Ethan Hawke Joins Colin Farrell in Total Recall Remake

According to Heat Vision, Ethan Hawke will appear in the forthcoming remake ofTotal Recall, starring Colin Farrell.
Details about Hawke’s role are being kept secret for the time being, but according to THR it is only a cameo.
Hawke, of course, is no stranger to science fiction and genre films, having appeared in both Gattaca and, more recently, the vampire film Daybreakers.
Total Recall is based on the 1990 Paul Verhoeven adaptation of the short Philip K. Dick story, “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale.” The original starred Arnold Schwarzenegger as Douglas Quaid (to be played by Colin Farrell in this version), a man haunted by a recurring dream of journeying to Mars who buys a literal dream vacation from a company called Rekall Inc., which sells implanted memories.
As the story unfolds, the man comes to believe he is a secret agent and ends up on a Martian colony, where he fights to overthrow a despotic ruler controlling the production of air.
Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel are in negotiations for the female leads in the film, which will shoot in Toronto beginning in June.
The Len Wiseman-helmed film is slated to open theatrically on August 3, 2012.

George Clooney’s The Descendants Trailer Bows

Vin Diesel has revealed that the long-in-development ‘Riddick 3′ is scheduled to begin filming this summer. On hisFacebook page, the actor said that the movie has been greenlit, but he will need to take a reduction in salary to realize the project.
Diesel earned about $15M for Fast Five, but with the choice to make the next Riddick film R-rated, the resulting limited audience will likely mean less dollars at the box office. Thus, Diesel may have to wait to see the tallies before he realizes any real money.
Complicating matters is the actor’s attachment to an action-comedy calledThe Machine, from the producers of The Pacifier, which could create a scheduling conflict with a potential Riddick project. Then there’s the actor’s own reservations about revisiting the Riddick franchise.
“[David Twohy] the writer/director just landed in New York with the good news. We can start filming this summer,” the actor explained. “However, there is a catch… In order for us to make a true R-rated film, I must work for scale upfront. Money is always second to art, integrity and spirit, but the real issue is deeper. Can I suspend my life, to momentarily venture to that dark place called Riddick?”
Later, Diesel added:
“I am off to another meeting with David, the director of Riddick, to see concept art and discuss the potential schedule.”
Do you think it’s time for Diesel to leave Riddick behind, or are you pining for another film?

New Look at David Tenant from Fright Night Remake

You probably recall that DreamWorks has been filming a remake of the 1985 cult film Fright Night. Word is that the new film will remain true to the frightening but fun spirit of the original, which starred Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Amanda Bearse and the late, great Roddy McDowall. What this really means is thatFright Night will not morph into Twilight.
We’re interested already.Meanwhile, two new images have been released from the film, courtesy of DreamWorks, including a look at Doctor Who veteran David Tennant as Las Vegas magician and all-around vampire hunter Peter Vincent. Check them out to your left and below.
According to rumors, DreamWorks is planning a big PR push for the film just around the corner, doubtless hoping to capitalize on the big summer movie season that is almost upon us. Some strategically-placed trailers in front of the upcoming tentpoles ought to do it.
Official Synopsis: Senior Charlie Brewster (Anton Yelchin) finally has it all going on: he’s running with the popular crowd and dating the most coveted girl in his high school. In fact, he’s so cool he’s even dissing his best friend. But trouble arrives when Jerry (Colin Farrell) moves in next door. He seems like a great guy at first, but there’s something not quite right—but everyone, including Charlie’s mom (Toni Collette), doesn’t notice. After observing some very strange activity, Charlie comes to an unmistakable conclusion: Jerry is a vampire preying on the neighborhood.
Craig Gillespie (forthcoming Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Lars and the Real Girl) helms the remake, from a script by Buffy the Vampire Slayer veteran writer Marti Noxon.

