As we’re already fairly deep into the summer movie season, this Movie News Cheat Sheet highlights a number of upcoming projects likely to earn the big bucks in summers to come – well, if they ever even come out.
Apparently the Dirty Dancing reboot has been cut from its July 2013 release and likely won’t arrive until 2014 at the earliest. However, Thor 2’s debut was recently bumped up from November 15, 2013 to November 8 and with filming due to begin this summer, loose ends are being tightened up and sadly for Josh Dallas, that means likely handing over the role of Fandral to Zachary Levi.
After a big opening, Universal looks to put its Snow White and the Huntsman sequel on the fast track while Warner Bros aims to benefit from the popularity of Stephen King’s It twice over, turning the book into a pair of features. There are also rumblings of another Jackass movie at Paramount.
Ready for the details? Here comes your weekly Movie News Cheat Sheet.
1. Zachary Levi for Josh Dallas: Looks like we’re getting a Warriors Three swap for Thor 2. Due to Once Upon a Time conflicts, the original Fandral, Josh Dallas, must bow out and pass the role to someone else. Funny thing is, the guy currently in talks, Zachary Levi, happens to be the first choice for the role when Thor was casting. According to THR, Levi’s talks are in an early stage, but an offer is likely. Thor 2 director, Alan Taylor, will get behind the lens to direct Thor veterans Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Idris Elba and Anthony Hopkins, and possibly Mads Mikkelsen who’s in negations for the villain role. The production is heading towards a July start.
2. Dirty Dancing Reboot Delayed: Perhaps nobody puts Baby in a corner, but Lionsgate has no trouble tucking the Dirty Dancing reboot away for quite a bit. As reported by Deadline, the delay is the result of casting issues and even though it was originally scheduled for a July 2013 release, it likely won’t hit theaters until 2014 at the earliest. Apparently Lea Michele, Liana Liberato and Nikki Yanofsky screen tested for the role made famous by Jennifer Grey back in 1987 and Luke Grime, Justin Gaston and Derek Hough auditioned to fill Patrick Swayze’s shoes, however, clearly nothing came of any of that.
3. Snow White and the Huntsman 2: I get moneymaking plays a big part in deciding whether or not to make a sequel, but just because Snow White and the Huntsman enjoyed an impressive $56.2 million opening doesn’t mean moviegoers will look past the fact that the film wasn’t all that good and return for more. Regardless, according to Deadline, Universal looks to be putting Snow White and the Huntsman 2 on the fast track. We’ve known the studio hired David Koepp to pen the sequel script since April, but now Universal is talking to director Rupert Sanders, too. The thing is, Sanders originally came to Universal as part of a package via a CAA auction, so now that his first feature hit it big, the guy is in demand and has the option to go elsewhere. As for the actors, Deadline says they all have options for two sequels, so they’ll be back should Universal go through with the project.
4. Say Hello to President Jamie Foxx: Right now I’m in the Jamie Foxx-as-Django mind frame, but perhaps Foxx could swing playing president. As reported by Deadline, Roland Emmerich snatched up Fox to play the United States President in White House Down. Emmerich already has Channing Tatum on board to play the Secret Service agent who must save the president when a paramilitary group attacks and holds everyone hostage inside the White House and recently recruited Maggie Gyllenhaal to play the female lead, a Secret Service agent on the president’s detail. Apparently Millennium Entertainment has something rather similar brewing called White House Taken starring Gerard Butler, but considering White House Down is heading towards a summer start, it’ll likely beat the competition to theaters.
5. Double Dose of Guillermo del Toro: We got our first looks at two Guillermo del Toro films this week, Pacific Rim and Pinocchio. Pacific Rim is due out on July 12, 2013 and takes place in the future when the human race on Earth is forced to defend itself from invading creatures. The latest edition of Total Film featured an interview with del Toro and included an image of Idris Elba in costume. The magazine also showed off concept art from the 3D stop-motion animated Pinocchio, a retelling of the beloved tale written by del Toro and Mark Gustafson. Del Toro plans to begin shooting that one in the summer of 2013. Head on over to Movie Hole to check out all of the images for yourself.
6. It x 2: Not only is Warner Bros bringing us a feature adaptation of Stephen King’s It, but the studio is splitting the book into two movies, both to be directed by Cary Fukunaga. Fukunaga is also set to co-write the scripts with Chase Palmer who adapted Dune for Paramount. It focuses on the Losers Club, a group of kids who run into a creature called It, often in the form of the evil clown Pennywise. When It comes back to town, the Losers Club, now adults, must come back together to take him down once and for all. Roy Lee and Dan Lin are on board to produce in addition to Seth Grahame-Smith and David Katzenberg for Katzsmith Production. (via THR)
7. Jackass May Go for 4: According to What Culture, Paramount might be working on Jackass 4: Bad Grandpa. Apparently the studio snatched up a dozen domain names including badgrandpa-movie.com and jackassbadgrandpa.com, suggesting they might be preparing to continue the franchise with that title. While the studio has yet to make an official announcement, it shouldn’t come as a surprise should they opt to move forward with round four after Jackass 3D earned a stellar $177.2 domestically on a $20 million budget. Click here to get a taste of what a Jackass movie Bad Grandpa-style might entail.
8. New Images from Liz & Dick: Lindsay Lohan may have given the folks at Lifetime a heart attack when she crashed her Porsche on the way to set, but at least they’ve still got some promotional material to show off for their latest TV movie. Via ComingSoon.net, Lifetime recently released the first official still from Liz & Dick as well as two additional images, one of Lohan as Elizabeth Taylor and the other of Grant Bowler as Richard Burton. As for that accident, Lohan’s Porsche was absolutely demolished but the starlet was unharmed, so the show can go on!
9. Trailers: Flight, Django Unchained, Wreck-It Ralph: While a film about a pilot who miraculously manages to land a malfunctioning plane only for investigators to find out he had consumed alcohol before the flight sounds quite intense, the first trailer for Robert Zemeckis’ Flight suggests the film’s got a far lighter and even somewhat playful tone. Django Unchained finds itself in a similar situation, the new teaser rocking a number of bounty hunter kills and showing off a main character desperate to save his wife, but with Quentin Tarantino at the helm, bloodshed and drama with pizazz is the norm. Last up is the new trailer for Disney’s latest animated film Wreck-It-Ralph. While the visuals are as advanced as any, this piece will undoubtedly bring back memories as it pays homage to some of the most memorable characters of arcade gaming.
10. Box Office: In a major upset, Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted steals the top spot from Prometheus. Europe’s Most Wanted didn’t manage to top Madagascar 2: Escape 2 Africa’s $63.1 million start, but it did collect $60.4 million, which was more than enough to top Prometheus’ $50 million haul. However, Madagascar 3 did play in nearly 1,000 more theaters and Prometheus was actually the film with the higher per theater average. The third position went to Snow White and the Huntsman, which, as expected, took a hefty weekend one to two hit. It lost 59.1% of its opening profits, leaving it with just $23 million for its second weekend out. Men in Black 3 took a big hit as well, dropping 51.9% from weekend two to three for another $13.5 million. The Avengers dropped 47.2% for $10.8 million this time around, but staying in the top five your sixth week out is quite the feat. To date, The Avengers has accumulated $571.9 million domestically. (via Box Office Mojo)
