Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: Mar 30, 2008

Another weekend, another Weekend Movie News Wrap Up.

This week:

Legion starring Dennis Quaid and Paul Bettany, Tom Hanks quits Fahrenheit 451, Nic Cage hunts for more National Treasure, Battlestar Galactica producer plans to make a television adaptation of Children of Men, Surrogates with Bruce Willis and Radha Mitchell and news on when we can expect to see a trailer for Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

For details on the above items, read on.

1. Dennis Quaid and Paul Bettany have joined the cast of Legion. According to Variety Paul Bettany stars as the archangel Michael:

“The only one standing between mankind and an apocalypse, after God loses faith in humanity. Man’s lone hope rests with a group of strangers who must deliver a baby they realize is Christ in his second coming.”

The film starts shooting soon and it will be directed by former FX guru Scott Stewart. Sounds like it should be good, and with Quaid on-board – I’m there.

2. Tom Hanks has pulled out of Frank Darabont’s adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451.

Darabont cites scheduling conflicts for Hanks’ departure. It’s another blow to the film that has been in development for about 15 years. Originally Mel Gibson planned to direct the project before passing it on to Darabont.

Fahrenheit 451 is one of my favorite books so I’d like to see this get made. Hanks probably wasn’t the best choice for the film, so it’s no great loss.

3. Nicolas Cage will get to hunt for more National Treasure.

Jon Turteltaub says that we should expect the third film in about three years:

“I’m guessing that we’re a few years away. By the time we come up with a decent idea and develop it into a complicated and intelligent puzzle it’s going to be at least 2009. Then to prep it and cast it… it should be three years away.”

I quite like these films, so National Treasure 3 shouldn’t be all bad.

4. Battlestar Galactica and Bionic Woman producer David Eick intends to make a television series based on Children of Men – the science fiction novel by P.D. James. The book also inspired the film directed by Alfonso Cuaron. Eick says that:

“It’s really taking root more in the origins of the novels in that it will focus on the cultural movement in which young people become the society’s utter focus.”

5. Radha Mitchell will join Bruce Willis in Jonathan Mostow’s Surrogates.

The film is based on a graphic novel which tells the story of a future where humans live their lives in isolation with surrogate robots interacting with others. Willis plays a cop who must leave the house for the first time in years in order to solve a crime. The film begins shooting on April 28th and it is due to open on November 20, 2009.

Sounds like it could be a pretty good film. Willis is always good value and Mostow knows how to put a good film together.

6. The trailer for Star Wars: The Clone Wars will be attached to Speed Racer when it is released on May 9th. The Warner Brothers release is the first Star Wars film not to have the famous Fox Fanfare before it.

The animated film will open on August 15.

That’s the Weekend Movie News Wrap Up for now, have a good week!

Sources: Variety , MTV , Cinemablend , Scifi.com , Comingsoon