British starlet Lucy Punch, best known for comedic turns in the films Hot Fuzz, Take Me Home Tonight, and the upcoming Cameron Diaz vehicle Bad Teacher, is set to play the female lead in the FX superhero pilot “Powers.”

“Powers” is the name of the civilian police force assigned to investigating crimes involving people with super powers. The pilot, directed by Michael Dinner (“The Wonder Years”) and penned by Charles Eglee (“Dark Angel”), is based on the comic book series created by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming.

Punch will play Deena Pilgrim, a rookie detective working  the murder of a super-powered celeb Retro Girl. Charles Dutton (Legion) costars as homicide head Captain Cross. Sony Pictures Television and Circle of Confusion (“The Walking Dead”) are producing.

Aspiring Albanian actress Antoinette Nikprelaj may only have a handful of uncredited and/or background roles under her belt, including that of “Mermaid” in Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, but the 5-foot-7 stunner is hard to forget once you’ve seen her.

That’s why Nikprelaj fans will want to check out Vicious Circle Films’ upcoming slasher Exit 33, arriving on DVD on Aug. 2. The trailer regrettably focuses on Kane Hodder’s character so it’s hard to tell how meaty Nikprelaj’s part is, but at least her character has a name: Angie.

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The flick’s synopsis reads:

A few miles off Exit 33 lies Ike’s Last Chance Gas, an old, forgotten hideaway where the reclusive Ike pumps gas and practices his taxidermy skills. Though he might come across as a simple soul, Ike has a dark secret: he’s obsessed with women who have enchanting eyes – eyes he wants to keep for himself.

Now, as four friends make their way to their 5-year high school reunion, they all make the mistake of taking Exit 33, and they won’t be making it back to the highway any time soon.

Exit 33 is directed by Tommy Brunswick (Jingles the Clown) and costars April Canning (A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas 3-D), Maria Hildreth (Naked Angel), Virgina Bryant (Jingles the Clown), John Anton (Deadheads), and Jerry Reid.

Nikprelaj can also be seen as “Boxing Fan” in DreamWorks upcoming Hugh Jackman vehicle Real Steel (Damn, now I gotta see that dorky film).

Like the Kennedy assassination and Roswell, the firing of actress Megan Fox from DreamWorks’ soon-to-be-released Transformers: Dark of the Moon has been shrouded in secrecy and speculation. Most people believe the 25-year-old starlet was canned for famously comparing director Michael Bay to Hitler. Those people are wrong.

Turns out there was a second shooter in the grassy knoll. Transformers producer/director Michael Bay has now revealed that he was not offended by Fox’s comment at all and that the real reason she was fired was because executive producer Steven Spielberg demanded it so.

Bay said (via Daily Mail):

You know the Hitler thing. Steven [Spielberg] said, fire her right now.

Fox, of course, was replaced in the film by 24-year-old Victoria Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whitely, who coincidentally once compared Bay to Janice Dickinson on “America’s Next Top Model.”

Transformers: Dark of the Moon arrives in theaters on July 1.

“LOST” starlet Evangeline Lilly has been cast in Peter Jackson’s eagerly anticipatedbig screen adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit. The beautiful 31-year-old will play Tauriel, a woodland elf character created for the film.

Says Jackson:

Evangeline Lilly will be playing a new character—the Woodland Elf, Tauriel. Her name means ‘daughter of Mirkwood’ and, beyond that, we must leave you guessing! (No, there is no romantic connection to Legolas.)

What is not a secret is how talented and compelling an actress Evangeline is; we are thrilled and excited she will be the one to bring our first true Sylvan Elf to life.

Lilly joins a large cast that includes many familiar faces: Ian McKellan, Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Andy Serkis, and Christopher Lee. Among the new faces are Luke Evans, Lee Pace, Stephen Fry, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins.

The Hobbit will be split into two movies: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (release date: Dec. 14, 2012) and The Hobbit: There and Back Again (release date: Dec. 13, 2013). Production is currently underway in New Zealand.

Lilly, best known for playing fugitive Kate Austin on ABC’s “LOST,” will soon be seen in DreamWorks upcoming Hugh Jackman vehicle Rock’em, Sock’em Robots Real Steel.

