I’m Still Here a Hoax, Pacino & Scorsese Finally Team Up, and much more.
I’M STILL HERE is a HOAX.
Yes, as many suspected, Joaquin Phoenix’s gonzo faux-documentary avant-garde art project, I’M STILL HERE, is all fake. Director Casey Affleck, who is married to Joaquin’s sister, Summer Phoenix, finally made the reveal to The New York Times, saying he “never intended to trick anybody,” and that absolutely everything in the film, including his appearance on Letterman, was an act in what he describes as “ the performance of his career.” Oddly enough, according to a staff writer over at Letterman, the late night talk show host was in on the joke, too. Dave, we never knew you were such a good actor!
GRAB YOUR NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL TICKETS!
The festival runs from September 24 – October 10, and always features a dazzling array of (mainly foreign) films. Buy your tickets here now!
THE TORONTO FILM FESTIVAL WINNER IS…
…THE KING’S SPEECH. Yes, the Colin Firth-Geoffrey Rush drama about King George VI’s attempts to overcome his stutter and lead England into World War II – has won the coveted audience award at the Toronto Film Festival, confirming its status as an Oscar frontrunner. The two most recent winners of the prize were “Precious” last year and “Slumdog Millionaire” in 2008, so it’s a biggie, even if Time’s Richard Corliss is not a fan.
PACINO + DE NIRO + PESCI + SCORSESE = THE IRISHMAN?
The long-awaited Al Pacino-Martin Scorsese collaboration might be in the works! According to Deadline, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci are in talks to star opposite Robert De Niro (!) in THE IRISHMAN – a mob drama by Scorsese that chronicles the exploits of mob hitman Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran as chronicled in the book “I Heard You Paint Houses.”
THE RZA and RUSSELL CROWE MAKE A KUNG-FU FILM.
Previously, Wu-Tang Clan member RZA – who also composed the soundtrack to “Kill Bill: Volume One” – wrote a kung fu movie with Eli Roth called THE MAN WITH THE IRON FISTS that he planned to star in and direct, and got Universal to finance it for $20 million. Well, it’s not been confirmed by none other than RZA himself that Russell Crowe will co-star with him in said project as “the baddest man alive,” according to E! UK. The two previously starred together in “American Gangster.”
THE WORST MOVIE POSTER. EVER.
The movie poster for Gael Garcia Bernal’s upcoming (terrible looking) romantic comedy with the increasingly bland go-to girl for rom-com’s, Kate Hudson, is quite possibly the worst movie poster, like… ever. Vomit.
COOL ARTICLE.
New York Magazine’s Vulture Blog is amazing. That being said, here’s a fun gallery they did on “The Twelve Creepiest Masks in Movie History,” inspired by the mask-wearing bank robbers in Ben Affleck’s crime-thriller “The Town.” Check it out.
CASTING ROUNDUP.
Swedish actress Noomi Rapace has been chosen to play the female lead in SHERLOCK HOLMES 2, reports Heat Vision. Best known for her role as Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish Millennium Trilogy (“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” “The Girl Who Played with Fire” and “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest”), Rapace will make her English language debut with the Holmes sequel. Though her role is unspecified, Heat Vision suggests that it may be the part of a French Gypsy, a role that doesn’t have any immediate parallel in iconic Arthur Conan Doyle characters.
Sacha Baron Cohen has been cast as Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in a biopic of the late singer, according to Deadline. The project is being scripted by Peter Morgan (“The Queen”) for a 2011 production start, and is being produced by Graham King’s GK Films.
According to the gang over at Entertainment Weekly, Martin Freeman – best known as Tim in BBC’s original “The Office” and the star of “The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy” – may be the frontrunner to play Bilbo Baggins in “Lord of the Rings” prequel THE HOBBIT. An offer has reportedly been made out to Freeman, and though official details are still unannounced, progression on “The Hobbit” would seem to indicate that New Line/Warner Bros. and MGM are close to working out the financial issues that have been holding back production.
Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna, who starred together in “Y tu mama tambien,” are joining Will Ferrell in CASA DE MI PADRE, director Matt Piedmont’s Spanish-language comedy. The Hollywood Reporter says the film’s story is being kept under wraps, but it will be told in an overly dramatic telenovela style and feature English subtitles.
Jennifer Garner is in talks to star opposite Jeremy Renner in Occupant Films’ dramatic thriller BETTER LIVING THROUGH CHEMISTRY. The film “centers on a small-town pharmacist (Renner) who is stuck in a loveless marriage and rediscovers himself through an affair with a trophy wife (Garner) who introduces him to the pleasures of prescription drugs. Things spin out of control when the affair escalates and the lovers begin plotting to kill the woman’s husband,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Variety has confirmed that “Mad Men” star Christina Hendricks will be joining Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan in the action-thriller DRIVE. To be directed by Nicolas Winding Refn (“Bronson”), the film also stars Albert Brooks, Bryan Cranston and Oscar Isaacs. Based on James Sallis’ crime novel of the same name and adapted by scribe Hossein Amini, “Drive” revolves around a Hollywood stunt driver (Gosling) who moonlights as a getaway driver in L.A.’s criminal underworld. He finds himself a target after agreeing to aid the ex-con boyfriend of his beautiful neighbor (Mulligan) in a job that goes dangerously awry.
VIRAL VIDEO.
Megan Fox is hot. Watch her lingerie-y short for Armani Jeans, entitled THE TIP.
Remember that story two years back about how Joaquin Phoenix credited eyewitness Werner Herzog for relaxing/rescuing him after the actor rolled his car in Laurel Canyon? Well, now you can watch the animated short film WHEN WERNER RESCUED PHOENIX, a Real-Life Story of Herzog and Joaquin.
NEW TRAILERS.
THE FIGHTER: Starring Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, and Amy Adams, and directed by David O. Russell (“Three Kings”), the film chronicles the true story of determined Irish boxing legend Mickey Ward. Uplifting stuff.
THE TOURIST: Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp in a comedy-thriller set in Venice. Is it just me, or does Depp look a bit… under the weather in this trailer?
HEREAFTER: The new Clint Eastwood suspenser starring Matt Damon as a man who communicates with the dead. Supposedly will be in the vein of “The Sixth Sense.” The film will close the 2010 New York Film Festival.
Until next week!
Tags: i'm still here, joaquin phoenix, marlow stern, the king's speech, weekly blog
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The Halo movie, Natalie Portman teams with Alfonso Cuaron, new trailers & more!
Sorry all, took a little vacation. But I’m back! So get ready for all the movie news that’s fit to print (online)…
UPCOMING FILMS.
Vulture is reporting that George Clooney – the director – is looking at Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, and possibly Chris Pine to star in FARRAGUT NORTH, an adaptation of Beau Willimon’s critically acclaimed play, set during the Iowa primary of a presidential race. The site says that “the story is set in Des Moines, Iowa, just weeks before the state’s Democratic caucuses officially commence; it follows the exploits of a twenty-something presidential campaign spinmeister/wunderkind named Stephen Myers, and the dirty pool he plays to get his candidate the nomination against a rival senator.” Clooney reportedly has offers out to Evan Rachel Wood and Marisa Tomei. Clooney is also expected to take a small role in the movie. Shooting is targeted for a February start date.
Ryan Reynolds and Bradley Cooper are attached to star in an untitled original action comedy written by Sheldon Turner (“Up in the Air”), according to Risky Business. The blog says the film “follows two friends, who are also San Francisco cops, whose fathers were once partners on the police force. The older generation is forced out of retirement to help their sons crack a case, with typically antagonistic results.”
