News Update: The Dark Knight Rises, Hansel & Gretel, Star Trek 2 and more!

• More vampires and werewolves are on the horizon.  Deborah Harkness' book The Discovery of Witches is being adapted for the big screen by David Auburn (Proof) for Warner Bros.
• So this is why we never got a trailer.  The studio behind the film, Paramount, has pushed back Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters all the way into January 2013.  Now I will have to cross it off my 2012 movie list.  Are there too many Jeremy Renner films coming out this year?  I really did want to see this one.
• The sequel to JJ Abrams' Star Trek starts filming this week and we have some newcomers to add to the cast.  Benedict Cumberbatch, fresh off of BBC's Sherlock (which I can't get enough of), is rumored to play the villain.  Previously, Benicio Del Toro was supposedly slated for the role.  Noel Clarke (Doctor Who), Naazneen Contracter (24), Alice Eve (Starter for 10), Joseph Gatt (Thor) also join the cast as new characters.  
• Midnight showings of The Dark Knight Rises have already been sold out in New York and Los Angeles.  The most anticipated release of 2012?  Yeah, I'd say so.  In case this didn't fully register, the movie is being released on July 19th.  That's nearly six months from now.  Hardcore Nolan fans!

New Photo: Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters

(Photo: Entertainment Weekly)

People are fascinated with re-imagining or re-examining the dark themes from the fairytale-like stories we heard as children.  After Snow White, Cinderella and Alice were all given big screen treatments, here comes the story of Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters.  Except they aren't children anymore, Hansel (Jeremy Renner) and Gretel (Gemma Arterton) are all grown up and are kick ass fighters!  I think I'm going to like this version.  Before the trailer hits next week, here's a quick look at Renner and Arterton as Hansel & Gretel.