Adam Brody ‘Not Proud’ of Letting ‘Distaste’ for ‘The O.C.’ Later Seasons Show on Set: ‘I Blame Myself for Lack of Professionalism’ and ‘Disrespect to the Work’

Zack Sharf Digital News Director “Avatar: The Last Airbender” creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino spent two years developing a live-action adaptation of the animated classic for Netflix before they shocked fans by announcing their exit from the project due to creative differences. The decision left Albert Kim, best known as a writer on “Pantheon” and an executive producer on “Sleepy Hollow,” as the live-action series’ showrunner without the support of the franchise’s original visionaries.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director As 2023 draws to a close, Christopher Nolan is feeling pretty good about the state of the movie business. That shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise considering “Oppenheimer” pulled in a remarkable $954 million at the box office this year, beating every superhero movie and several major Hollywood tentpoles, like “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” Audiences turning out in droves for a three-hour, R-rated and incredibly dense biographical drama as if it were a major action movie blockbuster has Nolan quite optimistic about the future. “I’ve just made a three-hour film about Robert Oppenheimer which is R-rated and half in black-and-white – and it made a billion dollars.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Logan Lerman was the first actor to bring Percy Jackson to life on screen with his role in Fox’s short-lived film franchise, which kicked off in 2010 with “Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief” and continued in 2013 with “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.” Now rising star Walker Scobell is taking over the role in Disney+’s television series “Percy Jackson and the Olympians.” Lerman recently surprised Scobell and the rest of the new cast by sending over his blessing during a live recording of the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast. “The show looks amazing,” Lerman told the cast in a note. “I can’t wait to see you all crush it in your roles.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Charlie Hunnam revealed to Entertainment Tonight while promoting his new film “Rebel Moon” that he was heavily considered to play Anakin Skywalker in George Lucas’ “Star Wars” prequel trilogy. While child actor Jake Lloyd played Anakin in 1999’s “The Phantom Menace,” a time jump for 2002’s “Attack of the Clones” and 2005’s “Revenge of the Sith” required Lucas to cast an older actor as Anakin. Hayden Christiansen won the part, but Hunnam said he also met Lucas in person to discuss the role.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director George Clooney turned up as Bruce Wayne in the final moments of “The Flash,” but in no way does that mean he’s interested in playing Batman again. Speaking to Entertainment Tonight while promoting his latest directorial effort “The Boys in the Boat,” Clooney said the chances of him playing Batman again are less than slim to none. “I do not think there’s enough drugs in the world for me to go back,” Clooney said bluntly.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director “Stranger Things” creators Matt and Ross Duffer are shutting down at least one fan theory about the upcoming ending to their blockbuster Netflix series. On the red carpet for the new “Stranger Things” play in London, the duo went on record to Metro saying the series will not end with a reveal that all the events in the Upside Down were just a dream. One fan theory about the “Stranger Things” ending alleges all the events on screen during the show’s run were actually just the main characters playing an elaborate and very long game of Dungeons and Dragons, a favorite among the characters since the show’s first season.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Jason Momoa is no longer feeling too optimistic about playing Aquaman in the future. The actor is reprising his superhero role in Warner Bros.’ upcoming “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” which might be Momoa’s swan song as the character on the big screen. Momoa was cast as Aquaman in the DC Universe, playing the character in “Justice League” and “Aquaman,” but the property is now being rebooted by new DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director With “Barbie” now available to stream on Max, director and co-writer Greta Gerwig hit the late night press circuit and revealed on “The Late Show” one of the wildest ideas Ryan Gosling wanted to execute in the film as Ken. One of the character’s most memorable looks in the blockbuster comedy is a white mink coat. According to Gerwig, Gosling pitched her on having Ken dance with and fight the mink coat during the “I’m Just Ken” dream ballet.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Timothée Chalamet was supposed to cameo in Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” movie alongside their “Lady Bird” and “Little Women” star Saoirse Ronan, but he never found out what the director had planned for her former collaborators. Scheduling conflicts prevented Ronan and Chalamet from appearing in “Barbie,” which became Warner Bros.’ top-grossing film in history and the biggest movie of 2023 with $1.4 billion in box office sales. “There was an idea for Saoirse Ronan and I to do a cameo in it,” Chalamet said during a recent interview on “The Tonight Show.” “I don’t know what the cameo would’ve been.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Timothée Chalamet was quoted in a recent interview with People magazine saying that his upcoming musical “Wonka” is his mother’s favorite Timothée Chalamet movie. It turns out that’s not the case. Appearing on “Good Morning America,” the Oscar-nominated actor revealed his mom, Nicole Flender, actually called him after the People interview ran in order to correct him.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Anne Hathaway appeared on the latest “Happy Sad Confused” podcast and called it “lucky” that her iteration of the “Barbie” movie never got off the ground considering the phenomenon that Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” became over the summer. Back in July 2017, Hathaway was announced as the star of Sony’s “Barbie” movie. Comedian Amy Schumer was originally cast, but Hathaway took over the role after Schumer departed.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director James Cameron revealed last month that he’s currently knee deep in the “very hectic” post-production of “Avatar 3.” Neither the director nor Disney is ready to unveil the title for “Avatar 3,” but it sounds like it won’t be “The Seed Bearer” as Cameron once considered. The titles for Cameron’s “Avatar” sequels have become social media fodder ever since November 2018 when the BBC reported the four movies would have the following names: “Avatar: The Way of Water,” “Avatar: The Seed Bearer,” “Avatar: The Tulkun Rider,” and “Avatar: The Quest for Eywa.” Cameron told Entertainment Tonight in 2019: “I can neither confirm nor deny — alright, here’s what I’ll tell ya: Those titles are among titles that are in consideration.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Timothée Chalamet admitted to GamesRadar+ that he originally worried “Wonka” might be a “cynical money grab” given Hollywood studios’ recent trend of rebooting every bit of IP it possibly can. Chalamet was offered the chance to lead the film, which is a musical prequel that tells the story of how Willy Wonka became a world famous chocolatier. “Like many people, when there are remakes, I feel very protective over the original character and versions you love,” Chalamet said.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Casey Wilson said on a recent episode of her “Bitch Sesh” podcast that working with Tim Allen on an episode of his Disney+ series “The Santa Clauses” was “the truly single worst experience I’ve ever had with a co-star ever.” Wilson, best known for her roles on “Saturday Night Live” and “Happy Endings,” guest starred in the show’s pilot episode, which debuted in November 2022. “The Santa Clauses,” which recently finished airing its second season on Disney+, serves as a sequel to Allen’s three movies “The Santa Clause” (1994), “The Santa Clause 2” (2002) and “The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause” (2006). “Tim Allen was such a bitch.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Adam Driver is earning praise on social media for how he sensitively handled a divisive interview question during a recent appearance on “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace?” The host told Driver directly that he does not look like a typical movie star and asked if his physical appearance was a “hindrance” in his career. Wallace has been widely criticized on social media platforms such as X for his “gross” and “rude” question.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Natalie Portman appeared on “Watch What Happens Live” to promote her buzzy Netflix drama “May December” and once again told “Star Wars” fans that she is more than open to reprising her role of Padmé Amidala on screen. Portman was just a teenager when she landed a leading role in George Lucas’ “Star Wars” prequel trilogy. Her first entry, “The Phantom Menace,” opened in 1999 when Portman was 18 years old.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Angelina Jolie told The Wall Street Journal Magazine that she probably would not become an actor if she was just starting out in the industry in 2023. She’d consider acting on the stage, perhaps, but certainly not a life and career in Hollywood. “I wouldn’t be an actress today,” the Oscar winner said.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Zack Snyder knew he was going to be the butt of a “Barbie” joke well before the blockbuster comedy opened in theaters from Warner Bros. In a new interview with Men’s Health, the “Rebel Moon” director revealed Warner Bros.’ film co-chief Michael DeLuca informed his wife and producer partner Deborah Snyder earlier this year about the joke and the studio’s intention to keep it in the film’s final cut. The Snyder Cut joke in “Barbie” arrives during a critical moment in the film.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Any movie fan who thought “Dune” was lacking on the action front will be happy with the upcoming sequel, at least according to director Denis Villeneuve. In a new interview with Total Film magazine, Villeneuve touted the 2024 sequel as “more muscular” than the first installment that hit theaters and Max in 2021. “The first movie was more meditative and contemplative.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director “Barbie” screenwriters Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach joined together for a “60 Minutes” interview in which they were asked about the surprising “anti-man” backlash to their blockbuster comedy. Several conservative figures blasted “Barbie” after it opened in theaters over the summer for its patriarchy jokes, which they perceived as being anti-man. Bill Maher even went on record calling the film “man-hating.” “The movie is meant to be a big-hearted thing, even though it’s poking fun at everyone,” Gerwig said when such accusations were brought up in the interview.