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Thursday, September 10
While previously unknown, Sharlto Copley turned in a surprising performance in the sleeper hit District 9 to become ... well not quite a household name. But his next movie role just might cement stardom for the producer-turned-actor.
According to BlackFilm, Copley has been offered the role of Capt. H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock in the big-screen reimagining of 80's TV hit The A-Team.
To date, we have no word if Copley has agreed to "join the team," but if he accepts he'll be alongside mercenaries the likes of Liam Neeson as Col. John 'Hannibal' Smith, Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton 'Face' Peck, and Quinton Ramone Jackson in the role that Mr. T made famous — Sgt. B.A. "Bad Attitude" Baracus.
The casting choice looks like a good fit for the ensemble action movie. Copley could indeed round-out this badass cast. Set for release next year, the feature, which is being directed by Joe Carnahan, has already begun shooting in Vancouver, Canada.
Posted 9/10/2009 by Jim
Related: Bradley Cooper | Liam Neeson | District 9 | The A-Team | Sharlto Copley
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Wednesday, August 19
Thanks to a $37-million opening weekend, and a budget of just $30 million, the little sci-fi movie that could, District 9, may be more than just a dark horse, late-summer hit. It might be the start of a whole new franchise.
Director Neill Blomkamp was known primarily for his work on commercials before his short film Alive in Joburg, the thematic inspiration for District 9, caught the eye of producer-director Peter Jackson. District 9 has already carved out a place in the hearts of sci-fi fans and could rake in the kind of cash that makes a sequel compulsory.
Just prior to the opening of District 9, Jackson was hesitant to jump into sequel plans. Blomkamp, however, said that a sequel is up to the fans.
I'd love to make a sequel, because it's so creatively rewarding to me; there's just something about (the story). It's my background mixed with the science fiction that I loved. I'd really like to go back to the world of District 9 — which, without [lead actor Sharlto Copley's] character, would be a very different kind of movie. So I think automatically the two of us will be reunited again, should the public decide that this film is something they want to see and it's successful.
Next Showing: District 9 is in theaters now
Posted 8/19/2009 by BrentJS
Related: Peter Jackson | District 9 | Neill Blomkamp | Sharlto Copley
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Tuesday, August 18
With District 9 striking massive success both critically and commercially, speculation is already underway as to whether or not director Neill Blomkamp and producer Peter Jackson will work on a sequel. This morning, MTV Movies cited excerpts from an interview with Blomkamp at Comic-Con as possible evidence that we can expect an expansion of the District 9 universe.
When I started thinking about it, I thought I'd totally like to go back to the creative universe of District 9 for sure. Hopefully there's a place for that sometime in the future. It has to kind of do well first.
Holding true to his reputation for artistic integrity, Jackson shared his colleague's reluctance to jump into sequel plans before knowing the fate of the first movie.
We're superstitious. Sitting down and talking about sequels when you haven't even released the movie is, I think, tempting fate. We'll get the film released, see how it does. I believe movies should come from the heart, and if there's any sequel or continuation of District 9 it should only be because there's a good idea involved, not because it's a money-making venture.
Now that we know the movie is a success, it seems likely that Jackson and Blomkamp will be in talks soon about the possibility of a second installment. We'll keep you updated when we hear more.
Posted 8/18/2009 by Rich Z
Related: Peter Jackson | District 9 | Neill Blomkamp
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Sunday, August 16
| Title | Weekend | Total | Analysis |
| District 9 | $37.0M | $37.0M | Great reviews and word-of-mouth buzz propels twisty, creative sci-fi flick to #1. |
| G.I Joe: The Rise of Cobra | $22.5M | $98.8M | The last of the summer blockbusters fell almost 60% from Week 1 opening. |
| The Time Traveler's Wife | $19.2M | $19.2M | Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams romance a mild success as sci-fi/cartoon counter-programming. |
| Julie and Julia | $12.4M | $43.7M | Cooking dramedy makes its $40M budget back in 2nd week. |
| G-Force | $6.9M | $99.0M | Animated guinea pig action pic showing strong legs as it approaches $100M "blockbuster" status. |
Bomb of the Week: The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard is this week's winner due to mere $5.3M take in spite of large marketing push. Perhaps some actors just work better on TV.
Posted 8/16/2009 by reelz
Related: District 9
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Thursday, August 13
New clips from District 9 are popping up all over the place as this Friday's opening approaches. A couple of particularly interesting ones revolve around the powerful alien weaponry that the MNU, the quasi-govermental security force patrolling District 9, is so eager to get their hands on. It turns out, as we see in the first clip, that just getting ahold of these weapons isn't enough to make them work. You have to have the right (meaning alien) DNA. Most humans obviously don't have it, but from the second (age-restricted) clip it's evident that Agent Wikus (Sharlto Copley) does, which proves to be a critical factor in getting him out of a tight spot.
