"Coloreds? This is highly irregular."

As if hipsters didn’t already have enough reason to buy vintage clothes, Baz Luhrmann is directing a film adaptation of The Great Gatsby set to open next Christmas, sure to be a sumptuous visual feast for everyone from the casual fan to the die-hard Luhrmaniac. It stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby, along with Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan, Joel Edgerton, and Isla Fisher. DiCaprio as the title character cuts a dashing figure in these new pictures from the set in Sydney’s Centennial Park, but something about the way Tobey Maguire rocks the collared sweater and floppy bow tie (as would-be writer Nick Carraway) absolutely steals the show for me. Tobey Maguire was born to play the Little Lord Fauntleroy role. He looks like what would happen if you brought a wedding-cake figurine to life and taught it skip around whistling jazz tunes. He’s like a human Jiminy Cricket.

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"Hav-ing the time of our liiiiiives, oooooh-oooohhh..."

When Hugh Jackman and Australia director Baz Luhrmann hang out, as you can imagine, it’s just a couple of good ol’ bros, broin’ out, doin’ bro stuff. Watching the footy, blowin’ the foam off a pint of suds, and of course, doing karaoke dressed like Japanese schoolgirls. You know, like bros do. Give me a pound, dog, let’s rock this town.

From Jackman’s recent interview with MTV:

“I actually did karaoke with Rob [Pattinson]. That’s random, isn’t it?” he said. “We were on our way to Japan, and he was promoting ['Twilight'] and I didn’t talk to him at all on the flight, because he’s this really tall guy with a hood over his head literally [ZOMG, R-PATTZ IS IN THE KLAN! -Ed], and every time I’d go to the bathroom, I’d be like, ‘Man, that guy takes some serious sleeping pills,’ because this was him [slumps over] the whole time.”

But the twosome quickly went from strangers on a plane to friends at a bar. “When he got out, I was like, ‘Hey, man,’ and Baz Luhrmann was also on the flight because we were promoting ‘Australia.’ So we went out to this Japanese karaoke bar, and we invited Rob, and he came,” he said. “And it was so much fun. Man, he’s got a voice. Really soulful.”

Jackman expanded a bit on the night’s debauchery, revealing what really goes on at a Japanese karaoke bar, for the uninitiated.

“The first thing you do is you get inside this room, the doors are closed, and there’s, like, eight of you,” Jackman explained. “So it feels a little weird. And then all of a sudden, they open, and they bring in these boxes, which are basically [full of] dress-up [clothes], and it’s all girls’ clothes. I was a schoolgirl, Baz got dressed up, and Rob did not. He was too cool for school.” [hat tip: videogum]

As much as I want to make fun of Hugh Jackman for being a fruity actor who can’t stop singing and dancing for five seconds, in all honesty, hanging out with him actually sounds fun as hell. “At first it felt a little weird, but then they brought us some schoolgirl outfits and Oy was like, ‘Suit up, blokes, it’s toime ta pahty!” I’d be lying if I told you I’ve never been to that kind of party.

And yes, that was an Abba reference in the photo caption. Because I guaran-goddamn-tee you they sang some Abba. Australians love Abba. Those people are the gayest racists on Earth.

"It takes two to make an accident." - F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, Ch. 3

Director Baz Luhrmann is currently in Australia shooting his adaptation of The Great Gatsby, starring Leonardo Di Caprio (Jay Gatsby), Tobey Maguire (Nick Carraway), Isla Fisher (Myrtle Wilson), and Carey Mulligan (Daisy Buchanan). Hopefully it turns out better than Australia (WOOF), but in the meantime, here’s a few pictures from the set. Either they’re just driving around the set in these and not actually shooting, or the costume designer decided to go real casual. “This is set when? Eh, I dunno, just throw on a t-shirt.”

Oh, and I thought the banner picture could use a little Gyllenhaal to brighten it up.

[FlynetPictures via ComingSoon]

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(The Great Catsby, obvi)

When I first heard Baz Luhrmann would be making a film adaptation of The Great Gatsby, my first thought was, “BUT WILL IT BE DARK AND/OR GRITTY?   CAN IT BE UPDATED FOR CONTEMPORARY AUDIENCES? AND WHAT OF ADDING VAMPIRES?”  Looks like I might not be disappointed…

Praising the 3D format, director Baz Luhrmann told The Hollywood Reporter that he has workshopped his upcoming project The Great Gatsby in 3D, though he has not made a call about whether to shoot in the format.

I imagine the final call will depend on whether Luhrmann thinks the bulky 3D camera rig will be maneuverable enough for all the car chases and wire work.

(barely related)

With studios fighting over who gets to adapt the Family Circus comic strip (note: this actually happened), you figure it was only a matter of time before Hollywood got around to making the most famous novel of the 20th century, the book Hunter S. Thompson used to type over and over in the hopes it would rub off on him. But unless you count the costume orgy we filmed in my van, The Great Gatsby hasn’t been a movie since Jack Clayton’s 1974 version starring Robert Redford, adapted by Francis Ford Coppola.  Well now Baz Luhrmann’s making it, which would be great news if his last film wasn’t Australia.

Luhrmann has officially given the starring role in The Great Gatsby to Carey Mulligan.  Mulligan was a late entrant to an elite list of actresses that Luhrmann met with while he conducted readings with Leonardo DiCaprio, who’ll play Jay Gatsby. Tobey Maguire is expected to play his friend, Nick Carraway, who narrates the tale.

Luhrmann delivered the message to Deadline, and gave me the above photo he took of Mulligan during rehearsals, when she was in Daisy Buchanan mode on November 2. “I was privileged to explore the [Daisy Buchanan] character with some of the world’s most talented actresses, each one bringing their own particular interpretation, all of which were legitimate and exciting. However, I was thrilled to pick up the phone an hour ago to the young Oscar-nominated [for An Education] British actress Carey Mulligan and say to her: “Hello, Daisy Buchanan.” [Deadline]

Told from the perspective of a rich dude who finds himself running with a circle of even filthier rich dudes who get drunk and bang each others’ girlfriends, many say the F. Scott Fitzgerald classic was a precursor to later Josh Schwartz shows such as The OC and Gossip Girls.