Disney Already Planning Star Wars Spin-Offs

Every week, let alone day, is a new revelation. George Lucas is selling the Empire to Disney. They're making new Star Wars movies. Wait, it's a new trilogy. Strike that, a new trilogy and more! Lucas gave Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher a head's up. Hamill and Fisher are coming back! Eh, they're probably coming back! Harrison Ford awoke from his decade long coma! He said he's game too! So on, and so forth.

And then there's the mountain of directors. Some by choice said, "Don't look at me!" Others cornered into an answer. Whether or not, any were realistic candidates to begin with.

Amid the chaos, what is certain? Michael Arndt writing Episode VII. The Oscar-winning Pixar scribe was the first big announcement following our shell-shocked reaction to new Star Wars pictures. Then the news Lawrence Kasdan and Simon Kinberg would serve as writers and producers for Episodes VIII and IX.

THR, realizing things haven't been confusing enough, are here to fix that:

"But now insiders tell THR that while Kasdan and Kinberg have indeed been hired to work on the Star Wars franchise, they will be writing separate projects (hence the reason why they also would receive producer credits), not necessarily Episode VIII and Episode IX.

Their scripts could turn into official 'Episodes' in the main Skywalker storyline, or they could form the basis for spinoffs focusing on side characters. Disney CEO Robert Iger said the goal is to release a Star Wars movie 'every two to three years,' and some could easily focus on other pieces of the expansive mythos (similar to Marvel’s Avengers universe). Disney and Lucasfilm declined comment."

The profit Disney earns from Episode VII alone will come close to the $4 billion they spent purchasing Lucasfilm. Take your sweet time and focus on the sequel trilogy. Each film at a time. Then start playing the spin-off game. Your current plan is a bit... much.

Youngest Star of Les Miserables Continues to be Adorable

Amongst the character-themed posters for Les Miserables, the most famous one hasn't been of any of the movie musical's all-star cast, but the one with the image of Young Cosette, the sad little girl with the big blue eyes and windswept hair.  The photo is a recreation of Émile Bayard's illustration of Young Cosette for the original novel by Victor Hugo, and it's also the official logo of the stage version.

So who is this kid?  The daughter that Anne Hathaway's Fantine tries so desperately to save, the abused Young Cosette first appears in the custody of the scheming Thernardiers before being rescued by Hugh Jackman's Jean Valjean (and grows up in the film to become Amanda Seyfried).  The actress is Isabelle Allen, a British ten-year-old making her feature film debut. 

On stage, the Young Cosette role is a small role, and she only sings one song, but it's still kind of a thankless one, with the kid being tossed around the stage by the horrible Thernardiers.  The film seemed pretty tough too, as Allen had to walk around barefoot in the snow, got her eyes stung by the menthol used to make her cry on film, and once accidentally spilled a bucket of freezing water all over herself.  Yikes.

But it looks like the hard work paid off, since the footage so far looks amazing.  In fact, Allen enjoyed playing the role so much that she's currently playing Young Cosette again in the London stage production.  Last week, she and her mom appeared on a U.K. talk show to discuss working on the film, what it was like to sing live on the set, and getting chased around by Russell Crowe.  How cute is this kid?

Also, while the film's upcoming New York premiere sounds exciting, Allen is also looking forward to visiting the big Disney Store in Times Square.  Seriously, how cute is this kid??

Les Miserables opens in theaters on December 25.

Bryan Singer Tweets Returning X-Men Cast

Mixing the best of both worlds, or those willing, if not contractually bound, to return.

X-Men: Days of Future Past is expected bring the 1960s cast and that of the "Not too distant future" from the Bryan Singer/Brett Ratner films to a head. Singer took to Twitter to announce James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence and Nicholas Hoult are back to represent the First Class side of the coin. The surprise, however, arrived from his second tweet.

Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen are too with "More to come..." Anna Paquin? Rebecca Romijn? Surely Hugh Jackman cameos recreating the iconic cover of Uncanny X-Men #141.

Giant sentinels and new continuity, here we come.

Is Joseph Gordon-Levitt Gearing Up For "Justice League"?

Why would you hire a fairly high profile actor to play a character with a name so generic it almost seemed like the creative team was resigned to a M. Night type twist from the beginning? There had to be more to him than just "a noble cop". We're looking at you "John Blake". Joseph Gordon Levitt was barely even in the trailers or TV spots for The Dark Knight Rises. We were on to you from the opening credits Team Nolan.

For those who have seen The Dark Knight Rises, and unless you were on another planet at the time not sure how you couldn't have, turns out we were right. Now according to Drew McWeeny At HitFix The Brothers Warner are preparing for the ending to the last film in the Batman Trilogy to expand allowing for Joseph Gordon Levitt to take on the role of Batman in a possible Justice League.

