Patience Price (Halle Berry) is a veternary scientist/cat-loving gymnast who was recently killed by an industrialist. Revived by a flock of felines, she now seeks revenge on her killer in the guise of 'Catwoman' - a suit-clad vixen with a skill for martial arts.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel talked with Halle Berry about her new feline fatale film Catwoman, saying that you shouldn't expect too garish a take on costumed adventurism. "It's very much based in reality," Berry said. "It was a full character I got to create here. Her emotional life, her life when she's not Catwoman, when she is Catwoman. It was a lot to play, and I really like that part of this one."
Basically the way things look are as such, Since Principle photography is near completion WB has decided to let PITOF Finnish Catwoman without any further changes. Now after that PITOF is supposed to have a visual presentation featuring early edited footage for Wb, They will then make their decision on whether they care for his "Vision" or not. I've also been hearing that WB has hired some writers to start working on a plan to make the script feel more like the comic-book version of Catwoman by adding new/alterante scenes if needed by a new director if the WB decides to go the Exorcist route. Haven't heard any names for a possible replacement, because it's far to early to see if that is ev! en needed but these rewrites will certainly help the film if PITOF is axed,
The article also says that Catwoman's release may even be pushed back for release after the new Batman, which is looking at a summer 2005 release.
I did a couple of drafts on Catwoman that got the director on, Pitof [of the FX-filled French film Vidocq], and that is now being polished for production as far as I'm aware. The Mage movie has been greenlit by Disney and they're getting their people in place to hopefully try to shoot this winter. I'm adapting Greg Rucka's Queen and Country comic now. I've got a project for DreamWorks coming up in the fall, and my other Paramount movie, Ice Station, the first draft just went to the studio.
I might actually come on as producer on [Richard Moore's Boneyard]. I can't write it, but I'd love to be there to protect it. And they're interested in that, because a writer producer is a useful producer. Most producers can't really fix a script if it goes askew. From my legendary crankiness with Catwoman, I have no problem banging heads against desks if I think something's going wrong on a comic property, to me there are things on a comic property that are integral to the story.
Catwoman is currently set for a 2004 release.
07/01/02
Scooby-Doo 2, Catwoman & Batman/Superman For 2004?
Today's Variety was informed by Warner Bros. President/Chief Operating Officer Alan Horn that the studio is currently considering how to fill its 2004 film schedule. From five possible "tentpole" slots, two have been already filled, one for Scooby-Doo 2, the other for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. That leaves three openings for '04, and the studio is looking at four possible films to greenlight to complete its year: an adaptation of the DC Comics/Vertigo comic book Hellblazer (retitled Constantine); Troy, a romance set during the Trojan War; Catwoman, starring Ashley Judd; and Wolfgang Petersen's still-untitled Batman/Superman team-up.
Both Batman: Year One and Superman V have been pushed back due to other comitments of the directors to other films, but this Batman/Superman project will directly influence both.
"How sick am I in two years going to be of talking about the suit?" Judd said. "Catwoman's really cool because she's this very hen-pecked, loser, insecure gal who ultimate sort of busts out and maximizes her alternate opportunities, shall we say.
"And it continues to have a dialogue between oppression and empowerment."
Judd responded to Leno's inquiry about Catwoman appearing in a Batman movie. "Catwoman has her own movie, Jay, get with the times," she laughed.
05/22/02
Catwoman Director Signs
French newspaper Liberation reports that the Catwoman deal with French director Pitof was signed the other day in Cannes.
05/20/02
Judd Takes Catwoman Seriously
Ashley Judd told SCI FI Wire that the success of Spider-Man has helped her Catwoman project's chances of taking its superhero mythology seriously. "One of the things I loved about Spider-Man is that for the genre, they made it very real," Judd said in an interview. "They played the emotion very genuine, and even the news editor, who was the most campy sort of iconic cartoon figure, there was something really great and plausible about him. It just definitely reinforced the direction that we had been planning on taking Catwoman all along, which is why we've worked so hard on the script in order to make it more real."
Judd conceded that the Catwoman script will have to alter one inside joke, since Spider-Man already covered it. "I think our joke was a Superman joke, so we've got to find a good joke, since there was a good Superman joke in Spider-Man."
