Category: film

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Rick McCallum producing new sci-fi film

Rick McCallumProducer Rick McCallum, who worked on the Star Wars prequels and Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, has revealed his next project to The Hollywood Reporter: R’Ha, a “high-concept sci-fi feature.” The film’s script is being written by Life on Mars co-creator Matthew Graham, who THR says was one of the lead writers on the shelved Star Wars live action series. (He was reported as working on the show in 2011, but it was never, to my knowledge, confirmed.)

R’Ha was created by Kaleb Lechowski, who will be directing the film based on his short of the same name.

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Brad Bird was asked to head Episode VII, didn’t want to drop Tomorrowland

Concept art for Tomorrowland (the park)

An early internet favorite for the job of directing Episode VII, Brad Bird, tells The Hollywood Reporter that he was indeed approached to helm the film:

I’ve known Kathy [Kennedy] for a while and I know George. And they did come to me. But the problem was, the schedule they had in mind made it impossible to do…unless I dropped Tomorrowland. And I was just really deeply into this film at that point. It’s easy to say, “Just put it on hold.” But you’re moving now; you don’t know if you’re going to be able to move later. Maybe it’s true of filmmakers like Cameron or Spielberg, but I have to act on momentum. We had reached a critical mass where it would’ve thrown the furniture around from the train stopping. I really want to see this movie. I love the Star Wars films, and I can’t wait to see what J.J. does, but it meant I’d have to shut down one dream to participate in another. I feel like [with Tomorrowland] we’re making something that’s really special and unique.

Tomorrowland was first known under the name 1952, which also figured into some early EPVII speculation.

He also talks about the possibility of a sequel to The Incredibles.

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Trailer park: Harrison Ford harnesses the minds of children for war, because why not

And it’s the first trailer for the Ender’s Game adaption, which really wants you know that a bunch of these actors have been up for/won Oscars. (Ford was nominated for Witness in 1985, which I can’t blame anyone for forgetting) Book fans may want to check out io9’s spoiler-full screencap study of the trailers.

Below the cut, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost go pubbing, George Clooney and Sandra Bullock get lost in space, and… Alien folksingers, because why not?

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Visual effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen has passed away

Ray Harryhausen

Ray Harryhausen, whose stop-motion animation made monsters come alive in films from the 30’s through the 80’s, has passed away, his family has announced. He was 93.

Stop-motion may be cheesey to those of us who grew up in the post-Star Wars era, but Harryhausen’s work – the most famous of which is perhaps the fighting skeletons of Jason and the Argonauts – was hugely influential. (Though to this 80s’ kid, it’s his Medusa in the original Clash of the Titans who kept me up at night!)

“Ray has been a great inspiration to us all in special visual industry. The art of his earlier films, which most of us grew up on, inspired us so much,” said George Lucas. “Without Ray Harryhausen, there would likely have been no Star Wars.”

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Trailer park: Thor, Wolverine, Helen Mirren and more

Thor: The Dark World looks… dark? Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who) joins Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston and his new wig for Thor’s first entry into Marvel’s Phrase 2. (Also, Thor… Just let her go, man. Didn’t you see what happened to the last pretty-but-kind-of-dim boy who got obsessed with saving Natalie Portman’s life? Ask Darcy, she’ll know.)

Beneath the cut, a new look at The Wolverine, Helen Mirren kills, Emma Watson wants to rob and… Judy Blume. It’s a mix.

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