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At last count, Disney Animation Studios has canonized 61 of their features. The central "Disney Canon" refers to an ill-defined section of the studio's animated feature output that, as far as one might surmise, serves as examples of the studio's preferred "house style." The Disney Animated Canon includes several animation styles and media, of course, but the 61 films in question are considered to be "official." Canonized Disney films cannot be co-productions, they must be pointedly toyetic, and are typically not auteur-driven. One might not be able to, for instance, recall the directors of "Cinderella" (1950) off the top of their head. Their names, incidentally, are Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske. The trio also directed Disney's animated films "Lady and the Tramp," "Peter Pan," and "Alice in Wonderland."

For Disney, though, the company is the auteur, and weird, smaller projects tend to be excluded from the Disney Canon. "A Goofy Movie,...

"Lady and the Tramp" is by no means one of Disney's greatest films, but the time and effort it took to bring this story to the screen for nearly two decades make it a worthy addition to their original roster. Although it has aged rather poorly in terms of distasteful stereotypes concerning the Siamese cats, the one area that holds up spectacularly well is in its animation. The 1955 feature was the first film to be fully animated for Cinemascope, as the widescreen format was gaining plenty of momentum around that time, so of course, the breathtaking vistas of this early 20th-century midwestern town still look so beautiful.

If there were only one scene that solidifies the film's legacy, however, it has to be none other than the spaghetti dinner date where Tramp (Larry Roberts) and Lady (Barbara Luddy) share their first tender moment together. Even if you've never seen "Lady and the Tramp,...

Disney has created some of the most memorable animated movies ever to hit the big screen. They've crafted beautiful stories and heartwarming tales with unforgettable, visually pleasing animation. The company is a brand that has undoubtedly left a mark on countless fans' childhoods and will continue to do so for decades to come. The company's first animated feature film was Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs, which was released in 1937, and their animation studio has been the stuff of legend since.

That's not to say Disney hasn't had its share of controversies — especially when it comes to its animated films, and they've come under fire multiple times for various reasons. Disney may have enriched countless children's childhoods, but it also troubled countless fans as well.

Update: 2023/01/04 11:00 Est By Shawn S. Lealos

Walt Disney Animation Studios just released its latest movie, Strange World, and had a bad break upon its release.

Click here to read the full article.

Janelle Monáe is set to receive the SeeHer Award at the 28th annual Critics Choice Awards, which will be held at Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles on Jan. 17.

Monáe, who received a past Critics Choice Awards nomination for best supporting actress in the Oscar-nominated film Hidden Figures, is also nominated this year for a best supporting actress for her performance in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.

Her other acting credits include Lionsgate’s Antebellum, Focus Features’ Harriet, Disney’s Lady and the Tramp, Amazon’s Homecoming and A24’s Oscar-winning film Moonlight. In 2018, Monáe’s album Dirty Computer was also nominated for two Grammy Awards for album of the year and best music video.

According to the Critics Choice Association, the SeeHer Award honors a woman who advocates for gender equality, portrays characters with authenticity, defies stereotypes and pushes boundaries. Recently,...

Photo Credit: Jheyda Mcgarrell The Critics Choice Association (Cca) has announced that artist and actor Janelle Monáe will receive the seventh annual SeeHer Award at the 28th Annual Critics Choice Awards. The honor will be presented to her at the star-studded Critics Choice Awards gala hosted by Chelsea Handler, which will broadcast Live on The CW on Sunday, January 15 from 7:00 – 10:00 pm Et (delayed Pt – check local listings). The SeeHer Award honors a woman who advocates for gender equality, portrays characters with authenticity, defies stereotypes and pushes boundaries. SeeHer is the leading global movement for accurate portrayals of women and girls in media. A global collective of marketers, media organizations and industry influencers, SeeHer is committed to creating gender-bias-free advertising and media. Previous award recipients are Viola Davis (2017), Gal Gadot (2018), Claire Foy (2019), Kristen Bell (2020), Zendaya (2021), and Halle Berry (2022). Janelle Monáe is an eight-time Grammy®-nominated singer, songwriter, producer, performer and actor.

