Writer-director Cord Jefferson won Best Adapted Screenplay at the 2024 Oscars for turning Percival Everett‘s novel “Erasure” into the critically acclaimed film “American Fiction.” That marked the fourth time in a decade that a film based on a novel won this award. The others: “Women Talking” (Sarah Polley), “Jojo Rabbit” (Taika Waititi), and “Call Me By Your Name” (James Ivory). This is the most common form of adaptation to win. Indeed this award, which dates back to the first Oscars in 1928, has gone to the adapters of 48 novels over the year. (Scroll down for the most up-to-date 2025 Oscar predictions for Best Adapted Screenplay.)
Peter Straughan reaped an Oscar bid in 2012 for his adaptation of John le Carre‘s spy tale “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.” His screen version of Robert Harris‘ taut thriller about Vatican intrigue should bring him back to the Oscars.
“Sing Sing” was written by director Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley.
Peter Straughan reaped an Oscar bid in 2012 for his adaptation of John le Carre‘s spy tale “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.” His screen version of Robert Harris‘ taut thriller about Vatican intrigue should bring him back to the Oscars.
“Sing Sing” was written by director Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley.
- 10/8/2024
- by Paul Sheehan
- Gold Derby
October is a great time to be a movie lover. The awards contenders are starting to roll out, genre films are obligatory for the Halloween season, and we start to see the indie palate-cleansers to wash away the popcorn hangover of the summer blockbuster. This month we have awards contenders with big stars like We Live In Time, or up-and-comers like Nickel Boys. We have intimate indies like La Cocina and exciting docs like Hollywoodgate and Nocturnes. All treats, no tricks this year. Check out what we’re excited about below.
We Live In Time
When You Can Watch: October 11
Where You Can Watch: Theaters (Limited)
Director: John Crowley
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Florence Pugh, Grace Delaney
Why We’re Excited: Directed by John Crowley, this decades-spanning romantic drama from scribe Nick Payne follows a couple, Almut (Pugh) and Tobias (Garfield). After award-winning chef Almut accidentally runs Tobias over with her car,...
We Live In Time
When You Can Watch: October 11
Where You Can Watch: Theaters (Limited)
Director: John Crowley
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Florence Pugh, Grace Delaney
Why We’re Excited: Directed by John Crowley, this decades-spanning romantic drama from scribe Nick Payne follows a couple, Almut (Pugh) and Tobias (Garfield). After award-winning chef Almut accidentally runs Tobias over with her car,...
- 10/4/2024
- by Su Fang Tham
- Film Independent News & More
“Nickel Boys”, which opens the New York Film Festival on September 27, wouldn’t exist without producers Dede Gardner (Plan B) and Joslyn Barnes (Louverture Films). Both women boast enviable track records of finding, backing, and promoting rising talent, along with Gardner’s Plan B partner Jeremy Kleiner, who produced with her the Oscar-winners “Moonlight” and “12 Years a Slave,” as well as Best Picture nominees “The Tree of Life,” “The Big Short,” “Selma,” “Vice,” and “Women Talking.”
Barnes is known in the documentary space for producing Oscar nominees “Strong Island” (Yance Ford) and “Hale County This Morning, This Evening,” her first collaboration with Brown professor and photographer RaMell Ross. Barnes was finishing “Strong Island” when Ross showed her eight minutes of his project; she resisted at first but eventually became intensely involved in the shoot, archives, and the final edit. Ross sees the world differently than most filmmakers; his rare...
Barnes is known in the documentary space for producing Oscar nominees “Strong Island” (Yance Ford) and “Hale County This Morning, This Evening,” her first collaboration with Brown professor and photographer RaMell Ross. Barnes was finishing “Strong Island” when Ross showed her eight minutes of his project; she resisted at first but eventually became intensely involved in the shoot, archives, and the final edit. Ross sees the world differently than most filmmakers; his rare...
- 9/27/2024
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
WaterTower Music has today announced the release of the Joker: Folie à Deux score, which features 19 tracks from Todd Phillips’ anticipated sequel, arriving in theaters on October 4. The soundtrack is available now digitally and Vinyl/ CD formats are available for pre-order.
Additionally, up for pre-order on vinyl and CD will be the original Joker score and Live! with Murray Franklin.
The Joker: Folie à Deux score reteams composer Hildur Guðnadóttir with writer/director/producer Todd Phillips following their collaboration on the latter’s 2019 blockbuster Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and an Academy Award, Golden Globe, Grammy, and BAFTA award for Guðnadóttir.
For Phillips, the decision to bring her back to compose the music for Joker: Folie à Deux was an easy one. “There was no version of this film where we weren’t calling Hildur to do the score. I think her music is...
Additionally, up for pre-order on vinyl and CD will be the original Joker score and Live! with Murray Franklin.
The Joker: Folie à Deux score reteams composer Hildur Guðnadóttir with writer/director/producer Todd Phillips following their collaboration on the latter’s 2019 blockbuster Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and an Academy Award, Golden Globe, Grammy, and BAFTA award for Guðnadóttir.
For Phillips, the decision to bring her back to compose the music for Joker: Folie à Deux was an easy one. “There was no version of this film where we weren’t calling Hildur to do the score. I think her music is...
- 9/27/2024
- by Mirko Parlevliet
- Vital Thrills
Back in 2018, while presenting Best Director alongside Ron Howard at the Golden Globe Awards, Natalie Portman created a meme: “And here are the all-male nominees,” Portman said, pointedly underlining the omission of presumed contenders like Greta Gerwig for “Lady Bird” and Patty Jenkins for “Wonder Woman.”
Speaking a month after the ceremony, Portman said she wanted to bring attention to the disparity in the directors’ field without throwing the male nominees under the bus. “It’s not their fault, and they all made great work. You don’t want to not recognize them,” she said to BuzzFeed. “It’s just, why aren’t we recognizing the people who aren’t part of this exclusive club?”
But, Portman added, her goal was to make clear the obvious. “We have to make it weird for people to walk in a room where everyone’s not in the room,” she said. “If you...
Speaking a month after the ceremony, Portman said she wanted to bring attention to the disparity in the directors’ field without throwing the male nominees under the bus. “It’s not their fault, and they all made great work. You don’t want to not recognize them,” she said to BuzzFeed. “It’s just, why aren’t we recognizing the people who aren’t part of this exclusive club?”
But, Portman added, her goal was to make clear the obvious. “We have to make it weird for people to walk in a room where everyone’s not in the room,” she said. “If you...
- 9/24/2024
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
Paramount+’s limited series JonBenét Ramsey (w/t), from MTV Entertainment Studios and 101 Studios, has tapped Emily Mitchell (The Apprentice) for its title role, also bringing aboard Garrett Hedlund (Tulsa King), Alison Pill (Trap) and Owen Teague (The Friend) for parts.
Mitchell’s JonBenét is a girl from an affluent family and child beauty queen, whose murder is at the heart of the story. Hedlund plays Detective Steve Thomas, a seasoned detective who is brought onto the JonBenét case, with Pill as Boulder, Colorado police detective Linda Arndt, who along with partner Detective Trujillo, is first on the scene after JonBenét Ramsey is reported missing/kidnapped. Teague plays Jeff Shapiro, a cocky, risk-taking reporter for the Globe tabloid.
As previously announced, Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen lead the cast as JonBenét’s parents, Patsy and John. Others aboard include Shea Whigham, who plays District Attorney Alex Hunter, an acquaintance of the Ramsey family,...
Mitchell’s JonBenét is a girl from an affluent family and child beauty queen, whose murder is at the heart of the story. Hedlund plays Detective Steve Thomas, a seasoned detective who is brought onto the JonBenét case, with Pill as Boulder, Colorado police detective Linda Arndt, who along with partner Detective Trujillo, is first on the scene after JonBenét Ramsey is reported missing/kidnapped. Teague plays Jeff Shapiro, a cocky, risk-taking reporter for the Globe tabloid.
As previously announced, Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen lead the cast as JonBenét’s parents, Patsy and John. Others aboard include Shea Whigham, who plays District Attorney Alex Hunter, an acquaintance of the Ramsey family,...
- 9/10/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Conrad Ricamora co-stars in “How to Die Alone,” Natasha Rothwell’s new Hulu comedy series that explores love and loneliness.
