DANIEL RADCLIFFE & ZOE KAZAN BACK IN TORONTO FOR "THE F WORD"

Daniel Radcliffe in Toronto - January 2012

They're back! Although they both were in Toronto earlier this year - Daniel Radcliffe for The Woman in Black and Zoe Kazan for Ruby Sparks - the two will in Toronto this Summer filming Director Michael Dowse's Romantic Comedy The F Word, which is said to be nothing at all like his Canadian Box Office-topping Hockey Comedy Goon.

Its Story centers around a young Man and Woman who have difficulty navigating their Friendship, which has a deep romantic Undercurrent.

Entertainment One will be handling distribution worldwide for the Film which begins filming mid-August to mid-September in Toronto.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will-W.)

PRODUCTION UPDATES TORONTO: "CARRIE", "THE F-WORD", "REMEMORY", "ROBOCOP", "LIZ & DICK" & "CYBERGEDDON"

Julianne Moore at TIFF 2009

Just a few updates on Production Timelines for some notable Projects set to film in Toronto this Summer to share as per the Ontario Media Development Corporation:

RoboCop from Director Jose Padilha is penciled-in to film between August 7-December 14, 2012. In addition to Joel Kinnaman being cast for the Remake, Gael García Bernal also has been added to the Film from Sony Pictures. Some rumours are circulating that Sean Penn and Edward Norton also are being eyed for the Project.

Director Michael Dowse (whom we chatted with back in February) recently achieved great success domestically with his Goon being the number one Film in its debut at the Canadian Box Office.  He  now has his sights set on a Rom-Com which he says will be completely different from anything he's done. The F-Word is set to film in Toronto between May 28-July 16, 2012.

Director Mark Palansky who brought Penelope starring Reese Witherspoon and Christina Ricci to TIFF 2006 will be filming Rememory in Toronto for a quick Shoot between May 10-June 8, 2012 and attached so far are Emmy and Golden Globe Winner Peter Dinklage and also our own Catherine O'Hara, who like him also is a fellow Emmy Winner.

Mad Men Producer Matthew Weiner is lending his name to Cybergeddon, which although is listed as a TV Movie, is set to premiere on Yahoo this Fall.  CSI:Crime Scene Investigation Creator Anthony Zuiker will be helming the Project, which will be formatted for to be viewed on Mobile Devices and Computer Screens. Cybergeddon films between May 7-31, 2012, also a quick Shoot.

The much-awaited Carrie Remake from Sony Screen Gems starring Chloë Grace Moretz and Jamie King is  closer to having Oscar-nominated Actress Julianne Moore sign-on, and also now is listed officially as a Toronto Production.  It would appear dates are still being finalized for the Kimberly Peirce Horror Film.

And lastly, for those of us excited to see Lindsay Lohan in Toronto filming Lifetime Television Movie Liz and Dick this Summer, The Wrap has just announced that filming will begin in June with Los Angeles mentioned as the locale for the Shoot.  Not sure what this means for Toronto which originally was eyed for Production, but this isn't boding well for Fans and Paparazzi hoping to get a glimpse of Lohan...

(Photo credit: Mr. Will-W.)

INTERVIEW: THE CAST OF "GOON" - FEATURING SEANN WILLIAM SCOTT, LIEV SCHREIBER, JAY BARUCHEL, MICHAEL DOWSE & MORE

Seann William Scott at the Toronto Premiere of Goon - February 2012

Canadian Director Michael Dowse (Fubar, It's All Gone Pete Tong) premiered his latest Hockey-Comedy back in September at TIFF to rousing reception and now is ready to unleash a "rink of fire" to the masses.  Alliance Films has shown its firm vote of confidence in the distinctly-Canadian Film, touring it over the past week with stop-offs in Vancouver, Winnipeg, Montreal and tonight, Toronto.  

Montreal's Jay Baruchel not only co-wrote Goon together with Evan Goldberg, but also stars in it.  He is said to have been moved to tears by a surprise visit from now-Fiancée and then-Co-Star Alison Pill. The two developed a romance on-set and thus, the Film can be said to be a Labour of Love, in more ways than one. In addition to Dowse and Baruchel, talents David Paetkau, Liev Schreiber and Seann William Scott graced the Fan and Media-filled Red Carpet also at Toronto's Scotiabank Theatre.

Goon centers upon Doug (Scott), a Jewish-Canadian Bouncer and trained Boxer whom after years of struggling to find his niche, gets hired aboard a floundering Halifax Hockey Team as someone whose purpose solely is to help his Team win fights on-the-ice, fully utilizing those Boxing chops. Doug turns out to be a much better at his job than anticipated and this causes some friction within his Team, especially with its Captain of many vices Xavier (Marc-André Grondin), and also a competing team's soon-to-retire star, the tough-as-nails Ross (Schreiber). Along the way, Doug falls for Eva (Pill) whom at first appears emotionally unavailable, but nonetheless he is determined to win her affections. With the support of his Team and Buddy Pat (Jay Baruchel), he enjoys a celebrated, although stormy rise to the top - even if it should come at the expense of his overachieving Parents.

Certainly not lacking controversy, Goon has gained much Media attention of late for both its shocking Posters, showing Baruchel in what might be considered a lewd act, but more so its violent on-ice beatdowns.  A Representative for the City of Toronto has denied that it ordered the removal of the offending Posters namely from bus shelters, according to a probe by The Globe & Mail.

Baruchel poked fun at the situation, performing quickly an encore of the said lewd act for the Cameras, shouting "Here you go, one more time!".  On a more delicate note, I asked Baruchel about how this Film might be misconstrued solely as a tough, violent Film when in fact much of it actually is a Love Story.  "Yes, that's exactly right. I was raised to believe that toughness has nothing to do with being a good person or not", he comments.   "It's also a reaction to a terrifying trend in movies where they're always cynical and always come from a mean-spirited place. I just wanted to bring a happiness and heart back into Films.".