Keanu Reeves Talks Future Projects

So there's this story going around from AintItCoolNews regarding an unconfirmed report of Keanu Reeves speaking as a guest of honor at the London School of Performing Arts University in England.  In it, the source states that Reeves was there promoting his new film, Henry's Crime, and talked to the class for a good 45 minutes, finishing up with a Q&A.

On the upcoming Japanese samurai film, 47 Ronin:

- Says he's prepping a action movie around the world of the samurai and that it will be a hard "R" rated 3D action feast that will deliver some great martial art set pieces. he's into 2 months of a 6 month training programme.

On the long in-development Bill and Ted 3:

- Spoke briefly about the possibility of Bill and Ted part 3 - ( Audience started laughing) but he assured us he's committed to the project.

On doing possible Parts 4 & 5 of The Matrix series:

- Says he met the Wachowski's (no emphasis on the word brothers), for lunch over Christmas and stated that they had completed work on a two picture script treatment that would see him return to the world of the matrix as Neo. Says the brothers have met with Jim Cameron to discuss the pro's and con's of 3D and are looking to deliver something which has never been seen again. keanu stated that he still has an obligation to the fans to deliver a movie worthy of the title "The Matrix" and he swears this time that the treatment will truly revolutionise the action genre like the first movie. Wachowski's are working on a movie called "Cloud Atlas" at the moment, once that concludes they will talk again.

On writers needing to be original and produce good, quality work (along with talking about the Wachowski's Hood):

- Keanu spoke about the need to encourage writers to continue to focus on working on new ideas and that a good script was worth its weight in gold. For example he said the Wachowski's had just sold the most expensive script in history to Warner Brothers. a modern futuristic take on the legend of "Robin Hood". Says he understands WB paid $5 million for the rights and that  from what the wachowski's have told him, it will be an action movie that would have the same impact visually and technically that Terminator 2 had. Confirmed that Will Smith has agreed ti headline the picture.

I must admit, as many people who knock Keanu Reeves for being a "wooden" actor, the guy is one of the few big-names in Hollywood who cares about putting quality work up on the screen.  His last few films for example (A Scanner Darkly, The Lake House, Street Kings, The Secret Lives of Pippa Lee, the upcoming Henry's Crime) weren't made to just get made; you could tell each had talented, passionate people working behind each project.  He's also one of the hardest working actors in the business (a six-month training regime for 47 Ronin?).  Who else does that?

More on this story as it develops as I'm sure confirmation is just around the corner.

Update on Mon, January 24, 2011 by John DiNicola

Sorry guys, apparently this whole story is built off of lies.  EW reports no such event took place in England and Keanu was not there.  Much apologies.

Weekend Box Office: January 21-23

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1.  No Strings Attached - $20.3 million

2.  The Green Hornet - $18.1 million

3.  The Dilemma - $9.7 million

4.  The King's Speech - $9.1 million

5.  True Grit - $8 million

6.  Black Swan - $6.2 million

7.  The Fighter - $4.5 million

8.  Little Fockers - $4.3 million

9.  Yogi Bear - $4 million

10.  Tron Legacy - $3.7 million

It was a fairly unremarkable but solid weekend at the box office.  This weekend's only major new release, No Strings Attached, easily took the top spot with $20.3 million.  That's about the norm for an Ashton Kutcher film (so that's why they keep finding movies for him to star in), and Natalie Portman's first top opening weekend since V for Vendetta in 2006.  There was some murmuring that starring in a critically panned comedy might hurt Portman's Black Swan Oscar chances the same way it's believed Norbit hurt Eddie Murphy's chance for his Dreamgirls Oscar (which ultimately went to Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine), but that doesn't seem likely now.  The reviews weren't that awful, and it should play well for the next few weeks.

Last week's new releases, The Green Hornet and The Dilemma, didn't do badly this weekend, earning $18.1 million and $9.1 million respectively.  Overall, however, The Dilemma is still underperforming with just a $33.4 million domestic total.  The Green Hornet's total stands at $63.4 million, which puts it past last year's Kick-Ass, making it the highest grossing live action superhero comedy.   

