England hosts the first Avengers

New York 1941. Hayle Atwell sprints out of an antique shop, raises a gun, takes aim and a car explodes behind her. and "CUT"

Ok, we're not really in Brooklyn but across the pond in Manchester where Dale Street has been transformed back in time to the 40's for the shoot of Captain America - The First Avenger.

Director Joe Johnston's comic adaption has so far visited London, Manchester and Liverpool. Johnston states that "the story is solidly about Steve Roger, his origian and how he became Captain American

Captain America - The First Avenger opens next year. 29 July 2011

Paranormal Activity 3 will open in October 2011

Paramount have set the date for a third entry in their phenomenally successful Paranormal Activity franchise.

Paranormal Activity 3 will hit screens a year after its predecessor on 21 October, 2011. Naturally no details beyond that have been released, but don’t expect Paramount to mess with the formula that has so far earned them a bucket-load of cash (over $300m combined).

I believe that the second film was not needed so this for me is not great. It will just be the same as the first one and the second one. there will be nothing new that will be shown on screen that audiences have already seen in one and two.

Ghostbusters 3

Filming on the long-awaited fantasy sequel Ghostbusters 3 looks set to begin in May 2011, but Bill Murray still isn’t confirmed

Kevin Smith Launches Red State Podcast . . .

. . . Cinema's first audio teaser?

Few filmmakers have embraced social networking with as much gusto as Kevin Smith, a man whose Twitter feed has become a thing of legend. The director, of course, has his first horror movie Red State in the works - a film he promises "will make The Dark Knight look like Strawberry Shortcake" - and he's launched a weekly podcast to keep fans appraised of goings-on as the film rolls into post.

The Film sound great, so have a listen.
Link to the SModcast http://smodcast.com/redstate/index.html

Two New Projects For Eli Roth. . .

. . . But he'll produce, not direct

Eli Roth has just scored two new projects in the form of Clown and Aftershock, in a deal with new production company Vertebra Films.

Clown, which will grow Machete-style from a grindhouse-y fake trailer, involves a doting father who dresses up to entertain his son's birthday guests, but then finds that, alien-Venom-symbiote-like, the pom-poms and baggy trousers and big shoes are an evil entity that he can't remove. First-timers Christopher Ford and John Watts put the trailer together prominently using Roth's name. They were afraid he'd sue, so must be rather pleased that he gave them a job instead. Ford wrote and Watts will direct.

Aftershock meanwhile is a violent thriller set in the aftermath of this year's Chilean earthquake. Roth will co-write this one with Guillermo Amoedo and Nicolas Lopez. The Chilean Lopez, who helmed Roth-favourite Promedio Rojo, plus last year's highest-grossing Chilean film Que Pena Tu Vida, will direct.

The two films join the Funhouse remake and RZA's Man With the Iron Fists on the increasingly busy "Eli Roth Presents" roster, following this year's The Last Exorcism, which made $60m on a budget of practically nothing. 

Roth hopes that the Clown (potentially part Pennywise and part Papa Lazarou) will join Freddy, Jason and Michael in the horror pantheon, and promises, "I'm giving us permission to go as hard as possible. I'd like to apologise to the MPAA for what we're going to put them through to get an R rating."

Of Aftershock, Roth says "The earthquake turned the country into a shaking amusement park ride. All hell broke loose. We thought of writing a supernatural element, but [Lopez's] description of the buildings and towns levelled, anarchy, and looters being shot from helicopters, was terrifying enough." The plot will follow several characters trying to survive following the disaster.

"Eli is a master at finding projects with great hooks," said Vertebra's Steven Prince. "We've been looking for the perfect projects to launch our company. We stopped looking after meeting him." 

Funhouse and Iron Fists go before the cameras in the next couple of months. Clown and Aftershock won't be far behind.

Zack Snyder begins his quest for Superman

 

Superman will be played by an unknown - or a low-profile TV actor - in his next big screen outing, if new casting reports are to be believed.

Zack Snyder has begun his quest to find the perfect new Man of Steel, and has decided not to bring back Brandon Routh for his big budget superhero movie.

Which will disappoint fans of Superman Returns – even those who didn’t love the film generally agree that Routh made for a decent supes.

Instead, Snyder has sent out feelers for unknowns aged between 28-32. Though Deadline report that True Blood’s Joe Manganiello and The Vampire Diaries’ Ian Somerhalder are two TV regulars who might also be in with a chance to don the tights.

Whoever Snyder eventually chooses, he’ll have to move pretty fast – shooting on his Superman will begin June 2011

The Dark Knight 'Rises' In May

With the $810m smash that was Inception now firmly behind him, Christopher Nolan is back in Gotham, working with brother Jonathan to nugget out the script for The Dark Knight Rises, which will be landing on its cast members' doorsteps in January.

Alfred himself, Michael Caine, revealing that the film's shoot will kick off in the summer and be done and dusted in six months. “Emma [Thomas], the producer, said we'd get the script in January. Christopher said: 'Script in January, shoot in May, finish in November.'"

Until then the confirmed cast members remain - fittingly - in the dark. "Christopher is the most secretive guy in the world," Caine said, "he won't tell you anything." Expect more casting news to follow in the very near future.