Movies

SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not seen “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” in theaters now.  When Benedict Wong was introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2016’s “Doctor Strange” as Wong, the titular superhero’s sidekick and fellow sorcerer, the British actor quickly became a fan favorite. Since, Wong has appeared in

There are countless accounts on TikTok dedicated to “The Mandalorian” star Pedro Pascal, where fans gather to ruminate on his acting skills and, of course, dashing good looks. But who would expect that the account calling him the “daddiest daddy” would be Lionsgate, the distributor behind Pascal’s latest film, “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent?”

Blue Fox Entertainment has acquired the worldwide rights to “Jane,” a YA thriller starring “Riverdale’s” Madelaine Petsch. The cast also includes Grammy-nominated singer songwriter Chlöe Bailey, Oscar-winning actress Melissa Leo, and model Chloe Yu. Blue Fox Entertainment will release “Jane” theatrically this fall, with the film debuting simultaneously on Creator+. For the unfamiliar, Creator+ produces

Minnie Driver was only 26 years old when she auditioned for the role of Skylar in Gus Van Sant’s “Good Will Hunting.” It’s a performance that would earn Driver an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress, but it’s one she recently told The Telegraph almost never happened because producer Harvey Weinstein believed “nobody would want

Capstone Global has boarded action-thriller “Boy Kills World,” starring Bill Skarsgård, Michelle Dockery and Jessica Rothe. The Los Angeles-based production and sales outfit is partnering on the pic with Nthibah Pictures, Hammerstone Studios, Sam Raimi’s Raimi Productions and Roy Lee’s Vertigo Entertainment. Sales will be launched in Cannes, with both Capstone and CAA co-representing U.S. rights.

European cinema giant Vue is partnering with the British Film Institute to create more exhibition opportunities for British, independent and international movies. From May, the cinema chain is set to screen a series of films curated by the BFI across all of its venues in the U.K. The program will be called “BFI Presents” and

Sony’s literary-driven speciality film unit 3000 Pictures has closed a deal for the rights to bestselling author Soman Chainani’s “Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales,” with an eye to turn it into a limited series. An overnight New York Times bestseller when it published with HarperCollins Children’s Books in September 2021, “Beasts and Beauty” has since

Two women filmmakers will be in the spotlight as part of South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission (KZNFC) activities at the upcoming Cannes Film Market. KZNFC had issued an open call to the industry inviting emerging filmmakers to form part of the Cannes delegation and Bonita Sithebe and Sithabile Mkhize were selected out of several applications

Indie film sales, financing, and distribution shop WME Independent has bolstered its ranks with several new hires, Variety has learned exclusively. Division co-heads Deborah McIntosh and Alex Walton announced on Monday the arrival of Julia Harris as senior vice president of business affairs, Melissa Martinez as vice president of marketing, and Victoria Romley as an

Marvel star Dominique Thorne has signed with M88 for representation. Thorne will soon make her MCU debut as the comic book character Riri Williams, aka Ironheart, a brilliant inventor who built her own version of the Iron Man suit in an MIT dorm, in the highly-anticipated movie “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” Thorne will then go

Created in 1997 as a screenwriting contest, the Outfest Screenwriting Lab has become the cornerstone of Outfest’s education and creative development programming. As the arts, media and entertainment organization celebrates its 40th anniversary, and the lab its 25th, Outfest has expanded the program with the support of partner Netflix, waiving submission fees for all applicants

Actor and producer Viola Davis will be honored with the 2022 Women In Motion Award bestowed by Kering Group and the Cannes Film Festival. Davis currently appears on screen in the Showtime series “The First Lady,” where she plays Michelle Obama. She recently published her autobiography, “Finding Me,” written during lockdown, that recounts her childhood experiences

Elizabeth Olsen is tired of filmmakers such as Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola bashing Marvel movies. The actor, who is back in theaters as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” told The Independent that she gets frustrated when people make Marvel movies “seem like a lesser type of art.”

