***THE RAVEN Starring John Cusack Picked up by Relativity Media ***Peter Farrelly Says Benicio del Toro Still Top Choice to Play Moe in THE THREE STOOGES

THE RAVEN Starring John Cusack Picked up by Relativity Media

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: January 20th, 2011

Yesterday, we brought you an image from the set of the Edgar Allen Poe thriller The Raven that was tweeted by star John Cusack in remembrance of the famed poet’s birthday. Today, it was announced that the film now has a US distributor. Deadline reports that Relativity Media has acquired the US distribution rights to the film. Directed by James McTiegue (V for Vendetta), the film tells the story of Poe teaming up with a detective to search for a serial killer who has kidnapped the author’s fiancée and gone on a murder spree that recalls Poe’s stories. The events all take place in the days before the poet’s death.

Cusack stars alongside Luke Evans (Tamara Drewe), Alice Eve (She’s Out of My League) and Brendan Gleeson. Cross your fingers for more sad-face Cusack pictures from the set as filming continues.

http://collider.com/the-raven-relativity-media/71603/

Peter Farrelly Says Benicio del Toro Still Top Choice to Play Moe in THE THREE STOOGES

by Matt Frisch    Posted: January 20th, 2011

Although no one has officially signed on yet to the ever-rotating cast of the Farrelly brothers (There’s Something About Mary, Me, Myself & I) The Three Stooges, it looks like the directors have at least set their sights on one cast member for now, Benicio del Toro. Farrelly confirmed Del Toro’s status with the project, as well as addressed what they’re looking for in the audition process:

“Benicio [Del Toro] is the front runner for Moe, but we’ve not made a deal with him yet. Our feeling is that it just can’t be your take on Moe. It’s gotta be Moe. Someone could nail Curly’s mannerisms, but if you’re 130 pounds it probably wouldn’t work.”

Apparently one reason that casting has been held back is that certain actors feel they shouldn’t have to audition for the role given their A-lister status. Hit the jump for more information on the filming of The Three Stooges, as well as past casting rumors.

In a recent interview with The Providence Journal (via The Playlist) Peter Farrelly spoke at length about the project:

“It’s not a biopic. We want to give a matinee feel to it. But none of the studios had any interest in it at the beginning. There was a lot to prove. We even had to show that in the script, despite all the hitting the Stooges were known for, it could be a PG movie.”

The cast has been all over the place for this one.  As we previously reported, rumors ran rampant that the cast had been filled out with Johnny Knoxville as Moe, Andy Samberg as Larry and Australian comic Shane Jacobson as Curly.In the end, they turned out to be exactly that—rumors.  Prior to that casting news, the original lineup consisted of Benicio del Toro, Sean Penn and Jim Carrey set to play Moe, Larry and Curly respectively. However, Penn suddenly dropped out due to scheduling conflicts and Carrey quickly followed suit. There was even talk at one time of Paul Giamatti possibly picking up Penn’s vacant role as Larry, but as much as I like the guy, I’m not quite sure he would be the right fit for Larry.

Fair to say that at this point, everything still seems very much up in the air.  But one thing is clear, these remaining parts will be cast sometime in the very near future.  The movie is set to start shooting in Atlanta in April.

http://collider.com/benicio-del-toro-three-stooges/71621/

***John Cusack Marks Edgar Allan Poe’s Birthday with a Shot from the Set of THE RAVEN ***New Trailer for RED RIDING HOOD ***Alexandre Aja Talks About His Adaptation of the Space Opera Manga COBRA THE SPACE PIRATE ***Johnny Depp in Talks to Replace Robert Downey Jr. in OZ, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL

John Cusack Marks Edgar Allan Poe’s Birthday with a Shot from the Set of THE RAVEN

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 19th, 2011

John Cusack has tweeted a photo from the set of James McTeigue’s upcoming thriller The Raven.  In the film, Cusack plays famous author Edgar Allan Poe.  Poe must team with a detective (Luke Evans) after the author’s fiancée (Alice Eve) has been kidnapped by a serial killer who is using Poe’s work as inspiration for a murder spree.  Today is Edgar Allan Poe’s birthday so Cusack tweeted an image of Poe’s (presumably) favorite things: chairs bearing his name and bottles of Fiji water.  Had Poe not died at the relatively young age of 40 in 1849, he would still be dead as people don’t live to the age of 202.

