Spider-Man 3’s Bryce Dallas Howard recently sat down with the Associated Press to discuss her role as Gwen Stacy:
Q: How does “Spider-Man 3″ compare to other films you’ve done?
BRYCE DALLAS HOWARD: It is supersized. Literally I would walk around the Sony lot … and they took over the entire lot practically. I was really surprised because when I was on set with (Director) Sam (Raimi) and all the other actors, it felt so intimate and fun and playful. Then when I finally saw the movie I remembered again, “God, this is such a big movie.” I can’t believe it, because it didn’t seem like a high-pressure situation. It seemed really relaxed and cool and like we were just making this movie.
Q: Are you a fan of superhero films?
HOWARD: I was really into this franchise in particular because although it is obviously this big film and there are these huge action sequences that are absolutely terrifying, it really is, at the end of the day, just a great character piece. Sam creates these really complex characters and there’s a lot of humor in it as well. It’s very, very funny, so it’s an incredibly balanced film. It’s terrifying, it’s hilarious, it’s emotional, it’s beautiful.
Q: Are you at the point yet where you’re giving your dad advice?
HOWARD: Oh God, no. Are you crazy? All the time I come up with these weird ideas or theories. I have all these theories about the industry or the future of storytelling, that kind of thing, so I’ll talk to him about that, but no, that man needs no advice from me, trust me.
Q: Does he give you a lot of advice?
HOWARD: No, he’s really great in that way. I mean, I ask him for advice sometimes, but he never gives unsolicited advice. He’s always kind of letting us — myself and my siblings — find our own way, make our own mistakes and come to our own conclusions. He’s pretty much the ideal parent.
Q: Are there any downsides to having such a famous father?
HOWARD: No. Sure, there have been times where there has been a bit of criticism and people say I’m only in this industry because he’s in this industry and all that kind of stuff, but that’s OK. I’m really grateful to have the father that I have and if I’m going to get that kind of criticism, I have to take it with a grain of salt. … I feel so lucky to have parents who are so supportive. I know a lot of my friends who are actors, their parents don’t quite understand … whereas my parents … know it’s possible. That itself is such an advantage just knowing your parents believe in you.
Q: Is there a genre that appeals to you more than others?
HOWARD: No, I like doing it all because I have a lot to learn. I want to immerse myself in as many genres as possible and as many different industries as possible. I love the European film community, I love the independent film community. I love now, with “Spider-Man,” being part of the more conventional Hollywood film community. So I just want to continue doing that and gathering as much information as possible and experiences as possible.
Q: How about a director you dream of working with?
HOWARD: I would love to work with my dad. I’m dying to work with my dad. We talk about it and I harass him about it. But I think eventually, if there is a role that’s totally appropriate and perfect, I hope it would become a reality. I have a bit further to go, though.
Spider-Man 3’s weekend gross was slightly higher than originally estimated. Sony has upped the initial $148 million opening weekend to $151 million. In addition to the record breaking opening in the U.S., the film broke records in 28 other countries including Canada, Japan and China.
According to Jeff Blake, vice-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, eighty percent of the world wide movie audience saw Spider-Man 3. The film is on route to becoming one of only three other films to break the one-billion dollar mark. The only other films to hit such a milestone are Titanic, Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. ”I don’t think it will come close to beating Titanic, because that film made its money in unique ways, over a longer period of time,” said analyst Gitesh Pandya of boxofficeguru.com. ”But from what I’ve seen this weekend I expect it to pass one billion dollars.”
The phenomenal success of the film prompted Sony executives to predict the franchise would continue. ”There’ll be a fourth and a fifth and sixth and a seventh” said Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment. ”As many stories as Peter Parker has to tell we’ll do sequels.” As for reports that this may be the last film for stars Maguire and Dunst and for director Sam Raimi? “I’d love to have the whole gang back,” said Pascal. “We’ve been a family making these last three movies together, but we will be making more Spider-Mans.”
Though director Sam Raimi and actor Bruce Campbell have collaborated on the cult hit Evil Dead films and the blockbuster Spider-Man films, their partnership began more than thirty years ago at Wylie E. Groves High School in Beverly Hills, Michigan.
“We met in drama class,” says Campbell. ”He was doing what I thought was a bad pantomime. I thought he was way overdoing it, and I think he felt my pantomime kind of blew because I wasn’t doing much of anything.” Back then, it was Raimi that was in front of the camera, starring in Campbell’s Super 8 movies. ”He seemed like a good guy to have involved in the movies that we were making,” admits Campbell.
As for Campbell’s cameos in the three Spider-Man films, he confesses it was he that approached Raimi. ”It is the first time I said, ‘You have to give me a part in this movie because, it’s Spider-Man. It’s going to be big.’ He was like, ‘All right, all right.’”
For Campbell’s role as a snooty French maitre d’ at an upscale Manhattan restaurant, Campbell went back to high school for inspiration. ”Sam and I had French class in high school,” explains Campbell. ”We had a teacher we both enjoyed, and we liked making fun of the accent and practicing the accent. When [Raimi gave me] the maitre d’ [role], he said, ‘Let’s do the French thing.’”
