BREAKING NEWS FROM EW.COM – CHRIS WEITZ WILL DIRECT NEW MOON

I look forward to watching his vision and hopefully experiencing a more polished movie.

I wish they would just go ahead and admit it…if it’s actually true that is!

Well we will just see how the movie will turn out. Maybe he can do like Catherine and do alot of interviews and show clips of what to expect.

NNNOOOOo!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE GOLDEN COMPASS SUCKED! GOODNESS PLEASE NO! THIS MOVIE IS GOING TO SUCK! SOMEONE GET RID OF SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT!

NNNOOOOo!!!!!!!!

I really hope he follows the book unlike the golden compass!the golden compass was nothing like the book! Catherine i believe did do a good job at staying true to the book.

I think until I hear it from someplace like Deadline Hollywood Daily, I’m not going to consider it a done deal…and even if/when it is, I’m not going to start wringing my hands. I liked The Golden Compass (I know, I must be in a minority), and even if many other people didn’t, why is everyone so ready to crucify this man based on one movie?

What I am more concerned about is Summit wanting to rush this whole thing, I mean *really* rush it. That’s not giving anyone time to put out a quality product, is it? They’ve set an opening date for a movie they don’t even have a director for. Put the cart before the horse why don’t you?

I still want Catherine, but I am a little at ease now that Summit will make their decision soon. As for the possibility of Weitz directing, I haven’t seen The Golden Compass, but from what I can tell the special effects look good and so I will give him that. We can only hope that he will keep the fans in mind…

I THINK CATHRINE DID A VERY NICE JOB! SHE SHOULD DIRECT NEW MOON AS SHE KNOWS THE STORY WELL AND THE ACTORS! I JUST HOPE THAT WHOEVER COMES NEXT WILL STICK AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE TO THE BOOK AND ARE ABLE TO TRANSMIT AN EXCITING ROMANTIC MOVIE!

I wonder if Summit is stalling because of fan reaction? Come on people, lets thank Catherine, she did a good job on the budjet she had but lets move on! This isnt such a big deal, Potters done great with several directors. Please stop all the hating and embrace the Chris. Imagine what all of our negativity is telling the cast and crew! It’s time to move on and be positive. If he doesnt listen to the fans the way Cathrine did THEN I’ll be the first in line with a tire iron! But I think New Moon and Eclipse need a mans touch. Yes, the story is from Bellas prespective but a mans prespective on how two “in love” guys fight over Bella is going to be interestingly insightful! WELCOME CHRIS FROM THIS TWI-HARD!

I will be at ease when I start seeing some talk from Stephenie (her website), and I start seeing interviews. I’m going to try to remain half-glass full. Although, there is a knot in my stomach. I will try…

I’ve already kicked, cried, & complained throughout every post on this website…
I am TRULY upset Catherine Hardwicke was fired.
But now I have decided to move on with my opinion.

I just hope Stephenie Meyer agrees & disagrees with everything correctly.
We have completely disregarded her decision.
If she had already denied some offers before, I think she will know what’s best for the movie and bring up any problems that arise.

I hope all goes well.
I am waiting for OFFICIAL news.

If it’s true…I hope he sees our vision for New Moon and doesn’t just view it as a cash cow. That’s all we can hope for.

Why should fans be upset? Catherine NOT directing is a done deal. Move on.

And “About a Boy” is one of my favorite movies ever, so whats not to like?

AARGGH!!!

I didn’t mind moving on to a new direcotr- but at least get someone who has a better track record. The Golden Compass was a huge flop- despite the fact that he had a 180million dollar budget, A list actors (dan craig, nicole kidman) and the support of the same studio that brought us lotr (new line!.)

I am very disgruntled by this news. When Harry Potter changed hands to Alfonso Cuaron, he was already a distinguished director and jk rowling already liked his work with A Little Princess. The handoff was also amicable, as Chris Columbus who directed the first two films still served as producer on the third.

