The New Hitman

I did not see 2007’s Hitman starring Timothy Olyphant – but I will be seeing the reboot of which that is currently in the works.

’Cause Paul Walker will be starring in it.

The hottie blondie has been cast as the titular super-assassin Agent 47 in Agent 47, which is set to go into production this summer in Berlin and Singapore.

And, yes, Walker is expected to shave it all for the role.

His hair, that is.

Well, @RealPaulWalker...if you need any help, I am @moviemartin and at your beck and call.

Photo: AllIn1Images.com.

A Friendly Date

It’s not quite the Chandler and Monica reunion Friends fans had in mind, but it’ll do.

Courteney Cox is paying her old chum Matthew Perry a visit on an episode of his freshman NBC comedy Go On later this season.

The actress will play a woman Perry’s widower character is set up for a date with by co-star Julie White.

Cox’s ep will air in April, and could you, please, now go watch Cougar Town.

Photo: MCDID.nl.

R.I.P. Ethan Rayne

Sad day, Whendonverse denizens: another one has bitten the dust.

British character actor Robin Sachs is gone: He passed away last week. He was 61 and would’ve been 62 yesterday.

Sachs is best to know to me and to million others as the squirrelly dark arts enthusiast Ethan Rayne on TV’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

No details about his death have been made available.

Photo: ReflectionsOnFilmAndTelevision.blogspot.com.

Singing for a Reason (to Keep Loving)

Pink, the balladeer, has done it again.

The singer has followed up the shoulda-happened-more “Try” with “Just Give Me a Reason.” And where the former was a song about love gone bad, the latter is a song about a lover starting to feel the love is going bad.

IMHO.

It’s a sad song. It reeks of doubt in a relationship, of wanting of reassurance, of a promise of hope.

Surely, we all have sung said something like this to ourselves and to someone at one point.

Except we didn’t sound as cool as Pink or had a duet partner like Nate Ruess from fun. singing along with us. Which this song has, so get – go download it on the iTunes.

And check out the video, which features Pink’s real-life hubby Carey Hart. Hey, she had to make out with someone for the clips storyline....

Photo: DallasNews.com.

Star-Lord Found

Sorry, Jim Sturgess – you will not be playing Star-Lord in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. 

Parks and Recreation scene-stealer Chris Pratt reportedly has won the starring role of alien-human Peter Quill, the charming troublemaker who serves as an interplanetary cop determined to protect the solar system from an evil alien race.

Slither and Super director James Gunn is helming the August 2014 tentpole.

Pratt can currently be seen in Zero Dark Thirty. And since this role will likely be hella demanding, you can bet everything you have in your pocket right now the guy’s gonna have to get in killer shape again.

Photo: TwitchFilm.com.

The Muppets Are Getting Ready

Comeback kids of 2011 the Muppets are getting ready for The Muppets... Again, their Euro-set sequel co-starring Ricky Gervais, Tina Fey, and Ty Burrell (TV’s Modern Family).

And it seems everyone’s on board for the sequel opening spring 2014 – everyone except Jason Segel and Amy Adams, unfortch.

Oh, well.... There’s always the threequel.

Photo: Disney.

Pa’ Broadway!

1-2-3 – this is fantastic: Gloria and Emilio Estefan are gon’ take Broadway by storm.

Tony better polish off his español.

Miami’s very own power couple is developing a new Great White Way show inspired by their decades-long love and the music they made famous and that made them famous.

You see, New York – the rhythm was bound to get ya.

Photo: Zimbio.com.

The Loner Assassin with the Heart of Gold

That amazing Aussie Sam Worthington is looking to play a classic Hollywood anti-hero: the bad guy gone good.

The Avatar star will produce and star in director Phillip Noyce’s adaptation of Kevin Wignall’s 2004 novel For the Dogs.

Worthington will play a loner gun for hire who helps a bright college girl exact revenge on those who 86d her family without mercy or consequence.

No word on who could his pretty co-star could be, although, for whatever reason, I immediately thought of Hayden Panettiere (TV’s Nashville).

Photo: AAPNewswire.com.au.

Into the Dark

Ever since I gave into my crush on Charlize Theron, I just love finding out and sharing what that leggy hottie might do next.

So, to recap from last week, the Oscar winner is set to work with Seth MacFarlane on a new comedy, and she also has her eye on the starring role in the adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s Dark Places.

Amy Adams was meant to headline the project, about a woman who, at 7 years old, survived the brutal murder of her family and testified against her accused brother only to be questioned and confronted about the events 20 years later.

Sounds like a feel-good one, huh.

Photo: Posh24.com.

The New Cianfrance Muse

Get out the way, Ryan Gosling – Derek Cianfrance has a new muse.

Bradley Cooper is in talks to reunite with his Place Beyond the Pines director for the tentatively titled Chef, a culinary comedy about a disgraced Paris-based chef attempting a comeback in London co-starring Omar Sy (The Intouchables).

