SF EPIC "JOHN CARTER OF MARS" HITS CINEMAS IN 2012, CHECK OUT THE STUNNING CAST! CHANNING TATUM IN "THE CONTORTIONIST'S HANDBOOK"

One of my most anticipated future movies, sf epic "John Carter of Mars" has gotten an official release date but it's not any time soon: the premiere is on June 8, 2012. Directed by Andrew Stanton (who brought us magic in "Finding Nemo" and "Wall-E" and is now doing a live action film for the first time) has gathered a stunning cast in the film which follows Civil War veteran John Carter who is mysteriously transplanted to Mars, where he discovers a lush, wildly diverse planet whose main inhabitants are 12-foot tall green barbarians. Finding himself a prisoner of these creatures, he escapes, only to encounter Dejah Thoris, Princess of Helium, who is in desperate need of a savior. He will also encounter formidable alien creatures resembling the beasts of ancient myth. Now check out the absolutely amazing cast: Taylor Kitsch (John Carter), Lynn Collins (princess Dejah), Mark Strong (Matai Shang a ruler with godlike status), Willem Dafoe (Tars Tarkas, a 10-foot tall, four armed green Martian), James Purefoy (Kantos Kan, the captain of the kingdom of Helium's grand warship), Ciarán Hinds (Tardos Mors), Dominic West (Sab Than, a prince who believes he is entitled to rule Mars), Polly Walker (merciless and tyrannical lady Sarkoja), Thomas Hayden Church (ambitious and vicious warrior Tal Hajus), Samantha Morton (Sola, Tars Tarkas's daughter, a soft-hearted princess of a violent race)...

Channing Tatum will produce and take the lead role in "The Contortionist's Handbook", about a chameleonesque forger who slips into new identities constantly to avoid being caught by the authorities, and to forget his troubled past. His strict code of conduct gets upended when he falls for a beautiful and mysterious woman with her own shady past.

CILLIAN MURPHY JOINS AMANDA SEYFRIED AND JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE IN "I'M.MORTAL". LUCY LAWLESS WILL LIVE AGAIN IN "SPARTACUS" SECOND SEASON!

OK guys, Andrew Niccol's ("Gattaca") sf film "I'm.mortal" is officially getting better and better. Last month I told you how the lead actress, angelic Amanda Seyfried will be joined by Justin Timberlake as the lead actor. But now they have another amazing addition to this already perfect cast: ultratalented Cillian Murphy will also join them. This sf film is set in a society where time is the new currency and the rich are essentially immortal and the rest of society has to struggle to survive. Justin Timberlake will go on the run after coming into a fortune of "time" while Amanda Seyfried will be a rich heiress he takes for hostage. Cillian Murphy will play a member of a law enforcement organization known as the Timekeepers, who is as precise as the time he keeps and who will try to catch Justin.

And good news for the fans of "Spartacus: Blood and Sand". Even though the show was ended in the most shocking season finale ever seen with almost all of the main characters killed for their sins and evil plots, it seems that Starz will bring one of them back to life. Although Lucy Lawless' character Lucretia was killed by her gladiator lover, due to popular demand the writers will resurrect her in the second season as well, so she wasn't dead she was just twitching and we won't be seeing her just in the six episodes of the prequel "Gods of Arena" but also in "Blood and Sand" season two. Both will be aired next year.

JAMES PUREFOY JOINS STARZ EPIC SHOW "CAMELOT", JOSEPH FIENNES SAYS HIS MERLIN IS A MIX OF OBI WAN KENOBI AND DONALD RUMSFELD

Since they scored a great success with "Spartacus: Blood and Sand", and their epic mini series "Pillars of the Earth" is going on well currently on programme, Starz is going on with giving us amazing historical shows. I've already written about their plan to do their own take on the famous Arthurian legends in "Camelot", a new historical show which will tell the story of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, and which is currently being filmed in Ireland.
The show will star Joseph Fiennes (as a "Machiavellian" version of the wizard Merlin, which Fiennes himself has described recently as the mix of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Donald Rumsfeld), Jamie Campbell Bower (as young Arthur), Eva Green (as evilish sorceress Morgana) and uber-lovely Tamsin Egerton (as Guinevere). The interesting update on "Camelot" is that another contestant in our current poll on British gentlemen will appear in the show: James Purefoy will join the cast as the bad guy King Lot. "Camelot's" writer Chris Chibnall has said that he wants to bring us an extremely cinematic and rich Camelot, but according to first rumors, the show will deliver lots of lust as well. The first promo trailer which was recently secretly shown to some critics (but is still not available online) was said to be full of gritty, earthy, violent and sexy scenes.

