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Exclusive: Vincent Kartheiser (Mad Men) and Laura Slade Wiggins (Shameless) have signed on to star alongside Landon Ashworth (Space Force) in Go On, a fantasy drama marking Ashworth’s feature directorial debut, which will enter production in New Mexico in September.

Marking Ashworth’s first produced feature screenplay, the film follows two strangers on a remote mountain, scorched by forest fires, as they help each other process baggage from their previous lives so they can transition to the afterlife. Ashworth crafted the screenplay after losing his very young cousin, Landon Bellm, to suicide.

“Having my feature film directorial debut be my own screenplay which addresses real, meaningful, and relatable issues is an honor,” Ashworth told Deadline. “Also, having the opportunity to work with Vincent is beyond a dream come true. I’ve followed his career for over a decade and knew he needed to play the co-lead of this movie.

After the success of Prey, director Dan Trachtenberg is reportedly working on his next standalone film in the Predator franchise. Titled Badlands, the film reportedly features Elle Fanning in the lead role. While no plot details have been revealed, the film will also be set in the Predator universe like Prey.

Amber Midthunder in a still from Prey | 20th Century Studios

Fanning’s casting might just be a masterstroke for the film as she has been known for her powerhouse performances. While she was recently seen in her Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated series The Great, Fanning has been delivering amazing performances since she made her debut as a child actress in I Am Sam. Here are five performances that prove why she is the best choice for Dan Trachtenberg’s Predator film.

1. The Beguiled (2017) A still from The Beguiled | Credits: American Zoetrope/Fr Productions

Elle Fanning first worked with director...

Given the success of the acclaimed 2022 Predator prequel film Prey, it's no surprise that the franchise will be moving forward and possibly circling another female star for its next movie. According to a new report from Deadline, Emmy and Golden Globe nominated actress Elle Fanning is currently in talks for the lead role in the standalone film Badlands from 20th Century and Prey director Dan Trachtenberg.

Trachtenberg will return to direct Badlands based on a script he co-wrote with Patrick Aison. The deal has not yet been formally announced, and 20th Century had no comment on the news, but if it does happen, it would be an exciting step forward for the film series. Many felt that Prey was one of the best horror films of the past decade, with actress Amber Midthunder earning high praise for her performance.

Fanning is already a respected actress with notable roles in The Great,...

It's "Alien" vs. "Predator" all over again. As the next installment of the classic horror franchise is set to arrive later this year with "Alien: Romulus," the rival "Predator" series is gearing up for a revival of its own. Director Dan Trachtenberg's "Prey" injected fresh blood into the IP in 2022, stripping away all the flashy bells and whistles from Shane Black's messy sequel and instead taking things back in time to colonial America. In fact, the Hulu film earned such glowing praise that it led to a buzzy announcement earlier this year, when we heard the promising news that 20th Century Studios would be bringing Trachtenberg back for more movies to come. At the time, all that was revealed was the title of the next planned feature -- "Badlands" -- but now we know which actor has been handpicked to lead Trachtenberg's new film.

According to Deadline, rising...

Emmy nominee Elle Fanning is in talks to star in “Badlands,” a standalone movie from Dan Trachtenberg that expands the “Predator” universe.

Trachtenberg is set to direct the movie for 20th Century Studios from a script he co-wrote with Patrick Aison. “Badlands” comes following the success of Trachtenberg’s “Prey” — the “Predator” prequel which was a critical hit and broke records with its release on Hulu. The 2022 film was nominated for five Primetime Emmys, winning one for sound editing; “Prey 2” is in early development, with its star Amber Midthunder potentially returning. “Badlands” was announced in February, with the film expected to begin production later this year. Plot details are being kept under wraps.

Fanning recently wrapped a three-season run as executive producer and star of Hulu’s “The Great,” where she starred as Russian monarch Catherine the Great and earned her first Emmy nomination (for outstanding lead actress in...

What does an abundantly talented woman have to do to get an Oscar around here? Annette Bening is 0-5 when it comes to winning an Academy Award in the acting categories. If it were up to her fans, there would a law in place that would put an end to this insanity. She might not always choose well when it comes to picking projects – if you haven’t seen 2000’s “What Planet Are You From?,” consider yourself lucky. Of course, it was probably criminal that her performance in 2016’s “20th Century Women” didn’t make more of an impact.

Bening was born on May 29, 1958, and married actor, producer, writer and director Warren Beatty after co-starring in “Bugsy.” Let’s look back at her three-decade career on the big screen, with 13 of her greatest films in our photo gallery, including “Nyad,” “The American President,” “The Grifters,” “The Kids Are All Right” and “American Beauty,...

