What Soderbergh’s U.N.C.L.E. would have been like

The Man From U.N.C.L.E.: still dormant.

Scott Z. Burns, who wrote a script for director Steven Soderbergh for a movie version of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. in 2011, has told COLLIDER.COM some details about the aborted project, which would have been set in the 1960s.

An excerpt:

Burns: Yeah, Steven and I both loved it because (U.N.C.L.E.) was a way of doing a spy movie and setting up a really interesting character that was fascinating to us, because U.N.C.L.E. wasn’t affiliated with the US or with Russia, it was this great cold war thing. And now spies have all these great toys but we would have to take some of them away, because it was the 60’s and there would be different plots because you didn’t always have a cell and you couldn’t solve problems with some of the things now.

So we had this idea based on something happening in the real world…there was a thing that happened with a B-52 bomber in like 1966 or 1967 over Spain where it was refueling and there was an accident and it lost its payload and three bombs fell on Spain and the Atlantic, and they hadn’t been armed, but …contained warheads.

So we scattered plutonium all over a farm field in Spain, the second bomb was recovered, but the there was a period of time when the third bomb was laying on the floor of the Mediterranean and no one could find it and so it was the race to find it that was what our episode was about, which I thought was going to be really, really cool and I’m bummed we didn’t get to do it.

Burns also told Collider that the project “was pretty close to going. I think we were all shocked that it didn’t happen.” Instead, Soderbergh quit the project.

This came out because Soderbergh, 50, wants to retire from directing. After U.N.C.L.E. crashed, he and Burns did a medical thriller called Side Effects, which comes out Feb. 8. Thus, publicity for Side Effects is underway.

Soderbergh’s last directing project, is a made-for-HBO movie about Liberace. Meanwhile, there have been no signs that Warner Bros., which has the rights to the 1964-68 U.N.C.L.E. television series, is doing anything with the property soon.

MI6 Confidential’s new issue looks at Skyfall

MI6 Confidential’s new issue with a look at Skyfall that includes an interviews with two of its screenwriters as well as the son of Eon Productions co-boss Michael G. Wilson.

Here’s an excerpt from the magazine’s WEB SITE:

Whilst pundits’ predictions of Skyfall’s success definitely rang true, the 23rd Bond adventure surely surpassed even the most optimistic auspices, both in terms of substance, and box office success. This issue celebrates that success, with a look at the global promotion and Royal World Premiere, and we turn back the clock to pre-production as screenwriters Neal Purvis and Robert Wade describe the genesis of the Skyfall screenplay in an exclusive interview.

Purvis and Wade, after a five-film 007 run, have said they’re departing the series. From The World Is Not Enough through Skyfall, they’ve done the early drafts of Bond scripts with (for the most part) other writers revising their work.

Also interviewed is Gregg Wilson, whose first name matches his father’s middle name. The younger Wilson has been working his way up the Eon chain. His named appeared as a byline of a magazine story that Pierce Brosnan’s Bond is reading about Gustav Graves in 2002’s Die Another Day. By Quantum of Solace, he had a real credit in the main titles as assistant producer. For Skyfall, he carried the title of associate producer.

The new issue also has a story about Judi Dench, who concluded a 17-year as M and a feature about Naomie Harris, whose agent Eve turned out to be the new Miss Moneypenny at the end of Skyfall.

For more information about contents and ordering, CLICK HERE. The price is 7 British pounds, $11 or 8.50 euros depending on where you live.

Skyfall’s legacy

Skyfall’s poster image

As Skyfall’s run in theaters ends (outside of China, anyway), there have been various efforts to analyze its place in 007 history, including whether or not it should be considered the top Bond performer even adjusted for inflation.

Here’s a simpler evaluation, without math or complicated comparison of box office from different eras over a half century: Skyfall, whether you liked it (and many did) or not, re-established or confirmed (depending on your view) Agent 007 as a major player in pop culture.

Not that long ago, Harry Potter films had passed 007 for worldwide ticket sales. Many 007 fans cried foul, saying such comparisons were unfair. Today, after Skyfall has reached No. 8 all time in adjusted ticket sales? You don’t hear that so much.

In 2008, Quantum of Solace got off to a strong opening weekend in the U.S. but faltered the next weekend when Twilight,the first of series of movies about young vampires, arrived in theaters. Four years later, Skyfall and 007 got even, recording higher ticket sales, even in the U.S., Twilight’s home ground for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2, the final bow of the young vampires.

All of this occurred despite a bankruptcy at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the studio that controls half of the 007 franchise. It happened despite a four-year hiatus for 007.

