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Zack Snyder talks 300 sequel

Liam — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:04:34 +0000

Warner Bros. held a press conference recently to showcase the upcoming Blu-ray releases of Watchmen and 300. Zack Snyder, director of both movies, was in attendance and he spoke to ComingSoon.net about the 300 sequel that we heard details about last year.

“I know for a fact that Frank [Miller] is writing right now,” says Snyder, who explains that the plan is for Miller to create the story as a comic book first, “[He's] drawing away and seems to be knee-deep in it. I think he’s going to head back to Greece again and do another reconnaissance.”
With the first 300 having been created on a decidedly smaller budget than Watchmen, Snyder says that he probably wants the look and feel of a sequel to maintain that of 300, even though Miller’s notes promise a grander scale.
“I think we would use the same technology… I don’t want it to look too Star Wars-ian… Just from what [Miller] told me, it would be bigger as far as landscape and terrain. We’re going to see Athens and the Aegean and other places. There would be an opportunity for bigger visions, though I’d hope for the same aesthetic. The tech we used for ‘300′ was not a revolution. It’s basically what the weatherman has. Look, instead of Accuweather it’s Sparta… It’s going to be the same way, but on crazier steroids.”

Snyder has said in the past that he will definitely direct, and that it will take place between the Battle of Thermopylae and the Battle of Plataea, the battle that narrator Dilios is at while re-telling the story of King Leonidas and the Spartans to a new group of warriors at the end of 300.

Emily Browning replaces Amanda Seyfried in Sucker Punch

Liam — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 20:17:24 +0000

Emily Browning will be replacing Amanda Seyfried in Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch according to Hollywood Insider. Seyfried had received an offer to play the lead role as an insane asylum inmate who loses herself in a fantasy world where she dreams about escaping with her fellow inmates, but she had to decline due to scheduling conflicts with the fourth season of Big Love.

Browning is probably best known for playing Violet in Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events. Since then it looks like she has been focusing on getting an education and apparently turned down the role of Bella in Twilight. Now it seems she is getting back into the whole acting business with The Uninvited, which is being released next month, and now Sucker Punch.

Evan Rachel Wood, Vanessa Hudgens, Abbie Cornish, and Emma Stone are all still in talks to costar, and filming is expected to take place later this year.

Amanda Seyfried, Vanessa Hudgens in talks for Sucker Punch

Liam — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 01:57:20 +0000

With Watchmen getting closer to it’s release date, director Zack Snyder is setting up his next movie, Sucker Punch. Amanda Seyfried (Mama Mia), Vanessa Hudgens (High School Musical), Abbie Cornish (Stop-Loss), Evan Rachel Wood (The Wrestler), and Emma Stone (Superbad) are in talks to join the all-female cast.

From THR:

Set in the 1950s, “Punch” follows a girl who is confined to a mental institution by her stepfather, who intends to have her lobotomized in five days. While there, she imagines an alternative reality to hide her from the pain, and in that world, she begins planning her escape, needing to steal five objects to help get her out before she is deflowered by a vile man.
Seyfried would play Babydoll, the institutionalized girl. If deals are completed, the rest would play Seyfried’s fellow inmates who also travel into the alternate reality. Hudgens would play a character named Blondie, Cornish would play Sweet Pea, and Wood would play Rocket.
Snyder, who co-wrote the script with Steve Shibuya, has described the fantasy world as ” ‘Alice in Wonderland’ with machine guns,” blending such elements as dragons, B-52 bombers and brothels.

Sucker Punch has a release date of October 2010, however filming schedules are still being sorted out.

Hugh Jackman and Hugo Weaving lending voices to Guardians of Ga’Hoole

Liam — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 19:05:29 +0000

According to The Daily Telegraph Hugh Jackman and Hugo Weaving will be voicing characters in Zack Snyder’s Guardians of Ga’Hoole. The animated movie is based on a series of books written by Kathryn Lasky. The books are set in the Forest of Tyto where Barn Owls live in peace until their kingdom is threatened by an evil that could destroy their home. The script for the adaptation was written by John Orloff (A Mighty Heart) and John Collee (Happy Feet).

New Watchmen featurette makes us forget legal troubles…briefly

Liam — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 15:59:39 +0000

Warner Bros. have released a new Watchmen featurette which shows director Zack Snyder giving us an overview of some of the main characters in the film. It’s good to see Warner Bros still promoting this thing, despite the fact we do not know whether it will still be released in March or not. Anyhow, forget all the legal stuff for 4 minutes and watch the featurette below!

Watchmen Running Time

Liam — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 21:12:10 +0000

During an interview with SCI FI Wire Zack and Deborah Snyder, the husband-and-wife directing/producing team of Watchmen, revealed that the film’s final length hasn’t been approved yet, but that it is getting shorter.

“We’re getting really close,” producer Deborah Snyder said in a telephone interview on Nov. 18. “We’re at two hours and 35 minutes.”
Director Zack Snyder added: “The movie’s pretty long … compared to 300, which was an hour and 58 minutes. The director’s cut [of Watchmen] is about three hours and 10 minutes long. It has even more than the theatrical version as far as the detail that gets even closer to the graphic novel.”

I guess this means the Watchmen DVD will be well worth the money with more than 30 minutes of extra footage. However, i’m sure the fans would rather see the whole thing on the big screen.

Watchmen Case Reaching Climax

Liam — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 22:23:09 +0000

The huge legal battle between 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. will reach its climax on December 15th, according to amlawdaily. The two sides filed their motions last week, and the suit will come to a head during a hearing that could derail the release of Zack Snyder’s Watchmen movie.

The two sides take very different strategies in their motions filed this week. Warners comes out firing, saying Fox, even if it did once own a right of first refusal, gave it up by not exercising it for more than a decade while three different studios batted around possible “Watchmen” projects. They characterize Fox’s suit as a last-minute attempt to attach itself to a film that looks like it will be a hit. But later in their motion, the studio says it’s willing to accept a partial summary judgment ruling. What that means is unclear; it could mean that Fox will end up with a percentage of distribution rights or that Warners will pay Fox an unknown amount to secure full rights to the movie.
Fox, on the other hand, is going for a home run. They ask for nothing less than the sole right to produce “Watchmen” and distribute it in the U.S. and abroad.
The eyes of comic book geeks around the world will be on Judge Gary Feess’s courtroom in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California next month.

Second Watchmen Trailer!

Liam — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 01:19:23 +0000

A second trailer for Zack Snyder’s Watchman has made it’s way online. Personally I prefer the teaser because the music and visuals fitted so well, however this new trailer isn’t bad at all. There’s a lot of new scenes and footage for fans to feast their eyes on, and we get to hear Dr. Manhattan speak!

Watch it below!

300 Prequel/Sequel Details

Liam — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:28:36 +0000

It is well known know that a prequel/sequel to 300 will be happening, however, we haven’t heard what they plan to make it about. Well IESB spoke to Zack Snyder at a Watchmen preview today, and he revealed some interesting details on the possible story.

In short, Snyder says he’s spoken with Frank Miller who will be writing and drawing the graphic novel that the second film will be based on. Upon Miller’s completion of the book, then, and only then, will they delve into writing a script for the movie.
Snyder continued and said he would not have any input into the novel and wants it to be a creation of Miller’s 100%.
Snyder also said it will take place between the Battle of Thermopylae and the Battle of Plataea, the battle that narrator Dilios is at while re-telling the story of King Leonidas and the mighty Spartans to a new group of warriors at the end of 300.

Snyder also told IESB that would definitely direct this sequel/prequel and is looking forward to Miller’s completion of the book.

Zack Snyder Signs Deal With EA

Liam — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 16:36:18 +0000

Electronic Arts today announced that 300 and Watchmen director Zack Snyder will bring his unique vision to the development of three original EA games. Snyder will lead the creative direction of the games while working in partnership with the production team at EA Los Angeles.

Under the agreement with Cruel & Unusual Films, EA will own the intellectual properties and the game franchises will be developed, published and distributed worldwide by EA. The deal will then see Zack Snyder adapt the game franchises into moves.

“I think video games are cool because they offer an opportunity to tell a story in an entirely unique way,” said Zack Snyder. “Being a long time fan of the games EA creates, I look forward to collaborating with them.”

So far everything Snyder has touched has been badass, so I expect the same level of badass-ness with these games!