Posted 8/13/2009 by Bill
Related: District 9 | Sharlto Copley
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Tuesday, August 11
To celebrate the release of Neill Blomkamp's District 9 this weekend, the Saturday Morning @ ReelzChannel crew will be shooting in Roswell, New Mexico. Travis Oscarson talked to humans who saw the sci-fi movie at Comic-Con a few weeks ago (check out the clip below). Now he'd like to chat on-camera with some aliens.
So don your best alien garb and come out this Wednesday, August 12, at NOON MST. Here's the meet-up location:
International UFO Museum Center
114 N Main St
Roswell, NM 88203
505-625-9495
Posted 8/11/2009 by reelz
Related: Saturday Morning @ ReelzChannel | District 9
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Monday, August 10
In an interview with io9, director Neill Blomkamp explains that one of the reasons District 9's aliens find it so difficult to fight back despite their superior technology is that, like some insects, they have a hive mind:
The hive mind [concept] is the most important thing to me, because I love the idea of a civilization that can build all of that technology and then, at the same time, just have a massive population that was just drones that needed direction, and were absolutely incapable of building that stuff on their own. I found that to be a really interesting concept. Also, it sort of explains why they don't turn on the humans. Individually, they may be feeling oppressed, but they don't have it together enough to form a resistance and back one another. So I found that really interesting.
And it's not just their minds that have insect-like attributes. An earlier viral video featured a doctor discussing the peculiar physiology of these creatures.
Posted 8/10/2009 by Bill
Related: District 9 | Neill Blomkamp
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Thursday, August 6
District 9 follows many of the familiar conventions of cinematic science fiction: aliens, giant spaceships, futuristic weaponry, and government conspiracy. The South African setting, though, is something really new.
Director Neill Blomkamp told the New York Times that he is unsure of how certain parts of the film will go over in America, given the unfamiliarity of this context. One part is particularly concerned about involves a chase scene where a group of Nigerian gangsters track down a corporate bureaucrat whose infected DNA is transforming him into an alien. They want to cut off and eat his alien parts. For a South African audience, Blomkamp is confident that the scene would come off almost like a segment from the evening news, but he wonders whether it might leave an American audience "feeling either confused or insulted."
Ultimately, he's not too worried, given all of the positive buzz the movie has gotten from early screenings. Besides, he suggests, this is just a taste of things to come:
The rest of the world has always been open to films from all over the place. The Americans have to, in the 21st century, start dealing with the fact that they may be watching popcorn films not from America.
Soon, we'll all be making films for the Chinese.
At least as far as District 9 goes, though, it may yet turn out that such concerns are wholly misplaced. It is, after all, a sci-fi flick about aliens. The more alien, the better, right? So, is it entirely possible that, even for American audiences, the exotic setting will turn out to be a feature, not a bug?
Posted 8/6/2009 by Bill
Related: District 9 | Neill Blomkamp
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Thursday, July 30
Previous trailers and clips have tended to put the emphasis on the apartheid aspects of Neill Blomkamp's District 9: The aliens are segregated and mistreated by a populace resentful of their presence. That's a theme in the new featurette too, of course, but here we also get a closer look at the central figure in the human side of the drama, Agent Wilkus, played by newcomer Sharlto Copley.
Wilkus has been infected by a mysterious virus that is changing his DNA. At the same time, it's gradually begun to dawn on him just how seriously the aliens are being mistreated, and he is determined to put a stop to it. These threads combine to throw him into the very center of events. He goes, as producer Peter Jackson puts it, "from being a nobody to being the most valuable person on the planet."
Posted 7/30/2009 by Bill
Related: Peter Jackson | District 9 | Neill Blomkamp | Sharlto Copley
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Friday, July 24
EW reports that Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson spoke to the public at Comic-Con in San Diego following a screening of Neill Blomkamp's District 9, which he his producing. Jackson spoke about both The Hobbit, which is being directed by Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth), and his own The Lovely Bones, due in theaters this December.
Jackson will deliver a script for The Hobbit in a few weeks, and he says that work on the movie is still very preliminary.
We don't have a budget. We don't have a green light. We can't offer any actors roles til then.
Meanwhle, Jackson screened a short clip for The Lovely Bones ahead of the release of the first official trailer on August 7. The movie tells the story of a 14-year-old girl — portrayed by Saoirse Ronan — who is murdered and afterwards watches over her family from heaven. She also sees her killer (Stanley Tucci) and struggles with a desire for revenge. Mark Wahlberg and Rachel Weisz play the girl's parents.
Although the subject matter of the movie is grim, Jackson finds humor in the main character.
She's wonderfully funny. She feels no self pity and makes ironic, wry observations.
Posted 7/24/2009 by Rich Z
Related: Mark Wahlberg | Stanley Tucci | Peter Jackson | Guillermo del Toro | Saoirse Ronan | The Lovely Bones | The Hobbit | District 9 | Rachel Weisz | Neill Blomkamp