“Ghostbusters III” Writers Signed September 10, 2008 3:10 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters III, Movies, News.add a comment
The trades are reporting that Sony is moving forward with a third installment in the Ghostbusters franchise. Columbia Pictures has just signed The Office co-executive producers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky to write the script for the film. Plans are in place to bring back the original cast of Harold Ramis, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson, although the focus of the new film will be on a new cast of Ghostbusters. Ivan Reitman, who directed the first two films, is also involved in this film’s development.
Sources: The Hollywood Reporter and Variety
Synder, Del Toro and Verbinski to Direct “Heavy Metal” September 10, 2008 2:44 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Heavy Metal, Movies, News.add a comment
In an interview with rgbFILTER, Kevin Eastman, co-creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, revealed that directors Zack Snyder, Guillermo Del Toro and Gore Verbinksi have all expressed interest in joining executive producer David Fincher to direct some of the segments of the upcoming Heavy Metal animated film. The film is expected to include eight or nine segments in total.
Source: rgbFILTER.com (via /Film)
Sommers Replacing Del Toro on “Tarzan” September 3, 2008 8:07 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, Tarzan.add a comment
Director Stephen Sommers has replaced Guillermo del Toro in directing a live action adaptation of Tarzan for Warner Bros, according to Variety. The trade further reports that Stuart Beattie will co-write the project alongwith Sommers. The studio began negotiating with Del Toro to direct the project about two years ago, but his commitment to The Hobbit and other projects has forced him off the project.
Source: Variety
“American Idol” Adds Kara DioGuardi As Fourth Judge August 25, 2008 2:45 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in American Idol, Casting, Fox, News, Television.1 comment so far
Fox has announced that grammy-nominated songwriter Kara DioGuardi has joined American Idol has a fourth judge, sitting alongside Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson on the upcoming eighth season of the show that peremieres on Fox in January 2009.
“We are turning the heat up on ‘Idol’ this year and are thrilled to welcome Kara to the judges’ table,” said creator and executive producer Simon Fuller. “She is a smart, sassy lady, and one of America’s most successful songwriters. We know she will bring a new level of energy and excitement to the show.”
The full press release follows after the jump.
Matthew Fox of “Lost” Gets Pay Raise; Other Cast Members Also Re-Negotiating August 19, 2008 6:20 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in ABC, Casting, Lost, News, Television.add a comment
Mathew Fox is the first of the principal cast of Lost to ink a new deal. The actor, who with Evangeline Lilly entered into negotiations with ABC on a new contract, will now be paid about $225,000 per episode (up from about $150,000 per episode). A deal still hasn’t be struck with Lilly, and also, upon hearing about the contract negotiations of the show’s two main stars, many of the show’s supporting cast have entered into their own renegotiation’s. They’re currently paid in the $80,000-$90,000 per episode range.
Fishburne in Talks to Replace Petersen on “CSI” August 6, 2008 9:37 am
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, CBS, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, News, Television.add a comment
Laurence Fishburne is in talks to replace William Petersen as the lead star in CBS’s veteran crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Sources say that Fishburne is being heavily courted to play a new character, described as a doctor/scientist outsider to the CSI unit who has the same genetic profile as a serial killer but hasn’t previously acted on any homicidal impulses.
THR further notes that Fishburne had been mentioned as one of the CSI producers’ top choices for the role, along with John Malkovich and Kurt Russell.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Comic-Con 2008: MIB Producer Attached to “Spooks” July 26, 2008 3:07 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Comic-Con, Comic-Con 2008, Movies, News, Spooks.add a comment
ShockTillYouDrop.com is reporting that producer Barry Josephson is attached to a live-action adaptation of the Devil’s Due comic book Spooks. Click here for more details.
DiCaprio Teaming With Warner Bros. on “Twilight Zone” Movie July 25, 2008 1:54 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, The Twilight Zone.add a comment
THR is reporting that Warner Bros. and Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company Appian Way are in the early stages of developing material for a feature film take on one ore more episodes from the classic TV series The Twilight Zone. THR adds that the companies are not looking to remake an episodic movie like the big-screen version of the movie 25 years ago did, but instead they want to build a storyline from one ore more of the episodes.
Source: THR
Singer Developing Live-Action “Freedom Formula” Feature Film July 25, 2008 1:51 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Comic Books, Freedom Formula, Movies, News.add a comment
Bryan Singer’s Bad Hat Harry Productions studio has teamed with Radical Pictures to develop a live-action feature film from the five-issue comic book series Freedom Formula, created by Edmund Shern. The comic book will be introduced at Comic-Con and be released in August. “This is a timeless story about young people struggling to break free of authority. That’s what ultimately appealed to me,” Singer said.
Source: Variety
Aronofsky and Self Confirmed for “Robocop” July 24, 2008 9:58 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, RoboCop.add a comment
Darren Aronofsky (The Fountain) is no longer the rumored director of the upcoming Robocop installment. MGM today announced that they’ve signed Aronofsky to direct and David Self (Road to Perdition) to write a new installment for its RoboCop franchise. The press release follows after the jump.
