News

Steven Seagal’s tough-guy persona wasn’t just for the movies; he reportedly had real-life run-ins with the mob. Back in the day, the Under Siege star found himself tangled with the infamous Gambino crime family, and it wasn’t a friendly encounter.

Steven Seagal in Under Siege 2 (1995) | Credits: Regency Enterprises

Per reports, the mob used him for target practice, though not in the way you’d expect. Instead of dodging bullets, Seagal was allegedly forced to sit still while gangsters tested his nerves.

Steven Seagal vs. the mob: When Hollywood met the Gambino crime family Steven Seagal in Under Siege 2 (1995) | Credits: Regency Enterprises

Steven Seagal has faced plenty of bad guys in Under Siege and Above the Law, but his scariest villains weren’t on a movie set; they were real. Back in the ‘90s, the action star got tangled with the Gambino crime family, and they...

Veteran US independent producer Cassian Elwes and Chinese tech entrepreneur and NextG founder Edward Zeng are launching a $100m fund to invest in five to eight features over the next three years.

The pair are in Cannes to meet with potential partners on their Next Generation Media Fund and are talking to buyers on the first project on the slate, the crime biopic Gambino.

Elwes, whose credits include The Butler, Precious and Mudbound, is lead producer on the story of the Mafia boss who led the Gambino crime family in New York until his death in 1976.

Nick Vallelonga, the Oscar-winning...

Tribeca Enterprises Chief Content Officer Paula Weinstein surprised a packed house tonight at Tribeca Festival’s annual Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award presentation with a special, never before seen, extended sneak peek of Susanne Rostock’s upcoming Harry Belafonte documentary “Following Harry.”

The four-minute clip, presented below, represents the prologue of Rostock’s upcoming documentary. The reveal was the climax of the event, during which the annual award was presented to Jane Fonda at Indeed Theater at Spring Studios.

The footage shows the elderly activist, who passed away at the age of 96 on April 25 of this year, reflecting on his life and the frustration that he has seen so many negative forces emerging upon the public stage in his twilight years.

“The truth of the matter is that the enemy doesn’t sleep,” Belafonte states amid scenes of torch-bearing Charlottesville Nazi protestors shouting “blood and soil.”

Belafonte collaborated...

Exclusive: Principal photography has wrapped on Following Harry, a documentary that offers an inside view of 96-year-old civil rights icon Harry Belafonte’s continuing mission of social justice. The film directed and edited by Susanne Rostock is being readied for premiere at fall film festivals.

Belafonte, who celebrated his birthday on March 1, executive produces Following Harry. He, Rostock and producer Julius Nasso previously collaborated on the 2011 documentary Sing Your Song, a film that examined both Belafonte’s groundbreaking career in entertainment and his key role in the Civil Rights Movement. Following Harry is a present-tense account of Belafonte’s ongoing dedication to advance a more equitable and just society. It covers a span of time dating from the killing of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida more than a decade ago until today.

“Following Harry is a feature documentary that shares the lived experience of Harry Belafonte, in the most public...

Exclusive: George Gallo (The Comeback Trail) is teaming with Green Book Oscar winner Nick Vallelonga to produce The Accidental Gangster, a new thriller based on reformed gangster Orlando ‘Ori’ Spado’s bestselling autobiography of the same name. The former will also direct from a script by the author’s son Anthony Spado and David Steenhoek.

Prior to leaving the mob, Ori Spado was an associate of NYC Colombo Crime Family underboss Sonny Franzese, as well as Los Angeles Family underboss Jimmy Caci, and Joey Pyle, who led the London-based criminal organization known as The Firm. He worked as a fixer in both Hollywood and New York and went on to pull off numerous jobs and heists during his time with the mafia, after working for a time as an insurance salesman. In 1997, one particular FBI Agent told Spado, “I will see the day you are chained, shackled and put on...

Veteran Hollywood multi-hyphenate George Gallo is attached to direct “Gambino,” a high-end biopic about organized crime boss Carlo Gambino that Gallo is co-writing with two-time Oscar winner Nick Vallelonga (“Green Book”).

The ambitious project, announced in Cannes, is being lead produced by Julius R. Nasso, also a Hollywood veteran, best known for his production partnership with Steven Seagal that went sour. Nasso more recently shepherded “Narc,” and is among producers of Susanne Rostock’s Harry Belafonte doc “Sing Your Song.”

