Tag: Brad Pitt

'The Movie Critic' Scrapped By Quentin Tarantino, '70s-Set Pic Had Brad Pitt Reprising Cliff Booth Role
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‘The Movie Critic’ Scrapped By Quentin Tarantino, ’70s-Set Pic Had Brad Pitt Reprising Cliff Booth Role

In a shocking twist of fate, writer/director Quentin Tarantino has decided not to move forward with “The Movie Critic” later this year (Sony Pictures was attached to distribute) as a report from Deadline announces the project has been scrapped entirely and the filmmaker will pivot to something else as his tenth, and final, film. “The Movie Critic” had longtime collaborator Brad Pitt attached to play a role, which the outlet claims would have been a reprisal of Pitt’s charismatic stuntman character Cliff Booth from “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.”

Other plot details were a little murky but would have followed a movie critic in Los Angeles during the 1970s that was writing for a “porno rag” and likely would have invited itself to feature the seedy underbelly of the city. There were also hints from Tarantino it would have homaged things like the violent revenge flick “Rolling Thunder,” and the protagonist was said to be similar to Travis Bickle from “Taxi Driver.” The former could have been an entry point for Cliff Booth to get involved, as that film featured two military buddies getting revenge together.

You never know; perhaps Tarantino will turn the script/project into a book instead.

This wouldn’t be the first time Tarantino has gotten cold feet ahead of production on one of his movies. You might remember that he once got so fed up with a leak of an unfinished version of “The Hateful Eight” script during the casting process that he pumped the breaks, and it was only until he did a live stage reading of the script that Tarantino ultimately decided to give the project a second shot.

Meanwhile, there have been plenty of unmade ideas in the past, who knows how far he ever got with these, that simply were spoken about in interviews that never materialized like “The Vega Brothers” movie, a fabled “Kill Bill 3” where Kiddo and Bibbi had to fight off revenge seekers, and there was even a time when Tarantino wanted to do an adaptation of the Len Deighton spy novels “Berlin Game,” “Mexico Set,” and “London Match.“

What comes next for Tarantino is a bit of mystery as a second project wasn’t on deck, and there was an expectation that “The Movie Critic” would be the filmmaker’s final theatrical feature.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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‘The Movie Critic’: Tom Cruise Could End Up Appearing In Quentin Tarantino’s Final Film Starring Brad Pitt

If you weren’t aware Quentin Tarantino (“Pulp Fiction”) is looking to hang up his feature film director spurs once he completes his tenth and final film, “The Movie Critic.” The pic is set in 1970s Los Angeles and is said to focus on a cynical movie critic that writes for an unnamed “porno rag” (This could easily be a publication owned by mobsters who had a financial interest in the porn industry) that takes inspiration from Travis Bickle, the lead character from the film “Taxi Driver” alongside potential elements from the revenge thriller “Rolling Thunder.” Telegraphing a violent angle to the film, which tends to be Tarantino’s calling card with his projects. We previously learned that Brad Pitt will be taking the lead role in the film, assumed to be the aforementioned movie critic. There is an equally exciting name that could show up in the film as well.

Not too long ago journalist Jeff Sneider had suggested that Tom Cruise could be potentially vying for a small role in the final Tarantino film. And now, Variety is backing up that claim as well in a new report outlining Cruise’s new attempts to get back to acting-focused projects not just action blockbusters like his popular “Mission: Impossible” movies. Stating the actor has “had discussions” about joining the upcoming production. Again, the size and character angle for the potential role haven’t been revealed in any great detail.

Eyes Wide Shut: Hidden in Plain Sight - An In-Depth Analysis of Stanley Kubrick's Misunderstood Masterpiece (Essay) — Boy Drinks Ink

This wouldn’t be all that surprising given that Tarantino sang high praises to “Top Gun: Maverick” when he saw it and seemingly, on paper, the two cinephiles could be a great pairing. Of course, Crusie isn’t a stranger to working with famed Oscar-caliber directors like Tarantino. Some of his previous directors include Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Paul Thomas Anderson, and the late iconic Stanley Kubrick on the thriller “Eyes Wide Shut.”

