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Capone With GREEN HORNET's Black Beauty Car, Co-Writer Evan Goldberg, Director Michel Gondry, And Seth Rogen!!
Hey all. Capone in San Diego here, with the first of many reports from Comic-Con 2009 in lovely San Diego.
Wednesday was preview night, and the truly big preview of the night was of THE GREEN HORNET's Black Beauty, a tricked-out, fully-loaded, dual-machined-gunned Chrysler Imperial that shined like a black diamond.
On hand for the grand, after-hours unveiling was GREEN HORNET star and co-writer Seth Rogen, co-writer Evan Goldberg, and director Michel Gondry, who posed for sexy photos in front of the Beauty and then talked to me briefly about the film, which is due to be released next summer, despite not having cast an actor to play Kato yet.
I truly cannot wait for this film, not because I'm some huge Green Hornet fan (although I did watch the show), but because I think Rogen and Goldberg have consistently surprised me with the quality and tone of their other films (SUPERBAD and THE PINEAPPLE EXPRESS), and I believe GREEN HORNET will offer some unexpected elements of action and comedy. But don't take my word for it, read on for a few more details from the creative team behind THE GREEN HORNET.
First up is Mr Goldberg…
Capone: Hey Evan, how are you? Good to finally meet you.
Evan Goldberg: How's it going? Nice to meet you.
Capone: I'm gathering you guys are going for full-bore action with this film, would that be an accurate statement? How will this compare to what was featured in PINEAPPLE EXPRESS?
EG: Oh, we're definitely going to surpass PINEAPPLE EXPRESS action. I mean, personally, PINEAPPLE EXPRESS being one of the greatest films ever made, I love that movie and I love the action in it. But, we had budgetary restrictions, and we did what we could within them. With David Gordon Green, we came up with some creative shit, but on this movie I hope that we're going to go balls-out and really do some crazy shit.
Capone: But there's not way this is going to be R rated, right?
EG: Ah, I wish. Me and Seth both know that if we want to make a movie for everyone, we can't make it rated R, and eventually we'd have to. But honestly, I think having to do a movie PG-13 has force us to be more creative and come up with funnier stuff than we would have. We've done stuff with the word 'shit' that I never thought one could accomplish, because 'shit' is much more allowed.
Capone: Absolutely. Did you pick this particular character to write a movie about a character that neither one of you was a huge fan of because it seemed like the most ridiculous guy to make a feature about?
EG: No, no, no. We both loved Batman, always have, all the Batman movies--well, most of the Batman movies--are spectacular, and the last two have been really awesome. And we watched "Batman" when we were kids, and after "Batman" was "The Green Hornet," or maybe that was only in Canada. Was that the case in America?
Capone: I'm a little too young to remember that. I do remember Green Hornet and Kato popping up in an episode of "Batman."
EG: I don't even know, but I assume they were produced by the same people, because the were very similar productions. But "The Green Hornet" was a little more serious. But what we loved, what brought us to it, was that we always wanted to make a movie about a sidekick and a hero, and this is the ultimate sidekick-hero combo, because this is the only story where the sidekick actually had more attention than the hero. Because even though the hero was rad, Van Williams was rad, Bruce Lee is Bruce Lee. There was a lot of appeal in that for us, and it allows us to play around and make some comedy but still keep it serious and full of action.
Capone: What date do you absolutely have to pick a Kato by.
EG: We're getting close. The date it has to be by is 10 days ago [laughs]. We're really close. We're narrowing it down, we're doing a lot of auditions, and it's hard because there are a lot of guys from China, Korea, Japan who are amazing. There are a lot of American guys who are amazing. The one thing none of us were expecting were some of the Americans are doing Chinese accents. That really through us for a loop. We're close.
Capone: Great. Thanks, man.
EG: Yep, great to meet you.
