Chris Evans

By Rob Keyes – ScreenRant.com

Finally, an actual step forward in casting the title character of The First Avenger: Captain America! Chris Evans, one of the top contenders recently listed to be in the running to play Captain America for Marvel Studios in a 9-picture deal has been reportedly been offered the role of a lifetime, hopefully putting an end to the rumors and speculation.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Heat Vision blog has scooped the info and says Marvel has yet to release an official announcement and Evans’ reps at CAA have declined to comment.

Evans is certainly not an “unknown” actor as director Joe Johnston described as their ideal leading man, and comic fans are well aware of him from his stint playing that other Marvel Comics character, Johnny Storm aka Human Torch, in the two Fantastic Four films. He also has roles in two upcoming comic book movies in The Losers and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, so he’s definitely making a run at Ryan Reynolds for number of key characters played in comic book movies.

Evans is typically typecast into playing witty fast-talking comedy relief type characters but in this role he’ll have to play the 1940s era charming hero and leave the comedy to Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark character when it comes to The Avengers.

It almost feels as if over the last few weeks, a whole pile of names was thrown out to the public through various sources and leaks to just gauge the response to each. Of all the actors listed as a “candidate” for the role, the idea of Evans as Steve Rogers definitely had the most positive reception from fans and blogs. Even I admitted in our post about Channing Tatum and Ryan Phillippe that although I wasn’t sure if I could picture him in the role just yet, that if it’s not him who is chosen, it would have to be an unknown – He’s the only listed “name” actor who was acceptable for my preference.

Of the known actors rumored for the role, Evans certainly tops the list and I think fans will easily warm up to the idea very quickly should he accept the role. The one hitch that may put a damper on the situation is that Evans is currently committed to a role in the romantic comedy What’s Your Number? opposite Anna Faris. That flick is scheduled to shoot this summer as well but I’m sure they’ll have to make arrangements to make this work. This is a role (or 9) you cannot pass on.

The First Avenger: Captain America hits July 22, 2011 and The Avengers is scheduled to debut May 4, 2012.

Fess Parker

By Duane Byrge – HollywoodReporter

Fess Parker, who starred as Davy Crockett in “Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier,” becoming a lifelong star to young Baby Boomers, has died of natural causes, according to reports. He was 85.

Parker also delighted young viewers with his performances in “Old Yeller” and “Daniel Boone.” In more recent years, he attained a second stardom as a winery owner of the sprawling Doubletree resort along beachfront Santa Barbara, Calif., and the Wine Country Inn & Spa in Los Olivos, Calif.

He was hugely popular among kids in the late 1950s, starring in such Disney films as “The Great Locomotive Chase,” “Westward Ho the Wagons!” and “The Light in the Forest.” He was named a Disney legend in 1991.

His appeal peaked with the nationwide Davy Crockett craze as little tykes bought the coon-skinned caps and belted out the popular refrains of “Davy Crockett.” He went on to star in other Disney creations centering on Crockett, including “Alias Jesse James” (1959), in which he appeared as Crockett. His casting by Walt Disney as Crockett was a bit of a fluke: Disney had requested to screen a sci-film film “Them!” which starred James Arness, whom Disney was considering for Crockett. Instead, Parker caught his eye in a bit role as a man frightened by an alien encounter. Arness, of course, went on to star as Matt Dillon in the popular TV series “Gunsmoke.”

Fess Parker in 1955

“Like many kids growing up in the ’50s, Davy Crockett was my first hero, and I had the coonskin cap to prove it,” said Disney CEO Bob Iger. “Fess Parker’s unforgettable, exciting and admirable performance as this American icon has remained with me all these years, as it has for his millions of fans around the world. Fess is truly a Disney legend, as is the heroic character he portrayed, and while he will certainly be missed, he will never be forgotten.”

Before attaining stardom with “Crockett,” Parker appeared in a string of Westerns and family films, beginning with “Springfield Rifle” (1952), in which he appeared with Gary Cooper and Lon Chaney. His athleticism and size — he was 6-foot-5 — won him the role of a baseball player in “The Kid From Left Field” (1953), his first notable role. During the early ’50s, he worked in TV and films, unusually in Western-related story lines, including such movies as “Untamed Frontier,” “Thunder Over the Plains” and “The Bounty Hunter.” He also played in such fare on TV, including the “Annie Oakley” series.

Following his late-’50s stardom, Parker roles became less frequent, reaching their high point with his portrayal of Daniel Boone in the TV series, which ran from 1964-69. Following the series, Parker was embroiled in a drawn-out suit against the show’s producer, who, Parker claimed, reneged on the profits-percentage agreements.

