Malin Akerman Replaces Lindsay Lohan in Linda Lovelace Biopic« FirstShowing.net

Throughout her trials (literally and figuratively), tribulations and troubles, directorMatthew WilderwasoptimisticaboutkeepingLindsay LohanonboardInferno, the biopic surrounding famedDeep Throatporn starLinda Lovelace. The actressreplaced Anna Farison the project back in May, but since then she's been faced with a myriad of issues in court, rehab and more. Now that Lohan is supposed to remain in rehab until 2011, Wilder has been forced to replace her.The WrapreportsMalin Akermanhas stepped up to take on the role which has been described as tawdry, but containing potential for a powerful, and darkly dramatic performance.

As for the risque nature of the role itself, if you've seen Akerman's work inThe Heartbreak Kid,WatchmenorHarold and Kumar Go to White Castle, you know that the actress doesn't have much of a problem taking her clothes off on camera. Frankly, I don't have a problem with it either, but in this case, much of the nudity will likely be part of something more disturbing rather than sexy, and that's what makes the move quite bold. Wilder confirmed Akerman's participation on hisFacebook pagecomplete with a profile picture of Akerman in her Silk Spectre costume fromWatchmen. This will certainly be a challenge for the actress who has mostly dabbled in cute supporting roles, and I'm looking forward to seeing what she can do.How about you?

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Swiss Director Ben Hibon Set to Helm Supernatural Thriller 'Pan'« FirstShowing.net

If youjoined the massesthis weekend in theaters to watchHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I, then you're already familiar with the work ofSwiss directorBen Hibon. Sure franchise helmer David Yates directed the film itself, but Hibbon is responsible for that sweet animated sequence where Hermione tellsThe Tale of The Three Brothersand the history/myth of the Deathly Hallows. Now Hibon is set to direct his own fantasy action thriller asVarietyreports he's set to helmPan, a story which we haven't heard about in nearly four years, that takes the classic fairy tale of Peter Pan and turns it completely on its head.Read on!

Ben Magid wrote the script which waspicked up by New Linein 2006 and apparently was once considered to be a directing vehicle for Guillermo del Toro. The story uses J.M. Barrie's classic characters but with a twist: Captain Hook is the hero, a haunted former police detective, while Peter Pan is some sort of childlike kidnapper. Having read the script, I can tell you that the idea is quite brilliant, but the execution of it leaves something to be desired. I feel like the story (at least in the draft that I read) is a missed opportunity that takes a great concept but just turns it into another generic thriller. Hopefully there's been some rewrites on the script, and Ben Hibon can bring some of the magic that he used inHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Iinto the live-action realm.Interested?

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'Another Brick In The Wall' Kids' Story Being Made into a Movie« FirstShowing.net

"We don't need no education… We don't need no thought control…"So check this out!Deadlineis reporting that British producerAndy Harries(The Queen, The Damned United) is working on a project based on the Pink Floyd song"Another Brick In The Wall."You might think of either themusic videoor Alan Parker's moviePink Floyd'sThe Wall, but this new movie won't be anything like either of those. Harries optioned the life story of music teacherAlan Renshawin order to tell the true story of the school children who sang the chorus in the 1979 song and their"maverick"teacher. It will be"Dead Poets SocietymeetsSchool of Rock."

Now this sounds pretty damn cool. If only they could getRichard Curtisto direct, things would be perfect. Harries apparently doesn't even have the rights to the song yet, but is hunting downRoger Watersto get them. Newcomer Steve Thompson is writing the script for Left Bank and BBC Films. Renshaw, the teacher, arrived at a"struggling north London comprehensive (public) school"in the late 70s, determined to shake things up. His class eventually ends up singing the chorus on Pink Floyd's"Another Brick In The Wall"and he ends up getting fired for it. Sounds like a good story kind of reminiscent of Richard Curtis'Pirate Radioanyway. Obviously this is all still in early development, but we'll be following it and will keep you updated!

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Stephen King Picks His Top 10 of 2010 Already - Let Me In is #1!« FirstShowing.net

It's a yearly tradition (see last year's) for legendary authorStephen Kingto publish his always strange yet fantastic list of favorite films from the past year, mostly because he chooses some very peculiar films, 2010 being no different. King just published his list in the latest ssue ofEntertainment WeeklyandSlashFilmgot the scoop on what he chose. As expected, it's a very odd list, yet I'm going to have defend him on some of his choices - especially Matt Reeves'Let Me Inbeing #1. I loved that movie and thought it was indeed a perfect counterpart to the Swedish version. Anyway, you can find the rest of King's 2010 list below, so check it out!

10. Green Zone
9. Jackass 3D
8. Monsters
7. Splice
6. Kick-Ass
5. Takers
4. The Social Network
3. Inception
2. The Town
1. Let Me In
List FromEW

One movie that really sticks out is obviouslyTakers- uh did anyone evenseethat movie? He explains:"This satisfyingly complex cops-'n'-robbers movie features great performances… and the armored-car heist is the best action sequence I've seen this year."Wow - anyone agree with him? Additionally, I'm very happy to seeSpliceandMonsters, but what aboutJackass 3D? Now I know it's supposed to be an awesome use of 3D, but this just seems like random filler. Did he not see other amazing movies this year likeThe King's SpeechorBlack Swan? Other comments he makes are aboutThe Social Network:"succeeds where Michael Douglas' Wall Street sequel fails"andThe Town:"bad title, fantastic movie… a strangely intimate film."Thoughts?

