Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Heart Breakfast
To promote the DVD und Blu-Ray release of Limitless in UK, Bradley will be a guest on Heart 106.2 Radio. Tune in tomorrow from 6 - 9am.
Twitter live chat
Digital Spy is doing a Twitter Live Chat with Bradley tomorrow.
Bradley Cooper's latest movie Limitless arrives on DVD and Blu-ray on August 1, and to mark the release of this fast-paced thriller we're hosting a live Twitter chat with Bradley himself on Thursday at 1.20pm (GMT).
Yes, that's tomorrow!
If you've got a question for Bradley then make sure to tweet it over to @digitalspy with the hashtag #bradleylimitlessdvd and if it's a good one we'll ask it to the man himself.
Make sure you're back with us from 1.20pm on Thursday for the chance to chat with Bradley live and submit your questions
Bradley Cooper's latest movie Limitless arrives on DVD and Blu-ray on August 1, and to mark the release of this fast-paced thriller we're hosting a live Twitter chat with Bradley himself on Thursday at 1.20pm (GMT).
Yes, that's tomorrow!
If you've got a question for Bradley then make sure to tweet it over to @digitalspy with the hashtag #bradleylimitlessdvd and if it's a good one we'll ask it to the man himself.
Make sure you're back with us from 1.20pm on Thursday for the chance to chat with Bradley live and submit your questions
Chat Show Appearance
Bradley headed to London today to record an episode of Alan Carr: Chatty Man. The show will air on friday, July 29th. Please check your local listings for broadcast times.
Legendary Pictures Panel Video
Bradley attended this years Comic-Con in San Diego to talk about his new movie project Paradise Lost. Check out the videos below.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Success and Goals
Hangover Part II star Bradley Cooper covered a lot of varied ground in his interview with the Wall Street Journal this week. Cooper is out promoting the Blu-ray and DVD release of Limitless, but he spent much of his time speaking about his opinion on the quality of The Hangover Part II and on his future in acting.
In particular, when Cooper is asked about the critical lashing that The Hangover Part II received (with many critics complaining that it was too similar to the first film), Cooper replies “It definitely perplexed me because to me, it’s not even a question that it’s a better movie than the first one. On every level I just think you’re watching a director evolve. It’s a much more complicated film. It’s a funnier movie. There’s better acting in it, the story’s more compelling. It’s just in every way a more sophisticated film. I think the only thing that it doesn’t have is the freshness of the first one because it was the first one. So, I was more just sort of like wow, it’s interesting, sometimes people just pan things because they’re supposed to, really.” Cooper isn’t exactly clear what he means by the critics panning the film “because they’re supposed to,” but he does continue to strongly support Hangover director Todd Phillips when he is asked about the possibility of The Hangover Part III and answers “Well, I would do anything that Todd Phillips says.”
Of course, doing comedic films like the Hangover movies and thrillers like Limitless take a tremendous amount of energy, and Cooper lets us in on his secrets of maintaining that energy. “I think love of what I do, probably. It’s easy to have energy when you love what you’re doing. I don’t take anything for granted. It’s easy to pop out of bed in the morning.” Part of that love goes with varying up his career choices, as Cooper has agreed to star in The Place Beyond the Pines, a drama from Blue Valentine director Derek Cianfrance. On that, Cooper adds, “That’s really no strategic decision, it was just this role came up and I met with Derek Cianfrance and I really loved this guy, he’s an incredible talent, so that’s just how that came about.”
Still, despite Cooper’s massive success in The Hangover and its sequel, he claims that success isn’t his main objective. When asked if he will ever step back from acting, Cooper replies “Well the goal is not to achieve success. The goal is to grow, so the answer is no, I don’t think I ever will.”
Check out Bradley Cooper in Limitless, now on Blu-ray and DVD.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Ryan Gosling & Bradley Cooper will be filming ‘The Place Beyond The Pines’ in Scotia, NY
Those of you hoping to catch a glimpse of the actors from “The Place Beyond The Pines” will have a chance when the crew “robs” the main branch of First National Bank of Scotia on July 27.