SPOILER ALERT: The following review contains spoilers. In “Ex Machina” director Alex Garland’s latest, “Men,” the leaves are so green, the tone is so ominous, and the men are so … Rory Kinnear-y that audiences are all but guaranteed to leave this folk-horror bizart-house offering feeling disturbed, even if no two viewers can agree on

In the frequently picked-over corpse of author Charles Perrault’s classic story “Cinderella,” centered on a servant girl who rises from obscurity after falling in love with a prince, lie such themes as perseverance, hope and the value of being a dreamer. These are the cornerstone principles of the Disney corporation, founded by a fellow dreamer

Movie icon Julia Roberts has been named the Godmother of the Trophée Chopard 2022 at Cannes Film Festival. As Godmother, Roberts will present the award to both a male and female young actor on the rise. She follows Godmother Jessica Chastain, who presented the award to Jessie Buckley and Kingsley Ben-Adir at Cannes Film Festival

“Unloved: Huronia’s Forgotten Children,” which world premiered in Hot Doc’s Hidden Histories sidebar, is among several titles at the festival that illuminate historical institutional abuse of or injustice toward people through the intimate stories of survivors. Huronia Regional Center, a now-closed hospital and home for children with developmental disabilities, opened in Orillia (roughly 90 miles

Conflict hot spots, war frontlines, and violent protests may seem the most obvious places for journalists to die in the line of duty, but “The Killing of a Journalist,” which recently premiered at Toronto’s Hot Docs, compellingly illustrates how investigative journalism—particular the kind that crunches numbers and sticks its nose in the shady corners where

When it comes to Drake’s music, producer Noah “40” Shebib has been a key architect of the rapper’s sound, and the city of Toronto has served as the backdrop of their work together. Both of those narratives come together in the form of a just-released 13-minute mini-documentary titled “Toronto Rising – 40’s Very Own.” Released

Asif Kapadia, the Oscar-winning guest curator for 2022’s Sheffield DocFest, has unveiled his program A Documentary Journey with Asif Kapadia. Kapadia, who is best known for his documentaries ‘Amy,’ about Amy Winehouse, and ‘Senna’ about Brazilian motor-racing champion Ayrton Senna, opened the last in-person iteration of Sheffield DocFest in 2019 with his feature about legendary

The Indian hit film ‘The Kashmir Files’ has been banned in Singapore by the country’s InfoComm Media Development Authority, on the grounds that it could disturb religious harmony. Backed by ZEE5 and directed by Vivek Agnihotri (“The Tashkent Files”), the Hindi-language film revolves around a university student who learns about the religiously charged political turmoil

Freddie Highmore and Maisie Williams will star in an adaptation of a bizarre true story about an American ex-beauty queen who was accused of kidnapping and raping a Mormon missionary in England. Entitled “Sinner V. Saints,” the movie is directed by Tim Kirkby (“Fleabag,” “Veep”) and will be sold by WestEnd Films, which is shopping

World premiering in Cannes’ Premiere section, Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s thriller “The Beasts”(“As Bestas”) has shared with Variety its poster, crafted by James Verdesoto at New York’s Indika Entertainment Advertising, who as creative director at Miramax was responsible for the original award-winning film poster of “Pulp Fiction,” as well as those for “The Piano” and “The Crying

Cannes Critics’ Week film “The Woodcutter Story” has debuted its trailer. It’s the feature film directorial debut from Mikko Myllylahti, the writer of Cannes Un Certain Regard winner “The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Makki.” The film is being sold by French sales outfit Totem Films. “The Woodcutter Story” centers on Pepe, a

Cinema box office in China fell back to the lower depths over the weekend, with just $8.9 million of revenue across a country of 1.3 billion inhabitants. Business continues to be badly hit by COVID-related closures as the disease shows signs of spread around the country, while slowly diminishing in Shanghai where there was a

The Playmaker Munich is launching sales in Cannes on the claustrophobic, real-time black comedy “Holy Shit!,” and have debuted the film’s international trailer. “Holy Shit!” will have its market premiere in Cannes on May 19. [embedded content] Scriptwriter and director Lukas Rinker has “created an ultimate worst-case scenario that feels relatable yet unimaginable at the

There are times in nonfiction film when daring — and magic — arrives in a surprisingly simple and quiet way. “Hello, Bookstore” is a documentary about a venerable and beloved independent bookstore in Lenox, Mass. The place is called The Bookstore, and it first opened its doors in 1973. Ever since 1976, it has been

It’d been six years since Rachel McAdams scrubbed into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Dr. Christine Palmer, the will they-or-won’t they love interest of Benedict Cumberbatch’s title hero “Doctor Strange.” But while Cumberbatch went on to join the Avengers in their fight against Thanos in the Infinity Saga, McAdams has been MIA since 2016. In

SPOILER ALERT: This story discusses major plot points of Marvel Studios’ “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” currently in theaters. Do not read until you’ve seen the movie. Practically from the moment that Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige announced that Elizabeth Olsen would star in the Disney+ series “WandaVision,” he also made clear that

Looking back on the life of Mickey Gilley, who died May 7 in Branson, Mo., at the age of 86, one must consider the musician and the country music era that he helped to define. The singer-pianist was a versatile stylist, an outstanding instrumentalist and one of country music’s most prolific hitmakers. He notched his