Gordon-Levitt began his acting career aged just 7-years-old, and has starred in everything from A River Runs Through It to (500) Days of Summer and Inception. Back in 2004, he also launched his own online collaborative production company, hitRECord.org. Proving that he is, indeed, a man of many talents, it seems that Gordon-Levitt’s next project will be to direct his first feature film.

Next new project, that is. Gordon-Levitt already has a number of films in the pipeline – and we hope he’s been taking notes from the range of first-class directors who he’s been working with. First up he’ll be appearing as a Gotham City cop in Christopher Nolan‘s third Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, before reuniting with Brick director, Rian Johnson, to play the lead in sci-fi flick, Looper. He’s also been working with legendary director Steven Spielberg on the Abraham Lincoln biographical drama, Lincoln. However, it seems that his own directorial plans could mean that Gordon-Levitt is forced to drop out of Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming spaghetti western, Django Unchained, due to potential scheduling conflicts.

That said, the actor’s not without his own directorial credentials – he’s helmed a 24 minute-long adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s short story, Sparks, back in 2009, and directed another short film, Morgan and Destiny’s Eleventeenth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo, a year later.

His first feature film, however, is reported to be a comedy, in which Gordon-Levitt will also star. He’ll play a modern-day Don Juan character who is looking to reform himself from being, as Gordon-Levitt put it, a bit of a “selfish dick”. hitRECord.org will co-produce the film, along with The Hurt Locker producer Nicolas Chartier’s production company, Voltage Pictures, who are also funding the venture.

As any young chap who’s writing, directing, producing and starring in their own movie might well be inclined to do, Gordon-Levitt’s decided to cast the stunning Scarlett Johansson as his leading lady. A second principle actress is also expected to be announced soon – and with his pick of the hottest stars in Hollywood, who knows who he might choose.

Shooting for the as-yet untitled film will begin on 16th April this year. Meanwhile, you can check out Gordon-Levitt’s short film, Morgan and Destiny’s Eleventeenth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo, below:

This is according to Sir Nicholas Hytner, artistic director at the National Theatre, who thinks that the income from the Broadway shows will make the War Horse play more successful and profitable than the big screen version.

Hytner told Sky News: “I’ll stick my neck out and predict the play will be more profitable to us than the movie will be to DreamWorks.”

He added, that even though the theatre has stage rights for the novel, ‘We’re not movie producers so we wouldn’t look for the movie rights, but we do have a stake in the movie because Dreamworks gave us a good deal on material that is specific to the play.’

The popular play is set to reach Melbourne and Toronto next year, as well as Los Angeles and California during its 2012 US tour.

The epic war story, based on Michael Morpurgo’s 1982 novel of the same name, has earned around £10m since its world premier at the National Theatre in 2007. The show has been seen by more than one million people in London and it is estimated to make a further £6.7m.

Spielberg’s tear-jerking adaptation, took in more money from its opening weekend than the National’s annual profit, however, its production costs of £70m dwarfed that of the theatre’s.

While the political biopic, The Iron Lady, took in £1.49m, War Horse brought in more than double this amount at the box office. In addition, it has taken $67.5m in the US. The film has also been rumoured to be an Oscar winner.

Before Hytner starts making any more success claims, he will have to wait and see how profitable the stage shows are next year in the US. We’ll keep you posted.

But even the Duchess of Cambridge couldn’t eclipse the thoroughbred, Joey, who seemed undeterred by the showbiz glitz and glamour as he walked the carpet. This was no doubt a by-product of the two months training he had prior to filming, preparing him for the explosions and loud noises he would face during the shoot. In comparison, flashing cameras and loud screaming must be a doddle.

His trainer Dan Naprous said at the premiere: “The premiere itself was great, and Joey certainly got a lot of attention as he walked down the red carpet.”

The First World War epic is based on the West End play that in turn was inspired by Michael Morpurgo’s novel. The tale centres on young Albert (Jeremy Irvine) and his relationship with his horse, Joey. When Joey is sold to the cavalry, Albert enlists in the  hope that they will be reunited on the battlefields of Europe.

It is a touching tale that is thought to have reduced Kate to tears. Spielberg who sat next to the new Royal during the screening, claims:

“I was sitting next to her and my wife, who was on my right, passed a Kleenex right across my face.”

The premiere was attended by 600 serving and ex-serving military personnel and their families. The director, who is supportive of the armed forces, has made many war films in the past, including 1998′s Saving Private Ryan.

“I make my movies about war so that their contribution will never be forgotten,” he says. It sounds as though we’re not likely to forget with this tear-jerker either.

War Horse stars a host of British names including Emily Watson, David Thewlis and Benedict Cumberbatch, and Spielberg admits the film is: “British through and through.”

War Horse opens across the UK Friday 13th January 2012.

Click to see bigger image of Kate and Wills at the War Horse Premiere:

The annual ceremony, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, recognises films, television programmes and video games for their outstanding use of special effects.

In this year’s film category, Spielberg’s Tintin is leading the way with six nominations across four categories. They include Outstanding Created Environment in an Animated Motion Picture and Outstanding Visual Effects in a Motion Picture.

Animated characters which have been commended for their excellent visual effects, include Tintin, Ceaser from Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Paul from Simon Pegg’s Sci-Fi comedy of the same name.

Captain America: The First Avenger and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides will be receiving nominations for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects-Driven Feature Motion Picture.

The nominees for Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects include Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and War Horse which premièred last night.

In the television category, Pan Am, Breaking Bad and the hit US gangster series, Boardwalk Empire, have been nominated.

Boardwalk Empire – a period drama set in the 1920s – has been nominated four times this year.

The Visual Effects Society awards show will take place on the 7th February 2012 in The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.

The iconic director, whose most recent offering, Hugo has been a box office hit was described by BAFTA Chair Tim Corrie as, “a legend in his lifetime,” who is a “true inspiration to all young directors.”

Previous winners of the award include silent-film legend, Charlie Chaplin and directors Steven Spielberg and Alfred Hitchcock.

Scorsese will collect the award on the 12th February 2012, in a ceremony to be held at the Royal Opera House in London. Speaking about the accolade in an official statement, the director said:

“It is a great honour to be recognised by the British Academy, and to join the ranks of such an esteemed group of industry colleagues and friends.”

Having had a long and illustrious career, Martin Scorsese first gained notice in 1973 for Mean Streets starring Robert De Niro, a film that can be seen as having formed the foundation for all his later pictures. It wasn’t until the release of Taxi Driver in 1976 that he gained respect from his peers. More than 30 years on, he has made a sizable impact on the industry with his directorial and production credits. These include titles like: Raging Bull, Goodfellas, The Aviator, and Shutter Island. And that is just the film credits. He also dabbles in television and is well known for his documentaries.

His latest projects are set to be a Frank Sinatra biopic, Sinatra, alongside Silence which will star Daniel Day Lewis and Benicio Del Toro.

Catch the British Academy Film Awards 2012 on BBC One on the 12th February 2012.

Steven Spielberg’s film launched itself, rather like our young hero is prone to do, right to the top of the UK and Ireland Box Office Chart after its first weekend of release and seems to be holding on to this spot. Starring Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot, Jane Eyre) as Tintin, the story follows our hero and Captain Haddock, played by Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, King Kong) on a good old treasure hunt. Daniel Craig (James Bond) plays mysterious criminal Ivanovich Sakharine and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead) plays Inspector Thompson.

Tintin has been facing competition from Justin Timberlake’s new thriller In Time. However, it has still managed to pull in £2.2 million after only having been out since October 26th, with In Time making £1.9 million so far.  There are others vying for the top spot as well, with Ben Stiller’s Tower Heist coming in at number three in the charts and Rowan Atkinson’s bumbling Johnny English Reborn spying his way to number four.

Produced by Peter Jackson, there is no doubt that Tintin is used to battling it out. However the ratings go in the next few weeks, the little animated adventurer is sure to put up a good fight. We’ll keep you posted!



John Logan has worked on the scripts for an extremely diverse range of films – from historical epics, like Gladiator, to children’s animated comedies such as Rango. He has also worked within a variety of genres, taking on the world of science fiction with films like Star Trek: Nemesis and The Time Machine, while venturing into adventure films with The Last Samurai and Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas. He’s even adapted stage musicals into screenplays, such as was the case with Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. In doing so, he’s worked alongside some of the world’s most renowned directors including Tim Burton, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, and Steven Spielberg.

Despite the fact that he is now a BAFTA and Oscar-nominated screenwriter, Logan actually started out as a playwright in Chicago. Writing plays was and still is, he tells us, his first passion. Whilst speaking at the BFI, one of his main pieces of advice to other writers was to understand the works of those who came before you – including those who were writing before the age of film-making, such as Shakespeare. In fact, Logan’s love of Shakespeare resulted in one of his upcoming feature films: Ralph Fiennes’ directorial debut, Coriolanus.

Logan claims that, when it comes to being a screenwriter, Oliver Stone told him how to do it. One of the most legendary screenwriters of all time, Stone worked with Logan on his first major screenplay, Any Given Sunday. He’s also received advice from director Ridley Scott who, perhaps ironically, told him to “write less words” – advice he passes on to other screenwriters who share his tendency to write overly long speeches for their characters.

His other top tip for writing a successful screenplay? “Don’t be afraid to reach for the big line”. Having written a number of ‘big lines’, such as Gladiator‘s “At my signal, unleash hell,” he’s a fan of dramatic moments and outlandish statements. However, he admits that there’s a big difference between writing such lines when you’re sat on your own putting a script together, and having the guts to present them to a director such as Ridley Scott. Most importantly, however, he stressed the importance of still being interested in the subject matter of your script and the plight of your protagonist – even after countless drafts – because if you’re not, then no one else will be.

