Race For Mars

Two projects about the planet mars are in production, continuing that popular Hollywood habit of making a couple of films about the same subject at the same time (Dantes Peak & Volcano, Armageddon & Deep Impact, to name but four). Naturally there's a massive studio behind each, so the race is on between them to get the films finished. In the Warner's corner Martha Coolidge is working on Mars, a top secret with Val 'Batman' Kilmer on board in the lead. The second is from Disney, with Brian De Palma's Mission to Mars, about a NASA mission that goes wrong. Though Disney looked to be in the lead, the Mission camp suffered a blow last week when actress Monica Potter dropped out in order to shoot Head Over Heels. Watch this space.