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Another Nic Cage Stinker At Box Office; Lowest Grossing Weekend Since 2003
It wasn’t just my imagination — this turned out to be the slowest box office weekend of the entire year, and the worst weekend in 5 years. The overall weekend was expected to generate around $66 million in box-office when all the final figures are tallied on Monday, according to Media By Numbers. The last time a weekend was lower was the
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Nicolas Cage bombs at box office with “Bangkok”
Less than a year after starring in the biggest movie of his volatile career, Nicolas Cage led the North American box office to its worst weekend in five years on Sunday with one of his weakest. “Bangkok Dangerous,” a thriller in which the 44-year-old actor plays a jaded assassin, opened
Studios wary of big budget auteurs
Who’s afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? The figure that haunts every studio chief’s dreams is a high-profile auteur whose artistic vision outweighs his financial constraints. Sometimes the gamble on a marriage of artist and epic pays off. James Cameron’s “Titanic” went way over
Nicholas Meyer to pen George Washington script
Paul Allen’s Vulcan Prods. has tapped Nicholas Meyer to pen a feature script about the life of George Washington. Nick Wechsler (”Reservation Road”) is attached as a producer along with Richard Hutton and Michael Caldwell for Vulcan. Meyer’s scripting credits include “Elegy”
Delhi court hears ‘Hari Puttar’ defense
What’s in a name? Not all that much, the producers of “Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors” argued Friday in the Delhi High Court. Mumbai-based Mirchi Movies counsel told Judge Reva Khetrapal that Warner Bros.’ copyright infringement suit here is essentially a case of judging a
DreamWorks waiting on Reliance
It’s the most overly reported deal of the year, but it never seems to close. Indian company Reliance apparently still intends to invest half a billion dollars in DreamWorks, but obstacles keep presenting themselves, and the deal, which was supposed to close weeks ago, is still weeks off. Insiders
‘Tropic Thunder’ Leads Box Office For Third Week, While ‘Dark Knight’ Tops $500 Million
The Box-Office Top Five #1 “Tropic Thunder” ($14.3 million) #2 “Babylon A.D.” ($12 million) #3 “The Dark Knight” ($11 million) #4 “The House Bunny” ($10.5 million) #5 “Traitor” ($10 million) There’s an old rule of fashion that says you’re
Court sets date for ‘Watchmen’ battle
The battle between Fox and Warner Bros. over the rights to “Watchmen” took a big step toward resolution Tuesday when the federal judge presiding over the dispute set a Jan. 6 trial date for the case. With a March release date looming, U.S. District Court Judge Gary Allen Feess said Fox should
Stephen Sommers swings with ‘Tarzan’
He’s already tackled Huckleberry Finn and Mowgli, so let’s see what Stephen Sommers can do with Tarzan. The “Jungle Book” director is in negotiations with Warner Bros. to bring a new version of the classic Edgar Rice Burroughs creation “Tarzan, Lord of the Apes,” to
Almodovar, Sony embrace ‘Broken’
Pedro Almodovar has wooed Sony Pictures Classics to “Broken Embraces,” the helmer’s latest collaboration with “Volver” thesp Penelope Cruz. Almodovar scripted. SPC has taken North American rights. Pic, which also stars Almodovar vets Lluis Homar and Blanca Portillo, is being
Hollywood endures summertime blues
The lucrative summer moviegoing season in North America ended on a lackluster note on Monday as ticket sales limped to a new record while attendance slumped to a three-year low. The U.S. Labor Day holiday weekend, which marks the traditional end of summer, was led for a third round by “Tropic Thunder.”