Ironically, Ricamora met his husband, Peter Wesley Jensen, while shooting the show in Toronto after matching on Hinge. The two met at Ruby Soho for their first date. The “How to Get Away with Murder” actor recalls arriving a bit early and being asked for a picture by a group of fans.
“He walked up while that was happening and was like, ‘Oh do you know them?’” Ricamora said of the couple’s very first encounter. “It’s a weird, really funny way to meet. But I immediately knew that I met my person.”
The two married in July 2023. Ricamora shared this story with Variety at the show’s premiere in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.
Following the red carpet event, Ricamora also posted about their romance on Instagram alongside...
Ironically, Ricamora met his husband, Peter Wesley Jensen, while shooting the show in Toronto after matching on Hinge. The two met at Ruby Soho for their first date. The “How to Get Away with Murder” actor recalls arriving a bit early and being asked for a picture by a group of fans.
“He walked up while that was happening and was like, ‘Oh do you know them?’” Ricamora said of the couple’s very first encounter. “It’s a weird, really funny way to meet. But I immediately knew that I met my person.”
The two married in July 2023. Ricamora shared this story with Variety at the show’s premiere in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.
Following the red carpet event, Ricamora also posted about their romance on Instagram alongside...
- 9/9/2024
- by Andrés Buenahora
- Variety Film + TV
Ontario talent has long starred onscreen in Hollywood, from Ryan Gosling and Mike Myers to Rachel McAdams and Sandra Oh.
But just as the province has become a key Hollywood production hub for the major studios and streamers, top global film and TV producers are also embracing local below-the-line talent to realize their creative ambitions behind the camera.
“When the amazing shows come and they bring the crazy scripts and the ambitiousness of it all, we’re able to meet the challenge, which is satisfying to see,” Shayne Fox, who has just received her third Emmy nomination for her production design work on the series What We Do in the Shadows, tells The Hollywood Reporter about doing her best work in the FX sandbox.
From Francis Ford Coppola’s dystopian epic Megalopolis to Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Ontario talent is bringing its A-game to some of the biggest titles of the fall,...
But just as the province has become a key Hollywood production hub for the major studios and streamers, top global film and TV producers are also embracing local below-the-line talent to realize their creative ambitions behind the camera.
“When the amazing shows come and they bring the crazy scripts and the ambitiousness of it all, we’re able to meet the challenge, which is satisfying to see,” Shayne Fox, who has just received her third Emmy nomination for her production design work on the series What We Do in the Shadows, tells The Hollywood Reporter about doing her best work in the FX sandbox.
From Francis Ford Coppola’s dystopian epic Megalopolis to Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Ontario talent is bringing its A-game to some of the biggest titles of the fall,...
- 9/7/2024
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hollywood veteran Brad Pitt has opened up about his long career in movies and how he views the future. In a recent interview, Pitt clarified previous comments where he said he was in the “last leg” of his career. The Oscar-winning actor explained that acting takes place in different phases, and he is now entering a thoughtful period about his choices.
Pitt started acting more than 30 years ago after leaving his hometown in the Ozarks region. He has experienced both triumph and struggle over the decades. “You go through excitement early on, but also pain from the hard work and challenges,” Pitt recalled. Now at age 60, Pitt sees himself in a different stage where he wants impactful roles but also fulfillment in his personal life.
Fellow iconic actor George Clooney, who co-stars with Pitt in the upcoming film “Wolfs,” said actors must adapt as they age. “The roles dry up...
Pitt started acting more than 30 years ago after leaving his hometown in the Ozarks region. He has experienced both triumph and struggle over the decades. “You go through excitement early on, but also pain from the hard work and challenges,” Pitt recalled. Now at age 60, Pitt sees himself in a different stage where he wants impactful roles but also fulfillment in his personal life.
Fellow iconic actor George Clooney, who co-stars with Pitt in the upcoming film “Wolfs,” said actors must adapt as they age. “The roles dry up...
- 8/15/2024
- by Naser Nahandian
- Gazettely
Brad Pitt has been telling GQ about the last “season” of his career – and whether it involves much acting at all…
In a 2022 chat with GQ, a certain star of Deadpool 2 (2018), The Lost City (2022) and Johnny Swede (1991) suggested his acting days might be coming to an end.
“I consider myself on my last leg,” he said, to coincide with a particularly garish cover photo shoot. “This last semester or trimester. What is this section gonna be? And how do I wanna design that?”
Now, in a new interview alongside Wolfs co-star George Clooney, the actor-producer is revisiting the topic – though it sounds less finalistic than his old statements might imply.
“I meant that as seasons,” Pitt explained. “You know, there was moving out from the safety of the Ozarks. You embark on this thing and it’s all about discovery and it’s really exciting and interesting and painful...
In a 2022 chat with GQ, a certain star of Deadpool 2 (2018), The Lost City (2022) and Johnny Swede (1991) suggested his acting days might be coming to an end.
“I consider myself on my last leg,” he said, to coincide with a particularly garish cover photo shoot. “This last semester or trimester. What is this section gonna be? And how do I wanna design that?”
Now, in a new interview alongside Wolfs co-star George Clooney, the actor-producer is revisiting the topic – though it sounds less finalistic than his old statements might imply.
“I meant that as seasons,” Pitt explained. “You know, there was moving out from the safety of the Ozarks. You embark on this thing and it’s all about discovery and it’s really exciting and interesting and painful...
- 8/15/2024
- by James Harvey
- Film Stories
As the dust settles on the 2024 Academy Awards, industry insiders and film enthusiasts are already looking ahead to the 2025 Oscars. With the 97th Academy Awards ceremony scheduled for March 2, 2025, speculation is mounting about potential contenders in various categories, including Best Adapted Screenplay.
The landscape for adapted screenplays in 2025 appears to be a mix of high-profile sequels and literary adaptations. Despite the Writing branch’s historical hesitation to nominate sequels, several follow-ups to beloved films are generating early buzz.
“Inside Out 2,” the sequel to Pixar’s 2016 Oscar-winning animated feature, is considered a strong contender despite mixed critical reception. Its box office success and the original’s nomination history bolster its chances. Similarly, “Dune: Part Two,” which has outperformed its predecessor both critically and commercially, is likely to earn consideration for Denis Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts, who were previously nominated for the first installment.
Other sequels in the conversation include “Gladiator II...
The landscape for adapted screenplays in 2025 appears to be a mix of high-profile sequels and literary adaptations. Despite the Writing branch’s historical hesitation to nominate sequels, several follow-ups to beloved films are generating early buzz.
“Inside Out 2,” the sequel to Pixar’s 2016 Oscar-winning animated feature, is considered a strong contender despite mixed critical reception. Its box office success and the original’s nomination history bolster its chances. Similarly, “Dune: Part Two,” which has outperformed its predecessor both critically and commercially, is likely to earn consideration for Denis Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts, who were previously nominated for the first installment.
Other sequels in the conversation include “Gladiator II...
- 7/2/2024
- by Naser Nahandian
- Gazettely
Exclusive: Prime Video is rounding out cast for Obsession, a thriller series produced by Amazon MGM Studios and Atomic Monster, starring Dove Cameron and Avan Jogia. Patch Darragh (Long Bright River), Kira Guloien (The Good Doctor), Celeste Oliva (Julia), Jesse James Keitel (Big Sky) and Matt Murray (Snowpiercer) are set for recurring roles, written and executive produced by Lisa Zwerling and Karyn Usher.
In addition to Cameron and Jogia, they join previously announced Dorian Missick and Karla Souza.
Based on Catherine Ryan Howard’s 2021 international bestseller 56 Days, the story follows Oliver (Jogia) and Ciara (Cameron), who, after meeting randomly in a supermarket, fall for each other fast, and dangerously hard. 56 days later, homicide investigators arrive at Oliver’s apartment to find an unidentified body — brutally murdered and intentionally decomposed. Did he kill her? Did she kill him? Intercutting between an intense single day in the present investigation and the...
In addition to Cameron and Jogia, they join previously announced Dorian Missick and Karla Souza.
Based on Catherine Ryan Howard’s 2021 international bestseller 56 Days, the story follows Oliver (Jogia) and Ciara (Cameron), who, after meeting randomly in a supermarket, fall for each other fast, and dangerously hard. 56 days later, homicide investigators arrive at Oliver’s apartment to find an unidentified body — brutally murdered and intentionally decomposed. Did he kill her? Did she kill him? Intercutting between an intense single day in the present investigation and the...
