Shia LaBeouf is a “Spy’s Kid” in Espionage Thriller Opposite Robert De Niro

April 22, 2013 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 1 Comment

Shia LaBeouf and Robert De Niro are attached to star as a father-son duo in true life spy thriller “Spy’s Kid”, according to THR.

Director DJ Caruso, who previously worked with LaBeouf on “Disturbia” and “Eagle Eye”, is attached to direct, but no writer has been set yet. The film will be based on a series of newspaper articles that chronicled the life and double-crossing spy career of Jim Nicholson, a CIA veteran who was convicted of selling secrets to the Russians in 1996 and sentences to a 20+ year prison sentence. His work didn’t stop there as his youngest son Nathan began visiting him and eventually became a courier carrying out his father’s work. De Niro and LaBeouf’s attachment is contingent upon the finished script, which appears to be a ways off.

After breaking out starring opposite giant alien robots in Michael Bay’s “Transformers” trilogy, LaBeouf got high marks in Cannes last year for his turn as one of three bootlegging brothers in Prohibition-era Virgina in “Lawless”, and then appeared opposite Robert Redford in “The Company You Keep” and Evan Rachel Wood in “The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman.” He’s wrapped up filming on Lars Von Trier’s “Nymphomaniac.”

Watch: New trailer for festival hit “Silver Linings Playbook” starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence

September 28, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Videos Leave a comment

The last time a trailer was released for David O. Russell’s dark comedy “Silver Linings Playbook”, no one had seen it. This time, it’s a little different. The Bradley Cooper-Jennifer Lawrence-starrer has since charmed audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival, going on to win the coveted Audience Award, and many an awards pundit are seeing it as a major force to contend with this Oscar season.

Particularly noteworthy are the praises critics are singing in favor of the performances and chemistry between Cooper and Lawrence, who reportedly really elevate the material and make the movie into something special. Cooper plays Pat, recently released from a mental institution following an “incident”, now determined to find the bright side of all things in life. Enter Lawrence’s Tiffany, next door neighbor with some demons of her own. Not surprisingly, the new trailer really puts the spotlight on Cooper and Lawrence with both dramatic and comedic scenes that should play well during Oscar season.

We don’t get to see what the buzz is all about with “Silver Linings Playbook” until it’s released on November 21st, but the new trailer can be viewed right now below.

Watch: Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence compare crazy in first trailer for “Silver Linings Playbook”

June 28, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Videos 1 Comment

We knew Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper must have some great chemistry since they were cast in Susanna Bier’s “Serena” in such quick succession behind “Silver Linings Playbook”, but today we have tangible proof of it. The first trailer for the David O. Russell dramedy based on the novel by Matthew Quick has been unveiled, and Cooper and Lawrence both shine in it, displaying a natural, sparkling chemistry.

The two play a pair of emotionally damaged people – he just got out of a stint in a mental institution, she’s turned to sex to deal with grief over the recent death of her husband – who, naturally, begin to find their balance again through getting to know each other. The trailer focuses mostly on comedy, with some witty and sharp lines being exchanged, though this storyline certainly suggests there are probably some meaty, heavier moments for the two actors to chew on as well.

The Weinstein Company is behind it, and it’s just been set for a November 21st release, so clearly Oscar hopes are in play here. Watch the first trailer below and let us know if you think it’s got a shot.

Watch: Elizabeth Olsen scopes out “Red Lights” in first clip from sci-fi Sundance entry

January 23, 2012 | Posted by Linda Ge in Videos Leave a comment

Elizabeth Olsen returns to Sundance (where she broke out in “Martha Marcy May Marlene” one year ago) in “Buried” director Rodrigo Cortes’ “Red Lights”, and today we have our first look at a clip of her in the film. Sigourney Weaver stars as a paranormal investigator who aims to debunk fraudulent claims, and Olsen and Cillian Murphy are along for the ride as her assistants. Everything comes to a head with the reappearance of Robert DeNiro’s character, a famous blind psychic who disappeared inexplicably for 30 years. The film is meeting with mixed reports from Sundance and it’s apparently got a whopper of an ending.

In the clip below, Weaver, Olsen and Murphy are on stake out, looking for “red lights” in a crowd, which apparently means people behaving strangely. No distribution deal is in place yet for the film, though a 2012 release is certainly likely.

Olsen is also appearing in Sundance entry “Liberal Arts”, directed by and co-starring Josh Radnor, which has been much more universally praised. Looks like the Sundance streak continues for Olsen.

Amanda Seyfried joins “Gently Down the Stream”

May 14, 2011 | Posted by Lindsey Young in Casting Leave a comment

According to Variety, Amanda Seyfried is set to star in the indie comedy “Gently Down the Stream” (a.k.a. “The Big Wedding” overseas). She will be joining Robert DeNiro, Diane Keaton, and Katherine Heigl. The film, directed and written by Justin Zackham (writer for “The Bucket List”), follows the story of a long-divorced couple (DeNiro and Keaton) who pretend they are still married for the sake of appeasing the biological mother of their adopted son at his wedding. No details yet on what role Seyfried will portray.

Seyfried recently wrapped up filming Andrew Niccol’s sci-fi drama “Now” and is currently filming Heitor Dhalia’s thriller “Gone.”

Production for “Gently Down the Stream” is scheduled to begin this July in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Sundance breakout Elizabeth Olsen joins Rodrigo Cortes’ “Red Lights”

January 24, 2011 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting 2 Comments

Sundance 2011′s brightest breakout star has already booked her next role. Elizabeth Olsen, earning rave reviews for “Martha Marcy May Marlene” and “Silent House”, tells THR that her next project will be “Buried” diretor Rodrigo Cortes’ “Red Lights”, a decision she made after “reading script after script after script.”

Olsen joins the thriller about paranormal activity with previously announced cast including Robert De Niro, Sigourney Weaver and Cillian Murphy. “Robert plays a world renowned psychic and Sigourney is a psychology professor, and I play her student,” says Olsen. “Cillian Murphy is my love interest, though that’s not a huge part of the story.”

Despite the industry eager to fill up her dance card, the New York University undergrad has other ideas. “I’m so lucky that school is always there for me when I take these little breaks [to film a movie]. But my education is always a priority.”

Ashton Kutcher joins “New Year’s Eve”; Will he reprise his “Valentine’s Day” role?

November 8, 2010 | Posted by Linda Ge in Casting Leave a comment

After starring as hopeless romantic Reed Bennett in Gary Marshall’s “Valentine’s Day”, Ashton Kutcher is set to star in the spin-off “New Year’s Eve”, joining previously announced Abigail Breslin and Lea Michele. The Hollywood Reporter reports that Robert DeNiro, Michelle Pfeiffer and Hilary Swank are also joining the ever-growing cast.

The movie will portray interweaving stories of New Yorkers over the course of one New Year’s Eve. DeNio will play a bitter, dying man in a hospital. Pfeiffer will play an executive secretary who feels stuck and decides to seize the day, Swank will be a producer of a New Year’s Eve show, and Kutcher will play a man who hates New Year’s Eve. Breslin and Michele’s roles remain unspecified.

The question remains whether Kutcher will be reprising his role from “Valentine’s Day”. Quite frankly, his and Jennifer Garner’s story was my favorite from the first movie, so if he will once again be playing Reed, my hope is Garner will jump on board as well.

Kutcher can next be seen in No Strings Attached opposite Natalie Portman.

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