Entertainment Weekly has just unveiled the first two photos (second pic after the jump) of Benicio Del Toro as The Wolfman, along with a pretty sweet interview with famed makeup artist Rick Baker on how he went about updating the look 67 years after the first big-screen Wolfman hit theaters. Joe Johnston (Jurassic Park 3) directs this latest version, which also stars Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt and Hugo Weaving. The makeup looks absolutely insane; especially in the second photo which creeps the living hell out of me. Do we even need to tell you the story? Dude becomes a wolfman and craziness ensues. Unfortunately, we'll have to wait all the way until February 13, 2009 to watch this sucker come to life in theaters.

Head over to EW to check out larger versions of each pic, as well as to read that Rick Baker interview.

I was pretty bummed when I posted that Mark Romanek had backed out of the upcoming horror thriller The Wolf Man, starring the wonderful Benicio Del Toro. Then, I tried to wrap my head around the new director, Joe Johnston. Right now, I'm not caring because Bauer-Griffin has some great photos from the set of the upcoming film.

Yes, that's Benicio above -- all bloody, but not looking particularly beaten, so I'm thinking that's what happens to his clothes after he wolfs out and rips a bunch of unlucky buggers apart. And of course, that's a bearded Anthony Hopkins to the right. This is just one of a bunch of stills the site has, all from the same shoot -- you should really check them out if you're at all interested in this film.

Unfortunately, we've got almost a year to wait to see if the film is half as good as these pics. The Wolf Man is scheduled to hit theaters February 13, 2009 -- just in time for Valentine's Day!

[via Shock Till You Drop]

Hearing that Mark Romanek was going to direct a new stab at The Wolf Man a year ago, with Benicio Del Toro starring, was music to my fangirl ears. It was the sort of project that sliced through remake apprehension, and sounded like tasty, cinematic candy. Well, if Nikki Finke's sources are correct, we can forget that possibility. Over at Deadline Hollywood Daily, she has posted word from her sources, who say that Romanek has just quit the project. And Variety has followed up with confirmation of his departure. What?! Is he nuts!?

The source says: "He just blew the opportunity of a lifetime, which is mind-boggling." Indeed! It seems that the $100 million budget wasn't enough for him: "He's a purist, an artiste, an exquisite craftsman, but he just had a budget schedule he couldn't accommodate." Okay... Sure, budgets can make for headaches, but lots of amazing films have been made with small budgets, and we're talking about Del flipping Toro as the Wolf Man, and Anthony Hopkins as Sir John. I might not sell my blood for it, Rodriguez-style, but I'd somehow make it work.

The studio thinks it will fill his shoes pronto, but there's no word about whether they'll stick to their February 18 start date. With Romanek out -- who could fill in his shoes and do the project justice?

I know I bitch and moan about horror remakes all the time, but every once in a while there comes a project that melts my cynicism and gets me all geeky. Universal's impending rendition of The Wolf Man is one such project, and I'm basing my early opinions on a few cool factors:

1. Benicio del Toro is going to star, and that's what I call good casting. OK, and this Anthony Hopkins guy is pretty solid, too.
2. Mark Romanek is directing, and if you've ever seen One Hour Photo (or, better yet, this DVD) then you know that's a good thing.
3. The screenplay comes from Andrew Kevin Walker, also known as the man who wrote the blisteringly awesome Seven and one very cool version of Sleepy Hollow.

And now, courtesy of CHUD.com, I have a fourth reason to get excited for this new version of The Wolf Man: The mega-hot and seriously talented Emily Blunt has been (almost) cast as the female lead. (Probably best known for a great supporting turn in The Devil Wear Prada, Ms. Blunt appeared in no less than four films this year: Wind Chill, The Jane Austen Book Club, Dan in Real Life and Charlie Wilson's War.) Plus, like I said, she's really pretty with a powerfully sexy accent.

Unfortunately the new Wolf Man isn't scheduled to make his big-screen appearance until February of '09 -- which will give us plenty of time to bring you all the newest developments.

Earlier this month a bunch of us came up with a list of the movie characters we'd love to have thanksgiving with. Now, here's the opposite. The title is pretty self-explanatory, so I don't need to set it up much. But as usual, we invite you to tell us of your own picks for worst Thanksgiving dinner guest. Please try to make it a movie character, though, because none of us know your annoying aunt, and plus this is a movie site.


Hannibal Lecter from Manhunter, The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, Red Dragon and Hannibal Rising

If you were to have Dr. Lecter (Brian Cox; Anthony Hopkins; Gaspard Ulliel) to your Thanksgiving feast, you'd want to prepare and cook all the food yourself. Otherwise, you might end up eating human flesh instead of turkey (or turducken, or whatever non-people-based meal you prefer). Then again, you might actually end up the meal, which is certainly much worse than unknowingly tasting Ray Liotta's brains. So, the best thing is to not even invite the guy.


