November 12 marks the debut film of upstart studio, Trans-Atlantic Features with co-studio head, CS Wood's, Redwood Films production, "Truth Takes Time." Known more as a hit-churning marketing maven, Wood takes a break from his usual blockbuster fare, with a more down-to-earth marital drama. Unfortunately, he seems to have dropped his famed guerrilla marketing tactics, as well, and has presented a more low-key marketing campaign.

On the other hand is 21st Century Cat Pictures' "Wrestling With Hollywood," whose advertisements have drawn much attention. Produced by Opticon Productions' Lucas, the off-beat wrestling mockumentary should provide effective counter-programming against "Truth Takes Time's" more serious tones. Sporting a huge cast, this film's budget may be a bit overbloated, but opening in a weekend featuring real-life film "The Polar Express," there should be ample room for both of these films to elbow it out for the sure-to-be plentiful box office cash.

With the weekend's box-office pot, it looks like both studios will be a financial winner, this week. Here's the breakdown for the two films:

Truth Takes Time/Wrestling With Hollywood

Director: Robert Redford/Spike Jonze
No contest here, for the wrestling flick. While Jonze may have a cult following after "Being John Malkovich" and "Adaptation," he's no match for heavyweight screen icon and Oscar winner, Robert Redford.

"Truth Takes Time" takes this category.

Cast: Buscemi-Watts-Brosnan-Swinton/Walker-Jonze-Mol-Spears
At first glance, "Truth Takes Time" takes this category, hands down.

Cult-icon Steve Buscemi vs. Pretty-Boy-of-the-Week Paul Walker? Former James Bond Brosnan vs. Hollywood Flop Britney Spears? It looks like another win for the Redwood Film.

Take into account "Hollywood's" plethora of wrestling stars, C-movie actors, a porn queen, a faux-afro man-queen, a rock star, and Tom Hanks' name, however, and you've got yourself a matchup. While, they may not draw in mainstream audiences, there's bound to be a number of demographics intrigued by this assortment of oddities. The question is, will they turn up and will they be enough?

While I may be completely off on this, I'll take the safe route and predict, no, so chalk up another victory for "Truth Takes Time."

Producer: CS Wood/Lucas
While both of these people are established players in HtG Town, CS Wood gets the nod here.

As mentioned earlier, Wood is a proven hit producer while Lucas, despite having produced a couple of TV shows back in FMVille, is known more as a creative company specialist.

While this may be Lucas' chance to establish himself, it's Wood's name here that will draw in the audiences and he takes the win in this category.

Audience Tracking: Truth Takes Time/Wrestling With Hollywood
If you could pick one category for a Redwood Film to win in, it would usually be in this one, however, in this case, "Hollywood" is kicking butt, here.

While Wood's trailers have barely made a stir (a seemingly sympathetic compliment from Lucas, himself, and a postive word from Ste300), "Wrestling With Hollywood's" trailers have caused quite a commotion.

Drawing both praise ("...quite possibly the most original ad I have seen...", Mattricks), ridicule ("Dude, he's POUNDING the wall!" Bishop), and a potential lawsuit for identity theft regarding Chris Jericho, this Opticon Production has produced a ton of controversy. Guess that's what you get for ripping off Y2J, spoofing politics, and using Tom Hanks' name.

Despite this, as "The Passion of the Christ" proved, any publicity is good publicity and "Wrestling" gets the edge in this department, over "Truth Takes Time's" trailers and its two articles in The Voice.

Conclusion:

Despite the overwhelming advantage in the audience tracking department, the three-count loss for "Wrestling" means that "Truth" takes the win, this time. Mainstream audiences will almost certainly be drawn by the name-power of CS Wood, as well as his principal cast.

ADVANTAGE: "TRUTH TAKES TIME"

Head-to-Head takes a hiatus next week as there only seems to be one film.

Check back in two weeks time for the Thanksgiving Weekend Threesome, pitting the Flip Brothers' "Night of the Squirrels," 21st Century Cat Pictures' "The Montana Joneses," and United Filmworks Inc.'s "Gutterball".

Originally printed in The Hollywood Voice. Article by MC48.

After Texas and Mexico, Producer Bryan Bishop takes us for a ride in the exotic lands of... Wyoming! Well, the poor frenchman that I am doesn’t know anything about Wyoming, but I’m sure it must be worth a journey with Mike Roulette.

After TIT (Tuesday in Texas) and MIM (Monday in Mexico), WIW (yes you’re right... Wednesday in Wyoming) is the third movie of the Seven Days saga. The names of the cast members as well as the plot have been kept secret, but we are now able to give some elements.

