Movies

Acclaimed film and theatre director Julie Taymor paid tribute to legendary Japanese filmmaker Kurosawa Akira in Tokyo on Tuesday, crediting his influence on her deciding to enter the film industry and contributing to her multi-cultural world view. “I go back to when I saw my first ‘foreign film’ in Paris, when I was 15 years

The first woman to testify in Harvey Weinstein’s Los Angeles trial broke down in tears, crying and breathing uncontrollably as she faced the jury Monday to detail her sexual assault allegations against the former Hollywood producer and already-convicted rapist. The witness, known as Jane Doe #1, was the first to be called by the prosecution.

A month from now, Martin Scorsese will turn 80, and the fact that he goes back that far has always given him a special angle on the rock ‘n’ roll world. From the start, he has been about looking at rock and watching it age — first in “Mean Streets,” where part of the hypnotic

Harvey Weinstein’s defense told the jury that there is absolutely no evidence against their client and that every woman who will testify in his trial is an actress who will be playing a role on the stand — all to fit the narrative of #MeToo, which they characterized as an “asteroid” of a movement that

Will Smith’s comeback got a boost from the likes of Rihanna and Dave Chappelle, who were just two of several high profile guests in attendance at a recent screening of “Emancipation.” The Antoine Fuqua-directed slavery drama marks Smith’s first movie release since the 2022 Oscars, where he slapped presenter Chris Rock on stage. In a

Could Marlon Wayans get away with making “White Chicks” in 2022? It’s a question that was recently posed to the comedian by Buzzfeed and led him to rail against “cancel culture.” Wayans stated that movies like “White Chicks” are needed more than ever despite the risk of being canceled. The 2004 comedy starred Marlon and

Nippon Television, the Japanese broadcast and production group that owns Hulu Japan, has made headlines in recent months with the success of its TV formats. However, it is using the recent Busan and this month’s Tokyo rights market to tout a slate of theatrical movies. In the live action category, it is readying “Nemesis,” a

Happinet Phantom Studios, the Japanese mini-studio which released Oscar contender “Plan 75” in its home market, is also handling international sales on a raft of new titles. These were introduced at the in-person Busan market and will be given a further launch this week at the online only Tokyo market (TIFFCOM). Headlining the slate is

Japan’s ColorBird Inc., is launching a trio of new titles at TIFFCOM, the rights market that accompanies the Tokyo International Film Festival, and which is this year held online only. Newest is “Winny,” a fact-based drama film that takes place in the early days of the Internet and sees a software developer wrongfully arrested by

“Outlander” served as Sam Heughan’s breakthrough acting role, but it would’ve been James Bond had he not been turned down by franchise producers. In his new memoir, “Waypoints: My Scottish Journey,” Heughan reveals he auditioned to play James Bond in “Casino Royale.” The role ended up going to Daniel Craig, who starred as 007 in

Japanese indie studio Gaga is activating international sales on a handful of films in post-production, with the “We Make Antiques! Osaka Dreams” and “#Manhole” the headline titles. “Antiques” is a comedy about get rich quick schemes, art forgeries and the world of antiques. It is directed by Take Masaharu, the hitmaker with credits that include

Jackson Pictures, the Matt Jackson-run production company behind Sony’s forthcoming Whitney Houston jukebox biopic “I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” has entered a multiyear first-look agreement with Fifth Season. Formerly known as Endeavor Content, Fifth Season will work with Jackson Productions across film, television, and documentary divisions to develop premium content for all platforms. Jackson and

Two decades after making his debut with werewolf war movie “Dog Soldiers,” Neil Marshall offers another spin on military-vs.-monsters action in “The Lair,” a semi-return to form that’s energetic if uninspired and increasingly silly. Nonetheless, it represents a bit of a rebound after the disasters of last year’s “The Reckoning” and an unhappy “Hellboy” reboot

Harvey Weinstein was a serial predator who used business meetings to sexually assault women over the course of decades, according to prosecutors in the former Hollywood mogul’s L.A. trial, which began opening statements on Monday morning. Weinstein’s defense team will deliver their opening statement to the jury on Monday afternoon, and will likely paint a

Dwayne Johnson is praising fans in the wake of “Black Adam” launching to $67 million at the domestic box office and $140 million worldwide. The movie now marks Johnson’s biggest box office opener in the U.S. as a leading man. While “Black Adam” was widely panned by film critics (its Rotten Tomatoes score is 39%

