04/24/05

Check out a rare photo of THE GRUDGE cast and crew here. Arigato and maraming salamat, Joey M.! Enjoy...

The wait is finally over! The highly anticipated press release for Southland Tales is out. Sarah will be playing the role of Krysta Now, "an adult film star developing her own reality television project". Joining Sarah in this ambitious project are Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock and Seann William Scott. Filming is scheduled to begin this August.

JOHNSON HEADS TO “TALES”

UNIVERSAL PICTURES INTERNATIONAL HOLDS MOST FOREIGN RIGHTS; CHERRY ROAD FILMS AND DARKO ENTERTAINMENT TO PRODUCE

Los Angeles, CA (April 20, 2005) – Cherry Road Films and Darko Entertainment announced today that Dwayne Johnson (aka The Rock) will star opposite Seann William Scott (American Pie, The Dukes of Hazzard) and Sarah Michelle Gellar (The Grudge) in the science-fiction thriller Southland Tales for writer-director Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko). Sean McKittrick will produce under the Darko Entertainment banner he co-founded with Kelly. Cherry Road principals Bo Hyde and Kendall Morgan will produce. Executive producers are Matthew Rhodes and Judd Payne of Persistent Entertainment, Bill Johnson and Jim Seibel of Inferno Distribution, and Oliver Hengst of Academy Film Gmbh.

Principal photography is slated to begin on August 1 in Los Angeles. Cherry Road Films had officially greenlit the picture with co-financing from Universal Pictures International, Inferno Distribution and Wild Bunch, with Universal distributing in most foreign territories through the UIP banner, and Wild Bunch distributing in France, Benelux, Spain and Switzerland . Richard Klubeck of UTA is representing on the domestic front.

Southland Tales is an ensemble piece set in the futuristic landscape of Los Angeles on July 4, 2008, as it stands on the brink of social, economic and environmental disaster. Johnson will star as Boxer Santaros, an action star stricken with amnesia whose life intertwines with Krysta Now (Gellar), an adult film star developing her own reality television project, and David Clark (Scott), a Hermosa Beach police officer who holds the key to a vast conspiracy.

“Dwayne, Seann and Sarah each have an adventurous spirit and I am honored that they have put their faith in me,” said Kelly. “ The film is going to be a strange hybrid of the sensibilities of Andy Warhol and Philip K. Dick. ”

Also joining the project are most of the key crew from Donnie Darko , including director of photography Steven Poster ASC , production designer Alexander Hammond, costume designer April Ferry and editor Sam Bauer. Critically acclaimed artist and producer Moby will compose the music for the film.

In addition to the feature film, an expanded version of Southland Tales will be presented as a nine-part interactive experience with the prequel saga to be published as six separate 100 page graphic novels, each written by Kelly. The graphic novels will be released over a six month period early next year leading up to the film's release with the feature film comprised of the story's final three chapters. In addition, the film's official website will be one of the largest and most elaborate ever designed for a feature film. “The graphic novels will work in tandem with the website, creating a more epic multimedia experience for those interested in taking the plunge," added Kelly.

UTA helped package the project. Glenn Feig of Reder & Feig is production counsel.

Richard Kelly is repped by CAA, The Firm and David Weber of Sloan, Offer, Weber and Dern, LLP.

Cherry Road and Persistent are repped by Linda Lichter at Lichter, Grossman, Nichols & Adler.

Inferno Distribution is repped by Phil Rosen of Rosen & Anderson. For additional information, please visit the film's official website, SouthLandTales.com.

Click here for the list of features included in The Grudge - Director's Cut DVD, coming out May 17th.

04/10/05

Sarah News

Just an update on Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey, the project is still alive and moving forward. They are now in the new design phase. The exciting part about this is our fan community's possible involvement. We will post more info when we have them. In case you're not familiar with this project, it is an educational animated feature with voices provided by an all star cast including Sarah as Ranger. To learn about this project, click here.

A new fan encounter! RJ, one of Sarah's biggest fans, had the pleasure of meeting her on the set of her new film about a week ago. He was kind enough to share his photos but has asked that they not be posted anywhere else. View photos.

