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| 'Percy Jackson's' Jake Abel, Nia Vardalos to star in 'Forget Me Not' Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:50 PM PDT By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Rising star Jake Abel ("The Host"), Nia Vardalos and Philip Baker Hall are attached to star in "Forget Me Not," an indie movie that Michael Mailis ("Act of Valor") and Benjamin Scott ("Lovelace") are producing, TheWrap has learned. Michael Aloyan will make his feature directorial debut with the film, which is expected to start production early next year. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Veronica Mars' creator developing modern 'Les Miserables' adaptation for Fox Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:48 PM PDT By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "Veronica Mars" creator Rob Thomas is tackling Victor Hugo for Fox. Thomas is developing a contemporary take on Hugo's novel "Les Miserables," which has been given a script commitment with penalty by Fox. The one-hour drama project, which Thomas is executive producing with Danielle Stokdyk and Dan Etheridge, is billed as a primetime soap about a brilliant lawyer running a legal exoneration program who fights to evade the consequences of his own unjust conviction many years before. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sundance movie 'God Loves Uganda' gets theatrical release from Variance Films Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:47 PM PDT By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Variance Films has announced that Roger Ross Williams' "God Loves Uganda" will be released theatrically in New York City on October 11, before expanding to theaters across the U.S. and Canada throughout the fall and into early 2014. In "God Loves Uganda," Oscar-winning filmmaker Williams ("Music by Prudence") explores the role of the American Evangelical movement in fueling Uganda's terrifying turn towards biblical law and the proposed death penalty for homosexuality. ... Full Story | Top |
| Weinstein Co. expanding Wong Kar-wai's 'The Grandmaster' into 749 theaters Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:45 PM PDT  By Todd Cunningham LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Coming off a big opening, the Weinstein Company is aggressively expanding director Wong Kar-wai's martial arts action film "The Grandmaster" this weekend. It will be in 749 theaters starting Friday, after opening in seven theaters last weekend. It brought in $132,259 for a $18,894 average - the highest of any film in release for that frame. "The Grandmaster" is based on the life of martial-arts master Ip Man (played by Tony Leung Chiu Wai), best known in America as the man who trained Bruce Lee. ... Full Story | Top |
| Naomi Watts-Matt Dillon movie 'Sunlight Jr.' acquired by Gravitas Ventures Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:42 PM PDT  By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Gravitas Ventures has acquired all North American rights to Laurie Collyer's "Sunlight Jr." which stars Naomi Watts, Norman Reedus and Matt Dillon, the company announced on Thursday. Gravitas will partner with Samuel Goldwyn Films for the release. The film will have a pre-theatrical VOD opening before opening in theaters this November. "Sunlight Jr." recently screened in competition at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival. ... Full Story | Top |
| Actress Valerie Harper's brain cancer nearing remission: doctor Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:36 PM PDT  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actress Valerie Harper's brain cancer is nearing remission, her physician said in an excerpt of a documentary that was shown on NBC's "Today" show on Thursday. "I'd say that we're getting pretty close to remission," neuro-oncologist Dr. Jeremy Rudnick said in a documentary that will air next month on the U.S. network. "It defies the odds," he added, as Harper sat listening to the results of tests conducted in June. Harper, 74, won four Emmy Awards for her signature role of Rhoda Morgenstern on the hit 1970s sitcoms "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and spin-off "Rhoda. ... Full Story | Top |
| Batman and Superman movie headed to Detroit, lured by $35 million in incentives Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:10 PM PDT By Brent Lang LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Gotham and Metropolis be damned: Batman and Superman are headed to the Motor City. The hotly anticipated Warner Bros. film uniting the two DC Comics heroes will be shot in Detroit and throughout Michigan, the Michigan Film Office said Thursday. The film will receive $35 million in incentives and is expected to spend $131 million in the state. More than 400 Michigan residents will be hired for the production and 500 local vendors will be used during shooting. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Futurama' finale gets pre- and post-shows from Comedy Central Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:08 PM PDT By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Good news, everyone! The series finale of "Futurama" is going out with a bang. The September 4 finale of the Matt Groening animated series will be bookended with pre- and post-shows that will be live-streamed by Comedy Central. The first show will feature a chat with Groening and "Futurama" executive producer David X. Cohen, which will be moderated by Nerdist's Chris Hardwick, who hosts the AMC after-shows "The Talking Dead" and "Talking Bad. ... Full Story | Top |
| Roger Waters targeted with boycott by German Jewish group: report Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:07 PM PDT  By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - A Jewish group is calling for a boycott of an upcoming concert by former Pink Floyd leader Roger Waters, claiming that the musician uses anti-Semitic imagery in his current tour. In his show "The Wall," Rogers uses an inflatable pig with a Star of David on it as a stage prop, though the pig also has other religious, political and corporate emblems emblazoned on it. Michael Szentei-Heise, the director of the Jewish Community in Dusseldorf, urged the boycott of Walters' September 6 concert in the German city, the Associated Press reports. ... Full Story | Top |
