[Exclusive] John Hillcoat on The Death of Bunny Munro and The Wettest County in The World

JackGiroux — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:09:51 +0000

Yesterday I had the great opportunity of speaking to director John Hillcoat to discuss his latest film The Road. During this period John was nice enough to confirm casting on The Wettest County in The World and that The Death of Bunny Munro will most likely be made into a television series.

I know you’re circling a few projects right now, can you give a few updates?

John Hillcoat: Well, one touchwood that’s most likely to…

The Wettest County?

John Hillcoat: Yeah it’s west Virginia, moonshine, backwoods, and Prohibition. Nick Cave has written the script and we’ve got a phenomenal cast. Hopefully, but — it’s really tough out there.

Who’s attached to that?

John Hillcoat: Um… Ryan Gosling and Shia LaBeouf. But yeah, I shouldn’t really talk about it cause it’s in the middle of all sorts of stuff.

And what about The Death of Bunny Munro?

John Hillcoat: We’re going to turn that into television. We’re going to try and wake up the BBC and, or, actually Channel 4. We’re trying to say to British television,”look at HBO, I mean what the hell are you doing?”

And are you involved with the remake of La bonne année?

John Hillcoat: No… That’s very misleading, all that stuff.

Make sure to check back later this month for the full interview.

Morgan Freeman to Star in, Produce ‘Dirty Old Men’

Carly — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:37:25 +0000

Morgan Freeman has signed on to star in the Warner Bros. comedy Dirty Old Men (working title).

In the film, Freeman will be playing the best friend and wingman of an aging playboy who finally meets the love of his life. After spending 40 years by his friend’s side, Freeman’s character isn’t too willing to give up his position, and does everything he can to try to break up the new couple.

The film was written by comic writers Josh Cagan and Greg Coolidge, and the comedic style of Dirty Old Men is said to be along the lines of that in Wedding Crashers and The 40-Year-Old Virgin.

No actor is attached to the film to play the part of the playboy, but Warner Bros. is interested in having Jack Nicholson fill the role. Nicholson and Freeman co-starred in the 2007 Warner Bros. film The Bucket List, and the studio evidently liked the interaction between the two.

Warner Bros. is looking to have Peter Segal direct Dirty Old Men, with the film being produced by Freeman’s Revelations Entertainment. Freeman will serve as executive producer as well as actor.

Doggone Owen Wilson

Carly — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:34:34 +0000

Owen Wilson is going to the dogs.

First he starred alongside an adorable golden lab in Marley and Me, and now he will be starring as…well, as a dog himself.

Wilson has signed on to voice the role of Marmaduke, the title character of a long-running comic strip that is being made into a live action film by Fox.

The cartoon, and subsequently the movie, follows the antics of Marmaduke, a mischievous Great Dane. In the film, we’ll see Marmaduke encounter a Mutts vs. Pedigrees battle over territory, attempt to woo the lady-dog of his dreams, and overcome a fall from grace.

Acting alongside Wilson will be Judy Greer, Lee Pace and William H. Macy as the humans in the film, with Fergie, Emma Stone, George Lopez, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Steve Coogan, Damon Wayans, Marlon Wayans providing voices to the non-human characters.

The film will be directed by Tom Dey and produced by John Davis in time for a release date in June 2010.

You Can Own the Terminator!

Carly — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:32:38 +0000

What’s that you say? “I can own the Terminator? Surely Carly must be talking about the DVD. Or maybe scientists in an underground laboratory have created actual Terminators that I can buy!”

No folks, I’m not referring to owning The Terminator on video, DVD or Blu-ray. And as cool as it would be to have real terminators in development (actually, I’m not sure that would be so much ‘cool’ as ’cause for slight panic’), no such plans are underway (as far as I know…)

What I’m talking about is you (providing you have millions of dollars at your disposal) potentially being able to claim ownership of the Terminator franchise.

After filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August, Halcyon Co–the company that currently owns the rights to the Terminator movies–has decided to put those rights up for auction.

The auction, which will take place in January, will give the winner rights to future Terminator movies, TV shows, DVDs, and merchandise. Interest in the auction has grown quickly, as the franchise is quite the asset–it’s “the only Hollywood tentpole asset that’s not owned by a studio,” said Kevin Shultz, senior managing director of FTI Capital Advisers.

During bankruptcy hearings, Halcyon execs put a value of $70 million on the franchise. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise was recently sold for $60 million, an amount that will likely set the bar for the minimum bid price for Terminator.

Halcyon should reach a decision as to which prospective buyer seems like the best option and set the minimum bid price. The new owner could potentially help to put Halcyon back on its feet by going forth with the 5th Terminator film Halycon has been developing.

So got a few million just laying around, looking for something to be used for? Get your name to Halcyon and you could have the chance to own The Terminator!

Mickey Mouse Moving Back to Disney Forefront

Carly — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:30:11 +0000

I don’t think it’s going too far out on a limb to say that this is one of the most interesting marketing moves I’ve heard in a long time:

The Mouse House will reintroduce its famous mascot in “Epic Mickey,” a videogame due late next year that will revive several of the character’s key personality traits that have been dulled or forgotten since his introduction in the late 1920s.

Be honest now. When someone says “Disney,” what’s the first thing that pops into your head? In some regard or another, Mickey Mouse is likely to be associated with Disney. However, what does anyone really know about Mickey anymore?

