
Ladies and Gentlemen, Star Trek 2 is on officially on the way. Paramount Pictures has announced that production has commenced on director J.J. Abrams’ follow-up to the fantastically awesome 2009 sci-fi pic Star Trek. We’ve got John Cho, Bruce Greenwood, Simon Pegg, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoë Saldana, Karl Urban, and Anton Yelchin all reprising their roles from the first film, and in an inspired bit of casting, Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch is onboard as the film’s villain. Joining Cumberbatch in the Star Trek newbie circle are Alice Eve and Peter Weller.
Development on the sequel hasn’t been without its fair share of drama (Benicio Del Toro dropped out of the villain role weeks before filming began), but it’s reassuring to know that production has finally begun. The script was written by Star Trek writers Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, and Damon Lindelof, and composer Michael Giacchino will indeed return to score the pic (huzzah!). The currently untitled sequel will be post-converted to 3D and is set for release on May 17th, 2013. Hit the jump to read the full press release.

The latest installment in the Harold & Kumar franchise, A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas just opened in theaters to an enthusiastically warm reception from audiences and critics alike. Just as the film was about to open, news broke of a possible animated series iteration of the characters. If you’re familiar with the franchise, it’s not hard to imagine a pretty great animated iteration of the White Castle-loving friends. Steve recently got the chance to sit down with Hayden Schlossberg and Jon Hurwitz, the writers of all three films in the Harold & Kumar series.
The two are behind the animated series version of everyone’s favorite multi-cultural duo, and talked pretty extensively about their plans for the series. They speak about what led them to the idea of an animated series, if the series would impact the feature film franchise, reveal that they’ve met with Comedy Central regarding the show, and talk about the involvement of Neil Patrick Harris in the half-hour animated series (John Cho and Kal Penn are already attached to voice their characters). Hit the jump for the full interview.

Happy Saturday, folks. I’m writing to you this week surrounded by a mountain of used facial tissue (that’s right, I’m not endorsing Kleenex on the site without some sort of kick back…wait, dang it). Cold season has officially set in which means I’m on a daily regimen of Dayquil (which I have no problem endorsing), warm tea, and self-pity. In case you’re a longtime reader of the “Top 5″ and you’re wondering to yourself, “Wasn’t Jason just complaining about the summer heat?”, the answer is yes. Out of the 52 yearly weeks, I’m generally not complaining about the weather for approximately 2 or 3 of them. It’s sad, I know.
In this week’s “Top 5″ you can find our video interviews with the cast of A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, press conferences with Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and more from The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 junket, the red band trailer for Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum’s 21 Jump Street, a sit-down with the great Albert Brooks, and our coverage to date of this year’s American Film Market. Find a brief recap and link to each after the jump.

With director Todd-Strauss-Schulson’s A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas opening today, I recently got to speak with Kal Penn and John Cho. During the interview, they talked about how many times they’ve been offered a joint or bong hit since 2004, their favorite karaoke song, if there’s anything in the 3rd film they felt crossed the line, if they get free White Castle for life, at what time they found out they’d be making a 3rd film and a lot more. Hit the jump to watch.

The Harold & Kumar franchise is a cult hit at its best. The Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle was a modest hit in theaters but it found a rich life as a word-of-mouth DVD hit. Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay was an earned sequel, and while it wasn’t quite as good as the first, it was still enjoyable. But there’s always a danger when good movies go Christmas. Christmas has been done to death, it has rules, and it’s meticulously designed to engender warm feelings based on jingles and iconography. A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas embraces not only Christmas movies but brilliantly combines it with the gimmick of 3D, and the result is a painfully funny R-rated X-mas flick that will be worth watching every holiday season.

Warner Bros. has released a new red band trailer for A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas. The sequel takes place six years after Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay—the duo has grown apart, but when Kumar decides to bring a mysterious package to Harold’s house, Kumar inadverdently burns down Harold’s father’s prized Christmas tree. In place of White Castle, the stoner quest at the center of Christmas is to replace the tree.
John Cho and Kal Penn return as the title characters, joined by Neil Patrick Harris, Patton Oswalt, Thomas Lennon, Danny Trejo, Eddie Kaye Thomas, David Krumholtz, and Elias Koteas. A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas opens in 3D on November 4th. If you’re over 17, watch the red band trailer after the jump.

Part of me feels like I’m one of the few people looking forward to another Harold & Kumar movie, but I don’t care. The Harold & Kumar movies are delightfully madcap, feature a nice mix of gross-out humor and absurdity, and it looks like they’ve gone all out with A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas. Director Todd Strauss-Schulson seems to have acknowledged that 3D is a mostly-gimmicky technology and used it to augment the shenanigans of his lead characters.
New Line has released twenty-five new images along with four new set photos and I continue to remain jazzed to see the movie. Hit the jump to check out the images. A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas opens November 4th.

