Rings Enters Home Stretch
eter Jackson is on schedule to wrap principal photography on Dec. 22 for The Lord of the Rings, the film trilogy he's been directing in New Zealand for the last 14 months, E! Online reported.
First and second units returned from location shooting in Queenstown and Twizel in mid-November, and cast and crew have been busy with cleanup work--interiors and blue-screen shots at Wellington's Stone Street Studios, the site reported.
Technicians at the WETA visual effects house are completing the Minas Tirith set in Upper Hutt, just outside Wellington, where filming begins in early December.
Meanwhile, executive producer Barrie Osborne confirmed that a Rings trailer was shown to potential distributors at this year's Cannes Film Festival. A teaser for the first film, The Fellowship of the Ring, is expected in theaters this Christmas.
Rings Will Look Rich
an McKellen, who plays Gandalf in Peter Jackson's upcoming film trilogy The Lord of the Rings, told fans on his official Web site that they will be impressed with the films' visual look.
McKellen was particularly taken with artistic advisor Alan Lee's contributions. Lee produced illustrations for J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy of novels, on which the films are based.
"When I first walked into [the] Rivendell [set], I gasped," McKellen wrote. "It was like being inside a huge, three-dimensional Lee painting; the sort of thrill that movie theme parks aim for. The largest of the Wellington [New Zealand] studios had grown an autumnal forest glade of large fiberglass trunks and tangled canvas roots; a Japanese-style bridge spanned the electrified waterfall splashing into a pool. ... The elves' headquarters grew out of the vegetation, slim wooden pillars supporting walkways above open spaces and shaded arcades. ... One upper-level gallery had four original Alan Lee landscapes that he had painted especially for his favorite set, and I wondered whose walls they would end up on."
Rhys-Davies Happy With Dwarf Role
ohn Rhys-Davies, who plays Gimli the dwarf in Peter Jackson's upcoming film trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, told E! Online that he's happy to be part of the historic project, even though he must endure heavy makeup.
"My skin reacts to the makeup, so I have to go home and hide for two or three days afterward," the veteran character actor told the site. "It's ruined my social life."
About his character, Rhys-Davies said, "There is in Gimli a great simplicity. He's never envious. There's a goodness in him, and he recognizes it in others, especially the hobbits. His line is a simple one: We know it's evil, it's our job, let's go and do it. He understands it's his role to protect the hobbits."
One of the films' greatest challenges was depicting different species of different sizes interacting, Rhys-Davies said. "As a dwarf, I'm taller than the hobbits, but shorter than the elves and the humans. Most of my shots tend to be in close-up, looking up [at a human or an elf] or down [at a hobbit]." The actor had three scale doubles to fill in for group shots with the Fellowship of the Ring and long-distance battle scenes, but he performs his own close-up battle shots.
Fans Petition For DS9 Film
ore than 250 fans of the defunct series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine have signed an online petition seeking a DS9 feature film.
"With the ending of the original series and The Next Generation film series, it seems only logical that Deep Space Nine--left rich in unfinished storylines and possibilities--should be the next film frontier for the Star Trek franchise," the petition reads.
A 10th Trek film is planned, but will again make use of cast and characters from The Next Generation. Paramount currently has no plans for a DS9 feature, and many of the cast and crew of the series have moved on to other projects.
Spiner Reluctant To Play Data
rent Spiner, who is in talks to reprise the role of Lt. Cmdr. Data in the upcoming 10th Star Trek film, told the Indianapolis Star newspaper that he'd be reluctant to put on the yellow makeup for another weekly series.
"Play Data again? I doubt it," he said. "I've done countless hours already. Besides, I'm too old. Enough is enough."
Even so, Paramount has gotten Spiner, 51, to consider playing the role in one more movie. "I haven't signed anything, but we've been in serious talks," Spiner told the Star. "It's not a matter of 'if,' but 'when.'"
Mulgrew Wants Janeway To Live
ate Mulgrew--Capt. Kathryn Janeway on Star Trek: Voyager--told the Fandom Web site that she's no longer eager to see her character's demise in the show's seventh and last season.
Mulgrew had been vocal about wanting Janeway to go out in a blaze of glory--an idea that hadn't been embraced by the show's writing staff.
"I've been told by my advisors that it would be very bad if Janeway died," Mulgrew told Fandom. "They pointed out to me why it would be so. I had to ruminate on those reasons, and then I came full circle again. I don't quite know how I feel about that anymore. Now I am thinking I should get the ship home. Of course, every actor wants something extraordinarily dramatic, but that may not be what is best for the story."
Mulgrew added, "On the other hand, I want an epic ending. It's been an epic run. It's had its ups and its downs, but it certainly has been an extraordinary idea, and I think it needs an extraordinary finish. It deserves one. I want what is best, most appropriate and most thrilling to this particular story. That's the ending that I want: the most provocative and poignant. It should be a tough ending. It was a very tough beginning. It should not be wrapped up in a pink bow."
Voyager Will End In Short Arc
ryan Fuller--executive story editor and co-producer of Star Trek: Voyager--told the official Trek Web site that the show will end with a relatively short story arc.
"We will definitely not have the 10-episode arc that Star Trek: Deep Space Nine had to conclude that series," said Fuller, who is one of the show's head writers.
