Jerry Bruckheimer

First Image of Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer in THE LONE RANGER

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: March 8th, 2012 at 7:18 am

The first official image from The Lone Ranger has been unveiled. The film had a very public rocky road to production, but filming is finally underway in New Mexico on the big budget adventure pic. This image gives us a look into what director Gore Verbinski has in store for the classic character, and unsurprisingly Johnny Depp seems to have crafted an entirely different Tonto. This iteration has some pretty intense face paint and, naturally, a dead bird on his head. Everyone’s familiar with the stories about how Disney almost fired Depp for his take on Jack Sparrow in the first Pirates of the Caribbean (also directed by Verbinski), so I’ll hold off judgment until we see this Tonto in action. For what it’s worth, I think Armie Hammer looks great as the title character. He’s got that everyman quality and “reassuring sense of justice” feel down pat. Verbinski is a really solid director (Rango was one of the best films of 2011) so I’m pulling for The Lone Ranger to be a fun flick. Despite the ridiculous budget, he’s assembled an impressive cast for the film and I’m eager to see more.

Hit the jump to check out the image. The film also stars Tom Wilkinson, William Fichtner, Barry Pepper, James Badge Dale, Ruth Wilson, and Helena Bonham Carter. The Lone Ranger opens May 31, 2013.

TOP GUN 2 Will Be Written By Peter Craig

by Dave Trumbore    Posted: February 29th, 2012 at 6:22 pm

When last we reported on the status of Top Gun 2, Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz (Thor) were supposedly set to draft the sequel. Apparently that never happened and now Peter Craig (The Town) will be starting from scratch. Not to worry, Mr. Craig, because Tom Cruise has thoughts on what the sequel could be about and just how big a role Maverick would play in it. Concrete plot details are non-existent at the moment, but it does seem likely that Cruise will return along with original director, Tony Scott. Top Gun 2 is being produced by Jerry Bruckheimer Films and David Ellison’s Skydance Productions for Paramount. Hit the jump to see what Cruise and Scott’s take would be on the sequel’s plot. 

Jerry Bruckheimer Shopping Afghanistan War Story HORSE SOLDIERS

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: December 2nd, 2011 at 1:35 pm

Horses are in, apparently. Steven Spielberg’s War Horse hits theaters later this month, and now comes word that producer Jerry Bruckheimer is shopping a movie package for an adaptation of Doug Stanton’s war tale Horse Soldiers. The true story takes place during the Afghanistan War and centers on 12 elite special forces soldiers and CIA operatives who secretly invaded Afghanistan after 9/11. The operatives aided the Afghan fighters in capturing the city of Mazar-i-Sharif and toppling the Taliban. Oh, and they arrived on horses, hence the title.

Deadline reports that Ted Tally (The Silence of the Lambs) wrote the initial script, which was subsequently rewritten by Peter Craig (The Town). Nicolai Fuglsig is onboard to direct, in what could be his feature film debut. The renowned commercials direct is also attached to direct the thriller Brass Monkey, as well as a futuristic take on Robin Hood. Bruckheimer has been out this week pitching the project to studios, so we should find out where it lands relatively soon. Hit the jump to read a synopsis of the book.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer Talks THE LONE RANGER Budget Negotiations; Plus Brief Update on PIRATES 5

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 19th, 2011 at 9:05 am

Major studios are talking about tightening their belts and being more selective in their projects because the DVD revenue market has dried up and nothing has come along yet to replace its riches.  However, one can’t help but be amused that for Disney, belt-tightening meant trimming the cost of The Lone Ranger from $260 million to $215 million and that paying $215 million for a movie based on a serial western from the 1950s is good financial sense.

The wrangling over the budget was done in public and we tracked every ludicrous step.  Eventually, the two sides came to an agreement and the film was re-scheduled from December 21, 2012 to May 31, 2013.  Producer Jerry Bruckheimer recently explained why production was shut down at the 11th hour, how they got the budget down to a “reasonable” number, what was cut from the script, and provides a minor update on Pirates of the Caribbean 5.  Hit the jump for what the prolific producer had to say.  The Lone Ranger will star Johnny Depp as Tonto and Armie Hammer as the Ranger.

