News

Writer-director Rod Blackhurst has wrapped production in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on horror film “Dolly.”

Blackhurst is the Emmy and Critics Choice nominated director and producer of Netflix original documentary “Amanda Knox” and the Tribeca Festival audience award-winning “Here Alone.” “Dolly” follows his acclaimed crime-thriller “Blood for Dust,” which premiered at Tribeca and won the narrative competition award at San Diego.

“Dolly,” described by the filmmakers as a blend of New French Extremity and 1970s American horror, follows Macy, a young woman abducted by a deranged, monster-like figure who wants to raise her as their child.

The cast includes Fabianne Therese (“John Dies at the End”), Seann William Scott (“American Pie”), Ethan Suplee (“Babylon”), Russ Tiller (“Blood for Dust”) and Michalina Scorzelli (“Shoplifters of the World”). The film also introduces current Nwa TV Champion Max the Impaler, aka The Non-Binary Nightmare, in the titular role of Dolly.

Blackhurst and Brandon Weavil (“Babygirl”) wrote the screenplay,...

The heroic character of Jon Snow in HBO’s Game of Thrones is played by the iconic actor Kit Harington. He is also known for starring in MCU’s Eternals as Black Knight aka Dane Whitman. Although he plays such heroic roles, Harington is, after all, a simple human being… with some weird habits.

Kit Harington as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones (2011 – 2019)

One of the weird habits that Kit Harington seems to have is as hilarious as it is random. With Harington believing that it is an Italian tradition, the actor and Jimmy Fallon could not control their laughter during his interview!

Kit Harington Scratches His Balls Every Time He Sees An Ambulance!

We cannot make this up even if we want to. Yes, the iconic Game of Thrones scratches his private parts every time he sees an ambulance. Although a clear story as to how Harington got the habit hasn’t been clear,...

“Blood for Dust” is a new live-action ‘noir-thriller’, directed by Rod Blackhurst, starring Kit Harington, Scoot McNairy, Nora Zehetne, Ethan Suplee, Amber Rose Mason, Stephen Dorff and Josh Lucas, now playing in theaters:

“…’Cliff’ (McNairy), a former salesman with a checkered past, is pulled back into a life of crime after losing his job.

“Desperate to keep his family afloat, he is lured by his old colleague, ‘Ricky’ (Harington), into trafficking drugs and guns for a cartel.

“As Cliff delves deeper, his once strait-laced life turns into a high-stakes game of survival…”

Click the images to enlarge…...

Kit Harington Reveals Searching For Negative Roles After Game Of Thrones ( Photo Credit – IMDb )

The Game of Thrones star Kit Harington shaded his good guy persona in his latest film, Blood for Dust. He had a white character in the HBO series and the Marvel movie Eternals, but the actor reportedly got bored of playing the hero and wanted to be a bad guy. But why was he done being a hero on screen? Keep scrolling to know more.

Kit became famous after appearing as Jon Snow in the HBO series based on George Rr Martin’s books. He was part of the main cast and one of the leading actors. By the end, he was romantically paired opposite Emilia Clarke, who made her MCU debut last year with Disney+’s Secret Invasion. Kit made his MCU debut with 2021’s Eternals, in which he played the role of Dane Whitman.

Jon Snow may know nothing, as the famous line from Game of Thrones goes. But the actor who played him, Kit Harington, knows he is happy to step outside the hero role and flex another side of his acting chops.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor expressed delight at taking on a different sort of character in the neo-Western, Blood for Dust.

Harington plays Ricky, a drugs and arms dealer, who works for a cartel.

“I rarely get the opportunity to play the Rickys of this world, the antagonistic dirtbag types, and I was excited to be presented with that opposite an actor like Scoot,” Harington said.

Harington adopts a mustache and American accent in the film. It’s all part of his plan to expand his range. While Harington won the role of Black Knight in Eternals, backlash makes it unlikely that he will reprise the character in future projects.

Kit Harington found worldwide fame and love for portraying the character of Jon Snow in the iconic HBO series Game of Thrones. Portraying the character for 8 seasons, Harington had quite a tough time adjusting to the normal world.

The character of Jon Snow is a hero through and through and Harington had quite fun while making the series. In a recent interview, however, the Eternals actor revealed that portraying heroic roles is “hard’ and that’s why he wants to play “f-cked up” characters now!

Kit Harington as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones (2011 – 2019)

Kit Harington Is Tired of Playing The Good Guys Now!

Back in 2023, Kit Harington starred in a film titled Blood for Dust. In the film, Harington portrayed the role of Ricky and it was not a very positive role. Being a dirtbag in the film, the actor revealed that he was excited to portray that villainous role.

