Lee Sun-kyun, star of Oscar-winning Korean film “Parasite,” is being investigated by police over his alleged drug use, Korean news media report. “Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency had begun an investigation into eight people, including the actor and the offspring of a chaebol [major family-controlled conglomerate], over allegations they took illegal drugs multiple times this year,”
Movies
In a bid to bypass traditional distribution channels and open up new ones, Madrid-based 59 En Conserva has launched a newly expanded Les Films de la Résistance, its international sales agency for non-fiction and hybrid Spanish films. Among the first titles in its roster is the critically acclaimed feature debut of 59 En Conserva co-founder
Annecy Animation Film Festival, which hosted the world premiered of Disney’s “Once Upon a Studio” and welcomed more than 16,000 people during its latest edition, is expanding its scope with a sprawling €26 million ($27.5 million) international institute dedicated to the world of animation. Called the Cité Internationale du Cinema d’Animation, the venue is expected to
Can Artificial Intelligence help better restore and preserve heritage cinema? That was the question asked to a high-level panel on Thursday at the Classic Film Market, which runs alongside Lyon’s Lumière Film Festival, dedicated to heritage film. Struggling to override the clatter of the heavy downpour hitting the ceiling of the tent set up next
Tonya Mantooth, CEO and artistic director of the San Diego International Film Festival, is keenly aware that film is a uniquely immersive medium with the power to connect people — even strangers. And that power will be evident at SDIFF’s 22nd edition, which will run in person Oct.18-22, with screenings at various venues in the San
In news that is sure to move waves in Spain, Portugal and beyond, former Netflix exec Juan Mayne, a name inextricably linked to the build of Spain as a global film-TV power, has been appointed as SkyShowtime regional content director for Iberia, encompassing Spain and Portugal. The move creates an effective new streaming door to
Rachel Zegler‘s vocals ring through “The Hanging Tree,” the first song to be released as part of the upcoming “Hunger Games” prequel “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” The orchestral title, out today via Geffen Records, first appeared as the second single from the soundtrack for “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1” in 2014. Jennifer
George Clooney, Ben Affleck, Scarlett Johansson and a group of other A-listers gave a proposal to SAG-AFTRA leadership on Tuesday, which they hoped would help end the 98-day actors strike. But the proposal was rejected on Wednesday by the union’s negotiating committee, which is sticking to the demands it has spelled out over many weeks
A powerful agent to A-list celebrity clients like Tom Cruise and Madonna is under fire at her company, Creative Artists Agency, and in the larger Hollywood community over controversial Instagram posts regarding Israel. On Wednesday evening, CAA‘s star-whisperer Maha Dakhil reposted a statement from an account labeled Free Palestine, which weighed in on Israel’s response
“Old Dads,” a Netflix comedy about three middle-aged dads in Los Angeles, each trying to deal with the delayed pleasures and perils of fatherhood, sounds like a Hollywood satire to watch along with “Bad Moms,” or maybe the sort of broad burlesque of child-rearing that would star someone like John Cena. Actually, though, it’s not
You can smell what’s happening in “Starve Acre” before you puzzle the rest of it out. The grassy, peaty dampness of its rural Yorkshire setting seems to hit the olfactory glands without any scratch-and-sniff assistance, only intensifying as the film unearths its literally deep-buried secrets. Daniel Kokotajlo‘s impressive second feature unfolds in a vein of
“This Time,” a romantic drama reminiscent of Richard Linklater’s “Before Sunrise” trilogy, but not officially based on it, has been picked up for global distribution by fast-moving sales company EST N8. The story follows two high school sweethearts who unexpectedly reunite in Los Angeles 23 years after they were separated in Jakarta and must decide
Amanda Nell Eu, director of breakout film “Tiger Stripes,” has disowned the censored version of the movie that launched in her native Malaysia on Thursday. “I do not stand behind the cut that will be shown in local cinemas […] the film that will be shown in local cinemas is not the film that we
For Eva Longoria to have the chance to direct “Flamin’ Hot,” she says she had to “overcome the stigma of being a dumb actor.” “I’m more than the actor you know from TV,” she tells Variety‘s Awards Circuit Podcast. “I’ve been directing for 12 years. I started with short films. I directed episodic TV, half-hours,
Taylor Swift‘s concert movie blockbuster “The Eras Tour” got a shout out from none other than Christopher Nolan during a recent City University of New York event in which the director and his producer and wife Emma Thomas were interviewed by author Kai Bird. It was Bird’s book “American Prometheus” that Nolan adapted into “Oppenheimer,”
