Crowds in India are, apparently, going wild over the new Karate Kid movie, starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan and produced by Will Smith.
As Kercy Daruwala, managing director at Sony Pictures, said, “We are expecting the numbers to go up in the coming week following positive word-of- mouth publicity. Many shows drew full houses during the weekend.”
Bollywood loves Jackie Chan, and, according to the article, this is the highest grossing Jackie Chan movie in India to date.
Jay-Z, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith can certainly be proud of their latest accomplishment. Their musical FELA! just received three Tony Awards on Sunday, June 13th, 2010 for Best Choreography, Best Sound Design of a Musical and Best Costume Design of a Musical. The musical was labeled as “the most original play on Broadway.”
FELA! was nominated, in total, in 11 categories including Best Musical. The music from the musical was recognized, as well, for giving the musical “a good vibe that helped to tell the story of Kuti.
Pictured here, at the awards ceremony, are Beyonce, Jay-Z, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith.
Here is a picture of FELA! producers Jay-Z, Beyonce and Will Smith and Jada Pickett Smith at the post-theater reception honoring the Broadway show ‘FELA!’ The reception took place at The Palm West on May 20,2010.
In recent very exciting news for FELA!, the show was nominated for an amazing 11 Tony Awards when the awards were announced on May 4th. The production has received rave reviews since it opened on November 23, 2009, after also enjoying a brief run off-Broadway in 2008.
Two of the Producers of Karate Kid Movie
One of the producers of the upcoming Karate Kid movie, out on June 11, 2010, was James Lassiter. Lassiter – apart from being a movie producer and having connections with the Karate Kid – has also actually been doing business with Will Smith for many years. Will Smith and his family have big involvements in the new movie. Firstly, it is his son Jaden Smith who plays the leading role of the karate kid in the movie. Second, Smith and Lassiter work together as two of the producers.
When rehearsals for the New York show about revered African world music star Fela Kuti halted due to financial concerns in September of 2009, Jay-Z, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith stepped in to save the show.
Fela! opened on Broadway in November, 2009. Now, Fela! is preparing to move to the much sought after National Theatre in London for approximately 60 performances from November 2010 through January 2011.
With great excitement, the lead producer of Fela!, Stephen Handel, says, “In the theatre world it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience to have your production honored on the National Theatre stage.” And he hopes that Jay-Z, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith and Beyonce will be there in London for opening night.
Read the entire article for more details.
Will Smith Co-Producer of Fela
Jay-Z, Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith have officially signed on as co-producers of “Fela!,” a musical about Nigerian Afrobeat pioneer Fela Anikulapo-Kuti that opens Monday (November 23) on Broadway.
Click here to view original article: http://www.reuters.com/article/musicNews/idUSTRE5AH0O920091118
Will Smith
A report surfaced this week that Will Smith is remaking the tearjerker Flowers for Algernon. Smith would star in the film and produce via his Overbrook Entertainment banner. There have been other adaptations, but the most famous one hails from 1968 and starred Cliff Robertson, who won the Oscar for playing Charly, a mentally challenged man who is a human test subject for a procedure that ups the intelligence quotient. The Algernon of the title is a lab mouse who also undergoes the surgery. When Charly learns the truth behind the experiment, the tissues come out big-time.
Click here to view original article: http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/movies/news/n23117.htm
Will Smith and Son Jaden Smith
Will Smith and his son Jaden are on location in China, filming the remake of the Karate Kid. While Smith is producing, his son Jaden, is receiving expert training from the one and only Jackie Chan. Last time Will and Jaden teamed up for The Pursuit of Happyness, the movie grossed a total worldwide box office of $304,286,036. Should be interesting to see what kind of “punch” this team can deliver once again.
Here is the original article: