Fillion Flies To Buffy
irefly star Nathan Fillion is joining the cast of UPN's Buffy the Vampire Slayer for a key role in the series' final five episodes, Variety reported.
Fillion will play Caleb, a former man of God who's turned to the dark side and now follows the First, the trade paper reported.
Buffy creator Joss Whedon also created the short-lived SF series Firefly for Fox.
"Nathan Fillion has a leading man's looks, but he's actually horribly evil, so he makes Caleb the epic foil for Buffy that he needs to be," Whedon told the trade paper. "Caleb calls himself a preacher, but his habit of murdering girls and his alliance with the darkest evil known to man makes him exactly the sort of guy whose ass Buffy needs to kick."
Whedon Eyes Giles TV Film
nthony Stewart Head, who plays Giles on UPN's Buffy the Vampire Slayer, told the icLiverpool Web site that the dormant British spinoff series based on his character may turn into a two-hour TV movie instead.
"I talked to [Buffy creator] Joss [Whedon]," Head told the site. "He said that instead of getting himself committed to another hourlong detective show, like Angel, he'd rather do a two-hour movie."
Head added, "It would look in depth into the character more. He's interested in Giles' character. It could be a one-off, and if anybody liked it, they'd go from there. At the moment, that's what I'm looking at. It makes more sense all 'round, and I know the BBC are still up for it. Joss has got so many ideas. It's not good for one man."
Heinlein's Moon Optioned
roducer David Heyman and Mike Medavoy's Phoenix Pictures have teamed to option the feature-film rights to Robert Heinlein's classic SF novel The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, Variety reported.
Published in 1966, the book centers on a computer repairman and moon resident who gets caught up in a rebellion against the authority that controls it from Earth, the trade paper reported. DreamWorks previously optioned the novel.
Heyman's Heyday Films also holds the option to the late author's Have Spacesuit Will Travel, the trade paper reported.
Heyman told Variety that Heinlein's widow, Virginia, gave her blessing to their acquisition of the project shortly before her death Jan. 26. "She wanted to know who was going to do it," he said. "She looked at our bios and decided that it seemed like we wouldn't screw it up."
Travolta Hops To Harvey
ohn Travolta is negotiating to star in Harvey, a new screen version of the Pulitzer-Prize winning fantasy play that was the basis for the 1950 Jimmy Stewart film, Variety reported.
The remake is a co-production between Dimension Films and MGM. Craig Mazin wrote the script.
The studios have begun talks with Travolta to play the role of Elwood P. Dowd, an amiable drunk who pals around with a 6-foot-tall invisible rabbit named Harvey, the trade paper reported. Stewart was Oscar-nominated for his portrayal in the adaptation of Mary Chase's play.
Foundation Script Is Done
ohn Rogers (co-screenwriter of The Core) told SCI FI Wire that he has finished a screenplay for a film adaptation of Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy of SF books for director Shekhar Kapur.
"He said to focus on the 'Mule' arc in the second book, and that was the way in," Rogers said in an interview. "Now we'll see if it's one movie, two or three."
The adaptation required Rogers to pull out pieces of action from a largely theoretical work. "Isaac Asimov is a real intellectual, so chapters would start with 'That was a thrilling escape from the space pirates, wasn't it? Yes, it was. Now about economics.' As a writer, I need the space pirates. I just can't have the economics discussion here. So there was a lot of trying to stay in the spirit of Asimov [while] at the same time expanding the text." No studio attachment or production start date has been announced.
Freeman Still Pushes Rama
ctor Morgan Freeman told SCI FI Wire that he's still intent on producing an adaptation of Arthur C. Clarke's award-winning novel Rendezvous With Rama and is just waiting on a final script.
"The bugaboo there is the script," Freeman said in an interview while promoting his upcoming film Dreamcatcher. "A picture like this, that is written by Arthur C. Clarke, the problem is trying to get someone to understand what it is."
Rama follows a team of astronauts sent to explore a mysterious cylindrical object that has suddenly appeared in our solar system. Freeman will star in the film, with David Fincher (Seven, Panic Room) set to direct.
Freeman said that the script has gone through several drafts in an effort to balance the commercial aspects with the science of Clarke's original story. "These things, they always want to make it into an action film," Freeman said. "So you've got to cowboy it up a little bit. You can't do it with this. And we've been having trouble getting someone to see the science aspect of this, the exploratory aspects of it, rather than the blood and guts and stuff."
The project remains a priority for Freeman, who has been involved in bringing it to the screen for more than two and a half years. "It's not in limbo," he insisted. "We're pushing hard at it constantly."
Walker Drops Out Of 'Superman'
aul Walker (Timeline) has dropped out of the running for the lead role in the proposed Superman movie, balking at the seven-year commitment to the franchise, Variety reported.
That leaves Brendan Fraser and soap star Matthew Bomer as the two likeliest candidates for the part, the trade paper reported.
