'Star Trek' Gets A KRE-O Makeover In Time For Comic-Con

Hasbro will be debuting their new Star Trek toy line from the signature KRE-O collection next week in San Diego at Comic-Con. To build additional anticipation for the showcase of various fan favorite characters and vehicles, Bad Robot produced a clever stop-motion teaser short in the vein of the feature film trailer for J.J. Abrams' 2009 blockbuster re-imaging of the iconic sci-fi franchise.

From Hasbro:

"Based on the upcoming STAR TREK sequel from Paramount Pictures and directed by J.J. Abrams, the KRE-O STAR TREK line, under license from CBS Consumer Products, features a variety of vehicles from the movie along with fun KREON figures based on iconic STAR TREK characters. Fans will be able to see the KRE-O STAR TREK U.S.S. ENTERPRISE set and KIRK, SPOCK and BONES KREON figures for the first time in person at the Hasbro Comic-Con booth (#3213) beginning on Preview Night, July 11."

"In a groundbreaking move for entertainment based building sets, Hasbro teamed up with J.J. Abrams, director of the upcoming STAR TREK sequel, to create a KRE-O STAR TREK stop motion digital short. The digital short, produced by Bad Robot, features icons of the STAR TREK saga in a stand-alone storyline and will premiere at a later date in partnership with Paramount Pictures. At Comic-Con the teaser trailer for the KRE-O STAR TREK digital short will be featured along with the upcoming U.S.S. ENTERPRISE building set and KREOStar TN figures in the Hasbro booth. In anticipation of the convention, Hasbro is unveiling a first look image of the KRE-O STAR TREK U.S.S. ENTERPRISE set and the teaser trailer."

“Comic-Con International is the perfect place to give fans a sneak peek at upcoming KRE-O STAR TREK products and the teaser trailer for the KRE-O digital short produced by Bad Robot,” said Kimberly Boyd, global KRE-O brand director at Hasbro. “The KRE-O brand is enjoyed by consumers around the world and Hasbro is thrilled to work with the amazing teams at CBS Consumer Products, Bad Robot and Paramount Pictures to bring the STAR TREK property to life with KRE-O building sets.”

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Poster For 'Oz The Great And Powerful' Revealed

Earlier this week, Disney released a teaser one-sheet for the Sam Raimi-directed Oz The Great And Powerful, which re-imagines the Earthly humble beginnings of the iconic title character from L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel (and the later 1939 Hollywood big screen version), The Wizard Of Oz.

This prequel trip down the yellow brick road re-unites the Spider-Man director with his Harry Osborn, James Franco, as Oscar Diggs (The Wizard), and casts Mila Kunis (Theodora), Michelle Williams, (Glinda), and Rachel Wiesz (Evanora) as the three Witches from the enchanted Land of Oz.

Actress Joey King (Crazy, Stupid, Love) let slip a few details that reveal Sam Raimi plans to pay homage to the visual style seen in the orignial film.

“We’re doing the same thing as the first Wizard of Oz, we’re making it black and white in the beginning and then (it gets) colorful when we enter the Land of Oz. It’s also going to be a 3D movie; I’m so excited about that. It’s going to add a whole new level to the awesomeness of Oz."

Here is the official synopsis from Disney:

"Disney’s fantastical adventure, Oz the Great and Powerful, directed by Sam Raimi (Spider-Man 1-3, The Evil Dead movies) imagines the origins of L. Frank Baum’s beloved character, the Wizard of Oz. When Oscar Diggs (James Franco), a small-time circus magician with dubious ethics, is hurled away from dusty Kansas to the vibrant Land of Oz, he thinks he’s hit the jackpot—fame and fortune are his for the taking—that is until he meets three witches, Theodora (Mila Kunis), Evanora (Rachel Weisz) and Glinda (Michelle Williams), who are not convinced he is the great wizard everyone’s been expecting. Reluctantly drawn into the epic problems facing the Land of Oz and its inhabitants, Oscar must find out who is good and who is evil before it is too late. Putting his magical arts to use through illusion, ingenuity—and even a bit of wizardry—Oscar transforms himself not only into the great and powerful Wizard of Oz but into a better man as well."

I had the opportunity to interview James Franco last August for Access Hollywood at the Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes junket, and asked him what we could expect from this new take on the iconic character, as they were already in production on Oz in Detroit.

“I am playing the Wizard of Oz, but if you’ll remember, the Wizard in the original 1939 film is an older man," he said. "So it’s another great opportunity to kind of do a new rendition on a franchise or a tradition, but it’s in a fresh way.”

“There are no real expectations of how the younger version of Oz should be,” he explained. “I do follow a tradition, but I also have a certain amount of freedom to create the character.”

 

Sam Raimi will be at the Disney presentation at Comic-Con on Thursday to talk up the film (and undoubtedly be bombarded with questions regarding his thoughts about The Amazing Spider-Man). Oz The Great And Powerful is set for release in 3-D on March 8, 2013.

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Ten New Stills From 'The Hobbit' Revealed

In Entertainment Weekly's annual Comic-Con preview issue, the magazine scored ten new stills from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first installment of the epic two-part 3-D prequel to big screen The Lord Of The Rings trilogy set for a highly anticipated release on December 14th.

In addition to the cover featuring Sir Ian McKellan (reprising his role as Gandalf the Grey) and Martin Freeman (as Bilbo Baggins), inside the pages the sneak peek at the film reveals a new CGI image of Gollum, Gandalf standing in the Shire, a first look at Hugo Weaving and Cate Blanchett reprising their roles as the elves Elrond and Galadriel, and a studio portrait of newcomer Richard Armitage in costume as the dwarf Thorin Oakenshield.

In addition to Evangeline Lily and Billy Connelly's inclusion to the cast, confirmed to return from The Lord Of The Rings trilogy in cameo roles are Elijah Wood (Frodo Baggins), Ian Holm (elder Bilbo Baggins), Orlando Bloom (Legolas), Christopher Lee (Saruman), and Andy Serkis (Gollum and Smegol).

Here is the official synopsis of the film from New Line / Warner Bros.:

The adventure follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers.

Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever…Gollum.

Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of guile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities … A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.

Peter Jackson returns as producer, co-screenwriter, and director of the films, which were shot back to back in New Zealand with the EPIC RED cameras for 3D. Its also worth noting a huge change in visual presentation will be pioneered with this major studio release. Jackson and his team have used 48 frames per second to shoot the film at, whereas the industry standard has been half that, 24 frames per second since the inception of film making. This promises to present a very different visual experience for the two Hobbit films on the big screen.

You can check out here what Elijah Wood had to say about returning to New Zealand and reprising his role as Frodo Baggins from the Sundance Film Festival.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is set for December 14. The conclusion of the two-part event film, The Hobbit: There And Back Again, is scheduled to hit theaters in 3D December 13, 2013.

SOURCE: Entertainment Weekly

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'Dark Knight Rises' MTV Movie Awards Footage Hits The Web

Last month at the MTV Movie Awards, Christian Bale, Christopher Nolan, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Gary Oldman appeared onstage to introduce an exclusive preview of this summer's The Dark Knight Rises. The footage was not made available online following the broadcast and was quickly pulled from any sites posting posting it.

The special preview has now been released to the web community.

The Dark Knight Rises opens on July 20th.

SOURCE: Batman-News.com

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WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: 'Ted' Outmuscles 'Magic Mike'

Two R-Rated films went head to head this weekend, and in the box office battle between a foul mouthed Teddy Bear and a team of male strippers led by Channing Tatum: the bear won. In additional news, Men In Black 3 has become the highest grossing entry in the blockbuster series starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, and The Amazing Spider-Man is out performing The Avengers' pre-US release numbers in some foreign markets according to box office accountants

Back here stateside, Ted, Seth MacFarlane's raunchy R-rated talking bear led leap onto the big screen was a huge success. The Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis starrer not only came in at number one at the box office, but over performed with an estimated take of over $54 million from Friday to Sunday.

Magic Mike, directed Steven Soderbergh, finished second despite offering a huge 'ladies night out' over the weekend. The film exceeded expectations and made it rain to the tune $39 million worth of singles. The semi-autobiographical tale of Channing Tatum's early days as a Florida stripper also boasted the box office eight packs of Matthew McConaughey, Matt Bomer (White Collar), Joe Manganiello (True Blood), and Alex Pettyfer (Beastly).

Though this weekend's numbers could have turned out entirely different had Paramount not made the 11th hour decision to push back its planned release of G.I. Joe: Retaliation from this weekend to March 29th of next year. The second film in the big screen G.I. Joe series also featured Channing Tatum, which would have had the actor competing against himself in two films on the same weekend. His role had been greatly diminished in the sequel also starring new headliners Bruce Willis and Dwayne Johnson, and according to sources, his character Captain Duke Hauser is actually killed off early in the film. It appears that Paramount's panic and release push is Universal and Warner Bros. box office gain.

20th Century Fox's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter disappointed again in week two, sliding to #6 with a 69% drop from last week. Prometheus - love it, like it, or hate it - continues to be debated continually and furiously online, scored nearly $5 million, bringing its total to $118 million domestically. Snow White & The Huntsman holds tight in the top ten with $4.4 million (a sequel script is in development). Star Trek fans did not show up to support the new Captain Kirk, Chris Pine in People Like Us. Despite positive reviews for his performance opposite Elizabeth Banks and Michelle Pfeiffer, the family drama came in 10th place with just over $4 million.

1. TED - Weekend Gross: $54.1M

2. MAGIC MIKE - Weekend Gross: $39.2M
3. BRAVE - Weekend Gross: $34M,  Total: $131.7M
4. MADEA'S WITNESS PROTECTION - Weekend Gross $26.4M
5. MADAGASCAR 3 - Weekend $18.8M, Total: $180M
6. ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER - Weekend $6M, Total: $29M
7. PROMETHEUS  - Weekend $4.9M, Total: $118M
8. MOONRISE KINGDOM - Weekend $4.8M, Total: $18.3M
9. SNOW WHITE & THE HUNTSMAN - Weekend $4.4M, Total: $145.6M
10. PEOPLE LIKE US - Weekend $4.3M

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Men In Black 3 is now the highest grossing entry in the Sony franchise, having passed the $589.4 million made by the original MIB in 1997. Men In Black 3 has racked up $599.4 million worldwide since its release in May, and the majority of that has been earned overseas ($429.8 million vs. $169.6 million domestic).

Per Deadline, another Sony film, The Amazing-Spider-Man is out pacing the box office numbers racked up by The Avengers in some foreign markets in its pre-US release. So far the reboot of the Marvel web slinger has already earned over $50 million in Asia and Europe. Spider-Man opens here on July 3rd (with Katy Perry: Part Of Me competing for 3D screens that week).

SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline

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