Fuller added, "We're currently discussing the last leg of the season. We have stories up through episode 20 or 21, which leaves about three or four shows before what we are currently planning to be a two-hour series/season finale. If there is an arc it would probably be only three or four episodes at the most, but may be limited to as few as the last two hours. That's not to say that there won't be seeds planted in previous episodes that will come to fruition in the finale; it just won't be as serialized as the arc in Deep Space Nine."
In the meantime, Fuller said he and executive producer Ken Biller are completing a two-part story for February, entitled "Workforce." "The episode's very much an ensemble show that will have the crew exploring new lives as laborers on an alien world," Fuller said. "I can't say much more about the plot than that, but I will tell you this, as with every good science fiction thriller, there's much more going on than meets the eye."
TNN Snaps Up Trek Series
aramount Domestic Television has sold the cable television rights to its three 1980s and '90s Star Trek series to TNN: The National Network, which is owned by Paramount's parent company, Viacom, TNN announced.
The deal includes the reruns of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager, as well as five Star Trek feature films starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy.
Terms were not disclosed, but Variety previously reported that Paramount was seeking as much as $364 million for the three series, which comprise more than 500 hours of Star Trek. That would be a record for such a deal, Variety reported. TNN beat out contenders for the series that reportedly included The SCI FI Channel, TNT, Fox Family, Odyssey Channel and FX.
TNN will begin airing the first of 179 episodes of TNG in the fall of 2001, 176 episodes of DS9 in fall 2004 and 172 episodes of Voyager in late 2006, TNN announced. Voyager is completing its original run of new shows on UPN this season, its seventh.
Starting in 2001, TNN will also air 1979's Star Trek: The Motion Picture, 1982's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, 1984's Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, 1986's Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and 1989's Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.
TNN, which was originally called The Nashville Network, recently changed its name to reflect a shift away from country music and toward general entertainment.
The SCI FI Channel is owned by USA Networks, which also owns SCIFI.COM.
Mulgrew Aims Barbs At Beltran
ate Mulgrew--Capt. Janeway on Star Trek: Voyager--made veiled criticisms of co-star Robert Beltran (Chakotay) in an interview with New York's UPN affiliate, according to the TrekToday Web site.
When an interviewer referred to Beltran's recent complaints that the show was plagued by bad writing, Mulgrew said, "I don't buy that for one minute."
Without mentioning Beltran by name, Mulgrew added, "That's a lazy actor's response. 'They didn't let me act.' Really? Go get a job in a cereal commercial. I just don't have any time for it."
Beltran has been vocal about his unhappiness with Voyager, complaining among other things that the show's writers have given him little to do as an actor. But, Mulgrew said, "Of course, you can find every opportunity ... [to] sit in this seat and say nothing. Do it! Be it! Lift it up! We're all trained here, and we're, you know, compensated very nicely."
Romulans Coming In Trek X
tar Trek executive producer Rick Berman revealed that the upcoming Trek X movie will feature the Romulans and a new villain who is the Federation's greatest nemesis since Khan from Star Trek II.
Speaking in an interview with Los Angeles UPN affiliate KCOP-TV, Berman declined to reveal plot details, but said the movie will be "shocking and exciting and fun ... a rip-roaring humorous adventure."
Berman also confirmed that Brent Spiner has signed to reprise his Star Trek: The Next Generation role as Data in the movie and has contributed story points to the script. Patrick Stewart (Capt. Jean-Luc Picard) has already signed on to the film, which is being written by Berman and Gladiator screenwriter John Logan.
But Berman denied widespread rumors that Data will meet his demise in the movie, or that Trek X will mark the last voyage of the crew from The Next Generation. The Trek producer said that the movie won't come out until 2002.
Noxon Directs First Buffy
arti Noxon, a longtime writer and producer of The WB's hit series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, told the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper that she's nervous about directing her first episode, the upcoming "Into the Woods."
"Directing was something I've always wanted to do--I just didn't feel
ready until now," Noxon told the paper. "This is my first job on a television show of any length, and I've been biding my time and learning from the master, from [Buffy creator] Joss Whedon."
Noxon added, "It just got to the point where I realized I couldn't read any more books," she said. "There's a part of directing that just can't be taught. It's very intuitive, and you have to learn by doing it. So I knew that I had my head packed full of ideas, and I had to go have the
experience. And it was terrifying."
The Dec. 19 episode will feature Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Riley (Marc Blucas), and it will take them in a new direction, Noxon said. "There's not really a B story, because it is a big Buffy-Riley episode. It was also a good episode for me to direct, because it's arc-heavy, with a little bit more melodrama, which is what I write more than the other stuff."
Lucas Touts Digital Movies
tar Wars: Episode II director George Lucas told the New York Times that the film should usher in an era of digital filmmaking.
Lucas shot the entire movie digitally and is now working with theater owners on digital projection technology, the Times reported. Episode II is currently in post-production.
"This is all going to happen because it has to happen," Lucas told the Times. "I love film, but it's a 19th-century invention. The century of film has passed. We are in the digital age now, and trying to hold on to an old-fashioned technology that's cumbersome and expensive--you just can't do it."
A digital version of Lucas' last movie, Star Wars: Episode I, ran for a month at four theaters on high-definition video projectors, the first time audiences paid to see a major feature projected digitally, the newspaper reported.
