Screen Rant » alice in wonderland

Poster Friday: Avatar, Kick-Ass, Lost, Salt & More!

Rob Keyes — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 05:59:09 +0000

Happy Friday everyone!

We missed last week due to the launch of our sister site, GameRant.com and the fact that there was quite a few less one-sheets than normal so instead, I’ve combined them all from the last two weeks into this edition of Poster Friday.

Screen Rant’s wall this week now includes new one-sheets for Avatar, Precious, Crazy on the Outside, Daybreakers, Lost, Salt, Alice in Wonderland, Crazy Heart, Kick-Ass, The Yellow Handkerchief, Caprica, All About Evil, The Wolfman, Ong Bak 3, The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, From Paris with Love and Wonderful World.

In addition to that we have some neat stylistic posters for some popular television shows.

Let’s get to it.

To start, here are a pair of French posters for Avatar, both of these we had lesser quality early looks at before, but now we have the full versions.

http://screenrant.com/wp-admin/media-new.php

Source: Latino Review, /Film

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Alice in Wonderland: Meet The Caterpillar

Rob Frappier — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:02:22 +0000

When the first images of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland hit the web a few months ago, fans of the famously quirky director were ecstatic. From the Red Queen’s heart-shaped head to the Mad Hatter’s crazy Carrot Top hair, the characters were dark and bright at the same time in a way that was quintessentially Burton. As awesome as the first images were, however, fans have still been waiting to see what a few more characters looked like, namely, the hookah-smoking Caterpillar voiced by Alan Rickman.

Luckily, we now have our first look at the Caterpillar thanks to /Film. The image (found below) comes from a magazine scan. While the image is somewhat grainy, I’m sure we won’t have to wait long before we see a better version (we’ll update you). The second picture shows the whole two-page scan.

After hearing Alan Rickman talk about his character, it’s good to finally see him. While the Cheshire Cat and the Mad Hatter seem to get all the love from Alice in Wonderland fans, I’ve always held a personal fondness for the Caterpillar. I’m excited to see what Rickman can do with the character. If the grainy magazine scan doesn’t satiate your thirst for Alice in Wonderland though, don’t worry, we have one more thing to show. Yesterday, Disney released the latest poster for the film on the Mad Hatter’s official Facebook Fan Page. The poster doesn’t really show anything we haven’t already seen, but it’s still nice to look at. Check it out below.

(click image for larger size)

Without a doubt, Alice in Wonderland is one of the most anticipated films of 2010. In retrospect, combining Burton’s unique visual aesthetic with Lewis Carroll’s classic story was a no-brainer. Adding a cast of well-liked and capable actors (including Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen, Anne Hathaway as the White Queen, and the aforementioned Alan Rickman as the Caterpillar) is just the cherry on top of a delectably psychadelic sundae.

What do you think of the first look at Alan Rickman’s Caterpillar and the latest poster? Is everyone as excited as I am to see this movie?

Alice in Wonderland hits theaters on March 5th, 2010.

Source: /Film and Facebook

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Scream Awards 2009: A Report From Front Row Center

Brian Kettler — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:42:51 +0000

This past Saturday, October 17th, I attended my second year of Spike TV’s annual Scream Awards. Not only did I attend, but I had been hand-picked by the casting director to sit front row center for the show! As a fan-focused awards show, it’s much more enjoyable being seated amongst JJ Abrams, Karl Urban, Elijah Wood and Woody Harrelson. My favorite personal surprise of the evening came when the Best Science Fiction Actress nominees were being announced. I cheered (maybe a little too loudly for my girlfriend’s tastes) for Eliza Dushku when her name was announced, only to discover she was sitting right in front of me. She turned around and flashed me her lovely smile. Good thing my girlfriend isn’t the overly-jealous type.

As for the show itself, it seems as though the winners have already been leaked online, and the best surprises have been revealed, even on Spike’s own website. So keep in mind there be spoilers here.

Starting off the show was the “Most Anticipated Movie” award. I’m sure everyone there was utterly surprised by the winner. After a black and white checkerboard “red” carpet, and a Wonderland-esqe stage design, who would have guessed it would be Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland?

In all seriousness though, having Johnny Depp there was very cool. After his extremely brief appearance at the San Diego Comic Con panel this summer, I half-expected that to be his only appearance for this show. Thankfully I was wrong and he came back onstage one more time to present the Rock Immortal award to Keith Richards. Johnny was very gracious on his way up to the small center stage, shaking hands with many of us in the pit next to the stage. Keith Richards was very spry on stage, bounding up the steps to receive his award from his former on-screen “son.” Johnny reiterated the old axiom that after the End of the World, “all that will be left are cockroaches… and Keith Richards”. Take that, Nancy Reagan!

Megan Fox, as I’m sure you all have already heard around the net, was apparently trying to smooth things over with Michael Bay. Here’s her speech:

“I would like to take this moment to actually say something genuine. There have been a lot of false reports concerning how I feel about this movie and I just want to be very clear that I’ve always felt that I am a very ordinary part of an extraordinary film. These movies took me out of obscurity and they gave me a career and I am completely grateful to everyone involved with this franchise. I don’t know why you guys keep voting for me for these things. I don’t feel like I deserve them but thank you and I love you so much, thank you.”

At first, it seemed as though she was setting us up for a SNL-style gag. I thought we’d see her then jokingly refer to Jennifer’s Body, since she never once uttered the names Transformers or Michael Bay. But then, after the disappointing box-office on Jennifer’s Body, it’s no surprise she wants to be a part of Transformers 3. Her speech did sound genuine, it just sounded odd not hearing either name.

Vampires and Werewolves were very well represented this year, from stand-out series True Blood, to the new movie Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant. But judging by the cheers, it was Twilight that had the best reception. Representing the franchise was Taylor Lautner, star of the upcoming The Twilight Saga: New Moon. The footage shown to us was more behind-the-scenes than actual movie footage. After Depp and Lautner, my girlfriend had all but forgotten my earlier Dushku encounter.

Harrison Ford presented the Best Director award to JJ Abrams. It would be exceedingly cool to see these two Hollywood titans do a project together. I wonder if having Ford in the next Star Trek movie would cause some kind of mass nerd head-explosions? William Shatner was also present at the show. He practically begged JJ to be in the next movie. I would have given anything to have been a fly on the wall of that green room! Just imagining Shatner and Ford having drinks and talking shop, I’m reminded of a line from Free Enterprise. When the young character in that movie complains that a kid at school “said that Han Solo was cooler than Captain Kirk”, Shatner, playing himself, remarked “kick the little f&@ker’s @$$”. Seriously though, it would be pretty mind-blowing to see Ford play a Trek villain.

