It’s Valentine’s Day weekend and love is in the air, so it’s no surprise what’s atop the box office. The other positions are less obvious; writers take a Vacation for New Line; Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law and Marion Cotillard get contagious for Steven Soderbergh; Jeffrey Dean Morgan might be a Loser but he has an Unblinking Eye and why the switch for Cage’s Witch film?

It was a romantic weekend at the box office as Garry Marshall’s Valentine’s Day claimed the number one position with an estimated $52 million over the weekend (or$60 million over the four day Presidents Day weekend). With a slew of top names like Julia Roberts, Bradley Cooper, Ashton Kutcher, Jessica Alba and Anne Hathaway it would appear that this rom-com is going to be pretty profitable (most of the cast took a back end deal).

Percy Jackson & the Incredibly Long Title was second with an impressive $31 million (or$40 million over four days). While it’s not Harry Potter money it does indicate that a sequel may be on the way.

The Wolfman was third with a $3o million gross ($35 inc Monday). With mixed reviews (Vic loved it) it might get to the point where we see Wolfman 2: The Wolfman takes Manhattan. If we do, it won’t cost $100 million like this one!

Avatar should bring in another $23 million over the four days for a mind-boggling $665 million gross. $700 million is now certainly on the cards. Imagine it folks – someone, somewhere has gross profit points in this film.

Dear John faced stiff competition, but banked another $15 million over the weekend. Tooth Fairy snatched another $5.3 million, while John Travolta’s From Paris With Love banked another $5 million.

Mel Gibson’s Edge of Darkness nabbed another $4.4 million, while Jeff Bridges’ Oscar favorite Crazy Heart sang up another $4 million.

When In Rome rounded out the top ten with just over $3 million.

Movie News

1. Last year we brought you news that Wedding Crashers director David Dobkin was producing a National Lampoon’s Vacation “revamp” for New Line. The film will focus on Rusty Griswold (the son of Chevy Chase’s Clark) as he takes his family to Wally World (the setting of the original film) before it shuts down.

The studio has now hired Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley to pen the script for the film which may (or may not) bring Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo back in the roles that they played from 1983-1997. The duo recently returned to the roles in a recent advert that played at the Super Bowl.

New Line hoped that the film will be similar in tone to Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

More on the new Vacation when we get it.

Chevy Chase will next be seen opposite John Cusack in Hot Tub Time Machine.

Source: Variety

2. Steven Soderbergh loves to work. The director constantly juggles multiple projects and always has one film ready to go as soon as he finishes another. The Ocean’s 11 director is currently shooting Knockout and he was ready to segue into his Liberace biopic with Michael Douglas and Matt Damon, but he has pushed that project back for viral thriller Contagion

Soderbergh works so fast that Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law and Marion Cotillard are currently closing deals to star in the film which has been penned by The Informant and The Bourne Ultimatum scribe Scott Z. Burns.

The film is believed to be a multi-stand story similar to Soderbergh’s Oscar-winning hit Traffic. Contagion is scheduled to start shooting this fall.

Liberace fans shouldn’t panic though as Soderbergh, Damon and Douglas are set to tinkle the old ivories for an early 2011 start.

More when we get it.

Source: The Playlist

3. A few days ago I had the great pleasure of interviewing Solomon Kane director Michael J. Bassett – that interview will be live in a few days si be sure to come back and check it out. During the course of the interview he said that he was working on a new “genre” film and that the cast would be announced shortly. While he couldn’t give me details at the time, he did say that he was excited by the cast that he’d lined up. Now we can see why: Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Watchmen, The Losers) will star in The Unblinking Eye.

The Hollywood Reporter has the following synopsis for the film:

Homicide detective John Callisto now a retired recluse after being nearly murdered by a serial killer, is tracked down by a relentless journalist. As the two confront each other, dark secrets from both their pasts come to light.

The $10 million budget film starts shooting in May, after which Bassett would like to shoot a Solomon Kane sequel.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

4. Life really can be a witch. Just ask Lionsgate and Nicolas Cage!

The studio had planned to release the Nicolas Cage starrer Season of the Witch in five weeks (March 19th), but they’ve now pulled the film, and no replacement release date is set!

The Dominic Sena directed film which also stars B-movie favorite Ron Perlman follows 14th Century Knights as they transport a girl who is believed to be a witch.

No reason has been given for the removal – but the March 19th date does have a lot of other movies that might impact on the films box office takings – science fiction actioner Repo Men with Jude law and Forest Whitaker and action comedy The Bounty Hunter with Jennifer Aniston and Gerard Butler also open.

I’d imagine that a fall or winter date would suit the film better – maybe around Halloween? Just a guess.

More on Season of The Witch when we get it.

Source: Variety

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

Screen Rant reviews Percy Jackson the Olympians: The Lightning Thief

Disclaimer: I have not read a single Percy Jackson book. I’d never even heard of the books until news of the movie version of Percy Jackson the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (man, that’s an annoying long title) first surfaced. I assume that since the Harry Potter franchise is almost played out on the big screen, that Hollywood might be looking for a fresh new series to pick up the baton once the Potter clan rides off into the sunset in their 24 carat gold, diamond encrusted Aston Martins.

As the film opens a gigantic man rises out of the sea and heads into the city (human size by then). He is of course, Poseidon (played by a rather thin looking Kevin McKidd). He meets with another fellow on the roof of the Empire State building who turns out to be Zeus (a somewhat miscast Sean Bean) – Zeus is accusing Poseidon’s son of being “the lightning thief.” It seems that someone has stolen Zeus’ favorite item – and if it is not returned within two weeks he will declare war among the gods.

Our soon-to-be hero Percy is played by 18 year old Logan Lerman (who does a fine job in the lead role). He looks younger and is a self-professed “loser” who pals around with his crippled friend Grover (Brandon T. Jackson). Percy has some major dyslexia (hallucinogenic, even) and the only time he finds peace is when he’s in the water – he loves sitting at the bottom of his school’s swimming pool… for seven minutes at a time.

He lives in a rough inner city neighborhood with his mom (Catherine Keener) and his grubby, rude and stinky stepfather (Joe Pantoliano). I love Joe, and he seemed to be in a different movie – bringing a greater depth to his character in the few moments he was on screen than most of the other actors did throughout the entire film. The man is good at what he does.

It seems that Hades (Steve Coogan) also believes that Percy has stolen Zeus’ lightning and he wants it so he can rule over all the gods himself. All manner of mythological creatures are sent after Percy and eventually he ends up in a training camp for demi-gods (children of god/mortal matings). There he meets Hermes’ son Luke (young Kevin Bacon lookalike Jake Abel) and Athena’s beautiful warrior-daughter Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario). Pierce Brosnan (as a Centaur… weird) tells Percy he must go to Zeus and explain that he is not the thief – but first (for some strange reason) he needs to train to hone his combat skills.

Well a situation arises that causes Percy to want to go to Hades instead of staying to train and head up to Olympus to talk to the big man, and Grover and Annabeth insist on tagging along. What we get then is basically a road trip where they run into some interesting adventures where they run into yet more well-known mythological creatures – that were actually quite entertaining.

There were some scenes that were just scary enough for kids, but nothing that should keep them up at night. If you’re a parent, there was nothing that would give you pause when it comes to watching this with your children – very family friendly. There’s action throughout the film and the climax was pretty impressive.

Overall I actually found the film to be pretty good (for what it was) although it didn’t have the richness and depth that’s present in the Harry Potter films – then again, maybe in those films I’m just impressed by all the British accents… Kidding aside, there’s just a little something that’s missing here, similar to the feeling I get from watching the Narnia movies – just something that’s a little too shallow about them that doesn’t really hook you and drag you deep into the film.

Having said that, there was an audience at the screening I attended and they seemed to enjoy the movie quite a bit, especially the kids in the audience. I think Percy Jackson will do very well at the box office and will no doubt spawn a sequel or two.

Recently there have been rumors floating about reporting that the 80’s classic Gremlins would get the inevitable reboot treatment in the now obligatory 3D. Details on the alleged film have been sketchy at best, but now, original Gremlins writer and director of the forthcoming Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightening Thief, Chris Columbus, has spoke about the project and sequels to some of his biggest hits – Mrs Doubtfire and The Goonies.

When asked by Coming Soon about a third Gremlins film Columbus said:

“I spoke to Steven Spielberg a couple days ago and said, ‘You know, I’ve been reading on the internet about this ‘Gremlins 3D’ and no one’s approached him either, so I don’t know if that’s really true.”

The director also went on to talk about why he thinks the film still has an appeal and why it wouldn’t work in CGI:

“It would be fun to go back and revisit. Something like Gremlins, which is a movie I really like, I think it’s impossible to recreate in a CGI environment. I think it will inevitably lose some of its charm. Those are edgy Muppets in a sense and you don’t want to lose that sense of anarchy that those gremlins had, because behind the scenes are 25 puppeteers making them to come to life.”

