MTV has designated Tuesday as "Twilight Tuesday," and each week they put up some kind of new tidbit, video, etc. Now that the movie's entered post-production, there is a noticeable lack of stuff floating around, and that'll probably remain the case till the press junkets start.
So I was especially psyched to see today's release -- namely, if Twilight does even remotely as well as everyone is projecting, the sequels -- yes, all three sequels -- will be filmed simultaneously. There really is no other way. I mean, with the exception of Kristen Stewart, the actors cast as the younger Cullens are already in their 20s playing 17 and 18.
Which is a problem, seeing as how vampires don't age. There isn't even that much leeway with Bella.
So yeah. Shooting simultaneously is the only way they can ensure that none of the actors ages too noticeably.
Twilight filmmakers hope to shoot sequels simultaneously
It was a gamble that paid off in a big way for the “Lord of the
Rings” trilogy, but may have helped sink the “Matrix” films. As for the
“Back to the Future” flicks, well, that battle continues to rage on.
Now, the “Twilight” series is the latest blockbuster franchise making
plans to shoot multiple sequels at the same time.
“It’s been discussed,” producer Greg Mooradian revealed to MTV News. “I can’t tell you we’re at that place yet, but it’s definitely been discussed.”
The advantages to such a plan are obvious: Rather than building sets and tearing them down only to be re-built a few years later, they can film multiple scenes; instead of selling vehicles and re-buying them (such as Carlisle Cullen’s Mercedes, which can be seen here), they can hold on to them; rather than having thirty-year-old actors pretending to still be in high school, they can stay the same age in each film.
“Our vampires can’t age…if they were like 45, people would say ‘What’s up?’” laughed director Catherine Hardwicke, citing one of the main problems with filming Stephenie Meyer’s “New Moon” and “Eclipse” novels. “[Filming them together] could be the case. Then, you just get it done.”
The main actors indicated to us that they are signed on for sequels, and Hardwicke said she hopes to return as well. “We’ve got our fingers crossed,” she beamed. “If the fans show up for this one, we’ll get to make more.”
Mooradian explained that as a producer, his goal is to get the movies done right, but also to get them on film quickly enough to maintain Meyer’s vision of perpetually-teenaged vampires. “We’re going to go as fast as humanly possible, especially since there are at least four stories to tell,” he insisted, factoring in the “Breaking Dawn” sequel due to be published in August. “We’d like to keep a real consistency as to how quickly we are able to do it. Some of the other stories are even bigger productions, so they require more prep time.”
Eyeballing such near-annual events as the “Harry Potter” films, Mooradian indicated that if “Twilight” is a hit, the sequels will go into production almost immediately. “The goal is to keep it moving quickly,” he explained. “[That will] give the audience a sense of knowing that the next installment is going to come at a really specific increment of time.”
Reached for comment, Stephenie Meyer said that she supports the idea of shooting the sequels simultaneously. “I think that would probably be a smart way to do it,” she explained. “It makes sense in a world where actors are actually aging, and our characters aren’t. That makes a lot of sense to me, but of course, we are still negotiating the contract on that.”
If Meyer, Mooradian and crew can come to an agreement, and moviegoers turn out in record numbers, look for Twilighters to be over the (New?) moon with a marathon shoot.
“[We like the idea of] shooting them back to back, and shooting them simultaneously as they did with ‘Lord of the Rings’,” the producer explained. “From a production standpoint, it’s a great thing to do. But it’s quite an undertaking.”
It's been officially confirmed -- Moonlight has been canceled.
Let the hysterics begin.
Look, I know what one likes or doesn't like is purely subjective, but it makes me snicker when I read some of the comments on Kristin's announcement saying how Moonlight is the best-written show they've ever seen, better than Angel, etc. Um...yeah, not so much.
I watched the show and enjoyed it for the most part, but I'm not particularly heartbroken about its cancellation.
I will, however, miss seeing Alex O'Loughlin on a weekly basis.
