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Thread: Charlie's Angels

  1. #1
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    Charlie's Angels

    A reboot of the reboot?

    Elizabeth Banks in Talks to Direct New 'Charlie's Angels' Movie (Exclusive)


    Elizabeth Banks

    by Borys Kit
    9/15/2015 2:00pm PDT

    Sony is rebooting the franchise.

    Charlie’s Angels is getting a new shot at the big-screen, this time with Elizabeth Banks involved.

    Sony is rebooting the franchise, about three attractive women who work as private detectives, and is in negotiations to hire Banks to direct the new movie.

    Banks will also produce with her husband and producing partner Max Handelman. The studio and producers will begin a search for a writer to tackle the reboot.

    Angels, a hit television series in the 1970s, centered around three detectives — played by Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith — who worked to solve cases for a mysterious benefactor named Charlie, while also joshing with their sidekick, Bosley.

    At first known as Jiggle TV and not taken too seriously, the show became a breakout hit and the actresses household names. Fawcett soon left and was replaced by Cheryl Ladd. Tanya Roberts also joined the cast in later seasons as ratings were declining.

    The property got an infusion of female empowerment energy in its big-screen treatment in 2000, when Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu starred in the action comedy hit directed by McG. (Bill Murray played Bosley.) The film was followed by a bloated and not well-received sequel, 2003’s Charlie’s Angles: Full Throttle, that effectively killed the movie franchise.

    Read More Elizabeth Banks' $200 Million Path to Directing 'Pitch Perfect 2'

    An attempt to revive it as a television series in 2011 only lasted four episodes.

    Banks, who has demonstrated a gift for comedy and drama as an actress, has also shown an affinity for female empowerment projects as the steward of the Pitch Perfect franchise. The movies focus on an all-girl a cappella group that takes on male rivals.

    Banks made her feature directorial debut with Pitch 2, one of Universal’s massive summer hits. The movie, with a budget in the $30 million range, opened to almost $70 million domestic, giving her the second-largest opening for a female director. (The movie has made almost $184 million domestic.)

    The movie also opened up a new career chapter for Banks, that of a director. She is already attached to direct YA fantasy Red Queen at Universal. Although Universal is putting together the pieces for Pitch 3, her involvement as director remains unclear.

    She is repped by UTA, Untitled Entertainment and Ziffren Brittenham.
    Gene Ching
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  2. #2
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    Writer Evan Spiliotopoulos

    Now we just need to cast some Angels.

    Charlie’s Angels Reboot Lands Beauty and the Beast Writer Evan Spiliotopoulos
    BY MAX EVRY ON DECEMBER 16, 2015


    Charlie’s Angels reboot lands Beauty and the Beast writer Evan Spiliotopoulos

    Back in September, it was announced that Sony Pictures was developing a big-screen Charlie’s Angels reboot with actress-turned-Pitch Perfect 2 helmer Elizabeth Banks in the director’s chair. Now movement continues as the studio has hired hot scribe Evan Spiliotopoulos to tackle the new adaptation’s screenplay.

    Although his most high-profile studio film has been Dwayne Johnson’s 2014 Hercules, Spiliotopoulos cut his teeth on Disney animated features (The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning, Pooh’s Heffalump Movie) and has The Huntsman Winter’s War coming out next year and Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast in 2017. He was also recently brought on to rewrite Universal’s Wanted sequel, so his credits speak to a perfect balance of action and humor that an Angels reboot will no doubt need.

    “The original ethos of women who graduated from the police academy, and then were given the jobs of crossing guard and meter maid, I feel like that’s still very real in the world right now,” Banks told the trade of her guiding impetus in making the film. She is also set to produce the new film alongside her husband Max Handelman through their Brownstone production company.

    The original show focused on three women who worked as a team of private investigators, receiving their orders from the mysterious Charlie Townsend (voiced by John Forsythe, but whose face was never revealed). Although the lineup changed during the course of the series, the four key headlining actresses were Jaclyn Smith, Farrah Facett, Kate Jackson and Cheryl Ladd.

    The popular series ran for five seasons and, in 2000, launched a feature film franchise starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu. That film also turned out a 2003 sequel, Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle.

    A television “Charlie’s Angels” reboot was attempted in 2011 with Annie Ilonzeh, Minka Kelly, Rachael Taylor headlining. Airing on ABC, it only lasted eight episodes.
    Gene Ching
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    I think ScarJo was just a rumor/hoax...

    ...but that was an amusing one for sure.

    For the record, ScarJo would be awesome in Charlie's Angels.