Annette Bening really should have gotten an Oscar by now, shouldn’t she? A consummate professional, Bening has been a star since 1990, when she received a Supporting Actress nod for her turn as a sexed-up con artist in “The Grifters.” Since then, she’s been a constant welcome presence on film, an actor that can be relied upon to give a charismatic, layered, and smartly calibrated performance. But, for one reason or another, she’s never quite taken home the gold.

Now on her fifth overall nomination and fourth Best Actress nod, Bening doesn’t seem overall likely to change that this year. She’s not a top competitor for her role in “Nyad,” in which she plays the eponymous long-distance swimmer with a penchant for self-mythologizing. Bening is one of the categories longshot competitors, as the likes of Emma Stone and Lily Gladstone are widely seen as frontrunners for the overall prize.

What should we make of the “Barbie” blowup?

After the candy-coated phenom debuted last summer to glowing reviews and box office glory, it seemed like a certifiable Oscar juggernaut. Last week as the Academy Award nominations were unveiled, “Barbie” scored a perfectly respectable eight nominations. However, voters overlooked director Greta Gerwig and lead actress Margot Robbie in their respective categories, sparking a social media backlash that threatens to overshadow the awards. It’s disappointing that Gerwig and Robbie’s outstanding work didn’t make the cut, but some perspective is important here. If you’ve only been getting your Oscar analysis from TikTok and X, you’d be forgiven for thinking “Barbie” was completely shut out.

Clearly that wasn’t the case. On one hand, I get the outrage. Female filmmakers still face an uphill climb when it comes to getting jobs and recognition. After all, only eight women have...

Exclusive: Annette Bening, who just received her fifth Oscar nomination last week for her portrayal of champion swimmer Diana Nyad in Nyad, has been named as the inaugural recipient of the Santa Barbara Film Festival’s Arlington Award.

The Arlington represents the first new award the festival has created in more than two decades and is named for the historic venue where all the fest’s annual tributes timed to Oscar season take place. It will be presented on Friday, February 16, 2024 at the theater, preceded by an in-person conversation I will be moderating covering her entire career.

“This is the first award added to our slate in 20 years. It is made to honor an artist who is greatly admired and who has demonstrated an incomparable commitment to film and its craft. Ms. Bening has not only displayed all of those qualities, but is considered by us to be a friend of the film festival.

Annette Bening, the guest on this episode of The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, is one of the most talented and admired actresses of her generation. Vanity Fair has called her “a leading lady from the old school,” who “epitomizes the wit and glamour of modern Hollywood.” The Los Angeles Times has said she “brings to mind such Golden Age actresses as Bette Davis, Claudette Colbert and Barbara Stanwyck — sassy, ready-for-anything heroines a half-step ahead of their man.”

Over the course of some 35 years in the business, Bening has given standout performances in films like 1990’s The Grifters, 1991’s Bugsy, 1995’s The American President, 1999’s American Beauty, 2004’s Being Julia, 2010’s The Kids Are All Right, 2016’s 20th Century Women and 2017’s Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool. Most recently, she starred in 2023’s Nyad, in which she portrays Diana Nyad, a woman who spent years of her...

Annette Bening is an actor’s actor. Like many of the greats before her, she began her career in the theatre. Through the 80s, she quietly compiled a library of rich, complex characters before making her Tony-nominated broadway debut in 1987’s “Coastal Disturbances.”

Bening then made her well deserved transition over to Hollywood with John Hughes’ “The Great Outdoors.” The film didn’t perform as well as hoped, nor did Milos Forman’s “Valmont” which was released the following year, but they both paved the way for Bening’s eventual Oscar-nominated breakout as Myra Langtry in Stephen Frears’ “The Grifters.”

She got particularly close to Oscar gold with “American Beauty” in 2000. Annette bagged the BAFTA and SAG award for her iconic portrayal of the colourfully volatile wife-in-crisis, Carolyn Burnham. She lost to Hilary Swank (“Boys Don’t Cry”) though, who had edged her out at the Globes.

Swank clearly was Bening’s kryptonite,...

Glenn Close delivered a killer Golden Globes acceptance speech in 2019 when she pulled off an upset in Best Drama Actress by winning for “The Wife.” Lady Gaga was the frontrunner for her performance in “A Star is Born” but it was Close who took to the stage.

We could be in for a similar situation this year as Annette Bening looks to claim a career win of her own. The frontrunner for Best Drama Actress is Lily Gladstone (“Killers of the Flower Moon”). Also nominated are Sandra Hüller (“Anatomy of a Fall”), Carey Mulligan (“Maestro”), Greta Lee (“Past Lives”), and Cailee Spaeny (“Priscilla”). Bening’s path to a Golden Globe victory isn’t just merited by her veteran status, however. She also has the backing of the critics.

Richard Lawson (Vanity Fair) opined: “Nyad is played by Annette Bening, who trained for a year to ready herself for the physical demands of the role.

Gerwig to become first American female director in Cannes history to serve in the role.

