DREDD VS AQUAMAN?; Karl Urban Rumored For Role In AQUAMAN

Another interesting piece of information in that report by Latino Review reveals that Karl Urban is being sought-out for a role in Aquaman. They aren't naming the character but it's possibly a villain.

WB is waiting patiently for Star Trek 3 to go into production and finish because they'd like to have Karl Urban step into Aquaman in an unspecified supporting role, possibly the villain. Urban and WB have had a good relationship in the past with Urban almost becoming a Batman, and for TV, WB producing Urban-starring Almost Human with Bad Robot for Fox.

I have to assume the role could be Aquaman's brother Ocean Master who eventually becomes a villain and a general pain in the ass.

We've all been rooting for Karl for years to breakout on his own and for the most part he's been able to land some great supporting roles.

Having his film debut in Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers and Lord of The Rings: The Return of The King. He would later take on villain roles in movies like The Bourne Supremacy and The Chronicles of Riddick. Karl struck big when he landed a role in the rebooted Star Trek franchise which has seen him apart of three films.

Although he hasn't always seen his hard work pay-off, an example of this is his well-beloved portrayal of the iconic comic book anti-hero Dredd. There's been a huge campaign to get a sequel to the film with a great deal of fans getting involved.

Another example was his wonderful sci-fi cop buddy series Almost Human on Fox, which was one of my favorite Fox shows in a very long time. It would eventually get cancelled and I lost a network show that I was actively supporting, a rare bird these days.

I think Karl would be a wonderful addition to the DC Comics cinematic universe and might be intimidating enough to be cast opposite a heroic Jason Momoa.



SOURCE: LATINO REVIEW

Simon Pegg Rewriting STAR TREK 3 Script, Will He GUARDIANS It Up For Paramount?

Deadline reports that Paramount has hired Simon Pegg and Doug Jung (Dark Blue) to rewrite the existing Star Trek 3 script. They might be under the gun as production is expected to being in April. Considering it's projected production start I'm expecting this is more of a punch-up than a page-one rewrite. The extent of the rewrites wasn't revealed in the report.

The studio really doesn't want to push that July 2016 release date as it meets the 50th anniversary of the franchise.

Another angle could be that everything in Roberto Orci's version of the film is getting kicked to the curb. Having two writers coming in to rewrite could mean a complete rewrite wouldn't take as long, but they don't have a huge amount of time to do that. A script by Patrick McKay and John D. Payne was ready to go when Orci was originally hired to direct the third installment but he would be eventually replaced with Fast And Furious franchise director Justin Lin.

Rumors of Roberto blocking other candidates such as Joe Cornish and Rupert Wyatt, to get his way into the director's chair were making the rounds. Let's remember, Orci was a screenwriter without a single directing credit to his name but was hired to direct a huge blockbuster. A move that had a lot of people scratching their heads, since Roberto had plenty of opportunity to direct on the many television shows he wrote for and created.

Will Keenser turn into a wisecracking son of gun?

 Apparently, the original vision for the film involved a new alien race and the rehashing of the time-travel trope to force a William Shatner cameo on audiences. Something I honestly don't want to see since Shatner's Kirk had a great exit in Generations.

Paramount scrapping the script could be happening due to talk of the studio wanting the film to include a lot more comedy using Guardians of The Galaxy as a blueprint. A huge tonal shift for even this version of the Star Trek universe which has some comedic moments but isn't focused on it.

The Guardians comparison isn't that bizarre since it's said hey are trying to make Keenser the Trek version of Rocket Raccoon. He doesn't speak so that's going to be a hard sell unless they give him a voice communicator.

Why spend two movies setting up Klingons not to make them villains?

I'm a bit more shocked that the Klingons aren't going to be our main villains, as far as we know. We've seen J.J. Abrams and the writers basically setup the combative alien warriors in the last two films. At the end of Into Darkness possibly have planted seeds for a full-scale war between The Klingon Empire and The Federation which had been looming for a while.

Considering the script is getting an overhaul or just a punch-up we could see a lot of these rumored elements nixed or just improved. At the very least we can expect some really funny moments via Pegg.

Simon of course having huge comedic screenwriting chops from co-writing Edgar Wright's Cornetto Trilogy which includes Shaun of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World's End. Doug Jung recently wrote the film Diamond for Bad Robot and Paramount which would explain his connection as well.



