It’s raining men. That’s the weather forecast for moviegoers as a flood of fresh male faces — and buff bods — hits the big screen this year.

The reason for the influx: A perfect storm of genres that requires a replenishing of the film industry’s dwindling stock of prime beefcake.

With studio slates packed with would-be superhero franchises, the rollout of more Clash of the Titans-style epics and a surge in fairy-tale adventures that require both virile peasants and handsome princes, there’s a run on actors between the ages of 20 and 35 capable of filling the needs of such cinematic fantasies.

“The sheer volume of these types of films is a casting nightmare,” says Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. “These are big shoes to fill, and you don’t want actors who are interchangeable.”

Good looks alone do not guarantee a perfect fit. That’s especially true of comic-book avengers who must meet sky-high fan expectations. Brandon Routh’s career was all but grounded after the lukewarm reception to his Man of Steel in 2006′s Superman Returns.

In the past, adaptations that took casting chances soared, including such offbeat hires as funny guy Michael Keaton, who kicked off the first Batman franchise in 1989, and the less-than-strapping Tobey Maguire, who added emotional depth to the role of Spider-Man in 2002. Going the unconventional route paid off more recently with the brainier-than-brawny Robert Downey Jr. in 2008′s Iron Man.

This new breed of Hollywood male, however, basically boils down to two flavors: super-soulful and slim or ultra-masculine and muscular.

Defining this dichotomy are Andrew Garfield, 27, the lanky British-American guy from The Social Network who has been recruited for the 2012 Spider-Man reboot, and Christian Bale, 37, typically a meatier Welsh-born specimen who dons Batman’s cowl for the third time in 2012′s The Dark Knight Rises.

The ‘Twilight’ factor
The reason for the double standard?

“It’s the two archetypes you see in Twilight,” Dergarabedian suggests. In one corner is brooding vampire Edward and, in the other, burly werewolf Jacob. “It’s probably an attempt to make sure women see these films.”

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Hollywood is all about finding the next hot thing, whether that’s a script, an actor, a director, a genre (vampires anyone?) or the ultimate discovery, a lucrative film series.

The seven “Harry Potter” movies have so far netted over $6 billion, while the first three installments of “The Twilight Saga” have earned just under $1.8 billion. That’s nearing “Oprah” money, people! (As opposed to “Potter,” which is nearing “Zuckerberg” money… but we’d rather be Oprah.)

And that’s not even counting all the licensing and swag sales… you gotta figure another few hundred thousand in Edward Cullen lunchboxes alone.

Studio executives would happily hand over their firstborns to the Volturi for a lead on “the next ‘Twilight’ franchise” (trust me, I’ve prank-called). That’s because finding such a rarity is about as easy as winning the lottery.

Paramount developed “Twilight” for three years before getting letting the rights slip to a then-little-known production company Summit Entertainment. Universal and United Artists passed on their options for “Star Wars,” and 20th Century Fox gave Lucas hell through production, worried the over-budget film wouldn’t amount to much.

The problem movie studios run into is trying too hard to find “the next _______.” “The Twilight Saga” is as much the next “Harry Potter” as “Pirates of the Caribbean” is the next “The Lord of the Rings” or “Ice Age” is the next “Toy Story.” Fanatics of one series aren’t necessarily looking to glom onto a new similar thing.

It seems like every other week we’re hearing buzz about some book being adapted for the big screen that its producers hope can be “The next ‘Twilight.’” News flash, producers: There’s only, and will only ever be, one “Twilight.”

Read the rest: Here

Via/Twilightish

Kristen Stewart, still looking for a cinematic success outside of “Twilight,” is slated for the lead role in Snow White and The Huntsman. It will be her first big budget film following to also-rans, “Welcome to the Rileys” and “The Runaways.”

Palek Patel, who’s producing with Joe Roth, has tweeted that she’s in final negotiations to star with Charlize Theron and Viggo Mortensen, according toDeadlineHollywood and other reports.

“KStew is officially playing Snow White and her deal is in final negotiations and will close next week,” Patel wrote.

The confirmation ends weeks of speculation afterDeadline reported in January that Stewart, 20, was being eyed for the role of Snow White.

Although she’s one of the most visible and popular actresses in Hollywood, and one of the hottest couples withRobert Pattinson, it still remains to be seen whether she can carry a picture on her own outside of “Twilight.”

Despite strong casting in Rileys, which also starred James Gandolfini and Oscar winner Melissa Leo, the movie flopped at the box office. It grossed around $300,000 worldwide, according to boxofficemojo.

