MOVIE DEVELOPMENT:
April 2005 - November 2006

The following is a detailed summary of movie news and speculation that was
reported from April 2005 to November 2006, just before the title was announced.

All news is accompanied by the name of the media source, and links to original articles.
Click here to return to my main Australia page.

3 November 2006

Source: ABC News Online, Luhrmann issues 'cattle call' for feature film
Film director Baz Luhrmann says he is searching for almost 1,000 cattle for his upcoming period epic to be shot in Western Australia's far north. It has been confirmed that scenes from the film starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman will be shot on pastoral land near Kununurra, after the Western Australian Government chipped in $500,000 to the project. The director says the funds were instrumental in his decision to shoot scenes, including a major cattle drive, in the east Kimberley. Mr Luhrmann says he is not just looking for any cattle. "Actually we need period cattle so we need short-horns," he said. "They can be a short-horn cross, red, sometimes a bit pie-bald, basically that look. So if you have a sensational, very attractive short-horn, we are doing cattle calls, pardon the rather lame pun."

2 November 2006

Source: WA Business News, Nicole Kidman lured to WA by state's $500k sweetener
Film director Baz Luhrmann will bring around $4 million to Western Australia after the director agreed to film part of his next movie, a war-time epic starring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman, near Kununurra for about one month. The State Government has committed $500,000 to secure the project for Western Australia. The full text of an announcement from the Premier's office is pasted below.

The State Government has successfully concluded negotiations to secure the filming of Baz Luhrmann's next feature film in Western Australia. Premier Alan Carpenter said the State Government had lobbied hard to lure the film to WA, committing $500,000 to the project to secure filming for at least a month in the Kimberley. The as yet untitled film will star Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman and will be directed by one of Australia's most successful filmmakers, Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge, Romeo and Juliet, Strictly Ballroom). The film is an historic epic set around the bombing of Darwin in the Second World War. "This is fantastic news for WA," Mr Carpenter said. "It is a massive boost to our screen industry and will showcase the stunning Kimberley region to the world."

Mr Luhrmann today said the feature film would start shooting in March 2007 and was planned to film around the unique Kununurra region in July 2007. "We had a choice - to recreate this section of the film in studio or in another State or to capture the real thing on film," he said. Mr Luhrmann said filming on location was preferable to shooting in a studio but the cost of filming outside a metropolitan area could be prohibitively high. "The WA Government' s financial contribution was instrumental in my decision to shoot these scenes around Kununurra," he said.

Culture and Arts Minister Sheila McHale said financial returns to the State were estimated at $4 million. "More than 200 cast and crew will live and work in the area for a month, with accommodation alone expected to total more than $325,000 per week," Ms McHale said. "Apart from the direct financial gains, there will be many flow-on benefits from such a major film production shooting on location; those benefits will also extend to Aboriginal people. "This project will provide once-in-a-lifetime employment opportunities for locals and may spur some to start a career in WA's thriving screen industry. "I am also thrilled the film will bring back to WA two of Australia's finest actors, Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman, who spent time here during their early careers." The Minister said the project would showcase WA as a tourism destination. "WA's unique North will be transformed into a film starring some of Australia's best talent and broadcast internationally," she said."

31 October 2006

Source: ABC Radio National - Podcast - Audio Interview with Fran Kelly and Baz Luhrmann

Fran - "Baz Luhrmann is one of Australia's most distinct and best known filmmakers. His credits include Moulin Rouge, Romeo + Juliet and of course Strictly Ballroom. He's now in pre-production for his next film. It's a sweeping romance set in northern Australia prior to World War 2 and it will star Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. I spoke with Baz Luhrmann from Kununurra yesterday."

Baz - "It's a sweeping romance that is set in a far away time - it's far away now - which was just before the war. It's from '38 right through to the bombing of Darwin. But the sweep and the breadth of the story means the sweep and breadth of the emotions. It's not naturalism, you know, it's not a documentary, and in fact the world in which we've set the story is factual, but I've taken those facts and I've made a world that is full of emotion. So it's about, I guess, the size and scale of the story telling."

Fran - "Does this untitled Australian Epic have a title yet?"

Baz - "You know, Fran, I'm going to have a title in exactly two weeks otherwise people are going to kill me."

Fran - "So, you can't give us a clue here on what it is?"

Baz - "No, actually, it's about the progress of it. I've been working on the script for many years now and to me, the naming of something, it names itself, and I'm very close to that moment. But in the next couple of weeks I'm going to commit."

Fran - "What about - you've given us the broad sweep, as you say - what about the storyline, can you fill it in a bit more for us?"

Baz - "Yeah, it's very simple really. It's a classical story and you will recognise a lot of classic story telling in it. But simply, it's an English, aristocratic woman (I wonder who might play that character?) and she's in England, you know, and she's - they land a gentry - her and her husband - but no cash. So her husband is out in Australia selling - he went out there to sell his cattle property the size of Belgium. She thinks he's out there having an affair so she goes out to sort of bust him. And when she gets out there, the property's in the north of Australia, so she's got to journey out there with a sort of rough, hewn drover (I wonder who that character might be - who might play that role?) And they sort of go on and 'African Queen' journey out to the station. They get out there and I won't tell you the surprise of it. But ultimately, she finds herself inheriting that cattle station and to save it, she and the Hugh Jackman character have got to undertake an epic cattle drive to Darwin to save it, and of course on that journey she falls in love with the landscape and the primary character. Now what brings them together though is this child. And there's an Aboriginal boy between the ages of, say, 8 and 10, and he's a very very primary character. And in fact, right at the moment, that's my biggest focus. We are looking all over Australia for this young indigenous actor. And we've seen some great boys so far, so we've got great possibilities, and in the next couple of weeks, I'm going to be doing some special workshops with groups of boys to try and find this young actor."

Fran - "You've mentioned that you've been up in the northern part of Australia, spent some time up there. Have you spent a lot of time there, and how important has that been to you developing the story?"

Baz - "Well, Fran, that's a really good question, because, you see, George Lucas, who I know well, and who made, of course, Star Wars, said to me 'Gee, you're doing a big outdoor epic. You don't have to leave the studios in Sydney', because of course he shoots Star Wars and he never leaves the sound stages. And that's the way most films are made these days. But I really want this to have that feel - like a Laurence of Arabia. I want the audience to really feel that they are in this magnificent landscape that we have. So to do that I've been quietly coming and going all over Australia, but particularly up here in the north where it's set, particularly in the Kimberley. And living here, with my team, feeling what it's like, getting to know the people, finding the story, the best way to tell it. And of course the big challenge is how to actually be here. I've got to say, in the next couple of weeks we're going to make decisions about how much we could shoot here, and how much we shoot in other parts of Australia, and that's all about the sort of help and support we're getting, you know."

Fran - "To date, your films, in collaboration with Catherine Martin, have set trends, I think it's fair to say, particularly with your production values. The music, the costumes, the editing. Can we expect that rich, unique texture that I think people have come to expect from your films in a movie shot in the Australian outback?"

Baz - "Actually, what I will say is this. Those three films we made were specifically evolved along a philosophy. And that philosophy was about reinventing the musical formula, if you like, theatrical cinema. This kind of cinematic story we're telling also has a pedigree, it has a sort of DNA, if you like, it comes from somewhere, it comes from - and I've got to be careful, because I'm not pretending for a second that this is going to be Gone With the Wind or going to be Laurence of Arabia - but those films that were made from the 30's through to the 50's that told big emotional stories - big emotions, not naturalism, operatic emotions, but use landscape to tell them - they belong to that period. So, that's the starting point, but of course it's not good enough just to copy that style. And so, I am taking that as a starting point and finding our own very particular way of using camera, of interpreting landscape, of telling story, so that it has some of those classic values, but it also has some newly invented values about it."

Fran - "These are big names, big themes, big moments in history that you're drawing on here. Are you nervous about trying to wrestle them all into one movie and do them justice?"

Baz - "Yes."

I mean, to me, that would be a terrifying...

Fran - "Yes, that's terrifying. But I mean, in a way, I guess it is Fran. I mean, there are films that are about D-Day, or they're about Pearl Harbour. And in a film like Gone With the Wind, which is really about Rhett and Scarlet, it is set in the world of the fading south. It makes use of and it very much relates to the world where slavery has been abolished and you have got the civil war. So what I'm saying is that yes - I don't know about being terrifying, but the challenge of it is enormous. But the particular kind of film we're making is about utilising that world and those facts so that it amplifies the human condition. Ultimately, this isn't a documentary about exactly what happened on a certain date. What this is about, if it documents anything, it's documenting the human condition."

Fran - "And what about music? Your films so far have all had big soundtracks and they've been big sellers in themselves. Is there a blockbuster soundtrack for this one?"

Baz - "No, I never... I was just doing the DVD for Romeo + Juliet, in fact it's a music edition, coming soon, and it had one of the biggest albums of all time, like 8 million copies or something. But I never really set out to make a hit album. I simply set out to tell the story through music. And in fact, when I presented this ecliptic grab bag of music, record companies did not want it. They said this is not a soundtrack album, it's too European, it's not American enough. It went on to have it's own life. But the film didn't use the music on top. Music was used to tell story. Music will be used to tell story with this epic. It's interesting at the moment, we're doing huge research on it. In fact, there's an actual unique sound that was happening at the time of this film here, which is, as I'm getting into it, which is fresh and alive and unique and belongs to Australia. And it's just going to be in the film because it tells a good story. Whether it sells records or not, that's another issue."

Fran - "So, it's music from the time?"

Baz - "Yes, it's music from the time. I mean, it's really exciting because you had all of the pearlers up here at the time, I mean you had the Japanese pearlers, and there's kind of a mixture between folk and country and sort of Hawaiian, actually. And they were watching movies all the time. They were in the outdoor cinemas in the film. They're obsessed with watching westerns and musicals and there's a big influence coming from Hollywood at the time and you can't ignore those things."

Fran - "I feel another soundtrack coming on."

Baz - "Fingers crossed!"

Fran - "Baz Luhrmann, just finally, when will you start shooting?"

Baz - "Actually, as I speak to you now, I'm in Kununurra, the whole team is at Fox Studios in Sydney, we're in pre production. And it's a little bit based on the weather, the actual start date, but no later than the beginning of March."

Fran - "It's all about the landscape. Baz Luhrmann, thank you very much for joining us on Breakfast and good luck with it."

Baz - "Great to talk, Fran. Bye."

Fran - "Filmmaker Baz Luhrmann. I can't wait for that soundtrack. Hawaiian meets country meets 50's rock and roll. Fantastic! And, for any young budding Aboriginal actors out there, if you're interested in trying out for Baz's film, and you'll be starring alongside Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, you can call the casting agency on 02 9699 1377."

