In-Development

‘Gangs Of London’ Creator Gareth Evans Is Working On A New Christmas Action Thriller

Den Of Geek‘s Friday report on The Raid franchise director Gareth Evans details hints on a new action thriller which he hopes to begin advancing toward the summer. Evans will be partnering with Ed Telfan along with XYZ Films’s Aram Tertzakian for its current development. “I started writing it probably about five months ago now. Really since being in lockdown, obviously I’ve been able to give a lot more focus to the writing of it,” says Evans. “It’s an action thriller. It’s a little more mainstream than what I’ve done in the past. It’s set two days before Christmas, so there’s a black dark humor streak to it, as well. It should be quite fun.” Evans also adds there will be some parallels to the 1988 action classic, Die Hard, which won’t be in a building per se, and cites Shane Black (Iron Man 3, Lethal Weapon) as a point […]

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METHUSELAH: ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ Team On Board Michael B. Jordan Action Adventure

Lee B. Golden III

The last four years of development history for the story of Methuselah have finally come to pass with director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Simon Beaufoy now leading the charge this time. The trades have maintained the project, which once saw Tom Cruise starring, has Michael B. Jordan on deck for the title role instead. As of Friday with the duo behind the highly-acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire officially on board, Jordan’s attachment hasn’t changed. What has changed, however, is the vision; A March 2019 Deadline piece described Methuselah as a story that told of “a man who has managed to survive for hundreds of years, without showing the physical signs of age. In that time, he has accumulated vast intellectual knowledge, from multiple languages to the sciences, as well as survival skills.” With Boyle now on board however, a new touch is in the works according to Variety‘s Justin Kroll who says […]

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Moves Forward At Paramount And Hasbro’s eOne In First Look Deal With Former Marvel Exec

Lee B. Golden III

It’s been twenty years since the highly popular Dungeons & Dragons made its first of several ventures into film. The influential role-playing game from TSR, Inc. and Wizards of the Coast is now back in the news just as Entertainment One (eOne) officiated its first look agreement with producer and former Marvel Studios executive, Jeremy Latcham. The move follows eOne’s acquisition by Hasbro who began their purchase last summer and completed in December to the tune of $3.8 billion. eOne’s announcement on Wednesday touts that the move will further power eOne’s ability to produce wide-appeal film and television content designed for a global audience from Hasbro’s vast library of IP. The past decade saw the potential start of development toward a reboot initially with Warner Bros. after a legal battle resolved between Hasbro and Sweetpea Entertainment in 2015. By 2017, the reigns were eventually handed over to Paramount who then […]

Tom Cruise Reaches For The Stars For New Action Thriller With Help From Space X And NASA. In Space. Literally.

Lee B. Golden III

Paramount Pictures is still in the process of recalibrating its ongoing production on the next pair of Mission: Impossible films currently set for November 2021 and November 2022. Neither of these have anything to do with with actor Tom Cruise going into space for his latest project now said to be in development according to Mike Fleming Jr. at Deadline on Monday. The project is said to be an action thriller with the involvement of NASA, and Elon Musk’s Hawthorne-based Space X program. No story or cast/crew info is available as of yet with the report stating the project is in early development, and there’s no studio circulation as of yet. Indeed, Cruise is no Jackie Chan, but that hasn’t hindered him from the careful planning and rehearsals he does in going above and beyond the call of duty for stunts. Among other credits, the Mission Impossible franchise is highly […]

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Joe Russo Seals Scripting Deal For EXTRACTION 2, Hemsworth And Hargrave Expected To Return

Lee B. Golden III

A new report at Deadline revealed on Monday that producer and director Joe Russo has locked a deal to pen the script for Extraction 2 for Netflix. The first film launched on the streamer on April 24, signaling a reunion for Joe and brother Anthony Russo, producing out of their AGBO banner, with industry stunt coordinator Sam Hargrave making his feature debut, and Chris Hemsworth starring and producing. Storied and scripted by the Russos with inspiration from Ande Parks’ 2014 novel, “Ciudad”, Extraction saw the story of Tyler Rake, a stoic former soldier-turned-black ops mercenary who finds himself battling enemies on all sides on the streets of India, to rescue the son of an imprisoned crime boss from his vicious rival. The report insists that Hemsworth may return, though one small detail Deadline’s Mike Fleming Jr. notes is that “…Several of the characters had past stories though, so there is […]

Paramount And Hasbro/eOne Ramp Up Animated TRANSFORMERS Prequel With ‘Toy Story 4’ Director