Click to continue reading “Scream Awards 2009: A Report From Front Row Center “

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The Hottest Things To Come Out Of Comic-Con

Vic Holtreman — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 22:46:07 +0000

Comic-Con seems like old news (even though it only ended a week ago), but as a final note we thought we’d show you what you guys ended up picking as the hottest things to come out of the 4 day event. There was certainly a lot of competition for fan attention, but as usual there are always a few things that end up grabbing the limelight.

We ran a poll asking you to pick what you thought were the three hottest things to come out of this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. Now the total numbers add up to more than 100% because with so much to choose from we allowed people to pick their top 3 items.

Results after the jump.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Once again (as happened two years ago) the winner by far is Iron Man, with 60% of voters selecting that as one of their top 3 events at the Con. Avatar came in second with a very respectable 38%, especially considering how little info there has been about the film up until footage was shown in San Diego.

From there we have the upcoming Sci-Fi film District 9 and the Johnny Depp-starring Tim Burton version of Alice in Wonderland pretty much tied for 3rd. Tron 2 (now known as Tron Legacy) was very close to those films with 18%.

I guess we don’t have as many Twilight fans here on the site as I thought, since New Moon only garnered a 15% rating.

One thing that caught me off guard at first, but in hindsight makes sense, is the fact that Kick-Ass scored near the bottom of the pack. Based on the reaction to the footage from those present, I would put that in the top 3 for sure, perhaps even above Avatar. As of Comic-Con Kick-Ass did not yet have a distribution deal, but based on the reaction there I would think this should not remain the case for long. I think if they really wanted to get the word out on the film they should release at least some of the footage online. Of course it would have to be age-restricted as it was definitely R-rated footage, but I think people would eat it up big time.

I’d have to say the same about Where the Wild Things Are: The audience was wildly enthusiastic about what they saw, but at least here on Screen Rant, that hasn’t translated to much excitement. Then again our readers do skew more towards the superhero/sci-fi side of things – however that doesn’t explain why the Tim Burton-produced 9 came out at the bottom of our pile… Other than there just so many heavy hitters it was up against in the voting.

Anyway, there you have it – as a group, that’s what you folks are most interested in seeing in the upcoming months!

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Tim Burton Unveils ‘Alice in Wonderland’ Footage & Surprise Guest!

Rob Keyes — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 03:18:54 +0000

Making his first panel appearance ever at Comic-Con, Tim Burton came on stage to show the few thousand of us in attendance the first footage of his unique take on Alice in Wonderland.

His introduction was met with strong applause and he came out with a big smile, waving to the crowd. It was good times for all!

Alice in Wonderland was the second out of three segments of Disney’s 3-D presentation at Comic-Con this morning to help kick off the start of major events at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. Patton Oswalt did a great job of interviewing Burton and they had a pretty humorous discussion.

In a jokingly manner in response to one of Oswalt’s questions about how he came up with this idea, Burton explained that they decided to make this film because he hadn’t done one with Johnny Depp where he has red hair – He says they “scalped Carrot Top and took his hair.”

They started by talking about the film and showing some of the images that we’ve seen already online in recent weeks but they also showed a new one of The Cheshire Cat which Burton said “confirms his hatred of cats.” This generated laughter amongst the crowd followed by applause when he mentioned that The Cheshire Cat is voiced by Stephen Fry.

Next up, we finally got to the good stuff when Oswalt and Burton introduced the exclusive clip.

It was pretty awesome and although short it length, for the first time, I was excited to see this film. The 3-D worked very well for the footage we were shown as well.

Host Oswalt then continued to press over and over again to see if Burton had more goodies to show us and Burton kept responding that what we say was all he had and emphasized that there’s still so much work to be done. So, instead, they showed the clip a second time.

At this point, I expected they were tricking us and were going to show us something different. They didn’t but I was still happy to get a second chance to see the clip to focus on some of the details you miss the first time through.

Following this, they moved on to the Q&A session which unfortunately was very weak and full of people praising Burton shamelessly instead of asking interesting questions. The one good thing that came from this was someone asking him if he’d direct a Harry Potter film to which he responded, that’s already finishing up now but if they’d make a spinoff about Harry’s Owl, he’d be all over that.

After this, Oswalt again pressed the creative director/writer/producer if he had brought anything else to show us and Burton said that he did have this imaginary friend… and… that’s when Johnny Depp walked out on stage!

The place went nuts with half of the people standing to cheer and snap a photo of the well-dressed icon. He said a few words then left, and for the third time we watched the Alice in Wonderland trailer.

Fans go nuts over Depp’s surprise appearance [Click to Enlarge]

It was a strong presentation marked with a great trailer and a great surprise appearance by Depp. Burton really converted me with this footage and now this film is something I will look for and something you should too.

Follow me on Twitter @rob_keyes for live updates from San Diego Comic-Con!

The talented cast of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland includes Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Anne Hathaway, Michael Sheen, Stephen Fry, Crispin Glover and Christopher Lee among others

Alice in Wonderland opens March 5, 2010.

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Alice In Wonderland Teaser Trailer Online! (Plus New Posters)

Ross Miller — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 20:46:14 +0000

Over the last few weeks we’ve had various looks at Tim Burton’s upcoming Alice in Wonderland adaptation, from images of the specific characters to concept art for the settings and so forth. To add to that, we’ve also been teased by Burton himself that the teaser (or “semi”) trailer was on it’s way soon, likely premiering at the 2009 San Diego Comic Con International this year.

However, it appears that the Alice in Wonderland trailer has dropped online a little earlier than allowed anticipated, as it was originally suppossed to be shown in 3D at Comic Con. We also have five new character posts for the movie for your viewing pleasure. Check it all out (while you can).

The very first ever footage from Burton’s Wonderland has just premiered online at IGN and I am relieved to say it’s every bit as good as I’ve been hoping it would be. The set design, the creatures, the colors, those classic Wonderland characters brought to life – all is just fantastic-looking. It appears that someone over at IGN has jumped the gun by posting this teaser trailer online this early, but here it is below (watch it while you can!):

Apart from the fact that Depp seems to be emulating Heath ledger’s Joker a tiny bit (with less sadistic violence, that is), he nonetheless looks fantastic in character as The Mad Hatter. Just like Burton and the Alice in Wonderland tale, Depp seems perfect for this role and this footage proves that.

Newcomer Mia Wasikowska, despite not speaking a word at all during the teaser, looks great as Alice, and overall it just looks like Burton has nailed the quirky yet dark tone the film rightfully should have (although, to be fair, Burton can do that sort of thing in his sleep).

On top of the teaser trailer, we also have five Alice in Wonderland character posters. They are basically the same as the images we’ve seen before of the film only in singular poster form, but they’re cool nonetheless (click any for larger version):

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Tim Burton To Premiere ‘Wonderland’ At Comic-Con

Ross Miller — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 20:01:21 +0000

Tim Burton has already been announced to appear at this year’s Comic-Con (for the first time in over 30 years) to promote his produced animated film, 9. However, that’s not the only thing Burton is there to promote – he’s also bringing with him the very first footage of his upcoming adaptation of Alice in Wonderland.

