Sci-Fi Storm

Remember the John Carter of Mars project being developed by Jon Favreau for Paramount? Well, after the studio shelved it and put Favreau on Iron Man instead, they let the option expire and Disney has now optioned it instead, hoping to turn out a new family-friendly franchise. Speaking of Favreau and the Ferrous One, Gwyneth Paltrow will join Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man as Virginia “Pepper” Pots, Tony Stark’s personal assistant. This one is getting some star power, and is due in May 2008.

Be among the first to view the trailer right here for the upcoming SF movie Sunshine, due to be released this Spring. Click on Read More to see the trailer. Sunshine is directed by Danny Boyle and produced by Andrew MacDonald (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later) and written by Alex Garland (28 Days Later) and features Rose Byrne, Cliff Curtis, Chris Evans, Troy Garity, Cillian Murphy, Hiroyuki Sanada, Benedict Wong, and Michelle Yeoh. “Fifty years from now, the sun is dying, and mankind is dying with it. Our last hope: a spaceship and a crew of eight men and women. They carry a device which will breathe new life into the star. But deep into their voyage, out of radio contact with Earth, their mission is starting to unravel. There is an accident, a fatal mistake, and a distress beacon from a spaceship that disappeared seven years earlier. Soon the crew is fighting not only for their lives, but their sanity.”

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William Shatner may be the only one talking, but its becoming one of the worst-kept secrets anyways. He told SCI FI Wire that J.J. Abrams is trying to write him into the script for Star Trek XI, and it does indeed deal with a young Kirk and Spock at Star Fleet Academy. Also mentioned is his SFC movie Alien Fire, and that he is working on two books himself dealing with Kirk and Spock at the Academy.

Robert Shaye, the head of New Line Cinema, has said that the studio won’t work with Peter Jackson on The Hobbit, or any other film at the studio for that matter. “I do not want to make a movie with somebody who is suing me,” Shaye said. “It will never happen during my watch.” The fireworks continue…Updated 1/11: And Jackson parries, calling Shaye’s comments “regrettable” and seems to be taking the high road in comparison.

James Cameron’s long-in-development SF project Avatar (previously reported as Project 880) has been greenlit by Fox, with a planned April start and release in the summer of 2009. In the meantime, Paramount has its own Avatar project: Avatar: The Last Airbender, a cartoon series on Nickelodeon, will get the big-screen live-action treatment with M. Night Shyamalan writing, directing and producing as part of a three picture deal with Paramount’s MTV Films and Nick Movies division.

The movie Children of Men, which has been getting good reviews while in limited release, will get a full release tomorrow on 1200 screens. For more information, check out the official web site.

The long-awaited fourth installment in the Indiana Jones franchise, in the works for years, is finally going to be filmed. No plot details have been given, but George Lucas said “It’s going to be fantastic. It’s going to be the best one yet.” Harrison Ford will definitely reprise the title role. Of course, it has to compete with The DaVinci Code-style treasure hunting and knock-off reality shows.

Eragon, based on the first novel of the popular Inheritance Trilogy by Christopher Paolini, opens in theaters next Friday. In case you haven’t seen the thousands of advertisements on television, or simply want more, check out the official web site and the online trailer. Eragon stars newcomer Edward Speleers as the title character, Jeremy Irons (Kingdom of Heaven), John Malkovich (The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy), and Rachael Weisz (The Mummy) as the voice of the dragon, Saphira, brought to life by the wizards at WETA.

In an article in German (read it here), Saul Lentz, the head of Tolkien Enterprises, which ultimately owns the filming rights, says production rights to The Hobbit will revert back to his company next year – which explains New Line’s rush. But it seems doubtful something like The Hobbit could be completed in a year. Lentz says he’s certain Jackson will be involved – and it looks like MGM may as well, as far as I can tell from the Google translation…

Oh, Gollum! Thanks to the lawsuit Peter Jackson filed against New Line Cinema regarding profits on The Lord of the Rings franchise, it appears that New Line no longer wishes his services for the production of The Hobbit, or for a “planned” LotR prequel (first I’ve heard of that). Now, there’s still nothing certain about it actually getting made…but this is certainly a blow to Middle-Earth fans…Update 11/21: MGM says not so fast…the matter is far from closed. I sense that one studio may buy out the other’s rights…