Thompson on Hollywood

Del Toro's DreamWorks Deal and Trollhunters, Jackson Fights Unions on Hobbit

- Guillermo del Toro, back from promoting two productions at the Toronto Film Festival--Julia's Eyes and Biutiful (the official Mexican submission for the foreign Oscar)--is now working closely as a consultant and exec producer with DreamWorks Animation. He will help out on Kung Fu Panda 2, Puss in Boots and another TBA project as well as Trollhunters, which he will write and direct.

By Sophia Savage
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September 28, 2010 6:21 AM
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Weekend Box Office: Inception Beats Dinner for Schmucks, Charlie St. Cloud

In its third go-round, Inception, buoyed by repeat business, continued to stave off all challengers, including the comedy Dinner for Schmucks, which scored a robust $23.3 million, and the Zac Efron weepy Charlie St. Cloud and animated sequel Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore, which were both DOA. Anthony D'Alessandro does the numbers.

By Anthony D'Alessandro
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August 1, 2010 4:08 AM
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Craig Nails Down Girl with Dragon Tattoo and Sequels

As I watched Daniel Craig at Comic-Con and the footage from Jon Favreau's Cowboys and Aliens, I crossed my fingers that he would play Mikael Blomqvist in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. And sure enough, Deadline reports that the deal is done.

By Anne Thompson
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July 26, 2010 8:21 AM
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DreamWorks' Katzenberg Packs Animated Pics with Celebs

James Sims reviews Nicole LaPorte's new book The Men Who Would Be King: An almost epic tale of moguls, movies, and a company called DreamWorks and agrees with me that of the founding troica, Steven Spielberg, David Geffen and Jeffrey Katzenberg, LaPorte gives the latter the worst appraisal of the three. While Katzenberg came off great just five years ago in James Stewart's book Disney War and in this year's hagiographic insider-documentary Waking Sleeping Beauty which covers the Katzenberg golden Disney years that yielded his career peak, the $700-million-grossing The Lion King, LaPorte and Sims are both more critical. Here's Sims:

By James Sims
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June 4, 2010 6:41 AM
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Weekend Box Office: Shrek 4 Stumbles, MacGruber Flops

In its fourth go-round, DreamWorks Animation's latest Shrek installment stumbled on its opening weekend, grossing an estimated $71.25 million, marking a probable end to the lucrative franchise. Anthony D'Alessandro does the numbers.

By Anthony D'Alessandro
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May 23, 2010 4:32 AM
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News Update: Grand Ole Opry Flooded, Spielberg Picks War Horse, Stone Tours South America

Flood damage to the Grand Ole Opry House was reportedly topic number one in the Nashville music community Monday. At least three feet of water encroached on the historic venue, whose stage is considered hallowed ground in country music. This weekend's shows have been relocated to the Ryman Auditorium downtown, an equally revered venue that fortunately was unaffected. Heavy rains and the rising waters of the Cumberland River devastated middle Tennessee over the weekend.

By Amy Dawes
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May 4, 2010 1:26 AM
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DreamWorks Tell-All Exposes Katzenberg Shrek Bail-Out

Ex-Variety reporter Nicole LaPorte, now writing for The Daily Beast, shares some of what she went through to write her new book about DreamWorks, The Men Who Would Be King. The problem: Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen --three very powerful Hollywood moguls---actively worked against LaPorte, refusing to grant interviews and lobbying others to do the same:

By Anne Thompson
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April 30, 2010 2:59 AM
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How to Train Your Dragon Unseats 3D Rival Alice in Wonderland

How to Train Your Dragon (Metascore 73 %) finally unseats holdover Alice in Wonderland at the weekend box office, reports TOH's Anthony D'Alessandro, with Hot Tub Time Machine (Tomatometer 63%) coming in third:

By Anthony D'Alessandro
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March 28, 2010 4:09 AM
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Disney's Aviv Exits as Ross Relies on DreamWorks

It's deja vu all over again. A studio in management upheaval. A new studio head recruited from TV being directed to reinvent the wheel by a boss who is a film biz outsider.

By Anne Thompson
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January 13, 2010 12:22 AM
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Trailer Watch: How to Train Your Dragon

While most folks would pick Pixar over Dreamworks animation any day, Jeffrey Katzenberg does know how to craft accessible commercial movies like Madagascar and Shrek (the fourth installment is in the works under live-action director Mike Mitchell). But I am hearing good buzz on How to Train Your Dragon, set in the world of the Vikings, which hits theaters March 10 in several 3-D formats, including IMAX. Some elements are familiar: our young hero proves his manhood by riding a flying banshee--er, dragon. (Slashfilm has doubts.)