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Archive of posts filed under the New Projects category.

Lily Collins joins The English Teacher

Posted by  on 25 October 2011, 4:26 am

Lily CollinsLily Collins has joined The English Teacher, an indie comedy from Artina Films and director Craig Zisk.

The story centers on Julianne Moore’s title character, a passionate teacher who convinces her former star pupil (Michael Angarano) to put on his unproduced play at the high school. Lily Collins will portray a popular student who clashes with the teacher. Nathan Lane and Greg Kinnear also star.

Craig Zisk is directing The English Teacher from a screenplay by Dan Chariton and Stacy Chariton. Production is scheduled to start later this week in New York City.

The movie marks the feature directorial debut of Craig Zisk, who has directed episodes of Weeds, Hung, Nurse Jackie, Nip/Tuck, and The Big C.

The English Teacher comes to theaters in 2012 and stars Julianne Moore, Greg Kinnear, Nathan Lane, Lily Collins, Michael Angarano. The film is directed by Craig Zisk.

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Warner Bros. sets Sherlock Holmes 3 writer

Posted by  on 25 October 2011, 4:02 am

Warner Bros. sets Sherlock Holmes 3 writerWith the second Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows just around the corner December 16th, Warner Bros. has hired on Drew Pearce to script the third installment of the period detective adventure movies starring Robert Downey Jr. as the infamous detective and Jude Law as his stalwart partner Watson.

Drew Pearce is the creator of the British superhero TV satire No Heroics. No production date has been set.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows comes to theaters December 16th, 2011 and stars Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Noomi Rapace, Stephen Fry, Jared Harris, Gilles Lellouche. The film is directed by Guy Ritchie.

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The Blair Witch Project 3 Moves Forward

Posted by  on 17 September 2011, 8:07 pm

The Blair Witch Project 3

It has been 12 years since directors Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick made indie horror history with The Blair Witch Project in 1999. Eduardo Sánchez is doing press for his new movie, Lovely Molly, and the director recently revealed he and Daniel Myrick still plan on making The Blair Witch Project 3. Here’s what Eduardo Sánchez had to say below, indicating that the ball is currently in Lionsgate’s court.

“It’s completely up to Lionsgate. Dan and I are ready to do it. We’ve been toying around with a sequel idea that we really like. It’s just a matter of getting our schedules in line and having Lionsgate sign off on the idea. We’ve been ready to do a Blair Witch movie for a long time. We’re as close as we’ve ever been to making it happen but it’s still not a guaranteed thing.”

The director also said the sequel will completely disregard Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, the failed 2000 sequel which Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick executive produced.

“I actually liked the sequel but at the same time it exists in a world outside of the movie. So if we want to do a sequel to The Blair Witch Project, we have to stay in that world, which Book of Shadows didn’t stay in that world. Book of Shadows created a different world. It’s like if the sequel to Jaws started with shots of people lined up to see Jaws in the movie theater. For Book of Shadows it worked in a certain way but to me my biggest gripe with Artisan was you shouldn’t have called it ‘Blair Witch 2.’ It would’ve been fine to call it Blair Witch Chronicles. It wasn’t really a sequel to our movie. So it would be a direct sequel to our film living in that mythology of Burkittsville, being possessed, haunted by something.”

The stars of The Blair Witch Project – Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, Michael C. Williams – will likely return for The Blair Witch Project 3, although not as the main characters.

“The plan is to have them [back]. They’re probably not going to be the main characters but they’re definitely characters in the sequel.”

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Kristen Stewart suits up for battle in ‘Snow White’

Posted by  on 26 July 2011, 12:39 pm

Kristen StewartKristen Stewart dons armor and wields a huge sword and shield for her next movie. Rest assured, it will not be your mother and father’s Snow White.

Stewart joined other cast and crew Saturday at the Comic-Con fan convention for a preview of next year’s “Snow White and the Huntsman,” an action-packed twist on the fairy tale.

The “Twilight” star told a Comic-Con crowd that doing a sweet, traditional Snow White was not something “I was jumping at.” What attracted her was that this Snow White was a bold leader with her feet firmly on the ground. “Also, I get to have a sword and stuff,” Stewart said. “Really cool weapons.”

The movie is due out next June and is one of two “Snow White” movies Hollywood has coming. The other, due out next March, features Julia Roberts as the evil queen. The cast of Stewart’s “Snow White” includes Charlize Theron as the wicked queen, Chris Hemsworth as a rugged huntsman and Sam Claflin as a prince.

The movie starts shooting in a few weeks. Director Rupert Sanders showed off photos of the stars in costume, among them Stewart in her fighting outfit and Theron in a sleek black gown with savagely high and sharp collars.

