RichardJenkins Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Julia Roberts' upcoming romance may have just gotten its best hope -- another rugged paramour. Variety reports that Javier Bardem is in negotiations to co-star in Roberts' pet project, Eat, Pray Love -- the Elizabeth Gilbert memoir that Ryan Murphy will direct.

The account follows Gilbert's post-marriage life. When she realized she didn't want to be married or have a kid, she got divorced and set off on a three-stop, year-long journey. Step one: widening the waistline in Italy while indulging in wonderful eats (I bet anything the waistline part will be forgotten). Step two: find her inner spiritual energy at an ashram in India. Step three: balance in Bali, where she slips into a love affair; enter Bardem, should he officially sign on.

It doesn't seem like the kind of fare worthy of Bardem's talents, but if there's one thing that Clive Owen has taught us, it's that Ms. Roberts does her best with a darker, rugged man. So, this could be a blessing for the film. (Then again, this is probably my inner Closer fan wishing that Julia would grab more fare like that and less chick fluff.) But just to make things even more titilating -- Richard Jenkins will play a Texan she befriends at the ashram, so it can't be all bad, can it?

Well, if you have to be embroiled in a destructive love triangle, being in one with Aaron Eckhart and Johnny Depp would definitely soften the blow ... sorry, I lost track of my thoughts there, I think I'll just take another moment to think it through -- there, all done. The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Eckhart is in negotiations to star alongside Depp and Amber Heard in the feature film version of Hunter S. Thompson's The Rum Diary. THR also reported that Richard Jenkins has officially signed to star as Depp's boss, Lotterman.

Depp plays the hard-drinking journalist named Paul Kemp (Depp), who moves from New York to work for the small newspaper, The Daily News, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The story is set in the late 1950s, and revolves around a twisted love story, plenty of violence and treachery, and because this is a Hunter S. Thompson story after all, "violent, alcoholic, lust". Well, when I think lust, Eckhart and Depp usually come to the top of the list, so I'm sold. Eckhart (if and when he signs) is expected to play Sanderson, "a wealthy landowner who believes everything has a price and introduces Kemp to a different standard of living" -- and who better than Eckhart to play the Golden Boy gone bad?

I have to admit, I'm a geek for all things Joss Whedon, so you can pretty much guarantee my interest in anything -- even if it is a tired horror cliché. Case in point: Whedon and Drew Goddard's (Cloverfield) horror-suspense, The Cabin in the Woods. The 'mystery-shrouded' project with MGM and UA has finally made their first honest to goodness casting announcement, but it is not who you might expect. The Hollywood Reporter has now confirmed that Richard Jenkins (Burn After Reading) is currently in talks to star alongside Bradley Whitford (star of the beloved political drama, The West Wing) in the suspense-horror.

Considering that the film is being made by the man responsible for Cloverfield, it shouldn't come as a surprise that most of the details about the story have been kept under wraps. What we do know about the flick, is that it will be a twist on the classic horror tale of 'sexy teens' stranded out in the woods -- and as someone who has been a long-time fan of Whedon, I know better than anybody that the guy knows how to do a 'variation on a theme'. Whedon wrote the script with Goddard (who will also direct), and Whedon will act as one of the producers for the film. In previous encounters with the press, Goddard said Cabin has, "...a harder and darker edge, but it's also got classic Whedon qualities. It'll rip your heart out and be heartfelt at the same time." -- Which will probably mark one of the few times in horror that we might actually give a damn about the folks being slaughtered before our eyes.

The Cabin in the Woods is scheduled for release on Feb. 5, 2010. Which is a far cry from an earlier promise of an October release, but when you are dealing with anything 'Whedonesque', a little patience doesn't just help; it's pretty much a requirement.

Just a month ago, we learned that Adrien Brody and Michael Chiklis were heading back to High School -- a rather unique comedy about a high school valedictorian (Matt Bush) who gets high with the school stoner (Sean Marquette), and then tries to use his smarts to get out of an upcoming drug test. Rather then messing with his own results, he schemes to get the entire school stoned to beat the system. Brody's the drug dealer, Chiklis is the principal, and now The Hollywood Reporter posts that Lisa Simpson, aka Yeardley Smith, will play a homeroom teacher while Luis Chavez (Crash) plays a druggie friend of the valedictorian.

