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Josh Hutcherson may have gotten his big break when he was cast as Peeta Mellark in the Hunger Games franchise, but he'd actually been a staple in Hollywood since he was very young. His most recent starring role is in the horror film "Five Nights at Freddy's," based on the video game of the same name, but he's been in tons of other movies as well, dating all the way back to his days as a child actor.

Way before he was running from demonic animatronic characters in "Five Nights at Freddy's," Hutcherson was just a kid working his way up. He had minor roles in 2004's "The Polar Express" and 2005's "Kicking and Screaming," and one of his first major starring roles was in the 2007 film "Bridge to Terabithia," which he starred in when he was 13 years old. He went on to star in 2008's "Journey to the Center of the Earth...

There’s plenty to look forward to in Hulu’s incoming slate, including the latest “American Horror Story” installment, BAFTA winner “The Banshees of Inisherin,” and new “The Kardashians.” But unfortunately, the streamer has to lose to gain, and new content means a library cleanout.

Throughout the month, Hulu will lose nearly 100 movies and series to make room, including multiple entries in “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” franchises, Wes Anderson’s “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” and many others.

Find out below The Streamable’s top 5 picks for what you should prioritize to watch before they leave this month!

30-Day Free Trial $7.99+ / month hulu.com What are the 5 Best Shows and Movies Leaving Hulu in September 2023? “The Full Monty” | Friday, Sept. 15

Hat’s off and farewell to the hit British comedy and Oscar Best Picture nominee as it departs the streamer this month. 1997’s “The Full Monty” follows the unemployed Gaz,...

Selena Gomez is "30, nerdy and worthy" - at least according to her Instagram - and she's also currently living it up in Italy. On Aug. 3, photos published by the Daily Mail showed the "Only Murders in the Building" star enjoying the sunshine on a yacht in Positano, Italy, alongside Andrea Iervolino, an Italian film producer who she worked with on the 2016 movie "In Dubious Battle." She's also shared a few videos over the course of her Italian vacation, posting a body positive clip of herself on TikTok on Aug. 3.

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Gomez turned 30 on July 22, and celebrated her actual birthday with a dinner with Taylor Swift followed by more festivities at Nobu Malibu in Los Angeles. The day after, she wore a shimmering sequined dress for a big party. In an emotional Instagram post shared on July 25, she reflected on the big milestone. "Though there...

Look at her now. Just weeks after ringing in her 30th birthday, Selena Gomez was simply thriving during a boating trip with producer Andrea Iervolino and friends. On Aug. 3, the "Lose You to Love Me" singer was all-smiles as she soaked up the sun aboard a yacht anchored near Positano, Italy. Clad in a black swimsuit, Selena was spotted sunbathing on the dock with Andrea, a producer on her 2016 flick In Dubious Battle, as their friends relaxed in the shade. At one point during the day, the group hit the waves—with Andrea, 34, playfully pulling the Only Murders in the Building star into the water just as she was climbing down a ladder. Selena and her pals were also seen jet-skiing...

Young U.S. model and actor Lola Sultan (“Bernie the Dolphin”) is attached to star alongside Australia’s Abbie Cornish in family action-adventure film “Dakota,” which is set to start shooting this month in Italy.

“Dakota” is being directed by Kirk Harris (“Bernie The Dolphin”) and produced by Italy’s Iervolino Entertainment, which is tapping into the Italian production tax rebate that currently allows a 40% deduction on eligible production costs.

Andrea Iervolino, Monika Bacardi, Danielle Maloni, Marty Poole, Kirk Harris and Ace Underhill are producing. Johnny Harrington (“I Still Know What You Did Last Summer”) wrote the screenplay.

“Dakota” is the name of a combat dog that belongs to Marine Clet Sanders who tragically dies in Afghanistan. Sargent Tj Malcom fulfils a promise to bring Dakota, who is Clet’s best friend, home to his family’s farm.

“Clet’s wife Kate, played by Abbie Cornish is struggling to maintain...

Exclusive: Analeigh Tipton has joined the cast of the Focus and Blumhouse thriller Vengeance, B.J. Novak’s directorial debut. Besides directing, Novak also penned the script and is starring in the pic. Issa Rae, Ashton Kutcher, J. Smith Cameron and Boyd Holbrook are also on board.

Jason Blum is producing the pic via his Blumhouse banner, along with Adam Hendricks and Greg Gilreath of Divide/Conquer. Leigh Kilton-Smith, Chris Warner, and Novak are executive producers.

As usual with any Blumhouse pic, the logline is being kept underwraps. The film recently wrapped production in Santa Fe.

