Good news about “Prozac Nation”. It’s been picked up by Miramax for distribution. And from showbizireland.com comes the following (note Jonathan was questioned, not arrested and this hopefully confirms he will be in Minatour as well as a new film based on an Alex Garland novel):
Rhys Meyers talks to ShowBiz Ireland…
Cork actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers was arrested and detained last week in Italy due to security measures after the terrorist attacks in America.The actor, who has stared in such films as Michael Collins and Velvet Goldmine as well as taking the lead role in the hit TV show Gormanghast, was on his way to Morocco when he was arrested by police before boarding a flight in Milan last week.
‘I have an apartment in Morocco and was flying from Italy. But, when I was checking in at the desk for Morocco it was next to the United Airlines desk. I guess they just saw a guy on his own with a one steel case and thought they should check me out. So, they took me away and questioned me for three hours. Finally they let me go when they realized I was Irish and not one of Bin Laden’s boys. So I got on the next Royal Air Morocco flight down to my place.’
Jonathan also told ShowBizIreland.com that he has recently got engaged to his girlfriend of two years Sasha Singe, a student of anthropology from D4. ‘We are madly in love and got engaged ages ago but we kept it quiet as we just like to keep things to ourselves. We have no current wedding plans. I’m going to the UK to film Minatore and then doing a movie version of an Alex Garland novel. So, we will have immediate plans for the wedding.’ The actor currently lives between his hometown of Cork, his apartment in Dublin and his place in Morocco. Before Sasha, Jonathan dated the actress Toni Colette, star of Murials Wedding and The Sixth Sense.
Congratulations to Jonathan on his engagement!
In other news, thanks to the ever amazing alec757 for sending along news about Jonathan attending the launch of the Foyle Film Festival in Derry, Northern Ireland. The festival will be held from November 9 - 18. The Belfast Telegraph has an interview with Jonathan that I’ve put in the Press section of the site that also mentions Jonathan will be going to Bangkok in January to work on a new film based on an Alex Garland novel. Currently, Alex Garland only has two novels. One (The Beach) has been made into a film already. The other is The Tesseract. While there is a film being made currently based on an Alex Garland screenplay, that is supposedly being filmed in London right now so The Tesseract seems like the one Jonny is going to do. Visit Amazon.com for more details about the novel.
Club Monaco has finally released their new fall/winter 2001 ad campaign on their site. And guess who is their star model? Take a look at their site to see plenty of gorgeous photos. Thank to k_czaplinska for alerting me about this.
Also, thanks to Nerd from the message board, SCI FI Wire is reporting the following:
Tony Todd told SCI FI Wire that he’ll be starring in Minotaur, a fantasy film based on the Greek myth about a supernatural creature that’s half bull and half man. Todd (Candyman) will star with Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Derek Jacobi; Jonathan English will direct, the actor said in an interview at the Fangoria convention in Pasadena, Calif.
“It’s … sort of Lord of the Flies, about a group of village kids who go searching for the mythological Minotaur, and they stumble upon my kingdom,” Todd said. “I play a demented king who’s into hedonism and sadism. I control the Minotaur. It parallels modern society. It starts shooting on Oct. 15, six weeks in Wales and London at the legendary Pinewood Studios. I’m really looking forward to it, because I like going out of this country and working.”
New rumor regarding Jonny’s possible next film role. This comes from Ananova, which is not the most reliable source:
Robbie Williams is reported to be considering a film role in the romantic comedy Goldfish Memory. Other actors said to be considering taking part include Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Darren Day, Dervla Kirwan and Ian Hart. Pearl Harbor star Josh Hartnett is also believed to be interested in joining the cast of the ?5 million adventure set in Ireland.
Take that with a grain of salt. There is a great new article posted recently that talks some more about Jonny’s next film along with his take on blockbuster films and what he enjoys reading. Check it out at: Showbix Ireland.
Lonny is supposedly filming in London right now his next role as a team coach for the film Bend It Like Beckham, directed by Gurinder Chadha. From feeserve movie news:
Directed by Gurinder Chadha (’Bhaji On The Beach’), the project tells the tale of two 18-year-old girls desperate to become professional footballers, despite their parents’ objections. The two girls will be played by Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley. [Shaznay] Lewis is all set to play the captain of a football team, with Jonathan Rhys Meyers also on board to play team coach. There’s no word on whether the film’s namesake, David Beckham, will be putting in an appearance.
(Thanks Galliia) Certainly sounds interesting doesn’t it? Is Jonny finally doing a proper comedy?
First off, the “Titus” DVD that’s set to be released August 15 in the US is going to be a special collector’s edition filled with trailers, costume gallery, commentary and a behind the scenes documentary.
