Fans Flock To Real Home Of "The Conjuring"

Fans of James Wan's scare fest summer hit "The Conjuring" are making life tough for the couple that owns the Rhode Island home made famous in the movie by the "true story" of the haunting that occurred when another family, the Perrons, lived there in the 1970s explains The Woonsocket Call.

The Perron Sisters And Their Movie Counterparts

Norma Sutcliffe and her husband have owned a 1730s-era home in the suburb of Harrisville for twenty five years.

Sutcliffe says she and her husband haven't slept in days as people with flashlights turn up in their yard in the dead of night. They also frequently receive calls asking "is this 'The Conjuring' house" as well as other harassing phone messages.

Sutcliffe adds: "There are already threats on the Internet that 'wouldn’t it be fun to break into that house?'. Our barn is very vulnerable and there is a big story connected to the barn about supposed hangings. Can you see kids breaking in and doing a séance with candles and having it burn down?"

While the so-called "real life incidents" of the film took place there, the production itself was shot far away in North Carolina.

Sutcliffe has seen the film and says "I just laughed at the whole thing. I thought it was so ironically ridiculous. I thought it was an insult to the Perrons."

TWC And Disney Help "Artemis Fowl" Movie Fly

The Weinstein Company and Disney are coming together to produce a live-action film adaptation of author Eoin Colfer's children's book "Artemis Fowl" says Screen Daily.

The story follows a twelve-year-old millionaire criminal mastermind who gets in above his head when he kidnaps a fairy.

The film will be based on the first and second installments in the book series that Michael Goldenberg will adapt the screenplay.

Robert DeNiro and Jane Rosenthal will serve as executive producers.

Harvey Weinstein's decision to reunite with Disney has a lot to do with the working relationship he developed with Disney's new chief Alan Horn when he was in charge at Warner Bros.

Spike Lee's "OldBoy" Redux Delayed By 5 Weeks

FilmDistrict has pushed back the release of the remake of Chan-wook Park's 2003 cult classic "Old Boy" by five weeks.

No official reason was given regarding the delay. Originally slated to bow on October 25th, it will now open wide against Disney's "Frozen," "Black Nativity" and the Jason Statham film "Homefront" among the Thanksgiving holiday weekend's wide releases.

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.

Josh Brolin has been cast in the lead. Elizabeth Olsen will play the part of the caseworker Marie who helps investigate the past of Brolin's character. "District 9" star Sharlto Copley will play the villain in the remake. Samuel L. Jackson is expected to take on a small but key role as the head of the motel where Brolin's character has been held hostage. James Ransone ("The Wire," "Inside Man") will play a doctor who works with Olsen's character

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

Doug Davison and Roy Lee will produce the pic

4 More Are "Welcome"

James Marsden, Wes Bentley, Joan Cusack and Alan Tudyk have all joined the cast of the comedy "Welcome to Me" says Screen Daily.

Eliot Laurence, a former staff writer for The Big Gay Sketch Show, wrote the screenplay about a woman (Kristen Wiig ) with Dissociative Identity Disorder who wins the lottery and decides to spend her winnings on a cable access talk show about her life.

Tim Robbins, Linda Cardellini and Jennifer Jason Leigh also star.

Shira Piven (Fully Loaded) helms the pic.

Aaron L. Gilbert, Marina Grasic, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Jessica Elbaum and Wiig will produce.

Production begins in California in August.

Weaver Out For Revenge In "City Of Ashes"

Heat Vision reports that Sigourney Weaver is in talks to join the cast of sequel The Mortal Instruments: City of Ashes.

Based upon Cassandra Clare's supernatural novel series, "Instruments" centers on Clary Fray (Lily Collins), a Shadowhunter who battles demons including vampires and werewolves. City of Ashes --With her mother in a coma and her father hell-bent on destroying the world, Fray is dragged deeper into New York’s terrifying underworld of werewolves, demons and the mysterious Shadowhunters. Discovering the truth about her past was only the beginning. Now the fate of the world rests on Clary’s shoulders, but can she master her new-found powers and control her feelings for a boy (Jamie Campbell Bower) who can never be hers?