Tipton can currently be seen in the Paramount+ series Why Women Kill opposite Ginnifer Goodwin and Lucy Liu. Previously she starred in the independent feature Broken Star for director Dave Schwep opposite Tyler Labine, and All Nighter opposite J.K. Simmons and Emile Hirsch for director Gavin Wiesen. Recent credits include James Franco’s In Dubious Battle...

Executive’s Mipcom slate includes The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, Jolt.

Millennium Media has named J.J. Nugent vice-president, sales and distribution as the executive prepares to represent the company’s slate at Mipcom this week.

Nugent will launch talks with buyers on Millennium’s upcoming comedy action thriller The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, which is in post and stars Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Salma Hayek, Morgan Freeman, and Antonio Banderas.

The slate includes action thriller Jolt starring Kate Beckinsale, Jai Courtney Stanley Tucci, and Bobby Cannavale, and the drama Tesla starring Ethan Hawke, which chronicles inventor Nikola Tesla...

Executive’s Mipcom slate includes The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, Jolt.

Millennium Media has named J.J. Nugent vice-president, sales and distribution as the executive prepares to represent the company’s slate at Mipcom this week.

Nugent will launch talks with buyers on Millennium’s upcoming comedy action thriller The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, which is in post and stars Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Salma Hayek, Morgan Freeman, and Antonio Banderas.

The slate includes action thriller Jolt starring Kate Beckinsale, Jai Courtney Stanley Tucci, and Bobby Cannavale, and the drama Tesla starring Ethan Hawke, which chronicles inventor Nikola Tesla...

I’m tired of hearing how some novels are “impossible to adapt.” Balderdash! Just because some books don’t lend themselves to being translated from page to screen doesn’t mean that the attempt ought not to be made. Just ask James Franco, who’s shown a speed freak’s determination to tackle some of the unlikeliest literary adaptations of the last decade, from William Faulkner to John Steinbeck (“In Dubious Battle”) to Cormac McCarthy (“Child of God”). Frankly, he’s not very good at it, but that doesn’t stop him. Nor should it. Even Franco’s failures are fascinating, like asymmetrical pottery-wheel mishaps that wouldn’t passs for a vase, but wind up looking like modern art.

From the moment of its publication in 2007, Steve Erickson’s postmodern showbiz satire “Zeroville” was widely described as “unfilmable” — which was like waving a red flag in front of Franco. Truth be told,...

Exclusive: Analeigh Tipton has signed with ICM Partners. The move comes after she recently toplined last year’s indie thriller Broken Star, opposite Tyler Labine.

The actor broke out playing a babysitter with a crush on Steve Carell in Crazy, Stupid, Love in 2011. She later starred in ABC’s romantic comedy Manhattan Love Story, which didn’t make it a full season after it debuted in 2014.

More recently, Tipton’s credits include James Franco’s John Steinbeck adaptation In Dubious Battle, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2016, and Alex Ross Perry’s Golden Exits, which bowed at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. In between, she starred opposite J.K. Simmons and Emile Hirsch in All Nighter.

Her other TV credits include HBO’s Hung, and films including Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s Mississippi Grind, Two Night Stand, Warm Bodies and Luc Besson’s Lucy.

She remains repped by Mosaic and McKuin Frankel Whitehead Llp.

You may recall, dear reader, that in the years preceding “The Disaster Artist” James Franco was writing and directing films at a breakneck pace — “As I Lay Dying,” “Child of God,” “The Sound and the Fury,” and “In Dubious Battle” all premiered within a three-year span. So did “Zeroville,” a comedy based on Steve Erickson’s novel of the same name, but because it was acquired by Alchemy — the ill-fated distributor that went out of business mere months after picking up the film — it has yet to receive a theatrical release.

Until now, that is, as myCinema appears to have saved “Zeroville” from limbo. The company is based online but partners with some 500 theaters that have the option of licensing its films — like “The Chaperone,” written by “Downton Abbey” creator Julian Fellowes — for traditional brick-and-mortar releases.

Here’s the (rather lengthy) synopsis:

Join Vikar (James Franco), a wide-eyed innocent in love with the movies,...

Exclusive: Ashley Greene has been added to the robust, all-star cast of the Jay Roach’s yet-to-be-titled Fox News project about the women who fought against network boss Roger Ailes and his toxic male culture. Greene is set to play former Fox & Friends host Abby Huntsman.

Penned by Academy Award-winning screenwriter Charles Randolph (The Big Short), the Twilight alum joins a roster of actors who will step into the roles of other players in the Fox News Channel universe. John Lithgow takes the role of Ailes, Nicole Kidman will play Gretchen Carlson, Margot Robbie will portray producer Kayla Pospisil and Charlize Theron will appear as Megyn Kelly. Allison Janney will play trailblazing feminist lawyer Susan Estrich.

