Dancer Steps Up 4 Film

So You Think You Can Dance favorite Kathryn McCormick has joined the tentatively titled "Step Up 4-Ever" as the female lead.

Choreographer Stacey Tookey revealed the news viaTwitter, that was subsequently confirmed by producer Adam Shankman.

"Kathryn McCormick isn't just IN Step Up 4. She's the female lead. Her audition was fantastic. A star is born" read Shankman's tweet.

Music video director Scott Speer calls the shots on the sequel which is aiming for a release in 2012

Avengers, Cap & Comic Con

Marvel flicks Captain America and The Avengers are hitting Comic-Con, but not in the way you may think,

No.There won't be a Hall H presentation, but First Showing reports that 'Avengers' will make big use of the floor with  a "massive Helicarrier bridge" set.

Marvel will use viral marketing with S.H.I.E.L.D.folks milling around along with vehicles Some of the main cast members are also expected to pop in for signings at Marvel's booth, while a new teaser trailer is expected to be shown at the con.

Meanwhile The Hollywood Reporter says that a special screening of "Captain America" could take place on Thursday morning while Chris Evans is expected to show up for some military-related treat for soldiers stationed in San Diego  Honoring real heroes indeed! Very Cool!!

With filming of  'Avengers', happening as we speak, plans are very fluid...

Weston Steps In For Rathbone

Jonny Weston has joined the cast of the drama Cherry says Variety.

Real life porn actress Lorelei Lee and author Stephen Elliott wrote the screenplay from which Elliott will make his directorial debut.

The film follows an 18-year-old girl who moves to San Francisco and enters the adult film industry.

Weston plays the girl's ex boyfriend, replacing Jackson Rathbone who dropped out due to scheduling issues

James Franco, Ashley Hinshaw  Heather Graham and Slumdog Millionaire's Dev Patel co star

Liz Destro will produce the pix

Could Spike Lee Direct Oldboy Remake?

Spike Lee is in talks to direct the Hollywood remake of Chan-wook Park's 2003 cult classic "Old Boy" says Twitchfilm.

The original film followwed a man's mysterious kidnapping, 15-year imprisonment and feverish quest for revenge upon being released.

Two remake attempts have been made almost since the first film's release with Justin Lin and Nicolas Cage taking on one version, while Will Smith and Steven Spielberg were looking to do the second Both fell apart

The project came back to life late last year and with. Mark Protosevich writing the new script

Doug Davison and Roy Lee will be producing.

Kilmer One Of 7

Val Kilmer, Ving Rhames, Luke Goss and Rebecca Da Costa will star in the indie thriller "Seven Below" reports Variety.

The film sees a group of strangers trapped in a time warp house where a terrible event transpired exactly one century prior.

Kevin Carraway is directing from a screenplay he co-wrote with Lawrence Smith.

Eric Fischer Brianna Lee Johnson and Warren Ostergard will produce.

Shooting kicks off in Cincinnati, Ohio next month

Depp On For Pirates 5?

Johnny Depp is close to a deal to sign on to star in Pirates of the Caribbean 5 according to Reuters.

The script for a fifth film has been written

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer said he had no plans to proceed without Depp.

At the time Depp said he'd be up for playing Captain Jack Sparrow again, but seemed interested in taking a break for a little while.

Despite the general downturn in U.S. domestic box-office, "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" has become the second highest grossing film of the year with $234 million thus far, behind only The Hangover Part II with $248 million and $1 Billion Worldwide

The second film, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest holds the worldwide record for the series with $1.066 billion - a figure 'Tides' will most likely pass before its theatrical run is over

Act Like A God

A fine supporting ensemble will play Greek Gods in the comedy "Gods Behaving Badly" says The Hollywood Reporter.

Based on the book by Marie Phillips, the story deals with a mortal couple (Alicia Silverstone and Ebon Moss-Bachrach,) who encounter the Olympian gods who are currently residing in a brownstone in modern-day New York

Christopher Walken will play Zeus, John Turturro is Hades, Sharon Stone is Aphrodite, Oliver Platt is Apollo, Edie Falco is Artemis, Phylicia Rashad is Demeter, Nelsan Ellis is Dionysus, Gideon Glick is Eros, Henry Zebrowski is Hermes, and Rosie Perez is Persephone.

