Jay and Seth Strike Back
It’s Apocalypse now for Seth Rogen.
The Knocked Up funnyman, along with fellow Judd Apatow repertory player Jay Baruchel, have teamed up to star in the aptly if not very creatively titled action comedy Jay and Seth vs. the Apocalypse.
The flick is based on a comedy short written by Rogen and his Superbad coscribe Evan Goldberg. Apocalypse made a splash online last summer when a trailer for the would-be film surfaced on YouTube.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Rogen and Goldberg were also given full creative control and final cut over the pet project.
The film will revolve around two guyswho, if history is any indication, may also happen to be stonerswho survive the apocalypse and are left to deal with the fallout together.
Shooting is set to start in 2009.
Norton Finds Reports of Hulk Feud Incredible
Perhaps The Hulk's troubles aren't so massive after all. Edward Norton, star of the would-be summer blockbuster The Incredible Hulk, is looking to refute the rampant rumors that a disagreement over the film's final cut has pitted him and director Louis Leterrier against Marvel Entertainment.
"Every good movie gets forged through collaboration, and different ideas among people who are all committed and respect the validity of each other's opinions is the heart of filmmaking," the Oscar-nominated actor said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly Wednesday.
"Regrettably, our healthy process, which is and should be a private matter, was misrepresented publicly as a 'dispute,' seized on by people looking for a good story and has been distorted to such a degree that it risks distracting from the film itself, which Marvel, Universal and I refuse to let happen."
In recent weeks, word had gotten out that Marvel, wanting a more wham-bam commercial cut, objected to Leterrier's more detailed, two hour-plus version of the filma creative difference that had Norton seeing red, if not exactly turning green.
Leterrier recently told EW he regretted that Norton and Marvel "didn't come to an agreement where we could've all worked together."
''Everyone was exhausted; it was like a little burst,'' the French director, who's perhaps best known for helming the Transporter films, said. '''I'm angry with you!' 'No, I'm angry with you!' And me in the center saying 'Boys, calm down.' It didn't come to blows. It was just a remark here and there.''
Then it "became public," he said, adding that it was the press that "kept Edward and Marvel from talking to each other. [The purported feud] was nothing and then it became something big."
For his part, Norton maintains the tale of disquiet on the set has been blown way out of proportion.
"In every phase of production, including the editing, working with Louis Leterrier has been wonderful," his statement continued. "I've never had a better partner, and the collaboration with all the rest of the creative team has been terrific…
"It has always been my firm conviction that films should speak for themselves and that knowing too much about how they are made diminishes the magic of watching them. All of us believe The Incredible Hulk will excite old fans and create new ones and be a huge hit…Our focus has always been to deliver the Hulk that people have been waiting for and keep the worldwide love affair with the big green guy going strong.''
The production was a risky venture to begin with, considering Ang Lee's adaptation of the saga featuring the easily excitable Dr. Bruce Bannerthe simply titled Hulkwas a flop as far as comics-inspired action extravaganzas are concerned, grossing only $132 million domestically.
But thanks to Marvel Comics' eventual decision to start breathing big-screen life into its own classic characters with its own studio shingle, the misunderstood green guy has another chance to find a cure for what ails him.
Leterrier's The Incredible Hulk, more a do-over than sequel to the 2003 film, begins with Norton's Banner hiding out in South America, where he's searching for an antidote to the gamma ray exposure that left him prone to what you might call rather intense fits of rage.
Liv Tyler, William Hurt and Tim Roth also star as love interest Betty Ross, Gen. Thaddeus Ross and villain Emil Blonsky, respectively. The film storms into wide release June 13.
Norton's characterization of the production's troubles as overblown should come as a relief to Hulk fans, who are hoping this film succeeds where its predecessor failed, although opinions are mixed as far as which running time would have been the better choice.
"[Lord of the Ring] sequels were sequels to hit movies. The first one was long and it worked. Godfather was long and it worked and was a hit. So the sequels were long too," wrote user DBZ2cool on one of the SuperheroHype.com boards devoted to the new film.
"Same cannot be said about hulk [sic]. hulk was [a] long, boring and really depressing movie."
Meanwhile, Bannerless Hulk wrote that the decision by Marvel to "axe character development in favor of commercial vitality runs squarely against their stated intent to do things the way [the very well-received] Batman Begins did. I don't see how 1:45 or less pulls off Batman Begins otherwise.
"Alas, the negative publicity just keeps trucking along. I can almost hear the general public laughing at the core fans, as we hope against all hope that the movie actually does well."
More Scoop on the 90210 Spinoff…
Fellow 9-0 fans, just wanted to let you know that our friend Rob Thomas has finished the first draft of the pilot for the Beverly Hills, 90210 spinoff, and I’m happy to report that he’s made a young BH High student by the name of Hannah Zuckerman-Vasquez the host of the school's Blaze news show. How great is that?! Unfortunately, Miss Hannah only graces one quick scene with her presence, but we have our fingers crossed for more appearances to come…and perhaps a cameo by her accomplished parents, Andrea and Jesse?
And speaking of roles for a few of our old West Bev friends, word is Mr. Thomas has his heart set on Jennie Garth reprising her role as Kelly Taylor, who would now be a fashion design teacher at BHHS. With Jennie signed on to shoot a CBS pilot this season, we’re not sure if that idea will make the final cut, but we certainly hope so.
Need more? Rumor has it that some of the series regulars will TP the Spelling mansion in that first ep as an homage to the original show. They’re also rocking a party at the Beverly Hills Hotel—why it’s not at the Bel Age, I don’t know—and making reservations at the Peach Pit, which has clearly become much higher class. I mean, reservations? Really?!
Korbi Ghosh
Kyle Newman Takes Back Fanboys
It appears that The Weinstein Co has brought director Kyle Newman back on board to make the final cut of Fanboys. The New York Times ran a story a couple weeks back about Microsoft. Newman worked on a short film / advertisement for the Redmond-based software company. Apparently no one in the movie sector read the article because buried somewhere in the advertising section. Thankfully reader Iron Monger spotted it, because hidden inside the article was a one-line quote from Kyle himself:
“I have been brought back into the editing room to work on a final version,” Kyle said. “All the key people are back. That’s all good.”
So there you have it. It appears that Kyle Newman has officially returned to work on a final version of the film. No word on if the movie will get a theatrical release or go direct-to-dvd. Although if I were The Weinstein Co, I’d at least test the waters with a limited theatrical release. A fanbase is certainly there, but can TWC convince them to see it after all the shit they pulled?
photo credit: Flickr