Johnny Depp, Armie Hammer, Gore Verbinski, and Jerry Bruckheimer Take Paycuts to Make THE LONE RANGER Happen

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: October 12th, 2011 at 9:12 pm

Disney very nearly pulled the plug on The Lone Ranger because of the absurd proposed $250 million budget.  Director Gore Verbinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer have spent the last two months searching for ways to cut costs, and here’s what they came up with according to Variety:

• Verbinski, Bruckheimer, and stars Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer will all take 20% paycuts; certain payments will be deferered until The Lone Ranger starts making money
• Bruckheimer Films will be responsible for any cost overruns.
• Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio (Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl) reworked the script by Justin Haythe (Revolutionary Road) to eliminate a few expensive sequences involving supernatural elements that require a lot of effects work.

That’s all well and good, and I applaud the waste reduction efforts on a movie that should not cost $250 million.  But the gesture is less meaningful when the result is a $215 million budget.  The report indicates Tom Wilkinson and Ruth Wilson are also still on board and confirms the shoot will probably be delayed from November to February 2012.  As such, The Lone Ranger will likely forfeit its right to a December 21, 2012 release date.  Hit the jump for Depp’s take on the situation.

THE LONE RANGER Comes Back from the Brink; Expected to Begin Shooting in Early 2012

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: September 23rd, 2011 at 11:02 am

After a public struggle between Disney and director Gore Verbinski to bring down the budget for The Lone Ranger, it appears the two sides have found a way to move forward and are eyeing an early 2012 start date.  Deadline reports that in order for Verbinski, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, and star Johnny Depp (who is playing Tonto), “the cutting process has included the reworking of deals…and trimming the production budget and the long shoot.”  It looks like Disney decided that they’d rather make an expensive movie with Depp and acquiesce to his demand of keeping Verbinski rather than scrapping the project all together.  If you’re wondering what real star power looks like, that’s it.

Armie Hammer is still on board to play the title character and Ruth Wilson (Luther) is still likely to play the female lead.  It’s unknown if other actors who were cast—Helena Bonham Carter, Dwight Yoakam, Barry Pepper, and Tom Wilkinson—are still on board or if the new start date has created a scheduling conflict.  It’s also unknown if Disney will try to hold onto its original December 21, 2012 release date, but I think that’s a highly-optimistic time crunch for a movie that with a budget of $215 million.  Mr. Verbinski loves his special effects and making FX houses work overtime to get the movie finished by December will only cost Disney more money.

Tyler Perry Is the Highest-Paid Man in Entertainment; Jerry Bruckherimer and Steven Spielberg Close Behind

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: September 12th, 2011 at 7:47 pm

Forbes has released their list of the highest-paid men in entertainment.  Minus Oprah, I bet it looks pretty much the same as the highest-paid people in general. That said, Tyler Perry does rep the diversity quotient at the top of the list with $130 million made from May 2010 to May 2011.  Perry is not popular with the critics, but I continue to be impressed by the man who can outearn such power players (and notable white men) as Jerry Bruckheimer and Steven Spielberg.  Perry has directed ten movies since his feature debut in 2006, and starred in most of them.  In recent years the two TBS sitcoms Meet the Browns and House of Payne have proven a major contribution to Perry’s paycheck.  He has a good shot at next year’s title, too: in 2012, he’ll deliver at least one more project, Good Deeds, and star in the potential franchise starter I, Alex Cross.

Look for the top ten and the oddities within (James Patterson?) after the jump.

Johnny Depp Won’t Do THE LONE RANGER without Director Gore Verbinski

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: September 1st, 2011 at 7:36 am

Disney’s drama with The Lone Ranger continues.  As we previously reported, Disney thought the budget was too high and wanted to work it down to at least $215 – $220 million.  Director Gore Verbinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer tried to wrangle down that budget but Disney chairman Rich Ross went so far as to hint that Verbinski was an expendable piece of the puzzle if it meant not spending an exorbitant amount on a Western.  But Deadline is now reporting that star Johnny Depp won’t do the movie without Verbinski at the helm.  No Depp means there’s no movie and the studio certainly wants to keep one of the world’s biggest movie stars happy.