When quizzed about the oft mooted sequel to Richard Donner’s The Goonies, which Columbus also wrote the Harry Potter director replied:

“‘Goonies’ would have to be the Goonies on their own as parents and their children doing something. But as Steven said, ‘How can you really be going underground finding another gigantic pirate ship filled with treasure? What can be the next adventure?’”

The man has a point. The Goonies worked because it had a sense of innocence and wonder that would be hard to replicate for a second adventure. As much as I would like to see a sequel to the film, I have to admit that it probably just wouldn’t work, and if one were made then I can only imagine that a backlash like what occurred after the Star Wars prequels and the last Indiana Jones film would ensue.

Gremlins on the other hand might work -  the creatures aren’t fixed to any locale or specific life – but like Columbus said, CGI would ruin it.

Fans of Columbus’ work will also be happy to know that he’s also thought about a sequel to his Robin Williams starrer Mrs Doubtfire:

“‘Mrs. Doubtfire is an interesting idea for a sequel because it’s the one time in film history where you can revisit the character and they’ll be the same age 15 years later. Because of the make-up, people can see Mrs. Doubtfire again and nothing has changed about her, which I think is kind of interesting.”

It’s doubtful that a sequel to that will be made either. About ten years ago Robin William’s Jumanji co-star Bonnie Hunt penned a sequel to the hit cross-dressing comedy, but the film never materialized.

Having said that, in recent years there’s one thing that Hollywood has taught me – never doubt a belated sequel will eventually find its way to cinema screens.

More on Gremlins if and when we get it.

Source: Coming Soon.

Logan Lerman called into the “Billy Bush Show” to talk about his upcoming star-making turn in Percy Jackson and the Lighting Thief and conversation veered into the realm of Sony’s upcoming Spider-Man reboot.

We now know that Marc Webb (500 Days of Summer) is helming the Spidey reboot, that the budget will be scaled back to $80 million and that the reboot will take Peter Parker back to high school, while exploring both the “gritty” and “human aspect” of Parker’s dual identity. However, the real question has been who will replace Tobey Maguire as the new Peter Parker – and Logan Lerman’s name swirling in the rumor mill for weeks now.

With almost shocking candor for a Hollywood actor (he’s still young, god bless him) Lerman answered Billy Bush’s questions by confirming that he is currently in early talks with Sony for the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man. Check this quote:

“There have been a few discussions, it’s definitely something I’m looking into. It’s [Spider-man] one of my favorite characters ever and I’m a huge fan of the series. I’d love to have more conversations about it. I’m definitely very interested in it.”

Lerman added that he’s a huge Spidey fan, and that the interest in him taking on the role has been a two-way street: the studio is as interested in him as he is in the role. You can listen to the interview for yourself, courtesy of Access Hollywood:

To this point, I haven’t paid any attention to Logan Lerman’s acting ability (he was in Gamer and 3:10 to Yuma), so I can’t really back Billy Bush’s assertion that the kid has “the chops” to play Spidey. He certainly has the look though, and Percy Jackson - which hits theaters in next week – will certainly be a strong barometer for how the public views Lerman. If all goes well with that film, I’d expect Lerman to be on the short list for new Spidey candidates.

So, let’s discuss: Logan Lerman: good man for the Spider-Man reboot? Or should Sony keep looking? And if not Lerman, who would you cast as the new Peter Parker?

[UPDATE: Nikki Finke is spreading the word that this may not be as certain as it seems. A Sony rep confirmed only that they're looking at a lot of options for the role and that “No offers have been made, nor have any business discussions been made with Lerman.” Lerman's reps say the same but c'mon now, Lerman didn't make it up...]

The Spider-Man reboot is slated as a Summer 2012 release.

Source: Access Hollywood

There’s not been too much marketing for M.Night Shyamalan’s adaptation of the award-winning cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender, especially with the fact that the full trailer was pushed back from its originally planned Christmas release until February. But now thanks to Yahoo, we have the first two official one-sheets for the flick alongside confirmation from producer Frank Marshall for when we’ll finally see the full trailer for The Last Airbender.

And the end of 2009 – it was only a few weeks ago, really – we reported on some scans that hit the net from a recent issue of Empire magazine. These images depicted some behind-the-scenes goodies from the production of The Last Airbender and they looked really cool.

It wasn’t that much, but now we have more in the form of two brand new posters; One features the title character of Aang (played by Noah Ringer) and the other features his nemesis, Dev Patel as Prince Zuko.

The details of the background and of the special effect of the air/smoke are what get me excited.

