HOLLYWOOD - Well, Ms.-I'm-not-married-to-Tom-Cruise-anymore is having a banner year, isn't she? First, she separated from what's-his-name in February, which generated just a little bit of a buzz. Uh, right, just a little. With the news of the separation came the release of her film Moulin Rouge, which showed off her singing skills. Coincidence? Hmmm, I wonder. Then she wowed audiences with her performance in the Sixth Sense-ish thriller The Others, which some are saying may get her an Oscar nod.
Now she's looking at her next project, another thriller called The Forgotten for Revolution Studios, where she'll play a woman who joins forces with a man in searching for answers to the unsolved abductions of their children. Yikes. That sounds intense. She's also going to star in Danish director Lars von Trier's Dogville and the big-screen adaptation of Philip Roth's novel The Human Stain with Anthony Hopkins. Hey, it pays to get divorced from a big name star, doesn't it?
Bruce Lee isn't really dead
Somewhere on the site, I've already covered this as a serious news story, but it's worth mentioning again in my column for the pure ridiculousness of it. Seems some bright South Korean filmmakers have decided to digitally bring the very dead kung fu king Bruce Lee back to life to star in a movie called Dragon Warrior, with the blessings of Lee's widow and daughter, no less.
OK, I have to ask the question. Why? Honestly, what's the reason for this? I really can't see one. I mean, with all the martial arts talent we have these days (inspired in part by Lee himself), do we need Lee to come back? I simply have to shake my head at this one. Maybe the good Jet Li and the evil Jet Li should fight the dead Bruce Lee while Jackie Chan supervises.
But, if you thought that was bad...
Rambo vs. Osama. That's right-you heard me correctly. Sly Stallone has decided to resurrect his alter ego to take on the Taliban and is writing a script for a fourth Rambo installment. The story supposedly has Rambo parachuting into Afghanistan and capturing Osama bin Laden alive, according to a news report in the London Times. Stallone has professed in the past that he didn't think he was up to playing Rambo again but apparently has changed his mind since Sept. 11. Harvey Weinstein at Miramax said in March he'd be excited to do a Rambo film. "It's a billion-dollar property," Weinstein said.
Well, sure it is. The movie will probably make a ton of money because if President Bush can't get it done, Rambo will. Thanks, Sly, for pinpointing exactly what the American public wants to see. God bless America!
Carrey in the romantic spirit
Jim Carrey is looking to Universal Pictures/Jersey Films for his next project, starring in an untitled romantic comedy where he plays a man whose dead wife comes back to haunt him, forcing him to confront the "ghosts" in their relationship. Hmmm, sounds a little like the classic Noel Coward play Blithe Spirit, about a man who is haunted by his first wife while married to his second. Or maybe it'll be an updated comedic Ghost, where the guy gets the dead wife back. Who knows? With Carrey starring, it should at least be fun. Production is scheduled for March for a Christmas 2002 release.
Wahlberg and Jackman go for "Glory"
Here's a really different and totally unique premise--ready? Beefy Mark Wahlberg and hunky Hugh Jackman are negotiating to star in Pride and Glory, a "gritty drama set in the New York Police Department." Wow. Never seen that before. They'll play brothers who come from a three-generation family of cops and come to blows when one investigates a case of corruption involving his brother. The Fine Line Features film will be directed by Gavin O'Connor (Tumbleweeds), the real-life son of a New York cop. Sorry, I'm yawning already. Even with Jackman attached, whom I like, this doesn't sound remotely interesting.
The Crocodile Hunter's big moment
I was waiting for this one. Steve Irwin, that wacky Australian zoologist who has a serious death wish wrestling crocodiles, snakes and other nefarious animals on his Animal Planet show, will be getting the big-screen treatment in The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course. He and his wife, Terri, will play themselves in a story where they get involved with a CIA's agent search for a missing satellite. And get this--Bruce Willis' company Cheyenne Productions is producing the film. Irwin will be perfect as a movie star; he's such a ham. But someone should tell him the movie industry could be the most dangerous beast in the world. One bite, and you die.