February 19, 2009
Original Source: Movie Web
It seems that Kevin McKidd may no longer be the lead contender to play the titular god of thunder in Marvel Studio's Thor. A casting call that was snuck to Corona Coming Attractions has gone out for the lead in the film, and beyond simply confirming that McKidd is probably no longer up for the role, it also suggests what the producers and director Kenneth Branagh is looking for in the part.
The casting call reads: Male MUST BE MID-LATE 20'S and SIX FEET OR TALLER. LEAD.Physically powerful, very handsome, occasionally egotistical, petulant, and wild. A natural warrior with a quick charming wit who must be genuinely and severly humbled before becoming the compassionate, mature hero of our film. According to the casting call, the start date for filming would be this July, with the film wrapping in September. Marvel is eyeing up a July 16, 2010 release date for Thor.
January 5, 2009
Source: PerfectPeople
Trainspotting star Kevin McKidd and his wife Jane have pledged to be more organised in 2009 after waiting too long to neuter their pet dogs.
The actor admits he's terrible at paying bills on time because he can't get organised and his failure to keep track of things left him with seven puppies.
He explains, "Last year we took these two dogs home from London to L.A. - two dogs that we love dearly - and we kept saying, 'We've got to take these dogs to the vet and get the job done, so they don't... because one of them's a boy and one of them's a girl.
"And then they did get the job done; we opened up the kennel one day and they were kinda like 'together' looking in each other's eyes lovingly... and we've got these seven puppies and they're just adorable."
McKidd and his wife have now had their pets neutered. They managed to find homes for six of the litter and have kept one of the pups.
Reynolds, Simon. "Boyle discusses 'Trainspotting' sequel."
November 26, 2008
Original Source: Digitalspy.co.uk
Danny Boyle has revealed that a Trainspotting sequel will move forward once the original cast begin to look older.
The director explained that the storyline will take place two decades after the events of Trainspotting, when the characters "hit the wall" in middle age.
However, Boyle said that Hollywood vanity is slowing down the ageing process for stars Ewan McGregor, Robert Carlyle, Jonny Lee Miller, Ewen Bremner and Kevin McKidd.
He told The AV Club: "The problem is, they don't look any different at the moment from when Trainspotting was made. They look exactly the same. They're a little heavier, but they basically look the same.
"Actors stay suspended in that timeless moment where they're moisturising and looking after themselves and making sure they keep fit and healthy, because it's their work, it's their future employment. But when time ravages them, we will be waiting for them."
Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh wrote a sequel to the novel called Porno, which follows the same characters working in the pornography industry.
October 11, 2008
Origina Source: Edinburghnews.scotsman.com
In the cutthroat world of the movie business, would-be film screenwriters have to use every tactic they can think of to get noticed. Except perhaps one.
"I did once go to an interview with the BBC and I just bombarded the interviewer with story ideas," recalls Adrian Mead with a wry smile.
"At 6ft 3in tall and weighing 11 stone, I am not a small guy. I basically shouted at her for about half an hour. It wasn't the best approach."
It may not have done Adrian any harm – on Monday, October 20, the critically acclaimed Night People, which he co-wrote and directed with his partner Clare Kerr, gets its first showing on television and the 45-year-old has a host of other projects on the go. But he is hoping that his new book, Making it as a Screenwriter, will help young hopefuls avoid a few of his mistakes.
"I wish I had had this book when I was starting out," he says. "I'm able to tell people all the things I did, most of them, on reflection, in the worst possible ways."
There is another reason Adrian is keen for the book, which was launched last Tuesday, to succeed – the proceeds are all going to Childline, a charity he volunteers with every week in the Capital.
He's only just finished his training, learning the hugely responsible task of how to help a small voice with often terrifyingly large problems on the end of a phone line. He admits that the first call was "very scary", but adds: "Sometimes you come away from a call and do feel that you've been part of something that's made a difference.
"Although it's very nerve-wracking at the start, there is such great support, so that passes."
The couple do not have any children themselves – Adrian says volunteering was more to provide an antidote to the sometimes navel-gazing world of movies.
"The media business can get rather silly – a bit self-obsessed. It's good to do something that's not about myself," he says.
Not that he's running the industry down – after all, it took every inch of the former hairdresser and city bouncer's determination to get into it in the first place.
"In the beginning, I knew absolutely nobody," he admits. "It's all about who you know and keeping in touch with people."
"If you want something, though, you have to believe you are already nine-tenths of the way there. You have to believe you are going to do it. It's about having a strategy – you have to plan and you need to execute that.
