We brought you a bunch of brand new G.I. Joe character photos yesterday, but Paramount just sent over a whole batch of those same images (plus a few others) in beautiful hi-res. These photos include characters like Duke (Channing Tatum), Hawk (Dennis Quaid), Ripcord (Marlon Wayans), The Baroness (Sienna Miller), Destro (Christopher Eccleston), Heavy Duty (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), Breaker (Saïd Taghmaoui), Scarlett (Rachel Nichols), Snake Eyes (Ray Park) and Storm Shadow (Byung-hun Lee). With the exception of Cobra Commander (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), that's our primary cast.

Check out all these images (in hi-res) in the gallery below. G.I. Joe hits theaters on August 7, 2009.

Above: Ray Park as Snake Eyes in G.I. Joe

[Note: Other images removed at the request of the studio ... but picture a bunch of actors wearing black and looking tough.]

We're not sure if they were hoping to release these one at a time, but the website [Bad People Who Leak Photos Online] has gotten their hands on the entire batch of character photos from the upcoming live-action G.I. Joe flick. Included in the images are Channing Tatum (as Duke), Karolina Kurkova (as Cover Girl), Marlon Wayans (as Ripcord), Sienna Miller (as Baroness), Ray Park (as Snake Eyes), Rachel Nichols (as Scarlett) and Dennis Quaid (as Hawk). Almost all of them are wearing this same black, special-ops outfit, which leads us to believe they won't be showin' off the color when it's time to do battle.

G.I. Joe arrives in theaters on August 7, 2009.

Well, if you weren't too hot on the new live-action G.I. Joe movie, you might change your mind after seeing this new photo, via those cool cats at JoBlo. Yup, that's Rachel Nichols (Alias, P2) as Scarlett (click on the image for a larger and hotter version). This marks the second official character photo from the film, after USA Today revealed our first look at Snake Eyes not long ago. From Wiki: "The official line on Scarlett is that her full name is Shana M. O'Hara. She was born in Atlanta, Georgia. Although she is as adept with standard weapons as any of her comrades, her weapon of choice is the crossbow which fires various bolts with specialized functions. Her rank is Master Sergeant, and she serves from time to time as team leader. Her primary specialty for the team is counter intelligence and is additionally skilled in martial arts and acrobatics. Of note, her secondary military specialty remains classified in all of her file cards."

I'm digging what I see so far out of this film, but what do you think -- is this the live-action G.I. Joe film you've always hoped for???

I do believe Ray Park is the first G.I. Joe actor to speak on the new movie -- which fits, as he's the first character the studio allowed us to see. Park gave a big interview to Geekscape! where he discussed Joe, Snake Eyes, Iron Fist, and the finer points of stunts and martial arts.

Park was determined to snag the role of Snake Eyes for himself. "One of the reasons I always wanted to play Snake Eyes is because I played as him when I was a kid. Star Wars fans and the fans I've met at conventions have said 'You'd be the best Snake Eyes ever if they did a GI Joe movie!' So when I heard they were actually going to do it I did everything possible to try and get in a meeting or try and get an audition cause I wanted to do it for myself, I wanted to do it for the fans and I wanted to do it for my cousins and all my nephews and my kids. It's great to be here and to be able to tell those stories."

It is a regular Stephen Sommers reunion on G.I. Joe. Latino Review reports that Brendan Fraser has been cast as Gung Ho, the Cajun gunnery sergeant. But don't get too excited to see Fraser sporting that Village People outfit -- word has it that it's a cameo. He's already finished filming his scene, a training sequence at The Pit.

LR says an offer has also been made to Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson to play Hector Delgado, aka Shipwreck. He hasn't yet accepted, but what red-blooded male is going to turn down a role in G.I. Joe? Despite the difference in ethnicities, the Rock would be a good fit for the popular character -- and he has the right humor to have a pet parrot making wisecracks at him.

You know, as I type this, it occurs to me that for most people, The Rock is probably a bigger name than Fraser these days. I think the latter is on the way to a comeback -- but will he actually stay working this time, or vanish off into the private life again? Perhaps he won't have a choice, the Gung Ho costume may force him into seclusion. As we wait for the Rock to commit, let's speculate on which Sommers veteran we will see next. I think Rachel Weisz is a no go, but surely someone from Van Helsing should appear before too long. What's Richard Roxburgh up to? They better nab him soon, G.I. Joe opens August 7th, 2009.