Lee B. Golden III

I’m quite pleased with this. I haven’t even seen the previous Michael Bay-directed Transformers film yet, or the Travis Knight-directed 2018 induction, Bumblebee which I’ve heard nothing but good things about the latter and I’ll have plenty of time to catch up on both. What matters though is we have a new Transformers movie in the works from Paramount and Hasbro that’s being developed to focus on the planet Cyberton, and the relationship between the franchise’s two mainstays, Optimus Prime and Megatron. Oscar-winning Josh Cooley (Toy Story 4) will direct the animated prequel from a script by Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari (Ant-Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp). According to Mike Fleming Jr.’s Deadline exclusive on Wednesday, Hasbro/eOne will lead the charge on the film’s production. The prequel’s development reportedly goes back to the script’s development in 2015 when Akiva Goldsman led a writers’ room at Paramount to plan a slate […]

HELLBOUND: ‘Train To Busan’, ‘Peninsula’ Director Boards Supernatural Drama For Netflix

Lee B. Golden III

For what it’s worth, Yeon Sang-ho is poised to host one of the hottest film summers ever with his long-awaited sequel, Train To Busan Presents: Peninsula. For this, he’ll have been more to bring to the table very soon with Netflix now readying Hellbound, which he will be penning and spearheading with illustrator Choi Gyu-seok. Hellbound will actually be the working title for the new original series going forward. In the series, people fight to survive the chaotic conditions that ensue when a group of religious fanatics emerge to worship supernatural events where afterlife beings enter out of nowhere to condemn people to hell. The series further rejoins Yeon with Lezhin Studio since production on this year’s tvN series, The Cursed. Choi is also the author of Songgot, a webtoon that was adapted as a television drama in 2015 titled Awl, directed by Kim Suk-yoon. From Netflix: The duo will […]

ALONG WITH THE GODS Gets New Life As Chinese Animation Project

Lee B. Golden III

Chinese media outlet MTime brings word of an animated transition of Joo Ho-min’s Korean hit webtoon, Along With The Gods, now in development at China’s Zhonghe Qiancheng Film and Television. The company acquired adaptation and filming rights and is presently in the pre-lim phase with script development. 200 Pounds Beauty and Mr. Go director Kim Yong-hwa sat at the helm writing, directing and producing two-live action films back-to-back ahead of releases in 2017 and 2018. The films center on the elusive, afterworld mystery, intrigue and danger surrounding a trio of guardian reapers who reluctantly aid in human affairs, while guiding and advising spirits of the dead who will face seven tumultuous trials to test their purity and worthiness of heaven. Cha Tae-Yun, Ha Jung-woo, Kim Hyang-Gi, Ju Ji-Hoon and recent Hollywood breakout Don Lee are among the roster between both films which scored massively at the box office whilst selling […]

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ONE PUNCH MAN Lands At Sony Pictures With Venom Scribes Adapting The Hit Manga Franchise

Lee B. Golden III

It was just a little over four years ago that Viz Media, LLC ponied up its catalogue, partnering with UTA to develop its manga and anime content into live action formats. ONE and Yusuke Murata’s One Punch Man became part of the line up and as it turns out, those propsects now home to Sony Pictures Sony according to Variety. Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinker (Venom) are adapting the property with Avi and Ari Arad producing. One Punch Man centers on Saitama, an unassuming young man who decides to become a hero for fun, joining the Hero Association to help defend Earth from an onslaught of monsters. His superior strength and seeming indestructibility, however, are his biggest downfall whenever he confronts enemies, as it only takes a single punch to defeat them. For Saitama, being a hero becomes more of a bore than anything, thus begging the question: Can a […]

THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES: Lionsgate Brings ‘The Hunger Games’ Team Back For Prequel Development

Lee B. Golden III

Lionsgate is moving forward with an adaptation of “The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes”, as announced by Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chairman, Joe Drake on Tuesday. Author Suzanne Collins penned the novel which is set prior to the events of her hit book series, The Hunger Games, which launched in 2008 and became a three-billion dollar success between four live-action films from 2012 through 2015. The film series also became a cornerstone for many a film franchise in service to audiences and fans around the world keen on young adult IPs, including Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight and Veronica Roth’s Divergent. The prequel will focus on the role of 18 year old Coriolanus Snow, years before becoming the tyrannical President of Panem. He is handsome and charming, and though the Snow family has fallen on hard times, he sees a chance for a change in his fortunes when he is chosen to […]