Continue to Page to see the Fiery Prince Zuko Poster...

A new 60-second TV trailer has made its way online for the upcoming fantasy-action/adventure film, Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief. The film tells the tale of a teenage boy named Percy Jackson (being played by Logan Lerman) who one day finds out he’s actually the son of the legendary god Poseidon. Percy then sets out to stop a war that will erupt if the god Zeus’ stolen thunderbolt isn’t found.

Among the vast and impressive cast are Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, Sean Bean, Kevin McKidd and Rosario Dawson, playing famous Olympians ranging from Zeus to Medusa. The last international trailer for Percy Jackson made me look forward to it, simply because it showed us more of the cast and the special effects. The latest trailer is similar to what we’ve seen before, but if you look close there’s some new footage in there.

Check out the new 60-second TV trailer below, thanks to Collider:

It still reminds me of Harry Potter, but looks like a fun film that will appeal to kids as well as those who just love a bit of special effects-laden magic action. I’m not marking my calendar in anticipation but I’ll certainly see it, nonetheless.

Thoughts on the latest Percy Jackson trailer?

Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief hits theaters on February 12th, 2010.

Source: Collider

This summer we got our first look at the teaser trailer for the upcoming adaptation of  Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief. It’s based on the first of a series of books by author Rick Riordan, about a teenage boy named Percy (being played by Logan Lerman) who discovers he is actually the son of the god Poseidon. Percy then sets out on a quest to stop a war between the gods.

A few months ago we got another look at Percy Jackson with the first official trailer, further solidifying early claims that the film bears more than passing resemblance to the Harry Potter franchise. And last month we got a look at the first international trailer, which showed off some of the special effects and magical elements of the story.

Now another new international trailer for Percy Jackson has been released and we have it here for your viewing pleasure. If you saw the first international trailer, you’ll probably recognize a lot of the footage in this one (read: it’s almost the same), but if you look close enough there’s some new stuff in there. The additions include seeing Sean Bean as the god Zeus; Pierce Brosnan as the Centaur, Chiron (that’s half-man-half-horse to the layman ); and an extended look at the impressive water effect which appears near the end of the trailer.

Check out the trailer, thanks to ComingSoon.net:

When I first heard of this project and watched the first teaser, I saw it as nothing more than a Harry Potter knock-off (it has the same director as the first two HP movies, Chris Columbus – coincidence?). However, there more I’ve seen of the film, the better it’s looked to me, and I can kind of forgive the similarities to Harry Potter in lieu of what it has to offer.

What makes me look forward to the project more than anything, though, is the impressive cast that’s been assembled, particularly the ones playing the various gods: Pierce Brosnan is Chiron, Uma Thurman is Madusa, Sean Bean is Zeus, Kevin McKidd is Poseidon, Rosario Dawson is Persephone, Serinda Swan is Aphrodite, Erica Cerra is Hera, Luke Camilleri is Dionysus, Dylan Neal is Hermes and Melina Kanakaredes is Athena… you had me at Bean, Thurman and Brosnan!

Pierce Brosnan as Chiron

What’s been stuck in my mind about Percy Jackson is the fact that it’s an epic adventure type movie much like Clash of the Titans. What’s the problem with that? Well, they both feature the legendary Greek gods, and they both come out quite close to each other (Percy Jackson in Ferbuary, and Titans in March). I realize Clash of the Titans is aiming for a slightly higher age of audience, but I fear general audiences will have seen Percy Jackson first and not bother with Titans because they’ll see it as ‘just another Greek god flick.’ It would be a shame if that happened, since the second trailer for Clash of the Titans makes it look 100x times better.

What do you think of the latest Percy Jackson trailer? Looking forward to this project or does it just look like a Harry Potter wannabe to you? Do you think both this and Clash of the Titans being about the Greek gods will make audiences pick one over the other?

Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief hits theaters on February 12th, 2010.

Source: ComingSoon

As 2010 approaches, it’s time to bid farewell to the cinematic happenings of 2K9 – but what does the near-future hold for movie lovers? Luckily for you guys, we here at Screen Rant are dusting off our crystal ball and looking ahead… all the way to the year 2010.

Be sure to read through our entire 2010 movie preview (of over 70 movies!) to get the scoop on when you’ll be able to catch big flicks like Iron Man 2, Christopher Nolan’s Inception, Martin Scorsese’s adaptation of Shutter Island, Freddy Krueger’s return to Elm Street, a comic book adaptation that’s sure to Kick-Ass, an animated showdown between Dreamworks’ Shrek Forever After and Pixar’s Toy Story 3 – and for the ladies, a second helping of Sex In The City and an obscure little film called The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.

