Sci-Fi Storm

Meant to mention this yesterday…Variety reports that J.J. Abrams is now eying Venezuelan actor Edgar Ramirez (Carlos) to replace Benicio Del Toro for the lead villain role in Star Trek 2 that Abrams still won’t tell us is Khan. Abrams is believed to be looking to make a decision quick in order to get production moving forward, after negotiations with Del Toro fell apart.

Columbiana star Jordi Mollà is also reportedly up for the role.

Apparently the hot rumors that Benicio Del Toro (The Wolfman) would play the bad guy in Star Trek 2 – rumored to be Khan himself – aren’t true. Vulture reports that negotiations fell apart last week for him to take the role. But is the role to be Khan, played both in the original series and again in the second original timeline movie by the late Ricardo Montalban? Vulture reports that their insiders say it is true – but in reading last Friday’s report from Hitfix saying Del Toro was out, I’m also reading another possibility. Hitfix says when asked about the report that Del Toro was signed to play Khan, J.J. Abrams only response was, “Not true.” Which isn’t true? That Del Toro was signed, or that the role isn’t Khan? It does seem likely that Khan is the villain, but who knows.

I’m sure there will be a few more rumors to go before we get the real lowdown.

Universal Parks & Resorts confirmed in a press conference today the hot rumor for the past week: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will come to Hollywood – specifically the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park. Very little details was given, such as how they’d fit it in the park (and it WILL be part of the park, not a separate park) – but it would definitely include Hogwart’s castle and the Forbidden Journey ride.

Also confirmed but with even less detail given is that the existing WWOHP section at Islands of Adventure in Orlando will be expanded, as long rumored – but that’s it. Some rumors state that they will somehow connect to space becoming available in the Universal Studios park (fueled by the recent announcement that the long-standing Jaws attraction is closing) – but they are fairly far apart with lots of support buildings and access roads in between. More likely is that it will take over more of the Lost Continent area.

Update: Hypable has a live blog of the announcement.

Remember that Harlan Ellison lawsuit against New Regency and director Andrew Niccol over the movie In Time that was reported as settled but really wasn’t? Well it’s over anyways.

I have confirmed with both Ellison’s and Niccol’s lawyers that the action has been dropped, and both sides have agreed to the following joint statement:

“After seeing the film In Time, Harlan Ellison decided to voluntarily dismiss the Action. No payment or screen credit was promised or given to Harlan Ellison. The parties wish each other well, and have no further comment on the matter.”

So there you have it. The lawsuit was originally sparked by what Ellison saw as similarities between the movie and his own story, “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said The Ticktockman”, namely the dystopian future in which people lived for a fixed amount of time, and that they could lose time if they violate anything. In the movie, time is literally money – everyone starts off with a fixed amount, and they earn more and pay for things with it. The movie struggled in theaters, however, grossing about $35 million domestically, and reaching only 38% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter may be getting a twin…and perhaps a lot more siblings. Earlier this month Universal Studios President Ron Meyer said in an interview, while panning recent studio failures, said, “Yes” when asked about plans to build additional Harry Potter parks.

Well now the Wall Street Journal is reporting that a second Wizarding World of Harry Potter is on the way (paid subscription required to read the whole article) – and the location will be at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Not much more details, other than an official announcement may come next week. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter was a huge success in Orlando (see a previous trip report here), helping to bolster the flailing Islands of Adventure park. Rumors have gone around about a possible expansion to that area, but with the possibility of money going to the other coast to build fresh there, I wonder if that pay delay any expansion plans.

Just had to say, that if you have any recollection at all of The Muppet Show, you need, and I mean NEED, to see The Muppets. The movie contains everything that made the Muppets great – silliness, seriousness, great songs, great cameos…and a story line that is a fictionalized tale of where the Muppets have been all this time, yet hits at reasons, valid or not, that we really haven’t seen much of the franchise.

It also doesn’t require much prior knowledge of the show. My own kids, who have never really seen the original show but are somewhat familiar with the characters through their movies, loved the movie, laughing and dancing and even signing. In the car ride home they were singing the theme song and “Mahna mahna”.

We can only hope that this reboot of sorts sees a resurgence in the Muppets so that we may see a whole lot more of them.

Paramount has slated the long-awaited Star Trek sequel for a May 17th, 2013 release date, according to Deadline. The sequel, currently being co-written by directory J.J. Abrams, Damon Lindelof, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, will also be made in 3D.

Earlier today, J.J. confirmed that he was looking for Benicio del Toro to have a role as a villain. Nothing has been revealed about what the role is, but speculation among the fanbase is that it could be Khan Noonian Singh.

When Lucasfilm obtained the domain name “StarWarsIdentities.com” (along with preemptively grabbing the typo’d StarWarsIdentites.com and sw-id.com), speculation ran rampant about the new mystery project, ranging from a new game or expansion to Star Wars: Galaxies, a new series of movies or a TV show, etc. My own thoughts would have been something less grand but marketable – actual ID cards to show your citizenship in the Republic (or Empire, or Rebel membership…). But it seems we were all wrong.

It is a museum exhibit.

This one is a bit different though. Instead of being just a traveling exhibit of props, etc. like has been done in the past, this is more about the characters, and what what defines them. It explores three aspects of an identity: “the origins of the characters, the influences that shape them, and the choices they make during their life.” It also includes an “interactive quest”, allowing a guest to create their own Star Wars identity incorporating fictional elements with their own, creating their own unique character (so wait, I wasn’t entirely wrong… 🙂 )

The exhibit will be at the Montreal Science Centre from April 19 through September 16, 2012, with tickets already on sale via StarWarsIdentities.com.

Dwayne Johnson (a.k.a The Rock) has signed on to star in an adaptation of [asin=0982750781]The Monster Hunter’s Survival Guide[/asin], a comic book miniseries created by John Paul Russ.

Johnson has a been a very busy boy lately…after some apparent time off, he’s revived both his Hollywood and wrestling careers, currently working on G.I. Joe 2 and is headlining Wrestlemania XXVIII.

The Monster Hunter’s Survival Guide is being produced by Simon Kinberg (Elysium, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) under his Genre Films shingle.

David Fincher (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), who was attached last year to direct the long-developing Disney 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea prequel movie about Captain Nemo and his creating of the Nautilus, looks to be teaming up with his Se7en screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker (The Wolfman) to take the latest pass on the script.

The project has been in development for years, as Disney has been trying to find a way to bring back Captain Nemo, whether it be a remake of its own classic film or a new story. Disney had previously scuttled a version being developed by McG.