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The new Will Smith film was top at the box office, but came in with a lackluster $19.1 million.
Kingsman: The Secret Service was second for the third straight week, with the new
SpongeBob movie in third and
Fifty Shades falling to fourth. Meanwhile, horror flick
the Lazarus Effect came in fifth with $10.6 million.
(BO)
TWC has acquired distribution rights to
The Founder, about how Ray Kroc turned the company into a fast food empire. Keaton will star as Kroc. FilmNation is producing along with Jeremy Renner and Don Handfield, through their shingle theCombine. The company plans to shoot later this year with John Lee Hancock directing.
(VAR)
Well, 24 personalities, at least, since he and New Regency are moving forward with
The Crowded Room, the long-gestating adaptation of Daniel Keyes‘ non-fiction book
The Minds of Billy Milligan. Published in 1981, Keyes’ book chronicles the real-life experiences of Billy Milligan, man charged with armed robbery and the rape of three women in the late ’70s. Milligan was the first person to successfully use the mental illness as a legal defense and was acquitted of his crimes. DiCaprio will play Milligan and produce. The script is by Jason Smilovic.
(COL)
Shannon Lee, Bruce’s daughter, is on board as a producer for the project, along with Lawrence Grey and Janet Yang. Lee’s life story has been told on the big screen, as director Rob Cohen had previously made
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story for Universal back in 1993.
(CB)
Studio is talks to acquire feature-film rights for the classic sci-fi novel for producer Mary Parent. Written by Alfred Bester, the book (better known as
Tiger! Tiger! in the U.K. for its opening-page reprint of a William Blake poem) follows a man who is shipwrecked in space for years when one day a rescue crew passes him by. Angered, he channels his energies into seeking revenge and begins scheming.
(DH)
The actress, who recently turned 80, said in an interview that the next season will be her last, irrespective of the speculation of whether the sixth season will be the final one of
Downton. "They say this is the last one, and I can't see how it could go on," Smith said adding: "I mean, I certainly can't keep going... To my knowledge, I must be 110 by now. We're into the late 1920s."
(THR)
Actor says that once he’s finished with the first season of
The Last Man On Earth — which debuted last night on Fox — he will make the sequel to his star vehicle “my number one priority.” However, if the show gets picked up for a second season, that might get pushed back. The original
MacGruber flopped at the box office, but became a cult hit on video.
(SF)
When it comes to generating buzz for new movies, trailers and TV commercials remain king. According to Nielsen’s 2014 Moviegoing Report, movie previews and TV spots are the top two ways Americans get their movie info, regardless of age or the ever-expanding list of devices and platforms competing for people’s attention.
(NC)
Madison Avenue has carved out new roosts in one of the video-streaming service’s flagship offerings. Three popular brews crafted by Anheuser-Busch InBev have found their way into the third season of Netflix’s
House Of Cards, while
Advertising Age suggested Friday that Samsung products will do the same. The companies aren’t necessarily paying for the privilege.
(VAR)
Scripts go through several drafts and crafting projects into a great piece of writing is a process that does not happen overnight. Beginning screenwriters don’t always know the truth behind many award-winning films and the fact that many were in the works for seven years before getting made. Examples include:
Shakespeare in Love,
Crash, and
Forest Gump, to name just a few.
(MO)
