CHANNING TATUM IN "JUPITER ASCENDING" SF EPIC BY "MATRIX" HELMERS! READY FOR CHANNING TATUM, ALEX PETTYFER, MATT BOMER, JOE MANGANIELLO STRIPPING IN "MAGIC MIKE"? "BUTTON MAN" MOVIE ADAPTATION?

 I've reported last winter that beside finishing their sf epic CLOUD ATLAS, famous MATRIX authors Andy and Lana  Wachowski are preparing JUPITER ASCENDING , another sf epic. I've also told you back then that Channing Tatum was offered the lead role and now "MovieWeb" says that Channing has confirmed the gig. The film follows a poor Russian immigrant, whose genetic makeup is identical to the Queen of the Universe. The Queen dispatches a bounty hunter (Channing Tatum) to eliminate this potential threat to her role, but the assassin ends up falling for his target. The film, scheduled for 2014. could possibly have Mila Kunis in the lead female role if the rumours prove to be true. Before that Mila has to finish OZ THE GREAT AND POWERFUL in which she plays a witch.

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES

I swear I've never heard of him, but it seems we shall get a movie adaptation of the comic book hero BUTTON MAN. "Deadline" reports that DreamWorks

is negotiating with director Nicolas Winding Refn (DRIVE, BRONSON) to helm the pic. The plot sounds identical to Gerard Butler's GAMER: it follows Harry Exton, a hit-man who takes part in a game organized by a group of millionaires. The game pits trained killers against each other in a fight to the death, while the rich bet on them. The main character decides to opt of of the competition and he finds that the only way out is to kill them all. Refn was also mentioned as the possible helmer of the famous 70's classic LOGAN'S RUN sf remake.

READY FOR MAGIC MIKE?

Speaking of Channing Tatum, are my ladies and gay readers ready for the premiere of MAGIC MIKE this June 29th? It's very close, I bet

you can already feel the heat :) The film is directed by Steven Soderbergh and stars Channing Tatum (Dear John, Step Up) in a story inspired by his real life especially by his early stripping days. The 

film follows Mike (Tatum) as he takes a young dancer called The Kid (Alex Pettyfer) under his wing and schools him in the fine arts of

partying, picking up women, and making easy money. Beside Channing and Pettyfer, other Hollywood hunks which will be taking their clothes

off in the film include Joe Manganiello, Matthew McConaughey, Adam Rodriguez, Matthew Bomer... and there's also Olivia Munn for the boys.

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HOLLYWOOD SPY SPOTLIGHT ON "FOR GREATER GLORY" HISTORICAL EPIC WITH ANDY GARCIA, PETER O'TOOLE, EVA LONGORIA, CATALINA SANDINO MORENO, OSCAR ISAAC

One of the films I've mentioned a few times before is finally getting its premiere June 1st in American cinemas. In the summer filled with super heroes and dark

action and fantasy movies, FOR GREATER GLORY (originally titled CRISTIADA) is a welcomed change since it brings an epic tale from history teaching us how a fight for a right cause can always be inspiring. With a rather stunning selection of famous actors in the cast which includes eight times Oscar nominee Peter O'Toole, Andy Garcia, Eva Longoria, Bruce Greenwood, Nestor Carbonell,  Oscar nominee Catalina Sandino Moreno, Oscar Isaac, Eduardo Verastegui, Santiago Cabrera... the story of this stunning and touching epic drama revolves around the Cristeros War from the 1920's which started after a rebellion over the Mexican government's 1917 attempt to remove the influence of the Catholic Church and secularize the country.