Studio War Involving ‘Watchmen’ Heats Up
The legal brawl over “Watchmen” is about to get rougher. Lawyers for Warner Brothers, which has already shot a movie of this graphic novel about the seamier side of superhero life, and lawyers for 20th Century Fox, which claims it owns the rights to the material, laid plans for a frenzied fight in
Jury convicts Anthony Pellicano
A jury has convicted former Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano and entertainment lawyer Terry Christensen of federal wiretapping conspiracy charges. Pellicano and Christensen were each convicted Friday of conspiracy to commit wiretapping. Pellicano was also convicted of wiretapping and Christensen
Liv Tyler’s ‘Strangers’ set for sequel
Rogue Pictures has set in motion a sequel to its summer hit “The Strangers” and has set Bryan Bertino to return to write the script. Bertino wrote the original and made his directing debut on the film; it’s yet to be determined whether he’ll helm the sequel. The expectation is that Liv
German studio offers ‘Valkyrie’ extras settlement
A German film studio has offered to negotiate a settlement with a dozen extras who were injured on the set of the Tom Cruise film “Valkyrie,” despite their demands that the actor and his production company, United Artists, pay them $11 million. “We have offered a settlement,”
Baz Luhrmann’s ‘Australia’ gets date change
Fox has bumped back the release of its adventure pic “Australia” in the U.S., Canada and Australia by 12 days to Nov. 26. The move to the day before Thanksgiving is the latest in a series of distributor efforts to adjust to Warner Bros.’ decision to move “Harry Potter and the
Minghella-Pollack film eyes Oscar run
The last film produced by the late Anthony Minghella and Sydney Pollack is looking for a December date. After a successful screening in New York of “The Reader,” the Weinstein Co. has decided to release the film for Oscar contention this year. The film stars Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes
Tom Cruise talks Paula Wagner, UA and Valkyrie
“I love Paula Wagner but she wants to produce elsewhere and in her own venue and I don’t intend to stand in her way. I’ll say this of her leaving United Artists — whatever Paula wants is what I want her to have! And I hope we’ll continue working together on future projects.”
Todd Solondz’s next, semi-sequel to Happiness
New indie production and finance shingle Werc Werk Works has stepped in to fully finance and produce writer-director Todd Solondz’s next film, an untitled part-sequel, part-companion piece to his controversial dark comedy “Happiness.” Founded by Elizabeth Redleaf and producer Christine
Details on the Watchmen Lawsuit from NY Times
How could this happen? The question springs to mind as 20th Century Fox claims it has the rights to the graphic novel on which Warner Brothers is basing “Watchmen,” its giant superhero movie. Peer deeper into the murk of Hollywood’s business practices, though, and the question becomes: How could
Hilary Swank really ‘Something’
Hilary Swank and producing partner Molly Smith have acquired feature rights to Emily Giffin’s 2005 debut novel, “Something Borrowed,” which they’ll develop through their 2S Films banner as a potential starring vehicle for Swank. Story centers on a Manhattan attorney who becomes involved
German ‘Office’ heading to the big screen
German comedy outfit Brainpool is producing a feature film based on the cult TV series “Stromberg,” the German adaptation of the BBC hit “The Office.” Writer and series co-creator Ralf Husmann will pen the script to the feature, which is planned as the finale to the sitcom’s
Garth Ennis’ Preacher TV Show Dead at HBO
Mark Steven Johnson, who brought Daredevil and Ghost Rider to the big screen, told The Continuum that his attempts to bring Garth Ennis’ Preacher to HBO as a series were close but ultimately unsuccessful. “We were budgeting and everything and it was getting really close to going,” Johnson
MGM Says “we’re not for sale!”
Contrary to recent media reports, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) is not for sale. There is no “asking price” for the company. MGM’s existing financing arrangements are sufficient to meet its needs. Goldman, Sachs has been retained to explore enhancements to MGM’s long-term
‘Tropic Thunder’ tops boxoffice again
Moviegoers were again drawn to the surprisingly resonant allure of “Tropic Thunder” this weekend. DreamWorks/Paramount’s R-rated comedy repeated atop the domestic boxoffice amid weaker-than-expected competition, marking a modest 38% decline from its first session for an estimated $16.1