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At the Oscars last night, E! caught up with Iron Man 2 director Jon Favreau, who said that Emily Blunt was officially out as Black Widow for Iron Man 2. According to The Playlist, Favreau told E! that Fox was indeed exercising their option on Blunt for Gulliver's Travels, and that she won't be available for Iron Man 2. Maybe now Eliza Dushku's campaign for the role is more than wishful thinking!
Favreau also mentioned that while Mickey Rourke was not "officially cast," Favreau was still a big fan of Rourke. We have an idea of what may entice Rourke to sign on: a sum of money above $250,000.
Posted 02.23.09 by Ryan -
It's raining Harry Potter clips! First, there is MTV's footage from its visit to the set of Harry Potter and and Half-Blood Prince, which features interviews with Dan Radcliffe (Harry), Rupert Grint (Ron), Emma Watson (Hermione) and Jessie Cave (Lavender). Then there is the very brief clip that was aired during the Oscars, which at least included a new glimpse of Dumbledore and Harry in the cave. Best of all though is the first look at a new trailer that showed up on MSN Australia. It includes some dramatic footage of Harry and Dumbledore fighting the Inferi and Death Eaters attacking the Burrow, along with a sprinkling of romantic and humorous interludes. And to top it off, new interview clips from cast and crew. As the host introducing the show puts it, "If that doesn't whet your appetite, nothing will."
Posted 02.23.09 by reelz -
New Moon isn't even shooting yet, but a third Twilight flick is already in the works. Summit Entertainment has announced a film of the third book, Eclipse, to be released on June 30, 2010. That's less than 8 months after New Moon is set to be released on November 20, 2009, so it's not like they're rushing these movies out or anything.
No word yet on cast or who will direct Eclipse. Maybe Summit will want to test drive Chris Weitz on New Moon before signing him on to any future films.
Posted 02.23.09 by reelz -
It was undoubtedly a night of triumph for Slumdog Millionaire at the Oscars. And it was a particularly exciting night for the kids in the movie who literally stole the show but have so far come away with surprisingly little monetary reward for their work. They held up pretty well in their little tuxedos and evening gowns for a very awkward red carpet interview with E!'s Ryan Seacrest, who evaded the issue of actually pronouncing their names by flashing a cast list in front of the camera and urging them to shout their names all at once, not realizing that some of them didn't understand him because they didn't speak English. Yikes.
Posted 02.23.09 by reelz -
In the final interview of the night, Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle and producer Christian Colson spoke about the tremendous success of their small, independent movie made for only "7 million pounds" in the day of $100-million budgets and the importance of having independent movies in the days of huge blockbusters "The studios -- and it's difficult of course, because they are under pressure -- the studios have got to protect them as well. Because that's where everybody starts, and they go on," said Boyle, who started out with the low-budget thriller Shallow Grave, about which Boyle reminded the press:
The whole film cost a million pounds. That's where you learn your craft, and you don't know what you are doing, you know. And I think that keeping it that way, you don't know what you are doing half the time; it's really important.
Considering Slumdog's almost-$100-million box office and 8 Oscars, it seems like "not knowing what you are doing" worked out well for the uplifting love story, which Boyle described as a "heavily disguised love story."
And all the success sure feels good. Boyle described the night by quoting W.H. Auden:
He talks about Americans 'putting jukeboxes on the moon.' I love that expression, and that's what tonight feels like. Just amazing like that. The bringing together of things that are just so unlikely, and yet wonderful, and about entertainment and pleasure and exploring things and changing things.
Posted 02.23.09 by Ryan -
Sean Penn, who next to Best Original Screenplay winner Dustin Lance Black, made the most political statements in his acceptance speech, was asked mostly political questions backstage after his Oscar win. Both Penn and Black were asked what they think President Obama should do about gay rights in America. Penn felt confident that gay rights would change:
We know his public position as far as the specific issue of gay marriage has not been, let's say, officially supportive of that. I would like to believe that that's a political stand right now and not necessarily a future one or a felt one. Because it's not a luxury, it's a human need, [Obama]'ll adapt. I'm more focused in letting him know that we will support him in taking those kinds of initiatives.
Earlier, Black was also vocal about gay rights after he accepted his Oscar:
There's a few things that I would love him to do immediately, which is to repeal "don't ask don't tell," and DMA, Defensive Marriage Act. But I do think that for inspiration for the gay community, we need to look not to Proposition 8, but dream bigger and look back to 1964 and the Civil Rights Act, because no group has ever won full civil rights in this country going state by state or county by county. I think it is time for the gay and lesbian community to have a federal civil rights act for full civil rights.
As for Mickey Rourke, Penn continued to be complimentary to the actor he took the Oscar from:
I've known Mickey for over 25 years. He had me almost throughout The Wrestler, weeping. Comebacks are funny, and we talk about it with [Rourke], but everyone in this room has to make a comeback every day. I think what's sensational about him is what's always sensational about him; he's one of the great poetic talents in acting that we have.
Posted 02.23.09 by Ryan -
In the press room, Kate Winslet was asked whom she would like to pass the gutsy nude-scene torch to, and Winslet took a long time to answer. "I got to go for a woman actually and be really controversial. Susan Sarandon."
Winslet said she still feels like a "Reading [England, her hometown] girl," telling backstage that her parents, who were at the Oscars, were pretty excited about her mother winning a pickled onion competition. She posed with her Oscar in front of the microphone for the local Reading paper. "This is for you," she said.
As for the possible actor's strike, Winslet says "I really, really hope we don't strike right now. Not for us actors here, but for the actors like my dad who depended on the occasional voice over or commercial job."
Back to the nude scenes, how was it for her to do a nude scene with her husband as director? "He saw me nude before he ever met me, so honestly he's used to it."
Posted 02.23.09 by Ryan -
After winning for Best Animated Feature Film, director Andrew Stanton was asked if the character development and depth of WALL-E was a sign of where animated movies were heading:
To be honest we were trying to go that deep with the first movie we made at Pixar. Toy Story was an attempt to just show that it's a movie and we just happen to be using animation as a medium to tell it. It's like saying because it's in black and white suddenly it means it has to be a cop movie or mystery. It's very odd. We have just been trying to make the most sophisticated film that we can with the very deep characters, and we assume that if it's well told then any age will understand it. So, that's been sort of the same attack on every film.
While Stanton already has an Oscar, he was no less pleased with the Oscar for WALL-E:
WALL-E really was the most unique personal film I could have made, and I really expected it to speak to a minority, not a majority, because I felt I had gotten away with that with Nemo. So, to get this kind of response, it just really gives you a lot of confidence to listen to that little voice inside you again the next time.
For more with Stanton, read our pre-Oscars interview.
Posted 02.23.09 by Ryan