News

Stars: James Gaudioso, Adam Shippey, Shawnee Smith, Drew Moerlein, Tyrese Gibson, Kresh Novakovic, Taryn Manning, Bruce Dern, Montanna Gillis | Written by James and Anthony Gaudioso | Directed by Ante Novakovic

Bloodline Killer begins on Halloween Eve when Connor sees his father killed by the masked serial killer known as Skulleton. He tries to save him but to no avail, and the only thing that saves him is his mother Moira putting several bullets into the killer. That drops him, but while she isn’t looking, the body vanishes.

At the hospital, Connor and his brother Michael almost get in a fight over Connor not being able to their father. Detective Cypher and his partner Detective Fink find out that someone claiming to be a cop has already interviewed the hospitalized Moira. And we find out that Skulleton is her cousin.

Elsewhere, Samantha, the killer’s sister finds him and drugs him...

A hot property that J.J. Abrams' production company Bad Robot acquired two years ago has finally found its director, according to Deadline. Actor, comedian, and filmmaker Jason Bateman is set to step behind the camera for "The Pinkerton," which will be the first original film project to come from Bad Robot's reported 250 million deal with WarnerMedia.

News of "The Pinkerton" first broke in early March 2020, when it was announced that "Kin" and "F9" screenwriter Daniel Casey was working on the script for the project. Given the obviously inauspicious timing of that announcement, it makes sense that it's taken "The Pinkerton" a while to get off the ground. Now, though, Bateman is set to return to feature directing for the first time since 2015 to helm what's being called a "supernatural revenge-Western hybrid," per Deadline.

What Should We Expect From The Pinkerton?

The plot of "The Pinkerton" is totally under wraps,...

Jason Bateman is partnering with Warner Bros. and J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot for The Pinkerton. No, this isn’t a making-of-documentary about Weezer’s 1996 sophomore album. The project is an original feature about Pinkertons, which Bloomberg says is a private security guard and detective agency founded around 1850 in the United States by Scottish-born flatfoot Allan Pinkerton and Chicago attorney Edward Rucker. Initially known as the North-Western Police Agency, the outfit became Pinkerton & Co., then the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.

The Pinkerton is the first project from a deal between Bad Robot and Warner Bros. In addition to directing the film, Bateman is executive producing with Michael Costigan. Abrams and Hannah Minghella also produce through Bad Robot.

According to Pinkerton, the group saved president-elect Abraham Lincoln from an assassination attempt before the famous leader of the United States took office. Thankful for the save, Lincoln hired the Pinkertons as his security guards during his presidency.

Exclusive: Jason Bateman is set to direct The Pinkerton, a supernatural revenge-western hybrid that Warner Bros. and JJ Abrams’ Bad Robot acquired two years ago. Pic was sold as a spec by F9’s Daniel Casey.

It was the first original film project for Bad Robot since Warner Bros signed a big deal with the producer. Batmen and Michael Costigan will join Bad Robot’s Abrams and Hannah Minghella as producers.

The Pinkertons were a private security guard and detective agency established in the U.S. by Scotsman Allan Pinkerton in 1850. Pinkerton became famous when he claimed to have foiled a plot to assassinate president-elect Abraham Lincoln, who later hired Pinkerton agents for his personal security during the Civil War.

Bateman made his directing debut on Bad Words and followed with The Family Fang, and won an Emmy and two SAG Awards for directing episodes of Ozark, to go with...

In a competitive situation, Apple Original Films has landed “Project Artemis,” a new film from Apple Studios that will star Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson and will be directed by Jason Bateman.

The original feature is written by Rose Gilroy will be produced for Apple by Apple Studios. In addition to starring, Johansson will serve as producer under her These Pictures banner, and Bateman will direct and produce through Aggregate Films. Jonathan Lia and Keenan Flynn will produce alongside Johansson for These Pictures.

Plot details for “Project Artemis” are being kept under wraps, but it marks an exciting pairing of stars and filmmaker. Evans and Johansson worked together for years in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and were originally set to reteam for the Apple romantic comedy actioner “Ghosted” before Johansson had to drop out due to scheduling difficulties. Ana de Armas replaced Johansson in that feature, which is directed by...

Exclusive: David Dastmalchian, Marin Ireland, Vivien Lyra Blair and Madison Hu (Voyagers) have signed on to star alongside Chris Messina and Sophie Thatcher in 20th Century Studios horror-thriller The Boogeyman, based on Stephen King’s 1973 short story of the same name, which has entered production in New Orleans, and will debut in 2023 on Hulu in the U.S., on Star+ in Latin America, and on Disney+ under the Star banner in all other territories.

The film from director Rob Savage follows a 16-year-old and her younger sister, still reeling from the death of their mother, as they’re targeted by a supernatural boogeyman, after their psychologist father has an encounter with a desperate patient in their house.

Mark Heyman wrote the most recent draft of script, with Scott Beck & Bryan Woods (A Quiet Place...

