• G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra took the top spot at the box office this weekend with $56.2 million. Turns out not screening your movie for critics is the key to box office gold.
• Frank Langella has joined the cast of Oliver Stone's Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps. Is it too late to do something about that title?
• Rumor has it Steven Spielberg could be developing the Halo movie now that Peter Jackson is too busy with The Hobbit. Hopefully it'll stay with Spielberg now. If we're not careful, it'll end up in Michael Bay's hands.
• Paul Giamatti is rumored to be taking over for Sean Penn in the Three Stooges movie. Word is Jim Carrey is no longer attached to the project. Giamatti was born to be Curly.
• The Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow will reteam with writer Mark Boal for action film Triple Frontier.
• Josh Hutcherson, Isabel Lucas, Edwin Hodge, and Connor Cruise are the leads for the upcoming Red Dawn remake. Sorry, but no one can replace Swayze, Sheen, and Thomas Howell. OK, maybe Thomas Howell.
• Taiwanese singer and actor Jay Chou will star opposite Seth Rogen in Green Hornet. Chou will be taking over the role for the departed Stephen Chow.
BIZ
Peter Bart: Is it cash infusion, or confusion? -- Several
sectors of our economy are showing signs of life these days, but here's my forecast
for the entertainment business: There will be a significant recovery thanks to
increased spending, stepped-up production and an easing of the credit crunch.
North Carolina senate boosts film incentives
Film News: Legislation ups tax credit to 25% --
Media stocks up; slow ad recovery expected
from Hollywood Reporter by By Georg Szalai
Media and entertainment stocks rose sharply Friday on
bullish ad-market comments from CBS Corp.
TV Upfront Tally Slips to $8 Billion as Networks Take Their
Chances on Scatter
from Advertising Age - MediaWorks by bsteinberg@adage.com(Brian Steinberg)
FESTIVALS
Nine compete for Venice 3-D prize
from Variety.com - Film Festivals
Film Festivals:
FILM
Weekend Box Office: August 7-9, 2009
from Box Office Mojo - Current Box Office Results
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra tops the box office with an estimated $56.2 million
'G.I. Joe' tops overseas boxoffice
from Hollywood Reporter by By Frank Segers
from NYT > Movies by By A. O. SCOTT
Yes, it's summer. But
EW Picks: 'District 9' looks like a winner
Three years ago, "Lord of the Rings" guru Peter Jackson handpicked Neill Blomkamp, then a director of music videos and TV commercials, to helm an adaptation of the video game Halo.
Universal has 'Change Up' with 'Hangover' writers
from Entertainment Weekly's News Briefs by Wendy Mitchell
Universal has acquired comedy script Change Up, written by The Hangover's team of Jon Lucas and Scott Moore.
Louis Leterrier Dreams Of Epic Avengers Quadrilogy, Released
Over One Summer
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com
(slashfilm.com)
The Incredible Hulk director Louis Leterrier recently told the Los Angeles Times his dream of collaborating on one part of
a quadrilogy of Avengers films for Marvel, which would be released over the
course of one Summer
Guillermo del Toro to produce Spanish thriller 'Julia's Eyes'
from Entertainment Weekly's News Briefs by John Young
As if Guillermo del Toro wasn't busy enough (he's currently preparing to direct two Hobbit films), the Mexican filmmaker has added another project to his already stuffed plate. Del Toro will be producing the Spanish-language horror thriller Julia's Eyes, according to Variety.
Gervais-Merchant: What's next?
from EW.com: Today's Latest Headlines by Simon Vozick-Levinson
''Office''/''Extras'' creators give Simon Vozick-Levinson
the scoop on their 2010 feature, ''Cemetary Junction''
Brad Pitt Will Narrate Terrence Malick's Voyage of Time Doc
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com
(slashfilm.com)
The Playlist has been great about uncovering info about the
two upcoming Terrence Malick films, The Tree of Life and Voyage
of Time.
from Hollywood Reporter by By Gregg Kilday
Tara Reid is joining the cast of the indie comedy "Last Call." The buddy film stars Travis Van Winkle and Ryan Hansen as cousins forced to run a family pub.
Taking A Closer Look At The New 'Where The Wild Things Are'
Trailer
from MTV Movies Blog by Adam Rosenberg
So the new trailer for "Where
The Wild Things Are" hit the Internet today. It's freaking awesome.
Director Spike
Jonze might be messing around with Maurice
Sendak's original story, but the author has already admitted that he's okay with it. If
he's fine, then I'm fine. Especially with Spike at the helm.
Arts, Briefly: The Hornet's New Kato
from NYT > Movies by Compiled by RACHEL
The Taiwanese pop singer Jay Chou will be playing Kato to Seth Rogen's Green Hornet in Columbia Pictures' adaptation of the 1930s radio series.
TELEVISION
"Mad Men" still spellbinding in Season 3
from Reuters: Entertainment News
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Even with all the loose
ends left dangling in the finale last year, is there a "Mad Men" fan
in God's creation that actually believes the show's Season 3 premiere on
Drama Confronts a Dramatic Decade
from NYT > Television by By
Matthew Weiner, creator of "Mad Men," which begins its third
season on
Plethora of Promos Will Soon Mob Your TV Screen
from Advertising Age - MediaWorks by bsteinberg@adage.com(Brian Steinberg)
NEW
Rapid change in late-night viewing
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By DAVID BAUDER
ABC Slams Katherine Heigl: Her Whining Is 'Unfortunate'
from Entertainment on HuffingtonPost.com by The Huffington Post
News Team
from Forbes.com: Media News by Lacey Rose
With ''Lost'' set to end and ''Desperate Housewives'' aging, the network bets big on new comedies and pre-sold names.
'Dancing with Stars' role for Paula Abdul?
from MSNBC.com: Reality TV
Paula Abdul may be out of a job on "American Idol" but she could soon
be dancing with the stars on rival TV network
TV Ratings: Season finale breaks network's ratings records -- "Burn Notice" ended the first half of its third season run on fire, with the USA Network skein's Thursday night episode drawing the most viewers for any telecast in the history of the cabler.
MUSIC
Dave Grohl's new superband to perform its first show on Sunday
from Entertainment Weekly's News Briefs by John Young
Them Crooked Vultures, the superband featuring Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme, and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones, will play its first show Aug. 9 at Chicago's Metro, the BBC reports.
Dance queen Lady GaGa fashions booming career
from Reuters: Entertainment News
'Dragnet' stamp set for release
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- The U.S. Postal Service is about to introduce a stamp honoring the classic TV police drama "Dragnet," officials say.
'Oliver!' star: I am father of Jackson kid
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