In one of the few new roles for part 2, Weaver will play the ruthless leader of the Shadowhunters who will stop at nothing to destroy the man who killed her son.

Kevin Zegers, Robert Sheehan, Jemima West and Jonathan Rhys Meyers will return to play their respective roles as well.

Harald Zwart returns to helm the sequel using a script by Jessica Postigo.

Robert Kulzer and Don Carmody will produce the sequel

Production hopes to start in October.

The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones hits theaters on Wednesday August 21st.

A film adaptation of the spin-off called The Mortal Instruments: Infernal Devices is also in the works

Motion Comic Fills Backstory Between "Chronicles" & "Riddick"

At the end of The Chronicles of Riddick, Vin Diesel's anti-hero was crowned king of the Necromongers, the army of religious zealots taking over the galaxy.

In the upcoming "Riddick" we will seethe character back on a desolate planet fighting off mercenaries and the indigenous life forms. 

How did he get there?

The sequel is expected to explain most of that backstory--Still Universal Pictures has released an online motion comic prequel which helps to start explain some of the events that occurred between the films including what happened to Vaako (Karl Urban).



Written and directed by David Twohy--the film also stars Katee Sackhoff Jordi Molla Matt Nable, Bokeem Woodbine, Conrad Pla, Raoul Trujillo, Nolan Funk Keri Hilson and WWE wrestler Dave Bautista.

Riddick has a release date of September 6, 2013.

MOS 2: Lois, Clark And Superman

Whatever the title of "Man of Steel 2"--featuring a Superman and Batman team up of sorts--ends up, one thing that will be different over previous Superman films--How he deals with Lois.

The action of "Man Of Steel" shows us that Lois Lane (Amy Adams) is aware from the start that Superman/Clark Kent are the same man. 

Henry Cavill recently spoke with IGN about that plot point and the benefits that it may have:

"I think it’s essential [for Lois to know Clark's secret] because if we’re trying to base it reality, there’s no way that Lois has these direct interactions with Superman, and then doesn’t recognize Clark sitting next to her in the office. If she falls in love with Superman, and she’s ignoring a guy who looks just like Superman, behaves just like him, and has the same kind of mannerisms and behavior, then what does that say about Lois? I like this relationship. She saves him just as much as he saves her."

He was asked if he wants Lois to be more of an emotional equal to his character in subsequent films: "Yes, absolutely, but [brief pause] 100 percent."

The sequel will see the return of Laurence Fishburne and Diane Lane as Perry White and Martha Kent. Batman has not yet been cast.

MOS director Zack Snyder and writer David S. Goyer will also be back--as will Christopher Nolan to executive produce the film.

The film is planned for release in 2015. Sources told THR that a tentative plan has also been made for a  Flash  movie in 2016 and "Justice League" by 2017.

Beverly Hills Cop: From TV Back To Film

"The Shield" and "Last Resort" creator Shawn Ryan had recently said that Beverly Hills Cop the series would instead morph into Beverly Hills Cop 4  now  Sky News has new details about the new movie

Now, it has been reported that "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" scribes Josh Applebaum and André Nemec will write the script.

Eddie Murphy is poised to return as wise-cracking cop Axel Foley nearly twenty years after Beverly Hills Cop III.

Nable And Henshall Face Off In "Fell"

Matt Nable ("Underbelly: Badness") and Daniel Henshall ("Snowtown") will star in the Australian revenge and redemption drama "Fell" according to a Press Release.

Nable plays Thomas Ryan, a man consumed by grief after his daughter is killed in a hit-and-run incident caused by Luke Simpson (Henshall). When Simpson is released from prison, Thomas changes his identity, abandons his corporate life and relocates to the remote outpost where Luke now works as tree feller.

Jacqueline McKenzie also stars as Thomas' wife.

Noted short film director Kasimir Burgess is making his feature length  debut on the film from a script by Natasha Pincus.

John Maynard and Mary Minas are producing the film.

Production started today in the southern Victorian Alps.

