spratt89

Jason Statham has signed on to star in the update of The Mechanic, reports say.

The actor will portray a hitman in the remake of the 1972 film that starred the late Charles Bronson, according to Total Film.

The plotline will centre on an emotionally reserved assassin who trains the son of one of his victims. Statham previously played a contract killer in the Crank movies.

The Mechanic will be directed by Simon West, whose previous filmmaking credits include the remake of When A Stranger Calls.

Filming will begin this summer in Shreveport, Louisiana.

spratt89

Christopher Lee has signed up to star in Antti J. Jokinen's directorial debut Invasion of Privacy, reports say.

The Dracula star joins Hilary Swank and Jeffrey Dean Morgan in the latest project from Hammer Films, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The flick, previously titled The Resident, details the story of a doctor (Swank) who moves into a New York apartment after splitting from her husband, only to discover that her new landlord is a stalker.

Earlier this year, Lee said that the James Bond bosses may need to "change certain things" to keep the franchise's audience.

spratt89

Christian Bale feared that his infamous Terminator Salvation rant would overshadow the release of the movie, he has revealed.

An audio recording of the actor losing his temper with a crew member was leaked online in February, creating a media storm.

Bale later made a public apology for his behaviour, admitting that he had "acted like a punk" and was "out of order beyond belief".

Reflecting on the row in a new interview with Access Hollywood, he commented: "You think about the numbers of days we shot on that movie - 77 days - everything going well. What's being focused on is four minutes where I behaved bad.

"I didn't want that to overshadow the hard work of everybody on the crew, in every aspect. So I felt like I had to say something."

Asked whether the incident affected his popularity, Bale replied: "I don't even think about that. I don't really have an awareness of what anybody's perception of me is, I don't like to. I like being oblivious to that because it allows me just to get on with whatever project I'm doing."

Terminator Salvation is released on June 3 in the UK.

spratt89

Paul Gascoigne has claimed that Dustin Hoffman wants to play him in a movie.

The troubled football star once met Hoffman when they stayed at the same hotel and the pair soon started discussing the possible film project.

Gascoigne told TalkSport Magazine: "I went over and said: 'Hi Dustin, you all right? You don't know me but I know you'.

"He said: 'What's your name?' and I said: 'Paul Gascoigne. But everyone calls me Gazza'. He went: 'You're that mad f***er aren't you?'

"I started laughing. He then asked me if I wanted to be in a movie. He wanted to play me in a movie! Nothing's come of it. But it will take some actor to play me I suppose."

Gascoigne has previously revealed that he has a close friendship with chatshow host Richard Madeley.

spratt89

J.J. Abrams' Star Trek reboot started off its opening weekend in warp drive, grossing a stellar $24 million at the box office on Friday, according to Box Office Mojo. That opening-day total is among the year's best: Though behind the $35 mil that X-Men Origins: Wolverine scored in its first 24 hours and the $30.1 mil that Fast & Furious revved up on its initial day, it is basically on par with the $25.1 mil that Watchmen earned on its first Friday. And if you add in the $7 mil that the franchise film banked in late screenings on Thursday, Star Trek's starting sum is already around $31 mil. Friday's box office leaders are listed below, and please check back here on Sunday for a full weekend recap in the Box Office Report.
1. Star Trek -- $24 mil
2. X-Men Origins: Wolverine -- $8.5 mil
3. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past -- $3.1 mil
4. Obsessed -- $2.1 mil
5. Next Day Air -- $1.4 mil

spratt89

Will Smith has revealed that he would like to be the first African-American James Bond.

The Seven Pounds star is confident that he would be a hit as the silver-screen spy, and that he would "guarantee the box office" if chosen, according to Extra.

Smith also nominated rapper P. Diddy and fellow actor Jamie Foxx for the role, saying: "Puff probably lives the most like James Bond.

"Jamie Foxx got the swag for James Bond. He can sing too, so he can add a new element to Bond. Wooing the ladies...and I think I can guarantee the box office!"

Smith added that he is set to reprise his role as Agent J in Men In Black 3, stating that he has had "a couple of meetings" with the production team behind the first two films

spratt89

Sexy Transformers star Megan Fox can't wait to sink her teeth into her next role - as a demon-possessed boy eater.

The actress will play a groupie a rock band sacrifices as part of a deal with the devil in Jennifer's Body - but they pick the wrong girl and she comes back literally looking for blood.

Fox tells WENN, "It's a really dark comedy with a lot of secret messages lying underneath the script.

"I play the captain of the flag team and I get improperly sacrificed by this rock band, who are trying to obtain a record deal - so they sell their soul to Satan. They need to sacrifice a virgin.

"I'm not a virgin, so what happens is I get taken over by a demon and, in order to stay alive in this sort of undead period, I have to eat flesh, so I eat boys."

To prepare for the gory role, Fox conjured up her own storyline about her character being molested by her father: "It's not in the script but, in my head, my character was victimised by my dad, so I take it out on the boys in my high school.

"So it's me eating them and having this bizarre pseudo-lesbian relationship with my best friend. It's all very manipulative and is basically how frightening young girls can be - they're completely terrifying."

spratt89

A theatre company is auctioning off a speaking role in a play alongside Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson.

Shakespeare Festival/La, a professional and community-based non-profit theater company, has offered a part in the Simply Shakespeare adaptation of The Comedy of Errors.

The winner will attend rehearsals, appear in the show for one performance on 18 May, and receive an invite to the VIP post-show party.

The sale began on Internet auction website eBay earlier this month and will end on Monday, with proceeds going to the Shakespeare Festival's summer youth employment and enrichment initiatives.

spratt89

Jennifer Aniston is set to send movie gossips into overdrive after signing up to make a new action thriller similar to the film that ended her marriage to Brad Pitt.

And her co-star is British actor Gerard Butler, who has been romantically linked to the actress.

In Bounty Hunter, Aniston plays a journalist on the run from her hitman ex-husband after he's instructed to kill her.

She says, "She's a witness to a murder, and the bounty hunter - her ex-husband (Butler) - is given her as a hit."

Ironically, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie played rival assassins in Mr & Mrs Smith - the film that brought the couple together and partly resulted in Pitt and Aniston's split.

In that film, Pitt and Jolie try to kill each other before teaming up to defeat the bad guys.

spratt89

Sylvester Stallone, Superman Brandon Routh and former Bond girl Denise Richards have reportedly shot secret cameos alongside Bollywood pin-up Akshay Kumar in a colourful new Indian movie about a Hollywood stuntman.

Kumar will play the stuntman in Kambakkht Ishq (Unfortunate Love), which will hit cinemas at the end of May - and the Hollywood stars jumped at the chance to be part of Sabir Khan's new film.

And U.S. Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, who broke the news about the film, hopes this will be the first of many Hollywood/Bollywood collaborations.

He tells WENN, "Bollywood stars used to seek entry into Hollywood, but now the tables seem to turning with this upcoming Bollywood movie.

"We welcome Hollywood and Bollywood working together to provide universal entertainment. I trust there will be more joint ventures in the future."

spratt89

J.J. Abrams' franchise reboot boldly went where no Star Trek movie has gone before, grossing a stellar $72.5 mil from Friday through Sunday, according to early estimates by Hollywood.com Box Office.

That's the second-best opening of 2009 (after X-Men Origins: Wolverine's $85.1 mil last weekend), and it includes a whopping $8.2 mil earned in IMAX showings, a new one-weekend record for the large format (beating The Dark Knight's $6.3 mil). What's more, if you add in the $4 mil that the movie starring Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto earned in late-Thursday showings, Star Trek has banked an impressive $76.5 mil so far -- well ahead of most expectations.

This result is highly logical. Considering all the hype and buzz and strong reviews that Star Trek has garnered, it's no surprise that this film's opening sum is by far the biggest of any Star Trek movie: Of the nine previous flicks in the franchise, 1996's Star Trek: First Contact bowed best, with (only) $30.7 mil over three days. Moreover, a look at the movie's CinemaScore report card reveals some potentially good news. While it drew an expected crowd mostly comprised of older males, Star Trek's solid-A grade shows that word of mouth could be strong enough to bring in fans outside of the franchise's usual demographic (i.e. people who weren't alive in the 1980s...and women) as the weeks go on. Unless said folks are too distracted by Angels & Demons, Night at the Museum 2, and all the other big flicks on tap, of course.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (No. 2) was next with $27 mil on a 68 percent decline. Fanboy-driven films always fall hard, but this drop is particularly hefty. Nevertheless, Hugh Jackman's franchise flick has already banked $129.6 mil in 10 days.

Fellow holdovers Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (No. 3 with $10.5 mil), Obsessed (No. 4 with $6.6 mil), and 17 Again (No. 5 with $4.4 mil) rounded out the top five. And the comedy Next Day Air failed to take off, grossing just $4 mil at No. 6.

And in limited release, neither Rudo y Cursi nor Little Ashes made much of a mark, as each averaged well under $7,000 per theater.

Overall, the box office was up nearly 22 percent from the same frame a year ago (when the infamous Speed Racer hit a bump in the road). And, really, what could be a better Mother's Day gift than that? Love ya, Mom! Have a great day!

spratt89

Hundreds of applicants had to be turned away from an open call for extras to star in Ridley Scott's new movie Robin Hood, it has emerged.

Over 1,000 people queued up at the Technium Centre in Pembroke Dock to appear in the film alongside Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett, the BBC reports.

Technium manager David Thomas said: "It's a very straightforward process. They will basically form an orderly queue. They will be seeing up to 800 people.

"They will measure them for costumes, photograph them, and answer any questions. The photos will go to the casting director."

He added: "There are no auditions or anything like that. They need 600 soldiers, so it is just for extras."

Director Scott recently revealed that the name of the film had been changed from Nottingham to Robin Hood to reflect a shift in the creative direction of its script.

spratt89

Ken Loach has said that he admired Eric Cantona as a footballer because of his strong personality.

The director, who directs Cantona in upcoming movie Looking For Eric, told The Guardian that he appreciated the star's individuality on the field.

Loach said: "He was a player of consummate skill and great cheek. Most people who enjoy football just saw in Eric's performance a very strong personality that communicated the joy of football."

