Movies about chefs seem to be all the rage at the moment.  Bradley Cooper and Jon Favreau are currently prepping two separate films about professional cooks, both called Chef, and now Chocolat director Lasse Hallstrom has been tapped to direct an adaptation of the Richard C. Morais novel The Hundred-Foot Journey for DreamWorks.  The story centers on the rivalry between an Indian restaurant that is 100 feet away from a three-Michelin-star restaurant in France, with the eccentric French chef reluctantly forming a bond with the young Indian boy whose family owns the quaint Indian restaurant.  Casting has yet to be confirmed, but Deadline reports that Helen Mirren will be playing the French chef Madame Mallory.

Steven Knight (Eastern Promises) wrote the screenplay adaptation and the film boasts Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey, and Juliet Blake as producers.  Hallstrom most recently helmed the Nicholas Sparks adaptation Safe Haven, but the Cider House Rules filmmaker certainly knows his way around a touching dramedy.  Hit the jump to read a synopsis for the book.

The Weinstein Company has released the first trailer for director Lee Daniels’ (Precious, The Paperboy) historical drama The Butler.  Based on a true story, the film stars Forrest Whitaker as Cecil Gaines, a butler who served at the White House from 1952 to 1986.  The trailer plays up the film’s awards prospects as we see a flash of famous faces playing the many notable persons who walked the halls of the White House throughout this period (Alan Rickman is particularly striking as President Reagan), and that’s balanced with an overview of Gaines’ life in a racially tense America.  While the film certainly looks like it has the potential to be powerful, cautious optimism is key whenever Lee Daniels is involved.

Hit the jump to watch the debut trailer.  The film also stars Oprah Winfrey, David Oyelowo, Mariah Carey, John Cusack, Jane Fonda, Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, Minka Kelly, Lenny Kravitz, Melissa Leo, James Marsden, Alex Pettyfer, Vanessa Redgrave, Liev Schreiber, and Robin Williams.  The Butler opens on October 18th.

Every year, Jimmy Kimmel Live follows the Oscars with a star-studded sketch.  Last year, audiences were treated to a trailer for Movie: The Movie, which featured dozens of movie stars parodying every film genre and cliché.  Naturally, every hit needs a sequel, and JKL has delivered with Movie: The Movie 2V.  I’ll let you be the judge between which trailer is better, but I would say the sequel surpasses the original when it comes to the obligatory Matt Damon joke.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  Movie: The Movie 2V opens Arbor Day.

New set photos from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Lee Daniels‘ The Butler, and Luc Besson‘s Malavita have gone online.  The photo from Catching Fire shows the construction of the justice building, but since it’s in a dystopian future, it’s really the injustice building.  Oprah Winfrey instagram’d the photo of her and co-star Terrence Howard in their “goodbye love scene.”  Finally, the official set photo from Malavita doesn’t give away much about the film, which is about a mafia family living in witness protection in France.

Hit the jump to check out the set photos.  The Hunger Games: Catching Fire opens November 22, 2013.  The Butler and Malavita will likely open in 2013.

Director Lee Daniels is currently at work on his period drama The Butler, and some images of his star-studded cast taking on famous historical figures are starting to trickle out.  The film tells the true story of Eugene Allen, a butler who served at the White House from 1952 to 1986.  Forest Whitaker plays Allen, Oprah Winfrey is set as his wife, and David Oyelowo will star as Allen’s son.  Butler has cast a number of familiar faces to play the notable persons who walk the halls of the White House throughout this period, and now we have our first look at Alan Rickman and Jane Fonda as First Couple Ronald and Nancy Reagan.  I wasn’t quite sure how Rickman would physically pull off Reagan, but the resemblance here is striking.

Hit the jump to take a look at not only Rickman and Fonda alongside Daniels, but also Winfrey and co-star Lenny Kravitz in old-age makeup.  Click here to see James Marsden and Minka Kelly as John and Jackie Kennedy.

Direct from the ongoing shoot in New Orleans comes the first look at Forest Whitaker in costume as Eugene Allen, the man behind the title role in director Lee Daniels’ The Butler.  We also have some new set photos of James Marsden and Minka Kelly in costume as John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jackie Kennedy.  The ensemble drama about the life of the White House servant who looked after eight first families was based on Wil Haygood’s 2008 Washington Post article about Allen.  The picture also stars Oprah Winfrey, David Oyelowo, John Cusack, Alex Pettyfer, Aml Ameen, Alan Rickman, Jane Fonda and Robin Williams.  Hit the jump to check out the images. [Update: The set photos have been removed at the request of the pictures' owners.]

The star of Prison Break and the pen behind the screenplay for Stoker, Wentworth Miller is now being courted to take up the adaptation of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle.  Written by David Wroblewski, the bestselling literary novel follows the titular protagonist, a mute boy in the American heartland who raises a fictional breed of dog with his family.  While that description sounds a bit odd, the story is actually a contemporary retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, albeit replacing the kingdom of Denmark with rural Wisconsin.  The novel was part of Oprah Winfrey’s book club in 2008; Winfrey will produce alongside Kate Forte, partnering with Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman.  Hit the jump for more.

Although her last live-action role was in 1998’s Beloved, Oprah Winfrey is considering a return to the big screen. The project that caught her discerning eye was the story of Eugene Allen, a black man who served under eight U.S. Presidents from 1952 to 1986 as the White House butler. From Precious director, Lee Daniels, comes The Butler, the story of Allen’s service in the White House through such pivotal moments in history as the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement and the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr., John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy. Daniels is reportedly interested in David Oyelowo (Red Tails) to play Allen; Winfrey would play his wife. It’s also being reported that Mila Kunis (Black Swan) and John Cusack (High Fidelity) have been approached to play Jackie Kennedy and Richard Nixon, respectively. Hit the jump for more.