“Welcome to the Rileys”? Thanks, but no thanks,” wrote Washington Postcritic Michael O’Sullivan.

Likewise, “The Runaways” The film, about the early days of Joan Jett and her iconic band also failed to ignite fans.

The movie fared somewhat better with critics than Rileys. But it only grossed $3.5 million with a production budget of $10 million.

Nonetheless, Stewart is considered bank in Hollywood.

She’ll have a lot of help from Oscar winner Theron, but the movie will go head-to-head with another Snow White picture, starring Julia Roberts.

Stewart just finished shooting “On the Road,” based on the Jack Kerouacnovel of the same name, about the coming of age of the Beat Generation in the 1950s.

From there, Stewart went right into filming the final “Twilight” installment, “Breaking Dawn, Part I and Part II.”

Production wraps at the end of April, and she will begin shooting “Snow White” in August.

“Snow White and the Huntsman” is scheduled for release in December 2012

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Robert Pattinson’s upcoming 20th Century Fox film, “Water for Elephants” with Reese Witherspoon and Christoph Waltz showcases his emotional intensity on screen unlike he was unable to do as Edward Cullen in “Twilight.” Just check out 20 screen captures from the new trailer.

The photos were culled from the 2:27 minute clip that focuses extensively on Rob from various scenes in the movie.

His piercing blue eyes are clearly evident; no more amber colored vampire contact lenses!

His eyes alone convey a lot of emotion, but framed in his angular face, he exudes passion, pain and delight as his character learns of the death of his parents and moves through the movie.

There has been some talk that Water could land Rob his first Oscar nomination.

It’s way too soon to speculate, but he looks fierce in the trailer, which can’t be fully appreciated without looking at the stills.

The story centers on a 90-year-old man (Hal Holbrook/Pattinson) who reminisces about his life during the Great Depression, the one in the 1930s, not the most recent economic downturn.

The man, a veterinary student at the time, tells of his experience finding work at a B-level circus taking care of the animals.

He sees the brutality of circus life while falling for the wife (Witherspoon) of the ringmaster, an abusive animal trainer (Waltz).

The movie is directed by Francis Lawrence (“I Am Legend,” “Constantine”) based on Sara Gruen’s best-selling book.

Lawrence gives the film a smoky and at times ethereal feel as Rob sets off in the world, discovers the circus’s cruelties an
d falls for the beautiful wife of its ringmaster.

“Water for Elephants” was shot in Ventura County, Calif. last summer.

The film is scheduled to hit theaters on April 22nd, in limited release.

Mann Theatres in Los Angeles has slated the “Water for Elephants” premiere on April 14 at Grauman’s Chinese, but the date isn’t set in stone.

Rob is still filming “Breaking Dawn” for Summit so the date is not locked it in, the studio said on its facebook page.

“We obviously want everyone there, so nothing is final at this time. We promise, as soon as we lock in a premiere we will let you know!” it added.

The London premiere is set for May 3, but no located has been picked yet, according to the site.

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Hollywood has had its fair share of romantic leading men over the last 80 years. Will Water for Elephants be the film that makes Robert Pattinson Hollywood’s next leading man?

The term “leading man” is an old Hollywood term for an actor who plays the love interest of the leading actress in a movie. A leading man is always handsome and debonair. He can usually do a little bit of everything such as singing, dancing, ect. He is also known for being able to make less talented actresses look better than they really are.

Does Robert Pattinson fit the bill so far?

Some popular leading men over the years have been; Errol Flynn, Cary Grant, Stewart Granger, Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise.

Is it Rob Pattinson’s turn to become Hollywoods next leading man?

Pattinson has everything you look for in a leading man. He has the looks, the charm, the sophistication and the ability to sing and play musical instruments. He has played the role in Twilight already and now he gets his chance to do it again, in a more serious film, with a leading lady in Reese Witherspoon.

Water for Elephants is beginning to look like a break through role for Robert Pattinson. The hype keeps building. Next month we will find out if it lives up to it all.

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The 400 and 500 blocks of Castro Street between Market and 19th streets will be closed starting just before midnight on March 26 until about 4 or 5 p.m. on March 27, said Wiener, whose district includes the Castro neighborhood. The actual one-hour performance is slated to begin at noon. The piece is set to air on GMA the following Tuesday, March 29.

Wiener said a yet-to-be determined number of people will be allowed in to see it for free. ABC producers have been meeting with local groups to hash out plans for the segment.

The cost of the whole affair is unknown at this point, Wiener said, but ABC will foot the bill for any city expenditures, which could include police for crowd control, rerouting of Muni services and movement of street cables to accommodate the stage and recording equipment. Wiener said the 24 and 33 lines would be rerouted, and the F Line could also be impacted.

