It has been three days since an uncompleted version of X-Men Origins: Wolverine was leaked onto the internet by someone who now has the FBI hunting them down like the scum they are. (I’m sure they haven’t been sleeping very well. The guy who leaked The Hulk apparently got around 7 years in jail). In that time we have had a statement from 20th Century Fox on the matter, and now Fox Entertainment Co-Chairman Tom Rothman has spoken out about the leak. From Entertainment Weekly:

“The version that went out is unfinished. It’s about 10 minutes shorter, doesn’t have key scenes, it wasn’t edited, and none of the effects shots were in any remotely final form,” Rothman tells EW. “It’s a complete misrepresentation of the film and is deeply unfair to the people who have worked on it for years.”

“The picture is not the kind of movie people get the whole experience of by watching on their computer. But other than The Hulk, I don’t think a movie with this kind of anticipation has been stolen. And it’s also a big deal because of how early it is.” Meaning, there’s a whole month before the movie is in theaters, and that gives fans a long time to get their fill of X-Men and move on.

Rothman is touting a bunch of footage shot in Canada earlier this year that he says is not even included in the version online. And he insists that both he and Hugh Jackman have vowed to stop at nothing to get the movie out to as many fans as possible. “Hugh was heartbroken and hurt when he found out. He’s lived with this thing for 10 years. But he’s also a man and knows that life isn’t fair, and is more determined than ever,” Rothman says. “Hugh and I exchanged e-mails: Basically, we’re not going to let the bastards win. But we didn’t use the word ‘bastards.’ That’s a slightly sanitized version.”

Whether you are a fan of Fox and Rothman or not, no studio deserves to have their movie leaked to the masses when people have been working on it for the past two years. It is too early to say what impact this will have on the box office. I suspect the majority of people who have downloaded the leak are either X-Men fans or people who download movies on a regular basis. The fans will go and see it on the big screen regardless (most likely multiple times), and those who download often probably wouldn’t have paid to see it anyway. I think this leak will have little impact on the average moviegoer, who will probably see it based on the trailers and/or their familiarity with the X-Men franchise. Whatever happens, Fox will probably be ploughing more effort into marketing than previously planned as the release date nears.

In other Wolverine news, director Gavin Hood spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about rumors regarding on-set clashes between him and Tom Rothman. He says that while they did had disagreements, it never came to full blown arguments and the differences were settled with ‘dignity and sincerity’. Watch below:

I suspect this was filmed before the leak, which is probably why there is no mention of it. Like Hugh, i’m sure Gavin Hood was angry and disappointed about the leak. Directors await the day that their movie will be released to the public and everyone can be entertained and give their opinion on it (whether it be good or bad). It is a huge shame someone had go and ruin it!

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In an interview with IESB.net Fox Chairman Tom Rothman was asked if rumours of a possible Deadpool spin-off were true.

Tom Rothman: Yes and no, I mean, Deadpool is an integral part of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, we are in the process now, of doing all the CG work to create that character at an A +++ level, that’s being done in truly as state of the art fashion as possible…

IESB: Scarring and all?

Tom Rothman: It will be very rewarding for the fans, let’s put it that way. It’s a high level endeavor because he figures importantly in the movie, so whether he’ll spin off into his own movie, if that’s what you’re asking, I don’t know the answer. We will have to see.

One of the main reasons Ryan Reynolds was cast in X-Men Origins: Wolverine was most likely to set up the character for possible spin-offs. Reynolds is a big enough actor to lead his own movies, so he must have took the small-to-medium sized role with the hint that more could be coming further down the line.

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A few weeks ago we got word that James Cameron’s Avatar would cost between $250 – 300 million, which is not the cheapest of movies by any means. However, IESB recently spoke to Fox co-chairman Tom Rothman and he revealed that despite the budget talk, it is not the most expensive movie Fox has made.

I won’t comment on the exact budget except to say that as always with Jim [Cameron] everything is misreported, everything is exaggerated, because he is larger than life and so everything surrounding him tends to be larger than life. While it’s obviously an expensive movie, it’s not an unprecedented expensive movie and it’s not even the most expensive movie we’ve made at the company and certainly not close to the most expensive movie that’s been made in the business recently.

He then went on to say that if Avatar makes huge numbers next December, we could be getting a sequel.

Jim Cameron tends to make hits and if the movie is a hit then this is the beginning, certainly for both the use of the technology and the work, it’s not going to stop here. So, there’s long term value to it as well.

IESB: So, potentially, this is a franchise?

TR: If it does well, yes, absolutely, in terms of an arena a whole new world. But for us, it isn’t any of that, it isn’t even the technology, it isn’t even the look and the world all of which is the coolest shit I’ve ever seen, it isn’t even any of that, it’s that it’s a great story. It’s just a great story. You read the story and you are gripped by every page, it’s just a great, original story with tremendously, classic emotional value. So, at the end of the day, that’s really what we’re here for, to try and make great stories when you can find them.

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According to Hollywood Elsewhere X-Men Origins: Wolverine has been having some behind the scenes drama involving director Gavin Hood and Fox CEO Tom Rothman. Lots of movie news sites have been posting it, however, it is full of crap and I will tell you why.

They start off with:

This is a second-hand but reliably sourced story about the currently-shooting Wolverine movie,

Wolverine actually finished filming over 2 months ago. To prove it here is an article by The Daily Telegraph talking about the wrap party. It even has images of Hugh Jackman and his wife dressed in 70′s costumes and has quotes from them thanking the cast and crew for all their hard work. That puts the ‘reliably sourced story’ well and truly in the crapper.

Anyway, here’s what they say the big drama is all about.

There was/is a huge Wolverine set being recently used. I’m not even sure which lot it was built on, but the look or mood of the set is, according to a source who was told Hood’s view of things, supposed to be on the dark, dinghy and somber side. I only know what I was told, but the basics are that Hood was away from the set for whatever reason (shooting something else, taking a day or two off), and when he returned to the big somber set he was shocked to find that it had been repainted top to bottom on Rothman’s orders. The murky-scuzzy vibe was gone, and a brighter and less downish look had taken its place.

Rothman redecorated? That’s the best they could come up with? If Rothman wanted to make the movie lighter he would have raised those concerns during the scripting process, he wouldn’t wait until director Gavin Hood conveniently goes off set for a few days to make a move. I am also sure Tom Rothman (however much of an ass he can be) is far to busy to care about what colour a set is.

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