That trio did screen tests with director Brett Ratner, but Walker was the only one who had an option to remove himself from consideration, the trade paper reported. He did that on March 13, joining Josh Hartnett, who also turned down the role.
Nolte Won Over In Hulk
ick Nolte, who plays Bruce Banner's father in Ang Lee's upcoming The Hulk, told Dark Horizons that he wasn't interested in doing a comic-book movie.
"I wasn't interested in just doing a cartoon, and Ang came to the house and said, 'Look, Nick, I don't know how to do a cartoon, but I DO know how to make a Greek tragedy.'"
Nolte added, "I said, 'If we go for a Greek tragedy, I'll go for it.' ... If we can present it of the magnitude of a Greek tragedy, a father/son tragedy, and if we do it right, there should be some element of compassion, maybe some pain." The Hulk, starring Eric Bana and based on the Marvel Comics series, opens June 20.
Berry To Play Catwoman
arner Brothers has set Oscar winner Halle Berry to play the title role in the upcoming Catwoman film for French director Pitof later this year, Variety reported.
Berry won the Academy Award for best actress for Monster's Ball and will reprise the role of Storm in the upcoming X-Men sequel, X2, which opens May 2.
In Catwoman, Berry steps in for Ashley Judd, who was long attached to the movie, but left to do a play, the trade paper reported. No deal has been made, but Berry is expected to sign on soon. Berry would be the second black woman to play Catwoman, after Eartha Kitt in the 1960s TV series Batman.
Catwoman was written by John Rogers and rewritten by Mike Ferris and John Brancato. Denise Di Novi is producing, the trade paper reported.
Berry is also set to star in the Joel Silver-produced WB supernatural film Gothika, with Robert Downey Jr. and Penelope Cruz, the trade paper reported.
League Novelization Set
imon & Schuster announced a July publication date for the novelization of the upcoming fantasy film The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which in turn is based on Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill's graphic novel, the IGN FilmForce Web site reported.
The 288-page paperback is written by K.J. Anderson (aka Kevin Anderson, author of Dune sequel novels and Star Wars: Rogue Squadron) and will be published under the company's Pocket Star
Books banner, the site reported.
Anderson's novel is based on James Robinson's script, which loosely adapts Moore and O'Neill's comic, about a team of Victorian-era literary characters who join forces to fight evil. "The basic concept is the same, but the overall threat, the Big Evil Plot, and the villain
mastermind are all different," Anderson told The Pulse. "Some
characters have been added or deleted, some character traits have been changed (unfortunately, in my opinion, because of political correctness) ... but James Robinson has come up with an excellent
alternative story. ... The League itself, of course, and the flavor of Victorian pulp sense-of-wonder [remain the same as they were in the comics]." League opens in theaters July 11.
Blair Fires Up Hellboy
elma Blair, who plays fiery Liz Sherman in the upcoming Hellboy movie, told MTV.com that she's happy to stray from her previous prissy roles.
"I do get the guy ... finally!" Blair told the site. "And I'm not a country-club ninny. I'm a secret agent. I felt the same way when Todd Solondz cast me in Storytelling. Like, 'Wait, someone's going to actually believe that I can do something other than these mutations of country-club girls?'"
Based on Mike Mignola's comic series, Hellboy centers on a creature summoned from another dimension by Nazis, who now works as a force for good. "I play Elizabeth Sherman," Blair said. "When I'm about 11, I kill my entire family and town. I'm a fire-starter. I have these supernatural, telekinetic powers. The kids all make fun of me. I'm always a bit different. And this rage and sadness lead me to self-combust, and I burn up my entire town. I'm a good girl. And that's my tragic flaw. ... I've killed everyone I loved. I'm this tragically flawed superhero, in a way, when I'm taken in by the government to help them with their research on paranormal phenomena." Hellboy is shooting in Prague for a summer 2004 release.
Glover Liked Willard's Rats
rispin Glover, who plays the title role in the upcoming rat-attack remake Willard, told SCI FI Wire that he enjoyed working with his four-legged co-stars.
"The rats were great, actually," Glover said in an interview. "I really liked them. They were so well trained."
Glover, who plays the role of a young man tormented by a tyrannical boss, added that he thought the rats were as well-mannered as a dog and a cat in the movie. "With the food rewards, they were able to make the rats go in specific patterns up and down my arm to a certain point, into a coffin," he said. "And these were during very emotional scenes for me. And ... the trainers were sensitive to that kind of thing. And these rats did it perfectly every time."
Glover worked with as many as 500 rats at a time on the movie, a remake of the 1971 thriller that starred Bruce Davison. As for whether he would command rats to wreak revenge like his character, Glover demurred. "I probably wouldn't," he said, but added, "in the fantasy element, I shouldn't say, but it would probably be somebody in the film industry. But I won't say who." Willard opened March 14.
Glover Helmed Willard Video
rispin Glover directed, starred in and sang in a music video of the Jackson 5 song "Ben" for his upcoming horror movie Willard, the Zap2it Web site reported.
