The inherent problem in making a good remake of a classic film lies in presenting something new to the audience, some fresh angle, something they haven’t seen before, even if they have watched the original a million times. Depsite previous claims to adhere more to Stephen King‘s novel than Brian De Palma’s previous feature, director Kimberly Peirce‘s Carrie looks exactly like a copy of the first film – at least if this trailer is to believed. Instead of playing with our Carrie knowledge base, this first look just rips it right off. Yup, Carrie (Chloe Moretz) is a weirdo outcast at school. Yup, her uber-religious mother (Julianne Moore) isn’t helping matters. Yup, something bad is going to go down in the girls’ showers at school (though the apparent injection of smart phones is an interesting new addition). Yup, Carrie is going to stumble into her telekinetic powers. Yup, there’s even going to be a pig-blood-bathed prom. So what’s left for this new entry? Let’s hope something beyond just a random iPhone. Go back to high school (wretched, wretched) high school with Carrie, after the break.

What is Casting Couch? It’s the casting news roundup that was compiled today with the help of Daft Punk musical accompaniment. You may not remember much about TRON: Legacy’s story, because other than its glowing lights and its pumping soundtrack, that 2010 sequel to Disney’s cult classic TRON was pretty dull. So, let’s refresh your memory. The movie starred Garrett Hedlund as the son of Jeff Bridges’ character from the first film. He went into the computer world, found his dad, and then there was a big battle. Remember all this? Good, because Next Movie just confirmed that Hedlund will be back for whatever TRON 3 ends up being called. Disney apparently started getting a script together for a third film just last week. This, of course, means that we’ll all now be keeping our eyes open for the real news regarding this new sequel: whether or not Daft Punk is coming back to do another soundtrack.

What is Casting Couch? It’s just trying to cram its foot into this shoe. Just last week, we learned that Cate Blanchett was likely to be Mark Romanek’s wicked stepmother in the new Cinderella movie that he’s doing for Disney, and now Variety gives us word that the project is closing in on its Cinderella as well. According to the trade, Atonement actress Saoirse Ronan, Anna Karenina actress Alicia Vikander, and The Three Musketeers’ Gabriella Wilde have all been in to see Romanek for screen tests. So, clearly, the sweet spot for getting this role is to have an interesting accent and some period work under your belt. Keira Knightley better watch her back, because it looks like there’s a whole upcoming generation of ladies gunning for her roles.

What is Casting Couch? It’s where Hollywood moms come every day to find out if their actor kids have gotten a job. Remember that movie about the day JFK got shot that Tom Hanks was putting together because these days he’s such a history loving, lame dad? It’s called Parkland, and it just put together an awesome cast. According to Collider, director Vincent Bugliosi has signed the terrific trio of Paul Giamatti, Jackie Weaver, and Billy Boy Thornton to headline the cast. There’s no word on what characters they’ll be playing, but my guess is Giamatti will be JFK, Thornton will be Jackie O, and Weaver will be Lee Harvey Oswald. Makes sense, no?

Stephen King seems to be having almost as good of a year as Kevin Costner when it comes to high profile news. The teaser for the big screen re-adaptation of his first novel, Carrie, just recently hit the web, and now word has come that the only unadapted tale in King’s four story collection, Different Seasons, is finally being turned into a film. The book already spawned two modern classics with Stand By Me and The Shawshank Redemption as well as Bryan Singer’s dark but less memorable drama Apt Pupil. The remaining tale, “The Breathing Method“, is a smaller story than any of those and readers would be hard pressed to see the cinematic angle within it. Per Deadline, that hasn’t deterred director Scott Derrickson. Fresh off of his success with the Ethan Hawke-starring horror film Sinister, Derrickson has begun development on a film adaptation of the story. There’s no script as of yet, but it will be interesting to see how it gets turned into a proper film.

