Janssen Talks X2's Grey
amke Janssen—who reprises the role of Jean Grey in the X-Men sequel, X2—told SCI FI Wire that her character undergoes changes in the sequel that may or may not set up a third film.
"Well, there's no talk of a third film yet," Janssen said in an interview. "We really don't know what's going to happen. But all I'm supposed to say is that Jean Grey is evolving."
Janssen added, "But also I think that it's one of those things that they don't want to give the ending away of [X2]. So they don't really want us to go that way with talking about it. But ... if I can say anything, it doesn't end there." (Don't read this if you don't want to be spoiled for X2: Janssen confirmed that fans familiar with Marvel Comics' Dark Phoenix story arc won't be surprised.)
Despite her character's likely importance in a third X-Men movie, Janssen remained non-committal about signing up for another sequel. "Perhaps," she said. "It depends. There are many variables." X2 opened May 2.
Fans Snatch X2 Ads
vereager fans have stolen 168 bus-shelter posters for the X-Men sequel film, X2, USA Today reported.
Distributor 20th Century Fox reported that the thefts include one from the bus stop in front of Fox's Los Angeles studios, the newspaper added.
The one-sheets, valued at $40 each, were snatched over the past week from buildings and bus shelters in 15 cities, including New York, Los Angeles, Detroit and Chicago, police told USA Today.
Some of the stolen posters were listed on eBay for sale, and some of the auctions were shut down, though others were spotted by the newspaper. No arrests have been made.
X2 Sets Release Record
he X-Men sequel film, X2, will set a record for the biggest ever "day-and-date" release in film history, meaning that it will open simultaneously in 80 countries and in 93 separate markets on May 2, Variety reported.
The previous record was set last year, when Star Wars: Episode II—Attack of the Clones opened simultaneously in 74 countries, the trade paper reported.
The strategy of a massive day-and-date release is mostly used on event movies that are already highly recognizable, the trade paper reported. The original X-Men took in $300 million worldwide three years ago.
Constantine Is Anti-X-Men
2 producer Lauren Shuler Donner told SCI FI Wire that her next comic-book movie, Constantine, based on Vertigo Comics' John Constantine: Hellblazer, will be darker than her X-Men sequel.
"It's PG-13, like X-Men, but the character doesn't have superpowers," Shuler Donner said. "It's really focused on John Constantine, and it's more spiritual. He sends demons back down to hell. It's a darker tone."
Shuler Donner added that it will be a challenge selling audiences on a hero without the name recognition of X-Men. "I think the challenge is just to make a really good movie," she said. "Even though there's a name, a cachet, the movie [still] has to stand up on its own."
Music video and commercial director Francis Lawrence will make his feature-film directing debut on Constantine. Shuler Donner added that she landed Keanu Reeves for the title role through luck. "We gave him the script, and he read it, and he liked it," she said. "He committed to it, luckily." Production begins in September.
Cumming Joins Phantom
2 star Alan Cumming told SCI FI Wire that he has joined the cast of director Joel Schumacher's upcoming film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Phantom of the Opera.
"I'm not going to be the phantom," Cumming said in an interview. "I'm going to be someone else."
Cumming is well-known to Broadway fans, having played the Emcee in the recent New York revival of Cabaret. When asked what he will bring to Phantom, Cumming replied, "Pizazz, lots of pizazz. I'm looking forward to working with Joel." Phantom of the Opera goes into production in October.
Cumming is currently on view as the blue-skinned mutant Nightcrawler in Bryan Singer's X2, which opened May 2.
Butler Offered Phantom Role
cottish-born actor Gerard Butler has been offered the starring role in director Joel Schumacher and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical feature film The Phantom of the Opera, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Butler (Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life) has not decided whether to take the role, because he is fielding other offers, the trade paper reported.
Anne Hathaway (The Princess Diaries) and Emmy Rossum (Passionada) have emerged as the top choices to play Phantom's female lead, Christine, the trade paper reported.
Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Group is producing the project, which goes into production in October.