Is 007 as big as 1965, when Thunderball set a James Bond box office record for (unadjusted for inflation) worldwide ticket sales that would stand until 1973’s Live And Let Die? Well, 1965 was a big year for Bond: it started out with Goldfinger still playing in theaters, was followed by a Dr. No-From Russia With Love getting re-released as a double feature and concluded with Thunderball. Thanks to home video, that kind of almost-constant run in theaters can’t happen today.

On the other hand, remember Thunderball wasn’t even the most popular movie in the year it was released. The Sound of Music had higher U.S.-Canada ticket sales than Thunderball did worldwide. Thunderball was a huge hit, to be sure, but some fans may remember it as being even larger than it was.

Skyfall, which debuted in Chinese theaters last week, is right behind The Dark Knight Rises for No. 7 all-time (unadjusted) and No. 2 movie worldwide for 2012 releases.

Eon Productions, MGM and Sony Pictures (which has released the last three 007 films) face a tough comparison when Bond 24 goes into production. But that’s a discussion for another day. As of early 2013, Harry Potter, Twilight and Batman (at least until the next reboot) have fallen away; agent 007 is still plugging away. That’s Skyfall’s real legacy.

Skyfall jumps to No. 8 all time after China ticket sales

Agent Eve is rather excited about Skyfall’s box office.

Skyfall jumped to No. 8 in all time worldwide ticket sales from No. 11 a week ago after the 007 film’s first week of ticket sales in China.

The 23rd James Bond film’s worldwide total rose to $1.078 billion as of 11:55 a.m. New York time, according to BOX OFFICE MOJO. That did not include an estimate for U.S.-Canada weekend ticket sales. so the figure will probably be revised later today

Skyfall generated $18 million in ticket sales in China within its first four days of release, according to THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER ON JAN. 24.

As a result, Skyfall has passed Toy Story 3 and Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest on the all-time list by unadjusted worldwide ticket sales. It’s just below (again as of 11:55 a.m.) The Dark Knight Rises at No. 7 at $1.081 billion.

UPDATE (2:45 p.m.): Skyfall doesn’t show up on Box Office Mojo’s U.S.-CANADA CHART FOR THE JAN. 25-27 WEEKEND. It’s still at some theaters, but if Box Office Mojo is correct, the film didn’t generate $18,000 in U.S.-Canada ticket sales this weekend. In any event, Box Office Mojo didn’t revise Skyfall’s worldwide ticket sale figure after 11:55 a.m.

UPDATE II (Jan. 28): Box Office Mojo updated Skyfall’s worldwide total to $1.0785 billion after adding U.S.-Canada ticket sales over the weekend. The U.S. Canada total is now $302 million.

Daily Show does a (sort of) double 007

The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart

Comedy Central’s The Daily Show did a (sort of) double 007 on its Jan. 24 edition.

First up: a clip from 1964’s Goldfinger, where James Bond (Sean Connery) was at the mercy of Auric Goldfinger, used as a joke during a segment concerning severe air pollution in China.

Host Jon Stewart made the point that Americans ought not be afraid of a nation of people who have become “instant smokers” because of China’s air pollution problems.

“We’ve got to stop being afraid of China and just think of them as another wheezing smoker,” Stewart said. “Very hard to be an evil arch villain with a heavy smoker’s cough.” That’s when the Goldfinger clip (Bond about to be dissected by Goldfinger’s laser beam) pops up. Stewart then talks about what it would have been like if Goldfinger kept hacking and couldn’t say, “No, I expect you to die.”

The second: Stewart’s featured guest was actor Christopher Walken, who played villain Max Zorin in 1985’s A View to a Kill, the final Roger Moore 007 film. No mention of Bond came up. But Walken is an interesting guy (among other things he mentioned how he still doesn’t use computers and doesn’t have his own cell phone) and the segment went by quickly.

You can CLICK HERE to see the entire Jan. 24 show. The Goldfinger gag comes up around the 11:24 mark. The Walken interview comes up at the 14:55 mark.

Some less-than-convincing 007 journalism

“What’s the matter, James? You sound skeptical!”

There has been some less-than-convincing journalism recently concerning Agent 007. A few examples caught our eye:

We Got This Covered, Jan. 12: The entertainment Web site had A STORY with this headline: “All Six James Bonds May Be On Stage At Oscars.”

The evidence?

Daniel Craig, Pierce Brosnan, Roger Moore, George Lazenby, and Timothy Dalton have reportedly agreed, making Sean Connery the lone hold-out. An Oscars source said he is hopeful that Connery will join the other five. Check out that comment below. (emphasis added)

“Sir Sean has been invited to take to the stage along with Daniel and the other 007s. As yet, we’ve not had a no from him. Normally he is quick to turn things down…

First “reportedly” translates roughly to “we don’t know this ourselves and we don’t want to credit those who have reported it.” Also, Connery hasn’t said no? Wake us up when he actually says yes.

