Behind the Scenes of ‘Burn Notice’ Prequel ‘The Sam Axe Movie’

Even though the Burn Notice prequel, dubbed “The Sam Axe Movie,” is currently filming in Columbia and won’t premiere until later this spring, fans are able to keep a close eye on the day-to-day production, thanks to producer Aaron Ginsberg.

Ginsberg, who recently came off the canceled Matt Nix FOX series The Good Guys, has been providing an in-depth look at the filming of “The Sam Axe Movie” through his Twitter and Tumblr accounts. While production has faced geese attacks, stray donkeys and permit problems, the internet availability appears to be pretty solid.

As we now know, “The Sam Axe Movie” will give fans a look at the back-story of everyone’s favorite alcohol drinking ex-spy on Burn Notice. Set in 2005 Colombia, Lt. Cmdr. Sam Axe is deployed to check out some problems that a local military platoon is having with Colombian rebels. As usual, bad things happen and we’ll see what events led Sam Axe to become our favorite Miami resident.

With camera in tow, Ginsberg has been providing wonderful photos of various filming locations, military vehicles and pre-production planning. On top of that, Ginsberg has also been keeping track of any interesting or hilarious conversations on the set and has been dictating them for fans to enjoy.

You can read some of our favorite quotes below:

“So, the dailies didn’t make it to LA… Turns out, they have been detained by U.S. Customs.” ~ Producer“Our generator is on fire. Don’t worry, we’re putting it out.” ~ 1st AD — only 2 hours into our first day of shooting.“And, look, we can always light his arm on fire.” ~ Stunt Coordinator“If it makes me nervous, you know we’re in trouble.” ~  Stunt Coordinator[An email with a picture of a donkey attached] “A donkey that Columbian Production found 500 yards from the location. Do we want him?”

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The PICTURE CAR DEPT shows us a laptop with picture of a CAR

PICTURE CAR DEPT: Do you like this car for Sam Axe?

JEFFREY DONOVAN: Yeah, that’s great!

PICTURE CAR DEPT: We cannot get this car.

::Pause. Picture Car Department gestures to another jpeg on the computer::

PICTURE CAR DEPT: How about this car? Do you like it?

JEFFREY: Perfect!

PICTURE CAR DEPT: This car is not available.

(Sigh.)

–

EXT. COLOMBIAN JUNGLES. CERTAIN KEY VEHICLES ARE NOWHERE TO BE FOUND. THE 1ST AD GRABS HIS WALKIE-TALKIE.

1ST AD: I need to know what -exactly- we have here on location!
::Excruciatingly long pause::
2ND AD: I’ll tell you in five minutes.

As you can tell from those select quotes that everything in production appears to be running smoothly – especially if they’re in need of an extra donkey. U.S. Customs holding delivery of the dailies, back to LA, certainly isn’t the best thing to happen – but things could be worse. For instance, their generator could catch on fire in the middle of the jungle.

Even though the quotes were hilarious, and somewhat informative, there’s nothing like photos. Fortunately, we sifted through all of Ginsberg’s photos and, like the quotes, selected our favorites. Unfortunately, Bruce Campbell doesn’t appear in any of them.  If you’d like to see all of Ginsberg’s photos and keep up date with filming, check out his Twitter and Tumblr accounts.

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Burn Notice prequel “The Sam Axe Movie” is set to air this spring on USA.

Follow me on Twitter @anthonyocasio
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Source: Twitter, Tumbler

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Alien Prequel Now An Original Movie Titled ‘Prometheus’ With Noomi Rapace

Jan 14, 2011 by Rob Keyes 

Ridley Scott’s heavily speculated prequel(s) to ‘Alien’ is now an original sci-fi work titled ‘Prometheus,’ starring Noomi Rapace. Does it take place in the Alien universe?

Breaking News: Twentieth Century Fox just sent out the most significant and unexpected update regarding Ridley Scott’s long-awaited Alien prequel. As it turns out, it’s no longer a prequel, sequel or any other sort of Alien franchise installment. Instead, Ridley Scott’s next major sci-fi project will be an original flick titled Prometheus.

Many actors have been rumored to be contending for a lead role in Scott’s Alien prequel but with the official announcement of the film’s title, and its confirmed release date, growing star Noomi Rapace has signed to star as one of the five main characters of Prometheus.