The film will also feature Kate McKinnon, Mark Duplass, and Alice Eve. Elisabeth Rohm and Spencer Garrett will appear as Fox News hosts Martha MacCallum and Sean Hannity respectively. Alanna Ubach will play Fox News host Jeanine Pirro.

James Franco is in negotiations to direct the movie “Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN” for Focus Features.

The project is based on the 2011 book of the same name by James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales, which recapped the formation of the sports network, based on interviews with more than 500 people. ESPN was launched in 1979 by Bill Rasmussen and his son Scott as the world’s first 24-hour cable TV network. It saw success by telecasting the early rounds of the Ncaa basketball tournament and the NFL Draft.

“Halt and Catch Fire” co-creator Christopher C. Rogers has been hired to re-write the script. Miller was tapped to adapt the script in 2015. Michael De Luca, Jamie Patricof, and Julie Yorn are producing the film.

Franco produced, directed, and starred in “The Disaster Artist,” which received strong reviews and earned one Academy Award nomination for adapted screenplay...

Filmmaker Mike Smith’s B&E Productions has obtained the film and television rights to Big Law, a legal thriller novel from Ron Leibman. The book, which was released January of last year via Penguin Group LLC, centers on a Carney Blake, a young lawyer at one of NY’s most prestigious law firms, and his discovery that things aren’t what they seem in the business of big New York City law. Smith, an NY native, will write and direct the film which will shoot on location. Smith has directed on a number of legal dramas like Law and Order Svu, Criminal Intent, Suits, and How To Get Away With Murder. He’s repped by Gersh.

Composer Joshua R. Mosley will score the film Bernie the Dolphin, starring Lola Sultan (In Dubious Battle), Kevin Sorbo (Hercules) and Patrick Muldoon (Melrose Place). Kirk Harris is directing the film which follows a...

Following the success of “The Disaster Artist,” James Franco will star in the sci-fi thriller “Future World,” which he co-directed. Using a color palette and costume design that bears an uncanny resemblance to both the original “Mad Max” as well as 2016’s “Mad Max: Fury Road,” “Future World” features car chases, cyborgs, and at least one reference to “the perfect woman.” Commence eye roll.

The movie stars Suki Waterhouse as a cyborg assassin known as a “synthetic,” who is coveted by the likes of Franco, Milla Jovovich, and Snoop Dogg for her powers. Though it’s unclear exactly what’s going on, she begins to malfunction and goes renegade in an effort to save a potential love interest. The film also stars Lucy Liu as a character known only as “The Queen.

“Future World” is co-directed by Bruce Thierry Cheung, the cinematographer who lensed Franco’s previous directorial efforts, “In Dubious Battle,...

Following the success of “The Disaster Artist,” James Franco will star in the sci-fi thriller “Future World,” which he co-directed. Using a color palette and costume design that bears an uncanny resemblance to both the original “Mad Max” as well as 2016’s “Mad Max: Fury Road,” “Future World” features car chases, cyborgs, and at least one reference to “the perfect woman.” Commence eye roll.

The movie stars Suki Waterhouse as a cyborg assassin known as a “synthetic,” who is coveted by the likes of Franco, Milla Jovovich, and Snoop Dogg for her powers. Though it’s unclear exactly what’s going on, she begins to malfunction and goes renegade in an effort to save a potential love interest. The film also stars Lucy Liu as a character known only as “The Queen.

“Future World” is co-directed by Bruce Thierry Cheung, the cinematographer who lensed Franco’s previous directorial efforts, “In Dubious Battle,...

A trailer and poster for the upcoming sleepwalking horror film Sleepwalker have been released and can be found below. Directed by Elliott Lester, written by Jack Olsen, and starring Ahna O’Reilly (In Dubious Battle, The Help), Richard Armitage (The Hobbit… Continue Reading →

The post Get Some Rest After Watching This Trailer Or You’ll Become a Sleepwalker appeared first on Dread Central.

Deadpool 2: Ryan Reynolds (as Deadpool) and Josh Brolin (as Cable) are finding creative ways to pass time on the set of Deadpool 2 when they're not needed, as illustrated in a new photo that Reynolds shared on social media (see below). The movie is set for release on June 1, 2018. [Twitter] Josh Brolin and I love to just hang out and chat between takes. He calls me his lil' Shake Weight™. pic.twitter.com/Thru3iS48w — Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) August 8, 2017 Woody Allen: Selena Gomez (In Dubious Battle, above) has nabbed a lead role in Woody Allen's next movie. No details about the title or plot have been revealed yet, which is typical for the secretive filmmaker. Elle Fanning and Timothée Chalamet, who have been in talks...