Next us is the wonderfully creative elf from France, Michel Gondry, director of such wonderful films as ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP, and BE KIND, REWIND. Also if you haven't seen Gondry's shorter film, "Interior Design," part of the TOKYO! anthology, go rent it now; it's great. Here is THE GREEN HORNET's director, Michel Gondry…
Capone: Good to see you again.
Michel Gondry: Ah, I remember you from Chicago.
Chicago: That's incredible. Thanks for saying so. What was it specifically about Seth and Evan's script that you thought would make a good fit for you?
MG: It was the relationship between Britt and Kato that really touched me in the screenplay. That was a element that was always missing in the different succession of projects based on "The Green Hornet." And I really felt that when I read this draft that it was really something that could be done and a solid structure of a great story.
Capone: I'm sure they love your movies, but did you have to convince them that you were the right person?
MG: I had to, yes, but it was not so hard. I did a storyboard of one fight sequence, based on the screenplay, and I did a video test of visual technique to shoot fights, mixing different films speeds without using blue screens or wires, using just fighters, people who fight for real. And when they saw that, they went, "Okay you got the job."
Capone: Are you excited to be doing some big action sequences?
MG: Yeah! I can't wait.
Capone: Just like the real Hollywood director you always wanted to be.
MG: [laughs] That is true. I'm in the David Lean Building on the Sony lot. It can't get better.
Capone: There you go. Thanks. I love the new DVD, by the way. It's magnificent.
MG: Oh, thank you so much. Great.
Finally we have Britt Reid himself, Seth Rogen…
Seth Rogen: Hey, you're Capone, right?
Capone: That's correct, and you are even more svelte than when I saw you in Austin a few months ago.
SR: Exactly, it never ends. [laughs]
Capone: So you're dealing with a character who hasn't been in the public eye for decades, are you going to make an effort to get people familiar with the old material, or does that not really play into this movie at all?
SR: I think if you're a big fan of the original material then you will be very pleased with what we're doing with it. I think we're honoring it in many ways and commenting on it in many ways. But we also had a mandate that if you'd never seen the original in any way, shape, or form, that you would like this movie. We just knew that this was how it had to be.
Capone: And how are you mixing the comedy and the action, because Evan made it sound like this was balls-out action film?
SR: It really is. We looked at movies with awesome action where the comedy comes from the character interaction, movies like TRUE LIES or movies that we've talked about a lot where the action is played as real as any action movie, but it's the people you choose to put in those situations that makes it play as a comedy at times.
Capone: When do you have to have a Kato chosen?
SR: [laughs] We got a few weeks until we're in real trouble, I would say. Most of our movies, we cast a lot closer to the gun than this. We like to be real sure. It's a long shoot, so we can work things out.
Capone: Has Michel introduced any elements or ideas at all that have resulted in you changing the script significantly?
SR: Oh, we spent all day with Michel going over everything. He comes to us with ideas, and some of them we work into the script and some of them, we explain, are impossible to understand and no one will get them [laughs].
Capone: Too Gondry-esque?
SR: Exactly. But at times--I mean, we love him, we constantly feel blessed that we have a guy with as many amazing ideas as him and pouring them into our movie. We think it's thrilling. I mean, you watch his videos and you think, "That stuff's going to be in our movie?" It's awesome, just looking at the storyboards and the pre-viz that he comes up with, it's truly exciting.
Capone: Alright, thanks a lot, Seth.
SR: Thanks a lot, man, I really appreciate it.
-- Capone
capone@aintitcoolmail.com
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+ Expand All
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Nice touch
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that's a first.
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thanks capone. I wish you woulda pressed them on what kind of actors they;re looking at, but oh well. Here comes the hate btw.
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...If not, it's fucking retarded.
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If they follow True Lies as a template, then my hopes for the project have increased.
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You know it'd be awesome...
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REEEETROOOO
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Jul 23, 2009 10:29:05 AM CDT
any film based on a marginal superhero or comic character..
by righteousbrother
bombs...
