BOP Daily News
November 1, 2004
The spirit of BOP News lives on in
This is So Last Week,
our pop culture week-in-review,
presented in a pleasing quiz form.
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Considering how successful The Grudge has been at the box office so far, it hardly comes as a surprise that a sequel has already been greenlighted. Producer Roy Lee has reported that Columbia has fast-tracked The Grudge 2, and details are currently being worked out. And since The Grudge is the English-language remake of a Japanese horror film that itself has seen four different incarnations prior to this, another entry in the franchise isn't at all out of the ordinary. No word on whether the director of the original Japanese version and its English-language counterpart, Takashi Shimizu, will be on board for the sequel, or if Sarah Michelle Gellar will return, nor are script details currently available. Rumors that the sequel will depict the efforts of a star NBA center taking vengeance on a showboating former teammate could not be confirmed at press time.
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One sequel that apparently won't be hitting the screens is Daddy Day Camp, with planned follow-up to the Eddie Murphy starrer Daddy Day Care. Jeff Garlin, Murphy's co-star in the hit film, has reported that a script was supposedly completed and that he'd been offered "a lot of money" to do the flick, but that for "a lot of reasons" the film is now apparently on hold. The film would have seen Murphy's character in charge of a summer day camp. Upon hearing the news, camps everywhere breathed a collective sigh of relief.
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When your career is on the wane, it's not a very good idea to alienate the friends you have left in the business, a caveat that apparently never was brought to Ben Affleck's attention. Affleck has lambasted Kevin Smith, who has cast the Gigli star in five of his films, for exploiting teen fans. According to gossip rag, Affleck was asked by Smith to appear at the opening of a store selling merchandise featuring the director's cult films, but Affleck refused, saying the whole thing was a "complete travesty." Affleck was quoted as saying, "It wasn't enough that I went to Vegas to play in (Smith's) lame charity poker tournament for the DVD launch of Jersey Girl" - the last film on which Affleck and Smith worked together - "but I also had to go out to his f***ing store", which Affleck feels sells overpriced merchandise to kids how can't afford it. Considering the lack of enthusiasm with which Affleck's most recent film, Surviving Christmas, was received, we're guessing Affleck won't have to worry about being asked to appear at events with the word "celebrity" in them for very much longer.
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Johnny Deep has reportedly gotten his wish as word comes that Keith Richards has been signed to play the father of his Captain Jack Sparrow character in the Pirates of the Caribbean sequel set to begin filming in February. Depp has been widely quoted as saying that Sparrow, which was far and away the best part of the first Pirates of the Caribbean film, Curse of the Black Pearl, was based on Richards, and had supposedly expressed interest in having Richards play Sparrow's falter in the follow-up, sub-tilted Treasures of the Lost Abyss. The studio was reportedly initially hesitant to hire the 61-year-old rock guitarist due to insurance concerns, but when it was pointed out how much abuse Richards' body has taken with little apparent ill effect, fears were calmed all around.
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"You seem somewhat familiar. Have I threatened you before?"
Previous edition's quote: Big Trouble in Little China
Box Office Prophets offers quality, reliable news about the entertainment industry. BOP is also entertaining. To that end, please be advised that some content in this column is intended to be humorous and should not be considered factual.
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