It will be no surprise when Twilight Saga’s New Moon will be #1 at the Boxoffice this weekend already setting records in Fanadango online ticket pre-order sales, but early reports are now saying that a new Midnight Release record has been set, toppling the previous record held by Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince earlier this year.
Two people close to the picture said the exact gross, which is still being calculated by Summit Entertainment, could be as high as $26 million.
Update (10:45 AM): Summit’s official estimate for midnight ticket sales is $26.27 million. Its official estimate for the gross of the original “Twilight” last night is $1.3 million.
The craze seems to have blossomed since the first film came out, enforcing that even though Twilight novels were already a hit, that the feature film put it on the map dragging in droves of new fans. Fans apparently eager to catch the new installment of the insanely popular franchise.
Reveiws are rolling in positive for the movie, and I expect there will be records set this weekend.
Among the very last of the casting announcements for Thor, the Guardian of Asgard has finally found an actor. Idris Elba (RocknRolla, The Office) will be Heimdall!
Elba will play Heimdall, the guardian of Asgard, who stands on the BiFrost Bridge ready to defend the city from intruders.
He joins a cast that includes Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, Jaimie Alexander, Colm Feore, Samuel L. Jackson, Stellan Skarsgard, Stuart Townsend, Ray Stevenson and Tadanobu Asano.
I like this casting. I find Idris to be uniquely intimidating and has a great presence. He will do fine with the role.
How big a role the gatekeeper will play is yet to be seen, but I am sure he will own it.
It was only a matter of time before the 3D Craze adpoted the old title trends like Jaws 3-D to bring out a third film, and make sure it was in 3D just for the play on words alone.
And the latest film to hop on that bandwagon? Jackass. Because clearly you needed to see that in 3D.
Bam Margera, one of the more popular and successful members of the group, revealed to the Finish magazine Iltalehti in September that the next film is a go, and will begin shooting in January 2010 (he apparently confirmed this on his own radio station, but there is no source cited.) Even more interesting is the prospect that the movie may filmed in 3D. /Film did some research and uncovered that the domain “jackass3d.com” (curently inaccessible) is owned by Paramount Pictures, the distributor of the film.
I find the Jackass films to be offensive. Not in what they do, because any moron can take a baseball bat to your junk or stick a leech to your eye, or offer you a shotglass full of donkey semen.
I find it offensive that this pathetic display of personal abuse that is below even the mentality of surfing YouTube to find underage girls cam dancing in skimpy outfits. But that this qualifies as a “feature film” event gives me little hope for the future. This is the world my children get to live in. Sigh.
But I can also see how this cash cow needs to be milked and someone is going to get fat on the profits these films make. The production consists of little more than a camcorder and a group of people stupid enough to do stupid shit. Zinger. There’s your multimillion dollar franchise right there.
It costs next to nothing to make. Next to no brain cells to write. And promises big returns as the mindless masses line up to see a man street luge in a shopping cart.
Looks like Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo will be once again reprising their roles as Clark and Ellen Griswold from the Vacation films, but not in the way I was hoping.
News of a new Vacation film following a grown up Rusty Griswold and his family brought hopes that we might see a cameo from his parents, but this time Clark and Ellen will star in a line of commercials for a Vacation Rentals company that will start with a featured Superbowl Sunday ad.
The Griswolds will be reuniting insead for an advertising campaign to be launched during the 2010 Superbowl. The television spot is for HomeAway vacation rentals (a natural fit) and according to US Weekly, will also feature an exact replica of the film’s iconic Wagon Queen Family Truckster.
I love the Vacation films, and while it will be great to see the Griswolds again, I am more interested in seeing the new generation bring the comedy stylings of Vacation back to the big screen with Rusty’s family.
But it will still be good to see Clark and Ellen again, if only briefly.
Twitter is a wonderful tool that I am getting used to. It gives me the snippets of information I want from friends and celebs that I want to follow in 140 characters or less! Its like reading headlines.
Well some news on the Marvel front has come out first via Twitter, starting with news from Jon Favreau that Robert Downey Jr’s Sherlock Holmes might be the place to be to see the first Iron Man 2 Trailer.
