Animated Terminator 3000

Hannover House, the entertainment distribution division of Target Development Group, Inc., announced that they have entered into a development venture with Vancouver-based Red Bear Entertainment, for Terminator 3000. The project is being produced as a 3D animated feature film with an estimated $70 million budget. And the movie will feature the characters and general plot points of the orignial Terminator movie. Eric Parkinson, the C.E.O. of Hannover House, was previously the C.E.O. of Hemdale Home Video, Inc. and Hemdale Communications, Inc., and handled the distribution of the original Terminator movie.

There aren’t many details for Terminator 3000, but the company has stated that they are aiming for a PG-13 rating, so they will be looking to minimize the level of violence in the movie. Hannover House and Red Bear Entertainment is proposing a January, 2011 start, and they will release details of the production timing, financing and principal production personnel in advance of their start.

However, controversy is arising around this announcement. Hanover is laying claim to rights to produce animated Terminator material, but another company, Pacificor, actually owns the rights to the Terminator franchise. And they have sent a cease and desist letter to Hannover House. The letter states:

“We recently became aware through various online media reports that Hannover House, purportedly a division of Target Development Group, Inc. (“TDGI”), entered into a purported feature film development venture with a Vancouver based entity, Red Bear Entertainment, for “Teminator 3000” an animated feature film based upon the characters introduced in the original Terminator movie.

This knowledge came as a surprise to Pacificor. It did not license or authorize any such development or film. Indeed, it has not been contacted by Hannover House, TDGI, Red Bear Entertainment or anyone else seeking such a license or approval.

While some of the reports we have seen mention that Pacificor “retains approval and licencing authority…” over the proposed project, a reasonable inference drawn from the reports is that such approval has been obtained. Otherwise, why would the “development deal” have been entered into in the first place and why would the reports mention a proposed January 2011 start date for production?”

Hemdale produced and distributed James Cameron’s original Terminator feature, but in 1990 they released the sequel rights to Carolco, which later transferred the rights to Halcyon Media. Halcyon went bankrupt and placed the Terminator rights up for auction. Santa Barbara based Pacificor, LLC purchased those rights at the auction in January. However, Parkinson claims that when rights to the Terminator property were sold to Carolco, animation rights weren’t included in the deal. And he insists that he was given the animation rights when he left Hemdale. Further complicating the picture is that even if Hanover does have the animation rights to Terminator, Pacificor still retains approval and licensing authority over the proposed Terminator 3000 project.

“The animation rights were excluded when Hemdale sold Terminator to Carolco and when I left Hemdale,” Parkinson said. “Part of my settlement was that I got those rights. However, the way the rest of the contractual rights are written, it would be dangerous for us to do this without Pacificor’s approval. They have certain intellectual rights. The best way to put it is, they can’t make an animated film without me, and we might not be able to make it without them. We are in discussions with WME (the agency in charge of the rights), and hope we can deal with this expeditiously.”

It seems that Terminator 3000 is stuck in limbo for now, but Parkinson remains hopeful that an agreement can be reached.

“We’ve arranged a meeting, we’ll show them our money and if the rational brain prevails, they’ll take the deal. If not, I can’t do it without them. You’ll have a follow-up next week that we are either holding hands, or not doing the film. At least we now have our meeting. I hope they will can think outside the box, because if we can make a movie that delivers a $20 million to $30 million rights payment, that is an income source they didn’t realize was possible. If not, it was a good idea anyway.”

Kilowog In The Green Lantern Movie

The comicbookmovie.com site has posted this pic of Kilowog from the upcoming Green Lantern movie. This gets me even more excited for the movie. Kilowog is one of my favorite Lanterns, and it looks like they are doing a bang up job of bringing him to the screen. Just the fact that we’ll see him is awesome. And this now brings up the possibility that we’ll see even more Lanterns in the movie. I wonder who else we’ll get a look at? I can’t wait.

Oblivion The Movie

Radical Publishing and Disney announced their collaboration on a film adaptation of Oblivion, based on an illustrated novel by Radical Publishing. Oblivion was created by Tron: Legacy director, Joseph Kosinski, was written by Rex Mundi creator, Arvid Nelson, and illustrated by Andrée Wallin. The movie version of Oblivion will be directed by Kosinki and will be produced by Radical’s President and Publisher, Barry Levine, along with Kosinski. Radical Studios’ Executive Vice President Jesse Berger is signed on as Executive Producer. Kosinki is repped by Verve and Anonymous Content while Radical is repped by CAA and David Schiff.

