Screen Rant » the a-team

The A-Team To Feature Members of Original A-Team?

Rob Keyes — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:44:03 +0000

For me, the most exciting part of the cast for Joe Carnahan’s film adapation of The A-Team is the addition of Sharlto Copley (District 9) who’s playing the most challenging role of the team as Capt. ‘Howling Mad’ Murdock. I think he’s absolutely perfect for the role and from everything we’ve heard about him on set for this and his debut role in D-9, it looks like it’s true.

Do you know who agrees with me? Well, the original Murdock of course, played by Dwight Schultz, who has seen Copley’s screen test describing it as “brilliant beyond words.” Better yet, Schultz will be appearing in the movie in a cameo role and is already on set in Vancouver.

See the report from the official Dwight Schultz fansite below.

We have received many questions if Dwight will have a cameo part in the A-team movie. We are pleased to inform you all that Dwight has actually already been working in Vancouver, where he has played a cameo role in The A-Team movie. Sharlto Copely, the South African actor who plays Murdock, is according to Dwight: ‘brilliant beyond words’. Dwight has seen his screen test and he stated: that honestly, if Sharlto is given an opportunity to do what I saw in that test, “Murdock” will be better than ever!’ Sharlto has been very kind to him on the set and Dwight must say that he has been treated very well.

I like the idea of Schultz playing a cameo role and it’s a nice throw back for fans of the original show. With him on board, is it possible that we see cameos from Mr. T. and Dirk Benedict as well? Unfortunately, George Peppard (the original Hannibal) passed away in 15 years ago as it would of been neat to see all four have guest appearance but they can still make do.Not having Mr.T seems like a missed opportunity to me although I’d admit to see two characters like B.A. Baracus in the film.

Don’t forget to check out the first image of The A-Team as well as the on-set interviews that Screen Rant put up recently.

What do you think of Dwight Schultz appearing in the film and would you like to see the other two make a guest appearance as well?

The A-Team opens in theaters June 11, 2010.

Source: Official Dwight Schultz Fansite via Cinematical

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First (Good) Look At The A-Team?

Paul Young — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:11:22 +0000

I love it when ‘A Team’ comes together!

Yesterday, Entertainment Tonight did a behind-the-scenes report on the upcoming TV show-turned-movie The A-Team. The footage was mostly uninteresting fluff but there was a quick glimpse of Quinton “Rampage” Jackson acting like “B.A.” Baracus. It was slightly cringe-worthy but I think it wasn’t a true take and only represented a rehearsal moment. However, it did give fans a chance to see what B.A. will look like, because up to now, we’ve only gotten paparazzi pictures.

As you can see from the above header, that may no longer be the case. Courtesy of Peter Sciretta at /Film, we have what COULD BE the first true look at all four members of The A-Team. Sciretta points us to /Film reader, Dr. Malo, and his website, which is all in Spanish but thanks to iGoogle Translator, we find out Malo reportedly got the pic from Fox Chile.

For a bigger version of the header image, go HERE.

Is it real or fake? Hard to say with any certainty since it was first released to a Spanish website via the Spanish-arm of Fox instead of a Canadian or American site, which makes it a tad odd, but just like a model on the cover of Playboy, real or fake this photo has definitely seen some serious airbrush and Photoshop time. That’s not a complaint, just an observation. The work on this picture is extraordinary and the artist(s) are to be commended. The work on Liam Neeson, in particular, is extremely impressive.

(Click image for larger version)

The New A-Team (Clockwise): Hannibal (Liam Neeson), Faceman (Bradley Cooper), "Howling Mad" Murdock (Sharlto Copley), "B.A. Baracus" (Quinton Jackson)

Talking to Screen Rant editor Kofi Outlaw about the picture he said this:

“It actually makes (me at least) believe that these guys can tackle these roles while putting their own fresh spins on them.”

You know what, I agree with him wholeheartedly. There was never any doubt about the casting of Liam Neeson as Col. John “Hannibal” Smith or Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck. Even the casting of District 9’s Sharlto Copley as Capt. “Howling Mad” Murdock was never really doubted. The only remaining question mark was the casting of MMA fighter-turned-actor Quinton “Rampage” Jackson as the iconic “B.A.” Baracus but this picture helps him take one step closer to solidifying his place in the film.

That is, of course, if the movie ends up being a true representation of The A-Team crew.

Filming has been going on in Vancouver for a couple of weeks now, with Narc’s Joe Carnahan firmly at the helm and with a release date only a handful of months away, we should get a teaser trailer shortly.

What do you think about the newly released A-Team group photo: fake, not fake or just cool?

The A-Team shoots up the screen June 11th, 2010.

Source: /Film

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The A-Team: New Set Footage, Photos, Interviews

Rob Keyes — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:28:54 +0000

The A-Team film is currently in full production and if you missed it, we recently got our first look at the team’s ride and our first look at Quinton “Rampage” Jackson as B.A. Baracus. Today we have more on that front with some new Entertainment Tonight set footage and interviews with some of the main cast members as well as some set photos courtesy of Coming Soon.

Alongside Jackson’s “Less gold, more muscle” take on Baracus, a role originally made famous by Mr.T, The A-Team stars Liam Neeson as Col. John “Hannibal” Smith, Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck and last but not least, District 9’s Sharlto Copley as “Howling Mad” Murdock. Joining the male action heroes is also Jessica Biel as Faceman’s ex and an Army general.