Pitt and Tarantino had worked together before on “Inglorious Basterds” and “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood,” with the latter earning him a Best Supporting Actor statue at the Oscars. Cruise and Pitt co-starred in the vampire drama “Interview With A Vampire” based on the Anne Rice novel of the same name. More big names are expected to be mentioned for parts in the film and we’ll have to wait until we learn if Cruise ultimately takes a part or not. I also think it’s safe to say longtime muse that Samuel L. Jackson will have a part waiting for him as well.

SOURCE: VARIETY & JEFF SNEIDER

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‘The Movie Critic’: Brad Pitt To Reunite With Quentin Tarantino For 1970s-Set Final Film

Today, there was a big casting update for Quentin Tarantino‘s next and final theatrical effort, “The Movie Critic.” The movie is said to be focused on a film critic that writes for a “porno rag” during the 1970s in California, however, other major key details are being kept under lock and key and we likely won’t get the full picture until there is a bigger press release about the project. Now comes the big casting update as Deadline reports that Oscar-winning actor Brad Pitt has joined “The Movie Critic” in what the outlet claims is a “lead role.” But any real specifics about his character haven’t been expanded upon.

Pitt has previously worked with the filmmaker on “Inglourious Basterds,” and “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.” The latter role earned the actor his Best Supporting Actor Oscar statue. While it wasn’t a film directed by Tarantino, one of Pitt’s early film roles was a small supporting role as a stoner roommate in Tony Scott’s “True Romance,” which had a script penned by a young Tarantino before “Pulp Fiction” made him an international sensation.

Filming on “The Movie Critic” is expected to begin this year and could be ready by the end of the year if the turnaround on post-production is quick enough as the film getting a prime fall/winter release date could help its awards consideration. Then again, the report mentions a possible 2025 date instead and that Sony Pictures might be involved the studio worked with Tarantino on “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.”

“The Movie Critic” is said to be Tarantino’s final feature film and would mean that plans for things like “Kill Bill 3” or other projects he’s mused about over the years might be saved for the small screen or the books he is aiming to write during his retirement from filmmaking. One of the current television projects he hopes to do is a series version of “Bounty Law,” which is a spinoff of the faux Western series from “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood” that starred Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio).

Usually, the casting news for Tarantino projects comes together rather quickly once the main actors are assembled. So, in theory, with Pitt announced we could be hearing about the rest of the cast very soon.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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Apple Studios Lands Director Jon Watts’ Thriller Starring Brad Pitt & George Clooney

Director Jon Watts has been spending a good chunk of the last ten years working on a Spider-Man trilogy for Marvel Studios, after making waves with his thriller Cop Car. He’s currently putting the finishing touches on Spider-Man: No Way Home and during that post-production process has been shopping around a massive package deal that has almost every studio/streamer in the Hollywood drooling.

Watts will write and direct an untitled thriller starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney as two lone wolf fixers given the same assignment.

Deadline reports after a large bidding war, Apple Studios has surfaced as victorious, however, not mentioning how much the deal is worth. The film will get a theatrical release which is not as common when streamers get their mitts on original projects.

The group vying for the film include Sony Pictures, Lionsgate, Annapurna, MGM Studios, Universal Pictures, Warner Bros., Apple, Netflix, and Amazon.

It’ll be interesting to see when the thriller begins shooting as Watts has been attached to direct Marvel’s Fantastic Four reboot since last December, but is one of the few MCU films still waiting on an official release date.

At this point, we shouldn’t expect Fantastic Four to begin shooting before 2023.

Watts’ film Cop Car is very much recommended if you’ve only seen his work at Marvel.

COP CAR – When two rebellious young boys stumble across an abandoned cop car hidden in a secluded glade they decide to take it for a joyride. When the small town sheriff (Kevin Bacon) goes looking for his missing car, the boys find themselves in the center of a deadly game of cat and mouse and the only way out is to go as fast as their cop car can take them.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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‘Bullet Train’: Channing Tatum Expected To Show Up In The New Brad Pitt Action Flick

Oscar-winner Brad Pitt (Troy, Inglourious Basterds, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood) is stepping into a genre he dips his toe in from time-to-time, action. His upcoming film Bullet Train features a wave of assassins on a Tokyo bullet train, it was helmed by director David Leitch and there are claims that Pitt is doing a majority of his own stunts.