If you were hankering for more details about the big-screen G.I. Joe, then today is your lucky day, because Hasbro's Brian Goldner is feeling chatty. MTV news spoke with G.I. Joe's executive producer and managed to score some important details about the feature film. Goldner is chief operating officer at Hasbro, and was responsible for releasing Joe back in the 80's to millions of military-minded children everywhere.

First up -- what the filmmakers have in store for main bad guy, Cobra Commander. According to Goldner: "In effect, this is all about the rise of Cobra Commander. ... For fans, they're really going to love this, because we take them on a journey. ... We have to go through the first chapter and then build from there." Rumors currently have Joseph Gordon-Levitt taking over the role of Cobra, but that has yet to be confirmed.

But it's not just about the bad-guys. Goldner also hinted about some new back-story on some of the more familiar characters, including Baroness (played by Sienna Miller) and Destro (Christopher Eccleston). As for the 'rah-rah military' tone of earlier incarnations of Joe, Goldner says that while the original feel, will still be there, we shouldn't start looking for any metaphors about global politics or foreign policy. According to Goldner: "Clearly, the American military is involved, as are other forces. But at the end of the day, the force that matters is the G.I. Joe force, and the Pit, and all the things that relate to that."

Now, what would a G.I. Joe movie be without the toy tie in? Goldner confirmed that Hasbro will revive the 3 and 3/4 inch figures from the 80's. "[That size] gives people a chance to get all the figures but get all of the vehicles. So it's going to be in that scale. ... Very true to where we were in the 1980s, and then we'll take it forward" -- gee I can't wait for my Marlon Wayans figure with kung-fu grip. G.I. Joe is set for release on August 7th, 2009.

I wonder if the President is reading Cinematical today ...

The first teaser poster/thingy for G.I. Joe was apparently unveiled at the New York Toy Fair over the weekend (as captured by MTV), and it's everything we all hoped it would be. Man, check out that silver on black -- it's all just so ... exciting. 2009 can't come soon enough. In other Joe news, Latino Review claims Jonathan Pryce has landed a "small but integral" role as President of the United States in the film, which comes with the following official synopsis: "From the Egyptian desert to deep below the polar ice caps, the elite co-ed GI JOE team, based from it's headquarters The Pit, deploys the latest in next-gen spy and military equipment to fight crooked arms dealer Destro and the growing threat of the mysterious COBRA organization from plunging the world into chaos." Yum!

In other news, the first photo from Richard Kelly's new flick The Box has arrived online (via Twitch). The photo (which you can view after the jump) shows two hands holding a box which appears to feature a snow globe of some sorts on the top of it. This is being hailed as Kelly's big commercial film, after his first two attempts (Donnie Darko, Southland Tales) confused the hell out of people and the box office. Starring Cameron Diaz and James Marsden, The Box tells of a couple who discover a mysterious box with a button inside that, if pressed, will give them enough money to save their ailing son. However, in return, someone somewhere will die. Freaky! The Box is due out later this year.

Although he functions under the cinematic radar, Christopher Eccleston has become quite the television scene stealer. He made Doctor Who irresistible to a much larger audience (including me). After his abrupt departure from his role as the infamous Time Lord, he jumped into Heroes and pretty much mopped up the floor with much of the cast. After those geek roles, Eccleston has been getting all sorts of dark and topping off his role as The Rider in The Seeker: The Dark is Rising and Dr. Jekyll in New Orleans, Mon Amour, The Hollywood Reporter says he's heading for G.I. Joe. (IESB first broke this news last night.)

He's grabbed the role of "the villainous Destro" in Paramount's update of the Real American Hero. Last month, it was going to be David Murray, but unfortunately, the Irish-born actor had to back out due to visa issues. As Destro, Eccleston will be the main bad guy, straight out of the Scottish Highlands. He's the head of M.A.R.S., and is known for being both calm and cutthroat. This also means that he gets to love Sienna Miller, who will play the Baroness, Cobra's second-in-command. Okay, I think I got that right, but unfortunately, my G.I. Joe knowledge goes no further than the elaborate scene an old friend of mine had set up in a spare room with rescued figures.

Then again, I bet I'll know more soon enough. For an action movie based on an old action figure, they've set up a huge and surprising cast. Production gets going this month, and the flick will hit theaters in 2009.

