"Dark Knight" footage shown at Wizard World Chicago

The cast and crew was filming in Chicago, so "The Dark Knight" made its presence known in a huge way at Wizard World Chicago.

Wizard Entertainment - 'Dark Knight' Footage Makes Its Debut

Credit: Wizard Universe

The footage sped up at that point into an intense montage of action, featuring the following clips:

- The new batsuit rising up from a trap door in the ground and held in a chain metal case.

- Rachel Dawes (played by Maggie Gyllenhaal) close to an unidentified man either kissing him or being threatened by him as the camera rotates around them.

- The Joker and Batman battling in close quarters (possibly a hospital room). Batman throws Joker over a table and crashing into the ground while the clown smiles at him. It should be noted that the Joker was done up in his signature purple suit.

- Plenty of big, bold Batmobile action including a shot where the tank-like car drives through a wall of flame. In fact, flames were pretty much everywhere in the footage as it appears Joker does actually make the world burn.

- There is also a shot of a somewhat grim-faced Joker walking across a city street mercilessly firing a machine gun as well as a television close-up of the Joker laughing hysterically.

- Two major additions to the speculation that Two Face will appear in the film came in the form of a single shot of a spinning 50 cent piece and the final image: after the action montage has slowed down, the camera cuts to a bartender looking at Harvey Dent, whose only onscreen presence is his left shoulder and a bit of a reddish-purple scarred neck. “Dent! I thought you were dead!” the man gasps, to which Harvey replies, “Half.”

-While the first flim was an origin tale, this movie will highlight the detective/criminologist side of Batman.
-Rachel Dawes will have a purpose, just as she did in the first movie. No specification, for obvious reasons, I'd imagine.
-The panel is asked about a potential World's Finest: Batman/Superman movie. Director Christopher Nolan declines, citing burnout. Ditto for screenwriter David Goyer. Christian Bale, however, looks intrigued, much to the pleasure of the capacity crowd.

So much to like, so much to love. Joker. Two-Face. Two-Face with a crazy awesome line. The part I like the most out of all of this (which is saying a lot, because I like ALL of what was reported): While the first flim was an origin tale, this movie will highlight the detective/criminologist side of Batman because there's never been a Batman movie that's about him being the world's greatest detective. In the Burton/Schumacher movies, it was always about bigger and better gadgets, with him solving a quick puzzle on the side to figure out who the villain is (most atrociously in Batman: Forever when he figures out The Riddler in 4 minutes with a few lame puzzles).

An Epic Mount

I don't see the big deal. She gained an intagible asset (Warcraft Money), and lost another one (Dignity). It's all good! The bottom line is, she got laid. I don't think many other WoW players can make such a boast.

NBC targets Jimmy Fallon as new Late Night

Credit: Broadcasting Cable

I don't know, I'd love to close every evening listening to an unfunny comedian giggling at himself for an hour. Sounds like a winning recipe to me!

Latest Adaptation... Oh FU Hollywood!

Oh Jason Lee....no.

Between this and Underdog (god damnit I hate Hollywood and their current obsession with nostalgia over originality), he's screwing his career over in a big way. I LOVE My Name is Earl, but I'm really getting sick of him picking these kinds of scripts. Maybe seeing him without the moustache, I can pretend it's not the same person.

I hope this is a trick and it actually turns out to be a psycho thriller in which Jason Lee genetically altered chipmunks to kill. And dresses them up cute to fool the neighbors.

Click here to view the trailer if your in to self abuse...

Funkytown? Turd eating?!

I'm there!

WTF?! Enter The Dragon Remake?!

Warner Independent Pictures has set "The Shield" exec producer Kurt Sutter to write and make his feature directing debut on "Awaken the Dragon." Noir-style remake of "Enter the Dragon," the 1973 martial arts classic that made Bruce Lee a global star, will be produced by John Wells, Fred Weintraub and Paul Heller.

John Wells Prods. is based on the Warner lot, and Weintraub and Heller were producers of the original WB-distributed film.

Sutter said he's writing "Awaken the Dragon" as a contemporized drama about a lone FBI agent who pursues a rogue Shaolin monk into the bloody world of underground martial arts fight clubs.

Original film starred Lee as a martial artist who's drafted by law enforcement to participate in a martial arts tournament and infiltrate a drug smuggling operation run from the host's heavily guarded island.

"I'm a huge noir fan, and this plot lends itself to the film I want to make," Sutter said. "I wanted to set it in these underground fight clubs where the action is really raw and expose the brutality of Shaolin kung fu. This will be more 'Raging Bull' than 'Crouching Tiger' in its viciousness."

Sutter will look to discover a fight star in the role of the monk and cast an established American actor to play the FBI agent.

Sutter, who'll be a consulting producer for the final season of "The Shield," is writing the FX pilot "Forever Sam Crow," a drama set in the world of outlaw motorcycle clubs. He's completing the script to "Inland Saints," a Paramount Pictures drama to be directed Joel Schumacher and produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura.

"I'm a huge noir fan, and this plot lends itself to the film I want to make"...

... wait. He's going to base the whole film around the thirty seconds in the original where you see Bruce Lee's shadow beating up other people's shadows on the wall...?

About Damn Time Disney Is Done With Sequels

Credit: JoBlo

Not all sequels, mind you. Just the cheap direct-to-DVD sequels of classic films like BEAUTY AND THE BEAST and THE LITTLE MERMAID that Disney has been consistently churning out for the last few years. Feeling a need to go back to a time before Disney started whoring their characters for a quick buck, John Lasseter and Ed Catmull, who took over Disney's animation division, Disney Toon Studios when Disney bought Pixar, have decided they'll no longer put up Disney's cheapo direct-to-DVD sequel whoring. They've decided that even the direct-to-DVD features need to be as original and thought-provoking as Pixar's CG features. Lasseter and Catmull had previously expressed their contempt for the poor quality of Disney's direct-to-DVD sequels so it's good to see they've taken action to put an end to them.

I know this might make a lot of nostalgic people happy, but from a business point-of-view, If they were losing money because the things weren't selling, then great, change is due, but if they were making money, then they are retarded to change up the formula to maintain 'artistic integrity' in a segment where it doesn't really apply. I mean, kids don't give a crap about tainting a flick with a straight to DVD deal, they just want to see their favorite cartoon characters do new stuff.

Personally, I think that Disney would strike gold with the adventures of a loveable pedophile. Can you imagine it?

Paedo And Stich
Kiddie Fiddler On The Roof
Honey I Touched The Kids

Pure gold, baby!

American Gladiators to return?

Credit: Variety

NBC is getting into the ring with "American Gladiators," which has been revived by the Peacock for midseason.

The competition skein -- which featured players with names like Nitro, Turbo and Laser in its campy, early '90s syndie incarnation -- will be updated for the 21st century with new technology and twists. MGM TV, which was behind the original hit, is producing along with Reveille.

Peacock's interest in the revival actually predates the arrival of NBC Entertainment/Universal Media Studios co-chairman Ben Silverman, who began developing the project while still in charge of Reveille. Net confirmed last month that "Gladiator" was a priority at the net (Daily Variety, July 16).

"We've been circling around this property for a long time now," said Craig Plestis, exec VP of alternative programming, development and specials at NBC Entertainment. "It's truly what's not in the TV landscape right now. While everyone's zigging, I'm attracted to doing a zag."

Net wouldn't confirm the episodic order, but at least six segs are believed to be in the works. NBC could opt to launch the show as a one-week strip -- similar to how it bowed "Deal or No Deal" -- or as a weekly skein.

Airing in syndication from 1989-96, "American Gladiators" focused on physically fit amateur athletes who competed against the show's regulars (action stars, stunt professionals and pro athletes) in various physical strength and endurance competitions.

The show hit it big by showcasing David vs. Goliath-style battles in events such as the Joust, the Wall, the Eliminator and Hang Tough. Coincidentally, the original "Gladiators" shot its first several seasons at Universal Studios.

Plestis said he was particularly interested in the original U.K. version of "Gladiators," which focused even more on the characters and the behind-the-scenes stories of common folk going up against the show's powerful stars. The new "Gladiators," he said, "will have the scale, scope, different characters and family drama that the U.K. version had."

"We're not going to completely reinvent the wheel here," he said. "But we're making it better, faster and stronger."

Show will follow eight gladiators -- four men and four women -- as they take on contestants both male and female. This time, in a new wrinkle, the players will be given the opportunity to train for their match -- and viewers will be given a glimpse of their personalities prior to the actual competish.

MGM Worldwide TV co-prexy Jim Packer said reviving "Gladiators" was part of a strategy to mine the company's library and revive franchises for a new generation of TV viewers. Repeats of the original show are currently posting decent ratings on ESPN Classic, he noted.

"The timing to bring the franchise back is perfect, and NBC is the ideal home," Packer said. "It's a very big, grandiose type of show."

In the 10 years after "Gladiators" went off the air, Reveille managing director Mark Koops said, shows like "Fear Factor" raised the bar for stunt-driven shows, and thus it's more important than ever to find contestants with compelling backstories. Producers are currently scouting for new gladiators and hosts in addition to contestants. Koops will serve as an exec producer.

"Gladiators" marks the first co-production between MGM TV and Reveille. Under their arrangement, MGM Worldwide will handle international sales of the show, while Reveille will be in charge (with MGM's assistance) of selling new locally produced editions around the world.

Koops said Reveille is close to making several international deals, including co-productions in Australia and the U.K.

Besides Koops, exec producers include Reveille's Howard Owens, as well as "Fear Factor" alum David Hurwitz and original series creator Johnny Ferraro.

I don't care, I'll watch the hell out of this when it redebutes. This was always a show that sparked a "why did they cancel this" attitude in anyone who remembered it. If they keep it as campy as the original, it could be great. And throw in some theme nights (celebs, geeks, super models, etc) and other gimmicks.