Jarett Wieselman has a nice Tropic Thunder video clip in his NYPost PopWrap blog! Go check it out here.

His comment:
There are only two reasons to see “Tropic Thunder.” One is Robert Downey Jr.’s unbelievable performance – am I the only one who thinks his name should start getting bandied around for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar?

If you haven’t had a chance to check out the film yet, get a glimpse of Tom in dance-tastic action above!

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“I LOVE Paula Wagner but she wants to produce elsewhere and in her own venue and I don’t intend to stand in her way. I’ll say this of her leaving United Artists — whatever Paula wants is what I want her to have! And I hope we’ll continue working together on future projects.” So spoke Tom Cruise on the phone with me this week. He added, cryptically: “I don’t run United Artists; I just own it.” It’s always fun to talk to Tom who tells me that his now “controversial” film about the German resistance attempt to assassinate Adolph Hitler in World War II is coming out on Dec. 26. All those critics who have panned the project, “Valkyrie,” in advance, should know that nothing can deter Tom from his belief in this story. He says, “It’s original. It’s suspenseful. The writers Chris McQuarrie and Nathan Alexander are just great and I can’t say enough good things about the director Bryan Singer. I first met him at the ‘Mission: Impossible’ premiere and we’ve been hoping to work together ever since. (Singer is the man who did “X-Men” and “Superman Returns.)”

WHEN I asked Tom why he felt so many people in the business have gone after the “Valkyrie” project as if it’s a bad idea or something historically obscene, he sighed: “It just doesn’t make sense to me either. The moment I read the screenplay I knew it was an important story and as it’s a true tale of heroic resistance to one of the great villains of history, I can’t imagine that people won’t want to see it.”

I ASKED Tom if he will continue doing comedies on the heels of his “character” impersonation as a fat, horrid studio executive in Ben Stiller’s “Tropic Thunder”? He laughed, “Well, I’m always looking for something new and Ben’s movie is hilarious. He and I are old friends and he is a really good director, so originally I said I’d do it just for friendship. But it turned out great. I actually love comedy and I did it in ‘Risky Business’ so I’ll do more if it presents itself. I’m also always looking for a good love story and I think I have one in a coming international thriller called ‘The Tourist.’ I believe I will be doing that.”

I told Tom I was looking forward to his wife’s debut on Broadway in the revival of Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons.” He said, “Things are going really well for Katie and we’ll see you on opening night, Sept. 18.” I congratulated moviedom’s big star on his little baby girl. He began to burble: “Oh, yes, she’s so charming; she’s so beautiful; she’s just great!” (That was Daddy talking, not the formidable icon who has made billions of dollars for Hollywood since 1983.) (Source: Variety)

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“Tropic Thunder” retained the weekend B.O. crown, slipping just 38% to collect $16.1 million.
Before “Tropic Thunder,” only “The Dark Knight” and “Iron Man” had managed to stay in the top spot for more than a week this summer. And only two previous studio summer titles, “Mamma Mia!” and “What Happens in Vegas,” had seen second-week drops of less than 40%.

The $90 million Ben Stiller sendup of Hollywood had a stellar Saturday, jumping 25% over its Friday level to gross $6.5 million. That propelled it past Sony’s female-skewing “The House Bunny,” which finished second at $15.1 million.

Universal’s “Death Race,” the remake of 1975 cult classic “Death Race 2000,” was initially considered a possible weekend champ but hit some speed bumps to take third at $12.3 million. The two top newcomers grabbed the expected auds, with “Death Race” skewing 63% male and “House Bunny” 68% female.

The weekend’s other wide openers fared worse. MGM/Dimension’s “The Longshots,” a family sports drama starring Ice Cube, finished eighth with $4.3 million. Fox continued its run of disappointments with “The Rocker,” a Rainn Wilson-starring bid at another “School of Rock”; it came in 12th with $2.8 million.

Fox wasn’t the only distrib with comedy agita. Focus launched Sundance darling “Hamlet 2” in 53 U.S. markets but came away with just $435,294 for a middling average of $4,226. A wide break of some 1,500 runs is set for Wednesday.

“Tropic Thunder,” a headline-grabber for months over content some have deemed offensive, an unbilled cameo by Tom Cruise and its risky economics, has now grossed $65.7 million.

“We definitely felt internally we were going to be No. 1, but Saturday was a pleasant surprise,” said DreamWorks/Paramount rep Chip Sullivan.

