Blake Lively Offered Lead Role In Pride And Prejudice And Zombies

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies has had a long, hard road to traverse to get to where it is, which is essentially nowhere. Natalie Portman is still around as a producer, but she has long since backed out of the lead role, and the film is currently playing host to its third director, Craig Gillespie (who replaced Mike White, who replaced David O’Russell). It hasn't been easy, but no one at the studio seems willing to give up on this adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith’s highly publicized novel.

According to Twitch, Gillespie has met with Gossip Girl star Blake Lively and offered her the lead role of Elizabeth Bennett, a role that has been turned down by Mia Wasikowska, Scarlett Johansson, and Emma Stone. Lively has been busy herself not only with her role on Gossip Girlbut she found major roles for herself in Green Lantern and Ben Affleck’s excellent bank robbery drama The Town. The girl can act, that’s for sure.

Judging by Pride and Prejudice and Zombies' track record, this offer means absolutely nothing and Lively's will just be another in a long list of names that have walked away or stayed away. There’s a lot of potential for this movie to be lots and lots of fun, and kick off the “Quirk Classics” novel adaptation trend. But unfortunately if they can’t get it off the ground, we’ll never get the chance to enjoy it. The Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter adaptation, from Smith's first "from scratch" novel, has wrapped up production, but PP&Z is the book that started it all, and it'd be a shame for it to never see the light of day.

Blake Lively Offered Lead Role In Pride And Prejudice And Zombies

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies has had a long, hard road to traverse to get to where it is, which is essentially nowhere. Natalie Portman is still around as a producer, but she has long since backed out of the lead role, and the film is currently playing host to its third director, Craig Gillespie (who replaced Mike White, who replaced David O’Russell). It hasn't been easy, but no one at the studio seems willing to give up on this adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith’s highly publicized novel.

According to Twitch, Gillespie has met with Gossip Girl star Blake Lively and offered her the lead role of Elizabeth Bennett, a role that has been turned down by Mia Wasikowska, Scarlett Johansson, and Emma Stone. Lively has been busy herself not only with her role on Gossip Girlbut she found major roles for herself in Green Lantern and Ben Affleck’s excellent bank robbery drama The Town. The girl can act, that’s for sure.

Judging by Pride and Prejudice and Zombies' track record, this offer means absolutely nothing and Lively's will just be another in a long list of names that have walked away or stayed away. There’s a lot of potential for this movie to be lots and lots of fun, and kick off the “Quirk Classics” novel adaptation trend. But unfortunately if they can’t get it off the ground, we’ll never get the chance to enjoy it. The Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter adaptation, from Smith's first "from scratch" novel, has wrapped up production, but PP&Z is the book that started it all, and it'd be a shame for it to never see the light of day.

TIFF Favorite Sleepless Night Acquired By Warner Brothers For Remake

These days it seems that studios are watching film fests like hawks, waiting to pluck anything with even the slightest buzz and fast-track it for a remake. Such is the case with TIFF favorite Sleepless Night. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the remake rights to the French actioner, which played as part of TIFF’s Midnight Madness slate, have just been purchased by Warner Brothers. The studio is also in talks to remake runaway TIFF hit The Raid so it seems Midnight Madness has been very lucrative for Warner Brothers.

Sleepless Night is about an undercover police officer who steals a considerable amount of cocaine from a ruthless gangster. As retribution, the gangster kidnaps the officer’s son and the film then becomes a race against the clock for our troubled protagonist to reclaim his son, uncover corruption, and avoid being arrested himself. There is certainly plenty of law enforcement intrigue for producer Roy Lee to work with here. Lee also produced the 2006 cop-and-crook thriller The Departed; itself a remake of Hong Kong thriller Infernal Affairs.

In testament to the velocity of the Hollywood remake machine, this story broke just as I had come out of a screening of Sleepless Night here at Austin’s Fantastic Fest. Drew McWeeny of HitFix.com introduced the film and joked that Hollywood would most likely remake Sleepless Night before we could finish watching it, turns out his assessment was entirely accurate. The reaction from the Fantastic Fest audience has been largely positive, but not overwhelming to the point that a remake seemed a lock. But I can say with confidence that there is such a solid foundation of gritty action material in Sleepless Night that an American remake could be something spectacular.

TIFF Favorite Sleepless Night Acquired By Warner Brothers For Remake

These days it seems that studios are watching film fests like hawks, waiting to pluck anything with even the slightest buzz and fast-track it for a remake. Such is the case with TIFF favorite Sleepless Night. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the remake rights to the French actioner, which played as part of TIFF’s Midnight Madness slate, have just been purchased by Warner Brothers. The studio is also in talks to remake runaway TIFF hit The Raid so it seems Midnight Madness has been very lucrative for Warner Brothers.

