day 102

drew to eclipse third twilight?

drew barrymore is in talks to direct the third movie in the twilight film franchise, eclipse.  the first film was directed by catherine hardwicke and the second - which goes into production in just a few short weeks - is being helmed by chris weitz.  drew has long been interested in directing, with her production company, flower films, becoming a powerhouse in hollywood after the charlie's angels flicks.  drew recently wrapped production on her directorial debut, whip it!, a comedy set in the fast paced world of roller derbies and starring juno's ellen page.  so why 3 directors for 3 films?  hardwicke pulled out of the second installment when summit entertainment, the studio behind the movies, wanted a tighter production schedule that hardwicke believed would hurt the quality of the film.  and weitz won't be returning to the third because he'll still be working on post-production on the second film. yes, the third film will be coming out in spring 2010, meaning filming needs to take place this fall, even before the second film will be released in theaters.  summit knows that twilight is a bankable series but they don't know how long the interest in the vampire themed epic will last.  it will be interesting to see the production value of the newest movie as compared to the first and so on.  and as for drew? i would want to at least see whip it! before i made the decision.  the only good thing is that she is a hollywood veteran and knows how the make and publicize big blockbusters.  she'll probably be a fun addition to the creative forces behind the series, too.  no official word has been released from either camps but, if drew is selected, the announcement will probably be made this summer. 

more gossip about gossip

the news just keeps piling up for the cw's gossip girl.  it has now been confirmed by fellow cast member krysten ritter that brittany snow will be going back to blonde to take on the role of lily van der woodsen (nee rhodes) in the tentatively titled lily (though that's sure to change - it screams felicity or other drama-in-a-can).  producers made the official decision last night right before krysten walked the carpet to promote her current show, breaking bad.  the show will focus on britanny and krysten's characters (lily and carol), two sisters living in la la land during the punk-infused era of the 80s.  and as for the show that birthed lily? gwen stefani and the group that launched her career, no doubt, will be taking to the upper east side in one of this season's last episodes right before their spring/summer tour launches in may.  that's sure to draw ratings to the show, right?  this should all be very interesting.  the cw is really putting all their creative juices into keeping gossip girl as their flagship show, which is a rarity for a network when a show doesn't really pull in big numbers.  it also looks like 90210 will be back in the fall to help usher in the melrose place relaunch, alongside dramas smallville and supernatural.