Worthington Is One Of "The Riders"

Sam Worthington, Charles Dance and Timothy Spall are set to star in a film adaptation of author Tim Winton's novel "The Riders" says Moviehole.

The story centers on an Aussie expatriate (Worthington) who "prepares to start a new life with his wife Jennifer and young daughter Bille in Ireland. His life is blown apart when he goes to the airport to meet his family, but finds only Billie and no message from his missing wife. With Billie in tow, he travels to Korcula and Paris in search of Jennifer: beginning a journey of self discovery that will alter the course of his life in ways he could never have envisaged."

Robert Connolly ("The Slap," "The Bank") is helming the film from an adapted script by Michael Hirst, Francesca Brill and Susie Brooks-Smith.

Production will kick off next year in France and along the Dalmatian Coast.

The Hobbit Shuffle

Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: Part 3 gets a release date says THR.

Following the news that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey/The Hobbit: There and Back Again would become a trilogy and will include some extensive additional shooting in New Zealand next year.

The second film is now called The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug.

Here's the new breakdown:

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will open on December 14th, 2012.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug will open December 13th, 2013.

The Hobbit: There and Back Again will open July 18th, 2014.

The prequels see Bilbo (Martin Freeman) travel on his journey with dwarves Thorin Oakshield (Richard Armitage) Bofur (Stephen Hunter), Bombur (James Nesbitt), and Bifur (William Kircher). Oin and Gloin (John Callen and Peter Hambleton) Jed Brophy as Nori, Adam Brown as Ori Mark Hadlow as Dori Balin (Ken Stott) and Dwalin (Graham McTavish)

Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage Benedict Cumberbatch Luke Evans Conan Stevens Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving Dean O'Gorman, Elijah Wood, Ian Holm, David Tennant, Barry Humphries., Lee Pace Bret McKenzie Orlando Bloom Billy Connolly Ian McKellen, former "Lost" actress Evangeline Lilly and Christopher Lee also star.

Smith's Cain and Abel Film Gets Green Light

Will Smith's long gestating pic about Biblical brothers Cain and Abel has gotten the green light says The Wrap. Smith hopes to direct the film as well

Under the title "The Redemotion of Cain" Smith would play crop farmer Cain, no word on who'll be his younger shepherd brother Abel but at last report the story was said to have a vampire twist.

Caleeb Pinkett, (Will’s brother-in-law) Daniel Knauf and Andrea Berloff had a hand in the script

Will's wife Jada Pinkett-Smith James Lassiter and Ken Stovitz also produce.

God Of War Writers Speak

In July it was announced that "Pacific Rim" writers Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan were hired to rewrite the script for the film version of the best-selling video game series "God of War".

The first game followed the battles of the Spartan warrior Kratos, who squares off against mythological beasts including Medusa, Cyclops and the Hydra in his quest to find Pandora's Box and destroy Ares, the god of war. By the end of the third game, much of the Greek pantheon lay dead at Kratos' feet. The game is famous for its graphics and imaginative environments, its often copied gameplay, and its doses of sex and extreme violence.

Chatting with IGN, Melton and Dunstan told the site why they were hired to rework David Self's existing script.

"The only problem with that [script] is it was written before Clash of the Titans, Wrath of the Titans, 300, and Immortals, and those movies borrowed quite a bit from the God of War stories. It was just a little bit outdated, so we wanted to differentiate it from those other movies."

The plan is now on to treat the open to the film as a prequel to the games - "we’re seeing him before he became the Ghost of Sparta, when he was just a Spartan warrior and he had family and kids."

The prequel narrativewill not last long before moving into the familiar- "In the game… there’s that attack from the barbarians and Kratos has to call upon Ares to help him. Really, that’s going to be our first act break. Before then, he’s going to be mortal, and he’s going to have his family. We’re going to learn about him and understand how he operates. So it’s potentially 30 minutes — give or take — of building up this character so that, when he does turn and becomes the Ghost of Sparta, we understand him as a human and we understand the journey that he’s going to take."