Janelle Monae will receive the SeeHer Award at the 2023 Critics Choice Awards (Photo Credit: Jheyda Mcgarrell)

Janelle Monáe will be honored with the seventh annual SeeHer Award during the 28th Annual Critics Choice Awards. The special award is given to “a woman who advocates for gender equality, portrays characters with authenticity, defies stereotypes, and pushes boundaries.”

Janelle Monáe joins a list of SeeHer Award recipients that includes Viola Davis (2017), Gal Gadot (2018), Claire Foy (2019), Kristen Bell (2020), Zendaya (2021), and Halle Berry (2022).

Janelle Monáe is nominated for a Best Supporting Actress award for her performance in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. The film is up for a total of six awards including Best Picture, Best Acting Ensemble, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Costume Design, and Best Comedy.

Monáe’s film credits include Antebellum, Harriet, Hidden Figures, Moonlight, and Lady and the Tramp. She also starred in Prime Video’s Homecoming series with Julia Roberts and Bobby Cannavale.

Exclusive: The Black List and Women in Film, Los Angeles have set Ana Brown (Trash Pandas), Audrey Rosenberg (Wild Animals), Christina Yr Lim (Gyopo), Rebecca Christian (Sankofa Selah), Sabeen Amanat Farooq (Burn Your Idols) and Zoey Towner (Great American Highway) as the participants for their fifth consecutive Feature Residency, which provides six promising screenwriters of underrepresented genders with a year’s worth of mentorship and career opportunities.

For the first time since 2020, the Residency will kick off in late June with an in-person weekend writing retreat in Los Angeles, which will feature intensive script and professional development sessions. Participants will then have meetings and receive feedback from working feature writers, executives, and industry leaders throughout the course of the year. Creatives participating as mentors this time around include Kirsten “Kiwi” Smith (Legally Blonde), Nicole Perlman (Guardians of the Galaxy), Graham Moore (The Imitation Game), Kari Granlund (Lady and the Tramp...

Warning: Spoilers ahead for “Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers”

Disney doesn’t often make jokes at it’s own expense, but when it does, its apparently goes all out. And so we have “Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers.”

The movie, now streaming on Disney+, is basically one giant Easter Egg full of smaller Easter eggs for animation fans everywhere. The movie marks some major studio crossovers, combining Disney characters with Dreamworks characters, Warner Bros. projects and more. And along the way, it doesn’t shy away from making Disney the punchline.

So, in case you missed them, we’ve rounded up some of the best self-owns Disney made in its new film.

Donald Duck’s Aversion to Pants

As we enter the world of Chip and Dale, we meet them at school, where the pair is starting third grade. But, before we even meet the chipmunks, we get a joke...

Exclusive: Adrian Martinez has signed on to star alongside Nicholas Hoult, Nicolas Cage, Awkwafina and Ben Schwartz in Renfield, the monster movie that Chris McKay is directing for Universal Pictures.

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 life and maybe even redemption when he falls for feisty, perennially angry traffic cop Rebecca Quincy (Awkwafina).

Martinez will play Rebecca’s traffic cop partner, Chris.

Ryan Ridley wrote the script. McKay is producing the film going before cameras in New Orleans with Skybound Entertainment’s film team, including Kirkman, David Alpert, Bryan Furst and Sean Furst,...

Four of the top animated films of the year sought to take us to very different worlds. One showed an astronaut trying to survive after his spaceship crash lands on a strange small planet while another shows a robot uprising on Earth instigated by a vengeful AI system. Another shows us a school that looks to make parents obsolete and the other displays a world of singing animals trying to make it in show business. In a recent discussion we got to hear the filmmakers behind these projects talk about their influences in animation and what lessons they’ve learned over the course of their careers. Gold Derby recently got to ask these questions with Joe Mateo (“Blush”), Tom McGrath (“The Boss Baby: Family Business”), Kurt Albrecht (“The Mitchells vs. the Machines”) and Garth Jennings (“Sing 2”) during our recent Meet the Experts panel.

