Boards are being posted n the woods of woe that the SAG is set to strike. We get wind of this dismal update thanks to the professionals at Variety.
The Screen Actors Guild will send out its strike authorization vote to members next month, making it possible for actors to strike as early as January — prompting a bitter response from the majors. In a message to SAG’s 120,000 members sent Wednesday, SAG president Alan Rosenberg said a strike would be called by the national board “only if it becomes absolutely necessary.”
“Your leadership believes that we must be empowered with the real threat of a work stoppage in order to let management know that we are committed to protecting the future of all actors,” he wrote. “We ask for your support, knowing that you have entrusted us to fight for your rights, and to protect your wages, working conditions and your health and pension benefits. We take your trust very, very seriously and will work towards reaching a fair agreement without a work stoppage.”
I understand the need to strike, but in this case I would personally want to hold off until the current economic “tsunami” is over.
Sadly, from where I sit, it looks like a strike is going to be inevitable. The studio may have to cave on this one just to ensure the business dollars for the California economy. People need the jobs right now and squabbling over percentages in this current climate isn’t kosher. I’m all for sticking it to the man and getting fair pay for fair work, but now is not the time to take a stand. The Union will have a much harder time shoring up public support when so many laid off from the manufacturing sector are looking for work.
In all sincerity, I hope this prophecy remains unfulfilled.
We have pictures from the upcoming Woody Allen/Larry David Film Whatever works to show you today thanks to First Showing:
I can’t wait to see this one. Larry David in a Woody Allen film seems about as perfect as you can get. Stylistically they come from the same denomination of comedy and I have the highest of expectation for this legendary team up.
This film is slotted for a Cannes premier and a release sometime in 2009. We’ll keep you up to speed on the progress of this film, I apologize for not having info about it sooner.
We have another trailer for He’s Just Not That Into You thanks to the good people over at the movieweb:
I have a feeling that this film is going to do quite well. It has a loaded cast and seems to have a finger on the pulse of those hunting for a mate. I am not sure if it will make Sex and the City money, but It should be among the most successful romantic comedies of 2009. This film launches in the love month of February and we’ll soon see what kind of booty it’s able to pull in.
Ladies, Gentlemen, Police Academy 8 is on deck suited up in full Guttenberg glory; ready for action! We get this glorious news thanks to Pete over at slashfilm:
Steve Guttenberg told The Sun over the weekend that a screenplay is being written for an eighth Police Academy movie with all the available original stars set to return.
“So far it is really great, everyone from the original movies who is still around will return,” says” Guttenberg. “I know Kim and Sharon have been asked but they haven’t said yes yet. It would be really great to have them onboard.”
Remember when I said I hate needless sequels, this is an exception to the rule. I love the first 3 Police Academy films. (I will watch all of them but the first three are very enjoyable.) The series went to shit after the Guttenberg left, so I think it appropriate to have hope now that Mahoney has returned.
I am more than pleased that the original cast is getting back together, but a massive absence will haunt this latest incarnation. In 2001 David Graf passed on and is no longer able to play Sgt. Eugene Tackleberry. Tackleberry was impulse and made for great comedic moments; his contributions will be greatly missed. I personally think the film should start at the funeral of Tackleberry to get this out of the way and celebrate the character one last time. A death in the line of service would fit the character perfectly and this character deserves an on screen funeral. Tackleberry may act before he thinks, but he isn’t a coward; the man has the blood of a hero and should have a warrior’s send off.
I hope Bobcat is back for this one as well. Shit. I am getting way too pumped for this film. Happy Thanksgiving Mr. Gutenberg, you made my day.
We have a few new pics from Underworld 3 for you to check out today thanks to our friends at moviesonline. For the rest of the images please go to the source.
I thought the first Underwold was enjoyable enough, but it always seemed like a weak second fiddle to the glory of Blade. Underworld 3 is set to take place in the 1500’s however and this is the best setting in which to have this film (in my opinion). Crossbows and spikes are more exciting than gun-fighting among vampires.
I have said before that Rona Mitra is a strong, sultry warrior. Any film where she is wearing armor like this is a-ok with me. I hope that she becomes to armor what Kiera Knightly is to gowns.
