Director Neill Blomkamp and actor Sharlto Copley are clearly quite fond of each other, and it appears that they have no plans to severe their professional relationship anytime soon.  The then-unknown South African actor gave a stellar turn in Blomkamp’s fantastic 2009 sci-fi film District 9 and has a supporting role in the director’s next film, the Matt Damon-fronted Elysium, and now EW confirms that Copley will lead Blomakamp’s next next film, the sci-fi comedy Chappie.  Plot details for Blomkamp’s Elysium follow-up are being kept firmly under wraps, but it’s described as a “science-fiction comedy” that takes place in an unusual setting.

Obviously details regarding Copley’s character are also being kept secret, but we do know that he will play the lead.  The actor most recently wrapped the villain role in Spike Lee’s remake of Oldboy and a supporting role opposite Angelina Jolie in Disney’s Maleficent.  Production on Chappie will take place in Johannesburg.

Following on the heels of the debut trailer and poster, Sony Pictures has released eight new images from Neill Blomkamp‘s Elysium.  The movie is set in 2159, and two classes of people are divided: the wealthy live on a man-made space station called Elysium, while the rest of the humans inhabit an overpopulated and ruined Earth.  Matt Damon plays a desperate man who must reach Elysium in order to find a cure that will save his life.  I’m digging everything I’m seeing from this film, and with four months until the release date, this is only the tip of the political-sci-fi iceberg.

Hit the jump to check out the images, and click here for Steve’s thoughts on the footage he saw yesterday.  The film also stars Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, Wagner Moura, Diego Luna, and William Fichtner.  Elysium opens August 9th.

The first trailer for District 9 director Neill Blomkamp’s highly anticipated sci-fi film Elysium has been released.  The story takes place in 2159 where two classes of people are roughly divided: the wealthy live on a man-made space station called Elysium, while the rest of the humans inhabit an overpopulated and ruined Earth.  The trailer begins by showing us the luxurious world of Elysium before revealing the grungy, desert-like Earth.  Blomkamp looks to have crafted an incredibly detailed and vast sci-fi world here, and the visuals are absolutely stunning.  The action sequences look excellent as well and Damon appears to be kicking all kinds of ass, but most importantly Blomkamp has crafted yet another timely, socially-conscious story that speaks volumes to the current issues facing our world.  A wholly original sci-fi property that asks audiences to think while also providing entertainment value in spades?  Count me wholeheartedly in.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer, and click here for Steve’s video blog recap after seeing 10 minutes of footage and interviewing Blomkamp.  The film stars Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, William Fichtner and Diego Luna.  Elysium opens on August 9th.

While news is going to be slow over the next few days, thanks to Empire Magazine, we have something cool to post: the first look at Sharlto Copley as the villain Kruger in Neill Blomkamp’s Elysium.  The film is set in 2159, and two classes of people are divided: the wealthy live on a man-made space station called Elysium, while the rest of the humans inhabit an overpopulated and ruined Earth.  Elysium was on track for a March 2013 release, but then the movie was pushed back to August 2013, which is the same weekend Blomkamp’s District 9 was released in 2009. 

While Sony has yet to release a trailer for Elysium, I’d imagine we’re going to see one very soon.  The film also stars Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Diego Luna, Alice Braga, and Wagner Moura.  Hit the jump for the full image and you can watch my comic-con video interviews with Foster and producer Simon Kinberg by clicking the links.  Here’s all our previous Elysium coverage which includes our comic-con recap and images.

Forget Mars; Europa is where all the cool kids are going these days. Thought to possess lakes of liquid water under the Jovian moon’s icy surface, the natural satellite may harbor one of our best chances at discovering life within our own solar system. That theory is at the heart of The Europa Report, a sci-fi picture starring Sharlto Copley (District 9) and Michael Nyqvist (Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol) that centers on a research team of six astronauts who explore the titular moon. The first teaser trailer has dropped and it shows glimpses of a space station, the astronauts in question and what, unfortunately, looks like hints of a found footage type pic. No release date or distributor has been set as of yet. Hit the jump to check out the teaser trailer, along with a link to the film’s viral site.

After a rather drawn-out development period, production is finally underway on director Spike Lee’s remake of director Park Chan-wook’s now-classic 2005 South Korean revenge film Oldboy.  Josh Brolin stars as an advertising executive who is kidnapped and imprisoned for 20 years without explanation.  He is abruptly released and sets out to discover the who and why of his captivity, running across a social worker (Elizabeth Olsen) and an illusive man (Sharlto Copley) who allegedly holds the key to his salvation.

FilmDistrict announced today that the pic will open on October 11th, 2013.  There are currently no other films slated for release at that time, but it puts the redo in a great spot both for commercial success and awards consideration.  Samuel L. Jackson and James Ransone round out the impressive cast, and I can’t wait to see how Lee puts his spin on the material.

No stranger to violent, auteur-driven films (ie. Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive), FilmDistrict has acquired U.S. distribution rights to director Spike Lee’s remake of Oldboy.  The film is a redo of Park Chan-wook’s now-classic South Korean revenge pic and stars Josh Brolin as an advertising executive who is kidnapped and imprisoned for 20 years without explanation.  He is abruptly released and sets out to discover the who and why of his captivity.  Lee has put together an impressive lead cast, with Elizabeth Olsen as the female lead and Sharlto Copley as “an illusive man who allegedly holds the key to his salvation,” but the director ran into a bit of trouble finding financing for the pic.  As such, word of FilmDistrict’s involvement is very good news indeed.

We recently heard that Samuel L. Jackson and Nate Parker were looking to join the cast, but the press release makes no mention of their involvement.  Chan-wook’s film is incredible but I’m interested to see Lee’s take on the material, especially how he handles the story’s more graphic/disturbing content. Oldboy is expected to be released in 2013, so luckily we don’t have to wait long to find out.  Hit the jump to read the press release, which includes a synopsis.