“Black Adam” filmmaker Jaume Collet-Serra has been hired by Amazon Studios to direct a movie starring Emily Blunt as pioneering female detective Kate Warne. Melissa Stack wrote the screenplay from a previous draft by Gustin Nash. The untitled film, described as a “propulsive action thriller,” centers around a real-life Sherlock Holmes-esque character. Kate Warne was
The best way to scare the studios this Halloween? Avoid dressing up as characters from struck series and movies. As striking actors enter spooky season, SAG-AFTRA released guidelines for members looking to “celebrate Halloween this year while also staying in solidarity” with the strike. That means union members can hang up their “Oppenheimer” porkpie hats
Ava DuVernay‘s latest drama “Origin” has added an original song to its Oscar prospects. New Zealand Māori artist Stan Walker performed the new song, “I Am,” at a private film screening at the Edition Hotel in West Hollywood on Wednesday. He also co-wrote the track with Michael Fatkin, Vince Harder and Te Kanapu Anasta. The
Back in 2019, “Iron Man 3” production executive Chris Fenton filed an explosive lawsuit against former employer DMG Entertainment, a once-highflying company that bridged Hollywood movies and Chinese distribution. After a legal back and forth that included a DMG countersuit that was later tossed, Fenton’s case is finally headed to trial next week and is
The road to the Oscars is looking bleaker than before. With the WGA securing its deal with the studios earlier this month, the industry was caught off guard when the AMPTP announced it was suspending negotiations with SAG-AFTRA, which has been on strike since July. There’s no end in sight, but one thing is apparent:
A group of A-list actors led by George Clooney presented a proposal to SAG-AFTRA leadership during a Tuesday afternoon Zoom call in an effort to find a way to resolve the three-month-long actors strike with the studios. But the proposal is likely dead on arrival. Sources with knowledge of the situation say the group of
They say the book is always better than the movie, but the real money is on the screen. So for decades, Hollywood has mined the written word — from Shakespeare to Hemingway to Fitzgerald all the way to the eight films based on “Harry Potter.” The industry needs reliable IP more desperately than ever, and
Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon,” an epic look at the French emperor and military leader’s rise to power, is one of the final potential awards hopefuls awaiting its first reactions from critics and pundits. As awards season approaches, Variety has learned exclusively which Oscar categories the film will be submitted for. Most notably, Vanessa Kirby will vie
The Sundance Institute has added four new additions to the Board of Trustees. Tessa Thompson, Pete Nicks, Nina Fialkow, and Kimberly Steward will help steer the organization and act in an advisory capacity. The new trustees will work closely with board chair Ebs Burnough and CEO Joana Vicente. “As Sundance Institute continues to respond to
How does one create a film festival during an actors strike? Middleburg Film Festival executive director Susan Koch explains she’s approached programming the Virginia fest in the same manner as she has always done. “We looked for the strongest films and a wide range of films that represent diverse voices and ones we feel will
Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer for Una Gunjak’s debut feature “Excursion,” which is Bosnia and Herzegovina’s entry for the Oscars’ international feature film category. Salaud Morisset is handling international sales. HBO Europe has just picked up the SVOD and pay TV rights to the movie in 15 countries in Central and
Inter Medya is launching sales on the brutal revenge saga “Sayara,” directed by Turkish horror genre specialist Can Evrenol, whose film “Baskin” premiered in TIFF’s Midnight Madness section. The Istanbul-based sales company has dropped a teaser for “Sayara,” which is being packaged as both a four-episode miniseries and a dark 90-minute horror thriller. Variety has
“Kingsman” and “X-Men: First Class” director Matthew Vaughn appeared on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast and was surprisingly open when asked about his relationship to a handful of major Hollywood franchises, from James Bond to “Star Wars” and the DC Universe. As a whole, he said the major Hollywood studios have been suffering by prioritizing
Kino Lorber has hired Rebecca Winter to be its vice president of partnerships and platform management. In her new role, Winter will oversee strategic distribution partnerships and new business development across all Kino Lorber brands and streaming services, including MHz Choice and Topic. She will develop and expand partnerships and manage existing relationships. In addition,
Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival has now been postponed indefinitely due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. The festival was previously rescheduled to Oct. 27- Nov. 2 from its original dates of Oct. 13- 20. Organizers announced on Thursday that the fest had been postponed and a new date has not been set.