Lucas added that Episode II would make an excellent showcase for
digital cinema when it is released in the spring of 2002. "In the beginning, a lot of people were trying to see if they could make a buck out of this, and I think now they're realizing that the real issue is improving the quality of the presentation," Lucas said. "And I have the feeling that the conversion is going to take place relatively swiftly."
Star Wars Fan Films Posted
he Star Wars Fan Film Network has posted the first of its fan-produced Star Wars-themed parody and documentary films, the site announced.
Viewers will be able to vote for their favorite one in a Jedi Best Contest, sponsored by Sony. The director whose films receives the best results by Dec. 31 will win a Sony DCR-PC100 Mini DV Digital camera.
The films include Dantana Morse for Galactic Senator, directed by Marc Kimball; Star Wars or Bust, directed by Jason Wishnow; Master of Facts, directed by Austin Reading; and Star Geeks, directed by Marc A. Samson.
Star Wars Galaxies Coming
ucasArts Entertainment announced that Star Wars Galaxies will be the formal name for its massively multiplayer online role-playing games.
LucasArts and Sony Online Entertainment will launch a Galaxies Web site on Nov. 30. The game is expected to go into first-round testing in late 2001.
The site will debut with three message boards and a list of frequently asked questions. The Star Wars Galaxies game series is being developed by Verant Interactive, a division of Sony Online Entertainment, and will be distributed and sold at retail by LucasArts and available for play exclusively online.
Expect More Mace In Episode II
nbreakable star Samuel L. Jackson told The Philadelphia Inquirer that his role in Star Wars: Episode II will be greatly expanded.
Jackson will reprise the role of Jedi master Mace Windu, whom he introduced in Episode I.
Among other things, Windu will see some action, Jackson said. "Definitely. This is a much more exciting story. It's closer to the first [Star Wars movie] that we saw, in terms of its adventurous scope. And there's not so much Jar Jar Binks."
MIB 2 To Shoot Next June
ony plans to shoot Men in Black 2--the sequel to the 1997 hit Men in Black--in June 2001, now that a basic financial formula has been worked out for stars Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith and director Barry Sonnenfeld, Variety reported.
Producers Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald brought on Galaxy Quest's Bob Gordon to write the script, the trade paper reported.
Separately, the trade paper reported that Sony is happy with Don Rhymer's latest draft of Jumanji 2, the proposed sequel to the 1996 hit movie, and wants to proceed. And writer Bruce Joel Rubin (Ghost) has turned in a draft of the proposed sequel to Stuart Little; director Rob Minkoff will be back on board to helm the follow-up.
Sequel To Continue Dune Story
ohn Harrison, who wrote and directed The SCI FI Channel's upcoming original miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune, will adapt the SF author's second and third books for a sequel, Entertainment Weekly reported.
Harrison will turn to Herbert's Dune Messiah and Children of Dune for a follow-up to the six-hour Dune, which airs Dec. 3-5 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
It was previously reported that SCI FI had struck a deal with Harrison for a sequel, but Harrison had said he wasn't sure which books would provide the source material for the next miniseries.
As for the first miniseries, Harrison told Entertainment Weekly that he hopes viewers will avoid comparisons with David Lynch's 1984 feature-film version of Herbert's book. "I didn't set out to correct or remake Lynch's movie," Harrison said. "It's impossible to do justice to the book in a two-hour [feature]. I had the advantage of six, and I just tried to create a faithful adaptation of Frank Herbert's book."
Smith Confirms Matrix 2 Role
ada Pinkett Smith confirmed on Oprah that she will appear in the upcoming sequel to 1999's The Matrix, according to the Popcorn U.K. Web site.
Smith had been reportedly in talks to star in The Matrix 2 and 3, which are slated to film back to back starting in March.
On the talk show, Smith didn't offer details of her role, except to say that she'll have some fight scenes. Smith was previously reported to be mulling the role of Niobi (or Niobe), a ship captain and the love interest of Laurence Fishburne's character, Morpheus.
Cardellini Mulls Velma Role
inda Cardellini (Freaks and Geeks) is in talks to play Velma in Warner Brothers' live-action version of the animated television series Scooby-Doo, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Raja Gosnell will direct the movie, which is scheduled to begin shooting in February.
Cardellini would join real-life couple Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar as Fred and Daphne and Matthew Lillard as Shaggy. James Gunn and John August wrote the script.
Word of Cardellini's negotiations belies rumors that Christina Ricci (Sleepy Hollow) was in line to play Velma.
Iron Man Script Coming?
riter Tim McCanlies (The Iron Giant) told the Ain't It Cool News Web site that he is just beginning to write a screenplay adaptation of Marvel Comics' Iron Man series.
McCanlies told the site that his draft would tell the origins of the superhero.
McCanlies also said that his villain would not typical, and that he would try to ground the story in reality. The script will pit Iron Man against a corporate villain with designs on stealing technologies and exploiting them to the detriment of humankind, AICN reported.
Jolie Awed By Angkor Wat
ngelina Jolie--who plays Lara Croft in the upcoming Tomb Raider movie--told reporters that she was awed by Cambodia's Angkor Wat temples, where the film recently shot, the Reuters news service reported.