It is unclear if Campbell and Raimi will work together again on another Spider-Man film, but plans for another Evil Dead film will insure these high school buddies have plenty of material for their forty year high school reunion.
If you’re interested in owning a piece of Spider-Man 3, head over to the Hollywood Vault page on E-Bay for your chance to bid on costumes, props and other items from the hit film.
Spider-Man 3 launched into the record books with the highest-grossing opening of all time with $148 million, surpassing the previous record held by Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest when it opened last summer with $135 million. Spidey’s take was a 167% improvement over the same weekend last year when Mission: Impossible III debuted. There was little competition as the only other major studio release, Lucky You took the sixth position with a paltry $2.5 million. Disturbia, which had held the top spot for three weeks was pushed to a distant second with $5.7 million for the weekend.
Spider-Man 3’s opening weekend was a vast improvement over the two previous films. Spider-Man held the record for highest-grossing opening back in 2002 when it debuted with $114.8 million. Spider-Man 2 followed with a $88.2 million opening in 2004.
The web-slinger should have smooth sailing as there will be little to no competition for two weeks until Shrek the Third hits theaters on May 19th followed a week later by Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End which will try to best its predecessor and take back the record.
Contactmusic.com is reporting that Sam Raimi is looking to return to his roots by developing a fourth film in his cult horror series The Evil Dead. Raimi wrote and directed 1981’s The Evil Dead and its two sequels, 1987’s The Evil Dead II and 1992’s Army of Darkness. Raimi is looking to his brother and Army of Darkness and Spider-Man 3 co-writer, Ivan Raimi to pen the script for the new film. “I’m trying to get my brother, Ivan, to write the screenplay with me,” says Raimi. “He wrote Army of Darkness, the third one, with me and we have been talking about another one, but we haven’t started work on it.”
It’s unclear if the reported fourth film is actually the planned remake of the original The Evil Dead film that was announced back in 2004 or a continuation of the series with Bruce Campbell returning as “Ash.”
In addition to the three films, there have been several video game adaptations of The Evil Dead.
Director Sam Raimi confirmed to Sci Fi Wire that he has had a conversation with New Line head Robert Shaye regarding the possibility of directing The Hobbit -a prequel to the uber-popular Lord of the Rings trilogy. “I spoke to him once, so it’s a little more overblown, I think,” said Raimi while promoting Spider-Man 3. ”That’s why I don’t want to pretend that it’s bigger than it is. I had one conversation about the possibility of it, and that’s really where it’s at.”
Reports of New Line approaching Raimi erupted following a lawsuit filed by Rings director Peter Jackson for reported fees owed him for the first Lord of the Rings film. As for whether or not The Hobbit would be Raimi’s next picture? ”I’d have to know that [Peter Jackson] was OK with [me directing] it. It’s really his picture and Bob Shaye’s picture,” said Raimi. “The truth is, I just don’t know what I’m going to do next. That’s the most honest answer I can give you. And I can’t honestly say, even though I have spoken to Bob Shaye, that I don’t know that I could honestly say that anything’s been offered to me until some time in the future, because it just wouldn’t be exactly right. Or true.”
Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel announced Friday that a Broadway musical based on the Spider-Man films is in the works with The Lion King Tony winner Julie Taymor directing and music and lyrics being written by U2’s Bono and The Edge.
“Marvel continues to look to every entertainment medium to support the enduring popularity of our Super Heroes, and we are thrilled with the talent on board,” said Maisel. ”The all-star creative team led by Julie Taymor, Bono and The Edge is second to none.”
No opening date has been announced, but Marvel promised a reading would take place as soon as this summer. ”We are certain this project will delight fans of Spider-Man and new audiences alike,” said Maisel.
By David Germain (Associated Press)
Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man is so good at his job that his Hollywood handlers put him up against THREE enemies this time.
“Spider-Man 3″ continues Peter Parker and alter-ego Spider-Man’s battle against old pal Harry Osborn (James Franco), who’s out to avenge his father’s death, which he blames on Spidey.
Meantime, petty crook Flint Marko (Thomas Haden Church) escapes from prison to try to help his sickly daughter and blunders into a scientific experiment that transforms him into the Sandman, who can shift into sand formations and uses the ability to steal and beat up on Spider-Man.
Spider-Man himself is tempted by his dark side as he learns the truth about his beloved Uncle Ben’s death, and he’s infected by an alien entity that brings out his inner villain. Spidey’s struggle eventually encompasses Peter’s news photography rival, Eddie Brock (Topher Grace), who becomes the black-hearted Venom, a creature with powers similar to Spider-Man’s.
With director Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man 3″ hitting theaters May 4, bad boys Franco, Church and Grace sat down with The Associated Press to discuss the art of evil-doing, why it’s more fun playing bad and who the best movie villains are.
