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Inside The Actor’s Studio: LeBron James’ Hits And Misses

jerwin — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:47:19 +0000

Yesterday came the news that LeBron James is set to make his feature film debut in a comedy called Fantasy Basketball Camp where he’ll play a character called…”LeBron James” who…hosts a fantasy camp only to get caught up in the personal lives of his campers. Filming is set to start next summer, and while the flick sounds like a flop of Divac-ian proportions, as long as it doesn’t interfere with LBJ’s training for his Knick debut (Hello Cleveland!), it’s all good with us.

But LeBron’s not the totally ~~blatant marketing “synergy”~~ out-of-leftfield casting choice you might think he is—it turns out dude’s been working on his acting chops for years (and not just acting bitchmade). To get an idea of how King James might do as a leading man, we took a look back at the highs and lows of his career as a thespian…

HIGH: NIKE’S “LEBRONS” CAMPAIGN
This classic from the “LeBrons” series from a few years ago shows LBJ inhabiting four alter egos. Our only issue: We’d like to have seen a lot more of pre-pubescent lil’ ‘Bron. Did we just say that out loud?

LOW: FEAR THE CHAMBER
King James doesn’t do much acting in this clip, until the end when he performs a karate kick and lets out a girlish shriek like someone’s squeezing the crown jewels.

HIGH: SEDUCING NICOLE SCHERZINGER
LeBron holds his own with noted acting heavyweight Nicole Scherzinger. Of course Corky from Life Goes On could’ve held his own with noted acting heavyweight Nicole Scherzinger, but give dude his due.

LOW: NBA’S “WHERE AMAZING HAPPENS” CAMPAIGN
First rule of acting: Don’t try too hard, and LeBron is clearly doing that here, reaching for the high notes in Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time.” Either that or that’s the way he really sings, which doesn’t bode well for roles in any potential Mamma Mia! sequels.

HIGH: “THIS IS SPORTSCENTER”: JAMMED COPIER
Nice, understated work from LeBron here, channeling the office equipment frustrations of the everyman. If Mike Judge ever gets around to that “Office Space” sequel, we’re thinking James could be a black Milton Waddams.

LOW: “THIS IS SPORTSCENTER”: MISSING THRONE
Again, LeBron fails acting basics here, not knowing what to do with his hands as he returns to his desk. We’d suggest he play with his championship ring but Mr. Eva Longoria’s wearing it.

HIGH: VITAMIN WATER COURTROOM SCENE
LBJ gets his Raymond Burr on here, with a little Meadowlark Lemon thrown in. Courtroom dramas are always a good career move. Look for LeBron to replace Sam Waterston when he finally retires from Law & Order after the 47th season.

LOW: STARTING FOR THE BROWNS
Second rule of acting: Pick realistic scripts. We did mention LeBron’s signing with the Knicks, right?

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Kevin Long Skates All Day And All Night

treats — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 21:54:11 +0000

Being a professional skateboarder has its fair share of perks. Money, women and a signature sneaker are just a few of the benefits that 23-year-old Kevin “Spanky” Long gets to reap. But with the release of his new Emerica shoe, The Spanky, he’s putting all the glamor aside to promote it through a grueling 24-hour commercial.

Called Kevin All Day And Night Long, the clip follows young Kev on a skate marathon with artist Donny Miller (pictured above on the left), covering over 24 miles in California and documenting the adventures they encounter along the way. It will be aired online on June 24 at 6 AM (PST), so catch up on your sleep now. Watch a quick trailer below.

Related: Inside Verte With The Razos

Gore Verbinski Helms Big Screen Bioshock Adaptation

treats — Fri, 09 May 2008 21:08:22 +0000

Hollywood really loves fucking up our favorite video games by remaking them into shitty live-action movies (actually, its mostly Uwe Boll’s fault). So when we heard today’s news about a Bioshock movie going into production, we got a little scared. At least semi-competent director Gore Verbinski (The Ring, Pirates of the Carribean) is behind it. Could be worse.

If you’re not familiar, Bioshock was released last year on the Xbox and PC to rave reviews. It’s an extremely creepy first-person shooter in which you survive a fiery plane crash, only to stumble upon an underwater city that’s overrun with unpredictable mutants. Watch the game’s preview after the jump.

