Pain Gains Beauty And Mark

Israeli supermodel Bar Paly ("The Starter Wife") and "Monk" star Tony Shalhoub have joined Michael Bay's long-gestating--low-budget dark comedy Pain and Gain reports Variety.

Based on a true story, the action follows a group of bodybuilders (led by Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson) who engaged in a campaign of kidnapping, extortion and murder in Florida. The not so bright group kidnapped Miami businessman Marc Schiller, tortured him and left him for dead. He survived and to get even he hired hired a private investigator (Ed Harris) to track them down.

Paly would play Sabina Petrescu, an illegal immigrant and former beauty queen who dreams of becoming the next Marilyn Monroe. Shalhoub plays Marc Schiller, the target of the kidnapping scheme.

Rob Corddry Anthony Mackie and John Turturro also star.

Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely ("Captain America: The First Avenger") wrote the script.

Bay Donald De Line and Ian Bryce will produce.

Productiom is slated to begin in the Spring.

In Defense Of The Piranha 3Dd Trailer

Ok---some folks online have said the theatrical trailer for the horror sequel Piranha 3Dd makes the film look really stupid...To that I ask Did ya see the first Piranha from 2010?!!!!

That's sorta the point of these films--They are supposed to be nothing more than what they are: Fun blood soaked--boob infused rides that don't take themselves seriously at all--even within the horror genre itself....As opposed to say Shark Night 3D which forgot to make its audience laugh once amid the mayhem

Given that--I think the 3Dd trailer works just great! Detractors need to lighten up---BIG TIME!!

Danielle Panabaker, Matt Bush, Chris Zylka who was also in Shark Night, David Koechner, Meagan Tandy, Paul James Jordan, Jean-Luc Bilodeau, Hector Jimenez, Adrian Martinez,Clu Gulager Katrina Bowden David Hasselhoff and Gary Busey join  the first film survivors Christopher Lloyd, Ving Rhames and Paul Scheer as potential fish food.

John Gulager ("Feast") called action from Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton's screenplay that sees the killer fish make their way into 'The Big Wet Water Park' where carnage ensues and the water slides will run red with blood.

The sequel is produced by Mark Canton, Marc Toberoff and Joel Soisson.



I for one Can't Wait!

Liz Olsen Up For Oldboy Redux

After Rooney Mara turned down an offer to play the female lead--renamed Marie-in the remake of Chan-wook Park's 2003 cult classic "Old Boy, Elizabeth Olsen is in talks to take the role says Heat Vision.

The older film centered on a man kidnapped and held for 15 years in solitary confinement without explanation. He is eventually released and sets out on a path of revenge.

Mark Protosevich wrote the adapted screenplay from which Spike Lee is calling action.

Josh Brolin has already been cast in the lead.

Olsen has the offer to play the part of the caseworker who helps investigate the past of Brolin's character.

Doug Davison and Roy Lee will produce.

The pic was due to go into production this month but was pushed back to late summer/early fall to accomodate Brolin's press commitments for "Men In Black 3" hitting on May 25th 2012.

The Avengers Trailer, Title And Poster

The 2nd theatrical trailer for The Avengers is here! And it is EPIC.....!!!



Freakin' AWESOME! I think I may have to be peeled off the celling.....

Meantime Empire reports that the movie has just received a title change in the UK to the slightly more complicated "Avengers Assemble".

The alteration was mmade to avoid audience confusion with The Avengers British TV series of the 60's (and the horrid 1998 film adaptation). Such a change would not have been taken lightly and there has obviously been research indicating title confusion between the 2 franchises

Also a new poster for the film has already sparked a lot of debate among fanboys and film writers alike for the weird use of perspective that seems to have Captain America as four stories tall and The Hulk about seven stories tall. The British version of the one-sheet, with the new title, can be seen here.

Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans Chris Hemsworth Scarlett Johansson Samuel L. Jackson Jeremy Renner Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgård, and Amanda Righetti star in the May 4, 2012 release for writer/director Joss Whedon

Goldsman Testing For Tale

Director Akiva Goldsman will soon begin testing for the lead roles in his supernatural thriller Winter's Tale says Heat Vision.