Exclusive: Jason Bateman and Michael Costigan’s Aggregate Films is beefing up its television ranks, upping Roxie Rodriguez to VP Television and bringing in Emma Ho as Director of Development for Unscripted as the company is looking to expand its business beyond scripted programming.

“It will come as no surprise to anyone who has worked with Roxie that she deserves this promotion and has become such a valuable member of our growing team,” said Bateman and Costigan. “With her excellent taste and ability to both identify and build shows around unique voices, Roxie has been instrumental in developing our television slate with several new series that we are excited to launch in 2021 and 2022.”

Rodriguez began her career in Austin, Texas where she worked in independent film, serving as Associate Producer on the films The Skeleton Twins and Rock The Kasbah. She also had a run as a programmer for the Marfa Film Festival.

A couple of things have caught our eye in February’s Netflix UK line-up, first, the German dystopian sci-fi Tribes of Europa. After the success of sci-fi series Dark, the streaming service invested in a bunch of new German-language series, including the mega-successful historical Barbarians. Tribes was among them, and tells the story of a group of siblings in 2074, separated after a global disaster that leaves Europe riven by warring factions. Also sounding like a good time is South Korean comedy Space Sweepers, about a spaceship crew tasked with cleaning up intergalactic trash.

There’s also the arrival of Parks and Recreation in full – perfect for a lockdown rewatch, new stand-up, all of The Vampire Diaries, and Jason “It’s a megalodon” Statham in The Meg.

We’ll update this list with new arrivals as they’re confirmed.

1 February

Anna and the Apocalypse (2017)

The Family Fang (2015)

The House Arrest of Us...

Before production began on the first season of “Ozark,” Jason Bateman knew what he was in for.

“It’s probably going to be the hardest work I’ve ever done,” he told The New York Times in 2015, “and that’s good.”

Today, “Ozark” has not only reshaped the preexisting perception of the actor as a comedy star, but the Netflix drama has broadened his reach as an artist — especially when it comes to directing. Originally, Bateman planned to direct every episode of Season 1, in addition to performing his duties as lead actor and executive producer. That much work soon proved impossible (Bateman ended up helming four of the 10), but he still pushed himself to do more. He wanted to do more than act, more than produce, more than direct: He wanted to have his hands on “every part of the process.”

With three seasons streaming, a fourth and final season prepping to shoot this November,...

Exclusive: After earning his third consecutive Emmy nomination earlier this week, Jason Bateman has now turned his sights on what comes after Ozark finishes shooting its final season, and he may have found his next project. We are hearing Bateman is in early negotiations to direct the Netflix heist pic Here Comes the Flood, which the studio won in a heated auction this past spring. Insiders say it is still early days on the negotiating front and as of now, those talks are just to direct, but given all the juicy roles in the film, the opportunity to act in it as well is certainly a possibility.

Netflix had no comment.

Simon Kinberg penned spec, which is an elevated, character-driven love-story heist movie, with the heist playing out in increments. Kinberg and Audrey Chon, president of Genre Films, are producing and if a deal closes, Bateman is also expected to...

Actor and now filmmaker Jason Bateman is all set to take the helm on a new thriller from New Line titled ‘Shut In’.

The plot outline is that of an edgy thriller in the vein of ‘Panic Room’, in which a single mother is held captive by her violent ex, with her two young children left at risk. She must do everything to protect them and survive. It is believed that Bateman won’t star in the movie.

The story is from first-time scribe Melanie Toast. Bateman and Michael Costigan will board as producers, alongside Farah Films’ Dan Farah, Vertigo’s Roy Lee and Cinestate’s Dallas Sonnier.

Exec producing are Cinestate’s Amanda Presmyk and Danielle Cox, Farah Films’ Andrew Farah and Vertigo’s Miri Yoon. Richard Brener, Daria Cercek and Josh Mack will oversee for New Line.

Also in news – ‘Marriage Story’ takes the lead in the 2020 Golden...

Exclusive: Fresh from winning the Emmy for Outstanding Directing For A Drama Series for Ozark, Jason Bateman has found his next feature film to direct. He’ll helm Shut In, the spec script by first time scribe Melanie Toast that New Line acquired in September.

Bateman had been developing to direct a film based on the Hasbro board game Clue, teaming with Ryan Reynolds at Fox/Disney. That project is still alive, but it would have been too much for Bateman to get it done and get back to his Netflix series. Then he found Shut In, a contained thriller he fell for quickly, and one that is a better fit for his schedule. They’re negotiating, but sources said that the film is on course for a production start in the first quarter of 2020.

Aggregate and its principals, Bateman and Michael Costigan, will board as producers, alongside Farah Films’ Dan Farah,...

