Congrats to PJ and the gang for RotK‘s billion dollar box office…those are weak Dubya dollars of course, compared to Titanic‘s $1.8 billion run of stronger Clintonian currency, but still, an ample reward for a job well done.
Category: Directors
Chasing Kato.
Miramax gets into the “Event Movie” game, with Kevin Smith on The Green Hornet. Expect Kato to be a pop-culture junkie.
Crazy like a Fox.
The forthcoming Nolan Batman adds Morgan Freeman to the mix as “Lucius Fox, a respected businessman and the CEO of billionaire Bruce Wayne’s mega-conglom, based in Gotham City.” (If this is some character from the comics, I’ve never heard of him.) Also, Neeson is confirmed as Ras Al Ghul, meaning the only high-profile character left is Commissioner Gordon (which Chris Cooper, sadly, already turned down.)
Speakers for the Dead.
Has the success of LotR cleared the way for stalled sci-fi film projects? Casting for the long-awaited Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has already been noted here, and now there’s finally movement on an Ender’s Game movie: Director Wolfgang (Das Boot, Air Force One) Petersen is already signed, and apparently the writers of X2 have come aboard for a rewrite. Hmm…that’s good news. Now I wonder what’s up with Morgan Freeman’s take on Rendezvous with Rama? It seems the only fanboy project in the tank right now is Indiana Jones and the Wrath of Lucas.
Ogres and Coens.
Some stirrings on the film front: Dreamworks releases the first trailer for Shrek 2 (Looks like more of the same, but it should make for a fun afternoon.) And, speaking of fun, Latino Review posts the one-sheet for The Ladykillers. The Coens have yet to let me down, and given how amusing I found the teaser for this one, I highly doubt they’ll start now.
Qui-Gon to Ras Al?
In more good news on the Batman front, Liam Neeson is set to play a villain, most likely Ras Al Ghul to Cillian Murphy’s Scarecrow. Well, so much for Viggo, but I still like this casting. I just hope Christian Bale can get back into Bruce Wayne-shape after getting creepily thin for The Machinist. Update: Has Nolan found Arkham Asylum?
Queen for a Day.
Also in the movie department, several new Brothers Grimm pics make it online, and, although they’re all basically just costume shots, this project is looking increasingly Gilliam-esque.
The Calculus Affairs.
In a strange bit of movie news, Steven Spielberg and Roman Polanski may be heading rival Tintin projects. Moreover, the Spielberg version is looking at Rupert “Ron Weasley” Grint or Jamie Bell as the boy detective in question…Not exactly star wattage, but I could see Bell in particularly working out. (And I could also see Spielberg going to the well and putting Tom Hanks or somebody as Captain Haddock.) As for a Polanski Tintin…I’m scared to think about it.
Witch On, Switch Off.
A slew of new 2004 film pics online, including Monica Bellucci in The Brothers Grimm (ok, but we’ve seen this before), Will Smith in I, Robot (uh oh…they turned it into an actioner), Samuel Jackson in Country of My Skull, and Robin Williams in The Final Cut.
The journey lengthens.
Speaking of the movie of the hour, Peter Jackson’s announced the RotK:EE running time, and it’s 4 hours and 10 minutes, 50 minutes longer than the theatrical cut. (And no, that’s not all tearful goodbyes, thank you very much.)