Joy be for Tim Burton fans!

Not only is Alice in Wonderland to have its first footage shown at the Con, but it’s being described as a “semi-trailer.” What’s that, I hear you ask? Well, let’s let Mr. Burton himself explain:

“[It's] a kind of a semi-trailer… It’s where we’re at at the moment. There’s not a lot of footage to show.”

It’s understandable that Burton wouldn’t have a full trailer for Wonderland yet, considering the movie’s still a while away and they’re not anywhere near done filming yet to be able to give us a full trailer. Not only is the point in time an issue in that they simply don’t have enough to show yet, there’s also the issue that the movie is a complicated mix of live-action, CGI and motion capture, which requires a lot of production beyond just shooting it with a camera. Burton explains:

“It’s a strange process we’re dealing with… We’re using a mix of techniques. If you picked them apart, each technique has been done before. We’re mixing them up, in a way.”

“I wish we had more footage to show… It’s a real mysterious puzzle that’s frightening and exciting at the same time.”

Burton is scheduled to appear on the 9 panel on Friday July 24th, but pre-empts that with the Wonderland footage the day before during the Disney 3-D panel. Alongside Alice in Wonderland footage will be the likes of Robert Zemeckis’ A Christmas Carol, and Tron 2 (is it a coincidence those three are all either a remake, a reimagining or a sequel?). MTV speculates that along with the Wonderland “semi-trailer,” we’ll most likely get Burton talking about the processing of making it, including collaborating with Johnny Depp for the seventh time.

For more on what Tim Burton said pre-Comic-Con, you can over to MTV Movies Blog.

Even if the Burton fan in me wants to see exactly what kind of stuff he’s come up with (at least visually) in motion with Alice in Wonderland, I’m sure anything that he shows at Comic-Con will just fuel the anticipation of the movie for me. The images we’ve seen so far have all been wonderful – I really can’t wait to see what the finished product ends up like.

What sort of footage do you think Tim Burton will be showing within this Alice in Wonderland “semi-trailer?” Are you looking forward to his take on the classic tale?

Alice in Wonderland is set to hit theatres on March 5th, 2010, in the US and on March 12th, 2010 in the UK.

Source: MTV Movies Blog

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New Alice In Wonderland Character Shots

Ross Miller — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 15:22:27 +0000

A couple of weeks ago we got our first proper look at most of the characters from Tim Burton’s upcoming Alice in Wonderland. It finally confirmed Johnny Depp’s Mad Hatter look, as well as revealing Helena Bonham Carter as The Red Queen, Anna Hathaway as The White Queen and Matt Lucas as Tweedledee & Tweedledum. Any views we’ve gotten of the titular Alice so far haven’t been very close-up.

Today we have three new character shots of The Mad Hatter, The Red Queen and, that’s right, Alice herself (being played by newcomer Mia Wasikowska). The images were originally scanned from Vanity Fair magazine and put onto Planet Disney, but thanks to the work of the good folks at /Film, we have cleaned up versions of the photos. Check out the three of them below:

(click for larger)

Even though these Alice in Wonderland images don’t give us a look at any new characters (wonder when we’ll see Stephen Fry as The Cheshire Cat, Crispin Glover as The Knave of Hearts or Alan Rickman as The Caterpillar?), it still gives us more of a look. As you can see, Alice is holding the famous White Rabbit that leads her down the hole, and as a little FYI, the rabbit is played (presumably voiced) by Michael Sheen (soon to be seen in The Twilight Saga: New Moon) – just one of the many things I’m looking forward to seeing as part of Burton’s vision.

Burton’s latest film is looking better and better all the time, in my eyes.

What do you think of these latest character shots for Alice in Wonderland? Are you looking forward to Tim Burton’s take on the classic fantasy tale?

Alice in Wonderland is slated for a release on March 5th in the US, and on March 12th in the UK, both in 2010.

Sources: /Film and Planet Disney

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Alice In Wonderland Official Site Plus Script Review

Rob Frappier — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:41:57 +0000

On Monday, we shared some great new pictures from Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. The pictures gave us our first look at Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, as well as Anne Hathaway as the White Queen and Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen – they also showed Burton’s decidedly creepy vision for the classic story.

Today, Disney released the official website for Alice In Wonderland and, well, compared to the pictures, it’s kind of a let down.

Right now, all there is the title treatment (seen above) and the Mad Hatter’s Hat (seen below). Of course, there’s a place to sign up for e-mail updates, so I’m willing to bet that the site will become more interactive in time. Being the Tim Burton fan that I am, I’ve signed up for updates and will share them as they come out.

In addition to the official website, pop culture news site CC2K has released a review of the film’s screenplay by Linda Woolverton. Without giving too much away, the script review confirms our earlier report that Burton’s Alice will not be a straight adaptation, but rather a sequel of sorts featuring Alice as a 17-year old who visited Wonderland as a child, but has since forgotten her adventures. For the full review, which is chock full of spoilers, check here.

Alice In Wonderland is currently in post-production and is scheduled to hit theaters and 3D IMAX on March 5, 2010.

Source:CC2K (via AICN) and JoBlo

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Johnny Depp Talks Wonderland, Pirates 4 & Dark Shadows

Ross Miller — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:04:52 +0000

Johnny Depp recently spoke with Collider promoting his upcoming gangster flick, Public Enemies, where he also gave some new details on his upcoming projects Alice in Wonderland, Pirates of the Caribbean 4, and the upcoming Dark Shadows adaptation. He also talked about his collaborations with director Tim Burton, and why they work well together. I know, wanted to hear about The Lone Ranger and his role as Tonto, too…

Tim Burton’s upcoming take on Alice in Wonderland is definitely one fans of both Burton and Lewis Carroll’s original story are looking forward to. Burton and Wonderland go together perfectly – it’s been a long-time easy guess that the Edward Scissorhands director would take on the classic Wonderland tale at some point in his career.

Depp was just as much of a no-brainer to play a part in Alice in Wonderland; him being cast as The Mad Hatter being utter perfection in my books. Depp spoke to Collider about the kind of research he (and Burton) did for the film, where he revealed that, “the book is the basis for everything [they're doing with the movie].” To be prepare for playing the character, Depp said there are, “little mysteries, little clues in the book that I found fascinating that were keys to at least my understanding of the Mad Hatter.”

For Alice in Wonderland, Depp also revealed he is very much on Burton’s creative boat as far as coming up with concept drawings for characters – “I made my little weird drawings and water colors and brought them to Tim [Burton] and he brought me his weird little drawings and water colors and they were not dissimilar [laughs]. You could’ve put them right together and they were pretty darn close.”

