Remakes and Sequels »
'Shakespeare in Love' Helmer Circles 'My Fair Lady'
Filed under: Music & Musicals, Deals, Remakes and Sequels
There is still no solid agreement for Keira Knightley to take on one Miss Eliza Doolittle, but it looks like the remake of My Fair Lady may finally have found a director. One who is not Joe Wright. Variety reports that the helmer behind The Debt -- John Madden -- is currently in talks to direct the film. Seeing that The Debt hasn't come out yet, let's be more clear: The director behind Shakespeare in Love, Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Proof, and Killshot is the guy circling this feature.That should be pretty decent news for the film. While I can't say that his subsequent work has brought him the same acclaim, getting an Oscar nomination for Shakespeare proved that he's at his best when dealing with classic literary romance. And while I would've loved to see Baz Luhrmann take it on (he was previously linked to the shebang), I can't really argue with the directorial direction they're going ... although I would very much prefer a stab at the original Pygmalion. Alas, no music-free wordiness for me.
The plan is to retain the film's 1912 setting and score, shooting in a number of London locales. But the big question will be whether audiences will care. Can rain in Spain bring in box office numbers? And when will ANYONE officially sign on to this sucker? Stay tuned!
Chris Weitz to Direct Two-Part 'Breaking Dawn' Finale?
Filed under: Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
As The Twilight Saga: New Moon crosses $200 million, execs over at Summit Entertainment are quietly (or not so quietly) trying to figure out what to do about Breaking Dawn, the final (for now) adaptation in the Twilight movie franchise. According to a piece in Variety, only screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg is confirmed to finish out the series, and right now it looks like they're going to go the Harry Potter route and split Breaking Dawn up into two parts. Problem is, none of the actors have deals for a second part, and so like what happened with Harry Potter, there's a very good chance Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner could be looking at upwards of eight figures for their participation.The other big question mark (aside from how you adapt the predominately darker Breaking Dawn into a film that will appeal to the tween and teen set) is who will direct. David Slade is currently helming Eclipse, the third installment in the Twilight franchise, and from the sound of things that's the only segment he'll be directing. Right now it looks like Summit wants Chris Weitz to finish out the series, which is why -- according to Variety -- they haven't yet closed the deal on The Gardener, which is the smaller, more personal film he wanted to direct next. But will Weitz commit to the back-to-back films, which are sure to keep him away from his family for several months?
What's the alternative, though? To bring on a director new to the franchise to helm its big finale? That doesn't make sense, and I'm sure Summit is preparing to empty their wallets on this one in order to line up the correct pieces. Sources claim the studio wants Weitz to finish the job, though they haven't yet made him an official offer. What do you want to see happen?
The First 'Iron Man 2' Poster Appears!
Filed under: Action, Paramount, Fandom, Newsstand, Movie Marketing, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels, Posters
Marvel Studios, Paramount and Jon Favreau have given you an early Christmas present. Yahoo! Movies has debuted the first poster for Iron Man 2, and as cheesy as it is to go nuts over marketing, it's an awfully cool poster. It's their exclusive, so you'll have to click the picture to see the entire thing, but I've given you a tiny preview above.
The best part? Those of us who didn't get to see the pants-wetting footage at Comic-Con finally get a glimpse at War Machine! There's something deliciously geeky about the buddy cop stylings of this poster. I could live quite comfortably in a world where Iron Man 2 was something akin to a super-suited Lethal Weapon, couldn't you?
Of course, as nice as the poster is, it's no substitute for seeing these guys actually take flight. Faverau has hinted via Twitter that we might see the first Iron Man 2 trailer this Christmas, and that it'll be attached to that other Robert Downey Jr. franchise, Sherlock Holmes. Maybe if you're very good boys and girls, Santa will grant your wish, and we'll get it a few days before Holmes hits theaters. I can't think of a more festive way to ring in the holidays than with a flying hero of red and gold.
First (Official) Look at 'The Karate Kid' Remake - Updated with More Photos
Filed under: Action, Sony, Family Films, Newsstand, Movie Marketing, Remakes and Sequels, Images
Update: Check out three more images in the gallery below.
The initial trauma over Columbia's remake of The Karate Kid seems to have passed for the children of the 1980s, enough that the first official image (not counting the teaser poster Erik Davis posted in September) shouldn't be salt in the wound. Instead, you might be thinking "Hey, for the first image of The Karate Kid, shouldn't there be, you know ... karate?" Yes, yes there should. But instead People Magazine gave us a tender look between the new kid, Jaden Smith, and his mentor, Jackie Chan. 1980s children will be relieved to know that his name isn't Mr. Miyagi, but Mr. Han, and he's a maintenance man who befriends the troubled and unhappy boy who's been relocated to China. He also can kick major ass.