He added: "I mean, I'm not overimpressed by anybody in films because it's the business and we just work in it.

"When it's somebody from outside who is very special in their own field, and particularly if it's a field you care about...you are impressed because, that level, it's something you can't approach. You can only stand back and admire really."

spratt89

Antonio Banderas will lead the cast of neo-noir detective movie The Big Bang.

In the project, to be directed by Tony Krantz, Banderas will play a private investigator looking for a missing stripper. His search leads him to New Mexico, where he encounters a trail of dead bodies, a Russian boxer, three Los Angeles cops and a tycoon attempting to create a nuclear Big Bang, reports Variety.

Band Of Brothers writer Erik Jendresen penned the screenplay and will produce alongside Krantz and Richard Rionda Del Castro.

Krantz, who spent 15 years working as a talent agent for CAA, previously helmed the straight-to-video films Sublime and Otis.

spratt89

Darth Vader's supposedly famous utterance "Luke, I am your father" has been voted the most misquoted movie line by film fans.

The poll from LOVEFiLM put Vader's comment from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back at the top of the list, with the movie villain actually saying, "No. I am your father," The Daily Telegraph reports.

Communications manager Darren Bignell said: "Iconic film lines are part of everyone's vocabulary these days, but it's interesting how years of quoting have had a Chinese whisper effect on accuracy."

The top ten misquotes were:

"Luke, I am your father" - Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?" - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
"Do you feel lucky, punk?" - Dirty Harry
"Play it again, Sam" - Casablanca
"Hello, Clarice" - Silence of the Lambs
"Beam me up, Scotty!" - Star Trek: The Motion Picture
"Frankly, Scarlett, I don't give a damn" - Gone with the Wind
"If you build it, they will come" - Field of Dreams
"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto" - The Wizard of Oz
"Mrs. Robinson, are you trying to seduce me?" - The Graduate

spratt89

Matthew Goode has been added to the cast of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant's Cemetery Junction.

The Watchmen star will play Mike, an employee at insurance firm Prudential who is dating his boss's daughter.

He joins Christian Cooke, Tom Hughes, Jack Doolan, Felicity Jones and Ralph Fiennes in the cast of the '70s-set comedy-drama.

Cemetery Junction marks Gervais's first movie collaboration with his Office and Extras co-creator Stephen Merchant. The pair will write, direct and produce the project.

spratt89

Christian Bale forced writers of Terminator Salvation to rework the script to give him a bigger part - as the British actor was determined to play the iconic role of John Connor in the sci-fi franchise.

Bale was originally offered the lead role of Marcus Wright in the upcoming sequel, but the Batman star turned the part down - insisting he would only play Connor in the film.

The character featured in all three previous Terminator movies but was only set for a brief appearance in the latest outing.

So writers were ordered to revamp the script to give Bale a bigger role.

Terminator Salvation scriptwriter John Brancato says, "A lot of the work was integrating (Connor) into scenes... and having that feel integral and sensible, as opposed to grafted on just because there was a star in the part."

The new movie hits cinemas on 21 May.

spratt89

A movie based on hit video game series Call Of Duty is allegedly in the works.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, publisher Activision has been been holding discussions about bringing the first-person shooter to the big screen.

In addition, Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures are continuing with plans to make a movie based around Activision's World Of Warcraft universe.

"They are being talked about for the big screen," said an insider.

There have been been five instalments in the Call Of Duty series, four of them set during World War II and one, Modern Warfare, in the present day.

spratt89

James McTeigue is the frontrunner to replace Brett Ratner as the director of Conan, reports say.

According to Chud.com, the V For Vendetta helmer is Nu-Image/Millenium's choice to steer the big budget reinvention of the Arnold Schwarzenegger barbarian franchise.

Producer Joe Gatta last week revealed that Ratner had exited the director's chair due to a scheduling conflict.

McTeigue, a long-time first-assistant director on The Wachowskis, recently oversaw Ninja Assassin for the Matrix duo. The movie is due out on November 25 in the US and November 27 in the UK.

spratt89

John Cleese has revealed the outline of a Fawlty Towers movie that he considered writing.

The co-writer of the 1970s BBC sitcom said that he "didn't put a single line down" for the film, but admitted that he was "amused" by the idea of a big screen outing for his lead character Basil Fawlty.

"I did speculate about doing a film...I thought what would be really funny would be if Basil and Sybil got on a plane to visit Manuel in Spain," Cleese told DS.

"The reason I wanted to do that was because I thought Basil would be terrific if a plane ever got hijacked. He would become so furious and he would probably overcome the hijack. And then of course they would bring the plane back to Heathrow, which would make him even more angry. So he would then hijack the plane himself, force the pilot to take him to Spain, where he would be arrested on arrival, and spend the rest of the holiday in a Spanish jail."

The Monty Python comic added: "It amused me for a while to play with that idea, but I don't think I ever mentioned it to Connie [Booth, co-writer]."

Fawlty Towers: Re-Opened and Fawlty Exclusive: Basil's Best Bits will air exclusively on G.O.L.D. at 9pm on May 10 and 17 respectively.