On Pirates of the Caribbean 4, Depp didn’t give much, other than saying what they’re “trying to do is just get a script in order and make sure it’s the right thing to do. If we can get a great script it’d be a ball.” As Collider points out, you can basically read that statement as the project is happening but we’re probably a long ways off from seeing it move into production.

For his next collaboration with Mr. Burton, after Alice in Wonderland, Depp spoke about the Dark Shadows adaptation, which he is excited about doing. Depp confirms that it, “is happening,” and reveals that the script is, “very, very close,” with he and Burton probably going to, “attack it next year.” He seems more enthusiastic and excited about this project than even Wonderland or even Pirates, adding that, “it’s very, very exciting… I loved the show when I was a kid… It’s like a lifelong dream for me.”

Continued on Page 2…

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Deeper Look Inside Tim Burton’s ‘Wonderland’

Kofi Outlaw — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:57:54 +0000

USA Today has posted some new character pics and concept art from Tim Burton’s upcoming Alice in Wonderland, as well as some important details about the film’s plot that fans of Wonderland should find intriguing.

If you’ve been waiting to see what Johnny Depp looks like as the Mad Hatter; what Matt Lucas (Little Britian USA) looks like as Tweedledee/Tweedledum; or how lovely and/or frightening Anne Hathaway and Helena Boham Carter look as the White and Red Queens, then your wait is at an end: welcome to Wonderland:

Wonderland: Talking Flowers and Giant Mushrooms

Alice meets twins Tweedledee & Tweedledum

The Mad Hatter (Depp), Red Queen (Carter) & White Queen (Hathaway)

Matt Lucas as Tweedledee & Tweedledum

For bigger versions of the concept art pics, go here. For larger versions of the character pics, go here. UPDATE: For a larger pic of the Tweedle Twins, go here.

Interestingly enough, the USA Today article confirms the many early reports that Burton’s Alice In Wonderland is not just a remake, but rather a sequel of sorts to Lewis Carroll’s tale of Alice’s excellent adventure. In this new version, now seventeen-year old Alice (Mia Wasikowska) receives a marriage proposal which sends her off and running, only to tumble back down the rabbit hole into Wonderland. However, Alice returns with no memory of her previous visit to Wonderland – can she rediscover the courage to aid the Wonderland misfits in their revolt?

According to Ain’t It Cool News, most of the character designs for the other Wonderland misfits are just as unnerving as those you see above. That label, “disturbing,” raises questions as to who the audience for this film will be – but then again, Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory remake was pretty weird and many kids still managed to enjoy it. Will Wonderland share in that success or scare off the family crowd?

Alice In Wonderland is currently in post-production and is scheduled to hit theaters and 3D IMAX on March 5, 2010.

Sources: USA Today via Slash Film & AICN

Update Source: Movies.ie

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How SyFy Is Planning To Be A Brand?

Bruce Simmons — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 16:00:30 +0000

With their big announcement back in March about changing their network name to SyFy, it looks like The Sci-Fi Channel is taking various steps to ensure we understand it’s their brand and not just Sci-Fi. They’re looking to expand into various categories so they’re not restricted to just Science Fiction and hoping this helps branch out into different markets. But what are they planning to help make that happen? Here’s a couple of things they’re working on and a bit later, I point out the definition of SyFy and I even have a few suggestions to help them along the way.

Unfinished Business

The Sci-Fi Channel, soon to be SyFy is looking to hit it big with a new project called Unfinished Business. The 2-hour movie is being looked at as a potential pilot for a series if it does well enough.

The important item to note here is that this production is in association with Will Smith’s production company, Overbrook Entertainment, and they’re touting this for everything it’s worth. Can you blame them?

This newest effort by Sci-Fi is being produced through Overbrook Entertainment with Smith, James Lassiter and Ken Stovitz executive producing. Sally Robinson is writing the pilot script and Mikael Salomon (Band of Brothers) is attached to direct. Both Robinson and Salomon are also executive producers.

Unfinished Business is about a cop who connects with memories of dead people. As it stands right now, some are already comparing this to Sci-Fi’s latest psychic / magic cop show called the Dresden Files. I remember Dresden Files and I remember not really being pulled into it, depsite wanting to be.

But with the insight of Overbrook behind the project, will it be better than a seemingly ripped off theme of the character from Lost, Miles? Miles who can read the psychic left over thoughts of dead people. Heck, if Hurley plays chess with them, I guess any show is possible at this point.

As it stands, Sci-Fi is hoping to combine the ratings generating popularity of a police drama with their special kind of fantasy programming.

But as Sci-Fi changes its brand to SyFy, it looks to present more original content to help develop their brand image as Unfinished Business will join other pilots on the slate for our entertainment.

Riverworld

Riverworld is a two-part, four-hour movie based on the novels by the late Phillip Jose Farmer and it is planned to air in 2010. The story takes place in a mysterious world where everyone who died, gets reborn along this mysterious river. The story will follow a combat photojournalist who awakens in this mysterious world. (Didn’t they already do a Riverworld? Didn’t it already pan out?)

Phantom

Phantom is yet one more try at making a palatable version of this masked purple hero who relies on wit and skill to undo evildoers. They say it’s been revamped for “today’s audience.” Hmm. I can’t help but wonder how they’re going to angle it toward today’s audience. Who is today’s audience?

Well, the only hope I’m seeing is that it’s written by Daniel Knauf. The same Knauf who wrote HBO’s Carnivale. If he brings that same desperate dark twist of entertainment to the screen that he did with Carnivale, it might have a chance.

Alice

I’m looking forward to Alice, the re-imagining of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

Alice is being written and directed by the same man who brought us Tin Man. And Tin Man was a nice dark and entertainingly dreary take on Wizard of Oz and I’m thinking Alice has a lot more material to work with. I can’t wait!

I’m also concerned, being that Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland release date of March 2010 may dampen the impact of the small screen version of Alice!

SyFy?

A quick snippet from TV Week:

“What we love about this is we hopefully get the best of both worlds,” Mr. (Dave) Howe said. “We’ll get the heritage and the track record of success, and we’ll build off of that to build a broader, more open and accessible and relatable and human-friendly brand.”

Sci Fi is coming off the best year in its history. In primetime it ranked 13th in total viewers among ad-supported cable networks in 2008. It’s a top-10 network in both adults 18 to 49 (up 4%) and adults 25 to 54 (up 6%).

So obviously, Sci-Fi is working hard at this new image and brand though I’m not sure how much more human friendly you can make a network. If I can thump buttons on a remote to get to a channel, I’d call that “human friendly.”

As it is, with their reinvention of themselves, I can’t help but wonder abut a few things.

I’ve been hearing about Alice for quite some time and I can’t help but wonder if they’ve stalled it long enough to release it under their new brand? It’s just pure conjecture on my part, but since Tin Man was pretty popular for them, I can’t help but wonder if they’re looking to generate news and media under their new logo.

