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Peter Berg Says Hancock 2 a Matter of When

Damon Houx — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:34:37 +0000

2008′s Hancock, which made over $600 Million globally, was Will Smith‘s last huge hit. Since then he made Seven Pounds and has mostly been involved in Men in Black 3, which will eventually hit theaters this May. There was talk of a Hancock sequel around the time of the film’s release, but no real movement. Director Peter Berg has chimed in now at comicbookmovie.com, and said it’s a question of getting everyone together, but that it will eventually happen.

They say Smith is the last movie star. They say that because he’s been great at picking winners, and has made his more arty/Oscar-centric films box office hits (well, except for Seven Pounds, which still made money). But 2008 is a long time in movie terms, and Men in Black 3 looks like a dud. He’s following that with an M. Night Shyamalan film, a director who’s been in an artistic and box office slump since 2002′s Signs. From the sounds of it Hancock 2 wouldn’t be ready to go until at least 2014. The money might be there because of the first film’s success, but it’s also the same company that’s putting out Men in Black 3. If that bombs, it could kill Hancock 2 along with it.

On top of that Berg’s got Battleship this summer. That could be a franchise-starter and push Berg into more sequels, or tank big time – I don’t know if there’s an in-between with it. Perhaps both are viewing Hancock 2 as their safety net and if both have a bad summer, expect the sequel to come together right quick.

Do you want a Hancock 2?

Men in Black 3 Trailer Offers One Joke

Damon Houx — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:41:51 +0000

Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, and Josh Brolin…as Tommy Lee Jones? That’s the set up from the Men in Black 3 teaser trailer, one that seems to be there to refresh viewers on the world of the Men in Black. Though the rough outline of the plot has been known for a while, this gives a sense of what the film is about, with newcomer Emma Thompson telling the viewers that Jones’s K character has been dead for forty years. Check out the teaser…

It’s a short tease, and one that offers exactly one joke in its running time (at least if you’re not familiar with the premise of the series), but that joke (Brolin’s Jones impression) may be enough to get people interested in seeing the film.

This is a weird teaser in that it’s not very clean – there’s a whole lot of set up for essentially one joke. The movies have been funny, and this covers a lot of back story – perhaps because it’s been a decade since the last picture means that they have to reorient a new generation to the series. And perhaps also with the recently announced reshoots the studio isn’t entirely sure what’s going to be in the finished film. But they do suggest some scale, and that we’re going to see some period detail. And maybe, just maybe, they’ll be some laughs along the way. The film is set to open May 25, 2012.

Are you ready for more Men in Black?

‘Men In Black III’ To Feature Retro Aliens… In 3D (Of Course)

traviswoods — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 19:14:13 +0000

Despite the cavalcade of production snafus that have befallen the wildly unnecessary Men In Black III—really, do we need another one?—from Alec Baldwin bailing on the production to massive filming delays to the growing sense that the entire production is simply an outgrowth of Will Smith’s increasingly egomaniacal self love, it looks like Men in Black III is still happening. And now details about the aliens featured in the film have begun to slip.

According to Coming Soon, half of the film will take place in the mid 1960’s—thanks to some nifty time travel knocking Will Smith’s character back in time to team up with Tommy Lee Jones’ younger self—and will thus feature some retro extraterrestrials, so says the film’s makeup effects designer, Rick Baker (via ShockTillYouDrop.com):

“The thing that’s cool is there is a time travel element [to the story],” he says, “Where I had fun is that we go back to the Men in Black headquarters of the ’60s. The first thing I said is that we should have retro aliens, not aliens of 2012. More based on B-movies of the ’50s and ’60s. So, a lot of the aliens are based on that. Space suits with fishbowl helmets and ray guns.”

The 3D film (of course) is set to hit theaters on May 25, 2012.

What do you think of the Men in Black III news?

Will Smith Teams with M. Night Shyamalan to Make Science Fiction Film

Damon Houx — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 20:00:06 +0000

If there’s one thing to say about M. Night Shyamalan‘s career, he’s failed up. Columbia Pictures announced today that Will Smith – the biggest and perhaps only real movie star left in America – will team with Shyamalan to produce and star in a science-fiction film. Also starring: Smith’s son Jaden. Jaden had been rumored for the script before - and the project is currently known as One Thousand AE, but Will Smith’s presence takes this to a new level.

