Emily Blunt targets 'Iron Man 2'
Another day, another "Iron Man 2" casting rumour.
Variety claims Emily Blunt may be cast in the superhero sequel as Natasha Romanoff, also known as Russian assassin The Black Widow. In the Marvel comic books, Romanoff begins life as a foil to both Tony Stark and his alter ego Iron Man. She eventually mends her ways and joins Iron Man in the supergroup The Avengers. Should writer Jon Favreau choose to follow the Marvel Ultimate storyline, Romanoff's role is considerably darker and more morally ambiguous.
The movie's casting has made news this month. Yesterday, Samuel L. Jackson raised questions about whether he'd reprise his role as superspy Nick Fury in "Iron Man 2," not to mention a host of other Marvel movies. Last week, "The Wrestler" star Mickey Rourke and Sam Rockwell circled villainous roles; Rourke is rumored to be in the running for Russian mercenary Crimson Dynamo, while Rockwell's potential role has not been revealed.
Blunt, 25, can be seen this year in "The Wolfman," a remake of the classic Universal monster movie, alongside Benicio del Toro.
Fall Out Boy maps big spring tour
Fall Out Boy has revealed dates for a major spring tour in support of the band's recently released fifth studio set, "Folie a Deux."
The alt-rockers will kick off the outing April 9 in Phoenix, AZ, and then head out for more than 30 dates over the following six weeks. Details are included below.
Tickets will be available in eight cities starting the weekend of Jan. 23, with the remainder of tickets going on sale Jan. 31. Check out the band's website for a list of the eight cities where tickets will be available early.
Released Dec. 16, "Folie a Deux" features guest appearances from a number of notable music figures, including several acts off the Decaydence Records roster, Lil Wayne, Pharrell, Debbie Harry and Elvis Costello. The album was originally scheduled for release Nov. 4 to coincide with Election Day before the band had second thoughts.
"This album kind of went a lot differently because we wanted to get the record out originally on the fourth of November," drummer Andy Hurley recently told LiveDaily. "We had a month-and-a-half to two months to do it. It was this awesome challenge to ourselves. We usually have as much time as we want.
"This kind of felt like 'Take This to Your Grave' when we had two weeks or even a week to record it," he added. "Everything we were doing on this record was the first thing that felt right. I think there's something really cool about that."
The new set follows 2007's "Infinity on High," which was the group's first No. 1 album in the US and spawned a pair of Top 10 singles in "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" and "Thnks Fr Th Mmrs."
April 2009
3 - Mesa, AZ - Mesa Amphitheatre
5 - Las Vegas, NV - Pearl
7 - San Jose, CA - SJSU Event Center
8 - Sacramento, CA - Memorial Auditorium
9 - Portland, OR - Expo Center
10 - Seattle, WA - WaMu Theatre
11 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Thunderbird
13 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Great Saltair
14 - Denver, CO - Fillmore Auditorium
17 - Dallas, TX - Nokia Theatre
18 - Houston, TX - Sam Houston Race Park
19 - New Orleans, LA - Lakefront Arena
21 - Miami, FL - Mizner Auditorium
22 - Orlando, FL - UCF Convocation Center
23 - Atlanta, GA - Gwinnett Arena
24 - Charlotte, NC - Bojangles Coliseum
25 - Columbia, MD - Merriweather Post Pavilion
26 - Troy, NY - RPI Fieldhouse
28 - Lowell, MA - Tsongas Arena
29 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun
May 2009
1 - Philadelphia, PA - Festival Pier
2 - East Rutherford, NJ - Bamboozle
3 - Memphis, TN - Beale Street Music Festival
5 - Toronto, Ontario - Ricoh Coliseum
6 - Montreal, Quebec - Cepsum de Montreal
8 - Detroit, MI - EMU Convocation Canter
9 - Rosemont, IL - Allstate Arena
12 - Cleveland, OH - TWCA at Tower City
13 - Columbus, OH - LC Pavilion
15 - Indianapolis, IN - The Lawn at White River Park
16 - Milwaukee, WI - Eagles Ballroom
17 - Minneapolis, MN - Roy Wilkins Auditorium
The Dark Knight Returns
Warner Bros. plans to return The Dark Knight to theaters -- including IMAX screens -- on January 23, 2009, one day after Oscar nominations are announced. The film is virtually certain to receive numerous nominations, and critics appear to regard the late Heath Ledger as a shoo-in for best supporting actor for his role as the Joker. The movie is already available on DVD, but Warner Bros. distribution chief Dan Fellman said in a statement today (Thursday) that the studio "wanted to provide one more opportunity for moviegoers to experience it on the big screen as it was meant to be seen."
