Leto to Appear at This Year’s Hollywood Film Awards

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Jared Leto is Hollywood bound…

The 42-year-old actor, singer-songwriter and director will make an appearance at the Hollywood Film Awards.

Leto, who won an Oscar last year for his critically acclaimed performance in Dallas Buyers Club, be joined by Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, Steve Carell, Laura Dern, Jennifer Lopez, Mike Myers, Robert Pattinson, Eddie Redmayne, Chris Rock and Hilary Swank at the annual awards ceremony, held at the Hollywood Palladium on Friday, November 14, from 8:00 to 10:00 pm ET and broadcast on CBS. Queen Latifah will host the 17th annual gala.

Previously announced attendees include Amy Adams, Gerard Butler, Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr., Robert Duvall, Jonah Hill, Keira Knightley, Michael Keaton, Julianne Moore, Jack O’Connell, Chris Pratt, Kristen Stewart, Channing Tatum, Jean-Marc Vallée, Reese Witherspoon and Shailene Woodley.

A half-hour red carpet show will kick off the evening at 7:30 pm ET. Following the two-hour awards show, a one-hour aftershow with interviews and highlights from the evening, hosted by CBS This Morning‘s Charlie Rose, Norah O’Donnell and Gayle King, starts at 10:00 pm.

The Hollywood Film Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions.

Bardem In Talks to Star in “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”

Posted on October 16, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Like wife, like husband?

It looks like Javier Bardem could be following in wife Penelope Cruz’s footsteps.

The 45-year-old Spanish actor, who won an Oscar for his role as an psychopathic assassin in No Country for Old Men, is in talks to join Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, the fifth installment in Disney’s blockbuster franchise.

Bardem would reportedly portray “some type of ghost pirate who clashes with Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow,” according to Variety.

The latest Pirates of the Caribbean movie will be helmed by Kon-Tiki‘s Joachim Ronnin and Espen Sandbreg.

Bardem earned Oscar nominations for his lead turns in Before Night Falls (2000) and Biutiful (2010).

Bardem’s wife Cruz co-starred with Depp in the fourth installment, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

He also gave one of his career-best performances playing the James Bond villain Silva in 2012’s Skyfall.

Pirates 5 is set for a July 7, 2017, debut.

Trailer Released for Kevin Smith’s “Tusk,” Starring Rodriguez and Justin Long

Posted on July 26, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Génesis Rodríguez is ready to thrill audiences this September…

During Friday night’s Comic-Con activities, writer and director Kevin Smith revealed the trailer for his oddball horror thriller Tusk, starring the 26-year-old Venezuelan- and Cuban-American actress.

“All that separates man from animal… are the stories he tells,” readers the message at the beginning of the film’s first official trailer.

Set in the Canadian wilderness, the film stars Justin Long as a podcaster who’s assigned to interview a mysterious seafarer (portrayed by Michael Parks) who happens to have a strange obsession with walruses.

The idea for the movie came during the recording of SModcast259 The Walrus and The Carpenter. In the episode, Smith and his longtime friend and producer Scott Mosier discussed an article featuring a Gumtree ad where a homeowner was offering a living situation free of charge, if the lodger agrees to dress as a walrus. The discussion went on from there, resulting in almost an hour of the episode being spent on reconstructing and telling a hypothetical story based on the ad. Smith then told his Twitter followers to tweet “#WalrusYes” if they wanted to see their hypothetical turned into a film, or “#WalrusNo” if they didn’t. A big majority of Smith’s followers agreed that the film should be made.

In addition to Long, Parks and Rodríguez, who portrays Allison in the film, Tusk also stars Haley Joel Osment and Johnny Depp.

Tusk is scheduled for release on September 19, 2014, by A24 Films.

Leto to Portray Doctor Strange in Marvel’s Film Adaptation?

Posted on June 6, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Jared Leto may be taking on his strangest role yet in the near future…

The 42-year-old part-Spanish actor/singer is reportedly being eyed by Marvel to star in Scott Derrickson-directed film adaptation of the comic book Doctor Strange.

Leto is on the list of possible candidates to play Stephen Strange, according to Badass Digest.

Unlike many other superheroes who gained their powers from super serum, gamma radiations or their alien roots, Strange got his from mystical origins. The arrogant and selfish surgeon seeks a conventional healing in Tibet after his hands were damaged in a car accident. He becomes a Sorcerer Supreme a.k.a. Marvel Universe’s greatest protector against magical peril.

The character recently got a shout-out in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Johnny Depp was previously linked to portray the former surgeon in the comic book adaptation.

Leto earned an Academy Award forhis critically acclaimed portrayal of a transgender woman in Dallas Buyers Club.

Leto recently said, “I’m looking at scripts and reading scripts,” when discussing his first post-Oscar project.

“[It’s] interesting because I didn’t read scripts for years before Dallas Buyers Club,” he told the Associated Press. “But now you have opportunities to work with people that you really respect or admire, people whose work has been inspiring and influential.”

The lead singer of 30 Seconds to Mars also talked about his interest to follow the likes of Ben Affleck who moved from acting to directing, “I think that would be really great. And when I have the right story to tell I’ll certainly do that.”

Bonham Carter Returning for “Alice in Wonderland” Sequel

Posted on May 31, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Helena Bonham Carter is returning to Wonderland…

The 47-year-old part-Spanish actress has signed on to reprise her role as the Red Queen in Through the Looking Glass, a sequel to Tim Burton‘s 2010 box office hit Alice in Wonderland.

