Audiences clamoring for information about "Star Wars: Episode VII" can take comfort in the fact that not even the creator the franchise knows what's happening with the film. It's either good news or bad news, depending on how much you liked the "Star Wars" prequels, but George Lucas has revealed that he has yet to talk to J.J. Abrams about "Episode VII" since Abrams took the helm of the upcoming reboot.

"I have not spoken to J.J. He's been busy with 'Star Trek,' and I'm sure that he'll let me know when he's got some questions," Lucas said during an interview with Access Hollywood.

Despite his lack of knowledge about the project, Lucas said that he's heard from producer Kathleen Kennedy that progress on "Episode VII" is "going well" so far, and that everything is "working out great."

Lucas has let slip in the past his desire to see original trilogy stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford reprise their roles, all but guaranteeing the trio had already been signed to do so, but other than that he's been uncharacteristically mum about the new trilogy. He may be stepping back in an effort to distance himself from the new direction of the upcoming films, letting Abrams take more control of the franchise. And it could also be that negative fan reaction to his direction of the prequels has left a bad taste in his mouth.

Either way, his lack of involvement in the project at this point is a bit of a head-scratcher, but we're sure he'll be eager to help should Abrams need any advice. After all, there would be no "Star Wars" in the first place without Lucas; Abrams should just be mindful to steer clear of any suggestions involving the words "Jar Jar."

​[via Indiewire]

A new trailer for "Kick-Ass 2" is here, though it doesn't offer much more than what we saw in the red band clip released in March.

Despite the familiar territory, it's fun to see our heroes back in action, and the new promo offers plenty. Hit-Girl (Chloe Grace Moretz) taunts Kick-Ass (Aaron Taylor Johnson) to punch her before beating the crap out of him. Col. Stars and Stripes (Jim Carrey) shows up and promptly bashes a baddy's brains in with a baseball bat.

"Try to have fun," the colonel implores the gang. "Otherwise, what's the point?"

Christopher Mintz-Plasse is back as the bad guy, trading his Red Mist moniker for a new profanity-laced identity (you'll have to check out the red band clip for that), and he's still bent on taking down Kick-Ass and company as one of the world's first real supervillains. Good thing Kick-Ass has some impressive new abs to help him out.

It might not offer anything new aside from the scrubbed-up language, but the trailer still amps up the excitement for the follow-up to the 2010 original. "Kick-Ass 2" is due in theaters August 16.

[via The Wrap]

After hitting a speed bump when it was delayed indefinitely earlier this year, "Jurassic Park 4" seems to be picking up momentum once more, with a potential new release date -- or year, anyway -- revealed Tuesday.

Coming Soon reports that while attending the Licensing Expo 2013 in Las Vegas this week, a correspondent snapped a photo of a banner featuring the familiar "Jurassic Park" logo of a T-Rex skeleton, under which appeared the date 2015. The banner provided no further information, but according to Coming Soon, the Licensing Expo program states that the film will be shot in 3D.

Nothing has been confirmed by studio Universal just yet, but it's welcome news for fans who thought the project was perhaps extinct in the wake of the delay announcement back in May. The film, set to be directed by Colin Trevorrow ("Safety Not Guaranteed") from a script by Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver ("Rise of the Planet of the Apes), will return to Isla Nublar, the setting of the first "Jurassic Park."

No word yet on the plot, though original star Sam Neill hinted that "JP4" is a "big reboot" of the series. We'll have to wait until 2015 to see if he's right.

[via Coming Soon]

The YA books inspiring the upcoming adaptation of "The Maze Runner" are full of mystery, but now audiences have one more clue to help them piece together the plot.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Patricia Clarkson ("Shutter Island," "Lars and the Real Girl") has signed on to play a character who holds the key to the movie's central questions, including why a group of boys with no memory of how they got there must run an ever-changing stone maze day after day. That group is led by Thomas ("Teen Wolf" star Dylan O'Brien), a recent arrival who starts asking questions of his fellow maze runners to try to piece together what's happening to them.

Warning: The full identity of Clarkson's character is a SPOILER, so to those not familiar with the books: Stop reading now if you wish to be surprised about the role.

Clarkson will play Chancellor Ava Paige, the woman in charge of an organization known as WICKED -- World In Catastrophe: Killzone Experiment Department -- which has been testing children's strength and intelligence in an effort to discover who among them possesses the greatest resistance to a disease that has decimated the global population. Just how that plays into the maze is unclear, but Paige takes a special interest in Thomas, setting in motion the events of the series.

The rest will be up to moviegoers to discover. "The Maze Runner" is due out Feb. 14, 2014.

[via Entertainment Weekly]

This weekend sees the release of Pixar's 14th feature film, "Monsters University," a prequel that takes the "Monsters Inc." crew back to the early days of Scaring 101 and all-nighters. While it has all the levity and heart of a typical Pixar movie, the blueprints are decidedly adult. With a love for films like "Revenge of the Nerds" and "Animal House," Team Pixar has found a way to use their pre-existing characters to craft a straight-up college party movie (or a G-rated college party movie, for any worried parents out there).

Taking adult-themed films and reworking them for a child's consumption is nothing new in Hollywood. If it worked the first time, when it was filled with raunchy humor and/or heady violence, why not replace the gratuitous bloodshed with flowers and candy to make it more age-appropriate?

Here are eight movies that took the foundation of a hard-hitting drama or an R-rated comedy and riffed on them enough that the MPAA approved it for the young ones. OK, the young ones and their parents:

Four-year-old Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, who's set to make her film debut as a young Princess Aurora in the 2014 fantasy movie "Maleficent," isn't the only member of Brangelina's sprawling brood to have scored a role in one of her famous parents' movies.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's eldest son, Maddox, 11, shaved his Mohawk to join the ranks of the undead in his dad's upcoming apocalyptic thriller "World War Z," in theaters this Friday.

"He's got a small piece in it," Pitt revealed at the New York premiere of the movie on June 17. "He's a zombie who then gets shot. I don't know what that says about my parenting!"

Pitt added that the z-factor drew him to the project in the first place. "[My kids] love these kinds of things," he said.

At least one person wasn't happy to see Maddox's trademark 'do go. Abigail Hargrove, who plays Pitt's character's older daughter in "WWZ," recalled the Jolie-Pitt kid's transformation for the bit part: "I remember one day he was talking to his dad, Brad, and I remember him talking about how he had to shave off his Mohawk because he had to play one of the zombies and I was like, 'No! Not the Mohawk!' But he was very excited to be a zombie. Definitely."

Look for Maddox when the latest cinematic scourge to the human race hits theaters June 21.

[via People]

Critics and fans are split down the middle about the new Superman reboot, "Man of Steel," but one thing's for sure: The final battle between Supes and General Zod wreaks absolute havoc on Metropolis.

A disaster expert named Charles Watson, of Watson Technical Consulting (WTC), went to impressive lengths to calculate the damage their battle would have actually caused, in terms of human and financial loss. According to BuzzFeed, WTC estimates the total cost of the destruction at $2 trillion, with property damage alone accounting for approximately $700 billion, compared to the $55 billion that resulted from 9/11. Even more staggering is that figure doesn't factor in loss of life or the long-term economic impact.

WTC puts the body count at 129,000, with over 250,000 missing and nearly a million injured.

The budget for all this simulated damage? A relatively paltry $225 million. So far, "Man of Steel" has brought in over $201 million worldwide -- and a sequel is already in the works.

​[via BuzzFeed]

It's been a hot minute since Disney's given us a heroine to root for, but next year's "Frozen" should do the trick. Not to be confused with the horror movie also called "Frozen," this animated flick is loosely based on the fairy tale "The Snow Queen" by Hans Christian Andersen.