It was another good week for the Oscar contenders.  The Fighter seems to have gotten a boost from last week's Golden Globe wins for Christian Bale and Melissa Leo, moving back into seventh place with $4.5 million.  Audiences still love The King's Speech, which barely moved from last week, staying in 4th place with just a 0.2% drop.  True Grit and Black Swan continue to play well, earning $8 million and $6.2 million.  With the Oscar nominations set to be announced this week, expect those to keep a strong hold in the top ten for the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, it's Jason Stratham vs. Anthony Hopkins next week as The Mechanic and The Rite open in theaters.

Wonder Woman Coming To NBC

Despite recently being announced as a dead project, Deadline is now reporting that NBC has picked up David E. Kelley's Wonder Woman script. Its described as Wonder Woman being a crime fighter in L.A. while trying to maintain her alter egos (Diana Prince) spot as a corporate executive. Here's what Kelley had to say about it;

"It's a huge project, and it was probably a bit too much to ask anyone to try to chew on it for next season. But I'm confident it will still happen. It's a very complicated piece, which is the most fun thing about it."

I'm still unsure how Wonder Woman will be received amongst the general TV crowd. It seemed like the stations not picking it up was the best thing for it. My biggest question would be how they plan on introducing her in the beginning. As for her costume, I'm betting they will go the route of the recent redesign with the black leather pants and jacket.

With shows like the Cape, it's hard to convince people that superhero related projects can be taken seriously on television. One exception is Smallville and I'm still not sure how it's carried on all these years. I'll hold off judgement until I see some footage and get more of an idea of where this one's headed. It could end up being a perfect fit for the Amazonian Warrior.

Next Superman Film to be called 'Kal-El'?

The fact that I came across this little tidbit this morning and just came home from work and not one other website picked up on it is beyond me.  Anyway, in this story circulating the net regarding the title of the next James Bond film (possibly Red Sky At Night), everyone has failed to notice the other title that caught my eye but apparently no one else:

Im close friends with an art director in the film industry, i wont mention his name but he has worked closely with production designer Michael Carlin and is about to start work in Canada on Kal-El, the next Superman movie.

Now I know what you're thinking, bullshit right?  Well look at the facts for a second.  The new Superman movie is yet without an official title, it's been heavily rumored to be filming in Canada, the production designer mentioned is an actual Hollywood name, and we've consistently heard that this new film will be about the in-between of Clark Kent and Superman, Kal-El. 

Take this for what it's worth, but I think I've found something here.

Paramount Releasing The Dictator May 2012

Not one to let losing The Avengers get them down, Paramount has set The Dictator, the next Sacha Baron Cohen/Larry Charles comedy, for May 11, 2012. Noticeably a week after the afore-mentioned big-dick Marvel superhero combo epic. A bold move, but a sign the studio is confident this will click with the masses.

Cohen will play the two leads both of whom are stuck here in the U.S. - a dictator (and quite the delusional one, to boot. Eh, strike that. What dictator isn't? The Saddam Hussein-penned novel Zabibah and The King is said to be their influence) and a goat herder.

An ingenious li'l way of letting the actor have the best of both worlds, I take it. Play the asshole, such as he did in Bruno, and the (presumably) sympathetic protagonist, like Borat. The latter, of course, is strange to say considering how racist, homophobic and anti-Semitic that character was.

Only thing I'm not aware they've made clear is if they're continuing in the "mockumentary" style? If so, haven't they fished that lake dry by now and don't enough people in the U.S. know who he is by now?

Clint Eastwood To Direct A Star Is Born

You gotta respect Clint Eastwood. His track record may be hit and miss. But when he commits to something, there's no two ways around it. The movie is getting made, and generally speaking, pretty fast.

Rather telling considering their history of scoopage, "TOLDJA" rather surprisingly reports Eastwood is onboard to produce/direct Warner Brothers' long-gesturing A Star Is Born remake from the Will Fetters script.

