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To judge from the electric response of the youthful audience at the Sam Gold-helmed production of Romeo + Juliet, the casting of Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor as William Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers will be enough to persuade their fans that this story is dope Af. It’s not hard to imagine teens, having just watched Connor’s Romeo dangle in the air from Juliet’s suspended bed before doing a pull-up to hoist himself up to kiss her, begging their drama teachers to stage a Shakespeare tragedy this spring instead of, say, Clue.

In Gold’s previous Shakespeare outings on Broadway—2019’s Glenda Jackson-headlined King Lear and 2022’s Macbeth, starring Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga—you really had to know the plays well to have any idea of what was going on. While critics cited the incoherence of their abstractions, I found much to relish in the...

The new Broadway production of Romeo + Juliet will be celebrating its official opening night performance this week and the show has released some gorgeous photos snapped during the play.

Kit Connor is starring as Romeo opposite Rachel Zegler as Juliet in the new production directed by Sam Gold and featuring music by Jack Antonoff.

One photo shows the already iconic balcony scene, in which Kit does a pull-up to hoist himself to Rachel‘s level and share a kiss with her.

Also featured in the photos are co-stars Tommy Dorfman and Gabby Beans.

Following nearly a month of performances during the preview period, Romeo + Juliet has been playing to sold-out, standing-room-only crowds at every single show. It’s already one of the biggest hits of the 2024-25 Broadway season.

It was announced recently that a limited number of floor seats will be available for every performance, putting audiences...

Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor have officially taken their first bows on Broadway and we can share an inside look at the very first performance of their Romeo + Juliet production.

The young stars are starring in director Sam Gold‘s new take on the classic Shakespeare play and they performed the first preview on Thursday (September 26) at the Circle in the Square Theater in New York City.

Tommy Dorfman is also making her Broadway debut in the production and Tony nominee Gabby Beans is part of the starry cast as well.

Following the performance, Rachel, Kit, and the rest of the cast joined fans at the stage door for a full-on party with DJ Amber Valentine spinning tunes for the nearly 1,000 fans who tried to get a glimpse of the cast following the show. Festivities continued at an exclusive underground party in the subway station at See No Evil Pizza and Nothing Really Matters.

Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor are making their Broadway debuts Tonight in the new production of Romeo + Juliet and we have the first photos from the show!

The young actors are playing the title characters in the Sam Gold‘s revival of the Shakespeare play, which features music by Jack Antonoff and movement by Sonya Tayeh.

Preview performances are beginning tonight (September 26) and the official opening night performance will be held on October 24.

Also starring in the production are Tommy Dorfman as Tyblat/The Nurse and Gabby Beans as Mercutio/The Friar/Prince.

It was announced recently that a limited number of floor seats will be available for every performance, putting audiences at the edge of the action each night. Get your tickets now while they’re still available. The production will end on February 16, 2025.

The new Broadway production of Romeo & Juliet hasn’t even begun performances yet, but ticket demand is so high that four more weeks of shows have been added!

West Side Story‘s Rachel Zegler and Heartstopper‘s Kit Connor will be making their Broadway debuts in the upcoming production of the classic William Shakespeare play.

Preview performances begin on September 26 ahead of an official opening night show on October 24. The run was originally scheduled to end in January 2025, but now there are more opportunities to get tickets!

Keep reading to find out more…

Producers announced that tickets are now on sale through February 16, 2025.

The cast also includes 13 Reasons Why‘s Tommy Dorfman and Tony-nominated actress Gabby Beans.

Rehearsals just began and you can see photos in the gallery!

The upcoming Broadway reimagined revival of Romeo And Juliet starring Heartstopper‘s Kit Connor and West Side Story‘s Rachel Zegler has extended its run by four weeks due to strong advance ticket sales.

Directed by Sam Gold and produced by Seaview, the revival, which features music by Grammy winner Jack Antonoff, begins previews at Circle in the Square Theatre on Thursday, September 26, and opens Thursday, October 24, and will now run through Sunday, February 16, 2025.

In announcing the extension, Seaview says the production broke the venue’s on-sale ticket day record when sales began in May. The extension is “due to astonishing advance demand.” Sales figures were not disclosed.

Hopeful ticket-buyers who have signed up on the show’s official website will have early access to tickets for the extension weeks beginning Wednesday, August 28. Tickets for the general public will be on sale beginning Thursday, August 29.

Billed as a Romeo And Juliet...

Tommy Dorfman and Rachel Zegler will be making their Broadway debuts together!

It was just announced that Tommy has been cast in the duel role of The Nurse and Tybalt in the upcoming production of Romeo & Juliet, which is being led by Rachel and Heartstopper actor Kit Connor.

Tony nominee Gabby Beans will play the dual role of Mercutio and The Friar.

Rehearsals for the upcoming Broadway production, directed by Tony winner Sam Gold, have just begun ahead of the first performance on September 26. The production will play a strictly limited 16-week engagement at the Circle in the Square Theatre.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled to be starting today with this brilliant ensemble. In the play, there are two households, but for us in the room, it really feels like one family,” Sam said in a statement.

The new production features original music by Jack Antonoff and movement by Tony winner Sonya Tayeh.

Tony Award nominee Gabby Beans (Skin of Our Teeth) and 13 Reasons Why’s Tommy Dorfman are among the complete cast for Romeo & Juliet, Sam Gold’s new Broadway production of William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, starring Kit Connor and Rachel Zegler. Rehearsals began today for the production, which is set to open this fall.

Beans will play ‘Mercutio/The Friar and Dorfman will portray The Nurse/Tybalt in her Broadway debut. Rounding out the cast are Nihar Duvvuri (Broadway Debut) as ‘Balthazar,’ Sola Fadiran (Camelot) as ‘Capulet/Lady Capulet,’ Daniel Bravo Hernández (Broadway Debut) as ‘Abraham,’ Taheen Modak (Broadway Debut) as ‘Benvolio,’ Jasai Chase Owens (Broadway Debut; The Expanse) as ‘Gregory,’ Gían Pérez (Sing Street) as ‘Samson/Paris/Peter’ and understudies Missy Malek (Broadway Debut), Timothy Oh (Broadway Debut), Susannah Perkins (The Wolves) and Daniel Velez (Broadway Debut).

“I couldn’t be more thrilled to be starting today with this brilliant ensemble,...

Spoiler Alert: The story includes details about the Season 1 finale of Apple TV+’s Presumed Innocent.

The Chekhov’s Gun narrative principle stipulates that if a writer introduces a gun hanging on a wall, there must be a reason, such as it being fired later in the story. Presumed Innocent employed the classic plot device in a big way as creator David E. Kelley used an element he had introduced to Scott Turrow’s story for a surprise ending.

Rusty (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Barbara’s (Ruth Negga) daughter Jaden (Chase Infiniti) was revealed as Carolyn Polhemus’ killer in the last minutes of Presumed Innocent‘s finale. In the book, as well as in the 1990 movie, Carolyn’s killer, Barbara, and Rusty have only one child, a young son. Kelley added a daughter, and made both siblings older.

While Jaden had spent most of the series in the background, her comments...

[Warning: The following post contains Major spoilers about Presumed Innocent Episode 7, “The Witness.”] Welp. We’re just one episode away from the Season 1 finale of Presumed Innocent, and we still don’t quite know who killed Carolyn Polhemus (Renate Reinsve), but Rusty Sabich (Jake Gyllenhaal) is looking guiltier by the second. In Friday’s new episode of the crime thriller series, Rusty has the very terrible idea to continue as his own lead attorney after Raymond’s (Bill Camp) heart attack, despite Judge Lyttle’s (Noma Dumezweni) offer of a no-questions-asked mistrial. As Mya (Gabby Beans) predicts, it’s a massive mistake that lands him right in hot water. After cross-examining Carolyn’s son, Michael (Tate Birchmore), and successfully raising the possibility of another killer, he then completely botches his defense by asking Det. Alana Rodriguez (Nana Mensah) questions that form a new narrative and thus force Rusty to take the stand. There, he is thoroughly dissected by...

Apple TV+ has given the green light for its legal thriller ‘Presumed Innocent,’ featuring Jake Gyllenhaal, to be renewed for a second season. The service posted a message on Instagram: “New season. New case. Presumed Innocent has been renewed for season 2.”

Season 2 of ‘Presumed Innocent’ is coming next to Apple TV+ The eight-episode first season is set to end later this month on July 24.

‘Presumed Innocent’ – Plot, Cast & Viewership Success

Based on David E Kelley’s adaptation of the book (itself based on Scott Turow’s 1987 bestseller) and executive-produced by Joel Schumacher, ‘Presumed Innocent’ stars a Gyllenhaal as Rožat ‘Rusty’ Sabich, a renowned prosecutor suspected of murdering his former lover and colleague. The series is a reimagining of the 1990 movie starring Harrison Ford and directed by Alan J Pakula.

The renewal comes a month after ‘Presumed Innocent’ debuted as the #1 most-watched drama of all time on Apple TV+, and...

Klar, Erfolg sorgt für Verlängerung: Apple TV+ schickt „Aus Mangel an Beweisen“ in eine zweite Staffel, nachdem die achtteilige Serie von TV-Genie David E. Kelley bereits vor ihrer kompletten Ausstrahlung die meistgesehene Serie seit Bestehen des Streamers ist.

„Aus Mangel an Beweisen” (Credit: Apple TV+)

„Aus Mangel an Beweisen“ startete bei Apple TV+ am 12. Juni, portioniert im Wochenrhythmus. Bereits ab Folge eins hatte sie einen gepackt, die auf acht Teile angelegte Serie von David E. Kelley, der Mann hinter Highend-Glam-tv wie „Big Little Lies“, „The Undoing“ oder „The Lincoln Lawyer“. Man wollte sofort weitergucken, mehr wissen, wissen, was kommt – obwohl man die Vorlage kennt von Scott Turow, obwohl man den Kinofilm kennt mit Harrison Ford. Egal, spannend gemacht, klasse Besetzung: Jake Gyllenhaal, Ruth Negga, Peter Sarsgaard, Gabby Beans, Bill Camp und vor allem die tolle Renate Reinsve. So ging es offenbar den meisten Apple TV+-Abonennt:innen, denn bereits jetzt, vor...