Kristen Bell voices Anna, a "fearless optimist" who travels far and wide to find her snowy sister Elsa. Elsa, voiced by actress and singer Idina Menzel, is the Snow Queen, and she's done her icy thing all over the kingdom of Arendelle. (You can see concept art for Arendelle over at the Disney Tumblr. Yes, Disney has a Tumblr!)

This teaser provides a sneak peek at Olaf, a snowman voiced by Josh Gad ("The Internship," "Ice Age: Continental Drift"), and a good-natured, doglike reindeer named Sven. Sven's the sidekick of Kristoff, a rough and tough mountain dude who comes along on Anna's journey. (To protect her from ferocious creatures like Olaf, obviously.) "Glee"'s Jonathan Groff lends his voice to Kristoff, so we can expect quite a bit of singing.


Jennifer Lee, who co-wrote the script for "Wreck-It Ralph," is sharing directorial duties with Chris Buck. She also worked on the screenplay.

Disney's success with projects like "The Princess and the Frog" and "Tangled" has made the young female audience an attractive target demographic for its winter offerings. "Frozen," which play in 3D, glides into theaters on November 27, just in time for the holiday season.

[via Deadline]

"Veronica Mars" and Zach Braff, what hast thou wrought? Now James Franco wants in on the crowdfunding party, with the actor turning to Indiegogo.com to finance a micro-budget feature.

The "This Is the End" star wants to raise $500,000 so the crew of filmmakers he's gathered can adapt his book of short stories, "Palo Alto." The plan is to split the project into a trilogy of feature films ("Memoria," "Killing Animals," and "Yosemite"), with Vladimir Bourdeau, Bruce Thierry Cheung, Nina Ljeti, and Gabriel Demestree behind the camera. Interestingly enough, Franco has already collaborated with some of these people; Cheung was one of many directors of "Tar," in which Franco played poet C.K. Williams, and Ljeti has appeared in several movies that Franco has worked on.

According to the Indiegogo page for this project, all profits will go to a charitable organization called Art of Elysium. Franco writes, "Working with Art of Elysium has given me the opportunity to share my creativity with hospitalized children and give them the gift of creativity." For a mere $450, you can get a personalized voicemail from Franco, plus things like a signed high school yearbook photo of the star. Shelling out $5,000 will get you a "cast credit role," which includes "star treatment" like hair and makeup. And for a $7,000 donation, you can get an original Franco painting. (If you've seen "This Is The End," you've gotten a taste of Franco's artistic prowess.)

Granted, this is a small project for up-and-coming filmmakers that would be difficult to drum up funding for, but is this worth your cold hard cash? It's not clear if these are people that Franco met in grad school or if they were his students, but either way, it would be hard for these films to get off the ground without his name attached.

[via Indiegogo h/t THR]

Unfortunately for all of us Ryan Gosling fans, the Baby Goose won't be starring in his directorial debut, "How to Catch a Monster," which he also wrote. But he's giving us the next best thing: Iain De Caestecker, a handsome young actor set to play the movie's male lead.

The 20-something Scottish star has been cast as Christina Hendricks's character's 18-year-old son, Bones, whom Deadline describes as "a loner with an active imagination."

Best known in the UK for his roles in the BBC series "The Fades" and "Young James Herriot," De Caestecker is set to make a name for himself stateside as a regular on the forthcoming Marvel/Joss Whedon series "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."

And now he has something even better than a plum gig on ABC: the Ryan Gosling seal of approval.

Billed as a "modern-day fairy tale" combining "elements of fantasy, horror, and suspense," "How to Catch a Monster" is slated to arrive in theaters sometime next year. In the meantime, you can ogle a blood-drenched Gosling in the Nicolas Winding Refn crime thriller "Only God Forgives," out July 19.

