Good lord, Tim Roth is doing a lot of morphing lately. He de-aged himself in Youth Without Youth, became a weird ol' monster in The Incredible Hulk, and now he's getting his wings.
Variety reports that Roth is taking the title role in Skellig -- a UK production that will hit television screens next spring before getting a theatrical release. Based on the novel by David Almond, Skellig focuses on a boy in northern England who makes a surprising discovery. His parents have just bought a rundown house, and while investigating the shed out back, he finds a man/creature lying in the darkness who he decides to help. "Feeding him Chinese food and beer, the boy nurses the creature, who possesses magical powers, back to health."
It definitely sounds like an interesting story (read more about it here), and it's hard not to get intrigued at the thought of Roth as an angel, alongside the likes of Kelly MacDonald, Bill Milner (the cutie from Son of Rambow), and John Simm. The film has just started shooting in Cardiff.
In The Incredible Hulk, long-time character actor Tim Roth leaps onto summer's biggest stage as Emil Blonsky, a soldier brought in by General Ross (William Hurt) to hunt down Bruce Banner and bring him back alive. But when Blonsky learns that Banner isn't "just another fugitive," he begins to want the kind of power Banner has hidden deep within. Yet, with that power comes a very large price -- and if he's not careful enough, Blonsky could end up turning into an abomination. Cinematical managed to snag Roth for a few moments to ask him about the character and what it's like for him to be appearing in such a giant film, as well as whether he'd be down for Hulk sequels and more fun with his pal Quentin Tarantino.
Cinematical: Is it important to start the character in a very realistic fashion given the wild changes he goes through in Act III?
Tim Roth: Yeah, I think what's interesting -- and what was interesting about doing it -- was that there was a real arc to the character. He goes through many different versions of himself before he finally goes over the top in the end. So it would've been a little less intriguing for me as an actor if I had a couple of scenes in the beginning and then suddenly I'm the monster. Yeah, that would've been a little dull ... but it was really the opposite in this case, because we really got to develop the character and play around with different aspects. See him as he's becoming more addicted to this; I mean, it's kind of like the journey of a weird junkie in a way.
So I ask you this: Are we talking about a failure ... or an underrated movie that's been unjustly labeled a failure? It matters not, I suppose, because the arrival of the all-new The Incredible Hulk, Marvel (and Universal) hopes to leave the first Hulk cowering in a dusty vault somewhere. (Until the next DVD re-release, of course.) So while I felt a strange bit of resentment towards this "forget that first movie, let's get a do-over" procedure, I felt pretty confident about the second Hulk's chances. Director Louis Leterrier has shown some skill with action flicks like Unleashed and Transporter 2, the new cast (which includes Edward Norton, Tim Roth, Liv Tyler and William Hurt) was pretty impressive, and (best of all) the producers were making one simple promise from the outset: More action.
I just got off the phone with Tim Roth, who, of course, stars as Emil Blonsky/Abomination in The Incredible Hulk (due out on Friday). We'll post our entire interview later this week, along with two reviews of the new (and definitely improved) Hulk, but to whet your appetite, here are a few non Hulk-related nuggets from the man himself. When I asked Roth about Inglorious Bastards and how Quentin Tarantino claimed to be heading for pre-production, he had this to say: "It's something me and Quentin had talked about over the years, and I don't know what's happening. If Quentin wants me, I'm there. But it's been years and years in the making. It's gonna be fun, though. If it's coming from Quentin, it's gonna be fun. I'm perfectly happy to roll up; I don't even need to read the script. Just tell me where to stand."
Additionally, and I thought this was kinda fun, I asked Roth if there were any characters of his he'd like to revisit at some point down the line. That's when he replied, "I'd like to do the Pulp Fiction character." I asked if he'd talked with Tarantino about doing a spin-off flick with Pumpkin and Honey Bunny: "Yeah, we did -- we talked about it before, because he thought they would've been good in Natural Born Killers; those two characters. We've often talked about it -- day dreams -- about taking those characters and making a film around them."
What say you? Would you be up for a Pulp Fiction spin-off featuring Pumpkin and Honey Bunny?
With The Incredible Hulk out this Friday (June 13), stars Edward Norton, Liv Tyler and director Louis Leterrier sat down for another one of Moviefone's fabulous Unscripted segments. The great part about these Moviefone Unscripted sessions is that not only do the stars and filmmakers ask each other questions, but most of those questions are from you, the reader -- because you left them in the comments section of this very blog! OMG! But anyway, above you will find an exclusive clip from their chat (one you won't see over at Moviefone), where all three talk about the importance of getting "the eyes" right, since, as Liv says, they're "the window to the soul." And I totally agree, especially when it comes to CG characters like Hulk and Abomination. Interestingly enough, because of certain techniques used, the eyes on Hulk and Abomination are "pretty much" the eyes of stars Edward Norton and Tim Roth, according to Leterrier.
Warning: The above TV spot kinda spoils the Tony Stark cameo in The Incredible Hulk. Watch at your own risk.
A very smart new TV spot for The Incredible Hulk opens on a snippet of the scene featuring Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and General Ross (William Hurt), spoiling what, for many of your average moviegoers, would have been a giant surprise. Of course, those of us living out our days in internet movie geek land have known about the Stark cameo for awhile now -- and if you visited New York Comic Con earlier this year, you would've seen a good majority of the Stark scene during the Hulk panel.
But the question is: Should they have ruined the surprise for everyone right off the bat with this new commercial? I guess it depends on which side you're on. From a marketing standpoint, it's kinda brilliant and a great way to show moviegoers that both The Incredible Hulk and the wildly-successful Iron Man are connected in some way. And while many predict Hulk will not pull in Iron Man numbers, throwing that film's star in a trailer will certainly help Hulk give its Marvel counterpart a run for its money. Then again, some folks like to be surprised -- but what's to say the Stark cameo is the only surprise in the film? Oooohhh ... goosebumps! I'm seeing The Incredible Hulk in just a few hours from now and I'm stoked. Fingers crossed for Norton, Roth and the gang!
Now this is a blast from the past -- and a trailer that is sure to lure in the fans of the television show. It even has that misty 70's film quality, but it's probably just some effect of it being ripped to Flash. This Awaken trailer is apparently available at Best Buy as a bonus DVD -- their website is mum on the details, but I imagine if you buy a certain DVD or spend a gazillion dollars, it's tossed in your bag free.
I actually really like the look of this trailer. As I've stated previously, I'm not a huge Hulk fan and I was feeling pretty ho-hum about seeing it. But this makes it look fun! I do think the television show was a far better incarnation of the Hulk than the majority of his comic stories. If the movie sticks to that, or manages to combine the best of both, it will be a lot cooler. Not only will it leave the franchise somewhere to go, it will appeal to that magical cross section of moviegoers who remember the show, but couldn't care less about comics. It's too bad more of this "retro" footage didn't make it in the wide release trailer, because it would have sucked in more of those people for sure.
I know many of you are on the fence about this movie as much as I -- what do you think? Does this one excite you a bit more? If so, it was just in the nick of time, as The Incredible Hulk opens on June 13th.
A bunch of clips from the upcoming The Incredible Hulk have been scattered all over the Internet for Memorial Day weekend. We linked to both the MTV clip and Yahoo's clip the other day, and now there's another one up at MySpace (which also happens to be the same one IGN was carrying). The Yahoo one is the most spectacular because Hulk fashions boxing gloves out of a common, every day object. He may not say "Hulk Smash!" but here, action speaks louder.
In this clip, Hulk goes up against Emil Blonsky before he becomes Abomination, but after he's injected with that super power serum. That's why he can do some pretty cool things, while not looking like a monster. As with the MTV clip, we're still on that big field and there's one heckuva fight going down.
At least there's plenty of smashing in this version! If nothing else, it will be much more exciting than Lee's. We'll find out June 13th.
A new trailer for The Incredible Hulkhas just arrived online, and I'm definitely diggin' it. This is the trailer currently playing before Speed Racer, and, is it just me, or is that a little tease of the classic TV show's music there at the end. Have we heard any of that yet? Maybe I missed it in another trailer, but I first noticed it just now -- and, man, did it take me back.* This new preview gives us a whole lotta Hulk and no Abomination -- just Hulk running and smashing things, like those two cars he's holding up at the end. (Does insurance cover a monster destroying your automobile?) The Incredible Hulk stars Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, Tim Roth, William Hurt and Tim Blake Nelson. The film marks Marvel's second self-financed flick, following the very successful Iron Man, and it was directed by Louis Leterrier (The Transporter, The Transporter 2). So now that you've gotten a good look at three trailers and tons of images from the film, whaddya think? Worth a shot? As good or better than Iron Man? Check our our pretty massive Incredible Hulk gallery, and sound off below ...
*The music is also featured at the end of the second trailer; thanks to Peter for pointing that out.
A whole crop of new images from The Incredible Hulk have hit the net, including the one above showing some assistant dude (Tim Blake Nelson) holding the super serum that's eventually injected into Tim Roth (which, of course, gave him super powers and turned him into Abomination). Ah, but those of us at New York Comic Con were told that this serum is, in fact, the same kind used to create Captain America. Additionally, First Showing is running around claiming there's a shot of Captain America's shield on Tony Stark's workbench in Iron Man -- and, while they've watched the scene several times and say it's true, I don't believe anyone from the Favreau camp has confirmed this yet.
Now thatIron Man has literally destroyed the box office, it will be interesting to see how their second self-financed film does when The Incredible Hulk hits theaters on June 13. The two scenes we watched at Comic Con were enough to convince me that this version of Hulk will definitely kick a bunch of ass. That's a given. But will it succeed with fans? (Something tells me there's already a whole bunch of people who will hate this film regardless, but that's their problem -- we'll certainly go in with an open mind and an open heart). Definitely check out all those new images (mixed with some older ones) in the gallery below.
Cinematical was just sent this exclusive clip from the upcoming Youth Without Youth DVD, starring Tim Roth, Alexandra Maria Lara, Bruno Ganz and Andre M. Hennicke. Produced, written and directed by the legendary Francis Ford Coppola, Youth Without Youth follows linguistics professor Dominic Matei (Roth) who, in 1938, gets struck by a bolt of lightning and starts aging backwards, from 70 to 40. There's seemingly no limit to the wonder and love he can find in his new youth. He pursues lost dreams, endless knowledge and the secrets of life until his secret is discovered. Now he must use his increased intelligence to keep his powerful secret safe from the wicked powers that would use it for evil. The above behind-the-scenes clips shows how the filmmakers went about aging Tim Roth through make-up and other wacky techniques. (And, personally, I just love Tim Roth in anything -- so I'd watch something like this a bunch of times.) Here's a question: What's the first thing you'd do if you started aging backwards?
Youth Without Youth arrives on DVD and Blu-ray High-Def on May 13th.
In case you haven't heard by now,Iron Man took home a whopping $201 million worldwide over the weekend, with that amount pretty much split right down the middle between domestic and international. Not only is it the second best non-sequel opening ever, but it also proved that Marvel (now self-financing their films) is in it to win it ... big time. Fortunately, folks won't have to wait long to see if Marvel will strike gold twice -- in a little over a month from now (on June 13, to be exact), The Incredible Hulk will debut in theaters. Last time a Hulk film was in theaters, Ang Lee directed and Marvel did not self-finance the flick. After seeing what Iron Man did to the box office over the weekend (and what fans thought of the film), something tells me we're in for a completely different kind of re-boot this time around.
Right from the start, folks haven't been giving The Incredible Hulk a fair shake, myself included. It took a long time to get those first images, and even longer for a trailer. But now that the film's marketing campaign is in full swing, I'm starting to see the fans turn. I witnessed the full "field scene" from the trailer at New York Comic Con last month, and I can assure you it looked awesome. Everyone is talking up the Iron Man cast, but have you noticed that The Incredible Hulk cast is just as good (not to mention I think Tim Roth will play a better villain than Jeff Bridges)? And now that Iron Man killed, does that change anything for The Incredible Hulk? Do more people now want to see it? Are expectations higher? Sound off below in the poll and in the comments section ...