Graham Young from Young Poisoner's Handbook

Another character who might be an interesting guest, but like with Lecter, you'll need to keep an eye on the food, or at least on the tea. Graham (Hugh O'Conor), aka "the teacup murderer" likes to play with poison, and there's a good chance he's going to spike the dinner or drinks with thallium.

"Good eeevening." The last we heard about writer/director Ryan Murphy's Alfred Hitchcock biopic was back in February. At the time it was just speculation, but today MTV Movies Blog has confirmation -- Anthony Hopkins will play Hitch. They've even got a clip of him doing the voice over there. I think it's pretty solid casting, but Hopkins better start eating! The February report mentioned Helen Mirren possibly stepping into the role of Hitchcock's wife and lifelong creative collaborator, Alma Reville, but that casting is not confirmed yet. The film is expected to be called Alfred Hitchcock Presents and will detail Hitchcock's experiences making the 1960 classic Psycho. At the time, the screenplay was seen as far too dark for mass audiences, and Hitch faced quite a few hurdles to bring the project to the big screen.

Alfred Hitchcock Presents will be written and directed by Ryan Murphy. I am a fan of Murphy's FX series Nip/Tuck, particularly the first few seasons. But any faith I had in his filmmaking went out the window with the absolutely dreadful Running with Scissors, one of my least favorite movies of 2006. Hopefully, he can redeem himself here. I can't say for certain when we'll see Alfred Hitchcock Presents, as Murphy is currently very busy in both the television and film worlds. On TV, he's overseeing Nip/Tuck and an upcoming F/X drama about a transsexual father called 4 oz. On the big screen, he's working on the Tricky Dick flick Dirty Tricks, starring Brad Pitt and Meryl Streep, with Jim Broadbent as Nixon, and Need with Nicole Kidman and Naomi Watts. So it's conceivable that we won't get to see AFP for a few years. Hey, now that the wheels are in motion on the story of how Hitchcock's Psycho came to be, is it too much to ask to get a making-of biopic for Gus Van Sant's critically acclaimed remake? I kid, I kid.

No, not Guillermo Del Toro! That guy's busy enough! I'm talking about the Oscar-winning bad-ass actor known as Benicio Del Toro. A while back we informed you that the guy would be starring in a new version of The Wolf Man for Universal. and director Mark Romanek. Well, the flick is still on the way (fortunately), but Benny has some other projects to get through first -- including two Soderbergh films in which he'll play Che Guevara!

But back to the wolfy stuff. Del Toro will play Lawrence Talbot in Romanek's new rendition, and the behind-the-scenes info just keeps getting better and better. Not only does the adaptation come from the man who wrote Seven and Sleepy Hollow -- but according to the actor (and the MTV Movies Blog) the legendary Anthony Hopkins has just joined the cast. It's been a rumor up till now, but the actor semi-confirms it: "I think so," he says. Universal seems to have May 2009 penciled in for the return of The Wolf Man, but why not bump it a few months? A big-budget Wolf Man re-do ... that's got the Halloween season written all over it.

When I got my Entertainment Weekly Fall Movie Preview in the mail the other day, I was excited to see that Anthony Hopkins' Slipstream was to be released October 26. But the film, which is Hopkins' debut as a screenwriter (he has directed before), didn't seem to have a distributor. Well, now it has one, but it's a bit smaller than I would have expected or hoped. Strand Releasing picked up domestic rights and will give the film a limited release on the date given by EW. The real exposure will apparently come with video, as Sony will put out the DVD sometime (probably early) next year. Hopkins recently won directing and acting honors for Slipstream at the Locarno International Film Festival, but the film is supposedly not even worthy of theatrical distribution. Variety's review from Sundance says, "without the name of Hopkins and those of cast members mixing usually reliable stars and actors, project would be commercially DOA; only a minuscule theatrical window seems possible, with most curiosity seekers wading through the undoubtedly extras-filled DVD."

Well, call me one of the curiosity seekers. Slipstream, which co-stars Christian Slater, John Turturro, Michael Clarke Duncan, Jeffrey Tambor and Camryn Manheim, is described by Hopkins as "a comedy of the absurd," and that is actually good enough for me. Of course, mainstream audiences don't share the same interest in weird stuff, so I guess the small release is fair. Another thing that doesn't really appeal to normal moviegoers is films about filmmaking, and Slipstream is set in the movie biz. It follows a screenwriter (Hopkins) working on a murder-mystery who has trouble discerning the difference between the real world and the one he's written. According to the Hollywood Reporter synopsis, "his brain begins to implode, captured in the film through a nonlinear, hallucinogenic narrative." I can't wait, even if it is as bad as they say.