The situation with twilight was completely different. I recognize that Catherine made mistakes with twilight, but she still didn’t deserve to be treated so poorly and be labeled ” difficult ” and “irrational.”
Handing over the reins to someone responsible for american pie only makes me even more upset. Has this guy even read the books?

Geez, Rob and Kristen are basically going to have to direct themselves.

Sorry for ranting. Eventually if this comes true I’ll just have to accept it like everyone else.

I’m not as concerned with who directs as I am concerned that Summit is moving too fast trying to get New Moon in the theaters in 2009 – as much as I would love to see it. Some of the news says that Catherine wanted more time to insure a quality script. I think Summie is just trying to capitalize on the fan response for Twilight which, in my opinion, was not as good as it should have been but was extremely successful only because the fans love the BOOKS. If Summit puts out a terribly inferior New Moon, I believe the fans may revolt. I hope Stephanie is heavily involved in the screenplay development and filming to insure the quality of New Moon.

I want to know how much input Stephenie Meyer has for the sequels? Will she be on the set or see the screenplay again to help keep the “peace (and perspective)” of TWI-Hards??

Kerri has a point about the male perspective fighting for a girl. Wasn’t American Pie all about male teenage angst??? (ROFL)

I just seriously hope this guy realizes what he’s getting into.
If he screws this movie up, his head is going to be on the cutting board (or in the more twilightly version, in the path of getting hit by a silver volvo).

It’s good to know that that they are finally making a decision. I just hope he does a good job. I really wish Catherine was directing the movie because I thought she did a pretty good job, but it’s just how things turn out and we have to live with it. I’ve heard that he’s pretty good with special effects, so it will be cool to see how the wolves will turn out. It will also be cool to see a man’s perspective, but i really really really wish catherine was directing new moon. All I have to say is STAY TRUE TO THE BOOK AND PLEASE MAKE SURE TO CONNECT WITH THE ACTORS!!!!!!!

I liked the Golden Compass and i’m actually quite upset that they didn’t continue with the series. But in any event, even if you didn’t like the golden compass cause of the story line, look at the effects in that movie. The effects were awesome, and I personally feel better knowing Chris is going to direct New Moon and not Catherine. After I saw the interview with Catherine and what she wanted to do with new moon I feel relieved that she is being replaced. I also think that with a man directing it, it will turn out better. Look at all the great romantic hits out there, all directed by men. Um The Notebook; written by a man and directed by one. Everyone gave Catherine all this credit for the movie because she’s a women and the amount of money the movie made. But lets be realistic, no one went to watch twilight because of the director. Twilight would have turned out to be blockbuster regardless because of the books. We’re all in love with the story and characters created by Stephenie Meyer. It’s was just Catherine’s luck that she got the opportunity to direct a movie that was already set to be a blockbuster before it even started.

EW is usually pretty accurate with their news but I am going to wait till it is confirmed before I belive this one. One of the American Pie guys? Sorry not for New Moon, thanks. This isn’t Sex Drive 2. Hardwicke should still be helming this ship. She did a wonderful job with the feel of Twilight and without her I worry what New Moon will be like. This isn’t gross out comedy – it’s romance with a fair amount of action involved.

I think that Catherine Hardwicke did the best she could given the budget she had for Twilight. One thing people cannot deny is the fact that she was a true fan of the series and wanted to maintain the essence of the books when translating it to the screen. I hope that Chris Weitz, if he is selected, will be at the helm. The Golden Compass’ special effects could be a plus for him if he takes on New Moon, but I hope that he stays true – Twihards will not embrace him if he changes too many things. I am eager to see what develops!