Will Smith – as an A lister – has made very few missteps and has been able to launch properties like Hancock that need star power in an industry that has very few high wattage talents. Unfortunately, Smith is also involved in Men In Black 3, which – at this point – has to be written off as a debacle, and/or will be at the very best not as terrible as it might have been. Currently the film is still trying to move forward after having done a couple weeks of principle photography, but the film was shut down because no one is happy with the script.

But as Men in Black 3 is ultimately a disaster in the offing, such makes his decision to work with M. Night Shyamalan all the more confusing. Shyamalan was once a guaranteed performer and audience favorite, but since Signs his grosses and cinematic prowess has all but collapsed. The Last Airbender was one of last year’s worst films, and was so terrible that Paramount did a rush-job last minute 3-D conversion to help salvage the film’s domestic box office.It would be one thing if this was his sole “off” film, but Shyamalan has not been making good or all that commercially viable films for nearly a decade – let’s say The Village got over on goodwill. Since then a film he produced (Devil) had a trailer that was known to get audiences groaning at the mere mention of his name.

Perhaps the script is magic and this will relaunch his career, or perhaps this will be the end for both Smith’s rule at the box office, and Shyamalan’s career, period.

Did you see Lady in the Water or The Happening?

‘Glee’ Creator Ryan Murphy Backs Out Of Will Smith’s ‘Annie’ Remake

traviswoods — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:01:55 +0000

Well, it appears that the mash-up of pop-cultural elements so horrible and cringe-worthy that their unification could potentially result in The End Of All Things isn’t going to happen after all– according to Deadline, Glee creator Ryan Murphy will not be directing Willow Smith in a Will Smith-produced remake of Annie (comments wall, I await your onslaught–just make it quick).

It looks like Murphy has just been too busy lately trying to bully and berate every hesitant rock band in world to join his unholy union of a capella pop song covers or else he’ll make sure that everyone in world knows how evil and mean and jerky they are for not wanting to sell their music to his TV show, because that’s the only way anyone will ever hear their music, you guys, so really Murphy’s doing them a favor by publicly demanding their music and then shaming the bands for not giving him the songs.

So what does this mean for the Smithified version of Annie? Well, it means we’re safe for a little while longer, but stay vigilant: they’ve already struck us with a wholly unnecessary remake of the Karate Kid—a wholly unnecessary remake of Annie (replete with a “Whip My Hair” singalong!) cannot be far behind. Stay strong, friends.

What do you think of the Annie news?

Alec Baldwin Ditches Troubled Men in Black III, Heads to Rock of Ages

Damon Houx — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:50:50 +0000

One of the greatest books on film is easily Julie Salamon’s The Devil’s Candy, which chronicled every bad turn Brian De Palma’s adaptation of Bonfire of the Vanities took. At this point, one hopes there’s an author on set of Men in Black III, as there’s undoubtedly a great story to be told about its production. Having hired a new writer mid-shoot, and having delayed production again recently, the film took another hit when Alec Baldwin told Vulture Monday he had to drop out, but was moving on to the Adam Shankman-directed, Tom Cruise-starring musical Rock of Ages.

Alec Baldwin is one of the leads on “30 Rock,” and so his dropping out isn’t necessarily a slight against the beleaguered third film in the Men in Black franchise. Likely “scheduling conflicts” is not PR talk in this case as Baldwin is surely locked in to certain dates for his television show. And if Baldwin announced that he was out of Men in Black III, this is something that the filmmakers knew about prior to his announcement.

But still, it’s hard not to wonder what’s going on with the third film with all these public production problems. Even though the second film was viewed as a misfire by virtually everyone involved it also made over $400 Million worldwide, and Will Smith is still one of the world’s biggest movie stars, so if the third film recaptured the magic of the first film, surely all would be forgiven. But the third film seems a victim of franchise filmmaking, where a studio wants a picture for a certain period of the year and wants to make a release date above all else. And though a third film had been rumored and likely work-shopped shortly after the second film was released in 2002, it seems that they have yet to be happy with the material.

