'Zombieland 2' Springs Back to Life; Ruben Fleischer Returning to Direct

After four years had passed since Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson, and Abigail Breslin hilariously took on the undead in Zombieland, there seemed to be little hope of a sequel. This despite plenty of stories suggesting Sony Pictures was interested, even if the cast and director Ruben Fleischer didn't expect it to happen. When the attempted TV series couldn't get past the pilot stage it looked like Zombieland was officially dead, but now comes word that a sequel has been revived.

According to Deadline, Sony has hired writer Dave Callaham to begin work on the screenplay, working closely with Fleischer who is expected to take the helm once again. He hasn't been confirmed to return but the films he's done since like 30 Minutes or Less and Gangster Squad have been critical and box office flops. Fleischer may be anxious to return to the zombie comedy that got his career off to such a promising start.

The same may not apply to the cast, though, who have since gone on to bigger and better things. Eisenberg has long been skeptical of coming back, and without him or any of the others Zombielband 2 could be a tough sell.

Read More

Rawson Thurber the Frontrunner for 'Ant-Man' Gig; Ruben Fleischer Eyed for 'Ghostbusters 3'

For the second Friday in a row Marvel is dominating the headlines, and again it's Ant-Man at the center of a lot of it. Earlier today we learned that Josh Brolin would be voicing Thanos in Guardians of the Galaxy, and then a short list of contenders to replace Edgar Wright as director of Ant-Man emerged. On that list were Rawson Thurber, Adam McKay, and Ruben Fleischer, but now it's looking as if Thurber has the edge.

The Wrap reports Thurber as the frontrunner for the gig, sighting his willingness to "serve a studio's vision", something Wright was unwilling to do. It helps that Thurber is red hot after last year's $270M hit, We're the Millers. Those factors give him the edge over McKay and Fleischer, who perhaps have greater cred with the crowd Marvel is trying to reach. McKay would have been the big score but an imperfect fit as he is similar to Wright in wanting to tell his own stories. Besides, he's got more than enough to do already. He's producing an animated version of The Flintstones, has the financial world drama The Big Short developing, and he may direct his buddy Will Ferrell in Border Guards.

As for Fleischer, he's still in the mix but The Wrap says he has family commitments that could prevent him from jumping into the job right away, which is something Marvel clearly wants. A better fit may be Ghostbusters 3, which Fleischer is apparently being sought for but is still a long ways off from going into production.

Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Patrick Wilson, Evangeline Lily, and Michael Pena are presumably still on board for Ant-Man, which Marvel hopes to open July 17th 2015.

Read More

'Ant-Man' Director Shortlist Includes Adam McKay, Rawson Thurber, and Ruben Fleischer

The dust is beginning to settle after Edgar Wright's ugly departure from Marvel's Ant-Man with most of the details out in the open for all to see. While fans can't be too happy to learn editorial pressure forced Wright's exit, a new director still needs to be found and now Marvel is starting to weigh their options.

According to THR, Marvel is set to meet with Adam McKay, Rawson Thurber, and Ruben Fleischer about the job, which would see them tossed right into the fire in hopes of having the film ready by next summer.  What's immediately obvious is that all three are known as comedy directors so perhaps some of the irreverent tone crafted by Wright and co-writer Joe Cornish will remain intact.

McKay is Will Ferrell's primary wingman, directing both Anchorman movies and showing a deft hand for action with The Other Guys, making him perhaps the best option of the three and the hardest to secure. Fleischer is best known for helming Zombieland and Gangster Squad, while Thurber is coming off last year's $200M smash, We're the Millers.

Other rumors going around were that James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) would take over, but he shot those down pretty harshly, and Agent Carter director Louis D'Espositio may also be in the mix. Whoever Marvel chooses they'll need to hustle to get Ant-Man ready by July 17th 2015.

Read More

Jack Thorne to Pen 'Sandman'; Ruben Fleischer Stays 'Overnight' for Disney; Frank Miller Wants 'Sin City 3'

* Warner Bros. has hired Brit writer Jack Thorne (How I Live Now, The Fades) pen Sandman, based on Neil Gaiman's seminal comic book series. Joseph Gordon-Levitt came on to produce and direct it just a few months ago, but Deadline's story seems to indicate that a deal is not quite done yet. Thorne knows the work of Gaiman well, having been hired to pen Joe Wright's adaptation of the author's most recent novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane.

* Ruben Fleischer swung and missed badly with Gangster Squad, but Disney is willing to look past that, tapping him to direct Overnight. In what sounds like Home Alone meets Career Opportunities, the story centers on a father and son who win an overnight stay in a toy store, only to have thieves try to rob the place. Hey, this is Disney, so chances are everything will turn out okay, and since this is in a toy store there should be plenty of room for product placement. [Deadline]

* It was nine long years between Sin City and this summer's Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, with Robert Rodriguez stringing us along the whole way. So I'm not holding my breath for a third film or any possible TV series, but co-director and Sin City creator Frank Miller is already looking ahead. Rodriguez told Sirius XM's Ron and Fez...

"Yeah - the second Sin City - I was just here with Frank Miller last night and we were watching it last night. [We] finished the cut, effects are being done, it will come out in August. He [Miller] watched Part 2 - he watched it last night with me and then at the end he said, he didn't have any comments, he was very happy with it. And he said, now about part three.... Started telling me how he's going to do part three. So he's already there on part three."

Yeah, we'll see about that. And note how Rodriguez put all of the burden on Miller, and none on himself. It may all depend on how Sin City: A Dame to Kill For performs beginning August 22nd. 

Read More

Has Zack Snyder agreed to direct 'Justice League'?

As Warner Bros. has been trying to figure out their plans for a Justice League film, one name that has been mentioned as a contender to direct it has been Zack Snyder. It was an obvious assumption to make, considering the strong buzz surrounding Man of Steel, and it makes sense for the studio to want to expand on the relationship. Snyder has mostly deflected these rumors by just refusing to comment, but now some evidence has emerged that suggests he may have already made a decision.

Gangster Squad director Ruben Fleischer was another name on that short list of possibilities, and Screen Crush took the time to ask him about it during a recent interview. Fleischer's response indicates that he's no longer a contender, but only because Snyder already has the gig....

Fleischer: "Well that’s something that Zack Snyder is going to wind up doing."

While that's hardly a concrete, stone cold leadpipe lock of a statement, one has to remember that Fleischer worked with Justice League writer Will Beall on Gangster Squad, so he may have some inside information. Or, he may just be speculating based on industry scuttlebutt. Does it really make sense that Fleischer would give up on a job like this based on mere rumors, though? Not really.

Beall's script was reportedly thrown out, with The Dark Knight and Man of Steel scribe David Goyer taking over. There's every reason to believe that Warner Bros. would want that duo together again on a project as important as Justice League. We'll see what happens, but expect an announcement of some sort to arrive soon.

Read More

Rumor: Brett Ratner, Ruben Fleischer, McG on shortlist to direct 'Justice League'?

Although we've only drawn attention to a handful of rumors surrounding Warner Bros.' Justice League movie, the fact is they've been flying around faster than Superman races to save Lois Lane. The latest rumor, which I like many quickly dismissed and didn't bother with, stated that Brett "I killed the X-men" Ratner was on the list as a potential director. This seemed like the type of mean-spirited, hurtful rumor that bullies spread to send comic books geeks like myself into an uproar. It didn't really work, though, but now there's reason to believe the rumor may not have been made up out of whole cloth.

Peter Georgiou at Think McFly Think has revealed a few of the names he claims are on WB's shortlist, and they're sure to upset a few folks...

The interesting thing to me is that he includes them all as either in contention or out of the running, so we don't know if guys like Ratner or the equally dreadful McG are still in the mix. Affleck has made it clear his lack of interest, but the Wachowskis are who people are buzzing about right now. Snyder's currently working on Man of Steel, and the studio may be reluctant to overload him with the burden of jumping straight from that into a potential expansion of their superhero line. If this list is true, and that's a big "If" right now, then Fleischer may be the most logical choice. He's already very familiar with Justice League scribe, Will Beall, as the two worked together on Gangster Squad for the studio. Why not keep the band together if it's possible? Georgiou says that there are eight total names on the list, and that more may be revealed shortly. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for David Goyer.

Between this and the earlier rumor about Batman possibly spinning off into his own solo franchise after appearing in Justice League, it's already been a busy day for DC Universe's costumed heroes, and we're barely past lunch time.

Read More