Okay, you twisted my arm -- I'll see the movie. Actually, I was planning on seeing it anyway -- I'm intrigued by how Robert Zemeckis keeps inching forward in his quest for photo-realism in the CG world. The Holy Grail of that being, obviously, faces. The faces of the characters in The Polar Express were aptly described by some as being like 'death masks' which probably frightened little kids more than wowed them, but you can't make an omelet, right? Based on the little bit I've seen of Beowulf -- on a small computer screen, mind you -- it looks like Zemeckis is still wrestling with that same problem. The faces don't seem to have a lot of life in them, but maybe it's such a technical challenge that inching forward a little bit at a time is the only way to go. Zemeckis, has, however, found a good trick for misdirecting us away from the faces -- shots of Angelina Jolie's naked breasts. The international trailer for Beowulf is being hosted over at ComingSoon.net, and it's mostly the same as the other trailer we recently saw, except that this one has a shot of Angelina from behind, a couple of her from the side and one of her straight-on naked from the belly-button up.

Speaking of Angelina, someone really needs to talk to her about the accents, because the voice she's sporting in this film seems like Dracula again, which is exactly what we heard in Alexander and even a bit in A Mighty Heart. When I spoke with her at the press day for Heart she talked about working with a voice coach and how some accents were more challenging than others, and I have no doubt she's talented enough to broaden her accent range, but she probably needs someone to tell her that it's necessary. We've heard Transylvanian Jolie -- let's hear something else.

I was lucky enough to get a seat in the packed house last night for a viewing of the first ever released footage from the upcoming Beowulf film, directed by Robert Zemeckis (or "Z", as Roger Avary calls him), and is written and produced by Neil Gaiman and Avary. The film is 100% CGI, and they used motion capture for all of the performances in the film. So close your eyes and picture Anthony Hopkins wearing a mocap suit with white balls all over it, and it's like you're on set!

Gaiman and Avary came down (to thunderous applause) to introduce the footage. Avary started to explain a bit but Gaiman thought this was something that would be best viewed without any setup at all. We then saw a short "taster" of material from the film set to a power rock soundtrack. Oh, and everything we saw was in REAL D (a 3D format), so we had to wear big giant clunky glasses, making us all look a bit like the late, great Roy Orbison. Pretty hot.

So, how many of you out there saw The Polar Express in 3D? Well, the 3D is that good, or in some cases much better. It's not extremely overdone, like everything seems fairly flat and 2D and then suddenly AHH! -- Grendel in your face. It's much more understated and subtle, more of an immersive aspect than a gimmick. After awhile you (thankfully) forget you're wearing the glasses, and it just becomes another part of the movie.

After reading the ancient tale of Beowulf in school, let's just say that the old line from Annie Hall pretty much sums it up for me. So, the new animated film from Robert Zemeckis doesn't have to do much to improve my opinion. The Dutch film site Film Focus now has a first look at the billboard and three posters for the film. But, unfortunately there is not all that much to see. Although even I can recognize Angelina Jolie at 20 paces -- plus the pose seemed to have a touch of Tomb Raider. Based on the medieval epic about a warrior king, the film has an all-star cast that includes Ray Winstone as the warrior Beowulf, Robin Wright Penn, John Malkovich, Anthony Hopkins, and Crispin Glover as the monster Grendel. The script was written by author Neil Gaiman who definitely knows his way around a mythical battle.

Zemeckis seems to have been bitten by the animation bug in general, having just set up an animation shop at Disney for a series of animated family films that will probably be a little more kid-friendly than what he has in store for Beowulf -- Grendel's looking pretty creepy and Jolie's curves seem to be venturing into Jessica Rabbit territory. The 3-D film was set to premiere at the Venice film festival before WB announced that they were bowing out of the festival because the film was not finished yet. Hopefully Zemeckis can keep the film on track for release on November 16th as promised.

[via Ain't it Cool News]

I am The Wolf Man, coocoocachoo! There are times when remakes make me cringe, times when I'm indifferent and times when I start to get the itch of excitement. The latter usually comes from who is involved. It didn't scare or upset me to hear that Lon Chaney's Wolf Man was getting remade, because Benicio Del Toro's involvement just seemed right. Then we got Mark Romanek added to the pot to make things interesting, and then in a moment of insanity or genius, Anthony Hopkins came on-board to play pops -- Sir John Talbot. Now TMZ has a photo up of Del Toro, who is in the midst of his role as Lawrence Talbot. While this isn't an on-set image, he's still looking wolfy.