| CBS ad enlists football stars in bid to end Time Warner blackout Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:05 PM PDT By Ronald Grover and Liana B. Baker (Reuters) - CBS Corp aired ads in three major U.S. markets this week urging fans to switch television providers before the start of the professional and college football seasons to pressure Time Warner Cable Inc to end a month-long blackout over fee increases. The ads, which feature a much-anticipated matchup between star sibling NFL quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning, are designed to highlight what Time Warner subscribers would miss should the blackout in those major markets extends into the rabidly followed football season. ... Full Story | Top |
| Richard Linklater documentary 'Double Play' gets FilmBuff release Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:05 PM PDT By Greg Gilman LOS ANGLES (TheWrap.com) - FilmBuff will release Gabe Klinger's documentary, "Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater," the company announced on Thursday. The film, which follows the filmmakers as they talk about sports, art and friendship over the course of a leisurely weekend in Austin, Tex., makes its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 3. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Bullwinkle Show' voice actress wins TV Academy's Governors Award Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:04 PM PDT  By Steve Pond LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Veteran voice artist June Foray, the voice of Rocket J. Squirrel and Natasha Fatale on "The Bullwinkle Show," Cindy Lou Who in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and Granny in the Tweety and Sylvester cartoons, has been named recipient of the 2013 Governors Award by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, ATAS chairman Bruce Rosenblum announced on Thursday. Foray, 95, has been in the entertainment business for more than 80 years, and over the last 60 she has become known as "The First Lady of Cartoon Voices. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Yo! MTV Raps' special marathon to air Labor Day weekend Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 05:01 PM PDT By Tony Maglio LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - MTV is celebrating the end of the summer with a three-day long "Yo! MTV Raps" marathon. MTV Jams, the network's 24-hour hip-hop music channel, will feature a countdown of the 100 most-played music videos during the iconic rap show's era, 1988 to 1995. MTV will also air some of the series' most memorable moments and interviews, including the 1989 boycott of the Grammys, when Will Smith - then The Fresh Prince - and DJ Jazzy Jeff won for "Parents Just Don't Understand," but rap wasn't included on the telecast. ... Full Story | Top |
| Singer Fergie, actor Josh Duhamel welcome first child together Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:53 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Fergie, the singer of pop-rap group the Black Eyed Peas, has given birth to a boy in Los Angeles on Thursday, a representative for her actor-husband Josh Duhamel said. Axl Jack Duhamel weighed 7 lb and 10 ounces (3.5 kg), Duhamel spokeswoman Ruth Bernstein said. It is the first child for both Fergie, who recently changed her first name from Stacy to her stage name, and Duhamel. Fergie, 38, rose to prominence when her addition to the Black Eyed Peas lineup coincided with a string of breakout hits for the group from their 2003 album "Elephunk. ... Full Story | Top |
| '2016: Obama's America' director sets sights on 'conspiracy nut' Michael Moore, Hollywood liberals Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:51 PM PDT By Todd Cunningham LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The conservative creator and co-director of last year's hit documentary "2016: Obama's America" is urging moviegoers to send a message to not just filmmaker Michael Moore but Hollywood's liberals by voting at the box office. It's not due in theaters until next year's Fourth of July, but Dinesh D'Souza says that he wants his next movie - "America," a look at "the meaning of what America the country was, is and should be" - to replace Moore's "Farenheit 9/11" as the highest-grossing political documentary of all time. ... Full Story | Top |
| James Brown biopic 'Get on Up' hitting theaters in October 2014 Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:46 PM PDT By Brent Lang LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "The Godfather of Soul" will face off against Frankenstein. "Get On Up," Tate Taylor's biopic of James Brown, will hit theaters on October 17, 2014. That release date pits it against "Frankenstein," a new version of the oft-told Mary Shelley horror story with Daniel Radcliffe and James McAvoy. "Get on Up" stars "42"s' Chadwick Boseman as the hardest working man in show business. Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer are being eyed for supporting roles. Both women starred in Taylor's 2011 hit "The Help. ... Full Story | Top |
| Echo Bridge vet Daniel March launches Dynamic Television Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:41 PM PDT By Tim Molloy LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Former Echo Bridge Entertainment executive Daniel March has launched his own company, with 160 of "Conan" among its shows available for licensing. March's Dynamic Television will be based in Los Angeles and will debut at Mipcom in October. March is the former international president of Echo Bridge. Dynamic's slate includes nine made-for-television movies, including Syfy's "Invasion Roswell" and "Dragon Throne." The movies will be available for the first time for international licensing. ... Full Story | Top |
