Top News

Bradley Cooper’s ‘A Star Is Born’ Bumped Back From Summer 2018 Release

  • The Wrap
Bradley Cooper’s ‘A Star Is Born’ Bumped Back From Summer 2018 Release
The remake of “A Star Is Born” starring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga has a new release date. The film will hit theaters 10/05/18, moving there from its previously assigned 05/18/18.

The move takes “A Star is Born” out of a very crowded month that starts with “Avengers: Infinity War” (May 4) and ends with Disney’s Han Solo movie (05/18/18), and lands it smack in the middle of awards season.

The third remake of the Oscar-winning 1937 film, “A Star is Born” tracks the relationship between two entertainers at opposing.
See full article at The Wrap »

Original Michael Myers Actor to Return to ‘Halloween’ Franchise

  • The Wrap
Original Michael Myers Actor to Return to ‘Halloween’ Franchise
Nick Castle, who played Michael Myers, credited as “The Shape” in the original 1978 “Halloween” movie, will return to reprise the role in the upcoming Blumhouse movie, an individual with knowledge of the casting told TheWrap. David Gordon Green is directing the film that will also star original cast member Jamie Lee Curtis and also Judy Greer. Laurie Strode (Curtis) will have her final confrontation with Michael Myers, the masked figure who has haunted her since she barely escaped his killing spree four decades ago. David Gordon Green and Danny McBride are scripting the new “Halloween” film, due in theaters Oct.
See full article at The Wrap »

Box Office: ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’ Off to Strong Start

Box Office: ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’ Off to Strong Start
Sony’s “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” is off to a solid start with an estimated $7 million to $8 million on its opening day at 3,765 North American sites, early estimates showed Wednesday.

The first numbers point to a six-day gross between $45 million and $55 million range for the six-day period that runs through Christmas Day. Studio projections that have been in the $45 million range for several weeks.

Initial estimates for Fox’s Hugh Jackman musical drama “The Greatest Showman” showed a first-day number of about $3 million at 3,005 locations — which would probably leave “Showman” with a six-day total of about $20 million, in line with recent forecasts.

Disney-Lucasfilm’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” is expected to continue to dominate domestic moviegoing. The tentpole took in $20.3 million domestically on Tuesday at 4,232 locations for the ninth-highest Tuesday of all time, down just 5% from Monday’s take. The North American total has hit $261.9 million in its first five days.
See full article at Variety - Film News »

Josh Gad Joins Judi Dench in Disney's 'Artemis Fowl'

Josh Gad Joins Judi Dench in Disney's 'Artemis Fowl'
Disney's Artemis Fowl has found it's lead with newcomer Ferdia Shaw, who will play the 12-year-old genius that runs his family's criminal empire.

Shaw, who will make his big screen debut in the Kenneth Branagh-helmed adaptation, was cast as the lead after an extensive search, which included more than 1,200 possible candidates.

The movie will was adapted for the screen by playwright Conor McPherson from Eoin Colfer's bestselling book series, which follows the intelligent Artemis as he attempts to uncover a hidden race of fairies who may be behind his father’s disappearance.

Disney announced Thursday that Josh Gad, who starred in the studio's live-action Beauty...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News »

‘Dark’ Season 2 Officially Ordered by Netflix

‘Dark’ Season 2 Officially Ordered by Netflix
Dark, the eerie, stylish time-travel mystery show from Germany, just got the go-ahead for season 2 on Netflix. The series was marketed as a kind of German Stranger Things, and while it certainly shares some connections with that other Netflix hit, Dark is a bit more cerebral and a lot less nostalgic. Overall, it’s a creep-tastic show […]

The post ‘Dark’ Season 2 Officially Ordered by Netflix appeared first on /Film.
See full article at Slash Film »

Box Office: ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ Blasts to $536 Million Worldwide

Box Office: ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ Blasts to $536 Million Worldwide
Disney-Lucasfilm’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” has sped through the half-billion dollar mark in box office grosses at $536.7 million worldwide in a week, with $42.1 million on Tuesday.

