News on the Planet of the Apes prequel gets pushed back, Storm Shadow returning for G.I. Joe 2 , Arnold Schwarzenegger talks his Hollywood future, Alien's prequel becomes Prometheus and more!
There is so much snow here, it is ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. Throw in a cold snap which left my car with a frozen battery and I'm not enjoying this winter as much as I should be. And it's only January! But oh well, only minor setbacks. University is back in full swing so my life is slowly creeping toward that hectic, frenetic pace that I'm so used to (and will probably miss when I'm done). My plans to get ahead this year are faltering quickly with my lack of a car, which makes things just that much more difficult, but I still hope to get things rolling. That said, onto the news:
Alright, so the weekend box office saw the predictable winner, and the one I was rooting for: The Green Hornet took the top spot, making $34 million in its opening weekend. Jonah Hill has another success on his hands, although maybe not quite as impressive as they were hoping for. The Dilemma opened in second with $17.4 million. True Grit fell from the top to third with $11.2 million, while The King's Speech once again rose up, this time all the way from ninth to fourth with $9.1 million. Black Swan stayed in fifth with $8.1 million. Little Fockers dropped from second to sixth in their fourth weekend on the charts. TRON: Legacy fell from fourth to seventh, Yogi Bear stayed around in its dismal eighth spot, The Fighter fell from seventh to ninth despite the Golden Globe nod to Christian Bale, and Season of the Witch rounded out the top ten with a complete nose-dive straight to tenth from third, only making $4.5 million in its second week.
Twentieth Century Fox announced today that Ridley Scott will direct Prometheus, an original science fiction epic, for worldwide release on March 9, 2012. The initial draft of the script was written by Jon Spaihts (The Darkest Hour) from Scott's idea. Damon Lindelof ("Lost," Star Trek) and Scott have since been working together on the current version which has expanded the story into new directions.
Story details are being closely guarded so as not to spoil surprises for moviegoers, but Scott explained the outlines of the film and its genesis as follows: "While 'Alien' was indeed the jumping off point for this project, out of the creative process evolved a new, grand mythology and universe in which this original story takes place. The keen fan will recognize strands of 'Alien's' DNA, so to speak, but the ideas tackled in this film are unique, large and provocative. I couldn't be more pleased to have found the singular tale I'd been searching for, and finally return to this genre that's so close to my heart."
"In a world flooded with prequels, sequels and reboots," said Lindelof. "I was incredibly struck by just how original Ridley's vision was for this movie. It's daring, visceral and hopefully, the last thing anyone expects. When I sat in a movie theater as a kid, feet raised off the floor for fear that something might grab my ankles, I never dreamed in my wildest imagination I would one day get to collaborate with the man responsible for it. Working alongside him has been nothing short of a dream come true."
Of the five major roles to be cast, Noomi Rapace is the first actor signed to star in the film. The young Swedish actress landed the role of scientist Elizabeth Shaw after Scott saw her portrayal of fictional Lisbeth Salander in the film The Girl With a Dragon Tattoo, for which she was lauded by Time magazine as a 2010 Performance of the Year. Rapace starred in all three entries of the breakout global franchise based on Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy of books (The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest are the other two entries), which have collectively grossed more than $212 million worldwide.
The other major roles will be cast shortly.
This is great news on a number of points. First off, with Ridley Scott returning to the Alien franchise and therefore science fiction in general, this is his next step. An original idea, particularly one from Scott himself with the foundations of Alien built in, is exciting. Scott can go in just about any direction he wants, and couple that with the technology of today, and I'd say we're going to have something really amazing on our hands. Rapace has almost become a superstar overnight and this will be the start of a very productive career for her. This is just good news all around.
Just a few short hours after the big announcement that Ridley Scott's "Alien"-themed sci-fi flick Prometheus will be released on March 9, 2012, 20th Century Fox has decided to move a number of their 2011 releases around, the most significant one being Caesar: Rise of the Apes, the prequel to Planet of the Apes which they've moved back to November 23, Thanksgiving week, from its original summer release date of June 24.
Fox also pushed back the Chris Evans-Anna Faris comedy What's Your Number? from its upcoming April 29 release date to September 30, which in turn pushed the Justin Timberlake-Amanda Seyfried sci-fi thriller Now off that date to October 28.
In turn the Jim Carrey comedy Mr. Popper's Penguins has moved forward in the summer from August 12 to June 17, and David Gordon Green's The Sitter starring Jonah Hill has been moved back to August 5 from its original July 15 release date. Selena Gomez's romantic comedy Monte Carlo was pushed back from July 1 to August 12, just one week later.
