A new trailer, poster, and images are now online for Despicable Me 2.  The new trailer shows Gru (Steve Carell) being kidnapped by the “Anti-Villain League”, and being recruited in order to defeat a new super villain.  Gru seems to have softened considerably since becoming the father of Margo, Agnes, and Edith.  Unsurprisingly, the best jokes belong to the minions, and although Despicable Me 2 looks okay, I’m still more excited to see the minions’ spinoff.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer, poster, and images. The film also features the voices of Kristen Wiig, Al Pacino, Miranda Cosgrove and Russell Brand.  Despicable Me 2 opens in 3D on July 3rd. 

BrandX with Russell Brand features the British comedian’s honest and unfiltered point of view on current events, worldwide politics and popular culture. After a somewhat experimental series of six episodes, FX has ordered another seven installments that will return sometime in October, likely behind the new seasons of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and The League.

While at the FX portion of the TCA Press Tour, Collider got the opportunity to participate in both the show’s panel and a 1-on-1 interview with the always outrageous and often thoughtful Russell Brand, in which he talked about what the experience of this show has been like, whether it’s been more fun or more work than he expected, what he enjoys about having such honest interactions with his audience, the creative changes he’s planning to make with the show, who he would like to exchange lives with for a day, and what he would do, if he could be President of the United States. He also talked about working with Diablo Cody on her directorial debut, his career doing family films, and how it’s been difficult to book time to do his voice work for Despicable Me 2 because they keep wanting to record during his yoga class, but that he will definitely be in it, eventually. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

When last we reported on the comedy Pierre Pierre, it had Jim Carrey (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) attached to star and Larry Charles (Borat) on board to direct.  Now it looks as if Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek) is in early talks to displace Carrey.  Pierre Pierre centers on an obnoxious Frenchman who steals the Mona Lisa and attempts to transport it to from Paris to London.  Along the way, he runs afoul of “French police inspector, a serial killer named Pigeonshit and his own brothel-owning mother.”  Hit the jump for more on Brand and Pierre Pierre.

Music is the heart of any musical, and Rock of Ages has a stolen heart.  The movie is based on a Broadway show designed with tourists in mind rather than people who actually appreciate stage musicals.  It’s a show that plays to nostalgia and provides the comfort of classic tunes so the audience is basically pre-sold: if you like the music, then why wouldn’t you like this music delivery system upheld by the laziest story imaginable?  If a musical must rely on other people’s music rather than writing original songs, then the onus for originality falls on the direction.  Sadly, director Adam Shankman is hardly up for the task of finding a new spin on well-worn rock favorites, and he’s only able to sporadically bring vibrancy to the film adaptation’s almost non-stop barrage of numbers.

We’ve been provided with eight clips from director Adam Shankman’s (Hairspray) upcoming movie musical Rock of Ages to share with our readers.   The film stars Julianne Hough as a small-town girl with big dreams who falls for a rock star (Tom Cruise), but the film is packed with 80s songs from the likes of Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  Joining in on the 80s fun is Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand,Malin Akerman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Diego Boneta, Mary J. Blige, and Bryan Cranston.

Hit the jump to watch the clips.  If you missed any of Steve’s set visit coverage, be sure to check out 20 things to know about the film and his interviews with Shankman, Boneta and Hough.  Rock of Ages opens on June 15^th.

Though this summer is filled with superhero and sci-fi fare to the max, we’ve also got a full-on movie musical to look forward to.  Warner Bros. has released 30 new high-resolution images from director Adam Shankman’s Rock of Ages.  The film stars Julianne Hough as a small-town girl with big dreams who falls for a rock star (Tom Cruise), but it’s packed with 80’s songs from the likes of Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  Cruise and Hough are joined by a stacked supporting cast in 100% 80’s garb that includes Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Diego Boneta, Mary J. Blige, and Bryan Cranston.

Hit the jump to check out the images.  Rock of Ages opens on June 15th.

Coming on the heels of news that NBC’s 30 Rock will be returning for a 13-episode final season next year, Alec Baldwin appears to be filling his hiatus spots with a couple of projects with familiar friends.  First up, Deadline reports that Baldwin will re-team with Woody Allen on the writer/director’s next untitled project.  Baldwin stars in Allen’s latest film, To Rome with Love, and apparently Allen took a liking to the actor as he’s decided to include him in his next feature.  After spending the past few years shooting abroad, the untitled film is set to shoot in San Francisco and New York this year.

Sally Hawkins (Happy Go-Lucky) is in talks to star as one of two female leads in the dramedy, with Cate Blanchett and Bradley Cooper apparently eyeing other roles in the pic.  Hit the jump for news concerning Baldwin re-teaming with Russell Brand.

We’ve got a few new posters to share with you this evening.  Briefly:

• On the Road – New character posters showcasing Kristen Stewart and Garrett Hedlund from director Walter Salles’ adaptation of the Jack Kerouac novel.
• Rock of Ages – An ensemble poster from the 80s rock musical starring Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough, Alec Baldwin, and Russell Brand.
• Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter – A new poster from the blood-filled twist on the story of our nation’s 16th President.  Benjamin Walker, Rufus Sewell, and Anthony Mackie star.
• Neighborhood Watch – A new poster for the sci-fi comedy starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, and Richard Ayoade as bored men who join a neighborhood watch group for fun.

Hit the jump to check out the new posters.