"I feel very blessed and very lucky to be able to be part of this film, part of this whole experience," Jolie told a news conference in the Cambodian town of Siem Reap.
Jolie added, "This has changed my life, being here in this country. ... It makes me feel differently about everything--about my life, about work, about what we can all do. ... It's the most amazing place I've ever been to in my life."
Tomb Raider, which is based on the Eidos video game series of the same name, wrapped up a week of filming in Cambodia on Nov. 27, Reuters reported. The movie will complete filming by the end of the year, with an eye to a June 15, 2001, release.
Is Dungeons The First Of Three?
ourtney Solomon--the writer, director and producer of New Line's upcoming Dungeons & Dragons movie--told the Toronto Sun that he always envisioned the film as the first of three.
But he added that he's in no rush to talk about a sequel to the movie, which doesn't open in North America until Dec. 8.
"It seems premature to me," Solomon told the newspaper. "I don't like to count my chickens before they hatch. I'm superstitious."
Solomon based the film on the Wizards of the Coast role-playing game of the same name. The movie stars Justin Whalin, Marlon Wayans, Zoe McLellan, Jeremy Irons, Bruce Payne and Thora Birch.
Poe Story Spawns Mesmerist
il Cates Jr. will direct The Mesmerist, a supernatural movie based on Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar," Variety reported.
The film will star Neil Patrick Harris, Jessica Capshaw and Howard Hesseman.
Mesmerist is described as a twisted comedy about a doctor who convinces a dying man's family to allow him to put the man in a trance and what happens as he descends into the afterworld, the trade paper reported. Michael Goorjian adapted Poe's story for the screen.
Janssen Up For T3?
-Men star Famke Janssen is the latest actress rumored to be up for the role of the female cyborg in Arnold Schwarzenegger's upcoming Terminator 3, Variety columnist Michael Fleming reported.
The columnist reported that Janssen is the front-runner for the role. Janssen is also expected to reprise her X-Men role of Jean Grey in the proposed sequel.
The Ain't It Cool News Web site, meanwhile, added new names to the rumor list: Natasha Henstridge (Species) and Janssen's X-Men co-star Rebecca Romijn-Stamos. Earlier, AICN speculated that WWF professional wrestler Chyna was up for the role.
Other rumors have linked Red Planet star Carrie-Anne Moss to the role of the terminatrix.
Baker Monkeys With Apes
akeup specialist Rick Baker, who is creating the elaborate costumes for Tim Burton's upcoming Planet of the Apes movie, told the Mr. Showbiz Web site that he'll go beyond the makeup in the original 1968 film.
"We've taken it to a level far beyond what's been done," Baker told the site.
Baker added, "We're trying to make something as real and as expressive as possible, and I think we've done it. They're still biped apes, but they resemble the real animals more than the first ones did and are so much more expressive. There are something like 500 apes."
Baker--who also created Jim Carrey's green costume for Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas--has been making monkeys out of actors since Gorillas in the Mist and Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes. For Apes, Baker will have to deal with outdoor filming. "There is a heat factor for the apes," he said. "The gorillas wear black, and it absorbs the heat." Apes is slated for a May 2001 release.
Warner Joins Apes Cast
avid Warner will play a liberal member of the ape senate and the father of Helena Bonham Carter's character in Tim Burton's upcoming Planet of the Apes movie, Variety columnist Army Archerd reported.
Warner's simian character will sympathize with the plight of humans to be played by Mark Wahlberg and Estella Warren, Archerd reported.
Tim Roth and Michael Clarke Duncan will play Warner's ape senate opposition, who consider humans animals. Warner praised Rick Baker's ape makeup, even though he has to report at 3 a.m. to have it applied before filming, Archerd reported.
Kristofferson Goes Apes
ris Kristofferson has joined the cast of Tim Burton's upcoming remake of Planet of the Apes, Variety reported.
Kristofferson will play a warrior who leads the human revolt against the ape regime--a departure from the plot of the original 1968 film, the trade paper reported.
Kristofferson joins a cast that includes Mark Wahlberg, Estella Warren, Tim Roth, Paul Giamatti, Helena Bonham Carter and Michael Clarke Duncan.
After completing Apes, Kristofferson will reprise his role from Blade in the upcoming sequel, Blade 2, which is also known as Blade: Bloodhunt, the trade paper reported.
Paul To Star In New SF Show
ighlander star Adrian Paul will play an intergalactic bounty hunter in a proposed television series to be produced by Lions Gate, Variety reported.
Paul will also star in a proposed feature film.
Writer/producer Gil Grant (Relic Hunter) will shepherd the as-yet-unnamed series, which will be developed for syndication. Paul will play an alien bounty hunter sent to Earth after a jailbreak he inadvertently prompted sends a swarm of bad guys to the planet, Variety reported. Paul and the fugitives assume human form. Dave Fleming, Paul's manager, will also produce.
Paul--who is best known as Duncan MacLeod in Highlander: The Series--is currently shooting the SF film A Breed Apart in Budapest with co-stars Bai Ling and Bokeem Woodbine; Michael Oblowitz is directing. Paul, who directed several Highlander episodes, is also preparing to direct Hirokin, a full-length SF film for the HiDef.com Web site, Variety reported.
Lembeck May Helm Clause II
ichael Lembeck is in final negotiations to direct the proposed sequel to Tim Allen's 1994 fantasy movie The Santa Clause, Variety reported.
Allen is expected to star in the as-yet-unnamed sequel, which is being slated for a November 2001 release.
Lembeck is best known for directing multiple episodes of television series such as Friends. Don Rhymer (Buccaneers) will write the script, which picks up the story five years after the original movie. Santa faces the challenge of balancing his work and personal life, Variety reported.
UPN Develops The Terror
PN will develop The Terror, a supernatural TV series based on an idea from Spawn creator Todd McFarlane's entertainment company, the Comics2Film Web site reported.
"The Terror is moving ahead at UPN," Terry Fitzgerald, a spokesperson for McFarlane, told the site. "It looks like Paramount TV has come on board as the studio for the series, and we can't be more happy with that."
Andrew Horne (Blade) will produce the show, Fitzgerald said.
Fox Licenses Zombie College
ox Broadcasting Co. has licensed the rights to Icebox.com's animated Web series Zombie College, marking the first time that a broadcast television show will be based on an Internet series, the Reuters news service reported.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times reported that Icebox will lay off 50 of its 100 employees to cut costs.
Fox will develop Zombie College into a live-action, half-hour pilot for its 2001-2002 programming season, Reuters reported. The series tells the story of students at a college for the undead.
In August, the Showtime cable network licensed the Icebox satiric SF animated series Starship Regulars to be produced as a live-action, half-hour series, Reuters reported.
SCI FI, USA, ABC Buy Unbreakable
he SCI FI Channel and its sister USA Network will share broadcast rights with ABC to M. Night Shyamalan's current supernatural thriller movie Unbreakable, Variety reported.
ABC will get at least three runs of the film over three and a half years, starting in the fourth quarter of 2003. USA and SCI FI will get multiple runs of Unbreakable for the final 18 months of the five-year network window, the trade paper reported.
The sharing deal also includes rights to other Disney films, including Mission to Mars. But USA and SCI FI will get exclusive broadcast rights to the films Highlander: Endgame and Gary Sinise's upcoming SF thriller movie Impostor, Variety reported. USA and SCI FI are owned by USA Networks, which also owns SCIFI.COM.
Marvel Develops Deathlok Film
arvel film executive Kevin Feige told the Comics2Film Web site that the comic publisher is trying to develop a feature film based on its Deathlok series, about a futuristic cyborg.
"We're just sort of finishing a deal with a major studio," Feige told the site. "We've got two writers, and they're going to start, hopefully, very soon." The writers are Stu Zicherman and Raven Metzner, the site reported.
The site also reported that Marvel is developing a movie based on its horror comic series Tales of the Zombie. "We have some writers," Feige said. "Hopefully we'll get in shape for Halloween next year." Chum Langhorn and Brent Askari are developing the screenplay.
Demolished Man Heads For Screen
riter and director Irving Belateche will adapt Alfred Bester's 1953 SF novel The Demolished Man for the screen, Variety reported.
Paramount-based producer Robert Evans and producer Ray Wagner will develop the film, the trade paper reported.
The Hugo-Award-winning novel tells the story of a powerful leader who commits a murder in a futuristic society in which there is supposed to be no crime.
King To Suspend The Plant
tephen King told readers on his official Web site that he will suspend release of chapters of his electronic novel The Plant so he can finish other projects.
King will stop issuing new installments of the supernatural horror tale after December's "very long" part six and won't offer new ones for at least a year or two, the author said.
"The Plant will be going back into hibernation so that I can continue work on Black House (the sequel to The Talisman, written in collaboration with Peter Straub)," King wrote. "I also need to complete work on two new novels (the first, Dreamcatcher, will be available from Scribner's next March) and see if I can't get going on The Dark Tower again. And my agent insists I need to take a breather so that foreign translation and publication of The Plant--also in installments, also on the 'net--can catch up with American publication. Yet don't despair. The last time The Plant furled its leaves, the story remained dormant for 19 years. If it could survive that, I'm sure it can survive a year or two while I work on other projects."
King will offer part six free of charge to thank the 75 to 80 percent of readers who voluntarily paid for the other five segments, he said.
Rowling Starts Potter V
.K. Rowling has started writing the fifth volume in her best-selling Harry Potter series of children's novels, the Reuters news service reported.
"Writing is what she loves more than anything else in the world," Rosamund de la Hey, head of children's sales and marketing at Rowling's British publisher, Bloomsbury, told Reuters. "She is beginning to work on book number five after a pretty busy year. She is just getting to grips with it."
De la Hey added, "She has started writing, but we have no idea when it will be coming out." The book's title has not been announced.
Potter Aunt Expects Enmity
iona Shaw, who will play horrid Aunt Petunia in the upcoming Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone movie, told the Empire Online Web site that she's prepared to be hated by fans of J.K. Rowling's best-selling Harry Potter books.
"Every child in the country and beyond is full of loathing for Aunt Petunia," she told the site. "I am not sure I am going to be so happy when I get bombarded with eggs when I get off an airplane or something."
Shaw added, "Mr. Dursley is also a baddie, played by Richard Griffiths, but he is nicer than I am. The little boy who plays our son said, 'I think it is going to be awful. We are going to be so hated in the world.' So we have decided we are all going to go to the opening together, the Dursleys, possibly in costume, just to be able to resist the world."
