News

“Poldark” star Aidan Turner will play Leonardo da Vinci in the new series by Frank Spotnitz that aims to provide an original take on the Renaissance genius. Each of the eight episodes of the show, which has the working title “Leonardo,” will center on one of his masterful achievements in various fields, not only including art.

The English-language series is planned for screening next year to mark the 500th anniversary of Leonardo’s death. To be directed by Dan Percival (“The Man in the High Castle”) and produced by Lux Vide (“Devils”), it’s expected to be the first project to hit the airwaves from The Alliance, the co-production group formed by continental Europe’s top pubcasters: Italy’s Rai, France Televisions and Germany’s Zdf. The broadcasters have banded together to counter streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon.

Casting of Turner (“The Hobbit”) was announced at Rome’s Mia market,...

Showrunner Frank Spotnitz is co-writing the drama with UK writer Steve Thompson.

Poldark star Aidan Turner has signed to play Leonardo da Vinci in the working-titled, high-end drama series Leonardo, produced by Italian film and TV company Lux Vide and top showrunner Frank Spotnitz’s Big Light Productions.

First announced in autumn 2018, the big-budget drama is the first production to receive the backing of pan-European co-production initiative The Alliance, created last year by broadcasters Rai, France Televisions, and Germany’s Zdf to up their game in the high-end drama scene.

Spotnitz is co-writing the drama with UK writer Steve Thompson,...

This summer there is lots of action on the Italian peninsula.

“No Time to Die, ” the latest James Bond film, is shooting amid cave dwellings in the ancient southern town of Matera, while Christopher Nolan’s latest, “Tenet,” is encamped in Ravello, a jewel overlooking the Amalfi coast. Terrence Malick is in Anzio, a central seaport, where cameras are rolling on his drama “The Last Planet,” which will reportedly depict passages in the life of Christ.

A little further north, on the grounds of Rome’s Cinecittà World theme park, Sky’s high-end Rome-origins skein “Romulus,” filming in archaic Latin, is in the midst of a 28-week shoot, while Luca Guadagnino’s HBO/Sky show “We Are Who We Are,” set on a U.S. Army base, is about to go into production in Padua.

“There is a production surge under way,” says “Romulus” producer Riccardo Tozzi, chief of ITV-owned Cattleya.

Sneak Peek more new footage from the animated feature "Batman vs Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", adapting the Idw/DC Comics crossover miniseries (2015) by writer James Tynion IV and illustrator Freddie Williams II, available on 4K, Blu-ray, and Digital, May 14, 2019:

"..it all starts in 'Gotham City', as a series of deadly raids leads 'Batman' to believe...

"...he is up against a group of highly trained 'ninjas'. 

"Somehow, the 'Foot Clan' has crossed over to another dimension-but they haven't come alone: 'Leonardo', 'Raphael', 'Donatello' and 'Michelangelo' are on their trail..."

Cast includes Troy Baker as 'Batman' and 'Joker', Darren Criss as 'Raphael', Kyle Mooney as 'Michelangelo', Baron Vaughn as 'Donatello', Eric Bauza as 'Leonardo'...

...Rachel Bloom as 'Batgirl', Tom Kenny as 'The Penguin', John Dimaggio as 'Mr. Freeze', Tara Strong as 'Harley Quinn' and 'Poison Ivy'...

...Carlos Alazraqui as...

Sneak Peek the upcoming animated feature "Batman vs Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", adapting the Idw/DC Comics crossover miniseries "Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" (2015) by writer James Tynion IV and illustrator Freddie Williams II, available on 4K, Blu-ray, and Digital, Spring 2019:

"..it all starts in 'Gotham City', as a series of deadly raids leads 'Batman' to believe...

"...he is up against a group of highly trained 'ninjas'. 

"Somehow, the 'Foot Clan' has crossed over to another dimension-but they haven't come alone: 'Leonardo', 'Raphael', 'Donatello' and 'Michelangelo' are on their trail..."

Cast includes Troy Baker as 'Batman' and 'Joker', Darren Criss as 'Raphael', Kyle Mooney as 'Michelangelo', Baron Vaughn as 'Donatello', Eric Bauza as 'Leonardo'...

...Rachel Bloom as 'Batgirl', Tom Kenny as 'The Penguin', John Dimaggio as 'Mr. Freeze', Tara Strong as 'Harley Quinn' and 'Poison Ivy'...

...Carlos Alazraqui...