While at Comic-Con to do a big Hall H presentation, Elysium co-stars Matt Damon, Jodie Foster and Sharlto Copley spoke to press about the highly anticipated but very mysterious sci-fi film, from writer/director Neill Blomkamp. The filmmaker described it as being “about an orbital space station that has the rich living on it, while Earth is diseased and has been left behind.”

During the interview, the actors were clearly guarded in their responses, so as not to reveal too much, but they talked about who their characters are, the key to finding their performances, the themes that they’re addressing with the rich versus the poor, and what they think the world might really be like so far into the future. Check out what they had to say after the jump. Also, check out our recap of the Comic-Con panel.

It’s turning out to be a very exciting month for District 9 star Sharlto Copley.  He recently landed the villain role in Spike Lee’s Oldboy remake, he’s poised to star in the thriller Open Grave, and now he’s set in a starring role opposite Angelina Jolie in a tentpole Disney release.  Deadline reports that Copley is in talks to play the male lead in the Mouse House’s Maleficent.  He’ll play the character of King Stefan in the pic, which tells the Sleeping Beauty story from the villain’s point of view.

We heard in March that the very talented Elle Fanning was in talks to star as the do-gooder princess, but this latest report makes no mention of the actress.  It’s possible that she’s still in negotiations, or things might have gone south and she’s now out of the project completely.  Nevertheless, production is set to begin next month in London under the direction of Robert Stromberg, the production designer of Avatar and Alice in Wonderland who is making his feature directorial debut with the fantasy pic.  Maleficent is slated for March 14th, 2014.

Like most of you, I’m incredibly excited/nervous about Spike Lee’s Oldboy remake.  Director Chan-wook Park’s 2003 South Korean revenge pic is an instant classic, and though I think Lee is certainly capable of great filmmaking, he’s had more than his fair share of flops.  Josh Brolin is set as the lead, Elizabeth Olsen has signed on as the female lead, and District 9 star Sharlto Copley recently landed the villain role.  We haven’t heard much about what Lee’s remake entails other than a promised “darker ending,” but Brolin recently talked quite a bit about the film and his hesitation to remake such a brilliant piece of work.  Hit the jump to see what he had to say.

Some casting additions for you today. Here they are briefly:

• Burt Reynolds, Joe Piscopo, Paul Sorvino and Erika Christensen cast in the mafia musical comedy, How Sweet It Is.
• Sharlto Copley, Thomas Kretschmann and Joseph Morgan dig Open Grave.
• Kate del Castillo joins Screen Gems thriller, No Good Dead.

Hit the jump for more on each film.

Spike Lee’s exhausting search for the villain in his Oldboy remake may have finally come to an end.  After previously offering the role to Christian Bale, Colin Firth, and Clive Owen—all of who turned the part down—Variety now reports that District 9 star Sharlto Copley has been offered the role and is in early talks to sign on.  Josh Brolin is set as the lead and Elizabeth Olsen is onboard in the lead female role of Lee’s take on Park Chan-wook’s classic revenge pic of the same name.  For those unfamiliar, Brolin plays a man who is abducted and imprisoned for 15 years, after which he’s inexplicably released and sent on a hunt to track down those responsible for his imprisonment.  Many unexpected twists and turns ensue.  Hit the jump for more, including my thoughts on Copley landing the role.

I like to dream of an alternate universe where Drive Angry did well at the box office and stardom finally comes to terrific character actor William Fichtner.  Sadly, I don’t live in that universe, but that doesn’t mean Fichtner’s disappearing into obscurity.  Variety reports that Fichtner is in talks to join Contact co-star Jodie Foster as well as Matt Damon, Wagner Moura, and Sharlto Copley in Neill Blomkamp’s Elysium.  Details on the plot remain under wraps, but the story takes place in the distant future on another planet.  The film will also feature the kind of social allegory of Blomkamp’s breakthrough film District 9 but on a much larger scale.

Elysium is due out March 8, 2013.

Barry Sonnenfeld’s Men in Black III has had an unorthodox production schedule.  The film started shooting in November with an incomplete script, scheduled a hiatus from December to mid-February to fix the rest of the script, and then pick back up and finish the movie.  According to The Hollywood Reporter, Sony Pictures took this bizarre route because they wanted to take advantage of tax breaks in New York City and spring weather.

However, the hiatus has now passed and the script still isn’t finished.  As we reported last week, screenwriter David Koepp (Spider-Man) has been brought in to fix the script by Etan Cohen (Tropic Thunder) and later Jeff Nathanson (Rush Hour 2).  But THR reports that those re-writes aren’t going smoothly as the project is caught between Sonnenfeld, producer Walter Parkes, and star Will Smith.  Hit the jump for more details.

Wagner Moura, best known for his work in the Brazilian action films Elite Squad and Elite Squad 2, has joined Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, and Sharlto Copley in Neill Blomkamp’s Elysium.  Latino Review broke the story and Heat Vision adds that Moura’s character has “a crazy sense of humor.”  HV also says that Damon will play an ex-con and that social class figures into the story, which is set 100 years in the future and on another planet.  Blomkamp says that the film is also “violent, very violent, and very unique, hopefully.”  Sony picked up Elysium in January to the tune of $120 million and plans to release the film in late 2012.

The Elite Squad films have been a massive success in Brazil and Elite Squad 2 holds the box office record in the country over Hollywood fare.  Their director, Jose Padilha, recently entered talks to direct MGM’s remake of Robocop. [Update: Heat Vision reports that Elysium has been set for a March 8th, 2013 release date].