May 10, 2012

Mad Men’s Jon Hamm will take a break from the advertising world to star in the upcoming Disney sports flick The Million Dollar Arm.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hamm has signed on for the true-life story about American sports agent J.B. Bernstein, who plucked a pair of young Indian cricket players and made them baseball stars in America.

Tom McCarthy and Mitch Glazer have written the script, but no director is yet attached to the project.

Bernstein travelled to India and developed a reality show to find the kid with the best arm. In the end he brought the show’s two winners to America, where they were signed to play pro baseball in the big leagues.

Though the film won’t be Hamm’s first foray onto the silver screen since finding fame and fortune on Mad Men, it will be his largest movie role yet.

The star recently appeared in the romantic comedy Friends with Benefits and in the blockbuster Bridesmaids.

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May 10, 2012

One of the producers behind Harry Potter is sending Paddington Bear to the silver screen with a small note attached that reads: “Please look after this bear.”

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Potter producer David Heyman is teaming with French production house StudioCanal to adapt Michael Bond’s beloved story about the very polite Peruvian bear for the big screen.

The picture will be a CGI/live action family flick that will land the beloved bear in our very modern world. It will be directed by British filmmaker Paul King.

“Paddington Bear is a universally loved character, treasured for his optimism, his sense of fair play, and his perfect manners – and of course for his unintentional talent for comic chaos,” says Heyman, explaining Paddington’s popularity.

StudioCanal CEO Olivier Courson agrees, adding that Heyman is the perfect producer for the project.

“Mr. Bond’s Paddington is beloved across generations throughout the world,” he says. “And David Heyman has had tremendous success adapting great British literary works for cinema.”

The story of a small brown bear who is found at Paddington station and adopted by a British family, Paddington Bear books have sold more than 35 million copies since his 1958 debut.

(Image: Harper Collins)

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May 10, 2012

The smash hit Quebec film Starbuck is getting a Hollywood remake courtesy of Steven Spielberg.

The Globe and Mail reports that Spielberg’s DreamWorks Studios will produce the American do-over of the 2011 comedy about a man who is shocked to learn he’s the father of 533 children, all sired during his career as a sperm donor.

Wedding Crashers star Vince Vaughn is in talks for lead, according to Variety. Patrick Huard starred in the original, which was set and shot in Montreal. The new version will take place in New York and feature an all new cast.

Andre Rouleau, producer of both the remake and the original film, says the deal came about after iconic American filmmaker, Spielberg, screened Starbuck last month and fell in love with the flick. Ken Scott, who wrote and directed the original, will also script and shoot the remake.

“We were completely charmed by the story in Starbuck and saw the potential for a commercial remake with universal appeal,” says DreamWorks CEO Stacey Snider. “We are excited to be working with the original filmmaking team of Ken Scott and Andre Rouleau and look forward to our collaboration on this film.”

Starbuck debuted on Canadian screens last summer and did well on the international film festival circuit, winning awards at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival and the Sonoma International Film Festival.

Shooting on the all new Starbuck is set to begin in the Big Apple this fall.

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May 10, 2012

Beliebers eagerly awaiting pop star Justin Bieber’s first big foray into big screen acting are going to have to wait a little bit longer.

MTV reports that plans for a basketball drama starring the pint-sized Canadian superstar and Mark Wahlberg have been put on hold as writers tackle the script and attempt to “make it better and stuff.”

The singer tells the network he’s still committed to the flick, even if it’s taking a little longer than anticipated to get it off the ground.

“I’m still working on this movie with Mark Wahlberg,” Bieber tells MTV News. “I don’t know what the deal is. Turns out they’re rewriting the script or something, trying to make it fit better and stuff.”

Though few details have been released about the story, Wahlberg has previously revealed he’ll play a mentor to Bieber’s character, a slam-dunking rookie. The Fighter star has said the film will be reminiscent of the Tom Cruise/Paul Newman pool table classic The Color of Money.

