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Lego Live-Action TV Musical

The Lego Group has set director and producer Kenny Ortega (High School Musical) as executive producer for its first-ever live-action TV project: a Lego Friends musical special, set in the world of Heartlake City. Filming is set to begin in London this August with release due in 2026. The storyline follows a girl who constructs a world out of Lego bricks, only to be magically transported to Heart Lake City. Ortega said: “I don’t know who’s more excited – my family or me. We are a Lego loving household, and receiving this invitation from the Lego Group to join them in their first live-action musical is an absolute honor. Also being able to produce alongside the wonderful team at Final Pixel, leaders in virtual production has me overjoyed, and I am thrilled to have my longtime creative partner, Paul Becker, alongside.”

Roel Reiné Thriller

Indie Rebel...

Exclusive: Jamie Bacon, Brandon Mychal Smith, Monroe Cline and James Oliver Wheatley are to front Pretty Boy Delaney, a gritty indie pic set to the backdrop of the fentanyl crisis.

Filming is underway on the pic, which is billed as a character-driven drama tackling addiction, mental health, and homelessness. Bacon is writing, with Liv Forsythe (Time is Emotional) the director, and Dean Street Productions, Forsyth Films and Ck Films. Steven Cookson, Neylin Mutlu, Hussain Manawer (Mogul Mowgli) and Bacon are also producing. Nick DeCoster is exec producer.

In the film, Bacon plays the title character, a 26-year-old former boxing prodigy now battling a relentless fentanyl addiction on the streets of Skid Row – territory ruled by the cold and calculating Shannon (Smith) – after settling in California with his older brother John (Wheatley). Estranged from his daughter, Delaney encounters compassionate outreach worker Emma (Cline) and boxing coach Berne (Eddie Arrazola...

Only a couple of weeks before The Chosen: Last Supper - Part 1 exceeded expectations in its box office debut, another religious film, based on the same biblical event, was also released theatrically. The Last Supper debuted in theaters in mid-March, finishing just outside the top five on the domestic charts. It basically ended its run this past weekend, passing what will likely be its final box office milestone. The target audience for The Last Supper has mostly been diverted to The Chosen, which is relying on a devoted fan-base built over years.

The Last Supper generated around $300,000 in its third weekend of release, passing the $6 million mark domestically. The film also lost around 700 theaters, falling from over 1,500 in its first and second weeks to around 800 in its third. The Last Supper finished at the number 10 spot on the domestic charts this past weekend, while The Chosenfinished third, behind the latest...

André Holland is on a roll with three new films, ‘The Last Supper’ tests the faith-based market, hot Vietnamese director Tran Thanh is back, and documentary October 8 examines the explosion of antisemitism after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

A handful of big indies are out with wide releases from Focus Features (Black Bag) to A24 (Opus) to Falling Forward Films and Ketchup Entertainment (Looney Tunes: The Day The Earth Blew Up).

Neon, the indie distributor of the moment, is out with mystery-thriller The Actor, André Holland’s third leading role this year after Sundance-premiering Love, Brooklyn by Rachael Abigail Holder, which Holland also produced, and The Dutchman, by Andre Gaines, which just debuted at SXSW. The Actor opens in NYC at the Angelika, Holland doing Q&As, at The Grove in LA and top 10 markets – 20+ screens in all.

Based on the novel Memory by Donald E. Westlake, the film,...

Faith-based Pinnacle Peak Pictures, previously Pure Flix Entertainment, is adding two new theatrical films to its international sales slate for AFM 2024, The Last Supper and Between Borders.

There’s been no lagging of interest in faith-based films, which have the potential to hit big. (Angel Studios Sound Of Freedom grossed $120 million globally.) The Last Supper is set in the days leading to betrayal, where a gathering of disciples unravels into a web of secrets and hidden motives. Starring Robert Knepper, James Ward(Verona’s Romeo & Juliet, His Dark Materials), James Oliver Wheatley, Nathalie Rapti Gomez, and Daniel Fathers.

The film was directed by Mauro Borrelli, who co-wrote it with John Collins. It was produced by Shawn Boskie, Ivan Cohen, Manu Gargi, Ken Halsband,...

A bit of directorial zest, a serviceable lead and some Dirty Dozen energy are the only weapons in the arsenal of this otherwise plotless movie

Here’s yet another low-budget, straight-to-streaming British second world war flick: just as much of a men-on-a-mission throwback as last month’s War Blade, but a few notches more competent thanks to a more compact setup, occasional bursts of galvanic film-making from director Bill Thomas, and a grimier tone that is more Dirty Dozen than Saving Private Ryan.

It’s backs-to-the-wall time; Sergeant Mason (James Oliver Wheatley) and his not-especially-crack commando squad bungle a raid on a Nazi convoy and find themselves running across Normandy from an ever-growing pack of Wehrmacht. Retreating to a shabby farmhouse, they dig in for the imminent siege, despite the reluctance of Belgian owner Julien (Allan Relph), who doesn’t fancy being labelled as a partisan. Julien is also hiding a secret there,...

Alexander: The Making of a God explores Alexander the Great's life, including speculation about his sexuality. The docuseries features reenactments, interviews with experts, and clips of ancient Alexandria excavation. Historians debate Alexander's sexuality, with some believing he was gay and others believing he was bisexual.

The Netflix television show Alexander: The Making of a God explores the life of Alexander the Great, including speculation about his sexuality. The 2024 documentary drama series tells the historical figure's story over the course of six episodes, each chronicling significant moments in his life. Alexander the Great, also known as Alexander III of Macedon, was the King of Macedon, an ancient Greek kingdom, from 336 to 323 BC, succeeding his father, Philip II, following his death. He ruled over many regions and ultimately was responsible for establishing one of the greatest empires — the Macedonian Empire — in history.

The Netflix docuseries features interviews with experts on the...

This year’s first-round Primetime Emmy nominations ballot includes a total of 51 Best Limited Series hopefuls. This is down from 2022’s unusually high total of 61, yet still much higher than 2021’s 37, 2020’s 41, and 2019’s 35.

All 20,000 plus voting members of the TV academy have until June 26 to cast their 2023 Emmy Awards nominations ballots for programs. Unlike the Oscars, voters for the Emmys do not rank their choices and nominees are determined by a simple tally. After six years of not having to limit their choices in any categories, members’ selections can now not be greater than the number of eventual nominations for a given award, which, in this case, will be five.

Unlike comedy and drama series, which simply appear on the ballot by name, the limited series submissions include plot descriptions and cast lists. Which of the shows listed below do you think will land in the final lineup on...

Low-budget take on the evergreen tale already feels overshadowed by the grand French retelling due next door

This British stab at the deathless Dumas novel refuses to heed its own running gag: always run in the face of overwhelming odds. In this case it’s the imminent arrival of a star-bejewelled, two-part French adaptation with Vincent Cassel, Eva Green, Romain Duris and Vicky Krieps. Instead, it puts up a valiant stand – led by pretty plush production and costume design for what is presumably a low-budget affair. But finally it waves its colours in surrender, let down by patchy acting and unimaginative direction.

It at least boasts one first: a black D’Artagnan (Malachi Pullar-Latchman). Whatever your stance on “racelifting”, in this instance it works pretty well: emphasising the would-be musketeer’s outsider but upwardly mobile status as he arrives in Paris, and lines up back-to-back duels with Athos (Ben Freeman...

Stars: Ben Freeman, Brian Blessed, James Oliver Wheatley, Martyn Ford, Gareth David-Lloyd, Kristian Nairn, Charlie Hiett, Phill Martin, Marie Everett, James Groom, Jamie Kenna, James G. Nunn | Written and Directed by Nicholas Winter

After Maid Marian is kidnapped by the Sheriff of Nottingham, Robin Hood must get a band of men together in order to save her. Many are reluctant, given that they are massively outnumbered by the Sheriff’s forces – but those that do join Robin will stop at nothing to defeat the bloodthirsty tyrant. Together, they hatch an audacious plan to penetrate the depths of the Sheriff’s castle and reclaim Robin’s true love.

The first thing that springs to mind, literally, when Robin Hood: The Rebellion starts is do we really need that much on-screen exposition for a film about Robin Hood? After all, we seem to get a new story of this English folklore legend...

To celebrate the home entertainment release of Robin Hood: The Rebellion, available on DVD and Digital HD 5th November, we have a copy of the DVD up for grabs, courtesy of Signature Entertainment! Thrilling swordplay, brutal action and gripping intrigue make this fresh take on Robin Hood a must-watch for fans of Game of Thrones and Vikings, as well as those with a taste for action classics like Die Hard and The Raid.

Ben Freeman (a favourite of Emmerdale fans) makes a terrific Robin Hood – a reckless, brave hero going up against insurmountable odds. James Oliver Wheatley, soon be seen in the smash hit TV series Vikings, is a standout as the villainous and eminently hissable Sheriff of Nottingham, while screen legend and star of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves Brian Blessed steals the show in the role of Friar Tuck.

Newcomer Marie Everett is a Maid Marian like you’ve never seen,...

"You got a scoop?" Samuel Goldwyn has debuted a trailer for an indie drama titled Burn Country, which premiered at Tribeca earlier this year. The film is a fictional feature version of a real-life story of a "fixer" journalist from Afghanistan who decides to move to a town on the coast in Northern California. However, once he begins working at a newspaper there he gets drawn into the strange "backwoods of this small town", stumbling into local corruption and other dangers. Iranian actor Dominic Rains stars as Osman, and the cast includes Melissa Leo, James Franco, Rachel Brosnahan, Thomas Jay Ryan, Tim Kniffin, and James Oliver Wheatley. This looks damn good, like it offers a unique perspective not often seen on film. Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Ian Olds' Burn Country, originally from EW.com: After being exiled from Afghanistan, a former war journalist (Dominic Rains) who...

Stars: Kal Penn, Vincent Regan, Geoff Bell, John Thomson, Sam Robertson, Holly Weston, Richard Ashton, Rebecca Reaney, Matt Healy, James Oliver Wheatley, Richard Crehan, Anthony Cozens, Melissa Wells, Marc Parry, Rachel Rae | Written by Anis Shlewet | Directed by Kit Ryan

Dementamania follows a well groomed and obsessive senior software analyst Edward Arkham (Sam Robertson) who’s constantly caught between reality and his imagination, where he takes out all the anger and frustration on people like his backstabbing manager or his annoying co-workers. One morning, he meets Nicholas Lemarchand (Vincent Regan), who tells Edward that he’s a mediator, but as the hallucinations get worse for him through the day, Edward starts seeing him Nicholas more and more in unexpected places, and when security footage suggests the mediator doesn’t even exist, Edward starts to get more and more suspicious of the strange man whilst falling further and further into his twisted imagination.