“After handing the camera to Robert Rodriguez on Monday In Mexico, I'm pleased to announce Sam Raimi will be returning to direct his second film in the Days Series” reveals studio head Sureshot. “ WIW picks the story up with Mike Roulette (Matthew McConaughey) riding the freight train into Winona, Wyoming, wearing the wounds he won in Lorraine, Texas. Also returning are Javier Jugaro (Vincent Gallo, Monday In Mexico) head of the Red Demon hit squad and his second in command, Joey Galapagos (Edward James Olmos) the man who killed Joshua Wood on that infamous Tuesday In Lorraine, Texas. Newcomers to the series include Kirsten Dunst, Joe Don Baker, Ted Raimi and David Carradine. There's also a few surprise roles we're keeping under our hat for now.”

For everyone, the real surprise would be that Wednesday in Wyoming beats Tuesday in Texas’ Box Office record ($385M!!).

“I doubt that we'll ever see a return to the kind of box office figures films like Tuesday In Texas, A Legacy Of Spies, The Gunslinger earned in (Film Mogul).” Admits Sureshot. “WIW is of the same quality though. Fans of the series will not be disappointed.”

WIW opens on December 10th and it looks as if we’re in for a bloody end of the year.

By the way, what is United Filmworks International developping for 2005? “We haven't really started planning 2005 yet,” answers Sureshot. “Blacksmith and I have our eyes set on a couple of big franchises, but we'll have to wait and see what happens there. We have a whole wealth of films in production right now. Next up will be Gutterball; Mattricks second film in HTG with our studio, then WIW, and a war/drama called The Bottle Of The Death from newcomer Freems will round UFI's year off as our Xmas release. Also in production is Crosshairs (EricM), The Stonebrooke Patients (Mrellias), In Vogue (Random FX), and a film of my own titled Hollywood Redux. There's also several other films we have signed up that we're likely to see early next year.”

Looks like Sureshot likes Surprises!

Written by Malko for The Hollywood Voice.

November 5th marks HtG's second ever head-to-head matchup, pitting the Flip Brothers' "The Paw" against 21st Century Cat's "Sal", and, boy, these two films couldn't be any more different.

It's second-release vs. second-release, crime-thriller vs. crime-thriller, black-and-white poster vs. black-and-white poster, Oscar nominated director vs. Oscar nominated director, three-lettered title vs. three-lettered title, and... Well, you get the picture.

With this many similarities, one has to wonder where the logic is in pitting these two films against each other. Sure, "The Incredibles" weekend is bound to generate some box-office cash but with the two films vying for the same demographics, this matchup is either going to be a blowout, or come out dead-even. Either way, at least one studio's going to be the big loser.

So who's it gonna be? The Flip Brothers? 21st Century Cat? Here's the breakdown for the two films:

The Paw/Sal

Director: Curtis Hanson/Michael Mann
Both of directors are well-respected and have had their fair share of hit crime flicks.

Ultimately, though, recently catering to both younger audiences ("8-Mile") and older ones ("L.A. Confidential") has given Curtis Hanson the slight advantage in the box-office draw area.

Cast: Boreanaz-Portman-Aiello-Peet/Pitt-Phoenix-C.Affleck-D.Lane
Is there even any question? Former Sexiest Man Alive vs. "Angel"? Come on.

The crew from "Sal" wins big time.

Producer: Ritchie Steven/Eric M
On the one hand, HtG Mayor, "Scream 4," "Of Love and Shadows," and "Downtown" producer. On the other hand, HtG citizen and debut producer. Their HtG social status alone speaks volumes.

Add the fact that "The Paw" uses the names of two cult-characters from Steven's old TV-show, this may draw in a few hardcore "Downtown" fanboys.

"The Paw" with the advantage here.

Audience Tracking: The Paw/Sal
So far, in the trailer department, "Sal" has been kicking "The Paw's" butt, earning audience raves, including:

"This one looks great, I can't wait to see it!," (Ste300)
"Very cool poster!" (MB Poster)
"Nice poster, great cast. Looking forward to this." (SA)
"Very f***ing cool!" (Ritchie Steven, in what may be a horrible publicity move)

Meanwhile, "The Paw" trailers have earned a grand total of no comments.

On the other hand, it's completely reverse in the press-coverage area. "The Paw" has had two pieces on it printed in the widely-read Voice, while "Sal" has had none.

