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The Big Cigar is a biographical drama thriller miniseries created by Jim Hecht. Based on the 2012 Playboy article of the same name by Joshua Bearman, the Apple TV+ series is set in the 1970s and it follows the story of Black Panther party founder Huey P. Newton as he tries to escape from the FBI to Cuba with the help of film and TV producer Bert Schneider.

If you love historical figures and their stories, The Big Cigar is for you as we get an in-depth look at the life of Huey P. Newton. So, if you love the Apple TV+ biographical series here are all the release dates for its upcoming episodes.

The Big Cigar – Episode Guide (When Will The New Episodes Come Out?) Credit – Apple TV+

The Big Cigar consists of six episodes in total. The biographical drama miniseries premiered on Apple TV+ with its first two episodes...

André Holland fights the power and impacts Hollywood’s framework in his role as real-life figure Huey P. Newton in Apple TV+’s “The Big Cigar,” which landed on the streamer on Friday and marks the 70th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education ruling.

The six-episode limited series is based on Joshuah Bearman’s (“Argo”) magazine article “The Big Cigar.” Per Apple TV+’s description of the show, it “tells the incredible true story of Hollywood revolution meeting social revolution. It’s a wild caper about Black Panther founder Huey P. Newton escaping from the FBI to Cuba with the assistance of famed producer Bert Schneider in an impossibly elaborate plan – involving a fake movie production – that goes wrong every way it possibly can.”

Here’s everything you need to know about how to watch.

When does “The Big Cigar” Premiere?

“The Big Cigar” premieres on Apple TV+ Friday,...

Legendary actor Louis Gossett Jr. has passed away.

Per the Associated Press, Louis Gossett Jr. died on Friday morning in Santa Monica, California. No details were shared about a cause of death, though his passing was confirmed by the actor's cousin, Neal L. Gossett. He was 87 years old.

“Never mind the awards, never mind the glitz and glamor, the Rolls-Royces and the big houses in Malibu. It’s about the humanity of the people that he stood for," Neal told the outlet, remembering his cousin and the ways he used dignity and humor to fight racism.

After beginning his career as an actor with stage work, Gossett rose to great fame with his role as Fiddler in the hit television miniseries Roots, which aired in 1977. For his performance, Gossett won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy Series. The acclaimed series was very acclaimed,...

Exclusive: Oscar nominee and Emmy winner Shohreh Aghdashloo is the latest addition to the cast of Renfield, the monster movie that Chris McKay is directing for Universal Pictures.

She’ll star alongside previously announced cast members including Nicholas Hoult, Nicolas Cage, Awkwafina, Adrian Martinez and Ben Schwartz.

The film based on an original story outline from The Walking Dead and Invincible’s Robert Kirkman centers on Renfield (Hoult), who has grown sick and tired of his centuries as Dracula’s (Cage) lackey. The henchman finds a new lease on life and maybe even redemption when he falls for feisty, perennially angry traffic cop Rebecca Quincy (Awkwafina).

Aghdashloo will play Ella, a bold woman who is one of the most feared crime lords in the city.

Ryan Ridley wrote the script. McKay is...

Exclusive: Quiver Distribution has acquired Martin Guigui’s Drama Drama, with plans to release the teen musical on digital and VOD June 1.

The film, scripted by Guigui and Brian Lukow, centers on five unlikely friends who are called upon to lead an anti-bullying initiative at their high school, teaming up to form a pop music group with a socially conscious message.

Starring in the coming-of-age pic, which features a set of 14 original songs, are newcomers Michelle DeFraites, Ana Golja, Zonta (Breaking Legs), Carlye Tamaren (Golden Boy) and Amelia DeMilo.

Pic is produced by All For One Media, Sprockefeller Pictures and Sunset Pictures. Executive producers include Brian Gold, Ryan R. Johnson and Martin Sprock.

“Drama Drama‘s heartwarming plot, captivating characters and fun music and dance numbers makes it the quintessential teen film,” said Quiver Distribution Co-Presidents Berry Meyerowitz and Jeff Sackman,...

“Soul,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Promising Young Woman,” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7” were the big film winners Sunday at the 11th annual Guild of Music Supervisors Awards.

“Soul” took best supervision for a film budgeted over $25 million, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” for under $25 million, “Promising Young Woman” for under $10 million, “The Cuban” for under $5 million, and “Hear My Voice” took best song honors from “The Trial of the Chicago 7.”

In TV, “Watchmen” won for drama and best song (“The Way It Used To Be”), “To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You” scored for movie, and there was a three-way tie for comedy or musical split between “High Fidelity,” “Insecure,” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”

The documentary awards went to “Crip Camp” and the docuseries “The Last Dance.”

In addition, the legendary Quincy Jones won the Icon Award and was paid a lovely tribute by Stevie Wonder,...

Oscar contenders “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Promising Young Woman” and Pixar’s “Soul” triumphed in their respective categories at the 11th Annual Guild of Music Supervisors Awards.

The ceremony celebrating outstanding achievement in the field of music supervision was held virtually, honoring the unsung heroes of film, television, documentaries, games, advertising and trailers. Despite not being recognized by AMPAS, the wins helped shine a spotlight on the music supervisors who contributed to Academy Award nominated films.

Tom MacDougall snagged best music supervision for film budgeted over $25 million for “Soul”, while the award for under $25 million went to Dawn Sutter Madell for her work on “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” Billie Eilish and Finneas made a surprise appearance to present Best music supervision for film budgeted under $10 million to Susan Jacobs for “Promising Young Woman.”

In the television category, the best music supervision for a television comedy or musical award resulted in a three-way tie,...

The music supervisors for “Soul,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “Promising Young Woman” won awards at the 11th annual Guild of Music Supervisors Awards, which took place in a virtual ceremony Sunday evening.

Tom MacDougall won for “Soul” in the Best Music Supervision for Film Budgeted Over $25 Million category. Dawn Sutter Madell won for “Ma Rainey” in the category for films under $25 million, Susan Jacobs won for “Promising Young Woman” for films under $10 million and Dondrea Erauw won for “The Cuban” for films budgeted under $5 million.

Daniel Pemberton and Celeste’s Oscar-nominated song “Hear My Voice” from “The Trial of the Chicago 7” won in the Best Song Written and/or Recorded for a Film category, in which it was not competing against any of the other Oscar song nominees.

In the television categories, winners included the music supervisors of “Watchmen,” “High Fidelity,” “Insecure,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “The Masked Singer...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Thursday revealed the 366 feature films that are eligible for consideration at the 93rd Oscars, which are set to air April 25 live on ABC.

The total number of films is up from last year’s 344 films in contention.

This year’s list was compiled based on tweaked eligibility rules implemented because of the coronavirus pandemic, which has pushed the ceremony to its latest date ever. For this year, feature films had to open by February 28 in a commercial motion picture theater for a seven-day qualifying run in at least one of six metro areas: Los Angeles County, New York City, the Bay Area, Chicago, Miami and Atlanta. Drive-in theaters open nightly were included as qualifying venues, as were films intended for theatrical release but because of the lockdown made available first via streaming, VOD service or other broadcast.

Today’s news comes...

Nominees for the 11th Annual Guild of Music Supervisors (Gms) Awards have been revealed. Recognizing the craft of music supervision in film, television, games, advertising and trailers, previous winners have included such top-of-their-field music supervisors as Mary Ramos (“Once Upon A Time In Hollywood), Robin Urdang (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) and Kier Lehman (“Queen & Slim”).

Among the film nominees for the 2021 edition of the Gms Awards, which was pushed to April in order to align with the rescheduled Oscars, are frontrunners like “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Soul” and “Promising Young Woman.” Television shows that scored nods include “Watchmen,” “Better Call Saul” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”

Songwriters, artists and music supervisors will be recognized together for the category of best song written and/or recorded for film.

As previously announced, Quincy Jones will receive the Icon Award. Maureen Crowe, the founding president of the Guild, will receive the organization’s prestigious Legacy Award.

This year’s Oscars have set a new record for the largest number of entries ever in the Best Original Song category, but the 105 eligible songs do not include Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ “(If Only You Could) Save Me,” a 1930s-style big band song from “Mank” that was recently nominated for the second annual Society of Composers and Lyricists Awards.

The song is heard briefly coming from a radio in the background of one scene and plays for only about 40 seconds. Academy rules require “a clearly audible, intelligible, substantive rendition of both lyric and melody,” and the song was judged to not fulfill that requirement.