Greta Gerwig will preside over the competition jury at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, running May 14-25, 2024.

Adding to what has been a record-breaking year for the Barbie filmmaker, Gerwig will become the first American female director in Cannes festival history to serve as jury president. At age 40, she is also the youngest jury president since Sophia Loren in 1966, the second American woman to assume the role after Olivia de Haviland in 1965, and the second female director after Jane Campion in 2014.

In a statement, the...

Barbie director Greta Gerwig will receive the Director of the Year Award at the 2024 Palm Springs International Film Fest.

The film awards will take place on Jan. 4, with the festival running through Jan. 15.

Past recipients of the award include Jane Campion, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Steve McQueen, Alexander Payne, Sarah Polley, Jason Reitman, David O. Russell, Quentin Tarantino and Chloé Zhao. Campion, Iñárritu and Zhao went on to win the best director Oscar.

“Director Greta Gerwig has brought us the cinematic experience of the year with Barbie, the perfect blend of comedy, emotion and adventure that has both entertained and resonated with audiences, becoming a cultural touchstone around the world,” Festival chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi says. “Gerwig is a masterful filmmaker, and her vision is brought to life so vividly by both the script she co-wrote with Noah Baumbach, and by her clear and singular collaboration with her extraordinary crafts teams,...

Fantasy is a genre that is often hard done by the awards groups, particularly the academy. Occasionally, the odd masterpiece such as Peter Jackson‘s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, which won 17 Oscars, will break their barrier but, in general, the genre doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. Even “Harry Potter” failed to earn an Oscar win and was never nominated in any above-the-line category.

However, Andrew Haigh‘s “All of Us Strangers” is poised to be the next fantastical film that makes the academy’s voters sit up and take notice. Part romance, part ghost story, the film is loosely based on Taichi Yamada‘s 1987 novel “Strangers.” The story follows Andrew Scott‘s Adam as a writer struggling with his latest project who forms a relationship with Paul Mescal‘s Harry. As their relationship progresses, Adam finds himself drawn to his past and visits his hometown only...

Acclaimed director, writer, and actor Greta Gerwig is set to helm the next adaptation of C.S. Lewis’s beloved fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia. Gerwig, who has previously directed the Oscar-nominated films Lady Bird and Little Women, will bring her unique vision and style to the magical world of Narnia, starting with the first book in the series, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

The film, which is being produced by Netflix and Walden Media, will feature a diverse cast of newcomers and veterans, including Tilda Swinton as the White Witch, Liam Neeson as the voice of Aslan, and David Oyelowo as the voice of Mr. Beaver. The roles of the four Pevensie children, who enter Narnia through a wardrobe and embark on an epic adventure to free the land from the witch’s eternal winter, have not been announced yet.

Gerwig, who is also co-writing the screenplay with her partner Noah Baumbach,...

American Beauty (1999)A sexually frustrated suburban father has a mid-life crisis after becoming infatuated with his daughter’s best friend.Rating: 8.3/10Stars: Kevin Spacey (Lester Burnham), Annette Bening (Carolyn Burnham), Thora Birch (Jane Burnham), Wes Bentley (Ricky Fitts)20th Century Women (2017)The story of a teenage boy, his mother, and...

Graphic: Images: IMDBAmerican Beauty (1999)

A sexually frustrated suburban father has a mid-life crisis after becoming infatuated with his daughter’s best friend.

Rating: 8.3/10

Stars: Kevin Spacey (Lester Burnham), Annette Bening (Carolyn Burnham), Thora Birch (Jane Burnham), Wes Bentley (Ricky Fitts)

20th Century Women (2017)

The story of a teenage boy, his mother,...

Previous filmmakers to inhabit the role include Pedro Almodóvar, David Lynch, Agnès Varda.

Greta Gerwig, riding high on the global success of Barbie, has been named AFI Fest’s guest artistic director at the 37th edition of the Los Angeles event running October 25-29.

Gerwig joins an illustrious list of former filmmakers to inhabit the role including Pedro Almodóvar, Bernardo Bertolucci, Ava DuVernay, David Lynch, and Agnès Varda.

“Greta Gerwig is devoted to cinema, and AFI is devoted to her,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI president and CEO. “In 2010, she served on the Shorts Jury for AFI Fest – and across the years since then,...

On the heels of a staggeringly triumphant run with Barbie, the fantastical comedy which she co-wrote and directed for Warner Bros, Greta Gerwig has been appointed by the American Film Institute to serve as Guest Artistic Director of AFI Fest 2023.

An Oscar-nominated filmmaker known equally for her work as an actress, Gerwig joins a lineage of Guest Aristic Directors that also includes such titans as Pedro Almodóvar, Bernardo Bertolucci, Ava DuVernay, David Lynch and Agnès Varda. The 37th edition of the festival is set to take place October 25-29 in Los Angeles. Ticket bundles have already been made available for purchase, along with the full festival lineup, with individual tickets to go on sale tomorrow.