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Bryan Cranston’s post-“Breaking Bad” career has taken him from Lbj on Broadway and television (“All the Way”) to James Franco movies (“In Dubious Battle,” “Why Him?,” “The Disaster Artist”) to indie flicks (“The Infiltrator” and “Wakefield”). However, he may have finally found the lead role that will land him his second Oscar nomination after “Trumbo.”

Word is, Cranston delivers in “Boyhood” writer-director Richard Linklater’s September 28 New York Film Festival opener, the road trip drama “Last Flag Flying” (November 3, Amazon). Adapted from the 2005 Darryl Ponicsan novel, Cranston plays one of three Vietnam Navy veterans who reunite to bury one of their sons, an Iraq soldier. Steve Carell and Laurence Fishburne costar.

A sort of “spiritual sequel” to Hal Ashby’s 1973 film “The Last Detail,” which starred Jack Nicholson, Randy Quaid, and Otis Young in an adaptation of Ponicsan’s novel, that film followed two Navy sailors who show...

Bryan Cranston’s post-“Breaking Bad” career has taken him from Lbj on Broadway and television (“All the Way”) to James Franco movies (“In Dubious Battle,” “Why Him?,” “The Disaster Artist”) to indie flicks (“The Infiltrator” and “Wakefield”). However, he may have finally found the lead role that will land him his second Oscar nomination after “Trumbo.”

Word is, Cranston delivers in “Boyhood” writer-director Richard Linklater’s September 28 New York Film Festival opener, the road trip drama “Last Flag Flying” (November 3, Amazon). Adapted from the 2005 Darryl Ponicsan novel, Cranston plays one of three Vietnam Navy veterans who reunite to bury one of their sons, an Iraq soldier. Steve Carell and Laurence Fishburne costar.

A sort of “spiritual sequel” to Hal Ashby’s 1973 film “The Last Detail,” which starred Jack Nicholson, Randy Quaid, and Otis Young in an adaptation of Ponicsan’s novel, that film followed two Navy sailors who show...

Author: Zehra Phelan

We’ve got an exclusive look at James Franco and Selena Gomez in the trailer for In Dubious Battle, a story of a farmer rebellion against the rich due to poor working conditions.

Based on John Steinbeck’s acclaimed novel this adaptation is directed, produced by and stars James Franco and also features a star-studded cast including Robert Duvall (The Godfather), Selena Gomez (Bad Neighbors 2), The Hunger Games’ Josh Hutcherson, Nat Wolff (The Fault in Our Stars), Ed Harris (Gravity) and Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Vincent D’Onofrio, Zach Braff and the late, great Sam Shepherd in one of his last outings on film.

Set in the 1930’s the trailer is full of passion as Franco leads a group of workers who just want people to know “their lives matter” as their wages are cut and he rallies the men to strike against these cuts. As both sides stand strong,...

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and actor who suffered from Als died at his home.

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and Oscar-nominated actor Sam Shepard has died from Als. He was 73.

Shepard died on July 27 at his home in Kentucky surrounded by family. “The family requests privacy at this difficult time,” Chris Boneau, the spokesman for the family, said.

Shephard won the Pulitzer Prize in 1979 for his play Buried Child and received a best supporting actor Oscar nomination for his role as Chuck Yeager in The Right Stuff.

His final on-screen appearance came in 2015 on the Netflix drama Bloodline. As an actor his screen credits include Days Of Heaven, Resurrection, Frances, Country, Fool For Love, Crimes Of The Heart, Baby Boom, Steel Magnolias, Bright Angel, Defenseless, Hamlet, The Notebook, Black Hawk Down, The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, Brothers, Mud, August: Osage County, Cold in July, Midnight Special, In Dubious Battle, and You Were...

It’s no secret James Franco is one of the most hate-him-or-love-him actors working in Hollywood. But even those who consider themselves fans don’t always show up to the countless indies he makes in any given year, from “Memoria” to “The Adderall Diaries,” “King Cobra” and directorial efforts “In Dubious Battle” and “The Sound and the Fury.” At this point there’s no denying Franco has talent, but he takes on so many middling projects and appears in what seems like everything to the point that it can be hard to remember why you loved him in the first place.

Fortunately, Franco looks like he’s ready to remind us why he belongs in the business. It’s happened before — his Oscar-nomianted lead performance in “127 Hours,” his go-for-broke turn in “Spring Breakers” and...

After teasing fans on social media with a series of clues about her latest music video-short film-mystery project, Selena Gomez has unveiled “Bad Liar,” the poster for which she shared three times on Instagram on Monday, June 12. The poster reads “a film by Jesse Peretz,” though the “film” is a music video in which Gomez plays three separate characters. (She previously released a different “Bad Liar” music video exclusively on Spotify).