You can watch the film animation...

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Unless you’re a foodie, you might not even notice how often filmmakers use food to help tell a story. From comic relief to sadness, food in film can stir up a range of emotions.

Food can also serve as a physical prop to enhance a scene, or help viewers better understand a character or the location (an example: New York City pizza tends to finds its way into films about the Big Apple). Food has delivered memorable moments in movies such as the cake-face scene in “Mrs. Doubtfire,” or the adorable spaghetti supper in “Lady and the Tramp.” Another cool thing about food in film? It’s a subtle way to share...

Dave Franco is set to direct “Somebody I Used to Know,” a romantic comedy starring Alison Brie, Jay Ellis and Kiersey Clemons.

Franco and Brie co-wrote the script for the film, which is being developed at Amazon Studios. The movie will debut exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide next year on an undetermined date.

“Somebody I Used to Know” follows workaholic Ally (Brie) who reunites with an ex-boyfriend (Ellis) on a trip to her hometown, a rendezvous that makes her start to question all of her prior life choices. The turn of events only get more confusing when she meets Cassidy (Clemons), a younger woman who reminds her of the person she used to be.

Franco and Brie, who are married, previously teamed on the horror movie “The Rental,” which marked Franco’s directorial debut and became a pandemic-era hit at drive in movie theaters.

Exclusive: After making his directing debut with the thriller The Rental, Dave Franco has found his next project, coming on to direct Somebody I Used To Know for Amazon Studios. Insiders also tell Deadline that Alison Brie, Jay Ellis and Kiersey Clemons are on board to star. Brie also co-wrote the script with Franco, and the film will be produced by Temple Hill’s Marty Bowen, Wyck Godfrey,and Isaac Klausner, and Black Bear’s Ben Stillman, Leigh Kittay,and Michael Heimler. Franco, Brie, Temple Hill’s Laura Quicksilver, Black Bear’s Teddy Schwarzman, and Bart Lipton will exec produce.

The film follows workaholic Ally (Brie) who, on a trip to her hometown, spends a night reminiscing with her ex-boyfriend Sean (Ellis), which makes her start to question everything about the choices she’s made and the person she’s become. Things only get more confusing when she meets Cassidy...

Studio Savannah, a venture formed by two independent producers who love the city (and want it to share a bit of Atlanta’s production largesse) said it has locked down plans for a sustainable sound stage complex that will break ground next month. The facility will span two acres with an initial investment of $40 million.

Its partners David Paterson of Arcady Bay Entertainment and Taylor Owenby of ISP Global Capital are calling the complex Kat-5 for its ability to withstand a Category 5 hurricane. They indicated that its unusual design elements, which include a rooftop solar farm and a “concrete water tank platform base” that will allow it to serve as a staging ground for Fema, helped get it off the ground.

So did demand for soundstages in Georgia, where state tax credits have made Atlanta a major production hub. Savannah, a 45-minute flight or circa four hour drive, is a...

Disney began the practice of releasing live-action remakes/re-imaginings starting with Alice in Wonderland and has now adapted fan-favorite titles like Aladdin, The Lion King, and Cruella, among others. What’s notable about these is that the live-action movies have a mixture of elements from their animated counterparts and original takes of their own.

Related: 4 Ways The Classic Disney Princesses Win The Day (& 4 Why The Newer Ones Rule)

Due to this, fans who’ve seen a film like Cruella can theoretically assume what’s in store for a movie like Lady and the Tramp as the general outline of the Disney live-action installments all have the same formula. Some of these have been essentially carried forward from the classics, while Disney has also gotten with the times and integrated social themes, strong characters, and thematic quality into the movies.

This Friday, “Cruella” hits theaters, marking Disney’s latest forray into telling an unexpected origin story. But for “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” there are still plenty of other obscure characters to give movies to — so they went ahead and created trailers for them, with the help of The Jonas Brothers.

