Has the ‘Saw’ franchise been hacked to death by ‘Paranormal Activity?’ Has its edge been dulled? Rendered toothless?

That’s the question analysts and armchair pundits are asking after the little-sleeper-hit-that-could came up from seemingly nowhere and spooked the entrenched series at this weekend’s box office.

‘Saw,’ a yearly staple in the Halloween horror market since it’s breakout in 2004, was easily knocked out of its top spot by ‘Paranormal Activity,’ which grossed $22 million in its first wide release. ‘Saw’ grossed only $14.8 million.

This despite the franchise’s effort to return to its leaner, meaner self, with an added dash of political relevance. This current installment of SAW has a group of health insurance executives trying to reason their way out of the usual traps, hopefully learning that they are there only because of the arbitrary way they denied health-care for profit.

‘Paranormal Activity,’ originally filmed for a mere $11,000 over seven days by Director Oren Peli in his own home, documents the anxieties of a young couple troubled by a haunting in their new place, with the boyfriend shooting events on video a la ‘Blair Witch Project.’

Now blogs and pundits are buzzing that ‘Saw’ has lost its edge. Some are wondering if torture porn is losing its appeal, especially given the recent ruling in Spain which slapped an X rating on the movie, relegating it to porn theatres. Top critics also seem bored with the franchise, giving it a 25 % rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Paranormal Activity, on the other hand, has rattled critics and audiences alike, receiving a whopping 90 % fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, who applaud its reliance on suspense and intelligent pacing rather than outright gore.

Only time will tell if ‘Saw’ is stuck in a trap it can’t escape from alive.  There are still plans to release ‘Saw VII’ in October 2010 (this time in 3D), and plans for ‘Saw VIII’ are already underway.

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With the late Heath Ledger’s knock-out performance as the Joker in Christopher Nolan’s latest ‘Batman’ movie enshrined in recent memory, it’s hard to remember that Jack Nicholson’s portrayal in Burton’s 1989 movie was once considered impossible to top. But even stranger is a rumour that Nicholson’s role was once considered for actor Willem Defoe.

Defoe, who recently talked to MTV to discuss the rumour (found on the actor’s IMDB page), asserts that he was never considered for a role as Gotham’s criminal wild card. Yet he confirms a much more surprising Batman related fact: he seriously considered playing the Dark Knight himself in the franchise’s debut back in 1989. As he recently told MTV news “Very early, they talked to me about playing Batman.”

The role ultimately went to Michael Keaton, considered an odd choice by many. After some initial consternation expressed by fans, the movie was embraced by audiences and critics and became a smash box-office success.

Dafoe, best known for his envelope pushing character portrayals in films that include ’Wild at Heart’, ‘The Last temptation of Christ’ and most recently Lars Von Trier’s ‘Anti-Christ’ (not to mention an academy award for best supporting actor in ‘Platoon’),  said that he nearly donned the mask of the caped crime fighter. But it was never to be.

Still, comic fans have stillgotten to know Defoe through the Spider Man Franchise, where he played Norman Osborn, the scientist who inadvertently transforms himself into the super villain Green Goblin.

Dafoe added in his MTV interview, “I hate to spread these things because unless you remember it well, you’re stoking the fires of bullsh*t. But I remember [it]. I’ve had my brush with these things.”

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The Wall Street Journal is reporting that movie producers in a cash starved Hollywood are basing major creative decisions on financial considerations, namely, where they can get the biggest tax incentives and government subsidies.

For example, the paper’s Lauren A. E. Schuker writes that producer Ingo Vollkammer changed the location of a planned action thriller, titled ‘Velocity,’ three times, from Texas, to Madrid, to Berlin and, finally, Montreal. Each of these changes required script rewrites.

‘Velocity,’ which reportedly stars Halle Berry, moved to Madrid in 2007, as the weakening Euro and government subsidies would help save millions. Then Germany offered to absorb 40% of the budget if Vollkammer moved the shoot there and used a German director. Then the Euro strengthened, so another rewrite set the film in Montreal. Vollkammer ultimately plans to shoot ‘Velocity’ in Canada, in March, with a German director, securing both subsidies and tax incentives.

The climactic final scene was moved from a U.S. government building to a Madrid train station to the Olympic Stadium.

“I realized I can’t be too fussy about the creative elements of my movies,” Vollkammer told the paper.

The WSJ also says “The Men Who Stare at Goats,” a comedy about military intelligence that stars George Clooney and is partially set in the Middle East, was shot half in Puerto Rico and half in New Mexico. Both places offer large tax incentives, which shaved about 15% off the final budget.

Many countries and states have been increasing tax incentives and subsidies in hopes of attracting film production dollars. Both independent producers and major studios are taking advantage — Warner Bros. shot Clint Eastwood’s ‘Gran Torino’ in Detroit after Michigan enacted its tax credits.

In 2008 New York state announced plans to triple tax credits for film and television productions. And in February 2009, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed legislation creating better tax credits for the same, while Ontario, which had recently hiked its credits, opted to make them permanent. These coffers, however, are not bottomless and, also in February 2009, it was announced that New York had already run through the $515 million set aside for the tax credit program through 2013.

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The Hollywood Reporter says Steve Carell may be set to portray a golfer angling for a better place to play in the pending ‘Missing Links.’ The ‘Evan Almighty’ star will also produce the project.

‘The Break-Up’ scribe Jay Lavender is writing the screenplay.

Reilly’s 1997 novel is a spoof of the golf and country club lifestyle. It tells the tale of a group of golfing friends who regularly tee off at a dumpy, hazardous club, and set out to better their situation and move to a nearby swankier green. Schemes and hijinks are involved. 

