At one point following the critical and commercial success of his 2007 post-apocalyptic blockbuster I Am Legend, director Francis Lawrence entertained the notion of coming back with star Will Smith for prequel, but eventually that possibility trailed off and Lawrence casted doubt onto his involvement with the potential project. But today Warner Bros. announced a deal with Akiva Goldsman and Overbrook Entertainment, who have tapped screenwriter Arash Amel to write a follow-up to the $584M hit. Whether or not it'll be a prequel or some sort of direct sequel is unknown, though it's reportedly being created for Smith. Let's speculate away: Just how WB can possibly pull off another installment?
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Sort of: "Hidden from the scrutinising eyes of the [Romanian] Secret Police, Irina Margareta Nistor dubbed over 5,000 foreign films that entered the country illegally and were distributed on the black market. Her husky and high-pitched voice became the symbol of freedom and Chuck Norris, Van Damme and Bruce Lee became national heroes. Chuck Norris vs. Communism follows the story of the tapes, the collapse of communism in Romania and the advent of the new capitalist era." And surprise! The filmmakers are crowdsourcing the budget. Click through for the teaser and invest accordingly.
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The Berlin Film Festival and European Film Market are getting underway as we speak, exposing an all-new crop of good, bad and WTF-inducing projects we'll be hearing and/or seeing about in the year or two to come. But there are also revelations to be found regarding more familiar titles. Take Lars von Trier's already notorious, sexually explicit Nymphomaniac, for example.
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Fun fact: Legendary philosopher and novelist Ayn Rand shared a birthday with Groundhog Day -- a curious coincidence hinting that Punxatawney Phil guaranteed more than just six added weeks of winter when he saw his shadow Thursday. How about two more years of Atlas Shrugged adaptations?
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Sorry, though -- you're screwed: "Pop sensation Katy Perry could be headed to the big-screen—and in 3-D, to boot. Paramount has initiated talks with Perry's camp, as well as Imagine Entertainment, to create a documentary-style 3D film centered on the powerhouse singer-songwriter." In seemingly related news, Soul Train creator and host Don Cornelius committed suicide this morning. [THR]
Party Down fans, there is finally real hope: According to series co-star Megan Mullally, a feature film continuation of the cancelled show, about Hollywood hopefuls employed by an L.A. catering company, is on its way with most of the original cast likely to return. Get more details after the jump!
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Among the heap of speculative projects idling in the landfill otherwise known as Hollywood, a Michael Jackson biopic has long been one thought likeliest to be reclaimed. This week, in fact, comes word that the late pop icon's estate is in discussions with Ivan Reitman's Montecito Picture Company to nudge such a project forward. Not to be outdone, an Irish bookie with a demonstrated interest in the most outlandish cultural wagers imaginable has commenced casting speculation in an inspired -- very inspired -- fashion.
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Word from the American Film Market has Jessica Chastain attached to star as Princess Diana in Caught in Flight, a developing project about the late royal's "secret affair" with heart surgeon Dr. Hasnat Khan, "who was said to be the love of her life." And according to those who've seen the script, the beloved Princess of Wales is not depicted so flatteringly. Incoming Daily Mail artillery in 5... 4... 3...
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Back when Movieline posted the bonkers-adorable trailer for genre master Takashi Miike's Ninja Kids!!!, about -- what else -- children studying at a school for ninjas, it seemed unlikely that the family-friendly manga and anime adaptation would go much farther than the genre/foreign crowd. However, that was before plans were reportedly in the works to adapt Miike's film into an Americanized remake. After all, every generation deserves their own 3 Ninjas!
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As it turns out, the best place to get Dan Aykroyd to discuss the possibility of Ghostbusters 3 is on the radio. Like the he did previously on Chicago's WGN radio last November, Aykroyd decided to fan the Ghostbusters flames over the air, this time with Dennis Miller. So! Is the mythical third film happening? Is Bill Murray going to appear? Who will star as the young Ghostbusters? What happened to the original Ghostbusters?
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It has been ten years since Mike Myers last brought his swingin' 'tude and awful dentistry to international man of mystery Austin Powers, and perhaps for good reason -- by the time Myers rolled around the 1970s with Beyonce's Foxxy Cleopatra in 2002's Austin Powers in Goldmember, the series had lost some of its driving mojo. Now, after taking a decade to recharge, the franchise is said to be headed back to the spotlight with a new sequel, according to a report by HitFix's Drew McWeeny.
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With this morning's news that Disney is courting Never Let Me Go director Mark Romanek to helm a Cinderella remake, it has become even more apparent that Hollywood is not going to keep its hands off of our Disney princesses. (Already, we have at least two Snow White reboots underway, one sensual Little Mermaid project in development, and a Hailee Steinfeld Sleeping Beauty redo.) In fear of which princess project will be announced next, Movieline has outlined four worst-case-scenario Disney adaptations that might make, say, the inevitable live-action Pocahontas action reboot seem less horrific in comparison.
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The insanely busy Bryan Cranston, whose upcoming slate includes Contagion, Drive, Total Recall, John Carter, Rock of Ages, Red Tails, World War Z, and Argo, has revealed plans to direct his own adaptation of David Wiltse's novel, Home Again. The crime thriller/mystery drama follows an ex-FBI agent who returns to his family in small town Nebraska only to become caught up in a murder investigation.
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The Internet had the time of its life bashing plans for a new Dirty Dancing when Lionsgate announced it would remake the '80s classic earlier this week. Perhaps that teeth-gnashing was slightly premature; according to director Kenny Ortega, Dirty Dancing is likely to stay in the corner for quite a while before heading to theaters.
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While most diehard Dirty Dancing fans still haven't warmed to the idea of Lionsgate remaking the Patrick Swayze classic (even if original choreographer Kenny Ortega will be directing), Jennifer Grey is already embracing the project. Click through to see what Baby herself has to say about the reboot.
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