Warner Bros. claimed the Nos. 4 and 5 spots on the chart. “The Dark Knight” inched closer to the $500 million domestic mark, adding $10.3 million to reach a $489.2 million cume. The animated “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” grabbed $5.6 million for a $25 million total.

Overall, it was a soft weekend. The penultimate frame of a surprisingly healthy summer saw receipts off a few percentage points from the year-ago period. The summer tally fell a fraction off the pace of last year’s record $4.16 billion, though a diverse product mix and earlier-than-usual Labor Day makes equaling the record a possibility. (Read more at Variety.com)

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Angelina Jolie might be many things, but she is not a “replacement” for Tom Cruise in the upcoming spy thriller “Edwin A. Salt,” as many outlets have reported.

According to a source close to the film, the studio did want Cruise in the lead role, but the actor passed.

“This story about Jolie taking over is completely false … this started with an inaccurate report months ago that said (Cruise) was taking the role,” says the source. “They courted him for almost a year for this movie. He considered it but passed.”

The source says a legitimate announcement about Cruise’s next film could come sooner rather than later. “He’s been offered many roles in the past few months. We’re sure to see news about the next project soon.” (MSNBC)

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Tom Cruise made yet another declaration of his devotion to wife Katie Holmes – after flying all night to walk her to work in the morning.

According to America’s OK! magazine, the actor jumped on a red-eye flight from Los Angeles on Thursday, August 14 to join Holmes as she prepares for a new role in a New York theater.

The pair strolled through Manhattan’s star-studded West Village with daughter Suri, two, as Cruise escorted his wife to a rehearsal for Broadway’s revival of All My Sons.

A source tells the magazine, “Some construction workers asked for a picture, but Tom politely said, ‘Sorry guys, I can’t stop. I’m walking my wife to work. She’s got rehearsals to get to.’”

Holmes starts her run in All My Sons in the autumn (08). (Source: Showbizspy)

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In spite of the fact he is one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars, I must confess that I am not a fan of Ben Stiller. (…) was with this in mind that I attended “Tropic Thunder,” a film that not only starred Stiller, but was written and directed by him as well. I fully expected to dislike it — but, much like a jungle ambush, it took me by surprise. It is, hands down, the funniest film that I have seen this year.

“Tropic Thunder” follows the production of a Vietnam war film featuring four famous but individually challenging entertainers. Tugg Speedman (Stiller) is an action-movie star looking for an award-calibre role that will revive his sagging career. Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr.) is an Oscar-winning thespian who will stop at nothing to “step into the skin” of his character. Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) is a heroin-addicted slacker and star of the “Fatties” movie franchise who will stoop to any level to feed his habit. Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson) is a hip-hop star who is trying to segue into film. Kevin Sandusky (Jay Baruchel) is a rookie actor hoping for his big break with his cinematic idols.

This talented but motley crew is led by Damien Cockburn (Steve Coogan), a first-time director who is losing control of his production. After an epic dressing-down by studio head Les Grossman (Tom Cruise), and with some assistance from burnout writer Four Leaf Tayback (Nick Nolte) and pyromaniac stunt director Cody (Danny McBride), Cockburn decides to inject some reality into the film by dropping his prima donna cast into the jungle with little more than a map. Unbeknownst to Cockburn, the jungle is fraught with all manner of dangers, not the least of which is a brutal drug lord’s heroin den. It is going to take the performance of their lives to negotiate their way out of this scene.

I have to admit that, after watching this film, I have developed a cautious respect for Stiller. This film is one of the most biting, witty pieces of satire that I have seen on-screen in a long time. The story is original, the dialogue is smart and the action moves the film along without being ridiculous. While it is not necessarily Oscar material, I will be surprised if “Tropic Thunder” does not make its way onto the nomination list for a few Golden Globes.

Much has been said about the performance of Robert Downey Jr. as Kirk Lazarus, an actor so oblivious to anything beyond his craft that he is willing to cross the boundaries of political correctness and decency to inhabit his character. Without a doubt, he has created a very amusing and intentionally annoying character. I have always enjoyed Downey Jr., and he did not disappoint me in this film.

But, for me, the highlight of this film was not the performances of the lead actors, but rather the cameo performance by Cruise. I cannot remember the last time that I laughed so hard or so loud in a theatre. Cruise’s performance was hilariously campy — he stole every scene in which he appeared. I am still not convinced that Cruise could carry a comedy on his own, but in this ensemble piece, he succeeds in delivering the best comedic performance that I have seen this year. It will be a crime if he is not nominated for a Golden Globe.

