Horrible Bosses

John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein to Script HORRIBLE BOSSES 2; Bateman, Day, and Sudeikis Expected to Return

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 4th, 2012 at 12:38 pm

I placed Horrible Bosses on my Top 10 of 2011 because not only was it hilarious, but because it had staying power.  New Line Cinema is now moving forward on a sequel and have re-hired original writers John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein.  According to THR, Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudeikis are also expected to return, and New Line is also trying to bring back director Seth Gordon.  I’m glad Daley, Goldstein, and possibly Gordon are returning, but what sells me on a sequel is brining back the Bateman, Day, and Sudeikis.  I don’t mean to diminish the work of the screenwriters or director, but Horrible Bosses works because of the chemistry between those guys.  I have no idea where a sequel could go, but as long as the lead trio is back, I’ll stay interested.

Bosses was a strong hit with a worldwide gross of $209 million off a $35 million budget.  Daley and Goldstein have stayed hot with their screenwriting; the duo was hired to pen the sequel to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and they also wrote the upcoming comedy Burt Wonderstone starring Steve Carell and Jim Carrey.

Top 10 Films of 2011

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: December 29th, 2011 at 7:14 pm

Between festivals and theatrical releases, I saw over 100 new films this year.  Some were awful, some were good, and some were mediocre.  And then there were the movies that stayed with me, and more importantly, held up on repeat viewings.  In past years, I’ve usually only had one chance to watch a movie and sometimes the initial positive impression was enough to land it on my annual Top 10 list.  Then I looked back on the list six months later and realized some films shouldn’t have made the cut.  This year, I got to attend major festivals and received “For Your Consideration screeners, which made it easier to double-check movies I enjoyed.  If you’re wondering why movies that originally received an a high rating didn’t make the list, it’s because while I still liked them on a second viewing, their faults became more apparent.  The movies on my Top Ten list became better on repeat viewings and I look forward to watching them again and again over the years.

Hit the jump to check out my picks for the Top 10 films of 2011.

HORRIBLE BOSSES Blu-ray Review

by Andre Dellamorte    Posted: October 14th, 2011 at 7:00 am

2011’s summer season was marked by the number of R-rated comedies it had, and the number of successful ones. Basically, it takes two years for the heat of one project to generate more of the same and you could say 2011 comedy summer this was all due to 2009’s The Hangover. This year saw Bridesmaids, The Hangover Part II, Horrible Bosses, Bad Teacher, Friends With Benefits, The Change Up and 30 Minutes or Less. And in that you can see that the start launched some really successful films, but by the end of summer audiences became bored of these films.  Hit overload. Horrible Bosses made over $100 Million and did so because of a great premise. Three guys (Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudekis) hate the people they work for (Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, and Colin Farrell) and so they plot to kill them. Our review of the Blu-ray release of Horrible Bosses follows after the jump.

Weekend Box Office – TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON Tops $250 Million to Become 2011′s Biggest Hit

by Nicole Pedersen    Posted: July 10th, 2011 at 9:56 am

As expected, neither of this week’s new comedies came close to catching Transformers 3 on its second weekend.  While Horrible Bosses became the latest R-rated comedy to top expectations this summer, Zookeeper became the latest potential tentpole to fall flat.  Meanwhile, both films combined barely topped this weekend’s estimate for Dark of the Moon, which became the US’s highest-grossing release of 2011 as of Sunday.

	Title	Weekend	Total
1	Transformers 3	$47,000,000	$261
2	Horrible Bosses	$28,100,000	$28.1
3	Zookeeper	$21,000,000	$21
4	Cars 2	$15,209,000	$148.8
5	Bad Teacher	$9,000,000	$78.7
6	Larry Crowne	$6,264,000	$26.5
7	Super 8	$4,825,000	$118
8	Monte Carlo	$3,800,000	$16.1
9	Green lantern	$3,125,000	$109.7
10	Mr. Popper’s Penguins	$2,850,000	$57.7

Friday Box Office – TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON Primed for Second Weekend on Top

by Nicole Pedersen    Posted: July 9th, 2011 at 9:17 am

In 2009, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen barely eked out a victory in its second weekend at the domestic box office.  Two years later, its follow-up looks much better situated.  On Friday Transformers: Dark of the Moon took in an estimated $15 million, bringing its domestic total up to $228.9 million in ten days.  Though it still trails the $269 million Fallen had earned at its ten day point here in the US, worldwide Tf3 passed the $500 million mark on Thursday and should pass $600 million sometime today.  In second place, Warner Brothers’ Horrible Bosses brought in an estimated $9.9 million from 3,062 locations for what looks like a weekend total of $26 million.  Meanwhile, Sony’s Zookeeper looks like 2011’s latest disappointment with a first day estimate of $7.4 million and a weekend projection of just $20 million.  Details and analysis tomorrow.

