Category: Industry News

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Gina Rodriguez and Zachary Levi Join ‘Spy Kids’ Reboot

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Robert Rodriguez is quickly putting together his spy family for his upcoming reboot of the ‘Spy Kids’ franchise.

It was announced this week that Zachary Levi and Gina Rodriguez will lead the movie. They’ll be joined by Everly Carganilla and Connor Esterson.

Rodriguez will write/direct the movie. He’ll also produce it, so his hands are all over it. He’s developing the project alongside Netflix, who he previously worked with on the family film, We Can Be Heroes, which performed pretty well on the streaming giant and got decent reviews from critics.

This latest Spy Kids chapter is set after the children of the world’s greatest secret agents unwittingly help a powerful game developer unleash a computer virus that gives him control of all technology, leading them to become spies themselves to save their parents and the world.

In total, there have been four films in the ‘Spy Kids’ franchise, the last one being released in 2011. Combined, the movies have brought in just over $550 million worldwide at the box office. That’s against a combined budget of just $132 million, so the movie has brought in some dough.

It’s not yet clear when this reboot will hit Netflix or if it will get a theatrical release, but we’ll keep you posted.

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‘Euphoria’ Star Hunter Schafer Has Joined The ‘Hunger Games’ Prequel ‘Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’

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Hunter Schafer shot to stardom, thanks in large part to her role in the hit HBO show ‘Euphoria‘ and she’s using her rise in fame to land feature roles as well.

It was announced this week that the 23-year-old actress has joined the upcoming Hunger Games sequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

She will appear opposite Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler in the studio’s attempt to recapture that old Panem magic. Schafer will play Tigris Snow, the cousin and confidante of Coriolanus Snow (Blyth), who, ‘Hunger Games’ fans know, will one day mature into the autocratic ruler of the dystopian world of the books and films, a leader who has just a dollop of psychopathy to go along with his suave demeanor.

The sequel is expected to hit theaters on November 17, 2023, and it should be a pretty big hit. The ‘Hunger Games’ did huge numbers at the box office, and it was always a pretty big event. At times, it was close to reaching ‘Harry Potter’ level excitement.

This prequel film follows the Snow family, which has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol.

With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, Snow is is assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Zegler), a girl tribute from the impoverished District 12.

Francis Lawrence returned to direct. He directed both ‘Mockingjay‘ movies, as well as ‘Catching Fire‘ which is arguably the best movie in the franchise.

Can’t wait!

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Watch The First Trailer For Lena Dunham-Directed Movie ‘Sharp Stick’

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Lena Dunham, perhaps best known for starring/creating the hit HBO series ‘Girls’, is ready to take another feature directing gig. She made her directorial feature debut back in 2010 with ‘Tiny Furniture‘ which opened a lot of doors for her in Hollywood.

Now she has returned in the upcoming body-positive dark comedy, Sharp Stick.

The film centers on Sarah Jo (Kristine Froseth), a naive 26-year-old living on the fringes of Hollywood with her mother Marilyn (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and sister Treina (Taylour Paige), who longs to be seen. When she begins an affair with her older employer Josh (Jon Bernthal), she is thrust into an education on sexuality, loss and power.

It was a smart move making Jon Bernthal the older employer because girls are in love with this dude.

Sharp Stick is expected to hit theaters in Los Angeles and New York on July 29, before expanding nationwide on August 5.

So far, critics have given the film mixed reviews. While some have praised the flick, others claim Lena’s Sharp Shitck has gotten old.

Check out the trailer below…

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‘Elvis’ Looks To Bring In At Least $30 Million During Opening Weekend

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How much is a 12-minute standing ovation at Cannes worth? Well, around $30 million, according to the most recent box office projections.

Early estimates have the upcoming ‘Elvis‘ biopic bringing in around $30 million during its opening weekend. It will premiere in nearly 4,000 theaters across the country this weekend.

The movie stars Austin Butler as Elvis and Tom Hanks as his infamous manager. The film was shot on a pretty pricey $85 million budget, not accounting for marketing, so they’ll need every bit of this potential $30 million opening.

