Roberto Orci

Imagine Entertainment, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci Developing Adaptation of Anne Rice’s THE TALE OF THE BODY THIEF

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 7th, 2012 at 2:39 pm

Ten years after 2002′s abysmal Queen of the Damned, tales from Anne Rice‘s Vampire Chronicles may be returning to the big screen.  THR reports that Ron Howard and Brian Grazer‘s Imagine Entertainment have optioned the fourth book in the saga of the vampire Lestat, The Tale of the Body Thief.  Star Trek screenwriter Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are co-producing and screenwriter Lee Patterson is currently at work on the script.

Hit the jump for more details on the project.

Roberto Orci Talks STAR TREK Sequel; Updates on Budget, Scope, and the Ship’s Engine Room

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: January 21st, 2012 at 12:53 pm

As production is finally underway on the sequel to J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek, fans are speculating away as to what the sci-fi follow-up will entail. We know that pretty much every major cast member from the first film is returning, and Benedict Cumberbatch is onboard as the film’s villain (which may or may not be Khan). Plot details are firmly under wraps in Abrams’ super secret, high-security mystery box, but writer/producer Roberto Orci recently spoke a bit about how the sequel will differ from the 2009 film.  Hit the jump to see what he had to say.

Filming Officially Underway on J.J. Abrams’ STAR TREK Sequel

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: January 17th, 2012 at 11:24 am

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.

Is Benicio Del Toro Playing Khan in STAR TREK 2? [Updated]

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: December 2nd, 2011 at 7:40 pm

Last month, we reported that Benicio Del Toro would be playing the villain in Star Trek 2.  Even before Del Toro’s casting, there has been non-stop speculation on who director J.J. Abrams and screenwriters Damon Lindelof, Roberto Orci, and Alex Kurtzman would choose as the baddie.  The name that kept popping up in fanboy circles was Khan Noonien Singh, the memorable antagonist from arguably the best Star Trek movie, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.  I thought this was a terrible idea, but unfortunately, it may have won the day.

Latino Review is reporting that Del Toro will play Khan in the upcoming sequel.  Hit the jump for more on Khan and why I hope this news is wrong.  [Update:  Abrams has commented on this rumor.  Hit the jump for what he had to say.]

STAR TREK 2 Begins Filming January 15th; Orci, Kurtzman, and Lindelof on 3rd Draft of the Scripts; New Details on Pre-Production

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: November 16th, 2011 at 8:07 am

Production on Star Trek 2 (unofficial title) is finally about to get underway.  We knew that it would start-up sometime in early 2012, but TrekMovie reports that filming on the sequel will officially begin on January 15, 2012.  Unless Paramount is willing to throw a lot more money at the sequel and everyone is willing to rush, don’t expect the sequel to hit theaters until summer 2013 at the earliest.

COWBOYS & ALIENS Team of Jon Favreau, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman Reunite for Government Sci-Fi Series EX-COMM

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: October 5th, 2011 at 10:17 am

Though Cowboys & Aliens didn’t really land with much pomp and circumstance, director Jon Favreau and writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman have plenty of great projects between them like Iron Man and Star Trek. Now Deadline reports the trio are teaming up again for a new pilot called Ex-Comm, a series described as a sci-fi drama with plenty of humor. Kurtzman is only executive producing the series with his collaborator Orci, but the latter will be writing the series with Favreau as well as Seth Green and Superman Returns and X2 writer Michael Dougherty, all of whom will also serve as executive producers.

It’s a strange assembly of writing talent, but the series sounds pretty cool as it’s said to follow a newly-elected President and his top secret Executive Committee (a.k.a. Ex-Comm), the government’s covert team of America’s most elite minds who investigate and protect our nation from the strangest occurrences and “conspiracy theory truths” out there. The series is described as a presidential procedural crossing the paranormal suspense of series like The X-Files and the politics of The West Wing, but with some fun and humor mixed in. Hopefully it turns out better than The Event, a series which seems to share some elements with this new series, but already I’m more confident in this new pilot than the canceled NBC series.

