Posted 2/9/12 12:09 pm EST by Kevin P. Sullivan in Dark Horse, News
Though one star of "Animal Kingdom," Joel Edgerton, turned down the lead role in the sequel to Zack Snyder's "300," one of his co-stars, Sullivan Stapleton, has taken his place.
Deadline is reporting that Stapleton will play the Greek warlord Themistocles in "300: The Battle of Artemisia."
The role of Themistocles was originally offered to Edgerton, who turned down the role last November while being approached for several other parts.
Posted 1/6/12 1:25 pm EST by Jeremy Gordon in News
The "Akira" remake is on hold, and we understand. It’s hard to do a live-action Americanized version of an animated Japanese film that was done perfectly the first time around, no matter how much Keanu was rumored to be involved at one point.
But according to Deadline, the whole thing isn’t dead. Warner Bros. is still technically reassessing the budget, although it doesn’t look pretty; it was already cut from $150 million to $90 million, and really, an "Akira" movie deserves to look good.
More notably, Deadline reports that Warner had a test option deal with Dane DeHaan and Michael Pitt, both competing for the role of Tetsuo.
Posted 12/19/11 2:59 pm EST by Terri Schwartz in Dark Horse, News
"300: Battle of Artemisia" -- or "300: The Battle of Artemisium" for some -- is finally close to finding its leading lady.
The Hollywood Reporter has learned that "Casino Royale" starlet Eva Green has entered into negotiations to play the titular goddess. Last we heard, Artemisia is the central character of the "300" prequel and was the main role director Noam Murro was looking to cast. She is the character who will pull the strings of the story, including manipulating Xerxes (rumored to be played by Rodrigo Santoro) and Themosticles.
Whether or not it's fair, the comparison is there: there are undeniable similarities between Zack Snyder's revered "300" and Tarsem Singh's "Immortals," out in theaters today. For one, both are extremely stylized swords-and-sandals epics. For another, the producers behind "Immortals" are the same ones behind "300." On top of that, "300" is based on a graphic novel, while "Immortals" also sports a completely original comic book counterpart.
The gauntlet has already been thrown down by our friends at NextMovie, who claim that "Immortals" is more badass than "300." Big words, of course, but inaccurate words? That's subject to debate. I can't speak for everybody, but having seen both films, I can speak for myself. Click on past the jump to see which movie — "Immortals" or "300" — I personally prefer, pound for pound.
"Immortals" hits theaters this Friday (November 11), bringing the fall movie season a much needed booster shot filled with swords and sandals, blood and brawn, gods and men. It's a powerful, action-packed moviegoing experience that fans of fare like "300" absolutely can't ignore. In fact, some folks hold the belief that "Immortals" is actually more badass than Zack Snyder's adaptation of the Frank Miller graphic novel.
Max Evry at NextMovie writes that the upcoming film "puts 'Clash of the Titans' to shame and makes '300' look quaint by comparison." Big words to be sure, but not unfounded ones: check out NextMovie's list of seven reasons why "Immortals" is more badass than "300" right over here, and let us know if you agree in the comments and on Twitter!
Posted 11/9/11 2:05 pm EST by Terri Schwartz in Dark Horse, News
Even if he does officially join the project, Joel Edgerton might not be the lead of "300: Battle of Artemisia" after all, based on a new report that the titular goddess Artemisia is the one at the forefront of the film.
Moviehole has heard that the casting process is about to begin for the role of Artemisia. According to their report, the "300" is now called "300: The Battle of Artemisium," but that doesn't change the fact that Artemisia is the character pulling the strings in the film.
Posted 11/2/11 1:48 pm EST by Josh Wigler in Dark Horse, News
"300" ended with the death of King Leonidas, so when the sequel to Zack Snyder's swords-and-sandals epic finally gets underway, we're going to be in need of a new lead—even if there is a small role for Gerard Butler, should he choose to accept it.
But with or without Butler, "300: Battle of Artemisia" has set its sights on a brand new lead actor: none other than Joel Edgerton, most recently seen in "Warrior" and "The Thing."
Posted 7/19/11 9:40 am EST by Aubrey Sitterson in Dark Horse, News
With “300” director Zack Snyder off working on his Superman reboot, “Man of Steel,” ancient-world-beefcake-enthusiasts were left to wonder who would pick up the reins on the prequel film, “300: Battle of Artemisia.” After two directors gunned for the gig (we’re hoping literally), only one remains standing: Noam Murro.
According to the fine folks over at The Hollywood Reporter, both Murro, the director of 2008’s “Smart People,” and Jaum Collet-Serra, who helmed the Liam Neeson action flick “Unknown,” were potentially up for the gig. But while Collet-Serra got saddled with what's already been a heavily criticized “Akira” adaptation, Murro will get to hang out with nearly-naked men in front of green screens for a couple of months. Before he gets there though, Murro is set to direct the upcoming “Die Hard 5.”
Posted 2/16/11 12:28 pm EST by Adam Rosenberg in Dark Horse, News
With Zack Snyder pinned down by his obligations to a reboot of the "Superman" movie franchise, fans are rightly starting to lose hope in ever seeing the director's planned adaptation of Frank Miller's "300" follow-up, "Xerxes." You still might get to see "Xerxes" in film however, as another geek-friendly auteur may be easing into the director's chair.
UPDATE: A spokesperson for Warner Bros. has told EW that the report indicating that Guy Ritchie has been offered the "Xerxes" director's chair is "an erroneous rumor."
Warner Bros. has reportedly offered the gig to "Sherlock Holmes" director Guy Ritchie, according to Vulture. There's no official indication of why the studio is making the switch, though one theory suggests that Warner Bros. wants to keep Snyder's entire focus on the Man of Steel.
Anonymous "insiders" tell Vulture that the in-development reboot suffers from some major third-act woes. Add to that the fact that the studio loses the rights to Superman if a production isn't in front of cameras by 2013, and the scenario certainly seems feasible. Read More...
Posted 7/24/10 1:37 pm EST by Brian Warmoth in Dark Horse, News
Zack Snyder and his "300" co-writer Kurt Johnstad have teamed up once again to write the screenplay for Frank Miller's follow-up miniseries "Xerxes." The "Watchmen" director still hasn't spoken to Gerard Butler about a cameo, but he sat down at San Diego Comic-Con to clarify how "Xerxes" will related to "300" and how he's approaching the new adaptation.
"Yes, I am in fact writing it," Snyder told MTV News. "Kurt and I are writing it right now using Frank [Miller]'s graphic novel that he's creating as our spine, as our jumping off point, as our Bible. Frank came up with a cool story, and it parallels "300" in a really cool way."
Snyder emphasized that the story won't be a true prequel or sequel, since its events coincide with what happened in "300." Read More...