With Devil, the first film in M. Night Shyamalan’s NIGHT CHRONICLES, hitting theaters on September 17, the filmmaker revealed to MTV that we’ll see the story he was going to use for Unbreakable 2 in the third movie in the film series. ‘I cannibalized the idea for the sequel to ‘Unbreakable’ for one of the ‘Night Chronicles,’” revealed Shyamalan. “It was such a cool idea for a villain, and it was actually originally in the script for ‘Unbreakable,’ and it was too much. There were too many villains, so I pulled this villain out and was like, ‘I’ll make this the second flick.’” Instead, Shyamalan used the villain and story for the film that will come after Twelve Strangers, which is expected to be the second movie in the “Night Chronicles.”
CASTING NEWS.
A little over a week ago, it was reported that Angelina Jolie had passed a second time on the lead female role in Alfonso Cuaron’s planned 3D space survival thriller GRAVITY, which already had attached Robert Downey Jr. cast in a supporting role. Despite recent rumors of Rachel Weisz being offered the part after other potential candidates like Blake Lively and Scarlett Johansson were nixed, word now comes from The Hollywood Reporter that Natalie Portman has been offered the part, having earned buzz out of Venice and Telluride for her performance in Darren Aronofsky’s thriller Black Swan. With a reported budget of $80 million, the film focuses on a female astronaut sent out to fix the Hubble telescope who is the sole survivor left stranded after space junk hits her transport, so she must fight her way back to earth.
Jeremy Renner (“The Hurt Locker”) has signed to star alongside Tom Cruise in Paramount Pictures’ MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE IV, according to the studio. It is the second big part Renner has landed following Hawkeye in Marvel Studios and Paramount’s The Avengers, coming to theaters on May 4, 2012. Renner can next be seen in theaters in Ben Affleck’s The Town on September 17.
John Cusack revealed via his Twitter that he would be taking on the role of Edgar Allan Poe in James (“V For Vendetta”) McTeigue’s thriller THE RAVEN.
Katie Holmes is in talks to star opposite Adam Sandler and Al Pacino in JACK AND JILL, says The Hollywood Reporter. In the Dennis Dugan-directed script, a family man by the name of Jack deals with his twin sister, Jill, when she visits for Thanksgiving then won’t leave. Sandler will play both characters. Holmes would play Sandler’s wife; Pacino is set to play himself. An October shoot is planned for the film.
Details are scarce, but USA Today is reporting on two cameos you can expect in SCREAM 4. Kristen Bell and “True Blood’s” Anna Paquin have roles in the sequel, still shooting in Michigan under the direction of Wes Craven. Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Rory Culkin, Nico Tortorella, Anthony Anderson and Marielle Jaffe star in the next entry opening on April 15, 2011.
HALO MOVIE?
In an article talking about the popular “Halo” franchise, Variety published quotes from Franchise Development Director Frank O’Connor about whether we’ll ever see a HALO MOVIE. The trade says that Microsoft is still developing scripts by Alex Garland (“28 Days Later”), Stuart Beattie (“Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise), novelist D.B. Weiss and Josh Olson (“A History of Violence”) as potential blueprints. “We’re still interested in making an excellent ‘Halo’ movie,” O’Connor said. “We’ve created an awful lot of documentation and materials to support a feature film. We have a good idea of what kind of story we want to tell, but won’t move on it until there’s a great reason to do it. We’re in no particular hurry.”
MOVIE TRAILERS.
127 HOURS: The trailer has hit for Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle’s upcoming film, 127 Hours, starring the ubiquitous James Franco. The film – based on a true story – is about hiker Aron Ralston, who gets his arm trapped under a boulder, and must amputate it to survive. The film screened at Telluride and critics are already talking Oscar.
BLACK SWAN: Darren Aronofky’s much anticipated follow up to The Wrestler concerns a New York ballet company’s rendition of Swan Lake, and featured Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis as two rival dancers in the production. Oh, and they totally make out.
…Until next week!
Tags: 127 Hours, Alfonso Cuaron, Black Swan, Bradley Cooper, Devil, Farragut North, George Clooney, Gravity, Halo movie, Jack and Jill, Jeremy Renner, John Cusack, M. Night Shyamalan, Mission Impossible IV, Natalie Portman, Night Chronicles, Ryan Reynolds, Scream 4, The Raven, Unbreakable 2
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Avatar 2 & 3, a John Belushi Biopic, On the Road News and Much More.
UPCOMING PROJECTS.
James Cameron talked to MTV and told them he’s considering shooting AVATAR 2 and AVATAR 3 back-to-back. Check it out here, courtesy of Deadline.
“The Pursuit of Happyness” screenwriter Steven Conrad and “The Hangover” director-producer Todd Phillips are developing a JOHN BELUSHI BIOPIC based on the late comedian’s life. Warner Bros. recently acquired the rights from Belushi’s estate, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Bummer. Bad news concerning the JERRY GARCIA BIOPIC. According to Jerry Garcia’s camp, the planned biopic of the Grateful Dead front man, adapted from the Robert Greenfield book “Dark Star: An Oral Biography of Jerry Garcia” and to be directed by Amir Bar-Lev – the documentary filmmaker behind “The Pat Tillman Story” and “My Kid Could Paint That” – will not be allowed to use any of Garcia’s music. Garcia’s estate released a statement: “We want to make clear that neither Grateful Dead Productions nor the Jerry Garcia Family LLC are in any way working with — or are in any other way affiliated with — the supposed upcoming Amir Bar-Lev-directed biopic about Jerry Garcia. We will not be licensing any recordings from Grateful Dead or Jerry Garcia’s music library for this production, nor will we provide the producer/director with access to any Garcia family members,” reports The New York Times.
TAYLOR SWIFT is rumored to be starring in a potential sequel to the hit ensemble comedy “Valentine’s Day.” The romantic comedy would star Swift as an NYU freshman looking for love, and possibly reunite her with her alleged ex-boyfriend and “Valentine’s Day” co-star Taylor Lautner, according to E!
CASTING NEWS.
Old Spice Guy ISAIAH MUSTAFA has been cast in a lead role in Tyler Perry’s upcoming entry in the “Madea” franchise, “Madea’s Big Happy Family,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. Mustafa will bow out of Perry’s other film, “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf,” in exchange for a bigger role in “Madea.”
What a cast! Although its taken nearly 30 years for Francis Ford Coppola to turn Jack Keruoac’s Beat Generation novel “On the Road’ into a movie, the project is finally well underway and looks worth the wait. Directed by Walter Salles (“The Motorcycle Diaries”), the film’s cast of Kristen Dunst, Kristen Stewart, Sam Riley and “Tron: Legacy” star Garrett Hedlund will now be joined by AMY ADAMS and VIGGO MORTENSEN.
Adams will play Jane, the emotionally damaged junkie mother of two children and the wife of Old Bull Lee. Mortensen is going to play Lee, according to Deadline.
David O. Russell’s (“I Heart Huckabees,” “Flirting with Disaster”) next movie is looking sharp now that SCARLETT JOHANSSON has committed to star alongside its producer and leading man, Vince Vaughn, in “Old St. Louis” – a road movie about a divorced traveling toy salesman who reconnects with his teen daughter after years on the road. Johansson would play Vaughn’s secretary/love interest who accompanies him on the trip, according to New York Magazine.
In one of the odder casting decisions of late, WILL FERRELL (“The Other Guys”) has committed to star in his next project, the Spanish-language comedy “Casa de mi padre.” The project will be produced by Ferrell and frequent director Adam McKay’s Gary Sanchez Productions, and the project – entirely in Spanish – begins shooting in September in California, according to Risky Business Blog.
“Inception” star CILLIAN MURPHY is set to join Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried in filmmaker Andrew Niccol’s (“Gattaca”) sci-fi drama, “I’m.moral.” The story is set in the near future where an aging gene has been turned off and time is the currency people use to pay for things, meaning the rich can live forever. Will (Timberlake) is suddenly gifted a fortune but then becomes the target of a murder investigation. He kidnaps an heiress (Amanda Seyfried) while on the lam, and Murphy will play an officer from an organization called Timekeepers that is tracking him down, according to Heat Vision.
