Quickhits: Renner Takes on 28 Weeks Later, Bettany in Inkheart and AOL Digs Movie Downloads
Filed under: Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thrillers, Casting, Sony, Universal, Warner Brothers, Tech Stuff, 20th Century Fox, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Home Entertainment, Movie Marketing, Remakes and Sequels
Odds and ends from Thursday:
- Whether you want it or not, they're making a sequel to the fairly engaging Danny Boyle flick, 28 Days Later. Only 28 Weeks Later (Yes, that's the name of the sequel for those of you who have been living in a hole for the past year) will have a new director (Juan Carlos Fresnadillo), a new writer (Rowan Joffe) and, now, a new star. Jeremy Renner (Lords of Dogtown) has signed on to play Sgt. Doyle, one of the sequel's brand new heroes. Pic, which finds Boyle and 28 Days Later writer Alex Garland wearing producer hats, picks up six months after the original. While Special Forces come in to try and neutralize the area, the zombie virus once again rears its ugly head and, well, sh*t goes down ... as usual.
- Looks like Brendan Fraser now has a co-star for his new flick, Inkheart, as Paul Bettany has come onboard to play a fire-eating performer in this adaptation of the popular children's book (which is part of a trilogy written by German author Cornelia Funk). Story revolves around a father who has the ability to "bring characters from books alive by reading them aloud." Yikes, here's hoping he stays away from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
- In an attempt to cash in on the demand for movie downloading, AOL has struck a deal with 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. to begin offering selected titles from each studio online for downloading. Ranging from $9.99 to $19.99, folks will be able to own their film, as well as play it on a "limited number of Windows-based personal computers or portable devices that support Microsoft Corp's Windows Media Player technology." Yeah, put that in your Mac ad Justin Long!
Jeremy Renner Wants To Be An Avenger
Directors We Love: Jim Jarmusch
Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'
Shelf Life: Fight Club_thumbnail.jpg)
Watch: Famous 'Matrix' Scene Re-Created with LEGOs
_thumbnail.jpg)