Beyoncé Knowles (whose been attached to this for quite some time) will star. The male lead, with names ranging from Russell Crowe to Robert Downey Jr. to Will Smith in the past, hasn't been determined. But since Downey just backed out of Oz: The Great & Powerful and Gravity (both are expected to shoot this year), maybe he's clearing his schedule for the Man with No Name?

Production is being eyed to start this fall just as Eastwood wraps up J. Edgar, which is about to start filming in a few weeks. Like I said, he works fast.

Russell Brand Wants to Rock

When Rock of Ages first opened on Broadway, I didn't want to see it.  I had no desire to pay outrageous Broadway ticket prices to see some jukebox musical that was made up of songs from my eighth-grade record collection and starring an American Idol castoff.  But then I did end up seeing Rock of Ages (with discount tickets) and not only did the show remind me of just how awesome my eighth-grade record collection was...I even cheered along when an overzealous audience member yelled "Take that, Simon!" after Constantine Maroulis hit a simply unbelievable high note at the end of "Oh Sherrie." 

Audiences have been wild for this impossibly silly show about the inhabitants of a 1980s Sunset Strip nightclub since it opened on Broadway in 2009, so inevitably a movie version is now in the works, with Adam Shankman (Hairspray) set to direct.  While nothing has been officially announced as far as casting, it's looking likely that the movie will star Alec Baldwin as the club's ex-hippie owner Dennis, and Tom Cruise as hair-band superstar Stacee Jax.

Now Deadline is reporting that Russell Brand is "circling" the role of Lonnie, the narrator of the show who also runs the club with Dennis.  It's arguably the most fun role in the show:  as narrator, Lonnie gets to break the fourth wall by talking directly to the audience and reprimanding other characters whenever they do something stupid.  He consults a "Musical Theater for Dummies" book when trying to find a way to end the first act and at one point even hauls out a Rock of Ages playbill to convince another character that they're just doing a show.  Most importantly, if Brand takes the role, he'll get to do a duet of REO Speedwagon's "I Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore"...with Alec Baldwin.  That scene was hilarious onstage, so I can't imagine what those two will do with it.

If all goes well, the movie is expected to start shooting in May.  The stage version is on a temporary hiatus while the production moves to a new theater, but it's set to re-open on Broadway in March.

Movie Moan TV - 'The Insider' (1999)

You know the drill folks, it's time for the moan of the week.  Stop squinting at 'Spider-man' set pics trying to make out the mask and spend 20 minutes of your valuable time with the Movie Moan crew as we take a look back at Michael Mann's best film, 'The Insider'.

"POTC: On Stranger Tides" Photos

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Rob Marshall, “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” captures the fun, adventure and humor that ignited the hit franchise—this time in Disney Digital 3D™. Johnny Depp returns to his iconic role of Captain Jack Sparrow in an action-packed adventure. Crossing paths with the enigmatic Angelica (Penelope Cruz), he’s not sure if it’s love—or if she’s a ruthless con artist who’s using him to find the fabled Fountain of Youth. When she forces him aboard the “Queen Anne’s Revenge,” the ship of the legendary pirate Blackbeard (Ian McShane), Jack finds himself on an unexpected adventure in which he doesn’t know whom to fear more: Blackbeard or Angelica, with whom he shares a mysterious past. The international cast includes franchise vets Geoffrey Rush as the vengeful Captain Hector Barbossa and Kevin R. McNally as Captain Jack’s longtime comrade Joshamee Gibbs, plus Sam Claflin as a stalwart missionary and Astrid Berges-Frisbey as a mysterious mermaid.

"11-11-11" Concept Art

On 11-11-11 a gateway will open and something from another world will pass into ours.

After the tragic death of his wife and child, famed American author Joseph Crone travels from the United States to Barcelona, Spain to reunite with his enstranged brother Samuel and dying father, Richard. However, fate has a different plan for Joseph as his life becomes plagued with strange happenings, and the constant sightings of the number 11. Curiosity quickly turns to obsession, and Joseph soon realizes that this number holds a horrific meaning not only to himself but possibly to all of religion. Isolated in a foreign country with only the support of his companion, Sadie, Joseph soon realizes that 11/11/11 is more than just a date, it's a WARNING!"