News

Gold Derby's top news stories for April 24, 2025.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping casts young Haymitch

Sunrise on the Reaping, the upcoming Hunger Games prequel film, has cast its young version of Haymitch Abernathy, the fan-favorite character played by Woody Harrelson in the original films. Haymitch will be played by Joseph Zada, who will next be seen in the upcoming shows We Were Liars and East of Eden. Emmy nominee McKenna Grace (The Handmaid's Tale) has also boarded as Maysilee Donner, Haymitch's fellow tribute from District 12, while Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl) will play Haymitch's girlfriend Lenore Dove Baird. Sunrise on the Reaping tells the story of the 50th Hunger Games, 24 years before Katniss Everdeen's (Jennifer Lawrence) first Hunger Games, which Haymitch won. The film is based on a just-released novel by Suzanne Collins, and is slated for Nov. 20, 2026.

Chloé Zhao's Hamnet sets release date

Focus Features announced the U.

Paddington The Musical has found a home. The show will pirouette into London’s Savoy Theatre for its world premiere November 1, producers announced Thursday.

Creatives led by director Luke Sheppard have held several workshops and word on the street is that the show’s great.

Tom Fletcher of boy band McFly fame and now a bestselling children’s author has written Paddington’s music and lyrics, while filmmaker, screenwriter and playwright Jessica Swale has penned the book.

‘Paddington in Peru’

Choreographer Ellen Kane’s name has not been included in the Savoy Theatre announcement but Deadline can reveal that she has come up with some stunning, show-stopping choreography. Paddington will be dancing on all paws. And there’s chatter about a chorus line of dancing bears chomping away on marmalade sandwiches. And why not? We shall see if that comes to pass.

Kane used to assist...

Paddington is not only a globally beloved bear and family brand but also good business, presentations by executives of Canal+ group’s StudioCanal unit at the Brand Licensing Europe 2024 convention in London on Wednesday made clear.

Françoise Guyonnet, CEO of StudioCanal, kids & family, and Sissel Henno, head of global sales – licensing & retail at StudioCanal, spoke during a keynote event entitled “Turning a Heritage Brand into a Global Phenomenon.” Its description promised a closer look at the “ongoing journey of Paddington from a classic character to a worldwide cultural phenomenon” ahead of the November release of the third film in the franchise, Paddington in Peru.

And while they emphasized things are still in too early a stage for details, they also had more good news for Paddington’s legions of fans. “We are also working on a new TV series and a new movie to come in 2027, ’28,” the latter of which...

Charlie Cox and Zooey Deschanel know what the audience wants – more dogs!

Dogs are always the best part of a movie and they will have you smiling at your screen throughout. The cuteness is just too much to handle! Whether it’s a comedy like A Dog’s Journey or a heart-wrenching tale like Hachi: A Dog’s Tale, these four-legged animals know just how to grab our attention.

Hachi: A Dog’s Tale (2009)

Now, Charlie Cox and Zooey Deschanel are all set to star in a film in which their dog plays a huge part. Merv is a romantic comedy directed by Jessica Swale who has also worked on projects like Summerland and Ten Percent as a director. According to the premise of the film, Merv will focus on a broken-up couple who come together for the sake of their dog and fans couldn’t be more excited.

Zooey Deschanel and Charlie...

Charlie Cox has been cast alongside Zooey Deschanel in the rom-com 'Merv'.The 41-year-old actor has signed up to star in the film that is being directed by Jessica Swale for Amazon MGM Studios.The picture centres on an estranged couple who find out that the dog they share is depressed following their break-up and decide to have an awkward reconciliation when they take their pooch on a sunny holiday to Florida to lift his spirits.Other stars to have boarded the cast include Chris Redd, Patricia Heaton, David Hunt, Ellyn Jameson, Wynn Everett, Jasmine Matthews and Joey Slotnick.Linsey Stewart and Dane Clark have penned the screenplay with Matt Beer and Roma Downey producing the film.Charlie is known for portraying Matt Murdock/Daredevil in the TV series 'Daredevil' and other projects in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and explained that he feels a "responsibility" to set...

Zooey Deschanel has been cast in the rom-com 'Merv'.The 44-year-old star has signed up to feature in the film that is being directed by Jessica Swale for Amazon MGM Studios.The film centres on an estranged couple who find out that the dog they share is depressed following their break-up and decide to have an awkward reconciliation when they take their pooch on a sunny holiday to Florida to lift his spirits.Linsey Stewart and Dane Clark have penned the screenplay with Matt Beer and Roma Downey producing the picture.Zooey starred in the TV sitcom 'New Girl' as Jess Day between 2011 and 2018 but said last year that it was "too soon" for a reunion episode – even though she would love to spend more time with co-stars including Jake Johnson and Max Greenfield.She told Us Weekly magazine: "No, it's too soon. We need a little more time in between.

