News about Baz Luhrmann project Options

[C81]

First of all, sorry for my English. I'm trying to do the best, but...

Anyway Nicole Kidman said something about new Baz Luhrman project in an interview with an italian magazine: (Tv sorrisi e canzoni)

-Did you hear Russell after the Hotel incident?
"Yes, I phoned him, also to tell him that Baz Luhrmann is going on with the project and we start shooting at the end of the next year."

This post has been edited by C81: Aug 2 2005, 01:24 AM

[Neringa]

Yeah, they decided to make sth together. I guess a new movie but Nic is doing 2 year break so probably she cancelled all of her projects for the next year...

[C81]

I found this online:

Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman, who were derailed in their earlier attempt to work together (in Eucalyptus), will try again. The project—an all-Aussie movie—is to be directed by Baz Luhrmann and is being written by Collateral scripter Stuart Beattie. Filming will be later in the year in the land down under and is being described as “an Australian Gone with the Wind.� Margaret Mitchell’s novel of romance and ruin, set against the backdrop of the War Between the States, remains one of America’s most beloved and its characters forever memorable: Scarlett O’Hara, Rhett Butler, Melanie Hamilton, and Ashley Wilkes, to name the four principals. David O. Selznick’s film version was the equal in every way to the novel and faithful to the source material. In the Aussie re-imagining of the novel/film, Nicole and Russell will portray the Scarlett and Rhett-like characters. Naomi Watts will enact the Melanie-type role. Others reportedly already signed for the project include Hugh Jackman, Simon Baker, and Guy Pearce, with Heath Ledger as a possibility. When we ran into Nicole and Naomi poolside at the Beverly Hills Hotel, they couldn’t tell us anything about the project—only that they are involved and that the script is being written by Beatty right now. Oh, and they said they were “very excited� about working together.

http://www.beverlyhills213.com/_issues/_20...__05_25_05.html
Also Naomi in this film?! OMG
But I don't know if it is true. We'll see.

This post has been edited by C81: Aug 2 2005, 07:02 AM

[friendlyfox]

Thanks C81 for the news. I am excited about it too. Naomi may be in it? That is the first time I have heard that...maybe that bit is not true as you say.

We have the news about there being a Baz Luhrmann project already (I will chase up the original topic, but I was hoping they would film it this year *sobs* . Are you certain it is the end of next year? Praying, praying.

[friendlyfox]

OH MY NICOLE... I went to chase it up and the main NKU page points to the topic on our old board. Off to get what I can back here for us.

[friendlyfox]

First place I went to is my email from our roving reporter as we have been discussing this project and are waiting fro any morsel we can get. This is a collection of articles put together by our wonderful roving reporter.

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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0455824/ - Untitled Baz Luhrmann Project

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http://www.celebrityspider.com/news/may05/...e050505-26.html
Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe Plan a Fine Film Romance With Baz 5/5/05


Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe seem to be keen to put the disastrous Eucalyptus behind them and move on with their plans to team up for a movie.

The couple had signed on to star in Eucalyptus but the project was halted due to wrecked sets and controversial script issues. But that hasn't stopped Kidman and Crowe from planning another project together - Australian director Baz Luhrmann is in negotiations with the pair about a new romance film he is planning. Luhrmann, who directed Kidman in Moulin Rouge, insists his new project is like "an Aussie Gone With the Wind."


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http://www.moviehole.net/news/5758.html
Interview : Nicole Kidman
Posted on Thr, 9-Jun-2005

Even with her flat shoes, Nicole Kidman remains a formidable presence. Understated in black, her hair, now more blonde than usual and in short pigtails, Kidman was flanked by her publicist, ready to talk about Bewitched. A far cry from her more intense work, the actress says she was attracted to this comic take on the 60s TV sitcom, partly as a release from the more dramatic work that garnered her an Oscar, and partly, she says, “because I’d watched the series as a kid and there seemed something quite fun at the idea of having watched something as a little girl, then being able to step into it as a woman and kind of pay homage to it. “ In this latest incarnation of a beloved television series, directed by Nora Ephron, Will Ferrell co-stars as Hot-shot actor Jack Wyatt, set to star as Darrin in a new TV version of the '60s TV series "Bewitched," who finds his ideal Samantha in unknown actress Isabel [Kidman], who just happens to be a witch in real life. For Kidman, playing such an icon meant engaging in a certain amount of nose twitching, she recalls, laughingly. “I needed a mirror and the slow-mo on the VCR. Then I would put her nose in slow motion, put up the mirror and would kind of try to mimic it. Finally my mum would say, ‘No, that wasn’t very good, try again’ “

