May 23, 2013

Kid Cudi Joins Racing Movie ‘Need for Speed’

kid cudi

*Rapper Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi has joined “Breaking Bad’s” Aaron Paul in DreamWorks’ racing action flick “Need for Speed.” Also joining the adaptation of the Electronic Arts video game are Ramon Rodriguez, Rami Malek and Harrison Gilbertson, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The company has said it’s aiming for the tone of the car-culture films [...]




Rihanna to Voice Animated Character in ‘Happy Smekday’

Rihanna

*With two of her ex-boyfriends making headlines over their bar brawl, Rihanna is forging ahead with her acting career by signing on to the Dreamworks animated film “Happy Smekday!” [SUBSCRIBE TO EURWEB's RSS FEED] The singer will follow up her big-screen debut in “Battleship” with the forthcoming film adaptation of Adam Rex’s children’s book “The [...]




Eddie Murphy: Less is More in ‘A Thousand Words’ (Audio)

eddie murphy

*A very verbose Eddie Murphy extends his innate ability to be funny in the new Paramount Pictures/Dreamworks  movie A Thousand Words, opening March 9 in theaters nationwide. The premise of the story has Eddie Murphy in the gregarious role of Jack McCall as he is challenged to use his words wisely or face dire consequences now that he has [...]




Team Obama Sells Fundraising ‘Packages’ in Hollywood

2008 Democratic National Convention: Day 4

*A committee working on behalf of both President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign and the Democratic National Committee is offering an array of novel fundraising “packages” to the incumbent’s deep pocketed Hollywood supporters, according to the Hollywood Reporter. An invitation being circulated this week by the Obama Victory Fund, which splits the contributions it receives between [...]




‘The Help’ Cleans Up in SAG Nominations, Leads with 4

viola davis octavia spencer

*”The Help” swept the competition this morning as nominations were announced for the 18th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. Also nabbing noms, the Regina King drama “Southland,” Laurence Fishburne for his role as Thurgood Marshall and Giancarlo Esposito for his memorable turn on AMC’s “Breaking Bad.” DreamWorks production “The Help,” about race relations in the [...]




‘Tower Heist’ Couldn’t Steal the Box Office from ‘Puss in Boots’

Murphy and Stiller in Universal's 'Tower Heist'

*Annnnd the box office winner this week is “Puss in Boots” and not “Tower Heist” after all the hype for the Brett Ratner directed and Ben Stiller & Eddie Murphy starrer. “Boots” from DreamWorks Animation and Paramount scratched its way to a $33 million second weekend (only 3 percent drop from its $34.1 million debut) [...]




‘Video: Puss in Boots’ (Starring Antonio Banderas) is a Crowd Pleaser

puss(2011-from-puss-n-boots-med)

*We first saw the charming renegade Puss in Boots in the film “Shrek 2,” and now the swashbuckling cat is coming to the big screen in DreamWorks Animation feature film, “Puss in Boots.” “Puss in Boots boasts plenty of action, intrigue and adventure that will thrill both young and old alike as it touches on [...]




‘The Help’ Cast To Receive ‘Ensemble Acting Award’

from left: Viola Davis, Jessica Chastain, Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone and Bryce Dallas Howard

*The cast of DreamWorks film “The Help” has been chosen to receive this year’s Hollywood Ensemble Acting Award at the 15th annual Hollywood Film Festival and Hollywood Film Awards, presented by Starz, the first awards show of the Oscar season. Carlos de Abreu, the Founder and Executive Director of the event, says that no fewer [...]




‘Contagion’ Infects Box Office; ‘Help’ Drops to No. 2

Laurence Fishburne at a "Contagion" photocall during the 68th Venice International Film Festival. (September 4, 2011

*The killer virus thriller “Contagion,” which stars Lawrence Fishburne as the head of the Center for Disease Control trying to stop a pandemic, took in $23.1 million to easily win the weekend box office. The Warner Bros. film bumps “The Help” off its three-week perch to No. 2. The Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer movie [...]




‘The Help’ Author on Writing from Black Maid’s Perspective; Film Passes $100M

THE HELP

“The Help,” starring Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer, has crossed the $100 million threshold in box office grosses in less than three weeks in release, marking  a notable victory for DreamWorks and Participant Media. The Tate Taylor-directed movie hit the milestone Tuesday night, and has now earned $100.8 million domestically, according to the Hollywood Reporter. [...]




‘The Help’ Tops ‘Apes’ At Monday Box Office

From left: Viola Davis, Jessica Chastain, Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone and Bryce Dallas Howard

  *DreamWorks’ “The Help” moved into first place at the box office for the first time on Monday after being edged out by 20th Century Fox’s “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” over the weekend. According to Disney, which is distributing the movie, “Help” took in $3.89 million on Monday, beating out “Apes,” with [...]




DreamWorks Throws In Towel On Eminem’s ‘Southpaw’

eminem

*Deadline.com is reporting that the Eminem boxing drama “Southpaw” from director Antoine Fuqua is down for the count at DreamWorks. Deadline’s Mike Fleming reports: The plan was to start in January. DreamWorks’ Stacey Snider, who worked closely with Eminem and his team on “8 Mile” while she ran Universal, basically gave the project back to [...]




‘The Help’ Has $5M Opening; Rare ‘A+’ From CinemaScore

(L-R) Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer in "The Help"

*Viola Davis’ “The Help” got off to an impressive start at the Wednesday box office, grossing at least $5 million in its first day and earning a rare A+ CinemaScore from folks who came out to see it, according to the Hollywood Reporter. DreamWorks and Disney decided to open the movie midweek to build buzz [...]




‘The Help’ Gets a Hand in Marketing from Black Leaders

Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis star in 'The Help'

*DreamWorks/Disney’s highly anticipated “The Help” opens in theaters tomorrow, Wednesday. Needless to say, there’s a lot of pent up emotion about the film which is based on a novel about the volatile relationships between Southern white women and their black maids at the dawn of the civil rights movement. When NAACP chairwoman Roslyn Brock heard [...]




Viola Davis Film ‘The Help’ Gets Help from Nate Berkus

(L-R) Emma Stone, Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis in "The Help"

*Following in the footsteps of his mentor Oprah Winfrey, home-makeover guru Nate Berkus has become an executive producer on a film — the highly-anticipated “The Help,” based on Kathryn Stockett’s bestseller about a secret sisterhood of women in 1960s Mississippi. Wednesday’s episode of “The Nate Berkus Show” gives a sneak peak at the film with [...]