Exclusive: Zooey Deschanel has signed on to star in Merv, a romantic comedy that Jessica Swale will direct for Amazon MGM Studios.

Written by Linsey Stewart and Dane Clark, the film (Merv is a working title) watches as an estranged couple learns that the dog they share is suffering from depression following their break-up, awkwardly reconciling over the holidays when they take their dog on a sunny vacation to Florida to lift his spirits.

Producers of the pic are Matt Baer and Roma Downey.

Best known for starring in films like (500) Days of Summer, Yes Man, Almost Famous, and the holiday classic Elf, as well as Fox’s hit sitcom New Girl, Deschanel has most recently been seen starring opposite Casey Affleck in Roadside’s Emerson brothers drama Dreamin’ Wild from Love & Mercy helmer Bill Pohlad, which world premiered at the Venice Film Festival. Other recent projects for the Emmy...

I dreamed a dream of bears gone by – everyone’s favourite fuzzball is heading to a UK stage in 2025. More below…

Paul King’s Wonka seems to have got Studiocanal in the mood for another musical. In the week that the toe-tappingly cheerful chocolatier tale shot to the top of the UK box office, the studio, along with Sonia Friedman Productions and Eliza Lumley Productions, have announced work has started on bringing their most successful (and most ursine) property to the stage in an original musical.

McFly’s Tom Fletcher is on music and lyrics duty, with Jessica Swale (who won an Olivier-award in 2016 for her comedy Nell Gwynn) writing the script. Luke Sheppard, who recently directed inspiring musical-drama The Little Big Things on the West End, is attached to direct the show tentatively titled Paddington: The Musical.

“It is a privilege to be creating a new musical about this...

Exclusive: Netflix’s British drama series Baby Reindeer has gone into production this week, and Deadline can reveal Jessica Gunning has landed a lead role opposite show creator Richard Gadd.

Gunning will play Martha, the female stalker at the center of Gadd’s story, which began life as a one-man stage play at the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe and explores how the warped relationship impacted him and ultimately forced him to face a dark buried trauma. The play won an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement at an Affiliate Theatre.

Gunning is known for roles in Channel 4 comedy Back, Matthew Warchus picture Pride and more recently Jessica Swale’s Gemma Arterton-starring Summerland.

The End of the F*cking World producer Clerkenwell Films is making Baby Reindeer, which Netflix UK VP of Original Series Anne Mensah yesterday at the Edinburgh TV Festival revealed had gone into production.

Weronika Tofilska is...

Streaming

The number of U.K. households with access to a subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service has declined, the Establishment Survey for the second quarter of 2022 by Barb, the U.K. television audience measurement currency, has revealed. In Q2 2022, 19.19 million U.K. homes (67 of households) had access to an SVOD service, a decrease of 382,000, or almost 2, from 19.57 million in Q1 2022.

Some 17.08 million homes (60) had access to Netflix in Q2, down 206,000, or just over 1, from 17.29 million in Q1, while 12.76 million homes (45) had access to Amazon Prime Video in Q2, a decrease of 589,000, or 4, from 13.35 million in Q1. Meanwhile, 2.07 million homes (7) had access to Sky’s streamer Now in Q2, a decline of 64,000, or almost 3, from 2.13 million in Q1.

However, Disney+ and Apple TV+ displayed small gains. Some 6.62 million homes (23) had access to Disney+ in Q1, an increase of 91,000 or just over 1, from 6.53 million in Q1, while 1.61 million homes (6) had access to Apple...

Further titles include ‘Doctor Jekyll’ and ‘Starve Acre’.

The UK Global Screen Fund is to award 10 features with support for their international distribution, including upcoming comedy A Gaza Weekend and period romance Summerland.

The titles will receive a share of £273,000 allocated through the international distribution stand of the £7m fund, which was piloted last year by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms) to boost international opportunities for the UK’s independent screen sector following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. It is administered by the British Film Institute (BFI), which confirmed the scheme’s renewal for...

Commission

Wildlife and nature programmer Love Nature has greenlit five-part natural history series “Evolution Earth” in co-production with PBS and Arte. The series, produced by Passion Planet and shot in extreme locations around the world, is an examination of adaptation stories that illustrate the rapid pace of change happening across Earth, while providing a look at nature’s ability to thrive.

The series includes five films, each showcasing a different extreme landscape including Earth, Islands, Ice, Heat and Grasslands. It will debut across Love Nature’s branded linear and streaming platforms around the world, PBS in the U.S., Arte in France and Germany and on Sky Nature in the U.K. and Italy. Blue Ant International oversees international licensing opportunities outside of commissioning territories.