The video will be added to the end credits of the film and is also available on the official Web site.
"I'm really proud of it," Glover told the site. "It's actually an expensive production. It's kind of 1926 Berlin-cabaret inspired." New Line rushed the production of the music video and song in order to get it tagged at the end of the movie, the site reported.
The video co-stars the two actual rats in the movie, a large rat named Ben and a smaller white rat named Socrates. The song was originally written for the 1972 sequel "Ben" and nominated for an Oscar. Glover's Willard co-star R. Lee Ermey also appears in the video, playing four different roles. Willard opened March 14.
Osiris Reloads The Matrix
oel Silver, producer of the upcoming sequel film The Matrix Reloaded, told SCI FI Wire that the computer-animated short film Final Flight of the Osiris leads directly into the highly anticipated film.
Osiris—one of nine upcoming animated Animatrix shorts—will screen in theaters alongside Warner Brothers' Dreamcatcher, which opens March 21.
Reloaded "starts with Final Flight," Silver said in an interview. "You're beginning to see the story of the movie. There's a machine army. There seems to be an enormous amount of sentinels that are available. There seem to be tunneling somehow to Zion. And that starts the movie. That starts the plot."
Final Flight of the Osiris, written by The Matrix creators Andy and Larry Wachowski, is one of the anime-style shorts that make up the Animatrix. Four additional segments will be made available for
download, Silver said.
"The first one was up on the Web site a month ago, on Feb. 4," Silver said. "We've had 4 million downloads of that. ... We have the new one up. ... I think we had 250,000 downloads in the first hour it went up. ... Another one will come up again in April and another one in May." The entire Animatrix will be released on DVD on June 3. The Matrix Reloaded opens in theaters May 15.
God Plays Straight In Bruce
organ Freeman, who plays God in the upcoming fantasy comedy film Bruce Almighty, told SCI FI Wire that he is a straight man to Jim Carrey's Bruce.
"I'm working with a supreme comedian, so I don't have to try and do anything funny," Freeman said in an interview. "[I only have to] be a straight man and do it. It works real well, and it's easy."
Bruce takes over for God when the Almighty goes on vacation. The situation allows Freeman to get some laughs, though he insists he's not cracking jokes. "He says to me at one point, 'You're God! You can't go on vacation.' And my answer is, 'Did you ever hear of the Dark Ages?' I don't make jokes, but [God] has a sense of humor." Bruce Almighty opens on May 23.
Muniz Bonded With Banks
rankie Muniz, who plays a teenage James Bond in the upcoming Agent Cody Banks, told SCI FI Wire that one of his favorite scenes in the film was the final sequence, which features elaborate stunts and special effects.
"That whole sequence was really great," he said in an interview. "I loved filming it, because I got to do all of the stunts. And it was crazy on the sets, because we just had huge explosions and all this stuff going on. That's fun for me, and that's not normal."
Muniz added that the experience was a welcome change from his usual work on Malcom in the Middle, the Fox television series for which he is best known. "[On] the TV show, if I had to walk fast, they'd have a stunt double there for me," he said.
In the film, Muniz plays the titular "junior secret agent," a 16-year-old boy who is recruited by the CIA to stop a criminal organization from taking over the world. "That's every teenager's dream," he said. "To be looked at as James Bond—or a character like that—as an actor." Agent Cody Banks opened March 14.
Harmon Sparred In Banks
ngie Harmon, who stars as a sexy CIA agent in the upcoming teen spy film Agent Cody Banks, told SCI FI Wire that she and co-star Frankie Muniz took their sparring scenes very seriously.
"Frankie and I almost killed each other," Harmon said in an interview. "The stunt people, not only do they know how to fight, but they also know how to miss and fight gentle and all of that stuff. And then they put Frankie and me together, and we just start wailing on each other."
Harmon, who is best known for her role as Abbie Carmichael on NBC's Law & Order, said she wanted to do as many of her own stunts in the film as possible. "Most of it is me," she said. "Like, the flips and things, that's not me. But most of it—all of the fighting and the kicking and the swinging, Frankie and I fighting—that was all of us."
Fans of Harmon's television series may be surprised by her voluptuous look in the film, which was inspired by the character of Emma Peel from the classic British spy series The Avengers. "You don't see her in the same hair, makeup or outfit twice," she said. "You know, she's completely self-involved, and she just has to look good while she's kicking as much ass as she does." Agent Cody Banks opened March 14.
Muniz Gets His Stripes
rankie Muniz (Agent Cody Banks) will voice the lead role in Alcon Entertainment's upcoming live-action/computer-animated family film Racing Stripes, Variety reported.
The movie tells the story of an abandoned baby zebra named Stripes (Muniz), who grows up on a Kentucky farm believing he's a racehorse.
Frederik Du Chau (Quest for Camelot) will direct from a script by David Schmidt, Kirk DeMicco and Mike Samonek, the trade paper reported.