The film is being designed to accomodate sequels- "We’re emotionally invested, so that it could go beyond just this one movie. In the game, you know, he’s immortal, and he doesn’t really do much besides raid Athens. So we’re trying to build him up a bit more, too, so that he can become a true villain."

Charles Roven and Alex Gartner are the producing the film.

Efron Asks "Are We Officially Dating?"

Zac Efron will star in the romantic comedy Are We Officially Dating? says Deadline New York.

The script, which made the 2010 Black List, follows three friends in New York City who make a pact to remain single just as they each start to fall in  love.

Tom Gormican wrote and will direct the movie.

Justin Nappi and Kevin Turen, Scott Aversano and Andrew O'Connor will produce the film--while Michael Simkin, Jason Barrett, and Manu Gargi are executive producing.

Production begins this fall in Manhattan

Pitt Plays Pickford's First Hubby

Michael Pitt has been cast in the biopic about actress Mary Pickford called The First says The Press Association.

Based on the book "Pickford: The Woman Who Made Hollywood" by author Eileen Whitfield--Josh Fagin is writing the adapted script which will explore the life of Pickford, (Lily Rabe) a silent film star known as "America’s Sweetheart" who was both one of the creators of United Artists and one of the co-founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. She is considered a central figure in the shaping of the Hollywood industry. She died in 1979 at the age of 87 of a brain hemorrhage.

Ryan Simpkins (A Single Man) will also play Pickford in her younger years. Pitt will play Owen Moore, the first husband of Mary. They had a troubled marriage, made harder by Owen's alcoholism and insecurity about living in her shadow.

Jude Law will play legendary actor Douglas Fairbanks--who was married to Pickford later in her life.

Jennifer DeLia will direct and produce the pic with Julie Pacino.

Production will kick off early next year.

Box Office Preview: Summer '12's Last Gasp

Summer 2012 comes to a close with Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf and Guy Pearce proving Lawless (reviews) for director John Hillcoat on Wednesday; While The Possession (reviews) takes hold of Natasha Calis, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Kyra Sedgwick.

Pamela McClintock of THR:

The long Labor Day weekend will see Brave and The Avengers dramatically up their theater counts at the North American box office in an end-of-summer push.

Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted also is increasing its presence -- which, combined with Brave, will make life difficult for the independently distributed kids pic The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure.

Oogieloves, directed by Matthew Diamond, opened to a dismal $102,564 from 2,160 theaters on Wednesday for a per-screen average of $47. Distributor Kenn Viselman, who was instrumental in bringing Teletubbies to American television, says the film will stay in that many theaters over the weekend.

Disney and Pixar's Brave, playing in 452 locations last weekend, will expand to 1,700 on Friday; ditto for Disney and Marvel's The Avengers, whose current theater count is 123.

The Labor Day push isn't entirely unprecedented, at least in the case of Disney. Last year, Cars 2 also made a major expansion during the holiday weekend, grossing $1.8 million.

Box-office observers say Disney and Paramount are reacting this year to a soft marketplace in terms of new offerings. This weekend, Lawless, from The Weinstein Co., and Lionsgate's horror pic The Possession will battle it out for No. 1 with an expected four-day opening gross in the $12 million to $13 million range.

Lawless, a Prohibition-era drama from Australian director John Hillcoat, opened Wednesday to a chart-topping $1.1 million. The film, starring Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf and Jason Clarke as moonshiner brothers, is based on Max Bondurant's novel The Wettest County in the World and was adapted by Nick Cave.

The anti-Barack Obama documentary 2016: Obama's America remains a wild card. The film continues to overperform and expands from roughly 1,091 theaters to more than 1,700 on Friday. The doc has grossed $12.3 million to date.

Theron Produces Colvin Biopic

Charlize Theron and producer Basil Iwanyk are gearing up for a film about recently killed war journalist Marie Colvin says The Hollywood Reporter.

Colvin was a well-known American war correspondent who covered conflicts in Kosovo, Chechnya, East Timor, Sri Lanka and other locales. She went through three divorces and post-traumatic stress disorder, and died in February while covering the Syrian civil war

Iwanyk has optioned the film rights to author Marie Brenner's Vanity Fair article Marie Colvin’s Private War while Theron,  Beth Kono and Aj Dix are in talks to join Iwanyk as producers.