Another successful limited series is becoming an ongoing drama series — Apple TV+ has ordered a second season of legal thriller Presumed Innocent, with David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams and Season 1 star Jake Gyllenhaal returning as executive producers and author Scott Turow as co-executive producer.

The news comes a month into the run of Presumed Innocent, which already has become the #1 most viewed drama of all time on Apple TV+, per the streamer, as the story is headed into its conclusion with the final two episodes dropping July 17 and July 24.

There are no details about Season 2 beyond the fact that it “will unfold around a suspenseful, brand new case.”

Like other hit limited series that became drama series, including White Lotus and Shōgun, there likely will be character(s) who link the seasons; we may get more clarity on that in the Season 1 finale.

There is no obvious blueprint for continuing...

The verdict is in on Presumed Innocent: Apple TV+ wants more.

The tech giant’s streaming service has ordered a second season of the legal drama based on Scott Turow’s best-selling novel. The renewal comes as the show’s eight-episode first season, which stars Jake Gyllenhaal as a prosecutor accused of murdering a colleague, is set to conclude on July 24.

Season two of Presumed Innocent will follow a new case. There’s no word yet on which (if any) members of the show’s current cast — which also features Ruth Negga, Bill Camp, O-t Fagbenle, Chase Infiniti, Elizabeth Marvel, Nana Mensah, Renate Reinsve, Peter Sarsgaard, Kingston Rumi Southwick and Gabby Beans — will return.

The show is Gyllenhaal’s first ongoing TV role, and he says he was drawn into the story “like an audience member” after reading the first script. He also said he enjoyed the challenge of working...

After Episode 4, titled The Burden, Apple TV+'s Presumed Innocent is halfway through its eight-episode run.

The murder trial, presumably dominating the second half of the limited series, has not even begun.

Therefore, Episode 4 does much of what previous episodes have done: Going back and forth on how guilty Rusty looks while occasionally introducing the possibility of other suspects, who often resemble red herrings.

Domestic disturbance

Episode 4 begins with Rusty and Barbara confronting their son, Kyle, after the last episode's revelation that there was a picture of him on his bike near Carolyn's home on the night of the murder.

Related: Presumed Innocent Season 1 Episode 3 Review: Discovery

Rusty then has a flashback to when Rusty and Carolyn were working on the murder of Bunny Davis, a woman who was murdered in a strikingly similar manner to the way Carolyn would herself be killed.

This leads to a fight between Rusty and Barbara,...

Presumed Innocent is Apple TV+’s latest series and a must-watch for legal drama fans. Created by Big Little Lies and Boston Legal‘s David E. Kelley, Presumed Innocent is based on a 1987 novel of the same name by Scott Turow; the book was adapted in 1990 with a film of the same name directed by Alan J. Pakula from a screenplay co-written by Frank Pierson and J. Pakula with Harrison Ford playing the leading man Rozat K. “Rusty” Sabich.

Apple TV+’s Presumed Innocent follows the story of Rusty Sabich, a Chicago city prosecutor and a family man who becomes the prime suspect of a colleague’s murder, with whom he had an affair. Where the film showed us this story in completely black and white, the series adaptation plays around in the greys and doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to prove anyone innocent. So, if you...

Plot: Following chief deputy prosecutor Rusty Sabich, the series takes viewers on a gripping journey through the horrific murder that upends the Chicago Prosecuting Attorney’s office when one of its own is suspected of the crime. The series explores obsession, sex, politics, and the power and limits of love, as the accused fights to hold his family and marriage together.

Review: Everything old is new again. In 1990, Harrison Ford led the first adaptation of Presumed Innocent, based on the best-selling novel by Scott Turow. A critical success and the eighth-highest-grossing film of the year, Presumed Innocent was a masterful courtroom thriller from director Alan J. Pakula that also delivered one of the best twists ever. While it spawned two small-screen sequels, neither lived up to the original film. Over three decades later, we are getting a remake of Presumed Innocent from the one-two punch of David E. Kelley and J.J. Abrams.

Scott Turow wrote his first novel, Presumed Innocent, in 1987. Three years later, it was adapted into a movie starring Harrison Ford. Fast-forward over thirty years, and David E. Kelley, known for hit shows like The Practice, Alley McBeal, and Big Little Lies, is adapting the novel to the small screen for Apple TV+. This crime thriller features magnificent twists and turns and two powerful performances by Academy Award nominees Jake Gyllenhaal and Ruth Negga.

Presumed Innocent Plot

Presumed Innocent follows the story of a Chicago Prosecutor who finds himself a suspect in the middle of a horrific murder. The series explores sex, politics, and obsession as Rusty Sabich fights to keep his family and marriage together.

Jake Gyllenhaal and Bill Camp in “Presumed Innocent,” premiering June 12, 2024 on Apple TV+.

The Critique

David E. Kelley, a master of the thriller genre, takes on the challenge of breathing new life into a story we thought we knew.

The Drama League Awards unveiled their slate of winners at an in-person ceremony on Friday, May 17. The event was hosted by Frank Dilella at the Ziegfeld Ballroom, where attendees toasted the best of Broadway and Off-Bradway.

The biggest winner of the day was Sarah Paulson, who claimed the coveted Distinguished Performance Award for her fiery role in “Appropriate.” That play, by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, also took home the League’s trophy for Best Revival of a Play.

See 2024 Dorian Theater Awards nominations announced: LGBTQ journalists champion ‘Merrily We Roll Along,’ ‘Stereophonic,’ ‘Oh, Mary!‘

The Distinguished Performance Award is unique in that a performer may only win the award once in their career. After prevailing, they are never eligible again. The category is also a massive catch-all race that includes actors of all genders, roles of all sizes, and both Broadway and Off-Broadway productions. This year, 54 thespians were included as nominees.

Winning...

Broadway’s Stereophonic and Hell’s Kitchen took home Lucille Lortel Awards for their earlier Off Broadway productions.

Lortel Awards (for outstanding Off Broadway shows) were awarded to Eli Gelb for his featured performance in a play for Stereophonic, and Kecia Lewis won for her featured performance, musical, in Hell’s Kitchen. Sound designer Ryan Rumery won for Stereophonic. All three of those winners are nominated for 2024 Tony Awards for their their shows Broadway productions.

The 39th annual Lucille Lortel Awards were handed out last night. Topping the winners roster with three awards was (pray), the musical produced by Ars Nova and National Black Theatre and created by nicHi douglas, with music by S T A R R Busby and JJJJJerome Ellis. (pray) won the awards for Outstanding Musical, Outstanding Director (douglas), and Outstanding Ensemble.

The complete winners list for the awards, produced by the Off-Broadway League and Lucille Lortel Theatre,...

Apple TV+ has revealed the first teaser-trailer for “Presumed Innocent” starring Jake Gyllenhaal, from Emmy-winning creator David E. Kelley.

Gyllenhaal narrates the trailer as Rusty Sabich, a man seemingly consumed by his love for a woman named Carolyn (Renate Reinsve). “She woke something up inside me,” he says as the footage cuts between his time with her and images of cars and courtrooms and arguments — clearly invoking a darker twist in this alleged romance. Carolyn, it turns out, has been murdered and, given their history, Rusty is the prime suspect.

What the trailer leaves out is extra juicy: Rusty and Carolyn were coworkers and prosecutors, and the suspected crime sends waves through the Chicago Prosecuting Attorney’s office as they mourn a colleague, reel from an affair, and pursue a murder investigation — to say nothing of how it affects Rusty’s marriage and home life.

The rest of the cast includes Ruth Negga,...

The nominees for the 2024 Drama League Awards were announced April 22, 2024, by Vanessa Williams and past Drama League winner Bebe Neuwirth. Winners will be announced during the 90th Annual Drama League Awards ceremony at the Ziegfeld Ballroom on Friday, May 17.

These kudos honor both Broadway and Off-Broadway productions and are famous for their catch-all acting category, the Distinguished Performance Award. An actor can only win it once in their career. After they have won, they can never be nominated again. This year, a whopping 54 performers are nominated.

See 2024 Tony Awards eligibility rulings (round 2): ‘Appropriate’ is officially a revival, ‘The Notebook’ actors split up

The expansive production categories mean that many Tony Awards hopefuls heard their name called this morning. Ten Broadway musicals were nominated in the Outstanding Production of a Musical race. Notable omissions include “Back to the Future: The Musical,” “The Great Gatsby” and critical darling “Days of Wine and Roses...

Ethan Coen has assembled a stellar cast for “Honey Don’t!,” his follow-up to this year’s “Drive-Away Dolls.”

Thirteen new actors have joined the cast of “Honey Don’t!” that already includes stars Chris Evans, Margaret Qualley, and Aubrey Plaza. Rounding out the ensemble are “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” star Charlie Day, “Bros” star and comedian Billy Eichner, and “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” actress Talia Ryder, IndieWire has learned. Also joining the cast are Lera Abova, Jacnier, Gabby Beans, Kristin Connolly, Lena Hall, Don Swayze, Josh Pafchek, Kale Brown, Alexander Carstoiu, and Christin Antidormi.

“Honey Don’t!” is filming now in New Mexico and will be released by Focus Features, which also released “Drive-Away Dolls,” Ethan Coen’s first feature as a solo director separate from his brother Joel Coen. The new film is reportedly set in Bakersfield, California, with Evans playing a cult leader, Qualley portraying a private investigator, and Plaza as a mystery woman.