And while they are at that, the internal buzz about Thor is reaching a fever pitch with many people involved tweeting their excitement:
The big Thor discussion was kicked off today by Marvel’s editor-in-chief Joe Quesada – @JoeQuesada:
“I could listen to Branagh talk about Thor all day long. Cast is in place, sets are being built and screenplay is brilliant. Marveldom rules!”
Then comic book author Brian Michael Bendis – @BRIANMBENDIS – replied with the following as well:
“Broadcasting live from marvel west. Thor movie meeting with Ken branagh was over the top amazing. Visited the sets! I was in Odin’s chamber!”
“U should get in line for the Thor movie today. Just saying.”
While I expect there to be a certain amount of pumping from executives and studios involved, this lines up with the rest of the news we are hearing. Solid cast, confident filming schedule and nothing but good news that almost sounds like the running start Iron Man had when we couldn’t find fault in that either.
Dwayne Johnson is treading down a path I wish he wasn’t. I didn’t mind him in a few family friendly candy flicks. My kids love him. Hell, I love him. But I wonder where the balance is.
His newest flick takes Dwayne to the world of Hockey, where traditionally lost teeth are a stereotype and his character is a tough bruiser who has earned the nickname Tooth Fairy. When he crosses the line and violates a child’s innocence he is sentenced to spend time as the real Tooth Fairy.
If this sounds suspiciously like the plot of Tim Allen’s Santa Clause, I thought so too. Well it seems the director of Santa Clause 3 will be in charge of this mythical figure’s job replacement. While I didn’t like the third Santa Clause as much as the first two, there was a certain charm to the series that I hope Michael Lembeck can bring to this one too.
Despite its similarities, it doesn’t look like this will be tied to the Santa Clause franchise but maybe we can pretend that Roy, the Molinator just needed a vacation and Johnson is filling in.
After this I hope that Johnson signs on with something meatier and asskickier.
One of the quiet stars of Iron Man was Paul Bettany supplying the voice of Stark’s computerized manservant Jarvis. So quiet that Bettany himself actually forgot about his involvement.
“I was on the set of Legion. It was the weekend after Iron Man opened, and some of the crew came in and were like, ‘Hey, I was listening to Iron Man. You’re in Iron Man, right?’ ‘No, I’m not.’ And they said, ‘Well, it sounds like you.’ And then I went, ‘Oh, wait! I am!,’” Bettany recalled with a laugh.”
The reason Bettany forgot about his part in the film was because he was added at the last minute, and the recording was only an hour worth of work.
“I got rung up. The director [Jon Favreau], who I know and have worked with as actors [in Wimbledon], said, ‘Do you wanna do this thing?’ ‘Yeah, sure. F*** it. I’ll do Iron Man.’ I went in. He’s a very funny human being, obviously, and I laughed my ass off for about an hour. Literally said a couple of lines, went downstairs, got in a cab and went home.”
And it looks like history might repeat itself. If Bettany is going to supply his voice for Iron Man 2, it will once again be a last minute.
I’d like to hear him in it again, and there is plenty of time to add his lines. Its a small part, but it is something that would offer consistency.
Uwe Boll is getting his name back in the media after a little break from the Boll overkill. And now he is going to perform miracles. It isn’t his promise to make a good movie, he always thinks he is doing that and is not shy to talk about it.
He is creating life out of nothing. If I am not mistaken Bloodrayne is the only Boll video game film to get a sequel – Because there was a second game. And now where there is no third game to base another film on, Boll is just going to run with it anyways!
The simplest answer is, Uwe Boll. Maybe it’s the fact that the original Rayne, Kristanna Loken is coming back. My question arises again, why? There’s no third game so there’s not a plot, of course you can come up with one, but Boll isn’t just anyone.
While Kirstanna Loken is easy on the eyes and will be returning to the skimpy outfits and gratuitous violence.
The subtitle Warhammer is another game franchise, so the title Bloodrayne 3: Warhammer offers some confusion but it might also have to do with the lack of a plot so we have no clue what Warhammer might mean.
But is it a Video Game adaptation if its not based on an existing game but still has the same character?
Brad Pitt is thirsty for an Oscar, but he may not get it with this proposed sci-fi actioner, as they tend not to be Oscar bait. But I still want to see him do it!
Pitt is a great action star, and now he may potentially star in a video game adaptation of Dark Void.
Reliance BIG Entertainment, is going to take on the alien world, as it has attained the feature film rights to Capcom’s third person shooter, DARK VOID. The film is being developed as a possible starring vehicle for Pitt.
The video game centers on a cargo pilot who is transported to an alternate reality after crashing in the Bermuda Triangle. He soon finds himself behind hunted by an alien race. Along with a small band of humans, he tries to fend off the alien threat with a cavalcade of weapons and things that go boom.
I have never played the game, so I am unfamiliar with the gameplay, however the plot does sound delicious for an action flick and Pitt is good at doing action, so why the hell not.
I know the mantra is that all video game movies are bad. But no one took comic book movies seriously either, so its bound to happen one day, so I can hope. Maybe its that I am unfamiliar with the game that makes me hopeful as I am looking at the premise as I would any sci-fi action flick and not reacting knee jerk style and assuming it will suck.
Given a good script, the premise has a ton of potential. I look forward to seeing how this shapes up.
Judd Apatow films are like the collection of royal jewels. Each one beautiful in their own way, and while you might not like them all the same, they are a combined treasure desipte each unique piece standing alone.
So when talk of actually sequelling one or more of his films came round, I was cautious. And now Apatow let it spill which one has the best chance at getting a second helping.
Judd Apatow recently appeared on the Funny or Die Writer’s Room live stream (found via The Playlist) and talked ever so briefly about two sequels to movies he produced. The first is Superbad, which has had sequel talk since the day it came out. And the second is Pineapple Express, which wasn’t as big of a success as Superbad, but has also been talked about for a while. I’m down for seeing more from either, although I liked Superbad better.
“I can’t get [Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg] to make the Superbad sequel. I begged, but they don’t want to ruin it. They think it’s a gem of a movie and they don’t want a crappy second,” Apatow said. That actually makes sense, especially because it was such a great movie. And as for Pineapple Express, he seems more optimistic. “There’s a little talk about a Pineapple Express sequel if that’s your cup of tea… your bowl of smoke. You probably have a better shot of seeing that [then any Superbad 2 or any other Apatow sequel],” he said.
I kind of like how Apatow films are contained and stand all on their own. They don’t need sequels, which adds to how great and unique his films are.
But would I want to see Pineapple Express 2? When I thought they were going to have Rogen’s collide and have his Cop character from Superbad turn out to be the Twin Brother of his Summons Server self in Pineapple Express combining the two films in a supersequel, I was really curious.
I am not against sequels, provided they are good. Im not against any movie if its good. But I don’t see a reason to sequel any Apatow film. Just come up with a new idea and run with that instead. But they might movie forward with Pineapple 2 and it will rock.
It looks like we might get to meet the Little Fockers, but we will have to do it without Bernie Focker, as a dispute over the size of his role has Dustin Hoffman possibly backing out of the third installment of the franchise.
Dustin Hoffman might not return for the third installment in the Meet the Parents franchise. Entertainment Weekly is reporting a rumor that “there has been strife between Hoffman and the studio over the size of the part, the scheduling of the days on set and other difficulties.” Hoffman has agreed to appear in the film, titled Little Fockers, as part of a funny cameo near the end of the movie, but it seems like that will no longer happen. Universal declined to comment.
Now I like Dustin Hoffman, but I honestly didn’t care one bit for him in Meet the Fockers, and with Little Fockers being about the new generation of Fockers, I don’t see any need for something significant from the grandparents outside of a cameo showing them sharing the joy of the new babies birth. That is all I would have expected.
And frankly if they did bow to his request at a bigger role, it would take away from the film. Letting him walk is just fine since it looks like he was just getting a cameo anyways. Dustin is moving into that “remember him?” category and maybe that’s what he is worried about.