Box Office Update: Tentpole Issues Continue

Audiences continued to signs of Summer blockbuster fatigue in the North America as Hugh Jackman return as clawed hero "The Wolverine" opened better overseas than it did here. In fact it opened well below that of  "X-Men Origins: Wolverine"... The "American Pie"-style comedy The To Do List fell below expectations....

Pamela McClintock of THR:

Hollywood's summer tentpole strategy continued to suffer in North America with the muted debut of The Wolverine, but the X-Men spin-off more than made up for it overseas.

The 20th Century Fox pic opened to $55 million domestically and roughly $86.1 million internationally for a worldwide total of $141.1 million -- easily covering the film's $120 million production budget. Internationally, it posted the strongest opening ever for an X-Men title.

Wolverine certainly isn't a dud in North America and still claimed the No. 1 position, but came in at least $10 million behind expectations.

It follows several all-out bombs, including R.I.P.D., White House Down, The Lone Ranger and After Earth, leaving Hollywood studios questioning the sanity of rolling out so many event pics in one summer. Unlike Wolverine, those films haven't been saved by a strong international performance.

Wolverine was directed by James Mangold, with Hugh Jackman returning in the title role (the two worked together previously on the 2001 romantic adventure Kate & Leopold). The film opens four years after X-Men spinoff X-Men Origins: Wolverine played in theaters, opening to $85.1 million in early May and grossing $373.1 million worldwide.

Fox is hoping that the movie's long-term outcome will be boosted by strong reviews and a strong A- CinemaScore; X-Men Origins was roundly bashed by critics.

Set sometime after the events of X-Men: The Last Stand, Logan (Jackman) has renounced his superhero powers and is living as a recluse in the Yukon. However, he's drawn back into the world when a Japanese man he once saved requests to become immortal. He also asks that Logan protect his granddaughter.

New Line's low-budget horror offering The Conjuring dropped a slim 47 percent in its second weekend, grossing $22.1 million to come in No. 2 and pushing its North American total to $83.9 million.

Universal's Despicable Me 2 continued to rule the family market, grossing $16 million in its fourth weekend to best newer offering Turbo, which declined 37 percent in its second weekend to $13.2 million for a domestic total of $55.8 million.

Despicable 2 also raced past the $300 million mark in North America, ending Sunday with a total $306.4 million, the second-best showing of the year after Iron Man 3. It's worldwide gross is $660.9 million.

R.I.P.D., from Universal, tumbled 54 percent in its second weekend to come in a dismal No. 9 with $5.9 million. The movie's domestic total through Sunday is a scant $24.4 million.

Wolverine may have been the only new major release this weekend, but there was a flurry of activity at the specialty box office, including the stellar launch of Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine.

The film, headlined by Cate Blanchett, grossed $612,767 from six theaters in New York and Los Angeles for a location average of $102,128 -- the best since The Master in September 2012 and ahead of the $99,834 opening location average of Allen's box-office hit Midnight in Paris. Sony Pictures Classics, Allen's longtime distribution partner, is releasing Blue Jasmine in the U.S.

Two high-profile specialty films expanded nationwide this weekend: Fruitvale Station and coming-of-age dramedy The Way, Way Back.

Fruitvale Station, from The Weinstein Co., placed No. 10, grossing $4.7 million from 1,030 theaters for a location average of $4,377 and cume of $6.3 million. Ryan Coogler's critically acclaimed film, prospering in both art house and African-American theaters, recounts the real-life shooting of an unarmed young black man by a BART police officer in Oakland. The film, which should end the weekend with a domestic cume of $6.3 million, has drawn numerous parallels to the Trayvon Martin case

Fox Searchlight's The Way, Way Back, starring Steve Carell, Toni Colette and Sam Rockwell, placed No. 11 with $3.3 million from 886 theaters for a total of $8.9 million. The film, directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, who wrote the script for The Descendants, posted a location average of $3,724.

Among other new specialty offerings, CBS Films' raunchy comedy The To Do List, starring Aubrey Plaza, opened to an estimated $1.5 million from 591 theaters, a softer-than-expected start.