    Doug Belgrad Launches 2.0, Will Co-Fi ‘Bad Boys’ & ‘Zombieland’ Sequels, ‘Charlie’s Angels’
    by Mike Fleming Jr
    September 8, 2016 1:47pm



    EXCLUSIVE: Three months after ending a 25-year run as a Sony Pictures film exec — the last three as Motion Picture Group president after 10 as Columbia Pictures president — Doug Belgrad has christened his new production shingle 2.0 Entertainment. He has hired Open Road exec Sophie Cassidy to be SVP Production, joining at the end of September. It will take until year’s end for him to tie down his outside financing and a while longer to assert himself as a buyer. But Belgrad will get his venture going by becoming a minority co-financier on Sony projects Peter Rabbit, Bad Boys 3, Zombieland 2, Mulan, Charlies Angels, and Mallory. The latter is a Doug Liman-directed drama about British mountaineer George Mallory and his attempts to summit Mount Everest. He has also gotten started in television with four active projects including a sitcom with Jake Kasdan.


    2.0 Entertainment

    Belgrad’s shingle will generate films and TV projects as producer and co-financier, and it will be headquartered on the Sony lot with a first-look feature deal there. He’ll co-finance between 10%-33% of the pre-existing Sony films, but will go 50/50 on packages he brings to the studio. If Sony doesn’t bite, Belgrad can partner with other studios or finance independently and distribute through Sony. The goal is to leverage Belgrad’s skills and relationships to entice talent to play in the mid-size-budget sandbox. Belgrad was certainly part of his share of big films at Sony, but those won’t be the focus of 2.0. He cited projects he helped shepherd, from 21 to The Social Network, American Hustle, Captain Phillips, Zero Dark Thirty, Karate Kid, Equalizer, Hitch and This Is The End as the kind he’d like to focus on.

    “These were dramas and comedies for sophisticated audiences that gave us the chance to work with high-quality filmmakers, and they made money,” Belgrad said. “There is great gratification in those films, and you can have more autonomy and independence creatively because the fate of the studio doesn’t hang in the balance. They were economically attractive then and they are becoming more so. Don’t get me wrong. Tentpoles are important; every studio needs those billion-dollar-grossing movie. I had a breather where I got to think about what I want to be and who I want to be in business with, and I have a good sense of that now and that is what I want to roll into 2.0.”

    When Belgrad exited, Sony chief Tom Rothman told Deadline he intended for Belgrad to become a key supplier and was incentivized to get him started. Sony has helped get 2.0 off the ground by bringing Belgrad in as financier and in some cases producer on key films on the studio slate, most of which Belgrad helped initiate while president.

    “Peter Rabbit is the movie Will Gluck will direct, with Animal Logic deep into character development and animatics in Australia, and the live-action shoot starting early next year,” Belgrad said. “Zombieland was one that Matt Tolmach supervised, but producer Gavin Polone, Ruben Fleischer and I have tried to figure out a sequel for the last four years, one that pleases Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson and Abigail Breslin. Wernick & Reese, who did the original before they did Deadpool, came back and polished a script that Dave Callaham wrote and Mike White and Oren Uziel did passes on. It’s very encouraging.” Belgrad won’t produce this, just co-finance.

    Bad Boys 3 brings him back to a franchise from his formative years at the studio. “I was fortunate to be the creative exec on the first one early in my career, with Simpson and Bruckheimer and a movie that really broke Martin Lawrence and Will Smith as big feature stars,” Belgrad said. The film, to be directed by Joe Carnahan, is on track to begin production after Smith completes the David Ayer-directed Bright for Netflix. “The script reinvigorates in a smart way a quintessential action comedy franchise,” Belgrad said.

    It’s unclear if he’ll be a producer on that one but he will join Elizabeth Banks, Max Handelman and Elizabeth Cantillon as producer on Charlie’s Angels, the reboot which Banks will direct. He’ll also be a producer on Mulan, a live-action film that Jason Keller is writing, based on the Chinese myth of the female warrior who disguises herself as a man. “The plan is to shoot predominantly or exclusively in China with a Chinese partner and a mostly Chinese cast,” Belgrad said. “It’s a Hollywood movie made for the world, but which we think will have immense appeal in China.”

    He will join Jennifer Klein and Liman’s Hypnotic partner Dave Bartis in producing Mallory, a Sheldon Turner-scripted adaption of the Jeffrey Archer book Paths Of Glory.

    Shepherding the projects will be Cassidy, who was a development exec at Summit and worked on acquisitions like The Hurt Locker and Fair Game, and homegrown projects like The Perks Of Being A Wallflower, before she was brought into Open Road by Tom Ortenberg. At Open Road she has been SVP Production and Acquisitions, overseeing films including Mother’s Day, Nightcrawler, Dope and Spotlight as well as Oliver Stone’s Snowden, which plays the Toronto Film Festival.

    “I met Sophie when she was Scott Greenberg’s assistant and was impressed by her taste and sensibilities,” Belgrad said. “She will help spearhead our activity in television, as well.”
    Gene Ching
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    Kristen...what? No.