Carell is on board for the ‘Get Smart’ sequel and can next be seen on the big screen in the romantic-comedy ‘Date Night.’

Reilly was a longtime Sports Illustrated columnist who recently made the jump to ESPN the Magazine and ESPN.com. He also co-wrote the script for the George Clooney directed ‘Leatherheads,’ which starred Clooney, Renee Zellweger and John Krasinski.

Hayden Christensen is suing a producer for $3 million. The Canadian actor, best known for playing Anakin Skywalker in the ‘Star Wars’ prequels, claims he and his brother, Tove, signed a film deal back in 2005 with Philippe Martinez and that the project never materialized.

According to TMZ, in the same month ‘Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith’ was released, Hayden struck an agreement with Martinez to appear in a movie called ‘Crash Bandits’ while Tove signed on as co-producer. They also agreed that Martinez would pay for the right to have first crack at the brothers’ future projects. The Christensens say Martinez claimed to have a $500,000,000 bankroll.

But now, in a lawsuit filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Hayden and Tove allege ‘Crash Bandits’ never got made and that Martinez never paid up.

Philippe Martinez is listed on IMDB as the producer of 2009’s ‘The Steam Experiment’ starring Val Kilmer and 2007’s ‘The Flock’ starring Richard Gere. He has two forthcoming films listed, ‘One Four Seven Greenwich’ and ‘Tribes of October.’  

Since the ‘Star Wars’ movies, Hayden has featured in ‘New York, I love You,’ and ‘Jumper’ among others. Tove produced ‘Shattered Glass’ in 2003 and ‘The Education of Charlie Banks,’ directed by Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst, in 2007.

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Channing Tatum was severely burned on the set of ‘The Eagle of the Ninth.’

The ‘GI Joe’ star was left scalded after a bizarre and totally avoidable wetsuit accident, while filming in Scotland, according to the Scots newspaper, the Daily Record.

Tatum, who is shooting the Roman epic in the highlands, was feeling the chill in the air and came up with an innovative, yet strange and likely ineffective way to stay warm – he donned a wetsuit under his costume and got aides to pour hot water into it.

But he was reportedly left howling when someone forgot to cool the water down first.

An source said, “Poor Channing seemed to be in a lot of pain.

“The paramedics on the set treated him immediately. But when they tried to change the dressing later, a massive patch of skin came off and they realized he’d need some rest to get over it.”

Channing took the next day off to nurse his wounds and has made a full recovery. A spokeswoman said, “He’s back doing his own stunts and everything. “There are no hard feelings over what happened.”

‘Eagle of the Ninth’ is set in 140 AD, twenty years after the unexplained disappearance of the entire Ninth Legion in the mountains of Scotland. Young centurion Marcus Aquila (Tatum) travels from Rome to solve the mystery and restore the reputation of his father, the commander of the Ninth. It also stars Donald Sutherland and Billy Elliot actor Jamie Bell.

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Matt Damon and Josh Brolin are in talks to star in the Coen brothers’ remake of ‘True Grit.’

The Hollywood Reporter says Joel and Ethan Coen, along with Paramount Pictures are moving fast on their re-adaptation of the Charles Portis novel. First they contacted Jeff Bridges, and now Damon and Brolin. Both Bridges and Brolin have worked with the Oscar-winning team before. Bridges famously portrayed the Big Lebowski in the classic of the same name, while Brolin played Llewelyn Moss in the best picture winner, ‘No Country for Old Men.’ ‘True Grit’ would be Damon’s first Coen Brothers movie.

Given the Coens’ penchant for extreme on-screen violence, it’s interesting that this news comes just after Damon was quoted as saying he chooses his roles carefully and eschews gratuitous use of the stuff.

‘True Grit’ is about a Texas Ranger and a U.S. Marshall who travel into dangerous territory with a14-year-old girl, in search of the man who murdered her father.

THR says Damon would take on the role of Texas Ranger, La Boeuf, originally played by Glen Campell in the 1969 Western, while Brolin is being considered for the role of the outlaw.

The studio hopes to begin production in spring.

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In a bid to maintain audience interest in one of the more established celebrity mutual-admiration fests, the Golden Globes have added a host to this year’s broadcast. The awards show, which honours both film and television, hasn’t had a host since 1995, when John Larroquette and Janine Turner did the honours. This year it will be Ricky Gervais, according to Variety.

The addition comes as producers of established televised awards shows are revising formulas, hoping to keep viewers entertained while industry people hand each other statues. Both last month’s Emmys and last year’s Academy Awards took risks that paid off with Neil Patrick Harris and Hugh Jackman doing emcee duties, respectively, and showcasing their talents with musical numbers. No word on whether Gervais will follow in their singing and dancing footsteps (though he was in a new wave band called Seana Dancing, in the eighties, so you never know).  

“The time felt right. There are very few things that seem such an obvious choice,” said NBC’s Paul Telegdy of Gervais’ selection. “His was the only name we discussed. We agreed on it there and then.”

Gervais starred in and produced the original British version of “The Office,” which was later adapted for American television with Steve Carell in the lead role. He also enjoyed a run on the sketch comedy show ‘Extras.’ On the big screen, Gervais recently starred in ‘The Invention of Lying’ and co-stars with Ralph Fiennes in another comedy, ‘Cemetery Junction’ in 2010. He has also featured in the popular ‘Night at the Museum’ movies with Ben Stiller.

Gervais says of his pending hosting duties, “It’s an environment where I feel I can get free rein as host. I have resisted many other offers like this, but there are just some things you don’t turn down.”