One half of the cultural phenomenon known as Barbenheimer, opposite Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, Gerwig’s live-action Barbie has proven immensely popular with critics and moviegoers alike, setting numerous records while grossing over $1.4B worldwide.

Daniel Dorr is an German-American stage, film and television actor. He is best known for his distinct roles as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the sci-fi/adventure film Bill & Ted Face the Music, Lt. Obersturmfuhrer Schmidt in the action film Fury, and for playing a smaller role in the hit drama/comedy film 20th Century Women.

Daniel Dorr Biography: Age, Early Life, Family, Education

Daniel Dorr was born on April 25, 1993 (Daniel Dorr age: 30) in Munich, Germany. He grew up in between Israel and Spain and relocated with his family to Los Angeles, California at a young age. Dorr graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, located in Los Angeles.

Daniel Dorr Biography: Career

In an exclusive interview with uInterview, Dorr revealed his unique experience getting into acting.

“Well, my dad’s an actor, my mom’s an opera singer, so I kind of was screwed from the get-go, you know?...

After years as an indie darling, Greta Gerwig has become a box office sensation. The filmmaker’s third directorial effort “Barbie” has become one of the biggest movies of 2023, posting a massive $155 million opening weekend. And although the film’s numerous pleasures — including fantastic performances from Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, a blockbuster pop soundtrack, and immaculate (pink!) production and costume design — would have likely helped it find fans regardless. Gerwig’s confident direction and strong voice as a filmmaker is what’s really made the movie into a cultural juggernaut.

“Barbie” and its massive success seems to signal a completely new era of Gerwig’s career. Her next project will see her venture even further into blockbuster filmmaking with two film adaptations of “The Chronicles of Narnia” for Netflix. The films will likely be even bigger than Barbie (at least as a matter of budget), signaling that Gerwig has...

Summer is heating up on Max.

Back in May, Max added programming from TLC, HGTV and Food Network. That means Discovery’s popular Shark Week will be available to stream when it kicks off on July 23, with programming to be announced soon.

For fans of unscripted series, Season 3 or “90 Day Fiancé: Love in Paradise: Pillow Talk” (July 4) and Season 5 of “90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way” (July 10) are both streaming, as well as the series premiere of “90 Day Fiancé: UK.”

Home renovation fans will want to catch Season 16 of “Barnwood Builders” (July 6) and the special “Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge” (July 16), hosted by Ashley Graham, just in time for the feature film.

Also Read:

Here’s What’s New on Amazon Prime Video in July 2023

“Project Greenlight” (July 13) returns, with executive producer Issa Rae along with Kumail Nanjiani and Gina Prince-Bythewood serve as mentors throughout the season.

Finally, the six-episode Max Original limited series “Full Circle,...

Max is following DC’s lead with its list of new releases for July 2023.

The two big ticket items this month are of the superhero variety. My Adventures with Superman arrives to Max on July 7 after making its Adult Swim premiere the night before. The end of the month sees Harley Quinn season 4 making its long-awaited debut on July 27. Other original TV titles of note are the Steven Soderbergh-directed Full Circle (July 13) and the third and final season of How To With John Wilson on July 28.

On the movie side of things, documentary Glitch: The Rise and Fall of HQ Trivia premieres on July 20. Before that on July 13 is both a fresh reboot of filmmaking competition Project Greenlight and the movie that came of it, Gray Matter. Library movies in July include Pulp Fiction, V for Vendetta, Lethal Weapon, and more on July 1.

Here is everything else coming to HBO and Max this month.

Apart from its original series and exclusive streaming titles, Max is set to feature a selection of the most beloved movie franchises on its platform in July. Director Steven Soderbergh and writer Ed Solomon collaborate on the Max Original limited series Full Circle, releasing July 13. The series revolves around an investigation into a failed kidnapping and stars Zazie Beetz, Claire Danes, Jim Gaffigan, Dennis Quaid, and many more. On the movie side, Max will have access to the Rush Hour and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles trilogy starting July 1, alongside all the Lethal Weapon films. However, the Mimic trilogy and some James Bond movies will leave the platform later this month. Here, check out what else is coming and going. Titles Coming to Max in July: July 1 300, (2006) 17 Again, (2009) 20th Century Women, (2016) A Life Less Ordinary, (1997) A Walk in the Woods, (2015) American Sniper, (2014) Angels Sing, (2013) Ballet 422, (2014) Barbershop, (2002) Barbershop 2: Back in Business,...

The original Max series “Full Circle” debuts on July 13. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the new drama investigates a kidnapping gone wrong in New York, revealing the secrets and lies of multiple characters. Or as the trailer warns: “Everything is connected.” The six-episode limited series stars Zazie Beetz, Claire Danes, Jim Gaffigan, Jharrel Jerome, Timothy Olyphant, and Dennis Quaid.

