Jon Favreau Page 5

Indeed, the film was originally released on his first birthday. And now he has remade it using state-of-the-art photorealistic animation so detailed that it's as if he travelled to India to shoot it. Actually, the entire movie was filmed in a downtown Los Angeles soundstage. And Favreau used the technology to augment nature for dramatic effect. "If you look at panthers in the real world, they're actually quite small," he says. "What creating the world allows us to do is exaggerate proportions and scale. We're not forced into tying into a real tiger, as they were in Life of Pi where half the shots are real and half are fake."

Instead, Favreau says his intention was to give the film "a dream like quality so you see the whole thing through a kid's eyes. If a panther is this big, make him as big as he was in the cartoon. Make him bigger, play with scale. And always keep it photo-real."

Continue reading: Jon Favreau Enjoyed Creating A New-Look Jungle Book

'The Jungle Book' has returned in one of the most visually stunning epics of the year. Directed by Jon Favreau, this new re-make of the Rudyard Kipling tale and its 60s Disney take-off follows the adventures of Mowgli and his jungle friends with live action and crisp CGI design. It was never going to fail visually, but how has this resurfaced story really affected critics?

The Jungle Book is a sensational spectacle

Predictably, the jaw-dropping CGI animals has left little to criticize. Indiewire branded it 'a lavish technological spectacle' that 'pushes the capabilities of computer-generated imagery' and the Hollywood Reporter called it 'exceptionally beautiful to behold and bolstered by a stellar vocal cast', referring to such voice artists as Scarlett Johansson (Kaa the snake), Christopher Walken (King Louie the ape), Bill Murray (Baloo the bear), Idris Elba (Shere Khan the tiger) and Ben Kingsley (Bagheera the panther).

Continue reading: 'The Jungle Book' Has Set The Bar For Cinematic Beauty This Year

Jon Favreau’s live action remake of Disney’s The Jungle Book might just have one of the most impressive cast lists we’ve ever seen! Filled with award winning talent such as diverse as veteran, Christopher Walken and rising star Lupita Nyong’o, as the film begins to take shape we just can’t help getting more and more excited. Here’s the list of famous names who have joined the cast so far, each of who will be giving a new voice to Kipling’s much loved characters.

Christopher Walken has joined the cast of The Jungle Book

Christopher Walken

Continue reading: Scarlett Johansson, Lupita Nyong’o And Now Christopher Walken: Meet The Epic 'Jungle Book' Cast

Every summer has its sleepers. Last year the surprise box office hits included the heist thriller Now You See Me, the comedy We're the Millers and Woody Allen's drama Blue Jasmine. In 2012 the unexpected biggies were the rude comedy Ted and the male-stripper romp Magic Mike.

This summer, the biggest surprise has been a scruffly little comedy-drama about a food truck. Made by A-list filmmakers and actors, Chef opened in America on May 9th and began its climb up the box office chart, entering the top 10 on the following weekend and remaining there for more than six weeks. And while plenty of big movies have made more money (Chef has earned $21m, a tenth of the latest X-men's box office receipts), none has managed such longevity at the top.

Continue reading: Chef Is The Summer's First Sleeper Hit

Ben Kingsley has joined the cast of Jon Favreau’s live-action adaptation of the classic Rudyard Kipling novel, The Jungle Book, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

Ben Kingsley at The Prince's Trust & Samsung Celebrate Success Awards

Kingsley will play the role of Bagheera, the friendly, caring panther that acts as a surrogate father figure for the orphaned Mowgli. His recent projects include the high profile blockbusters Ender's Game and Iron Man 3, while his upcoming projects include Autobahn, Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb and Exodus: Gods and Kings.

Continue reading: Ben Kingsley Is The Wise And Caring Bagheera In Jon Favreau's 'Jungle Book'

Jon Favreau’s new film Chef was released last weekend to nearly unanimously positive reviews. Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times raved, “Favreau is flat-out terrific. Warm, dimensional and intuitive, his Carl proves an ideal combo of top dog and underdog - as well as a thoroughly credible kitchen master.”

Jon Favreau's new movie Chef has gone down a storm with the critics

Praise for Favreau and the script aside, hardly a single critic doesn’t recommend making sure you watch Chef on a full stomach. The tantalising dishes served up are just too much to take if you’ve skipped lunch. We recommend stocking up on snacks before watching these fantastic food movies, too.

Continue reading: 'Chef' And Our Five Other Favorite Films About Food

On a quiet Friday night (May 9) ‘Chef’ is the main course as it hits cinemas in New York and L.A. John Favreu’s passion project sees him play a disgruntled chef that branches out from the security of menu cooking to street food following a very public shaming.

Jon Favreau plays Carl Casper, a chef with bigger ideas

It’s been hailed as a triumphant return to filmmaking for a director/actor who very publically left the Marvel machine. ‘Chef’ has been warmly received by the critics, culminating in an 87% score on Rotten Tomatoes, but with one warning: don’t watch this film when hungry!

Continue reading: Favreu's 'Chef' Is A Friday Feast For N.Y, L.A Residents

Jon Favreau's latest movie Chef is very...now. It follows the story of a fine-dining chef in Los Angeles who gets tired of the shackles imposed on him by a money-mad restaurateur and so decides to follow his heart and cook from a food van. It's basically the story of every chef in London. If you love Pitt Cue Co, Hawksmoor, Meat Liquor and Bubbledogs, then you'll love Favreau's new movie.

Jon Favreau [centre] in 'Chef'

The rise of the food blogger has created a new critical landscape for restaurants, and some writers - including Chris Pople of Cheese & Biscuits - can now heavily influence how a new eatery performs upon opening.

Continue reading: Jon Favreau Tackles Food Bloggers In Hipsterish 'Chef'

The Tribeca Film Festival is underway in New York, and stars have been turning out to promote their new movies. Jon Favreau and Sofia Vergara hit the red carpet for their film Chef. Sofia Loren turned up with her filmmaker son Edoardo Ponti and other family members for the premiere of Soul Survivors. And retired boxers Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield staged a reunion on the red carpet for the the documentary Champs. Check out the videos here Jon Favreau And Sofia Vergara Appear At The Tribeca Premiere For 'Chef', Sophia Loren Takes Her Family To The Tribeca Premiere Of Film Short 'Soul Survivors' and Mike Tyson And Evander Holyfield Pose Together At The Tribeca Premiere Of 'Champs'.

Meanwhile in Los Angeles, paparazzi got more pictures of a rather rough-looking Jennifer Aniston on the set of her new movie Cake, along with costar Sam Worthington. It's about a mother who is both physically and emotionally devastated by a car crash, and gets help from an unexpected source. Take a browse through our photo gallery of Jennifer Aniston filming new movie "Cake".

Continue reading: A Week In Movies: Tribeca Brings Out Stars In New York, Jennifer Films In L.A., Kelsey Shoots In London, And New Trailers Promise Music, Thrills And More Music

Scarlett Johansson and Lupita Nyong'o are reportedly in talks to star in Jon Favreau's adaptation of the classic tale, The Jungle Book. The actresses will join Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom's Idris Elba, who will voice the man-eating tiger, Shere Khan.

Scarlett Johansson Is To Star In John Favreau's Adaptation Of 'The Jungle Book.'

Johansson ('Under The Skin') is rumoured to be in line for the voice of Kaa, the deceptive python who eats other animals by hypnotising them whilst 12 Years a Slave star Nyong'o is in final negotiations to voice Rakcha, the mother wolf who adopts the human boy, Mowgli, according to THR. The role would see Johansson become the movie's second villain, after Elba's formidable Shere Khan.

Continue reading: Scarlett Johansson And Lupita Nyong'o Land Roles In Jungle Book Adaptation

Scarlett Johansson announced her own good news this week – the Avengers actress is expecting. And while pregnancy, especially the early days, can be a trying time, Johansson seems to be adjusting nicely to her pending role as a new mum. So says Jon Favreau, Johannson’s long time friend, Iron Man and Iron Man 2 helmer and director of the upcoming comedy Chef, which stars Johansson.

Director and longtime pal Jon Favreau is confident in Johansson's parenting skills.

