1. It’s being reported that Kate Hudson has joined Mandy Patinkin and Josh Gad in “Wish I Was Here,” the upcoming Kickstarter-funded movie written and directed by Zach Braff. The film “centers on Aidan Bloom (Braff), a struggling actor, father and husband who at 35 is still trying to find his identity and a purpose for his life.” Just what we need, another movie about a man-child. “He and his wife (Hudson) are barely getting by financially and Aidan passes his time by fantasizing about being the great futuristic Space-Knight he’d always dreamed he’d be as a little kid.” Wait, don’t you think Braff could have raised $2 million with Hudson attached to the film? Time to demand your refund! [Deadline]
Archive for the ‘Theater’ Category
May 21, 2013, 10:00 am
In Five: Kate Hudson Joins Zach Braff’s Kickstarter Film, Obie Award Winners, and More Culture News
May 15, 2013, 11:00 am
In Five: Al Pacino Plays Another Eccentric, Scarlet Johansson Joins Food Truck Rom-Com, and More Culture News
1. Al Pacino has signed on to play A.J. Manglehorn, “an aging, ordinary guy in a small town who’s more than meets the eye,” in “Menglehorn,” a new film from David Gordon Green. Paul Logan wrote the screenplay, based on an original story by Green and Logan. The film tells “the story of an eccentric man who tries to come to terms with a past crime that cost him the love of his life.” Al Pacino has never been more ready to play an eccentric man. Production is expected to begin this fall in Los Angeles. [Deadline]
May 14, 2013, 10:04 am
In Five: Bill Hader Exits “SNL,” Charlie Kaufman’s “Anomalisa” Finds Cast, and More Culture News
1. Bill Hader is leaving the cast of “Saturday Night Live” after nine seasons, it’s being reported. His final regular appearance will be on this week’s season finale. “It was a hard decision, but it has to happen at some point,” Hader said in an interview with the New York Times. “It got to a point where I said, ‘Maybe it’s just time to go.’” [Deadline] (more…)
May 13, 2013, 9:45 am
In Five: Robert Downey Jr.’s a “Chef,” Katherine Boo’s “Behind the Beautiful Forevers” Heads to the Stage, and More Culture News
1. Robert Downey Jr. has signed on to take a starring role in director Jon Favreau’s “Chef,” set in the culinary world of Los Angeles. The ensemble comedy will also feature Sofia Vergara, John Leguizamo and Bobby Cannavale in supporting roles. In addition to directing, Favreau will also write the script and take a starring role in the film. Downey Jr. and Favreau previously worked on the first two films in the “Iron Man” franchise. [Variety]
May 7, 2013, 10:30 am
In Five: Kanye West: “I Am a God,” Benicio del Toro Joining Pynchon Film, and More Culture News
1. Did you think Kanye West was going to show up to the Met Gala last night and not do something crazy. Accompanied by a very-pregnant Kim Kardashian, West put on his favorite kilt and weird mask and, during his performance, decided to scream like he was the singer of My Chemical Romance, punctuated by the statement, “I am a God!” Yes, West’s ego is that huge right now, and it’s amazing. A-Trak posted a Vine of the incident, which you can watch below. And since Kanye reportedly has a new album coming out very soon, is this a sign of what to expect? [Vulture]
May 6, 2013, 9:58 am
In Five: Lauryn Hill Has A New Song, Harper Lee Fights In Court, and More Culture News
1. Lauryn Hill has released a new song, “Neurotic Society (Compulsory Mix),” one of the few studio releases since the singer’s 1998 “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” Apparently, the song is a rough mix, as Hill was “required” to release something immediately, “by virtue of the impending legal deadline.” “I love being able to reach people directly,” she adds in a blog post, “but in an ideal scenario, I would not have to rush the release of new music… but the message is still there.” And that “legal deadline” Hill is talking about? Well, it was a hefty tax debt, which she payed off ahead of her sentencing today. [Tumblr]
May 4, 2013, 3:00 pm
Tucker Max’s Stage Adaptation Actually Meta-Commentary on Bro Culture
By Craig Hubert | Well, this just got more interesting. Back in March, when bro-culture hero and notorious creep Tucker Max (“I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell”) announced that an adaptation of his book, which was already attempted as a film and failed miserably, would be staged Off-Broadway, the reaction was a combination of confusion and disgust. How can a bunch of stories about frat guys drinking too much and doing horrible things to women be turned into a theatrical production? Would it be a musical? Are we just imagining this whole thing? Either way, it sounded like chugging a warm Pabst Blue Ribbon — a terrible idea. Now, according to an e-mail sent by Christopher Carter Sanderson, the director of the show to Jezebel, the stage adaptation of Max’s terrible book is actually a meta-condemnation of the author’s way of life. “Because Tucker had never seen a play before and has no understanding of theatrical art or its practitioners—in fact, he called me, to my face, a “theater fag”—he agreed to give me full creative control in all aspects of this project,” the director writes. “He has not seen the script, nor will he even attend a rehearsal.” Now we want to see this! It’s worth reading the whole, which can be found here.
May 3, 2013, 9:32 am
In Five: Jessica Chastain Joins “Intersteller,” HBO Signs Up “Olive Kitteridge,” and More Culture News
1. Jessica Chastain is in talks to join Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway in Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar.” The film will reportedly ”depict a heroic interstellar voyage to the farthest borders of our scientific understanding.” Nolan is writing the script with his brother, Jonah Nolan, after they took over the project from Steven Spielberg. [Deadline]
April 29, 2013, 10:02 am
In Five: James Franco Never Stops, Beastie Boys Memoir Coming Soon, and More Culture News
1. We’re starting to think James Franco has initiated some sort of art project to get his name in the Hollywood trade papers at least once a week for an entire year. The actor/writer/director/artist/musician, who is screening “As I Lay Dying,” his William Faulkner adaptation, at Cannes in May, and is reportedly close to wrapping production of “Child of God,” an adaptation of a novel by Cormac McCarthy, not to mention various other projects, has another one on his slate: an adaptation of Andre Dubus III’s 2009 novel “The Garden of Last Days,” concerning “the lives of three deeply flawed, driven people.” Filming is set to begin in New York in July. [Deadline]
April 26, 2013, 11:05 am
In Five: James Franco Follows Werner Herzog Into the Desert, “Glass Menagerie” Moves to Broadway, and More Culture News
1. James Franco is in talks to replace Jude Law, who seems to drop out of more movies than he stars in these days, in Werner Herzog’s upcoming “Queen of the Desert.” Franco will co-star opposite Robert Pattinson and Naomi Watts, “in the story of Gertrude Bell’s life as a traveler, writer, archaeologist, explorer, cartographer, and political attaché for the British Empire at the dawn of the 20th century.” The film has stalled over recent months, and Franco has not officially signed on to the project, but just imagining him and Herzog in the same room is enough for us. [Deadline] (more…)