Hit the jump to check out the image.

Image via John Cusack’s twitter:

http://collider.com/the-raven-set-photo-john-cusack/71415/



New Trailer for RED RIDING HOOD

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: January 19th, 2011

Warner Bros. has released a new trailer for Red Riding Hood, which opens similarly to the November teaser before it delving deeper into the plot.  Amanda Seyfried (Letters to Juliet) stars as Valerie, a beautiful young woman torn between a brooding outsider (Shiloh Fernandez) and the wealthy man of her parents’ dreams (Max Irons).  Unfortunately, one of them may be the wolf that terrorizes her village.  (Such virility is a turn-on, but werewolves are notorious commitment-phobes.)  Gary Oldman, Billy Burke, Virginia Madsen, and Julie Christie also star.

Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight) directed the gothic re-imagining of the familiar tale; Red Riding Hood is due in theaters March 11.  Watch the trailer after the jump.

........

http://collider.com/red-riding-hood-movie-trailer/71445/

Alexandre Aja Talks About His Adaptation of the Space Opera Manga COBRA THE SPACE PIRATE

by Talia Soghomonian    Posted: January 19th, 2011

Alexandre Aja is currently writing his next movie, a live-action 3D adaptation of Buichi Terasawa’s popular manga, Cobra the Space Pirate. The Piranha 3D director had already shared his enthusiasm about this project few months ago, and it really seems like a personal goal that he has set for himself. “Cobra is unique. Of all the animés I used to watch as a kid, it’s the most avant-garde, in both rhythm and imagination,” he told French site Cinemateaser.

Hit the jump to find out more.

Cobra, or Kobura, is a manga series written and illustrated by Buichi Terasawa, who apparently drew inspiration from French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo, famous for his action-adventure movies from the 60s and 70s. Cobra embarks on a series of adventures himself as he tries to escape his enemies. His tactics include surgically altering his face and erasing his own memory which he later regains. His arm? The Psycho Gun, a weapon that is connected to his brain. He also has a regular gun, just in case. His close confidante is Lady Armaroid, a mechanical cyborg with a really cool name.

The manga originally appeared in the Japanese magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump between 1978 and 1984. It has already been adapted to television as well as the big screen in 1982’s Space Adventure Cobra. But Aja, inspired by his recent mainstream success with Piranha 3D, is aiming for a movie of overambitious blockbuster proportions and continues to compare it with Star Wars.

Considering the volume of material available, it will be quite an undertaking.

“The 25 mangas by Terasawa are incredibly rich. Its tone has no equal. This project is a huge challenge, because it’s going be a space opera. I envision it as a sort of Star Wars. I just have to convince all the financial partners now.”

It’s also fairly unknown in America. Maybe its sexy undertones will attract a larger American audience. And as Aja intends to stay as close to the original work as possible, the sexy bits will surely be depicted in the film.

“You have to respect the essence of Cobra. He’s an adventurer and a seducer. Its ’sexiness’ has to be included in the film, just like its humor and adventure. My Cobra has to remain true to Terasawa’s universe.”

And hopefully to the expectations of the diehard French fans.

“There are so many Cobra fans in France that they’ll understand why I’m so passionate about this and why it’s so essential that I succeed in making this film.”

And he’s already thinking about who will portray Cobra.

“I have a lot of names in mind, but I can’t say anything right now. I’m still thinking about it.”

Who do you think should play Cobra and Lady Armaroid?

http://collider.com/alexandre-aja-cobra-the-space-pirate/71465/

Johnny Depp in Talks to Replace Robert Downey Jr. in OZ, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: January 19th, 2011

The pairing of Sam Raimi (Spider-Man) Robert Downey Jr. for Oz, the Great and Powerful sounded fantastic from the get-go.  But as late as October, we had Downey listed as “unofficially attached.”  It turns out his involvement was all too tenuous, as Downey has dropped out of the project.  It’s a regrettable turn of events, particularly after the news that a similarly promising collaboration between Downey and Alfonso Cuaron (Children of Men) for the sci-fi film Gravity was not to be.