Back in the day I once was a Warhammer 40K geek, but I sucked at the game so I just stuck to painting the figures and putting them on display. That was my favourite part of the game was that it was so visual.
The most popular faction in the war game of the far fletched future was clearly the Space Marines, and the most elite of them was the UltraMarines. So it seems only fitting to have that be the focus and title of the upcoming Warhammer 40K movie.
Rookie director Martyn Pick has been given directorial duties for ULTRAMARINES, based on the table-top game and many subsequent books and whatnots. Screenplay is already being banged out by Dan Abnett, known in the industry for his work with Marvel and DC as well as having written a number of 40K books already, so the dude knows that stuff.
And here is a short clip of Dan Abnett talking about how encouraged he is on the direction for the Warhammer movie:
I am very interested to see how this will turn out. I worry however, that the special effects required to make this come to life will be so elaborate that this might as well have been a CG film and not the liveaction mixed proposal they are working with. And as much as I would like to see the Tau or Eldar, the classic pairing in the 40K world has always been the Space Marines vs the Orks.
I am happy to hear they hired a fan favourite writer that really knows his stuff in the 40K world.
There is this Urban Legend that Eddie Murphy’s popularity in the 80s died off when he made fun of Bill Cosby in his standup and felt the wrath of the father figure of the media and was discretely driven out of Hollywood. But then Murphy made his subtle return and became a face again.
But his efforts to make films his kids could watch has made him into the Carrot Top of comedy. He might get a brief laugh out of you here and there, but nothing to build a film around.
But with a rumoured Beverly Hills Cop 4 being written we may just yet see they Eddie Murphy of legends. But right now Murphy is developing an R Rated comedy with talking animals that he may star in. Now I know the title “The Misadventures of Fluffy” sounds like its another Doctor Dolittle, but it is slated to be rated R.
Fluffy is, at the moment, developing as an R-rated comedy, again for Paramount. Sam Pitman and Adam Cole-Kelly (behind Tyler Perry’s mooted The Diversification of Noah Miller) are currently writing the script, which is reportedly a social buddy-comedy a la Trading Places, about a journey across New York. Featuring talking animals.
Ok, the idea for the film sounds lame, but I am so desperate to see Eddie Murphy save his reputation and star in something edgier than Daddy Day Care, that I am going to cling to the one morsel in this news.
Eddie Murphy in a Rated R Film.
Thats all I have right now, and I am going with it.
It seems the only consistant rumour about Spiderman 4 is that Black Cat is going to be in it, but everyone is quick to jump on the rumours as to who is being cast in the busty vixen’s role.
It started with Rachel McAdams and Romola Garai. Then we heard briefly it was Julia Styles.
Now it seems that Anne Hathaway is joining the club of wild speculation.
Now comes word from DeadlineHollywood that Anne Hathaway (Get Smart) has been approached to star in the fourth installment. She is wanted for a starring role, but won’t replace Kirsten Dunst. The site has been pretty accurate in the past, which makes me believe that Hathaway will likely end up in the movie.
Now don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Anne Hathaway, but I just can’t picture her as Black Cat.
Personally I would love to see the McAdams rumour have been the truth. And while I don’t want them to pick a Black Cat because of breast size, Hathaway does have what it takes in that department. And after seeing the above picture, I have a better grasp of Hathaway as a leather clad vixen.
So while Sam Raimi interviews every female actor in Hollywood, making the rumour mill work in overtime, Who would be your pick? One of the rumoured choices, or someone else altogether?
I have been looking forward to seeing The Wolfman for a while now. Originally I didn’t care much, but as I see and hear more and more about it, I want to see the final product.
However the “final” product is not happening just yet as those in charge have taken a look at the cut and had to admit it was a mess. So Editors Mark Goldblatt and Walter Murch have been called in to give it a different cut.
Emergency editors Mark Goldblatt and Walter Murch have been brought on board to fix the meandering mess of a movie is the final nail in the coffin for Universal’s tentpole.
