‘The Predator’ Loses Benicio Del Toro, Lines Up ‘Narcos’ Star
Benicio del Toro (Sicario) has reportedly walked away from negotiations to star in Shane Black’s (The Nice Guys) upcoming Predator reboot, The Predator. That hasn’t hindered development in the slightest, however, with FOX immediately bringing Narcos star Boyd Holbrook to take over as lead. Landing del Toro has been a problem for the studio for a while now, with the actor’s schedule becoming an issue early on. The studio had previously moved production date back in an attempt to accommodate del Toro, to no avail. No word on whether the potential casting of Holbrook might speed things up for The Predator’s start date.
Justin Theroux Joins Alexander Skarsgard and Paul Rudd in Duncan Jones’ ‘Mute’
Justin Theroux (The Girl on the Train) has signed on to Duncan Jones’ (Warcraft) latest film Mute, which is to be distributed by Netflix. Theroux joins Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood) and Paul Rudd (Ant-Man) in the science fiction thriller in which Skarsgard plays a mute bartender trying to locate a woman who has disappeared. The film is said to have at least a loose connection to Jones’ breakout hit, 2009’s Moon, with the director previously hinting that Mute would offer closure for Moon’s character, portrayed by Sam Rockwell (Poltergeist).
(Variety)
Netflix Brings Star Power to ‘Bright’
Netflix has also landed some serious star power for another planned release, Bright. Directed by David Ayer (Fury, Suicide Squad) and written by Max Landis (American Ultra), Bright is a fantasy epic starring Will Smith (Concussion) and Joel Edgerton (Black Mass) star respectively as a human and an elf who must evade authorities, lowlifes, and supernatural creatures in order to protect a magic wand. Actress Lucy Fry (11.23.63) has just signed on to play a major role in the project, portraying an elf who owns the wand being protected by Smith and Edgerton.
‘The Walking Dead’ Marathon Anchors 20th Annual Fear Fest on AMC
AMC has announced that a massive marathon of their hit series The Walking Dead will run prior to the premiere of the new season on October 23. The marathon is about of this year’s annual Fear Fest, which features horror themed programming in celebration of Halloween. In addition to the marathon, AMC will also debut a new two-hour retrospective of The Walking Dead, titled The Walking Dead: The Journey So Far on October 16. The marathon begins that same night, and runs every night that week leading up to the season 7 premiere.
(AMC)
‘Heathers’ TV Reboot Finds Leads
Heathers is heading to television. TV Land is in the process of developing the cult 1988 film into a film series and has cast newcomers James Scully and Grace Victoria Cox in the roles originated by Christian Slater and Winona Ryder. The series adaptation is said to retain the dark comedic elements of its forebear, updated to the present day. The group of Heathers this round are said to include a black lesbian and a male gender queer named Heath. Production is set to begin sometime this fall.
