Harold Ramis confirms ‘Ghostbusters III’
I just received this e-mail from Harold Ramis confirming the forward progress on a third “Ghostbusters” movie (as mentioned earlier here), with Judd Apatow, some of his regular actors and perhaps Bill Murray involved:
“yes, columbia is developing a script for GB3 with my year one writing partners, gene stupnitsky and lee eisenberg. judd apatow is co-producing year one and has made several other films for sony, so of course the studio is hoping to tap into some of the same acting talent. aykroyd, ivan reitman and i are consulting at this point, and according to dan, bill murray is willing to be involved on some level. he did record his dialogue for the new ghostbusters video game, as did danny and i, and ernie hudson. the concept is that the old ghostbusters would appear in the film in some mentor capacity. not much else to say at this point. everyone is confident a decent script can be written and i guess we’ll take it from there.
best,
harold- from chicago trib
Not funny! “40 Year Old Virgin” Actor Arrested in Vicious Stabbing
An actor who was featured in “The 40 Year Old Virgin” has just been arrested for allegedly viciously knifing his ex-girlfriend.
Shelley Malil allegedly went to his ex’s home yesterday and stabbed her in her home near San Diego. Authorities say he chased her inside and outside the house, stabbing her as many as 20 times. The victim’s two children were in the home at the time of the attack.
- from TMZ
Studios shuffle 2009 summer sked
The dating game for movies is more popular than ever as distributors comb the release calendar to check for openings and survey the competition.
Last week, Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer announced they were pushing back the release of fantasy actioner “Prince of Persia” — a potential franchise along the lines of “Pirates of the Caribbean” — by nearly a year, from June 19 to Memorial Day 2010.
Looking to provide some counterprogramming and appeal to females, Disney simultaneously moved Sandra Bullock-Ryan Reynolds romantic comedy “The Proposal” into the June 19 slot.
The Mouse House still had the date to itself — for all of 24 hours.
Taking advantage of “Prince of Persia’s” relocation, Fox quickly swooped in and claimed June 19 for Dwayne Johnson family comedy “The Tooth Fairy.” The time period is coveted since kids are out of school.
Earlier this week, a third comedy, Sony’s Judd Apatow-produced “Year One,” planted its flag on the same date. Laffer is being directed by Harold Ramis and toplines Jack Black and Michael Cera.
- from Variety
Judd Apatow’s raunchy ‘Pineapple Express’ is a good high
If the guys from Superbad smoked too much weed in college, never got their diplomas and continued to find themselves in absurd situations, they might grow up to become the paranoid pothead trio in Pineapple Express. This bawdy stoner comedy about a couple days in the life of three foolish dudes feels like a relative of last summer’s hit about a trio of inept guys. Fans of Superbad will enjoy Pineapple Express. It’s a similar sweet-silly buddy comedy where everything that can go wrong does. - from USAToday
Details From Inside Judd Apatow’s Funny People
From CinemaBlend:
You’ve probably heard about Judd Apatow’s next project, a film about standup comics called Funny People, and starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Eric Bana, Jason Schwartzman, and Leslie Mann. What you probably haven’t heard is well… anything more than that. Till now everything about the movie has remained tightly under wraps. Tonight though we got our hands on a several pages of the script, which offer a few clues as to what Judd’s up to with this one.
The pages we have focus on a female character named Daisy and her relationship with a pair of roommates and standup comics named Ira and Marc. It’s seven pages, composed almost entirely of dialogue. Apparently Apatow doesn’t improvise everything his characters say on the set, as is sometimes assumed. He has plenty of talking planned. The tone is a lot more serious than any of his other work as well. Ira is in love with Daisy, Daisy is screwing Marc, and everyone seems to be making everyone else uncomfortable. Oh it’s certainly full of all the fuck jokes you’d expect, but it’s also a lot of relationship drama, in fact this thing almost reads like his attempt at a raunched-out, straight-up romance movie.
Eric Bana, Jason Schwartzman and Jonah Hill are all Judd Apatow ‘Funny People’
Judd Apatow has rounded out the cast and picked a title and start date for his next directing vehicle.
Eric Bana, Jason Schwartzman and Jonah Hill have joined the ensemble of “Funny People,” which will be co-financed by Universal Pictures and Columbia Pictures, with Universal distributing worldwide next summer.
Apatow set Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen and Leslie Mann in the comedy earlier this year (Daily Variety, March 10).
More than one option
* (Co) Daily Variety
Filmography, Year, Role
* (Co) Daily Variety
The filmmaker, who last wrote and directed “Knocked Up,” was deliberately vague about subject matter, allowing only that the movie takes place in the world of standup comedy and the focus is on a comedian who has a near-death experience.
Pic’s a co-production of Apatow Prods. and Happy Madison, and Apatow is producing with Clayton Townsend and Barry Mendel. Jack Giarraputo, Rogen and Evan Goldberg are exec producers. Production begins in mid-September in Los Angeles.
Bana began his career as a comic on the standup circuit in Australia and starred in the sketch comedy series “Full Frontal” and “The Eric Bana Show” before remaking himself as a dramatic actor. Bana most recently shot “Star Trek” and “The Time Traveler’s Wife.”
- From Variety
Stand up! More news on Judd Apatow’s next directing project.
He’s one of the brightest bulbs in the comedy firmament, but if you miss a punch line in the newest Judd Apatow film, the still-untitled “Adam Sandler Project,” don’t worry. Co-star Seth Rogen told MTV News: “[The plot will center on] stand-up comedians.” - From MTV
Apatow Blue-light Special
“Forgetting Sarah Marshall” helmer Nick Stoller is reteaming with Judd Apatow and Universal Pictures for the comedy “Get Him to the Greek,” with Jonah Hill and Russell Brand attached to star.
Stoller has been tapped to write and direct the laffer, which centers on a fresh-out-of-college insurance adjuster (Hill) who is hired to accompany an out-of-control rock star (Brand) from London to a gig at L.A.’s Greek Theater.
Hill and Brand played supporting roles in U’s “Sarah Marshall”; Stoller made his feature directing debut on the pic. “During the table read on ‘Sarah Marshall,’ Jonah and Russell had such a great chemistry,” said Stoller, who described “Greek” as a very dirty take on “Almost Famous.” “Even though they are such different actors with different styles, I thought there could be a great buddy comedy there.”
Via Variety
Judd Apatow. Ready for a crash?
When Judd Apatow was asked by a colleague about the recent pendulum swings in his fortunes, he responded with a trademark quip: He said that he had the “fastest rise, fall and rise” in Hollywood. Get ready for another potential roller coaster ride. (more…)