Corona | Coming Attractions

If you're excited about seeing The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo as early as you can, Sony Pictures' chairman just gave you something good. The movie is now being released in North American theaters one day earlier than planned, on December 20.

"This is one of the busiest times of the year for moviegoing and we can't wait to share this outstanding thriller with audiences all over the world," said Jeff Blake, Sony's chairman. "We feel that by opening for night-time shows on December 20th, fans of the book will be given the perfect opportunity to get a jump start on the release of an exceptional film."
 

To go with the now released teaser trailer, we've got the first teaser poster for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

The first official image of Mara Rooney dressed in her role as Lisbeth Salander has surfaced, and it's appearing on this month's cover of W magazine as part of a visit to the film's set.

In the article Fincher talks about how he first met the actress while she was auditioning for the part of Mark Zuckerberg's girlfriend in The Social Network. The director was impressed with the confidence and demeaor of Mara, and when the opportunity to direct the remake of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo presented itself, Fincher suggested that she audition for the part.

"Before I read the book, I didn't think I could do it," Mara told W's reporter. "I locked myself in a room for a week and read all three books, and decided I really wanted to be Lisbeth. But I thought I had no shot at it."

But she did get the part and eventually prepared both mentally and physically for theharrowing role of Salander. One of the film's scenes depicts the rape of Lisbeth, something that shapes the core of her character and why she involves herself with solving the murder at the heart of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. As for her physical appearance, Fincher had something in mind. "Lisbeth is the goth Pippi [Longstocking]," he observes.

Read the full piece at W's website. [Full story]

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross are reuniting with David Fincher for the second time. As the musicians gather more award nominations for their score to The Social Network, the duo are now two months into composing the score for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

Spy photos showing Daniel Craig filming an early scene from the movie on the courthouse steps in Stockholm, Sweden have been published by one of London's daily papers. In the series of photos Craig can be seen arriving on set, filming his scenes and consulting with director David Fincher.

Christopher Plummer will play the man who sets off the chain of events at the heart of the film. The 80-year-old's part will be of a wealthy industrialist who hires the services of Daniel Craig's journalist and Mara Rooney's hacker to solve the mystery behind who killed a young woman 40 years ago.

Plummer voiced the villain in last year's Pixar movie, Up, and has starred in over 100 films.

Photos showing Rooney Mara working on the movie have turned up on a fan site for the actress. While the series of 13 photos does show the black-haired Mara on a motorbike and rehearsing a scene while helpers surround her, she might be practising on the motorcycle when the photographs were taken. That may also mean that the way Mara looks in these photos, with her short dark hair, may not be the way that she appears as her character in the remake.

See the photos.

Rooney Mara has won the part of Lisbeth Salander in the remake. She's appeared in Gregg Araki's Kaboom, this year's remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street and the upcoming David Fincher film The Social Network.

The studio has also confimed Daniel Craig's role in the movie.

Actor Stellan Skarsgård is one actor who is currently in contention for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo remake, and we all now know this because he told the trade magazine Variety himself.

"I have met (David) Fincher, I want to work with him, he wants to work me. I have had a concrete offer and now we are in negotiations," Skarsgard told the outlet. "The contract is for the period September to March, but I don't know yet when I am supposed to start my part in the film."

Skarsgård would play Martin Vagner in the movie, one of the prime suspects in the cold case murder of a young girl.

Two sites are both reporting as an exclusive that Daniel Craig has signed to play journalist Mikael Blomkvist in the remake. Neither website is saying why their report is more exclusive over the other.

Sony Pictures president Amy Pascal spoke with The Wrap about her company's planned remake of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, and she was adamant that the movie would go into production soon.

"Well, I’m going to try to get these movies out as fast as possible. But, you know, we’ll have the first one next Christmas. And hopefully, the next two as quick as I can get them. We’re trying to figure that out now," Pascal told the site's Sharon Waxman.

The studio head also said that she hopes David Fincher will direct all three films in the series, and that a search will begin shortly to find the actress to play the film's female lead. "It's the greatest character for a girl since I-don't-know-what," Pascal explained. She then brushed off a thought from Waxman that the character of Lisbeth in the American remake won't look so punk and retain the stud in her nose that the original Swedish film's Noomi Rapace wore.

"Oh, just wait and see," Pascal shot right back. "We're doing the book. That's why we hired David Fincher. We're going to really do this, in all their glory. Otherwise why do it? They're very R-rated movies. It's the shock of what’s really going on underneath the surface of society. If you don't actually make good on that, you haven't told the story."

In other related news, eRc Box Office was the first to report a release date for the remake: December 21, 2011.

The rumor du jour is that Daniel Craig is said to be talking with someone involved with the studio about playing the Mikael Blomkvist part in the remake.