Read More: ‘The Fundamentals of Caring’ Review: Paul Rudd and Selena Gomez Can’t Salvage This Netflix Release

A co-executive producer on HBO’s “Girls” and director of 18 episodes of the show, Peretz has also directed episodes of Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black,” “Nurse Jackie” and “New Girl,” among other show. A feature film director with credits including Paul Rudd’s “Our Idiot Brother” and “The Ex,” starring Zach Braff and Amanda Peet, Peretz is currently prepping “Juliet,...

A extensive look at all those movies James Franco directed.

James Franco has done a lot of things, we’ve heard. Following a successful turn on Judd Apatow’s Freaks and Geeks and a well-received starring spot on a TNT biopic on James Dean, he turned immediately to a litany of pursuits: from playwriting and English degrees to painting and directing no less than ten feature-lengths. The latter project interested me. Were they any good? In Franco’s Rolling Stone profile last year, Jonah Weiner ran around a thesaurus of words like “dizzying,” “indefatigable“ and, wait for it, “multihyphenate” to describe his subject but none of those words mean very much. Paul Klee painted over a thousand paintings in the penultimate last year of his life. So could I. So what?

“What did we do to deserve James Franco?,” asked Rex Reed in a slightly different era. Back then, even the The Guardian agreed with Jared Kushner...

Exclusive: Scott Haze, who has appeared in such films as Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special, The Sound and the Fury and Child Of God, has signed with a team at CAA, moving from ICM. Haze recently was seen in James Franco’s In Dubious Battle, with Nat Wolff, Josh Hutcherson and Selena Gomez, which premiered at last year’s Venice Film Festival. His upcoming slate includes Jason Hall’s Thank You for Your Service, starring Miles Teller and Amy Schumer, which Universal releases…...

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James Franco is set to star alongside James Franco’s favorite creative genius, James Franco, in the new HBO series The Deuce. The show, by The Wire and Treme creator David Simon, depicts the rise of the porn industry in the 1970s, with plans to begin in the early 70s and, if the series proves popular, end in the mid-1980s. It’ll explore the beginnings of HIV, the effects of drug epidemics and the start of gentrification in the city.

Franco is playing extremely mustachioed twins Vincent and Frankie, low-level mob gophers who recognize that there’s money to be made in skin flicks and begin an inexorable rise to the top of their industry. Typically for Hollywood’s greatest polymath, Franco’s involvement with the project doesn’t end with him merely appearing in it (twice), as he’s also directing two episodes of the show.

If you thought you’d had enough James Franco already — since December, three movies starring the actor/director have hit the big screen (“Why Him?,” “In Dubious Battle,” “The Institute“) with “The Disaster Artist” premiering at SXSW this month — get ready for a double dose. “The Wire” and “Treme” creator David Simon‘s highly anticipated “The Deuce” is on the way, and we have our first look at Franco times two in the series.

Continue reading First Look: James Franco Pulls Double Duty In David Simon’s ‘The Deuce’ at The Playlist.

As Isabel in The Institute, Allie Gallerani experiences unconventional treatments at the hands of Dr. Cairn (James Franco). With Momentum Pictures releasing The Institute in theaters and on VOD this Friday, March 3rd, we caught up with Gallerani for our latest Q&A feature to discuss working with Franco, the influence of Penny Dreadful, and much more.

Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for us, Allie. What attracted you to playing the role of Isabel Porter in The Institute?

Allie Gallerani: I was drawn to Isabel’s strength, intelligence, and curiosity. These traits were not valued in Victorian society, so she feels like a bit of an outsider. I love playing characters who are a little bit stubborn and challenge accepted norms. As an actor, I’m always intrigued by a character’s transformation and Isabel’s is monumental.

Did any other films or performances inspire...

The figure of James Franco as a director is under constant scrutiny; this is his 15th film, yet he still hasn’t made one that has made the ripples that he no doubt wishes they had. His directing style is still undistinguishable, mixing some experimental elements with a direct approach at performance that makes him look amateurish, almost film school-like. He’s been constantly mocked, especially after many adaptations of various works of literary masters, some deemed un-adaptable, and with In Dubious Battle he dares once again, but with a more conventionally structured novel. By adapting more agreeable material that approaches his political sensitivities, he manages to get closer to a more conventionally made film that becomes at times great because of the passion involved in the...

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

"I've never been a goal-oriented person. I never have in my entire life set one goal, I don't think," admits Josh Hutcherson. We're meeting at his publicist's office in West Hollywood and I've just asked if, after spending half a decade playing, promoting and generally being Peeta from The Hunger Games, the 24-year-old wrapped up his time on the franchise with an idea of the next steps he wanted to take in his career. Hutcherson, his dark hair tousled and scruff dusting his square jawline, leans forward as he elaborates, "I think that the idea of a goal means that you're focused on getting there, instead of being in the moment."

While Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemswoth leveraged their franchise clout to land more blockbuster jobs, traversing the galaxy in action-adventure rom-coms or fighting off alien resurgences, Hutcherson took a step back. "It wasn't about, like, proving to people I could do something else, as much as...

James Franco’s adaptation of John Steinbeck’s “In Dubious Battle” is currently in limited release, and it isn’t the only thing directed by the multi-multi-hyphenate you can watch right now. Franco has also directed the video for “Girls on T.V.,” the lead single from Tashaki Miyaki’s debut album “The Dream.” Watch it below.

Read More: ‘In Dubious Battle’ Review: A James Franco Period Protest Drama, Dubiously Made

Juno Temple (“Black Mass,” “Killer Joe,” “Maleficent”) stars in the video; Franco describes her role as “an innocent soul seeing Hollywood for the first time” in a statement. Full of words superimposed on the screen in neon letters, the video finds Temple’s cowboy hat–wearing newcomer strolling through Hollywood on a dark, dreamy night. The director lists “Midnight Cowboy,” “Fallen Angels” and Robert Redford’s “Electric Horseman” as influences on his latest endeavor.

Read More: ‘The Institute’ Trailer:...

A successful Oscar season is wrapping up, as multiple contenders from the specialty world continuing their long runs. Last out of the gate is Documentary Feature contender “I Am Not Your Negro” (Magnolia) which is rapidly expanding far beyond most similar nominees in an era when most documentaries do not play outside their Oscar-qualifying theatrical runs.

Among limited films, the new releases are mainly niche items without high expectations, and will add little in upcoming weeks. However, strong new Los Angeles dates on the second week of cat documentary “Kedi” (Oscilloscope) showed that its big New York opening was no fluke.

Opening

Everybody Loves Somebody (Lionsgate) – Metacritic: 74; Festivals include: Palm Springs 2017

$1,000,000 in 333 theaters; PTA (per theater average): $3,003,000

The second 2017 release from Lionsgate’s Mexico producing partner Pantelion is a rom-com with a rare female director for this commercial general (mostly Latino) audience. Bilingual, it centers on an Los Angeles-based...

“In Dubious Battle” is not the first movie about a labor strike with Robert Duvall as the antagonizing boss man; that honor goes to the 1992 Disney musical starring Christian Bale, “Newsies,” in which Duvall portrayed Joseph Pulitzer. “Newsies” went on to receive five Golden Raspberry Award nominations, but it contained more drama and gusto than this humorless dirge from director-star James Franco.

This smug period drama follows the conventional narrative of an idealistic revolutionary and his fearless leader as they incite a strike among apple pickers in California’s fictional Torgas Valley. Matt Rager adapted the script from John Steinbeck’s 1936 novel, and the film is largely based on events that occurred during the California labor strikes of 1933.

Read More: ‘In Dubious Battle’ Trailer: James Franco Takes on John Steinbeck in His Latest Literary Adaptation

Franco is Mac, a spirited labor rights activist (some say Communist) who takes young Jim...

The year is 2029, and the mutant formerly known as the Wolverine isn’t quite as invincible as he used to be. After being alive for almost 200 years, he’s finally starting to show his age. He’s haunted by something from his past (you’ll have to see the previous movies to find out what, or re-visit them to remember), and he hurts people in his dreams. He’s rotting from the inside out, he needs reading glasses, and his healing powers can’t keep up. He’s saved the world like eight times over, but he’s now a glorified Las Vegas Uber driver who cares more about his limo than he does his life. He may be the one guy on Earth who can’t drink himself to death, but that certainly hasn’t stopped him from trying. He’s pretty much a Johnny Cash song with adamantium claws.

If Quentin Tarantino remade “Pulp Fiction” as an animated movie set in modern day China, it might look something like “Have a Nice Day,” an ensemble drama about the criminal underworld.

The second feature from Liu Jian (“Piercing I”) presents a series of interlocking tales in a pulpy display of desperate characters, all drawn together by a typical device — money — and the reckless behavior caused by it. The vivid palette of Liu’s animation conveys a comic book-like exuberance to the proceedings, but the underlying socioeconomic frustration is very real.

Read More: Hong Sang-soo Addresses His Marriage Scandal With a Movie in ‘On the Beach at Night Alone’ — Berlinale 2017

The movie opens with a quote from Leo Tolstoy’s “Resurrection,” in which the author recalls that even in a reckless world filled with unhappy people, “spring was still spring, even in this town.” Liu takes that stance as a starting...

