A new Wonder Woman project is in the works and this time it won’t be for the big screen and has nothing to do with Joss Whedon. Sorry fans. Instead, David E. Kelly, one of TV’s most successful creators of shows such as Ally McBeal and The Practice, has signed on to bring the character to the small screen in a new TV series.

The project, from Warner Bros Television where Kelley is based, and Warner Bros’ DC Entertainment, will be taken out to the networks shortly. Details on Kelley’s TV series are, of course, being kept under wraps and it’s not clear if the new Wonder Woman series will feature the old familiar Wonder Woman or the redesigned one announced earlier this year and now featured in the comics.

It will be interesting to see if Kelly can do for Wonder Woman what he did for his other shows. He managed to portray strong female characters who were likable and also infused his shows with a sense of humor. Plus, he always had a bit of his own personal social and political agenda come through.

I’m not sure if that’s the right way to go for Wonder Woman, but based on his past successes and obvious talent, I’m willing to give him a chance. Plus, with Smallville off the air after this season, we are in need of another superhero show to fill that void.

Regardless of the rest, the real question now is who can replace the iconic Lynda Carter, who portrayed the Amazon princess in the most successful TV adaptation which ran from 1975 to 1979, as Wonder Woman? There are a lot of talented actresses out there who may be right for the part, but who’s best? Let the speculation and predictions begin.

Another fine opening! Now that Dwight owns the building, he’s looking for new sources of revenue, so he’s decided to open a day-care center, run by Cousin Moze and located in one of the creepiest rooms of the building, made creepier by the décor, which includes an Insane Clown Posse poster (where “Insane” and “Posse” are crossed out); a chest of plastic forks and knives (for imaginative fun); and buckets for number one, number two, and, uh, feed.

Back at the regular episode, Michael, following his spanking incident last week, has been ordered to undergo several hours of counseling with his arch-nemesis Toby (who, naturally, has a degree in social work). However, the sessions largely consist of Michael glaring at Toby and only opening his mouth to deliver the next insult. But at least he’s getting some sort of help, because, as Phyllis says, “He’s got a lot of issues and he’s stupid.”

Meanwhile, Dwight’s boycotting the Steamtown Mall and demands that the rest of the office join his crusade…whatever that is, because he says his reasons for the boycott are none of their business. To get everyone else on board, he plans on calling up all Mall-related clients and delivering an excoriating, profanity-laden tirade.

So far, it’s worked at losing Andy’s clients. Jim quickly diffuses the situation, and Dwight reveals that his anger derives from an incident the day before, when the owners of one of the stores refused him service…sort of…based on his appearance. Kelly suggests that he doll himself up, go back to the shop, and “Pretty Woman their ass.” Creed suggests they start their own mall, which Erin spastically seconds. Jim goes with Kelly’s idea, and Andy invites himself along to give Dwight a makeover.

And Pam’s struggling with her sales, ultimately deciding that she’s not cut out for it (“The thing that’s unfair about sales is that it’s based on commissions, so if you suck at sales, you don’t make any money. Well, I guess that’s fair”). Opportunity knocks when a traveling salesman asks to see the office administrator, and Pam steps up to the post, which doesn’t actually exist, but hey, it beats waiting for a promotion.

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30 Days of Night: Dark Days (directed by Ben Ketai and starring Kiele Sanchez, Diora Baird and Mia Kirshner) is the sequel to 30 Days of Night, both of which are adapted from the Steve Niles’ graphic novel series of the same name.  The film centers around Stella Oleson (Kiele Sanchez) who has coped with the vampire massacre of her Alaskan hometown (far enough north that it experiences a month of darkness, which the light-sensitive vampires take advantage of) by publishing an account of the attack which claimed the lives of many of it’s citizens - including her husband, Eben.

Stella uses her book tour to draw out and publicly expose vampires to warn people of their existence (and maybe kill one or two of them in the process). During one such tour in Los Angeles, she is contacted by a small group of fellow vampire-attack survivors as well as an unusual vampire named Dane, who still retains enough of his humanity to mourn the loss of his own family, casualities of the attack which turned him.

Acting as a kind of support group, the band convince Stella to work with them as they seek retribution for their mutual losses with the primary goal of destroying the vampire Lilith (Mia Kirshner) - who apparently has control over the other nests of vampires – believing that her eradication will aid in their plan to annihilate vampires entirely.

Shifting the setting from northern Alaska to Los Angeles creates a different tone – both in color and general atmosphere.  The first film established a helpless feeling of isolation for it’s characters with it’s remote, dark and snowy location.

To evoke a similar climate of desolation, Ketai shot the film in areas that appeared to be uninhabited or overlooked – like Skid Row – and it is very effective.  Claustrophobic, dark tunnels are utilized to establish an overall feeling of tension, particularly as characters are preyed upon and picked off one-by-one.

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David Fincher’s The Social Network piqued the interest of audiences over the weekend and grossed over $23M, on just over 2,770 screens.  That is a full thousand fewer screens than big releases typically get.

