Bill Murray talks about his cameo in the Ghostbusters reboot

In an interview with Vulture, Murray talked about what convinced him to make the Ghostbusters reboot cameo in the first place:

“You know, they were incredibly nice to ask me, and I really enjoyed being there. They have such a jolly group, and they are going to have great success with this project. I didn’t want to overshadow [them] or anything, and I feel really good about it.. I like those girls a lot. I mean, I really do. They are tough to say no to. And Paul is a real nice fellow.”

“I thought about it for a very long time. Like, many, many months. No, that’s not right. I was seriously thinking about this for years, really … It kept eating at me, and I really respect those girls. And then I started to feel like if I didn’t do this movie, maybe somebody would write a bad review or something, thinking there was some sort of disapproval [on my part].”

Ghostbusters will open in U.S. theaters on July 15th, 2016.

James O’Barr gives Crow reboot update

According to ComicBook.com, O’Barr spoke at Twin Tiers Comic Con and discussed Relativity’s bankruptcy, as well as the possibility of moving the project to a new studio.

“It’s still very much a live property. The company, Pressman Films, that owns The Crow film and TV rights, licensed it to a studio named Relativity. And Relativity made like a hundred bad movies and lost money so now they’re in financial trouble. So the producers are just going to take it to another studio if Relativity can’t get backing again. It’s going to happen.”

O’Barr elaborated on The Crow’s options, sounding confident the troubled project would be moving forward.

“The day Relativity announced that they were having financial problems, there were like a dozen other studios that called about getting The Crow property. It definitely will happen.”

Xena Princess Warrior reboot in development…?

NBC network president Bob Greenblatt further confirmed that a Xena princess warrior reboot is being discussed. However, he emphasized that the project is still in the very early stages of development,

Yes, we’re in the early stages of developing a new take on Xena and we’re looking for a writer. We want to do it. I don’t think it’s just a continuation, but we haven’t gotten that far. I think it’s a great character, and we should try to figure out how to revive it somehow… there is a deal with Sam [Raimi] and Rob Tapert to produce, and it’s with NBC International.

As to the possibility that Lawless (who’s also married to Tapert and worked recently with Raimi on Ash vs. Evil Dead) will reprise as the show’s namesake, Greenblatt replied:

“We’d love to have Lucy be a part of it — if we felt that her presence didn’t overshadow the direction we take with it. I’m not sure how she could be part of it if she wasn’t playing Xena, and I don’t know if that’s a direction we’ll ever go.”

Underworld 5, Dark Tower and others get release dates

Other than release dates announced most of these film properties have little in terms of concrete news to report, and while I am excited for The Dark Tower and The final Chapter of the Resident Evil franchise The rest are so-so.

Sony has given release dates for a number for film franchise properties here is a rundown….
Underworld 5 – arriving on October 21st, 2016 and directed by Anna Foerster, the fifth Underworld installment will once again star Kate Beckinsale as the vampire warrior Selene. Underworld Awakening costar Theo James is reportedly going to return for this new Underworld movie, though official plot details have yet to be revealed.

The Dark Tower – arriving on January 13th, 2017 and directed by Nikolaj Arcel,  an adaptation of Stephen King’s first novel about the gunslinger Roland Deschain and his journey to find the legendary Dark Tower. No official casting announcements have been made, as of yet.

Resident Evil 6 – arriving on January 27th, 2017 and directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, the film will reportedly complete the story of the warrior Alice (Milla Jovovich) and her battle against the Umbrella Corporation. The working title for the movie is Resident Evil: The Final Chapter.

Barbie – (yes really) arriving on June 2nd, 2017, the film adaptation of the mega-popular Mattel toy property is currently being re-written by Oscar-winner Diablo Cody. The film has yet to gain an official cast or director.

Uncharted – arriving on June 30th, 2017, the film adaptation of the popular video game property is currently undergoing script revisions, with Seth Gordon having recently stepped down as director.