Marc Turtletaub makes his feature directorial debut on the pic

Turtletaub and Peter Saraf will produce,

The film begins shooting this month in New York City.

Trip Ticker To Austenland

Keri Russell, Jj Feild and Bret McKenzie will star in the indie romantic comedy"Austenland"  says Heat Vision.

Based on Shannon Hale's novel of the same name--the story centers on a single, thirtysomething woman with a secret obsession with Colin Firth's performance of Mr. Darcy in the 90's mini-series adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice". The obsession is ruining her love life because no real man can compare, so she decides to spend her life savings on a trip to an English resort catering to Jane Austen crazed women. Her fantasy of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman becomes more real than she could have imagined.

Russell is playing the single woman, while Feild is playing a Mr. Darcy actor at this Austenland resort

Jennifer Coolidge, Jane Seymour, Rupert Vansittart and James Callis co-star.

The film marks the directorial debut of Jerusha Hess (Napoleon Dynamite) who also co-wrote the adapted script with Hale It also marks the film producing debut of Twilight Series author Stephenie Meyer

Filming starts this week

Santoro Expects To Be Expecting

Rodrigo Santoro has been cast to play Jennifer Lopez's husband in the film adaptation of "What To Expect When You're Expecting" says The Hollywood Reporter

An adaptation of the guidebook of the same name the film will interweave the lives of several couples as they prepare for parenthood

Santoro will play a music business executive who isn’t quite ready to have a child but goes along with his wife’s plan to adopt.

Cameron Diaz, Anna Kendrick and Brooklyn Decker also star

Whip It writer Shauna Cross and Heather Hach (“Freaky Friday)” will adapt authors Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel bestseller into a screenplay.

Kirk Jones (“Nanny McPhee”) will call action on the film for producers Mike Medavoy, Arnie Messer, David Thwaites and Doug McKay.

Who Will Battle The Bots Next?

As director Michael Bay and star Shia Labeouf leaving the Transformers film series the next film will be taking a different direction for a potential sequel

Showbiz Spy speculates that action star Jason Statham might be the series' next leading man.

When you consider that Transformers: Dark of the Moon female lead, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, is the real life girlfriend of Statham who would likely come back for the fourth film if he were involved--the notion makes some sense

Their source claims “It’s clear the franchise still has huge potential but with a new leading man capable of taking Transformers in a new, darker direction. Jason could be just the man to do that and his relationship with Rosie would be an added bonus in marketing the movie.”

Statham is indeed a big box office draw....But really it's all about the bots putting say Josh Duhamel or Tyrese Gibson in that lead off spot makes as much sense

Additional Listers

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Parker's Pals

Character actors Clifton Collins Jr. (Star Trek, Capote) and Wendell Pierce have signed on for Taylor Hackford's action film "Parker" says Variety.

The film adapts late author Donald Westlake Parker novel series, in which Jason Statham plays a thief who follows a strict moral code who's willing to kill if crossed.

Jennifer Lopez plays Leslie, a woman who gets involved with Parker as he executes a heist.

Hackford directs from an adapted script by John J. McLaughlin ("Black Swan").

Hackford, Steven Chasman, Les Alexander, Sidney Kimmel and Jonathan Mitchell will produce

The potential franchise launcher begins production in August.

Sandler & James Check In To Hotel Transylvania

Adam Sandler will lend his voice for the lead role of Count Dracula in the animated family comedy "Hotel Transylvania" says The Hollywood Reporter.

The story follows a group of classic monsters including Frankenstein, the Mummy, Dracula and the Werewolf who are hiding out in a hotel on the outskirts of Transylvania now that 21st century technology has seemingly made them irrelevant.

Sandler's frequent co-star Kevin James and Andy Samberg will also voice characters but those have not been specified yet.

"Samurai Jack" creator Genndy Tartakovsky will direct the film while Michelle Murdocca ("Open Season") will produce the pic

Proud America

Some time ago there was a plan to shorten the upcoming superhero film's title from "Captain America The First Avenger:" to just "The First Avenger" in select international territories.