The pic could also be an acting vehicle for Theron but she is not committed to star.

Another one of Brenner's articles-The Man Who Knew Too Much was turned into a film-Michael Mann's highly acclaimed 1999 drama "The Insider".

Arad Produces "Metal Gear" Movie

Avi Arad will produce the planned film adaptation of Konami Digital Entertainment's "Metal Gear Solid" video game franchise reports Game Informer.

The first in the series of stealth-based games, which began back in 1998, the story follows an attempt to take back a secret military base from genetically enhanced soldiers who have hostages in tow and a dangerous next-generation nuclear weapon.

Sony Pictures has been developing the film adaptation since at least 2006, but the attachment of Arad gives the project new life.

"For many years I fought to bring comics to theaters - and video games are the comics of today. We will take our time and tell the story with all the nuances, ideology, cautionary tales needed" Arad said at yesterday's Metal Gear 25th Anniversary event.

Chan-wook Park Travels To "Rattleborge"

South Korean filmmaker and "Oldboy" director Chan-wook Park is in talks to direct the thriller "The Brigands of Rattleborge" says Variety.

The story follows a sheriff and a doctor who seek revenge against a group of bandits who use the cover of a torrential thunderstorm to rob and terrorize the occupants of a small town.

S. Craig Zahler's script made the 2006 Black List of best unproduced screenplays but the violent content is extreme enough that the project has been languishing for several years.

Bradley Fischer, Riza Aziz and Joey McFarland will produce the film.

Leigh Is A "Spectacular" Mom

Jennifer Jason Leigh has joined the cast of the film adaptation of Tim Tharp's coming-of-age novel "The Spectacular Now" says Variety.

The indie R-rated teen comedy film centers on a high school senior (Miles Teller) who lives entirely in the moment. He starts dating a girl (Shailene Woodley of "The Descendants") who is a social outcast and is trying to plan for her future, but he realizes he has the power to permanently impact someone's life.

Leigh plays Teller's mother.

Dayo Okeniyi Brie Larson, Kaitlyn Dever, Masam Holden, Kyle Chandler, Bob Odenkirk, Andre Royo and Mary Elizabeth Winstead also star.

Marc Webb was originally attached to direct but chose to helm the The Amazing Spider-Man instead. And then Lee Toland Krieger ("The Vicious Kind") was gonna do it but has moved on--now "Smashed" helmer James Ponsoldt will call action on the film.

Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber ((500) Days of Summer) adapted the script .

Tom McNulty is producing the flick.

Production is going on now in Athens, Georgia.

Foster Endures A "Red Light Winter"

Ben Foster is attached to star in Adam Rapp's indie drama adaptation of his own play "Red Light Winter" says Variety.

The story follows two male friends who travel from New York to Amsterdam and become caught up in a love triangle with a prostitute (Kirsten Dunst), bringing to the surface dark undercurrents in their troubled friendship.

Foster plays one of the pair, an anxious emerging writer, a role that Mark Ruffalo was originally due to play.

Billy Crudup was also previously attached to star.

Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen and Scott Rudin are producing the film.

Production hopes to kick off in December or January.

Fisher Takes "Plush" Part

Frances Fisher has joined Catherine Hardwicke’s erotic thriller "Plush" says Variety.

The film, written by Hardwicke and Arty Nelson sees Emily Browning as a rising rock star and married mother of two who finds new hope and friendship in Enzo (Xavier Samuel), the replacement guitarist who inspires her to reach new creative heights. She slowly discovers she may have let a madman into her home and family.

Fisher will play the new nanny of  Browning's character.

Dawn Olivieri plays the band’s manager.Cam Gigandet plays the husband. Evan Rachel Wood and  Thomas Dekker co-star.

Hardwicke will also produce the thriller with Stuart Ford.

Production starts this month in LA.