Other songs that didn’t make the list, although they were thought to be in the running, include “Uh Oh” from “Promising Young Woman” and “Boss Bitch” from “Birds of Prey.” Even without those, the list of eligible songs tops 100 for the first time...

The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Ritman spoke to Sergio Navarretta, director of The Cuban, plus the film’s lead star and producer Ana Golja and her fellow castmembers Louis Gossett Jr. and Shohreh Aghdashloo, in a THR Presents Q&a powered by Vision Media.

The wide-ranging conversation saw the filmmakers and actors discuss the key messages and takeaways from the Canadian film, which has already won several awards, including at the Los Angeles Pan African Film Festival, Montreal Black Film Festival and Whistler Film Festival.

The Cuban follows Mina Ayoub (Golja), a pre-med student and once-aspiring singer working part-time in a Canadian care home ...

The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Ritman spoke to Sergio Navarretta, director of The Cuban, plus the film’s lead star and producer Ana Golja and her fellow castmembers Louis Gossett Jr. and Shohreh Aghdashloo, in a THR Presents Q&a powered by Vision Media.

The wide-ranging conversation saw the filmmakers and actors discuss the key messages and takeaways from the Canadian film, which has already won several awards, including at the Los Angeles Pan African Film Festival, Montreal Black Film Festival and Whistler Film Festival.

The Cuban follows Mina Ayoub (Golja), a pre-med student and once-aspiring singer working part-time in a Canadian care home ...

Paris airport-set English-language thriller is jointly sold by Pulsar Content and XYZ Films.

Brainstorm Media has acquired US rights to Spanish director Kike Maillo’s English-language, airport-set, psychological thriller A Perfect Enemy.

The US distribution and production indie – which has recently released titles such as Second World War tale drama Recon and coming-of-age tale The Cuban – is planning a 2021 launch for the film.

Sold jointly by Paris-based Pulsar Content and XYZ Films, other fresh deals for the film include to Russia (A-One), the Middle East (Selim Ramia & Co) and Singapore (Shaw).

Previously announced sales include to Germany (Koch Media), Poland...

Paris airport-set English-language thriller is jointly sold by Pulsar Content and XYZ Films.

Brainstorm Media has acquired US rights to Spanish director Kike Maillo’s English-language, airport-set, psychological thriller A Perfect Enemy.

The US distribution and production indie – which has recently released titles such as Second World War tale drama Recon and coming-of-age tale The Cuban – is planning a 2021 launch for the film.

Sold jointly by Paris-based Pulsar Content and XYZ Films, other fresh deals for the film include to Russia (A-One), the Middle East (Selim Ramia & Co) and Singapore (Shaw).

Previously announced sales include to Germany (Koch Media), Poland...

Sergio Navarretta’s The Cuban is set to be released on VOD on October 6, 2020, following its July 31st virtual cinema release. The film was directed by Sergio Navarretta and stars Academy Award winner Louis Gossett Jr., Academy Award nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo, Ana Golja, Emmy winner Lauren Holly and Giacomo Gianniotti (Grey’s Anatomy). The screenplay was written by Alessandra Piccione, and the film was produced by Piccione and Navarretta of S.N.A.P. Films Inc., alongside Golja and Taras Koltun. The Afro-Cuban score was composed by legendary Grammy-nominated and Juno winning Cuban-Canadian pianist Hilario Duran and produced by Roberto Occhipinti. The sound team was led by Oscar-nominated sound editor Neslon Ferreira (The Shape of Water). The film was shot in Brantford and Paris Ontario Canada, as well as Havana, Cuba. The Cuban is a musical journey of love, friendship, and the power of the imagination. When a naïve pre-med student...

Music is at the heart of director Sergio Navarretta’s “The Cuban,” set for a limited theatrical release July 31. In the movie, pre-med student Mina, played by Ana Golja (“Degrassi”), is tasked with caring for Luis, portrayed by Louis Gossett Jr., who is struggling with Alzheimer’s and has retreated into himself. As she feeds him, she tells him of her dreams of being a musician and hums tunes from her childhood in Afghanistan. Luis sparks to the songs, and begins to come out of his shell.