By setting the film during World War II set mostly in Europe, the filmmakers have mostly avoided using contemporary political issues that that may have undermined their international box-office.
 
You could not just ignore the title character's orgins...The studio offered all territories the choice of both titles.

The Hollywood Reporter reports that only three countries have opted for the shortened version - Russia, Ukraine and South Korea.

Most international distributors thought the franchise name was so identifiable that not using "Captain America" in the title could risk losing ticket sales. In the three countries it will take place, the change was reportedly done for "cultural and political reasons".

Some elements of the marketing elements have been changed. A new Australian version of the recently released full trailer for the film confirms that the tagline "Heroes are made in America" has been dropped from the international versions of the trailer, replaced with a far less interesting and more generic "When evil rises, a hero will stand."

The film will get its big push internationally in the UK, Australia, certain Asian and South American markets on July 28th, a week after the US release. Most of continental European gets it in August. The film isn't expected to get a release in China due to their strict foreign film allowance policies, but a final decision has not been made

Warriors Of The Woods

Snow White and The Huntsman producer Joe Roth tells Entertainment Weekly that the film could turn into a potential trilogy.

"It's meant to be the first in a series of films. This story will end, but there will be questions remaining for these three characters".

Hossein Amini rewrote original scribe Evan Daugherty's version of the classic fairy tale with Evan Spiliotopoulos taking a crack at it The story expands the role of the Huntsman (Chris Hemsworth). Ordered to take the evil Queen's (Charlize Theron) stepdaughter Snow White (Kristen Stewart) into the woods and kill her, The Huntsman instead lets her go and becomes something of a mentor who teaches her how to fight and survive.

The Snow White in this film "starts out not a damsel in distress, but innocent, and after 11 years of imprisonment by the Evil Queen, she escapes and learns the ways of a warrior in the woods."

Roth adds that "We retain the basic story of [Alice in Wonderland] a young girl meant to be the queen who is cast out. The Huntsman is a mercenary, in the sense that he's a guy who is very able in the woods, more able than most anyone. His job is to capture runaway girls, who are all fleeing the kingdom because of the queen. He's a nondescript bounty hunter, as we first meet him... He's not a nice guy, but not only that he’s someone who has lost hope and lost faith. He has lost his wife, given up on everything."

Sam Claflin plays the Prince while Ian McShane is Caesar, the leader of the dwarfs. while Ray Winstone Eddie Marsan Eddie Izzard, Bob Hoskins Toby Jones and Steven Graham round them out

Rupert Sanders will call action

Snow White and the Huntsman is scheduled to open June 1, 2012 and is not to be confused with the rival flick staring Julia Roberts, Lily Collins and Armie Hammer called The Brothers Grimm: Snow White with Tarsem Singh sitting in the big chair for its March 16, 2012 bow.

Iron Man 3/Avengers Talk

Marvel chief Kevin Feige talks Iron Man 3 with the Film Journal promising that  Shane Black's sequel will focus on Tony Stark's (Robert Downey Jr. ). journey

"Audiences will see that Tony Stark is going back into his own world. There will be acknowledgements to the events of The Avengers and the character journey he took there, but he’s not going to be having tea with Thor and calling Nick Fury every five minutes" says Feige, confirming the film will have a stand alone story.

Feige also says that "The Avengers" will balance out the character ensemble - "The first step in avoiding that was hiring Joss  [Whedon, to write and direct]. If you look at his body of work, he regularly writes for lots of characters. ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer" may be called ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer,’ but it’s really an ensemble piece and none of the characters ever get lost in the spectacle of whatever is going on. The stuff we’ve shot [so far on The Avengers] is cutting together spectacularly and it’s just the character interactions that we’ve done so far—we haven’t shot much of the action sequences yet. I think the end result is going to feel very, very satisfying."

Prometheus Prattle

Ben Foster is reportedly joining Prometheus, Ridley Scott's sorta-prequel to Alien, says JoBlo.

No official announcement has yet been made of Foster's involvement.

