Movie Muser

For a few months now Matt Damon and Ridley Scott have been preparing to team up for The Martian. While the film is largely about a man stranded alone on Mars, he’s not 100% of the story, and now it looks like he’s getting some company, as Variety and Deadline report that Jessica Chastain and Kristen Wiig are circling the movie.

There’s no news on who they might play, although it’s likely one of the actresses will be the Commander of the NASA mission that results in Damon get stuck on the Red Planet, while the other will be back at Mission Control on Earth.

The film is based on the self-published e-book by Andy Weir, with Drew Goddard having adapted the script (Goddard at one time was set to direct, but was replaced by Scott after Drew went off to make the Spider-man spin-off The Sinister Six).

It’s not too surprising that Hollywood has been sniffing around the UK phone hacking scandal, but it’s even less surprising that it’s Rupert Murdoch’s 20th Century Fox won’t be making it.

Now Sony’s Hack Attack has a director, and it’s none other the George Clooney.

The film is an adaptation of journalist Nick Davies’ account of the British phone hacking scandal, which has surrounded Rupert Murdoch’s news empire for the last few years.

According to Variety, ‘Davies investigated News Corporation and its subsidiary, News International; his book shows how their habit of hacking into the voicemail messages of elected officials, celebrities, and even ordinary British citizens and the victims of terror attacks was wide-ranging and ongoing. The resulting scandal would not only mark the end of News of the World after 168 years of continuous publication, but spur a government inquiry that would bring to light some of the most unthinkable of business practices.’

“This has all the elements – lying, corruption, blackmail – at the highest levels of government by the biggest newspaper in London,” Clooney comment. “And the fact that it’s true is the best part. Nick is a brave and stubborn reporter and we consider it an honor to put his book to film.”

All Clooney’s films have had a political and social edge, and Hack Attack has the added interest for him that he’s the son of a journalist himself. There’s no news on when it might shoot.

For quite a while it’s been clear Dwayne Johnson has been interested in taking on a major comic book, and in recent weeks the rumours have run rife that he was closing in on a role in Warner Bros.’ planned take on DC Comics’ Shazam.

Now Variety reports that Johnson will indeed be in the movie, although those who suggested he wasn’t quite right for the title role have been proved correct, as Johnson will actually be playing Shazam’s nemesis, Black Adam.

The actor has confirmed the new with the tweet below.

Shazam (also known as Captain Marvel, although you can see why they’d avoid that name) is the superhero alter-ego of a boy called Billy Batson. The hero has the powers of Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, and Mercury. While not particularly well known today outside comic book circles, he was the biggest selling character of the 1940s.

Black Adam meanwhile first appeared in 1945 as Teth-Adam of Kahndaq. He was originally a villain, but slowly transformed into an anti-hero who matches Shazam in strength, agility and fighting. He also knows magic.

It seems likely therefore that Johnson will be taking the role with the eye to getting his own spin-off.

Darren Lemke will write the script for Shazam, which is likely to be released in 2016.

 

"Kneel at his feet or get crushed by his boot." My honor to become.. #BlackAdam #TheAntiHero #DCComics pic.twitter.com/Qk55eNf3R7

— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) September 3, 2014