The tentpole took in $20.3 million domestically at 4,232 locations for the ninth-highest Tuesday of all time, down just 5% from Monday’s take. The North American total has hit $261.9 million in its first five days.

Tuesday’s international gross totaled $21.8 million for a foreign total of $274.8 million, led by the U.K. with $46 million, Germany with $27.6 million, France with $21.6 million, Australia with $19.8 million, and Japan with $18.3 million. “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” began opening internationally on Dec. 13 and 14. China will open on Jan. 5.
See full article at Variety - Film News »

Star Wars 'Last Jedi' Toy Shipments Down Sharply From 'Force Awakens'

Star Wars 'Last Jedi' Toy Shipments Down Sharply From 'Force Awakens'
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is a hit, but The Force may not be as strong for Disney when it comes to merchandise sales this year.

Panjiva, a data company that tracks the giant shipping containers that arrive at U.S. ports, says 6,587 of them with Star Wars gear were shipped in the seven months leading up to The Last Jedi, but that’s down 47 percent from the seven months leading to Rogue One in 2016 and off 56 percent from the same time period ahead of The Force Awakens in 2015. Once the containers land in the U.S., these products go to Walmart, Amazon.com and every other...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News »

HuffPost Writer Apologizes for Calling Black Gop Sen. Tim Scott ‘Manipulated Prop’ at Trump Event

Huffington Post writer Andy Ostroy apologized to Sen. Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) on Wednesday after accusing the Senate’s lone African-American Republican of being used “like a manipulated prop” during President Donald Trump’s tax reform event on Tuesday. “@SenatorTimScott, earlier I tweeted something that I now agree was unfair,” Ostroy wrote. “Senator, I regret that tweet & apologize for it. There were many other ways I should’ve and could’ve made my point.” .@SenatorTimScott, earlier I tweeted something that I now agree was unfair. Senator, I regret that tweet & apologize for it. There were many other ways I should
See full article at The Wrap »

Singapore’s Imda Seeks Greater Enforcement Powers

Singapore’s Imda Seeks Greater Enforcement Powers
The ability to enter homes and workplaces without a warrant in order to pursue unlicensed film screenings is among the new powers sought by Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority. The measure is one of several revisions being proposed to the country’s Films Act.

The Imda says the proposed Films Act amendments are “pro-family and pro-business,” with some “additional operational amendments to align and update our policies to cater to the changing media environment.” The revisions are currently up for public consultation until Dec. 30.

A petition campaigning against the increased enforcement powers was started by filmmaker Jason Soo and has attracted over 400 signatories, according to the Straits Times. A lobby group called filmcommunitysg, which includes Boo Junfeng, Anthony Chen, Tan Pin Pin and Jasmine Ng, said it is studying the changes. “In theory, with provisions like these, an Imda officer could enter anyone’s home to seize a documentary you are making,” wrote [link=nm
See full article at Variety - Film News »

Berlin Festival Unveils First Titles in German Cinema Sidebar

Philipp Eichholtz's Away You Go, a drama about a young Berlin schoolteacher who strikes out on her own path, will open the Perspektive Deutsches Kino sidebar, which focuses on young German cinema, at the Berlin Film Festival early next year.

Organizers on Thursday unveiled the first six titles in the Perspektive Deutsches Kino lineup, which often highlights debut features or student films.

Other titles in the 2018 Perspektive are: After-work Beer, the directorial debut of Ben Brummer; Great Wall of China from film student Aleksandra Odic; Kolja Malik's Storkow Kalifornia, another student feature; and Ra, by Sophia Bosch, a directing...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News »

Berlin Film Festival Bear Goes Hot-Tubbing in Official Poster

At least someone will be keeping warm in Berlin next year.

Organizers for the Berlin International Film Festival unveiled the official poster for the 2018 event on Thursday, and it features a surprisingly chill polar bear soaking it up in a rooftop jacuzzi.

The bear is the symbol both of the German capital and the festival, whose top prizes are ursine awards in gold and silver.