 STORY OF THE GLORY

What price would you pay for freedom? In the exhilarating action epic FOR GREATER GLORY an impassioned group of men and women

each make the decision to risk it all for family, faith and the very future of their country, as the film's adventure unfolds against the long-hidden, true story of the 1920s Cristero War ­the daring people¹s revolt that rocked 20th Century North America. Academy Award nominee Andy Garcia headlines an acclaimed cast as General Gorostieta, the retired military man who at first thinks he has nothing personal at stake as he and his wife (Golden Globe winner Eva Longoria) watch Mexico fall into a violent civil war. Yet the man who hesitates in joining the cause will soon become the resistance's most inspiring and self-sacrificing leader,

as he begins to see the cost of religious persecution on his countrymen . . . and transforms a rag-tag band of rebels into a heroic force to be reckoned with. The General faces impossible odds against a powerful 

and ruthless government. Yet is those he meets on the journey ­ - youthful idealists, feisty renegades and, most of all, one remarkable teenager named Jose - ­ who reveal to him how courage and belief are forged even when justice seems lost.

GLORY TIDBITS

The film is directed by Dean Wright (in his directorial debut, he is known as a visual effects expert who worked on LORD OF THE RINGS 

and CHRONICLES OF NARNIA) and the music is composed by the best among the best - Oscar winning composer James Horner (TITANIC, AVATAR)!

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THRILLING TRAILER FOR "BRANDED" SF FILM! BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH, MICHAEL FASSBENDER IN "12 YEARS A SLAVE"! JOSH DUHAMEL & JULIANNE HOUGH IN "SAFE HEAVEN"

According to "Variety" the latest one to join epic drama 12 YEARS A SLAVE is Sherlock Holmes Benedict Cumberbatch who is currently busy shooting STAR TREK 2 as a villain.  Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender and Paul Dano are already in The cast of the story which follows a free

man living in New York during the mid-1800s who is kidnapped and sold into slavery in the deep south. He ends up on a plantation in Louisiana from which he will be rescued only 12 years later. Ejiofor plays the lead role, while Dano will be his slave owner. The film will be directed by famous Steve McQueen and produced by Brad Pitt (who may or may not star in it as well).

HOLLY WOOD SPY HEAD LINES

It's official, people, Josh Duhamel has taken the lead role in SAFE HEAVEN, a movie adaptation of Nicholas Sparks' novel, but the news is that his partner will be gorgeous Julianne Hough from ROCK OF AGES and FOOTLOSE. The film is an affirming and suspenseful story about a young woman's struggle to find love again after she arrives in a small North Carolina town. Her reluctance to join the tight-knit community raises questions about her past. Slowly, she

 begins putting down roots, and gains the courage to start a relationship with Alex, a widowed store owner with two young children. But dark secrets intrude on her new life with such terror that she is forced to rediscover the meaning of sacrifice and rely on the power of love in this deeply moving romantic thriller directed by amazing Lasse Hallstrom (CHOCOLAT, CIDER HOUSE RULES).

BRANDED DYSTOPIA

Now, here is a rather strange but extremely interesting trailer: the clip for BRANDED, a sf flick which hits cinemas this September starring Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor and Max von

 Sydow. After Misha skyrockets to the top of the advertising business, a tragic mishap on the set of one of his productions torpedoes his career and he retreats into self-imposed exile. Ten years later, Misha returns to a radically changed world and finds himself plagued by visions of bizarre and terrifying creatures with the ability to influence people’s thoughts, desires and actions. Creatures only he can see. He soon realizes the creatures are part of a clandestine campaign unleashed by a rival advertising agency to make “fat the new fabulous” and create a new era of uncontrolled consumer appetite. In order to save mankind, Misha uses his own considerable marketing skills to launch an ingenious plan to try to eradicate the plague. But the corporate legions will not go down without a fight.

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TRAILER FOR BBC'S EPIC SERIES "THE HOLLOW CROWN" WITH TOM HIDDLESTON, JEREMY IRONS, BEN WHISHAW, PATRICK STEWART! GEMMA ARTERTON WITH JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE & BEN AFFLECK IN "RUNNER RUNNER"! "EXPENDABLES", "STEP UP", "RED" TO BECOME TV SHOWS!

