Kit Harington and Andy Samberg Serve Up '7 Days in Hell'; Allison Williams is Peter Pan

 Being a part of the HBO family comes with many perks. Not only are you a frequent target for Emmy nominations, but it also leads to some pretty big opportunities outside of the network. And now we're seeing two members of the HBO fam taking on new projects, one that sounds potentially awesome and another that could be disaster in the waiting.

First up, Game of Thrones star Kit Harington will team up with Andy Samberg for the star-studded tennis mockumentary, 7 Days in Hell. Check out the cast being assembled for this one: Fred Armisen, Lena Dunham, Will Forte, Karen Gillan, Howie Mandel, Soledad O’Brien (!!!), Michael Sheen, Mary Steenburgen and Oscar nominee June Squibb. Samberg and Murray Miller developed the story with Miller writing the script, and it follows two fierce tennis rivals during an epic 7-day match at Wimbledon. SNL's Jake Szymanski is directing. [Deadline]

And then there's Allison Williams, who plays vocally-challenged wannabe singer Marnie Michaels on Girls. She'll kind of get her wish in a sense as Williams has agreed to play the boy who wouldn't grow up in NBC's Peter Pan Live. She'll sing and dance alongside Christopher Walken as Captain Hook, and hopefully this won't be as terrible as their live version of The Sound of Music. Ratings be damned, that thing sucked.

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Joe Wright Has Found His Peter 'Pan' in Levi Miller

So far Joe Wright's Peter Pan film, Pan, doesn't quite have the multi-racial feel he's promised. The prequel to the JM Barrie classic stars Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard, Garrett Hedlund as Captain Hook, Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily (!!!), Adeel Akhtar as Smee, and now we know newcomer Levi Miller will play the title character.

Miller will play a younger version of Pan in the origin story about a London orphan spirited away to Neverland. There he becomes a savior to the native people by leading them in a fight against the evil pirates. This will be the biggest role for Miller after appearing on Fox's failed series, Terra Nova.

Pan will open on July 17th 2015. [THR]

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Joe Wright Casts Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily in 'Pan'

Here's what The Wrap's latest report says about Joe Wright's upcoming Peter Pan origin story, Pan...

"Wright is planning to create a world that very international and multi-racial, effectively challenging audiences’ preconceived notions of Neverland and reimagining the environment."

That may be true, but surely he knows there will be some unhappy folks about his decision to cast Rooney Mara in the role of Tiger Lily, a Native American princess in Neverland. Mara will be joining Hugh Jackman, who is taking on the role of Blackbeard, and Garrett Hedlund as Captain Hook. So far it's not looking so racially diverse. Written by Jason Fuchs, Pan tells an early story of how a London orphan is taken to Neverland and becomes a hero to the natives by overthrowing the evil pirates.

Nothing against Mara as she's a terrific actress and definitely bolsters an already great cast. We'll just have to wait and see if those claims of a multi-racial version of the story hold any weight. Pan is expected to open July 17th 2015.

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Joe Wright's 'Pan' Offers Garrett Hedlund Hook Role

The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Garrett Hedlund (Tron, Inside Llewyn Davis) has officially been offered the role of Captain Hook by director Joe Wright in the upcoming Warner Bros production that will explore the beginning of the iconic relationship between Peter Pan and Captain Hook who, according to THR, will start out as friends. The word gritty was used to describe this origin story...obviously my immediate reaction is to ridicule that, I mean, how can any take on Peter Pan described as "gritty" be at all faithful to the classic tale of the boy who never grew up. Then I remember the early 90's Robin Williams/Dustin Hoffman flick, Hook..yeah I know it doesn't evoke memories of anything dark and on the edge but if you look past the bright colors you'll find a very Lord of the Flies like atmosphere commanded by an almost insane seeming Rufio. Yeah...it takes a stretch of the imagination, but it's there. Staying with that line of thinking I suppose this take, which will reportedly feature Hook's early day's of piracy under the command of Blackbeard (word is Hugh Jackman will be taking that role), could actually be something less light and fluffy than what we all equate to anything Peter Pan and actually still work. 

