Movie & TV News, Posters & Stuff

[GamerMan316]

Don't think anyone saw this coming!

Tom Cruise to star in Van Helsing reboot
Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are writing it



Van Helsing was a big disappointment for Universal. Bringing together the likes of Dracula, the Wolfman and Frankenstein's Monster, it should have been The Avengers of monster movies, but suffered an absolute mauling at the hands of the critics. Any ideas of a potential franchise were swiftly dead in the water.

However, Universal have now attached electrodes to Van Helsing's ruined corpse and are ready to flip the switch, with Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci currently developing the script for an upcoming reboot.

Now, whilst that might not necessarily sound like a recipe for success, consider this: Tom Cruise is reportedly on board to produce the film, and apparently, he's agreed to star in it as well.

Whether or not you're a fan of Cruise's screen presence, this does at least suggest that Universal are planning to do things properly this time around. Cruise generally runs a tight ship when he's on production duties, so hopefully there will be none of the half-assedness that plagued the original.

The team-up with Kurtzman and Roberto represents part of the first-look deal agreed between Universal and the screenwriters, with the pair also set to breathe new life into The Mummy. Prepare to hide behind your sofas… monsters are on the rise once more.

[nCogNeato]

I really did want to like the Van Helsing.  On paper it sounds fantastic.  But the most amazing elements can't make up for a sh*t script.

[zerosum]

Tom Cruise needs to retire though. I don't know that I can watch any of his films without connecting it to the cartoon character he is off screen.

[Failed]

Thanos

[GamerMan316]

[GamerMan316]

Kurt Russell drops out of Django Unchained
As does Sacha Baron Cohen



Django Unchained has suffered a double blow in the casting stakes, with both Kurt Russell and Sacha Baron Cohen dropping out of Quentin Tarantino's latest.

Russell is the second actor to leave the role of Ace Woody, having initially replaced Kevin Costner for the part. Costner had cited scheduling issues, but as yet, no reason has been given by Russell's camp for his departure.

Woody is one of the film's many villains, a ruthless trainer who pits various slaves against each other for the entertainment of the public. Could it be that the character is too controversial for A-list tastes, or is it purely coincidence that both Costner and Russell have dropped out?

Sacha Baron Cohen's departure seems a little more straightforward, with scheduling conflicts precluding his involvement. He was only earmarked for a cameo in any case, so his absence shouldn't rock the boat too much.

Meanwhile, QT still has plenty of acting talent at his disposal, with Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington and Samuel L. Jackson all set to star. Django Unchained opens in the UK on 18 January 2013.

[GamerMan316]

[GamerMan316]

This looks nuts!

[GamerMan316]

New synopsis and filming details for The World's End
Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost reunite



The World's End looks set to bring the Blood & Ice Cream trilogy to a close sooner rather than later, with the news that filming will begin on the project this September.

Back in January, Pegg and Wright revealed they were hard at work on the script, and according to Deadline, cameras will begin rolling this autumn with a view to a release date in early 2013.

The film will follow Shaun Of The Dead and Hot Fuzz in the loose trilogy, with Pegg referring his next project via Twitter, as a job involving "plasma and gelato". As for what we can expect from the script, the new log line is very helpful indeed.

"20 years after attempting an epic pub crawl," begins the blurb, "five childhood friends reunite when one of them becomes hell bent on trying the drinking marathon again. They are convinced to stage an encore by mate Gary King, a 40-year old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens, who drags his reluctant pals to their home town and once again attempts to reach the fabled pub, The World’s End."

"As they attempt to reconcile the past and present, they realize the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind’s. Reaching The World’s End is the least of their worries."

How's that for a slice of fried gold, eh? Colour us sick with excitement…. the boys are back in town!

[nCogNeato]

We can all use a little more Gos in our lives.   

[nCogNeato]

This looks nuts!

American Psycho for the Twilight generation.  I like it.

[nCogNeato]

f*ck YES!