R.I.P.
PATRICIA NEAL, 84, died Sunday of lung cancer at her home in Edgartown, Mass. The actress won an Oscar for playing Paul Newman’s grief-stricken housewife in 1963’s “Hud,” and was nominated for another Oscar for 1968’s “The Subject was Roses.” Neal also appeared in other classic films, including: “The Fountainhead” (1949), “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (1951), and “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961). She was married to legendary author Roald Dahl from 1953-1983.
NEW TRAILERS.
I personally can’t wait for this. The trailer for MTV’s JACKASS 3D has hit the Internet, and it looks hilarious. All the boys are back – Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Steve-O, etc. – and better than ever. Check it out here:
The trailer for the Christina Aguilera-starring music pic BURLESQUE has hit the Internet. Cher also stars as a burlesque clubowner who mentors the small town girl with big singing pipes. No word yet on whether this will be as bad as “Crossroads” or “Glitter.”
COOL VIDEOS OF THE WEEK.
Watch Joseph Gordon Levitt’s directorial debut – the short film “Morgan and Destiny’s Eleventeenth Date” – that premiered at SXSW earlier this year. Gordon Levitt stars in the film, alongside his “G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra” pal Channing Tatum.
“Scott Pilgrim” co-stars Michael Cera and Jason Schwartzman randomly stopped by Atlanta’s local Fox News TV affiliate to do the news. Hilarity ensues.
MTV News asked the stars of “Eat, Pray, Love” if they knew what the mantra of MTV’s breakout reality hit “Jersey Shore” – GTL, or “Gym, Tanning, Laundry” – meant. Javier Bardem’s response is pretty hilarious.
Until next week!
A Bieber Biopic? Paul Rudd: Bar Mitzvah DJ? “Titanic II?” And much more…
UPCOMING FILM PROJECTS.
Bieber-mania! Paramount Pictures has made a deal to turn Justin Bieber’s life story into a 3D feature biopic. Davis Guggenheim, the Oscar-winning director of “An Inconvenient Truth,” is negotiating to direct, and though the film doesn’t have a title, Bieber is set to play himself in the film. The film will come out February 11, 2011 on Valentine’s Day weekend (for all you ladies out there).
Jason Reitman and Charlize Theron are in talks to direct and star in, respectively, YOUNG ADULT, from a script by Reitman’s “Juno” scribe Diablo Cody. The story is a dark comedy that follows a thirtysomething, divorced, young-adult fiction writer (Theron) in Minneapolis who returns to her hometown to chase the ex-boyfriend, who’s now married with a kid, that got away, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Yes! The long-in-gestation ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT MOVIE now has half a script, and is very likely to get made, according to the show’s creator Mitch Hurwitz.
CASTING NEWS.
Life is good for Old Spice man Isaiah Mustafa these days. Not only is he causing sales in the company’s bodywash products to soar courtesy of an ingenious ad campaign, but the muscle-bound ladies man ahs been cast in the upcoming Jennifer Aniston/Jason Bateman comedy film HORRIBLE BOSSES, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Sony has picked up MOMMY & ME, the comedy package featuring Meryl Streep and Tina Fey as a mother-and-daughter duo to be directed by Streep’s “The Devil Wears Prada” co-star Stanley Tucci, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Woody Allen’s currently filming MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, and probably regrets casting French first lady Carla Bruni in a cameo. Why, might you ask? She appears in one scene – where she walks into a grocery store and walks out with a baguette – and it took Sarkozy’s stunning wife 35 TAKES to nail it.
INDUSTRY SHAKEUP.
Walt Disney Co. finally brokered it’s sale of the Weinstein-created independent film company Miramax Films for $660 million to an investment group led by real estate mogul Ron Tutor, according to Variety.
MUST READS.
Frank Bruni wrote an absolutely brilliant profile of celebrated indie actress and three-time Oscar nominee Laura Linney in the most recent issue of The New York Times Magazine. Read it for yourself.
And on the funnier side, you should read Dan Fierman’s Q&A interview with legendary funnyman Bill Murray, where he addresses “Ghostbusters 3,” Barack Obama, “Garfield” and his infamous rumored gags on unsuspecting Union Square bystanders.
REMAKES.
Len Wiseman, the filmmaker behind the “Underworld” flicks and that silly fourth “Die Hard” movie where John McClane is dead sober and flies a car into a helicopter, will apparently direct a remake of the 1990 Arnold Schwarzenegger sci-fi cult classic TOTAL RECALL, according to Heat Vision. Too soon in my book.
GOING VIRAL.
Before Paul Rudd starred in “Clueless,” “Knocked Up,” “I Love You, Man,” and the recent “Dinner For Schmucks,” he had a different job: Bar Mitzvah DJ. Check out this incredibly clip of Rudd DJing a Bar Mitzvah in 1992.
“Titanic II?” YES. Please stop whatever you’re doing and watch the unintentionally hilarious trailer for the straight-to-video sequel to the James Cameron classic. The trailer actually contains the line, “It looks like history is repeating itself.” Must-see TV.
Watch the equally hilarious (fake) trailer for a movie version of the famous computer game we all played as kids, “Oregon Trail.”
Thespian Kevin Kline recently stopped by Stephen Colbert’s “The Colbert Report” while doing the promotional rounds for his latest film, “The Extra Man.” There, Kline and Colbert engaged in a battle for the ages. Prepare yourself for… Enunciation throwdown!
The greatest talk show of our time returns. Check out Steve Carell’s appearance on “Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis.”
A new entry in the lexicon of truly awful trailers: “Yogi Bear,” a 3D adaptation featuring Anna Faris (as the real person), Dan Aykroyd voicing Yogi and Justin Timberlake doing Boo-Boo.
SCANDALOUS.
“Charlie St. Cloud” and “High School Musical” star Zac Efron recently attended Flashdancers strip club in New York City, where the boyish actor reportedly spent $2,000 on vodka and strippers…
Chris Tucker apparently hires the same accountants as Wesley Snipes. Tucker, who hasn’t acted since 2007’s “Rush Hour 3,” for which he reportedly raked in $25 million, owes $11 million in federal taxes to the IRS, according to TMZ.
Until next week!
Comic-Con 2010 makes the geeks wet their pants, and much more…
COMIC-CON 2010!
Thousands of nerds gathered over the weekend in San Diego for COMIC-CON, the annual event where movie studios and TV networks offer sneak previews of their comic book adaptations in crowded halls of unshowered man-children who still live with their parents. With that said, here’s the buzz:
-GOOD-
SCOTT PILGRIM vs. THE WORLD continues to ride a wave of solid buzz, as the film screened in it’s entirety to the legion of fanboy critics to mostly glowing reviews. However, proceed with caution: these were fanboy online critics and not the more “polished” kind…
TRON: LEGACY returned for its THIRD consecutive Comic-Con—yes, you heard that right. Test footage screened at the 2008 Comic-Con by Disney to gauge interest in rebooting the 1982 film, then a brief teaser reel unspooled in 2009, and this year, the cast and crew returned with eight minutes of footage and a new trailer that was rapturously received…
THOR’s early stills looked absolutely ridiculous and were, fittingly, laughed off the Internet. However, Shakespearean director Kenneth Branagh took the Comic-Con stage with his entire cast, including: Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Natalie Portman & co., and showed a trailer, which was well-received…
COWBOYS & ALIENS has only been shooting for a month, but director Jon Favreau (“Iron Man”) showed 10 minutes of mixed footage of the cowboys-meets-spaceships epic film to crowd approval, and Harrison Ford’s first ever appearance at Comic-Con went like gangbusters…
LET ME IN, the American remake of the Swedish vampire flick “Let the Right One In,” which was released a mere two years ago, has been much-maligned by fans of the original. However, the new, restricted trailer for the film has made the haters change their tune. View the trailer here:
-BAD-
SUCKER PUNCH, Zack Snyder’s (“300,” “Watchmen”) 1950s-set saga about an institutionalized girl who imagines an alternate reality, and then must escape from that alternate reality, debuted its trailer. Most critics thought it was a bit too much of a head-trip. View the trailer and decide for yourself here:
THE GREEN HORNET, directed by Michel Gondry and starring Seth Rogen as Britt Reid and Christoph “Inglorious Basterds” Waltz as the baddie, debuted a second trailer, which was just as bad as the first, causing people to walk out right after it screened…
DRIVE ANGRY 3D, an upcoming entry into the Nicolas Cage oeuvre of ridiculousness, debuted. And was laughed at. View the trailer here:
Again, take all of this “buzz” with a grain of salt. Most of the Comic-Con media are fanboys themselves…
UPCOMING FILM PROJECTS.