Navarretta points to “The Mambo Kings” as an inspiration for his film, saying he was so moved by the music in that 1992 movie, about a pair of brothers who flee Havana for New York in the ’50s, that he wanted to make a picture with music as its focal point. His choice to create that sound was Grammy Award-nominated Cuban jazz artist Hilario Durán.

There are several very mildly cautionary notes sounded in Sergio Navarretta’s “The Cuban,” . There’s the gentle exhortation not to follow someone else’s dream at the expense of your own. There’s a subtle finger-wag at ageism, at the assumption that because someone is elderly or infirm they have nothing left to give the world. And there’s a whole lot about the healing power of music. But the real learning here ought to be that if you cast two such charismatic performers as Louis Gossett Jr. and Shohreh Aghdashloo in your movie, it would be better to clear all the Life Lesson clutter away and just let them get on with it.

Gossett plays Luis Garcia, a heavily medicated Alzheimer’s patient in a care home where he spends most of his time staring into the middle distance in his room — institutionally tidy except for a poster...

"We teach people how to love." Brainstorm Media has released the first official trailer for The Cuban, a heartwarming indie drama from Canadian-Italian filmmaker Sergio Navarretta. This first premiered at the Whistler Film Festival last year, and it also played at the Sonoma Film Festival earlier this year. Ana Golja plays a naïve pre-med student who lands her first job working in a nursing home. An unexpected friendship with Luis, an elderly Cuban musician there, reignites her love of music and changes her life forever. Starring the tremendously wonderful Louis Gossett Jr. (last seen on HBO's "Watchmen") as the Cuban musician Luis. With a cast including Shohreh Aghdashloo, Lauren Holly, Shiva Negar, Jonathan Keltz, and Giacomo Gianniotti. This looks like it's an emotional, energizing film about the amazing power of music. Here's the first official Us trailer (+ poster) for Sergio Navarretta's The Cuban, direct from YouTube: A musical journey of love,...

Brainstorm Media has picked up the U.S. rights to Sergio Navarretta’s The Cuban, a coming-of-age drama starring Oscar winner Louis Gossett Jr. and Shohreh Aghdashloo.

The indie, shot in Canada and Cuba, is set for a theatrical and virtual release July 31, with plans for VOD in the fall. "The Cuban is exactly the film we need right now. It’s filled with Afro-Cuban and salsa music, brilliant performances and a ton of heart,” Michelle Shwarzstein, vp marketing and acquisitions at Brainstorm Media, said in a statement Wednesday.

The Cuban, also starring Degrassi: Next Class actress Ana Golja,...

Brainstorm Media has picked up the U.S. rights to Sergio Navarretta’s The Cuban, a coming-of-age drama starring Oscar winner Louis Gossett Jr. and Shohreh Aghdashloo.

The indie, shot in Canada and Cuba, is set for a theatrical and virtual release July 31, with plans for VOD in the fall. "The Cuban is exactly the film we need right now. It’s filled with Afro-Cuban and salsa music, brilliant performances and a ton of heart,” Michelle Shwarzstein, vp marketing and acquisitions at Brainstorm Media, said in a statement Wednesday.

The Cuban, also starring Degrassi: Next Class actress Ana Golja,...

Distribution pipeline includes The Cuban starring Louis Gossett Jr.

Ambitious Ontario-based distributor A71 Entertainment has hired former senior eOne executive Justin Rebelo as CEO, effective immediately.

Rebelo served at the Canadian giant as vice-president overseeing television and digital distribution for English-speaking Canada. The longtime veteran of the film and television space spent more than 15 years programming at various broadcasters including HBO Canada, Super Channel, Epix in the Us, and Bell Media-owned Much Music.

He was the executive in charge of production on, among others, Bruce McDonald’s Pontypool, Tiff best first Canadian feature and Csa award-winner Blackbird, Tiff Best...

Distribution pipeline includes The Cuban starring Louis Gossett Jr.

Ambitious Ontario-based distributor A71 Entertainment has hired former senior eOne executive Justin Rebelo as CEO, effective immediately.

Rebelo served at the Canadian giant as vice-president overseeing television and digital distribution for English-speaking Canada. The longtime veteran of the film and television space spent more than 15 years programming at various broadcasters including HBO Canada, Super Channel, Epix in the Us, and Bell Media-owned Much Music.