Kit Harington is opening up about the sort of roles that he is drawn to after starring in Game of Thrones.

The 37-year-old actor brought Jon Snow to life on the hit series. The heroic character had a strong moral compass and was committed to doing the right thing.

After leaving the role, Kit revealed that he isn’t rushing back into a similar project anytime soon. Instead, he’s playing a more villainous role in his new project Blood for Dust.

He explained the desire and opened up about being the hero in a new interview.

Keep reading to find out more…

“That is seemingly what I’ve been hunting a bit,” Kit told EW about his desire to play a morally grey character. “If I look at the roles I’ve taken since playing an out-and-out hero in Game of Thrones, I have to admit there seems to...

Kit Harington is in full villain mode in his new movie “Blood for Dust,” which is exactly the kind of role he’s been looking for since his tenure as the heroic Jon Snow ended on HBO’s “Game of Thrones” in 2019. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the actor admitted that he grew tired of playing the hero by the end of his run as Jon Snow and is now more interested in tackling “fucked up” guys.

“That is seemingly what I’ve been hunting a bit,” Harington said. “If I look at the roles I’ve taken since playing an out-and-out hero in ‘Game of Thrones,’ I have to admit there seems to be some sort of pushback about playing a hero. I’m not so interested in heroic roles, and if I am, they have to be pretty anti-hero-ish..”

“My heart goes out to people playing heroes,” he continued.

“Blood for Dust” is a new live-action ‘noir-thriller’, directed by Rod Blackhurst, starring Kit Harington, Scoot McNairy, Nora Zehetne, Ethan Suplee, Amber Rose Mason, Stephen Dorff and Josh Lucas, releasing April 19, 2024 in theaters:

“…’Cliff’ (McNairy), a former salesman with a checkered past, is pulled back into a life of crime after losing his job.

“Desperate to keep his family afloat, he is lured by his old colleague, ‘Ricky’ (Harington), into trafficking drugs and guns for a cartel.

“As Cliff delves deeper, his once strait-laced life turns into a high-stakes game of survival…”

Click the images to enlarge…...

Stars: Kit Harington, Scoot McNairy, Josh Lucas, Ethan Suplee, Nora Zehetner | Written by David Ebeltoft | Directed by Rod Blackhurst

Cliff (Scoot McNairy) is a struggling salesman, with employers closing doors on him like there’s no tomorrow. Through a chance encounter, he reconnects with old friend Ricky (Kit Harington), who now is a drugs runner across Montana. With Cliff in dire straits, the two agree to team up, prompting even more danger than they could ever have imagined.

Without even getting into its nuances — or at least, finer details — Blood For Dust can be best summed up as an inoffensive movie that we’ve definitely seen before. However, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Harking back to the black comedy vibe of Fargo, merely replacing the comedy element with the Midwestern gritty violence of Yellowstone, the movie well knows what it is. Most importantly, it knows where it is.

In this week’s episode of The Discourse, host Mike DeAngelo grows out his handlebar mustache and puts on a southern accent to discuss “Blood for Dust” with star Kit Harington (“Game of Thrones,” “Eternals”). The movie follows a struggling salesman with a troubled criminal past who is pulled back into a string of crimes by a former colleague, leading to a trail of blood…and dust.

Continue reading ‘Blood For Dust’: Kit Harington Talks New Crime Drama, The ‘Jon Snow’ Series, Almost Playing King Arthur & More [The Discourse Podcast] at The Playlist.

You can tell they shot Blood for Dust outside. People’s cold breath hangs in the wintry air, and it’s not the kind of wispy CGI breath that never seems to move quite right. Half-melted snow clings to the streets and straw-yellow Montana hills. The film’s title and poster would blend right into a direct-to-video lineup, but director Rod Blackhurst brings surprising texture and craft to bear on the otherwise familiar proceedings of this ’90s-set noir.

In a rare lead role, dependable and charismatic character actor Scoot McNairy plays Cliff, a traveling salesman whose tired eyes give away his success on the job. Maybe he was persuasive once, but he’s now tough to imagine peddling anything to anyone, much less the defibrillators that he crams into the back of his station wagon alongside the dummy he uses to demonstrate them. He even botches an attempt to blackmail...

One of several announced Game Of Thrones spin-offs, a series following the adventures of Jon Snow is no longer ‘on the table’ according to Kit Harrington.

When Game Of Thrones – the wildly popular TV series based on George R.R. Martin’s fantasy novels – came to an end in 2019, HBO was already in the process of cooking up a number of potential pin-off shows that could prolong the success of a show that had become must-watch TV.

We’ve already seen one spin-off show emerge from the world of Game Of Thrones, that being House Of The Dragon. That show is currently approaching its second season but another potential spin-off that was in development is now dead, according to the actor who was at the centre of it all.