Exclusive: In what marks her first major acquisition since leaving Fox 2000 and forming the Sony-based production label 3000 Pictures to make book-friendly films, Elizabeth Gabler won an auction for screen rights to Nothing to See Here, the just published Kevin Wilson novel from Ecco/HarperCollins. Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber are attached to write the script and produce the film. That duo adapted The Fault In Our Stars and Paper Towns for Gabler at Fox 2000. Their other credits include (500) Days of Summer, The Spectacular Now, and The Disaster Artist.

Sources said that at least four bidders chased the deal in an auction that played out over the weekend. The book transaction is mid- to high- six figures for the book, and seven figures to engage the writers. The author will be exec producer and his book is expected to be a big bestseller.

If the book package wasn’t...

Tony Sokol Sep 26, 2019

The board game Clue is being set for a new adaptation with Ozark's Jason Bateman directing and Ryan Reynolds starring.

Two corpses, everything's fine. Jason Bateman of Arrested Development is in early talks to direct a live-action Clue remake for Fox/Disney, according to Deadline. Bateman may also star in the film alongside Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool). The project was first announced in early 2018. The new movie is not connected to the 1985 Paramount version directed by Jonathan Lynn.

Bateman, who won a directing Emmy for the Ozark episode “Reparations,” will develop the script with Reynolds. When the project was first announced, the film was based on a screenplay written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, the writers of the first Deadpool movie. Bateman recently began production on Ozark season 3, which will include two episodes he will direct as well as reprise his role as drug cartel financial advisor Marty Byrde.

Jason Bateman, the newly-minted Emmy winner for directing “Ozark,” is in talks to direct the live-action remake of “Clue” based on the Hasbro board game set up at Disney and Fox, an individual with knowledge of the project told TheWrap. Bateman is also in early talks to star in the film alongside Ryan Reynolds.

“Clue” is a comedy and murder mystery inspired by the popular board game from Hasbro, but it’s not connected to the 1985 “Clue” film starring Tim Curry.

The writers on Reynolds’s “Deadpool,” Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, were hired to write the screenplay back in 2018 as the first project as part of a three-year, first-look deal with Twentieth Century Fox. Reynolds’s Maximum Effort is producing the film alongside Hasbro Studios’ film division Allspark Pictures, and Bateman will also work in developing the script.

Also Read: 'Ozark' Star Jason Bateman on Show's Secret...

Exclusive: Trans activist and model Corey Rae is getting a second crown — so to speak. Red Crown Productions has acquired the rights to Harry Tarre’s screenplay Queen which is based on Rae’s article “How I Became the World’s First Transgender Prom Queen — A Personal Essay.”

As the title of the article suggests, the screenplay is based on the true story of Rae’s real-life high school transition process and how she became the world’s first openly transgender prom queen. The film will be produced by Daniel Crown and Yoni Liebling of Red Crown Productions, and executive produced by Corey Rae and Harry Tarre, along with Amanda Crown, the Creative Executive, who brought the picture to Red Crown.

Rae first shared her story publicly on her blog in 2016 after transitioning (2009-2012). She looks to help break social stigmas surrounding transgender women. “I couldn’t be more excited...

Netflix has signed John Cena to an untitled action-comedy movie that Jason Bateman will direct and produce.

The project re-teams Bateman with “Game Night” writer Mark Perez, who is scripting. Bateman is producing with Michael Costigan for Aggregate Films along with Jeff Kirschenbaum and Joe Roth for Roth Kirschenbaum Films. The project centers on a family stuck in an old abandoned movie studio where the sets come to life.

Cena began to expand his career as a top pro wrestler into the movies with Amy Schumer’s “Trainwreck” in 2015, followed by “Blockers” and “Bumblebee” last year. He’s also attached to star in Paramount’s family comedy “Playing With Fire,” which begins production next month.

Bateman stars in the Netflix crime show “Ozark” and is up for a SAG Award for actor in a drama series. He has also directed episodes of the show. Bateman made his feature directorial debut with the 2013 comedy “Bad Words,...

John Cena is set to star in an untitled project that will be directed by Jason Bateman and is currently in development at Netflix, an individual with knowledge of the project told TheWrap.

The script will be written by Mark Perez, who also wrote the Bateman-starring “Game Night” from 2018.

Bateman is producing under his banner Aggregate Films along with his partner Michael Costigan. Aggregate Films has a production deal at Netflix. Joe Roth and Jeff Kirschenbaum are also producing for Roth Kirschenbaum Films.

Also Read: John Cena, Sugar Ray Leonard Remember Muhammad Ali at Si Sportsperson of the Year Awards (Photos)

The logline is currently under wraps, but THR described the film as an action comedy that centers on a family that gets stuck in an abandoned movie studio overnight and find themselves stuck in various classic films when the movie sets come to life.

This is Bateman’s third feature,...

HBO has ordered a series adaptation of the Stephen King novel “The Outsider” with Ben Mendelsohn attached to star, Variety has learned.

In addition, Jason Bateman will direct the first two episodes and executive produce the series under his Aggregate Films banner.

In the series, a seemingly straightforward investigation into the gruesome murder of a local boy leads a seasoned cop and an unorthodox investigator to question everything they believe to be real, as an insidious supernatural force edges its way into the case.

Media Rights Capital is the studio and will produce along with Aggregate and Temple Hill Entertainment. Mendelsohn will also produce in addition to starring. Richard Price serves as writer and executive producer. Marty Bowen of Temple Hill will also executive produce along with Michael Costigan of Aggregate and Jack Bender.

Mendelsohn is well-known for recent film roles like “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” “Mississippi Grind,...

Nicole Kidman readily admits she has two husbands.

She’s been happily married to country star Keith Urban for 12 years, but then there’s the man she affectionately calls her “work husband”: Per Saari, her partner in Blossom Films, the production banner they launched in 2010. Blossom boasts a carefully curated but high-powered lineup across film and TV, from 2016’s “The Family Fang” to HBO’s hit limited series “Big Little Lies.”

Kidman and Saari pride themselves on choosing projects that speak to them personally. But as Kidman’s star has risen, so has Blossom Films’. The banner now boasts more than a half-dozen projects with A-list pedigrees.

“We’re not out there to dominate the world. We just want to have a little part,” says Kidman.

As with any marriage, they do have their conflicts, with Kidman often the voice of self-doubt. Season 2 of “Big Little Lies” particularly has her worried,...

Today Jason Bateman turned out to be a double threat Emmy nominee for his Netflix/Media Rights Capital noir series Ozark, not just earning a nomination for lead actor in a drama series, but also for directing as well.

While Bateman has continually been lauded for his comedy acting chops throughout the years, largely for Arrested Development (Tbd on whether the comedy series will season 6; the series season 5 received zero love from Emmy voters), it’s arguably the first time that he’s been recognized in the directing arena, and he’s been exercising that creative muscle for quite some time not just with indie features such as The Family Fang and Bad Words, but going as far back to the late ’80s when he directed episodes for NBC’s Valerie, a sitcom on which he also starred.

Though Ozark has provided Bateman the opportunity to delve his straight-man persona...

Exclusive: Already a staple of the Netflix queue with Ozark and Arrested Development, Jason Bateman has deepened his relationship with the global streaming service. He has partnered with seasoned producer and executive Michael Costigan, and they have set Aggregate Films in a first-look, multiyear deal with Netflix to generate film and TV projects.

This becomes the latest big overall deal for Netflix, after recently making massive deals with Shonda Rhimes and Ryan Murphy on the TV side, continuing its arrangement with Adam Sandler to build and star in comedy features, and making strategic overall deals to manage its burgeoning film slate. Those pacts include with experienced big picture producer Ian Bryce (War Machine); War for the Planet of the Apes and Batman director Matt Reeves and his 6th & Idaho banner; and another with I, Tonya producer Bryan Unkeless and Eric Newman, the vet producer who’s currently showrunner and exec...

Deal follows similar pact with Jordan Peele.

Amazon Studios has signed Nicole Kidman and her production company Blossom Films to a first-look deal covering theatrical features, television series and digital content.

The deal is the latest move in the ongoing battle between streaming services and their traditional media rivals to sign talent. Kidman and Blossom have most recently been working on the second season of Big Little Lies for HBO and upcoming David E Kelley limited series The Undoing, also for the premium cable network.

Amazon said it will work with Kidman and Blossom to develop original series to be...

Exclusive: Funny or Die creative director and former Saturday Night Live head writer Andrew Steele is penning The Last Shot, a comedy set in the basketball world that is being produced by Red Crown Productions and Funny Or Die. Sports Illustrated writer Lee Jenkins, who has covered the NBA extensively over the last 11 years, will be making contributions to the script.

Pic will be produced by Daniel Crown and Yoni Liebling of Red Crown Productions, and Mike Farah and Joe Farrell of Funny Or Die.

“This is as close as I’ll ever get to my lifelong dream of ever playing in the NBA,” said Steele.

“We are thrilled to announce our involvement with The Last Shot and to have the incredible writing of Andrew Steele and the NBA knowledge and expertise of Lee Jenkins to help bring this story to the screen,” said Crown, Founder of Red Crown Productions.

Amazon Studios has signed a deal with Nicole Kidman and her production company, Blossom Films, it announced Thursday.

Amazon and Blossom will work together to develop original series that will be available exclusively on Amazon Prime and movies for theatrical release.

“Nicole is a force of nature as both an actress and a producer,” said Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke in a statement.

“She understands the focus of bringing addictive, entertaining and compelling television to our Prime Video customers as well as movies that will connect with film audiences,” Salke added. “Stay tuned for many exciting projects to come in the very near future!”

“I’m excited to start working with Jen Salke and the Amazon team,” Kidman said. “Our goal at Blossom Films is to create important and entertaining content across multiple platforms,...

