Now playing in theaters is director Joe Wright’s adaptation of the classic Leo Tolstoy novel Anna Karenina.  The film takes place in late 19th century Russian society and stars Keira Knightley as an adulterer who questions her happiness.  In true Wright fashion, this isn’t exactly a straightforward adaptation; the director has set much of the film in a lush theater that uses over 100 interconnected sets to allow the action to move fluidly through a door and into a separate setting entirely.  The film also stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Matthew Macfadyen, Kelly Macdonald, Domhnall Gleeson, Alicia Vikander, and Olivia Williams.  For more on Anna Karenina, here’s Matt’s review, five clips, and all our previous coverage.

At the press day, I spoke to Aaron Johnson.  We talked about how he prepared for the role, when he found out Joe Wright was changing the way he wanted to tell the story and why, and more.  In addition, we also talked about the Kick-Ass sequel. Hit the jump to watch.

Comics creator/Fox consultant Mark Millar likes to talk.  With production currently underway on the adaptation of his comic Kick-Ass 2, Millar has been sharing updates and reports from the set for fans.  He doesn’t exactly have the most objective opinion, but he recently took to the interwebs to talk about seeing some edited footage and the evolution of Hit-Girl in the follow-up now that star Chloe Moretz is three years older.  He also noted that the first 45 minutes of the film will focus mainly on Hit-Girl.

Moreover, with us breaking the recent news that Kick-Ass director Matthew Vaughn may be in talks to land the highly coveted Star Wars: Episode VII directing gig, Millar chimed in with his thoughts on that prospect.  Hit the jump to see what he had to say. 

One of the films to premiere footage at this year’s New York Comic-Con was director Kimberly Peirce‘s (Boys Don’t Cry) remake of Carrie.  Based on the book by Stephen King, Screen Gems says Carrie is “a reimagining of the classic horror tale about Carrie White (Chloë Grace Moretz), a shy girl outcast by her peers and sheltered by her deeply religious mother (Julianne Moore), who unleashes telekinetic terror on her small town after being pushed too far at her senior prom.”  While many were nervous about the remake, Matt was very impressed with the footage.  Read his recap here and here’s the first trailer.

Shortly before the Comic-Con panel, I did an exclusive interview with Chloë Moretz.  We talked about her experiences with comic-con, why she prefers the PS3 to the XBox 360, video games, how she got the role in Carrie and the audition process, the challenges Hit-Girl faces in the Kick-Ass sequel, whether Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) will make an appearance, what she has planned next, and more.  Hit the jump to watch.

We previously brought you the first looks at Joel Kinnaman (The Killing) in a new version of his RoboCop suit, but now we have a few more looks at Kinnaman as the 100% human Alex Murphy.  Speaking of superhumans, director Jeff Wadlow recently tweeted a number of photos of the Kick-Ass 2 cast in costume.  Though none are as awesome as the first look at Jim Carrey as Colonel Stars, these set photos do have that “official” ring to them.

Director Jose Padilha’s RoboCop also stars Abbie Cornish, Gary Oldman, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Keaton and Jackie Earle Haley and opens August 9th, 2013.  Kick-Ass 2, starring Aaron Johnson, Chloe Grace Moretz and Christopher Mintz-Plasse, opens June 28th of next year.  Hit the jump to see the new images. 

We’ve been seeing a multitude of images from the set of writer/director Jeff Wadlow’s sequel Kick-Ass 2 over the past couple of weeks that have given us our first looks at Aaron Johnson, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Chloe Moretz back in costume, but now we have our first peek at Jim Carrey as Colonel Stars.  The character is a founding member of Justice Forever who recruits other heroes to join the crime-fighting group.  Carrey looks to be wearing a bit of prosthetics to get the character’s look just right, and it should be fun to see him in action when the film hits theaters.

Hit the jump to check out the images.  The film also stars Donald Faison, John Leguizamo, and Olga Kurkulina.  Kick-Ass 2 opens on June 28th, 2013.

Last night, I managed to squeeze in a double feature of Dredd 3D and The Master. While I wasn’t thrilled with the prospect of not having a 2D showing available to choose from, I have to admit that director Pete Travis‘ film provided me with my first 3D screening since 2010′s Piranha 3D that actually felt worth the extra dimension and additional ticket price. As for The Master, it’s probably unfair to judge something so heavy after a single viewing. That said, my initial reaction is that I can’t remember watching a film where its individual parts so far exceed the sum the first time around. From top to bottom the pic’s technicality is superb. And yet, I don’t see myself in any hurry to revisit Paul Thomas Anderson‘s latest world.

Moving forward to the reason we’re all here, in this week’s episode of the Top 5, The Hobbit celebrates Tolkien Week in a big way with a new trailer and images, we get our first looks at a new suit from director Jose Padilha‘s Robocop reboot, Steve sits down to talk End of Watch with Jake Gyllenhaal, Anna Kendrick, and more, Kick-Ass 2 set images continue to roll out while Aaron Johnson talks about the film at TIFF, and Fantastic Fest 2012 kicks off. Continue reading for a brief recap and link to each.

As evidenced by the bounty of set photos that have already hit the web, production on Kick-Ass 2 is well underway in Toronto.  Director Matthew Vaughn has taken on a producer role on the follow-up, with Jeff Wadlow stepping in to helm the sequel.  Some exciting new casting additions have been announced like Jim Carrey as The Colonel and Donald Faison as Dr. Gravity, and all signs point to Kick-Ass 2 being one hell of a ride.

Steve got to sit down with star Aaron Johnson recently at the Toronto Film Festival for his upcoming romantic drama adaptation Anna Karenina, and the actor talked briefly about what fans can expect in Kick-Ass 2.  He revealed that they’ve excised some of the more disturbing material from Mark Millar and John Romita Jr.’s comic book counterpart and teased some interesting character developments.  Hit the jump to see what he had to say.