AP: “Spider-Man” villains are never wholly evil. How did you go about balancing the good and bad?
Church: Flint Marko, he’s probably a pretty decent guy who if anything is corrupted by his own good intentions. He has such a singular focus on trying to save his daughter and at various points in the movie doesn’t give a - who he steps on in that pursuit. He’s an empathetic character, and the fact is he’s addressing perhaps the greatest fear of any parent. That he might lose his child.
Grace: Understanding why a bad guy does what they do, whether or not you agree with them, is scarier to me than just some guy falling into a vat of acid, then saying, “I want to take over the world.” If you understand it, that connects you to the villain and their evil acts. But in a bigger sense, what I really love about this movie is even Spider-Man’s bad during it. … It’s great, because we all know no one’s pure good and pure evil. Everyone has good and bad intentions.
Franco: Some people come up to me and say, “Oh, you’re so bad in ‘Spider-Man 1 and 2,’ but I don’t see Harry as a villain at all. Although he’s misinformed about what happened to his father, he really thinks he’s doing the right thing. He’s avenging his father’s death. And in part three, Peter Parker, the hero, does pretty much the same thing, avenging his uncle’s death. The father figure in his life. In a different story, Harry could be the protagonist.
AP: Is it more fun playing bad guys?
Church: I don’t really think I play a villain in this movie.
AP: OK, you’ll have to leave the room.
Church: Yeah. He’s a pretty simple guy who breaks out of prison to save his daughter, and while he is responsible for criminal acts, I don’t think he’s a true criminal in as much as he makes the good and evil choice. I think verisimilitude plays heavily into how the villains are portrayed in these movies. It’s all about perspective. One guy’s evil act is another guy’s good intentions gone awry.
AP: James, Topher? More fun being bad?
Grace: Oh, yeah. In my opinion. It was a big lesson I learned on this, because I’d never done that. When you’re a protagonist, it’s kind of your job, like you hear a little bell go off when you’re getting too far away from center. Would I really do that? That comes from your job to be kind of a conduit for the audience to experience the movie through that character. Whereas playing a bad guy, playing a psycho alien murderer from outer space, I never felt that bell going off. I just never heard the bell.
Franco: Whenever anyone says it’s more fun to play bad guys, it’s because you get to do things that in normal life, there would be …
Grace: Consequences.
Franco: A lot of consequences. And you get to have fun doing it. You get to relish being bad.
AP: And you don’t get arrested at the end. If given superpowers, would most people use them for evil or at least face that temptation?
Church: Are you asking like in real life? If somebody annoys me, would I form a large sand fist?
Grace: Remember when you hit me a couple times on the set because you thought I wasn’t doing the scene right? You kept saying, “Do it right” and hit me.
Church (letting out a big laugh): And I happened to have my sand fist on. So you’re right. So maybe you’re right.
Grace: I felt like I was kind of playing the evil doppelganger version of Peter. … The point of my character is to show someone very similar to Peter but who didn’t have a great mentor like Uncle Ben to say, take responsibility for this power. It wasn’t just that Uncle Ben said that. It’s that it was shown to Peter by a really awful experience that he had to take responsibility for his power. If a character didn’t have that mentor and got the same power, yeah, he probably would use it for evil.
AP: Who’s the best movie villain?
Grace: Probably Darth Vader. What I love about trilogies is that there’s new information with each film. So you’re in the same world with the same actors, but it opens up and opens up. I love how it got deeper.
AP: James? Favorite villain?
Franco: I like Francis in (”Pee-wee’s Big Adventure”). I like Jack Nicholson as the Joker. I really like the guy in “Pan’s Labyrinth.” He was pretty great. The Terminator in the first “Terminator.” Pretty amazing.
Grace: You know who they said was one of the biggest ones in the (American Film Institute) villains list? “Man,” in “Bambi.” Which you never see. That’s a great villain. I remember feeling that villain so intensely and not even getting who it was.
AP: Yup, “Man was in the forest.” Thomas? Best villain?
Church: I’ve got to go back to a movie that came out when I was a kid, and it remains one of the most riveting experiences I’ve ever had in a theater. It was “Alien,” and Ian Holm’s character. He was just so mechanically efficient in ensuring that the alien was protected and killed everybody on board. There was a purity to his - it’s not even evil. It’s just this, like I said, mechanical efficiency at eliminating life to protect an animal. I still think it’s a touchstone performance.
With the constant uncertainty on whether or not Tobey Maguire will return for a fourth Spider-Man film, website Cinema Blend is reporting from a “reliable, proven, inside source” that The Lookout’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt is in contention as a possible replacement for Maguire if he decides not to return as the web-slinging hero.
Spider-Man producers have been quoted as saying they would continue with the franchise with or without Maguire and have approached original Spider-Man writer David Koepp to pen a script for a possible fourth outing.
In addition to his critically acclaimed role in The Lookout, Gordon-Levitt is probably best known for his role on the long-running NBC hit 3rd Rock from the Sun.
Monday, May 7, 2007
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