I've received several e-mails asking about the SMG Birthday Project 2005. I'm glad to report that the album is done and is ready for delivery. I received 153 postcards and thank everyone who participated. Cover, Front, Sample 1, Sample 2, Sample 3 and Sample 4

04/01/05

Happy April 1st everyone! We hope those bad pranksters didn't get you on this crazy April Fool's Day.

03/28/05

Read an English translation of a German interview with Sarah conducted in December 2004 here.

You can now pre-order a copy of THE GRUDGE DVD - Director's Cut, which is scheduled for a May 17th release.

Watch a clip (23MB) of a deleted scene from our making of THE GRUDGE collection. Enjoy!

03/21/05

We've confirmed the release date for THE GRUDGE DVD - Extended Cut to be May 17th. We should have some goodies coming soon so check back here again.

Last we heard, filming for Sarah's now untitled Rogue Pictures project is moving along.

Our SMGFAN.com's Scooby Doo DVD Giveaway is now closed. Winners will be announced here within the next week or so.

03/16/05

Sarah has left the William Morris Agency...with good reason. I thought of commenting about this but decided against it. Instead, I share the following with you: Success is not measured by what a man accomplishes but by the opposition he has overcome and the courage with which he has maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds. ~C.S. Marsden

Don't forget to catch the network television premiere of Scooby Doo this Friday, March 18th at 8:30 PM ET/PT on Nickelodeon.

03/13/05

Sarah News

Read Fangoria's article on Sarah's new project (formerly entitled Revolver) here.

THE GRUDGE opened in the no. 5 spot in Germany, taking in an estimated $1 million.

Watch a rather funny new clip from the Japan promotions of THE GRUDGE. Clip (24 MB). Thanks to Japanese Fan.

Site News

There are only 18 days left before the deadline for our SMG Birthday Project 2005. If you haven't sent your postcards yet, do so before it's too late! Details

03/07/05

SMGFAN.com's Scooby Doo DVD Giveaway is now OPEN! Enter here. Please note that the contest is open to US residents. Good luck!

03/05/05

We have 2 new clips from THE GRUDGE promotions in Japan courtesy of Japanese Fan. Watch clip 1 (10 MB), clip 2 (15 MB). Right click and then Save Target As

02/28/05

Yup, it's SMGFAN.com's 9th anniversary. We would like to thank all of you who continue to visit and support the site. We'd also like to say a big thanks to Ms. K., Ms. S. and most especially to Ms. G. for always playing nice.

This is for you (for best quality Right click and Save Target As)

02/24/05

Sarah News

We've added a clip of Sarah promoting THE GRUDGE on a Japanese tv show as well as scans from some Japanese publications. Thanks to Japanase Fan for all the goodies. Watch clip (11mb). View scans.

Following are some estimated international boxoffice figures for THE GRUDGE and its opening rank:


France (as of Feb. 13th) - $5.4 (6th)
Hong Kong (as of Feb. 13th) - $104,000 (5th)
Italy (as of Feb. 13th) - $6.3 (2nd)
Japan (as of Feb. 13th) - $1.3 (4th) *this is opening weekend
Spain (as of Feb. 13th) - $3.7 (2nd)
The Netherlands ( as of Feb. 13) - $1.8 (2nd)
United Arab Emirates ( as of Feb. 13th) - $480,000 (2nd)
UK ( as of Feb. 13) - $14.5 (1st)

Incidentally, both of Sarah's movies released in 2004 did well in the domestic and international boxoffice: Scooby Doo 2 made $84.2 and $97.2 m respectively while THE GRUDGE earned $110.3 and $60.4 m. Not bad.

Site News

The two winners of our THE GRUDGE DVD Giveaway are C. Jacobs of Harrisburg, PA and T. Francisco of San Diego, CA. Congratulations! Check back here for our upcoming contest - Scooby Doo DVD Giveaway.

Just a clarification about the SMG Birthday Project 2005, we will only include postcards (with a picture of your city or town) in the package we'll be sending to Sarah so please DO NOT send a picture of yourself or a gift or a letter. Any extra items we receive will be discarded. Thanks for your cooperation. If you live in a small town and you can't find a postcard for it, you may choose one for a neighboring big city or take a picture of a landmark in your town and send that instead. The purpose of this project is to show Sarah that she has fans all over the world.

SMGFAN.com is turning 9 in a few days. Who'll be celebrating our anniversary with us? Find out soon...