- 6/28/2024
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Toronto has long been a popular destination for major productions thanks to its solid and skilled crew base, competitive tax credits, extensive studio space and growing tech sector. Projects such as Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, Amazon’s hit show The Boys and Netflix comedy Ginny & Georgia are just some of the 24 productions that are shooting (or close to shooting) in Ontario’s capital city. And while its modern infrastructure and very stable and long-established system of local and federal incentives have always been a big draw to the region, this is, say locals, just one piece of the puzzle as the city looks to build on this growth.
“The economic argument is that the production services tax credit is here, and it’s been stable for a really long time,” says Marguerite Pigott, the Film Commissioner and Director of Entertainment Industries for the City of Toronto. “This, plus...
“The economic argument is that the production services tax credit is here, and it’s been stable for a really long time,” says Marguerite Pigott, the Film Commissioner and Director of Entertainment Industries for the City of Toronto. “This, plus...
- 6/20/2024
- by Diana Lodderhose
- Deadline Film + TV
There is a subgenre that basks in the creaturely natures of girls and women. Forget the ethereal sisters of “The Virgin Suicides” for here are some hot messes. Found in the literature of Shirley Jackson, Angela Carter and Deborah Levy and in films by Josephine Decker and Luna Carmoon, this is a mode of characterisation that delights in stripping away the illusion of a “fairer sex” in order to marinate in the feminine grotesque.
Ariane Labed’s entry to this canon, her directorial feature debut “September Says,” is infused with her own history as a Greek New Wave actress. There are shades of her break-out role in Yorgos Lanthimos’ claustrophobic family drama “Dogtooth” and a callback to her animal impressions in Athina Rachel Tsangari’s sublime, underrated “Attenberg.” Otherwise, Labed follows the sketchy map laid out by Daisy Johnson’s source novel, “Sisters.”
September (Pascale Kann) is older than her...
Ariane Labed’s entry to this canon, her directorial feature debut “September Says,” is infused with her own history as a Greek New Wave actress. There are shades of her break-out role in Yorgos Lanthimos’ claustrophobic family drama “Dogtooth” and a callback to her animal impressions in Athina Rachel Tsangari’s sublime, underrated “Attenberg.” Otherwise, Labed follows the sketchy map laid out by Daisy Johnson’s source novel, “Sisters.”
September (Pascale Kann) is older than her...
- 5/21/2024
- by Sophie Monks Kaufman
- Indiewire
Basado en el best-seller de David Gilbert.
Según anuncia Deadline, Bill Nighy (“Living”), Noah Jupe (“A Quiet Place”), George MacKay y Matt Smith (“The Crown”) protagonizarán el debut en inglés del cineasta argentino Pablo Trapero (“El Clan”) “& Sons”, cuyo guion ha sido escrito por la ganadora del Oscar Sarah Polley (“Women Talking”).
La película “& Sons” está basada en la novela homónima de David Gilbert. Andrew es un novelista más conocido en el mundo como A.N. Dyer. Escribió su primer libro a los 27 años y se convirtió en un clásico instantáneo, vendiendo 45 millones de ejemplares. Andrew se despierta una mañana convencido de que está a punto de morir. Sabe que se le acaba el tiempo y necesita arreglar los vínculos más importantes de su vida, así que reúne a sus hijos para que estén con él. Han pasado casi 20 años desde que un “incidente” destrozó el hogar de los Dyer.
Según anuncia Deadline, Bill Nighy (“Living”), Noah Jupe (“A Quiet Place”), George MacKay y Matt Smith (“The Crown”) protagonizarán el debut en inglés del cineasta argentino Pablo Trapero (“El Clan”) “& Sons”, cuyo guion ha sido escrito por la ganadora del Oscar Sarah Polley (“Women Talking”).
La película “& Sons” está basada en la novela homónima de David Gilbert. Andrew es un novelista más conocido en el mundo como A.N. Dyer. Escribió su primer libro a los 27 años y se convirtió en un clásico instantáneo, vendiendo 45 millones de ejemplares. Andrew se despierta una mañana convencido de que está a punto de morir. Sabe que se le acaba el tiempo y necesita arreglar los vínculos más importantes de su vida, así que reúne a sus hijos para que estén con él. Han pasado casi 20 años desde que un “incidente” destrozó el hogar de los Dyer.
- 5/20/2024
- by Marta Medina
- mundoCine
Exclusive: Oscar nominee Bill Nighy (Living), Indie Spirit nominee Noah Jupe (A Quiet Place I & II), BAFTA nominee George MacKay (1917) and BAFTA nominee Matt Smith (The Crown) are set to star in acclaimed Argentinian filmmaker Pablo Trapero’s (El Clan) English-language movie debut & Sons, which is being scripted by Oscar winner Sarah Polley (Women Talking).
Bankside Films is launching world sales on the buzzy project at this week’s Cannes market. Bankside, UTA Independent Film Group and CAA Media Finance are co-repping North American rights.
Pic is based on the novel of the same name by David Gilbert. The official synopsis reads:
“Andrew is a novelist best known to the world as A.N. Dyer. He wrote his first book when he was 27 and it became an instant classic, selling 45M copies and creating a cult around its elusive author. Andrew wakes up one morning convinced that he is about to die.
Bankside Films is launching world sales on the buzzy project at this week’s Cannes market. Bankside, UTA Independent Film Group and CAA Media Finance are co-repping North American rights.
Pic is based on the novel of the same name by David Gilbert. The official synopsis reads:
“Andrew is a novelist best known to the world as A.N. Dyer. He wrote his first book when he was 27 and it became an instant classic, selling 45M copies and creating a cult around its elusive author. Andrew wakes up one morning convinced that he is about to die.
- 5/17/2024
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Paramount Pictures has rounded out the cast of Vicious, its horror film starring Dakota Fanning. New additions include Kathryn Hunter (Poor Things), Tony Award nominee Mary McCormack (The West Wing), Rachel Blanchard (The Summer I Turned Pretty), Devyn Nekoda (Scream VI), Klea Scott (Millennium), and Emily Mitchell (Ordinary Angels).
An Atlas Independent production, the film follows a young woman who, after being left with a strange present from a late-night visitor, must spend the night fighting for her existence as she slips down a disturbing rabbit hole contained inside the gift.
Bryan Bertino (The Strangers) is directing from his own script, with Richard Suckle producing. Melinda Whitaker serves as executive producer. Pic is slated for release in theaters on August 8, 2025.
Recently, Hunter has been seen in Yorgos Lanthimos’s Poor Things, as well as Joel Coen’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, also appearing on shows like Andor and Landscapers.
An Atlas Independent production, the film follows a young woman who, after being left with a strange present from a late-night visitor, must spend the night fighting for her existence as she slips down a disturbing rabbit hole contained inside the gift.
Bryan Bertino (The Strangers) is directing from his own script, with Richard Suckle producing. Melinda Whitaker serves as executive producer. Pic is slated for release in theaters on August 8, 2025.
Recently, Hunter has been seen in Yorgos Lanthimos’s Poor Things, as well as Joel Coen’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, also appearing on shows like Andor and Landscapers.
- 4/1/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Oppenheimer director Christopher Nolan won the Academy Award for best director, his first Oscar ever, on Sunday night.
“I have so many people to thank,” Nolan said during his acceptance speech. “The most incredible cast, Matt Damon, Robert, Emily, Florence, just so many others, all at the top of their game, led by the incredible Cillian Murphy… a crew, some of whom have been awarded tonight. I can’t say enough about the incredible crew that we got together on this film. Thank you to Chuck Roven for putting the book in my hands… The incredible Emma Thomas, producer of all our films and all of our children. I love you. To the academy, just to say movies are just a little bit over 100 years old. I mean, imagine being there 100 years into painting or theater. We don’t know where this incredible journey is going from here. But to...
“I have so many people to thank,” Nolan said during his acceptance speech. “The most incredible cast, Matt Damon, Robert, Emily, Florence, just so many others, all at the top of their game, led by the incredible Cillian Murphy… a crew, some of whom have been awarded tonight. I can’t say enough about the incredible crew that we got together on this film. Thank you to Chuck Roven for putting the book in my hands… The incredible Emma Thomas, producer of all our films and all of our children. I love you. To the academy, just to say movies are just a little bit over 100 years old. I mean, imagine being there 100 years into painting or theater. We don’t know where this incredible journey is going from here. But to...