SG-1's Tapping Gets Active
manda Tapping, who co-stars as Maj. Samantha Carter on the SCI FI Channel original series Stargate SG-1, told SCI FI Wire that she will get to showcase Carter's rarely seen action chops in a seventh-season episode entitled "Space Race."
"It's a cool episode that we're actually shooting as we speak," Tapping said in an interview this week. "It's kind of a video-game episode, and Sam engages in this space race in this ship with an alien that we'd encountered last season."
Tapping added that Sam is an adrenaline junkie who rides a motorcycle to work, and the change of pace is right up her alley. "So it's interesting to play her [in] this episode, because she's a lot more fun, a little cheekier," she said. "She's like a little kid, because everything is all about this race, and she really gets off on it."
Tapping said that she has long believed her character possessed an inner fire. But she was careful not to overplay it in "Space Race," she added. "I was talking to the director yesterday, after we'd finished a scene, and he said, 'Wow, I love what Sam is doing. I love what you're doing here with her,'" she said. "I said, 'It's not too much, because you can't just suddenly bring in this whole new side of the character.' It's something that's always been there, and now it gets to be right at the forefront, the kind of style that she has of 'Woo-hoo! I get to be in a race.'" Stargate SG-1 is currently in production for its seventh season, which will debut on SCI FI June 13.
Hitchcock Informs Paycheck
ohn Davis, producer of the SF thriller film Paycheck, told SCI FI Wire that director John Woo is shooting the Philip K. Dick adaptation in the style of suspense master Alfred Hitchcock.
"It's North by Northwest," Davis said in an interview. "The camera moves are so elegant. He's just a brilliant visualist."
Paycheck, based on a Dick short story, stars Ben Affleck as an engineer who discovers that part of his memory has been erased after he worked on a top-secret project. Affleck's character must figure out what's missing while he eludes the government. "In the picture, Ben Affleck feels like Cary Grant" in the famous Hitchcock film, Davis said. Production is underway in Vancouver, B.C., aiming for a Christmas release.
Purcell Upbeat About Doe
ominic Purcell, star of Fox's SF series John Doe, told SCI FI Wire that the cast and crew are optimistic that the show will be renewed for a second season.
"Everyone thinks it's got a great chance of coming back," Purcell said in an interview. "People really love the show. It's doing really well in the demographics." The network is expected to make a decision on the show this month.
Australian-raised Purcell thinks the show's amnesia motif can last only another six months before moving on to bigger mysteries. "I'd like it to develop into a more high-class kind of genre, more to do with global terrorism and stuff that confronts modern-day issues," he said. He added that he has his own theory about who John Doe is: "I think I'm some kind of clone. I think it's the government gone mad with something." John Doe ended its freshman season April 25.
Cusacks Quit Stepford
ohn and Joan Cusack have dropped out of Paramount's remake of The Stepford Wives, citing family reasons, Variety reported.
Matthew Broderick is negotiating to replace him; Bette Midler is set to replace her, the trade paper reported.
They join Nicole Kidman, Christopher Walken, Glenn Close, Roger Bart, Mike White and Faith Hill in the remake, which will be directed by Frank Oz from a script by Paul Rudnick.
John Cusack had been set to play the husband of Kidman, who becomes seduced by the idea of having a reprogrammed mate. Joan Cusack was set to play a friend who helps her put together the clues, the trade paper reported.
ID4 II Script In Works
ndependence Day producer and screenwriter Dean Devlin told SCI FI Wire that he and his partner, director Roland Emmerich, are working on a script for a sequel.
"Roland and I are writing it, so hopefully it'll come out good," Devlin said in an interview. "If not, we'll bury it."
Devlin declined to discuss the script's plot, but added that the quality of the screenplay will be a key factor in getting back the original cast, which included Will Smith, Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum. "I think if we had a good script, everyone would want to come back," he said. "If the script's not good, then they'll probably tell us to go our own way."
Williams: Pan Gets Deep
ritish actress Olivia Williams, who plays Mrs. Darling in the upcoming live-action Peter Pan film, told Dark Horizons that the movie digs beneath the surface of the J.M. Barrie fantasy story.