NBC announces `30 Rock,' `The Office' renewals
UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. – NBC is renewing Tina Fey's "30 Rock" for the 2009-10 season, along with "The Office" and "The Biggest Loser."
Besides the return of the comedies and the weight-loss reality show, NBC announced Thursday that it has set a premiere date for Amy Poehler's new comedy, a mockumentary about local government. The show, yet to get a title, will debut 8:30 p.m. EST April 9.
"Southland," a new police drama from "ER" executive producer John Wells, also will debut April 9, at 10 p.m. EST.
NBC said that fans of "ER" will get three more episodes than previously announced before the show ends for good, a total of 23. That will push its two-hour finale to April 2.
Angela Bromstad, new president of prime-time entertainment for NBC, weighed in on the fate of other series at a meeting of the Television Critics Association.
Despite a drop in ratings, "Heroes" is secure, Bromstad said. The sci-fi drama, in its third season, "may have taken on too much in terms of characters and multiple story lines," she added.
Bromstad said the network feels "very strongly" about "Life," "Friday Night Lights" and "Lipstick Jungle." She denied reports that "Lipstick Jungle," which stars Brooke Shields, has been canceled.
The network executive's enthusiasm doesn't extend to the new sitcom "Kath & Kim" and "Knight Rider." The two shows were "fair tries" but aren't holding up in the ratings, she said. She called them "indicative of shows that may or may not be coming back."
Bromstad, who was named to her position in December, also oversees production at NBC and Universal Media Studios.
The network finished last season in fourth place and continues to struggle with its scripted programs. None of NBC's four new fall series clicked with viewers, including the already canceled drama "My Own Worst Enemy."
'Slumdog' leads field for British Academy awards
LONDON – Underdog-turned-favorite "Slumdog Millionaire" picked up 11 nominations Thursday for the British Academy film awards, Britain's version of the Oscars.
The British-Indian film about a Mumbai street boy's rise to game-show glory was nominated in six major categories including best picture, best actor for Dev Patel and best director for Danny Boyle. It also received several design nominations.
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," which stars Brad Pitt as a man who ages backward, also was nominated in 11 categories, including best film, best actor and best director for David Fincher.
Double Golden Globe winner Kate Winslet is competing against herself in the best-actress category, with nominations for both "The Reader" and "Revolutionary Road." She is up against Angelina Jolie for "The Changeling," Meryl Streep for "Doubt" and Kristin Scott Thomas for the French film "I've Loved You So Long."
The best-actor nominees are Pitt, Patel of "Slumdog", Sean Penn for "Milk," Frank Langella for "Frost/Nixon" and Mickey Rourke for "The Wrestler."
The winners will be announced at London's Royal Opera House on Feb. 8. The British awards, known as BAFTAs, are considered an important indicator of success at the Academy Awards in Los Angeles two weeks later.
Batman thriller "The Dark Knight" received nine nods, including a best supporting actor nomination for the late Heath Ledger.
Clint Eastwood's L.A. noir "Changeling" is nominated in eight categories, including best director, while political drama "Frost/Nixon" has six nominations including best actor for Frank Langella and best director for Ron Howard.
In addition to "Slumdog" and "Benjamin Button," the best-picture contenders are "Frost/Nixon," inspirational biopic "Milk" and Nazi-themed drama "The Reader."
In the separate category of best British film, the nominees are "Slumdog," ABBA musical "Mamma Mia!" hit-man comedy "In Bruges," Irish hunger-striker drama "Hunger" and tightrope-walking documentary "Man on Wire."
The nominations cement the transformation of "Slumdog" from low-budget outsider to Oscars favorite. Filmed on the streets of Mumbai with a largely Indian cast and partly in Hindi, the film features a tough-but-sweet script from BAFTA-nominated Simon Beaufoy ("The Full Monty") and kinetic direction by Boyle ("Trainspotting," "28 Days Later").
The BAFTAS are also a chance for several highly touted films shut out of the Golden Globe awards — including "Benjamin Button," "Frost/Nixon" and "Doubt" — to regain awards-season momentum.
Among the more offbeat nominations is Robert Downey Jr.'s supporting actor nod for his performance as an overly intense method actor in the lowbrow action comedy "Tropic Thunder."