During the 1960s, he made several guest-star appearances on TV, including stints on such shows as “Dragnet,” “Death Valley Days,” “The Alfred Hitchcock Hour,” “Destry,” “Burke’s Law” and “The Andy Williams Show.”

Subsequently, however, he attained wealth not in entertainment but in real estate, hitting gold in Santa Barbara with his winery and sprawling, beachfront resort just east of the Santa Barbara pier. Through his hotel, Parker was supportive of the arts, donating rooms to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, and the Fess Parker Winery served as host to Shakespeare Santa Barbara for several years.

Fess Elisha Parker Jr., born Aug. 16, 1924, played college football at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene before transferring to the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied drama. He married Marcella Rinehart in 1960, and the couple had two children.

By Mark Langshaw– DigitalSpy.com

Dynamite Entertainment has acquired the publishing rights to Vampirella.

The firm agreed to purchase the license from Harris Publications, who launched a special one-shot to mark the character’s 40th anniversary last year.

“Vampirella is one of the most well-known and longest-running comic characters in the history of the business,” said Dynamite president Nick Barrucci.

“Outside of Marvel and DC characters, very few comics characters that debuted in the ’60s still resonate with fans today. Our acquisition of this iconic brand is another step in Dynamite’s exciting growth and builds on the ongoing success of our line.”

Harris president Stanley Harris added: “I am incredibly pleased to be passing the stewardship of Vampirella on to Dynamite. Dynamite has proven to be one of the premiere publishers in the comic book industry, and Vampirella couldn’t be in better and more caring hands.”

Vampirella debuted in 1969 as a horror story hostess in Vampirella #1. After being revamped as a protagonist, the character has featured in books by Warren Publishing and Manga as well as several dual company crossovers.

Dynamite is expected to unveil its plans for the character soon.

by Matt Barone – ReelLoop.com

It’s a plot synopsis custom-made for horror enthusiasts and more than likely repulsive to all others: two American girls are kidnapped by a mad German scientist and forced to participate in the sick man’s experiment, a fusion of the girls’ flesh-and-blood bodies, ass to mouth, to a Japanese man. Indeed. The title? The Human Centipede, naturally.

Written and directed by Dutch filmmaker Tom Six, The Human Centipede has been the talk of the gore community for months, with teaser trailers and stomach-churning clips wetting appetites (of the depraved). There’s been a question as to when non-festival-attending moviegoers would be able to see it, though…until today. Shock Til You Drop reports that IFC Films has scheduled an April 30 unveiling in New York City, followed by other cities in the proceeding weeks.

From IMDB:

Cast
Akihiro Kitamura … Katsuro
Dieter Laser … Dr.Heiter
Andreas Leupold … Det. Kranz
Ashley C. Williams … Lindsay
Ashlynn Yennie … Jenny

Make Up Department
Rachel Elbertse … makeup department head
Erik Hillenbrink … special makeup effects artist
Rob Hillenbrink … special makeup effects artist

Visual Effects Department
Simon Astbury … colourist
Tom Dunn … visual effects producer
Enge Gray … online editor
Alex Jevon … visual effects
Ryan Lewis … visual effects

by: Dave Davis – JoBlo.com

PANDORUM turned out to be one of my favorite flicks from last year, so I’m more than thrilled to hear director Christian Alvart is heading back into space again. Even if this trip won’t be quite a scary or grimy.

Alvart is bringing pulp character CAPTAIN FUTURE to life for a big-screen adventure. Popularized by science fiction writer Edmond Hamilton in the 1940s (and later as an anime series), the stories followed the exploits of brilliant scientist Curtis Newton as he roamed the solar system battling supervillains.

Discussing the project with Quiet Earth, Alvart talks about his approach: “We are developing CAPTAIN FUTURE as a big fun space opera for the whole family – hoping to recreate that same sense of excitement that I had discovering space through the CAPTAIN’s eyes. There are many smart and adult ideas in the franchise for grown-ups to enjoy, but this will definitely be something they can take their kids to as well.”

Alvart says the first movie will be somewhat of an origin story, and gives another intriguing point of comparison: “Like THE FIFTH ELEMENT this will be a big budget Science Fiction movie developed and produced out of Europe with an international cast.”

director Timur Bekmambetov

By Uncle Creepy – DreadCentral.com

Ever since vampires struck Hollywood gold with Twilight, there’s been a mad dash to try and identify the next big thing. With two similarly themed films on the way (the other being Tommy Wirkola’s Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters), it looks as if those wicked witches are getting their spot in the sun!

