Thompson on Hollywood

Who Should Direct Bond 24? Take Our Poll

Features

Now that Sam Mendes has dropped out of directing "Bond 24," who should helm the follow-up to the billion-dollar "Skyfall"? The new MI6 table's been set with M (Ralph Fiennes), Q (Ben Whishaw), and Moneypenny (Naomie Harris), and with no more rites of passage or existential crises to deal with, Daniel Craig's 007 is now fully formed and reporting for duty "with pleasure."

By Anne Thompson and Bill Desowitz
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March 7, 2013 4:17 PM
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Zemeckis to Warm Up 'Death Becomes Her' at Bravo. Why?

News

NBCUniversal cable channel Bravo is set to remake Bob Zemeckis's 1992 Universal film "Death Becomes Her" as a one-hour TV movie. I am mystified as to why. Zemeckis, whose new deal is at Universal, will exec produce the drama along with Jack Rapke and Jackie Levine for producer Universal Cable Prods. and Lupara Prods., who will be looking for a writer, reports Variety.

By Anne Thompson
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December 7, 2012 2:34 PM
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Immersed in Movies: Zemeckis Talks 'Flight' and the 'Digital Stew'

Interviews

While "Flight" marks Robert Zemeckis' return to live-action, he rejects the notion that he spent the last decade wandering in the virtual woods with performance capture. In fact, the Oscar-winning director likes to quote Francois Truffaut in explaining that his movies have always been about "truth and spectacle." In "Flight," we get both, of course, with a harrowing plane crash, and a riveting performance from Denzel Washington as an alcoholic airline pilot forced to confront his personal demons when his heroics turn against him. Indeed, Zemeckis maintains that the real spectacle was navigating the dramatic ambiguity of Washington's crucible.

By Bill Desowitz
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November 2, 2012 4:21 PM
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Weekend Recap: Zemeckis and Brad Grey Talk 'Flight,' John C. Reilly on 'Wreck-It Ralph,' and Murdoch Courts Penguin (Updated)

News

The New York Times interviews Robert Zemeckis about his return to live-action movies with "Flight," his first since "Cast Away" in 2000. “Everyone keeps thinking I haven’t made a movie in 12 years,” the director behind "Back to the Future," "Forrest Gump," and "The Polar Express" said.

By Maggie Lange
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October 29, 2012 6:34 AM
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'Flight' Review; Zemeckis, Washington and Cheadle Talk at NYFF Press Conference (VIDEO)

Festivals

Denzel Washington waltzed in late to the press conference following the NYFF screening of the Robert Zemeckis-directed "Flight." The audience didn't mind of course, because he's Denzel: His appearance prompted wild applause which immediately drowned out the voice of screenwriter John Gatins.

By Sheerly Avni
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October 14, 2012 3:59 PM
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Washington to Star in Zemeckis's Flight for Paramount

Denzel Washington will topline director Robert Zemeckis's return to live action filmmaking, Flight, for Paramount and producers Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald under Zemeckis, Steve Starkey and Jack Rapke's ImageMovers banner. It's the first pairing for the star and the director. The movie is set to begin shooting this October in Atlanta, GA.

By Anne Thompson
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September 9, 2011 10:28 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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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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News Wrap: Hamm Talks Mad Men, Hanks Releases New Larry Crowne Trailer, In Talks with Zemeckis

“I think it should end. Everything should end.” So states Mad Men star Jon Hamm in this interview with the BBC, during which he also criticized AMC studio bosses for the hold up of Mad Men’s fifth season: “When billionaires fight it tends to take a lot longer than when normal people do."

By Maggie Lange
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June 13, 2011 5:35 AM
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Holiday Movie Wrap: Avatar Beats Sherlock Holmes, Nine Flops

Over the holiday weekend, the two most popular topics on my Twitter feed were Avatar and Sherlock Holmes. While there was debate on Sherlock Holmes's merits, most of my tweeters approved of Cameron's blockbuster (as did critics--it scored 83 on both Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic). Avatar looks to challenge, if not beat, Titanic's box office records, based on its extraordinary performance in North America so far: $75 million over the holiday and $212 million to date. (Here's the LAT's box office report, and David Poland's analysis.)