Top Story: Johnny Depp To Manage Crew of Oompa Loompas
Johnny Depp has been offered the role of Willy Wonka in director Tim Burton‘s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, a Warner Bros. remake of Mel Stuart’s 1971 Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. This will be the third reteaming for Depp and Burton, who previously collaborated on Edward Scissorhands and Ed Wood. According to Variety, talks could potentially break down between the studio and Depp‘s UTA reps, since the commercial success of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl gives the actor an upper hand in the negotiations. The adaptation of the Roald Dahl classic is being produced by Michael Siegel, who manages the interests of the author’s estate, and Plan B partners Brad Grey, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston. A script for the pic is in the works, but Warner Bros. has moved carefully over the years to prep the remake; Dahl adapted his novel for the original Willy Wonka movie but wasn’t content with the result.
Production Resumes on Raymond Set
Production resumed Tuesday on CBS’ Everybody Loves Raymond following the return of co-stars Doris Roberts and Peter Boyle, who had called in sick the day before. Co-star Patricia Heaton also was out sick several days last week, but the actress did report to work Tuesday, Reuters reports. The show’s set has been rocked by the deadlock between producers and Emmy-winning co-star Brad Garrett, who has demanded a raise before he returns. Garrett was subsequently written out of next month’s premiere episode.
Plastic Surgeons Snippy About Nip/Tuck
The FX network’s hit drama Nip/Tuck, which follows two plastic surgeons who run a successful practice in Miami, is apparently getting under the skin of real life plastic surgeons. Dr. Leo McCafferty, chair of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery’s public education committee, claims the show perpetuates the belief that all plastic surgeons do is stretch skin and stuff breasts rather than work with burn or accident victims. “The specialty is a medical specialty that deals with real medical issues,” McCafferty told the AP. Maybe so, but according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, some 6.6 million people had cosmetic plastic surgery last year, with most popular procedures being nose reshaping, liposuction, breast augmentation, eyelid surgery and facelifts. Last week, Nip/Tuck was the 11th-ranked cable show.
The Fab Five Head to Miami
The Fab Five from Bravo’s hit reality series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy will guest star as themselves on an episode of the NBC comedy Good Morning, Miami in the show’s upcoming second season, Reuters reports. In the scene, Carson Kressley, Thom Filicia, Ted Allen, Kyan Douglas and Jai Rodriguez will meet Dylan and Jake in New York, where the couple moves, and will transform their little studio apartment into a nice living space. The episode is set to air Oct. 7 and will also feature guest appearances from Good Day Live‘s Jillian Barberie and Beverly Hills, 90210 alum Tiffani Thiessen.
Harrison Ford Guests at Deauville Film Fest
Harrison Ford will be the star guest at next month’s Deauville Film Festival in France, The Associated Press reports. The 61-year-old actor will promote his latest action comedy Hollywood Homicide. Other stars expected at the festival, which honors American cinema, include John Cusack, Ed Burns, Charlize Theron, Ridley Scott and Jessica Lange. Ten films will compete for the Jury Prize, while another 15 will be shown out of competition, including Hollywood Homicide, American Wedding and Woody Allen‘s Anything Else. The 29th annual Deauville fest runs from Sept. 5-14.
Erik Estrada Sues Production Company
Former ChiPs star Erik Estrada filed a lawsuit Monday against White Tiger Films for $75,000, claiming the studio reneged on paying him when it decided against making a proposed movie, the AP reports. According to the Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit, the 54-year-old actor was set to appear in Four Corners of the Mafia and was to receive $25,000 a day for three days’ work, regardless of whether the movie was made. The provision is standard in many actors’ contracts to prevent them from losing income after committing to a failed film project.
Magician David Blaine Reveals Next Stunt
For his next stunt, magician David Blaine will suspend himself from a crane in a small Perspex box for more than six weeks. According to the BBC, Blaine will have no communication for the duration of the stunt and his only source of nourishment will be a tube supplying him with water. The event will start September 5 on the banks of the River Thames in London and end October 19. This will be Blaine‘s first UK stunt. Britain’s Sky One TV will air a live telecast of Blaine gong into the box and then again exiting. His past stunts have included standing on a 100-foot-high pole in New York City for 35 hours and encasing himself in a six-ton block of ice for three days.
Role Call: Hip-Hop Director Eats Up Jelly Beans
Grammy-nominated hip-hop video director Chris Robinson, whose recently helmed the video for Snoop Dogg and Pharrell Williams’ “Beautiful,” will direct Jelly Beans for Warner Bros. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the project is described as a music-oriented feature set in an Atlanta roller-skating rink in the vein of
