Frankenstein

Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson Reunite for INTERNS; Shawn Levy Directing from a Script by Vaughn

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: February 7th, 2012 at 7:38 pm

Wedding Crashers buddies Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are set to reunite for Interns, with Shawn Levy (Real Steel) directing.  As a producer, Levy is currently in post-production on the Vaughn-led comedy Neighborhood Watch.  Levy was hoping to make Frankenstein next, but Vulture hears that he’ll have to cut the $80 million budget before Fox is willing to consider the project.  Vaughn is in a similar position since The Inane Laws is reportedly having trouble getting off the ground over at Universal.  (The rumor mill whispers that Vaughn is still demanding a Wedding Crashers-era paycheck in the wake of The Dilemma.)  The serendipity led Vaughn and Levy back to Fox to pitch Interns, a comedy that Vaughn wrote about fortysomething friends who get laid off: “Convinced they’ve gone about managing their careers entirely wrong, they resolve to become interns at a Google-like dotcom and start anew.”  Hijinks ensue when Vaughn and Wilson compete against “wily, fresh-faced 22-year-olds” to advance in the company.

Vaughn and Wilson have shown interest in re-teaming, but 2 Guns somehow transformed from a Vaughn/Wilson vehicle to an actioner starring Mark Wahlberg and Denzel Washington.  Interns sounds like a suitable replacement, with a fruitful premise for their style as a comedy duo.

Lynne Ramsay Talks WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN, the Patti Smith Biopic, Adapting FRANKENSTEIN & Her Sci-Fi Take On DAS BOOT Meets MOBY DICK In Outer Space

by Ron Messer    Posted: January 15th, 2012 at 10:22 am

We Need To Talk About Kevin has been gathering acclaim since its debut at last year’s Cannes Film Festival.  Lynne Ramsay‘s first film since her 2002 critical hit Morvern Callar, paints a claustrophobic nightmare for the mother of an evil son whose committed unspeakable acts.

The film begins a gradual, national rollout this weekend in New York as its star, Tilda Swinton is a Best Actress nominee (Motion Picture-Drama), across the country, at Sunday’s Golden Globes in Beverly Hills.  Ramsay’s also seen her share of glory for Kevin, including a Best Director win at the British Independent Film Awards (England’s equivalent of the Indie Spirits).  The writer/director made time for Collider during a hectic press tour.  Hit the jump for the transcription and audio of her interview about Kevin, including lots of exclusive details on why she probably won’t give Patti Smith‘s autobiography a big screen treatment, other biopics of rock icons she’s turned down and what she really thought of Peter Jackson‘s King Kong. Warning: Spoilers ahead.

Universal Pictures to Celebrate Centennial with Restorations of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, FRANKENSTEIN, JAWS, DRACULA, and More

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 10th, 2012 at 7:21 am

Universal Pictures has been around for 100 years and to celebrate their 10-carat diamond anniversary, the studio has big plans for 2012.  The most exciting aspect of this celebration is the studio’s plan to restore and release 13 of their classic titles including All Quiet on the Western Front, The Birds, Buck Privates, Dracula (1931) , Frankenstein, Jaws, Schindler’s List, Out of Africa, Pillow Talk, Bride of Frankenstein, The Sting, and To Kill a Mockingbird.  To Kill a Mockingbird will be the first out the gate with the release of the Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy combo pack on January 31st.  The restorations will also be released as a limited edition collector’s set, and near the end of the year we can look forward to Blu-ray releases for Universal’s Classic Monster and Alfred Hitchcock series.  Here’s hoping the restorations are worthy of their movies.

Hit the jump for the full press release, which also includes info on Universal’s planned events and promotions for their centennial celebration.

Director Shawn Levy Talks FANTASTIC VOYAGE, FRANKENSTEIN, and Which Project Will Be His “Spring Movie”

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: September 24th, 2011 at 3:16 pm

Over the past few months, we’ve been reporting on director Shawn Levy’s future projects.  As most of you know, he’s been attached to direct the James Cameron-produced 3D remake of Fantastic Voyage, as well as  a retelling of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, written by Max Landis.  What has been unclear is which project would go first.  So when I spoke to him today at the Real Steel press junket, I asked which was going to be his next project.  He said:

“They’re both possibilities.  I’m meeting with actors regarding both movies right now.  I love them both and I want to make them both, but I don’t know if it’s one two or two one.  But I’d say within a month I will be able to tell you with certainty which will be my spring movie.”

He also admitted the possibility exists that another project could happen instead of these two films.  Hit the jump for more.

Shawn Levy Confirmed to Direct FRANKENSTEIN for 20th Century Fox

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: September 1st, 2011 at 1:30 pm

Last week, we reported that director Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum) was in talks to helm 20th Century’s Fox new adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.  Today, Variety confirms that Levy has gotten the gig and beaten out talented directors like Paul Greengrass and David Yates.  Levy’s film will work from a script by Max Landis (Chronicle) and will compete with the six other Frankenstein films currently in the works at other studios.  I hope that Levy’s adaptation is so full of slapstick and bad jokes that it inadvertently becomes a backdoor Frankenberry movie.