Exclusive: Ethan Coen has rounded out the cast for his comedy Honey Don’t! for Focus Features and Working Title, on which we were first to report. Newcomers include Charlie Day (Fool’s Paradise), Billy Eichner (Bros), Lera Abova (Anna), Jacnier (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory National Tour), Gabby Beans (Presumed Innocent), Talia Ryder (Dumb Money), Kristen Connolly (The Cabin in the Woods), Lena Hall (Your Friends & Neighbors), Don Swayze (All Saints Day), Josh Pafchek (Marvel’s Runaways), Kale Browne (Mike), Alexander Carstoiu (Magnolia Flowers) and Christian Antidormi (Netflix’s Lincoln Lawyer).

As previously announced, Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza and Chris Evans will lead the ensemble. Details as to the film’s plot are currently under wraps, though it’s said to be in the same vein as Coen’s comedy Drive-Away Dolls, starring Qualley, which Focus released earlier this year. Production is currently underway in New Mexico.

Coen is directing...

Exclusive: With interest in the great 20th Century American writer Thornton Wilder about to get one of its periodic surges – a major Broadway revival of Our Town is coming this year, and Hello, Dolly!, the musical based on Wilder’s 1954 play The Matchmaker, will open on London’s West End this summer in a revival starring The Crown‘s Imelda Staunton – the estate guarding the author’s works has named its first non-family Literary Executor in 28 years to oversee all of its intellectual properties.

Jeremy McCarter, the former New York Magazine drama critic and co-author with Lin-Manuel Miranda of the bestselling behind-the-scenes non-fiction book Hamilton: The Revolution, has been named Literary Executor of the Wilder Family LLC. He assumes the role this month from Thornton Wilder’s nephew Tappan Wilder, who has held the post since 1995.

Tappan Wilder announced McCarter’s appointment to Deadline today. McCarter will serve as a...

Billy Porter wrote the song “Always Be My Man” before he even knew about the film “Our Son,” let alone knew he would star in it, too. The multi-talented performer had wanted to pen a piece with collaborators Joe Killington and Conor Reeves about “the complexity of a relationship,” especially because he was living through a moment in which he was “fighting” with his now ex-husband. When the script for Bill Oliver’s film came his way soon after, the actor felt “the song was the law of attraction for me to receive this moment.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.

The desire to write a song for a film in which he also stars is one Porter has felt for a very long time. “I’ve been doing movies since 1999. I’ve been trying to get a song in a movie that I’m in since then. I have been completely dismissed for decades,...

Exclusive: Noma Dumezweni (The Undoing), Gabby Beans (Succession) and Sarunas J. Jackson (Insecure) have joined the cast of the Apple TV+ limited series Presumed Innocent.

Inspired by Scott Turow’s courtroom thriller, Presumed Innocent is the story of a horrific murder that upends the Chicago Prosecuting Attorneys’ office when one of its own is suspected of the crime. The book was published in 1987 and was turned into a 1990 feature starring Harrison Ford in the role Jake Gyllenhaal is taking on.

As reimagined by David E. Kelley, Presumed Innocent will be exploring obsession, sex, politics, and the power and limits of love, as the accused fights to hold his family and marriage together.

Dumezweni will recur as ‘Judge Lyttle,’ a formidable legal mind, she’s been on the bench for decades, and now she’s overseeing one of the most highly publicized trials in Chicago’s recent history. She knows the...

Stars: Gabby Beans, Cody Braverman, Emily Davis, Ray Anthony Thomas, Myles Walker | Written and Directed by Andy Mitton

I think (my memory is generally terrible) The Harbinger is the first film I have seen where the pandemic has played a big and important part in the story.

In the movie, Monique is currently quarantining with her family during the pandemic. But when her oldest friend, Mavis, reaches out in a state of fear, she chooses to visit her to help out. Mavis is suffering from nightmares in which she can’t wake up from, sometimes even days are passing and a demon – The Harbinger – is the one haunting her. Monique soon discovers the nightmares are contagious and they both must find a way to defeat the demon.

The pandemic part of the movie is used really well. It gives a reason for the characters to be where they need to...

Writer-director Andy Mitton inventively mashes up pandemic panic and supernatural danger to make a potent, truly creepy package

Horror as a genre is especially well suited to stories about isolated people in claustrophobic spaces. So it was kind of inevitable there would be a glut of features along those lines made during the most locked-down periods of the Covid-19 pandemic, when safety measures restricted cast and crew sizes as well as location use. And yet few of the resulting movies even mention Covid, let alone address the abundant anxieties and fears surrounding it all. Writer-director Andy Mitton’s simply executed feature – apparently shot in 2021 but set in the more dangerous, pre-vaccine months of 2020 – inventively mashes up pandemic panic and supernatural danger to make a potent, truly creepy horror package, garnished with naturalism and sly, strategic moments of humour. There are flaws, sure, and logical lacunae here and there, but it...

Horror is, without question, still the backbone of cinema, even as cinema struggles in these uncertain times. This year saw a number of wins for the genre; original movies like Smile, Barbarian, and X and its prequel Pearl achieved both critical acclaim and box office success, and franchises like Scream, Predator and Hellraiser were all reignited with praised returns.