Warner Bros. is currently in post-production on a "Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" animated feature, adapting Idw's "Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" mini series (2015) by writer James Tynion IV and illustrator Freddie Williams II, available on 4K, Blu-ray, and Digital, Spring 2019:

"..it all starts in 'Gotham City', as a series of deadly raids leads 'Batman' to believe...

"...he is up against a group of highly trained 'ninjas'. 

"Somehow, the 'Foot Clan' has crossed over to another dimension-but they haven't come alone: 'Leonardo', 'Raphael', 'Donatello' and 'Michelangelo' are on their trail..."

Cast includes starring Troy Baker as 'Batman' and 'Joker', Darren Criss as 'Raphael', Kyle Mooney as 'Michelangelo', Baron Vaughn as 'Donatello', Eric Bauza as 'Leonardo'...

...Rachel Bloom as 'Batgirl', Tom Kenny as 'The Penguin', John Dimaggio as 'Mr. Freeze', Tara Strong as 'Harley Quinn' and 'Poison Ivy'.

U.S. showrunner Frank Spotnitz and British writer Steve Thompson were recruited by Italy’s Lux Vide to write English-language TV series “Leonardo,” which will portray the Renaissance genius in new ways, including as a gay outsider. That aspect that has already created a stir on social media in Italy even before the show hits the airwaves.

Plans are for the ambitious eight-episode skein to screen next year to mark the 500th anniversary of Leonardo’s death. “Leonardo,” which Lux is lead-producing, will also be the first product generated by The Alliance, the co-production group formed by continental Europe’s top pubcasters – Rai, France Televisions, and Germany’s Zdf – in an effort to counter streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon.

Spotnitz (“The Man in the High Castle”) and Thompson (“Sherlock”) spoke to Variety about the challenges of vividly depicting the enigmatic Tuscan artist and inventor for contemporary audiences.

Variety:...

Italian sales company True Colours has taken world sales on high-end biopic “Amazing Leonardo,” directed by Mexican helmer Jesus Garces Lambert and produced by Comcast-owned paybox Sky for play on both TV and theatrical in 2019, which will mark the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s death.

The “Leonardo” biopic, toplining Italian A-lister Luca Argentero (“Eat Pray Love”) as the artist, scientist and inventor is being touted as going beyond the common stereotypes about the life of the quintessential Renaissance man who painted the Mona Lisa.

Art historian Pietro C. Marano, a member of Italy’s national panel of da Vinci experts, is in charge of the research, while Cosetta Lagani, who is in charge of Sky’s theatrical productions of the arts, is supervising the visuals.

Shooting on the biopic started in September in locations that include da Vinci’s native Tuscan town of Vinci and the region’s countryside,...

Here’s a brand new poster and clip from directors Bob Fisher and Rob Greenberg’s upcoming gender-swapped remake of the 1987 Kurt Russell/Goldie Hawn comedy Overboard. Garry Marshall’s original film starred Goldie Hawn as a rich heiress suffering from amnesia, with Kurt Russell appearing as a carpenter who then convinces her that they are married. The remake features Eugenio Derbez as a spoiled, wealthy playboy who is thrown overboard and becomes the target of revenge from his mistreated employee, played by Anna Faris.

In a splashy new twist, Overboard focuses on “Leonardo” (Eugenio Derbez), a selfish, spoiled, rich playboy from Mexico’s richest family and “Kate” (Anna Faris), a working class single mom of three hired to clean Leonardo’s luxury yacht. After unjustly firing Kate and refusing to pay her, Leonardo falls overboard when partying too hard and wakes up on the Oregon coast with amnesia. Kate...

Here’s the first trailer for directors Bob Fisher and Rob Greenberg’s upcoming gender-swapped remake of the 1987 Kurt Russell/Goldie Hawn comedy Overboard. Garry Marshall’s original film starred Goldie Hawn as a rich heiress suffering from amnesia, with Kurt Russell appearing as a carpenter who then convinces her that they are married. The remake features Eugenio Derbez as a spoiled, wealthy playboy who is thrown overboard and becomes the target of revenge from his mistreated employee, played by Anna Faris.

In a splashy new twist, Overboard focuses on “Leonardo” (Eugenio Derbez), a selfish, spoiled, rich playboy from Mexico’s richest family and “Kate” (Anna Faris), a working class single mom of three hired to clean Leonardo’s luxury yacht. After unjustly firing Kate and refusing to pay her, Leonardo falls overboard when partying too hard and wakes up on the Oregon coast with amnesia. Kate shows up at the hospital and,...

