News

Mark Neveldine directs 1980s-set story of ex-marine on undercover mission.

Saban Films has picked up North American and UK and Ireland rights to Yale Productions and Grandave Capital’s Cole Hauser and Mel Gibson action thriller Panama as Highland Film Group continues talks with international buyers at EFM.

Mark Neveldine, whose credits include the Crank franchise and Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance, directs from a screenplay by Daniel Adams and William Barber that takes place in 1989 in Panama as Becker, a decorated ex-marine played by Hauser who is sent undercover by his former commander Stark (Gibson) to execute a high-value deal with dangerous adversaries.

Cory Hardrict has joined Orange Is The New Black alum Taryn Manning in Karen, the indie suspense thriller from writer and director Coke Daniels. Manning, who is producing the indie, will play Karen White, who believes that races should stick to their “own kind” and carries this belief into her neighborhood. Hardrict will star as Malik, a community activist in Atlanta dedicated to his wife and fighting social injustices. When Malik and his wife, Assata, become Karen’s new neighbor, she makes it her personal mission to remove them from the neighborhood, by any means necessary. However, Assata and Malik don’t have time for this and aren’t going down without a fight.

Manning is producing the pic with Daniels and Craig Chapman. Burke Management Firm founders Vanzil Burke and Victor Burke will serve as executive producers.

Hardrict’s film credits include Clint Eastwood’s American Sniper and Gran Torino...

Exclusive: How to Get Away with Murder alum Charlie Weber and Victor Turpin have been added to the cast of Panama, the action thriller being directed by Mark Neveldine (Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance). The new additions are joining previously announced stars Cole Hauser, Mel Gibson and Kate Katzman.

Written by Daniel Adams and William R. Barber, the pic follows James Becker (Hauser), an ex-Marine who is sent undercover by his former commander, Stark (Gibson), to execute a high-value arms deal with untrustworthy adversaries.

Weber will play Hank Burns, a straight-edged ex-Marine also hired by Stark to join Becker’s mission. Turpin will play Brooklyn Rivera, a real-life member of the Contras, the revolutionary rebel group backed by the U.S. in opposition to the Sandinista government in Nicaragua.

Jordan Beckerman, Jordan Yale Levine, Michelle Chydzik Sowa, Michelle Reihel, Shaun Sanghani and Frances Lausell are producing the project, which will shoot in Puerto Rico.

Exclusive: Actress Kate Katzman has been cast in Panama, joining Cole Hauser and Mel Gibson in the action thriller, which is being directed by Mark Neveldine (Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance).

Set to being shooting next month in Puerto Rico, the pic follows an ex-marine who is tasked to go undercover to complete an arms deal and becomes entangled in the U.S. invasion of Panama. Katzman will play Tatiana, sister-in-law to the ex-marine.

Daniel Adams and William R. Barber wrote the screenplay. Jordan Beckerman, Jordan Yale Levine, Michelle Chydzik Sowa, and Michelle Reihel are producing, while William R. Barber, Richard Switzer, Ian Niles, and Anne Clements serve as executive producers.

Katzman is also set to appear opposite Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman, and Tommy Lee Jones in The Comeback Trail, due out next year.

She is repped by Rugolo Entertainment.

Principal photography scheduled for December in Puerto Rico.

Highland Film Group has come aboard to handle worldwide sales on action film Panama starring Cole Hauser (Yellowstone) with Mel Gibson in a supporting role.

Mark Neveldine directs the Yale Productions feature from a script by Daniel Adams and William R. Barber based on actual events in Panama in 1989, the year the US invaded the island.

Hauser will play an ex-Marine dispatched by his former commander (Gibson) on an undercover mission to carry out a deal with untrustworthy adversaries.

Jordan Beckerman, Jordan Yale Levine, Michelle Chydzik Sowa, Michelle Reihel, and Frances Lausell are producing,...

Cole Hauser, who stars alongside Kevin Costner in Paramount Network’s Yellowstone, will topline Panama, an action thriller to be directed by Mark Neveldine.

Mel Gibson has nabbed a supporting role in the thriller which will shoot in Puerto Rico in December.

Yale Productions is behind the project, with the company’s Jordan Beckerman and Jordan Yale Levine producing along with Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel.

The script, by Daniel Adams and William R. Barber, follows a rugged and decorated ex-marine (Hauser) who is sent undercover by his former commander (Gibson) to execute a high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries.

William R. Barber, Richard ...

Cole Hauser, who stars alongside Kevin Costner in Paramount Network’s Yellowstone, will topline Panama, an action thriller to be directed by Mark Neveldine.

Mel Gibson has nabbed a supporting role in the thriller which will shoot in Puerto Rico in December.

Yale Productions is behind the project, with the company’s Jordan Beckerman and Jordan Yale Levine producing along with Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel.

The script, by Daniel Adams and William R. Barber, follows a rugged and decorated ex-marine (Hauser) who is sent undercover by his former commander (Gibson) to execute a high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries.

William R. Barber, Richard ...

Captain America: The Winter Soldier's Frank Grillo and Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman have joined the action film Panama from The Highland Film Group.

According to the press release, Frank Grillo is set to star as James Becker, a rugged, decorated ex marine in 1989 Panama. When his former commander Stark, played by the great Morgan Freeman, sends him undercover to execute a high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries, Becker is thrust into the chaos of the local civil war.

He must fight assassins, court femmes fatales and negotiate with the enemy in order to complete his mission. With his former commander by his side, Becker perseveres against all odds in hopes of making it home alive.

Panama is inspired by true events and comes from a script written by Daniel Adams and William R. Barber. Adams will also helm the project as director while Barber leads as executive producer alongside...

Morgan Freeman and Frank Grillo will star in Daniel Adams’ action film “Panama,” Highland Film Group announced Thursday.

Adams and William R. Barber penned the script for the film, which will be produced by Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel, with Barber also serving as executive producer. Highland Film Group is handling worldwide sales for the title that will be introduced to buyers at the Toronto International Film Festival next month.

“Panama,” inspired by true events, is set in 1989 and follows James Becker (Grillo), a rugged ex-marine who is sent undercover by his former commander (Freeman) to execute a high-value deal. He must navigate through the local civil war to fight assassins and court femme fatales. Principal photography is set to begin in November.

Freeman won an Academy Award for his performance in “Million Dollar Baby...

Morgan Freeman and Frank Grillo are starring in the action movie “Panama” with Daniel Adams directing from a script he co-wrote with William R. Barber.

Highland Film Group will handle worldwide sales, which will launch at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival. “Panama” will be produced by Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel, with Barber also serving as executive producer.

Inspired by true events and set in 1989 Panama, Grillo will portray a rugged, decorated ex-marine who is sent undercover by his former commander, played by Freeman, to execute a high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries. While navigating through the chaos of the local civil war, he must fight assassins, court femmes fatales and negotiate with the enemy in order to complete his mission. Principal photography is set to commence in November.

Grillo’s credits include the Captain America and Purge franchises. He’s starring in the upcoming “Black and Blue,” “Boss Level...

Oscar-winner Morgan Freeman and Frank Grillo are set as leads in the action film, Panama, directed by Daniel Adams, who also co-wrote the screenplay with William R. Barber. The pic, which is inspired by true events, is being produced Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel.

Set in wild 1989 Panama, the plot follows James Becker (Grillo), a rugged, decorated ex-marine, who is sent undercover by his former commander Stark (Freeman) to execute a high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries. While navigating through the chaos of the local civil war, Becker must fight assassins, court femmes fatales and negotiate with the enemy in order to complete his mission. With Stark always by his side, Becker perseveres against all odds in hopes of making it home alive.

Filming is slated to commence in November. Highland Film Group will handle worldwide sales, which will launch at the Toronto International Film Festival. Barber serves as executive producer.

Principal photography on action feature to commence in November

Highland Film Group has added another high-octane action project to its roster and will launch talks with worldwide buyers in Toronto next week on Panama to star Morgan Freeman and Frank Grillo.

Daniel Adams will direct the feature from a screenplay he co-wrote with William R. Barber that takes place in the central American country in 1989 against the backdrop of the Us invasion.

Grillo plays James Becker, a decorated ex-marine sent on an undercover mission by his former commander Stark (Freeman). Becker must fight assassins, court femmes fatales and negotiate with...

Captain America: The Winter Soldier actor Frank Grillo and Morgan Freeman are set to star in Daniel Adams’ action film Panama.

Grillo will play a decorated ex-Marine in 1989 Panama who is sent undercover by his former commander Stark (Freeman) to execute a high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries. While navigating through the chaos of the local civil war, Becker must fight assassins, court femmes fatales and negotiate with the enemy in order to complete his mission.

Inspired by true events, the film was penned by Adams and William R. Barber and will be produced by Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel,...

Captain America: The Winter Soldier actor Frank Grillo and Morgan Freeman are set to star in Daniel Adams’ action film Panama.

Grillo will play a decorated ex-Marine in 1989 Panama who is sent undercover by his former commander Stark (Freeman) to execute a high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries. While navigating through the chaos of the local civil war, Becker must fight assassins, court femmes fatales and negotiate with the enemy in order to complete his mission.

Inspired by true events, the film was penned by Adams and William R. Barber and will be produced by Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel,...

See the movie poster and images from Love, Wedding, Marriage, starring Mandy Moore, Kellan Lutz, Jessica Szohr, Jane Seymour, James Brolin and Michael Westin! The IFC Films comedy opens June 3rd and is helmed by Dermot Mulroney from the writing by Anouska Chydzik and Caprice Crane. Love, Wedding, Marriage follows a happy newlywed marriage (Moore) counselor and how her views on wedded bliss get thrown for a loop when she finds out her parents are getting divorced. Michelle Chydzik Sowa produces the film...

See the movie poster and images from Love, Wedding, Marriage, starring Mandy Moore, Kellan Lutz, Jessica Szohr, Jane Seymour, James Brolin and Michael Westin! The IFC Films comedy opens June 3rd and is helmed by Dermot Mulroney from the writing by Anouska Chydzik and Caprice Crane. Love, Wedding, Marriage follows a happy newlywed marriage (Moore) counselor and how her views on wedded bliss get thrown for a loop when she finds out her parents are getting divorced. Michelle Chydzik Sowa produces the film...

See the movie poster and images from Love, Wedding, Marriage, starring Mandy Moore, Kellan Lutz, Jessica Szohr, Jane Seymour, James Brolin and Michael Westin! The IFC Films comedy opens June 3rd and is helmed by Dermot Mulroney from the writing by Anouska Chydzik and Caprice Crane. Love, Wedding, Marriage follows a happy newlywed marriage (Moore) counselor and how her views on wedded bliss get thrown for a loop when she finds out her parents are getting divorced. Michelle Chydzik Sowa produces the film...

The trailer and images are now available from IFC's Inhale drama which opens on October 22nd in La and New York. Baltasar Kormakur (Brúðguminn, Jar City) directs from the writing by John Claflin and Walter A. Doty III from the story by Christian Escario. Michelle Chydzik Sowa, Jennifer Kelly and Nathalie Marciano produce. The strong cast includes Dermot Mulroney, Diane Kruger, Jordi Molla, Vincent Perez, Rosanna Arquette and Sam Shepard. Every day, rising Santa Fe District Attorney Paul Stanton and his wife, Diane, wait for word that there’s a donor for their daughter, Chloe. Diagnosed with a rare degenerative condition, Chloe is on a long list to receive a double lung transplant. As her health worsens, Paul becomes desperate to save his young child…so desperate that he’ll risk everything to organize an operation. When Paul learns of a Dr. Novarro who performs transplants in Juarez, Mexico, he...

By Gregg Kilday

IFC Films has acquired U.S. rights to Baltasar Kormakur's thriller "Inhale," starring Dermot Mulroney, Diane Kruger and Sam Shepard.

The movie concerns a man's desperate search to get a lung transplant for his daughter. It was written by Walter Doty and John Claflin, with the story by Christian Escario, and was produced by Nathalie Marciano, Jennifer Kelly, and Michelle Chydzik Sowa.

26 Films produced in association with Kormákur's company, Blueeyes Productions.

It will open theatrically at New York City's IFC Center on Oct. 22 and will also be offered on IFC’s movies-on-demand VOD platform.

The deal was negotiated by IFC’'s Arianna Bocco and Wme Independent on behalf of the filmmakers.

We have film clips and interview excerpts from Fox Searchlight Pictures' "My Life in Ruins," starring Nia Vardalos, Richard Dreyfuss, Harland Williams, Rachel Dratch, María Botto, Alexis Georgoulis, Caroline Goodall, Sophie Stuckey and Brian Palermo. Donald Petrie ("Just My Luck," "Welcome to Mooseport," "Miss Congeniality") directs the film from the screenplay written by Mike Reiss. Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Nathalie Marciano produce the film which sees theatres on June 5th. The comedy premiered in France at the Cannes Film Market and most recently at the Tribeca Film Festival. See interviews with Nia Vardalos, Rachel Dratch and others as well as clips from the film. See the "My Life in Ruins" group on MovieJungle.net and catch all the videos, add your bubble comment, see images and more! From Nia Vardalos, writer and star of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, comes the hilarious comedy My Life In Ruins. Georgia (Nia Vardalos...

We have film clips and interview excerpts from Fox Searchlight Pictures' "My Life in Ruins," starring Nia Vardalos, Richard Dreyfuss, Harland Williams, Rachel Dratch, María Botto, Alexis Georgoulis, Caroline Goodall, Sophie Stuckey and Brian Palermo. Donald Petrie ("Just My Luck," "Welcome to Mooseport," "Miss Congeniality") directs the film from the screenplay written by Mike Reiss. Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Nathalie Marciano produce the film which sees theatres on June 5th. The comedy premiered in France at the Cannes Film Market and most recently at the Tribeca Film Festival. See interviews with Nia Vardalos, Rachel Dratch and others as well as clips from the film....

We have film clips and interview excerpts from Fox Searchlight Pictures' "My Life in Ruins," starring Nia Vardalos, Richard Dreyfuss, Harland Williams, Rachel Dratch, María Botto, Alexis Georgoulis, Caroline Goodall, Sophie Stuckey and Brian Palermo. Donald Petrie ("Just My Luck," "Welcome to Mooseport," "Miss Congeniality") directs the film from the screenplay written by Mike Reiss. Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Nathalie Marciano produce the film which sees theatres on June 5th. The comedy premiered in France at the Cannes Film Market and most recently at the Tribeca Film Festival. See interviews with Nia Vardalos, Rachel Dratch and others as well as clips from the film....

• What would happen if How Stella Got Her Groove Back and My Big Fat Greek Wedding had a celluloid child together? We're about to find out. Fox Searchlight is looking to replicate Greek-mania with My Life in Ruins, which they will distribute in North America, Australia, and New Zealand.This romantic comedy, starring Nia Vardalos, Richard Dreyfuss, Harland Williams, and Rachel Dratch, follows a travel guide in Greece attempting to regain her sexual attraction. The flick will be directed by romantic comedy veteran helmer Donald Petrie, who is responsible for films like How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and Just My Luck. Appropriately, Vardalos has appeared in both the big-screen 'Greek Wedding' and the television version, 'My Big Fat Greek Life'. One thing may help the film: Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson are executive producers, along with Gary Goetzman and Peter Safran. Michelle Chydzik Sowa

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New York -- Fox Searchlight has signed on to distribute the Nia Vardalos vehicle "My Life in Ruins" in North America, Australia and New Zealand.

Donald Petrie's romantic comedy, which co-stars Richard Dreyfuss, Harland Williams and Rachel Dratch, centers on a travel guide (Vardalos) who rediscovers her mojo as she leads tourists around Greece.

Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Nathalie Marciano of 26 Films produced "Ruins." Gary Goetzman, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson and Peter Safran served as executive producers. The film is scheduled to be released in 2009.

Ray Strache brought "Ruins" to Searchlight. The deal was brokered Searchlight's Joey DeMarco and Kobie Conner. The film was repped by Bob Wallerstein of Hirsch, Wallerstein, Hayum, Matlof and Fishman.

Sam Shepard, Rosanna Arquette, Jordi Molla and French star Vincent Perez are joining Dermot Mulroney and Diane Kruger in the organ transplant thriller "Run for Her Life."

Shepard plays a district attorney whose illegal heart transplant persuades Mulroney and Kruger's characters to seek one for their daughter. Arquette plays a pediatrician they consult with, and Perez plays a doctor whose practice isn't quite what it seems to be. Molla plays a corrupt police officer.

Nathalie Marciano and Michelle Chydzik Sowa of 26 Films, which produced Nia Vardalos' upcoming "My Life in Ruins," are producing the feature with Jennifer Kelly. Principal photography is under way in New Mexico.

Shepard, whose latest play "Kicking a Dead Horse" debuted last month at New York's Public Theater, is repped by Icm and Eighth Square Entertainment.

Arquette is repped by Abrams Artist Agency and Brillstein Entertainment Partners. Molla ("Che") is repped by Paradigm and Aim. Perez ("Queen Margot") is repped by Icm, United Agents, Artmedia and Schiff Co.

"National Treasure"'s Diane Kruger has landed the female lead opposite Dermot Mulroney in Baltasar Kormakur's thriller "Run for Her Life".

Kruger and Mulroney play parents who attempt to get a lung transplant for their dying daughter in Mexico. But after agreeing to the operation, they face an ethical dilemma after discovering that the organs aren't taken from willing donors.

Nathalie Marciano and Michelle Chydzik Sowa of 26 Films, which produced Nia Vardalos' upcoming comedy "My Life in Ruins", and Jennifer Kelly are producing the feature, set for a New Mexico shoot.

Kruger is repped by ICM and manager Abi Harris.

NEW YORK -- W. Bruce Cameron's book "8 Simple Rules for Marrying My Daughter," the sequel to his best-seller-turned-hit TV series, will be brought to the big screen by 26 Films and The Devil Wears Prada producer Wendy Finerman.

Cameron is adapting his semi-autobiographical tome into a comedy with co-writer Cathryn Michon, author of the Grrl Genius Guide book series. It offers wry commentary in the same vein as his 2001 book 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, the basis of ABC's eponymous series starring the late John Ritter.

Finerman and Wendy Finerman Prods.' Lisa Zupan brought the project to 26 Films, which optioned the book. Finerman is attached to produce the feature with 26 Films principals Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Nathalie Marciano.

Chydzik Sowa said the plot will revolve around a divorced dad juggling a younger girlfriend and two daughters who both get engaged at the same time. Other details haven't been revealed, but the book's subtitle -- "And Other Reasonable Advice From the Father of the Bride (Not that Anyone Is Paying Attention)" -- provides a clue.

Dermot Mulroney will star in the organ-harvesting thriller Run for Her Life for producer-financier 26 Films.

Mulroney will play a district attorney whose daughter contracts a rare illness and needs new lungs. After discovering she's low on the official U.S. waiting list, he heads to Mexico to buy his way onto their list. But his ethical nature is put to the test when he has to choose between saving hundreds of children being killed for their organs or saving his daughter's life.

Baltasar Kormakur will direct the film for producers Nathalie Marciano and Michelle Chydzik Sowa of 26 Films (Nia Vardalos' upcoming comedy My Life in Ruins) and Jennifer Kelly.

Christian Escario penned the screenplay, and John Claflin (Fool's Gold) handled the rewrite. The six-week New Mexico shoot begins in late April.

Mulroney (Zodiac) starred in 26 Films' first production, The Wedding Date, for Universal. Kormakur directed A Little Trip to Heaven. Both are repped by ICM.

From its opening shot of the Manhattan skyline to its soft-pop soundtrack, The Wedding Date signals movie romance of the effervescent kind. Familiar but never overly broad, this well-cast, crowd-pleasing comedy benefits from a low-key emphasis on character over high jinks. Despite the stock feel of many of its characters and a sometimes laughably obvious script, the film has an energetic grace, directed with fluid efficiency by Clare Kilner. Wedding, which should click especially with females, looks destined for a date with solid boxoffice.

Debra Messing stars as Kat, a New York-based airline employee on her way to London for her half-sister's wedding. In order to convince her family and her ex-fiance -- best man at the upscale shindig -- that she's deliriously happy and not still gazing wistfully at the ring he gave her more than two years ago, she hires a male escort as her dream date. Himbo Nick (Dermot Mulroney), who has all the self-confidence Kat lacks, makes it clear that, for an additional sum, the business transaction can include services of a more intimate nature. She's shocked, just shocked.

When Kat's American mother (Holland Taylor) and English stepdad (Peter Egan) open-mindedly put the visiting couple in one room, it prompts a 21st-century version of the Wall of Jericho in It Happened One Night: a barrier of pillows between them in the bed they share. Like all such walls, it's built for toppling; by the time she's indulged in a night of drunken bachelorette-bash revelry, Kat has all but forgotten about ex Jeffrey (Jeremy Sheffield).

Kat tells anyone who asks that Nick is a therapist -- the joke being that he is, in a way, breathing you-go-girl affirmations in her ear with knee-weakening expertise. As an unsure gal who would withdraw $6,000 from her 401(k) in order to play-act romantic bliss, Messing is convincing and likable. But Kat isn't the only one play-acting here. Over the course of a week's worth of luxe nuptial dinners, picnics and parties, the wedding couple (well played by Amy Adams and Jack Davenport) are headed on a sure path from picture-book romance to major revelation. In the romantic comedy scheme of things, the repercussions of that twist are momentary at best.

Messing ("Will & Grace") brings a sweet, self-deprecating humor and impressive gift for physical comedy to her first big-screen lead. Limited here by the smoldering restraint he's called upon to deliver, the talented Mulroney more than fits the bill as the sexiest man money can buy. If this hunk-for-hire with a comp lit degree from Brown doesn't seem quite convinced spouting simplistic pearls of ostensible wisdom ("Every woman has exactly the love life she wants"), there's no question that he was a way with a raised eyebrow.

Dana Fox's script, based on the novel Asking for Trouble by Elizabeth Young, offers no shortage of cliches, the most unfortunate being the hackneyed role of the single, sex-obsessed woman who provides comic relief (which Sarah Parish nonetheless puts over with verve).

Wedding just barely dusts the spiderwebs off formula tricks, but Kilner (How to Deal) keeps the party moving. All of it plays out with mild Brit conviviality -- the booze bill alone for this week of nuptial excess could keep a developing country afloat. DP Oliver Curtis and production designer Tom Burton showcase the posh London and Surrey County locations, and costumer Louise Page outfits the cast with a frothy sense of elegance.

THE WEDDING DATE

Universal Pictures and Gold Circle Films

26 Films Prods.

Credits:

Director: Clare Kilner

Screenwriter: Dana Fox

Based on the book Asking for Trouble by: Elizabeth Young

Producers: Nathalie Marciano, Michelle Chydzik Sowa, Jessica Bendinger, Paul Brooks

Executive producers: Norm Waitt, Scott Niemeyer, Steve Robbins, Jim Reeve

Director of photography: Oliver Curtis

Production designer: Tom Burton

Music: Blake Neely

Co-producer: Jeff Levine

Costume designer: Louise Page

Editor: Mary Finlay

Cast:

Kat Ellis: Debra Messing

Nick Mercer: Dermot Mulroney

Amy: Amy Adams

Edward Fletcher-Wooten: Jack Davenport

TJ: Sarah Parish

Jeffrey: Jeremy Sheffield

Victor: Peter Egan

Bunny: Holland Taylor

MPAA rating: PG-13

Running time -- 88 minutes...