Film News: Ben Wheatley on Dr. Who, James McAvoy talks Filth, Jesse Eisenberg to play Lex Luthor

BEN WHEATLEY ON DOCTOR WHO: "IT'S BEEN VERY GEEKY INDEED..."
In an interview with geek culture website io9.com, director Ben Wheatley (Sightseers, Kill List) has talked about the forthcoming episodes of Doctor Who that he helmed, dropping some big hints about the tone and direction showrunner Stephen Moffat is taking the Doctor in, now that Peter Capaldi has taken over from Matt Smith.

With the Doctor ending the final episode of Smith's run with thirteen new regenrations to work through, and the first screenshots of Capaldi's costume, complete with shiny Doctor Martens, suggesting more than a few nods to the darker, more adult-oriented Doctor Who of previous decades, it really does seem like the start of a new era for the time-travelling physician – and Wheatley sounds very excited by the challenge of creating a new take on the classic character.

First of all, Wheatley expresses his excitement at being handed the keys to the TARDIS for the first two episodes of Capaldi's run: "It was something I sought out," he reveals. "I got my agent to kind of badger them about doing [it], because I was a fan as a kid. But also because my kid was a fan of the show and I wanted to make something that he could see, for a change. That was it. And it's been very geeky indeed. Going into the TARDIS, I held the Sonic Screwdriver the other day, and that was a particular thrill. All sorts of stuff. Also stuff I can't talk about, that's been very, very exciting for me."

Commenting on Capaldi's take on the Doctor, Wheatley observes: "He's a massive Who fan. He knows Who inside out. And everything he does is very, carefully planned and thought about. I remember when they first started talking to me about doing it, and I was very nervous for just those reasons. How do you shape this performance?" He continues: "With Capaldi, you look at his career and you look at his performances, they are all so brilliant, and all so different as well. It was a lucky break for me."

Asked if Capaldi's Doctor will be exploring darker themes than the Tennant and Smith runs, Wheatley is guarded, but comments: "Doctor Who is pretty dark, I think. Generally it's dark, it's always been dark... It seems to me the episodes that we're doing now seem more like classic Who. We're going back to that style. But you'll have to wait and see."

Wheatley also reveals that his forthcoming adaptation of J.G. Ballard's dystopian SF novel High Rise will stick close to the book, and that his writing partner Amy Jump has finished a draft of the script, set in 1975, as in the original novel. "We're looking at the Ridley Scott adverts of that period," Wheatley reveals. "It's going to be modern in a way that the 70s looked. In a way that, 'I don't know what the future looks like anymore,' which is quite funny... Back then they had a real idea of what the future was going to be like, and it was much more stylish." Yesterday, Wheatley also confirmed the film's star as Thor's Tom Hiddleston, and tweeted a picture of a poster for the film. Read the full interview at io9.com.

JAMES MCAVOY TALKS FILTH
As breakout Scottish hit Filth prepares to hit DVD, a new deleted scene has surfaced online, with a strong dose of the down-and-dirty humour and dark themes that made the Irvine Welsh adaptation such a treat at the cinema. Earlier this week, the film's star, James McAvoy, gave a revealing interview to Den of Geek, in which he discussed his character, the dissolute, debauched detective Bruce Robertson.  

"I think it's been said that, y'know, to play a baddie you've got to like the people you play and all that kind of stuff, [that] if you're playing Hitler you need to find a way to like Hitler and that sort of thing," says McAvoy. "I just don't think that's true. I think you've got to be able to sympathise with them and empathise with them and understand what they do, but no, I certainly wouldn't want to be going for a pint with him." But, McAvoy continues, "he's one of the two parts that I'll probably miss most, knowing that I'll never ever play them ever again, y'know?"

Reflecting on the film's success abroad, McAvoy pillories the French: "Even the distributor in France, who'd bought the rights, was a bit like, 'We do not like theez film,' even though they had a vested fucking interest in it. Scandinavian countries went for it, Germany... yeah, we've done relatively well for a low-budget film." McAvoy also talks about his upcoming role in Frankenstein, directed by Sherlock's Paul McGuigan, and compares Irvine Welsh's writing to that of Charles Dickens. Read the interview in full here, and read our pre-release interview with Irvine Welsh about Filth here.

THE RUMOUR MILL: JESSE EISENBERG TO PLAY LEX LUTHOR, NEIL GAIMAN'S AMERICAN GODS, TARANTINO'S THE HATEFUL EIGHT BACK ON?
A round-up of recent film rumours – beginning with the shock casting of Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Zombieland) as Lex Luthor in the forthcoming Batman Vs. Superman, helmed by Man of Steel's Zack Snyder. Business Wire broke the news of Eisenberg's casting, scotching rumours floating around the net that the favourite for the role was Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston. More than one site made the joke that Eisenberg won the role after a casting agent misheard Zack Snyder ordering them to cast "that Heisenberg guy."

Under development as a long-form TV show for several years with HBO, Neil Gaiman's American Gods has finally been passed over by the network – only to find a home at independent production company FremantleMedia, according to Gaiman's blog. The new producers are reportedly "determined" to bring Gaiman's epic saga to the screen. Gaiman also reveals that Anansi Boys, another of his much-loved urban fantasy novels, has been optioned by British production company Red, and will be destined for the BBC. Gaimanites, rejoice!

And finally, Quentin Tarantino's leaked Western script The Hateful Eight may be back on the slate after all, according to Jeff Sneider, columnist for The Wrap. "The Hateful Eight is back on," Sneider commented on Twitter, “as sources tell me that Quentin has reached out to Sam Jackson in the week since he called off the movie... I'm told that the initial betrayal came as a shock, but QT has calmed down and is having second thoughts about moving on. Will rewrite script." Yee, and indeed, ha. 

TRAILERS: SUPERBOWL SPECIAL FEATURING TRANSFORMERS, SPIDERMAN & CAPTAIN AMERICA
Last week, Americans were transfixed by live coverage of the Superb Owl*, a mysterious creature that reportedly transfixes our transatlantic brethren once a year with an extended display, broken up at half time with a hotly-anticipated advert break where trailers for the forthcoming Summer's blockbusters are revealed to an audience of millions. This year was no exception, with highlights including Optimus Prime riding a robotic dinosaur, Captain America fighting a dude with a metal arm, and Spiderman fighting, well... everybody. 

First up, the first look at Transformers: Age of Extinction promised Dinobots, plenty of Marky Mark Wahlberg running away from explosions in dramatic slow motion (sadly no Funky Bunch), and not even a whiff of Shia LaBeouf, whose lead character has presumably (and hopefully) met with a violent end in between films. It may not be Shakespeare, but we're going to count this one cautiously in the 'win' column.

Next, Spiderman's return in the imaginatively titled The Amazing Spiderman 2 promises a plethora of villains, leading off with an impressive-looking turn from Jamie Foxx as Electro. Teaming up with Foxx will be Paul Giamatti as armoured baddie the Rhino, B. J. Novak as Alistair Smythe, creator of an army of Spider Slayer robots, and Dane DeHaan as the son of Norman Osborn, better known as the Green Goblin. Cue punching!

Last but not least in the superhero section, we have Captain America: The Winter Soldier, with Chris Evans (the muscly one, not the ginger one) returning as Cap, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, and Anthony Mackie as Falcon, squaring off against newcomer Sebastian Stan, a metal-armed emo with enhanced punching capabilities. Looking a shade darker in tone than the somewhat whimsical original film, this could be a highlight of the Summer superhero sequel sweepstakes. 

*Superb Owl joke copyright Stephen Colbert!