22 October 2006

Source: Edmonton Sun, Jackman: Life Beyond X-Men
"He's equally undaunted replacing Russell Crowe in the long-anticipated $100-million US Luhrmann film. (Being second choice has paid off for Jackman in the past - he was cast as Wolverine only after Dougray Scott was forced to drop out.) "It's going to be a watershed movie for Australia. They've never had a movie bigger than $25 million or $30 million," he says, comparing it to Lawrence of Arabia and Out of Africa. "It's an international epic and a love story, but (it's a personal project, too) because we're doing it in Australia, with Australian actors and an Australian crew and it's an Australian story. That's never been done before." 

20 October 2006

Source: Daily Mail, Who's the Perfect Daddy, Russell?
"I'm not interested in being the parent that's always away. I'm not interested in being that sort of dad. I want to be present all the time," Russell told me. Those work-family thoughts were going through his mind when he decided to withdraw from the epic film everyone thought he was going to make with Baz Luhrmann, co-starring Nicole Kidman as his leading lady. "I can't get into a gig that's going to go on and on and on. You can't make other plans. The last movie he shot took 16 months," said Russell, insisting that he and Luhrmann remain good pals and will work together again. Then there's the dosh factor. Russell observed that the as-yet-untitled Luhrmann picture (it shoots early in the New Year, and will now star Hugh Jackman) has a big budget, but everyone reduced their price, so more money could be spent on other aspects of the film. "Everyone has to take a hit, I understand that. But I didn't understand why my hit had to be bigger than everybody else's," he said."

17 October 2006

Source: Dark Horizons, Interview: Hugh Jackman
"The actor says he is looking forward to working more extensively with Kidman on the new "Luhrmann film with her and not be penguins will be nice." The Australian epic starts filming on March 26, Jackman confirmed, on location in Sydney, Darwin, and Bowen, near the Barrier Reef. Already compared to the likes of Out of Africa, Jackman laughingly describes the untitled Aussie film as "a combination of Out of Africa, Gone with the Wind, Lawrence of Arabia -- that kind of world, a romantic adventure epic with me and Nicole."

15 October 2006

Source: ctnow.com, Hugh Jackman's Juggling Act
"It's sort of been a little bit of a hallmark of my career," he says. "I always presume that I'm not the first one to be asked and I don't really care in a way. It's like saying other people have played Hamlet before. I feel like I'm the right guy for the role. I wouldn't go for it otherwise. I feel like I can put my stamp on it. It's a watershed movie for Australia and, honestly, the role of a lifetime for me."

29 September 2006

Source: IESB.net, IESB's Candid Interview With Fox Chairman Tom Rothman
IESB: What is going on with the Baz Luhrman film?
TR: It's moving forward, it's gonna go in February or March in Australia with Baz, Nicole [Kidman] and Hugh Jackman. So it's an epic picture, doesn't have a title right now, and it's Baz really moving into a new genre, very sweeping but naturalistic.

IESB: How soon before we start hearing about some new casting announcements?
TR: I don't know probably not until after the first of the year. There are a lot of very interesting secondary parts, a lot of really cool character parts but, the heart of the movie is Nicole and Hugh. It's African Queen or Giant or Out of Africa, the story centers on the adventure and romance between the two of them.

25 September 2006

Source: The West Australian, Jackman makes his first flick for kids
"Jackman has now begun preparing for Baz Luhrmann's untitled Australian epic, which goes into production in February. Jackman and his fellow castmates, including Nicole Kidman, will take part in a production workshop in Sydney in December. "I have just been in doing fittings for hats and boots, so we are definitely on the go," said Jackman. He said he'd taken some horse riding tips from fellow actor Tom Burlinson, who starred in 1982's The Man From Snowy River. "I am starting my horse riding stuff," said Jackman, who first learnt to ride a horse for Kate And Leopold, with Meg Ryan. "I am going in for the long haul, mate. I don't want any (stunt) doubles. I am fairly confident on a horse but this is droving, it's another level."

16 September 2006

Source: Sydney Morning Herald, Style mistress puts epic designs on the table
Inside the fortress-like walls of film designer Catherine Martin and director husband Baz Luhrmann's $10 million Darlinghurst mansion Iona, conversation goes in a flash from can can skirts and baby vomit to cattle breeds and the outback.

Martin and Luhrmann are in pre-production of their epic $100 million yet-to-be-titled film, an outback romance about a cattle farmer (Hugh Jackman) and a wealthy woman who inherits a cattle station (Nicole Kidman) in the years leading up to the World War II bombing of Darwin.

"Budget-wise, logistically and in terms of the story, this film is a hundred times more ambitious than Moulin Rouge. It will be completely different in style … There will be a more naturalistic element to it … no singing and dancing … Well, not yet at least. It will definitely have Baz's thumbprint on it but it is an epic in the tradition of epics," Martin said.

Next Tuesday at a Nokia dinner party to launch a new phone, Martin, who created the look of Moulin Rouge, Strictly Ballroom and Romeo+Juliet, will unveil the first clue as to how the new film will look, by designing a special table inspired by the film.

"There is a very loose association between the film and the table. It will be inspired by the outback … And yes it will hopefully be glamorous on the night, but at the moment it's a bit more outback than glamour," Martin said. "It also times in well with a range of homewares I'm working on which will hopefully launch next year."

For years Martin chose to let husband Baz bask in the spotlight. Then she won an Oscar for Moulin Rouge, soon followed by a Tony for her work designing Luhrmann's version of La Boheme for Broadway. These days even her closest friends, such as Lachlan and Sarah Murdoch, Collette Dinnigan and Kidman, are public figures. Martin admits she has learnt to become friends with fame, or as she describes it, "the devil".

Martin says having "fabulous" child care and a studio below her home makes it possible for her to combine full-time work and motherhood. "We have two small children (daughter Lilly, 3, and six-month-old son William) and sometimes it's so frantic my eyes are popping out … I could be arguing about something ludicrous with a three-year-old, taking the kids to swimming lessons and be thinking about a colour for a costume all at once. "Having children has given me a better taste for work … They make me try harder."

10 September 2006

Source: The Scotsman, A New York Symphony
"How different from his working relationship with Luhrmann, who is coming to Glasgow this week to discuss a new project with Armstrong. The flamboyant director always travels to Glasgow when the duo are working on a film together, peering over Armstrong's shoulder while he works so that the composer eventually has to order him to go and do circuits of Kelvingrove Park."

19 August 2006

Source: The Australian, Baz's epic 'a joy' for novelist
Tasmanian novelist Richard Flanagan is the latest, and possibly last, screenwriter to collaborate on Baz Luhrmann's untitled Australian epic.

Twentieth Century Fox and Bazmark Film announced that the author of Gould's Book of Fish and The Sound of One Hand Clapping, is working on the final draft of the romantic historical epic starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

Flanagan joins Luhrmann's other collaborators, Collateral's Stuart Beattie and The Pianist's Ron Harwood on the project.

Luhrmann and Flanagan have recently consulted in northern Australia.

"I've wanted to work with Richard Flanagan for a long time, and apart from his tremendous story-telling skills, he has an extraordinary ability to illuminate character through his gift of language, description and Australian vernacular," Luhrmann said.

Flanagan's happy too. "It's a great joy working with someone of Baz's talent," he said. "We share a passion for this land and its people, and I think our time in the remote north, meeting its people and hearing their stories, has helped in laying the basis for a uniquely Australian movie that may just charm the world."

The film, set in the years leading up to World War II in the Top End, will begin shooting early next year. The epic begins in the mid-1930s and concludes with the February 1942 Japanese bombing of Darwin and the exodus south, known as the Adelaide River Stakes.

Flanagan's next novel, The Unknown Terrorist, will be published later this year.

16 July 2006

Source: Sydney Morning Herald, Corn of a new era, says Baz
Living up to his reputation as one of our most flamboyant, creative film directors, Baz Luhrmann has revealed the mantra behind his new romantic film epic: "The world needs corny."

Luhrmann, who will direct a sweeping romance starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, has obviously decided filmgoers need a good old-fashioned love story on the big screen.

A Sun-Herald operative spotted Luhrmann at the East Village pub in Darlinghurst last week, where he was waxing enthusiastically to a companion about his big-budget project. During the conversation with his industry colleague, Luhrmann used the "world needs corny" line as a selling point for his new movie.

The director was obviously trying to convince his pub buddy to come on board the project behind the scenes, saying most of the filming would take place on a cattle station owned by an indigenous community in the Northern Territory. He said cast and crew would be living in contained quarters on site.

The pair had a low-key chat about the creative fall-out between Luhrmann and actor Russell Crowe, who was removed from the film, but Luhrmann seemed in good spirits nonetheless, at one stage cheerfully declaring "time for another g and t".

The director, who looked suave and relaxed during preparations for Kidman's wedding earlier this month, is back in peak creative form - spilling out ideas and visions for his sweeping epic film.

For the project, Luhrmann is expected to continue his extraordinary creative partnership with his wife, Catherine Martin, who won an Oscar for her work on Moulin Rouge!. The dynamic Sydney-based pair have two young children, Lillian and William.

Although an official filming date is yet to be announced - as is the title of the film - Kidman and Jackman have cleared their schedules for later this year, with both stars expected to spend at least six weeks filming in the Northern Territory.

6 July 2006

Source: TVNZ.co.nz, Jackman ready for outback flick
"Multi-talented Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman says he is ready to sink his teeth into director Baz Luhrmann's next extravaganza. The A-list stage and screen performer who has made his mark on Broadway as a talented song and dance man will star opposite fellow Aussie Nicole Kidman in the yet to be named outback flick. "Nicole and I are doing a movie with Baz ... it's very big and very Australian," Jackman told reporters in Sydney on Thursday, as he promoted the Australian season of his hit stage musical, The Boy From Oz. The arena spectacular begins its national tour in Sydney on August 3. "I haven't done an Australian movie in a while, to do it with Nicole is a dream come true." But it won't be the first time Jackman and Kidman have worked on the same film. The pair recently wrapped production on the animated, adventure/comedy Happy Feet. "We were both penguins in that, so it will be nice to work with her in person," said Jackman, 37, who sang at Kidman's Sydney wedding to country music star Keith Urban on June 25. Luhrmann, who directed Kidman in Moulin Rouge, will be happy to learn that Jackman is convinced his musical work helps fine tune his on-screen performances. "Contrary to common belief, acting through song is the hardest thing to do," Jackman said. "Having energy, hitting certain emotional or vocal marks ... it makes you sharper. It sharpens your instincts."