“The Hangover” sequel is headed to Thailand. Yes, THE HANGOVER 2 production will move there this fall with a script that sees the characters from the 2009 hit comedy traveling to Asia. The film reunites Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Justin Bartha and Zach Galifianakis as a group of friends who find themselves getting into even more outrageous trouble. Ladyboys, anyone?…
As rumored, Tim Burton will direct an adaptation of the board game MONSTERPOCALYPSE, according to Slashfilm. The film is currently being drafted by Burton regular John August (“Big Fish”), working alongside the creator of the game, Matt Wilson. The monsters, meanwhile, are being developed by Visual Effects Supervisor Ken Ralston. Skyscraper sized, the giant monsters are left behind after an attack on Earth and humanity builds giant robots for which to combat them. The film will most likely be developed for 3D and that it could fast tracked to hit theaters before the end of 2012…
Variety reports Dustin Lance Black (“Milk”) has been hired to write the script for 20th Century Fox’s film about infamous 19-year-old outlaw Colton Harris-Moore, nicknamed “THE BAREFOOT BANDIT,” and David Gordon Green (“Pineapple Express”) is in final talks to direct. Based on the book proposal “Taking Flight: The Hunt for a Young Outlaw” by Bob Friel, the story centers on the teenager who’s stolen cars, boats and planes and taught himself how to fly in order to evade local police, Homeland Security and the FBI. He’s also burglarized at least 100 private residences. On July 4, Harris-Moore allegedly fled in a plane stolen from Indiana and crashed on the shoreline of a Bahamian island. He was indicted July 6 by a U.S. Federal Court in Seattle on charges of transporting another stolen aircraft in that state. He was arrested July 11 in Harbour Island, Bahamas, as he attempted to flee on a boat. Harris-Moore became known as the “Barefoot Bandit” or “Barefoot Burglar” by reportedly committing some of his crimes barefoot…
CASTING NEWS.
Rihanna is set to make her feature film debut in Universal’s BATTLESHIP, the Hasbro adaptation to be directed by Peter Berg. The recording artist, songwriter and model will be joining Taylor Kitsch (TV’s “Friday Night Lights”) and Alexander Skarsgard (HBO’s “True Blood”) in the film, scheduled to hit theaters on May 18, 2012. “Battleship” will unfold as a massive Naval adventure across the seas, in the skies and over land as our planet fights for survival against a superior force. Kitsch stars as a Naval officer who leads the fight and Skarsgard will play his brother in the film…
Daniel Craig will star in David Fincher’s THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, based on Stieg Larsson’s posthumously published crime thriller trilogy, “The Millennium Series.” The deal includes two sequels based on “The Girl Who Played with Fire” and “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest.” Adapted by Steve Zaillian (“Schindler’s List”), “Dragon Tattoo” describes the mystery surrounding the long-unsolved disappearance of an heiress. Journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Craig), recently dinged by a libel case, and young female hacker Lisbeth Salander try to resolve it, stirring up bundles of personal and industrial corruption along the way. The role of Salander has not been cast yet. Scott Rudin is producing “Dragon Tattoo,” which Columbia Pictures will release on December 21, 2011…
MTV interviewed WORLD WAR Z author Max Brooks at the San Diego Comic-Con and Brooks confirmed that the Marc Forster (“Quantum of Solace”)-directed adaptation of his novel is moving forward at Paramount Pictures with Brad Pitt attached to star in the lead role. Brooks says that the studio is targeting a Summer 2012 release for the film, about a worldwide infestation of flesh-eating zombies. Brooks — the son of Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft — wrote a detailed tale in which a researcher for the U.N. Postwar Commission interviews survivors from countries all over the world, 10 years after the crisis, to gather a first-person post-mortem on a war that obliterated every country on the map…
STUDIO SHAKEUP NEWS.
Relativity Media has officially become a Hollywood player. Relativity will take over the distribution and marketing operations and some assets of the Starz Overture Films subsidiary. Approximately 45 staff members, or two-thirds of Overture’s employees, will make the move to Relativity Media, including Peter Adee, formerly Overture Films’ President of Worldwide Marketing, Distribution and New Media, and Kyle Davies, Executive Vice President Theatrical Distribution. Overture Films will release its remaining titles – “Jack Goes Boating,” “Let Me In” and “Stone” – through a new distribution services agreement with Relativity…
COOL TRAILER NEWS.
20th Century Fox has brought online the deliciously violent Comic-Con Red Band trailer for MACHETE opening in theaters on September 3. Directed by Robert Rodriguez and Ethan Maniquis, the action pic stars Danny Trejo, Jessica Alba, Robert De Niro, Michelle Rodriguez, Lindsay Lohan, Cheech Marin, Jeff Fahey, Don Johnson and Steven Seagal:
…Until next week!
Tags: comic-con, marlow stern, weekly blog
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Mel Gibson is Craaaazy, and so much more.
UPCOMING FILM PROJECTS.
Working Title Films and director Joe Wright (“Pride & Prejudice,” “Atonement”) are developing a live-action feature based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairytale THE LITTLE MERMAID. Abi Morgan (“Brick Lane”) wrote the script for the adaptation of the classic tale of a young mermaid who gives up her life in the sea for a human prince. Andersen’s story was first published in 1837 and has been adapted numerous times for stage and screen. Wright’s version is inspired by a children’s puppet theatre production of the classic at London’s Little Angel Theatre Company.
Early work has begun on bringing WICKED to the silver screen, reports Deadline, who has received word that J.J. Abrams, James Mangold, Rob Marshall and Ryan Murphy are among the names who have met with the musical’s authors, Winnie Holzman (the libretto) and Stephen Schwartz (the songs). The musical, originally based on the novel, “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” by Gregory Maguire, retells L. Frank Baum’s “The Wizard of Oz” from the perspective of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. Premiering in 2003, the stage version, which originally starred Idina Menzel, Kristen Chenoweth and Joel Grey, continues to perform internationally.
Sir Michael Caine, who plays Alfred in Christopher Nolan’s BATMAN movies, told Digital Spy at the premiere for Inception last night at London’s Leicester Square that the third film will get underway in April for a July 20, 2012 release. You can watch the interview clip below:
The Wachowskis’ upcoming Iraq war film is reportedly titled CN9, according to a tweet from Production Weekly. The film, said to have entered the casting stages, is rumored to deal with a homosexual relationship between a U.S. soldier and an Iraqi. Beginning in the near-future and flashing back, the project will allegedly be shot in a cinema verite style. Though it may have a different meaning for the film, the term CN9, in medicine, refers to the ninth cranial nerve, known as the Glossopharyngeal nerve.
CASTING NEWS.