[Reuters]

Iron Man Meets Nick Fury In Bonus Clip

treats — Mon, 05 May 2008 19:26:28 +0000

In case you high-talied it out of the theater last Friday after watching Iron Man, you missed the introduction of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. You couldn’t ask for a better setup. Through the course of the film, a puny government agent gave clues to his parent company, Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division which actually stands for S.H.I.E.L.D.'the counter-terrorism group which Fury heads up. Only thing is, no one really picked up on that until he decided to shorten the long-form name to S.H.I.E.L.D.

As most comic fans would know, Nick Fury was drawn as Jackson for the Ultimates series, kind of like a remix of the Avengers. Now that Iron Man hit the big-screen, the sequel is set to follow their story, featuring of course, Nick Fury. Watch the teaser clip after the jump.

Related:

- The Official Complex Iron Man Review

- Iron Man In Under 3 Minutes

Meet The Cast and Crew of Notorious

treats — Mon, 05 May 2008 15:31:58 +0000

Thanks to producer Wayne Barrow’s blog, fans have been getting some early looks at the Biggie biopic Notorious, including this new video that takes you on set to meet the entire cast and crew. Get familiar with folks like Angela Basset (pictured above) who plays Biggie’s mom, Anthony Mackie, who plays 2Pac, and Marc John Jefferies, the kid that played a young Curtis Jackson in Get Rich Or Die Tryin’. Watch the video and spread love the Brooklyn way after the jump.

[Nah Right]

Related:

On The Set of the B.I.G. Biopic

Watchmen’s Toy Story Continues

treats — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 19:30:42 +0000

Now that the The Watchmen film is knee-deep in production, the rest of the franchise is finally getting its just due. Today, EW premiered the first pictures of the new action figures for Night Owl and Rorschach, which are just part of the set that’s being debuted at this weekend’s New York Comic Con. Nerds might remember back in 2001, when an original line of Watchmen toys were abandoned after creators Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons had a dispute with DC. After the jump, see pictures of these never-released figures.

[Click on an image to view full size]

Images: WatchmenComicMovie.com

Hype Check: Eric Gordon, CBGBs & Batman

treats — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 20:20:26 +0000

The media shoves so much down our throat these days that it’s hard to know when to believe the hype. Can you help us out? Each week we’re going to be asking you, the readers, to vote on what’s gonna live up to expectations and what’s gonna flop.

Will Eric Gordon smash the NBA? Will Bobby Brown’s son find his own perogative? Will the new John Varvatos store in CBGBs piss off or please punk rockers? Will Batman: Gotham Knight bring John Wayne back? Let it be known after the jump.

Now that the Final Four is over, all eyes are on 19-year-old phenom Eric Gordon. Will the Indianapolis guard be the NBA’s number one draft this June?
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.
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Can Bobby Brown’s son follow in his dad’s footsteps as the “King of R&B” on MTV’s Rock the Cradle?
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.
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Will John Varvatos’ new store at CBGB carry on the legacy of the punk rock landmark?
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.
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Could Batman Gotham Knight be the best animated adaption of the franchise ever?
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Jenna Jameson Might Eat Your Brains

treats — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 20:34:52 +0000

Click on the image to view the full Zombie Strippers poster.

By the looks of the movie poster for Zombie Strippers, Jenna Jameson resembles her old self, before she looked like a collagen-injected carrot. The porn queen is starring in this upcoming horror flick along side her UFC fighter boyfriend Tito Ortiz and Robert Englund (you may know him as Freddy Krueger). While it was supposed to go straight to DVD, we’ve just learned that Zombie Strippers will be opening in limited theaters on April 18th. Watch the trailer after the jump.

[Beyond Hollywood]

On The Set of the B.I.G. Biopic

treats — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 19:49:54 +0000

All the uproar surrounding F-list rapper Gravy playing Biggie Smalls started to sound like the outcry by fanboys in the comic world over Toby Maguire as Spiderman. Get ready to face the reality of Notorious, which recently began shooting.

Director George Tillman Jr. (Soul Food, Men Of Honor) continued production today in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn (the corner of Franklin Ave. and Prospect Pl., to be exact), where Gravy was spotted. After the jump, get a quick glimpse of the rapper-turned-actor doing one of the film’s first takes…

Gravy is the tall fellow in the Army green hat.