Nasso has acquired rights to the novel “Gambino: The Rise” by Pierre James which delves into the U.S. story of Cosa Nostra starting from its roots in Italy and the role played by Carlo Gambino, who was its boss from 1957 until his death in 1976 of natural causes in his Massapequa, Long Island, home.

“I have known this story all my life,” Gallo told Variety, speaking from Los Angeles.

Gallo...

If you did a double-take when you first heard that Ethan Hawke and Selena Gomez were in a movie together, or raised your eyebrows when you then heard that the Getaway movie wasn’t about something involving angst-riddled teens and heart-wrenching drama… and, if you thought a selection of new images would clue you in to something beyond cars, explosions, and moody pictures of Hawke and Gomez very near each other… well, frankly, I’ve lost my train of thought.

However it all works out, this Getaway movie looks fantastic. There’s probably a really good reason that Gomez’ character has a custom Ford Shelby GT500 Super Snake for Hawke to steal, but… no, I’m kidding.

Still, it may be fun. Have a look at some hot new images, and get ready to choke on everything you ever said about Selena Gomez’ acting ability.

Getaway Movie Trailer

Getaway Clip...

Steven Seagal has requested a presidential pardon for the film producer convicted of conspiracy to extort money from him. The action star wrote to the office of the pardon attorney at the United States Department of Justice to confirm his support for an eventual pardon for his former business partner Julius Nasso. He wrote: 'I have no objections to and would support the application (when it is timely) of Julius R. Nasso for a Presidential pardon.' The producer was sentenced to a year in federal prison in 2003 after his decade-long partnership with Seagal was severed. The 'Born to Raise Hell' star ended their relationship when his spiritual guru advised him to stop making violent films. However, Julius had already...

Brendan Fraser has filed a $3 million (£1.8 million) lawsuit against the makers of a new movie about William Tell, amid allegations the planned project has failed to materialise.

The Mummy actor claims producer Todd Moyer hired him to star in The Legend of William Tell: 3D early last year, with the shoot scheduled to begin in October.

Fraser alleges he passed up on several lucrative jobs to commit to the project - which is reportedly still in pre-production due to financing issues.

The actor has now taken legal action and filed papers at Los Angeles County Superior Court, demanding a $2.25 million (£1.4 million) payout he insists he's entitled to whether the film shoots or not. He's also asking for additional damages, taking the amount to $3 million, reports TMZ.com.

However, Moyer is stunned by the legal action because he's adamant the project is still on, telling the website, "This is the first I have heard of this lawsuit. As we told Mr. Fraser's reps, we are ready, willing and able to make the movie for the September 3rd start date. (Producer) Julius Nasso and I have the movie fully financed.

"Unfortunately, Mr. Fraser does not seem to be interested in making the movie as a 2D film as the producers intend to do. This is not a contractual decision Mr. Fraser has the ability to make."...

Brendan Fraser claims the producers behind a new 3D movie about William Tell have screwed him out of more than $2 million in acting fees -- and now, he's suing for every penny ... plus more.Brendan filed the lawsuit in L.A. County Superior Court -- claiming producer Todd Moyer hired him to act in "The Legend of William Tell: 3D" in early 2011, promising to begin shooting in October of that year.Brendan claims he fully...

New York, Jan 13: Steven Seagal has landed himself in a lawsuit for the second time, after he failed to pay a 500,000-dollar debt to his mobbed-up former business partner.

According to the court papers filed, film producer Julius Nasso claims that Seagal, whose 1992 action-thriller 'Under Siege' grossed an estimated 156 million dollars worldwide stiffed him on two instalment payments of 50,000 dollars each last year.

Nasso, of Staten Island, said that he has made "numerous attempts" to collect the money, which the actor agreed to pay to dissolve their film-production companies in 2007.

That deal also required.

HBO has acquired the U.S. TV rights for Susanne Rostock's documentary Sing Your Song, about the life and career of Harry Belafonte. It will debut on HBO in fall 2011. Sing Your Song was screened at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and the 2011 Berlin Film Festival. It was produced by Michael Cohl, Gina Belafonte, Jim Brown, William Eigen and Julius R. Nasso.