The choice of a polar bear is a nice touch, giving a nod to the main attraction in Berlin's city zoo.

The hot tub poster is just one of six designs created for next...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News »

China Launches Incentive Scheme to Boost Box Office of Local Films

China’s Film Bureau has announced an incentive scheme to reward movie theaters that increase box office scores for local films. The move will take effect from Jan. 1, 2018.

The scheme rewards theaters that derive more than 55% of their box office revenues from Chinese films, allowing them to keep half of a 5% tax they pay on ticket sales. There are bigger bonuses for those that score 60% and 66%.

This is not the first time that China has announced such a scheme. In March last year it said that theaters earning 66% could keep half the tax.

“I don’t think the Chinese government reduced the target because they were feeling generous. They wanted results, and they weren’t getting them at 66%,” said lawyer Matthew Dresden at law firm Harris Bricken. Boosted by the $860 million gross for “Wolf Warriors II,” market share for Chinese films stood at 52% as of mid-November.

The scheme has numerous potential problems. These include
See full article at Variety - Film News »

China’s Wang Xiaoshuai Wraps First Part of Homeland Trilogy

Leading Chinese auteur Wang Xiaoshuai has completed a marathon three-month shoot for “Di Jiu Tian Chang.” The film is the first installment in what Wang calls his Homeland Trilogy, examining changing times and families in modern China.

Working from a script co-written with “Under the Hawthorn Tree” screenwriter Ah Mei, the first part spans a 40-year period, starting with the market-oriented economic reforms of the 1980s. The story follows the troubles that afflict and force apart two families that had previously been close.

Wang says he is aiming to mount the trilogy on a far larger visual and narrative scale than his previous “Shanghai Dreams” or “Beijing Bicycle.” The shoot took in multiple cities from the north to the south of China.

Production is by Liu Xuan through Beijing-based Dongchun Films, with finance from Hehe Pictures and Fengshanjian. Discussions with international sales companies are ongoing.

The cast includes veteran actor Wang Jingchun (“11 Flowers,” “Black Coal, Thin Ice
See full article at Variety - Film News »

‘Redha’ and ‘Beast’ Among Winners at Luang Prabang Festival

Malaysian film, “Redha” was named as the winner of the audience prize at the Luang Prabang Film Festival, in Laos. The 8th edition of the festival, concluded last week.

The film, directed by Tunku Mona Riza, is the story of a couple who struggle to come to terms with the disabilities presented by their autistic son.

The festival, which focuses on Southeast Asian cinema, played 32 feature films and four programs of short films.

Variety contributor, Kong Rithdee curated the spotlight on Thailand section comprising a full day of screenings and discussion of the issues facing Thai filmmakers today. Filmmakers in attendance included Anocha Suwichakornpong (“By the Time it Gets Dark”), Sompot Chidgasornpongse (“Railway Sleepers”), Boonsong Nakphoo (“Wandering’), Laddawan Rattanadilokchai (“The Couple”), Sakchai Deenan (the upcoming “Memories of New Years’), and Sanchai Chotirosseranee (Thai Film Archive, representing “Santi-Vina”). Other discussions included one on Muslim voices in cinema, and another on documentary film making.

In co-operation
See full article at Variety - Film News »

‘Pitch Perfect 3’ Tops Studios’ TV Ad Spending

In this week’s edition of the Variety Movie Commercial Tracker, powered by the TV advertising attention analytics company iSpot.tv, Universal Pictures claims the top spot in spending with “Pitch Perfect 3.”

Ads placed for the comedy had an estimated media value of $8.99 million through Sunday for 1,352 national ad airings across 44 networks. (Spend figures are based on estimates generated from Dec. 11-17. Estimates may be updated after the chart is posted as new information becomes available.) Universal prioritized spend across networks including NBC, Fox and CBS, and during programming such as NFL Football, A Christmas Story Live! and The Voice.

