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Benjamin Walker, Tom Hiddleston, Lily Collins, Bella Heathcote & Jessica Brown Findlay Testing For Akiva Goldsman's 'Winter's Tale'

  • By Benjamin Wright
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  • February 29, 2012 10:25 AM
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  • 3 Comments
News
While he may draw the critical scorn of fanboys everywhere with even the mention of his name, and rightfully so after penning the screenplays for the weak “Batman Forever” and disastrous “Batman & Robin,” screenwriter Akiva Goldsman still holds a lot of clout in Hollywood. That’s what one earns when they write behemoth blockbusters that span multiple genres, such as “I Am Legend” or “A Beautiful Mind,” as well as help usher in franchises with the likes of “The Da Vinci Code.” It was reported all the way back in February of 2011 that Goldsman would be lensing his directorial debut “Winter’s Tale," but at the beginning of this month it looked as if Goldsman called in some favors to his famous friends after the production hit some budgetary speed bumps, landing “I Am Legend” star Will Smith and “A Beautiful Mind” actor Russell Crowe in supporting roles. About $20 million was shaved off the budget and the project gained some much needed steam, so it pays to have friends in high places.
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More: Winter's Tale, Benjamin Walker, Tom Hiddleston, Lily Collins, Bella Heathcote, Jessica Brown-Findlay, Akiva Goldsman, Will Smith, Russell Crowe

Barry Sonnenfeld Says Shooting 'Men In Black 3' Without A Third Act Ready Might Have Been "A Really Stupid Idea"

  • By Joe Cunningham
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  • February 29, 2012 9:00 AM
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  • 8 Comments
News
If you've been following the production of "Men In Black III" to any small degree, you'll know it has been somewhat of a debacle. Despite it being a decade since the last outing for Agent J and Agent K in a vastly inferior sequel to the original movie, it was decided that a third outing would be a good idea. We think the studio logic here is that if you put Will Smith in it, they will come. The saga of the development of the film is a long one, but here's the condensed version:
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More: Barry Sonnenfeld, Men In Black 3, Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, Josh Brolin

So, That 'I Am Legend' Sequel Is Becoming Possibly More Real As Warner Bros. Officially Moves Forward

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
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  • February 17, 2012 12:10 PM
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  • 2 Comments
News
Warner Bros. has made a shocking, stunning announcement today that they would like to continue making lots of money by making a sequel to a hit movie. No. Fucking. Way.
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More: Will Smith, Warner Bros. , Akiva Goldsman, I Am Legend

Will Smith & Russell Crowe Take Supporting Roles In Akiva Goldsman's Directorial Debut 'Winter's Tale'

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
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  • February 1, 2012 3:28 PM
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  • 4 Comments
News
It pays to have friends in high places. One year ago, it was announced that screenwriter, producer and frequent Ron Howard collaborator Akiva Goldsman ("A Beautiful Mind," "Cinderella Man," "Batman Forever," "Batman And Robin") was gearing up his directorial debut "Winter's Tale" at Warner Bros. with a $75 million budget and a spring shoot being planned for this year. Well, Goldsman had some trouble getting the project movie and it took some favors to keep it alive.
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More: Will Smith, Russell Crowe, Winter's Tale

Peter Berg Reveals Will Smith Tossing Around Ideas For A 'Hancock' Sequel

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
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  • January 18, 2012 5:01 PM
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  • 0 Comments
News
This idea of a "Hancock" sequel has been kicking around for a while, and while the movie isn't exactly one of the more memorable blockbusters in recent memory, the bottom line is that it took in over $600 million worldwide. Not bad for a movie about a made up superhero who is also kind of an asshole. Back in 2009, director Peter Berg boldly proclaimed, "Everybody's going to come back for a sequel," noting he had a new super villain in the works. "We have [someone in mind]. I'm not gonna tell you who, but we have!" Well, nothing came to pass, but it seems there is still an effort underway.
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More: Peter Berg, Will Smith, Hancock

Clove From 'Hunger Games' Joins Will & Jaden Smith In M. Night Shyamalan's 'After Earth' (aka '1000 A.E.')