Kit Harrington played Jon Snow in Game Of Thrones and given how the series ended, seemed well situated for a series charting the character’s further adventures.

HBO’s Jon Snow-centered Game of Thrones sequel has been shelved, Kit Harington confirmed on Tuesday.

“There are no plans for it at the moment. It’s off the table for the foreseeable,” Harington told the Associated Press while promoting his new film, Blood For Dust.

Game of Thrones, based on the fantasy book series by George R.R. Martin, finished its eighth and final season in 2019. HBO’s prequel series, House of the Dragon, premiered in 2022, with a second season scheduled for this June.

Also in 2022, plans surfaced for a Game of Thrones sequel series centered on Jon Snow, with Harington attached to reprise his role.

Updates on the status of the potential project have remained sparse ever since, but showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss told The Hollywood Reporter in January they hadn’t written off the sequel entirely.

“It would be so great; nothing would make us...

Jon Snow won’t be coming back to life (again) anytime soon: Game of Thrones alum Kit Harington says HBO’s planned spinoff centered on Jon Snow is no longer in active development.

“In development, you look at every angle, and you see whether it’s worth it. And currently, it’s not,” Harington told ScreenRant while doing press for his movie Blood for Dust. “Currently, it’s off the table, because we all couldn’t find the right story to tell that we were all excited about enough. So we decided to lay down tools with it for the time being.

HBO is still in the “Game of Thrones” business, just not with Jon Snow. One of the earliest spinoffs from the hit fantasy drama was set to be about Kit Harington’s young leader, but the actor told ScreenRant that this project is not actively in development.

“Currently, it’s off the table, because we all couldn’t find the right story to tell that we were all excited about enough,” he said while promoting Rod Blackhurst’s “Blood for Dust,” releasing April 19. “So, we decided to lay down tools with it for the time being. There may be a time in the future where we return to it, but at the moment, no. It’s firmly on the shelf.”

The studio has its hands full of “Thrones” worldbuilding, including the hit prequel series “House of the Dragon,” which returns for Season 2 in June, and the upcoming “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight...

Looks like fans won’t find out what happens to Jon Snow (Kit Harington) after he takes up a more permanent residence North of the Wall at the tail end of Game of Thrones. According to the actor, the previously in-development Game of Thrones spinoff centering on the former King in the North is dead … at least, for now. Harington reportedly spoke with Screen Rant about the now-scuttled spinoff and revealed why it never came to pass while promoting his upcoming film release, Blood for Dust, which hits limited theaters and on-demand services April 19. The actor explained, “Currently, it’s off the table because we all couldn’t find the right story to tell that we were all excited about enough. So, we decided to lay down tools with it for the time being. There may be a time in the future where we return to it, but at the moment,...

"Game of Thrones" continues to try and match the "Star Wars" franchise for the biggest number of announced projects that will probably never see the light of day. Sure, "House of the Dragon" was a big hit and season 2 is on its way, but by that point, HBO had already canceled another prequel show after spending $30 million on the pilot. As of now, there are supposedly spin-offs in the works for "Dunk and Egg," another for the character of Nymeria, another one about Aegon's Conquest, one about the Sea Snake, and a whole set of animated spin-offs.

Though some of them are moving along in development, one spin-off we know for sure won't make it to the screen is the Jon Snow sequel series. You remember Jon Snow, right? He's the guy who knows nothing, was revived from the dead, and had sex with his aunt before murdering her.

Speaking...

Kit Harington announced in a new interview with ScreenRant while promoting his movie “Blood for Dust” that his “Game of Thrones” spinoff centered around Jon Show is “off the table” and no longer in development at HBO. The network declined to comment. News broke in June 2022 that Harington was set to return to his iconic “Thrones” role, which earned him two Emmy nominations (one for supporting actor and another for lead actor in a drama series).

“It was Kit Harrington who brought the idea to us,” author George R.R. Martin later confirmed in a blog post. “I cannot tell you the names of the writers/showrunners, since that has not been cleared for release yet but Kit brought them in too, his own team, and they are terrific.”

Now talking to ScreenRant, Harington admitted the team “couldn’t find the right story to tell” so the project is not in active development anymore.

It was announced back in 2022 that HBO was working on a Jon Snow spin-off series to star Game of Thrones‘ Kit Harington, but it’s no longer happening.

The 37-year-old actor has confirmed that the proposed series is “off the table,” years into the development of the show.

The potential series was going to follow Jon Snow after the series finale of the flagship show. In the eighth-and-final season, Jon Snow discovered his true name was Aegon Targaryen, a potential heir to the Iron Throne, and in the final episode, he was exiled from Westeros and journeyed North of the Wall with the Wildlings to leave his old life behind.