Dick Tracy
The Shadow
The Phantom
The Spirit
Even the orignal Green Hornet tv show flopped. Why would you pump money into a property that hardly anyone knows about? Or remembers fondly?
Maybe these guys can pull off something interesting, but I'm not exactly enthused about this.
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Seriously some of the best action ever. The scenes with the Harrier Jet were mostly practical. Amazing stuff.I also really enjoyed Pinapple Express...
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Jul 23, 2009 10:37:37 AM CDT
What a DREAM to have a shot like this. --Good luck, Gondry.
by jdanielp
I've felt like I've been the most optimistic person for this project. And now, after reading this,...even more so. I'm looking forward to it, guys.
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They bought the rights to Green Hornet because they probably were cheap and no one cares about him, to make whatever movie they want.
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I like the idea of Rogen/Goldberg staying out of the directing process and Gondry staying out of the writing process. That bodes well.
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Seems to feel lucky to work with Rogen and team? Shouldn't be the other way around?
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I would have pressed them on actor types, but I'd heard them not answer that same question a dozen time before I got to talk to them. The truth is, they're looking for an actor who is or could be a star in his own right, since he would essentially be a co-lead and not just a sidekick. I actually think they have someone in mind, and they just can't say because the papers haven't been signed. Tony Jaa would be an excellent choice, foxthebloodied, but I'm rooting for Rob Schneider...kidding.
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EG: PINEAPPLE EXPRESS being one of the greatest films ever made
Chicago: When we fucked in Capone I changed my name to Chicago.
I like the car. I wanna fuck Kate Beckinsale as Len Wiesman films us in shaky cam -
now that I believe.
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can you see the movie "Mythic Journeys " at ComicCon
Friday, July 24th
San Diego , CA
12:15 in the afternoon - Room 24b
wish I could be there -
Fuck Green Hornet!
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would be a good choice. My vote is Tony Jaa, but a question. Why hasn't anyone considered Statham for this?! Statham would run a one-man sex train of awesomeness on this movie.
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From award-winning filmmakers Steven & Whitney Boe comes this stop-motion adaptation of an ancient tale where a king accepts the invitation of a stranger, finds himself in a spectral burial ground full of macabre magic, and learns the secret of the universe through a series of mythic challenges. Featuring the voices of Tim Curry, Mark Hamill, and Lance Henriksen. With Original puppets designed and created by Brian & Wendy Froud.
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in case you did not know
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Is Peter North in that? Because that would be awesome. Also, who cares animas?
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must this site continue sucking Seth Rogen's overrated cock?
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less than 4 hours away motherF****KERS!
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and I would like someone at aicn to see it
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None of which are man Tony is from. That dude Rain has that Ninja movie coming out, and Storm Shadow might work. But we all know that Jet Li would have been their first choice. The fan favorite is Jaa of course but I highly highly doubt that
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Or what?
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there better not be any damn racist fake accents.
if they go with an Asian American actor, which I actually am kinda hoping for (now that Stephen is sadly not going to be in it) he better be Asian American. Like a John Cho type. There are tons of decent respectable Asian American actors, lets finally give em a chance.
and I swear i'll kill someone if this turns into another Dragonball Evoloution. -
Why not? Or Terrence Stamp? Or Zhang Ziyi? Or McG? Let's get creative people!
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is seth rogen actually gonna play the green lantern character? how the fuck do they expect to pull that off without it just being a joke
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the green hornet
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flip flop wearing muthafucker..have some respect for the nerds.
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Whoever it is they have to make the audience forget that Seth Rogen is on the screen the same way that Bruce Lee made people forget about that guy whose name escapes me at the moment. Stephen Chow could do it but he's obviously not going to. I'm thinking we'll end up with either Wu Jing or Vincent Zhao, who'll be coming off of Yuen Woo-Ping's TRUE LEGEND.
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is the asian guy from The Hangover.
