Saturday, November 16, 2013

Forget The Heat 2 - A Spinoff Is In The Works

While Sandra Bullock has turned a cold shoulder towards the idea of a sequel to the comedy hit The Heat , director Paul Feig and the folks over at Fox aren't ready to give up on the crazy characters therein. Deadline reports Fox and Feig are at work on a spin-off of The Heat, which would focus on Beth and Gina, the scene-stealing girlfriends of Melissa McCarthy's character's brothers.

Comediennes Jamie Denbo and Jessica Chaffin play loudmouths Beth and Gina respectively, and brought a world of wild improvisation to the set that really made an impression on Feig, who'd previously worked with the pair on their Showtime pilot Ronna & Beverly back in 2012. If you check out The Heat's DVD/Blu-ray special features you'll see much more of this dynamic duo. Outtakes reveal how hard Chaffin made it for her onscreen boyfriend (Joey McIntyre) to keep a straight face as she ran off one ridiculous impromptu line after another. Then, Chaffin and Denbo took their Boston girl shtick to the press junket, where they harassed and/or flirted with reporters for more special features.

’2 Guns’ Director Says a Sequel Could Happen

An obscure comic book movie adaptation, 2 Guns didn’t exactly stand out as a high point of the Summer 2013 movie season. For my money, though, it is a serviceable B-movie shoot-em-up/buddy throwback, with updated cultural references (Mexican drug cartels, corrupt government organizations), a commendable bromance with Mark Wahlberg and Denzel Washington, and even a genuinely memorable scene or two. (Who wants to play Russian Roulette with Bill Paxton?)

The Wahlberg/Washington pairing also turned out well from a studio investment perspective, resulting in 2 Guns exceeding its $61 million budget in terms of U.S. box office returns; and then, it more than doubled its cost, once you also figure in the foreign gross. Admittedly, those aren’t exactly the kind of numbers that can get a sequel green-lit without a moment’s hesitation, but it’s enough for director Baltasar Kormákur to have discussed the possibility with Wahlberg (who also produced the film).

David O. Russell Wrote A Horror Film That Eli Roth May Direct

David O. Russell and Eli Roth are two filmmakers that you really rarely hear about in the same breath. After all, the former is a three-time Oscar nominee with credits like Silver Linings Playbook and The Fighter, while the latter has made his name with gorific horror titles like Cabin Fever and Hostel. You wouldn't even necessarily think that they would be hanging around in the same circles, but now we not only have word that Russell and Roth know each other personally, but also that they may soon team up on a project together.

With American Hustle set to hit theaters next month and expected to be a big part of Awards season over the next few months, Russell recently participated in The Hollywood Reporter's director roundtable (via The Playlist) with Steve McQueen, Paul Greengrass, Ben Stiller, Alfonso Cuaron and Lee Daniel, and during the 50-minute long conversation the Three Kings filmmaker revealed that between making I Heart Huckabees and The Fighter he actually wrote a script for a horror film that Roth is thinking about directing. ""I wrote a couple of things that someone might make," Russell told the table. "Eli Roth may actually do one, I wrote a horror a few years ago."

James Bond Lawsuit Settlement Opens the Door for the Return of Blofeld and SPECTRE

The legacy of the James Bond film franchise is not without its twists and turns, many of which are excellently captured in the documentary Everything or Nothing: The Untold Story of 007.  One of the more difficult stories related to the film series involves Thunderball, which began with an original screenplay by Bond creator Ian Fleming and Kevin McClory, before Fleming decided to cut McClory out of the picture and publish the novel Thunderball—based on the idea the two hatched together—with nary a mention of McClory.  The result was a decades-long legal battle and two “unofficial” Bond films (Thunderball and Never Say Never Again), but at long last the entanglement has ended.

Hit the jump for more, including what this means for the Bond franchise going forward.

‘The Best Man Holiday’ Review

The Best Man Holiday picks up 15 years after the first film, reuniting us with author Harper Stewart (Taye Diggs), who is now expecting his first child with wife Robin (Sanaa Lathan). Harper’s writing career has fallen on hard times after the smash hit Unfinished Business (the catalyst of the drama in the first film), which is why the invitation for a holiday visit with his estranged friend, NFL star Lance Sullivan (Morris Chestnut), holds certain lucrative career opportunities.

Lance is retiring from the game soon, and Harper sees the chance to cash-in on a biography of the all-star player. However, first he’ll have to stitch the rift between himself and Lance over the infamous affair with Lance’s wife Mia (Monica Calhoun) – not to mention deal with all the drama that comes with having old friends like Julian (Harold Perrineau), Candy (Regina Hall), Shelby (Melissa De Sousa), Jordan (Nia Long) – and of course, acid-tongued Quentin (Terrence Howard) all under one roof again. While both old wounds and new pains threaten the group’s bond, they soon learn that there’s no better time than the holidays in which to celebrate life, love, and good friendship.

Batkid Saves San Francisco: Internet's Best Reactions

Stars, Major League teams teams and President Obama are singing the praises of five-year-old Miles, who dressed as a miniature caped crusader to fight crime.
San Francisco transformed into Gotham on Friday to make a wish come true for Batkid, whose secret identity is Miles. The  five-year-old Batman fan has battled cancer and is in remission after completing chemotherapy this summer.

Batkid's heroics earned the thanks from all over – from Batman studio Warner Bros. and DC Comics to the San Francisco Giants for saving the team's beloved mascot, Lou Seal. Stars such as Anna Kendrick, Olivia Munn and Nick Lachey confessed to getting a little verklempt thanks to epic photos of Miles saving damsels in distress and receiving a key to the city from San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee. The day of super-heroics was made possible thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation and thousands of volunteers who came out to cheer Miles on.

Will Smith to Headline ‘City That Sailed’ with Shawn Levy Directing

City That Sailed (a.k.a. The City That Sailed) is a project that’s had Will Smith’s attention for more than three years now, going back to right before he committed to making Men in Black III. The project now has the A-lister officially set as its lead, while 20th Century Fox has gone ahead and tapped Shawn Levy – director of Real Steel and the Night at the Museum franchise – to take the helm on this original fantasy-adventure.

An earlier script draft for City That Sailed was penned by writer/director Andrew Niccol (Gattaca, The Host), with a story about a (divorced?) New York street magician separated from his young daughter. The girl ends up being moved to London, where she finds magic candles (as you do in England) that grants her every wish. Problem is, that pesky plot device takes her desire to be closer to her dad way too literally, when it causes the entire island of Manhattan to separate from the North America continent and drift across the ocean.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

‘Batman vs. Superman’ Artwork Revealed at ‘Man of Steel’ Fan Event

Man of Steel is coming out on Blu-ray, and to commemorate that event – and further tease the upcoming sequel Batman vs. Superman - Warner Bros. hosted live event in New York, hosted by none other than Kevin Smith and featuring Man of Steel director Zack Snyder, Lois Lane actress Amy Adams, and Superman himself, Henry Cavill (via satellite)

While many of the topics discussed centered on things like making Man of Steel, the controversial plot details, inspiration in filmmaking, iconic characters (and annoying fans), there was inevitably some talk about what’s coming next in Batman vs. Superman. After days of rumors about everyone from Nightwing to Wonder Woman being in the film, Snyder and Co. had some big questions to answer, and revealed some big announcements about the titan team-up that’s coming in the sequel.
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