“I’ve got the touch.”
Over at Deadline Hollywood Daily, Nikki Finke is reporting that actor Edward Norton and Marvel Studios are in an escalating tizzy over editing and final cut on The Incredible Hulk. Oh boy, this is not good. Norton, who pretty much received the right to rework Zak Penn’s script however he wanted, is known for having strong feelings about the end product. His arguments with director Tony Kaye over American History X (Norton won) are the stuff of legend.
Finke reports that Norton and Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel are currently “holed up” alongside director Louis Leterrier (who is oddly mentioned in the news item like a third wheel) in hopes of reaching an amicable decision. It’s not clear what the arguments are over and it seems that, like fanboys, even the insiders have little idea how the $150 million flick is shaping up.
Another unnamed source seems to throw some water on the flame, saying…
“There is a very healthy exchange of ideas going on. Discussions now are even more heated. But some of Ed’s best movies have had this exact dynamic to them. Everyone’s in the process of figuring it out and working it out. But I expect it’ll all get resolved pretty quickly.”
With The Incredible Hulk’s teaser trailer, yes only a teaser, appearing tomorrow night on MTV, it’s at once worrisome and kinda sweet how cloaked this project is from the public eye. Opening on June 13th, its secrecy has almost seemed like a Sun Tzu marketing strategy when compared to The Dark Knight and Iron Man; but while a secretive approach might work for a never-before-seen character that’s eagerly anticipated, we’ve seen Ang Lee’s Hulk already. Either Leterrier’s Hulk is going to blow us away tomorrow or get a big “meh!” It’s really that simple. And Norton is pretty sharp, so hopefully Marvel listens to him. As much as I pined for Liv Tyler in that Aerosmith video, Norton is the only reason why I’m interested in the remake.
Discuss: Does Norton’s disagreement with Marvel over final cut bother you? What are you expecting from the teaser tomorrow? Do you find it cool to know so little about the film this far in?
March 11th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
American History X was a pretty good movie so i say let the man do his thing ! we all know tomorrows teaser is going to suck cuz they are not going to reveal anything ..and it also sucks that the movie is just a couple of months away and we haven’t seen or heard anything about the flick..
March 11th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
Oh dear … but I do trust Norton’s judgment. My guess is that he’s going to inject a little more brain into the script but Marvel is still mindful of what happened the last time they put story above action.
What’s Universal thinking about this? Marvel isn’t financing Hulk by itself, is it?
March 11th, 2008 at 12:48 pm
American Histiory X might have been a pretty good movie, but Keeping the Faith was pretty crappy one.
March 11th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
Maybe his idea is to bring Low Ferrigno back as the Hulk!
March 11th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
@ clarence somerset
Universal is not mentioned in regards to the disagreement.
I love how, like, Nikki Finke (god bless her) is the only Tinsel Town journalist ever to get Deep Throat quotes like: “Never let an actor write a script,” one insider commented. “Marvel made a mistake letting the wolf into the hen house.”
Who talks like that? Lulz.
March 11th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
Norton is the ONLY reason you’re interested? I guess you don’t care much for Tim Roth…who blows Norton out of the water (in my opinion).
March 11th, 2008 at 1:11 pm
I’m not sure how I feel about this news. Norton is a
pretty smart guy, but he also has never done a comic
movie. so it makes me wonder if the arguement
is justified on his side. I hope it is and gives a better
movie.
I’m looking foward to seeing the teaser trailer and it
doesn’t bother me that we haven’t seen too much. I
rather like it and hope that the final product will kick
ass. I really want this movie to be good.
March 11th, 2008 at 1:13 pm
In Tyler Durden we trust.
March 11th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
I agree with the earlier poster - the teaser trailer, i doubt, will reveal much. I really don’t understand the delay. Are the fine tuning the special effects so our first glimpse of the big green guy doesn’t get a resounding “Meh!”?
March 11th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
@ Matthew
I am a fan of Tim Roth, sure, but he also starred in Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes and, alas, he wasn’t enough to save it. Norton and the look of the Hulk are the deciding factors for me with this flick. And “From the director of The Transporter” still worries me.
