March 20, 2007 - Madison Kid - STAR WARS STAR TO SHOOT IN 'PEG? - "Rumours are swirling that Star Wars cutie Hayden Christiansen will be in town next month to shoot a biopic based on the life of Wisconsin "Poker Brat" Phil Hellmuth, the youngest ever winner of the World Series of Poker. Titled The Madison Kid, the flick was written by Hellmuth's real-life pal Bob Soderstrom and is the source of some angst for tourism-types in Wisconsin, according to papers there. Producers had hoped the movie would be shot in Madison but with no tax incentives in place, the Winnipeg package "pretty much blows us out of the water," according to VISIT Milwaukee spokesman David Fantle (as quoted in Greater Milwaukee Today). After defeating two-time champ Johnny Chan in 1989, Hellmuth went on to win nine more World Champion bracelets, with total winnings (as of 2006) estimated at $8.75 million." Source
March 18, 2007 - Istanbul International Film Festival Website - "Films that meet the world of arts and the artists with the seventh art, or reflect the works of literature to the silver screen will compete for the Golden Tulip. The International Competition jury this year is presided over by director Michael Radford."
Factory Girl - International Competition - Among the thirteen films competing for the "Golden Tulip" Award in 2007 are George Hickenlooper's Factory Girl starring Sienna Miller, Guy Pearce and Hayden Christensen and Joachim Trier's Reprise.
"This star-studded drama with an imaginative visual style and lots of Glam Rock music unfolds the comet-like rise and fall of 60s “it girl” Edie Sedgwick, the blazing superstar who came to define both the glamour and the tragedy of our celebrity-obsessed culture. Sedgwick was every young American girl’s dream: blue blooded, Harvard educated, wealthy, charismatic and beautiful."
Refresh the Factory Girl movie page for rotating movie stills Factory Girl Istanbul Film Festival
March 18, 2007 - E!'s Celebrity 101 Update - Hayden is currently ranked 44 out of 101 (he was at 68 recently) on the top visited celebrity page on E! Online. The rankings change regularly according to visits to celebrity links listed. Hayden moving up in the rankings could be a result of several fansites and message boards posting the ranking news over the last few days, prompting more visits. Thumbs up! E! Celebrity 101
March 17, 2007 - Poker Brat - "At issue is a soon-to-shoot film called "The Poker Brat," a $10 million production chronicling the life of Madison native and 10-time World Poker Champion Phil Helmuth, Jr. Hayden Christensen, best known for portraying a young Darth Vader in the latter "Star Wars" prequels, is set to star."
"Producers want to shoot the film, slated for production this summer, in Madison, but with no tax incentives in place, the film will shoot in Winnipeg, Canada, Fantle said. Fantle, acting as a liaison between the state and production crews, said he has made every effort to delay an upcoming scouting trip by the producers, but "the clock is ticking." "
"I have been ... holding off every day that I can," he said, "because we know without the incentives, why should they even bother coming? The Winnipeg package, without our incentives, pretty much blows us out of the water." More on Wisconsin film tax credits and the fate of Poker Brat at GM Today
March 17, 2007 - E! The Daily 10 - The Daily 10 showed a photo of Hayden and Rachel Bilson out and about in Los Angeles and mentioned that filming on Jumper wrapped last week.
March 17, 2007 - E! Online - E! Online's Celebrity 101 has ranked Hayden number 68 on it's list of most visited 101 Celebrities. E! Celebrity 101
March 16, 2007 - Star Wars 6 Movie Marathon - "The Star Wars party at Celebration IV in Los Angeles this May just got even better. On Wednesday May 23, fans will have the opportunity to kick-start their Celebration weekend with a U.S. first: a free Star Wars six-movie marathon event." Get all the details atCrave Online
March 16, 2007 - Madison Kid - "There are no guarantees that the state will land movie deals, but several companies are interested, including one that plans to make a film about Madison native and big-time poker player Phil Hellmuth. Without the tax credits, producers say they'll make their film in Canada." More at Journal Sentinel
March 16, 2007 - Still no US release date for "Awake" but IMDB has updated it's International release information adding dates for Turkey (24 August 2007) and Germany (15 November 2007). IMDB Releases
March 15, 2007 - Factory Girl - UK Reviews - Follow the link to read the entire review.