| James Spader to play Ultron in 'Avengers' sequel Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:39 PM PDT  By Brent Lang LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "Boston Legal" star James Spader will square off against Earth's Mightiest Heroes as the malevolent robot Ultron in Marvel's "Avengers: Age of Ultron." For non-fanboys, Ultron is a powerful artificial intelligence who, taking the form of a shiny humanoid robot, brings the super-team to its knees. To what extent Spader will actually play Ultron - as opposed to just doing voiceover - will depend on how much license Joss Whedon takes with the Ultron story, which the director has already indicated will stray from the recent comicbook run of the same title. ... Full Story | Top |
| Epix lands 'Milius,' about 'Apocalypse Now' writer Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:36 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - EPIX has acquired the U.S. rights to the new documentary "Milius," about the writer of "Apocalypse Now" and his fall from Hollywood grace. It will also screen at the Telluride Film Festival. The documentary, which will premiere on EPIX and all platforms including EpixHD.com and on EPIX apps, looks at the conservative filmmaker who worked on "Jaws," "Conan the Barbarian" and "Dirty Harry" and mentored George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. ... Full Story | Top |
| Miley Cyrus re-brands herself with raunchy VMA shocker: A success or major fail? Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:34 PM PDT  By Tony Maglio LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Miley Cyrus knows what she's doing - but that doesn't mean you have to like her, because she probably doesn't care. At least, she's pretending not to. So says Linda Ong, president and brand strategist at TruthCo., a Brooklyn-based company that specializes in creating brands with cultural impact. The firm has worked with networks such as MTV (though not on the Video Music Awards), A&E, ABC and The CW, among others. Ong is surprised at the shock created by Cyrus' twerk-heavy, racy VMAs performance on Sunday. ... Full Story | Top |
| Foam finger inventor says Miley Cyrus 'degraded an honorable icon' Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:32 PM PDT  By Sara Morrison LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The man credited with inventing the foam finger - like the one Miley Cyrus brought to the forefront of national attention at Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards - is not her No. 1 fan. Iowa native Steve Chmelar, who created the foam finger prototype in 1971 (which Geral Fauss would later go on to mass produce in 1978), said he didn't like his invention's newfound infamy. "She took an honorable icon that is seen in sporting venues everywhere and degraded it," Chmelar told FoxSports. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Pretty Little Liars' finale hits record in viewers & tweets Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 03:30 PM PDT  By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "Pretty Little Liars" racked up some pretty big numbers with its summer finale Tuesday. The ABC Family series pulled in 3.3 million total viewers, making it the most-watched summer finale in the series' history, and a season high for total viewership. In the 18-49 demographic most important to advertisers, "Pretty Little Liars" drew 1.8 million viewers - also a high for summer finales and a best for the season. ... Full Story | Top |
| TLC introduces progressive polygamists with 'My Five Wives' Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 02:55 PM PDT By Jethro Nededog LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - TLC is ready to introduce its viewers to a new polygamous family. But, if you're thinking this is a redux of its hit "Sister Wives" reality series, you may be pleasantly surprised by the show's twist on polygamist values. One-hour special, "My Five Wives," will premiere on September 15 at 9/8c and feature a polygamist family that left the Mormon Church in protest of its conservative beliefs, TheWrap has learned. As TLC has been known to do, the success of the special may lead to a series pickup for "My Five Wives. ... Full Story | Top |
| Justin Timberlake in talks to produce 'The Idolmaker' remake for MGM Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 02:50 PM PDT  By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Justin Timberlake is sticking with what he knows as he embarks on a film producing career, entering negotiations to produce MGM's remake of "The Idolmaker," multiple individuals familiar with the project have told TheWrap. Directed by Taylor Hackford, the original 1980 film was based on the life of rock promoter/producer Bob Marcucci, who discovered acts such as teen idols Frankie Avalon and Fabian. Timberlake currently has no plans to star, though one insider cautions that could change depending on the script and who winds up directing. ... Full Story | Top |