The bit pitches three movies, each one focusing on a character more random than the last. First, there’s the origin story of Eeyore, showing his journey to depression. With Joe Jonas starring as Eeyore himself, it’s revealed that the donkey enlists as a drug mule to save his and his friends’ home in the Hundred Acre Woods.

In fact, that’s how Eeyore lost his tail; it was cut off during a drug deal gone bad. After his harrowing journey, Pooh (Kevin Jonas) and Tigger (Nick Jonas) finally question if everything’s okay, but by then,...

The Knives Out 2 cast continues to grow. Janelle Monae is the latest cast member to join the sequel after Dave Bautista and Edward Norton were announced earlier this week. The trend seems to imply that one cast member will be announced every day until the cast is fully revealed. Daniel Craig's Benoit Blanc, the unique Southern detective from the first Knives Out, is also confirmed to reprise his role, and writer/director Rian Johnson will also return. Although plot details have been kept secret, the sequel is expected to follow in the footsteps as the original movie and present an original murder mystery with a memorable and fresh cast of characters.

Monae's originally started her career as a singer/songwriter before transitioning more into acting. Although Janelle Monae still composes music, she is becoming more recognized for her brilliant acting, including some major leading roles. Her first film was Rio 2,...

Adam Shankman is directing the follow-up to 2007’s “Enchanted”

“Disenchanted,” the sequel to Disney’s 2007 fairy tale comedy “Enchanted” starring Amy Adams, has added three to its cast, including Maya Rudolph, Yvette Nicole Brown and Jayma Mays, an individual with knowledge told TheWrap.

Amy Adams, James Marsden and Idina Menzel are returning to the sequel that’s being directed by Adam Shankman. The original “Enchanted” was the story of a cartoon princess (Adams) who finds herself transported into the real world and adapting as a fish out of water to life in New York City.

“Disenchanted” was first announced as part of Disney’s investor day last December and is being intended for Disney+. Barry Josephson, Amy Adams and Barry Sonnenfeld are producing. The film will go into production starting this spring.

Also Read:

Justin Simien in Talks to Direct Disney’s ‘Haunted Mansion’ Movie

It’s unclear what roles Rudolph,...

Exclusive: Two-time Primetime Emmy winner Maya Rudolph, Yvette Nicole Brown and Jayma Mays are boarding Disenchanted, the Disney+ Enchanted sequel starring Amy Adams, Idina Menzel and James Marsden

Disney Studios’ President of Production Sean Bailey announced the sequel at Disney Investor Day back in December. Adams, Menzel and Marsden are reprising their respective roles of Giselle, Nancy and Prince Edward from the original film, with composer Alan Menken also returning. He said during a Jlgb Virtual livestream that Marsden and Menzel would be returning for Disenchanted.

The 2007 live-action movie was a satire on Disney animated princess musicals, a fish-out-of-water tale about a cartoon princess who is submerged in modern-day New York City. I hear Rudolph will play a villain in the sequel with Brown and Mays also potentially portraying evil as well.

Adam Shankman is directing for a production start later this spring. Producers are Barry Josephson, Adams, and Barry Sonnenfeld.

“My favorite thing to do is to build a world, musically,” says composer Joseph Trapanese, who got to do just that for “Shadow and Bone,” the eight-part fantasy series that drops April 23 on Netflix.

Based on novels by Leigh Bardugo, the show combines elements of magic, horror, war, crime and romance in a setting that resembles 19th-century Russia. Fans know this as the Grishaverse — the name is derived from the world’s elite sect of magicians — and Trapanese’s music helps to guide viewers through the many characters and their complex relationships.

Executive producers Eric Heisserer and Shawn Levy contacted the composer before shooting began in Hungary in late 2019. “The challenge to Joe,” Heisserer tells Variety, “was to give us a sweeping, Russian-inspired, big orchestral space that would go with the cinematography of the wide landscapes, and the big, unnatural elements like The Fold [the foreboding, malevolent darkness between lands].

