Will Smith's "Pretty Much Decided" He's Not Going to Do 'Independence Day 2'

Despite many websites claiming Will Smith has 'officially' said NO to star in Independence Day 2, that is certainly not the case when reading the original report carefully.

Mike Fleming Jr. of Deadline - who has proven himself to be reliable when it comes to reporting exclusives - announced last night that Will Smith has informed 20th Century Fox that he won't be coming back for the sequel to the film that launched his movie career.  However, when reading Fleming's report in full, he clearly states that Smith has not had a final conversation with director Roland Emmerich as of yet and specifically writes:

I was told not to set this in stone, because Smith has been back and forth before on whether to make the movie, though I hear he is pretty much decided.

Now I'm not at all saying Fleming's report is BS (which I don't think it is), but I think it's important to note neither Fox, Smith, Emmerich, or any official statement has come out announcing the actor's decision not to return.  Until then, fans of the original should still keep some shred of optimism that Smith will have a final change of heart and star in the sequel.

Remember, it's not like Smith's movie career has been hot as of late.  After Earth completely tanked last summer and the audience's love for the actor has seemingly waned in recent years, mostly due to the fact of his over 3-year absence from film along with his nepotistic push to get his children into the movie business.

We'll keep you posted on this story as I'm sure an official announcement from the studio is around the corner on what direction their planned sequel will go.

Source:  Deadline

Anna Kendrick & Rebel Wilson Officially Returning for 'Pitch Perfect 2'

Back in the fall of 2012, Universal released Pitch Perfect in theaters.  It got solid reviews, and did under-the-radar business, hitting over $100 million worldwide on a $17 million budget.

Yet, with the power of the home video market and the popularity of 'acapella' groups right now, the film has become a massive cultural hit with demand for a sequel extremely high.

Just a few weeks back, it was announced that actress Elizabeth Banks would make her directorial debut and helm the follow-up (she produced the original along with taking a small acting role), and now word comes that the first film's stars Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson have officially signed on for the sequel.

Universal has set a prime May 15th, 2015 release date and knows that if they do this thing right, they have a sure-fire hit on their hands.

I've seen the original (after not thinking much of it from the previews) and was pleasantly surprised by how good the it was.  I'm not much for musicals or singing in movies but even I had to admit the whole thing was done brilliantly.

Expect more cast members from the first film to be announced soon with production starting later this year.

Universal has also released a promo image for the sequel which you can view below:

Giveaway: Win A Copy Of 'Rocky: Heavyweight Collection' Blu-Ray Set

 We've teamed with Fox Home Entertainment to giveaway ONE copy of 'Rocky: Heavyweight Collection' blu-ray set, out on February 11th. The set contains all six intense Rocky films as well as the original film in an "all-new stunning remaster". The contest is open to residents of the US and Canada only. To enter, all you have to do is 'Retweet' the embedded tweet below. Good luck!

---

RETWEET and FOLLOW for your chance to win 'Rocky: Heavyweight Collection' Blu-Ray set courtesy of @McflyDotCom pic.twitter.com/ZvfwDj4vup — Alex Lynch (@TheAlexLynch97) February 7, 2014

---

Special Features
• 8mm Home Movies of Rocky (1975) — Narrated by Director John G. Avildsen and Production Manager Lloyd Kaufman
• In the Ring: Three-Part Making-of Documentary
• Behind-the-Scenes Featurettes: Makeup, Music, Directing and Camera Work
• Boxing Featurettes: Three Rounds with Legendary Trainer Lou Duva, The Opponents and The Ring of  Truth
• Tributes: Burgess Meredith, James Crabe
• Interview with a Legend: Bert Sugar
• Video Commentary with Sylvester Stallone
• Sylvester Stallone on Dinah! (1976)
• Theatrical Trailers, TV Spots and More!

HUNGER GAMES Star Dials Into Stephen King's CELL Adaption

 

About 8 years after Stephen King's terrifying novel CELL hit shelves, it appears they're finally getting around to bringing it to the big-screen, currently being pitched to potential distributors at the Berlin International Film Festival, and it's also cast Isabelle Fuhrman (ORPHAN, The Hunger Games) and NEBRASKA star Stacy Keach.

Variety Reports:

Fuhrman plays a teenage neighbor of Cusack’s Clay Riddell character who joins him and Jackson’s Tom McCourt character on their journey to safety after a mysterious pulse spreads like a virus through the human population.

Keach (“Nebraska”) will play the headmaster of a prep school where the survivors stop along their way.

The film, which recently started shooting in Atlanta, is directed by Tod Williams (The Door in the Floor, Paranormal Activity 2) and stars King-adaption alums from 2007's 1408 John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson.

The screenplay was written by King himself along with Adan Alleca who wrote 2009's violent thriller The Last House on the Left.

I'm interested to see how this film goes, the cast and writing are fantastic; but what made CELL so unique was it's release in a time where cell-phones were still a "young" thing so the premise was somewhat more terrifying.
Of course now, cell-phones are attached to everyone's ear and are now intelligent devices that dictate our day-to-day life so I feel this is the rare case of time being on the adaption's side.  

Matthew McConaughey to Headline Gus Van Sant's 'Sea of Trees'

Honestly, in the past three short years, has there been any other actor with the type of career turnaround as Matthew McConaughey?

