WTF? Robert Downey Jr. as Lestat? The folks at Bloody Disgusting seem to think so. With the Twilight/True Blood/Vampire-of-the-day craze taking hold in Hollywood, it’s only logical that Anne Rice’s Lestat is brought back from the dead (bet no one ever wrote something as stupid as that comment).
But Robert Downey Jr.? WTF? Sorry, but he’s too old to be Lestat. You never know – folks were skeptical of Downey as Tony Stark – and that did magnificent.
We’ve been scrambling all week to confirm the following report, especially since it came from a very reliable source and is insanely logical considering the popularity of vampires these days. I guess something good has come from the success of Twilight as Bloody Disgusting has learned exclusively that Universal Pictures is looking to restart Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles, which tells the tale of the vampire Lestat Du Lioncort (through his narration), a nobleman-turned-vampire in the late 18th century. No word yet on how they plan on unrolling this franchise, but we did find out who they are talking with to replace Tom Cruise and Stuart Townsend. Read on for the skinny. We have confirmed this afternoon that ROBERT DOWNEY JR. is in close talks to play the vampire Lestat in Universal Pictures’ The Vampire Chronicles, a newly rebooted franchise based on Anne Rice’s popular novels. – From Bloody Disgusting
He’s suited up and ready to save the world! Back in action on the Iron Man 2 set, Robert Downey Jr. shoots a scene for the action film Wednesday in Los Angeles. The Jon Favreau-directed movie also stars Scarlett Johansson, Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L. Jackson.
“Marvel made a choice, and it was a very, very bad choice. They didn’t keep their word. They didn’t honor my contract. They produced a great bounty with the first one but they put it all in the storehouse and you were not allowed in. They did the same thing with Gwyneth Paltrow, from what I’ve been told. They did it with almost everyone except Robert Downey [Jr.]. One of the things that actors need to learn to do is always stick together, one for all and all for one. I’ve seen the script, I know what’s going to happen, but I’m not revealing anything. I believe in karma. When someone does something wrong, you don’t have to get them back. Everything right will return the favor for you. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing the movie. I want to see Don Cheadle become me. No, I want him to do better than me. That’s what I really want to see. Don Cheadle was the reason I got Crash, so I have a lot of love for him.” – Terrence Howard via Parade
Meanwhile….
Kate Mara and Clark Gregg have joined Marvel’s “Iron Man 2,” being directed by Jon Favreau and currently shooting in Manhattan Beach, Calif. Mara’s role is being kept under wraps. Gregg is returning as Agent Phil Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. – from THR
According to Favreau, the “Iron Man 2” director has reprised his role as Happy Hogan, Tony Stark’s bodyguard sidekick. While the character was rather subdued in the first film, it sounds like Favreau’s role will be significantly more colorful in the sequel — the actor-turned-director has already been involved in stunt work. “Woke up sore from doing stunt work last night,” Favreau posted on April 18th. “I shoulda known it was coming when the stuntwoman said goodbye by saying ‘Take some Advil.’” – from MTV
# Scarlett and Downey in Stark manor.about 15 hours ago from TwitterFon
# Shooting a scene with John Slattery.10:22 AM Apr 22nd from TwitterFon
# Don did a great job today.9:47 PM Apr 21st from Tweetie
# Shooting in the workshop with Rhodey and Tony.2:40 PM Apr 21st from TwitterFon
Yesterday I attended the international press day for “The Soloist” as a reporter for our partner website Omelete. Since Robert is extremely busy filming “Iron Man 2”, he was only doing limited press. Thankfully, I was one of the lucky ones that got to participate in a roundtable interview. In the coming days I’ll be posting the full transcript, but with demand for “Iron Man 2” news as high as any film going right now, I figured you might want to know what Robert said right now. – from Collider
Director Jon Favreau wouldn’t confirm reports that Mickey Rourke will join the cast of the much-anticipated Iron Man 2, but he assured EW that “everyone will be happy with who’ve we got.” Speaking from the red carpet of the March 17 premiere of I Love You, Man in L.A., Favreau acknowledged being a “very big fan” of Rourke — and not just because of his work in The Wrestler. “Sin City was when he got on the geek map,” Favreau said. “The Comic-Con crowd knew about his rebirth back from Robert Rodriguez’ film. With shooting set to begin within a month, Favreau said he planned to gather the Iron Man 2 cast this week for a little bonding and a whole lot of rehearsing. “I’m getting the old-timers together again and introducing them to new cast members,” he added. “We’re gonna shake the Sherlock outta junior! I’m a little nervous because the first one set a high bar but we have put our all into this so far.” – from EW
Robert Downey Jr. said that Mickey Rourke will NOT be playing the Crimson Dynamo in Iron Man 2. When asked if Rourke would be playing Whiplash, Downey was unable to confirm or deny that report, adding that “maybe it’s some semblance of both.”
The Oscar nominees luncheon was held today. I get this image of cafeteria and bunch of people eating pasta salad and ham and potato casserole made by old ladies in the lunchroom.