We previously brought you some early set photos of Aaron Johnson and Chloe Grace Moretz in costume to reprise their roles of Kick-Ass and Hit Girl in director Jeff Wadlow’s Kick-Ass 2.  Today, we’ve got more looks at Kick-Ass alongside Donald Faison as Dr. Gravity, plus a couple other members of the superhero team Justice Forever.  The images show what appears to be Insect Man, plus Clark Duke reprising his role as Marty and taking on the mantle of Battle Guy.

Kick-Ass 2 also stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Jim Carrey, Lyndsy Fonseca, Yancy Butler, John Leguizamo, Lindy Booth, Andy Nyman, Olga Kurkulina and Nicolas Cage in a cameo. The film hits domestic theaters on June 28, 2013 and will be in UK theaters July 19, 2013.  Hit the jump to take a look at the new set photos.

It’s a minor miracle that Kick-Ass 2 is a reality.  Matthew Vaughn’s first film was a respectable success but the R-rated superhero pic was by no means a blockbuster, so few were expecting a follow-up to come to fruition.  But alas, production is currently underway on Kick-Ass 2 in Toronto under the direction of Jeff Wadlow, and some new set photos have surfaced that give us a look at a little older Chloe Moretz as Hit Girl and the actress’ stunt double in full costume.  We also get a peek at Aaron Johnson as the titular Kick-Ass and Hit Girl’s bike, as well as Morris Chestnut who takes over the role of Sergeant Marcus Williams from Omari Hardwick, who played the character in the first film.

Hit the jump to check out the bevy of set images.  The film also stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Olga Kurkulina, John Leguizamo, Donald Faison and Jim Carrey.  Kick-Ass 2 opens on June 28th, 2013.

A short while ago, we reported that Universal was interested in Jim Carrey for a role in Jeff Wadlow’s Kick-Ass 2.  Now, Carrey’s role has been confirmed by the director himself via Twitter.  Carrey will play Colonel Stars, a founding member of Justice Forever who recruits heroes to the crime fighting group.  The sequel also features the return of Aaron Johnson, Chloe Grace Moretz, Nicolas Cage and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.  To see what Wadlow had to say about adding Carrey to the cast as well as a wrap up of casting so far, hit the jump. 

After yesterday’s news that Universal was courting Jim Carrey for Jeff Wadlow’s Kick-Ass 2, now Lindy Booth (Dawn of the Dead) is in talks to star as yet another hero.  Carrey was sought to play Colonel Stars,  who forms the heroic team, Justice Forever.  While Carrey may not take the role, Booth is currently in negotiations to star as the Night Bitch, a member of Justice Forever.

Kick-Ass 2, which features the return of stars Aaron Johnson, Chloe Grace Moretz and Christopher Mintz-Plasse, stars filming next month in Toronto and New York.  Hit the jump for more on Booth, Night Bitch and a recap of the casting so far.

Universal reportedly wants Jim Carrey to join the ass kicking in director Jeff Wadlow’s Kick-Ass 2.  The sequel to Matthew Vaughn’s 2010 original film adaptation of the Mark Millar and John Romita Jr. comic already features returning cast members Aaron Johnson, Chloe Grace Moretz, Nicolas Cage and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.  Carrey is being sought to play the role of Colonel Stars, a founding member of Justice Forever who recruits heroes to the crime fighting group.  Deadline reports that, though Carrey is a fan of Vaughn’s original film, no deals are in place yet.  Do you think Carrey would be a good fit for the Colonel? Let us know in the comments!

Two more bits of casting news this evening.  Here they are in brief:

• Yancy Butler, who appeared as Angie D’Amico in Kick-Ass, is set to return in the same role for the Jeff Wadlow-directed sequel.
• Jonathan Daniel Brown (Project X) is set to join the cast of the horror comedy Milo, also starring Ken Marino, Gillian Jacobs and Peter Stormare.

Hit the jump for details on both projects.

Opening on August 17 is LAIKA’s awesome 3D stop-motion feature, ParaNorman.  Directed by Chris Butler and Sam Fell, the film centers on a young boy who can see the dead and must use this gift to lift a curse that threatens his small town.  ParaNorman features the voices of Kodi-Smit McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, John Goodman, Casey Affleck, Leslie Mann, Jodelle Ferland and more.  For more on the film, here’s six clips, a very cool featurette called Time Lapse, and all our previous coverage.

Earlier today I got to speak with Christopher Mintz-Plasse.  We talked about his reaction to the finished film, how the script changed along the way, and the recording process.  In addition, with Mintz-Plasse about to leave for London to start filming Kick-Ass 2, he talked about what fans can look forward to in the sequel which he describes as “Warriors meets Kick-Ass.”  He also revealed that he’s part of some of the big action scenes and Chloe Moretz’s character Hit Girl is going into the 9th grade in the sequel.  Hit the jump to watch.

At the end of Kick-Ass, it looked like Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) was being set up as the villain for the sequel.  The actor is slated to return for Kick-Ass 2, but he won’t be the only baddie.  According to Moviehole, the production is currently casting for the role of “Mother Russia”, who serves as Red Mist’s bodyguard.  Casting directors are look for an “extremely tall, large, fit female of 25 to 40 to play the part.”  If you take away the height factor (something that can be remedied with cinematography; just ask Tom Cruise), then the answer seems pretty obvious.

Hit the jump for more on the character.  Written and directed by Jeff Wadlow, the film also stars Aaron Johnson and Chloe Moretz.  Kick-Ass 2 starts filming in September.