By Romeo San Vicente
'Mrs. Doubtfire' strikes back
She exposed her true identity at the end of the first film, but that's not stopping Euphegenia Doubtfire from planning a return to multiplex screens. Robin Williams is in early talks to step back inside the Big Beautiful Woman padding and grandmotherly wig, reprising his role as the Scottish nanny in a sequel to the 1993 hit "Mrs. Doubtfire." That film, about a divorced San Francisco dad who disguises himself as a woman to gain access to his children, grossed over $200 million and assisted in further mainstreaming the idea of drag. As it stands now, Williams is set to co-produce the picture with his wife, Marsha Williams, with Bonnie Hunt ("Life with Bonnie") in talks to write the script. One question, though: Romeo wants to know who's left in San Francisco that can't spot a man in drag at 50 paces?
Clive Barker spreads the 'Plague'
Clive Barker must have a really busy personal assistant. The queer author-filmmaker has so many projects happening at once, it's a wonder he has time left to think up more dark, twisted ideas. He's still working on writing and directing duties for the Universal feature "Tortured Souls," the film based on his line of horrifying action figures; he's producing "Dread" for 20th Century Fox, a feature based on his own short story; and he's co-producing the horror film "Plague" in collaboration between Armada Pictures and his own company, Midnight Picture Show. The movie starts shooting in February with director Hal Masonberg. "Plague" involves a future cataclysm that leaves the world's children in comas. Then they wake up and attack their parents. In other words, it's "The Bad Seed" times a billion.
The resurrection of Edie Sedgwick
She was the most famous and glamorous member of Andy Warhol's Factory superstar scene, and she cemented her pop culture immortality by dying young. But the story of model and "Chelsea Girls" star Edie Sedgwick hasn't been immortalized on film in anything other than the bizarre 1972 "documentary," "Ciao! Manhattan," until now. Sienna Miller (co-star of "Alfie," opposite her real-life leading man, Jude Law) has signed on to play the doomed Sedgwick in the feature "Factory Girl." George Hickenlooper, whose credits include the recent acclaimed documentary "The Mayor of the Sunset Strip," will direct from a script by Captain Mauzner ("Wonderland"). Now Edie's famous-for-being-famous legend can live on as something other than a hip T-shirt decal.
'Will & Grace' team sires 'Kings'
Now that the "Friends" have all gone their separate ways, Will and Grace may be getting some new neighbors. "Will & Grace" creators Max Mutchnik and David Kohan have a new project in the works at NBC called "Kings of New York," which hopes to repeat the team's earlier Emmy- and ratings-winning sitcom success. "Kings" will revolve around four New York City characters who've been friends since childhood. Nothing more is known about these characters or the show's premise at the moment, but what is known is that, in typical Hollywood fashion, the deal between Mutchnik, Kohan, and NBC has come along even as the various parties are all busy suing each other over things monetary. There's no business like show business – for the lawyers anyway.