    I actually like Kristen despite her Twilight stint. I'm not sure why. Nevertheless, I think she'd be a poor choice for this film. I could see Lupita in this however.

    You wanna know who would be good? Margot Robbie.

    Kristen Stewart Eyed for ‘Charlie’s Angels’ Reboot (EXCLUSIVE)
    By Brent Lang and Justin Kroll


    CREDIT: SEBASTIEN NOGIER/EPA/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK

    Kristen Stewart is being eyed for the “Charlie’s Angels” reboot, according to sources close to the project.

    The “Twilight” star would play one of the members of the female private detective agency. Stewart’s is not the only name being considered. Casting is under way, and Sony, the studio behind the film, is also interested in several other big names, including Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o.

    Elizabeth Banks, who scored with “Pitch Perfect 2,” is directing the film. It’s slated for a summer 2019 release, and Sony clearly has franchise hopes for the project. Banks, Elizabeth Cantillon and Max Handelman will produce.

    Stewart has focused largely on indie fare in recent years, earning raves for her work in “Still Alice,” “Cafe Society,” and “Personal Shopper.” She hasn’t headlined a major studio tentpole film since “Snow White and the Hunstman” in 2010. She will appear in Fox’s “Underwater,” which centers on a crew of underwater researchers scrambling with the fallout from an earthquake.

    “Charlie’s Angels” first came to public attention during its five-season run on ABC from September 22, 1976 to June 24, 1981. It was later given the big screen treatment in 2000, with Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu playing the Angels. That film was a major hit, earning $264.1 million. A sequel, 2003’s “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle” disappointed at the domestic box office, but got a lift from overseas crowds, topping out at $259.2 million globally.

    Stewart is represented by The Gersh Agency. A spokesperson for Sony declined to comment.
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    Naomi Scott & Ella Balinska

    There's an embedded link if you don't know who Naomi Scott or Ella Balinska is.

    JULY 26, 2018 10:00am PT by Borys Kit
    'Charlie's Angels' Reboot: Naomi Scott, Ella Balinska Join Kristen Stewart

    Elizabeth Banks, who is directing the crime adventure, will take on the role of Bosley.

    Charlie and Sony have found their Angels.

    Naomi Scott, who stars as Jasmine in Disney's upcoming Aladdin remake, and British newcomer Ella Balinska are set to join Kristen Stewart in the studio's new Charlie's Angels reboot.

    Elizabeth Banks, who is directing the project, will also take a role in front of the camera: She will play Bosley, the face of the enigmatic and never-seen owner of the detective agency, Charlie Townsend.

    The new story takes the detective agency premise of the original 1976-1981 TV series and 2000 and 2003 movies global, with the Townsend Agency now a worldwide security and intelligence service that has teams around the world. The movie will focus on one of those teams and the next generation of Angels.

    "Charlie's Angels, for me, is one of the original brands to celebrate the empowered woman since its debut in the '70s," Banks said Thursday in a statement. "This film honors the legacy of Charles Townsend and his agency while introducing a new era of modern and global Angels. I couldn't be more excited to work with Kristen, Naomi and Ella to bring this chapter to fans around the world."

    The new project has Banks' imprint on all levels. In addition to being in front and behind the camera, Banks wrote the latest draft of the script with Jay Basu (The Girl in the Spider's Web), working off of earlier drafts by Craig Mazin and Semi Chellas.

    Banks is also producing the project with husband Max Handelman via their Brownstone Productions banner, as well as Doug Belgrad, who is co-financing through his 2.0 Entertainment, and Elizabeth Cantillon.

    Sony has set a Sept. 27, 2019, release.

    British-born Scott appeared on TV's Terra Nova and starred in 2017's live-action Power Rangers movie before nabbing the high-profile role of Jasmine in Aladdin. That film, directed by Guy Ritchie, is slated to open May 24, 2019. Scott is repped by WME, Echo Lake Entertainment and Sloane Offer.

    Charlie's Angels will be a big break for Balinska, who has only appeared in two television projects, including an episode of the U.K.'s long-running series Midsomer Murders, as well as the indie film A Modern Tale. She is repped by UTA and Identity Agency Group.

    Banks, who will be seen in The Happytime Murders and heard in Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, last directed the hit Pitch Perfect 2. She is repped by UTA, Untitled Entertainment and Ziffren Brittenham.
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    November 1, 2019

    Charlie's Angels Movie Reboot Cast, Release Date and Everything to Know
    Elizabeth Banks is directing a Charlie's Angels reboot movie, which is scheduled to arrive in 2019.


    Charlie's Angels cast: Naomi Scott, Ella Balinska and Kristen Stewart
    NEWS
    Mike Cecchini
    Joseph Baxter
    Feb 7, 2019

    So, perhaps the Charlie's Angels movies are a bit dated now. The first one was good fun, but the second is best forgotten.