- 3/11/2024
- by Beatrice Verhoeven
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Disney can’t seem to catch a break as filmmaker Sarah Polley exits from the upcoming Disney remake – Bambi. Sarah Polley, who is known for her thought-stirring work like Women Talking, has recently decided to step away from the upcoming live-action remake for creative reasons.
Sarah Polley is not the only one to walk off the sets of Bambi; screenwriter Lindsey Anderson Beer also reportedly left the project last year. Disney’s trouble with live-action remakes is not a new issue; the last release, The Little Mermaid, faced backlash from fans, and the upcoming Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs remake generated negative reactions before release.
A still from Women Talking | Source: Women Talking
Bambi In The Wild
Disney has been trying desperately to bank on the success of existing projects, and the success of The Lion King and The Jungle Book has played a major role in greenlighting several live-action remakes.
Sarah Polley is not the only one to walk off the sets of Bambi; screenwriter Lindsey Anderson Beer also reportedly left the project last year. Disney’s trouble with live-action remakes is not a new issue; the last release, The Little Mermaid, faced backlash from fans, and the upcoming Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs remake generated negative reactions before release.
A still from Women Talking | Source: Women Talking
Bambi In The Wild
Disney has been trying desperately to bank on the success of existing projects, and the success of The Lion King and The Jungle Book has played a major role in greenlighting several live-action remakes.
- 3/8/2024
- by Akhil Bhagwani
- FandomWire
The films in contention for the 2024 Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar are “American Fiction,” “Barbie,” “Oppenheimer,” “Poor Things,” and “The Zone of Interest.” Our odds currently indicate that “American Fiction” (7/2) will win the award, followed in order of likelihood by “Oppenheimer” (18/5), “Barbie” (4/1), “Poor Things” (9/2), and “The Zone of Interest” (9/2).
This marks only the 14th instance in 96 years of all five Best Adapted Screenplay-nominated films also being in the running for Best Picture. Prior to the last time in 2017 – the year “Moonlight” achieved dual victories – this had happened only twice during the 21st century (2011; 2013) and once during the latter half of the 20th (1965). The bulk of cases occurred almost annually from 1934 to 1943, with the only inapplicable year being 1937.
Respective “The Zone of Interest” and “Oppenheimer” writers Jonathan Glazer and Christopher Nolan are simultaneously nominated for Best Director, while Nolan is also set to face off against “American Fiction” scripter Cord Jefferson in the Best Picture race.
This marks only the 14th instance in 96 years of all five Best Adapted Screenplay-nominated films also being in the running for Best Picture. Prior to the last time in 2017 – the year “Moonlight” achieved dual victories – this had happened only twice during the 21st century (2011; 2013) and once during the latter half of the 20th (1965). The bulk of cases occurred almost annually from 1934 to 1943, with the only inapplicable year being 1937.
Respective “The Zone of Interest” and “Oppenheimer” writers Jonathan Glazer and Christopher Nolan are simultaneously nominated for Best Director, while Nolan is also set to face off against “American Fiction” scripter Cord Jefferson in the Best Picture race.
- 3/7/2024
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Sarah Polley is no longer attached to direct the live-action remake of “Bambi” for Disney, IndieWire has learned. The remake of Disney’s 1942 animated classic is still in development at the studio, even after the recent exit of live-action film head Sean Bailey. An individual with knowledge of Polley’s exit said there’s no drama in the split but simply said things didn’t work out.
TheWrap first broke the news in an analysis of Bailey’s exit. Bailey, in his 15-year tenure at Walt Disney Studios, had pioneered and greenlit virtually all of Disney’s streak of live-action remakes of animated classics, some mega hits like “The Lion King,” “Aladdin,” and “Beauty and the Beast,” and some like the recent “The Little Mermaid,” “Haunted Mansion,” and others that underwhelmed at the box office. Some of Bailey’s lingering projects include live-action takes on “Moana,” “Lilo & Stitch,” and “Mufasa: The Lion King.
TheWrap first broke the news in an analysis of Bailey’s exit. Bailey, in his 15-year tenure at Walt Disney Studios, had pioneered and greenlit virtually all of Disney’s streak of live-action remakes of animated classics, some mega hits like “The Lion King,” “Aladdin,” and “Beauty and the Beast,” and some like the recent “The Little Mermaid,” “Haunted Mansion,” and others that underwhelmed at the box office. Some of Bailey’s lingering projects include live-action takes on “Moana,” “Lilo & Stitch,” and “Mufasa: The Lion King.
- 3/7/2024
- by Brian Welk
- Indiewire
At least one live-action Disney remake just took a major step backward. Last year, we learned that the Oscar-winning Sarah Polley ("Women Talking") was set to direct a new live-action reimagining of the 1940s classic "Bambi." Now, it's been revealed that Polley has left the project. There is currently no word on who will replace her and, not to get too ahead of ourselves here, but the answer may be nobody.
According to a report from The Wrap, Polley has quietly left the remake. It's unclear when the filmmaker departed or why she split from Disney on this one. The report also notes that it's equally unclear if the movie will still move forward. Part of that has to do with the recent departure of Sean Bailey, the former president of Walt Disney Motion Picture Production. Bailey was largely responsible for the deluge of live-action remakes of animated classics that...
According to a report from The Wrap, Polley has quietly left the remake. It's unclear when the filmmaker departed or why she split from Disney on this one. The report also notes that it's equally unclear if the movie will still move forward. Part of that has to do with the recent departure of Sean Bailey, the former president of Walt Disney Motion Picture Production. Bailey was largely responsible for the deluge of live-action remakes of animated classics that...
- 3/7/2024
- by Ryan Scott
- Slash Film
Cord Jefferson’s “American Fiction” won outstanding film adaptation at the 36th annual USC Libraries Script Awards on Saturday, while Apple TV+’s “Slow Horses” won in the episodic series category for the second year in a row.
Jefferson and Percival Everett accepted the award for “American Fiction.” In his speech, Jefferson recalled his experience reading Everett’s novel “Erasure” in 2020, which he went on to adapt into “American Fiction.”
“It felt like I was reading a book written specifically for me. It felt like I understood what was going on in these characters in the story on a molecular level,” he said. “It felt like somebody crawled into my brain and put it into words on a page. It felt like the book was electrified as I was holding it.”
Jefferson then reached out to Everett about adapting the novel. After a half-hour conversation, Everett agreed to give Jefferson...
Jefferson and Percival Everett accepted the award for “American Fiction.” In his speech, Jefferson recalled his experience reading Everett’s novel “Erasure” in 2020, which he went on to adapt into “American Fiction.”
“It felt like I was reading a book written specifically for me. It felt like I understood what was going on in these characters in the story on a molecular level,” he said. “It felt like somebody crawled into my brain and put it into words on a page. It felt like the book was electrified as I was holding it.”
Jefferson then reached out to Everett about adapting the novel. After a half-hour conversation, Everett agreed to give Jefferson...
- 3/3/2024
- by Caroline Brew
- Variety Film + TV
The USC Libraries announced the winners for the 36th annual USC Libraries Scripter Award, which honors the year’s best film and television adaptations, as well as the works on which they are based. This group of academics, industry professionals, and critics (for which I vote) is often predictive of the Adapted Screenplay Oscar race.
For the second year in a row, “Slow Horses” took home the prize for episodic series; Cord Jefferson won the 2024 award for film adaptation; both he and the author of the novel he adapted, Percival Everett, were in attendance. Jefferson thanked Everett for trusting him with his 2001 novel, which he felt was written just for him. “He has managed to mine my novel for the material he needed to make this film,” said Everett, who teaches at USC. “And then I sat back and did nothing. So good job. Thank you.”
“I wouldn’t be here without without him,...
For the second year in a row, “Slow Horses” took home the prize for episodic series; Cord Jefferson won the 2024 award for film adaptation; both he and the author of the novel he adapted, Percival Everett, were in attendance. Jefferson thanked Everett for trusting him with his 2001 novel, which he felt was written just for him. “He has managed to mine my novel for the material he needed to make this film,” said Everett, who teaches at USC. “And then I sat back and did nothing. So good job. Thank you.”
