The Jolie-Pitt brood appear to have caught the acting bug from their folks. Last August, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie ‘s four-year-old daughter was cast as the young Princess Aurora in Maleficent , starring her superstar mother in the title role. Now, two siblings are set to join the production, and with a 2014 release date, could there be room for more? Jolie and Pitt’s son Pax, 8, and daughter Zahara, 7, are also set to appear in the big screen spin on the Sleeping Beauty tale, Us Weekly reports, adding that their parts will be small and they will not have speaking roles. Four year-old Vivienne joined the Maleficent cast as the young Princess Aurora. She eventually grows up to be the enemy to the evil Maleficent. Walt Disney Productions confirmed the addition in August. Daughter Shiloh, 6, meanwhile also nearly appeared in the movie, but she was apparently not in the mood during the day her part was supposed to shoot. She made an appearance in her dad’s feature The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in 2008. Maleficent , directed by Robert Stromberg ( Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End ), also stars Sharlto Copley, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Imelda Staunton, Miranda Richardson, Juno Temple and Lesley Manville. It is slated for a 3-D release in March, 2014. The pic retells the Sleeping Beauty story from the POV of villainess Maleficent. Fourteen year-old Fanning will play the grown-up Princess Aurora and gave a shout-out to Jolie in a recent E! News interview. “She’s so elegant. She looks just amazing as Maleficent, all her costumes and her makeup. You know, it’s like an elegant scary—sort of spooky. But you get used to it…It’s perfect.” [ Sources: Huffington Post , Yahoo , Us Weekly, E! ]
Intentionally vague official plot synopsis, be damned; the first trailer for Iron Man 3 hit the ‘net, bringing with it a handful of images and glimpses at scenes just begging to be captioned. [ Want the full gallery of hi-res Iron Man 3 trailer images? Head here . ] So we know the vague, personal, vaguely personal setup : When enemies destroy his world (including, apparently, that sweet crib and his personal Iron Man suit museum) Tony Stark heads out to find out who’s responsible. Hint: Look for the bearded half-white guy with ten rings and a flair for Eastern fashions. But what kind of life was Tony living, anyway? Ever since The Avengers , life superheroing while flying solo seems a little more empty. (Sorry, Pepper.) Sometimes Pepper wakes up in the middle of the night and hardly recognizes him… because he’s also SHAKING HER AWAKE! But if Tony’s asleep, WHO’S IN THE SUIT?? Best Punk’d ever. So Pepper’s like, uh, no. And Tony’s all, ‘What? Chicks dig guys who wear nerdy accessories on their heads!’ (They don’t. Trust me.) Never mind. Here comes The Mandarin, who isn’t Chinese because wouldn’t that be crazy? Instead let’s give Sir Ben Kingsley a fashion identity crisis and the strangest alien-speaking-English accent of all time. At least he has magical bling.
Intentionally vague official plot synopsis, be damned; the first trailer for Iron Man 3 hit the ‘net, bringing with it a handful of images and glimpses at scenes just begging to be captioned. [ Want the full gallery of hi-res Iron Man 3 trailer images? Head here . ] So we know the vague, personal, vaguely personal setup : When enemies destroy his world (including, apparently, that sweet crib and his personal Iron Man suit museum) Tony Stark heads out to find out who’s responsible. Hint: Look for the bearded half-white guy with ten rings and a flair for Eastern fashions. But what kind of life was Tony living, anyway? Ever since The Avengers , life superheroing while flying solo seems a little more empty. (Sorry, Pepper.) Sometimes Pepper wakes up in the middle of the night and hardly recognizes him… because he’s also SHAKING HER AWAKE! But if Tony’s asleep, WHO’S IN THE SUIT?? Best Punk’d ever. So Pepper’s like, uh, no. And Tony’s all, ‘What? Chicks dig guys who wear nerdy accessories on their heads!’ (They don’t. Trust me.) Never mind. Here comes The Mandarin, who isn’t Chinese because wouldn’t that be crazy? Instead let’s give Sir Ben Kingsley a fashion identity crisis and the strangest alien-speaking-English accent of all time. At least he has magical bling.