[GamerMan316]

Weekend Box Office â€" The Avengers Break Second Weekend Record with $103.1 Million; Dark Shadows in Second with $28.8 Million

It’s another one for the record books. Along with the prize for highest first weekend in domestic history, The Avengers has now earned the highest second weekend with an estimated $103.1 million from 4,349 locations. That crushes Avatar’s former sophomore record of $75.6 million and represents a decline of just 50% â€" a better hold than The Dark Knight managed in its second frame. Even more exciting for Disney and Marvel, the worldwide estimate for The Avengers has now topped One Billion. Unfortunately, good news for The Avengers means not-so-good news for Dark Shadows. The latest collaboration of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp earned an estimated $28.8 million from 3,755 locations, or a bit less than The Avengers made on Friday alone.

For the second weekend in a row, The Avengers has made breaking a box office record look easy. As if it wasn’t impressive enough that the film topped $200 million in its first outing, it has now made the dream of a $100 million second-weekend a reality.

Considering that it has been ten years since Spider-Man became the first movie to break $100 million, and that few people saw last weekend’s $200 million landmark coming, this historic second weekend wasn’t on anyone’s radar until a few days ago. That’s partially because $100 million seemed an unattainable goal for a holdover and partially because most people assumed that The Avengers would lose more than 50% in its sophomore frame. In 2008, The Dark Knight fell by almost 53% its second time out, and most people had The Avengers’ odds at about the same. But, once again, the superheroes beat our expectations; and, while the film’s hold is not as impressive as Spider-Man’s 63% in 2002, it was certainly stronger than The Hunger Games, TDK, and many other recent ‘blockbusters’ could manage on their second weekends.

So, now that The Avengers has captured another record, let’s update where the blockbuster stands. With Sunday’s estimate, the film has now earned a gigantic $373.1 million in the US over 10 days. That already tops the final gross for both Iron Man features ($318.4/$312.4) and equals the domestic total of Spider-Man 2 ($373.5). Worldwide, Disney estimates that the film has earned $1.002 Billion, putting it in eleventh place on the list of All-Time earners, right behind Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland with $1.024.

Speaking of Tim Burton, did you know that this was the week that Dark Shadows was coming out? Don’t worry, a lot of other people seemed to have forgotten as well. The latest pairing of Burton and his muse, Johnny Depp, was a bit of a financial let-down, despite being the only wide release of the weekend. Instead of the $35 million that was projected, the director’s take on TV’s classic vampire soap opera commanded just $28.8 million. With The Avengers looming large, no one expected outsized numbers from Dark Shadows â€" especially after the critics weighed in. But most of us did expect the film to get to $30 million, based on Depp’s appeal and the size of WB’s marketing effort. The reported budget on Dark Shadows is $150 million, so the studio is going to have to depend on Depp’s international appeal to make this one a financial winner.

The all-consuming interest in The Avengers (combined with the lack of interest in Dark Shadows) allowed two limited releases to sneak in to the top ten this weekend. First, in 178 locations, is Fox Searchlight’s Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, which earned an impressive per-screen average of just under $15,000. Then, at number ten with an estimated $1.35 million from 322 locations, is Lionsgate’s Girl in Progress. Considering that I haven’t seen one bit of advertising for this dramedy, I’d say that’s pretty impressive as well.

After last weekend’s box office record-breaker I wondered how front-loaded The Avengers would be. So far? Not very. Assuming that the film can maintain this level of interest next weekend, what would a total of $50 million mean for the debut of Peter Berg’s Battleship? We all know that word of mouth on the Hasbro movie has been, er, mixed. And, unlike Dark Shadows, Battleship was designed to appeal to precisely the same audience as our reigning superhero champs.  Think there’s room for two at the top?


Watched Avengers at the weekend, it was awesome.   

[donnieoneshot]

Watched Avengers at the weekend, it was awesome.   

+1

that "Puny God" scene was excellent!!!!

[Smithk4]

Would watch it again in a heartbeat!!