Meanwhile, Variety reports that Navy NCIS actress Cote de Pablo is making the jump to the big screen with Scott Speedman's The Last Rites of Ransom Pride. The Calgary Herald describes it as "a violent ransom about a woman trying to bring her lover -- a murdered outlaw -- home for burial." I've no idea how this will turn out, but it's got an interesting cast that also includes the V-loving Lizzy Caplan (True Blood), Jason Priestley, Peter Dinklage, Kris Kristofferson, and Dwight Yoakam.

And Richard Jenkins is putting aside his Burn After Reading gym ways to board Lasse Halstrom's Dear John, according to Variety. More dramatic romance from Nicholas Sparks, the film will follow a soldier who falls for a conservative college student while on leave. There's no word on Jenkins' role.

And: CSI:NY's A.J. Buckley is entering Skateland.

There may not be much footage that we haven't already seen in either the original red-band trailer or the international teaser for the Coen brothers' Burn After Reading, but I noted enough bits and pieces to feel these two new videos worthy of sharing. Plus, for those of you who have a preference, George or Brad, you now have a trailer that fits you best. Personally, I'm hoping that the ladies, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swinton, get their own character-centric trailers. And while Focus Features is at it, how about individual spots for John Malkovich? Heck, give Richard Jenkins, J.K. Simmons and David Rasche each their own, too. I'm that excited about this movie that I want more, more, more.

Fortunately, we've only got about a month until Burn After Reading opens on September 12.

Anyone with more than a passing interest in Judd Apatow's career will note how there's a curious call-back to one of Apatow's earlier works in this most recent of his productions, with the credits for Step Brothers in the exact same scrawled, stretched-out font as his comedy Freaks and Geeks. Freaks and Geeks, though, featured teens who often spoke and acted like adults; Step Brothers features adults who constantly speak and act like children.

The credit-font's evocation of an earlier Apatow work is an omen for the rest of Step Brothers, in fact, with Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly recycling and amplifying their rivalry from Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (also directed by Step Brothers helmer Adam McKay) but without that film's plot structure, surreal wit or inspired mockery (and celebration) of NASCAR culture; instead, Step Brothers seems constructed -- or, rather, contrived -- solely to create a circumstance where Ferrell and Reilly can act like idiot man-children and riff to their great amusement. That, however, is not the same thing as riffing to the amusement of the audience. ...

College professors rule! Well, at least the one that Richard Jenkins plays so well in Tom McCarthy's The Visitor (Overture Films). The comedy-drama expanded to 18 theaters in its second week of release and averaged $9,055 per-screen to remain in the #1 position, according to estimates compiled by Box Office Mojo. Check the film's web site to see where it will be opening in the next couple of weeks (click on "in select theaters now").

Debuting indie films did not fare so well, judging strictly by per-screen averages, but it's notable that Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (Rocky Mountain Pictures), opened on more than 1,000 screens and made $2,997 per location for a total of more than $3 million for the weekend. The doc follows Ben Stein as he chases down Ferris Bueller ... oops, wrong movie! This one's about "intelligent design" in the classroom.

Opening on just one screen, Anamorph (IFC Films) grossed $3,000. Willem Dafoe stars as an NYPD detective investigating a serial killer. Critics were not kind: Anamorph scored just 28% positive at Rotten Tomatoes. David Hudson at GreenCine Daily rounds up pertinent quotes.

Two other holdovers did better as they expanded their runs. Young At Heart (Fox Searchlight), the "elderly folk chorus that sings modern rock songs" documentary, increased its theater count to 33 and averaged $4,393 per screen. Hou Hsiao-Hsien's gentle drama The Flight of the Red Balloon (IFC Films) proved its appeal beyond New York City, making $3,572 per-screen at 11 locations.