David Allen is the director of Passion Planet and series producer alongside Oliver Twinch. James Manfull executive produces the series on behalf of Love Nature.

Exclusive: Cosmo Jarvis (Lady Macbeth), Suki Waterhouse (The Divergent Series: Insurgent), Oscar nominee Richard E. Grant (Can You Ever Forgive Me?) and BAFTA nominee Nikki Amuka-Bird (Nw) are among those joining Dakota Johnson and Henry Golding in Netflix and MRC’s Jane Austen movie Persuasion.

Rising Brit actor Jarvis joins as Captain Frederick Wentworth, the love interest opposite Johnson’s character, Anne Elliot. Golding will play Anne’s cousin. We understand that fittings and rehearsals are underway for an imminent UK shoot.

Also joining will be Ben Bailey Smith – aka Doc Brown (The Split), Izuka Hoyle (The Outpost), Mia McKenna-Bruce (Get Even) and Nia Towle (The Hollow).

Persuasion tells the story of Anne Elliot, an unconforming woman living with her snobby family on the brink of bankruptcy. Unmarried and 27-years-old, Anne reconnects with a man she was once persuaded to reject and faces a second chance at love.

The book...

Exclusive: In recent weeks, intrigue has been building in the UK industry about the local remake of French hit Call My Agent! (Dix Pour Cent in France), but cast and plot details have been a tightly guarded secret.

Today, four days before the series gets underway in central London, we can reveal key intel about the Bron Studios and Headline Pictures adaptation, which heralds from BAFTA-winner John Morton (W1A).

Starring will be Tony-nominated actress Lydia Leonard (Absentia) as Rebecca, in a role loosely based on Camille Cottin’s character Andréa Martel; Jack Davenport (Pirates Of The Caribbean) will play Jonathan, in a role loosely based on character Mathias Barneville; Maggie Steed (Chewing Gum) will be Stella; Prasanna Puwanarajah (Patrick Melrose) plays Dan; and newcomers Harry Trevaldwyn (The King) will be Ollie and Hiftu Quasem (Killing Eve) will play Misha.

Also starring will be Fola Evans-Akingbola (Siren), Rebecca Humphries (Trigonometry...

Henry Golding has been cast alongside Dakota Johnson in Netflix’s adaptation of the Jane Austen novel “Persuasion.”

The movie will serve as a modern-day retelling of the romantic drama, centering on the conforming Anne Elliot (Johnson), who lives with her snobby family on the brink of bankruptcy. When Anne, unmarried at 27-years-old, reconnects with Frederick Wentworth, a man she was once persuaded to reject, she faces a second chance at love.

Golding, who shot to stardom as the heartthrob Nick Young in “Crazy Rich Asians” and later led the romantic comedies “A Simple Favor” and “Last Christmas,” surprisingly has not been cast as the love interest. Instead, he will play Mr. Elliot, the cousin of Johnson’s character. Netflix has not announced the actor who will play Frederick Wentworth.

Carrie Cracknell, known for directing Jake Gyllenhaal in “Sea Wall/ A Life” on Broadway, is stepping behind the camera in her feature directorial debut.

Dakota Johnson is set to star in Netflix’s retelling of Jane Austen’s novel “Persuasion.”

Carrie Cracknell, known for directing Jake Gyllenhaal in “Sea Wall/ A Life” on Broadway, is stepping behind the camera in her feature directorial debut. Ron Bass and Alice Victoria Winslow have adapted the screenplay.

Described as a “modern, witty approach” to a beloved story, “Persuasion” tells the story of Anne Elliot, an unconforming woman living with her snobby family on the brink of bankruptcy. Unmarried and 27-years-old, Anne reconnects with a man she was once persuaded to reject and faces a second chance at love.

“Persuasion” was the last novel written by Austen, the author of literary classics like “Sense and Sensibility,” “Pride and Prejudice” and “Emma,” prior to her death in 1817. The property has been adapted for the screen numerous times, including the 2007 TV movie starring Sally Hawkins.

A separate production of “Persuasion...

British actor Joel Fry, who appeared in Danny Boyle’s Yesterday, has joined Succession’s Sarah Snook to star in Persuasion, an adaptation of Jane Austen’s final novel that Mahalia Belo is directing for Searchlight.

Persuasion, a romance of second chances, tells the story of Anne Elliot who, many years after refusing the proposal of young naval officer Frederick Wentworth, finds herself navigating the waters of English society when Wentworth returns from war a wealthy and decorated captain. As Anne ponders missed opportunities, she must consider her own regrets and unwavering, possibly unrequited love.

Fry will play Wentworth opposite Snook’s Elliot.

