On Stephens Island in New Zealand's storm-wracked Cook Strait, the tuatara—one of the most ancient reptile species on Earth—is getting a hand from distinctly 21st-century science (see a New Zealand map). Researchers have placed in the wild a very special male that, like its wild cousins, can put on physical displays to establish its dominance. But this reptile's skin is made of rubber, not scales, and its "heart" is a nickel-cadmium battery. The alpha male in question is "Robo-Ollie," a robotic tuatara created to help researchers understand the behavior of these rare reptiles, the last species in a family that dates back 200 million years. [More]

Richard Taylor, co-founder of Weta Workshop and Digital and representing New Zealand, was one of 47 business leaders from 39 companies competing for the title of Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year over the weekend. All have won national Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year titles and were in Monte Carlo representing their countries in the world’s only global business award. [More]

Celebriel sends a reminder that "Black Sheep," featuring Weta Workshop's special effects work, opens June 22. The film is about genetically mutated sheep that acquire a taste for humans. Ah, returning to their "Bad Taste" and "Brain Dead" roots!!. The tag line is "Violence of the Lambs" and the New Zealand landscape looks as good as ever. [More]

Take an early look on our 'DVD Tuesday' feature...every Monday! There are a whole slew of amazing DVDs out tomorrow, take a look at some TV goodies like; 'CHiPs - The Complete First Season', 'Cosby Show: Season 3 & 4', 'Dark Angel: The Complete First Season & Second Season', 'Dead Zone 5th Season' & 'Doctor Who: Castrovalva, Keeper of Traken, Logopolis'. There is a new steelbook movement out there, or at least the studios seem to want to push them on us, 'Fight Club', 'Cast Away' & 'Platoon' all get the steelbook treatment. The big releases of of the week include; 'Ghosts of Abu Ghraib', 'Norbit' & 'Seinfeld - Season 8'. The HD DVD crowd get a few good titles this week with 'Trading Places'. The Blu ray gurus get 'Blood Diamond'. Check out the whole list here! [More]

Jack Black will be on a repeat airing of 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' tonight on NBC.

Who is the mysterious Dr Grordbort, and what has he got to do with New Zealand’s legendary multi Academy Award® winning Weta Workshop? Well, it seems that Grordbort has reached out from his parallel universe and appointed Weta Limited to manufacture his awesome range of Rayguns.

With names such as the MANMELTER 3600ZX Sub-Atomic Disintegrator Pistol; the F.M.O.M. INDUSTRIES Wave Disrupter Gun, or even the GOLIATHON 83 Infinity Beam Projector, you know that these have been created by a truly warped mind! [More]

Special effects king Richard Taylor will fly the Kiwi flag in Monaco this week amid the world's leading entrepreneurs, a prospect he finds daunting. Attending the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year awards, after winning the New Zealand title last October, Mr Taylor will compete against 46 others from around the world in the luxury Mediterranean port. But it was the prestigious company, rather than the swanky location, that was the biggest treat. "We have always thought of ourselves as creative people, not business people. It's a bit daunting actually," he said. [More]

From WETANZ.com: Weta Designer Stephen Crowe returns to the forums to answer as many questions as he can on NZ Thurs 31 May. Here are some of the highlights from last week's blitz...Here's a snippet: What was your first project with Weta and what was your best? Stephen: "I was originally brought in to work on the Neon Genesis Evangelion live action movie - which was good fun, and a very steep learning curve for me. The BEST one is probably what I'm working on right now - which of course I can't talk about!" [More]

From wetanz.com: Today's Kongcept artwork comes from Weta Designer Gus Hunter. Beast infested swamp, anyone?! "These pieces came about as designs for the giant swamp creature for the movie. It didn't feature in the cinema release but had its debut in the Kong extended DVD release. In the film the creature disrupts and kills some of the crew as they make passage through the dangerous swamp land mirroring a similar fate of the crew in the original King Kong version. "I think Peter saw this creature as being very bad and sinister looking so it had to be very creepy. I based the bodies on a variety of prehistoric sea mammal anatomy but wanted the head to be different and have a more sinister look. "Three different shaped heads were done but I think the most successful drawing was #3 which was influenced from deep sea fish creatures - giving it a very grotesque, sinister appearance. An appearance you probably would not want to bump into while swimming in a stinky, dark, murky, insect infested swamp!" [More]

Take an early look on our 'DVD Tuesday' feature...every Monday! Sadly there are very few winners to choose from this week. However some of the goodies include; 'Heavy Petting: Special Edition' & 'Katherine Hepburn Collection'. There are really no big releases of note this week, save perhaps 'Hannibal Rising: Unrated'. The HD DVD crowd get a few good titles this week with 'Dragonheart', 'Frighteners' & 'Lost in Translation' all coming out tomorrow. The Blu ray gurus get 'Curse of the Golden Flower' & 'Weeds Season 1'. Check out the whole list here! [More]

Be sure to check out our weekly Sideshow Collectibles update! Each week we provide an update on your favorite Sideshow goodies, from busts to premium figures and more! Take a look! [More]

In my opinion Halo is to video games what American Idol is to television, and yet both 20th Century Fox and Universal decided a Halo movie (with newbie director Neill Blomkamp directing) just wasn't going to happen. But that was then, and this is now -- with Halo 3 getting set to demolish the gaming world, Peter Jackson told OnFilm magazine that he expects the project to lift itself out of development hell once Fox and Universal catch a glimpse of the Halo hype first hand. As far as Blomkamp goes; Jackson notes: "We wouldn't want to do it with anyone else. It's Neill's call." But that's not all the man has on his plate; apart from directing The Lovely Bones, Jackson is producing a remake of 1954's The Dam Busters; a project he's kept quiet about for quite some time. [More]