Nicole Kidman has signed a first-look deal with Amazon Studios for features, television series and digital content. Under the pact, Amazon and Kidman’s Blossom Films will develop original series that will be available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, as well as movies for theatrical release.

“Nicole is a force of nature as both an actress and a producer,” said Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios. “She understands the focus of bringing addictive, entertaining and compelling television to our Prime Video customers as well as movies that will connect with film audiences. Stay tuned for many exciting projects to come in the very near future!”

During her recent first found of Q&As since joining Amazon Studios, Salke indicated that the company plans to be aggressive in pursuing first-look and overall deals with top talent, especially all-encompassing pacts that span TV and film. Amazon Studios recently inked an exclusive first-look TV deal with Jordan Peele.

MaryAnn’s quick take… This rushed sequel is an insult to its progenitor movie. A cheap knockoff that doesn’t understand what made Bad Moms so smart, funny, and feminist-wise. I’m “biast” (pro): love the first movie

I’m “biast” (con): the trailer looked awful

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a sequel throw its progenitor movie under a bus the way that A Bad Moms Christmas does. If I hadn’t just rewatched Bad Moms, I would have been doubting what I remembered as a very positive reaction to it last year as I sat through this barrage of nasty, cruel, antiwoman, even antimom garbage. But no: as I had just reminded myself, Bad Moms truly is a terrifically smart and wise movie — and also a very funny one — about the impossible job that modern...

Sony Classical announces the release of Goodbye Christopher Robin (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) with an original score by Academy Award®-nominated composer Carter Burwell.

The soundtrack will be released digitally on October 13 and on CD on October 27, 2017. The film will be released in the Us on October 13, 2017.

Pre-order here.

Goodbye Christopher Robin is directed by Simon Curtis (My Week with Marilyn, Woman in Gold) and will be released in Us theaters by Fox Searchlight Pictures on October 13, 2017.

Carter Burwell said about the score:

“One of the riskier decisions Simon Curtis and I made with the score was to withhold the main theme until the middle of the film, when A. A. Milne begins to write and his friend Ernest Shepard begins to illustrate “Winnie The Pooh”. We did this to make that moment especially noteworthy, to make it the turning point of the story. Before that point, the music plays...

MaryAnn’s quick take… Thoroughly charming. Spider-Man’s signature light comedy works surprisingly well even as this story is uniquely steeped in the darker Marvel Cinematic Universe. I’m “biast” (pro): love the Marvel Cinematic Universe

I’m “biast” (con): tired of Spider-Man

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Oh, god, not another Spider-Man movie! We’re all tired of Spider-Man, aren’t we? Didn’t we all groan a little when he showed up in Captain America: Civil War because we knew it meant more standalone Spider-Man movies? (I mean, of course it did. Like how every Avenger gets their own movie: Iron Man and Cap and Thor and Ant-freakin’-Man and Black Widow– oh, wait.) It was only just five years ago, in 2012, when we got Andrew Garfield as The Amazing Spider-Man (with its sequel only three years ago), and that was only...

MaryAnn’s quick take… Thoroughly charming. Spider-Man’s signature light comedy works surprisingly well even as this story is uniquely steeped in the darker Marvel Cinematic Universe. I’m “biast” (pro): love the Marvel Cinematic Universe

I’m “biast” (con): tired of Spider-Man

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Oh, god, not another Spider-Man movie! We’re all tired of Spider-Man, aren’t we? Didn’t we all groan a little when he showed up in Captain America: Civil War because we knew it meant more standalone Spider-Man movies? (I mean, of course it did. Like how every Avenger gets their own movie: Iron Man and Cap and Thor and Ant-freakin’-Man and Black Widow– oh, wait.) It was only just five years ago, in 2012, when we got Andrew Garfield as The Amazing Spider-Man (with its sequel only three years ago), and that was only...

1. “Friends From College” Season 1 (available July 14)

Why Should I Watch It? Ivy League graduates are largely insufferable, but Netflix is challenging that notion by assembling the most likable cast in recent memory to play a bunch of Harvard alumni reuniting in their late 30s. (Ok, so this list pretty much proves that all famous Ivy Leaguers are awesome, but you know the non-famous are impossible bores. No? Just me? Damn it.) Anyway, “Friends From College” brings together Keegan-Michael Key (Ethan), Cobie Smulders (Lisa), Annie Parisse (Sam), Nat Faxon (Nick), Fred Savage (Max), and Jae Suh Park (Marianne) — plus Kate McKinnon and Ike Barinholtz as guest stars — in a comedic exploration of old friendships from the creative minds of Nicholas Stoller (“Neighbors: Sorority Rising,” “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”) and Francesca Delbanco. Sounds like an ideal mixer, no? Good — at least we can agree on something.

Best Episode: Season 1 of “Friends From College...

Author: Scott Davis

Netflix has unveiled the first look at their new show Ozark, which debuts on the subscription service later this summer – you can check out the first trailer and debut images below!