Check out the behind-the-scenes goodies after the jump.

Here’s the ET video:

And continue through the pages to see some set photos – head to Coming Soon for the rest.

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First Look At Baracus in ‘A-Team’

Anthony Ocasio — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:11:18 +0000

Last week we gave you a first look at the new A-Team and while the picture showed us Hannibal (Liam Neeson), Faceman (Bradley Cooper) and Murdock (Sharlto Copley), the ever iconic B.A. Baracus (Quinton “Rampage” Jackson) was somewhat hidden – but not anymore, as today we provide you with the first clear pictures of Baracus in full mohawked glory.

The photo, presumably taken while in-between shots, shows an ever-plump looking Jackson donning the familiar B.A. Baracus wardrobe and hair stylings. Unfortunately, there is not a single gold chain in sight.

Check out the photo below, but I have to warn you; It’s not pretty. I never thought that “Rampage” Jackson was a good casting decision and while Mr. T may now be known as a parody of himself, back in the day he owned that role. From the pic it looks like the only “rolls” Rampage is owning are the fresh baked ones.

I know that Mr. T was never that “in-shape,” but he never appeared to be over-weight. While I’m sure Mr. T and Rampage Jackson can both out-manly me at anytime, this re-imagining (or whatever they’re calling it to get away with him looking so out-of-shape) just doesn’t sit well with me.

This just proves that, once again, there’s only one Mr. T and he can’t be replicated.

So, now that you’ve seen the photo, what do you think of the new B.A. Baracus?

The A-Team will be released on June 11, 2010.

Source: Urdirt [via: Screen Crave

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First Look: The New A-Team & Green Hornet’s Costume [Updated]

Ross Miller — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:01:50 +0000

Today we have a couple of first looks for you lucky Screen Rant readers: a first look at the new A-Team, and also our first look at the costume Seth Rogen will be donning to play the masked superhero, The Green Hornet.

The A-Team

We recently gave you the first look at the new A-Team van on the Vancouver set of the upcoming movie adaptation of the classic ’80s TV series. And today – thanks to ComingSoon.net – we have our very first look at Liam Neeson (as Hannibal), Bradley Cooper (as Faceman), Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (as B.A. Baracus) and District 9’s Sharlto Copley (as Murdock). It’s not the greatest of photos (I think we’re a few months away from official, high quality shots) but it nonetheless serves as our first look at the new Team.

The photo was either taken during a scene in progress, or UFC fighter Quinton Jackson is trying to mentally prepare for a scene about to shoot (maybe he’s nervous about the daunting task of filling Mr. T’s shoes!). As for the look of the cast as a whole – nothing to get worried about in terms of them “ruining” one of the most well known TV shows of the last 26 years. There’s still time for them to drop the ball, I realize, but so far so good in my eyes.

Take a look:

Click image for full size version at ComingSoon.net

Along with Neeson, Cooper, Jackson and Copley, The A-Team is also set to star Jessica Biel as an Army General (and an ex-lover of Cooper’s Faceman) and Watchmen’s Patrick Wilson as some sort of CIA operative. It is being directed by Joe Carnahan (Smokin’ Aces, Narc) and is written by Michael Brandt, Derek Haas and Skip Woods.

The Green Hornet

Next and last up we have our first look at the costume Seth Rogen will be wearing as The Green Hornet. Sadly, we don’t get a look of Rogen actually donning the costume, but rather what is presumably his stuntman (I know Rogen has shed the pounds recently, but…). We’ve already seen what Kato will look like (also by way of a stuntman), but now you can take a look at the clothes our titular masked hero will be wearing:

As a bonus, here’s a video from the set of The Green Hornet from Splash (thanks to Cinemablend). Explosions and, “a bulldozer being dropped on a car,” is what you’ll see. Take a look:

GREEN HORNET SET VIDEO

UPDATE: Some set photos giving us our first look at Seth Rogen in costume as The Green Hornet have appeared online at Splash News. Check out one of the photos below:

For more shots of Rogen as The Green Hornet, head over to Splash News.

Along with Rogen as the titular hero and Jay Chou as his sidekick, Kato, The Green Hornet also stars Cameron Diaz, Edward James Olmos and possibly Inglourious Basterds baddie, Christoph Waltz (replacing the previously attached Nicolas Cage). The script was written by Rogen and his Superbad co-writer Evan Goldberg, and the film is being directed by Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind).

What do you think of our first looks at both the new A-Team cast and Seth Rogen in The Green Hornet’s costume? Do both of them look as you hoped?

Both The A-Team and The Green Hornet are currently filming, with The A-Team set to hit theaters on June 11th, 2010, and The Green Hornet (after being moved) is set for a December 17th, 2010 release.

Sources: ComingSoon, Splash, Cinemablend and Cinematical (for TGH still)

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The A-Team: First Look At The New Van & More Casting News

Ross Miller — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 20:54:47 +0000

Today we have a double whammy of new items from the upcoming movie version of the classic 80s TV series, The A-Team. They are a new piece of casting news (don’t worry, none of the already announced actors have been replaced!) and our very first look at the famous A-Team black-with-red-stripe-van.