P.J. Hogan was "the right director for Peter Pan, the way he explores the magic of childhood and the fantasy of it," Williams told the site. "The social facts are also there: the fact that J.M. Barrie had a pretty dodgy relationship with an understanding of children that Mr. Darling and Captain Hook are the same guy. None of that gets past P.J. Itıs not a sentimental Hollywood version, but on the other hand, it has all the imagination and magic that it requires."
Williams spent several months shooting Peter Pan in Australia. "We were meant to be done by March, I think," she said. "The boy who never grew up [was] definitely growing up."
Moss Swears Off Kung Fu
arrie-Anne Moss, star of the upcoming The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, told Newsweek that she won't be doing any more martial-arts movies.
"I will never do another kung fu movie again," Moss told the magazine, adding that she broke her leg during the first week of training for the back-to-back shoot of the two Matrix sequels.
"It's too stressful," Moss said. "It's stressful on the body and spirit. I mean, I loved it, and it was great to have a challenge like that. No, you know what? I didn't love it. I love that I did it, but I didn't love it. It was really hard for me."
Moss said that she fractured her leg doing wire work when she landed on it too hard. She says the training for the sequels was harder than on 1999's original Matrix. "The first time around I didn't know what to expect, and it was really hard, but ignorance was bliss. This time, it was brutal." The Matrix Reloaded opens May 15; Matrix Revolutions opens in November.
Punisher Trailer Due
arvel Studios executive vice president Kevin Feige told E! Online to expect a new trailer for the upcoming Punisher film adaptation to accompany prints of Ang Lee's Hulk movie, which opens June 20.
Punisher, based on the Marvel vigilante series, stars Thomas Jane (Dreamcatcher) as Frank Castle.
"There's a teaser coming out that I swear is going to bring the house down, whether you know who the character is or not," Feige told the site.
Feige added that the movie begins shooting this summer. "It's not going to be New York," he said. "We've [already] got a lot of heroes in New York. But it will be in an atmosphere where one would expect the Punisher."
Vinton Animating Corpse
inton Studios has signed on to produce Tim Burton's stop-motion animated film The Corpse Bride for Warner Brothers, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The film is set to begin shooting in November in London and marks the first full-length feature to hail from the Portland, Ore.,-based Vinton Studios, the trade paper reported.
Based on a 19th-century Eastern European folk tale, Bride is described as an offbeat fable about a young man who inadvertently becomes betrothed to a corpse. Burton is attached to produce the movie, which is being adapted for the screen by Caroline Thompson (Burton's Edward Scissorhands) and directed by first-time helmer Mike Johnson, the trade paper reported.
Johnson, whose best-known directorial effort is the foam-animated Primus music video The Devil Went Down to Georgia, worked in the claymation department at San Francisco-based Skellington Productions during the creation of the Burton-produced features The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach.
Square Enix Previews Games
quare Enix announced that it will unveil the North American version of its Final Fantasy XI video game for the PlayStation 2 and the PC at the upcoming Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, May 14-16.
The debut will be part of the slate of new games Square Enix will introduce at the expo, including the PS2 games Unlimited Saga, Final Fantasy X-2, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time and Drakengard.
Square Enix will also show Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles for the GameCube and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance and Sword of Mana for the GameBoy Advance.
Cartoon Network Unveils Shows
he Cartoon Network will premiere two new animated series this summer, one featuring a teenage Robin and another bringing a Space-Age Daffy Duck to the screen, the network announced.
The new shows—Teen Titans and Duck Dodgers—will join returning shows
The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy and The Justice League.
In Teen Titans, based on the DC Comics series, Robin the Boy Wonder unites teen superheroes Cyborg, Starfire, Beast Boy and Raven as they join forces to defend the world against a new generation of supervillains, all the while dealing with the horrors of being a teenager. Teen Titans premieres July 19.