“Witchblade” Director Chosen July 23, 2008 2:00 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, Witchblade.add a comment
Platinum Studios Inc., has confirmed that 
Michael Rymer will be the director of the upcoming comic book adaptation of Witchblade. Rymer is most recognized as a television producer and director of several episodes of Battlestar Galactica. An actress for the lead role has yet to be announced.
Witchblade is scheduled to hit theaters sometime in 2009.
Zack Braff: Eighth Season of “Scrubs” Will Be His Last July 18, 2008 4:56 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in ABC, Casting, News, Scrubs, Television.3 comments
Regardless of how well the upcoming eighth season of Scrubs does–which is moving over from NBC to ABC–show lead Zack Braff says it’ll be his final season.
Show creator, Bill Lawrence said the following at the TCA press tour:
“I think it’s Zach’s last year on the show,” Lawrence says. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that would be it for the series.
“When I created this show, Steve McPherson [was] president of the studio,” Lawrence explains. “… He was really supportive when I pitched it as this show possibly being like ‘ER’ as a comedy, with some revolving cast members and, you know, putting new blood in.”
On that end, Braff said he thinks this is his last season, but is open to returning on a guest-basis:
“The sense is that we thought we were ending, and then thanks to [McPherson], this has been a bonus, amazing year. We’re having a blast doing this,” Braff says. “My sense is this is my last year. If the show does continue like he’s saying, like an ‘ER’ kind of thing, I would love to come back and visit and definitely direct some — and do craft service if they need some help.”
Scrubs season eight is scheduled to premiere on ABC in early 2009.
Dinner Impossible New Chef Premieres in August July 18, 2008 3:51 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Dinner: Impossible, Food Network, News, Television.add a comment
Food Network has announced that Chef Michael Symon, who won the network’s The Next Iron Chef in 2007, will premiere as the new host of Dinner: Impossible this August. The show returns with new episodes on Wednesday, August 20th at 10 pm ET/PT. Symon was named the new host of the show in April after a scandal forced Chef Robert Irvine out as host. Dinner: Impossible has been a success for the network, ranking as its third-highest rated series.
Steven Spielberg and Diablo Cody Re-Teaming for Comedy July 16, 2008 4:53 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News.add a comment
Diablo Cody has been hired to write an currently untitled comedy script for DreamWorks Pictures that is based on an original idea by Steven Spielberg. Details of the project are being kept under tight wraps by the studio. There are no producers yet attached.
This marks the second time that the pair have collaborated. Cody wrote the pilot and is an executive producer on the upcoming Showtime series The United States of Tara, which was also based on an original idea from Speilberg.
Source: Variety
Tarantino Targeting Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio for “Inglorious Bastards” July 16, 2008 4:51 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Inglorious Bastards, Movies, News.add a comment
Quentin Tarantino, director of the upcoming WWII drama, Inglorious Bastards is searching for who will play two key roles in the film. The director met with Brad Pit in France on Tuesday to talk about the possibility of Pitt playing the key role of Aldo Raine in the film and Tarantino also plans to meet with Leonardo DiCaprio for another key role, that of Hans Landa, on Thursday.
The film begins shotting this fall in Germany and France.
Source: Variety
Dan Patrick joining Football Night in America + Inside the NFL Panel Announced July 9, 2008 6:16 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Football Night in America, Inside the NFL, NBC, News, NFL, Showtime, Sports, Television.2 comments
Former ESPN colleagues Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann are reuniting. NBC has announced that Patrick, who was a former ESPN anchor and radio personality, is joining Football Night in America this fall to co-host the program. “I’m delighted to be reunited with my tag team partner,” Olbermann said, and in an homage to a favorite SportsCenter catchphrase, “I can’t stop Dan Patrick from working with me again, I can only hope to contain him.”
In other NFL-related TV news, James Brown, Phil Simms and Cris Collinsworth were named as cohosts of Inside the NFL, which is moving to showtime after a long run on HBO.
Source: TV Guide
Robert Picardo and Stargate Atlantis Producer Joseph Mallozzi Discuss Atlantis: Season Five July 6, 2008 1:00 am
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Sci Fi, Stargate, Stargate Atlantis, Television.4 comments
New series regular Robert Picardo and producer Joseph Mallozzi recently held a press conference to discuss the upcoming fifth season of the SCI FI series Stargate Atlantis (July 11th at 10pm). The topics included how the new season kicks off, whether Tori Higginson will be returning to reprise her role as Dr. Elizabeth Weir and more. Check out the highlights after the jump.
Tennant May Not Be Leaving “Doctor Who” Afterall June 29, 2008 1:21 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in BBC, Casting, Doctor Who, News, Sci Fi, Television.10 comments
For quite some time, it’s been reported that the current Doctor of “Doctor Who”, David Tennant, would be leaving the show (including on this site). However, it turns out that he may be staying. According to reports, BBC is rumored to be offering Tennant a new contract worth £1.3 million, or about £100,000 per episode (about $2.6M or a shade under $200,000/episode) to carry on as Doctor Who. In addition, he could be offered other drama projects in an attempt to keep him on board. More after the jump.