While shooting may still be a little way off, Bieber says he’s excited about the project and plans to get his b-ball skills into shape so that he’s ready to hit the court once cameras are set to roll.

“It’s really cool,” he says. “Hopefully I’ll be able to do that as well soon. So I’ll be hooping. I got to get back in the gym. I haven’t played basketball in a while.”

Fans looking forward to seeing The Bieb on the big screen won’t have to wait too long however. The Stratford, Ontario native has revealed he makes a super-brief cameo in the upcoming sci-fi comedy Men in Black III.

“Basically you see me on the screen for, like, two seconds. They showed me the piece … and [I was like] ‘Where was I?’”

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May 10, 2012

Charlize Theron relished the opportunity to play a villain in the upcoming fairy tale action flick Snow White and the Huntsman that she injured herself on set just by screaming at people.

The sexy Hollywood veteran tells MTV she jumped into the role as the story’s Evil Queen with both feet – so much so that she tore a stomach muscle by being so nasty.

Asked by a fan on Twitter what it was like playing “a b—- for a change,” Theron revealed that she was thrilled to tackle the role of the baddie who wants Snow White’s heart on a platter.

“What do you mean, ‘for a change’?” Theron quipped. “God, yeah. That’s the tricky thing of the movie: Finding that line that you can walk where you’re not going into camp-ville and you’re also not going into ‘please take me serious Marlon Brando acting-ville.’”

The star says she enjoyed the role so much that she injured herself by being so awful. “I did enjoy just screaming at people,” she said. “I screamed so much at people, I tore a stomach muscle, which I had never heard of that before.”

Theron even admits she took the Queen’s terrible attitude to heart while shooting.

“And then off-set, you can joke about it, because you’re in these costumes. I felt like I was being so high-maintenance: ‘It hurts, oh gosh, I can’t walk to craft service.’ You become a big pain in the ass. I mean, I’m saying it was the costume. but it really wasn’t. That’s how I behaved.”

Snow White and the Huntsman lands on theatre screens everywhere June 1.

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May 9, 2012

Ridley Scott’s heavily anticipated sci-fi thriller Prometheus will be released with a risky R-rating after the director refused to trim the movie’s gory violence.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Fox has confirmed the upcoming space adventure will receive an R in the U.S. due to “sci-fi violence including some intense images, and brief language.”

The move is unusual due to the film’s sky-high budget and the current general wisdom that flicks with a PG-13 rating tend to fare better at the box office. The Times points out that summer blockbusters with an R-rating are rare these days unless they’re comedies.

The few exceptions – such as Air Force One and The Matrix Reloaded – came out ages ago. 300, which was released with an R-rating, was the rare exception to the rule. It grossed over $200 million, but was released at the tail end of winter, avoiding the risk of bombing out in the packed summertime marketplace.

Starring Michael Fassbender and Noomi Rapace, Prometheus began life as a prequel to Scott’s Alien, but later found life as a stand alone project.

Adult audiences will be able to judge the violence for themselves when Prometheus finally lands in theatres June 8.

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May 9, 2012

Few actors in Hollywood are as adept at bringing villains to life as No Country for Old Men star Javier Bardem. Now he’ll have a new opportunity to flex his bad guy muscles as a nasty neo-Nazi.

The Playlist reports that Bardem has signed on to join the cast of an upcoming adaptation of his brother Carlos Bardem’s novel Alacrán Enamorado.

Roughly translated as Scorpion in Love, the book tells a Romeo & Juliet type story about the love between a neo-Nazi named Scorpion and a beautiful Latin American immigrant in modern day Spain.

Santiago Zannou will direct the picture, working from a script Bardem has adapted from his own book. The story is “a fable that shows that love and trust can save us from the path to auto-destruction” says Zannou.