‘Power Rangers Reboot Details Revealed

Courtesy of Collider, sources close to the film have provided the names of the five protagonists in Power Rangers, along with a brief biography for each one. Check out the descriptions below, though do so with a grain of salt as nothing official has been confirmed yet.

Jason – 17 years old, the makings of someone or something great if he would just get out of his own way. Jason was a legend of this town—a freshman quarterback with the skills to take him all the way. People knew his name. Children wore his jersey. Until, one night Jason wrapped his car around a pole and busted out his knee. Everything Jason was going to become ended in an instant. And with it, he lost himself. When we meet him at the start of the film, he’s a kid in need of redemption. By the end, he’ll be leading this disparate group of teens to shed their individual baggage and find who they truly are.

Kimberly – 17 years old, unconventionally cool all in a way the popular girls wish they were. In fact, she was one of those girls, but isn’t anymore. Not since she’s returned to school after an absence of 6 months. Rumors are flying as to why; rumors she seems not to care about, because she’s come back with this new rebel-without-a-cause, edgy attitude. But the truth is, it’s all masking a deep secret that makes her feel profoundly vulnerable.

Trini – 17 years old, mysterious and extremely bright. Her parents constantly move for work, making Trini the perpetual new girl to any school. A loner who owns it, Trini is self-sufficient, contemplative, but always observant. All she wants is to find her gang of friends, but she’ll never admit it – least of all to herself.

Billy – 17 years old, slight and awkward. Billy is challenged in his abilities to communicate and interact socially. Whip-smart and sweet, but always odd. Sometimes in a fun way, sometimes not, Billy is a kid with no filter. Showing his emotions, understanding sarcasm, and dealing with his OCD is a constant challenge. Has never really had any friends and instantly gravitates towards Jason.

Zack – 17 years old, always the life of the party. Filled with bravado and swagger, Zack’s tough and cool on the exterior. A charming guy who’s never had trouble with the one-liner, nor lacked confidence around women. A great athlete that’s never wanted to play on any team but his own. Zack advertises everything about himself, except the truth, which is that he lives in a trailer park with his single mom, and because of it, feels deeply inferior to all his peers.

Will there be a Hellboy 3….?

Here is what Perlman offered on the subject of Hellboy 3, while he was promoting Hand of God during the 2015 Television Critics Association press tour (hat tip /Film):

“Let me make the record clear. I don’t want to do Hellboy 3. It’s a pain in the ass to put that makeup on and take it off. But I feel we’re obligated to finish the story. That’s it. End of conversation.”

“I got no problems with forcing the conversation, as you can tell. We’re in the business of moving mountains. Those of us who are used to working in mainstream film and television. Don’t come to me with details and problems. Just tell me how we move the mountain.”

The budget necessary to realize del Toro’s vision for Hellboy 3 is the biggest obstacle preventing the project from moving forward, as del Toro has noted before. Perlman’s age is something of an issue too, though the 65-year old actor has jokingly (?) said that so long as he’s still breathing, he’s game to play Big Red one last time:

“Because del Toro says: Put the makeup on, you can shoot me in a wheelchair and I’ll still be Hellboy. I guess the only cutoff point is when they actually close the box. If you don’t see me get up and go, ‘Hang on, I was kidding,’ then I’m still ready.”

Another Nightmare on Elm Street reboot in development

There ill thoughts and feeling by most of Freddy Kruger fans are still ripe in regards to the 2010 reboot attempt, I personally liked it, especially Jackie Earle Haley performance, but I also had my own complaints however mine were less die hard fan and more general and pragmatic.  My basic complaint was I understand paying homage to what came before in regards to SFX and kills but there should have been some new ones and new special effects, after all they had 20 plus years to come up with fresh original way and mean for kids to get killed by Freddy.

Anyway The Tracking Board reports that New Line’s second Nightmare on elm street reboot will be penned by David Leslie Johnson, writer of Orphan, and the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons reboot. Potential plot details are being kept under wraps, so it remains unclear whether this new Elm Street film will be another remake of the original Wes Craven shocker, or a brand new take on Freddy Krueger’s dark deeds.

