Sony Dives Back Into the Lisbeth Salander Saga, Will Skip Second and Third Books
Beloved hacker will hack again on the big screen but not in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo sequel, The Girl Who Played With Fire. Instead, Sony is putting its focus on the fourth book in the Millennium series, The Girl in the Spider’s Web, the first book famously not written by creator Stieg Larsson. Steven Knight is in talks to adapt the novel, while neither Rooney Mara nor Daniel Craig returning. Ditto for Dragon Tattoo director David Fincher. (THR)
Lily James Signs On For Another Period Piece, but This Time Will Ditch the Corset At Home
The actress known for Downton Abbey, Cinderella and the upcoming Pride and Prejudice and Zombies will play Olympic gold medalist and record-breaking swimmer Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle in Young Woman and the Sea for Paramount Pictures. In 1926, two years after winning an Olympic gold medal, Ederle became the first woman to swim across the English Channel, and was christened “Queen of the Waves.” (WAH)
“Creative Differences” Is Once Again the Culprit as Director Michael Winterbottom Leaves ‘Russ & Roger’
Attached since last April to direct the Russ Meyer / Roger Ebert comedy biopic, Winterbottom has walked. Will Ferrell remains aboard to play “king of the nudies” Meyer, with Josh Gad his unlikely film-critic ally Ebert. Christopher Cluess wrote the screenplay, which focuses on the partnership between Meyer and Ebert, leading to the infamous Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. (EMP)
Elizabeth Banks Continues Her Astounding Year, Will Star In ‘Rita Hayworth With a Hand Grenade’
Sloane U’Ren will direct the adventure drama, from a script by Anotny Neely, and Robert Graf will produce. Set in World War II, Banks will portray one of the first female war photographers. She’s shot down and stranded on a South Pacific island, where the only other inhabitant is a marooned Japanese soldier. The two evolve from sworn enemies to reluctant allies in a 30-year battle against the forces of nature and their inescapable circumstances. (VAR)
Ricky Gervais Now the Latest To Join the Cast Of the Animated ‘Blazing Saddles’ Tribute
Blazing Samurai borrows heavily from Mel Brooks’ seminal fish-out-of-water western. Instead of a wisecracking African American sheriff, the film’s new protagonist will take the shape of a dog named Hank (voiced by Michael Cera), who dreams of becoming a samurai warrior. Gervais a villainous cat, while Samuel L. Jackson, George Takei, Gabriel Iglesias, Aasif Mandvi and Michelle Yeoh are also in the cast. The film opens August 4th, 2017. (TOH)
Bryan Cranston’s ‘Sneaky Pete’ Is Officially Picked Up To Series At Amazon
Streaming service was rumored to have ordered the drama, originally produced as a pilot last development season for CBS, and has now confirmed the news. From Sony Pictures Television, the drama from Cranston and David Shore stars Giovanni Ribisi as a conman who, after leaving prison, takes cover from his past by assuming the identity of his cell-mate, Pete. (LF)
Millennium Snags Major Trio For New Actioner, ‘Hitman’s Bodyguard’
Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson and Gary Oldman will lead the film, which follows the world’s top protection agent (Reynolds), who must protect a hit man who has come in from the cold. They’ve been on opposite ends of a bullet for years and hate one another. Now they’re stuck together and have 24 hours to get to the Hague. Oldman will play a villain. Jeff Wadlow will direct from a script by Tom O’Connor. (CS)
‘Jurassic World’ Fans Have Two More Films To Look Forward To, and In the End, They Will Form a Proper Trilogy
Universal studio executive Donna Langley not only confirmed that Jurassic World 2 and Jurassic World 3 (technically Jurassic Park 5 and Jurassic Park 6) is being outlined by World director Colin Trevorrow and series Godfather Steven Spielberg. She also said that the next two installments will be designed to tell one complete story begun in this past summer’s record-breaking reboot. (CB)
First Look: ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them’
Warner Bros. has released the first images from the highly anticipated Harry Potter prequel, staring Eddie Redmayne, Colin Farrell, Katherine Waterson, Samantha Morton, Alison Sudol, Ron Perlman, Ezra Miller, Jon Voight and Dan Fogler. Directed by David Yates and scripted by author J.K. Rowling, the film is currently shooting and will hit theaters November 18th, 2016. (EW)
Screenwriters: Specs & The City — Character Introduction and ‘The Silence Of the Lambs’
Screenwriters have it beat into them early by all of the gurus out there to never write anything that can’t be shown on the screen. This is good advice overall but, as with everything else, the real key is getting to the point in your craft where you know when (and how) to ignore it. Your character introductions are one of those places. (SM)