Over the last few days, several movie websites "accidentally" received casting call information from Paramount for what sounds like J.J. Abrams's upcoming Super 8, the secret project Abrams shot and released a teaser trailer for before any actors were actually hired to be in the movie. What can we glean from this casting information? The movie is about three 13-year-old kids from the midwest, and while actors who submit for the two boy roles can be scrawny, fat, cute, whatever, the young actresses who go in for the lead girl role definitely have to be "natural beauties" and "stunning."
more »
Congratulations to Glee star Jane Lynch, who married her girlfriend Lara Embry in Massachusetts over the Memorial Day weekend. Upside: a big ol' TV star just got gay-married! Downside: they had to do it in Massachusetts, because gay marriage is still illegal in California, where the two live. [Star]
Another day, another reason to track HBO's comedy pilot Tilda. This time, Jason Patric has signed on to co-star in the project, which already stars Diane Keaton as the title character -- a powerful Hollywood blogger -- as well as Ellen Page, Wes Bentley, David Harbour and Leland Orser in supporting roles. Patric will assume the role of Tilda's sworn enemy, Andrew Brown, the mastermind behind a media empire. So, Jeff Zucker? [Deadline]
Or so suggests a NY Times health blogger, springboarding off last week's amateur diagnosis by Monjack's mother ("He's had heart problems and been in deep distress since Brittany [Murphy] died") into research about "classic heart attack symptoms after suffering severe emotional stress." Interesting reading; it's a hormonal thing. evidently. Nevertheless, when the coroner publicly cites "a huge number of medicines by his bedside," is it safe to assume that Monjack may have been broken-hearted because he was a little... careless? Figure that one out, science. [NYT]
Step aside, Stephen Baldwin and Kevin Costner! Only one man has the goods to solve this BP oil leak, and his name is James Cameron. According to the AP, the Avatar director met with the EPA today to brainstorm ways to stop the Eywa-harming gusher. As long as it involves a beautiful-but-headstrong female scientist, free diving, and 3-D underwater cameras, consider my ticket bought! [AP via Wonkette]
· Here's your poster for the new season of Entourage. Needs more Sasha Grey! Click for bigger.
· How did Kristen Stewart turn out so grounded (if surly)? "I had, like, the perfect upbringing," she tells Elle UK. "It sucks for people like Lindsay [Lohan], but it's not her fault that she's so off the rails - and she's smart, very smart."
· Internet scuttlebutt has Lost star Josh Holloway taking meetings with Marvel.
· Bradley Cooper can't believe that A-Team body is actually his: "I was like, 'This cannot be me--that's the way I look?'" he tells Details. "It was so fucking surreal, 'cause as a kid I only fantasized about looking that way. Remember Soloflex commercials? That was huge when I was a kid. It was like, 'I wanna be the Soloflex guy. Mom, can we get the Soloflex?'"
· And on that note, here's a whole list of stars who've altered their bodies for roles, whether they're pulling a 50 Cent or a Bradley Cooper.
The recent superhero boom has been a godsend for every young white guy in Hollywood, but what about the non-white actors who can't even get an audition for the title roles in Thor or Captain America? The buzz surrounding Donald Glover's attempt to try out for Spider-Man is indicative of a wider problem: big action tentpoles are what traditionally launched black movie stars like Will Smith, but when those tentpoles are replaced by comic book adaptations, there are far fewer starring roles out there for anyone who isn't a handsome white guy in his twenties.
Can Hollywood think bigger? We've taken 6 iconic roles (both superhero and action hero) that have traditionally cast from a pool of white actors, and expanded that pool quite a bit. Here are our suggestions for casting directors who want to think outside the box:
more »
Thai martial-arts icon Tony Jaa has reportedly walked away from his film career to become a monk. The news comes as the latest sordid development in a recent history full of them: Power struggles to direct Ong Bak 2, chicken sacrifice, black magic, tearful TV appearances, studio holdouts and the lackluster effort Ong Bak 3. His monastery stay is indefinite for now, but surely he won't come back eventually. Anyway, don't be sad! Anything that entitles Apichatpong Weerasethakul to rule Thai cinema by himself can't be that bad. [Twitchfilm via The Playlist]
How do we know that Rampage Jackson, the Ultimate Fighter who plays B.A. Baracus in the reboot of The A-Team, is new to the mainstream press? Because during a set visit by the LAT, Jackson got in a physical fight with assistant directors, mused pejoratively that "Vancouver strikes me as a San Francisco-kind of place," called out production overruns, and noted, "Acting is kind of gay. It makes you soft. You got all these people combing your hair and putting a coat over your shoulders when you're cold. I don't want a coat over my shoulders! I'm a tough-ass [motherf***er]!" [LAT]
From fist pumps to nose bumps: It seems that one of MTV's golden guidos has allegedly stumbled into a bit of a cocaine habit while shooting the show's second season in Miami. And while the other cast members are aware of the, ahem, situation, Jersey Shore producers are not, and the star's identity is being kept a secret. Click through for some hilarious "insider" commentary -- and to cast your ballots.
more »
While you were stuffing your face over the holiday weekend -- with alcohol, right guys?! -- Donald Glover was busy creating an Internet meme. The Community star -- spurred on by a commenter to an io9 article suggesting that the actor cast in the Spider-Man reboot should be non-white -- has begun campaigning for an audition to play the friendly neighborhood web-slinger. And campaigning in 2010 means a Twitter hashtag (#donald4spiderman) and Facebook pages devoted to making it happen. Hey, it worked for Betty White. [MovieViral via Vulture]
· Welcome back from the long Memorial Day weekend, during which it might have been worth taking an extra moment of silence for what can only mean the end of The Hobbit: Guillermo del Toro is outski, and Peter Jackson officially will not take over as director. You can't just push the start date indefinitely and/or ask the few qualified filmmakers remaining to spend years of their lives developing a project for a paralyzed studio buried under a few billion dollars of debt. Even Uwe Boll would probably turn this down now. Anyway, there's that, happy Tuesday. [Deadline]
Renee Zellweger gets into party mode, McG goes the young-adult route, and more Hollywood Ink after the jump.
more »
Guillermo del Toro has been attached to direct The Hobbit for two years, and he's even been quietly auditioning actors for it over the last month (including one recent alum of Movieline's Verge feature -- guess who!), but it's been impossible for him to proceed as planned with the Lord of the Rings prequel without a firm greenlight from the in-turmoil, unsold MGM. Therefore, he announced today, he's leaving the project.
more »
There must be something in the water over at Dreamworks Animation. As happened with the studio's How to Train Your Dragon in the spring, Shrek Forever After appears like it has legs and knows how to use them. Who -- besides David Poland -- woulda thunk it?! The big green ogre managed to beat the Four Ogres of the Apocalypse -- better known as the gals from Sex and the City 2 -- over the weekend, meaning Jeffrey Katzenberg is probably having a green-colored cosmopolitan right about now. Mix one up yourself and get ready for some weekend receipts.
more »