We have the trailer for What Doesn’t Kill You today thanks to our friends over at slashfilm. Peep this shit -
Holy fuck, does Ethan Hawk looks like a dirtbag! (This of course, is awesome.) I didn’t expect a film about hooligans involving Mark Ruffalo And Ethan Hawk to look so appealing - but this trailer has sunk chains into me like they were sent by Cenobites.
For those of you that are feeling the depression blues this Thanksgiving, may I suggest hunting for your own turkeys just like the pilgrims did! I was luck enough to find a Norwegian “how to” video on this very subject. The video below features a typical Norwegian turkey hunt.
Empire Magazine has outstanding pictures from time to time and below is an example of such work. We get the heads up thanks to our good friends at comingsoon:
This months issue has Wolverine on the cover and has an interview with Jackman about the film.
We have the new trailer for the upcoming Heigl/Butler Rom Com The Ugly Truth thanks to the video lords of You Tube.
This looks like a pretty standard “I’m going to prove you wrong” Rom Com, and I can’t say that I’m too excited about this one personally. 27 Dresses wasn’t great and if this one ends up being shit, it may be time for Heigl to walk away from the genre.
Katherine has a sternness about her that needs to be tapped; I want this to be remedied by having her portray a nun in a movie.
Katherine Heigl stars in Nun Vengeance: The Sisters Take Back The Streets.
We learn of a new Michael Cera comedy called Paper Hearts today. It is scheduled to appear at next years Sundance film fest and we get the following details thanks to the hilarity caves of yahoo:
Look at most movie databases, and you’ll find no mention of a new film called “Paper Hearts.” “It’s pretty much ‘the one,’ at least as far as festival programmers are concerned,” one seller said.
Those familiar with “Hearts” describe it as part documentary, part scripted comedy, centering on the real-life relationship between Cera and his girlfriend, Charlyne Yi, another member of the Apatow acting crew (she played the pigtailed stoner in “Knocked Up”). As in Cera’s recent “Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist,” music is a key element.
So this is an exaggerated day to day between Cera and his girlfriend… it could be good. If the chemistry between the two is humorous, I can see this being quite funny. I like the deadpan stylings of Cera and am curious to see if he will play it as straight in this film, where he plays himself.
I’m curious if he is naturally “like that” or merely plays a subdued character on the screen. In real life I bet Cera’s as cantankerous as Belushi (RIP).
International friends - what do you think about this one?
For those of you that haven’t seen the motion poster in action - please go to the official Sony site to see it for yourslef. Below is the poster at the end of the animation. The motion poster is a cool idea for a web ad and I think we will see more of this sort of thing in the future. Now I need to find out how to embed them here.
Elijah Wood recently dished about an upcoming project titled “9″ that will be based on a short silent film by Shane Acker. We get the following interview scoop thanks to our friends at MTV:
Tim Burton is producing the full-length feature from Acker, one of the WETA Digital animators on “Return of the King,” and Crispin Glover, Jennifer Connelly, John C. Reilly, Martin Landau, and Christopher Plummer are among the other voice actors. Wood plays 9, one of nine mechanized rag dolls, “who kind of have the soul of humanity in them,” he said. “It’s basically about a post-apocalyptic world where machines created by man have destroyed mankind, and these nine ragdolls go about trying to find out what has happened and what these machines are about.”
In the worldless short film version, two of the ragdolls — 9 and 5 — are scavenging for items when they encounter and must fight one of the ramshackle machine monsters, whose head is a skull, limbs are metal, and torso made out of the burlap hide of ragdolls it’s already killed.
A post Apocalyptic film where robots are the only ones left to investigate wheat happened is right up my alley. Add to the fact that Tim Burton is producing and I can safely tell you that this is now on my radar in a big way.
A ramshackle enemy that collects the parts of his bested foes unto himself is incredible. This is the robot version of a cannibal and the look is completed with the wearing of the skull. I cannot wait to see this villainous Lhurgoyf robot grow stronger as he pilfers parts from his fallen foes.
9 we just met and already I want to have your baby. Give me a cyborg uterus so I may carry your children to term.
Edit: I have added the original Short here for your viewing enjoyment!