02/19/05

Just a small but interesting tidbit about THE GRUDGE tv spot in Japan - apparently, a lot of people complained that the tv promo was too offensive and scary for general audience (some scenes made children cry). This prompted the distributors to change the promo to a less 'scary' version. In Japan, they only show one tv spot unlike in N. America where we get slightly different versions depending on the time of day it airs.

02/18/05

Clips from THE GRUDGE Japan press conference are now up. MPEG (Right click and Save As) - Part 1 (21 MB), Part 2 (57 MB), Part 3 (47 MB) and Part 4 (36 MB). Footage copyright and courtesy of NIPPON Herald Films/klockworx/EF. Please note that we are aware of the sound being out of sync and we apologize for this.

Just a reminder that SMGFAN.com’s THE GRUDGE DVD Giveaway ends on February 21st. Enter now if you haven't already done so.

02/14/05

New pictures from THE GRUDGE Japan press conference have been added to the Pictures section.

02/12/05

We've added footage from the Japan premiere of THE GRUDGE. Watch clips. Footage from the press conference will be posted soon so check back here again. Enjoy!

02/10/05

Sarah News

SMG on 'The L Word'? The New York Daily News reported the following: Sapphic casting?: Who would "The L Word" star Jennifer Beals most like to see in a lesbian love romp? "I want Buffy - I want Sarah Michelle Gellar on the show," the 41-year-old Beals told Lowdown at Showtime's second-season premiere party at Duvet. "I've told [executive producer] Ilene [Chaiken], ad nauseam. She just laughs and walks away. I'm going to try again this year, and we'll see what happens. It's set in L.A, so Sarah could be herself." Yesterday Gellar's rep said: "She'd be flattered - who wouldn't be? Jennifer Beals is an icon." The L Word is a new critically acclaimed series on Showtime that deals with the 'romantic, professional and social exploits of a group of women - some straight, some gay - living in Los Angeles'.

THE GRUDGE DVD had a very successful debut. It was America's no. 1 ($9.2 million) rental movie and the second best-selling DVD for the week ending February 6th. Speaking of the DVD, we've received word that the special features on all the regions are expected to be the same.

We've been told that Japan is getting a version of THE GRUDGE that's 3 minutes longer than what the rest of the world saw in theaters. Apparently, they will see the uncut version of the scene with Karen, Doug and Kayako. Also, Nicolas Cage has expressed interest in working with Takashi Shimizu and has asked the director to send him a copy of the script for his next project. Wouldn't it be interesting if GRUDGE 2 ended up with both Sarah and Nicolas? Stay tuned.

The nominees for the 31st Annual Saturn Awards have been announced and seasons 2 and 3 of Buffy are nominated for Best DVD Television Release and THE GRUDGE is nominated for Best Horror Film.

For those big SMG/Buffy memorabilia collectors, Fox and VIP Fan Clubs are auctioning off a pair of black pants worn by Sarah in the Angel episode I Will Remember You. Auction

Scooby Doo! Where are you?

On Friday, March 18th at 8:30 PM ET/PT, Nickelodeon brings you the network television premiere of Scooby Doo, the live action meets state-of-the-art animation adaption of the beloved cartoon series. Hollywood darlings Freddie Prinze, Jr (I Know What You Did Last Summer,She's All That), Sarah Michelle Gellar (The Grudge, Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Matthew Lillard (Without A Paddle, Scream), and Linda Cardellini (ER, Freaks and Geeks) star in this fun adventure film.

Two years after a clash of egos forced Mystery Inc. to close it's doors, Scooby-Doo and his clever crime-solving cohorts Fred (Freddie Prinze, Jr..), Daphne (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Shaggy (Matthew Lillard) and Velma (Linda Cardellini) are individually summoned to Spooky Island to investigate a series of paranormal incidents at the ultra-hip Spring Break hot spot. Concerned that his frightfully popular resort might truly be haunted, Spooky Island owner Emile Mondavarious (Rowan Atkinson) tries to reunite those notoriously meddling detectives to solve the mystery before his supernatural secret scares away the college crowds. Scooby and the gang will have to overcome their personal differences and forget everything they think they know about fake ghouls and phony creatures to crack the case, save themselves and possibly...the world! Ruh-roh!

