The Wall Street Journal has learned the main plot of the new Toy Story film:
In Pixar’s coming movie Toy Story 3, Woody the cowboy and his toy-box friends are dumped in a day-care center after their owner, Andy, leaves for college.
The sdtuio will re-release Disney Digital 3-D versions of Toy Story on October 2nd 2009 and Toy Story 2 on February 12th 2010 to celebrate the 3D-produced third film’s release on June 18th 2010.
Cary Elwes has been cast in Robert Zemeckis’ A Christmas Carol alongside Jim Carrey, Bob Hoskins, Colin Firth, Gary Oldman and Robin Wright Penn. Elwes will play multiple roles in the performance capture/Disney digital 3-D film. Carrey will play Ebenezer Scrooge, the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present and the Ghost of Christmas Future. Walt Disney Pictures is planning a November 6, 2009 release.
Nicolas Cage, Steve Buscemi, Tracy Morgan are set for the lead voices in Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer’s live-action/CG family feature G-Force says Reuters. The story follows a group of ultra-intelligent animal commandoes who work for a government agency trying to prevent an evil billionaire from taking over the world. Cage will play Speckles, a mole; Buscemi will portray Bucky, a hamster; and Morgan will voice Blaster, a guinea pig. Bill Nighy and Will Arnett have joined the human cast as an industrialist and an FBI agent respectively. Oscar-winning visual effects innovator Hoyt Yeatman makes his directorial debut on the project. Zach Galifianakis, Kelli Garner, Gabriel Casseus and Jack Conley also star and production is currently under way in Los Angeles.
Andy Fickman will direct Walt Disney Pictures’ Witch Mountain, a remake of the classic 1975 adventure movie “Escape to Witch Mountain” says The Hollywood Reporter. The 1975 film was based on a science fiction novel by Alexander Key and followed a pair of siblings, endowed with paranormal powers, who go on the run from a diabolical group of men who wish to exploit their abilities. The brother and sister turn out to be extraterrestrials. The movie hatched a sequel and a made-for-TV movie. Matt Lopez wrote the current remake’s script.
Matt Dillon is in final talks to co-star in the Walt Disney Pictures comedy Old Dogs, says The Hollywood Reporter. Robin Williams, John Travolta and Kelly Preston already have boarded the film, which will be directed by Wild Hogs helmer Walt Becker. Written by David Diamond and David Weissman, the story revolves around a divorced father of 6-year-old twins and his womanizing best friend/business partner who have their hands full when they’re forced to care for the kids for two weeks. Dillon will play Barry, the overzealous leader of the summer camp where they take the kids. He is ultraconservative and thinks the two men (Williams, Travolta) are actually gay lovers who have adopted the twins. He keeps a sharp eye on the two at all times. Andrew Panay, Peter Abrams and Robert Levy are producing through their Tapestry Films banner.
Walt Disney Pictures has set release dates for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. The former will hit theaters on May 1, 2009 while the latter, an adaptation of the video game produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, opens on July 10, 2009.
The Walt Disney Studios has entered into an exclusive multi-year first look deal with Spider-Man creator and producer Stan Lee and his production company POW! Entertainment, it was announced by Dick Cook, chairman, The Walt Disney Studios. Under the terms of the agreement, Lee and his production company will develop and produce all forms of entertainment.
Walt Disney Pictures has bought an untitled adult treasure hunt spec script by Amy Pocha and Seth Cohen, says The Hollywood Reporter. Chris Bender and JC Spink’s Benderspink, Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot’s Offspring as well as Mason Novick are attached to produce. The story follows a group of childhood friends who reunite in their early 30s to seek out a treasure that they tried and failed to find as kids. The script is based on an original idea by Novick. Offspring’s Matthew Mizel brought the treasure hunt project to Kristin Burr at Disney. Mizel will act as a co-producer.
Disney has acquired the pitch Yosemite Three and will develop it as a comic vehicle for Tim Allen, says Variety. The writing team of Michael Carnes and Josh Gilbert will pen the script; Mandeville partners David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman produce. Allen will play a corporate employee who heads off on a company retreat. Bored with a mandated nature hike, he and two others hole up in a bar and are reported missing in Yosemite National Park. They longer they stay missing, the more popular they become in news reports.
Walt Disney Pictures has hired screenwriter David Benioff to bring his take to the long-gestating action project Gemini Man. Benioff will be doing a ground-up reworking of the story of an over-the-hill hitman forced to do battle with a younger clone of himself. The film will be produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, who boarded the project about nine months ago; Bruckheimer toppers Mike Stenson and Chad Oman will executive produce along with Angry Films’ Don Murphy. Jason Reed will act as creative executive for the studio.