"She'll be wonderful," Favreau told E! News on Friday at the movie's opening night premiere at the South By Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin. He explained further: “She's one of my favorite people because she's smart, she's talented and she's really down to earth and a hard worker," Favreau said.

Continue reading: Jon Favreau Talks New Movie, Also Scarlett Johansson's Parenting Skills, For Some Reason

From the mean streets of Baltimore to Mowgli’s Jungle, Idris Elba’s career path hasn’t exactly been typical of a British actor. But the versatile Hackey-born star is lending his deep, silky tones to the iconic Jungle Book story as Shere Khan in Jon Favreau’s live-action film adaptation.

Looks like Elba missed the memo regarding which animal he's playing

According to The Wrap, The Wire, Luther and Pacific Rim actor is in advanced talks to voice the role of the killer tiger. Disney's “Jungle Book” movie, which was written by Justin Marks, will be a mix of live-action and VFX, a bit like Life of Pi, which landed Ang Lee the Academy Award for Best Director at last year’s Oscars.

Continue reading: Idris Elba Lands Shere Khan Voice In Live Action 'Jungle Book'

Robert Downey Jr, the star of The Avengers and Iron Man 3 - two of the biggest grossing movies in history, has been named Forbes' highest paid actor on the planet with annual estimated earnings of $75 million.

The 48-year-old - who's enjoyed somewhat of a career resurgence over the past decade thanks to Marvel's big-budget blockbusters - pulled in more than $1 billion at the box-office.

Though Downey Jr is the predictable No.1, perhaps most surprising is the entry of Channing Tatum in second place on this year's list. The new father who both financed and starred in Steven Soderbergh's Magic Mike, made around $60 million.

Continue reading: Meet Robert Downey Jr, Forbes' Highest Paid Actor In The World

Destiny is the latest multi-platform shooter from gaming powerhouse Activision (working in collaboration with fellow game manufacturer Bungie) and last night (May 23), the developers behind the game released the kick-ass part live action/part CGI trailer for the much-anticipated video game. The gaming studios even enlisted some Hollywood help for the promo, hiring Jon Favreau to direct, and Giancarlo Esposito as the star of the live segments.

The trailer doesn't feature any game play from the upcoming title, but we are treated to some classic English literature as Breaking Bad's Esposito reads his son Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book before bed, his story intertwining with the CGI clips highlighting the inner workings of the game. The Revelations actor reads aloud from the book, his chosen extracts seemingly reflecting the 'no man is an island' ethos of the game as he narrates; “The strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack.”

Iron Man director Favreau handled the camera work for the promo

Continue reading: Activision Pull Out The Stops In Live-Action Trailer For 'Destiny' [Video]

The news of Disney's acquisition - the $4.05b purchase of Lucasfilms, and with it the rights to reignite the Star Wars movies, has had a multitude of reactions: terror, gloom and dread from sci-fi aficionados vs. enthusiasm, vigour and delight from people who look set to mature fiscally from the new arrangement. So what do Hollywood's 'creators' think?

Damon Lindleof, Peter Jackson, J.J. Abrams, Joss Whedon, and Jon Favreau are all giants of the sci-fi and fantasy genre, and, as genuine fans of the Star Wars franchise, could all yet have a say on what happens in the universe of Skywalker, Lightsabers and Darth Vader, as the creative forces set to steer Episode 7 in any particular direction are still unannounced. "The idea of another trilogy that further shrouds the Force in mystery as its secrets are lost to time - that's extremely compelling," Favreau said. "I want so bad for it to be good. Can you imagine?" he continued wistfully, deep in the depths of imagination.  "Star Wars literally defined 'the magic of movies' to me as a child. No other film had more impact on my subconscious desire to become a filmmaker," explained George Nolfi - the mind behind The Adjustment Bureau, which wasn't very good. 

Sin City and Machete director Robert Rodriguez seems equally enamoured with the news, according to E! Online: "What an amazing world and legacy George Lucas has created -- and it needs to continue in capable hands," the Texas-based filmmaker said. "I do think Disney is the best studio for the job and the fact that they brought in Kathleen Kennedy? I can't imagine a better scenario. And 2015 can't get here fast enough."

Continue reading: Star Wars Episode 7: Hollywood's Stars Have Their Say