A couple months back it was reported that in between will-he-won’t-he work sessions on his often talked about, never produced Tupac Shakur biopic, Training Day director Antoine Fuqua would be making a boxing drama called Southpaw starring rapper turned occasional actor Eminem. The film was said to be about a lower class welterweight boxer struggling through drama in his daily life and boxing career on the way to greatness. It had a script by Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter that was loosely based on Eminem’s own rise in the rap world, it was financially back by DreamWorks, and it was all set to start shooting in January. Sound like smooth sailing right? Not so fast. Suddenly DreamWorks has pulled out of the project and left it back in the hands of its creators to shop around to other studios for funding. Deadline River Rouge reports the studio’s decision, but doesn’t have anything to offer other than speculation as to why they may have backed out. It’s strange for a studio to drop a project like this that already has script, star, and director packaged up and ready to go. Theoretically, Fuqua and company should be able to find somebody else to set them up pretty quick, seeing as most of the heavily lifting has already been done and all they need is some funding. And I hope that’s true, because I just don’t want to live in a world where the entertainment industry’s preeminent white rapper can’t get a [Due to Content Scraping and Theft, we have been forced to try abbreviated feeds. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and woud very much appreciate you clicking through to view the full article on FilmSchoolRejects.com]

What happens when you work your way to the top of the game, and the game changes? You have to change it back. What’s been lovingly dubbed the “Robot Boxing Movie,” Real Steel hasn’t shown much in the way behind the high tech monstrosities that its CGI has brought to life so far, but this trailer gives a more intimate look at what the movie’s really all about: a father and a son connecting in a garbage heap. It’s about an underdog made of metal, an underdog made of flesh, and working your way back up to the top. Check out the trailer for yourself:

Roy Halladay, the starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies just became the second person in history to pitch a no-hitter in a post-season game. Even those apathetic about baseball can appreciate the incredible rarity of this cleat-footed feat, and to celebrate, I’ve put together a list of the best baseball movies out there. What goes into a great baseball film? Is it a sense of Americana? Is it a well-paced presentation of the game itself? Is it the players being brought to life and rounded out so that they become something more than just Gods of the Mound? Would Gods of the Mound make a great title for a porn version of Clash of the Titans? I think it’s a combination of all of these things. So, without further ado, and since “5 No-Hitter Baseball Movies” doesn’t make sense, here are 5 Perfect Baseball Movies in honor of Roy Halladay.

Back during the wild days of Law Abiding Citizen, I asked Gerard Butler 19 questions about his ab routine and 1 question about his upcoming projects. This is what he had to say: “There’s a few different projects that we’ve been working on, but there’s one in particular – it’s a movie called Slide about a former baseball player who goes back to try and patch things up with his child and estranged wife and ends up coaching the kid’s baseball team. He becomes the subject of fascination and longer by every bored house wife in the town. And it’s him trying to survive that while trying to patch things up with his kid. I think we’re going to have Gabriele Muccino direct the movie. Hopefully. We’re in talks with him, and he’s very much up for directing it so we’ll what happens there.” Go ahead and read that again, but replace the word “baseball” with “soccer.” It works because they both involve sliding. In its reduced form, it sounds like “Eastbound and Down” meets Kicking and Screaming with a charming lead. Apparently the film is being reworked to focus on soccer, although no real reason was given. Perhaps it’s the dearth of soccer films. Perhaps its rising popularity. Perhaps it’s because Butler is Scottish and baseball continues to wane in importance here in America what with all the asterisks you have to keep up with now. [LA Times]

Set at the dawn of pro football in the 1920s, Leatherheads is a spirited affair that isn’t quite a football movie, but more of a romantic comedy that uses football as a backdrop. But with a solid cast and a little flair, it just might be worth a ticket.

Since Jake Gyllenhaal is now in line to star as womanizing football Hall of Famer Joe Namath in an upcoming biopic, we’ve decided to make a few pitches to Hollywood for some other biopics that need makin’.