Online gambling flick RUNNER RUNNER is really getting a steamy cast: "Variety" writes that gorgeous British star Gemma Arterton (PRINCE OF PERSIA, DISAPPEARANCE OF ALICE CREED) has joined pop super star and praised actor Justin Timberlake and Ben Affleck in the story of a Princeton student (Justin Timberlake), who loses his tuition due to an online gaming addiction. He ends up becoming the sidekick to the site's corrupt boss. Gemma will play Justin's girlfriend! Gemma also has HANSEL AND GRETEL THE WITCH HUNTERS coming up next January next to Jeremy Renner.

 HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES

In short news: according to "Deadline" Lionsgate is planning to make

TV series out of a number of its hit films. The first three on the list of projects which might become TV shows are THE EXPENDABLES which followed old action stars in action again (the film version starred Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren...), STEP UP which followed young people competing in dance (the film made Channing Tatum famous and gave him his real life wife Jenna Dewan) and RED which also has old agents returning to do some agent business again (the film starred Helen Mirren, Bruce Willis, Karl Urban, John Malkovich)... It's also interesting that all of these films have either potential sequels in the work or those already made ones which will premiere this year.

BBC'S THE HOLLOW CROWN

Oh, people, here it is, here it is! The first trailer for long awaited BBC series THE HOLLOW CROWN or Shakespeare Unlocked, which is ready to air this summer! It is the NBC Universal's and BBC's project

on the TV adaptation of 4 of Shakespeare's major plays in the form of TV dramas with stunning casts and magnificent sets and costumes. The first one to be aired this summer on BBC is RICHARD II in which Ben Whishaw stars as the King, alongside a phenomenal cast including Rory Kinnear, Patrick Stewart, David Suchet, David Morrissey, Clemence Poesy as the queen, Lindsay Duncan and James Purefoy. The producer of this one and the other three dramas is famous director Sam Mendes. The second in the project will be HENRY IV, to be shot in two parts, with Jeremy Irons as King Henry IV in the drama 

directed by famous Richard Eyre. Tom Hiddleston is Prince Hal in the cast which also includes GAME OF THRONES Harry Lloyd. The last film in the series will be HENRY V in which Tom Hiddleston ascends to the throne to play the role of King Henry V, while Lamber Wilson will play the King of France with Julie Walters and Jon 

Hurt also in the cast. This one was be shot last year, after RICHARD II, while two parts of HENRY IV were shot this year. It is interesting that the production teams of all of these films include people who worked on classics such as THE PIANO, THE KING'S SPEECH,

CRANFORD, DOWTON ABBEY, THE QUEEN... The whole project is done to mark London 2012 Festival and The Cultural Olympiad on the BBC which coincides with the summer Olympics.

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TRAILER FOR "LES MISERABLES" WITH HUGH JACKMAN, RUSSELL CROWE, ANNE HATHAWAY! GONG LI IN TARSEM SINGH'S "MARCO POLO"! ZAC EFRON IN "THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU"! GILLIAN ANDERSON & RUFUS SEWELL IN "I'LL FOLLOW YOU DOWN"

Here's a new project with a rather rich cast: as "Variety" reports today, Adam Shankman's comedy drama THIS IS WHERE I LEAVE YOU, in which the story will follow a highly dysfunctional and non-religious family, who has to sit Shivah for seven days as a dying request from their father, has added a lot of new stars - Zac Efron, Leslie Mann (she's currently starring in GOOD CHRISTIAN BITCHES at ABC), Malin Akerman, Jason Bateman, Goldie Hawn, Jason Sudeikis ... The film is based on a novel by Jonathan Tropper. And according to "Deadline" Gillian Anderson has joined Victor Garber, Rufus Sewell, Haley Joel Osment in I'LL FOLLOW YOU DOWN. The story follows the wife of missing scientist Gabriel (Rufus Sewell), who disappeared during a business trip but years later the family finds out that their missing loved one might mysteriously still be alive. Haley Joel Osment will play the son and Victor Garber is the grandfather.

