"Saban's Power Rangers" will be coming to the big screen in 2017, but fans can already take another small glimpse at Rita Repulsa.
A post on the Power Rangers' Instagram account shows actress Elizabeth Banks behind what seems to be plastic, or perhaps a liquid-looking force field. She is staring intently at something unidentified, wearing a green outfit, with the ends of her fingers decorated with what looks like long, golden claws.
A photo posted by Power Rangers (@powerrangersmovie) on Aug 15, 2016 at 6:00pm PDT
According to IGN, Banks ("The Hunger Games") describes her character as "unpredictable" and is "definitely a modern and edgy re-imagining of the original."
Rita Repulsa is the arch-nemesis of the Power Rangers. In the series' lore, she had been described as an alien witch who is aiming for domination of the universe, having already conquered a number of worlds. While attempting to invade Earth, she was defeated by Zordon of Eltar and was imprisoned for 10,000 years. Upon gaining freedom, she decides to finally defeat Zordon and conquer Earth.
In the upcoming film, five ordinary teenagers, namely Jason (Dacre Montgomery), Trini (Becky G), Billy (RJ Cyler), Kimberly (Naomi Scott), and Zack (Ludi Lin), will have to accept their destiny as heroes and take on the role of the Power Rangers to defeat an alien threat looming over their town and the world. They ultimately become the Red, Yellow, Blue, Pink, and Black Rangers, respectively. Actor Bryan Cranston ("Breaking Bad") portrays Zordon, their mentor and, apparently, a target of Rita's revenge.
One photo shared on Instagram last month shows Rita Repulsa pinning Trini onto a wall. Other promo images include the Rangers' helmets, the team lined up in full costume, as well as the individual characters in their own introductory posters.
Filming for "Saban's Power Rangers" began in February and wrapped up in May. Distributed by Lionsgate and Saban and directed by Dean Israelite, it is set for release on March 24, 2017.
