When Michael Bay made the original film, he was a video director looking to break through in Hollywood; now, he oversees massive productions of films like the “Transformers” movies. Back in 1995, Will Smith was slowly overcoming his teen-oriented-rapper stigma as the “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” TV show was winding down and small movies like “Six Degrees of Separation” were earning him decent reviews; nowadays, he is arguably the most bankable movie star in the world. Some would wonder why outlandish-but-effective detectives Mike Lowery and Marcus Burnett would pop up again now, when the “Bad Boys” talents each have successful careers of their own (Lawrence just opened “Death at a Funeral” this past weekend). According to Martin, however, the time to reunite is now.

“Any time you can get Big Willie to come out and talk about doing a third installment of a hot movie like ‘Bad Boys,’ you have to take notice,” Lawrence explained. “I met with Michael Bay, and he said he’s on board too — so it’s real.”

Writer Peter Craig is putting together a script for Columbia, and the “Bad Boys” team is ready. “I got Big Willie to come down and see me about the movie. I felt special,” Lawrence said of a visit Smith paid to his friend recently to talk about getting the band back together, adding that at this point, the green light is in the hands of the franchise producer. “We’re just waiting on Jerry Bruckheimer to let us know when it’s really real.”

So, hopefully we will get to see Burnett and Lowery doing their stuff in the not so distant future. We’ll keep you posted.

Dark Horizons

The general story has a doctor trying to find the cure for Alzheimer. After his research is shut down, he takes home and raises Caesar, the child of his most promising chimp experiment subject. Caesar continues to evolve and soon leads an army of apes in an uprising around the same time humanity is hit by a catastrophe.

One of the more interesting touches are numerous references to the launch and disappearance of the Icarus led by Colonel Taylor, the lead character and ship which crashed on the future Earth in the original 1968 ‘Apes’. The other is that the cataclysm that hits humanity ties in to the genetic mutation and explains not just how the apes evolve enough to lead an uprising, but why the apes in the original series looked nothing like the modern apes of today.

There were actually very few surprises with most categories won by the favorites. No thrills at all. That lack of surprise continued over into Best Actor and Actress, with “Crazy Heart’s” Jeff Bridges and “The Blind Side’s” Sandra Bullock both taking home a golden statue.

The broadcast has some “technical problems” with really bad choice of clips and audio dropouts. The whole show, unfortunately,  lacked much of the polish of last year’s Academy Awards.

Anyway, here’s the list:

Best Picture: “The Hurt Locker”
Actor in a Leading Role: Jeff Bridges (“Crazy Heart“)
Actor in a Supporting Role: Christoph Waltz (“Inglourious Basterds“)
Actress in a Leading Role: Sandra Bullock (“The Blind Side“)
Actress in a Supporting Role: Mo’Nique (“Precious“)
Animated Feature Film: “Up”
Art Direction: “Avatar”
Cinematography: “Avatar”
Costume Design: “The Young Victoria”
Directing: “The Hurt Locker”
Documentary Feature: “The Cove”
Documentary Short: “Music by Prudence”
Film Editing: “The Hurt Locker”
Foreign Language Film: “The Secret in Their Eyes”
Makeup: “Star Trek”
Music (Original Score): “Up”
Music (Original Song): “Crazy Heart”
Short Film (Animated): “Logorama”
Short Film (Live Action): “The New Tenants”
Sound Editing: “The Hurt Locker”
Sound Mixing: “The Hurt Locker”
Visual Effects: “Avatar”
Writing (Adapted Screenplay): “Precious”
Writing (Original Screenplay): “The Hurt Locker“

“We’re going to shoot it this year I think.” says Hill, “We hired directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller who directed ‘Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs‘ and are friends of mine. They are incredible. Their take on the movie is incredible… It’s about cops who go back to high school. Young rookie cops who go back to high school. I think that’s a real interesting idea as opposed to saying, that’s not what happened in the show so it can’t happen in the movie“.

Working from a script by Michael Bacall and Joe Gazzam with an original idea by Hill (who is also executive producing), the film will keep the same basic premise as the series but will have a tone that Hill believes will surprise fans.

“Audiences are not expecting what it’s going to be. It’s not a parody of the show. I’m not playing Johnny Depp’s character… I’m not saying I’m Johnny Depp. I’m not playing his character. It’s a group of people that go back to high school to deal with a drug problem. To deal with crime in high school. I really love the “Back to the Future” moment of that where it’s getting to relive a certain period of your life… It’s a comedy with really cool action. We’re not doing something serious like ‘Miami Vice.’ But it’s not a parody. It’s a funny movie with a lot of great action and a real story. I’ve been saying that it’s like a John Hughes movie with ‘Bad Boys‘ style action.”

Outside of Hill there is no cast currently lined up. The focus is on tailoring the script to Lord and Miller’s vision, but Hill is certain that the production is headed in a great direction, adding, “I wouldn’t make it if it wouldn’t be awesome.”

Dark Horizons

So, with Halcyon Holdings having filed for bankruptcy, The Los Angeles Times reports that one option being heavily considered right now is to either partially or outright sell the rights to the Terminator” franchise to bring the company out of insolvency.

