Casey Affleck

Legendary Pictures Scraps Alex Proyas’ PARADISE LOST Starring Bradley Cooper

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: February 9th, 2012 at 12:02 pm

In the climate of budget conscious studios hesitant to gamble money on anything that doesn’t have a “2” in the title, more and more ambitious projects are having trouble crossing the finish line. Universal passed on Guillermo del Toro’s At the Mountains of Madness, Ron Howard and Brian Grazer are struggling to get their blended, multi-part film/TV adaptation of The Dark Tower off the ground, and most recently we saw Warner Bros. put their fantasy pic Arthur & Lancelot on hold in order to work out budget issues.

Now you can add Paradise Lost to the list of blue balled titles, as Legendary has pulled the plug. The ambitious adaptation of John Milton’s classic epic poem was to begin shooting in January, but Legendary decided in December to push production back in order to reduce the budget. Now the studio has scrapped the project all together. Hit the jump for more, including why Legendary backed out.

International Trailer for PARANORMAN

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: December 12th, 2011 at 11:34 am

An international trailer for the stop-motion animated film ParaNorman has gone online.  The movie centers on a young boy named Norman (voiced by Let Me In‘s Kodi Smit-McPhee) who is able to see ghosts but it’s no big deal.  It becomes a bigger deal when his small town comes under attack from the un-dead and he must save the day by stopping a centuries-old curse.  The US teaser trailer is one of my favorite trailers of the year, and the international version is also good, but it’s more focused on introducing Norman and the plot.  The movie still looks like a lot of fun and it will be one worth keeping an eye on in 2012.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film also features the voices of Casey Affleck, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, John Goodman, and Alex Borstein. ParaNorman opens in the US on August 17, 2012; it opens in the UK on September 14, 2012.

TOWER HEIST Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: November 4th, 2011 at 6:02 am

I was trying to figure out a way to find a more backhanded compliment than Brett Ratner‘s “Tower Heist is surprisingly not terrible,” but I came up empty.  At first glance, it should be the poster child for everything that’s wrong with mainstream American cinema.  Ben Stiller has been playing the same character, his co-star Eddie Murphy doesn’t seem to care about acting anymore, and Ratner is an unimpressive journeyman director.  And yet Tower Heist is kind of an entertaining movie.  Stiller plays against type, Eddie Murphy shows he can deliver when he’s not phoning it in, and Ratner keeps the film upbeat.  There are a mind-blowing number of obvious plot-holes, and the crappy screenplay relies heavily on coincidence, but the movie never comes off as insulting or offensive.  Tower Heist is like a sweet child who draws a terrible picture of your house, but he doesn’t know any better and just wants you to be impressed.

Teaser Trailer for Stop-Motion Animated Film PARANORMAN

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: October 28th, 2011 at 11:37 am

The first trailer for the stop-motion animated film ParaNorman has been released. The film comes from LAIKA, the animation studio that brought us Coraline, and centers on a boy whose ability to talk to the dead comes in handy when his town is ravaged by zombies, ghosts, witches, moronic grown-ups, and a centuries-old curse. We don’t get any dialogue from this teaser, as it’s just a montage of scenes with Donovan’s appropriately titled “Season of the Witch” playing over the scenes. The images here are pretty spectacular, as expected, and I like the design of the characters. The tag of the trailer really got me as well. I’m excited to see more from this peculiar little fella.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer. The film features the voices of Kodi Smit-McPhee (Let Me In), Casey Affleck, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, John Goodman, and Alex Borstein. ParaNorman opens August 17th, 2012.

8 Clips from TOWER HEIST

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: October 27th, 2011 at 11:33 am

We’ve been provided with eight clips from director Brett Ratner’s upcoming comedy Tower Heist. The film centers on a group of disgruntled employees who decide to rob a white-collar criminal living under house arrest in their high-rise after he scams them all out of their savings. The all-star cast includes Eddie Murphy, Ben Stiller, Matthew Broderick, Casey Affleck, Gabourey Sidibe, Téa Leoni, Stephen Henderson, Judd Hirsch, Michael Peña, and Alan Alda. Tower Heist opens November 4th.

