Sci-Fi Storm

According to a rumor repeated by The New Zealand Herald, a scripot for a second Narnia film may may already be in the works. Mark Zoradi, the head of Disney’s foreign distribution arm, Buena Vista International, reportedly made statements to that effect, plus if the first film (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe) does well, they may film the next two movies simultaneously. Which two films is uncertain – there is much debate as to what is the best order to the books…

It appears that the unlikely Star Trek XI movie may still happen – and Enterprise executive producer Brannon Braga may have spilled the beans on the plot. While talking about Enterprisefor Star Trek Communicator, he made mention that the Romulan War – which is to conclude a few years after the current Enterprise timeline – probably won’t be part of the Enterprise plot, because it could conflict with the movie. The other exec, Rick Berman, said in the same magazine the movie would be set before Kirk’s time, but not involve the Enterprise.

Emmett writes “SerenityMovie.com is up and open for business. Come one and all join the Browncoats as we wait for Joss’s Big screen adaption of Firefly.”

The casting for the primary roles in the upcoming Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is complete, with 4 relative unknowns joining Johnny Depp (Wonka) and Freddie Highmore (Charlie, J.M. Barrie’s Neverland). They are Annasophia Robb (Violet Beauregarde), Jordan Fry (Mike Teevee), Julia Winter (Veruca Salt), and Philip Wiegratz (Augustus Gloop).

David Twohy, who wrote and directed The Chronicles of Riddick which opens this week, is also writing a spinoff TV movie for the SCI FI Channel focusing on the character of Kyra, who also appeared in the first film, Pitch Black – the girl who masqueraded as a boy. This movie would fill in the 5 years between the theatrical films. The Kyra spinoff would also serve as a pilot for a potential series.

As the third movie installment in the strong Harry Potter franchise, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban has to overcome several things: the fact that it is a sequel, a new director, an older cast, and a darker story. It succeeded admirably.

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This ls late, since I did get to see it on opening weekend. If you are one of the three people who haven’t seen it yet, what are you waiting for? This is one of the few cases where a sequel can actually be as good as the original…

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Seems that the screenwriter for I, Robot is at it again. This time, Jeff Vintar is working on adapting Isaac Asimov’s Foundation trilogy of stories into a couple of films. The big problem? the fact that the stories take place over 500 years, and involve separate characters. “How can I create something which is still recognizably Foundation, and yet give us a narrative that has the requirements of a film?” Ironic, given reaction to his last adaptation.

According to a news report on CBS Marketwatch, Disney CEO Michael Eisner told Merrill Lynch analysts that Disney is working on sequels to the Disney/Pixar sensations Monsters, Inc. and A Bug’s Life, despite the contentious split between the partners. Certainly the success of sequels of Toy Story and Shrek, and the general success of of CGI films in general, show that it makes financial sense. I believe that Pixar gets first refusal rights to the production as well.

As we all know, Shrek 2 is consuming the box office like swamp rat stew, so much so that even retailers are blaming slumping sales on the green guy. Even I got a chance to see it opening weekend (go see it!), and now Dreamworks has announced that they will move forward on two new Shrek films.