Derek Anderson and Victor Kubicek’s Halcyon bought the rights to the “Terminator” franchise for $25 million in 2007 in order to produce this summer’s “Terminator Salvation“.  Halycon have now hired the financial advisory firm FTI Capital Advisors to look into their options with the “Terminator” rights the company’s only real valuable asset. The company is in debt of several million to a Santa Barbara hedge fund named Pacificor, LLC. FTI’s managing director Kevin Shultz says “We’re going to be contacting a variety of studios and independent companies.”

I think I said it before – you can’t make a Terminator flick without Arnold Schwarzenegger in it. And I’m not talking about some weak cameo on a computer screen. No, you need the big guy. In the flesh. It’s a no-brainer.

Patrick Swayze

Swayze was raised in Houston, Texas, and his mother was a choreographer and ballet school owner. He trained with the Harkness Ballet and Joffrey Ballet schools in New York, starting his career dancing for “Disney on Parade.” After appearing in “Grease” on Broadway, he made his film debut in “Skatetown, U.S.A” (1979).

He was cast in several youth-appeal pics, including “The Outsiders” and the brilliant “Red Dawn,” before netting a major role in Civil War miniseries “North and South” in 1985. His popularity rose with the dance instructor role opposite actress Jennifer Grey in 1987′s “Dirty Dancing,” which became a surprise hit. He received a Golden Globe nomination for the performance and sang one of the songs on the soundtrack. After several minor films, his career picked up with “Road House” and then the modern classic “Ghost,” in 1990, where his character romantically haunted Demi Moore after he was murdered.

He married Lisa Niemi, one of his mother’s dance students, in 1975. He is survived by his wife, brother, and his mother.

Sad news for all movie lovers out there. We all knew it was coming but still… He will be missed.

Anyway, next up is former UFC world light heavyweight champion – Quinton Jackson. Dark Horizons reports that Jackson is now locked in to portray Sgt. “B.A.” Baracus (originally played by Mr. T) in Fox’s upcoming film remake of 80′s TV series classic “The A-Team.”

Jackson arrived in Vancouver on Friday to begin filming the role on the production that will shoot over the next six weeks. Jackson joins Bradley Cooper as Face, Liam Neeson as Hannibal, and a still as yet undisclosed star as ‘Howling Mad’ Murdock.

Joe Carnahan is directing. “The A-Team” will hit cinemas next June.

“Knockout” casts Carano as a girl from the wrong side of the tracks who is given a second chance to use her skills for constructive purposes. The film is a closer cousin to “La Femme Nikita” and “Kill Bill” than “Million Dollar Baby,” in that it doesn’t take place in the fight ring. Rather, Soderbergh considers the film as a flat out action film in the James Bond mold, and will shoot in locations around the world that include Ireland, Turkey and the U.S.

The MMA circuit is where Soderbergh discovered Carano, a lightweight division slugger with movie star good looks. The Muay Thai-trained fighter has compiled a 7-1 record. Though Carano suffered her first loss in a title fight last month, she is considered the face of the fledgling women’s mixed martial arts fighting circuit.

Carano so far has appeared as herself in the documentary “Ring Girls” and the Oxygen reality series “Fight Girls.” She also served a stint as Crush on NBC’s “American Gladiators,” and had a role in the upcoming action film “Blood and Bone.” Soderbergh plans a late January production start.

The Hollywood Reporter writes that the project, written by Robert Rodat from an idea he conceived with Spielberg, is set shortly after aliens have wiped out most of the human population. Wyle will play the leader of a ragtag group of soldiers and civilians who struggle against the occupying alien force.

“It is a privilege to be starting a second series with Noah,” said Spielberg, whose company was behind “ER.” “The first didn’t do too badly.”

TNT had been looking to extend into series its relationship with Wyle, whom TNT head of programming Michael Wright called “an incredibly talented actor and an extraordinary person.” Wyle has starred in four original films for the cable network: the “Librarian” action-adventure franchise, which spawned three movies, and “Pirates of Silicon Valley.”

“I couldn’t feel more at home,” Wyle said.

Good for you Noah!

BBC News says that David Carradine has been found dead in the 5-star Nai Lert Park hotel in Bangkok on Thursday. Thai police says a hotel maid found the 72-year-old in a wardrobe with a cord around his neck. A US embassy official confirmed the actor’s death, but added that the cause of death had not yet been established, although the police believe the actor took his own life, and preliminary investigations found that he hanged himself.

Carradine was in Thailand filming his latest film, “Stretch”, according to his personal manager Chuck Binder. Mr Binder said the news was “shocking”, adding: “He was full of life, always wanting to work… a great person.”

The star was best known for his role as Kwai Chang Caine in the 1970s TV series “Kung Fu“, which spawned sequels in the ’80s and ’90s. The character became one of the most iconic roles in US TV and earned Carradine both Emmy and Golden Globe nominations.

While his film career saw him working with directors including Martin Scorsese and Ingmar Bergman, the cult actor was considered something of a B-movie legend. In 2003, after years in the straight-to-video market, Carradine found a new audience thanks to his role in the Quentin Tarantino film “Kill Bill“.

He is survived by his wife, Annie Bierman, and three children including actresses Calista and Kansas.