Time to channel your Kitchen Confidential expertise, 2011 Sexiest Man Alive!

Oh, btw – the Silver Linings Playbook Best Actor nominee also has The Man From Primrose Lane on his plate, a literary adaptation property Warner Bros. acquired just for him.

Must be nice to be the beau of the ball....

Photo: TheIndyChannel.com.

Welcome, New CK Model Guy

Calvin Klein’s Super Bowl commercial for its new Concept line of 360 seamless technology underwear was easily one of the most hated spots to air last night.

Really...just GTS.

But we gotta agree at least half the people watching – and then some (the gays) – probably loved new model guy Matthew Terry, a.k.a. Mr. Intense Gaze.

Right?

I feel like grating cheese all of the sudden.

Photo: UsMagazine.com.

Just Because, Pt. 88

Isn’t Max Greenfield just the cutest thing?

My, yes, he is. Gwyneth thinks so, and so do I, even though I don’t really watch his TV show, New Girl.

Anyway, there the actor was last week, looking all sporty and s--- when he taught a for-charity SoulCycle sping class in West Hollywood last week.

Raise your hand if Greenfield ain’t the kind of guy you just want to take home to mom and dad.

Now put your hand down – you’re doing as a blog says, you randy beeyotch.

Photo: People.com.

Ms. Carter

Emily VanCamp is going to take a break from playing her little Revenge games to get plain ol’ heroic.

The actress has won the plum role of S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Sharon Carter opposite Chris Evans in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

VanCamp will be playing the present-day (?) niece of Peggy Carter, who was portrayed in the first Cappie movie by Hayley Atwell, and serve as a new love interest for the original Avenger. She joins a cast that also includes Frank Grillo as the villainous Crossbones, Anthony Mackie as the Falcon, and Sebastian Stan.

The sequel, which is being touted as darker and edgier, is due to hit theaters on April 4, 2014.

Photo: FlicksAndBits.com.

Fierce, B – And...

So Beyoncé brought it, when she performed during halftime at the Super Bowl in New Orleans yesterday – in such an extraordinary way that even electricity was like, “Nah...not following that.”

Oh, Superdome.... A blackout? Really?

And for the record, Madonna did that – having a show so hot it blew a fuse – first.

Alright, alright – I’m not even gonna front and try to play favorites here because any habitual reader of this little operation already knows the answer: M is It for me. But Queen B can be compared only a little to that last great bastion of excellence to provide the entertainment at the big game, no? That happens to be the Queen of Pop. And like I said, Beyoncé brought it and she served it, too.

So this isn’t a cool serving of haterade. Crowns for both.

Starting with “Crazy in Love”? Terrific, and obviously the strong way to go. But then girlfriend just danced, and gave the spotlight away (to one of her gurrrl-power band members), and danced, and Sasha Fierced her hair around, and danced, and was that a little doo-wop? All great elements of a Beyoncé show – a longer show – not things to cram into 13 minutes for football fans. It was a lot to take in and follow and appreciate in that live context. And what was with all the taking of breaks. There were spots there where B looked like a sweaty asthmatic. I was worried. Because I can be a sweaty asthmatic, and I am not required to perform in heels And, really? Projected, albeit badass images of yourself to do your thing is so 2011. Derivative. But necessary. Let the world see you, woman. Women. Beyoncé repped hard. 

Loved the Destiny’s Child section ’cause “Independent Women, Pt. 1” is the s----, although it felt a bit thankless, right Kelly and Michelle? Those girls just had to be put back in their places and be asked to do the Single Ladies thing on their way out.

I guess what I’m getting at is Beyoncé, unlike Madonna, had to put a lot of thought into delivering, whereas M just, you know, just did/does it. B even reached and served a song that to most four people I know, myself included, sounded like a new single (“End of Time”); it is now the song. Her halftime felt studied and overworked. You could kinda see the seams of it. Yes, vocally superior to my Queen’s, but just a tad underwhelming.

Not.

I get it – she has to try harder at everything, that is why Beyoncé is Beyoncé and that is why she is the future. I guess I simply recognized a little bit of this...exhaustion.

Last year, Madonna rocked it: everyone knew she would; she did; the lot of us moved on. This year, ’twas a solid B.

It was fierce. It was Beyexcellent.

Photo: SocialiteLife.com.

Update: Further proof that Beyoncé stopped short of throwing the kitchen sink at us? The announcement of her upcoming “Mrs. Carter Show” world tour immediately following the show, which she hinted at during her Super Bowl press conference.

Why do I sense that Beyoncé is a paradigm shift?

The tour will kick off in Serbia on April 15, before coming to North America on June 28. Stateside tickets will go on sale Feb. 11.

No word on South American dates yet, btw.

The Directors Like Ya, Too, Ben

Just like the producers and the actors, the directors had plenty of love for Ben Affleck this awards season.

The filmmaker, a.k.a. 2013’s most notorious Oscar snub, was awarded the Directors Guild Award for his third effort behind the camera, Argo.

