While Guillermo del Toro’s engagement on The Hobbit is still not completely set in stone, the director has confirmed that there has been significant progress on the project behind-the-scenes.

Writing in the official forums for his upcoming Hellboy II: The Golden Army, del Toro said: “Whew. Not yet. But there has been a lot of movement. And for the last few weeks there has been a lot of creative/cast/crew/visual talks and agreements, and we have witnessed great progress in areas that I cannot disclose or that have already leaked from other sources.”

He added: “I am dying to share news, but I have to be patient and wait until the papers are done and my attachment is real. Nevertheless, a lot of progress in defining the films, their cast and crew. And, may I add, we are all happily in synch about all creative aspects so far and all willing and eager to move forth.” The two Hobbit films/Lord of the Rings prequels are scheduled for release in 2010 and 2011, respectively.

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Posted in Movies, The Hobbit / LOTR •

Hit television show Lost is set for an additional fourteenth hour at the end of its current (fourth) season according to TV Guide.

This brings the total number just two short of the 16 originally intended for the season before the writers strike interrupted those plans.

The show goes back on air for four weeks starting April 24th with its ninth episode. The three-part finale begins with episode twelve on May 15th, followed by the expanded two-hour season closer on May 29th. No episode will air on May 22nd, when the prolonged Grey’s Anatomy season finale takes up Lost’s timeslot.

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Posted in Lost, Television •

Last week’s rumours about the potential half-length cut of the Vin Diesel fronted Babylon A.D. seem to have been unfounded.

According to the film’s official MySpace page, there never was a 160-minute cut of the film (which was said to be screening on mainland Europe exclusively, with the rest of the world getting a reduced 90-minute version) - the number apparently goes back to a joke made by director Mathieu Kassovitz, which was misinterpreted by some journalists.

The approximate length of the film, in fact, is 100 minutes, and the only differences between the original and the US cut will be that certain scenes have been toned down in the latter in order to achieve a PG-13 rating, which was a contractual agreement between the filmmakers and their US distributor Fox. The sci-fi film is released August 29.

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Posted in Movies •

Last autumn’s reputed confirmation of Rose McGowan’s casting in the title role of a new Barbarella movie was soon refuted amid claims that Universal was looking for a bigger name actress like Jessica Alba or Nicole Kidman.

MTV recently had a chance to ask McGowan herself how things were panning out, with the actress confirming that she’s signed on for the role. “[The news that I was out] was really irritating because I know all the people over there and obviously it wasn’t true. It was very malicious and there was no proof. Oftentimes these things have basis in truth but this didn’t. I have contracts to prove it.”

Furthermore, McGowan revealed that the film’s costumes are prepared and half of the sets already built. Currently, the only impediment to the movie is the possible actors strike in June. Director Robert Rodriguez (From Dusk Till Dawn, Planet Terror) is looking to release the film at the end of this year.

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Posted in Movies •

Cinema Blend reported last week that audiences at test screenings of The Dark Knight were left upset over a scene in which The Joker (played by recently deceased Heath Ledger) hides inside and then emerges from a bodybag.

But speculation that the scene would be excised from the film can be disregarded, according to Moviehole. Apparently, Warner Bros. has made no mandate to have the scene removed. Director Chris Nolan is honest in saying that he will not change what was intended with The Joker, respecting Ledger’s performance and memory.

The sequel to 2005’s Batman Begins opens in cinemas July 18.

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Posted in Batman, Movies •