“But when we hop over to Ketterdam,...

Kiersey Clemons will return as Iris West in The Flash movie , reprising the role from a Justice League deleted scene. In the original cut of Justice League, Clemons appeared as the intrepid reporter who will serve as a love interest for Ezra Miller's Barry Allen. Her restored scene can be seen in Zack Snyder's Justice League, the four-hour cut of the DC movie, when it is released on HBO Max next week.

Next, Kiersey Clemons will have her role in the Dceu expanded when she appears in The Flash in 2022. Though plot details are being kept under wraps, Iris and Barry are close in the original comic books. After growing up together, the two eventually get married with Iris West even helping her husband form the superhero league Team Flash. The character is played by Candice Patton in the Arrowverse shows on The CW. Paula Marshall also played...

Kiersey Clemons is set to star opposite Ezra Miller in “The Flash” solo movie, according to an individual with knowledge of the project.

Clemons will reprise her role as Iris West, the romantic interest of Barry Allen.

Clemons was initially cast as West in 2017’s “Justice League” but was cut from the final film. Clemons’ scene has been restored for “Zack Snyder’s Justice League,” which will premiere on HBO Max on March 18.

Ben Affleck’s Batman is not the only Batman to return, as Michael Keaton will return to the role of Batman from the 1989 Tim Burton film, as TheWrap first exclusively reported.

The plot of “The Flash” will introduce general audiences to the idea of the multiverse, one of the of core concepts underpinning DC Comics. For the non fanboy set, the multiverse refers to a shifting number of alternate universes that coexist within the larger reality depicted in DC comics.

(Welcome to Out of the Disney Vault, where we explore the unsung gems and forgotten disasters currently streaming on Disney+.) Before Disney started producing endless remakes of its classic animated films and dumping some of them on Disney+, they used to make endless sequels to classic animated films and dump them […]

The post Revisiting ‘Aladdin and the King of Thieves,’ Disney’s Best Direct-to-Video Sequel That Also Stars Aladdin’s Hot Dad appeared first on /Film.

Disney is taking fire from conservatives complaining about so-called “cancel culture” for a change the company made to Disney Plus — five months ago.

In October 2020, Disney Plus added a new content warning that appears as a slate prior to several older movies on the service that contain racist depictions, including “Dumbo,” “Peter Pan,” “Swiss Family Robinson,” “The Aristocats,” “Fantasia,” “The Jungle Book” and “Lady and the Tramp.”

“This program includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures,” the advisory label says in part. “These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together.”

At the time, Disney Plus blocked those titles from being accessed in the service’s Kids Profile, which is restricted to G-rated films and television shows rated TV-7Fv.

But the...

In the midst of "cancel culture," TCM will shine a spotlight on several "problematic" movies from the past for the new limited series Reframed Classics. The series will present wide-ranging discussions about 18 culturally significant movies from the 1920s through the 1950s. Debuting on Thursday at 8 p.m. Et, the show launches with a look at the controversial romance drama Gone with the Wind. You can watch a trailer for the series below.

"We know millions of people love these films," said TCM host Jacqueline Stewart, clarifying that the goal is not to take these movies away. "We're not saying 'This is how you should feel about "Psycho"' or 'This is how you should feel about Gone with the Wind. We're just trying to model ways of having longer and deeper conversations and not just cutting it off to 'I love this movie.' 'I hate this movie.' There's so much space in between.

The Pinocchio reboot has found its Blue Fairy in Harriet star Cynthia Erivo. TheWrap reported on Wednesday that Erivo had landed the role along with a few other casting announcements. Those joining Erivo for the project include Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the voice of Jiminy Cricket, Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as the voice of Pinocchio, Keegan-Michael Key as the voice of Honest John, and Lorraine Bracco as the voice of new character Sofia the Seagull.

