Movies

July 16, 2019 10:44AM PT Warner Bros. has put its long-in-development “Akira” adaptation on hold indefinitely, sources tell Variety. Sources indicate that after a brief delay, the studio has pulled the plug on production indefinitely for the classic anime adaptation, which was set to begin later this fall. “Thor: Ragnarok” helmer Taika Waititi was on

Elton John and David Furnish are launching a new gala for the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The two will host the inaugural A Midsummer Party benefit on July 24 in the south of France at the Johnny Pigozzi’s private estate, Villa Dorane, in Cap d’Antibes. A cocktail reception will be followed by dinner, a live

As a comedian whose routines not only lampoon Italian stereotypes but demand larger-than-life performances of those cultural peccadilloes, Sebastian Maniscalco has carefully — if inadvertently — created a niche for himself as an actor. In 2018, in between selling out shows at Radio City Music Hall and Madison Square Garden, he took his first steps

July 16, 2019 10:00AM PT Lionsgate has promoted veteran executive Erin Westerman to the post of president of production of its Motion Picture Group. Motion Picture Group chairman Joe Drake and motion picture group president Nathan Kahane made the announcement Tuesday. The post has been vacant since earlier this year, when it was held as

Developing a rapport with hotel staff members is not uncommon for celebrities, especially those who travel frequently enough because of work or press opportunities to have multiple encounters with folks who carry their luggage, make up their rooms and serve them food. But when comedian Sebastian Maniscalco warmly greets the Four Seasons Los Angeles server

July 16, 2019 9:13AM PT Beyoncé has unveiled the track listing for her “Lion King” companion album on her website… a whole three days ahead of its release. That might be even sooner than expected, given how much Queen Bey likes surprises and somehow managed to keep the entire project under wraps until the week

“Girls Trip” director Malcolm D. Lee is replacing Terence Nance as director of “Space Jam 2,” starring LeBron James, for Warner Bros. and James’ SpringHill Entertainment. The departure of Nance, creator of the HBO show “Random Acts of Flyness,” was due to differing visions between Nance and the producers for “Space Jam 2.” Warner Bros. has set

Brad Pitt space odyssey “Ad Astra,” Noah Baumbach’s untitled new project, “Joker” with Joaquin Phoenix, Tom Harper’s “The Aeronauts,” Fernando Meirelles’ “The Pope,” the new “Rambo” installment, and heist thriller “The Burnt Orange Heresy,” starring Mick Jagger as a reclusive art dealer, all look bound for the Venice Film Festival, sources tell Variety. The fest

Korean cinema giant CGV has signed a deal with Imax to install a further 40 giant screens in movie theaters in China. The deal suggests that China’s multiplex building boom still has some way to run, and that at least one Korean company is still willing to invest in China, despite China’s currently boycott of

BAFTA has undertaken a major renovation of its London headquarters that will double the building’s capacity and increase space devoted to the British academy’s programs to promote skills training and new talent. Work has already begun on the $31 million overhaul, which is expected to take two years. In the interim, BAFTA will relocate its

Eros International, India’s largest and most controversial film distributor, says that its digital revenues now outstrip conventional theatrical and syndication revenues. Its Eros Now streaming platform claims 18.8 million paying subscribers. The New York-listed company reported annual results that were distorted by multiple adjustments to presentation. Reported revenues in the year to end of March

Still reeling from the cancellation of the theatrical release of its blockbuster “The Eight Hundred,” production studio Huayi Brothers has been hit with another setback: Its comedy “The Last Wish” has also been quietly pulled from China’s summer lineup. Both films have fallen afoul of China’s increasingly heavy-handed censors. The unwelcome development comes as Huayi

July 16, 2019 12:00AM PT “The Personal History of David Copperfield,” with Dev Patel as the titular character, will open the BFI London Film Festival on Oct. 2. The new take on Charles Dickens’ classic tale comes from Armando Iannucci and stars Tilda Swinton, Hugh Laurie, Peter Capaldi, Ben Whishaw, Paul Whitehouse and Gwendoline Christie,

China’s internet is thrilled by news that Marvel appears to be insisting on casting an ethnic Chinese actor as Shang-Chi in the master of kung fu’s own spinoff film and has begun scouting out candidates for the role. Variety reporter Justin Kroll tweeted Sunday that Marvel is apparently “putting out test offers for a group

In today’s film news roundup, Sean Astin gets two roles, two “Peanuts” movies are set for release, “One Last Night” gets distribution and Brian De Palma gets honored. CASTINGS Sean Astin has been cast in a pair of upcoming feature films: “Mayfield’s Game” opposite Mira Sorvino and “Charming The Hearts of Men” opposite Kelsey Grammer. Astin