The good news for Disney is that Verbinski and Bruckheimer were able to get the budget down to less than $220 million although it’s not at the $200 million mark that the studio would have preferred.  However, there’s still no final agreement on the budget and insiders tell Deadline that Verbinski “won’t take the budget down to a certain point where it’s not the same movie that he started out to make.”  Hit the jump for a recap of why Disney is stuck between a rock and a hard place.

NBC Picks up 80′s Professional Wresting Drama Pilot from Dwayne Johnson and Jerry Bruckheimer

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: August 24th, 2011 at 2:22 pm

With the actor first gaining fame as a professional wrestler who only used to be known as The Rock, what better man than Dwayne Johnson to bring a drama series set in the world of wresting to television. Deadline reports NBC has just picked up a pilot from Johnson and producer Jerry Bruckheimer that will take place during the golden age of wrestling in the 1980′s. With World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation being at the top of their game in that decade, it’s the perfect setting for such a series which will be written by Brent Fletcher and Seamus Kevin Fahey (Spartacus: Gods of the Arena)

It’s yet another period drama heading to networks following the success of Mad Men, and the premiere of new dramas like Pan-Am and The Playboy Club this fall. The question is whether or not real wrestling icons like Hulk Hogan or Randy “Macho Man” Savage will be included, or if the drama will be completely fictionalized. Since wrestling has never been my cup of tea, I’m not necessarily excited, but I could’ve said the same thing about my interest in a New York ad agency in the 60′s and now I can’t miss an episode of Mad Men, so there you go.

Phillip Noyce Leaves HUNTER KILLER; Will THE LONE RANGER Ride without Gore Verbinski?

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: August 22nd, 2011 at 7:51 am

We have a few director-related stories for you this morning.  First up, Moviehole is reporting that Phillip Noyce (Salt) has left the submarine action-thriller Hunter Killer.  Noyce had been officially on board since February, but apparently just realized that the story—which is about an American sub commander and a Navy SEAL team that must rescue the Russian president and defeat a renegade admiral who’s attempting a coup—was too similar to his previous films (Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger).  He’ll now turn his focus to the time-travel romance Timeless and newly-announced project, Above Suspicion, a thriller written by Chris Gerolmo (Mississippi Burning).  We previously reported that Noyce was also attached to a remake of Bloodsport, an adaptation of Tim Winton’s Dirt Music, and the drama Our Wild Life.

Hit the jump for more intrigue revolving around The Lone Ranger.

Gore Verbinski and Jerry Bruckheimer Try to Wrangle a Lower Budget for THE LONE RANGER

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: August 17th, 2011 at 11:57 am

At a reported budget of $250 million, you have to wonder if anyone behind Gore Verbinski’s The Lone Ranger actually has respect for the source material.  The character is a guy with a Native American partner who fights bad guys.  That’s about it.  But apparently that’s not cool enough for modern audiences and this notion that bloated spectacle is automatically better is why you now have Disney holding off on making The Lone Ranger and their sticking point is that they have to make it cost $215 to $220 million (or less) instead of $250 million.  A source tells THR, “It all starts with [Verbinski].  If there is any saving this version of the movie, he’ll have to find substantial savings. If he can, maybe we can hold this together.”  Only in modern blockbuster filmmaking run amuck could knocking $30 million off a $250 million budget qualify as “substantial savings.”

Hit the jump on why the film still costs so much and why Disney remains skittish (and rightfully so).  Johnny Depp is still attached to play Tonto with Armie Hammer set as the title character.

