Didn’t get your “Expendables” fix this weekend? Not only does this week’s Movie News Cheat Sheet have all the details on “The Expendables 2’s” box office performance, but the latest on “The Expendables 3” and new trailers for Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s next movies, too.
“The Expendables” not your thing? We’ve also got the details on Kristen Stewart’s status for the “Snow White and the Huntsman” sequel, the latest casting news for “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire,” information on Samuel L. Jackson’s “Old Boy” character and more. Check it all out in your weekly Movie News Cheat Sheet.
1. Bullet to the Butt During “The Bourne Legacy:” Apparently all the firepower in “The Bourne Legacy” made one moviegoer trigger happy – kind of. As reported by the Associated Press via Yahoo!, a 56-year-old man shot himself in the butt right in the middle of the movie at a Nevada theater. The man had a permit to carry a concealed firearm. When he tried to get comfortable in his seat, the gun fell from his pocket, hit the ground and fired. The man will be fine and no one else in the theater was hurt, but the incident is being passed along to the city attorney for possible charges. Clearly there’s some humor in what happened here, but far more concern and distress as the incident occurred just weeks after the “Dark Knight Rises” shooting in Aurora, Colorado.
2. The Avengers Return in 2015: After barreling into theaters with a whopping $207.4 million opening weekend intake, Disney has appropriately set “The Avengers 2” to arrive that very same weekend of 2015 – on May 1, 2015. Should “The Avengers 2” follow in the footsteps of “Iron Man” and “Iron Man 2,” both of which hit theaters the first weekend in May, “The Avengers 2” could be on its way to an even bigger opening than the first. But, of course, times change and “Iron Man 2” arrived back in 2010. Perhaps a better comparison could be made to “Iron Man 3’s” performance when it opens on May 3, 2013.
3. Is Kristen Stewart is Snow White No More?: As if having romantic “Twilight: Breaking Dawn – Part 2” stills rubbed in her face isn’t enough, now, according to THR, Kristen Stewart has been cut from the “Snow White and the Huntsman” sequel, shortly after news got out that Stewart had an affair with the film’s married director, Rupert Sanders. No word on whether or not Sanders will be invited back to direct, but Universal is making plans to switch gears and turn the sequel into a starring vehicle for Chris Hemsworth’s Huntsman. The article points out that even under the circumstances, this is a very unusual move for a studio to make and, in fact, it might not be Universal’s final decision at all. Via Cinema Blend, Universal Co-Chairman Donna Langley made a statement explaining, “We are extremely proud of ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ and we’re currently exploring all options to continue the franchise. Any reports that Kristen Stewart has been dropped are false.” This could actually mean a number of things. Perhaps the studio really isn’t cutting Stewart out of the equation, but this could also leave the door open from them to “explore all options” and give the franchise to Hemsworth or nix the idea of making a sequel all together. Does anyone really want “Snow White and the Huntsman 2” anyway?
4. “The Walking Dead” on the Big Screen: As reported by Bloody Disgusting, AMC might give “The Walking Dead” a go on the silver screen. Apparently the plan only consists of rumblings around the office in non-business conversations, but at least the idea is out there. “The Walking Dead” was originally pitched as a TV show, so perhaps it’ll be more adaptable and actually make it into production unlike the rumored “24,” and “Sopranos” features. However, even if it does get to that point, it likely won’t be for a while as Bloody Disgusting notes, “nothing is even close to official and don’t expect there to be any real talks for another few years.” If that means another few years of “The Walking Dead” on TV and then a feature, I can handle the wait.
5. “Catching Fire” Finds Seeder and Cashmere: “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” roster continues to fill up, adding two more Hunger Games victors to the growing list. Maria Howell of NBC’s upcoming show “Revolution” joins the cast as District 11 victor Seeder while Stephanie Leigh Schlund snags the role of Cashmere, a District 1 victor and the sister of Gloss (Alan Ritchson). Lionsgate had been delivering a steady stream of casting announcements, but since revealing that Schlund is on board on August 14th, the studio’s been silent. Perhaps the start of a new workweek will mean more new additions, and hopefully they’ll include some of the more coveted roles like Beetee of District 3 and maybe even District 4’s Finnick Odair. Keep an eye on my casting piece over at Movies.com for all the latest.