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

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

Lindelof talked about the story for "Prometheus" and it's connection to the '79 film  (via /Film)...And then the first footage was expected to be shown during CineEurope to industry professionals, however The Hollywood Reporter says nothing was screened. Scott, Fassbender and Rapace were on hand though for a Q&A

Meanwhile as to the supposed  "leaked synopsis" via io9 from a few days ago was shot down by a studio representative that described the information as "way off" and countered with the release of a short official synopsis:

"Visionary filmmaker Ridley Scott returns to the genre he helped define, creating an original science fiction epic set in the most dangerous corners of the universe. The film takes a team of scientists and explorers on a thrilling journey that will test their physical and mental limits and strand them on a distant world, where they will discover the answers to our most profound questions and to life's ultimate mystery."

Look for ithe flick in theatres on June 8th, 2012.

Dark Of The Moon Dominates

Final Holiday Weekend Box Office Report: 'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' Lights Up the Sky with Best July 4th Opening of All Time

As we work our way through another holiday weekend in United States Transformers: Dark of the Moon takes the world by storm as the bot sequel has Third-Best Global Bow Ever

Pamela McClintock of THR has the deets

Paramount’s Transformers: Dark of the Moon has transformed into the third best worldwide debut of all time, smashing records and grossing a whopping $372 million through Sunday.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince scored the best worldwide debut of all time in grossing $394 million, followed by Spider-Man 3 at $382 million.

With the actual July 4th holiday still to go, Michael Bay’s Dark of the Moon should finish Monday with a total opening gross of $405.8 million. That would not change its status compared to Half-Blood Prince and Spider-Man, since Monday's grosses don't count in terms of the record.

Domestically, Dark of the Moon’s gross through Sunday was $162 million. It’s expected to earn another $18.8 million Monday for a total domestic launch of $180.8 million.

That’s behind the $200 million earned by Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen in its six-day domestic debut but well ahead of the $155.4 earned by the first film in the Shia LaBeouf action franchise.

Dark of the Moon is an undisputed monster overseas, where it’s already grossed $210 million, the best debut of all time for Paramount International and beating the $147 million earned by Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Through Monday, Paramount puts the movie’s foreign cume at $225 million.

Dark of the Moon is pacing 50% ahead of the foreign launch of Revenge of the Fallen ($139.6 million) and has scored the biggest opening of all time in seven countries, led by Korea at $28 million and followed by Hong Kong, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Peru.

Paramount heavily marketed the 3D element of Bay’s tentpole, and the efforts paid off. In North America, Dark of the Moon earned 60% of its grosses from 3D theaters, bucking the recent downturn in 3D attendance. Overseas, where 3D continues to thrive in certain markets, 70% of the grosses came from 3D.

“It shows that you’ve got to motivate and inspire the audience,” said Paramount vice chair Rob Moore, who praised Bay.

Imax theaters playing Dark of the Moon ponied up $22.5 million worldwide, a record for the large format exhibitor.

Domestically, Dark of the Moon hit another milestone -- its Friday through Sunday gross of $97.4 million is the best three-day number ever for the July 4th weekend.

The same glow didn’t extend to the Tom Hanks-Julia Roberts starrer Larry Crowne, which grossed an estimated $13 million through Sunday to come in No. 4 at the domestic box office, behind Dark of the Moon and holdovers Cars 2 and Bad Teacher.

Universal’s four-day estimate for Larry Crowne is $15.6 million, a meek number considering the film’s star power.

A full 71% of the audience for Larry Crowne was over the age of 50 and 93% over the age of 25. The film, directed by Hanks and receiving a B CinemaScore, is one of the oldest-skewing films box office observers can remember.

Universal is distributing Larry Crowne on behalf of Hanks’ Playtone and Vendome Pictures, which fully financed the $30 million drama-comedy.

The third new film debuting nationwide over the four-day holiday weekend was 20th Century Fox’s tween girl pic Monte Carlo, which grossed an estimated $7.6 million through Sunday (Fox isn’t providing a four-day estimate until Monday morning).

The niche pic, toplining Selena Gomez, received an A- CinemaScore, with 61% of those buying tickets under the age of 25. Of the audience, 82% were females....

