Paul Blart Shooting At My Mall

It was a fairly warm day towards the end of March when I walked into the Burlington Mall in Burlington MA. When I say walked, I mean really slowly and probably not because I wanted to. I'm assuming my girlfriend wanted to buy some funky shirts or yet another pair of jeans and I'm also assuming I really wasn't all that interested unless coffee was somehow involved. To tell you the truth, I really don't remember.

What I do remember is approaching the center of the mall and being confronted by the strangest of sites. Right there; in the middle of the mall, in the middle of spring, was a set up inspired by the North Pole. That's right, it was Christmas in March. As I approached the giant candy cane riddled display I noticed a small sign that was of course created to look like some sort of scroll. It read something like this:

No you're not dreaming, it is indeed Christmas in the Spring. Please pardon our appearance while we shoot the new Kevin James comedy "Paul Blart: Mall Cop".

I have to say it made me feel midly excited that they were actually filming a movie about 10 minutes away from my house and the fact that Kevin James was involved only made it sweeter. Personally I think Kevin James is one funny man.

Make sure you go to see the mall I am forced to shop at on January 16th.

http://www.paulblartmallcop.com/

Is Samuel L. Jackson Not Nicky Fury Anymore?

For those of you hoping to see Samuel L. Jackson put on the eye-patch again as Nick Fury in Iron Man 2, The Avengers or any of the other properties Marvel Films is currently developing, brace yourselves.

Speaking to the Los Angeles Times, Jackson revealed that talks between him and the studio have ceased:

"There was a huge kind of negotiation that broke down. I don't know. Maybe I won't be Nick Fury. Maybe somebody else will be Nick Fury or maybe Nick Fury won't be in it. There seems to be an economic crisis in the Marvel Comics world so [they're saying to me], 'We're not making that deal.'"

First, Terrence Howard is shown the door, and now possibly Jackson?!?

Jackie Chan To Teach The Crane Kick!

Variety is reporting that Jackie Chan is in final negotiations to star in the remake of 80's classic ' The Karate Kid'. He will be playing the mentor role, although there is no confirmation in the article that the character will still be called Mr Miyagi, as played by the late Pat Moritia in the original.

The film has been developed as a star vehicle for Jayden Smith and is being produced by his father Will's production company 'Overbrook Entertainment'. Harald Zwart is set to direct, he has just finished up on 'The Pink Panther 2'.

I am not one that has been vocal about this remake as I don't feel it is amongst the real gems of the 80's like Back to the Future, Ghostbusters and Raiders of the Lost Ark, although many fans of the 80's are dismayed at the prospect. The addition of Chan in a role that saw Moritia garner an Oscar nomination and the fact it's being directed by a guy responsible for the truly horrendous looking 'Pink Panther 2,' is doing nothing to assuage their fears.

Will Smith To Go 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ?

Last Week it was announced that McG (Charlies Angels & Forthcoming Terminator Salvation) was set to direct  '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo', a remake of the Disney classic that starred Kirk Douglas and James Mason which was adapted from Jules Verne's novel of the same name.

This week McG has been out and about promoting Terminator Salvation and told Latino Review that he is eyeing none other than Big Will Smith to play Captain Nemo.

"The character Nemo in this film is more about obsession, he is obsessed and people tend to forget that when you become so obsessed you end up being the villain," ..... "Man I'm trying to get Will Smith to do it, been trying to get a hold of him. I've been wanting to work with him for a long time already. That guy's great."

I am sure Disney wont object to this casting idea, bringing on board the current biggest box office draw in the world is always a good business move, and after the misstep of 'Seven Pounds' Smith may just be looking for the kind of summer blockbuster hit that 20,000 Leagues can provide.

An Update on 'Mars' from Andrew Stanton

Director Andrew Stanton (Wall-E) had a chat with the good folks at Sci Fi Wire where he revealed that things are coming along with John Carter of Mars, the long in the development big-screen adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs novels:

"[I'm] deep into it. I'm on my next draft of it. We're in preproduction art-wise, and we're starting to talk to actors. So it's full bore.

The Finding Nemo helmer also confirmed that the film would be live-action:

"Yeah, I think that's the only way. I mean, there are so many creatures and characters that half of it's going to be CG whether you want it to be [or not], just to realize some of these images that are in the book. But it will feel real. The whole thing will feel very, very believable."

Considering this is the same filmmaker who got audiences emotionally attached to a little trash-compressing robot this past summer (which was the best film of 2008, for my money), I'm willing to give Stanton and his team the benefit of the doubt.

Although I'm still damn curious as to how this thing is going to look!

Kevin Williamson To Scream Again

The "interwebs" have been flooded with a steady stream of rumors surrounding the Scream franchise since the 3rd installment sliced through the box office in 2000. "MrDisgusting" at www.bloody-disgusting.com threw some more logs on the fire today with the following:

While SCREAM 4 is still very much in the early stages of development, we have a few exclusive facts to kick start the hype.

Fact #1: Kevin Williamson (writer of two of the SCREAM films (character credit on third)) is going to start writing a draft, although it may or may not become the shooting script (which is typical).

Fact #2: Wes Craven may or may not direct, but there is a very good possibility that he will return.

Fact #3: They are making financial offers to David Arquette, Courtney Cox Arquette and Neve Campbell to play cameos.

Fact #4: This will be a younger version of the SCREAM movies.

