— Variety have confirmed that Sony Pictures are greenlighting a pair of 3D sequels, in the shape of a third “Jackass” movie, and a sequel to the sleeper hit “Zombieland.” “Jackass 3” will begin filming on January 25th, and will feature the usual painful antics, but, you know, in three dimensions. Meanwhile, the as-yet-untitled “Zombieland” sequel (“Zombieworld?” We want ten percent of the gross if that gets used…) will again feature director Ruben Fleischer at the helm, and stars Jesse Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson are both in negotiations to return. Producer Gavin Polone says that the film “is clearly one movie that will benefit from the technique.” We liked “Zombieland” just fine, but didn’t lose our shit over it like everyone seemed to — it’s a fun comedy that’s stopped dead in its tracks by its ‘secret’ cameo. Better this than “The Blind Side 2: Blind Harder” though.
—The seemingly endless, ongoing saga surrounding Roman Polanski has gotten a small silver lining. The director, who was said to be editing up “The Ghost” in his prison cell (he was arrested as post-production work was getting underway), has completed the film, and German distributor Kinowelt have announced a Feb. 18, 2010 release date for the film. With the Berlin Film Festival running from Feb. 11-21 it’s a fairly safe bet that the film will premiere at the festival in advance of its release, with insiders speculating it will play out of competition at a special gala screening. As for Polanski, he is still in jail as authorities wait to receive his $4.5 million bail money, at which point he will be put under house arrest at his chalet in Switzerland.
— Summit Entertainment, currently using £20 bills as toilet roll following the success of “The Twilight Saga: New Moon”, have picked up a couple of new genre projects. The first is an adaptation of the comic book “Alibi,” which follows a socialite who covers for his twin brother, a government assassin. John Hlavin, a former writer on “The Shield” who’s also penned the upcoming fourth “Underworld” movie, will write the script. The other is “Invasion,” which tracks a group of survivors of a subway accident who emerge into the world above to discover that aliens have attacked. The script is by Ben Magid, and, according to Shock Til You Drop, it’ll be produced by Eli Roth.
— Of course, “New Moon” has made peanuts when compared to the colossal success of the videogame “Modern Warfare 2,” which has sold a staggering $3 billion worth of copies since its release last month. The director of that game, Keith Arem, will make his feature debut on “Frost Road,” an independent sci-fi actioner for producer Cary Brokaw (“Angels in America”). It follows a young man who is immune from a deadly virus that has been unleashed on a small coastal town.
— The inexplicable 3D CGI remake of “Night of the Living Dead” has added an appropriately D-list vocal cast, featuring Jesse Corti (“Heroes”), Danielle Harris (Rob Zombie’s “Halloween”), Bill Moseley (“The Devil’s Rejects”) and some other people you’ve never heard of. Director Zebediah de Soto describes it as ‘the “Empire of the Sun” of zombie movies’, so this will presumably feature either a CGI ten-year-old Christian Bale, or some Australian electro-pop.