Looney Tunes characters Daffy Duck and Porky Pig find themselves in the 24-1/2 century in Duck Dodgers. Daffy's Duck Dodgers and Porky's Space Cadet must save the Earth from Martian Commander X-2 (Marvin the Martian). Each episode consists of two 11-minute cartoons; the show premieres Aug. 23.
Banks 2 Goes To London
rankie Muniz told SCI FI Wire that he begins shooting Agent Cody Banks 2 on May 27 in London.
This time, the young agent will be a fish out of water in London society, Muniz said in an interview. "He's not going to know where he is and what to do," he said. "[He'll do] a lot of lying, of course, to get the mission done."
Muniz promised more hand-to-hand combat for the teenage secret agent. "It's going to be triple the amount of fighting and stuff like that, so it's going to be crazy," he said.
In the original Agent Cody Banks, Muniz's character tried to overcome his fear of talking to girls. In the sequel, that will no longer be a problem. "He's definitely going to talk to girls easily this time," Muniz said. "That's not going to be an issue." No release date has been set for Agent Cody Banks 2.
Polar Expresses Reality
on Burgess, director of photography for the upcoming fantasy film The Polar Express, told SCI FI Wire that the animated film's performances will be based on real actors, not created by animators.
The film is an adaptation of Chris Van Allsburg's holiday-themed children's book.
"The entire movie is being shot in motion-capture," Burgess said in an interview. "So [while] the surfaces are ultimately going to be rendered to look like The Polar Express [book], ... the performances are all captured [from] the actors. It's pretty amazing, because you truly get the performance this way."
The Polar Express is the latest collaboration between Burgess and director Robert Zemeckis, who previously teamed on Contact, What Lies Beneath and other films. Tom Hanks plays The
Conductor; the late Michael Jeter completed several roles before his death in March.
Burgess said that The Polar Express has been a unique experience. "It's certainly not the traditional role of a director of photography," he said. "It's a very different role. [But] I've been working with this particular filmmaker for 10 years, and when he went to take on this process and kind of reinvent the wheel, he wanted his core brain trust around him to help him solve the problems. So I'm here." The Polar Express is tentatively scheduled for release on Nov. 19, 2004.
New Crow Takes Wing
imension Films has tapped David Boreanaz (Angel), Edward Furlong, Dennis Hopper and Tara Reid to star in Wicked Prayer, the fourth installment in the Crow film series, produced by Edward R. Pressman and Jeff Most, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Lance Mungia (Six-String Samurai) is directing the film, which goes into production in June, the trade paper reported. Emmanuelle Chriqui, Danny Trejo, Marcus Chong and Tito Ortiz round out the cast.
Set in the Southwest, Prayer tells the story of ex-con Jimmy Cuervo (Furlong) and his girlfriend, Lily (Chriqui), who are murdered by Luc Crash (Boreanaz) and his satanic gang, Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, as part of a ritual for Crash to become an immortal demon, the trade paper reported. Reid plays Crash's evil love interest. Hopper plays El Nino, who marries Crash and Lola.
The Crow franchise is based on the comic-book series created by James O'Barr. Mungia and Most wrote the screenplay to the project, with a polish by Sean Hood, the trade paper reported.
Elfman Sees Some Action
enna Elfman, who co-stars in the upcoming fantasy sequel film Looney Tunes: Back in Action, told SCI FI Wire that her character spoofs 007 and Indiana Jones.
"I got to wear this hot pink pushup dress and this big long blond wig that made me into a Bond type of girl," Elfman said in an interview.
Elfman's character, a studio executive teaming up with Bugs Bunny to chase Brendan Fraser and Daffy Duck, also gets to drive a "spy car" loaded with Bond-like gadgets. "There are all these knobs with pictures," she said. "They put little pictures of bombs, so if you push that button, it becomes a cartoonish and funny [gadget]."
The film culminates with all four going through a jungle temple filled with booby traps, a la Raiders of the Lost Ark. "The things really worked," she said. "All these booby-trapped things were stuff we really had to work with, so it gave a sense of suspense and excitement to the filming." Looney Tunes: Back in Action opens Nov. 14.
