Movies

In today’s film news roundup, Angie Thomas’ “On the Come Up” gets a new home, Luc Besson’s “Anna” gets a release date and Roy Lee and Jon Berg announce a Vertigo promotion.  PARAMOUNT PURCHASE Paramount has bought the movie rights to Angie Thomas’ bestseller “On the Come Up” from the now-shuttered Fox 2000 division. It’s

April 10, 2019 5:05PM PT Topher Grace is joining Steve Carell, Rose Byrne, Chris Cooper, and Mackenzie Davis in the Jon Stewart’s comedy movie “Irresistible.” Carell is portraying a Democratic political consultant who helps a retired ex-Marine colonel, played by Cooper, run for mayor in a small Wisconsin town. Byrne will play Carell’s Republican counterpart

It may be stretching things to say that Hellboy was the role Ron Perlman was born to play, but in Guillermo del Toro’s stylish and sturdy “Hellboy” (2004) and its spectacular eye-candy sequel, “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (2008), there’s no doubt that Perlman connected with the character in an uncanny way. Part of it

While several books have explored the fertile 1990s indie rock scene, precious few documentaries truly capture the period’s excitement. “Brainiac: Transmissions After Zero,” which premiered at SXSW and which will have its New York premiere Friday, offers a notable peek into the era via the lens of this arty Dayton, Ohio-based band that reached the

Netflix is close to signing a deal to purchase the historic Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood from the American Cinematheque, but that doesn’t mean the streamer will be using the movie palace to run theatrical releases of its films to qualify for Oscars. At least not in the near future. Variety has learned that Netflix’s primary

April 10, 2019 2:43PM PT British actress Bel Powley has signed on to play the female lead in Pete Davidson’s untitled comedy from director Judd Apatow. Universal has given the project a prime summer release date of June 19, 2020. The film, described as “semi-autobigraphical,” is written by Apatow, Davidson, and Dave Sirus. Davidson, who

Entertainment law powerhouse Michael Gendler touched on a range of topics during a keynote conversation at Variety’s Power of Law breakfast presented by City National Bank held at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel on Wednesday, including the ongoing dispute between the Writers Guild and the major talent agencies. Speaking with Variety‘s co-editor-in-chief Claudia Eller, Gendler said he

It’s about to get crowded at multiplexes. That’s because four movies — Lionsgate’s “Hellboy” remake, Universal’s comedy “Little,” Laika’s stop-motion animation “Missing Link” and Aviron’s romantic drama “After” — are all opening nationwide. The quartet of films joins an already packed box office marquee that includes last week’s champ “Shazam!” and Paramount’s horror pic “Pet

Following an acclaimed and emotional premiere at January’s Sundance Film Festival, a documentary about the life and work of late actor Anton Yelchin will hit U.S. theaters this summer. Lurker Productions will self-distribute the movie, “Love, Antosha,” beginning with New York and Los Angeles in early August, with Michael Tuckman’s mTuckman Media booking theaters. The

April 10, 2019 11:40AM PT Universal Studios Hollywood has announced that it will open a theme park ride based on “The Secret Life of Pets” next year. The news about the upcoming ride, titled “The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash!,” came on Wednesday, two months before the sequel opens on June 7. It

April 10, 2019 10:51AM PT David Harbour understands if movie-goers don’t realize he’s the star of the new “Hellboy.” “I was kind of stunned. It’s quite a transformation. I didn’t even recognize myself,” the “Stranger Things” star recalls about seeing himself for the first time as the half-demon superhero. “And as the process went on

Billy Crystal turned 70 years old in March, but don’t think that means the actor-writer-director-comedian is slowing down. “I remember when they asked George Burns if he would ever retire. He said, ‘To what? What would I do?’” Crystal says with a laugh. “That’s how I feel.” Far from retiring, Crystal is “busier than I’ve

Long before America’s childhood bullying epidemic made headlines, Hollywood had taken the issue to heart, making it a standard ingredient of YA films to condemn the mistreatment of misfits by mean girls, jocks, rich kids, and cool cliques. But the movies have largely ignored the reverse phenomenon, in which those who once identified as outcasts

Women in the World and the IFC Center are teaming up to create a new kind of film festival that will be dedicated to highlighting female artists and their work. Dubbed 51Fest, the event will take place from July 18-21 in New York City at the IFC Center and the SVA Theatre. The festival’s name

After its 1989 release, “When Harry Met Sally …” set the bar for all future romantic comedies. It turns 30 this year and yet the film still feels so relevant. But that’s the hallmark of a classic film. Director Rob Reiner can’t quite believe it. “It’s ridiculous, isn’t it? ‘Spinal Tap’ is turning 35,” he

Fan Bingbing is going back before the camera in Jessica Chastain’s “355,” the highly anticipated action film that cast the Chinese superstar just a few months before a tax-evasion scandal brought her career to a screeching halt. Sources confirmed to Variety that “355” is set to begin shooting this year with its previously announced stars

Ryan Murphy continues to be one of the busiest people in the industry. Not only did he just announce he will be adapting the Broadway musical “The Prom” as a movie for Netflix, but he also told Variety that he’s holding fundraisers for presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg. “I’m having a benefit for

Jodie Foster already has more than 90 combined acting and directing credits to her name, and she’s not slowing down anytime soon. At Tuesday’s premiere of the upcoming documentary “Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blache,” Foster discussed her current ambitions as a budding director, as well as her long term goals to evolve

Disney returns to Pride Lands in the first official trailer for Jon Favreau’s remake of “The Lion King.” The new clip, featuring dazzlingly realistic footage of the African savannah filled with giraffes, antelopes, and zebras, begins with a young Simba getting some advice from his wicked uncle Scar. “Life’s not fair is it, my little

Sagging performance by local films and a modest Chinese New Year haul left the Chinese box office down 8% in the first quarter of this year. Gross box office in the three months from January to March 2019 totaled RMB18.6 billion ($2.77 billion), according to data from specialty consultancy Artisan Gateway. That compares with revenue

Leeding Media, a company which straddles the U.S. and Chinese film industries, has set up a development deal with prominent Hollywood independent producer Revolution Studios. The agreement follows renewal of most of Leeding’s portfolio of movie rights for China. “This is a very flexible deal that see the two companies jointly develop film and television

April 10, 2019 3:16AM PT India’s Election Commission has halted the theatrical release of “PM Narendra Modi” and two other biographical films on the grounds that they potentially distort the electoral level playing field. They cannot be shown in India until after the polls close on May 19. The decision comes just one day before

Last June, the Berlin Film Festival made a double departure from tradition. With longtime chief Dieter Kosslick slated to step down this year, it decided to split the top job in two after his exit: an artistic director responsible for curation and an executive director to run the commercial side. Then it picked Mariette Rissenbeek

April 9, 2019 8:23PM PT UPDATED: President Trump’s latest 2020 campaign video was removed from Twitter Tuesday night after Warner Brothers Pictures requested it be taken down due to the use of music from “The Dark Knight Rises’” score in the clip. “The use of Warner Bros.’ score from ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ in the

April 9, 2019 7:17PM PT Leaders of the Writers Guild and Hollywood agents have concluded their third meeting in four days with discussion of the key issues of packaging fees and ownership of production companies. Tuesday afternoon’s session at the WGA West headquarters in Los Angeles lasted several hours, with small groups representing both sides.

Singer-songwriter Camila Cabello will star in writer-director Kay Cannon’s re-telling of “Cinderella” for Sony Pictures. Cabello will be involved in the music for the project, which grew out of an original idea from James Corden. The film will be produced by Corden and Leo Pearlman through their Fulwell73 banner. The new “Cinderella” will be a

April 9, 2019 4:27PM PT UPDATED: Netflix has delayed the Felicity Huffman comedy “Otherhood” after the actress agreed to plead guilty for her role in the college admissions bribery scandal. Netflix has moved the film’s release to Aug. 2 from April 26. Huffman co-stars with Patricia Arquette and Angela Bassett in a trio of suburban mothers

MGM has signed a two-year, first-look deal with George Clooney and Grant Heslov’s Smokehouse Pictures. Jonathan Glickman, president of MGM’s Motion Picture Group, announced the deal on Tuesday. The first film under the new deal will center on motoring engineer and designer John DeLorean, with Clooney set to direct the movie with the possibility of

April 9, 2019 1:00PM PT Universal Pictures is getting in on the Valentine’s Day spirit, releasing Issa Rae and LaKeith Stanfield’s romantic drama “The Photograph” on Feb. 14, 2020. Stella Meghie will direct from her own script and Will Packer will produce for his eponymous production company. “The Photograph” centers on intertwining love stories in

April 9, 2019 12:20PM PT Universal Pictures has picked up rights to the historical drama “The News of the World” with Tom Hanks attached to star. The project, based on the best-selling novel by Paulette Jiles set in the days following the Civil War, was previously in development at Fox 2000. Disney decided to retire