We have the new Duplicity trailer for you today thanks to the video lords of You Tube. Check it out -
This looks like a cool romantic spy film involving a lot of snappy Julia banter. She’s an outstanding guest on Letterman, they have great back and forth exchanges. She is quick as a whip - and that will always increase someone’s stock on my charts.
For those of you hungering to see the trailer for the upcoming Wolveine film, the wait will soon be over. The trailer is set to show before The Day the Earth Stood Still. We get the following heads up thanks to our friends at the movieweb:
We now know when you can expect your first glimpse at Hugh Jackman and his adamantium claws once again. 20th Century Fox has confirmed that the first trailer for Wolverine will be shown in theaters on Friday, December 12, before Fox’s The Day the Earth Stood Still. The traielr will likely debut online sometime shortly thereafter.
I still have a bad feeling about this one. Wolverine is said to have gobs of supporting characters, and this is bad news in my books. Whenever you try and introduce too many fresh heroes in a film; it usually seems to fall apart. I have fears that Wolverine will be a let down and make fans of the character furious.
For now however, we wait; let us discuss the trailer together on the following morning of December 13th.
Fi Fi FO Fum I smell the blood of a Lundgren’s son! Ladies and gentlemen today we learn that monsieur Dolph Lundgren will be joining the cast of the Expendables. We get the following scoop from our friends at comingsoon:
In an interview with Review Nation on the red carpet of Transporter 3, Sylvester Stallone revealed that he’s lining up Dolph Lundgren to co-star in his next film, The Expendables. Lundgren starred in Stallone’s fourth installment of the “Rocky” series in 1985.
Sylvester Stallone will star in, write and direct the action film, also starring Jason Statham and Jet Li. The movie follows a team of mercenaries on a mission to overthrow a South American dictator.
Well this is certainly awesome. This film is shaping up to be the Inglorious Bastards that I’ve always wanted. Statham, Stallone, and Jet Li are more than enough action for one film; ramming Lundgren into the mix makes for an overblown macho ensemble of lore and legend.
I first heard about Lundgren’s addition to the cast on yesterday’s 2pm live show and I’m pleased as punch to have this news confirmed today. I hope Lundgren and Stallone are on the same team this time around so we may see them join forces in ass-kickery.
I am pumped for this one amigos, I have high hopes for hot action.
Josh Brolin opted out of Terminator Salvation and recently had this to say about the matter to the good folks over at MTV:
“Yeah. I talked to Christian [Bale] for a couple hours,” he said. “I really liked the script though I hear that’s not what they filmed. The one I read was very interesting and dark. Ultimately though I didn’t think it felt right.”
One would guess that Sam Worthington ended up in the role meant for Josh. Brolin told us that he’s curious along with the rest of us now about how it all turned out. “I saw [Bale] recently and I asked him how it was and he said, ‘it’s alright.’” he laughed.
Based on this above chatter, it doesn’t sound like Bale feels Salvation will be his most excellent work. This is of course news we heard from a dude, that heard from a dude, as reported by another dude. My hopes were high when Bale was brought on board, but expectations have been falling steadily since.
It would have been cool to see Mr. Brolin team up with Mr. Bale; perhaps another time. If the two can talk shot for hours about the new Terminator, I am guessing they have a decent working relationship.
Do you guys think this chatter can let us know anything about the quality of Terminator Salvation, or should we just chalk this chatter up as rumor and hearsay?
There’s an interview today over at MTV that has one of the writer’s of Iron Man shedding some light on the ongoing War Machine drama. In the interview Justin Theroux quells rumors that Jim “Rhodey” Rhodes has his profile scaled down in the next film. This news clears up the assumption that Howard had a lesser role to play in the film, than the previous Iron Man.
If you have interest in reading the interview for yourself please check it out here.
I am sure something that somewhat resembles the truth will surface eventually regarding this matter; but for now the scrying glass is cloudy.
Regardless of the reasons for his departure I personally consider the loss of Howard to be a big blunder on Marvel’s part. This shouldn’t have happened.
I opened up the flood gates to a shit storm last week when I announced that Brand may be cast as a brother to Jack Sparrow in POTC 4. The news was dispelled as rumor but today we have Brands own thoughts on the buzz thanks to the scoop hounds over at MTV:
“I’ve seen some talk about that matter but I think they’re still writing the script,” he said. And of course, then Brand launched into a riff that makes you wonder how far he will go for his art should the role pan out. “I am having a skull and crossbones tattooed on each of my nipples in anticipation of the plotline. I just hope it doesn’t affect my other work in Jane Austen adaptations.”
