
Chilean director Nicolas Lopez first came to Austin in 2005 for SXSW with his feature film Promedio Rojo in tow. That film was about a fictional comic-book nerd named Roberto Rodriguez who vies for the attention of the hot new girl at school while trying to bolster his self esteem. While Lopez was in town, he convinced producer Elizabeth Avellan (producing partner and ex-wife of the real-life filmmaker Robert Rodriguez) to watch the movie, and she liked it so much that she agreed to have the studio work on the CGI effects for his next feature. That film ended up being Santos, which is another tribute to geekery. It’s about a lowly comic-book nerd who grows up to become a successful comic book artist, and actually finds out that the heroes he’s been creating are real –– and that he has superpowers himself. It’s like Galaxy Quest for the comic-book set. In our full interview with Lopez from Fantastic Fest, learn why he makes his stars gain weight for their roles, why Santos had to be an international co-production, and why he wants to be the Chilean George Lucas.
…Read more
Robert Rodriguez and Rose McGowan answer questions on upcoming Red Sonja with director, Doug Aarniokoski.
Highlights:
- Rodriguez is planning to restart the Conan franchise.
- RR apparently fell for Rose after she called him “Count Fuckula”
- Machete will be made starring Danny Trejo and it will be the first “Mexploitation” flick
- Sin City 2 & 3 have scripts
- Red Sonja will be so bloody, it will introduce the “Double R”
Read the liveblogging transcript after the jump.
…Read more
The NY Observer says Robert Rodriguez has lost Universal’s backing for his Barbarella remake, over the filmmaker’s insistence that his fiancee, Rose McGowan, play the title role. Rodriguez and McGowan “fell in love” on the set of Planet Terror, which led to the end of Rodriguez’s 16-year marriage to his producer, Elizabeth Avellan. According to the story, when the studio was first informed that Rodriguez intended to cast McGowan over “more famous names [like] Nicole Kidman, Halle Berry and Jessica Alba”, they re-calibrated Barbarella’s budget from $100 million to something “in the double-digit millions.” Rodriguez denies this; he says Universal will give him $60 million to make the film, no questions asked, but he thinks he needs $82 million, so he’s shopping the project around to other studios.
Of note: McGowan face was injured in a car accident earlier this year, leading to actress to obtain major plastic surgery. It’s possible that the studio is worried the 17 Cherry Darling obsessives that might pay to see McGowan in a Barbarella outfit may not even be able to recognize her (see this related rumor about the actress’ reported post-surgery trouble landing work). Also of note: not one of the three “more famous” actresses listed above has proven that she can actually open a movie.