Four New Films Flop, Allowing ‘The Martian’ To Reclaim Box Office Top Spot
Ridley Scott’s adaptation of the best-selling novel came in with $15.9 million, just ahead of Goosebumps, which finished with $15.5 million. Meanwhile, The Last Witch Hunter ($10 million), Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension ($8.2 million), Steve Jobs ($7.3 million), Rock the Kasbah ($1.5 million) and Jem and the Holograms ($1.3 million) all either disappointed or outright flopped. (BO)
Edgar Wright and Johnny Depp Are Teaming Up To Adapt a Neil Gaiman Story
The author’s children’s book, Fortunately the Milk, will be adapted by Bret McKenzie. Book, which is described as “a story of time travel and breakfast cereal,” will be a live-action and animation hybrid. Depp will be starring in the film, and he will also be producing the film along with Animal Logic Entertainment. (SF)
George Clooney and the Coen Brothers Are Working Together Again, Sort Of
In the planning stage for some time, Clooney is finally set to direct Suburbicon, an original script by Joel and Ethan Coen that the two time Academy Award winner has been eyeing for more than a decade. Film is being set up at Sony’s TriStar Pictures. Film is described as a noir drama in the vein of Blood Simple. Clooney has appeared in several Coen Brothers films, and is one of the stars of the upcoming Hail Caesar! (CS)
Jean-Marc Vallee To Re-Team With Reese Witherspoon, Will Direct ‘Big Little Lies’ For HBO
Nicole Kidman also stars in the limited series adaptation of the novel by Liane Moriarty about three women whose lives intersect and unravel in a big way. David E. Kelley has penned the scripts, and the project has a straight-to-series order. Vallee will direct the first episode, and maybe more, with production to start in early 2016. (TP)
Sherlock Fans Rejoice! A Premiere Date For New Special and Shooting Dates For Season Four Are Here
Masterpiece and PBS announced on Saturday that the upcoming 90-minute standalone, Victorian-era Sherlock special, titled Sherlock: The Abominable Bride, will make its PBS debut on Friday, Jan. 1st 2016 at 9/8c. (For the first time, Sherlock will premiere on the same day in the US and the UK.) Additionally, Masterpiece confirmed that Sherlock‘s fourth season will go into production in Spring 2016. (TVL)
Add the Blue Ranger To the Updated “Power Rangers’ Roster, as RJ Cyler Lands the Role
Star of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is the fourth actor cast for the movie, following Naomi Scott as the Pink Ranger, Dacre Montgomery as the Red Ranger and Ludi Lin as the Black Ranger. Dean Israelite is directing the movie from a script by Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz. Haim Saban, Brian Casentini and Allison Shearmur are producing. (VAR)
NBC May Have Cancelled ‘Hannbal’, but Bryan Fuller Is Still Recreating ‘Amazing Stories’ For the Network
The anthology series is now in development at the network. Fuller will executive produce and write a pilot script for the project – an hourlong weekly anthology series telling fantastic, strange and supernatural stories. The 1985 original ran for two seasons and was created and executive produced by Steven Spielberg, who is not involved in the reboot. The series earned 12 Emmy nominations and received five awards. (EW)
Cross-Promotion Alert: DreamWorks Creates a Magical World for Ikea’s New Line of Toys
The animation studio has created 25 animated short films to promote Ikea’s new collection of toys, Lattjo. The line includes games, musical instruments, toys for indoors and outdoors, and is meant to encourage adults and children to play together. (CO)
Trailer Buzz: ‘Jessica Jones’
Netflix and Marvel Studios have released the first full-length trailer from their upcoming drama series, starring Krysten Ritter, Mike Colter, Carrie-Anne Moss and David Tennant. The series drops in its entirety on the streaming service November 20th. (EMP)
Screenwriters: Improvising Screenplays — The Five Keys To Creating Great Characters
You have a clear picture in your head of your main character. Great. You know what your protagonist has to do throughout the story. Fantastico! But what’s the motor driving her? What basic, primal character element is the essential force pushing her through every moment of your script? Crickets…crickets…annnd…crickets. (SM)