“has experience with special effects”

…Well, they’ve got me on board now if he’s good with special effects. That is one of my biggest worries with New Moon, so hopefully he isn’t going to screw it up. Thinking positively here, as usual. ^^

The movie will be good, hopefully. maybe even better than twilight

i never read the golden compass but i liked the movie. if weitz can make new moon as visually stunning as the golden compass was to me, then i am sure i will love it. i wasn’t crazy about hardwicke’s directing, so i am looking forward to a fresh pair of eyes.

i do wish they’d fire melissa rosenberg… her screenplay did not do the book justice on twilight.

also, i wish they’d allow more money to go into the production – especially with the special effects needed for the coming films in the twilight series. why are they being so stingy?

i just want this done right. twilight was a disappointment, but i supported it b/c i love the books. if new moon is botched up, then i won’t go see eclipse. i really don’t want the happy escape that is the twilight series to be ruined by shoddy film-making. i’d rather just stick to the books and my own imagine if that’s what is going to happen.

Bring him on…I look forward to him saving the franchise (at least, let’s hope he does MUCH better anyway….) Hardwicke was not one I was thrilled with in the least from the beginning. Her and the screenwriter needed to stick with the theme of the book, instead of skimming the realtionship and going heavy on forshadowing the end…they went more for action, less for relationship…ugh. Now, someone replace the screenwriter too!

And PLEASE, keep the non-book junk out of the movie! The scenes in “Twiight” that were not even in the book were are waste of time that could have gone to scenes filmed that were actually IN the book!

I am glad they got a new director. ( I don’t want hate mail). Here’s why. When reading the book you can imagine the scenes being precise. Especially the scenes of Edward using his Vampire skills. The scene’s like when he’s running up the path with Bella look a little fake. Hopefully he’s better with the special effects.

Well if Chris Weitz is going to be the director then lets welcome him to Twilight and support the film…maybe instead of argue lets start giving comments about what we think the movie should be like and chapters of the book that are important…let talk about this things so our new director (whoever it will be) can touch the pulse of us the fans…

we can’t let Catherine’s departure bring us down you guys lets go speed ahead and make the best of it

Kerri-you make a good point I had not thought of. Getting a man’s perspective on Edward and Jacob’s fight for Bella could be interesting. While I am sad to see CH go-I loved the movie-and am worried about a man staying true to the book-I will still support the cast and New Moon. Everybody’s so passionate about these characters because we care-that’s why we get so upset-doesn’t mean we won’t support New Moon. I didn’t want a new director because CH stayed true to the book and I didn’t want the cast changed-none of them. We’ll just have to wait and see how this all plays out.

NOOOOOOOOOOOO I HOPR THIS IS NOT TRUE THE ONLY MOVIE THAT I KNOW HE DERICTED WAS THE COMPASS AND IT WAS A BOMB OF A MOVIE IT SUCKED I ALSO DO NOT WANT A GUY TO DO IT I HOPE IT IS NOT TRUE BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE IT IS I HOPE IT DOES NOT RUIN THE MOVIE. I HOPE HE CAN PULL IT OFF. IF NOT HE WILL HAVE TWILIGHTERS AT HIS DOOR LOL
GRRRRRR I AM MAD OK I AM DONE VENTING NOW

Is anyone else angry that the suits treated CH like garbage in order to hire a male director, WHO THEYRE FRIENDS WITH AND IS “EASYGOING” (in other words, will do what Summitt wants)??????? Is anyone else disgusted that we have given this studio MILLIONS OF OUR HARD-EARNED DOLLARS, and they are giving us another low-mid budget movie???? How could anyone be excited that the next Twilight Saga movie is going to be directed by a guy who’s best known for screwing up The Golden Compass? And reports are, as I suspected, that Rob and Kristen are not happy with this. We can all guess Nikki is not happy either. Dont you think that may affect their performances and their willingness to sign on for Breaking Dawn?

I thought Golden Compass was a good film and I am not horribly upset about the replacement. Twilight had some problems, and not just budget. I am hopeful that he will do a good job.

To be honest, I’d rather we changed production houses. I don’t really like the way Summit have behaved at all. Is there no loyalty? Catherine Hardwicke turned out a great movie in just a few months on a shoestring budget that’s lifted Summit’s profile immeasurably, and what does she get for that?

“Oh, you’re too ‘difficult’, we don’t want you involved with the sequels.” I rather think she was difficult because Summit kept changing the release date and reducing the amount of post-production time she had. I mean, they were still filming extra scenes in July and August and the movie was released November 17th! That seems an extraordinarily short post-production time.