The Sun - Nice movie stills with this review.
"But it all starts to unravel when she turns her sights to rock star Billy Quinn (Hayden Christensen playing Bob Dylan in all but name), who doesn’t get Andy.
Edie gets lost in the middle of the two men’s feud, abandoned by Billy and shunned by Warhol."
The Independent
"Sienna Miller is perfectly fine (and indeed beautiful) as Edie, though the movie edits her so fussily that she's hardly allowed to put together a performance. We get hints of a traumatic family background - two brothers killed in accidents, a tyrannical father who may have abused her - and the story of a stillborn romance with a rock star (Hayden Christensen) who (lawyers insist) is emphatically not Bob Dylan. She also visits a palm-reader, who tells her she will die young, around which clairvoyance the film tries to spin a gossamer of tragedy."
March 15, 2007 - Madison Kid - There might be a title change for the movie from "The Madison Kid" to "The Poker Brat". If this is true, could it also mean that the movie won't be filmed in Madison, Wisconsin as those close to the production had hoped?
The article is here at The Burlingame Daily News:
Phil Hellmuth's Projects
"When I do an interview, I can't remember all the pieces of all the companies that I have. It's crazy. I can't remember all the products I endorse anymore."
"Poker Brat" - the Movie (formerly "The Madison Kid")
March 14, 2007 - As the counter on this site turned over to 10,000 hits, I felt grateful to everyone who has visited the site and found the information useful and fun. Thank you and I hope we're all still here for 10,000 more.
March 14, 2007 - Factory Girl - No, Hayden did not make an appearance at the Factory Girl UK premiere on Tuesday but UK publications are printing and writing their reviews as we speak. The Independent printed this bit of info from director George Hickenlooper:
"Bob Dylan's hissy fit over Sienna Miller's new flick Factory Girl - about the abrupt life of Edie Sedgwick, with whom Dylan is rumoured to have had an affair - was awkward for the film's director George Hickenlooper.
Dylan objected to a character played by Hayden Christensen - a singer who "wears a leather coat, uses a harmonica brace and performs solo". Dylan feared the portrayal falsely implied he had contributed to Sedgwick's suicide.
It landed Hickenlooper in the glue, as he's friendly with Dylan's eldest son, a director. "I know his son Jesse well," Hickenlooper told Pandora at the Factory Girl premiere on Tuesday evening. "I haven't spoken to Bob about it and I probably won't. I think he's portrayed favourably in the movie, so I don't know why he's angered." All good publicity. Source
March 14, 2007 - Shattered Glass - Shattered Glass airs on the Independent Film Channel Fri Apr 6 12:55P and Fri Apr 6 06:45P.
March 13, 2007 - Jumper Filming - Hollywood Comes to Newport - " "Mary Ellen and Milt Miron were sitting in their Newport home a couple of weeks ago when they heard a knock. The man at the door, David Rumble, said a famous director wanted to look at their property to see if it could pass as Siberia for a movie he was shooting...."They told us they were just riding around because their plane was delayed and said they were looking for a place to shoot the movie ‘Jumper,'" Mrs. Miron said...On March 2, he came back to their house to take pictures of the ice and sent them to Mr. Liman. The next day, a film crew of about 20 people, including actor Hayden Christensen, flew into the area and began filming the Siberia scene for the movie "Jumper." " Read more at Monroe News
March 13, 2007 - Virgin Territory - The Weinstein Company has a web page up for Virgin Territory, nationwide release date scheduled for September 21, 2007. The Weinstein Co. It seems they've settled on a release date.....and a title.