‘Ghostbusters 3′ Writer & Producer Discuss the Bill Murray Factor

As each month passes, the hopeful spring start date for Ghostbusters 3 becomes increasingly unlikely.

While Sony Pictures, Harold Ramis, Dan Aykroyd and Ivan Reitman have already signed-off on the much revised Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky screenplay, there still remains one final hurdle to overcome… the Bill Murray factor.

Last week, Lee Eisenberg and Ghostbusters 3 producer Joe Medjuck separately discussed the stalled production of the highly-anticipated return of everyone’s favorite parapsychologists. Despite being on opposite sides of the country, both discussions quickly turned to Bill Murray and his reluctancy to sign-off on the Ghostbusters‘ final installment -- or even read the script.

Eisenberg, visiting his alma mater Connecticut College to kick off a series of lectures, talked about the lengthy waiting period they’re in because of Murray:

“Right now, we have a script we haven’t worked on probably in a couple of months, and we’re waiting for Bill Murray to read it. People seem excited about it, and the studio seems high on it. … We’re very proud of it. We worked really hard on it, and I think it’d be a really fun movie.”

Additionally, Eisenberg noted how involved Reitman, Aykroyd and Ramis have been during the writing process, noting that Ramis will now receive a story credit on the film because of it:

“We’ve been working really closely with Ivan Reitman for a couple years on it. Dan Aykroyd has been really involved. Harold Ramis has been very involved -- we’re sharing a story credit on it with him. Then we reworked the script. I mean, that script went through a lot of rewrites, and it kept getting, we think at least, tighter and funnier. It took a little bit to really understand the tone of a movie like Ghostbusters. It’s really scary when you’re writing characters you grew up on. … The last thing you want to do is disappoint.”

On the other side of the country, Ghostbusters 1, 2 & 3 producer (and longtime producing partner of Ivan Reitman) Joe Medjuck attended the Ghostbusters screening at the Arclight Cinema. Following the film’s presentation, Medjuck, along with other members of the Ghostbusters special effects team (including William Atherton), fielded questions from the audience.

Obviously, the first thing that came up was Ghostbusters 3. While Medjuck related similar information regarding Bill Murray, he provided a more in-depth look at the process – or lack there of – that Murray is known for and how Murray didn’t even read the script for the original Ghostbusters until the first day of filming.

“Sony says they’d like to make it, everyone thinks it’s a good script. Bill has heard it’s a good script, but he hasn’t read it. Bill’s like that – he just says he’s busy.

Harold tells a very funny story about the several months it took to get Bill to read the script for Groundhog Day. Every week or so, [Bill] would go up to Harold and say, “You know, I read 10 pages… they’re really good. Is it going to stay this good?”

He hasn’t even read 10 pages [of Ghostbusters 3] yet, to the best of our knowledge.

[Regarding the original Ghostbusters] Bill just committed to it… he just said yes. He went to India to make The Razor’s Edge. I don’t think he even read the script [for Ghostbusters] until he arrived back, [and] the day he came back, we shot with him.”

You can watch the entire Ghostbusters Q&A from the Arclight Cinema below:

Perhaps it’s the fact that Eisenberg and Stupnitsky are behind this screenplay and not Aykroyd, Ramis and Reitman that’s causing much of Murray’s hesitation. The fact that Eisenberg and Stupnitsky’s Year One bombed in theaters certainly can’t help matters.

Whether it be hell or high water, someone needs to find a way to get Murray to at least read the script. As it’s been stated many times before, Murray is one of the five rights holders to Ghostbusters and there can be no movie unless Murray signs-off on it -- even if he doesn’t want to appear in it. Maybe some nice messages on his famed 1-800 number will help sway the comedic genius… or begging. Whatever works.

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Ghostbusters 3 is slated to begin production this spring.

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Source: The Day, Arclight Cinema [via: Proton Charging]

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‘Sanctum’ Producer James Cameron Talks Schwarzenegger & The Future of 3D

We had the opportunity to attend the “Sanctum mobile 3D experience” at which, the 3D trailer and several scenes from the film were screened. In attendance were the film’s director Alister Grierson, writer Andrew Wight, and executive producer James Cameron.

Sanctum tells the story of::

An underwater cave diving team experiencing a life-threatening crisis during an expedition to the unexplored and least accessible cave system in the world.

The creators spoke with us after the screening about some of the difficulties inherent in the process of shooting a 3D film on a project that was already rife with challenging physical exigencies, as well as the genesis of the story. We have video below with some excerpts of what James Cameron and the team had to say about the use of 3D in this film; the future of 3D in general, and what they feel makes Sanctum a compelling tale outside of its technological and visual appeal.

We have to thank our good friend Eric Eisenberg from Cinemablend for providing the raw footage for us to edit with after we had technical fail on not one, but two flip cams, while attempting to film James Cameron. Which some may call ironic.

Executive Producer James Cameron, Writer Andrew Wight, And Director Alister Grierson.

The most dynamic scenes that were screened had to do with the characters’ near-silent, underwater, battle to save their lives. It is difficult to correctly ascertain the strength of the story outside of the “event.” The opening sequence that did include a fair amount of dialogue did not feel terribly fresh; and the characters read a bit like broad sketches. Again, it is challenging to make a thorough assessment without having seen the full film -- but our best surmising would be that Sanctum is exactly the kind of film that you would imagine it would be: A visually engaging adventure, that has a brief, and perhaps somewhat thin character/relationship set-up before it brings you into a perilous situation in a visceral way. The relationship that seems to have the most meat is between the leader of the expedition, Frank McGuire (Richard Roxburgh), and his son, Josh ( Rhys Wakefield).

Take a look at the trailer below, and note the final moments, as Josh seeks even the smallest air pockets as he clings to life; this was the most effective scene that we were able to see.

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As to the physical production, Sanctum, literally, used the same cameras that were utilized on Avatar, so they were working with 2007 technology. The team had visited the set of Avatar and were aware of some of the challenges inherent in working with 3D, and as such, they built their sets specifically to work around said challenges.

They shot most of the film on a stage, with the underwater work done in a tank, as it was impractical for them to attempt shooting an ambitious 3D production on locations where control is limited. As mentioned, they found the physical needs of the story — working with actors on cables in dangerous situations, the heat, the cold, and of course working in and around (literally) tons of water, to be the most difficult aspect of physical production. Having any camera near that much water is problematic, the particular issue that comes up when recording 3D, stereo space, is that the water may splash one lens, but not the other.

Cameron was attracted to the project in that it was an attempt to create high quality 3D on a “modest budget”; though he quips, “compared to Avatar, everything is a low-budget.” He also feels that 3D is completely appropriate for a claustrophobic survival tale such as this one; it brings you into the experience, and technically speaking, 3D is more effective in tight, confined, close shots. In fact, he tells us that anything more than about 20 feet away does not really read as 3D (even to the human eye), so it is the close, intimate scenes that the medium is actually most useful for.

Take a look at the video below where the team discuss’ the use of 3D in Sanctum specifically:

The story of Sanctum was inspired by a real-life near death experience in a cave that writer Andrew Wight lived through. The team wanted to take that experience and create a film about survival, and the dynamics that come into play as a group of people are forced to either “push forward, or die.”

Take a look below where Wight tells his tale, and James Cameron talks about what he feels this film, and its action sequences, are really expressing about human nature:

Of course, there was some general discussion as to the future of 3D technology, and a brief spanking for those who create cheap, quick and otherwise poorly done post-conversions. The team compared 3D to any of the other cinematic advances over time – sound, color, widescreen -- and believe that television programing, like sporting events, will collapse the timetable for a widespread shift to the everyday use of the medium.

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Take a look at James Cameron talking about the future of 3D:

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Finally, when Cameron was asked about his plans to work with his longtime friend Arnold Schwarzenegger -- now that the governator is no longer governating -- this is what the director had to say:

Sanctum opens February 4th.