ETA: New CBS news from Ausiello -- The New Adventures of Old Christine and How I Met Your Mother have been renewed; Shark has been axed. Still no word on Moonlight.
More Upfront stuff, this time via an interview with ABC boss man Steve McPherson (courtesy of Kristin Dos Santos.)
I am so excited about Life on Mars. I saw the pilot of the British version and loved it. I'm quite happy about Jason O'Mara playing the lead. I'm just slightly worried that David E. Kelley is behind it -- his erratic behavior and tendency to bail on his shows halfway through is legendary -- and that the guys behind the recently canceled October Road are going to showrun it. It's landed itself in a prime spot, though -- Thursday nights after Grey's -- so if it can't make it there, well, it probably can't make it anywhere.
Also, if Sarah Chalke is coming to HIMYM full-time, I'll have to brush up on Seasons 2 and 3.
Scrubs Is Moving to ABC (Duh): In the reveal of what is perhaps the worst-kept secret in the industry, McPherson announced that ABC will air 18 episodes of Scrubs this fall. "Given the fact that it's been moved 17 times and still doing better than any other NBC comedy on Thursday than The Office...We think it's really a great addition for us." Holler.
Ted on How I Met Your Mother Is Screwed: McPherson confirms that Sarah Chalke is most definitely back on Scrubs for the new season on ABC. Full time. Stelllllaaaa! If she is the mother, Ted's gonna have to wait.
Men In Trees and October Road Are Gone: On behalf of all you heartbroken fans (I feel your pain), I asked McPherson if this call was made purely from a ratings standpoint. "It was, yeah," he replied. "It was a really hard decision. I think both shows were incredibly well done and we have a fantastic relationship with (Men in Trees creator) Jenny Bicks. We're hoping to do some great things with her. But even when we gave it a pretty decent run on Thursday, I would have loved to see it pop."
As for October Road: "It was like the little engine that could. It was a pilot that was picked up late and the series was picked up late. It was a terrific show it just had a very, very small but dedicated core audience. [Road producers Josh] Applebaum and [Andre] Nemick and [Scott] Rosenberg are going to work on our new drama Life on Mars and have some great ideas about this version. So we love the people but it's just unfortunate that we couldn't find the kind of audience that would make it worth keeping."
McPherson Calls the New Fall Schedule "Incredibly Stable": With only one new drama and two new unscripted series, there isn't much change at all. Still, he adds that there are 17 pilots still in development for midseason, so clearly, thanks to the strike, there wasn't a lot of grooming time this year.
Life on Mars Looks Pretty Awesome: Cherry-picked as the only new scripted series coming to ABC this fall, this British import about a cop who gets sent back to 1972 actually looks pretty engaging. (They showed a clip.) Jason O'Mara (most recently McDreamy and Meredith's latest brain-tumor patient on Grey's) stars and the series is produced by David E. Kelley and the brain trust behind October Road (Applebaum and friends). It will air after Grey's on Thursday nights at 10.
Also Coming to ABC: Opportunity Knocks, a game show from Ashton Kutcher which McPherson describes as "Extreme Home Makeover meets Millionaire" (the show comes to your house with a truckload of prizes and asks you to answer trivia about your own family and community) and an untitled Ashton Kutcher/Tyra Banks reality show, which is "a beauty pageant like you haven't seen before" that McPherson says "we are keeping under wraps for now at their request."
Ugly Betty Is Most Definitely Moving to NYC: Says McPherson, "The pilot was shot in New York. The show is based in New York. And the studio made the decision that given the current climate in New York that it made a lot of sense to move it back. We're excited from a production standpoint to have that real NY quality because as much as people try to cheat NY it's really hard to do so. So I think it's sort of funny that people are taking issue with the fact that it's cheaper to do a show in New York about New York." McPherson also says all cast members will be on board, but that Rebecca Romijn has "left the show." When asked why, he says Rebecca's run was always supposed to be a limited engagement and now that run is over. (Something tells me that's news to Rebecca.)
Ugly Betty Is Getting Back to Betty: "Silvio [Horta] is very smart to do what he's doing. I think that on Ugly Betty, there was sort of a flight of fancy that was going on there and it was funny but I think it got away from the core that really is the heart of the show. And some of the episodes at the end of this year have gotten back to that." Also, LL will be back. "[Lindsay Lohan] is going to do more episodes next year. I don't know that the New York move will affect that but she is doing more than one episode next season."
Is Edie Gone from Desperate Housewives? When asked if Nicolette Sheridan will return, McPherson initially gives a firm "Yes." When pressed for clarification, given that Marc Cherry was just quoted as saying that's the last we're gonna see of her for years, McPherson just smiles and says "Maybe." Hmmm…
Pushing Daisies Love: My beloved Pushing Daisies, which will back next season in its old time slot, is still all about the love. The ABC new-season video they showed us featured Lee Pace talking about how, "I've fallen in love with Anna Friel," and how that's a good thing because they can't touch on the series so they really have to sell the love through their eyes. Awww...
Grey's Anatomy Is Planning Something Big: "Grey's has got a big idea for next year that Shonda's getting ready to launch on people," says McPherson, but wouldn't go into further detail (shocker). "But the other shows we feel like are firing on really good waves so there's no big kind of shift." (Read into that transition what you will.)
Why Eli Stone Got the Pickup (Hurrah!): "In comparison to the big shows we have it's not particularly expensive," McPherson explains. "And we just felt like it had a very tough launch amidst the strike without our original programming to really launch it. And creatively we felt like it grew from the beginning to the end of the first 13, so we really feel like it's got a big up side… We also think we have a better lead-in for it with Dancing with the Stars." As for the big twist in the 13th ep, Mcpherson says: "That was always Greg Berlanti's design of where it would go.
Lost Timeslot for Midseason? TBD, according to SM. "At this point we still like this 10 p.m. on Thursday and we could move Life on Mars at that point. But it's also been a great 9 p.m. performer and 8 p.m. performer, so I think some of that quite honestly we have to see how the fall plays out."
ETA: About two minutes after I posted this, Kristin updated her site stating that Moonlight was suddenly trending negative -- according to reliable sources, CBS is high on a number of its new drama pilots and so there's not much room for the uneven Moonlight. I'm glad I was never that sold on it in the first place.
The Upfronts are taking place as I type this, so I'll be posting tidbits about next season, such as cancellations, renewals, the new shows being greenlit by each network, etc.
The following is incomplete and has been cobbled together from preliminary reports from Kristin and Ausiello:
Renewals:
- The Sarah Connor Chronicles, FOX (yay!)
- Friday Night Lights (on DirecTV, with NBC getting the rerun rights)
- Chuck, NBC (More Zach Levi. Yum.)
- Pushing Daisies, ABC (More Lee Pace. Yum.)
- Heroes, NBC (I am so close to not even caring anymore)
- Eli Stone, ABC (woohoo!)
- Boston Legal, ABC (although with a drastically reduced cast, ala the The Practice firings)
- Miss/Guided, ABC (can't bring myself to watch anything involving Ashton Kutcher)
- The Unit, CBS (but it's being moved to Fridays at 8 -- could spell trouble for Moonlight)
- Gossip Girl, CW (I'm so glad I stopped watching, especially after seeing the previews for tonight's -- Serena's too great of a character to be ruined by these cheap soap opera-ish plotlines)
- Smallville, CW (Lex and Lana are gone, and rumor is that Chloe's on her way out now -- hasn't Lois and Clark already been done?)
- Supernatural, CW
- One Tree Hill, CW (seriously? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, but...seriously? Could this show get any more horrible?)
- Everybody Hates Chris, CW
- The Game, CW
- America's Next Top Model, CW
- 'Til Death, FOX
- Scrubs, ABC
- Reaper, CW
- Scrubs, NBC (that's right, you read correctly -- NBC canceled Scrubs, but ABC picked it up.)
