There’s nothing like a 20% tax credit to jump start the heart of a Hollywood movie. Mark Wahlberg, and the boys from the hit HBO series Entourage, can ask the haters…who’s laughing now? It was announced yesterday that the California Film Commission, designed to seduce movie makers to produce in sunny CA, thereby creating more jobs, more work for extras, stand-ins, food carts etc., had chosen (at random), the film Entourage to receive a 20% tax incentive from the $100 million available.
There hasn’t been a great outpouring of support for the film coming to the big screen. That could be because Hollywood plays by the old school philosophy – difficulty at the beginning is a good thing. I wouldn’t be surprised if Grant Elliot’s anti-Entourage campaign efforts on Kickstarter, raising $3 million to pay creator Doug Ellin and the cast NOT to make the film, was a publicity stunt. Bad press spreads like wildfire when you’re trying to generate some heat, and nothing sells a movie faster than a little heat.
The original cast, featuring Adrian Grenier as Vince, Kevin Connolly as Eric (E), Jerry Ferrara as Turtle, Kevin Dillon as Johnny Drama, and Jeremy Piven as over the top, cocaine snorting, mega-agent Ari Gold would all reprise their roles in the film. Entourage, the HBO TV show, ran for 8 seasons, was nominated for 6 Emmys in a row, and is syndicated in over 214 countries and territories world wide. Doug Ellin, the original series creator, has finished the screenplay and will be directing the film.
Celebrity cameos were a trademark of the TV series, and it seems the movie will be no different. Ryan Gosling and Jennifer Lawrence are rumored to be in talks to come aboard, and Complex.com is reporting that Adrian Grenier specifically requested that Justin Beiber have a cameo. Never underestimate what a little star power can do.
Jezebel.com has scooped that the script storyline involves hooks of the guys not only saving the world, but also having Guillermo del Toro wanting Vince to star in his next movie. No production date has been announced yet, but with tax credit in hand, expect the movie to move forward quickly.