Sleepless Night is about an undercover police officer who steals a considerable amount of cocaine from a ruthless gangster. As retribution, the gangster kidnaps the officer’s son and the film then becomes a race against the clock for our troubled protagonist to reclaim his son, uncover corruption, and avoid being arrested himself. There is certainly plenty of law enforcement intrigue for producer Roy Lee to work with here. Lee also produced the 2006 cop-and-crook thriller The Departed; itself a remake of Hong Kong thriller Infernal Affairs.

In testament to the velocity of the Hollywood remake machine, this story broke just as I had come out of a screening of Sleepless Night here at Austin’s Fantastic Fest. Drew McWeeny of HitFix.com introduced the film and joked that Hollywood would most likely remake Sleepless Night before we could finish watching it, turns out his assessment was entirely accurate. The reaction from the Fantastic Fest audience has been largely positive, but not overwhelming to the point that a remake seemed a lock. But I can say with confidence that there is such a solid foundation of gritty action material in Sleepless Night that an American remake could be something spectacular.

Captain America Sequel Probably Won't Arrive Until 2014

Marvel hasn't exactly been hesitant when it comes to capitalizing on success. After Iron Man shattered expectations in 2008, a sequel was immediately put into pre-production and came out two years later, and now Iron Man 3 is set to hit theaters on May 3, 2013. Thor, which came out earlier this summer, made over $100 million before the movie even came to North America and the sequel, Thor 2, is scheduled to arrive on July 26, 2013. But what do you do with Captain America? The patriotic hero's solo adventure was yet another hit at the box office, raking in over $350 million globally, but Marvel can't fill summer 2013 any more without putting its own films in competition with each other. The answer to the problem is simple: bump Cap to 2014.

Chris Evans, who stars as the stars and stripes protagonist, recently spoke with The Playlist and confirmed that his contract is for five more films, but fans wanting to see more of the character may have to wait two years after next summer's The Avengers to see him again. "Marvel has a lot of balls in the air, they aren’t going to cannibalize their films," Evans said. Because Evans is specifically signed on for three Captain America movies and three Avengers movies, you also shouldn't expect him to appear in any of the other franchise projects. Said Evans, "Out of those six films, if I pop up in one of those [other films], it counts as part of the deal. So if they needed me in a third Cap, and I say, ‘Fuck you, give me $30 million,’ well…they want to avoid that."

Marvel announced two secret release dates in 2014 last month, one on May 16th, the other on June 27th, so we can probably expect the second Cap adventure to fall on one of those days. Writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have already begun working on the script for Captain America 2, so it looks like they'll have plenty of time to tinker and toy and make sure that it's perfect. Sounds like a good deal to me.

Captain America Sequel Probably Won't Arrive Until 2014

Marvel hasn't exactly been hesitant when it comes to capitalizing on success. After Iron Man shattered expectations in 2008, a sequel was immediately put into pre-production and came out two years later, and now Iron Man 3 is set to hit theaters on May 3, 2013. Thor, which came out earlier this summer, made over $100 million before the movie even came to North America and the sequel, Thor 2, is scheduled to arrive on July 26, 2013. But what do you do with Captain America? The patriotic hero's solo adventure was yet another hit at the box office, raking in over $350 million globally, but Marvel can't fill summer 2013 any more without putting its own films in competition with each other. The answer to the problem is simple: bump Cap to 2014.

Chris Evans, who stars as the stars and stripes protagonist, recently spoke with The Playlist and confirmed that his contract is for five more films, but fans wanting to see more of the character may have to wait two years after next summer's The Avengers to see him again. "Marvel has a lot of balls in the air, they aren’t going to cannibalize their films," Evans said. Because Evans is specifically signed on for three Captain America movies and three Avengers movies, you also shouldn't expect him to appear in any of the other franchise projects. Said Evans, "Out of those six films, if I pop up in one of those [other films], it counts as part of the deal. So if they needed me in a third Cap, and I say, ‘Fuck you, give me $30 million,’ well…they want to avoid that."

Marvel announced two secret release dates in 2014 last month, one on May 16th, the other on June 27th, so we can probably expect the second Cap adventure to fall on one of those days. Writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have already begun working on the script for Captain America 2, so it looks like they'll have plenty of time to tinker and toy and make sure that it's perfect. Sounds like a good deal to me.

Thor 2 Details Revealed By Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige

In the past couple of hours alone we've learned that Monster director Patty Jenkins is in the running to direct Thor 2, and that we likely won't be seeing another Captain America solo film until 2014. But for fans of the superhero genre, particularly those of the Marvel variety, that isn't nearly enough. So how about some Thor 2 plot details as the cherry on top of your sundae?

While reporting the news that Jenkins is a potential helmer for the God of Thunder sequel, EW reached out to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige for comment, and he spilled a bit of what we might be seeing in the character's next adventure. For starters, while Thor took us to the lands of Asgard, Midgard, and Jotunheim, the sequel will be exploring the other six realms. Furthermore, the movie will also develop the relationship between the Norse God (Chris Hemsworth) and his human love interest, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), as well as his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins). Said Feige about the project, "[Thor 2 will] primarily be the journey of that character, of he and Jane Foster and how the new dynamic with his father is working out, as well as what are the broader stakes for The Nine Worlds."