Edward Norton will not be reprising his role as Dr. Bruce Banner, reports HitFix, who say that Marvel Studios plan to cast a new actor in the part. The report theorizes that a deal could not be made, despite Edward Norton wanting to join the ensemble cast of THE AVENGERS that will include Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Chris Evans as Captain America. Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige confirmed the report with the following statement he sent to the site:
“We have made the decision to not bring Ed Norton back to portray the title role of Bruce Banner in the Avengers. Our decision is definitely not one based on monetary factors, but instead rooted in the need for an actor who embodies the creativity and collaborative spirit of our other talented cast members. The Avengers demands players who thrive working as part of an ensemble, as evidenced by Robert, Chris H, Chris E, Sam, Scarlett, and all of our talented casts. We are looking to announce a name actor who fulfills these requirements, and is passionate about the iconic role in the coming weeks.”
Marvel Studios is planning a May 4, 2012 release for The Avengers.
According to Variety, Ralph Fiennes, Colin Firth, Gary Oldman and Michael Fassbender will star in the espionage thriller TINKER, SAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY for Working Title and Studio Canal. Tomas Alfredson (“Let The Right One In”) is directing the film, which starts shooting this October in London. Peter Morgan wrote the script. Based on John Le Carre’s seminal cold war best-seller, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, the thriller tells the tale of a spy-hunt within the highest echelons of the British Secret Intelligence Service.
MEL GIBSON.
Will Mel Gibson’s career ever recover? That’s the question everyone’s asking. He seemed to rebound fine from those drunken pictures with random ladies – who weren’t his wife – and his DUI/subsequent anti-Semitic rant, directing the criminally underrated Mayan epic “Apocalypto.” However, his latest uncorking of the crazy has taken him far past the edge of darkness. I’m sure by now you’ve heard the terrible phone conversations between Gibson and his baby mama, Oksana Grigorieva – the Russian pianist who Gibson left his wife of 29 years (and seven kids) for. Gibson split from Grigorieva in April, and there’s since been a domestic violence investigation launched against Gibson, who is alleged to have punched Grigorieva in the face – knocking out several teeth in the process. And then, there’s the taped conversations, which led to Gibson being dropped by his agency, William Morris Endeavor. Here’s just one of them. Judge the insanity for yourself:
FUN NEW TRAILERS.
Focus Features has debuted the trailer for one of my favorite filmmaking duos, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s (“Sugar,” “Half Nelson”), IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY and you can watch it using the player below. The dramedy, opening September 24, stars Keir Gilchrist (“The United States of Tara”), Zach Galifianakis, Emma Roberts, Viola Davis, Zoe Kravitz, Aasif Mandvi, Lauren Graham and Jim Gaffigan.
In the New York City-set film, 16-year-old Craig (Gilchrist), stressed out from the demands of being a teenager, checks himself into a mental health clinic. There he learns that the youth ward is closed – and finds himself stuck in the adult ward. One of the patients, Bobby (Galifianakis), soon becomes both Craig’s mentor and protégé. Craig is also drawn to another 16-year-old, Noelle (Roberts). With a minimum five days’ stay imposed on him, Craig is sustained by friendships on both the inside and the outside as he learns more about life, love, and the pressures of growing up:
IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY Trailer
The trailer for direct Todd Phillips’ DUE DATE has come online and can be watched using the player below! Opening in theaters on November 5, the comedy stars Robert Downey Jr., Zach Galifianakis, Michelle Monaghan, Jamie Foxx, Alan Arkin, Juliet Lewis and Danny McBride.
In the Warner Bros. release, Peter Highman (Downey Jr.) is an expectant first-time father whose wife’s due date is a mere five days away. As Peter hurries to catch a flight home from Atlanta to be at her side for the birth, his best intentions go completely awry when a chance encounter with aspiring actor Ethan Tremblay (Galifianakis) forces Peter to hitch a ride with Ethan–on what turns out to be a cross-country road trip that will ultimately destroy several cars, numerous friendships and Peter’s last nerve.
DUE DATE Trailer
TWILIGHT NEWS.
There is a great profile in GQ this week of Taylor Lautner, star of the “Twilight” films. Yes, I’m as surprised as anyone. But it’s a very fun read.
THE 2010 NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL.
In addition to announcing that David Fincher’s THE SOCIAL NETWORK has been selected as the opening night film of the 48th Annual New York Film Festival, Columbia Pictures has released a new teaser trailer for the Facebook film:
THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Until next week!
Tags: marlow stern, mel gibson, weekly blog
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Andrew Garfield is your friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man! And much more…
ANDREW GARFIELD IS SPIDER-MAN!
Sony Pictures has officially announced that Andrew Garfield has landed the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man in director Marc Webb’s Untitled Spider-Man Film! The film focuses on a teenager grappling with both contemporary human problems and amazing super-human crises. The action adventure will open in 3D and 2D theaters on July 3, 2012.
Here’s the official press release followed by an announcement photo:
After a comprehensive worldwide casting search, Andrew Garfield has been chosen to portray Peter Parker when Spider-Man swings back onto the screen in 3D on July 3, 2012. The new film will begin production in early December directed by Marc Webb from a screenplay by James Vanderbilt. Laura Ziskin and Avi Arad will produce the film from Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios… On selecting Garfield, director Marc Webb said, “Though his name may be new to many, those who know this young actor’s work understand his extraordinary talents. He has a rare combination of intelligence, wit, and humanity. Mark my words, you will love Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker”… Garfield most recently worked with director David Fincher on the upcoming film The Social Network. He previously starred for Spike Jonze on his robot love story I’m Here, which premiered at Sundance this year. He plays the lead male opposite Keira Knightley and Carey Mulligan in Mark Romanek’s Never Let Me Go, due for release later this year. Other notable screen credits include Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus playing opposite Christopher Plummer, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, Jude Law and the late Heath Ledger, Robert Redford’s Lions For Lambs, where he starred alongside Redford, Tom Cruise and Meryl Streep; Revolution Films’ “Red Riding Trilogy – 1974″ directed by Julian Jarrold, where he lead a stellar cast including Rebecca Hall and David Morrissey, and his unforgettable portrayal of a young ex-con in John Crowley’s “Boy A,” for which he earned the best actor BAFTA in 2008…
UPCOMING FILM PROJECTS
Judd Apatow will be producing a new PEE-WEE HERMAN film, reports Variety. The script, currently in development, is being written by Paul Reubens (who plays Pee-wee) and fellow actor/writer Paul Rust. No director is currently named, but it is suggested that the job will not go to Apatow himself…
Heat Vision is reporting that Warner Bros. Pictures has hired “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” helmers Phil Lord and Chris Miller to write and direct the LEGO movie. Based on the popular building blocks, the movie will mix live action and animation. The studio is keeping the plot tightly under wraps, but it’s described as an action adventure set in a LEGO world. Lord and Miller are currently developing the 21 JUMP STREET movie and plan on doing LEGO after that…
CASTING NEWS
Meryl Streep is being eyed for the in the lead role of THE IRON LADY, a biopic about the life of the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, says The Hollywood Reporter. The film would reunite Streep with director Phyllida Lloyd, who previously directed Streep in 2008’s Mamma Mia! The article also notes that Jim Broadbent is likely to play the role of Thatcher’s husband, Denis. The film would examine the life of the prominent political figure over a brief period of time, in this case the 17 days in 1982 leading to the Falklands War when conflict broke out between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the island chain…
Virginia Madsen has joined the cast of Warner Bros.’ RED RIDING HOOD as the mother of Amanda Seyfried’s character, reports Variety. She joins a cast that includes Shiloh Fernandez, Max Irons, Julie Christie, Gary Oldman and Lukas Haas. Directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight), the movie is scheduled for a March 11, 2011 release. The film is a gothic horror re-imagining of the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale. Seyfried will play a woman in a medieval village being terrorized by a werewolf…
FILM BIZ NEWS
Netflix, Inc. and Relativity Media, LLC announced a long term agreement through which major theatrically released films owned by Relativity will be licensed directly and exclusively to Netflix for streaming to its subscribers during the “pay TV window.” Traditionally, these films have flowed through Relativity’s studio releasing partners to output deals with premium TV channels. Under the agreement, an increasing amount of popular contemporary movies previously encumbered by pay TV agreements with premium channels such as HBO, Showtime and Starz will become available to be streamed from Netflix months – and not years – after their release on DVD. It will be the first time that studio quality theatrical feature films will be streamed via subscription by Netflix instead of being broadcast by the traditional pay providers, and it opens up a new revenue stream for such movies…
Earlier this year, James Cameron mentioned that they were targeting a spring 2012 release for the 3D version of Titanic. Now we have a more specific month. It looks like Cameron talked about the 3D release at the 100th birthday party for Gloria Stuart, who played the older Rose in the film. While it’s not a direct quote, the Los Angeles Times article said: …said the director, who’s converting the blockbuster into 3-D for re-release in April 2012, the 100th anniversary of the ship’s sinking. The date makes sense as the RMS Titanic set off on April 10, 1912 and struck an iceberg and sank on April 14…
YouTube is joining world famous filmmakers Ridley Scott and Kevin Macdonald in asking people around to world to create the first user-generated feature-length documentary film shot on a single day – July 24, 2010. LIFE IN A DAY is a historic global film experiment that enlists the global community to capture a moment of their lives on Saturday, July 24 and to upload that footage to YouTube.com/LifeinaDay. Academy Award-winning director Kevin Macdonald (State of Play, Last King of Scotland, Touching the Void) will direct, bringing together the most compelling footage into a feature-length documentary film. The project will be executive produced by Ridley Scott (Robin Hood, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down) and produced by his company Scott Free Productions. Individuals whose footage makes it into the finished film will be credited as co-directors and 20 of these contributors will be flown to the 2011 Sundance Film Festival for the film’s world premiere…
FILM TRAILER NEWS!
