It what may come as sad news for fans of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower who were anxiously awaiting its translation from book series to feature films and TV series, it looks like Universal has decided to pull the plug. News came late yesterday that the studio decided to not move forward with the extremely ambitions adaptation of the series which would have started with a trilogy of films and two limited-run TV series.
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So now the filmmakers, which include star Javier Bardem, director Ron Howard, producer Brian Grazer, screenwriter Akiva Goldsman and Mark Verheiden, who was set to co-write the TV elements with Goldman, need to look for a new place to set up. It’s going to be a tall order finding a studio that’s willing to go on the hook for what would surely be a commitment of at least $500 Million (or more).

It’s not that hard to understand why Universal was reportedly more interested in doing one film to see what happens before moving forward with the rest. In this climate that’s a big bite for any studio to take and they were probably looking to minimize their risk. Makes sense.

In case you’re not familiar withThe Dark Tower series, it centers on the last living member of a knightly order of gunslingers named Roland Deschain who becomes humanity’s last hope to save civilization as he travels the land on a journey towards the Dark Tower. Along the way, he encounters all manner of characters, both good and bad, in a world that’s part Old West and part magical realm.

It’s quite an interesting series so let’s hope it finds a way to the big screen. In the meantime, Marvel is doing some excellent adaptations of the series which are plotted by Robin Furth and scripted by Peter David. Stephen King serves as Creative and Executive Director of the comics.

The battle for Smartphone Supremacy seems to have come down to two companies: Apple and Google. Of course, Apple has the iPhone and iOS, a device and operating system many would say has revolutionized the way people communicate and interact on the go.

And Google has it’s Android operating system that is increasingly being adopted by more and more Smartphone manufacturers and has a growing fan base of its own. That’s pretty much the way it seems to be coming down and a new survey from ChangeWave seems to support that.

According to the survey, 48% of those planning to buy a new smartphone during the next 90 days plan on buying an iPhone. Also, 46% of those buying a smartphone in the next 90 days said that they would prefer an iOS-powered device, 32% want a smartphone running Android, and only 4% want a device running BlackBerry OS.

It’s not just potential new users, however. Current users are pretty excited for the iPhone too. 70% of those surveyed said that they were “very satisfied” with iOS. 50% said they were very satisfied with Android, 27% were happy with Microsoft’s Windows OS (which we assume means both Windows Mobile and Windows Phone), and 26% were pleased with RIM’s BlackBerry OS.

That may seem pretty definitive but it doesn’t really tell the full story. There’s people who will always dislike Apple and it’s “closed” architecture and people who like Google and Android for being more “open.” However, 48% versus 32% isn’t really a slam dunk for Apple and the iPhone. There’s still a lot of fight left in this battle.

Click through for the full ChangeWave press release.

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With Comic-Con in San Diego starting this Wednesday night with Preview Night and going through Sunday, it’s a great time to make sure you’re ready and able to find all the great coverage we’re going to be doing during the show. With that in mind, following are some links to where our content and coverage are going to be.

Of course, the main place you can find our coverage and content will be right here at The Flickcast website. See that link above that says San Diego Comic-Con 2011? Click that and it will take you directly to all our Comic-Con features, news, interviews, video and more.

We’ll also be posting items of interest to our Facebook Page and our Twitter feed. So, if you haven’t yet become our friend on Facebook or started following us on Twitter, now is a great time to do that! You can also find our video content directly at our video site.

This year’s Comic-Con promises to be better than ever so be sure to check back right here for all your Comic-Con news, interviews, photos, videos and more!

You have to hand it to Quentin Tarantino. Besides being a very talented director who tells interesting stories well he’s also got the ability to put together some great ensemble casts. From his fist film Reservoir Dogs, through his most recent Inglorious Basterds, the director never ceases to lock in some great actors for his films.

He’s continuing that trend with his upcoming Sergio Leone-inspired western Django Unchained. He’s already got Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson and Leonardo DiCaprio. Now, according to Deadline, we can add Oscar-winner Kevin Costner to the mix as well.