Final weekend numbers will be announced tomorrow

You can read my review of "Moon" here Meanwhile some other Box Office Headlines

'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' Dominates Overseas Box Office With $210 Million Bow

VIDEO: Does Michael Bay's 'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' Recycle Old Movie Clips

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer Reacts to 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' Passing $1 Billion Worldwide and 'Bridesmaids' Passes 'Sex and the City' to Become Top R-Rated Female Comedy Ever

Next Up Kevin James is the Zookeeper; While Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis have Horrible Bosses

GI Joe 2 Characters/Casting & Red 2

Producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura tells MTV News that Dwayne Johnson's character Roadblock in G.I. Joe 2: Cobra Strikes will play a major part in the pic.

di Bonaventura says "It's a full-on lead role. In a way, he and Snake-Eyes (Ray Park), their stories are really dynamic and very important. (Dwayne) is such a great character to have in 'G.I. Joe 2.' It's an amazing combination. We would not be very good if we didn't fully utilize him, so he's going to have a lot of things to do. It is an ensemble movie, so you have other characters certainly playing it out."

He adds "The ninja fans are going to love it. There's a tremendous amount of it. What's interesting is, we both have that going on in the Snake-Eyes story, but we've found a way to bring that element into the Joes' story. I think anybody who's a fan of dark, in the middle of the night [action with] a dangerous foe arriving, this is a movie for you."

Meantime Deadline New York reports that Adrianne Palicki will play the female lead in the film as  Lady Jaye/Alison R. Hart-Burnett. She is the Joe Team’s covert operations specialist

Channing Tatum will reprise his role as Duke in the sequel, and Byung-hun Lee is scheduled to return as well. French actress Elodie Yung will play a ninja member of the Joe squad named Jinx Rapper/actor RZA AKA Robert Diggs amd D.J. Cotrona are cicling roles as well

Jon Chu calls the shots on the film from a Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick script .The film is being shot later this summer and has an August 10th 2012 release date..

di Bonaventura also revealed that plans are still well underway for the as yet Untitled Red Sequel but they want to bring in some new faces to join all the returning cast members Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren, and John Malkovich..

"We'll bring in one or two characters that'll play a really big part — maybe three, but definitely one or two. Sometimes there's a tendency to want to do too much of a good thing so you don't really service anything, so we're really trying to stay focused on our core crew with one or two new additions."

Tom Tackles Transformers 3

I did not coumt myself among those who truly loathed Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen--but I would be lying if did not admit that the film did not have it's share of issues--thanks in part to a rushed screenplay due to the writers strike....Thankfully Transformers: Dark of the Moon brings the series back in better shape--As long as you keep in mind that it's a movie about warring bots and not The Godfather--you should have a good enough time...

In 1961, a Cybertronian spacecraft crash lands on the far side of the moon. Known as the Ark, it was the last ship to escape Cybertron devastated by war. Piloted by Sentinel Prime (voiced by Leonard Nimoy), it carried "the Pillars", technology that could save the Cybertronians once and for all. On Earth, the crash of the Ark is detected byNASA, and President John F. Kennedy (using some creepy looking CG) authorizes the mission to put a man on the moon as a cover. In 1969, Apollo 11 lands on the surface of the Moon to investigate the Ark.

In the present day, the Autobots have forged a military alliance with the United States, but largely act independently in stopping humans from destroying themselves. During a mission to the Chernobyl disaster site at the request of the Ukrainian government, Optimus Prime (voiced by Peter Cullen) discovers a fuel cell from the Ark (which awakened Shockwave, voiced by Frank Welker) that the Soviet Union attempted to use as a power source, resulting in the Chernobyl meltdown Knowing this, Optimus launches his own mission to retrieve the Pillars and revive Sentinel Prime. Just five Pillars remain on-board the vessel, which the Autobots describe as being the means to establish a mobile space bridge between two points and transport matter through. U.S. National Intelligence Director Charlotte Mearing (Frances McDormand) is horrified at this revelation as the Pillars could be used to bring an invading army to Earth.--recreating Cybertron

Meanwhile Sam (Shia LaBeouf) may have saved the world twice, recieved a medal from the President, and have a new smoking hot girlfriend (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley) named Carly--but he is without a job--wanting very much to matter again.

Soon after he is hired as a mail clerk  in a tech division of the same company Carly works for Sam meets her boss Derek (Patrick Dempsey) and finding himself once again drawn into a war to save mankind.