So no new information. It obviously looks like Brand will take the job if it’s offered to him, but his involvement seems to be wishful thinking at this point.
When I first posted about the possibility of Brand being cast I was floored at how many people hated this man. I count him as a ridiculous character along the lines of Karl Lagerfeld, but personally have no reason to hate him, and consider him to be a quality glam entertainer. I appear to be in the minority among our readers however; and growing up with a taste for Motley Crue may be to blame.
Russel Brand is an infamous man that possesses great powers of polarization; no matter which way this news falls - there will be chatter.
We have news today about a sports biopic based on the ascention of LeBron James. We get the following skinny thanks to our friends at comingsoon:
Variety reports that More Than a Game, a documentary about NBA star LeBron James’ high school days in Akron, Ohio, has been sold to Lionsgate in an unusual deal.
“Game” is being positioned not merely as a record of James’ achievements but as a feel-good story of overcoming adversity. It follows the five starters on the varsity team at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, who travel a winding road from a rundown gymnasium to national glory and NBA riches, seeking to remain a tight-knit quintet even as James becomes a megamillionaire. The film mixes newly unearthed archival footage and family memorabilia with fresh interviews.
I know jack shit about sports. I’m sure LeBron James is popular in most circles; his name sounds familiar…. but that’s all I got. (you may commence mockery)
For those of you that are fans of James and are looking forward to this film, I can only offer this bit of commentary. The film is said to have been very well received at the Toronto International Film Festival. The source article is claiming that a 5 minute standing ovation occurred after the film was shown. This is as good a sign as you can hope for in my opinion. When people are compelled to stand and clap - excellence has happened.
This film is scheduled for a release in fall of 2009 and we’ ll be sure to keep you up to speed on the updates.
We have strange news today about I Am Legend. It appears that the prequel wasn’t well received so a sequel is being forged. We get the following scoop from our friends at AICN:
Let’s start at the beginning. Smith is actually the one who developed the initial story. It took place several years before the original film and there were still pockets of survivors and the story centered around Smith interacting, bonding, and ultimately failing to save them. For months this was the story. Warner’s didn’t much care for it and Smith and Weiss eventually came on board and all parties agreed to change things up. Well this change is pretty insane, the film is no longer a prequel, it’s a fucking sequel!
From what I hear the first film didn’t lend itself to a sequel very well, that’s why a prequel was the obvious choice. Now continuity is being eschewed for extra bags of money.
For those of you that are interested in reading the whole article that Illuminates the reasons why the studio is considering this path - please go to the source,
Boards are being posted n the woods of woe that the SAG is set to strike. We get wind of this dismal update thanks to the professionals at Variety.
Ladies, Gentlemen, Police Academy 8 is on deck suited up in full Guttenberg glory; ready for action! We get this glorious news thanks to Pete over at slashfilm:
Elijah Wood recently dished about an upcoming project titled “9″ that will be based on a short silent film by Shane Acker. We get the following interview scoop thanks to our friends at MTV:
For those of you hungering to see the trailer for the upcoming Wolveine film, the wait will soon be over. The trailer is set to show before The Day the Earth Stood Still. We get the following heads up thanks to our friends at the movieweb:
Fi Fi FO Fum I smell the blood of a Lundgren’s son! Ladies and gentlemen today we learn that monsieur Dolph Lundgren will be joining the cast of the Expendables. We get the following scoop from our friends at comingsoon:
Josh Brolin opted out of Terminator Salvation and recently had this to say about the matter to the good folks over at MTV:
I opened up the flood gates to a shit storm last week when I announced that Brand may be cast as a brother to Jack Sparrow in POTC 4. The news was dispelled as rumor but today we have Brands own thoughts on the buzz thanks to the scoop hounds over at MTV:
We have news today about a sports biopic based on the ascention of LeBron James. We get the following skinny thanks to our friends at comingsoon:
We have strange news today about I Am Legend. It appears that the prequel wasn’t well received so a sequel is being forged. We get the following scoop from our friends at AICN:
