andPOP » sequel

Blue Crush 2: Interview

Christian Allaire — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 19:57:57 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

‘Blue Crush 2,’ the highly anticipated sequel to the 2002 smash ‘Blue Crush’ starring Kate Bosworth and Michelle Rodriguez, was released on June 7 and I had the pleasure of sitting down with some of the cast and the director.

I meet Sasha Jackson and Ben Milliken, two of the film’s stars, and director Mike Elliot at ‘Hotel Le Germaine’ in Toronto. It’s clear they’re doing well for themselves, I mean, the hotel is swanky.

The first thing I tell them is that the movie actually surprised me – it was fun and, unlike many sequels, not horrible.

“Did you like it? Because we haven’t seen it yet,” says Jackson.

That must drive you crazy, I say. Imagine yourself being recorded and broadcast to a global audience without approving it. Terrifying right? To make matters worse, Jackson says she can’t stand to watch herself on screen.

“I don’t watch it as it’s me, I never have. But I will notice when I look like, ugly in a scene,” says Jackson. “I’m not good of an actress.”

Jackson has no reason to be tough on herself, though. The budding actress has appeared in everything from ‘One Tree Hill’ to larger film roles that are in the works.

Milliken, though, seems a little less used to fame. Well, at least according to director Elliot, who jokingly berates him for admitting he’s married. “Ben, you’re not supposed to let the little girls out there know that you’re married. The fantasy has to be maintained.”

“I’m terrible at this whole thing,” Milliken says.

As we continue the chat, Jackson admits that she had never been on a surfboard before the film and found it rather difficult to shoot the scenes she did.

“Every time you see me stand up and come off the board, that’s me. Not fall off the board, but [laughs] yes. Every time you see me fall and nearly die, that’s me.”

You can thank her stunt double, Rosy Hudge, for making her look like a pro surfer. In fact, the two look so alike that Jackson’s then-boyfriend mistook her for Sasha while filming, hugging her from behind. Talk about awkward.

Milliken says he’s been surfing his whole life, though (he grew up on Sydney’s northern beaches), which is funny as he only has one surfing scene in the film. Is he mad he couldn’t do more? You bet.

“It would have been fun to surf more, but I was doing as much actual surfing as everyone else,” says Milliken.

“Yes, he did get in the water a lot, it just wasn’t in the movie,” says Jackson.

I turn my attention to the director, Elliot. With a long resume including films like ‘The Eye,’ ‘Death Race 2,’ and ‘The Devil’s Rejects,’ a surfer movie seems a little out of place. What’s it like jumping from action and horror to a fun sport movie?

“Well, it’s all really pretty formulaic. What we do is take the bullets and the blood, and switch it out for bikinis and babes. And then just put it all in the same storyline, and set in on a beach instead of a race track or hell hole or something.”

As we end our short chat, our conversation is increasingly drowned out by the sound of nearby police sirens. Gotta love the city.

Not missing a beat, Jackson says “meanwhile, the police are coming to get us and we have been discovered… Kate Bosworth is actually gagged back there, because she nearly booked this role and she keeps trying to go to press about it, and I’m like ‘listen, Kate Bosworth, you can’t. What is this?’”

Movie Review: The Hangover II

Christian Allaire — Thu, 26 May 2011 19:58:09 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

So I decided to check out “The Hangover II,’ the widely-anticipated sequel to the original box office smash.

As hilarious as the first movie was, I didn’t have high hopes for this film. Sequels are never as good as the originals, and in this case, I predicted that the film would be the exact same format and journey the ‘Wolfpack’ took in the first film. I was correct.

Let’s get the plot out of the way, though. This time around, right after the bachelor party in Las Vegas, Phil, Stu, Alan, and Doug jet to Thailand for Stu’s wedding. Stu’s plan for a subdued bachelor party, however, goes seriously awry when they wake up the next morning. In a hotel. In Bangkok.

Of course, out-of-this-world revelations are discovered throughout the movie, such as face tattoos and missing body parts. Funny things happen. People die. But the film is almost exactly the same as the first; they wake up, someone is missing, they try to find him, then funny things happen. The end.

The film tends to push the envelope even further this time around (I won’t give anything away, but it’s definitely up there in shock-factor.) I will say the movie definitely delivers on that front, providing even more shocking and crazy situations. But aside the shocking moment or two, the film really is the same bag of tricks at the first one.

I know, I know, what did I expect from the flick? An oscar-worthy plot line? But they could have at least come up with some new material. Hey, it if it worked the first time, I guess they’ll keep milking it while they can.

Of course, Zach Galifianakis’ character Alan saves the film with his off-beat humour and very, very stupid comments. He is worth the price of admission alone.

So if you’re looking for a good laugh or to be entertained, by all means see the film. It’s a great movie to see with your friends. But don’t expect to be blown away or to laugh harder than the first film, because you won’t.

In fact, you’ll laugh less, unless you’re the kind of person who can watch something 80,000 times and laugh at it every time. I give the movie 3 out of 5 stars, just because it made me laugh a few times and delivered what I expected it to.

‘Anchorman 2′ Unlikely To Happen

andPOP Staff — Tue, 03 May 2011 14:59:40 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Will Ferrell broke the bad news that “Anchorman 2″ is unlikely to ever happen. Ferrell told Entertainment Weekly that the studio is not loving the idea, despite the enthusiasm of the cast.

“Well, you know, yeah, it’s a little peculiar,” Ferrell, 43, told EW. “On the one hand, [we were] being begged to do a sequel for such a long time, and then we finally came up with a concept that we liked, we talked to all the guys, and everyone was up for it. And then to get the reaction we got, yeah, it’s slightly puzzling to us. But you know what? It’s also their money. They get to do or not do whatever they want. So we’ll see. We’re still going back and forth. Maybe there is a solution. Or, I know in talking to [co-writer/director Adam McKay], if it never happens, then it never happens. And that’s fine, too. So we’ll just see.”

No doubt “Anchorman” was funny, but do you think it really needs a sequel? Is there really anything to build on?

James Cameron Talks Avatar Sequels

Megan MacKay — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 23:07:03 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

James Cameron

It looks like the next Avatar movie may see the light of day as early as 2014!

Cameron is in the process of writing the next two movies and reports that he is “planning to shoot them together and post them together.” This means both movies will be done at the same time, but their releases will be staggered for around Christmas 2014 and 2015.

Cameron also divulged that all of the characters from the first movie would most likely appear in the upcoming films. “Basically, if you survived the first film, you get to be in the second film, at least in some form,” he explained.

Fox has partnered with the director to donate a large chunk of the movie’s profits to environmental causes.

The first film was basically the plot of Pocahontas, so we can’t wait to see what Disney movie Cameron rips off next! We’ve got our fingers crossed for a blue-ified High School Musical or Old Yeller!

‘Nightmare on Elm Street’ 3D Sequel Coming

Sara Harowitz — Tue, 04 May 2010 18:42:15 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Freddy’s coming. Again.

The first remake has been out less than two weeks and they’re already planning its sequel.

According to PerezHilton, the Warner/New Line’s remake of the classic horror film Nightmare on Elm Street (that was just released on April 30) has already got the go-ahead for a 3D sequel.

Warner distribution president Dan Fellman said, “We don’t have a story yet, but this is the largest horror opening in the April-May corridor, and it just proves there’s a lot left in the franchise.”

Don’t fall asleep!

Zoolander Sequel Denied By Paramount

Sara Harowitz — Tue, 04 May 2010 16:30:36 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

The strangest part about this news is that it comes to me as I sit in my living room, watching the original Zoolander.

Did anyone even know a sequel was a possibility?

Regardless, perezhilton.com reports that a Zoolander sequel has been axed by Paramount Pictures. Turns out the studio does not want to fund the film, and apparently it’s not just Derek Zoolander that is not feeling the love.

Ben Stiller, the Blue Steel man himself, took to his Twitter account to break the news, tweeting: “Ron Burgundy and Derek Zoolander looking to appear in sequels. Both men destitute, without means or intellect to fund their own comebacks.”

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m more saddened by the refusal to fund a second Anchorman. Afternoon delight!

Sex and the City Cast Missing Kim Cattrall

Angelina Irinici — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 04:36:43 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

The glamorous women of Sex and the City jetted to Las Vegas last night – well all of them, but one. Sarah Jessica Parker, Kristin David and Cynthia Nixon were all in Sin City to accept the honour of winning this year’s Ensemble Award at ShowWest, a movie industry convention, but Kim Cattrall was nowhere to be found, according to E! Online.

This time, it is not because of gossip or a feud, she was simply busy starring in a West End production of Noel Coward’s play Private Lives, in London.

The girls joked about her absence, and expressed their fondness to the smokin’ 53-year-old actress.

“We don’t like her, so she’s gone,” Parke joked backstage. “We’ve actually been emailing with her for the last three or four hours. The next time you see us, we will be complete.”

Nixon added, “We miss her.”

Davis was there to set the record straight about yet another recent tabloid of the cast catfighting. “I want to clear this up,” she said, “I promise I have never made Kim eat alone in a restaurant!”

Fans are extremely eager for plot and storyline details for the upcoming sequel, but the cast stayed tightlipped, letting very little out. However, they did dish about a location switch – from glamorous New York City to not-so-glamorous North Africa.

“We happened to be staying at a hotel that had no electricity and no indoor plumbing,” Davis said. “We always had to run out to trailers to go to the bathroom.”

Much different than shopping on Fifth Avenue.

Parker added, “We were drinking so much mint tea, but it was a real dilemma: Do you hydrate or do you pee less?”

The much-anticipated sequel is released at the end of May, and fans are already hoping for a third. Although no decision has been made, Nixon cracked, “We’re going to do Sex in Space.”

All we can do is cross our fingers.

James Cameron speaks on ‘Avatar’ Sequel

Angelina Irinici — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 18:41:43 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

“Titanic” didn’t get a sequel, but Canadian writer/director James Cameron talks of a sequel for his monster 3-D box-office hit “Avatar”. MTV News reports that earlier this month News Corp’s bigwig Rupert Murdoach announced that Fox had “very early talks” about a sequel. Avatar became the highest-grossing movie in the U.S. box-office history, beating out “Titanic”, another James Cameron directed film.

Cameron told MTV News that there are still a few kinks that need to be smoothed out before complete commitment to a sequel of the sci-fi love story.

“I’ve got some deal hurdles I got to get over with the studio before I want to emotionally embrace that,” said Cameron.

That being said, fans can still get ready for more of the world of Pandora. Cameron declined to talk about what obstacles stood in the way, not compensation-related, he assured, but said all parties involved in making the film expect a deal to be signed eventually.

“[Sequel details have] never properly been worked out, let me put it that way,” he said. “But everyone’s highly motivated. Rupert Murdoch told us we were doing it, so now they have to make a deal.”

The sequel would pick up after the ending of the film which is set in the year 2154, when humans are mining a precious mineral on Pandora’s land which threatens the local tribe Na’vi – a humanoid species indigenous to Pandora. Like most tales, a love story takes place to add more complication and romance to the plot.

“It would be a continuation of their story and I expect that those nasty humans didn’t go away forever: ‘Oh, well that didn’t work!’ ” he said.

The film has been in the works since 1994, when Cameron began writing an 80-page script intended for the box-office hit. If you are wondering what Cameron was up to in between his Titanic days in 1997, to Avatar in 2009, he hadn’t fallen out of the game completely. He spent those years creating documentaries and co-developing the 3-D Fusion Camera System.

Keeping with his secretive nature, Cameron won’t say whether a second Avatar will be his next directing job for a feature film. He is working on many other projects including “Sanctum,” a 3-D underwater cave-diving story shot in Australia.

“I’m sort of reacquainting with a bunch of projects that are non-theatrical film projects, like space stuff and ocean stuff,” Cameron said. “But yeah, I’m thinking about what the next feature will be and another Avatar film is a strong possibility.”

Sequel To Transformers Hits $300 Million Mark

Ilan Mester — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 15:39:01 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Critics may have given thumbs down to “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” but that sure isn’t stopping fans from watching the action flick on the silver screen.

After just 14 days in theatres, the sequel to the highly successful “Transformers” raked in an impressive $300 million in U.S. ticket sales, making it second to last summers blockbuster hit “The Dark Knight” in terms of box office figures.

The first film — starring Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox — grossed $319.2 million domestically during its entire time in theatres and $700 million worldwide.

Meanwhile, “Revenge of the Fallen” has already raked in $600 million internationally since its June 24 release, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com.

Needless to say director Michael Bay is ecstatic over his movie that’s explosive both on screen and with the audience.

Diddy To Star In Sarah Marshall Spin-Off

Eva Lam — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 17:26:56 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Sean “Diddy” Combs has been cast in the spin-off to the 2008 comedy “Forgetting Sarah Marshall.”

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the producer/rapper will play a record label executive in “Get Him to the Greek,” which sees the return of “Sarah Marshall” director/co-writer Nicholas Stoller and producer Judd Apatow.

Also back is Russell Brand, who will reprise his role as out-of-control rocker Aldous Snow. Rose Bryne (“Knowing,” TV’s “Damages”) will play Snow’s latest love interest, an equally wild pop star named Jackie Q.

The cast is rounded out by Jonah Hill, who will play a record-company intern hired to get Snow from London to a gig at Los Angeles’ Greek Theatre, and Elizabeth Moss (TV’s “Mad Men”), who will play the uptight girlfriend of Hill’s character.