Smith and Chan give a few excited quotes for Kid. Smith reveals he trained for four months with the film's fight coordinator, Master Wu, which was probably interesting enough to warrant its own training montage. As he became wise in the way of karate, he learned discipline that extended all the way to his personal habits. "His dad told me that Jaden had changed," says Chan. "When he takes his shoes off, he doesn't throw them in the corner, but puts them away neatly!"
Admittedly, there could be some lovely Chinese eye candy in this. One sequence will take place on the Great Wall of China, so we're in for at least one (hopefully) breathtaking sequence that could actually rival any crane kick Ralph Macchio performed. The Karate Kid hits theaters on June 11, 2010.
First Glimpses of 'The Voyage of The Dawn Treader'
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, 20th Century Fox, Family Films, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Movie Marketing, Remakes and Sequels, Images
Over the holiday weekend, we received our first official glimpse of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. This is a film that hasn't really attracted a lot of fervent interest or rumor-mongering, something that seems to have marked the ill-fated series as a whole.
But Dawn Treader is coming, with Michael Apted at the helm and 20th Century Fox directing its trade wind. I know I've stated it a million times before, but this is one Narnia installment that I'm desperate to see. It was my favorite of the books, and the film might actually work on a level that Wardrobe and Caspian haven't. There was more to be mined from those first two books than the films managed, but Dawn Treader is rather glossy and adventurous, a series of "What's that -- oh no!" moments that should make for a pretty entertaining movie. Sure, there's the heavy handed morality tale of selfish cousin Eustace, but that's a pretty simple thing to translate since it's a lesson as old as Grimm's -- bad kids are punished, regardless of religious inclination!
Narnia has chosen to launch its first images in a very unlikely place: Facebook. A production blog has started up there, and the first images were tacked onto the end of it. It should be fun to follow along with as we inch closer to its release date of December 2010. Meanwhile, the photos are in the gallery, and they certainly are pretty to look at.
'Shrek Forever After' to Be Last 'Shrek' Film ... for Now
Filed under: Animation, New Releases, Family Films, Remakes and Sequels, Images
I have a personal kink when it comes to a good old fashioned fairy tale subversion. I can't explain it, but there's just something about messing with those classic tales that never fails to amuse me -- so you can see why I have a soft spot for the Shrek franchise. News of a fourth film first hit back in 2007 and now USA Today gives us our first look at the fairy tale comedy, as well as (good?) news that the fourth installment of the franchise, Shrek Forever After, will be the last (and as much as I liked the first two films, I'll admit that by the time we had reached Shrek the Third, the charm was wearing a little thin).
Bill Damaschke, head of creative production at DreamWorks and Mike Mitchell (Sky High) gave some hints as to what we should expect from Shrek Forever After, and according to Mitchell, this time Shrek is feeling out of touch with his inner ogre, so he strikes up a deal with Rumplestiltskin (voiced by Walt Dohrn) to change his life. But things don't work out as planned and Shrek finds out that life in Far Far Away has changed for the worse in his absence. Franchise favorites Puss in Boots (voiced by Antonio Banderas) and Donkey (Eddie Murphy) will return and some of the new additions to the cast are Kathy Griffin and Kristin Schaal (Flight of the Conchords) as witches and part time Ogre hunters, and Mad Men's Jon Hamm as the leader of the ogre underground.
Another A-Team Cameo Confirmed: Dirk Benedict
Filed under: Action, Casting, RumorMonger, Fandom, 20th Century Fox, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
Just a few weeks ago, Peter Hall brought you the news that Dwight Schultz, aka the original Howlin' Mad Murdock, had earned a cameo in Joe Carnahan's remake of The A-Team. Obviously, you can't invite Schultz and not invite the rest of the surviving team, and it seems Faceman will also be getting some facetime. According to Dirk Benedict Central, Dirk Benedict will also be appearing in the film in an unspecified role. Remember when this kind of thing stayed secret? I'm not losing sleep over the production of The A-Team or anything, but it makes me nostalgic for the days down the long haul and into history back when you didn't know anything about secret cameos until you were in the dark theater. Then you could nudge whoever you were with and say "Oh my gosh! That's Dirk Benedict! Ha ha!" If you had your head bitten off when you started blabbing about the Zombieland cameo, this is the reason why. People like surprise cameos!
