Random News of the Week (October 13 - October 19, 2008)

Finally, a virtual deluge of information is out on the next Star Trek from JJ Abrams. Here’s what JJ said about the running time, “I'm sick of these two hours and forty-five minute movies. Seriously, it's like I don't have enough time to stay two hours and forty-five minutes. I'm exhausted just saying that twice. I can't stand it.” The film will run under 2 hours. Here are some other details: The action begins at a time pre-Kirk's birth with an attack on the starship USS Kellvin by the vicious Romulan captain Nero (Eric Bana). Trek canon stuff shown or mentioned include the doomed Captain Pike (Bruce Greenwood), Sulu's swordsmanship, and classic lines like "I have been, and always shall be, your friend." Sequences that will be shown include an awe-inspiring introduction of the Enterprise, a daring ice planet escape, and action up in the skies of Vulcan." The new bridge has handrails for the crew to grip onto during battles.

Here are several more pics from the new Star Trek footage:










The 5th LETHAL WEAPON is now completely dead. It turns out that Joel Silver was trying to stab Donner in the back on the whole thing so as soon as he found out, he was out (if he was ever in) and Mel Gibson pulled out also.

This was pretty bad news this week for me. Terrance Howard is out of IRONMAN 2. In his place will be, Don Cheadle. Cheadle is VERY good. But I love Terrance Howard. He has a strong presence and really brought something to the whole film. It is really too bad. Worse, the rumor for why he left sounds even more terrible. He may have left because they wouldn’t pay him enough money. Ouch.

A sequel is being prepped for WALLSTREET 2. I just watched WALLSTREET the other night. What makes it work is that Charlie Sheen actually had some acting talent back then but even more powerful is Michael Douglas’s portrayal of Gordan Gecko. I know they are trying to fast track this because of the economy but I just don’t see it working again.

Disney is planning a live action film of MOULAN. The budget is planned at $30 million.

Harrison Ford was clear that Shia will NOT be taking over the Indiana Jones franchise. "No, that's never been the idea. I think it just doesn't work that way. And there's definitely a distinction between passing the fedora and someone picking it up.”

I LOVE Peter Weir (MASTER AND COMMANDER). He doesn’t make that many films but when he does, they are amazing. He is now set to direct from his own script a film titled THE WAY BACK. It follows the true story of soldiers being captured by the Soviet Red Army in 1939 and his journey to freedom with other inmates when they escaped a year later. The group crossed the Siberian arctic, the Gobi desert and the Himalayas, finally settling in Tibet and India.

Brad Pitt and George Miller (MAD MAX series) are planning to adapt THE ODDESSY into a futurist space epic.

Sam Raimi has gone from not caring and luke warm towards SPIDER-MAN sequels to suddenly being completely excited again. SAM! PLEASE STOP MAKING THESE AND GO DO SOMETHING CREATIVE AND NEW!!! I'm really excited about Spider-Man, and I'm hoping to direct it. I don't have a script yet, but production would start probably by March of 2010, I'm guessing."

Ridley Scott will finally return to sci fi. He will be adapting the book THE FOREVER WAR to screen. The book revolves around a soldier who battles an enemy in deep space for only a few months, only to return home to a planet he doesn’t recognize some 20 years later.