Watch the “Full Circle” trailer:

The four-part documentary “Last Call: When A Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York” is set in the early 1990s as the AIDS crisis worsens. The media’s distorted coverage of the gay victims, coupled with the homophobic biases of the criminal justice system, undermine the investigation. The docuseries — which premieres on Max on July 9 — illustrates how the LGBTQ+ community fought to solve the murders and demand attention for those murdered.

Preview “Last Call: When A Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York”:

Arriving on the platform on...

Timothy Olyphant, Claire Danes, and Dennis Quaid in ‘Full Circle’ (Photograph by Sarah Shatz)

Max’s July 2023 schedule includes the premiere of the drama Full Circle and the return of Shark Week. The hot summer month’s lineup also includes the final season of How To With John Wilson, the premiere of Project Greenlight, and the final episodes of the popular comedy The Righteous Gemstones.

The two-part documentary The Golden Boy about the life and career of Oscar De La Hoya joins the streaming service’s lineup on July 24th. Shaun White: The Last Run, a docuseries about the Olympian, is set to premiere on July 6th.

Series & Films Arriving On Max In July 2023:

July 1

300 (2006)

17 Again (2009)

20th Century Women (2016)

A Life Less Ordinary (1997)

A Walk in the Woods (2015)

American Sniper (2014)

Angels Sing (2013)

Ballet 422 (2014)

Barbershop (2002)

Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004)

Beauty Shop (2005)

Because of Winn-Dixie (2005)

Brandi Carlile: In the...

The Entertainment Community Fund, formerly called The Actors Fund, has a new board chair: Annette Bening.

The board for the Fund, one of Hollywood’s leading charitable nonprofits, announced that the American Beauty and 20th Century Women actor would be succeeding longtime chair Brian Stokes Mitchell at its annual meeting on Wednesday evening. Helmed by Mitchell since 2004, the board institutes policies for services provided by the Fund including emergency financial grants, affordable housing options and support groups, among other offerings, for workers in the performing arts and entertainment industries.

Bening has served on the board since 2010; she was elevated to vice chair in 2016. In 2010 Bening was awarded the Fund’s Medal of Honor, spotlighting individuals who “enrich” the entertainment community, for her work helping to lead a campaign that raised $10M for the Fund during the Great Recession. Bening also steered the Hollywood Arts Collective Campaign Committee, which helped to...

Exclusive: Elle Fanning (The Great) is set to star alongside Timothée Chalamet and Monica Barbaro in A Complete Unknown, the Bob Dylan biopic that two-time Oscar nominee James Mangold is directing for Searchlight Pictures.

The film heading into production in New York this summer watches as a young Dylan (Chalamet) shakes up the music world in 1965, as he pivots to performing with an electric guitar for the first time. Fanning will play the role of Dylan’s early ’60s love interest, university student and artist Sylvie Russo.

Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York) wrote the script, with Mangold handling revisions. Dylan’s longtime manager Jeff Rosen will produce alongside Veritas Entertainment Group’s Bob Bookman, Alan Gasmer and Peter Jaysen, Automatik’s Fred Berger, The Picture Company’s Alex Heineman, and Mangold. Exec producers include Dylan, as well as Automatik’s Brian Kavanaugh-Jones and Andrew Rona.

Recognized thus far in...

In the article series Sound and Vision we take a look at music videos from notable directors. This week we look at The National's I Am Easy to Find, by Mike Mills. Mike Mills might be foremost known as a feature film director to the readers of ScreenAnarchy. His film 20th Century Women is considered a favorite among many lovers of modern American independent cinema, and his films Thumbsucker, Beginners and C'mon, C'mon all have their defenders too. Thing is: Mike Mills is a man of many occupations, in all of which he has had some singular stand-outs. For instance: before he became well known as a film director, he was a famous graphic designer, especially of album sleeves. His covers for Air's Moon Safari...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

Exclusive: Archer Gray Partner Vinay Singh has been promoted to CEO at the media company, known for such projects as the Oscar-nominated Can You Ever Forgive Me?, the Tony-winning musical Once and the SXSW-winning documentary, Transmilitary.

Singh has been with Archer Gray since 2015, previously serving as the company’s COO and Vice-Chair. He takes over the CEO post from Amy Nauiokas, the Wall Street exec and investor who launched the company in 2010 and will now focus on her role as its Chair. In his new role, Singh will oversee a rapidly expanding media business, which now spans scripted and unscripted content, live experiences, and brand and retail strategy. He will, at the same time, guide the company’s launch of a venture studio focused on talent-led brands and experiences, reporting to Nauiokas.

During his time at Archer Gray, Singh has directed investments in disruptive media companies like Sharegrid, the production...

Exclusive: Kiersey Clemons (Warner Bros’ upcoming The Flash) is set to lead cast in Tayarisha Poe’s (Selah and the Spades) sophomore feature The Young Wife for FilmNation and Archer Gray.

Principal photography has begun in Savannah, Ga, on the feature, which was written and is being directed by Poe.

Archer Gray’s Anne Carey produces, Amy Nauiokas is an executive producer and Rebecca Choi co-produces. The film is fully financed by FilmNation, with Ashley Fox serving as executive producer for the company.

According to the team, the movie follows a woman grappling with the meaning of love and commitment in the face of an uncertain and tumultuous world. A sunny-day panic attack and a wholly new take on the wedding film, the movie follows her over the course of her “non-wedding” day.

Emmy and Tony winner Judith Light (The Menu), Grammy winning R&b artist Leon Bridges (in his acting debut), Michaela Watkins,...

“To visit planet earth, you will have to be born as a human child”

From A24, C’mon C’mon,the moving story about the connections between adults and children, arrives April 12 on DVD and Blu-ray from Lionsgate.

From A24, C’mon C’mon, the moving story about the connections between adults and children, arrives April 12 on DVD and Blu-ray from Lionsgate. Written and directed by Academy Award® nominee Mike Mills, the movie features Academy Award® winner Joaquin Phoenix, Woody Norman, Primetime Emmy® Award nominee Gabby Hoffmann, Scoot McNairy and Jaboukie Young-White. C’mon C’mon will be available on DVD for the suggested retail price of $19.98 and on Blu-ray for the suggested retail price of $21.99.

Johnny (Joaquin Phoenix) and his young nephew (Woody Norman) forge a tenuous but transformational relationship when they are unexpectedly thrown together in this delicate and deeply moving story about the connections between adults and children and the past and the future,...

It was a big swing for writer and director Mike Mills to cast Joaquin Phoenix in his beautiful drama “C’mon C’mon,” something he didn’t expect he would take on. “I think Joaquin is an incredibly smart and multiple layered person, who will always be surprising,” says Mills. “So if this role seems surprising, then yes, sign me up. He’s not going to do the Joker twice in a row.”

On this edition of the Variety Awards Circuit Podcast, we speak with the Oscar-nominated writer and director of the black-and-white dramedy “C’mon C’mon” from A24. He discusses shooting his film during Joaquin Phoenix’s Oscar run for “Joker,” as well as the magnificent additions of his co-stars Emmy nominee Gaby Hoffman and newcomer Woody Norman. Also, in this episode, the Awards Circuit Roundtable discusses the opening of Oscar voting and where the race for the Academy Awards currently stands.

Now that Sundance has answered the question looming over the 2022 festival by going all-virtual for the second year in a row, it’s full-steam ahead. And today the nonprofit Sundance Institute announced the members of its six juries, including Marielle Heller (“Can You Ever Forgive Me?”), Andrew Haigh (“Weekend”), Joey Soloway (“Transparent”), and Payman Maadi (“A Separation”). The 16 jurors will bestow awards upon the festival’s winners January 28, with award-winning movies available for extended online viewing during the festival’s closing weekend.

“These exceptional individuals will come together to offer a collaborative lens on our program,” said Sundance’s Director of Programming Kim Yutani in an official statement. “Their diverse personal perspectives can elevate work above the sum of its parts.” As previously announced, the jury for Alfred P. Sloan jury deliberated in advance of the festival and awarded the prize to “After Yang,” directed by Kogonada.

And audiences will...

Marielle Heller (A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood), Garrett Bradley (Time), Joey Soloway (Transparent), Andrew Haigh (Lean on Pete) and Dawn Porter (The Me You Can’t See) have been named as jurors for the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, taking place virtually from January 20-30.

Heller, who brought her first feature The Diary of a Teenage Girl to the festival in 2015, will preside over the U.S. Dramatic Competition with C’mon C’mon producer and former Annapurna Pictures exec Chelsea Barnard, and A Separation actor Payman Maadi.

Bradley, whose Sundance-premiering doc Time earned an Oscar nomination in 2021, will oversee the U.S. Documentary Competition with Peter Nicks, the director behind 2021 Sundance title Homeroom, and director-cinematographer Joan Churchill.

Soloway, the Transparent and I Love Dick creator who brought their first feature, Afternoon Delight, to Sundance in 2013, will serve as this year’s sole juror of the Next section, with Reservation Dogs director...

“I make a film to help me have meaning and help me find connection with other people,” reveals Mike Mills. His latest movie, “C’mon C’mon,” takes inspiration from his personal life. His past two endeavors (“20th Century Women” and “Beginners”) were based on his parents, and his newest story is a similarly personal tale of raising his young child. As such, the connection between a kid and his father figure serves as the beating heart of “C’mon C’mon.” Watch the exclusive video interview above.

