The early nineties were arguably the heyday of brawny action. Arnold Schwarzenegger was the world’s biggest star, thanks to Total Recall and Terminator 2. Sylvester Stallone was just a little behind him with Cliffhanger and Demolition Man, but the lower-tier action stars were starting to catch up. Steven Seagal had a string of hits and was briefly about to hit the big time with Under Siege. At the same time, the Muscles from Brussels was finding his way into bigger studio fare and teamed up with arguably the greatest action director of all time for one of his best movies – Hard Target, which is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its release.
Jump back to 1991, when Jean-Claude Van Damme had two movies that broke through at the North American box office. First up, in January of that year, was Lionheart, which carried a low budget but made $22 million for Universal.
Jump back to 1991, when Jean-Claude Van Damme had two movies that broke through at the North American box office. First up, in January of that year, was Lionheart, which carried a low budget but made $22 million for Universal.
- 8/13/2023
- by Chris Bumbray
- JoBlo.com
by Blair Marnell
Producer Jim Jacks has joined the supernatural action thriller "Mortis Rex," which will be "Hellboy" screenwriter Peter Briggs’ directorial debut. Dominic Ianno is also on board as an executive producer, and the film will shoot next spring on location in Italy, Eastern Europe and the U.K., according to Variety
“Mortis Rex” – which is Latin for “King of the Dead” – is set in 122 Ad. The story focuses on a disgraced Roman war hero who is given one last opportunity to redeem himself when he is sent to a Roman garrison plagued by a series of brutal and unexplained killings.
Briggs – who first broke into the industry with his spec script for “Aliens vs. Predator” – has been working to get “Mortis Rex” off of the ground for years. The news that Jacks, one of the producers of the "Mummy" films, is locked in with his company Frelaine Productions,...
Producer Jim Jacks has joined the supernatural action thriller "Mortis Rex," which will be "Hellboy" screenwriter Peter Briggs’ directorial debut. Dominic Ianno is also on board as an executive producer, and the film will shoot next spring on location in Italy, Eastern Europe and the U.K., according to Variety
“Mortis Rex” – which is Latin for “King of the Dead” – is set in 122 Ad. The story focuses on a disgraced Roman war hero who is given one last opportunity to redeem himself when he is sent to a Roman garrison plagued by a series of brutal and unexplained killings.
Briggs – who first broke into the industry with his spec script for “Aliens vs. Predator” – has been working to get “Mortis Rex” off of the ground for years. The news that Jacks, one of the producers of the "Mummy" films, is locked in with his company Frelaine Productions,...
- 10/28/2009
- by MTV Movies Team
- MTV Movies Blog
Variety reports that Peter Briggs (pictured) will direct the supernatural actioner Mortis Rex for Frelaine Productions. One of the producers is Jim Jacks, whose credits include the Mummy series and a few films for Sam Raimi (who named David Paymer’s Drag Me To Hell character after him).
Mortis is set in Rome circa 122 A.D. and focuses on a disgraced war hero who gets a chance to salvage his reputation when he’s assigned to investigate strange and violent killings at a garrison. The producing team also includes Stuart Pollok, Matthew Dench and Marisa Kagan; Briggs, who co-wrote the first Hellboy feature, first broke onto the screenwriting scene with a highly regarded but eventually abandoned Alien Vs. Predator spec script, and has subsequently worked on Freddy Vs. Jason and an aborted period version of The War Of The Worlds. Shooting on Mortis Rex is scheduled to start next spring on British,...
Mortis is set in Rome circa 122 A.D. and focuses on a disgraced war hero who gets a chance to salvage his reputation when he’s assigned to investigate strange and violent killings at a garrison. The producing team also includes Stuart Pollok, Matthew Dench and Marisa Kagan; Briggs, who co-wrote the first Hellboy feature, first broke onto the screenwriting scene with a highly regarded but eventually abandoned Alien Vs. Predator spec script, and has subsequently worked on Freddy Vs. Jason and an aborted period version of The War Of The Worlds. Shooting on Mortis Rex is scheduled to start next spring on British,...
