Richard Donner: 'Lethal Weapon 5' is 'dead'

Links (25)

Richard Donner Disappoints the Three Fans Who Were Hoping for Lethal Weapon 5
Published 10/13/2008 by Neil Miller at Film School Rejects
... That is the quote that Richard Donner gave to The LA Times’ Hero Complex today regarding Lethal Weapon 5, a movie that has been rumored to be on the fast-track. But according to Donner, the man who produced and directed the first four films in the series, the project is “pretty much dead in the water unless someone had the sense to come to me.” ...

Mel Gibson Passes on Lethal Weapon 5
Published 10/13/2008 by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com) at /Film
... Last we heard, Joel Silver was waiting on Mel Gibson to approve Shane Black’s treatment for Lethal Weapon 5. Now word comes from original series director Richard Donner (via: the Los Angeles Times) that Gibson turned down the idea and the project is dead. ...

Mel Gibson Ditches Lethal Weapon 5, Leaves it Dead in the Water
Published 10/13/2008 by Alex Billington at FirstShowing.net
... that Columbus Short was attached to star and that Warner Brothers was fast tracking the project. But an update today from director Richard Donner over at the LA Times kills any more speculation about its progress in the studio. Donner claims that "Mel turned it down." He's talking about ...

Mel Gibson Ditches 'Lethal Weapon 5'?
Published 10/13/2008 by Erik Davis at Cinematical
But was he ever considering it in the first place? Not long ago it seemed a Lethal Weapon 5 was all but a lock, what with Shane Black writing the script and Columbus Short supposedly in talks to play Danny Glover's son -- but now, according to a recent interview with Richard Donner in the LA Times, it looks like the whole thing might just go away. Thank God. That's because, in Donner's world, Mel Gibson has already passed on the project. (And here we thought Glover passed over a year ago.) The director notes, "Mel ...

Gibson Not Interested in Lethal Weapon 5
Published 10/13/2008 by James Cook at TheMovingPicture.net
... The L.A. Times recently spoke with Richard Donner, director of the first four movies in the popular series, who had this to say regarding Gibson’s involvement: ...

Mel Gibson, Richard Donner Pool Resources to Euthanize 'Lethal Weapon' [The End Of Ideas]
Published 10/14/2008 by STV at Defamer
... In these rapey-sequel times, it takes a real man to stand up against the bloated revivals of franchise whose glories are long past. And while we'll assume that there is more to the implosion of Lethal Weapon 5 than just one jilted director's story, we'll take Richard Donner's perspective for now as some of the most reassuring news we've heard since doctors disclosed that Indiana Jones would recover from his ...

Have Politics Scuttled LETHAL WEAPON 5??
Published 10/14/2008 by Merrick at Ain't It Cool News - The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news.
... turned it down," Donner said. "I would like to think that Mel turned it down because I wasn't involved. Knowing Mel, I would like to think that. Would that be the kind of thing he does? It sure would be." [SNIP] "Joel Silver tried to ace me out of it. He tried to put it together but made sure he didn't do it until my contract was up. You know, it's typical of the man. A guy who wasn't even around at the beginning when we started on the first one. He came in late." ...says Donner in L.A. Times piece , which goes on to discuss Donner's preferred angle for the SUPERMAN ...

Mel Gibson Is Too Old For This Shit!
Published 10/14/2008 by noreply@blogger.com (Flicks News) at Flicks News
... It was reported that screenwriter Shane Black and producer Joel Silver were working on a fifth installment of the franchise without the director and producer of all four "Lethal Weapon" movies, Dick Donner's involement. He had this to say while talking to the Los Angeles Times: ...

"Lethal Weapon 5" - Dead in the Water?
Published 10/14/2008 by Jane Boursaw at Film Gecko
... So it wouldn’t bother me horribly if another movie wasn’t made, and that’s what it’s sounding like. The Los Angeles Times spoke to 78-year-old ...

Mel Gibson Turns Down ‘Lethal Weapon 5′, Religious Group Yet To Be Blamed
Published 10/14/2008 by Matt at Hollywood Hills - Movies and Television
... would like to think that Mel turned it down because I wasn’t involved. Knowing Mel, I would like to think that. Would that be the kind of thing he does? It sure would be.” Well, however it happened, thank goodness for it. By the time Weapon hit its third installment it was too much, not to mention a fourth one a few years later. And lest anyone forget, here are five more words: “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”. Source: LA Times This content is copyrighted by Hollywood Hills. --- Related ...

Detective Riggs Narrowly Averts ‘Lethal Weapon 5’
Published 10/14/2008 at Vulture
... In this crazy world of lame sequels, needless remakes, and inexplicably rebooted franchises, leave it to level-headed actor Mel Gibson to bring some order. Gibson has turned down Lethal Weapon 5, meaning it probably won't happen until Hollywood gets a little more desperate. [Hero Complex/LAT] ...

Lethal Weapon 5: So Lethal It’s Dead?
Published 10/14/2008 by Kirsten Anderson at At The Movies - Film News and Reviews
... In the LA Times this weekend, Richard Donner, director and producer of the four Lethal Weapon movies, said that the recently chatted about fifth movie is likely dead. ...

Mel Gibson Ditches Lethal Weapon 5
Published 10/14/2008 at Cinema Blend News
... in Lethal Weapon 5 , a source even closer to the production says the whole thing is dead in the water. Richard Donner, who directed and produced the first four films, told the Los Angeles Times that Mel Gibson has turned down the movie, and without Mel, there will be no sequel. ""I would like to think that Mel turned it down because I wasn't involved," said Donner, who had been working on his own idea for a fifth movie but was not approached by the studio. And that's the grain of salt that all this information needs to be taken with-- of course the embittered director, ...

