With the Academy Awards a mere five days away, Hollywood seems to be preoccupied with what films and stars are going to take home Oscar gold. However, there are still several newsworthy items lurking in Oscar’s shadow, so here are the other stories that are currently making headlines.
BOX OFFICE RECAP
Martin Scorsese’s supernatural thriller “Shutter Island” hauled in an estimated $22.2 million to take the top spot at the box office for the second week in a row. This comes after the film did better than expected in its opening weekend, when it pulled in $40.2 million, marking a clear career best for both Scorsese and leading man Leonardo DiCaprio. Scorsese’s previous opening weekend personal record was $26 million for “The Departed” in 2006, while DiCaprio’s best opening weekend was $30 million for “Catch Me If You Can” in 2002. Two new films, “Cop Out” and “The Crazies” took the second and third spots, respectively.
MOVIE NEWS
It’s been known for a while now that Ryan Reynolds had been cast to play the title character in the upcoming superhero flick, “The Green Lantern.” He won the role by beating out tough competition from stars Justin Timberlake and Bradley Cooper. Now the rest of the cast is finally coming together, as Blake Lively of “Gossip Girl” fame has been cast as Reynold’s love interest, Carol Ferris. The film is scheduled to begin shooting this March in New Orleans, with a planned release date of June 17, 2011.
Big sequels seem to be the hot commodity among studios, as it makes sense to invest in a project that has already proved to be a cash magnet.
“Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” is set to start shooting in Hawaii this summer. The big news from the project, though, is that Penelope Cruz is reportedly in talks to be the new leading lady. While no information is currently available on what character she might portray, one can logically conclude that she is replacing Keira Knightley’s Elizabeth Swann.
In a move that was surely made to minimize costs and maximize profits for Summit Entertainment, “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn” will be split into two films and will be shot back to back starting in October 2010. This is the last film in the “Twilight” saga, so it makes sense that the studio is trying to get as much as they can out of the extremely profitable series.
Two huge trilogies from the 1990s are coming back into the spotlight with fourth installments. Wes Craven has announced that “Scream 4” will begin shooting in May 2010, with stars Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox and David Arquette all planning to return.
Universal Pictures is also reportedly in talks with “Harold and Kumar” screenwriters Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg to pen a script for “American Pie 4.” While the straight-to-DVD sequels that have been released since the original trilogy have focused on new characters, this movie will bring back the group from the first three films.