GI Joe Cast Cut to Three for Sequel

Posted by K.C. Morgan Categories: Paramount, Action, Adventure, Sequels, Casting, Celeb News, Rumors, Upcoming Releases,

Plans for the sequel to GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra are underway, and at least one cast member isn’t too happy about it. Rachel Nichols, who played Scarlett in the first film, just broke the news via Twitter: only three cast members from the first flick are returning.

She isn’t one of them (sorry, Rachel Nichols fans). Channing Tatum will reprise his role as Duke, Ray Park will come back as Snake Eyes and Lee Byung-hun is set to play Storm Shadow.

If Nichols is correct, Jon Chu is directing a sequel that will leave Scarlett, Ripcord (Marlon Wayans), Sergeant Stone (Brendan Fraser), General Hawk (Dennis Quaid) and Cobra Commander (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) completely out of the franchise.

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Box Office Breakdown: Expendables Team Up Against Julia Roberts

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists,

For some people, eating, praying and loving is the way to go. For others, shooting and fighting is the preferred course of action.

The Expendables, directed and co-written by Sylvester Stallone, overpowered the competition this weekend with a $34.8 million finish. The combined star power of the cast – which included Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li, Mickey Rourke, and Jason Statham – helped land the actioner in first place while awarding Stallone his biggest debut to date.

Although Eat Pray Love fell in second with its $23.1 million take, the movie was by no means a disappointment. The Julia Roberts vehicle premiered on par with Julie & Julia’s $20 million kickoff last August. Meanwhile, Roberts earned her best opening numbers in 10 years (outside of the Oceans franchise).

Unfortunately for Michael Cera, it appears the world was simply working against Scott Pilgrim vs. the World The $60 million comic book adaptation only raked in $10.6 million over the past three days.

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Cinema Scene: John Belushi Biopic, Bugs Bunny Film

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Paramount, Warner Bros, Adaptation, Animation, Biopics, Drama, Family, Music, Scripts, Technology, Upcoming Releases,

-Edie Falco says she would be interested in reprising her role as Carmela Soprano if a Sopranos film was ever made. “Frankly, I think it’s not going to materialize, but stranger things have happened,” she said.

-Director Todd Phillips (The Hangover) and screenwriter Steven Conrad (The Pursuit of Happyness) are teaming up for a John Belushi biopic. At this point, Phillips is only attached as a producer.

-Speaking of biopics, director Jon Chu (Step Up 3D) has just been tapped to direct the 3-D concert/biopic centering on Justin Bieber. The movie is scheduled to hit theaters over Valentine’s Day weekend next year.

-Bugs Bunny will be the latest animated character to get the live-action/CGI treatment. David Berenbaum has been tapped by Warner Bros. to draft a script on the Looney Tunes figure.

Box Office Breakdown: Victory for The Other Guys

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: FOCUS, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists, Technology,

Will Ferrell is no longer stuck in the Land of the Lost.

After stinking up the theaters last summer with his science fiction remake, Ferrell has rebounded nicely with The Other Guys. Sony’s buddy-cop flick opened to $35.5 million over the weekend, giving the funnyman his second highest debut ever. (Talledega Nights rang in $47 million in August 2006.) The comedy also performed well for Mark Wahlberg. It was his best outing since Planet of the Apes’ $68.5 million kickoff in 2001.

Unfortunately, 3-D screens and So You Think You Can Dance plugs couldn’t push Step Up 3D further up the charts. The $40 million film only grossed $15.8 million in ticket sales while coming in lower than the first two installments. (Step Up premiered to $20.7 million in 2006 while Step Up 2 the Streets opened to $18.9 million in 2008.)

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In Theaters This Weekend: August 6, 2010

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Columbia Pictures, Disney, IFC Films, Magnolia, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Adaptation, Documentary, Drama, Foreign, Foreign Language, Independent, Period, Romance, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases, Trailers,

Here are a few selections in theaters this weekend:

• The Other Guys (PG-13): starring Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes (directed by Adam McKay)
• Step Up 3-D (PG-13): starring Rick Malambri, Sharni Vinson, Adam Sevani (directed by Jon Chu)
• Cairo Time* (PG): starring Patricia Clarkson, Alexander Siddig, Elena Anaya (directed by Ruba Nadda)
• The Disappearance of Alice Creed* (R): starring Gemma Arterton, Eddie Marsan, Martin Compston (directed by J. Blakeson)
• Flipped* (PG): starring Madeline Carroll, Aidan Quinn, Penelope Ann Miller (directed by Rob Reiner)
• Lebanon* (R): starring Yoav Donat, Itay Tiran, Oshri Cohen (directed by Samuel Maoz)
• Middle Men* (R): starring Luke Wilson, Giovanni Ribisi, Gabriel Macht (directed by George Gallo)

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