This afternoon while I was writing some emails and drafts of some future blog posts that you'll soon be seeing here, I received the Breaking News about Disney's purchase of Lucsafilms via an email from Sharon Waxman'sTheWrap, our daily entertainment must-read. A few minutes later I listened to the entire conference call and heard analysts try to alternately pry and parry some good intel out of Jay Rasulo, Disney's CFO, that he didn't want to share, particularly as it involves valuation.
Much of the video above spoken by Disney CEO Robert Iger, better known to some of you as the husband of TV news personality Willow Bay, was later heard in the conference call that I listened to in its entirety. You can listen to the entire conference call here: http://edge.media-server.com/m/p/c2nj5j33/lan/en%20%20 In particular, they didn't want to talk in much detail about what the story is with Fox's distribution contract for prior Star Wars films and Paramount's deal for the Indiana Jones films. As you listen, while you probably have already heard the big news that a new Star Wars film is slated for release in 2015, Episode 7, make sure you don't sleep on the news that Disney wants to bring Star Wars and its huge cast of characters and narratives to TV in some new fashion, geared towards kids, and to amusement parks. TheWrap WaxWord blog Will the Force Be With Disney’s $4B 'Star Wars' Gamble? By Sharon Waxman Published: October 30, 2012 @ 7:58 pm
In buying Lucasfilm for a stunning $4.05 billion on Tuesday, Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger has made yet another bold gamble for the future of his media company, betting on a beloved but dusty franchise in need of a radical reimagining for a new generation.
starwars YouTube Channel: George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy discuss the future of Star Wars movies at Disney. Uploaded October 30, 2012. http://youtu.be/YyqlTi7lkhY
Los Angeles Times 24 Frames blog Critical Mass: 'Thor' swings his hammer and the critics scream By Patrick Kevin Day May 6, 2011 2:55 p.m.
Bridges are the key theme of this weekend's "Thor," a film that bridges us from the doldrums of spring releases to the flashier, if not better, world of summer blockbusters. It also serves as another step in the bridge from the first "Iron Man" in 2008 to next summer's superhero all-star jam, "The Avengers." And within the film itself, a superhero actioner about the Norse god of thunder and his adventures in his home of Asgard and on Earth, a rainbow bridge connects the well-regarded Asgard sections of the film with the less successful Earth sections, set in Puente Antiguo, N.M. (which means "Old Bridge").
'Captain America: The First Avenger ' ( Trailer) http://www.youtu!be.com/watch?v=5ZxRuxSZfzw Opening July 22nd.
Finally, the Super Soldiers we've been waiting for all this time... for like, FOREVER! And Tommy Lee Jones is training him? Fabulous!
I came across the new Paramount ad on TV last night for the first time on Comedy Central and was immediately hooked, even though I was not aCaptain America comic book fan as a kid.
I've seen Hayley Atwell, the lead female actress in Captain America in a few things before but am not super-familiar with her work, per se, though I have been hearing the same rumors that many of you have probably heard as well about her being cast in Baz Luhrmann's remake of The Great Gatsby, starring Carey Mulligan, which I referenced here a few months ago.
To be fair, no woman looks as great in -or out of- a military uniform as Kate Beckinsale did in Pearl Harbor. At least for the big screen. http://www.allmoviephoto.com/photo/kate_beckinsale_pearl_harbor_005.html Obviously, Catherine Bell locked-up that title for the small screen years ago, plus, she speaks Farsi. http://www.beyondhollywood.com/gallery/your-fourth-of-july-picture-of-the-day-catherine-bell/ I wish Bell were cast in a really good film -action, espionage, et al- where she could really show her talent off to a larger audience than her current popular Lifetime cable TV show, Army Wives, which I've seen a few times but am not a regular viewer of.
In my opinion, there are far too many twenty-something actresses cast as government agents, secret or otherwise, or intel types, and they always comes across as preposterous, like they should still be in grad school, perhaps calling their parents up for money because they had car problems. Bell, on the other hand grabs you attention from the start, just like another longtime HBB favorite, Annabeth Gish did so consistently on X-Files.
