Film News Roundup – November 2009 – Week 4
Joe Wright in talks to direct assassin girl ‘Hanna’
“Atonement” helmer Joe Wright is in talks to direct Focus Features’ action-adventure thriller “Hanna.” The project is described as having shades of “La Femme Nikita” and the “Bourne” movies. The story centers on a 14-year-old Eastern European girl who has been raised by her father to be a cold-blooded killing machine. She connects with a French family, forms a friendship with their daughter and goes through the pangs of adolescence. When the girl is dragged back to her father’s world and discovers that she was bred as a killing machine in a CIA prison camp, she must fight her way to a free life.
‘The Shield’ writer to pen fourth ‘Underworld’ film
“The Shield” writer John Hlavin has been hired to pen the fourth installment in Screen Gems/Lakeshore’s “Underworld” franchise. Hlavin said the plot is under wraps, “but I can tell you it’s not a prequel.” He added, “It will satisfy old fans and excite new audiences, meaning that we don’t want to redo the first three movies, so steps are being taken to honor what fans have loved but at the same time introduce fresh elements.”
Producer Wyck Godfrey on DEAD SPACE, GEARS OF WAR, and Will Ferrell’s EVERYTHING MUST GO
For fans of Gears of War, he says Wiseman is working on a script and “we’ve done a ton of visual references and he’s sort of put together a whole presentation, so we should know pretty quickly if this version is going to move forward or not.” What he said about all three projects after the jump:
Brad Pitt falls into ‘Dark Void’
Plan B, Reliance team on videogame adaptation
Brad Pitt’s Plan B shingle and Indian media conglom Reliance Big Entertainment have inked a deal with vidgame company Capcom to develop a feature film based on the “Dark Void” computer game as a potential franchise and starring vehicle for the actor. “Dark Void” follows a pilot who crash lands in the Bermuda Triangle following a routine mission and finds himself in an alternate world resembling a primitive Earth where aliens with superior technology are planning to take over civilization.
DiBonaventura sets up ‘Secret’
Company to produce ‘Nicholas Flamel’ series
Lorenzo di Bonaventura has snapped up rights to produce Michael Scott’s six-part fantasy series “The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel.” Scott’s series follows 15-year-old twins Sophie and Josh as they pursue adventure across several continents with the immortal alchemist of the title. Flamel, an actual French alchemist born in 1330, was included in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” the first film and book in the series.
Forget Twilight: Priest has kick-ass vampires
“The film is set in a post-apocalyptic vampire world at the end of generations of war between vampires and humans,” actor Karl Urban said. “That’s where this story takes place. I think that it’s going to have some pretty dark moments in it, that’s for sure. Dude, it’s not Twilight. I do have fangs.”
Simon Baker takes a ‘Breath’
‘Mentalist’ star, Johnson will produce adaptation
“The Mentalist” star Simon Baker and producer Mark Johnson have teamed to acquire feature rights to the Tim Winton novel “Breath.” Baker and Johnson will produce together, and Baker plans to play one of the lead roles. Published in 2008, the novel is set in a small town in Western Australia where two 16-year-old boys take up surfing under the tutelage of an enigmatic surfer named Sando (Baker) and his mysterious wife. Spurred on by their mentor, the boys test the limits of courage and recklessness as they try to escape their mundane lives.
Zack Snyder’s ‘Guardians of Ga’hoole’ adds cast
Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush, Hugo Weaving and David Wenham will topline the voice cast of Animal Logic’s 3D animated feature, “Guardians of Ga’hoole,” distributor Roadshow Films said Wednesday. The big-budget fantasy film, in production in Sydney and directed by Zack Snyder, also will feature the voices of Aussie actors Emily Barclay, Abbie Cornish, Emilie de Ravin, Ryan Kwanten and Jay Laga’aia, as well as English actors Miriam Margolyes, Helen Mirren and Jim Sturgess. The film follows Soren, a young owl enthralled by his father’s epic stories of the Guardians of Ga’Hoole, a mythic band of winged warriors who had fought a great battle to save all of owlkind from the evil Pure Ones.
Richard Linklater on THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT, His Spiritual Sequel to DAZED AND CONFUSED
earlier today when I sat down with Linklater to talk about his new film Me and Orson Welles, we discussed what happened to That’s What I’m Talking About and he told me a lot more about the film and what really happened. The good news: it’s still a project he really wants to do and he has a plan to make it happen! Watch what he had to say after the jump.
Universal circles Rinsch for ‘47 Ronin’
Director in advance talks for Keanu Reeves starrer
Universal Pictures is near a deal with Carl Erik Rinsch to make his feature directing debut on “47 Ronin,” the epic period samurai swordsmen tale that will star Keanu Reeves. Actioner “47 Ronin” tells the famous fact-based story of a band of samurai swordsmen who avenge the death of their master in 18th century Japan. The Chris Morgan (“Wanted”) script was tailored so that the half-Asian Reeves can play one of the swordsmen. The picture mixes the fantastical elements of films like “The Lord of the Rings” with battle scenes of the sort found in “Gladiator” and “300.”
