Dr. Manfattan’s Movie News 15/7/09

Heeey everyone.

So yeah, basically Darren of Darren’s Movie News fame has been a little busy recently, off playing Rock Band with Bruce Springsteen and The Beatles or something, so the task of giving the public some juicy movie news has fallen to me! Great….anywho, away we go:

• Working Title is developing a third installment in the Bridget Jones film series reports Variety. The third installment will see Zellweger reprising her role as a British publishing executive struggling to find love. The story will likely be based on author Helen Fielding’s weekly newspaper columns from 2005 which has Bridget, now in her 40s, attempting to have a baby before it’s too late. Will it be good? I haven’t seen the other two so I’m not in a position to judge, but honestly I don’t really care. Woop.

• Stephen Chow has bowed out of Sony’s The Green Hornet, leaving the Columbia Pictures project to search for a new Kato, the sidekick of playboy-turned-vigilante Brit Reid, which is played by Seth Rogen. According to Variety, sources said Chow left on amicable terms and had several other projects he wanted to pursue that didn’t fit with “Hornet’s” production schedule. Michel Gondry is directing the film. Chow had initially signed on to direct the film as well, but then opted just to play Kato, the role Bruce Lee took in the original 1960s TV show. Bruce Lee kicked ass, so who ever they get for Chow’s replacement better up to Lee’s level of kickassery otherwise this movie will suck.

• According to E! Online, both Courteney Cox-Arquette and David Arquette will be returning for Scream 4. “We’re going to be doing Scream 4,”David Arquette told the site. “Kevin Williamson is writing the script at this moment, and hopefully Wes Craven is going to direct.” Neve Campbell was said to turn down a chance to reprise her role in the sequel, but Arquette added, “I hope Neve does it. I really hope so.”

• Ryan Reynolds has been cast as the Green Lantern in Warner Bro’s 2011 film adaption of the DC comics hero. The studio had previously narrowed it down to three candidates, the other two being Bradley Cooper and Justin Timberlake(?), but Reynolds won out in the end. The movie will be a big-budget sci-fi extravaganza and I’d say Warner Bro’s and DC are hoping it will be their Iron Man. From my little knowledge of GL Reynolds seems to be a good choice. I just hope this doesn’t affect the Deadpool movie Reynolds has in the works because I would much prefer to see a good Deadpool film than any Green Lantern one.

• In other comic-to-movie news, Natalie Portman has been cast as Jane Foster in Marvel’s upcoming Thor. in the comics Jane Foster was the love of Donald Blake, Thor’s human alter-ego. Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige will produce Thor. Principal photography for the film is set for early 2010. The film will be released in the US on May 20, 2011 and distributed by Paramount Pictures. Portman will star opposite Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston and Brian Blessed, playing Thor, Loki and Odin respectively. Looking forward to this A LOT.

• Ready for another childhood cartoon to be completely destroyed by Hollywood? According to Variety Alcon Entertainment will be making its live-action/animated version of Hong Kong Phooey with Alex Zamm directing. The screenplay was written by David Goodman.The film will be an adaptation of the 1970s Hanna-Barbera animated TV series. You know, the one where a police Janitor (who’s a dog) that is secretly an incompetent Kung-Fu super-hero who has a sidekick cat (but he’s still a dog) .

• Circle of Confusion is producing Gatekeeper, a comedy/zombie thriller with Matthew O’Leary, Lea Thompson, Judge Reinhold, Ron Perlman and Jana Kramer attached. Isaac Meisenheimer is signed to make his feature directing debut on “Gatekeeper.” Meisenheimer also penned the script, in which a simple mistake leaves three friends to defend their town from a zombie outbreak. “We intend to make a film in the vein of ‘Shaun of the Dead‘ for American audiences,” Emery said.

• Confirming reports from earlier this year that he was in talks to join the production,Jackie Chan has come aboard the Karate Kid remake in the role originated by Pat Morita. They are now calling it Kung Fu Kid, and it’s going to be set in China. Will Smith is producing and his son Jaden will be in the starring role. I’m fairly certain that I’m not the only one here who thinks that this whole remake is a terrible, terrible idea.

• And for some slightly wtf-tinted news, Russell Brand is to play…..the Easter Bunny. Well the voice anyway. Brand will lend his vocal talents to the furry egg-deliverer in the upcoming I Hop. The high-concept comedy, which will combine live-action with CGI, revolves around an unemployed slacker who hits the bunny with his car, breaking his leg. What follows is a twisted buddy movie as said slacker is pressed into egg-delivering duty to save Easter.

And now the Trailer Park:

• District 9 looks like the sleeper hit of the summer. Looking forward to this:
• Universal’s new 3D CGI adventure, Despicable Me:
• Carey Mulligan, Alfred Molina and Peter Skarsgard are giving us An Educationn:
• Megan Fox in Jennifer’s Body makes me all kinds of happy:
• And finally, the brilliant Ellen Page is on a roller derby team in Whip It: