Thompson on Hollywood

Finke is Back: on Deadline, MCN, Film Comment and Tilda

As HBO's Tilda goes into production--and the show's inspiration, Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood, keeps hyping every piece of news (TV reporter Nellie Andreeva is obsessed with the show)--Finke is back from neck surgery that has impaired her vocal chords. Meanwhile, exhausted Deadline New York blogger Mike Fleming is taking a much-needed vacation. But at least Finke's trademark bile has returned to the blog, inflaming David Poland, and likely not for the last time. But he's right to suggest that Hollywood players often use Finke to advance their agendas.

By Anne Thompson
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June 11, 2010 1:10 AM
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Bourne #4, Green Lantern Sequel, Monsterpocalypse and Inception Spot

In Development: - Bourne #4 is coming. Tony Gilroy is back in the saddle to write The Bourne Legacy as a sequel, not prequel, to the franchise starring Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, as well as a "Bourne Bible." The film is not based on the book The Bourne Legacy (written by Eric Van Lustbader, not original novelist Robert Ludlum, who died in 2001) and is set for release in 2012. Damon says he won't do it unless director Paul Greengrass returns (Greengrass directed Ultimatum and Supremacy, while Doug Liman directed the 2002 kick-off The Bourne Identity). [Anne Thompson: I'd like to see Gilroy--in many ways the series' true creator, and a crackerjack director himself (Michael Clayton, Duplicity)-- do the honors. Would Damon work with him? After he sees the script, maybe.]

By Sophia Savage
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June 10, 2010 9:20 AM
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Entourage Movie in Works, Fassbender on the Rise, Weinsteins Grab Miral, Del Toro Posts on Hobbit

- Entourage producer Mark Wahlberg is turning the hit HBO series into a feature length film, MTV reports. The seventh season arrives in a few weeks, followed by six additional episodes in 2011. Wahlberg told Josh Horowitz: the show needs to end strong before making the movie, and he believes this is the best season yet. "I am more focused on making that movie than my own films."

By Sophia Savage
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June 8, 2010 4:54 AM
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PBC: Top Producers Dish on Lousy Filmmaking Present, Death of Drama and Cable Future

Amid the general doom and gloom for studios and indies alike, at this weekend's Produced By Conference, producers Mark Gordon, Marshall Herskovitz, Richard Zanuck, Larry Gordon, and Mark Johnson marked some cautious upbeat notes, reports Amy Dawes:

By Amy Dawes
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June 7, 2010 8:41 AM
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MTV Movie Awards: Bullock Should Have Kissed Betty White, Eclipse Clip, Cruise and JLo Dance

As I've said, most awards shows are about people promoting themselves. Wouldn't it be a great idea to get the three stars to intro the Twilight: Eclipse video? (It's below, along with clips from the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, The Last Airbender, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.) Let's have lovable wise-ass Betty White and hunk Bradley Cooper give embattled star Sandra Bullock an MTV Generation award and everyone will give her a standing ovation and then Bullock will kiss Scarlett Johansson (who has continued working out since she made Iron Man 2). I would have preferred Bullock to kiss White, who quipped, "Honey, don't you ever wear that dress backwards."

By Anne Thompson
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June 7, 2010 6:59 AM
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HBO's The Neistat Brothers Debuts June 4th

Fair to say, HBO's latest series The Neistat Brothers, which debuts on June 4th, is not like anything you have ever seen before.

By Sophia Savage
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June 1, 2010 7:51 AM
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Sheen Heads for Jail, Fuqua Biopics Shakur, Anderson Casts Scientology Film, Boardwalk Empire Pops

Charlie Sheen is choosing 30 days of jail time over probation, which was too risky, reports TMZ. In a plea bargain, Sheen will plead no contest to third-degree misdemeanor assault for hitting his wife Brooke Mueller on Christmas Day and immediately start to serve what will likely amount to 17 days in jail in Aspen, Colorado. He has to complete 36 hours of anger management before the hearing June 7. Mueller and Sheen both went into rehab following the incident, and Sheen took off time from his hit TV show Two and a Half Men. He'll get his time out of the way before filming begins in early August. The show has been renewed for two seasons; Sheen now earns a reported $2 million an episode.

By Sophia Savage
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June 1, 2010 4:04 AM
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Answering Questions about Lost, Assuming You Are Caught Up

From the very beginning with Lost, you hang onto the characters and Oscar-winner Michael Giacchino's score for dear life and suspend disbelief. It never did make any sense! (The NYorker profiles Oscar-winner Giacchino; see clip below.)

By Anne Thompson
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May 25, 2010 11:49 AM
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Sorkin's Facebook Script, Disney Calls Off Miramax-Weinstein Deal, Howard Stark in Tights

- The Daily Beast blogger Choire Sicha got hold of an unofficial copy of Aaron Sorkin's screenplay about Mark Zuckerberg which portrays the Facebook founder as a "selfish, sexist, back-stabber," writes Sicha. Zuckerberg and Facebook are no strangers to user discontent over site changes followed by apologetic reassurances. Sorkin's script follows Zuckerberg from his Harvard dorm days and doesn't make any excuses for him, portraying him as an angry, "maybe-shy but maybe-unfeeling, inhuman, awful, back-stabbing, shallow little code monkey with about as much insight into human relations as a poorly developed friend-recommending algorithm." The David Fincher film will be released in October. There's no need to feel sorry for Zuckerberg. As The Wrap points out, the current privacy issues are "barely a hiccup for Facebook," which will continue to grow, because most users choose to use the service and disregard the fine print anyway.

By Sophia Savage
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May 25, 2010 4:22 AM
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Lohan in Court, Monjack found dead, Zuckerberg on Facebook privacy, Scorsese's Sinatra

Entertainment News:- Lindsay Lohan's video denying drug use and claiming to be in full compliance with court orders did not save her from a Beverly Hills judge Monday, who ordered her to refrain from alcohol, undergo weekly blood tests and wear an alcohol detection bracelet. Lohan's lawyer said she had proof that the actress had airline tickets and missed the May 20th hearing due to a lost passport, and declined the judge's offer to spend thirty minutes reading the list of reasons for the sentencing.