The new show is directed and executive produced by Jason Bateman (The Family Fang, Office Christmas Party), who also stars in the show as Marty Bird, a financial planner who relocates with his family from a Chicago suburb to Missouri Ozarks, a summer resort community. The move has to do with Marty also being a top money launderer and after a job backfires, the second biggest Mexican drug cartel comes for them.

Bateman will direct half the episodes of the 10-episode series and marks a return to television series directing for the actor, who previously directed episodes of Arrested Development amongst others, as well as 2013’s Bad Words and 2015’s The Family Fang, which co-starred Nicole Kidman and Christopher Walken.

MaryAnn’s quick take… This may be Werner Herzog’s most conventional film, but its mostly untold true story knows what it means for a woman to choose a life of adventure and intellect. I’m “biast” (pro): I’m desperate for stories about women

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Have you heard that there is a new movie, a sweeping biopic of a major historical figure, written and directed by Werner Herzog, starring Nicole Kidman, James Franco, and Robert Pattinson? Seems like kind of a big deal, doesn’t it? Seems like the kind of movie you’d hear a lot about. Instead, Queen of the Desert has been sitting on a shelf since it debuted at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2015 — more than two years ago — because… why? Why did it just now get a...

The move comes as the Los Angeles-based film and TV company ramps up operations.

The Los Angeles-based film and TV company that co-financed last year’s best picture Oscar winner Spotlight has named Jason Fisher senior vice-president and head of production and Ryan Heller vice-president of acquisitions.

The new hires come as First Look Media continues to expand its programming and content team. The company has just boarded the Ben Foster drama My Abandonment with Bron Creative.

Fisher (main picture) will oversee a growing number of scripted and unscripted productions for digital, television and film, while Heller takes the lead on forging new partnerships and ramping up acquisitions to complement original programming.

Both will report to First Look Media executive vice-president of programming and content Adam Pincus.

Fisher, who began his career as a film producer, served as senior vice-president and head of production at AMC Networks where he helped create the in-house studio behind The Walking Dead, Mad Men...

Stars: Jason Bateman, Nicole Kidman, Kathryn Hahn, Christopher Walken, Marin Ireland, Harris Yulin, Eugenia Kuzmina, Michael Chernus, Josh Pais, Maryann Plunkett | Written by David Lindsay-Abaire | Directed by Jason Bateman

Performance artists. What good are they anyhow? It’s not like they put their lives on the line, or make a strong statement about anything going on in current events. It’s not like they tend to become wildly notorious for their acts, nor do they leave a mark on younger generations. But the question is, what happens to their kids? That’s what The Family Fang sets out to solve…

The second directorial feature from Jason Bateman after 2013′s Bad Words, The Family Fang sees Bateman star as Baxter Fang, the brother of Annie Fang, played by Nicole Kidman. They are affectionately called “Child A” and “Child B” by their parents Caleb and Camille, played by the one and only Christopher Walken and Maryann Plunkett.

Oopsie. In the Holiday rush we forgot to share one of the most important lists, the list of which films can be nominated for Oscars (in regular categories -- speciality categories like "best foreign language film" having their own rules). Every year the list is a wee bit odd if you really take a deep dive at it because it's filled with movies you haven't heard of as well as missing a few movies you have. Why is that? Because the list is made up of films which met two requirements.

1) Each film played for a week long engagement in Los Angeles that you could buy tickets to like you would any movie (i.e. not a festival engagement alone) and...

2) Films which did that and then Also submitted paperwork to the Academy to be eligible.

The most important film that is missing this year (apparently due to requirement #2) is acclaimed Aquarius starring Sonia Braga.

MaryAnn’s quick take… Hangover lite, with even more tepid notions of what constitutes debauchery, plus a true dedication to strained contrivance. I’m “biast” (pro): nothing

I’m “biast” (con): not a fan of grossout comedies

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

You know those really dumb comedies where the only actually funny bits are the outtakes that run over the end credits, where everyone is finally on their game and the humor comes loose and fast and unconstructed, and you think, “Gee, why isn’t the whole movie like that?”? This is not the case with Office Christmas Party. Ocp — not to be confused with the evil robotics corporation in Robocop, which is more fun on a Friday after-work drinks thing than this movie — is, if I recall correctly, the first instance of end-credits clips that are as precisely forced and flat as...

Liane Moriarty (Photo credit: Nic Walker)

Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon have joined forces to option the film rights to Sydney novelist Liane Moriarty.s Truly Madly Guilty..

The actors are clearly high on Moriarty, having already turned the author's Big Little Lies into a series for HBO that is currently in post.

The show was adapted by David E. Kelley, directed by Dallas Buyers Club's Jean-Marc Vallee and stars Witherspoon, Kidman, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern, Zoe Kravitz and Alexander Skaarsgard..