So let's take what we know and speculate a little bit.  How crazy do you think fans would go if Superman were to take to the skies at the end of "Man Of Steel," finally ready to fully accept his role as mankind's most powerful protector, only to have the closing credits interrupted when something catches his attention and he swoops down out of that sky, landing on a rooftop where Jim Gordon stands next to the Bat-Signal, interrupting just as the new Batman arrives for a chat about Gotham's latest problem?

It seems to me that Nolan agreed to lay the foundation for a new era of Batman for Warner Bros as long as he was able close out his universe with Bruce Wayne. Now the studio can explore different story lines with another version of Batman allowing for a possible return of Bruce Wayne somewhere down the road. I wonder if they'll call JGL's version of Batman "Nightwing" and run with it.

I'm still not sold on Justice League happening right away, so the speculation brought forth by McWeeny on a possible cameo by "The New Batman" in Man Of Steel makes some sense to me. Maybe even a Batman & Superman team up film first could work as a Man Of Steel sequel. Remember when Joseph Gordon-Levitt was originally cast in The Dark Knight Rises? Large groups of fanboys were so sure he playing The Joker or The Riddler. Grains of salt are raining down on us. Let the speculation flood the interwebs.

Star Trek Into Darkness Synopsis Hints To Gary Mitchell

Don't wanna count my chickens before they hatch. But it sounds definite Star Trek Into Darkness isn't the Abrams, Kurtzman, Orci, Lindelof remake of Space Speed. That alone is reason to rejoice.

The official plot synopsis is here from Paramount (We Are Movie Geeks got it up first):

"In Summer 2013, pioneering director J.J. Abrams will deliver an explosive action thriller that takes Star Trek Into Darkness.

When the crew of the Enterprise is called back home, they find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization has detonated the fleet and everything it stands for, leaving our world in a state of crisis.

With a personal score to settle, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction.

As our heroes are propelled into an epic chess game of life and death, love will be challenged, friendships will be torn apart, and sacrifices must be made for the only family Kirk has left: his crew."

That sounds like Benedict Cumberbatch's unspecified villain is Gary Mitchell. Something co-star Karl Urban said aloud months back in July. Thank God.

It is hypocritical, I'll admit, to being fine with doing a round-about retelling of Where No Man Has Gone Before but scolding doing the same for Space Seed. But Khan was made famous to the public by The Wrath of Khan. Everyone knows Ricardo Montalbán and his chest (rubber or real) and the Moby Dick references.

Gary Mitchell is a character regulated to classic Star Trek and open for a new generation of film-goers to discover.

Iron Man 3 Isn't "Serious" – Despite Trailer Saying Otherwise

Iron Man is fun. The appeal is Robert Downey Jr. charming the pants off his co-stars onscreen and us the audience watching. Mixed with the latest suits and Marvel universe references, Shellhead is the light and frothy alternative to the dark and brooding superheroes taking up multiplexes.

That's why the Iron Man 3 trailer was a shock. No subtly or reading into something that wasn't there, that footage said, "This time, shit gets dark!" And that got great fan reaction. It offered something new from the usually fun franchise.

Until Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige reneged:

"It's not a serious movie, but we seriously dig into exploring more of Tony. The trick is just trying to make great movies. We try to make them all great, all different and all fresh. What you'll see in Iron Man 3 is some very unique directions that were taken."

Nobody's expecting Tony Stark to lose at the end or the tone to be "cut your wrists" dark. Hey, little kids love Iron Man. But it's not what you directly told us from the trailer? Thanks for pulling a fast-one, Kev.

Source: The Western Australian

Zack Snyder Treads Cautiously on Justice League

Ah, Justice League.

Living in an environment where The Avengers is the third-biggest movie of all-time, Warner Brothers is lagging behind. Badly. Much worse offense considering they own DC Comics. Disney still has to share meaty portions of the Marvel pie with Sony and 20^th Century Fox. Yet they can still yield Earth's Mightiest Heroes on the silver screen.

No reason why they can't figure it out. But they haven't. Not one to tarnish their relationship with Christopher Nolan, they left him alone to "do his thing" on the Dark Knight trilogy. They tried, and failed, to ignite Green Lantern. That puts all the pressure on The Man of Steel. It's not enough to ask if the Superman relaunch warrants a sequel. Not anymore it isn't. The Brothers Warner must ponder if Henry Cavill's Kryptonian do-gooder can be what Robert Downey Jr. is for Disney/Marvel, what Hugh Jackman is for X-Men. Can he be the face of the Warner Brothers/DC cinematic universe?

Hey! U Guys were the first to approach the subject to helmer Zack Snyder. He shot it down. It was the early days however. Cavill just cast, principal photography long from starting and no idea how the material would come together on set and in the edit bay.

