Jill Valentine coming back for 'Resident Evil 5'

Anyone who watched last year's "Resident Evil: Afterlife" knows it ended with the return of Jill Valentine (Sienna Guillory), who hadn't been seen since the second film, "Apocalypse."

Guillory recently confirmed she was preparing for the as yet untitled fifth installment via twitter.

"RE:5 alert! Training begins! I aim to mostly put less in the big hole on the front of my face than comes out of the little one on my arse," she posted on March 18.

Although nothing else about the film is known, Screen Gems has set a Sept. 14, 2012, release date. Presumably Milla Jovovich will be back as Alice and her husband Paul W.S. Anderson will direct since he helmed every installment to this point.

The series hasn't exactly set the box office on fire, but it has been consistent domestically and is gaining steam overseas. "Afterlife" exploded on the international market, pulling in a total worldwide gross just shy of $300 million, double the previous best set by 2007's "Extinction."

Although I've never played the video games, the film series is one my biggest guilty pleasures and has been ever since the release of the original film in 2002. That film featured a great set, intriguing characters and a rocking soundtrack from Marilyn Manson. On a side note, "Afterlife" was one of only a handful of the countless 3D releases in 2010 which made decent use of the technology.

My hope is we will finally learn the fate of the young Angela (Sophie Vavasseur), who like Jill vanished sometime between the second and third films.

Leads shortlisted for 'Akira' live action adaptation

From the districts of Panem to the streets of Tokyo, we have some more casting news and, of course, more fan outrage.

Deadline is reporting that Albert Hughes has shortlisted the pool of candidates for the leads in the upcoming live-action adaptation of "Akira."

First a six-volume Japanese manga and then adapted into the famed 1988 anime film of the same name, "Akira" tells the story of futuristic Toyko in which Kaneda, the leader of a motorcycle gang, tries to save his friend Tetsuo from a military experiment.

"Harry Potter" scribe Steve Cloves is the latest to take polish to the live action script.

According to Deadline, Garrett Hedlund, Michael Fassbender, Chris Pine, Justin Timberlake and Joaquin Phoenix are being considered for Kaneda, while Robert Pattinson, Andrew Garfield and James McAvoy are in the running for Tetsuo.

Cue the rage. How dare they cast white actors for Japanese roles? Well, considering the live-action movie reportedly set in Neo-Manhattan instead of Neo-Tokyo, I think it's pretty clear this is a domestic remake rather than just a live-action adaptation.

With project is expected to command a sizable budget, that's not terribly surprising. Studios want bankable stars.

Rage on.

'Hunger Games' author endorses Lawrence casting

Jennifer Lawrence in "Winter's Bone."

Fans of Susan Collins' "The Hunger Games" trilogy have been buzzing louder than a nest of tracker jackers about the casting of Jennifer Lawrence ("Winter's Bone") as Catniss Everdeen.

Having just finished the books myself, I have say my first reaction was, "Too old and too blond." Sadly, "Winter's Bone" was one of the 2011 Academy Award Best Picture nominees I have not yet had a chance to see, so I can't speak for her acting chops, although her own nomination says enough.


Well, now Collins herself has weighed in, sending a letter to Entertainment Weekly assuring fans she was involved with the casting process and said Lawrence is the one to embody her creation:

As the author, I went into the casting process with a certain degree of trepidation. Believing your heroine can make the leap from the relative safety of the page to the flesh and bones reality of the screen is something of a creative act of faith. But after watching dozens of auditions by a group of very fine young actresses, I felt there was only one who truly captured the character I wrote in the book. And I’m thrilled to say that Jennifer Lawrence has accepted the role.

Collins goes on to say she "watched Jennifer embody every essential quality necessary to play Katniss." Sounds like a glowing recommendation to me.

The hair can be taken care of pretty easily. Just look at Emily Browning ("A Series of Unfortunate Events") and her new blond look for this weekend's "Sucker Punch." Incidentally, she was one of the actress I had in mind for the role, along with everybody's favorite pick of Hailee Steinfeld ("True Grit").

Now on to the next casting reveal, and the next round of the games.

Welcome back!

After an all-too brief attempt at creating an online presence in 2009, it's time to jump back into the deep end.

Welcome to the all-new Marquee Entertainment, where we will be discussing the latest movie news along with the occasional juicy TV tidbits. My movie reviews, for the time being, will remain in print form and can be currently read weekly in the Perry News-Herald in Florida, and the South Padre Island Parade in Texas. Hopefully that will be expanding soon.

AWARD SEASON: The Academy Award nominations

Phew, what a week to take off. Lots to catch up on, so let's get started.

Of course the biggest news of the week was the announcement of the Academy Award nominees.

After streaking through the Guild nominations, The Dark Knight was left in the dust by the Academy voters when it came to the big awards, with the exception of the sure bet nomination of Heath Ledger for Best Supporting Actor.

Likewise, Wall-E couldn't dig himself out of the animated category to compete for the big award either.

Instead, we have Golden Globe-winner Slumdog Millionaire up against The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (which picked up the most nominations of any film this year), Frost/Nixon, Milk and The Reader.

All five films' directors--Danny Boyle, David Fincher, Ron Howard, Gus Van Sant and Stephen Daldry--are up for Best Director.

Richard Jenkins (The Visitor), Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon), Sean Penn (Milk), Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) and Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) will vie for Best Actor.

Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married), Angelina Jolie (Changeling), Melissa Leo (Frozen River), Meryl Streep (Doubt) and Kate Winslet (The Reader) are up for Best Actress.

For a few list of the nominees, click here.

Jericho returning... again

In an interview with IF Magazine published Wednesday, Executive Producer and Director Jon Turteltaub said a film version of his canceled series Jericho is in the works.

“We’re developing a feature for Jericho,” Turteltaub said. “It would not require you to have seen the TV show, but it get into life after an event like this on a national scale. It would be the bigger, full on American version of what’s going on beyond the town in Jericho.”

He continued that the cast will return for the movie, although he provided scant other details.

Jericho debuted on CBS during the 2006 season, telling the story of a small in Kansas after 23 American cities are attacked by nuclear weapons. Unfortunately, the first season ended not only with falling ratings, but with one of the biggest cliffhangers ever as the townspeople rush out to battle a neighboring community with the gunfire continuing as the scene faded to black.

CBS canceled the series only to be met with a huge fan response, 40,000 pounds of nuts mailed to the studio's headquarters, referencing a favorite line from the finale. CBS agreed to bring the show back for a truncated second season--seven episodes--to continue the survivors' story.

Jericho returned in the spring of 2008 as a midseason replacement while the networks were recovering from the effects of the writers' strike. While the show didn't earn a third season--it was canceled again during the summer--the show had a much more satisfying conclusion.

In the weeks following its second canceling, rumors had the show moving to the Sci-Fi Channel, but when no word emerged, the show was thought dead for good.

This week's news is interesting, if only to see how they plan on retooling the story in a way to attract new viewers while pleasing the fans that saved the show the first time. The second season ended with a clear direction for the story should a third be approved, and I have to wonder if the great storytelling we received in those seven episodes will be forgotten.

Only time will tell...

Fox and Keanu making Cowboy Bebop film

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Twentieth Century Fox is moving forward with its live action adaptation of the anime series Cowboy Bebop with Keanu Reeves.

The series, which ran on Tokyo TV in 1998-99 and debuted on Cartoon Network in 2001, follows a series of spacefaring bounty hunters, including Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Faye Valentine, Ed and Ein. Bebop also spawned an animated film in 2001. The movie made its way stateside in the summer of 2003, picking up approximately $1 million, although its release never expanded past 29 theaters.

Rumors about a live action adaptation have been swirling since last summer, but this is the first time concrete details have emerged.

This is what we know:

• Peter Craig--about whom I can find very little information--is writing the script.
• Reeves is set to play Spike.
  
• Reeves' longtime manager, Erwin Stoff, is producing through 3 Arts Entertainment. Joshua Long is executive producer.
• Key members of the production staff from the original series will serve as associate producers, including Sunrise president Kenji Uchida, director Shinichiro Watanabe and writer Keiko Nobumoto.
• Original series producer Masahiko Minami will serve as production consultant.