According to John Buhrmaster, president of First National, the branch, at 201 Mohawk Ave. in Scotia, NY, will be a location in the independent feature film “The Place Beyond The Pines”.
The movie, which stars Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes and Ray Liotta, follows a professional motorcycle rider who turns to bank robberies to support his newborn son. When he crosses paths with a rookie police officer, they get into a violent conflict that spirals into a generational feud.
According to John Buhrmaster, most of the July 27 filming will take place inside the First National main branch, where a robbery scene will be set. Most of the bank employees will also be used as extras in the scene since Derek Cianfrance, the director, wants it to look real. “He doesn’t want to train people to act as tellers when he can have real tellers,” Buhrmaster said.
Other scenes for the movie which is slated for a 2013 release will be shot at Ellis Hospital , Schenectady High School, the Schenectady Police Station, and some as-yet-unnamed area restaurants, filming is expected to last until October.
source
According to John Buhrmaster, president of First National, the branch, at 201 Mohawk Ave. in Scotia, NY, will be a location in the independent feature film “The Place Beyond The Pines”.
The movie, which stars Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes and Ray Liotta, follows a professional motorcycle rider who turns to bank robberies to support his newborn son. When he crosses paths with a rookie police officer, they get into a violent conflict that spirals into a generational feud.
According to John Buhrmaster, most of the July 27 filming will take place inside the First National main branch, where a robbery scene will be set. Most of the bank employees will also be used as extras in the scene since Derek Cianfrance, the director, wants it to look real. “He doesn’t want to train people to act as tellers when he can have real tellers,” Buhrmaster said.
Other scenes for the movie which is slated for a 2013 release will be shot at Ellis Hospital , Schenectady High School, the Schenectady Police Station, and some as-yet-unnamed area restaurants, filming is expected to last until October.
source
First Look: Paradise Lost Artwork
Bradley Cooper as Lucifer in Paradise Lost, which will be shot in Sydney at the end of October. Paradise Lost is directed by Alex Proyas. Based on the poem by John Milton.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Bradley is a travel freak
Hollywood actor Bradley Cooper’s hectic schedules take up most of his time, but the actor reveals that he always tries and manages to take time out to pursue his passion for travelling.
That, he says, is not only his love but also a way to de-stress. Also he loves interacting with people which he thinks is the best way to unwind.Bradley, who had recently shot for the sequel of Hangover inBangkok, says that it was the ultimate holiday for him and that Thailand was the perfect destination where he married his work with leisure, adding that he just fell in love with the place.
“Yeah, we had spent Christmas in Chiang Mai (a significant holiday destination in northern Thailand), which is incredible.But I would echo what Todd (Philips, his director) is saying.For me, I just fell in love with Bangkok.We spent two weeks in the resort town and I couldn’t wait to get back to Bangkok,” he says. “I actually took a liking to Top Menu, which was a Chinese Restaurant where I ate a lot in Bangkok,” he added.
So, what is the best part of the place that made his Bangkok sojourn so memorable when he was shooting for Hangover 2 there? According to the actor, it’s the people that made the place so dear to him.
“The people in Bangkok in general are beautiful, men and women.It’s got such beautiful aesthetics.It’s incredible and certainly the women are gorgeous over there,” said Bradley.
“There’s just something about the spirit of the people there.I mean, they call it the ‘Land of a Thousand Smiles,’ and there’s a reason for that.There’s just an openness and gentility, which is very infectious.There’s something about the energy of the women and the people there that is infectious and that you want to be around.That’s one of the reasons why I fell in love with Bangkok and would go back in a heartbeat,” the Hollywood hottie shared.
He also recalls the fun time he had with former heavy weight boxing champion Mike Tyson which also made his Bangkok trip a memorable one. “Mike was amazing.It was great to see him.First of all, he looked fantastic.He lost about 50 pounds and was in great spirits.We got to spend a lot of time with him,” he added.
source
That, he says, is not only his love but also a way to de-stress. Also he loves interacting with people which he thinks is the best way to unwind.Bradley, who had recently shot for the sequel of Hangover inBangkok, says that it was the ultimate holiday for him and that Thailand was the perfect destination where he married his work with leisure, adding that he just fell in love with the place.
