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ALERT! IRON MAN II UPDATE
The IM II buzz continues: We know Don Cheadle will replace Terrence Howard as Tony Stark’s military bud Rhodey. But now rumour has it, Tim Robbins will play Stark’s dad Howard in an important flashback sequence that is going to set up the Avengers and Captain America films, according to LatinoReview. Director Jon Favreau didn’t think the original guy, Gerard Sanders, who played Howard in Iron Man could carry such an important scene … color me intrigued.
KEEP READING: Ford Enters the Talk Show Circuit
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FORD ENTERS THE MORNING TALK SHOW CIRCUIT
Harrison Ford tries his hand at being a talking head personality. According to the Hollywood Reporter, he’ll star in Morning Glory, a comedy in which he plays a grizzled old-school anchor in the Ted Koppel mold who quits in disgust over the gossip-heavy direction of the evening newscast. He’s then recruited by a hot up-and-coming producer (Rachel McAdams) to help revive a morning talk show, only to be paired with his rival. Be careful, Harrison — comedies aren’t your forte.
KEEP READING: J Lo Gets Knocked Up
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J LO GETS KNOCKED UP
Art imitating life, perhaps? Jennifer Lopez has signed on to star in the fertility-themed rom-com Plan B, Variety reports. It’s about a single woman (Lopez) who turns to artificial insemination to answer her ticking biological clock only to meet the man of her dreams on the same day as her positive pregnancy test results. Good thing she already has twins with hubby Marc Anthony.
KEEP READING: Gugino Turns to Porn
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GUGINO TURNS TO PORN
Yeah, it’s not a stretch. Carla Gugino is one hot mama, evident with her sexy turn in Sin City and in Righteous Kill, in which she shows a penchant for rough sex. Now Variety reports she’ll star in Elektra Luxx, playing a porn star whose life gets turned upside down when she discovers a bun in the oven. Joining her in the cast are Tim Olyphant, Alicia Silverstone and Justin Kirk. Interestingly, Luzz is a sequel to an ensemble comedy called Women in Trouble, which never found distribution. How does that work? There’s got to be a copy of it somewhere.
KEEP READING: Baz Does Gatsby
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BAZ DOES GATSBY
An Australian to handle the quintessential great American novel? Hmmm … Nikke Finke at Deadline Hollywood Daily is reporting “exclusive” inside information that Baz Luhrmann will make The Great Gatsby as his next project. Finke says the Aussie director is looking for cast members now. Luhrmann will have his work cut out for him. First, it might be tough for him to capture that true American, roaring ‘20s spirit. His slick Moulin Rouge tricks won’t work here. Second, a couple of Gatsby big-screen adaptations have already been attempted — the 1949 Alan Ladd/Betty Field version and the 1974 Robert Redford/Mia Farrow version — and neither one were well regarded (although Redford as Gatsby was a good choice). Lastly, Luhrmann’s sappy, over-budgeted Australia is still trying desperately to make back its money. And that was a movie he did in his OWN country. Oh well, maybe third time will indeed be a charm.
KEEP READING: Morgan Completes the Blair Trilogy
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MORGAN COMPLETES THE BLAIR TRILOGY
Playwright/screenwriter Peter Morgan, the mastermind behind Frost/Nixon, will be completing his trilogy on former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. First was the BBC production The Deal, a TV movie which tracked the rise of Tony Blair, played by Michael Sheen (above). Then Morgan teamed with Sheen again in the Oscar-winning The Queen, directed by Stephen Frears, about Blair’s first few months in office as the country — and the royal family — dealt with the death of Princess Diana. Variety reports the third movie, tentatively titled The Special Relationship, will explore the intimate relationship between Blair and President Bill Clinton between 1997 and 2000. Sheen will be playing Tony once again.
KEEP READING: More Wedding Stuff
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MORE WEDDING STUFF
Enough with these wedding movies already. The latest, aptly titled The Wedding, will star The Squid and the Whale’s Jesse Eisenberg, who plays a young nuptials guest infatuated with a thirtysomething woman (Pushing Daisies’ Anna Friel). Yawn.
KEEPING READING: The Directors Line ‘Em Up
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THE DIRECTORS LINE ‘EM UP
The threat of an impending actors’ strike doesn’t seem to be affecting these directors much. First, Pirates of the Caribbean helmer Gore Verbinski has acquired a 2007 Wall Street Journal article about online fantasy play, focusing on a married man who spends as many as 20 hours a day on a computer as a thriving, muscle-bound entrepreneur when in reality, he is a diabetic, chain-smoking 53-year-old. Then Barry Sonnenfeld will direct the action comedy The How-To Guide for Saving the World, about “a non-action-hero guy not unlike me, in terms of manliness, and a woman who hates him who find [an instruction manual for saving the world left behind by a secret group] and have to save the planet from an impending attack,” Sonnenfeld told Variety. And finally Bedtime Stories’ Adam Shankman (above) is attached to two movie projects: Disney’s Bob the Musical, about a mild-mannered man who suddenly hears the “inner song” of people’s hearts after being struck in the head (which they stole from a Scrubs episode) and The 8th Voyage of Sinbad, retelling of the classic myth of sailor Sinbad and his crew, who are marooned off the coast of China and embark on a quest to find Aladdin’s lamp. Looking forward to hearing the casting on these.
LAST WEEK’S DOTTED LINE: Brad, Ben and a New Moon