Next Up: The Cineplex will turn blue on Wednesday with the arrival of The Smurfs 2. And then on Friday Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg are packing heat in the actioner 2 Guns

An Unrated Cut Of "The Wolverine" On Disc Is Possible

Despite the fact that Hugh Jackman's Logan gets plenty of opportunity to use his claws to defeat the bad guys throughout "The Wolverine," the audience doesn't see any severed limbs or arterial spatters and the claws themselves stay clean throughout the film save from one key scene in the pic.

The sanitized display is a necessity for the film to receive a PG-13 rating for a theatrical run. On home video though, the restrictions do not apply. 

In fact, director James Mangold told Digital Spy that the forthcoming Blu-ray release could include a bloodier cut of the film.

"I’m very happy with the cut, and the studio was very generous in terms of letting me finish the movie as I wanted, but I do think we will have a slightly more violent version… let’s say an unrated, a bloodier version."

He was then asked about the additional scenes we might see on the disc:

"There’s about ten or 12 minutes of scenes that I’d love people to see, that we’ll produce some kind of longer version of the movie at some point on Blu-ray or whatever. There’s another great scene with Hiro Sanada and a much more elaborate battle with ninjas from the third act that is a pretty huge battle sequence that you’ll see."

Bale Could Witness "An Act of God"

Director Todd Haynes might be re-teaming with actor Christian Bale for the third time on his upcoming political film An Act of God according to The Tracking Board (via The Playlist).

If he signs on, Bale would play a Kansas man who gains notoriety across the nation after taking his local government to task following a devastating tornado.

Haynes has previously said he wants to explore heartland America's suspicions about government, how that "keeps clicking into conservative politics and the way the right makes use of those uncertainties. There’s interesting reasons why people feel the way they do, outside of the coasts and outside of the clear liberal orthodoxy, and that interests me."

Bale previously worked with Haynes on "Velvet Goldmine" and "I'm Not There".

Diesel Is One Of The "World's Most Wanted"

Deadline reports that Vin Diesel will star in the actioner "World's Most Wanted".

The story follows a team of specialists assigned to take down an international criminal. In the process, they stumble onto a vast conspiracy that forces them to go on the run.

Dan Mazeau will rewrite the earlier draft of the script by Will Staples and Sean O'Keefe .

Neal Moritz will produce.

Samantha Vincent and Tania Landau are serving as executive producers.

No production schedule was given.

Mangold X-plains How The Tag In "Wolverine" Came About

"The Wolverine" director James Mangold talked with Digital Spy about the mid-credits scene that teases Bryan Singer's "X-Men: Days of Future Past"--explaining how it all came together.

SPOILERS AHEAD:

"I had finished the movie and Future Past had started shooting, a couple months ago, and we had been talking about what to do, if anything, in the tail credits of this movie. It's something I had been talking about with Simon Kinberg [producer] and Bryan Singer at that point about what we might do to kind of feed into it. My only stipulation that was important to me was just that I really didn't want it to be tongue-in-cheek. I feel like a lot of these bonus things almost make the film into a joke, and that wasn't interesting to me. I thought it would be more interesting to try and actually do something quite promising, actually say something and promise something and give people a piece of a story. The whole sequence was built around the shot where we'd unveil Patrick, and I created this shot where he's weaving through all these frozen airport patrons and that is Patrick Stewart with a joystick and electric wheelchair and that isn't easy. He's doing a kind of Olympic slalom through all these extras and uh, he's a badass on that thing."

Mangold adds that he's glad that Singer was the one charged with explaining how Professor X survived the events of "X-Men: The Last Stand".

"Yes, it is his job and I know they have one, so I'll leave it to them to unveil it."

X-Men: Days Of Future Past" hits screens July 18th 2014.

Star Wars: John Williams Is Back!!

At the Star Wars Celebration Event in Germany, producer Kathleen Kennedy confirmed that composer John Williams will score Episode VII , Episode VIII and Episode IX.

Kennedy is quoted via Empire Online:

"I had breakfast with someone very important to the Star Wars family on Friday, and he has committed to being involved in the next three films, and that is Mr John Williams."