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck to Reteam for Biopic of Irish Crime Boss Whitey Bulger; Plus an Update on Damon’s Directorial Debut [UPDATED]

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 24th, 2011 at 9:41 am

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are set to reteam for a biopic of Irish crime boss Whitey Bulger.  The project hasn’t been officially announced, but Damon is playing Bulger, Affleck is directing, and Terrence Winter (Boardwalk Empire) is writing the script.  Affleck and Damon were previously planning to team up for The Trade, a true-life story about wife-swapping Yankees players, but legal complications have held up the project.  Damon says the movie is still in development, but it will come after the Bulger biopic.

Hit the jump for more on Bulger, the direction the movie might take, and an update on Damon’s recently-announced directorial debut. [Update: More details have been revealed about the project including new casting.  Hit the jump for more.]

Character Posters for TOWER HEIST Starring Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 18th, 2011 at 10:08 am

Universal has released six bland character posters for Brett Ratner’s Tower Heist.  Each poster features a main character standing on top of a building, we get the actor’s name and their character’s profession, and I guess this sells a movie.  I suppose having an adorable dog on Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy’s posters doesn’t hurt.

Hit the jump to check out the posters.  The film also stars Tea Leoni, Matthew Broderick, Casey Affleck, and Gabourey Sidibe.  Tower Heist opens November 4th.

Dominic Purcell is Satan’s Right-Hand Man in Alex Proyas’ PARADISE LOST

by Dave Trumbore    Posted: October 7th, 2011 at 5:36 pm

In what is shaping up to be an epic cast (which is good since it’s an epic poem), Paradise Lost has added yet another minion to the legions of dark angels. Dominic Purcell (Prison Break) will play Jerahmeel, an angel who is rechristened as Moloch when he falls in step with Lucifer’s rebellion against Heaven.  Alex Proyas (I, Robot) is directing the Warner Bros.’ project as an action-oriented adaptation of John Milton’s classic poem. The Legendary Pictures production also stars Bradley Cooper as Lucifer, Benjamin Walker as Michael and Casey Affleck as Gabriel. Since this tale has a lot of moving parts and a lot more cast, hit the jump for a break down.

New Trailer for TOWER HEIST Starring Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 6th, 2011 at 1:13 pm

A new trailer for Brett Ratner’s Tower Heist has gone online.  The film centers on a group of employees working in a high-rise who decide to rob a white-collar criminal after he fleeces them out of their savings. After viewing both trailers, I stick by my conclusion that it will be a popular movie featuring the kind of safe humor that makes a crummy show like Two and a Half Men the #1 show on comedy.  However, it looks like we might finally get another funny performance from Eddie Murphy.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer. The film also stars Ben Stiller, Matthew Broderick, Téa Leoni, Gabourey Sidibe, Casey Affleck, Stephen Henderson, Judd Hirsch, Michael Peña, and Alan Alda.  Tower Heist opens November 4th and hits VOD in select markets three weeks later.

Casey Affleck to Play the Angel Gabriel in PARADISE LOST Opposite Bradley Cooper and Benjamin Walker

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: September 22nd, 2011 at 6:37 pm

Though it was Ben Affleck who played the fallen angel in Dogma, Casey Affleck always seemed the more angelic of the two brothers.  Finally cinema will reattain balance now that, per Variety, the younger Affleck is in negotiations to play the angel Gabriel in Paradise Lost.  Based on the John Milton epic poem, the story center on an epic battle of good and evil between Michael (Benjamin Walker) and Lucifer (Bradley Cooper), who mounts an army after after he is cast out of heaven.  Dijmon Hounsou also stars as Abdiel, the angel of death, in the adaptation directed by Alex Proyas (Knowing).  The casting is shaping up really well.  Affleck, who will next be seen in Tower Heist on November 4, is a nice addition.

Legendary Pictures is eying the end of 2013 for the 3D release.  For all our coverage on Paradise Lost, including casting, quotes from Proyas, and a report from the Comic-Con panel, click here.

First Trailer and Poster for TOWER HEIST Starring Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy [Updated with 5 New Images]

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: July 28th, 2011 at 9:14 am

I know I should have zero interest in Tower Heist.  It’s directed by Brett Ratner, it has Ben Stiller playing a straight man, and Eddie Murphy hasn’t done a good comedy this century, but I have to admit that the trailer got a couple laughs out of me although they weren’t from Stiller or Murphy.  The movie’s got a great supporting cast that includes Michael Peña, Casey Affleck, Matthew Broderick, and Alan Alda, but the biggest laugh in the trailer comes from watching Gabourey Sidibe (Precious) hit on Murphy.  I also have to mention that this and Horrible Bosses share the message that if you’re interested in committing a crime, ask a black guy (preferably one who was in Dreamgirls).