There is no single event or moment with his child that spurred Mills to start writing this script. “There’s so much on the line,” he explains of raising a kid. “It’s so crazily intimate and meaningful to be needed on that level.” So it’s no surprise that the film contains a specific gentleness and intimacy, as both the adult Johnny (Joaquin Phoenix) and...

World premiering at the 2021 Telluride Film Festival, C’mon C’mon is Mike Mill‘s fourth feature film following Thumbsucker (2005), Beginners (2010) and 20th Century Women (2016). Something of a cross between Michael Apted’s 7 Up Series for its affectionate and anthropological approach to documenting children’s inner thoughts, and perhaps 70s and 80s Woody Allen for capturing the timeless and restlessness qualities of New York City, it’s a also a bittersweet look at the highs and occasional lows/woes of parenting. Joaquin Phoenix joined the project early on and it was shot primarily in New York, but includes the backdrops of New Orleans, Los Angeles and Detroit as well.…...

Mike Mills' movies are vivid portraits of a time and place. "Beginners," "20th Century Women," and Mills' latest film, "C'Mon C'Mon," are almost like time capsules. They're about people looking back, especially at the figures and days that defined them. "I have to do more therapy about why memory trips me out so much," Mills told us. 

In "C'mon C'mon," the filmmaker tells the story of a kid (Woody Normal) and his uncle (Joaquin Phoenix) hitting the road. As the uncle tells his nephew, he'll remind him of this time if he forgets. Time is precious in Mills' work. 

Recently, the writer-director told...

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The Ghostbusters are back this weekend in Ghostbusters: Afterlife, opening in 4,300 theaters including IMAX and other large screens. It is the fourth film in Sony’s franchise and a direct sequel to the first two films, disregarding the 2016 reboot. Afterlife is a family affair, being written and directed by Jason Reitman, whose father Ivan Reitman directed Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II and is producing Afterlife. Even the story keeps it the family, focusing on the grandchildren of O.G. ghostbuster Egon Spengler, who was played in the original films by the late Harold Ramis. The cast is headlined by Paul Rudd, Finn Wolfhard ("Stranger Things"), Carrie Coon, and Mckenna Grace, but the real treat for fans is the return of the old gang as the film brings back Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver and Annie Potts.

The original Ghostbusters was the highest grossing film of 1984, and it was...

It’s hard to imagine an actor with more disdain for the interview process than Joaquin Phoenix. Over the years, Phoenix’s awkward responses to questions from interviews have practically become an extension of his uneasy screen persona. In 2019, he walked out of an interview for “Joker” when asked about whether the movie incited violence, and when another reporter asked him about preparing for the role a few months later, he said it was “old news.”

In 2014, he confessed during an Esquire profile that while he didn’t hate doing press, he certainly doesn’t like it, likening himself to “a bratty kid who doesn’t want to take a shower.” Phoenix’s discomfort with the process has become so tied to his persona that he even spoofed it himself with a prankish appearance on “Late Night With David Letterman,” in a bit that ended up being part of the mockumentary “I’m Still Here.

As with his past features Beginners and 20th Century Women, writer-director Mike Mills focused his latest effort, C’mon C’mon, on family—this time honing in not on his relationship with his father or mother, but instead on that between an adult and a child.

“The story, the heart of it came from me having a kid, and living with my kid, and experiencing the world with them,” Mills said Sunday during Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles even, “and having someone need you so fully. It’s so intimate, being a parent.”

In the A24 pic, Joaquin Phoenix plays Johnny, a radio journalist whose latest project has him interviewing children across the U.S. about the state of affairs in the world. Johnny forges a tenuous but transformational relationship with his 8-year-old nephew Jesse (Woody Norman)—the son of his sister Viv (Gaby Hoffmann)—when he winds up...

A24 has released the official trailer for “C’mon, C’mon,” the latest feature from Mike Mills, who has proven himself a master of stories about everyday heartbreaks of the human condition in films like “Beginners” and “20th Century Women.” Starring Joaquin Phoenix and Gaby Hoffman in an elegant black and white framing, “C’mon C’mon” follows a man forging a connection with his eccentric nephew following his mother’s death. The first trailer will no doubt appeal to fans of Mills’ brand of moody humanism, as well as those with a penchant for heartfelt stories about children and adults.

In his review out of this year’s Telluride Film Festival last week, IndieWire’s David Ehrlich wrote: “A shaggy black-and-white mood piece about an unmarried radio journalist (Joaquin Phoenix) who unexpectedly finds himself on a cross-country assignment with his nine-year-old nephew (Woody Norman) in tow, Mills’ latest film…can be...

It is never too early to take a look at the movies that could figure in the 94th Academy Awards. Variety’s experts present the Circuit Contenders, movies that could score a minimum of two nominations in the major categories — picture, director, screenplay, international film and the acting races.

Annette

(Amazon)

Though it came out earlier in the year, the performances from Adam Driver, Marion Cotillard and Simon Helberg are excellent. As the season goes on, voters might look back to this wholly original film for accolades beyond the score and songs. It will take a fresh push to get it back in people’s minds, but the actors and director Leos Carax (who won the director prize at Cannes) are worth remembering.

Being The Ricardos

(Amazon)

One of the big unknowns of the season, the pedigree of the film alone has people buzzing. Written and directed by Oscar-winner Aaron Sorkin,...

Film directors have been exploring their own childhood memories on screen for decades, and the honor roll of notable films that have come from that exploration ranges from Francois Truffaut’s “The 400 Blows” to George Lucas’ “American Graffiti,” from Louis Malle’s “Au Revoir les Enfants” to Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous,” Mike Mills’ “20th Century Women” to Lee Isaac Chung’s “Minari,” from John Boorman’s “Hope and Glory” to Alfonso Cuaron’s “Roma.” Writer-director-actor Kenneth Branagh has now tried his hand at the genre, and to say that “Belfast” brings out the best in him would be an understatement.

Visually stunning, emotionally wrenching and gloriously human, “Belfast” takes one short period from Branagh’s life and finds in it a coming-of-age story, a portrait of a city fracturing in an instant and a profoundly moving lament for what’s been lost during decades of strife in his homeland of Northern Ireland.

Everyone speaks in the same struggling-to-be-sensitive manner in C’mon C’mon, a film of intelligence and insight that nonetheless remains a low-key and sometimes frustrating study of big-city shortfallers. Toplined by Joaquin Phoenix in his first outing since his Joker Oscar turn and highlighted by a precocious performance from young newcomer Woody Norman, this is an impeccable-looking film about a mangy radio journo trying to put his finger on the pulse of American citizens, with only tentative and partially edifying results. Premiered at the Telluride Film Festival, this A24 release will open after its screening at the New York Film Festival on October 4, but no date is set.

Writer-director Mike Mills stirred critical interest with very good casts in three previous features spread over 12 years: Thumbsucker, Beginners and 20th Century Women. His new film, which is in splendid black-and-white, focuses on brainy, water-treading urbanites trying but mostly failing to make coherent...

A24 released a trailer for “C’mon C’mon,” which premiered at the Telluride Film Festival and will open in theaters later this year.

Helmed by Mike Mills, the Oscar-winning director behind “20th Century Women,” the films stars Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny, a middle-aged radio journalist who, when left to take care of his nephew (Woody Norman), embarks on a trip across the country to interview kids, asking them what they think about their lives and where the world is headed.

Rounding out the cast are Gaby Hoffmann as Johnny’s sister Viv, Scoot McNairy as Viv’s high-maintenance ex-husband Paul, Molly Webster as Roxanne and Jaboukie Young-White as Fernando.

In his review, Variety’s chief film critic Peter Debruge called the film “a small, soft-spoken yet casually profound family drama,” while film awards editor Clayton Davis wrote in his column, “Mills’ film is not going to appeal to everyone, but I...

If there’s a film that screened in the mountains at the Telluride Film Festival, and grew legs with attendees, it was Mike Mills’ “C’mon C’mon” starring Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann and Woody Norman. The A24 feature debuted at the famous Chuck Jones theater on the fest’s opening day, which has become a bit of a good luck charm since movies like “Lady Bird” (2017) and the best picture-winning “Moonlight” (2016) played in that coveted slot. No one initially discussed Mills’ follow-up to “20th Century Women,” which earned him an original screenplay nom — the film’s sole mention. But as the five-day festival continued, the black-and-white picturesque depiction on how we communicate with each other, become a festival favorite.

Mills’ film is not going to appeal to everyone, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t share that this could be the best screenplay written in the last decade, something the writers branch may recognize.

C’mon C’Mon, the latest film from writer-director Mike Mills premiered at the Telluride film festival and was enjoyed by virtually all who saw it. Like his prior two films — 2011’s Beginners, which was inspired by his father, and 2016’s 20th Century Women, which was inspired by his mother — it is semi-autobiographical (inspired by his inquisitive young child), small-scale (it cost just $8.3 million) and doesn’t aim to set the world on fire with any grand message. So it remains to be seen if, like each of his earlier films, it can ride its charm to even a ...

C’mon C’Mon, the latest film from writer-director Mike Mills premiered at the Telluride film festival and was enjoyed by virtually all who saw it. Like his prior two films — 2011’s Beginners, which was inspired by his father, and 2016’s 20th Century Women, which was inspired by his mother — it is semi-autobiographical (inspired by his inquisitive young child), small-scale (it cost just $8.3 million) and doesn’t aim to set the world on fire with any grand message. So it remains to be seen if, like each of his earlier films, it can ride its charm to even a ...