James McAvoy: 'Gnomeo & Juliet' premiere & 'Mountain of Madness' updatee

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Actor Matt Lucas, left, producer David Furnish, actress Emily Blunt, producer Elton John, actor James McAvoy, actor Patrick Stewart and actress Ashley Jensen at the premiere of their animated film "Gnomeo & Juliet" at the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles. The comedy is a modern retelling of William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" through the eyes of rival garden gnomes.

Source: The Baltimore Sun

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James McAvoy Says He Knows Nothing About Guillermo Del Toro’s ‘Mountain Of Madness,’ Yet

Despite being rumored to be in a showdown with Tom Cruise for the lead role in Guillermo Del Toro‘s upcoming 3D adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft‘s “At The Mountain Of Madness” and even being touted as the early studio favorite, James McAvoy has now revealed he’s heard nothing regarding the Del Toro project let alone anything about an offer to take the lead role of Dyer.

“Not at all, not at all,” said McAvoy, responding to questions of an approach by Del Toro and company. “I don’t know anything about the story, but he’s an amazing director. I would be very lucky to be able to work with someone like that one day.”

Read more at Indie Wire

James McAvoy to star in 'At the Mountains of Madness'? + TIFF appearance speculation

Guillermo del Toro's 3D adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness, is set to shoot in May of 2011. Universal reportedly wants James McAvoy in the lead role, while del Toro wants Tom Cruise instead. Both actors would presumably be free at the time, though at this point both actors aren't even officially attached to the project. A synopsis of Lovecraft's novella is below:

The story is written in first-person perspective by the geologist William Dyer, a professor from Miskatonic University. He writes to disclose hitherto unknown and closely kept secrets in the hope that he can deter a planned and much publicized scientific expedition to Antarctica. On a previous expedition there, a party of scholars from Miskatonic University, led by Dyer, discovered fantastic and horrific ruins and a dangerous secret beyond a range of mountains taller than the Himalayas. [Wikipedia via Collider]

The Conspirator will make its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival later this month, but there hasn't been official confirmation on whether or not James McAvoy would make an appearance in Toronto. According to an Exclusive Artists Management press release, James will be at the festival:

Exclusive Artists Management will be providing celebrity hair and makeup artists to participate at this year's Toronto International Film Festival for the seventh consecutive year.

...Some of the confirmed actors that our teams will be getting camera ready include Helen MIrren, Carey Mulligan, Evan Rachel Wood, James McAvoy, Rachel Weisz, Frieda Pinto, Minnie Driver, Vera Farmiga, Kristen Scott Thomas, Bryce Dallas Howard, Winona Ryder, Michael Sheen, Thomas Hayden Church, Chris Cooper, Josh Lucas, Amy Ryan, Sam Rockwell, Zach Galifianakis, Amber Tamblyn, Dominic Cooper, Kate Mara, Jim Broadbent and Melissa Leo