Tom Hooper and Christopher Hampton Board East of Eden

Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment's Brian Grazer have set "John Adams" helmer Tom Hooper to direct and Christopher Hampton to write East of Eden, an adaptation of the John Steinbeck novel.

Grazer will produce with Grand Illusions Entertainment's Jonathan Sanger and Ed Albert.

First published in 1952, "East of Eden" is Steinbeck's retelling of the Cain and Abel story, set in California's Salinas Valley. The multigenerational story focuses on the Trask brothers and a woman who comes between the siblings.

The studio hopes to put the film in production later this year.

Thoughts:

Never read the book, but it sounds pretty interesting. The miniseries "John Adams", won over 13 Emmy awards and 4 Golden Globes so I'm sure director Tom Hooper will do a fine job with the famous novel.

Jackie Chan Set To Join The Karate Kid Remake

Jackie Chan is in final negotiations to join the Columbia Pictures remake of The Karate Kid.

Harald Zwart will direct the film, which has been revamped as a starring vehicle for Jaden Smith.

Set in an exotic Asian locale, the new film will borrow elements of the original plot, wherein a bullied youth (Jaden Smith) learns to stand up for himself with the help of an eccentric mentor (Jackie Chan).

Chris Murphy wrote the screenplay. The film will shoot early this summer in Beijing.

Thoughts:

I thought the original was a good movie, but this remake seems totally unnecessary. I guess were going to have to wait and see how this turns out.

Universal Unleashes New Fast & Furious Trailer

Universal Pictures has revealed the full new trailer for Fast & Furious, opening in theaters on April 3. The Justin Lin-directed action-thriller reteams Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster.

When a crime brings them back to L.A., fugitive ex-con Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) reignites his feud with agent Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker). But as they are forced to confront a shared enemy, Dom and Brian must give in to an uncertain new trust if they hope to outmanuever him. And from convoy heists to precision tunnel crawls across international lines, two men will find the best way to get revenge: push the limits of what's possible behind the wheel.

Thoughts:

Trailer looks very cool and I'm now stoked for this film. I really enjoyed the original and thought the 3rd film was fun. Here's hoping this one turns out even better than the original.

Brendan Fraser Joins Harrison Ford in Crowley

Brendan Fraser will play the title role in director Tom Vaughan's Crowley, joining Harrison Ford in the film that begins shooting April in Portland.

The drama is based on the true story of John and Aileen Crowley, whose two children had a rare genetic disorder. Rather than give up hope that nothing could help his children, John Crowley found a researcher (Ford) with a potential cure.

Ford also will executive produce the film inspired by a Wall Street Journal article and subsequent book, "The Cure," by Geeta Anand.

Thoughts:

So Rick O'Connell and Indiana Jones in a movie together? I think the movie sounds somewhat interesting and I tend to enjoy Fraser more in drama movies. Hope the film turns out good.

Weekend Boxoffice Numbers

In Order

Gran Torino
Studio: Warner Bros.
This Week: $29,484,388
Last Week: $2,936,423
Total: $40,524,518
________________________________________________________
Bride Wars
Studio: 20th Century Fox
This Week: $21,058,173
Last Week: -
Total: $21,058,173
________________________________________________________
The Unborn
Studio: Rogue Pictures
This Week: $19,810,585
Last Week: -
Total: $19,810,585
________________________________________________________
Marley & Me
Studio: 20th Century Fox
This Week: $11,391,425
Last Week: $24,263,763
Total: $123,751,596
________________________________________________________
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Studio: Paramount Pictures
This Week: $9,212,515
Last Week: $18,691,248
Total: $94,092,395
________________________________________________________
Bedtime Stories
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
This Week: $8,550,000
Last Week: $20,501,339
Total: $97,180,000
________________________________________________________
Valkyrie
Studio: United Artists
This Week: $6,662,000
Last Week: $14,094,617
Total: $71,509,383
________________________________________________________
Yes Man
Studio: Warner Bros.
This Week: $6,032,337
Last Week: $13,910,477
Total: $89,288,024
________________________________________________________
Not Easily Broken
Studio: Columbia Pictures
This Week: $5,600,000
Last Week: -
Total: $5,600,000
________________________________________________________
Seven Pounds
Studio: Columbia Pictures
This Week: $3,900,000
Last Week: $10,068,518
Total: $66,830,000

Thoughts:
We had 3 wide releases this week and all three of them made the top 10. Warner Bros. released Eastwood's Gran Torino in over 2,700 theaters which resulted in a big opening for the film. The film picked up whopping $29 million and has now become Eastwood's biggest opener. With Warner Bros. spending alot on heavily advertising this film, I can see Gran Torino cruising past $100 million. Fox's Bride Wars opened in second place with $21 million. This may look good for 20th Century Fox on paper, but considering the movie opened in over 3,000 theaters and barely managed to pass Rogue Pictures' The Unborn which opened in alittle more than 2,000 theaters, is kind of disappointing. This definetly isnt a good way to start the new year. Still, the $30 million budgeted flick should pass its budget and that should be enough for Fox.

The other wide release this week was Rogue Picture's The Unborn. The horror flick from writer/director David S. Goyer opened with an impressive $19 million. The film was in about 1,000 less theaters than Fox's Bride Wars and still managed a tight race. A review for the film is in the works. Last week's number one film "Marley & Me", fell four spots down and grossed an estimated $11 million. The animal comedy flick should still manage to pull past the $150 million mark. David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was able to pass Disney's Bedtime Stories and grossed an estimated $9 million while the Disney flick brought in $8million. Valkyrie and Yes Man took the 7th and 8th spot on the top 10.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Poster

Yahoo! Movies has debuted the new poster for Michael Bay's Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, opening in conventional theaters and IMAX on June 26. The anticipated sequel stars Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Kevin Dunn, Julie White, John Benjamin Hickey, Ramon Rodriguez, Isabel Lucas and John Turturro.

Thoughts:

Poster looks alright for a teaser poster, but I think its alittle too dark. I guess this can hold us over until the first teaser trailer that's suppose to come next month.

James Mangold To Direct Juliet

Universal Pictures has acquired the rights to "Juliet," a novel by Danish author Anne Fortier, for James Mangold and Cathy Konrad to produce through their Tree Line Film banner. Mangold is also attached to direct the adaptation.

The story, which takes a cue from "Romeo and Juliet," toggles from medieval Siena to the present day in a story about a woman who discovers she may be descended from the people who inspired one of the most popular and tragic love stories of all time.

No writer is on board to adapt. Husband-and-wife team Mangold and Konrad last worked on 2007's "3:10 to Yuma." Tree Line is developing the time-travel thriller "The Archive," also at Universal.

Thoughts:

I think James Mangold is a great director. I thought Walk the Line was a great film and heard so many good things about 3:10 to Yuma. I'm excited for his next film and cant wait to check it out.