Dark Of The Moon has all of the ingredients that one would expect a Michael Bay film to have; Big booms lots of prpererty damage insane stunts and a good looking chick around a sweet mode of transport Ehren Kruger's script has the feel of a trilogy capper since both Shia and Bay have both nixed the idea of doing another one of these movies....The attempts to surprise the audience with a few plot twists falls flat though as they are easy to spot ahead of their reveals.

Huntington-Whiteley makes me forget all about Megan Fox from her first few seconds on screem--Thanks Mike!! Moving on....

Franchise muscle is once again provided by Josh Duhamel and Tyrese Gibson who do their part for King and Country. as does John Turturro who returns as Simmons While John Malkovich Ken Jeong Kevin Dunn and Julie White provide most of the film's comic relief--Some gags work better than others but hey this war after all

The film boasts some truly spectacular stunts and effects sequences--Particularly on a freeway and in the city of Chicago, Yes they defy all logic and comoon sense of surrvival...But as we know summer movies often mean we must turn off our brain anyway.

The sequel's running time is long just like the other 2 films in the series but at least unlike last time this one turned out better.

Stew Goes Boom!!!

The latest round of industry bits...

-Will Smith and Jay-Z are in negotiations with Oscar-winning screenwriter and actress Emma Thompson to pen their new version of classic musical "Annie" reports Vulture.

-Daniel Auteuil and Mathieu Kassovitz will team on screen for the gangster pic “Le Guetteur” (“The Lookout”) penned by Cédric Melon and Denis Brusseaux says IndieWire Michele Placido (”Angel of Evil”) will direct the film about a detective (Auteuil) in his hunt for the marksman (Kassovitz) who spoiled a plot to catch a notorious team of bank-robbers.

-David O Russell is said to be circling "The Mission"; Brad Pitt is wanted to star says Deadline.

-British helmer Michael Radford will direct the historical drama "Castro's Daughter" reports Variety.

-Talking about his upcoming sci-fi feature "Rise of the Planet of the Apes", filmmaker Rupert Wyatt spoke with Empire Magazine (via The Playlist) about his possible next projects--including mo-cap version of Orwell's Animal Farm?

-Warner Bros. Pictures has picked up Ian Shorr's script which is a sci-fi spin on Alexandre Dumas' "The Count of Monte Cristo" reports Variety.

-"Horrible Bosses" scribe Michael Markowitz will pen the latest draft of the script for "King of the Elves"says Variety.

-DJ Caruso is in discussions to direct the R-rated gritty drama "A Walk Among the Tombstone" for Cross Creek Pictures says Deadline.

-Former Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel has been hired as special adviser to Rovio, the company behind the immensely popular game "Angry Birds" says Variety.

-"Juno" scribe Diablo Cody will make her feature directorial debut on the comedy "Lamb of God" says THR

-"Jack the Giant Killer" screenwriter Darren Lemke has signed on to adapt the screenplay for the CG-enhanced animated comic book pic "Beasts of Burden" says Heat Vision.

-"The Rules of Attraction" writer/director Roger Avary is set to adapt William Faulkner‘s bleak 1931 novel “Sanctuary” for the big screen says Deadline.

-The proposed spin off to "300" is not called "Xerxes" any more it has been given a new name - "300: Battle of Artemisia" reports Deadline.

-Warner Bros. Pictures is developing an adaptation of Glen David Gold's 2002 novel "Carter Beats the Devil" reports The Los Angeles Times.

-Deadline reports that "Bridesmaids" scene-stealers, Jon Hamm and Melissa McCarthy could be reunited on screen

-20th Century Fox and producer John Davis have hired  Max Landis ("Chronicle") to pen a script for a new take on the "Frankenstein" story says The Hollywood Reporter.  Vulture adds that this version will tell the tale through the eyes of Igor, Victor Frankenstein’s assistant

-Drew Barrymore is in negotiations to produce and possibly direct the caper film "The Heist Society" reports Variety.

-Scarlett Johansson has signed on to star in "Once" writer/director John Carney's $10 million new feature "Can a Song Save Your Life?" reports SB Post.

-Carey Mulligan is poised star in the sci-fi action feature "Outback" says The Sydney Morning Herald.