And some more exciting news to report thanks to Caroline for passing it along. Jonathan is set to star in a new TV miniseries but this time for US cable channel A&E. As reported by Yahoo, Orson Welles 1942 film “The Magnificent Ambersons” is being remade using the original shooting script. Jonathan will star along with James Cromwell, Madeleine Stowe, Jennifer Tilly and Thora Birch. The miniseries will be directed by Alfonso Arau and will air sometime next year. “The Magnificent Ambersons” is based on a Booth Tarkington 1918 novel and revolves around the decline of a wealthy family at start of the 1900’s.
Exciting news from Cannes! The Telegraph reported on May 13 that:
Jonathan Rhys-Meyers is hotly tipped to star as Christopher Marlowe in a steamy new movie about the life of the 16th-century playwright that will be unveiled here early next week.
The £14 million film, to be called Marlowe, is being produced by Natural Nylon, the Soho-based company co-owned by Britpack actors Ewan McGregor, Jude Law, Sadie Frost, Johnny Lee Miller and Sean Pertwee.
The Hollywood star Michelle Pfeiffer is believed to be in the running to play Lady Audrey, the seductive wife of Marlowe’s patron Thomas Walsingham. The film will be directed by John Maybury, who has had many offers since his acclaimed Francis Bacon biopic Love Is The Devil.
Marlowe, to begin shooting in London in September, will focus on the five-year period between the performance of the playwright’s first work and his mysterious death at the age of 29 in a tavern brawl in 1593.
Natural Nylon originally envisaged Law in the title role but the star, nominated for a supporting actor Oscar for The Talented Mr Ripley, had to bow out reluctantly because of a scheduling clash. In September, he will begin acting duties on Steven Spielberg’s AI, a sci-fi extravaganza developed over 20 years by the late Stanley Kubrick.
Rhys-Meyers, most recently seen in the television production Gormenghast, is one of the hottest young stars around. He recently completed production on Conspiracy of Weeds opposite Rachel Leigh Cook and his up-coming projects include a film adaptation of the best-selling book Prozac Nation with Christina Ricci and Anne Heche. He will next appear on screen in September in Julie Taymor’s Titus, based on Titus Andronicus.
What’s that? “Conspiracy of Weeds” is already completed? That may not be the case, and for those in the UK, “Titus” is set for release September 1 according to Clear Blue Sky Productions (thanks Elaine).
Also be on the lookout for little tidbits in the UK press. Thanks to Lindsey who posted at the JRM board about two sightings, one in ES Magazine which came with the London Evening Standard on May 5 and the other a review and small image of “Ride With The Devil” in last Saturday’s The Information which comes with The Independent. ES Magazine had an article on sex appeal and Shane Watson wrote, “Jonathan Rhys-Meyers with his pillowboy looks is like the distilled essence of sexual attraction for both sexes, to be adored but not touched.”
Thanks to Bridge (you omipresent news finder!) and Sarah, here’s a few tidbits about not just the one role Jonny has signed up for, but the two roles he’s snagged (congrats goes out to Jonny on what looks to be promising roles!).
From: Empire Online
Rhys-Meyers’ Cheating Parts 25/04/2000
Irish actor Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, last seen gracing the British small screen in “Gormenghast”, has nabbed two choice roles in Hollywood. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Rhys-Meyers has signed up for two boyfriend roles, requiring him to play the love interests of Christina Ricci and Rachael Leigh Cook in Prozac Nation and Conspiracy of Weeds respectively.
Unfortunately, Rhys-Meyers’ bad boy persona as honed to perfection in Ang Lee’s “Ride With The Devil” and “Gormenghast” looks set to be his stock in trade as both roles show his character cheating on his girlfriend.
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From: Daily Variety, April 26, 2000
Michelle Williams and Anne Heche have joined the cast of “Prozac Nation,” the pic based on Elizabeth Wurtzel’s bestselling novel.
Thesps join Christina Ricci, Jason Biggs and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers.
Lensing begins May 15 in Vancouver and Boston. Norwegian helmer Erik Skjoldbjarg (”Insomnia”) is directing… Story centers on Wurtzel’s freshman year at Harvard and her bout with depression.
Jonny has finally picked his next project. It will be filming this summer in Canada. I’ll post more when I find out. Got word on another of Jonny’s projects, “Rake’s Progress”. This production has been put on hold due to possible financing problems. Lastly, the DVD for “Ride With The Devil” is available for pre-order over at Amazon.com, set for release on July 18th.
You can pre-order “B. Monkey” on DVD through reel.com for only $17.99. It’s coming out March 21st (thanks to Laura for sending this info along). Fox Searchlight’s site for Titus is fully up and running. Check it out for some clips from the film. You’ll need flash to view the site. Lastly, Jonny is not going to do “Johnny Domino”. He was offered the part but decided not to do it. And is still on the look out for his next project.
“B. Monkey” is FINALLY going to be released in select theatres in New York and Los Angeles September 10th. At least that’s what Miramax is saying now. You can click on the ad to the left to view the official Miramax website. Jonathan’s tentative next project hopefully starts filming in October in Ireland, titled “Rake’s Progress”.