July 15, 2019 5:58PM PT ArcLight Hollywood is celebrating the release of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood” with a three-day tribute from July 19-21 showing all the director’s previous films. Ahead of the nationwide release on July 26, Tarantino fans can also catch 70mm advance screenings of “Once Upon a Time” on

In the “Fast & Furious Presents Hobbs & Shaw,” the movie’s villain Brixton, played by Idris Elba, spreads his arms out wide and declares “I’m black Superman.” It turns out that might not have been the original line. Dwayne Johnson tells Variety that Elba was first asked to proclaim he’s “black James Bond,” but the

July 15, 2019 5:21PM PT “Jane the Virgin” Star Justin Baldoni is adapting Colleen Hoover’s romance novel “It Ends With Us” for film through his Wayfarer Entertainment company. Baldoni announced Monday that he had optioned the project on his Instagram account. “It Ends With Us” first published in 2016 and follows a young woman through

Lakeith Stanfield is set to star in a feature film adaptation of American-Nigerian chef Kwame Onwuachi’s memoir, “Notes From a Young Black Chef,” with A24 on board to finance the film. Randy McKinnon will adapt the script from the memoir, which was penned by Onwuachi and Joshua David Stein. Knopf recently acquired the publishing rights

July 15, 2019 12:00PM PT Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach have signed on to co-write Warner Bros.’ “Barbie” movie, with Margot Robbie set to portray the iconic doll. Gerwig is also being eyed to direct, though no deal has yet closed. The studio had an eye on the duo to co-write the film since Warner

July 15, 2019 11:17AM PT The Jennifer Lopez–Owen Wilson romantic comedy “Marry Me” has moved from STX back to its original home, Universal Pictures. STX previously took over the project in April. Kat Coiro is directing from a script written by John Rogers and Tami Sagher, with a rewrite by Harper Dill. Colombian singer/rapper Maluma

Elizabeth Gabler is joining Sony Pictures Entertainment in an innovative media deal that will see the veteran executive produce film and TV content based on HarperCollins books. Gabler was the longtime steward of Fox 2000, which was shuttered after the Walt Disney Company acquired much of 21st Century Fox in March. She will bring her

July 15, 2019 9:04AM PT Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic has found its king of rock ‘n’ roll. After numerous screen tests, Austin Butler has been tapped to play Elvis Presley in Luhrmann’s next feature film for Warner Bros. The studio tested with a handful of actors in full hair and make-up at the end

July 15, 2019 9:00AM PT [embedded content] Disney is promising plenty of sword-fighting, gunplay and devastation in its first teaser trailer for the Fox spy comedy prequel “The King’s Man.” The studio unveiled a first look Monday that sets the stage for an origin story of the private British  intelligence service, portrayed in the two previous

July 15, 2019 8:21AM PT “La La Land” director Damien Chazelle is heading back to Hollywood for his next feature film “Babylon,” and Emma Stone is in early talks to star. Sources say Chazelle has met with a handful of suitors over the past couple weeks, and Paramount and Lionsgate are both vying to land

Jennifer Lopez and Antonion Banderas are among this year’s Imagen Awards nominees, which span a range of categories including informational programming, on-air advertising, outstanding individual performances and prime time programming in film and television. The Imagen awards were first established in 1985 upon recommendation from TV veteran Normal Lear in an effort to recognize more

Beijing-based Enlight Media, one of China’s most prominent production companies, said Monday it expects a steep decrease in net profits of up to 96% in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2018 — an indicator of the deep turmoil in the Chinese industry, which has been hit by regulatory

Long-awaited martial-arts film “The Hidden Sword” announced Monday that its theatrical release this Friday in China has been canceled because of “market reasons,” becoming the latest casualty of a censorship campaign that is damaging the country’s box office. The film is helmed by writer-director Xu Haofeng (“The Final Master”), who was also the screenwriter for

July 15, 2019 6:23AM PT “Spider-Man: Far From Home” remained on top of the South Korean box office in its second weekend. The Sony release earned $9.8 million from 1.3 million admissions between Friday and Sunday for a total of $49.0 million from 6.69 million admissions after two weekends. The Marvel superhero movie accounted for

A24’s “The Farewell” lit up the specialty box office with a stellar limited debut, making its performance the one bright spot in an otherwise lackluster weekend for the movie business. “This is the blockbuster of the indie world this weekend,” said Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at Comscore. The studio opted for a platform