March 11th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Was Tim Roth in the teaser for the trailer? He’s in his ’50s right? The biggest problem with the first Hulk was the lack of a credible enemy. The abomination or whatever he’s called in the movie is a fantastic foe.
March 11th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
I hate it when I go to a movie and can guess about how long is left based on the number of scenes I saw in the commercials. 300, spiderman, transformers, all the big action movies have to show a clip from each scene. I’d rather studios released nothing more than a teaser until opening weekend.
March 11th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
I have a lot of faith in Norton’s acting ability and his knowledge of good film making (though not enough that I’d say he should turn to directing).
However after the travesty that was Ang Lee’s Hulk I’m hesitant to say that I’m looking forward to this film. I’m sure I’ll go see it and I may end up being pleasantly surprised but I’m not counting the days till it’s release and the news of the trailer didn’t really spark my interest.
March 11th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Stick to what you do best, Norton… act. Don’t put your nose where it doesn’t belong. Directing.. and editing… leave that to the people who are paid to do it. Is your ego that big? Let’s scrap the whole film making process for the last 100 years and start letting actors decide what’s best for a movie. You’re not Jack Nicholson… not even Tom Hanks… you’re Ed Norton, you’ve been in what??? 2, maybe 3 movies worth mentioning. Take a reality check.
March 11th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
Worries. I’m riff with worries. I’m betting it’ll be a strong Meh in the end. Sort of like the X-Men series.
March 11th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Our opinions don’t matter, but if i had to say anything it’d be that I respect Norton’s work and even his judgement.
One good thing to note is that when was the last time you say any creative based dialogue or arguments going on within a comic book movie? Obviously, there are some people that care about the integrity of the Hulk character.
I wish there was a Norton type during most of the filming of any X-Men movie which were completely horrible. same goes for Daredevil, Punisher, Spawn, Ghostrider, Superman, Fantastic Four, ect.
It’s a shame it’s taken this long before filmakers started to get the comic book themed movie right. Batman Begins and Hellboy being some of the exceptions.
March 11th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
i love norton but:
- i imagine it must be frustrating to have him do this with many of his projects, why doesn’t he just direct? i think it can be disrespectful to the director who is in charge of the vision, to have a lead actor take away from his idea of what the final cut should be.
-i’m not expecting much from the teaser. lots of banner & supporting cast, but probably just a hulk silohuette or a brief glimpse at most. maybe the same for abomination.
-i don’t mind not seeing anything so far, its a different strategy.
-just bring on The Dark Knight already!
March 11th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
I hope it’s not an ego trip
March 11th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
When is Norton NOT arguing with his filmmakers?
March 11th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
I think Norton may be the one to back here. I’m not saying this because he’s a familiar face as an actor, but merely from his credentials. This is Marvel’s first film foray as an indepedent studio. Leterrier is a good action director but hasn’t made a completely great Hollywood film yet. But Norton’s least got one film down to his name which he helped edit and get out - with American History X and it’s a corker.
I hope Ed doesn’t back down from this. I presume his clout is that after rebooting this one, they don’t want to do it again and if doesn’t return for numero 2, then perhaps the franchise is gone for good.
March 11th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
Who cares if it’s an ego trip. I would love to see both versions, hell I would love the footage or the Ang Lee Hulk, maybe someone could make something out of that, that didn’t suck. Can we really blame the director is some cases? When the story isn’t even finished before filming is half way thru, crank it out, crank it out. How much was Raiders rewritten while filming was going on? Visual things that just distract from the rest of the movie. Wirework that is sloppy, Digital figures fighting (Blade3 anyone) that suck. Maybe they should look at dailies on a screen that isn’t the size of a matchbook.
March 11th, 2008 at 8:23 pm
I didn’t like that he got power over this film to begin with. I mean he’s a great actor but come on…
March 12th, 2008 at 7:04 am
I trust Norton. The more input he has, the better. Also it keeps him happy for a sequel.
March 12th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
Cenzo,
you are in bad need of a reality check!!!
I wonder when everyone is going to realise that if Edward Norton
likes something and thinks it needs to be done a certain way
they should effing listen to him!!!
IN ED WE TRUST!