The Green Hornet Tagged Articles at Cinematical

It was almost two years ago that we got a glimpse of a trailer for Jay and Seth vs The Apocalypse, starring Seth Rogen and Jay Baruchel as two guys trapped together Odd Couple-style after an apocalyptic event. As it turned out, the whole thing was a calling card for the two comedians in hopes of landing a deal for the film, and thanks to Baruchel's and Rogen's ability to work their way up the Hollywood food chain, it worked. Mandate Pictures secured the rights last year, and now Baruchel has begun to hint at a start date. During an interview with MTV Baruchel told them, "'Jay and Seth' will at the very least happen in the next year and a half for sure,"

Baruchel also went on to say that Rogen and writing partner Evan Goldberg were already at work on the script. As part of their deal with Mandate, they even have final say on the story. But before you get too excited, keep in mind that Rogen still has to complete work on The Green Hornet and then it is going to be a toss-up between Jay and Seth and Baruchel's hockey flick, The Goon. As to be expected, Baruchel was relatively non-committal about which project would go in front of the cameras first, saying, "Whichever one is closer to going, we'll do." I know which one I'm voting for, how about you?

After the jump; the trailer that started it all, and some of my favorite end of the world comedies...

So maybe I was a little late to the party, but over the weekend I finally caught a screening of Observe and Report and as I wandered from the theater in a misanthropic haze, I began to wonder: Just how funny is Seth Rogen? Being hailed "the new hero of comedy" is a lot of pressure for anyone -- and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I don't like the guy; I know he's a great writer and a whiz at improv, but after getting a load of the darker side of Rogen's range as Ronnie Barnhardt I was kind of happy to see that maybe he wasn't the soft and fuzzy stoner (not to mention one-note wonder) that Hollywood would like us to believe.

Think back to 1999 when Rogen made his acting debut in Judd Apatow's Freaks and Geeks as the acid tongued 'freak', Ken Miller; it was a role that was perfect for Rogen's sarcastic laid back style, and he's been doing a variation of it ever since. Whether it was Cal from 40 Year Old Virgin, Ben in Knocked Up, or Zack Brown in Zack and Miri Make a Porno, each character wasn't necessarily someone you wanted to bring home to Mom, but they charmed audiences nonetheless. Sure they were all kind of jerks, but they were all loveable jerks, and more importantly they were relatively 'toothless' when it came to their bad behavior -- compared to Ronnie, Officer Michaels was practically a choirboy.

I read a story earlier (forget where exactly it was) that Seth Rogen needed oxygen after rehearsing an action scene for The Green Hornet -- and as a recovering fat kid, I totally gained more respect for this dude because, let's face it, he's not exactly the ideal action star, but he's losing weight, busting ass and risking his health to bring us a superhero flick unlike any we've seen before.

In a new interview with Moviefone, Rogen talks up his voice role in Monsters vs. Aliens, as well as several other projects he has on his plate -- like Observe and Report, this summer's Funny People and, of course, The Green Hornet (which hits theaters next summer). Regarding the latter, Rogen says, "Me and Evan [Goldberg] have thought, in our writing, we'd be able to reinvent a lot of the conventions of how these superhero movies generally go -- but we want to be sure that in the visual look of the movie we'd be able to do the same thing, and having a guy like Michel Gondry pretty much guarantees that we'll be able to do that. In my head, he's kind of an unmatched visualist. He conceives of things that aren't even on other people's radars. So it's exciting."

Rogen also made a pretty interesting observation when it came to his character's past in the upcoming dark comedy Observe and Report. He notes, "Actually, after watching Observe and Report again recently, I feel like that character in a way could be a continuation of Ken from Freaks and Geeks. I do. It wouldn't surprise me if he ended up like that." Check out the rest of the interview over at Moviefone, and read about Rogen's Playboy cover, his fear of Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, his contributions to Sacha Baron Cohen's Bruno and more.

For some, Michel Gondry's addition to The Green Hornet was a breath of fresh air to an increasingly stale project. To others, it was yet another cause of worry. It's a fair fear -- Gondry certainly hasn't established himself as an action director -- but it's one that might be quelled soon. In a talk with MTV, Seth Rogen said that Gondry whipped up an action scene on his own dime to get the gig, showing off "some of the weird filming techniques he has and some of the stuff he can pull off. I mean, this is something he did in two days and it was instantly unlike anything you've ever seen before." Yeah, Rogen needs to talk up his pet project, but we are talking about the man who solved a Rubik's Cube with his nose. I don't think we can give up hope quite yet.