6. “Expendables 3” Already Loading Up: Even before “The Expendables 2” hit theaters, talk of “The Expendables 3” casting hit the web. According to Total Film, not only has producer Avi Lerner approached Clint Eastwood to join the group, but Harrison Ford, too. Lerner also noted, “[And we want] Wesley Snipes when he comes back from prison.” Lerner went on to announce that Nicolas Cage is on board to play one of the characters and, “… we’re going to bring Mickey Rourke back, if he won’t be too crazy. I like Mickey. And of course, all the existing stars [will return].” I wonder if “The Expendables 2’s” subpar opening will affect Lerner’s casting plan – or his plan for a third film altogether.
7. Samuel L. Jackson for “Old Boy:” Spike Lee’s already got Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen and Sharlto Copley on board for his “Old Boy” remake, but now he’s going even bigger, adding Samuel L. Jackson to the roster. As reported by the LA Times, Lee brought Jackson on for a “small but critical part.” A source close to the production tells that outlet that the character is shown being tortured by Brolin’s character in a revenge scene. Jackson won’t have to endure the infamous tooth extractions from the original, but should his big moment be on par with that, it’ll certainly be brutal.
8. Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” Director Wish List: Shortly after the big SDCC announcement that “Guardians of the Galaxy” is due in theaters on August 1, 2014, THR got word that Marvel not only has directors in mind, but also has a top choice. The studio wants “Slither” and “Super” director James Gunn to helm the film featuring a giant tree-man, a half-human/half-alien vigilante, Rocket Raccoon and more. According to the film’s recently released log line, it’ll focus on “a U.S. pilot who ends up in space in the middle of a universal conflict and goes on the run with futuristic ex-cons who have something everyone wants.” Apparently it’s “Gunn’s sensibility and his ability to mix comedy elements with action and horror” that set him apart from the pack, but no deal has been made so others are still up for the gig including Peyton Reed, and Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden.
9. Trailers: “Bullet to the Head,” “The Last Stand,” “Stolen:” How about a little more Sylvester Stallone after an “Expendables” packed weekend? Stallone stars in the upcoming release “Bullet to the Head” and, sure enough, the trailer is packed with some rough and tough behavior, brutal action and explosions. Stallone’s co-Expendable Arnold Schwarzenegger also got a trailer of his own this past week. Quite similarly, the trailer for “The Last Stand” features quite a bit of firepower, fireballs and Schwarzenegger taking down the bad guys. We round out this week’s trailer section with a potential Expendable, Nicolas Cage. The new trailer for “Stolen” features Cage as a father fighting to save his kidnapped daughter. Should the full feature be as generic and tacky as the voiceover that chimes in about halfway through, you might want to skip this and just wait for “The Expendables 3,” whenever that actually happens.
10. Box Office: “The Expendables 2” did manage to top the box office this weekend, but even with a bigger cast, it wasn’t able to top the original’s $34.8 million opening. Still, the sequel’s $28.8 million haul put it well ahead of the #2 movie, “The Bourne Legacy,” which took a hefty 55.4% hit and only brought in another $17 million. “ParaNorman” had a rather weak opening, earning just $14 million on a $4,085 per theater average. While “The Campaign” had a slightly higher per theater average, $4,112, the fact that it’s in about 170 theaters less than “ParaNorman” meant that it was only able to accumulate $13.4 million for its second weekend out for the 4th spot at the box office. Newcomer “Sparkle” didn’t open big, but also didn’t do all that bad. It managed to post $5,348 per theater for an opening weekend total of $12 million, just enough to edge out “The Dark Knight Rises” and its $11.1 million total (via Box Office Mojo)
The Movie News Cheat Sheet will not return until Sunday, September 2nd. I’m off to make a movie of my own!