[via Deadline]

In the new international trailer for "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones," our hero, Clary Fray (Lily Collins), has just learned she's "not a mundane" (slang for human), but a Shadowhunter, a group of half-angel warriors who've worked for centuries in secret to protect the world from demons.

"Welcome to the City of Bones," says Jace Wayland (Jamie Campbell Bower), a fellow Shadowhunter.

Needless to say, she's a bit freaked out.

There's a lot of action in the clip, as Clary adjusts to her new reality, including seeing Jace and other Shadowhunters when no one else can, and learning her recently gone-missing mother (Lena Headey) is also a member of the group. As Clary falls deeper into the Shadowhunters' world, she learns she's joining the cause just as "humanity is on the very brink of extinction."

Based on the books by Cassandra Clare and directed by Harold Zwack, "The Mortal Instruments" is due in theaters August 21 -- two days earlier than originally planned.

[via /Film]

While it looks as though most of the major players from "The Avengers" won't be going anywhere for the sequel, one character who's definitely not returning is the bad guy, Loki.

Director Joss Whedon spilled the beans about the Norse god, played by Tom Hiddleston, during a recent appearance on the Empire Film Podcast. When asked about a speech Loki delivers to Black Widow that ends with the villain calling the Avenger a "mewling quim," Whedon revealed there are no plans for a similar speech in "Avengers 2."

"Imitating what I did before is the surest way to do it not as well," he explained. "Second of all, Loki is not there to say those terrible things."

Loki's absence from the sequel could mean that he meets his doom in the upcoming "Thor" follow-up, "The Dark World," due out November 8. Screen Rant points out that Thor vows to kill his evil adopted brother in the "Dark World" trailer, so the theory isn't too far off, especially since the movie is a purported redemption story for Loki -- and those don't often end well.

Whedon is introducing mutant twin siblings Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch in "Avengers 2," which could potentially set them up to become the villains, depending on which Marvel mythology he elects to follow. But whoever it is that's antagonizing the Avengers, Whedon says he doesn't take killing off characters lightly -- "I don't find people to be expendable," he said -- and there shouldn't be too much concern for our heroes' safety.

As for other information about the film, Whedon wouldn't get into the specifics, although he did say there are still several details that need to be ironed out with the script.

"There's some science in it, which means I have scenes where someone says, 'Science the sciencey science!' And then I'm like, 'I'll fix that later,'" Whedon said.

We vote for Robert Downey Jr. as most likely to deliver the line "sciencey science" with a straight face. We'll see if that makes it into the "Avengers 2" final cut, due out May 1, 2015.

[via Empire Film Podcast h/t Screen Rant]

Jennifer Lopez will be heading to Chile this fall to film "The 33," a drama about the 33 miners who were trapped underground for 69 traumatic days in 2010, reports The Hollywood Reporter.

Dapper Spanish actor Antonio Banderas will be playing Mario Sepulveda, the second miner to surface; nicknamed Super Mario, he became the face of the miners and the "breakout" media star of the group. Martin Sheen is on board to play a father of one of the miners, and Rodrigo Santoro will play the first miner to be rescued. "The 33" will be produced by Mike Medavoy ("Black Swan," "Shutter Island," "All the King's Men"), who was the first to snag the rights to the miners' story.

The movie, from a script by Mikko Alanne and Jose Rivera, will depict the struggles of the trapped miners, their worried families, and the people organizing the rescue. The miners contributed to the script, providing new details about their ordeal, including the 17 days they were trapped underground without contact.

It's been a while since Jennifer Lopez has taken on a dramatic role, though the triple-threat star's performance in "Selena" -- as the titular murdered singer-songwriter -- was arguably what put her on the map.

"The 33" will be directed by Patricia Riggen, who's known for independent films centered on women, such as her 2007 debut "Under the Same Moon" and "Girl in Progress" (with Eva Mendes).

[via THR]

It's clear who's the boss in this scene from Joseph Gordon-Levitt's upcoming film "Don Jon."