    However, the core concept — three badass detectives working for a mysterious billionaire — seems like it could work in any setting. It worked for five seasons on ABC in the late '70s, after all. (We don't speak of the more recent TV reboot attempt...)

    And with Elizabeth Banks in the director's chair for a new Charlie's Angels movie, perhaps things will be a little less frenetic this time around.

    In the latest Charlie's Angels news...

    A glimpse of the Charlie’s Angels reboot set has surfaced in a tweet from Elizabeth Banks, the film's director and cast member who's playing one of multiple manifestations of the classic Bosley character (with Patrick Stewart playing one of the others). Touting #4PercentChallenge – designed to persuade Hollywood to hire more female directors – Banks has posted an on-set image of herself standing with the reboot's new Angels, Ella Balinska, Kristen Stewart and Naomi Scott, seemingly teasing a covert op at a fancy party.

    View image on Twitter


    Elizabeth Banks

    @ElizabethBanks
    #BTS @CharliesAngels on set. Ella, Kristen, Naomi. #4PercentChallenge ✔️

    2,046
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    Charlie's Angel Movie Reboot Release Date
    Charlie's Angels is now scheduled to arrive on November 1, 2019.

    The new release date represents a five-week shift from its previous slot on September 27, 2019. The move occurs after Warner Bros. made the decision to move the highly-anticipated DC sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, from its long-held November 1, 2019 slot to June 5, 2020.

    Interestingly, Charlie's Angels was originally slotted for June 7, 2019 before its move to September.

    Charlie’s Angels Reboot Cast

    Your new Angels have been officially assembled!

    The Charlie’s Angels reboot movie has completed its titular trio, ready to ravage crime across the globe at the behest of a fancy speakerphone. Pictured in the main image left to right, they will consist of...

    Naomi Scott, a London-born actress, just played the Pink Ranger in the 2017 Power Rangers movie, and is about to bank another reboot as one of the Angels. Of course, Scott’s upcoming reboot cred doesn’t stop there, since she’s playing the role of Princess Jasmine in Disney’s 2019-scheduled Aladdin live-action movie, opposite star Mena Massoud.

    Ella Balinska, also London-born, nabs a potential breakthrough role here. This will only serve as the second feature film appearance for Balinksa, a newcomer, who previously appeared in the 2017 U.K. thriller, A Modern Tale, with TV guest spots banked on Midsomer Murders and Casualty.

    Kristen Stewart was the first of the new Angels to board the movie, way back in September of 2017, as Variety reported. The Twilight film franchise’s wannabe vampire and star of Snow White and the Huntress and The Clouds of Sils Maria – now reinvented as an indie favorite – will join Naomi Scott and Ella Balinska as director Elizabeth Banks’s new trio of movie Angels.

    As Banks lauds in a statement:

    “Charlie’s Angels, for me, is one of the original brands to celebrate the empowered woman since its debut in the '70s. This film honors the legacy of Charles Townsend and his agency while introducing a new era of modern and global Angels. I couldn’t be more excited to work with Kristen, Naomi and Ella to bring this chapter to fans around the world.”



    The reboot has also cast none other than Sir Patrick Stewart as one of at least two Bosleys. More on that here.



    Sam Claflin has joined the Charlie's Angels reboot cast, as reported by Variety. While details about Claflin’s character were not revealed, his casting will serve as a mini reunion of sorts for The Hunger Games films, since he played enigmatic winner-turned-rebel Finnick Odair, and director Elizabeth Banks famously played the sartorially-eccentric games escort, Effie Trinket. Claflin recently co-starred in thriller The Nightingale and co-starred in rescue drama Adrift alongside fellow-YA-movie-genre alumna Shailene Woodley. He also appeared in war drama Journey’s End and mystery movie My Cousin Rachel and WWII-era dramedy Their Finest.

    Director Banks co-wrote the screenplay with Jay Basu (The Girl in the Spider's Web), working off drafts by Craig Mazin and Semi Chellas. At one point, it was set to be re-written by rewritten by Doug Miro and Carlos Bernard (Narcos).

    According to the 2017 Variety article, Sony was interested in casting Lupita Nyong'o in one of the main roles, which would have been a great decision. Additionally, according to The Tracking Board, the studio was hoping to land Janelle Monae as one of the leads at one point.

    Here's the original TV show's opening credits.



    Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.
    By chance, I caught some of the 2000 reboot on TV last week as I was folding laundry. Man, that's bad. Bill Murray is great in it though. He saves so much of it.
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    CHARLIE'S ANGELS - Official Trailer (HD)

    Gene Ching
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    CHARLIE'S ANGELS - Official Trailer #2 (HD)

    Gene Ching
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    Prc

    ASIA OCTOBER 28, 2019 8:20AM PT
    ‘Charlie’s Angels’ Sets China Release Date
    By HENRY CHU
    International Editor
    @https://twitter.com/henryhchu?lang=en

    “Charlie’s Angels” is set to land in China on Nov. 15.