Well, I guess this means General Hawk won't die in the first film. While making the press junket rounds for his latest film Vantage Point, Dennis Quaid spoke a bit about his role as General Hawk in the upcoming live-action G.I. Joe flick to Collider. Not surprisingly, Paramount is hoping to turn G.I. Joe into the next big action franchise, and Quaid confirmed that he had signed on for three films. Did you ever think, at this point in his career, that Dennis Quaid would sign on for three G.I. Joe films? Apparently the dude is looking to get dirty, and more power to him. On the film and his character, Quaid says, "We grew up with G.I. Joe and it's kind of a cartoon thing...it's a big popcorn type of tent pole action movie that...it's not deep. The character of General Hawk that I'm playing is kind of a cross between Chuck Yeager and Sgt. Rock and maybe a naïve Hugh Hefner thrown in there. General Hawk's aide to camp is a Victoria Secret supermodel so how serious can it be?"

Quaid also admitted that he might go "a little blond" with regards to his character's look, and that he's currently lifting weights, "trying to look like the cartoon." He compared the tone of the film to "the old James Bond's -- like the Dr. No's -- where the mastermind has his own private island and all these people are wearing matching coveralls." Finally, he says he's only shooting for two weeks out of five. For this new, live-action film, Stephen Sommers will direct a cast that already includes a ton of folks like Channing Tatum (Duke), Sienna Miller (The Baroness), Rachel Nichols (Scarlett), Ray Park (Snake Eyes), Marlon Wayans (Ripcord), Arnold Vosloo (Zartan), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Heavy Duty) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. G.I. Joe is due out in theaters on August 7, 2009.

It's funny, once they announced a G.I. Joe live-action film, I totally thought I'd kick ass on all the posts. See, I played with the Joe action figures religiously when I was a kid. From time to time, Superman and the Star Wars guys would cross over into my G.I. Joe universe (oh yes, I was way ahead of Hollywood on the cross-over themes), but most of the time it was just me and my Joes. Now, however, as more cast members and characters are revealed, I've found myself somewhat lost.

Like today, IESB tells us the character of Cover Girl has been cast, and that supermodel Karolina Kurkova will be taking on the role. Cover Girl? I never played with a hottie action figure! Actually, it's probably a good thing I didn't, what with the whole ... ya know ... growing up thing. Anyway, Cover Girl was apparently featured in the comics and the cartoon, and the character was actually a former fashion model who joined the army when she found her former life to be unfulfilling. Most of the info on her includes the many crushes guys had on her, as well as who she dated in what issue, etc ... -- so I imagine a lot of that will come into play in the movie. She'll probably be the hot Joe everyone wants to get with ... until one man (Duke?) eventually wins her over. My apologies to all the PC women out there, but this girl is absolutely smokin'! Check out more pics of her below ...

My goodness, it seems like everywhere you turn somebody else is signing up for the big-screen adaptation of G.I. Joe. Variety reports that Dennis Quaid has now signed to star as General Hawk. You know, your typical 'grizzled' military man. He's probably going to have a cigar chomped in his teeth for three-quarters of the film. The news came on the heels of official word that Channing Tatum had been hired to play Duke; the second in command of the elite team with 'kung-fu grip'. Yesterday, Erik had also reported that Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy) will be playing Zartan, but so far there is no official word.

It looks like Quaid is technically one of the biggest name stars in the cast, which includes Marlon Wayans as Ripcord and Sienna Miller as The Baroness. Some of the other 'Joe' characters who will be making an appearance are Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who will play Heavy Duty, Byung-hun Lee as Storm shadow, Ray Park as Snake Eyes, and Said Taghmaoui as Breaker.

So far, there aren't many details about the plot, but what we do know is that Stuart Beattie's script will focus on "A European-based military unit known as Global Integrated Joint Operating Entity (G.I.J.O.E.), a hi-tech, international force of special operatives that takes on an evil organization led by a notorious arms dealer". There are still a few more spots to fill, but it looks like director Stephen Sommers has almost finished assembling his team. Just in time too, since the film is scheduled to start shooting next month. G.I. Joe is scheduled for release on August 7th, 2009.

UPDATE: IESB now says that David Murray (a theater actor, apparently) has landed the role of Destro in G.I. Joe. Destro is the main villain in the film, and is described as the "faceless power behind Military Armaments Research System, the largest manufacturer of state-of-the-art weaponry."