FIRST PIC OF HELEN MIRREN AS PROSPERA IN "THE TEMPEST". CHRISTOPH WALTZ MIGHT BE THE LIZARD IN "SPIDERMAN". LIST OF NEW MARVEL FILMS

OK, people, since spies can't rest even on Sundays, here's your dose of the freshest film news for today: I've been trying to find the first pic from this film for a long time, but now here it is: Helen Mirren as the sorceress Prospera in Julie Taymor's adaptation of Shakespeare's play "The Tempest". Released by Disney this December, "The Tempest" will deal with Prospera's journey from vengeance to forgiveness as she reigns over a magical island, cares for her young daughter, Miranda, and unleashes her powers against shipwrecked enemies in this exciting, masterly mix of romance, tragicomedy and the supernatural. Ben Wishaw will play the airy spirit Ariel, Russel Brand is jester Trinculo, Djimon Hounsou is the deformed slave Caliban, Alfred Molina is the drunken butler Stephano ...

Even though most of the world has totally lost interest in "Spider-Man" reboot after they gave the lead role to Andrew Garfield (don't ask me who he is, I don't know), and after they lost Michael Fassbender who decided to be Magneto in "X-Men: First Class" instead of being a villain in Spider-Man, it seems the studio is still going on with the casting. According to new rumors, Sony wants Christoph Waltz as the bad guy, and the bad guy might be The Lizard.


After "Thor" and "Captain America" premier in 2011, and "The Avengers" in 2012 with "Runaways" (teen super heroes) also coming out in 2011, Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige has revealed to MTV that after 2013 we shall see new super hero movies from Marvel which might include some of the following comics Iron Fist, Black Panther, S.H.I.E.L.D., Doctor Strange and Guardians of the Galaxy.

WARNER BROS. SECRETLY PREPARING "JUSTICE LEAGUE" MOVIE AND HAS THE LIST OF THE POSSIBLE SUPERHEROES IN IT

Since Marvel is planning to unite most of its superheroes in "The Avengers" movie which is to be directed by Joss Whedon, DC must strike back and Warner Bros. has allegedly given a tentative green light to the "Justice League" project. Not only that the project isn't dead but the studio is apparently already secretly searching for the possible actors. According to "Acesshowbiz" the basic plot has been outlined and there is already a list of DC superheroes who will be featured in the film: Green Lantern, The Flash, Wonder Woman, Aquaman and Martian Manhunter are apparently in the line up for now, and Superman and Batman might make their way into the script as well.
Of course, "Justice League" movie will not happen any time soon, since DC will first release "Green Lantern" next year with Ryan Reynolds, and "The Flash" a year or two after that. Things might get complicated because there are also some rumors that "Green Lantern" already has two sequels planned for 2012 and 2013 if the first part earns good money. Hopefully, Wonder Woman will get her solo movie some day as well :)

"STAR WARS" LIVE ACTION TV SERIES PUT ON HOLD AGAIN

Ah, people the good news is that the working week is over, but the bad news is that a huge sf project that has been on and off for some time now, has been put to rest again. Earlier this year, a lot of you got really excited when I told you that a live action TV series based on "Star Wars" is in preparation, but now the production has stopped moving forward again. Here's what George Lucas said plain and simple for the "ComicBook Movie":
The live action TV show is kind of on hold because we have scripts, but we don't know how to do them. They literally are "Star Wars", only we're going to have to try to do them at a tenth the cost. And it's a huge challenge, a lot bigger than what we thought it was gonna be.
If you remember, in HOLLYWOOD SPY's previous post on this topic, I've informed you that "Star Wars" TV series were supposed to be set in the period between the films "Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith" and "Star Wars: A New Hope" with some of the minor characters from the films now taking the lead role on TV.

GUY PEARCE IN LUC BESSON'S SF "LOCKOUT". RIDLEY SCOTT GOES SF IN "THE FOREVER WAR". DISNEY GOES SF IN "OBLIVION"

Luc Besson has signed in Guy Pearce and Maggie Grace to star in his new sf film "Lockout", which will be set in outer space and as far as I've heard it, it might be shot here in Serbia's film studios. Pearce will play a man wrongly convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage against the U.S. He's offered his freedom if he can rescue the president's daughter (Maggie Grace) from an outer space prison taken over by violent inmates.

Ridley Scott will direct the adaptation of the sf novel "The Forever War". The book by Joe Haldeman revolves around a soldier fighting in space for a couple of months, only to return home some 20 years later to a planet he doesn't understand.

And here's a cute and educational upcoming movie for you to watch with your youngsters. "A Dolphin's Tale" will center on a young dolphin that loses her tail in a crab trap and an introverted 11-year-old boy who rallies friends and family to save it by persuading a doctor to create a prosthetic attachment to restore the dolphin's ability to swim. Ashley Judd will play the boy's mother, Morgan Freeman will portray the doctor and Harry Connick Jr. a marine biologist who rescues the mammal and takes it to the facility he runs.

Production house Echo Lake has acquired movie rights on "Man at Arms", a medieval action script which follows knight Lancelot and his adventures after the breakup of Camelot. According to "MovieWeb" they are currently searching for a filmmaker that can give the movie a distinct visual style.