The trailer for LET ME IN, the American remake of the fantastic Swedish vampire film “Let the Right One In,” has hit the Internet. Directed by Matt Reeves (“Cloverfield”), the film stars Chloe Moretz (“Kick-Ass”) as a bloodsucker. There is no way it will be as good as the original:
AT THE MULTIPLEX
THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE is breaking all kinds of box-office records, and with good reason: it’s arguably the most entertaining live action Hollywood film this summer. With its slick camerawork from an edgier director (David Slade of “Hard Candy” fame), robust character development and tongue-in-cheek attitude, it’s the best “Twilight” film to date and a fun way to spend two hours in an air-conditioned room…
…Until next week!
Tags: andrew garfield, Blog, let me in, marlow stern
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The Creators Project invades Manhattan! And movie trailers galore…
THE CREATORS PROJECT INVADES MANHATTAN!
Sensory overload is the only way to describe The Creators Project, a joint Vice magazine and Intel party-all-day-and-rock-into-the-night bonanza on Saturday, June 26, at Milk Studios in New York City’s Meatpacking District.
The view from above. Outside Milk Studios in Manhattan's Meatpacking District.
Yes, Milk Studios was transformed into an eight-floor, 80,000-square-foot art exhibition. During the 12-hour-long fiesta, from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m., approximately 3,500 art/pop culture-obsessed hipsters lucky enough to score a wristband ingested as much of the intimidatingly eclectic performance space as they could. There was something for everyone at the event, which featured multimedia installations, various works of art, panel discussions and a star-studded roster of live musical performances.
The audience takes in Spike Jonze's short "I'm Here" in a screening room at Milk Studios, NYC.
If witnessing megaproducer Mark Ronson craft a pop song (in under an hour) with psychedelic dance outfit Neon Indian, or schmoozing with the likes of fashion designer Alexander Wang to hipster girl-preying actor Josh Hartnett wasn’t your thing, you could satisfy your inner movie nerd by attending a screening of Spike Jonze’s latest short film, “I’m Here.” The 35-minute short, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, explores themes of emotional fragility and loneliness – similar to his latest feature film, “Where the Wild Things Are.”
Set in contemporary L.A., save the fact that robots have been integrated into society, the film centers on two different robots: Sheldon, a bashful, unerringly sweet library assistant played by Andrew Garfield (“Boy A,” upcoming Facebook film “The Social Network”) and the capricious Annie, played by Sienna Guillory (a staple on the Maxim Hot 100 lists). The two opposites soon begin an unlikely courtship that explores the entire emotional-relationship spectrum. Bathed in bright lights and bitter melancholy, the creatively-lensed film sees Jonze doing his best Gondry imitation, with poignant results. A ghostly score by ASKA permeates the film, and, as the film ended, the screen lifted to reveal the ambient rock outfit ASKA, there to perform their hauntingly beautiful soundtrack. You can view Spike’s film here: http://www.imheremovie.com.
It should be noted that the film is sponsored by Absolut Vodka, but as far as I can tell, they just ponied up the money for it.
I’m not sure what exactly the goal of the Creators Project is – or how they intend to make any money – but they bill themselves as:
…a new initiative by VICE and Intel to identify leading artists across the world who are pushing creative boundaries through technology. The project establishes new platforms for these artists to showcase their work and to engage a young audience of millions.
It’s apparently the first of five global launch events, with the others set in London, São Paulo, Seoul and Beijing. And with films, a bevy of weird art installations, musical performances by Sleigh Bells (raucous, bass-thumpingly awesome); Interpol (always nice to hear the old stuff, but clearly missing Carlos D and his mustache); Neon Indian (trippy in a good way); “surprise guest” M.I.A. (whose cuts off upcoming LP /\/\ /\ Y /\ continues to disappoint) and more – PLUS open bar (!) – it’s one of those days-journey-into-nights’ that makes you thank your lucky stars you live in NYC. More Pics below:
M.I.A. swaggers across the stage at Milk Studios, NYC.
Interpol unveil their new lineup at Milk Studios, NYC.
Trippy art installation at Milk Studios, NYC.
Alan Palomo of Neon Indian (L) and Mark Ronson (Middle) craft a song together at Milk Studios, NYC.
Sleigh Bells tear the roof off of Milk Studios, NYC.
A man sees the light at Milk Studios, NYC.
TRAILERS GALORE!
Quite a few anticipated trailers hit the Internet this week. Here are a few of note…
The (spooky) teaser for David Fincher’s Facebook drama THE SOCIAL NETWORK, starring Jessie Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg, Justin Timberlake as Sean Parker and Andrew Garfield as Eduardo Saverin:
RED, a film based on a graphic novel and directed by Robert Schwentke (“Flightplan”), starring Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren (!), Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich as a team of retired black-ops agents who must get the band back together when they’re targeted by the government:
The surprisingly generic-looking trailer for THE GREEN HORNET, the comic book adaptation directed by Michel Gondry and starring Seth Rogen as millionaire Britt Reid, Cameron Diaz as his love interest, and Christoph Waltz (!) as the baddie:
And last but not least, for all you wizardry nerds, the trailer for the final HARRY POTTER film, HARRY POTTER & THE DEATHLY HALLOWS:
…UNTIL NEXT WEEK!
Tags: Blog, creators project, marlow stern, trailers
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“The Hobbit” rumors, the “Wizard of Oz” prequel, DiCaprio as J. Edgar Hoover & more!
UPCOMING FILM PROJECTS!