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES

After giving the world four visual masterpieces THE CELL, THE FALL, IMMORTALS and MIRROR MIRROR, it seems that we shall again see

Tarsem Singh's visual splendour in another epic. According to "Twitch" instead of doing a smaller film as he announced recently, Tarsem will do an oriental epic on MARCO POLO heading over to China. An American / Chinese co-production backed by Endgame Entertainment, Tarsem's next will be an English language period picture about the travels of Marco Polo to China. And while the actor who will play Polo himself has not yet been announced Screen International brings word that Gong Li (CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER) has been cast as the female lead. As I've reported earlier, Starz is also preparing a new TV show on MARCO POLO.

LES MISERABLES TRAILER

And here's something unexpected: the first rather spectacular trailer for Tom Hopper's (THE KING'S SPEECH) musical drama LES MISERABLES is here! Ready to battle with THE HOBBIT in cinemas

this December, the adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel follows prisoner Jean Valjean, who is released from prison and breaks parole to create a new life for himself while evading the grip of the persistent Inspector

Javert. Set in early 19th-century France, the story reaches resolution against the background of the July Revolution of 1832. One of the most starstudded casts ever includes Hugh Jackman as Valjean, Russell 

Crowe as Javert, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried and Helena Bonham Carter in female roles, young star Eddie Redmayne (BIRDSONG, PILLARS OF THE EARTH)...

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CRAZY TRAILER FOR "TAI CHI O" STEAM PUNK EPIC! BBC'S 'THE LADIES PARADISE"! LUC BESSON'S "MALAVITA" WITH ROBERT DE NIRO! RYAN MCPARTLIN IN "TOUCH" SPINOFF "DAYBREAK"

According to "Digital Spy" one of HOLLYWOOD SPY's fave TV hunks of all times, Ryan McPartlin (CHUCK, LIVING WITH FRAN) will take one of the lead roles in DAYBREAK, which is a  spin-off of

popular TV show TOUCH with Kiefer Sutherland.  Loosely connected to its parent series, it will also star Sarah Roemer (The Event) and Ryan Eggold (90210). DAYBREAK is described as "a series of online films... about the magic of technology and a global conspiracy to control an ancient and powerful object called a dodecahedron".

HOLLY WOOD SPY HEAD LINES

According to "MovieWeb" Relativity Media is developing two interesting new projects in cooperation with Luc Besson's EuropaCorp: MALAVITA, which follows the Manzonis, a mafia family that gets relocated to Normandy, France under a witness protection program with Robert de Niro in the lead role, and THREE DAYS TO KILL, which follows a Secret Service Agent who discovers he is dying and decides to retire in order to reconnect with his family. The Secret Service offers him access to an experimental drug that could save his life in

exchange for one last assignment. Meanwhile, "Deadline" reports that BBC has greenlit THE LADIES PARADISE, an eight episode series loosely based on an Emile Zola’s novel. Set in England’s first department store, the series tells the rags-to-riches story of Denise Lovett (Joanna Vanderham), a young girl who works in the store and gets caught up in the charms of the modern world. Denise is a 19th-century Working Girl – big-hearted, smarter than she’s taken to be and more ambitious than her pretty eyes suggest.

TAI CHI O TRAILER

Since it is a very slow week in the movie news department, my little freaks, the only new clip I have for you is a trailer for something that looks rather amusing and crazy: a clip for Chinese film TAI CHI O which mixes fantasy,

adventure, and steam punk which looks rather interesting in an Asian movie. The film by Stephen Fung, which will be released in USA in early 2013, follows an uncommonly gifted Yang Luchan who has a fleshy abnormality that holds tremendous power growing on his forehead. However, being teased as the town fool, Yang travels to the distant Chen Village to learn TAI CHI. At this legendary village everyone practices TAI CHI and uses TAI CHI in every aspect of their lives. Nevertheless, it is forbidden for a villager to disclose TAI CHI to an outsider, which Yang learns the hard way. Upon arriving at the village,