First up, let’s take a look at the new A-Team van, by way of a photo from the set (from SplashNews) where the movie is currently filming in Vancouver. Die hard fans of the original series will be pleased to know that the new van isn’t all that different from the original (I mean generally – I suspect die hards will nitpick…), which I don’t think is much a problem since that was one of the less cheesier things from the series. It can easily be transferred almost identically to the 21st century movie update and work just as well. Take a look for yourself:

For the rest of the images (in which those with a keen eye or amazing photoshop skills may be able to work out if any of the primary cast are driving it) you can head over to SplashNews.

Now onto the casting news:

We’ve already learned who will replace the original actors in their respective roles: Liam Neeson is Hannibal, Bradley Cooper (from this summer’s smash comedy hit, The Hangover) is Faceman, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (the UFC fighter) is B.A. Baracus and lastly, Sharlto Copley (from this summer’s awesome District 9) is Murdock. Along with Copley’s news the other day, it was also reported that Jessica Biel is starring in the movie as an army general and ex-lover of Cooper’s Faceman.

And now it seems (thanks to Entertainment Weekly) that Watchmen star, Patrick Wilson, will be joining The A-Team cast as some sort of CIA operative. It’s currently unknown if he will be helping or hindering the Team. Either way I’m always glad to see Wilson get more acting work: I personally think he’s adynamite acting talent to watch out for (if you’ve seen the both fantastic Little Children and/or Hard Candy, you’ll know what I mean).

In The A-Team, Neeson, Cooper, Jackson and Copley will play a group of Iraq war veterans (changed from Vietnam to place it present-day) who are trying to clear their names with the U.S. military which suspects the four men of committing a crime which they were actually framed for. The tone is being described as, “less silly and more slick.” Good news? It is being directed by Joe Carnahan (Smokin’ Aces, Narc) and written by Michael Brandt, Derek Haas and Skip Woods.

What do you think of the Team’s new van? What about the Wilson casting news?

The A-Team is scheduled to hit theaters on June 11th, 2010.

Sources: EW, SplashNews, Joblo, /Film and Wikipedia

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Confirmed: Copley & Biel In Final Talks For The A-Team

Rob Keyes — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:41:45 +0000

The A-Team has come together!

Well, almost. Last week, BlackFilm.com broke the news that District 9 star, Sharlto Copley, had been offered the role of the fourth and final character yet to be cast in The A-Team movie.

If true, that could mean Copley would play H.M “Howling Mad” Murdock alongside MMA fighter Quinton “Rampage” Jackson as B.A. Baracus, Liam Neeson as Col. John “Hannibal” Smith and Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck.

Now comes confirmation that Copley is in fact close to acquiring his second major film acting gig, and also joining the cast could be the beautiful Jessica Biel!

According to THR, Sharlto Copley is in final negotiations to bring Murdock to the silver screen and joining him could be Jessica Biel who’s also reportedly in final negotiations.

The character of “Howling Mad” Murdock was The A-Team’s craziest member and an ace chopper pilot. He’s officially mentally unstable and suffers from delusions and other mental ailments, but unofficially he’s the funniest and most over-the-top character of the show – so much so, that originally the producers behind the show wanted to get rid of him but his popularity solidified his position on the team.

In the show, he stayed a psychiatric hospital but escaped regularly to join the team on their adventures where he got to showcase all the facets of his mental issues. Those of course included his love of cartoon characters, hallucinations, his caring for his invisible dog, a little memory loss and many more we’ll probably see on screen in the adaptation.

With that said, Copley is perfect for the role as a master of improv – something that helped him a ton while filming District 9 and what helped director Neill Blomkamp pick him.

Moving on to the next possible addition to the cast – we have Jessica Biel. She’s in negotiations for the role of an army general and ex-lover of Bradley Cooper’s character, Faceman. Yeap, an army general – don’t expect realism from the movie, it’s more of a fun thing, I’m sure you understand… you “crazy fool!”

So, it looks like we’re very close to finalizing the The A-Team which is set to start principal photography this fall in Vancouver.

What do you think of the casting decisions?

The A-Team is to be directed by Joe Carnahan and hits theaters June 11, 2010.

Sources: THR, BlackFilm

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District 9’s Sharlto Copley as The A-Team’s Murdock?

Rob Keyes — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 11:01:44 +0000

On Monday Screen Rant reported that the film adaptation of The A-Team had finally decided on who was to play the infamous role of B.A. Baracus, a character made famous by everyone’s favorite Mr. T.

The character was confirmed to be played by MMA fighter Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, becoming the third member of the team officially cast out of four. The other two of course being Liam Neeson as Col. John “Hannibal” Smith and Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck.

Now it seems, they might have finally chosen the man who play H.M “Howling Mad” Murdock… District 9’s Sharlto Copley?

According to an inside source of our friend Wilson Morales of BlackFilm.com, he’s exclusively discovered who may be playing Murdock in The A-Team, rounding out the cast of the titular team of soldiers of fortune.

According to the source, Copley has been offered the role but there’s no confirmation yet as to whether or not he’s accepted. How can he not though – this is chance to go forward as a star actor after just one performance. I thought he did great in District 9 and I’m all for him playing this role as well.

Too bad he can’t take that Prawn body-exploding weapon (pictured above) from D-9 with him into The A-Team…

Whosoever in charge of casting is sure paying attention to this year’s popular summer films and upcoming actors. Cooper finally hit it mainstream with his lead role in one of the year’s best comedies, The Hangover, and the first-time-actor Sharlto Copley was of course the star of the very cool District 9.

What do you think of Copley playing Murdock, and the team so far?

