Archive for the ‘Scripts’ Category
Filed under: Comedy, Casting, Deals, Scripts
The pot-heavy world of the stoner comedy seems to be making a slow comeback. We’ve seen Anna Faris go on a stoned money quest. We’ve seen Seth Rogen and James Franco get mixed up in business between drug lords and cops. And now Jason Segel is getting in on the bud.
The Hollywood Reporter posts that Segel is going to star in a new stoner comedy called Jeff Who Lives at Home with The Hangover’s Ed Helms. The latest laugh fest from the mumblecoring Duplass Brothers (Jay and Mark of the new Cyrus), the film will focus on “a day in the life of two brothers.” Segel is the slacker loser bro, while Helms is the overbearing success. Judy Greer is circling the role of Helms’ wife (please take it, Judy!), and the Brothers are currently looking for the matriarch who allows slacker boy to live at home.
Could the casting be any more perfect? Segel’s got the slacker comedy angle down pat, along with the requisite stoner snacker look. Greer is wonderful when not wasting her talents on fare like Marmaduke, so let’s hope she signs on. Helms, well, when he finally got his starring gig (Hangover), the flick did pretty darn well.
Now it’s all a matter of who birthed both Segel and Helms. I say Susan Sullivan or Jessica Walter. How about you?
Filed under: Drama, Independent, Casting, Deals, Scripts
What happens when a hero goes bad and heads up a criminal empire? We’re about to find out. Variety reports that there’s a new indie gangster film in the works called Criminal Empire for Dummys, which might be yet another irritatingly misspelled title, but also boasts a bad-ass cast. Milo Ventimiglia, Gary Oldman, and Malin Akerman will star, with Michael Clarke Duncan and Harvey Keitel also on the roster. Cliff Dorfman (Entourage) wrote the script, and will make it his feature directorial debut.
The film will focus on a “charismatic young man” played by Ventimiglia, “who relates the do’s and don’ts of running a criminal empire through a flashback to his own rise from a tragic childhood and life in the ghetto to eventual position as a multinational drug and criminal kingpin.” Last year, however, things were playing out a little differently.
During TIFF, Arclight Films was pushing the feature as a vehicle for Chris Evans, Keitel, and Rachel Bilson. Somewhere along the way, the Human Torch exited, a hero without a spunky name entered, Akerman slipped into Bilson’s spot, and this is the big surprise: Keitel got downgraded from co-star to supporting gig. The same Arclight blurb also gave a whole different tone to the project as well. “Lesson One — If you’re gonna be a gangster, you’re gonna get caught. Not a matter of if. Just a matter of when. Thus starts our journey as we follow the rise of the infamous Ray Ford. From his severely fractured home, to the U.S. Marine Corps, to the housing projects of the deep south, to running the largest criminal empire known worldwide.”
Production will kick off later this month in New Orleans. Ventimiglia… Evans… Which hero do you prefer as criminal kingpin?
Filed under: Classics, Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Deals, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, War
Just two days ago, I brought you the rundown of what filmmakers were dusting off their Tennyson, Le Morte d’Arthur, T.H. White and John Boorman and heading back to that spot that was once known as Camelot. One of them is now officially official, as Variety reports that Guy Ritchie is attached to direct a new King Arthur film for Warner Bros. But instead of the Warren Ellis script that was being bandied around, Variety says it’ll be scripted by Ritchie and John Hodge.
Beyond that, there’s as little to go on as there was in the scraps of my previous Arthurian article. Variety notes that it will be a “re-imagining” of the Arthur myth, but that it’s drawing on Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’ Arthur. This 15th century collection of tales has been the basis of just about every Arthur story to date, including John Boorman’s Excalibur. You can get a little rundown of all the tales on good old Wikipedia, although I recommend buying a copy sometime if you really dig going to the source. They’ve survived from the 15th century for a reason.
So, the big question will be how this version will re-imagine Malory, and how it’s going to contrast with Bryan Singer’s Excalibur remake that’s also at Warner Bros. I like Ritchie for the job, though. He loves England, and I thought Sherlock Holmes really showed a knowledge of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and a love of London extended beyond Ritchie gangsters and into a fantasy Victoriana. If he could bring that to the Middle Ages, keep the magic and bromance, and make it look like the sweeping, Pre-Raphaelite vision that many of us cherish, it would be the perfect King Arthur movie.
What do you think?
Filed under: Documentary, Scripts, Steven Spielberg, Michael Moore, Columns, Cinematical Indie
I implore any prospective or fledgling screenwriters out there to see the new documentary Tales from the Script. And afterward, if you still feel like attempting to break into that highly competitive and rarely rewarding side of the movie business, then it’s possible this is indeed the right dream and career for you. As Taxi Driver and Raging Bull scribe Paul Schrader says in the film, “if you can be happy doing anything else, do that.”