Two years ago, he and Clare, who live on Leith Walk, did just that with Night People, a love song to the city, shot on a shoestring £300,000 budget and with just the street lights to illuminate the Capital's world-famous skyline.
Since then it's been shown at film festivals across the world, including in Tehran. "It's been mentioned all over the world just how beautiful the city looks in Night People," says Liverpool-born Adrian, who co-wrote and directed the film that Clare produced. However, in Berlin, there was a slightly worrying moment when one young man excitedly told the couple the film gave him a headache. "We were a bit confused, but he meant that he loved looking at all the colours in the film," laughs Adrian.
"A lot of people from Edinburgh who have watched the film said they have never seen the city look like that," adds Clare, 42. "I'm proud of the fact that we made this place – where I have come back to throughout my life – beautiful."
Night People follows a series of characters on their journeys across Edinburgh. David, a 13-year-old runaway, is fleeing the Capital on the first bus he can get to London. But at the station he meets Josh, a rent boy just four years his senior, who promises he can show him a new life, right on his doorstep.
Taxi driver Jane spends the night as a desperate chauffeur, caught in the middle of dodgy goings-on across the city. She is forced to take her five-year-old daughter Alison along for the ride, spinning fairytales about where they are going to protect her from the truth. Other characters include a struggling single father and a guilt-ridden missionary.
Although the film will be a first for thousands of television viewers next week, the couple have since focused their attention on more familiar projects, including the antics of a much-loved, black-haired tearaway named Dennis.
"Yes, it is true, I have been writing for the Beano character," smiles Adrian. "It's been absolutely fantastic."
And he says he gets a huge thrill out of writing for the BBC cartoon series. "I loved it when I was a child and I think my friends are a bit jealous. In fact, I got an e-mail the other day from one of them, simply saying 'B*****d!'."
He has also managed to find time to write scripts for the BBC's hugely popular Waking The Dead, for which he wrote two parts for the final series.
"It was great. There are so many writers wanting to do the show. It's a big responsibility – you know half the country is watching."
And as for Clare, a former chef raised in Abbeyhill, there are many projects on the go, including a feature film entitled Faith.
Although she emphasises that the film is still in its infancy – she hopes work will start next year – it has secured Rome and Trainspotting star Kevin McKidd for the lead in a tale about the relationship between a father and daughter. She's also co-producing Wide Open Spaces, a film comedy from the writers of Father Ted.
She says: "Even with the credit crunch, people still seem to go to the cinema. For £10 they know they will enjoy themselves and can escape from real life for a bit."
But do the film-making duo ever tire of living and often working together?
"Not really," Clare laughs. "The biggest challenge is to remember you have to stop working!"
• Night People will be broadcast on STV on Monday, October 20 at 10.35pm.
The full article contains 1054 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper. Page 1 of 1 Last Updated: 11 October 2008 11:48 AM Source: Edinburgh Evening News Location: Edinburgh
There can be only one! Unless there's another one... As we learned a few months ago, a "reinvention" of the HIGHLANDER franchise is in the works courtesy of Summit, the company behind the (soon to be massively successful) TWILIGHT movie. But who might possibly be willing and able to don the kilt and wield the hefty blade once held by Christopher Lambert?
JoBlo reader 'Lynchy' tells us that actor - and actual Scotsman - Kevin McKidd (HBO's "ROME", DOG SOLDIERS) was just on Dublin radio, and mentioned he'd been approached by the production company about starring in the film. We don't know much more than that, but the producers did previously mention they would include medieval Scotland in their version of the story. And McKidd may have some time on his schedule after the termination of his "JOURNEYMAN" series.
In case you weren't aware, the indefatigable HIGHLANDER series revolves around a secret race of immortals who, over the course of centuries, constantly clash and cut each other's heads off with swords so they can absorb the special effects that spill from the decapitated bodies.
Extra Tidbit: McKidd was reportedly a favorite to play THOR before director Matthew Vaughn exited the project.
August 12, 2008
By: Graem Smith
Source: HeraldScotland
Hollywood actor Kevin McKidd yesterday called for tax breaks for film-makers to encourage more movies to be made in the Highlands and Islands.
The Elgin-born star of Trainspotting, who has just started filming a series of top American drama Grey's Anatomy, was speaking in his home town at a ceremony marking his appointment as patron of the Scottish Highlands and Islands Film Commission (SHIFC).
The actor, who is now based in Los Angeles and is best known for roles in the BBC TV series Rome and the recent comantic comedy Made of Honour, was also in Elgin to celebrate his 35th birthday.