Jessica Swale, writer-director of ...

British actor Joel Fry, who appeared in Danny Boyle’s Yesterday, has joined Succession’s Sarah Snook to star in Persuasion, an adaptation of Jane Austen’s final novel that Mahalia Belo is directing for Searchlight.

Persuasion, a romance of second chances, tells the story of Anne Elliot who, many years after refusing the proposal of young naval officer Frederick Wentworth, finds herself navigating the waters of English society when Wentworth returns from war a wealthy and decorated captain. As Anne ponders missed opportunities, she must consider her own regrets and unwavering, possibly unrequited love.

Fry will play Wentworth opposite Snook’s Elliot.

Jessica Swale, writer-director of ...

Stars: Gemma Arterton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Lucas Bond, Penelope Wilton, Tom Courtenay, Toby Osmond, Dixie Egerickx | Written and Directed by Jessica Swale

Ever since the super low budget and criminally underrated Disappearance of Alice Creed (if you have not seen it check it out), I have been a big fan of Gemma Arterton; she is easily in the top 5 or 6 actresses we have on our British shores. So with that in mind, I am always keen to see the latest films she features in. Sprinkle in a whole dose of actual global virus events and a somewhat upbeat hopeful movie about evacuees during World War 2 might just be what the doctor ordered…

Arterton plays Alice, a shut off reclusive writer, spending her days researching folklore and writing her new book in the picturesque setting of the seaside cliffs of Southern England while World War II rages on in the background. After...

Apple TV+ has given a straight-to-series pickup to the thriller “Surface” from “High Fidelity” creator Veronica West, the streamer announced Monday.

“The Morning Show” star Gugu Mbatha-Raw is set to star in the series, though no plot or character details have been released.

Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine will produce “Surface” with Apple Studios, with Witherspoon and Lauren Neustadter serving as executive producers alongside series creator and showrunner West and co-executive producer Mbatha-Raw.

“Surface” marks the latest collaboration between Apple and Hello Sunshine — a partnership that has previously produced “The Morning Show” and the crime drama “Truth Be Told,” as well as the upcoming music competition series “My Kind of Country.”

West’s previous credits include Hulu’s “High Fidelity” adaptation, the upcoming “Dexter” revival, the CBS procedural “Bull,” NBC’s “Chicago Fire” and The CW’s “Hart of Dixie.”

For Mbatha-Raw, the project follows the British comedy-drama “Misbehaviour,...

Exclusive: After her breakout role in the Netflix comedy series Sex Education, Emma Mackey has landed her first major lead role in a feature film as we are hearing she is attached to star in Working Title’s Nell Gwynn. Working Title is still still packaging before they go to financiers which would include Focus Features, who Working Title goes to first as part of their first look deal with Universal. Insiders add they will likely cast the role of Charles II, with execs currently meeting with talent, before taking package out.

Based on the Olivier-winning play by Jessica Swale, who is also adapting, the story follows the life of Nell Gwynn, mistress of Charles II, and her part in the theatre of the 17th century. Ordinary Love directors Lisa Baros D’Sa and Glenn Layburn will helm.

Mackey’s star has been on the rise with her scene stealing...

“Succession” breakout and Emmy nominee Sarah Snook is set to star in “Persuasion,” an adaptation of Jane Austen’s final novel at Searchlight, according to an individual with knowledge of the project.

Mahalia Belo is directing the project.

“Persuasion” is Jane Austen’s final novel, a quintessential romance of second chances. Many years after refusing the proposal of young naval officer Frederick Wentworth, Anne Elliot (Snook) finds herself navigating the waters of English society when Wentworth returns from war a wealthy and decorated Captain. As Anne ponders missed opportunities, she must consider her own regrets and unwavering, possibly unrequited love.

Writer/director Jessica Swale, (“Summerland”) is penning the screenplay adaptation of the Jane Austen book that was first published in 1818, a year after Austen died.

Producers Alison Own and Debra Hayward, are producing the project via their Monumental Pictures banner. BBC Films is the co-financier.

Katie Goodson-Thomas, Searchlight Pictures UK...

Sarah Snook, the Emmy-nominated actress from HBO’s hit drama “Succession,” has signed on to star in an adaptation of Jane Austen’s final novel, “Persuasion.”

The movie, from Searchlight Pictures, will be directed by Mahalia Belo. Published in 1817 after Austen’s death, “Persuasion” centers on Anne Elliot, a 27-year-old whose family moves to lower their expenses. In the meantime, they rent their home to an Admiral and his wife. The wife’s brother, a Navy captain, had been engaged to Anne Elliot (who will be portrayed by Snook), but they have had no contact in more than seven years when they meet again.

Jessica Swale, whose credits include “Summerland,” will pen the screenplay.

