New York was central to most of Woody Allen's film career until he headed to Europe in the mid-2000s, with features set in London, Paris, Rome and Barcelona, but if some Allen fans have their way, he'll be shooting in Israel. Now that he has To Rome With Love making its way to screens in the U.S., the Oscar-winning filmmaker is reportedly headed to San Francisco for his next project, which will star Alec Baldwin, Cate Blanchett, Bobby Cannavale and curiously, Andrew Dice Clay. But if a group of L.A.-based Jewish campaigners have any say, his follow-up will be in Israel and they're looking to put their crowd-funding wares to the test in order to lure Allen to film in the Jewish state.
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Be safe this week at Comic-Con, folks — according to reports out of San Diego, a 53-year-old woman who had been camping out with fellow Twilight fans ahead of Breaking Dawn's Thursday panel was struck and killed by a car while crossing the street near Hall H.
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It may seem like an unlikely pairing, the academic and author Douglas Brinkley teaming up with one of the world's biggest movie stars to edit a little-known unpublished novel by the late folk singer/songwriter Woody Guthrie titled House of Earth. But that is in fact in the works. Johnny Depp is partnering with Brinkley whose writings eventually informed documentaries including Spike Lee's Hurricane Katrina work When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts as well as the 2004 doc Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry. Brinkley stumbled upon the work, which Guthrie finished in 1947, while researching an article about Bob Dylan for Rolling Stone.
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Well, it's certainly great to be cast in a hit franchise that producers are itching to see the good times roll on. Scarlett Johansson's portrayal as the Black Widow in Marvel's The Avengers was one component in a half-dozen super-heroes that has brought in over $1.45 billion since its release in late Spring. With money like that rolling in, no point in jiggering with a winning formula. And to keep the good times going, the producers have offered up a record-breaking paycheck for Johansson to reprise her super-hero role.
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Fans of E.L. James' erotic bestseller 50 Shades of Grey have been fantasy-casting their perfect Christian Grey for months, arguing over whether this actor or that actor would best embody the BDSM-addicted rich playboy hero in the forthcoming film adaptation. But one enterprising academic has cobbled together the perfect Christian Grey with the help of police technology — a little Brad Pitt here, a dash of McDreamy there — morphing together the features of various leading men. The result: Kinda creepy!
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Or is he just effing with us? While doing press for his upcoming Dredd, Karl Urban seemed to let slip the identity of Benedict Cumberbatch's Star Trek 2 character. Was he telling the truth or not? Right now, there is evidence for both sides. First, some background.
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Osar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman has been cast to play Plutarch Heavensbee, Head Gamemaker for The Hunger Games, studio Lionsgate said. Hoffman recently wrapped his gig playing Willy Loman on Broadway in the revival of Death of a Salesman, which earned him a Tony Award nomination. He will next been seen in Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master and indie film A Late Quartet, also starring Catherine Keener and Christopher Walken. The second installment of The Hunger Games franchise is based on Suzanne Collins' smash hit series of novels that have sold 36 million copies in the U.S.
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Cool Hunting met with filmmaker David Lynch at the swanky Chateau Marmont to discuss his design collaboration on a limited edition bottle of Dom Pérignon (really), only to discover that his favorite creative muse is the City of Brotherly Love: "I always say my greatest inspiration came from the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. So many reasons, the mood of the place, the architecture, what I saw and heard and felt. It was very magical, but laced with a deep tormenting fear and sickness. And I ate many steak sandwiches there." [Cool Hunting via MCN]
Topics ranging from film finance, pitching, marketing, video on demand and micro-budget filmmaking are set for the American Film Market, taking place October 31 - November 7 in Santa Monica. AFM attendees from over 70 countries will take part in the AFM Conference Series, which takes place 9:15 - 12:45 daily from November 2 - 6. The AFM Conference Series launched in 2011 and sold out in its first year with more than 700 attendees at each event. "AFM is attended by industry leaders from more than 70 countries so the AFM Conference Series has a tremendous pool of experts and innovators to draw from." said Jonathan Wolf, executive vice president of the Independent Film & Television Alliance and managing director of the AFM. "This makes the AFM Conference Series unique and invaluable." Details on the events follow:
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Swedish-born actor Stellan Skarsgard has run a wide gamut of film roles in his career. His blockbuster fare includes roles in Marvel's The Avengers and last year's Thor. He appeared in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Mamma Mia as well as artier titles like A Somewhat Gentle Man (2010) and fellow Scandinavian Lars von Trier's Melancholia (2011), Dogville (2003) and Dancer in the Dark (2000). One of his next projects is the controversial filmmaker's next two films, which have already titillated fans of the enigmatic Danish director. Skarsgard gave a bit of insight about the back to back projects, The Nymphomaniac and The Nymphomaniac Part 2, which, perhaps unsurprisingly, promise to live up to their titles.
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With two weeks to go until Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises hits theaters, Warner Bros. has made available nearly 50 pages of detailed production notes online that offer behind-the-scenes tidbits on character, plot, costume design, the crazy practical stunts Nolan & Co. pulled off, Batman's new toys, and some of the new faces joining the trilogy. The question is, how much do you want to know? (Bonus: Get the new IMAX poster after the jump!)
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"We droppin' racks at Nordstrom, son - that's racks on racks, you feel me?" And with that, comedian/actress/writer/funny lady Tina Fey hardcore raps her way into my heart forever. Listen to her guest verse on Childish Gambino's (AKA Community's Donald Glover, who's written for 30 Rock and popped up in a few episodes) track "Real Estate," from his new album Royalty.
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File under "Too Soon," perhaps: Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor star in The Impossible as a couple on holiday with their two young children in Thailand when the 2004 tsunami tragedy sweeps the region, leaving hundreds of thousands dead in 14 countries. Directed by Juan Antonio Bayona (The Orphanage), the disaster drama is based on one family's experience and makes use of realistic CG and sets to recreate the event. And judging from the newly unveiled (and kind of terrifying) Spanish teaser poster, expect an intense treatment of the tragedy as seen through the eyes of the victims on the ground.
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The unofficial and slightly bizarre-sounding Raging Bull II sequel may be currently filming, but that will be moot if original Raging Bull studio MGM gets its way in a lawsuit filed this week. Claiming breach of contract over a 1976 agreement signed by boxer Jake LaMotta, MGM claims they had first offer-rights to any sequels to the Martin Scorsese classic — and since the makers of Raging Bull II are billing the pic as a sequel (the numeric title is hard to argue around), the studio is crying foul. If MGM has its way, not only will the film never see release, its makers could face compensatory damages of an amount intended to deter future imitators. Could this be the end of Raging Bull II and similar faux-sequels? Developing... [Deadline]
The first image of the mysterious Elysium has made its way onto the Internet and a smooth skulled Matt Damon sporting a severe weapon and futuristic bric-a-brac are revealed. Director Neill Blomkamp received an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay for District 9 in 2010, which made over $115 million in the U.S. alone. Not bad for a feature directorial debut and no doubt a pass to move onto bigger and brighter things.
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