Circuit Round-Up, 07/31

* Last week, I previewed some rather interesting films opening on the last weekend of July.

* Joey Magidson recommended yet another acclaimed sci-fi thriller for his DVD Picks of the Week, and gives us his favorite Ryan Gosling performances.

* Mike Ward reported a surprising drop in the attendance for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 for last weekend.

* Joey also argued that – as a director – Ben Affleck’s star may shine brighter over time than Clint Eastwood’s.

* John H. Foote listed films from the Aughts that he feels are under-appreciated.

* Finally, the results of the ACCA 2001 are in, and I’m proud to say that the Awards Circuit community made some unexpected and delightfully idiosyncratic choices. Well done!

Clint Eastwood wants Leonardo DiCaprio to star with Beyonce in A Star is Born?

Apparently so, according to Deadline:

I hear Clint Eastwood is using his time with Leonardo DiCaprio on the J Edgar Hoover biopic to discuss the director's new Warner Bros project A Star Is Born. Clint is hoping to team Leo with Beyoncé, who's already set for the musical. Clint is producing through Malpaso as well as helming the script by Will Fetters. Producers are Billy Gerber and Basil Iwanyk and Jon Peters (who made the infamous version with Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson). The project has been at WB for several years, and there'd been talk of pairing Beyoncé and Will Smith. But casting Leo as the male lead would make for a much more interesting movie. There have been a trio of A Star Is Born versions made since the 1930s, the last one coming in 1976 with Kristofferson playing the boozer and Streisand the wannabe. Or even #4 if you consider What Price Hollywood (1932) made by George Cukor, which is often forgotten.

-Joey's Two Cents: I'm not exactly excited by this project, but DiCaprio would be a very interesting choice...thoughts?