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dead and Green Hornet asks Kato for D batteries. "D, Motherfucker, D!" "Motherfucker, You!" "Motherfucker you? You alright, Kato!"
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End Of Line.
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Who would have thought when watching Freaks and Geeks back in the day that rogan would be getting this much exposure.
Its like if you told me Gilbert Godfrey would win oscar for best actor, best picture, best screenplay for a film he did in 3 yrs from now. -
I didn't even think of that fool. If KEN JEONG plays Kato I will burn down every fucking theatre playing this shit
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just being evil here
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but i really have no clue as to why they think anyone gives enough of a damn about this property to turn it into a feature film.
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Burt Kwouk! Look it up, kids...
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They have no Kato, but we have the three softest looking wonder breads posing next to the black beauty. They have no fucking KATO!!! Hollywood does not have a clue.
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I'll help
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supplied by Script Girl.
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is correct. I think it even still plays that way on one of the specialty cable channels here in Canada.
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Everything I read indicates grandiose awfulness. The ridiculous car is just the icing on the Nic Cage/Seth Rogen cake.
I understand what Seth Rogen wants to do, but it's making me turn against him. It's actually appropriate that Nic Cage is co-starring, since he was the original "now that I am successful, I am going to pass myself off as a 'hunk' and make crap movies for even more money."
I will be curious as to box office. Probably in the 50-75 million mid-range ballpark. -
when i thought seth rogen was only the star, i was like, maybe. but now that i know he's writing it, im so in. superbad and pineapple express are two of my favorite recent movies. i'll see anything rogen writes. and gondry is actually a smart guy too. this could be a cool movie. btw, tony jaa is my favorite actor, and i dont want to see him in this, i dont think it's right for him. sure bruce lee did it, but that was before he was a star.
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tony jaa isn't one of the biggest stars here right now. he sure is for me, ever since i saw ong bak. i just can't believe people think baseball players are great athletes, or they watch mma fights that turn into gay wrestling matches, but they dont know about tony jaa, the most badass dude on the planet. he's even writing and directing his own movies now. he's truly the only guy to ever pick up the torch bruce lee dropped. and most americans dont even know it. sigh...i guess cgi robots are cooler than a guy who can...well, you know. do the most badass shit. a sad sign of the times. people are more impressed by cgi nonsense then some of the most amazing physical moves i've ever seen. these kids need to get outside.
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The general public PERIOD is clueless. Duh, most of us here know of Tony Jaa's awesomeness. The rest of the general public doesn't and doesn't care to find out about cool shit, whether it be movies, music, television, comedy, etc, etc... It's nothing new and nothing to get too bent out of shape about, brometheus.
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...off of his website. He did a nice job, but somehow he made me look like a creepy french dude. Still, it was money well spent.
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but really, it is ugly, original looked sharper. I was hoping they would use a modern car such as the 300.
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you're prolly right, y'all here should at least know of tony jaa. it just makes me sad, i mean, americans knew bruce lee was the man back in the day, they still know it. but yet i feel like, if they really knew bruce lee was the man, they would see how great tony jaa is. i feel like the surest sign america doesn't have it's priorities straight is that tony jaa is almost unknown. maybe since they're all fatties jaa just makes them feel bad about themselves. i gotta move to thailand or something. here's to ong bak 2.
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"But honestly, I think having to do a movie PG-13 has force us to be more creative and come up with funnier stuff than we would have. We've done stuff with the word 'shit' that I never thought one could accomplish, because 'shit' is much more allowed."
So this is what passes for "funnier stuff" - variations on the word "shit"? That pretty much sums up my dislike of projects involving Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Kevin Smith, etc. I can see this will be another film where a majority of the "humor" comes from the various obscenities spouted by the characters. I can swear around my friends and laugh at juvenile humor, why do I want to pay to see it in a movie? -
Sounds like this is going to be a really intelligent, exciting superhero movie.One more time: No. One. Gives. A. Fuck.