Even so, Shaw said she's ready to appear in any sequels. "I will be doing part two and three and four--happily--because, apart from anything else, that was the contract we had to agree to, but also because it is such great fun to follow the story through."
Zeta-Jones To Play Bond Girl?
he Dark Horizons Web site reported a rumor that Catherine Zeta-Jones will play the latest Bond girl in Beyond the Ice, the upcoming 20th James Bond film.
Citing a report in the British tabloid newspaper The Mirror, Dark Horizons reported that Zeta-Jones will play a female partner of Pierce Brosnan's superspy.
Kevin Spacey will reportedly play the chief villain in the movie, Brosnan's last turn as 007. The new Bond film will shoot in Alaska, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Washington, D.C., and is aimed at a 2002 release, the site reported.
Mutant X Due In Fall
ribune Entertainment has ordered Mutant X, a television series based on the Marvel Comics series of the same name, to air on Tribune broadcast stations in fall 2001, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Mutant X follows the adventures of a group of human mutants with extraordinary genetically engineered powers, the trade paper reported.
Mutant X is produced by Canada's Fireworks Entertainment in association with Marvel Media and Tribune Entertainment, which also is handling domestic syndication.
Alexander Develops SF Series
tar Trek guest star Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) has teamed with Deep Space Nine executive producer Ira Steven Behr to executive produce E.S.P.ers, a one-hour SF adventure project for CBS, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Twentieth Century Fox Television will produce the proposed series, which has received a script commitment from the network.
Behr, Eugene Tobin and Noreen O'Neill are writing the script, which centers on a detective who investigates paranormal activities with the help of psychics. Alexander has a production deal with Fox, the trade paper reported.
Chyna Up For T3 Role?
he Ain't It Cool News Web site reported a rumor that professional wrestler Chyna is the top choice to play the female cyborg in Arnold Schwarzenegger's upcoming Terminator 3 movie.
The 200-pound, 5-foot-10 WWF wrestler, whose real name is Joanie Laurer, is rumored to be the choice of Schwarzenegger and T3 producer Mario Kassar, AICN reported.
Red Planet star Carrie-Anne Moss has been previously rumored to be in line for the role of the cyborg in the latest installment of the popular film franchise.
If the latest rumor is true, Chyna would follow fellow wrestler The Rock--otherwise known as Dwayne Johnson--into films. Johnson plays the Scorpion King in the upcoming The Mummy Returns.
Andromeda Geek Is For Real
ordon Michael Woolvett--who plays fix-it man Seamus Harper on the syndicated television series Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda--told the Space.com Web site that he's almost as much of a geek as his character.
"For fun, I design Web sites," Woolvett told the site. "I am a computer geek. I'm a nerd."
Woolvett added, "How geeky am I? I am so geeky that before I got this part, I was building a hovercraft. I downloaded the schematics off the Internet. The engine was really small. It would go 1 mph on water and 15 mph on ground. I was going to take it out to the desert. You have to make a skirt for it, and build the whole darn thing and then send away for the motor. I was just beginning to get all the supplies when I got this [part], so I had to shelve that idea. ... Also, when I'm not working I spend a lot time on the computer. I also write sci-fi on the side for fun. I've written a few spec scripts and stuff like that. I'm totally, totally entrenched in that whole world."
Will any of Woolvett's ideas see the light of day? "When we negotiated, one of the things I got put into my contract was that they'll look at some of my scripts for consideration for second season. That doesn't mean they have to like them. The thing is you plan that ahead of time, and once you get on a series, you're working all day. When you have your days off, it's hard to sit down at the computer and actually start writing about it. Because you want to distance yourself and maybe go hit the ocean or build a hovercraft or something."
Romijn-Stamos Joins Simone
-Men's Rebecca Romijn-Stamos will join the cast of New Line Cinema's Simone opposite Al Pacino, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The movie tells the story of a producer (Pacino) who makes a film with a computer-generated star who goes on to become a major sensation, the trade paper reported.
Romijn-Stamos will play a cameo role as a young woman who is mistaken for the actress. Andrew Niccol is directing.
Online Hellraiser Game Due
heThreshold.com Web site has acquired the online gaming rights to Clive Barker's Hellraiser movie franchise, Variety reported.
The entertainment site will use the films' mythology for its game, Hellraiser: Hell Online.
Users must unlock a puzzle box to open a gateway into the netherworld. In addition to Hellraiser, the site will unveil several other online genre games in the next six months, the trade paper reported.
Shyamalan Unsure About Indy 4
nbreakable director M. Night Shyamalan told Cinescape Online that he's not sure he wants to tackle the script for the fourth installment of the Indiana Jones series of movies.
It's been reported that Shyamalan is in line to write the screenplay for the much-anticipated sequel, and he has met with Indy director Steven Spielberg and star Harrison Ford.
"I've got to think about it," Shyamalan told Cinescape columnist Cindy Pearlman. "There are a lot of things on my plate, and with the actors' strike coming up, I'm not sure what I want to do next."
Shyamalan said he was ill when he first met Spielberg. "I was physically sick that day with the flu," he said. "Unbelievably, for that hour of meeting Spielberg, my body said, 'I'll give you a little break.' I suddenly felt fine for that little window and then felt sick for weeks afterward. ... Steven Spielberg told me he had seen The Sixth Sense three times."