So, what did Kit have to say?

Keep reading to find out more…

“I hadn’t really ever spoken about it, because it was in development. I didn’t want it leaked out that it was being developed, and I...

I can’t say it was difficult finding nine posters to talk about this month––most new April releases were given the bad Photoshop treatment. Some, like Cash Out, scream Dtv. Some, like Arcadian, try their best to at least make the lighting and coloring look real. Some go the collage route, e.g. The Long Game. And then there are those like Blood for Dust where the actors resemble flat cutouts and their heads bobbling balloons pasted on top.

I’ll never understand a studio’s desire to go that route when a simple film still with effective typography can garner attention for its beauty rather than its superficiality, but that mindset doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon. Thankfully there are still those who get it––those who commission posters as an art form and a marketing tool. You can have both.

Shadows

While not as provocative as the poster for Collective,...

It’s been four years since The Avenue first launched, and the indie distributor just scored its first top 10 film with William Eubank’s “Land of Bad.”

The action flick starring Liam Hemsworth, Russell Crowe, Luke Hemsworth, Ricky Whittle and Milo Ventimiglia opened on Feb. 16, had the fourth-highest per screen average over the holiday weekend and was the only independent film in the top 10.

While indie films in awards contention can often make a modest box office dent, it’s unusual for an action film like “Land of Bad” to reach such heights: the actioner’s four-day total on opening weekend was $2.1 million from 1,057 screens.

President of domestic marketing and distribution JJ Caruth says the box office success of “Land of Bad” is a strong signal that audiences are hungry for more action-packed movies. “I’m just happy to see an independent film succeed at the box office. It’s...

"The only thing that matters, is that you are a man that no one would expect." The Avenue has revealed an official trailer for an indie small town crime thriller titled Blood For Dust, set for release starting in April. The film premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival last year, and it played at a number of other festivals including Deauville, San Diego, and Raindance. Described as "Breaking Bad meets Fargo", it's yet another of these gritty films about a guy with a troubled past that catches up to him. The same story as so many other films. Cliff, a traveling salesman drowning under the weight of providing for his family and the myth of the American dream, finds himself on a dangerous path after a chance encounter with Ricky, a colleague from a dark past. His once straight-laced life turns into a high-stakes game of survival. Starring Scoot McNairy as Cliff,...

Kit Harington and Scoot McNairy play old friends who reunite under dangerous circumstances in the first trailer for crime thriller Blood for Dust.

The Avenue is set to release director Rod Blackhurst’s feature in select theaters and on digital platforms April 19 following its premiere at last year’s Tribeca Festival. Josh Lucas and Stephen Dorff also star in Blood for Dust, which tells the story of Cliff (McNairy), a traveling salesman with financial issues who becomes enveloped in the world of drug trafficking after reuniting with Ricky (Harington).

“I don’t sell products that sell themselves,” Harington says in the trailer. This leads McNairy to respond, “You’re an arms dealer who sells drugs, Ricky.”

Blackhurst (Here Alone) helmed the film from a script by David Ebeltoft. Ryan Winterstern, Bernard Kira, Petr Jákl, Ari Novak, Arun Kumar, Bobby Campbell, Nathan Klingher, Mark Fasano and Noah Lang serve as producers.

Exclusive: Grady Craig has been promoted to President of Buffalo 8 and Senior Vice President of Business Development at BondIt Media Capital, Deadline has learned.

In his new roles, he will continue to oversee select deal structuring and provide executive producer support at the production and financing companies, while directing greater attention to high-level business development, operational management, and leadership across both organizations. His role will be key to expanding the organizations’ international presence, integrating new M&a opportunities, and growing their overall media portfolio as they expand deeper into music, live entertainment, and digital content.

Most recently serving as VP of Business Development and Operations at BondIt and as a general consultant to Buffalo 8, Craig joined BondIt as an intern in college before coming aboard full time in 2018. Since then, he’s supported $200M of aggregate investment into over 200 film, television, and live music touring projects at BondIt, helping to scale...

Highland Film Group shared a first look at “London Calling,” an action-comedy that reunites director Allan Ungar with star Josh Duhamel after the success of the action heist thriller “Bandit.”

Film also stars Jeremy Ray Taylor, Rick Hoffman and Aidan Gillen (“Game of Thrones”)

Written by Omer Levin Menekse and Quinn Wolfe, “London Calling” sees mediocre hit man Tommy Ward (Duhamel) go on the run and get stuck in L.A. after mistakenly killing a relative of London’s biggest crime boss (Gillen). To get back to his son on the other side of the pond, Tommy makes a deal with his new employer (Hoffman): teach his socially awkward teenage son Julian (Taylor) to be a man, in exchange for safe passage. Tommy is now forced to drag Julian, afraid of his own shadow, along on his latest contract killing of a renowned assassin. What starts off as a...

