Fifty Shades: the Film

Emma Watson (Harry Potter, The Perks of Being A Wallflower) has made it very clear she doesn’t want to play Anastasia Steele in the film version of the runaway bestseller of 2012, the erotic novel Fifty Shades of Grey. “Who here actually thinks I would do 50 Shades of Grey as a movie? Like really. For real. In real life.” Watson tweeted to her over five million followers. “Good. Well that's that

National Alfred Hitchcock Day Observed

I have no idea why today is National Alfred Hitchcock Day. The filmmaker was born on August 13th, 1899 and died on April 29th, 1980. It’s possible one of his many films debuted on this date that, but I have a hunch the answer is even more simple: the date was available, so they plunked it in.

Whatever the case, there are worse occasions for celebrating. For instance, does the world really need a

Abraham Lincoln, Poet

Considering the pedigree of the Academy Award-winning film, Lincoln, how could there not be a huge resurgence of interest in the life of America’s 16th President? After all, nearly everyone loves themselves some Spielberg (Warhorse, Saving Private Ryan), the screenplay was written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Tony Kushner (Angels in America) based on a book (Team of Rivals: The Political

Pi Goes PI

A nod from Oscar this coming Sunday might just push things into the stratosphere, but sales of Yann Martel’s “irrational” tale of a boy and his tiger are already not too shabby. From The Guardian:



Martel's narrator, who chooses his mathematical nickname to avoid being known as "Pissing", would undoubtedly be delighted at the news that the novel he narrates, Life of Pi, has just sold its

Books to Film: John Dies at the End

Back in 2009 I quite liked a breakout bestseller called John Dies at the End by an author who was billed as David Wong, but wasn’t. In part, this is what I said:

At a time when many writers are pushing at the edges of the novel, trying to redefine what the word means and what it is, David Wong sort of does. This comes in part from the publication history of his first novel, John Dies at the

Django Unleashed

While you’re thinking of lining up to see Django Unchained, writer/director Quentin Tarantino’s new movie, be aware that there is another way to experience the story. At the same time, DC/Vertigo Comics has released a new comic series that is set to be a close adaptation of Tarantino’s script. WIRED looks at the new release:

The comic is an incredibly faithful adaptation of Tarantino’s movie

New Bond Novel to be Set in 1969

Author William Boyd (Any Human Heart) has become the third writer invited to play in Ian Fleming’s fictional world. Boyd’s Bond novel will come out in the fall of 2013, just in time to mark the 60th anniversary of the creation of James Bond. From The Independent:

The acclaimed author of Any Human Heart, Boyd is giving little away about the plot, or even a title but has disclosed that his story

King’s The Stand Will Be Feature Film

Stephen King’s post-apocalyptic 1978 novel, The Stand, is generally thought to be one of the author’s most accomplished works. It is sprawling, epic and, according to many people -- including the author -- pretty much unfilmable as a standard feature-length picture. As King told The Hollywood Reporter, when plans to make The Stand as a feature were first released early in 2011,


The author said

Hobbit Will Premiere in November

Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson has announced that his new film, a 3-D extravaganza based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, will take place in New Zealand on November 28th, a full two weeks before the general release of the film in mid-December.

Jackson has opted to tell the Hobbit story in two parts, with both set roughly 60 years before the action in The Lord of the Rings. In the first,

Forget Vampires: Dystopia is the New Black for Teens

With her bleak but beautifully rendered visions of a dystopian future, in books like Oryx and Crake and even 1985’s The Handmaid’s Tale, we always knew Margaret Atwood was ahead of her time. Now The Telegraph (who knows everything) confirms:Many parents might feel worried on finding their teenage children addicted to grim visions of a future in which global warming has made the seas rise, the

“Mommy Porn” Will Be Movie

And then hell froze over. I don’t have the spirit for it. Here’s The Hollywood Reporter:Fifty Shades of Grey, the surprise erotic literary hit that began as a posting on a fan-fiction website, is sparking major interest from Hollywood as movie studios clamor for film rights.Multiple sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that a representative for the E.L. James book, which became a word-of-mouth

Hannibal the Cannibal Heads for Television

While we’re betting it won’t be a comedy or a musical, our arms are still a bit akimbo at the thought of a television series based on Thomas Harris’ most famous character, Hannibal Lecter.Last week, Deadline broke the story that NBC will be airing 13 episodes of Hannibal beginning in November of this year. No word yet on who will star in the series to be executive produced by Bryan Fuller (Heroes

More Movies Based on Larsson Books for Sony

Despite disappointing openings for the English language version of the screen version of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Sony Pictures has said they’re going to go ahead with other film versions of the other books in Stieg Larsson’s trilogy.Like Dateline Hollywood, January wonders if Sony is now rethinking the wisdom of having opened Girl With the Dragon Tattoo as a Christmas film. The darkness

Americans Might Not “Get” Film Version of TinTin

As Stephen Spielberg’s long-awaited 3-D version of the Belgian comic book classic opens in the UK, some critics are not sure how well the 80-year-old comic character will play in the United States when the film arrives in theaters in time for the holidays.“American audiences may find the film a bit difficult,” TinTin expert Michael Farr told the BBC, “Some have known him and loved him, like

Discworld Author Prepares for Battle

“Movies are a sore point,” noted fantasy author told me in an interview in 2002. “There’s always things in development heck.”Nearly a decade later, Practchett’s “development heck” seemed to have dropped to a whole new level when the author, who is famously battling early onset Alzheimer’s disease, prepares for a very different battle. From The Telegraph:The 63-year-old novelist is suing Paul