Shooting is scheduled to begin shortly for an April 2010 release.

Maggie Gyllenhaal Cast In Nanny McPhee Sequel

Eva Lam — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 17:04:28 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

“Dark Knight” actress Maggie Gyllenhaal is set to star opposite Emma Thompson in the “Nanny McPhee” sequel, according to Production Weekly.

The movie, tentatively titled “Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang,” will see Thompson reprise her role as the magical nanny, although there is no word yet as to what role Gyllenhaal will play.

According to Thompson, the sequel will be markedly different from the 2005 original, which took in $122 million at the worldwide box office. “It’s not a sequel, actually, it’s a new story,” she told MTV in November. “(The second film) is set one hundred years later; the only thing that is the same is Nanny McPhee.”

Thompson, who penned the screenplay for the first McPhee movie, once again helped to write the second story. According to the Oscar winner, the new movie takes place in wartime and follows the nanny as she deals with two “extremely different” families, one with country children and the other with town children.

Filming is slated to begin next month in England.

Gyllenhaal, whose other film credits include “Secretary” and “Mona Lisa Smile,” has two movies coming out this year, the indie pic “Away We Go” and the music-based drama “Crazy Heart.”

‘Sex And The City’ Sequel Gets Release Date

Eva Lam — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 03:47:57 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Mark your calendars, “Sex and the City” fans – the sequel to last summer’s hit TV show adaptation will arrive in theatres on May 28, 2010.

Variety reports that all four stars – Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon – will return, along with writer-director Michael Patrick King.

Although plot details have yet to be released, Parker told MTV News in November that fans shouldn’t expect to see Carrie sporting a baby bump underneath her high-fashion threads. “[Motherhood] doesn’t seem as if that’s going to be a choice she’ll make,” she said. “It feels a little bit manipulative to toss that into the mix because she seems so pointed in a different direction.”

The sequel’s release date mirrors that of the first movie, which hit theatres on the same weekend last year (May 30). It went on to pull in $412.6 million at the worldwide box office, a whooping amount for an R-rated romantic comedy.

The only other movie currently scheduled to open against the sequel is the action fantasy “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton.

‘Dazed And Confused’ Sequel In The Works

Joelle Tomlinson — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 19:42:16 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Sixteen years after “Dazed and Confused” put Matthew McConaughey on the map as the stoner-sage David Wooderson and became the gold standard of high school nostalgia comedies, writer-director Richard Linklater has written a “spritual sequel,” reports ew.com.

The story follows a group of lost boys and girls during their first weekend of college in 1980. The untitled project isn’t literally spiritual or a sequel, strictly speaking — sadly, none of the characters from the first movie will be featured in this one. But, like “Dazed,” it attempts to capture an iconic and infinitely confusing moment in a person’s life by following an ensemble of different characters through a short period of time. Much of the action takes place among the members of a college baseball team.

According to ew.com, they have learned that Linklater has completed the script and has been spending the past few months trying to drum up funding for the project.

“It’s tough, man,” said Linklater, whose most recent film, “Me and Orson Welles”, has yet to find a distributor. “Unless it’s a tentpole, sequel, remake, or over-the-top comedy, that’s all the studios are even doing. They’ve kind of admitted they’re not in the business of doing anything else. The slightest level of irony or intelligence and, boom, you’re out of the league, you’re done.”

‘Lara Croft’ Minus Angelina Jolie

Ilan Mester — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 01:00:58 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

E! Online reported Warner Bros. has confirmed plans for a third “Tomb Raider” movie, which would feature changes for its leading character, Lara Croft according to the Hollywood Reporter. These changes will include the main character’s origin story as well as new missions, villains and love interests.

But the most notable change is a new Lara Croft. Producers have said they have not yet selected the new leading lady because they are waiting for a writer and a director to sign onto the project.

Although “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider” and “Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life,” its sequel, were both produced by Paramount Pictures, Eidos has obtained the rights to its video game.

The first “Tomb Raider” film scored big at the box office in 2001, earning $275 million worldwide. The sequel however did not gross as high, but managed to pull in an impressive $157 million. Meanwhile the video game series has made more than $1 billion since its release in 1996.

‘New Moon’ To Be Finished By 2009 – Hopefully

Ilan Mester — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 23:39:35 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

“Twilight” director Catherine Hardwicke, who recently broke the record for the largest opening by a female filmmaker, says that the first step for a ‘Twilight’ sequel is making sure everyone is on the same page.

