Paramount Pictures is confirming 4 new additions to the GI Joe movie cast according to IESB and Hollywood Reporter.

First up is Storm Shadow, the Cobra ninja and personal bodyguard to Cobra Commander. He’s the “swordbrother” of GI Joe’s resident ninja commando, Snake Eyes. He’ll be played by South Korean actor Byung-hun Lee. Western gamers might recognize him as the face of Wayne Holden in the game “Lost Planet: Extreme Condition”

Model/Actress Rachel Nichols has been cast as the GI Joe member Scarlett (seen above). Scarlett is the team’s counter intelligence officer and uses a cross bow, she’s also been romantically linked to Snake Eyes. Rachel Nichols previously starred as an FBI agent on Alias, and has also taken an unspecified role in the next Star Trek. Nichols will dye her hair red and speak with a southern accent or else everyone will cry.

LOST fans looking for a shot of Mr Eko are going to be pleased to see Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje has been cast as Heavy Duty, the unit’s demolition and ordinance specialist.

Boxer turned actor Said Taghmaoui has also been cast though the announcement makes no mention of his role. Fans speculate he’s taking the roll of Breaker, the communications expert.

Will Smith stars as a superhero who isn’t so super as people would like. Looks like it has a lot of potential. The trailer pretty much speaks for itself. Coming Summer 2008.

After years in the courts, and constant questions if the movies will ever get made, we finally have an answer. New Line and MGM will be going forward with a pair of movies based on the JRR Tolkien book “The Hobbit.” See the full press release here.

The Hobbit takes place before the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, and follows a younger Bilbo Baggins on his first adventure. The story also features popular LOTR characters like Gandalf The Grey and Gollum.

No casting has been made, no director has been chosen. Effects are expected to be done by WETA workshop and be consistent with the existing Lord Of The Rings films. Shooting will start in 2009 for release of the 2 films in 2010 and 2011.

This past weekend many people got to see this new promo for the sequel to Batman Begins ahead of I Am Legend, and now everyone can see it online. Its being hosted on one of the many websites for The Dark Knight, A Taste For The Theatrical.

Not online in any official capacity is the 6 minute IMAX scene that also ran ahead of IMAX showings of I Am Legend. Bootlegs flood youtube, but don’t watch them unless you feel you have no other choice.

The images we linked to last week led to an interesting discussion on our forums about why we are so hyped for the upcoming Speed Racer movie. Well, here is what most of us have been waiting for to get an idea of what to expect.

Source: Blogs@Newsarama

Source: Blogs@Newsarama.

In another brilliant form of viral marketing, a contest has been set up to for people to add a widget to their site. The top number of grabs of the widget from a site gets an exclusive advanced screening in a theater in their hometown for you and all your friends. There are some pretty nice runner-up prizes as well.

Source: Blogs@Newsarama

This one speaks for itself:

Via: Blogs@Newsarama.