Also in Monday morning’s round-up of news briefs: The deadline looms for the 19th Screen Actors Guild Awards consideration. Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter receive London Fest honors; And a Chinese-Japan row over uninhabited islands spills into the Tokyo International Film Festival. Sundance London To Return for 2nd Round The Sundance London Music and Film Festival will return again next year and 2014. The second Sundance London will take place from 25-28 April, 2013, and host the international and UK premieres of American independent films fresh from the 2013 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah as well as live music performances, panels and events. The 2013 program will continue its 2012 focus on presenting new work by American filmmakers and music artists. Sundance Institute, which annually presents the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, will select the films and related programming. Screen Actors Guild Deadline Loom Acting submissions for this year’s 19th Screen Actors Awards consideration is fast approaching. Submissions must be turned in by Thursday October 25th at 5pm PDT. For the first time, submissions are only accepted online . Around the ‘net… Specialty Box Office: The Sessions Tops Debuts; Holy Motors , Brooklyn Castle , The Flat Solid Fox Searchlight’s highly anticipated The Sessions starring John Hawkes, Helen Hunt and William H. Macy debuted with a robust $30,100 average in its four-theater run in New York and Los Angeles, by far topping newbies in the specialty arena, in another crowded field of newcomers, Deadline reports . Jeffrey Katzenberg and Steven Spielberg Donate $1M Each to Obama Super PAC A filing to the Federal Elections Commission show the Oscar-winning filmmaker and DreamWorlds Animation CEO made their donations, one of the largest to the Obama campaign, on September 24th, Deadline reports . Tim Burton Honored at London Film Festival “It’s good because there’s no jealousy at home,” partner Helena Bonham Carter who also received an award said. “It’s very thoughtful for them to give us both one at the same time,” BBC reports . Tokyo International Film Festival to Screen Feng Shui Despite Official Withdrawl The Chinese film was withdrawn from the Japanese festival and director Wang Jing and actor Jiao Gang canceled their visits due to political tensions between the two Asian giants. But the Monday night screening went on as planned, THR reports .
Those out there who might dismiss the final Twilight pic Breaking Dawn Part 2 as just another vampire movie sequel heavy on Bella Swan’s moony-eyed sighs and Edward Cullen’s sparkly undead chest, consider: This new behind-the-scenes featurette peels back the curtain to reveal the massive sets, wire work, and action set pieces Bill Condon wrangled for the highly anticipated franchise-ender — starting with Kristen Stewart going Over The Top with a little arm-wrestling action! I wish the Twilight Saga took Bella on an arm-wrestling tour of bars and truck stops with her newfound vampire strength, but alas. Stewart does, however, get to leap over giant chasms (okay, that’s probably her stunt double but still ) and do a bit of tandem vampire-fu with Robert Pattinson . The clip also features cast mates explaining further for the uninitiated the idea of half-vamp baby Renesmee and why Michael Sheen and his Italo-vampires want her dead. And did I mention the sprawling new cast of international bloodsuckers? Lee Pace , people! Between Breaking Dawn and Lincoln (both out November 16) you’ve got two chances to see the underrated Pace grace the big screen. Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Daniel Craig may be on he heels of one of the most anticipated films of the Fall, but he’s already looking ahead of 007 for his next gig. Craig said he’s hoping to be a part of a follow-up installment to the English-language version of Stieg Larsson’s trilogy, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo , though at the moment there seems to be little movement for the second installment, The Girl Who Played with Fire . Craig starred along with Rooney Mara, Christopher Plummer, Stellan Skarsgard and Robin Wright in the English version of the film, which grossed over $232 million worldwide last year. “Of course I’ll embrace [the movie], especially if [David] Fincher does it,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “I’m definitely going to work on him.” Fincher has a lot on his directing plate and has kept mum about a second round of the crime mystery. Danish-born director Niels Arden Oplev directed the original in 2009. “I’m definitely going to work on him,” said Craig. Skyfall is destined to be a worldwide blockbuster, but Craig said taking on indies can be a great change. “Sometimes shooting on a smaller scale, as long as things don’t blow out of proportion, is very liberating…But I wouldn’t like to self-consciously go out and look for some nice small project just to get a chance to prove my acting chops. It’s like, I think I’ve … done enough of that.” [ Source: Los Angeles Times ]
