Posted on Wednesday, January 13th, 2010 by Russ Fischer
With a bunch of films scheduled to start shooting later this month and into the dregs of winter, we’re starting to get some new blasts of casting info. First up, Moon Bloodgood has a new role in Faster, the George Tillman Jr.-directed revenge drama starring Dwayne Johnson. She’ll play Johnson’s girlfriend; Johnson is “an ex-con pursued by cops and killers as he sets out to avenge his brother’s death.” Also in the cast is Oliver Jackson-Cohen, who will be one of the killers on the Rock’s trail. The trade report describes his character as “a self-made millionaire who kills for fun.” [THR]
After the break, Kevin Spacey goes to China and Paul Giamatti may work with The Visitor director Tom McCarthy. Read More »
Overture Films has released a trailer for Grant Heslov’s The Men Who Stare At Goats. Based on Jon Ronson’s 2004 book, Ewan McGregor stars in this so-unbelievable-yet-true story of a reporter who is chasing after a crazy story. U.S. Army First Earth Battalion unit member Lyn Cassady (George Clooney) claims to be part of an experimental U.S. military unit using ancient Chinese mind techniques to develop paranormal powers for American soldiers. This elite experimental group have developed “unparalleled psychic powers to read the enemy’s thoughts, pass through solid walls, and even kill a goat simply by staring at it.”
Posted on Wednesday, June 24th, 2009 by Russ Fischer
Kevin Spacey is producing and starring in a film called Father of Invention and now he’s been joined by the wonderful Craig Robinson, as well as Heather Graham, Johnny Knoxville and Camilla Belle, according to THR. Spacey plays, according to the trade, a “humble inventor turned egomaniacal billionaire” who serves an eight-year stint in jail after some bad shit goes down with one of his inventions. Intent on revitalizing his reputation, he also has to rebuild his family. Trent Cooper is directing from his own script co-written with Krane and Nichole Beatty. Read More »
Yesterday it was revealed that David Fincher is in “advanced talks” with Columbia Pictures to direct The Social Network, the story of the creation of Facebook, as written by Aaron Sorkin. But apparently almost everyone (even the hollywood trade newspapers) failed to realize that the film is actually an adaptation of Ben Mezrich’s upcoming book The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook, a Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal.
Some might recognize Mezrich as the author of the bestselling book Bringing Down the House, which was adapted for the screen under the title 21. And those of you who read the story from yesterday might recall that Kevin Spacey is producing this new Facebook movie with Scott Rudin. Connecting the dots: Spacey produced and starred in 21. Yes, it all makes sense now. A lot more information is available after the jump.
We were baffled last Summer when Golden Globe nominated screenwriter/producer Aaron Sorkin had joined Facebook and announced that he was writing a Facebook movie for mega-producer Scott Rudin. Today Variety offers an unbelievable follow-up, filmmaker David Fincher (Fight Club, Se7en, Benjamin Button) is in “advanced talks” with Columbia Pictures to direct the film, which has been titled The Social Network.
Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Be Kind Rewind) recently directed a series of television commercials for American Airlines starring Kevin Spacey. The spots which are promoting the airline’s business class service feature actual planes instead of the expected cardboard and masking tape created sets.
Actually, all three spots are surprisingly generic. And by generic, I mean, like normal advertisements for an airline, and not something you’d expect from Gondry. Which says more about the business of making commercials than anything else. Check out all three commercials after the jump. And of course, I’m kidding — I didn’t actually expect sets made out of cardboard.
In the near future, Astronaut Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) is sent on a three year mission to live on the far side of the moon and mine Helium-3, a chemical that has now become Earth’s primary source of energy. His moon base has lost live communication with Earth and is rather lonely. But luckily his contract is almost up and he will soon return home to his loving wife Tess and their three year old daughter Eve. But as the final days clock down, Sam suffers a freak accident and discovers a secret which puts into question everything. This is only the beginning. What is Lunar Industries up to?
Last month we brought you the teaser trailer for Recount, HBO Films’ retelling of the behind-the-scenes happenings during the 2000 presidential election and the scandal that resulted. /Film reader Linton sent us the full length trailer for the upcoming film.
Written by 33-year old actor turned screenwriter Danny Strong, Recount was the top film on the 2007 Black List, an annual poll of 150 development executives and high-level assistants which ranks the hot screenplays making the rounds in Hollywood. The top three entries of the 2005 list where Things We Lost in the Fire, Juno, and Lars and the Real Girl. So it’s definitely a great list to be on. Directed by Jay Roach (Meet The Parents, Austin Powers), and starring Kevin Spacey stars as Ron Klain, former Vice President Al Gore’s Chief of Staff, John Hurt as Warren Christopher, who supervised the contested Florida recount, Laura Dern as Katherine Harris, former Secretary of State for the State of Florida, Tom Wilkinson as James Baker and Denis Leary as Michael Whouley.
Each year a poll of 150 development executives and high-level assistants is compiled called the Black List. The resulting list contains a ranking of the hot screenplays making the rounds in Hollywood, which will not be released in theaters during that calendar year. The top three entries of the 2005 list where Things We Lost in the Fire, Juno, and Lars and the Real Girl. So it’s definitely a great list to be on.
The top film on the 2007 Black list was Recount, a behind-the-scenes look at the 2000 presidential election and the scandal that resulted. Written by 33-year old actor turned screenwriter Danny Strong, and directed by Jay Roach (Meet The Parents, Austin Powers), the completed film will premiere on Sunday May 25th at 9:00pm on HBO, and we have the teaser trailer. Kevin Spacey stars as Ron Klain, former Vice President Al Gore’s Chief of Staff, John Hurt as Warren Christopher, who supervised the contested Florida recount, Laura Dern as Katherine Harris, former Secretary of State for the State of Florida, Tom Wilkinson as James Baker and Denis Leary as Michael Whouley.
Posted on Wednesday, January 2nd, 2008 by Peter Sciretta
A couple days ago (last year even) it was reported that Sacha Baron Cohen had been cast as Abbie Hoffman in Steven Spielberg’s The Trial of the Chicago Seven. I like many other movie journalists wondered when Speilberg was going to find the time for this project with Tintin, Lincoln and Interstellar on his plate. Jim Windolf mentions in the new Indiana Jones Vanity Fair article that Spielberg is hoping to direct Chicago Seven next, and follow up with Lincoln. I assume this means that Jackson, not Spielberg, will be directing the first Tintin film.
Windolf also got a glance at a table of headshots of actors under consideration for the film. The list of big name actors includes: Will Smith, Taye Diggs, Adam Arkin, Kevin Spacey, Sacha Baron Cohen, Philip Seymour Hoffman (as William Kunstler). Smith and Diggs are likely in contention for the part.
A couple days ago (last year even) it was 