Follow me on twitter @jrothc and Screen Rant @screenrant

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‘Desperate Housewives’ producer has ABC singing ‘Hallelujah’

Small town Tennessee is a long way from the fictional Stepford-esque world of Desperate Housewives, but if ABC has its way, mainstream viewers will soon be singing its praises. Creator, writer and executive producer for the popular prime-time soap show, Marc Cherry, is attached to the network’s next project, Hallelujah.

The show will center around the small Tennessee town of the same name. According to TV Guide, the story revolves around forces of good and evil at work in Hallelujah, and the mysterious stranger who comes to town bringing justice, peace and faith.

Marc Cherry will write and executive produce alongside fellow Housewives veteran Sabrina Wind. His other credits include The Golden Girls. Cherry and his production studio currently have an undeniable hit under their belt, but there have been some flops, too: Golden Girls spinoff The Golden Palace and CBS project The 5 Mrs. Buchanans both fizzled after a single season.

Desperate Housewives started big in 2004 and has continued strong ever since. Currently in its 7th season, the series is popular world-wide and has won six Emmy awards and four Golden Globes along with dozens of nominations. Essentially a prime-time soap opera, Housewives keeps audiences interested with bedroom romantic intrigue and snappy comedic writing.

If the synopsis for Hallelujah is accurate, it’s unlikely that the show will replicate Desperate Housewives‘ white collar dramedy or suggestive themes. The show might be anything from a “clean up this town” drama a la Justified, or a more family-focused serial like 7th Heaven. The latter would place it in a fairly unique spot among network television, giving welcome relief to more conservative viewers tired of endless police procedural and reality TV. It would also probably catch a fair share of Housewives’ overwhelmingly female viewership. But feel-good television doesn’t pay for advertising: expect Hallelujah to fall somewhere between Wisteria Lane and Mayberry.

There are no casting or production announcements beyond Cherry and Wind, and no timetable is available yet. But if the pedigree is any indication, ABC will be fast-tracking Hallelujah and putting plenty of production and promotion dollars behind it. Expect a pilot sometime in 2012.

Source: TV Guide

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‘The Thing’ Producer Talks Date Change; Reshoots

John Carpenter’s The Thing may very well be one of the greatest horror movies of all time. Though it was utterly unsuccessful when originally released—in the same era as Steven Spielberg’s E.T.—it enjoyed a massive resurgence in the decades that followed.

There have been a number of sequels/prequels/remakes to John Carpenter’s The Thing planned, proposed, announced, and (thankfully) scrapped over the past ten years, but the only one to make it out of development hell is the prequel known, simply, as The Thing (2011). Last week, news broke that it wouldn’t be making its April release date for then unknown reasons and today, producer Marc Abraham is discussing why.

Courtesy of Drew McWeeny at Hit Fix, Abraham promises that there’s nothing to worry about regarding the quality of the film, something no producer would ever have any reason to lie about (sarcasm!), and that the release date change will merely give the filmmakers more time to “enhance existing sequences,” “make crystal clear a few story beats,” and “add punctuation marks to the film’s feeling of dread” via re-shoots.

One specific scene that requires “enhancement,” so to speak, is the very first time the film’s protagonists see ‘the thing’ in all its wretched glory. Apparently, producer Marc Abraham wants to straddle that very narrow line where the film can be embraced by both hardcore John Carpenter fanatics and newer audiences not so accustomed to the horrors of that thing from another world.

Certainly, that’s no easy task, one might even say it’s impossible, but this particular John Carpenter fanatic would be satisfied with just a good movie.

Some of the cast will be involved in the re-shoots, including star Mary Elizabeth Winstead. No word yet as to whether or not the other star, Joel Edgerton, otherwise known as the Star Wars prequels’ Uncle Owen, will be involved, too.