This remake of the classic 1987 comedy Overboard was a bad idea. The first trailer has been released and it looks absolutely terrible. Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn starred in the original film and it was a great and funny movie. This remake, which stars Anna Ferris and Eugenio Derbez, looks like an empty shell of a film an embarrassment. And I like Anna Ferris!

The film basically takes the same story but switches the roles around. Remember when Kurt Russell's character is treated like crap by a snobby rich woman? Then after she falls off her yacht into the water and loses her memory, he claims to be her husband and turns her into his slave? In this movie, Ferris takes on Russell's role and Derbez takes on Hawn's role. Here's the synopsis:

In a splashy new twist, Overboard focuses on “Leonardo” (Eugenio Derbez), a selfish, spoiled, rich playboy from...

Pajamas and a big bowl of sugary cereal is how many of us remember watching our favorite Saturday morning cartoons as kids. Beginning in May, DC Entertainment plans to give old fans and new the chance to relive (and extend) their childhoods with a new, modern lineup of comics based on some of Hanna-Barbera’s most popular cartoon characters, but reimagined in a fresh and contemporary fashion.

The initial lineup includes:

Scooby Apocalypse – Featuring character designs by veteran artist Jim Lee and an origin story by Jim Lee and Keith Giffen (Justice League 3001), artist Howard Porter (Superman) will provide his own unique take on Freddie, Velma, Daphne, Shaggy and Scooby-Doo. “Those meddling kids” and their Mystery Machine are at the center of a well-meaning experiment gone wrong and they’ll need to bring all of their mystery solving skills to bear (along with plenty of Scooby Snacks), to find a...

Angela Grosvenor Cdg is casting for The Secret Life Of Boys, a new series from Foundation TV for Cbbc, plus an interactive website.

The series is filming in the UK with director/producer Beryl Richards (Wizards Vs Aliens, Leonardo), and they are looking for an Australian girl (based in the UK) to play age 12/13, she should have a sunny personality.

Suitable applicants should email agrosvenor@me.com...

“Are you in or out?”

The Doctor and Clara wake in the company of two strangers and are quickly told they are to rob a bank. Everything is planned so well, almost as if the planner knows what’s going to happen, that The Doctor quickly realizes that this isn’t a mere bank heist, but a…

Time Heist

By Steve Thompson and Steven Moffat

Directed by Douglas MacKinnon

The Bank of Karabraxos is the single most secure bank in human history. A loyal staff, redundant security systems, and a guard dog that literally smells guilt in the customers. When The Doctor picks up the phone of the Tardis and suddenly recovers from a blackout in a strange room with two criminals, it’s too tantalizing not to move ahead with. Being chased by the bank’s security at all times, the quartet must breach unbreachable security, all the while...

Award-winning production company Kindle Entertainment are set to bring Enid Blyton's classic childrens book series, The Famous Five, back to our TV screens.

Kindle, the production company behind Leonardo, Some Dogs Bite and Dustbin Baby, will co-produce a new TV series based on the books, with Hachette Books who have acquired the rights to the Enid Blyton literary estate (excluding Noddy).

The reimagining of Blyton’s much loved children’s stories, in which four young children and their dog have adventures while on school holidays, is planned as a family series, rather than a kids-only show, with Kindle targeting the early Saturday primetime slots filled by the likes of Doctor Who and Merlin.

The pilot follows tomboy George, now a modern girl, tand her dog Timmy, being transported back in time to Kirrin Bay in 1954 where she meets the rest of the gang. Through each episode George will gradually...

Adele could continue her winning streak well into the year, with news that she has collected four nominations in the prestigious Ivor Novello Awards.

The London star, who stole the Grammys and the Brits earlier in the year, has been recognised for Best Song (Rolling in the Deep), Best Album (21), and Most Performed Work (twice, for Rolling in the Deep and Someone Like You).

Florence + the Machine, Take That, Pj Harvey and Ed Sheeran are also among the nominees. Full List Below.

The awards this year will take place on 17 May in London.

Ivor Novello Awards - full list of nominations:

Best Song Musically and Lyrically

Adele: Rolling In The Deep (written by: Adele Adkins / Paul Epworth)

Florence + the Machine: Shake It Out (written by: Paul Epworth, Kid Harpoon, Florence Welch)

Ed Sheeran: 'The A Team (written by: Ed Sheeran)

Best Contemporary Song

Nero: Promises' (written by: Joseph Ray,...