Alison Own and Debra Hayward are producing the film through their Monumental Pictures banner. BBC Films is co-financing the drama. Katie Goodson-Thomas is overseeing the project for the studio, as well ass Pete Spencer and manager Apolline Berty.

Sarah Snook is set to star in Searchlight’s adaptation of the Jane Austen novel Persuasion. Mahalia Belo is directing.

Alison Own and Debra Hayward are producing through their Monumental Pictures banner. BBC Films is co-financing the drama.

The novel tells the story of Anne Elliot (Snook) who, many years after refusing the proposal of young naval officer Frederick Wentworth, finds herself navigating the waters of English society when Wentworth returns from war a wealthy and decorated Captain. As Anne ponders missed opportunities, she must consider her own regrets and unwavering, possibly unrequited love.

Jessica Swale is adapting the book that was first published in 1818.

Searchlight Pictures UK’s head of development and production Katie Goodson-Thomas is overseeing with senior development exec Pete Spencer and manager Apolline Berty are overseeing the film.

Snook was most recently nominated for an Emmy for her role as Siobhan ‘Shiv’ Roy on HBO’s award-winning series Succession.

More than 300 global Zoom meetings organised for works in progress, co-production market.

The $58,000 Eurimages Lab Project Award at Haugesund’s New Nordic Films has been presented to A Blind Man Who Did Not Want To See Titanic from Finnish director Teemu Nikki and producer Jani Pösö from Helsiniki-based It’s Alive Films.

The film is about Jaakko, a wheelchair-bound blind man who wants to make a challenging journey to see his girlfriend.

The jury praised Blind Man’s “bold artistic approach, that the director and producer propose, takes us deep into the universe of a blind man who has to confront...

by Juan Carlos

Jessica Swale’s Summerland introduces us to Alice, an old writer living in the countryside during the 1970s. We watch her drive away children who are playing petty pranks on her. While it may seem random, the film utilizes this moment to inform us of her instinctive response to children which will interfere with the story to unfold.

Cut to the 1940s: in the same town, people are wary of the looming terror of the war. A young Alice (Gemma Arterton), then a recluse, is given the news that she is required to take in a young boy named Frank from London as the perils of the war continue to escalate in the capital. Meanwhile, she remembers a former lover (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) from the past...

Exclusive: Jessica Swale has been tapped to rewrite the script for Universal Pictures’ Swan Lake, based on the ballet by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. An earlier version of the script was written by Kristina Lauren Anderson.

Felicity Jones is attached to star. Todd Lieberman and David Hoberman of Mandeville Films will produce. Mandeville’s Alex Young will executive produce.

Senior Executive VP of Production Erik Baiers and Director of Development Lexi Barta will oversee the project on behalf of Universal.

Swale recently made her directorial debut on the World War II drama Summerland, which she also wrote. That film was released by IFC Films and Lionsgate on July 31 to great acclaim. She is currently working on an untitled screenplay for Working Title, as well as Persuasion for Fox Searchlight, Longbourn for StudioCanal.

Swale is represented by Gersh and The Soho Agency.

Written and directed by Jessica Swale, the wartime drama Summerland follows Alice (Gemma Arterton), a reclusive writer with a prickly personality who is content in her solitary life in England during World War II. When she finds herself in a situation where she’s to adopt a frightened young London evacuee named Frank (Lucas Bond), he warms her heart and allows her to re-evaluate painful secrets from her past that free her on her own journey. During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, filmmaker Jessica Swale talked about what inspired her to write Summerland, telling a period …...

The Russell Crowe thriller is the first film to gross over £100,000 since reopening.

RankFilm (Distributor)Three-day gross (Jul 31-Aug 2)Total gross to date Week 1 Unhinged (Altitude) £174,901 £174,901 1 2 Onward (Disney) £58,951 £5.7m 8 3 100% Wolf (Vertigo) £33,130 £33,130 1 4 Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (Disney) £31,137 £7.4m - 5 Jurassic Park (2020 reissue - Universal) £22,987 £61,842 1

Gbp to Usd conversion rate - 1.31

Altitude’s Russell Crowe-led thriller Unhinged has topped the UK and Ireland box office on its debut session, becoming the highest-grossing title over a weekend since cinemas reopened.

The film took £174,901 from 250 locations, with several sites still to report. This was the widest release and biggest...

Lucas Bond as “Frank” and Gemma Arterton as “Alice” in Jessica Swale’s Summerland. Photo by Michael Wharley. Courtesy of IFC Films. An IFC Films Release

Summerland is a sweet drama set in the English countryside during WWII, about a reclusive, curmudgeonly writer who has her heart softened by a young refugee who has been sent to her Sussex village to escape the London Blitz. Gemma Arterton is delightful as the author but everything about writer/director Jessica Swale’s warm-hearted story is a bit too neat and perfect to be believable, much like the folk tales and myths about which the central character writes.