He was the executive in charge of production on, among others, Bruce McDonald’s Pontypool, Tiff best first Canadian feature and Csa award-winner Blackbird, Tiff Best...

WFF19 attracted a total of 12,339 attendees across our programming including 6,450 film-screening attendees and 2,180 special event attendees. On the Industry side, the Content Summit welcomed 2,655 attendees, 116 talent program attendees and 938 delegates.

The Whistler Film Festival’s Audience Award sponsored by Fisherman’s Friend went to the North American premiere of LIBERTÉ: A Call To Spy, an exciting true story about female spies during WWII. The film is an American title shot partly in Budapest and was produced, written by and stars Sarah Megan Thomas and was directed by Lydia Dean Pilcher. The Wff Audience Award runner-up was The Cuban directed by Sergio Navarretta, which had its world premiere at the festival. The Wff Audience Award for Most Popular Canadian Film went to Antigone, Canada’s official submission in this year’s international film Oscars category. Directed by Sophie Deraspe, the film won four of the five Borsos Competition Awards including Best Canadian Feature.

Simon Pegg may have done some snowboarding in Whistler, but he’s yet to attend a film fest there. Lucky for him, Katharine O’Brien’s “Lost Transmissions,” in which he stars alongside Juno Temple, is making its Canadian debut to open the Whistler Film Festival, which runs Dec 4-8. Pegg is thinking of bringing his snowboard, just in case, but mainly he’s there for the fest. Anything else is a bonus.

“It’s such a beautiful part of British Columbia,” he says by phone from his home in the U.K. “And it’s lovely for us to be the opening film there for a little film like this, which is very much a low-budget affair. It’s such an auspicious festival and it’s all you can hope for when you make these smaller films.”

Although Pegg is known more for comedies, this film, which tackles the subject of mental health,...

The Rosenzweig Group has signed Emily Piggford and Chance Kelly for representation in all areas.

Piggford recurs on Netflix series The Umbrella Academy, as well as Steven Soderbergh’s The Girlfriend Experience on Starz, and also is a series regular on CBC’s comedy series Michael: Every Day, opposite Bob Martin and Matt Watts. In addition, Piggford is a lead and producer of D.W. Waterson’s online series, That’s My DJ, for which she received a Canadian Screen Award nomination, and she is currently a lead in the CW/CBC web-series Warigami. Piggford also is featured in the Columbia Pictures’ thriller Flatliners starring Ellen Page and Nina Dobrev., and Canadian indie The Cuban, starring Louis Gossett Jr and Shohreh Aghdashloo.

She continues to be repped by The Characters Agency in Toronto.

Kelly is known for his work on Generation Kill, Fringe, Aquarius, American Sniper and Homeland and currently recurs on Ray Donovan and Billions.

The Leftovers alum Regina King is re-teaming with series’ creator Damon Lindelof for Watchmen, his high-profile follow-up drama pilot at HBO. King has been cast along with Don Johnson, Tim Blake Nelson, Louis Gossett Jr., Adelaide Clemens and Andrew Howard in the pilot. It is not specified if all of the actors will be series regulars, I hear at least one may be recurring.

Written by Lindelof based on Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ iconic limited comic series, Watchmen is considered a dark satirical and dystopian take on the superhero genre. Set in an alternate history where “superheroes” are treated as outlaws, Watchmen embraces the nostalgia of the original groundbreaking graphic novel while attempting to break new ground of its own.

Details of the cast’s roles are being kept under wraps though we have some ideas. King is believed to be playing Angela Abar, while Gossett Jr. likely is Old Man.

Oscar winner Louis Gossett Jr. and Shohreh Aghdashloo are starring in The Cuban, an indie coming-of-age drama from S.N.A.P. Films and director Sergio Navarretta.

The film, shooting in Brantford and Brant County in southern Ontario through mid-May, also stars Degrassi: Next Class actress Ana Golja, Giacomo Gianniotti and Lauren Holly.

The Cuban portrays a young Afghan immigrant named Mina (Golja) who starts her first job at a nursing home when an unexpected friendship with Luis, a Cuban resident with dementia, reignites her love of music and changes her life.

Gossett Jr. will play the nursing home resident, Luis, and Aghdashloo...