The latest on Disney movies

It's the time of year where there's a lot going on in the movie biz and with numerous projects in the works Disney is in the middle casting, filming and promoting new films.

Here's a look at some of what's going on:

Cinderella

Cate Blanchett

Casting is going hot and heavy for the upcoming "Cinderella" movie. Cate Blanchett is in talks to play the role of the evil stepmother, Yidio reports. Is it far each from playing Galadriel, the Noldorin princess in The Lord of the Rings trilogy and the upcoming Hobbit trilogy, to one of the most hated villains in Disney history?

Meanwhile, Variety reports it looks like it is down to three  actresses to see who will wear the glass slipper. Testing for director Mark Romanek are Irish actress Saoirse Ronan ("The Host"), up-and-coming Swedish actress Alicia Vikander and British actress Gabriella Wilde, who appeared in "The Three Musketeers," 

20,00 Leagues

Will Australia be the background for the new Brad Pitt-Disney movie "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Captain Nemo?" There's talk that Pitt is trying to convince Australia to extend a tax rebate so he can film on location," The New Castle Herald reports.

The movie has been pitched to Australia for filming in Sydney's Fox studios, but sources tell the newspaper that it may yet be made in another, more competitive, country if a deal can not be worked out.

Roger Rabbit sequel?

Is there another Roger Rabbit movie on the horizon?

The film's original director Robert Zemeckis has admitted he has a follow-up script ready for the 1988 film "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" caper and wants to use 3D technology, but is waiting for Disney to give the film the green light, according to Blockbuster.

"I'm happy with the script. It's very good. It's written by the original writers, and it's good. (But Disney) is still thinking about it. If I were to do the sequel, it would be done just like the first one. It would look the same way, but we would present it in 3-D in its release. I would do all of the animation hand-drawn; 2-D, but using 3-D tools. It wouldn't be like Pixar 3-D. It wouldn't look like that," Zemeckis said in a MTV interview.

Whether or not he would be able to get co-star Bob Hoskins is questionable. The 70-year-old actor recently announced he was retiring after finding out he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

The new "Monster's University" poster.

Monster's U

Disney/Pixar has released a new poster for the upcoming "Monster's University" movie, slated to be released June 21, 2003. Billy Crystal and John Goodman reprise their voices to Mike and Sulley. 

Here's the official synopsis: "Mike Wazowski and James P. Sullivan are an inseparable pair, but that wasn't always the case. From the moment these two mismatched monsters met they couldn't stand each other. Monsters University unlocks the door to how Mike and Sulley overcame their differences and became the best of friends."

New Pixar movie

After wrapping up "Monster's Universty," director Dan Scanlon started off on his next film, which could be even scarier than monsters. What could that be you ask? How about the inside workings of a little girl's mind.

 According to Bleeding Cool, the new film does not have a title, its only called "The Untitled Pixar Movie That Takes You Inside The Mind." But, the website reports, John Lasseter described the set up like this: "The emotions of this little girl are the characters and it takes place in the head of this little girl, and shows how they control things that go on."