Coventry Telegraph - The Geek Files

Johnny Depp enters the revolving door of The Tourist

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 22:20:59 +0000

IF you follow the production of films you will soon become aware that many changes often take place on the journey from script to celluloid.

But even by those standards, The Tourist has gone through a surprising number of cast and crew members coming and going.

Matthew Vaughn's Kick-Ass kicks in with new posters

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:53:39 +0000

THE publicity machine has started to roll for Matthew Vaughn's upcoming comic book adaptation Kick-Ass ahead of its release on April 16, 2010.

Four new character posters have been revealed on IGN, two of which are included here.

Based on the comic by Mark Millar and John Romita Jr, which is published on Marvel's Icon imprint, the film centres on high-school student and comic book fanboy Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) who decides to become a costumed crimefighter, at first with disastrous results.

He triggers a subculture of copy-cat vigilantes and encounters a sword-wielding 11-year-old called Hit-Girl (Chloe Moretz) and her father Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage). They feature on the new posters along with Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Red Mist.

Marvel unveils future film, animation and video game projects

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 14:17:07 +0000

COMIC BOOK titan Marvel Entertainment has detailed its future slate of film, DVD and video game projects.

The company's latest earnings statement, released on Yahoo, confirmed four upcoming feature films: Iron Man 2 on May 7, 2010; Thor on May 20, 2011; The First Avenger: Captain America on July 22, 2011; and The Avengers on May 4, 2012.

There are two animated TV series in the pipeline: The Super Hero Squad (52 30-minute episodes on Cartoon Network in the US and launching on international broadcast channels by the end of this year); and The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes (52 30-minute episodes in production; timing and network to be decided).

Star Trek's JJ Abrams to produce Micronauts movie

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:26:04 +0000

WITH toy-based films such as Transformers and G.I. Joe bringing in a box office bonanza, it's pretty obvious we are going to see many more brands exploding on to the screen.

In an article discussing the boom in feature films derived from games and action figures, The Wall Street Journal reveals that Star Trek director and Lost creator JJ Abrams is in talks with toymakers Hasbro to produce a Micronauts movie.

Hasbro - which makes the Transformers and G.I. Joe action figures - has just acquired the rights to the Micronauts from Japanese originators Takara.

The interconnectable toys were first released in 1974 under the name Microman before being cancelled in 1980 and then revived in 2002. They were also adapted into several comic books published by Marvel, Image and Devil's Due Publishing.

As part of the current studio craze for raiding toy stores, Ridley Scott is to direct a movie based on the board game Monopoly; film bosses are fighting to acquire the rights to Etch A Sketch; Will Smith is to co-produce a film based on the game Risk; and the plastic tricycle Big Wheel has a TV show on the way.

But G.I. Joe director Stephen Sommers is not convinced all these ideas will work, telling The Wall Street Journal: "There's a herd mentality in Hollywood. Sometimes I read about toys in development and just think, 'What! Battleship and Monopoly? Really?' I mean, best of luck."

Helen Mirren joins Bruce Willis and Morgan Freeman in Red

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:14:48 +0000

OSCAR-WINNING actress Helen Mirren has joined the cast of Red, the film adaptation of the comic book miniseries written by Warren Ellis and published by Wildstorm.

The movie, starring Bruce Willis and Morgan Freeman, begins filming on January 11 and is set for release on November 19, 2010, with Robert Schwentke (Flightplan, The Time Traveler's Wife) directing.

Willis will be playing retired CIA agent Paul Moses who is targeted by assassins sent by the new leader of the CIA (Freeman) who wants to dispose of former agents who know too much.

Mirren, 64, whose casting was revealed by ScreenDaily and is now confirmed by Variety, is speculated to be playing the previous CIA boss who has stayed in touch with Moses.

In addition, John C. Reilly (The Aviator, Gangs of New York) and Mary-Louise Parker (Weeds, Angels in America, The West Wing) are in talks to join the film, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Reilly would portray a retired CIA agent who is paranoid that everyone is out to kill him while Parker would play a federal pension worker who is romantically involved with Moses and becomes entangled in his battles against the hi-tech hitmen.

Comics to screen: Latest titles heading to film, TV, iTunes and iPhone

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:01:15 +0000

SIN CITY producer Stephen L'Heureux's Solipsist Films has acquired the rights to Ed Laroche's graphic novel Almighty.

According to Mania, Black Hawk Down screenwriter Ken Nolan is attached to write the script and potential directors are being approached.

Created, written and drawn by Laroche, Almighty takes place in 2098 and follows a female motorcycling mercenary called Fale, who is hired to rescue a girl and bring her home across a third world America - "a fractured landscape of segregated zones driven by neo-tribalism."

Melissa Rosenberg on why David Slade is perfect for Twilight's Eclipse

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:37:00 +0000

SCREENWRITER Melissa Rosenberg says British filmmaker David Slade is the perfect director for The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, the third instalment in the vampire romance series.