The ensemble cast for the highly-anticipated live-action G.I. Joe flick is starting to come together, and IESB reports that Arnold Vosloo has just landed the role of Zartan in the film, who's described as a "mercenary who works with Destro and Cobra. He is one of the main villains in the G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero comic and animated series." The name might not automatically ring a bell, however you should remember Vosloo from his role as High Priest Imhotep (aka The Mummy) in The Mummy and The Mummy Returns. He's also starred in a number of films; most recently as Colonel Coetzee in Blood Diamond. Vosloo joins Sienna Miller (The Baroness), Ray Park (Snake Eyes), Marlon Wayans (Ripcord), Channing Tatum (Duke), Byung-hun Lee (Storm Shadow), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Heavy Duty), Rachel Nichols (Scarlett), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Rex) and Said Taghmaoui (Breaker) in the film, which will be directed by Stephen Sommers (The Mummy) and is due out August 7, 2009.

I'm not very familiar with Zartan, but IESB says the character is "a bit of a chameleon and can imitate anyone to an exact physical and vocal likeness. In the cartoon and comics his chameleon-like abilities were done through a mix of holograms, illusions and hypnosis. Zartan is also fluent in twenty languages and dialects, a ventriloquist, an expert martial artist, master archer and the leader of the biker gang known as the Dreadnoks who also suffers from Paranoid Schizophrenia and Multiple Personality Disorder." I imagine this casting choice came from Sommers himself, who's worked with Vosloo on both Mummy films. The guy was creepy as all hell in those films, so I imagine he'll fit in well here. What do you think?

Well, it looks like we might finally have our next Real American Hero. Ain't it Cool News is reporting that Channing Tatum (star of She's the Man and Step Up) has signed to play Duke in the feature film version of Hasbro's iconic military men, G.I. Joe. News that Tatum was in the running for the part first sprung up on Latino Review, but AICN claims that they now have word that it's a done deal and Tatum will be playing the second in command for Team Joe.

G.I. Joe will be directed by The Mummy's Stephen Sommers, and while some of the details have been tinkered with ever so slightly in Stuart Beattie's script, for the most part it looks like fans will be getting the Joes they know and love. Just last week, some plot spoilers were leaked, so if you can't wait, you can check that out here. So far, the cast includes Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (LOST), Said Taghmaoui (The Kite Runner), Sienna Miller as The Baroness, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Marlon Wayans -- and I don't think I'm alone in thinking that this is one eclectic cast to say the least.

If it's true, this will be a big role for Tatum, who so far has starred in some pretty crappy teen fare. Tatum's career is on an upswing lately, and has the upcoming Iraq drama Stop Loss hitting theaters this year, as well as a role in Michael Mann's Dillinger film, Public Enemies, with Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. G.I. Joe is set to start shooting in Los Angeles in the next month, so we should get some official word soon.

We already told you about IESB's little chat with producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, but that chat also included a bunch of tidbits regarding the upcoming G.I. Joe flick. (Side note: Does anyone really care about this film? Yeah, I loved the action figures and all, but I'm not excited about this for some reason. Maybe the 2008 hype machine has finally worn me down?) Lots of stuff is talked about, including the decision to cast Marlan Wayans in the role of Ripcord. Bonaventura says, " A lot of people are fans of his from the comedic point of view obviously for all the right reasons, but what I think everybody forgets about is how damn good he was in Requiem for a Dream as an actor. And, when we were trying to figure out who would be the right element to make this combination work of Duke as the leader and Ripcord as the best friend who sorta gets Duke in trouble all the time and Duke has to bail him out all the time and have fun with him, we needed a guy who's gonna be funny and we needed a guy who was going to be a good actor."

On when we'll be hearing who was cast as Destro: "Within the next two weeks, I will comfortably tell you that. We don't have a guy chosen, we have the list down to about 4 or 5. All of them are of the English, Irish, Scottish persuasion shall we say." Same goes for the casting of Zartan, as well as Hawk. They then talked a bit about story, which Bonaventura described via this interesting analogy: "If you would you say the original GI Joe movie was like the original Batman movie with Jack Nicholson then I would say this is like Batman Begins." You can head on over to IESB to read more from their interview with Bonaventura; G.I. Joe is currently scheduled to arrive in theaters in August of 2009.