In recent weeks, HBO has been spamming the world with Snow White and the Huntsman repeats, so it might be worth revisiting the latest on Universal’s plans for the film’s sequel. The last we heard is they would not be spinning off the huntsman character as the plan would instead be to bring back Kristen Stewart in the role of Snow White with Chris Hemsworth supporting. We have not exactly seen anything in regards to how the script is going; however, the studio seems confident that the franchise will return to the big screen by 2015.
They made this known at CinemaCon where the studio also revealed plans for a Pitch Perfect sequel releasing around the same time. I have reported on this type of thing for a while now enough to say that we should believe it when we see it as all of this is script contingent. One person, in a room, using a studio’s notes– if he/she fails to make something brilliant, the whole thing falls apart or even worse, the script is great but no director wants to touch it. That said, let’s be very cautious in regards to the Snow White follow-up considering it barely made its money back ($400 million gross on a $170 million budget.) Universal will not want to move on a lackluster gimmick.
THR ran an interesting Q&A with Universal chairman Adam Fogelson that is enlightening to say the least. While the information he provided was pretty much of the ‘we already knew that variety,’ there was a few things we previously never heard that are worth the quick mention, so let’s get into it.
First off, Fogelson commented on the surprise success of Identity Thief which is now at $77 million after two weekends. He kind of caught us off guard though because we were not expecting a sequel, yet that is apparently an option. Universal is said to be hot on the idea of re-teaming Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy for another go at it although the takeaway should be less literal. This may more likely lead to another Bateman-McCarthy feature down the road and not exactly an Identity Thief Part II. Continue Reading
Just a heads up on some breaking news going into the holiday, it seems as if Universal has opted to keep Kristen Stewart on the Snow White and the Huntsman franchise after all. The actress recently spoke with The Playliston the topic while promoting her new indie film On the Road saying, “it’s gonna be fuckin’ amazing. No, I’m so excited about it, it’s crazy.”
This still does not change the fact that Rupert Sanders could be out of the director’s chair after he successfully launched this property on a shortened time table. That said, we definitely want to hear more especially in regards to the casting of the film’s central antagonist before we call it a win.
Snow White and the Huntsman starred Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, and Sam Claflin. The film launched in June and rode a $56.2 million three-day opening to $396 million worldwide on a budget of $170 million.
Despite the fact that Universal is in complete denial about ditching Kristen Stewart, The Hollywood Reporter is sticking by their story from earlier in the week that had Snow White and the Huntsman turning into a solo starring vehicle for Chris Hemsworth. Since no one else could get confirmation (and their chief rival Deadline called their reporting one comprised of guesswork,) THR decided to post a defensive article today about how not only is it true, but also how the studio has every reason to do it and deny their decision to move on.
The trade publication believes that the $10 million plus 5% back-end Stewart would garner from a sequel is enough to say no to; however, there are also clear marketing concerns (even before Stewart’s affair with director Rupert Sanders) that makes her pretty much underwhelming force in the property. Research apparently showed that Hemsworth was appealing enough to both men and women to anchor the film on its own and Stewart may have actually worked against the franchise’s launch as she is considered to be a polarizing figure with her core audience not unlike Shia LaBeouf. Continue Reading
In perhaps the biggest news story of the day, despite Universal’s possession of an option for a Kristen Stewart reprisal in the Snow White and the Huntsman sequel, they have decided to drop her from the franchise going forward. This news follows tabloid-related events in recent weeks that had the Twilight starlit admitting to an affair with franchise director Rupert Sanders, but it might not be a direct result of what has happened.
Rumors started to surface well before the launch of Snow White and the Huntsman that Chris Hemsworth’s Huntsman character would be taking center stage in any such sequel offering. The Thor actor was a major draw in the production and many consider his presence responsible for a startling 50/50 gender split with the film’s audience that many thought would be impossible given the source material. Hemsworth is optioned up for an undisclosed number of films in the franchise, so he undoubtedly will be returning. Continue Reading
In what has to be the most strange and disappointing piece of entertainment news out there today, there seems to be a bit of a tabloid sensation building around the relationship between Kristen Stewart and her Snow White and the Huntsman director Rupert Sanders. While I generally avoid talking about such fodder, the Twilight star and now the former commercial director have since confirmed the speculation, thus suggesting there is obviously going to be some huge ramifications surrounding Universal’s newest franchise–something that cannot be ignored.
