Sam Worthington Goes For The Dogs
Sam Worthington has officially signed on to star in the new film from Salt director Philip Noyce. Based on a novel by Kevin Wignall the new action thriller is called For the Dogs and will see the rugged Avatar star playing an assassin who helps a college girl take revenge against the people responsible for the murder of her parent and brother.
The film will be a co-production between FilmEngine Entertanemnt and Worthington’s own production company Full Clip Productions. Worthington will also take on a producing role for the film.
Speaking about the project, fellow Producer Navid McIlharey said :
“I have been friends with Sam, John, Mike and Paul for some time now and watched them grow their production company. They are very talented producers with commercial instincts who led us to this terrific thriller, with a character that seems to be tailor made for Sam. With a brilliant director like Phillip, we are very excited to have a team like this come together.”
Sony Plans Dragon Tattoo Sequel Without Daniel Craig
Sony is reportedly considering cutting Daniel Craig’s character Mikael Blomkvist out of their Girl with the Dragon Tattoo sequel as a way of reducing the budget. Although the first film managed to take $223 million at the box office alone from a $90 million budget, it was less than the studio had hoped for.
Feeling cautious about audience appetites for The Girl Who Played with Fire, the studio is unsurprisingly keen to keep costs low this time around. Although given the record breaking success of Skyfall it’s doubtful that they’ll be getting Bond on a budget anytime soon.
Some cynical commentators are already suggesting these recent rumours could just be a ploy by the studio to encourage a cheap deal with the British star before negotiations have even officially started.
Kenneth Branagh Directing Live Action Cinderella
Kenneth Branagh looks set to replace Mark Romanek in directing duties for Disney’s forthcoming live action Cinderella project.
Cate Blanchet who was previously attached to play the wicked stepmother remains in place, with the rest of casting for the re-imagined fairytale set to begin once negotiations with Branagh have reached a seemingly inevitable successful conclusion.
Disney parted company with their last director as they were reportedly unhappy with Romanek’s uncompromisingly dark vision of the familiar fairy tale. So it’s likely that Branagh will likely be encouraged to focus more on the feel-good whimsy of glass slippers, fairy godmothers and charming Princes. Although presumably he’ll be working form the same script , courtesy of Chris Weitz and Aline Brosh McKenna.
It’s probably far to early to speculate but it wouldn’t be such a surprise to see Branagh turn to his Thor & Wallander star Tom Hiddleston as obvious casting for Prince Charming…
Warner Bros Confirm Entourage Movie
The long rumored big screen version of HBO’s popular TV series Entourage is officially a reality. Warner Bros have given the go ahead to series creator Doug Ellin to direct the project based on his own script.
The popular series followed the adventures of fictional movie star Vincent Chase and his ‘entourage’ of friends, as they navigated the perk and perils of Hollywood superstardom. Often seen as an obvious male equivalent to Sex And The City, the series delved into the extravagant excesses of LA parties and a seemingly endless parade of desirable women. The show also boasted an enviable array of celebrity cameos.
As for what’s in store for the new movie, it’s expected that the film will pick up with the boys 6 months after the events of the last episode in the final 8th series which aired in 2011. Doug Ellin hasn’t confirmed any specific plot details yet but has reassured fans that the gang are “still hanging out and going to fun parties”.
The series regulars are yet to officially sign on, but it seems unlikely any of them would turn down the chance to take the show to a whole new level of life imitating art… finally making a movie about a fake movie star making movies.
Cobie Smulders Set For S.H.I.E.L.D .TV Series
How I Met Your Mother star Cobie Smulders who played special agent Maria Hill in The Avengers is in talks about reprising the character in the new spin-off S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series.
Despite her on-going role in How I Met Your Mother the beautiful sitcom star has confirmed in a recent interview that it wouldn’t prevent her having some kind of involvement in the new Marvel TV series as well.
“The commitments to [How I Met Your Mother] don’t affect it, and I can’t really say but there are definite talks about it.”
Her character proved a popular addition to the superhero team in the recent billion dollar box office hit and her involvement in the new series would arguably go a long way towards giving the series a real connection with the film franchise.
Some fans had expressed initial concerns that there’s a danger the series could feel like a poor cousin to the Marvel film’s; with the involvement of familiar characters like Iron man, Captain America or Thor looking unlikely.
Although lacking in superpowers, Maria Hill is one of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s top agents and the pistol wielding sidekick to Samuel L.Jackson’s ultimate super-spy Nick Fury. Evidently Smulders is as excited as fans about reprising the role:
“Oh yeah! I’m very excited. I will do Maria Hill until they fire me and hire someone else to do it.”