Episode III Sets Going Up
rews have begun rebuilding classic Star Wars sets for George Lucas' upcoming Episode III, which starts production this summer, the official Web site reported.
"We've been in Sydney for about four weeks now, and the department is about 50 percent up and running in terms of personnel," production designer Gavin Bocquet told the site. About 35 workers have come together in departments such as construction, props, special effects and plaster, he added.
To meet the schedule, Bocquet's team has tackled the returning environments first in lieu of new locales, which are still being developed, the site reported.
"We do have four or five sets that are being repeated from [Star Wars: Episode II—Attack of the Clones] and a couple of the other episodes, which gives us a chance to work quite quickly on those," Bocquet said. "They don't need any great design input or even technical drawings, because they have existed before."
Those sets include the Jedi Council chambers, the Senate Rotunda and Palpatine's office. The crew will also recreate two sets from the original Star Wars trilogy, the site reported. One is space-based and the other is planet-based, and each will be the stage for intricate action sequences, the site reported.
Dune Auction Benefits Charity
he SCI FI Channel will host a charity auction on eBay of costumes and memorabilia from its upcoming original miniseries Frank Herbert's Children of Dune, starting at 8 p.m. ET March 13.
For 10 days, fans can bid on dresses, headpieces and other wardrobe designed for stars Susan Sarandon, Alec Newman, Daniela Amavia and other cast members, as well as signed posters, books and Dune literary memorabilia. The auction runs through March 23.
SCI FI will donate all proceeds from the auction—guaranteeing at least $25,000—to Reading Is Fundamental, the nation's oldest and largest children's and family literacy organization.
Children of Dune premiered at 9 p.m. ET/PT March 16.
Light, 'Stories' Win Tiptrees
. John Harrison's novel Light and John Kessel's novella "Stories for Men" are co-winners of this year's James Tiptree Memorial Award, the Locus Online Web site reported.
The award honors science fiction or fantasy that explores and expands the roles of women and men for work by both women and men.
The Tiptree Award is named after Alice B. Sheldon, who wrote under the pseudonym James Tiptree Jr. for many years before revealing her real name, the site reported.
MIB III In Works?
olumbia has started development on a third installment of its Men in Black film franchise, Variety columnist Michael Fleming reported.
Director Barry Sonnenfeld is returning to develop a sequel idea pitched to him by star Will Smith with Tommy Lee Jones.
But producer Walter Parkes and Sonnenfeld don't get along, Fleming reported. Sonnenfeld dropped out of Lemony Snicket when Paramount invited DreamWorks to partner. Smith and Jones won't do the film without Sonnenfeld, so Sony's plan is to let the director run with Smith's concept. Parkes would take a back seat, Fleming reported.
Kay Scares Up Boogeyman
tephen Kay has come aboard to direct Senator International's horror project Boogeyman for Ghost House Pictures, Senator's genre label headed by Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Production is due to begin in the spring in New Zealand, and Screen Gems will distribute domestically, the trade paper reported.
Boogeyman is described as a classic horror project about a young man traumatized by memories of terrible events in his childhood bedroom, the trade paper reported.
Spider-Man director Raimi and his longtime producing partner Tapert will produce from a script by Eric Kripke, Juliet Snowden and Stiles White.
Ricci Is Cursed
hristina Ricci has been cast as the lead in Dimension Films' horror thriller Cursed, which reunites Scream team Wes Craven and Kevin Williamson, Variety reported.
The movie follows three strangers whose fates collide on a moonlit night in modern-day Los Angeles, the trade paper reported.
Scott Foley and Omar Epps are also in the cast, as are Kristina Anapau, Scott Baio, James Brolin, Illeana Douglas, Jesse Eisenberg, Robert Forster, Judy Greer, Milo Ventimiglia and Corey Feldman, the trade paper reported.
Williamson wrote the screenplay and will produce with longtime Craven collaborator Marianne Maddalena. Oscar-winning horror veteran Rick Baker has signed on to design special makeup effects for the film, the trade paper reported.
Disney Game Division Renamed
isney Interactive, which will release Tron 2.0, has changed its name to Buena Vista Games, the GameSpot Web site reported.
The renamed game division's overall strategy is to develop and publish more high-profile cross-platform games, the site reported.
Buena Vista's first major release will be Tron 2.0, a video game based on the 1982 Disney movie Tron. Monolith is developing the game.
Brady Puts On Dog
om Brady (The Hot Chick) will rewrite Disney's remake of the 1959 fantasy movie The Shaggy Dog, which the studio hopes to make with Tim Allen in the lead, Variety reported.
Brady may also direct Shaggy Dog, about a boy who changes into a sheepdog at inopportune times, the trade paper reported.
Brady told the trade paper that he planned to complete the rewrite in the next few weeks, at which time the studio would submit the script to Allen. Disney hopes to put Shaggy Dog into production this year for release as a Disney label family comedy for 2004, the trade paper reported.