Hit the jump for a recap of the other Frankenstein flicks in development.

Shawn Levy May Direct Fox’s FRANKENSTEIN, Could Be Off FANTASTIC VOYAGE

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: August 24th, 2011 at 3:13 pm

Just the other day, we reported that director Shawn Levy (Date Night) was growing impatient with his James Cameron-produced 3D remake of Fantastic Voyage, threatening to walk away if he couldn’t get an A-list star (specifically Will Smith) to topline. Well now it looks like he may be done with the project after all, as he’s considering taking the reins of Fox’s Frankenstein. Max Landis (Chronicle) wrote the script for the retelling of Mary Shelley’s 1818 classic, and the studio is eager to get production moving in order to beat the other 12,000 Frankenstein projects currently in development. Hit the jump for more, including a rundown of those other iterations of Frankenstein.

NBC Orders Modern-Day FRANKENSTEIN Script from HOUSE Executive Producers

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: August 9th, 2011 at 4:16 pm

There’s not much more to this than the revelation of a new series being in development at NBC, but here we go. THR has word that the network has ordered a script for a new horror series described as a modern-day take on Mary Shelley’s classic tale of Frankenstein. Written by House M.D. executive producers Russel Friend and Garrett Lerner, the series is just one of a couple recent attempts at bringing horror to the small screen again after FX ordered American Horror Story from Glee duo Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. That series has also remained shrouded in mystery, as all good horror should, but it sounds like the genre could be coming back to TV in a big way. I’m not sure a new take on Frankenstein is the most intriguing idea, but I’ll wait until details emerge before passing any real judgment.

The Academy Library to Archive Mondo Posters including New FRANKENSTEIN Poster by Drew Struzan

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: July 11th, 2011 at 10:47 am

Today is a great day for the fine folks at Mondo.  The company has just sent out a press release announcing that the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences’ Margaret Herrick Library will archive Mondo’s growing collection of original film posters.  One of the first Mondo posters to go into the archive will be Drew Struzan’s gorgeous poster for Frankenstein, which is part of Mondo’s Universal Monsters series.  In Struzan’s long career of designing posters, this is his first screenprint.

The Mondo posters will be housed in Herrick’s existing collection of more than 38,000 posters, stored in climate-controlled vaults, and scanned into the library’s online catalog.  Speaking of finding the Mondo posters online, the company has now started up mondoarchive.com where you can check out all of the posters released thus far.  The only way the site could be better is if they told you how fast the poster sold out.  Hit the jump to check out the press release along with the Struzan Frankenstein poster. Details on the sale date, price and edition size will be revealed soon so be sure you’re following @MondoNews for the announcement.

Haley Joel Osment to Star in Frankenstein Retelling WAKE THE DEAD

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: June 27th, 2011 at 8:02 pm

After an eight year hiatus from the movies, Haley Joel Osment is making a return to acting with three independent projects.  The first two are in post-production, with no release set and truly unfortunate titles: Sassy Pants and Montana Amazon.  The third has a fine title (Wake the Dead) and should have no trouble finding distribution given the marketability.  Variety reports that Osment will play Victor Franklin, a college student who experiments with raising the dead in a present-day retelling of Frankenstein.

Wake the Dead is set up at Slasher Films, a production company launched by Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash.  Jay Russell (The Water Horse) will direct from a script he co-wrote with James V. Hart (August Rush), based on Steve Niles comic of the same name.  Wake the Dead is one of many upcoming projects based on the Frankenstein tale.  Hit the jump for a recap.

Fox Taps Max Landis to Pen Frankenstein Project

by Jason Barr    Posted: June 22nd, 2011 at 5:29 pm

20th Century Fox has thrown its hat into the Frankenstein ring, hiring Max Landis (Chronicle) to pen a take on the Mary Shelley 1818 classic. Per Variety, the project is still in its infancy and the studio has yet to even put together a list of front-runners for the director’s chair. Nevertheless, the report claims that Fox is looking to land a big name, citing Paul Greengrass, David Yates, and even Ron Howard (who is apparently interested in every project currently circling Hollywood) as potential candidates for the gig.

Although the plot details surrounding Landis’ untitled take are currently under wraps, soon you may be able to crack the code simply by process of elimination. As of now, there are several Frankenstein projects in development (no surprise, as the classic tale resides in the public domain) including: playwright David Auburn’s The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein, author Kenneth Oppel’s This Dark Endeavor: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein, Sony Pictures’ contemporary version, and the take Guillermo del Toro has been working on at Universal. Davis Entertainment will produce Landis’ version with Fox set to distribute.