“Yeah, we had spent Christmas in Chiang Mai (a significant holiday destination in northern Thailand), which is incredible.But I would echo what Todd (Philips, his director) is saying.For me, I just fell in love with Bangkok.We spent two weeks in the resort town and I couldn’t wait to get back to Bangkok,” he says. “I actually took a liking to Top Menu, which was a Chinese Restaurant where I ate a lot in Bangkok,” he added.
So, what is the best part of the place that made his Bangkok sojourn so memorable when he was shooting for Hangover 2 there? According to the actor, it’s the people that made the place so dear to him.
“The people in Bangkok in general are beautiful, men and women.It’s got such beautiful aesthetics.It’s incredible and certainly the women are gorgeous over there,” said Bradley.
“There’s just something about the spirit of the people there.I mean, they call it the ‘Land of a Thousand Smiles,’ and there’s a reason for that.There’s just an openness and gentility, which is very infectious.There’s something about the energy of the women and the people there that is infectious and that you want to be around.That’s one of the reasons why I fell in love with Bangkok and would go back in a heartbeat,” the Hollywood hottie shared.
He also recalls the fun time he had with former heavy weight boxing champion Mike Tyson which also made his Bangkok trip a memorable one. “Mike was amazing.It was great to see him.First of all, he looked fantastic.He lost about 50 pounds and was in great spirits.We got to spend a lot of time with him,” he added.
source
Saturday, July 23, 2011
The Legendary Pictures Panel
Katey Rich from Cinemablend was live blogging during the Legendary Pictures Panel at Comic-Con.
1:11 Next up, Bradley Cooper for Paradise Lost. He gets much, much bigger cheers than poor director Alex Proyas, but I guess that's how these things go.
1:13 Proyas talks about the Archangel Michael and Adam & Eve fitting into the story, which he admits is "pretty big." They're showing some concept art and a very basic title treatment-- you're probably not surprised to hear that there's a lot of fire and brimstone involved. Take a look below.
1:14 Cooper put together an audition tape in his kitchen to make his pitch to play Lucifer, which he admits was a little crazy to have "the guy from The Hangover playing Lucifer." But given that The Hangover made a ton of money for Legendary, you can kind of see the appeal for the studio.
1:16 Cooper says he thinks of this as a small story about an "intimate nuclear family."
1:18 Boucher asks Cooper what The Hangover has meant to him. "To make two movies was incredible" sounds to me like code for "please don't make us do a third."
1:20 Proyas says the big potential pitfall is avoiding the visual depictions of Paradise Lost that have been done throughout history. Given that this is a story almost literally as old as time, that's a pretty tall order.
1:11 Next up, Bradley Cooper for Paradise Lost. He gets much, much bigger cheers than poor director Alex Proyas, but I guess that's how these things go.
1:13 Proyas talks about the Archangel Michael and Adam & Eve fitting into the story, which he admits is "pretty big." They're showing some concept art and a very basic title treatment-- you're probably not surprised to hear that there's a lot of fire and brimstone involved. Take a look below.
1:14 Cooper put together an audition tape in his kitchen to make his pitch to play Lucifer, which he admits was a little crazy to have "the guy from The Hangover playing Lucifer." But given that The Hangover made a ton of money for Legendary, you can kind of see the appeal for the studio.
1:16 Cooper says he thinks of this as a small story about an "intimate nuclear family."
1:20 Proyas says the big potential pitfall is avoiding the visual depictions of Paradise Lost that have been done throughout history. Given that this is a story almost literally as old as time, that's a pretty tall order.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Bradley talks about getting satanic in 'Paradise Lost' and drops a possible hint about 'The Hangover 3'
Between the surprise No. 1 opening of the thriller Limitless, in which he played as a burned out writer who becomes a super genius thanks to an experimental drug, the gargantuan success of The Hangover Part II, and that viral clip showing him doing an interview in fluent French, Bradley Cooper’s career has gone into overdrive this year. On Friday, Cooper will take the stage at Comic-Con to start stoking buzz among the nerderati for Paradise Lost, director Alex Proyas’ big-budget, effects-driven adaptation of John Milton’s 17th-century epic poem, in which he will play Satan. Limitless hit DVD shelves on Tuesday, complete with an alternate ending (“the original ending was that alternate ending,” Cooper reveals, “but I like the ending that was in the movie theaters—I think it changes the whole movie”) and an unrated extended cut (“the script was much more profane—there are a lot more f—s, some nudity, and some more blood,” he says). While talking to EW to tout the DVD release, Cooper also shared some thoughts about the prospect of playing Satan, shot down reports he’ll star in Doug Liman’s sci-fi film Luna, and — maybe — dropped a hint about the plot of The Hangover Part III.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: So did Paradise Lost fall into your lap after all the success you’ve had this year?