SOURCE: DEADLINE

BOURNE 4 Gets Out Of The Way For STAR TREK 3 And Release Moves To Late July 2016

Universal has moved the Bourne 4 release date to July 29th, 2016 (via Deadline). The move is to give some breathing-space between the releases of Star Trek 3 directed by Justin Lin and the untitled fourth Jason Bourne film. Paul Greengrass is back as the director after helming the last two sequels.

Funny thing, Justin Lin was aiming to direct the Bourne Legacy sequel with Jeremy Renner but the film was put on hold when Damon returned. There is some talk that Jeremy Renner's Aaron Cross could factor into the next installment, mainly to help boost that spin-off franchise.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Justin Lin Replaces Roberto Orci As STAR TREK 3 Director

Director Justin Lin might be apart of Fast And Furious franchise directing the last four installments, but has helped turned that dumb series of films into something fun. We all have to admit those movies have been better with each installment, and Justin is apart of that success. He's been bouncing back and fourth with a bunch of different projects. Lining-up potential directing gigs with projects like Terminator 5, Highlander, The Crow and eventually deciding on the sequel to The Bourne Legacy. The latter project was recently delayed because of Matt Damon returning to the Bourne series, and that film was getting made first.

It looks like he's finally found his next film, as reports he's replaced Roberto Orci as the new director of Star Trek 3. Orci stepped-down recent and Paramount put-out a search that included names such as Rupert Wyatt and Lin. It seemed like Wyatt was the frontrunner, considering being linked before Orci, having the blessing of producer J.J. Abrams and having great success rebooting Planet of The Apes with Rise of The Planet of The Apes. There is even chatter that Roberto Orci is still very much involved as a producer, but won't be contributing to the script.

While audiences seemingly enjoyed the last two films, in the era of blockbusters I'm sure Paramount is a bit disappointed the films haven't broken $500M worldwide. Perhaps, Justin will be able to pump new energy into the franchise which is having problems attracting international audiences. Considering the last film cost $190M+ to make, the studio would likely want a much bigger return.

The release date has also been officially set for July 8th, 2016. A date that will see the film arrive just in time for the 50th anniversary of the original series.

SOURCE: VARIETY

STAR TREK 3 Directors Short-List Has Abrams Approved Rupert Wyatt As Paramount's Top Choice

Now that we've seen Paramount come to their senses and Roberto Orci step-down as director of Star Trek 3, more potential replacements have been revealed. Deadline is reporting that directors like Rupert Wyatt (The Gambler, Rise of The Planet of The Apes), Morten Tyldum (Intimidation Game, Headhunters), Daniel Espinosa (Safe House, Snabba Cash, Child 44), Justin Lin (Fast And Furious 3-6) and Duncan Jones (Moon, Source Code, Warcraft) are new names on a studio short-list. Wyatt reportedly being the top choice for the gig.

Previously mentioned candidate Edgar Wright isn't named in this grouping.

While my first pick here would be sci-fi savy Duncan Jones. I can understand why the studio would want Rupert Wyatt to direct. Considering, he's already helped Fox reboot their Planet of The Apes franchise. It's possible that he could help push the Trek franchise past a trilogy.



This isn't the first time his name has been in the mix for the third installment. Originally, he had been in the rumormill as a possible candidate. J.J. Abrams spoke to HitFix in 2013, about the potential of hiring Rupert to replace him as director. It also doesn't hurt he just worked with Paramount for his remake of The Gambler.

"I know Rupert and he's incredibly talented and we'd be lucky to have someone as talented as Rupert. But there are things we're focusing on right now before the director, which is just sort of the fundamentals of where the story is gonna go."

Justin Lin would be interesting as well, only problem he's played this game before. Lin attaching himself to projects like Highlander, Terminator 5 and others just to jump-ship. He's currently lined-up to helm the Bourne Legacy sequel with Jeremy Renner, but it's been delayed due to Matt Damon's return to the franchise. That said, he's helped build-up the Fast And Furious franchise to new levels of fandom and is said to be returning for it's finale.





SOURCE: DEADLINE

Production On STAR TREK 3 Halted As Roberto Orci Exits And Edgar Wright Linked To Replace

This was a bad idea from the start. Deadline is reporting that first-time director Roberto Orci has exited the director's chair on Paramount's Star Trek 3. Details for the exit aren't being reported, but I've heard he bullied his way onto the job and creative differences have lead to the exit. Originally, directors like Attack The Block's Joe Cornish were in talks to direct. One of the new directors on the studio's shortlist is Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim, Shaun of The Dead, The World's End, Hot Fuzz), who recently exited Marvel's Ant-Man over creative difference.

