X-pectations
Do the X-Men number among
their many mutant superpowers the ability to repeat the
success of their
first movie? It remains to be seen whether Wolverine, Cyclops,
et al can approximate with “X2” the heroic
grossing power displayed by “X-Men” (the 2000
original garnered $157 million domestic, $137 million international),
but we already know what the cast is working on.
Ian McKellen (Magneto), hereafter to
be known as “King
of Franchises,” was actually rumored for a while
to be the next Dumbledore in the “Harry Potter” films.
Michael Gambon ended up with the role, but McKellen still
won’t be begging for work.
Peter Jackson says he undertook the first
two legs of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord Of The Ring” trilogy
so he could make “The Return Of The King,” which
reveals the identity of the true King of the West, the
outcome of the Great War, and the fate of Frodo and Sam
in the dungeons of Mordor, and takes the One Ring to the
Crack of Doom. Returnees from parts one and two include
the “Heavenly Creatures”-”The Frighteners” team
of writer-director Jackson and screenwriter Fran Walsh,
as well as screenwriter Philippa Boyens and actors McKellen
as Gandalf, Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins, Sean Astin (“Deterrence”)
as Sam Gamgee, Christopher Lee (the Duke of Sequels) (“Star
Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones”) as
Saruman, Liv Tyler (“One Night at McCool’s”)
as Arwen, Viggo Mortensen (“28 Days”) as Aragorn,
Cate Blanchett (“Charlotte Gray,” “Heaven”)
as fairy queen Galadriel, Billy Boyd as Pippin Took, Dominic
Monagham as Meriadoc “Merry” Brandybuck, John
Rhys-Davies as Gimli, Andy Serkis (“24 Hour Party
People”) as Gollum and Orlando Bloom (“Black
Hawk Down”) as Legolas. Returnees from part one include
Ian Holm (“The Emperor’s New Clothes”)
as Bilbo Baggins. New Line earmarks Dec. 17 for journey’s
end.
After that, McKellen takes on the title
role in “Emile,” the
story of a man – long estranged from his family – who
attempts to reconnect through his only remaining relative,
his daughter Nada. Carl Bessai (“Lola”) directs
from his own screenplay. Deborah Kara Unger (“The
Salton Sea”) co-stars as Nada. Tygh Runyan (“K19:
The Widowmaker”) also stars. Buena Vista International
is handling distribution overseas; it has yet to connect
with a domestic distributor.
Halle Berry (Storm) has had enough time to heal her Oscar-chapped
lips and plunge into new projects.
“Gothika” is a thriller about a criminal psychologist
who awakens one day to find herself a patient at the mental
institution where she worked – accused of a murder
she does not remember. Mathieu Kassovitz (“Amen”)
directs from a screenplay by Sebastian Gutierrez (“The
Big Bounce”). Berry co-stars with Penelope Cruz (“Vanilla
Sky”), Robert Downey Jr. (“Wonder Boys”)
and Jennifer Ehle (“Possession”). Warner Bros.
sends it to your local institution Oct. 24.
“Catwoman,” which French helmer Pitof (“Vidocq”)
will direct later this year, should find Berry suiting
up in the role made memorable by Michelle Pfeiffer in “Batman
Returns.” Once a project intended for Ashley Judd,
the film acquired new urgency once Judd dropped out and
Berry became available. Warner Bros. has released no other
details about the project.
Hugh Jackman (Wolverine) returns to
period work in “Van
Helsing.” The horror thriller, set in the late 19th
century, follows the famed monster-hunting doctor (Jackman)
travelling to Eastern Europe to destroy Count Dracula,
the Wolf Man and Frankenstein’s monster. Stephen
Sommers (“The Mummy” franchise) directs from
his own screenplay. Kate Beckinsale (“Laurel Canyon”),
Richard Roxburgh (“Moulin Rouge”), Shular Hensley
(“The Bread, My Sweet”), Will Kemp (“Mindhunters”)
and David Wenham (“The Lord of the Rings: The Two
Towers”) co-star. Universal recently staked a claim
on the May 7, 2004 release date once reserved for “Spider-Man
2.”