So, can we just call it and back the Academy Awards truck into the guys driveway, already?

Btw, It Girl Lena Dunham also walked away from the DGA ceremony a winner. She was recognized for her direction of the pilot for HBO’s Girls.

Photo: Dawn.com.

Nostalgia, Pt. 39

Top this, Beyoncé:



Now, I bet Queen B will put on a terrific show, but in my book, the chapter to end all chapters when it comes to Super Bowl halftime shows was written by Madonna last year.

That’s it, that’s all; #longlivethequeen; game over.

Oh, and hey, don’t forget that Elementary is airing after the big game, OK.

Doing the King’s Work

You Sister’s Sister star Mark Duplass wants to get his Stephen King on.

By which, of course, I mean he is set to star in an adaptation of one of the author’s works.

Duplass is joining Frances O’Connor (A.I.) and Dylan McDermott in Mercy, the story (based on the King short Gramma) of a single mom and her two boys caring for her mystically powered mother (Shirley Knight).

Right on, guy.

Photo: Time.com.

Funny Char

Charlize Theron is pulling a Mark Wahlberg.

She is working with Ted’s Seth MacFarlane.

The actress is circling the female lead in MacFarlane’s follow-up to last summer’s Ted, the Blazing Saddles-esque A Million Ways to Die in the West.

Go for it, girl. Make us laugh saying it and doing it that MacFarlane way.

Photo: PicsToPin.com.

Noomi and Tom, Sitting on a Set...

This is how rumors get started, people.

Actors/pals Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace are already set to work together on the adaptation of my fellow FIU grad Dennis Lehane’s Animal Rescue, which has yet to start rolling, right, and they’re also already looking ahead at their next collaboration.

The pair is talking to director Daniel Espinosa (Safe House) about starring in Child 44, a Stalin Soviet Union-set thriller about a disgraced war hero (Hardy) whose faith in the political system is shaken when he becomes embroiled in the investigation of a kid’s death.

Rapace would play the man’s wife in the project based on the first novel of Tom Rob Smith’s trilogy, which is in turn based on the true story of Ukrainian serial killer Andrei Chikatilo.

Now, here’s a thought: Hardy and Rapace, the new Bogart and Bergman?

Discuss.

Photo: tumblr.com.

The Vampire Becomes a Vampire Hunter

So I met Twilight Saga star Charlie Bewley last fall – and he never mentioned anything about this.

Way to build trust, ol’ chap.

Anyways, babes, I forgive him...but only ’cause he is headed to The Vampire Diairies, one of my favorite TV shows.

Oh, yes, yes, yes, the Brit will arrive in Mystic Falls later this month (on Valentine’s Day, actually) and he’ll stick around for several episodes because he will be playing – Spoiler Alert! – a member of the Five, the ancient vampire hunter group that holds the cure to vampirism.

Here’s to hoping the role requires lots of shirtlessness. Knowing The CW, that’s like a big duh.

Photo: BellasDiary.com.

Cable Woman

Seems like HBO has found Woody Harrelson a TV wife.

Raven-haired beauty Michelle Monaghan has been cast opposite the People vs. Larry Flynt star and Matthew McConaughey on the cabler’s new anthology series, Season 1 of which will see how the lives of the actors’ characters collide during a 17-year hunt for a serial killer in Louisiana.

As Harrelson’s wife, Monaghan will play a woman who makes a tough call that will have long-reaching and devastating consequences.

Cary Fukunaga (Jane Eyre) is directing the eight-ep first season of True Detective. Subsequent seasons will feature an entirely new mystery played out by an entirely different troupe of actors à la American Horror Story over on FX.

Neato!

Photo: listal.com.

Memory of a Crime

Don’t you just hate it when you steal a priceless work of art – and then you get your head knocked out and you can’t remember where it is?

Or when the goon that you got in cahoots with really starts to lose his temper and threatens your existence?

That’s what James McAvoy’s poor little good-guy auctioneer gone naughty goes through in Trance, the next film from Danny Boyle that’s opening in limited release on April 5.

So what’s a dude to do to get himself out of the jam?

Find a hypnotherapist, of course, and if she’s a hottie like Rosario Dawson, keep her from becoming a target herself. (Unless, of course, she’s also in on it on working ya som’in’ fierce.)

The plot of the film reminded me of Inception, in a way, especially when I heard bad-guy Vincent Cassell tell McAvoy in the trailer that “she put that there” and that “it’s not real.” I presume he is talking about a memory.

Anyway, for a second there I even forgot I wanted to type what I just did because the Trance looks like total Boyle goodness, especially the cleverly executed nudity.

This one’s gonna a sexy one, people.

Photo: EW.com.

The List, Pt. 44

In: Amy Poehler.

So Five Minutes Ago: Mindy Kaling.

O-V-E-R: Tina Fey (at least until she drops something new like it’s hot, yo).

Photo: BostonHerald.com.