The most impressive aspect of James Franco’s “In Dubious Battle” is, by far, its cast. Unsurprisingly, Franco stars in his adaptation of what is thought to be John Steinbeck’s first major work, and joining him is a celebrity roll call: Robert Duvall, Bryan Cranston, Ed Harris, Vincent D’Onofrio, Sam Shepard, Josh Hutcherson, Selena Gomez, Zach Braff, and even Danny McBride. Together, they tell the story of California apple pickers who went on strike in 1933 and of the two radical activists who instigated them. But rarely has such star wattage resulted in a film so dull. Franco has tackled legendary authors.

Ashley Greene admits she's been checking out Pinterest for wedding inspiration, but she also insists that she and her fiancé Paul Khoury won't be getting hitched anytime soon. The Twilight actress and Australian TV personality got engaged in December. "Definitely nothing this year, perhaps next year," Greene told E! News while promoting her new movie In Dubious Battle. "I'm still at the point of looking down at my hand and going 'Oh, my God! I'm engaged!'...I kind of want to relish in that first before taking on planning a wedding. We are going to try to make it as easy as possible but planning a wedding is a stressful thing for anyone and I just want to enjoy being engaged...

With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options — not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves — we’ve taken it upon ourselves to highlight the titles that have recently hit platforms. Every week, one will be able to see the cream of the crop (or perhaps some simply interesting picks) of streaming titles (new and old) across platforms such as Netflix, iTunes, Amazon, and more (note: U.S. only). Check out our rundown for this week’s selections below.

Allied (Robert Zemeckis)

That thing we can’t take for granted: a film whose many parts – period piece, war picture, blood-spattered actioner, deception-fueled espionage thriller, sexy romance, and, at certain turns, comedy – can gracefully move in conjunction and separate from each other, just as its labyrinthine-but-not-quite plot jumps from one setpiece to the next with little trouble in maintaining a consistency of overall pleasure. Another late-career triumph for Robert Zemeckis,...

Selena Gomez has anything but a quaint fan base, and yet she still shares personal messages like she's talking to her close friends.

On Thursday, the 24-year-old singer continued her reign of having the most Instagram followers, surpassing the 110 million, and using the opportunity to express her gratitude.

"Thank you fam for 110," Gomez captioned a photo of herself onstage looking out over thousands of concertgoers. "I promise I will continue to cherish my platform and speaking truth."

"But more importantly," she added, "Each and every one of you have changed my life. I'm very grateful."

Watch: Selena Gomez and The Weeknd Make Out During Romantic Date on Yacht

Gomez hit 110 followers not long after the release of her new single, "It Ain't Me," featuring Kygo. The song inevitably had fans speculating as to whether the lyrics were about her longtime on-again, off-again relationship with Justin Bieber.

“No, I don’t wanna know where you been or where...

James Franco continues in that “bad hair/facial hair” vein with The Institute, a psychological thriller in which he plays a doctor who seems to have forgotten the Hippocratic oath. As Dr. Cairn, he tries to “cure” the patients of the Rosewood Institute with torture and various other Franco methods, like popping up at their bedside, or calling his work “art.” The grief-stricken young woman at the center of the story, Isabel, comes to regret her decision to check into the institute for help. But it looks like the staff will have some regrets of their own, as things devolve into a Wicker Man homage. Which makes sense, since Franco co-directed the thing. He also stomps around in wire spectacles and a mustache that’s just hanging off his face—you know, like a real doctor.

Franco is joined in the cast by his In Dubious Battle co-star Allie Gallerani...

Selena Gomez is James Franco's "secret weapon."

Et's Deidre Behar sat down with the actor and director at the junket for his new movie, In Dubious Battle, in Los Angeles on Wednesday, where he opened up about casting Gomez in an unexpected role.

Watch: Selena Gomez Releases First New Song in Almost a Year: ‘It Ain’t Me’

"I think Selena is incredibly talented and I don't know what people think, but it seems to me she hasn't done tons of movies like this," Franco explained. "She even said that to me when I asked her to do this, she was like, 'Yes, I want to be a part of your world, I want to try it. I'm going to go on this adventure.'"

"I felt like I had a secret weapon, that I knew she was a great actress, that people wouldn't be expecting her in this and that I could put her in...

With 37 credits for both features and shorts in the last 12 years, James Franco has quietly become one of the most prolific directors working in Hollywood. In Dubious Battle is his latest effort and the film had its American premiere on Wednesday night at the ArcLight Hollywood.

One secret to his success may be the speed with which he puts his films together. While many films linger for years in development hell, it took Franco only a few hours to pull together the financing for his latest effort.

“As soon as we saw the second draft of the script,...

Ashley Greene is one busy bride-to-be!

The 29-year-old actress spoke to People exclusively about her engagement to longtime boyfriend Paul Khoury and their upcoming wedding plans.