The A-Team is scheduled to hit theaters next summer, June 11, 2010 with its 6-week shoot beginning soon.

Source: BlackFilm

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‘The A-Team’ Picks Its B.A. Baracus – But Still No Murdock

Paul Young — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 17:02:30 +0000

Well our friends in the Great White North are going to be seeing a lot of military action in the upcoming couple of months. Joe Carnahan, the director that brought us Smokin’ Aces and Narc, should be ready to start a six-week shooting schedule shortly in Vancouver for the upcoming feature film of The A-Team. As an added bonus, it looks like MMA fighter Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has been selected to play the iconic, gold-chain-covered B.A. Baracus.

Mr. “Rampage” joins the already cast Liam Neeson as Col. John “Hannibal” Smith and this summer’s Hangover star, Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck. Yet to be announced is the actor chosen to play H.M “Howling Mad” Murdock. We could easily speculate on who has been rumored to play the chopper pilot turned psychiatric patient, but frankly the list has gotten ridiculous and a bit tedious.

The latest person rumored to be B.A.’s little buddy Murdock is Chris Pine. This is the same Chris Pine that is already confirmed to star opposite Denzel Washington in Unstoppable, which just so happens to be filming in Philadelphia right now. So unless that runaway train he is on finally stops in Vancouver, I doubt he will be able to make the film schedule. Good rumor though; too bad it probably won’t pan out.

Of course, this could be just like all the Chris Pine/Green Lantern rumors that floated around the blogosphere leading up to actual casting of Ryan Reynolds. Hey I’ve got an idea, why not just cast Justin Timberlake as Murdock and be done with it? A long, long while back, when The A-Team was just an inkling of a rumor in the Hollywood mill, Jim Carrey was supposed to be playing the titular character – but alas, that didn’t pan out. Earlier this year, Carnahan grabbed the director’s chair and Woody Harrelson was going to wear Murdock’s crazy leather bomber jacket; but that too turned out to go nowhere.

What I’m afraid is going to ultimately happen, just like with the choice of “Rampage” Jackson, is that they will choose a relative unknown for the character and that will most likely turn out awful. Other than having been on TV for MMA fights, Jackson has no acting background whatsoever and we won’t find out how he does for another year or so. I’d be a little less apprehensive if he was coming from a WWE background. At least then we would know he can act (zing)!

I’m not worried about Carnahan’s ability to deliver a summer-worthy movie, but if he doesn’t make a good choice for Murdock and the choice for Baracus turns out to be a bust, then The A-Team could quickly become a movie focused on “Hannibal” and “Faceman.”

"I pity the fool who doesn't portray me well"

What are your thoughts on the choice of Quinton “Rampage” Jackson as B.A. Baracus and who do you see playing H.M. “Howling Mad” Murdock? (If someone says Ben Affleck I will literally club a baby seal.)

The A-Team has a release date of June 11^th, 2010 but seeing as how filming hasn’t started and 25% of the cast hasn’t been selected, I’m going out on a limb and say that will be pushed WAY back.

Source: The Playlist

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Rapper The Game To Play B.A. Baracus In The A-Team?

Ross Miller — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:10:20 +0000

There’s been a lot of casting rumors flying around about the upcoming A-Team movie. The only two castings that have been confirmed so far are Liam Neeson and Bradley Cooper (playing Hannibal and Faceman, respectively). But probably the biggest role of interest (and the source of most of the A-Team rumors), is that of B.A. Baracus, the character made famous in the The A-Team tv show by Mr. T.

For some bizarre reason unknown to me (and I’m sure everyone else on the face of the Earth), rappers have been the rumored candidates to play B.A. (Ice Cube and Common were notable ones that turned out to be false).

Sadly, the rapper/B.A. Baracus rumors continue…

Blackfilm is reporting as an exclusive from, “a very highly reliable source in the entertainment industry,” that the rapper known as The Game is currently being considered for the role of B.A. Baracus. There’s no details on his consideration other than, well, he’s being considered. But it can be speculated that they’re looking for another notable rap figure to fill the spot after Common signed on to the Queen Latifah sports film Just Right, which clashed with The A-Team shooting schedule.

The Game is, of course, a 29 year old Grammy-nominated rapper who made his feature film debut opposite fellow rapper-turned-actor Tyrese Gibson in Waist Deep. Ironically, he also appeared (albeit in a small role) alongside former B.A. Baracus candidate Common in Street Kings last year. I must confess I’ve not seen either of those movies, but I’ve been told that The Game basically played himself in both (I dread to think that would be the case with the B.A. role if he were to get it).

Click for /Film's full size (hilarious) image!

Is it fair to bash The Game without him having a real chance to prove himself onscreen? Maybe it’s not fair to attack him personally (he may be the next Robert De Niro, who knows), but we can question the general idea of having a rapper play Mr. T’s legendary role. Is there some special quality a rapper has that screams “This is the new B.A Baracus!” to the studio? Or are they just trying to snag the rap demographic?

I am cautiously looking forward to The A-Team movie, especially since they cast Neeson and Cooper (the latter was awesome in The Hangover recently). I just hope this new rapper casting “news” turns out to be false, and they get someone completely different for the role (hint: not a rapper!).

What do you think of The Game being a candidate to play B.A. Baracus in The A-Team movie?

The A-Team is slated for a June 11th, 2010 release.

Sources: Blackfilm and /Film

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: June 21, 2009

Niall Browne — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 20:49:25 +0000

This week:

First there’s The Proposal and then there’s The Hangover; Moneyball gets thrown a curve-ball; Scream 4 isn’t Neve Campbell’s favorite scary movie; it looks like The A-Team won’t be Common and there’s an up and coming Red Dawn.

Box Office

Sandra Bullock scored the biggest opening of her career with The Proposal. The romantic comedy which co-stars Ryan Reynolds grossed $34 million over the weekend.

The Hangover remained a popular choice and moved into the runner-up spot with a weekend take of $26 million. With $152 million in the bank after three weeks, it looks like this is going to be a hugely profitable film and franchise for Warner Bros.

Up took in another $21 million from Friday to Monday giving the Pixar film a mighty $224 million tally.

Jack Black’s Year One opened a disappointing third this weekend with a gross of $20 million. It’ll need good legs to see a decent profit.

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 stole $11 million from audiences over the weekend giving the Denzel Washington/ John Travolta thriller a total gross of $43 million.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian took in another $7 million giving the Ben Stiller comedy a stellar $155 million.

The interstellar Star Trek took just under $5 million to give the film a $239 million total tally.

Land of the Lost’s total now stands at $43 million after taking almost $4 million over the weekend. Not a good total for a film that cost a reported $150 million.

Eddie Murphy’s Imagine That dropped 43% from last weekend to $3 million. The film now has a terrible total of $11 million.

Terminator Salvation rounds out the top ten with $3 million. The Christian Bale film now has a total of $119 million.

Movie News

1. Columbia Pictures has scrapped production of the Steven Soderbergh directed, Brad Pitt starring, Moneyball – even though the film was due to start shooting on Monday!

Apparently when Steve Zaillian handed in the latest draft last week it wasn’t what studio head Amy Pascal had expected and she got cold feet on the film due to the $50 million budget. The sports drama has now been put into turnaround in the hope that another studio decides to make it.

According to Variety

“Moneyball is based on the bestselling Michael Lewis book about Billy Beane (Pitt), the former phenom who undermined his playing career by taking a big paycheck before he was ready, who resurfaced as Oakland A’s general manager who found success fielding competitive teams for low cost, compared to the payrolls of league rivals like the New York Yankees.”

Source: Variety

2. It’s looking like Scream 4 will not star Neve Campbell.

Franchise creator Kevin Williamson twittered:

“Trying to figure out a Sid-less scenario. She won’t do it. This sucks.”

David Arquette and Courtney are in negotiations to return.

There’s still no news on whether Wes Craven will return to direct.

Source: Ace Showbiz

3. Common was mooted as a possible candidate to play B.A Baracas in the big screen version of The A-Team. Looks like they’ll have to find another actor to step into Mr. T’s shoes.

The actor-rapper has signed on to the Queen Latifah sports film Just Wright.

Considering that the film starts shooting in July, it looks like he’ll be unable to join Liam Nesson and Bradley Cooper in Joe Carnahan’s film.

Source: Variety

4. Chris Hemsworth, Josh Peck and Adrianne Palicki have joined the cast of MGM/UA’s Red Dawn remake. The new version is rumored to feature an invasion of Chinese troops on U.S. soil, instead of Russians.

Dan Bradley will direct the film that is set to open on September 24, 2010

Source: Hitfix

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

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Neeson And Cooper In Negotiations For The A-Team

Niall Browne — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:37:15 +0000

It looks like Joe Carnahan’s film version of The A-Team is finally coming together.

20th Century Fox is currently in negotiations with Liam Neeson and rising star Bradley Cooper (The Hangover) to star in the film as John “Hannibal” Smith and Templeton “Faceman” Peck respectively.

The long-gestating A-Team film has been in development for almost a decade and names previously considered for the role of Hannibal over the years have included Bruce Willis, Mel Gibson and George Clooney. However, out-of-left-field choice Liam Nesson is now on a roll after coming off the sleeper action hit Taken (which grossed $221 million worldwide) as well as signing on to play Zeus in the Greek epic Clash of The Titans.

Bradley Cooper, on the other hand, is the current favorite to star as Faceman in The A-Team. And, with The Hangover receiving great reviews and snagging a strong box office take, it looks like Cooper is in a position to negotiate a pretty good deal for himself.

Cooper is the new Faceman

The A-Team (which is based on a 1980’s TV series) are “a crack commando unit sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn’t commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune.”

The team is compromised of four members – the aforementioned Hannibal (the leader), lady-killer Faceman, as well as “Howling Mad” Murdock and B.A. Baracus. The roles were originally played by George Peppard, Dirk Benedict, Dwight Schultz and, of course, Mr T.

Casting for the film is currently underway (duh), with principal filming scheduled to start in August. While Nesson and Cooper aren’t firm locks yet, expect the studio to announce their attachment soon.

The A-Team will be produced by Tony and Ridley Scott and is scheduled for release on June 11, 2010.

Sources: Variety and The Hollywood Reporter

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Bradley Cooper Recruited Into The A-Team?

Rob Keyes — Mon, 18 May 2009 05:27:52 +0000

Rumors for the upcoming A-Team action film have been running rampant recently with speculation that Common (who’s in this week’s Terminator Salvation) is in talks to play the role made famous by Mr. T, B.A. Baracus, and Chris Pine as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck but instead wanting to play the crazy Capt. H.M. “Howling Mad” Murdock.