New STAR TREK Comics Will Re-Imagine the Original Series and Lead into STAR TREK 2

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 3rd, 2011 at 9:06 am

It doesn’t look like we’ll be getting Star Trek 2 until late 2012 at the earliest, but fans who need their fix can head down to their local comic shop.  IDW Publishing recently launched a new Star Trek comic series that takes episodes from Star Trek: The Original Series and tweaks them to accommodate the Enterprise crew created in the new timeline from 2009′s Star Trek.  This makes absolutely no sense since the whole point of the alternate timeline was to create new adventures.  “The first few issues of the series are adaptations of TOS episodes, as the ‘new’ crew encounters some of the same threats the original crew did,” explains Star Trek 2 co-writer Bob Orci, “but with differences that reflect things like Kirk being a younger captain and Spock losing his homeworld.”

But not all the comics will undermine the benefit of an alternate timeline.  Hit the jump for details on how the comics will set up the sequel.

FRINGE Producers and THE SHIELD Writer Sell Western Series to Fox, and TBS Orders Pilot with Comedian Steve Byrne from Producer Vince Vaughn

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: September 30th, 2011 at 10:28 am

Here’s two more new series in development that will be vying for a slot on next year’s TV schedule. First up, THR has word on a new western series that just sold to Fox. The untitled project is said to explore the origins of Wyatt Earp, focusing on the well-known events in his life like the infamous gunfight at the OK Corral and details about his brothers bringing order to a lawless frontier. The Shield writer John Hlavin is behind the script while Fringe producers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci will executive produce. With these names attached, it’s makes it much more likely that this will be a big project at next year’s upfronts presentation. Of course, with AMC’s track record, this new project will likely have to work hard to top the forthcoming western series Hell on Wheels.

Details on a new TBS sitcom with comedian Steve Byrne after the jump.

J.J. Abrams Finally Commits to Directing STAR TREK 2; Shooting to Begin This Winter

by Jason Barr    Posted: September 13th, 2011 at 6:42 pm

In what is probably one of the most non-surprising news bits in recent history, J.J. Abrams has officially committed to directing Star Trek 2. It’s been widely assumed for some time that Abrams would return to helm the sequel to his 2009 blockbuster. However, several delays eventually led Paramount to replace Star Trek 2 with G.I. Joe 2: Retaliation in its June 29th, 2012 release slot and the director told us back in August that he wouldn’t officially sign on until “everything was in place.”

Apparently, that time has come as Vulture reports that said delays are now a thing of the past now that co-writer Alex Kurtman has completed work on his directorial debut, DreamWorks’ Welcome to People. Per the report, Abrams and co. are now ready to focus on Trek 2 and are looking to begin shooting the much-anticipated pic this winter. Now that everything is “official,” Trek fans can finally get back to worrying less about who will direct and more about how they’ll be able to cope with “Average Joe Off the Street” enjoying their beloved franchise.

10 Interviews You May Have Missed: Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson TINTIN, Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Marc Webb THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, More

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: July 29th, 2011 at 3:11 pm

As you may have noticed, we’ve been a bit flooded with content for the past week thanks in no small part to Comic-Con 2011. We’ve been posting our full-scale coverage from the convention (I’m still trying to catch up on sleep), which has included a large number of interviews. We know some of you might have missed a few of these interviews, so we’ve compiled a sort of “catch up” list of 10 that we thought you might enjoy.

Not all of the interviews are Comic-Con related, but we’ve got conversations with Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson, Damon Lindelof, Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Marc Webb, Steve Carell, Patrick Stewart, Don Cheadle, Neil Patrick Harris and Jayma Mays, Nicolas Winding Refn, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, Don Cheadle and Kate Beckinsale. Hit the jump for some quick recaps and links to the full interviews.