Next up: Scott Evil is reuniting with his mom! The Hollywood Reporter has posted that Seth Green will star in Disney's Mars Needs Moms, which was brewing eons ago, and he'll be joined by Austin Powers mom Mindy Sterling, as well as Dan Fogler and Joan Cusack. This is a Berkeley Breathed piece, so it will be performance-capture, detailing the adventures of a kid who stows away on a spaceship in order to rescue his mom from Martians. Green will be Milo, while Sterling will play the terrifying leader on Mars, Fogler will play Milo's friend, and Cusack will play the poor, abducted mom. Green's already using his voice lots with the likes of Robot Chicken and Family Guy, but could this foray into motion capture make him the next Andy Serkis?

For more ... hit the jump!

This just in: Production Weekly is reporting via their Twitter feed that Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Be Kind Rewind) is going to direct Seth Rogen in The Green Hornet. The Hollywood Reporter has also confirmed this, and Gondry's involvement is sure to take this much talked-about project to another, fantastical level.

The Green Hornet has been plagued by issues ever since Seth Rogen announced he'd be writing the screenplay with Superbad pal Evan Goldberg and starring as The Green Hornet too. In fact, Rogen's lost a lot of weight for the role so far, and looks to be in pretty good shape (did you see him at the Oscars?). Meanwhile, Stephen Chow had originally signed on to direct and play Green Hornet's sidekick Kato, but backed out due to him wanting to direct his own superhero movie -- but according to THR, he's still expected to take on the role of sidekick (and we hope he does).

Gondry, however, would bring his wild imagination to a property that could totally use it. Assuming no one else drops out, count me in as someone who's extremely excited to watch the end result.

Thoughts?

Seth Rogen's revival of The Green Hornet may not see the light of day. You remember, of course, that Stephen Chow left the director's chair. It was then rumored that he might not even play Kato due to commitments to a Jack Black superhero comedy. Sony was hunting frantically for a director to make that spring shooting schedule, but no replacement has been found.

Now the usually reliable Drew McWeeny of HitFix is reporting what we have long suspected -- that you may be hearing the death knell of the Green Hornet. With Chow dropping out, Sony began to hesitate. Rumors flew at Sundance that the film was dead and McWeeny reports that if it isn't yet, it probably will be soon.

The Green Hornet has been in and out of development for years. George Clooney famously headed up one almost-but-not-quite attempt, as did Kevin Smith. McWeeney notes that "if this particular configuration doesn't happen, then I suspect it never will," which I have to agree with. If Rogen fails, he can at least take some pride that Clooney and Smith failed before him ... but it has to sting (pun not intended), especially after all that physical training he's put in. We'll watch and see what happens -- and I'll be curious if there's more cheering or weeping in the comments.

I have the sneaking suspicion that Seth Rogen's The Green Hornet remake may go the way of its failed predecessors. Over the weekend, Monika reported that Stephen Chow was no longer directing the film -- now comes the news that Chow may not remain as Kato, either.

Chow told the AP that he had abandoned directing the film in order to make a superhero comedy starring Jack Black. "If I direct The Green Hornet, the superhero comedy will have to be delayed for two years," Chow said. "The timing might not be right for a superhero comedy in two years. And I want to make a movie based on an original idea."

Presumably, directing Black might also interfere with his Kato-playing duties -- something Chow confirms by saying that continuing in the role depends on his schedule. If you're a conspiracy theorist, you can speculate away about whether Chow's really passionate about Black and original superhero comedy, or whether it's those vague "creative differences" reported earlier.

Judging from the comments, Rogen's Hornet isn't too popular anyway. I was unsure about the comedic angle the project was taking, but Chow's casting was something to hang your hopes on, particularly if they reined in his slapstick style. But maybe that's precisely what the "differences" are. Maybe they just need to quit forcing this one, and let the Hornet sit for the unforeseeable future?

Did you do a spit-take over the news that Seth Rogen was going to write himself a starring role in The Green Hornet, but then kinda rebounded when Stephen Chow became involved? If so, you might not like this bit of news.

Variety reports the film has lost Chow (of arse-kicking Kung-Fu Hustle fame) as director. Why? The dreaded creative differences. I was both puzzled and not very thrilled with the choice of Rogen, but have pretty much lost all hope if Chow isn't happy with the way things are going. There is the possibility that Chow is the one with the off-kilter vision, or that he just wanted to execute it all in a wacky way, but we're talking about Seth Rogen in a role once said to be filled by George Clooney. It just doesn't make sense.

Oh, but there's more ... Chow will still stay on the cast roster and play Kato to Rogen's Britt Reid. Is it contractual? The dream to hold a role once played by Bruce Lee? Simple disinterest in directing the feature? I don't know, but it all sounds like a big hornets nest to me. Can anyone out there actually imagine Rogen as The Green Hornet? And does anyone have high hopes for this?