Enter Bradley Cooper.

Bradley Cooper is an actor I love in everything he’s been in, from the Alias TV show to many supporting roles in big movies, might be a part of The A-Team now. You’ve probably seen his name floating around quite a bit recently with his upcoming comedy The Hangover set to open this summer and speculation that he is one of the lead candidates to play Hal Jordan in the Green Lantern movie.

Just a few hours ago, IESB reported exclusively that Bradley Cooper will be playing Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck in The A-Team.

What’s interesting is how they found this information out. Apparently, they had heard a rumor that he was in the running for the role a few weeks ago but had no confirmed source to run the story. Now, at the press junket for The Hangover this weekend in Vegas, IESB reporter Chris Goodson spoke with Cooper one-on-one in one of the hallways (with “a smuggled tape recorder”) and asked him directly if he was excited about playing the role in the movie, pretending as if it were officially announced already.

A surprised and unknowing Cooper replied:

“That’s out already!?”

Followed by laughter, where he then continued:

“Wow. Yeah…its Joe Carnahan’s. It’s very interesting. It’ll be cool. It will be cool see what…He’ll make a great movie out of it.”

It’s not officially confirmed yet but when he hear something, we’ll let you know.

As for the movie, the possible cast members we think are shoe-ins so far are awesome as well as the rumored candidates. I think this movie will make for a great action flick.

In the TV series, the role of Face was played by Dirk Benedict who you may also know for playing Starbuck in the original Battlestar Galactica series. Cooper seems to me like a great choice to play the role, especially with his resemblence when he’s supporting his longer hair.

What do you think of this news?

The A-Team will be directed by Joe Carnahan and should open in theaters some time next year.

Source: IESB

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Rapper Common Talks A-Team Movie

Ross Miller — Sun, 10 May 2009 04:59:33 +0000

The A-Team movie is a project that has been in development for years and years now, with various different people attached to write, star and direct at different stages. The first name attached to helm it was Boyz In The Hood director John Singleton, but he dropped out (due to creative differences), and then Smokin’ Aces director Joe Carnahan was brought on-board.

The last we heard, Chris Pine was in talks to play the role of Murdock, which was played by Dwight Schultz in the original TV series, and Ice Cube was in talks to play B.A. Baracus. Regarding the latter, it appears that nothing came of it as there’s a new contender for the role famously played by Mr. T: Rapper-turned-actor Common.

In an interview with our friends over at IESB promoting the upcoming Terminator Salvation, Common confirmed that he was at least being held in consideration for the role:

“I can’t speak on it yet until we know what’s going on but that would be an incredible character to play… (laughing) I can’t do the Mohawk but we got to do something, we got to find something to make it work… I would love to [do it], just to work with Joe [Carnahan] is so exciting for me I just had such a great experience [making Smokin' Aces]. I feel that he is one of the freshest directors and innovative guys and fun, he is a quality guy, quality director and man, I just want to work with him… You know you need to keep your pace and patience and let things develop… I want it to be as diverse as possible, [but] first of all I don’t want act like I’ve been given the role of B.A. So let me be honest about that…

[But] it’s great to be in those talks because to be considered to be in another Joe Carnahan movie would be just an honor for me… You definetly have to give it something different [than what Mr. T did]… It’s a new day, you just got to give it something new. The kids don’t know that B.A. so you wanna bring something new to it and you want to pay respect to B.A. and the way B.A was created, too. I believe there is a way to find a combination, I have certain similarities to Mr. T already. We are both from Chicago, we are both rebels in our own way. I could really get that, I could really get that.”

In the interview, Common also talked a bit about his casting in the now dead (as far as we know) Justice League movie as the Green Lantern. He says that he hasn’t heard anything new since last year, and that he doesn’t think it’ll happen anytime soon, if it ever does. He talked about the fact that he had the Green Lantern costumed fitted, as well as saying it was taking the superhero characters (including Batman and Superman) in a different direction (based on storyboards he saw), with Mad Max and Happy Feet director George Miller apparently going to “smash” the project.

Common certainly ain’t no thespian, but I say more power to him for being able to get the sort of roles he’s gotten ever since he delved into the world of movies a few years ago with Smokin’ Aces. He’s in one of this summer’s biggest blockbusters, Terminator Salvation, and he played parts in other action fare: last year’s Wanted (which was awesome) and the aforementioned Smokin’ Aces. He’s not the worst actor in the world, but for what he does – that tough gun shooting type of guy – he’s at the very least serviceable from what I’ve seen.

Is he right for the role of B.A. Baracus? I wouldn’t say so, especially when he has Mr. T’s portrayal of the character to live up to. I am in two minds when it comes to the role for the new movie; on the one hand I think it has to be recast because I don’t think it fits well with the current movie going age and what audiences will credibly accept to appear on-screen. But on the other hand, Mr. T’s turn as the character is almost too legendary to try and top. I really don’t know what they can do – either way it doesn’t seem to work.

Just to throw my two cents in, I think Michael Clarke Duncan would be a good choice for the role if they’re going with the recasting route. He’s tough looking and yet has a charm and likability about him. He’s a decent actor (great when he’s given the right roles, such as in The Green Mile) and let’s not forget he’s built like a frickin’ house. I think he’d make a great B.A.

Who could you see replace Mr. T has B.A. Baracus? Is Common in any way suited?