Slade, whose previous credits include Hard Candy and 30 Days of Night, completed filming Eclipse at the end of last month.

The 40-year-old is ideal for tackling the emotional struggles and choices in the story, says Rosenberg, who penned the Eclipse screenplay and also adapted Stephenie Meyer's Twilight and New Moon books into films.

She said: "I think David [Slade] brings an intensity that's really great for Eclipse.

"His films of the past have leaned towards the dark, and this will obviously be PG or PG-13, so this won't be quite that dark, but he brings...an intensity.

Roland Emmerich developing TV series follow-up to 2012

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:59:13 +0000

ROLAND EMMERICH, director of the earth-shattering disaster flick 2012 which hits cinemas on November 13, says a TV spin-off is in the pipeline.

The filmmaker told Entertainment Weekly that the movie's executive producer Mark Gordon, who is also involved in shows such as Grey's Anatomy, is part of the project.

The series would pick up where the film ends and is provisionally entitled 2013. ABC is said to be in talks over the idea, which would fill the scheduling void left by Lost.

Guillermo Del Toro on bringing to life the creatures and battles of The Hobbit

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:44:52 +0000

DIRECTOR Guillermo del Toro has explained how he intends to bring an original look to the creatures and battles of his two-part adaptation of The Hobbit.

The first part of the $300million project comes out in December 2011 and the second a year after that. Peter Jackson is serving as executive producer to help ensure a close match with the Lord of the Rings films.

In a new interview, Del Toro talks in detail about the epic production, which has so far had a year of design work and months of story planning and writing.

2012 director Roland Emmerich admits turning down superhero film offers

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:47:21 +0000

ROLAND EMMERICH, whose disaster movie 2012 erupts on to the big screen on November 13, has revealed he finds superhero movies boring and has rejected every offer to direct a comic book adaptation.

Emmerich, whose other credits include Godzilla, The Day After Tomorrow, Independence Day and Stargate, admitted he was "a little worried" about the culture of remakes and adaptations.

He said: "I don't know how many more superheroes they can pull out of their hat. I hate superheroes.

"I always say no to every one that I get offered because I feel that it's boring. But they seem to be successful for some of the people.

Producer talks The Lone Ranger and Pirates of the Caribbean 4

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:46:16 +0000

PRODUCER Jerry Bruckheimer has confirmed that Disney is moving forward with its planned movie based on The Lone Ranger, with Johnny Depp cast as native American sidekick Tonto.

Bruckheimer said they were now aiming for a 2012 release. Mike Newell - whose credits include Four Weddings and a Funeral, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and upcoming Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time - is attached to direct the feature.

Ian McKellen gives updates on Gandalf and Bilbo in The Hobbit

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:19:05 +0000

IAN MCKELLEN says he now has his hands on the screenplay for The Hobbit, to be directed by Guillermo del Toro and produced by Peter Jackson.

Sir Ian told Sci-Fi Wire: "As Peter has said, they loved writing Gandalf [for The Hobbit] because they knew who they were writing him for.

"There are a lot of characters in The Hobbit including, crucially, Bilbo, and they don't know who's going to play Bilbo. So it's extremely attractive that this part has been written for me. The other Gandalf was written for, well, just as Gandalf.

Ghost Rider 2 'aiming for Casino Royale feel'

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:58:27 +0000

BATMAN scribe and FlashForward showrunner David Goyer recently revealed that Sony studio chiefs were dusting off a Ghost Rider screenplay he wrote nine years ago to make it into a film.

The first Ghost Rider movie in 2007, with Nicolas Cage as a biker who sells his soul to the devil and is transformed into a supernatural bounty hunter, was indeed hellish.

But, nonetheless, it managed to make a reasonable $238million globally (on a budget of $120million) and a further $103million from DVD sales in the USA alone.

Douglas Henshall talks return of Primeval

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:44:32 +0000

FANS of ITV's cult sci-fi show Primeval had two shocks this year.

First, the head of the monster-fighting team Professor Nick Cutter, played by Douglas Henshall, was killed off in the third series, and then the popular show was cancelled.

But last month ITV bosses brokered a deal which will see both a fourth and fifth series on our screens in 2011, and Douglas Henshall fans will soon be able to catch the actor in new ITV drama Collision, starting on Monday and running for five consecutive nights.

While Douglas left Primeval to spend more time on stage and making films, he's not surprised that it's had a reprieve.

Kate Mulgrew wants Captain Janeway in next Star Trek movie

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:19:21 +0000

WHO and what will feature in the next Star Trek movie?

That seems to be a popular topic for debate as director JJ Abrams and writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman explore story possibilities amid huge pressure to repeat the success of the first film.

And Kate Mulgrew, who played Captain Kathryn Janeway in TV series Star Trek: Voyager, is keen on a slice of the intergalactic action once again.