The Dark Tower, Ron Howard’s planned film trilogy and TV miniseries based on the novels by Stephen King, has hit a major bump in the road. Deadline reports that the project has been rejected by Universal, citing budgetary concerns.
Comic-Con 2011 has come and gone, leaving numerous announcements and reveals in its wake. While not as Earth-shattering as past productions, fans got a good taste of what’s to come in 2012. One of the bigger events was the unveiling of concept art for Joss Whedon’s upcoming The Avengers project.
We’ve been reporting for awhile that two films based on the “Snow White” legend will be arriving in 2012. Although both studios insist there’s no rivalry, first images have popped up for both films within days of each other. Check out images of Lily Collins and Kristen Stewart, both portraying Snow White for their respective features.
Captain America concluded the run of superhero movies in 2011 with a consistent opening rather than a big bang. Nevertheless, its $65.8 million opening was good enough to best Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, which commanded $48 million in its second weekend (having bled more than 70 percent from last week).
Patrick Stewart made his debut for the first time at Comic-Con Saturday in Hall H as part of the cast of the upcoming animated film Dorothy of Oz. The film begins with Dorothy returning to Kansas to find it devastated by a tornado. She is quickly transported back to Oz, where her help is needed to find her former traveling companions. The film also stars Jim Belushi voicing the Lion, Dan Aykroyd as the Scarecrow and Kelsey Grammer as the Tin Man. The album will feature performances by Megan Hilty, Hugh Dancy and Martin Short. Lea Michele voices Dorothy, but was unable to make her appearance at the panel.
Knight of whatnow? Let me tell you a bit about this intriguing IndieVest Pictures project. Directed by Frozen helmer Joe Lynch, Knights of Badassdomstars Steve Zahn, Firefly’s Summer Glau, Games of Throne’s Peter Dinklage and Saw’s Ryan Kwanten in a film about a group of live action role-players LARPers (think the dudes from Role Models) accidentally summon a succubus from the underworld.
Universal is set to start filming its version of the age old story of Snow White. “Its” refers to the fact that it’s one of a few “Snow Whites” in prduction. Rupert Sanders (director), Joe Roth (producer) and Evan Daugherty (writer) hit the stage ahead of actors Kristen Stewart (Snow White), Charlize Theron (The Evil Queen), Chris Hemsworth (The Huntsman) and Sam Clalfin (Prince Charming).
The second half of Sony/Screen Gems’ panel consisted of Joe Cornish’s British alien invasion flick, Attack the Block, which has already gained a positive reputation internationally as well as in its several American screenings since its impressive debut at SXSW earlier this year. The panel consisted of Cornish, now-infamous colleague and producer Edgar Wright and star John Boyega.
Tarsem Singh and his cast of Immortals, including lead Henry Cavill, Freida Pinto, Stephen Dorff, Luke Evans and Kellan Lutz took the stage at Comic-Con and unleashed a bloody never-before-seen extended trailer that brought whoops from the crowd.
After what amounted to no better than a direct-to-DVD third film in Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, Kate Beckinsale returns to the franchise as Selene for this filmed-in-3D installment. The panel featured directors Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein, writer/producer Len Wiseman and stars Theo James and Michael Ealy in addition to Beckinsale.
