‘Conan’ Lands March 2011′; Jump Street’ Bumped Until March 2012 Which Means They’re Probably Waiting For Emma Stone
Just a few days after Universal Pictures blanketed the 2012 calendar with releases of “The Bourne Legacy,” Ron Howard’s “The Dark Tower,” “Snow White And The Huntsman,” plus Tom Hanks‘ “Larry Crowne” for July 2011, other studios started quickly following suit and are trying to carve out their territory for future weekends.
With Fox planting a June 22, 2012 stake in the ground for their “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” picture directed by Russian helmer Timur Bekmambetov, the holes in the 2011 and 2012 release calendars are starting to fill up.
Next in line is Sony who have chosen a March 16, 2012 date for their adaptation of the ’80s TV drama, “21 Jump Street” that will star Jonah Hill, and is being directed by “Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs” filmmakers Phil Lord and Chris Miller. The planned early 2011 shoot was possibly being pushed back a few months until would-be female lead Emma Stone was free (she’s about to be extremely busy with “Spider-Man“) and this 2012 release date (moved from August 2011) is a strong indication that the filmmakers indeed won’t be casting someone else and will wait until her Marc Webb-helmed Spidey chores are complete. Newcomer Julianne Hough, who will also star in the “Footloose” remake, also evidently has a role.
Next up is Lionsgate. Has their “Conan” remake always been a 3D film and always called “Conan 3D“? Or were we just not paying attention (entirely possible)? Either way, “Conan 3D” starring Jason Momoa, Rachel Nichols and Ron Perlman has now been slotted for a August 19, 2011 release. Directed by Marcus Nispel (he of the predilection for remakes including, “Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” and “Friday The 13th”) the film was clearly not shot in 3D, but like 90% of most tentpoles will be heading towards some post-conversion work. “Conan 3D” will have to battle it out against two other 3D films that weekend, “Fright Night” starring Anton Yelchin, Toni Collette and Colin Farrell and Robert Rodriguez‘s “Spy Kids 4: All The Time In The Wold” featuring Jessica Alba, Jeremy Piven and Joel McHale.
So far, the only competition for “21 Jump Street” is “Contraband” starring Mark Wahlberg and Kate Beckinsale.
