jason reitman
Big Screen
At Summer’s End, Hollywood Counts The Money
1:46AM Richard Rushfield | After the orgy end, the hard work begins. There are vomitoriums to be scrubbed and receipts for Transformers 2 to be counted. The summer belonged to Michael Bay and Megan Fox, but this week belongs to the accountants. More »
Diablo Cody, The People’s Oscar Winner, Will Gladly Sign Your Testisatchel
3:00AM Seth | Looking for something to do tonight? Juno screenwriter/ unhealthy-Defamer -preoccupation topic Diablo Cody is curating the New Beverly schedule for the next two weeks, in a programme she calls MONDO DIABLO: Season of the Bitch!. “Call it a festival, a season, or just TWO SOLID WEEKS OF FUCKING RAD SHIT,” she writes on her MySpace blog. The fun kicks off tonight with a Reitman family reunion, as both Ivan and Jason will be on hand to answer all your Stripes and Thank You for Smoking-related questions. To sweeten the pot—as if that fucking rad shit-filled pot needed sweetening—Cody has offered to sign your Juno DVDs and Blu-Rays, or your scrotum: More »
Diablo Cody Brings the Poetry of Baby Batter One Step Closer to the Mainstream
6:10AM Defamer Hollywood | Having flirted with dangerous levels of underexposure since winning her Best Screenplay Oscar a little over a month ago, Diablo Cody is back with a double-barreled blast of creative miracles. First up, The Hollywood Reporter notes that Cody’s long-rumoured comedy series The United States of Tara — starring Toni Collette as the title character afflicted with multiple personalities — is nearing a full-season order from Showtime. We can handle this without much difficulty — and by “handle” we mean “believe,” because the second project has the calendar-conscious skeptic in us praying for an April Fool’s Day revelation: “Juno B-Sides: Almost Adopted Songs,” a 15-track collection boasting a ditty performed by star Ellen Page, will debut exclusively through iTunes for a suggested list price of $9.99 on April 8, distributor Rhino Records said. Page performs ‘Zub Zub,’ a song written by the film’s Oscar-winning screenwriter, Diablo Cody, for a scene that was eventually cut for time. Page’s character bemoans her fate with such lines as “he filled me with baby batter, then we ate some orange tic tacs after.” More »
Jim Carrey On Board To Muck Up Jason Reitman’s Winning Streak
6:38AM Seth | Jason Reitman will direct Jim Carrey in Pierre Pierre for Fox Atomic, a “politically incorrect story centers on a self-indulgent French nihilist who transports a stolen painting from Paris to London.” The challenging role will require Carrey to stretch as never before, with several scenes written to be spoken through the ass in fluent French. [Variety] Seth Rogen, meanwhile, is attached to Warner Bros.’s Observe and Report, about “a deluded, self-important head of mall security who squares off in a turf war against the local cops.” We don’t know why. We just think he can do this. [Variety] More »
‘It’s As If I Had Swallowed Some Fireworks’: Oscar Nominees React
3:36AM Seth | Still reeling from the Kathy Batesiest nominations announcement ever, we’re left entirely encouraged that the 80th annual Academy Awards brings with it a Best Picture race containing at least two extremely worthwhile nominees. (We realize we’re supposed to be impartial observers, but…No Country for everything! Included Best Animated Short and the Irving G. Thalberg!). But enough about us–this is the nominees’ morning! It’s time for a reactions round-up: Michael Moore: “If I’m fortunate enough to stand on that stage again, I will be true to myself and very gracious and grateful for the acknowledgement, but I would start by finishing the last 10 seconds of the previous speech.” [Variety] Tom Wilkinson: “I had forgotten about the nominations and was walking the dog. Then someone told me to turn on the TV and I saw it. I got this character from the start.” [Variety] More »
7:38AM Defamer Hollywood | An interesting debate has erupted over at our East Coasted sibling site Gawker over the relative merits of Juno, the hippest, sassiest, teen-pregnanciest movie ever! While we don’t get it at all–it was twice as adorable as Little Miss Sunshine, at least–you still may want to take a look. And for counterpoint, we offer director Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody, providing commentary over a scene that helps you understand why it all works so well. [Gawker, Slashfilm] More »
Trade Roundup: An Appropriately Dark Awards Season Awaits
7:00AM Defamer Hollywood | · This year’s Oscar contenders display a “bleak, even nihilistic worldview,” a largely coincidental development as all were put into production long before Hollywood’s collective spirits were darkened by the ongoing labour Armageddon. Should the strike drag on into February, look for replacement host Ryan Seacrest to provide an appropriately somber tone to the proceedings. [THR] · The Pinkett-Smith family is getting together to make the drama The Human Contract, a film Jada is directing and writing and Will is executive producing. No role is specified for precocious son Jaden, though he may eventually be awarded an associate producer credit for secretly punching up the script during trips to the set with mum and dad. [ Variety] More »