This new brand, SyFy had me thinking. Oh lord, Bruce is thinking again. (This is when the work associates find some reason to go check their email or check on more tax paperwork.) So they’ve stuck with something phonetically similar so at least it’s not something new to remember.

Yet, I’m not alone in being confused or miffed by the name change. One of the original co-founders of The Sci-Fi Channel, Mitch Rubenstein, said he can’t believe the name change with the quote, “SyFy, say it’s not so!“

Supposedly the Sci-Fi Channel gang had 300 ideas on the table about what new brand to make for themselves and they had to snag (buy) another websites name (SyFy Portal, Now Alpha Airlock) to make their brand. I can only imagine what the other 299 ideas on the table were!

According to Wiktionary, Syfy is the plural of syf. Syf is Polish for dirt. Does that make SyFy dirty? Huh? Who did they hire for this process? I’m guessing they don’t think Poland is considered a big demographic for them. Dudes, I think I could have helped.

Since you didn’t call me to help rename the network, I thought I’d help you brand your programming. If you rename some of your shows, then you can truly own them too while spreading out into as many seasons as possible with every 20 episode series that comes along.

Here are just a few suggestions I’ve come up with:

The BSG prequel Capryca is due out in 2010.
I hear people like Desynation Truth.
I’m bummed they canceled Stargate Alantys.
Then there’s Dark Angyl,
I think they’ve got some Jerycho repeats coming?
Then there’s the favorite vampyre show, Moonlyte.
Have you seen the Outer Lymyts, that’s usually on late at night, along with the Twylyght Zone.
They’ve been playing Star Trek Enterpyse during the week.
And Star Trek, The Nyxt Gyneration.
And of course, there’s the ever approaching yet unnamed air date for Euryka.

I’ve said enough and made my point.

Sci-Fi is re-branding to expand. This is obviously a plan that Dave Howe has brought with him. As I reported back in January of 2008, on Dave Howe having become president of The Sci-Fi Channel, he’s looking to “build revenue by expanding the Sci Fi brand from the cable channel to video games and the mobile and youth markets.“ He does have an incredible proven track record, if you look at what he did with the BBC in London. So although I’m bagging on some decisions here, I can only presume he does know what he’s doing. Even if some initial decisions seem to be leaving the traditional Sci-Fi fan behind.

Anyone else have any ideas on the matter? I’d love to hear them or suggestions. For all we know, he reads Screen Rant too!

Sources: THR, SciFi Wire, Hollywood.com, Wiktionary, TV Week

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Tim Burton’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ Gets 3D IMAX Release

Ross Miller — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:18:45 +0000

Are you looking forward to Tim Burton’s upcoming adaptation of Alice in Wonderland? Well, here’s a reason to get even more excited about it: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and IMAX Corporation has announced that the film will be getting an IMAX 3D release!

Alice in Wonderland will be released simultaneously on regular screens and on the most up-to-date IMAX 3D screens. In the case of the latter, the film will be “digitally re-mastered into the unparalleled image and sound quality of the IMAX Experience with IMAX DMR (Digital Re-Mastering) technology.”

Mark Zoradi, president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Group, commented on the move to show Alice in Wonderland in 3D IMAX:

“If ever there was a film that cried out to be presented in Disney Digital 3D(TM) and the premium IMAX 3D format, Tim Burton’s fantastic interpretation of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ is that film. This is going to be an eye-popping cinematic experience as Tim takes moviegoers down the rabbit hole and into the dimensional world filled with incredible characters, sly humor, and wild adventures. Disney’s partnership with IMAX is taking shape with two amazing films already on the schedule. We look forward to working with them in bringing exciting new experiences and quality entertainment to IMAX screens around the world.”

IMAX Co-Chairmen and Co-CEOs Richard L. Gelfond and Bradley J. Wechsler added:

“We think that Disney’s new ‘Alice in Wonderland’ is exactly the type of 3D story telling that will resonate with IMAX audiences. We believe our worldwide commercial theater network will be approximately 50 percent larger by the time this film is released, giving more and more people a chance to experience the magic of Disney in IMAX.”

And Greg Foster, chairman and president of IMAX Filmed Entertainment, finished with:

“‘Alice in Wonderland’ is a fantastic addition to our 2010 film slate. Combining a beloved Disney classic re-designed through the imagination of Tim Burton’s creative vision with these incredibly outrageous characters and world class actors certainly makes for an event-status film, and we’re pleased to add another level of excitement to this highly-anticipated movie.”

We got our first look at Burton’s Alice in Wonderland last month, and it only fueled the high anticipation for it. I don’t think there’s any doubt whatsoever that Burton is a good choice to bring this classic tale to cinematic life, and judging by the images we’ve seen, he’s at least on the right path.

Johnny Depp as The Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland will reunite Burton with Johnny Depp (who’s playing The Mad Hatter – again, perfect match) for the seventh time. The two have come a long way since their first team-up on Edward Scissorhands back in 1990 (man, almost 20 years already!), and even though it almost seems inevitable that they will work together, I say don’t fix it if it ain’t broken!

The rest of the cast includes Alan Rickman as The Caterpillar; Helena Bonham Carter (aka, “Mrs. Burton”) as The Red Queen; Anne Hathaway as The White Queen; Stephen Fry as The Cheshire Cat; Crispin Glover as The Knave of Hearts; Michael Sheen as The White Rabbit, and newcomer Mia Wasikowski as Alice.

As far as the IMAX 3D thing goes, I think it’s a very fitting choice for this film. I make it no secret that I tend to think the 3D trend is just a gimmick, one which will oversaturate the industry in the next few years until people eventually get tired of it. However, in the case of Alice in Wonderland, I think that the technology will be a great tool to get the best experience possible from the film.

While I’m not as much of a Burton fan as a lot of people are (I really like most of his work, but I don’t think that everything he does is the greatest thing ever), I’m still very much anticipating this flick. There isn’t anything we’ve heard about it that says it will be anything less than great; hopefully the forthcoming trailer will continue to inspire that same confidence.

(And don’t worry, Screen Rant will have that trailer for you as soon as it drops!)

What do you make about Alice in Wonderland being shown in IMAX 3D? Do you think the technology serves the movie well in this case?

Alice in Wonderland is set to be released on March 5th, 2010 in the US and on April 2nd, 2010 in the UK.

Source: ComingSoon.net

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ShoWest Update

Sabrina Cognata — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 13:54:29 +0000

For those not in the know, ShoWest is a convention for theater owners where studios pimp out their movies with the hopes of making a mark regarding their up and coming films. Yesterday, at ShoWest in Las Vegas studios decided to give one another a run for their money. Warner Bros. president Alan Horn showed clips of Terminator Salvation and the new Harry Potter. Both were things we’ve seen before and nothing particularly special.