A Third Clip Arrives from Steven Spielberg and JJ Abrams’ Super 8

We just finished showing you two new clips from producer Steven Spielberg and director JJ Abrams’ forthcoming film, Super 8…and now a third one has debuted online, courtesy of AOL.
You can check it out using the embedded player below.
The clip further hints at everything we were talking about here, and simply makes us want to see this film more and more.
Story Synopsis:
In the summer of 1979, a group of friends in a small Ohio town witness a catastrophic train crash while making a super 8 movie and soon suspect that it was not an accident. Shortly after, unusual disappearances and inexplicable events begin to take place in town, and the local Deputy tries to uncover the truth—something more terrifying than any of them could have imagined.
Super 8 stars Kyle Chandler, Elle Fanning, Joel Courtney, Gabriel Basso, Noah Emmerich, Ron Eldard, Riley Griffiths, Ryan Lee and Zach Mills.
The film arrives in theaters on June 10.

Albert Hughes Follows Keanu Reeves Out of Live Action Akira Film

The live-action adaptation of Akira isn’t getting much love these days. Barely one week after the departure of Keanu Reeves — purportedly due to fan outcry surrounding the actor’s casting as Kaneda — today comes word that the Warner Bros’ project has also lost director Albert Hughes (The Book of Eli). Hughes may not have been a popular choice in some quarters, but his departure casts some doubt on the future of the troubled production.
According to Deadline, Hughes is definitely gone, and while the reasons aren’t specified, many believe that a growing schism between the fundamental tenants of the source material and the studio’s own conflicted aspirations for the film may have been the root cause. Hughes may well have wanted a more mature film with the grittier, darker tone that better reflected the brutal world of the anime, even as the studio attempted to leverage the project as a PG-13 movie to maximize box office revenue.
Moreover, Reeves’ departure from the project perfectly illustrated the difficulties that Warner Bros is having; an older, established actor attempting to personify a film about teenage rebellion. The studio wants to birth a new action-adventure franchise, even as the source material is much more complicated than that.
Deadline is now suggesting that the studio may return to the original vision for the project, which would have seen up-and-coming 20-something actors starring in the adaptation.
Regardless of which way Warner Bros now chooses to go, hopefully the more “mature” tone that Hughes’ likely wanted won’t leave the project with him.

New Images from Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy with Oldman, Hardy and Firth

Based upon master spy novelist John le Carré novel of the same name, Tinker, Tailor, Solider Spy may be one of those films that doesn’t fall on the radar of most moviegoers this year, but probably should. The film stars Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy and Colin Firth…with a supporting cast that includes Mark Strong, Ciarán Hinds, Benedict Cumberbatch, David Dencik, Stephen Graham, Toby Jones, and John Hurt.
Several new images from the film have been released, thanks to The Playlist, which you can check out to your left and below.
Quite apart from the amazing cast (which should automatically tell you something), le Carré’s story is itself one of the greatest espionage tales of the past century. In a nutshell, the thriller is set during the Cold War and follows a retired spy named George Smiley (Oldman) brought in to find a suspected mole within the British intelligence agency MI6.
Unlike James Bond — which is artificially pumped up on glamor and action (not that we don’t love it anyway!) — le Carré’s story focuses on a more real world approach to spy-craft, with plots that are woven intricately.
Producer Doug Urbanski reported earlier that the Universal Pictures film had been invited to open the Venice Film Festival and that it was a “very serious Oscar contender.”
The only other time “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” appeared on screen was as a PBS miniseries back in 1979, starring Alec Guinness as Smiley.
The Tomas Alfredson-directed film is scheduled for release in the UK in September and in North America in October or November.

Go Behind the Scenes of Transformers: Dark of the Moon

A behind-the-scenes clip about the high-flying stunts for Transformers: Dark of the Moonhas been posted online courtesy ofMoviefone. You can check it out below.
Plot summary: When a mysterious event from Earth’s past erupts into the present day it threatens to bring a war to Earth so big that the Transformers alone will not be able to save us.
The film stars Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Kevin Dunn, Julie White, Frances McDormand, John Malkovich, Ken Jeong, Patrick Dempsey, Alan Tudyk, John Turturro and Leonard Nimoy.
Directed by Michael Bay, the third installment opens in conventional, 3D and IMAX theatres on June 29.