Highland Film Group has locked key territory deals for sci-fi thriller “The Astronaut” from “A Quiet Place” producer Brad Fuller Pic stars Kate Mara (“A Teacher”), Laurence Fishburne (“John Wick” films) and Gabriel Luna (“Terminator: Dark Fate”). The film wrapped shooting late last year in Ireland.

“The Astronaut” has sold to Signature Entertainment for the U.K., Capelight Pictures for Germany, Blue Swan Entertainment for Italy, Nos Lusomundo Audiovisuais for Portugal, DeAPlaneta for Spain, Spentzos Film for Greece, Cinemania Group for former Yugoslavia, Shoval Film Production for Israel, Falcon Films for the Middle East, Filmfinity for South Africa and Roadshow Films for Australia and New Zealand.

Jess Varley’s directorial debut, “The Astronaut” is produced by Fuller Media, the company behind Paramount’s “A Quiet Place” and “A Quiet Place Part II,” and Cameron Fuller, alongside Wonder Company’s Eric B. Fleischman (J.D. Dillard’s “Sleight”) and Chris Abernathy (“Barbarian”).

Highland Film Group,...

Exclusive: Bernard Kira, the manager and producer behind the nine-year-old shingle Bmk-ent, has rebranded the company as Apparent Motion Media, also announcing his signing of International Emmy winner Fernando Rovzar (Hotel Cocaine).

Kira’s move to rebrand comes as he preps Higher Ground, his third film as a producer, and second for an in-house client. Heading into production in March, the film is based on a script discovered by Apparent Motion client Charlie Weber (How to Get Away with Murder), which was developed internally, before being packaged and sold with Weber headlining. Previously, Kira set up client Erlingur Thoroddsen’s film The Piper, a horror pic poised to hit theaters on March 8.

In a statement on the re-launch of his company, Kira made the observation that “artists are becoming more proactive in generating their own opportunities and controlling the trajectory of their careers.” He added that he “started Bmk-ent with...

“May December” breakout Charles Melton has lined up another major feature and is set to star alongside Elizabeth Olsen in Todd Solondz’s next film, the darkly comic “Love Child.”

Killer Films, 2Am (“Past Lives”) Volition Media and Gramercy Park Media are teaming with Rocket Science to bring the project to this week’s European Film Market.

“Love Child” follows Misty, who is stuck in a loveless marriage to a brutish husband. Junior, her precocious 11-year-old is her only consolation. When Easy, a handsome vagabond stranger, appears, Junior hatches a plan to get rid of his father so that his mother can marry him instead. But things end up backfiring, so Junior comes up with yet another plan, this one even more devious, and with more disastrous—and unexpected—consequences.

Cindy Bru of Volition Media, Christine Vachon of Killer Films, David Hinojosa of 2Am and Ford Corbett of Gramercy Park Media will produce.

Signature Entertainment has acquired the action comedy London Calling, starring Josh Duhamel (Transformers franchise), from Highland Film Group for release in the U.K. and Ireland.

The feature film also stars Jeremy Ray Taylor (It), Rick Hoffman (Suits) and Aidan Gillen (Game of Thrones).

Signature said it plans to release the movie in early 2025.

London Calling focuses on Tommy Ward (Duhamel), a “mediocre hitman who goes on the run and gets stuck in Los Angeles after mistakenly killing the relative of London’s biggest crime lord,” according to a plot description. “To get back to his son on the other side of the pond, Tommy makes a deal with his new employer (Hoffman): teach his socially awkward teenage son Julian (Taylor) to be a man, in exchange for safe passage.”

The film is directed by Allan Ungar, who is reuniting with Duhamel after their work on the heist thriller Bandit,...

“You will see the El Niño of all Berlins with a downpour of projects… Unless you have a great project it will get lost.”

One month on from the AFM a positive yet realistic mood prevails with sellers reporting solid market deal flow as they and their partners return to packaging and production in the wake of the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Most sales executives who spoke to Screen were heartened by buyer attendance. Asian buyers in general returned – although South Korea is challenging – and there was strong attendance too from Eastern Europe, Benelux and Scandinavia.

After a months-long production halt the...

A few days after AFM wrapped in Santa Monica, the dearth of substantial deals trickling in is pointing to a weakened film sales market which is grappling with structural changes and the reverberations of the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Global industry players came into the AFM with reasonable hopes of dealmaking after a quiet Toronto festival, even if many packages were held back due to the strike. Yet, the main talking point of this AFM came down to the dysfunctional logistics of the event which was held for the first time at the Meridien Delfina hotel instead of the beachfront Loews.