BRADLEY COOPER: The absolute opposite of falling into my lap. I must have met with the director five times. I’d been vying for that role for three years. And then I actually put myself on tape unsolicited in my kitchen, just so he’d look at it. [Laughs] Not much has changed.
Alex Proyas has done big sci-fi films like I Robot and Dark City. So is this sort of a sci-fi take on Milton’s poem?
It’s not a sci-fi take on Paradise Lost — it is Paradise Lost. It’s a cinematic adaptation of Milton’s poem with motion capture. That technology is evolving exponentially by the minute, so where they were when they did Avatar as opposed to where they are now is almost different worlds. I just did the whole fitting for the motion-capture helmet that you wear, and we start shooting at the end of October in Sydney, Australia. I’m very excited.
So what appealed to you about playing Lucifer?
I loved studying that poem at Georgetown. I just fell in love with that character. Satan is kind of the guy you agree with — I don’t know if you agree with him, but you understand his argument and he’s very compelling. Hopefully we’ll be able to maintain the integrity of that.
What’s your Lucifer going to look like onscreen?
I think he’s going to look like me. I don’t know what that says about how satanic I look but, yes, it will be me. [Laughs]
It’s also been reported you’re attached to director Doug Liman’s sci-fi film Luna. Is that right?
No, that’s an IMDB creation. It’s like The Flash — I read I was going to be in The Flash and I called my agent and he was like, “No, bro, you’re not going to be in The Flash.” [Laughs]
Then there’s the rumored remake of The Crow you’re supposedly going to star in. What’s the status of that?
I don’t know the status of that. It’s something I really loved, but we’ll see about that.
And where do things stand with The Hangover Part III?
Whenever Todd [Phillips] says, I’m in.
Zach Galifianakis said in an interview recently that the plot may have to do with his character, Alan, being in a mental hospital and the rest of the Wolfpack breaking him out.
You know what? That might be right.
Really? A lot of people assumed that he was joking, and Warner Bros. has said there are no real plans for the movie yet.
I mean, I have no idea. But that sounds good. [Laughs]
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: So did Paradise Lost fall into your lap after all the success you’ve had this year?
BRADLEY COOPER: The absolute opposite of falling into my lap. I must have met with the director five times. I’d been vying for that role for three years. And then I actually put myself on tape unsolicited in my kitchen, just so he’d look at it. [Laughs] Not much has changed.
Alex Proyas has done big sci-fi films like I Robot and Dark City. So is this sort of a sci-fi take on Milton’s poem?
It’s not a sci-fi take on Paradise Lost — it is Paradise Lost. It’s a cinematic adaptation of Milton’s poem with motion capture. That technology is evolving exponentially by the minute, so where they were when they did Avatar as opposed to where they are now is almost different worlds. I just did the whole fitting for the motion-capture helmet that you wear, and we start shooting at the end of October in Sydney, Australia. I’m very excited.
So what appealed to you about playing Lucifer?
I loved studying that poem at Georgetown. I just fell in love with that character. Satan is kind of the guy you agree with — I don’t know if you agree with him, but you understand his argument and he’s very compelling. Hopefully we’ll be able to maintain the integrity of that.
What’s your Lucifer going to look like onscreen?
I think he’s going to look like me. I don’t know what that says about how satanic I look but, yes, it will be me. [Laughs]
It’s also been reported you’re attached to director Doug Liman’s sci-fi film Luna. Is that right?