Pizza Bomber Tale Becomes A Movie

The film rights to FBI Special Agent Gerald C. Clark, Jr. and journalist Ed Palattella's upcoming non-fiction book "Pizza Bomber" have been purchased says Deadline.

In 2003 a Pennsylvanian pizza delivery man entered a bank telling an employee he’d been shackled with an explosive device around his neck and forced to pull off a heist. As he exited, the bomb went off and killed him instantly. Ultimately it was discovered he wasn't a victim but a co-conspirator unaware that a real bomb would be involved. The actual mastermind was a woman who is currently serving life plus thirty years in prison.

Keaton Takes Laurie's Robocop Role

Michael Keaton has replaced Hugh Laurie in the remake of "Robocop" says Heat Vision.

At first 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 (The Killing star Joel Kinnaman) actual transition from man to machine.

Keaton will play “the cold, sarcastic CEO of Omnicorp, Raymond Sellars, leading the group behind RoboCop’s creation.”

Gary Oldman has been cast as Norton, the scientist who creates Robocop and finds himself torn between the ideals of the machine trying to rediscover its humanity and the callous needs of a corporation. Samuel L. Jackson will play Pat Novak, a charismatic media mogul and a powerful force in the future. Abbie Cornish will play the role of Alex Murphy's wife who thinks she is a widow. Jennifer Ehle plays a character named Liz Kline which is new to the mythology. Jackie Earle Haley will play Maddox, the man who dispenses the military training to Roboco. Michael Kenneth Williams will play the partner of Murphy who is close with Murphy’s family. Marianne Jean-Baptiste is set to play Karen Dean, the Detroit Chief of Police Jay Baruchel also stars.

Marc Abraham and Eric Newman will produce the film.

This has been a difficult time for the remake following a negative script review from HitFix honcho Drew McWeeny--reports in the Brazilian outlet Cinemacom Rapadura suggest that Padilha is clashing with the studio over creative decisions--Making the project "Hell" for Padilha

Shooting kicks off in September in Toronto for release on August 9th 2013.

Bats Reintroduced In Justice League Movie?

Even with Christopher Nolan's bat-capper "The Dark Knight Rises--it seems that Warner Bros might forgo the expected reboot option for Batman.

Batman on Film reports that it's looking likely that a new Batman will be introduced in the proposed "Justice League" movie, meaning that we would not see a stand alone film featuring the Caped Crusader until after JL hits the cineplex.

The "Justice League " teams DC Entertainment's most famous heroes (Batman, Superman, The Flash, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, among others)--with the script by "The Gangster Squad" writer Will Beall.

With Warners planning to keep the Nolan Bat-verse separate and apart  from its plans for DC Comic films moving forward.

It' assumed that Henry Cavill's Superman in Zack Snyder's "Man of Steel" will likely be a part of a JL film, but there is no official word that's a sure thing...

Would the Ryan Reynolds version of "Green Lantern" be part of the film...

Recent reports suggest that the sibling directors Andy Wachowski and Lana Wachowski are on the studio's list of possible contenders to helm JL

Given Marvel's success with writer/director Joss Whedon's The Avengers DC faces an uphill climb no matter what they do.

Gosling Gets To Direct A "How To" Movie

"Drive" star Ryan Gosling, co-star Christina Hendricks and producer Marc Platt are ready to reunite for "How To Catch a Monster" according to The Film Stage.

Described as a "modern day fairytale" with suspense and fantasy noir elements weaved in, the story is set in a vanishing city where a single mother of two (Hendricks) is "swept into a macabre and dark fantasy underworld while her teenage son discovers a secret road leading to an underwater town". The pair must solve the mystery if they're all to survive.

The motion picture will mark Gosling's writing and directing debut

It's expected that the pic will be sold at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival

Production is aiming to kick off in the Spring.

Douglas Circles "Reykjavik" As Reagan

Michael Douglas is in talks to star in the historical indie drama "Reykjavik" says The Hollywood Reporter.

The story is based on the 1986 Reykjavík Summit between President Ronald Reagan (Douglas) and Russian President n Mikhail Gorbachev which led to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty between the two super powers.

