Archive for August, 2010

Lionsgate boss blames ‘Killers’ for losses

Thursday, August 12th, 2010
Killers

The boss of film distributor Lionsgate has partly blamed Killers for driving down company profits.

CEO Jon Feltheimer admitted that the comedy, starring Ashton Kutcher and Katherine Heigl, had ‘underperformed’ following its release in June.

The film reportedly barely managed to earn back the $75m (£48m) that producers spent making it and the company revealed losses of $64.1m (£40.8m) during the first quarter.

In a statement, Feltheimer said: “Our first quarter was affected by marketing costs for our three wide releases, timing of television deliveries and the underperformance of our theatrical release Killers.”

However, he remained optimistic, adding: “With our upcoming theatrical slate, beginning with this Friday’s opening of The Expendables, and the continued strength of our television, library and channel businesses, we remain poised to achieve our full year financial targets.”

‘Camelot’ to be the new ‘Tudors’?

Tuesday, August 10th, 2010

Camelot showrunner Chris Chibnall (left) has revealed that sex is a vital part of the new Starz drama.

The writer – who has previously worked on Doctor Who and Torchwood – told Blastr that the new series would be an “adult” retelling of the Arthurian legend.

“[Sex is] part of our palettes, and also we have some beautiful actors as well,” he explained. “This is an adult drama.”

He added: “The extraordinary thing in all the versions of Camelot and Arthurian legend is it’s all about the romance. It’s all about the passion. It’s all about great ideals compromised by falling in love with the wrong person. So it’s an element of our storytelling.”

Series star Joseph Fiennes, who plays Merlin, agreed that the show is “romantic”.

“It’s a beautiful, riveting, romantic, sensational epic story that has never been told in all of its episodes,” said the actor.

Camelot is expected to premiere on Starz early next year.

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BBC’s ‘Sherlock’ hits America

Tuesday, August 10th, 2010
Sherlock Holmes and John Watson in Sherlock

BBC One’s Sherlock has been picked up by US cable channel PBS, it has been confirmed.

All three episodes from the first series – ‘A Study In Pink’, ‘The Blind Banker’ and ‘The Great Game’ – will air in the States from the autumn.

According to The Sun, Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’s modern-day adaptation has been given “positive responses” from American critics, who have already watched previews of the programme.

PBS has already based its new season ad campaign on one of the detective’s catchphrases – ‘The Game Is On This Fall’.

Benedict Cumberbatch, who plays Holmes, recently joined Moffat and Gatiss at a Los Angeles press launch for the show.

Sherlock – which also stars Martin Freeman – will be screened in a primetime slot on PBS from October 24, going head-to-head with HBO’s much-anticipated gangster series Boardwalk Empire.

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Oscar-winner Actress Patricia Neal Dies at 84

Monday, August 9th, 2010

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‘Other Guys’ topples ‘Inception’ at US box office

Sunday, August 8th, 2010
Will Ferrell

The Other Guys has debuted at the top of the US box office.

The cop comedy, starring Will Farrell and Mark Wahlberg, earned $35 million, ending Inception‘s reign, which slipped to number two.

Step Up 3D also debuted this week with $15 million in third place.

Salt landed at number four with $11 million, followed by Dinner For Schmucks and Despicable Me.

Zac Efron’s Charlie St Cloud claimed the number eight position with $4 million and Toy Story 3 fell to number nine with $3 million.

Finally, The Kids Are Alright, starring Annette Bening, enters the top ten with $2 million.

The US box office top ten in full:

1. (-) The Other Guys – $35,600,000
2. (1) Inception -$18,600,000
3. (-) Step Up 3D – $15,500,000
4. (3) Salt – $11,100,000
5. (2) Dinner For Schmucks – $10,500,000
6. (4) Despicable Me – $9,400,000
7. (6) Cats & Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore – $6,910,000
8. (5) Charlie St Cloud – $4,700,000
9. (7) Toy Story 3 – $3,048,000
10. (12) The Kids Are Alright – $2,606,000

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Stallone ‘made no money from Rocky role’

Saturday, August 7th, 2010
Sylvester Stallone

Sylvester Stallone has revealed that he made no profit from the sixth film in the Rocky franchise.

The 2006 film, Rocky Balboa, earned over £133 million ($200m) in box office ticket sales, but the 53-year-old actor insisted that he has not received a share.

“I haven’t seen a dime yet. [It made] nearly $200 million. That’s life, eh? That’s how it works these days,” he told GQ.

“They have this thing called ‘back end’. Or ‘Watch my back end move into the horizon as you lie there, shackled in naivety’. You can make a movie for $12 million that makes $250 million, but it still ends up in the red. The studios say they added $50 million in publicity in the Ukraine or somewhere, and you’re like, ‘What?'”

Stallone recently admitted that he was depressed about his failed career before finding success again with Rocky Balboa.

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‘Law & Order: LA’ premiere cast revealed

Thursday, August 5th, 2010
Law & Order Los Angeles title logo

Cast details have been revealed for the premiere episode of new crime drama Law & Order: Los Angeles.

TV Guide reports that the instalment – titled ‘Hollywood’ – will feature Saw actress Shawnee Smith as Trudy, the mother of young Hollywood star Chelsea (Danielle Panabaker).

Wyatt Russell, son of real-life couple Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn, will play wannabe actor Sam, while Jim Beaver – Bobby Singer on Supernatural – has been cast as his father Frank.

The Mummy star Oded Fehr rounds out the cast as the villainous Manto.

It was previously reported that the first episode of the new spinoff would be based on the real-life ‘Burglar Bunch’ who stole from the homes of celebrities including Paris Hilton, Rachel Bilson and Orlando Bloom.

Law & Order: Los Angeles will premiere on September 29 on NBC.

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New ‘Buffy’ DVD set announced

Thursday, August 5th, 2010
Buffy The Vampire Slayer cast
Twentieth Century Fox has announced plans to release a repackaged version of its Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Complete Series DVD boxset.

The set will contain all seven seasons of Joss Whedon’s cult series starring Sarah Michelle Gellar as a young woman destined to protect the world from vampires and other demons.

The new collection will be available in the US on October 12 with a list price of $199.98, reports TV Shows on DVD.The packaging will reportedly be wider than the complete series set released in 2006.

It will also feature new cover art.It is unknown if the set will contain new bonus features or other content not previously released.

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Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

Disney have announced details of the forthcoming release of the DVD and Blu-ray editions.

Click in the image below to read the details:

Click on cover image to read full release details

Click on cover image to read full release details

No renewal for ‘Law & Order’

Monday, August 2nd, 2010
Law & Order

Law & Order creator Dick Wolf has confirmed that the crime drama will not return to television.

The show was originally cancelled by NBC in May. However, Wolf later speculated that the series could return as a television movie. Cable network AMC was also reported to have expressed an interest in picking up the programme.

However, Wolf told reporters at the Television Critics Association press tour that the series had “moved into the history books”.

“We were extremely disappointed that Law & Order is not coming back for a record 21st season,” he said. “But that’s business, that’s life.”

He added: “Everything on television is born under a death sentence, they just don’t tell you the day of execution.”

The producer also denied that a television film would be produced to wrap up the show’s storylines.

He refused to confirm whether Law & Order had been cancelled due to a financial disagreement with the network, commenting that “in the 23 years I’ve been continuously on the air, we’ve never failed to make a deal when there was a deal to be made”.

New spinoff Law & Order: Los Angeles will debut on NBC on September 29.

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