The A-Team is supposed to be released on July 11th, 2010.

Source: IESB

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Chris Pine Trying To Snag ‘A-Team’ Role

Sabrina Cognata — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 20:44:24 +0000

Without having his up and coming film Star Trek even open in theaters, Chris Pine has become one of Hollywood’s hottest commodities. Currently, he is best known for playing Captain James T. Kirk in J.J. Abram’s soon to be release Star Trek reboot.

The buzz around Pine’s career, however, has started to extend beyond the realm of Star Trek – a while back there there were also reports of Pine being offered the role of Green Lantern.

Now he’s in talks to star in the remake of the classic ’80s television show The A-Team. Joe Carnahan is directing the remake and has approached Pine to team up with him.

MTV Movies Blog reports:

Carnahan gave Pine his first big break as an action star with the 2006 film “Smokin’ Aces,” and now that the director has been handed the keys to the high-profile film adaptation of the Mr. T show, Pine has been reminding the filmmaker that “A-Team” was one of his favorite TV shows growing up.

However, Pine has no desire to play Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck, the role that seems perfectly suited for the chiseled Pine. Instead Pine says that he’s campaigning to play the role of Capt. H.M. “Howling Mad” Murdock otherwise known as the crazy dude on The A-Team.

In regards to being asked to play “Faceman” Pine remarked, “No, Murdock is my man.” He went on to express his favoritism for the crazy character by saying: “I love Murdock.” Pine’s hope is to develop another crazy character like the one he played in Carnahan’s Smokin’ Aces.

For now, Pine says that the script is in development and he’s waiting to see what role he’ll assume in Carnahan’s The A-Team. What’s sure is that he’ll definitely play a pivotal role as one of the members of the crack commando unit he loves so much!

Source: MTV Movie Blog

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Will Joe Carnahan Drive ‘The A-Team’ To Success?

Niall Browne — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 19:18:56 +0000

The A-Team movie has been in development for about a decade now. It looked like it was moving forward last year when John Singleton signed on to direct and started talking about casting.

However, things didn’t come together and Singleton left the project due to “creative differences.” It looks now that The A-Team is actually set to go into production this June – and behind the wheel is Joe Carnahan (Narc) directing and Tony and Ridley Scott producing.

Now that’s exciting!

Talent fascists 20th Century Fox want the film released on June 11, 2010 so they’d better be on the ball and ready to roll soon.

The current script by Skip Woods (G.I Joe) will be tweaked by Brian Bloom and Carnahan. Instead of being Vietnam vets, The A-Team will have conducted their tour of duty in the Middle East. Carnahan says:

“You can … make a film that reflects on the real world without losing the great sense of fun and the velocity of action in a classic summer popcorn film.”

Carnahan doesn’t have much luck getting films off the ground. Over the past few years he’s developed Mission: Impossible 3, Bunny Lake Is Missing, Killing Pablo and White Jazz to no avail – so it’s easy to see why he jumped on a project that’s already moving. Carnahan went on to say:

“It’s an interesting time in Hollywood, and you have to be aware when you get the opportunity to step into a business model that is working. This was a coveted property, and reimagining a show that I remembered as a kid was tough to turn down. Fox hired me to make it as emotional, real and accessible as possible without cheesing it up.”

Now that the Scott boys are on producing duties and with Carnahan directing it looks like The-A Team will be a stylish and action-packed piece of cinema. The field is also wide open for casting due to the type of talent that the Scotts attract, and don’t forget that Carnahan’s Smokin’ Aces was also a pretty starry affair.

So I’ll ask it once again – who is your ideal A-Team?

The A-Team opens June 11, 2010

Source: Variety

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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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Studios Ramp Up Production Prior To SAG Strike

Kofi Outlaw — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 03:30:48 +0000

As it stands, Hollywood studios are deadlocked in their contract negotiations with the Screen Actors Guild. That news stirs up foul memories of a year ago, when the Writers Guild of America was at a similar juncture with the studios… Soon after that there were no TV shows for about half a year.

And we all know what that did last year’s TV season.

In anticipation of the worst (which has ironically become the norm in these days and times), studios are turning to the pre-strike protocols they devised after the 2007 WGA strike, pushing as many films as they can into production so that the 2010-2011 movie roster doesn’t end up barren.

Check out the studio by studio list of the films that are either currently in production, or are headed into production in light of the looming strike.

The list of movies being fast-tracked are as follows:

COLUMBIA

Ruben Fleischer-directed “Zombieland”
Phillip Noyce-helmed “Edwin A. Salt” with Angelina Jolie
Stephen Chow-directed “The Green Hornet” with Seth Rogen

DISNEY

Tim Burton-directed “Alice in Wonderland”;
“Tron” sequel;
Robert Zemeckis-produced motion-capture film “Mars Needs Moms”;
Jon Turteltaub-directed “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” with Nicolas Cage;
Walt Becker- helmed “Wild Hogs 2″

FOX

James Cameron-directed “Avatar”
Shawn Levy-helmed “Date Night,” with Steve Carell and Tina Fey
“A-Team”
“Ramona”
Chris Columbus-directed “Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief”
“Diary of a Wimpy Kid”
John Carney-directed “Town House”
“Alvin and the Chipmunks 2″
Tom Bezucha-directed “Orbit”
Rick Famuyiwa-helmed “Family Wedding”