Previously known as "Don Jon's Addiction," Joseph Gordon-Levitt's directorial debut is a romantic comedy about a guido named Don Jon who's faced with a terrible dilemma: his smokin' hot girlfriend Barbara, played by a New Jersey-accented Scarlett Johansson, or his single dude life, which includes copious amounts of porn and working out. What's a guy to do? In this case, Don Jon (played by JGL himself) brings his lady home for dinner with his parents. Don's a family man, so you know this is serious stuff!

You can see in this clip -- released on Father's Day -- that the apple didn't fall far from the tree. While it seems Don's mom is pleased to get some extra help in the kitchen, Tony Danza's Jon Sr. is very impressed with his son's girlfriend's assets, and he's not shy about sharing it. If watching Danza and a pumped-up JGL together doesn't get you psyched for this movie, what will?

NSFW warning: Danza uses some explicit language to describe ScarJo's beauty.


"Don Jon" will hold you closer, tiny dancer, on September 27.

"World War Z" is almost upon us, and the latest clip launches us right into the middle of the action.

The following teaser gives us a closer look at an early scene in the movie in which Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt) and his wife Karin (Mireille Enos) flee their apartment with their two daughters. There's a helicopter headed their way, but first Gerry and his family have to outrun the ambulatory undead quickly shuffling after them. Although no one says the z-word in the preview, it's clear the creatures in hot pursuit are definitely not normal.

Despite all the behind-the-scenes chatter about last-minute problems with the film, it's been getting solid early reviews from critics in the United States and the UK. Super-fans in select cities can also purchase a $50 "Mega Ticket" that comes with a few extra goodies, including a digital download or stream of "World War Z" once it comes out on DVD and Blu-ray. With this deal available in only five U.S. theaters, it appears Paramount is testing the waters for future "Mega Ticket" offers.

The hotly anticipated undead invasion begins June 21, when "World War Z" hits theaters.

If we'd only known that working on Wall Street was this fun, we'd have gotten our MBAs long ago. In the trailer for Martin Scorsese's upcoming crime drama "The Wolf of Wall Street," Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill are in fine form, boozing it up, quite literally throwing money around, and even engaging in a little dwarf-tossing.

Based on Jordan Belfort's memoir of the same name, "The Wolf of Wall Street" stars DiCaprio as Belfort, a tough-talking Wall Street suit who lives as large as Gatsby. Along with his partner Donnie Azoff, Belfort schemes and scams his way to millions -- enough to buy yachts, insanely cool cars, lots of illicit substances, and the affection of foxy young blondes. Hill flashes some fancy fake teeth and a preppy look for his role as Azoff, a character loosely based on Belfort's real-life buddy Danny Porush. Matthew McConaughey is all sleaze as Belfort's boss and mentor.

All this money comes at a price, though: The dirty deals and mobster pals get the SEC sniffing around Belfort and company, and soon their high-flying '90s fun comes to a close. (Of course there are mobsters. This is Scorsese we're talking about.)

The film is slated for a November 15 release. In the meantime, we can look forward to countless GIFs of DiCaprio dancing and biting his fist.

It's hard to believe that Robert De Niro and John Travolta have never starred in a movie together, but the two Hollywood heavyweights are finally facing off in "Killing Season."

As the first trailer shows, De Niro is a Bosnian war veteran who's shut himself off from his family and the rest of the world in the Appalachian Mountains.

Travolta is a lost hunter with a bad accent and weird beard whom De Niro takes in. Little does he know that the guy is actually a Serbian soldier plotting vengeance against him for something that happened during the war.

But once they head out hunting, De Niro quickly realizes he's Travolta's prey. "What do you want from me?" he demands in a walkie-talkie.

"To feenish vat vee stahted," Travolta cackles.

They go mano a mano, and for an old guy, De Niro holds his own.

"You want a war? Come and get it," he taunts the Serbian.

"Killing Season" stalks theaters July 12.

