Surprise, surprise – we have a Move News Cheat Sheet loaded with the latest on franchises and superheroes. Oh, and an Internet sensation, too.
Lil Bub made waves at the Tribeca Film Festival with her very own documentary, but Grumpy Cat is getting the big screen treatment in the form of a feature length narrative. Meanwhile, Sylvester Stallone is looking to recruit Jackie Chan, Wesley Snipes, Nicholas Cage, and Milla Jovovich for “The Expendables 3” while Marvel is getting close to locking Glenn Close for “Guardians of the Galaxy.”
Ready for those stories, a “Man from U.N.C.L.E.” update, some of the hottest new trailers, and more? It’s all coming at you in your weekly Movie News Cheat Sheet.
1. Cage, Snipes, & Jovovich for “The Expendables 3:” “The Expendables” franchise is aiming to raise the bar yet again – in terms of casting, of course. The sequel got a Chuck Norris, Liam Hemsworth, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Arnold Schwarzenegger upgrade, and now round three is looking to up the allure via Jackie Chan, Wesley Snipes, Nicholas Cage, and Milla Jovovich. As reported by Deadline, all four are currently in “advanced negotiations” for the latest installment to be helmed by “Red Hill” director Patrick Hughes. No word on whether or not any of the original cast members are locked to return or on who the potential newcomers might play, but there is speculation Jovovich’s character could be the “young Sigourney Weaver” Sylvester Stallone once mentioned.
2. James Bobin May Take “Alice in Wonderland 2:” The “Alice in Wonderland” sequel, currently operating under the working title “Into the Looking Glass,” is in the process of moving forward. As reported by Variety, Disney has James Bobin in early talks to direct the feature. Bobin’s the man behind “The Muppets” and is currently shooting “The Muppets … Again!,” so it should be interesting to see how his style and technique adapts when practical puppets are long gone and he’s working on a set that’ll require a significant amount of post-production work.
3. Grumpy Cat – The Movie: Grumpy Cat is going to be a star! Well, a bigger star than she already is. According to Deadline, the ultimate sour puss, Tardar Sauce, will lead her very own feature comedy. Broken Road Productions is spearheading the project, which is said to be similar to the 2004 film “Garfield,” but starring a talking Grumpy Cat. Producer Todd Garner noted, “You read all of the memes and the comments, and one is funnier than the next. We think we can build a big family comedy around this character.”
4. Glenn Close Joins “Guardians of the Galaxy:” “Guardians of the Galaxy” has picked up two more cast members and this time we don’t have to weed through a supposed short list of rising stars and string of rumors to find out who they are. According to Deadline, Marvel is about to lock Glenn Close in to take a leadership role in the intergalactic space patrol known as Nova Corps, a part being likened to Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury in “The Avengers.” And for all you “Doctor Who” fans, the project also just recruited actress Karen Gillian to portray the lead female villain. THR doesn’t have further details on the part just yet, but she’ll be joining Lee Pace and Michael Rooker as the film’s brigade of baddies.
5. “Thor: The Dark World” Loses Composer: There’s trouble brewing over in the dark world. As reported by Deadline, the “Thor: The Dark World” composer, Carter Burwell, just backed out of the project due to creative differences. A studio insider told the outlet, “They like him but it wasn’t the right project.” It sounds harmless, but it’s also tough to imagine such a seasoned composer like Burwell putting together anything subpar, which automatically leaves you thinking exactly what one reader posted in the article’s comment section, “in other words, the music WAS going to be good. now it isn’t.”
6. Henry Cavill May Replace Tom Cruise in “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.:” Just because Tom Cruise is out of the picture doesn’t mean “Man From U.N.C.L.E.” won’t get a boost from some serious star power. According to Variety, Henry Cavill is already in talks to take over Cruise’s role and star alongside Armie Hammer in the big screen adaption of the 1960s TV series about a pair of agents in the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement battling the evil organization Thrush. It’s really no surprise that the studio snatched up someone like Cavill for the part. Not only is he a natural silver screen hero, but he’s also got studio approval courtesy of “Man of Steel” and was even being considered for the role Hammer snagged. After all this time and all the hiring and re-hiring, “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” could finally roll into its fall shoot in exceptionally good shape.
7. Meet Hound and Optimus Prime & Bumblebee 2.0: Even though Michael Bay is currently busy shooting “Transformers 4,” he’s still got time to indulge fans and show off his new and improved Autobots. The first photo that popped up was of a “completely upgraded, custom-built” Optimus Prime designed by the truck manufacturer Western Star after which Bay unveiled Bumblebee’s new look, “a highly modified, vintage 1967 Camaro SS.” Finally we’ve got the franchise newcomer, Hound. Bay calls this guy “the always rugged and reliable Hound, one of the Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles from Oshkosh Defense.” Check them all out for yourself over at Bay’s personal website and keep an eye out for more as production progresses and the film inches closer to its summer 2014 release.
8. Johnny Depp Says Bye Bye to “Black Mass:” There’s a big difference between a $20 million paycheck and a $10 million one, but does such a high paid actor like Johnny Depp really need $20 million every time he does a film? Hopefully there was some sort of creative-related decision making happening here too, but according to THR, after Barry Levinson’s “Black Mass” didn’t do so well on the market at Cannes, the Whitey Bulger biopic had no choice, but to lessen the budget to the high $60 million range. Apparently the cost cutting meant the film could no longer part with $20 million to fulfill Depp’s usual cost and when Depp was asked to only take half of that, he walked. Cross Creek and Exclusive are hoping to hold things together by finding a suitable replacement, but there’s a good chance some arrangements could suffer from the change.
9. Trailers: “Closed Circuit,” “Prisoners,” “Machete Kills:” It looks as though we may have a riveting thriller to close out the summer 2013. The first trailer for the John Crowley-directed “Closed Circuit” has dropped and while it does contain one too many details to offer a clear-cut sense of the narrative, it also gets an added boost from the very real threat of terrorism, making the material particularly engaging. Similarly, the new trailer for “Prisoners” makes you wonder how far you’d go to bring home a missing family member. It’s tough to call this an Oscar contender just yet, but with a lineup including Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Maria Bello, Terrance Howard, Viola Davis, Melissa Leo, and Paul Dano all in the midst of an overwhelmingly dramatic and suspenseful situation, it seems as though that could be where it’s heading. We switch gears entirely and wrap up this section on a lighter note courtesy of the very first trailer for “Machete Kills.” It’s a mere minute long and doesn’t do much but show off its star studded cast and Sofia Vergara rocking boobs with firepower, but for those who dug the first film, this should be a sufficient start.
10. Box Office: M. Night Shyamalan may have gotten away with “The Last Airbender” thanks to decent returns, but that doesn’t look to be the case with his latest, “After Earth.” The Will and Jaden Smith-starrer suffered a disappointing start, only taking $27 million on a $7,939 per theater average. Not only was that not enough for the top spot, but it wasn’t even worthy of the second position either. “Fast & Furious 6” took a killer weekend two hit, but after having such a massive opening, its 64.5% dip still left it with $34.5 million and the #1 spot. “Now You See Me” may not have opened on top, but it did kick off its run stronger than expected. It came in at #2 with $28 million and a solid $9,590 per theater average. After two hefty hits, both “Star Trek Into Darkness” and “Epic” are posting $16.4 million for their second weekends out, so we’ll have to wait for the actuals to come in before officially bestowing the 4th rank on one or the other. (via Box Office Mojo)