Disney has offered Sam Raimi the job as director of OZ, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL, according to Vulture. The project, a prequel to the classic “Wizard of Oz” story, would focus on the character of the Wizard himself and his humble beginnings in Omaha, leading to the balloon accident that leaves him stranded in Oz. The project is being developed as a starring vehicle for Robert Downey Jr…
Over two weeks after the announcement that director Guillermo del Toro had departed the planned two-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s THE HOBBIT, there’s been a lot of rumors and speculation about who might take over. According to Deadline, who have had a lot of contact with Peter Jackson’s manager, the two studios behind the anticipated prequel, Warner Bros. and MGM, are working hard on getting Jackson to change his mind and direct the two movies. So far no one else has been offered the job, although there’s been talk of David Yates, who just finished filming the last of his four “Harry Potter” movies, Wedding Crashers director David Dobkin and yes, even Brett Ratner…
M. Night Shyamalan has completed a script for a new film and already has some stars lined up, reports Heat Vision. Outside of a “loosely attached” cast that includes Bruce Willis, Bradley Cooper and Gwyneth Paltrow, almost nothing is known about the project. Shyamalan is reportedly shopping the script to various studios with his trademark secrecy, offering reads to only to highest level executives with a personal assistant on hand at all times to take the script back once the read is completed…
Framestore, the UK special effects company that won an Oscar for “The Golden Compass” and has worked most recently on “Avatar,” as well as Alfonso Cuarón’s “Children of Men,” has revealed new details on Cuarón’s GRAVITY. The 3D Warner Bros. sci-fi film will star Robert Downey Jr. Here’s what Framestore says on its official website:
Framestore is about to embark on one of its greatest challenges yet, Gravity is the next Avatar in terms of ambition. There are many innovative and visually stunning aims for this project. The entire film will be made here at Framestore. In effect the film, as Avatar was, is 60% CG feature animation with the balance being hybrid CG and live action elements. Starring Robert Downey Junior, the film is a contemporary survival thriller that follows a woman as she attempts to make her way back to earth after a satellite crash sets off a chain reaction of further crashes. Because it’s set in space, most shots require every element to float in zero-gravity. But then factor in that this a stylish Cuarón flick, directed with his trademark languid feel, and you begin to realise the full scale of our challenge. Cuarón’s long and fluid style (the opening shot alone is slated to last at least 20 minutes) leaves no cut points to hide behind. In short, this is a hybrid of a fully animated, photo-real feature film with a blockbusting visual effects movie…
CASTING NEWS!
According to Deadline, Leonardo DiCaprio is set to play J. Edgar Hoover in the still untitled biopic. Already getting early Oscar buzz for Chris Nolan’s “Inception,” Leo will be directed in the epic FBI drama by Clint Eastwood who’s producing with Brian Grazer and Rob Lorenz through Imagine and Malpaso. Scripted by Dustin Lance Black (“Milk”), production begins later this year…
The cast has been revealed for Steven Spielberg’s next film, WAR HORSE, to be released by DreamWorks Pictures on August 10, 2011. Set in 1914, the film centers on Joey, a beautiful bay-red foal with a distinctive cross on his nose that is sold to the army and thrust into the midst of the war on the Western Front. With his officer, he charges toward the enemy, witnessing the horror of the battles in France. But even in the desolation of the trenches, Joey’s courage touches the soldiers around him and he is able to find warmth and hope. But his heart aches for Albert, the farmer’s son he left behind.
According to Empire magazine, young actor Jeremy Irvine has landed the lead role of Albert and is joined by Emily Watson, Peter Mullan, David Thewlis and Benedict Cumberbatch. Watson and Mullan play Albert’s parents. Cumberbatch will play military man Major Stewart. Rounding out the internationally diverse cast are Niels Arestrup (“A Prophet”) as the grandfather of a young French girl (Celine Buckens) who takes Joey in, plus Nicolas Bro, David Kross, Leonard Carow, Rainer Bock, Robert Emms and Patrick Kennedy. Also in talks to join the cast are Tom Hiddleston and Stephen Graham. The film will start shooting in August…
According to Variety, Nicolas Cage will team-up with Nicole Kidman, who has seemingly gone from being in four movies a year to roughly one, in the Joel Schumacher-directed action-adventure TRESPASS. Written by Karl Gajdusek and Eli Richbourg, the duo would play a married couple taken hostage by four brutal perpetrators seeking easy cash, though things don’t work out as planned…
Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum will star in romantic pic THE VOW, to be directed by Michael Sucsy (HBO’s “Grey Gardens”). The film tells the real-life story of a newlywed New Mexico couple, played by McAdams and Tatum, who end up in a car crash. The wife is put in a coma, where she is cared for by her devoted husband. When she comes to, without any memory of her husband or their marriage, the husband woos her and attempts to wins her heart again…
Jennifer Garner and Nick Nolte are in talks for ARTHUR, the upcoming remake of the 1981 comedy, claims The Hollywood Reporter. The new version will see Russell Brand stepping into the role of the title character (played in the original by Dudley Moore): a young playboy would-be billionaire whose mother (Helen Mirren in the new film) threatens to give away his inheritance unless he marries. Garner is said to play, “an heiress who carries her own secrets and whom Brand must marry,” while Nolte would play her religious father…
Heat Vision is reporting that “True Blood” star Alexander Skarsgard will star opposite Taylor Kitsch in Universal’s BATTLESHIP, an adaptation of the Hasbro game. Peter Berg (“Hancock”) is directing the action-adventure movie, which adds an “alien invasion” element to the screen story. The script, by Jon and Erich Hoeber, revolves around an international fleet coming together to battle a water-bound armada of otherworldly origin. Skarsgard will play Kitsch’s brother, a straight and narrow naval officer whom Kitsch, a wildly spirited naval officer, idolizes. “Battleship” will start shooting on August 30 in Hawaii for a May 18, 2012 release…
In the oddest casting news of the week, Christian Slater, Gary Oldman and Dane Cook will star in GUNS, GIRLS & GAMBLING, a stylized crime thriller from writer/director Michael Winnick, reports Heat Vision. According to the trade, the story throws Elvis impersonators, Indians, modern cowboys, a 6-foot-tall blond assassin, a frat boy, a corrupt sheriff and a prostitute into a chase for a priceless American Indian artifact stolen during a poker game at an Indian casino. Slater plays a normal guy who in a drunken stupor joins an Elvis impersonation contest. Oldman is the contest’s mega-contender, and Cook will play the sheriff. Filming starts on July 6…
According to Variety, Lasse Hallström will direct the coming-of-age story TOM’S DAD, starring Patrick Dempsey, for Point Blank Productions. Variety says the story is “set in 1962 Las Vegas with a successful character film actor and a comedy vaudevillian nightclub performer at a crossroads because of the changing styles of comedy is making him obsolete. His situation’s complicated by the arrival of his long estranged young son”…
THE TRAILER FOR SOFIA COPPOLA’S NEW FILM!
Focus Features has released the cool, largely dialogue-less trailer for writer/director Sofia Coppola’s SOMEWHERE, starring Stephen Dorff, Elle Fanning and Michelle Monagahan. The trailer features Julian Casablancas’ song “I’ll Try Anything Once” – the slowed-down version of The Strokes’ “You Only Live Once,” and the film, opening in New York and Los Angeles on December 22, the movie is an intimate story set in contemporary Los Angeles; Johnny Marco (Dorff) is a bad-boy actor stumbling through a life of excess at the Chateau Marmont Hotel in Hollywood. With an unexpected visit from his 11-year-old daughter (Fanning), Johnny is forced to look at the questions we must all confront:
AT THE MULTIPLEX!
Disney•Pixar’s eleventh movie and their first threequel, TOY STORY 3, featuring the voices of Tom Hanks, Tim Allen and more, helped get the summer back in gear with a estimated opening gross of $109 million in 4,028 theaters including Digital Disney 3D and IMAX 3D. 3D showings accounted for 60% of that opening with IMAX 3D bringing in $8.4 million, a new record for an animated film in the format, topping “Monsters vs. Aliens’” $5.1 million IMAX opening last year. Besides being Pixar’s biggest opening, surpassing The Incredibles’ $70.5 million, it was the third-biggest opening of the year after Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland” and “Iron Man 2,” and Disney’s 4th $100 million opener to enter the Top 10 domestic opening weekends of all time. The debut of Warner Bros.’ take on the DC Comics Western hero JONAH HEX, starring Josh Brolin, tanked with just under $5.1 million in over 2,800 theaters, a pitiful average of $1,800 per site. Opening in four theaters in New York and L.A., the Duplass Brothers’ third film CYRUS (Fox Searchlight), starring John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill and Marisa Tomei, scored $180,000 over the weekend, an impressive per-theatre average of $45,000. The movie expands to other cities over the next month…
…Until next week!