“Tropic Thunder” is a film that I would recommend without hesitation. I entered the theatre expecting a slightly tasteless display of toilet humour, and exited having spent two hours watching a smart satire that mocks the political incorrectness and the Hollywood vice that sits on its surface. Whether you see it for Downey Jr. or you see it for Cruise, by all means see it — this is one of the summer’s best films. (Timmins Daily Press)

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As Tom Cruise goes about writing the next chapter in his career, he’s developing an interest in comic book movies.

Together with Sam Raimi, he is setting up “Sleeper” at Warner Bros. Cruise is loosely attached to star in the adaptation of the DC Comics/Wildstorm comic that Raimi would produce with his Star Road Entertainment partner Josh Donen.

Written by Ed Brubaker with art by Sean Phillips, “Sleeper,” which ran from 2003-05, centers on an operative whose fusion with an alien artifact makes him impervious to pain and allows him to pass it on to others through skin contact. He is placed undercover in a villainous organization by an intelligence agency and falls for a member of the group, named Miss Misery.

Although he remains a co-owner of United Artists — from which his longtime producing partner Paula Weinstein resigned last week — he’s not tied exclusively to that company. It now looks as if his next acting gig will be the Spyglass thriller “Tourist,” as if to counter the more cerebral role he played in the UA boxoffice failure “Lions for Lambs” and the upcoming UA WWII period pic “Valkyrie,” in which he plays the anti-Nazi Claus van Stauffenberg.

“Sleeper” is the third project that Cruise has become associated with over the past two weeks –all three separate from his commitments at UA. In addition to “Tourist,” the actor has expressed interest in the Working Title-Universal comedy “Food Fight.”

Also apart from UA, the actor picked up some good notices last week for his uncharacteristic turn as a bald film mogul in DreamWorks-Paramount’s “Tropic Thunder.”

Even if Cruise opts not to do “Sleeper,” his interest in the project is propelling it forward, despite complicated rights issues that must be sorted out. Raimi and Donen have long been fans of the book, and the project could have found homes at Sony and Regency if those issues hadn’t been so complex.

“Sleeper” is a spin-off book from Wildstorm flagship title “WildC.A.T.s” and features characters from another spin-off book, “Gen 13.”
Both books had been set up at different places around town and some of those deals were made before DC bought the imprint in 1999.

Warners, now involved in a legal wrangle with Fox over the rights to “Watchmen,” appears determined to cross all the t’s and dot all the i’s in its contracts for “Sleeper.”

The project is being eyed not only as a starring vehicle for Cruise but also as a possible franchise for the studio.
Matt Reilly is overseeing the project for Warners while Russell Hollander shepherds for Star Road. Gregory Noveck oversees for DC. No writer is attached.

“Sleeper” sees Raimi and Donen continuing their company’s superhero, which began when they recently set up the superhero story “The Transplants” at Disney. (HollywoodReporter)

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Isaac Hayes got an all-star send-off fit for the Black Moses.

Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington and Wesley Snipes were among those attending Sunday’s private burial service for the Oscar- and Grammy-winning music legend, while Shaft star Richard Roundtree, Chuck D, Bootsy Collins, Doug E. Fresh, Kelly Preston, Anne Archer and the Revs. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson were among the 3,000 mourners at today’s public memorial in Memphis.

“He was a lovely man, always involved with causes,” said Jackson before the service. “Literacy, civil rights. He was always there, and that’s why we’re all here for him.”

During the four-hour service, which included video and music, U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen said that the city should celebrate Hayes as it does Elvis Presley, even floating the idea of naming the local airport after the seminal soul singer.

“He is a person who the world will miss,” Cohen said. (Source: E! Online)

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DreamWorks and Paramount’s outrageous big-budget comedy “Tropic Thunder” topped the weekend box office in grossing an estimated $26 million from 3,319 runs for a five-day opening of $37 million, meaning the R-rated pic will need sturdy legs and a strong overseas run to impress financially.
The star-packed pic, playing best among older males, landed in between “Pineapple Express” and “Step Brothers” in terms of its opening performance, but those two R-rated laffers both cost far less to produce.

