Andrea Berloff is Writing N.W.A. Biopic

THR is reporting, Andrea Berloff, who wrote Oliver Stone's true-life movie "World Trade Center," is tackling the story of seminal rap group N.W.A.

Berloff is writing "Straight Outta Compton," the story of the rise and fall of the Compton, Calif.-based group, whose initials read Niggas With Attitude. The members included drug dealer turned label founder Eazy-E, young disc jockey Dr. Dre and the politically bent Ice Cube, plus MC Ren and DJ Yella.

Another member, Arabian Prince, left N.W.A. before the group released the ground-breaking "Straight Outta Compton" album in 1988. The album, which featured the title track as well as "Fuck tha Police," introduced gangsta rap to the world and triggered sales of 9 million units.

As the group rose, however, egos and jealousies surfaced.

Cube left in 1990 over royalty disputes, went solo and warred with the group via songs. All grappled with violence, charges of anti-Semitism, misogyny and homophobia, and even more infighting, this time between Eazy-E and Dr. Dre.

Eazy-E's death, from AIDS-related causes, set the ex-members on a reconciliatory path. Cube has gone on to a successful career as an actor and producer, and Dre has become a top music producer.

Cube and Matt Alvarez are producing via Cube Vision. Eazy-E's widow, Tomica Woods, who inherited his share of the song rights, also is producing. Michelle Weiss and Dave Neustadter are overseeing for New Line.

Box Office Report: April 30 - May 2

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1.  A Nightmare on Elm Street - $32.2 million

2.  How to Train Your Dragon - $10.8 million 

3.  Date Night  - $7.6 million

4.  The Back-Up Plan - $7.2 million

5.  Furry Vengeance - $6.5 million

6.  The Losers - $6 million

7.  Clash of the Titans - $5.9 million

8.  Kick-Ass - $4.4 million

9.  Death at a Funeral - $4 million

10.  Oceans - $2.6 million

As expected, the remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street ran away with the weekend, grossing an impressive $32 million.  However, the film took a steep 33% drop from Friday to Saturday, which means word-of-mouth on Freddy's return to the big screen was not too good (the Cinemascore rating from theatergoers could only manage a low C+), and it should fall in spectacular fashion when the summer movie season kicks off with the release of Iron Man 2 next weekend.

Regardless, Nightmare's weekend was good enough to make New Line happy - a 3D sequel is reportedly already in the works.  Then again, a 3D sequel was also planned for the Friday the 13th remake, and now that's no longer happening.

Speaking of Iron Man 2, that film has already grossed $100.2 since it was released in 53 territories overseas last week.

How to Train Your Dragon continued to do well at the box office this weekend, claiming the #2 spot and adding another $10.8 million, bringing its domestic total to $192 million.  Expect those grosses to drop a bit next weekend when Iron Man 2 takes over most of the IMAX screens (although it will still dominate the 3D screenings).

Are we noticing an Iron Man 2 pattern here?  This weekend is like the calm before the storm...

The rest of the weekend's box office was fairly unremarkable.  The moronic-looking Furry Vengeance flopped with just $6.5 million and just barely cracked the top 5.  The Back-Up Plan held up somewhat well with $7.2 million, but still couldn't pass Date Night, which held on to the #3 spot and has now grossed a total $73.6 million domestically.

The Losers, which tanked on its opening weekend, continued to do so this weekend.  It's total gross stands at just $18 million after 10 days of release.  Sadly, Kick-Ass seems to be fading from the top ten as well, dropping 52% from last weekend and grossing only $4.4 million.

So now that the weekend is done...start cueing up the AC/DC soundtrack for next weekend, when the box office numbers should be exploding into the stratosphere with the release of Iron Man 2.  And not a moment too soon.

Tron Legacy Banners

I have a confession to make...calm yourselves it's not that type of confession........no it's a confession that despite being a child of the 80's I have never seen Tron, however I plan to rectify that situation before the spiffy new sequel is released.

/Film has gotten hold of a new banner for the film and included the previous 3, all of which you can view in order below!

New Salt Images

No not the stuff you put on your chips/fries, images from the decidely clunky looking Angelina Jolie thriller courtesy of Latino Review.

 

Matthew Vaughn to Direct X-Men: First Class?

Could Matthew Vaughn finally be getting his chance to direct an X-Men movie?  Entertainment Weekly is reporting that Vaughn is officially in talks with Fox to direct the prequel film X-Men: First Class. 

Vaughn, as fanboys remember all too well, was originally set to direct X-Men: The Last Stand, but left the film due to reported family issues.  Or issues with the studio.  Or issues with the script and the lack of time he was going to have to finish the film in time for its Memorial Day 2006 release date.  Or a combination of all of the issues above.  Seriously, pick a rumor.   

Ultimately, Fox hired Brett Ratner to direct X3.  And the less said about that, the better.

The original plan was for Bryan Singer to return to direct First Class, but he was unavailable due to his commitment to direct WB's Jack the Giant Killer.  However, Singer will stay on as a producer for this film, and possibly several other X-Men projects currently in the works.