But just as George Clooney stepped in to restore the prospects of Gravity, there is a a glimmer of hope for Oz.  Thanks to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and last year’s Alice in Wonderland, Disney is BFFs with Hollywood’s most idiosyncratic megastar, Johnny Depp.  The studio is eager to get Oz in production later this year, and is currently in discussions with Depp to replace Downey.  Of course, fitting the film into Depp’s busy schedule will take some fancy calendar work.  Hit the jump for a look at the various projects Depp must schedule, plus background on the film.

Depp will shoot Dark Shadows with Tim Burton this spring.  Despite how long the film’s been in development, that start date seems pretty set in stone.

Depp is also attached to star as Tonto in The Lone Ranger, another project that has long been on his to-do list.  According to Heat Vision, if Depp commits to Oz, that would necessarily delay Lone Ranger.  Plus, there’s always the looming possibility of more Pirates sequels, which would be truly daunting if shot back to back as rumored.

But there is some wiggle room.  The Lone Ranger and Pirates are both housed at Disney, and the studio is clearly willing to shuffle all of these project in front of cameras at some point.  It’s worth noting that Oz, the Great and Powerful is the furthest along in the development process.  The Lone Ranger has a director in Gore Verbinski, but still no is signed to play the titular character.  (Depp likes Brad Pitt and George Clooney for the masked cowboy.)

Oz, the Great and Powerful is a prequel of sorts to the familiar Wizard of Oz lore.  There is no official start date, but reports suggest Disney wants to begin principal photography this summer.  According to Heat Vision, the studio has hired a unit production manager and “begun the task of creating the world of Oz.”

Here’s a tentative plot outline:

The Wizard — a snake-oil salesman posing as a magician — enters Oz via a hot-air balloon, which he uses to escape an angry husband who has found out that Oz slept with his wife. There, Oz — a fast-talking huckster who wears a velveteen frock coat (yes, I can see that) — falls in love with Glinda (the Good Witch), and the two combine forces to fight the evil witches Evanora and Theodora. Theodora starts out as a good witch, but after Oz jilts her sexual advances, Evanora — the truly evil witch — convinces Theodora to become an evil witch with her and help her to rule all of Oz.

http://collider.com/robert-downey-jr-johnny-depp-oz-great-powerful/71471/

***New Look at Cusack as Poe ***John Cusack As Edgar Allan Poe In 'The Raven' (PHOTO) ***First Official Image Of John Cusack In The Raven

New Look at Cusack as Poe

Ooh, and it's in black-and-white too

Posted By Brad Brevet on Monday, December 13th 2010 at 4:06 PM

The Huffington Post offers up the above image of John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe in V for Vendetta helmer, James McTeigue's The Raven, and this time it's a more official look than the previous set shot in which Poe was sporting a nice pair of Nike Shox.

The Raven was penned by Ben Livingston (Bruce Almighty) and Hannah Shakespeare (Loverboy) and is described as a fictionalized account of the final five "mysterious" days of Edgar Allan Poe's life. The story will follow the famous writer as he joins the hunt for a serial killer whose murders are inspired by his stories. "It's like the poem, 'The Raven,' itself, crossed with Se7en. It should be pretty cool. The script is really good and everyone responds to it really well. I'm in the middle of casting," said McTeigue.
http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/new-look-at-cusack-as-poe

John Cusack As Edgar Allan Poe In 'The Raven' (PHOTO)

First Posted: 12-13-10 09:24 AM   |   Updated: 12-13-10 01:03 PM

Here's John Cusack doing a spot-on Edgar Allan Poe for the upcoming psychological thriller 'The Raven.'
Cusack announced his involved in the James McTeigue-directed film in August.
"official- will play edgar allen poe in fall-a-film called the raven, send any poe- gold - my way as i begin this journey into the abyss," he tweeted.
The movie is a fictionalized account of Poe's mysterious last days--spent, as speculated by some, following a serial killer inspired by his horror stories.
PHOTO:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/13/john-cusack-as-edgar-alla_n_795737.html

First Official Image Of John Cusack In The Raven

By Will LeBlanc

Published: 2010-12-13

About a month ago we were given our first look at John Cusack sporting his very best goatee in a spy image captured from the set of The Raven, the fictionalized story of Edgar Allan Poe’s final days. The image wasn’t official, but showed us that Cusack is pulling the look off. Today, The Huffington Post has gotten their hands on the first official promo image of Poe himself holding his iconic black bird.