“I wouldn’t be here without without him,...
- 3/3/2024
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
The 36th annual USC Libraries Scripter Awards on Saturday named Cord Jefferson’s American Fiction its outstanding film adaptations, giving the Oscar-nominated script a boost leading into next weekend’s Academy Awards.
Apple TV+’s Slow Horses won in the episodic series category for a second year in a row during the ceremony tonight at the University of Southern California’s Edward L. Doheny Jr. Memorial Library.
The Scripters honor writers of the year’s most accomplished film and episodic TV series adaptations, as well as the writers of the works on which they are based.
American Fiction, written by Jefferson based on the novel Percival Everett’s novel Erasure, was joined on tonight’s finalist list by two other Oscar nominees, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Tony McNamara’s Poor Things. Also nominated tonight were Ava DuVernay’s Origin and Martin Scorsese and Eric Roth’s Killers of the Flower Moon.
Apple TV+’s Slow Horses won in the episodic series category for a second year in a row during the ceremony tonight at the University of Southern California’s Edward L. Doheny Jr. Memorial Library.
The Scripters honor writers of the year’s most accomplished film and episodic TV series adaptations, as well as the writers of the works on which they are based.
American Fiction, written by Jefferson based on the novel Percival Everett’s novel Erasure, was joined on tonight’s finalist list by two other Oscar nominees, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Tony McNamara’s Poor Things. Also nominated tonight were Ava DuVernay’s Origin and Martin Scorsese and Eric Roth’s Killers of the Flower Moon.
- 3/3/2024
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
The writers behind the feature American Fiction and the TV adaptation Slow Horses took home the top honors at the USC Scripter Awards, which honors the best adapted projects of the year. Both the original authors as well as the screenwriters share the award.
In the film category, American Fiction (Cord Jefferson’s adaptation of Percival Everett’s novel Erasure) topped fellow nominees Killers of the Flower Moon (Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese’s adaptation of David Grann’s book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI); Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin’s book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer); Origin (Ava DuVernay’s adaptation of Isabel Wilkerson’s book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents); and Poor Things (Tony McNamara’s adaptation of Aliasdair Gray’s novel of the same name).
On the TV side,...
In the film category, American Fiction (Cord Jefferson’s adaptation of Percival Everett’s novel Erasure) topped fellow nominees Killers of the Flower Moon (Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese’s adaptation of David Grann’s book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI); Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin’s book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer); Origin (Ava DuVernay’s adaptation of Isabel Wilkerson’s book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents); and Poor Things (Tony McNamara’s adaptation of Aliasdair Gray’s novel of the same name).
On the TV side,...
- 3/3/2024
- by Aaron Couch
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Horror film “The Voices of Our Mother,” headlined by Sheila McCarthy (“Women Talking”), has wrapped principal photography.
The film is written and directed by Mark O’Brien, who is also an actor, with his most recent credit being Atom Egoyan’s Toronto and Berlinale selection “Seven Veils.” It tells the story of a family who is brought together when their matriarch falls ill, only to find that their lineage is connected by more than blood. The film was shot in Hamilton, Ontario.
The cast also includes Georgina Reilly (“Quantum Leap”), O’Brien, Carolina Bartzcak (“Painkiller”), Alex Ozerov-Meyer (“The Americans”), Anna Ferguson (“Lost Girl”) and Shawn Doyle (“Star Trek: Discovery”).
The film is produced by Canada’s Vortex Productions, a subsidiary of boutique distributor Vortex Media. This marks the second collaboration between O’Brien and Vortex Media who helped to finance and distribute the filmmaker’s Fantasia and Grimmfest-winning feature directorial debut “The Righteous.
The film is written and directed by Mark O’Brien, who is also an actor, with his most recent credit being Atom Egoyan’s Toronto and Berlinale selection “Seven Veils.” It tells the story of a family who is brought together when their matriarch falls ill, only to find that their lineage is connected by more than blood. The film was shot in Hamilton, Ontario.
The cast also includes Georgina Reilly (“Quantum Leap”), O’Brien, Carolina Bartzcak (“Painkiller”), Alex Ozerov-Meyer (“The Americans”), Anna Ferguson (“Lost Girl”) and Shawn Doyle (“Star Trek: Discovery”).
The film is produced by Canada’s Vortex Productions, a subsidiary of boutique distributor Vortex Media. This marks the second collaboration between O’Brien and Vortex Media who helped to finance and distribute the filmmaker’s Fantasia and Grimmfest-winning feature directorial debut “The Righteous.
- 2/26/2024
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
I share my colleague Pete Hammond’s fascination with Cord Jefferson’s BAFTA win for his screenplay adaptation, American Fiction. It is no small thing for a self-consciously American story to win a very British award against competition as formidable as Christopher Nolan, especially for a debut film.
Pete has a point when he notes that American Fiction, based on Percival Everett’s novel Erasure, about a black novelist who hits it big when his send-up of African-American cultural clichés is taken at face value, probably got traction as the only currently Oscar-nominated adaptation that is all about writing.
Fair enough. But I’d go one step more.
In fact, American Fiction is the only Oscar-nominated script that takes a serious bite out of contemporary socio-political reality.
The rest, even that wild pink feminist fly-by Barbie, which does get tangled in reality, are in a sense doing what the phrase-coining...
Pete has a point when he notes that American Fiction, based on Percival Everett’s novel Erasure, about a black novelist who hits it big when his send-up of African-American cultural clichés is taken at face value, probably got traction as the only currently Oscar-nominated adaptation that is all about writing.
Fair enough. But I’d go one step more.
In fact, American Fiction is the only Oscar-nominated script that takes a serious bite out of contemporary socio-political reality.
The rest, even that wild pink feminist fly-by Barbie, which does get tangled in reality, are in a sense doing what the phrase-coining...
- 2/20/2024
- by Michael Cieply
- Deadline Film + TV
With just four days remaining until final Oscar voting officially opens, the race has taken a few unexpected turns at the BAFTA Awards.
Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” a biographical drama about the father of the atomic bomb, has continued to surge ahead after seven wins, including best film and director. Its trajectory towards a triumphant night on the Dolby Theatre stage on March 10 seems assured.
However, surprises abound with other awards contenders making pronounced showings. Yorgos Lanthimos’ sci-fi black comedy “Poor Things” garnered four prizes, including leading actress for Emma Stone, production design, special visual effects, costumes and makeup and hair. The unexpected success, particularly in makeup, could foreshadow a possible upset for presumed favorite “Maestro” at the upcoming Academy Awards. Notable, since Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan missed out on their respective lead acting prizes, signaling the Netflix feature will need a rebound sooner rather than later.
Read: Variety...
Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” a biographical drama about the father of the atomic bomb, has continued to surge ahead after seven wins, including best film and director. Its trajectory towards a triumphant night on the Dolby Theatre stage on March 10 seems assured.
However, surprises abound with other awards contenders making pronounced showings. Yorgos Lanthimos’ sci-fi black comedy “Poor Things” garnered four prizes, including leading actress for Emma Stone, production design, special visual effects, costumes and makeup and hair. The unexpected success, particularly in makeup, could foreshadow a possible upset for presumed favorite “Maestro” at the upcoming Academy Awards. Notable, since Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan missed out on their respective lead acting prizes, signaling the Netflix feature will need a rebound sooner rather than later.
Read: Variety...
- 2/18/2024
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
“Anatomy of a Fall” is the favorite to win Best Original Screenplay at the Oscars; director Justine Triet co-wrote the script with partner Arthur Harari. But another multi-hyphenate could pull off an upset: “Past Lives” writer/director Celine Song. Her acclaimed film follows two childhood friends from South Korea who reconnect in the USA years later and find that their bond is still there. Greta Lee and BAFTA-nominated Teo Yoo bring Song’s delicately crafted characters to life while the restrained story is a clear sign of Song’s maturity and control as a writer.
Her film has done very well with critics groups. She won Best Original Screenplay from the Austin Film Critics Association Awards, the Florida Film Critics Circle Awards, and the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards. She was also nominated at the Critics Choice Awards for Best Original Screenplay. She lost that race to...
Her film has done very well with critics groups. She won Best Original Screenplay from the Austin Film Critics Association Awards, the Florida Film Critics Circle Awards, and the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards. She was also nominated at the Critics Choice Awards for Best Original Screenplay. She lost that race to...
