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Sunday, May 6, 2012

NEWS UPDATE : James Cameron's Avatar Sequels, The Mummy Reboot, Robert Pattinson and More

  • James Cameron has announced in a recent interview that from now on he will live and breathe only "Avatar" and he is determined to add two, maybe even three sequels to his 2009 sci-fi hit. Here's what Cameron had to say on the subject : "I’ve divided my time over the last 16 years over deep ocean exploration and filmmaking. I’ve made two movies in 16 years, and I’ve done eight expeditions. Last year I basically completely disbanded my production company’s development arm. So I’m not interested in developing anything. I’m in the Avatar business. Period. That’s it. I’m making Avatar, Avatar 2, Avatar 3, maybe Avatar 4, and I’m not going to produce other people’s movies for them. I’m not interested in taking scripts. And that all sounds I suppose a little bit restricted, but the point is I think within the Avatar landscape I can say everything I need to say that I think needs to be said, in terms of the state of the world and what I think we need to be doing about it. And doing it in an entertaining way. And anything I can’t say in that area, I want to say through documentaries, which I’m continuing."

  • Robert Rodriguez added Sofia Vergara ("Modern Family") and Demian Bichir ("A Better Life") to the roster of his exploitation sequel "Machete Kills". Danny Trejo, Michelle Rodriguez and Jessica Alba will reprise their roles and they will be joined by Mel Gibson, who will play the villain, and Amber Heard. More about "Machette Kills" here.

  • Writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, both known for their blockbuster scripts for "Star Trek" and "Transformers", have been hired to write reboot scripts for "The Mummy" and "Van Helsing". What's even cooler is that Tom Cruise is attached to star as Van Helsing in the latter reboot. Cue the Mission: Impossible theme song. Here is the official press release which offers a whole lot of cool details about the two screenwriters recent projects as well :
    "Universal Pictures today announced the studio has signed a two-year first-look production deal with one of the leading writing/producing teams in the entertainment industry, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, and their K/O Paper Products banner. The duo will kick off their new relationship with Universal by reimagining titles from the studio’s library including Van Helsing and The Mummy. The announcement was made by Universal Pictures Chairman, Adam Fogelson and Co-Chairman, Donna Langley.

    Kurtzman and Orci have collaborated with some of the industry’s top creative minds including J.J. Abrams, with whom they wrote the third installment of Mission: Impossible, which grossed nearly $400 million at the worldwide box office. In 2007, they wrote Transformers and went on to write Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen in 2009. Together, those films grossed more than $1.5 billion worldwide. More recently, the pair wrote and executive produced 2009’s Star Trek, which grossed more than $385 million worldwide. Accompanying their impressive film resume, Kurtzman and Orci have found tremendous success in television, having created the series Fringe, writing/producing Alias and in 2010, producing the reboot of Hawaii Five-O. They also currently executive produce the highest rated show on Hasbro’s The Hub, Transformers Prime.

    “Alex and Roberto are extraordinarily talented writers and producers who know the value of a great story in building successful tentpole films,” Fogelson and Langley said in a joint statement. “They have been a major part of some of Hollywood’s biggest movies and television shows in recent history, and we’re eager to have them build on that success at Universal.”

    “We’re thrilled to call Universal Pictures our home,” said Kurtzman and Orci. “From the moment we sat down with Adam, Donna, Peter, Jeff and the entire Uni team, there was an instant flow of inspired ideas. They really understand the importance of building a strong creative team and giving our shared projects their full support. We’re proud to start making movies that will live as part of Universal’s enduring legacy.”

    Kurtzman and Orci’s K/O Paper Products will develop and produce a modern reimagining of Universal library titles including The Mummy, alongside producer Sean Daniel and writer Jon Spaihts. The pair will also develop and produce Universal’s reimagined Van Helsing, with Tom Cruise attached to star in and produce the film.

    Kurtzman and Orci’s upcoming projects include writing Sony’s next installment of The Amazing Spider-Man; producing Now You See Me, for Lionsgate Summit, set for release in March 2013; and producing Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game, also for Lionsgate Summit. Kurtzman and Orci wrote and produced People Like Us, which marks Kurtzman’s directorial debut and is scheduled to be released in June 2012, and wrote and produced the second installment of Star Trek, set for release in 2013. The pair most recently rewrote All You Need Is Kill for Warner Bros., with Tom Cruise attached to star, Doug Liman to direct and Erwin Stoff to produce."


  • Robert Pattinson joins two new productions : the psychological thriller "Mission: Blacklist" and "Rover". The "Twilight" star is definitely looking to join some very edgy projects. "Mission: Blacklist" is the real story of military investigator Eric Maddox (played by Pattinson), the man who orchestrated the capture of Saddam Hussein. Erik Jendresen ("Band of Brothers") adapted the screenplay from the homonymous novel and Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire will direct. "Rover" is the story of some guy (Guy Pearce) whose car is stolen by a group of men and he pursues them through the wild and rugged outback. It is unknown what Pattinson's role will be in this movie. "Rover" is being written and directed by David Michod ("Animal Kingdom").

  • Jonah Hill ("Moneyball") joins Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorsese's biopic based on the memoir "The Wolf of Wall Street". DiCaprio stars as Jordan Belfort an amoral stockbroker who was indicted in 1998 for security fraud and money laundering and served a 22 months sentence in a federal prison. Production begins in August.



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