Friday, November 13

• First The Fighter Image of Mark Wahlberg in the Ring Released

  Principal photography for director David O. Russell's (Three Kings) The Fighter wrapped in August and an image of Mark Wahlberg in the ring as boxer "Irish" Micky Ward has finally been released.

  The Fighter is based on the true story of South Boston welterweight fighter Ward and his half-brother, Dicky Ecklund (played by Christian Bale), who kicked addiction to help Ward train for fights against such notable fighters as Arturo Gotti and Sugar Ray Leonard. The film also stars Amy Adams, who plays Charlene, a bartender in love with Ward.

  
  
  Next Showing: The Fighter is scheduled for a 2010 release

  Posted 11/13/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Amy Adams | Christian Bale | Mark Wahlberg | David Russel | The Fighter

Tuesday, October 6

• Mark Wahlberg Remaking Icelandic Movie Reykjavik-Rotterdam

  

  British production company Working Title Films (The Soloist, Smokin' Aces) has plans to remake the Icelandic thriller Reykjavik-Rotterdam, and they want Mark Wahlberg to contribute more than just his money. Wahlberg is currently attached to produce, but the company would like to see him step in front of the camera to play the lead in the movie as well.

  Reykjavik-Rotterdam, directed by Oskar Johnsson, won five Edda awards at this year's Icelandic movie awards and will be Iceland's foreign-lanugage submission to the 2010 Oscars. The movie tells the story of a smuggler who is struggling to go straight until his friend persuades him to commit one last illicit job. Working Title has hired Aaron Guzikowski (Prisoners) to adapt the Reykjavik-Rotterdam script for an American audience.

  Wahlberg recently wrapped filming on director David O. Russell's The Fighter alongside Christian Bale. He is currently shooting The Other Guys with Will Ferrelll, an action-comedy by director Adam McKay (Anchorman).

  
  

  Posted 10/06/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Mark Wahlberg | The Fighter | The Other Guys

Saturday, August 22

• Putting a Wrap on The Fighter

  Actors Mark Wahlberg and Amy Adams were recently photographed at the Lexington Flick movie theater in Boston, where they were filming some final scenes for The Fighter, a film inspired by the true story of "Irish" Mickey Ward (Wahlberg). Ward, with the assistance of his half-brother and trainer, Dickie Eklund (played by Christian Bale), rose through the ranks to challenge boxing greats such as Arturo Gotti and Sugar Ray Leonard. Adams plays Charlene, an athlete-turned-bartender who falls in love with Ward.

  The Fighter is directed by David O' Russel (Three Kings) and is expected to wrap filming next Wednesday.

  
  
  Next Showing: The Fighter is scheduled for a 2011 release

  Posted 08/22/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Amy Adams | Mark Wahlberg | The Fighter

Friday, July 24

• Peter Jackson Previews The Lovely Bones, Talks About The Hobbit

  

  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 07/24/2009 by Rich Z

  Related: Mark Wahlberg | Stanley Tucci | Peter Jackson | Guillermo del Toro | Saoirse Ronan | Rachel Weisz | Neill Blomkamp | The Lovely Bones | The Hobbit | District 9

Monday, July 20

• Security Tightened on the Set of The Fighter

  Apparently, having tough-guy actors like Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg around isn't enough to deter a curious fan from trying to sneak a peek at their co-star, Amy Adams, while in her trailer on the set of The Fighter.

  According to RadarOnline.com, shortly after 1,500 extras participated in a major boxing scene at Paul Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts, an unidentified man climbed the stairs to Adams' trailer and stuck his head inside. Adams, who was speaking with a production worker inside the trailer, was startled and scared the intruder off by yelling at him. The man ran off and is currently at large. In the wake of the incident, security around the set has been tightened.

  Inspired by a true story, The Fighter tells the story of "Irish" Mickey Ward (played by Wahlberg) and his half-brother and trainer, Dickie Eklund (Bale), who fought former world champion Sugar Ray Leonard in 1978. With the assistance of Ecklund, Ward fought throughout the '80s and 90s and his fights against Arturo Gotti are considered some of the greatest in boxing history. Adams plays Charlene, a tough bartender and former athlete who falls in love with Wahlberg's character.

  
  
  Next Showing: The Fighter is currently filming and scheduled for a 2011 release

  Posted 07/20/2009 by BrentJS

  Related: Amy Adams | Christian Bale | Mark Wahlberg | The Fighter

Tuesday, June 30

• Amy Adams in Talks to Star in The Fighter with Bale and Wahlberg

  Variety reports that Amy Adams is in negotiations to star in The Fighter alongside Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg, and Melissa Leo, who was nominated for an Oscar for her performance in Frozen River.