A literal buzz topic on the interwebs, Rapace has quickly earned well-deserved fame and attention for her critically acclaimed performance as the star of the original adaptation of The Girl With a Dragon Tattoo. Rapace has been sought for many starring roles in Hollywood ever since, and was previously reported as a leading candidate for the part in this film.

As for how the new film idea came about, screenwriter Jon Spaihts (The Darkest Hour) had originally penned the prequel’s script, working with Scott. Since then, Damon Lindelof (Lost) has been working with him to reshape the screenplay into an original work. Lindelof had this to say about working with his idol on the project:

“In a world flooded with prequels, sequels and reboots I was incredibly struck by just how original Ridley’s vision was for this movie. It’s daring, visceral and hopefully, the last thing anyone expects. When I sat in a movie theater as a kid, feet raised off the floor for fear that something might grab my ankles, I never dreamed in my wildest imagination I would one day get to collaborate with the man responsible for it. Working alongside him has been nothing short of a dream come true.”

As for what this film will be about, Scott explains that his imagination allowed him to get creative with the bigger picture of the Alien mythology, seemingly hinting that this may be some sort of spin-off.

“While ‘Alien’ was indeed the jumping off point for this project, out of the creative process evolved a new, grand mythology and universe in which this original story takes place. The keen fan will recognize strands of ‘Alien’s’ DNA, so to speak, but the ideas tackled in this film are unique, large and provocative. I couldn’t be more pleased to have found the singular tale I’d been searching for, and finally return to this genre that’s so close to my heart.”

This does confirm that the film is not titled “Paradise” as previously rumored and what we found out from the studio about it being only one film, instead of two.

Details on what the story will be about and what Alien elements will or will not be used are under lock and key, but with the press release also came the release date for Prometheus which is officially scheduled to hit theaters March 9, 2012.

Are you happy, confused or disappointed that Prometheus will not be a prequel to Alien?

Tell us your thoughts on this through Twitter @rob_keyes and @screenrant.

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Charlize Theron Not Joining ‘J. Edgar’; Possibly Starring in ‘Alien’ Prequel

Things change fast in the world of movie news – just ask Charlize Theron. One day she’s reportedly all but set to play Leonardo DiCaprio’s lifelong secretary in J. Edgar; the next brings words that the blonde bombshell could be duking it out with slimy extraterrestrial killing machines in the Alien prequel instead.

The only official news for the time being is that Theron won’t take on the role of J. Edgar Hoover’s devoted assistant, Helen Gandy, in Clint Eastwood’s biopic about the FBI founder. What her next project will be, however, is not clear.

Theron is definitely out of the running to join J. Edgar, which recently added Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick to its cast as Agent Smith (no Matrix jokes, please). Deadline claims that Eastwood is now considering actresses Naomi Watts (Fair Game) and Amy Adams (The Fighter) as possibilities to play Miss Gandy, instead. Theron, meanwhile, is reportedly in the process of signing on for Universal’s new version of Snow White, in which she would appear as the evil queen.

Here’s where it gets tricky; Vulture is now reporting that 20th Century Fox had the role of Elizabeth Shaw (the female protagonist of Ridley Scott’s Alien prequel) rewritten and expanded to accommodate someone of Theron’s stature. The rumor is that a new version of the script will be sent to Theron later this week and only after that will the actress decide for certain what her next role will be.

Noomi Rapace of Girl With the Dragon Tattoo fame reportedly remains Scott’s top choice to play the attractive but hard-edged lead of his sci-fi prequel – and given Rapace’s fierce portrayal of Lisbeth Salander, she seems like a perfect fit for the part. If Scott has his way, the costly CGI project will apparently revolve around a multi-cultural space crew that could feature name actors like Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) and/or Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class) – however, Fox is reportedly concerned about production costs and wants a better-known name than Rapace to headline the film.

Scott reportedly still wants Rapace for his 'Alien' prequel.

To reiterate: the only concrete bit of news at the time being is that Theron won’t be starring in the Hoover biopic – everything else is essentially RUMOR and should be taken as so. There have been rumblings in the past about Fox delaying the Alien prequels (back when it was believed there would be two movies) and the studio having concerns about the budget for the entire project. Remember also that Scott is a highly respected, Oscar-nominated filmmaker with a healthy number of blockbusters under his belt – so he does have a fair amount of influence with respect to the casting of his Alien prequel.