…And that’s just the preview of the preview. Let’s get to the full list of 2010 movies.

You can click on any one of the movie titles to see our archive of coverage on that film.

If you’re impatient and want to skip around, here’s where you can find:

• 2010 Spring movies
• 2010 Summer movies
• 2010 Fall/Winter movies

Enjoy…

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JANUARY

Daybreakers

January 8th

Synopsis: In the year 2019, a plague has transformed most every human into vampires. Faced with a dwindling blood supply, the fractured dominant race plots their survival; meanwhile, a researcher  (Ethan Hawke) works with a covert band of vamps on a way to save humankind.

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Youth In Revolt

January 8th

Synopsis: Nick Twisp (Michael Cera), a unique, but affable teen with a taste for the finer things in life falls hopelessly in love with free-spirited Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday). But family, geography and jealous ex-lovers conspire to keep these two apart. With Sheeni’s encouragement, Nick abandons his dull, predictable life and develops a rebellious alter ego who leads him on a path of destruction with uproarious consequences.

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The Book of Eli

January 15th

Synopsis: A post-apocalyptic tale, in which a lone man (Denzel Washington) fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving humankind. Gary Oldman and Mila Kunis co-star.

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The Lovely Bones

January 15th

Synopsis: Based on the critically acclaimed best-selling novel by Alice Sebold, and directed by Oscar-winner Peter Jackson, The Lovely Bones centers on a young girl (Saoirse Ronan) who has been murdered and watches over her family and her killer from heaven. She must weigh her desire for vengeance against her desire for her family to heal.

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Legion

January 22nd

Synopsis: After a terrifying biblical apocalypse descends upon the world, a group of strangers stranded in a remote truck stop diner in the Southwest unwittingly become humanity’s last line of defense when they discover the diner’s young waitress is pregnant with the messiah.

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Tooth Fairy

January 22nd

Synopsis: A bad deed on the part of a tough minor-league hockey player results in an unusual sentence: He must serve one week as a real-life tooth fairy.

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Edge of Darkness

January 29th

Synopsis: As homicide detective Thomas Craven (Mel Gibson) investigates the death of his activist daughter, he uncovers not only her secret life, but a corporate cover-up and government collusion that attracts an agent tasked with cleaning up the evidence.

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FEBRUARY

From Paris with Love

February 5th

Synopsis: In Paris, a young employee in the office of the US Ambassador hooks up with an American spy looking to stop a terrorist attack in the city.

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Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief

February 12th

Synopsis: A young boy discovers he’s the descendant of a Greek god and sets out on an adventure to settle an on-going battle between the gods. Based on the book by Rick Riordan.

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The Wolfman

February 12th

Synopsis: Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro), a haunted nobleman, is lured back to his family estate when his brother’s fiancée (Emily Blunt) tracks him down to help find her missing love. Reunited with his estranged father (Anthony Hopkins), Talbot learns that something with brute strength and insatiable bloodlust has been killing the villagers, and that a suspicious Scotland Yard inspector named Aberline (Hugo Weaving) has come to investigate.

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Shutter Island

February 19th

Synopsis: Up-and-coming U.S. marshal Teddy Daniels is assigned to investigate the disappearance of a patient from Boston’s Shutter Island Hospital. Teddy’s shrewd investigating skills soon provide a promising lead, but the hospital refuses him access to records he suspects would break the case wide open. As a hurricane cuts off communication with the mainland, more dangerous criminals “escape” in the confusion, and as the puzzling, improbable clues multiply, Teddy begins to doubt everything – his memory, his partner, even his own sanity.

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Cop Out

February 26th

Synopsis: A comedy about two cops (Bruce Willis, Tracy Morgan) whose adventures include locating a stolen baseball card, rescuing a woman, and dealing with gangsters and their laundered money. Kevin Smith directs. Formerly titled “A Couple of Dicks” and then “A Couple of Cops”. Now it’s called Cop Out.

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The Crazies

February 26th

Synopsis: The inhabitants of a small Iowa town suddenly plagued by insanity and then death after a mysterious toxin contaminates their water supply.

Click to continue reading our 2010 Movie Preview

Happy Friday everyone!

Last week we had our biggest Poster Friday collection ever (separated into two parts), but this week we’re back to our standard format and have again gathered the latest posters to come out for this week’s poster round-up.