The Sydney Pollack film Tootsie was considered a tortuous production, as there were a number of writers brought on board, with few making star Dustin Hoffman happy. But now the film is considered a classic, so there’s evidence the film could be saved. With the public scrutiny that comes with this film’s troubled production its makers must be covered in flop sweat.

Adam Shankman’s adaptation of the broadway play Rock of Ages is supposed to shoot this summer, with Cruise, Baldwin, Mary J. Blige, and Julianh Hough currently attached.

Did Alec Baldwin choose the right movie?

Confirmed: Sony, Will Smith, Jay-Z, Willow Smith Working on Annie Remake

Krystal Clark — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 19:37:09 +0000

Do you remember last week when it was rumored that Will Smith might team up with rapper Jay-Z to produce a remake of the comic strip and Broadway play Annie? It’s no longer speculation. Sony Pictures has just confirmed that they are in talks with Smith and Jay-Z regarding a remake. The film will be created as a star vehicle for Will’s daughter Willow Smith.

Here’s the scoop via the press release:

The partnership began over dinner with Jada, Will, James Lassiter and JAY-Z, where they decided to co-invest in the now successful beauty products line Carol’s Daughter. They continued this partnership as co-producers of the successful Broadway production Fela!, which earned a total of eleven Tony Award nominations in 2010.

“The time is right to bring back ANNIE to the big screen. Of course, we’re true believers in Willow’s talent and believe she will be perfect in this role,” said Columbia Pictures President Doug Belgrad. “Combining Willow with the Overbrook team that reimagined Karate Kid and the spectacular JAY-Z makes this a dream project. A decade ago, JAY-Z proved that the power of the underlying Broadway property remains, by showing how these songs could be reinterpreted for a new generation with Hard-Knock Life. We couldn’t be more thrilled to be working with our friends at Overbrook as they launch this new venture.”

Whether or not you agree with their decision to give a makeover to the classic property, it’s happening. We’re interested to see what their take on the character will be. The Smith’s sure love to remake cult favorites. First Jaden Smith in The Karate Kid remake, and now Willow in this.

What do you think of Willow Smith as the new Annie?

Source: Coming Soon

Will and Willow Smith to Remake Annie With Jay-Z?

Krystal Clark — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 18:11:13 +0000

The song “Hard Knock Life” represents the downtrodden people of the world, and it became Billboard gold for rapper Jay-Z back in 1998 when he released his album …Vol. 2. It sampled a hook and a beat from the classic play Annie, which centers on a spirited red-haired girl and her life in an orphanage. Several reports state that Jay-Z may team up with Will Smith for a revamp of the classic character. And this time the title role could be played by Smith’s daughter Willow.

According to Variety, Will Smith is currently in talks with Sony to produce an Annie remake. They’re in the early development stages, but Jay-Z, who signed the younger Smith to his Roc Nation record label, might be on board to retool the music.

Smith and his wife Jada, recently achieved reboot success with the 2010 summer feature The Karate Kid, which starred their son Jaden. They know a thing or two about keeping it in the family.

We know a lot of people have issues with remakes, but Annie has been done so many times that we don’t have a connection to any of the incarnations.

What do you think of Willow as Annie? Would you like to see a remake?

The Wachowskis to Write and Direct Hood, Will Smith To Possibly Star

Krystal Clark — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 17:25:29 +0000

Andy and Lana (formerly Larry) Wachowski aka The Washowkis have landed a new gig. According to THR, the directing duo will write and helm a developing film called Hood. The title sounds simple enough, but they’ll have to do something extra to make the film worthwhile because it’s another incarnation of the Robin Hood story. Didn’t we just see it told earlier this year (Ridley Scott’s version)?