‘Power Rangers Reboot Details Revealed

ourtesy of Collider, sources close to the film have provided the names of the five protagonists in Power Rangers, along with a brief biography for each one. Check out the descriptions below, though do so with a grain of salt as nothing official has been confirmed yet.

Jason – 17 years old, the makings of someone or something great if he would just get out of his own way. Jason was a legend of this town—a freshman quarterback with the skills to take him all the way. People knew his name. Children wore his jersey. Until, one night Jason wrapped his car around a pole and busted out his knee. Everything Jason was going to become ended in an instant. And with it, he lost himself. When we meet him at the start of the film, he’s a kid in need of redemption. By the end, he’ll be leading this disparate group of teens to shed their individual baggage and find who they truly are.

Kimberly – 17 years old, unconventionally cool all in a way the popular girls wish they were. In fact, she was one of those girls, but isn’t anymore. Not since she’s returned to school after an absence of 6 months. Rumors are flying as to why; rumors she seems not to care about, because she’s come back with this new rebel-without-a-cause, edgy attitude. But the truth is, it’s all masking a deep secret that makes her feel profoundly vulnerable.

Trini – 17 years old, mysterious and extremely bright. Her parents constantly move for work, making Trini the perpetual new girl to any school. A loner who owns it, Trini is self-sufficient, contemplative, but always observant. All she wants is to find her gang of friends, but she’ll never admit it – least of all to herself.

Billy – 17 years old, slight and awkward. Billy is challenged in his abilities to communicate and interact socially. Whip-smart and sweet, but always odd. Sometimes in a fun way, sometimes not, Billy is a kid with no filter. Showing his emotions, understanding sarcasm, and dealing with his OCD is a constant challenge. Has never really had any friends and instantly gravitates towards Jason.

Zack – 17 years old, always the life of the party. Filled with bravado and swagger, Zack’s tough and cool on the exterior. A charming guy who’s never had trouble with the one-liner, nor lacked confidence around women. A great athlete that’s never wanted to play on any team but his own. Zack advertises everything about himself, except the truth, which is that he lives in a trailer park with his single mom, and because of it, feels deeply inferior to all his peers.

Dungeons and Dragons reboot in development

The Wrap is reporting that Warner Bros. has (after a year-long legal struggle involving the rights) started development on a new Dungeons & Dragons film. Teaming up with Hasbro’s Allspark Pictures and Sweetpea Entertainment, WB will base the project on an existing script by David Leslie Johnson (Wrath of the Titans). Hasbro’s Brian Goldner and Stephen Davis, along with Roy Lee (The LEGO Movie) and Courtney Solomon are attached to produce. The movie does not currently have a director.

Greg Silverman, Warner Bros. Pictures’ president of creative development and worldwide production, had the following to say:

“We are so excited about bringing the world of ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ to life on the big screen. This is far and away the most well-known brand in fantasy, which is the genre that drives the most passionate film followings. D&D has endless creative possibilities, giving our filmmakers immense opportunities to delight and thrill both fans and moviegoers new to the property.

Stephen Davis, Hasbro’s executive vice president and chief content officer, confirmed that the film will be based on The Forgotten Realms campaign setting.

This is such an enormous opportunity to bring the rich fantasy setting of the Forgotten Realms to life and, together with the creative powerhouse of Warner Bros., use movies to tell the stories that have enchanted passionate D&D fans for decades.”

the Crow reboot in Jeopardy floowing reletive media bancruptcy

According to THR, inside sources are claiming that pre-production on The Crow in the UK has stalled and an entire production team has left the project, along with several department heads. Sources also said that Relativity is currently preparing an official statement on the status of The Crow, though one insider said that Relativity “continue[s] to be excited” by the property.

Relativity has bigger problems right now, however. The company is currently filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to owing hundreds of millions of dollars in debt, and this week confirmed that 75 people – a fifth of Relativity’s total staff – have been laid off. The studio’s financial woes have obviously had an impact on its current projects, and the latest reports indicate that The Crow has been hit hard.