Special effects work on the film is, obviously, ongoing and likely won’t be finished until early next year. I just hope against hope that the CGI in the film will be utilized solely to augment or support the (cross your fingers) prevalent practical effects. It’s become commonplace in the past few years to heavily rely upon CGI for creature effects in horror movies. This usually rips every ounce of tension right out of the film, because the human eye knows the difference between a cartoon object and a real, physical object, dripping with goo and writhing about covered in tentacles, tumors, eyeballs, and more. Cartoon monsters in the middle of a live-action movie just aren’t scary.

Check out the below video to see just how magnificent the original The Thing‘s creature effects were, way back in 1982:

Frankly, if the creature effects don’t, at the very least, match those from the nigh-on thirty-year-old original in their gruesome plausibility, then the filmmakers might as well get new day jobs. I mean, no one held them up at gunpoint and said, “Make a prequel to John Carpenter’s classic horror film The Thing from 1982!” (As far as I’m aware?)

No word yet on what the new release date for The Thing, directed by Matthijs van Hijningen Jr., will be. Here’s hoping that the re-shoots will provide what it takes to put this movie over the top in terms of sheer awesome horror. Honestly, I’m not expecting a movie on par with the original, but just an enjoyable horror movie experience would be a breath of fresh air.

Source: Hit Fix

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‘Avatar’ Producer Addresses Sequel Rumors

Only months after the release of Avatar, director James Cameron was already dropping hints about what fans could expect from the inevitable sequels. One of his earliest declarations was that Avatar 2 would take audiences into a region of Pandora unexplored by the original film – the oceans.

It’s been confirmed that Avatar 2 will be Cameron’s next project and that it will be shot back-to-back with Avatar 3. Although screenplays for the sequels have yet to be written, there are some factions of the Internet rumor mill that seem to believe the first sequel will take place entirely underwater.

Empire recently caught up with Jon Landau,  one of the Avatar franchise’s producers, while he was out promoting Avatar‘s upcoming Extended Collector’s Edition. Landau revealed that the oceans of Pandora will indeed be featured in Avatar 2, but they won’t be the focus of the film:

“Water will be a part of the movie, but it won’t be all of the movie … There’s been a lot of rumours that it’s an underwater movie – it’s not. Just like the Floating Mountains, and the Na’vi’s interaction with the mountains, were a part of Avatar, it’ll be the same type of thing.”

This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise since Cameron previously stated that Avatar 2 would definitely expand the scope of the first movie, but not at the expense of revisiting established locations. Yet, the innovative filmmaker clearly has a larger story in mind – one that goes beyond Pandora and involves other planets in the Alpha Centauri AB system.

If the franchise does indeed wind up traveling to other worlds, it won’t be until the third film. Landau indicates that Avatar 2 will likely take place entirely on Pandora:

“I think the next movie will stay on Pandora. That’d be my guess. Not all the answers are there yet, but I think we’re happy with Pandora.”

James Cameron and Jon Landau

Landau also insists that even though the sequels are shooting back-to-back, it’s important that they stand on their own. So don’t expect Avatar 2 to end with a cliffhanger à la Back to the Future Part II or The Matrix Reloaded:

“The next [film] will kick off where the  last one ended, but just like Avatar resolved itself and doesn’t feel like a set-up to another movie, you don’t want Avatar 2 to feel like a set up for 3.”

Not only does that decision seem creatively stronger, in my opinion it also shows more respect for the audience. The majority of Avatar fans are already passionate and no one needs to be baited into seeing another film. Franchise or not, I think each film should tell a contained story – even if there’s a larger arc in place.

Finally, Landau touches on two other long-gestating Cameron projects – The Dive and Battle Angel. While they’re obviously a ways off, it doesn’t sound like interest has waned:

They’re further-out projects … Neither one has that shooting script yet and both are really worthy projects to make.”

My list of criticisms for the first Avatar is largely the same as everyone else’s, but I really do have high hopes for the follow-ups. Landau previously discussed Cameron’s successful track record with sequels and the pressure that created for  Avatar 2. Here’s hoping they knock it out of the park.

Source: Empire.

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