- 10/28/2009
- by no-reply@fangoria.com (Michael Gingold)
- Fangoria
Jet Li is in negotiations to play the villainous title character in Universal Pictures' The Mummy 3, being directed by Rob Cohen.
Plot details of the script, written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, are being kept under wraps. However, it is known that the action is set in China, with Li's story beginning in ancient times before moving to a post-World War II setting. It is also known that one sequence involves the famous terra-cotta warriors, the collection of 6,000 men and their horses that were originally constructed to protect the tomb of an emperor.
Stephen Sommers and Bob Ducsay along with Sean Daniel and Jim Jacks are producing.
Jeff Kirschenbaum and Erik Baiers are overseeing for Universal.
Li is now in preproduction on an untitled J&J project, which teams him with Jackie Chan. Li was last seen in Rogue Pictures' Fearless. He is repped by CAA, ACE Media and Bloom Hergott.
Plot details of the script, written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, are being kept under wraps. However, it is known that the action is set in China, with Li's story beginning in ancient times before moving to a post-World War II setting. It is also known that one sequence involves the famous terra-cotta warriors, the collection of 6,000 men and their horses that were originally constructed to protect the tomb of an emperor.
Stephen Sommers and Bob Ducsay along with Sean Daniel and Jim Jacks are producing.
Jeff Kirschenbaum and Erik Baiers are overseeing for Universal.
Li is now in preproduction on an untitled J&J project, which teams him with Jackie Chan. Li was last seen in Rogue Pictures' Fearless. He is repped by CAA, ACE Media and Bloom Hergott.
- 3/22/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Rob Cohen is in negotiations to direct Mummy 3 for Universal Pictures.
Stephen Sommers, who directed the first two movies, is producing with partner Bob Ducsay. Sean Daniel and Jim Jacks also are producing.
The plot details of the script, written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, are being kept under wraps.
The previous two installments of the successful action-adventure franchise starred Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz as early 20th century adventurers who end up in the path of a reborn Egyptian mummy played by Arnold Vosloo. The first movie, released in 1999, grossed $155 million at the domestic boxoffice, while 2001's The Mummy Returns made $202 million.
Talks with actors have not begun.
Jeff Kirschenbaum and Erik Baiers are overseeing for Universal.
WMA-repped Cohen last directed Stealth. He also is writing a biopic of filmmaker Russ Meyer and his wife titled King of the Nudies, which he plans to direct, and is attached to direct Scared Straight for New Line. Cohen's other directing credits include The Fast and the Furious and XXX.
Stephen Sommers, who directed the first two movies, is producing with partner Bob Ducsay. Sean Daniel and Jim Jacks also are producing.
The plot details of the script, written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, are being kept under wraps.
The previous two installments of the successful action-adventure franchise starred Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz as early 20th century adventurers who end up in the path of a reborn Egyptian mummy played by Arnold Vosloo. The first movie, released in 1999, grossed $155 million at the domestic boxoffice, while 2001's The Mummy Returns made $202 million.
Talks with actors have not begun.
Jeff Kirschenbaum and Erik Baiers are overseeing for Universal.
WMA-repped Cohen last directed Stealth. He also is writing a biopic of filmmaker Russ Meyer and his wife titled King of the Nudies, which he plans to direct, and is attached to direct Scared Straight for New Line. Cohen's other directing credits include The Fast and the Furious and XXX.
Paramount Pictures chairman Brad Grey has exchanged one big-budget Tim Burton project for another: He has sent Believe It or Not back into development while Stacey Snider, CEO and co-chairman of Paramount's DreamWorks, is putting Sweeney Todd on the fast track with Burton at the helm. DreamWorks will now need to assemble and cast that movie, which is a project adapted by John Logan (The Aviator) from the Stephen Sondheim Broadway musical. Burton already is talking with Johnny Depp for the lead role as the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Paramount sources said. Burton and producers Richard Zanuck, Sean Daniel and Jim Jacks had been fighting the battle of the budget bulge on Believe, starring Jim Carrey. But Grey refused to give the project a green light until the ambitious production, based on the adventurer Ripley, fell into the $150 million range, co-president of production Brad Weston confirmed.
