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Archive for January 27th, 2009

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

TUESDAY JANUARY 27, 2009

PROJECTS ANNOUNCED

“P.S. I Love You” scribe Steven Rogers has been tapped to adapt Shanna Swendson’s book “Enchanted, Inc.” for Strike Entertainment. Story centers on a small-town woman who comes to New York only to find out magic is commonplace in Gotham and has existed there for centuries. But because she is one of the rare creatures without the slightest bit of magic inside her, she can see through any spell. Novel was published by Ballantine in 2005.

In a seven-figure upfront deal, Warner Bros. has acquired “Samson,” a pitch for a futuristic retelling of the Samson and Delilah story. WB prevailed in a three-studio bidding battle. The seven-figure deal comes despite a sluggish year so far for deals on material. Aside from a strong writer and director, the project sparked bidding because it had a big idea that can be shaped into a tentpole project in which the concept is the star. Scott Silver will write the script, and Francis Lawrence will direct. Erwin Stoff will produce through 3 Arts. “Samson” gives a futuristic twist to the story of the biblical strongman who was invincible until he was betrayed by Delilah, to whom he entrusted the secret that his strength came from his long hair.

Brendan Fraser will star in and Roger Kumble will direct “Furry Vengeance,” a live-action family comedy that will start production by early summer. Fraser will play a real estate developer whose new housing subdivision pushes far into a pristine part of the Oregon wilderness, pitting the developer against a band of angry critters. Summit Entertainment and Participant Media are co-financing and co-producing the movie, marking their first collaboration since announcing a multipic distribution deal last week.

Outspoken NFL star Terrell Owens is getting his own VH1 reality show. The cabler has greenlit the voyeuristic reality skein, which will shadow the controversial Dallas Cowboys receiver as he goes about his daily life. His publicists will also be featured in the skein. As-of-yet untitled series is slated to kick off over the summer.

Hilary Duff and Kevin Zegers will star in indie feature “The Story of Bonnie and Clyde,” produced by Cypress Moon Studios. Tonya S. Holly will direct the film from her own script, which is a new adaptation of the story of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow rather than a remake of the 1967 classic film starring Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty. Holly began working on the project after reading old newspaper articles about the gangster pair in an abandoned house on her family’s property.

ABC has officially greenlit a pilot for its reworking of “V,” the 1980s miniseries about alien lizards coming down to Earth. New adaptation of the franchise was written by “The 4400″ co-creator/exec producer Scott Peters. The new “V” centers on Erica Evans, a Homeland Security agent with an aimless son. When the aliens arrive, her son gloms on to them — causing tension within the family. Like the original, show centers on visitors who say they’ve come to help the Earth — but their motives are nefarious.

Death Ray Films, a production company formed recently by Kevin Munroe, Chris Patton and Robert Sanchez, is teaming with Maya Entertainment to bring Dark Horse comic “El Zombo Fantasma” to the big screen. Munroe will write and direct the feature, with Patton and Sanchez producing. Dark Horse’s Mike Richardson will executive produce. The comic, published in 2005, tells the story of a murdered, temperamental Mexican wrestler who returns from his fiery damnation to play guardian angel to a troubled Los Angeles teenager. Zombo learns the teen is not what she seems and that their fates are intertwined. The character was created by David Wilkins and Munroe when they worked at a video game company. They will act as co-producers.

Plum Pictures is finding itself an “American Wife.” The New York shingle has optioned rights to the Curtis Sittenfeld novel about a presidential First Lady with a strong resemblance to Laura Bush. The story centers on Alice Blackwell, a quiet woman who married a charismatic scion of a political family. Plum exec Daniela Taplin noted that it’s a perfect vehicle for a strong leading actress.

PROJECT UPDATES

Wayne Kramer has been set by Warner Bros. to direct “Fully Automatic.” Pic is a buddy action film in the vein of “Lethal Weapon” and is being produced by Joel Silver, whose Silver Pictures launched that franchise for WB. Story follows two rookie cops out to make their mark and who team with a female former Delta Force operative to stop a mercenary who has stolen a cache of weapons. The most recent draft was written by Marc Wolff. The hope is to get the film into production later this year.

Steven Spielberg has set his cast for “The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn,” the first installment in the 3-D motion-capture trilogy that Paramount Pictures and Sony Pictures Entertainment are co-financing. “Billy Elliot” thesp Jamie Bell will star as the titular character, an intrepid young reporter whose relentless pursuit of a good story thrusts him into a world of high adventure. Daniel Craig will co-star as the nefarious Red Rackham. Film, which has been cloaked in secrecy during pre-production, has begun principal production in Los Angeles. It is set for release in 2011. Andy Serkis, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have already boarded the project. Gad Elmaleh, Toby Jones and Mackenzie Crook will round out the cast.

Minnie Driver has joined Hilary Swank in “Betty Anne Waters,” a legal drama that Tony Goldwyn is directing for Omega Entertainment. The film is based on the true story of Waters (Swank), an unemployed single mother who saw her brother convicted for a murder-robbery in 1983 and sentenced to life in prison. Convinced of his innocence, she spent the next decade earning a law degree and working on her brother’s case, challenging the conviction with DNA evidence. Richard LaGravenese wrote the most recent draft; Pamela Gray penned the original script.

BUSINESS NEWS

Helmer Neil LaBute has inked a two-picture deal with Screen Gems. The first project will reteam the director with his “Nurse Betty” star Chris Rock for a remake of 2007 British comedy “Death at a Funeral.” LaBute, who most recently directed the Samuel L. Jackson starrer “Lakeview Terrace” for the genre label, has also signed on to helm the romantic comedy “Here Comes the Sun” for Screen Gems. The American-set “Death at a Funeral,” which was penned by Rock and Aeysha Carr, revolves around a dysfunctional family that gathers for the patriarch’s funeral. Tensions rise and old conflicts are uncovered.

INDUSTRY MOVES

Jim Amos has been upped to president of Sony Pictures Releasing. Amos, a 25-year veteran of the studio who most recently was Sony Pictures’ division manager and senior VP of distribution for the Eastern division, fills the vacancy left open when Rory Bruer was recently promoted to prexy of worldwide distribution for Sony Pictures Worldwide Marketing & Distribution. In his new role, Amos will oversee the domestic distribution of films such as “Angels & Demons,” “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3,” “Julie & Julia,” “The Pink Panther 2,” “The International” and “2012.”

STRIKE NEWS/LABOR ISSUES

Doug Allen, the lightning rod at the center of the Screen Actors Guild’s bitter polarization, has been fired as national exec director and chief negotiator. Allen’s gig ended Monday afternoon; several hours earlier, the moderates had delivered “written assent” documents terminating him — two weeks after a 28-hour filibuster by Allen’s supporters thwarted his ouster.

TECHNOLOGY/MULTI-PLATFORM CONTENT

The Senate passed a bill on Monday to delay the nationwide switch to digital TV signals, giving consumers nearly four more months to prepare. The transition date would move to June 12 from February 17 under the bill that was fueled by worries that viewers are not technically ready for the congressionally mandated switchover. It also would allow consumers with expired coupons, available from the government to offset the cost of a $40 converter box, to request new coupons. The government ran out of coupons earlier this month, and about 2.5 million Americans are on a waiting list for them. Senate Commerce Chairman John Rockefeller said delaying the TV switch is the right thing to do because the U.S. is not yet ready to make the transition.

WEBSITE TO WATCH

http://festival.sundance.org/2009/

The Sundance Film Festival, which wrapped Sunday, put together a rich multimedia website this year to celebrate its 25th anniversary. The site offers an impressive selection of video content including highlights of last night’s awards ceremony, interviews with insiders and a “snackbox” of short tidbits of advice from budding filmmakers. Sundance also launched an in-depth channel on YouTube devoted to the festival featuring interviews with filmmakers and outtakes from the festival panels, courtesy of HP. Movie sales tended to be more modest at Sundance this year but many deals featured interesting distribution models. For instance Humpday from Seattle-based filmmaker Lynn Shelton, about a couple of straight friends who decide to make a gay adult movie, was acquired by Mark Cuban’s Magnolia Pictures, which plans to make it available on VOD a month before its theatrical release.