Friday the 13th (2009) Teaser Trailer

The first full new teaser trailer for Friday the 13th is now online and can be watched using the player below. Directed by Marcus Nispel (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), the film stars Amanda Righetti, Jared Padalecki, Jonathan Sadowski, Aaron Yoo, Travis Van Winkle and Odette Yustman. The movie returns to the story that started it all, this retelling of the original "Friday the 13th" heads back to summer camp where a mysterious killer is systematically slaughtering the teenage camp counselors. 

Release Date: February 13, 2009

Chris Columbus in Talks to Direct Ripley's

Paramount is negotiating with Chris Columbus to direct its long-gestating Ripley's Believe It or Not!, reports Variety. 

Jim Carrey is still set to star as newspaper columnist-explorer Robert Ripley. 

After being unplugged months before a 2007 production start in China with Tim Burton at the helm, Ripley's Believe It or Not! is getting a complete overhaul, based on a concept that Columbus pitched. Both Paramount and Carrey sparked to it, and the China-based storyline will be scrapped. 

Once Columbus' deal is closed, the studio will hire a writer to draft the project, which remains a Paramount priority: The studio is aiming for a 2011 release and is hoping the film spawns a franchise.

Legendary to Acquire Epic Games

Private equity-backed film financier Legendary Pictures is in negotiations to acquire Epic Games, the North Carolina-based developer of video games including "Gears of War," reports Variety. 

If the deal is consummated, Legendary would be the first film financing company to start investing money in video games. Several studios, including Warner Bros., where Legendary is based, have recently started spending their own money on games. 

"Gears" is Epic's most successful game. It has sold more than 5 million units since its 2006 release; a sequel, slated for next month, is expected to perform even better. The company's other successful franchise is "Unreal Tournament."

Universal Acquires EA's Army of Two

Electronic Arts Inc. today announced that the company has closed a deal with Universal Pictures to bring EA's new franchise and top-selling videogame, "Army of Two," to the big screen. 

Scott Stuber, through his Stuber Productions shingle, will produce the film along with EA, and screenwriter Scott Z. Burns, who recently co-wrote the blockbuster The Bourne Ultimatum, has signed on to adapt the game for the screen. Universal Pictures, Stuber Productions and EA are planning to begin production of the film in 2009. 

"Army of Two," which has grossed over $100 million in sales since its release in March 2008, is the second film project that EA has set in motion as part of an aggressive strategy to move its IP across more entertainment platforms. The company is also currently developing The Sims at 20th Century Fox with producer John Davis. 

"'Army of Two' is a great project that has already attracted top name talent, and we're glad to be working with Electronic Arts on making this hit game into a film franchise," said Donna Langley, President of Production at Universal Pictures. 

"Electronic Arts is a pioneer in its field, and I look forward to collaborating with them and the Universal team in taking their cutting-edge storytelling into the world of film," said producer Scott Stuber. 

Scott Z. Burns added, "I'm thrilled that EA and Universal see the potential to make a smart thriller that has real implications in the world we live in today." 

"Our goal is to be in business with the highest level artists and producers as we adapt exciting games such as 'Army of Two' into compelling film and television entertainment," said Patrick O'Brien, Vice President of EA Entertainment. 

Added Alain Tascan, General Manager of EA's Montreal studio, and Reid Schneider, Executive Producer of the franchise, "We couldn't be more excited about working with Scott, Scott, Pete and the entire Universal team." 

"Army of Two," which shipped earlier this year for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, is a strategic co-operative third-person shooter which features a captivating and politically-charged storyline. The game is set in the world of private military contractors and follows the missions of Rios and Salem. After an extensive career in the Rangers, they're drawn into the business of war. However, they quickly learn their employer is as corrupt as the people they're sent to take out. 

The unique gameplay of "Army of Two" brought a new and groundbreaking co-op gaming experience to players worldwide. Focusing on two-man tactics to ultimately create an advantage no enemy can withstand, players have to fight their way through war, turmoil and a conspiracy so vast it threatens the entire world.