- 6/13/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Tim Burton and Jim Carrey are teaming up for Believe It or Not! an action-adventure loosely based on Robert Ripley. Burton and Carrey are in early negotiations to direct and star, respectively, in the movie, which is being produced by Alphaville's Jim Jacks and Sean Daniel along with producer Ken Atchity and executive producer Chi-Li Wong. Richard Zanuck, who worked with Burton on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Big Fish and Planet of the Apes, also is in negotiations to produce. The movie will follow the exploits of Ripley, a sport cartoonist who ran out of ideas and turned to the world of the strange and unusual. Ripley became a larger-than-life personality in the '30s and '40s, well-known for going around the world looking for oddities and getting into adventures while doing so.
- 11/29/2005
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Tim Burton and Jim Carrey are teaming up for Believe It or Not! an action-adventure loosely based on Robert Ripley. Burton and Carrey are in early negotiations to direct and star, respectively, in the movie, which is being produced by Alphaville's Jim Jacks and Sean Daniel along with producer Ken Atchity and executive producer Chi-Li Wong. Richard Zanuck, who worked with Burton on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Big Fish and Planet of the Apes, also is in negotiations to produce. The movie will follow the exploits of Ripley, a sport cartoonist who ran out of ideas and turned to the world of the strange and unusual. Ripley became a larger-than-life personality in the '30s and '40s, well-known for going around the world looking for oddities and getting into adventures while doing so.
- 11/29/2005
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Ehren Kruger is going to Mars. The scribe, who wrote The Ring and the upcoming The Ring 2, has come aboard to write John Carter of Mars, which is being directed by Kerry Conran for Paramount Pictures. Alphaville's Jim Jacks and Sean Daniel are producing. Based on the first book in Edgar Rice Burroughs' 11-book science-fiction series, Mars centers on John Carter, a Civil War officer from Virginia who is transported to Mars and finds himself a captive of the savage green men from Thark. Eventually he rises to become the greatest warrior of all time, marries the beautiful Dejah Thoris, raises a family and embarks on numerous adventures. The project was previously known as A Princess of Mars, which was the title of the series' first book. Mark Protosevich wrote the previous draft. Kruger wrote Skeleton Key, which is shooting with Kate Hudson starring, as well as Arlington Road and Scream 3. He is repped by Paradigm.
- 10/10/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paramount-based Alphaville is in final negotiations with the Ripley Entertainment Inc. to produce a series of adventure movies based on the popular 1930s explorer who spawned the Ripley's Believe It or Not! comic strips, chain of museums and television shows. Paramount Pictures will distribute. The writing team Larry Karaszewski and Scott Alexander are on board to pen the script for Believe It or Not! The producers are Alphaville principals Jim Jacks, Sean Daniels and Ken Atchity. "It's about the exploits of Robert Ripley, one of the most popular newspaper cartoonists in the '30s and '40s, who was well known for going around the world and looking for oddities and getting into adventures while doing so," Jacks said. "We want to make a series of movies that, if not quite the truth, are the adventures that should have happened."...
- 10/4/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
British screenwriter Terry Hayes is teaming with director William Friedkin on Paramount Pictures' Book of Skulls. The Dead Calm writer has been hired to adapt Robert Silverberg's sci-fi novel for studio-based Alphaville. The psychological thriller follows four college students who discover an ancient book containing the secret to eternal life -- except that it comes with a price. Hayes' recent credits include the upcoming Jodie Foster starrer Flight Plan, to be directed by German helmer Robert Schwentke (Tattoo). Hayes' other credits include From Hell, Vertical Limit and Payback. Company principals Jim Jacks and Sean Daniel will produce alongside Michelle Manning, Bruce Bernhard and Sam Gaglani, who brought the property to Alphaville. Rebecca Nelson is overseeing for the company. Hayes is repped by WMA.