Benjamin Walker and Tom Hiddleston  are among several actors trying out for the male lead next week. The following week Lily Collins Bella Heathcote and Jessica Brown Findlay are all up for the female part.

An adaptation of the 1983 Mark Helprin novel of the same name, follows Peter Lake, an orphaned mechanic who tries to rob a palatial West Side mansion. There he meets a young dying girl who he becomes determined to save. A flying white horse also figures into the story which is set in both 19th Century and contemporary Manhattan.

Russell Crowe will play a gangster boss with Will Smith appearing as a judge. Both men have worked with Goldsman on films before.

Cool Prometheus Viral Video

Attendees of the TED Conferences and its official site launched this very cool viral video from Ridley Scott's "Prometheus"

The clip shows Guy Pearce as his character Peter Weyland addressing the conference's 2023 session. There's even a bio on the guy:

"Peter Weyland has been a magnet for controversy since he announced his intent to build the first convincingly humanoid robotic system by the end of the decade. Whether challenging the ethical boundaries of medicine with nanotechnology or going toe to toe with the Vatican itself on the issue of gene-therapy sterilization, Sir Peter prides himself on his motto, “If we can, we must.” After a three year media blackout, Weyland has finally emerged to reveal where he’s heading next. Wherever that may be, we will most certainly want to follow."

Pearce has previously said that his role in the film is a cameo, and this suggests his scenes take place nearly two centuries before the events in the film do. Certainly it's years before Weyland-Yutani became the big biz of the "Alien franchise



Damon Lindelof also talked about the experience writing the film and coming up with this spot. He worked with director Scott on the film script, which was originally written by Jon Spaihts.

Scott is said to have shot both an R rated and a PG-13 rated version of the script.

Michael Fassbender Charlize Theron Noomi Rapace Idris Elba Rafe Spall, Sean Harris, Logan Marshall-Green Ben Foster and Kate Dickie star. With Emun Elliott Patrick Wilson and Benedict Wong also in the cast as well.

The pic has a June 8th, 2012 release date.

Berg Has 3/4ths Of His SEAL Team For Lone Survivor

Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch and Ben Foster are in talks to play three of the four leads in Peter Berg's "Lone Survivor" says Deadline.

Based on the non-fiction book by Marcus Luttrell , which recounts a mission his Seal team undertook to kill a terrorist leader, although they were ambushed in the Hindu Kush mountains of Afganistan and struggled to stay alive--Lutrell was the only one to come out alive

Berg has wanted to direct the film for years, even placing himself among a Navy SEAL Team in Iraq for a month and writing the screenplay based on Lutrell's account. Universal Pictures promised him a deal where he could make this film, as long as he made Battleship--also starring Kitsch--That and the fact Osama Bin Laden, was killed by U.S. Forces in Pakistan during a firefight last year put the pic on the front burner

Wahlberg will play Luttrell. 

As for the tone its "unapologetically patriotic" and "a bit like Black Hawk Down" with just four guys.

Berg, Wahlberg, Sarah Aubrey, Akiva Goldsman, Barry Spikings, Randall Emmett and George Furla will produce.

Production is due to get underway this fall

Kirk Could Be Working The "Weekend"

Brian Kirk is in talks to direct a long-gestating new adaptation of  The Osterman Weekend remake says Deadline.

Based upon author Robert Ludlum's novel, the story has the host of an investigative news show becoming convinced by a Central Intelligence Agency agent that the friends he has invited to a weekend getaway in the country are engaged in a KGB conspiracy that threatens national security.

The book was adapted once before in 1983 and was the last film made by Sam Peckinpah. John Hurt, Craig T. Nelson, Rutger Hauer, Dennis Hopper, Meg Foster, Burt Lancaster and Chris Sarandon starred in that classic pic

Simon Kinberg and Jesse Wigutow penned the reboot pic that will leave the Cold War and spy elements behind and will switch some of the occupations and the show host character will have a different job, and the CIA agent character will be a reporter who warns the man his friends aren't whom he thinks they are. The reporter then gets killed, pushing the man into a desperate fight to survive and learn whom he can trust and why he's being targeted.

