Taylor Lautner Dropped From STRETCH ARMSTRONG; Movie Set For 2014

Well I always did think the casting of Taylor Lautner was a stretch for this one. Hasbro's STRETCH ARMSTRONG feature film no longer has the Twilight star attached. You can add Rob Letterman (director) to that departing list as well.

In fact, you can add Universal too. The studio has also dropped the property which prompted Relativity to pick it up. Relativity has sent a release date of April 11, 2014.

Here's the official press release:
Relativity Media has partnered with global branded play company Hasbro, Inc. [NASDAQ-HAS] to develop and produce a live-action tent-pole film based on Stretch Armstrong, the iconic action hero figure launched in the 1970s, it was announced today by Relativity’s Co-President, Tucker Tooley and Hasbro’s President and CEO, Brian Goldner.

Relativity will be the domestic distributor and will release the film internationally through its network of foreign output partners. The film is targeted for an April 11, 2014 release date.

The film will be produced by Relativity’s CEO, Ryan Kavanaugh (The Fighter), Hasbro’s Goldner (Transformers) and Bennett Schneir, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Motion Pictures (Battleship). Tooley (Immortals) will serve as executive producer.

Hasbro has become an entertainment powerhouse by creating hit movies and television shows from its rich portfolio of world class brands. Since 2007, Hasbro’s Transformers and G.I. Joe franchises have grossed nearly $3 billion at the worldwide box office. 2012 is shaping up to be another stellar year for Hasbro with its partners Universal Pictures releasing Battleship in April and Paramount Pictures releasing G.I. Joe: Retaliation in June. In television, Hasbro Studios produces shows like Transformers Prime and My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic that can be seen on the HUB television network in the U.S. and in more than 140 countries globally.

“We are absolutely thrilled to partner with Hasbro, a company whose global reach and ability to innovate has made them immensely successful in the arena of brand re-imagination– as evidenced by their legacy of creating such franchises as Transformers and G.I. Joe,” said Tooley, “We look forward to bringing Stretch Armstrong to audiences worldwide.”

“Stretch Armstrong is a great example of Hasbro’s rich portfolio of intellectual properties that we are continuing to develop globally,” said Goldner, “We are excited to partner with Relativity on this movie as they are a growing and innovative studio.”

Stretch Armstrong is the classic action hero figure first launched by Hasbro in 1976 and re-launched in the 90’s, sold successfully throughout North America and in markets across the world. The original Stretch’s unique design broke free of traditional action figures, as he could be stretched over and over and always returned back to his original size. The nostalgic toy is considered to be rare and collectible to this day.

Relativity recently released Oscar®-winner Steven Soderbergh’s dynamic action-thriller Haywire in theatres. Looking ahead, Relativity will release the the heart-pounding Navy SEAL action-thriller Act of Valor (in theatres February 24, 2012) and magical adventure comedy Mirror Mirror (in theatres March 16, 2012), starring Oscar®-winner Julia Roberts, Lily Collins, Nathan Lane, and Armie Hammer. The studio just wrapped production on the comedy 21 and Over and is currently in pre-production on Nicholas Sparks’ gripping love story Safe Haven and the international espionage thriller Hunter Killer.

No word on whether the property remains a 3D production or not. One would assume so. I'll let you know more when I get it...

Image Source: Jason Hrycuik

IMMORTALS Begin Life With A Big Bang!

If you haven't seen IMMORTALS yet, what's slowing you down? I saw it last night and man did it impress! We had a special screening with Robert Maillet who played "Minotaur" (the torturer) who gave a Q&A afterwards.

I am not giving any spoilers with this mini-review. However the gloves are off in the comments! :-)

Tarsem Singh has certainly spread his wings with this movie. Some critics (37% rotten) have blasted the story - well I am here to tell you that you can safely ignore them (along with most audiences, 75% fresh). Is it a perfect story? No. Is it passable? Certainly. I liked the storyline in fact. And the visuals? Beyond reproach. It's a fantastic journey and I simply love how Singh presented and used the gods and titans.
Henry Cavill did a fairly good job with Theseus and I was impressed with how Singh wove in how his future was being decided (via Frieda Pinto playing Phaedra) by the actions he takes every day.

A couple of cheesy moments but they pass QUICKLY. This is an absolute must see in 3D too and the audiences agree - thus far 66% have chosen 3D for their tickets.

Relativity Media is looking at $33 - 38 million for the weekend, which is gangbusters and records are being broken for the company. In fact their projections were no where near these figures. Champagne glasses are clinking at Relativity. Congratulations! And to Tarsem Singh - BRAVO.

MUST WATCH: New Trailer For IMMORTALS!

Wow - if the story is as good as the visuals we are in for a heckuva ride with Tarsem Singh's IMMORTALS!

In Immortals, the ruthless King Hyperion (Rourke) leads his bloodthirsty army on a murderous rampage across Greece to find a deadly weapon that will destroy humanity. A mortal chosen by Zeus named Theseus (Cavill) must lead the fight against Hyperion and his evil army with the fate of mankind and the Gods at stake.

Director: Tarsem Singh
Writer: Charley Parlapanides
Studio: Rogue Pictures
Cast: Henry Cavill, Stephen Dorff, Luke Evans
Release: November 11, 2011

Have a look:



Love it! Can't wait.

