The Playlist

Tom Cruise Reportedly Held Scientology Auditions For Wives, Director Paul Haggis Expresses Support For Allegations

By Charlie Schmidlin
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September 4, 2012 12:19 PM
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9 Comments

News

Along with the requisite comments on shooting in 70mm and Joaquin Phoenix's return to cinema screens, cast and crew from “The Master” have by and large counted the film's Scientology parallels as the main source of discussion. The concentration of questions has lessened somewhat as subsequent press showings of the film have revealed a different focus entirely, but just as the pressure subsides for PTA and co., leave it to Tom Cruise to stir up speculation on Scientology once more, this time regarding the process surrounding his past marital courting.

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Liam Neeson & Olivia Wilde To Star In Paul Haggis' Romantic Drama 'Third Person'; Jude Law Rumored For Role As Well

By Simon Dang
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April 4, 2012 2:52 PM
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2 Comments

News

Lately, writer-director Paul Haggis has been developing a few gestating projects, and one of them looks like to have firmed up as his follow-up to the largely unsuccessful prison escape actioner "The Next Three Days," which starred Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks.

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Martin Campbell Replaces Joe Carnahan On The Thriller 'Umbra,' Paul Haggis Will Rewrite Script

By Kevin Jagernauth
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January 6, 2012 4:56 PM
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2 Comments

News

It seems like ancient history, and it kind of is, but way back in 2010 Joe Carnahan signed on to direct the thriller "Umbra." The project had been kicking around awhile – and once was set to be a Roger Donaldson/Nicolas Cage vehicle, but they made the terrible-looking "Seeking Justice" instead – but it continued to sit on the backburner, as Carnahan went off and shot his upcoming man vs. nature vs. Liam Neeson tale "The Grey." Well, the project has changed hands once again, falling into the lap of someone who needs a serious rebound.

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Paul Haggis To Direct Political Drama 'Paris'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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January 4, 2012 6:20 PM
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5 Comments

News

It's been a while since we've heard anything from Paul Haggis. He spent most of 2011 under the radar, with his name only popping up in connection with a potential franchise over at Universal based on the spy books by Daniel Silva. But it looks like Haggis' next paying gig is coming from his native land in the true north strong and free.

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Paul Haggis Gets His Own Spy Franchise, Adapting Daniel Silva's Ex-Mossad Agent Gabriel Allon

By Oliver Lyttelton
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June 24, 2011 1:18 AM
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2 Comments

To his credit, Paul Haggis has not used the fact that his coming-out party as director, "Crash" won Best Picture at the Academy Awards, to churn out a series of Oscar-bait films. Instead, the "Due South" creator has mostly stuck to the kind of middlebrow thrillers to which he's suited, ranging from the superior ("In The Valley Of Elah", "Casino Royale") to the ridiculous ("Quantum of Solace," "The Next Three Days").

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Paul Haggis Says He's Not Collaborating On Scientology Exposé

By The Playlist
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January 17, 2011 3:41 AM
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6 Comments

Author Confirms The Director's Non-Involvement With The Writing, But Book Will Still Focus On Haggis' Experiences With The ChurchSo filmmaker Paul Haggis (“Crash”) is prepping a tell-all exposé about his years as a member of the Church of Scientology, right? Only, he's not. And this must be how scurrilous rumors get started because author Lawrence Wright recently rejected the reports that claimed the "The Next Three Days" director would be a major collaborator on his upcoming novel-length explication of the church.

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Paul Haggis Prepping Tell-All Exposé About His Years In Scientology

By Kevin Jagernauth
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January 6, 2011 5:00 AM
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9 Comments

Gives Up Dream To Ever Work With Tom CruiseAfter 35 years as a devoted follower to wacky fake religion/cult Scientology, director Paul Haggis left in a blaze of glory in 2009. Following the group's inaction after a San Diego branch supported Prop 8, Haggis penned an angry screed that ended up online, denouncing the group for their empty promises in dealing with the situation. And it looks like Haggis isn't quite done taking down his former faith just yet.

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Amnesty International, Paul Haggis, Sean Penn & Harvey Weinstein Team To Support Iranian Filmmakers

By Kevin Jagernauth
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December 28, 2010 8:02 AM
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0 Comments

Director Paul Haggis, actor Sean Penn and super producer Harvey Weinstein have teamed with British-Iranian actress and Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) spokesperson Nazanin Boniadi to raise awareness and speak out against the harsh sentences recently imposed on Iranian filmmakers Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof.

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Martin Scorsese, Paul Haggis & Film Community Rallying Around Jailed Iranian Filmmakers

By Kevin Jagernauth
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December 23, 2010 9:24 AM
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1 Comment

As the movie community puts together their best and worst lists, and gathers around to watch their new BluRays delivered by Santa, they are also taking a moment to think about jailed Iranian filmmakers Jafar Panahi and Muhammad Rasoulof and encourage their colleagues to join in the number of petitions calling for their release.

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Review: 'Next Three Days' Is Paul Haggis Trying/Failing to Make Muscular Entertainment

By Drew Taylor
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November 16, 2010 5:20 AM
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0 Comments

The true test of any director's dexterity and creativity lies with their ability to successfully tackle a myriad of genres. It's enough to be "good enough" in one highly specified field, but to be able to grapple with different subject matters is truly remarkable. Certainly Danny Boyle is a great contemporary example of this, as he's been able to tackle disparate genres like the zombie thriller ("28 Days Later") and heady science fiction epic ("Sunshine"), all the while able to slip back into humanist dramas like "Slumdog Millionaire" and this fall's "127 Hours." (Steven Soderbergh is another notable, current example of an itchy genre experimentalist.)

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