Other names have previously been announced as a part of the new Pinocchio reboot cast. Tom Hanks will play the live-action Geppetto while Beauty and the Beast remake star Luke Evans has been cast as the Coachman. Oakes Fegley has also reportedly been in talks to play Lampwick.

In the original Disney movie, the Blue Fairy is who brings the wooden puppet that is Pinocchio to life, telling him he'll be able to become a real boy...

Most of the classic films that run on TCM are introduced by a single host. In March, some will require a whole team.

The WarnerMedia outlet on Thursdays this month will seek to put some popular but troublesome films in better context, part of an effort it calls “Reframed.” A team of the network’s on-air personnel will introduce viewers to some of Hollywood’s most seminal pictures, which remain popular but are increasingly being scrutinized under a different lens as the nation ponders more deeply how people of different races, backgrounds and creeds treat one another.

Teams will ponder cultural issues posed by films such as “Gone With The Wind,” “Psycho,” “The Searchers,” “My Fair Lady” and “Gunga Din,” among others. Some of the hosts hope the initiative will continue beyond the next four weeks.

“We are hearing more and more from audiences about moments they are really puzzling over,...

“If music be the food of love, play on,” wrote Shakespeare, but we prefer to think that the food of love is, well food. That’s why we’ve assembled this mouth-watering selection of movies to remind you that the best way to the heart is through the stomach.

Lady And The Tramp

Lady And The Tramp, Amazon

Amber Wilkinson writes: Meals don't come much more romantic or memorable than the plate of spaghetti and meatballs shared by spaniel Lady and loveable mutt Tramp in the 1955 Disney animation as they're serenaded by waiters. Their unexpected kiss is a sweet moment in a film that's also packed with plenty of adventure as Tramp encourages Lady to leave the human world behind after her owners discover a baby is on the way. The tunes are catchy, particularly the bom-bo-bom-ruff of the dogs' chorus and Peggy Lee's blues triumph He's A Tramp,...

Michelle Williams is on board to portray another entertainment icon, in the Peggy Lee biopic “Fever” for director Todd Haynes, Variety has confirmed. MGM is in talks to back the film. Marc Platt, Reese Witherspoon, and Killer Films’ Pamela Koffler and Christine Vachon are producing. Doug Wright (“Quills”) is writing the screenplay.

Billie Eilish, her mother Maggie Baird, and Justin Lubliner, CEO of Eilish’s label Darkroom, are also in early discussions about possibly coming aboard the film as executive producers. Eilish has cited Lee as an inspiration; in December 2019, the singer-songwriter told Variety, “I used to listen to tons of old music — Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Etta James, Johnny Mathis and people like that — where all the songs had a perfect songwriting structure.”

Born Norma Deloris Egstrom in 1920, Peggy Lee is today likely best known for her sultry version of the song “Fever,” which became a sensation after she...

Michelle Williams is attached to star in the biopic “Fever” about the life of singer Peggy Lee. The film will now be directed by Todd Haynes, and MGM is in talks to acquire it, two individuals told TheWrap.

“Fever” was once a project that had Reese Witherspoon attached to star with a screenplay by the late Nora Ephron, but this latest package of the film is still in its early days.

Pop star Billie Eilish has expressed interest in being an executive producer on the film along with her mother, Maggie Baird, and record label boss Justin Lubliner. Eilish previously participated in an online 100th anniversary celebration of Lee’s contributions to music.

“Fever” began as a project under Fox 2000, but was put on hold after Ephron passed away in 2012 and after Witherspoon departed the film. Fox 2000 was then closed in Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, and the project was shelved.

Humans love pets and pets love humans. Pets are so important to audiences that movies, sitcoms, animated shows and more have been made to tell the stories of the admirable loyalty that pets show humans. Consequently, some of TV's most memorable and most important characters have been pets.

Related: 5 Disney Pets That Would Be A Delight (& 5 That Would Be A Nightmare)

On TV (and in real life) the best pets are loyal, loving, and comforting best friends that offer unconditional love to often rejected characters. Ever since the release of movies like Lady And The Tramp (1955) and Lassie Come Home (1943), audiences have craved to see dramas about pets' love for their owners, serving as a source of comfort to viewers worldwide.