Ditmar Nominees Announced
inalists for this year's Ditmar Awards for Australian SF have been announced by Swancon 2003, the 42nd Australian National Science Fiction Convention, to be held April 17-21.
The awards are named after Martin James Ditmar (Dick) Jenssen, a founding member of the Melbourne Science Fiction Club. A full list of nominees follows.
Best Australian Novel
•Transcension by Damien Broderick
•Echoes of Earth by Sean Williams and Shane Dix
•Sovereign by Simon Brown
•The Storm Weaver and the Sand by Sean Williams
•Blue Silence by Michelle Marquardt
•The Sky Warden and the Sun by Sean Williams
•Time Past by Maxine McArthur
Best Australian Short Fiction
•"Father Muerte and the Theft" by Lee Battersby
•"Stealing Alice" by Claire McKenna
•"Scratches in the Sky" by Ben Peek
•"Cigarettes and Roses" by Ben Peek
•"King of All and the Metal Sentinel" by Deborah Biancotti
Best Australian Collected Work
•Machinations, ed. Chris Andrews
•Agog! Fantastic Fiction, ed. Cat Sparks
•Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, ed. ASIM Collective
•AustrAlien Absurdities, ed. Chuck McKenzie & Tansy Rayner Roberts
•Passing Strange, ed. Bill Congreve
Best Australian Artwork
•Passing Strange cover by Cat Sparks
•Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine cover, issue No. 3, by Les Peterson
•AustrAlien Absurdities cover by Dion Hamill
•Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine cover, issue No. 1, by Les Peterson
•Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine cover, issue No. 4, by Les Peterson
•Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine cover, issue No. 2, by Les Peterson
Fan Categories
Best Australian Fan Writer
•Edwina Harvey
•Chris Lawson
•Robin Pen
•Dave Cake
•Jonathan Strahan
•Grant Watson
•Bill Wright
Best Australian Fan Artist
•Miriam English
•Les Peterson
•Sarah Xu
•Dick Jenssen
•Colin Sharpe
•Cat Sparks
Best New Talent
•Lily Chrywenstrom
•Chris Mowbray
•Brendan Duffy
•Lee Battersby
Best Australian Fanzine
•Interstellar Ramjet Scoop, ed. Bill Wright
•Fables & Reflections, ed. Lily Chrywenstrom
•Australian SF Bullsheet, ed. Edwina Harvey
•Visions, ed. Stephen Thompson
•Antipodean SF, ed. Antipodean Computer Services
Best Australian Production
•Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine Launch
•Spaced Out Web site
•The View From Mt. Pootmootoo
•Eidolon Web site
Best Australian Professional Achievement
•Lee Battersby
•Trent Jamieson
•Jonathan Strahan
Best Australian Fan Achievement
•Borderlands: That which scares us ..., ed. Simon Oxwell, Grant Watson and Anna Hepworth
•Robin Pen
•Spaced Out Web site, ed. Miriam and Geoff
•Tama Leaver
•Jonathan Strahan
•Robin Pen
•Bill Congreve
•Justin Larbalestier
McGinley Joins Family Curse
ed McGinley (Married ... With Children) leads the cast of The WB's supernatural drama pilot Family Curse, playing the father of a family of archaeologists who hunt down ancient evils, Variety reported.
Lindsay Frost (The Ring) will play mother Kate, Brian Sites will play son Jamie and Britt Irvin (Steven Spielberg Presents Taken) will play daughter Miranda.
Family Curse was formerly known as Shadow Walkers, the trade paper reported. The pilot was written by Dan Angel and Billy Brown (Night Visions) and comes from Regency TV.
Potter Takes On Grotter
arry Potter author J.K. Rowling has accused a Russian writer of copying her work and asked a Dutch court to block publication of one of his books in the Netherlands, her lawyer told the Reuters news service.
Rowling has asked an Amsterdam court to prevent the publication of the first Western edition of The Magic Double Bass by Dmitry Yemets, which her lawyer says copies her hit book Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (which appeared as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the United States), the news service reported.
The Russian book features a girl called Tanya Grotter. Potter and Grotter have much in common: Both are orphans, have strange marks on their faces, wield magical powers and battle an enemy too terrible to be named, Reuters reported.
Yemets' Dutch publisher Byblos said his work was not a copy of Rowling's work, but a response to the hype surrounding the boy wizard.
Isis Film Developing
omic publisher Angel Gate announced the development of Legend of Isis, a fantasy movie from Original Films based on the comic character.
Screenwriter Luke McMullin (Stan Lee's Forever Man) will adapt the comic series for the big screen, the company announced.
The film is described as being in the vein of Raiders of the Lost Ark. A new Legend of Isis comic series is slated for release in November. Darren G. Davis created the series. Ryan Scott Ottney will write the new series, with pencils by Jeremy Roberts, inking by LeBeau Underwood and a cover by R.V. Valdez.
Kasdan Adapted Dreamcatcher
awrence Kasdan, who directed the upcoming supernatural thriller Dreamcatcher, told SCI FI Wire that the depiction of creatures in the film isn't exactly faithful to the Stephen King novel on which it's based.