Hood is described as a “modern, urban take on the Robin Hood myth.” Like everything the Wachowski’s do, the film’s official plot is being shrouded in secrecy. No one knows how they plan on executing the tale. If you go off of their previous works like The Matrix and Speed Racer, one could assume that it will have some amazing action sequences inspired by anime and pop art but with arrows instead of guns and cars. They’ve already begun reaching out to actors to star including Will Smith, who is currently filming the latest Men in Black sequel.

“The Wachowskis have been working on their Iraqi war movie, CN-9, told from the point of view of archaeologists piecing together events from the U.S. occupation of Iraq using found footage and includes two male soldiers falling in love and a plot to assassinate George W. Bush.”

They gave Warner Bros first crack at the film but it’s been hard to find financing and distribution for it due to its subject matter.

What do you think of the Wachowskis taking on Robin Hood?

Will Smith to Star in Cain and Abel Story – With Vampires!

Krystal Clark — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 22:22:30 +0000

Just when we thought the vampire trend couldn’t sink its teeth into anyone else it’s gone after Will Smith. According to Deadline, the actor is in talks to take on the lead in a film entitled The Legend of Cain. As in Cain and Abel, the guy who committed the first murder ever recorded in the Bible. Yeah, Smith wants to play the killer in the movie that will somehow tie into vampires.

The Legend of Cain is a retelling of the strenuous relationship between two brothers one of whom kills the other out of a fit of jealousy. Smith will star as the lead and produce the film with his Overbrook Entertainment partners Jada Pinkett Smith (his wife), James Lassiter, and Ken Stovitz. The big twist of the story is that vampires will be involved. We don’t know how or WHY but they’ll be there.

The screenplay was written by Caleeb Pinkett, Dan Knauf and will be revised by Andrea Berloff. A director hasn’t signed on yet but with the success of Overbrook’s Karate Kid and Smith’s name attached we’re sure someone will come try to get in on this action.

What do you think of Smith starring in The Legend of Cain?

Will Smith in Men in Black III Teaser Clip

Krystal Clark — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 19:32:50 +0000

Men in Black III is one of the many films that will debut during the summer of 2012 and it’s up against some tough competition. The studio recently amped up their marketing by playing a promotional clip for the film during the Sony 3D TV Launch. It featured franchise star Will Smith in full costume as his character Agent Jay who after all these years still manages to make that suit and those glasses look good! Check it out…

In other MIB news screenwriter David Koepp has been hired to pen the screenplay for the film replacing Etan Cohen who wrote the original. His previous credits include Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, War of the Worlds, Spider-Man and Jurassic Park. Out of that bunch, I legitimately enjoyed 2, which means there’s a 50% chance that this movie might blow but lets hope that’s not the case.

Men in Black III will once again be directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and will star Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin and Jemaine Clement. The film hits theaters on May 25, 2012 and will be in digital 3D.

What do you think of the Will Smith teaser clip? Are you excited to see the movie?

Source: Coming Soon

Men in Black 3 To Be Released May 2012, Will Smith to Return

Krystal Clark — Fri, 07 May 2010 20:47:54 +0000

Over the past few days Hollywood execs have been really trigger happy with their 2011-2012 summer schedules. Release dates are being announced every hour on the hour with the latest coming from Columbia Pictures. A date has finally been set for Men in Black 3 (in 3D) so expect to see Will Smith. Tommy Lee Jones, and Josh Brolin in May 2012.

Barry Sonnenfeld will return to direct Men in Black 3, which will have Smith reprising his role as Agent Jay, while Jones and Brolin are in advanced negotiations to star as the old and younger versions of Agent Kay. The studio expects production to start sometime this fall with the official release set for May 25, 2012.

We knew it! We knew that Brolin was being brought on to play a younger version of Kay. That’s perfect casting. As for the release date, we’re not surprised that the film will open in May as opposed to July because the 2012 summer slate is packed with too much competition. Columbia obviously wants to stay away from Batman 3 and Sony’s other big release, Spider-Man. Men in Black and Men in Black II opened on July 2nd and 3rd respectively in 1997 and 2002.

What do you think of MIB popping up in May as opposed to July? What do you think about Josh Brolin joining the cast?

ScreenCrave.com » will smith

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