Actually, the final nail was when the project was delayed for a third time. This latest news, which has happened after several expensive re-shoots, re-cut trailers and the letting go of a high-wage composer who had provided a whole complete score and paying for a completely new one from another guy, well it feels like it’s an afterthought at the wake.
I am of two minds when it comes to news of this type.
When I hear that someone has been fired from a film, or someone else has been brought in to “fix” the film, my first instict is the reaction above. The film is in trouble.
But in reality once sanity returns, you realize that in fact this might be a bullet dodged. Perhaps they recognized that something just wasn’t working. The Score, an actor, bad trailer, poster, whatever. And bringing someone in to fix it might do just that.
Fix it.
Of course the road to hell is paved with good intentions and it might be able to be saved.
I am still looking forward to it, whenever it finally does come out.
While I am surprised that with Star Trek already being released on Blu and DVD, we are not already hearing news that Star Trek 2 is not already filming. A lot of that has to do with those in charge choosing to take his time with the inevitable sequel, which even Abrams admits he wont commit to directing until the script is finished.
Well before the first step is taken on the continuing journey of the Starship Enterprise, wild speculation has already said “they” are eyeing Nestor Carbonell for Khan Noonien Singh, the role made famous by Ricardo Montalban in Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan.
Nestor Carbonell, who plays Richard Alpert on the J.J. Abrams-executive produced ABC series “Lost.”
Now, before you go shouting Nestor is KHAAAN! There are way too many variables right now, including the fact that the Khan character may not even be in the sequel. We just know that if they started filming today, he would be their man.
Really? They know this for sure? There isn’t even a script, and this rumour seems to say that “they” have a favourite for the role that “they” should know is even in consideration. This is just blind “I think this person would be a great Khan” speculation.
I am of the camp that revisiting Khan would be a terrible mistake. They went to such great lengths to recreate Star Trek for a new generation without offending the remnant of fans still clinging on and building a whole new fanbase. That alone was a massive effort carefully scripted.
So why go back to repeat old stuff. Give us new stories. Leave Khan alone. Who knows if this Kirk and this timeline will ever have the two meet or never will the cryogenically frozen super soldier from the Eugenics war of Earth’s history ever be found and revived at all.
Nothing that happened in the original series has happened yet for these characters, and there is no reason for them to. Keep moving FORWARD without dwelling on the past. The slate is clean, so lets not soil it.
Speculating that Nestor would play a good Khan is fun to play around with, but I hope the character never comes to light again.
Sean Connery is a missed presence in the world of film, but after his long and majestic career, he bowed out to enjoy the spoils of his efforts in retirement. Can’t say I blame the guy.
But if League of Extraordinary Gentleman was your last film, you might want to break the retirement oath just once to kind of cleanse that palette.
And it looks like Connery’s triumphant return will only be a half return has he sets his voice to an animated film called Sir Billi
Connery has been absent from the scene for about half a decade, even turning down a chance to be in Indiana Jones and the Legend of the Crystal Skull. But now he’s back, kind of. The Hollywood Reporter says Connery will executive produce and supply his often imitated voice to the animated film Sir Billi.
It’s an adaptation of a 2006 short film (which Connery also voiced), with 007 playing “a retired, skateboarding veterinarian who lives in a remote Scottish village and who spearheads the rescue of an illegal fugitive who also happens to be a beaver.”
Not to say that Connery will be making a smash hit with this, but his return alone has me curious about the character. A skateboarding vet is the last think I would associate his unique voice to, but we will have to wait and see.
Will he get the itch again and do a film or two for kicks? Who knows. This might just be his last last performance in film!
Uwe Boll has such potential to put out a major hit simply because the expectation with ANY film he does is that it will be garbage.
But living up to his stereotype of adapting video games and sucking at it, he brings us Far Cry:
I liked the game enough. It wasn’t “great” but it was interesting and satisfying in that “shoot the badguys just to watch them die” kind of way. But keeping up with expectations, this trailer is not impressing me at all and surely not making me want to see a Far Cry movie.
With super hotties Julia Voth, Erin Cummings and Ameríca Olivo just sexing up the screen in Bitch Slap, you will finally get a chance to catch the movie at a theater near you.