McG To Direct Spy Film Adaptation; Potential New Franchise

After Terminator Salvation, McG will direct a big screen adaptation of the upcoming spy novel, Dead Spy Running for Warner Bros. Written by Daily Telegraph journalist Jon Stock, the novel tells the origin story of former MI5 agent Daniel Marchant. 

Patrick Janson-Smith has described the new series as “John le Carré meets Jason Bourne” and claims that Stock has “reinvented the spy novel for the 21st century.” Dead Spy Running sold to Harper Collins after an intense bidding war. The 320 page book is due out in July 2009. Warner Bros is quick to point out that McG will be directing the first installment or a planned franchise. Looks like Warner beleives they might have the next James Bond. 

The most interesting thing about this announcement is what isn’t said. Terminator Salvation, from what I understand, is the first film in a planned trilogy. I would expect if Salvation is the success that Warners believe it might be, that the two follow-ups will be fast tracked into production. I wouldn’t even be surprised if they shot them back to back ala The Matrix sequels. So then, why would Warner Bros sign McG up to another high profile project if they want him back to helm the sequels? Or maybe they don’t. 

Before everyone starts jumping to conclusions, let me clarify that Warner Bros is giving McG another high profile potential franchise-starting film project. If they weren’t happy with the early footage from Terminator, they wouldn’t be rewarding him with this spy film. No screenwriter has been announced, so there is also the possibility that Warner Bros is planning to develop Dead Spy Running for a couple years.

Seth Green to Direct Freshmen Comic Book Movie

Moviehole caught up with Seth Green this week who let us in on a new project he's working on. 

"I'm gonna direct The Freshmen, which is a comic book that my friend Hugh Sterbakov and I created", the "Sex Drive" star says.  "We have two graphic novels in the marketplace, and we conceived it as a feature.  But that'll be the movie that I direct." 

"It is kids - it's Revenge of the Nerds meets X-Men.  It's kids in their first year of college, their first days of college, leaving the nest for the first time, awkwardly discovering their own identifies, trying to cast off all the things that have been placed on them throughout their scholastic career, and define their own identity in college.  And these kids are - you know, because of the overflow of the enrollment, they're put into the science building, where they don't even have permanent housing. And, you know, now this is a makeshift group they're supposed to be best friends with, and they find themselves at a fraternity party where they are the butt of every joke and humiliated beyond their imagination.  And then they go back to the dorm and kind of mull over the notion of being trapped in this place for the next four years.  And then they are the victims of a scientific event, which gives them borderline useless superpowers.  So now in addition to being these outcasts of the outcasts, they are additionally alienated, with a physical deformity." 

Green so they're "writing the feature, and we're gonna make it when it's ready". 

This is too big a movie for Green to finance on his own, so he's looking for a studio. 

"You know, it'll probably need a studio for release.  My estimation is to make this movie the way we want to make it, we'll need independent financing.  But the nice thing about independent financing is, you know, a small-budget film is $35 million these days.  And that's about what we'd need to make it". 

We also asked Green why he has a beard at the moment. 

"I'm doing Heroes.  I'm doing a bit on Heroes", he says, adding "Breckin Meyer and I are doing it together, which is awesome, because Breck and I have known each other forever and get to work together a lot, but rarely on-camera.  So all our scenes are together, and it's great". 

Green says they will be around for a "few episodes.  Yeah.  It's an open-ended thing".

Curb Your Enthusiasm to Resume Production

HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" will be back in production in December, with 10 season-seven episodes slated for next year, reports Variety. 

HBO has not yet released an airdate or executive producer lineup for season seven of the comedy series created, executive produced and starring Larry David. 

The season-six finale aired in November of last year -- a lengthy break, but not as pronounced as the 21-month gap between seasons five and six. 

Launched in October 2000, the series is the longest running in the HBO lineup.

NBC Keeps Knight Rider's Motor Running

A couple weeks ago, NBC ordered more scripts for Knight Rider. Now, the Peacock has ordered the back nine episodes, making Rider the fourth freshman show to receive a full-season pickup this year behind Fringe, 90210 and The Mentalist. 

The order also marks NBC's first back-nine pickup for any of the network's new shows. (Returning spy comedy/thriller Chuck was given a full order before the season began.) 

The pickup wasn't unexpected after the network ordered the additional scripts, but it wasn't a forgone conclusion either. The update of the popular 1980s series saw strong numbers in its TV-movie/backdoor pilot outing in February, but the series itself has yet to pick up much speed. 

Looks like NBC will at least let KITT cross the first-season finish line.

Renewal News: Dexter to Kill... a Lot More

Showtime has opted to kill two morally bankrupt murderers birds with one stone, picking up Dexter for two more seasons, it was announced on Tuesday. 

Seasons 4 and 5 will consist of 12 episodes each, with production to commence this spring in Los Angeles. 

"Dexter's enormous success is a tribute to the great achievements of its cast, the producing team, the author of the original book [Jeff Lindsay], and the gifted Michael C. Hall," says Showtime president of entertainment Robert Greenblatt. "I thought at best we would attract adevoted cult audience but soon realized that, ironically, this show is so thematically rich and layered with humanity that audiences of all kinds have flocked to it." 

Hall is a two-time Emmy and Golden Globe nominee for his portrayal of Dex, while the series itself was nominated this year for five Emmys, including Outstanding Drama Series.

Lil Wayne Re-Releasing 'Tha Carter III?'

Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter III" is handily the best-selling album of 2008, but the rapper has plans to make it even bigger. The set will be re-released with all brand new songs, Wayne told MTV, although Universal says there are no details confirmed at deadline.

Wayne remains the hardest-working man in popular music. He recently revealed on his ESPN.com blog that he had already begun work on "Tha Carter IV" and that he will release a 20-song mixtape, "Dedication 3," on his Web site. In addition, he's collaborating with T-Pain for a duet album, "T-Wayne," which is slated for 2009. 

Wayne took home the lyricist of the year, MVP of the year and people's champ awards at the 2008 BET Hip-Hop Awards, which were filmed in Atlanta on Saturday (Oct. 18). During the taping, he announced he is expecting his first son. "I've got a son about to be born in any day now, so shout out to him. Pray for me," he said. 

"Tha Carter III" has sold 2.55 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" is the second best-selling album of 2008 at 1.81 million.

Brand New Music Video: Senses Fail - Family Tradition

The new music video for Senses Fail’s Family Tradition from the album Life is Not a Waiting Room.

Mickey Rourke and Jason Statham in 13 Tzameti Remake

What if I told you that Mickey Rourke would be teaming up with Jason Statham for a crime thriller? Sounds like a great idea, right? 

What if I told you that the movie in question is the American remake of the award-winning French crime thriller 13 Tzameti? Sounds even better… 

Now yould your excitement be squashed if I told you that Rourke and Statham will be joined by rapper turned actor 50 Cent (Get Rich or Die Tryin’)? Argggggg…. 

13 will begin shooting on November 17th in and around New York City. You can read the plot synopsis for the original Gela Babluani film below: 

Twenty-two-year-old Sebastien (Georges Babluani) leads an impoverished life with his immigrant family constantly struggling to support them. While repairing the roof of a neighbor’s house, he overhears a conversation about an expected package that promises to make the household rich. Sensing the opportunity of a lifetime, Sebastien intercepts the package containing a series of specific instructions. Following the clues, he assumes a false identity and manages to slip through the grasp of the enclosing police as he ventures deeper and deeper into the countryside. The closer he gets to his destination and the more people he meets along the way, the less he understands about what he is looking for. Ultimately, he comes face to face with a ring of clandestine gamblers placing bets on the outcome of a multi-player, high stakes tournament of Russian roulette. Gela Babluani’s directorial debut is a winner-take-all thriller, where an unfortunate young man is transformed into the thirteenth contestant in an incredibly inhuman game. 13 TZAMETI won the 2005 Venice Festival’s Best First Feature Film prize and the Grand Jury Prize for World Cinema at the 2006 Sundance Festival.

Exhale: Big Momma’s House 3 Still Happening

Let the fanboy email inquiries cease: The latest “momma of all comedies” is plopped for a 2009 release. Over the weekend, IESB spoke to producer, David T. Friendly, who confirmed that the second sequel in the hit Martin Lawrence undercover fat-suit franchise, Big Momma’s House 3, is currently in the scripting stage and on the fast track/conveyor belt after originally being due this year. 

No word if Paul Giamatti will reprise his role from the first film. Ever. Combined, the first two entries grossed $190 million domestically.

Eminem Returns To Rap With 'Relapse'

Emimem's return to hip-hop is now official. 

After months of rumors, the MC announced the title for his sixth album, "Relapse," last night (Oct. 15) during an on-air launch party for his book, "The Way I Am" via Orion Books. Eminem also introduced a new track, "I'm Having a Relapse." 

"There's a lot of album titles floating around that are fake albums titles," Eminem told Shade 45 hosts DJ Kayslay and Angela Yee on Sirius Satellite Radio. 

While no release date has been confirmed, the set is rumored to hit shelves before year's end. During the Shade 45 broadcast, 50 Cent hinted that "Relapse" may even arrive before his own new album, "Before I Self Destruct," due Dec. 9. 

Eminem's last release, 2005's "Curtain Call: The Hits," has sold 2.9 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. His last studio album was the previous year's "Encore," which has shifted 5.1 million. 

Representatives for Interscope were unavailable at deadline.

Door closes on Opportunity Knocks

ABC's mobile game show gets a whammy, is cancelled after only three episodes. 

All you game-show fans that have been peeking out your curtains just waiting for the Opportunity Knocks bandwagon to show up in your cul-de-sac, you're wasting your time. ABC has cancelled Opportunity Knocks after just three episodes, making it the first ABC show to be swept under the rug.

Opportunity Knocks was a bit of a ratings bummer, averaging just a 1.9 rating and 5 share in the key 18-49 year-old demographic and 6.3 million viewers, according to Variety. It will be replaced on Tuesday nights by a Dancing With the Stars recap. Ouch. ABC is considering airing the remaining episodes later on. 

In case you missed it, Opportunity Knocks was a game show on wheels. The production would literally roll up to contestants' houses, set up in the street, and tape the show with friends and neighbors watching from the sidewalks. The game would test families' knowledge of each other, asking questions such as, "How many girls has little Billy kissed?" J.D. Roth hosted, with Ashton Kutcher one of the producers. 

This is the second cancellation this season, with Fox ditching Do Not Disturb weeks ago.

Daily Show's Rob Riggle Heads to CBS

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart is about to lose another player. 

Not to be outdone by Jason Jones and Samantha Bee's CBS sitcom deal, Daily Show correspondent Rob Riggle has signed one of his own. 

According to Variety, the talent holding deal with CBS and CBS Paramount Network TV will position Riggle to develop and star in his own sitcom on the net, which, he says, is "making a real commitment to comedy." 

Riggle will executive produce the project, which may be inspired by his background in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, with Peter Principato. 

As for his future on The Daily Show, Riggle will stay through year's end and has received Stewart's blessing to follow in a plethora of Daily Show vets' footsteps (Jones, Bee, Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Ed Helms and Rob Corddry) to explore new opportunities. 

"Jon's been nothing but a great mentor and a great friend," Riggle said. "When I sat down and told him what's going on, he gave me a high five. He totally got it."

NPD: US game sales slip 7 percent in Sept.

Final summer month's $1.27 billion haul falls just short to Halo 3-boosted '07 sales; 360 sales up 78 percent postprice cut; Force Unleashed, Wii Fit, and Rock Band 2 top games. 

September 2007 was a banner month for the US game industry. Halo 3 mania and brisk Wii sales helped boost total US game sales--which include hardware, software, and, accessories--to a massive $1.3 billion for that month, according to figures from industry-research firm The NPD Group. 

One year later, the story is slightly different. During September 2008, the game industry didn't deliver quite the same punch as during the same period a year ago, bringing in $1.27 billion for the month. 

"This is the first true monthly decline the industry has experienced since March of 2006," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier in a statement disavowing January's slightly skewed figures. "It's important to keep in mind, however, that this month's 7 percent decline is against a month that itself was up 75 percent from the prior September." 

On the hardware front, Nintendo took home the gold and silver yet again, with the Wii placing first with 687,000 units sold and the DS second with 536,800 units sold. However, Microsoft's dramatic price reduction of the Xbox 360--the cheapest model is now just $199--paid off in the form of a 78 percent jump in sales volume. The console sold 347,200 units during September, up from just 195,000 in August. That was enough to put it past the PlayStation 3 (234,000 units) and its smaller sibling, the PSP (238,100 units). Xbox 360 sales may further increase once all three models of the 360 are bundled with games later this month. 

However, despite the high sales volume, monthly hardware revenue was actually down 9 percent year over year, going from $545.7 million in September to $498.0 million. "Hardware unit sales were flat versus last year, so the decline in dollars is due to lower prices," said Frazier. "The average retail price of hardware across all platforms declined 8 percent from last September." 

The lack of a Halo 3-level blockbuster also caused overall software revenues to decline six percent in September, sliding from $656.5 million to $616.1 million. As expected, the big software hit of the month was LucasArts' Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. Three versions of the mildly praised game made it into the top 10, with a total of 1.16 million units: The 360 edition came in first with 610,000 units, followed by the PS3 version (325,000 units) and the Wii iteration (223,000 units). 

The only other top 10 newcomer was the 360 edition of Electronic Arts' Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, which came in sixth place with 297,000 copies sold. However, the marginally reviewed game's publisher was well-represented in the top 10, scoring two slots for the 360 (8th, 224,000 units) and PlayStation 2 (10th, 158,000) installments of Madden NFL 09. MTV Games' Rock Band 2, which EA distributes, had a solid debut in third place with 363,000 units. The rhythm-series sequel is due out on the PS3 this month, with PS2 and Wii editions to follow in December. 

The rest of the September top 10 game chart belonged entirely to Nintendo. Wii Fit didn't sweat lukewarm reviews, coming in second with 518,000 units despite being on the market since May. One month prior, Mario Kart Wii pulled into stores, but that didn't stop it from a fourth-place finish in September with 353,000 units. Older still is Wii Play, which debuted in February 2007. Despite the fact that the package is simply a Wii Remote packed in with a rudimentary game, NPD still insists on classifying the product as software--software that had a seventh-place finish with 243,000 units sold. 

Speaking of classification foibles, NPD continues to not count PC game sales in its monthly video game figures, instead lumping them in with general software figures. However, Frazier took the step of calling out two PC games that launched in September. "Spore realized sales of 406,000 units and Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning sold 274,000, which would put them both in the top 10 list of combined console, portable, and PC games sales for the month," she noted. Unfortunately, NPD does not release such a combined top 10 list to the public. 

US VIDEO GAMES INDUSTRY - SEPTEMBER 2008
Software: $616.1M (-6%)
Hardware: $498.0M (-9%)
Accessories: $152.6M (-3%)
Total Games: $1.27B (-7%) 

TOP-SELLING HARDWARE - SEPTEMBER 2008
Wii--687,000
Nintendo DS--536,800
Xbox 360--347,200
PlayStation Portable--238,100
PlayStation 3--232,400
PlayStation 2--173,500 

TOP-SELLING SOFTWARE - SEPTEMBER 2008
Title / Publisher / Units*
1) Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (Xbox 360) / LucasArts / 610,000
2) Wii Fit w/ Balance Board (WII) / Nintendo / 518,000
3) Rock Band 2 (Xbox 360) / MTV Games/Electronic Arts / 363,000
4) Mario Kart Wii w/ Wheel (WII) / Nintendo / 353,000
5) Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (PS3) / LucasArts / 325,000
6) Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (Xbox 360) / Electronic Arts / 297,000
7) Wii Play w/ Remote (WII) / Nintendo / 243,000
8) Madden NFL 09 (Xbox 360) / Electronic Arts / 224,000
9) Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (WII) / LucasArts / 223,000
10) Madden NFL 09 (PS2) / Electronic Arts / 158,000 

* Figures include Collector's Editions and non-hardware bundles.

W. Feels the Payne of the Bees' Sting

The ComingSoon.net Box Office Report has been updated with studio estimates for the weekend. Click here for the full box office estimates of the top 12 films and then check back on Monday for the final figures based on actual box office. 

Winning the weekend as expected was Mark Wahlberg playing video game gumshoe Max Payne (20th Century Fox), although it only brought in an estimated $18 million in 3,376 theaters, an average of $5,300 per site. While it opened bigger than the movie based on Resident Evil in 2002 and the movie based on Doom in 2006, it was still only the ninth biggest opening for a movie based on a video game and Wahlberg's seventh biggest opening. 

Disney's Beverly Hills Chihuahua held strong in its third weekend, dropping to second place with $11.2 million and a total gross of $69 million. 

The biggest surprise of the weekend might have been the success of the movie based on Sophia Monk Kidd's best selling novel The Secret Life of Bees (Fox Searchlight) with an ensemble cast featuring Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys and Jennifer Hudson, which grossed an estimated $11 million in just 1,591 theaters, showing the strongest per-theater average in the Top 10 with nearly $7 thousand per location. 

After opening in second place on Friday with $3.8 million, Oliver Stone's psuedo-biopic W. (Lionsgate), starring Josh Brolin as the 43rd President, lost third place to the Bees, taking in an estimated $10.5 million in its opening weekend. 

The rest of the Top 10 saw a shake-up with DreamWorks' thriller Eagle Eye, starring Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan, edging ahead of last weekend's openers to take fifth place with $7.3 million. Down just 33% and one spot from last week, it has grossed $81.3 million in four weeks with a production budget just below that mark. 

Ridley Scott's Body of Lies (Warner Bros.), teaming DiCaprio and Crowe, dropped 47% in its second weekend, taking sixth place with $6.9 million with a ten-day gross of $24.5 million. 

Screen Gems' R-rated horror movie Quarantine took the biggest plunge of last week's openers, dropping 56 % to 7th place with $6.3 million over the weekend and $24.7 million total. 

The teen romantic comedy Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (Screen Gems), starring Michael Cera and Kat Dennings, ended up in eighth place with $3.9 million and $26.7 million total. 

Opening in ninth place, the R-rated road comedy Sex Drive (Summit) brought in a disappointing $3.6 million in 2,421 theaters, averaging less than $1,500 per location despite decent word-of-mouth from sneak previews and promo screenings. 

The romantic drama Nights in Rodanthe (Warner Bros.), reuniting Richard Gere and Diane Lane, rounded out the Top 10 with $2.7 million, although it might lose that spot to the inspirational hit Fireproof when actuals are reported on Monday. 

The Top 10 grossed an estimated $83.3 million over the weekend, up 14% from the same weekend last year. 

The most significant movie in limited release was Barry Levinson's What Just Happened?, starring Robert DeNiro, which brought in $216 thousand in 36 locations, averaging $6 thousand per site.

Ron Perlman Joins Season of the Witch

On the red carpet of the 2008 Scream Awards that took place Saturday night, The Dark Knight producer Charles Roven revealed to us that Ron Perlman will co-star in the thriller Season of the Witch. 

The "Hellboy" franchise star joins the Columbia Pictures project, which marks the reteaming of director Dominic Sena and his Gone in 60 Seconds actor Nicolas Cage. 

The film chronicles the journey of 14th century knights transporting a girl suspected of being the witch responsible for spreading the Black Plague. 

Written by Bragi Schut Jr., Season of the Witch is scheduled to start shooting in Austria and Hungary in early November. 

Roven also told us that there is "no momentum" on comic book adaptation The Flash at Warner Bros. Pictures.