‘Joker’ Sets Box Office Record, Jane Fonda Makes Awards Show History, Cannes Plan Development, More
Iconic actress and producer Jane Fonda made history this week as she accepted her Stanley Kubrick BAFTA Britannia Award for Excellence in Film while being handcuffed by police following her actions at a protest calling for a Green New Deal and an end to drilling for fossil fuels.
Video – 26th Oct
New Warner Bros/DC movie Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix, has topped $855million in worldwide box office grosses to make it the highest earning R-Rated (15) theatrical release in history, overtaking Fox/Marvel entries Deadpool and Deadpool 2.
The European Visual Observatory has revealed that the number of female directors in Europe is “growing slowly”, with new statistics taken from the 2017 calendar year putting the number of female directors at 19% across the continent’s film industry.
THR – 22nd Oct 2019
The Cannes Film Festival announced this week in Paris that they are to renovate, develop and expand their Côte d’Azur home with a new $556million project that aims to make the location the “audio-visual sillicon valley”.
THR – 24th Oct 2019
Pirates of the Caribbean is being rebooted at Disney, with the studio drafting in original series writer Ted Elliott and ‘Chernobyl’ creator Craig Mazin to develop a story.
THR – 25th Oct 2019
John Carter and Battleship star Taylor Kitsch will star in Inferno, a new film from District 9 and Chappie director Neill Blomkamp, a movie about an FBI agent who attempts to discover the truth behind a New Mexico murder.
Empire – 24th Oct 2019
Latin music star Ozuna has joined the cast of James Wan’s upcoming Fast & Furious 9, set for release on May 22nd 2020. Famed musician Cardi B was also confirmed via an Instagram update from star and producer Vin Diesel.
THR – 21st Oct 2019
Birdman and Spotlight star Michael Keaton has joined the cast of Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7, which has set a release date of September 2020 ahead of an expected awards push. Keaton joins the likes of William Hurt, Frank Langella, Mark Rylance, Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt on the cast of the film.
THR – 25th Oct 2019
Trainspotting star Kelly Macdonald has joined Colin Firth on the cast of World War II drama Operation Mincemeat, from director John Madden (Shakespeare in Love; The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel).
Deadline – 22nd Oct 2019
Baz Luhrmann’s upcoming Elvis Pressley biopic has cast Australian actress Olivia DeJonge, known for her work on Netflix’s ‘The Society’, as Priscilla Pressley.
Deadline – 25th Oct 2019
Daniel Wu has joined Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson and Thandie Newton on the cast of Reminiscence, a dystopic romance that is set to be the directorial debut of ‘Westworld’ executive producer Lisa Joy.
Deadline – 22nd Oct 2019
‘Flight of the Conchords’ star Bret McKenzie will write the script and the music for an upcoming adaptation of Jim Henson’s 1970s ABC special Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas.
Variety – 21st Oct 2019
Both Matt Damon and Christian Bale are to campaign in the Lead Actor category ahead of the upcoming Oscars for their roles in upcoming release Ford v Ferrari.
Variety – 21st Oct 2019
Palme d’Or winning British director Ken Loach, whose new film Sorry We Missed You is released in cinemas Oct 31st, has described superhero films as being “made as commodoties like hamburgers”.
THR – 22nd Oct 2019
And finally…
Early reactions to the Greta Gerwig directed adaptation of “Little Women” are hugely positive, with many critics pointing to an inevitable awards run for Gerwig and her all-star cast. The film will be released on 26th December, some 25 years after the last silver screen adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s novel, Little Women (1994) directed by Gillian Armstrong.