Steve Carrell Signed for Three More Years of “The Office” June 26, 2008 11:27 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, NBC, News, Television, The Office.1 comment so far
Ricky Gervais reported over on his official site, that Steve Carell, who plays Michael Scott on NBC’s The Office has signed on with the show for an additional three years.
Had some great news today about the American version of The Office.
Steve Carell (now one of the most bankable film stars in the world) has just signed up for another three years with us. He is the hardest working man in Hollywood and the harder he works the better it is for me. I mean… well done Steve you are wonderful.
Source: Ricky Gervais
Transformers 2 Title Update, Casting News and Set Videos June 24, 2008 10:15 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, Photos, Transformers, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Videos.add a comment
There have been a couple Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen developments over the past several days. Here’s a quick round-up:
- The 2 has been dropped from the title.
- Howard Stern regular Lester “Beetlejuice” Green has been spotted on the film’s set (click here to for the photo) [TFLive]
- The Transformers Live blog has some videos from the set of filming at Princeton. [TFLive]
Arsenio Hall named host of MyNetworkTV’s Funniest Moments June 13, 2008 6:16 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Funniest Moments, Movies, myNetworkTV, News, Television.4 comments
Arsenio Hall has been named the host of MyNetworkTV’s new hour-long comedy clip show, Funniest Moments. The show is scheduled to run Wednesday’s at 9pm starting this fall. Hall also returned to standup comedy for the first time in more than a decade and will be featured in Weinstein Co.s upcoming animated film Igor which hits theaters on September 19th.
TV and Film Casting Bites: The Hobbit, Crash and more June 6, 2008 1:18 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, Television.add a comment
In an interview with Empire Magazine, Christoper Lee (pictured right in character as Saruman from The Lord of the Rings trilogy) said that he hopes he’ll be returning to play Saruman again in Guillermo Del Toro’s adaptation of The Hobbit. Saruman was never featured in the prequel book, but the two-film adaptation could rely on extra material not necessarily found in The Hobbit. Lee is a fan of the books, and knows his stuff. Read his thoughts here.
Dennis Hopper has joined the cast of Crash, Starz Entertainment’s first original drama series. The 13-episode one-hour series has already started production. Hopper will play “Ben”, a veteran, maverick music producer looking for his last big score. [ComingSoon.net]
Continue reading for more casting bites
TV and Film Casting Bites: ABC Pilots, Terminator, Transformers and more June 4, 2008 3:27 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in 2012, Casting, Finnegan, News, Television, Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins, The Hobbit, The Unusuals, Transformers 2.add a comment
Warner Bros. has replaced Charlotte Gainsbourg with Bryce Dallas Howard (pictured right) in Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins. Howard will play the character Kate, who was introduced in Terminator 3 as Kate Brewster (played by Clarie Danes). [THR]
British actor Matthew Marsden is the newest addition to the cast of Transformers 2. He’s been cast in the role of “Graham”, a character who is part of the British Special Forces. [MTV]
continue reading for more casting bites
Rumor: James McAvoy as Bilbo Baggins? May 29, 2008 12:38 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, Rumors.add a comment
There’s a new rumor circulating the net that has James McAvoy playing Bilbo Baggins in Guillermo del Toro’s The Hobbit. The Daily Express reports:
“A number of names have been doing the rounds, including Daniel Radcliffe and Jack Black, but James (MCAvoy) is the one the film’s bosses really want. They’re expected to have talks soon so hopefully it could be confirmed in the not too distant future.”
Though the British source singles out McAvoy, considering the inclusion of two other names, it’s perfectly reasonable to conclude that this rumor has no basis in fact.
Expanding on this a bit. If you missed the chat Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro participated in this past Saturday over at TheOneRing.net (click here for that article), Guillermo said that he has plans to utilize Ian Holm (who played Bilbo in the Lord of the Rings trilogy) in “some fashion for sure” and that “the difficulty of the role will be better assessed after” the screenplays are completed. Del Toro also expressed the same thoughts in an interview with Empire Magazine just last week:
“We are writing based on [Ian Holm’s performance], but other than that, we have ideas [of who could play him],” Del Toro told us. “I can tell you that it’s down to a few names that we all agree upon. And that our first choice…completely, magically, we said the same name. All of us!”
COMMENT: So assuming this rumor pans out (and we’ll have to wait awhile as Del Toro has said casting announcements are a year away) what do you think?
Sources: The Daily Express and Empire Magazine
Casting Bites: TV and Film May 24, 2008 10:33 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in Casting, Movies, News, Television.add a comment
Actor/Rapper Shad Moss (aka Bow Wow) has joined the upcoming fifth season of HBO’s Entourage. He will play a recurring role as Charlie, a new stand-up comic client of Eric (Kevin Connolly). [THR]
The two-hour 24 prequel movie bridging the sixth and seventh seasons has added several cast members: Eric Lively, Tony Todd and Gil Bellows. Lively will play the president’s son, Bellows a State Department officer ordered to serve Bauer with a subpoena and Todd, who will also appear during the seventh season, will play cruel African dictator Gen. Juma. [THR]
Continue reading for more casting announcements.
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