Playwright Jessica Swale makes her feature film debut with Summerland, which stars Gemma Arterton and Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who also appeared in Swale’s Olivier Award-winning play “Nell Gwynn.”

Summerland opens in a picturesque cottage in the English Sussex coastal countryside, with a disheveled older Alice...

The British actor excels as a crotchety loner who takes in a child evacuee in Jessica Swale’s uplifting debut feature

What a lovely, hopeful and rather magical movie this is. The feature debut from writer/director Jessica Swale, whose impressive theatre CV includes the Olivier award-winner Nell Gwynn, Summerland provides just the tonic we need in times of turmoil. A tale of love lost and found, told with wit and charm, it maintains an impressive balance between the sly and the sentimental, gently subverting mainstream formulae as it slips back and forth in time, alternating between the realist and the romantic.

We open in coastal Kent, 1975, with Penelope Wilton’s crotchety Alice rudely shooing children from the door of her cottage (“You know how you can help the aged? You can bugger off!”) so she can return to her typewriter. From here, we spiral back to the 40s, where...

Making a tearjerker that still has a sense of fun to it is a fairly difficult proposition. After all, you want the emotions to seem real, so the playfulness can’t overwhelm it, or frankly, vice-versa. While the back half of Summerland goes for emotions and tears more than the first part, which is lighter and almost comic, the film manages to work on its own merits. To be sure, a main reason why the movie works is Gemma Arterton, who gets to shine in a juicy lead role. Now playing, it’s an option that adults longing for some solid drama can really sink their teeth into. The film is a drama, set during World War II. Alice (Arterton) is a reclusive writer, living a rather solitary life in a small town on the seaside cliffs of Southern England. The war rages, but she’s largely unconcerned, just focused...

Castles in the Sky: Swale Finds Love During Wartime in Likeable Debut

Although it’s a somewhat simple and ultimately schmaltzy dose of narrative convenience, Jessica Swale presents a likeable entry in period lesbian recuperation with her debut Summerland, so named for its lead character’s description of a utopia floating just beyond our horizon. Another strong lead performance from Gemma Arterton buoys what could have easily become a treacly misfire, commanding a solid portrait of independence and resilience despite the crushing machine of social expectation, especially when the preservations of rigid standards are clung to defensively during wartime.

Swale presents a double period piece, framed by 1975 bookends, wherein Penelope Wilton as the elder version of Alice writes her memoirs of a scenario three decades prior, whereupon the narrative re-treats to her same abode on the isle of Kent.…...

Jessica Swale’s World War II-era “Summerland,” debuting on demand via IFC on July 31, turns the English coastal countryside into a character in the tale of a reclusive writer played by Gemma Arterton — and the house in which much of the action takes place serves as a portal to those surroundings.

Making her feature film debut, Swale, the Olivier-winning playwright who penned “Nell Gwynn,” enlisted set decorator Philippa Hart to create the ambience of the house. It’s there that Arterton’s Alice is writing a thesis about the mythology of the area, when a boy — an evacuee from London — is left in her care. Overcoming her initial misgivings, she establishes a friendship with the child that reawakens her emotionally and allows her to reconnect with the memories of a former love (Gugu Mbatha-Raw).

The house that’s featured in the movie is film-friendly — its exteriors were used in the final scenes of 2007’s “Atonement.

Gugu Mbatha-Raw is stretching herself, even while social distancing. The actress co-stars in Summerland, a British dramatic film written and directed by Jessica Swale. Mbatha-Raw plays Vera, the love interest to Alex (Gemma Arterton) during the 1940’s. The love doesn’t last and heartbroken, Alex becomes a recluse in her quaint cottage home. It isn’t until she’s signed up to be a temporary caregiver of Frank (Lucas Bond) during WWI that Alex is forced to face her fears and her past love.

Continue reading Gugu Mbatha-Raw On ‘Summerland’ & The Journey Of Living Through Her Characters [Interview] at The Playlist.

It’s a volatile time in our country. We are divided and there’s an extreme sense of civic unrest. As hopeless as many of us feel, there are heroes on the front lines who are protecting our constitutional freedoms when it comes to abortion rights, immigration rights, LGBTQ rights and voting rights — and those heroes are chronicled in the documentary The Fight which debuts today in select theaters and on demand.

Directed by Elyse Steinberg, Josh Kriegman and Eli Despres, who produce alongside Kerry Washington, The Fight debuted at Sundance earlier this year. Who would have known that this documentary would be so poignant during this pivotal moment in history when Black lives are being killed, trans women of color are being murdered, the well-being of immigrants is at risk and the Trump’s administration is doing everything they can to put civil liberties of marginalized communities in danger.

With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options—not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves–each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit platforms. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.

Black Is King (Beyoncé)

Four years ago, Beyoncé dropped the film version of Lemonade, which brought together directors Kahlil Joseph, Jonas Åkerlund, Mark Romanek, Melina Matsoukas, and more to deliver a visual album that, like many of her works, had an immense cultural impact. She is now returning with Black Is King, a film in production for an entire year that reimagines the tale of The Lion King through the perspective of the Black experience. Now available on Disney+, we imagine it’ll be the most-watched film of the weekend.

Where to Stream: Disney+

Bull (Annie Silverstein)

There’s not much to do around Kristyl’s (Amber Havard) hard...

As far as feature debuts for a writer/director go, there have been few as rewarding as Summerland, the first endeavor from award-winning playwright turned filmmaker Jessica Swale. Utilizing breathtaking English locations and anchoring a wartime drama that sneaks in a wickedly effective love story, replete with fine performances all around, Summerland is that rarest of experiences, a film that somehow manages to make everything in it seem fresh, bright, and new again.

Alice (played by Gemma Arterton) is a reclusive writer, resigned to a solitary life on the seaside cliffs of Southern England while the horrid events of World War II rages on across the channel. When, one day, she opens her front door to learn that she is now expected to watch over a young London evacuee named Frank (Lucas Bond). Although she is resistant at first, it is not long before the two realize they have more...

There is a scene early on in “Summerland,” a romantic WWII drama by Jessica Swale, that calls to mind the pilot of “Killing Eve.” In “Killing Eve,” we first meet assassin Villanelle (Jodi Comer) in an ice cream shop, where, after smiling benignly at a little girl, she walks out and pushes the little girl’s ice cream onto her lap.

Continue reading Gemma Arterton Shines In Subversive Tearjerker ‘Summerland’ [Review] at The Playlist.

Tucked in her seaside cottage, clattering away at her typewriter, and smoking like a chimney, Alice Lamb (Gemma Arterton) doesn’t fit in with her buttoned-up small-town Kent neighbors. Perhaps it’s the townsfolk’s predilection for referring to her as a witch? Or the punk kids who shove trash into her mailbox and run off screaming? Maybe the elder statesman who tells Alice she’s all but asking to be shunned by, what, simply existing? Alice is an outsider and disinterested in playing nice with her community; that’s the sort of thing that would bother her neighbors even during regular times, but Alice is the product of Jessica Swale’s “Summerland,” set in the heat of World War II, even if the bombs are falling miles and miles away.

Alice’s isn’t helped by her own disdain for the world around her — “That’s right, we’ve...

While movie theaters are still hoping to get on track before the end of August, we seem further away from a return to normalcy. Tenet is rolling out overseas before it makes a limited debut in the U.S. More titles are being bumped to 2021. We are a long way from being able to head back to theaters on a weekly basis, that much is certain. Fortunately, there are plenty of options to stream from the comfort of home this weekend.

We have the latest starring Natalia Dyer, a new documentary from Netflix and some new Transformers goods. Plus, we have a movie that was shot entirely during quarantine that is already being released, among other options. Here are this week's streaming selections.

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As the body count rises, it becomes clear that genectically enhanced bull sharks will end life as we know it.

Arterton’s cantankerous bluestocking is landed with a tousle-haired evacuee in Jessica Swale’s bucolic picture of 1940s Kent

Strong on lush cinematography, period knitwear and sincerity, but less effective in terms of historical plausibility, the mostly second world war-set drama Summerland is a mixed bag – a blend of fizzy sherbet lemons and humbug. Gemma Arterton stars as Alice, a cantankerous bluestocking scholar of myths and legends who lives alone – a suspicious tendency in the eyes of the locals, especially the pesky kids who like to play pranks on her – in an impossibly picturesque cottage on the Kent coast.

On the surface, Jessica Swale would seem to have a lot of beginner’s luck. The first play she ever wrote, “Blue Stockings,” was a massive success with audiences and critics, premiering at Shakespeare’s Globe in 2013. Her first official foray behind the camera as writer-director, a short film titled “Leading Lady Parts,” starred a who’s who of powerhouse women and quickly went viral. And now her feature film debut as writer-director, “Summerland,” comes out this week to warm reviews for its story and lead actors Gemma Arterton and Gugu Mbatha-Raw. She also has several scripts in various stages of development, from her own works to adaptations of Jane Austen’s “Persuasion” and the novel “Longbourn.”

Of course, luck has little to do with Swale’s success; she’s a self-proclaimed workaholic who spent a decade building her bona fides as a stage director on such plays as “Sense and Sensibility...

