Welcome to CraveOnline's weekly movie news roundup - a weekly rundown of the top films of the week and the breaking Hollywood news you care about, with an eye for what Tinseltown's got in store for us in the near future!
BOX OFFICE TOP TEN
1. Hanna Montana The Movie - $34 million ($34 million)
2. Fast and Furious - $28.7 million ($85 million)
3. Monsters vs. Aliens - $22.6 million ($141 million)
4. Observe and Report - $11.1 million ($11.1 million)
5. Knowing - $6.6 million ($68 million)
6. I Love You, Man- $6.4 million ($58.9 million)
7. The Haunting in Connecticut - $5.7 million ($46.2 million)
8. Dragonball Evolution - $4.6 million ($4.6 million)
9. Adventureland - $3.4 million ($11.4 million)
10. Duplicity - $2.9 million ($36.8 million)
Hannah Montana The Movie debuted at #1 at the box office over the weekend with $34 million. Congratulations are in order, especially due to the fact that she's already said she doesn't want to do a sequel. Miley can earn her millions now and go open schools in Darfur or some shit when she's grown up and far too ugly to hog any more screen time. The buck-toothed charm schtick has an expiration date.
Fast and Furious dropped a spot to #2 last weekend, bringing in $28.7 million and raising its two week total to $118 million. With a budget of $85 million, it's safe to say we can expect another seven or eight of these.
Monsters vs. Aliens also dropped a spot, to #3 this week, bringing in $22.6 million and raising its three-week total to $141 million, not a far cry from its $175 million budget.
Seth Rogen's Observe and Report opened #4 at the box office with $11.1 million, and Knowing fell one spot to #4 for a four-week total to $68 million.
According to Moviehole, the rumors of Angelina Jolie playing Ava Lord in Sin City 2 could be more than just rumors. The site states that according to a high profile producer Jolie is now is "serious" talks to star in the film.
The character of Ava Lord is based on the Frank Miller graphic novel, "A Dame to Kill For." Ava Lord is an ex-lover of Dwight McCarthy, a conniving temptress who controls men through her beauty and feigned innocence.
Haven't we seen enough of Angelina? Isn't that what Megan Fox is here for? She's Angelina 2.0 - younger, hotter, more badass. Go inspire more Octomom's Ang. We don't need you anymore.
A badass new TV spot for the upcoming Star Trek film was unveiled just a few days ago - here it is for those who missed it:
It's exciting to see the young Kirk being a brash little hothead, no?
Justin Marks had some things to say to the Hollywood Reporter about video game adaptations in general, but specifically the upcoming film adaptation of the epic PS2 game Shadow of the Colossus.
"With a lot of games there are so many elements in the universe you spend your time tearing down and tearing down," he said. "What's nice about this game is that it's so sparse so you can start building right away. This is a game that catches you unaware - it catches you on an emotional and experiential level, not just for the puzzles you solve."
He also said he will try to avoid letting the studio add Hollywood cliches to the story.
"What's so nice about this game is that it's all seen through such an adult lens, so that what pleases the fans also pleases a wider audience."
Here's hoping they don't butcher a beautiful game with a cheap-ass movie. I'd much rather see a sequel to the game itself than a film version of it. I don't think I'm alone (get crackin', guys!).
Marvel Studios began filming Iron Man 2 last week, and ComingSoon has a few photos of Robert Downey Jr. on-set, looking coiffed and well-heeled. They aint much, but given the foaming excitement over all Marvel-related projects these days, we'll keep the goods pumpin' for you.
The Jon Favreau-directed sequel, which opens in theaters on May 7, 2010, also stars Mickey Rourke, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Garry Shandling (yes, really) and John Slattery.
Let me start off this bit by saying that Stephen King's epic novel It is very dear to my heart. The idea of yet another shitty movie version makes my blood boil, but it's not as if we can all crawl into a hole and wish it all away.
Dave Kajganich, the writer of the new adaptation, recently spoke with Dread Central about the remake.
"The remake will be set in the mid-1980s and in the present almost equally -- mirroring the twenty-odd-year gap King uses in the book -- and with a great deal of care and attention paid to the backstories of all the characters…I think the real twist here is that my pitch to WB -- which they've assured me they're on board for -- is that this will not be PG-13. This will be R. Which means we can really honor the book and engage with the traumas (both the paranormal ones and those they deal with at home and school) that these characters endure.
"I plan to be very protective of the book…The reality, though, is that WB wants to do this as a single film, so I will have to kill a few darlings to make that happen. You have my promise, though, that I will do this with the utmost humility and respect for King's work. He's the King, after all, and I intend to continue to pledge to him my allegiance."
First published in 1986, Stephen King's It follows a group of kids called the Losers Club that encounter a shapeshifting, otherworldly creature called It, which preys on children and whose preferred physical form is that of a horrifying clown called Pennywise (played by Tim Curry in the original). When the creature resurfaces, the kids must regroup again, as adults, even though magic has stolen their memory of the first battle. The novel was set in 1958 and 1985, but the remake will reportedly be set in the present day.
The book, which is over 1,000 pages long, was turned into a TV movie in the 90s. It sucked. It sounds like their intentions are certainly more pure this time around, and the special effects will no doubt be better than the '80s version, but I've got very serious doubts about this one.
According to Variety, Liam Neeson has signed on to portray Zeus in the Clash of the Titans remake. Ralph Fiennes is also in "advanced negotiations" to join the cast as Hades.
Already lined up on the cast list are Sam Worthington (Terminator Salvation) as Perseus, Henry Cavill (The Tudors) as Theseus, Gemma Arterton (Quantum of Solace) as Io, Mads Mikkelsen (Casino Royale) as Draco and Alexa Davalos (Angel) as Andromeda. If you're into that kind of thing.
According to Shock Till You Drop, Rob Zombie has been asked to direct a segment in the upcoming animated sci-fi fantasy film Heavy Metal, by director Kevin Eastman. Zombie would work on a piece that would fuse Zombie's story with his music. He's worked in animation before, with The Haunted World of El Superbeasto, but that film has never been released.
Variety reports that Heavy Metal will be similar to the 1981 film in that it will be a collection of animated segments, each with a different director. David Fincher is in charge of the film and will direct one part, while Kevin Eastman will direct another. Tim Miller is currently set to lead the 3rd part, and also be in charge of animation. The film is expected to have nine parts.
After months of rumors, it's finally been confirmed that Zac Efron has signed to play the title role in Warner Bros.' planned live-action version of the popular '60s Hanna-Barbera cartoon show Jonny Quest. L.A. Times ' "Hero Complex" got the confirmation but mentions that Warner Bros. have been considering changing the name of the property to avoid the inevitably negative comparisons to Warner Bros.' flop Speed Racer, another live action movie based on a popular cartoon. You can read the entire story over at Hero Complex .
