Ryan Reynolds is in talks for a new thriller, Emma Stone signed on to be Woody Allen's next leading lady, and Kate Hudson and James Franco are headed to London for Good People. Meanwhile, Shia LaBeouf is in talks for not one but two new roles, and The Avengers baddie Tom Hiddleston is in early talks to lead a reboot of a cult classic. Find out more about these deals and more with a roundup of the biggest casting news of the week. Keep checking back as we update!
The undead have all but taken over the movie theater, but that shouldn't stop you from checking out Byzantium. Saoirse Ronan and Gemma Arterton star as vampires hiding out in an old hotel in a mysterious seaside town. Why might you want to give this Tribeca Film Festival movie a chance? Watch and find out.
Ryan Reynolds got together with his The Voices cast, including Anna Kendrick and Gemma Arterton, for dinner in Berlin on Friday. The group met up in Germany to kick off production on the psychological thriller, which is being directed by Marjane Satrapi. Anna is already settling into the new location and tweeted, "There are 3 sex shops within walking distance from my hotel in Berlin. Grocery store would have been a bonus but I'm not gonna get greedy."
Ryan's stint overseas comes just as his other projects are getting airtime. The trailer for R.I.P.D. was released last week, though we'll have to wait until July for the movie to hit theaters. Ryan will be pulling double duty this Summer, since the animated featured Turbo is also expected in mid-July. Gemma, meanwhile, has Runner, Runner's release to look forward to in September, but first her Byzantium is screening at the Tribeca Film Festival this week.
Justin Timberlake gave a special concert in London last night following his Brit Awards performance, which Jessica Biel raved about. She tweeted, "My Huz just killed it on the Brits, and the London fans are the tits!"
After the show, the duo headed over to The Forum, where Justin sang for fans and celebrities like Justin Bieber and Gemma Arterton. Jessica was part of the star-studded crowd and was spotted showing off her dance moves and sipping on a drink during his set. Once Justin wrapped up his singing duties, he headed over to the Sony afterparty with Jessica to join in on the fun with fellow Brit Awards partyers.
Ready for some more vampires on the big screen? Instead of the common focus on romance, Byzantium revolves around the relationship between mother and daughter vampires, Clara and Eleanor (Gemma Arterton and Saoirse Ronan). The trailer gives us a peek at their dynamic: Clara is a prostitute without much humanity save for her feelings for her child, and daughter Eleanor sometimes has to tell mom not to attack victims. Their lives are threatened when young Eleanor falls for a human boy (X-Men: First Class's Caleb Landry Jones) and Clara doesn't exactly support the union.
Aside from its central relationship, Byzantium doesn't seem to be bringing anything particularly fresh to the bloodsucker genre, but it is directed by Neil Jordan, who directed Interview With the Vampire. The man knows his way around a gothic vampire tale, so I'm curious to see more, especially since I like both Arterton and Ronan so much. Byzantium comes out June 28, but you can check out the trailer after the jump.
Nicole Kidman and Cate Blanchett showed support for their fellow Australian actors when they attended the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards in Sydney yesterday. Nicole walked the red carpet in a yellow Erdem dress with nude Brian Atwood sandals while Cate turned up the glamour factor in a red Armani gown. The ladies joined host Russell Crowe and AACTA president Geoffrey Rush at the event, marking the first time that all four actors — who have each won an Oscar, BAFTA, a Golden Globe, and an AFI Award — were in the same room at the same time. At the event, the Australian film The Sapphires won the biggest awards of the night, including best film, best direction, and best actor for Chris O'Dowd.
Although the official AACTA Awards took place in Australia, there was a special AACTA Awards lunch held in LA over the past weekend. At the lunch, we caught up with honoree and Aussie actress Jacki Weaver who talked about playing Bradley Cooper's mom in Silver Linings Playbook. Jacki also revealed at the AACTA lunch that her costar Jennifer Lawrence is battling pneumonia, although Jennifer pulled it together to attend the SAG Awards on Sunday.
It's almost Valentine's Day, which means it's also the perfect time to play around with pink and red makeup, and Gemma Arterton has already taken her love-hued palette out for a spin. At the premiere of her new movie, Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters, Gemma went for a rosy flush on her cheeks, eyes, and lips. The feminine look paired with soft curls is perfect for a romantic night out.
To get an equally flattering look, try cream blushes and shadows, which give you a more dewy, ethereal finish. Start by working Tarte Airblush in Shimmering Poppy ($25) onto the apples of your cheeks and then sweep Lancôme Color Design Infinité in Everlasting Rose ($25) onto your eyelids. For added flair, dab a touch of the Tarte blush into the center of your eyes. For your lips, pick a semimatte color like Clarins Rouge Eclat Lipstick in Rose Ruby ($26). The three colors will work together to create a flawlessly flushed palette, perfect for anytime you're in a romantic mood.
Headbands hit a fever pitch a few years back before slowly burning out. But a new crop of celebrities has been giving us a handful of reasons to take a second look at the trend. Ashley Tisdale added some sophistication to her ponytail with a sleek black ribbon, while Gemma Arterton walked the red carpet for her movie Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters sporting a gilded version. Also, Juno Temple took Sundance by storm with a black embellished headband that popped against her fiery hair color. Who do you think is making the best case for the trend?
Not every movie can be Schindler's List-caliber, but would we really want that, anyway? Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters is a preposterous movie, but the blood-soaked fairy tale is more than aware of its silliness and embraces it. Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton star as the titular brother-and-sister duo, but the classic characters are a little different than you may remember. Their tale begins traditionally, with their miraculous escape from a witch who lures them in with her candy-coated cottage. Now grown, the siblings' childhood nightmare has catapulted them to fame as the most successful witch hunters in the land. The movie picks up when they are commissioned by a village to investigate the disappearance of children. It's not the most imaginative concept, but that doesn't mean the film lacks creativity. Read on to find out why Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters may be more amusing than you think.
To find out the other ups and downs of Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, just read more.
Everyone seems to be hunting something supernatural these days. Abraham Lincoln's staking vampires, nobody likes zombies, and now classic fairytale characters Hansel and Gretel are gunning down witches with crossbows. In Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters, the once-innocent siblings (Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton) are all grown-up and working through their past trauma (that whole gingerbread house ordeal) by slaying witches who inhabit their area. Townsfolk turn to them when children start disappearing, but they realize they may be dealing with a creature far more dangerous than a run-of-the-mill witch.
I like fairytale-fantasy mashups just as much as the next person — which is to say I regard them with a sort of amused skepticism — but this is just silly. The trailer almost immediately reminded me of 2005's The Brothers Grimm, a film with a similar "darkness lurks in the forest" vibe, but not in a good way. Maybe I'm being too harsh; make up your own mind when you watch the trailer after the break.