According to Deadline New York the next person being tapped to help cook up their own brand of strange brew is Night/Day Watch, Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov as he readies to produce The Last Witch Hunter along with executive producer Adam Goldworm for Summit Entertainment.

Summit recently acquired the pitch from the writer behind the upcoming Priest film, Cory Goodman. The tale centers upon a witch hunter who is seeing a surge in warlocks and witches and needs to keep the population “in check.”

director Tim Burton and actress Marion Cotillard

(AP) PARIS – American movie director Tim Burton and Oscar-winning French actress Marion Cotillard were added to France’s cultural honor roll in a star-studded Paris ceremony Monday.

Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand pinned green and gold medallions on the two, making the “Alice in Wonderland” and “Edward Scissorhands” director an officer in France’s National Order of Arts and Letters, while the “Nine” and “La Vie en Rose” star was made a knight.

Burton, wearing a dark suit and his trademark finger-in-an-electric-socket hairdo, called it “one of the biggest honors I’ve ever received.”

“From the beginning of my career, I always felt a very special place in my heart (for) France,” he told the crowd of journalists and fans. “Because whether or not you liked the movies, I always felt that the French were looking for the poetry, looking for the meaning, looking for the things I was trying to do.

“France has such a special place in my heart and I feel much more at home here than I do in my own country, and I always have,” he said, adding: “I thank you very much.”

Cotillard, dressed in a checkered skirt and blouse in seashell pink silk, thanked Burton, whose 2003 film “Big Fish” was among her first U.S. movies.

Burton “in a way opened the doors to American cinema to me and has always been my idol,” she said in a brief speech. She also thanked her friends and family — including her brother and her boyfriend, celebrated French director Guillaume Canet, both of whom attended the ceremony.

Burton’s girlfriend, Helena Bonham Carter — who plays the short-tempered Red Queen in “Alice in Wonderland” — was on also hand for Monday’s event, looking in her quirky black and white striped skirt suit and veiled hat as if she had just walked off the set of a Burton movie.

The two were in France to promote “Alice,” premiering in Paris on Monday. The 3-D film also stars Johnny Depp, a frequent collaborator with Burton, as the Mad Hatter.

The director will return to France in May for the Cannes Film Festival, where he is to preside over the jury.
Source(s) AP, Yahoo News

Peter Graves

from E Online
Peter Graves’ career was more like three careers. At least. He was Mission: Impossible’s pre-Tom Cruise leading agent, Jim Phelps. He was Airplane’s Turkish prison-curious pilot, Captain Oveur. He was the Emmy-winning host of Biography.  

The silver-haired star who lent a steadiness and voice of authority to 60 years’ worth of TV and film was found dead today of apparently natural causes in his Los Angeles-area home, the Los Angeles Times reported. He was 83.

For all his work—Graves’ credits include the Billy Wilder WWII classic, Stalag 17, to bits on House and American Dad—the actor may be best remembered for listening very carefully to the following taped greeting: “Good morning, Mr. Phelps…”

cast of Original Mission Impossible TV series

director Matt Reeves (holding camera)

From ShocktilyouDrop    Source(s) MTV News

MTV caught up with director Matt Reeves at this weekend’s South By Southwest festival and pressed for details on a proposed sequel to his 2008 hit Cloverfield.

“I can tell you nothing, [but] there are these spikes in activity. There are things that we keep talking about and things spike up. It very well may happen.”

Not too different from what JJ Abrams told MTV back in January. We imagine when schedules line up for Reeves, Abrams, producer Bryan Burk and screenwriter Drew Goddard, we’ll hear something more concrete.

In the meantime, Reeves is in post-production on his latest feature Let Me In starring Chloe Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee, the remake of the beloved Swedish classic Let The Right One In.

Joaquin Phoenix

From WENN News

Joaquin Phoenix’s rap career has been put on hold – he will return to the big screen as Edgar Allen Poe, according to Oscar-winning sound engineer Resul Pookutty.

The Walk The Line actor quit Hollywood last year, announcing plans to focus on becoming a hip-hop star.

He disappeared from the spotlight, only emerging for a string of bizarre TV interviews, which saw him sporting a scraggly beard and giving one-word replies to questions, and a couple of disastrous gigs.

However, Slumdog Millionaire sound designer Pookutty has revealed Phoenix is heading back to acting to play iconic American writer and poet Poe.

Pookutty tells India’s Mumbai Mirror, “I couldn’t be happier because I am doing a period film. It is a very special challenge because I have to recreate the sound textures of New York in 1854.

“It’s an adaptation of The Beautiful Cigar Girl by Daniel Stashower and based on an eerie real-life experience of author Edgar Allan Poe which happened just months before his death. Joaquin plays Edgar Allen Poe.”