Michael Bay Persuades Theaters Owners to Lighten Up

With the 3D movie fad steadily losing momentum, Hollywood must be panicking at the thought of lost revenue. With many big event 3D movies still in the pipeline, they must be doing everything in their power to keep moviegoers interested. There are many factors to blame for the public’s waning interest, chief of which are the quality of the movies themselves. A bad movie is a bad movie, whether in 3D or not. However, it has been shown that audiences are willing to shell out a premium for a worthwhile film. But as much effort as that which goes into the making of a movie, if theaters owners sabotage their screenings by diminishing their cinema experience, then nobody wins. A good movie badly presented is a wasted opportunity.
A recurring problem with 3D films is that the projection must be much brighter than an ordinary film. Keep in mind that the projector light must pass through a polarizing filter before reaching the screen. Coupled with the fact that the viewer must also wear what essentially amounts to a pair of sunglasses, and you can see how a sufficiently bright light source is crucial. However, as Eldon Tyrell says, “the candle that burns twice as bright, burns half as long,” and theater owners know this. Projector bulbs are not cheap and when you go through bulbs twice as quickly, well, the cost per screening goes up and it is not unthinkable that an unscrupulous theater manager might turn the brightness down to extend the bulb’s life.
I, myself, have sat in such a screening where the picture was so dark that I took off my glasses, preferring to watch the movie in blurred 2D rather than strain my eyes to see through the murk. This is not an isolated incident it seems, but a frequently occurring problem, and an unhappy moviegoing experience translates to decreased attendance for 3D movies.
That’s why Michael Bay has been personally calling up theater chain executives to impress upon them the importance of keeping projection standards up, reports The NY Times. And according to Variety, the prints for Transformers: Dark of the Moon were enhanced to be sharper and brighter. “We want the best presentation possible. We have created a special version with extra sharpening, color and contrast. It is a superior look in the format. The brighter the image, the brain processes in a different way (sic) and the result sharpens and makes it more vibrant.”
There’s no denying that the early footage looks incredible, but we expected no less from a Transformers movie. However, this time it looks like they’ve gone a step further, and the trailer is utterly epic. Eye candy, surely. Cohesive story? Well, this is a Michael Bay film, after all. However, if early buzz is any indication, Mr. Bay seems to have done his job and delivered the goods. What remains to be seen is whether you will get to see the movie the way he designed it to be seen: big, bright and in your face.

Mad Men Crowned Outstanding Drama Series for Fourth Consecutive Year at 2011 Emmys

Mad Men scored the top prize for televised drama at the 2011 Primetime Emmy Awards for the fourth year in a row. Creator Matthew Weiner accepted the award for Outstanding Drama Series on behalf of AMC, Lionsgate, and the crew, and thanked the fans for their support of the series.
The presence of AMC shows like Breaking Bad and Mad Men was felt throughout the Emmys telecast. Bryan Cranston joined Katie Holmes to present the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series award to Julianna Margulies for The Good Wife. Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul andMad Men's John Slattery made hilarious appearances as new cast members on The Office, while Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, Christina Hendricks, and John Slattery joined Emmy host Jane Lynch for an opening sketch where the Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce gang learned about modern day culture.

Co-financing Deal Brings Release Date for Steven Spielberg’s Robopocalypse

Though Steven Spielberg’s name has long been connected to development work onRobopocalypse — a movie based on the book by Daniel H. Wilson — there has been scarce word in recent months about the project.
Spielberg has long been interested in the project, and working with screenwriter Drew Goddard (Cloverfield), even crafted storyboards as author Wilson was turning in pages. The legendary director was said to be eyeing the adaptation before turning his attentions to the highly-anticipated biopic,Lincoln, but there were no firm commitments in place.
All that appears to be changing. According to THR, 20th Century Fox will join DreamWorks in a co-financing deal that is said will bring Robopocalypse to the big screen on July 3, 2013.
Set in the future, the book tells the story of robots who have become an integral part of our everyday lives, but who one day turn upon us and become killing machines after being exposed to a sentient artificial intelligence buried miles below the surface of Alaska.
“Steven Spielberg will capture the story’s epic mix of thrills, scale, humanity and heart,” said Fox. “We are truly honored to once again collaborate with such a motion picture giant, as well as with the team at DreamWorks.”
Spielberg has a slew of projects either in development or slated for imminent release. War Horse andThe Adventures of Tintin arrive within five days of each other this year, while Lincoln is expected to land in theaters in December 2012.