9 June 2006

Source: The Courier Mail, Oz boy to go bush
The first thing Hugh Jackman wanted to do when he won the coveted lead role in Baz Luhrmann's $120 million Outback epic was telephone his leading lady, Nicole Kidman. But so far Jackman, who has replaced Russell Crowe, has been unsuccessful because of another big role in the actress's life – bride to be. "We're playing phone tag," said Jackman in Brisbane yesterday. "Nicole has left a message on my phone and I've left a message on her phone. She is en route from the US to Australia because of something, er, big that is happening for her." As the good-natured Jackman cruised through a gruelling publicity tour in Brisbane yesterday to promote the $24 million stage musical The Boy from Oz, he wouldn't confirm if he was referring to Kidman's upcoming Sydney nuptials to singer Keith Urban – or if he had been invited.

But Jackman did confirm his star casting in Lurhmann's yet untitled picture and spoke for the first time about the role. He said he wanted to appear authentic as the rough-hewn drover who wins the aristocratic Kidman's heart and will learn how to wrangle cattle and ride like a stockman. "I can't wait to go to the Outback," he said. "I love it. I spent a few months out there when I was 18 and worked on Aboriginal missions building houses at Arionda near Alice Springs, near where the film is going to be shot. I loved it so much I didn't think I would leave." The film marks a major career move for Jackman and is set to confirm the $20 million-a-movie actor as Australia's hottest leading man on the big screen. "He's always been a leading man but he is moving towards being an iconic leading man which is perfect for the story we are doing," Luhrmann told Hollywood Reporter this week. Jackman is excited to be going bush to swap sequins for moleskins as it means he gets a second chance to work with both Kidman and Luhrmann after missing out on Moulin Rouge. He auditioned for the 2001 film but didn't get a part. The 37-year-old actor said there were no hard feelings between him and Luhrmann. "Baz said I just wasn't right at the time and one day we will work together and here we are," Jackman said. "I am just absolutely thrilled and it's an amazing opportunity to be able to do a film on such a large Hollywood scale here in Australia." Jackman has actually been with the Luhrmann project since February as the second male lead.

8 June 2006

Source: The Australian, Hugh to romance Nic in outback epic
"First Russell Crowe had been cast, then Heath Ledger was rumoured, but now Hugh Jackman has signed on to star as Nicole Kidman's lover in Baz Luhrmann's upcoming Australian epic. The problem-plagued sweeping romance finally found its leading man when the Moulin Rouge director signed Jackman to replace Crowe, who was reportedly dumped last month after demanding script approval. It will be the first Australian film role for Jackman - currently on cinema screens in the box-office hit X-Men: The Last Stand - in almost a decade, and his first since he conquered Hollywood and Broadway. Jackman is travelling the country promoting the upcoming Australian arena tour of The Boy From Oz, in which he will reprise his Tony award-winning turn as Peter Allen. Luhrmann, who is overseas, told Variety magazine Jackman was "a tremendously strong choice". He also released story details of the still-untitled film which is set in northern Australia before World War II. It centres on an English aristocrat, Kidman, who becomes the proprietor of a cattle station "the size of Belgium" and has to fight cattle barons who plot to take over her land. She enlists the help of a "rough-hewn" cattle driver, Jackman, to move 2000 beasts in a cross-country trek across the Top End. The pair eventually get caught up in the Japanese bombing of Darwin. Luhrmann said he expected to start pre-production on the epic - which has been delayed by location, weather and casting problems - in October, with shooting to begin in February. He said of Crowe's exit: "As we tried to bring the budget to the right place and arrange shooting in the capricious weather in northern Australia, it was necessary that the studio (Fox) and the actor come to a resolution. They got close, but when it came to a point where it was not resolved, the No1 thing to do was set an actor in that role." Luhrmann also said he had not shelved plans to make a film about Alexander The Great. "I'll do the Australian epic first, but I'd be very surprised if Alexander was not the film I made right after." Kidman, currently filming in New York, is rumoured to be returning to Australia in the next fortnight for her wedding to country singer Keith Urban. Jackman is about to start rehearsals for The Boy From Oz, which tours Australia from August. He also has several films set for release, including the sci-fi drama The Fountain and Woody Allen's romantic comedy Scoop."

Source: Sydney Confidential, Hugh's a jackaroo
Luhrmann. Kidman. Jackman. It has a certain ring to it. Twentieth Century Fox hopes it's the ring of box office tills as Hugh Jackman is confirmed to star opposite Nicole Kidman in Baz Luhrmann's upcoming period epic, reports Michael Bodey. Jackman replaces Russell Crowe, who was pushed from the project last week after dallying on script consultation. Jackman will play a cattle driver hooking up with an English aristocrat (Kidman) whose northern Australian ranch, which she inherits unexpectedly, is threatened by British cattle barons. They undertake a cattle drive across the Top End. Luhrmann, speaking of Crowe's early exit, said: "This is a hugely ambitious marriage between Fox, the director and the principal actors." "As we tried to bring the budget to the right place and arrange shooting in the capricious weather in northern Australia, it was necessary that the studio and the actor come to a resolution. They got close but when it came to a point where it was not resolved, the No.1 thing to do was set an actor in that role." Jackman was being considered for the third lead role until Crowe fell out. Jackman was the obvious replacement as he had no filming commitments after his Australian stadium tour of The Boy From Oz later this year and four films released in 2006. He is also a favourite of the Fox studio given his star performance as Wolverine in the X-Men franchise. Jackman has also confirmed his new Australian production company with John Palermo, Seed Productions, will be based at Sydney's Fox Studios, and aim to make two or three $US 10million films a year. Luhrmann's yet-to-be titled pre-World War II film, co-written with Collateral's Stuart Beattie and The Pianist's Ronald Harwood, is now scheduled to begin filming in February."

7 June 2006

Source: Reuters, Jackman replaces Crowe in Luhrmann's Oz pic
"Los Angeles (Hollywood Reporter) - Just weeks after Russell Crowe dropped out of writer-director Baz Luhrmann's untitled period epic, "X-Men" star Hugh Jackman has signed on to replace the mercurial actor. Jackman will star opposite Nicole Kidman in the 20th Century Fox romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia before World War II. Shooting starts in February. The film centers on an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across the country's most unforgiving landscape, only to face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by Japanese forces. After news leaked that Crowe was dropping out because of differences with the studio, the project appeared to be in jeopardy. Several names, including Heath Ledger, surfaced as a replacement. Luhrmann said Ledger is still a possibility, but for the film's third lead. Jackman enjoys a solid relationship with Fox, coming off the box office success of "X-Men: The Last Stand," in which he reprised his role as Wolverine. Jackman also is attached to star in the studio's thriller "The Tourist." "He just continues to astound in terms of his range, whether it's (his Tony-winning turn in) 'Boy From Oz' or 'Wolverine," Luhrmann said in an interview. "He's always been a leading man, but he is moving toward being an iconic leading man, which is perfect for the story we're doing." Luhrmann also said he expects to work again with his friend Crowe. "I know that Russell and I want to work together. The question is on what," he said. "Working with Russell in the future is something that I definitely look forward to doing." Jackman's upcoming films include Darren Aronofsky's "The Fountain," Woody Allen's "Scoop" and Christopher Nolan's "The Prestige." Luhrmann's credits include "Moulin Rouge" and "William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet."

Source: 20th Century Fox, Press Release, Hugh Jackman to Star with Nicole Kidman in Baz Luhrmann's Untitled Epic; Luhrmann's First Feature Film since Oscar-Winner "Moulin Rouge'' to Begin Production February 2007.
"Hugh Jackman, just off the record-breaking success of "X-Men: The Last Stand," has agreed to star with Nicole Kidman in writer-director Baz Luhrmann's as yet untitled epic. Jackman, one of today's most in-demand and busiest talents, chose the Luhrmann film over the myriad projects he has been offered in recent weeks. His next film set for release, Darren Aronofsky's "The Fountain," is already receiving strong critical buzz. Also awaiting release for the actor are Woody Allen's "Scoop" and Christopher Nolan's "The Prestige." Luhrmann's film, a romantic action-adventure set in northern Australia prior to World War II, centers on an English aristocrat (Kidman) who inherits a ranch the size of Maryland. When English cattle barons plot to take her land, she reluctantly joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver (Jackman) to drive 2,000 head of cattle across hundreds of miles of the country's most unforgiving land, only to still face the bombing of Darwin, Australia, by the Japanese forces that had attacked Pearl Harbor only months earlier. With his new film, Luhrmann is painting on a vast canvass, creating a cinematic experience that brings together romance, drama, adventure and spectacle. The film begins pre-production October 2006 and production commences in Australia in February 2007. A third lead, a dark rival for the heroine's love and land, will be announced shortly. One of the world's largest producers and distributors of motion pictures, Fox Filmed Entertainment produces, acquires and distributes motion pictures throughout the world. These motion pictures are produced or acquired by the following units of FFE: Twentieth Century Fox, Fox 2000 Pictures, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Fox Atomic and Twentieth Century Fox Animation."

6 June 2006

Source: Variety, Hugh ready to saddle up for Baz epic
Baz Luhrmann is setting Hugh Jackman to star alongside Nicole Kidman in his Australian period epic for 20th Century Fox. Jackman replaces Russell Crowe, who recently departed the project. The studio is negotiating with Jackman, who has met with Luhrmann and agreed to go forward. Set before World War II, pic centers on an English aristocrat who joins forces with a rough-hewn cattle driver after her northern Australian ranch is threatened by Brit cattle barons. Casting keeps the film on track to begin in February. Luhrmann, who has been writing the script with Stuart Beattie ("Collateral") and Ronald Harwood ("The Pianist"), hasn't made a film since 2001's "Moulin Rouge," and the new project is said to be as ambitious. "I rarely make a film and my process is unorthodox, but this fell into place nicely with Hugh," Luhrmann said. "He's a tremendously strong choice."

A third lead, a rival for the heroine's love and land, is yet to be cast; Luhrmann thought Jackman might take that role, until Crowe fell out of the lead. On that exit, Luhrmann said: "This is a hugely ambitious marriage between Fox, the director and the principal actors. As we tried to bring the budget to the right place and arrange shooting in the capricious weather in northern Australia, it was necessary that the studio and the actor come to a resolution. They got close, but when it came to a point where it was not resolved, the No. 1 thing to do was set an actor in that role."