Anna Paquin (Rogue) next descends into “Darkness,” a
horror thriller about a teen girl who moves with her family
into a haunted house in the country. Written and directed
by Jaume Balagueró, it co-stars Lena Olin (“The
Queen of the Damned,” “Hollywood Homicide”),
Iain Glen (“Rosenkrantz & Guildenstern are Dead,” “Lara
Croft: Tomb Raider”), Giancarlo Giannini (“C.Q.”),
Fele Martínez, Fermín Reixach and Stephen
Enquist. Already released in Europe, a domestic date is
being kept in the dark by Miramax.
Just when you thought it was safe to
continue reading, we find another horror thriller starring
an “X2” cast
member. Rebecca Romijn-Stamos (Mystique) stars in “Godsend,” about
a couple who seek out a scientist they believe can clone
their late son. Nick Hamm (“Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel
and Laurence,” “Talk of Angels”) directs
from a screenplay by Mark Bomback. Robert De Niro (“Analyze
That”), Greg Kinnear (“Auto Focus”),
Jenny Levine (“The Recruit”), Deborah Odell
(“A Simple Wish”) and Cameron Bright also star.
Lions Gate sends it into the earthly realm this autumn.
Having nothing to do with her character’s fate in “X2,” Famke
Janssen (Marvel Girl) stars next in “Eulogy.” The
black comedy is about three generations of a dysfunctional
family that reunite for the funeral of its patriarch. Michael
Clancy makes his feature directorial debut from his own
screenplay. Ray Romano (TV’s “Everybody Loves
Raymond”), Rip Torn (“Men in Black II”),
Debra Winger (“Big Bad Love”), Winona Ryder
(“Simone”), Hank Azaria (“Mystery, Alaska”),
Jesse Bradford (“Swimfan”), Glenne Headley
(“What’s the Worst That Could Happen?”),
Monica Potter (“Along Came a Spider”), Kelly
Preston (“What a Girl Wants”), Zooey Deschanel
(“All the Real Girls”) and Piper Laurie (“The
Faculty”) co-star. Artisan says visitation is set
for October.
James Marsden (Cyclops) takes off the
dark glasses and heads out on “Interstate 60.” It’s a
comedy-fantasy-adventure about a man traveling a highway
that exists on no map. Screenwriter Bob Gale (“Used
Cars,” all three “Back to the Future” movies, “Trespass,” “Bordello
of Blood”) makes his feature directorial debut from
his own script. Gary Oldman (“Hannibal”), Chris
Cooper (“Adaptation”), Amy Smart (“Rat
Race”), Ann-Margret (“Any Given Sunday”),
Christopher Lloyd (“Man on the Moon”), Jane
Moffat (“The Recruit”), Michael J. Fox (“Mars
Attacks!”) and Kurt Russell (“Dark Blue”)
co-star. IDP sends it down the road April 25.
Marsden then turns a page in “The Notebook,” a
period drama that follows a young couple who meet in their
teens and are reunited after World War II. Nick Cassavetes
(“She’s So Lovely,” “John Q”)
directs from a screenplay by Cassavetes and Jeremy Leven
(“Legend of Bagger Vance”). It’s based
on the novel by Nicholas Sparks (“A Walk to Remember”).
It stars Rachel McAdams (“The Hot Chick”) and
Ryan Gosling (“Murder by Numbers”) as the young
couple, with Gena Rowlands (“The Weekend”)
and James Garner (“Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood”)
as the couple many years later. The cast also includes
Joan Allen (“The Contender”), Jamie Brown,
Kevin Connolly, Nancy De Mayo, Todd Lewis, Sam Shepard
(“Black Hawk Down”), Heather Wahlquist and
Meredith Zealy. New Line has it scribbled in for autumn.