Kevin Hood wrote the script

Ridley Scott was previously linked to helm the pic now though Mike Newell is now in talks to direct. Scott remains on board as producer along with David W. Zucker, Mark Sennet and Stewart Mackinnon.

Production kicks off in March in Germany.

Celebrate James Bond Day!!!

MGM, Columbia Pictures, Passion Pictures and Red Box Films will release Stevan Riley's James Bond feature length documentary "Everything or Nothing: The Untold Story of 007" on October 5th.

Celebrating the film franchise's 50th anniversary on that date, the film centers on the origins of the successful spy thriller series thanks to three men - Bond franchise producers Albert R. Broccoli, Harry Saltzman and author Ian Fleming.

The movie boasts unprecedented access both to the key players involved and to from Eon Productions' extensive archive.

Specific release plans will be announced soon.

Emma Stone Says Gwen SHOULD Die

With The Amazing Spider-Man successfully rebooting the series and Peter Parker's first love Gwen Stacey front and center--many (myself included) have wondered if the classic story The Night Gwen Stacy Died would become part of the new narrative.

In a chat with Cameron Crowe published in Interview magazine, actress Emma Stone who plays her is all for that happening- "Essentially the argument is that Spider-Man kills her by accident. So the person she loves is the person who kills her, which is the most horrifying thing. Apparently people unsubscribed to the comic book when that happened because they were just so flipped-out over it. But, of course, I want to stay true to that."

This illustrates one of the reasons why I love Emma--She is willing to do risky things for the sake of story and plot rather than herself. I would not want her to leave the series too early--because of my crush---But Gwen's death would allow Andrew Garfield as Spidey to take him further than he would be allowed to if the watershed event is not included.

Producer Matt Tolmach said they plan at least three films in this series, and considering the $704 million worldwide haul of the first film that is a forgone conclusion.

Will the death of Gwen, become a plot point of the The Amazing Spider-Man 2" which is already set for May 2014?

Wood. Polish, Catch A "Butterfly"

Evan Rachel Wood is in talks to star while Michael Polish is attached to direct the indie road movie 18 Wheel Butterfly says Variety.

"Deus Ex" video game writer Christian Divine penned the film which is set in Texas in 1977. Wood would play a driver who must outrace the law, bounty hunters and a pair of fellow truckers after she is wrongly accused.

Aaron Magnani, Polish and his brother Mark are producing the film.

Financing is still being sought and so no start date is yet locked.

Raimi Wins Evil Dead Court Ruling

Sam Raimi has won a legal tussle against a production company that was keen on releasing an unauthorized sequel to his Evil Dead film series says THR Esq.

Back in May, Raimi's production company Renaissance Pictures sued Award Pictures for their attempts to produce a film called "Evil Dead 4: Consequences".

Award Pictures president Glenn MacCrea failed to respond in court.

A California federal court decision last week entered a default judgment that permanently enjoins Award Pictures from using the "Evil Dead" trademark or using marketing materials that might confuse the public into believing that Award has rights to the title.

Fassbender May Carry "Jane's" Gun

Michael Fassbender is in talks to join "We Need to Talk About Kevin" director Lynne Ramsay's new western "Jane Got A Gun" says Vulture.

The story centers on a woman (Natalie Portman) who must defend her farm when her outlaw husband returns home after a gunfight at death's door. With his gang coming to kill them, she seeks the help of an ex-lover (Fassbender) to defend themselves.

Brian Duffield wrote the script which forced a bidding war at the Cannes Film Festival and also made last year's annual Black List of best unproduced screenplays.

Portman will also produce,

'Jane' hopes to begin shooting by early next year.

Espinosa Cares For "Child 44"

"Safe House" director Daniel Espinosa is in early talks to call action on an adaptation of author Tom Rob Smith's novel "Child 44" reports Deadline.

The first book in a trilogy is set in the Joseph Stalin-era Soviet Union and follows disgraced lawman Leo Demidov who is assigned to investigate a series of gruesome child murders.