Jackman, who's coming off "X-Men: The Last Stand" for Fox, opens in August opposite Scarlett Johansson in the Woody Allen-directed "Scoop" for Focus. In October, he stars in the Darren Aronofsky-directed "The Fountain" for Warner Bros. and in the Chris Nolan-directed "The Prestige" for Disney. Jackman's emergence as the lead comes just after the Aussie actor declared an intention to become hands-on in generating production in Australia, by hatching film projects through his Fox-based Seed Prods. banner. Seed won't be involved in the Luhrmann movie, but shooting the film in Australia will give Jackman and Seed partner John Palermo time to scout local talent for their own projects.

Luhrmann added that his other epic, the one on Alexander the Great, has hardly folded its tent. He and co-writer David Hare and producer Dino De Laurentiis put it down, but he's confident that it won't be forever. "I spoke to Dino about it this morning, and I never came to a moment where I didn't see myself making that film," Luhrmann said. "I'll do the Australian epic first, but I'd be very surprised if 'Alexander' was not the film I made right after."

04 June 2006

Source: Variety, Crowe flies, but Baz is unruffled
With Russell Crowe ankling Baz Luhrmann's latest project -- an Australian period epic -- the question arose as to just how long auds will have to wait for Luhrmann's follow-up to 2001's "Moulin Rouge!" Luhrmann's auteur approach means relatively long lapses of time between his labors of love, which are not limited to the bigscreen and include helming the opera "La Boheme" and a high-profile Chanel spot in the interim since "Moulin Rouge!" He's also taken time off to have two kids. This style is supported by Fox, with which Luhrmann has had a long relationship, and where the attitude according to one exec is: "Baz doesn't make a movie until it's the right one." Translated: They're worth the wait. Indeed, that's the state of Luhrmann's Alexander the Great project, which is expected to ramp up again after more time has elapsed since Oliver Stone's 2004 pic. Luhrmann's Oz epic remains active, sans Crowe, and could start lensing by the end of August, depending on how quickly casting comes together.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald, Dumped Crowe at a loss to explain the director's cut
"Russell Crowe has revealed director Baz Luhrmann dumped him from an Australian-based film project before the Oscar-winning star had a chance to comment on a draft script. The actor has confirmed rumours he will no longer be involved in Luhrmann's $150-million, Gone With The Wind-style Australian epic that was set to star Crowe and Nicole Kidman. But despite rumours he had tried to gain full script approval, the actor said he had no chance to make demands regarding the second draft. Instead, he said he barely had time to read it, before he was told by Luhrmann and producers from 20th Century Fox he was no longer needed for the film. "Before I could tell them what I thought of the script, they'd moved on," Crowe wrote in an exclusive email to The Sun-Herald last week. "That's their choice." Crowe expressed surprise at his removal from the project, saying "My reps stand by their efforts in trying to make this work . . . we did not disengage, Baz and Fox did".

Crowe said he had five days to read the second draft script for the movie, during a period where he was also working on another film, Tenderness, directed by John Polson in New York. The actor said when he did read the script he thought it was "brilliant", but he never had a chance to discuss his thoughts with Luhrmann or Fox. "I was given the draft [on the] 12th [of] May, the day I flew out to New York, and replied by 17th of May. Too late apparently," he said. "There was nothing that wasn't usual in our deal process [before that]," he added. But Crowe's reputation as an outspoken perfectionist may have lead to early demands from US studio bosses, nervous about his pedantic involvement in the script. It is believed Crowe's dissatisfaction with the script for Eucalyptus, an Australian film also set to star Nicole Kidman, ultimately lead to the project's demise.

Crowe admitted executives from 20th Century Fox made early demands regarding the script-reading process for Luhrmann's film. "I was given the script with a demand from the studio that I waive script approval before I read it," he said. "Before I could tell them what I thought of the script, they'd moved on." Despite being removed from the film - a project he had championed publicly for several months - Crowe said that he still admired Luhrmann enormously. "I love Baz, he's a boy wonder, genius for sure," he said. "And I'll tell you, as I told Fox, when I finally got the second draft it was brilliant. I trust that Baz will make the movie he wants to make and that's absolutely the way it should be."

Nicole Kidman is still believed to be involved in the film project, set to be made in the Kimberley region of Western Australia as well as the Northern Territory, but Luhrmann is searching for a leading man. The script for Luhrmann's movie centres on a love story set in Darwin in the 1930s and '40s. The Australian-based project is a vital one for Luhrmann, who has not made a film since Moulin Rouge, which also starred Kidman. Luhrmann had planned an epic version of the life of Alexander the Great, which included a request to Prime Minister John Howard to use members of the Australian Army as extras, but the lavish project never got off the ground. For Crowe, whose next cinematic release is A Good Year (which was filmed in France), his exit from Luhrmann's project opens up a hole in his professional schedule later this year. But the actor is expecting his second child with his wife Danielle Spencer, so it is likely he will concentrate on fatherhood while considering other offers."

01 June 2006

Source: The Daily Telegraph, Stars in Hollywood power play
"Russell Crowe has been outwitted and Baz Luhrmann left without a male star in a Hollywood power play. Luhrmann's epic love story is set to begin pre-production in October with a February shoot starring Nicole Kidman and, now, who knows, after Heath Ledger passed on the film. Luhrmann is overseas casting a male Australian lead. Ledger's US representatives said the Brokeback Mountain star passed on the role, which he reportedly had in the bag. The Daily Telegraph understands Ledger's casting in another high-profile international film will be announced soon. While Crowe didn't have script approval on the 1930s Top End story, insiders said the Oscar winner continues to throw around his "rights of consultation" and held off signing his contract unless his changes were accepted. Luhrmann and the studio behind the film, Twentieth Century Fox, decided the script - co-written by Collateral's Stuart Beattie and The Pianist's Ron Harwood - wouldn't need further input. Crowe recently told friends he hadn't seen a final script. "Baz is the master, he's the one, the film doesn't need two masters," said a crew member closely involved in production. Crowe's camp suggests the film's future is clouded given its budget ($150 million) and logistical problems (filming in The Kimberleys, Darwin and Sydney), but production staff continued to scout locations last week. Fox's commitment to Luhrmann is solid, despite its handshake deal with Crowe to produce his directorial debut. However, the studio is respectful of Luhrmann's vision and ability to hire "low-stress" cast and crew, said one insider. Crowe, filming Tenderness for director John Polson in New York, will be in Sydney next week for a "re-launch" of the South Sydney Rabbitohs. This incident will confirm to many that it was Crowe who was at the heart of the end of the film Eucalyptus last year.

31 May 2006

Source: Empire, Crowe Flies Luhrmann's Epic
"Somebody fetch Baz Luhrmann a stiff drink. He’ll need it now that Russell Crowe has departed his planned Australian period epic. The fickle fates of film, not content with robbing the Moulin Rouge helmer of a real shot at Alexander The Great (thanks, Oliver Stone, thanks), and throwing weather and finance-related delays in his path while planning his big comeback Aussie film, have now seen Russell Crowe leaving the movie, following disagreements with 20th Century Fox. And the story gets even more tangled with tabloid The New York Post "revealing" that Heath Ledger had been cast to replace him, when the actor's management told Variety that Ledger had already passed on the film. What we do know at this point is that Luhrmann is unbowed and plans to press ahead with his epic, and that Nicole Kidman is still attached."

Source: Variety, Inside Move: Crowe flies coop on Oz epic
"What's going on with Baz Luhrmann's period Australian epic? Russell Crowe, who said yes long ago to starring with Nicole Kidman in the drama for 20th Century Fox, departed last week after disagreements with the studio. A report in the New York Post (both the tab and 20th are owned by Rupert Murdoch) said Heath Ledger had replaced Crowe, who was spurned when he tried to return to the pic. In fact, reps for the "Brokeback Mountain" star confirmed he had passed. Kidman and Luhrmann are still attached to the project, which 20th is going forward with. It's unlikely Crowe will return, as studios were buzzing about his sudden late-year vacancy, the same as they did after the implosion of the Fox comedy "Used Guys" over a budget that went north of $110 million. The development indicates the fragility of projects, no matter how hot the participants. Coming off "Moulin Rouge," Luhrmann was poised to direct an epic about Alexander the Great with producer Dino De Laurentiis. Unfortunately, he was beaten to the punch by director Oliver Stone and the project stopped in its tracks and robbed Luhrmann of several years' worth of momentum. Given the Crowe-Kidman epic was his comeback, the sudden leading-man loss can't be heartening to the filmmaker."

30 May 2006

Source: The Daily Telegraph, Too pushy Crowe dumped
"Oscar-winner Russell Crowe has reportedly been dumped from Baz Luhrmann's new $150 million epic in favour of Heath Ledger. Crowe was to play Nicole Kidman's lover later this year in the film to be set around the Japanese bombing of Darwin in 1942. But Crowe has been accused of demanding script approval before signing on for the film. While he was procrastinating, the producers reportedly told Luhrmann to find another actor. The director then met Ledger several times. "Baz liked him and offered him the movie," a source told the New York Post yesterday. "Then Crowe came back to Luhrmann and said he'd forgo script approval and wanted to do the film, but they told him it was too late - to buzz off." A spokeswoman for Luhrmann last night declined to deny or confirm the report. "Baz doesn't publicly comment on his casting processes and currently he has made no final decision on the film, who is in it or when or where it will be shot," a spokeswoman said. Crowe talked up his new role during the Australian Film Institute awards last November."

Source: New York Post, Bluff Called
"The reason Russell Crowe was replaced by Heath Ledger in the still-untitled Baz Luhrmann movie? The hot-tempered Oscar winner demanded script approval for the love story with Nicole Kidman set in the Australian outback prior to the Japanese bombardment of Darwin in 1942. The producers told Luhrmann to find another actor, and the director met several times with fellow Aussie Ledger. "Baz liked him and offered him the movie," said one source. "Then Crowe came back to Luhrmann and said he'd forego script approval and wanted to do the movie, but they told him it was too late - to buzz off." Crowe's flack had no comment."

14 April 2006

Source: Sydney Morning Herald 'Opinion', Green Light For Baz
"Scuttlebutt reported in this column last week claiming Russell Crowe and Baz Luhrmann had gone separate ways - leaving in limbo the $100 million outback epic that also was to star Nicole Kidman - continues to reverberate across the planet. Crowe's spin doctor says the rumours are "totally inaccurate" but won't elaborate. Kidman insiders say she loves the project and is still keen to do it, and Luhrmann's people say he will deal with the "inaccuracies" when he returns to Sydney some time next week, after travelling to Britain and the US to work on the as yet untitled film's script. Word is that he and Crowe still intend to work together. The studio, 20th Century Fox, says the project has the green light and there are no squabbles over the budget, despite rumours Luhrmann was being forced by bean counters to use computer-animated cattle in some scenes instead of the real thing. Meanwhile, disgruntled workers on the project, which has been slated for filming in the Kimberley from February, are reeling about their poor work prospects for the next few months."