Tales from the Script is basically just a supplement to the recently published book of the same name by Peter Hanson and Paul Robert Herman (or vice versa, the book can be seen as the companion piece to the film). Hanson also directed the documentary, which features interviews with a number of celebrated screenwriters, including Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption), Shane Black (Lethal Weapon) and William Goldman (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid), as well as lesser-knowns like low-budget action scribe Michael January (CIA II: Target Alexa), Golden Age Oscar-winner Melville Shavelson (Houseboat) and My Favorite Year screenwriter Dennis Palumbo, who ultimately quit the field and became a psychotherapist.
Palumbo may be the only one who quit, but at times the other talking heads in the film seem to be on the verge of doing the same. Honestly, the whole point of the film appears to be a response to a statement from John Carpenter, who was one of Hanson’s first interviews. He says that “if you knew what was gonna come, you wouldn’t do it.” Well, kids, here’s what terrible things came with the careers of your favorite screenwriters: starvation on the way to success, starvation after success, lack of respect, lack of control, lack of credit, unwanted credit and disheartening interactions with anyone from Uwe Boll to Steven Spielberg.
Filed under: Drama, Deals, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand
The indefatigable Clint Eastwood is already in post-production on his supernatural film, Hereafter, so naturally he’s lining up ten more projects to finish by December 2010. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Eastwood will tackle the lawman who looms above all others: J. Edgar Hoover.
Eastwood, Brian Grazer, and and Ron Howard’s Imagine Entertainment are teaming up for a Hoover biopic, which isn’t yet set up at a studio, but will probably find home at Warner Bros. The script has been penned by Dustin Lance Black, who won the screenwriting Oscar last year for Milk. I can’t say that Milk really broke new ground as far as the biopic style, but it was solid enough, and it allowed for some great performances from Sean Penn and Josh Brolin. We can hope for a similar case with J. Edgar Hoover.
As just about everyone knows, Hoover was instrumental in forming the FBI in 1935, and was its formidable director until his death in 1972. The FBI has certainly done its share of good and honest crime-fighting, but Hoover also liked using illegal methods, and often used the FBI as own personal task force. He harassed activists, dissenters, politicians, and even little old ladies at the beauty shop with his black-suited boys. (I heard a story once about idle salon gossip about Hoover’s sexuality resulting in a crackdown. True? Probably.) He could also be incredibly capricious, and would punish agents for being too successful (Melvin Purvis of recent Public Enemies fame came under his hatred) or wearing the wrong ties or socks. He may also have been a deeply closeted homosexual and cross-dresser, and was rarely seen apart from Clyde Tolson, who took over the FBI after Hoover’s death. He was complex to say the least.
Continue reading Clint Eastwood Tackles The Ultimate Lawman: J. Edgar Hoover
Filed under: Action, Warner Brothers, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels
Time probably stopped for Superman and DC fans when news broke that Christopher Nolan was going to oversee Warner Bros’ Superman reboot, and that David S. Goyer would be penning a new Man of Steel story. (Possibly even titled Man of Steel.) As Nolan is one of those quiet chaps, there’s been little word on what he and Goyer plan to do, but he’s broken his silence and given an interview with Hero Complex.
Nolan remains tight-lipped on Goyer’s idea, but revealed that it came about as they hit an impasse on Batman 3. “He basically told me, ‘I have this thought about how you would approach Superman.’ I immediately got it, loved it and thought: That is a way of approaching the story I’ve never seen before that makes it incredibly exciting. I wanted to get Emma [Thomas] and I involved in shepherding the project right away and getting it to the studio and getting it going in an exciting way.” He wasn’t willing to discuss villains (though he said Mr. Freeze won’t be in it) or what time period it’ll be set in, though he denied all the Man of Steel rumors currently circulating. There’s a Superman reboot, and Goyer is writing the script. That’s all he’ll say, the tease.
Ok, not quite. Nolan quickly quashed any idea that a new Superman movie will lead to a Justice League spinoff. Superman will exist in his own world of Metropolis, and have no conception of a world where other superheroes exists. “A lot of people have approached Superman in a lot of different ways. I only know the way that has worked for us that’s what I know how to do …. Each [hero] serves to the internal logic of the story. They have nothing to do with each other.”
Continue reading Christopher Nolan Talks ‘Superman’ and ‘Batman 3′
Filed under: Classics, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, New Line, Universal, Warner Brothers, RumorMonger, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
With re-imaginings and reboots being the keyword for every movie being churned around Hollywood’s grist mill, it’s no surprise that they’re turning to L. Frank Baum and The Wizard of Oz for some fresh content to churn around. According to The LA Times, Warner Bros and New Line (blood brothers) are both looking at remakes of The Wizard of Oz in the hopes of grabbing some of that sweet cash that Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland is raking in.