This is in reference to Snow White and the Huntsman’s sequel which is currently being written by David Koepp (Spider-Man.) Details have been hush, hush but it looks as if early rumors that it would be a spin-off of the Huntsman character might be overblown especially after seeing confirmation the Stewart and Hemsworth are both contractually obligated to return. Given that half the film’s audience was female, it would be kind of senseless to drop her with no obvious replacement. Continue Reading
One week ago, Snow White and the Huntsman hit theaters which a flurry as the Chris Hemsworth-lead feature quickly found itself the lone top dog at the box office, usurping the reigning champion Men in Black III. Continue Reading
As I have been reporting on the past few weeks, Universal is hell bent on crafting a sequel for Snow White and the Huntsman whether it be a legitimate second effort or a Huntsman spin-off. Continue Reading
It has been quite the year for Chris Hemsworth, so to perhaps celebrate the actor took a victory lap at The Tonight Show last night where he promoted his latest film, Snow White and the Huntsman. The film actually won top film at the box office over the weekend by bringing in over $56 million despite a lack of 3D. While this is a far cry from The Avengers’ $200+ million debut a month ago, this number still shattered expectations for Universal’s latest blockbuster property. It is with that in mind that Hemsworth was probably shipped off to the show in order to ensure that the movie does not get buried by Prometheus come Friday.
Here is the interview in which the actor talked about almost quitting acting and getting punched by Kristen Stewart on the set of Snow White.
Yet another major talk show appearance from Charlize Theron took place last night as the actress is still busy promoting Prometheus and Snow White and the Huntsman. The latter is already a hit as it debut to over $56 million during the weekend, so now it is time to ensure that her other summer blockbuster overperforms as well. That should not be too hard as the prequel to Alien has a huge amount of demand that is matched by stellar early reviews. Early tracking has the R-rated film opening north of $50 million.
Topics of conversation included the actress’ poor decision to auction herself off for a date and her love of astronomy.
This weekend brought with it a refreshing take on the box office report as for the first time in weeks it seems as if Hollywood delivered what they expected. Continue Reading
Upon seeing the Friday box office figures, a Universal executive went on the record this morning regarding the financial outcome of his studio’s latest blockbuster. Continue Reading
Snow White and the Huntsman is off to a roaring start with an eye set on an opening north of the $50 million mark, so now it is time to take a look at just what Universal paid to pull this visually impressive fantasy tale off. Continue Reading
Universal is letting out a sigh of relief right now as their fantasy flick is performing a whole lot better than expected going into Friday. Continue Reading
In recent weeks, HBO has been spamming the world with Snow White and the Huntsman repeats, so it might be worth revisiting the latest on Universal’s plans for the film’s sequel. The last we heard is they would not be spinning off the huntsman character as the plan would instead be to bring back Kristen Stewart in the role of Snow White with Chris Hemsworth supporting. We have not exactly seen anything in regards to how the script is going; however, the studio seems confident that the franchise will return to the big screen by 2015.
THR ran an interesting Q&A with Universal chairman Adam Fogelson that is enlightening to say the least. While the information he provided was pretty much of the ‘we already knew that variety,’ there was a few things we previously never heard that are worth the quick mention, so let’s get into it.
In perhaps the biggest news story of the day, despite Universal’s possession of an option for a Kristen Stewart reprisal in the Snow White and the Huntsman sequel, they have decided to drop her from the franchise going forward. This news follows tabloid-related events in recent weeks that had the Twilight starlit admitting to an affair with franchise director Rupert Sanders, but it might not be a direct result of what has happened.
In what has to be the most strange and disappointing piece of entertainment news out there today, there seems to be a bit of a tabloid sensation building around the relationship between Kristen Stewart and her Snow White and the Huntsman director Rupert Sanders. While I generally avoid talking about such fodder, the Twilight star and now the former commercial director have since confirmed the speculation, thus suggesting there is obviously going to be some huge ramifications surrounding Universal’s newest franchise–something that cannot be ignored.
This might be the last stop on Charlize Theron’s whirlwind press tour for her duel films, Snow White and the Huntsman and Prometheus. 
As I have been reporting on the past few weeks, Universal is hell bent on crafting a sequel for Snow White and the Huntsman whether it be a legitimate second effort or a Huntsman spin-off. 
Universal is letting out a sigh of relief right now as their fantasy flick is performing a whole lot better than expected going into Friday.