"Heat Vision" reports that Walt Disney Pictures has bought the movie rights to graphic novel "Oblivion" in which the story is set on a future Earth, where civilization lives above the clouds and scavengers collect ancient artifacts from the polluted surface below. When one young scavenger finds a crashed spacecraft on the planet, it leads him on a journey filled with romance and adventure.

NEW CHARACTER POSTERS FROM ROMAN EPIC "CENTURION". STEPHEN SOMMERS WILL DIRECT "G.I.JOE2". "MAGE" COMIC MOVIE ADAPATION

One of the movies we are anxiously waiting to see on August 27th is the Roman epic "Centurion" directed by Neill Marshall. Three new character posters and a new hand-drawn comic poster have just been revealed showing Michael Fassbender, Olga Kurylenko and Dominic West. Check them out. As I've informed you many times before, "Centurion" will follow the legendary Ninth Legion which is trying to wipe the Picts from the face of the earth and destroy their leader over at ancient Britain.

Earlier this year, I've also informed you that "G.I.Joe" will get its sequel, and now it has been officially confirmed that visual genius, Stephen Sommers ("The Mummy", "Van Helsing") will sit behind the helm again. Channing Tatum will most likely return as Captain Duke Hauser in the new installment of the movie which has grossed more than $300 million around the world.

Lloyd Levin the producer of "Watchmen" has bought the film rights to the comic book series "Mage". According to "Movieweb", the series was created by Matt Wagner in the 80s, and is a reimagined version of the Camelot legend. The story centers on Kevin Matchstick, a troubled young man who learns he possesses special powers and, with the aid of an enchanted baseball bat, seeks out to vanquish the evil plans of the Umbra Sprite.

JON HAMM AND JOE MANGANIELLO MIGHT BE THE NEW SUPERMAN. DEL TORO MIGHT DO "PARADISE LOST". NEW "NARNIA: VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER" POSTER

Ah, you know it, it's the boring uneventful Monday in film news, but I've managed to secure at least some updates. First, there's a new poster for the fantasy adventure "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" revealing the ship itself. Coming out this December the film will follow the young Pevensies and Prince Caspian on a trip across the sea aboard the royal ship The Dawn Treader. Along the way they encounter dragons, dwarves, merfolk, and a band of lost warriors before reaching the edge of the world.

Last week the new casting mystery started when Zachary Levi said how he would like to be a new Superman, but new rumors coming from Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures say that the producers of the new "Superman" movie are actually going for someone a bit more older. Apparently the studios are seriously considering Jon Hamm from "Mad Men" as the possible actor for the role of Clark Kent and Superman. Beside Levi and Hamm, another candidate for the role is hunky Joe Manganiello from "True Blood".

"FirstShowing" has revealed some rumors about Guillermo del Toro possibly directing the adaptation of famous "Paradise Lost" by Milton. The whole buzz begun when Legendary Pictures started giving away shirts depicting their new projects and their respective directors during the ComicCon. Beside a shirt with "Xerxes" and the name of Zack Snyder all over it, there were also shirts with the artwork of a conquistador called El Guerrero and del Toro's name on the back. A brand new mystery for us :)

MEL GIBSON TO USE "LETHAL WEAPONS" AGAIN (NOT AGAINST OKSANA). CHARLIZE THERON IN BRANDON FLOWERS' SOLO VIDEO "CROSSFIRE".

First they see terrorists all around the world (usually when they find it convenient) and then they see aliens everywhere, yep, you've guessed it, it's the Americans. New sf alien film "Battle: Los Angeles" describes exactly the favourite American pastime of finding new reasons to use weapons as often as possible. These five spooky posters promote the film which starts when unknown forces suddenly and mercilessly attack the City of Angels out of nowhere, and then it's up to a local Marine staff sergeant (Aaron Eckhart) and a new platoon of unseasoned soldiers (Michelle Rodriguez, Bridget Moynahan, Lucas Till) to meet the threat. As the invasion hits the streets of LA, these Marines become the first and last line of defense in an intense battle against an enemy unlike any they've ever encountered before.

And after his tragic fiasco in all means possible, it seems that lovely and incredibly polite creature Mel Gibson has a new cunning plan on how to make people love him again (which hasn't happened in a decade at least). After using his tongue and fists as lethal weapon, according to new rumors, Mel might do "Lethal Weapon 5". Producer Joel Silver has been asking him to reprise the role for years now, but Mel is thinking of accepting it only now, when the whole world has developed a very low opinion about him, as a possible way to get some of his fame back.

And to finish in a nicer tone - here's a brand new video from the amazing Brandon Flowers, the singer of the super popular band The Killers, who has finished his solo album "Flamingo". The video for the first single "Crossfire" features stunning Charlize Theron as a skilled fighter who is saving him from some bad guys.