Kennedy broke the news during an hour-long Q&A moderated by Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi actor Warwick Davis. Williams then showed up in a recorded video message, saying:

"I look forward to returning to a galaxy far, far away. I actually feel like I never left it. I hope I can contribute something in the new films that will be worthy of your continued attention."

Kennedy also revealed that location shooting is part of the mix for the next trilogy:

"Like many of you, looking at all the Star Wars movie and getting a feeling for what even the early films did in combination of real locations and special effects, that’s something we’re looking very seriously at. We’re going to find some very cool locations we’re going to use in support of Ep VII. I think we’re going to probably end up using every tool in the toolbox to create the look of these movies. That’s what we’re excited about."

Great News--but not a surprise....Back in May Williams stated that he would be up to the task.



Oscar winner Michael Arndt ("Toy Story 3," "Little Miss Sunshine") is writing the script for the “Star Wars: Episode VII that J.J. Abrams directs The script is said to include Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Han Solo in their later years. No official word yet if Mark Hamill could be tempted to return as Luke Skywalker but he is interested... Carrie Fisher had all but confirmed that she would be back in the role of Princess Leia--but then her rep told CNN that she 'was joking'  Harrison Ford is also interested..."

Franchise creator George Lucas told Bloomberg Businessweek that he begun talks with original stars to have them return to for its new films -- before he had even begun the process of the ultimately $2 billion deal between Disney/Lucasfilm.

Fellow Original cast mates Billy Dee Williams and Anthony Daniels say that they are keen on returning to that "galaxy far, far, away". Earlier in July actor Ray Park said that he would be interested in playing Darth Maul again as well. Back in May LR said that "The Tudors" and future Dracula TV series star Jonathan Rhys Meyers is having his "name thrown around a lot" in connection with the movie.

Zac Efron and Ryan Gosling are rumored to be in the running for the eagerly awaited next film with Gosling in particular is being talked about for the role of Luke Skywalker's son. Leonardo DiCaprio is said to have passed on an offer to appear. Pretty wild...

Writers Lawrence Kasdan ("The Empire Strikes Back," "Raiders of the Lost Ark") and Simon Kinberg ("Sherlock Holmes," "X-Men: Days of Future Past") have reportedly closed deals to pen the final two installments of the new "Star Wars" trilogy. Kasdan and Kinberg are also indeed developing stand alone Star Wars features.

Kasdan and Kinberg would also join the projects as producers with Kathleen Kennedy.

Some big Star Wars announcement is expected to happen at the D23 Expo starting Aug. 9th.

4 More Set For "Dracula" Reboot

Samantha Barks, Charlie Cox, Art Parkinson and Icelandic star Thor Kristjansson have joined the cast of  the "Dracula" reboot at Universal Pictures says THR.

Formerly known as "Dracula Year Zero"--the project centers on Vlad the Impaler (Luke Evans) and his lust for blood which inspired the mythology behind Bram Stoker's classic novel. In this version Dracula is a Transylvanian prince who risks eternal damnation in order to save his wife and son from a Turkish horde.

The film came close to production a while back when the studio shut it down due to the budget being too large. The pic previously had Sam Worthington attached to star and Alex Proyas set to direct.

Barks plays the Eastern European folk figure Baba Yaga, a beautiful young woman turned into a savage witch. Kristjansson will play Bright Eyes, a slave turned a vicious Ottoman Army assassin. Parkinson will play Dracula’s son Ingeras.

Sarah Gadon also stars in the female lead role. Dominic Cooper and Zach McGowan also star.

Matt Sazama & Burk Sharpless wrote the latest draft of the screenplay from which commercials guy Gary Shore is now in poised to direct. Michael De Luca will act as producer.

Production has just begun production in Belfast.

Spidey 2: Gadon's Role Is..?

While there was speculation that actress Sarah Gadon ("Cosmopolis," "A Dangerous Method") was going to be the new Mary Jane Watson, given the fact that Shailene Woodley's performance as the character had been cut from Marc Webb's "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" The thinking was that Gadon pop up down the line as MJ.

