M. Night Shyamalan to direct film with Jaden Smith

Filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan is teaming up with the Smith family for his next directorial effort. The project is currently titled "One Thousand A. E.," and it looks like Jaden Smith may star in the lead role.

Not much is known about the project at this stage, but Reuters refers to "One Thousand" as an "ultra clandestine sci-fi project." Will Smith would be producing the thing, but he will not star in the film.

Gary Whitta ("The Book of Eli") wrote the script. By the way, this has nothing to do with the Shyamalan secret project we started hearing about back in June. I hear that one died after failing to find a studio.

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Quick Movie Review: "Devil"

Seen on: September 20, 2010

The players: Director: John Erick Dowdle, Writer: Brian Nelson, Cast: Chris Messina, Logan Marshall-Green, Jenny O'Hara, Bojana Novakovic

Facts of interest: M. Night Shyamalan developed the film's story.

The plot: Five strangers get on an elevator that breaks down and causes panic among them. Is the devil lurking anywhere close by?

Our thoughts: John Erick Dowdle’s “Devil” is the first movie in M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Night Chronicles” series, and while this little horror thriller lacks the kind of originality that would set it apart from others in the genre, the film still boasts a solid pace that provides 80 minutes of decent entertainment.

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Movie Review: "The Last Airbender"

Seen on: June 29, 2010

The players: Director: M. Night Shyamalan, Writer: M. Night Shyamalan, Cast: Noah Ringer, Dev Patel, Nicola Peltz, Cliff Curtis, Aasif Mandvi, Shaun Toub

Facts of interest: None whatsoever.

The plot: A young boy with powers has to embark on a mission to stop the evil Fire Nation from taking over the world.

Our thoughts: “The Last Airbender” is undoubtedly one of the worst films of 2010. In fact, it is so bad, it almost made me want to pack up my stuff and leave the city for a few days to recuperate. In other words, M. Night Shyamalan has created a huge big-screen disaster that sucks the money straight out of your wallet and offers you absolutely nothing in return. It’s one to skip, for sure.

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M. Night Shyamalan prepping secret project?

With the release of "The Last Airbender" coming up July 1, 2010, M. Night Shyamalan is already trying to get his next project launched. It's another one of his secret projects, and a script is already done.

Shyamalan let studio executives read it, but only under the supervision of his assistants, according to Heat Vision. The project also has three names attached: Bradley Cooper, Gwyneth Paltrow, Bruce Willis.

Now that's what gets my attention. Nothing else is known about this film, but with such a cast, he sure will create some buzz around town. He needs to, because his more recent projects failed to impress.

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Two new character posters for 'Last Airbender'

M. Night Shyamalan's upcoming action adventure "The Last Airbender" hits theaters July 2, 2010, and the folks at IGN posted two new character posters for the flick based on Nickelodeon's animated TV series "Avatar: The Last Airbender." Check them out below. Noah Ringer and Dev Patel star, and the film follows Aang, a young boy who heads out to stop the ruthless Firebenders from controlling the great nations.

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'The Last Airbender' goes 3D, unfortunately...

Oh, those darn 3D conversions... "Clash of the Titans" in 3D sucked in my book, and compared to flicks shot in 3D, these converted films just don't deliver as well in terms of that 3D effect. The latest one to be converted to 3D is "The Last Airbender," M. Night Shyamalan's upcoming film starring Noah Ringer.

Deadline New York says Paramount has hired Stereo D (the company that worked on "Avatar") to take care of the conversion, so I hope this thing will look better than "Clash." I'm fine with conversions as long as they also give us the 2D option, but my guess is 3D will soon take over full force.

The better option, of course, is to shoot it all in 3D. "Avatar" and "How to Train Your Dragon" recently proved that shooting in 3D really makes a huge difference, and I can only hope that will soon kill off the conversions. Anyway, "Airbender" will open in 3D July 2, 2010. Who is excited about this one?

'The Last Airbender' Super Bowl Spot hits

You don't need to wait until Sunday to see what movies will have commercials during the Super Bowl. One you will see for sure is M. Night Shyamalan's "The Last Airbender," which will hit theaters July 2, 2010.

Based on Nickelodeon's animated TV series "Avatar: The Last Airbender," the film follows Aang (Noah Ringer), a young boy who heads out to stop the ruthless Firebenders from controlling the great nations.

Although short, this spot shows viewers tons of brand-new footage. I never saw the show and won't be able to tell whether the film does it justice, but right now, I admit this one looks visually interesting.

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First stills for Shyamalan's 'Airbender' hit

After the gigantic mess that was "The Happening," M. Night Shyamalan takes a break from mysterious horror and dives into the world of adapting animated television series. His next project is "The Last Airbender," which is based on Nickelodeon's "Avatar: The Last Airbender," and USA Today has the first two stills from the flick, which is set to open July 2, 2010. Check them out below and read more about the film here.

The first photo below shows Noah Ringer as lead character Aang, a young boy who heads out to stop the ruthless Firebenders from controlling the great nations. Dev Patel (in the second still) stars as the evil Prince Zuko. Jackson Rathbone, Nicola Peltz, Shaun Toub, Jessica Andres and Aasif Mandvi co-star.

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Shyamalan talks more ‘Unbreakable’ sequel

Just a couple of weeks ago, M. Night Shyamalan told MTV he was thinking about developing a sequel to his 2000 mystery thriller “Unbreakable.” Now he’s definitely considering it. But what does that really mean?

In a recent interview with Sci Fi, the director said the initial mixed reaction to “Unbreakable” kept him from getting started on a follow-up right away.

"I felt really hurt, and I couldn't bring myself to write," he said. Yet, time has passed, and Shyamalan is more than ready to get started on the project. Here’s what’s going on in his head right now:

"I want to write it right now, but I want to write it for the right reasons. I want a story to pop into my head that is organic and expressive of who I am. You know, these are all kind of journals of where I am emotionally, so it's kind of hard. I'm kind of trying to go back to the journal that existed in 1999 for me. But I know me: As soon as I give up on it is when the idea will come to me.”

So, does that really mean we’ll get to see “Unbreakable 2” anytime soon? Or how long may it take him to come up with the story? Judging by the way he’s talking, it may even never happen. Who knows?

Shyamalan’s latest, “The Happening” hit DVD shelves today. He’s currently prepping for “The Last Airbender.” For more on what he said, click here.

Shyamalan talks potential ‘Unbreakable’ sequel

We haven’t heard much about it in quite some time, but according to MTV, there may still be a chance M. Night Shyamalan will direct a sequel to “Unbreakable” one day. Whether we really want one is a different question.

The director told MTV, “I tell you I get asked about it all the time, so it’s not [an idea] I ever forget. I genuinely just asked this question the other day — should I make ‘Unbreakable 2’?”

Okay, that doesn’t really answer the question of whether we’ll see a sequel soon, but just in case we will, Samuel L. Jackson seems to be eager enough to return as Elijah Price.

“Every time I see [Shyamalan], he says, ‘I’ve written this thing for you,’ so I say, ‘why are you always doing these movies I’m not in?’” Jackson said.

“Unbreakable” did not pull the best reviews when it opened in 2000, but apparently, Shyamalan always planned to make it a trilogy.

So what do you think? Want to see a sequel to this?