Thompson on Hollywood

Peter Morgan Talks Clint Eastwood's Hereafter, James Bond, Freddy Mercury, 360, and Tony Blair

Screenwriter Peter Morgan is unusual: a Brit based in Vienna, he's a prolific writer of self-generated screenplays, and not so often a writer-for-hire. (He's been nominated for two Oscars, for The Queen, an original, and Frost/Nixon, adapted from his play.) Hereafter is an unusual original, even for him, written in a "disgracefully short period," he says. After Steven Spielberg flirted with it, Clint Eastwood scooped it up and shot it without making any changes. Morgan still isn't sure how he feels about it. Would he have liked to work on it more, or is the movie as good as it is because it's idiosyncratic, not polished, and emotionally raw? (The movie opened well this weekend; Metacritic rates it at 56.) The script weaves together three stories about people trying to reach the hereafter--or in the case of the character played by Matt Damon, avoiding it.

By Anne Thompson
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October 24, 2010 11:48 AM
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MGM's Future Comes Due: Spyglass Closing Deal

Time is running out on MGM, which has staved off six debt payments and owes another in September.

By Anne Thompson
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August 10, 2010 12:15 PM
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MGM in Flux, Jackson Wants Hobbits, Weinsteins Lose Library, Ortenberg to Apparition

There's a lot going on in Hollywood this summer, as the economy and DVD declines continue to take their toll on several struggling distributors, from MGM and Lionsgate to the Weinstein Co., Overture and Apparition. MGM is in flux, as it struggles to pull itself back from the brink of bankruptcy and figure out a way to get The Hobbit films made with Peter Jackson at the helm. But whether that's possible is still the question. MGM needs help.

By Anne Thompson
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June 25, 2010 7:33 AM
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Cameron Speculation, Bond Stall Releases Craig and Mendes, Perry Loses Carey, Nolan Loves Bond

In the constant push for site traffic, James Cameron provides a reliable news headline, what with the BP "morons" thing, and the lingering impact of the ultimate blockbuster, the 3D Avatar. The tiniest indication of directional change for Cameron's next project is enough to fuel endless speculation.

By Cameron Carlson
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June 4, 2010 9:26 AM
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The Hobbit and Next James Bond Await MGM Picks to Run Studio

With MGM creditors calling the shots and debating the future of the studio with MGM management, the cold reality is that no one is going to buy MGM at the valuation the studio needs as it copes with its $3.7 billion debt load. Thus the next phase of MGM's reorganization will likely involve bringing in some entity to exchange some debt for equity and run the studio. Top of the list of possible partners are Spyglass, Summit and the guy who thought up this solution, Amir Malin of Qualia Capital, a private media and entertainment equity fund. He made an offer to infuse MGM with some $500 million to run a lean operation in hopes that the economy and Wall Street would eventually improve.

By Anne Thompson
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May 28, 2010 6:22 AM
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Alice To Pass $1 Billion, Hollywood for Sale, Bale Talking Hillcoat Flick

-Disney's Alice in Wonderland will cross the $1 billion worldwide box-office threshold tomorrow, marking the sixth movie to do so and a record for a springtime release. With over $332 million domestic and $667 million foreign, Alice in Wonderland is Disney's second-highest grosser behind Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest ($1.07 billion worldwide).

By Sophia Savage
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May 26, 2010 3:25 AM
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Bond 23 Update: Sam Mendes in Talks to Direct

When your career needs a boost and there are few available top-dollar jobs: take a franchise.

By Anne Thompson
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January 5, 2010 11:20 AM
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Bond Producers Put Number 23 On Hold

Writer Peter Morgan (The Queen) worked on a first draft of Bond 23 that he described as a "shocking story" from July until October last year, followed by regular writers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade. But EON Productions has put pre-production work on the film on hold pending the resolution of distributor MGM's sale, reports Bond site Mi6. Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli told Total Film Magazine: "Our timeline's a little up in the air what with the situation at MGM, so we have to be flexible. We just don't know enough about the situation to comment, but we know it's uncertain."

By Anne Thompson
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January 5, 2010 12:15 AM
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Father's Day Faves

Like Kris Tapley, my father turned me into a cinephile. (Cineaste, as Dave Kehr is wont to point out, is strictly reserved for filmmakers.) Raising two (and later three) kids in Manhattan, my father took us to the movies every weekend at the local movie houses: the Riverside and Riviera, Symphony, Nemo, Olympia, Thalia and New Yorker.

By Anne Thompson
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June 16, 2009 1:09 AM
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John Carter of Mars' Stars, James Bond's Writers

Pixar writer-director Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo, Wall-E) is moving forward at Disney with his live-action debut John Carter of Mars, which he adapted from the Edgar Rice Burroughs Martian novels. The materials I've seen on James Cameron's Avatar remind me of this alternate world set on another planet. And in both stories, an American visits this faraway place full of strange creatures.