I hear that that exit was due to Wright's unwillingness to include elements of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and other Marvel films into his script. Edgar Wright wouldn't be a stranger to the Star Trek set as he directed a few shots in Into Darkness, during the fight between Khan and the Klingons. We'll be keeping our fingers crossed that Cornish and Wright are frontrunners for the gig. You might remember that Edgar Wright had also been on Paramount's radar to direct Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Roberto Orci In Talks To Direct STAR TREK 3 Without Any Directing Experience, But Why?

Variety reports that Roberto Orci, who has been a franchise writer for the new wave of films, is now in talks to direct Star Trek 3. Orci previously revealed a desire to direct the third installment, but seemed like a long-shot, considering Roberto has almost zero directing experience. Compared to high-profiled candidates such as Attack The Block's Joe Cornish. Sure, Orci has been involved as one of the franchise's many screenwriters, but what made Paramount choose him to takeover for J.J. Abrams?

"After weeks of rumblings that he was the frontrunner, sources have told Variety that Skydance and Paramount have tapped Roberto Orci to direct Paramount and Skydance’s “Star Trek 3.” Orci is currently writing the story with J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay and had been campaigning to replace J.J. Abrams as director for some time. Abrams is busy with directing the next installment of the “Star Wars” franchise and will only be producing this pic."

The big question at the moment is why? Yes, we've recently seen Orci's writing partner land the directing gig on Sony's Venom, but Alex Kurtzman has at least directed films such as People Like Us (let's try to forget how horribly it bombed on it's tiny budget). It's sort of crazy to think a first-time director would get a shot at directing the third installment in a blockbuster franchise like Star Trek. Without any previous material to back-up his directing candidacy.

We've seen first-time directors such as Wally Pfister crash-and-burn already this year with Transcendence, you'd think that would have been a wake-up-call to some studios. Not to say this will entirely turnout to be a disaster, as we've seen people like Drew Goddard shine. He at least hasn't been dubbed a terrible writer, lacking vision which Orci has.

Vision, is a major element a director needs. We've seen from scripts for Amazing Spider-Man 2, The Island, Cowboys & Aliens and The Transformers franchise, that Orci lacks the basics of storytelling, plot structure and character development as a writer. So, how the hell could he finally muster those necessary tools now, when he's placed in the director's chair? I just don't see why he's the prime choice when there are plenty of budding directors already working for Bad Robot, who could have taken-up the director's seat and given something special to the franchise. This decision screams, a rushed production to meet a release date, rather than a solid choice for a director. It's who they could get and one that was willing to take every single note from the studio, without butting-heads over the studio's vision. There's one story that's making the rounds, which could explain how Roberto was able to get Paramount to sign-off on him.

STAR TREK 3 director Bob Orci believes the Boston Marathon Bombing and the Sandy Hook massacre were set up by the government.
— Devin Faraci (@devincf) May 14, 2014

Devin at BadassDigest has been a giant advocate against Mr. Orci. Pointing out his public break-up to longtime writing parter Kurtzman, had to do with his "alcoholism" and crazy conspiracy theories. A few including the government was involved in the Boston Marathon Bombing and Sandy Hook Massacre. Painting Orci as an unstable person that just might overshadow the craziness of Mel Gibson, as Mr. Gibson never rained-down such lunacy in his own film Conspiracy Theory. It's actually shocking that Paramount would place Roberto as the face of their squeaky-clean franchise. At least the press tour will be interesting when his crazy theories are explored in front of cameras. Devin also added the following to his own write-up on the news, which might explain why Orci was hired. It's safe to say BadassDigest won't be supporting the new film, and others just might follow-suit.

"I've already told you what I heard, that Orci cock-blocked every director who came in for meetings on the project, making it look like anyone who helmed would be his dancing monkey. Who wants that when you already have pressure from the fans and the studio? Orci made a power move to guarantee his ass in the director's chair despite a huge lack of experience. How did Paramount allow this to happen?"

SOURCE: VARIETY

J.J. Abrams Comments On Rumored STAR TREK 3 Director Candidate Rupert Wyatt

HitFix was able to get some comments from J.J. Abrams concerning Star Trek 3. He finally comes out and confirms he won't be able to direct the third installment. However, will stay on helping develop the film's story which is currently the focus of the project. When asked about rumored directorial candidate Rupert Wyatt, Abrams gave an endorsement of sorts. Praising the director of Rise of The Planet of The Apes but didn't confirm they were looking at him at this point.