Screen Rant’s wall this week now includes new one-sheets for Season of the Witch, The Wolfman, Avatar, The Lovely Bones, The Book of Eli, Sex and the City 2, Clash of the Titans, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, Sherlock Holmes, Tron Legacy, Death at a Funeral, Edge of Darkness and Iron Man 2.

We also have a little bonus for fans of Star Wars and/or Zombies…

Let’s get to it.

To start, here’s a Season of the Witch starring the very busy Nicolas Cage:

Source: STYD

The International trailer for Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief has hit the Interweb, and it looks better than the previous trailer(s) that we’ve seen for the film.

The difference? This international trailer actually sets up something of an interesting (and action-packed) story, rather than simply providing us a glimpse at something that looks like yet another Harry Potter knock-off.

Speaking of Harry Potter, Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief is being helmed by Chris Columbus, the same guy who directed the first two installments of the Potter franchise. Percy Jackson is based on the popular young-adult novels by Rick Riordan, and tells the story of a young boy named Percy (Logan Lerman) who discovers he is the descendant of the Greek Gods, only to become embroiled in a god-war.

The cast of actors playing the gods in the movie are made up of some very familiar faces – see if you can spot them in the trailer:

In case you didn’t catch them all, the gods are Pierce Brosnan as Chiron, Uma Thurman as Madusa, Sean Bean as Zeus, Kevin McKidd as Poseidon, Rosario Dawson as Persephone Serinda Swan as Aphrodite, Erica Cerra as Hera, Luke Camilleri  as Dionysus, Dylan Neal as Hermes and Melina Kanakaredes as Athena. Also in the cast are Catherine Keener as Sally Jackson and Brandon T. “Tropic Thunder” Jackson as Grover Underwood.

What did you think, did you like the latest trailer?

Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief hits theaters on February 12, 2010.

Happy Friday everyone! For our last Friday of October 2009, Halloween weekend! And you know what that means… we’ve again gathered the latest posters to come out for this week’s poster round-up.

Screen Rant’s wall this week now includes new one-sheets for Sherlock Holmes, The Box, How To Train You Dragon, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, The Fourth Kind, The Graves, Psychosis, Old Dogs, The Blackout, Smallville, Cracks, V.A.m.L. and Altitude.

In addition to that, we have some hints as to the meaning of the Lost poster from two weeks back and a little bonus for Tron Legacy.

Let’s get to it.

To start, here’s the latest poster for Sherlock Holmes, courtesy of Cinematical:

Starring Robert Downey Jr. Jude Law, Rachel McAdams and Mark Strong, Guy Ritchie’s take on Sherlock Holmes opens this Christmas, December 25, 2009.

A new trailer has appeared online for Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, an adaptation of a series of fantasy books written by Rick Riordan. The film is about a teenage boy called Percy, who one day learns that he is the son of the god Poseidon. He then sets out on a quest to settle a war between the Greek gods.

The first teaser trailer for Percy Jackson debuted a few months ago and was exactly that -- a teaser. It was understandable at the time that they didn’t show that much, but it was important that the next trailer give us a lot more. And although they haven’t given us as much as I’d hoped for, the new trailer still provides more of a glimpse into this fantasy world, including showing us some of the large, diverse cast that includes Pierce Brosnan, Rosario Dawson and Steve Coogan. Check out the latest trailer below:

Even if that doesn’t look all that deep or meaningful, the movie still looks like a decent enough fantasy adventure, with plenty of different famous faces filling the Greek god roles of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades (to name a few). I just wonder if the debated Harry Potter similarities will hurt or help the film at the box office. People may see the similarities to HP and see Percy Jackson based on that principle, while others might just want to wait for the next Potter flick to hit theaters. Although I think Percy Jackson will do decently at the box office, I can’t help but think that Potter will affect it negatively at least somewhat.

What do you think of the second Percy Jackson trailer? Do you think it will make a lot at the box office or fail because people will see it as inferior compared to the Harry Potter franchise?

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief stars Logan Lerman (from Gamer), Pierce Brosnan (as Chiron), Sean Bean (Zeus), Rosario Dawson (Persephone), Uma Thurman (Medusa), Kevin McKidd (Poseidon), Ray Winstone (Ares), Steve Coogan (Hades) and Melina Kanakaredes (Athena). It is scheduled to hit theaters on February 12th, 2010.

Source: YouTube and Collider

The first ever teaser trailer has premiered for the upcoming fantasy film, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. The incredibly long titled film is an adaptation of a series of books that bare more than passing resemblance to the Harry Potter series. The film follows a teenage boy, Percy, who discovers he is actually the son of the god Poseidon. Percy then sets out on a quest to settle a war between the Greek gods.