Alex Gonzalez will play the young Nazi in love while Judith Diakhate will play his lover. Javier Bardem will play Solis, the leader of the neo-Nazi outfit that controls the anti-hero at the story’s centre.

Bardem will shoot the picture before flying back to America to join the star-studded cast of Ridley Scott’s upcoming drama The Counselor, featuring Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz and Michael Fassbender.

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May 9, 2012

Fans of the Avengers aren’t just buying movie tickets, they’re also buying up shawarmas, the delicious middle east treat featured in the blockbuster flick.

According to celebrity gossip website TMZ, sales of the pita-wrapped delight are skyrocketing like Iron Man in Los Angeles, due to a hilarious sequence tacked on to the end of the superhero adventure.

Warning to the few of you who haven’t yet seen The Avengers: Spoilers follow!

During a major battle set at the climax of the picture, Iron Man takes a break from the action to ask Captain America if he’s ever enjoyed the pleasures of chomping down on the exotic sandwich.

“Have you ever tried shawarma?” he says. “There’s a shawarma joint about two blocks from here. I don’t know what it is, but I want to try it.”

At the end of the film, after the battle has been won, the planet saved and the film’s end credits revealed, the entire superhero supergroup is seen at said “joint” enjoying the meal.

TMZ reports that at Hollywood’s famed Ro Ro’s Chicken, schawarma sales have taken off by 80% since the film’s debut.

No word yet on whether or not the same is true for body-hugging spandex suits.

(Image: Marvel/Paramount)

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May 9, 2012

Plans are afoot to bring children’s favourite Clifford the Big Red Dog out of his massive dog house and onto the big screen again.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Illumination Entertainment – the folks behind the recent smash The Lorax – are looking to adapt Norman Bridwell’s stories about the beloved scarlet canine, this time as a live-action/animated hybrid. In 2004, Warner Bros. released the fully animated Clifford’s Really Big Movie, starring John Ritter in his very last role as the voice of the much loved pup.

Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of the gigantic pooch’s first adventure, which was published way back in 1963.

The story of Emily Elizabeth and her adventures with her big-hearted big red dog Clifford, Bridwell’s stories have resonated with generations of kids.

Race to Witch Mountain and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice scribe Matt Lopez has been hired to write the script, though no director is attached just yet.

A TV adaptation of the Clifford stories has been a hit on the U.S. PBS since 2000.

No word just yet on when fans of the lovable mutt can look forward to seeing Clifford bound across the silver screen.

(Image: Scholastic)

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May 9, 2012

Johnny Depp says he required help to go to the bathroom while on the set of his upcoming gothic comedy Dark Shadows.

Vanity Fair reports that the eccentric star revealed the difficulties he faced while dressed up as vampire Barnabus Collins for Tim Burton’s adaptation of the cult classic television series. Depp says that with the prosthetic nails he wore for the role, a team of assistants were needed just to help him use the men’s room.

“In every film that I’ve been lucky enough to do with Tim, there’s always some form of torture, and the nails were Tim’s idea,” Depp says. “They were the length of the fingers and stuff, but it was okay because I had a troop of people who would help me go to the bathroom. They had to have treatment afterwards but they’re okay now. That is true.”

The trips to the loo were only one difficulty Depp suffered through while shooting the film. The actor says that playing a vampire comes with its own set of unusual dilemmas – including the awkward experience of biting his co-stars.

A scene in which Barnabus chomps into a construction worker was one of the first such scenes to be shot.

“I felt as though I was biting one of the Village People,” Depps says. “Big, sweaty stuntman. When I had the fangs in, you want to be a little bit careful that you didn’t actually pierce the jugular.”

Despite the difficulties, Depp says he was determined to portray an old school vampire – as opposed to the pretty-boy blood suckers popular with the Twilight crowd.

“Tim and I talked early on [and agreed that] a vampire should look like a vampire, and it was a kind of rebellion against vampires that look like underwear models.”

Dark Shadows opens everywhere this Friday.

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