Bullet Train is based on the Kôtarô Isaka novel Maria Beetle with a script penned by Zak Olkewicz (Last Voyage of The Demeter).

The rest of the cast consists of Joey King (The Dark Knight Rises), Andrew Koji (G.I. Joe Origins: Snake Eyes), Michael Shannon (Knives Out, Man of Steel), Oscar-winner Sandra Bullock (Gravity, Speed), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Tenet, Kraven The Hunter, Godzilla, Kick-Ass, Avengers: Age of Ultron), Karen Fukuhara (The Boys, Suicide Squad), Brian Tyree Henry (Godzilla vs Kong, Widows, Joker, Eternals), Hiroyuki Sanada (The Wolverine, Avengers: Endgame, Sunshine, Westworld, The Last Samurai, Shogun), Logan Lerman (Gamer, Fury, Hunters), Masi Oka (Heroes), Zazie Beetz (Joker, Deadpool 2, Atlanta), and rapper Bad Bunny.

An IMDB listing The Ronin has spotted might suggest another casting addition, with Lucas Hyde doing body double work in Bullet Train for actor Channing Tatum (The Hateful Eight, 21 Jump Street, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, This Is The End, Free Guy) in the role of “Burly Man.” Hyde also recently worked on the film Dog which is co-directed by Tatum and longtime partner Reid Carolin.

Sandra Bullock (plays Maria Beetle in Bullet Train) and Channing Tatum recently shot The Lost City of D, that just happens to reportedly feature a cameo from Brad Pitt.

David Leitch is quickly becoming action film royalty as he co-directed the original John Wick only to move on as a solo filmmaker with credits such as Charlize Theron’s Atomic Blonde, Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool 2, Hobbs & Shaw, and his next project is the memory loss thriller Fast & Loose starring Oscar-winner Will Smith. He also produced Bob Odenkirk’s Nobody and Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Kate at Netflix, which both came out in 2021.

Bullet Train will hit theaters on April 8, 2022 and we’ll be excited to get some first-look footage/images in the near future.

SOURCE: IMDB

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Andrew Koji Says ‘Bullet Train’ Set Was Claustrophobic & Season 3 Of ‘Warrior’ Aims To Start Shooting Spring 2022

Paramount Pictures is releasing a new origin film set within the G.I. Joe franchise with Crazy Rich Asians lead Henry Golding is playing a young version of Snake Eyes. The action blockbuster is about to hit theaters and Storm Shadow actor Andrew Koji is during the press tour to promote the G.I. Joe reboot.

While speaking with Collider, the British actor confirms that the third season of his martial arts series Warrior won’t begin shooting until the spring of 2022 and will wrap sometime around that summer.

He also briefly spoke about what it was like shooting the Brat Pitt assassin flick Bullet Train during the pandemic and the claustrophobic set brought on action scenes on film that mainly takes place on speeding train along with the mask/face shield they were required to wear.

“Yeah, it’s very different. It’ tight, it’s very claustrophobic. Also, we shot it all during COVID times. It’s going to be one of them few big blockbuster films that was made purely during COVID. [motions to mimic putting on a mask/face shield] It’s super claustrophobic, you’ve got the mask and the shield shout-out to Chris Stag, who took care of us…There is just less room, less space,” the actor told Collider what it was like shooting Bullet Train.

The rest of Bullet Train’s cast includes Joey King (The Dark Knight Rises), Michael Shannon (Knives Out, Man of Steel), Oscar-winner Sandra Bullock (Gravity, Speed), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven The Hunter, Godzilla, Kick-Ass, Avengers: Age of Ultron), Karen Fukuhara (The Boys, Suicide Squad), Brian Tyree Henry (Godzilla vs Kong, Widows, Joker, Eternals), Hiroyuki Sanada (The Wolverine, Avengers: Endgame, Sunshine, Westworld, The Last Samurai), Logan Lerman (Fury, Hunters), Lady Gaga (Gucci, A Star Is Born, Machete Kills), Masi Oka (Heroes), Zazie Beetz (Joker, Deadpool 2), and rapper Bad Bunny.

