Month: January 2020

The streaming wars are set to unleash a river of cash. With major media companies entering the market, American consumer spending on subscription-video services will increase 29% in 2020, hitting an estimated $24.1 billion, according to the Consumer Technology Association’s sales and forecast study for the year. The anticipated jump comes as streaming video providers
0 Comments
In a box office achievement fit for royalty, Disney’s “Frozen 2” is officially the highest-grossing animated movie in history. The sequel has generated $1.325 billion at the global box office, pushing past “Frozen” ($1.281 million) and “Incredibles 2” ($1.243 million) to secure the top spot. Though Jon Favreau’s remake of “The Lion King” is entirely
0 Comments
Golden Globe nominee Patricia Arquette is wondering whether Ricky Gervais has apologized yet for some of his recent tweets that have been deemed transphobic. “I think it’s a really important conversation for everybody to have. Obviously, I have very strong feelings about protecting the trans community,” Arquette told Variety‘s Marc Malkin on the red carpet
0 Comments
Happy Golden Globes weekend! Variety reporters and editors have been dispatched throughout Los Angeles to let you know what’s been happening before the HFPA hands out its trophies on Sunday. Keep checking back today and tomorrow to find out who was doing what where and with whom. W MagazineChateau Marmont, West HollywoodThe fashion magazine held
0 Comments
January 3, 2020 11:37PM PT Two hitherto-heterosexual men’s relationship roils their families in an enjoyable if glib ensemble comedy. The news that two hitherto heterosexual patriarchs are getting married — to each other — roils both of their families in amiable “An Almost Ordinary Summer.” This slickly produced second feature for director Simone Godano is
0 Comments
Producer Arthur Cohn was first mentioned in Variety on Feb. 20, 1962, when the documentary he produced, “Sky Above, Mud Beneath,” was nominated for an Oscar. The doc, “Le Ciel et la boue,” directed by Pierre-Dominique Gaisseau, underwent a few title changes over the years, and ended up winning the prize for 1961. Cohn has
0 Comments
William Sadleir, the founder and chairman of indie distributor Aviron Pictures, has been ousted by the fledgling company’s financier, two insiders familiar with his exit told Variety. It’s unclear what circumstances Sadleir left under, both sources said. He was removed under a contractual provision given to the shop’s senior lender, reported to be asset management
0 Comments
What would you do if a heat-and-serve lasagna arrived at your door along with a screener for a short film? The people who sent it hope you’ll pop the lasagna in the oven and watch the screener as it bakes. That memorable mailer was just one facet of Rogers & Cowan’s innovative “for your consideration”
0 Comments
To prepare for a role, Margot Robbie tells Variety for this week’s cover story, she dives deep into research. In the case of her “Bombshell” character, Kayla Pospisil — a fictional composite created by screenwriter Charles Randolph — Robbie worked on Kayla’s Florida accent, studied the Fox News programs she would have watched, and created
0 Comments
From the moment I learned that “Honey Boy” explored a complex father-child relationship — how pain and abuse can transcend generations — I knew that interviewing Shia LaBeouf, one of Variety’s 10 Screenwriters to Watch, would be an emotional experience for me. I just never expected for it to change me. As someone who’s exhaustively dissected
0 Comments
Greta Gerwig’s screenwriting style starts in the middle and fans out. “I don’t write in a straight line,” admits the “Little Women” writer-director. “It’s like a quilt I try to stitch together.” But one piece was more important than the others: the opening scene. “Getting the opening just right was so important,” says Gerwig. “When
0 Comments