Northern Lights

Taylor Launter Drops STEEL for STRETCH

by Germain Lussier    Posted: February 26th, 2010 at 11:49 am

Though Twilight star Taylor Launter was signed on to star in two upcoming toy movies, Vulture has learned that the werewolf hunk has officially dropped Paramount’s Max Steel to be Universal’s Stretch Armstrong.

After generating huge buzz for his performance, and body, in The Twilight Saga: New Moon, Lautner was the toast of Hollywood. He quickly signed on to play Max Steel, based on the Mattel toy, as well as Stretch Armstrong, based on the famous Hasbro toy. Turns out, though, that Lautner and his team weren’t happy with how Mattel was developing their project in contrast with Hasbro. For example, according to the Vulture article, producer Brian Grazer is working to get Stretch Armstrong made in 3D for a 2012 release. That, along with a few other things, led to this decision.

After the jump, read a little bit more on Hasbro’s plans, why Launter seems to have made the right decision and all of the young heartthrob’s upcoming projects.

Taylor Lautner Cast As STRETCH ARMSTRONG

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: February 5th, 2010 at 10:08 pm

Apparently if you are a Hollywood executive looking jumpstart a franchise based on a toy line, Twilight hunk Taylor Lautner is your go-to guy.  After the immense success of New Moon ($704 million worldwide), Lautner has capitalized on the exposure by signing on to a number of high profile projects including Paramount’s Max Steel, based on the Mattel action figure.  Now Universal has announced (via press release) that Lautner will represent malleable plaything Stretch Armstrong on the big screen.

More after the jump:

Taylor Lautner and Tom Cruise to Co-Star in Flyboy Movie NORTHERN LIGHTS — UPDATED

by Laura Kelley    Posted: January 6th, 2010 at 11:42 am

According to Deadline, Taylor Lautner and Tom Cruise will be co-starring in a film called Northern Lights, with filming set to start on April 1^st.  David Ellison’s Skydance Productions is behind the film, and John Moore of Max Payne fame will be directing. This film makes Lautner now the highest paid teenage star with his salary for the role rumored at $7.5 million, though that salary does not include countless tween-girl screams.  And no, Lautner won’t be playing a shirtless werewolf.  Sorry to get your hopes up, but you’ll have to wait until Eclipse for more of that.

The plot of Northern Lights sounds an awful lot like Top Gun, but if you ask me that’s not a problem since it’s easily the best airplane-based homoerotic American action movie other than Con-Air.  The film is about “a gifted, young aerobatics pilot who faces off with his controlling, billionaire father and falls in love with a gifted female pilot” according to the logline.  There is as of yet no word as to whether there will be a gifted rival pilot ala Val Kilmer or any shirtless volleyball playing, but we can all hope for both.  Lautner’s career is definitely growing quickly following his turn in Twilight, with this new film as well as Max Steel, Paramount’s latest announced Lautner star vehicle.  Lautner’s career is growing fast, with his recent SNL hosting gig showing off his comedic timing and his crazy martial arts skills, and the Twilight films making massive bank, and it’ll be interesting to see how he does carrying a film alongside a huge (and controversial) star like Tom Cruise. [UPDATE: We've received word that Tom Cruise is not in the film and there is no "billionaire father" in the story]

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