November 21, 2018 12:20PM PT Sony Pictures is staking out two significant dates in 2020 for their piece of the Marvel pie, the Spider-Man universe. An untitled Sony–Marvel project will hit theaters on July 10, 2020, with an untitled Sony-Marvel sequel following on Oct. 2. While no specifics were provided in the studio’s announcement, the
Movies
Seriousness is so overrated. In an apparent bid for gravitas, the year’s box-office busting, critic-charming musical, “A Star Is Born,” opted to compete in the Golden Globes drama category. That choice might have triggered a sense of inferiority in the jolly musical or comedy gang — but, no! The musical or comedy category is often
“Ralph Breaks the Internet” and “Creed II” are poised to become big holiday hits after earning an impressive $3.8 million and $3.7 million, respectively, from Tuesday previews. The two sequels are expected to dominate the box office during a busy Thanksgiving period and to make quick work of the week’s other wide release, “Robin Hood.”
AMSTERDAM — At 53, Alex Winter has worn many hats in the entertainment industry, moving from the stage to screen and then finally behind the camera, helming indie oddities such as “Freaked” in 1993 and “Fever” in 1999. Latterly, however, he has proven himself a capable hand with non-fiction, and he arrived at IDFA with
Chinese director Feng Xiaogang is busy bolstering his patriotic credentials, revealing that his next film will be about Communist Party history even as he aggressively seeks to douse rumors that authorities plan to fine him 2 billion yuan ($288 million) for tax evasion. His next venture will be a movie about the 70th anniversary of
Before they appeared on the cover of “Sports Illustrated,” before the TV appearances and red-carpet galas and the surprise home makeover from Tyler Perry, the Sheppard sisters were living in a homeless shelter in Brooklyn with their single mother. How they overcame adversity and raced their way into the limelight is the subject of “Sisters
In the opening shot of “The Border Fence,” the camera straddles the invisible line between Austria and Italy, watching without comment as a man blithely walks from one country to the other. This is as it should be in modern Europe, where a heavy influx of refugees and migrants from countries devastated by war and
November 21, 2018 12:04AM PT Sony Pictures has succeeded in getting theatrical slots in mainland China for two of its key movies. Both will launch in the peak month of December. Family action-adventure film “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” will be released on Dec. 21 in Chinese theaters. Before that, Screen Gems’ critically acclaimed and sleeper hit
November 20, 2018 8:21PM PT In this week’s edition of the Variety Movie Commercial Tracker, powered by the TV advertising attention analytics company iSpot.tv, Lionsgate claims the top spot in spending with “Robin Hood.” Ads placed for the action-adventure remake had an estimated media value of $7.88 million through Sunday for 1,037 national ad airings
In today’s film news roundup, “Green Book” gets a festival honor, the Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild names lifetime achievement winners, and indies “Tyger Tyger” and “Sons of the Cross” are heading into production. HONORS The Palm Springs International Film Festival will present the drama “Green Book” with the Vanguard Award at its annual
Musician and actor Jay Chou is joining Vin Diesel in the fourth “xXx” movie, with D.J. Caruso directing for the H Collective. Diesel is reprising his role as Xander Cage — an extreme sports enthusiast and reluctant spy for the National Security Agency. Joe Roth and Jeff Kirschenbaum will produce with Diesel, Samantha Vincent for One
The controversy over Viggo Mortensen’s use of the N-word during a recent Q&A for his movie “Green Book” appears to be over, but can he and the film recover enough to emerge as a genuine awards contender? In the immediate days following the incident, glowing profiles in the likes of USA Today (“Finally, an Oscar for
November 20, 2018 3:36PM PT [embedded content] Lunacy prevails in the new trailer for “The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part,” with Chris Pratt returning to voice Master Builder Emmet Brickowski along with new character Rex Dangervest. The footage show the unfailingly optimistic Emmet searching the galaxy for Lucy — aka Wyldstyle — (voiced by
November 20, 2018 2:22PM PT It looks like David Chase and New Line have found their first star for the “Sopranos” feature film. Sources tell Variety that Alessandro Nivola is in negotiations to star as Dickey Moltisanti in “The Many Saints of Newark,” the prequel movie to the critically acclaimed and massively successful HBO TV