  Due for release sometime in 2011, The Fighter is being directed by David O. Russell, who helmed I Heart Huckabees, Three Kings, Spanking the Monkey, and the upcoming political comedy Nailed starring Jessica Biel and Jake Gyllenhaal. The Fighter is based on the true story of "Irish" Micky Ward, a boxer from South Boston who rose to prominence on the welterweight circuit during the mid-1980s.

  Wahlberg will portray Ward, while Bale will play Ward's half-brother, Dicky Eklund, who recovered from drug addiction to help guide Ward's career. Leo will portray Ward's mother. If cast, Adams would play the part of a bartender who develops a romantic relationship with Ward.

  Adams's other upcoming projects include Julie & Julia, in which she will star opposite Meryl Streep. She also recently finished filming for Anand Tucker's romantic comedy Leap Year.

  
  

  Posted 06/30/2009 by Rich Z

  Related: Amy Adams | Christian Bale | Mark Wahlberg | Melissa Leo | David O. Russell | The Fighter

Friday, June 26

• Christian Bale Loses Weight for The Fighter

  With Terminator Salvation dominating the (overseas) box office and Public Enemies opening July 1, it's hard to believe that Christian Bale took a year off from acting. However, Bale's ready to step back into the ring in more ways than one as he plays Mark Wahlberg's boxer-training brother in The Fighter. Bale described the movie to Collider.

  It's a true story of two incredibly gifted boxers who were half brothers. The one, Dicky Ecklund, who fought Sugar Ray Leonard at a very young age, when he was twenty one, was an incredible natural talent. He lived a very hard life. Then he came to train his brother, Irish Mickey Ward, to the world title.

  The role meant some serious dieting, which Bale explained to MTV.

  I've had to [lose] a great deal of weight because he was a welterweight.

  Bale has lost and gained weight for roles several times in his career, at one point dropping 62 pounds for The Machinist before gaining it all back and more for Batman Begins. Bale is using fairly conventional methods for his weight loss this time around:

  There’s nothing like boxing for getting you in shape. It’s a wonderful thing when your trainer is actually the person you’re playing.

  Production on The Fighter starts in July, releasing sometime in 2011. David O. Russell will direct.

  
  

  Posted 06/26/2009 by Ryan

  Related: Christian Bale | Mark Wahlberg | Sugar Ray Leonard | David O. Russell | Batman Begins | Public Enemies | Terminator Salvation | The Fighter | The Machinist

Monday, October 20

• Payne Shoots Down Bad Reviews

  The video game-based Max Payne took firm command of the U.S. Box office this weekend to the tune of a cool $18 million, despite overwhelmingly negative reviews. As of this morning, Rotten Tomatoes listed Payne at 17 percent from 76 critics.

  The success begs the question of whether Payne's conquest is attributable to the popularity of the video game, the drawing power of star Mark Wahlberg or a combination of the two?

  Surprisingly, the top seven movies and nine of the top ten at the box office currently score "Rotten" ratings from the aforementioned critical aggregate site.

  As we head towards the 2008 Oscar season, a time in which releases are traditionally driven by critical praise, has America collectively decided to ignore the critical masses?
  

  
  

  Posted 10/20/2008 by reelz

  Related: Mark Wahlberg | Max Payne

Saturday, July 26

• Mark Wahlberg Talks Max Payne at Comic-Con

  

  Max Payne star Mark Wahlberg took a moment out of his Comic-Con schedule to talk about the upcoming movie and how it will vindicate his reputation, having been tarnished by the poorly received The Happening.
  

   

  
  

  Posted 07/26/2008 by reelz

  Related: Mark Wahlberg | Max Payne

Thursday, April 3

• Exclusive Max Payne Talk with Mila Kunis
  

  The hottie star of That '70s Show and the voice of The Family Guy's Meg Griffin is about to make the transition from the small to big screen in a big way.
  
  The actress stars in this month's very buzzed Forgetting Sarah Marshall as the object of Peter Bretter's (Jason Segel) post-breakup affection. She is also currently shooting an adaptation of the popular video game Max Payne in which she will play Mona Sax opposite Mark Wahlberg as Payne.
  
  ReelzChannel.com spoke exclusively with Kunis recently and we got her to dish a bit on the highly-anticipated video game movie. Check out our full Mila Kunis Max Payne interview and then be sure to check out the rest of our exclusive interview with Kunis next week.
  
  
  
  

  Posted 04/03/2008 by reelz

  Related: Mark Wahlberg | Mila Kunis | Max Payne | Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Saturday, November 10

• Movie news: Max Payne and End Zone

  Mark Wahlberg is negotiating to star in a live-action adaptation of the videogame Max Payne, about a cop haunted by the loss of his family (is there any other kind?) investigating strange murders and fighting fierce foes. John Moore (Behind Enemy Lines) will direct.