Astro Boy Reborn
he Kids WB has ordered 26 episodes of a new U.S. version of the classic animated Japanese anime Astro Boy, Variety reported.
The original Astro Boy launched in 1963 as one of Japanese TV's first anime-style series.
Sony Pictures Television, Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan and Tezuka Productions are behind the updated version, which will air on Kids WB during the 2003-'04 season, the trade paper reported.
Astro Boy centers on an atomic-powered robot, created in the image of a grieving scientist's dead son, who fights for peace and justice in Metro City. The original Astro Boy was set 50 years in the future, which placed the birth of the character in the year 2003.
Meg Film Piques Interest
teve Alten, author of the prehistoric shark book Meg and its sequel, The Trench, told TV Guide Online that interest is heating up in a film adaptation.
The writer said that his screenplay adaptation is sparking interest again, after he reacquired film rights, because of the story's teen appeal.
"For a while, nothing was happening," Alten told the site. "But recently some developments have been spurred on, because it seems that teens love Meg—so much so that high-school teachers were using the book as part of their curriculum. I didn't know this until English teachers started e-mailing me that the book was a huge hit in their classes."
"So essentially we have a growing army of kids who are wanting to see a movie [adaptation]," Alten said. "I wasn't aiming to do that, but it just worked out. Now, slowly but surely, Hollywood studios have gotten wind of that, and it's generated a real interest."
Alten will release Primal Waters, the third title starring the Carcharodon megalodon, in summer 2004.
Potter Props Stolen
hieves have stolen props from the British set of the third Harry Potter film, the British Herald newspaper reported.
Security has been stepped up after polystyrene pumpkins and plaster rocks were removed or vandalized on the set of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which is slated to begin shooting in the Glencoe area of Great Britain.
Much of the set, including Hagrid's Hut, is built so close to a major highway that it has become a tourist attraction, the newspaper reported.
Siblings Adapt Rapunzel
ibling writers Adam and Melanie Wilson have been hired to pen the animated-film adaptation of the classic fairy tale Rapunzel for Disney, Variety reported.
The film is intended as an all-computer-animated production.
The Wilsons also wrote the spec script Evergone, a dramatic fantasy about a boy's journey into the Bermuda Triangle in hopes of finding his long-lost father, the trade paper reported.
Melanie Wilson is a former unit publicist, while Adam Wilson worked in production at MTV and VH1.
Sims Beholds The Zone
olly Sims, the model and host of MTV's House of Style, told SCI FI Wire that she hadn't seen the original Twilight Zone episode "Eye of the Beholder" when she signed on to star in UPN's upcoming remake, playing the young woman who goes under the knife to change her face.
But she quickly saw the irony of playing a person whose idea of beauty doesn't necessarily match our own.
"I have to say, it was a great character to play, considering that I'm a model, and everything does really depend on what you look like," Sims said in an interview. "So it was a great ... juxtaposition to play someone who actually wants to look not [what we consider] beautiful."
In the remake of Rod Serling's original episode, Sims plays Janet, a woman the audience first glimpses covered in bandages and attended to by hospital staff whose faces aren't revealed until the end. "I was wrapped for about two and a half days," Sims recalled. "I had like a balaclava and then a plaster mask on. ... I was wrapped. So it was a bit claustrophobic. ... I was like, 'Oh, my God.' I couldn't see."
Sims takes on the role first played by Donna Douglas in the original "Eye of the Beholder," which was first broadcast in 1960. "And we pretty much followed the script exactly the way [Serling] wrote it," Sims said. "It was a great experience." "Eye of the Beholder" airs on the new Twilight Zone at 9 p.m. ET/PT April 30.
Knight To Ride Again
ormer Knight Rider star David Hasselhoff told SCI FI Wire that he's still executive producing a feature-film version of the 1980s TV show and is also developing a new TV series.
Formerly known as Super Knight Rider 3000, the feature film is now simply called Knight Rider: The Movie and is in development at Revolution Studios.