- Women's Murder Club, ABC
- Aliens in America, CW
- Pussycat Dolls, CW
- Beauty and the Geek, CW
- New Amsterdam, FOX
- Back to You, FOX (although there's talk of CBS picking it up)
- Moonlight, CBS
- The New Adventures of Old Christine (although ABC will probably scoop it up if CBS passes)
- How I Met Your Mother, CBS
- 90210, CW (And Jennie Garth has signed on to reprise Kelly Taylor, albeit in a recurring role)
- Surviving the Filthy Rich, CW (formerly known as How To Teach Filthy Rich Girls: it's another Gossip Girl. Without Josh Schwartz or Blake Lively. Joy.)
- Stylista, CW (yet another Tyra Banks reality show. Contestants compete for an editorial job at Elle.)
- The Mentalist, CBS
- Game Show in My Head, CBS (yet another Ashton Kutcher reality show)
- Sit Down, Shut Up (new animated show from Arrested Development creator Mitch Hurwitz and featuring the voices of AD alums Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Henry Winkler, among others.)
- Dollhouse, FOX (Joss Whedon, Eliza Dushku, Amy Acker, etc., etc. Will be a mid-season show.)
- Fringe, FOX (from the awesome JJ Abrams; pilot cost $10 million to make; very X-File-ish; can't WAIT)
- Eleventh Hour, CBS (from Jerry Bruckheimer; more X-File-ish stuff; awesome)
The first official movie poster, shot by a previously-unknown 18-year-old photographer, who has since been contracted to shoot the rest of the posters, as well as those involved in any sequels.
Nice tagline.
I've been slacking in my movie-watching lately. I blame the fact that I can barely keep up with my TiVo -- I mean, I'm a month behind on Lost, for crying out loud. I also can't remember the last movie I saw in the theaters.
As always, in no particular order:
16) Cold Creek Manor (Dennis Quaid, Sharon Stone, Kristen Stewart, Stephen Dorff): I ranked this two stars on Netflix. I wish there was a two-and-a-half star option, because I didn't loathe this movie, but there were some completely unnecessary parts, and some overacting, and some generally bad story-telling. I've never lined up my own Cherry Chapstick rating system with any specific guidelines -- as the disclaimer says, I use it as I see fit, based on nothing even resembling structure and/or objectivity -- but I guess I'd give it two Cherry Chapsticks.
17) Nancy Drew (Emma Roberts, Tate Donovan): I saw this in the theaters with Elizabeth, Sarah and Mia, and we all really liked it. It was so cute, and so refreshingly PG. I get so tired of the arguments that the kind of crap put into movies and TV shows aimed at the younger demographic happen, so gee, we might as well watch it -- whatever. Just because something is realistic doesn't make it beneficial or, you know, right. Emma Roberts is adorable, and I really enjoyed watching this again on DVD. Four Cherry Chapsticks.
18) The Jane Austen Book Club (Emily Blunt, Kathy Baker, Amy Brenneman, Maggie Grace, Maria Bello): Couldn't even make it through half of the movie. It was boring and uninteresting and...I just didn't remotely sympathize with any of the characters. The plastic wrapper of a Cherry Chapstick.
19) Juno (Ellen Page, Jennifer Garner, Michael Cera, Jason Bateman): I've written extensively about my love for it. I constantly have "Anyone Else But You" in my head. Five Cherry Chapsticks.
20) Across the Universe (Rachel Evan Wood, Jim Sturgess): I don't know why I even Netflixed this. I don't sympathize remotely with anti-war protesters, or casual drug use, or really, the whole hippie existence in the 60s and 70s. So yeah. Like The Jane Austen Book Club, I didn't even finish it. The plastic wrapper of a Cherry Chapstick.
21) Into the Wild (Emile Hirsch, Kristen Stewart, William Hurt, Hal Holbrook, Marcia Gay Harden): Funny, Kristen's not even listed in any of the reviews or on Netflix or whatever, but her storyline and her character's interaction with Chris is the only one I cared about. As I've mentioned, I just didn't find Chris very sympathetic. I think it stems from the fact that I've lived in forced isolation before due to my depression, and so I honestly don't understand how anyone would choose isolation. Two Cherry Chapsticks.