Lastly, they have placed the Owen Wilson-Jack Black comedy The Big Year onto the date of October 14.
Not quite sure why the rearrangement was necessary, but overall, it's not particularly earth-shattering. It's unfortunate that Rise of the Apes had to be pushed back. Not much of a difference for Now , only a month, and the rearrangement of the comedies isn't going to change much either. What's Your Number? and The Big Year are the comedies that stand out, along with Mr. Popper's Penguins , but no huge changes, either. Overall, it's news, but not much else.
Ben Foster appears likely to join the cast of 360, reports Deadline.
The film, which currently has Rachel Weisz and Anthony Hopkins attached to star, is based on the 1900 play "La Ronde" ("Reigen" in the original German) by Arthur Schnitzler. An exploration of sexual interaction across boundries of social class, the title refers to a circular dance, the inspiration for the updated 360.
Though there are no details currently available on Foster's role, he is expected to join an ensemble cast with more announcements yet to be revealed. He can next be seen on the big screen opposite Jason Statham in The Mechanic, hitting theaters on January 28th.
Ben Foster is a good actor, he's great in 3:10 to Yuma , his small role in X-Men: The Last Stand was good, but I've heard Alpha Dog is where he really shines. All that said, he should be a good addition alongside Weisz and Hopkins, and should flesh out the cast. I'm unsure of the story itself, but treated properly and updated well, it could be pretty good. I'll be watching this one to see where it goes.
James Gray (We Own the Night) has signed on to direct The Gray Man for New Regency, reports Deadline.
Based on the book series by Mark Greaney, The Gray Man is the first entry in a series of novels featuring the protagonist Court Gentry, a former CIA operative turned assassin-for-hire. The official description of the first book is as follows:
Court Gentry is known as The Gray Man-a legend in the covert realm, moving silently from job to job, accomplishing the impossible, and then fading away. And he always hits his target. But there are forces more lethal than Gentry in the world. And in their eyes, Gentry has just outlived his usefulness.
Now, he is going to prove that for him, there's no gray area between killing for a living-and killing to stay alive.
The second book in the series, "On Target" was released last September with a third, as-of-yet untitled novel planned for this year.
The film adaptation, meanwhile, is moving forward with a script by Adam Cozad (the upcoming Jack Ryan reboot), though the article states that Gray could tackle another project before beginning production on The Gray Man.
The story sounds excellent, although it is pretty in line with my tastes. It reminds me of some sort of cross between Tom Clancy and Human Target , and that's pretty awesome. I'm very excited to see what story they can weave together, because it sounds excellent. The only noteworthy project on James Gray's resume is We Own the Night , but that might be enough, he did well on that one. Here's hoping this is as good as it's starting to sound.
Terry Rossio has been brought on board to provide the script for the fifth Pirates of the Caribbean film, reports Deadline.
Rossio was responsible for work on the first four Pirates films, including the upcoming On Stranger Tides, but worked with a writing partner, Ted Elliot, who will not be joining him for the fifth outing.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is slated to hit theaters in 2D, 3D and IMAX 3D on May 20th.
While it's unfortunate that Ted Elliot won't be involved with this one, at least Rossio is still on board. Half the team is better than none, and it's not an overly complex formula to keep following here. As long as he doesn't try to pull something overly ridiculous and complex like Dead Man's Chest again, this should be just as good as the other ones. I'm just hoping that On Stranger Tides is a worthy fourth film.
The script has been completed and Zoolander 2 is waiting for the go-ahead, Ben Stiller told Empire, offering a few plot details.
The project reunites Derek and Hansel (Stiller and Owen Wilson) ten years later with a story set primarily in Europe.
"Their lives have changed and they're not really relevant anymore," Stiller said, "It's a new world for them."
Stiller also confirmed that Will Ferrell will return as Mugatu, stating that the character has an "integral part" in the screenplay.
"Will Ferrell is written into the script and he's expressed interest in doing it," he explained, "...he features in a big way."
Zoolander 2 is not currently greenlit, but check back for updates on the project as they become available.
While the sheer stupidity the original film was built on never really appealed to me, it's undeniable that this was a huge movie and very popular. For fans, the news that Will Ferrell will be returning in an even bigger role is probably very exciting. And this will almost surely be greenlit, it's a guaranteed money-maker with an established fan base. Stiller and friends will be making this one soon enough.