Hasselhoff added that he is in talks to produce the new TV series. "Right now it's in this land of 'Which way are we going with it?'" Hasselhoff said in an interview. "I think for the film, we're going to go one way, and for the television series another way." Hasselhoff said that he hopes to have an acting role in both the film and the series. "I figure James Bond's about my age, so I could still be Michael Knight." No start date is announced for either project.
Adventure Star Dies
esse Nilsson, star of the syndicated TV show Adventure, Inc., died of heart failure on April 26 at his parents' home in North York, Ontario, Canada, the Toronto National Post newspaper reported.
He was 25.
Nilsson, whose career began in 1993 playing Justin in the popular Canadian teen show Ready or Not, was a lifetime asthmatic who had been suffering from pneumonia for two weeks prior to his death, the newspaper reported. Nilsson was found by his parents shortly after lunch.
Nilsson starred as Gabriel Patterson in Adventure, Inc., produced by Fireworks Entertainment and Tribune Entertainment. The show has not been picked up for a second year yet.
Sutherland Bites Salem
onald Sutherland has joined the cast of TNT's miniseries Salem's Lot, based on Stephen King's best-selling vampire novel, Variety reported.
Sutherland will play Richard Straker, a mysterious antique-store owner and right-hand man to the head vampire, the trade paper reported.
The cast includes Rob Lowe, Andre Braugher, Rutger Hauer, James Cromwell and Samantha Mathis, the trade paper reported. Salem's Lot began filming this month in Australia. Mikael Salomon directs, from a script by Peter Filardi (The Craft).
Columbia Options Half Magic
olumbia Pictures has picked up the film rights to Edward Eager's fantasy book Half Magic for David Heyman to produce, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Magic, first published in 1954, is a comedy about four children who embark on a magical journey when they find a talisman that turns out to be "half magic."
Heyman produced the Harry Potter film franchise.
Steampunk JLA Debuts
disakdi Tantimedh, writer of DC Comics' Justice League: Age of Wonder miniseries, told SCI FI Wire that H.G. Wells inspired his steampunk alternative superhero saga.
Age of Wonder, part of DC's Elseworlds series of alternate histories, places Superman and the Justice League in 19th-century America and looks at their influence on the Industrial Revolution, among other things.
"The initial spark for the story was the question 'What if H.G. Wells wrote a Superman story?'" Tantimedh said in an interview. "Since superheroes are an offshoot of science fiction, Superman and the Justice League were the perfect vehicles with which to explore themes of history and technological change."
In the comic, Clark Kent, the Green Lantern, the Flash and Starman create the League of Science, witnesses to and catalysts of the dawn of a new age of science. But when industrialist Lex Luthor turns against them, the League must battle against the encroaching forces of chaos.
"The Industrial Revolution was an interesting era, and it was a no-brainer to stick Superman and the Justice League in that time just to see how they would affect the late 19th century and create an alternate history from the one we know," said Tantimedh, who is also an independent filmmaker. "The series explores how rapid technological change can alter a world and how the direction the world goes in can be hijacked by the agendas of businessmen and politicians."
Book one of two Age of Wonder issues, with art and cover by Galen Showman, is now in stores.
Snowman Film Thawing
mmett/Furla Films has teamed with Ilya Salkind and Gale Anne Hurd to develop and produce The Abominable Snowman, Variety reported.
Salkind (Superman) held the rights to the title, the trade paper reported.
The movie is based on the legend of the "yeti" that stalk the Himalayas , the trade paper reported.
Hurd (The Hulk) has also teamed with Randall Emmett and George Furla to develop Micronauts, the trade paper reported.
Arnold, Cleese Take 80 Days
rnold Schwarzenegger and British actor-comedian John Cleese will play cameo roles in Walden Media's upcoming Around the World in 80 Days, based on Jules Verne's classic book, Variety reported.
Schwarzenegger will reteam with his Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines producer Hal Lieberman, who is producing 80 Days with Bill Badalato, the trade paper reported.
The movie, which stars Jackie Chan and Jim Broadbent, began shooting in Thailand and moved to Studio Babelsberg in Germany this month for a three-month shoot, the trade paper reported.