The actress is philosophical when discussing the inherent dangers of contemporising a beloved television show. “I think that the lesson you learn is not try to stay within the confinements of what’s been set. That’s where I think Nora Ephron tackled it quite well, that even though you’re doing a remake, she was able to find another way of telling a story with this film.�

Witchcraft, it seems, comes naturally for the Aussie Oscar winner, having dabbled in it once before in the critically maligned Practical Magic, but the actress says there are no similarities between the two. Yet at the same time, playing a witch has some liberating elements to it. “If you’re pissed off, it’s kind of nice to be able to walk through walls, blow up the cappuccino machine, make a dog jump into your arms and make him speak in tongues,� Kidman says, laughingly. “I think that’s sort of funny and cool, but at the same time, I obviously think the concept is that everyone wishes they could do a little magic and I think the overall idea of the film is that to fall in love requires some of that.� But Kidman says that if she were a witch, she would use her powers in less frivolous ways. �To get heavy, I do a lot of fund raising for women’s cancers, so I probably would choose to eradicate not just women’s cancers, but all cancer, so that would be a good thing.�

In all the years that I’ve known Kidman, 20 years to the day, the actress has always maintained that she perpetually has doubts before taking on a project, whether it’s a broad comedy or heavy drama. Nothing, it seems, has changed. “I think that that’s something that motivates you in the sense of: if you think you can do something then it’s a whole different ballgame. I think there’s a slight arrogance to that, so I think it’s always better to be, ‘I’m not sure’, ‘teach me’ and ‘I’m willing to learn’. “Kidman says that a time comes when she needs to leave part of those lingering doubts off the set. “There’s a time when you step into it and you just go, well now I’m kind of on the roller coaster, so I’ll be kind of brave, throw myself into it and not worry if I fall flat on my face. You know, the first few days of shooting or rehearsal, is when you’re kind of hoping that you DO fall flat on your face, so then you’re not frightened of making a fool of yourself, because so much of your trepidation is just based on, ‘I don’t wanna make a fool out of myself’, particularly if your nature is a little kind of shy to begin with.�

Kidman has always denied being a workaholic, though even at the time of this interview, she was in the midst of shooting Fur, the unconventional biopic about photographer Diane Arbus, a film she wouldn’t discuss in detail, except to admit it was the antithesis of studio fare. “Here the budget is so small and we’re kind of running trying to get everything we can so that the director gets his shots, in order for the film to get made.� It’s a film that Kidman is clearly passionate about, “because it’s such a bold and unusual thing and there isn’t a lot of money for it to be made.�

The actress says she took a break recently for 6 months, returning to her native Sydney, where she enjoys spending quality time with her parents, but has no intention of revealing where her next vacation will be. “Now I don’t tell anybody where I go or what I do, because it just gets publicised and then I can’t go back,� she adds, laughingly. The actress does hope to return to Australia to work, admitting that she and Baz Luhrmann are set to reunite for a new project, following the disappointed collapse of Eucalyptus, in which she was to star opposite Russell Crowe. “They just didn't have the script together, and Fox decided not to make the film, which was a very bold move, considering what we were attempting to do. But at the same time, I think it was the right move, because a lot of times films go ahead and get made, and people know that they're not going to be good, yet they still make them, so I think this was actually a sort of honorable decision in the sense that they didn't want to waste the money and make something that wasn't going to be good.� And Kidman has no idea if that film will resume or not. “I have no idea, but I hope so.� In the meantime, having enjoyed Kidman’s musical prowess in Moulin Rouge, she gets to sing and dance again. “I did do a movie musical with George Miller, called 'Happy Feet,’ where I got to sing a little bit.� Ah yes, the versatile actress plays a penguin, “and hopefully a cute penguin,� she adds, laughingly. “I mean, George is obviously a huge talent, who hasn't made a film for so long, so I’m looking forward to this one. I'm a big penguin, but a small role, so I’ve gone from Bewitched to a penguin.�

[friendlyfox]

Also from roving reporter

Developing epic
The Sun-Herald
Christine Sams
June 26, 2005

BAZ Luhrmann weaved his directorial magic for Nicole Kidman, now there are continuing rumours Russell Crowe will be Luhrmann's next leading man.
The pair, who have spent some time catching up together throughout this year, are believed to be collaborating on Luhrmann's planned Australian period epic.
Crowe has returned to Australia after his phone rage incident in New York and is said to be focusing on developing the new film project.
But rumours that Kidman is also involved in the Luhrmann epic have been dismissed by well placed local film sources. Instead, the Oscar winner has her sights set on working with director Lars Von Trier again. Unlike Luhrmann's dazzling sets and costumes for Moulin Rouge, Von Trier put Kidman in a dog collar and chain for the controversial film Dogville

[friendlyfox]

Some light mentions of the epic here....the first is just because vampvan loves the photos more than anything

Click to make bigger

This one full size

[C81]

Nicole in the interview said next year, that's sure. I would prefer this year, but the important thing is that Nicole is in this movie.
Thanks Foxy for all the articles.

This post has been edited by C81: Aug 2 2005, 08:10 PM

[Vampvan]

Some light mentions of the epic here....the first is just because vampvan loves the photos more than anything

LOL, it's true, so true!

As for the article with the amazing cast list, I am having difficulty in believing this! There has been no mention of other cast members except Nic and Russell Crowe and, as this seems like a gossip based website, it all seems too good to be true. Plus, this was posted back in May during all the hype surrounding the initial news of the Australian epic. So I really don't think there's any truth to it.

But what's this? Nic said filming won't take place until the end of next year?

Nooooooooo!

*controls self*

I guess it would make sense though. Nic has said she is going to take time out, so this would indeed push back the epic. But... oh, it's just been so long since Baz made a film! ATG was on and off again for two years, and then this Aussie epic look promising for this year... so waiting another year or so is going to be very very difficult!

[rougevelvet]

the first is just because vampvan loves the photos more than anything

lmao, you know her all too well

[friendlyfox]

I added this to an Alexander thread because of the last paragraph, but it really belongs here. It seems Russell has not been asked!

Thanks roving reporter for the story.


http://sundaytelegraph.news.com.au/story/0...5-28781,00.html
Crowe tipped for new epic - Ros Reines

August 21, 2005
ONE of Australia's most original directors, Baz Luhrmann is rumoured to have his eye on Russell Crowe for the lead role in a mysterious Australian epic love story which could start shooting as early as February.


Outback epic: Russell Crowe is being talked about for the film
Nicole Kidman is another name that has been tossed around in connection with the project. A team of writers is reportedly working on the film which is set between the two wars in Outback Australia. However, Crowe recently told one of the trade publications that it was all news to him.

"I really believe in what Nicole and I could bring to the screen together, and Baz is somebody I would go to the ends of the earth with. I really don't know anything about what is being printed in newspapers, but considering I see Baz quite regularly for coffee and he hasn't brought it up . . . whatever."

Adding to the intrigue Luhrmann is also due to start filming his long-awaited epic based on the story of Alexander the Great as early as next year.

[friendlyfox]

I have the scan for the above article now.

Click on image to make Bigger
Sunday Telegraph (Australia) 21st August 2005

[NicoleFan4Life]

Thanx foxy!Love the articles!

[iluffnicole]

THANK YOU!!!

[Re_Broome]

Ten Thousand Horses, this is the title of the new movie of Baz, Nic e Russel...

[Palme d' OR]

Nicole Kidman + Russel Crowe = Box Office Hit, Critical Hit, and Academy Award Winner


Nicole Kidman has been cheated for so many awards, I'm so glad she has the opportunity to do something mainstream enough to be a shoe-in for an academy award nomination.

[flafims]

Nicole Kidman + Russel Crowe = Box Office Hit, Critical Hit, and Academy Award Winner

+ BAZ!!!!

And God bless you!!!

[narrows101]

I didn't know where the heck to put this but this sounded like a good thread. Nothing earthshattering, but the premiere of "Jindabyne" was in Australia last night (Hugh Jackman's wife Deborra-Lee Furness is in the movie and they walked the red carpet). It was reported that Baz was there, and he mentioned the Australian epic movie:

Others to walk the red carpet at Sydney's Fox Studios complex included Australian director Baz Luhrmann and actor Nathan Phillips.

***
Jackman is also slated to star opposite Nicole Kidman in Luhrmann's upcoming untitled Australian film.

"We are on schedule," said Luhrmann of the film which is expected go into production later this year.