Category: Films

Alcon Ent. is moving forward with a live-action/animated take on HONG KONG PHOOEY, per VARIETY, with Alex Zamm to direct David A. Goodman's script.

Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove of Alcon will produce with Brett Ratner and Jay Stern. Goodman is an exec producer of FAMILY GUY.

PHOOEY was a 1970s Hanna-Barbera animated TV series about a police station janitor who becomes a dog with mystical powers.

Don Murphy and John Wells have optioned the rights to novel THE FLOCK by James Robert Smith, per THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER.

Murphy will produce with Angryfilms partner Susan Montford and Wells is producing with his company's president, Claire Polstein. Murphy is a producer on TRANSFORMERS 2. He discovered Smith via blog comments. Murphy was perusing the blog of FROM HELL artist Eddie Campbell, and Smith was posting critical comments of the film, of which Murphy was producer. Murphy discovered Smith had written a book, so he ordered it and greatly enjoyed it, to his surprise.

Cameron Diaz has been offered the female lead in GREEN HORNET, reports ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY.

Sources tell EW she is in early talks for the role. Michel Gondry is directing the film, set to begin shooting soon, from a script by star Seth Rogen and writing partner Evan Goldberg.

The release date is set at July 9, 2010.

Press Release from Fandango

Harry Potter is successfully casting his spell on moviegoers across the country, selling out more than 1,000 showtimes on Fandango, from San Francisco to New York, from Anchorage, Alaska to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. As Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opens tomorrow night at midnight, theater owners are scrambling to add additional showtimes throughout the witching hours on Wednesday morning.

The sixth Harry Potter movie currently represents:

Vertigo Films is producing 3-D horror film ELFIE HOPKINS AND THE GAMMONS, calling it U.K.'s first, per VARIETY.

A co-production with Size 9 Productions will star Jaime Winstone as a teen misfit and amateur detective living in a rural village. A mysterious family, the Gammons, moves into her neighborhood, arousing her suspicions. Ryan Andrews, who co-wrote the film with Riyad Barmania, is set to direct.

Press Release from Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation

Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation have tapped Raja Gosnell (BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA, SCOOBY-DOO) to direct SMURFS, the live-action/animated film based on the legendary blue characters created by Peyo, it was announced today by Doug Belgrad and Matt Tolmach, presidents of Columbia Pictures, Bob Osher, president of digital production for Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Hannah Minghella, president of production for Sony Pictures Animation.

Press Release from New Line Records

New Line Records will release the original motion picture soundtrack for the newest installment of the Harry Potter film franchise, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," from Warner Bros. Pictures, at digital retailers and on CD Tuesday, July 14. The score selection lineup features 28 diverse tracks, offering the listener over 60 minutes of music from the film, which opens nationwide on Wednesday, July 15.

While weekend estimates had ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS and TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN both at $42.5 million, box office actuals give the title to TRANSFORMERS with $42.3M.

The animated ICE AGE 3 (Fox) still earned the largest opening ever for an animated film on a Wednesday, doing $41.7M over the weekend and $66.7M in total.

TRANSFORMERS 2 (Paramount/DreamWorks, vfx by ILM and Asylum VFX, Digital Domain, Kerner Optical and Proof) has done $293.4M in two weeks, but dropped more than 60 percent from its opening.

Sony will release THE GREEN HORNET July 9, 2010, two weeks after its latest release date of June 25, to make room for Adam Sandler buddy comedy GROWN UPS, per VARIETY.

Sandler's film had been scheduled for March 12 and is also starring Chris Rock, Kevin James, David Spade and Rob Schneider. Sony's decision follows the success of recent comedy blockbuster THE HANGOVER, which has done very well in its late June-early July run.