Hammond On Cannes: Suspense Builds To Sunday’s Palme … 
Record-Breaking Memorial Weekend 2013! ‘Fast & … 
Cannes: Un Certain Regard Winners Include ‘The … 
SAG-AFTRA Sued For Witholding Foreign Residuals And … 
Harvey Weinstein Closes Prolific Cannes With Deals For … 
Cannes: Competition Movies Divide Critics; How Much Do … 
Zach Braff Ends $3+M Kickstarter Campaign 
Fox Unscripted TV Czar Mike Darnell To Exit 
NBC Sets Oklahoma Tornado Benefit Concert For May 29 
Cannes: Directors’ Fortnight Honors ‘Les … 
SHOCKER: Tom Cruise Exits ‘Man From … 
A+E Rebuild: BBC’s Jana Bennett To Run Bio And LMN … 
RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Hannibal’ Hits Low, … 
‘Katie’ Shakeup: Rachel Miskowiec Replaces … 
Hammond On Cannes: French Hero Jerry Lewis On His Return To … 
Cannes: Another Jewelry Heist? $2.6M Necklace Missing After … 
Hammond On Cannes: Leo DiCaprio’s Moon Trip Tops … 
Specialty B.O. Preview: ‘Before Midnight’, … 
2012-2013 Season Network Rankings: CBS Sweeps In Final … 
Full 2012-2013 TV Season Series Rankings 
TOLDJA! Paramount Pocketing $190M From Disney For Marvel … 
Lionsgate has formally announced its acquisition of North American rights to Machine Gun Preacher, the fact-based drama about Sam Childers, a reformed badass who established an orphanage in war torn Africa and then supervised a militia to protect the kids. The film stars Gerard Butler, Michelle Monaghan and Michael Shannon, with Marc Forster directing the Jason Keller script based on the real life exploits of Sam Childers. Deadline told you all this last month after first reporting on the worthy project getting Forster and Butler in January. What’s new? They start shooting July 5 in Detroit and South Africa, and Madeline Carroll, Kathy Baker and Souleymane Sy Savane are also in the cast. It gives Lionsgate production execs something to think about while management fights off Carl Icahn.
Gerard Butler’s ‘Machine Gun Preacher Gets Start; Michelle Monaghan Will Play Wife
Loading ...
They will find a way to F*ck this up.
Lionsgate Domestic, sucks. Their acquisitions people, suck. Their US marketing people, suck.
What they have going for them, is a fantastic Intl sales team and a few decent tv series.
Stick with DVD and theatrical releases from; Tyler Perry and horror films. Other then this, let the professionals do their thing. (You still have time, give your animation film you will release to a US domestic that knows family films. This film has a shot at making money)
Co- Productions. They would not know a good director, if it fell in their faces. I feel sorry for intl sales company who produce films with them.. Start listening to people who know directors. No matter what age a Director is, there are fantastic people out there that know how to get the job done and know how to speak to their actors…
At last…a project that sounds like a perfect match between a star and material. Plus, what a great story and Lionsgate has the right to market it internationally.
Great. Another Great White Father who saves the poor African kids from other evil Africans. What, Angelina Jolie wasn’t available?
I would appreciate your grumpiness more if the film wasn’t based on a true, KICK-ASS story.
It may well be ‘another….’as you say, but it is a fact-based drama.
@Peggy. You’re absolutely right. The idiots at Lionsgate haven’t figured out that not only are blacks tired of these tired stories but so are white people.
Wow. Sounds like 21st century version of Tarzan to me. I wonder which nefarious intelligence agency placed the “machine gun preacher” in the middle of the Dark Continent and for what purpose. Surely saving kids was just his cover. NOW that would make for an interesting movie instead of this fable I’m reading about here.
You must think you’re so clever Peggy. Go back to hole you came from.
Peggy go get yourself a life.
Peggy may be a bit snarky, but underneath the snark she suggests a deep and lingering truth: Hollywood’s fascination in movies with white people going to places peopled by folks of color, and saving them/gaining an appreciation of their natures/conquering the noble (or ignoble) savages….etc, etc….
From “Out of Africa” to “Freedom Writers” to “Dances with Wolves” to now, apparently, “Machine Gun Preacher” this constant and pervasive theme of “white folks as heroes” can get a bit repetitive.