Sony will release David Leitch’s (John Wick, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2, Hobbs & Shaw) next action film on April 8, 2022.

SNAKE EYES – An ancient Japanese clan called the Arashikage welcomes tenacious loner Snake Eyes after he saves the life of their heir apparent. Upon arrival in Japan, the Arashikage teach him the ways of the ninja warrior while also providing him something he’s been longing for: a home. However, when secrets from Snake Eyes’ past are revealed, his honor and allegiance get tested — even if that means losing the trust of those closest to him.

SOURCE: COLLIDER

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Quentin Tarantino Reveals Jennifer Lawrence Almost Appeared In ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’ As Squeaky Fromme

Quentin Tarantino and Jennifer Lawrence have been trying to work together since he was trying to assemble a cast for his western The Hateful Eight, as the actress was once being eyed to play the foul-mouthed outlaw Daisy Domergue. Tarantino confirmed the potential casting to Entertainment Weekly in 2015 and spoke about the missed opportunity being due to her extremely busy schedule.

“I can see her doing a good job with this role, so we went to talk about it and everything. She was just doing me a courtesy to see me, I think. She was doing Joy. She had to do all this publicity on the Hunger Games movies. There was just no fucking way in the world that she was available,” the filmmaker said.

They reportedly tried again to work together on Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, but that didn’t happen either. Tarantino briefly mentioned during an interview on the podcast WTF With Marc Maron (via The Playlist), that Jennifer Lawrence was supposed to play Manson Family mamma bear Squeaky Fromme in the film before Dakota Fanning ultimately took the part.

“Early on, in the pre-production of Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, I flirted around with the idea of—and [by the way], I couldn’t be happier with what Dakota Fanning did, it’s one of the best performances in the movie, she’s amazing as Squeaky Fromme, she becomes [her]. But early on, I investigated the idea of Jennifer Lawrence playing Squeaky, so she came down to the house to read the script cause I wasn’t letting it out,” Tarantino told host Marc Maron about his early idea to cast Jennifer Lawrence as Fromme.

Considering that Quentin Tarantino is going to hang up his spurs as a feature film director with his tenth and final film, the pair are going to have to make sure they align their schedules or this might happen a third time.

SOURCE: WTF WITH MARC MARON

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Quentin Tarantino Muses About A 3 Hour & 20 Minutes Cut Of ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’ If He Had Been Able To Make It Longer

Quentin Tarantino fans like myself have longed for extended cuts of his films, case in point, Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair, is a version where the two movies are combined. However, this version hasn’t been released or if it has I certainly missed out on it.

This idea of extended cuts is more or less directors being allowed to show the film without studio expectations of runtime, the longer a movie if the theory is that audiences will get bored or will limit the amount of screenings that can be played in a theater.

When it came to Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, Tarantino left out a bunch of footage but decided to write a novelization of the film to expand those characters and the world they inhabit. During a chat with comedian/actor Marc Maron on his podcast WTF With Marc Maron (via The Playlist), Quentin revealed that if he were to assemble a longer cut with the footage he took out it could end up around 3 hours and 20 minutes.

“I think if I were to put it all together, in a way where I would use everything that I wanted and didn’t have to worry about time, it would probably be around 3 hours and 20 minutes or something,” Tarantino said to host Marc Maron.

Hopefully, that version can see the light of day but I wouldn’t count your chickens, just yet.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD – Actor Rick Dalton gained fame and fortune by starring in a 1950s television Western, but is now struggling to find meaningful work in a Hollywood that he doesn’t recognize anymore. He spends most of his time drinking and palling around with Cliff Booth, his easygoing best friend and longtime stunt double. Rick also happens to live next door to Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate — the filmmaker and budding actress whose futures will forever be altered by members of the Manson Family.

SOURCE: WTF WITH MARC MARON

Posted on in Film News

Brad Pitt Assassin Pic ‘Bullet Train’ Releases April 2022

Sony Pictures has finally given a release date for their Japanese-set action movie Bullet Train. The project stars Oscar-winner Brad Pitt (Killing Them Softly, Inglourious Basterds, Fight Club, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood) as an assassin named Ladybug, that is travelling on a bullet train in Japan, only to face a wave of murderous fellow assassins.