- 7/27/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Harry Knowles, creator of the Internet movie gossip Web site Ain't It Cool News, is coming on board to co-produce Princess of Mars, Paramount Pictures' adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs pulp classic that Robert Rodriguez is directing. Jim Jacks and Sean Daniel of Alphaville are producing the project along with Rodriguez and his wife and producing partner, Elizabeth Avellan. In Knowles' 2002 autobiography, he describes Burroughs' Martian Tales series, revolving around adventurer John Carter, as one of the literary world's properties that is most deserving of a big-screen treatment.
Robert Rodriguez is set to direct Edgar Rice Burroughs' science fiction classic Princess of Mars for Paramount Pictures. The project is based on the first book in Burroughs' 11-book series, John Carter of Mars, which centers on John Carter, a Civil War officer from Virginia who is transported to Mars and finds himself a captive of the savage green men from Thark. Eventually, he rises to become the greatest warrior of all time, marries the beautiful Dejah Thoris, raises a family and embarks on numerous adventures. Mark Protosevich wrote the latest draft. Producing the project are Jim Jacks and Sean Daniel of Alphaville. Rodriguez and his wife and producing partner, Elizabeth Avellan, also are producing. Paramount acquired the rights to the Burroughs series, which carries obvious franchise potential, in 2002. Previously, it had been under development at Walt Disney Studios. Rodriguez, the filmmaker behind the Spy Kids trilogy as well as the El Mariachi trilogy, recently signed on to adapt and direct Sin City, based on a the series of critically acclaimed graphic novels by Frank Miller, for Dimension Films. He will direct Princess after he completes Sin. Rodriguez is repped by ICM.
Having chronicled life in a Texas high school during the 1970s in his 1993 feature Dazed and Confused, writer-director Richard Linklater is graduating to college. The Texas filmmaker will write, direct and produce a still-untitled feature film in a similar tone as Dazed that will be set at a Texas college in the 1980s. Paramount Pictures and Alphaville will produce the project, sources have confirmed. Production is set to begin in early to mid-2004, after Linklater wraps shooting the sequel to Castle Rock Entertainment's Before Sunrise. Linklater's college film will revolve around the trials and tribulations of a freshman who arrives at the school to join the baseball team. Alphaville's Sean Daniel and Jim Jacks, who produced Dazed, are producing the project with Linklater and his producing partner Anne Walker-McBay. The project also will reunite Linklater with Paramount, for whom he directed the upcoming feature The School of Rock, which stars Jack Black and opens Oct. 3. Linklater is repped by CAA.
Paramount Pictures has optioned Robert Silverberg's sci-fi novel The Book of Skulls for William Friedkin to direct with studio-based Alphaville producing. Jeff Davis will adapt the project, a psychological horror story about four college students who discover an ancient book that provides the secret to eternal life -- a secret that comes with a terrible price. Producers Bruce Bernhard and Sam Gaglani brought the property to Alphaville and will produce with company principals Jim Jacks and Sean Daniel. Alphaville executive Rebecca Nelson is overseeing. "To be writing a psychological horror film for William Friedkin, the man who set the standard in the genre by directing what is considered the scariest and most viscerally disturbing movie of all time, is more than a writer could hope for," said Davis, referring to the filmmaker's classic The Exorcist. Friedkin, repped by WMA, most recently directed The Hunted. Davis is repped by Victoria Wisdom at Becsey Wisdom Kalajian, manager Zach Tann at Zide/Perry Entertainment and attorney Christopher Tricarico of KMZ Rosenman. He wrote Retribution for filmmaker Kevin Williamson and Dimension Films. Bernhard is repped by Cine/Lit and attorney Leanna Gutman. Gaglani is repped by UTA and attorney Tal Vigderson.
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