No, that’s an IMDB creation. It’s like The Flash — I read I was going to be in The Flash and I called my agent and he was like, “No, bro, you’re not going to be in The Flash.” [Laughs]
Then there’s the rumored remake of The Crow you’re supposedly going to star in. What’s the status of that?
I don’t know the status of that. It’s something I really loved, but we’ll see about that.
And where do things stand with The Hangover Part III?
Whenever Todd [Phillips] says, I’m in.
Zach Galifianakis said in an interview recently that the plot may have to do with his character, Alan, being in a mental hospital and the rest of the Wolfpack breaking him out.
You know what? That might be right.
Really? A lot of people assumed that he was joking, and Warner Bros. has said there are no real plans for the movie yet.
I mean, I have no idea. But that sounds good. [Laughs]
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Bradley Talks Acting, Storytelling And 'Limitless'
The "it guy" of the moment, thanks to a run of charismatic and pretty boy handsome comedy roles, Bradley Cooper was sold on his first major solo starring role by a scene in which his would-be character is tired, desperate and face-first on the ground. That may seem uncharacteristic, from knowledge limited to "Hangover" references and "Wedding Crashers" memories, but here's a little secret: Bradley Cooper is a serious actor.
On the phone at 8:00 am on a Monday to promote the DVD/Blu-Ray release of his March thriller, "Limitless," Cooper had been out late the night before, not partying like a celebrity, but cruising the rough streets of Schenectady, New York with police officers, learning whatever he could about life on the beat for his upcoming indie drama, "The Place Beyond The Pines." Given the circumstance, stock quotes delivered on early morning auto-pilot could be reasonably expected, but Cooper gives considered insight about his craft and a film he clearly has a passion for that stretches beyond the leading man star status and DVD sales cash that its success guarantees.
While, yes, "Limitless," the Neil Burger-directed story of a scraggly, struggling writer who takes NZT, an experimental superdrug that turns him into a rapid thinking, physically commanding and suddenly charming new man -- think Captain America meets Vanity Fair -- puts Cooper in a now-familiar position of alpha male on screen, he was most excited to take on his character, Eddie Morra's, dark moments, where his true traits come out.
"I have to say the one scene that sort of pushed it over is when Eddie drinks the blood and I thought 'I have to do that scene in the movie,'" Cooper remembers, referring to an action sequence when his Morra, now back to his weakened original self, is seemingly without hope, beaten badly in a battle against a mob man who, having pumped up on the pills himself, leads a ruthless squad of thugs to attack him in his apartment. "I had never seen it before, and it was the ultimate visual of how desperate this guy is, the lengths this guy goes to."
There's an affinity Cooper clearly feels for the character, and again, not because the role offered him the chance to wear nice suits and display an enhanced version of a men's magazine's nebulous definition of what it is to be a modern gentleman, his first real chance to do so since his early 2000s run on TV in shows such as "Alias."
"I don’t even see him as power hungry," he says of Morra, who uses his new capacity to retain and recall wikipedia-sized reams of information to, amongst other things, take a gobsmacked Wall Street by storm. "His objective certainly is not to make money, his objective is to do something else and he needs money to get there. Even when he’s in Mexico with all those people," Cooper explains, discussing a good-life montage that comes shortly after taking the drug, "he doesn’t care about it, that’s why he says 'You know this is fine but I didn’t want to be around it, it didn’t do anything for me.'”
Cooper, then, is more Morra than his cocky, nearly philandering ringleader Phil from "The Hangover" films, who is the man pushing the wild bachelor parties that end up in amnesiac scrambling. The film's release, timed two months before "The Hangover, Part II," did a solid job of setting him up as more than just the go-to guy for fast talking, hard-partying characters, but he insists that sort of actors' integrity insurance was just a well-timed coincidence.
"It sort of just worked out that way, that it was released right before 'Hangover 2' and that it did well," he says, "but no it was nothing that planned out, it just happened to be a job that I happened to get that I auditioned for and loved, but it wasn’t a strategic move or anything."
