the industry

Commence Shrieking: Zac Efron Is Back for ‘Senior Year’!

Photo: Getty Images

Efron’s Musical Career Continues: Zac Efron’s sweet delectable awesomeness will blast out of your TV and splatter all over the silver screen in Kenny Ortega’s High School Musical 3: Senior Year, the first of the franchise to score a theatrical release. (Vanessa Hudgens too, fellas, relax.) [Variety]

Hudgens Will Enunciate: Speaking of Hudgens, Tweenmerica’s Sweetheart also signs on to Todd Graff’s drama Will, about a group of high-school misfits who start a rock band. Hudgens will reportedly play “a 15-year-old former stutterer now speaking slowly and deliberately,” which should be hilarious for up to several minutes. [HR]

Theron Takes to The Road: Charlize Theron takes on the role of Viggo Mortensen’s wife, seen only in flashbacks, in John Hilcoat’s feature film of Cormac McCarthy’s hit postapocalyptic novel The Road. Though it’s a small role, it’s a potent one, and Hilcoat beautifully showcased Emily Watson in a similar role in 2005’s The Proposition. Be warned, though: This one scores high even on McCarthy’s Bleakometer. [Variety]

Barrymore, Mystery Star to Whip It: In an interview, novelist Shauna Cross discusses Drew Barrymore’s forthcoming feature adaptation of her novel Derby Girl, re-titled Whip It for the screen and possibly set to star, in Cross’s words, “an actress whose name rhymes with ‘Shmellan Shmage,’” which could theoretically refer to the young lead of the current hit comedy Shmuno, in which her character chooses not to get a shmashmortion. [Film School Rejects]

Missy, Flo Rida Step Up: Atlantic releases the soundtrack to the hilariously titled Step Up sequel Step Up 2 the Streets, featuring the Flo Rida hit “Low” as well as two new tracks from Missy Elliott titled “Ching-A-Ling” and “Shake Your Pom Pom,” both of which suggest that Elliott is in fine form. [Billboard]

Bates, Smith Stand Still: Kathy Bates and Jaden “Son of Will” Smith join Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly in 20th Century Fox’s remake of the sci-fi epic The Day the Earth Stood Still. Good to see little Jaden getting his Earth-saving smart-ass training early, so he can skip the embarrassing hip-hop and sitcom careers. [Bloody Disgusting]

Commence Shrieking: Zac Efron Is Back for ‘Senior Year’!