"There's a description in the book of the s--t weasels, but that's not the one we wound up with," Kasdan said in an interview. "But it starts you in a certain direction. Also, there's certain physical demands for where it goes and what it does that starts to dictate what it looks like."
In adapting the 600-page novel into a film, Kasdan said he tried to remain true to King's vision, while adding his own ideas. "If you look at the book, I don't think he describes [the creatures] in much detail beyond the weasels," he said. "That's why he's so adaptable."
King wrote Dreamcatcher just after the June 1999 auto accident that almost killed him. "He couldn't sit at his computer," Kasdan said. "He was in real pain. The book is suffused with that pain, and it's in the movie. ... I think there's a certain extent to which the whole book is a fever dream in the pain and medication."
But Kasdan said that King was "very supportive" overall during the filming process and is "very happy with the movie." Dreamcatcher opens March 21.
Spielberg Mulls Mitty Remake
aramount is developing The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, a remake of the 1947 comedy, with Jim Carrey playing the role originated by Danny Kaye and with Steven Spielberg directing, Variety reported.
Carrey and Spielberg are expected to start within the next 12 months, the trade paper reported.
Paramount declined comment, but a spokesman for Spielberg acknowledged to Variety that preliminary discussions are under way, as did Samuel Goldwyn Jr. Goldwyn's father produced and distributed the original Mitty.
In the original movie, Kaye played a timid fellow whose daydreams of being a swashbuckling hero were played out in fantasy sequences. The movie was based on a short story by humorist James Thurber, the trade paper reported.
Hales Adapting Gargoyle
olumbia Pictures will adapt Marvel's The Gargoyle comic series for the big screen, with Jonathan Hales (Star Wars: Episode II—Attack of the Clones) writing the script, Variety reported.
Hales, who also wrote The Scorpion King, told the trade paper that his Gargoyle script will have very little connection with the Marvel comic's storyline.
J.M. DeMatteis wrote and Mark Badger drew the comic, which was published in a limited series from June through September 1985. It followed a human soul trapped within a Gargoyle's form, the trade paper reported.
Hales told Variety that his script is "a mother/son tale" about a young boy who spends much of his free time talking to a gargoyle statue on top of his apartment building, which comes to life when a 100-year-old curse is lifted.
Roddenberry Kid Stories Bought
igital Production Solutions, a division of IDT Media, has acquired two stories by late Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry to turn into 3-D animated TV shows or movies, Variety reported.
DPS optioned Starpoint Academy and Gene Roddenberry's Char, the only tales the Trek meister wrote for kids, the trade paper reported.
Starpoint Academy centers on an organization that recruits the best and brightest galactic teens and trains them as elite Astro Rangers on Starpoint Pharos, an artificial planet that's a cosmic United Nations, the trade paper reported.
Char is the story of an intergalactic princess robbed of her birthright, who is raised as a normal girl on 24th-century Earth.
Panacea Entertainment chairman Eric Gardner and Karen Corbin will executive produce the projects with Majel Roddenberry, Roddenberry's widow, the trade paper reported.
Miramax Readies Tiger Film
iramax has acquired film rights to Chinese-American author Laurence Yep's children's fantasy trilogy of books, The Tiger's Apprentice, Variety reported.
Jane Startz is attached to produce the project. Miramax beat out chief rival Nickelodeon for the rights, the trade paper reported.
Yep's trilogy focuses on a Chinese-American boy raised in San Francisco by his grandmother, whom he discovers is the guardian of a magical phoenix egg. The boy must learn ancient Chinese magic in order to carry on his grandmother's role, undergoing training with a tiger capable of assuming human form, the trade paper reported.
A two-time Newbery Honor author, Yep's numerous young-adult books include Dragonwings, Dragon's Gate, The Golden Mountain series and Sweetwater, the trade paper reported.
Creature Rises Again
edi Sarafian will write a remake of The Creature From the Black Lagoon for producer Gary Ross' Universal-based Larger Than Life production company, Variety reported.
Ross' father, Arthur Ross, wrote the script to the original 1954 creature feature, the trade paper reported. Sarafian wrote a draft of the upcoming Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.
Creature is among the studio's upcoming projects featuring vintage Universal monsters, following the successful resuscitation of its Mummy franchise. The studio is planning a 2004 release for Van Helsing that will include many of its classic horror characters, including Frankenstein's monster, Dracula and the Wolfman, the trade paper reported.
In the original Creature, an amphibious "Gill Man" terrorizes archaeologists in the Amazon while falling in love with a beautiful girl, played by Julia Adams, the trade paper reported.
Universal is owned by Vivendi Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.
Games Morph Into Books
ublishers are developing several books by SF authors, based on popular video games, USA Today reported.
Among upcoming offerings:
•Halo: The Flood by William C. Dietz. Out in April, the second Halo novel is based on the Microsoft Xbox game about a super soldier.