Just behind “Pitch Perfect 3” in second place: Columbia Pictures’ “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” which saw 1,271 national ad airings across 47 networks, with an estimated media value of $7.56 million. This film also had the best iSpot Attention Index (128) in the ranking, getting 28% fewer interruptions than the average movie ad (interruptions include changing the channel, pulling up the
See full article at Variety - Film News »

What the Catalan Crisis Means for Spain's Movie Business

Images of citizens from Spain’s northeastern region of Catalonia, plastered across the world’s newspapers in October, seem far away now. In those heady days, a region in the heart of Europe wrestled with how to garner greater autonomy while respecting the rules of democracy.

When the Catalan regional government unilaterally declared independence from Spain — and then suspended its effects — in late October, it capped a month of historic moments that split Catalan society in two and challenged Spain’s territorial integrity and constitution.

Catalan aspirations for greater autonomy crescendoed into high-stakes brinkmanship between the regional government and the central...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News »

Harvey Weinstein, TWC Hit With $10 Million Lawsuit From Former ‘Marco Polo’ Associate Producer

Harvey Weinstein, TWC Hit With $10 Million Lawsuit From Former ‘Marco Polo’ Associate Producer
Harvey Weinstein and The Weinstein Company are facing another sexual harassment lawsuit, this time from Alexandra Canosa, a former associate producer on the Netflix series “Marco Polo.” In the $10 million suit filed in New York Supreme Court, Canosa said Harvey Weinstein sexually harassed, intimidated and assaulted her over a number of years. “Harvey Weinstein threatened plaintiff and made it clear that if she did not succumb to his demands or if she exposed his unwanted conduct there would be retaliation, including humiliation, the loss of her job and any ability to work in the entertainment business,” the papers obtained by TheWrap state.
See full article at The Wrap »

‘Survivor’ Crowns Season 35 Winner in Wild Finale

‘Survivor’ Crowns Season 35 Winner in Wild Finale
(Spoiler Alert: Please do not read on if you have not yet watched Wednesday’s “Survivor” finale) Ben Driebergen, a 34-year-old marine from Boise, Idaho, won the $1 million prize and the title of sole “Survivor” to cap off the 35th season dubbed “Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers.” Driebergen began the game on the “Heroes” tribe. An analytical eye towards the season’s editing hinted at his win. Producers included multiple tangents focused on Driebergen personally, such as apparent manifestations of Ptsd and his family’s role in his mental health, even when a key storyline of a particular episode focused elsewhere.
See full article at The Wrap »

See Will Forte in Amusing 'National Lampoon' Biopic Trailer

See Will Forte in Amusing 'National Lampoon' Biopic Trailer
Gags, naughty cover shoots, cocaine and other debauchery are showcased in the new trailer for the David Wain-directed A Futile and Stupid Gesture, the upcoming biopic on National Lampoon cofounder Doug Kenney.

Will Forte plays the younger Kenney while Martin Mull portrays the older Kenney in the film, which is based on the book A Futile and Stupid Gesture: How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever by Josh Karp.

The trailer highlights the wild antics that took place behind the magazine, reflecting its ethos, and features the characters that shaped the publication,
See full article at Rolling Stone »

Film News Roundup: Hollywood Publicists Select Betty White for Lifetime Achievement Award

Film News Roundup: Hollywood Publicists Select Betty White for Lifetime Achievement Award
In today’s film news roundup, Betty White is honored by Hollywood’s union publicists, Dean Cole and RonReaco Lee get cast in “#2MinutesofFame” and fan-owned Legion M makes a promotion.

Life Achievement

Betty White will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 55th Annual International Cinematographers Guild Publicists Awards Luncheon to be held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on March 2.

Icg national president Steven Poster said, “Betty White is a joy and a national treasure. She brings a smile to the nation.s face and the Icg is honored to celebrate her inspiring accomplishments.”

White said, “It is such an honor to be recognized for a lifetime of doing what you love. I do not ever take it for granted.”

White, 95, has won seven Emmys and was added recently to the Guinness World Records under the title “Longest TV Career for an Entertainer (Female).” She starred in “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “The Carol Burnett Show,” “[link
See full article at Variety - Film News »
loading
An error has occured. Please try again.