	Title	Friday	Total
1	Transformers 3	$15,000,000	$228.9
2	Horrible Bosses	$9,920,000	$9.9
3	Zookeeper	$7,400,000	$7.4
4	Cars 2	$4,825,000	$138.4
5	Bad Teacher	$3,000,000	$72.7

Exclusive: Screenwriters John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein Talk HORRIBLE BOSSES, BURT WONDERSTONE, OF ALL THE THINGS, VACATION Reboot, and More

by Christina Radish    Posted: July 8th, 2011 at 8:57 am

Screenwriting partners John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein may have come from very different backgrounds (Daley from being an actor and Goldstein from being a lawyer), but their shared sense of humor and ability to collaborate with ease is what’s brought them the success that they’re currently experiencing in Hollywood. Clearly on a roll, with the hilariously raunchy comedy Horrible Bosses out this week, and a long list of upcoming and in-development projects, they are clearly a writing team to keep an eye on.

In this exclusive interview with Collider, John Francis Daley (Dr. Sweets on the Fox series Bones and Sam Weir on cult favorite Freaks & Geeks) and Jonathan Goldstein talked about how they came onto Horrible Bosses, which had been in limbo since 2005, how having the same sense of humor strengthens their work, what it was like to see the incredible cast bring their words to life, and how impressed they were with the lengths the actors went to for comedy. They also talked about their desire to direct (they just did a Funny or Die short), what it’s like to collaborate with Steve Carell on two upcoming projects – Burt Wonderstone and Of All The Things, their desire to reboot the Vacation franchise, developing a project with Steven Spielberg (Cal of the Wild), and how they hope to continue to diversify their portfolio so that they’re not just known for one thing. Check out what they had to say after the jump:

HORRIBLE BOSSES Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: July 8th, 2011 at 6:51 am

For an R-rated comedy, the humor doesn’t always have to be about shock value and gross-out gags (although those certainly don’t hurt).  It can be about strong dialogue and fantastic performances and Seth Gordon’s Horrible Bosses manages exactly that.  It’s the fourth major R-rated comedy to hit this summer and it may be the best one so far.  While it lacks the warmth and maturity of Bridesmaids, it’s also a tighter, sharper narrative that keeps a laser-like focus on delivering non-stop jokes and never letting the plot stall.  But more than its pacing, Horrible Bosses thrives because every actor is working at the top of their game.  Leads Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudeikis each maintain their own comic style but find a way to make those styles work in concert with each other.  Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, and Colin Farrell relish playing the eponymous bosses with Farrell and especially Aniston getting to show audiences a new side of their acting talents.  The result of the sharp writing, profanity-laden humor, and killer performances make Horrible Bosses one of the year’s most consistent comedies.

Exclusive: Director Seth Gordon Talks HORRIBLE BOSSES, WARGAMES and KING OF KONG

by Christina Radish    Posted: July 4th, 2011 at 7:53 pm

In the raunchy and hilarious comedy Horrible Bosses, three friends conspire to murder the awful bosses that make their lives a living hell. Management candidate Nick (Jason Bateman) is doing everything he can to please his twisted supervisor Harken (Kevin Spacey) because he thinks it will earn him a well-deserved promotion. Dental assistant Dale (Charlie Day) has been fighting off the X-rated advances of Dr. Julia Harris (Jennifer Aniston), much to her dismay. And accountant Kurt (Jason Sudeikis) now has to answer to his company’s corrupt new owner, Pellit (Colin Farrell), who is on a fast-track to run the company into the ground. After some advice from a hustling ex-con by the name of Motherfucker Jones (Jamie Foxx), the guys come up with a plan, although ill-conceived, to permanently rid the world of their respective employers.

While at the New York press day, director Seth Gordon spoke to Collider for this exclusive phone interview, in which he talked about the universal appeal of the script, matching up the actors who would play the employees and their horrible bosses, walking a tonal tightrope to keep the film grounded, the improv that led to much of the comedy gold not making it into the film itself but likely ending up on the DVD/Blu-ray, and what it’s like to see the TV version of a hard-R film. He also talked about getting to work on his remake of the 1983 film WarGames, and his wish to still make the King of Kong narrative feature. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

HORRIBLE BOSSES Giveaway

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: June 30th, 2011 at 4:20 pm

With director Seth Gordon’s (The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters) comedy Horrible Bosses opening July 8, we’ve been given some movie related swag to giveaway to some of our readers.  As most of you know, the film has an all-star cast featuring Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, and Jamie Foxx and it’s about a group of friends that decide to work together to kill their bosses.  In the past week I’ve spoken to a number of people that have seen the movie and they’re all telling me it’s extremely funny.  Hit the jump for images of what we’re giving away and how to enter.