“It’s really fun!” Greene says of being newly engaged. “Paul and I are best friends, so it’s the same but different.”

She adds: “I look down at my hand every once in a while and I’m like, ‘Oh yeah, I’m engaged’ which is crazy, but as always, we’re keeping it easy and fun and not stressing about anything that’s to come afterwards—we’re just enjoying this moment.

Let it be known that I genuinely like James Franco. Given the choice between ‘yer average pretty boy movie star and a ludicrous avant-garde polymath jester, I’ll pick the latter every time. Problem is, while the self-titled Mayor of Gay Town gleefully smashes through cultural/social/artistic boundaries like a steam train, the art that’s produced at the end of it is… not great.

And so to In Dubious Battle, an adaptation of John Steinbeck’s 1936 novel of the same name and the latest in Franco’s quest to put his favorite books on screen. This weighty literary project has, thus far, borne little of value. His adaptations of Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury and As I Lay Dying were “nearly unwatchable” and “stale and jumbled,” and his take on Cormac McCarthy’s Child of God “tedious and meandering”. Sadly, this trend remains unbroken.

Set during the Great Depression,...

Welcome back to the Weekend Warrior, your weekly look at the new movies hitting theaters this weekend, as well as other cool events and things to check out.

This Past Weekend:

The Lego Batman Movie won the weekend as expected, but not with nearly as much money as I had predicted, not besting the opening of The Lego Movie as expected, but instead ending up with a reasonable and not so bad $53 million. Fifty Shades Darker proved that the audience for movies based on the popular books was still great enough for it to win Friday with $21 million (to Lego Batman’s $15 million) and end up second for the weekend with a strong $46.6 million. That was still almost $40 million less than the opening of the previous movie Fifty Shades of Grey, but the sequel also didn’t have the benefits of Valentine’s Day and a four-day holiday. Coming in...

James Franco’s death march through the American literary canon continues with In Dubious Battle, a John Steinbeck adaptation so conventionally dismal that it makes one better appreciate the artsy, dawdling garbage that is the actor turned dilettante’s usual stock in trade. Every Franco personal project—from his unintelligible, low-budget adaptations of William Faulkner (As I Lay Dying, The Sound And The Fury) and Cormac McCarthy (Child Of God) to his novels and assorted experiments in self-fellatio—is born with a “Kick Me” sign on its back, begging critics to punt it in the keister for making artistic ambition look lame. This one even comes with a freebie: It’s got “dubious” right there in the title. But instead of being sloppily miscalculated (the “Franco touch”), this attempt at a Depression-era labor drama in the vein of John Sayles just bores its way through almost two hours of screen...

The James Franco train is rolling hard at the moment — he’s got both “In Dubious Battle” and “The Institute” coming to cinemas in the next couple of months — but every once in a while, his moviemaking machine turns up a possible gem, and we’ve got hope for “The Disaster Artist.” Why? Because the film finds Franco playing Tommy Wiseau, the eccentric director of cult favorite “The Room.”

Read More: Watch: Step Into ‘The Room’ Director Tommy Wiseau’s World With Trailer For Documentary ‘Room Full Of Spoons’

Joined by Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Josh Hutcherson, Ari Graynor, Jacki Weaver, and Alison Brie, the film will detail all the shenanigans that went into making one of the best worst movies in recent memory.

Continue reading New Look: James Franco As ‘The Room’ Director Tommy Wiseau In ‘The Disaster Artist’ at The Playlist.

James Franco has directed adaptations of novels by William Faulkner and even a biopic of sorts of Charles Bukowski, and now this week he brings to the big screen In Dubious Battle, the first in Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck’s Dustbowl trilogy that included the iconic American classics Of Mice And Men and The Grapes Of Wrath. The three novels were published in an unthinkably prolific and important stretch over three years in the late 1930s taking up the cause of the…...

Despite what you may think of his talents, it is indisputable that James Franco is a prolific creator. So comes a new full-length theatrical trailer for his most recent adaptation, In Dubious Battle. Based off the novel by John Steinbeck, the film follows a California-based activist who gets tangled up in the labor movement for farm workers in the 1930s.

Jam-packed with such an extensive cast-list that it barely fits on a poster, Franco’s latest directorial effort stars himself, Nat Wolff, Vincent D’Onofrio, Selena Gomez (in a Spring Breakers reunion!), Robert Duvall, Bryan Cranston, Ed Harris, Josh Hutcherson, Sam Shepard, Scott Haze, and Zach Braff. Following screenings at Venice and Tiff last year, where it garnered mostly mixed reviews, it’ll arrive in just a few weeks.

See the trailer below.

In the California apple country, nine hundred migratory workers rise up “in dubious battle” against the landowners.