Matrix Sequel Details Leaked
n the highly anticipated sequels to the SF action movie The Matrix, Neo faces off with a female agent who can move faster than the speed of light.
That's a tidbit of the plot offered up by an unnamed source to the Dark Horizons Web site about the two sequels now in pre-production.
A representative to the production told the Web site that "in the period since shooting on the original film wrapped, the programmers who devised the technology for The Matrix have refined it and taken it to new levels. What exactly this entails is anybody's guess." Also expect more dynamic fight scenes with moves that "defy comprehension."
As to rumors about where the two follow-up movies will be filmed, the site reported that London's Shepperton and Pinewood studios have been queried about their availability from December to February 2001 and from June 2001 to August 2001. The original film was shot in Australia. Other rumors have placed Keanu Reeves and a producer who looks like Joel Silver in London, scouting studio space.
Meanwhile, comic book writer Grant Morrison (JLA, The Invisibles) is reportedly contemplating suing Andy and Larry Wachowski, the brothers who created The Matrix. Grant argues that The Matrix copies storylines from his Invisibles comics, according to IGN Sci-Fi. So far, no suit has been filed.
Wood Talks Frodo And Rings
lijah Wood, the 19-year-old actor who plays hero Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson's film trilogy The Lord of the Rings, is enthusiastic about taking on the marathon role.
He's attracted by "the sheer length of the project, the fact that I've got three films to develop a character, to hold that character and have him change and grow," Wood told E! Online.
"Normally, you've got a couple of months to shoot a movie and develop the character, and it's not normally done in sequence," he said from the film's New Zealand location. "Here, we've got three films, being filmed mostly in sequence, so I get to experience the character's changes and live with the character over a long period of time, which I really enjoy."
Speaking for the first time about his role in the epic films based on J.R.R. Tolkien's novels of the same name, Wood said he loves the character he plays, a young Hobbit who must save the world. "I think he has a sense of strength, that he's able to take on this quest and take it to the end, which is very interesting to me. And what happens to him on the way interests me as an actor--you know, the fact the Ring starts to take hold and he starts to go mad and loses himself. It's an incredible arc, to watch that happen over time."
Not that it's easy, he said. "Every morning, I start with about two and a half hours of makeup, which means some very early mornings. We're usually picked up around 5 a.m. I come to the set, and I get into my feet, which takes about an hour. ... Then I put on my wig--it's the first time I've worn a wig in a film, so that's exciting--and the [prosthetic] ears, which fit on very well, so it's cool. You feel like a Hobbit."
Tolkien's Vision Followed On Rings Set
he crew behind the massive production of New Line's Lord of the Rings movies, based on J.R.R. Tolkien's novel trilogy of the same name, are taking pains to hew strictly to the master's vision.
That was the impression of a visitor from TheOneRing.net Web site, who was given a day to tour the Hobbiton set in New Zealand.
"Everything is exquisitely detailed, with gently curving rooflines, leadlight windows, carved wooden beams and round wooden doors," said the site's source, identified as Tehanu. "The gardens by now are full-blown with the summer heat." Tehanu observed director Peter Jackson working with actors Elijah Wood (Frodo) and Ian McKellen (Gandalf) as they performed a scene in a horse-drawn cart.
Tolkien illustrator Alan Lee is a consultant on the set, with sketches of production designs based on his well-known illustrations for the books. Language coaches are also working with tapes of Tolkien himself reciting in Elvish, as well as consulting with Tolkien language experts in the United States, Tehanu reported.
Jackson told the visitor that a reel of bloopers and outtakes was being prepared, which would eventually make it onto the DVD release of the films.
McKellen Reports From Rings Set
he spirit of J.R.R.Tolkien, author of the trilogy The Lord of the Rings, is guiding director Peter Jackson's production of movies based on the famous books, actor Ian McKellen wrote in his
Web journal.
Now on location in New Zealand, McKellen is playing the part of the wizard Gandalf.
"Peter Jackson has ensured that Tolkien rules the enterprise," McKellen wrote. "So, in working out Gandalf's appearance, we went back to the few terse descriptions in the [first] novel. We agreed that the cover illustration of Gandalf on [the] Harper & Collins complete edition of The Lord of the Rings had captured too much of our collective imaginings to be ignored. John Howe painted it, and he has for 18 months been crucial to the 'conceptual art' of the movie, along with that other formidably imaginative illustrator, Alan Lee."
McKellen said he rises before dawn and spends three hours in makeup before proceeding to the Hobbiton set, a full-fledged village "tucked in and around ... curving farmland, surrounded by green low peaks and gentle valleys." He has spent several days filming with Elijah Wood, who plays Frodo.
DiCaprio To Play Spidey?
adawan or Webbed One? Leonardo DiCaprio, reportedly in the running to play Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode II, is now on the short list of actors vying for the role of Peter Parker in Columbia's upcoming Spider-Man movie, based on the Marvel Comics franchise.
Entertainment Weekly online cites an unnamed high-level studio source saying that DiCaprio is at the top of a list that includes Freddie Prinze Jr. (Down to You) and Jude Law (The Talented Mr. Ripley).
DiCaprio's representative Ken Sunshine told the magazine, ''He's obviously approached all the time about great-sounding ideas, but he's got to see the script.'' Prinze's publicists weren't available, and Law's said, ''There have been some overtures about it. Jude has been a Spider-Man fanatic since he was a kid.''
The magazine also reported that Sam Raimi (A Simple Plan) has sealed the deal to direct the movie, with filming to begin in December for a fall 2001 release.
Meanwhile, the Spider-Man Hype Web site quoted an unnamed source saying that actor Liam Neeson (Star Wars: Episode I) will play Spidey's nemesis The Green Goblin. Long before he put on his Jedi robes, Neeson played the title role in Raimi's feature film Darkman.
Koepp Talks About Spider-Man
avid Koepp (Jurassic Park) will have to contend with a tangled web of source material as he writes the screenplay for Sony's highly anticipated movie Spider-Man, based on the long-running Marvel Comics series of the same name.
"There really is only one treatment; [Titanic director] Jim Cameron wrote a treatment," Koepp told the Fandom Web site. "There are no previous drafts. But you [have] 35 years' worth of comic books and 10 years' worth of animated TV, so you know there's lots--an abundance of material."
Koepp said he's been hammering out the script for six months so far. "You try to figure it out, and you go down different directions. You try this villain; you try that villain; you try this storyline and that one, and you see what works. It's an ongoing process, and it takes a long time. There's a million ways to do it."
Koepp said he traveled to Georgia recently to speak with newly named Spider-Man director Sam Raimi. Raimi's in Savannah filming The Gift, a supernatural thriller starring Keanu Reeves and Cate Blanchett. Koepp said Raimi's a good choice for Spider-Man. "It should be fun. Sam's a great director for it."
Kamen To Score X-Men
omposer Michael Kamen (The Iron Giant) has reportedly been signed to score the soundtrack for Fox's upcoming X-Men movie, based on the Marvel Comics series of the same name.
Kamen will write the instrumental music for the film, which is directed by Bryan Singer, according to Soundtrackmag.com.
The Web site also reported that longtime film composer Ennio Morricone will write the score for Brain De Palma's SF movie Mission to Mars. Morricone will reportedly use an 80-piece orchestra, plus a choir, for the project. The Mars score will be released on Hollywood Records.
Marvel Likes X-Men Movie
ontrary to rumors, Marvel Comics is apparently pleased with the production of the feature film version of its popular X-Men series, now shooting in Toronto, Empire magazine reported.
Production of Fox's X-Men feature film is going so well, producers are talking sequels and action figures.
X-Men has been shooting for five months, and a teaser trailer and 10 minutes of footage have already been assembled, according to an Empire magazine reporter who visited the set recently.
The film is two months away from the end of shooting, but producer Lauren Shuler Donner is already talking sequels. Director Bryan Singer has been working seven-day weeks to meet the July 14 release date, despite a shoulder injury sustained while demonstrating a Wolverine move to actor Hugh Jackman.
On the day Empire visited the set, X-Men Storm (Halle Berry), Wolverine, Jean Grey (Famke Janssen) and Cyclops (James Marsden) were fighting Mystique (Rebecca Romijn-Stamos) on the Statue of Liberty. The good guys were wearing skin-tight black leather, while Mystique was wearing little but blue makeup.
Director Discusses X-Men
irector Bryan Singer said the upcoming Fox feature film X-Men will differ from the Marvel Comics series on which it is based because of the difficulty in adapting a comic to the screen.
"As much as people like to think, what works magnificently and elegantly in the comic book doesn't always translate directly to film," Singer told Mania Magazine.
That's especially true of the X-Men's black leather costumes, photos of which have been leaked on the Internet, causing fan furor. "We've taken a combination of style and believable application and applied them to the costumes," Singer said.
As for the plot, Singer revealed that the movie will combine stories from the comics' 40-year history, and will focus on Wolverine (played by Hugh Jackman). "The movie follows the character Wolverine through a journey that takes him into the world of the X-Men at their earlier stage," Singer said. "Wolverine is one of the most exciting [mutants] with one of the most complex and interesting origins. Then there is Professor Xavier [Patrick Stewart], who is definitely the mind behind things. But the group is in a new stage and he's met with formidable opposition."
The X-Men will face off against the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, led by Magneto, played by Ian McKellen. "Magneto is an old friend of Charles Xavier," Singer said. "He has chosen to view the future of mutant-kind and protect that future in a way that ultimately threatens mankind. That pits these two old friends against one another. The brotherhood is a cast of Magneto's own mutants who may follow blind leadership and are not always the most sophisticated, but are definitely quite dangerous."
The film shoots in Toronto for another month, aiming at a July 14 release date.
Fox Says Buffy Has A Future
he WB's not talking, but 20th Century Fox Television, which produces Buffy the Vampire Slayer for The WB, says that no decisions have been made about the future of the hit series once its five-year contract with the network expires in 2001.
Seventeen magazine has reported that The WB is considering jettisoning the popular show because its ratings aren't that high.
"It's come up in the media," Kim Sandifer, spokesperson for Twentieth Century Fox Television, told SCI FI Wire. "The first time it came up was last summer. Sandy Grushow, [who was] at the time the head of the studio, said that we're going to be looking for fair market value for the show when it's time to renegotiate" with The WB.
Does Fox think that The WB is underpaying for Buffy? "No," Sandifer said. "But when it comes time to renegotiate, the studio wants to make sure it gets fair market value for this show." In any case, there's a future for Buffy, she added. "The show 's going to be with The WB until 2001, so we have a year and a half before it becomes an issue. ... It's too early to even have those discussions." The WB declined comment and referred questions to Fox.
Willow Faces Change On Buffy
illow will explore alternative relationships on The WB's hit series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, creator Joss Whedon revealed in a post to the show's fan bulletin board.
"Willow and [fellow witch] Tara's relationship is definitely romantic," Whedon said over the weekend.
"Thorny subject," he added. "The writers and I have had long [talks] about how to deal with the subject responsibly, without writing a story that sounds like people spent a long time discussing how to deal with it responsibly. To me it feels just right. ALL the relationships on the show are sort of romantic (hence the B Y O Subtext principle) and this feels like the natural next step for her. I can only promise you two things for sure: We're not going to do an Ally or Party of Five in which we promote the hell out of a same-sex relationship for exploitation value that we take back by the end of the ep. ... I just know there's a sweet story there that would become very complicated if
[Willow's ex-boyfriend] Oz were to show up again. Which he will."
Whedon also revealed that he is writing his first comic book, for Dark Horse, which already publishes several Buffy and Angel titles. "I wrote the first issue over Christmas break," he said. "A challenge. A new medium. ... It's not a Buffy comic; it's going to be a limited series about the Slayer some 500 years from now. It'll probably take the better part of a year to get out there (some poor schmuck has to DRAW it); I'll keep you posted. 'Cause I'm awfully excited."
Ling Joins Angel Cast
ai Ling, who plays an otherworldly princess on an upcoming episode of The WB's vampire series Angel, just signed a deal to become a regular cast member on the series.
Her character will mix it up with the show's title character, according to TV Guide magazine.
"It was super-cool," Ling said. About her character, she added, "She drives trucks, kicks ass and tries to seduce Angel." Ling, 28, was born in China and most recently appeared as the unfaithful concubine Tuptim in the feature film Anna and the King.
Scotty To Be A Daddy
tar Trek's James Doohan (Montgomery Scott), 79, and his wife, Wende, 43, are reportedly expecting a new baby in April.
Doohan, who turns 80 on March 3, already has four children from previous marriages, according to the British newspaper The Daily Mail.
"When the baby is born, I'll be 80 years and one month old," the actor told the newspaper. "It's absolutely fantastic." Doohan met his wife 25 years ago, when she asked him for an autographed photo.
Late-life births apparently run in the family: Doohan said his grandfather was 72 when Doohan's mother was born.
Ryan Dating Trek Producer Braga
eri Ryan (Seven of Nine on Star Trek: Voyager) confirmed rumors that she's romantically involved with Voyager executive producer Brannon Braga.
Speaking to syndicated columnist Ian Spelling, Ryan said, "It's not a secret. We are dating, and we're very happy."
Ryan also offered details on next week's Voyager episode, which has her character going to the mat with professional wrestler The Rock. "The crew is on shore leave, and everybody but Seven and Tuvok [Tim Russ], who have no interest in recreation, is pretty excited to be on this planet," Ryan said. "Chakotay [Robert Beltran] and Torres [Roxann Dawson] discover this sport called tsunkatse, which is sort of a gladiator-type fighting event, with lots of people coming into an arena to watch.
"Seven and Tuvok, who went off on an away mission, are captured and Seven is forced into playing the sport. You soon realize that the people who are doing the fighting are not there by choice," Ryan said. "Fighting is very much against Seven's nature because, for the last three years, she has tried to stifle her aggressive side. And now she is forced to be violent and aggressive in order to survive and save Tuvok." The episode airs Feb. 9 on UPN.
Paramount Won't Confirm New Trek
spokesperson for Paramount told SCI FI Wire that she could not confirm a report that the studio has given the green light to a new Star Trek television series or a tenth feature film in the franchise.
She was responding to a story by Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist Mark Dawidziak in which he quoted Star Trek: Voyager executive producer Brannon Braga saying that Paramount had given the go-ahead for both projects.
Earlier reports have suggested that the studio is withholding a decision on either project until it evaluates its options. Rumors have had the studio testing various scenarios for a series to replace Voyager when it ends its run at the end of next season. Meanwhile, sources have told SCI FI Wire that a tenth Trek movie is on indefinite hold. Calls to Braga's office were not returned.
Trek: Armada Web Site Opens
ctivision has opened a Web site with details of its upcoming real-time strategy game Star Trek: Armada.
Armada is due for release in the first quarter of this year.
Star Trek: Armada is the first 3-D game of its type set in the universe of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Players will be able to assume command of the fleets of the Federation, Klingons, Romulans or Borg and use up to 30 starships in ship-to-ship combat.
The new Web site will contain news, screenshots, downloads and other information on the game's storylines and strategies.
Rowling Named Author Of The Year
.K. Rowling, writer of the popular Harry Potter series of children's novels, was named author of the year by the British Book Awards.
Rowling beat five other contenders for the honor, including horror writer Stephen King, according to the Associated Press.
Rowling's latest book, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, had come in second to other volumes in recent British literary awards competitions. The as-yet untitled fourth book in the Harry Potter series is slated for release this summer in the U.K. and the U.S.
A.I. Details Revealed?
ate director Stanley Kubrick's proposed SF movie A.I. remains a closely guarded secret, but rumored details of the story have been leaked to the Dark Horizons Web site.
The movie, based in part on Brian Aldiss' short story "Super Toys Last All Summer Long," centers on a robot child named David who outlives humanity centuries from now after the polar ice caps have melted, the site reported.
David, a robot in the form of a little boy, is discovered by artificial intelligences (the "A.I.'s" of the title), and placed in a computer-generated reality as a museum reminder of a time when humankind ruled the Earth. Dark Horizon cites several supposed drafts of a script based on Kubrick's treatment for the movie, which combines elements of the Pinocchio fairy tale, virtual reality and global environmental disaster.
Director Steven Spielberg is reportedly interested in making the movie, and is writing a screenplay based on Kubrick's treatment.
Pitch Black Monsters Designed For Dark
reature designer John Cox faced an unusual challenge for the upcoming SF thriller movie Pitch Black: create monsters that live completely in the dark and only emerge once every 60 years.
"Eighty percent of the movie occurs in total darkness," Cox told the Space.com Web site. "This gave the aliens a special look, breaking some really new ground for science fiction."
Pitch Black tells the story of a spaceship that crash lands on a barren planet about to enter a period of total darkness. As the light fades, the creatures come out--to feed.
"We had to think through all the evolutionary and physiologic concerns these creatures would need to establish their niche and survive on such a planet," Cox said. "There were some design changes we had to make to the creatures because evolution wouldn't have allowed it."
Cox built 11 aliens for the movie. The creatures are enhanced by digital special effects. "When you see the creatures, you'll see the design is really bizarre and unlike anything ever done before," he said. "They're very slender, with slender wrists and long arms and slender necks."
Pitch Black, directed by David Twohy (The Arrival), stars Vin Diesel (Saving Private Ryan) and Claudia Black (Farscape). It opens Feb. 18.
Red Planet Bumped To Fall
ed Planet, the second of two Mars-themed SF movies coming out this year, is being bumped back to Nov. 10 from its June 16 opening date.
It's the second delay for the Warner Bros. film, which was moved from an original March 31 premiere after Disney's Mission to Mars grabbed a March 10 release date, according to Variety.
The studio said the delay was necessary in part because of the time needed to complete the movie's extensive special effects. In June, the movie would also have faced stiff competition from Shaft and Titan A.E..
Red Planet, about the first manned mission to mars, stars Val Kilmer, Benjamin Bratt, Carrie-Anne Moss and Tom Sizemore. Kilmer and Sizemore were reported to have feuded during filming in Australia, but the stars have denied a rift.
Indy 4 Not A Done Deal
eorge Lucas has completed a script for a fourth Indiana Jones movie, but neither potential star Harrison Ford nor director Steven Spielberg have seen it yet.
Without Ford's or Spielberg's approval, a fourth movie is unlikely, according to USA Today columnist Jeannie Williams.
"If there was a script they all loved, they would kill themselves to clear their schedules," Ford's agent, Patricia McQueeney, told Williams. "They love it so much, but they can't seem to get their heads together on a script they are all enthusiastic about." Ford just completed the supernatural thriller What Lies Beneath.
Lone Gunmen Coming To Fox
ox Broadcasting has given the green light to a pilot for a proposed spinoff television series based on the Lone Gunmen characters from The X-Files.
X-Files creator Chris Carter and producers Frank Spotnitz, Vince Gilligan and John Shiban will produce the pilot for next season, according to the Hollywood trade papers.
The show would probably star Lone Gunmen actors Tom Braidwood, Bruce Harwood and Dean Haglund in their roles as Frohike, Byers and Langley, though no final deal has been reached. The show is envisioned as a light drama with humor and conspiracy themes. Carter reportedly plans to add a new character: a woman after whom the Gunmen lust.
The Lone Gunmen characters were created by former X-Files writers Glen Morgan and James Wong, who are now producers of NBC's upcoming paranormal drama The Others.
Russell To Helm Dr. Strange?
huck Russell (The Mask) is rumored to be the potential director of a Sony feature film based on the Marvel Comics character Dr. Strange.
Russell, whose credits include Eraser and The Blob, would also write the script, according to the Comics Continuum Web site.
Don Murphy, a producer of the Doctor Strange project, told the site earlier that Sony had put the movie on a fast track for development, with an eye to a summer 2001 release.
Cricket Heads For The Screen
he producer of the hit feature film Stuart Little, which was based on E.B. White's children's book of the same name, has bought the movie rights to another popular kid's story: George Selden's The Cricket in Times Square.
Stephen Waterman, Little's executive producer, bought the rights for Cricket and its six sequels from publisher Farrar, Straus & Giroux, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Cricket, first published in 1960, chronicles the adventures of a singing cricket named Chester and his New York City adventures with Harry the cat, Tucker the mouse and Mario, a young boy whose parents run a failing newsstand.
Waterman intends to turn the book into a live-action/computer-animated feature along the lines of Stuart Little.
Andromeda Hero Has New Name
t's official: Kevin Sorbo's character in the upcoming syndicated television show Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda is now Dylan Hunt, executive producer Majel Barrett Roddenberry told SCI FI Wire through a spokeswoman.
"It's Dylan Hunt as of yesterday [Feb. 2]," said Roddenberry's personal assistant, Diane Klein.
The name of Sorbo's starship captain character had mutated several times during the series' development phase, with variations including Dylan Jericho and Dylan Shepard (or Shepherd).
Andromeda, based on an idea by the late Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, features Sorbo as an officer in a galaxy-wide Systems Commonwealth. After being left for dead in a black hole following an abortive battle, Hunt is discovered 300 years later, and sets out in his sentient ship to rebuild the Commonwealth. The series premieres in the fall.
Budrys Talks About Battlefield Earth
F author Algis Budrys told SCI FI Wire that he has been hired to write a prequel book to L. Ron Hubbard's Battlefield Earth, the 1,050-page novel that is the basis of an upcoming movie of the same name starring John Travolta.
But Budrys denied reports that he is penning a film script for a movie based on the prequel.
"Every book in the L. Ron Hubbard library potentially is the basis for the script. ... This is much likelier to become a film," he said. But, he added, "I received an assignment to write the novel. ... The script-writing, etc., will not be done by me, but by somebody else." Earlier reports had said producers of Warner Bros. feature film version of Battlefield Earth were considering both a prequel and a sequel film to the movie that comes out May 12.
Budrys said his as-yet untitled prequel will cover events centuries before those in Hubbard's book. "There will be people who will be born who will in turn give birth to [Battlefield Earth's hero,] Jonnie Goodboy Tyler. ... It takes place with the first landing of the [evil alien] Psychlos on Earth, about 1,000 years before Battlefield Earth." Budrys said his book is set for a fall release.
Budrys, a longtime author of SF, was associated for decades with Hubbard, founder of the controversial Church of Scientology. Among other things, Budrys was a judge for the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future program, which promoted aspiring SF authors. Budrys says neither he nor the program is formally affiliated with Scientology, though Budrys added that he is friendly with many people in the church.
Sega Gets Star Wars Games
tar Wars: Episode I Racer, a video game based on the Episode I movie, will be the first title released by LucasArts Entertainment for the Sega Dreamcast game platform.
The Sega version of Racer will come out in the spring, Variety reported.
LucasArts, owned by Star Wars creator George Lucas, already has a deal with Nintendo to release games for its N64 console, with a third Star Wars game coming out soon. Racer has already been released for the N64 and for PC platforms and has sold millions of units.
LucasArts said it's not clear whether there will be a second Star Wars game release for the Sega platform this year.
Star Wars Game Seeks Fan Input
ans are being asked to contribute their suggestions to the creation of a role-playing game based on the Star Wars universe.
Fans can answer questionnaires on the Web site of gamemaker Wizards of the Coast, which owns the license to publish the game.
Among other things, fans can suggest the time frame in which to set the game, and which characters should appear. The first Wizards of the Coast Star Wars game is slated for release in the fall.
New Clarke, Baxter SF Novel Coming
F writer Stephen Baxter said it was legendary author Arthur C. Clarke's idea to collaborate on a new novel, The Light of Other Days.
Clarke drew up a four-page outline and sent it to Baxter via e-mail, and a correspondence began, Baxter told CNN online.
"It was easier by e-mail than face to face," said Baxter, author of The Time Ships and Moonseed. "I could kind of forget that it was Arthur and imagine he was one of my writing buddies."
Baxter, 42, had worked with Sri Lanka-based Clarke, 82, on a short story. But Baxter and Clarke (2001: A Space Odyssey) worked for four months to write the novel, all by e-mail correspondence. "I started typing the first draft, and Arthur did research," Baxter said. "And Arthur, being Arthur, was able to tap the world's experts on President Lincoln, for instance. And back would come--within a day--a 4,000-word essay on the aspect of Lincoln I was looking for. It was scary, but fantastic."
The Light of Other Days (Tom Doherty Associates) tells the story of an industrialist who discovers by accident a way for people to see into the past. It will be released this month.
Moore Joins Good Vs. Evil
ormer Star Trek writer Ronald Moore has joined the staff of The SCI FI Channel's good vs. evil as a consulting producer, SCI FI spokeswoman Caroline Mendoza told SCI FI Wire.
Moore, who was hired about five weeks ago, supervises overall script quality for the show, Mendoza said.
Moore told the Fandom.com Web site, "It's a fairly limited gig, mostly giving notes, helping them to break stories, that sort of thing. There's something about it that I like." good vs. evil, formerly GvsE, moves from USA Network to SCI FI in March.
Butler Wins Witchblade Role
ancy Butler has won the title role in TNT's two-hour telefilm based on the Top Cow comic series Witchblade, a source told SCI FI Wire.
The movie, tentatively scheduled to air on TNT in the fall, is being executive produced by Oliver Stone based on the comic series created by Marc Silvestri, David Wohl, Brian Haberlin and Michael Turner.
Butler has guest-starred on television series including Brooklyn South and South Beach, and has appeared in feature films including Hard Target and Drop Zone. The TNT movie is set to begin production in Toronto this month; TNT is expected to have an announcement about the movie later this week.
The Witchblade comics tell the story of NYPD homicide detective Sara Pezzini, who inherits a mystical gauntlet that she uses to combat crime in modern-day New York.
Buzz Coming To TV
uzz Lightyear of Star Command, an animated series based on the Buzz Lightyear character from the Toy Story feature films, is coming to television later this year.
That's the word from Zoe Leader, director of communications for Disney, who visited London to preview Disney's animation slate for the next two years, according to Empire magazine.
Buzz Lightyear follows the adventures of Buzz in his persona as a space warrior fighting the evil Emperor Zurg.
Leader also unveiled details of Disney's upcoming animated movies. Dinosaur, coming out in May, is a computer-animated movie about an iguanodon who ends up being raised by a family of lemurs. When a huge comet hits the Earth, the lemurs and the iguanadon set out on a journey to an idyllic oasis that may no longer exist.
Atlantis, coming out in 2001, tells the story of an explorer, voiced by Michael J. Fox, searching for the lost continent. Monsters Inc., a Disney-Pixar co-production due in late 2001, is about the monsters who lurk in the scary places of your bedroom at night.
Comics' Gil Kane Dead At 73
omic book artist Gil Kane, who drew the Green Lantern, Hulk, Captain Marvel and Spider-Man in a career that spanned half a century, died Monday, Jan. 31, in Miami of cancer. He was 73.
Kane was known as an eloquent spokesman for the comic book industry who was also credited with creating the first graphic novel, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Kane had worked as a comic book artist from the age of 16 until he became ill.
Most recently, he illustrated Ring for writer Roy Thomas in 1990, drew new versions of Superman and illustrated The Edge for frequent collaborator Steven Grant. In 1998, DC Comics issued an anniversary edition of his initial Green Lantern from 1959. Kane's most famous work was done during the Silver Age of comics, from 1956 to 1969. That was when he redesigned the look of Green Lantern and Captain Marvel and helped introduce the heroes to a new generation.
Kane himself became a character in writer Alan Moore's Awesome's Judgment Day: Aftermath, which Kane illustrated. Kane's 1968 black-and-white one-shot comic, His Name Is Savage, was considered by many to be the first graphic novel.
Proyas To Direct Hardwired?
irector Alex Proyas (Dark City) is rumored to be ready to meet with producers about helming the proposed SF murder mystery movie Hardwired, which has been delayed repeatedly.
Bryan Singer (X-Men) was originally attached to direct the film, which has migrated from Disney to Fox, according to the Coming Attractions Web site.
Quoting an unnamed source, the Web site reported, "Alex Proyas is in Los Angeles shooting a short project, and also meeting with executives on Hardwired, which is expected be his next film. Work on the final shooting script begins in February."
Hardwired tells a futuristic story of the search for a killer in a murder case where all the suspects are artificial intelligences. It is not related to the cyberpunk novel Hardwired by Walter Jon Williams.
Tomb Raider Feature Preps
feature film based on the popular Eidos video game Tomb Raider is prepping production, an unnamed source told the Dark Horizons Web site.
"The script for Tomb Raider is far from dead," the source said.
"A new draft is being prepared, with a new director attached, and the only real
crew attached at present is the [director of photography] Phil Meheux [GoldenEye]," the source said.
An unknown actress has also been chosen to play heroine Lara Croft. The unnamed actress is in her early twenties and comes from a stage background. Locations are being scouted in Thailand and Mexico, with the current budget estimated at between $30 million and $50 million.
Jonze To Direct Button
eing John Malkovich director Spike Jonze is in final talks to helm Benjamin Button, a Paramount Pictures feature film based on a fantasy short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Jonze will develop the project, with an initial screenplay by Robin Swicord (Little Women), according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Malkovich co-writer Charlie Kaufman may also help develop the script for Button. Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy will produce with Ray Stark, who has long held the rights to Fitzgerald's story "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."
The story is about a 50-year-old man who falls in love with a 30-year-old woman, then finds himself aging backward. The two must come to terms with their widening differences.
Aliens Won't Elude Roswell Sheriff
illiam Sadler, the veteran actor who plays Sheriff Jim Valenti on The WB's teen UFO series Roswell, says his character will probably uncover the secret he's been chasing all season long.
"My guess is that eventually, I will ... discover the truth about Max and Isabel and Michael, that they are in fact aliens," Sadler told SCI FI Wire. "What I do with that information is sort of anybody's guess."
Sadler's Sheriff Valenti has been pursuing the main characters in the popular series since it debuted in October. But Sadler said that he looks forward to exploring Valenti in other ways as well. "As the season is unfolding ... I have a girlfriend, played by Diane Farr, who I flirt with and ... that's fun. I have a teen-age son, who I have trouble communicating with, and that's fun. I have an elderly father, who we're bringing into the show now, who I wronged when I was young, ... and now all of a sudden I realize he was right, so there's reconciliation there. So the character's fleshing out well. It's not just about chasing the aliens and never quite catching them."
Sadler's Roswell role, his first full-time job on a television series, has had an unexpected benefit: an online fan club, called "The Valentines." "[It's] a first for me," he said with a laugh. "And [it's] great fun. I'm enjoying the hell out of it. It's funny, because I've done theater, and movies for many years, and while I've accumulated fans around the world, there's never really been a dialogue with them. And the Internet ... has provided this forum, a place for that to happen. Which is remarkable."
Sadler, who first worked with Roswell co-executive producer David Nutter on the film Disturbing Behavior, also admitted he's actually seen a UFO. "I saw one when I was a kid, on a farm outside of Buffalo[, New York]. Looking up in the sky, I saw a light travel across the sky, stop, make a hard right-hand turn, then a hard left-hand turn, then streak off across the horizon at phenomenal speeds. ... My friend and I just stood there in my backyard, dumbfounded."
Malkovich, Green Mile Get SAG Nods
eing John Malkovich and The Green Mile were among the SF&F films most honored with nominations for Screen Actors Guild awards.
The Sixth Annual Screen Actors Guild Award nominations, announced on Tuesday, Feb. 1, recognized outstanding performances in both film and television.
Being John Malkovich won a nomination for outstanding performances by the entire cast, as did The Green Mile. Michael Clarke Duncan was nominated for outstanding film performance by a male actor in a supporting role for his part in The Green Mile. Both Cameron Diaz and Catherine Keener were nominated for their supporting performances in Being John Malkovich.
Haley Joel Osment was nominated for best supporting actor for his role in The Sixth Sense.
In television, Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny were both nominated for their starring performances in the Fox drama series The X-Files. The Screen Actors Guild Awards will be presented in a live broadcast on TNT from the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center on Sunday, March 12.
Spielberg Wins DGA Lifetime Award
teven Spielberg will receive the Directors Guild of America's highest honor, the lifetime achievement award, for his work on films that include E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
The award was previously named for pioneering director D.W. Griffith, but was changed last month in the wake of concerns over depictions of race in Griffith's landmark 1915 Birth of a Nation, according to Variety.
The guild previously honored Spielberg with awards for outstanding directorial achievement in a feature film for The Color Purple, Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan. Spielberg also won best director Oscars for Schindler's List and Ryan.
The guild will present Spielberg's lifetime achievement award at ceremonies on March 11 in Los Angeles.
Books Of Blood Goes To The Movies
irector Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters) will collaborate with Clive Barker on an anthology movie based on Barker's collection of stories The Books of Blood.
Condon will direct opening and closing segments for the series of short films, to be directed by three first-time gay directors, Barker announced on his official Web site.
Keith Clark, Jack Morrissey and Christopher Landon will write and direct "Pig Blood Blues," "Human Remains" and "Dread."
Meanwhile, Barker said principal photography on Hellraiser 5, the latest installment in the horror film franchise, wrapped on Dec. 10, 1999. The movie is now in post-production, with a release date "still quite far off."
Paranormal TV Pioneer Newland Dead
ctor and director John Newland, host of Alcoa Presents, one of television's first paranormal anthology series, died Jan. 10 in Los Angeles of a stroke. He was 82.
Newland directed all 99 of the show's episodes from 1959 to 1961, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The show, about psychic phenomena, spirits and other mysteries, was renamed One Step Beyond when it went into syndication. The show was a forerunner of classic genre TV series such as The Twilight Zone.
Newland had his roots in dramatic television programs such as Playhouse 90. He was born in Cincinnati, performed in vaudeville, and later moved to Manhattan to study acting. He appeared on the radio and in plays in New York. Over three decades, Newland directed scores of television movies and episodes of several well-known series, including Night Gallery, The Sixth Sense and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.
Newland is survived by his wife, Areta; two daughters, Hillary Alexander and Karen Kissler; and one granddaughter.
Preps Underway For Jurassic 3
anish cinematographer Mikael Salomon (The Abyss, Backdraft) has been hired to shoot Jurassic Park 3, the third film in the dinosaur series.
The movie, to be directed by Joe Johnston (Jumanji), begins production in a few weeks, according to the Dark Horizons Web site.
Salomon told the British film magazine Moviz, "I leave next month, heading for New Zealand, where the opening scene will be shot. That is all I can say right now, unfortunately."
Dark Horizons also cited Spanish film magazine Cine reporting that Chris Klein (American Pie) is a cast member. Other casting is expected to be announced in late February or early March.
For his part, author Michael Crichton, whose two Jurassic Park novels inspired the first two movies, said on his official Web site, "I have no involvement in JP3 at the moment. I am devoting all my attention to [a] new book."
Vonnegut Hospitalized After Fire
F author Kurt Vonnegut was hospitalized over the Jan. 29 weekend for smoke inhalation sustained in a fire at his home in New York.
The 77-year-old author of Cat's Cradle and Slaughterhouse-Five was in critical but stable condition, according to the Associated Press.
Vonnegut, who also suffers from emphysema, was expected to remain in intensive care for a few days.
The fire was reported at 7 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 30, on the top floor of Vonnegut's four-story brownstone home. Vonnegut was at home with his wife and 17-year-old daughter. Neither woman was injured. The brownstone was slightly damaged.
Lasseter Animates Monsters
onsters Inc., the next project of Toy Story 2 animator John Lasseter, is in mid-production.
"It's a wonderful movie about a world very similar to our own, but it is inhabited by monsters of all types," Lasseter told the German media while promoting Toy Story 2, according to the Dark Horizons Web site.
There are "tall ones, blue ones, scary ones," the Pixar animator said. "They get up in the morning, have coffee, go to work on a bus. The only way this world connects with our world is through a hole to a bedroom."
The computer-animated film is slated for a 2001 release.
NBC Eyes Wheel of Time Miniseries
BC is close to buying the rights to The Eye of the World, the first book in the eight-volume Wheel of Time fantasy series by Robert Jordan, Jordan said in an interview with Australia's Smeg Radio.
Jordan said the network is interested in developing the sword-and-sorcery novel into a miniseries.
Jordan added that the network has hired writers who worked on the miniseries Merlin to come up with a script. Jordan himself would act as a consultant, "mainly to make sure they don't do anything that would cut off their ability to buy options on future books," he said.
"If I get what they did in Merlin, I'll perfectly satisfied. As long as I don't get what they did with Noah," Jordan quipped.
BFSA Nominees Announced
ovels by Eugene Byrne, Justina Robson, Mary Doria Russell, Simon Ings and Ken MacLeod top the short list of nominees for the British Science Fiction Association's annual awards.
The nominees for best novel include Byrne's ThigMOO, Robson's Silver Screen, Russell's Children of God, Ings' Headlong and MacLeod's The Sky Road.
In the best short fiction category, the nominees were "Gorillagram" by Tony Ballantyne (Interzone 139); "Hunting the Slarque" by Eric Brown (Interzone 141); "Malignos" by Richard Calder (Interzone 144); "The Lady MacBeth Blues" by Stephen Dedman (Interzone 148); and "White Dog" by Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff (Interzone 142).
The best artwork nominees are the cover of Christopher Priest's The Dream Archipelago by Jim Burns; the cover of Robert Charles Wilson's Darwinia by Jim Burns; "The Sky-Green Blues," the cover of Interzone 142, by Dominic Harman; the cover of Justina Robson's Silver Screen by Steve Stone; and "Dreaming Down Under," the cover of Interzone 146, by Nick Stathopoulos.
The winners will be chosen by the members of the British Science Fiction Association and the annual British National Science Fiction Convention, or Eastercon. Winners will be announced April 23 in Glasgow, Scotland.
SF&F Films Still Strong
tuart Little remained in the box-office top 10 during the Jan. 29 weekend, when many moviegoers stayed home to watch the Super Bowl.
Little ranked No. 4 with revenues of $4.8 million, bringing its total take to $123 million.
The Green Mile ranked fifth with $4.1 million, for a total of $115.2 million. Galaxy Quest showed it has legs, coming in at No. 7 with a weekend take of $3.5 million and total ticket sales so far of $58.8 million.
Toy Story 2 moved up from the 11th spot into 10th place this weekend, with an estimated gross of $2.4 million. Toy Story 2 has grossed a whopping $234.4 million to date.
Briefly Noted
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Can't get enough of William Shatner's peculiar vocal stylings from those Priceline.com television commercials? If you want to watch them over and over again, the ads are available online at the Web site.
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Haley Joel Osment, the pint-sized star of The Sixth Sense, will make his Oscar television debut as a presenter in this year's Academy Awards ceremony, according to Variety.
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Tick creator Ben Edlund has completed the script for a live-action pilot for a proposed series based on his animated show and comic book, The Tick, the Comics2Film Web site reported.
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Marvel executive Matt Edelman, who shepherded the development of movie projects including Spider-Man, has joined eruptor.com as an executive in charge of content, with the mandate to develop and acquire original episodic programming for a Web site geared toward the teen set.
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Jennifer Blanc (Party of Five) has been added to the cast of James Cameron's Fox TV pilot Dark Angel, Variety reported.
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Alex D. Linz (Home Alone 3) will star with James Woods in the feature film Race to Space, according to Variety.
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Cleavant Derricks, the lone remaining original cast member of the SF television series Sliders, is sorry to see the show end. "I had no idea that I would love the show, this character [Rembrandt Brown], and consequently the fans as much as I have," the actor told SCI FI Wire. "Sliders fans will truly understand how much I will miss the series and their love of it."
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The Coming Attractions Web site reports that the trailer for Fox's upcoming X-Men movie will be available Feb. 18 in movie theaters. A spokesman for Fox declined to comment on the rumor.
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NBC has ordered production of the drama series News From the Edge, about a tabloid reporter who investigates weird stories, and the comedy Dog Years, about dogs who can talk to each other, but not to humans.
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Someone who looks a lot like producer Joel Silver has been seen escorting Keanu Reeves around and asking about space at both Pinewood and Leavesden studios in the U.K., according to Dark Horizons. Could it be that the anticipated sequels to The Matrix will shoot in England?
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The WB has green-lighted production of the dramatic series Day One, from Star Trek alumnus Michael Piller, based on a British miniseries set in a post-apocalyptic society.
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Michael C. Williams (The Blair Witch Project) guest stars on NBC's Law & Order as the father of a baby who starved to death and was secretly buried by one of his parents. The episode, "Mother's Milk," airs Wednesday, Feb. 9, at 10 p.m. ET.
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Makers of the sequels to The Matrix are denying the validity of scripts floating around the Internet. "Any rumors heard around the many fan sites about current scripts are false reports," the official Web site reported. "No script for The Matrix sequels are circulating, as they're still being written."
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Michael Clarke Duncan (The Green Mile) won the ShoWest 2000 Male Star of Tomorrow award from the National Association of Theatre Owners. Duncan will receive his award in March at the association's Las Vegas convention.
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Fox Broadcasting Company has ordered a pilot of Night Terrors, an anthology horror television series, for development for the fall. Terrors, from producer Dan Angel (Ultimate Goosebumps), will focus on two scary stories per episode.
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Gillian Anderson told TV Guide that the episode of her Fox TV show The X-Files that will mark her directorial debut "delves into Scully's struggles between her place in life as an FBI agent and as a medical doctor."
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William Boone, the character played by Kevin Kilner, won't return to the syndicated SF television series Earth: Final Conflict, writer Cory Tynan said. According to the Cinescape Web site, Tynan said, "I would like to put this to rest. Boone is not coming back ever. The bottom line is that we have a new lead in Robert Leeshock [Liam Kincaid], and I think he has really grown into the part over the last two years."
