Movies

A Cuban exile filed a defamation suit against Netflix on Wednesday, alleging she was portrayed as a promiscuous “party girl” in a film about a Cuban spy ring in South Florida. Ana Margarita Martinez filed suit in federal court in Miami, alleging that the film, “Wasp Network,” romanticized the clandestine operations of Fidel Castro’s regime,

Jared Leto is returning to the DC Comics fold, reprising his role as the Joker from 2016’s “Suicide Squad” in Zack Snyder’s new version of “Justice League,” Variety has confirmed. It’s unclear whether Leto was always meant to appear in “Justice League” before Snyder left the feature in early 2017 in advance of significant reshoots by

“Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” a sequel to the blockbuster comedy, will hit theaters next summer. The movie is now expected to debut on June 11, 2021 — exactly 37 years after the original. Like nearly every film slated for 2020, Sony has hopscotched the release date for “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” multiple times during the pandemic. It was originally

The Laurie Strode-Sidney Prescott horror movie crossover of your dreams happened over a Zoom call. Variety convened the stars behind the iconic films “Halloween” and “Scream” — Jamie Lee Curtis and Neve Campbell — for a legends-only talk about their rare positions in Hollywood as franchise leaders and to compare notes on their decades rebooting

Apple TV Plus has scored worldwide distribution rights to “The Velvet Underground,” a new documentary from Oscar-nominated director Todd Haynes. Haynes (“Carol,” “Far From Heaven”) tackles the hugely influential 1960s avant-garde group, at one time managed by Andy Warhol and considered the “house band” of his iconic workspace The Factory. Haynes’ film aims to prove

As the Oscar season continues to unfold, a new question has been answered for the upcoming awards circuit. Netflix has confirmed to Variety that it will campaign the late Chadwick Boseman in the lead actor category for his role in the upcoming “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” Based on the play by Pulitzer Prize-winner August Wilson,

Tyler Perry is Variety‘s 2020 Showman of the Year. For the full cover story, click here.  Before Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, Tyler Perry communicated with fans the old-fashioned way — by chatting with audience members at the end of his plays and collecting their email addresses. It was a way to stay in touch with his

The first official trailer for “Raya and the Last Dragon” is here, and it gives an action-packed look at Disney’s latest animated adventure. Released on Wednesday morning, the trailer introduces Disney fans to Raya, voiced by “Star Wars” actor Kelly Marie Tran, an experienced warrior on the hunt for the last dragon in the fictional

Busan, Asia’s premier film festival, which kicks off Wednesday, has regularly reinvented itself in the face of literal and metaphorical storms. Painfully, over a period of years, the Busan festival overcame the political storm that followed its 2014 screening of “Diving Bell” (aka “The Truth Shall Not Sink With Sewol”), a film about a ferry

Everyone’s favorite Gemini vegetarian is postponing her return to the big screen. “Legally Blonde 3” has pushed back its release date and will debut in May 2022. Reese Witherspoon is reprising her iconic role as sorority girl-turned-lawyer Elle Woods for the third installment in the series. The threequel, from MGM, was initially scheduled to open

Munich-based sales agency ARRI Media Intl.’s has signed a North American distribution deal with Rock Salt Releasing for “Curveball – A True Story. Unfortunately.,” which had its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival in the Berlinale Special Gala section this year. The film, co-written and directed by Johannes Naber, is released in German cinemas

Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to the uplifting Danish drama “The Food Club” from Scandinavian sales and aggregation banner LevelK. Although it has yet to have an international premiere, “The Food Club” has been acquired for more than 30 territories. Besides selling to Samuel Goldwyn Films for North America, the movie was

Tyler Perry is entering a new phase — not just in his career as a media mogul who owns a 330-acre studio bearing his name, nor in his tax bracket, after being designated a billionaire by Forbes. Perry, who has consistently stayed above the fray for much of the time he has been a celebrity,

In normal times, the idea of a Richard Harris Intl. Film Festival (which runs Oct. 20-26; richardharrisfilmfestival.com) seems entirely appropriate to the legions of fans of the late legendary Irish stage and screen actor, but since Oct. 1 marked Harris’ 90th birthday, it feels absolutely essential. Oscar-nominated twice, first for Lindsey Anderson’s “This Sporting Life”

Leading talent agency Markham Froggatt and Irwin, who represent a host of star acting talent on both sides of the Atlantic, has joined the Curtis Brown group of companies. Curtis Brown is Europe’s largest and oldest literary and talent agency. Peter Froggatt set up the agency that would evolve into Markham Froggatt and Irwin in

Stars of the “Avengers” franchise — Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Rudd, Chris Evans, Don Cheadle and Robert Downey, Jr. — joined together for a virtual fundraiser on Tuesday for the Joe Biden campaign. Kamala Harris also appeared for the “grassroots” event, which donors could watch by contributing any amount to the campaign.