Hit the jump to check out the trailer as well as the new poster.  Tower Heist opens November 4th. [Update: We've added five new images from the film and replaced the poster with a hi-res version]

Focus Features Signs Two-Picture Distribution Deal with CORALINE Studio LAIKA; Will Release PARANORMAN Next August

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: May 4th, 2011 at 11:59 am

Focus Features will reteam with Coraline animation studio LAIKA for two upcoming pictures.  Focus will distribute the first film under the deal, ParaNorman, on August 17, 2012.  The film will be only the second stop-motion animated film to be released in 3D.  Directed by Sam Fell (Flushed Away) and Chris Butler (storyboard supervisor on Coraline), ParaNorman is a comedy thriller about a local boy (voiced by Kodi Smit-McPhee) who can speak with the dead, which comes in handy when his town becomes under siege from zombies, ghosts, witches, moronic grown-up, and a centuries-old curse.  The voice cast also includes Casey Affleck, Jeff Garlin, John Goodman, Leslie Mann, Christopher Mintze-Plasse, Bernard Hill, Tempestt Bledsoe, Elaine Stritch, and Anna Kendrick.

The yet-to-be-named second picture will be released by Focus in 2014.  Hit the jump for the full press release.

Ray Liotta Joins COGAN’S TRADE; Casey Affleck, Mark Ruffalo, Javier Bardem Confirmed to Co-Star

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 15th, 2011 at 2:10 pm

When we last left Andrew Dominik’s adaptation of George V. Higgins’ crime novel Cogan’s Trade, the film was stacking up a great cast led by Brad Pitt and costarring James Gandolfini, Sam Rockwell, Bella Heathcote, and Richard Jenkins.  Also rumored to be in the cast were Casey Affleck, Mark Ruffalo, and Javier Bardem.  Risky Business now confirms that not only are Affleck, Ruffalo, and Bardem in the mix, but Ray Liotta is getting in the game as well.

The story of Cogan’s Trade revolves around a mob enforcer (Pitt) who must investigate the robbery of a high-stakes poker game.  Liotta is set to play “Mark ‘Markie’ Trattman, the unfortunate hustler who runs the game in a motel room and finds things only going downhill from there.”  Filming begins later this month in New Orleans for an early 2012 release.  The only way I can see this cast getting any better is if the rumor about Bill Murray joining the film comes true.  Hit the jump for a synopsis of the novel.

Alexander Payne to Direct NEBRASKA

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 18th, 2011 at 11:02 am

Sideways director Alexander Payne Payne recently finished up with The Descendants starring George Clooney and is now turning his attention to the drama Nebraska.  According to The Playlist, the story centers on,

“an aging alcoholic father who thinks he’s won a million dollar Publisher’s Clearing House sweepstakes prize. He is unbowed when his family tries to dissaude him from making the long trip from Montana to Nebraska to cash in his winnings. So his estranged 20-something son—who doesn’t believe the ticket is a winner—is forced to go along with him for the ride to keep him out of trouble, providing an opportunity to bond with his father after years of separation.”

Hit the jump for more details Nebraska.  The Descendants is due to be released later this year.

The Weinstein Company Acquires COGAN’S TRADE for 2012 Wide Release; James Gandolfini May Join the Cast

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: January 11th, 2011 at 8:04 pm

The Weinstein Company has acquired the domestic distribution rights to Cogan’s Trade for a wide release in early 2012 — a smart move given what we know about the project.  Andrew Dominik (The Assassination of Jesse James) will direct and adapt the sharp George V. Higgins crime novel.  Brad Pitt and Sam Rockwell are confirmed to star, and an earlier report suggested Casey Affleck, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Bill Murray, Mark Ruffalo, and Zoe Saldana could join the ensemble.

The latest update lists Affleck’s involvement in a more official capacity and adds James Gandolfini’s name to the list of possible ensemblers.  More after the break:

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