•WarCraft, StarCraft and Diablo games from Blizzard Entertainment have related series from Pocket Books.
•Mage Knight, the WizKids video game, is the basis of two novels coming out with an Atlantis theme, Rebel Thunder by Bill McCay and Dark Debts by Doranna Durgin.
Disney Revives Topper
isney has bought remake rights to the 1937 ghost movie Topper for director Adam Shankman (Bringing Down the House) and star Steve Martin, Variety reported.
The original movie, starring Cary Grant, was based on the novel by Thorne Smith, about a man haunted by a married pair of madcap ghosts.
The remake will be produced by Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot and David Hoberman of Mandeville Films. There is no start date, and it has not been decided whether it will be Shankman's next, the trade paper reported.
Davidson Talks Troopers 2
on Davidson, producer of the upcoming straight-to-video sequel Starship Troopers 2, told Moviehole that the film's budget will remain low.
"This installment of Starship is being kept low-budget for an excellent reason: to provide a comfort level for Sony so that they will hire Phil Tippett as the director," Davidson said.
Tippett, a visual-effects artist, created the insectoid creatures in the first Starship Troopers, which was directed by Paul Verhoeven. For the sequel, "Sony is getting a huge bargain on the visual effects, in exchange for allowing Phil to helm the film," Davidson said. "We will also need lots of help from the talented folks in Phil's shop to make it happen and be visually exciting. It really has to be a labor of love to pull it off for next to no money."
Bulletproof Game Due
mpire Interactive announced that it has acquired the video-game rights to the upcoming supernatural martial-arts film Bulletproof Monk.
United Kingdom-based Mucky Foot Productions is developing the game, which Empire will publish this holiday season for all leading console and PC platforms, the company said.
The game will follow the film, with a few new twists. Based on the comic book published by Flypaper Press in 1999, the movie tells the story of a monk with no name who travels the globe to protect the ancient Scroll of the Ultimate, which holds the key to unlimited power.
John Woo directed Bulletproof Monk, which opens April 16.
VU Games Get Fox Titles
ivendi Universal Games has reached a deal with Fox Interactive to publish and distribute at least 10 games that are based on Fox TV and film
productions, the companies said.
The titles include Buffy the Vampire Slayer 2 for Xbox and The X-Files: Resist or Serve for
Xbox and PlayStation 2.
A Futurama video game is also in development and could
be part of this deal, but details on all the titles will be announced later, the companies said.
The agreement also grants VU Games a first look at future Fox TV and movie properties through Fox's licensing and merchandising department.
VU Games is owned by Vivendi Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.
Titus Looks To Future
hristopher Titus will star in NBC's upcoming SF-themed drama pilot Future Tense, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Future Tense, from Warner Brothers TV, Silver Pictures and NBC Studios, is set in the near future and focuses on a high-tech law enforcement unit, the trade paper reported.
Titus will play the head of the division, a medical doctor with a doctorate in public policy.
Meanwhile, David Keith (Daredevil) has signed on to star in Fox's supernatural drama pilot Still Life, the trade paper reported. From 20th Century Fox TV and Original TV, Still Life is a family drama told from the point of view of the recently deceased 20-year-old son. Keith will play the dead boy's father, the trade paper reported.
New Mexico Mulls E.T. Day
New Mexico legislator proposed a holiday aimed at bringing SF fans and other tourists to the state to "celebrate and honor all past, present and future extraterrestrial visitors," the Reuters news service reported.
Rep. Dan Foley, a Republican from Roswell, N.M., told the news service that he introduced the legislation to "enhance relationships among all the citizens of the cosmos, known and unknown."
Extraterrestrial Culture Day would be held the second Thursday of February and would honor space travelers from other worlds and even give a nod to creatures made famous in movies, such as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Reuters reported.
Each July, thousands of visitors descend on Roswell, where UFO buffs believe an alien craft crash-landed in 1947, the news service reported.
Diesel Ready For Riddick
in Diesel told SCI FI Wire he begins filming the SF sequel film Riddick in Vancouver, B.C., in two weeks, with some improvements.
After difficulty with the contact lenses in the predecessor movie, Pitch Black, Diesel ordered a new set for the sequel. "We've upgraded from hard lenses to soft," Diesel said in an interview.
Diesel said that he had a hand in the development of the film, influencing even the scientific explanations for the film's villainous creatures. "[I've been] creating creature characteristics and attributes you won't see until scene two or scene three and researching on the Internet to explain negative matter: where these villains come from, these Necromongers," he said. "[We have to explain] their scientific existence."
Diesel added, "We're going to create this huge universe. And I'm excited about exploring this character's purpose in this universe and what his whole deal is." Riddick, the first in a proposed new trilogy of films centering on Diesel's character, is anticipating a June 25, 2004, release.
Nemesis DVD Adds Cut Scenes
he DVD of Star Trek Nemesis will feature seven deleted scenes when it comes out May 20, the official Trek Web site reported.