Exclusive: Screenwriters Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci Talk COWBOYS & ALIENS, STAR TREK 2, HAWAII 5-0, FRINGE, WELCOME TO PEOPLE, ENDERS GAME and More

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: July 28th, 2011 at 7:03 pm

With Cowboys & Aliens hitting theaters tomorrow, yesterday afternoon I sat down with screenwriters/producers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci for an extended interview.  During our wide ranging conversation, we discussed Comic-Con, Cowboys & Aliens, balancing the western genre with Sci-Fi, Harrison Ford, Kurtzman’s directorial debut Welcome to People (which stars Chris Pine, Olivia Wilde and Elizabeth Banks), Hawaii Five-0, Fringe, the potential for TV show crossovers, the Star Trek sequel, 3D, Ender’s Game, the Star Trek video game (which takes place after the first movie), and so much more.  Hit the jump to either read or listen to the interview.

Upcoming STAR TREK Video Game Is Canon and Will Serve as a Bridge to STAR TREK 2

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: July 5th, 2011 at 10:57 am

Video game tie-ins tend to be a losing prospect.  They’re cheap, they’re half-hearted, and tend to exist as simply another piece of merchandise that will end up in a 70% off bin six months later.  They’re are exceptions: GoldenEye 007 and Spider-Man 2 come to mind, but quality tie-ins are few and far between.  Whether the upcoming Star Trek game will be good as a game remains to be seen, but executive producer and screenwriter Roberto Orci says it will function as canon.  Orci goes on to say, “It’s going to be a story that fits into our movies, and fits into between the first two movies.”  That’s a dangerous prospect.  Hit the jump for quotes from Orci on the game and why I think this could seriously backfire.

LOCKE & KEY Series Pilot to Screen at Comic-Con

by Ethan Anderton    Posted: June 22nd, 2011 at 9:37 am

Though Fox ultimately decided to pass on the series adaptation of the graphic novel Locke & Key, audiences will still get a chance to see the pilot. Deadline reports IDW Publishing, the company behind the book, is hosting a special screening of the pilot complete with a panel discussion featuring creators Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez, the pilot’s writer/executive producer Josh Friedman and executive producers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. However, the audience won’t be all that huge since the screening has been set in Room 8 (with the panel following in Room 9) on July 22nd at 10:30am. So if you’re desperate to see the fallen pilot, this might be your only chance. Of course, if fan reaction is big enough, perhaps the network will reconsider. For those just joining us, details on the story are after the jump.

COWBOYS & ALIENS Featurette

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: June 17th, 2011 at 10:10 am

A new featurette for the upcoming sci-fi/western Cowboys & Aliens has been released. The video includes a number of the creatives involved with the film, including producers Steven Spielberg and Ron Howard, and director Jon Favreau. If you’re trying to avoid spoilers, there’s no need to worry. The featurette doesn’t include any footage beyond what’s been shown in the trailers, and the filmmakers basically just talk about the general idea behind the film. A sci-fi property that’s not a sequel and blends genres with a Western is no easy sell, but the marketing campaign has been pretty spot-on so far.

Hit the jump to check out the featurette. Cowboys & Aliens stars Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Paul Dano, Clancy Brown, and Sam Rockwell.  The film opens (in 2D!) on July 29th.

Hero Complex 2011 Recap: Warren Beatty (DICK TRACY), Richard Donner (SUPERMAN), Jon Favreau & Robert Downey Jr. (IRON MAN), More

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: June 12th, 2011 at 9:55 pm

For the past few days at the Chinese Theater in Hollywood, Geoff Boucher of The Los Angeles Times hosted the second annual Hero Complex Film Festival.  In attendance were Warren Beatty for Dick Tracy, director Nicholas Meyer for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, writers/producers Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Damon Lindelof for Star Trek (2009), Richard Donner for Superman and Superman II (with an appearance by Geoff Johns), Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr. (who was a surprise guest) for Iron Man and Iron Man 2.  Of course they both talked a bit about Iron Man 3, The Avengers and Magic Kingdom.

In addition to the previously announced guests, Captain America: The First Avenger screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely premiered the new trailer and talked about the movie, and Mike Mignola talked about going back to Hellboy.  For more on the Festival, hit the jump.

Update: Added some video of Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr.

Copyright ©2005 - 2012. All Rights Reserved. California web design