    The new movie iteration of the 1970s TV show stars Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and Ella Balinksa as the three gun-toting, karate-chopping investigators sent on dangerous missions by the mysterious Charles Townsend, whose private detection firm now has branches around the world. Elizabeth Banks directs.

    The Sony Pictures movie will hit mainland Chinese theaters day and date with its U.S. release.

    The last “Angels” film, 2003’s “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle,” grossed a little more than $2 million in China. There are now tens of thousands more screens in the Middle Kingdom, which has become the world’s second-largest movie market.

    However, none of the new film’s three main stars is of Chinese descent, as was Lucy Liu. Whether that will have any effect on its reception in China remains to be seen.

    Banks is the first woman to take charge of the “Charlie’s Angels” IP, whether on the small or big screens. In addition to directing, she wrote the screenplay, based on a story by Evan Spiliotopoulos and David Auburn. She also appears in the film, alongside actors Djimon Hounsou, Sam Claflin, Noah Centineo and Patrick Stewart.

    The film is produced by Banks, Doug Belgrad, Elizabeth Cantillon and Max Handelman. Executive Producers are Matthew Hirsch, Leonard Goldberg, Nancy Juvonen and Drew Barrymore, who starred in the previous “Charlie’s Angels” movies.
    So tempted to make some sort of Charlie Chinese pun...
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    Time to look back...

    ‘Charlie’s Angels’: Divine secrets from the set
    By Tiffany Green
    Published 3 days ago


    Sunset Bouldevard Corbis via Getty Images
    When Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson, and Jaclyn Smith signed up to play three crime-fighting agents known on television as “Charlie’s Angels,” they had no idea that it would become a cultural phenomenon.

    Let’s take a trip back to when feathered hair and platforms were the norm, and take a peek behind the scenes of Charlie’s Angels.

    ABC hated the idea of the show

    When ABC network executives Barry Diller and Michael Eisner were presented with an hour-long action show about three butt-kicking female leads. The execs immediately wrote it off.

    Between fits of laughter, they deemed it “the worst idea we have ever heard,” but producer Aaron Spelling had a deal from a previous movie arrangement that guaranteed him $25,000 to create a new pilot.


    Michael Ochs Archive via Getty Images

    Spelling argued with Eisner that they might as well get their money’s worth, so Eisner reluctantly agreed, and ABC wrote up a script. (We bet Diller and Eisner eventually stopped laughing when they saw the ratings.) The show, obviously), was insanely successful and was a top 10 hit in Nielsen ratings for two seasons.

    The original Charlie was fired for obscene behavior

    When the idea of the faceless Charlie Townsend was created, producers immediately contacted well-known actor, Gig Young to read for the role. When Young showed up to do the voice-over, he was inebriated, leaving producers in a panic.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb
    A hysterical Aaron Spelling called John Forsythe, begging him to read for the pilot, which had to be turned into network executives the next day. Forsythe made his way down to 20th Century Fox in his pajamas and read for the part. He remained the now-iconic voice of Charlie Townsend for all five years of the series.

    Farrah Fawcett had strict rules in her contract

    At the time of Charlie’s Angels, Farrah Fawcett was married to The Six Million Dollar Man, Lee Majors. While we all know that Fawcett became a household name because of the show, she prioritized her marriage over fame and fortune.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    Fawcett was adamant that her work schedule not interfere with her home life so, in her contract with Spelling, she made sure that shooting ended every day at 7:00 pm, so she could be home in time to cook dinner for her husband.

    The budget for costumes per episode was insane

    We’re betting that the producers for the show had the “go big or go home” mentality here, seeing as they spent a small fortune on costumes alone for the Angels. (After all, if you’re going to fight crime, you might as well be dressed to the nines while doing so.)


    Silver Screen Collection via Getty Images

    They had a hefty budget of $20,000 PER episode to spend on clothes. The Angel’s costumes were changed at least eight times per hour, and Farrah Fawcett broke the show’s record when she changed into 12 different outfits during one of her guest appearances.

    Many people believed there was a ‘Charlie’s Angels’ curse

    After taking a deep look into the personal lives of the actors, many fans began thinking that there was a curse that plagued the cast. It all started when Farrah Fawcett was sadly laid to rest in 2009, following a long battle with cancer.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    Jaclyn Smith and Kate Jackson have BOTH had cancer scares and faced three divorces since appearing on the show. This was followed by the devastating death of Smith’s stepson. Cheryl Ladd, who appeared on the show for only a season, was plagued by medical issues her whole life and went through a tough separation during the `80s.