Since launching in November 2019, Disney+ has released quite a few original movies, including several that were initially intended for a theatrical release before the Covid-19 pandemic forced them to make the switch to streaming. Some (like their Lady and the Tramp remake or their Black Beauty adaptation) have gone unnoticed, while others (such as Hamilton and Soul) have met with critical and financial success.

Related: 10 Best Disney+ Movies Released In 2020, According To IMDb

But between Hamilton and Soul, which film encapsulates the best of what Disney+ has to offer? One is the film version of a hit Broadway musical, and the other is Pixar's best movie in years. And the truth is that they both signal highs for the streaming service — just in very different ways.

Kiersey Clemons will star in 141 Entertainment’s “Susie Searches,” a darkly comic thriller from Sophie Kargman.

“Susie Searches” centers on Susie (Clemons), an awkward college student who seizes the opportunity to bolster her popularity and her under-the-radar true-crime podcast by solving the disappearance of a classmate. Her investigation reveals that the truth and Susie aren’t at all what they seem to be.

Kargman will direct from a script by William Day Frank — the feature is based on a short film that the two previously made. Clemons will also serve as an executive producer on the project. Production on the film is set to start in London early next year.

“I’m so excited to be working with Sophie Kargman on such a dark and witty film,” said Clemons in a statement. “I fell in love with the heart and peculiarity of Susie right away. Stories like this, starring...

Disney’s procession of live-action remakes based on their extensive back catalogue of animated classics have been a license to print money over the last decade, yielding more than $9 billion at the box office. However, not all of them are guaranteed to be smash hits, and the takings vary wildly from the paltry $299 million of Alice in Wonderland sequel Through the Looking Glass to Jon Favreau’s The Lion King, which ranks as the seventh highest-grossing movie ever made after raking in over $1.65 billion.

This summer’s release of Mulan via the Premier Access model was a test run of sorts to see how Disney Plus subscribers would react to some of the studio’s biggest projects heading straight to streaming, and despite the controversy, the numbers were hugely promising. Of course, last year’s Lady and the Tramp was the first live-action remake to be sent directly to the small screen,...

One of the programs that launched Disney+ was a Lady and the Tramp reboot, and The Walt Disney Studio original movies have been a key element of the streaming platform’ original programming strategy.

Now Disney is building a similar pipeline between its other two movie studios, 20th Century and Searchlight, and adult-focused streamer Hulu.

During the Disney Investor Day, Hulu President Kelly Campbell announced that “in the U.S., will launch exclusive original films produced by 20th Century Studios and Searchlight.”

She highlighted the platform’s recent success with acquired movies such as Palm Springs.

Already part of a Disney streaming bundle, Hulu and ESPN+ are now getting further integrated.

“Starting early next year, ESPN+ and all of its programming will become available for viewing directly within the Hulu interface,” Campbell said. “Users can sign up or enjoy existing ESPN+ subscriptions without ever having to leave the Hulu app.”

Campbell...

Disney+ will debut a slew of new Marvel and “Star Wars” television shows on its streaming platform in the near future, the company announced on Thursday.

“Over the next few years, we will release roughly 10 Marvel series, 10 ‘Star Wars’ series, 15 Disney live-action, Disney Animation and Pixar series, as well as 15 Disney live-action, Disney Animation and Pixar features,” Kareem Daniel, chairman of media and entertainment distribution for The Walt Disney Company, said during a livestreamed Disney Investor Day presentation.

“With these Disney+ originals, along with theatrical releases and library titles, we will be adding something new to the service every week,” he said, doubling down on the studio’s renewed focus on streaming.

“WandaVision,” which debuts on Jan. 15, is the first original Marvel series scheduled to premiere on the platform, with two more set to roll out later: “Falcon and Winter Soldier” with Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan as well as Tom Hiddleston’s “Loki.