How evil is Theron’s queen? “She’s a serial killer,” Theron said. “I’m pretty much preparing to play a serial killer.”

Sanders also showed a photo of the dwarves that accompany Snow White in this version, all standing in a row looking scruffier than a gang in a police lineup. The actors playing them include Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins, Ray Winstone, Nick Frost and Toby Jones.

There are eight dwarves rather than the usual seven. Sanders said “there are eight because there are a few great lines when one of them gets killed.”

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What’s Your Number International Trailer

Posted by  on 3 May 2011, 6:42 am

20th Century Fox has released a new international trailer for the romantic comedy What’s Your Number?, which hits theaters nationwide on September 30. Click on the video player below for your first glimpse at this new movie, which stars Chris Evans, Anna Faris, and Joel McHale.

What’s Your Number? comes to theaters September 30th, 2011 and stars Chris Evans, Anna Faris, Joel McHale, Zachary Quinto, Andy Samberg, Ari Graynor, Jackson Nicoll, Dave Annable. The film is directed by Mark Mylod.

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The Dictator lands Anna Farris

Posted by  on 3 May 2011, 6:35 am

Anna Farris

Anna Faris is in talks for the female lead in Sacha Baron Cohen’s new comedy The Dictator for Paramount Pictures. Last week we reported that Anna Faris, Kristen Wiig, and Gillian Jacobs were the front runners for the female lead, which has now been offered to Anna Faris.

The story centers around Sacha Baron Cohen’s character, a dictator who travels to America for a meeting at the United Nations. However, he discovers his second in command has replaced the dictator with a look-alike sheepherder. Anna Faris will play an organic food store owner who meets the dictator and gives him a fresh outlook on life, and perhaps a bit of romance as well. Here’s the official logline which was released by Paramount recently.

“The film tells the heroic story of a dictator who risked his life to ensure that democracy would never come to the country he so lovingly oppressed. It is inspired by the best selling novel, Zabibah and The King, by Saddam Hussein.”

Larry Charles is directing The Dictator from a script by Alec Berg, Jeff Schaffer, David Mandel, and Dan Mazer. Production is scheduled to begin in May, with shooting to take place in New York City and Monaco.

The Dictator comes to theaters May 11th, 2012 and stars Sacha Baron Cohen, Ben Kingsley, Jason Mantzoukas, Anna Faris. The film is directed by Larry Charles.

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7 New images from The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn

Posted by  on 3 May 2011, 6:12 am

Summit Entertainment has released new images from The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 . They’ve also released hi-res versions of the three images that were released last week.

The film directed by Bill Condon, stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 is set to open November 18th, 2011.

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part I - Image 1

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part I - Image 2

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part I - Image 3

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part I - Image 4

Here’s the official synopsis for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn:

In the highly anticipated next chapter of the blockbuster The Twilight Saga, the newfound married bliss of Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) and vampire Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) is cut short when a series of betrayals and misfortunes threatens to destroy their world.

After their wedding, Bella and Edward travel to Rio de Janeiro for their honeymoon, where they finally give in to their passions. Bella soon discovers she is pregnant, and during a nearly fatal childbirth, Edward finally fulfills her wish to become immortal.

But the arrival of their remarkable daughter, Renesmee, sets in motion a perilous chain of events that pits the Cullens and their allies against the Volturi, the fearsome council of vampire leaders, setting the stage for an all-out battle.

The suspenseful and deeply romantic Breaking Dawn continues the epic tale of supernatural fantasy and passionate love that has made The Twilight Saga a worldwide phenomenon.

Currently in Production. U.S. release via Summit Entertainment, November 18, 2011, and November 16, 2012.

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part I - Image 5

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part I - Image 6

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part I - Image 7

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Paul W.S. Anderson to direct volcanic disaster movie Pompeii

Posted by  on 3 May 2011, 5:36 am

Paul W.S. Anderson to direct Pompeii.

Paul W.S. Anderson (Resident Evil: Afterlife) has signed on to direct Pompeii, an disaster film set in ancient Rome as Mt. Vesuvius erupts and destroys the titular city. The vaguely Romanic Constantin Filmwill finance a reportedly large budget as scripted by Lee Batchler and Janet Scott Batchler (Batman Forever). Summit Entertainment will distribute the film in America with plans to auction off Pompeii to foreign buyers at the Cannes Film Festival later this month. Pompeii reunites Summit, Constantin, and Anderson after The Three Musketeers. Anderson is in post-production on Musketeers preparing for release on October 14. Sources suggest Pompeii will shoot in spring 2012.