The picture above takes place toward the very end of the scene they showed us yesterday at New York Comic Con, and it comes toward the end of a battle between armed forces and the Hulk. This scene is also predominantly featured in the new trailer which will play before Iron Man in about two weeks. Essentially, the military have Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) on the run. They chase him into this glass tunnel, lock both entrances on either side and launch two smoke-type bombs into the area. Outside, jeeps and a slew of troops gather awaiting Banner's transformation. They want this monster and they want him bad.
Suddenly, as the smoke builds up, we see Banner press his hands against the glass -- his eyes go green, his face fighting the beast within. Smoke fills the screen; it's quiet. Everyone waits. Then ... BOOM! -- the Hulk crashes out of the glass onto this huge field, running for his life. Several jeeps give chase, guns firing from every corner of the screen -- bullets ripping into Hulk's skin; he bumps one jeep and the vehicle rolls over. He gets to another one, picks it up and proceeds to smash it until the thing is in a million pieces. Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), who at this point has been given a few injections of that super serum, heads out to where Hulk is. Hulk tries to beat down Blonsky, but the latter has an extra bounce in his step. For some reason, he's not like the others -- he can move pretty fast. After a brief cat and mouse, the two approach each other (seen above). Blonsky says, "Is that all you got?" Hulk looks down, winds his leg back and goes to deliver a giant kick to Blonsky's stomach ... and we ... cut to black.
Davis has just reported in from The Incredible Hulk panel, where the new trailer played to a pretty impressed audience. Davis says it "looks awesome" and will be writing a detailed description of it later tonight. The rest of us will have to wait until it premieres in front of Iron Man.
Lou Ferrigno and Tim Roth were both in attendance -- and Ferrigno claimed he was the voice of the new big-screen Hulk, but it wasn't clear if he was joking or not. If that's true, the television homage has stopped being a homage -- it's a remake! But hey, you won't hear us complaining, the TV show was pretty awesome. On Ferrigno's part, it's said to be an actual part, not a cameo and it's "funny."
The panel audience got a special treat that we in theatres (most likely) won't -- after the trailer, they showed the much-discussed cameo that Tony Stark makes in Hulk. Stark is sitting with General 'Thunderbolt' Ross in a bar -- and Ross is completely drunk. Stark says "I hear you've got an unusual problem." "You should talk," replies Ross. Stark then shoots back, all smooth: "You should listen."
Additionally, Empire has two new stills from Hulk out -- one is posted above to provide a fresh illustration to some fun news. I hope they don't get mad at me for using it. Hey, buy the special Hulk issue when it hits stands! 3-D cover.
UPDATE: Erik here -- new Dark Knight trailer just premiered to a thunderous applause. The trailer will be available "in about two weeks" and from what I gather it will come via the viral marketing campaign (we were told to hunt it down from here). Trailer looks great -- lots of Joker dialogue, lot more of Harvey Dent and a possible prelim glimpse at Dent's transformation into Two Face -- though we do not see Two Face in the trailer. Dent does have one awesome line in the trailer; he says, "You either die a hero or you live long enough to become the villain." Once again, we were told everyone will see the trailer in about two weeks from now. The Dark Knight arrives in theaters on July 18.
The first official poster for this summer'sThe Incredible Hulk has just arrived over at IGN (head over there for a larger version). As you can see from the image above, the Hulk is trying to capture Edward Norton using the muscles in his back. Personally, this is exactly what I imagined the poster to look like -- some sort of combo between the green monster and Bruce Banner, with a bunch of helicopters and tanks shooting in the background. I expect a few character posters (one with the Hulk, one with Abomination, etc) to follow in the coming weeks.
Despite its solid cast, The Incredible Hulk has enjoyed (or maybe not) its share of controversy since word of the film first hit the net. An obvious re-do (following Ang Lee's not-so-successful effort a few years back), rumors have spread about Norton's control-freak mentality; how Zak Penn was quietly replaced as writer and how studio folks have clashed with Norton over the final product. Me? I still think it looks pretty cool -- and dammit if Tim Roth doesn't rock out as the villain in this movie!
What do you think? Does The Incredible Hulk have the, er, strength to compete with this summer's other big whales?
Good lord, Tim Roth is doing a lot of morphing lately. He de-aged himself in Youth Without Youth, became a weird ol' monster in The Incredible Hulk, and now he's getting his wings..jpg)
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