Film News Roundup – November 2009 – Week 3
Hollywood’s Favorite Cowboy
Author Cormac McCarthy, 76, talked about love, religion, his 11-year-old son, the end of the world and the movie based on his novel ‘The Road.’ He was just getting going.
Novelist Cormac McCarthy shuns interviews, but he relishes conversation. Last week, the author sat down on the leafy patio of the Menger Hotel, built about 20 years after the siege of the Alamo, the remains of which are next door.
Chuck Roven Developing The Looking Glass Wars?
While appearing on ABC’s Good Morning America to promote the final book in the series “ArchEnemy,” auther Frank Beddor was asked whether we might see the series brought to the big screen any time soon to which he replied: “I am working with the producer of ‘The Dark Knight’ Chuck Roven, so we’re putting it together, and it’s pretty exciting to think about it as a movie. It’s a really visual world so we’ll see,” and then added facetiously, “I’m just trying to get my neighbor Angelina Jolie to play her.”
Death Race Sequel – Title, Casting Call and Plot Details Revealed
But despite the basics of ‘logic’ and ‘good storytelling,’ Anderson is producing Death Race: Frankenstein Lives, which takes up back to that prison and shows us the origins of the Death Race.
Paul W.S. Anderson Still Circling Castlevania
Paul W.S. Anderson is still circling video game adaptation Castlevania at Rogue Pictures and that they are waiting on a script. This summer, James Wan was attached to direct the movie based on the Konami game, but we haven’t heard much about his involvement. Producer Jeremy Bolt added that he and Anderson would like to adapt Konami’s Metal Gear Solid for the big screen at Columbia Pictures.
Aussie Protagonist targets ‘Wild’ deals
Territories sold include Australia, China, Germany
Brit sales company Protagonist Pictures has closed deals on a number of territories for helmer Jonathan Lynn’s “Wild Target.” The pic follows a beautiful con artist who finds herself pursued by an assassin. Pic, which stars Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt, Rupert Everett and Rupert Grint, has been acquired by Icon for Australia and New Zealand, Moonlight for Benelux, DDDream for China, Atlas for Germany, Ascot Elite for Switzerland and Leda for Latin America.
Michael Sheen Exclusive Video Interview THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON
An exclusive Collider interview with this fantastic actor about working on New Moon, his upcoming movies like Alice in Wonderland and Tron Legacy, how he prepares for his roles, and he tells some great stories about how he came up with his character in New Moon and what happened with his driver who took him to the hotel.
Harvey Keitel cast in ‘Little Fockers’
Joins the Ben Stiller-Robert De Niro starrer
Harvey Keitel has joined the cast of Universal and Tribeca Prods.’ “Meet the Fockers” sequel. Regulars Ben Stiller, Teri Polo, Robert De Niro, Blythe Danner and Owen Wilson are returning, along with newcomers Jessica Alba and Laura Dern. Paul Weitz (“In Good Company”) is directing the film, which has the working title of “Little Fockers,” since it focuses on the main couple’s children. Keitel will play a contractor employed by Stiller’s character.
Marti Noxon to pen ‘Fright Night’ redo
1985 comedy-horror was written, directed by Tom Holland
“Mad Men” writer-producer Marti Noxon has been hired to pen DreamWorks Studios’ revamp of the 1985 horror comedy “Fright Night.” Before her work on AMC’s “Mad Men,” Noxon was a writer-producer on the bloodsucker series “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel,” so fangs and stakes are in her blood.
Writer tapped for ‘Hansel and Gretel’
Dante Harper hired to work on script for Tommy Wirkola pic
Writer Dante Harper has been hired to sprinkle a few more bread crumbs on the script for “Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters.” “Dead Snow” co-writer/director Tommy Wirkola is helming the project for Gary Sanchez Prods. and Paramount. The Norwegian pitched and plotted out the story line, which picks up the fairy-tale siblings 15 years after their traumatic gingerbread house incident, which provoked them to become witch bounty hunters.
Is Aragorn Ready to Return for The Hobbit?
“I think they’re just worried about shooting the first part of that movie which doesn’t involve my character,” said Mortensen during an interview for his upcoming movie The Road. “My character is around at times–in the middle, but it would only be if they made a second movie or connecting movie that connected ‘The Hobbit’ to ‘The Lord of the Rings’ that I might appear, which would be great.”
Ridley Scott is rolling the dice on a ‘Monopoly’ movie and here’s why
“They have this big world and this game — it’s the most famous board game in the world — and it just really came out of the whole ‘Alice’ thing. I took the approach of thinking of the main character falling down a rabbit hole and into a real place called Monopoly City … It was the re-engineering of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ that got me thinking and then with this it came around full circle and I was able to utilize that. That’s a big world. They were searching for that.”
