The daily gossip: Some guy spent $500,000 to hang out with Kristen Stewart for 15 minutes, and more
5 top pieces of celebrity gossip — from the final death of The Killing to the dark and gritty Dracula reboot
1. Some guy spent $500,000 to hang out with Kristen Stewart for 15 minutes
The Twilight franchise has come and gone, but according to Harvey Weinstein, star Kristen Stewart can still command a killer paycheck. In a recent interview with The New York Times, the producer revealed that an unnamed Middle Eastern prince happily offered to donate $500,000 to a Hurricane Sandy relief fund just to spend 15 minutes hanging out with the actress at Madison Square Garden. No word on whether or not the deal included a smile. [Us Weekly]
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2. Pirates of the Caribbean 5 has been indefinitely delayed
Now that The Lone Ranger has taught Disney that you shouldn't just give Johnny Depp a weird hat and a blank check to make whatever movie he wants, the company is tightening its purse strings. And the upcoming fifth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, which was originally scheduled to hit theaters in the summer of 2015, is the first victim. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer expressed hope that the blockbuster would be ready for summer 2016, but added that "the script is not done." A barely coherent script didn't stop the last Pirates of the Caribbean movie from being made, so who knows? [The Hollywood Reporter]
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3. The Killing is dead again
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Just a year after an unlikely eleventh-hour deal saved it from the unmarked grave to which so many other TV shows have been consigned, AMC has decided, once again, to kill off The Killing. "We have made the difficult decision not to move forward with a fourth season of The Killing," said the network in a statement, going on to thank the show's creator and fans in the TV equivalent of an "it's not you, it's me" speech. Anyone who's now looking for a new mediocre, ceaselessly grim AMC crime drama is advised to check out Low Winter Sun. [Deadline]
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4. Universal's Dracula reboot is now called Dracula Untold
Universal's upcoming Dracula movie will be a dark and gritty reboot, because that's pretty much the only thing Hollywood makes anymore. But after realizing that calling their brand-new vampire movie Dracula could confuse audiences with the 30 or 40 other films that are also titled Dracula, Universal decided to re-christen the film Dracula Untold — a perfectly bland title for a perfect bland movie idea. The film's new title presumably beat out a few other creative contenders, like Dracula Begins, The Amazing Dracula, or Dracula of Steel. [The Hollywood Reporter]
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5. Don't hold your breath for that Mortal Instruments sequel
Hollywood's never-ending search for the next Twilight has taken another casualty. The Wrap reports that the sequel to this summer's The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, which was originally slated to begin production next week, has been shut down indefinitely. In a statement, executive producer Martin Moszkowicz says the filmmakers want "more time to reposition the film in the current marketplace" — and maybe add some sparkly vampires or something. [The Wrap]
Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.
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