Ford says he's fit to play Indiana Jones
ROME - Harrison Ford says he feels "fit to continue" to play Indiana Jones despite growing older. Ford, 64, said at the inaugural Rome Film Festival on Friday that he was delighted to team up again with directors Steven Spielberg and George Lucas for the film. Lucas co-wrote and executive produced the earlier films, which Spielberg directed.
"We did three films that stay within the same block of time. We need to move on for artistic reasons and obvious physical reasons," Ford said at a news conference. "I feel fit to continue and bring the same physical action."
"Indiana Jones 4" has been in development for over a decade, but the production has recently gained momentum. Lucas has said he and Spielberg, who would direct, are working on a script, though no details have been disclosed.
Ford played Indiana Jones in 1981's "Raiders of the Lost Ark," 1984's "Temple of Doom" and 1989's "The Last Crusade." In the last film, Jones' father was played by Sean Connery, who Ford said might also appear in the planned fourth feature.
"He's part of the emotional fabric of these films. I think there may be an opportunity, I believe that Sean is still willing and I'd be delighted if he joined us," said Ford.
Connery, who attended the Rome event last week, has said that no offer had been made.
Ford declined to provide details about a shooting schedule or film locations, adding that the directors were not yet finished with the script.
"I think it's a real opportunity to make a film as successful ... as the ones we've made before," he said.
Love Wants Her Throne Back On New Album
Courtney Love is nearly finished with her first album since 2004's "America's Sweetheart," her lone release under a much-trumpeted deal with Virgin. The artist is now signed to producer Linda Perry's Custard imprint; Perry has also been behind the boards on the as-yet-untitled new album, due sometime next year.
"Courtney is the queen of rock'n'roll to me," Perry tells Billboard. "Damn it all to hell. She is the last one." If Perry has her way, the embattled Love will regain her throne. Sober for a year-plus, Love says she's more than ready. After a string of drug and assault charges, she says it was jail or rehab. "I was backed up against a wall," she says. "I had f*ckin' nothing."
Perry and Love first worked together on "America's Sweetheart," a project Love admits was doomed for two reasons: She was high as a kite, and the label didn't understand the album. Perry finally walked out on Love at that time. "I said, 'When you want to make music, give me a call,'" Perry says.
Love called her from rehab. Perry brought her a guitar. "My hand-eye coordination was so bad, I didn't even know chords anymore," Love says. "It was like my fingers were frozen. And I wasn't allowed to make noise [in rehab]. So I'd sit there and try to quietly write and struggle. I never thought I would work again. No one is ever going to talk to me. I'm never going to get a record deal. I'm never going to get on stage again. So, I just kept writing. This is a very personal album."
The set features a sequel to Perry's Christina Aguilera hit "Beautiful" titled "Letter to God," which Perry wrote at the same time as "Beautiful." Love and Perry "Courtnified" the song, recasting it in minor chords and adding what Perry calls "Courtney swagger." Billy Corgan also lent his hand to a few tracks.
"I think we made a beautiful, vibey, magical record," Perry says. "Courtney Love's name should be right next to Bob Dylan when they say best lyricist of all time."
Love says that now that she's clean, she's looking at movie scripts and would consider doing a play in London. She also has a hardcover book of her diaries and letters coming out next month. "It's an insight into how I think. Not sure that's a good thing or not. But it's me."
Furtado to headline Grey Cup
Canadian pop diva Nelly Furtado will perform during the halftime show at the Grey Cup in Winnipeg next month, organizers of the Canadian Football League championship announced Friday.
"The Grey Cup is a national treasure and I'm thrilled to be performing," Furtado said in a statement.
Recent Canadian Idol winner, Eva Avila, a 19-year-old from Gatineau, Que., will sing the national anthem.
CFL commissioner Tom Wright called Furtado, winner of Grammy and Juno Awards, a great Canadian talent.
"The Grey Cup is a Canadian tradition and the largest single-day sporting event in the country," Wright said.
"As part of the Grey Cup entertainment experience, the CFL is proud to present Nelly Furtado in the Rogers Grey Cup Halftime Show. We’re thrilled to have one of Canada’s greatest talents entertain CFL fans everywhere on Grey Cup Sunday."
The 94th annual Grey Cup is at Canad Inns Stadium on Nov. 19 (CBC, 6 p.m.).
Furtado, who rose to fame with 2000's I'm Like a Bird from her record-breaking debut album Whoa, Nelly!, is back atop the North American music charts with hits like Promiscuous and Maneater from her third album, Loose.
The 27-year-old native of Victoria is the latest big act to perform at the Grey Cup, one of the oldest professional sports championships in North America.
Others include:
2005 in Vancouver: American hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas.
2004 in Ottawa: Tragically Hip.
2003 in Regina: Bryan Adams and Sam Roberts.
2002 in Edmonton: Country star Shania Twain.
"Fraggle" to rock big screen with Ahmet Zappa
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Jim Henson's "Fraggle Rock" is coming to the big screen.
The 1980s cult hit TV show is being developed by Ahmet Zappa -- younger son of Frank Zappa -- into a full-length live-action musical fantasy starring the classic characters.
"(Zappa) recently created his own fantasy property ('Mighty McFearless'), and we had him in to talk about books and movies," said Lisa Henson, who serves as co-CEO of the Jim Henson Co. with her brother, Brian.
"During that conversation, I had an intuition that he might be a 'Fraggle Rock' fan. He jumped out of his seat when he heard our idea of making 'Fraggle Rock' into a feature-length movie."
Zappa -- a musician and TV personality who will serve as the project's executive producer -- is developing a treatment in which puppet stars Gobo, Wembley, Mokey, Boober and Red will travel from beneath the Rock and venture into the human world for the first time.
"The Fraggles didn't really get into the human world on the series, so we plan to make the movie more about the intersection between the Fraggles and the humans," Lisa Henson said.
Zappa is informally talking to musician friends about writing original songs for the movie. The original Henson puppets will be refurbished and updated for the film, with little expectation of computer-generated enhancements.
A release date has yet to be determined. Lisa Henson plans to hire a screenwriter and director once an initial treatment is completed.
"We're taking the movie as far as we can independently because the company has a big personal investment in how the movie turns out," she said.
"Fraggle Rock" premiered on HBO in 1983 and over five seasons garnered multiple awards and a global fan following. The show was created by Jim Henson as an international co-production and was adapted for each territory to meet the needs of its audience.