THE LONE RANGER Adds Helena Bonham Carter, Barry Pepper, and Dwight Yoakam

by Jason Barr    Posted: July 19th, 2011 at 4:22 pm

It looks as if director Gore Verbinski’s (Rango) take on The Lone Ranger may soon be upping its cast by three. Already starring Armie Hammer in the title role, Johnny Depp as his trusty sidekick Tonto, and Tom Wilkinson as a railroad tycoon, the pic is now close to landing Helena Bonham Carter, Barry Pepper, and country star turned actor Dwight Yoakam. Per Heat Vision, the trio is currently in talks to join the pic as a brothel madam, military officer, and gang leader respectively. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, Disney’s adaptation of the classic character is set to begin shooting in mid-October of this year in Texas and New Mexico.

The Lone Ranger is penned by Ted Elliot, Terry Rossio, and Justin Haythe (Revolutionary Road) and will center on the plight of a Texas Ranger (Hammer) who is left for dead by Yoakam’s gang, only to return as the masked title character. As for the film’s potential new additions, Carter can currently be seen in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2, Pepper has a role in Terrence Malick’s untitled romantic drama with Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, and Javier Bardem, and Yoakam is currently lensing director Billy Bob Thornton’s drama Jayne Manfield’s Car alongside Kevin Bacon, Dennis Quaid, John Hurt, and Robert Duvall.

Johnny Depp Close to Signing on for Fifth PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: July 5th, 2011 at 4:40 pm

For a while there, it looked as if we might be spared another rushed entry in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, as star/lynchpin Johnny Depp was reportedly not entirely certain he wanted to return. Well apparently the actor realized that he doesn’t own enough houses in France and/or armbands, because now The Wrap reports that Depp is close to a deal to return once again in a fifth Pirates of the Caribbean film. (The Wrap now reports that Depp’s total profits from the entire franchise so far is $350 million. Holy hell).

This really isn’t all that surprising. The latest sequel, On Stranger Tides, just crossed the $1 billion mark at the global box-office. Obviously Disney and everyone involved behind the scenes that stands to make even more money was itching to go back to the well. Hit the jump for more.

Tom Wilkinson in Talks to Join THE LONE RANGER

by Jason Barr    Posted: June 22nd, 2011 at 6:55 pm

Tom Wilkinson (Michael Clayton) is in talks to join Disney and producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s adaptation of The Lone Ranger. Per Variety, the two-time Oscar nominee would take on the “prominent” role of a railroad tycoon. If the deal goes through, Wilkinson would join a cast that already includes Armie Hammer in the title slot and Johnny Depp as his sidekick, Tonto. Gore Verbinski (Rango) is directing the pic which is scheduled to begin shooting after Depp finishes Tim Burton’s Dark Shadows adaptation and Hammer wraps Tarsem Singh’s (Immortals) untitled Snow White pic alongside Julia Roberts.

The Lone Ranger script comes courtesy of Ted Elliot, Terry Rossio, and Justin Haythe (Revolutionary Road). In addition to his potential role in Lone Ranger, the usually excellent Wilkinson can next be seen alongside Helen Mirren and Sam Worthington in director John Madden’s (Shakespeare in Love) drama/thriller The Debt which is due out on August 31st. The thesp also signed on to join Samuel L. Jackson in the indie thriller The Samaritan back in April.

Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Rob Marshall and Jerry Bruckheimer Interview PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES

by Christina Radish    Posted: May 17th, 2011 at 9:47 pm

It’s quite obvious that Johnny Depp loves playing the role of Captain Jack Sparrow, as much as the audience loves seeing him do it. Taking that into consideration, along with the fact that the first three films brought in $2.6 billion worldwide, it’s really no surprise at all that everyone signed on to do Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, opening in theaters on May 20^th.

At the film’s press day, Johnny Depp and co-star Penelope Cruz, who’s new to the franchise, along with director Rob Marshall and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, talked about reigniting the Pirates films, being sure to get the screenplay right before going into production, working in 3D, and where they would like to see things go for Pirates 5 and 6. Depp and Bruckheimer also hinted at what audiences can expect from The Lone Ranger, in which Depp will play Tonto. Check out what they had to say after the jump.

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