I was talking to Michael Fassbender this morning in advance of his new film Fish Tank (more on that soon), and the actor let slip a juicy piece of unannounced casting. Fassbender's seen his profile rise since he played the purring Hickox in Inglourious Basterds, and he's got a full deck of interesting directors clamoring to work with him, including David Cronenberg (who will team Fassbender with his Basterds costar Christoph Waltz for The Talking Cure) and Cary Fukunaga (who cast Fassbender in his upcoming redo of Jane Eyre).
more »
Perhaps the biggest sign that Avatar has secured a permanent place in the pop culture pantheon is the increasing appearance of unwashed, aggressive Na'vi warriors stationed outside Grauman's Chinese Theater, available for snapshots with the kids for the low, low suggested donation of $5 sky people dollars. Of course, the fearsome Omatikaya clan are known for their mercurial temperaments, and should you try to get away with paying less (or, Eywa help you, nothing at all), prepare for their wrath and/or a dull spearhead puncturing your back as you saunter over to SpongeBob SquarePants.
The following photo gallery captures some of the mayhem that has accompanied their recent invasion of Hollywood's hallowed character turf.
more »
Warner Bros.' yesterday resolved its tiff with Netflix over a sales-only window for its new DVD and Blu-ray titles, and it's a doozy: Customers will now have to wait four weeks after new WB releases hit stores before they can rent them. It's the first deal of its kind for any studio, and not likely the last as the majors scramble to stop hemorrhaging home-video revenues. Warners had already withheld from Redbox for a month; look for fellow kiosk holdouts Universal and Fox to follow suit with Netflix as renegotiations come due. And, I guess, push your home-viewing plans for The Book of Eli back a month. [Variety]
If you had taken those long odds that Wednesday's hearing in the ongoing Roman Polanski saga might result in his sentencing, you were so close. Instead the filmmaker -- currently under chatel-arrest and awaiting extradition from Switzerland -- and his attorneys urged the judge in his case to sentence Polanski in absentia. It's not as odd or dramatic a strategy as it sounds, either.
more »
The critics have finally spoken up about the trouble (or lack thereof) with smoking in movies, with one even going so far as to call for an automatic R-rating when characters light up onscreen. Well! It's about time we had this talk! We all knew Avatar would be a game-changer! That said, someone needs some straightening out, so let's get right to it.
more »
· The smoldering crisis surrounding Spider-Man 4's production status (just one more script draft to go!) gave Paramount a boost Wednesday, when the studio pushed its own comics adaptation Thor into Spidey's presumed-vacated May 6, 2011 release date. That gave Disney an opening to drop Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides in Thor's old May 20 slot. And for the discriminating adult moviegoers keeping score at home, Kenneth Lonergan's troubled, years-in-the-making drama Margaret still has no release date scheduled. I smell counterprogramming! [THR]
James Franco climbs a rock with Danny Boyle, the latest on MGM and more Hollywood Ink after the jump.
more »
The technicians at Nic Cage As Everyone figured out that "everything in life would be better with a little more Nic Cage, the most unique and versatile actor of his generation." Nicolas really brings that "worried milquetoast uncle" flair we've needed in pop culture for years. If you like his portrayal of Fonzie, wait 'til you see the sly, confused touch he brings to Don Draper.
more »
Following in the brave footsteps of Britney Spears, Carrie Underwood will make a tightly scripted guest appearance on the CBS series How I Met Your Mother, playing a blonde love interest for Ted (Josh Radnor). Instead of Britney's stalker-like receptionist cameo, Underwood will mark her acting debut as an "enigmatic pharmaceutical sales rep" in March. Merry prescription-pushing! [People]
George Lucas sat in at The Daily Show yesterday promoting his book (well, he more commissioned it than wrote it), George Lucas's Blockbusting: A Decade-by-Decade Survey of Timeless Movies Including Untold Secrets of Their Financial and Cultural Success. Host Jon Stewart began the interview with an impassioned tirade about some logical lapses in a Star Wars plot-point, which was greeted by the director's most earnest, "I'm too old and rich for this shit"-look. Then Stewart launched right into the theme of disappointment, as it pertains to, say, people who cherish the original films and hated the sequels. It's the kind of thing poor George must get a lot; here's how he justifies it.
more »
Despite ABC's best efforts to keep the identity of its scandal-wreaking bachelorette under wraps for an inappropriately dramatic reveal followed by a pack of angry women flagellating the two-timer with bouquets of long-stemmed roses on January 11, Radar has foiled the network's plans by revealing that the culprit was Rozlyn Papa. And the rat who leaked the identity of the Richmond, Virginia makeup artist/hairstylist (read: struggling model) was no less than her middle school boyfriend. Other damning developments, including her modeling stats and her corny aviation-themed pun, after the jump.
more »
THR's scoop that Sam Mendes would direct Bond 23 sent ripples throughout the Bondosphere yesterday, eliciting everything from hearty hazzahs ("Sam Mendes directed Road to Perdition, a really exciting movie about men with guns!") to groans ("Sam Mendes directed Jarhead, a really unexciting movie about etc. etc.") to calls for Mendes to stop making movies altogether and return to his artsy-fartsy roots in theater Siberia. (That last request came from LAT's Patrick Goldstein, who apparently missed his BAM/Old Vic co-productions of The Cherry Orchard and The Winter's Tale last year.) So much discussion! So much debate! But is the story even true?
more »
· Natalie Portman poses at right for Elle. Look, Nat, if you're that chilly, put some pants on!
· The USC Scripter Award nominations were announced and honor adapted works Crazy Heart, District 9, Up in the Air, Precious, and An Education.
· Deadwood creative force David Milch is teaming up with Michael Mann to make the racetrack drama Luck for HBO.
· Nikki Finke says that Taylor Lautner is Hollywood's highest-paid teenager on account of his decision to star alongside Tom Cruise in Northern Lights. Daniel Radcliffe is mumbling to himself, "Only because I just turned twenty."
· The Reel Geezers review Tom Ford's A Single Man. Lorenzo's charming oldness is not quite as fun when he's gay-panicking!
Eli Roth may appear to lead a charmed life, but it isn't always fun times and Kleenex-wasting internet masturbation. The Hostel director (whose profile is even more elevated this year thanks to his Bear Jew acting stint in Inglourious Basterds) found himself on a Mexican vacation at the end of last month that almost did him in. Explained Roth on his Twitter (which has been pieced together by his loyal subjects at ONTD):
more »
If there's one highly anticipated script out there whose leak would spread like a Taylor Lautner-prompted wave of screams at Comic-Con, it's the one for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. Good news, Twi-hards: It turned up on the internet this week with cast member Jackson Rathbone's name printed on every page! Somewhere, Anna Kendrick is laminating Rathbone's membership card for a very exclusive club. [Zap2It]
The debate about what Avatar can and can't make at the box office has finally reached China, where the blockbuster took in 33.03 million yuan on its opening day. That amounts to about $4.8 million, which nobody in the country's state-run film office can verify as a record but is presumed to be the first step to knocking off 2012's record 460 million yuan ($67.3 million) in the month ahead. So where does James Cameron's mint stand overall to date?
more »
