Indiewire Browse the indiewire network

The Playlist

The obsessives' guide to contemporary cinema via film discussion, news, reviews, features, nostalgia, movie music, soundtracks, DVDs and more.

Interviews

Actors

Directors

Archives

The Playlist

Russell Brand Is Going To Be 'Cupid,' Is Currently Captain Hook In Disney Theme Park Ad

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
  • |
  • August 2, 2012 4:51 PM
  • |
  • 3 Comments
News
All one has to do to determine the future big screen prospects of Russell Brand is to simply look at the titles at some of the movies he's been attached to: "Rentaghost," "Hauntrepreneur," "The President Stole My Girlfriend" (seriously), "Man That Rocks The Cradle" and earlier this week, "Pierre Pierre" (though of all these flicks, this one is the promising). And you can now add "Cupid" to the list.
Read More »
More: Cupid, Russell Brand

Jim Carrey Out, Russell Brand In For Long Gestating Comedy 'Pierre Pierre'

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
  • |
  • July 30, 2012 10:24 PM
  • |
  • 2 Comments
News
So, here we are, nearly four years after it was first announced, and still not much happening with "Pierre Pierre." Okay, something is happening, but the movie is still moving along at an unhurried pace, and it's now swapping stars.
Read More »
More: Russell Brand, Pierre Pierre

Review: 'Rock of Ages' Is Anything But a Good Time

  • By Kimber Myers
  • |
  • June 13, 2012 3:09 PM
  • |
  • 5 Comments
Reviews
"Rock of Ages" will make you want to raise your arms...and then immediately plunge your fingers into your eyeballs for salvation (you can go back for seconds to rescue your ears). "Hairspray" helmer Adam Shankman directs this movie that will finally kill the '80s nostalgia that continues to plague us if we're lucky and will further root karaoke performances and bar jukeboxes in that hairspray-choked decade if we're not. We've had a sub-par version of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" stuck in our head since we saw it, and we wouldn't wish this fate on anyone, except perhaps the development heads at Warner Bros. As much as everyone keeps trying to make Julianne Hough a star, Steve Perry she is not (though admittedly she is cuter).
Read More »
More: Rock Of Ages, Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough, Paul Giamatti, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Adam Shankman, Malin Ackerman, Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin, Review

Hold Onto Your Mullets, A Discography Of New Pics From 'Rock Of Ages' Turn It To 11

  • By Benjamin Wright
  • |
  • May 31, 2012 9:25 AM
  • |
  • 1 Comment
News
If you still have Def Leppard’s Pyromania album on heavy rotation and prefer Jefferson Starship to Jefferson Airplane, then there’s a pretty good chance you’re excited for the upcoming musical adaptation, “Rock Of Ages.” An ode to the days of hair metal and tight leather pants, “Hairspray” helmer Adam Shankman has cooked up a tale of a small town girl (livin’ in a lonely world) and a city boy who fall for one another on the Sunset Strip, all while in pursuit of their Hollywood dreams. Some of us here at The Playlist have secretly been anticipating the film’s June release, and with a cast consisting of Russell Brand, Julianne Hough, Alec Baldwin, Malin Akerman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Mary J. Blige, Bryan Cranston, Will Forte, and of course Tom Cruise doing his best Tim Cappelo interpretation, who can blame us?
Read More »
More: Rock Of Ages, Tom Cruise, Paul Giamatti, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman

Alec Baldwin Joins Woody Allen's Next Pic; Reunites With Russell Brand For 'Man That Rocks The Cradle'

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
  • |
  • May 11, 2012 1:17 PM
  • |
  • 1 Comment
News
With "30 Rock" getting picked up by NBC for one last, shortened, 13-episode season, it looks like Alec Baldwin is going to have a bit more time on his hands. The actor is starting to fill up his calendar and is calling on a couple of recent pals to help him do so.
Read More »
More: Alec Baldwin, Woody Allen, Russell Brand, Man That Rocks The Cradle

Jessica Brown-Findlay, James Frecheville & More To Star In Smiths Comedy 'Shoplifters Of The World'; Russell Brand Also Eyed For Role

  • By Oliver Lyttelton
  • |
  • February 10, 2012 9:02 AM
  • |
  • 3 Comments
News
Ah, The Smiths. Who among us, at least those born after 1965 or so, can say they didn't have moments of adolescent angst, confusion and heartbreak soundtracked by the acerbic lyrics of Morrissey and the chiming guitar lines of Johnny Marr? And yet, their influence on film has never quite matched up to their cult appeal. Oh, sure, they've been recurring soundtrack favorites as far back as "Pretty In Pink," and were a key plot point in recent rom-com hit "(500) Days Of Summer," but have so far managed to avoid biopics or films revolving around them (like the upcoming Stone Roses-themed "Spike Island," which we reported on yesterday). 
Read More »
More: Russell Brand, James Frecheville, Jessica Brown-Findlay, Will Poulter, Shoplifters Of The World, The Smiths, Stephen Kijak

Russell Brand Will Try To Scare Up Laughs In 'The Hauntrepreneur'

  • By Joe Cunningham
  • |
  • January 27, 2012 10:24 AM
  • |
  • 0 Comments
News
2011 was supposed to be the year that Russell Brand conquered Hollywood, but instead it was the year he conquered the tabloids. “Arthur” hardly set the box-office on fire and saw Brand receive some pretty brutal reviews, while all “Hop” served to highlight was that he could also be pretty annoying as a CGI bunny. And while it may not look like he has a future as a leading man, the studios are still gonna give him a shot.
Read More »
More: Russell Brand, The Hauntrepreneur

Russell Brand Sets Up Late Night Show At FX, Sells Animated Show To Fox

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
  • |
  • December 15, 2011 2:14 PM
  • |
  • 2 Comments
Television
With the "Arthur" remake--set to be Russell Brand's big leading man coming out party in Hollywood--tanking pretty hard, it looks like the comedian is wisely turning to television in order to build his, uh, "brand" back up. And we have to say at least one of these ideas is a pretty good one.
Read More »
More: Russell Brand

Russell Brand To Lead 'The President Stole My Girlfriend'

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
  • |
  • November 14, 2011 10:05 AM
  • |
  • 2 Comments
News
This isn't scientific or anything, and evidence still needs to gathered to turn this theory into a fact, but as Russell Brand's hair has become far less wild and as he's settled into a domestic life with his improbable wife Katy Perry, the man has gotten distinctly less funny. The witty, energetic comedian fell hard into the man-child stereotype with "Arthur," a movie that bizarrely took him away from the exact style of comedy that made him noteworthy. And now, it looks like yet again, Brand is ready to go Hollywood even if it means making him a completely anonymous comic actor.
Read More »
More: Russell Brand, The President Stole My Girlfriend

Russell Brand Out, Ben Stiller In For 'Rentaghost'

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
  • |
  • October 12, 2011 7:07 AM
  • |
  • 0 Comments
In Hollywood, you're only as good as your last movie, and with Russell Brand's first bonafide leading man vehicle "Arthur" opening at number three this spring and then fading fast from theaters, it seems some heat has fallen off Mr. Katy Perry. Meanwhile, Ben Stiller continues to be a moneymaker (at least when you stick him in mainstream fare). "Little Fockers," as wretched as it was, still made over $300 million worldwide. "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian"? More than $400 million around the globe. So it's no surprise that the folks behind the gestating movie version of the TV show "Rentaghost" would prefer one name much more than the other.
Read More »
More: Actors, Films, Rentaghost, Russell Brand, Ben Stiller

Follow Us

Email Updates

What's Poppin'

Recent Comments

Blog Roll

Around The Network

the network

indiewire

categories