In a future where the Earth’s surface has been irradiated beyond recognition, the remnants of humanity live above the clouds, safe from the brutal alien Scavengers that stalk the ruins. But when surface drone repairman Jak discovers a mysterious woman in a crash-landed pod, it sets off an unstoppable chain of events that will force him to question everything he knows.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Joe Kosinski on Oblivion,” said Barry Levine, president of Radical Pictures. “Joe is one of the most creative forces in filmmaking today. From the moment he teamed with Radical to produce the book and film, he had such a clear vision of the Oblivion landscape and universe. Add to that Joe’s successful partnership with Disney on Tron: Legacy, and you have all the ingredients for a phenomenal action/adventure film.”

Oblivion, the 128-page illustrated novel, will be released in Summer 2011 and will feature prose, combined with over 40 fully painted landscape renderings. Oblivion will be distributed worldwide through Random House.

Fans are encouraged to visit the Radical Publishing websites www.radicalpublishing.com,www.facebook.com/radicalpublishing and www.twitter.com/radicalcomics for more information.

Matt Wagner’s Mage Optioned For A Movie

Variety is reporting that Watchmen producer Lloyd Levin has picked up the rights to Matt Wagner’s Mage: The Hero Discovered; the first part of the Mage comic book trilogy that began at Comico in 1984. Mage: The Hero Defined, the second part of the trilogy came out from Image in 1997, however, the third and final part, Mage: The Hero Denied still has not been released. Levin will have the rights to the entire 15-book run that makes up the Hero Discovered arc.

Mage is the story of Kevin Matchstick, a man who learns that he has superhuman powers and gains a magic baseball bat while attempting to defeat an evil being called the Umbra Sprite. It is later revealed that his baseball bat is actually the legendary sword Excalibur, which has taken on a new form, and that Matchstick is  a new incarnation of King Arthur.

Mage has always been a favorite book of mine,” said Levin. “It’s one of the great untapped comic books from the ’80s renaissance that also spawned Watchmen and Batman: The Dark Knight.” Levin will produce the film alongside Eureka co-creator Andrew Cosby.

“It’s a great that Lloyd is taking on this material because his approach (to comic books) is to capture the essence of the original source material,” added Wagner. “The timing is good, too, because in the past, (filmmakers) tried to fix the material. Now they try to adhere to the material.”

Mage was previously optioned by 300 and Watchmen director Zack Snyder, but the movie was never put together. Levin will now finance the development and production of Mage. And he is no stranger when it comes to adapting comic books to the screen. Levin has previously produced Hellboy, The Rocketeer, Time Cop and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, in addition to being attached to produce an adaptation of Terry Moore’s Echo.

Thor Movie Trailer

The Thor trailer has been circulating out of Comic Con international. I just watched it, and it looks amazing. I’m getting jazzed to see the Thor movie next year. And I love Clark Gregg as Agent Phil Coulson. The Destroyer lands and he has this nonchalant, been-there-done-that attitude about it. I like that nothing phases him. He may have small roles in these movies, but I like the way he plays it, and how he brings a little humor to the part. I can’t wait for next May.

Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch

Zack Snyder, the director of 300 and Watchmen, is promoting his next movie, Sucker Punch. The movie is coming form Warner Bros., and its an action flick that has plenty of girl power with Emily Browning, Jena Malone, Vanessa Hudgens, Jaime Chung, Abby Cornish, and Carla Gugino in the cast.

Sucker Punch is set in the 1950s, and follows a girl who is confined to a mental institution by her stepfather, who intends to have her lobotomized in five days. To try and deal with the pain she hides in an alternative reality of her own imagination. And in that world she begins planning her escape, which calls for her to steal five objects to get her out before she is deflowered by a vile man.

Sucker Punch hits theaters on March 25, 2011.

The concept sounds interesting, and visually the movie looks incredible, but I wonder how well all of the elements will come together. The trailer looks like a dream. A frantic dream that is a mix of a 1940s vision of the future type of sci-fi, dragons and samurai fantasy, and plenty of big special effects and big explosions. It looks awesome. I just hope that the story is as least somewhat cohesive and interesting. At any rate, it looks like an entertaining movie. I’m already buying popcorn.

Batman:Year One and All Star Superman Movies

If you’re running out today to buy the latest Warner Brothers/DC Comcis direct-to-DVD animated movie, Batman: Under the Red Hood, then there is big news for you coming out of Comic Con International. Under the Red Hood had its premiere at the mega comic book and media convention, and it was followed by a panel discussion after the screening. During this panel it was confirmed that Superman/Batman: Apocalypse will be out this September, although that is old news at this point. However, that was followed by the news that All Star Superman, the highly acclaimed story by Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely, will be made into an animated film. And if that isn’t enough, producer Bruce Timm announced that the iconic Batman: Year One storyline by Frank Miller and artist David Mazzucchelli will be made into a feature-length animated film in the near future.

All Star Superman is a story that has received much love from comic book fans, and it could make for an excellent movie. However, I wonder  what the art direction of the movie will be. If they try to create character designs based off of Quietly’s art from the comic books, like it was done with the Ed McGuiness art on Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, then I have some reservations about this movie. I have not been a fan of Quietly’s work, and I don’t know if it will translate well to animation. To me his people can seem “puffy” and I’m not big on his look. Still, it’ll be interesting to see how this one develops.

On the other hand, I think that Batman: Year One is huge news. This is one the most celebrated storys in the history of comic books, and most definitely one of the top three Batman stories, ever. Year One helped to revitalize Batman, it helped make a star out of Frank Miller, and it helped to change the look of the comic book landscape. If they’re doing adaptations, then I would have preferred to see this one first over a couple that they did before it. Batman: Year One is one of my all-time favorites, and I can’t wait to see it animated.

The Goon Movie Trailer

Here’s a trailer for the animated The Goon movie. The movie is based on The Goon comic book by Eric Powell that is published by Dark Horse Comics. The Goon is something of a pulp flavor comic with a supernatural slant to it. The trailer makes it look like the movie will be all kinds of awesome.

Thor’s Hammer In The Stone

This image from the upcoming Thor movie has been floating around. This “sword in the stone” image hints at the bit of Arthurian legend that is mixed into Thor’s mythology. As comic fans know, Thor’s hammer Mjolnir, can only be lifted by someone who is “worthy” to wield it.

Eisner’s Contract With God Movie

A Contract with God, the landmark graphic novel from legendary comic book master Will Eisner, is being adapted into a live action feature film. The announcement came from the film’s producers at Comic-Con International.

Considered to be one of the most influential graphic novels ever written, A Contract with God explores stories and memories from Eisner’s childhood growing up in a New York City tenement, in an innovated comic book format. The book is an anthology of stories that show the brutality, fragility, and tenderness that exists among people living in close quarters during challenging economic times.

The movie will cover the four chapters of the graphic novel, with a different acclaimed independent director handling each chapter. Alex Rivera (Sleep Dealer), Tze Chun (Children of Invention), Barry Jenkins (Medicine for Melancholy), and Sean Baker (Prince of Broadway, MTV’s Warren the Ape) will be bringing the seminal comic work to the screen. Darren Dean (Prince of Broadway) will produce and adapt the graphic novel for the screen.

The film adaptation of the comic will be produced under the auspices of the Eisner estate in the spirit of the original work. Bob Schreck, a 30-year veteran of the comic book industry and Michael Ruggiero, former head of original programming at STARZ, will serve as Co-Executive Producers. Black Squirrel Films Co-Founder Tommy Oliver will serve as Co-Producer and Mark Rabinowitz, Co-Founder of indieWIRE.com, will serve as Associate Producer.

Focusing on the immigrant struggle, A Contract With God takes a look at prominent themes across four separate but related stories that are set in a New York City tenement in the 1930s. The four chapters are: A Contract With God (Rivera), The Street Singer (Chun), The Super (Jenkins) and Cookalein (Baker). Each filmmaker brings a different approach, which will capture the diversity, style and essence of Eisner’s story. Nat Sanders (Medicine for Melancholy, Hump Day) will serve as editor on the entire film.

The announcement regarding the film adaptation of A Contract with God was made at the 22nd annual Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, which honors creative achievement in American comic books including induction ceremonies into the comics industry Hall of Fame, the first time such an announcement has been made at the Eisners. Will Eisner was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005.

Darren Dean said, “I look forward to finding the fine balance of offering Eisner fans a very faithful interpretation of his work and allowing the voices of these strong and competent filmmakers to be heard. We are all approaching the inaugural stage of this project with respect, honor and anticipation and hope that the fans will welcome us with both faith and scrutiny. This is for them, as much as any of us.

Bob Schreck said, “Getting to know Will Eisner was one of the great honors of both my personal and professional journeys. We are all well aware that the work ahead has a very high bar of excellence to aspire to set by Mr. Eisner’s pioneering achievements in storytelling.”

Tze Chun said, “Before I became a filmmaker, I wanted to be a comic book artist, and I spent many nights poring over Eisner’s Comics & Sequential Art. The book should be mandatory reading for every person who wants to be a storyteller regardless of his or her intended medium. Eisner’s magnum opus, A Contract With God, is a master class in visual storytelling — groundbreaking, humanistic, moving, and rich in detail. Within these four short stories, Eisner creates an entire world. I’m very excited to be a part of the team that will bring this film to life.”

Key roles will be cast in the coming months with principle photography set to begin in 2011.