- 2/17/2024
- by Jacob Sarkisian
- Gold Derby
Rooney Mara says she chooses movie projects these days based on who is seated in the director’s chair and has been doing so for some time.
“For me, I really go by the director. I learned that pretty early,” the Women Talking and Girl With a Dragon Tattoo actor said Friday when explaining how she ended up starring in director Alonso Ruizpalacios’ English-language debut, La Cocina, which bowed at the Berlin Film Festival on Friday.
The two-time Oscar nominee plays a waitress at a high-stress Manhattan restaurant where she strikes up a relationship with a backroom cook, played by Raúl Briones. “I had some bad experiences as an actor,” Mara continued.
So it took her role in David Fincher’s The Social Network, where she played Erica Albright, to restore her faith in acting. “It was the first time I worked with David Fincher and I realized follow the director.
“For me, I really go by the director. I learned that pretty early,” the Women Talking and Girl With a Dragon Tattoo actor said Friday when explaining how she ended up starring in director Alonso Ruizpalacios’ English-language debut, La Cocina, which bowed at the Berlin Film Festival on Friday.
The two-time Oscar nominee plays a waitress at a high-stress Manhattan restaurant where she strikes up a relationship with a backroom cook, played by Raúl Briones. “I had some bad experiences as an actor,” Mara continued.
So it took her role in David Fincher’s The Social Network, where she played Erica Albright, to restore her faith in acting. “It was the first time I worked with David Fincher and I realized follow the director.
- 2/16/2024
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
“It’s about a whole bunch of things,” Mexican filmmaker Alonso Ruizpalacios says when quizzed on the subject of his latest feature, La Cocina, debuting this evening at the Berlin Film Festival. “In equal parts, it explores the topic of work, the American dream, the failure of the American dream, and abortion rights. That’s a really tough question as a director.”
Ruizpalacios has a point. Starring Rooney Mara and shot in a crisp digital black-and-white, La Cocina is hard to define. Running just short of two-and-a-half hours, the pic is a complex and formally ambitious tale, perhaps best described as a tragicomedy, set in a deathly busy New York City restaurant called The Grill.
The film opens during the lunch rush at The Grill, where, to the fury of the restaurant management, money has gone missing from the till. As a result, all the undocumented cooks are now subject...
Ruizpalacios has a point. Starring Rooney Mara and shot in a crisp digital black-and-white, La Cocina is hard to define. Running just short of two-and-a-half hours, the pic is a complex and formally ambitious tale, perhaps best described as a tragicomedy, set in a deathly busy New York City restaurant called The Grill.
The film opens during the lunch rush at The Grill, where, to the fury of the restaurant management, money has gone missing from the till. As a result, all the undocumented cooks are now subject...
- 2/16/2024
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Two-time Emmy and Golden Globe winner Claire Foy and Oscar nominee Brendan Gleeson are set to star in H Is For Hawk for Plan B and Film4.
Based on author Helen MacDonald’s well-received New York Times memoir of the same name, the film is to be directed by BAFTA winner Philippa Lowthorpe (The Crown), and written by Emma Donoghue (Room).
The true story follows Helen (Foy) who, after losing her beloved father (Gleeson), finds herself saved by an unlikely friendship with a stubborn hawk named Mabel. Through the bond, Helen rediscovers the beauty of being alive.
Protagonist Pictures’ is launching worldwide sales on the buzzy package ahead of the EFM. Pic is being produced by Plan B and was developed with Film4 who will executive-produce and co-finance.
Based on author Helen MacDonald’s well-received New York Times memoir of the same name, the film is to be directed by BAFTA winner Philippa Lowthorpe (The Crown), and written by Emma Donoghue (Room).
The true story follows Helen (Foy) who, after losing her beloved father (Gleeson), finds herself saved by an unlikely friendship with a stubborn hawk named Mabel. Through the bond, Helen rediscovers the beauty of being alive.
Protagonist Pictures’ is launching worldwide sales on the buzzy package ahead of the EFM. Pic is being produced by Plan B and was developed with Film4 who will executive-produce and co-finance.
- 2/9/2024
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Double Oscar-nominee Rooney Mara is all wrapped up, literally, with her co-star Raúl Briones in her new film, La Cocina. In it, the English-language debut of Mexican director Alonso Ruizpalacios (A Cop Movie, Museo), Mara plays Julia, an American waitress working the high-stress lunch rush in the Manhattan restaurant The Grill, whose relationship with undocumented Mexican grill cook Pedro (Briones) is about to be put to the test.
The official posters for the film, exclusively revealed to The Hollywood Reporter, show the Women Talking and Girl With the Dragon Tattoo actress back-to-back with Briones, bound together by a seemingly unending ticker tape of lunch orders. In the bottom corner, a loose lobster appears to be making a break for freedom.
A second poster shows Mara cleaning the glass of the lobster tank while Briones looks on. Submerged inside the tank is a mini Statute of Liberty, symbolic of the (broken?...
The official posters for the film, exclusively revealed to The Hollywood Reporter, show the Women Talking and Girl With the Dragon Tattoo actress back-to-back with Briones, bound together by a seemingly unending ticker tape of lunch orders. In the bottom corner, a loose lobster appears to be making a break for freedom.
A second poster shows Mara cleaning the glass of the lobster tank while Briones looks on. Submerged inside the tank is a mini Statute of Liberty, symbolic of the (broken?...
- 2/8/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
From American high school comedies to Oscar winners, plenty of 2023’s biggest and brightest films have skipped the DVD market in the UK.
(Correction: A previous version of this article claimed Nida Manzoor’s Polite Society couldn’t be found on DVD. It actually can. Don’t worry, we have fired the news-goblin responsible for the error.)
As recently as 2021, the idea that the previous year’s Best Picture Oscar winner wouldn’t get a UK physical media release would have been absurd.
In fact, to find a Best Picture winner that isn’t easily available on a UK disc format, you’d have to head all the way back to 1937. Try as we might to watch The Life Of Emile Zola on the secret DVD player at the top of Big Ben (don’t tell anyone), it looks like no one got round to burning it onto a disk...
(Correction: A previous version of this article claimed Nida Manzoor’s Polite Society couldn’t be found on DVD. It actually can. Don’t worry, we have fired the news-goblin responsible for the error.)
As recently as 2021, the idea that the previous year’s Best Picture Oscar winner wouldn’t get a UK physical media release would have been absurd.
In fact, to find a Best Picture winner that isn’t easily available on a UK disc format, you’d have to head all the way back to 1937. Try as we might to watch The Life Of Emile Zola on the secret DVD player at the top of Big Ben (don’t tell anyone), it looks like no one got round to burning it onto a disk...
- 1/30/2024
- by James Harvey
- Film Stories
The wrestling drama The Iron Claw has quietly grossed $31.5 million domestically at the box office since its Christmas launch, a veritable fortune for an independent film in the post-pandemic age and one of the best showings ever for distributor A24. And it isn’t the only specialty movie doing impressive business these days thanks to a powerful new ally: younger adults.
For years, art house movies relied on the “elderverse,” as one indie executive puts it — i.e., moviegoers over age 35 or 40. But that relationship collapsed during the Covid-19 crisis and has yet to be fully restored. At the same time, the 18-to-34 crowd started snubbing once-surefire genres like superhero fare and began venturing beyond their comfort zone. “Also, people are realizing that streaming is leveling off. There’s less good content to watch at home,” adds Neon distribution chief Elissa Federoff.
“This is the strongest I can remember seeing...
For years, art house movies relied on the “elderverse,” as one indie executive puts it — i.e., moviegoers over age 35 or 40. But that relationship collapsed during the Covid-19 crisis and has yet to be fully restored. At the same time, the 18-to-34 crowd started snubbing once-surefire genres like superhero fare and began venturing beyond their comfort zone. “Also, people are realizing that streaming is leveling off. There’s less good content to watch at home,” adds Neon distribution chief Elissa Federoff.
“This is the strongest I can remember seeing...
- 1/26/2024
- by Pamela McClintock
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
It’s been going on for a while, and it’s been even worse post-pandemic, but the Oscar halo effect for Best Picture nominees has diminished greatly.