Kinberg, Peter S. Davis, Doug Liman, Jeffrey M. Weiner and Ben Smith will produce.

Both Robert Schwentke and Liman were in line to direct the remake at one tim.

21 Jump Street Sequel Already In The Works

We are a few weeks away from the March 16th release of  the action comedy adaptation of the TV Series--21 Jump Street and Sony Pictures feels confident enough in the film to move ahead with a sequel.

Hill and Michael Bacall's ("Scott Pilgrim vs. the World") original R-rated script has Hill and Channing Tatum playing a pair of undercover cops working in high schools and colleges. The tone has been described as “John Hughes meets ‘Bad Boys'"

Speaking to E! Online at The Oscars this past weekend co-star/co-writer Jonah Hill says "We are writing the sequel now…We got [the green light] by the studio to start writing the sequel"

Rob Riggle Brie Larson Dave Franco DeRay Davis Jake M. Johnson Bridesmaids cutie Ellie Kemper and Ice Cube playing the captain of the two cops also star. Original Jumper Johnny Depp will cameo

Chris Miller and Phil Lord ("Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs") are directing the pic

The film is produced by Neal Moritz with Tatum and Hill serving as executive producers.

After Z Forster Takes On Cowboy Ninja Viking

Marc Forster ("Quantum of Solace," "Monster's Ball") will direct a film adaptation of A. J. Lieberman's comics "Cowboy Ninja Viking" says Deadline.

"Zombieland" writers Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese wrote an adapted screenplay for Disney which the suits deemed 'too edgy'. 

Universal Pictures has now acquired that script and hopes it will be a potential franchise launcher for them.

The story deals with a secret government program to turn schizophrenics into assassins with our protagonist scoring the skill sets of a cowboy, a ninja and a viking. When the program went awry in Iraq, he escapes and uses his skills to track down the billionaire who masterminded the program.
Wernick, Reese, Guymon Casady, Ben Forkner, Mark Gordon and Bryan Zuriff will produce the pic.

Production kicks off later this year once Forster completes his work on the Brad Pitt-led "World War Z"

Murphy's One Hit Wonders

Gwyneth Paltrow Reese Witherspoon Cameron Diaz Beyonce and Andy Samberg are in talks to star in the musical comedy One Hit Wonders says Deadline

Gwen, Cameron, Beyonce & Reese

Glee creator and "Eat Pray Love" helmer Ryan Murphy is attached to direct from a script he’s set to co-write with regular cohorts Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan

Conceived at a dinner attended by Murphy, Paltrow, Witherspoon, and Diaz, One Hit Wonders centres on three passed-their-time singers who decide to form a super group.

Sony Pictures co-chairman Amy Pascal will produce.

Murphy will shoot "Wonders" when he is done with his work on the adaptation of Larry Kramer's semi-autobiographical play "The Normal Heart

Hill & Franco Tell A True Story For Producer Pitt

Jonah Hill and James Franco are attached to star in Rupert Goold's "True Story" reports Deadline.

An adaptation of journalist Mike Finkel's memior in which Hill would play the NY Times Magazine  writer who was fired from the publication for reportedly falsifying information. Around the same time Christian Longo (Franco), a killer on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List, was captured in Mexico and claimed he'd been living under the identity of Finkel in order to evade capture. The real Finkel sees a chance at redemption when he learns he is the only journalist that Longo will talk to.

Brad Pitt and Dede Gardner will produce the pic.

The pic is Hill’s 2nd dramatic role after Moneyball with Pitt for which he got an Oscar nomination.

Seydoux Says Blue Is A Hot Color

Léa Seydoux has joined the cast of the dramedy "Blue Is a Hot Color." says Variety

Based on Julie Maroh's graphic novel, the story follows a teenage girl who unexpectedly falls in love with another woman and faces her parents' and friends' judgment.

