Welcome to Buzz Worthy News where the stories are awesome and not at all well-written. Need your YA industry news? Never fear, Kate is here to give it all to you. Just, ya know, not in any kinda sophisticated sense or nothing.
In this week’s Buzz Worthy News: Beauty and the Beast Cast Photo! Dominic Sherwood is playing Jace in the Mortal Instruments TV Show. The Selection is being adapted for a movie after two failed series pilots of CW and much, much more!
Buzz Worthy News is Cuddlebuggery’s weekly news post bringing you all the best information about the book and blogging world, particularly for the venn diagram of people who overlap between the two. For new releases and cover reveals of all the best Young Adult fiction, check out our Tuesday post: Hot New Titles.
Entertainment News
Beauty And The Beast Cast Photo
Every time I see more casting news for Beauty & The Beast Live Action the little girl inside of me dances around to the tune of “Be Our Guest”. I’ve got two for you this week! The first is a cast photo posted by Josh Gad on his Instagram that showcases most of the new cast.
Just for those of us who are bad at names/faces from left to right that is Josh Egad as LeFou, Dan Stevens as Beast (MATTHEW!!!!!!!), Emma Watson as Belle, Luke Evans as Gaston and Kevin Kline as Maurice.
But wait, there’s more! They also just added Ewan McGregor as the irrepressible Lumiere, Beast’s best buddy.
Seriously can’t wait to see this movie!
Dominic Sherwood To Play Jace Of Jace & Clary
For those who have been waiting with bated breath to find out who will play Jace in the upcoming TV series Shadowhunters based on The Mortal Instraments series by Cassandra Clare (*cough* MEG *cough*), we have some casting news for you!
The wait is over! Congrats to @DomSherwood1, he'll be playing Jace on @ShadowhuntersTV! pic.twitter.com/UFQh0pZQNJ
— Freeform (@FreeformTV) April 20, 2015
Sherwood’s Jace is described as narcissistic, lethally gorgeous and a skilled demon hunter, whose mission in life is to find the man who killed his father.
Sherwood played the role of Christian in Mark Waters ‘“Vampire Academy” adaptation and was also featured in Taylor Swift‘s music video for “Style.” He is represented by Curtis Brown in the UK and WME.
Not much commentary for this one. Waiting to see what the rest of the casting will look like.
The Selection Bought Up For Movie Adaption
And as if we didn’t get enough YA adaption news this week, we also have this little gem for you: The Selection by Keira Cass has been slated for adaption for the third time, this one on the big screen.
Warner Bros has won film rights to Kiera Cass’ global bestseller The Selection, the first of a five-novel series, and has set Black List scribe Katie Lovejoy to adapt it. DiNovi Pictures’ Denise DiNovi and Alison Greenspan are producing with Pouya Shahbazian. Lovejoy’s script The Arsonist Love Story made the 2010 Black List.
I would weep for humanity, but humanity doesn’t particularly care about my opinions, as this book has sold 3.5 MILLION copies world-wide.
HarperTeen just made a two-book deal to continue the series, which is published in 32 languages. Described as The Hunger Games without the bloodshed, it follows 35 underprivileged girls who are chosen to compete to live in a life of luxury. The protagonist, America Singer, is sweet on a young man from her district, but when she’s exposed to the opulence of a royal life, she’s conflicted, even though a rebel uprising threatens the pampered.
I don’t know why they think this particular incarnation will succeed when the TWO pilots the CW ordered were utter failures, but whatever. Or to quote my favorite feminist icon, Liz Lemon:
EL James’ Husband to Adapt Second Book For Movie Version
And speaking of the worst, EL James is clearly trying to kill me by making me eye-roll myself to death over the continuing coverage of her movie making drama. Becuz guess who’s going to adapt the next movie in the series, guys? Her husband. No, I’m not joking.
Niall Leonard, E.L. James’ husband, will be writing the screenplay for the Fifty Shades of Grey sequel. “Niall is an outstanding writer in his own right, with multiple established credits, and we are lucky to have him join Team Fifty,” producer Michael De Luca said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.
This is how I imagine the whole thing went down.
EL James: *sobbing* Oh Noes! No one will adapt my brilliant and amazing second book, Fifty Shades Darker so that it can be made into a thoughtful and award-winning movie. *more sobbing*
Niall Leonard: There, there, Pet. Let’s not fuss over such a silly thing. I’ll do it for you, if you’d like.
James: *looks up, tears swimming in her eyes* Oh, schmoopsy-poo, will you REALLY?
Leonard: *puts an arm around her* We can’t let the real world try to ruin your plans, now can we? Besides, I wrote the screenplay for Horatio Hornblower 3, how hard could it be?
James: *throws her arms around him* You’re the best hubby in the whole wide world!
(All above depictions are completely fictitious and utterly without real life basis. Except that it’s super obvious that she couldn’t get anyone in the “whole wide world” to adapt the thing, so she got the one person who HAD to if she asked him.)
FSOG Sets Release Date For Both Sequels
And if that weren’t ENOUGH FSOG news, they’ve also announced release dates for both of the upcoming films. Why February, of course.
The sequels to “Fifty Shades of Grey” — “Fifty Shades Darker” and “Fifty Shades Freed” — will be released Feb. 10, 2017, and Feb. 9, 2018, respectively, it was announced at CinemaCon on Thursday. “We’re making this a Valentine’s Day event,” said Universal Pictures chair Donna Langley at CinemaCon.
Meryl Streep Sponsors Scriptwriting Lab For Ladies
I’ve had a glass or two of wine, but even in my slightly inebriated state I can tell you how awesome Meryl Streep is.
Diversity on the writing end results in diversity on screen, and female screenwriters make a meaningful difference: for example, there’s an 8.7 percent increase in female characters on screen when there’s a female screenwriter involved, and I would conjecture that this figure would go up with the female screenwriter’s age. And that’s where Meryl comes in—she’s funded a writer’s workshop for screenwriters over 40 in partnership with New York Women in Film and Television, which will pair eight women with successful, experienced counterparts who can advise them on bringing their scripts to production. Via Variety, the program was announced Sunday night at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Well Holy Cats, Meryl! You done good!
The blurb states that they’re seeking “submissions from all racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and cultural groups” as well as a “broad selection of screenplays across all genres.” Well, are you a screenwriter over 40? They start taking applications May 1st!\
Books
Now: DC Comics for Girlz
Finally, some progress in the comics merchandising department when it comes to girls getting their own action figures.
DC Comics and its parent company Warner Bros. has announced plans to launch DC Super Hero Girls, a multifaceted line of content and merchandise targeting girls and based on DC’s iconic super heroes. A licensing partnership between DC/Warner Bros, Mattel, Random House and Lego, the DC Super Hero Girls line will launch with an interactive digital product in fall 2015, followed by a wide variety of print and digital content, TV shows, toys and other products aimed at girls aged 6-12.
The DC Super Hero Girls universe will be based on the female super heroines of the DC Comics Universe—Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Katana, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Bumble Bee and Batgirl—depicted as multi-ethnic teenagers in their formative years prior to full development as superpowered adults. Each of the characters will have her own storyline about mastering her power and growing up.
There is a lot to love about this: the focus on girl characters exclusively, the different ethnicities involved. It almost seems ungrateful to mention concerns with the idea, but whenever you market something exclusively as “for girls” it tends to turn away half the population. Just because anything that’s “for girls” can’t be “for boys”. This is why these sorts of things have a hard time succeeding, because they’re marketed directly at one audience, whereas an icon like Batman is never outright stated to be “for boys”. Ah well. Let’s hope this is at least a step in the right direction.
Khloe Kardasian Self-Help Book
You cannot make this shit up. I mean, even if I were to sit down and try to think of hilarious book news ideas, this would not have popped into my head. Yet there it is, like a gift from the universe especially for Buzz. Because if ANYONE should be writing a self-help book, it’s Khloe, amirite??
In the book, Kardashian will teach readers “how to create strength and true beauty in every area of their lives by building a strong body, mind, heart, and spirit,” according to the publisher.
“I am so excited about sharing my philosophy on how I live and the power of strength,” said Kardashian. “I hope to be an inspiration to readers everywhere on how they can create their own true strength and beauty inside and out.”
I would post a Liz Lemon eye-roll gif, but it’s probably too obvious for this situation, right?
Interesting Links
25 Times Gilbert Blythe Melted Your Heart (The Movie Version)
What (most) Women Want In Their Romance Novels
Alone In the Bathroom Poem Viral Video
Barbie Recap Of The Selection (For those who want to know what it’s about without reading the books)
Ilex
What? No Hawkgirl in those new DC comics? 🙁
Kate Copeseeley
I did not see mention of a Hawkgirl, although to be honest, the only time I’ve heard of her is on my DC girls calendar. Does she have her own comic?
