May 30

Exciting & Concerning News From ComingSoon.Net 

I use Comingsoon.net for all of my movie news, and am filled with a mixture of joy and concern over the following tidbits from this week:

Five More for Greg Mottola’s Paul

Seth Rogen, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader and Jane Lynch have been cast in Paul, a Working Title film for Universal Pictures, it was announced today. Rogen will play the voice of Paul.

Greg Mottola (Superbad, Adventureland) will direct the comedy adventure, while Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz), who co-wrote the screenplay, will serve as the film’s leads. Paul will be produced by Eric Fellner and Tim Bevan from Working Title and Nira Park for Big Talk Productions.

— Hell yes! Frost & Pegg teaming up with Mottola, who I thought did an awesome job with Adventureland. Obviously a killer line-up too.

Jake Kasdan to Direct Bad Teacher

The Hollywood Reporter says that Jake Kasdan (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story) will direct the Columbia Pictures comedy Bad Teacher.

Based on a screenplay by Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg, the film concerns a foul-mouthed seventh grade teacher who is dumped by her sugar daddy and starts to pursue a colleague, which provokes conflict with the school’s model teacher.

Kasdan has also written and directed The TV Set and Zero Effect.

— Hopefully this will avoid the hokey territory of Dewey Cox. I thought the TV Set was well done, although most people missed it.

Scott and Brody Board Kevin Smith’s Dicks

Seann William Scott and Adam Brody are joining Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan in Warner Bros.’ A Couple of Dicks, a buddy action comedy being directed by Kevin Smith, says The Hollywood Reporter.

The script, by Robb and Mark Cullen, follows a maverick cop (Willis) and his partner (Morgan) who, while tracking a valuable stolen baseball card, tangle with a memorabilia-obsessed gangster and rescue a Mexican beauty who holds the key to millions in laundered drug money.

Scott plays a thief known as the Sh*t Bandit for the souvenirs he leaves at his robberies. Brody is an abrasive detective not happy to be working with Willis and Morgan.

— Seriously?