According to the report, Costner would play Ace Woody, “the sadistic trainer of the male fighting slaves who entertain the white patrons of Candyland as well as the female slaves who are forced to be prostitutes. The club and ranch are owned by Calvin Candie (DiCaprio) and Ace Woody is the one who pits the “mandingo” fighters against one another.” Sounds like a nice guy. Mmm, not.

Once Coster is set for the role he and DiCaprio should make an interesting pair of bad guys. I’m sure it will be very interesting to see how it all turns out. The film is set to go into production in the Fall with an eye to a late 2012 release.

We’ll bring you more on this film as we get it.

This week’s pick comes to us from the Italian front, a rigorous and often overlooked campaign of ETO during World War II. Robert Mitchum stars as a war correspondent (Dick Ennis) (loosely based on famed correspondent Ernie Pyle) in the 1968 production of Anzio, produced by the legendary Dino De Laurentiis and directed by both Edward Dmytryk and Duilio Coletti. The film also stars Peter Falk (Cpl. Jack Rabinoff), Earl Holliman (Sgt. Abe Stimmler), Arthur Kennedy (Maj Gen. Jack Lesley), and Wolfgang Preiss (Field Marshal Albert Kesselring)..

Anzio tells the story about Operation Shingle, a bold plan devised by Winston Churchill to drop an Allied force behind the famed Monte Cassino Line in central Italy and to liberate Rome in January 1944. The Italian campaign proved to be a stalemate for the Allies who were making very little headway due to the geographical advantages the Germans and their Italian allies had over the invading forces. The film is a dramatization of the operation and the effects its aftermath had with the Allies who underestimated the enemy’s strength and exact location.

Dick Ennis (Mitchum) is a war correspondent who has seen too much war and is tired of its effects on humanity. Ennis joins the American expeditionary force assigned for the invasion. During a press conference with Generals Lesley (Kennedy) and General Carson, (based on Gen. Mark Clark) (Robert Ryan), Ennis shouts out the destination of where they’re heading. An angered Gen. Carson asks Ennis where he comes by his information. Ennis simply replies “from the streets of Napoli general.”

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Sean Bean is an incredible talent. Not just because the man has been working for over 25 years in nearly 100 projects, but because he knows a good thing when he’s hit it. In the past decade, since his role as Boromir in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, Bean has managed to make a name for himself in the fantasy realm.

From Red Riding: In the Year of our Lord to Black Death and most recently Game of Thrones, the man knows he looks good wearing armor and weilding a sword, so why fix something that isn’t broken? It turns out he’s keeping with that motto as he’ll be portraying the king in Relativity Media’s upcoming Snow White film.

From Variety:

Bean will soon close a deal to play Snow White’s father, whose kingdom is destroyed by Roberts’ evil Queen.

Lily Collins stars as Snow White, while Julia Roberts and Armie Hammer co-star as her wicked stepmother and princely love interest, respectively.

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Judging from the box office success of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, quite a few of you have already had the chance to see this brand new teaser trailer for The Dark Knight Rises. However, for those of you who haven’t, or want to watch it again and again, we’ve got it for you right here now.

In it we get our first glimpses of the upcoming final, epic battle between Bruce Wayne’s Batman and Tom Hardy’s Bane. Plus, the teaser sets this up clearly as the third and final chapter of a trilogy that will set Batman on his eventual course to become the true Caped Crusader and Dark Knight.

I don’t have to tell you we’re all pretty excited around here for this movie to come out. Of course, as with endings of this type, it will be bittersweet. Still, can’t wait.

Check out the trailer after the jump. The Dark Knight Rises is directed by Christopher Nolan and features Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Anne Hathaway, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. It hits theaters on July 20th, 2012.

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From the folks that brought you G33K & G4M3R Girls and superHarmony, and the guy you love to call Chuck, comes a brand new web spoof that takes place in the distant future of 1964!

That’s right, things are going back to the beach in this brand new short from Team Unicorn, The Guild director Sean Becker, and Robot Chicken writer Zeb Wells. It’s called Alien Beach Crashers! and that’s exactly what you’re going to get. As if you needed a synopsis, here it is.

Team Unicorn is back and putting a new spin on the classic beach party song and dance movies of the 60’s with their comedic homage “Alien Beach Crashers!”, a story about pesky intergalactic invaders ruining the most awesome beach party ever.

Starring a pretty “far out” cast including Zachary Levi (Chuck), Pete Wentz (Fall Out Boy), Abraham Benrubi (ER, Robot Chicken) and of course, Team Unicorn, made up of Clare Grant, Michele Boyd, Milynn Sarley, & Rileah Vanderbilt.

Take a look at the hilarious short after the jump, and be sure to subscribe to Team Unicorn’s channel, as they’re sure to post some great new shorts in the coming weeks!

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As if it was much of a surprise to anyone who has seen the films or read the books, or even casually knows of the phenomenon surrounding J.K. Rowling’s characters, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, the final film in the franchise, broke records worldwide this weekend and made the top of the list in terms of opening weekends in history.

At a record-smashing $168 Million in the first three days, the film went on to break even more records overseas, and tolled upwards of $475 Million worldwide. Surely a huge break for both the recurring cast of the film, and Warner Bros. in general. This make make that Green Lantern sting feel a little less harsh.

Also opening this weekend, another children’s classic as Disney and Buena Vista tried to breath life back into the Winnie The Pooh franchise. The only problem was its timing, as the film was in half as many theaters as HP, but only pulled in $8 million in the domestic box office, and $14 million worldwide.

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One show that we’re pretty much universally in love with around The Flickcast offices is AMC’s The Walking Dead. After a hugely successful first season on the network, Frank Darabont’s adaptation of the Robert Kirkman comic series promises to be even bigger and better when season two arrives.

Previously, we’ve had some bits of info about the second season including the first pic and the first teaser. Now, there’s a brand new teaser for the season which debuted during the season premiere of Breaking Bad Sunday night and we’ve got it for you right here.

In this new video we see our main man Rick Grimes in action as he deals with some unwanted attention from a couple of the undead. Needless to say he’s not a fan of them and takes care of business. Good to see him back in action.

Check out the teaser after the jump. The Walking Dead returns to AMC in October. Not. Soon. Enough.

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Two things in particular that are cool and go well together: Comic-Con and great art. With that in mind it makes complete sense that one of my favorite groups of people, the folks who run the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, TX, have put together a great collection of contemporary movie poster art and are bringing it to Cominc-Con next week.

They will be located in the main exhibition hall in booth #433 and will release new posters, have artists signings as well as offer rare archival posters. All poster releases will be announced via their Twitter account: @MondoNews

As if that wasn’t enough, Mondo is also working with The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Margaret Herrick Library to preserve the company’s growing collection of original film posters designed by contemporary graphic artists. The first group of the Alamo Drafthouse’s Mondo posters arriving at the Herrick will include the latest print, a poster for the classic horror film “Frankenstein” (1931), created by Drew Struzan.

You can take a look at past Mondo art (including the awesome They Live poster by Shepard Fairey above)  by going to their website.

For those of you going to Comic-Con next week this is sure to be a must see. I know we’ll be there.

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It’s Friday again so that means it’s time for previews of one of our favorite shows on TV: HBO’s True Blood. If you haven’t been watching True Blood, you’re really missing out on a great show full of drama, sex, violence, werwolves, shape shifters and, of course, vampires. The non-shimmering kind, thank goodness.

This time around we’ve got three, count ‘em, three previews for Sunday’s all-new episode. The episode, entitled “I’m Alive and on Fire”, continues the story of Bill’s reign as King of Louisiana, Eric’s memory problems, the witches that are starting to be a big problem and Sookie’s desperate attempts to just feel normal and have a regular life.

The clips, which are “Alcide comes to Sookie’s Aid”, “Bill Questions Pam” and “Marnie is asked to Reverse the Spell” are some good examples of the kind of drama this show entails. They don’t give away too much but just serve to whet your appetite for more. Of course, that’s just what they are intended to do right?

Check out all the videos after the break. True Blood airs Sunday at 9/8C on HBO.

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