Kim Kardashian, an object of study? If you're Emma Watson, then yes.

According to "Bling Ring" director Sofia Coppola, British actress Watson marathoned "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" in preparation for her role in the film, now in theaters.

"I think she watched a lot of 'Kardashians' to get a Calabasas accent," Coppola dished to E! News at the Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards on June 12. "And she watched 'Pretty Wild' and she immersed herself into all of that."

Watson's "Bling Ring" character, Nicki, is based on Alexis Neiers, one of the stars of "Pretty Wild," an E! reality series that aired after the Bling Ring's illegal exploits came to light.

"I think she did an incredible job with the accent, it's really specific," Coppola gushed. "She's such a Californian, it's very Calabasas."

Reality TV -- good for more than just guilty-pleasure viewing and 15 minutes of fame.

[via E! News]

May the Force be with Mickey Mouse!

Speculation is mounting that Disney World is moving ahead with plans to build Star Wars Land. Sources tell Theme Park Insider and TheForce.net that the long-awaited attraction is "past the consideration phase and into the planning phase."

The sites say that Disney World will build both Star Wars Land and Cars Land, which has been a huge hit at the California Adventure park.

This follows recent news that Disneyland visitors had received a survey asking about their interest in Star Wars Land. The company has been quick to capitalize on its purchase of Lucasfilm -- greenlighting a new series movie (Episode VII, with director J.J. Abrams), ordering spin-off films, and developing animated series. A theme park attraction is the natural next step.

Star Wars Land will likely expand on the existing Star Tours, adding a Cantina-themed restaurant and possibly another ride. A source told TheForce.net that "most of the expansion will be environments and character meet-and-greet areas."

Theme Park Insider believes development will take five years, meaning Star Wars Land would open sometime in 2018.

[via Theme Park Insider, TheForce.net]

Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy" is adding another Oscar nominee to its big-name cast.

Deadline confirmed that John C. Reilly is signing on to play Rhomann Dey, former leader of the Nova Corps, in the big-budget comic book adaptation.

He joins a star-packed cast that includes Academy Award nominee Glenn Close; Zoe Saldana as the green-skinned assassin; Gamora; Chris Pratt as the leader Star-Lord; Lee Pace and Karen Gillan as villains; and Benicio del Toro in an unnamed significant role.

Rhomann led the Nova Corps on his planet until it was destroyed by a space pirate. He's the Agent Coulson (of "Avengers" fame) of "Guardians of the Galaxy," reporting back to S.H.I.E.L.D. on Earth.

"Guardians of the Galaxy" flies into theaters Aug. 1, 2014.

Emma Watson, who plays a hilariously deranged version of herself in this weekend's wonderfully weird "This is the End" and a superficial kleptomaniac in Sofia Coppola's "The Bling Ring" (also this weekend), is reteaming with her "Harry Potter" collaborators, producer David Heyman and studio Warner Bros., for what's being described as a "Game of Thrones"-esque fantasy trilogy. Seven hells!

The project is called "The Queen of the Tearling" and is based on an upcoming fantasy trilogy by Erika Johansen (the first book will be published sometime next year). Johansen said that the trilogy's 19-year-old female lead was inspired, in part, by a speech she heard Barack Obama give in 2007.

A writer and director are currently being sought by the studio, so this is very much in the early stages, but Warner Bros. has wrapped up the exclusive rights to the book and will distribute the films. The report describes the book as being set "three centuries after an environmental catastrophe when a malevolent Red Queen holds considerable power." So this series is set in the dark ages and is also post-apocalyptic? Sounds good!

Watson can soon be seen in Darren Aronofsky's biblical epic "Noah," alongside Russell Crowe, and has an adaptation of "Beauty and the Beast," which Guillermo del Toro is overseeing (and could potentially direct), coming soon too. Pretty soon she's going to need a "Harry Potter" Time-Turner just to be able to accomplish all of these projects.

[via Variety]