He’s always packin’ the niftiest of gadgetry and he’s reinvented himself throughout the generations, remaining forever in his prime, but one en vogue technology James Bond is not considering is 3-D. Producers of the 50 year-old franchise say they have no interest in making a Bond film a three-dimensional format despite the rise of the medium – and its box office prowess – since the last Bond film, Quantum of Solace debuted back in 2008. Avatar re-ushered in 3-D in a massive way to audiences back in 2009, grossing over $2 billion that year in the U.S. alone, while Summer-season ’12 release Marvel’s The Avengers scored well into the 10-figure gross mark. And Ang Lee’s ventured into 3-D with his anticipated Life of Pi due out in late November. [ Related: INTERVIEW: 007 Scion And Skyfall Producer Barbara Broccoli On Growing Up Bond ] Read More at: http://movieline.com/2012/10/09/barbara-broccoli-james-bond-007-interview-skyfall-daniel-craig/#utm_source=copypaste&utm_campaign=referral “3-D is fantastic for the right material, but we’re not sure Bond is the right way to go,” said Skyfall producer Barbara Broccoli in a recent interview with A.P. “With our movies, there’s a lot of challenges to 3-D, particularly when you’ve got a lot of action and a lot of quick cutting.” Broccoli added, “It has to be right for our story. Unless you can do something as well as [ Avatar ], it’s probably not worth looking at.” Broccoli and her half-brother Michael G. Wilson have spearheaded the last seven Bond films. Wilson added that some have poked around at the idea of converting some of the old Bond films into 3-D, perhaps taking a cue from Disney animated classics in recent years, but he called the suggestions “more of a novelty.” One piece of visual stimulation Skyfall is embracing is IMAX. The film will be released there a day early on November 8th in North America. So, Bond has mostly adapted to the times. Should the 3-D prove to be more than a medium-term fancy, seeing Daniel Craig as 007 flying, falling, shooting and in your face with millions of adoring cross-generational fans may yet happen. Craig has signed on for two more Bond films, which will be the 24th and 25th installments. Neither is planned as a 3-D pic, but said Broccoli: “Who knows? We’ll see if things change in the future.” [ Source: A.P. ]
RZA is feeling good about his directorial debut, The Man with the Iron Fists . In this Behind-the-scenes featurette, the Wu-Tang Clan leader says he didn’t think he could top his musical work with the hip-hop group (or as a solo artist), which, he explains, led “to some of the greatest climaxes of my life.” Okay! But after teaming up with “my boy Quentin Tarantino” and Hostel director Eli Roth to ” make a fat joint of my own,” RZA proudly proclaims “I have topped it.” Related Story: Check out Movieline’s gallery of more than 20 images from The Man with the Iron Fists . The 43-year-old first-time filmmaker explains that The Man with the Iron Fists is the result of a fascination with kung-fu movies that began when he was 11 years old, and it sounds like he’s got a lot more ideas where this movie came from. He also explains that the movie’s soundtrack of hip hop and classic soul is meant to be integral to moviegoers’ enjoyment of the picture. You can just sit back, smoke one — if you smoke — and let the music flow. Here’s a preview of what to expect below. Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
So, you can’t move like Jagger, but can you write a song like Jagger and Richards ? If you think you’ve got what it takes, you could win one of five pairs of tickets Movieline is giving away to the midnight screening of The Rolling Stones Charlie Is My Darling – Ireland 1965 documentary at Grauman’s Chinese Theater on Oct. 24. The hour-long road trip film, which was inspired by The Beatles ’ classic 1964 film A Hard Day’s Night , came together when the Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham hired director Peter Whitehead to shoot and music producer and engineer Glyn Johns to record the first professionally filmed concert performances of the band during a two-city tour of Ireland. The footage, which includes the first live performance of “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” caught on film, was never officially released or aired and sat largely untouched in film cans for more than 40 years. But now that it’s been rediscovered, it’s about to become available to the public. After premiering at the New York Film Festival in September, Charlie Is My Darling — which features previously unseen performances of six complete Stones songs including “The Last Time” and “Time Is On My Side” — will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray on Nov. 6. If you live in the Los Angeles area and can’t wait until next month, here’s what you need to do: Take a verse or chorus from one of your favorite Stones songs and rewrite it. Post the original verse and the song’s title followed by your reworking in the comments section, and I’ll choose the best five submissions by 3 p.m. EST on Friday, Oct. 19. Here’s an example: “Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby (Standing in the Shadow)?” Original: Have you seen your lover, baby, standing in the shadow? Has he had another baby, standing in the shadow? Baby, where have you been all your life? Talking about all the people who should try anything twice Reworked: Have you seen your stalker, baby, standing in the shadow? Has he violated his TRO, baby, standing in the shadow? Baby, he wants to know where have you been all his life Time to hit the panic room, looks like he’s got a knife Got it? Make sure to leave your email in the comments box, too, so if you win we can contact you with details on how to pick up your tickets. Remember, you’ve got to be able to get yourself to Grauman’s on your own steam. Now get writing, because time is not on your side. For inspiration, check out the trailer: Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