In the end, though, public exclamations from excited potential-viewers speak volumes and so, "Sal" gains the edge in this category.

Conclusion:

Despite looking pretty even, splitting the four categories above, "Sal's" significant cast drawing power and early audience buzz is too much to ignore. With "Sal" likely drawing in most of the crime-thriller audience, let's just hope for the Flip Brothers' sake that there are enough "Downtown" fanboys left over.

ADVANTAGE: "SAL"

Check back next week for Head-to-Head: 11/12/04, pitting TAF's debut outing "Truth Takes Time" against 21st Century Cat Pictures' "Wrestling With Hollywood."

Originally printed in The Hollywood Voice. Article by MC48.

Hollywood the Game is still a young baby, and I met one of his proud fathers: Ritchie Steven.

“I feel very good about the game right now. We have a strong structure and we have been moving foward nicely. Over the next week or so will will be introducing a few more aspects, like Awards and Film Libraries. It's an exciting time,” Ritchie said.

The baby is growing without the aspect that led Film Mogul to death: Talent agencies. Instead of them, the staff successfuly introduced other careers such as the real-estate agent job. “The real estate thing is just an extra way to make money and I wouldn't think people would play just for that. So far two players have made close to 10 mil selling houses, so its working” says Ritchie.

The staff also abandoned the idea of creating a “Theater owner career” which was regarded as a game element that would only have involved a small part of the players.

Some sections of the site are still under developement. The studios’ pages on should open very soon, and the first edition of The Pit should come in mid November. The staff is also developing promising elements.

Said Ritchie: “Another Short Film Festival is being planned for December and DVDs/HTG TV are both activitly in the production stages. Hopefully with the new year, we will be able to release these aspects of the game.”

The debate on whether television (HTG TV or HTV ) should be introduced or not, shows that in some ways, the danger is to make the game grow too fast. Many players want it, but it is obvious that some other parts of the games such as “Arthouse films” or “Awards” should be completed first.

The other positive fact is the growing number of players. The death of Film Tycoon is, of course, one of the main reasons: more than 20 former Film Tycoon players joined HTG after October 20th!

“I feel very bad for their loss, but I am more than happy to have them here,” Ritchie told me. “The bigger the player base, the more activity, I hope they all tell their friends and their friends’ friends, and so on. We all have to spread the word a little bit.”

Looks like HTG’s best days are coming. I just hope that the teenage crisis will be avoided!

Originally posted on The Hollywood Voice. Written by Malko.

On October 20, HtG Town's neighbor, the vastly populated Film Tycoon (FT) City had closed its doors. Over the past few months, the once-mighty metropolis had been deteriorating as internal riots, crumbling architecture, and pre-occupied leaders all contributed to the downward spiral which ultimately led to its doom.

As a result its many citizens have fled the burning remains and have re-formed into several groups and clusters, each heading out into new territories in the vast lands of the Internet. Some have set out to form new Empires, new Low-Intake Utopian societies, and new Miniature versions of the once-great FT. Others have quit altogether and retired peacefully in the countryside. And about twenty or so brave and intrepid refugees have ventured out and found themselves here, in HtG Town.

It was on the eve of October 19 when HtG Town's stunned inhabitants first saw the group of migrating off in the horizon. Leading the pack was former-FMVille citizen Bobbins (who actually seems like a prophet by joining a day before FT's close). Much like most of the good-natured immigrants, Bobbins greeted HtG Town mayor, Richie Stevens, cordially and with open arms.

"I hope you can all be patient with us folks who aren't used to your city ways and might get a bit lost!" Ambassador Bobbins remarked. "Hopefully we can all get used to this place pretty quickly instead of becoming some sort of 'expat FT community' thing."

"A bit lost" was quite an understatement for most of the new immigrants in the first few days of their new life at HtG Town. Some couldn't even find their way to their new homes in The Slums.

"I've been completely lost," Kylaar has been overheard to have said. "It was such a big shock about FilmTycoon closing."

Alas, after a few days and two new buildings being erected in The Slums, most of the new citizens have settled down quite nicely. Mayor Richie Stevens is even gathering funds to initiate a new Mentor Program to help the new citizens adjust to the rigors of HtG Town. His actions have already begun to generate praise from the ex-FTers.

"I think its fantastic the way the community started the mentor program to help people adapt," Graham exclaims. He adds that, "Everyone (he's) encountered has been very helpful," and that, "once (he's) used to the way things are done (he’ll) get more enjoyment out of the game."

Several other players echo Graham's sentiments.

