Earlier this month we reported McG’s next project, a romantic comedy titled This Means War. Due to “creative concerns” and the fact that Todd Phillips‘ Hangover sequel is set to shoot in the fall, soon after McG’s July start date, it looks like Bradley Cooper has dropped out [EW].

This Means War is the tale of two best friends, inseparable since childhood, who fall in love with the same woman (Witherspoon). The two men’s bond disintegrates and their ensuing battle escalates to mammoth proportions, with New York City demolished in their wake.”

Good riddance. The project, which has been floating around Hollywood for over 10 years, seems like typical schlock. The synopsis sounds a bit too big for it’s own good and I would rather see Cooper take on more interesting projects.

Were you looking forward to Cooper in McG’s next film? Are you glad he moved on to the next Hangover?

According to Deadline Hollywood, Terminator 2: Judgment Day co-writer William Wisher has apparently written a 24 page script treatment for Terminator 5 and a 4 page outline for Terminator 6. The treatment is described by Deadline as:

Wisher’s 2-picture construct takes place in a post-apocalyptic battleground, and factors in an element of time travel that allows for Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese to interact beyond their single fateful meeting when he traveled back in time to protect her in the original film. Wisher has created a role for Arnold Schwarzenegger that is as surprising as his shift from villain in the first film, to John Connor’s bodyguard in the second. Schwarzenegger wouldn’t be needed until the final film, which wouldn’t shoot until after he ends his term as California Governor. And who wouldn’t want to see Linda Hamilton back in aerobic top fitness form as Sarah Connor?

There are several new villains, and plenty of firepower. For instance, a swarm of “Night Crawlers,” 4 1/2-foot tall border sentries that are set like mines to spring up out of the ground and ambush rebel fighters with 10 MM pistols built into their wrists, and fingers and feet that are razor sharp. Also fresh off the Skynet assembly line are new shape-shifting cyborgs that can morph together in Transformers-like mode, and are more lethal than anything we’ve seen in previous Terminator installments.

It is unknown if Wisher is going to actually be following through with these treatments and turning them into the actual shooting script but it sure is a nice thought. It is also unknown if Terminator Salvation director McG is returning. Keep checking back with The Film Stage for more on this developing story.

Do you like Wisher’s treatment?

Call it a shot at financial salvation? After three studio-supported box office near-misses (Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, We Are Marshall, Terminator Salvation), director McG is setting up to discover his softer side.

The film’s called This Means War, starring Reese Witherspoon and Bradley Cooper to be produced by Fox. McG, Witherspoon and Cooper are all un-signed to the project, however.

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With official news that Rob Marshall is directing Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides with Johnny Depp just out in the open comes further news that Disney’s McG-steered Captain Nemo film is dead in the water, with no McG or start date or cast to speak of (not that there was ever a cast). The film was set to start filming in February. [Variety] Read the full story

According to The LA Times the rights to The Terminator franchise which are currently owned by the now bankrupt Halcyon Holding Group controlled by Derek Anderson and Victor Kubicek are up for sale again. Since Terminator is Halycon’s biggest asset it is clear this is being done to cover their debt now that they are in chapter 11. The rights are on sale for $60 million which is over twice the amount that Anderson and Kubicek payed for the original rights in 2007. This will create a bidding war among studios since The Terminator is still a hot item. It is unclear at this point however how this will effect the timing of another sequel.

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Screenwriter Randall Walace has just been brought on to do rewrites for McG’s next film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The first draft of the script was penned by Justin Marks, the writer behind Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li. Wallace’s pervious work includes Braveheart, Pearl Harbor, and he also directed We Were Soldiers. It was always speculated that McG would helm another Terminator sequel before 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, but a sequel to Terminator Salvation seems unlikely to happen anytime soon.

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This weekend the fourth installment of the Terminator franchise Terminator Salvation was released, but has received an extremely negative response. The film is currently tracking at 34 percent over at Rotten Tomatoes. Skeptics have been calling it “dumb” and they say it lacks “depth”. If you’ve read my review then you know that I rather enjoyed it and found many aspects of the film to be quite impressive, most notably and surprisingly McG’s direction. The lackluster response not just from critics, but also a few members of the fan-base comes off illogical and hypocritical.

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Terminator Salvation sets out to get this franchise back on track after a lackluster installment, and it succeeds on some levels. The first two films are landmarks in story telling and special effects. They were original films with unique ideas, while third film heavily lacked those ingredients. Although there is not much originality to be found here, the film still manages to be a fun entertaining action film.

Set in post-apocalyptic 2018, the film focuses on John Connor, the future leader of the resistance. After encountering Marcus Wright, a mysterious machine, Conner must decide whether to trust him or not while Skynet prepares it’s big attack. Connor and Marcus must band together to get to the heart of Skynet and to foil there plans which involve Connor’s destiny, Kyle Reese’s fate, and the secret of Marcus’s purpose.

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With the release of the fourth installment in the Terminator franchise, Terminator Salvation upon us, news is emerging that the films distributors may be having a change.  A story in Variety reports that distributor MGM may take the opportunity to snatch up the rights for the Terminator franchise from  the fourth films distributor Warner Brothers.

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By Jack Giroux

2008 was a great summer for the movies. Good entertainment was had, and not just dumb popcorn movies for once. We got The Dark Knight, Wall-E, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Iron Man, Tropic Thunder, and Pineapple Express. This summer is even going to be better. Although the start was a bit shaky with Wolverine, Star Trek kicks it off right this weekend. Here are the top 15 stand out films this summer:

15- Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen

Release Date- June 24th

Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen will inevitably offer no more then a lot of explosions and CGI, but with robots. While the first film wasn’t a landmark of any kind, and mostly dumb, it was fun none-the-less. The 147 minute running time for the new one is a bit bothersome, but long running times are fine when the story calls for it. My only question is do we really need to see robots fighting for that long? Its a Michael Bay movie, there will only be good action, nothing more. Even the length of the first movie was a problem, the last thirty minutes turned into nothing but repetitive action. Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen will without a doubt be a fun action movie, even if it extends its welcome.

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