Three Studios Want To Distribute Kick-Ass
Lionsgate, Paramount and Universal are competing to buy Mark Millar’s creator-owned title “Kick-Ass” after Comic-Con presentation of comic-book adaptation has generated a ton of interest.
Director Matthew Vaughan (Stardust) financed independently after some studios found the project’s violence too graphic and some of its dialogue too profanity-laced.
Sony were initially onboard, but Vaughn split with the studio over creative differences; they wanted to turn the character of Hit Girl (who is 11-years-old in the comic) into a teenager, for example.
Star Trek Breaks Record For Trailer Downloads
On March 6th, Paramount Pictures released the latest (third) trailer for the upcoming “Star Trek” film. In the first twenty-four hours after it was released, the newest Star Trek trailer has broken records with 1.8 million downloads. Trailer also breaks weekly download record with over 5 million downloads.
From J.J. Abrams (Mission: Impossible III, Fringe, Lost and Alias), comes a new vision of the greatest adventure of all time, “Star Trek,” featuring a young, new crew venturing boldly where no one has gone before.
The film starring John Cho, Ben Cross, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Winona Ryder, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Anton Yelchin, Eric Bana and Leonard Nimoy.
“Star Trek” opens nationally on May 8, 2009.
Take a look at the record-breaking trailer here.
“The Soloist” And “Defiance” Moved To 2009
Paramount Picture is moving “The Soloist” starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr. from November 21, 2008 to March 13, 2009. So, the movie is without any hope for Academy Awards 2008.
TV spots for “The Soloist” have already aired nationally and trailers had been placed in front of “Eagle Eye.”
“We decided it’s a commercial movie that will play well in the spring, and we’ll give it an aggressive wide release then,” Paramount Pictures vice chairman Rob Moore said.
Studio also moved Edward Zwick’s “Defiance,” starring Daniel Craig and Liev Schreiber, to a 2009 wide release. The film, which was scheduled to open December 12, 2008 will be released on January 16, 2009.
In its old date, “Defiance” would have gone up against “Doubt,” “The Reader” and “Frost/Nixon.”
“The Soloist” was set to open wide in a very crowded frame – “Twilight” and “Bolt.”
Paramount is clearly throwing its Oscar campaign money at Sam Mendes‘ “Revolutionary Road” starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, David Fincher’s “The Curious Life of Benjamin Button” starring Brad Pitt and Ben Stiller’s comedy “Tropic Thunder” with Robert Downey’s supporting performance in the movie.
“Iron Man” Great Design Art
Though Jon Favreau talks about the upcoming “Iron Man 2” we’ve got some interesting photos when the first movie was in the works.
Robert Downey Jr. on the set of Paramount Pictures’ Iron Man
Take a look at design art from Paramount Pictures‘ “Iron Man” 2008.
Stephen Sommers To Direct Tarzan
The Jungle Book director Stephen Sommers is in negotiations to direct a big screen version of Tarzan for Warner Bros, reports Variety. Two years ago, the studio was negotiating with Guillermo del Toro to direct but his commitment to The Hobbit has put him out of the running.
Jerry Weintraub (Ocean’s Eleven) is producing through his Jerry Weintraub Prods.
Variety says that Sommers will also co-write the “Tarzan” script with Stuart Beattie. With the first two “Mummy” movies, “The Scorpion King” and “Van Helsing,” Sommers, who is repped by WMA, has become a connoisseur of the big-budget, effects-driven spectacle. He recently finished shooting the summer 2009 Paramount tentpole, “G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra,” which Beattie came in to write for him. Continue Reading…
Tom Cruise Rejected From Top Gun Sequel
Tom Cruise will not be reprising his role in a new “Top Gun” movie, according to a representative from Paramount.
Earlier this week, speculation grew that the actor would appear in a sequel, 22 years after the original was first released.
However, the rumours have been shot down by a spokesperson at the production company behind the movie who told Access Hollywood there was “no way” Cruise would be returning to the role.
The new movie would have seen his character Maverick returning to Top Gun school as a flight instructor.
“Eagle Eye” Full Trailer
Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks has released the second full-length trailer for its upcoming D.J. Caruso directed thriller “Eagle Eye“.
In the fast-paced race-against-time-thriller “Eagle Eye” Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan are two strangers who become the pawns of a mysterious woman they have never met, but who seems to know their every move. Realizing they are being used to further her diabolical plot, they must work together to outwit the woman before she has them killed.
The story is based on a Steven Spielberg idea, which will feature a couple of agents played by Rosario Dawson and Billy Bob Thornton. The film is scheduled to hit theaters on September 26th.
Watch “Eagle Eye” trailer after jump Continue Reading…
“Cloverfield” Creator J.J. Abrams to Produce “Mystery on Fifth Avenue”
“Cloverfield” and “Lost” creator JJ Abrams is to make a new mystery movie: “Mystery on Fifth Avenue,” based on a New York Times article. Writers Maya Forbes and Wally Wolodarsky have been hired to adapt it into a film, with Marc Evans overseeing for the studio.
Variety reports that Paramount Pictures has acquired the rights to the article by Penny Green about the owners of a New York house who discovered secret panels and hidden clues in their home which led them on a scavenger hunt.
The trade daily says the mystery involved “a poem, a book, a soundtrack and a host of historical figures”.
Abrams will produce the film through his company, Bad Robot.
Transformers’ Sequel Gets a Title: Revenge of the Fallen
Paramount and Dreamworks Pictures today announced the official title for the new “Transformers” film. The now filming sequel will be called “Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen“.
‘Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen’ started shooting on June 2nd in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
The film will star Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, John Turturro and is due out for release on June 26th, 2009.
More set photos from the shoot are available at Transformers World
Walt Disney: ‘The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian’ Sales Disappoint
A highly competitive film season is weighing on the returns of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Robert Iger said at an analyst conference Wednesday.
Speaking at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference, Iger said the second installment in the Narnia series is not doing as well as the first, nor as well as Disney officials had hoped.
Iger pointed out that the movie business is a crowded field, and the marketplace can’t always accommodate all the releases that a studio puts out.
“I think there are too many movies being released in the marketplace,” Iger said, later adding, “It’s a very delicate, very fragile marketplace.”
Prince Caspian was released May 16 and has made an estimated $146 million in worldwide receipts thus far. But the movie’s production costs are estimated at $200 million. In order to turn a profit in theaters alone, Prince Caspian would have to make roughly $500 million worldwide when marketing costs are included. The film is expected to have a home video life, however. Continue Reading…