Vanity Fair, Jan. 24: The magazine’s Web site had THIS STORY about the prospect of all six film 007s appearing at the Oscars. An excerpt:

A day after it was announced that Adele would perform her Oscar-nominated James Bond theme song, “Skyfall,” for the first time live at next month’s Academy Awards, a rumor is circulating the Interweb that the Academy will further pad the James Bond portion of the February 24 program. Producers have already revealed that the show, hosted by Seth MacFarlane, will feature a 50th-anniversary tribute to the iconic British spy, most likely a montage celebrating the franchise’s 23 films. A new report, however, speculates that all six of the actors who have played Bond over the years—Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig—will unite for the first time ever at the Oscars as further tribute to the Ian Fleming character.

A rumor? On the Internet? Vanity Fair presents a link to THIS STORY from the Independent that says, well, there’s a rumor.

Geek Tyrant, Jan. 24: The Web site had THIS STORY that proclaimed it had been CONFIRMED the six Bond film actors would appear. Its evidence? A link to the same story in the Independent that Vanity Fair linked that said, well, there’s a rumor it will happen.

NewsRadio95.com, Jan. 24: The radio station’s Web site has THIS STORY with this excerpt:

Yesterday we brought you the news that Adele will be appearing at the 2013 Oscars to perform the Best Original Song nominated “Skyfall.” But now there’s even bigger James Bond news to share: it’s looking like every actor who has portrayed the classic character are set to appear on stage together for the first time ever to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of James Bond. This calls for a martini!

Now before we get too excited, we must remember that this is not confirmed as of yet, but it’s a rumor that has been floating and the Adele news supports it. Can’t you just picture the singer’s luscious voice ushering the Bonds on stage as the crowd loses its collective mind? (emphasis added)

Before we get too excited, let us know when you have actual information you’re willing to stand behind.

Forbes.com, Jan. 22: The financial magazine’s Web site had THIS STORY that proclaimed, “`Skyfall’ Becomes Tenth Highest-Grossing Film of All Time.” One problem: there are no actual figures to back this up.

The exact box office totals are not yet officially tabulated, but they will place Bond’s current receipts at somewhere in the neighborhood of $1.045 billion. Yesterday, Skyfall opened in China to enormous numbers, and it should finish its run as the seventh highest-grossing movie in history, bumping The Dark Knight Rises down to number eight on the all-time list.

At the time this was posted, there was exactly one day of Skyfall box office sales data in China available ($5.1 million). The author didn’t know he was estimating. Maybe he was right, but he had no actual hard data to back it up. The movie has had better-than-expected ticket sales and, as of the start of the week, was knocking on the top 10 in ticket sales unadjusted for inflation. But this reads more like an exercise in getting people to click than actual journalism.

During Skyfall’s production there were a number of stories from various sources (including U.K. tabloid newspapers) that TURNED OUT TO BE TRUE. These stories varied in how transparent the outlets obtained their information. Some had solid records in reporting scoops ahead of official press releases.

The examples cited above didn’t appear to even check things out. Instead, they were content to repeat rumors or guess.

Adele to perform Skyfall at the Oscars

Adele to perform at Oscars.

Adele will perform Skyfall, nominated for an Oscar for best song, at this year’s awards show, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences said IN A PRESS RELEASE ON ITS WEB SITE.

Here’s an excerpt:

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – Multi-platinum selling singer-songwriter Adele will perform the Oscar®-nominated theme song from the latest James Bond movie at the 85th Academy Awards®, the show’s producers announced today. “Skyfall,” from the film of the same name, was announced as a nominee for Original Song at the Academy’s Nominations Announcement on January 10. The song, written by Adele and Paul Epworth, is the first Bond theme ever to debut in Billboard’s Top 10 and the first to be nominated for an Oscar since “For Your Eyes Only” in 1981.

Adele’s exclusive Oscar show performance will be the first time she will have performed “Skyfall” anywhere live and will also mark her first U.S. television performance since the Grammys® last year.

If Skyfall wins the Oscar for song, Adele and Paul Epworth would receive it in their capacity as writers of the song. That’s different from the Grammys, where the performer gets the award.

With previous 007 best song nominees, a recording of Live And Let Die performed by Paul McCartney and Wings was used as part of a dance number. Carly Simon didn’t perform “Nobody Does It Better” at the 1978 Oscars. Sheena Easton did perform the title song for “For Your Eyes Only” at the 1982 Oscars, which included a big Moonraker-themed dance number.

Hawaii Five-0’s remake of `Hookman’ to air Feb. 4

The new Hawaii Five-0’s remake of the “Hookman” episode from the original 1968-80 series is scheduled to be broadcast by CBS on Feb. 4, according to the TV LINE WEB SITE.

The story is presumably accurate because CBS promoted TV Line’s piece IN A TWITTER POSTING.