Playwright David Auburn to Write Adaptation of THE CASEBOOK OF VICTOR FRANKENSTEIN

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: May 23rd, 2011 at 3:53 pm

Following in the footsteps of vampires and zombies, it looks like Frankenstein may be Hollywood’s next supernatural obsession. Pulitzer-prize winning playwright David Auburn (Proof) has been tapped to adapt Peter Ackroyd’s novel The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein. The story focuses on a young Frankenstein who spends his days experimenting with corpses. Mary Shelly, who wrote the original novel and created the character, appears as a character in Ackroyd’s book alongside her mother. Deadline reports that RT Features and Sam Raimi’s Ghost House Pictures will produce.

This is one of a number of Frankenstein-centered projects currently in development. Summit acquired the rights to Kenneth Oppel’s upcoming novel This Dark Endeavor: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein, Sony is working on a contemporary version of the story, and Guillermo del Toro has been working with Universal on an adaptation for quite some time. Hit the jump to read a synopsis of Ackroyd’s novel.

Naomie Harris Interview THE FIRST GRADER

by Christina Radish    Posted: May 11th, 2011 at 3:00 pm

The biographical drama The First Grader tells the story of Maruge (Oliver Litondo), an old Mau Mau veteran, and the Kenyan teacher who had enough compassion to help make his dream come true. In 2003, when a free education was promised by the Kenyan government to all who could produce a birth certificate, an 84-year-old villager decided that he wanted to educate himself and learn how to read. Once he arrived at a classroom in a small, remote primary school in the bush, he met the school principal and head teacher, Jane Obinchu (Naomie Harris), who was quickly impressed by his tenacity and supported his struggle to gain admission at the school, even though they faced fierce opposition from parents and officials who didn’t want to waste one of the children’s precious spots on an old man. As he worked to overcome memories of living under British colonial rule and the harsh conditions of the British detention camps, the students formed friendships with Maruge and his determination allowed him the chance to learn that he so longed for.

At the film’s press day, actress Naomie Harris talked about meeting the real Jane Obinchu, researching the history of this story, how spending so much time in Kenya inspired her, and what it was like to work with real school children as her co-stars. She also talked about the direction her career has taken, reuniting with 28 Days Later director Danny Boyle to do Frankenstein on the stage (opposite Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller, alternating in the lead role), and how she’s hoping to take the summer off. Check out what she had to say after the jump:

Summit to Adapt Kenneth Oppel’s Novel THIS DARK ENDEAVOR: THE APPRENTICESHIP OF VICTOR FRANKENSTEIN

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 1st, 2011 at 11:15 am

Summit Entertainment has nabbed the screen rights to Kenneth Oppel’s upcoming novel This Dark Endeavor: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein.  According to Deadline, the story follows “young Victor Frankenstein and his attempt to save his twin brother, Konrad, who falls gravely ill. Victor seeks out a mysterious old alchemist who sends Victor and his best friend Elizabeth on a dangerous quest to find three rare ingredients needed to create the Elixir of Life.  There are betrayals along the way and a love triangle between Victor, Elizabeth and Konrad.”

Hit the jump for other Frankstein-based projects in the works.  Oppel’s novel is due out this summer.

Sony Pictures Developing Contemporary Version of Mary Shelley’s FRANKENSTEIN

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: December 2nd, 2010 at 2:24 pm

Sony Pictures is developing a contemporary adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein based on a pitch by Craig Fernandez.  Fernandez will write the script while Matt Tolmach will produce through his new company, Matt Tolmach Productions.  According to Deadline, this will be Tolmach’s first production at Sony since leaving his post as the company’s co-president to become a producer.  Fernandez’ previous credits include the upcoming From Prada to Nada and he’s also written the scripts Everything Must Go (based on Terry Pratchett’s The Bromeliad Trilogy) and an adaptation of Octavia Butler novel Clay’s Ark for DreamWorks Animation.  He’s also written The Courageous, which is a futuristic adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s Captain Courageous.

If you’ve never read Frankenstein, you should because it’s awesome.  It’s also in the public domain, which means it’s free.  Hit the jump for the synopsis.

Danny Boyle Exclusive Interview 127 HOURS; Plus Updates on Shekhar Kapur’s PAANI, FRANKENSTEIN, the Olympics, and a Lot More

by Ron Messer    Posted: November 7th, 2010 at 1:53 pm

The biggest constant in Danny Boyle’s career is change.  The 54-year-old director left a successful run in British theater and television to tackle a striking range of genres on film: horror, romantic comedy, family drama, thriller, dark comedy, among others.  This weekend’s limited release of his real-life man vs. nature film, 127 Hours, marked the first time Boyle has let one actor fully drive a film.  The venture paid off with a lead performance from James Franco that is getting rave reviews and the lion’s share of early buzz for the upcoming awards season.

This will also be the Oscar winner’s last directorial effort on film for some time.  Boyle is the artistic director of the 2012 London Olympics Opening Ceremony and will smooth that transition from film to live events with a return to theater as the director of a new adaptation of Frankenstein at the Royal National Theatre in England.  He recently gave Collider a host of new details on the play, how 127 Hours was inspired by Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler, revelations about his real-life subject Aron Ralston and why Slumdog Millionaire is far from his last production in India.  Hit the jump for the full audio and transcription.

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