Michelle Pfeiffer, who played Catwoman in 1992's Batman Returns, previously told SCI FI Wire that Judd should make sure to have fun in the role. Judd agreed. "My first sort of internal response was it's got to be the funnest thing I've ever done in my life, or else it's not worth it, because [these films] are hard," Judd said. "It sounds so trivial, but the reality of being in that costume and doing all that stuff is just if you do it for something like four months, that can be miserable. It's got to be the funnest thing ever."
Judd has studied Pfeiffer's performance as Catwoman. "I remember watching it in spring of 2000 and just thinking, she's definitely got the devilish part of Catwoman, which is so delicious." Judd said that she has never seen the Julie Newmar Catwoman from the 1960s Batman television series. There is no start date yet for Judd's Catwoman, but Judd added that she hopes it will be this year.
Hey I went to Universal Studios and got to meet one of my fave actors, Michael Keaton. I mostly talked about Batman and he says that as far as he knows he's not doing another Batman, but there's a chance the "old crusader" might appear in the new "Catwoman" flick - but that's it - 5 minutes.
Keaton said something along the lines of an offer is on the table but whether or not it happens for him or one of the other actors who played Batman is still up in the air.
Nothing on the possible Beetlejuice sequels.
05/13/02
Catwoman Interview w/ Ashey Judd
NW Magazine talked with Ashley Judd, and one of the things they discussed was "Catwoman".
"I'm a bit worried about my butt, but if it can look half as good as Michelle's (Pfeiffer), i'll be okay", says Judd about the leading part of the leather clad supermiss.
Judd says it's Yoga that is helping her prepare for the role. "I think it's going to be a really cool role", she enthuses.
On a final note, Judd says a certain Oscar Nominee is her choice for the villain part. "There's a female nemesis in it and I hope they cast someone really unsuspecting to play it. I'd like a tiny ninja person like Winona Ryder to do it". Whether Winona will or not, remains to be seen.
Perhaps when Winona's out of jail...
05/07/02
Catwoman Casting
IGN FilmForce reports that Warners is after Owen Wilson in playing the part of Tom Lone, a former Gotham City police detective now working in Lake City opposite Ashley Judd in Catwoman.
04/10/02
John Rogers on Catwoman Plot
CHUD spoke with "Catwoman" screenwriter John Rogers on the recent report that helmer Pitof is in talks to direct. It seems the Hollywood trade papers did not list the correct synopsis.
According to Rogers, his draft does indeed take place in a large metropolis (although not Metropolis), and revolves around biotech being used for illicit ends. The leather-clad justice-seeking lead character acts as both a detective and a thief, not to mention an accomplished martial artist. Rogers used the Tim Burton origin as a starting point but spun this new character off into her own evolution. There's apparently plenty of action of the rooftop pursuit, hi-tech heist and general ass-kicking variety involved as well, along with more characterization than perhaps we're accustomed to in most comic book properties.
04/08/02
Catwoman Pushed Back
French visual-effects director Pitof (aka Jean-Christophe Comar) is in talks to make his English-language debut as a feature-film director on Warner Brothers' upcoming Catwoman movie, starring Ashley Judd, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The movie has no start date.
Pitof is known for his visual-effects work on The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc, Asterix & Obelix vs. Caesar and Alien: Resurrection. Last year, he made his directorial debut on the French action/crime thriller Vidocq.
With Ashley Judd committing to yet another Paramount thriller, what does this mean for the "Catwoman" project she was set to star in? Judd herself explained what'll happen on UK talkshows the other day. "Catwoman" is still seen as a high priority for her but the script isn't finished and she has "yet to get comfortable with the suit".
02/17/02
Catwoman Director In Talks
According to a source on Batman-on-Film, Kinka Usher (Mystery Men) is in talks as a possible director for the upcoming Catwoman movie staring Ashley Judd.
01/26/02
Catwoman Producer Reported
Variety reports that Ed McDonnell is a producer on the upcoming Catwoman movie, staring Ashey Judd.
01/23/02
Pfeiffer the Purrfect Sport on Catwoman
The Chicago Sun-Times posted an interview with Michelle Pfeiffer and talks about her role in Batman Returns, amoung other things, and says she would have returned to the role in Catwoman, but only if Tim Burton been involved.
"I think Ashley Judd will be great as Catwoman," Pfeiffer said, adding that, yes, she did plan to play the role again, but the idea was catnipped in the bud for one simple reason. "Tim Burton isn't involved in the new Catwoman film and I wanted to do it with him. For me, it was really his vision that made it so special."
Pfeiffer says that she doesn't want to scratch Judd's eyes out for taking over the role. "Studios like change and there's always a new person playing Batman," she offered. As for advice to Judd, she laughs and says, "Ashley should make sure the mask fits because it was squishing my face through half of the movie. I hope her outfit is a lot more comfortable than mine. All that latex is sort of itchy."
12/03/01
Catwoman Up Next For Judd?
Today's Variety discusses a recent development deal which carries actress Ashley Judd as an attachment. Castle Rock has purchased a pitch for a psychological thriller called Untraceable as a starring vehicle for the actress.
What's interesting about the write-up for comic movie fans is that it states the actress is expected to film Catwoman as her next feature. The article indicates that Warner Bros. is about to go out to directors with John Rogers' recent rewrite of the script. This script may include rewrites that takes Batman: Year One's new direction for Catwoman into consideration, since Batman Returns will be out of the picture as much as Batman (1989) will. Judd is due to appear in a string of new releases including High Crimes with Morgan, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood with Sandra Bullock and Ellen Burstyn and Frida with Salma Hayek.
Coming Soon posted a lil` update report on all the upcoming live-action Batman features, and the result were not unexpected. Here's the rundown, according to Coming Soon:
Batman: Year One: To be directed by Darren Aronofsky. Ignore any casting rumor you've heard because it's too early to cast as no casting has begun. But why? Because the scripts have been rejected countless times now and that doesn't mean they went back to revise them either. Nope, each time a script has been rejected for the new film, they have gone back to square one delaying the project even further. This movie won't be seen for awhile.
Batman Beyond: This one has been dead for along time. The movie was apparently too expensive due to the futuristic environments that would have had to be created, Coming Soon's source claims, and Warner Bros. dumped the film in the trash. Sorry director Boaz Yakin (The Punisher) and screenwriters Paul Dini and Alan Burnett. What would have been a great edgy film is now trash material.
Catwoman: The website got in touch with the screenwriter for the upcoming movie. Catwoman screenwriter John Rogers revealed the comic adaptation is still in development at Warner Bros. unlike what was previously believe. Also, Rogers mentioned that he's turning in the second draft tomorrow! Catwoman in the second draft is still called Patience Price, played by Ashley Judd, who "has to stand on her own two feet."
Batman / Superman: The movie reportedly had screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker (Sleepy Hollow) and director Wolfgang Petersen attached. Same thing for this one - stuck in development hell, and will more than likely stay there.
Out of the many live action movies planned, only Batman: Year One and Batman/Superman have the chance of being made. Coming Soon also reports that Wonder Woman still has a chance to be made.
08/09/01
Catwoman Interview w/ John Rogers
In an interview with Comics2Film John Rogers reveals how the Catwoman character will be altered for the developing movie project. Rogers confirmed that Selina Kyle will not be the character under the Catwoman mask. Instead it will be Patience Price, a character that's been developed in previous iterations of the screenplay. Rogers also points out that the movie isn't going to be one, long origin story. "This movie isn't about the mythology of Catwoman. It's about the adventures of this particular Catwoman, in this particular situation."
Patience Price will have to struggle with the duality of her reborn self. "The fun of the movie is watching this nice, pleasant person become this very sexy, viciously sarcastic, extremely talented criminal," Rogers told C2F. "As she evolves into Catwoman, one of the things she's dealing with is, 'this can't be good. I'm becoming a criminal.'"
There will be some vague ties to the character seen in Batman Returns, and this new Catwoman, like the Michelle Pfeiffer version, will have been killed only to return in the black cat outfit. Rogers says, "We're going to set up a legacy in the first few minutes so that you understand how it works and the mythology behind it. In the first half-hour of the movie you will know not only how this happens with this girl, but how that worked back with Selina Kyle."
Fandom reports that Judd purr-fect as "Catwoman". Ashley Judd has agreed to play the felonious feline in Catwoman, a film being rapidly developed at Warner Bros.
Judd signed on after a meeting last week with studio executives.