Wiener said ABC producers are in the process of submitting permit applications and details will be solidified in the coming weeks. Spears is set to arrive in San Francisco a few days before the Sunday performance, most likely to meet with youth organizations including the Lavender Youth Recreation and Information Center and Larkin Youth Services.

Other than wanting to meet with kids, locals say Spears is clearly courting a gay audience, for good or ill.
“It’s a calculated move on Britney’s part to come down and sort of ‘reclaim my gays,’” said Heklina, a well-known local drag queen who founded Trannyshack, a monthly cabaret.

Still, Heklina said rooftop parties are already planned for the event and the novelty, at the very least, is exciting for the neighborhood. Former Supervisor Bevan Dufty said the rebounding pop star’s appearance can’t be a bad thing.

“The Castro is really rooting for Britney,” Dufty said.

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In case you haven’t heard, Blockbuster is in a bad way right now. Now it’s affecting Twilight.
The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September, and it has left Twilight film studio Summit Entertainment stranded when it comes to their Eclipse DVD funds.

According to Reuters, Blockbuster owes Summit Entertainment $6.8 million but that the company will not (allegedly, “cannot”) pay it, which will cause Summit (a “small studio”) a “significant hardship.” Apparently, Blockbuster made around $8.3 million off of the Eclipse DVD, and now, because Summit isn’t being paid their due, they’re suing Blockbuster to force them to pay the tab or go into liquidation.

As you know, the Eclipse DVD was released on December 4th.
NOTE: A common question here might be: why would the studio enter into agreements like this knowing there are issues with bankruptcy involved? First of all, there was probably a relationship in place long before the petition/filing (Twilight and New Moon were big releases for the store). Even if not, according to Dallas News, “Summit said it was assured that studios would be paid post-petition bills because new movie releases are the chain’s livelihood.”

As for specific numbers, Home Media Magazine reports:

Summit last November shipped Blockbuster 426,180 DVDs (excluding widescreen) of Eclipse for unit prices ranging from $6 to $20.20 each, in addition to 92,290 copies of the film on Blu-ray Disc (excluding widescreen) for unit prices from $6 to $23.99 each.
Summit . . . claims Eclipse was the fourth-biggest home video release of 2010 . . .
There were also some other films involved, including The Hurt Locker, Robin Hood Unrated, and Red, but The Twilight Saga: Eclipse was the big boy in the matter, naturally.

HMM states, Blockbuster “had agreed to pay [Summit] within 60 days of the title’s Dec. 4 release initial invoices totaling more than $1.6 million.”
Bankruptcy cases are really tricky because, basically, through the system corporations get to reorganize their finances in order to survive whatever downturn they’re experiencing. By filing, they gain protection from creditors who will later be paid in a certain order, the last few on the list usually being the losers of that scenario.

As Reuters states, “Bankruptcy gives companies breathing space to reorganize their debts in part by ensuring suppliers will be among the first paid.”

The question is: Is Summit a supplier or a (secured or unsecured) creditor?
According to an old HMM article (which is not legal precedent by any means, but it’s a good start) concerning other studios, those companies (like Walt Disney, Universal) were considered either secured creditors or suppliers.

This means they favor slightly higher on the totem pole than, say, generic lenders (there’s an entire course on this in law school, by the way). The point is, Summit would at least be up there on the list of those who could suck the blood out of the Blockbuster turnip in bankruptcy, but it could take months for the company to reorganize, and even then there still may not be enough money to pay the sum back.

Forcing a liquidation would be a very smart move, and it will be interesting to see if that is where this thing leads. Could the Twilight film studio bring down the bleeding Blockbuster once and for all? Looks like it just might. It all depends on how the court decides to rule on it.
On a personal note, for those of you who remember the death of Hollywood Video and the thousands of other companies done under by the strong-armed 1990’s Blockbuster – or those of you who suffered from their former $3.95 a day late fee regime – you might agree: it’s the boomerang. Do you feel sympathy? Nah. Hello Redbox and Netflix. Although it would mean less part-time jobs on the market.

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In a recent article, Movieline discusses how the casting of Rob in Cosmopolis could affect American literature. Check it out below!

I won’t take up more of your time explaining why Cosmopolis is maybe the fifth or sixth most optimal Don DeLillo novel for a screen adaptation by David Cronenberg, but two new developments surrounding the looonnng-gestating project most definitely bear noting. Needless to say, Robert Pattinson’s casting as paranoiac, Manhattan-crossing, billionaire-in-the-unmaking Eric Packer is pretty important. But are we ready for the consequences?

