1.) Universal’s Japanese epic 47 Ronin has spiraled out of control, with one source close to the film saying the studio has pulled the rug out from under first-time director Carl Rinsch after the film’s price tag ballooned to $225 million. Universal co-chairwoman Donna Langley has taken over supervision of the film’s editing process, pushing the director aside after completing production on a recent series of reshoots.
The reshoots reportedly added a love scene and put more focus on the lead character played by Keanu Reeves, the lone member of the international cast widely recognizable to U.S. audiences. The 3D tentpole was originally scheduled to debut this November, but was twice delayed to account for the visual effects and reshoots before settling on a December 2013 release. Another big budget flop is the last thing Universal, the studio that brought you the $80 million loser Battleship, needs, but I’d imagine they’re anxious to get this thing out there and cut their losses at this point. The film needs more than $500 million just to break even. And while The Last Samurai did come close to that mark, I don’t think Reeves, at this or any point of his career, is Tom Cruise. [The Wrap]
2.) Melissa McCarthy is in talks to take a small role in The Hangover Part III. The film is currently in production ahead of its May 24 release, though I’m nervous it’s going to have to be 3 hours long to make time for all the cameos and returning characters. [Variety]
3.) Casey Affleck will star in the Warner Bros. true adventure story Race to the South Pole, with his brother Ben Affleck and Matt Damon on board as producers. Casey will play Englishman Robert Falcon Scott, one of two early 1900s explorers competing to be the first person to reach the South Pole. [THR]
4.) Actress Jenny Slate (“Saturday Night Live,” “Bored to Death”) has been hired by Warner Bros. to write a live-action/CGI Looney Tunes reboot. Harry Potter producer David Heyman and writer Seth Grahame-Smith (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) are among those signed on to produce. Will the timeless appeal of Bugs and company connect with audiences the same way The Muppets did last year? [THR]
5.) Bill Paxton is negotiating to join Tom Cruise in the Warner Bros. sci-fi actioner All You Need Is Kill. The pairing would mark the first time the two have appeared on screen together in their long and prolific careers. Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity) directs the graphic novel adaptation about a soldier (Cruise) killed in a war against aliens, who trains and becomes a better soldier by reliving his last day over and over. Paxton takes the role of Cruise’s tough platoon leader. [Variety]