We’ve got a few high resolution images from the musical Rock of Ages and the horror flick The Apparition to share this afternoon.  Directed by Adam Shankman, Rock of Ages stars Julianne Hough as a small-town girl with big dreams who falls for a rock star (Tom Cruise).  The musical is full of 1980s hits and features a pretty impressive ensemble cast that includes Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Diego Boneta, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Paul Giamatti.  The film opens on June 15th.

Additionally, The Apparition centers on a young couple played by Ashley Green (Twilight) and Sebastian Stan (Captain America) who accidentally conjure a terrifying apparition that feeds on their fear.  Naturally, they turn to Harry Potter’s Tom Felton to help them get rid of the dastardly creature.  These images confirm that Greene is, in fact, very good looking. The film opens on August 24th.

If the first trailer for director Adam Shankman’s Rock of Ages didn’t blow your denim miniskirt up, perhaps this new one will.  The Hairspray director leads this feature film adaptation of the Broadway musical by the same name. Centering on a small town girl (Julianne Hough) who falls in love with an all-star rocker (Tom Cruise), Rock of Ages will feature 1980s hits by such classic bands as Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  This particular trailer ends on a high note of sorts with Cruise rocking out to Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive.” Rock of Ages, also starring Diego Boneta, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman, Bryan Cranston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige, opens June 15th.  Hit the jump to check out the new trailer.

Spring hasn’t even started yet, but FX is already making moves to get you ready for a summer of television with new seasons of Wilfred starring Elijah Wood (the season premiere will have a guest star appearance by Robin Williams) and Louie with Louis C.K. In addition, the network has also revealed the premiere dates for their new series like Anger Management, marking the return of Charlie Sheen to a series since his crazy breakdown and departure from Two and a Half Men, and Russell Brand‘s non-scripted series Strangely Uplifting.

All of the series will premiere on Thursday, June 28th. Anger Management kicks off the comedy block at 9/8c with a two-episode premiere (the show’s regular timeslot will be at 9:30/8:30c) followed by the second season premiere of Wilfred at 10/9c. Louie follows with its third season premiere at 10:30/9:30c followed by the debut of Russell Brand’s show Strangely Uplifting at 11/10c, filmed in front of a live audience. This block sounds almost as impressive as NBC’s Thursday night line-up and just might give it a run for its money. However, it all depends on how the two new series pan out. For a full press release with plenty more information on all these series, hit the jump.

In May of last year, we brought you word that Paramount Pictures was vying for a spec script by Scott Rosenberg (Gone in Sixty Seconds) called The Hauntrepreneur with Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes lined up to produce. It now looks like Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek) will be attached to star in the family friendly film about a peculiar man hired to help a family adjust to their new town by creating a haunted house full of oddball characters. The studio had no comment on the casting and is now looking to place a director. The project has previously been described as similar in tone to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with a bit of Beetlejuice thrown in. I could definitely see Brand as an off-center combination of Johnny Depp’s Willy Wonka and Michael Keaton’s Beetlejuice. Hit the jump for more.

With Conan O’Brien taking his late night comedy to TBS, now is the time for another cable network to make their own attempt at joining the nighttime circuit. FX is the first to take the plunge as the network has just announced a new deal with Russell Brand for six half-hour episodes of a new, currently untitled, unscripted late night series that will feature the comedians British sensibilities and take on current events, politics, pop culture and more, all in front of a live studio audience. Brand says, “I am so excited I’m on the point of climax, in fact I will put the “O” into FX, which spells FOX, which is actually the channel’s real name,” said Brand. “That’s the only thing that worries me about all this to be honest. At least I’ll be able to have a Christmas drink with Bill O’Reilly.”

Before making it big on films here in the United States, Brand was already an established stand-up comedian, so this kind thing really is his forte. As someone who enjoys not only British humor, but Brand’s off-the-cuff, fast-paced comedy style, I’m interested to see if cable can become the new hip place for late night talk shows as the staples like Jay Leno and David Letterman get up there in age. Brand will also likely have competition from either Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert depending on the time slot of the spring 2012 series. Hit the jump for the full press release.

Warner Bros. has released the first trailer for the feature adaptation of the Broadway musical Rock of Ages.  The film tells the story of a small town girl (Julianne Hough) who falls in love with a larger-than-life rocker (Tom Cruise) set against the backdrop of the 1980s music scene, featuring songs from the likes of Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  The gist of the trailer is that if you like 80s rock, you’ll probably like a musical that only features 80s rock and uses it as a basis for the plot.  But there’s also an important lesson:  When sleazy guy played by Paul Giamatti give you a chance at fame, you take him up on his obviously legit offer.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer and poster.  The film also stars Diego Boneta, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman, Bryan Cranston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige. Directed by Adam Shankman (Hairspray), Rock of Ages opens on June 1, 2012.

Russell Brand is readying himself for a political comedy. Sort of. Brand is attached to star in and produce the comedy The President Stole My Girlfriend for Warner Bros. The studio acquired the script from writer Matt Portenoy. While Portenoy has yet to have one of his scripts produced, he performed a well-received rewrite on the Porky’s remake currently in development, and scripted a segment for the comedy anthology Movie 43. His segment stars Emma Stone and Griffin Dune. The exact plot of The President Stole My Girlfriend is unknown, but Brand described the project thusly to THR:

“In this movie, the president steals the girlfriend of a sexy hippie—me, obviously. It was inspired by the night I naively invited [Warner Bros. president] Jeff Robinov for dinner.”

Brand made his feature producorial debut on this year’s Arthur remake. He recently wrapped a role in Adam Shankman’s star-studded movie musical Rock of Ages, and is poised to star in Diablo Cody’s upcoming directorial debut (previously known as Lamb of God) alongside Julianne Hough.