7 April 2006

Source: Sydney Morning Herald 'Opinion', Out of Action
"Baz Luhrmann's "Big Epic War Romance Film" (working title only) has collapsed in a temporary heap even though Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman were slated as leads and the Kimberley had been chosen as the location. Budget problems were blamed but Crowe apparently walked after being approached by Ridley Scott (his director in his Oscar-winner Gladiator) to star in another epic. Perhaps mindful of Crowe's role in the demise of Jocelyn Moorhouse's Eucalyptus, it is understood Luhrmann does not want Crowe back when he goes back into production next year."

4 April 2006

Source: Hollywood Reporter, Delay saga for Luhrmann '30s project
"Baz Luhrmann's untitled 1930s period epic starring Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman, which was eyeing a September start date in Australia, has been pushed back because of scheduling conflicts and budget debates with 20th Century Fox, sources have confirmed... Luhrmann had begun hiring crew on his ambitious Australian saga, but they are now free to seek other employment. According to sources, the '30s period drama, set against the rugged Australian landscape, is now aiming for a February production start. Fox declined comment. Although to date Luhrmann has kept an exclusive relationship with Fox, which backed his "Romeo + Juliet" as well as "Moulin Rouge," the director's ambitious "Alexander" project, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, for Fox and Universal, failed to get off the ground."

Source: Reuters, Crowe, Kidman foiled again in movie plans
"Los Angeles (Hollywood Reporter) - Baz Luhrmann's untitled 1930s drama starring Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman, which was eyeing a September start date in Australia, has been pushed back to February because of scheduling conflicts and budget debates with 20th Century Fox, sources have confirmed... Luhrmann, who previously worked with Kidman in "Moulin Rouge," had begun hiring crew on his ambitious $150 million Australian outback saga, but they are now free to seek other employment. Fox declined comment. Crowe recently told the Sydney Morning Herald that he was still keen to do the Luhrmann film, and that the director was keeping him apprised of developments. "We talk ... he is mysterious," Crowe told the paper. "(But) it's all good."

Source: Daily Telegraph, No budget problems for Baz
"Baz Luhrmann's Australian epic is not in doubt despite recent reports questioning its production. The Daily Telegraph understands 20th Century Fox gave the film, starring Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe, the go ahead for a July start date but Luhrmann was not confident of making the date. The studio approved Luhrmann's budget, believed to be about $150 million, last month with an insider saying there were "no budget issues" and Luhrmann had the studio's full confidence. But the sweeping epic, in which Kidman and Crowe's characters fall in love during the tumultuous 1930s and 40s in the Top End, required far more planning than could have been achieved before the wet season begins in August. Luhrmann's precise quest for authenticity, including recreations of the 1942-43 Japanese bombing of Darwin, has proven time-consuming and onerous."

3 April 2006

Source: Sydney Morning Herald, Trust in Baz, says Crowe
"Russell Crowe has declared his continued faith in director Baz Luhrmann, despite delays surrounding Luhrmann's planned film project with Crowe and Nicole Kidman. Luhrmann told reporters last week he had "disengaged" some of the crew signed on for the film because of a delay, believed to be centred on budget concerns. But Crowe emailed S to throw his weight behind the flamboyant director - saying he was as keen as ever to do the film, when Luhrmann was ready. "When Baz is ready I'm there," wrote Crowe. "I don't know anything about the revisions he is doing, but I'm sure they are smart. Let him do it as he does it, that's the way I flow with it," he added. The epic film, set between the 1930s and early 1940s, was due to be filmed in the Kimberley region of Western Australia later this year. The film's title is yet to be revealed publicly. But Luhrmann told reporters last week: "To say that it is a complex and large-scale undertaking is an understatement and I cannot formally announce the project until all of the crucial elements are secure." The Moulin Rouge director, who is renowned for his grand vision and lavish detail when it comes to film projects, is still in the process of convincing the number-crunchers at 20th Century Fox to sign off on his massive budget. Although the two lead stars are Oscar winners, studio executives would be well aware of what happened to Eucalyptus, the film also supposed to have starred Crowe and Kidman (and directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse). Although Eucalyptus was a Fox Searchlight project, with a very low budget by Hollywood standards, its cancellation resulted in a financial loss. Luhrmann had also previously meticulously planned an epic grand-scale film about Alexander the Great - including asking the Federal Government if 500 Australian soldiers could appear as extras - but the project did not come to fruition. But this time around, insiders say the director is passionately dedicated to getting his grand-scale film off the ground. In the meantime, the key stars, including Crowe, are being quietly kept in the loop by Luhrmann. "We talk ... he is mysterious," said Crowe. "[But] it's all good."

2 April 2006

Source: The Sunday Telegraph, Baz's bizzy whirl (transcript only)
Film director Baz Luhrmann will spend most of 2007 on his epic Australian film starring Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman. Luhrmann is working on the budget and the script, and will hold workshops with his stars before filming begins. "I'm not sure exactly where Baz is with the script; he wanted to do some rewrites with a guy in London, so I've yet to see the results of that work," Crowe told me. "You have to understand that we're dealing with an auteur genius, and you should just let that be what it is. You have to also understand that (20th Century) Fox hold their directors to a high level of exactitude as regards budget. They're spending north of $100 million US - it's not unreasonable for them to require Baz to finish his revisions. However, Baz's plan also includes weeks of workshops with horses etc ... I'm imagining we will spend all of next year doing it. It's worth waiting for."

31 March 2006

Source: The Daily Telegraph, Baz's epic under pressure
"Haggling over a budget cut – the size of which could fund the Australian film industry for a year – is the sticking point on Baz Luhrmann's proposed "epic" with Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe. Hollywood studio 20th Century Fox has baulked at Luhrmann's proposed budget of $175 million, despite one studio insider saying they're desperate to work with the director, writes Michael Bodey. A decision would need to be made within weeks if the "epic" is to begin in August to beat the north's wet season, as Luhrmann desires. But Luhrmann painted his wagon into a corner with that statement. The film was unlikely to begin production before August anyway, a fact confirmed by Crowe's commitment to Ridley Scott's American Gangster, which he will film opposite Denzel Washington from late this July. While Luhrmann is intent on establishing a 150-plus crew in the Kimberleys for the production, the studio, which saw Titanic's budget sky-rocket while James Cameron was filming in Mexico, is reticent to gamble a massive budget at such a remote shoot. They've asked him to lop tens of millions from the budget. While Luhrmann this week conceded some of the crew had been "disengaged", this is not uncommon on a delayed feature film. And the director of Moulin Rouge!, and Strictly Ballroom is said to be unwilling to drop the film without a fight."

30 March 2006

Source: The Daily Telegraph, Baz is poised for Aussie epic
"It's big, it's local and it stars Russell Crowe, so Baz Luhrmann's next "epic" is bound to be the subject of countless rumours. The latest, that it's going under, is just puff, says Luhrmann's camp. The only problem at this stage, it appears, is getting studio 20th Century Fox to sign off on the budget. Then it will be all systems go by August, an insider told Michael Bodey. Luhrmann has already consulted with Crowe and Nicole Kidman on the script for the romantic epic which begins in the mid-1930s and ends with its major set-piece, the 1942-43 Japanese bombing of Darwin. Luhrmann, who is also co-writing and producing, recently flew to Los Angeles to work with Crowe after the Academy Awards. He then darted to Nashville, hometown of Kidman's beau, Keith Urban, to collaborate with the actress on the script and costumes. Crowe, after watching his footy team the Rabbitohs on Sunday, flew to New Zealand. Confirmation of the film's budget and name is expected within the next fortnight, with a number of Australian locations, including the Kimberleys, Darwin, Bowen and Sydney's Fox Studios, waiting with anticipation to see if they'll get a piece of the lucrative action. Even Newcastle believes it may be a chance to double as the Darwin pier after the film's location manager called Film Hunter agents. "They were looking for a pier and there was something in the Newcastle area that I was able to show them," Film Hunter's Christine Armstrong said."

Source: The Australian, Baz's outback film epic on hold
"Filmmaker Baz Luhrmann has confirmed that some crew have been stood down from his upcoming film and evidence is gathering that shooting is unlikely to start this year. The combination of the towering talent of Luhrmann with the internationally famous homegrown stars, Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe, makes this one of the most significant Australian films of all time. But this very combination, the film's World War II setting and the difficulties of shooting in remote locations - it is an epic romance and the Kimberley and the Queensland town of Bowen have been mentioned as possible locations - means 20th Century Fox will not give production the green light until it is confident that the huge investment will pay off.

"To say that it is a complex and large-scale undertaking is an understatement and I cannot formally announce the project until all of the crucial elements are secure," said the director of Moulin Rouge, Romeo + Juliet and Strictly Ballroom. "Currently, they are not, and so it is true we've had to disengage some of our very loyal team. As soon as we are able to bring those crucial elements together I will be able to make a formal announcement concerning the starting date of the production, at which time it will also be named."

He added that the enthusiasm and support from the creative team and crew, local and state governments and members of the community to see the film made has been "unflinching". Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe's schedules and the need to wait for manageable weather conditions indicate shooting may not occur until next year. Luhrmann only last week was in the outback researching locations. Kidman is known to be shooting an untitled film by Noah Baumbach, who directed The Squid And The Whale, in New York for two months from next week. Crowe is widely reported to be doing American Gangster with director Ridley Scott and co-star Denzel Washington from July. Add to that Luhrmann's assertion to The Australian last month that filming had to start in August at the "absolute latest" because of the wet season. Luhrmann was deep in planning the film in the Northern Territory and Western Australia only last week. Only a couple of weeks before, he was working in Los Angeles with Crowe, and was in Nashville with Kidman working on the script and on costumes. If the film is delayed it will be a bitter disappointment to all concerned. But it ain't over until the fat lady sings."

Source: The Daily Telegraph, Baz's cattle call (transcription only - no link)
"It passed without notice but the much-maligned Today show on Nine revealed the budget for Baz Luhrmann's next film. As Richard Wilkins interviewed Russell Crowe a few weeks ago, Crowe dropped a bombshell about the upcoming epic, in which he stars with Nicole Kidman. Namely that, "If everyone got paid full whack and if any of the current crop of directors in America were doing it, they'd be looking at $US180 million to do it," Crowe said. But he said Luhrmann was trying to bring the budget down to $US125 million ($175 million) and Wilkins confirmed it was about $A160 million. "It's the biggest budget Australian movie ever made with an Australian thematic as the story and Australian characters," Crowe enthused. Which sort of explains the latest release from Camp Baz. He's conducting an actual cattle call, looking far a particular breed of shorthorn cattle for a major set-piece. No digital cows for this film. Luhrmann's been scouting the Northern Territory and Western Australia for the right breed. "It's not just that the cattle need to look right, they need to be able to work together as a herd as well given they'll literally be starring alongside the lead actors, ' he says."