Action man Steven Seagal and his former business partner Julius R. Nasso have ended their bitter six-year legal battle, which at one point saw allegations of Mob extortion surface. Nasso filed a $60 million lawsuit against Seagal in 2002, accusing the actor of reneging on a deal to develop and produce four movie projects with him. Seagal maintained no such agreement was ever made. Now, in an out-of-court settlement to end the dispute, Seagal is expected to pay his former best friend Nasso $500,000, while the producer will drop his lawsuit. Nasso says, "I'm glad it's behind us. I wish him the best." In 2002, FBI agents arrested Nasso on suspicion of conspiring to extort Seagal. The producer was charged alongside 16 people with alleged ties to the Gambino crime family. In 2003, Nasso pleaded guilty to conspiring to extort Seagal and ended up serving one year in prison. He now hopes to secure a presidential pardon removing the offence from his record. As part of the pair's settlement, Seagal has agreed to write a letter supporting Nasso's application for a pardon.

Hollywood actor Steven Seagal's lawyers want to be released from representing him - because the movie tough guy has allegedly failed to pay them since May last year. The attorneys defending the Under Siege star from a $60 million civil suit brought by former business partner Julius Nasso have filed papers in New York asking to be let loose from the case. Lawyer Martin L Perschetz states in the motion, "The amount due is substantial, amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars. I have made numerous attempts to communicate with Mr Seagal over the last six months, including attempts by letter and by telephone. Mr Seagal has not responded to any of these." Last month a court ordered Nasso - who produced a number of Seagal's early movies - to spend a year in prison, pay a $75,000 fine, and undergo mental health counseling, after he admitted arranging for the film star to be threatened. Nasso had pleaded guilty last August to extortion conspiracy and later admitted he'd arranged for Anthony 'Sonny' Ciccone, a member of reputed crime family the Gambinos, to confront Seagal. The court then heard how Ciccone demanded Seagal keep working with Nasso and pay him $150,000 a film. Nasso, who starts his sentence this August, has filed the civil suit against Seagal for alleged breach of contract, writes website Pagesix.

Hollywood action star Steven Seagal's former business partner has been sentenced to a year and a day in prison after admitting he arranged for the film star to be threatened. A New York court also ordered Julius Nasso - who produced a number of Seagal's early movies - to pay a $75,000 fine, and undergo mental health counseling. Nasso, who pleaded guilty last August to extortion conspiracy, told the court on Tuesday he had arranged for Anthony 'Sonny' Ciccone, a member of reputed crime family the Gambinos, to confront Seagal in the Vip room of a New York restaurant in a way "that would be perceived to be a threat". The court heard how Ciccone demanded Seagal keep working with Nasso and pay him $150,000 a film. Nasso's lawyer, Robert Hantman, said his client's crime was, "an aberrant incident that is unlikely to happen again and totally out of character for somebody who is otherwise a well-respected and successful businessman." But Seagal spokesman Peter Mirijanian said Nasso had tried to ruin Seagal's career, "Although some of the harm to Seagal cannot be undone, he feels vindicated knowing that Mr. Nasso has had to confess to a judge that he is a felon, extortionist and a liar."...

A judge has refused to throw out a $60 million lawsuit against Steven Seagal that claims he backed out of movie projects on the advice of his Buddhist spiritual adviser. Judge Joseph Maltese ruled on Thursday that the case filed by Seagal's previous business partner, producer Julius Nasso, can proceed to trial. Nasso has accused Seagal of reneging on a contract to perform in four motion pictures, with had a combined budget of more than $125 million.

Steven Seagal's business partner claims the actor broke a contract to star in four movies after falling under the spell of a Buddhist "spiritual advisor". Julius R. Nasso, Seagal's partner for 15 years, wants $60 million in damages from Seagal, who was convinced he would be reincarnated as a lesser being if he went ahead with the movies, budgeted for $125 million. The star was reportedly told to spurn "his children from two previous marriages, his movie production companies and others," by the man known only as Mukara. Nasso says, "This Mukara started interfering, and told Steven that he wasn't allowed to wear black or shoot a gun. I feel sorry for him a little bit. I don't know if he's being misled or brainwashed or what." Nasso's lawyer, Robert Hantman, says, "He just wants what's fair."...