The story is based on the real life tale of Ukrainian serial killer Andrei Chikatilo aka the Rostov Ripper who was executed in 1994 for 52 murders.

Richard Price adapted the script.

Ridley Scott was once attached to direct and remains producer.

Production aims to kick off early next year should it get the green light.

Fincher On "The Girl Who Played with Fire"

While speaking with The Art Of Title about the credit sequences in his films director David Fincher updated the progress on the English-language version of Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo follow-up "The Girl Who Played with Fire"--which recently saw its proposed release date from next Christmas to sometime in 2014.

The next book in the series is set a year later. Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) is approached by a young journalist couple with a meticulously researched thesis about Swedish sex trafficking ring invoving high-ranking public and private figures. When both they and Lisbeth Salander's (Rooney Mara) abusive former guardian is found murdered, Lisbeth is pegged as the prime suspect. The trail leads to a dark incident in Lisbeth's past and a mysterious figure known only as 'Zala' who is the key to everything.

Despite rumours that he is not going to call action. As is turns out he is still very much involved in preping the film. He tells the site "Well, [I'm] trying to figure out a sequel to 'Dragon Tattoo.' We’ve got to be able to make it our own thing."

Screenwriter Steven Zaillian is still working on the script.

Fincher is busy on the TV series "House Of Cards", the remake of the classic British political drama with Kevin Spacey taking over for Ian Richardson.

Leo, Tom, & Tobey Team For Animal Poaching Pic

Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire and Tom Hardy are teaming to produce an Untitled Animal Trafficking Project drama says The Hollywood Reporter.

The film will follow several different storylines ala Traffic about the impact of animal Poaching at different points along the process- from the ground war on poachers in the African savanna to the end products in places like the high-end fashion houses of Paris.

The search for a writer has begun. Hardy came up with the idea, inspired by former Special Forces friends of his who went on to become anti-poaching fighters in South Africa.

It's uncertain at this point if any of the three actors would apear in the film.

"Fellini" Falls For Cornish

Abbie Cornish has won the female lead role of Betty in "Fellini Black And White" reports Deadline.

Set in Los Angeles in 1957, the story follows filmmaker Federico Fellini's (Wagner Moura) first trip to America to attend the Oscars, during which time he went missing for 48 hours and barely made it to the ceremony. Afterwards he returned to Italy to create his two most iconic films- "La Dolce Vita" and "8½".

The pic comes up with a scenario as to what may have happened during those two days - in this case discovering the jazz and surf scenes and falling for a veterinarian (Cornish)

Terrence Howard, Peter Dinklage and William H. Macy are attached to play a jazz musician, the vet's lover and Fellini's publicist respectively. Nina Arianda will play Italian film star Giulietta Masina, the wife of the filmmaker

Henry Bromell directs from his own script

Andrew Lazar is producing the film.

Production begins early next year.

SzohrJoins "Two Night Stand"

Jessica Szohr is in negotiations to join the indie romantic comedy "Two Night Stand" says THR.

The story follows a pair of unlikely lovers (Miles Teller and Analeigh Tipton) who are trapped together in an apartment after a record-breaking blizzard forces them to extend a regrettable one-night stand.

Szohr will play Tipton’s best friend and workaholic roommate who encourages Tipton to get back into the dating world.

Mark Hammer wrote the script from which Music video director Max Nichols is calling action.

Beau Flynn and Ruben Fleischer are producing.

Production kicks off in late September in New York.

Smulders Circles Starbuck Redo

Cobie Smulders ("The Avengers") is in talks to play the female lead in Ken Scott's remake of his own 2011 French-Canadian comedy hit "Starbuck" says Variety.

The story follows a middle-aged (Vince Vaughn) man who learns he has fathered over five-hundred children through sperm donation, a few hundred of which express an irrepressible need to meet their dad.

Smulders would play Vaughn's pregnant girlfriend. Chris Pratt will play a single father of four and lawyer who takes Vaughn’s case.

Scott is set to write and direct the remake. Andre Rouleau is set to produce the film.

Scott Mednick will exec produce.