“The logistics of AFM were more noisy than the actual market of AFM,” admits Scott Shooman, who was named head of film earlier this year at AMC Networks, a portfolio that encompasses IFC Films, Rlje Films and the streaming service Shudder.

Dylan Leiner, the senior EVP of acquisitions and production at Sony Pictures Classics,...

Kit Harington is reuniting with fellow Game of Thrones alum Mark Gatiss for a new BBC adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle.

Gatiss — who co-created the BBC’s wildly popular Sherlock based on Doyle’s novels — is adapting Doyle’s short story “Lot No. 249.”

The move keeps with an annual tradition of Gatiss writing and directing a televised ghost story for Christmas.

Harington stars with Freddie Fox (The Great) in a story that “revolves around a group of Oxford students, one of whom undertakes research into the secrets of Ancient Egypt which become the talk of the college. Can these experiments truly breathe life to the horrifying bag of bones which is the mysterious Lot. No 249?”

Says Gatiss: “It’s a serious delight for me to delve once again into the brilliant work of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, this time for the Christmas Ghost story. Lot No.249 is personal favourite and...

Christian Cooke’s directorial debut ‘Embers’ is among the world premieres.

The UK premieres of Jack Huston’s Day Of The Fight and Isabel Coixet’s Un Amor will respectively open and close the 31st Raindance Film Festival, which will take place in London from October 25 – November 4.

Day Of The Flight launched in Horizons at Venice earlier this month, It is the directorial debut of UK actor Huston and stars Michael Pitt, Ron Perlman and Joe Pesci in a story about a once-renowned boxer on his first day out of prison.

Coixet’s latest feature Un Amor stars Lai Costa...

The 31st edition of London’s Raindance Film Festival will open with the U.K. premiere of British actor Jack Huston’s directorial debut “Day of the Fight.”

The film comes to Raindance fresh off its Venice debut, where Huston was honored by Variety as a breakthrough director.

The story of a once-renowned boxer who takes a redemptive journey through his past and present on the day of his first fight since he left prison stars Michael Pitt alongside a cast including Ron Perlman, Joe Pesci, and a cameo from Steve Buscemi.

The U.K. premiere of Isabel Coixet’s “Un Amor” will close the festival after it bows at San Sebastian. Based on Sara Mesa’s bestselling novel, Laia Costa plays a young woman who escapes her stressful life in the city and relocates to rural Spain. When she accepts a disturbing sexual proposal, it gives rise to an all-consuming and obsessive passion.

Exclusive: Primetime Emmy nominee Kate Mara has joined Laurence Fishburne in the sci-fi thriller, The Astronaut. Terminator: Dark Fate actor Gabriel Luna has also joined the cast.

Jess Varley (Phobias) makes her solo writing and directorial debut.

Cameras are set to roll this October in Ireland under an interim SAG-AFTRA agreement.

The Astronaut is produced by Fuller Media’s Brad Fuller and Cameron Fuller, alongside Wonder Company’s Eric B. Fleischman (J.D. Dillard’s Sleight) and Chris Abernathy (Barbarian).

Highland Film Group is repping foreign rights to the pic here at TIFF. CAA Media Finance and the UTA Independent Film Group are co-repping domestic rights.

Gabriel Luna

In the pic, astronaut Sam Walker (Mara) returns from her first space mission. She’s found miraculously alive in a punctured capsule floating deep off the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.

Jessie Andrews stars in Love Bomb, an erotic thriller about a mysterious dating app that links three strangers together with deadly consequences.

David Guglielmo directed the picture from a script by Kathy Charles (Jacob’s Wife).

In addition to Andrews, Love Bomb also stars Josh Caras (The Highway Men) and Zane Holtz (“From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series”) and is produced by Bobby Campbell (Blood for Dust), Lillian Campbell (An Autumn Summer), and Jordan Dykstra (Assassin Club).

Love Bomb will play festivals in the fall. A release date is still to be determined.

Bloody Disgusting has a first look at the film and its poster designed by Sarah Ford of Yippee.

The post ‘Love Bomb’ Poster Swipes Left For Thrills [Exclusive] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

France’s Deauville American Film Festival has unveiled the 14 U.S. indie titles selected for competition in its 49th edition running from September 1 to 10.

They include Celine Song’s Sundance hit Past Lives; Jesse Eisenberg-starring Berlin Golden Bear Contender Manodrome by John Trengove as well as Sean Price Williams’ The Sweet East and Joanna Arnow’s micro-budget debut The Feeling That The Time For Doing Something Has Passed, which both debuted in Cannes Directors’ Fortnight in May.