The film was enthusiastically embraced by critics, receiving some of the best reviews of the year. According to Cinemascore, the film scored a solid B+ with audiences as well.  There is lots of Oscar talk swirling around this film, and it is unofficially considered a bookend to the upcoming award season. Look for this film to perform in theaters for several weeks.

There seems to be a bit of hand-wringing over the gross of the film, because many thought would make more money.  However, if you look at the per/screen average, the film did quite well, with over $8,300 per a showing.  That simply annihilates the per/screen totals of everything else in the top ten this week.

If the film had opened on more screens, it likely would have grossed more money.  Keep in mind that there are no big name stars in the film (save for Justin Timberlake, who is a co-star,) and David Fincher is still not a household name for mainstream America.

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole maintained its number two spot from last weekend with  $10.8M, with a standard drop of about 32% over opening weekend. After two weeks in release, the film has made about $30M, which is still a long way from its estimated $80M budget.

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There’s been plenty of speculation about who will take on the pivotal role of Mary Jane Watson, love interest of Peter Parker (aka Spider-Man) in the upcoming reboot of the franchise. Now it seems speculation can end because according to reports, the awesome Emma Stone is going to be offered the role.

Stone, coming off of great roles in Easy A and Zombieland, seems a natural for the part and according to the reports is a favorite of Sony, the studio home to the Spider-Man franchise. With the role of Mary Jane seemingly a lock for Stone, attention can then turn to the other pivotal female role in the film: Gwen Stacy.

The top contenders for that role include Glee’s Dianna Agron, Mia Wasikowska, Georgina Haig and Dominique McElligott. Of those, I would probably lean towards Agron who could definitely pull of the role. Still, at the moment, no clear front runner has emerged.

Whatever happens with the part of Gwen Stacy, its great to see Emma Stone is becoming a bigger actress in Hollywood. She’s a talented girl who can go far. I, for one, hopes she does. Of course, when this deal is finalized and the one for Gwen Stacy as well, we’ll let you know.

What do you guys think? Is Emma Stone the right choice for Mary Jane Watson? Who should be Gwen Stacy?

UPDATE: Apparently, things got a bit reversed as Emma Stone has actually made a deal to star as Gwen Stacy instead of Mary Jane Watson. Odd?

Jane:  Short Fuse: This collection of horror shorts had a few that really stood out to me among the crowd.

Ninjas (directed by Dennison Ramalho) was anticipated to be one of the best by a lot of people that I spoke with at FF.  It contained a truly disturbing scene and an inventive visual sequence that had me squirming in my seat, though some of the imagery used was remeniscent of J-horror films (which a lot of people like, I think I am just way burned out on it).   

Rosenhill (directed by Johnan Lundborg and Johan Storm) is a clever piece about an elderly woman who has recently moved into a nursing home and believes that the staff have nefarious plans for her.  I really enjoyed it.  

Interview (directed by Sebastian Marka) is a dark, humorous yarn which slowly unravels as a journalist interviews a serial killer – this film was a lot of fun and made great use of it’s short running time.  

Off Season (directed by Jacob Jaffke) a man and his dog break into unused summer homes by an ice covered lake during the winter season and find something disturbing and terrifying while they pilfer for loot.  This piece was so beautifully filmed, the stark winter setting adds a tremendously haunting atmosphere to the story, this was easily my favorite among the short programs.

Stake Land (directed by Jim Mickle and starring Danielle Harris, Connor Paolo and Nick Damici) Set in a kind of post-apocalyptic world in which vampires have infested nearly every part of the globe (save the colder climates, as these vampires are cold-blooded like reptiles), a young boy is rescued by an older man after his family is slaughtered and together they seek refuge in a place called New Eden (Canada) which they believe is free of vampire infestation.

It’s hard not to make comparisons to The Road - and to a lesser extent, to Zombieland - because there are many similarities.  This isn’t to say that the film isn’t good – I enjoyed it quite a bit – but I do think it suffers from the resemblances that it bears to other recent releases covering similar themes.

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I had an idea for a Sunny script: Charlie and Frank take to sea on a boat Charlie’s been secretly building in the basement of the bar (I love the episodes that explore the various never-seen rooms, why not peak at the cellar?). The two become pirates and eventually wind up running a child-prostitution ring.

Well, tonight’s episode, “The Gang Buys a Boat,” shares only one similarity: the boat.

Anyway, brimming with cash ($2500) from the success of Dick Towels, Mac, Dennis, and Charlie decide to buy a boat. After a brief bit of haggling with the salesman (“I didn’t figure you for the ‘hearing’ type”), they land themselves a dilapidated Cape Fear-esque houseboat and promptly set Dee and Frank to task fixing up the non-Diddy-esque cabin while Mac and Dennis seek to integrate themselves among the local boat culture.

Frank’s not so interested in work as he is in starting a shrimping business with Charlie (who, in his Charlie-like mind, thinks barnacles are edible), with a special emphasis on catching some delicious, toxic, “endangered” catfish—that is until he tosses the guys to Charlie, and they promptly go in the drink (“That’s how I toss; I toss: overhand”).

