Cumming and Romijn Are Mad for Hatter
Mutants stick together. After appearing as superheroes in X2: X-Men United, Alan Cumming and Rebecca Romijn will be reunited for the new film Hatter. The feature debut for director James Killough, the story follows a fashion designer known for his wild lifestyle and a journalist who’s got inside dirt on some of his less than savory exploits. The pair wind up involved in a modern take on the Mad Hatter’s tea party from the classic Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. In other words, if the supporting characters are analogous to an irate queen and a Tweedledum/Tweedledee couple, then there’s no telling how interesting the rest of the casting process could get. The party goes before the cameras in spring of 2008 for a tea party date somewhere in ’09.
Jenna Elfman Wishes on Star
Looking for a hit sitcom to remind audiences why Dharma & Greg stayed on the air for so long, Jenna Elfman is pinning her hopes to a new Darren Star (Sex and the City) vehicle currently blooming under the tentative title Literary Superstar. Look for that to change to something punchier as it gets closer to the completion of the pilot, which finds Elfman starring as a book publicist who fights for the underdogs of the literary world while pursuing her own love life outside the office. And since pilots are a strange thing in Hollywood – sometimes never being seen by audiences at all – Elfman has a sweet deal that pays her no matter what the outcome. In the meantime, Dharma devotees, she’ll be guesting on Brothers & Sisters as Calista Flockhart’s pregnant rival.
Ashley Judd’s World AIDS Day Doc
Ashley Judd, stepping back a bit from the popcorn thrillers and romantic comedies that made her a household name, has joined the ranks of celebrities using their visibility to bring attention to the issues that matter. She’ll be lending her support to a documentary about HIV/AIDS called India’s Hidden Plague, to be aired on World AIDS Day, Dec. 1, on the National Geographic Channel and on a pay-per-view basis on several large cable systems nationwide. As YouthAIDS Global Ambassador, Judd appears in the documentary and will also join U2’s Bono for a week-long bus tour across seven U.S. cities to bring attention to the crisis of AIDS on the African continent. Those romantic comedy roles will still be there when she gets back.
Berlanti Brings Green Lantern to Light
Greg Berlanti, powerhouse TV producer (Dirty Sexy Money, Brothers & Sisters) and sometime feature director (The Broken Hearts Club) has taken on helming duties for the upcoming Green Lantern feature. And who’s the Green Lantern? In comic-book-land, he’s Hal Jordan, test pilot, a brave man selected by alien forces to be a superhero. His mandate is to protect and guard Earth against evil interlopers from all over the galaxy, using his power ring to help right triumph over wrong, and all while wearing green tights—in other words, this is another lucrative comic book film franchise in the making now that other, more established superheroes enter sequels-of-sequels territory. No word on casting yet, but expect lots of big names in the hopper of summer blockbuster hopefuls.
Romeo San Vicente would like to offer his services as assistant at green-tights-intensive costume fittings. He can be reached care of this publication or at DeepInsideHollywood@qsyndicate.com.