The Playlist

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

Interviews

Todd Phillips Replaces Martin Scorsese As Director Of 'The Gambler'

By Edward Davis
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August 20, 2012 6:59 PM
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4 Comments

News

It appears director Todd Phillips is about to get serious for the first time after he's done with his upcoming comedy trilogy. In a surprise announcement, and what will be the first dramatic feature-length effort of his career, THR is reporting that Phillips is taking over "The Gambler" from Martin Scorsese and will make it his first post-"The Hangover Part III" project.

By Todd Gilchrist
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November 13, 2011 12:30 PM
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5 Comments

News

Looking at William Monahan’s body of work, it’s hard to determine which is more impressive, what he’s already done, or what he has coming up. “Kingdom of Heaven” was his first produced screenplay, and that was followed by Martin Scorsese’s Oscar-winner “The Departed” and Ridley Scott’s Middle East opus “Body of Lies.” He has a number projects in the works after the release of his directorial debut, “London Boulevard” -- starring Colin Farrell and Keira Knightley -- which arrives in theaters this weekend, and those include writing duties on “Sin City 2” for director Robert Rodriguez and “The Gambler” for Scorsese. The Playlist caught up with Monahan recently for a conversation about “London Boulevard,” and he offered a detailed, no-holds-barred portrait of his creative process, examining the film’s influences, artistic aspirations, and even some of its shortcomings. Additionally, he discussed the film in the context of his increasingly eclectic career, and talked about how he wants to continue to wear multiple hats as a screenwriter producer and director.

By Simon Dang
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October 18, 2011 2:20 AM
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5 Comments

U.S. Trailer For 'London Boulevard' Arrives; Also Says He'll Channel Frank Miller For 'Sin City 2'Despite only five films next to his name, William Monahan is one of the most renowned writers in Hollywood. After taking home the Oscar for his screenplay for Martin Scorsese's "The Departed" half a decade a ago, Monahan now has his hands on more projects than you can shake a stick at. He recently spoke at length to Collider about his upcoming slate namely the long-gestating, much-talked-about sequel to Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez's "Sin City," which he recently came on board to rewrite.

By Kevin Jagernauth
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August 29, 2011 1:19 AM
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2 Comments

Just as the east coast was going to bed and/or gearing up for Hurricane Irene and the west coast was gearing up to go out on the town, it was announced that "The Departed" trifecta of director Martin Scorsese, writer William Monahan and star Leonardo DiCaprio were all taking on a remake of Karel Reisz‘s 1974 film “The Gambler.” If you missed the news, don't worry, you're not the only one as that film's writer James Toback, was only hipped to the project thanks to housemate Brett Ratner (yes, they apparently live together). Needless to say, he was pissed.