Chris Columbus (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone/Chamber of Secrets) directed Percy Jackson, which stars Logan Lerman as the titular character, and Catherine Keener as his mother. The list of actors playing the Greek gods are Sean Bean as Zeus, Uma Thurman as Medusa, Kevin McKidd as Poseidon, Pierce Brosnan as Chiron, Rosario Dawson as Persephone, Ray Winstone as Ares, Steve Coogan as Hades and Melina Kanakaredes as Athena.

Sadly, none of those gods are included in our first look at the movie, and we only really get a look at Percy himself. However, being that it’s a teaser, the destination of his elevator travels is sufficient tease enough.

Check out the trailer below:

[See post to watch Flash video]

Head over to AOL for an HD version.

I don’t think we can judge Percy Jackson too much going by this first trailer. It’s only a teaser, and it’s understandable they wouldn’t reveal their entire hand at this point in time. However, for their next release of footage they really need to crank things up and show us at least some glimpses of the massive, diverse cast that are playing the Greek gods.

This initial premise of a young boy finding out he has a fantastical, magical, life awaiting for him isn’t all that far removed from the Harry Potter franchise. Will audiences turn their noses up, or will another fantasy film in this vein rake in the cash without a hitch? Only time will tell.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief is slated for a February 12th, 2010 release (That’s the date of  Presidents Day in America for those that don’t know).

Source: FirstShowing

Beyonce is Obsessed with being number one; Tony Scott and Denzel Washington are Unstoppable; it’s all Greek to Warner Bros. with Odysseus; James Marsden hassles the “Hoff” in Straw Dogs; will DiCaprio Beat the Reaper? Catherine is Keener for Jackson.

Box Office

It looks like all the independent women threw their hands up in the air for Beyonce Knowles starring Obsessed. The female fronted film grossed $28.5 million – which is about $10 million more than the studio predicted.

Zac Efron had to settle for a runner-up spot this week with an $11.5 weekend take for 17 Again. The film has so far banked about $39 million clearly going through the door-marked profit.

Channing Tatum (who’s on the cusp of big things with G.I Joe) and Iron Man’s (but not Iron Man 2) Terrance Howard came a close third this weekend with $11.3 million for Fighting.

Iron Man himself Robert Downey Jr was fourth with The Soloist. The film which co-stars Jamie Foxx was delayed by Paramount and although reviews were good it couldn’t make enough sweet music. With a weekend gross on just over $9 million it looks like The Soloist might have to sing for its supper.

Monsters vs. Aliens earned another $8.5 million. With a total of almost $180 million – expect a sequel.

State of Play couldn’t use its good reviews to build on its audience. With just over $7 million it looks like the Russell Crowe/ Ben Affleck film will have to find its audience on DVD.

Hannah Montana: The Movie has now banked $65 million (if you care) at least Miley and Billy Ray Cyrus will be happy. Vin Diesel and Paul Walker’s Fast and Furious has powered to $145 million. I wonder how fast and furious the next installment will be?

Movie News

1. Tony Scott and Denzel Washington are like er… Tony Scott and orange filters – inseparable.
Washington is in talks to star in Unstoppable, Scott’s runaway train movie.

If Washington cho-cho-choses (I know I made that joke before) the action pic will be their fifth film together…

Their fourth The Taking of Pelham 123 opens on June 12.

Source: Variety

2. Warner Bros. have won a major bidding war for the script Odysseus.
According to The Hollywood Reporter:

“The story centers on the legendary hero Odysseus, famed king of Ithaca, who returns to his island after 20 years of fighting the Trojan Wars, only to find his kingdom under the brutal occupation of an invading force. Odysseus single-handedly defeats every last man and takes back his wife, his son and his kingdom.”

Warner’s seem to love Greek based movies – a few years ago they had Troy, 300 and they have the forthcoming Clash of The Titans.

Haven’t they heard the expression “beware of Greeks bearing gifts”?

Source: Variety

3. James Marsden will play the Dustin Hoffman role in Rod Lurie’s Straw Dogs remake.
The former X-Man will star in the film which is due to start shooting in August.
The controversial original film Sam Peckinpah saw an American return to his wife’s rural village in England, only for the locals to turn nasty.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

4. Brian Koppelman and David Levien have been hired to adapt the Josh Bazell novel Beat the Reaper in the hopes that Leonardo DiCaprio will star.

“The drama, being developed as a potential star vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio, revolves around a Manhattan ER doctor whose life becomes complicated when a mobster recognizes him from his former life as a hitman.”