"There are tax breaks for film productions in countries like Ireland and they seem to work there so I don't see why they wouldn't work in Scotland as well.
"Tax incentives would make it much more attractive for film companies to shoot in the Highlands and Islands. I have been involved in a few Scottish productions shot in other countries because it was cheaper, when I wish they could have been shot here," he said.
In his new role as patron of SHIFC he aims to raise awareness of what the Highlands and Islands has to offer to the film and TV industry.
"I will do anything I can to support the work of promoting film and television production in my home area. I want film companies to know that not only are there great places to film here, but also that there is an infrastructure of accommodation and facilities to support large film productions with crews of up to 300 people.
"If we can bring films to the Highlands and Islands we will reap the economic benefits and there is the bonus of putting the area on the map.
"That's how you achieve things like the Harry Potter tourist trail in Lochaber," he added.
The actor is backing SHIFC's "Film Crews Welcome Scheme," which enables film production companies to discover online which hotels and bed and breakfasts have an understanding of their specific needs. Kevin, who filmed One Last Chance with fellow Scot Dougray Scott in Moray, wants to return to his home turf to make more movies.
He said "I would love to film again in Moray. I am trying to find scripts to shoot here, maybe a new film of Macbeth."
Eric McGillivray, chairman of SHIFC, said: "Kevin may be based in Los Angeles but he is passionate about Scotland and his home patch in particular. We are delighted that he is genuinely interested in supporting film production in Moray and the Highlands and Islands because of the economic benefits it brings."
Mr McGillivray presented the actor with a kilt in a special tartan designed for the SHIFC, which he will wear for future promotions.
There is currently considerable optimism for the future of the film industry in the Highlands and Islands. A £3.2m Viking epic, Valhalla Rising, where Highland locations are doubling for the Canadian landscape, is filming at the moment, and is expected to bring £2.7m into the Scottish economy.
McKidd heads film campaign Actor Kevin McKidd has become patron of an organisation which aims to make the Highlands and Islands a leading destination for film-makers.
The Elgin-born performer, best known for his role in TV series Rome, is to take on the role for the Scottish Highlands and Islands Film Commission.
The actor said he was "delighted" to receive the honour as patron.
May 18, 2008
By: Chris Evans
Original Source: Screen Daily
Future Films signs Karolina Kurkova and Kevin McKidd to Parasomnia
British star Kevin McKidd (The Last Legion, Trainspotting) and Victoria's Secret model Karolina Kurkova have signed as the leads in Future Films' and MilCoz Films' psychological horror Parasomnia.
Written and directed by Modigliani director Mick Davis, Parasomnia tells the story of a woman who is haunted by constant nightmares following her father's death.
The film is scheduled for a July shoot in North Carolina and will take advantage of Future Films' US tax credit package cash-flowing the production against enabling producers to exploit the State by State tax breaks.
Joy Mellins and Costa Theo at Milcoz Films are producing alongside Albert Martinez Martin at Future Films. Marina Fuentes at Spanish outfit 6 Sales is handling global sales.
Kevin McKidd will next be seen in Guy Moshe's Bunraku alongside Josh Hartnett, Demi Moore, Ron Perlman and Woddy Harrelson, which is being sold in Cannes.
April 27, 2008
Source: Luton Today
Bedford-based actor Kevin McKidd has been linked with the latest superhero film.
He is one of the names in the frame for the role of Thor, aka The Mighty Thor, in a motion picture directed by Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake; Snatch; Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels) expected to begin filming later this year.
The Scots-born actor is reported to have described the rumours as "semi-true", saying: "I didn't know about them either until I heard the rumours and called my agent. And he went: 'Yeah, yeah, yeah, we've been talking to them about it.'
"But the last I heard from my agent, they're talking that they want to go for somebody much younger, a 19 or 20-year-old, for that role. So they're reconceptualising it as we speak."
However, internet rumours have also suggested that Mr McKidd could be in line for another major part in the film - touted by some as Thor's nemesis Loki, his adopted brother who has hated him since childhood. Both characters were inspired by Gods of the same name from Nordic mythology.
The title role has been linked with professional wrestler Paul Michael Levesque, better known by his ring name Triple H.
While Mr McKidd found his big break playing the tragic Tommy in the classic 1990s film Trainspotting, he is no stranger to appearing in costume.
His career has also taken in portraying a centurion in the BBC series Rome, the Duke of Norfolk in period series The Virgin Queen, an English sergeant in the Crusades-era film Kingdom Of Heaven, and he even wore a dog collar as Father Deegan during a Father Ted Christmas special.