    Cheryl Ladd believed the ‘curse’ was stardom

    The “Charlie’s Angels curse” that wreaked havoc on the lives and relationships of the cast was a topic of conversation in the media. But, as Cheryl Ladd puts it, it was mainly a consequence of superstardom, stating, “Doing that kind of show, filled with long hours, heavy emphasis on appearance and lots of media attention, brought to the surface the weaknesses in relationships.”


    Harry Langdon Photography via Getty Images

    She continued, “It is really confusing. It really puts a strain on good marriages because husbands are going, ‘What on earth is the matter with you?’ I didn’t know what the heck was happening. I wasn’t sleeping at all and I was so sensitive emotionally.”

    Critics deemed the show ‘anti-feminist’

    The fans and the actresses of the show were quick to celebrate the feminist undertones of the premise, with Jaclyn Smith describing it as “groundbreaking” and “inspirational” during an interview with People magazine. However, critics believed otherwise, chastising everything from the surface-level plots to skimpy wardrobe.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    Aaron Spelling apparently wanted bikinis in every scene. Farah Fawcett stated, “When [the show] got to be number one, I decided it could only be because none of us wears a bra.” Critics believed that, in comparison to other female-centric shows at the time like The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Charlie’s Angels fell short.

    Farrah Fawcett ran into trouble when she left the show

    From the moment the show kicked off, it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing. Charlie’s Angels delivered ratings the network had never seen before, and fans were completely enamored by the trio. This is why it was such a huge issue when fan-favorite, Farrah Fawcett, wanted to leave after the first season.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    It was rumored that Fawcett wanted to leave to focus on her marital issues and to expand into film. Well, ABC, who had a strict verbal agreement with Fawcett, took legal action. Eventually, Fawcett was released from her permanent Angel duties, but she had to continue to make guest appearances over the next two seasons.

    Kate Jackson was originally paid more than the others

    When the show first went on air, Farrah Fawcett and Jaclyn Smith were basically nobodies in the eyes of Hollywood. Due to their inexperience in the `biz, the actresses were paid a meager $5,000 per episode.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    Kate Jackson, who had a bigger claim to fame, was paid $10,000 an episode. Eventually, Jaclyn Smith’s salary was raised to $40,000 over the next few seasons. Of course, the actor with the biggest salary on set was John Forsythe (which is absurd, considering his job was talking in a recording booth).
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    Continued from previous post

    Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood were silent partners of the show

    In 1973, Aaron Spelling worked as executive producer on a film called The Affair, which starred Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood. While working on the film, Spelling gave them an offer they couldn’t refuse.


    Silver Screen Collection via Getty Images

    He promised that the three of them would co-own a future series together and, although the couple was never credited, their deal gave them 50% of the profits. The deal became public knowledge when Wagner accused Spelling/Goldberg productions of using his Charlie’s Angels funding to make Starsky and Hutch. The scandal was referred to as “Angelgate.”

    The cast changes were pretty problematic

    Farrah Fawcett quitting the series triggered even bigger issues, as her replacement, Cheryl Ladd, found it difficult to get along with some of the other Angels. Ladd and Kate Jackson never really got along, and when asked about their relationship, Ladd would only describe it as “complex.”


    Silver Screen Collection via Getty Images

    As audiences began tuning out during the third season, Jackson began to complain about the quality of the storylines, saying, “The scripts are so light it would take a week to get to the floor if you dropped it from the ceiling.”

    The original title was very different

    During an interview with the Archive of American Television, Aaron Spelling explained, “When we pitched this idea to Barry Diller, it was called Alley Cats, and he said, ‘You should be ashamed of yourself. Three gorgeous girls are Alley Cats? No.'”


    Sunset Boulevard Corbis via Getty Images

    It was Kate Jackson who recommended the name Charlie’s Angels to Aaron Spelling. It turns out she was inspired by an angel painting that sat in Spelling’s office, which he inherited from Frank Sinatra. Looks like we have Ol’ Blue Eyes to thank for the famous name.

    Kate Jackson was difficult on set

    Kate Jackson already had one foot out the door when she was offered the opportunity to star in Kramer vs. Kramer opposite Dustin Hoffman. Jackson ended up not taking the part, and it went to Meryl Streep, who won an Oscar.


    Silver Screen Collection via Getty Images

    A begrudged Jackson became difficult on the Angels set, which gave producers no other choice but to let her go before ramping up for the fourth season. Shelley Hack was eventually brought in to replace Jackson, and she was fired after a single season.

    That Farrah Fawcett photo was shot before ‘Charlie’s Angels’ even started

    Remember that famous Farrah Fawcett photo? You know the one. During the 1970s, the notorious poster of Farrah Fawcett in a red one-piece adorned the walls of thousands of young teens’ bedrooms. The photographer, Bruce McBloom, was hired by ABC to take the publicity shots for the show. The only Angel who agreed to pose was Fawcett.