Eight character posters have gone online for A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas. Nothing can ever come close to the NPH riding a unicorn teaser poster from Harold & Kumar 2, but there’s a Danny Trejo character banner in here that comes close. It’s also one of the few that doesn’t have a pot-pun as the tagline.
Hit the jump to check out the posters. The film stars John Cho, Kal Penn, Paula Garcés, Danneel Harris, Tom Lennon, Danny Trejo, Elias Koteas, Eddie Kaye Thomas, David Krumholtz, Patton Oswalt, and Neil Patrick Harris. A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas opens November 4th.

Some new character posters for A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D have been released. They feature stars Kal Penn, John Cho, and the notorious Neil Patrick Harris. In addition to promoting the movie, they also serve as a reminder that Photoshop is every poster-creator’s best friend. The first trailer for the flick was a little underwhelming, but it’s nice to see that NPH seems to be playing a larger part this time around.
Hit the jump to see the posters. A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D opens November 4th.

Earlier today the first image from A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D was released, and now the first trailer for the fllm has hit the web. It’s pretty much everything you’d expect from a Harold & Kumar movie, but with Christmas. The story finds the duo trying to replace Harold’s father-in-law’s Christmas tree by day’s end, but you can probably surmise that all doesn’t go according to plan. While I didn’t find the second entry in the franchise as amusing as the first, hopefully the holiday setting of this one will punch things up. They look to be having fun with (and poking fun at) the 3D, and it appears that we’re in for a sure-to-be-great musical number. Speaking of awesome, Neil Patrick Harris looks to have a bit of an expanded role in the flick, which is very good news.
Hit the jump to watch the trailer. The movie stars Harris, John Cho, Kal Penn, Paula Garcés, Danneel Harris, Bobby Lee, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Danny Trejo, Amir Blumenfeld, David Burtka, Fred Melamed, and Richard Riehle. A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3D opens November 4th.

The first official image from A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas has gone online. As you can see, Harold (John Cho) and Kumar (Kal Penn) have dressed up as nutcrackers for some reason, but I’m even more amused that the center of the image is Neil Patrick Harris. He’s only a cameo in the previous two films and I imagine he’ll only have a small role in the new movie. But you put the focus of the image on the NPH because the NPH can sell anything. Even his commercials for Comcast make me hate that company a little less (once the commercial is over I go back to hating them).
Hit the jump to check out the image and be on the lookout for the first trailer in the not-too-distant future. A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas opens in 3D on November 4th. [Update: We've now posted a high resolution version of the image]

At this year’s Comic-Con, I was able to talk with John Cho before the Total Recall panel in Hall H. Cho told me that he plays someone who works at Recall and he explains his bizarre look. He also said the Recall in director Len Wiseman’s film is a lot different than Paul Verhoeven’s, as Wiseman’s Recall is more of a “den of sin” and less of a business. In addition, Cho talked about American Reunion, A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas, and Star Trek 2. Regarding the Trek sequel , I asked if he knows when they might start filming and how often do people ask him about it? Hit the jump to watch.

As I said with the Fright Night panel, remakes are tricky but at least the original Fright Night a pretty straight film. Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall is insane. Not only does it have a twisty plot which it then drops half-way through, but there’s exploding fat lady heads, tri-breasted women, and the magnificence that is Kuato. Even though the film only came out twenty years ago, it’s tough to imagine a big summer blockbuster being so strange. I need to be convinced that this remake is necessary or brings something new to the table. Sitting in Hall H for the panel, I want to be convinced.
Hit the jump for the recap of the Total Recall panel.

Set photos from the upcoming non direct-to-DVD American Pie sequel, American Reunion, have gone online. They’re not photos from filming, but simply the cast looking directly into the camera while on the set and showing us all what a grand time they’re having. The photos also show that John Cho is returning, although I’m left to wonder if his role will be as minor as it was in the original movies.
Hit the jump to check out the set photos. The film reunites Jason Biggs, Alyson Hannigan, Eugene Levy, and almost everyone else from the original movie. American Reunion opens April 6, 2012.

We’ve got a few casting stories for you tonight. First up, John Cho is the latest actor to join the cast of Len Wiseman’s Total Recall remake. The film stars Colin Farrell, Bryan Cranston, the recently confirmed Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Bielm, and late addition Bill Nighy. EW reports that Cho is on board to play McClane, the rep for the company that tries to mess with Farrell’s character’s mind. Cranston is playing the villain, with Ethan Hawke set to show up in a cameo. Total Recall hits theaters August 3rd 2012.
Additionally, Colin Hanks has signed on for the Paramount comedy My Mother’s Curse. The film stars Seth Rogen, Barbara Streisand and Chuck star Yvonne Strahovski. The story centers on an inventor (Rogen) who invites his mother along for a cross-country trip while he attempts to sell his new product and connect with a long lost love. THR reports that Hanks will play the husband of Strahovski, Rogen’s high school sweetheart. Anne Fletcher (The Proposal) will direct from a script by Dan Fogelman (Tangled). Hit the jump for the casting news of Elijah Wood in Celeste and Jesse Forever.
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