Kathy Bates recently signed to play Queen Victoria. Other cast includes Steve Coogan, Johnny Knoxville and Belgian actor Cecile de France. Frank Coraci (The Wedding Singer) directs, from a script by Michael D. Weiss and David Titcher.
AnLab, Asimov Winners Named
nalog Science Fiction and Fact magazine announced the winners of its AnLab Award, and Asimov's Science Fiction magazine named winners of its Readers' Award.
The awards were presented during the 2003 Nebula Awards weekend on April 19. Both awards are based on reader polls. A list of winners follows.
Analog Science Fiction and Fact
AnLab Winners
Best Novella
•"In Spirit" by Pat Forde
Best Novelette
•"Look Away" by Stephen L. Burns
Best Short Story
•"The Hunters of Pangaea" by Stephen Baxter
Best Fact Article
•"Galactic Society" by Robert Zubrin
Best Cover
•David A. Hardy
Asimov's Science Fiction
Readers' Award Winners
Best Novella
•"Breathmoss" by Ian R. MacLeod
Best Novelette
•"The Wild Girls" by Ursula K. Le Guin
Best Short Story
•"She Sees My Monsters Now" by Robert Reed
Best Poem
•"Eight Things Not to Do or Say When a Mad Scientist Moves Into Your Neighborhood" by Bruce Boston
Best Cover Artist
•Dominic Harman
Best Interior Artist
•Michael Carroll
Angel Finale Upends Things
im Minear, consulting producer on The WB's Angel, told the Zap2it Web site that the show's upcoming fourth-season finale will act as a "pilot" for the series' next season, should the network renew the vampire drama.
"We tried to design it so that it would basically be a pilot for next season," Minear told the site. "It's setting up the new configuration for the show. I guess you could call it a cliffhanger. It's really not."
Minear wrote and directed "Home," the season finale, in which the outcome of the battle against Jasmine draws the attention of Wolfram & Hart, which makes Angel and his crew an offer they can't refuse, the site reported.
"There is some resolution to story threads that have been pushed throughout the season, but it really is a pilot," Minear said. "Home" airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT May 7. A decision on Angel's future is expected later in May.
Rowling Richer Than Queen
arry Potter author J.K. Rowling made enough money to surpass Queen Elizabeth on Britain's annual "rich list," published in this week's Sunday Times newspaper, the Reuters news service reported.
With 280 million pounds ($445.5 million), the author is now the U.K.'s 122nd richest person.
Rowling wrote her first novel about a boy wizard while a single parent living on a state benefit of only $111 a week. Of her fortune, $238.7 million came from her books and the rest from film rights and Harry Potter merchandise, the news service reported. The fifth book in the series is due out this summer and the third film is on its way.
Queen Elizabeth, with $397.8 million, is ranked a mere 133rd on the list of her wealthy subjects, the news service reported.
Galactica Game Developing
arthog is developing a prequel video game based on the Battlestar Galactica TV series for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox.
The Battlestar Galactica game will join the DVD and home-video release of the original TV series, as well as the SCI FI Channel's upcoming miniseries, to celebrate the franchise's 25th anniversary.
The game, to be released by Vivendi Universal Interactive, puts players in the role of Ensign Adama, 40 years before the events of the original television show. Players will get to pilot retro versions of the famous Colonial Viper attack fighters, as well as an all-new Colonial heavy bomber and the familiar Cylon Raider.
Vivendi Universal Interactive is owned by Vivendi Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.
No Lee, Kirby Credit In Hulk?
he IGN FilmForce Web site reported a rumor that Hulk creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby may not receive screen credit in Ang Lee's upcoming film adaptation.
Citing anonymous sources, the site reported that Marvel Enterprises, which owns the character, may not accord the comic creators credit in retaliation for a $10 million lawsuit Lee filed against Marvel claiming that his longtime employer cheated him out of profits from the film adaptation of Spider-Man.
The site added, however, that the film's credits are only tentative right now, and final screen credits won't be determined for another three weeks so.