    Karen Bleier AFP via Getty Images

    The photo was taken at the actress’ house, and it was her idea to slip into a red one-piece instead of the initially suggested bikini. The photo sold over 12 million copies and, in 2009, the suit was donated to the Smithsonian.

    The network always wanted to show Charlie

    We became familiar with the enigma that was Charlie Townsend by the sound of his voice, but had ABC had their way, we would’ve actually gotten a glimpse of the man behind the curtain.


    Michael Ochs Archive via Getty Images

    Producer Leonard Goldberg told the Archive of American Television that the network “talked often about the episode where you got to see Charlie. Every year the network would say, ‘Sweeps are coming. Let’s show Charlie.'”

    It was almost a completely different show

    If critics weren’t fans of the Charlie’s Angels we wound up with, then they would have detested the one we almost got. Newsweek writes that producer Leonard Goldberg originally wanted the three Angels to be female cops who wore all-leather arrangements in every episode.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    When presented with this possible scenario, actress Kate Jackson immediately shot it down. It was Jackson’s idea that the three ladies be secret agents instead of police officers. Even though the cast and crew labeled Jackson as intolerable, it seems we have her to thank for the premise of the show.

    The male spin-off failed, terribly

    After seeing the success of Charlie’s Angels, producers attempted to create a spin-off called Toni’s Boys, featuring all males. Instead of a male “Charlie,” they had a (you guessed it) female “Toni,” played by Barbara Stanwyck.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    The pilot featured three men going undercover at the whim of their employer, as they get themselves into dangerous situations. Aaron Spelling promised to work on a full series if the public enjoyed the pilot. Plot twist, they didn’t. And thus, Toni’s Boys remains lost in time (probably for the best).

    The Angels did a Crossover with ‘The Love Boat’

    When Kate Jackson got the boot after the third season wrapped, producers needed the new actress, Shelly Hack, to start the new season on a high note. ABC devised a big crossover episode between Charlie’s Angels and The Love Boat, which certainly made a splash.


    Ron Galella/Ron Galella Archive via Getty Images

    The episode, “Love Boat Angels,” revolves around the new trio taking a cruise on the Love Boat to catch a thief. It received top ratings and positive responses from audiences, but the rest of the season just couldn’t measure up. Ratings dropped immensely, and Hack was eventually let go and replaced by Tanya Roberts.
    continued next post
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
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    Continued from previous post

    Not all of the remakes have been able to go the distance

    Since Charlie’s Angels first premiered, the world has remained fascinated by the secret agent trio. This is why many attempts have been made to recreate the original magic. The first attempt was made in 1988, with Angels ’88, but it never took flight the way the original did.


    Columbia Pictures via Getty Images

    The show was rebooted in 2011, but it lasted only four episodes before it was taken off the air. Perhaps the most successful remake was the 2000 movie, Charlie’s Angels, and its remake Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu.

    Cheryl Ladd struggled to fill Farrah Fawcett’s shoes

    When Cheryl Ladd was chosen to fill Farrah Fawcett’s platforms, as she found herself drowning in the pressure. Hilariously, on her first day, Ladd wore a “Farrah Fawcett Minor” t-shirt to the Charlie’s Angels set. Before joining the cast, Ladd said, “Nobody cared what I ate, how I exercised, what clothes I wore.”


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    After joining the cast, Ladd admitted, “Everything I said was interesting.” Ladd took advantage of her new popularity to help further her music career. She guest-starred in multiple musical variety series, performed the national anthem at Super Bowl XIV in 1980, and released three albums.

    They played the pilot twice

    Pilot episodes are a great way for television networks to gauge the success of a show with audiences. The pilot for Charlie’s Angels first aired in 1976. Ratings were so high, ABC producers believed it was a fluke. Still skeptical, the network decided to play the pilot again the following week, only to get the same numbers.


    Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images

    The pilot was a little different from the series that followed. It aired as a 2-hour film and featured M*A*S*H actor David Ogden Stiers as Scott Woodville, a friend of Charlie’s. The character was dropped, as it didn’t seem necessary for Charlie to have two male sidekicks. Bosley was kept on to add humor to the show.

    The Prince of Wales was a big fan

    When Prince Charles visited Hollywood in 1977, it was a pretty big deal. Leonard Goldberg told the Archive of American Television that, during dinner with the Prince of Wales, an aide walked over and said, “His Highness would like to visit the Angels.” Then, “He stands up, and of course, everyone stands up, and even though he hasn’t eaten, he walked out.”


    Tim Graham Picture Library via Getty Images

    The aide continued, “And everybody’s staring, so Aaron and I, we walk him over to the set, followed by about 75 photographers, the international press. He goes inside and spends a few minutes talking to the girls, and then he came out, he put his arms around the girls and said to the press, ‘Now you know why they call them Charlie’s Angels.'”