Abdellatif Kechiche will call action

Bremner Gets Snow Daze

Ewen Bremner is joining the cast of the post-apocalyptic thriller "Snow Piercer" says Variety.

The film is an adaptation of the French comic "Le Transperceneige and is set in a future when an Ice Age has killed off all life on the planet except for the inhabitants of the Snow Piercer, a train that travels around the globe and is powered by a sacred perpetual-motion engine. A class system evolves on the train but a revolution bubbles up.

Chris Evans, John Hurt, Tilda Swinton Jamie Bell recent Oscar winner Octavia Spencer and Kang Ho also star.

Bremner will play a father that teams up with Evans in order to rescue his kidnapped son.

"Before the Devil Knows You're Dead" writer Kelly Masterson rewrote the film

"The Host" director Joon-ho Bong will call action on the pic and wrote the initial script with the original "Oldboy" director Chan-wook Park, the latter will also produce with Dooho Choi

Production begins this March in Prague.

Matt Bush Delivers Pizza With A "Curve"

Matt Bush ("Piranha 3Dd," "Adventureland") has joined the baseball drama "Trouble With The Curve" says Variety.

The story centers on aging baseball scout (Clint Eastwood), coping with blindness, who goes on a road trip to Atlanta with his adult daughter (Amy Adams) to evaluate a player.

Bush will play a pizza delivery boy who develops a friendship with Clint's character

Clint's son Scott Eastwood plays a slumping minor league player who the older Eastwood discovered and still has faith in. John Goodman is playing a baseball scout and an old friend of Clint's character. Matthew Lillard will play a fellow baseball scout. Justin Timberlake co-stars

Randy Brown wrote the script

Robert Lorenz, a regular second unit director for Eastwood, will get to boss him around in the big chair.

Production is due to begin in early March.

A release date of September 28th is set

Trek 2: Spock & Baddie Fight Video; Leeeeeaks!

The other day  photos from the set of the as yet Untitled Star Trek Sequel made quite the splash--now SplashNews has posted video of Benedict Cumberbatch and Zachary Quinto doing part of the same fight scene on the set.

Exclusive: Behind The Scenes Of Star Trek 2

Zoe Saldana told MTV at the Independent Spirit Awards over the weekend that the leaks are not making the director happy...

"J.J. was very upset. I have to say that. It's not going to stop people from intruding, but they are, and it's such a bummer because it only hurts them by stealing away the surprise."

What surprise? Nothing was reavealed that gave away any plot deets--save for--oh no--Spock has confrontation with the bad guy....The shock...!!!

Chris Pine, Quinto, Saldana, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, Anton Yelchin John Cho and Bruce Greenwood have all returned to the Final Frontier in their respective roles as Kirk Spock Uhura Dr. McCoy Scotty Chekov Sulu and Admiral Pike.

The Supporting Cast Also Includes Nazneen Contractor who will play the wife of Noel Clarke’s family man character--while Alice Eve has a major role as does former "Robocop" star Peter Weller and actor/stuntman Joseph Gatt.

Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof wrote the script for director J.J. Abrams.

The sequel will be produced by Abrams, Kurtzman, Orci, Lindelof, Bryan Burk, and David Ellison.

The film will be released May 17, 2013 in 3D.

Hancock Goes Behind The Scenes Of Mary Poppins

Filmmaker John Lee Hancock ("The Blind Side") is in talks to direct "Saving Mr. Banks" says Deadline.

Kelly Marcel's script deals with Walt Disney's 14 year attempt to persuade Australian author P. L. Travers to sell him the film rights to her Mary Poppins stories. 

Travers' book was highly personal, and reflected hardships in her own life and her relationship with her father who died when she was seven. Disney finally persuaded her to let him make the film, though she was difficult to please all the way to the end.

Alison Owen will produce the film.

The hope is for the film to head into production this year.

Bosses Duo Take A "Vacation" To Direct

Not only was the forthcoming Vacation reboot written by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein--the duo will now call action too says THR.

The original series of 4 films from 1983-1997 followed the Griswold family as they took a summer road trip across America, a European Vacation, stayed home for a Christmas Vacation, (the best of the sequels in my opinion) and a Vegas Vacation with mishaps happening all along the way. Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo starred as the adult Griswolds .