An Unbreakable Trilogy Coming?
ruce Willis, star of M. Night Shyamalan's new supernatural movie Unbreakable, told a Yahoo! chat that the director always envisioned the film as the first of three movies.
"Unbreakable is the first part of a trilogy of films," Willis told fans. "I can't tell you about the others, ... but we're supposed to do two more. You'll understand how it lends itself to a continuing story."
In Unbreakable, Willis plays a stadium security guard who miraculously survives a calamitous train wreck. Willis co-stars with Samuel L. Jackson and reteams with Shyamalan, his director in The Sixth Sense. Unbreakable opened Nov. 22.
Willis was enthusiastic about Shyamalan's technique. "Night set out to do something amazing, and achieved it," Willis said. "There are always one or two shots that are done in one take, either hand-held or what have you ... very complicated and complex. And so there's generally only one or two of them in films. There are over 30 scenes in this movie that are done in one take. It's astounding."
BBC Plans Dr. Who Films
he BBC is planning a series of feature films based on its long-running Dr. Who television series, the London Sunday Times reported.
The proposed Who movies are part of BBC director general Greg Dyke's plans to involve the network in full-scale film production, the newspaper reported.
The BBC plans a movie version of Dr. Who, the SF series that first aired on the BBC in 1963, as well as sequels, the Times reported.
Gift Scares Grounded In Reality
am Raimi, director of the upcoming supernatural thriller The Gift, told Eon magazine that the scares are based in reality.
"We tried to make the film as suspenseful as possible, and I recognized when I read the fine script that it was very frightening and upsetting, which I think was attributed to the very real characters," Raimi told Eon. "It took time to build them, and to have Cate Blanchett in the lead role further helped the reality. This is a real person you're watching. When anything happens after that, it becomes frightening, even if it's a phone call, and there's no one the other end."
Blanchett stars as a small-town psychic who is called in by police to help find a missing girl, played by Katie Holmes. The film, from a script by Tom Epperson and Billy Bob Thornton, also stars Keanu Reeves as an abusive husband, Hilary Swank, Greg Kinnear and Giovanni Ribisi.
"Cate interviewed with a lot of psychic card readers and tried to understand the process that they go through," Raimi said. "When it came time to photograph Cate's character having these visions, it was important we didn't show normal tarot cards and pretend they had some meaning to them, as I saw in a lot of films. When you have Cate Blanchett, you want her to communicate what she sees. It was best we used bland, meaningless symbols, and Cate would perform what she saw. We did that throughout the script. She was a great collaborator. If she didn't understand something in the script, she'd ask me. If I had an answer, I would give it to her. If we realized we hadn't figured out that moment, we'd work on it."
The Gift opens in limited release in New York and Los Angeles on Dec. 20 and goes into wide release on Jan. 19, 2001.
Miller Returns To Batman
rank Miller--writer of the classic Batman graphic novel The Dark Knight--told Wizard magazine that his new comic series returns to the Batman universe 14 years later, according to Eon magazine.
The Dark Knight Strikes Back series takes place in a totalitarian America.
"America has become what I can only call a kinder, gentler fascist dictatorship," Miller told the magazine. "The heroes have vanished. No one knows where they have gone. And it's up to the world's greatest detective to get them back into action."
Miller said to expect appearances by Green Lantern, the Flash, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow and a new and improved Catgirl. The first issues of the Dark Knight Strikes Back series will debut in the middle of 2001.
Will Sony Ditch Spidey Script?
he Popcorn U.K. Web site reported a rumor that Sony is unhappy with the current script for Sam Raimi's upcoming Spider-Man movie and may ditch it in favor of a discarded one by Titanic director James Cameron.
The studio reportedly doesn't like the latest rewrite by Scott Rosenberg of Jurassic Park writer David Koepp's original screenplay.
Cameron wrote a treatment for a Spider-Man film in 1991, which Sony acquired, Popcorn reported. The movie, based on the Marvel Comics series of the same name, was reportedly slated to start production in January.
TV Guide Online, meanwhile, reported rumors that Mena Suvari and supermodel James King are among the actresses vying for the role of Mary Jane Watson, for which Alicia Witt has also been rumored.
Nickelodeon Develops Pet Boy
an Schneider will write an animated film based on Keith Graves' SF short story "Pet Boy," according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The story centers on a boy who is kidnapped by aliens after he discovers an evil trader's alien pet collection.
Nickelodeon will develop the project, the trade paper reported.
No Start Yet For Hulk
arvel Studios executive Kevin Feige told the Comics Continuum that the feature-film version of its comic series The Incredible Hulk doesn't have a production start date yet, despite recent rumors that Universal Studios had green-lighted the project.
X-Men screenwriter David Hayter has turned in a Hulk script to the studio.
"We have just turned in David's new draft to Uni," Feige told the Continuum. "We love it, they love it, and we are going to start putting it together right away. They have said they want to make the movie. We are looking for directors and trying to figure out when the best release date would be."
Feige added, "I think some people are confused by the term 'green light.' We were up in Toronto with only weeks before filming was to start before we got an official green light on X-Men."