Witherspoon and Kidman will produce Truly Madly Guilty with Australian Bruna Papandrea (soon to hit Sydney for an in-conversation event hosted by Screen Nsw), who runs Witherspoon's Pacific Standard banner, and Per Saari, who oversees Kidman's Blossom Films..

Pacific Standard is known for its focus on adaptations, with Witherspoon having previously produced Cheryl Strayed's.Wild, directed by Vallee, and Gillian Flynn's.Gone Girl, which was directed by David Fincher.

James Schamus with Indignation's Linda Emond Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

Partners on Broadway in Cabaret, starring Michelle Williams and Alan Cumming, together in Jason Bateman's The Family Fang with Christopher Walken, Maryann Plunkett and Nicole Kidman, Linda Emond and Danny Burstein this time are parents to Marcus Messner (Logan Lerman) in James Schamus's adaptation of Philip Roth's Indignation with Sarah Gadon, Tracy Letts, Ben Rosenfield, Pico Alexander, Noah Robbins and Philip Ettinger.

Linda Emond starred opposite Philip Seymour Hoffman in Mike Nichols’ production of Arthur Miller's Death Of A Salesman and may be seen in Terrence Malick's Weightless with Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Natalie Portman, Rooney Mara, Cate Blanchett, Val Kilmer, Benicio Del Toro, and Michael Fassbender.

Danny Burstein: "My dad was a protégé of Philip Roth." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

“If I did everything right, I could justify to my father the expense of my...

El Santo, the greatest luchador who ever lived, was buried wearing the silver mask that had become his signature. Pedro Aguayo Ramirez, known in the ring as Hijo del Perro Aguayo, died from a cervical fracture that he sustained from a flying kick from one of his fiercest opponents. Fabian El Gitano committed suicide (most sources believe) after losing a match and being unmasked in front of his biggest fans. Mexican wrestling may not be “real,” but it sure as shit isn’t fake.

Lucha libre (which translates to “free wrestling,” but operates like a less corporatized, more cultured and similarly colorful version of the WWE) is a matter of life and death, silly and serious in equal measure. Alex Hammond and Ian Markiewicz’s “Lucha Mexico” may not explore the sport’s performative middle distance with the same intellectual rigor that Robert Greene’s “Fake It So Real” applied to American independent wrestling,...

Every week we dive into the cream of the crop when it comes to home releases, including Blu-ray and DVDs, as well as recommended deals of the week. Check out our rundown below and return every Tuesday for the best (or most interesting) films one can take home. Note that if you’re looking to support the site, every purchase you make through the links below helps us and is greatly appreciated.

Boy & the World (Alê Abreu)

Crayon-like scribblings and simple geometric patterns meticulously complicate themselves like a fractal over the course of this child’s-eye odyssey through the global struggle between humankind and the forces that oppress it. Kaleidoscopic visuals use repetition to explore the communal nature of both work and celebration. This film continually pulls back to show the larger picture of society, its visuals becoming more complex in kind, before it reduces to a more intimate view...

Nicole Kidman and Jason Bateman are Annie and Baxter Fang, children of celebrated performance artists Caleb and Camille Fang (Christopher Walken, Maryann Plunkett). When the elder Fangs go missing under mysterious circumstances, the siblings are forced to unpack long-dormant and unresolved issues from their unorthodox childhoods as they search for their parents. Caustically funny and deeply felt, Bateman’s critically acclaimed sophomore feature directorial effort is based on Kevin Wilson’s bestselling novel. The film stars Nicole Kidman, Jason Bateman, Christopher Walken, Maryann Plunkett, Jason Butler Harner, and Kathryn Hahn. Directed by Jason Bateman. Based on the novel “The Family Fang” by Kevin Wilson. “The Family Fang” will be available on home [ Read More ]

The post Exclusive: The Family Fang Gets A New Clip appeared first on Shockya.com.

“The Family Fang” follows the adult siblings Baxter and Annie Fang (Jason Bateman and Nicole Kidman), the children of Caleb and Camille Fang (Christopher Walken and Maryann Plunkett), two world-famous performance artists who used their young children in surprise, often disturbing public interactive art exhibitions. When Caleb and Camille go missing, Baxter and Annie return to their family home after years of being estranged to investigate their disappearance, and to discover if it’s a ruse or if it’s genuine. Watch an exclusive clip from the film below featuring a performance art piece with a young Caleb and Camille (played by Jason Butler Harner and Kathryn Hahn respectively) berating their children in the park for being terrible at playing music.

Read More: ‘The Family Fang’ Review: Jason Bateman’s Continuing Quest to Be a Serious Filmmaker

“The Family Fang” is directed by actor Jason Bateman. Starting his career as...

Academy Award winner Nicole Kidman is getting into the virtual reality world. The actress stars in a new five-minute short film, “Reimagined,” for Etihad Airways. The video is a 360-degree journey that lets the viewer control the shot and take a look all around the airline’s new Airbus A380s, flying non-stop between New York and Abu Dhabi.