22) Undertow (Dermot Mulroney, Josh Lucas, Jamie Bell, Kristen Stewart): This was a weird movie. Really, really weird. Really violent and depressing and did I mention weird? I Netflixed it in my quest to see all of KS's movies, and was irritated to find that she's in two 90-second scenes within the first half-hour of the movie. I still don't quite understand the point or the underlying theme or, really, what was even going through the director's mind. At all. The cap off a Cherry Chapstick.
23) The Safety of Objects (Patricia Clarkson, Glenn Close, Moira Kelly, Joshua Jackson, Dermot Mulroney, Kristen Stewart): The first time I watched this last year sometime, I was distracted and didn't get it. I didn't even understand the title. I thought it was disjointed and weird. But I watched it again recently and this time, I, well, really saw it. It's still a little weird and a little disturbing, but I also liked it a lot better. And the title made a lot of sense and was even a bit profound. Two and a half Cherry Chapsticks.
24) The Golden Compass (Nicole Kidman, Sam Elliott, Daniel Craig, Dakota Blue Richards): I'm not going to suggest that Kevin and Mia see this, and it has nothing to do with the supposed "controversy" over the book. I read the first book and found nothing offensive or controversial whatsoever. However, I was so bored watching the movie. Seriously. It was disappointing, because I liked the book so much. Two Cherry Chapsticks.
25) Cloverfield (Mike Vogel, Lizzy Caplan): I never got around to seeing this in the theaters -- I much prefer Netflixing them and watching them in my PJs at home, anyway -- so I was looking forward to this. JJ Abrams didn't disappoint. I really, really liked it, and unlike some, I wasn't bothered by the jerky motions from the hand-held camera. It just made the suspense more realistic. Four Cherry Chapsticks.
26) Panic Room (Jodie Foster, Kristen Stewart, Forest Whitaker): I still don't like this movie very much but I figured I'd at least watch it all the way through. People have said that Kristen was cast only because, at 11, she resembled Jodie Foster, but what very few know is that she was attached to the movie before Foster was. Originally, Nicole Kidman was cast as Meg, and Hayden Panettiere as Sarah. And then Panettiere was replaced by Kristen, and then Nicole Kidman hurt her knee and was forced to drop out. If only that hadn't happened -- I'm sure I would've enjoyed the movie a lot more without Foster. Anyway, now that I've seen the entire thing, I still can't give it more than two Cherry Chapsticks.
Jen's Cherry Chapstick Rating System is in no way scientific, accurate, or objective, and is based on whatever the hell she feels like.
So much for using The Host to bridge the interminable gap between now and the time Breaking Dawn, the fourth -- and final, sob! -- in the Twilight saga, is released in August.
As is so often the case, I couldn't pace myself.
I can't say that I liked The Host better than any of the Twilight books, especially Twilight, which is my clear favorite, but it is at least as good.
It's hard to aptly describe the plot without giving too much away or being too confusing, but I think my BSG correlation is pretty accurate. Battlestar Galactica with a smidge of a not-cheesy, more-hopeful Red Dawn thrown in for good measure. (If that's not a unique description, I don't know what is.)
At several points throughout the story, I found myself thinking about BSG, though, and how I immediately started sympathizing with Sharon, and especially Helo, the human in love with a "toaster," moreso than anyone else, even though the series is told from the human perspective and therefore we are supposed to hate the Cylons. Sharon remains my favorite character. (Which reminds me -- I really need to catch up on last season.)
Stephenie Meyer does a superb job with the first-person narrative. I liked Wanderer better than Melanie, and really, better than all of the humans, just as I liked Bella better than any of the characters in the Twilight series and get really, really annoyed at all the Bella bashing that seems to take place in the rabid fandom. (I know I posted last year sometime as to why I loathe, despise and abominate fandoms.)
Jared is no Edward Cullen, that's for sure, and really, he doesn't play nearly the all-consuming role Edward does. Stephenie mused that if a movie is made, she sees Jared as being very Matt Damon-esque, and that fits. Although if the movie is made -- and I can't see why it won't be, especially given the projected success that the Twilight franchise is supposed to achieve -- I don't think even Damon can play 26.
But yeah. Give The Host a chance. It's fantastically entertaining and has equal parts action, adventure, suspense, romance, reflection and angst. Stephenie does an excellent job at weaving in pertinent themes like individuals vs. community, prejudice vs. acceptance, love, sacrifice, honor, and probably half a dozen others.
I went to bed last night having read a mere 48 pages of The Host.
I woke up this morning at 9 a.m. and started reading again. (I'm sick with horrid allergies, a fever, and a lovely hacking cough.)
It is now 3:41 p.m. and I'm at page 437. Just 182 pages left.
I cannot for the life of me put this book down, even though my brain is begging me to take a nap. Or at least take some more medicine for this beyond irritating cough.
Anyone who likes Battlestar Galactica should definitely read The Host. The story is so similar, except that it's like it's being told from, for example, Sharon's point of view as a Cylon.
So awesome.
Stephenie Meyer is so my favorite author.
I knew it would begin with the end, and the end would look like death to these eyes. I had been warned.
Not these eyes. My eyes. Mine. This was me now.
Stephenie Meyer's new book, The Host, dropped Tuesday. I put myself on the waiting list at the library a few weeks ago, and I was perfectly okay with being 11th. I mean, I admit, I wasn't all that enthused to read it. After all, this was wholly separate from the Twilight series. No Edward. No Bella. No impossibly, epically, gut-twistingly angsty romance. No life-and-death situations whereupon death would be more welcome than spending eternity without the one your heart yearns for...
Wait...where was I again?
Oh, yeah. The Host. So anyway, even though I'd heard really good things about it, I still was leery. I mean, it's being described as sci-fi-ish. I'm always leery of the sci-fi genre, even though I have discovered jewels like Battlestar Galactica and Firefly amidst the weird puppet-y Farscape stuff.
And then I got to work, sat down to count drawers and compile the morning deposit, switching on Glenn Beck as I always do. Five minutes after I did this, he starts raving about Stephenie Meyer. His daughters love Twilight, and so he's become quite familiar with the series as well, and then he proceeds to read the first few paragraphs of Chapter One of The Host, including the above excerpt, and I stopped everything I was doing to listen.
And then instead of going to the bank, the other store, and back to the main store to continue about my day, I made a quick detour to Barnes and Noble to pick up my own copy.
I am hooked. So yeah. There will be no vacation recap, no pictures -- I probably won't even unpack (!!) until I'm done.
I'm only on Chapter 2 and although I already know it won't top Twilight -- I'm not sure anything ever will -- it's going to come dang close.
I'm alone in my room for the first time since we checked into the Caribbean Beach Resort here at beautiful Walt Disney World in Orlando (see, if you spend a large portion of time here,chances are you start sounding like a walking guide book) on Sunday.
I'm sharing a room with my sister, Kailin and Emily, and they are all swimming. We spent the day at Epcot, and my friend Andrew met us there and he, my sister and I hung out after everyone else left. It was pretty cool, although my stomach is still rebelling over my decision to ride Mission: Space. Anyway, he dropped us off about 20 minutes ago, my sister took the girls swimming, I stripped down to barely decent (I am sunburned, woohoo), put The OC (it's Season 1, Episode 2 -- otherwise known as back when The OC was still good) on SoapNet, cracked open a bottle of ice water, and logged onto my parents' laptop.
We come home tomorrow and I'll be glad to get back to my own place, my own bed, etc. But we've been having an excellent time.
Still, I couldn't wait till tomorrow to check out the first official Twilight trailer, which Erin texted me was available online. (Yay -- I don't have to see Speed Racer anymore.)
One word: chills.
