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Directed by George Lucas, Star Wars: Attack of the Clones
will star Golden Globe nominee Hayden Christensen, who will play
Anakin. Other leading performances include Natalie Portman and
Ewan McGregor with supporting casting by Samuel L. Jackson, Anthony
Daniels, Christopher Lee, Kenny Baker, Ian McDiarmid, and Temuera
Morrison. Characters include Anakin Skywalker, Jar Jar Binks,
Yoda, C-3PO, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and R2-D2. This franchise, written
by George Lucas and Jonathan Hales and produced by Lucasflim,
consists of a trilogy and a prequel that have made over $1 billion
in the U.S. This action/adventure/sci-fi epic movie is set to
release May 16, 2002 and is distributed by 20th Century Fox Film
Corporation. Sequels include Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom
Menace which was released in 1999 and Star Wars: Episode
III, scheduled for release in 2005.
Before Episode I, George Lucas had not directed a film in
twenty-plus years (1977). "There's only one issue for a
filmmaker," Lucas says. "Will this make its money back
so I can make the next one? With Phantom Menace, we didn't
know. It didn't have Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher.
It was not a slam dunk."
In Attack of the Clones, Anakin is 20, a young
man of superior skills and even higher ambitions, chafing under
the stern tutelage of his mentor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and daring
to risk his status in the Jedi Order, which forbids romantic
attachments, by pursuing a reckless passion for Senator Padme
Amidala. They fight with Senator Palpatine and battle the Jedi
rebel Dooku and his droids with an army cloned from scurvy bounty
hunter Jango Fett.
On April 24, Star Wars: Episode II - The Attack of the
Clones merchandise hit the stores in Time Square and
120 Toys "R" Us stores across the U.S. Highlights of
the latest Star Wars toy line include Jango Fett and his spacecraft
and Jedi warriors (Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker).
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Comic book hero Spider-Man is set to hit the
big screen in movie theaters on May 3, 2002. The leading cast
will star Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, and Willem Dafoe, with
a supporting cast of Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons, James Franco,
and Cliff Robertson. Directed by Sam Raimi and written by David
Koepp, Spider-Man has a PG-13 rating. This adventure/sci-fi
comic book adaptation is distributed by Columbia Pictures and
Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Kirsten Dunst, 19, will star as Spider-Man's
alter-ego, photographer Peter Parker's red-headed girlfriend
Mary Jane. Previous works of hers include The Cat's Meow, the
Virgin Suicides and Bring It On.
Willem Dafoe plays the pumpkin-hurling bad guy, Green Goblin.
Minority Report
Minority Report stars Tom Cruise and is directed
by Steven Spielberg. This is based on a short story by the late
Phillip K. Dick. About a futuristic society of clairvoyants who
help stop murderers, Minority Report has 477 special-effects
shots. Other lead performances include Samantha Morton and Colin
Farrell with supporting roles by Peter Stormare and Kathryn Morris.
Written by Scott Frank, this action/sci-fi thriller has a release
date of June 21, 2002 and will be distributed by 20th Century
Fox Film Corporation.
Men in Black 2
This buddy-cop flick that grossed more than $250 million the
first time around is back. Based on the 1997 movie and a 1992
Malibu Comics Men In Black, MIB has bigger and
badder villains this time around. Lara Flynn Boyle, from The
Practice, stars as the new alien on the block, Serleena, who
is a sexy distraction that takes the form of a Victoria's Secret
model. Michael Jackson will be making a cameo appearance as an
undercover Man in Black on the alien affirmative action program.
Will Smith who reportedly earned only $5 million on part one,
will receive a cool $40 million for part two now that he's a
big maxium-gross player (this film put him on the map).
Coinciding with the release of Men in Black 2,
Will Smith will be releasing a new CD, not yet titled. The first
single, "Nod Ya Head," hits the air waves in mid-June.
Smith says "two weeks in the studio, and I'm up to speed.
My slang is current, I'm hip to the new-style drums, and I'm
back in synch.''
Perdition
In Perdition, Tom Hanks plays a role we're not
used to‹a bad guy, a Mob hitman avenging his wife's death.
Based on the 1998 graphic novel by Max Allan Collins, "Road
to Perdition," Perdition also stars Paul Newman
in a leading role opposite Hanks. Supporting cast include Stanley
Tucci, Jude Law, Jennfier Jason Leigh, Alfred Molina, Daniel
Craig, and Tyler Hoechlin. Set for release on July 12, 2002,
this Depression-era drama was directed by Sam Mendes, written
by David Self, and distributed by Dreamworks.
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Austin Powers in Goldmember
Mike Myers will be reprising his role as Austin Powers, Dr.
Evil, and Fat Bastard, along with a new character, the enemy,
Goldmember in the upcoming sequel to Austin Powers the Spy
Who Shagged Me. Beyonce Knowles, lead singer of Destiny's
Child, will star as his love interest and undercover spy, Foxxy
Cleopatra and Michael Caine as his spy father, Nigel. The supporting
cast also includes Michael York, Seth Green, Rob Lowe, Robert
Wagner, and Verne Troyer. Based on two previous Austin Powers
movies, James Bond, and British sexy-cool kitsch, Austin
Powers in Goldmember was directed by Jay Roach and written
by Mike Myers and Michael McCullers. This comedy has a release
date of July 26, 2002 and will be distributed by New Line Cinema.
Scooby-Doo
Freddie Prinze, Jr. (Fred), Matthew Lillard (Shaggy), Sarah
Michelle Gellar (Daphne), and Linda Cardellini (Velma) have leading
roals in the upcoming Scooby-Doo movie to be released
on June 14, 2002. Supporting cast include Mark McGrath and Rowan
Atkinson. This Warner Brothers comedy was directed by Raja Gosnell
and written by James Gunn and Craig Titley.
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