Harry Potter: The Exhibition
Warner Bros announced on Friday that they will be bringing a 10,000 square foot Harry Potter exhibit to 10 or more cities throughout the world over a five year span. Harry Potter: The Exhibition will open in a major market in Spring 2009. Read the press release.
BECKER GROUP AND WARNER BROS. CONSUMER PRODUCTS ANNOUNCE
“HARRY POTTER: THE EXHIBITION”
International Touring Exhibit to Debut in 2009
(Baltimore – April 25, 2008) Becker Group, in partnership with Warner Bros. Consumer Products, today announced it will bring worldwide audiences “Harry Potter: The Exhibition,” a state-of-the-art exhibition highlighting artifacts from the Warner Bros. films based on J.K. Rowling’s beloved book series. The 10,000 square foot experience will premiere in Spring 2009 in a major market, and will appear in ten or more cities around the world throughout a five-year span.
“Harry Potter: The Exhibition” will include elaborate displays of authentic costumes, props and artifacts from popular environments featured in the films such as those from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, including the Gryffindor common room and Hagrid’s hut. During its run, the exhibit will also be updated to include artifacts from the final installments of the Harry Potter film series. The exhibition will be displayed in major cultural and entertainment venues, museums and institutions, and will be supported by a multimedia promotional effort and advance ticket sales worldwide. Tour information, updates and ticket availability will be posted at www.harrypotterexhibition.com as details become available, or for more information, call 866-231-8328.
With more than $4.5 billion in worldwide box office gross sales to date, Harry Potter is the most successful film franchise in the world. The next installment of the Warner Bros. blockbuster film series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, is scheduled to open in theaters on November 21, 2008.
“Creating this magical tour around such a legendary property is a true milestone for Becker Group, both as a company, and a source of creative entertainment-based attractions,” said Glenn Tilley, president and chief executive officer of Becker Group.
“We’ve dedicated ourselves to delivering an exciting experience for visitors that will meet the standards set by the films based on the novels by J.K. Rowling,” added Eddie Newquist, president of Becker Group’s Creative Studio and Exhibits.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Becker Group to produce this multi-dimensional exhibition dedicated to the iconic Harry Potter film series,” said Brad Globe, president Warner Bros. Consumer Products. “Fans around the world will finally be able to see the incredible craftsmanship and detail that went into creating their favorite props and costumes.”
“Harry Potter: The Exhibition” is the fourth collaboration between Warner Bros. and Becker Group.
Previous partnerships include the successful “Happy Feet Snow Globe Experience” and the “Fred Claus Snow Globe Experience,” each of which appeared in 17 Taubman retail centers nationally in 2006 and 2007, respectively, as well as another project based on the classic holiday film The Polar Express.
Jaws on ‘Roids: The Gargantuan Shark Movie MEG is Moving Foward…Again
“Tonight, we’ll grill some tuna, have a lil’ vino, some kissy kissy, it’ll be great!”
In my opinion, MEG has maintained dibbs on “Award for Best Boner Shorts Concept Art” for a few years running. The 80-foot prehistoric pissed off shark movie–think death metal to Jaws’s hep jazz–needs to happen no matter what. Recently, The L.A. Times published an update about the feature adaptation of author Steve Alten’s 1997 page turner, that also rewinds MEG’s stint in Hollywood production hell.
The good? We still have the concept art. The pretty good? The film has a solid new financier, Appelles Publishing Inc. in Virginia, with three producers, including Watchmen producers Lloyd Levin and Lawrence Gordon, now riding the wave (the one with the 70,000 pound shark in it). This may finally happen! The bad? It’s MEG, a pricey fever dream even for an American blockbuster. The ugly? The fourth MEG book (due this summer) is entitled MEG: Hell’s Aquarium. (What would Peter Benchley say?)
You might recall that earlier this decade, director Jan de Bont (Speed, Speed 2: Jason Patrick) was close to steering the film into reality for New Line. Producers at the time included Guillermo del Toro and CHUD.com’s Nick Nunziata. In a funny tidbit from the LAT article, MEG’s creator, Alten, who sees this as a “billion dollar film franchise,” laughs remembering that one rejected script “stuck wings on the shark.” Somebody please email me that concept art! That is more friggin’ ‘tarded than Spinal Tap’s Shark Sandwich. Are we talking fairy wings or dragon wings?
Discuss: Do you believe in MEG? Who should direct MEG? What should MEG 4 be subtitled? Wings or no wings? Would you see MEG if Uwe Boll directed it? Michael Bay? Jason Reitman?
Brett Ratner to Direct Comic Book Adaptation Harbinger
Does big time studio director Brett Ratner lie around the Grotto half-naked with Hugh Hefner and his Bunnies while searching through ancient Valiant comic books for his next franchise? If not, did an assistant bring him a copy of Harbinger and if so, why not a copy of Turok Dinosaur Hunter or X-O Manowar instead? I mean, at least those forgotten Valiant series had snazzy holographic covers. The world may never know or care.
Ratner (X-Men: The Last Stand), who is currently toying around with a Hefner biopic entitled Playboy, is attached to direct a Harbinger feature film for Paramount Pictures, with MTV Films circling the project as well. The discontinued ’90s comic series followed a group of angst-stricken teenagers called Harbingers who had superpowers, the catch being that these teens’ powers had to be unlocked by more experienced “omega” harbingers. Conflict arises when one teen Harbinger must face his omega mentor, an evaaal industrialist.
“The movie is in the vein of a young ‘Blade Runner,’ as this 17-year- old gifted kid helps other kids tap into these parts of their brains,” said producer Alexandra Milchan.
A “new, young Blade Runner” aside, reportedly one reason why The Rat took interest in the series is that he wants to create a (possibly suck-worthy) comic book film franchise from the ground up. According to Variety, Valiant Comics is set for a comeback after its extensive library was purchased by a private company that will apparently kick-start the better known titles. I’m guessing Harbinger will be one of those, though it definitely wasn’t the most popular Valiant comic when it was around.
Wanted International Trailer Kicks Ass Red Band Style
Universal has a new international trailer for Universal’s Wanted. I normally wouldn’t be posting a Russian language trailer on, but this trailer shows off some of the incredible cinematography that all of a sudden got me excited about this film. It’s also uncensored. This same trailer would certainly be redband if it were released in the U.S. I’m not expecting Shakespeare, just some incredible action sequences. I don’t even care if the story is basically a comic booky version of The Matrix. I’m pretty sure the bullet through the head shot from the opening of this trailer is worth the price of the movie ticket alone. Check it out NOW and tell me what you think in the comments.
Watch the trailer in High Definition on Filmz.ru.
Official Plot Synopsis: Based upon Mark Millar’s explosive graphic novel series and helmed by stunning visualist director Timur Bekmambetov—creator of the most successful Russian film franchise in history, the Night Watch series—Wanted tells the tale of one apathetic nobody’s transformation into an unparalleled enforcer of justice. In 2008, the world will be introduced to a hero for a new generation: Wesley Gibson. 25-year-old Wes (James McAvoy) was the most disaffected, cube-dwelling drone the planet had ever known. His boss chewed him out hourly, his girlfriend ignored him routinely and his life plodded on interminably. Everyone was certain this disengaged slacker would amount to nothing. There was little else for Wes to do but wile away the days and die in his slow, clock-punching rut. Until he met a woman named Fox (Angelina Jolie).
After his estranged father is murdered, the deadly sexy Fox recruits Wes into the Fraternity, a secret society that trains Wes to avenge his dad’s death by unlocking his dormant powers. As she teaches him how to develop lightning-quick reflexes and phenomenal agility, Wes discovers this team lives by an ancient, unbreakable code: carry out the death orders given by fate itself. With wickedly brilliant tutors—including the Fraternity’s enigmatic leader, Sloan (Morgan Freeman)—Wes grows to enjoy all the strength he ever wanted. But, slowly, he begins to realize there is more to his dangerous associates than meets the eye. And as he wavers between newfound heroism and vengeance, Wes will come to learn what no one could ever teach him: he alone controls his destiny.
Wanted hits theaters on June 27th 2008.