Yes, it’s Sunday, but aren’t you getting that summer vibe? Soon enough school will be out and offices will readjust their hours and rules to fit the new season. Regardless, Shockya.com will still be here to bring you the best of the best in film news every Sunday night. The latest movie updates are still useful beach and poolside, right?
It should come as no surprise that this weekend’s Cheat Sheet is brimming with, well, for lack of better terms, unoriginal material. We’ve got sequels, book-to-film adaptations and role reprisals as we’ve got updates on The Hobbit, The Hunger Games, a new Dumb and Dumber potentially in the works and much more. But don’t you worry; there’s a little originality in there in the form of a surprisingly promising wedding-themed romantic comedy as well as a little something from PT Anderson.
Check it all out in this weekend’s Movie News Cheat Sheet:
1. The Hobbit Films Get Titles and Release Dates: It’s been a rather long road, but Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit films are as real as ever and actually, not that far away. The news first leaked back in March that New Line registered the titles The Hobbit: An/The Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again, but now it’s official. An Unexpected Journey is due to arrive on December 14th, 2012 followed by There and Back Again almost exactly a year later on December 13th, 2013. The official press release also runs through the massive cast, which includes Lord of the Rings vets Ian McKellen as Gandalf the Grey, Cate Blanchett as Galadriel, Orlando Bloom as Legolas, Ian Holm as the elder Bilbo, Christopher Lee as Saruman, Hugo Weaving as Elrond, Elijah Wood as Frodo and Andy Serkis as Gollum. (via The Hobbit Facebook Page)
2. Donald Sutherland Rules Panem: Donald Sutherland is the latest and likely final actor to join The Hunger Games. He’ll step in as President Snow, the ruler of the country of Panem. While Snow is safe and sound in the Capitol, he forces each of his country’s 12 districts to send two teens into The Hunger Games, a televised fight to the death. In the first book of the trilogy, we only see Snow a small handful of times, but it’s made quite clear that Snow’s top priority is maintaining control over his country and he’s willing to do anything necessary to preserve that, even if the results are deadly. While Sutherland doesn’t quite fit the description of “small and thin with paper-white hair,” I’m willing to forgo the meager appearance for the super sinister performance Sutherland’s capable of delivering. In other Hunger Games news, Lionsgate also announced that the three-book series will be split into four feature films. (via The Hunger Games Facebook Page)
3. Photo From the Set of Rock of Ages: Apparently Alec Baldwin is past his indecision over whether or not to hold onto his role in the stage-to-screen adaptation of Rock of Ages because director Adam Shankman tweeted a picture from the set of both Baldwin and Russell Brand in full costume. Baldwin’s character, Dennis Dupree, is the owner of The Bourbon Room, while Brand is Lonny, his trusty, but eccentric right hand man. Having seen and thoroughly enjoyed the musical on stage, I’m quite pleased with the costumes. Not only are the looks right on line with the source material, but both Baldwin and Brand wear them well, too. (via Adam Shankman’s Twitter Feed)
4. The Hangover Part III Script in the Works: Who said money isn’t everything? Despite dismal reviews, The Hangover Part II still made a killing at the box office and you know what that means; Warner Bros. is gearing up for round three. Apparently Craig Mazin who wrote Part II has been hired to tell the tale of Phil, Stu and Alan’s next night of debauchery. As someone who was far less than thrilled with the sequel, I’ve got absolutely no desire to see it happen all over again. I’m still convinced the basic premise has the potential to be enjoyable yet again, but after suffering through the painfully unfunny second film, my desire to see that happen is entirely extinguished. (via The Wrap)
5. Jim Carrey Considering Reprising Two Roles: While out promoting his latest film, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Jim Carrey spilled on the potential of bringing two old favorites back to the big screen, Bruce Nolan of Bruce Almighty and Lloyd of Dumb and Dumber. When asked about his future plans, Carrey said, “We’re talking about maybe returning to some old characters that everyone has been asking about.” He also added, “There’s Bruce Almighty and we’re talking about maybe another Dumb and Dumber.” Oddly enough, both films already have sequels, albeit weak ones. Even more curious, out of all the films on Carrey’s resume, the only role he’s ever played more than once is Ace Ventura; an anomaly for such a busy actor in a franchise-obsessed industry.
(via Coming Soon)
6. PT Anderson Adds Five to His Next Film: The project may lack a title, but director Paul Thomas Anderson is loading up his roster fast. Anderson already has Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix on board, but now he’s added Laura Dern, Jesse Plemons, David Warshofksy, Amy Adams and Rami Malek. The piece, which was once titled The Master, is about Lancaster Dodd (Hoffman), a World War II vet who returns to start his own church, championing his own belief system with Phoenix’s character ultimately becoming his second in command. Adams is set to portray Hoffman’s character’s wife, Friday Night Light’s Plemons his son, Malek his son-in-law and Warshofsky a detective. No word yet on who Dern will portray. (via Deadline)
7. The Dark Knight Rises Open Casting Call: Think you’d make for a good “victim” or “perpetrator” in “a city besieged by crime and corruption?” Well, The Dark Knight Rises casting team is looking for you! A casting call recently went out under the title “Magnus Rex” for the Pittsburgh-based scenes in The Dark Knight Rises. Don’t you want your chance to “take part in the urban action adventure ripping through the streets of Pittsburgh from July 28th through August 21st?” Now that’s some pretty persuasive marketing. If it worked its magic on you, check out the full details over at SWD Casting by clicking here.
8. Alison Brie and Lizzy Caplan in Save the Date: Is there any hope for wedding-themed romantic comedies? Well, if Kate Hudson and Katherine Heigl keep at it, no, but now we’ve got two far less tiresome actresses giving the subgenre a go for a project that’s brimming with potential. Community and Party Down fans will be thrilled to hear the Alison Brie and Lizzy Caplan are joining forces for director Mike Mohan when his film, Save the Date, goes into production this July in Los Angeles. The duo will play a pair of sisters, one addicted to planning her wedding and the other with no desire whatsoever to marry her boyfriend. (via Variety)
9. Trailers: The Vow, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum are at it again, melting moviegoers’ hearts in The Vow. The duo plays a loving couple that survives a car accident, but sadly leaves McAdams’ character without her memory. The trailer is a bit on the melodramatic side, but looks as though the film will have no trouble getting the waterworks flowing come Valentine’s Day 2012. Rise of the Planet of the Apes is back, this time with a full theatrical trailer. It boasts a significant amount of new footage, especially in the action department. I’m still not thrilled with the pacing as it’s not nearly as tense as it could be, but it’s still enough to get me pumped for August 5th. As for The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, this is a trailer made for fans of the book or original film. For the rest of us, it’s nothing more than a montage to a remix of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song.”
10. Box Office: X-Men: First Class is officially the lowest opening film of the franchise. My fingers were crossed for a start at least as big as X2: X-Men United, which kicked off its run with $85.6 million, but First Class only took $56 million, just $2 million more than the first X-Men film. Coming in at #2 with a massive loss, as expected, is The Hangover Part II. It waved goodbye to 62.2% of its week one earnings, giving it $32.4 million this time around. Kung Fu Panda 2, on the other hand, took a lesser a blow, losing 49% and adding another $24.3 million to its domestic pot. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides continues its 50%+ freefall, this time around losing 54.8%, giving it $18 million for week three. Rounding out the top five is Bridesmaids, which held on incredibly well, yet again, only losing 26.7% of its week three earnings, giving it $12.1 million for week four. (via Box Office Mojo)
By Perri Nemiroff