On purpose or not, Cooper fits the writer that is finally, brilliantly completing his long-gestating book and working to win back the girlfriend who left him at the height of his self-destructive decade-long writer's block. Like his Morra, Cooper is creatively driven, having made clear in the past few months that he doesn't intend on settling into a comfortable life of acting superstardom: he's currently writing a big screen adaptation of the novel series, "Hyperion" and wants to direct.
He championed "Limitless" from the start, signing on as an executive producer, which allowed him a new level of input into the film.
"Being able to have an EP title allowed you to be in all of the conversations without having to apologize all the time," he offers. "Being able to be there from pre-to-post-production with the casting and then you know just creatively being there, being able to collaborate on every level, which was just a real testament to [producing studio] Relatively and Neil to allow me to help do that."
Cooper also enthuses about the opportunity afforded by working with Robert De Niro, who co-starred in "Limitless" as a Wall Street tycoon both skeptical of and reliant on Morra's perplexing genius.
"It was incredible, it was a dream come true," he says of his time working with the big screen titan. "Every aspect, the fact that he’s an amazing human being and became a good friend and then also that he’s Robert De Niro, the reason I became an actor to a large degree, and also he came to the school that I went to and I got to ask him a question years ago and then to be able to work with him now is just incredible."
The reverence is honest; "no, not once," he laughs when asked if he happened to remind De Niro of his scholarly inquest.
Ultimately, though, regardless of any Oscar-winning supporting players, the film was Cooper's to carry, a fact he took very much to heart, given his understanding of how fleeting his profession -- and industry -- can be.
"I definitely felt anxiety I guess would be the right word, or pressure, that if the movie didn’t do well I wouldn’t get another shot to have a role like that in a movie," Cooper admits. "So, I definitely felt that they were certainly marketing the film and positioning the film that if it didn’t succeed it would probably weight on my shoulders. So, I really wanted it to succeed, because I love what I do so much and I want to do more of it, so of course you want it to succeed."
And succeed it did. "Limitless" opened the box office at number one in its opening weekend, ultimately taking in $155 million worldwide, no synthetic performance enhancers for Cooper required.
"Limitless" was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on Tuesday.
source
On the phone at 8:00 am on a Monday to promote the DVD/Blu-Ray release of his March thriller, "Limitless," Cooper had been out late the night before, not partying like a celebrity, but cruising the rough streets of Schenectady, New York with police officers, learning whatever he could about life on the beat for his upcoming indie drama, "The Place Beyond The Pines." Given the circumstance, stock quotes delivered on early morning auto-pilot could be reasonably expected, but Cooper gives considered insight about his craft and a film he clearly has a passion for that stretches beyond the leading man star status and DVD sales cash that its success guarantees.
While, yes, "Limitless," the Neil Burger-directed story of a scraggly, struggling writer who takes NZT, an experimental superdrug that turns him into a rapid thinking, physically commanding and suddenly charming new man -- think Captain America meets Vanity Fair -- puts Cooper in a now-familiar position of alpha male on screen, he was most excited to take on his character, Eddie Morra's, dark moments, where his true traits come out.
"I have to say the one scene that sort of pushed it over is when Eddie drinks the blood and I thought 'I have to do that scene in the movie,'" Cooper remembers, referring to an action sequence when his Morra, now back to his weakened original self, is seemingly without hope, beaten badly in a battle against a mob man who, having pumped up on the pills himself, leads a ruthless squad of thugs to attack him in his apartment. "I had never seen it before, and it was the ultimate visual of how desperate this guy is, the lengths this guy goes to."
There's an affinity Cooper clearly feels for the character, and again, not because the role offered him the chance to wear nice suits and display an enhanced version of a men's magazine's nebulous definition of what it is to be a modern gentleman, his first real chance to do so since his early 2000s run on TV in shows such as "Alias."
"I don’t even see him as power hungry," he says of Morra, who uses his new capacity to retain and recall wikipedia-sized reams of information to, amongst other things, take a gobsmacked Wall Street by storm. "His objective certainly is not to make money, his objective is to do something else and he needs money to get there. Even when he’s in Mexico with all those people," Cooper explains, discussing a good-life montage that comes shortly after taking the drug, "he doesn’t care about it, that’s why he says 'You know this is fine but I didn’t want to be around it, it didn’t do anything for me.'”