Bullet Train will hit theaters on April 8, 2022, as announced by the studio via Deadline.

It was helmed by stuntman-turned-director David Leitch and has been hyped-up for the amount of in-camera stunt work Brad Pitt did on the film, similar to how Keanu Reeves did a lot of his own stunt work on the John Wick films thanks to months of intense training and prep.

Leitch co-directed the original John Wick only to move on as a solo filmmaker with credits such as Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2, Hobbs & Shaw, and his next project is the memory loss thriller Fast & Loose starring Oscar-winner Will Smith. He produced Bob Odenkirk’s Nobody and Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Kate at Netflix coming out in September.

The rest of the cast consists of Joey King (The Dark Knight Rises), Andrew Koji (G.I. Joe Origins: Snake Eyes), Michael Shannon (Knives Out, Man of Steel), Oscar-winner Sandra Bullock (Gravity, Speed), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven The Hunter, Godzilla, Kick-Ass, Avengers: Age of Ultron), Karen Fukuhara (The Boys, Suicide Squad), Brian Tyree Henry (Godzilla vs Kong, Widows, Joker, Eternals), Hiroyuki Sanada (The Wolverine, Avengers: Endgame, Sunshine, Westworld, The Last Samurai), Logan Lerman (Fury, Hunters), Lady Gaga (Gucci, A Star Is Born, Machete Kills), Masi Oka (Heroes), Zazie Beetz (Joker, Deadpool 2), and rapper Bad Bunny.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News

‘Kraven The Hunter’: Sony Approached Keanu Reeves, Brad Pitt, John David Washington & Adam Driver – ‘Spider-Man’ Spinoff Releases January 2023

Yesterday, it was announced that Sony Pictures had selected British actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kick-Ass, Bullet Train, Avengers: Age of Ultron) to lead their latest Spider-Man spinoff film, Kraven The Hunter. The project will focus on Sergei Kravinoff aka Kraven, a Russian aristocrat turned big-game hunter that becomes a major antagonist of Marvel superhero Spider-Man as a member of The Sinister Six and half-brother of fellow villain The Chameleon.

Some of the names rumored for the role were indeed true, as Deadline reporter Justin Kroll tweeted a list of names that Sony Pictures had considered to play Kraven but they had passed. Those high-profile names were Keanu Reeves (John Wick, The Matrix), Brad Pitt (Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, Fight Club, Inglorious Basterds), John David Washington (Tenet), and Adam Driver (House of Gucci, Logan Lucky, Star Wars: The Force Awakens).

However, Aaron Taylor-Johnson reportedly “blew away” Sony brass thanks to footage from his latest project, Bullet Train.

I find it interesting that the latter two actors being co-stars in Spike Lee’s Oscar-winning film BlacKkKlansman, the filmmaker had been attached to make a Nightwatch movie for the studio with a script from Luke Cage showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker.

It’s noteworthy that John David Washington was mentioned in the group, as it could signal back to when Black Panther director Ryan Coogler talked about wanting to use Kraven and the actor’s own comments from the Tenet press tour last year mentioning his desire to play Reed Richards in Marvel’s Fantastic Four reboot from Spider-Man: No Way Home director Jon Watts.

Kraven The Hunter will be directed by J.C. Chandor (A Most Violent Year, Triple Frontier) from a scripted penned by Richard Wenk (The Equalizer, The Expendables 2) with Art Marcum and Matt Holloway tackling rewrites. The duo of screenwriters aren’t strangers to studio genre projects working on Iron Man, Punisher: War Zone, Transformers: The Last Knight, Men In Black: International, and the upcoming Tom Holland video game movie Uncharted.

Sony is attempting to build their own cinematic universe featuring various Spider-Man friends and foes. Some of those upcoming films consist of Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Jared Leto’s vampire flick Morbius, Olivia Wilde’s Spider-Woman movie, and a Madame Web movie. It remains to be seen of these movies will or will not be directly connected to Marvel Studios’ cinematic universe, as hiring the former Quicksilver actor would suggest that Kraven isn’t connected to the hard-canon MCU.

The Spider-Man spinoff has landed a release date of January 13, 2023 from Sony Pictures and suggests that production could begin by 2022.

SOURCE: DEADLINE