Ilex
I know Hawkgirl primarily from the Justice League animated TV show rather than from comic books — but she was my favorite character on the show, so I’d absolutely buy her stuff for the kids I know (boy kids, too!) if she’s part of this new DC line. I’ll have to check it out and see who all they end up including.
Brigid
Beauty + Beast: BUT WHEEEEEEERE IS IAN MCKELLAN DARLING? oh poo.
E.L’s Husband: WHHHHAT. BWAHAHAHAHAHAH I cannot.
DC comic for girlz: FFFFFFFFFF**** yesssss
Khloe K: I admire that woman’s guts. Seriously she’s got some major balls for writing a self help book when everybody laughs in her face day in and day out for falling on her face all the time. Because why not write a self help book when you suck at decisions?
Kate Copeseeley
How can you be so perky on a Monday????
EL James is the best story of the bunch today. To be a fly on the wall during that conversation…
🙂
Stacey Brucale
Thanks so much for doing this post. There’s so many cool things happening! I’m super excited about the Beauty and the Beast movie. That was one of my favorite movies growing up so I’m excited to see what they do with it.
I hope they do a good job with the City of Bones tv show. I have high hopes because I love what I’ve read of the books so far, but after the terrible movie, I just don’t know.
I haven’t read The Selection yet, but I hope to get to it soon. I’m interested to see if they end up making a movie out of it.
Kate Copeseeley
I loved Belle growing up. The first heroine who looked like me (well, she’s far prettier, but we both have brown hair/eyes) and loved to read as much as I do. So excited about this movie!!!!
Layla
Man, I am more excited than I should be about the Beauty and the Beast movie. (Ewan McGregor, yesssssss; RIP Jerry Orbach.)
Meryl Streep is an inspiration to us all.
I’m actually kind of conflicted about the DC Comics thing. (Marketing things “for girls” and in partnership with Mattel – ugh – as if DC Comics aren’t already for girls.) But I’m glad about the representation of different ethnicities – yay for that.
Kate Copeseeley
I feel the same way about the DC comics thing. Both of my boys love Wonder Woman as much as they love Spiderman and Superman, but it’s obvious that these things will become “taboo” because they are being marketed as for girls. Bums me out.
Isabel
Hey, I noticed that the second link at the bottom possibly goes to the wrong site! Super good post though!
Kate Copeseeley
Thanks for bringing that to my attention! The link has been fixed. I hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Cee
At first I wasn’t exactly excited about the Beauty & The Beast live-action but seeing Josh Egad and Ewan McGregor?! YES PLEASE.
Forever crying at the whole 5SOG mess. No thanks.
Natalie M.
“Described as The Hunger Games without the bloodshed…”
HAHAHAHAHA… Oh, wait, they’re serious. The Selection is a fluffy fantasy that that was marked wrong by a drunk marketing team. It makes me sad a serious genre like Dystopian has been besmirched by the likes of it.
Beth W
It says a lot for how excited I am by the Beauty and the Beast casting that I chuckled all the way through the rest of the post. Even at poor little EL James’ inability to find a screenwriting willing to touch her fanfic with a 10-foot-pole. But double YAYS on Meryl Streep rocking it. And on getting the Mortal Instruments series as a TV show, still. I mean, as long as they don’t birdwalk too much on the plot, that could be a better pacing for the story than a movie could ever be. My fingers are crossed!
Nhi
Unpopular opinion: I must be the only person who doesn’t care/never wanted the Beauty and the Beast live action remake. We already have the animated movie – why do I need *another* version of that? I may be wronged once the movie comes out, but for now – you could have a decent casting but I will be meh about it (despite my unadulterated love for Ewan McGregor! <3)
The fact that both City of Bones AND the Selection are still being adapted makes my skin crawl. Didn't the massive flop of their films/pilots not tell these people anything? And I say this as someone who enjoyed the hell out of the gloriously terrible City of Bones movie.
Add the fact that 50 Shades of Grey sequel(s) may still be a thing (although your imaginings of how it went down is probably like 120% accurate/hilarious) just makes me want to emulate an ostrich and stick my head into the ground until all of this hogwash just blows over.
I'm sorry, I can't be anything but amused by the whole
Khloe Kardashian self-help book thing. Like, who cares, amirite?
Nhi
Also Meryl Streep is the greatest, and I will refuse to hear otherwise.