"I know Rupert and he's incredibly talented," he says, "and we'd be lucky to have someone as talented as Rupert. But there are things we're focusing on right now before the director, which is just sort of the fundamentals of where the story is gonna go." 

Ashley Miller And Zack Stentz In Talks To Write STAR TREK 3 For Paramount

BadassDigest reports that Paramount is currently in early talks with screenwriters Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz to write a draft for Star Trek 3. Apparently, the studio wants production to begin in 2014 and aren't willing to wait for the previous writers who are currently busy with other projects. Miller and Stentz are best known for contributing to Thor and X-Men First Class. Along with writing for J.J. Abrams' Fringe and Fox's Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.

Zachary Quinto Says STAR TREK 3 Aiming For 2014 Shoot, Confirmation J.J. Abrams Will Be Replaced As Director?

Actor Zachary Quinto (Spock) finally was able to breakout a bit as secondary lead rather than a supporting character in J.J. Abrams' new Star Trek franchise. So when he gives us production tidbits we should listen very closely. He gave a new quote (via FirstShowing) stating that Paramount was moving quickly on the next film with an early 2014 shoot. There had been rumblings that directors such as Joe Cornish (Ant-Man, Attack The Block) were being looked as possible replacements for J.J. Abrams. As the director is expected to shoot Star Wars: Episode 7 the same time that the third Trek film goes into production.

"Star Trek 3 should be filming, I suppose, next year. It’s going to be made a lot quicker than the last one. That’s the plan, although nothing is confirmed yet."

SPECULATION: Could Joe Cornish Direct A Federation/Klingon War In STAR TREK 3?

It's starting to look like J.J. Abrams really won't be coming back to make the third Star Trek. As there is talk via LatinoReview on Twitter that J.J. and Paramount are possibly looking at an up and coming writer/director to direct the third installment. The name they are likely referring to is British comedian turned writer/director Joe Cornish. Joe is best known for his breakout sci-fi comedy Attack The Block and he also co-wrote Marvel's Ant-Man with Edgar Wright.

Details of the third film aren't exactly known but the seeds of a massive war between the Federation and Klingon Empire were planted in this recent installment. I wouldn't be shocked to see The Enterprise given another galaxy saving mission soon but we might not see the crew again until 2016. No word if the writers have started on turning their outline into a full fledged shooting script. If Cornish is indeed the person who takes over the franchise he has the writing chops to put a script together on his own.

Zoe Saldana In Talks To Play Gamora In Marvel's GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

THR reports that actress Zoe Saldana is in talks to take the female lead in Guardians of The Galaxy. She would take the role of Gamora the deadliest woman in the universe and adopted daughter of Thanos. Gamora eventually sets her sights on taking down Thanos and joins the Guardians. She already has two massive sci-fi franchises under her belt with Avatar and Avatar 2-3 expected to shoot in the near future along with playing Uhura in the rebooted Star Trek franchise. Zoe would be the third cast member added to the cosmic project which previously cast Chris Pratt as Peter Quill/Starlord and Dave Bautista as Drax The Destroyer.

Could Bryan Singer Direct STAR TREK 3 And Beyond?

IGN talked to Trekkie director Bryan Singer about possibly taking over the Star Trek franchise from J.J. Abrams. Singer unlike Abrams is a die hard Trek fan and even had a small cameo in Star Trek: Nemesis which had a young Tom Hardy as the villain. If Bad Robot and Paramount were looking to hire someone on the level of Abrams but had more of connection with the fans it very well could be Singer. He admits the problems with coming into a franchise as an outsider. Bryan keeps the door open if there is a strong script/story, Abrams stayed on as a producer and supported him. Singer also talks about being friendly with the cast and even visiting the set recently.

"I don't know." "Even though Matthew Vaughn directed X-Men: First Class, I produced it, I wrote the story, I was involved in the casting and the design of the movie itself, so I don't feel like I'm taking on someone else's franchise." "I'm jumping back into my own." "Particularly with this movie (X-Men: Days of Future Past), because it involves the old cast as well." "It's a very different thing jumping into someone else's franchise, someone else's cast." "It was very tough when Brett Ratner did it with mine, you know." "And you're held up, particularly if it's something that people really like what the originator did, you're held to a very, very tough standard when you're jumping into somebody else's franchise." "It's a very scary thing to do cause' they're waiting to judge you." "And sometimes it works like Aliens." 