"I've had several moments where I've asked for help and within five minutes I'll get a nice reply explaining everything. It's nice," Godfather remarks. "You guys are all great!" Mrellias adds.

But settling in is only the first step for these new citizens. Getting a job is another.

"I find the pitching process a hard as I don’t like giving away to much information about my movies," Graham complains. Kylaar also suggests "making (the process) easier and simplifying" things, while the first ex-FT citizen to earn money, Screw_Ball, is asking for a system for independent films.

This frustration is evident in the figures received in a poll where the numbers indicate that 29% plan to leave HtG altogether, 47% will commute between HtG and various other cities, while only 24% intend to make HtG Town their permanent home.

Despite this, at least five new producer's films have received significant interest from studios, and three (Godfather's, Graham's, and Mrellias') have already been officially picked up.

When asked about his feelings on his movie being picked up, Mrellias exclaims, "I feel great! It's good coming into a game with a good start." Commenting on the higher standards harder pitching process, he adds that, "it is a lot different from FT, but I would say it is more fulfilling."

So what advice do these newest HtG hotshots have to give to their fellow immigrants? Graham sums it up best.

"Adapt, this is not Film Tycoon. HtG has a different way to things but ultimately the same outcome to get your ideas and movies out to the community."

Now I know that's easier said than done, so good luck to all you newest HtG Town citizens. Hope to see your films in theaters soon.

Written by MC48 for The Hollywood Voice.

When the old and new players meet for the first time, it does not always go smoothly. Much like immigrants reaching a new country, bringing with them old beliefs and superstitions, new players from a similar game also bring beliefs, superstitions and most notable, “old habits,” both good and bad.

Here in HTG, “Noobs” find themselves going from complete bosses of their own studios, releasing movie after movie without the care of what others may think in their old game, to moving down the corporate ladder to what might seem a glorified screenwriter.

No longer a studio head, “Noobs” find themselves a little fish in a VERY big pond. Add to this a set of different rules (both forum and game), different playing styles plus established players and you may just find a confused and frustrated player.

It is inevitable that mistakes are made. Also impossible to avoid are…

1. The influx of questions
2. Requests for making the game play much like the game just left &
3. A jockeying for quick advancement in what may seem the “established” game ranks.

Now you at HTG may be asking yourself, “Why invite new players to our game if we are going to be inundated these situations?” The answer I believe is very simple, the admittance of “fresh blood.”

An infusion of fresh ideas, thoughts and game play could just strengthen and revitalize a game. This could in turn challenge established players to broaden their horizons and empower them to once again find their creative and artistic center.

Now I am not saying that the creative juices were not flowing long before the arrival of new players but that a whole new level of creativity could open up plus a renewed interest in different aspects of the game play itself.

But fresh blood aside the most important thing for a “Noob” to remember is the concession/acknowledgment of an established game environment and most importantly respect for all players.

Established players also have a role to play to play in the “invasion” (if you will) of new players.

1. Reception – Never underestimate the POWER of friendly acknowledgment.
2. A simple welcome will do wonders for the morale of new players.
3. Be approachable and easy to talk too.

Cooperation, acceptance and compromise are something we all must do to make this an enjoyable experience.

I am glad to note that the established players here at HTG have gone out of their way, on numerous occasions, to make us all feel welcome and most importantly wanted.

Originally posted on The Hollywood Voice. Written by PantonyP.

More like Seven's Hell, at least for BlackSmith Pictures and their latest film featuring Jennifer Connelly and Thomas Jane.

The Seventh Son, UFI's October 22 theater entry, is "a culmination of a 10 year dream" for co-writer Grant Smith. Apparently though, it's more like a nightmare, incorporating the legend of the first witch from old times yore, as well as the mythology of the enigmatic seventh son of a seventh son.

From the producer's own words:

"The story takes place in Roanoke Virginia, a beautiful mountainous area with a dark past. An old hospital has been converted into a combination orphanage and juvenile hall for minor offenders. A child psychologist (Jennifer Connelly) becomes fascinated by a new arrival: an infant that has never uttered a sound. She also begins to notice a sinister presence roaming the halls that seems fixated on the child. When a prominent doctor at facility is brutally murdered an FBI agent (Thomas Jane) with a past in supernatural investigation becomes involved and together they unravel a terrifying mystery that leaves humanity itself hanging in the balance. (Check the bottom for excerpts from the film's production log).