The new version is said to focus on a now adult Rusty Griswold--played by multiple actors over the years by Anthony Michael Hall, Jason Lively Johnny Galecki Ethan Embry.

The duo wrote the hit Horrible Bosses and the its upcoming Horrible Bosses 2 as well as the magician comedy The Incredible Burt Wonderstone with Steve Carell and Jim Carrey.

"Wedding Crashers" helmer David Dobkin was to produce the comedy reboot but has since moved on. Peter Segal was in line to call action but that never materialized

The "Prometheus"/"Alien" Link Revealed By Scott?

The translation of an interview with Hungarian website Mozinezo (via AVP Galaxy) has director Ridley Scott's seemingly finally explaining how "Prometheus"  and his 1979 classic "Alien" tie together. Until now all those who worked on the new film have downplayed any linkage as much as possible, despite evidence to the contrary...

POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD...You Have Been Warned...

Scott: “When the first ‘Alien’ movie and ‘Blade Runner’ were made, I thought that in the near future the world will be owned by large companies. This is why we have the Tyrell Corporation in ‘Blade Runner’, and Weyland-Yutani in ‘Alien’. They sent the Nostromo spaceship.”

He adds “The Prometheus is owned by an entrepreneur called Peter Weyland, and is played by Guy Pearce. That’s the connection between the two films, and nothing more. ‘Prometheus’ is a new film, a new world, and is full of new ideas. And of course new monsters as well.”

Pearce has said before that his character has a very short cameo in the film.

Michael Fassbender Charlize Theron Noomi Rapace Idris Elba Rafe Spall, Sean Harris, Logan Marshall-Green and Ben Foster Kate Dickie star. With Emun Elliott Patrick Wilson and Benedict Wong also in the cast as well.

Damon Lindelof worked with director Scott on the script, which was originally written by Jon Spaihts

Scott is said to have shot both an R rated and a PG-13 rated version of the script.

The pic has a June 8th, 2012 release date.

Razzie Noms '12 Sandler Makes Murphy Feel Better

"Celebrating" 2011's worst films--The 32nd annual Razzies Nominations have been announced...

Adam Sandler dominates with eleven nominations for his acting, producing and writing work from no less than three films - "Jack and Jill" ''Just Go with It" and "Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star".

'Jill' has most of those nominations, including worst actor and worst actress for Sandler's dual roles as a twin brother and sister.

"Bucky Larson" and "Jack and Jill" join "New Year's Eve," ''Transformers: Dark of the Moon" and "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1" for worst picture.

Sandler's nominations breaks the previous record of five held by Eddie Murphy for "Norbit" in 2007.

This year's Razzie Awards will handed out on April 1st, 2012.

Oscars 12: Winners And More

The Oscars 2012 Are History....And right at the top I would like to thank the AMPAS and telecast-producer Brian Grazer for convincing Billy Crystal to host his 9th ceremony....his Spoof of the Year in Film and Opening Monologue were very well done and funny....As were most of jokes and mini-bits--but not everybody liked the show--In fact the the Critics were down on the show to wit THR--Oscars Become Badly Paced Bore-fest--All I can say I laughed a lot more with Billy hosting than without him...

As to the results

Martin Scorsese's 3D family film Hugo and silent movie and award season darling The Artist  topped the night with five wins apiece. The Artist took home several of the top awards, including best picture, director and actor

The Winners List

Best Motion Picture of the Year
Winner: The Artist

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Winner: Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Winner: Jean Dujardin for The Artist

Best Achievement in Directing
Winner: Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist

Best Short Film, Animated
Winner: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Best Documentary, Short Subject
Winner: Saving Face

Best Short Film, Live Action
Winner: The Shore

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Winner: Midnight in Paris-Woody Allen

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
Winner: The Descendants- Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song
Winner: The Muppets-Bret McKenzie ("Man or Muppet")

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
Winner: The Artist-Ludovic Bource

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Winner: Christopher Plummer for Beginners