"Right because that was a very different thing." "Alien was a science-fiction masterpiece horror film that Ridley Scott made and Jim Cameron just did an action film." "But a sequel to a character charged Star Trek...I'm friends with some of the cast and I was on the set recently." "I'm friends with J.J. Abrams and so I was on the set visiting, which was really cool and it looks really awesome." "They're really great people." "Chris Pine is lovely and I'm friends with Zachary Quinto and they're all great." "That would be the most fun part, to work with those people and to work with the lore that I love." "I just...I'm like, the pressure of doing it would freak me out." "Or might freak me out." "That being said, if someone presented a story and a structure and the original director was supporting you, really supporting you and producing with you and behind you then maybe it would be a great experience." 

While it's still possible Abrams could still make one more Trek film. Even after he completes a trilogy he'll likely move on. Nothing is set in stone about Star Wars because currently J.J. is only attached to make one film. Along with rumors of him staying on to consult on the other films with Bad Robot sticking around as well. LucasFilm could end up hiring other directors to round out the new trilogy. There has been talk of Alfonso Cuarón being looked at to direct one of the Star Wars sequels.

Singer is dying to make a science fiction film and was putting together a Battlestar Galactica movie with Universal. The last time he mentioned his BSG film was back in August. I could see him put that on hold if given the chance to make a Trek film. Producer Bryan Burk has stated that the studio isn't looking for another four year gap between the release of Star Trek Into Darkness and Star Trek 3. X-Men Days of Future Past is coming out in 2014 which would give Bryan plenty of time to shoot Trek 3 for a possible 2016 release date.

Could We See STAR TREK 3 Released In 2016?

DigitalSpy has spoken to Star Trek producer Bryan Burk about the possibility of the next Star Trek film being released in time for Trek's 50th anniversary (1966 - 2016) in 2016. A similar marketing campaign used to help the promote the release of Skyfall which also fell on Bond's 50th anniversary. Depending on when production begins on Episode VII (hopefully by the end of the year) it could actually all work out. Allowing Abrams enough time to make both films, if Disney and Paramount can figure out how to share the director's time. Even if he doesn't return to direct, J.J. and Bad Robot will stay on as producers.

Digital Spy: Given that the Gene Roddenberry series debuted in 1966 and we’ve just had a huge Bond 50-year anniversary celebration – has Paramount been talking to you about making a 2016 release date for the next Star Trek film?

Bryan Burk: We’re definitely talking about the next one, but we haven’t talked about a release date. We don’t want to wait four years, the same amount of time between the last one and this one, but it’s going to be a big year to celebrate, hopefully.


To say Paramount is hot to make another film is an understatement. The studio already sees dollar signs as curious Trek and Star Wars fans will be both dying to see what Abrams has done with Into Darkness. Along with the general audience who should be dazzled by the marketing campaign. The Trek fans are invested because it's expected to be bigger and more action driven than the last installment. Star Wars fans will be analyzing the film piece by piece to discover if Abrams is the right person to take over the franchise from a very tired George Lucas.

Abrams' commitments to Star Wars might put him out of the picture for Star Trek 3. Actually, that might not be the case. If they're aiming for a 2016 release date it could allow Abrams enough time to at least complete principle photography because ILM comes in to fill in the special effects. Giving a window in late 2014 or 2015 too shoot photography on Trek 3 allowing for a possible release in 2016 (Summer or Winter). The only issue at the moment the film's writers aren't exactly talking up a script for a third installment beyond ideas and possible outlines.

J.J. Abrams Still Producing STAR TREK 3 And MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 5

According to Variety Paramount has confirmed that Bad Robot and J.J. Abrams will be involved with both Star Trek 3 and Mission: Impossible 5. While his role as director for Star Trek 3 is unlikely it hasn't been mentioned that a search for a new director has begun. Christopher McQuarrie is being looked for MI5 while Star Trek 3 is only in development phase without a completed script.

THR adds that Abrams can move Disney's purposed Summer 2015 release date for Episode VII. Which means depending on the project's development it could be released earlier or later. I have to assume that a new Star Wars film would need at least a year for artists to put together set designs, action sequences and alien concepts. We should be expecting a little more than just a green-screen production this time around.

In theory, he could choose to hold off the release of the next Star Wars until 2016. Perhaps, giving him all the time needed to be involved with pre-production on Episode VII along with a small window to make Star Trek 3. At the very least helping Paramount find a new director and continue creative choices as producer. It wouldn't be shocking to see a director like Jon Favreau (Iron Man) or Drew Goddard (Cabin In The Woods) coming in to pickup the baton.