27 March 2006

Source: The Telegraph, Sneak Preview
Australian maverick director Baz Luhrmann has had to call on Oscar-winning screenwriter Ronald Harwood to fix his new film. Luhrmann, whose movies Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge dazzled audiences with their visual virtuosity, had to make a last-minute trip to London, staying for a month, in order to give Harwood time to rewrite the screenplay for his new film, a home-grown period piece which starts shooting this summer. The movie will star Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe. "I can't tell you much about it except that it's an Australian historical epic and it's my first original screenplay," Harwood says. "Working with Baz was an amazing experience. He came over to my house every day for a month and we would work solidly. It was very intense."

Around 27 March 2006

Source: Stuff.co.nz - Video
Interviewer: "You've also got that little sideline that you do of your acting, and it looks like you're having a huge year this year - the Baz Luhrmann Australian Epic, which I know very little about, with Nicole Kidman - and how long have you been talking and I guess the media have been asking you about when you're going to work with Nicole Kidman?"
Crowe: "Probably since, I'd say, it first came up in about 1990. I think we'll be a great onscreen team, you know. I have a wonderful relationship with her and a very very deep friendship and I think that will reflect when we work together eventually."

23 March 2006

Source: Sydney Morning Herald, Acting giants to co-star
"...Washington said American Gangster was set to begin filming in the mid to late part of this year... Crowe is clearly going to be busy this year, because he is also starring in director Baz Luhrmann's next film, an Australian epic to be shot on location and at Fox Studios from August.

Luhrmann announced yesterday he is holding cattle call auditions for the new film - literally. He and his film production team are scouting the Northern Territory and Western Australia to find prime examples of the shorthorn cattle which will appear in the film. Luhrmann said the breed was no longer common on the territory's cattle stations, but insisted the correct period cattle were essential to the project's success. As well as looking the part, they also need to be able to work together as a herd. Luhrmann, who is directing, co-writing and producing the film, has recently returned from Nashville where he worked with the film's co-star Nicole Kidman on script and costume."

18 March 2006

Source: The Australian, Gladiator's battle for his childhood dream
"So seriously does Crowe take tomorrow's ballot that he has interrupted rehearsals in Los Angeles for his latest movie, an as-yet untitled Gone With the Wind-style film directed by Baz Luhrmann and co-starring his friend Nicole Kidman, to personally persuade the 4505 Souths members that his vision for the club is the right one."

16 March 2006

Source: New York Post, Wedding Dress Talk
"The great star Nicole Kidman has been in Los Angeles since the Oscars doing a workshop for a new film with her "Moulin Rouge!" director Baz Luhrmann. They are planning an epic movie to be made in their native Australia (though Nicole was actually born in Honolulu). I had a wonderful talk recently with Baz at an Oscar picnic given by Barry Diller. Baz said he was over the moon to be working again with the divine Nicole."

Sources: WireImage and East News
Images of Baz Luhrmann at the LA premiere of Thank You For Not Smoking, and also walking with Russell Crowe and his son Charlie in Beverley Hills.

15 March 2006

Source: Variety, The Pianist Scribe Penning Dover Pic
"Oscar-winning Harwood, who most recently scripted New Line's Love in the Time of Cholera and Focus Features' The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, will start writing as soon as he completes a rewrite of Baz Luhrmann's untitled film for Fox, which shoots later this year with Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman starring."

14 March 2006

Source: The Herald Sun, Stars up close and personal with Queen
"But Nicole Kidman is a no-show because of movie commitments in Los Angeles. She is believed to be working on a new project with Moulin Rouge director Baz Luhrmann"

12 March 2006

- Source: The Sunday Telegraph, Crowe puts fear of God into LA  
"Crowe – who is in the States with Danielle, and Charlie – will sit down this week with director Baz Luhrmann and Nicole Kidman to run through the script of his new Australian film, which has already been described as an outback version of Gone With The Wind."

10 March 2006

- Source: Daily Mail
"It's the only time I could get Nic and Russell together at the same time to read through the script," Luhrmann joked, as we chatted in the marquee that Vanity Fair had attached to the back of Morton's for their big shindig [after the 2006 Oscars]. "We've been doing a bit of horse-riding, too. The riding's important, because Russell's a loner drover and you have to remember that some of those cattle stations in those days were as big as Belgium, and people often rode for hundreds of miles. It's going to be the ultimate in romance and epics."

Nicole broke her silence to agree. "Everything about it is going to be big. I'm looking forward to working with Russell for the first time, and making a film in my country."

5 March 2006

- Source: WireImage
Images of Baz Luhrmann at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Los Angeles.

2 March 2006

- Source: Today show, Channel 9 - Russell Crowe Interview
Transcript used with permission from NKU:
JR=Jessica Rowe (Today host), KS=Karl Stefanovic (Today host), RW=Richard Wilkins (Today host/entertainment), RC=Russell Crowe

JR: And what can you tell us about this movie with Nicole that you're looking at doing?

RC: Well I can tell you that Baz Luhrmann is a genius and I shall follow him into the desert [ saying this in "magnificent" tones and lifting his arm up in salute ] . And what's also cool is they worked out this movie should cost about $180 million if anyone else was doing it. If everyone got paid full whack and if any of the current crop of directors in America were doing it, they'd be looking at $180 million to do it. But it's a point of pride with Baz he is trying to bring the budget to $125 because he believes that we should be able to do it cheaper and smarter and therefore more efficiently and that's a point of pride for him and so until he actually works out a way to bring the budget to that point, we don't actually have any dates yet, but you know…

RW: $125 of theirs or ours?

RC: Theirs. It's the biggest budget Australian movie ever made with an Australian thematic as the story and Australian characters.

KS: You said all along you've wanted to work with Nicole for so long. Is there going to be a love scene? Is it going to be difficult for you two?

RC: umm... [ smiles ] ... No, it won't be difficult. As you know I've got one child with another one on the way and I know where all the bits are. Thanks Karl! [laughs] But the wife's watching this morning so I think I'm right... they are taking all the love scenes out Karl.

RW: You insisted?!

RC: Last time I looked... all the kissing... all the other stuff... it's like... cut to waterfall! Crashing waves...

RW: So $125 million. That's about $160 million Australian dollars...[]

RC: Yes it's magnificent.

RW: We're going to see some big budget stuff on the screen.

RC: Well look. When Baz said he was going to make a movie about "Strictly Ballroom" did you imagine it was that? Right? When he said he was going to make a remake of "Romeo and Juliet" did you ever possibly imagine it was going to be that? And when he said he was going to do a musical set in Paris, "Rooooxaaannnnee"... did that come to mind? I mean, what he is going to do with the genre with this big romantic set piece I can't wait to be involved.

JR: So it will be like an Australian "Gone with the Wind"?

RC: That was his hook line for me and Nicole. [laughs] I'm not sure he really wanted that hook line to go out around the world like it did but you know... it's a pretty good line.

RW: So you'd say "Frankly my dear, I don’t give a... "

RC: It's probably going to be s***t though isn't it?

RW: Yes I pulled up short...[]

RC: It would have to be Australianised is what we meant... []

RW: Mate, you and Nicole got close to working together in Eucalyptus. That didn't happen but this is something you kind of wanted to do for a long time.

RC: This was in place before Eucalyptus. Eucalyptus came up as a separate thing which... umm... Baz was probably quite pleased that noone had stolen his thunder, you know? We've been talking about this with Baz for a long time. But as I said, the scale of this thing is gigantic. What he is trying to achieve is gigantic. The parts of Australian history he talks about in the movie - because I've read the script and it's by Baz and a young Australian writer called Stuart Beattie - and these are just bits of our history of our growth as a nation that we just don't know about. The ' 64 bombing raids on Darwin, the amount of people who died, and the destruction and what the plan was should the Japanese actually invade. And all these things are not really part of our national psyche. He's picked a great area of our history with a great backdrop. Not only do you have the outback and the loneliness of the outback on that time but you also have bombers in the air over an urban centre so it's a great juxtaposition.

25 February 2006

- Source: The Daily Mercury, Could Bowen get tick for Baz’s flick?
Bowen could be set to play host to some of Hollywood's A-list including Aussie stars Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe and director Baz Luhrmann... Bowen mayor Mike Brunker said Bowen's wide streets and 'old-time feel' was just what Luhrmann and his team had in mind. "Baz was here on Wednesday — so fingers crossed we've got the tick for the flick," he said. Cr Brunker said filming in Bowen would raise the profile of the town. "‘There's a huge economic benefit — I think they want to be here for three or four months," he said. Bowen is just one of the short-listed towns because of it's 1930s appearance and similarity to an early Darwin... The Australian-set, period epic drama will be filmed on the vacant block of land down at the front beach, Cr Brunker said. "They'll have to build a proper set," he said. "Of course our very romantic jetty out the front will play a part in that as well," he said.

- Source: Townsville Bulletin, Hollywood Mike to jam with Rusty
[Baz Luhrmann] and his location manager Phillip Roope met this week with Bowen Mayor Michael Brunker to discuss the possibility of filming part of the... film in the coastal town.  "I believe they plan to use the front beach entrance as a scene for the movie," Cr Brunker said. "It's not 100 per cent guaranteed, but they seem quite keen. They want to start filming in August this year. It will probably take three to four months to film. This could pump millions of dollars into the local economy." Cr Brunker said the best of what Bowen could offer would be laid on for the Hollywood greats. "We'll roll out the red carpet for the big stars if they come," Cr Brunker said. "If Rusty (Russell Crowe) and Nicole come to town, we'll make sure they have plenty to do. There's plenty of good times to be had in Bowen. We could even get the guitars out and have a bit of a jam session with Rusty, I believe he's a bit of a rocker. I hear he's going to Mackay to watch South Sydney play against the Cowboys, so I might catch up with him there."

24 February 2006

- Source: Abc.net.au, Bowen vies for $40m Kidman, Crowe film
Bowen's old jetty, wide streets and colonial architecture could make it the favoured site for a $40 million film. Mike Brunker, the Mayor of the north Queensland town... says although the film might be shot in Bowen, it would not be about Bowen. "It's set in the 1930s. We're going to look like the entrance to Darwin apparently," "I know they've asked us to scout around and have a look for some long horn cows and a few props." "The vacant block of land down the front beach will be used for three to four months. They'll have to build a proper set. Of course our very romantic jetty out the front will play a part in that as well."

