Oprah and Meryl and Sandra in the same movie. No, seriously.
Michael Patrick King must be a wizard. Who else could foist something as terrible as Sex and the City 2 on an unsuspecting world and bounce back this ferociously without even spending a little bit of time in Movie Jail? It’s enough to make you believe in a Hollywood Velvet Mafia. But bounce he has with his latest untitled comedy that already features the slam-dunk casting coup of the year: the three-headed power-hydra of Oprah, Meryl and Sandra. That’s right, you don’t even need their last names at this point (For the record, though: Winfrey, Streep and Bullock, respectively.) The film in question is set up at Universal Pictures and is an ensemble piece set at a Home Shopping Network-like work environment featuring what will certainly be a glamorous trip into manic behavior and unreality. And really, as long as they don’t all wind up running through Abu Dhabi in identity-concealing cloaks everything will be fine.
Johnny Depp would like a drink
Rob Marshall, the gay director of Chicago and Memoirs of a Geisha, has been working with Johnny Depp recently on Pirates of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. And Depp must think pretty highly of him because the actor is itching to get Marshall to direct him in a remake of the classic comedy The Thin Man. Don’t know what that is, young person? It’s the 1934 Hollywood high-water mark of witty banter starring William Powell as wealthy, always-drunk Nick Charles, who along with his socialite wife Nora, played by Myrna Loy, solve mysteries and down cocktails. In other words, the perfect offbeat starring vehicle for Johnny Depp (and Lauren Graham -she had plenty of practice with that kind of rat-a-tat delivery on Gilmore Girls, so someone give her a shot) and a chance for Marshall to work his period film magic again like he did withChicago. One more request, though: Could it be in black and white? Please?
Zachary Quinto wants _Your Number_
In his recent video contribution to the “It Gets Better” project, Star Trek star Zachary Quinto offered up heartfelt encouragement to gay teenagers and walked right up to the edge of a personal coming out (rumored to be gay, the actor keeps his private life out of the press). But his new feature film, the ensemble comedy What’s Your Number?places him squarely in the realm of hetero romantic comedy. Starring Anna Faris – who realizes that she’s had twice as many relationships as the average woman and cuts off all men, deciding instead to work backward through the guys she’s discarded to see who should get a second chance – the movie also features every young, good-looking guy in Hollywood right now as her sizeable team of exes. Joining Quinto will be Chris Evans, Ryan Phillippe, Dave Annable (ofBrothers and Sisters), Joel McHale, Andy Samberg, _Parks and Recreation_’s Chris Pratt and White Collar star Matthew Bomer (who’s seemingly openly gay but has still had his own share of is-he-or-isn’t-he press). See who Faris reboots in spring 2011.
Rocky Horrifying
In its 35 year history, The Rocky Horror Picture Show has gone from box-office flop to enduring midnight-movie sensation as well as seen its brazenly in-your-face pansexuality move from shocking to sweet-enough-for-primetime tributes on Fox’s Glee. So while it’s not surprising that someone wants to remake the beloved weirdo musical, it’s a little bit odd to see Glee’s creator Ryan Murphy in talks to take the movie’s reins. As a screenwriter, the man is wicked with the sharp-tongued dialogue. He could rise to task. But is his directorial approach too sanitized and clean to take on the scruffy, deranged, rock ‘n’ roll world of Rocky Horror? Could he make it not just gay but dirty too? Because if you’re going to toucha-toucha-toucha touch Janet on the big screen, that’s kind of how you need to be. At least they’re not approaching Ron Howard, right?
* Romeo San Vicente is no virgin, Rocky Horror or otherwise. He can be reached care of this publication or at DeepInsideHollywood@qsyndicate.com.