Another new flick entering theaters this weekend? The Ethan Hawke-starring horror film, The Black Phone, which is receiving solid reviews from critics. Experts say the film could bring in around $15 million this weekend. It was made on an $18 million budget, so a $15 million start would be solid.

One thing to watch this weekend? The potential for ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ to beat both films in its fourth week inside theaters! Projections show the movie making around $30 million this weekend, so if that holds true, it could be another huge victory for the movie, which is quickly closing in on the $1 billion global mark.

Given stellar word-of-mouth, the nostalgia-fueled sequel to 1986’s ‘Top Gun’ has withstood minuscule week-to-week drops and looks to score another $30 million to $33 million between Friday and Sunday. It has grossed $901 million globally, making it the highest-grossing movie of the year in the U.S. and the second-highest worldwide.

It should be a great battle.

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Watch Good Ol’ Winona Ryder In First Trailer For Horror Film ‘Gone in the Night’

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Do you want to take a ride on the Winona Ryder train? Hop in, ’cause we’re headed straight to horror town!

The ‘Stranger Things‘ actress is set to star in the upcoming horror film, Gone in the Night, which was previously titled The Cow.

Vertical will release the film in select theaters on July 15, followed by a VOD release on August 2.

Upon arriving at a remote cabin in the redwoods, Kath (Ryder) and her boyfriend (Gallagher Jr., 38) find a mysterious young couple (Teague, 23, and Tju, 24) already there — the rental has apparently been double-booked. And with nowhere else to go, they decide to share the cabin with these strangers. When her boyfriend disappears with the young woman, Kath becomes obsessed with finding an explanation for their sudden breakup.

Honestly, that sounds like an intriguing premise. Certainly good enough to order up on a boring Saturday night to enjoy over a slice of pizza.

In addition to Ryder, this movie will star John Gallagher Jr., Owen Teague, Dermot Mulroney and Brianne Tju.

Gone in the Night was directed by Eli Horowitz, who also co-wrote the script alongside Matthew Derby. For those who don’t know, Horowitz is the co-creator of the Amazon Prime series, Homecoming.

Check out the trailer for ‘Gone in the Night’ below…

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Sebastian Stan And Renate Reinsve Set To Star In A24 Thriller ‘A Different Man’

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Sebastian Stan is a hot actor in Hollywood currently, thanks in large part to the recent success of the thriller/horror, Fresh, which was released on Hulu back in January of this year. The movie was well-received by critics and the general audience.

He also recently starred in the Hulu limited series, Pam & Tommy, which earned him rave reviews.

And now, he’s taking his skills to A24. It was announced this week that he’s set to star alongside Renate Reinsve in the upcoming psychological thriller, A Different Man.

The film follows Edward, an outcast who is seeking a new life and fresh start. After he undergoes facial reconstructive surgery, he becomes fixated on a man starring as him in a stage production based on his former life.

The movie is being written/directed by Aaron Schimberg, who previously directed the micro budget film, Chained for Life, back in 2018.

Production on ‘A Different Man’ is expected to begin in July, which means a release date in 2023 feels like a safe bet.

As always, we’ll keep you posted.

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Watch Teaser Trailer For ‘Not Okay’ Starring Dylan O’Brien And Zoey Deutch

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Hulu surprised fans this week by dropping the first teaser trailer for Searchlight Pictures’ satire comedy film, Not Okay. The movie star Dylan O’Brien and Zoey Deutch.

It was written/directed by Quinn Shephard, who previously worked as an actress before making her directorial debut in 2017.

‘Not Okay’ follows Danni Sanders (Deutch), an aspiring writer going through a period of arrested development. When Danni decides to fake a trip to Paris in an attempt to gain Instagram clout, she winds up in the middle of a huge lie that casts her as a public hero. Along the way, she meets school shooting survivor and activist Rowan (Mia Isaac, ‘Don’t Make Me Go’) and connects with her dream guy, Colin (O’Brien). Danni also gains a growing audience of followers, but life as an influencer turns out to be more complicated than she may have imagined. 

Sounds a little complicated, but with the potential to be hilarious. Sometimes these satirical films can come across as a little out of touch or corny, but this seems to have a young filmmaking crew behind it, which should help fight against that.