Scooby Doo premieres on Nickelodeon on March 18th at 8PM ET/PT. It will re-air on the same night at 10PM ET/PT, Saturday at 8PM ET/PT, and Sunday at 4PM ET/PT.

Want to own a copy of the Scooby Doo DVD with all the cool special features and commentary? Check back here on March 7th for our Scooby Doo DVD Giveaway (5 copies).

02/04/05

Sarah News

In an interview with comingsoon.net, Rob Tapert, THE GRUDGE producer, comments on Sarah's possible return in the movie's sequel.

THE GRUDGE DVD (Region 1) is now available. The commentary makes getting a copy worth it, as the participants shared a lot of interesting tidbits about the film and funny stories from their time in Japan. Also, we've received a few e-mails asking if we know when the 'uncut' version will be coming out. There is no release date as of this time but as soon as we know, we will post the info here.

We've been told that principal photography for Sarah's new project, Revolver, is scheduled to start at the end of the month and they are hoping to wrap by the end of April.

Site News

We've added 2 pictures from THE GRUDGE premiere and press conference in Japan courtesy of NIPPON Herald Films.

Check out the multimedia section for a clip from the Japan premiere of THE GRUDGE. Thanks to Japanese Fan for sharing the clip with us.

Deadline for this project is April 1, 2005. If we don’t receive your postcard by the deadline, there is no guarantee that it will be included in the package that will be sent to SMG. Remember, mail can take up to 3 – 4 weeks depending on where you are so don’t wait too long, send your postcards soon! If you have any questions, please contact us. Also, PLEASE READ an important note here.

SMGFAN.com’s THE GRUDGE DVD Giveaway is now OPEN! Contest is open to N. American residents only. Good luck.

01/26/05

Sarah News

Attention fans in Japan! The premiere for THE GRUDGE in Tokyo is scheduled for Feb. 2nd at 6pm at the Nakano Sunplaza. Sarah will be doing an on-stage presentation and Q&A with Takashi Shimizu and Takashige Ichise before the showing. For a list of some of Sarah's inteviews in Japan, please click here.

Site News

SMGFAN.com will be giving away 2 copies of THE GRUDGE DVD to celebrate its release on February 1st. Please check back again for details.

01/25/05

Sarah News

We have two clips from THE GRUDGE DVD extras courtesy of Sony Pictures: video 1, video 2. Enjoy! As always, we ask that you post a link to this page if re-posting the info. Thanks.

Don't forget to check out our THE GRUDGE page for some additional goodies coming soon. We've received requests to make all trailers for the movie available on the site. We will be putting up all 7 TV spots in the very near future as well as a clip of highlights from the premiere.

01/23/05

Sarah News

Richard-Kelly.net has posted an update on the progress of Southland Tales. It seems that filming is now expected to start in the summer. An official press release is forthcoming.

Read an interesting piece on how Buffy changed how teens talk today.

01/14/05

Sarah News

Just a few short tidbits; SMG' s 'Revolver' is scheduled to begin filming in early March in Austin, Texas.

Takashi Shimizu has signed on to direct the sequel to THE GRUDGE. Will Sarah be returning as Karen Davis? Stay tuned…

Speaking of THE GRUDGE, just a reminder that the DVD (Region 1) is set for a February 1st release. You can pre-order your copy now.

Sarah's next overseas appearance will be in Japan for the premiere of THE GRUDGE. More info to follow.

Site News

Coming soon is SMGFAN.com's SMG Birthday project 2005! Check back here for the details.

01/02/05

2004 was an amazing and exciting year for Sarah and the fans. Both Scooby Doo 2 and THE GRUDGE did well in the boxoffice with the latter far exceeding expectations. THE GRUDGE promotional run was like a gift to the fans. Not only did it take her all over the world, much to the delight of fans outside N. America, but she also made her first ever appearance at the San Diego Comic-Con, did an MSN Live Chat and graced several magazine covers. Join us as we look back at last year's highlights and look foward to another great year in 2005! Watch Rewind 2004 (note: video has music)

01/01/05

As we begin a brand new year, let us all remember those in countries devastated by recent disasters. If you are able, please consider donating to organizations helping in the cause such as the Red Cross, UNICEF and World Vision. You might also want to check with your local banks, community groups and charitable agencies for other ways to help. Our prayers are with everyone affected by this tragedy. May GOD bless us all.