| Box Office: 'One Direction: This Is Us' should be no. 1 - but can it touch Miley and Bieber? Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 02:48 PM PDT  By Todd Cunningham LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "One Direction: This Is Us," the 3D concert movie from the red-hot British boy band that opens nationwide Friday, is the clear favorite to close out summer with a win at the Labor Day weekend box office. With analysts projecting a four-day total of around $20 million, returns for "One Direction" aren't likely to match the box-office haul of previous concert films from Justin Bieber or Miley Cyrus. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'One Direction: This Is Us' review: An infomercial as amiable and disposable as the boy band's songs Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 02:45 PM PDT  By Alonso Duralde LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The closest that "One Direction: This Is Us" gets to actual rock 'n' roll is when members of the British boy band wear Rolling Stones or Doors T-shirts. But for audiences willing to spend some time basking in the glow of the teen sensation of the moment, this docu-music-infomercial is as palatable, and as disposable, as the group's hit songs. One Direction, best known for their global hit "What Makes You Beautiful," is as pre-fab as any band since the Monkees; the five lads in the group had all auditioned separately for the U.K. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sheryl Crow finds new 'home' in country music's Nashville Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 02:04 PM PDT  By Tim Ghianni NASHVILLE, Tennessee (Reuters) - Sheryl Crow has spent the past seven years living the country life in country music's capital with her country music friends, but the Grammy-winning rocker has only now come around to recording a country music album. "Feels Like Home," which will be released on September 10, is the culmination of the 51-year-old mother of two's latest musical conversion, this time into a country singer. ... Full Story | Top |
| Australian trek, Sicilian stand-off feature at Venice film fest opening Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 01:05 PM PDT  By Isla Binnie VENICE (Reuters) - The real-life story of a young woman's trek across the Australian desert with four camels and a film about a stand-off between two female Sicilian motorists opened the competition for the 70th Venice film festival on Thursday. The 10-day cinema circus showcases 3,470 feature-length and short films, of which 20 new works have been selected to compete for eight awards including the coveted Golden Lion for best film. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sandra Bullock: I will do comedy 'until the day I die' Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 12:03 PM PDT  By Michael Roddy VENICE (Reuters) - Sandra Bullock put in a call to the astronauts on the International Space Station for tips on how to play her latest role in space drama "Gravity", but America's "Miss Congeniality" says she will never give up playing comic roles. "I will do comedy until the day I die: inappropriate comedy, funny comedy, gender-bending, twisting comedy, whatever comedy is out there," Bullock said on Thursday in an interview with Reuters Television. ... Full Story | Top |
| Egypt to clamp down on Al Jazeera's Egyptian channel Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 10:46 AM PDT  By Omar Fahmy CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's military-backed government is to clamp down on Al Jazeera's Egyptian television channel, accusing it of threatening national security, the state news agency MENA said on Thursday. The channel this week aired statements from two leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood including a call for protests against Egypt's new rulers. The army toppled Islamist President Mohamed Mursi last month after nationwide protests and security forces have arrested most of the movement's leaders and killed hundreds of its supporters. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Mistress' tops U.S. best-sellers list for third straight week Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 10:02 AM PDT NEW YORK (Reuters) - "Mistress," a political thriller by James Patterson and David Ellis, stayed atop the list of best-selling U.S. books on Thursday for its third consecutive week at the No. 1 spot. The list is compiled using data from independent and chain bookstores, book wholesalers and independent distributors nationwide. Hardcover Fiction Last Week 1. "Mistress," by James Patterson and David Ellis (Little, Brown, $28.00) 1 2. "The Cuckoo's Calling" by Robert Galbraith (Mulholland, $26.00) 2 3. "Inferno" by Dan Brown (Doubleday, $29.95) 4 4. ... Full Story | Top |
| Book Talk: Classic memoir author Walls plunges into fiction Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 09:32 AM PDT By Bernard Vaughan NEW YORK (Reuters) - "The Silver Star," a new novel by Jeannette Walls, stars two young sisters left largely to fend for themselves while their unstable mother pursues a questionable music career. It's a scenario Walls knows well, as readers of her best-selling 2005 memoir, "The Glass Castle," can attest. The book chronicled Walls' and her siblings' upbringing by an erratic father and a mother who cared more about painting than parenting. Since then, the former journalist has turned to fiction, publishing "Half Broke Horses," based on her grandmother, in 2009. ... Full Story | Top |
| Entertainer Rolf Harris charged with 13 child sex offences Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 08:27 AM PDT  By Belinda Goldsmith LONDON (Reuters) - Australian entertainer Rolf Harris was charged with 13 child sex offences on Thursday as part of an investigation by British police into child abuse that has led to the arrest of more than a dozen aging celebrities. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Harris, 83, faced nine counts of indecent assault related to two girls aged under 16 in the 1980s, and four offences of making indecent images of a child last year. ... Full Story | Top |
| WPP raises 2013 forecast as rivals' merger spurs acquisitions Thursday, Aug 29, 2013 04:47 AM PDT  By Paul Sandle and Belinda Goldsmith LONDON (Reuters) - WPP, the world's largest advertising agency, slightly raised its 2013 forecast on Thursday due to rising revenues and said the merger of two major rivals would spur it to step up its pace of small and medium acquisitions. WPP posted a 12 percent rise in headline pre-tax profits for the first half to 524 million pounds ($810 million) with a 7.1 percent rise in first-half reported revenue to 5.3 billion pounds, broadly in line with market forecasts. ... Full Story | Top |
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