Focus Raises Revolver
ocus Features has acquired the supernatural film script Revolver from writer Adam Sussman, Variety reported.
Focus hopes to put it into production this fall.
Revolver tells the story of a troubled young woman traveling across the Midwest, who discovers that she may be reincarnated and that supernatural forces have brought her there to avenge her own murder, the trade paper reported.
Fans Auction Buffy Props
ans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Nicholas Brendon (Xander) are auctioning show props to benefit charity.
NickBrendon.com is selling two prop pieces as part of its annual fund-raiser for the Stuttering Foundation of America.
The items are an autographed hospital bracelet Xander wore after his encounter with Caleb in the episode "Dirty Girls" and an autographed yellow hard hat.
Brendon has served as honorary chairperson of the foundation's Stuttering Awareness Week for three consecutive years, and fans have donated more than $5,000.
Briefly Noted
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U.K. commercial TV network Five has picked up Alias from Buena Vista International Television, Variety reported.
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UPN's Enterprise saw its ratings down in the first week of May sweeps by a big 39 percent in the 18-49 demographic, compared with its opening-week May performance of a year earlier, Variety reported.
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George Romero's upcoming vampire thriller The Ill, produced by Thierry Cagianut of Gotham's P-Kino Films, has been picked up by London-based sales outfit IN-motion Pictures for worldwide sale outside the U.K. and North America, Variety reported.
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Former Star Trek: Voyager star Kate Mulgrew will speak about her role as Katharine Hepburn in the play Tea at Five and will also sign autographs at the Broadway Talks series at 7:30 p.m. May 11 at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. Tickets are $22 per person.
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Moviehole reported a rumor that Nicole Kidman will have a cameo role in Terry Gilliam's upcoming fantasy film Brothers Grimm. Entertainment Tonight, meanwhile, reported that George Clooney will cameo in the upcoming Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over.
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The TrekWeb fan site reported major spoilers from an upcoming TV Guide about the season finale of UPN's Enterprise, which airs at 8 p.m. ET/PT May 21.
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Pittsburgh fans of UPN's Buffy the Vampire Slayer will gather at Rumshakers for the last of their Buffy Nights viewing parties on May 20, the night the series finale airs. The special gathering will include a costume contest, giveaways and musical performances.
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Artisan Home Entertainment will release yet another DVD of Terminator 2: Judgment Day on June 3. T2: Extreme DVD will feature a remastered print of the movie—including a high-definition version viewable only with special equipment—as well as 16 minutes of new scenes and a host of new features, priced at $29.98.
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The Cartoon Network has renewed its long-running original series The Powerpuff Girls for another 13 half-hour episodes, Variety reported. The network will also schedule the Powerpuff Girls Movie as a TV premiere for four consecutive nights at 8 p.m. over Memorial Day weekend.
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A new series of short Internet films, The Chloe Chronicles, will focus on Allison Mack's character from The WB's Smallville series. The documentary-style shorts will appear on Tuesdays immediately following Smallville for four weeks only on AOL Television at AOL Keyword: Smallville.
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British TV network Channel 4 has picked up 52 episodes of the recently remastered 1967 Classic Spider-Man animated series, Variety reported. C4 has not yet announced air dates for the series.
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Kathryn Morris has nabbed a role in John Woo's upcoming SF thriller film Paycheck, based on a Philip K. Dick short story, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Shooting is under way in Vancouver, B.C., with Ben Affleck, Uma Thurman, Aaron Eckhart and Michael C. Hall.
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Fox Searchlight will sneak-peek the British independent SF thriller film 28 Days Later on June 13 in screenings in 28 U.S. cities. The apocalyptic movie opens wide on June 27.
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Comedian Anthony Anderson (Kangaroo Jack) has joined the cast of Agent Cody Banks 2, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
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The GameSpot Web site reported that Valve's upcoming action-game sequel Half-Life 2 will be released on Sept. 30.
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Holes grossed about $13 million over the April 25 weekend to place third in the box-office rankings, the Hollywood trade papers reported. That represented a slight 20 percent drop from the movie's opening grosses.
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