- Source: News.com.au, No rushing genius Luhrmann: Crowe
Russell Crowe says he cried when reading the script for his romantic Australian film, written by its director Baz Luhrmann. "The first draft I read – goose bumps twice and tears at the end," Crowe told Macquarie Radio today. "It's fantastic." "One can't rush genius," said Crowe. "Mr Luhrmann is a certified genius and when he's got the name he'll no doubt call me up in the morning and say 'by the way I have the name'."

23 February 2006

- Source: Reuters
Oscar winners Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman have signed up for an Australian historical epic to be directed by Baz Luhrmann, Luhrmann's publicist said on Thursday. Publicist Maria Farmer confirmed media reports that the new movie, to be filmed in Australia's harsh but beautiful outback, would begin production in August.

22 February 2006

- Source: Australian newspapers, Various (click here for transcripts)
Baz Luhrmann finally spoke out about his next movie - this was the very first time that Baz himself had publicly commented on the film. Australian news articles were syndicated worldwide. Click on the above link to read what Luhrmann revealed, as it is too much to condense here :-)

17 February 2006

- Source: The Independent Online, Pandora
After being "scooped" too many times, Baz Luhrmann is busting a gut to keep his next film project under wraps. The Oscar-winning screenwriter Ronald Harwood has been forced to sign a draconian confidentiality contract before starting work on the flick. He says this follows an incident in 2002, when one of Luhrmann's writers was persuaded to work on Oliver Stone's film Alexander. Following that defection, Luhrmann was forced to abandon plans for his own "swords and sandals" epic about Alexander the Great. "I can't tell you what this new film is about, as I've had to sign a secrecy clause," says Harwood. "Baz told me he got pipped to the post over Alexander because of one of his writers being indiscreet, and won't let himself get his fingers burnt again.

9 February 2006

- Source: The Daily Telegraph, Baz to reel in Russ and Nic by July
Luhrmann's spokeswoman Maria Farmer told The Daily Telegraph of his three "epics" in development:
"He has now moved the Australian epic into first position. He and his Bazmark team have been making significant inroads into developing this project and have scouted various Australian locations. Baz is cautious and extremely thorough in his development process so before he 100 per cent commits to the Australia epic, he needs certain conditions to be right and he and his team are currently working on resolving these issues." 

These issues are believed to involve the US$40 million budget, the proposition of filming on studio sets in Sydney and accommodating a cast and crew of 240 in northwest WA. The Australian epic will be primarily filmed in The Kimberleys. It is a sweeping romance set prior to World War II and the Japanese threat to the top end.  [The film is yet to be given the green light by 20th Century Fox although Fox Searchlight chief Peter Rice has visited Australia recently to work with Luhrmann.] His other two epics are Alexander the Great and a Russian-set tale in the vein of Doctor Zhivago.

31 January 2006

- Source: TMCnet.com - Australia: Productions appear robust, but industry remains fragile
At Sydney's Fox Studios, Baz Luhrmann's Australian Outback epic toplined by Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman for 20th Century Fox is penciled in but not confirmed.

26 January 2006

- Source: Channel 10 News Clip, courtesy of Nicole Kidman United
Nicole Kidman - "It's not signed, sealed and delivered yet, so I'm a little bit superstitious about talking about things before they are. Um, but, yeah, hopefully coming back to Australia in the middle of the year, and being able to make - I've always wanted to make a big film in Australia, a film that's about Australia."

Russell Crowe - "Well, I don't know, you know. I'll get told in due course. I know that the schedule keeps changing because it's quite an expensive movie, so they have to - they're refining the budget, because one of the things that Baz wants to make sure he does is make a really expensive movie for less money than somebody else might make it because that's a point of pride for him, you know. It's a big budget film, yes, but it's an Australian big budget film so I'm sure we can come up with at least the last $50 million with good ideas instead of having to spend the cash so you know, I'm with him. Any which way he wants to do it, I'll be there."

23 January 2006

- Source: The Sun Herald - Nic and Russ go outback
"I can only tell you certain things . . . but it's very exciting," said Crowe, during a one-on-one chat with S at his home in Woolloomooloo last week. "I look at this thing that Baz has shown me, what he wants to do, and you just have to realise Baz Luhrmann's [genius] . . . he's just not Bazza from the block, mate, he is a 100 per cent, solid gold cinematic artist."

Crowe described the first time he read the draft script for the as-yet-untitled film, which was co-written by Luhrmann and Stuart Beattie (the Aussie scriptwriter behind Collateral and the sequel to Pirates Of The Caribbean). "The first draft was a double goose bumps with tears, it was just a magnificent read," Crowe said. The Oscar winner had initially allowed about 15 minutes for a quick glance through the script, but then cancelled all his meetings for the next few hours and ended up lying on his couch in Woolloomooloo, absorbed by the story. "It was just a wonderful afternoon. I was just transported off into this place and time and into the lives of these people. So it will be a magnificent thing working with Baz, it'll be wonderful spending that much time in that particular area of Australia." Crowe confirmed a full-scale set for the epic film will be built in a remote area of the Kimberley region. "It's not the Northern Territory, but it's close. A lot of the movie is set there actually, whether it's shot there is different. We'll be shooting in the Kimberleys. Life's tough, eh!" Crowe said, with a laugh.

He said working on a film with Kidman had long been a personal goal for both of them, which continued beyond the collapse of Eucalyptus last year. "It's just something we've talked about since we were quite young, but it had to be the right thing, you know. In the way life has conspired this is the best possible situation, because Baz is very familiar with getting the best out of Nicole, which she's really excited about because she loves being in the situation of being challenged." Crowe said the film would be made in the second half of 2006, although Kidman may return to Australia earlier so the two Oscar winners can workshop their scenes."

20 January 2006

- Source: Daily Mail - Nicole sends the Gladiator into a swoon
"It's set in the 1930s and 40s and I can tell you that it's a romance and I do a bit of horseriding and a bit of swooning with Nic. Baz - the other Baz, not you Baz - has talked to Nic and me a lot about this film and we're both up for it. I've known Nic for a long time, but we've never worked together; and I've known the other Baz for a while. And the important thing is that it's nearly six months working in Australia. We start rehearsals in May and the cameras roll in June." - Russell Crowe

"It's perfect timing on all fronts, mate - although some of the locations are pretty remote. We'll do some filming partly in the Kimberleys and the Northern Territory. It's as rough as guts out there. There's nothing there. There'll be a cast and crew of around 240, and Baz said he'll have to be like John Ford and build a town." - Russell Crowe

"Eucalyptus was a small affair and I said to Nic that it was a fragile piece and it was probably a mistake in the first place for her and me to do it. Suddenly, there was all this expectation and it couldn't take the weight of Nic and myself. Baz's film has the kind of sweeping story that can carry us." - Russell Crowe

16 January 2006

- Source: Fox News - Kidman, Crowe to Do Aussie 'Gone With the Wind'
"...[Russell's] ready to make a big movie. And it's all set: He will do an untitled picture with Nicole Kidman, directed by Baz Luhrmann, the man who guided Kidman through the delicious hit "Moulin Rouge."

"It's like the Australian version of 'Gone with the Wind'. That's the way Baz describes it, anyway. It's set in the Australian country in the early 1930s. Baz will have to build a whole community where we're going to shoot, since it's a very remote area. He'll have to put up around 260 people. It's just like what John Ford used to do with his Westerns." - Russell Crowe

"Crowe told me that he'd already made a pact with his wife Danielle, now pregnant with their second child, regarding his work schedule. "I told her I'd give her 12 months at home, and then I'd take 12 months to make a movie." He will be at her side, presumably, when she gives birth in July, even if the film is well into production."

29 December 2005

- Source: Northern Territory News - Quest for actors in Territory epic film
"Auditions have been held in the Territory for an epic Australian motion picture directed by Baz Luhrmann and filmed in the NT next year. A Sydney casting agent has visited Darwin, Katherine and some remote communities looking for potential actors to play the role of a young Aboriginal boy and stockmen. The agent also visited Kununurra, Fitzroy Crossing and Broome. It is believed the movie, which has been tipped to star Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman, will be partly filmed in the NT at Coolibah Station near Timber Creek. The Northern Territory News understands that Crowe and Kidman will play love interests in the movie that will be set in the 1930s. The film budget is believed to be more than $40 million and involves production companies Bazmark Films and 20th Century Fox."

19 December 2005

- Source: ABC News Online and ABC Regional
"Auditions have been held across the Kimberley for an epic Australian motion picture to be filmed next year. A Sydney casting agent has visited Kununurra, Fitzroy Crossing and Broome over the past few days looking for potential actors to play the role of a young Aboriginal boy and stockmen. The auditions follow reports Australian director Baz Luhrmann will film a new movie on a Northern Territory cattle station, 200 kilometres from Kununurra, next year. The Australian blockbuster is expected to star Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe. Bradley Rosewood was among those who auditioned and says there was a fair bit of competition. "From all ages and sizes, you see a lot of experienced stockmen, young ones and even some just learning and whatever," he said. "It's good seeing everyone coming down to do it because it's a good opportunity for Aboriginal people."

9 December 2005

- Source: Ain't It Cool News - AICN Downunder
"The new Baz Luhrmann film -- which I believe is called Ten Thousand Horses or something similar... I got told by a prospective crew member over a beer, like, three months ago -- will begin shooting soon with a budget of $40million. Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman will star as two people who fall in love or sing or try to get three words out before the next slam cut."

1 December 2005

- Source: The Kimberley Echo - Major film on local station
"Coolibah Station, east of Timber Creek, is reported to be the location for a major film shoot involving Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman. Milton Jones' Coolibah station has been in the news recently as one of the 'hot spots' that Kimberley Toadbusters have been concentrating on in their battle to stop the advance of the cane toad. It is also the home to a crocodile farm. The movie to be shot there next year is reportedly a romance, more interesting when it is considered that Crowe and Kidman were once reported to be dating. Academy Award-winning director Baz Luhrmann will film the epic... Crowe and Luhrmann have not confirmed that Coolibah Station will be the venue for the movie shoot, but the NT News reported that it believed the station would host 300 crewmembers for three months of filming. The budget for the movie is reported to be more than $40 million. The film is set in the 1930s with Kidman playing the target of Crowe's affection."

