Alantis Rising Again
Immortals producer takes on the project
Much like the legends that surround the place itself, the cinematic adaptation of Platinum Studios’ comic series Atlantis Rising will not stay sunk. Now Immortals co-producer Mark Canton has jumped aboard for the latest effort to get it on screen.
Crafted by Scott Michell Rosenberg, Atlantis Rising originally saw the light as a five-issue miniseries, which chronicled what happens when the world’s militaries investigate a series of deep-sea earthquakes. Given the title of the thing, you won’t be surprised to learn that they find the lost kingdom of Atlantis, whose inhabitants are none too pleased about the sudden intrusion from above. Events escalate from there and soon it’s all-out war.
It’s a tempting title for anyone planning a franchise, though given the scope and the likely effects costs, it’s also not the easiest sell to budget-conscious studios. One attempt has already floundered, with Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman looking to line up a version at DreamWorks that had Len Wiseman directing back in 2008.
Now though, Rosenberg and his Platinum team have the rights back, and they’re trying again with a completely new take on the story. And Canton seems to think there’s plenty of opportunity here: “Atlantis Rising has the franchise potential of Men In Black, which I greenlit for Scott while at Sony’s Columbia TriStar,” Canton tells Variety. “I’m looking forward to bringing it to the screen with Platinum as a dynamic, state-of-the-art action thriller.” Given his experience with Immortals and 300, he does at least know something about making big films work…
 |
 |
Sources:
Alantis Rising Again
Resident Evil: Retribution Trailer
Alice is back…
Given the success (at the box office, at least) he had taking back the rudder of the Resident Evil series with Afterlife in 2010, it’s no surprise to see Paul WS Anderson keeping the undead horde thriving for the next instalment, Retribution. And now the first trailer can be watched below.
Retribution continues the theme of the last few films – Alice (Milla Jovovich) wakes up in the heart of an Umbrella Corporation facility and starts once more hunting those evil bastards responsible for unleashing the T-virus upon the world. Travelling between ravaged cities such as Tokyo, New York and Moscow, she digs deeper into her mysterious past and discovers a shocking revelation that might just challenge everything she believes in… And no, it’s not the thing about toast always falling butter-side down.
We’re promised a few old faces in this one (with the likes of Michelle Rodriguez and Sienna Guillory cropping up) plus a few new arrivals to the franchise. From the looks of the footage, most of what fans enjoy about the films – Jovovich in leather gear running, shooting guns and using a variety of other weapons. Plus more of the infected than you can shake a stick at (including what looks like some flying beasties).
Resident Evil: Retribution is out on September 14.
|
|
Sources:
Resident Evil: Retribution Trailer
New Hobbit Picture Online
Bilbo gets Mirk’ed
It’s safe to say that 2011 is going out with a bang. But amid the latest Gotham goings-on, and with Ridley Scott reporting in from the less audible corners of space, it’s easy to forget that somewhere in Middle-earth, Bilbo Baggins and his crew of footsore dwarves are Mirkwood-bound on an epic quest to find treasure and slay some serious cave troll in The Hobbit.{New Hobbit Still}Well, call us over-caffeinated Tolkien fanboys hyped up on pipe-weed and Christmas spirit, but we couldn’t be more fired up about this one if we lived in Smaug’s larynx. In fact, we’re so excited that we sent our top man to Wellywood, New Zealand, to get the latest from the set of Peter Jackson‘s new Tolkien two-parter.
“The first thing I filmed was finding the ring in Gollum’s cave,” Martin Freeman told us nonchalantly, giving an insight into his approach to hobbiting. “It’s good to know, but not play, the importance of the Ring,” he explained. “I’m trying to put a bit more heaviness into it. It’s not all comical.”
Get hold of the new issue of Empire for more from the set. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is out on December 14.
|
|
Sources:
New Hobbit Picture Online