The Television Critics Association honored the best in television tonight, and NBC’s Friday Night Lights was named Program of the Year for its fifth and final season. Though the show was never a ratings juggernaut, it has been beloved by critics throughout its tenure, and garnered a small but passionate fanbase. AMC’s Mad Men took home the Best Drama prize, while ABC’s Modern Family won Best Comedy at the 27^th annual awards show.

It warms my heart to report that Nick Offerman shared the Best Individual Achievement in Comedy award with Modern Family’s Ty Burrell for his genius portrayal of Ron Swanson on NBC’s stellar comedy Parks and Recreation. HBO didn’t go home empty handed, as their smash-hit Game of Thrones won Best New Series. Hit the jump for the full list of winners.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has announced today that James Earl Jones, make-up artist Dick Smith, and Oprah Winfrey will receive honorary Oscars at this year’s Academy Awards.  We all know that Jones is a legend and it will be great to see him receive an Oscar.  For those who may be confused by Winfrey’s nomination, keep in mind that she previously received an Oscar nomination for her performance in The Color Purple.  More importantly, the Academy is giving her an Oscar for her countless humanitarian efforts.  Finally, for those unfamiliar with Dick Smith, you may have heard of the films he worked on: The Godfather, The Exorcist, Scanners, and Taxi Driver just to name a few.  If you like the work of Rick Baker, you owe a debt of gratitude to Mr. Smith.

Hit the jump for the press release along with the video of Darth Vader redubbed with lines from James Earl Jones’ other movies.  I know it’s old, but it’s still hilarious.

While some might regard Schindler’s List as Spielberg’s finest venture into hard-hitting drama, The Color Purple could certainly give it a run for its money. Up until this point, a filmmaker like Steven Spielberg taking on a serious drama like this might raise some eyebrows (no matter how much heart E.T. may have had), but now audiences have pretty much realized that Spielberg can do anything. And when you consider the fact that it was Spielberg, and not a director like Spike Lee, who took on the powerful racial issues and mostly tragic story of this film, that makes it all the more impressive.  My review of the Blu-ray after the jump:

Where Sabretooth and Magneto have failed to kill Wolverine, Oprah has almost succeeded. Hugh Jackman was recently injured while filming in Sydney Harbor for Oprah’s Ultimate Australian Adventure. The Hollywood Reporter confirms that while descending on a flying fox (a harness and wire-rigged zipline), Jackman came in too fast and slammed into some stage lighting. The actor was able to touch down safely and was quoted as saying the impact “was worse than playing rugby.”

Though bleeding from a cut under his right eye, the tough Aussie soldiered on and continued with the interview segment after a brief pause for medical treatment. Jackman even performed a musical number to end the show. Oprah will continue her 8-day tour down under to complete shooting her talk show’s final season. Other Australian actors on the host’s hit-list of favorites include Baz Luhrmann and Russell Crowe, who should probably be watching their backs.  Hit the jump for video of Jackman’s accident and a recap of his upcoming projects…if Oprah doesn’t get him first.

Continuing her quest for worldwide media domination, Oprah Winfrey is now in talks to star in the film adaptation of Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Ruined. The play ran off-Broadway to much critical acclaim, and focuses on Mama Nadi, a Madam at a brothel in war-torn Congo, who struggles to keep herself and the women working for her safe from the conflict between the government and rebel armies. Winfrey, who is producing through her Harpo Productions alongside HBO Films, would star as Nadi. Deadline reports that the script is currently being written by Nottage herself.

Last seen onscreen in 1998’s Beloved, Winfrey most recently campaigned for the role in 2008’s Doubt that eventually went to Viola Davis. In October, it was announced that Winfrey, who is currently in the middle of the final season of her syndicated daytime talk show, will be teaming up with Meryl Streep and Sandra Bullock for a Universal comedy from writer/director Michael Patrick King (Sex and the City). Ruined is one of several projects that Winfrey and her Harpo Productions have set up at HBO, as they also have plans to adapt Taylor Branch’s book trilogy America: In the King Years for a 7-part miniseries.

Here’s one for the ladies: the new project from writer/director Michael Patrick King (Sex and the City) has drawn the star power of Meryl Streep, Sandra Bullock and Oprah Winfrey.  The power trio have committed to the not-yet-titled Universal comedy, rumored to revolve around the Home Shopping network.  King met with producer Scott Stuber and hammered out the idea with the three leading ladies in mind.

“I put it in front of each of them and they all said yes,” King said. “To have access to these women, tell them this story and hear yes was almost like a Greek mythological journey, with me going from one goddess to the next. It was humbling.” King expects to have the script done by January, with production tentatively scheduled for the summer. Hit the jump for more.

News of three rather disparate book adaptations sprung up today.  First up, Kitty Kelley’s controversial and very unauthorized biography, Oprah: A Biography.  Deadline reports that producer Larry A. Thompson (Amish Grace) has acquired the rights to the bio, with plans to adapt it a television movie or miniseries.  The intended premiere date is September 2011, to coincide with Winfrey folding her syndicated talk show after twenty-five years.  Thompson is still seeking writer a for the project, which will be made without Winfrey’s participation.

Hit the jump for details on the adaptations of Seamus Deame’s Reading in the Dark and John Perkins’ Confessions of an Economic Hitman.