Just two days after signing on to topline Focus, Will Smith seems intent on keeping himself busy, with two films possibly lined up after the grifter pic.  The action star is reportedly considering two projects he’s had on his radar for quite a while, the first of which is the drama American Can, where he’d be taking the role of a “reluctant hero” during the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina for director Edward Zwick (The Last Samurai).  On top of that, there is the possibility that Smith would also star in the thriller The Accountant.  Hit the jump for more.

Ed Zwick (The Last Samurai) is no longer onboard to direct the supernatural epic The Great Wall.  The film was recently postponed due to lack of financing and weather issues, at which point Zwick committed to directing the Bobby Fischer biopic Pawn Sacrifice with Tobey Maguire.  Now Deadline reports that Zwick is off The Great Wall altogether.  The period pic, based on an idea by Legendary CEO Thomas Tull and World War Z author Max Brooks, explores “the mysteries” behind the construction of The Great Wall in China.  Two 15th century British soldiers get caught up in the havoc caused by some inhuman element that the builders of the wall are trying to keep out.

Before the project was postponed, Benjamin Walker (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) and Henry Cavill (Man of Steel) were set as the leads, but it’s unclear if they’ll still be available when the film moves forward again.  Though Zwick has dropped off, Legendary East apparently still plans on starting production next year.

Ed Zwick (Love and Other Drugs) has signed on to direct Pawn Sacrifice, a biopic about chess master Bobby Fischer.  Tobey Maguire is attached to star and produce.  The current draft of the script by Steven Knight (Eastern Promises) focuses on Fischer’s rise to prominence in the 1960s, leading up to his famous match against Soviet chess player Boris Spassky in 1972.

THR reports that Zwick’s schedule opened up once The Great Wall—a supernatural epic that Zwick is attached to direct—was delayed as Legendary Pictures seeks funding.  That leaves Zwick free to step in for David Fincher, who was previously linked to direct.  I imagine Zwick’s Pawn Sacrifice will be very different than Fincher’s Pawn Sacrifice—the directors are on the opposite ends of the cinematic emotion spectrum.  Zwick is the safer choice, but I think the story is inherently interest, and Zwick is certainly competent enough to tap into that potential.

Just a few days ago, we learned that the co-lead opposite Man of Steel’s Henry Cavill in director Edward Zwick’s The Great Wall was down to either Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood) or Benjamin Walker (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter).  The decision-making process wasn’t stretched out much further, as Variety now reports that Walker has landed the role.  The period pic explores “the mysteries” behind the construction of The Great Wall in China, and apparently involves some inhuman element that the builders of the wall are trying to keep out.  Cavill and Walker will play 15^th century British soldiers who stumble upon the construction of the wall, and presumably get caught up in the havoc that this supernatural presence brings.

Walker is a relatively untested actor on the big screen.  He had bit parts in Kinsey and Flags of Our Fathers, but he stretched his chops in the Broadway play Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson.  We’ll get our first good look at Walker in a starring role in this summer’s Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Director Edward Zwick (The Last Samurai) is gearing up to start production on his period epic The Great Wall, and producers are now mulling over two actors to take on the co-lead role opposite Man of Steel star (aka the new Superman) Henry Cavill. Deadline reports that the decision is now between True Blood’s Alexander Skarsgard and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter star Benjamin Walker.  Previously all we’d known about the film was that it “looks at the mystery behind how China’s Great Wall was constructed.”  Now a new logline shines a bit more light on the project, as the film centers on British warriors traveling through 15th Century China who realize “there is something inhuman and more dangerous” that the builders of the titular wall are trying to keep out.  Hit the jump for more.

CBS Films has tapped Jeffrey Nachmanoff to direct an adaptation of Vince Flynn’s spy novel American Assassin. The book is actually the 11th in Flynn’s series that centers on CIA Agent Mitch Rapp. Assassin serves as a prequel to the series and tells the story of how, as a college scholar and athlete, tragedy forged Rapp’s path to become a ruthless hunter of terrorists for the CIA. Edward Zwick was initially tapped to direct the film, but he dropped out when the schedule conflicted with his next directorial effort, The Great Wall.

Nachmanoff previously directed the 2008 thriller Traitor starring Don Chedele, and recently helmed two episodes of Showtime’s fantastic series Homeland. Deadline reports that Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz wrote the most recent draft of Assassin, but Herskovitz exited when Zwick did. There’s no word on who’ll they’ll bring in to do a rewrite. Nachmanoff himself wrote The Day After Tomorrow and the upcoming Arnold Schwarzenegger actioner The Last Stand. CBS Films previously planned on beginning the potential Mitch Rapp franchise with Consent to Kill, but decided Assassin provided a better starting point. The film really hinges on who plays Rapp, and CBS Films plans on going with a younger actor. Hopefully we hear some casting news soon. Hit the jump to read a synopsis of the book.