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Final Twilight book split into two films, Transformers 3 news, a Les Grossman film & more!
TWILIGHT NEWS!
Summit Entertainment has confirmed the rumor that the final “Twilight” book will be adapted as two separate films. The news, from their press release:
Summit Entertainment confirmed today that THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN will be released as two separate films with the first of the two slated to be released in theatres on November 18, 2011. Academy Award® winner Bill Condon will direct both films starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner along with Billy Burke as Charlie Swan as well as returning members of the Cullen Family including Peter Facinelli as Carlisle, Elizabeth Reaser as Esme, Jackson Rathbone as Jasper, Nikki Reed as Rosalie, Ashley Greene as Alice and Kellan Lutz as Emmett…
UPCOMING FILM PROJECTS!
USA Today visited the set of TRANSFORMERS 3 and got new details on the third film, opening in theaters on July 1, 2011. The newspaper confirmed it will be released in 3D. Talking about the second film, director Michael Bay said, “I’ll take some of the criticism” while standing at a set built to resemble a dilapidated nuclear reactor. “It was very hard to put (the sequel) together that quickly after the writers’ strike (of 2007-08).” Bay said that “This one really builds to a final crescendo. It’s not three multiple endings… As a trilogy, it really ends. It could be rebooted again, but I think it has a really killer ending.”
“One thing we’re getting rid of is what I call the dorky comedy,” Bay added. So the twins, “They’re basically gone,” he said, though John Turturro returns for comic relief.
The newspaper says the new villain will be Shockwave, “the robot cyclops-turned-laser-cannon, who became dictator of their home world of Cybertron after the other Autobots and Decepticons journeyed to Earth.”
According to USA Today, “The new film features Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) taking his first tenuous steps into adulthood while remaining a reluctant human ally of Optimus Prime.” “Shia has this great line: ‘You know, I’ve saved the world twice, but I can’t get a job,’” producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura said. Transformers 3 centers around the space race between the U.S.S.R. and the USA, suggesting there was a hidden Transformers role in it all that remains one of the planet’s most dangerous secrets…
You saw him in “Tropic Thunder” and on last Sunday’s MTV Movie Awards, and now Paramount is going to make movie about Tom Cruise’s LES GROSSMAN. The official announcement:
Paramount Pictures and MTV Films announced today that they are set to develop a movie around mega-producer Les Grossman. The announcement comes on the heels of Grossman’s groundbreaking and visionary production of the soon-to-be Emmy® award-winning 2010 MTV Movie Awards Sunday night. Tom Cruise, along with Ben Stiller and Stuart Cornfeld of Red Hour Films will produce and have secured the life rights to Grossman…
Universal Pictures announced that Tony Gilroy (“Michael Clatyon”) is returning to write the script for THE BOURNE LEGACY, the fourth installment in the Jason Bourne franchise. He penned “The Bourne Identity,” “The Bourne Supremacy” and “The Bourne Ultimatum”…
Producer Scott Rudin has purchased the rights to the upcoming biography CLEOPATRA: A LIFE by Stacy Schiff and may be looking at Angelina Jolie to play the last of the Egyptian Pharoahs, says USA Today. The story of Cleopatra has had a long history in Hollywood, including (among others) a lost silent version starring Theda Bara, a 1934 version with Claudette Colbert and, most famously, a 1963 version with Elizabeth Taylor in the title role. Let’s hope Jolie’s performance doesn’t mirror her crappy one in the Oliver Stone dud “Alexander”…
The classic children’s fairy tale, SNOW WHITE will be getting an updated live-action retelling courtesy of Brett Ratner and Relativity Media, Deadline reports. The new version is said to take an “edgy” and comedic look at the original Brothers Grimm story with Ratner claiming, “This is not your grandfather’s ‘Snow White’”…
F. Gary Gray (“The Italian Job”) is in early talks to direct KANE & LYNCH, a big screen adaptation of the Eidos video game. Stunt coordinator and second unit director Simon Crane was directing the project but exited in May due to creative differences. Bruce Willis and Jamie Foxx are attached to star. The plot follows Adam “Kane” Marcus (Willis), a mercenary who makes an unlikely alliance with a schizophrenic killer named James Lynch (Foxx). The duo is forced on a mission to retrieve a stolen microchip…
CASTING NEWS!
According to the Hollywood Reporter, “The Proposal” director Anne Fletcher, stars Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds, and producers David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman are reteaming for Universal Pictures’ MOST WANTED. Not to be confused with the Keenan Ivory Wayans action film of the same name, in this action comedy, Bullock plays a woman on the run with Reynolds as an agent who is supposed to be handling her. The project is described as having a tone similar to that of Universal’s 1988 release “Midnight Run,” with Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin, which the studio is developing a sequel for…
For all the “True Blood” fans out there: “True Blood” actor Stephen Moyer will star in thriller THE DOUBLE opposite Richard Gere and Topher Grace, and then he’ll topline THE BIG VALLEY with Jessica Lange. “The Double” is writer Michael Brandt’s directorial debut and stars Moyer as a Russian spy. The story centers on a retired CIA operative (Gere) forced to partner with a young FBI agent (Grace) to hunt down the killer of a senator in Washington. Next month, Moyer will go to Louisiana for “The Big Valley,” an adaptation of the 1960s ABC series that starred Barbara Stanwyck. Lange will play Stanwyck’s role of matriarch of the Barkleys, a family of ranchers in 19th century California. Moyer will play Jarrod Barkley, the family’s respected attorney who represents ranchers fighting to keep their land from being taken by railroad companies…
Michael Fassbender is in the running for two different comic book adaptations, playing the villain in each, Showbiz411 reports. The “Inglorious Basterds” actor is allegedly up for the part of Magneto in X-MEN: FIRST CLASS and the unknown villain of Marc Webb’s 3D SPIDER MAN reboot. According to the article, Fassbender can’t fit both films into his schedule and will have to pick one or the other…
Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, Emily Mortimer and Rashida Jones will star opposite Paul Rudd in MY IDIOT BROTHER. Jesse Peretz is directing the comedy about Ned (Rudd), an idealist. His three sisters (Banks, Deschanel and Mortimer) are ambitious. His mother is overbearing. Ned crashes at each of their homes, in succession, and brings truth, happiness and a sunny disposition into their lives. In other words, he wreaks havoc…
AT THE MULTIPLEX!
There are a few fantastic films in limited release opening this week: JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK provides a revealing portrait of the legendary TV personality and comedienne. If you weren’t a fan of Rivers before, you definitely will be after viewing this touching documentary. WINTER’S BONE features an outstanding performance by star Jennifer Lawrence as a teenage girl who races against the clock to find her deadbeat dad before her family loses their home. The film also boasts a great supporting turn by character actor John Hawkes as her badass uncle, Teardrop. THE LOTTERY, a doc by Madeleine Sackler, is a very one-sided piece of advocacy (although the side is the right one) in favor of charter schools in order to fix the failing public school system in New York and beyond. It’s heartbreaking nonetheless, as Sackler follows four families from Harlem and the Bronx who have entered their children in the charter school lottery with very slim hopes for winning a better future…
…Until next week!
Tags: les grossman, marlow stern, the lottery, transformers 3, twilight, weekly blog, winter's bone
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