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My first and, in an academic capacity, only economics teacher was a big, brutish-looking but very intelligent man named Carilli. The official goal of the class was to teach us the basics of the dismal science, but Carilli’s true aim was to challenge our way of thinking. And challenge he did. As an English major, my specialty was simply posing questions—“What does the green soldier in The Red Badge of Courage signify?”

“What is Ahab’s nailing of the gold coin to the mast really signify?”—and, nine times out of 10, the best answer was “We may never know.” But Carilli wanted something definitive. “Why aren’t there any great baseball players anymore?” would be a standard question, followed by a lot of head-scratching from me and my peers, and before I could work up the courage to mouth a “We may never…” he’d take pity on us and answer, “Because basketball pays better. The top athletes go into that, because that’s what the people watch—and that’s what makes money.”

That’s the kind of question Freakonomics would ask, and its greatest strength is taking what most would think of as a relentlessly boring subject and making it interesting.

The film presents itself almost as a term paper, with the thesis that incentives matter, and applies it to everyday life, correlating data to explain why you should keep your house on the market if you expect a higher payoff later instead of a lower payoff now or why Sumo wrestlers cheat.

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During our ongoing investigative reporting into the final season of Smallville, we knew it was integral to speak with the brains behind the operation: Executive Producers Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson. Over the course of the last decade, Smallville has shifted from its one-off episode style to an ongoing mystery into the world of Krypton‘s favorite son. This season the mysteries will be resolved.

While the Greeks had Zeus and Athena, in modern times we have our own mythology in the form of superheroes. Like epic poems passed down myths, Smallville illuminates Superman’s origins with dramatic flare. After fighting Lex Luthor, Brainiac, and Zod, you’d think Clark Kent would get a nice vacay. Instead, his hero’s journey will only really begin after the final episode is over.

Yesterday we spoke with Souders and Peterson about episode 200, Kristen Kruek and more. This time we’re talking with the producers about Clark’s legendary journey thus far and what they have in store for our Man of Steel. Note: This interview may contain spoilers. Read at your own risk.

The Flickcast: Smallville’s plot structure has evolved from being a “Freak of the Week” structure to having an ongoing mythology. Can you describe why the choice was made?

Kelly Souders: Well, I think anytime you’re on the air for that long, you have to reinvent it. If not for just that we’d all get bored if we kept doing the same thing, but so that the fans have something new to grow with too. I mean ten years, you change a lot. We change a lot, each fan is going to change.

I think it’s evolving has a lot to do with it surviving. I think we tried to make the show as organic to real life as possible. If we don’t all change, find out new things about ourselves, or try to make changes within ourselves- the same thing would happen (to us) and we’d kind of stall out.

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You heard that right. Pushing Daisies creator Bryan Fuller is currently working with NBC to bring a brand new Munsters reboot to the airwaves as soon as next season. Just like that, what could be a terrible idea, has been turned around into a potential brilliant idea. From EW.

So far, NBC, with whom Fuller has an overall deal, has ordered only a pilot. But since the potential series is being described to me as “Modern Family meets True Blood,” I have a good feeling about it.

Not only that, but rumor has it no less than Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy) is eyeing a behind-the-scenes role in the project.

So if fanboys and fangirls weren’t excited enough for Daisies creator Fuller to come on-board, master of twisted horror/sci-fi del Toro is also looking to hop into the mix.

Though it’s sad to believe, a lot of this project’s future rides on whether or not ABC’s newest series No Ordinary Family succeeds. If the TV-watching American audience doesn’t buy into the not-so-conventional family comedies that they used to scoop up in the mid 1990′s, this series could be dead before it’s ever born.

We expect to hear more news soon, but don’t expect anything official until we get closer to NBC’s next Fall Upfronts next year.

Loki, as you may know, is a character that works against Thor quite often. In fact, you might ever call him Thor’s nemesis. So naturally, the character is going to play a prominent role in the upcoming big screen adaptation of the comic.

With that film coming out soon enough, that hasn’t stopped Marvel from going ahead and making a comic devoted to the character with the upcoming mini-series Loki. From the creative team of writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and artist Sebastian Fiumara, the comic will focus on the mythic past of Asgard and the birth of Marvel’s most relentless villain.

What is the truth behind the twisted motivations of Loki? Money? Power? Revenge? Chicks? Find out everything you need to know from this comic.

Loki #1 hits store shelves on October 20. Until then, check out the preview for the comic after the jump.

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So it may have been tried before Sukiyaki Western Django and The Good, The Bad and the Weird, but this time, the genre mashup is making it’s way to the big screen via Rogue Pictures. Also, if you’re still a bit weary, you can expect to see some familiar faces in the film as well.

Geoffrey Rush, Kate Bosworth, and Danny Huston (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) join the cast in what looks to be an incredible film. Here’s the official synopsis.

The Warrior’s Way, a visually-stunning modern martial arts western starring Korean actor Dong-gun Jang who plays an Asian warrior assassin forced to hide in a small town in the American Badlands.

The film turned enough heads that Lord of the Rings producer Barrie M. Osborne helped bring this film to plenty of screens across the country this December.

Check out the first official trailer for the film after the jump and catch Warrior’s Way in theaters everywhere on December 3rd.

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