Cooper, then, is more Morra than his cocky, nearly philandering ringleader Phil from "The Hangover" films, who is the man pushing the wild bachelor parties that end up in amnesiac scrambling. The film's release, timed two months before "The Hangover, Part II," did a solid job of setting him up as more than just the go-to guy for fast talking, hard-partying characters, but he insists that sort of actors' integrity insurance was just a well-timed coincidence.
"It sort of just worked out that way, that it was released right before 'Hangover 2' and that it did well," he says, "but no it was nothing that planned out, it just happened to be a job that I happened to get that I auditioned for and loved, but it wasn’t a strategic move or anything."
On purpose or not, Cooper fits the writer that is finally, brilliantly completing his long-gestating book and working to win back the girlfriend who left him at the height of his self-destructive decade-long writer's block. Like his Morra, Cooper is creatively driven, having made clear in the past few months that he doesn't intend on settling into a comfortable life of acting superstardom: he's currently writing a big screen adaptation of the novel series, "Hyperion" and wants to direct.
He championed "Limitless" from the start, signing on as an executive producer, which allowed him a new level of input into the film.
"Being able to have an EP title allowed you to be in all of the conversations without having to apologize all the time," he offers. "Being able to be there from pre-to-post-production with the casting and then you know just creatively being there, being able to collaborate on every level, which was just a real testament to [producing studio] Relatively and Neil to allow me to help do that."
Cooper also enthuses about the opportunity afforded by working with Robert De Niro, who co-starred in "Limitless" as a Wall Street tycoon both skeptical of and reliant on Morra's perplexing genius.
"It was incredible, it was a dream come true," he says of his time working with the big screen titan. "Every aspect, the fact that he’s an amazing human being and became a good friend and then also that he’s Robert De Niro, the reason I became an actor to a large degree, and also he came to the school that I went to and I got to ask him a question years ago and then to be able to work with him now is just incredible."
The reverence is honest; "no, not once," he laughs when asked if he happened to remind De Niro of his scholarly inquest.
Ultimately, though, regardless of any Oscar-winning supporting players, the film was Cooper's to carry, a fact he took very much to heart, given his understanding of how fleeting his profession -- and industry -- can be.
"I definitely felt anxiety I guess would be the right word, or pressure, that if the movie didn’t do well I wouldn’t get another shot to have a role like that in a movie," Cooper admits. "So, I definitely felt that they were certainly marketing the film and positioning the film that if it didn’t succeed it would probably weight on my shoulders. So, I really wanted it to succeed, because I love what I do so much and I want to do more of it, so of course you want it to succeed."
And succeed it did. "Limitless" opened the box office at number one in its opening weekend, ultimately taking in $155 million worldwide, no synthetic performance enhancers for Cooper required.
"Limitless" was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on Tuesday.
source
Paradise Lost to be filmed in Sydney
The next multi-million dollar blockbuster movie from the director of I, Robot and Knowing, Australia's Alex Proyas, will be filmed in Sydney bringing $88 million to the state, the NSW government has announced.
Proyas will direct his version of John Milton's classic epic Paradise Lost predominantly at Sydney's Fox Studios, creating 1,300 jobs.
The film will star The Hangover actor Bradley Cooper as Lucifer, and has a release target of 2013.
The production was lured to Sydney with financial incentives from the state government, Acting Premier Andrew Stoner said.
"This is a major coup for our state," Mr Stoner told reporters at Fox Studios.
"With fierce competition from rival locations in the United States and Canada, there is no doubt securing Paradise Lost is a major win for the NSW film industry.
"Had we not done this it would have been opportunity lost, not Paradise Lost."
Proyas said the state government's support for the production "puts a very clear signal out that the Australian film industry is very much alive and kicking in these difficult times".
"I think it is a great win for our project, in terms of making the film here, but also for the Aussie film industry," he said.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Wax Figure
Actor Bradley poses with his wax figure during the unveiling of his wax figure for Madame Tussauds Las Vegas on July 18, 2011 in New York City.
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