This one goes all the way to 11. The central “Fast and Furious” franchise will come to a conclusion after the 10th and 11th films, Variety has confirmed. Justin Lin, who directed the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and ninth “Fast and Furious” films, will return to direct the final two installments and drive the franchise

Paramount Pictures Motion Picture Group President Emma Watts has hired former 20th Century Studios executive Jeremy Kramer as president of Paramount Players. Variety reported on Oct. 2 that Kramer was circling the post. Paramount Players was created as a genre label by Brian Robbins, the founder and former CEO of AwesomenessTV. Robbins left the studio

Hulu is decking the halls for “Happiest Season,” a rare mainstream holiday comedy centered on two women in love. The streamer has picked up domestic distribution rights to the Clea DuVall-directed film. Original distributor and co-financier Sony Pictures will retain rights in Canada and the rest of the world. The move is unsurprising as the

Entertainment One is bringing back Hasbro’s Power Rangers brand for film and television adaptations. The company has tapped Jonathan Entwistle, creator of the Netflix series “I Am Not Okay With This” and “It’s the End of the F—ing World,”  to shepherd the projects. eOne will develop and produce the projects with Entwistle set to direct across

There are two big factions among the 160,000 members of SAG-AFTRA, and they have rarely, if ever, gotten along, even in the eight years since SAG and AFTRA merged into a single union. No event exemplifies the deep divide within SAG-AFTRA like the 2000 commercials strike, which lasted six months and ended 20 years ago

The “Wicked” movie, Universal’s long-awaited adaptation of the smash Broadway musical, has hit another roadblock. Director Stephen Daldry has departed the movie due to scheduling conflicts. “Wicked” has been in development for over a decade and was recently taken off Universal’s release schedule amid the pandemic. Cast members have not been announced. Universal originally slated

Black Lives Matter co-founder Opal Tometi is experiencing a “full circle moment.” “I had actually just watched the film ‘Fruitvale Station,’ when I first heard that George Zimmerman was being acquitted of the murder of Trayvon Martin,” Tometi tells Variety, recalling the birth of the movement. “Between watching the film and sitting in that moment

Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” ruled the U.K. box office for the eighth weekend in a row, collecting £187,275 ($242,900), according to final numbers from Comscore. The Warner Bros. title now has a running total of £16,877,908 ($21,892,508). CinemaLive’s concert film “Michael Ball & Alfie Boe – Back Together” bowed in second place with £175,778 ($228,028). The

Kingsley Ben-Adir’s version of Malcolm X in “One Night in Miami” is a different take than Denzel Washington’s portrayal of the civil rights leader in Spike Lee’s 1992 biopic, the actor said. “The more I investigated the script, it became pretty clear quite early on that it was a completely different Malcolm and an opportunity

Jamie Foxx is starring in and executive producing the Netflix vampire comedy “Day Shift,” with JJ Perry making his directorial debut. Foxx will portray a hard working, blue collar dad who wants to provide a good life for his quick-witted 8-year-old daughter, but his mundane San Fernando Valley pool cleaning job is a front for

San Francisco Film has selected filmmakers Aaron Sorkin and Chloe Zhao for honors at its annual San Francisco Film Awards ceremonies, due to be livestreamed on Dec. 9. Sorkin, whose “Trial of the Chicago 7” is streaming on Netflix, will receive the Kanbar award for storytelling. Zhao, the director of awards contender “Nomadland,” will receive

Egypt’s El Gouna Film Festival, which shifted its dates from September to an October slot, will mark a moment of post COVID-19 restart for the Arab film industry, while also seeking to reinvigorate the region’s international ties after the pandemic. Barring complications, the ambitious event, now in its fourth edition, “will be the first festival in

Gaumont’s “Aline, The Voice of Love,” a hotly anticipated film freely inspired by the life of Celine Dion, has already lured key distributors around the world ahead of its theatrical bow in November. “Aline, The Voice of Love” is directed by actor-turned-filmmaker Valerie Lemercier, a self-proclaimed fan of Dion who also headlines the movie and

German film and TV company Leonine Group, which was formed through the merger of Tele München Gruppe, Universum Film, i&u TV, Wiedemann & Berg Film and W&B Television, has rearranged its long-term group financing. The financing includes long-term loans and revolving credit lines totaling Euros 189 million ($222 million), which also cover the company’s film