Really???

Ridley Scott has officially moved onto Park Avenue.

The helmer will direct Universal Pictures' bigscreen version of Hasbro's Monopoly board game from a script by Pamela Pettler.

Scott, who recently helmed Warner Bros.' "Body of Lies" has long been attached to the project. He will produce, with Hasbro topper Brian Goldner, as well as direct.

"Monopoly" is set up at Universal Pictures, which has a first-look deal with Hasbro to develop movies based on the company's line of toys. Those include "Ouija," which Platinum Dunes is developing, and "Battleship."

Hasbro jumped into the adaptation game after successfully turning its "Transformers" toys into a franchise at DreamWorks and Paramount. It has actioner "G.I. Joe" bowing next summer.

-- from Variety

Does anyone else think that this is a bad idea?

They're back!

Eight years after Troy Duffy's police actioner "The Boondock Saints" disappeared quickly from theaters, he's come back to direct "The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day" from his own script.

Chris Brinker and Don Carmody are producing the sequel, which has started shooting in Toronto. Lloyd Segan and Rob Fried exec produce.

Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus are reprising their roles as brothers dispensing vigilante justice in Boston. Billy Connolly, Julie Benz, and David Ferry also star.

-- from Variety

You knew it was coming

Edward Norton’s production company, Class 5 Films, approached Barack Obama two and a half years ago with a proposal to document the events of his campaign. Obama agreed, and the filmmakers were given extensive access to the candidate, his staff, his family, and associates. With Obama’s victory, interest for the project has skyrocketed and HBO has now closed a seven-figure deal for U.S. rights to the film.

The film was directed by Amy Rice and Alicia Sams and is being edited by Sam Pollard, who worked on Spike Lee’s masterful When the Levees Broke. In fact, footage is still being captured, and filmmaking will continue through the inauguration.

-- from /film

Follow the white rabbit

Tim Burton is set to direct a live-action remake of the Disney Classic "Alice In Wonderland". The film will feature Mia Wasikowska as Alice, Johnny Depp as The Mad Matter, Anne Hathaway as The White Queen, Helena Bonham Carter as The Red Queen and Crispin Glover as The Knave of Hearts.

Burton is using a combination of live action and performance-capture technology to tell the Lewis Carroll story.

-- from killermovies.com

Tim Burton + Wonderland = can't wait for this one!

Are you kidding me?!?

Hollywood star JOHNNY DEPP will reportedly pocket a staggering $59.2 million (£32 million) pay cheque for reprising his role as CAPTAIN JACK SPARROW in a fourth installment of the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN franchise.

The big-money deal will make Hollywood history as the highest up-front payment ever - overshadowing the $53.65 million (£29 million) Tom Hanks was offered to star in the forthcoming The Da Vinci Code sequel, Angels & Demons. But a movie insider insists Disney Studio bosses - who are behind the hugely successful franchise - would pay anything to keep Depp on their books.

The source tells Britain's Daily Mail newspaper, "There's only one Johnny Depp. They simply cannot make another Pirates movie without Jack Sparrow. "The first three films have earned $2.7 billion (£1.46 billion) at the box office. It's no surprise that Disney executives want Jack back and they are willing to pay big bucks to get him."

However, it is unlikely Depp's co-stars Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley will return to star in another sequel. Knightley, who played Elizabeth Swann in the adventure trilogy recently said: "I think it was wonderful and an amazing opportunity and those films were just extraordinary and I was extremely lucky to be a part of them. But no. I think my pirating days may be over."

-- from enewsi.com

Elementary...

Rachel McAdams will star opposite Robert Downey Jr. in "Sherlock Holmes," a reimagining of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's supersleuth that Guy Ritchie is directing for Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow.

The movie, which will begin shooting next month, takes its cue from a forthcoming comic book that producer Lionel Wigram wrote as a selling tool for a new take on the classic character. The concept sees Holmes as more adventurous and less stuffy than previous screen incarnations and mines more obscure character traits.

-- from killermovies.com

When you need someone strong...

Based on the 80s cult-classic (which was based on the 60s Japanese manga series), Imagi Studios' upcoming CG-animated feature "Astroboy" will be released across North America on Oct 23, 2009.

The $40 million pic will feature the voice talents of Nicolas Cage, Kristen Bell, Freddie Highmore (Astroboy), Donald Sutherland and Eugene Levy.

-- from variety.com, wikipedia, imdb.com

For those who don't remember, or those who didn't watch as a kid:

Tomorrowland

Johnson takes trip to 'Tomorrowland'
Segment of Disneyland gets 'Pirates' treatment

After turning the theme park ride "Pirates of the Caribbean" into a blockbuster film trilogy, Disney is circling an entire segment of its theme park — Tomorrowland — as inspiration for a space movie that will star Dwayne Johnson.

The studio has set scribes Jon Lucas and Scott Moore to draft an epic-sized action adventure set in space. The film is being designed as a vehicle for Johnson, who starred for the studio in family hit "The Game Plan" and most recently completed "Race to Witch Mountain."

-- from variety.com

I loved Tomorrowland as a kid!

Across the Universe

Stumbled across this movie one random weekend afternoon. With Beatles' music as a sonic backdrop, 3 young people weave their way across the globe during the Vietnam War. You'll have to see it for yourself - here is one of the very powerful musical scenes.

Ghostbusters III

Columbia Pictures is getting serious about scaring up a new installment of its blockbuster Ghostbusters franchise.

The studio has set "The Office" co-exec producers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky to write a script for a film designed to bring back together the original cast of Harold Ramis, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson.

"Ghostbusters" was Columbia's highest grossing film ever, until it was beaten by Men in Black and then Spider-Man.

-- from variety.com

Darren Aronofsky To Direct 'RoboCop 4'

MGM is ready to reboot its "RoboCop" franchise. Darren Aronofsky has signed on to direct and David Self is penning a new installment about the hero whose tagline is "part man, part machine and all cop."

"RoboCop," which is being fast-tracked for a 2010 release, becomes the first potential tentpole to come together since Mary Parent took the reins of MGM in March. Aronofsky's involvement has been one of the worst kept secrets, with rumors rampant in the blogosphere that "The Fountain" helmer was eyeing the project.

-- from www.killermovies.com