When you think of logical choices to direct the sequel to our generation's (if you were born in the 2000s) Blair Witch Project, does the name Brian De Palma shoot to the top of that list? It does not? Well then maybe you need a psychiatrist, because that's exactly who Paramount is wooing for the sure-to-not-be-a-phenomenon Paranormal Activity 2: Even YouTubier. Also on the short list: Transsiberian director Brad Anderson and Australian horror director Greg McLean. But make no mistake -- it's De Palma has that has tongues wagging, and the delirious prospect of a young couple being stalked by a demon who takes the form of Michael Caine in a lady wig. It's going to be something, friends. [LAT]
· Disney has released a new Tron Legacy still, and you'll have the opportunity to see more if you sign up for a special footage screening this weekend.
· Roland Emmerich has added Rhys Ifans, David Thewlis, and Vanessa Redgrave to Anonymous, his skeptical take on Shakespeare. Any world-ending theatrics here would require some serious revisionist history.
· Andrew Koenig's parents blew off Larry King yesterday because they felt the doddering host had disrespectfully truncated their segment.
· Tahar Rahim of A Prophet will take on the lead role in Lou Ye's innocuously titled new project, Bitch.
· Tim Burton based the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland on...Nigella Lawson? "She's really beautiful and she does all this cooking, but then there's this glint in her eye and when you see it you go, 'Oh, whoa, she's like really ... nuts.' I mean in a good way. Well, maybe. I don't know."
The Hills were alive with groans this morning after learning that Audrina Patridge has recruited a new parasitic boyfriend for the show's sixth season. The latest jackpot winner is musician Ryan Cabrera, who is no stranger to playing the role of lame love interest in MTV's brand of reality -- he dated Ashlee Simpson during the filming of The Ashlee Simpson Show. Although Cabrera will be featured this season, his rep laments that he still has not signed a contract. [Us]
In the early days of this Oscar season, there were all sorts of intriguing scandals, whether it had to do with Tobey Maguire's Blu-ray generosity or Mo'nique's innocent inquiries on the ability of a little gold man to affect her bottom line. Now, though, we'll have to make do with a misstep from The Hurt Locker co-producer Nicolas Chartier, who's in hot water for sending out a rule-violating email bashing Avatar: "If everyone tells one or two of their friends, we will win and not a $500M film, we need independent movies to win like the movies you and I do, so if you believe The Hurt Locker is the best movie of 2010, help us!" The Hurt Locker awards campaign: officially spazzing out. [Gold Derby]
The Say Whaaaa?-worthy battle of wills between Disney and Odeon Theaters ended Wednesday when the British film exhibitor assented to an abbreviated 12-week theatrical window for Alice in Wonderland, thus ending its boycott threat. I know you're shocked Disney got its way, but there are still fires to put out in Europe. Like how about my fellow Dutchmen, putting their wooden shoes down and threatening to keep Alice out of 85 percent of the theaters there? Woot! If you ain't Dutch, you ain't much. [Deadline]
· The impossible dream of a million 30-ish culture sponges may soon come true: Ben Stiller and Justin Theroux are said to be developing Zoolander 2 for Paramount. Theroux, who will co-write with Stiller as well as make his directorial debut, is said to plan a visit to Paris Fashion Week to get all au courant with the style; Stiller, meanwhile, will no doubt enjoy absorbing a gazillion Zoolander inquiries at this weekend's Greenberg junket. Sorry, Ben. [Deadline]
Drew Barrymore gets with the whales, Natalie Portman gets high on the road, and more Hollywood Ink after the jump.
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· BAFTA commissioned illustrator Tavis Coburn to create posters of its Best Film nominees, which included Precious, Up in the Air, The Hurt Locker, Avatar, and An Education. We're fond of the magenta Precious illustration (seen right), but the An Education poster is resplendent. It also reminds you that Carey Mulligan looks like the Wendy's logo. Glimpse the retro art after the jump. [SlashFilm]
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We'd love you to become a fan of Movieline on Facebook -- so much, so, in fact that we're choosing five new fans at random, and gifting them with the shiniest, most cutting-edge wireless media device available to consumers. That's right -- the Apple iPad, and you'll be the first person on your block to own one! (Unless, that is, you happen to live in the same dorm as Felicity and her University of New York classmates, who've apparently been hot to the iPad tip for well over a decade now. Damn that J.J. Abrams and his time travel abilities.)
To become eligible, become a fan of Movieline on Facebook, then fill out the information here and click submit to enter. That's it! Contest closes April 15th.
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It didn't take much imagination to contemplate the tsunami of critical bile that would wash away even the most modest hopes for Kevin Smith's Cop Out. Indeed, as the film's Friday release date approaches, the film has made enemies everywhere from Movieline to Rotten Tomatoes. But one particular critic today took his skill for evisceration to some pretty profound new levels.
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Zach Galifianakis and Jude Law have been scheduled for Saturday Night Live hosting gigs on March 6 and 13, respectively. For Galifianakis, it marks a return to sketch comedy that we haven't seen from him since VH1 series Late World with Zach, where he did hilarious things like interview Natalie Imbruglia on a crane. This will be Jude Law's second time hosting, and the first time he won't be overshadowed by not-so-musical guest Ashlee Simpson. [EW]
If the Captain America casting race wasn't enough for you today, how about these tidbits? According to Latino Review (though tempered slightly by Harry Knowles), David Goyer will be scripting the Christopher Nolan-shepherded Superman reboot, entitled The Man of Steel. Meanwhile, it looks like Mickey Rourke could be signing on to play the title character's father in Conan (formerly Conan the Barbarian). If that news excites you, it's best to wear a raincoat. [Latino Review, AICN, Deadline]
It's been a tough year of festivalgoing for writer-director Jane Campion. As if it weren't bad enough that her Bright Star experienced a catastrophic projection error last fall in Toronto, she has been cited among the women filmmakers claiming they were sexually harassed recently by the husband of a festival director in India. Campion issued a statement saying that while the India International Women's Film Festival is the most "fraudulently presented" fest she'd ever attended, she was not among the targets of Bhaskar Deb's alleged "lewd advances." But as seen above, Movieline has uncovered evidence suggesting that Campion might have overlooked this kind of thing before.
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Whoever said the blues are dead, anyway? Judy Belushi Pisano, John Belushi's widow, has teamed up with Saturday Night Live writer Anne Beatts to write a six-to-eight episode television adaptation of the classic SNL sketch-turned-movie. The potential series would star Kieron Lafferty and Wayne Catania, who currently headline the touring Blues Brothers Review, and put the bluesmen on a "mission down the Mississippi back to New Orleans." Dan Aykroyd, who co-founded the band in the late '70s with John Belushi, has not commented. [NY Post]
There's still one huge role in the Marvel stable that needs filling, and that's Captain America. Mike Fleming at Deadline.com reports that the Joe Johnston-directed adaptation of the comic book is near to settling on a lead actor, and there are seven contenders for the role: Chace Crawford, John Krasinski (!), Scott Porter, Mike Vogel, Michael Cassidy, Patrick Flueger, and Garrett Hedlund. Who has what it takes? Let's go over their pros and cons:
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· Terry Richardson's portrait of Jersey Shore star Pauly D is a minimalist masterpiece.
· Kellan Lutz (who missed out on Conan the Barbarian yet has several underwear ads under his waistband) will star opposite Brittany Snow and Ashley Tisdale in A Misfits' Christmas.
· Was Jane Campion sexually harassed at a film festival in India? Reports say yes, but the director says no.
· The UK Film Council has revealed a whole clutch of upcoming projects by your favorite directors.
· Malcolm in the Middle star Frankie Muniz is now a struggling drummer in Arizona. I can only imagine how rough things are for Dewey.