According EW, Vaughn is not the only person being considered for the First Class job.  Fox is apparently keeping their options open (smart, considering Vaughn did walk last time) and have been speaking to several directors.  We don't know yet who else they are speaking to, but as HitFix reported last month, these other directors are "good names, guys who either have real experience in the comic book movie medium or who have heavy credibility with fan audiences.  Names that would make fanboys happy from the first moment they're announced."

I would say the director of Kick-Ass being considered to direct the next X-Men film definitely sounds promising.  So which other 'names that would make fanboys happy' do we hope Fox is talking to? 

UPDATE:  Deadline is now reporting that Vaughn is most likely passing on the project, claiming negotiations with the studio were "touch and go."  They also report that Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted), Louis Leterrier (The Incredible Hulk, Clash of the Titans), David Slade (30 Days of Night), Daniel Espinoza, and Carl Erick Rinsch are among the directors being considered for the film, which they are hoping to start shooting in the late summer or early fall.  Expect an official announcement soon.

Piranha 3D Official Trailer

I am usually a sucker for these types of movies, a good underwater monster flick is one of my guilty pleasure, and I make no apologies for recommending "Frankenfish" to other fans of the genre.

Here though we have one mediocre looking entry into the genre, it's directed by Alexandre Aja who was the man behind the excellent "The Hills Have Eyes" remake, but this just looks dull and the CGI is very poor, the fact the film is also a 3D release is no excuse, the only saving grace is Christopher Loyd tapping into his Doc Brown character as a Piranha expert - "This particular Piranha vanished 2 million years ago!!!!" is easily the highlight of the trailer.

Piranha 3D opens August 27th and you can see the trailer below.

Teaser trailer for Buried

Ryan Reynolds is of course best known for comedies, but next year he will look to step up to action hero blockbuster status as he headlines Warner Bros, DC comics adaption of Green Lantern, however Reynolds has also tried his hand at indies and this is the teaser for one such film.

Buried has a very simple premise, Reynolds character (Paul Conroy) wakes up to find himself buried alive, he has 90 minutes to try and find a way to be rescued. Now personally I am claustrophobic so this may not be for me but I've heard the script is superb, the teaser though is a bit too clever for it's own good, I think the reveal shot needs to be slightly longer with a closer look at Reynolds.

Buried opens September 24th and you can see the teaser below.

"GI Joe 2" coming 2012?

MTV recently talked to G.I Joe producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura about the upcoming sequel.

Although they don't actually have a finished copy of the script yet, he hopes they'll be in production for next spring, setting them up for a summer 2012 release date.

he wouldn't confirm which of the cast was returning or who would be directing, and when asked about shooting in 3D, he said:

"No, I mean we're still working on getting the script. I'd definitely be open to it, but that's Paramount's decision. But myself and whoever the director is would have a big say in that. But at this point, we haven't gotten into that conversation."

I personally hoped that G.I. Joe 2 would never see the light of day. The first one was awful, I can't believe that was even made, but it did go on to  make 300 million world wide at the box office. I would think this time around if we actually see the sequel get made, it won't  be doing as well at the box office, the curiosity is no longer there, and the turd has shown it self.

As it stands already, 2012 is looking like a very busy year. We have the Spider-Man reboot, The Avengers, and the newly confirmed Batman 3 and Superman reboot.

With all this to look forward to, does anyone really want to spend their hard earned money on a G.I Joe sequel?

Is Tommy Lee Jones in Captain America?

Just recently it was reported that Tommy Lee Jones along with Will Smith were returning to do Men In Black 3. Well now news has emerged of Jones possibly appearing in Captain America as well. With both movies set for release next year (well presumably MIB3), how is Jones able to do both?

this is what UGO had to say:

According to a source close to UGO, Tommy Lee Jones might be a very busy man this summer. Along with the previously announced Men in Black 3, Jones is in negotiations to appear in Marvel's The First Avenger: Captain America. And they say aging actors don't have a place in Hollywood anymore. Ha!

So who would he playing? That we're not sure about, but Jones has the gruff, stone cold look of a military man, which makes perfect sense in Captain America's WWII-era storyline. I'm sure there's a certain secret super soldier program that's looking for a leader...

What do you think, is Tommy Lee Jones someone you'd like to see in Captain America? I certainly wouldn't mind, but I am curious at to what actual role he'd be taking on.

Check back to TMT for more on Captain America over this next year.

batman 3 coming july 2012

 

Warner Bros has finally made it official, and it's about damn time!

The third installment in the Chris Nolan directed Batman franchise will hit theaters on July 20, 2012 in conventional and IMAX theatres!

That is a little over two weeks after Sony Pictures is releasing their Spider-Man reboot on July 3, 2012, but I'll be expecting to hear that Spider-Man's getting the bump back to May, with news of Batman set to take over July.

The most recent Batman film directed by Chris Nolan, The Dark Knight earned over 1 billion world wide at the box office.With The Dark Knight, Batman faced both Heath Ledgers Oscar winning turn as the Joker and Aaron Eckhart has Harvey Dent/ Two Face.

If I had to guess, we'll be getting the official Batman 3 title before the end of the summer, and we'll be hearing some if not all the casting news along with a possible synopsis by the end of the year. Production will likely start early next year, with a possible teaser trailer at next years Comic Con, similar to what we got in 2007 with the The Dark Knight.

Check back to TMT, as we'll be covering the Batman 3 news rigorously over the next couple years.