Lest you think this is a tacked-on sequel rushed to meet 3D demand, the script is written by Alex Garland, who made a name for himself with 28 Days Later. In case you couldn’t tell from the clip, the producers decided to take Judge Dredd in a younger, less mumbly direction with Karl Urban. His nemesis will be played by a prostitute-turned-drug kingpin. And while it would be funnier if that character was a former gigolo, it’s a girl, played by Juno‘s Olivia Thirlby.

So open your eyes, get your tickets, and realize that Judge Dredd isn’t living in 1994 anymore.

6 photosLena Headey

Check out the first look at Olivia Thirlby as Judge Cassandra Anderson and Lena Headey as the villian Ma-Ma. You’ll also find a few shots of Judge Dredd running from explosions and kicking in doors. Two aspects of the job that Night Court never had the budget to bring to the screen. (Empire and SuperHero Hype)

Superman rescues mini Duncan Jones. It doesn't matter why.

Forgive the pun but Moon helped rocket Duncan Jones to the top of many best director lists. It was only natural that the offers would come rolling in. Including offers that Jones was too chickenshit to accept. He tells ComingSoon:

“I was thrilled to be on that short list. For me, that was enough. I don’t know if I would be ready for that leap yet. I did have a meeting with Chris and he’s a fantastic guy and seemed to have really enjoyed ‘Moon,’ so there was some legitimate interest in me. I think, maybe, I’m not quite ready for that scale of project and that scale of expectation from an audience that is already existing and is waiting to see the next generation of ‘Superman’ film. I don’t know. It’s a hard one. I’m a huge Superman fan and Bizarro Superman fan. And also a big ‘Judge Dredd’ fan, which was another one that came my way. Those are two very different scales of projects. Superman was so big that I think I was a little intimidated by it and sort of backed out. ‘Judge Dredd’ I really thought about and it ended up not being right for me because I had such strong feelings and opinions on what I wanted that film to be. Although I really like what they’re going to do with it, it’s not the film that I was going to make. So that one wasn’t going to work out.”

I can understand not wanting to touch Superman with a ten-foot pole. It comes with a whole set of expectations and no matter how good it is, it will not be embraced by the fans. To see what I mean, bookmark this article and read it again the day after the Spider-Man reboot is released. You’ll have a new found sense of perspective.

The new Judge Dredd kind of looks like a housefly, and the post-apocalyptic motorcycle looks like something a shop class would have made in 1981. Let’s hope that the upcoming trailer will give us some dimensions that the stills have failed to. (/Film)

The new ‘Pirates‘ appears to be trying to sell audiences on the 3-D experience they will provide with this image. Given that the franchise has gotten a little stale over the past decade or so, playing up the 3-D angle will probably do more for buzz than any aspect of the story good. With Disney behind it, this could be a fun one. (Cinema Blend)

Here, we can see that Spider-Man either broke his arm or Andrew Garfield has truly awful running form. We’ve seen this costume before, and it looks a lot more interesting up close than it does from this distance. Further, this is the second time we’ve seen Spider-Man jaywalking. I don’t to get all preachy, but someone should tell Sony Studios that impressionable kids will be watching this. (Coming Soon)

In the script, Ma-Ma is described as being in her late fifties or early sixties with a scar running down her face. There’s no official word yet that confirms the casting so take this with a grain of salt. I’d assume if they don’t go the aged route, they’ll simply scar up Headey as is and send her to set.

Then again, maybe they will age her. You know how those make-up people love to show off. Seems like a waste of liquid latex when the production just could have hired Betty White. She’s so hot right now.

A photo of Karl Urban decked out in Judge Dredd gear for the upcoming Pete Travis-directed Dredd has found its way online. Comic book artist Jock tweeted the pic that was taken during rehearsal, which explains the low quality. Dredd‘s suit is definitely more leathery than Sly’s in the 1995 Judge Dredd. Also, what do you guys think of Urban, mainly around the mouth area? Is he rocking the right amount of stumble? Sporting a sufficient frown? Damn that Dredd mask for hiding the eyes. A judge, jury, and executioner needs those for proper sentencing. (Cinematical)

Olivia Thirlby, 2008′s It Girl (non-Kat Dennings version), will be joining Karl Urban when he shoves his gavel up bad guys’ butts in the Judge Dredd reboot. Thirlby is best known for her turns in Juno and The Wackness. It looks like she’s attempting to break into bigger, less-shoe gazey projects between this and The Darkest Hour. In other words, momma wants a pool.

For Dredd, she will play a young telepath who shadows Dredd on his beat. C’mon, do you really need to read minds to know where he’s sticking that gavel? (Up butts.) (Variety)

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Karl Urban was offered the role of Judge Dredd a few weeks ago, and now he’s officially said, "Sure, why the hell not." The film’s producers Andrew Macdonald and Allon Reich are determined to make this new adaptation not suck like the Stallone one did:

“The main thing about Dredd is that it’s a fantastic comic that was completely messed up 20 years ago," said Macdonald. "Our idea is to make a very hard, R-rated, gritty, realistic movie of Dredd in Megacity, so we’ve got to get the tone right. He’s not going to take off his helmet. His bike is going to feel real. He’s going to hit people and it’s going to feel real."

No word yet if director Pete Travis will bother developing tactile technology to literally punch audience members in the face. It seems like the next step in total entertainment immersion, but some people just aren’t ready to REALLY watch movies. (Empire)

Star Trek‘s Karl Urban is expected to be offered the role of Judge Dredd in Pete Travis’s gritty 3D take on the hanging judge. But I think the bigger story is that an actor would want to play Judge Dredd. I’m just playing. If early buzz is correct, Travis’s take will wash the taste of Stallone’s Dredd out of our mouths for good. And I, for one, am all for getting that zesty comingling of poop and piña colada off my tastebuds.

Of course, anything can happen at this point but I think Urban would be a solid choice for the role. I would normally suggest Ron Perlman but science hasn’t been able to craft a helmet large enough yet. Maybe someday when technology catches up to imagination. (Bleeding Cool)

^{If you print this out and tape it to your t-shirt, you will get so laid.}

Pete Travis is ready to fill the 3D Judge Dredd-shaped hole in our lives. Deadline reports that the Vantage Point director has signed on with DNA Films to bring Judge Joe Dredd back to the big screen, and they’ll be looking to secure distribution at Cannes.

This is good news for two reasons. A) It can’t be worse than the confusing mish-mash that was Sylvester Stallone‘s version. 2) There’s no studio involved to muck up the story. There’s no word how faithful the film will stay to the comic series but Alex Garland (Sunshine) is attached to script.  I’d like to see a scene where Dredd has his own syndicated courtroom show, and punishes deadbeat roommates to the harshest extremes of the law. Please get on this "Robot Chicken." If you haven’t already.