Thompson on Hollywood

Lone Ranger: Inflated Budget Drama Pits Risk-Averse Disney Against Verbinski Loyalist Depp UPDATE

UPDATE 9/29: The Lone Ranger is set to ride again, with budget issues being worked out between the studio and director Gore Verbinski and his loyal star, Johnny Depp. Deadline has the good news details (though an official announcement is yet to be made).

By Anne Thompson and Sophia Savage
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September 1, 2011 11:06 AM
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Telluride 2011: Lineup Includes Descendants, Albert Nobbs, Dangerous Method and The Artist

Festivals

The annual LA to Montrose charter flight was packed with the usual suspects Thursday (plus first-timers Tilda Swinton and Penelope Ann Miller), who opened up their copies of The Telluride Watch, one per seat, and eagerly checked out the line-up.

By Anne Thompson
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September 1, 2011 10:38 AM
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Trailer Watch: Johnny Depp Reunites with Hunter S. Thompson

One of the movies that is not hitting the fall fest circuit this year is The Rum Diary, Bruce Robinson's long-delayed film adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson's semi-autobiographical novel. The new trailer (below, which will be attached to new release Don't Be Afraid of the Dark) begins with a burp. FilmDistrict opens the film October 28.

By Maggie Lange
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August 26, 2011 4:40 AM
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Studios Rethink Big-Budget Producers and Their Pricey Tentpoles--and Westerns

Blame Cowboys & Aliens.

By Anne Thompson
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August 19, 2011 3:14 AM
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Johnny Depp and Pirates Crew Reinvent Western Lone Ranger, Tonto

Now that Cowboys & Aliens can be viewed as a too-pricey western tentpole wannabe, how does Disney feel about Jerry Bruckheimer's Lone Ranger going into pre-production? They've ditched "the," and buttressed themselves from criticism by staffing up with their tried-and-true --but pricey-- Pirates gang, now that #4 yielded a satisfactory $1.03 billion worldwide and Johnny Depp is considered a major movie star. Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio penned the script, rewritten by Justin Haythe. Gore Verbinski has worked with Depp four times, including the modestly successful but costly animated western Rango ($242.8 million worldwide to date). And what marquee loyalty does Depp command when he's not Jack Sparrow? Neither Sweeney Todd nor The Tourist was a slamdunk, topping out at $153.3 million and $278.7 million (mostly foreign) worldwide, respectively.

By Anne Thompson
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August 8, 2011 10:15 AM
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Paramount's Grey Gets Tough with DreamWorks Animation's Katzenberg, Launches Paramount Animation

One of the reasons that Paramount Pictures ventured into its first CG animated movie, Rango, with Gore Verbinski and ILM, was to back itself up in case Jeffrey Katzenberg's DreamWorks Animation chose not to renew its distribution deal, which expires at the end of 2012. Since 2000, when DreamWorks Animation was created out of DreamWorks SKG, the label's 20 releases have grossed more than $8.2 billion worldwide. This summer's Kung Fu Panda 2 has grossed $535 million worldwide. Katzenberg has been shopping for a new home; the most logical place is Warner Bros.; the other studios have their own animation units.

By Anne Thompson
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July 6, 2011 7:14 AM
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Greengrass May Commandeer Hanks in Somali Pirates Adaptation, Caribbean #5 Considers Next Director

Ahoy, pirates!

By Sophia Savage
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June 2, 2011 5:27 AM
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Dark Shadows Update: Tim Burton Confirms "Weird Tone," Not in 3-D; Director's Exhibit Opens at LACMA

Tim Burton fans in Los Angeles can rejoice now that his LACMA exhibit is open (more details below, and here's a slideshow). The Wrap took the chance to chat with the director at the exhibition's opening. Of his Dark Shadows adaptation (currently in production), Burton says, "we’re sort of getting right in there." He confirms the project has a "weird tone," and will be somewhat soap-opera-esque (like the 1960s TV show that precedes it), but adds:

By Sophia Savage
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May 31, 2011 4:57 AM
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Box Office Breaks Memorial Day Weekend Record, Hangover Part II Leads Holiday Surge

The 2011 box office slump is a distant memory as summer hit full stride with two mighty Memorial Day Weekend sequels, The Hangover Part II and Kung Fu Panda 2. Anthony D'Alessandro reports.Grossing $118.1 million in four days, Warner Bros.’ The Hangover Part II wasn't a drunken delusion, but a Memorial Day box office record worth remembering. Like a cup of coffee after an evening’s stupor, Hangover 2 jolted this year’s under-25 set wide awake as they spent an estimated $280 million overall at the cinema this weekend –an all-time record that surpasses 2007’s $255.6 million and puts 2010's atrocious $192.7 million Memorial Day B.O. out of mind.

By Anthony D'Alessandro
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May 29, 2011 2:42 AM
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Memorial Day Weekend: Will Hangover Part II Break Records?

The weekend box office is expected to continue at a torrid pace, reports Anthony D'Alessandro.Unlike last year, when Memorial Day weekend box office hit a nine-year low of $192.7 million, industry executives aren’t planning to shed tears this weekend. Building upon the box office recovery which began four weekends ago with Fast Five (current B.O. $188.1 million), Memorial Day looks to restore its boffo record-breaking glamour.