If you’re like me, you simply think of Mickey Mouse as the squeaky voiced mouse with gloved hands and shorts with large buttons on them. I’m fairly sure that Mickey is supposed to be a pretty good guy, but I can’t exactly place him as a character in much more than Mickey’s Christmas Carol. What I, and most people, now see Mickey as is an iconic image of the Disney corporation, sans any real identifiable persona.

Disney has apparently noticed this and will be using video game marketing to bring Mickey back to the hearts of audiences as more than just the face of the company.

According to VP and Creative Director of Junction Point Studios, Warren Spector, the video game will aim to give a personality back to Mickey. “I want to remind Mickey that he’s a hero — and to be a hero, we need to give him purpose…I want him to be funny. I want him to struggle. I want to ‘age him up’ a little.” Ultimately though, the game’s goal is to let players decide what it is they find cool about Mickey.

Now, why do I find this such an interesting marketing strategy? Mickey Mouse is a character who has been around for over 80 years. Obviously, such a long span of time would result in an evolution of the character.

Well, with Mickey the evolution kind of went stagnant. The easiest way to bring back Mickey with a personality would be to make a new film, or series of shorts, with Mickey as the star.

However, while a movie would be easier, bringing him back to the forefront of Disney characters in the realm of video games will likely prove a more effective move than trying to release a movie with Mickey as the lead character.

Unlike a movie, a video game will provide audiences with an opportunity to interact with the character, rather than just watch him going through the actions.

In another interesting strategy, the new video game will also incorporate Mickey’s predecessor, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. This character will be “something of an antagonist in “Epic Mickey.” He resents his brother’s success and the love Walt had for Mickey. The redemption of Oswald is one of the player’s chief goals in the game.”

Not a bad way to give some attention to not only the character that made Walt Disney a household name, but also the character that got his animation career rolling.

Currently “Epic Mickey” is the only project in the works to boost Mickey’s recognition as a personality, but Spector hopes that it will lead to interest in other projects expanding on Mickey’s role.

Eighty years, and Disney is finally ready for their most well-known character to be re-introduced to a new generation. I think Walt would be proud.

Uwe Boll’s “Storm” Looks … Good?

John Cooper — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:46:41 +0000

The only man in Hollywood busier than Ridley Scott must be Uwe Boll, who has had a videogame-to-film adaptation in theaters or on DVD every twelve minutes since House of the Dead. But word on the streets from Fantastic Fest was that his latest, Rampage, was actually quite good (and not based on any previously existing properties).

Now comes the trailer for his next, a little moody film called Storm, or Final Storm, written by Tim McGregor. The film stars Dumb and Dumber’s Lauren Holly and a back-from-the-abyss Luke Perry, and describes itself via this lengthy (and spoiler-heavy) synopsis:

“Biblical rain, dying animals and a blood red moon. Clearly, all is not well on the quiet farm in the countryside where Tom makes a living with his wife Gillian and their young son Graham. Before the cable and power goes out, glimpses of weather related catastrophes on a global scale are hinted upon. Amidst these eerie signs, a soft spoken man named Silas stumbles onto their property, sick and cold. Even more disconcerting is how quiet Tom notices everything is… neighbors, cars, birds, crickets, all are nowhere to be seen nor heard.

According to Silas it’s not so much as the beginning of the end, but in fact the end itself, and they’ve been left behind. As Tom goes about things in denial, believing that the flooding rains have simply evacuated the town, he shuts out those closest to him, allowing Silas, perhaps the only other man left alive, to grow closer to the emotionally starved Gillian and Graham. But the unsettling evidence cannot be ignored and Tom struggles with the horrifying truth: maybe it is the apocalypse. The rapture. The end of days. And they’re all that is left of humanity.

As Silas slowly reveals his true colors with his murderous past, and lust for Gillian, the tension between the men builds until an explosive showdown occurs, with Tom defending his family, and fighting for their survival, and perhaps the survival of all mankind.”

It doesn’t look great, but I’d argue it looks as interesting as the significantly higher budget Crazies trailer we saw recently.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Trailer

John Cooper — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:24:17 +0000

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer is definitely aiming to recapture his Pirates of the Caribbean mojo with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, if this trailer is any indication. From the humor on display to the cinematography, this thing wishes so badly it had Johnny Depp in its clutches.

However, it gets Jake Gyllenhaal instead. Which isn’t inherently a bad thing, but he seems woefully out of place here (and way too bulky to play the fast and deadly Prince). His accent is horrible. With a double dose of this and Sir Ben Kingsley, this might be unbearable.

However, I have hope — with a little decently shot action, any film of this caliber can be redeemed. Prince of Persia is directed by Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’s Mike Newell, and is slated to be released on May 28 of next year.

How to Train Your Dragon Trailer

John Cooper — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:07:03 +0000

Want to know How to Train Your Dragon? Well know you can get to know the film a little better with the new trailer for the film that has been released today. It looks like it’s pretty much par for the course from Dreamworks Animation: entertaining and ultimately fluffier and less heartfelt than Pixar’s output. Hopefully we have something in the Kung-Fu Panda realm of work.

How to Train Your Dragon is written and directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders (Lilo & Stitch) from a story by Cressida Cowell, and features the voices of Gerard Butler, Jay Baruchel (who I believe narrates the trailer), Craig Ferguson, Jonah Hill, and McLovin himself, Christopher Mintz-Plasse.

Check the trailer out below! The film is due on March 26, 2010 from Paramount Pictures.