Turteltaub Wants To Be "Beached"

Director Jon Turteltaub is looking to helm "Beached" as a directing vehicle for himself says The Hollywood Reporter.

The story centers on a chubby 4-year-old child who falls overboard during a family outing, is raised by whales and goes on to become a champion swimmer.

The original script was handed in by Ted Griffin (Ocean's Eleven, Tower Heist) with Betty Thomas attached to helm the film.

Now--Turteltaub will oversee the re-writing of Jordan Roberts' previous draft.

This really sounds ridiculous...I wonder if Swimmer Michael Phelps will star since he's retired...?

Turteltaub is now in pre-production on the comedy "Last Vegas" with Michael Douglas, Morgan Freeman and Robert De Niro.

Holloway Gives Medical Help In "Breacher"

Josh Holloway is set to join the action thriller "Breacher" aka "Ten" says Variety.

The story revolves around the members of an elite DEA task force who depart from their usual operations and steal millions from a drug cartel safe house. Just when the team thinks they got away with it, someone begins to take out them out one by one.

Sam Worthington Terrence Howard Dawn Olivieri Joe Manganiello Olivia Williams Max Martini Malin Akerman Mireille Enos, and Arnold Schwarzenegger are attached to star.

Holloway is in talks to play Neck, the team's medic.

Bill Block, Paul Hanson, Joe Roth, Palak Patel and Albert Ruddy will produce.

Production kicks off in October in Atlanta.

Johnson Could Be A "Badass for Hire"

‘The Rock’ Dwayne Johnson is loosely attached to star in the long developing comedy "Dan Mintner: Badass for Hire" says The Wrap.

The Chad Kultgen, spect script revolves around a character who is described as the ultimate badass who becomes tangled in a kidnapping drama.

Lesbian Vampire Killers director Phil Claydon was attached to possibly direct this, but that seems to no longer be the case.

The studio hopes for a start of production date sometime next year, though uncertain whether it will be before or after Johnson shoots "Journey to the Center of the Earth 3". Johnson is currently filming "The Fast and the Furious 6" in the UK.

Kurtzman And Orci Oversee Dragonology Movie

"Star Trek" and "Transformers" duo Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci will produce the fantasy adventure adaptation "Dragonology" says Heat Vision.

The book uses the conceit that dragons actually exist as purported by the Victorian dragonologist Ernest Drake. The film version will focus on a team of dragonologists who embark on a quest to avert a plot to use the world’s remaining dragons to wipe out humanity.

Leonard Hartman was originally set to write the adapted script when the property rights were secured back in 2008, now that draft has been discared so that Kurtzman and Orci can oversee the hiring of a new writer to pen the new draft.

Nolfi Sends "Xoxo"

George Nolfi ("The Adjustment Bureau") is attached to both direct and oversee a rewrite of the social-media thriller "Xoxo" says Variety.

Mark Heyman ("Black Swan") wrote the original script that follows a rising executive who flirts online despite being engaged. He begins a virtual relationship with a woman on Facebook, soon the romance begins seeping into his actual life in a deadly way.

Darren Aronofsky, Michael London and Kelly Mullen will produce the film.

Shepard Brings Them Together In "August"

Sam Shepard (Days of Heaven, The Right Stuff) has joined the film adaptation of Tracy Letts' award-winning play "August: Osage County" says Variety.

First performed in '07 the show revolves around a family's buried pains and present conflicts after its patriarch (Shepard) dies. Meryl Streep would play the drug-addicted matriarch, while Julia Roberts would play the eldest daughter who is estranged from her adulterous husband.

Juliette Lewis is in talks to play Karen, the self-deluding youngest daughter. Chris Cooper plays Streep's brother in law. Abigail Breslin will play Roberts’ angry and acerbic pot smoking daughter Margo Martindale plays Mattie Fae Aiken, the sister of Streep's character.Dermot Mulroney will play Steve, the not-quite-who-he-seems businessman fiancé of Karen. Benedict Cumberbatch will play the sensitive son of Mattie Fay.

John Wells will direct the film from a screenplay adapted by Letts.

