Not that we are in any way endorsing the reboot/remake of Total Recall but with two hot actresses now joining the cast, we have to at least mention it. So, here it is. With Colin Farrell already taking over the role originated by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the film and Bryan Cranston onboard as the evil nemesis, the next question has always been who would be playing the female leads?

Well, now we know. Kate Beckinsale has officially been cast as Lori, the bitchy wife of Douglas Quaid (Farrell) in the “real” world, while Jessica Biel will play sleazy and demure Melina, the woman he meets in his “other” life as a spy. The roles were played by Sharon Stone and Rachel Ticotin in the 1990 original.

In addition to the women, Heat Vision says Bill Nighy has landed the part of Quatto, the leader of the resistance movement. So, with Beckensale and Nighy in place that’s quite an Underworld reunion director Len Wiseman’s got going on. Oh well, he is in charge and if my wife was that hot I would probably cast her in my movies too.

I do have a question about Quatto though. Will he be a mutant and will he lead a resistance? According to reports, the new version of the story will not take place on Mars like Philip K. Dick’s original or the 1990 film.

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You might have expected this considering her husband, Len Wiseman, is the director. However, news has come out that Kate Beckinsale has been offered one of the lead female roles opposite Colin Farrell in the Sony Pictures remake/reboot of Total Recall.

According to the report, Beckensale would play Lori, the role made famous by Sharon Stone in the original. In that film, Lori is the happy wife of Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger ) who, after Quaid begins to discover things are not what they seem, changes into someone who tries to kill him.

The other main female role of Melina (played in the original by Rachel Ticotin) is also reportedly still up for grabs with Eva Mendes and Rosario Dawson as the apparent front runners. Of those two I think I would prefer Dawson, although Mendes wouldn’t be a bad choice either.

In case you’re not familiar with the story of the original Total Recall film, it’s based on Philip K. Dick’s story “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale” and centers on Quaid, a seemingly unsophisticated construction worker, who is haunted by a recurring dream of going to Mars.

He buys a literal dream vacation from a company called Rekall Inc., which sells implanted memories. It turns out he is a freedom fighter from Mars who has been relocated to Earth, and he must restore order, and reverse the corrupt influence that commercial powers had over the red planet.

We don’t know if the new film will follow that storyline as well but you can imagine it will be similar. Look for the new, improved Total Recall to hit theaters in August of 2012.

At the beginning of this year, MGM filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy which meant two things for film fans everywhere: there was a distinct possibility that we wouldn’t see The Hobbit or the 23rd film in the James Bond franchise for the unforeseeable future.

As we all know, Jackson is down under working on The Hobbit as we speak, and it looks like Bond may have just gotten saved, as both MGM and Sony have come to a deal and will work together to get the film made by 2012. From THR:

Sony Pictures, which released the last two James Bond movies, has struck a deal with MGM to co-finance and distribute worldwide the next Bond, still known only as Bond 23.

With Bond 23 set for release on Nov. 9, 2012, Sony and MGM also plan to join forces for the next film in the ongoing series, Bond 24, under a similar arrangement.

As part of the deal, announced Wednesday by MGM’s Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum and Sony’s Michael Lynton and Amy Pascal, MGM and Sony are also exploring co-financing deals on future movies produced by each of the studios during the next five years.

Along with Bond 23 and 24, Sony Pictures and MGM are locked in to release The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo remake and are in talks about working together on the Total Recall remake.

It’s nice to see talented actors who deserve recognition and more work get both. One such actor is Emmy winner Bryan Cranston, who currently stars in the AMC TV series Breaking Bad as a High School science teacher who decides cooking meth is a better way to make ends meet.

Now, Cranston is poised to further expand the diversity of his work and is all but cast as the bad guy in the Len Wiseman directed remake of Total Recall. Colin Farrell is starring in the sci-fi action movie, which is a retelling of the film made famous by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1990 original.

In case you’re not familiar with it, Total Recall centers on a man haunted by a recurring dream of a visit to Mars. As he investigates, he remembers being a secret agent who fought against the evil administrator of Mars.

The new version is said to be closer to Philip K. Dick’s short story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale on which both movies are based. Cranston is perfect for the bad guy and will do a terrific job in the film.

Welcome to this week’s On the Radar where we delve into all corners of the entertainment, tech and geek Internets for news, views and whatnot that may have escaped our regular coverage this week. Let is know if we missed something interesting. Otherwise, on to the links!

• Finally, something good is coming to TV as Patton Oswalt is developing a series for Fox.

• A 23 year old turned their Dodge Caravan into the classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles van. The best part? It was a girl.

• Netflix may be making a buttload of money in the next few months, but they still feel like their too good for Trash Humpers, a film about humping trash.

• New TRON inspired wristwatches are on the way. Say goodbye to the ladies, and hello to the confusion you’ll have when trying to figure out when lunch is.

• Len Weisman has announced that Colin Farrell is at the top of the list to star in a remake of Total Recall. We’d like to see him fit inside of an animatronic fat lady…

• Think Zach Galifiniakis gives the best awkward interview? Think again. This Dallas radio host actually out-awkwards him.

• The plot details for Transformers: The Dark of The Moon have popped up online and no there’s no continuity tie-in to The Wall.

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The remake none of us were waiting for, and that has been rumored for a year, has finally been made official today. You will soon once again be seeing Total Recall at a movie theater near you.

Columbia Pictures officially announced Len Wiseman (Live Free or Die Hard, Underworld films) as the director for the project. It has been report that he will be working off a script written by Kurt Wimmer, who recently wrote Salt and Law Abiding Citizen. Doug Belgrad and Matt Tolmach, presidents over at Columbia Pictures, stated that negotiations are almost finalized.

The original Total Recall, was based on the immortal Philip K. Dick’s story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale. The original follows Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Quaid who is a seemingly unsophisticated construction worker, who is haunted by a recurring dream of journeying to Mars.

He buys a literal dream vacation from a company called Rekall Inc., which sells implanted memories. It turns out he is a freedom fighter from Mars who has been relocated to Earth, and he must restore order, and reverse the corrupt influence that commercial powers had over the red planet.

Continue Reading →