School of Rock star and Tenacious D front man Jack Black hasfinished the script for a Tenacious D movie tentatively titledTenacious D in: Pick of Destiny. The movie will co-star Kyle Glass,the other half of the Tenacious D duo. But don’t get tooexcited yet. “The weird thing is, nobody that’s read itlikes it so far,” Black says. We can only hope that thegreatest and best band in the world can also create the greatestand best movie. (Source: Zap2it.com)
On the superhero front, Tom Cruise is reportedly in negotiationsto play the lead in a New Line Cinema’s adaptation of IronMan. In the comic book version, Iron Man is portrayed bybillionaire Tony Stark who uses a high-tech suit of armor to battlethe forces of evil. But does Cruise have what it takes? If he getsthe role, he will be the biggest star to date to jump onto thesuperhero bandwagon. (Source: Empire Online)
Almost Famous director Cameron Crowe is in talks with OrlandoBloom to star in Crowe’s upcoming movie Elizabethtown. Bloomwill be filling a vacancy left by Ashton Kutcher, who ditched theproject because of “scheduling conflicts.” However, asource told The New York Post that it wasn’t Kutcher’sschedule that was the problem. “Cameron was unhappy withAshton’s read-throughs. Ashton did several and each one gotworse and worse. Cameron even postponed production because hethought the readings would get better, but they didn’t. Atone point, Cameron suggested that Ashton take acting lessons. Soonafter that, they both decided it would be best if Ashton was not inthe movie.” What’s this, Ashton Kutcher can’tact? Say it isn’t so. (Sources: Zap2it.com, New YorkPost)
It’s official — the release of Kill Bill Part 2 willbe pushed back to April 16. The Quentin Tarantino film wasoriginally slated for release two months before that. Rumors thatthe movie would be delayed had been circulating over the last fewweeks. Looks like we’ll all have to wait a little longer tosee more blood-caked Uma Thurman. (Source: Empire Online)
Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick will be taking their Broadwayadaptation of Mel Brooks’ 1968 comedy “TheProducers” to the big screen. Lane plays Max Bialystock, awashed-up Broadway producer originally played by Zero Mostel, andBroderick is Leo Bloom, a neurotic auditor originally played byGene Wilder. The two enter into a moneymaking scheme to produce theworld’s worst play, “Springtime for Hitler.”Production on the film adaptation of the Broadway adaptation of thefilm is scheduled for early 2005. (Source: Movies.com)
Filming began Dec. 17 on The Untitled Onion Movie, asketch-comedy feature written by Robert Siegel and Todd Hanson,editors and writers for the comedy publication The Onion. The filmis directed by Mike Maguire and Tom Kuntz, the award-winning teambehind commercial campaigns for Budweiser and Nike. There is norelease date yet, but I think I speak for a lot of people when Isay that it can’t come out soon enough. (Source:Comingsoon.net)