His answer fine-turned, more open-ended, shall we shall, and less dismissive for the New York Post:

"'I don't know how 'Justice League' is going to be handled. Honestly, I don't,' Snyder says. 'But 'The Man of Steel' exists, and Superman is in it. I don't know how you'd move forward without acknowledging that.'

When asked whether he had conversations with the studio about integrating 'Man of Steel' into a larger superhero universe, Snyder treads carefully.

'Um, how can I answer that?' he wonders. 'I can't really say anything to that, because that's a big spoiler. I will say, yeah, they trust me to keep them on course.'"

The marketing blitz for The Man of Steel begins soon; a trailer in front of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, more production stills (Likely the "Exclusive Reward" touted for sharing The Dark Knight Rises' DVD/Blu-Ray release on Facebook) and we're hearing its presence will be felt at next year's Super Bowl.

But it comes down to how the new Superman is received in June. Until then. It's all talk, answers and, in most cases, non-answers.

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" Post Production Video

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain, first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever… Gollum. Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of guile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities… A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.

Peter Jackson via ComingSoon.Net

Holiday Weekend Box Office: November 21-25

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1.  The Twilight Saga:  Breaking Dawn Part 2 - $64 million

2.  Skyfall - $51.1 million

3.  Lincoln - $34 million

4.  Rise of the Guardians - $32.6 million

5.  Life of Pi - $30.1 million

6.  Wreck-It Ralph - $23 million

7.  Red Dawn - $22 million

8.  Flight - $11.3 million

9.  Silver Linings Playbook - $5.9 million

10.  Argo - $5.1 million

This Thanksgiving holiday weekend looks a whole lot like this same weekend last year, with the latest Twilight movie easily taking the top spot.  Indeed, Breaking Dawn Part 2 earned an estimated $64 million over the 5-day weekend, bringing its total haul to $226 million domestically (plus another $350 million overseas).  That puts it ahead of where Breaking Dawn Part 1 was at this same time last year, making it another smash entry in the Twilight series.

A bunch of new releases were no match for James Bond this weekend as either, as the excellent Skyfall crossed the $200 million mark this weekend, earning an estimated $51.1 million over the long weekend.  Skyfall is now officially the highest-grossing Bond film of the series domestically at $221 million and counting, while overseas the film has grossed a staggering $568 million.

Lincoln continued to impress at the box office, earning an additional $34 million over the holiday, bringing its domestic total to $62 million.  It should continue to do strong business as Oscar season revs up over the next month.  Joining the Oscar hopeful mix this weekend was Life of Pi, which opened strongly with $30.1 million, and Silver Linings Playbook, which went into wider release and earned $5.9 million at just 367 theaters. 

The new animated film Rise of the Guardians didn't fare so well, earning just $32.6 million over the holiday weekend.  Business picked up somewhat on Friday, but then dropped steadily as the weekend continued.  The film did receive an "A" Cinemascore from audiences, but its darker tone may keep it from turning into another How To Train Your Dragon, which started off slow and picked up momentum propelled by good word-of-mouth back when that opened in 2010. 

Wreck-It Ralph continued to do well, its $23 million over the holiday managed to beat up the long-delayed remake of Red Dawn, which went mostly unnoticed with only $22 million over five days.

Another Oscar hopefully joins the mix next weekend, as Killing Them Softly opens in theaters.  Not much else joining it, besides horror sequel The Collection.  Looks like we may see a Twilight/Skyfall threepeat next weekend. 

First Trailer for New Dwayne Johnson Actioner 'Snitch'

What's interesting about Dwayne Johnson - or The Rock as most still think of him as - is he's kind hit his peak as a movie star.

I mean, he's been acting full-time for what, a decade now?  It's pretty much been cemented in stone that he will never be as big as Arnold Schwarzenegger or Sylvester Stallone in their prime.  He'll never have the box office draw power of a Tom Cruise or Will Smith.  He's really just been regulated to the same class as Jason Statham and Vin Diesel:  Solid actors, great action stars, but nothing more than average to above-average box office (unless it's a franchise, ala Expendables, Fast & Furious).

Below is a look at Johnson's newest action film, Snitch.  In the pic, he plays a father who becomes an informant for the DEA to save his son from a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 10 years.  Obviously, things go south and Johnson is forced to take matters into his own hands to protect those he loves.

Also starring Susan Sarandon, Benjamin Bratt, Jon Bernthal, and Barry Pepper, Snitch opens February 22nd.

Inspired by true events, the film stars Johnson as a father whose teenage son is wrongly accused of a drug distribution crime and is looking at a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 10 years. Desperate and determined to rescue his son at all costs, he makes a deal with the U.S. Attorney to work as an undercover informant and infiltrate a drug cartel on a dangerous mission- risking everything, including his family and his own life.