Arthur’s Amigos.

From the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying “Beware of The Leopard,” Dark Horizons manages to procure the first two publicity stills from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. From left to right we have Zaphod (1-headed Sam Rockwell), Trillian (Zooey Deschanel), Marvin (Warwick Davis, with terrible pain in all the diodes down his left side), and Ford (Mos Def)…In case you were wondering, Arthur (Martin Freeman) is in the other one.

Ask Prosser about head.

BBC airs some behind-the-scenes footage from Hitchhiker’s Guide, which includes our first looks at Arthur (Martin Freeman), Ford (Mos Def), Trillian (Zooey Deschanel), and a big-hair Zaphod (Sam Rockwell)…They all look good, although I was thrown by Zaphod’s lack of second head (Apparently, it’s in his nose…yeah, I don’t get it either.)

Don’t Panic!

This is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but…Vogon poetry? The brief teaser for Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, rumored since Comicon, is now freely available online. Be sure to check out the production slideshow, which shows off the splendid designs of Marvin the Paranoid Android and the Heart of Gold. Oh, and don’t forget your towel. Update: More production art here.

Self-Flagellation.

“WHO THE H*#&! ARE YOU AND WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO MUCK AROUND WITH THIS TREASURED PIECE OF LITERATURE, YOU AMERICAN HOLLYWOOD HACK? Ah. Good one. Yes, I can see why a lot of people might be wondering this…” Screenwriter Karey Kirkpatrick talks about his contribution to the forthcoming Hitchhiker’s Guide film.

Babel Fish Not Required.

From the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Tenth Intergalactic Edition: Director Garth Jennings and producer Nick Goldsmith discuss the upcoming Hitchhiker’s film, including casting decisions, production designs, funding, and the input of the late Douglas Adams on the script. I’m quite looking forward to this project — Until then, there’s always the classic Infocom game online

The Prophet of No Tea.

The cast of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy rounds out with John Malkovich as a “religious cult leader called Humma Kavula, created by the late author especially for the long-gestating film.” Hmm, strange. In case you missed earlier reports, the cast also includes The Office‘s Martin Freeman as Arthur Dent, Mos Def as Ford Prefect, Sam Rockwell as Zaphod, and Zooey Deschanel as Trillian. Should be better than Vogon poetry, at any rate.

Confessions of Two Dangerous Minds.

By way of Quiddity, the cast of Hitchhiker’s Guide gets rounded out, and I like what I’m hearing. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Mos Def will be Ford Prefect (good race-neutral casting, although I hope he’s still British), Zooey Deschanel plays Trillian (how’d her agent ever manage to stop the Knightley Behemoth? Keira’s got more momentum these days than Kerry) and Sam Rockwell is Zaphod Beeblebrox, president of the universe (That’s classic…but no word yet on how or if they’re casting his second head.) This should be fun.