Take a look at that mug! Well, imagine it without "The Hunted" truck cap and worn, leather jacket, because they make him look like a scary rapist or something. The hair... The look in his eye... This is what got me amped about the project. Will it be just like the original? Doubtful. Will it do it justice? My magic 8-ball says signs point to yes -- crap! I just pulled it out and actually asked, and it says: "Cannot Predict Now." Back when Hopkins jumped on, his agent had said it was a great script, but then again, as many great roles as he has had, he's also had some stinkers. According to the script review at Latino Review, we've got Victorian London in 1888, and Talbot is a Shakespearean actor performing Hamlet, picked for the passage: "To be or not to be, that is the question; whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing, end them." They also say screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker is at the top of his game. God, I hope so!

A refreshingly simple, Grisham-style legal thriller, Fracture lays out its agenda early on and never feels the need to delve into absurdities or tack on sixteen endings in order to complete its business. Anthony Hopkins stars as Ted Crawford, a man who, despite living in a hilltop mansion, is still apparently going to work every day, which can't be the definition of success for someone his age. We're informed early on that his younger wife (Embeth Davidtz) is having a reckless love affair and seems eager to have the big discussion with her husband rather than quietly put a stop to her activities, as he would prefer. He's a typical Hopkins character endowed with a silent British suffering that's laughably out of place amidst the Grand Guignol of Los Angeles. He's also endowed with that typically Hopkins-style compulsion -- that endless mental finger-drumming that goes on in the head of most of his characters. Early and often, we see him staring at an elaborate mousetrap-style contraption in his home that he apparently built himself.

The whole plot revolves around whether Crawford is actually as smart as he thinks he is, so I won't make a comment on that, lest I give away the store. Upon learning that his wife's paramour is actually a lowly cop, he comes up with an elaborate plan to murder her in the home they share and then have the cop (played by Billy Burke) arrive first on scene. Once arrested, he will dramatically reveal buckets of evidence that the cop and the rich wife were having a torrid affair, which he thinks should be sufficient grounds to have the entire arrest declared inadmissible in court. If it were me, I'd probably think I owed it to myself to put in a couple years in night school researching that before I put my plan into action, but he seems pretty confident about it. Opposing him will be Ryan Gosling, a young hotshot from the D.A.'s office who doesn't need a high-profile, complicated case like this one on the eve of being offered an associateship at a swanky private firm.

While I never thought there would be the day that Benicio del Toro would take over a role immortalized by Lon Chaney Jr., Scott Weinberg posted in February that Dr. Gonzo would become the epically hairy beast man. We learned that Se7en scribe Andrew Kevin Walker was in charge of the screenplay, and music video helmer and One Hour Photo director Mark Romanek would head the film. Now, according to Rotten Tomatoes, Anthony Hopkins Is considering the role of Wolfman's dad.

While it might be strange to think that Del Toro could come from Hopkin's loins, they bear a vague resemblance. Of course, a Latin mother would be necessary to make us buy it, but I'm pretty intrigued by the idea. The World's Fastest Indian is quoted as saying: "There's also a chance I may play the Wolfman in London in a movie with Benicio Del Toro. My agent says it's a great script, but he hasn't sent it to me yet." While he isn't signed on officially, it seems that he has every intention of playing the part: "[The agent] said he just wants to make sure that the deal is all in but I play the Wolfman's father in Paris. A wonderful part." Since Hopkins is also known for his tendency to bark between takes, I'm sure he'll feel right at home in the feature. If you're anxious for more, your can read a script review here.

Remember that incident a few months back involving the city of Boston and a marketing idea gone wrong? In case you're totally oblivious or have a bad memory, it consisted of a silly stunt to promote Aqua Teen Hunger Force that accidentally caused a terror alert. In the end, the mistake resulted in two men facing felony hoax charges, the head of Cartoon Network resigning, Turner Broadcasting paying out $2 million in restitution and Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino hating the surreal animated series forever. Unfortunately for Menino, the cinematic spin-off of the series, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters, opens this Friday around the country, including in two theaters in his city. Menino has made attempts to convince these locations to boycott the film, "out of respect to the people of Boston," but obviously the theaters are not willing to meet his demands. The thing Menino doesn't appear to realize, which doesn't take an expert in marketing communication to point out (though the Boston Herald quotes one, just to go with an official perspective), that any negative attention he can give the movie will help in its appeal.

In unrelated news, Menino has also attacked the marketing of another film this week. He has ordered the removal of advertisements for Fracture, which contain written in big letters the phrase "I Shot My Wife" superimposed over Anthony Hopkins' face. The fifty posters, which are part of a reported $52,000 ad campaign, have been on display in bus shelters for nearly a month, and apparently they have caused a lot of complaints. A statement from the mayor's office claimed the ads promoted a negative and violent message, which makes me wonder what Menino would have thought if Boston had been included in the controversial campaign for Captivity. He might have gone and banned all movie marketing within city limits for good. Well, except for maybe those promoting seemingly harmless Tim Allen comedies. After all, in case anyone thinks that the mayor has a thing against Hollywood in general, recall how much love he showed to Wild Hogs last month.