Harvey Weinstein George Clooney Grant Heslov Jean Doumanian and Steve Traxler will produce the pic.

Gyllenhaal Sr. Chronicles The Kennedy Detail

Stephen Gyllenhaal, father of actors Jake Gyllenhaal and Maggie Gyllenhaal will write and direct the film "The Kennedy Detail" according to If Press.

Gyllenhaal's film, hopes to mark the 50th anniversary President John F. Kennedy's assassination next November, is set to examine the Secret Service personnel assigned to protect the President on that day.

Gyllenhaal will use both former agent Gerald Blaine's book of the same name, and recent interviews he did with surviving members of Kennedy's security detail.

Production kicks off in January.

Nyman Another Kick Ass 2 Baddie

British actor/magician Andy Nyman has joined the cast of "Kick-Ass 2: Balls to the Wall" as a villain named "The Tumor" says HitFix.

The Kick-Ass sequel sees Aaron Johnson, Chloë Grace Moretz and Christopher Mintz-Plasse return to reprise their roles.

The character is a member of Red Mist's gang of supervillains which is called The Toxic Mega-Cunts.

Donald Faison is in talks to play Doctor Gravity a physics professor at Columbia who built a baseball bat-like pole which can make something twenty times its actual weight. In actuality though it is just a baseball bat covered in tin foil. John Leguizamo plays the bodyguard of Red Mist. Yancy Butler ("Witchblade," "Drop Zone") is set to return to reprise her role as the mother of Red Mist. Robert Emms is set to play 'Insect Man' and Morris Chestnut will play Marcus Williams In the comics, Insect Man is a cop who turned into a superhero during the night to "do the stuff he couldn't do in his day job." Marcus is the new stepfather of Hit-Girl. Jim Carrey is being pursued to play 'The Colonel' who helps motivate the team of misfit super heroes to assemble and fight evil. Lindy Booth ("Dawn of the Dead," "Wrong Turn") is in talks to play Night Bitch.

"Never Back Down" director Jeff Wadlow wrote a script and will direct the pic.

Shooting kicks off in September in Toronto and London.

Dekker Decks Out "Plush"

Thomas Dekker has joined Catherine Hardwicke’s erotic thriller "Plush" says Just Jared.

The film, written by Hardwicke and Arty Nelson sees Emily Browning as a rising rock star and married mother of two who finds new hope and friendship in Enzo (Xavier Samuel), the replacement guitarist who inspires her to reach new creative heights. She slowly discovers she may have let a madman into her home and family.

The site did not specify the nature of Dekker's role

Dawn Olivieri plays the band’s manager.Cam Gigandet plays the husband. Evan Rachel Wood co-stars.

Hardwicke will also produce the thriller with Stuart Ford.

Production starts this month in LA.

Malick's "Knight Of Cups" Is Very Full

Aussie actor Jason Clark has confirmed he's got a role in writer/director Terrence Malick's new film "Knight of Cups" says The Playlist.

Clarke joins an already massive cast that includes Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Natalie Portman Isabel Lucas, Antonio Banderas, Joe Manganiello,Ryan O'Neal, Wes Bentley Joel Kinnaman, Freida Pinto,Thomas Lennon, Michael Wincot and  Imogen Poots.

All that is known about the plot is Kinnaman has the role of “a rich playboy” to Bale’s “depressed writer”

Nicolas Gonda, Ken Kao, Daniel Newman, Sarah Green and Hans Graffunder are producing the film.

Production has been underway for weeks.

It's "No Easy Day" For Spielberg

Steven Spielberg is said to be in talks to direct a film adaptation of "No Easy Day", a book by former SEAL Team Six member Matt Bissonnette aka Mark Owen, says The Atlantic Wire.

This is a first-hand account of what happened on the ground during Operation Neptune Spear - the raid on Osama bin Laden's hiding place in Pakistan which led to the death of the al-Qaeda leader.

The film is only in the early stages of development, far behind two other movies about the military operation which are due for release this year--Kathryn Bigelow's topical war drama Zero Dark Thirty and John Stockwell's true bin Laden actioner Code Name Geronimo