“Always in search of the talent of tomorrow, which is already enjoying success today, the strong competition of nine first films and eight films by female directors gives hope for the future of independent cinema,” said festival director Bruno Barde.

This year’s main competition jury will be presided over by actor-director-producer Guillaume Canet, with other members including filmmakers Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre, Alexandre Aja and Léa Mysius as well as actress Rebecca Marder.

On paper, Rod Blackhurst’s Blood for Dust is just a standard film within the Neo-Western genre: a man (Scoot McNairy) down on his luck trying to earn money for himself and/or his family who eventually partners with a shady criminal (Kit Harrington) to earn one big score that will set both of them for life, but as they dig further and further into the criminal underworld, they’ll learn that their score comes at the risk of losing not just their lives, but their loved ones as well.

Every cliche and trope that you can imagine a Neo-Western story could have is littered throughout Blood for Dust. However, while its predictability makes for a film that has very few, if any, surprises or moments of subversion, it more than makes up for it by creating the most entertaining and engaging film that it can be, and for the most part,...

Director Rod Blackhurst’s stark crime flick Blood for Dust is nothing new under the sun — or, more accurately, the frigid sun of Wyoming and Montana, where the story takes place. But with an array of burnished, lived-in performances from a strong cast and an underlying level of suspense punctuated by a few gnarly action scenes, it’s certainly a watchable little genre venture that could find an audience, especially on streaming.

Fargo (both the movie and the TV series) immediately comes to mind in this early 90s-set thriller that feels very much like a product of the early 90s, with lots of caustic dialogue and outbursts of gory violence against a backdrop of Western American desolation. Following a forlorn salesman, Cliff (Scoot McNairy), who gets roped into illegal drug trafficking by his badass former colleague, Ricky (Kit Harington), it heads to mostly familiar places, but manages to do so...

The late Roger Ebert swore by the “Stanton-Walsh rule.” He claimed no film featuring character actors Harry Dean Stanton or M. Emmett Walsh could ever be entirely bad. Their presence could provide at least one bright spot in an otherwise dismal affair.

Stanton has left us now, though Walsh is still cranking out roles at 88. To replace at least the one missing half of this axiom, there’s no better candidate than Scoot McNairy.

Continue reading ‘Blood For Dust’ Review: Pencil-Thin Story Wastes Solid Craft And Performances [Tribeca] at The Playlist.

Nicolas Cage has been set to lead the cast in the new psychological thriller ‘The Surfer.’

Cage takes on the role of a man who returns to his hometown in Australia and takes on a local gang of surfers.

The synopsis reads; When a man (Cage) returns to his beachside hometown in Australia, many years since building a life for himself in the U.S., he is humiliated in front of his teenage son by a local gang of surfers who claim strict ownership over the secluded beach of his childhood. Wounded, “The Surfer” decides to remain at the beach, declaring war against those in control of the bay. But as the conflict escalates, the stakes spin wildly out of control, taking “The Surfer” to the edge of his sanity.

Also in news – Aimee Lou Wood & Matt Dillon join cast of ‘The Gambler Wife’

Lorcan Finnegan is directing from a screenplay by Thomas Martin.

Cage is hitting the beach!

Having recently saddled up for his first Western, Nicolas Cage looks set to ride some waves for the first time on screen, having been cast to lead elevated psychological thriller The Surfer from director Lorcan Finnegan (Vivarium, Nocebo) and screenwriter Thomas Martin.

Mossbank, the partnership between Sculptor Media and Raven and headed by Michael Rothstein and Sam Hall, is handling international sales and introducing The Surfer to buyers at the Cannes Market. Domestic sales will be repped by WME Independent.

In The Surfer, when a man (Cage) returns to his beachside hometown in Australia, many years since building a life for himself in the U.S., he is humiliated in front of his teenage son by a local gang of surfers who claim strict ownership over the secluded beach of his childhood. Wounded, “The Surfer” decides to remain at the beach, declaring war against those in control of the bay.

Lucy Liu (Strange World, Shazam! Fury of the Gods) and Cooper Hoffman (Licorice Pizza) have joined two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz (No Time to Die, Big Eyes, Inglourious Basterds) in Old Guy, the upcoming action comedy from Simon West (The Expendables 2, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider).

West directs and produces the feature, which was written by Greg Johnson (The Son) and recently wrapped in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where it was filmed on location, with support from Northern Ireland Screen. Highland Film Group is co-financing the action comedy and handling worldwide rights.

Old Guy follows aging contract killer Danny Dolinski (Waltz), who still believes he’s the best at what he does. Stuck at a dead end but vying for the love of club manager Anata (Liu), Danny is thrilled when The Company pulls him back into the field, but only to train Gen Z newcomer Wihlborg (Hoffman), a prodigy assassin with an attitude.