Carrie was the very first piece of Stephen King‘s writing to see a film adaptation way back in 1976, and Brian De Palma’s film remains one of the high points in King’s cinematic canon. The story follows a teenage girl whose blossoming into womanhood opens up a powerful psychic power within her, and while her rigidly religious mother sees it as the work of the devil her cruel classmates don’t see it at all. Well, not until prom night anyway. King’s fiction has been adapted for the screen over a hundred times including feature films, shorts, direct to DVD efforts and sequels, and starting with 1997′s mini-series of The Shining his previously adapted works also started getting the remake treatment. Interestingly, all of them ended up as TV films/mini-series (including a 2002 redo of Carrie that aired on NBC). That distinction is set to change early next year though when Screen Gems/MGM will release a new feature version of King’s first novel. Director Kimberly Peirce returns to the big screen for only the second time since she burst onto the scene with 1995′s Boys Don’t Cry, and she’s joined by Chloë Grace Moretz and Julianne Moore to tell a story about bullying, teen angst and the untimely arrival of Aunt Flo. Check out the brand new teaser below.

They said it couldn’t be done. A fifth year of 31 Days of Horror? 31 more terror, gore and shower scene-filled movies worth highlighting? But Rejects always say die and never back away from a challenge (unless you count that time Jack Giroux was challenged to prove that hairy palms don’t come from excessive masturbation), so we’ve rounded up the horror fans among us and put together another month’s worth of genre fun. Enjoy! Synopsis: Written by Stephen King at the height of his fame, Silver Bullet tells the story of mysterious and violent deaths happening in the small Maine town of Tarker’s Mill. At first, they are dismissed as accidents, but soon people suspect a killer is on the loose. Young paraplegic Marty Coslow (Corey Haim) and his older sister Jane (Megan Follows) uncover some evidence that leads them to believe that the killer is actually a werewolf. Marty and Jane try to convince their wayward uncle Red (Gary Busey) that not only is the killer a literal monster but the werewolf has now targeted them because they know the secret.

Looks like yet another Stephen King adaptation is on its way (this one joins the in-production Carrie, the still-up-for-grabs The Dark Tower, that apparent two-film It adaptation, the long-rumored The Stand remake, and maybe even an Under the Dome series and a few Rose Madder films, just for fun) to theaters, but this one is a much less well-known property that has a far more homegrown sense of terror to it than some of those old King classics. THR reports that Joan Allen will star in A Good Marriage, which King has adapted from his own novella. Peter Askin (Trumbo, Searching for Certainty) will direct the film, which comes from King’s 2010 short story collection “Full Dark, No Stars.” Shockingly, it’s not really a story about a good marriage.

Ron Howard and Akiva Goldsman must not have put out enough finger sandwiches because Variety is reporting that Warners has passed on their ambitious Dark Tower project which has already morphed quite a bit in attempts to appease studio sensibilities. Most notably, Universal turned down the film, but while Warners was the next suitor in line, the future of the movie is no wholly uncertain. Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Media Right Capital (Ted, Elysium) is now in talks to finance which might be a good fit. However, if MRC takes on the promise of three feature films and a television series, it might be a larger signal of studio potency flagging while independent groups begin handling bigger budget fare. It still remains to be seen whether MRC will take the gamble, and it will be a gamble, but at this point it’s only safe to say that The Dark Tower isn’t completely dead.

It’s been a long time since Stephen King fans had any reason to be excited for an upcoming film adaptation of his work. Bag of Bones was made into a mediocre mini-series last year, but the last King-based feature to hit theaters was Frank Darabont’s excellent and underrated The Mist five years ago. Between then and now the only other completed productions were several short films (usually independent “dollar babies”). It’s telling that the best film/TV entity bearing his name in the past five years is a syfy series that bears absolutely zero connection to its supposed source material (King’s short novel, The Colorado Kid). Recent announcements haven’t been all that exciting either. The Dark Tower from the poop-filled pen of screenwriter Akiva Goldsman? The Ten O’Clock People from the director of the worst King mini-series, The Langoliers? Remakes of Firestarter, Carrie, and Pet Sematary? Aside from a tease that Ben Affleck may develop The Stand as an upcoming directorial project the news has been fairly grim. Which is why what follows is so damn exciting (and unexpected).

It’s been 16 years since Tom Holland‘s last feature film, Thinner, hit screens. It came at the end of a career of writing work like Class of 1984 and Psycho 2 and directing Fight Night and Fatal Beauty. But now, it’s not the end. According to Deadline Castle Rock, Holland is going to make Stephen King‘s “Ten O’Clock People” his next feature film. Beyond this and Thinner, Holland also adapted King’s “The Langoliers” for TV and appears in The Stand. The story for Ten O’Clock People focuses on a man quitting smoking, who discovers that he (and others trying to kick the habit) are able to see hideous monsters who have disguised themselves and made their way to prominent positions in society. Just like we all knew all along. These Batmen pose a great threat, and it will be interesting to see Holland flesh out King’s short story which is, admittedly, a bit thin. Sorry for the pun. However, it seems as though King is having a filmic re-emergence with many different projects in the works (Dark Tower, Carrie and others). A million years ago, we posted a list of Stephen King short stories that would make great movies, and this wasn’t on there because (while this is incredibly interesting) there are a ton of other stories that would be better suited for the big screen. It’s a head-scratcher, but it’s cool to see Holland back in the saddle.

A quick hit of official business on a Friday afternoon, as Deadline Farmdale reports that MGM has made a formal offer to Julianne Moore for the role of the demented religious fanatic mother in Kimberly Peirce‘s take on Carrie. Moore had been in the running for the role since last month, and it appeared to be hers to lose earlier this month. Jody Foster was also rumored to be a possible pick by Peirce. Chloe Moretz is set to play the Carrie role that Sissy Spacek originated in Brian De Palma’s 1976 take on Stephen King’s novel of the same name. Piper Laurie played the mother role in that film, eventually getting an Oscar nomination for her work. With such a solid team behind this film, it looks like more awards glory might be in the cards for the film about a teen outcast, her psychic powers, and a town that just doesn’t understand.

Editor’s Note: With Landon Palmer busy (read: probably writing a thesis on Sexual Deviancy in John Wayne Films in the Greater Context of Post-WWII America As Seen Through the Work of Southern Filmmakers), the excellent, insightful Adam Charles has stepped in to write this week’s entry. Enjoy. Few things have been as equally discussed and deliberated over the past few weeks than that of who Lionsgate was going to choose to take the reigns from Gary Ross to direct the second installment in The Hunger Games franchise. The first film had one of the biggest opening weekends in history (and it didn’t even require 3D price-hikes to get there), earned a positive majority from critics, and has a dedicated fanbase that defies demographic lines of fandom; and they’re chomping at the bit to see the next adaptation in the series, Catching Fire, as quickly as possible. Neither Lucas, Spielberg, or even Peter Jackson’s franchises could replicate just how much of the domestic populous is waiting for the next picture.

Back when it was announced that Chloe Moretz would be the new girl getting laughed at it Kimberly Peirce’s upcoming remake of the horror classic Carrie, it was also rumored that the director had a couple of names in mind for Carrie’s overbearing, fundamentalist mother. According to word on the street, either Jodie Foster or Julianne Moore were the top choices. Of course, word on the street isn’t always very reliable, so that was news to be taken with a grain of salt. In this case, however, the gossip-mongers seem to have been spot on. Bloody Disgusting is now reporting that things have progressed with Moore to the point where she’s in serious talks to take the role. If things work out and Moore comes on board, she’s going to have some pretty big shoes to fill. Piper Laurie already portrayed the mother character very memorably in the Brian De Palma-directed Carrie, to the point where she’s fondly thought of as one of the creepiest and most evil villains in horror history. Moore already has one strike against her as far as horror fans are concerned due to her involvement in Gus Van Sant’s absurd Psycho remake, so if this film turns out to be as unnecessary and awful as that one, she could be marked as a pariah for life.

Late last week, Nathan graced us with a story about MGM’s supposed short list for the lead role in Kimberly Peirce‘s remake of Carrie, a list that included Chloe Moretz and Haley Bennett at the top, with other names like Dakota Fanning, Lily Collins, and Emily Browning rounding out the apparent second-string picks. It was a relatively odd list – a mix of ages, looks, and star power, with only one name really sticking out as the actress most likely to get as gritty and desperate as Sissy Spacek so memorably did in Brian DePalma’s original film (based on the 1974 Stephen King novel). That actress is of course 15-year-old Moretz, who has already turned in her share of gritty and desperate work before even hitting legal driving age (see: Kick-Ass, Let Me In, and Hick). Thankfully, it looks like MGM and Peirce agree with my assertion, as Deadline Fulton reports that the studio and the director have now made a formal offer to Moretz. The outlet adds that, despite last week’s short list, “Peirce and the studio had an eye on Moretz. The studio denied it at the time, but what actually happened is, Moretz didn’t meet with Peirce until last weekend. She got the job immediately.”

Editor’s note: With our own Junkfood addict Brian Salisbury busy writing through the typhoon that is SXSW, we’ve farmed out his column to similarly-minded Rejects. This time at bat – Kevin Carr! Welcome back to Junkfood Cinema, where our best exercise is lifting food into our mouths and working those jaw muscles. This week, we’re looking ahead to the future by looking into the past. Remember when reasonable people saw virtual reality for its true dangerous potential: to control people’s minds? You don’t? Well, try telling that to the filmmakers from 1992 because apparently it was a real threat. Today, we’re examining the gloriously convoluted dangers of virtual reality in a world of ooey gooey polygons and cybersex. The film that warned us of these dangers: The Lawnmower Man.

AMC’s The Walking Dead and I have a strange relationship in that I watch it but don’t particularly care for it. I can’t really tell you why I tune in every week, but it has something to do with my great love for the comic books and a desire to see horror on television, mostly regardless of quality. The books by Robert Kirkman have always had a bit of melodrama about them, but the show has often taken that to obvious, soap opera levels. “The Walking Dead” comics feature a great cast of characters with complex motivations and relationships. Many of those characters made it to the television show – well, at least characters with the same names made it in. Things have changed so drastically from comic to screen that one has to ask – when does an adaptation stop being an adaptation?

At one point in its recent development history, The Stand was planning on sending the Harry Potter team of Steve Kloves and David Yates to a cornfield in Colorado to write and direct the incredibly difficult source material. With that team passing on Stephen King‘s novel, Ben Affleck picked it up for a directorial project, and Vulture is reporting that Affleck has hired screenwriter David Kajganich to provide the blueprint. The only problem here is Kajganich’s track record. It’s always difficult to assign blame/credit to writers for a finished film because of the labyrinthine group effort the art demands, but so far his two biggest features have been the flat Invasion (starring Nicole Kidman) and the nasty horror flick Blood Creek. Neither inspires much in the way of optimism for an adaptation that even the most talented writer would struggle to make sense of. According to the report, Warners was impressed with Kajganich’s draft for a feature film version of It and decided that he was fit for crowing King again. What’s more, he’s also the writer of the Pet Sematary remake at Paramount, which means the studio system only knows of one guy who’s interested in writing these things for some reason. The question here is why Affleck would pass off writing duties (although the answer may be that he just doesn’t have the time to deal with a tome of that size). The silver lining, of course, is that Affleck so far has proven himself to be a

We’ve all heard the grumblings and complaints over the prospect of a new remake of Brian De Palma‘s adaptation of Carrie. What’s to care about with this remake? We’ve already got a pretty perfect adaptation. But now some of us can care, with the news that Kimberly Peirce could possibly be at the helm. Peirce is both an odd and kind of perfect choice for this project. Her acclaimed Boys Don’t Cry and lesser acclaimed but still pretty good Stop-Loss are both what one could call psychological horror movies, and Carrie very much is that. Peirce seems adept crafting films that chronicle young people going through a tough time, so she makes for an oddly suitable fit, really. MGM and Screen Gems are supposedly interested in a “gritty” take, despite the story involving a girl using psychic powers. Peirce, clearly being a lover of making all things gritty and realistic, could probably give them the realism they (oddly) want. Deadline Hermon is currently reporting she’s “in talks” to direct, and I certainly hope that deal goes through.

As all things go in cycles, we’re headed toward the apex of the Stephen-King-Movie-Go-Round. And, yes, I know carousels don’t have apexes because they spin horizontally, but just go with it. Some projects, like The Dark Tower still have a question mark hanging over them, and others, like remakes of Carrie and Pet Sematary, are simply ideas in the minds of executives. Today we can add another project to that pile, and take one out as well. According to /film, the proposed Showtime series adapted from “Under the Dome” is moving forward with Lost writer Brian K. Vaughan sitting down at his typewriter for the program. The story focuses on a town in Maine (surprise!) that’s sealed off from the rest of the world by a mysterious force field. Kind of like a supernaturally powered island. Adding to the prospective pile, Variety is reporting that Palomar Pictures has secured funding for two foreign remakes and an adaptation of King’s “Rose Madder” – the novel about a woman who leaves a dreadfully abusive husband and discovers a painting that she can travel into. The bottom line? Either get ready for a lot of Stephen King or get ready for Stephen King to receive a bunch of checks for movies that never get made.