Amasia’s THE GREEN HORNET AND KATO Revs Up At Universal

Lee B. Golden III

Four years since Paramount Pictures took the reins with Gavin O’Connor a likely prospect, LA-based Amasia Entertainment snagged the rights for a film all their own based on legendary pulp hero, The Green Hornet.That IP now has new life as Green Hornet and Kato, with word from the trades on Amasia’s newly-etched partnership with Universal Pictures. Both parties are reportedly eyeing a global franchise with Amasia’s Michael Helfant and Bradley Gallo producing, currently in search of writers. George W. Trendle and Fran Striker first launched the character on radio in 1936 with actor Van Williams transitioning the character on screen by the 1960s – a playboy/media mogul and owner of The Daily Sentinel, Britt Reid. A wanted fugitive, he dons a trenchcoat and green mask as the gun-toting crimefighting alterego alongside his valet-turned-partner, Kato, debuted by then-burgeoning martial arts star, actor Bruce Lee. The new film marks the latest effort […]

Martial Club Confirms Team’s Feature Film Plans Are In Active Development

Lee B. Golden III

Martial Club is still proliferating their brand in the fields of martial arts, health and wellness, stunts and action cinema. To date, they’re still committed to their YouTube audience while working on their own endeavors, which no less includes their very own feature film. Team member Andy Le announced the project in November 2018, as a declaration to unilaterally grow and evolve toward making their own opportunities happen. “Martial arts action cinema was the platform that inspired me to do martial arts. And so we wanna create the same.” said Le at the time. Le says he is currently writing the project in the channel’s newest video. The team has been assembling their own content for their YouTube channel – including a Fist Of Fury-inspired short which he says is about a year or so overdue – while working on what Le says in the video were “opportunities that we […]

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ATOMIC BLONDE Sequel Gets Traction At Netflix

Lee B. Golden III

David Leitch‘s inaugural solo directing gig with 2017 Cold War spy pic, Atomic Blonde may at long last have a future if Thursday’s Discussing Film report is any hint. A follow-up is reportedly in development at Netflix with actress Charlize Theron expected to reprise her role as Lorraine Broughton, an elite MI6 agent who, in the first film, debriefs her superiors on her deadly assignment in 1989 to retrive a dossier in Berlin, containing a list of double agents. That film is based on 2012 graphic novel, “The Coldest City”. Kelly McCormick (Deadpool 2, Fast And Furious Presents: Hobbs And Shaw) is expected to continue onward from the original film as producer, alongside Theron who will produce at Denver And Delilah Productions with Beth Kono. Leitch and Theron previously expressed interest in a sequel prior to the 87eleven co-founder and John Wick co-director’s announcement of its development with an unnamed […]

RED: ‘Express Delivery’ And ‘The Take Down’ Creators Team Up For Action Thriller Proof Of Concept

Lee B. Golden III

Actor Beau Fowler is still in the mix these days, just completed his newest short film proof of concept, Red (working title, subject to change) last weekend from Ki Films. The actor took to social media last week on Thursday to tease fans with a mystery image, revealing himself opposite actress Jennifer Lim (A Monster Calls) in an intense scene. Fowler wrote the proof late last year and began a collaborative development soon with filmmaker David Newton (Wrath Of God, The Last), constructing a short story to serve as preamble to a hopeful feature-length endeavor later down the line. Plot details are underwraps though, but I am told the project is described as “an emotionally driven action thriller set in the world of organ harvesting”. Red rejoins Fowler with Newton, himself an industry stunt performer, independent filmmaker who made the festival rounds in 2018 with his feature debut, Amber – […]

BLOOD RUSH: ‘The Night Comes For Us’ Director Boards Ranjeet Marwa’s Indo Action Thriller As Consultant [EXCLUSIVE]

Lee B. Golden III

Director Timo Tjahjanto is officially coming aboard as production consultant on Ranjeet S. Marwa’s latest thriller, Blood Rush. The move reunites between Tjahjanto, and his Headshot and The Night Comes For Us actors Zack Lee and Sunny Pang, who have since joined the cast since the film’s announcement at the top of the year. Pic hails from Rocket Sky High Motion Pictures Ltd. Marwa will direct from his own script which centers on Lee in the role of Max Wayan, a grieving widower whose secretive new life in the occult turns out to be more than he bargained for. Also joining the cast are actors Yayan Ruhian (The Raid franchise, Hit & Run), and Nathan Jones (Jet Li’s Fearless, Mad Max: Fury Road), and stunt performer/action actor Nick Khan (Aladdin, Invincible) who also serves as fight choreographer. In addition, actor Nicholas Vince (Hellraiser, Hellbound: Hellraiser II) is currently in talks […]

AMERICAN RONIN: Newcomer James Moten Black Developing Original Urban Samurai Action Drama [EXCLUSIVE]

