Put yourself in the mindset of a development-strapped executive who's just been handed the rights to classic cartoon character Speedy Gonzales. What are the most hacky choices you could make for its film adaptation? "I know! Let's get the writers of Garfield for the screenplay, and George Lopez to voice Speedy! Oh, and this definitely should be a CG/live action mix." All those things actually happened. How close were you? [THR]
Perhaps you've heard of Chatroulette, a new video chat website that randomly sets you up to talk to strangers? It's one of those always-fun "cross-sections of humanity" like you see when you go to the DMV, though unlike the DMV, it skews a bit younger and is about half-full of people who are nude or exhorting you to be the same way. Anyway, noted Twitter baron Ashton Kutcher has been spotted using the service, and as screenshots of his experience prove, even celebrities can go on Chatroulette and lie about their filmographies to a complete stranger.
· Matt Damon always seemed like more of a John F. Kennedy type to me, but there he is in talks to play Robert F. Kennedy in an untitled biopic of the assassinated senator and presidential hopeful. It's way early in the development process, but screenwriter Steven Knight (Eastern Promises) has the script assignment and Gary Ross has the directing gig. At least the Boston accent will come easier than the dodgy South African dialect of Invictus, so hey, why not. [Deadline]
Jonah Hill sits, Jason Segel teaches, and more Hollywood Ink after the jump.
· For the release of the Playstation 3 game Heavy Rain, Sony hired director Neil LaBute (of the Wicker Man remake and In the Company of Men) to make a short film concerning one of the game's themes, which is: "How far would you go to save someone you love?" Here's where it gets incredible: LaBute rounded up interview subjects like Samuel L. Jackson, Peter Bogdanovich, Nicholas Hoult, Stephen Fears, and Chris Weitz for the project. And they all have big opinions about love! LaBute himself is the real authority, though, proclaiming, "I'm interested in stretching the parameters of love. And your tolerance!" Enjoy How Far Would You Go? or go on loveless. [/Film]
*Dear The View audience, Movieline feels that it is necessary to inform you that contrary to Sherri Shepherd and The Situation's statements on this morning's show, hot tub water does NOT "kill sperm" nor does the extreme temperature "take care of business." Just thought we should mention it considering that the other hosts, producers and network failed to correct them.
That being said, let's discuss the crazy sh*t that went down on The View today, including Whoopi Goldberg's Mad Hatter top hat, Elisabeth Hasselbeck's powerlessness against The Situation's date rapist-style pick-up lines and Joy Behar's uncanny ability to keep The Situation from removing his shirt.
With all the Disney 3D movie news today, it seems somehow fitting that we should cap things off with a report from Disneyland, where Michael Jackson's sci fi thrill ride -- now called the Captain EO Tribute -- today made its historic return. According to a dispatch from Movieline's special correspondent on Bedazzled Spacesuits and Laser-Accompanied Moonwalking, the "glasses are yellow. No lasers. No smoke. Lots of floor shaking. Best morning ever." Sounds to us like a success! Pictured above, a photo of the first public EO Tribute audience ever. These EO superfans are to be applauded. Click on for more photos and commentary!
You're a Movieline reader, so just admit it: You're an early adopter, you're always well-informed about the latest new thing in entertainment, and you usually have far too many old episodes of 30 Rock sitting on your DVR, "just in case." With most of those traits in mind, we've devised a great sweepstakes for you: Movieline is giving away free Apple iPads! (When it comes to the backlogged DVR, though, you're on your own.)
Odeon cinemas, which has theaters all over the U.K., Ireland and Italy, has made good on a threatened boycott of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland -- a direct response to Disney's plan to reduce the all-important window between theatrical and home video release. Industry standard is 17; Disney wants 12. Disney's defense, interestingly, is not "because the sooner we move product off Tesco shelves, the sooner we can make back our staggering investment," but rather the old anti-piracy song-and-dance: "If a cinema stopped showing a film before the 17-week exclusivity period," goes the argument, "the audience did not have a legitimate way to see the movie -- potentially leading to piracy." And while 12 weeks should be more than sufficient for this 3D fractured fairy tale, to pull from our own incredulous-outburst playbook ...Say Whaaaa?