While it feels like Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel has been filming forever, star Henry Cavill is finally looking to book his first post-Superman role. Variety reports that Cavill is now in negotiations to star in director Edward Zwick’s (The Last Samurai) period epic The Great Wall. The film “looks at the mystery behind how China’s Great Wall was constructed.” Zwick wrote the screenplay with Marshall Herskovitz, based on a story by World War Z author Max Brooks and Thomas Tull.

No other plot details are given, but historically speaking the Great Wall was constructed in the 5th century BC in order to keep nomadic groups out of the Chinese Empire. It’s unknown what kind of approach Zwick will take, or what kind of character Cavill will play. The actor was recently seen in Immortals, but we’ve got quite a while to wait before we see him don the tights. Man of Steel opens June 14th, 2013.

Director Edward Zwick is going to China. The Last Samurai director is set to helm the inaugural film for Legendary East, The Great Wall. Zwick and his longtime writing partner Marshall Herskovitz will pen the screenplay for the flick that “reveals the legend behind a great mystery of our age: why this magnificent structure came to be.” The script will be based on a story by Legendary Entertainment Chairman and CEO Thomas Tull and World War Z author Max Brooks. Tull is also producing alongside Jon Jashni, Alex Gartner, Charles Roven (The Dark Knight Rises) as well as Zwick and Herskovitz.

The wall itself was originally constructed in the 5^th century BC to keep out nomadic groups from the Chinese Empire, but has a storied history as it has been rebuilt, added to, and maintained throughout multiple culturally significant periods in China’s history. Hit the jump for more, including the full press release.

Today, we have six clips from Edward Zwick’s new film, Love and Other Drugs.  The romantic dramedy stars Jake Gyllenhaal as a fast-talking, shallow pharmaceutical rep who learns to love when he falls for an artsy chick played by Anne Hathaway.  The “drama” in the “dramedy” comes from the fact that her character has Parkinson’s Disease.

The film also stars Hank Azaria, Josh Gad, and Oliver Platt.  Hit the jump to check out the clips.  Love and Other Drugs opens November 24th.

When we posted the first trailer for Love and Other Drugs, the romantic dramedy led by Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway, one comment remarked, “Show me the whole movie why don’t you?”  Turns out there may still be plenty of plot details under wraps.  20th Century Fox has released a new trailer, and in doing so revealed an entirely new (and arguably major) subplot absent from trailer number one.  If you don’t mind a bit of spoilage, check out the new trailer after the jump.

Following an early glimpse of footage earlier today, 20th Century Fox has unveiled the first trailer for Love and Other Drugs, the romantic dramedy led by Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway.  Hathaway plays an “alluring free spirit” who falls for Gyllenhaal, a charming pharmaceutical sales rep.  The leads are joined by Oliver Platt, Hank Azaria, Josh Gad, and Gabriel Macht, with Edward Zwick (Defiance) directing.  Check out the trailer after the jump.

The first footage from director and Oscar winning producer Edward Zwick’s Love and Other Drugs has landed online. Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway star in the rom-com which revolves around a Viagara salesman (Gyllenhaal) overcoming his history of sordid relationships so as to land a woman who suffers from Parkinson’s disease (Hathaway). While, here in The States, romantic comedies have the tendency to tread the line between terribly contrived and just plain terrible, the footage makes the film look at the very least watchable (putting it ahead of 80% of its peers already) and potentially quite good.

While you can look for a full theatrical trailer to open this weekend (I’m guessing it’s attached to Julia Roberts’ Eat, Pray, and Love so, by all means, proceed with caution), you can also hit the jump to check out the footage now. Co-starring alongside Gyllenhaal and Hathaway are Judy Greer, Hank Azaria, Oliver Platt, and Gabriel Macht. Love and Other Drugs is based on Jamie Reidy’s nonfiction book Hard Sell: The Evolution of a Viagara Salesman and opens November 24^th, 2010.

Walt Disney has sent over a new image of Anne Hathaway as the White Queen in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland.  They’ve also included a Q&A with the actress.  While you’re going to get vanilla answers to every question, if you’re really looking forward to Alice in Wonderland, you might enjoy the interview.  Hit the jump to check it out:

Interviewing two people at the same time is hard. The reason is, when you’re interviewing just one person, you can focus all your energy and questions on that individual. But when you have two people ready and willing to answer questions, you’ve got to come up with stuff they both can talk about and you never know if they’re going to play off each other. Sometimes you only have the time to ask one question because they’ll keep going on and on. Trust me, it’s a challenge. Thankfully, when I sat down to speak with Alex O’Loughlin and Gabriel Macht for their new movie “Whiteout”, not only did they play off each other quite well, we had enough time to ask some individual questions. So if you’re curious what making “Whiteout” was like and what they have coming up, take a look at the interview after the jump.

Also, since it’s not online, Gabriel revealed that he’s been cast in Edward Zwick’s new film “Love and Other Drugs” opposite Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal.

The catalog flood of titles to Blu-ray is one of the best and worst things about getting the new toy that is Blu-ray. The good news is that a lot of great titles are coming out looking better than ever. The bad news is not only might you get double dipped, you’re more than likely to purchase something that will look great but always kind of sucked. My reviews of Air Force One and Glory after the jump.