Alatriste: "Viggo Mortensen is in negotiations to topline the Spanish period adventure film "Alatriste," in the eponymous role of Captain Alatriste, a Spanish soldier-cum-mercenary embroiled in the country's 16th century imperial wars. Mexican Gael Garcia Bernal is in talks to play Alatriste's page Inigo. Up-and-coming Spanish actress Elena Anaya ("Van Helsing") looks likely to have a co-starring role as Angelica de Alquezar, Inigo's love-interest..." (more info). Aloft: "Screenwriter Steve Conrad has inked a high-six figure deal to pen the adaptation of Chang-Rae Lee's novel "Aloft". Studio bought the rights to the book last December with producer Scott Rudin. Book is the sprawling tale of an aging baby boomer who must hold together his fractured family..." (more info). American Darlings: "Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Lopez are tuning up to star in "American Darlings," a period drama that was bought preemptively by New Regency from a four-page pitch. Kidman has been the driving force behind the construct of the film, a drama about a white female swing band that joins forces with a group of black and Hispanic musicians at a time when women were ostracized from playing male-dominated clubs..." (more info). Case 39: "Morgan Creek Prods. has acquired Ray Wright's original script "Case 39". The psychological horror story follows a social worker trying to rescue a young girl from abusive parents but who begins to suspect the girl may not be so innocent after all..." (more info). Diary: "Jennifer Aniston is filling up her film slate. Thesp is set to star in "Diary" for Escape Artists at Columbia Pictures. Story concerns a married woman whose diary is stolen and then used against her. Original script was written by Eric Nicholas, with current revisions by George Hickenlooper..." (more info). Ice Princess: "Tim Fywell has come aboard to direct "Ice Princess" for Walt Disney Pictures. Pic will star Michelle Trachtenberg in a classic ugly-duckling tale about a young girl who realizes her dream of becoming a champion figure skater while battling a disgraced coach, stage parents and three competing ice princesses..." (more info). Nightfall: "Warren Zide's new production shingle, Matinee Pictures, is gearing up its slate. Company, which will begin operations in April, has bought Michael Stokes' horror script "Nightfall" in a low-six-figure deal and plans to begin shooting later this year. The story follows two buddies snatch a woman who turns out to be a vampire queen. The she vamp's authenticity is questioned by the kidnappers until her vampire legion sets out to get her back..." (more info). Pet Sematary: ""Face/Off" scribes Mike Werb and Michael Colleary have been tapped to disinter "Pet Sematary". Paramount has signed the screenwriting team to script a remake of the horror thriller, based on Stephen King's story of a family moving to a small Maine town with a pet cemetery and an Indian burial ground, for Par-based Alphaville to produce..." (more info). The Ring 2: "Commercial director Noam Murro is no longer helming DreamWorks' sequel to "The Ring", stepping aside after nearly five months of development. Murro signed on to make his directorial debut on "The Ring 2" in November but since that time has faced creative differences with the studio over the direction of the franchise and decided to step aside. Replacing him will be Hideo Nakata, the Japanese director behind the original "Ringu", upon which the 2002 horror pic "The Ring" was based..." (more info).Electric Boy Genius: ""Twin Peaks" co-creator Mark Frost is in final negotiations with Walt Disney Studios to write "Electric Boy Genius." Mark Ciardi and Gordon Gray are producing through their Mayhem Pictures shingle. "Genius" is the true story of gadget genius Ryan Patterson..." (more info). Fat Albert: "Director Joel Zwick has found a new leading man in Kenan Thompson (Nickelodeon's "Kenan and Kel"). Production is gearing up for a mid-April start with a cast that also includes Omarion of B2K fame as Reggie, Raven-Symone in the animated part of Danielle, Jermaine Williams as Mush Mouth, Jeremy Suarez as Russell and Aaron Frazier as Weird Harold..." (more info). House of Wax: "Paris Hilton is in final negotiations to join the cast of Dark Castle Entertainment's "House of Wax". Hilton, who is known for playing herself on such fare as the hit reality series "The Simple Life" and "Zoolander," has been transitioning to dramatic material..." (more info). Last Days: "Gus Van Sant is preparing to step from the high school hallways he explored in his Palm D'Or-winning "Elephant" to Seattle's grunge music scene with his next outing, "Last Days." The Oscar-nominated director is close to packaging up "Last Days" with Michael Pitt on board to star and HBO Films on board to finance..." (more info). Sensei: "Freestyle Pictures has tapped scribe Matt Nix to adapt "Sensei," a novel by author John Donohue. Freestyle's Adam Platnick is producing. "Sensei" is a crime thriller set in the world of martial arts. It revolves around a Brooklyn cop who has to team up with his estranged brother to solve a series of murders involving martial arts masters across the United States..." (more info). The Man Who Came to Dinner: "Sarah Jessica Parker is in discussions with DreamWorks about taking a lead role in the studio's big-screen redo of "The Man Who Came to Dinner". Negotiations have not yet begun for Parker to fill the role, sources said, because her agreement to star is contingent upon whom the studio finds to take the lead male role..." (more info). Things to Do Before I Die: "Warner Bros. Pictures has pre-emptively picked up the script for David Heyman to produce through his Heyday Films shingle. Written by Cory Helms and Jamie Linden, the script tells the story of a man in his thirties who finds out that he is dying from an inoperable brain tumor. He sets out with his lifelong but estranged friend to fulfill a list of things they wanted to do before they die, a list they made when they were 19..." (more info). Twilight: "MTV Films has teamed with Maverick Films to jointly acquire feature film rights to the forthcoming novel "Twilight" from Phoenix-based author Stephanie Meyer. Set for publication in September 2005 from Little, Brown, the high school-set novel centers on Bella, who falls in love with a vampire. The new couple leads a rival vampire clan to pursue them and attempt to force her to decide if she, too, wishes to become one of the undead..." (more info).Batman Begins: Well at least it's not padding - The BBC reports that Christian Bale has bulked up so much that his costumes are ripping from being too tight. Das Boot (DVD): A 6-hour cut of "Das Boot" is coming to US DVD on June 1st according to DavisDVD. Dawn of the Dead: The first ten minutes, uncut, will air on Monday between 10pm-10:30pm after an airing of "Final Destination" on USA. DVD News: Details are up for Catch That Kid & Welcome to Mooseport. Elektra: HNR indicates the film will shoot from May 3rd-July 15th at Lions Gate Film Studios (aka Northshore Studios) in North Vancouver. Final Destination 3: Fangoria has details on the proposed second sequel. Garfield: Excepts from the first chapter of "Garfield: The Movie" noveilzation are up at Random House. Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban: Daniel Radcliffe talks about the new sequel to Visimag. Hellboy (DVD) : Guillermo Del Toro confirms the 110 minute theatrical cut will hit DVD in August, followed by a 130 minute version 2-3 disc edition in December. Hunchback: Playbill reports the classic tale is being redone as a TV movie. I, Robot: Screencaps from the new trailer are up at The Trades. Just Friends: Roger Kumble is negotiating to direct and Ryan Reynolds may potentially star. Lethal Weapon 5: Director Richard Donner told NineMSN that "It's up to Mel. If he says yes then there's another Lethal Weapon. I have a great story, I'd love to do it and put Lethal Weapon to bed". Lord of the Rings Trilogy: The ENTIRE trilogy is being screened back-to-back in Australia this Friday, Saturday & Sunday country-wide commencing each day at 1:30pm at Greater Union and Birch, Carroll & Coyle Cinemas. Every ticket purchased also receives a limited edition dvd containing the LOTR Super Trailer. See Greater Union for details for where its available. Pink Panther: With Hugh Grant passing on Dreyfus, the offer is out to Kevin Kline. Playing it Straight: The new FOX reality show best described as "Bachelorette but half the guy candidates are secretly gay" has an official site, the show itself premieres tomorrow night at 8pm on Fox. Shade: Not only is the official site open, but the film has been selected to open the 2004 Philadelphia Film Festival. Showboy: The official site for this documentary is now online. Star Wars: Episode III: More new photos are now up at Movie Vault whilst a look at a sketch of Vader's birth and Anakin all body charred has just appeared in UK tabloid Daily Mirror and is online at Aint it Cool.
The Birthday: Details on the new Corey Feldman movie are up at his official site. The Hollow: Some pics from the low-budget horror flick starring Backstreet Boy Nick Carter are up at UHM. Thunderbirds: Early talk about the film's quality has leaked out at Animated News. Underworld (DVD): An unrated extended two-disc director's cut is coming to disc May 25th, see DavisDVD for details. Unique: Scott Michael Rosenberg talked with Screenwriter's Voice about about his upcoming graphic novel to film project which David Goyer is slated to direct. Thanks to 'Patrick', 'CK', 'Dan', 'Brandon', 'FrighT MasteR', 'AB King', 'Stef', 'Patrick', 'Starbelly', 'Tom', 'Alex', 'Gustavo', 'Eva', 'KarlChilders', 'Antoine', 'Jacob', 'Reg', 'KarlChilders', 'Movie Man', 'Jim', 'Bilbo McDermid' & 'Brian'