J.J. Abrams Will Not Be Building His ‘Dark Tower’
“You’ll be hard-pressed to find a huger fan of ‘The Dark Tower’ than me, but that’s probably the reason that I shouldn’t be the one to adapt it,” he revealed. “After working six years on ‘Lost,’ the last thing I want to do is spend the next seven years adapting one of my favorite books of all time. I’m such a massive Stephen King fan that I’m terrified of screwing it up. I’d do anything to see those movies written by someone else. My guess is they will get made because they’re so incredible. But not by me.”
First Hobbit cameo role revealed!
Looks like Hobbit director Guillermo del Toro will follow the example of fellow filmmakers M. Night Shyamalan and Alfred Hitchcock by putting himself into his own movies. “I had a hand on the design of the creature and I will personally sculpt the appliances that will be applied on my face and hands. I used to sculpt the creatures for NECROPIA (my FX company) and I miss it a bit. I will have a line or two and die quickly.”
Cavaye to direct ‘A Bout Portant’
Thriller stars Gilles Lellouche, Roschdy Zem
Fred Cavaye (“Anything for Her”) is set to helm “A Bout portant,” a thriller starring Gilles Lellouche (“Public Enemy Number One”) and Roschdy Zem (“Go Fast”). Set over 24 hours, the high-voltage crime suspenser centers on a male nurse (Lellouche) who is coerced by rogue cops to free a big-time gangster (Zem), who has just been transported to a hospital after being injured in an accident.
Do we meet Dumbledore’s gay lover in the last Potter films?
Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling told a Carnegie Hall audience in 2007 that she thought of Prof. Dumbledore as gay and that she intended the character of Gellert Grindelwald in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to be Dumbledore’s lover, though she did not specify that in the book. But it looks like the film version will address the author’s revelation, and actor Jamie Campbell Bower—who plays Grindelwald in the two Deathly Hallows films—refers to his character the same way Rowling did.
The Cutting Room Floor
- Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce, Derek Jacobi set for ‘The King’s Speech’
- Kevin Williamson’s ‘The Bedroom Window’ Remake Coming Between ‘Scream’ Movies
- Gus Van Sant film keeps it in the family
- Optimum Releasing and Pinewood Studios team to protect British movie classics
- ‘National Treasure’s Jon Turteltaub takes on Greenpeace biopic
- Argentine producer-scribe Jose Levy sets up film with a social marketing campaign
- Courteney Cox ready to shriek again in ‘Scream 4′
- Brian Cox is at the top of the list for The Hobbit?
- Disney docks ’20,000 Leagues’ pic
- George Strait set for ‘Pure Country’ sequel
- Focus Features sets six pics for 2010
- 9 New Moon controversies are put to rest
- Travolta Excited To Remake Butch Cassidy And It’s Our Fault
- Universal settles complaints over fake ‘The Fourth Kind’ news
- Rambo 5 Changes Course
- Robert Zemeckis to make 3D Nutcracker
- ‘Independence Day’ Sequel Would Be Two Movies, Possibly Called ‘ID4-Ever’
- ‘Ghost Town’s David Koepp to helm actioner ‘Premium Rush’
- Hugh Jackman to play fighter in a robot boxing movie
- Ryan Reynolds, Anna Faris to star in romcom ‘TMI’
- Action Jackson LLC to produce 3-5 pics per year
- Jason Priestley’s acquires ‘Death of a Freerider’
- Luke Greenfield (“The Girl Next Door”) to helm ‘Something Borrowed’
- Zachary Quinto Spock boldly goes on a romantic adventure
- Cecile de France joins Matt Damon in Clint Eastwood’s ‘Hereafter’
- Parlay Films Vamps it up at AFM with Amy Heckerling project
- Sony nabs remake rights to French-Canadian pic ‘Fathers and Guns’
- Len Wiseman to direct apocalyptic thriller
- Summit to co-finance thriller ‘The Cold Light of Day’
- Peter Chernin wins rights to book ‘My Name Is Memory’
- Winona Ryder, Barry Pepper to co-star in ‘Lois Wilson Story’ for Hallmark
The Fine Print
This is by no means meant to be a comprehensive roundup of the entire weeks’ news. All stories are chosen by me for no other reason than that they got my attention and might capture yours. If something you think is more important chime in on the feedback; we’d love to hear comments and have a conversation about it.
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