  • By Kevin Jagernauth
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  • January 11, 2012 5:23 PM
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  • 1 Comment
News
Soon-to-be fifteen year old actress Isabelle Fuhrman is carving out quite a career for herself. She first came to notice as the creepy Esther in the horror flick "Orphan," went the indie route for "Salvation Boulevard" and this spring she'll feature in her first major tentpole with "The Hunger Games" playing Clove. And it looks like she's impressing the right people and she'll join one of the biggest movie stars on the planet -- and his son -- in another futurist tale.
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More: Isabelle Fuhrman, One Thousand A.E., After Earth, Will Smith, Jaden Smith, M. Night Shyamalan, Sophie Okonedo, Zoë Kravitz

Watch: Josh Brolin Nails His Tommy Lee Jones Impression In First Trailer For 'Men In Black 3'

  • By Oliver Lyttelton
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  • December 12, 2011 7:10 AM
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  • 13 Comments
News
Of all the big tentpole pictures of next year, none seems to have had a more troubled production than "Men in Black 3." The first film in the series, in 1997, was an enjoyable sci-fi comedy, but it took five years to get a sequel together,  and when "Men In Black 2" hit theaters in 2002, virtually no-one was impressed with an unfunny reprise of the original. Ten years on, Will Smith's picked the franchise to be his return to the screen after an absence of four years, but the film had problems of its own; the project was greenlit with only one act of the sequel complete to take advantager of NYC tax breaks, but Will Smith allegedly tinkered with the script, with two more writers, Jeff Nathanson and David Koepp, brought on to fix things during an extended hiatus, while the budget soared up to $215 million, and Alec Baldwin was forced to drop out of a role when shooting didn't restart on time.
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More: Men In Black 3, Barry Sonnenfeld, Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Emma Thompson

Zoe Kravitz & Sophie Okonedo In Talks To Join Will & Jaden Smith In M. Night Shyamalan's '1000 A.E.'

  • By Oliver Lyttelton
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  • December 6, 2011 9:04 AM
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  • 3 Comments
News
Looking back at the blockbusters of this year, it's pretty much whiter than a dinner party at Mel Gibson's house. Bar the occasional token supporting role, like Derek Luke's five lines in "Captain America: The First Avenger," Idris Elba stealing the show in "Thor" or David Oyelowo's villian in "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," the cast (and indeed principle crew) of the biggest movies of the year have mostly been depressingly omni-ethnic, a sad reflection that international audiences still, on the whole, don't turn out to see black actors in lead roles. And that's why, whatever misgivings we might have about a new M. Night Shyamalan film, the casting for his next effort is at least a little refreshing.
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More: M. Night Shyamalan, One Thousand A.E., Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Zoë Kravitz, Sophie Okonedo

'Traffic' Oscar-Winner Stephen Gaghan Polishes M. Night Shyamalan's Will Smith Vehicle 'One Thousand A.E.'

  • By Oliver Lyttelton
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  • November 11, 2011 9:41 AM
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  • 4 Comments
News
Of the many, many problems of the recent output of M. Night Shyamalan, perhaps first among them is that he's simply not as good a writer as he is a director. He handles the early parts of "Signs" with a disciplined tautness worthy of Spielberg, but throws it away on a teeth-grittingly nonsensical 'God has a plan' ending. He writes himself into "Lady in the Water" as a soon-to-be-martyred author whose work will eventually lead to world peace. He printed out "The Happening" and sent it to his agent, rather than putting it in a box, setting fire to the box, taking the ashes and putting them in a lead-sealed concrete vault a mile underground, as he should have done.
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More: Stephen Gaghan, One Thousand A.E., Jaden Smith, Will Smith, M. Night Shyamalan

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