According to TV Line, the remake includes some scenes shot in the same locations as the 1973 original. The story includes stills from the new and original versions of Hookman, which features a villain who has no hands and must use hooks to operate weapons. Here’s an excerpt of the TV Line story:

Fans of the original series will remember the episode’s title and plot from the sixth season premiere, which nabbed an Emmy for the iconic drama. Only back then, a double amputee gunned for Jack Lord’s Steve McGarrett, who’d played a huge role in his accident.

Morton Stevens, composer of the Five-O theme, won the Emmy for his background music for the 1973 episode.

UPDATE (Jan. 23): We came across a CBS PRESS RELEASE for this episode and see a red flag. It has some credits near the end including “Written by Joe Halpin.” But what about the writers of the original episode, Glen Olson and Rod Baker?

In the 1990s, Lois and Clark: the New Adventures of Superman remade “Panic in the Sky,” an episode of the 1950s George Reeves series The Adventures of Superman. Jackson Gillis, the writer of the original, got a “story by” credit for the 1990s show. It would seem that Olson and Baker would be due similar treatment for the new version of “Hookman.”

UPDATE II: Back IN NOVEMBER: CBS said writer Halpin had consulted with Olson and Baker about the remake to get their blessing. Executive Producer Peter Lenkov said the remake would “stay true to each and every element that made ‘Hookman’ such a beloved hour of television.”

UPDATE III (Jan. 25): The Writer’s Guild of America has weighed in on the credit issue for Glen Olson and Rod Baker. See Rod Baker’s response to this post below. We’re glad to hear it. If you click on the link to the online CBS press release, it now has a credit for Olson and Baker.

UPDATE IV (Jan. 28): Peter Lenkov fielded a question from a fan on Twitter about Hookman:

Peter Lenkov‏@PLenkov

“@FangirLEEng: @PLenkov Currently watching the original Hookman. Are you guys going to remake every single scene of the episode? #H50” yep

That’s going to be a neat trick. In the 1973-74 season, Five-O episodes were 49-50 minutes without commercials. The new Five-0 is 42-43 minutes.

The FBI Season 4 coming soon on DVD

“Identification branch? I want information on this Harrison Ford.”

It not official yet, but the Warner Archive division of Warner Bros. is planning to bring out season four of The FBI soon on DVD.

We don’t have a specific date. But we quizzed Warner Archive on Twitter if season 4 of the Quinn Martin-produced is coming out. The answer: “Soon, but not yet announced.”

The 1968-69 season has a number of highlights, including Caesar’s Wife, featuring Harrison Ford, then 26, as the grown son of a retired U.S. diplomat (Michael Rennie), who’s the target of a Soviet spy ring run by a deep cover agent played by Russell Johnson. Ford’s character gets the short end of a fight scene with the one-time Professor of Gilligan’s Island. Actually, it’s a good episode but from the Ford-Johnson fight will probably get a lot of 2013 viewer attention.

Other highlights of the season include Wind It Up and It Betrays You, the first episode of the season and another espionage story, which was plotted by Harold Jack Bloom (the only writer who scripted an episode of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and contributed to a James Bond movie with “additional story material” for You Only Live Twice) and has Louis Jourdan as the villain; The Runaways, featuring a post-Opie Ron Howard; and Conspiracy of Silence, which has some backstory of Efrem Zimbalist Jr.’s Inspector Erskine character and whose cast includes Gene Tierney.

The fourth season was the last to be overseen by producer Charles Larson, who had been with the show from day one. It’s also the final season where Inspector Erskine drives a Ford Mustang convertible in the end titles. Ford Motor Co., the lead sponsor and supplier of vehicles, wanted to promote other models starting with season 5.

Skyfall sells almost $301 million in U.S.-Canada tickets

Skyfall, the 23rd James Bond film, is almost at the $301 million market in U.S.-Canada ticket sales, at an estimated $300.9 million as of Jan. 20, according to THE BOX OFFICE MOJO WEB SITE.

The 007 movie had an estimated $1.05 million for the Jan. 18-20 weekend, its 11th weekend in the U.S. Skyfall was shown on 507 U.S.-Canada screens, according to the Web site that tracks movie ticket sales. That’s down from 3,505 during its debut in the Nov. 9-11 weekend. Skyfall passed the $300 million mark on Jan. 18, according to Box Office Mojo data.

Skyfall’s latest estimate for worldwide ticket sales is $1.034 billion as of 3 p.m., Jan. 20, according to Box Office Mojo. That may not yet reflect ticket sales in China, where Skyfall premiered last week. You can CLICK HERE to view a story at the MI6 fan Web site describing the China premier. You can CLICK HERE to view an MI6 story about some of the trims made by Chinese censors.