As for Chris Weitz, Golden Compass looked good but the direction was very ordinary. So I hope he’s lifted his game in the last year or so because I’d hate New Moon to wind up like that.

As for Summit – just make an announcement already. Even if it’s a definate maybe, and put everyone out of there misery. Then get on with pre-production for New Moon and Eclipse

I have been worried about this next film every since I heard they wanted to rush it for 2009 and immediately film Eclipse after that. Number one, sensory overload folks. We love the series but a new movie each year? Can they not learn something from George Lucas or the company that does the Harry Potter? Which told me all Summit Ent. was worried about was the almighty dollar. It’s one thing to know a company needs to make money but another to do it at the cost of the movie. And the fans that love it. Then I heard Catherine was having time table issues and now she’s out. Again, I fear for this movie that we love and are so passionate about.
Does anyone remember the Interview with the Vampire series? Well, Interview was awesome. But the Vampire Lestate and Queen of the Damned were horrible. They changed directors, changed actors and made it so cheesy you couldn’t watch it without getting sick. That is my fear for the Twilight series of movies. I want so bad to be wrong. And we won’t know for awhile. But I feel there’s so much turmoil within that series that how can the actors concentrate hearing all the negative buzz. They had a relationship with Catherine and she was passionate about this series.
Again, I hope I’m wrong but it sure has burst my bubble with all this news. I feel very defeated with a movie/books I love.

First of all I’m not going to write in all caps locks or use explanation points

I have my doubts but we all don’t know if he will do a bad job. I mean I know it’s not confirmed but if it is true I’m not going to worry about that….. What I worry about is the budget. 50 million isn’t enough to get this film made the way we want it. Then again if they hire Chris if he needed more money to fulfill this movie he could probably get it (since he’s such buddies with Summit)

I totally agree with jazall… Twilight should move to a different production house. the way Summit is handling this is completely unprofessional. They need to stop worrying about money and worry about what us fans think. Did they not see it in the fans reviews of the movie? Half of the reviews on yahoo we’re negative and the only reason it got a b+ was because all the tweeners who know nothing about movies rated it with an A+

Summit I suggest you quit while you’re ahead. That means if you want to get the most profits you need to spend more money and time to complete this film. If critics give the next movie a better grade more people who are not devoted fans will wonder why everyone thinks this is a good movie and will see it. Let’s face it there were a lot of people for Twilight that had heard nothing about the series until the trailer came out. And they were first introduced to Twilight when they first saw the movie. And well a lot of non fans didn’t understand it at all. what was all the hype about? Why is it so dramatic? Why is it so cheesy? What the hell kind of effects were those? there making another one after this? I’m not going to see it, this movie was enough for me (and yes I heard a lot of these comments when I walked out of the theater)

Summit Entertainment you need to get things straight before you lose a good thing for your company, your investors, and your REPUTATION as a film company.

I really have to say that I am not excited. You should go look at his track record for directing on the IMDB as he really doesn’t have much of anything, oh yeah, the golden compass failure! He is only getting the job because he is friends with Summit big/wigs and because he will be the puppet, obeying the puppet master! I don’t know if he has read the books or cares about them. I am fearful to see what will be on the big screen for our New Moon. I guess I will watch closely all the news blogs and if it doesn’t improve, I will not be excited for the next chapter. I guess we should be writing letters to Chris Weitz so he is aware of the obsession we all have with this series!

I am hopeful for this new director. He has DOUBLE the experience Catherine Hardwicke has even though he has only done a few ‘well known’ films. The Golden Compass was a brilliantly done film and was widely appraised outside the US- how anyone can think the beauty of it was poorly done is beyond me.