Both Theron and Rapace are excellent actresses and either could make for an engaging lead in Scott’s latest (and presumably 3D) sci-fi venture, which will feature new work by Oscar-winning sculptor/set designer H.R. Giger as well. Production on the Alien prequel looks to get underway later this year, so expect an official statement about the film’s cast in the relatively near future. J. Edgar, meanwhile, will begin shooting next month and should reach theaters by late 2011.

Source: Deadline, Vulture

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Will ‘Monsters, Inc. 2′ Be A Prequel?

To date, Pixar has done no wrong in my eyes and with a combined box office haul in the billions apparently the majority of the world agrees with me. Every time the studio announces a new project the worldwide consensus is that it will earn major dollars.

When Pixar announced their plans last year for Monsters, Inc. 2, many people where wondering if they could make a film entirely about monsters that make kids laugh. At the end of the first film, the monster society discovered they could produce more power from a child’s laugh than they could a scream – it was a great ending for the film but it didn’t feel like a strong enough motivator for a sequel.

According to the Dutch site Animatie, it appears that Disney and Pixar might not have to face that problem, as they are apparently planning on making Monsters, Inc. 2 a prequel and not a sequel. The story will apparently take audiences back to Sully (voiced by John Goodman) and Mike’s (voiced by Billy Crystal) college days where they were fierce rivals. While teaching their classes advanced techniques of scaring, Mike and Sully go from working against each other to becoming the best friends audiences know and love from the first film.

This information apparently came from a Disney catalogue of upcoming films sent to a French theater, and since there hasn’t been any confirmation by Pixar or Disney in regards to its validity you should take this RUMOR with a grain of salt.

However, in my opinion, this isn’t a bad direction to take the Monsters, Inc. franchise in. Besides giving viewers a chance to see how Mike and Sully became such good friends, a prequel would also open up the story to explaining the reasons behind Randall’s (voiced by Steve Buscemi) disdain for Sully. Taking the story back a few years really gives Pixar a multitude of options and gives them the ability to introduce a slew of new characters.  I’m sure the extra stock of marketable (read: sellable) merchandise wouldn’t hurt, either.

Monsters, Inc. 2 should scares its way into theaters November 2012. How do you feel about it being a prequel instead of a sequel?

Follow us on Twitter for TV and Movie News @Walwus and @ScreenRant

Source: Animatie via /Film

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‘Alien’ Prequel Space Jockey Concept Art Revealed?

Script Flags was sent some sketches of what are allegedly “The Space Jockeys,” and extraterrestrial race that will be featured in Ridley Scott’s upcoming Alien prequels.

Let me be clear upfront: there is no confirmation that this artwork is the official concept artwork being used by Ridley Scott and the other Alien filmmakers. That said, it is certainly worth a look.

For those who aren’t experts on the Alien franchise, “The Space Jockeys” are a mysterious alien race that appeared in Ridley Scott’s original Alien film. The Jockey (shown above) was actually an alien corpse on a crashed ship that Ripley’s (Sigourney Weaver) crew first encountered on the planet LV-426. On that same crashed vessel, Ripley’s team discovered eggs housing the face-grabbing parasites that give birth to the dreaded titular aliens.

Take a look at the suppossed Space Jockey concept art below:

CLICK FOR A LARGER IMAGE

We know that The Space Jockeys are large in size, and this suppossed concept art does in fact resemble the corpse pictured in the header image up top, which is taken from the original Alien film. So while this art isn’t confirmed to be official, it is interesting nonetheless – I would be happy to see these designs brought to life onscreen.

Previous reports about the story for the two-part Alien prequel have stated that the film will focus on the backstory of The Space Jockeys (and specifically the Jockey seen crash-landed in the first Alien film), as well as their relationship to acid-blooded alien species.

There will also have a human component – as recent Alien casting rumors have indicated. Some early (and admittedly dubious) rumors have already asserted that the prequels will deal with human/Space Jockey relations. If that’s true – if human actors and Space Jockey creatures will be sharing a lot of scenes in the film -  the designs for the Jockeys needs to be fairly impeccable, able to look eerie and alien yet relatable and expressive at the same time.

I for one am hoping that they use practical makeup/animatronic effects to bring the Jockeys to life; no need to go the CGI route, really.

What do you think of the artwork? Could it be official?

The Alien prequels are slated to be in theaters sometime in 2011. However, seeing as how they have yet to even cast a lead actor, we’ll see if they meet that deadline.

Source: Script Flags

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