I don't think I'm alone in saying that the scenes in Asgard were much more compelling than the scenes on Earth in the first film, so having the characters travel to the other worlds is a great step in the right direction. For those unaware, the other six worlds include:

• Alfheim: Land of the Light Elves
• Hel: Land of the dead
• Muspelheim: Land of the demons
• Nidavellir: Home of the dwarves
• Svartalfheim: Land of the Dark Elves
• Vanaheim: Land of the Vanir, a “sister race” of the Asgardians.

Thor 2 Details Revealed By Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige

In the past couple of hours alone we've learned that Monster director Patty Jenkins is in the running to direct Thor 2, and that we likely won't be seeing another Captain America solo film until 2014. But for fans of the superhero genre, particularly those of the Marvel variety, that isn't nearly enough. So how about some Thor 2 plot details as the cherry on top of your sundae?

While reporting the news that Jenkins is a potential helmer for the God of Thunder sequel, EW reached out to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige for comment, and he spilled a bit of what we might be seeing in the character's next adventure. For starters, while Thor took us to the lands of Asgard, Midgard, and Jotunheim, the sequel will be exploring the other six realms. Furthermore, the movie will also develop the relationship between the Norse God (Chris Hemsworth) and his human love interest, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), as well as his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins). Said Feige about the project, "[Thor 2 will] primarily be the journey of that character, of he and Jane Foster and how the new dynamic with his father is working out, as well as what are the broader stakes for The Nine Worlds."

I don't think I'm alone in saying that the scenes in Asgard were much more compelling than the scenes on Earth in the first film, so having the characters travel to the other worlds is a great step in the right direction. For those unaware, the other six worlds include:

• Alfheim: Land of the Light Elves
• Hel: Land of the dead
• Muspelheim: Land of the demons
• Nidavellir: Home of the dwarves
• Svartalfheim: Land of the Dark Elves
• Vanaheim: Land of the Vanir, a “sister race” of the Asgardians.

Michelle Rodriguez To Return From The Dead In Resident Evil: Retribution

Michelle Rodriguez didn't have what you would call a gracious exit from the Resident Evil franchise. Playing Rain Ocampo in the first movie, her character was first bit and infected by one of the zombies before being shot in the head by Matt Adison (Eric Mabius). But if you think a slight case of death is going to prevent her from coming back, apparently you couldn't be more wrong.

Bloody Disgusting has learned Rodriguez is set to return as Ocampo in Resident Evil: Retribution 3D, the fifth film in the franchise. The news has since been confirmed as accurate. Also returning will be Shawn Roberts, who played Albert Wesker in Resident Evil: Afterlife, though apparently that will only be a cameo. The two will join the cast that already includes Milla Jovovich (who returns as Alice), Sienna Guillory (who will play Jill Valentine for the third time), Colin Salmon (who will be coming back as James 'One' Shade) and Boris Kodjoe( once again playing Luther West). The new movie will be set in Toyko, Japan and is scheduled to be released on September 14, 2012.

I wonder how Paul W.S. Anderson plans to get around this one. Ocampo was most definitely dead by the end of the first movie, so it will take some seriously creative maneuvering to bring her back. Then again, this franchise is as much sci-fi as it is action and horror, and we all know that anybody can return from the dead in science-fiction. The question that remains, however, is what team she will be playing for after her resurrection.

Michelle Rodriguez To Return From The Dead In Resident Evil: Retribution

Michelle Rodriguez didn't have what you would call a gracious exit from the Resident Evil franchise. Playing Rain Ocampo in the first movie, her character was first bit and infected by one of the zombies before being shot in the head by Matt Adison (Eric Mabius). But if you think a slight case of death is going to prevent her from coming back, apparently you couldn't be more wrong.

Bloody Disgusting has learned Rodriguez is set to return as Ocampo in Resident Evil: Retribution 3D, the fifth film in the franchise. The news has since been confirmed as accurate. Also returning will be Shawn Roberts, who played Albert Wesker in Resident Evil: Afterlife, though apparently that will only be a cameo. The two will join the cast that already includes Milla Jovovich (who returns as Alice), Sienna Guillory (who will play Jill Valentine for the third time), Colin Salmon (who will be coming back as James 'One' Shade) and Boris Kodjoe( once again playing Luther West). The new movie will be set in Toyko, Japan and is scheduled to be released on September 14, 2012.

I wonder how Paul W.S. Anderson plans to get around this one. Ocampo was most definitely dead by the end of the first movie, so it will take some seriously creative maneuvering to bring her back. Then again, this franchise is as much sci-fi as it is action and horror, and we all know that anybody can return from the dead in science-fiction. The question that remains, however, is what team she will be playing for after her resurrection.