Best Achievement in Visual Effects
Winner: Hugo - Robert Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossmann, Alex Henning

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Winner: Rango-Gore Verbinski

Best Documentary, Features
Winner: Undefeated-Daniel Lindsay, T.J. Martin, Rich Middlemas

Best Achievement in Sound Mixing
Winner: Hugo- Tom Fleischman, John Midgley

Best Achievement in Sound Editing
Winner: Hugo-Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty

Best Achievement in Editing
Winner: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo-Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Winner: Octavia Spencer for The Help

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Winner: A Separation - Asghar Farhadi (Iran)

Best Achievement in Makeup
Winner: The Iron Lady- Mark Coulier, J. Roy Helland

Best Achievement in Costume Design
Winner: The Artist- Mark Bridges

Best Achievement in Art Direction
Winner: Hugo - Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo

Best Achievement in Cinematography
Winner: Hugo-Robert Richardson

The Winners' Reactions....

Before things got going there was this: 'Glee's' Darren Criss and Kermit Perform Duet on 'Rainbow Connection'

On The Red Carpet VIDEO--Sacha Baron Cohen's Joke Leaves Ryan Seacrest in the Dust: Hollywood Reacts Backstage--Robert Downey Jr. Caught 'Tebowing' at the Oscars--Speaking of Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow made the best Presenters Octavia Spencer gave the best acceptance speech...

I coulda seriously done without the whole Cirque du Soleil Routine As talented as they are--we should have been able to hear the 2 nominated songs including winner "Man Or Muppet" from The Muppets instead....And the talking heads discussing their faves--could have been eliminated really....

The Best (and Worst) Moments Photo Gallery--per THR

'Night of 100 Stars' Partygoers Talk Award Show Overload

Inside the Governors Ball

The Patriot Act

The Navy SEALs showcase movie "Act Of Valor" came out on top this Academy Awards weekend and its success is a bit of surprise to me given that the film had only real life heroes to carry the story rather than those the industry uses to propel its action flicks.

Sometimes flag waving patriotism is a good thing--right Hollywood?

Tyler Perry does Good Deeds taking #2--while the Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston reunion Wanderlust and the Amanda Seyfried led thriller Gone landed with a BIG THUD....

Pamela McClintock of THR:

Relativity Media's government-endorsed Act of Valor--featuring real-life Navy SEALs--easily won the weekend crown with a strong $24.7 million opening.

Act of Valor, produced by the Bandito Brothers, led another boom weekend at the domestic box office. Revenues were up more than 25 percent from the previous year, even with Sunday's Oscar telecast, which can take a bite out of theater traffic.

Among the best picture nominees still playing, frontrunner The Artist saw a bump on the eve of the Academy Awards, grossing $3 million for a domestic cume of $31.9 million. The pic has earned north of $45 million overseas.

Tyler Perry's romantic Good Deeds, from Lionsgate, opened at No. 2 with $16 million. Perry's movies often debut north of $20 million, but that's for the Madea series, which features the director-writer-actor playing Madea.

Good Deeds was up 25 percent from Friday to Saturday, the best increase of any film and indicating that older females are driving the pic (85 percent of those buying tickets were over the age of 25, while 76 percent were females).

Act of Valor and Good Deeds both earned A CinemaScores. In Act of Valor, Navy SEALs play fictionalized characters on a mission to recover a kidnapped CIA agent. The acton pic, rated R, began its life as a Navy recruitment video but morphed into a feature.

The film's debut is a victory for Relativity, which acquired worldwide rights for $13 million from directors Scott Waugh and Mike "Mouse" McCoy, whose company Bandito Brothers produced the film for roughly $12 million. The deal also included a $30 million marketing commitment. Alliance is distributing the pic in Canada for Relativity.

Act of Valor, which won the praise of President Obama at a White House screening earlier this year, did especially well in the Southeast, Southwest and West, regions rife with military bases. Males fueled the pic, making up 71 percent of the audience.