Please spare me the ‘it was nothing like the book’ bits. If you have seen Twilight and have read the book you will understand how useless that argument is in reality. (just for those who don’t get it: many changes were made from ‘Twilight the book’ to ‘Twilight the movie’, if you hadn’t noticed)

Angelina: I am sorry you feel that way about the producers…the bottom line for them is MONEY. NOT fans. They probably looked at the popularity of this series and knew right away how much money they could make. The only thing I think they were wrong with was how much they greenlit the budget for. The first movie should have easily had a $50M budget. New Moon should easily have a $75M budget.

Acacia: I hope you are wrong. I agree they didn’t spend enough with Twilight to make it what it could have been. But I think they are headed in the right direction now knowing what the possibilities are. Unfortunately, New Moon isn’t the strongest book out of the 4.

Chrisy said: ‘When reading the book you can imagine the scenes being precise. Especially the scenes of Edward using his Vampire skills. The scene’s like when he’s running up the path with Bella look a little fake. Hopefully he’s better with the special effects’- Ummm, yeah. I’m pretty sure Weitz will know (and recognize) using CGI is essential to making this film (and the others) work UNLIKE Hardwicke! That means scenes like Edward carrying Bella on his back won’t look so stupid in the future. It’s a good thing.

To the majority of you: eh, get over it. It’s a film. We are lucky that Twilight was made to begin with. Stay positive and stop being so naive when it comes to the moving on of execs. It happens everywhere and most people do just fine.

New Moon and Eclipse will be brilliant, I am sure. Try not to put Queen Catherine on a throne just yet.

I’ve been told Hollywood really values collaboration — I think it would be awesome if the new director confers with Stephenie, the cast and even — shocker — Hardwicke. A good director should be able to listen to a number of viewpoints and pull out the best ideas from each. Together we are all smarter than any one of us alone is.

The worst book adaptations I’ve seen (Jane Eyre with John Hurt) came from people who didn’t seem to understand what made the book great, what the true essence of it was. It’s unfortunate that Weitz (or whomever) won’t have much time to spend getting to know the book, but hopefully he’ll do some fast reading — and listen.

Ugh.

Just ugh.

I’ll reserve judgement until the movie actually comes out, but UGH pretty much describes how I’m feeling right now.

I understand some unrest about hiring a new director because most people who had read the books were satisfied with the movie that was produced. I have seen it twice and totally enjoyed it both times. But I am a huge fan of the series. If I wasn’t, I’m not sure that I would enjoyed it as much. And I would not have seen it a second time.

A new director could make the story flow better. There is a huge section of the book which if treated exactly like the book was written would leave many die-hard fans disappointed. If you have a 120 minute movie and Edward is only on screen for about 25 minutes and the rest of it is Bella being depressed hanging out with Jacob scene after scene, it would be a boring movie. Sometimes what translates well in print does not have the same impact on the screen. Maybe a new director who is not as emotionally attached to the stories can make good movie making decisions.

As far as the studio wanting to get these movies out quickly – they really only have a limited time because the actors will age and will start showing their age on screen (RP is 22 – he probably only has about 4-5 years before he will not pass for an older teenager) and they only have till the next big book series comes along. The Harry Potter movies started while she was still writing the books so there was always something to keep you interested. All 4 books in this series were published prior to the movies coming out. If another big series hits between now and when the 2nd or 3rd movies come out, they may not have as much interest. So if we want to see this franchise continue, the studio has to continue making money which means striking while the iron is hot. Because they will not make movies which they know they can’t make back money on.

I liked Golden Compass, but I never read the book so I wasn’t disappointed by the bad adaptation everyone complained about. I did see american pie and didn’t like it. My two concerns with Chris would be, can he pull off decent effects with the crappy budget Summit is giving him and will he ruin the romance of the story by putting in unnecessary scenes in.

I agree Twilightmom: New Moon should easily have a budget of $75 million. That was one of the concerns I stressed when I wrote my letter, because honestly that’s my BIGGEST concern.