Well, we haven’t seen this since A History of Violence.

Source: Variety

5. Catherine Keener will join former James Bond Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, Sean Bean, Kevin McKidd in Christopher Columbus’ Percy Jackson.

The non Warner Bros. produced Greek fantasy film “put(s) Greek gods in modern times, (it) involve (s) Poseidon’s half-human son, Percy, who is on a quest in modern America to prevent a war among the gods.”

Keener will play Percy’s mother in the film which is currently shooting in Canada.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

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

Think Harry Potter is the only series of young adult-centric fantasy books prime for a movie franchise? Think again. The series of books Percy & The Olympians is set to be turned into a movie (with the presumed title simply as Percy Jackson), with the adapted screenplay already written by Chris Columbus and Craig Titley based on the first book in the series called The Lightning Thief.

The film, which is to be directed by Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire, and the first two Harry Potter films), is based on the Greek mythology-based books that tells the story of Poseidon’s half-human son, Percy, who sets out on a quest across modern America to prevent a war among the gods.

Speaking of which, most of those who will play the Greek gods have already been cast, they are: Pierce Brosnan as Chiron, Uma Thurman as Madusa, Sean Bean as Zeus, Kevin McKidd as Poseidon and Melina Kanakaredes as Athena. The gods Aries, Hades and Persephone have not yet been cast.

The three main teenage characters have already been cast: Logan Lerman (3:10 To Yuma), Alexandra Daddario (All My Children) and Brandon T. Jackson (Alpa Chino from Tropic Thunder).

Since it’s based specifically on the first book in the series, here’s a bit more of an in-depth plot that will most likely be used in the film (courtesy of Wikipedia):

The Lightning Thief is the first book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, it is the story of twelve year old Percy Jackson, a boy with ADHD and Dyslexia. Percy has been going to many different schools, many of them boarding schools, due to the fact that he keeps getting kicked out. His entire life he has had no idea where his father is. But one day during a school field trip, Percy is approached by a mystical creature and defeats it with a sword named Riptide(disguised as a pen) given to him by a teacher. Later that day, Percy and his mom go on a trip to a beach when attacked by a storm. Percy’s friend Grover from school suddenly appears saving Percy, but ultimately failing to save his mom. Grover exposes himself as a Satyr and that Percy has been taken to Camp Half Blood. Percy discovers that he is a demigod and during a Capture the Flag game that his father is Poseidon, the god of the sea. A while later, Chiron, his old teacher and the camp director tells him that his father and uncle Zeus are warring over Zeus’s lost Master Bolt. Now, Percy must journey to find the Zeus’ missing bolt to restore peace in Olympus with Annabeth Chase and Grover the Satyr.

What immediately struck me about this whole idea is how it mixes the Greek god mythology with modern day life. It has the high potential to look extremely cheesy on-screen, and so I remain pensive as to whether or not they can pull this off. However, Columbus has proven himself competent in bringing a fantasy story to life with the first two Harry Potter films which on paper also had the potential to not work on-screen. Luckily, Columbus and subsequent directors such as Alfonso Cuaron found a way to make it work very well.

The term used to describe how the story functions is that they “take some creative license.” Wouldn’t they have to for it to work?…

As far as the casting of the gods goes, it’s kind of a mixed bag. Thurman and McKidd I think are suited to the roles, with the latter being pretty kick ass in any role he takes. But Brosnan, Bean and Kanakeredes are another story - all three are fine performers in their own right, but it seems in this case they have just been chosen for how they look more than the performance they have to give.

An interesting thing to note about the titular teenage boy – the character is written as having both Dyslexia and ADHD. It’s great to see there being a character in such a fantasy series who has real life issues, as opposed to “the perfect young hero.” I just hope they keep that part of the movie version… something tells me they won’t.

As I hinted at in the opening paragraph, the plan is to make this into a full franchise of fantasy films (much like what Harry Potter is now) – each installment based on one of the five original books by Rick Riordan. These books in order are: The Lightning Thief, The Sea of Monsters, The Titan’s Curse, The Battle of the Labyrinth and The Last Olympian.

We’ll just see if the first film does well at the box office before they can move on to more films. I don’t think the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series has had the success and mainstream name recognition as Harry Potter did (and obviously still does), but you never know, this could catch on and become very successful.

So is there any fans of the source material out there? Do you think this will make a successful movie franchise?

Percy Jackson is set to start shooting sometime this year, and is aimed for a February 2010 release.

Source: Variety