Arnold Schwarzenegger is looking to return to the movie business and told Krone.at (via TheArnoldFans.com) that he is looking at three possible scripts. Here's a translation of the quote:
"Currently I'm reading three scripts. One topic/script, which I considered a long time ago before governor, is delighting me particularly. In it I would play an older [German] soldier, who gets the order at the ending of the war to kill a bunch of kids. But he doesn't do it and get them to safety at the risk of his life and it has all kind of adventure. This script is based on a true story!"
TheArnoldFans says the movie that Schwarzenegger is describing is With Wings as Eagles, which was written by Randall Wallace (Braveheart, We Were Soldiers).
The story is based on the true life story of a German officer who doesn't agree with his Nazi party and instead helps the American POWs escape.
There is no confirmation on what the other two scripts are.
There's been a lot of speculation on when Arnold's return to Hollywood would be and what exactly he would take on. I even thought there might be a chance that he doesn't do it at all. Of course, what's he going to do if he's not in movies? That said, this sounds like an interesting project for him . . . but also a worrying one. This sounds a lot more serious than his old movies. Is Arnold taking a serious tone? Will he try to develop himself into a serious actor? Because the fun of Arnold is that he's just so cheesy, and if he tries to go all serious, I'll be a little worried. Hopefully we hear more confirmation soon.
Lee Byung-hun will again appear as Storm Shadow on the big screen when as-of-yet-untitled G.I. Joe sequel arrives, likely in 2012, The Hollywood Reporter claims.
Byung-hun played the ninja character in the 2009 film, G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra, though his fate appeared sealed following a battle with Snake Eyes (Ray Park).
It was recently announced that Stephen Sommers, the director of the original film, would not be returning for the sequel, currently in the scripting stages with Zombieland writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick working on the first draft.
Additionally, the article states that production is planned to start this June and that the action sequel will target a fast-paced summer 2012 release.
Ugh, I still can't get over the fact that they're actually making a sequel to this abomination of a movie. That's unfortunate, and depressing. But what will you do, it's Hollywood. A new director will probably mean this will go even more downhill, although the inclusion of the Zombieland writers is mildly hope-inspiring. The return of Storm Shadow is . . . well, I couldn't care less, but maybe fans of the movie will be glad to see the ninja return. Byung-hun didn't do a terrible job, especially in comparison to the rest of the actors in the movie, so I guess this is good news.
Since there's been so much news about the in-progress remake of this one, I figured it's high time I reviewed it here. So this week I present:
The movie vaguely has to do with memories, in that Douglas Quaid (Schwarzenegger) decides to go on a virtual vacation and have his memories implanted. But it sparks a very strange reaction and he finds himself on the run from mysterious forces and running all the way to Mars to find out what is truly going on. But the real question is . . . is any of it really happening?
Now, the action is alright, typical of a Schwarzenegger movie, I suppose. Nothing particularly original or different, though. The special effects are for the most part atrocious, although they did a pretty good job on the mutants, which becomes a bit symbolic in the movie. The story is really the intriguing part. They create a great air of mystery in the movie, never really revealing exactly what is going on, and there's a particularly brilliant part where Quaid is faced with what is going on, and which really branches out the movie between reality and fiction.
Schwarzenegger is his usual cheesy self in this one, never really believable, but suitable enough for the role. At least they didn't try to make him an accountant, which was the original plan for the movie. That said, the movie really wouldn't be the same without him. Ticotin as Melina is good, she comes into the movie late but she's a good fit for Schwarzenegger. Sharon Stone is actually really great as Lori, as she has a great fight scene, acts the crazy manipulative woman very well, and overall is a great fit. Ronny Cox stars as Cohaagen, the predictable villain, and his very small role is just too small to really appreciate. Michael Ironside as Richter is the more appreciable villain, and does a good job. The cast is passable but not fantastic.
Honestly, this movie at its core is cheesy, ridiculous, with an average cast at best. The only saving grace is a truly fantastic story, which cleverly manages to keep you guessing right to the end. It's worth a watch for the story, certainly, if nothing else.
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I completely boycotted the Golden Globes this year, although I admit, I did browse the awards list, after which I regretted doing it, because it was not only exactly what I expected, but particularly disappointing in some of the categories I actually had hope for. But alas, that's how the world works. Until next week:
[All news, images, and other stuff from www.comingsoon.net , www.imdb.com , www.rottentomatoes.com and www.youtube.com .]
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