To wit, are we ready for the collision of a voracious Twilight saga/Stephenie Meyer readership and the dense, oblique, conspiratorial post-9/11 ravings of arguably America’s greatest living novelist? For the record, I’m not saying one can’t handle the other — they’re all just books in the end, and Meyer’s key demo is nearing college age — but when the flawed, dated Cosmopolis now flies off the shelf, leaving Twihards to possibly settle for, say, The Body Artist, Libra, Mao II or (please God please God please) White Noise as some kind of clued-in tonal surrogate, are we looking at a new generation of DeLillo readers? To say nothing of new Cronenberg viewers? I don’t think the reigning bards of spiritual disaffection and body horror could possibly have had better news from Hollywood today. Relevancy for all!

Read full article.

EXCLUSIVE: I’ve learned that the Taylor Lautner juggernaut continues in Hollywood as this 18-year-old Twilight Saga action star and teen heartthrob just keeps booking movie after movie. Last year’s highest paid teenage actor (for a reported $7.5 million pay day in Universal’s Stretch Armstrong with Hasbro and Imagine) is starting off the new year by producing and starring in 2 new studio tentpoles during 2011.
I can scoop that Fox 2000 and New Regency each coughed up an 8-digit paycheck to work with 8-pack-abs Tay-Tay for his two only available time slots this year. Meanwhile, three top producers including Michael Bay and his Platinum Dunes are circling Taylor to star in their movies for 2012 and beyond.

That’s because of Lautner’s enormous Twi-hard fan base and reputation for aggressively promoting his films, and not because of any solo box office he’s done yet.

At Fox 2000, Lautner will play the lead role in Catherine Fisher’s novel, Incarceron, a sci-fi/fantasy novel. (Last March, Fox won a bidding war for the rights to the book which was published in the U.S. this November and jumped onto The New York Times bestseller list.) Lautner plays a character who lives his entire life in a savage and futuristic prison society. Now the filmmakers are looking to cast his love interest and the frontrunners are Blake Lively, Jennifer Lawrence, and Emma Watson. John Palermo Productions will produce (Wolverine, Drive) with Lautner’s own Quick Six production banner.

The screenwriting duo of Adam Cooper and Bill Collage are writing. (They are also scripting Moby Dick for Timur Bekmanbetov and Moses for FOX and producer Peter Chernin. So why not for Lautner, too?)

The 2nd Lautner vehicle is an as–yet-unnamed international spy thriller set up at New Regency. Described to me as “The Bourne Identity for the next generation.” The story is loosely based on the exploits of Juval Aviv, a former Israeli Mossad agent who was the inspiration for Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award-nominated Munich. Lautner will produce with Alexandra Milchan (who is currently producing The Wolf Of Wall Street with Leonardo DiCaprio), daughter of Israeli mogul Arnon who is New Regency’s founder.

Taylor is scheduled to finish shooting the Twilight Saga’s Breaking Dawn this spring. And Fox 2000 and New Regency grabbed his two available slots for 2011. But insiders tell me that several producers are now trying to woo him to their projects: The Oscar-winning team of Craig Zadan and Neil Moren (Chicago, Hairspray) who have an untitled project; Scott Stuber who has Demon Wars, a book written by bestselling author R.A. Slavatore.

Lautner would play a reluctant hero in this epic fantasy adventure confronting the dark tides of destiny in his search for justice and peace; and Michael Bay whose production company Platinum Dunes is aggressively trying to make a movie this year with Taylor’s limited availability.

All this — and yet Taylor won’t even turn 19 until February 11th, and Hollywood won’t find out the kid’s non-Twilight Saga box office power until Lionsgate releases its thriller Abduction later this year on September 23rd.

Deadline | Via

Taylor Lautner is set to wolf down some hefty salaries in 2011, with two major star vehicles coming his way.

As Gossip Cop reported last month, the first of these films is Incarceron, adapted from a sci-fi novel about the attempt to escape from a savage, futuristic prison society.

Lautner’s second upcoming project will supposedly be an international spy thriller based on the life of Juval Aviv, a former Israeli Mossad agent. It’s described as “The Bourne Identity for the next generation,” according to Deadline.

It’s now reported that the budding action star will earn 8-figure paychecks – and serve as a producer – for both projects.

His current commitment, of course, is Twilight Saga finale Breaking Dawn, which is scheduled to finish shooting this spring.

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Wishing Taylor all the best + lots of success with his future films!