Dances with Wolves star Kevin Costner on Tuesday sued a film production company for US$8 million for allegedly breaking an oral contract for him to star in the romantic comedy Taming Ben Taylor.
In a suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the 50-year-old star alleged that Ascendant Pictures entered into a binding agreement for him to star in the picture last December but then pulled out of the contract in June. A representative for Ascendant Pictures declined to comment on the suit.
The movie about a gruff divorced man who refuses to sell his failing vineyard to a nearby golf course was never made.
In his suit, Costner claims he had "duly performed all obligations under the agreement in all material respects, except those obligations plaintiff was prevented or excused from performing."
US pop star Madonna said this week she might try her hand at making films, but her British movie director husband Guy Ritchie smilingly said he could do without the competition.
The 47-year-old singer was attending a London screening of I'm Going to Tell You a Secret, a documentary directed by Sweden's Jonas Akerlund that follows her 2004 "Re-Invention" tour. It is due to be shown on Britain's Channel 4 TV this week.
"Yeah, this has been a great learning experience and Jonas kept me involved in a lot of the decision-making, so I like it," she said, when asked if she would consider making a film.
Ritchie, whose movies have inclu-ded Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, seemed less enthusiastic.
"I could do without the competition," he said, breaking into a grin.
Asked to describe the Ritchie household should his wife move into making films, he said: "I don't know. I mean ... she ends up sort of directing things anyway, so I don't think it'll be anything new."
Responding to the same question, Madonna said: "The same as it is right now. Two very big egos having discussions about things."
Hollywood superstar Jim Carrey is to play the founder of the Ripley's Believe It Or Not chronicle of oddities in a new movie to be directed by Tim Burton, the entertainment press reported Carrey, 43, the star of last year's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Truman Show (1998) and The Mask (1994) will play Robert Ripley in the Paramount Pictures movie scheduled for release in 2007, Daily Variety said.
The teaming of Carrey and Edward Scisssorhands director Burton comes after the success Burton's colorful remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Carrey's string of blockbuster hits over the years.
Hollywood faces uncertain prospects for jobs and growth in next year due to slowing DVD sales, the loss of local film and television production and looming labor talks, according to a report issued on Tuesday. The report from the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp projected that growth in local entertainment industry jobs would begin to moderate in next year after solid growth this year. There are currently about 249,000 people employed in the entertainment industry in Los Angeles County, the report said.
British acting legends Vanessa Redgrave, Peter O'Toole and Leslie Phillips will co-star in a new drama that Hollywood's Miramax Films has snapped up, the Hollywood press reported.
The trio began production on the film Venus in London on Monday and Miramax has now secured the US and British distribution rights, Daily Variety said.
Venus tells the story of a pair of veteran actors, played by O'Toole and Phillips, whose lives are disrupted by the arrival of the teenage grandniece of one of the men. The movie is being directed by roger Michell and is written by the author of the hit movie My Beautiful Launderette, Hanif Kureishi.
My friends and I have been enjoying the last two weeks of revelation after revelation of the financial and legal shenanigans of Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) head and recent presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲). Every day brings fresh news — allegations that a building had purchased with party subsidies but listed in Ko’s name, allegations of downloading party subsidy funds into his personal accounts. Ko’s call last December for the regulations for the government’s special budgets to be amended to enforce fiscal discipline, and his September unveiling of his party’s anti-corruption plan, have now taken on a certain delightful irony.
The number of scandals and setbacks hitting the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) in such quick and daily succession in the last few weeks is unprecedented, at least in the countries whose politics I am familiar with. The local media is covering this train wreck on an almost hourly basis, which in the latest news saw party chair Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) detained by prosecutors on Friday and released without bail yesterday. The number of links collected to produce these detailed columns may reach 400 by the time this hits the streets. To get up to speed, two columns have been written: “Donovan’s
President William Lai’s (賴清德) vision for Taiwan to become an “AI island” has three conditions: constructing advanced data centers, ensuring a stable and green energy supply, and cultivating AI talent. However, the energy issue supply is the greatest challenge. To clarify, let’s reframe the problem in terms of the Olympics. Given Taiwan’s OEM (original equipment manufacturer) roles in the technology sector, Taiwan is not an athlete in the AI Olympics, or even a trainer, but rather a training ground for global AI athletes (AI companies). In other words, Taiwan’s semiconductor ecosystem provides world-class training facilities and equipment that have already attracted
Despite her well-paying tech job, Li Daijing didn’t hesitate when her cousin asked for help running a restaurant in Mexico City. She packed up and left China for the Mexican capital last year, with dreams of a new adventure. The 30-year-old woman from Chengdu, the Sichuan provincial capital, hopes one day to start an online business importing furniture from her home country. “I want more,” Li said. “I want to be a strong woman. I want independence.” Li is among a new wave of Chinese migrants who are leaving their country in search of opportunities, more freedom or better financial prospects at a
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