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and this is why i fucking hate these hollywood shits what, too busy banging coked out starlets to even use google...you stupid fuck hey goldberg...of course gh was produced by the same folks who did batman this movie is gonna suck...i dont care what the car looks like
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Awesome.
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Ken Jeong for Kato!
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Seriously, nobody, and I mean NOBODY gives a rat's unshaven ass about Green Hornet.
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i actually think the car looks old school campy bad ass. like a tricked out james bond aston martin. and i love the hatred of things that aren't even made yet. if i could travel back in time to before most of you were born i would post hateful things about your parents having you. seriously when did being a nerd mean hating on everything? is it like some new credo i don't know about?
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Since the last Green Hornet update, whats the hold up?
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Cruisin' down the boulevard
I treated like some superstar
You know the time so don't look hard
Get with it - the ultimate homeboy car
All you suckers in the other ride
Wherever I'm comin' get you my side
My 98 is tough to chase
If you're on my tail - better watch your face
Smoke is comin' when I burn
Rubber when my wheels turn
A tinted window - so super bad
Lookin' like the car the Green Hornet had
It's the reason I'm ahead of the pack
It's the reason I left them back
It's the reason all the people say
My 98-O blows 'em all away
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That's who you need in this movie. Al Fucking Leong.
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misogynistic, racist, idiotic, mindless...no one should ever use it as a template for anything, except for what NOT to do.just like Crash!
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Nobody but Kevin Smith gives a shit about negative talkbackers. Seth Rogen is quietly laughing at your pathetic hate from his yacht made of diamonds and gold. If the trailer has explosions and karate in it people will go see it.
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I have no desire to see this. Rogan has been good in some of his roles, but I can't see him playing a superhero. Of course it's probably all Starsky and Hutch'd out anyway. You know, a big campy joke.
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I couldn't watch Superbad more than once, and Pineapple Express probably made me laugh once! Once in 2 fucking hours. They are such hacks. Add to that Michel Gondry's shitty track record lately. Oh and also Stephen Chow isn't in this. If he directed and played Kato it could have been pretty cool.
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Yet see his other films.
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Awesome!
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yes, Gondry makes shitty movies, Superbad was not that funny, water is dry, and you're a paragon of taste.god the talkbacks have gone downhill since I started on here.
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At least the car is cool. This is up there with Will Smith's miscasting in "Wild Wild West."
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The Green Hornet was not The BATMAN TV show, it was not played for camp. He was the great grandson of the Lone Ranger, How cool is that? Kato was his bodyguard, and he would beat the shit out of you.
The GREEN Hornet was feared by Gangsters because HE was perceived as one.
Man, this thing could've had so much potential, too bad its going to be rushed to meet the 2010 deadline. Should've called it the Green Doobie cause I 'm gonna need one if I'm gonna watch this travesty.
M -
I find it funny you are criticizing someone for trashing a movie after your rant regarding True Lies...um pot meet kettle
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first of all, people who use the "pot meets kettle" online cliche should shampoo my crotch...
second, I hate True Lies. it's an opinion, but it's very supportable. it would be very hard to argue that it's not sexist and racist and gratuitous...but the doofus above was puling the classic AICN talkback schtick, wherein you take something (or things) that were immensely popular critically (and on here) and hate on them for no reason other than to be contrary.Superbad is a great example. that was UNIVERSALLY loved by all, and now that it's a few years in the past, and since then many of its contributors have gone on to increased popularity, it's suddenly cool to hate them.Rogen used to be loved for Freaks and Geeks, funny writing on Da Ali G show, etc, and now that he's more popular, he's an unfunny hack that everyone hates.but Michel Gondry? for god sake, can't we draw the line somewhere?I'm just waiting for someone to say something about Soderbergh, then I'm going to start tracking people down.the talkbacks used to be great places for film geeks to debate, now it's just a bunch of whiny teenagers who have to hate on anything and everything to try to be the coolest kid on the block. it sucks for the old timers like me. (I'm 29, and I've been coming here for 10 years)
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Check it Out!!!
http://tinyurl.com/ns6ne7 -
Check it Out!!!
http://tinyurl.com/ns6ne7 -
Check it Out!!!
http://tinyurl.com/ns6ne7 -
Check it Out!!!
http://tinyurl.com/ns6ne7 -
Seth Rogen as the Green Hornet? No way. It just shows how incestuous Hollywood is.