    The network had no choice but to cancel

    When Season 2 rolled out, Charlie’s Angels moved up an hour to the Wednesday time slot at 9:00 pm, where it remained for three years. While the series dropped in ratings, during the second and third seasons after losing Fawcett, it still remained in the top five from 1977-78.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb
    When Kate Jackson left the show, the fourth season again saw a major decline in ratings, and it sank to the 17th spot for the 1979-80 season. After five seasons and 110 episodes, ABC had no choice but to cancel the show.

    Kate Jackson experienced some trouble after ‘Charlie’s Angels’

    After Charlie’s Angels, Jackson went on to star alongside Harry Hamlin in the 1982 film Making Love, but it did poorly at the box office. Jackson then starred in the show, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, where she became interested in directing. During the fourth season, she checked into a hospital due to a tumor found in her breast, which led to a partial mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.


    Spelling-Goldberg Productions via IMDb

    Following the operation, Jackson continued to star in several TV movies while advocating for breast cancer awareness. In 2003, Jackson was awarded the Power of Love award by the American Heart Association for her philanthropy. In 2010, it was reported that Jackson was in the midst of a legal battle with her financial advisor, Richard B. Francis, whom she claims bankrupted her.

    Jaclyn Smith after ‘Angels’

    As mentioned, Jaclyn Smith, who played Kelly Garrett, was the only actress to remain on the show for the entirety of its run. Smith had quite a successful acting career after Charlie’s Angels.


    David Livingston via Getty Images

    She was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Miniseries or TV Film for her role in Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, and she continued to star in TV films and miniseries over the next two decades. She reprised the role of Kelly Garrett in the 2003 film, Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, as the only Angel from the original series to appear in the movie.

    Farrah Fawcett after ‘Angels’

    Farrah Fawcett left the show after just one season, but she remains the most famous Angel to date. Fawcett’s first post-Angels project was the film, Somebody Killed Her Husband, which didn’t exactly receive rave reviews. She continued to work in television, appearing in multiple TV movies, which received positive reviews, and appeared on popular shows Ally McBeal, Spin City, and The Guardian.


    Djamilla Rosa Cochran/ WireImage via Getty Images

    In 1979, she began dating Ryan O’Neal, and the pair had a son named Redmond James Fawcett O’Neal. The pair’s relationship was said to be toxic and destructive, which led to their separation in 1997. In 2006, Fawcett was diagnosed with cancer and, after countless treatments, she succumbed to the disease in 2009.

    Shelley Hack after ‘Angels’

    Shelley Hack made her film debut in 1977 in Woody Allen’s film, Annie Hall. Shortly after, she replaced Kate Jackson on Charlie’s Angels, playing the former sorority girl turned Angel, Tiffany Welles, beating out Michelle Pfeiffer and Barbara Bach for the role.


    Bobby Bank via WireImage

    In an interview with People magazine, Welles said:

    “They can say I didn’t work out, but it isn’t true. What happened was a network war. A business decision was made. Change the time slot or bring on some new publicity. How to get publicity? A new Angel hunt. Who is the obvious person to replace? I am – the new kid on the block. I never expected to be there more than a year and I wasn’t. I did my year and I moved on.”

    John Forsythe after ‘Angels’

    John Forsythe is an actor who already had an illustrious career before playing the voice of Charlie Townsend. He got his start with Warner Bros. at 25, starring in films like The Captive City, It Happens Every Thursday, and The Trouble with Harry.


    via Getty Images

    Forsythe reprised his role as the voice of Charlie Townsend for the film version of Charlie’s Angels starring Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, and Cameron Diaz, along with the sequel, Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. In 2002, Forsythe married Nicole Carter, and the pair remained together up until his death in 2010.
    continued next post
    Gene Ching
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    Continued from previous post

    David Doyle after ‘Angels’

    David Doyle is remembered for his role as the comedic John Bosley, and he is only one of the two actors who appeared in every episode of the series.


    Michael Ochs Archive via Getty Images

    Following Charlie’s Angels, Doyle made appearances on game shows such as Match Game, Password Plus, Super Password, and Tattletales. Doyle died of a heart attack in 1997 at the age of 67 in Los Angeles, California.

    Michelle Pfeiffer: Almost Angel

    At the end of Season 3 when Kate Jackson was fired, there were many up-and-coming actresses who were considered for the role of new Angel, Sabrina Duncan.


    Sunset Boulevard via Getty Images

    Some of the actresses who were considered included Bo Derek, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Melanie Griffith. Pfeiffer was very close to being cast, but producers believed that she lacked acting experience. Whoops.
    The upcoming film might only work for me if there's some cameos from the original Angels.
    Gene Ching
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    For me, the most memorable thing about Charlie’s Angels was that when I was 14, I had a crush on Cheryl Ladd. She was the only one for me out of all of them.

  15. #15
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    Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus, Lana Del Rey - Don’t Call Me Angel (Charlie’s Angels)

    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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