The only time I’ve ever seen this theme work in the reverse is when Sidney Poitier went to London to teach and inspire some rough and tumble poor (and mostly white) kids in “To Sir, With Love” — a well-written movie I dare say no Hollywood exec would rush to do today in any way, shape or form.
Peggy worded her message poorly, but I think the core of what she said is a worthy point for debate — and not namecalling or dissing her.
Just my two Abe Lincolns.
I have a life thank you. And it would be much better if hollywood would stop making movies about Africans who can’t help themselves unless a white man or woman takes control.
You need to ask yourselves why hollywood needs to keep making movies where white guys dominate black guys. And why do you need to keep seeing those movies? Perhaps you need to listen to your girlfriend when she says “size doesn’t matter”.
Peggy,
The reality is, this story on based on truth. My issue is, this is a modern version of THE MISSION. We have seen this story before.
I’m sure there are many stories about black people helping themselves, but we don’t see many… If you know about a specific story, why don’t you try and get it made…
I personally, like the story. (Decent script) I think Gerard Butler is a hotty, and if he doesn’t do too much of the side mouth thing when he speaks, he is a good actor.
Think of this as THE MISSION 2 and try and do something about it, rather then complain.
My issue, is LGE’s domestic entity, if this movie has a shot, they would hand over the rights to a Domestic that knows what they are doing. This is a concern.
@peggy. This is more then you think it is. This is a man that is going into war torn areas and rescuing children that have been brutally rapped, kidnapped or even had limbs or other areas of there body cut off. Too me that’s not other africans taking care of one another. There is a war going on in Northern Sudan that you know nothing about and one day it will happen in the United States and it could be your child or children that this will happen too. What if it happened to your child? What would you do then? Would you make horrible comments about the people that are trying to make a difference while you sit back and do nothing. Next time think before you say, and read the whole story before you comment on something that has more meaning to then your own self ego.
THAT RIGHT ITS EASY TO SIT BACK AND MAKE COMENTS ABOUT SOME ONE WHO’S MAKING A DIFFERENCE.SO GO AHEAD AND JUDGE ,ONE DAY YOU’LL BE JUDGED TO …BETTER TAKE YOUR SUNSCREEN ,U IGNORANT SMUCK CAUSE YOULL NEED IT.
@ Peggy: I find your comments mildly amusing to say the least. You said, “And it would be much better if hollywood would stop making movies about Africans who can’t help themselves unless a white man or woman takes control.”
Your comments, especially the one I quoted above, begs the questions: what constitutes “control” and where are the stories about Africans helping themselves, other than a white-washed history of Nelson Mandela?
If “white people” are controlling when they offer help such as in the above script, in Bono’s & GWB’s aid packages for Africa, and other such expressions of helping a less fortunate set of countries out, what are you really left with?
Please suggest some plots oh all seeing, all-knowing Oz. From what I know of African history, the stories of Mugabe or any of the tin pot dictators would not make a great plot according to your guidelines. Nor would a story about the Chinese aiding the genocidal regime of the Sudan blow up the box office.
I suppose you would rather he just sat back and got fat in America instead of going out and stopping people hacking lips and arms and ears off little children – good on him for caring and putting some value on the lives of innocents!!
I PERSONALLY KNOW SAM HE’S MAKING A DIFFERENCE .THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN RESCUED.FEEDING HUNDREDS OF CHILDREN EVERYDAY,WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU THOUGHT OF DOING SOMETHING LIKE THAT.THIS IS HIS MISSION FROM GOD HOW YOU GONNA DOUBT THAT,WERE BEHIND YOU BROTHER ,ALL THE WAY.
this guy can’t act and he has a pot belly, what’s the deal with this character?
incidentally I found out that you buy your star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, I guess that explains the 25k debit in Laura Dern’s account over the weekend.
oohhhh, buddhabob, Gerard no longer has a pot belly. He admits he likes to eat and gains weight between projects. He lost a lot of weight for this project and Coriolanus. Sounds like you suffer from a little envy…LOL! For a guy with as much testosterone as Gerard has, he is a guy with a sense of humor, and a committment to charitable things.