Writer Loses Blade Suit
arv Wolfman, creator of characters from the Marvel Comics series Blade the Vampire Hunter, lost a two-year legal battle to regain ownership of them from Marvel, according to TCJ Online.
Wolfman created the characters Blade and Deacon Frost, which were featured in Marvel's Tomb of Dracula comic in the 1970s.
Wolfman registered a formal copyright for the characters and filed suit against Marvel in a U.S. District Court in California in August 1998, just as a Blade motion picture starring Wesley Snipes was reaching the screen, TCJ reported. Wolfman argued that he had not been bound by any work-for-hire contract at the time he had created the characters in 1972 and that Marvel's subsequent use of the characters had been contingent on his approval.
But the court ruled that Marvel's use of the characters was sufficiently different from Wolfman's initial creations to protect it from Wolfman's claim of copyright ownership.
Grinch Steals Box Office
r. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas wrapped up the No. 1 box-office slot over the five-day Thanksgiving holiday weekend, taking in an estimated $73.8 million, according to the Hollywood trade papers.
The Jim Carrey movie raised its 10-day total to $137.4 million.
Unbreakable, the new movie from The Sixth Sense director M. Night Shyamalan, opened in the No. 2 slot, taking in an estimated $47.2 million over five days, the trade papers reported.
Arnold Schwarzenegger's cloning thriller The 6th Day dropped to No. 7 in its second weekend, taking in an estimated $7.7 million for a total so far of about $25.2 million. Little Nicky came in 10th in its third weekend of release, grossing an estimated $4.7 million, for a total of about $33.9 million.
Briefly Noted
-
Lucasfilm, the production company of filmmaker George Lucas, landed on this year's Forbes magazine list of 500 largest private companies, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Lucasfilm ranked No. 219, with 2000 revenue of $1.05 billion, operating profit of $230 million and net income of $110 million, Forbes reported.
-
The WB will keep Sabrina, the Teenage Witch on its schedule through at least the end of next season, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The network acquired the series from ABC this spring for two seasons, with an option to drop the show if ratings fell short, but the show has performed well.
-
Producers of Rollerball, John McTiernan's upcoming remake of the 1975 SF movie of the same name, have updated the official Web site. The site--which purports to be the official home page of a real Rollerball league--features news updates of recent games, photographs, player profiles and wallpapers with images from the upcoming movie.
-
The SFX Network Web site reported a rumor that the title of the upcoming sequel to this year's hit SF movie Pitch Black will feature the name of Vin Diesel's character, Riddick. The site also reported that a script will be delivered in January.
-
Barry Fanaro (Kingpin) will rewrite the script for Men in Black 2, the proposed sequel to the 1997 Will Smith/Tommy Lee Jones hit movie, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
-
The Ain't It Cool News Web site reported a rumor that Milla Jovovich (The Fifth Element) and Michelle Rodriguez (Girlfight) have been cast in the upcoming Resident Evil: Ground Zero movie, which is based on the Capcom video game series Resident Evil.
-
David Duchovny will return as FBI Agent Fox Mulder in The X-Files during episodes slated to air in the February sweeps period, Fox Entertainment president Gail Berman told E! Online.
-
As expected, James Franco (Freaks and Geeks) will play Harry Osborn, son of the villainous Green Goblin, in Sam Raimi's upcoming Spider-Man movie, Variety reported.
-
Marvel launched an official Web site for its Saturday-morning animated series X-Men: Evolution. The site features flash-animated character biographies, conceptual artwork and discarded designs, five radio shows, interactive games, news, a trailer and the series' bible.
-
Planet of the Apes star Charlton Heston told Entertainment Weekly that he's flattered director Tim Burton is remaking the monkey movie. "I remade both The Ten Commandments and Ben Hur, so there's no law against remakes. It's indicative of the popularity with audiences the original film had. ... It's a compliment."
-
Producer Lauren Shuler-Donner told the Coming Attractions Web site that she will produce Constantine, a feature film based on Vertigo's Hellblazer comic series, for Warner Brothers. Frank Cappello is writing the script.
-
Screenwriter David Hayter (X-Men) told the Comics Continuum Web site that he has turned in a draft of the script for the feature-film version of Marvel Comics' The Incredible Hulk to Universal Studios. "I have indeed finished a draft of The Hulk, and from all accounts, it seems that the studio is pretty happy," Hayter told the Continuum. "Thus, I am pretty happy."
-
Ubi Soft designer Oliver Sykes told the FGN Web site that the upcoming Dreamcast video game Dragonriders: Chronicles of Pern will be delayed until March or April of next year. The game, based on Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern series of fantasy novels, was originally slated for release by the end of the year.
-
An official Web site has gone up for Elvira's Haunted Hills, the new movie from the campy TV horror hostess Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (otherwise known as Cassandra Peterson). The independent movie, a spoof of Roger Corman horror films, is currently shooting in Romania.
-
Universal Pictures requested that theater owners pull a teaser trailer for its upcoming film The Mummy Returns, which was scheduled to run with the studio's PG-rated holiday film Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Several theater owners complained that the trailer was too intense for young children who would likely come to see The Grinch. The Mummy movie, which has not been rated, is expected to draw a PG-13 rating.
-
A teaser poster for Steven Spielberg's upcoming SF epic movie A.I. has gone up on the film's official Web site.