Far from giving away anything about what we can expect from the film, the image still manages to be a decent look at Cusack doing something even more “Poe” than just standing in the street. Hopefully we’ll get something a little more substantial sooner rather than later. Have a look below, and scope out the quick synopsis below that.
A fictionalized account of the last days of Edgar Allan Poe's life, in which the poet is in pursuit of a serial killer whose murders mirror those in the writer's stories.

http://www.cinemablend.com/new/First-Official-Image-Of-John-Cusack-In-The-Raven-22187.html

source; official John Cusack yfrog.com page; http://yfrog.com/h29z9yj

source; official John Cusack yfrog.com page; http://yfrog.com/47delzj

Two New Pics of John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe in The Raven
Posted by Jon Lyus on December 13, 2010
Almost exactly a month ago we got our first look at John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe in John McTeigue’s The Raven, and while an on set pic of the man looking a little bored is all fine and well we’ve now got a far better look Cusack with the titular bird.

The Huffington Post had the pic, which is complemented below by another from Cusack’s twitter account and he certainly looks the part. The film is termed a psychological thriller based around the mysterious last days of Poe and a serial killer inspired by his works.
And a few hours ago John Cusack tweeted this picture of himself in suitably gloomy circumstances,
http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2010/12/13/two-new-pics-of-john-cusack-as-edgar-allan-poe-in-the-raven/

you can see this pic;
source; official John Cusack yfrog.com page; http://yfrog.com/h3ubvotj

The Raven Filming in Budapest

By James Wray Nov 15, 2010

US actor John Cusack in the role of poet Edgar Alan Poe during the shooting of the film The Raven in the city centre of Budapest, Hungary, 14 November 2010. The film evokes the poet’s last days. EPA/BEA KALLOS

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/movies/features/article_1598962.php/The-Raven-Filming-in-Budapest?page=2

US actor John Cusack in the role of poet Edgar Alan Poe during the shooting of the film The Raven in the city centre of Budapest, Hungary, 14 November 2010. The film evokes the poet’s last days. EPA/BEA KALLOS

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/movies/features/article_1598962.php/The-Raven-Filming-in-Budapest?page=3

 

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/movies/features/article_1598962.php/The-Raven-Filming-in-Budapest?page=1

**John Cusack is Edgar Allan Poe - First Image

John Cusack is Edgar Allan Poe - First Image

Posted By : Deth_Banger, Monday Nov,15

Thanks to Monsters&Critics we have a first look at John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe in the upcoming movie The Raven, which features Poe who teams up with a detective to search for a serial killer who has kidnapped Poe's fiance and gone on a killing spree which mimics Poe's work.
The image features Cusack dressed as Edgar Allan Poe taking a stroll while filming in the city centre of Budapest, Hungary. Check it out below:

The Raven is directed by James McTeigue and written by Ben Livingston & Hannah Shakespeare, the film co-stars Luke Evans and Alice Eve and is scheduled for a 2011 release.
http://www.horror-movies.ca/horror_19484.html

First Set Photos of John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe in James McTeigue’s THE RAVEN

by Matt Goldberg    Posted:November 15th, 2010

We now have our first look at John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe in the upcoming period-thriller The Raven.  Directed by James McTeigue (V for Vendetta), the story has Poe teaming up with a detective (played by Luke Evans) to search for a serial killer who has kidnapped the author’s fiancée (Alice Eve) and gone on a murder spree that recalls Poe’s stories.
Hit the jump to check out Cusack looking Poe-y.  Also, click here for Steve’s interview with McTeigue where the director talks about the film.

Images via The AP.

http://www.collider.com/2010/11/15/the-raven-movie-set-photo-john-cusack/