Beginning back in 2011 with a supporting role in Richard Linklater's Bernie, and then continuing on with The Lincoln Lawyer, Killer Joe, The Paperboy, Mud, Magic Mike, The Wolf of Wall Street, and then of course, Dallas Buyers Club (which has earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor, his first); McConaughey has transformed from 'the dude who always does romantic-comedies' to 'what a great frickin actor'.  (I should also mention HBO's currently airing True Detective as well which he's absolutely phenominal in).

Now that he's finished his work as the lead in Christopher Nolan's Interstellar (I'm sure another massive hit on the way), McConaughey has boarded his next project; Gus Van Sant's Sea of Trees, joining another Christopher Nolan alum, Ken Watanabe.

The story 'follows an American man (McConaughey) who takes a journey into the infamous "Suicide Forest" at the foothills of Mount Fuji with the intention of taking his own life.  When he is interrupted by a Japanese man (Watanabe) who has had second thoughts about his own suicide, and is trying to find his way out of the forest, the two begin a journey of reflection and survival.'

The script is by Chris Sparling (Buried) which this past year's Black List (best uproduced scripts in Hollywood).

Van Sant (Good Will Hunting, Milk) is gearing up to begin production shortly along with Gil Netter (Life of Pi) as producer.

And in case you were curious, McConaughey's chance at an Oscar his set for Sunday, March 2nd.

Source:  The Wrap

Everything Will Continue to be AWESOME: LEGO MOVIE Sequel In The Works

 

With The LEGO Movie set to release this weekend, already garnering nothing but praise and a predicted HUGE opening weekend, it's no surprise WB is already getting the ball rolling on a follow-up.

The Wrap reports:

Warner Bros. has already begun work on a sequel to “The Lego Movie,” the upcoming animated film based on the popular kids’ toys, according to two individuals with knowledge of the studio’s plans. Jared Stern, who wrote “The Internship” and “Mr. Popper’s Penguins,” is working on the script with Michelle Morgan (“Girl Most Likely”).

Advanced market research indicates “The Lego Movie” will be a huge hit, grossing upwards of $40 millon this weekend. It should breeze to a win at the box office over fellow new releases “the Monuments Men” and “Vampire Academy.”

This is somewhat dissappointing news, given that Chris Lord and Phil Miller seem to not be returning; but I'll keep my hopes high as The LEGO Movie is one of my most anticipated films in recent memory.

The film, which opens this weekend, stars Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Morgan Freeman, Will Arnett, Charlie Day, and Will Ferrell. 

Miles Teller & Aaron Eckhart to Star in Boxing Drama 'Bleed for This'

It was announced today that Miles Teller (The Spectacular Now) and Aaron Eckhart (I, Frankenstein) will headline the boxing biopic, Bleed for This, the true story of boxer Vinny Pazienza.

The film will tell the story of Pazienza (Teller) who after shooting to stardom in becoming WBA World Jr Middleweight Champion, is involved in a near-fatal car accident and is told by doctors he would never fight again.  After months of recovery and against doctors wishes, Pazienza returned to the ring under the watchful eye of infamous trainer Kevin Rooney (Eckhart) just a year later.

Ben Younger (Boiler Room, Prime) will both write and direct the project with none other than Martin Scorsese executive producing.

Source:   Synchronicity Entertainment

New Captain America: The Winter Solider Trailer Is Pretty Damn Good

In the middle of the Super Bowl, Marvel (being Marvel) decides to drop the new trailer for Captain America: The Winter Solider.

Pretty sneaky! But that's how you do it, kids. Not just from a "Steal the thunder" marketing perspective, this is an all around solid piece of trailer-cutting, and I'm not a guy to praise Marvel at the drop of a dime. Their slate of films is spottier than most of my fellow online pundits want to admit.

Side-note: Phil has a cool theory of how they are gonna reintroduce the Red Skull into the modern times and spoilers, it's not Robert Redford. I'm not so sure but we'll know in a few short months.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Super Bowl TV Spots & Villain-Heavy Trailer

"Let's go catch a spider!"

Sony released a two-part Super Bowl spot (one on Friday and the other just now during the Big Game as the Seattle beats down on Denver) for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and an Electro-Green Goblin focused sizzle called "Enemies Unite." Only it's really an extended trailer. So why not call it a trailer?

It may be three months away but they aren't holding back. So much plot, dialogue and CG action on display, you wonder if you didn't just watch the whole film. Still laying it thick on Gwen Stacy's death; so much so it feels like misdirection and Emma Stone will be green-screening it again for The Amazing Spider-Man 3.

Transformers: Age of Extinction Super Bowl TV Spot

The masturbatory reaction to the Transformers: Age of Extinction Super Bowl spot reiterates what some of us, including our pal Jack Giroux, know. Our community has the shittiest memory.

The reactions to the Super Bowl ads for Revenge of the Fallen and Dark of the Moon were glowing with proclamations that "Michael Bay finally got it right." Then the respective films opened and everyone conveniently forgot how they reduced themselves to blubbing idiots due to 30 seconds of sizzle-reel footage and bashed Bay.

Oh but Optimus Prime is riding a Dinobot. It must be good this time, right?