Set in late summer 79 A.D., Pompeii revolves around the slave of a shipping tycoon who dreams of the day he can buy his freedom and marry his master’s daughter. What the slave doesn’t know is that she’s already been promised to a corrupt Roman senator, while he’s been sold to another owner.

Just when things can’t get any worse, Mt. Vesuvius erupts with the power of 40 nuclear bombs. But the slave is trapped on a ship headed for Naples, separated from his love and best friend, a gladiator who is trapped in the city’s coliseum. As fire and ash destroy the only world he’s ever known, the slave is determined to get back and rescue them.

Of the thousands that died in the explosion, several hundred left their shape in the volcanic deposits around the city. During excavation, it was discovered that filling these cavities with plaster revealed human casts so detailed that the look of terror is evident on many. Thus creating the world’s most disturbing tourist attraction.

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Focus Features acquires worldwide rights to Moonrise Kingdom

Posted by  on 3 May 2011, 5:27 am

Moonrise Kingdom

The worldwide rights to Wes Anderson’s next film have been acquired by Focus Features. Moonrise Kingdom, co-written (with Roman Coppola) and directed by Anderson, stars Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton and Jason Schwartzman. The film takes place in the 1960’s on an island off the coast of New England and “follows a young boy and girl falling in love. When they are moved to run away together, various factions of the town mobilize to search for them and the town is turned upside down – which might not be such a bad thing.”

Willis is set to play the town sheriff, Norton is a camp leader, and Murray and McDormand will take on the roles of the young girl’s parents. The kids will be played by newcomers Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward. Filming has already begun and Focus Features International is poised to begin international sales at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

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Orlando Bloom and Milla Jovovich stars in The Three Musketeers 3D

Posted by  on 17 September 2010, 12:28 pm

The Three Musketeers 3D

Production on Paul W.S. Anderson’s 3D The Three Musketeers is in full swing and more photos from the set have appeared online. Last week, the first batch of images surfaced and this second wave features Orlando Bloom in a stunning pompadour as the Duke of Buckingham, Oscar winner Christoph Waltz as Cardinal Richelieu and the director’s wife, Milla Jovovich as M’lady De Winter. The photos were all taken at the Wurzburg Residence in Wurzburg, Germany.

The Three Musketeers opens in 3D on April 15, 2011 and also stars Logan Lerman, Mads Mikklesen, Matthew Macfadyen, Ray Stevenson, Luke Evans, Juno Temple, and James Corden.

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Alex Proyas finds Paradise Lost

Posted by  on 17 September 2010, 11:39 am

Alex Proyas

John Milton’s epic poem adapted.

When you think of John Milton’s 17th-century poem Paradise Lost, does your mind immediately latch on to the idea of it (or at least a chunk of it) as an action spectacle with ripe potential for 3D? Alex Proyas’ brain-garden clearly does, as he’s signed on to make a battle-strewn adaptation for Legendary Pictures.

Proyas, who last brought the world Knowing, and has been working on developing Dracula Year Zero for a while now, has signed on to direct the ambitious adaptation for Legendary boss Thomas Tull.

The film, which has been waiting for someone to tackle it for a few years now, will chronicle the war between archangels Michael and Lucifer, with Lucifer’s fall and full-on angelic aerial clashes promised. Hopefully it’ll have the budget to provide proper angel footage as opposed to the empty visions of Legion.

And we’ve got some hope for the script too, since while Byron Willinger and Philip de Blasi wrote the first draft, the majority of the script’s shape has come from Exam’s Stuart Hazeldine, who has toiled on both the Milton adaptation and The Tripods for Proyas. And his work has since been through the hands of both Lawrence Kasdan and Ryan Condal.

There’s no word on when Proyas will start making the film (it’ll likely have to wait until after the Dracula pic), but Warner Bros. will step up to co-produce and co-finance it, should it finally find its way to production.

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Hostel 3 filming starts in August

Posted by  on 1 July 2010, 8:03 am

Hostel 3

Hostel 3 or Hostel: Part III will start filming this August but without Eli Roth behind the camera. Sony’s Stage 6, who is releasing the 30 Days of Night sequel is taking over the duties and it looks like we now have a direct-to-disc Hostel 3 coming our way.

Scott Spiegel will take over the directing duties with a screenplay by Michael Weiss with Roth returning to produce, I’m glad his name is still attached to the franchise because it wasn’t too long ago he said he wouldn’t be involved with another Hostel sequel. The story will take a big change of scenery this time around, this time in Vegas where a bachelor party goes horribly wrong.

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