A surge of intrigue rippled through the blogosphere this week when a rumor hit, sourced from the barest of suggestions ( a secondhand casting breakdown ), that Michael Bay ‘s fourth and allegedly final outing with the Transformers series might revolve around the rarest of Bay creatures: A female heroine. Sad, yes — Bay’s filmography is so male-driven, his portfolio so stacked with binders full of supermodel-hot leading ladies, that even the slightest move toward gender equality in Bay’s work force warrants an onslaught of hopeful speculation. That’s not to say Michael Bay has that much in common with Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney . One’s a clean-cut Mormon Presidential candidate who appears to think in unfortunate Eisenhower-era terms of sexual politics, the other is Hollywood’s reigning alpha male blockbuster guru with an eye for explosions and hot ladies who was once described by an actor — lovingly so — as a barking dog . Well, they both have good hair. But these two white male millionaire Americans converge this week the most when it comes to talking about the roles of women in their respective worlds of film and politics. Could it be Michael Bay is really making room for a strong female star in his testosterone-fueled oeuvre? The rumors trace back to a flimsy two-sentence report on SpoilerTV : It looks like Transformers 4 will have 2 new leads. The new female lead that they are looking for is a high school senior and her boyfriend a Texas racing driver. Many bloggers picking up the story focused on the latter sentence, extrapolating that it meant Transformers 4 will revolve around a female protagonist with a male love interest — the opposite of the three Shia LaBeouf + Megan Fox/Rosie Huntington-Whitely films to date. Understandably, the notion is promising. Enough with LaBeouf’s Sam Witwicky saving the world with his robot pals and a hot lady on his arm — bring on the scrappy (but most likely model-gorgeous and stick-thin) female lead to save Earth, or the galaxy, or whatever! Consider it wishful thinking by way of selective reportage, if you give SpoilerTV’s clumsily-worded report any credence at all. For starters, it clearly states two new leads — beside which Fox and Huntington-Whitely were technically “female leads” even if they payed second fiddle to LaBeouf. It sounds more like Bay’s trying to reboot the franchise with a new dynamic romantic duo fans can root for, and lust after, like they did for LaBeouf and Fox at first but never quite did for LaBeouf and Huntington-Whiteley, Fox’s supermodel replacement. Maybe this “high school senior” and her “Texas racing driver” boyfriend will fight evil robots together, as equal partners on equal footing, although he already has a leg up on her with the mere fact that he has a vocation useful for fighting in a war with giant robots who turn into cars and she’s technically a schoolgirl. Look at Bay’s filmography and not one film has an actual female protagonist, though he’s got a memorable lineup of female leads/love interests under his belt: Tea Leoni in Bad Boys , Liv Tyler in Armageddon , Scarlett Johansson in The Island . His eye for the female form is undeniable, and moreso in his earlier films, translated to casting talented actresses in their popcorn movie breakthroughs. But Bay did surprise with his latest project, the modest (by Bay standards) true crime tale Pain & Gain . Not another CG-heavy spectacle, and not a film stitched together from the wet dreams of a 12-year-old boy, the forthcoming black comedy stars another group of muscly men (it is about thugs who meet at a gym, after all) including Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, Anthony Mackie, and Kurt Angle. Rebel Wilson, one of the cast’s lone women, plays a key role and is a terrific hire on Bay’s part. Still, when I asked her in a recent interview what she’d learned most about her director, she noted that “he loves push-up bras” and shoots Victoria’s Secret commercials for fun . So let’s hope that Bay’s turning over a new leaf and embracing a more progressive attitude toward the female characters in his movies. It’s entirely possible that he could use his whirling hero shots and explosiony adventures for good, to introduce strong new heroines into the cinematic landscape. I’m just not terribly optimistic that it’ll happen in Transformers 4 . Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