Logan’s other upcoming projects include the highly anticipated Bond 23, directed by Sam Mendes – which, despite being sworn to secrecy, Logan hinted could see the return of the iconic villain, Blofeld. During the audience Q&A session, Logan was reminded that he once stated that “Bond should always fight Blofeld”. When asked whether he still believed this to be the case, Logan simply smiled and replied, “Bond should always fight Blofeld”.

Logan has also written the script for Hugo, a 3D family adventure film based on Brian Selznick’s novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret. The film – starring Chloë Moretz and Jude Law – marks the second collaboration between Logan and Scorsese, the first being the 2004 biographical drama The Aviator, and is due to be released 2nd December 2011.

Other screenwriters will speak at future lectures in the series include Guillermo Arriaga (21 Grams, Babel), Frank Cottrell Boyce (Hilary and Jackie, 24 Hour Party People), Paul Laverty (The Wind That Shake the Barley, Sweet Sixteen) and Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Being John Malkovich) – purchase your tickets for the 2011 BAFTA and BFI Screenwriters’ Lecture Series on bafta.org.

This much anticipated film is based on the 1982 children’s novel by Michael Morpurgo, which was turned into a successful stage play back in 2007 and won the Tony Award for best play in New York this January. Set during the First World War, War Horse tells the story of a young man named Albert, who forms a friendship with a horse called Joey. However, the pair are torn apart when Joey is sent to join the cavalry, and Albert makes it his mission to find him again.

War Horse is the latest film from legendary director Steven Spielberg, who is also producing. He’s teamed up with cinematographer and long-time collaborator, Janusz Kaminski, as well as Love Actually writer Richard Curtis and Lee Hall, who wrote the screenplay for Billy Elliot, who have worked together to pen the adaptation.

RSC and National Theatre actor, Jeremy Irvine, will be taking on the role of Albert, while Breaking the Waves actress Emily Watson, and Neds and actor and director, Peter Mullan, will be playing his parents. You can also expect to hear an impressive score from award-winner, John Williams, who has composed music for all but two of Spielberg’s films.

From the looks of things, this film will certainly be a stark contrast to Spielberg‘s other upcoming release, The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn, but another addition to the director’s output of war films alongside Empire of the Sun, Schindler’s List, and Saving Private Ryan. War Horse is currently scheduled to hit UK cinemas on 13th January 2012 – just in time for the Academy Awards, which are announced at the end of the month…

Check out the trailer below.

Cast your mind back to last year when we head that the super foxy, women-of-every-man’s-dream Fox was being replaced in the third Transformers‘ film by British model/actress Huntington-Whiteley. At the time we were lead to believe that Fox had left of her own accord to pursue other film opportunities. Ah that old chestnut.

Well, we’ve finally got the full story. It has been reported that it was in fact the film’s producer Steven Spielberg who had her fired after he read an interview in which she described the director, Michael Bay, as being like Hitler. Spielberg is Jewish and seriously powerful player, and her comments were too much according to Bay:

“You know the Hitler thing? Steven said: ‘Fire her right now.’”

Bay insists that he wasn’t offended by the comment, however he did fire her straight away. It seems that Fox didn’t make too many friends on the film set, you may remember one particular letter posted on Bay’s website which said:

“Michael found this shy, inexperienced girl, plucked her out of total obscurity thus giving her the biggest shot of any young actresses’ life.

“He told everyone around to just trust him on his choice. He granted her the starring role in ‘Transformers’, a franchise that forever changed her life; she became one of the most googled and oogled women on earth. She was famous! She was the next Angelina Jolie, hooray! Wait a minute, two of us worked with Angelina – second thought – she’s no Angelina. You see, Angelina is a professional.

“We know this quite intimately because we’ve had the tedious experience of working with the dumb-as-a-rock Megan Fox on both Transformers movies (sic).”

Not too complementary at all. On the other hand everyone has been singing Huntington-Whiteley’s praises, so we’ll just have to see the film to decide who is better.

Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon, minus Megan Fox, will reach UK cinemas on June 29 with our very own Huntington-Whiteley.

Check out the trailer below

Reboots are common, but there are certain films that it’s best not to touch. Die Hard, Indiana Jones, The Godfather, Star Wars, oh, and Jurassic Park. The reason you don’t reboot these franchises is because they are fine as they are.

It’s not the X-Men franchise, where the films are decent but could be easily remade and improved on – the Jurassic Park films are legendary, and most especially the first two (similar to Terminator, another untouchable franchise… well, it used to be). So to remake them runs the risk of a giant like Spielberg effectively trampling all over his own work in favour of a film that won’t be guaranteed to inspire the same amount of awe, terror and excitement that the original films managed in spades.

Nothing’s set in stone at present; nothing ever is, when it comes to remakes and reboots, as the controversy of committing to something so blasphemous usually renders the project inert after a few short months. Then again, it’s not a new rumour, the web tells me, but Spielberg’s direct involvement with the project lends it a worrying level of credibility. More on this as it develops.