I am a huge fan of the Scream Trilogy and really am looking forward to a new installment. If done the right way I think it can put horror back on the map the way it should be. I am so tired of the new direction horror has taken. Do we really need anymore torture style horror flicks? Let us get back to basics. Scream revived the horror industry in the 90's let's hope it can revive it for me going into the next decade.

I think Kevin Williamson once again laying out the foundation for "Ghost Face" is exactly the right move. He might not end up writing the final draft in the end, but I feel confident with him constructing the backbone of the story.

Hopefully we'll all get to scream again real soon.

Terminator: Salvation Updates

Say what you will about McG, but the man knows how to sell himself and his projects.

I mean, sure James Cameron really didn't give his blessing for the upcoming Terminator: Salvation nor did he personally recommend his Avatar lead Sam Worthington to play the character of Marcus Wright (aka the new Terminator!)

But still, it worked - i.e. we're talking about it.

And said talks continued last night as the We Are Marshall director presented new footage from his Terminator sequel (due in theatres May 22) in a special "Road Show" event.

Among the tidbits revealed include the possibility of Linda Hamilton (aka Sarah Connor from the first two James Cameron-helmed Terminator films) doing a voice-over narration to open the new installment.

Also, McG revealed that he and Salvation writer Jonathan Nolan (The Dark Knight) have already begun working out the story for two additional sequels - the fifth installment being currently scheduled for a Summer 2011 release (which may or may not be helmed by McG depending on his commitment to Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo).

When pressed for further details, McG revealed that "time travel has yet to be explored" and will be a major theme in Terminator 5.

Will Harvey Dent & Joker Return for Batman III?

Another day, and another set of Batman III rumors for us to dissect.

Last week, Batman Begins and The Dark Knight producer Chuck Roven spoke to the MTV Movies Blog at the People's Choice Awards.

When asked about the identity of the villain(s) for the eventual Batman III, Roven explained:

“We have to separate the actors from the role. On a personal level, Heath was a friend of mine. We had worked together before 'The Dark Knight,' but I still think that 'The Dark Knight' is its own thing, and we have to seperate them."

Do anyone really think Christopher Nolan & Co. are going to re-cast the Joker so soon after the iconic performance from the late Heath Ledger - especially when you consider a decision like that could possibly hurt his chances of winning the "Best Supporting Actor" Oscar he will, no doubt, be nominated for next week? (Note: It doesn't feel like it, but it's been about a year since Ledger's passing! Weird.)

Oh, but the rumors don't stop there, boys and girls. The Dark Knight co-star Aaron Eckhart has something to say too.

At last night's Golden Globes ceremony, the Thank You For Smoking star was corned by MTV Movies Blog (Damn, those guys sure can get around) and asked about the possbily of his Harvey "Two Face" Dent returning:

"I think Harvey - if he's not dead - is in a serious coma, and I'm not sure he's coming out. They might pull the plug on him.

Personally, I wouldn't put too much thought into those remarks. More likely than none, he was simply playing around with the interviewer. At least, that's how I read into it.

Eckhart and Nolan have both said Dent is flat out dead. Hell, it's even stated in the screenplay of The Dark Knight!

To be fair, these rumors are certainly worth-mentioning. But at the end of the day, it sounds like B.S. in order to give Batman III even more attention than it already has...

New Killshot Trailer!

Despite boasting a cast that includes Diane Lane, Thomas Jane, Joseph Gordon Levitt  and Mickey Rourke, John Madden's 'Killshot' has sat on the shelf for close to two and a half years. I suspect the sudden arrival of a new trailer is due in no small part to the fact Rourke is hot again on the back of his unanimously praised performance in Darren Arnorfsky's 'The Wrestler'. It is based on a novel by Elmore Leonard, previous books of his that have been adapted include 'Get Shorty' and 'Out of Sight'.

Synopsis:

A botched scam sends an old-school hitman (Rourke) and a young stick-up kid (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) on a mission to find and kill an innocent couple (Jane and Lane) in order to protect their identities.


The new trailer is more involved than the first and gives a better sense of the tone and especially of Levitt's character. I'm a big fan of this type of movie, and while it's nothing new, it does look stylishly made with an excellent cast.

The movie is set to begin a limited release on January 23rd, you can check out the trailer at the links below.

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1505755929/

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=V5A5QSJPkyg

Chronicling The Voyage Of The Narnia Franchise

~On Christmas Eve Narnia fans were all snug in their beds~
~While visions of the "Dawn Treader" danced in their heads~

When Narnia fans woke up on Christmas Day and read The Hollywood Reporter article that Disney was "jumping ship" on The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, it was like receiving a giant lump of coal in their stockings.

What seemed like a calculated move by Disney to drop the bomb towards Christmas, which hindered Walden's search for another studio, hasn't seemed to deter Walden from aggresively looking for a place to dock "Dawn Treader".

A logical fit for Walden would be Warner Bros. who have gobbled up quite a few fantasy novels over the last couple years including: Terry Brooks' Shannara series, Angie Sage's Septimus Heap, as well as the announcement that they will be utilizating Baum's fifteen book Oz series.

Although they are acquiring quite a bit of fantasy properties, WB would love to get another fantasy series out immediatley with Potter winding down. WB was banking on The Golden Compass to replace their spectacled cash cow but the poor 70-million domestic take dashed their hopes.

Walden teaming up with Warner Bros could also mean that Thomas Tull's Legendary Pictures could flip some of the bill. Tull has made it quite clear that he is willing to get behind the right projects and Legendary's penchant for backing fantasy based features might bode well for Narnia landing at WB.