MGM

Drew Goddard-directed “The Cabin in the Woods”
Kevin Tancharoen-helmed “Fame”
“The Matarese Circle,” which David Cronenberg is negotiating to direct Washington
Darren Aronofsky-helmed “RoboCop”

MARVEL
(Paramount distributing)

Jon Favreau-directed “Iron Man 2″ with Robert Downey Jr.
Kenneth Branagh-helmed “Thor”

MIRAMAX

John Madden-directed “The Debt” with Helen Mirren
“Man on a Train”
“Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark”

NEW LINE

“Torrente”
“Sex and the City 2″
Wesley Strick-directed “A Nightmare on Elm Street”
Len Wiseman-helmed “Gears of War”

PARAMOUNT

Kenny Ortega-directed “Footloose” with Zac Efron;
M. Night Shyamalan-helmed “The Last Airbender”
“Morning Glory”
“Beverly Hills Cop”
“Us and Them”

UNIVERSAL

Edgar Wright-directed “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World,” starring Michael Cera
Untitled Nancy Meyers-helmed comedy with Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin
Peter Billingsley-directed “Couples Retreat” with Vince Vaughn;
Gore Verbinski-helmed “BioShock”
Nicholas Stoller-directed “Get Him to the Greek”
Ridley Scott-helmed “Nottingham” with Russell Crowe

WARNER BROS.

Clint Eastwood-directed “Human Factor” with Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon
Mark Neveldine/Brian Taylor- helmed “Jonah Hex”
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” the David Yates-directed final, two-part installment in the franchise, which begins production in February;
Alcon-financed “Book of Eli,” the Hughes brothers-directed Denzel Washington starrer
Louis Leterrier-helmed “Clash of the Titans”
Zack Snyder-directed “Suckerpunch.”

Not to worry, Summer movie enthusiasts: just about all of your big budget sequels (Transformers 2, Night at the Museum 2, Angels & Demons) are safely in production. Doomsday epic 2012 is also going to make the cut. Any other new films that studios hope to get off the ground, however, are going to face major problems without actors to act in them. But we’ll cross that bridge if and when we come to it. For now, negotiations continue.

Personally I’m glad Iron Man 2, Thor, Green Hornet and Avatar made the cut; I’m hoping that Bioshock and Gears of War will be worthy of their excellent video game sources–and I’m praying that Jonah Hex is going to turn out well. Hex was badass on that Batman: The Animated Series episode.

How about you? Any movies you’re glad are in the pipeline? Any films you wish they’d kept on the shelf?

(Thank Variety for putting the list together.)

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Is The A-Team Coming Together With Bruce Willis?

Niall Browne — Tue, 13 May 2008 18:25:09 +0000

The news that Bruce Willis has been approached to star as Hannibal Smith in the feature version of The A-Team isn’t really a surprise. He is one of the original names that has been attached to the part for almost a decade but… it’s a pretty good choice!

John Singleton is attached to direct, and the 2 Fast 2 Furious helmer has already mentioned that he would like Woody Harrelson to play Murdock and Ice Cube to play the iconic B.A Barracus. I must point out though, that nobody has in fact been signed.

The main question is: Would Willis be willing to star in such an obviously commercial choice, and one that is based on a 1980’s television show?

There’s a pretty good chance that he might want to step into George Peppard’s shoes.

Willis has shown a great interest in pop culture over the years, and he has appeared in comic book adaptations – Sin City and the forthcoming The Surrogates (a pretty cool graphic novel – you should pick it up) sequels – Die Hard I’m looking at you!

Heck he’s even willing to star in ensemble films – Pulp Fiction and Ocean’s Twelve, and let’s not forget that he started his career on television during the 1980’s with Moonlighting (one of the greatest shows…ever).

It will be interesting to see if Willis would be up for it, but he’s more likely to do it than the other names on the Hannibal list: Mel Gibson, George Clooney and Harrison Ford.

If Singleton gets the cast he wants it should make for an interesting film – that is if they don’t play it too straight, this should be an 80’s style action flick – with humor!

I wonder who he would like for “Face?”

Names bandied about by the guys here at Screen Rant have been Jason Bateman, Pierce Brosnan and Paul Giamatti, so you can see we all have our own opinions. I know that a few years ago they were looking at Brendan Fraser who would appear to suit the line up that Singleton has proposed, but anything could happen.

No word on a release date, or a start date for that matter, but you can bet your backside I’ll keep you up-to-date.

I’m just waiting to use the line – “I love it when a cast comes together!”

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The A-Team Has A Release Date

Niall Browne — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 18:52:16 +0000

The film adaptation of The A-Team has been in development for about a decade now. However, the John Singleton directed film finally has a release date.
So folks, get out your diary and pencil in June 12, 2009 as A-Team Day.

Just don’t get too excited, the film might have a release date, but it does not have a cast. There is no A-Team!!

When John Singleton first came on board we have learned that Ice Cube was in negotiations to play B.A Baracus, and that Singleton would like to cast Woody Harrelson as Murdock. Then things went quiet.

Since the film was first in development everyone from Mel Gibson to Bruce Willis and George Clooney has been mooted to star as the team’s leader Hannibal, but in the past few years there hasn’t been any news on who might play the cigar chomping Colonel. Going by the standards of Hollywood today, they might even “go young.”

Now with the release date things should begin to fall into place. This plan may finally be coming together.

The A-Team is scheduled to be released on June 12, 2009

Source: Variety

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