The real question is, do people want to see a gritty origin story about the green tight wearing icon who taught us all that anything was possible with happy thoughts and imagination? 

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Hugh Jackman Sets Sail as Blackbeard in Joe Wright's 'Pan'

Just a few weeks ago a story emerged that Joe Wright had made an offer to Javier Bardem to play Blackbeard in his Peter Pan prequel, Pan, and there was question whether the blockbuster-shy actor would consider it. But after starring in Skyfall, which is no indie by any measure, it seemed like a distinct possibility. However it didn't work out that way, and instead it looks like it will be Hugh Jackman terrorizing Peter Pan instead.

Variety reports Jackman, who is coming off perhaps his darkest turn ever in Prisoners, will play the pirate villain in the Jason Fuchs-scripted film, which just landed on the 2013 Black List of best unproduced screenplays. Not that it means the movie will be good, mind you. The film will be an origin story about an orphan taken to Neverland where he grows up to lead the natives in a fight against the pirates.

With Blackbeard as the lead villain, Captain Hook is actually Pan's ally before eventually turning evil. The search is still on for the Hook role, with Ryan Gosling apparently turning it down, as well as for someone to play Pan and his love interest, Tiger Lily. Pan has been scheduled to release on June 26th 2015.

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Javier Bardem Offered Blackbeard Role in Joe Wright's 'Pan'

After playing bad guys in Skyfall, No Country for Old Men, and The Counselor, there's nobody who plays strangely-haired villains better than Javier Bardem. With Joe Wright (Atonement) now attached to direct Pan, a Peter Pan origin story, he's in need of someone to make his stay in Neverland miserable, and it looks like Bardem may be the guy.

Deadline reports that Bardem has been offered the role of Blackbeard in the film, which was written by Jason Fuchs. The story will center on an orphan taken to magical Neverland where he battles pirates and becomes the savior to the natives. We recently saw Blackbeard in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, played by Ian McShane, and it'll be interesting to see the differences between the two portrayals.

Of course, it all depends on whether Bardem even takes the deal. Skyfall was the biggest film he's ever tackled and it may have given him the itch to do more franchises.

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Joe Wright May Direct Peter Pan Origin 'Pan'

There are a number of Peter Pan projects floating around Hollywood at the moment, as the J.M. Barrie tale seems to be as eternally youthful as its protagonist. Gary Ross left The Hunger Games sequel to begin work on Peter and the Starcatchers; Channing Tatum has a Peter Pan film titled Neverland with Gavin O'Connor directing; and there's also the long-brewing Aaron Eckhart-led crime flick that reimagines Peter Pan as a serial killer and Captain Hook as a detective. Now there's one more to add to the list, and it may be the most promising of all as it will have Atonement and Hanna director Joe Wright at the helm.

Deadline reports Wright is in talks to direct 'Pan', an origin story scripted by Jason Fuchs which Warner Bros. hopes to build into a franchise. Little is known about exact plot details but it's expected to retain the most familiar elements of the story, such as Neverland and Captain Hook, while telling the tale of an orphan taken to the magical world where he grows up to save the natives from pirates. It's yet another adaptation for Wright, who has already adapted Pride & Prejudice and last year's Anna Karenina. 

Would anybody be surprised if Wright makes a couple of phone calls to Saoirse Ronan to Keira Knightley to inquire about the roles of Tinkerbell and Wendy?  Wright has long been working on a live-action take on The Little Mermaid, recently adding Kelly Marcel (Fifty Shades of Grey) as screenwriter, but it's unclear where that project stands now or if it's been cast aside for now.