Bonham Carter earned a London Critics Circle Film Awards nomination forBritish Supporting Actress and an MTV Movie Awards nod for Best Villain for portrayingthe character in the film.

In addition to Bonham Carter, Johnny Depp is slated to return as the Mad Hatter and Mia Wasikowska will reprise her role as Alice.

Meanwhile, Sacha Baron Cohen will portray the main villain, named Time, in the sequel.

The sequel, which will be directed by James Bobin, will open in U.S. theaters on May 27, 2016.

Plaza to Star in “The Driftless Area”

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Aubrey Plaza is driftless in Hollywood…

The 29-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress/comedian and Parks and Recreation star has joined the cast of The Driftless Area, starring Anton Yelchin, Zooey Deschanel, John Hawkes and Frank Langella.

The film centers on the young love between a bartender and a mysterious woman. Their relationship is threatened after the bartender, Pierre, gets mixed up with a dangerous crook and his bag of stolen cash.

The Driftless Area, an adaptation of Tom Drury‘s novel of the same name, is currently shooting in Vancouver.

Zachary Sluser, who co-wrote the screenplay with Drury, is directing.

Plaza, who starred in 2012’s Safety Not Guaranteed, which earned her the Breakthrough Performer of the Year award at CinemaCon,and 2013’s The To-Do List, can next be seen in the upcoming A Many Splintered Thing opposite Chris Evans and Michelle Monaghan and Lionsgate’s Mortdecai, co-starring Johnny Depp, Ewan McGregor and Gwyneth Paltrow.

Both films are in postproduction.

Collins Jr. to Star in ABC’s Drama Pilot “Secrets & Lies”

Posted on February 25, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a case of secrets & lies for Clifton Collins Jr. …

The 43-year-old Mexican and Spanish American actor has signed on to co-star alongside Ryan Phillippe, Juliette Lewis and KaDee Strickland in ABC’s drama pilot Secrets & Lies.

The project centers on Ben (Phillippe), a family man who becomes the prime suspect in the murder of a young boy when he finds the body.

Collins, who appeared on the network’s short-lived drama Red Widow last season, will portray Ben’s childhood friend and the tenant in Ben’s pool house who is unwaveringly supportive of Ben.

Collins most recently starred in Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim and guest-starred on NBC’s The Blacklist. His other television credits include The Event, Southland and Alias.

He’ll next appear opposite Johnny Depp in Transcendence.

Carter to Portray the Fairy Godmother in Disney’s Live-Action Version of “Cinderella”

Posted on June 20, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Helena Bonham Carter is about to make one princess’ wish come true…

The 46-year-old part-Spanish actress’ has landed the high profile role of the fairy godmother in Disney’s live-action version of Cinderella.

Kenneth Branagh is directing the film project, which sees Lily James in the title role, Cate Blanchett as the wicked stepmother and Game of Thrones‘ Richard Madden as the prince.

Sophie McShera (Downton Abbey) and Holliday Granger (The Borgias) are set to play the stepsisters.

The fairy godmother will be getting more screen time in this version than in Disney’s classic animated movie, with the character disguised as an old beggar who watches over Cinderella before revealing herself as the magical being she truly is.

Cinderella will be shot this fall in London.

Bonham Carter previously played the Red Queen in another Disney film, 2010’s Alice in Wonderland. She also appears in the studio’s big summer tentpole, The Lone Ranger, which reunites her with Johnny Depp, whom she starred with in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

de Cervantes’ “Don Quixote” Getting a Modern Re-Do…

Posted on December 9, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote may be getting the Johnny Depp treatment in the near future…

Disney has closed a deal for an untitled pitch that’s being hailed as a reimagining of the legendary Spanish author’s The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha, which was published in 1605.

The project, to be written by Steve Pink and Jeff Morris, will be produced by Infinitum Nihil’s Christi Dembrowski and Johnny Depp, who was long been intrigued by the character. Depp was even attached to star in a Don Quixote film that Terry Gilliam was trying to make.

Depp’s Infinitum Nihil recently wrapped The Lone Ranger, which stars the actor. The company’s feature credits include Hugo, Dark Shadows and The Rum Diary.

Spalding to Replace Beyoncé in “A Star Is Born” Remake?

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

She beat out Justin Bieber for the Best New Artist award at the 53rd Grammy Awards… And, now Esperanza Spalding could be replacing Beyoncé on a highly anticipated big screen project.

Following Beyoncé’s recent exit as the lead in the Clint Eastwood-helmed remake of A Star Is Born, the Hollywood legendary actor/director is reportedly looking at the 27-year-old part-Mexican jazz singer to fill in the female lead role.

Beyoncé quit the project due to scheduling issues, which has opened the door to Spalding to sign on for her first-ever big screen role.

However, sources say that until a male lead is signed, no discussions or offers will be made with the female lead.

In the remake to the 1976 musical film, Beyoncé was set to tackle the character which was originally played by Barbra Streisand. When the “Crazy In Love” singer was pregnant with her first child, Warner Bros. Pictures postponed the production, which was expected to begin this past February.

The delay was seen as an opportunity to give the studio more time to find the lead actor. Leonardo DiCaprio, Christian Bale, Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp, Will Smith and most recently Bradley Cooper have been mentioned as the contenders, but no deal has been firmed up of now.

The A Star Is Born remake promises an updated version of a romantic relationship between an alcoholic star on his way out and a young female artist on the rise.

Earlier this year, Spalding, who performed a moving rendition of Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World,” released her follow up album entitled, Radio Music Society.

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