Red Band Trailer for HORRIBLE BOSSES

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: June 27th, 2011 at 12:17 pm

A red band trailer for Seth Gordon’s Horrible Bosses has been released. While the green band trailer has some good laughs, this trailer gives a better idea of how the film’s gonna play out. The jokes are spot-on, and every member of the fantastic cast is bringing their A-game. Whoever put Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis together is a genius. I can’t wait to finally see the whole film.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer. And if you missed any of Steve’s coverage from the set, check out his interviews with Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis, director Seth Gordon and producer Jay Stern, as well as his full set visit report. Horrible Bosses also stars Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, Jennifer Aniston and Jamie Foxx. The film opens July 8th.

6 Clips from HORRIBLE BOSSES

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: June 25th, 2011 at 9:39 pm

With director Seth Gordon’s (The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters) comedy Horrible Bosses opening July 8, Warner Bros. has provided us with six clips.  As most of you know, the film has an all-star cast featuring Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, and Jamie Foxx and it’s about a group of friends that decide to work together to kill their bosses.

While I haven’t seen the film, I’ve spoken to a few people that have and they’re all telling me it’s great.  And after being on the set last year and laughing my ass off, I believe it.  Hit the jump for the clips, and here’s my on set interviews with Day, Bateman and Sudeikis, Gordon, and producer Jay Stern.

TOP 5: Alamo Texter Voicemail, John Davis Talks PREDATOR, HORRIBLE BOSSES Set Visit, SUPER 8 Review, J.J. Abrams Video Interview

by Jason Barr    Posted: June 11th, 2011 at 9:18 am

At the risk of inflating expectations, I have to say that this week’s “Top 5″ includes one of my all-time favorite stories on the site: the “Alamo Texter Voicemail.” In less than two minutes, the Drafthouse puts a voice to “that person” who all too often sees the movie theater as a great place to get the most out of their unlimited monthly text plan. Joining Alamo’s contribution in this week’s installment is producer John Davis’ sit-down with Steve where he discusses the Predator franchise and what kept Arnold Schwarzenegger from doing Predator 2, our Horrible Bosses set visit, and a pair of Super 8 pieces coming in the form of Matt’s film review and Steve’s video interview with writer/director/producer J.J. Abrams.

Hit the jump to find a quick recap and link to each.

Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day On Set Interview HORRIBLE BOSSES

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: June 9th, 2011 at 10:00 am

When you put Charlie Day (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia), Jason Sudeikis (Saturday Night Live) and Jason Bateman (Teen Wolf Too, Silver Spoons) in a movie together, you automatically have my interest.  When you add Jennifer Aniston, Colin Farrell, Jamie Foxx, Kevin Spacey, Donald Sutherland and Julie Bowen to the cast of Horrible Bosses, it becomes a must see film.  In the film – which arrives next month – Bateman, Sudeikis & Day play friends that decide to kill their bosses who are played by Spacey, Farrell & Aniston. With this being a comedy, needless to say, nothing goes according to plan.

Last summer, I got to visit the set while the production was filming in Woodland Hills, California.  During the visit, I got to participate in a very small roundtable interview with Day, Sudeikis and Bateman.  They talked about the great cast, real life bosses, their characters and the relationships with one another, filming with digital cameras and how that changes the way you can do a scene, ruining takes from laughing, and a lot more.  Hit the jump to either read or listen to the conversation.

Director Seth Gordon On Set Interview HORRIBLE BOSSES

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: June 9th, 2011 at 10:00 am

There are plenty of great-looking hard-R comedies headed our way this summer, but Horrible Bosses has a cast that makes it a serious contender for the best of the bunch.  The film stars Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, and Charile Day as a trio of hapless employees who agree to kill each others’ bosses played by Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, and Jennifer Aniston, respectively.  As if that cast wasn’t impressive enough, the film also stars Jamie Foxx (playing a character named “Motherfucker Jones”), Donald Sutherland, “Old Spice guy” Isaiah Mustafa, and Julie Bowen.

Last summer I got to visit the set and participated in an intimate roundtable interview with director Seth Gordon.  He talked about the great cast, how the film is using real world issues to “tap into all the emotion and all the upheaval for a lot of Americans right now,” is it difficult to sell the Aniston offering sex as a villain, and a lot more.  Hit the jump to read or listen to the interview.

Producer Jay Stern On Set Interview HORRIBLE BOSSES

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: June 9th, 2011 at 10:00 am

Last year I got to speak to producer Jay Stern on the set of his latest comedy, Horrible Bosses.  Directed by Seth Gordon (Four Christmases, The King of Kong) the movie centers on three hapless employees (played by Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudeikis) who conspire to kill each other’s horrible bosses (played by Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, and Jennifer Aniston). And based on what I saw on set, the film looks very funny and I think audiences are going to love it.

During an intimate roundtable interview, Stern talked about how the project got made, the great cast, how much screen time each of the bosses gets, the tone, the freedom of knowing it’ll be rated R, Colin Farrell’s comb-over, why they wanted Gordon to direct, and a lot more.  Hit the jump to either read or listen to the conversation.

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