• Most Popular
  • Most Shared

Will Smith's son down to "Earth" for sci-fi redo

Tue Jan 15, 2008 1:42am EST

By Leslie Simmons

Film

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Will Smith's 9-year-old son has landed a part in Fox's remake of the sci-fi thriller "The Day the Earth Stood Still."

Jaden Smith will play Jacob, the rebellious 8-year-old stepson of scientist Helen Benson (Jennifer Connelly) who first makes contact with the humanoid alien Klaatu (Keanu Reeves). Kathy Bates and newly anointed Golden Globe winner Jon Hamm ("Mad Men") also star.

Klaatu's arrival on Earth triggers a global upheaval as governments and scientists race to unravel the mystery behind his appearance. Jacob and Helen get caught up in Klaatu's mission, coming to understand the ramifications of his being a self-described "friend to the Earth."

Scott Derrickson directs the contemporary reinvention of the original 1951 movie. It is filming in Vancouver.

Jaden Smith co-starred in 2006 with his father in "The Pursuit of Happyness," for which he won a Teen Choice Award and an MTV Movie Award.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Film


More from Reuters

Photo

Exclusive: U.S. business investment showing life

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A trade group for the lenders that finance half the capital equipment investment in the United States said on Tuesday the sharp pullback in business borrowing that marked the recent downturn moderated markedly in November -- an encouraging sign companies may be growing more confident in the sustainability of the recovery.

» More Top News
Malaysians participate in computer attack and defence hacking competition during The 3rd Annual Hack-In-The-Box Security Conference 2004 in Kuala Lumpur on October 6, 2004. REUTERS/Bazuki Muhammad
Commentary:

Year of the breach

Data security breaches are nasty business and should be avoided at all costs, writes Kevin Prince, a chief technology officer at Perimeter e-Security. Here's a look at the biggest breaches and blunders of 2009.  Commentary 

Technology
Soldiers look on as U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates speaks to soldiers at F.O.B. Warrior in Kirkuk, Iraq December 11, 2009. REUTERS/Justin Sullivan/Pool

Are you pregnant? Sir! No, Sir!

There are some 115,000 U.S. troops in Iraq -- and one commander wants to make sure his soldiers don't multiply.  Full Article 

Politics