30 November 2005

- Source: The Australian - More than a flash in the pan
"At a press conference last week ahead of the AFI awards, Russell Crowe confirmed that he and Nicole Kidman have been cast in what is expected to be the next film project for director Baz Luhrmann. Although Luhrmann has stopped short of confirming when the film might be made, he did say that he "would be delighted if Russell and Nicole were to be involved in the Australian epic", and he is hopeful that the right conditions will come together to allow production to begin early in the new year."

28 November 2005

- Source: Sydney Confidential - Eucalyptus leaves bitter taste
"Afterwards [the AFI Awards], Crowe alluded to his next film with Kidman for Baz Luhrmann, to be filmed in the Northern Territory and Sydney next year. "Thanks Nicky. See you next year. Don't forget your sunscreen," he said."

27 November 2005

- Source: The Observer - Crowe flies to Aussie films' rescue
"Before the gala [AFI Awards], Crowe revealed that he and his friend and fellow Aussie Nicole Kidman, who have never collaborated on screen, have been signed to star in Baz Luhrmann's next movie - a romance based on Gone with the Wind to be shot in 2006."

26 November 2005

- Source: The Northern Territory News - Crowe, Kidman to film NT movie
"... the Northern Territory News understands Coolibah Station near Timber Creek will host 300 crew members for three months of filming. Stokes Hill Wharf in Darwin also is expected to be used. The film budget is believed to be more than $40 million. Alice Springs-based location scout Chris Tangey said Luhrmann had considering the Red Centre as a base. Picturesque Glen Helen Gorge, 130km from Alice Springs, had been one of three locations in the running. Mr Tangey said the project would be the biggest film ever shot in the Territory. "There will be a huge infrastructure set-up that's never been attempted in Australia before," he said. "Baz insisted it had to all be real and authentic." The film will be set in the 1930s and Kidman will play Crowe's love interest in what has been described as a Gone With The Wind-style epic."

25 November 2005

- Source: ABC News Online - Luhrmann eyes NT cattle station for next epic
"A remote cattle station south of Darwin could be the backdrop of a new Australian epic being planned by movie director Baz Luhrmann. Darwin film producer Simon Manzie has told the ABC he helped scout out a number of Territory locations for Luhrmann's company. But he said he is not aware any decision has been made. Australian actors Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman have reportedly signed up for the as yet unnamed film."

- Source: Daily Telegraph - Rusty turns on the charm
"He confirmed plans to star opposite Nicole Kidman in a Baz Luhrmann film next year. Asked what genre the film would be, he replied: "Magnificence, is that a genre?"

24 November 2005

- Source: The Australian - Another chance for Rusty and Nic to co-star
"Eucalyptus may have fallen over, but Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman will team up again for a new Australian movie directed by Baz Luhrmann. Crowe confirmed the casting ahead of his role hosting this weekend's Australian Film Institute awards in Melbourne. The film is rumoured to be a Gone With The Wind-style Australian epic and Luhrmann is believed to have already scouted locations, including a cattle station south of Darwin and properties near the town of Cootamundra, in central NSW. Crowe would not say much about the film except that it was "magnificent", that it would be financed by Fox and that it would not be shot in Victoria. When asked if he and Kidman's characters would be romantically involved, Crowe smiled and said: "Could be." Luhrmann was not available for comment yesterday, but in September he told The Australian he was close to deciding which of three film projects he was working on would become his follow-up to Moulin Rouge. A spokeswoman for Luhrmann said he was working on "three epics": Alexander the Great, "the Australian epic and the European epic". "At the moment, he is working on the Australian and European epics in parallel," she said. "He would be delighted if Russell and Nicole were to be involved in the Australian epic."

20 November 2005

- Source: The Daily Telegraph - Nic won't be home for Christmas
"The good news is that Kidman will be back in Sydney early next year. She's rumoured to be shooting another film with Baz Luhrmann, who directed her in Moulin Rouge, and her co-star will reportedly be Russell Crowe. It's one of two screen productions Luhrmann is said to be working on. He hinted at the Kidman-Crowe project last month in a speech at a dinner in Sydney for members of the Australian Theatre for Young People."

5 November 2005

- Source: FemaleFirst.co.uk - Craig Armstrong Knows The Score
"Now that you have worked with Baz on two of his movies do you two have any future projects lined up?"
"Yeah he has asked me to work on a movie with him in the future. I'm not sure what it's about yet. But Baz's projects take about two years to generate. I did meet him recently in London, which was nice. He's an incredibly talented guy."

27 October 2005

- Source: The Daily Telegraph
"Bodey Line column. -- A load of hot air -- Best film rumour sweeping Sydney this week? That Baz Luhrmann is remaking Gone With The Wind with Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe. Bodey Line can quash that one comprehensively, although the Moulin Rouge! director has intimated that his next Australian film will be a Gone With The Wind-style epic. While he's still working on scripts and nothing has been confirmed, Crowe and Kidman are circling for an early 2006 shoot for the Fox Searchlight studio. And the story? Can't say too much, but it draws on a true story from World War II focused in the Northern Territory and featuring a major cattle drive (which Luhrmann researched during the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive this year) and big love story. A Lawrence Of Australia, if you will."

27 September 2005

- Source: Ninemsn.com - I'm too busy for love
"Kidman also scotched rumours she is planning to work on a string of movies in the next three years or making a return to theatre. "This is it. I have the possibility of a film with Baz Luhrmann next year and that is it. I am taking a holiday after this," she said."

12 September 2005

- Source: The Australian - Baz in new role for youth theatre
"Luhrmann, whose most recent film was Oscar winning, Moulin Rouge!, said he was very close to deciding which of the three very different stories would become his next movie. One possibility is his stalled Alexander the Great project, which he has written with British playwright, David Hare. Another is a European film about which he continues to say very little. Then there is the proposed Australian Epic which might star Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman. 'I would love to work with them,' said Luhrmann when asked about the possible involvement. Luhrmann expects to make an official announcement about his intentions in the next two months."

21 August 2005

- Source: The Sunday Telegraph - Crowe tipped for new epic
"One of Australia's most original directors, Baz Luhrmann is rumoured to have his eye on Russell Crowe for the lead role in a mysterious Australian epic love story which could start shooting as early as February. Nicole Kidman is another name that has been tossed around in connection with the project. A team of writers is reportedly working on the film which is set between the two wars in Outback Australia. However, Crowe recently told one of the trade publications that it was all news to him. "I really believe in what Nicole and I could bring to the screen together, and Baz is somebody I would go to the ends of the earth with. I really don't know anything about what is being printed in newspapers, but considering I see Baz quite regularly for coffee and he hasn't brought it up . . . whatever."

4 August 2005

- Source: Contact Music - Crowe and Kidman to Star in Luhrmann Romance
"Australian actor pals Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman are hoping to play lovers in an upcoming Baz Luhrmann film. Kidman was disappointed earlier this year (05) when the independent Aussie film Eucalyptus was cancelled, because co-star Crowe was unhappy with the script. However, the actress is hoping to finally share the screen with her old friend, under the guidance of her Moulin Rouge! director and close pal Luhrmann. She enthuses, "Baz is putting together a love story at this very moment that Russell and I are interested in doing together. "I'd be thrilled if this worked out because it's important to us to put money back into the Australian economy."

July 2005

- Source: Australian Woman's Day - Nicole Kidman
"Baz Luhrmann [Moulin Rouge director] is putting together a love story that Russell and I are interested in doing together, so I'd be thrilled if this worked out because it's important to all of us to put that money back into the Australian economy." - Nicole Kidman

26 June 2005

- Source: The Sun Herald - Developing Epic
"Baz Luhrmann weaved his directorial magic for Nicole Kidman, now there are continuing rumours Russell Crowe will be Luhrmann's next leading man. The pair, who have spent some time catching up together throughout this year, are believed to be collaborating on Luhrmann's planned Australian period epic. Crowe has returned to Australia after his phone rage incident in New York and is said to be focusing on developing the new film project. But rumours that Kidman is also involved in the Luhrmann epic have been dismissed by well placed local film sources. Instead, the Oscar winner has her sights set on working with director Lars Von Trier again. Unlike Luhrmann's dazzling sets and costumes for Moulin Rouge, Von Trier put Kidman in a dog collar and chain for the controversial film Dogville."

19 June 2005

- Source: The Sun Herald - Luhrmann takes a break
"His spokeswoman, Maria Farmer, has confirmed... "Baz is working simultaneously on the development of his three epics - an ancient epic [Alexander the Great], an Australian epic and a European epic set during World War 1," she said. "He is currently co-writing the Australian piece with Stuart Beattie [LA-based Australian writer of Pirates of the Caribbean and Collateral]. Baz is taking some time out after the birth of his son William [but] intends to make a final decision on these projects in the next couple of months. He is very much hoping that the Australian epic will move into first position, and that he can be in production by the end of the year."

10 June 2005

- Source: Entertainment Weekly - The Champ
EW "There have been reports recently you're going to do a big romantic epic with Kidman and Baz Luhrmann."
RC "I really believe in what Nicole and I could bring to the screen together, and Baz is somebody I would go to the ends of the earth with. I really don't know anything about what's been printed in newspapers, but considering I see Baz quite regularly for coffee and he hasn't brought it up... whatever."

9 June 2005

-Source: Moviehole - Nicole Kidman: Interview
"The actress does hope to return to Australia to work, admitting that she and Baz Luhrmann are set to reunite for a new project, following the disappointed collapse of Eucalyptus, in which she was to star opposite Russell Crowe."

30 May 2005

- Source: Daily Telegraph - Rouge backside for Baz
"He's famous for spending time with the likes of Nicole Kidman and Leonardo DiCaprio on sumptuous film sets but lately Baz Luhrmann has rouged it. The Moulin Rouge director last week joined the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive in outback South Australia. Baz mounted his trusty steed and joined the six-week event at halfway in Mungerannie, helping drove 500 cattle on the Birdsville Track. He later partied at the Mungerannie Pub. Maybe he found inspiration for his next film project, described as an Australian period epic."

5 May 2005

- Source: E! Online - Russell, Nicole Hooking Up?
"If at first you don't succeed… Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman, who were supposed to team up in the romantic fable Eucalyptus earlier this year before the production was postponed indefinitely, are hoping to hook up again. The Oscar winners are director Baz Luhrmann's top choices to headline his latest project, an untitled Australian romantic epic for 20th Century Fox that insiders are describing as Oz's answer to Gone with the Wind. According to the Hollywood trades, a deal isn't yet on the table, but Crowe and Kidman are being targeted for what is expected to be the first in a troika of epics Luhrmann has up his sleeve for the next decade that was originally supposed to kick off with his big-screen version of Alexander the Great. But after Oliver Stone beat Luhrmann to the starting line with Alexander, the Aussie filmmaker opted to shelve that biopic for now in favor of developing