Like last year, there were a lot of horror movies to watch in 2022. This resulted in movies slipping through the cracks as the year continued, and bigger releases held the spotlight.

These ten hidden gems might have been overlooked at the time, but it’s never too late to discover them.

An Ideal Host

“An Ideal Host”

After circulating at multiple film festivals for a good two years, the Australian horror-comedy An Ideal Host quietly surfaced on streaming platforms this year. Robert Woods and Tyler Jacob Jones‘ offbeat collaboration amassed a...

In the years and the decade to come, we’re going to look back at pandemic-era films and see some that were made in the pandemic and maybe made it a small detail in the storyline, while others that really embraced it. Not celebrated it, but really grabbed it and incorporated it into the story. There’s no right or wrong to this, but I will say that The Harbinger is most definitely one of the latter. It’s one of the strongest and most impactful pandemic-era films that I have seen (to say nothing of the fact that it’s just a freaking brilliant film overall).

Written and directed by Andy Mitton, The Harbinger is set during the early days of lockdown. Monique (Gabby Beans) and her brother have come home to spend lockdown with their father. The trio are super careful and are doing everything possible to stay...

Signature Entertainment has acquired U.K. and Ireland rights to supernatural horror “The Harbinger” from MPI Media Group.

The film is produced by Jay Dunn (“The Witch in the Window”), Richard W. King (“We Go On”) and Andy Mitton (“YellowBrickRoad”), with Mitton also directing and writing. It stars Gabby Beans (“House of Cards”), Emily Davis (“The Plagiarists”) and Raymond Anthony Thomas (“Shutter Island”).

The New York-set film sees Monique (Beans) reluctantly break quarantine during the pandemic to care for her friend Mavis (Davis) who’s plagued by horrific nightmares. Monique soon learns that the dreams are contagious, and originate from a demonic, reality-warping force – The Harbinger. Monique and Mavis must discover a way to defeat the malevolent entity before it consumes their souls entirely.

The film was selected at Canada’s Fantasia International Film Festival, the U.K.’s FrightFest and the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival. It won Best Scare at the U.

The holiday season is now upon us, and it seems only right that we’re heading into December with a brand new Christmas-themed genre movie arriving in theaters later this week.

I’m of course talking about the David Harbour-starring Violent Night, which features the “Stranger Things” actor as an ass-kicking version of none other than Santa himself.

But that’s not the only new genre movie arriving this week…

Here’s all the new horror headed down the chimney November 28 – December 4, 2022!

This week is all quiet on the horror front until Thursday, December 1, which kicks off with the release of The Harbinger, which has been favorably compared to Nightmare on Elm Street.

In the film from writer/director Andy Mitton, “Monique ventures out of quarantine to visit an old friend who’s plagued by nightmares. She finds herself drawn into a hellish dreamscape where she must face her...

8 Found Dead: "Stuck in a pandemic, Travis Greene and Jonathan Buchanan stumbled upon the story of 8 Found Dead while spitballing ideas at their local coffee shop.

Using several real-life characters and situations from Travis' life, Jonathan crafted a story around the inherent drama of being held hostage by conversation, a cue taken from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf (1966) - which, along with Death Trap (1982), Funny Games (2007) and The Strangers (2008) served as inspiration for the filmmakers.

The next step was choosing a cinematographer. and the obvious choice was their friend Ryan Valdez. His unique style had always stood out and seemed perfect for 8 Found Dead."

Synopsis:

"Two couples drive to a secluded house in the desert for a weekend getaway, each with their own baggage, expectations and secrets. Upon their arrival, they are met by two strangers, claiming to have rented the house as well.

What starts out as a “simple...

Slate includes Waking Karma, The Third Saturday In October.

MPI Media Group is in talks with AFM buyers on a slate led by horror titles Night Of The Bastard and The Harbinger, both of which screened at London’s FrightFest.

Night Of The Bastard marks the feature directorial debut of Erik Boccio and stars London May (The Dark Knight Rises) as a hermit in the desert who along with a youngster must defend himself from a savage cult. Mya Hudson, Hannah Pierce, and Henry Mortensen also star.

The Harbinger, Andy Mitton’s follow-up to The Witch In The Window, stars...

The isolation and helplessness some people felt during the prime days of Covid lockdown is utilized to good effect in “The Harbinger.” Andy Mitton’s second solo feature (following two co-directed with Jesse Holland) is a spooky tale in which vulnerable individuals find themselves prey to a malevolent spirit that worms into their dreams, dislodging them from grounding reality.

in XYZ Films’ release to limited theaters and VOD on Sept. 1.

Disturbing, recurrent cries from the NYC apartment of Mavis (Ellen Davis) have gotten complaints from neighbors, particularly a next-door “Karen” and belligerent anti-masker (Stephanie Roth Haberle). When her more-sympathetic building superintendent (Cody Braverman) lets himself in to investigate, he finds the tenant in a state of whimpering hysteria and self-harm — yet asleep. After successfully waking her, he urges Mavis to get help.