In a cozy, seaside cottage in Kent, with the winds of WWII still at a distance, Alice Bloom (Gemma Arterton) bangs out academic theses about folklore on her typewriter and launches verbal attacks on neighbors who dare to interrupt her work. The locals have the swaggering, chainsmoking Alice pegged as a witch who’s probably signaling the Nazis from her perch over the white cliffs. The Brit villagers are not even half right — but oh, does she have anger to spare. Her reveries concern a torrid affair with Vera ((Gugu Mbatha-Raw...

The Hi-Pointe Theater, at 1005 McCausland Ave in St. Louis, is the best place to see movies. Gemma Arterton in Summerland opens there Friday July 31st.

Check out this romantic trailer:

Alice is a reclusive writer, resigned to a solitary life on the seaside cliffs of Southern England while World War II rages across the channel. When she opens her front door one day to find she’s to adopt a young London evacuee named Frank, she’s resistant. It’s not long, however, before the two realize they have more in common in their pasts than Alice had assumed. Gemma Arterton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Tom Courtenay star in this intensely emotional story of love’s endurance in trying times.

Summerland Feature Film Stills by Michael Wharley

Summerland stars Gemma Arterton (Vita And Virginia), Gugu Mbathta-Raw, Penelope Wilton (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel), Tom Courtenay (45 Years) and is directed by Jessica Swale...

Oh how I love directorial debuts. There’s nothing more exciting than seeing a new director cut her teeth on a passion project, and when that new director is Olivier Award-winning playwright Jessica Swale the result is sure to be interesting. While Summerland is perhaps not as fresh as it might’ve been, it remains a worthwhile watch all […]

The post ‘Summerland’ Movie Review: Tearjerker Hits All The Right Notes appeared first on uInterview.

It’s 1975 and Alice Lamb, played by Penelope Wilton, is cussing at her typewriter and telling cute children to “bugger off.” When we cut back to the same typewriter some 30 years earlier, Alice, now played by Gemma Arterton, is again shouting at local kids and pointedly buying for herself the rationed chocolate bar another saucer-eyed moppet so desires. “Summerland,” the amiable debut feature from UK theater director and playwright Jessica Swale, works hard in its opening 10 minutes to convey the irascible Alice’s unlikability, and then even harder over the following 89 to unpick that impression. It’s all very good-natured but it does amount to a zero-sum game.

We’re on the outskirts of a small coastal village in Kent, in a picturesquely scuffed cottage in the dunes. Alice (Arterton) lives here alone, writing “academic theses” on folklore and investigating the “island in the sky” phenomenon, a kind of Fata Morgana...

To celebrate the release of Summerland, the directorial debut of writer Jessica Swale, we sat down with the writer/director as well as star Gemma Arterton to chat about the magical new drama.

Set in an around the British coastlines, Summerland follows the story of fiercely independent folklore investigator, Alice (Arterton) who secludes herself in her clifftop study, debunking myths using science to disprove the existence of other-worldly forces and magic. Consumed by her work, but also profoundly lonely, she is haunted by a love affair from her past and is soon asked to shelter a young boy named Frank, who has been moved to her little town as the war in London intensifies after the Blitz.

Speaking on the film, Arterton told us she was drawn to Alice due to her characteristics and allowing her to play something different to other roles she has portrayed and, as star and producer,...

It has been seventy-five years since World War II ended and there appears to be no shortage of new tales to tell. Enter Summerland, written and directed by Jessica Swale. The film concerns Alice (Gemma Arterton), a hermetic writer living in Southern England. She’s hated by the entire community, and hates them right back. The legend Tom Courtenay offers up some pitch-perfect facial expressions as the principal of the local school.

As the war tears apart London, a group of children arrive in the seaside town to be temporarily adopted for their safety. Alice is perturbed to find she has apparently volunteered to take care of one: a boy named Frank, played by Lucas Bond. Before long, of course, the pair grow comfortable with one another.

Arterton has been an under-appreciated performer for much of her career. Too often do her stellar turns come in under-seen fare, such as Tamara Drewe and Byzantium.

Both Gemma Arterton and Gugu Mbatha-Raw enjoyed success on the London stage in the title role of playwright Jessica Swale's comedy about Restoration actress and royal mistress Nell Gwynn. Their collaboration continues in Swale's first step into features as writer-director. But Summerland, while it's an original screenplay, has the feel of sentimental historical fiction, the kind of decorous novel that's a dime a dozen as Brit TV miniseries material. For a story in which a potentially controversial mixed-race lesbian relationship plays a significant part, it's also surprisingly insipid.

That's disappointing given how captivating Arterton was a ...