Venice. Telluride. Toronto. San Diego. San Diego? Yes, planting that sequence of film fests in the minds of the industry is the lofty goal of Tonya Mantooth, CEO and artistic director of the San Diego Intl. Film Festival. She wants to make the event part of the mandatory awards calendar, capturing films, stars and —

Making “Armageddon Time” proved both a gift and weirdly traumatizing for director James Gray, who revisited his old New York City stomping grounds for the Focus Features release arriving in theaters next month. One of Gray’s most personal films yet, it loosely follows his experiences as a student at the private Kew-Forest School in Queens

Memento International has boarded Martin Provost’s film portraying the art and epic love of renowned French painters Pierre and Marthe Bonnard. Titled “Bonnard, Pierre and Marthe,” the movie will star Cecile de France (“Lost Illusions”), Vincent Macaigne (“Irma Vep”) and Stacy Martin (“Nymphomaniac”). The film charts the colorful relationship and collaboration spanning five decades between

The Man of Steel returns! Henry Cavill posted to social media on Monday that he is “back as Superman” following his cameo in the post-credits scene of “Black Adam,” which opened on Friday to $140 million worldwide. “I wanted to wait until the weekend was over before posting this because I wanted to give you

Marvel Studios has dropped the first trailer for “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” starring Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly as the titular characters and introducing Jonathan Majors as Kang the Conqueror. After helping save the universe in “Avengers: Endgame,” Lang is the most popular guy around in the new trailer. He’s walking red carpets with

Adam Sandler will receive a performer tribute at the 32nd Gotham Awards ceremony, taking place on Nov. 28 in New York City. It was recently announced Michelle Williams, star of Steven Spielberg’s “The Fabelmans,” will also receive a performer tribute at the Gothams. “Adam Sandler’s spectacular performances across some of the most popular films of

CAA has dropped Kanye West as a client, Variety has confirmed. In addition, a completed documentary about West will be shelved in light of his recent Antisemitic comments, MRC studio executives Modi Wiczyk, Asif Satchu and Scott Tenley announced in a memo Monday. “This morning, after discussion with our filmmakers and distribution partners, we made the decision

Harvey Weinstein was a monster. He was a sexual predator who used his position of power in Hollywood to harass and assault dozens of women. But there was also a system in place that shielded him from repercussions, one that relied on enablers and enforcers who protected Weinstein and allowed him to continue his pattern of

Viola Davis and Rian Johnson are among those being honored at the 12th annual Hamilton Behind the Camera Awards. The awards will be held on Nov. 5 at Avalon Hollywood on Vine and writer, actor and comedian Fortune Feimster will host the ceremony, which pays tribute to the brilliant behind-the-camera talent of the year’s most

The library shuffle among streaming services continues. HBO Max next month is getting all 10 of the original “Star Trek” movies — after they left Paramount+ — and once again will offer all of the first eight movies in the Warner Bros. “Harry Potter” series. Paramount+ in November 2021 launched every Star Trek movie, and

After a red carpet parade lasting nearly two-hours, the opening ceremony for the 2022 Tokyo International Film Festival kicked off with a musical number performed by four women from the Takarazuka all-female theater troupe in black men’s suits. There is over 100 years of tradition behind Takarazuka-style performances, in which women play men’s roles. But

The Olympic Games, the Coronation of the Emperor and the COVID pandemic have each thrown up challenges to the normal functioning of the Tokyo International Film Festival in recent years. But the festival’s chairman Ando Hiroyasu was bullish about this year’s 35th edition, when he spoke to Variety. Is the festival truly ready for a

Dark Star Pictures has come on board to release Patricia Mazuy’s “Saturn Bowling” (“Bowling Saturne”) in the U.S. The deal, brokered by Paris-based sales agent Totem Films, marks the first U.S. deal for a film by Mazuy, despite the filmmaker having received a retrospective at the Lincoln Center in 2019. The pic is written by

  For the second year in a row TIFF is hosting the Amazon Prime Video Take One Awards for new filmmakers. “We want Amazon to be a home for talent — when directors come up with great new ideas, we want them to think Amazon is the place to go,” said Kodama Takashi, country director for

Damon Lindelof is going to a galaxy far, far away — or, at least, he’s well on his way there. The co-creator of “Lost” and Emmy-winning executive producer of “Watchman” is developing a new “Star Wars” movie for Lucasfilm — and the top-secret project has already a director warming up their hyper-drive: Oscar-winner and “Ms. Marvel” helmer