• Mad Men's Jon Hamm is joining the cast of Zack Snyder's Sucker Punch. Emily Browning, Vanessa Hudgens, and Carla Gugino are among the cast of the female-heavy action thriller. Don Draper is definitely in his element.
• Warner Bros. has enlisted Shoot 'Em Up director Michael Davis to helm a remake of Outland. Will Sean Connery come out of retirement to brandish a shotgun in outer space once again?
• District 9 director Neill Blomkamp would love to make a sequel to his hit film. We're assuming the studio is also OK with running a good concept into the ground.
• Word is Peter Jackson may direct a third Hobbit movie. The three Lord of the Rings prequel films will also be in 3D. Wait, three movies? That's going to be a lot of scenes of pipe weed smoking and walking around lush backdrops.
• In other Hobbit news, Daniel Radcliffe has reportedly turned down the role of Bilbo Baggins and sworn off fantasy entirely. Which is terrible news for my screenplay "The Whimsical World of Daniel Radcliffe."BIZ
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio ousts Sloan as CEO
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By RYAN NAKASHIMA
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Struggling Hollywood studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is turning to a restructuring expert who has helped businesses from energy to doughnuts to help it dig out from billions in debt....
Blockbuster to offer movies on Motorolas
from Hollywood Reporter by Associated Press
Blockbuster Inc. plans to offer movies that can be watched on Motorola Inc. cell phones.
One nation, all digital: Norway prepares revolutionary rollout
from Film Journal by Bill Mead, Digital Cinema Editor
Norway is in the midst one of the cinema industry's most interesting and extensively planned digital conversions. Film & Kino, the Norwegian government agency that oversees the country's film, video and exhibition industries, is preparing to move forward by soliciting bids from digital-cinema providers for a full national rollout for the country's 400-plus screens.
FESTIVALS
L.A. Irish Film Fest sets premieres
from Hollywood Reporter by By Gregg Kilday
"Cherrybomb," "Peacefire," "Identities," "Gabriel Byrne: Stories from Home" and "The Secret of Kells" will receive U.S. premieres at the Los Angeles Irish Film Festival.
Toronto Adds New Docs; Introduces One Day "Doc Conference"
from indieWIRE News
The 34th Toronto International Film Festival had added five new documentaries to its growing program, with topics ranging from a Ruth Gruber bio, a multi-faceted look at modern China, a controversial exploration into the world of the Saharawi refugees, a probing study on autism and the story of Disney's re-emergence as an animation powerhouse.
Tom Ford's "Single Man" vies for Queer Lion
from Reuters: Entertainment News
ROME (Hollywood Reporter) - "A Single Man," the
directorial debut of fashion designer Tom Ford, will head a record 14 films in
the third edition of the Queer Lion awards at the Venice Film Festival.
AWARDS
BAFTA set to honor Monty Python
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
LONDON, Aug. 18 (UPI) -- The surviving members the iconic British comedy troupe Monty Python are to be presented with a special BAFTA honor this fall, the BBC reported.
FILM
Daily Box Office: Monday, August 17, 2009
from Box Office Mojo - Current Box Office Results
District 9 tops Monday's box office with $5.2 million
Quentin Tarantino Working On 'Inglourious Basterds' Prequel
from Entertainment on HuffingtonPost.com by The Huffington Post
News Team
Brad Pitt was a no-show at Monday night's Big Apple premiere of
"Inglourious Basterds," but he may have another chance to join
Quentin Tarantino on the red carpet. According to the film's director, a
prequel is in the works.
from Entertainment Weekly's News Briefs by Jeff Labrecque
Outland, the 1981 scifi film that starred Sean Connery as a
Jupiter lawman, is being updated by Warner Bros. According to The Hollywood
Reporter, Chad St. John will write the remake, set in an orbiting city around
Earth's moon, and Michael Davis (Shoot 'Em Up) will direct. 
UK film board stops sale of Japanese horror movie
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
LONDON (AP) -- Britain's film board banned the sale of a Japanese horror DVD, saying Wednesday its violence is so extreme that it could cause psychological harm to audiences....
Jon Hamm signs on for 'Sucker Punch'
from Entertainment Weekly's News Briefs by Jeff Labrecque
Jon Hamm has joined the cast of Sucker Punch, Zack Snyder's fantasy film about an institutionalized girl scheduled for a lobotomy.
Daniel Radcliffe Says No to The Hobbit
from News in Film by Jeff Leins
Last month
rumors of casting choices for The Hobbit started circulating.
TELEVISION
CBS News pioneer Don Hewitt dies at 86
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
NEW YORK (AP) -- CBS News says Don Hewitt, the newsman who invented "60 Minutes" and produced the popular newsmagazine for 36 years, has died. He was 86....
The Time Traveler's Wife Becoming a TV Series
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com)
After The Time Traveler's Wife scored a fairly respectable little pile
of poker chips at this weekend's box office, the news is breaking that the
story is next headed to the small screen.
Oliver Stone To Produce Documentary Series
from Entertainment on HuffingtonPost.com by The Huffington Post
News Team
NEW YORK -- Showtime says filmmaker Oliver Stone is producing a 10-part
documentary series on what he calls the secret history of America.
Reality TV contestant sought in model death in CA
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
BUENA PARK, Calif. (AP) -- A former contestant on the reality TV show "Megan Wants a Millionaire" is being sought for questioning in the death of a woman whose body was found stuffed in a suitcase in an Orange County trash bin.
Nicole Kidman to make cameo on Lifetime's `Runway'
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
NEW YORK (AP) -- From her Oscar gowns to her Chanel ads, Nicole Kidman sizzles with style. Next on her sartorial schedule: "Project Runway."
NBC plans a capella competition show
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif., Aug. 18 (UPI) -- NBC has announced it is holding auditions for its new a capella singing competition show "The Sing-Off" in New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Los Angeles.
Joe Jonas confirmed, Kelly Clarkson uncertain as next 'American
Idol' guest judge
from Entertainment Weekly's News Briefs by Michael Slezak
Joe Jonas, one third of the teen pop sensation the Jonas Brothers, will be a guest judge during the audition rounds for American Idol's upcoming ninth season, a source close to the show confirmed to EW.com this evening.
from L.A. Times - TV News
It's looking like CBS has a companion hit to go with "Two and a Half Men" on Monday nights.
Black Eyed Peas set record for most weeks at No. 1
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By MESFIN FEKADU
NEW YORK (AP) -- Will.i.am would love to say "I told you so" to all the people who have bashed the Black Eyed Peas in the past, but he won't - even though the group just made history on the Billboard charts....
Mexican fans to try for `Thriller' dance record
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Led by a Michael Jackson impersonator in sunglasses, a sequined black jacket and white glove, dozens of the singer's Mexican fans are practicing the steps in his "Thriller" video to attempt a new world record....
Britney Spears shows her new figure on Letterman
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
NEW YORK (AP) -- What would a President Spears administration be like? Apparently, very tasty....
Smashing Pumpkins pick new drummer after open call
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Drum roll, please. The Smashing Pumpkins have a new member of the band....
Priests ask Madonna to cancel Bulgaria gig
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
SOFIA, Bulgaria, Aug. 19 (UPI) -- A group of Bulgarian Orthodox priests have called for the cancellation of U.S. pop star Madonna's concert in Sofia because it coincides with a religious feast.
Mariah Carey Kisses Off The Grammys
from Entertainment on HuffingtonPost.com by The Huffington Post
News Team
Mariah Carey is refusing to be pushed around by the Grammys anymore.
Jay-Z Unveils Blueprint 3 Track Listing
from MTV News
New album includes...
Death Row Records moves into movie biz
from Hollywood Reporter by By Etan Vlessing
Newly resurrected rap label Death Row Records is expanding into film production.
R. Kelly to release 10th studio album
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
NEW YORK, Aug. 19 (UPI) -- U.S. recording artist R. Kelly will release "Untitled," his 10th studio album, Oct. 13, Jive Records announced Wednesday.
Cobra Starship's Hot Mess Cleans Up At #4 On Billboard
from MTV News
King of Country George Strait lands #1, and Neil Diamond takes #2.
ETC...
Robin Wright Penn files for divorce
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Robin Wright and her husband, Sean Penn, are calling it quits on their more than decade-long marriage....