Directed by "Superman", "Lethal Weapon", "The Goonies" and "The Omen" director, Richard Donner, this film promises to deliver a "creepy, scary good time." While I don't neccesarily equate "getting scared" with "good times," audience tracking indicates that movie-goers are tuning in and taking notice.

Part-time film critic and producer, Corey, drops his usual objective professionalism to exclaim "Thomas Jane! I'll be (watching) this one!" And I thought groupies were girls... Similarly, though, full-time critic and producer, Mattricks, also expresses his excitement and is "expecting a horror masterpiece."

With this much pre-release buzz, expect this film to gross its $57.5 million budget in no time.

***

The Seventh Son Production Log
Courtesy of BlackSmith Pictures and United Filmworks Inc.

Joe (D. Blackerby) and Grant (Smith) had initially sold the script to Alexander Studios, but now the movie will be released through UFI.

As pre-production began, it was clear early on that location filming should take place in the Virginia hills. As scouting was finishing, the casting process began. Director Richard Donner had a specific person in mind. “Our first choice was Jennifer Connelly and we were extremely lucky to get her”, he said. “The part of Clarice intrigued me”, Connelly said in a recent interview. “She’s a grown woman dealing with adult issues, yet she’s got a child-like innocence that she can’t let go of.” The part of Joseph, the FBI agent was a much tougher choice. Executive Producer Joseph Blackerby says, “We looked far and wide for an actor to take on the part of Joseph, but no one seemed to fit. Then Thomas Jane’s agent called and he agreed to a reading. Once Thomas read for us, it was clear that he was our Joseph.”

Principal photography began on January 29, 2004 at UFI Studios. The sets were constructed on Stages 4, 15, 24 and a massive interior set for the Roanoke Orphanage and Juvenile Hall was constructed on Stage 29. Shooting at the studio wrapped on March 5, 2004 and moved to key exterior shots in Virginia. An old mental hospital stood in for the exterior of Roanoke Hall.

Principal photography wrapped on April 10, 2004 and is now in the final stages of post-production. Director Richard Donner says, “We hope this movie gives audiences a good, scary time. It’s extremely creepy and while an original story, it has firm roots in ancient mythology which makes the movie that much more terrifying.”

The Seventh Son is coming to theaters on October 22, 2004, just in time for the Halloween season.

Originally written by MC48 for The Hollywood Voice.

Yeah, I think that phrase is played out too. Anyhow, this is a weekly thing I’ll bring you, the dedicated readers of this new news website. I’m going to play around with this column every time around and we’ll see what happens.

The obvious topic will be the one I take on in my first ever HTG column: the startup of the game. It has been a long (well, not really) road to this game’s creation. Somewhere around early August we got the word that Film Mogul was no more. So the plans sprung up within 24 hours to create a new game. Original plans were for a Zero/Mac leadership, but it looks like the Flip Brothers have this job now. I couldn’t possibly support our new leaders more, and allow me to be the last to say this new game is very exciting.

The questions surrounding this game, however, might be worth taking a look at. The most interesting question that I think can be asked is, “Where will the new players come from?” To my knowledge (And trust me, I’m not in the know) there will be a code on every page of every website involved with this game that will not allow people to find us. So if someone searches “Hollywood Simulation Game” or even “Gay Porn” they will not find our little website(s). Which, realistically, may represent a problem. The thing that kept FM running, in my opinion, was the constant influx of new players. If we don’t have that, what will the future hold for our new game?

This problem could be partially solved with some sort of recruitment system. Maybe awarding players for bringing in friends. I don’t know. I think it would be something that might be worth a thought. Let’s push these issues aside for a moment so I can give a shoutout to the theaters. We have The Giver and Shades of God as the two full-length films and eight (I think…) short scripts from the contest. This is a very solid start, I think. Both full-length films seem to be getting good reviews. But let me take a moment to point out the one big stink bomb that calls the HTG theater home.

That’s right, The Drink. This short film was written by yours truly and seems to be challenging for the award for worst short film. What I believe would be funny to point out for those unaware is, well, these characters aren’t new. Yep, that’s right, one or two of you may have noticed that the characters seem to bare a striking resemblance to the characters from my August 2003 release, The Life Of Crime. Now, anyone who knows of this film probably remembers that it did not do well with critics. However, it did take in something like 250 million in box office receipts. Which brings to mind a interesting question… will there be a repeat?

We’ll see. That’s all for this time around… stay tuned for next week’s column…. I promise it will be better…. adios…

Originally posted on The Hollywood Voice. Written by Marty.

Or, to be more politically correct, Trans-Atlantic Features.

That's right, after HTG's very own October 3rd Presidential elections, running-mates Dante and CS Wood have earned their very own studio, which they've promptly renamed Trans-Atlantic Features.

"It feels great," gushes Dante, one half of the newly-elected pair of studio chiefs. "I'm not used to winning, so this comes as an extreme shock." The self-proclaimed loser goes on to thank his supporters and assures them that he'll strive to "live up to (their) expectations."

At first glance, the Dante-Wood partnership seems like the perfect marriage. Destiny Films, Dante's old FM studio was moderately successful, but, according to Dante himself, suffered "laughable" marketing. Additionally, he's "hoping for better organization and profit," two other traits CS Wood has been known for.

Known more as a blockbuster-churning producer, Wood's FM Redwood Films production company has had a reputation for top-of-the-line marketing and for churning out hit after hit after hit. A month rarely went by without some CS Wood film hitting the theaters.

"I knew I had many weaknesses (but) believe that CS really takes care of those," Dante remarks. Ahh, just like any successful marriage, these two partners really do complement each other.

But who's wearing the pants in this relationship and proposed? Ironically, it wasn't on Wood.

"I had always wanted to get back into the studio area ever since Destiny Films was shut down," proposer Dante confesses. "This partnership had started before HTG. We had planned on saving $400-$500 million to start our own studio but about a month into it FM closed."

Nothing like a pre-marital affair to kick off T&A Features.

So what's the future like for these two and their studio? Apparently, they plan "to release a variety of genres... all kinds of movies, from documentaries to westerns to fantasy."

"I'll go for what I can get and strive for anything better," Dante adds.

Up the studio's sleeves are a "Legend of Zelda" flick, "The Navidson Records" (a documentary adapted from House of Leaves), Dante's "Perfect Dark," and two more unspecified CS Wood projects.

With these promising ventures, things are looking good for Trans-Atlantic, although Dante refuses to get carried away.

"I think it will be a difficult and tough journey to the top," he adds with a wink. One particular rival he singled out was Sureshot and Blacksmith's UFI. According to him, "everything they have turns to gold."

Well, Dante, then I guess you'll just have to hope for platinum.

Originally written by MC48 in The Hollywood Voice.

October 15 marks the highly awaited HTG debut of FM-wunderkind Brian Bishop, "Near and Dear". After setting the Film Mogul box office on fire with his freshman outing, "Tuesday in Texas," the Flip Brothers are obviously banking on his reputation as the Jerry Bruckheimer of virtual Hollywood. Only this time around, the movie is low-budget. And it's a drama. With no blood. Oookay.

"Yup, it's completely different," Bruckheimer Bishop remarks. "There is no blood in this movie aside from a slight trickle. No gunplay, no criminals or cowboys."

In a far cry from his trademark action-packed westerners, "Near and Dear" features a lonely Bill Murray stranded on a desert planet. So, who's near? Nobody. But apparently a lot of people are dear, presumably Murray's co-stars Demi Moore, Darryl Hannah, and Steve Buscemi.

Bishop describes the film as "a science fiction character study with a ghost story thrown in for good measure," which I guess makes it a futuristic "Castaway" with a tinge of "Ghosts of Mars." But then again under David Lynch's direction, you can never tell what you'll get.

Why then are the Flip Bros. releasing this unpredictable Hollywood blockbuster? "It just fits," replies Flip Brother Richie Steven (the hotter of the two, according to Bishop).

Despite being set for release following three consecutive character-driven pieces and risking potential over-saturation, Steven remains optimistic in Bishop's abilities. "Bryan Bishop is easily one of the best writers I know," Steven beams (because he's the hotter brother, no doubt). "As you will see with this script, (Bishop) can handle drama just as good as he can handle action/gore."

Bishop adds that "Near and Dear" is "one of (his) best-written pieces," and that "when something's (this) highly personal, it tends to come out that way." These are strong words coming from the critically acclaimed writer of the aforementioned "Tuesday in Texas," its prequel, "Monday in Mexico," and "Black Backpack."

So with this much studio confidence in the film, how's the HTG public feeling? "When will (this) faggy astronaut movie come out?" Corey asks.

Clueless Kentuckyan. October 15. Check the calendar.

For those of you missing Bishop in Bruckheimer mode, don't worry as he's got a number of other films in development. In fact, he's got another western within two weeks of this release.

Amazing. As someone notes in his Web site, Bryan Bishop is truly, "The fastest scripter in the West."

Originally written by MC48 in The Hollywood Voice.