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Disney Starts the Engine on Techno Action Thriller 'Hovercar 3D'« FirstShowing.net

Apparently Disney is still high on the fast-paced action of light cycles from the forthcomingTron Legacyas the studio has just lined up another high-speed techno action thriller.24 Framesreports the Mouse House have been developingHovercar 3D, an adaptation of ayoung adult book seriesfrom authorMatthew Reilly. Apparently the property was picked up six years ago with the creators of Smallville behind the project, but development has started all over once again. Much likeTron Legacy, a relatively unknown director is being brought onboard inFredrik Bond, who recentlysigned on to directYear 12, a new sci-fi action film.Read on!

The first book in the series sounds like anotherSpeed Racer(which still makes me think that the Wackowski siblings film was ahead of its time) meets thevideo game seriesF-Zero, but I'll let the official summary do the talking:

In the world of the near future, the most popular sport in the world is hover car racing. Superfast and dangerous, its heroes are the racers: part fighter pilot, part race-car driver, all superstar.

But to get to the Pro Circuit, you must first pass through the International Race School, a brutal cauldron of wild races on even wilder courses, where only the best of the best will survive.

This is the story of Jason Chaser, a talented young racer selected to attend the Race School. He’s younger than the other students. He’s smaller. His trusty car, the Argonaut, is older. But Jason Chaser is no ordinary racer. And as he races against the best drivers in the world he will learn that at Race School winning is everything, that not everyone in this world fights fair, and that you never ever have any friends on the track.

Strap on your seatbelts and hold on tight because the pace of reading just went supersonic!

That's pretty much right up Disney's alley, and apparently the story and challenges in the series have been compared toHarry Potter, a good snag for the studio as the popular Warner Bros. franchise comes to an end. As for director Fredrik Bond, well you can get a good look at his work by checking out thiscollection of his commercialsthanks to SlashFilm. He's got some unique style, and he really makes a commercial easier to watch. He's also been attached to directorHack/Slashand a remake ofThe Hostfor awhile, so he's been waiting for his feature film debut for a little while now. If Bond can make a big splash at Disney in the same way that Joe Kosinski has been blowing minds withTron Legacy, then he'll have quite a career ahead of him.What do you guys think?

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'Dark Knight' Producer Behind 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' Reboot« FirstShowing.net

Previously we'd heard about thepotential of a new takeonBuffy the Vampire Slayerwithout Joss Whedon being involved at all. Though the series creator wasn't bitter about the project, he just said hewouldn't be a part of it. Since then we haven't heard any new details. But today Atlas Entertainment, the company run byThe Dark KnightproducerCharles Roven, announced they are behind the project along with Warner Bros. They also revealed relatively inexperienced screenwriterWhit Andersonis behind the screenplay. No details on the story whatsoever have been revealed but having Roven behind the project certainly doesn't hurt.Read on!

Here's what the producer had to say on the project:

“Whit approached us with an exciting idea about how to update Buffy. There is an active fan base eagerly awaiting this character’s return to the big screen. We’re thrilled to team up with Doug and Roy on a re-imagining of Buffy and the world she inhabits. Details of the film are being keptunder wraps, but I can say while this is not your high school Buffy, she’ll be just as witty, tough, and sexy as we all remember her to be.”

Hero Complexalso spoke to Anderson about the project where she revealed she's"fighting through"the script right now. Since there's many Buffy fans out there who are undoubtedly worried about their beloved characters and universe Whedon so carefully constructed, here's her trying to tell us how much she loves the series:

”I didn’t really watch much television at all, but Ialwayswatched 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer,' that was the one show I would watch when I got home. I just loved this character. I was the same age as Buffy and it was so rare to have a female lead character on TV in those days who was strong and capable and smart but also allowed to be feminine.”

It's always somewhat worrisome when the only thing a writer, producer, actor or director can say is how big of a fan they are without offering any real evidence outside of the usual praise of the character, series, etc. I want to hear specifics about what you loved, why you loved it, and how you're going to try and bring that to your own take on the property in question. I might be a big fan of something, but I'm not the one giving it a complete overhaul for a major motion picture.  For now, I guess we can take solace in the fact that a producer like Roven who gathered Christopher Nolan and his entire creative team to bring Batman back to life, but somehow, I don't think it'll be enough for some fans to have faith (especially for those who loved Sarah Michelle Gellar and therest of the series' cast).How about you?

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'Hot Tub Time Machine' Director Behind 'Toxic Avenger' Remake« FirstShowing.net

Back in April we found out thatThe Toxic Avengerwas gettingtossed in the remake machinefor a family friendly PG-13 action comedy similar toThe Maskstarring Jim Carrey. NowDeadlinehas word that directorSteve Pink, the seemingly familyunfriendlyfilmmaker ofHot Tub Time Machinewill helm the"green"remake for these environmentally conscious times. No new details on the story for this new adaptation have surfaced, but the original focused on a mop-wielding simpleton named Melvin, whose trusting ways made him easy prey for gym thugs who tossed him into a vat of toxic waste, thus turning him into The Toxic Avenger.

A transformation gave him rippling muscles and despite a rather grotesque exterior appearance, some beautiful ladies finally started noticing Melvin. The deal for the remake included the acquisition ofthe 1984 original film, four sequels, an animated TV series and comic books, so rather than a straight up adaptation of one of these iterations, the new film will likely use all of them as inspiration. It's not clear if the director will tackle this before continuing development on therecently announced adaptationofHow to Survive a Robot Uprisingbut Pink says,""The Toxic Avenger is exactly what the country–wait, that's not big enough–what theworldneeds right now."A bit theatrical, but I guess you can't expect much less for a hero that could save the world with his mop and bucket.Anyone excited about this news?

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