MUST SEE: New IMMORTALS Character Posters From Tarsem Singh!

The producers of 300 (Mark Canton, Gianni Nunnari) and THE FIGHTER (Ryan Kavanaugh) along with director Tarsem Singh (THE CELL, THE FALL) have just released a handful of character posters for their upcoming S3D epic IMMORTALS. And they look amazing!

Click on the images to enlarge...

The posters in order are: Theseus (Henry Cavill), King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke), Phaedra (Freida Pinto), Poseidon (Kellan Lutz), Zeus (Luke Evans), Aries (Daniel Sharman), Stavros (Stephen Dorff) and Athena (Isabel Lucas).

Here's the movie's official details and synopsis:

Directed by: Tarsem Singh
Written by: Charles Parlapanides and Vlas Parlapanides
Cast: Henry Cavill, Stephen Dorff, Isabel Lucas, Freida Pinto, Luke Evans, Kellan Lutz, with John Hurt and Mickey Rourke
Produced by: Gianni Nunnari, Mark Canton, Ryan Kavanaugh
Executive Producer: Tucker Tooley, Tommy Turtle, Jeff G. Waxman
Rating: TBD
Runtime: TBD

Visionary director Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall) and producers Gianni Nunnari (300), Mark Canton (300) and Ryan Kavanaugh (The Fighter) unleash an epic tale of treachery, vengeance and destiny in Immortals, a stylish and spectacular 3-D adventure. As a power-mad king razes ancient Greece in search of a legendary weapon, a heroic young villager rises up against him in a thrilling quest as timeless as it is powerful.

The brutal and bloodthirsty King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) and his murderous Heraklion army are rampaging across Greece in search of the long lost Bow of Epirus. With the invincible Bow, the king will be able to overthrow the Gods of Olympus and become the undisputed master of his world. With ruthless efficiency, Hyperion and his legions destroy everything in their wake, and it seems nothing will stop the evil king’s mission.

As village after village is obliterated, a stonemason named Theseus (Henry Cavill) vows to avenge the death of his mother in one of Hyperion’s raids. When Theseus meets the Sybelline Oracle, Phaedra (Freida Pinto), her disturbing visions of the young man’s future convince her that he is the key to stopping the destruction. With her help, Theseus assembles a small band of followers and embraces his destiny in a final desperate battle for the future of humanity.

Stay up to date on IMMORTALS:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/immortals?ref=ts
Twitter: http://twitter.com/immortalsfilm

I am really looking forward to seeing this film. The visuals alone should be spectacular and hopefully the story matches. CLASH OF THE TITANS didn't quite do it for me (3D set aside for a moment) so here's hoping! Will have updates for you the moment I get them.

Check out the trailer for IMMORTALS right here.

MUST WATCH: First Trailer For Tarsem Singh's IMMORTALS!!

Oh yeah. This looks good. As many of you have pointed out - MarketSaw's coverage of IMMORTALS should be top priority and I agree!

You can also check out the high def version on Apple.

With an obvious nod towards Tarsem Singh's work in 300, IMMORTALS brings incredible visuals back to the screen highlighting Mickey Rouke as the villain King Hyperion and Henry Cavill as Theseus.

The Relativity release has a budget of $100 million and will be post converted to S3D. With the overwhelming response to how well THOR has been converted, I am hoping for a continued trend in the positive with every single release. Certainly many factors exist in the execution of a near perfect conversion but I hope its gold standard work flow is not far away.



IMMORTALS is set for release November 11.

Marvel's THE AVENGERS To Shoot In LA And Relativity Media's SNOW WHITE To Shoot In Montreal

Just some shooting location updates for you: Marvel is apparently changing their plans to shoot THE AVENGERS in New York City (via Bleeding Cool) and will move the lion's share of the production to Los Angeles.

That's it. Move along. Nothing more to see here. Just don't mess this thing up guys! I am sooo invested in seeing a quality product with this ensemble movie.

--

Speaking of production location news, Relativity Media's SNOW WHITE will be shot in Montreal at Mel's Studios where they will be building a 100,000 square foot village just for the movie.

Shooting for director Tarsem Singh (IMMORTALS) will take place from April to June, 2011 and it seems that the production will faithfully follow the darker Brother's Grimm fairy tale rather than other lighter versions. Release window is in 2012.

More details on these stereoscopic 3D productions when I get them!

Relativity Media's Modern Take On SNOW WHITE To Be Made In 3D!!

Looks like Relativity Media has picked up the rights to Melisa Wallack's script for THE BROTHERS GRIMM: SNOW WHITE and they plan on giving the classic children's tale a modern spin and produce it in 3D.

Relativity's Tucker Tooley is executive producing along with Bernie Goldmann, Brett Ratner and Ryan Kavanaugh in the producer's role.

"Talent and directors of the highest level have already responded to the new, edgier concept, and to Melissa's script," Goldmann said. "While retaining the elements of the beloved Brothers Grimm tale, this is certainly not your mother's Snow White."

Sounds intriguing! Kind of like Disney's modern live action take on Cinderella I would wager. Looks like we will be in for a few movies in this new paradigm.

Source: Variety