Blood relatives apparently not being an option, she rings up old friend Monique (Gabby Beans), who’s surprised...

Exclusive: In a competitive situation, Tony-nominated Gabby Beans has signed with Brillstein Entertainment Partners for management.

Beans was recently nominated for a Tony Award for lead actress in a play for her star-making role in Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth at Lincoln Center Theater. Directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz, the play marked Beans’ Broadway debut.

Beans’ previous acting credits include guest-starring roles in HBO’s Succession, CBS’ The Good Fight, Netflix’s House of Cards and Showtime’s Ray Donovan.

Writer and filmmaker Beans also recently founded production company Chaotic Good Content, which produces work dedicated to telling strange and sublime stories with a social conscience.

Beans continues to be repped by TalentWorks.

The Harbinger Photo: Courtesy of Fantasia International Film Festival

One of the great things about film festivals is that there is always the potential for a film which hasn’t had much prior word of mouth to surprise you. The Fantasia International Film Festival is no exception. It was almost by accident that I found myself watching The Harbinger, the story of a woman (Emily Davis) troubled by strange nightmares and the friend (Gabby Beans) who tries to help her, only to be caught up in the nightmare herself. Set during the period when Covid-19 was wreaking havoc in new York City, it’s one of the first films in any genre to really take on the fear of contagion and the difficulty of living in that situation. As soon as I watched it, I knew I had to speak to the director.

Fortunately, Andy Mitton was happy to oblige.

Stars: Gabby Beans, Cody Braverman, Emily Davis, Ray Anthony Thomas, Myles Walker | Written and Directed by Andy Mitton

I think (my memory is generally terrible) The Harbinger is the first film I have seen where the pandemic has played a big and important part in the story.

In the movie, Monique is currently quarantining with her family during the pandemic. But when her oldest friend, Mavis, reaches out in a state of fear, she chooses to visit her to help out. Mavis is suffering from nightmares in which she can’t wake up from, some times even days are passing and a demon – The Harbinger – is the one haunting her. Monique soon discovers the nightmares are contagious and they both must find a way to defeat the demon.

The pandemic part of the movie is used really well. It gives a reason for the characters to be where they need...

Director Andy Mitton takes on night terrors and social distancing in his new horror movie “The Harbinger,” fresh off its world premiere at Fantasia. Recently picked up by XYZ Films, it was produced by Jay Dunn and Richard W. King.

Originally set to follow his well-received 2018 release “The Witch in the Window” with “Walk with Me into the Darkness,” the U.S. director changed his mind after the pandemic hit.

“It was probably parallel to what everyone else was experiencing when it finally dawned on us that it wasn’t going to be just a two-week thing. Our plans went down the tubes,” he reminisces at the Montreal-based fest.

Starring Gabby Beans, the film shows a woman who, after quarantining with her family, decides to venture out into the world again to help out a friend (Emily Davis), suffering from loneliness and terrifying dreams.

“Back then, I was also in...

As we all know, trying to survive a seemingly never-ending global pandemic is pretty damn scary, but what if dying from it completely erased you and it was as if you had never existed? Since we started dealing with Covid-19 in real life in 2020, there have been a slew of pandemic-based movies, but Writer/director Andy Mitton, who is responsible for films like We Go On (2016) and The Witch in the Window (2018), has come up with a unique and frightening twist on pandemic horror. His new film The Harbinger had its World Premiere at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival and uses the fear of contracting coronavirus, combined with a demonic entity which invades your dreams and feeds on fear, to effectively tell a horrifying and profound story of survival and our need to be remembered.

The Harbinger tells the story of Monique, played by Gabby Beans, a woman...

Tony Awards nominations were announced on Monday, May 9 by Adrienne Warren and Joshua Henry. While the nominations for the 75th annual Tony Awards were determined by a few dozen theater professionals, winners were decided by upwards of 650 members of the Broadway community.

The Tonys take place June 12 at Radio City Music Hall hosted by newly minted Oscar winner Ariana DeBose. The 2022 Tony Awards winners list below includes all 26 competitive categories.

Musicals

Best Musical

“Girl From the North Country”

“Mj”

“Mr. Saturday Night”

“Paradise Square”

“Six”

X — “A Strange Loop”

Best Musical Revival

“Caroline, or Change”

X — “Company”

“The Music Man”

Best Actor (Musical)

Billy Crystal, “Mr. Saturday Night”

X — Myles Frost, “Mj”

Hugh Jackman, “The Music Man”

Rob McClure, “Mrs. Doubtfire”

Jaquel Spivey, “A Strange Loop”

Best Actress (Musical)

Sharon D Clarke, “Caroline, Or Change”

Carmen Cusack, “Flying Over Sunset”

Sutton Foster, “The Music Man”

X — Joaquina Kalukango, “Paradise Square”

Mare Winningham,...