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Gavin O'Connor to direct Channing Tatum's 'Peter Pan' movie, 'Neverland'

There are two different Peter Pan films floating around out there, both with rather unique twists on J.M. Barrie's novel about the boy who wouldn't grow up. The first is Pan, directed by Ben Hibon and starring Aaron Eckhart, which reimagines Pan as a serial killer being tracked by detective Captain Hook. It's strange to me, too, but kinda inspired in a twisted sortof way. The other is being produced by Channing Tatum, and once went by the boring title of Peter Pan Begins, now simply known as Neverland.

The film has been in the works since last March, and as of right now Tatum has no plan to don the little green tights and start flying around. Not much has been heard on it since, but with the actor set to make a big splash with 21 Jump Street, the ball appears to be rolling pretty quickly. Variety reports that Gavin O'Connor, director of Warrior and the still-awesome hockey drama, Miracle, will step behind the camera. Based on a script by Billy Ray(Breach), who also had a hand in writing The Hunger Games, the story is an origin tale that may include Peter Pan and Captain Hook as brothers. Seriously.

Even with a director lined up, it's still fairly early into this one. No start date has been set, and casting has yet to begin, although I wouldn't be shocked to see Tatum fit in there somewhere. Maybe as Hook?

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Terence Stamp joins Ben Hibon's serial killer Peter Pan flick

There are a couple of Peter Pan projects on the way, but both are vastly different. There's Peter Pan Begins, which last I heard still had Channing Tatum attached with a script by Billy Ray(Shattered Glass). The other one most has my attention, as it's unlike any version of the J. M. Barrie novel that we've ever seen, more like a dark and twisted crime procedural.

Titled simply 'Pan', the film once had Guillermo Del Toro attached to direct, but ultimately ended up in the hands of Ben Hibon, the man behind those beautifully animated sequences in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pt. 1. Back in May, Sean Bean, Aaron Eckhart, and AnnaSophia Robb came aboard. Moviehole now reports that Terence Stamp(The Limey) has come aboard in an unspecified role. That would normally be enough to make this a buzzworthy flick, but it's the premise that sets it apart.

Based on a script by Benjamin Magid, this version of Peter Pan is set in the modern world, and reimagines Captain Hook(Eckhart) as a haunted cop, with Smee(Bean) as his only friend on the force. Peter Pan is a violent serial killer, with Wendy(Robb) one of his potential victims who got away. What role Stamp would play is unclear, but how cool would it be if he were an aged version of Pan? Just a thought.

No clue when this one will kick off, but I wouldn't expect it anytime soon. Maybe not for a couple years at least.

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Sure Shots: Channing Tatum; Bryce Dallas Howard; Nicholas Hoult

* Channing Tatum in little green tights? I'm sure the ladies will love it. The buffed up actor is currently shopping a project called Peter Pan Begins, which sounds like a really ill-conceived origin story. Screenwriter Billy Ray(Shattered Glass) and producer Joe Roth(Alice in Wonderland) are aboard as well. More than likely Tatum won't actually be starring but could just be producing. Lord let's hope that's all it is.  Personally I think people should just check out the underrated 2004 Peter Pan and call it a day. Thanks to THR for the exclusively break on that story.

* We love Bryce Dallas Howard here at Punch Drunk Critics International, but I have to admit her directorial debut sounds derivative as heck.  She's set to follow in daddy's footsteps with The Originals, about a group of childhood friends who reunite as young adults when a former teacher falls into a coma. Wasn't that the premise behind Grown Ups? Are they going camping? Ugh. Howard and her brother-in-law Dane Charbonneau penned the script. She describes it as a "Breakfast Club for my generation". Double ugh.  Apparently one of the roles was written for Zoe Saldana(The Losers). Run, Zoe, run!

* You make one movie as Colin Firth's boy toy and suddenly you're Hollywood's fresh new plaything. Nicholas Hoult has signed on to Warm Bodies, Jonathan Levine's adaptation of Isaac Marion's upcoming novel about a relationship between a zombie and the human girlfriend of one of his victims. Shooting will begin this summer and should complete around the time of Levine's cancer comedy, 50/50, releases. That film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen. Thanks to THR for this story as well.

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