In the film viewers see all aspects of the plane and its extraordinary and luxurious features. It then centers on Kidman as she’s in a meeting, roams around the airplane and sits comfortably on her bed. The shots are used to showcase the ample room and comfort that one has when traveling on the new Airbus A380s.

Read More: Nicole Kidman Joins Colin Farrell in Yorgos Lanthimos’ ‘The Killing of a Sacred Deer’

The actress serves as the airline’s brand ambassador and in 2015 also starred in another Etihad ad campaign.

Nearing the halfway mark of the movie year and teetering, as we all are, on the edge of another summer movie abyss which holds only the thinnest promise of providing strong reason to tread amongst the mall-igentsia in search of air-conditioned escape, I find myself feeling far less regret than usual over the movies I’ve missed so far in 2016. Usually by this point I’m bemoaning having had to sideline 20 or 30 interesting pictures because I couldn’t get out to a theater. This year I’ve whiffed on about the same number of movies of interest, but only nine or 10 of those misses have anything like real regret attached to them. It does actively annoy me that I will have to catch up with the likes of Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Cemetery of Splendor, the foodie doc City of Gold, Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special, Ethan Hawke as Chet Baker in Born to Be Blue,...

For a while, Christopher Walken felt like "troubled guys" were the only types of roles he was being offered, and he knows when it began. "In Annie Hall, I played a suicidal guy who drives his car into traffic," he says in his matter-of-fact, stilted, utterly Walkenesque way. "Then in The Deer Hunter, which came immediately afterward, I shot myself in the head. I was playing these disturbed people. That might have been when that started." When asked if that bothered him, he plainly says, "Listen, I'm lucky."

It's a bright spring day in Manhattan,...

Exclusive: Protagonist launches sales on starry Cannes package from Sully writer; Us shoot to get underway next month.

Divergent and Suicide Squad star Jai Courtney is to play alongside two-time Oscar winner Michael Douglas and rising actor Brenton Thwaites (Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales) in intriguing Cannes package The God Four.

Todd Komarnicki (Resistance), writer of upcoming Clint Eastwood-Tom Hanks biopic Sully and producer of Will Ferell comedy Elf, has written and will direct the feature, which is based on Ron Irwin’s novel Flat Water Tuesday.

Courtney will star as Rob Carrey, a documentary filmmaker who, on the eve of his 10-year school reunion, discovers that one member of their championship rowing crew has just committed suicide.

The revelation prompts him to revisit his fateful senior year, a time of rivalry, romance and dangerous secrets.

Wall Street star Douglas will play Carrey’s former coach and Thwaites an Olympic hopeful...

Exclusive: Protagonist launches sales on starry Cannes package from Sully writer; Us shoot to get underway next month.

Divergent and Suicide Squad star Jai Courtney is to play alongside two-time Oscar winner Michael Douglas and rising actor Brenton Thwaites (Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales) in intriguing Cannes package The God Four.

Todd Komarnicki (Resistance), writer of upcoming Clint Eastwood-Tom Hanks biopic Sully and producer of Will Ferell comedy Elf, has written and will direct the feature, which is based on Ron Irwin’s novel Flat Water Tuesday.

Courtney will star as Rob Carrey, a documentary filmmaker who, on the eve of his 10-year school reunion, discovers that one member of their championship rowing crew has just committed suicide.

The revelation prompts him to revisit his fateful senior year, a time of rivalry, romance and dangerous secrets.

Wall Street star Douglas will play Carrey’s former coach and Thwaites an Olympic hopeful...

Strikingly original, a truly rare pleasure in a cinematic environment clogged with cookie-cutter films. Jason Bateman and Nicole Kidman are splendid. I’m “biast” (pro): big Jason Bateman fan

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

I have not read the source material

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Jason Bateman’s second film as director opens with a sequence that is one of the most provocative introductions to a movie I’ve ever seen. I am not going to tell you what it entails, not even in the barest outlines, because watching it unfold and feeling wonderfully bewildered at where it goes is a truly rare pleasure in a cinematic environment clogged with cookie-cutter films. And once it’s over, you’re left with an even more delicious sense of having absolutely no idea what sort of story this is setting up.

I’m so glad...

Black Panther coming for your ticket moneyWhile Captain America v. Iron Man didn't prove to be that much hotter a ringside ticket than Batman v. Superman did in its opening weekend (there's just a 15 million difference or so), the gap will surely widen. The movie's general quality will help it outlive and outperform that earlier embarrassment. One thing the two films do have in common is that the audience excitement appears to be primarily wrapped up in the new characters (Wonder Woman then & Spider-Man/Black Panther now) as opposed to the familiar faces. In related news, Bunny v Fox aka Zootopia overtook Batman v Superman this weekend to become the second highest grossing film of the year thus far.

But real question: who on earth was going to Batman v Superman This weekend of all weekends (it earned another million) with Iron Man vs. Captain America available to them? 

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