The biggest victory of the weekend belonged to Warner Bros.’ “The Dark Knight,” which is now the second highest grossing pic of all time after “Titanic” domestically, according to Rentrak. Batman sequel may have been bumped from the No. 1 spot after four weeks, but it dipped only 36% in its fifth frame to an estimated $16.8 million from 3,590. Cume is $471.5 million, eclipsing the $461 million earned by the original “Stars Wars.”

“Dark Knight” beat the “Star Wars” franchise in more ways than one. Unspooling over the weekend was Lucasfilm’s family toon “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” the feature film companion to the upcoming Cartoon Network series. Pic took the No. 3 spot, grossing an estimated $15.5 million from 3,452 in a solid but not spectacular opening.

The summer box office continues to run slightly ahead of last year’s record-breaking grosses, although the weekend itself was down roughly 2% from the same weekend a year ago, when R-rated laffer “Superbad” debuted to $33 million. The Olympics likely dampened multiplex traffic. (Saturday night’s telecast was the most watched Saturday night program on NBC in 18 years.)

Several other wide openers also tried to stake their claim at the B.O. before kids start returning to school this week.

Benefiting from being the only horror pic in the market, New Regency’s “Mirrors,” directed by Alexandre Aja and distributed by 20th Century Fox, came in No. 4 and debuted to an estimated $11.1 million from 2,664 runs. That’s the best showing for a Fox release since early summer. New Regency financed and produced the film, which skewed female.

On the specialty side, the Weinstein Co.’s Woody Allen pic “Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” distributed by MGM, placed No. 10 for the weekend in grossing an estimated $3.7 million for a per screen average of $5,361.

Summit’s 3-D toon “Fly Me to the Moon” wasn’t able to crack the top 10 in its bow, hampered by holdover 3-D film “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” “Fly Me to the Moon” opened to an estimated $2 million from 452 screens, coming in behind “Journey,” which grossed an estimated $3.5 million from 1,405 screens for a cume of $88.1 million in its sixth sesh.

If the fledgling 3-D market is crowded, the market for R-rated films is even worse, with “Tropic Thunder,” “Pineapple Express” and “Step Brothers” essentially opening back to back. “Mirrors” also added to the late-summer deluge.

“Tropic Thunder,” starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black and Tom Cruise, wasn’t able to match the $41.2 million five-day opening for “Pineapple Express” the previous week. “Step Brothers” debuted to $30 million over the July 25 weekend. Latter two comedies were both produced by Judd Apatow and released by Sony.

DreamWorks said “Tropic Thunder,” directed by Stiller, performed in line with expectations. Some 57% of the aud was male and 57% over age 25. Because it appealed more to adults, “Tropic Thunder” saw stronger weekend numbers and lighter traffic on its first two weekdays than did “Pineapple Express.”

The combo of “Tropic Thunder” and “Mirrors” seemed to take a bite out of “Pineapple,” which dropped a sizable 57% in its second weekend to an estimated $10 million from 3,072 runs for a cume of $63 million in its first 10 days. Comedies coming out of the Apatow camp usually enjoy stronger holds.

DreamWorks spokesman Chip Sullivan said “Tropic Thunder” steadily built its audience over the five-day stretch. He predicted that strong word of mouth will keep the film high up on the box office chart.

Cruise’s portrayal of a foul-mouthed, overweight studio exec is a particular crowd favorite.

“Each cast member is getting terrific notices. Because we purposefully didn’t include Tom Cruise in any of the marketing materials, his performance is definitely getting attention,” Sullivan said.
The production budget of “Tropic Thunder” is being put at $90 million, although it’s believed to be closer to $120 million before factoring in tax credits. Production budget on “Pineapple Express” was under $30 million.

DreamWorks expects the film to do well overseas, pointing to Stiller’s and Cruise’s popularity abroad. Stiller’s “The Heartbreak Kid” grossed $90 million internationally and $30 million domestically. “Tropic Thunder” opened in only a few territories over the weekend.

(Visit Variety.com to read the entire article.)

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Variety reports that Tom Cruise is in negotiations with Spyglass Entertainment to play the lead character in the upcoming film “The Tourist”, a remake of a 2005 French thriller “Anthony Zimmer”.

“The Tourist” will be directed by Bharat Nalluri and is reported to be the strongest contender for Cruise’s next film.

Julian Fellowes of “Gosford Park” wrote the script about an American Tourist who is used as a pawn by a female Interpol agent.

The film will be produced by Spyglass principals Gary Barber, Roger Bimbaum and Jonathan Glickman. (current-movie-reviews.com)

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