 locals discourage Yang by challenging him with fights. From the strong men to old ladies to children, everyone defeats Yang with their TAI CHI moves. After facing the toughest battle and being defeated by Master Chen’s beautiful daughter Yuniang, Yang is determined to master the art of TAI CHI and goes in search of Master Chen. Little does Yang know,

the poor strange man who he befriended is in fact Master Chen who had saved him from the duel with Yuniang. Master Chen realizes Yang’s genius and disguises himself to secretly guide Yang to his self realization of TAI CHI. One day, a frightening steam-powered machine comes to

the village, lead by Fang Zijing, a childhood friend of Yuniang. He has bribed government officials to permit him to build a railway that will run straight through the village. Yang decides to join forces with Yuniang to defeat Fang Zijing and destroy the machine. This brave act may just win him the hearts of the villagers… PS don't forget to click on the pics, to see all the wonderful detail on them.

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COLIN FIRTH IN "MAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN" & "THE HAPPY PRINCE" WITH RUPERT EVERETT! MALIN AKERMAN & STANA KATIC IN "CBGB"! TRAILER FOR RYAN KWANTEN'S "NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN"! 1ST "ROMEO AND JULIET" HAILEE STEINFELD & DOUGLAS BOOTH PIC

So first I have two British pieces of news today: according to "Screen Daily" Colin Firth will take the lead role in MAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN in which he will play famous Noel Coward during his eventful two week-stay at The Desert Inn in Las Vegas in 1955. On the other hand, always amazing Rupert Everett  is planning to make his directorial début with THE HAPPY PRINCE, a biopic of the famous

Irish writer Oscar Wilde in which he will take the lead role, while the above mentioned Colin Firth will play his friend and confidant Reginald "Reggie" Turner. According to "The Hollywood Reporter" the film, which will also star Tom Wilkinson and Emily Watson, will look at Wilde’s final, tragic days as he looks back on the disasters of his life with characteristic dry wit and black humour.

HOLLYWOOD SPY HEADLINES

I've mentioned the shooting of CBGB film last week, which will follow the famous New York club from the last century which had a huge impact on the music scene. Beside Alan Rickman who will play the role of the club owner and Rupert Grint who will play Cheetah

Chrome, the guitarist for The Dead Boys, now the new cast members are Malin Akerman who will appear as Blondie singer Deborah Harry, and CASTLE's and Serbia's own Stana Katic who will play Genya Ravan, a producer who was the lead singer of pioneering 1960s rock band Goldie & the Gingerbreads, which many say was the first all-female band to have a recording contract.

Meanwhile, you can check out the first pic of Hailee Steinfeld and Douglas Booth in Carlo Carlei's movie adaptation of ROMEO AND JULIET in which Damian Lewis plays lord Capulet, Stellan Skarsgard will play the ruler of Verona, while Paul Giamatti plays the friar. GOSSIP GIRL's Ed Westwick plays Romeo's friend Tybalt. The film is being written by DOWNTON ABBEY's Julian Fellows!

NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN

Your trailer for today is a charming clip for upcoming comedy drama NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN with ever so charming and always

 enchanting Ryan Kwanten in the lead role  of a young playboy who learns he has one month until he becomes infertile so he sets out to procreate as much as possible. But, as you will see from the trailer, the movie is much more serious than that. Beside the beloved TRUE BLOOD Australian hunk, the cast also includes Serbian cutie pie Bojana Novakovic who is building up her career in Hollywood and you will soon see her next to Keanu Reeves in GENERATION UM and before that you've seen her in BURNING MAN with Matthew Goode and as Mel Gibson's daughter in EDGE OF DARKNESS. The film is out this June in Australia.

ATTENTION!

 I'm going back to work after my famous Borg surgery :), about which all the world tabloids wrote about, although none of them managed to get the steamy pictures of me getting naughty with my anaesthesiologist at the clinic :), which means that I will go back to posting stories a bit later in the day, closer to the times written in the right side bar! So you still get fresh news, but a bit later during the day! 

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