“Well, right now we’re trying to figure out if the studio people, and me, and everyone’s on the same page,” Hardwicke told MTV News, “I want to do ['New Moon'] better than we did ‘Twilight,’ and do it really cool. I definitely don’t want to do it as something just tossed off, like a ‘Saw II’ or something like that.”

Hardwicke said “New Moon” could be finished by the end of 2009 or beginning of 2010. “Cameras could be rolling in about five moths,” Hardwicke explained to MTV News. “We spent about a year and three months getting ['Twilight'] ready, between writing the script and casting. We could probably do things a little bit faster this time, but who knows? It depends.”

The director also revealed to MTV News a draft has already been made by “Twilight” screenplay writer Melissa Rosenberg, “There’s a draft, but then of course, you do more than one version of the script. You work on it. You try to bring it to life”.

Possible ‘Sex And The City’ Sequel

Ilan Mester — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 01:16:26 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

The “Sex And The City” movie broke box-office records by becoming the biggest romantic-comedy opening of all time, but is there another one in store for Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte? The answer is maybe.

When asked by MTV News if a “Sex And The City” sequel is a possibility, Sarah Jessica Parker said, “We are talking about it. We’ve had very general conversations about the idea. That’s the big hurdle: the idea. The studio is very enthusiastic, which is lovely and seductive. We’re at the place where [writer/director] Michael [Patrick King] has a wealth of stories so now it’s, ‘We think we have this story and how do we put this together and are we completely sure that it’s the right thing to do?’ ”

As for a shooting date for the sequel, Parker told MTV News next summer could be a possibility, “I think it’s a realistic timetable. That’s when we’d start shooting to be out in 2010. But that means we need to figure this out in the next couple of months.”

‘Sarah Marshall’ Sequel Planned, Starring Russell Brand

andPOP Staff — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 02:54:54 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Forget Sarah Marshall – it’s all about Russell Brand.

A sequel to Jason Segal’s hit comedy is in the works, which would centre around Brand’s obnoxious rock star character, Aldous Snow.

UK website Chortle reports that Segal and Sarah Marshall herself, Kristen Bell, have been approached but nothing has been confirmed. Jonah Hill, however, would be back, “a wet-behind-the-ears insurance adjuster instructed to ensure Brand’s wildman gets to a gig.”

‘Iron Man 2′ Already Has Release Date

andPOP Staff — Tue, 06 May 2008 03:04:10 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

The people behind “Iron Man” certainly are efficient. A sequel to this weekend’s box office smash already has a release date: April 30, 2010.

Not all of the details are ironed out yet, however. It’s unclear as to what members of the cast will be back and what the plot will be.

“Iron Man” isn’t the only franchise Marvel is excited about. Its film adaptation of “The Avengers” is set for a July 2011 release.

Until they, they have such heavy hitters as “The Incredible Hulk,” Punisher: War Zone,” and”X-Men Origins: Wolverine” to keep the money rolling in.

“Iron Man” has already made more than $200 million worldwide.

Anne Rice Resurrecting Vampire Chronicles

andPOP Staff — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 11:00:58 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

You can’t keep the un-dead down for long.

In an interview with TIME magazine, Anne Rice announced plans to resurrect the Vampire Chronicles series for one final instalment.

Fans were heartbroken when Rice, once an atheist, returned to church in 2005 and decided she would only write novels about the Lord. In fact, she told Christianity Today that “”I would never go back, not even if they say you will be financially ruined. I would be a fool for all eternity to turn my back on God like that.”

Strong words, and Rice has justified her change of heart, saying that the book will have a heavy Christian influence, including a focus on the idea of redemption.

However, it will take a while to breathe life back into Lestat. Rice plans to write another book about the Lord before sinking her teeth into the Vampire sequel.

Ann Rice Resurrecting Vampire Chronicles

andPOP Staff — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 10:42:45 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

You can’t keep the un-dead down for long.

In an interview with TIME magazine, Anne Rice announced plans to resurrect the Vampire Chronicles series for one final instalment.

Fans were heartbroken when Rice, once an atheist, returned to church in 2005 and decided she would only write novels about the Lord. In fact, she told Christianity Today that “I would never go back, not even if they say you will be financially ruined. I would be a fool for all eternity to turn my back on God like that.”

Strong words, and Rice has justified her change of heart, saying that the book will have a heavy Christian influence, including a focus on the idea of redemption.

However, it will take a while to breathe life back into Lestat. Rice plans to write another book about the Lord before sinking her teeth into the Vampire sequel.