For a Broadway season that will go down in the record books for its abbreviated 42-week length, Covid cancelations and stark decline in attendance attributable at least in part to New York City’s pandemic-era dearth of tourists, the 2021-22 theatrical season was surprisingly healthy in one very significant way: As this year’s Tony Awards nomination roster makes clear, Broadway venues were well-stocked with the talent and quality that can make trophy-voting an endless cycle of on-the-other-hand second guessing and nitpicking.

In a Broadway season that made noticeable (if never enough) strides in presenting new creative voices – Black artists, Queer artists, artists who brought downtown avant-garde sensibilities uptown – so much of the work represented in this year’s Tony nominations roster is bold in ways that would have been unthinkable just a couple seasons ago before the disaster of Covid and the miracle of Black Lives Matter arrived to shake things up.

After an extraordinary season boasting 34 musicals, plays, and revivals, Broadway will toast its nominees and crown new winners at the upcoming 75th annual Tony Awards. If predicting the winners seems overwhelming with so many terrific contenders to choose between, check out our racetrack odds below for all 26 categories.

These official odds for the Tonys are derived from the predictions of our Experts who write about theatre year-round, our in-house team of Editors, the Top 24 Users who did the best predicting last year’s ceremony, the All-Star Top 24 Users who have the highest scores when you combine predictions from the last two years, and all our Users who make the up the largest and often savviest bloc of predictors.

On June 12, the Tonys begin with an hour-long special called “The Tony Awards: Act One” on Paramount+ hosted by Darren Criss and Julianne Hough — who are appearing on Broadway this season in “American Buffalo” and “Potus,...

We are just days away from the 2022 Tony Awards on Sunday, June 12 and voters are making their final decisions on who will emerge victorious on Broadway’s biggest night. Before you lock in your final Tony predictions, be sure to catch up with every exclusive Gold Derby interview with this season’s nominees. I had the honor of talking with 21 Tony nominees this season, all of whom were eager to share their stories as Broadway roared back to life after a pandemic-induced intermission.

A whopping 13 of these artists are first time nominees, all of whom are about to have one of the most exciting nights of their life. Some of these first timers are veterans of the stage, like Jesse Tyler Ferguson (“Take Me Out”) or Ron Cephas Jones (“Clyde’s”), but have narrowly missed Tony recognition until now. Then there’s the queen of Off-Broadway, Deirdre O’Connell, who lip...

“Thank you for this work that’s just so magic and so worth it,” expressed Mary-Louise Parker when she accepted the Tony Award from presenter Gwyneth Paltrow in 2001 for her unforgettable performance in “Proof.” This year, Parker competes for the same prize for starring in the first Broadway production of Paula Vogel’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play “How I Learned to Drive” and could take home the third trophy of her career for it. Below, see a list of all five of Mary-Louise Parker’s Tony nominations and two wins.

See Mary-Louise Parker (‘How I Learned to Drive’) poised to make Tony Awards history

Parker originated the role of Li’l Bit in the original Off-Broadway production of “How I Learned to Drive” 25 years ago. This Broadway revival reunited her with costars David Morse and Johanna Day as well as director Mark Brokaw. The drama is a haunting memory play that...

“I had an intuition,” reveals Gabby Beans on her approach to playing Sabina in “The Skin of Our Teeth.” The “very meta” role in the revival of Thornton Wilder’s Pulitzer Prize winning play requires an immense stamina from the actress, as she takes the character across three acts full of allegory, physical comedy and apocalyptic disasters. Her intuition proved to be right on the money, as she earned a Tony Award nomination for Lead Actress in a Play, the first of her career, for her Broadway debut. Watch the exclusive video interview above.

Those who witnessed her performance as Sabina will be shocked to hear Beans’ actual speaking voice. It sits in a relaxed tone at the back of her throat. A far cry from the hyper-stylized, high-pitched dramatics she employed when making her entrance on “Teeth’s” mid century modern Act 1 set. The performer confesses she actually used...

Your favorite podcast hosts Jason A. Coombs and Samantha Tuozzolo are back with Tony Award Nominee, Gabby Beans, who made her Broadway debut in the Broadway Revival of Skin Of Our Teeth this past year Gabby shares her artistic journey from seeing Broadway shows with her Mom as a child to working alongside veteran actors Susan Sarandon, Robin Wright and Mandy Patinkin over the years.

Your favorite podcast hosts Jason A. Coombs and Samantha Tuozzolo are back with Tony Award Nominee, Gabby Beans, who made her Broadway debut in the Broadway Revival of Skin Of Our Teeth this past year Gabby shares her artistic journey from seeing Broadway shows with her Mom as a child to working alongside veteran actors Susan Sarandon, Robin Wright and Mandy Patinkin over the years.

The countdown to the Tony Awards has a officially begun On June 12, the brightest stars of the 2021-22 season will shine even brighter as they gather at the iconic Radio City Music Hall to celebrate Broadway's biggest night. Leading up to the 75th Annual Tony Awards, BroadwayWorld is getting up close and personal with the nominees. Today we're studying up on Gabby Beans...