Chris Hemsworth is planning on a new project, Jennifer Lawrence is re-teaming with her Silver Linings Playbook crew, a Les Misérables starlet is heading west, and Sandra Bullock is preparing to play — er, voice — against type. All these big deals and more have gone down this week. Want to stay in the know? Take a look at all the latest movie casting news of the week!
Zombie comedy Warm Bodies comes to theaters this weekend, with Nicholas Hoult at the forefront as an undead Romeo. Is the unconventional romance worth a trip to the movies, though? Check out our video review to find out if you should watch, pass, or rent Warm Bodies.
Zombies have been invading movies and televisions for decades, but few if any of those films or shows have examined what it's like inside the minds of the undead — which is part of the reason why Warm Bodies offers a fresh take on the genre. The comedy centers on R (Nicholas Hoult), a young-looking (and, frankly, kind of cute) zombie whose mind is still intact, even if his memories and motor skills aren't. When R meets Julie (Teresa Palmer) during a routine flesh-eating fest with his fellow undead, he feels a sudden desire to protect her. And what unfolds is a tender love story that, believe it or not, is also relatable.
Warm Bodies solidifies Hoult has what it takes to carry a film, injecting just the right amount of charisma and comedy under all of that zombie makeup. What R lacks in verbal communication he makes up for in witty internal monologue, sharing the trials and tribulations of eating brains with the audience and reminding himself not to be too creepy around Julie. Julie herself is understandably hesitant to believe R's grumbles that he won't hurt her but soon becomes intrigued with how gentle he is — not to mention his surprising amount of nostalgia for records and other artifacts that he collects. Translation: he's a zombie hoarder. The pair actually connect in a way that feels authentic and fun to watch. It's basically a combination of Beauty and the Beast and Romeo and Juliet, but with a lot more laughs.
To see what else I liked about Warm Bodies, just read more
Nicholas Hoult takes on leading man status in Warm Bodies, but he's actually not playing a man — he's playing a zombie. Hoult stars as R, a zombie who falls for human Julie (Teresa Palmer) and does his best to win her over. I recently sat down with Hoult at the film's press day in LA, where we discussed the trials and tribulations of playing the undead, and how he'd fare in the event of an actual zombie apocalypse. He also compared his zombie makeup to that of his costume in X-Men: First Class. Check out the interview before Warm Bodies hits theaters on Feb. 1.
Nicholas Hoult, Teresa Palmer, and Dave Franco celebrated their new film, Warm Bodies, with a glamorous premiere in LA. Teresa, who wore a black lace Philip Armstrong gown, chatted with Nicholas at the premiere's afterparty and shared a cute moment with John Malkovich, who plays her father in the zombie romantic comedy. She was joined by her costar Cory Hardrict and his wife, Tia Mowry, and model-turned-actress Analeigh Tipton who wore a stunning Barbara Bui dress.
At the premiere, Nicolas spoke about his X-Men costar and ex-girlfriend, Jennifer Lawrence, who most recently picked up a SAG Award for her highly acclaimed performance in Silver Linings Playbook. He admitted to being "very proud" of Jennifer so far and hoping that she wins an Oscar. A SAG trophy isn't the only award that Jennifer has picked up during this year's award season — check out Jennifer Lawrence's best award-season moments so far.
Justin Timberlake will perform this Saturday at a special pre-Super Bowl event, and then again the weekend afterward — JT's set to take the stage at the Grammys on Sunday, Feb. 10! We're looking at JT's busy few weeks in this PopSugar Rush and also checking out other early headlines, including Ashley Judd's split and the confirmation that an Entourage movie's on the way.
If you're a zombie movie fan, you should be counting the days until Warm Bodies lumbers into theaters this week. Nicholas Hoult and Teresa Palmer headline the movie as star-crossed lovers, but in this case, Romeo is a member of the undead. Rob Corddry, Dave Franco, and Analeigh Tipton also costar in the horror-comedy-romance. Before you buy your tickets, take a look through all the pictures of the movie!
Now that Edward and Bella have drifted off into the vampire sunset, it's time to find a new human/undead couple to root for. Allow us to present R (Nicholas Hoult) and Julie (Teresa Palmer), the cute zombie/human couple at the center of upcoming comedy Warm Bodies. We've been looking forward to this, um, unnatural love story since we saw the trailer, and we're loving this cute new poster that reads "He was dead inside until he met her" — get it? The film opens on Feb. 1, but you can check out another character poster via the Warm Bodies Tumblr.
See a bigger version of the poster when you read more
The trailer for Warm Bodies puts a new spin on forbidden love — instead of Romeo and Juliet, we're getting zombie and human. Zombies may not be as romanticized a supernatural creature as, say, vampires, but when the zombie in question is played by Nicholas Hoult, I might be rethinking my view of the undead. Hoult stars as R, a flesh-eater in a world where zombies are rampant. He falls in love with Julie (Teresa Palmer) at first sight, and their love for each other slowly begins to change the zombie race. Understandably, her family doesn't approve of their relationship, especially her father (John Malkovich), who happens to be the man in charge of wiping out the zombies.
The film, based on Isaac Marion's popular novel, may be filled with bloodthirsty creatures, but you can't deny that the trailer has a certain charm to it. It's quirky, and the love story feels fresh and original. I've had a crush on Hoult, who audiences may remember from About a Boy, since seeing him all grown up on the UK's Skins. Though they're an odd pair, I also love Rob Corddry as R's grunting sidekick, and truth be told, I'll see pretty much any movie that features Dave Franco. The movie is set to open Feb. 1, and you can check out the trailer after the jump.
