In the new thriller The Lincoln Lawyer, based on the best-selling novel by Michael Connelly, charismatic defense attorney Mick Haller (Matthew McConaughey) unexpectedly lands the case of a lifetime, defending rich Beverly Hills playboy Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe). Charged with attempted rape and murder, Roulet deceivingly leads Haller to believe the case will be quick, landing him some easy money. But, when the case goes to trial, the streetwise lawyer who works out of the backseat of a chauffeured Lincoln Continental, finds out that this may not be the only crime Roulet is responsible for.

At the film’s press day, actor Matthew McConaughey talked about his attraction to playing lawyers, the fact that he thought he was going to be a lawyer when he was a teenager, the ways in which he identified with Mick Haller, the importance of music as a tool to help him find his character, and his preference to keep things moving on a set. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

The Handlers is an Atom.com exclusive web series about a group of ambitious campaign operatives determined to claw their way to the top of their game. They will do whatever it takes to get hapless candidate Jack Power (Bryan Cranston) elected to a post as State Senator, whether he likes it or not. Based on a French concept called Henaut President, the eight-episode series premieres on January 4^th, and then series star Bryan Cranston returns to his Emmy Award-winning performance as Walter White on AMC’s hit television series Breaking Bad, which goes into production for Season 4 on January 13^th.

In a recent exclusive phone interview with Collider, the very busy Bryan Cranston talked about the fun of doing a web series that is a humorous and racy look at politics, his hopes that it will continue for future episodes, how nerve-wracking it was to host Saturday Night Live this past October, what his favorite skits were, how he’s looking forward to returning to Breaking Bad, and that he prefers to not know where his character is headed so that he can be as surprised as everyone else. He also talked about his roles in the feature films Larry Crowne, The Lincoln Lawyer and Drive, all due out in 2011. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

Lionsgate has released a new trailer for The Lincoln Lawyer, an adaptation of the best selling novel by Michael Connelly.  Matthew McConaughey stars as Mickey Haller, “a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney who operates out of the back of his Lincoln sedan.”  Ryan Phillippe, Marisa Tomei, William H. Macy, Josh Lucas, John Leguizamo, Michael Pena, and Bryan Cranston also star.  Brad Furman (The Take) directs from a script by John Romano (Nights in Rodanthe).  Check out the new trailer after the jump.

New posters have been released for The Eagle, Rango, and The Lincoln Lawyer.  Hit the jump to check out all the posters along with a synopsis for each film. The Eagle stars Channing Tatum and Jamie Bell and opens February 11th.  Rango features the voices of Johnny Depp and Isla Fisher and opens March 4th.  The Lincoln Lawyer stars Matthew McConaughey and Marisa Tomei and opens March 18th.

More Lincoln news! Okay, not really. This one involves the towncar. Lionsgate has released the first teaser trailer for The Lincoln Lawyer, based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Michael Connelly.  The film stars Matthew McConaughey giving off a bit of an A Time to Kill vibe, along with Ryan Phillippe, Marisa Tomei, John Leguizamo, William H. Macy, Josh Lucas, and Michael Peña.  The plot revolves around a successful criminal defense attorney who does business from the back of a Lincoln Towncar.  He gets involved with a high profile case concerning a wealthy realtor from Beverly Hills (Phillippe).  Tommy Lee Jones was previously attached to direct and star in the film but dropped out over creative differences. Brad Furman (The Take) now directs from a script by John Romano (Nights in Rodanthe).  The Lincoln Lawyer will be released on March 18^th, 2011. Hit the jump to check out the trailer.

We have a slew of new release dates for you.  Here’s a list of the films with announced release dates [via Box Office Mojo and Variety], ordered chronologically:

• The Mechanic starring Jason Statham and Ben Foster – January 28, 2011
• Kids in America starring Topher Grace – March 4, 2011
• The Dark Fields starring Robert De Niro and Bradley Cooper – March 18, 2011.
• The Lincoln Lawyer starring Matthew McConaughey – March 18, 2011
• Bad Teacher starring Cameron Diaz – April 1, 2011
• One for the Money starring Katherine Heigl – July 8, 2011
• Colombiana starring Zoe Saldana – September 2, 2011
• Dolphin Tale 3D starring Morgan Freeman – September 16, 2011
• Jack and Jill starring Adam Sandler – November 11, 2011
• Premium Rush starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt – January 13, 2012

Hit the jump to learn about the other films coming out on these dates.

Back in October, we heard that Tommy Lee Jones and Matthew McConaughey were teaming up for an adaptation of the Michael Connelly novel The Lincoln Lawyer, with Jones set to direct.  Sadly, Jones bowed out a month later (those darn “creative differences”), but the cast is shaping up nicely regardless.  According to Variety, Lionsgate just picked up the domestic distribution rights for Lawyer after the flick recently recruited Marissa Tomei, William H. Macy, and Ryan Phillippe to co-star alongside McConaughey.

Brad Furman (The Take) will replace Jones in the director’s chair for the July production.  The adapted script from John Romano (Intolerable Cruelty) outlines a legal thriller centered around a defense attorney whose Lincoln Town Car doubles as an office.  You’ll find a full plot synopsis for Connelly’s novel after the break.

Variety reports that Tommy Lee Jones has left the upcoming adaptation of Michael Connelly’s The Lincoln Lawyer.  Jones was to direct the film and co-star with Matthew McConaughey, but departed over the infamous creative differences.  Obviously, those differences are never publicly specified, but I’ll walk through the wide door of speculation and say that McConaughey’s was encouraging Jones to exercise using palm fronds.  But as for The Lincoln Lawyer, that project continues to move ahead with Lakeshore Entertainment hoping to line up a new director so they can begin shooting next spring.

But Jones has plenty to keep him busy.  He’s currently in post-production on HBO’s adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s The Sunset Limited.  Along with directing, Jones co-stars with Samuel L. Jackson so maybe they’ll rekindle that Rules of Engagement magic.  Jones is also preparing to adapt Ernest Hemingway’s Islands in the Stream and he recently wrapped production on John Wells’ The Company Men co-starring Ben Affleck and Kevin Costner.

Tommy Lee Jones is in talks to co-star and direct the adaptation of Michael Connelly’s novel “The Lincoln Lawyer,” about a Los Angeles lawyer who sets up shop in the back of his Lincoln. McConaughey will play Mickey Haller the hotshot lawyer, and though Jones’s role is unknown as of now, he looks to be playing the Beverly Hills playboy Haller must defend for murder. More on the project after the jump.