Not Okay is scheduled to premiere exclusively on Hulu on July 29, 2022. Check out the trailer below…

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The Early Reviews For Horror Flick ‘The Black Phone’ Are Pretty Positive

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If you’re a horror fan, chances are you’ve seen the trailer for the Ethan Hawke-starring film, The Black Phone.

The trailer looks pretty damn creepy, and the hype for this movie has been building ever since it was delayed due to COVID-19. Well, the movie is finally hitting theaters this weekend, which means the early reviews are being released this week.

And so far, they’re pretty dang positive. It currently sits at an impressive 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes with nearly 30 reviews counted. It has a 68 on Metacritic, but only eight reviews have been counted.

The Hollywood Reporter’s John DeFore wrote:

The Black Phone expands on a short story in ways that feel very true to the source material while significantly enhancing its theatrical appeal. It was never in doubt that this would be a more commercial outing than the deeply odd (but effective, in its way) 2013 adaptation Horns, but the picture also dovetails nicely with the current vogue for retro-set genre fare, lightly scratching a nostalgic itch.

And Bloody Disgusting’s Meagan Navarro had this to say in her review:

Derrickson and Cargill revive the same traits and structure of Sinister to transform Joe Hill’s short into a feature-length nightmare full of ghostly kids, violence, scares, and a trio of unforgettable performances.

It should be a pretty entertaining and creepy ride. The Black Phone will hit theaters this weekend. Check out the trailer below…

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Uh-Oh! Pixar’s ‘Lightyear’ Film Fails To Make It To The Top Spot At The Box Office

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Talk about a major disappointment. The most recent Pixar film, Lightyear, stumbled at the box office this past weekend. The spinoff story, set in the same universe as ‘Toy Story‘ debuted in over 4,200 theaters across the country but managed to bring in just $51 million.

And while $51 million would be a great opening for some films, it’s not fantastic for Pixar/Disney. The movie reportedly cost $200 million to make, not including marketing.

Experts believed the movie would take in at least $70 million, so the fact that it barely got $50 million is concerning. The movie received lackluster reviews from critics and fans of ‘Toy Story’ didn’t really seem all that excited about it. After all, the trailers didn’t do much to connect the two. They should have leaned more in to the Toy Story angle.

In any event, the movie was beat at the box office by Jurassic World, which brought in a $58 million total in its second weekend at the box office. It suffered a huge 60% decline from its opening weekend, but it was still enough to take the top spot, thanks to Lightyear’s disappointing start.

In third place? Top Gun: Maverick. It had a ridiculous $44 million this past weekend, just a 15% decline from the weekend before. It’s been playing inside theaters for nearly a month now, so these numbers are incredible. It’s made $885 million globally, so it’ll likely cross that billion dollar mark soon.

A huge achievement for everyone who worked on the movie.

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Oscar-Winning Screenwriter Paul Haggis Arrested In Italy For Alleged Sexual Assault

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69-year-old screenwriter Paul Haggis is not having a good time. It was reported this week that Italian authorities have detained the Oscar winner for investigation of allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman in Southern Italy.

The filmmaker was apparently in Italy for a film festival that is set to begin on Tuesday.

The news agency LaPresse and several other Italian media reported on the alleged incident. They quoted a written statement from prosecutors in the nearby city of Brindisi that a ‘young foreign woman’ was forced to have ‘non-consensual’ sexual relations over two days. Prosecutors said the woman was ‘forced to seek medical care’ following the sexual relations.

After Haggis was done with her, he allegedly dropped her off at the local airport.

She subsequently ‘was left there at dawn, despite (her) precarious physical and psychological conditions.’

Apparently, employees at the airport noticed her “confused state” and offered her some initial treatment before she was transported to a hospital for examination.

Haggis has had a long career in Hollywood. He spent more than 20 years writing for various TV shows, before moving into the land of features. He received Academy Awards for Million Dollar Baby and Crash. He also co-wrote the James Bond flick, Casino Royale.

So far, he has not spoken publicly about these allegations. We’ll keep you posted.