A trailer for director Dwight H. Little’s (“Bones”) live-action adaptation of the Namco fighting game Tekken is circulating the web. The film stars Kelly Overton as Christie, Mircea Monroe as Kara, Candice Hillebrand as Nina Williams, Marian Zapico as Anna Williams, Jon Foo as Jin Kazama, and Luke Goss as Steve Fox.

Set in the post apocalyptic world of 2039, Tekken follows street fighter Jin Kazama as he battles to the death against champion martial artists and half-naked women in the King of Iron Fist tournament.

Horror fans may recognize Overton from The Ring 2 and Monroe from The Black Waters of Echo Pond. Little’s directing creds include Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, Phantom of the Opera (starring Robert Englund), and episodes of the Fox series “Millennium.”

Anchor Bay Entertainment will release Tekken on July 19 on DVD and Blu-ray.

Peep the King of Iron Fist Tournament:

A new trailer for DreamWorks upcoming tent-pole Transformers: Dark of the Moon has hit the web. The clip is set to hard rock outfit Linkin Park’s song “Iridescent.” The tune is super pussified, but the footage looks pretty cool—although at 1:11 mark it becomes clear that Rosie Huntington-Whiteley ain’t much of a screamer.

Transformers 3 arrives in theaters on July 1.

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DreamWorks has released a short featurette for director Jon Favreau’s big screen adaptation of Scott Mitchell Rosenberg’s graphic novel Cowboys & Aliens, arriving in theaters on July 29. Along with some BTS footage, the clip features Favreau and producers Ron Howard and Steven Spielberg discussing the project, its cast, and the source material.

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Set in the mid 19th century, Cowboys & Aliens follows gunslinger Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig), Ella Verity (Olivia Wilde), and Colonel Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford) as they set out to stop an alien race from enslaving humankind.

Costars include Sam Rockwell (Iron Man 2), Walton Goggins (Predators), Clancy Brown (”LOST”), Abigail Spencer (Haunting in Georgia), Keith Carradine (“Dexter”), Paul Dano (Taking Lives),  Ana de la Reguera (Nacho Libre), and Adam Beach (Flags of Our Fathers).

Anchor Bay Entertainment has set an Aug. 23 home-video release date for director Eric Valette’s (One Missed Call) ode to killer car flicks Super Hybrid. The film stars pretty Canadian up-and-comer Shannon Beckner (American Pie: Beta House), who—according to her IMDB bio—had to learn how to weld to get the role (those Hollywood casting guys sure are a kinky bunch).

The film’s synopsis reads:

Late one night, a mysterious car is brought into the Chicago police impound garage after a deadly traffic accident. The on-call mechanics soon discover the car has a mind of its own. With hundreds of horsepower and two tons of reinforced steel at its command, it’s a seemingly unstoppable killing machine capable of outrunning — and outwitting — humans.

Super Hybrid costars the very sexy Melanie Papalia (American Pie: Book of Love), Ryan Kennedy (“Hellcats”), and Oded Fehr (Resident Evil: Extinction).

Get your motors running:

“Spartacus: Blood and Sand” fans will have to wait till January 2012 for the premiere of the show’s second season, “Spartacus: Vengeance,” but those attending this year’s Comic Con convention in San Diego, CA will get an early introduction to Liam McIntyre, the actor stepping into original Spartacus lead Andy Whitfield’s sandals.

Starz announced today that it will host a “Spartacus: Vengeance” panel at Comic-Con on July 21 at 5:45pm PT in Room 6BCF. Joining McIntyre and executive producer Steven S. DeKnight on stage will be costars Dustin Clare, Lucy Lawless, Manu Bennett, and the beautiful Katrina Law.

While I look forward to seeing Spartacus (McIntyre) cross paths with Gannicus (Clare), and am curious to see how Lucretia (Lawless) will fit into season two, I’m thrilled to see that Law’s escaped House of Batiatus slave Mira will have an ongoing story arch.

As far as I’m concerned, Dexter Morgan can do no wrong. But, for many of you, season five of Showtime’s hit serial killer drama “Dexter” proved to be a let down from past seasons, especially four. Well, looks like Showtime got your anthrax-coated memos. The network has released a new promo in which Dex, himself, assures fans that he’s going back to his old ways.

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