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Charlie Sheen has announced he is taking a leave of absence from CBS's Two and a Half Men to enter rehab, says the actor's publicist. This follows his December arrest for domestic abuse against wife Brooke Mueller, who is also in rehab. According to a blurb on The Hollywood Reporter's website, publicist Stan Rosenfield released the following statement: "As a preventative measure, Charlie Sheen has entered a rehabilitation facility. He will take some time off his series 'Two and a Half Men.' He has asked that his privacy be honored. No further statements are planned." UPDATE: CBS has halted production on Two and a Half Men. Developing...
· The new poster for the rebooted Nightmare on Elm Street is out. Click for bigger.
· Would you believe that the reserved Carey Mulligan was once evicted for being a loud partier?
· If you've been crossing your fingers for a Die Hard 5 and an Unbreakable 2, you're in luck. The rest of us, however...
· At age 19, Alexander Skarsgard was both a self-described "hippie" and an anti-terrorist Marine in Sweden. Meanwhile, you were playing Goldeneye a lot in your dorm.
· Anaheim is trying to steal Comic-Con away from San Diego. Well, fandango my nango.
After a nationwide, web-based casting call to fill the young female lead of the Coen brothers' remake of True Grit, the filmmaking duo have settled on 13-year-old Hailee Steinfeld. She'll be playing Mattie Ross, who teams up with U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) to hunt down her father's killer. That typing sound you hear is Adam Shankman texting her reps about her availability as an Oscar presenter. [Deadline]
The eldest daughter of former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin will make her acting debut this summer on ABC Family's The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Bristol, 19, will play herself in a third season episode in which she befriends Amy (Shailene Woodley) at a music camp for teen moms. "I am thrilled to be on this show and to be a part of a program that educates teens and young adults about he consequences of teen pregnancy," Bristol said. [THR]
A funny thing happened on the way to the Vatican IMAX theater: Italy's ministry of health confiscated 7000 pairs of 3D glasses from cinemas. And they pledge to snatch away more, claiming the glasses could easily pass around "hygiene risks" if not disinfected between screenings, and that they lacked tags proving they don't cause vision problems.
That this sweeping health initiative should come so soon after the announcement of a 3D remake of Caligula by veteran Italian softcore auteur Tinto Brass is indeed suspicious -- it's perhaps the type of action taken by a nervous government after a presentation from public health officials on mass forehead-herpes outbreaks. But according to a new study from the University of California Berkeley, the Italians might well be onto something when it comes to those vision issues. And that's something Hollywood would love to sweep under the carpet.
We're presuming that the actors auditioning for the lead role of Bilbo in Guillermo del Toro's The Hobbit are not allowed to talk about it, but then again, Matthew Goode has never been one to bite his tongue. In a freewheeling interview with the Telegraph, the actor disparages his own film Leap Year ("It's turgid...Was it a bad job? Yes, it was"), blames the underperformance of Brideshead Revisited on his costar Ben Whishaw, and divulges the information that he's just gone in for his Hobbit audition. Does he think he has a good shot at the role? "Look at the size of me for Christ's sake!" [Telegraph]
Monday's disturbing news about the disappearance of Andrew Koenig is looking up today. Vancouver police report having received hundreds of tips from folks claiming they've seen the actor/director/comic, who has been battling depression and was last heard from on Feb. 14. Koenig, best known for his role as Growing Pains' "Boner" Stabone, also got a prayerful shout-out from his former co-star (and current Christian film actor) Kirk Cameron: "Mike [Seaver] and Boner could always work things out when they put their minds to it." Here's to a happy ending. [TMZ]
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