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Friday

09Oct2009

Neil Marshall to direct 'Burst 3D' for Lionsgate

Friday, October 9, 2009 at 5:59PM | By

Lionsgate today announced it has acquired worldwide distribution rights to "Burst 3D," a 3D horror thriller Neil Marshall will direct and Sam Raimi and his Ghost House Pictures will produce.

The synopsis of the film goes like this: A group of stranded travelers meet during a blizzard and are stalked by a malevolent force that makes people spontaneously combust. Gary Dauberman wrote the script.

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Monday

05Oct2009

Oprah Winfrey, Chris Rock look for 'Black Friend'

Monday, October 5, 2009 at 7:41PM | By

Oprah Winfrey's Harpo films is partnering with Lionsgate to secure the big-screen rights to Devin Friedman's November 2008 GQ magazine article "Will You Be My Black Friend?," according to Variety.

The article is a humorous account of how a clumsy Friedman attempted to make friends with African Americans. Word is Chris Rock ("Good Hair") will be starring in the film.

Winfrey's career in the film indutrsy is slowly growing. She's a producer on "Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire," and her credits also include "The Great Debaters."

She's also done a bunch of voice acting lately, including "Charlotte's Web," "Bee Movie" and the upcoming "The Princess and the Frog."

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Thursday

03Sep2009

Tyler Perry signs to direct 'For Colored Girls'

Thursday, September 3, 2009 at 3:18PM | By

Tyler Perry isn't slowing down a bit. He's got "Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself" opening this September, and he's got "Why Did I Get Married Too" set for a Spring 2010 release.

On top of that, he's now all set to write, direct and produce a big-screen version of Ntozake Shange's 1975 play "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf."

For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf,

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Tuesday

01Sep2009

Lionsgate moves 'Expendables' and 'Kick-Ass'

Tuesday, September 1, 2009 at 8:59PM | By

Are you ready for the latest release date changes? Lionsgate decided to push back Sylvester Stallone's upcoming action spectacle "The Expendables" from April 23, 2010 to Aug. 20.

This year, August has proven to be a good month for films that generally appeal to male audiences ("The Final Destination," "Inglourious Basterds"), and that's why Lionsgate decided to go through with the change, according to Variety.

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Wednesday

19Aug2009

Wednesday film news roundup: Summit to pick up 'Beaver'?; Michael Davis travels to 'Outland'

Wednesday, August 19, 2009 at 1:35PM | By

Here are some short but interesting film news that appeared in the trades or on the Web today:

• Summit Entertainment is in talks to grab worldwide distribution rights to the upcoming Jodie Foster-directed comedy "The Beaver." Mel Gibson plays a crazy dude who starts walking around with a beaver puppet, which he treats just like a human. Foster also plays his wife. (via Variety)

• Michael Davis ("Shoot 'Em Up" & "Monster Man") is set to direct a remake of Peter Hyams' Sean Connery vehicle "Outland," a sci-fi flick about a police marshal who uncovers a big conspiracy in a mining colony on Jupiter's moon Io. Chad St. John will write the screenplay. (via Variety)

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Tuesday

18Aug2009

Brand-new 'Saw VI' poster wears gloves

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at 11:30PM | By

The Oct. 23, 2009 release date of "Saw VI" is approaching, and Lionsgate today debuted a new poster for the sixth installment in the series. The folks at ShockTillYouDrop posted it online, and you check it out below. As you can see, it says "Trust in him." Who? Good old Jigsaw? Oh, wel will find out soon enough.

Here is the synopsis for the sequel: Special Agent Strahm is dead, and Detective Hoffman has emerged as the unchallenged successor to Jigsaw's legacy. However, when the FBI draws closer to Hoffman, he is forced to set a game into motion, and Jigsaw's grand scheme is finally understood.

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Monday

17Aug2009

Monday morning movie news: 'Kick-Ass' finds distributor; Writers board 'Brewster's Millions'

Monday, August 17, 2009 at 11:35AM | By

• Time to kick butt! Lionsgate to distribute 'Kick-Ass' in wide 2010 release

Matthew Vaughn's upcoming action comedy "Kick-Ass" has found a distribution home as Lionsgate has landed domestic rights to the flick. Based on the comic book series by Mark Millar, the film follows a boring high school student (played by Aaron Johnson) who attempts to become a real-life superhero named Kick-Ass.

Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Nicholas Cage, Lyndsy Fonseca, and Chloe Moretz co-star. Footage from the film was shown at this year's Comic-Con, and it sure received a bunch of of positive responses.

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Tuesday

11Aug2009

'Harold & Kumar' creators have 'One Night Stan'

Tuesday, August 11, 2009 at 11:55AM | By

The folks behind the "Harold & Kumar" films have set up their new project at Lionsgate, as Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg are set to direct "One Night Stan" written by Josh Friedlander.

The Hollywood Reporter says the film follows a man who discovers his fiancee has had many more sexual partners than he before they got together. So before marrying her, he embarks on a night for some catch-up.

Hurwitz and Schlossberg last wrote and directed "Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay," a comedy I simply couldn't warm up to. Some of their other upcoming projects include "'Til Beth Do Us Part" and "Grandma vs. Grandma."

"One Night Stan" sure sounds like a concept that could be funny if done right, but as long as Hurwitz and Schlossberg stick to the "Harold & Kumar" kind of humor, I'm not so sure they'll manage to win me over.

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Friday

24Jul2009

Of course, 'Saw VII' is already set for production

Friday, July 24, 2009 at 7:55PM | By

With the release of "Saw VI" approaching fast, it's time to talk about the horror franchise's next installment, which, as you may already now, is going to happen for sure.

It's also going to happen very soon. According to Variety, Lionsgate has already greenlit the seventh installment in the series, with a production start set for January.

Returning to direct is David Hackl, who helmed "Saw V" and worked as a production designer on the second, third and fourth flick. Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton will also return to write the script.

The trade also said the five "Saw" films already collected more than $700 million worldwide. Sure, that's a bunch of money, but to be honest, the franchise has lost all innovation.