Good Deeds was followed by a trio of stellar holdovers--Journey 2: The Mysterious Island ($13.5 million), Safe House ($11.4 million) and The Vow ($10 million). The Vow's estimated domestic cume through Sunday was $103 million, marking the first time a Screen Gems title has jumped the $100 million mark.

The weekend's two other new offerings didn't fare so well.

Jennifer Aniston-Paul Rudd R-rated comedy Wanderlust, from Universal, and Amanda Seyfried thriller Gone but faltered in their debuts, coming in No. 8 and No. 9, respectively.

Wanderlust grossed an estimated $6.6 million after earning a B- CinemaScore. The comedy, costing north of $30 million to produce, reteams Role Models director David Wain with Rudd and is about an overstressed Manhattan couple who find a new way of life at a pastoral shared community.

Wanderlust skewed older, with 61 percent of those buying tickets over the age of 30. Females made up 57 percent of the auidence.

Gone, receiving only C+ CinemaScore, opened to $5 million. Summit is releasing Gone for Lakeshore Entertainment and Sidney Kimmel, and says it has a net risk of $2 million on the pic. Females drove the film, making up 64 percent of the audience. Moviegoers over the age of 18 made up 61 percent of those buying tickets.

At the specialty box office, the Metropolitan Opera's live HD transmission of Verdi's Ernani grossed $1.7 million from 850 theaters in the U.S. Overseas, 68,000 moviegoers saw the opera on 500 screens in 39 countries.

Domestic Weekend Box Office, Feb. 24-Feb. 26

1. Act of Valor, 1/3,039, Relativity/Bandito Brothers, $24.7 million

2. Tyler Perry's Good Deeds, 1/2,132, Lionsgate, $16 million

3. Journey 2, 3/3,350, New Line/Warner Bros., $13.5 million, $76.7 million

4. Safe House, 3/3,052, Universal, $11.4 million, $98.1 million

5. The Vow, 2/3,038, Screen Gems/Spyglass, $10 million, $103 million

6. Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, 2/3,174, Sony/Hyde Park, $8.8 million, $37.9 million

7. This Means War, 2/3,189, Fox, $8.5 million, $33.6 million

8. Wanderlust, 1/2,002, Universal, $6.6 million

9. Gone, 1/2,186, Summit, $5 million

10. The Secret World of Arrietty, 2/1,522, Disney/Studio Ghibli, $4.5 million, $14.7 million

Next The Classic Dr. Seuss tale The Lorax comes to the big screen as a CGI Toon with the voices of Taylor Swift, Danny Devito, Zac Efron, Ed Helms, Rob Riggle and Betty White while Thomas Mann Oliver Cooper and Jonathan Daniel Brown throw a wild party in Project X

Feild & Others Get "Work"

Jj Feild Tom Gallop and Christian Clemenson have joined the cast of the low-budget thriller "Not Safe For Work" says Variety.

Adam Mason and Simon Boyes's script follows a young paralegal (Max Minghella) trapped in an office with a killer on a secret mission to destroy files and anyone that stands in his path.

Parts for the three actors are not disclosed in the trade

Eloise Mumford is going to play Minghella's girlfriend who works in the same office.

Joe Johnston will direct while Jason Blum will produce the film.

Production on the film will begin soon.

Feild worked with Johnson on last Summer's Superhero film Captain America: The First Avenger

Fares Fares Joins Hunt For bin Laden

Lebanese actor Fares Fares has joined the cast of Kathryn Bigelow's topical and as yet Untiled Bin Landen war drama says Risky Biz Blog.

Writer Mark Boal extensively researched the film which centers on an elite Black Ops team's attempt to assassinate Osama bin Laden almost a decade ago, an effort that came very close to succeeding.

His death last year meant a few rewrites.

It is not known what role Fares will play, though he is said to be "a good guy" in the film.

Joel Edgerton, Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kyle Chandler, Edgar Ramirez, Tom Hardy, Chris Pratt, Guy Pearce Jennifer Ehle  Harold Perrineau Australian actor/stuntman/filmmaker Nash Edgerton and Mark Strong also star.

Boal, Bigelow and Megan Ellison are producing the film.

The pic has December 19th release date.