Green Lantern reboot ‘Green Lanter Corps’ update

Speaking with Collider, Tyrese Gibson addressed his potential involvement with Green Lantern, and though he could not offer any concrete updates, other than he has discussed the possibility with the powers that be at WB:

“I’ve already had a couple of meetings at Warner Bros., so we’ll see what happens. I do believe that there needs to be more black superheroes out there, but that’s not even my motivation. I think I would be the best Green Lantern and based on my fans and supporters that spent around $6 billion in box office receipts, I feel like there’s a fanbase of fans out there waiting to see me put on this green suit and do my thing. So I would love to confirm something today but I can’t. We’ll just keep following up.”

Martyrs remake planned for 2015

Martyrs is a special kind of movies and by that I mean that even for a die hard horror genre afficinado as myself, watching the fim, is like a insane, violent, bloody, almost obsene stress test that has gone horribly wrong.Let me explain it this way, the director said in an interview the most difficult part of the film was not the film itself or ever the special effects, but was in fact having to constantly keep the lead acctresses CRYING.   And this is being said by a person who has watched such films as All the Human Centipede films, The I spit on you grave remake and its sequel, and even the Siberian Filmand come out basically unscathed. It is also one of the first films to be associated with the fringe film making style affectionatily called “New French Extremity”  and includes such other pieces of “ultra violence” such asÀ l’intérieur, a.k.a. Inside“and “Frontiere(s)

I highly recommend all the aformentioned films, but only in moderation and only for the stong willed and those with stong stomachs and even stronger nerves.

Now come news that an american remake of the original Martyrs is currently being developed for an assumed 2015 release In February 2015 the new productions company’s Blumhouse Productions and The Safran Company announced that the movie was already filmed and that the Goetz Brothers, Michael and Kevin, had directed with the leads stars Bailey Noble, Troian Bellisario, Kate Burton and Blake Robbins.

Gremlins and Goonies reboots in development…??!

Columbus told ScreenCrush that he is “heavily developing” both a new Gremlins and Goonies film alike, but acknowledged that the process has been slow. He added:

“The stuff that I’m involved with — the Gremlins and Goonies reboots, for instance — they would do that without me. So, I’m staying involved just so I can be protective and actually protect what people love about those movies so it doesn’t go off track.”

Cube remake in development at Lionsgate

Cube, the independent minimalist scifi sleeper hit that launched the feature career of director Vincenzo Natali in 1997, has already been followed by a sequel and a prequel. Now. Lionsgate is setting up a Cube “re-imagining” from producers Roy Lee and Jon Spaihts, and relatively new filmmaker Saman Kesh is set to direct. The Cube reboot is currently called Cubed,

Using the original setup of seven strangers trapped in a giant cube-like structure, Cubed is described as a sci-fi survival thriller about artificial intelligence, humanity and the birth of a new “digital” race. – THR (source)

Cube remake in development at Lionsgate

Cube, the independent minimalist scifi sleeper hit that launched the feature career of director Vincenzo Natali in 1997, has already been followed by a sequel and a prequel. Now. Lionsgate is setting up a Cube “re-imagining” from producers Roy Lee and Jon Spaihts, and relatively new filmmaker Saman Kesh is set to direct. The Cube reboot is currently called Cubed,

Using the original setup of seven strangers trapped in a giant cube-like structure, Cubed is described as a sci-fi survival thriller about artificial intelligence, humanity and the birth of a new “digital” race. – THR (source)

Samuel L Jackson joins cast in Blob remake

Samuel L Jackson has been a very busy person. Playing the leading role in Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming murder mystery western The Hateful Eight which is scheduled to come out later this year. The Oscar-nominee has also completed (or will soon complete) filming for roles in a variety of big screen productions of  2016 releases including : Tim Burton’s Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children an adaption of the children novel of the same name and Harry Potter director David Yates’ Tarzan and more recently on a film adaption of theStephen King novel adaptation Cell, a horror-esque film which involves a signal which infects cellphones and when heard transforms people into monsters which is due to reach theaters later this year.
Now THR reported the news about Jackson signing up for The Bob, which is being produced by Richard Saperstein and Brian Witten.Regarding the Blob remake the director was interviewed by Geek of Den and said:

“The blob itself will be more sophisticated, more along the lines of Alien and Predator and things like that – much more science-based, the way Jurassic Park made you believe you could bring back dinosaurs with a bit of DNA from a mosquito. This will be much more explained on where the blob comes from and how it works. It’ll be a much more sophisticated creature – because it is a monster movie rather than a horror in that sense.”

Big Trouble in Little China remake coming… starring the Rock

Big Trouble in Little China was the last straw for director John Carpenter that drove away from hollywood and back into the arms of independent filmmaking, when it was released in 1986 and bombed both financially and critically.

With its over the top martial arts style mixed with spaghetti western flair and a load of eye popping special effects the film has become a cult classic.  Yes the script was silly, and the dialogue was mediocre at best, and the film’s plot made no rational sense, and most of the scenes could be reorganized in any order and it would still be the same movie experience. Still it is fondly remembered by its fans as a fun light hearted action/martial arts/horror comedy flick with a constant grandiose myriad of special effects. But now comes the decision by Hollywood to remake it… no wait it gets worse… the remake will supposedly star Dwayne the Rock Johnson.  All I can say is I know the original is almost thirty years old and the generally accepted age for a proper remake of a film is like 25 but still I am for a few very respectable reasons..

One, I really cannot comprehend that director John Carpenter, godfather of the independent film would allow hollywood to remake the film, two, I did not know hollywood would even consider remaking a film that originally was a commercial and financial failure, and three, I don’t care how much technology has changed, as cheesy as they were the practical effects of the original were what gave the original film its appeal and I do not think CGI or motion capture or any of that will be justice in retrospect, and will only destroy another childhood favorite film.

Bourne 5 news update

Deadline has learned that Alicia Vikande (Ex Machina) is now set to play a lead role in the upcoming Bourne 5 film. (not the official title of course) She joins returning stars Matt Damon as Jason Bourne and Julia Stiles as CIA agent Nicky Parson. No other returning cast was yet been confirmed.  The film is being co-written and directed by Paul Greengrass.

Also, Viggo Mortenson has been offered a villain role in Bourne 5, one which would see the actor play an assassin on the hunt for Jason Bourne  Plot details beyond that remain under wraps, though it’s been confirmed that Jeremy Renner won’t reprise the Aaron Cross character from the 2012 installment Bourne Legacy.

Back to the Future remake? Say it ain’t so!

When ever there is a marathon of a favorite film franchise on cable (as there recently was of the Back to the Future series) I fret and wonder if a reboot or remake is not far away.  Thankfully, according to Robert Zemekis a back to the future remake could actually happen….. over his dead body…

Zemeckis did not mince words when The Telegraph asked him whether he would ever consider agreeing to a remake:

Oh, God no. That can’t happen until both Bob and I are dead. And then I’m sure they’ll do it, unless there’s a way our estates can stop it.

I mean, to me, that’s outrageous. Especially since it’s a good movie. It’s like saying ‘Let’s remake Citizen Kane. Who are we going to get to play Kane?’ What folly, what insanity is that? Why would anyone do that?

Kindergarten Cop remake?? A tv series????

Showbiz 411 reports the Kindergarten Cop remake will come from Universal’s 1440 division, which specializes in direct-to-video sequels and remakes of old movies. Their works include Jarhead 3: The Siege, The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power, and Beethoven’s Treasure Tail. The remake is definitely happening, but the site notes that this could also be a maneuver to help get a Kindergarten Cop TV series off the ground

Don Michael Paul (Jarhead 2: Field of Fire) will direct the Kindergarten Cop remake from a script by David H. Steinberg (American Pie 2). Schwarzenegger is not involved. He has better things to do, like try to get a Twins sequel together.