Sen. Robert Kelly is not in “X2” – but
the actor who played him is. This is because Bruce Davison
is among the actors playing the shape-changer Mystique
this time around. After that, term limits kick in and Davison
will just have to be happy with “The Runaway Jury.” In
it, a juror and a woman on the outside manipulate a court
trial involving a major gun manufacturer. Based on the
best-selling novel by John Grisham (“The Rainmaker,” “The
Gingerbread Man”), it’s directed by Gary Fleder
(“Impostor”) from a screenplay by Brian Koppelman
(“Rounders,” “Knockaround Guys”).
Davison’s co-stars include John Cusack (“Max”),
Rachel Weisz (“About a Boy”), Gene Hackman
(“The Royal Tenenbaums”), Dustin Hoffman (“Confidence”),
Jeremy Piven (“Old School”), Melora Walters
(“Magnolia”), Bruce McGill (“Sum of All
Fears”), Nick Searcy (“Head of State”),
Cliff Curtis (“Collateral Damage,” “Whale
Rider”), Bill Nunn (“Spider-Man”), Rhoda
Griffis (“Road Trip”), Nora Dunn (“Cherish”),
Guy Torry (“Pearl Harbor”) and Rusty Schwimmer
(“The Perfect Storm”). Fox has it on the docket
for Oct. 17.
Brian Cox (Gen. William Stryker) heads
into ancient Greece for “Troy.” The
epic drama, set around 1193 B.C. follows the Trojan prince
who incited a bloody, decade-long
war with the Greeks after he stole away the wife of the
Greek Menelaus. Based on Homer’s epic poem “The
Iliad,” it’s to be directed by Wolfgang Peterson
(“Air Force One,” “The Perfect Storm”)
from a screenplay by David Benioff (“25th Hour”)
and Michael Tabb. Cox stars as Agamennon, Brad Pitt (“Ocean’s
Eleven”) as Achilles, Eric Bana (“Black Hawk
Down,” “The Hulk”) as Hector, Orlando
Bloom (the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy) as
Prince Paris of Troy, Rose Byrne (“I Capture the
Castle”) as Briseis, Sean Bean (“The Fellowship
of the Ring”) as Odysseus, Saffron Burrows (“Frida”)
as Andromache, Julie Christie (“No Such Thing”)
as Thetis, Brendan Gleeson (“Dark Blue”) as
Menelaus and Peter O’Toole (“Phantoms”)
as Priam, King of Troy. Warner Bros. plans to launch a
thousand ships May 21, 2004.
Cox will then know “Sin.” The thriller is about
a retired policeman targeted for vengeance by a mysterious
crime lord. Michael Stevens directed from a screenplay
by Tim Willocks (“Swept From the Sea”) Cox’s
co-stars include Ving Rhames (“Dark Blue”)
as the cop and Gary Oldman as the crime boss, as well as
Alicia Coppola (TV’s “Bull”), Gregg Henry
(“Ballistic: Ecks Vs. Sever”), James Lew ,
Bill Sage (“Glitter”), Chris Spencer (“The
Sixth Man”) and Kerry Washington (“Bad Company”).
Sin, of course, always leads to “The
Reckoning.” The
thriller, set in the 14th century, deals with a traveling
band of actors who try to solve a murder by putting on
a play depicting it. Based on the Barry Unsworth novel “Morality
Play,” it’s directed by Paul McGuigan (“The
Acid House,” “Gangster No. 1”) from a
screenplay by Mark Mills (“The Lost Son”).
Paul Bettany (“A Beautiful Mind”) stars as
the priest and Willem Dafoe (“Auto Focus”)
as the leader of the acting troupe. Cox’s other co-stars
include Ewen Bremner (“Black Hawk Down”), Vincent
Cassel (“Irreversible”), Jared Harris (“Mr.
Deeds”), Simon McBurney (“Onegin”), Gina
McKee (“Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood”),
Stuart Wells (“Billy Elliott”), Tom Georgeson
(“The Land Girls”), Tom Hardy (“Star
Trek: Nemesis”) and Matthew Macfadyen (“Enigma”).
Paramount Classics says it’s coming soon. 