-Actress Naomie Harris  confirmed she has tried out for the role of a Bond girl in the 23rd James Bond installment reports Shadow and Act

-Film School Rejects reports according to their sources the talked about Marvel DVD shorts have already been shot with Clark Gregg reprising his role as Agent Coulson.  They are slated to appear on the forthcoming DVD and Blu-Ray releases of “Thor” on September 30th and “Captain America: The First Avenger” at the end of the year. Since Marvel isn't at Comic Con this year, the first place the shorts will likely screen is the D23 Expo in August.

-Will Ferrell is attached to star in the buddy comedy "Swear to God" says Variety. He would play a narcissistic hedge fund manager who thinks he's seen God

-Disney Pictures is developing an adventure movie with the working title of "The Hill" reports Heat Vision. Inspired by the Disneyland Matterhorn ride, the story will center on five young adventure seekers who, for mysterious reasons, are called to the top of the mountain and encounter a Yetis on the journey down.

That's all for now....

London Sets His Dial To Roswell FM

Jason London  has joined the cast of indie romantic comedy "Roswell FM" says Variety

Brendan Fehr stars as a young man deciding between the financial needs of his family and his dream job of hosting a quirky, UFO-themed talk show in Roswell.

London will play a quirky eccentric paranormal talk show host in the film

Mirelly Taylor also stars

Stephen Griffin directs from a script by David Spence.

Alan Trever is producing the pic that starts shooting on July 25th in New Mexico

3 More Expecting

Chris Rock, Anna Kendrick and Brooklyn Decker have joined the cast of the comedy "What To Expect When You're Expecting." says Deadline in 2 reports .

An adaptation of the guidebook of the same name the film will interweave the lives of several couples as they prepare for parenthood.

Rock will play the leader of a group of expectant fathers who “lectures them on what it’s really like to have a baby and become a father.” Kendrick will play a woman who reunites with an old flame following a turf war between their food trucks Decker will play the role of Skyler, a relentlessly perky woman who is married to an older man and tees off her friends because she flies through her pregnancy with twins with ease.

Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Lopez star

Whip It writer Shauna Cross and Heather Hach (“Freaky Friday)” will adapt authors Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel bestseller into a screenplay.

Kirk Jones (“Nanny McPhee”) will call action on the film for producers Mike Medavoy, Arnie Messer, David Thwaites and Doug McKay.

Vaughn Watches Out For Stiller

Vince Vaughn is in negotiations to re-team with his "Dodgeball" co-star Ben Stiller in the high concept comedy "Neighborhood Watch" says The Hollywood Reporter.

The pair play suburban dads who use the guise of a neighborhood watch group for some male-bonding time away from their families. They soon accidentally uncover a plot to destroy the world.

Akiva Schaffer is directing the project from a script by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg.

The pic once had Will Ferrell moving in on the pic

Cornwell Now In The Dark

Peter Cornwell ("The Haunting in Connecticut") will direct "Into Darkness", a sci-fi remaining of  Joseph Conrad 's .classic novella "Heart of Darkness says Variety.

The original 1902 novel explored the dark side of European colonization in Africa and centres on an Englishman working as a ferry-boat captain in Africa. He takes an assignment to head up the river into the heart of the Congo to find and return the rogue ivory trader Kurtz to civilisation.

Francis Ford Coppola once reimagined the story into his war epic "Apocalypse Now".

This time the adventure will use a sci-fi backdrop

Tony Giglio and Branden Morgan wrote the script.

Ted Field and Mike Weber are producing

Gordon And Nolan Team Up

"Christine" and  Back to School actor Keith Gordon will both write and direct an untitled supernatural thriller says Deadline.

The story is based on a novel whose title hasn't yet been revealed. But we do know that he will be working on the pic with Christopher Nolan,

Gordon has worked extensively with Nolan, serving as his assistant on "Batman Begins", an associate producer on "The Dark Knight" and "The Prestige", and a co-producer on the currently in production "The Dark Knight Rises".

Jordan Goldberg will produce while Nolan will executive produce along with Emma Thomas.».

3 For Three

Adam McKay is in talks to once again direct his "Other Guys" stars Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg on the comedy "Three Mississippi" reports Vulture.