  Josh Hartnett and Sam Rockwell will be starring in the adapation of the Don DeLillo novel End Zone about a Texas college football. Hartnett plays the star runningback and Rockwell the school publicist. George Ratliff (Joshua) will direct.

  Source: Variety.

  
  

  Posted 11/10/2007 by reelz

  Related: Josh Hartnett | Mark Wahlberg | End Zone

Monday, October 22

• Ryan Gosling drops out of The Lovely Bones

  According to Variety, all is not well in the land of Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones.

  Actor Ryan Gosling, who was to play the role of grieving father Jack Salmon, dropped out on Friday--after gaining 20 lbs and growing a beard for the movie, which begins shooting today in Pennsylvania. Mark Wahlberg stepped over the weekend to take his place.

  Gosling's 11th hour decision is being attributed to 'creative differences.' That does not sound good.

  
  
  Next Showing: The Lovely Bones begins shooting today.
  

  Gosling at the Toronto Film Festival

  Talking about his current movie Lars and the Real Girl

  Posted 10/22/2007 by reelz

  Related: Mark Wahlberg | Ryan Gosling | The Lovely Bones

Friday, September 21

• Pitt, Wahlberg step into boxing ring together

  We always knew that Brad Pitt secretly wanted to be a Bostonian. And now he will get his chance at the accent that proves to be most actors' Waterloo.

  Pitt has just signed to star opposite Mark Wahlberg in The Fighter, a drama about Boston boxer/world lightweight champion "Irish" Mickey Ward. Wahlberg will play Ward, and Pitt will play his half-brother/boxer Dicky Eglund.

  Matt Damon was supposed to play Eglund, but ceded the role to Pitt when his schedule became too crowded with other projects. Darren Aronofsky (The Fountain, Pi) will direct.

  Just remember this, Mr. Pitt: Not everyone from Boston sounds like a Kennedy. In fact, only Kennedys do. Now good luck, and may the road rise to meet you.

  Source: Variety.

  
  
  

  Brad Pitt can currently be seen in...

  The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

  Posted 09/21/2007 by reelz

  Related: Brad Pitt | Mark Wahlberg | Darren Aronofsky | The Fighter

Wednesday, July 18

• M. Night is Happening

  Super-secretive thrill-monger M. Night Shyamalan is at it again. The writer-director is putting together his next movie, The Happening, a thriller about a man (Mark Wahlberg) who tries to save his family when a natural disaster threatens to end the world.

  John Leguizamo and Spencer Breslin (brother of Little Miss Sunshine cutie Abigail) have recently joined the cast.

  As anyone who watches Entourage knows, Shyamalan is notoriously hush-hush about his projects (neurotic paranoia might be a better description). Thus, not much else is known about the movie--other than it begins filming next month in Philadelphia (of course).

  
  

  Posted 07/18/2007 by reelz

  Related: John Leguizamo | M. Night Shyamalan | Mark Wahlberg | Spencer Breslin | Zooey Deschanel | The Happening

Thursday, March 29

• Shyamalan has a Sixth Sense about Marky Mark

  Egomaniac and king of the thrillers M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense) has just announced plans to have Oscar-nominee Mark Wahlberg star in his upcoming "paranoia thriller" The Happening.

  In it, Wahlberg will play a man who takes his "family on the run after an apocalyptic threat to humanity." It is set to start filming in Philadelphia in August.

  Twentieth Century Fox is planning a global opening of The Happening on "the scariest day of the summer" - Friday the 13th of June, 2008.

  Scary stuff, indeed. Although it can't be scarier than this.

   

  
  
  Next Showing: The Happening, which hasn't filmed yet, opens on 6/13/08.
  

  Reelz Clip

  Wahlberg can currently be seen in Shooter.

  Posted 03/29/2007 by reelz

  Related: M. Night Shyamalan | Mark Wahlberg

Monday, March 19

• Wahlberg takes on the Spartans

  Ok, the phrase "Academy Award Nominee Mark Wahlberg" is gonna take a little getting used to. While not as strange-sounding as "Academy Award-Winning Screenwriter Ben Affleck," it's still something most of us never thought we'd hear. Indeed, Wahlberg's come a long way since we first saw him dancing around in his underpants 15 years ago. Check out our interview with the star of Shooter here.
  
  
  

  Reelz Clip

  Mike Richards talks to the stars of Shooter.

  Posted 03/19/2007 by reelz

  Related: Mark Wahlberg | Shooter