The scenes constitute about 45 minutes of footage that was cut from the film's theatrical release, the site reported.
The scenes include one between Data and Jean-Luc Picard, in which they share a bottle of 2267 Chateau Picard champagne; an early scene of Shinzon; one between Worf and Picard in the observation lounge; one with Deanna Troi and Picard in a corridor; a second scene of "mental rape" of Troi in a turbolift; a sickbay scene with Picard and Dr. Beverly Crusher; and the original ending of the film, featuring the new first officer, Cmdr. Madden.
Walken, Close Mull Stepford
scar-nominated actor Christopher Walken (Catch Me If You Can) and Glenn Close are in talks to join the cast of Frank Oz's remake of The Stepford Wives, Variety reported.
Paramount is also wooing country singer Faith Hill to play a role in the film, the trade paper reported.
Walken and Close are eyed to play the town leaders of Stepford. One of them might be behind the campaign to transform the dissident townsfolk into robotized perfect mates, the trade paper reported.
Nicole Kidman tops a cast that includes John and Joan Cusack and Roger Bart, the latter of whom plays a gay character with effeminate mannerisms who is transformed into a beer-guzzling soccer dad, the trade paper reported. Paul Rudnick wrote the script for the remake, which is eyed as a black comedic take on the original 1975 SF movie.
No Fraser In Mummy 3?
olumnists Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith reported that a third Mummy movie may go forward without Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz, who starred in the first two installments, according to a report on ComingSoon.net.
Arnold Vosloo, who plays the title character, told the columnists that the concept for the third film would have ancient King Imhotep waking up "in contemporary times, with new stars."
The first two Mummy films were set in the 1920s. "In a weird way, we've kind of done that period," Vosloo said. "Taking the story to a different time would open up all new possibilities. It could even be set in the 1950s or '60s, whenever the mummy wakes up."
Halo 2 Delayed From 2003
he sequel to Halo, the most successful game for the Xbox, won't come out this year, game developer Bungie announced on its Web site.
"There has been much speculation regarding Halo 2's release date since we announced the game last year," the company said. "The fact is we don't like announcing release dates unless we're certain we'll meet the deadline."
The company added, "We're still not ready to pick a specific release date, but we do want to state for the record that Halo 2 will not ship in 2003. This game is a vast undertaking, considerably more complex than any of our previous efforts, and there is just no way to squeeze all of the necessary work into this calendar year."
But the company added that it will preview Halo 2 at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles in May. Mac and PC versions of the original Halo, meanwhile, are on track for a 2003 release, with new features and content, the company said.
Briefly Noted
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Producers Tony Lord and David Cohen have landed a deal from Summit to write Black Sabbath, a film about a cop who escapes from hell, Variety reported.
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Benicio Del Toro denied for SCI FI Wire rumors that he is seeking the title role in Guillermo del Toro's proposed Creature From the Black Lagoon remake. "I don't want to do it, but I have ideas about it," Del Toro said in an interview.
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Square has released Final Fantasy X-2 in Japan, the latest installment in the video-game franchise, the GameSpot Web site reported.
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Superman star Christopher Reeve is able to breathe on his own thanks to experimental surgery to implant electrodes in his diaphragm, the New York Times reported. Reeve has been on a respirator since he broke his neck in a horse-riding accident eight years ago.
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French actress Cecile de France and Men in Black II star Johnny Knoxville have joined Jackie Chan, Steve Coogan and Jim Broadbent in the upcoming Around the World in 80 Days, which is due to begin principal photography in mid-March in Thailand and Berlin, ScreenDaily.com reported.
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The Superhero Hype! Web site reported a rumor that the costume in the upcoming Superman film doesn't have a cape yet, may be padded and will feature an "S" logo with a black, not yellow, field.
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The IGN FilmForce Web site debunked a plot synopsis for the proposed Daredevil spinoff movie, Elektra, that was posted on the Ain't It Cool News Web site.
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Hector Elizondo has joined the cast of Century City, a TV pilot set in a law firm in the year 2053, Zap2it reported. Elizondo will play the head of a law firm, while Nestor Carbonell (The Tick) will play a new lawyer.
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Dark Horizons reported that a trailer for the upcoming sequel film Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life will be attached to prints of Paramount's SF thriller The Core, which opens March 28.
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New Line has posted a music video featuring Willard star Crispin Glover singing his version of the Jackson 5 rat ballad "Ben" from the film, which opened March 14.
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The Moviehole Web site reported a rumor that Lance Henriksen and Kari Wuhrer will star in the upcoming Hellraiser sequel film Hellraiser: Hellworld.
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TV Land honored Star Trek with the Pop Culture Award in its inaugural TV Land Awards: A Celebration of Classic TV, which will air on TV Land and Nick at Nite at 9 p.m. ET/PT March 12.
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A feature-film version of the popular animated TV series Spongebob Squarepants is slated to hit theaters on Nov. 19, 2004, Yahoo! Movies reported.
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