November 20, 2018 1:23PM PT First-day advance ticket sales of “Aquaman” by online ticket service Fandango have eclipsed “Venom” and “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” in their first days of pre-sales. Sony’s “Venom” overperformed in its North American launch with $80.3 million during the Oct. 5-7 weekend. Paramount’s “Mission: Impossible — Fallout” took in $61.2 million
Despite accusations of voter suppression and calls for a boycott from Judd Apatow and other top Hollywood figures, the film and television industry is unlikely to pull out of Georgia. Films such as “Venom” and shows such as “The Walking Dead” have been flocking to the Peach State for years, drawn by its generous tax
From the soft-spoken methodical meter KiKi Layne’s Tish Rivers uses to narrate the history of social and criminal injustices that have ruined the lives of black men and their families in writer-director Barry Jenkins’ “If Beale Street Could Talk” to Carey Mulligan’s Jeanette Brinson, a curt and frustrated midcentury housewife who flaunts her extramarital affair
November 20, 2018 12:12PM PT Van Toffler’s Gunpowder & Sky has taken the worldwide distribution rights to Alexandra Cuerdo’s documentary “Ulam: Main Dish.” The festival player, a celebration and account of the Filipino food movement rising on the U.S. culinary scene, will begin a limited theatrical release on Dec. 1 before hitting numerous streaming video
November 20, 2018 12:09PM PT Quentin Tarantino’s New Beverly Cinema, which was closed in January for remodeling, is re-opening on Dec. 1 with a matinee showing of “Batman Returns.” The New Beverly will then offer a double feature that day of “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “Butch and Sundance: The Early Days.” There
Imagine being asked to record an audition to play rock ’n’ roll legend Freddie Mercury in a movie, but your tryout is specifically for the members of Queen, Mercury’s former bandmates. That was the awkward position Rami Malek was put in before he starred in the Mercury biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody.” “We ended up watching it
Martin Scorsese may be a living legend, but he’s never pretended to be anything other than human. Countless actors and directors paid tribute to him on Monday night at the Museum of Modern Art’s annual Film Benefit — and shared frank, funny stories from their own experiences with the famous director. Emily Mortimer vividly recalls
A boxing heavyweight champion and an outlaw with a bow and arrow will be no match for a video game baddie and his trusty sidekick as “Ralph Breaks the Internet” looks to dominate a busy Thanksgiving weekend at the domestic box office. Disney’s animated sequel is expected to earn between $67 million and $77 million over
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
Somebody (I think it was my hero Francis Coppola) said the movies that most affect us, the moments that changed us, live on the other side of the moon while we live our lives. Al Pacino kissing Fredo on the lips. Bob De Niro asking a mirror if it’s talking to him. James Dean discovering
November 20, 2018 6:30AM PT Nicole Kidman has been labeled many things over the years. Statuesque beauty. Screen siren. Old-fashioned movie star. But these terms reveal a fragment of her rich reality, and obscure what makes her such an extraordinary, peculiar and genuine artist. Having had the opportunity to work with Nicole, I can say
If you’re a purist about Robin Hood, then you probably won’t go for “Robin Hood.” It’s a let’s-retrofit-the-legend-for-the-kids movie, and it’s not shy about its fast and furious action-and-attitude makeover tendencies. The battle scenes, fought with bows and arrows, really are battles, in which the arrows land with the force of bullets, destroying on contact.
If you don’t like sharing a meal, stay away from Nicole Kidman. “She’s the kind of person, when you’re at dinner with her, she goes, ‘What’s that?! And she’ll have a few mouthfuls,’” says her friend Hugh Jackman, recalling how she was once very eager to try his tiramisu. Then there was the time he and Kidman
Everyone loves a good Hollywood feud, even if it’s not exactly real. Hugh Jackman took the opportunity at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, where he was being honored, to take a shot at John Krasinski and Ryan Reynolds, who ganged up on him on social media over the weekend after a photo of Jackman
In today’s film news roundup, Jon M. Chu is honored by union publicists, Melissa McCarthy is honored by the Palm Springs Film Festival and the film “Ali’s Realm” gets a cast. PUBLICISTS HONOR Hollywood publicists have selected “Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon M. Chu as recipient of the Motion Picture Showman of the Year Award.
Amazon is offering its Amazon Prime members an exclusive early showing of Warner Bros.’ “Aquaman” on Dec. 15 — six days before the fantasy-adventure film opens in North America. Amazon launched the promotion Monday under which Prime members can purchase up to 10 tickets through Atom Tickets for the showing at more than 1,000 Regal,