Even though most of this year’s Best Picture contenders are available in the home, there are three in an exclusive theatrical release which look to make gains by Oscar night, March 10: Amazon MGM’s American Fiction, Searchlight’s Poor Things and A24’s Zone of Interest. For some studios, playing off the heat of Oscar nominations is still a business.
Poor Things is currently playing in 1,400 theaters, the widest it has been following its Dec. 8 release, which notched the third best first weekend theater average ($73K) of 2023. The Emma Stone-starring and produced bawdy female erotic romp busts wide this weekend at 2,200 theaters. This Friday,...
Even though most of this year’s Best Picture contenders are available in the home, there are three in an exclusive theatrical release which look to make gains by Oscar night, March 10: Amazon MGM’s American Fiction, Searchlight’s Poor Things and A24’s Zone of Interest. For some studios, playing off the heat of Oscar nominations is still a business.
Poor Things is currently playing in 1,400 theaters, the widest it has been following its Dec. 8 release, which notched the third best first weekend theater average ($73K) of 2023. The Emma Stone-starring and produced bawdy female erotic romp busts wide this weekend at 2,200 theaters. This Friday,...
- 1/23/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Barbie director Greta Gerwig was notably snubbed in the best director category during the Oscar nominations on Tuesday. But following last year’s omission of any female filmmaker in the category, Anatomy of a Fall’s Justine Triet received a nomination.
Triet, Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things), Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer), Jonathan Glazer (The Zone of Interest) and Martin Scorsese (Killers of the Flower Moon) were nominated in the coveted category Tuesday morning.
Gerwig is a notable snub, as the Barbie director, throughout the awards season, received various best director nominations (the Directors Guild of America, the Golden Globes, Critics Choice) and wins (Palm Springs International Film Fest). She was also on various pundits’ prediction lists for best director, including from The Hollywood Reporter. Frontrunner Alexander Payne (The Holdovers) was also omitted.
Last year, no woman was nominated for best director. The nominees were Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin), Todd Field...
Triet, Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things), Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer), Jonathan Glazer (The Zone of Interest) and Martin Scorsese (Killers of the Flower Moon) were nominated in the coveted category Tuesday morning.
Gerwig is a notable snub, as the Barbie director, throughout the awards season, received various best director nominations (the Directors Guild of America, the Golden Globes, Critics Choice) and wins (Palm Springs International Film Fest). She was also on various pundits’ prediction lists for best director, including from The Hollywood Reporter. Frontrunner Alexander Payne (The Holdovers) was also omitted.
Last year, no woman was nominated for best director. The nominees were Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin), Todd Field...
- 1/23/2024
- by Beatrice Verhoeven
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Clockwise from left: Past Lives (A24), All Of Us Strangers (Searchlight Pictures), American Fiction (Amazon MGM Studios), Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Lionsgate) Graphic: The A.V. Club We’re just a day away from this year’s Academy Awards nominations announcement and a few names are dominating the race.
- 1/22/2024
- by Cindy White
- avclub.com
Clockwise from left: Past Lives (A24), All Of Us Strangers (Searchlight Pictures), American Fiction (Amazon MGM Studios), Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (Lionsgate)Graphic: The A.V. Club
We’re just a day away from this year’s Academy Awards nominations announcement and a few names are dominating the race.
We’re just a day away from this year’s Academy Awards nominations announcement and a few names are dominating the race.
- 1/22/2024
- by Cindy White
- avclub.com
Last year “Women Talking” underperformed during the awards season apart from getting a Best Picture bid at the Critics Choice Awards and an ensemble cast nom from the SAG Awards. But in the end it still managed to make the Oscar lineup for Best Picture. This year something similar has been happening with “The Color Purple.” Can it also get nominated for Best Picture with only Critics Choice and SAG noms under its belt?
Before last year’s major precursors started rolling in, many thought “Women Talking” would be a strong awards contender for Best Director (Sarah Polley), Best Supporting Actress (Jessie Buckley and/or Claire Foy) and Best Score (Hildur Guðnadóttir). Yet despite scoring six Critics Choice nominations including Best Picture, the rest of its precursor run proved disappointing.
The movie only scored two Golden Globe noms for Best Film Screenplay and Best Score. It was completely ignored by BAFTA.
Before last year’s major precursors started rolling in, many thought “Women Talking” would be a strong awards contender for Best Director (Sarah Polley), Best Supporting Actress (Jessie Buckley and/or Claire Foy) and Best Score (Hildur Guðnadóttir). Yet despite scoring six Critics Choice nominations including Best Picture, the rest of its precursor run proved disappointing.
The movie only scored two Golden Globe noms for Best Film Screenplay and Best Score. It was completely ignored by BAFTA.
- 1/21/2024
- by Jeffrey Kare
- Gold Derby
As of this writing the frontrunner to win this year’s Oscar for Best Original Screenplay is “The Holdovers” with 69/20 odds based on the combined predictions of Gold Derby users. What was previously behind it in second place was “Barbie,” yet the Academy recently declared that script to be adapted despite Warner Bros. campaigning it as original. With “Barbie” out of the way, “Past Lives” is now in second place in this category with 4/1 odds. But I think it actually has a shot of taking down “The Holdovers” for the win.
When it comes to Alexander Payne movies at the Oscars, they’ve so far gone one of two ways. They’ve either only won one award for screenplay (as was the case for “Sideways” and “The Descendants”), or they’ve gone home empty-handed. Many are currently predicting “The Holdovers” will fall into that first category, though it’s also...
When it comes to Alexander Payne movies at the Oscars, they’ve so far gone one of two ways. They’ve either only won one award for screenplay (as was the case for “Sideways” and “The Descendants”), or they’ve gone home empty-handed. Many are currently predicting “The Holdovers” will fall into that first category, though it’s also...
- 1/17/2024
- by Jeffrey Kare
- Gold Derby
The finalists for the 36th USC Libraries Script Awards, honoring the most accomplished films and episodic series adaptations, have been announced. Among the selected are “American Fiction,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Oppenheimer” and “Poor Things,” all top-tier contenders for Oscar attention. Ava DuVernay’s drama “Origin” was a surprise entry in the lineup, making her the second Black woman recognized by the awards body (the first was Dee Rees for 2017’s “Mudbound”).
A strong bellwether for the Oscars’ best adapted screenplay category, previous Scripter winners that have matched the Academy in the last decade include “12 Years a Slave” (2013), “The Imitation Game” (2014), “The Big Short” (2015), “Moonlight” (2016), “Call Me by Your Name” (2017), “Nomadland” (2020) and “Women Talking” (2022). Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman” (2019) is the only Scripter-eligible film to win the Academy Award without being nominated by the organization.
One of the notable omissions from the group is Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” but according to the awards team,...
A strong bellwether for the Oscars’ best adapted screenplay category, previous Scripter winners that have matched the Academy in the last decade include “12 Years a Slave” (2013), “The Imitation Game” (2014), “The Big Short” (2015), “Moonlight” (2016), “Call Me by Your Name” (2017), “Nomadland” (2020) and “Women Talking” (2022). Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman” (2019) is the only Scripter-eligible film to win the Academy Award without being nominated by the organization.
One of the notable omissions from the group is Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” but according to the awards team,...
- 1/17/2024
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
The USC Libraries has revealed the finalists for the 36th annual USC Libraries Scripter Award, which honors the year’s best film and television adaptations, as well as the works on which they are based. This group of academics, industry professionals, and critics (for which I vote) is often predictive of the Adapted Screenplay Oscar race.
Last year, screenwriter Sarah Polley and novelist Miriam Toews won the film award for “Women Talking,” which was nominated for Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay Oscars; Polley won for Adapted at the Academy Awards. Meanwhile, the television prize last year went to English stand-up comedian and screenwriter Will Smith for the episode “Failure’s Contagious,” from “Slow Horses,” based on the novel by Mick Herron. Past winners include “Call Me By Your Name,” “Moonlight,” “The Big Short,” and “The Imitation Game,” which all won Oscars. In fact, before 2019, eight Scripter Award winners went on to win Oscars.
Last year, screenwriter Sarah Polley and novelist Miriam Toews won the film award for “Women Talking,” which was nominated for Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay Oscars; Polley won for Adapted at the Academy Awards. Meanwhile, the television prize last year went to English stand-up comedian and screenwriter Will Smith for the episode “Failure’s Contagious,” from “Slow Horses,” based on the novel by Mick Herron. Past winners include “Call Me By Your Name,” “Moonlight,” “The Big Short,” and “The Imitation Game,” which all won Oscars. In fact, before 2019, eight Scripter Award winners went on to win Oscars.