As to Africa, white people have screwed it up for the last five centuries at least, decimating whole cultures, taking over, and stealing resources. That leaves openings for bad, bad people to take over, which they did. Power loves a vacuum…
So it is reasonable for white people to work alongside black people to change some of the damage. It is not all white people, many, many Africans are working for their country. There are some great stories there, that will be told someday.
meanwhile we have few male actors with this level of masculinity, so leave Gerard alone! LOL.
To everyone jumping down Peggy’s throat:
Don’t you see that the real question is: Why does Hollywood only make the movie if there’s a white guy or woman saving the poor needy black people. Hollywood doesn’t make the movie if it’s a badass story about a local guy who saved “the natives.” Then, there will be all kinds of reasons American audiences wouldn’t be interested in seeing that movie, not the least of which, um, the hero would be “African.” (I do love how there’s no mention of which country this story is even set it. It’s just set in “Africa.” One of 56 countries. Your guess which one.)
So all you people who are running in to say “OMG but this is a TRUE story, you guys!” should think about that. There are tons of astonishing true stories about what locals are doing in their own country. But Hollywood will only make that movie if the protag would be white. It’s embarrassing and we sure are tired of being told that only white people are capable of saving the world.
Read the book, talk to the man before you comment, for you are truly ignorant.
I don’t feel this story is about a white man saving black children. It’s a about a man saving children. It’s pretty sad people have to judge one another by color.
I understand bashing Hollywood there is a lot things, I myself don’t think they should put on TV and in movies. But this is different when you want to judge something you should know the story otherwise you just look stupid.
BEFORE YOU POST UGLY THINGS LOOK INTO THE WORK SAM CHILDERS AND ANGELS OF EAST AFRICA ARE DOING. IT’S NOT THEIR FAULT HOLLYWOOD WRITERS DON’T GIVE ENOUGH INFORMATION ABOUT Sam Childers MINISTRY. GET ONLINE LOOK AT ALL AOEA & Sam Childers WEBSITES, READ SAM’S BOOK, CALL THEIR OFFICE WITH “A GOOD ATTITUDE “AND ASK QUESTIONS, TAKE A MISSION TRIP “with AOEA”. ASK WHAT THEY DO AND WHERE ALL THEIR WORKING. That makes way more sense than writing ugly comments. And it’s sad everyone just keeps talking in a circle with one another when you could take time and look into their work. I will bet $1,000.00 NO ONE who wrote and ugly comment called AOEA’s office or wrote them a nice e-mail asking questions and getting more information. THE REASON WHY!!! Is because you really don’t care.
http://www.angelsofeastafrica.org
http://www.machinegunpreacher.org
Look Sam up on FaceBook
Office: 800-757-0535 Monday-Friday 9:00am-5:00pm EST.
Sam’s book is called “Another Man’s War”
Sam also has short movie clips on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLteptwC_DI
Google Sam Childers
Cheers
Thanks @but see. You understand what this is about. As to the rest of you, there are thousands of white, yellow, black, brown people helping the “poor natives” in Africa. And that’s nice. But the TRUE question is why are there so many failed African states? Could it be that they are propped up by the US, China, France, etc, in order to gain access to the natural resources there? Corrupt, evil men with Swiss bank accounts and no respect for human rights left to run those states? Using their own militia to terrorize the population so that people like Sam Childers can go over there and “save” them? Do you think there are any Africans ANYWHERE in Africa that are doing the same thing as SAM? Helping their own people? Why don’t YOU do the research and find out? You can get the funding because as a non-white THERE IS NO WAY I could get hollywood to fund ANYTHING that doesn’t involve a white person. Regarding this story, is it ONLY news if a white guy does it?? Is it ONLY news when Angie and Bono walk around in safari clothes with reporters following behind? Angie, Bono and Sam, who have WHAT in common?
Peggy’s right.
Seriously….”Machine Gun Preacher”…where in the Bible does it say to kill or promote violence…it’s one thing to save the children but to promote this kind of violence is just wrong. Is this giving Americans permission to kill somebody who is hurting their children? Is this truly what God has planned for Americans? To proudly go to another country and kill another child of God. Let’s face it we are all children of God, here or across seas. It’s one thing to feed and provide them medicine but to tell the world as a preacher you are not afraid to kill someone? What scripture says that? I personally think we should be praying and put the situation in God’s hands not our own.