I also think that the whole thing of they should switch production houses-let’s face it-it’s NOT going to happen. They have the rights to the whole saga minus Breaking Dawn just, yet, supossedly they’re closing in on the rights for that one as well. PLUS, if you remember, it took a lot of convincing for Stephenie to give the rights to Summit, because of her past experience with Paramount and them REALLY butchering the book. In that sense, Catherine saved the Twilight because the first script she was given was the one for Paramount and it had the first scene with Bella and James in a diner, and Bella was a track star, etc. OME! She had every right to panic! So for her to sell the rights to someone else…yea like I said not going to happen. Let’s hope that they realize how the fans feel and they will continue having Stephenie in tabs. Which I’m sure they will considering they don’t want to have her reconsider giving the rights to them and ruin everything. “Glass half-full” people, come on.

Only movie from Chris Weitz I’ve seen was the Golden Compass, it was OK. Really didn’t follow the books though. I’m a tad nervous, but that’s probably because I don’t really feel like I know Chris Weitz as well as I “know” Catherine.
One thing I do think Chris Weitz did really well in the Golden Compass, was the CGI effects. I don’t know if a director has much control over that, since I’m not really a movie guru.. But it would be nice if he did have some control, because there *will* be CGI in New Moon.
Wow. I really didn’t mean to say that much. But I guess we just kind of have to hope that everything turns out okay, :]

Oh, I have one more thing to say. Kind of off topic, but sort of on topic. I think they kind of HAVE to rush (at least filming) because the actors that play vampires (Rob, Ashley, Peter, Kellan etc.) are going to get older and that could be problem.

That’s just my two cents,

^_^ I for one am excited. The direction in “The Golden Compass” was well done. I never read the book and still was able to appreciate the great job done in production and post production.
Its not up to the director to “stick with the book”. Its the screenwriters job to condense it, alter it, and to fit 120 minutes. You should write to Melissa Rosenberg with comments about that.

The script is already done. Melissa was finishing up with it before the premiere, that’s what bothers me. I was disappointed that most of the wonderful dialogue between Edward and Bella had been cut out including “the meadow” which was so important for people to understand the magnitude of their relationship. So what has Melissa AXED in New Moon? I didn’t read or see “Golden Compass”, I don’t think it’s smart to put an inexperienced director in the drivers seat of a sequel based on nepotism – Oh Yeah, I went there!!!!

There have been several directors of the Harry Potter films (Cuaron being my personal favorite). As long as respect for the spirit of the books is maintained, I think Chris Weitz will do a fine job. If you haven’t seen About A Boy (based on Nick Hornby’s novel) see it. Then listen to his and his brother’s commentary on the DVD. These are a couple of erudite, intelligent men. Never seen an American Pie flick–never intend to as it’s not my kind of humor, but Weitz has proven himself a versatile director, and I’m hoping he’ll be better at action than Hardwicke was.

Some people didn’t like what Catherine products in Twilight. I personally like the movie, of course there are certain scenes that were deleted that were in the book. However, Catherine has the passion and the love to create Twilight. I hope that Mr. Weltz has the passion and love that’s in New Moon to make it better than Twilight. As Edward and Bella’s love progress as it will in New Moon when Edward returns. Edward & Bella’s love is stronger in New Moon and I hope the director can show this on screen. As the story progresses in Eclipse and where it meets the highlight of their love story in Breaking Dawn. This saga can be one fantastic piece of work with the right director bringing it to life. As for Golden Compass, it was a flop.

I think if the right people keep their thumb on top of Weitz he won’t screw New Moon up. I feel like he has the potential to make New Moon really great. I say let’s give the guy a chance. The Golden Compass wasn’t terrible, but I’ve never read those books. I thought it was a good movie and the CGI effects were really good. My main concern at this point is that they do NOT replace Taylor Lautner.

I can’t help but be worried about the new director (even though his letter at the Stepheniemeyer website was somewhat comforting). I did like “About the Boy” as many of you have; however, as I recall, I attempted to watch “Golden Compass” twice, and could not finish it – it never held my interest. Similar to New Moon, “Golden Compass” had more computer graphics than “About the Boy.” Hence, my apprehension…

I’m going to have faith!