Many kudos for the hugely deserving nomination for Ledger – he was the Dark Knight – and it’s a fitting tribute to his memory. Also, more kudos to the academy for recognizing Robert Downey Jr. for his brilliant comic role in Tropic Thunder. The accolades for Danny Boyle’s superb Slumdog Millionaire are great. On the down side, WALL-E was easily one of the best picture last year – and it gets shoved aside because it’s ‘only’ an animated film. Much like Ratatouille was in 2007, it may well be the best film of this year. And finally – the Reader for best picture? Where the hell did that come from. (The Full List Is Below).
On the first anniversary of his death, Heath Ledger received a huge tribute: The late actor is an Oscar nominee for best supporting actor for his role as The Joker in “The Dark Knight.” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” notched the most nominations with 13, including best picture, best director for David Fincher, best actor for Brad Pitt and a best supporting actress nod for Taraji Phenson. – From NY Daily News
Batman and Clint Eastwood? Forget about it. Instead, the far more serious Holocaust-themed The Reader slipped into the race for a best-picture Oscar and its director, Stephen Daldry, also managed to sneak into his category. The other nominees announced for top prize in the 81st Academy Awards Thursday morning in Los Angeles followed the script of the prognosticators: the era-spanning fable The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which led the crowd with 13 nominations; gay-themed political biopic Milk; TV-landmark drama Frost/Nixon; and romantic crowd-pleaser Slumdog Millionaire. – From USA Today
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” led all films with nominations for the 81st annual Academy Awards on Thursday morning, picking up 13. The film, about a man who ages in reverse, earned nods for best picture, best director (David Fincher), best actor (Brad Pitt), best supporting actress (Taraji P. Henson) and best adapted screenplay as well as several other picks. The record for Oscar nominations is 14, held by “All About Eve” and “Titanic.” Both films won best picture. – From CNN
Frost/Nixon:
Milk:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button:
Slumdog Millionaire:
The Reader:
Performance by an actor in a leading role:
* Richard Jenkins in “The Visitor” (Overture Films)
* Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon” (Universal)
* Sean Penn in “Milk” (Focus Features)
* Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
* Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)
Performance by an actor in a supporting role:
* Josh Brolin in “Milk” (Focus Features)
* Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder” (DreamWorks, Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
* Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.)
* Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage)
Performance by an actress in a leading role:
* Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married” (Sony Pictures Classics)
* Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” (Universal)
* Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics)
* Meryl Streep in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)
Performance by an actress in a supporting role
* Amy Adams in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (The Weinstein Company)
* Viola Davis in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Taraji P. Henson in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
* Marisa Tomei in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)
Best animated feature film of the year:
* “Bolt” (Walt Disney) Chris Williams and Byron Howard
* “Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount) John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney)
Achievement in directing:
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.) David Fincher
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal) Ron Howard
* “Milk” (Focus Features) Gus Van Sant
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company) Stephen Daldry
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight) Danny Boyle
Best documentary feature:
* “The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)” (Cinema Guild) A Pandinlao Films Production Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
* “Encounters at the End of the World” (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment) A Creative Differences Production Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
* “The Garden” A Black Valley Films Production Scott Hamilton Kennedy
* “Man on Wire” (Magnolia Pictures) A Wall to Wall Production James Marsh and Simon Chinn
* “Trouble the Water” (Zeitgeist Films) An Elsewhere Films Production Tia Lessin and Carl Deal
Best foreign language film of the year:
* “The Baader Meinhof Complex” A Constantin Film Production – Germany
* “The Class” (Sony Pictures Classics) A Haut et Court Production – France
* “Departures” (Regent Releasing) A Departures Film Partners Production – Japan
* “Revanche” (Janus Films) A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production – Austria
* “Waltz with Bashir” (Sony Pictures Classics) A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production – Israel
Best motion picture of the year:
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
A Kennedy/Marshall Production Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal)
A Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers
* “Milk” (Focus Features)
A Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)
A Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production Nominees to be determined
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight)
A Celador Films Production Christian Colson, Producer
Don’t believe ANY of the Batman 3 rumors — nothing is happening with Batman right now. Nothing. Na-da, no planning, scripting, casting. Confirmed by Christopher Nolan and Alan Horn (watch the freakin’ video). So, should we take this casting news of Tim Robbins in Iron 2 with a grain of salt?
Tim Robbins is going to be playing Howard Stark in an important flashback sequence that is going to set up the Avengers and Captain America films. Jon [Favreau] wanted to get a good actor because he didn’t think the guy who played Howard in the last film could carry such an important scene. – from Latino
Seriously, read the below buzz from Robert Downey Jr. — he “gets it.” From their comic book property, movies, etc, the dude should run the Marvel Universe… (Kinda like how Tony Stark runs the Marvel Universe basically in the comics)
The internet damn-near gave the actor a standing ovation when news broke last month about Downey not only signing on for “Iron Man 2,” but also officially joining the cast of the absurdly-anticipated “Avengers” movie. So naturally, we had to get Downey’s take on the upcoming film that’s destined to be the Holy Grail for Geekdom, and you can rest assured knowing that the actor is well-aware of how important the film will be to not only Marvel, but the comics community as a whole.
“If we don’t get it right it’s really, really going to suck,” said Downey. “It has to be the crowning blow of Marvel’s best and brightest because it’s the hardest thing to get right. It’s tough to spin all the plates for one of these characters.” – from MTV