At one time titled  "Turkey Bowl", the Robert Carlock and Scott Silveri script follows two neighboring families as they do battle in an annual Thanksgiving game of front-lawn tackle football that’s grown increasingly nasty over the years.

McKay was originally set only to produce, now he's helming as well making it his next film--in time for a release on Thanksgiving 2012.

Submitted For Your Approval

Bureau of Moving Pictures has acquired the rights to make a biopic about the life of one of my industry heroes Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling  reports Deadline.

Aftter a tour of duty during World War II  Serling returned to the States and worked his way into radio before becoming a TV writer.

Of course the  sci-fi anthology series "The Twilight Zone" has had a  major influence on many film and TV writers and directors to this day.

Serling was also responsible for the similar  TV anthology "Night Gallery" a decade later, and he co-wrote the 1968 sci-fi classic "Planet of the Apes".

He died at 50 due to his chain-smoking habit.

Stanley Weiser will write the movie while Serling's widow Carol Serling and with Andrew Meieran will produce

Thor 2 Needs A Director

Chris Hemsworth will indeed return for a sequel to Thor that is already going to open on July 26th 2013 reports Deadline.

Director Kenneth Branagh, however, will not return to direct the sequel. His exit from the film has been described as "mutual and amicable", Branagh is said to be extremely happy with both the studio and the film's performance.

The $150 million-budgeted film has good reviews and has taken in $437 million worldwide in ticket sales with a few key territories still left to release the pic

Sorry to see Branagh go here but I kinda figured he would not be around for the second one...Let the search begin

Dark Room

The long 4th of July weekend marks the halfway point of the Summer box office season...And we already know that Transformers: Dark of the Moon (reviews) has Earned $37.3 Mil on Wed--Best Opening Day Gross of 2011 : Tom Hanks co-wrote directs and stars with Julia Roberts in Larry Crowne (reviews); Selena Gomez and her gal pals take a trip to "Monte Carlo" (reviews)

Pamela McCiintock of THR

The Tom Hanks-Julia Roberts starrer Larry Crowne hopes to lure adults when opening Friday at the domestic box office, but tracking has been on the softer side for the slice-of-life comedy.

Also opening Friday is Selena Gomez girl pic Monte Carlo from 20th Century Fox and New Regency.

As with Larry Crowne, Monte Carlo hopes to serve as counterprogramming to the action-packed Transformers: Dark of the Moon over the long Fourth of July weekend (Transformers got a jump on the holiday by opening Tuesday night and raked in $37.3 million on its first day.).

Tracking shows Larry Crowne, costing $30 million to produce, opening in the low teens.

One wild card: Larry Crowne could face competition from Woody Allen’s adult-fueled sleeper hit Midnight in Paris. Sony Pictures Classics is planning an aggressive play over the holiday weekend for the film, which has cumed $29.7 million at the domestic box office.

Hanks directed and stars in Larry Crowne, which was fully financed by Vendome Pictures. Universal is distributing the pic on behalf of Vendome and Hanks’ production company Playtone.

Hanks and Universal have been aggressively marketing the adult comedy, which follows a former Navy veteran who enrolls in community college and falls for a speech professor. Along the way, he joins a group of outcasts who ride motor scooters.

Hanks, who co-wrote the script with Nia Vardalos, co-hosted one of Oprah Winfrey’s final shows in promoting Larry Crowne and also went on a five-city tour. The film marks his second directing effort after 1996's That Thing You Do!

Like other adult-driven films, Universal is counting on Larry Crowne being a long-term player at the box office. It’s tracking best among older females, followed by older men.

Monte Carlo also is anticipating a modest opening, considering it is targeted at one demo, younger females.

In addition to Gomez, the film stars Katie Cassidy, Leighton Meester, Cory Monteith and Andie MacDowell.

Directed by Tom Bezucha, Monte Carlo is about three friends who pose as wealthy young socialites in Monaco. It includes the song “Who Says” from Selena Gomez & the Scene.

Nicole Kidman and Denise Di Novi produced Monte Carlo for Fox and New Regency.

I saw Transfoformers 3 Thursday and plan to post a review sometime this weekend....