It is often said that the secret to becoming a successful entrepreneur is finding a need and filling it. When Santa Monica-based BondIt Media Capital launched in 2013, it zeroed in on the deposits productions must leave with SAG-AFTRA, DGA, IATSE and other guilds to ensure that their members get paid in a timely fashion.

The company co-founders — CEO Matthew Helderman and COO Luke Taylor — knew from their experience working in the production trenches that these deposits, which sometimes take up to six months to be returned, can create a significant cash flow problem for low-budget projects during principal photography.

So they decided to offer a deal: producers would pay the unions, then BondIt would reimburse their cash outlay, minus a fee (typically 12%-15%), and collect the deposits when they were returned.

It wasn’t exciting, it wasn’t big-time, but it was a foot in the door.

“No other financiers...

The King of Queens and Paul Blart: Mall Cop star Kevin James is set to star in the new action comedy Guns Up, playing an ex-cop and family man who moonlights as a mob henchman. When a job goes horribly wrong and both of his worlds collide, he has one night to get his family out of the city.

Millennium Media, known for the Hitman’s Bodyguard and Expendables franchise, is handling world sales on the upcoming feature and will be pitching it to international buyers at the Cannes Film Market next week.

Edward Drake, director of Amazon Prime thriller Broil, will direct Guns Up from his own screenplay. Production on Guns Up is set to start in June, with BondIt Media Capital financing and assisting with project packaging.

“We couldn’t be more excited to team up with Ed on this film, which stars the incredibly talented Kevin James...

Exclusive: Argo actor Scoot McNairy is the latest to join the cast of Speak No Evil, the Blumhouse and Universal psychological horror thriller from writer-director James Watkins.

The pic revolves around a family invited for a weekend at an idyllic country house -– a dream holiday that warps into a snarled psychological nightmare. Cameras are rolling in Europe.

The James McAvoy project is based on the screenplay of the Danish psychological horror thriller Gæsterne by Christian Tafdrup and Mads Tafdrup. A theatrical release is set for Aug. 9, 2024. Mackenzie Davis, who starred with McNairy for four seasons of AMC’s Halt and Catch Fire, also stars.

McNairy’s filmography includes Ben Affleck’s Argo, Andrew Dominik’s Killing Them Softly, Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, David Michod’s The Rover and War Machine, Lenny Abrahmson’s Frank, Zack Snyder’s Batman vs Superman, Mike Mills’ C’mon C’mon,...

Scoot McNairy and Kit Harington discuss gun-running, drug-dealing and the last episode of Game of Thrones (Ok, maybe not that) in this first-look still from Blood for Dust, the action-thriller from Netflix’s Amanda Knox documentary director Rod Blackhurst.

Written by David Ebeltoft (Here Alone) from a story he co-wrote with Blackhurst, the feature is being sold at the European Film Market in Berlin by Highland Film Group.

Now in postproduction, Blood for Dust follows former friends Cliff (McNairy), a traveling salesman struggling to make a living, and Ricky (Harington), an illegal weapons dealer making serious money, who reconnect one fateful day. Hoping to make some quick cash, Cliff agrees to partner with the violent Ricky, who is expanding his business to include cross-state drug and gun deliveries for John, a mid-level American cartel boss (Josh Lucas). Reluctantly he agrees to retrofit his beat-up station wagon to carry dozens of kilos of drugs.

Exclusive: With Berlin’s EFM market just a few weeks away, pre-sale packages are already starting to take shape. Here’s one of the first notable ones: two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz (No Time To Die) has been set to star in action-comedy Old Guy.

The Expendables 2, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Con Air director Simon West is aboard to direct the movie which has been written by Greg Johnson (The Last Son).

Inglourious Basterds and Django star Waltz will play ageing contract killer Terry Eubanks who still believes he’s the best at what he does. Stuck at a dead end, he is thrilled when The Company pulls him back in the field, but only to train Gen Z newcomer Wihlborg, a prodigy assassin with an attitude. The mismatched pair is asked to eliminate top members of a competing crime syndicate and, in the process, uncover their employer...

Highland Film Group co-finances, handles worldwide rights.

Christoph Waltz will star in the action comedy Old Guy, which Highland Film Group co-finances and will introduce to buyers at the EFM in Berlin next month.

Simon West is directing from a screenplay by Greg Johnson and production is scheduled to start early this year in Belfast.

Waltz will play an aging contract killer assigned to train a Gen Z newcomer who discovers with his new partner that their employers want to eliminate the older assassins like him.

Jib Polhemus and Martin Brennan are producing with Hal Sadoff and Norman Golightly on behalf of Dark Castle Entertainment.