Screenwriting duo tackles ‘Drake Fortune’
Donnelly, Oppenheimer replace Kyle Ward
Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer have been given the keys to “Uncharted: Drake Fortune.” Columbia has tapped the screenwriting duo to pen the adaptation of the video game, which would be produced by Avi Arad, Charles Roven, Ari Arad and Alex Gartner. “Uncharted” follows a treasure hunter named Nate Drake, a descendent of explorer Sir Francis Drake who believes he has learned the whereabouts of El Dorado, the fabled South American golden city, from a cursed golden statue. The search becomes competitive when a rival hunter joins the fray, then is ratcheted up several notches when creatures — actually mutated descendants of Spaniards and Nazis — begin attacking those hoping to learn the treasure’s true secrets.
Joshua Jackson’s captain of ‘UFO’
‘Fringe’ actor set for adaptation of Brit TV series
“Fringe” star Joshua Jackson will topline “UFO,” the feature film version of the British TV series that will be directed by visual effects wiz Matthew Gratzner. Jackson will star as Paul Foster, a test pilot who joins S.H.A.D.O. (Supreme Headquarters Alien Defense Organization), a covert org built under a Hollywood studio that defends Earth against a race of aliens who have been abducting humans and using the body parts. The series was a cult hit in the ’70s.
‘Howling’ hunts for new audiences
Werewolf franchise gets a re-launch
Indie producers Joel Kastelberg and Moonstone Entertainment’s Etchie Stroh are re-launching the werewolf franchise as “The Howling: Reborn.” Former studio marketing exec Joe Nimziki, who worked at New Line, MGM and Sony, will make his feature directorial debut from his own script.
New movie mixes Edgar Allan Poe and ‘torture porn’
An upcoming film called The Raven posits a story about what would happen if Poe were faced with the very murders he wrote about. In the movie, at the end of Poe’s life, a serial killer challenges him to solve a series of killings inspired by Poe’s fiction. Director James McTeigue (V for Vendetta, Ninja Assassin) revealed some of the classic Poe stories that provide inspiration for his upcoming movie.
Babylon 5 creator reboots a sci-fi classic … and a sequel?
J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of TV’s Babylon 5, is now drafting a screenplay for a new movie version of the classic 1956 sci-fi movie Forbidden Planet, and he told us that the reboot will remain faithful to the original while adding more backstory and leaving room for a sequel. Straczynski says not to worry. “There’s a little more action, but it’s still a strong character piece, because it’s based on The Tempest and the idea of a father whose daughter is being courted by, in the original play, sailors that are washed up on shore.”
The Cutting Room Floor
- We’ve got big spoilers for Star Trek 2!
- 7-Eleven Promo for ‘Sherlock Holmes’ Is Ingenious
- Bollywood star Akshay Kumar to star in ‘Tees Maar Khan’
- Sweden rethinks ‘Twilight: New Moon’ rating
- ‘2012′ makes splash in India
- Is Dustin Hoffman out of ‘Little Fockers’?
- Richard Linklater on his 13yr Ethan Hawke & Patricia Arquette Project
- Optimum nabs Huda’s ‘Comedown’ urban horror pic
- Brett Ratner re-edits Reliance’s ‘Kites’ for English-language version
- Eddie Murphy: Trading places and talking to animals, redux?
- Justin Theroux Tapped to pen script for ‘Space Invader’
- ‘Rome’ & ‘Call of Duty’ movies on!
- Top Class Editors Called In To Rework ‘The Wolfman’
- Filmmaker Krishna Shah sets ‘Mother: The Indira Gandhi Story’ pic
- Cast Of Star Trek Talk The Sequel & Khan, Avatar, Green Lantern, Tron: Legacy, Lost, Flash Forward, Fringe, Priest, The Losers And More!
- Eric Dane star joins Screen Gems musical ‘Burlesque’
- Bradley Cooper and Sam Worthington Come Aboard The Texas Killing Fields
- CBS Films hooks up with Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group
- Paladin handles civil rights drama ‘Blood Done Sign My Name’
- Jennifer Hudson to star as former wife of Nelson Mandela in ‘Winnie’
- Peter Jackson says THE LOVELY BONES test audience Demanded more Violence
- Uma Thurman to star opposite Robert Pattinson in ‘Bel Ami’
- T.J. Miller Cast in ‘Yogi Bear’
- Katherine Brooks set to direct biopic of jockey Julie Krone
- Emily Watson joins David Wenham, Hugo Weaving in ‘Oranges and Sunshine’
- ‘New Moon’ director Chris Weitz to direct ‘The Gardener’
- Moseley, Mos Def Join ‘Night of the Living Dead: Origins 3D’ Cast
- ‘Ninja Assassin’ director James McTeigue talks
- Hugh Jackman to star in ‘Real Steel’
- Tommy Lee Jones exits ‘Lincoln Lawyer’
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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