This film is not to be confused with John Stockwell's true bin Laden actioner Code Name Geronimo that's already filming.

Fisher Joins The Host Film Adaptation

Frances Fisher ("Titanic," "The Lincoln Lawyer") has joined the film adaptation of Stephenie Meyer's book The Host says Deadline.

Saoirse Ronan has been cast as "Melanie Stryder, one of the last humans putting up a fight against an alien species called Souls. These parasites invade human bodies, fuse to each person's consciousness and systematically erase their personalities. Melanie is captured by the aliens and implanted by a Soul called Wanderer (who Saorise will also play), something of a legend because of all of the "hosts" she has attached to on numerous planets. Wanderer's goal is to get Melanie to give up the remaining pockets of humans, but instead the alien finds Melanie to be unique in her unwillingness to surrender her consciousness. Wanderer is so overwhelmed by Melanie's memories and feelings, the alien is driven to reconnect with Melanie's old life."

Fisher is playing the role of Maggie--a stern aunt to Melanie and sister to Uncle Jeb.

Max Irons has won the male lead role of Jared, Melanie's boyfriend. While Jake Abel is playing the role of Ian, who brutalizes Wanderer before falling in love with her. William Hurt will play the pivotal role of Jeb, an eccentric uncle to Ronan’s Melanie. He is one of the grizzled leaders of the human survivalists fighting the alien invasion. Diane Kruger will play The Seeker, who is charged with overseeing the conversion of Melanie and later pursues her.

Andrew Niccol has written the adapted script and is directing.

Nick Wechsler Steve Schwartz and Paula Mae Schwartz will produce the film.

The film is due to be released on March 29, 2013.

Hollander Is Dickens' Wingman

Tom Hollander has joined the Ralph Fiennes directed drama "The Invisible Woman" according to The Daily Mail

Based on Claire Tomalin's book of the same name, the story focuses on acclaimed author Charles Dickens' 13-year-long secret love affair with Ellen Ternan, fondly known as Nelly ("Like Crazy" star Felicity Jones) by Dickens (Fiennes).

Hollander will play fellow author Wilkie Collins who was instrumental in their meeting

The pic marks Fiennes directorial follow-up to Coriolanus. Abi Morgan wrote the adapted script.

Gabrielle Tana and Stewart Mackinnon will produce.

Production kicks off in April.

Kinnaman Circling RoboCop Redux

The Killing star Joel Kinnaman has seemingly been offered the lead in the "RoboCop" reboot says Deadline.

Gran Torino screenwriter Nick Schenk was recently hired to pen a new draft of the script for director José Padilha. Last March Joshua Zetumer was hired to write the reboot of the RoboCop franchise that now aims to explore in detail a part of the story that Paul Verhoeven's 1987 classic did not--Alex Murphy's actual transition from man to machine.

Kinnaman makes an interesting choice to wear the metal first worn by Peter Weller and is someone that was not on my radar in terms of potentials

It's been confirmed that new the film would be set in Detroit, where Verhoeven's took place. Shooting hopes to kick off this Summer.

Bale Jumps Into The Furnace

He's been circling the pic for a while--and now Christian Bale is indeed locked for the lead in Scott Cooper's Out Of The Furnace, aka The Low Dweller according to The Playlist,

The story is based on a spec script by Brad Ingelsby and centers on Slim (Bale), an Indiana native who has just been freed from prison in 1986. Although he initially has plans to marry his girlfriend, Slim's brother is soon found to be murdered after falling in with a dangerous gambling racket. This eventually leads to Slim's quest for revenge.

Robert Duvall, is the top contender to play the hero’s uncle, while Viggo Mortensen is being mentioned for the bad guy...Meantime Channing Tatum Garrett Hedlund, Taylor Kitsch, and Casey Affleck are being mentioned as candidates to play Bale‘s brother according to Variety

Back in 2008 the script was highly sought after attracting directors like Rupert Sanders and Ridley Scott as well as actor Mark Wahlberg.

Scott. Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson Killoran will produce, with Brooklyn Weaver is executive producing.