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Yeah, Rogen, showing off a pimped-out car is going to convince people you can play a superhero. You're not Robert Downey Jr., you know. Not even close. Not in your wildest dreams. You're not even Thomas Jane. Or Timothy Olyphant. Heh, you wish you were a tenth as pretty as Olyphant. Pathetic. How did this guy get a career?
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i do not hate anyone who was in freaks and geeks but i am pretty pissed that he isnt taking this project seriously
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I've been using "Pot meet kettle" since oh 94, 95, (btw I'm 32 and have been coming to AICN since 96 or 97...but I have no idea what that has to do with anything)anyways, you still haven't made any argument about your hatred of of TRUE LIES (another critically acclaimed and loved movie--maybe not as much as Superbad but still)I'm not defending hatred of Rogan, Superbad, Apatow, etc, I enjoyed Superbad alot and I really like Seth Rogan. What I'm saying is that to just bitch about (without argument) True Lies and then bitch about someone bitching about Superbad is what I would call boderline hypocritical
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Really. Really, really, really.
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Early on it was really funny. Then it devolved into a gay-love sweetheart fest. Then it treated the girl/guys in a completely hackneyed, unrealistic way. When Michael Cera found out the girl he liked was an indescriminate blowjob-giving, dirty-talking freak, he wouldn't still nurse a crush on her. He'd have been weirded out and left her. I thought the fat kid with the afro and Cera were going to start making out in their sleeping bags. Just dumb.
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If the movie doesn't turn out to be the most fucked up and strange comic movie ever made, i'll be disapointed.
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Yeah, probably... :-(
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...seeing that ugly fuck Seth standing next to the Black Beauty is just... wrong. Something VERY wrong with that picture.
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True Lies completely dehumanizes the vague islamic bad guys, and it ushered in an era of "them" that we hadn't seen since the vaguely Jewish "thems" of the early horror films that preyed upon people's latent anti-semitism. it was the first movie that tried to get your balls to swell by watch Schwarzenegger blowing up muslims like you'd pop tic-tacs.from John Simon's review: "The enemy here--ill-defined, all-purpose Arabs--is a bunch of gibbering idiots, playing with their expensive weaponry in Three Stooges fashion." and the entire plot of him lying to his wife, treating her like a complete rube, then jealously following her, having her arrested and handcuffed and terrorized all to prove his own power over her, manipulating her, forcing her to strip for him as a phony character, it's just completely pathetic.but people still remember it fondly because "bridge go boom real good!"I urge you to rewatch that shit show, and if you still think it holds up, more power to you. but I expect a little more from the glowing screen."women, can't live with em, can't kill em!" yeah, great cinema, right there.
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True Lies was most evidently misogynist, but lots of Arnold's movies are. The racism isn't as bad, imo, because using radical Islam villains in this decade is pretty much like using Nazi villains. Hard groups to defend.
Seth Rogen is getting hate now because he's a sell-out. As I said before, a part of me can't blame him for wanting to be a leading man. Another part of me has lost respect for him. Jerry Seinfeld didn't feel the need to do it,but then he's TV, not a "movie star."
On a more objective note, his last movie bombed horribly (but got some good reviews).
I wasn't a huge fan of Superbad. But there were two actors I loved: Of course McLovin saved the movie, but Seth Rogen's cop was heee-larious as well.
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