Reel Talk Mixtape
Published 10/14/2008 by reeltalk at Reel Talk
... Last week we told you that plans for a "Lethal Weapon 5" were on the fast track. Now we're hearing that the film could be shelved for good. ...

Mel Gibson Not Returning For ‘Lethal Weapon’ Sequel
Published 10/14/2008 by Elisabeth Rappe at MTV Movies Blog
... And he won’t be giving it. Geoff Boucher caught up with Richard Donner, who reports that Gibson has refused to return for a fifth installment. ...

Richard Donner Says “Lethal Weapon 5″ Is Dead
Published 10/14/2008 by Rick at TunaFlix
... . Which means now it likely won’t be made, according to what Richard Donner (who directed the previous four films) told The LA Times: ...

Lethal Weapon 5 Is Dead
Published 10/14/2008 by Niall Browne at Screen Rant
... means no Mel. God bless him, too. There is very little loyalty in Hollywood these days and it’s good to see somebody stand up and say “No, I don’t care about $30 million, I want to work with my friend.” With a bit of luck maybe Warners will decide to bring Dick by on board so we can have Martin Riggs stand proud where he belongs; beside other 1980’s icons like Rambo, Rocky, John Mc Clane and Indiana Jones. Source: LA Times via IESB ...

Phew! 'Lethal Weapon' No Longer a Threat
Published 10/14/2008 at I Watch Stuff - The Best Movie News Ever
Mel Gibson has reportedly decided to spare us all from hearing the words "Now I'm REALLY getting to old for this shit!" and has walked away from plans for a fifth Lethal Weapon. From Geoff Boucher's LA Times blog: ...

‘Sherlock Holmes’ Pics, ‘Iron Man 2’: Cheadle In, Howard Out, And Other Life Changing Stuff
Published 10/14/2008 by Nick Plowman at Fataculture
... ] Mel Gibson lets the world know he has limitations! He has said that under absolutely no circumstances would he make a “Lethal Weapon 5,” and that he regrets ever making 2, 3, and 4. Okay, he didn’t say the latter, but he was thinking it. And so is the rest of the world. Viva common sense, or learning from one’s mistakes, whatever, in plain and simple English – we will never have to think about ‘Lethal Weapon’ again. [ LA. Times ] Having just got back from a screening of “Nick and Norah’s Infinte Playlist,” which I love to no end at this point in time with a review to pop up ...

Lethal Weapon 5 is a No Go
Published 10/14/2008 by Sean at Film Junk
... we’ve been hearing about Lethal Weapon 5 finally coming together (including a screenplay from original Lethal Weapon writer Shane Black), it appears that the project has hit a pretty major snag. The L.A. Times reports that Mel Gibson has turned it down, and Richard Donner claims it’s all because he (the director of the first four movies) was not asked to be involved. ...

‘Lethal Weapon 5′ Not Happening
Published 10/14/2008 by Jeremy at WeAreMovieGeeks.com
... Passion of the Christ’ and ‘Apocalypto’. “It’s true, Mel and Danny, they’ve done it and to get them back, to provoke them and get some excitement from them to do a fifth one after all this time, you really have to come up with something so solid and so unique and so dedicated to their characters,” Donner said. “Without that I can see their view of, ‘I’ve been there, I’ve done that.’ ” Source: LA Times ...

Lethal Weapon 5 - Not Happening
Published 10/15/2008 by Melissa Brobby at Movie Moron
... he was not available for comment, last being seen heading for his car with a bottle in his hand. (last bit untrue) Donner says “I would like to think that Mel turned it down because I wasn’t involved. Knowing Mel, I would like to think that. Would that be the kind of thing he does? It sure would be.” Yeah because working with Shane Black would be so terrible… With no Gibson, don’t expect this buddy cop saga to continue. Source: LA Times ...

Will Celluloid Continue To Be The Man Of Steel's Other Kryptonite? [Superman]
Published 10/18/2008 by Graeme McMillan at io9
... fanboys cheered - I know, that I was one of them - but does Superman The Movie director Richard Donner publicly stating that the Superman movie franchise should be handed over to Action Comics writer (and former assistant to Donner) Geoff Johns actually mean that anything will change for the seemingly-permanently stalled Superman movie franchise? Okay, we won't boast too much that Donner was just saying something that we said a couple of months ago when he suggested that Johns be given the keys to the franchise earlier this week: ...

Screenwriting News & Links! 10/19/08
Published 10/19/2008 by noreply@blogger.com (Mystery Man) at Mystery Man on Film
... Feature Film Hiltz Squared Media Group this week optioned the rights to former flight attendant Ellen Simonetti's semi-autobiographical novel, Diary of a Dysfunctional Flight Attendant: The Queen of Sky Blog. Hiltz Squaredhas commissioned Simonetti to write a screenplay based on the book. Simonetti, in turn, has launched an interactive blog about the writing of the screenplay, complete with scene snippets, plot outlines, and polls. On the death of Lethal Weapon 5, Richard Donner’s Career, and the Future Direction ...

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Published 10/22/2008 by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com) at /Film
... she really is. [variety] Death Cab For Cutie discovered Max Records, the star of Spike Jonze’s Where the Wild Things Are. [playlist] Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler is one of five nominated films in the “Best Feature” category this year. [searchlight] /Gamer has the first screenshot from the Dexter iPhone game. Richard Donor wants Warner Bros to hire Geoff Johns for the next Superman. [LATimes] The Playlist has a script review of Guy Ritchie’s ...