Lee B. Golden III

Actor and indepedent creator, newcomer James Moten Black is working to develop American Ronin, an original project that will firstly shoot a conceptual proof trailer to help gain attention from potential investors. Plot details and specifics about the film are pending, though it’s described as a contemporary martial arts piece cosigning his love for classic jidaigeki cinema and anime. Black is an accomplished martial artist since the age of eleven; He trained in Tang Soo Do under now-Grandmaster Linda Denley (Armor Of God), studied Muay Thai and scored a win in the competitive arena in sparring and forms. He moved to Los Angeles in 2014 to pursue acting, joining the Breakin’ Through Acting Workshop headed by actor and founding instructor Choice Skinner, and eventually picked up on Iaido and Kenjutsu under Skinner’s tutelage, next to learning visual effects compositing. The two have since flourished in their creative partnership, most prolifically […]

CROSSFIRE: Sony Targets Live-Action Adaptation Of Popular First-Person Shooter With Smilegate

Lee B. Golden III

Trade sources have reported and confirmed announcements from Smilegate with word on a new live-action film adaptation in development for first-person shooter, Crossfire. The South Korean game developer will partner with Sony Pictures with Tencent Pictures co-producing and co-finance the project. The move into feature film territory with Sony marks the latest update in a previous deal made between Smilegate and Fast saga producer Neal Moritz’s Original Film. Chuck Hogan (13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi) has long since been attached to the script in its development stages with Smilegate dating back to 2017. “I am very excited to prove the wonder of CROSSFIRE IP to the world through a Hollywood major motion picture with a great partner Sony Pictures,” says Smilegate’s EVP of Marketing/IP Business Development, Paek Min-jung. “Creating and spreading a household IP has always been Smilegate’s direction and goal. We have discussed and prepared the movie […]

VIGILANTE: Action Pic In-Development From ‘Jarhead 3’ Director, Scott Adkins In Talks To Star

Lee B. Golden III

Avengement star Scott Adkins is reportedly circling a chance to reteam with director William Kaufman for action thriller, Vigilante, according to news broken at City On Fire on Friday. The film also reunites Kaufman with screenwriter Chad Law who penned the director’s 2015 dystopian zombie thriller, Daylight’s End, as well as Adkins’s Isaac Florentine actioner, Close Range. Law is co-penning the script with Josh Ridgeway, and with Andrea de Liberato (Among The Shadows) producing. Vigilante centers on a disgraced soldier who wages war against the city’s most dangerous criminals, only to end up endangering the lives of the very same people he initially set out to help protect. Kaufman and Adkins last paired up for 2016 threequel, Jarhead 3: The Siege. A seperately-gestating reboot of Kaufman’s stellar 2010 crime pic, Sinners And Saints, which the two circled with actor Johnny Strong back in 2017, still waits in the wings. Vigilante […]

THE HUNT: SAVAGE WITHIN Brings Back Z-Team Films For New Indie Sci-Fi Action Feature [Exclusive]

Lee B. Golden III

Actor, martial artist and filmmaker Fabien Garcia is developing female-centric sci-fi pic, The Hunt: Savage Within. The project has been ongoing for some years now, and also now comes with conceptual imagery and artwork that I’ve been allowed to share which you can view at the bottom of this article. Story and plot details center on the role of Sarah, a forest ranger who finds herself hunted by an extraterrestrial being until a band of spec-ops soldiers arrive to her aid while investigating the crash site of the entity’s spaceship. The film is being billed as a gritty action feature likened to a mix of classic cult thrillers such as Predator, Terminator and The Thing. Garcia is shepherding pre-production under his Z-Team Films banner with Laurent Buson (Merantau), and Christine Gorchon. The label is an upscale rebranding of his former Z-Team label which emerged in 2003 with Buson as both […]

ONE PIECE Manga Lands Ten-Episode Live-Action Series At Netflix

Lee B. Golden III

A ten-episode live-action rendition of One Piece found a new home at Netflix on Wednesday according to trade news and a press announcement from the streamer. The news comes following word that broke in July of 2017 that a live-action series was in the works from Shueisha, and Marty Adelstein’s Tomorrow Studios, the same company involved with the current serial production of Cowboy Bebop – also for the streamer. A multitude of adventures outline One Piece which took off as a hit manga beginning in 1997. The franchise expanded itself greatly into television and original video animes with its story centered on Monkey D. Luffy and his epic, action-packed and sprawling quest to find said ‘piece’ and claim the title of “King Of The Pirates”. The manga has sold over 460 million copies in its nearing 23-year history, birthed from author/creator Eiichiro Oda who took to Twitter for a statement […]