Warner Bros’ Oz is very much taking the Alice route. Written by Josh Olson, and produced by Basil Iwanyk, it centers on a granddaughter of Dorothy returning to Oz to vanquish evil. Todd McFarlane is involved somehow, either as producer or consultant which suggests they’re really inspired by his Twisted Land of Oz series. (That link is a bit NSFW.) Who wants to see S&M Dorothy and a monster, flesh-hooked Toto? Hollywood might! Wheee!
New Line’s project is a lot more mysterious. It has a script by Darren Lemke, but no title and it doesn’t come up on his IMDB credits at the moment. It’s also being produced by Temple Hill who has made a killing with Twilight. Could it be something focusing on the later books of Baum’s Oz series? Could they be attempting a more faithful adaptation of Baum’s book? There’s a difference between doing that and a straight-up remake of MGM’s iconic film. For now, at least, no one is looking at doing that.
In the meantime, those who favor Broadway’s re-imaginings over Hollywood’s still have Wicked to look forward to. It’s still in the works at Universal with producer Marc Platt, and all this fervent interest in all things Oz might just give it the fuel injection it needs to make it to the big screen.
Filed under: Independent, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Warner Brothers, RumorMonger, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Dreamworks, Remakes and Sequels
As you know, Hollywood loves trends. Be it meteor movies, ant movies, Ninth Legion movies, Easter Bunny movies, volcano movies, Greek mythology movies, they know there’s no project that’s not awesome enough to do in twos, threes or fours. Now we may get competing King Arthur movies because everyone in L.A. woke up and read Morte’d Arthur.
According to The LA Times, Sylvain White is currently negotiating to direct Pendragon for New Regency. Penned by Lee Shipman and Brian McGreevy, the script is being described as “an origin story” that explains how Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot all meet in Camelot. I’m not sure how that’s different from every other Arthur story ever written, filmed, or sung by troubadours but ok.
Naturally, that’s not the only possible Arthur movie kicking around. Pajiba reported last week that Guy Ritchie is contemplating directing Warren Ellis’ Excalibur for Warner Bros, which is not the Captain Britain series he penned, but an untitled Arthurian project he announced on his blog last July. Ellis told Ain’t It Cool News that it was “differs from the prior 751 King Arthur movies in many ways, but perhaps most obviously in that it is very specifically about the gathering of the Knights.” Since most versions of the story (be they on paper or screen) do concentrate on what brings the knights to the Round Table, I’m not sure what’s unique about Ellis’, though he’s certainly not a writer to sneer at.
Continue reading Who Will Draw King Arthur’s Sword From the Stone? Take Your Pick
Filed under: Action, Deals, Noir, Mystery & Suspense, Sony, Celebrities and Controversy, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Politics, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels
Once Sam Raimi was unceremoniously booted from Spider-Man 4 along with the cast and crew, speculation was rampant as to what he would direct next. World of Warcraft? What about The Shadow? He’s wanted to do that for a long, long time and as of last January, it was chugging along quite nicely. Whatever he picked, we were rooting for him. But now The Shadow has vanished into the darkness, as Variety reports that Sony has let the rights lapse. It’s hard not to read into this and see it as evidence of bad blood between Sony and Raimi. I don’t want to jump to gossipy conclusions, but if things were good, wouldn’t you at least agree to be friends and make The Shadow together?
Raimi’s reps at CAA are now shopping The Shadow rights around town, and Raimi is still attached as a producer. So at least he gets to keep his pet pulp, even if it’s standing on shaky ground. Not only does it delay a possible film, but it could all land in some uncompromising hands. One of the interested parties is 20th Century Fox. Latino Review says they’ve already purchased The Shadow and may have set David Slade to direct, while Variety is merely reporting Fox as “interested.”
Slade and Raimi go way back (30 Days of Night) so it makes sense that Raimi would offer the chair to an old friend. But I was hoping he’d step into the director’s chair for a little noir before heading into Warcraft. At least we know that’s likely to be his next director’s outing by sheer default. Start casting your Night Elves now!
Filed under: Thrillers, Deals, Scripts, Comic/Superhero/Geek
You know who Deepak Chopra is, right? He’s the author who’s into mind-body medicine, who publishes tons of self-help books, and who used to be a leader of the Transcendental Meditation movement. He also wrote a graphic novel a few years ago called Beyond, and now Variety reports that he will adapt the piece into a screenplay for Suri Krishnamma (Being Othello) to direct.
It’s not just a graphic treatment of his teachings, but rather a supernatural thriller about a man whose wife disappears while on holiday in India. “His search for her is guided only by the sound of her cries for help from the ether.” Chopra says: “Beyond is a story about reality being multi-dimensional and how we can take journeys to realms we never dreamed of by separating the veils that partition our minds.”
Whether you’re into it, or you think it’s a farce, this is the sort of stuff that gets explored in fantasy films and SciFi. The question is: Can a man who really believes that make a thriller that relays his teachings and appeals to the graphic novel fiends and fantasy fans out there? Have you read Beyond? How do you think it’ll play as a feature film?