 As it turns out though Gadon DOES appear in "Amazing 2" after all as an entirely different character. She is  actually playing an android cop.

Gadon tells Toronto Life: "My character is an artificial intelligence officer. She represents the convergence of humanity and technology - it's very [David Cronenberg]."

Andrew Garfield will return as Peter Parker and Emma Stone is gonna reprise her role as Gwen Stacy. Do these recent set pics confirm that the classic story The Night Gwen Stacy Died is part of the film? For the record Stone endorsed the idea last August when The Amazing Spider-Man was still in theaters...

Dane DeHaan ("Chronicle") has won the role of Harry Osborn Osborn of course is Peter Parker's best friend and eventual enemy who was played by James Franco previously. Jamie Foxx will be playing bad guy Electro. Paul Giamatti plays the villain, the Rhino Chris Cooper has been cast as Norman Osborn--who eventually becomes Spidey's number one foe--The Green Goblin--The character was played previously by Willem Dafoe Felicity Jones (Like Crazy), plays Norman's girlfriend in the film. Former Office star B.J. Novak has an unspecified role in the film.

Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Jeff Pinkner wrote the script based on a previous draft by James Vanderbilt.

Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach will produce.

The new film is now in post-production to meet its May 2nd 2014 release date.

Both The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 4 already have release dates

Sandy And Her Thoughts On "The Heat" Sequel

The buddy comedy The Heat, starring Sandra Bullock and  Melissa McCarthy-has made more than $130 million at the U.S. box-office since its release--Talk of a sequel has begun.

Bullock tells EW that she is no rush for that to happen:

"I know they say never say never, but right now, I can't imagine it. I don’t want to ruin what Melissa and I had. If a miracle happens where [a script] shows up that really and truly outdid the first and provided an experience that was better than the first one, then I would look at it. But I'm not there."

The critical and box-office failure of the two sequels on her resume- "Speed 2: Cruise Control" and "Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous" have made her skiddish of them.

"If you look back on my illustrious sequel work, nothing has proven successful. A sequel is such a daunting thing, because you don't want to lose the magic and the charm of the first one."

Meantime THR reports that McCarthy is in early talks to reunite with her "Heat" and "Bridesmaids" director Paul Feig for his female spy comedy "Susan Cooper".

The story is described as a a realistic comedy about a female James Bond -type. Feig wrote the script and will produce.

Avengers 2: Black Widow Has A Bigger Role

Chatting with writer/director Joss Whedon about "The Avengers: Age of Ultron" at Comic-Con last week, he talked to MTV News about expanding Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow role in the sequel:

"Natasha is a huge part of the sequel because you do want to concentrate on the people who don't have their own franchises. Although she in 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier', [and] she's great. She was the most fun for me because she's not a hero, you know, and it's something that I read-and I feel bad that I can't remember who wrote the book-but it's in one of the books explaining, 'These guys are heroes, you are a spy. It's a different thing-it's a different skill set-and you don't have their moral high ground or any of that good stuff.' That just makes her so interesting to me. So yeah, the stuff I've got going on with her in the second one is killer."

Meantime Marvel suit Kevin Feige told Collider that we shouldn't expect any announcements about their phase three movies- namely anything they are working on post-2015, until this time next year.

Feige says: "It’s only 2013 now. But, I think it would probably be, at the earliest, a year from now."

"The Best of Me" Goes To Relativity And WB

The film adaptation of author Nicholas Sparks' novel called The Best of Me has landed at Relativity Media and Warner Bros. says Deadline.

The story follows two former small-town high school sweethearts from opposite sides of the tracks. Now middle-aged, they’ve taken wildly divergent paths but neither has forgotten their first love affair and the past is confronted when they return to their hometown for a funeral.

Will Fetters ("The Lucky One") did a rewrite of J. Mills Goodloe's adapted script draft from which Michael Hoffman ("The Last Station") is due to direct

Sparks, Denise Dinovi, Theresa Park and Ryan Kavanaugh are producing

Eight of the sixteen fiction novels Sparks has published so far, have been turned into big screen films.