kevin nealon Tagged Articles at Cinematical

So after Scott busted out with the classic trailer for the classic Alien, I thought it might be high time for something a little more low-brow and modern. Enter Aliens in the Attic (formerly They Came From Upstairs), a positively shrill-looking summer comedy in which a handful of kids must prevent a handful of extraterrestrials from dominating the world beyond their homestead...

Okay, so there's a premise there worthy of an '80s-family-adventure throwback, but clearly, priority one for the co-producer of Daddy Day Camp and the director of The Honeymooners here was having a break-dancing Hollister hand-me-down take on a kung-fu-fighting Doris Roberts.

Now I've got your attention, huh?

I'm not sure what else to say about that scene until you watch it for yourself, and even then, I'm not sure that words can do it justice. I mean, thank goodness they bothered to make it Just Like A Video Game for the characters and audience to connect with, but that doesn't quite excuse the goofiness of it. Maybe that means I should just be grateful above all else that on July 31st, everyone can hear you scream.

If you were wondering how a group of teens could find themselves partying alone in a Maine vacation home, and then have to fight off aliens who invade from upstairs, we have our answer. Ashley Tisdale's dad in They Came From Upstairs is going to be played by Doug Wilson, err -- Kevin Nealon, who has been co-starring on Weeds as the pot-smoking ex councilman Doug for a few years now. Of course, there's a chance that the teens are not alone, and that mom and pops are sleeping upstairs, but since they haven't been mentioned in previous news releases, I'm going to guess that the parents either went out for the night, or don't know where their rabble-rousing children are.

So yes, The Hollywood Reporter has posted that Nealon will play Tisdale's father, Stuart Pearson, while Gillian Vigman (Mad TV and one of the speed dating women from 40-Year-Old Virgin) has been cast as his wife and Ashley's mom. Since Tim Meadows already nabbed himself a role earlier this month, the adventure comedy will be a bit of a reunion for the SNL alumni. With these adults in place, you've got your comedy, and I guess the kids will provide the adventure. Now, if only we could hear something more about the film other than it being a comedy adventure about kids trying to defend a vacation home from aliens who invade from upstairs. Production is getting into gear, so maybe we'll hear soon.

Say what you want about Tom Arnold and all his personal nonsense, but the guy always finds a way to entertain me -- be it on screen or off. He's a jumpy actor -- kind of like Jimmy Fallon, who I mentioned earlier, but not as annoying -- and I've enjoyed him in a number of things, including True Lies and Happy Endings. Recently, Arnold has decided to go the indie route and take (what I assume is) less money for juicier roles. Stuff that's more dramatic and doesn't have him playing someone's wacky best friend. And how is that going for him?

Well, in 2006 he had one role as the voice of a character in something called Lolo's Cafe. In 2007, however, the guy has a whopping eight films lined up. Eight films! Did someone find a better agent, or what? Should we start calling 2007 "The Year of the Other Tom?" Heh, I like the way that sounds. Among the eight films we have the comedic thriller Remarkable Power, in which Arnold has just signed on to play a role. This is a bit confusing as IMDB already has the film in post-production -- did they add his role and begin re-shoots? Or was this a story that should have been written about six months ago, except The Hollywood Reporter just never got around to it? Regardless, pic revolves around a late-night talk show host who attempts to pull off some elaborate stunt in an effort to save his canceled show. When said stunt turns into murder, we see how it affects an eclectic group of Los Angeles locals whose lives intertwine as a result of the whole mess. Arnold will play some sort of private detective, and will star alongside folks like Kevin Nealon (remember him?), Evan Peters and Nora Zehetner.

How do you feel about Tom Arnold and the eight films he has coming out next year? Does he still have time to turn things around and get serious? Would you be able to watch him in a dramatic role and not chuckle once or twice?

LAPD-cop-turned-private-detective Anthony Pellicano was once "the go-to detective for information needed by lawyers and agents representing entertainment A-listers." (If we were more plugged in to the LA scene, we'd probably know what agents hire PIs to dig up. As it is, it just sounds seedy.) Things, however, have changed: yesterday, Pellicano pled guilty to a 110-count indictment that charged him with "organizing and masterminding a corrupt enterprise that allegedly wiretapped phones, entered private computers without authorization, committed wire fraud, bribery, identity theft and obstruction of justice." Based on evidence collected over the course of a three year investigation by the federal government, the man was very, very busy.

Among other things, Pellicano and his associates would both tap the phones of stars (including Sylvester Stallone, who is now going to kick Pellicano's ass, Rocky-style) and, with the help of an LAPD insider, access "confidential police records" to get dirt on the famous, including Garry Shandling and Kevin Nealon. Pellicano would then spring into action, "securing clients who were willing and able to pay large sums for the purpose of obtaining personal information of a confidential, embarrassing, or incriminating nature regarding other individuals." Basically, it was a huge network of scum, working together in a variety of ways.

Though the sentence has yet to be handed down, Pellicano - who is just finishing up an unrelated prison term (He was storing explosives in his office. Since when has that been a problem?!) - is not likely to go home any time soon.