Horn then introduced the trailer for the comedy The Hangover, which the audience seemed to really enjoy as they broke into laughter, and the action-comedy Sherlock Holmes. Robert Downey Jr. was there for the unveiling of the film’s trailer. He joked with the crowd and explained that he chose to do this film after the mega success of Iron Man. The trailer itself is said to be classic Guy Ritchie with a mix of action and comedy tied together with a certain supernatural element.

At the Disney panel, they announced that the new Tron film will be in 3D, as well as, asserting that the film will be called just “Tron.” In addition to that they showed the trailer that was originally brought to the public back at Comic-Con. They also dropped the news that Toy Story 1 & 2 will be rereleased in October for a limited engagement in 3D, as well as Beauty and the Beast, but it’s release date will be in February of 2010.

In total, Disney/Pixar have 17 theatrical 3D films planned for release between 2009 and 2012. Included on this list is Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland, which will also be released on IMAX 3-D. They did not show a trailer for Alice In Wonderland, but showed stills from the film including the already seen photo of Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter and new shots of the Cheshire Cat and it’s smile oddly reminiscent of the Joker. Finally, we got a glimpse of the Queen of Hearts’ Castle, which happens to resemble the Disneyland Castle. Way to highlight the Disney iconic logo. However, the middle part of the castle is appropriately shaped in a giant heart.

Up was also shown again, as it has been at every major movie event for the past few months. At this point I have seen the first 45 minutes of Up more times than I have seen most of my favorite films. Still the film does not miss the mark. It continues to shine in a way that makes the story and characters both believable and relatable.

All in all, the footage shown at ShoWest has been pretty impressive. Perhaps that has something to do with the 3D wow factor or the fact that most of the movies being marketed there are already highly anticipated films with mega blockbuster potential.

What do you think? Which films are you excited to finally be hearing more about?

Sources: Collider, IESB.net, SuperHeroHype.com, HitFix, and AintItCool

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First Look: Tim Burton’s ‘Alice In Wonderland’

Ross Miller — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 16:39:22 +0000

Whether you like his style of film-making or not, you can’t deny that when a new Tim Burton film is coming out, it’s more of an event than “just another movie.” He’s a filmmaker who has cult written all over him and his films, but yet he’s one of the most popular in the business. And when the idea of an Alice in Wonderland was first thrown around it was almost a no-brainer that Burton would end up helming it. Could there be a more perfect match than Burton and this classic fantasy tale?

I think not.

We’ve already had hints here and there about what we can expect from Burton’s sure-to-be-unique take on the story, but we’ve had nothing really concrete so far (well, beyond the no-brainer casting choice of Burton regular Johnny Depp being cast as the Mad Hatter). A couple of days ago at a Disney meeting, a lucky few got a glimpse of what Depp will look like in the film and apparently the “oohs” and “aahs” were abundant.

Back in November there was an image released of Depp in the Mad Hatter garb but it was never confirmed as genuine. However, thanks to Disney Twenty-Three Magazine (a quarterly publication that can be signed up for a quite expensive $74.99 a year from Disney’s Official Community for Fans) we get our first proper look at what we can expect from Burton’s Alice in Wonderland (sorry for the poor quality – click images for larger versions).

(Click here for more images)

Although we still don’t get to see what Depp will look like, the images (seemingly more concept than actual images from the film) still give us a great first look into just what Burton and co. have in store for us with this new telling of the Alice in Wonderland story. However Burton’s movies turn out in terms of quality, he never lets us down with his unique, trademark style that is in-part the reason he is so popular.

It’s great to finally see how young actress Mia Wasikowski looks in her Alice outfit (it looks like she’ll nail the character) and particularly pleasing to see the tea party scene come to life in this new visual form (albeit concept art for the moment).

I haven’t loved every film in Tim Burton’s career (I know I am going to get some serious flack for saying this but in particular I really don’t like The Nightmare Before Christmas) but I am more than willing to give him the benefit of the doubt every single time.

What do you make of our first real look at Burton’s Alice in Wonderland? Has he gotten it right as far as we can see?

Alice in Wonderland is scheduled for a March 5th 2010 release in the US and an April 2nd 2010 release in the UK.

Sources: TimBurtonCollective and /Film

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Disney Execs Wowed By Johnny Depp’s Mad Hatter

Sabrina Cognata — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 15:14:33 +0000

During Walt Disney Company’s annual meeting a small glimpse of Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter from Tim Burton’s unreleased Alice In Wonderland was shown momentarily during a montage of clips. Apparently shareholders were impressed with what they saw judging by the barrage of oohs and ahhs that accompanied the brief glimpse of Depp’s character.

The Carpetbagger Blog describes what was seen:

“Victorian top hat, crimped hair that sticks straight out, and swirl of brightly colored make-up on his eyes, cheeks and lips that resembled the blur of a pinwheel blowing in the breeze.”

If I didn’t know any better I’d say Burton and Depp came together to help portray on film the Mad Hatter many have only been able to dream of. I suppose a dash of the preposterous and a sprinkle of “acid flashback” can do that when you’re dealing with that sort of character.

However I am sad to announce the photo will not be made available. After the meeting, a Disney spokesperson said that an exclusive interview with director Tim Burton and concept art from Alice In Wonderland would be available for $15.95 in the launch of “Disney Twenty-Three,” a quarterly magazine also introduced at that same meeting.

This movie sounds awesome. I mean super awesome. Although there is some fear in my heart after the travesty that was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, now that I’ve heard this all my faith is in Tim Burton. Not to mention he was recently quoted as saying: “It’s kind of a mixture of some distorted live action and animation. I’m not sure what to relate it to. It’s kind of new territory for me.”

New territory for the guy that established a whole arena of new territory with his early work Beetlejuice and Edward Scissorhands means I have absolutely no idea what to expect. Honestly, I am so excited with the prospect of something new and different that I’ll probably be absolutely shattered if this movie isn’t absolutely original and innovative.

How’s that for having a high standard?

Alice in Wonderland is scheduled to open on March 5, 2010.

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Alan Rickman Talks ‘Alice In Wonderland’

Ross Miller — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 21:40:23 +0000

During a recent interview, Alan Rickman has let slip some more details about Tim Burton’s upcoming film Alice In Wonderland. Rickman will play the Caterpillar, starring alongside Burton regulars Johnny Depp and Helene Bonham Carter as well as the likes of Anne Hathaway, Michael Sheen and Crispin Glover.

Here’s what he had to say:

“I’m a voice, but I have been filmed because it’s my face who will be on the end of something that will be the caterpillar. So it’s the first time that they’ve mixed three disciplines, I suppose — live action, animation, and stop motion. I think I’m part of the animation bit, and I saw Helena [Bonham-Carter] and Crispin Glover yesterday. They’re a mixture of the two, actually, because there’s Helena in a costume and in makeup but her head is going to be made three times bigger than it actually is on top of the costume.”