So, who do you think Benedict will be? Bradley Cooper's father? Someone helpful they meet along the way? One of the commanding officers coordinating the task force that's hunting them down? Or will Schultz, Benedict and Mr. T (you know he'll be the next one confirmed) all have a scene together where they hand over keys to the iconic van?
Who Will Be The Crow?
Filed under: Action, Drama, Casting, Mystery & Suspense, Fandom, Remakes and Sequels
Oh, The Crow! I loved you so! I had the poster, the comic book by James O'Barr, the T-shirt, and the unrequited crush on Brandon Lee, whose tragic death only fanned the flames of my teenage desire. I even went to see the sequel, The Crow: City of Angels, which featured the spectacularly bad line, "F*ck you, bird d*ck!" uttered by none other than Iggy Pop. (I did, however, forget to light a candle for its 15th anniversary earlier this fall. Sniff.)As previously reported, there is a relaunch being written by Stephen Norrington, who will also direct, that might not even include Eric Draven, the main character (sacre bleu!). The last time that Norrington took a crack at directing a beloved comic book was the 2003 stinker The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but as io9.com reported, so far the script is getting good reviews. Meredith Woerner at io9.com coaxed some details from producer Ryan Kavanaugh (Nine, Brothers, Zombieland), and while he wouldn't reveal which actor is going to be smearing himself with makeup to wreak vengeance on those who violated and murdered his beloved, he did say it will be "a whole relaunch of the franchise, much more of a dark superhero type" and starring an already-established actor.
What a Surprise: 'The Howling' Gets a Remake
Filed under: Horror, Deals, Scripts, Remakes and Sequels
What a complete non-surprise! Now that New Moon is raking in the cash, and doing what very little it can for the werewolves of the world, the vamps are gearing up for some further sharp-toothed competition. Variety reports that The Howling will return to the big screen by the hands of indie producers Joel Kastelberg and Etchie Stroh under the name The Howling: Reborn. Since it's been over three years since we first heard rumors of a remake, my guess is that this is a whole new can of worms.A former marketing executive for studios like MGM and New Line, Joe Nimziki wrote the script and will direct it when the feature starts shooting this February. Once that's all done, they're hoping to get this howler into theaters for Halloween. The plot is being kept under wraps, but the original followed a TV newswoman who goes on a retreat after an ordeal with a serial killer, only to be thrust into a world of
Now here's where I say this is a missed opportunity. It's inevitable that each old-school horror flick will get rebooted. But why not try to up the ante, or at least insert wow-factor? We've seen the increased interest in Elm Street since Jackie Earle Haley took over, and that's a pretty mainstream franchise. Now imagine what The Howling could be if they coerced John Sayles into writing it again -- maybe not to be campy like the first, but a well-written piece of horror. That man is a pro at taking characters and situations and spinning an intricate web, so imagine if he intermingled his indie talents with his old-school horror ways. At the very least, it'd make the project immediately buzz worthy to a larger audience.
As it stands, do you want more Howling?
Joshua Jackson Flies Away In a 'UFO'
Filed under: Action, Independent, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Casting, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
There seems to be a slow and steady drive towards remaking everything that ever appeared on British television. I suppose that's all right (they do have fantastic shows and made-for-television movies in the United Kingdom) but what happens on that dark day when Hollywood runs out of British productions? Yikes. Let's not think about that, and turn instead to the dark version of 1980 that's being remade for the modern viewer, as Variety reports that British favorite UFO is being re-imagined for the big screen. UFO will be helmed by Matthew Gratzner, and will star Joshua Jackson. The British premise for UFO was set in the near future (ten years in their case -- the show aired in 1970 and took place in 1980) where aliens had conquered Earth. Naturally, they didn't do so with altruistic means, but to use us as an organ harvesting ground. Humanity's future lay with SHADO, (Supreme Headquarters Aliens Defense Organization), a covert organization pretending to be a movie studio, who defend against the alien horde. Many have tried to remake UFO and failed, the last evolved into Space: 1999. (I can't find any reference as to V took any inspiration from it. The timing screams that it wasn't a coincidence.)
Jackson will play Paul Foster, a test pilot who joins SHADO. Foster is one of the original characters, and had an interesting little conflict after he became involved with the enemy. Since Gratzner praises his ability to show Foster's "inner conflict," the movie will undoubtedly take that and run with it. The movie is aiming to begin filming in the spring.
Chris Weitz to Direct Two-Part 'Breaking Dawn' Finale?
Girls on Film: The Academy's Shallow Actress Pool_thumbnail.jpg)
Alec Baldwin Becomes Latest to Threaten Retirement
The First 'Iron Man 2' Poster Appears!
The Return of Jessica Alba?
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