Well that is if you happen to be near or in one of the cities that the January 8th limited Theatrical release is being played at.
If you haven’t heard of this film, I welcome you as a new reader here. We have been raving about this since before John Campea lured two of its stars (Voth and cummings) to be in his own film The Anniversary.
Check out the trailer because its just too fun not to.
Even though John is biased, simply by standing within 10 feet of these staggering women, I myself have not been privy to meeting them and therefore remain a critical bystander who is just ravingly jonesed about this film.
It will be no surprise when Twilight Saga’s New Moon will be #1 at the Boxoffice this weekend already setting records in Fanadango online ticket pre-order sales, but early reports are now saying that a new Midnight Release record has been set, toppling the previous record held by Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince earlier this year.
Among the very last of the casting announcements for Thor, the Guardian of Asgard has finally found an actor. Idris Elba (RocknRolla, The Office) will be Heimdall!
It was only a matter of time before the 3D Craze adpoted the old title trends like Jaws 3-D to bring out a third film, and make sure it was in 3D just for the play on words alone.
Looks like Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo will be once again reprising their roles as Clark and Ellen Griswold from the Vacation films, but not in the way I was hoping.
Twitter is a wonderful tool that I am getting used to. It gives me the snippets of information I want from friends and celebs that I want to follow in 140 characters or less! Its like reading headlines.
Dwayne Johnson is treading down a path I wish he wasn’t. I didn’t mind him in a few family friendly candy flicks. My kids love him. Hell, I love him. But I wonder where the balance is. 
One of the quiet stars of Iron Man was Paul Bettany supplying the voice of Stark’s computerized manservant Jarvis. So quiet that Bettany himself actually forgot about his involvement.
Uwe Boll is getting his name back in the media after a little break from the Boll overkill. And now he is going to perform miracles. It isn’t his promise to make a good movie, he always thinks he is doing that and is not shy to talk about it.
Brad Pitt is thirsty for an Oscar, but he may not get it with this proposed sci-fi actioner, as they tend not to be Oscar bait. But I still want to see him do it!
Judd Apatow films are like the collection of royal jewels. Each one beautiful in their own way, and while you might not like them all the same, they are a combined treasure desipte each unique piece standing alone.
It looks like we might get to meet the Little Fockers, but we will have to do it without Bernie Focker, as a dispute over the size of his role has Dustin Hoffman possibly backing out of the third installment of the franchise.
Back in the day I once was a Warhammer 40K geek, but I sucked at the game so I just stuck to painting the figures and putting them on display. That was my favourite part of the game was that it was so visual. 
There is this Urban Legend that Eddie Murphy’s popularity in the 80s died off when he made fun of Bill Cosby in his standup and felt the wrath of the father figure of the media and was discretely driven out of Hollywood. But then Murphy made his subtle return and became a face again. 
It seems the only consistant rumour about Spiderman 4 is that Black Cat is going to be in it, but everyone is quick to jump on the rumours as to who is being cast in the busty vixen’s role.
I have been looking forward to seeing The Wolfman for a while now. Originally I didn’t care much, but as I see and hear more and more about it, I want to see the final product. 
While I am surprised that with Star Trek already being released on Blu and DVD, we are not already hearing news that Star Trek 2 is not already filming. A lot of that has to do with those in charge choosing to take his time with the inevitable sequel, which even Abrams admits he wont commit to directing until the script is finished.
Sean Connery is a missed presence in the world of film, but after his long and majestic career, he bowed out to enjoy the spoils of his efforts in retirement. Can’t say I blame the guy.
A new Trailer has come out for the musical film Nine, staring Marion Cotillard, Nicole Kidman, Kate Hudson, sophia Lauren, Judi Dench and Fergie.
Uwe Boll has such potential to put out a major hit simply because the expectation with ANY film he does is that it will be garbage.
With super hotties Julia Voth, Erin Cummings and Ameríca Olivo just sexing up the screen in Bitch Slap, you will finally get a chance to catch the movie at a theater near you.
