The Playlist

Guillermo Del Toro Says Alfonso Cuarón's Plans For 'Gravity' Are 5 Years Ahead Of Its Time

By Kevin Jagernauth
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August 15, 2011 8:03 AM
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10 Comments

Filmmaker Also Says Cuaron Has Consulted James Cameron & David FincherWe're not going to recount the long journey Alfonso Cuarón has taken to get "Gravity" made, but needless to say after original lead actress Angelina Jolie bailed, the film seemed on the verge of collapsing before Sandra Bullock stepped in. The picture then looked like it might be dashed against the rocks when co-star Robert Downey Jr. had to exit the project to film “The Avengers,” but then George Clooney came aboard to rescue it in late 2010. Well, with the film now in production with a release date set for late next year, it's now a matter of seeing if the all the drama and waiting will be worth the hype, and according to Guillermo Del Toro, it will be.

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Guillermo Del Toro Says PG-13 Is The Refuge Of Cowards

By Cory Everett
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August 10, 2011 2:46 AM
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1 Comment

How The Weinsteins Messed With 'Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark' & More From The Filmmakers On The Horror RemakeOn Monday night, the Film Society Of Lincoln Center hosted a screening of “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark” as part of their Film Comment Selects series. The Guillermo del Toro-produced horror film is a remake of a 1973 made-for-TV film about a young couple being pursued by malevolent creatures in a spooky old house they’ve inherited. The new version swaps in Guy Pearce and Katie Holmes as interior decorators renovating an old house and gives Pearce’s character an 11-year-old daughter, Bailee Madison (“Brothers”), who ends up the subject of most of the torment.

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Ex-'The Hobbit' Actor Rob Kazinsky Joins Guillermo Del Toro's 'Pacific Rim,' Willem Dafoe In Talks

By Oliver Lyttelton
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July 29, 2011 1:40 AM
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4 Comments

If you're cast in a major blockbuster, only to be replaced publicly, it can be hard to get your career back on track again. Stuart Townsend, for instance, shot scenes as Aragorn in "Lord of the Rings," before Peter Jackson decided he was too young, and replaced him with Viggo Mortensen. Townsend's heat remained for a little while -- he was the lead in "Queen of the Damned," and one of "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," but, well, we know what happened to those, and Townsend hasn't had much luck in recent years. Dougray Scott, meanwhile, was meant to play Wolverine in Bryan Singer's "X-Men," but had to bow out when "Mission Impossible 2" ran over, and was last seen starring in British rom-com "Love's Kitchen," which took a whopping £121 on its opening weekend in the U.K (although, in fairness, he's playing Arthur Miller in "My Week With Marilyn," which could start a comeback).

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Max Martini On Board 'Pacific Rim'; Emory Cohen Joins 'Place Beyond The Pines'

By Simon Dang
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July 27, 2011 3:41 AM
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4 Comments

Boston Rapper Slaine Also A Part Of 'Cogan's Trade'A couple casting tidbits on a few projects we've been keeping a very keen eye on.

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Guillermo Del Toro Says He Wants ‘Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark’ To Scare Your Kids Silly

By Jeff Otto
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July 27, 2011 3:15 AM
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1 Comment

The Director Talks About Finding New Talent At Comic-Con, His Fear Of Repeating The Mistakes Of 'Mimic,' What Still Scares Him & More Guillermo del Toro is a likable guy, plain and simple. He’s a fan first, as he will quickly tell you, and eager to discuss anything he's got going whether it's acquisition for his Bleak House man cave (his collection of stuff is so big he needed a second house to hold it) to the next project he’s directing or producing.

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Disney-fied: Jon Favreau Talks 'Magic Kingdom' & Guillermo Del Toro Discusses 'Haunted Mansion'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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July 22, 2011 6:26 AM
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0 Comments

Comic-Con '11: Del Toro Says He "Wishes" He Was Making Marvel's 'Dr. Strange,' Plus Talk On 'Pinocchio,' 'Pacific Rim' & MoreAfter a long day of panels from a variety of studios and filmmakers, Jon Favreau and Guillermo del Toro took the stage in Hall H for Entertainment Weekly’s annual “Visionaries” panel, where the two filmmakers talked about their upcoming projects, traded insights and endlessly complimented one another. Like other honorees from past years, such as J.J. Abrams, Peter Jackson and Joss Whedon, Favreau and del Toro tapped into their personal fandom as they talked about their professional futures, offering a fun and insightful portrait of their working methods.

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Comic-Con '11: Guillermo Del Toro & Ron Perlman Keep Hope Alive For "Epic, Gigantic" 'Hellboy 3'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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July 22, 2011 1:25 AM
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0 Comments

Ron Perlman Hints That He'll Be In 'Pacific Rim'Of the many, many, many projects Guillermo Del Toro has in various states of development, the one fans tend to ask about the most is "Hellboy 3." So no surprise that at the FilmDistrict panel this afternoon at Comic-Con, where Del Toro was talking up "Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark," the subject once again came up and while it doesn't look like it's on the immediate horizon -- Del Toro has "Pacific Rim" to work on -- it does sound like an idea gnawing at the back of their minds.

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Comic-Con '11: Nicolas Winding Refn Says Getting His Cast Together For 'Drive' Was "Like Sex"

By Kevin Jagernauth
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July 21, 2011 11:02 AM
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4 Comments

Panels and press conferences are pretty straightforward: get together the cast and crew, show some footage and answer some questions. But the folks at FilmDistrict had a bit of a light bulb "Eureka!" moment, deciding to pair up their films "Drive" and "Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark" in one panel and let two very chatty folks in Nicolas Winding Refn and Guillermo Del Toro share the stage and the result was one of the most entertaining panels of this still young Comic-Con, providing enough quips and quotes to fill a phone book. So here are some of the highlights.

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'Tree Of Life' Star Jessica Chastain To Star In Guillermo Del Toro-Produced Horror 'Mama'

By Oliver Lyttelton
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July 20, 2011 1:35 AM
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0 Comments

It feels like Jessica Chastain is a name that we've been hearing about for years now, without much evidence to go by in terms of released movies. But now that we've seen her in a leading role in Terrence Malick's "The Tree of Life," we understand why she's such a hot property: she's a terrific, luminous actress. And 2011 will continue to be a massive year for her, as she has another seven films on the way: playing the young Helen Mirren in "The Debt"; starring in the acclaimed Sundance drama "Take Shelter"; popping up Ralph Fiennes' "Coriolanus," teaming with Al Pacino in "Wilde Salome," featuring alongside Emma Stone in "The Help," taking a part in John Hillcoat's "The Wettest County In The World," and appearing with Sam Worthington and Chloe Moretz in cop drama "Texas Killing Fields." Whew. As for 2012, she's got a small role in Malick's next picture (presuming it comes out next year), and she's just signed on to something that sounds very different, a film with a rising Spanish director, and produced by one of the biggest names in the genre world.

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