- 1/17/2024
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
The screenwriters and authors behind Oppenheimer, Origin, American Fiction, Poor Things and Killers of the Flower Moon and The Crown, Daisy Jones & The Six, The Last of Us, Winning Time and last year’s TV winner Slow Horses have been nominated for this year’s USC Libraries Scripter Awards.
In its 36th year, the Scripters honor the writers of the year’s best film and TV adaptations.
Last year, Sarah Polley and author Miriam Toews won for Women Talking, which went on to win the Adapted Screenplay Oscar. Will Smith and Mick Harron are back in the hunt this year for Slow Horses, as is Peter Morgan for The Crown, which he adapted based on his stage play The Audience.
The 2024 Scripter selection committee chaired by USC professor Howard Rodman selected the finalists from a field of 80 film and 56 episodic series adaptations. Winners will be revealed March 2 during a black-tie...
In its 36th year, the Scripters honor the writers of the year’s best film and TV adaptations.
Last year, Sarah Polley and author Miriam Toews won for Women Talking, which went on to win the Adapted Screenplay Oscar. Will Smith and Mick Harron are back in the hunt this year for Slow Horses, as is Peter Morgan for The Crown, which he adapted based on his stage play The Audience.
The 2024 Scripter selection committee chaired by USC professor Howard Rodman selected the finalists from a field of 80 film and 56 episodic series adaptations. Winners will be revealed March 2 during a black-tie...
- 1/17/2024
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Welcome to Oscar Experts Typing, a weekly column in which Gold Derby editors and Experts Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen discuss the Oscar race — via Slack, of course. This week, we discuss Best Picture in the wake of Friday’s Producers Guild Awards nominations.
Christopher Rosen: Hello, Joyce! It’s Friday and we waited for the Producers Guild Awards nominations to commence our weekly typing — perhaps expecting the industry’s producers to toss the Best Picture race into some disarray as Oscar voting ramps up. But how the taste jumped out. The 10 movies nominated for this year’s PGA Award exactly match the 10 movies we both expect to see nominated for Best Picture from A to Z — by which I mean, the list includes “Anatomy of a Fall” and “The Zone of Interest.” This is presumably where films like “The Color Purple” and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” should’ve gotten...
Christopher Rosen: Hello, Joyce! It’s Friday and we waited for the Producers Guild Awards nominations to commence our weekly typing — perhaps expecting the industry’s producers to toss the Best Picture race into some disarray as Oscar voting ramps up. But how the taste jumped out. The 10 movies nominated for this year’s PGA Award exactly match the 10 movies we both expect to see nominated for Best Picture from A to Z — by which I mean, the list includes “Anatomy of a Fall” and “The Zone of Interest.” This is presumably where films like “The Color Purple” and “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” should’ve gotten...
- 1/12/2024
- by Joyce Eng and Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
Exclusive: Annette Bening is joining Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Frankenstein lore feature at Warner Bros; the studio making it official that this is a go-project. Cameras roll in Q1. This package with its attachments has been out there since it was at Netflix, and the deals have finally closed with everyone. Jessie Buckley is the star of the movie which follows Frankenstein’s pursuit of love.
There’s already been word out there about the cast, including Buckley, and it’s a murderers’ row with Christian Bale, Penélope Cruz, and Peter Sarsgaard. Bale and Buckley have been circling this project well before the strikes.
Logline: A lonely Frankenstein travels to 1930s Chicago to seek the aide of a Dr. Euphronius in creating a companion for himself. The two reinvigorate a murdered young woman and the Bride is born. She is beyond what either of them intended, igniting a combustible romance, the...
There’s already been word out there about the cast, including Buckley, and it’s a murderers’ row with Christian Bale, Penélope Cruz, and Peter Sarsgaard. Bale and Buckley have been circling this project well before the strikes.
Logline: A lonely Frankenstein travels to 1930s Chicago to seek the aide of a Dr. Euphronius in creating a companion for himself. The two reinvigorate a murdered young woman and the Bride is born. She is beyond what either of them intended, igniting a combustible romance, the...
- 1/12/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Nominations for the 2024 Producers Guild of America Awards have been announced with the surprise of two international titles — Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” and Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest” — the first time two international titles have been nominated by the guild.
The lineup includes many of the Oscars’ usual suspects as voting for nominations is underway. Rounding out the noms are “American Fiction,” “Barbie,” “The Holdovers,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Maestro,” “Oppenheimer,” “Past Lives” and “Poor Things.”
After being shut out of the SAG nominations, indie distributor A24 is the only studio to land two films in the top category with “Past Lives” and “The Zone of Interest.”
When the Academy expanded its best picture lineup from five to 10 nominees in 2009, the PGA duplicated the move. Since then, the guild has averaged eight of its 10 nominees translating to an Oscar Best Picture nod. However, last year saw only seven,...
The lineup includes many of the Oscars’ usual suspects as voting for nominations is underway. Rounding out the noms are “American Fiction,” “Barbie,” “The Holdovers,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Maestro,” “Oppenheimer,” “Past Lives” and “Poor Things.”
After being shut out of the SAG nominations, indie distributor A24 is the only studio to land two films in the top category with “Past Lives” and “The Zone of Interest.”
When the Academy expanded its best picture lineup from five to 10 nominees in 2009, the PGA duplicated the move. Since then, the guild has averaged eight of its 10 nominees translating to an Oscar Best Picture nod. However, last year saw only seven,...
- 1/12/2024
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
At the 2022 Oscars, Sian Heder won Best Adapted Screenplay for “Coda,” her adaptation of the French film “La Famille Bélier.” “Coda” also claimed Best Picture, thereby becoming the fifth remake to win the top Oscar. In 2021 playwright Florian Zeller shared in the Oscar win for Best Adapted Screenplay with Christopher Hampton for bring his stage hit “The Father” to the screen. In his directorial debut Zeller bagged Anthony Hopkins his second Best Actor Oscar. (Scroll down for the most up-to-date 2024 Oscar predictions for Best Adapted Screenplay.)
Screen versions of stage works had won Best Adapted Screenplay at the Oscars 15 times before. The most recent of these was in 2017 when “Moonlight” director Barry Jenkins and playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney prevailed for adapting the latter’s un-produced play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue.” Prior to that you have to go all the way back to 1989 when Alfred Uhry won for adapting...
Screen versions of stage works had won Best Adapted Screenplay at the Oscars 15 times before. The most recent of these was in 2017 when “Moonlight” director Barry Jenkins and playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney prevailed for adapting the latter’s un-produced play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue.” Prior to that you have to go all the way back to 1989 when Alfred Uhry won for adapting...
- 1/11/2024
- by Paul Sheehan and Jacob Sarkisian
- Gold Derby
Flashback: The #1 grossing film for January 2023 was “Avatar: The Way of Water.” In January 2022, it was “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” Both films were #1 on the last weekend of the month as well as the first.
Contrast that with “Wonka” (Warner Bros.), which is a clear success headed for a worldwide gross of over $500 million — but isn’t remotely in the same league. That explains why January is more than 20 percent below last year, but this month has a chance to succeed if it does something entirely different.
Yes, 2024 needs franchise titles and sequels to carry their weight; “Dune Part 2,” “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire,” and “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” all arrive in March. However, to rise above the year’s grim $8 billion projection for domestic gross (down 12 percent from 2023), a whole slew of standalone titles must thrive.
Enter the weekend of January 12. The four-day Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday traditionally boosts grosses,...
Contrast that with “Wonka” (Warner Bros.), which is a clear success headed for a worldwide gross of over $500 million — but isn’t remotely in the same league. That explains why January is more than 20 percent below last year, but this month has a chance to succeed if it does something entirely different.
Yes, 2024 needs franchise titles and sequels to carry their weight; “Dune Part 2,” “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire,” and “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” all arrive in March. However, to rise above the year’s grim $8 billion projection for domestic gross (down 12 percent from 2023), a whole slew of standalone titles must thrive.
Enter the weekend of January 12. The four-day Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday traditionally boosts grosses,...
- 1/11/2024
- by Tom Brueggemann
- Indiewire
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.