“I don’t know what it (the Caterpillar) looks like, so I’ve only done the first stage of it, which is them recording me saying these lines quite badly. Then, somewhere down the line, they’ll have animated it and I’ll redo it.”

Wow, that sounds intriguing. It doesn’t sound like anything we’ve seen before – live action, animation and stop motion all mixed together? That could make for a very visually stunning experience, I think we can all agree Burton has the skill to apply such techniques in a well done fashion.

I know it seems a bit monotonous casting the same people over and over in his films (particularly Depp) but his projects just seem to suit his usual actors perfectly and I say if it works why change the formula?

I look forward to Alice in Wonderland greatly, how about you? Any fellow fans of Tim Burton out there?

Sources: Dark Horizons and MoviesOnline

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Mid-Week Movie News Wrap Up – Nov. 20, 2008

Niall Browne — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 18:42:34 +0000

Yep, it really is that time of the week again.

This week:

Harrison Ford talks Indy 5; we check out Johnny Depp in Alice In Wonderland; Jonah Hex is in trouble; John Carpenter is a Prince; and The X-Files’ Frank Spotnitz plans 2012.

1. Harrison Ford has discussed Indiana Jones 5 with MTV and It looks like the film is moving ahead – albeit slowly.

Ford had the following chin-wag with MTV:

MTV: Is a fifth Indiana Jones film inevitable?

Ford: I don’t know. If we come up with a good idea…

MTV: Is the ball in George’s court at this point?

Ford: It is. That’s the process. With some general input he goes off and searches for the MacGuffin and then stumbles into a story. And at some point we have a chance to take a look at and give some input.

MTV: And he hasn’t found the MacGuffin yet?

Ford: No, we’re still in the primary stages.

MTV: The end of the last film leaves your character in a very intriguing position. He has a wife and a kid. Can he still be that man of adventure with those commitments?

Ford: And he’s seen something. Remember those are the only witness to what he’s seen. That’s kind of interesting.

It looks like we may just see Indiana Jones one last time.

I must say that I watched Kingdom of the Crystal Skull again on DVD and it was far better on that second viewing. The CGI moments that irked me originally hardly annoyed be on the second go around.

Source: MTV

2. Like Johnny Depp? Wanna see what he might look like in Tim Burton’s forthcoming adaptation of Alice in Wonderland (maybe, this is most likely a fake)?

He looks like Johnny Depp in a Tim Burton movie. Like we’ve never seen that before.

Source: Just Jared

3. It looked like Josh Brolin was all set to star in the film version of Jonah Hex. However, it now looks like there is No Movie For Old Men as Mark Nelvedine and Brian Taylor have left the directors chair(s) for the film. The oft cited creative differences have been mentioned as the reason.

A Spring start is a certainty as the studio want to keep “the hot” Brolin on board. I mean hot as in hot property. Not…you know…hot, hot. However, I’m sure a few female Screen Ranters would disagree.

Source: Variety

4. John Carpenter seems to be trying to match Ridley Scott as a direcor with a bucket-load of films attached to his name. We already know about Riot (aka Scared Straight) with Nic Cage, but now CHUD has some news on a new gangster called The Prince.

According to the films co-writer Jeremy Passmore:

“We [Passmore and co-writer Andre Fabrizio] were trying to do Unforgiven as a gangster movie, because we’re both just huge fans of that.

It’s a bit of a departure. It’s definitely more of a very character based crime movie. I don’t know what’s going on with it right now, but the premise is that this guy was the most [badass] gangster of all time in Las Vegas, and he’s left the life and created this whole new world. His wife died but he’s raising his kid. He’s living in the middle of nowhere and he’s this very religious, trying to live a straight life guy. His daughter is now going to school at UCLA and she disappears, and he goes looking for her. The trail leads to Vegas and he has to go get her, and the entire city kind of comes down on top of him.”

Sounds odd for Carpenter, but don’t forget that his cinematic hero was Howard Hawks – master of all genres and director of the original Scarface.

Source: CHUD

5. X-Files fans – there is more news out there on a third film in the franchise.

Producer/ Writer of the recent I Want To Believe Fran Spotnitz has stated (again) that a new film depends on the DVD sales of the film.

He has also hinted that the film will focus on the 2012 invasion story hinted during the series.

Spotnitz said:

“As you know the date of December 2012 is an important one in The X-Files, and I’d like to focus on that.”

It’s interesting, but I’d have loved to have seen a series of stand-alone X-Files movies that offer a good batch of thrills to adults and not kids.

However, having said that – “never look a gift horse in the mouth”.

Source: Sci-Fi Movie Page

That’s it for now. See you at the movies.

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: October 26, 2008

Niall Browne — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 16:47:35 +0000

This week:

The A-Team doesn’t come together; Ripley’s Believe it or Not gets a director; Steven Soderbergh has Cleopatra coming at ya; Crispin Glover teams with Tim Burton and McG gets into the spy business with Dead Spy Running .

Box Office

The world economy may be in crisis, but the box office is still going strong. Claiming the number one spot with ease is High School Musical 3. It’s no surprise really considering the built in audience and the amazing number of tickets that were booked in advance by Effronettes. The tween musical should bank about $50 million by Monday morning.

Saw V claimed the runner-up position with a $30 million gross. It’s amazing that people still come back to this franchise. I have to say that I haven’t watched any of the films past the original. With Halloween on the way, this should hold up next weekend, then drop like a stone.

Colin Farrell and Edward Norton had a flaccid opening with Pride and Glory. Now there was a sentence that I never thought that I’d write…ever! The cop pic should gross an estimated $6-7 million over the weekend.

Clint Eastwood’s Changeling should make around $500,000 from 15 locations. The Angelina Jolie starrer is being tipped as potential Oscar bait. Having said that – the film looks like a bad television movie. I’d save my money and go see the new Dirty Harry film… sorry, I mean Gran Torino. Oliver Stone’s W should pocket another $5 million, but I feel that the end is near. The film will probably have to wait for a few years to be rediscovered, or at the very least end up in an Oliver Stone “Presidents” triple pack beside JFK and Nixon.

Movie News

1. Poor 20^th Century Fox. The studio hasn’t had a decent hit all year and now it looks like they’ve lost one of next years major tent pole films. John Singleton has quit The A-Team and Fox still can’t get a script that works. That means no cast and no director – this will now open on June 2010 a year later than previously planned. That’s one plan that’s not coming together!

Don’t feel sad for the studio though, they have a stellar line up that includes Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel, Tooth Fairy, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

Kill me now, please!

Source: Variety

2. Jim Carrey’s long in development hell Ripley’s Believe it or Not may finally be made. Believe it or not. Chris Columbus is in negotiations with Paramount to helm the film. Tim Burton had been in the frame to direct at one point, but I guess Paramount wanted the film to be flat and mediocre.

Believe it or Not: Carrey’s next film is called I Love You Phillip Morris, while Colubmus’ is titled I Love You, Beth Cooper. Coincidence? I think so.

3. Steven Soderbergh is developing a 3D live-action rock ‘n’ roll musical about Cleopatra entitled Cleo. No really.

The Ocean’s director is trying to get Catherine Zeta Jones to play the titular queen, while he wants Hugh Jackman to play Mark Antony (not the JLo one). The $30 million film is currently being shopped around Hollywood.

You gotta love those crazy ideas that Soderbergh has – this is even crazier than the Liberace movie that is in development with Zeta Jones’s other half Michael Douglas.

Source: Variety

4. Crispin Glover has signed on to play the Knave of Hearts in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. The cast includes Anne Hathaway and Burton regulars Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter.

The last thing that I saw Glover in was the terrible Charlie’s Angels, but I do have Beowulf sitting on my “to watch pile” so my opinion of him may improve.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

5. Speaking of Charlie’s Angels, Mc G will direct and produce Dead Spy Running for Warner Bros. The film will be based on the forthcoming book by Jon Stock, which follows the exploits of a newly trained spy. McG is currently working on a little low budget film that has no expectations at all. The film is Terminator: Salvation.

Source: Variety

That’s it for this week. See you at the movies.

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Mid-Week Movie News Wrap Up – Oct. 9, 2008

Niall Browne — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:04:54 +0000

Welcome to yet another jam-packed, news filled installment of the Mid-Week Movie News Wrap Up.

This week: Kevin Costner may play ball again; Tim Burton may helm Pirates of The Carribbean 4; David Cronenberg is Bourne again (kind of); we check out the helmer of 28 Months Later and Bill Murray talks Ghostbusters 3 and you can see Prince of Peace – God of War for free.

1. Kevin Costner may make his first ever sequel. Maybe.

Producer Thom Mount has stated that he has a script in development that is a sequel to 1980’s baseball classic Bull Durham. The film was one of Costner’s most successful (critically at least) films and it co-starred Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins.

Mount says that no cast has yet signed on, but there is a slim chance that Costner and company may return. If not, I wouldn’t be surprised if Kurt Russell stars – as he was originally in the frame for the lead role, but the studio went for the more box office friendly Costner.

Source: Moviehole

2. Cinema Blend has a scoop that says that Tim Burton may be in the frame to replace Gore Verbinski in the director’s chair for the fourth instalment of The Pirates of the Caribbean.

Although Verbinski is set to return, apparently Burton is ready to make Jack Sparrow gothic if he decides that fourth time isn’t a charm.

It seems unlikely – but Johnny Depp and Burton have a special relationship, and I’m sure Burton would consider it, if he was asked. He’s also currently shooting Alice In Wonderland for “the house of the mouse”. Also, he didn’t say no to Planet of the Apes so why would he not consider a Depp movie with Pirates and other wierd stuff.

I hope this isn’t so, as it would seem like a backward step for Burton.

Source: Cinema Blend

3. David Cronenberg is pondering directing duties on The Matarese Circle. The film is based on a novel by Bourne Identity novelist Robert Ludlum. The pic is due to star Denzel Washington.

It sounds a bit too mainstream for Cronenberg – but then again, so did The Fly.

I saw A History of Violence recently, I must say that I wasn’t impressed.

Source: Variety

4. The unlikely “Days Later” franchise has nabbed a director for a third instalment of Zombie action. Paul Andrew Williams will helm 28 Months Later. the follow-up to 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later. See what they did there? I can’t wait for 28 Years Later.

Source: Arrow In The Head

5. Coming Soon got talking to Bill Murray about Ghostbusters 3, and the star seemed quite open to returning to the franchise. However it does all depend on the script. I’m guessing the paycheck is important too!

This is what went down at the interview:

Q: You play a hero in “Ghostbusters” and a villain in this movie. Is it more fun playing a good guy or a bad guy? And what persuaded you to go back for the rumored “Ghostbusters 3″?

Murray: Well, you’re way ahead of me, but that’s okay. There’s someone trying to write a script for another “Ghostbusters” movie. There’s two fellows from “The Office” that are writing a script, but I have yet to see it. And I’m more involved with, you know, trying to get the dessert we order at lunch than I am with the new “Ghostbusters” sequel. (Laughter) But it’s possible. It’s a great idea that they hired these two guys to do it, ’cause I think it could be a fresh look at it. And it could be funny. We did a sequel and it was rather unsatisfying for me, because the first one to me was ‘the goods.’ It was the real thing, and the sequel, you know, it was a few years later, and there was an idea pitched. They got us all together in a room. We just laughed for a couple of hours, and then they said, “What if we did another one? Here’s an idea these guys have got.” So they had this idea, but it didn’t turn out to be the idea when I arrived on the set. They’d written a whole different movie. And the special effects guys got their hands on it, and it was just not the same movie. There were a few great scenes in it, but it wasn’t the same movie. So there’s never been an interest in a third “Ghostbusters” ’cause the second one was kind of disappointing, for me, anyway. But the third one could happen.

But you asked me a question about bein’ a bad guy and a good guy. It’s so much easier to be a bad guy. It’s a piece a cake. It’s a joke. (Laughter) And, you know, I keep saying, “Why do they give Oscars to guys that play bad guys,” ’cause it’s so simple. Play a good guy some time. That’s hard. Play a really, decent good person. That’s hard.

Q: So would you go back for “Ghostbusters” again?

Murray: Only if I could play an evil person. (Laughter) No, it’s mostly all about the script. I don’t have any obligation to the franchise or anyone. If the script were good and I thought we could do it, it’d be fun. But, you know, it’s only now that this has ever been a prospect. No one’s ever talked about it for a long time, ’cause the second one was the way it was. This is just kind of a clever idea. I think they see that, and the fact that every interview today has asked me about the “Ghostbusters” movie–every single person–means that there is some interest for it. You think you’re talking about the “City of Ember,” but I’ve answered as many questions about the “Ghostbusters” as I have about… well, not as many, but, I mean, on every single one. So there’s interest in it.

You really have to love how the interviewer shoe-horned Ghostbusters in to that first question. He must have been up all night working on that. I’m also thinking that there was a bet around the Comingsoon office as to whether he would have the stones to ask it or not.

Source: Comingsoon

6. Prince of Peace – God of War, a documentary by John Campea (who runs TheMovieBlog.com) is now available free online. The film got some kudos on the festival circuit and I’m sure that it will excite and divide people with an equal amount of passion. You can check it out here.

It’s like, free – so why not. That’s the beauty of film in the digital age – it can reach everyone.

That’s it for another week – see you at the movies!

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