Disney+ now has 86.8 million subscribers, the company announced Thursday during its investor day.

That new subscriber figure is as of Dec. 2, CEO Bob Chapek said. During its most recent quarterly earnings, Disney+ had more than 73 million subscribers globally as of Sept. 30.

The company had already reached the projected 60-90 million subscribers it expected to have by 2024. It has now reached the top end of that projection.

Disney+ debuted on Nov. 12, 2019 with 10 million sign-ups on its first day. The streaming service launched with originals including “The Mandalorian,” a “High School Musical” TV series and a live-action “Lady and the Tramp” film.

Over the next few years, the company expects to roll out 10 more “Star Wars” series, 15 live-action Disney films, 15 Pixar films and over 10 different Marvel series, including the upcoming “WandaVision,” which debuts on Jan. 15.

Approximately 30% of Disney+ subscribers come via its integration within India’s Hotstar.

As far as Disney’s other streaming services,...

In “Godmothered,” a young fairy-godmother-in-training travels to the modern human world to save her fairy-tale existence. If that plot reminds you of “Enchanted,” then that’s clearly what the folks at Disney+ had in mind, down to the casting of Isla Fisher; Fisher is a talented actress in her own right, but at least as far back as “Nocturnal Animals,” she also seems to be in on the joke that Hollywood thinks of her as The Other Amy Adams.

For the most part, “Godmothered” is a mixed-bag of clever comedy and banal kid-movie clichés, but director Sharon Maguire (“Bridget Jones’ Baby”) and writers Kari Granlund (2019’s “Lady and the Tramp”) and Melissa Stack (“The Other Woman”) craft an ending that’s so emotionally and intellectually satisfying that it’s easy to forgive the film’s less magical attributes.

It’s the story of Eleanor (Jillian Bell), the youngest and most...

Next year, Image Comics plans to surprise many with new launch Stray Dogs, a series it describes as Lady and the Tramp meets Silence of the Lambs — and The Hollywood Reporter has an exclusive glimpse.

The five-issue series is the creation of Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner, both of whom have some experience in comic books featuring cute animals, with their experience working on Idw Publishing’s My Little Pony titles — although Stray Dogs is anything but a simple cute animal book. Instead, it’s a tense thriller that just so happens to feature some adorable cartoon creatures, as Sophie arrives at an unfamiliar location, surrounded ...

Over the past few years, Korean animation has shown to have a face of its own. And when comparing the styles of the films released, one could even argue it has many different faces. With “Underdog”, Oh Sung-yoon and Lee Chun-baek certainly add to this list and the films selection for the 2019 Annecy Festival is a testament to its international appeal.

“Underdog” is screening at London Korean Film Festival

“Underdog” is the second collaboration of the two directors. They previously worked together on “Leafie, A Hen into the Wild” (2011) be it in a different setting with Oh Sung-yoon being the director and Lee Chun-baek working as an animator on that film. For “Underdog”, Oh Sung-yoon reprised his role but Lee Chun-baek came on board as a codirector. “Leafie, A Hen into the Wild” was well received by film critics and at festivals, winning amongst others the Best Sitges Family Film...

Andrew Bujalski may be best known as the godfather of mumblecore, but “Support the Girls” director’s career took a surprising turn last year when he wrote the screenplay for Disney’s live-action remake of the beloved 1955 animated classic “Lady and the Tramp.” But it’s not uncommon for big studios to turn to more low-key talent to bring an elevated sensibility to a project (see Alex Ross Perry’s “Christopher Robin” screenplay). In a recent conversation out of the BendFilm Festival, moderated by IndieWire’s Eric Kohn, Bujalski spoke about molding his vision into a pre-existing property, and what made it (and didn’t make it) into the final film.

“Just when I started batting ideas around with the producer [Brigham Taylor], I really tried to rethink, I tried to kind of take it from scratch,” he said. “There [were] never any illusions that like this was going to be my movie and,...

Racist imagery and cultural stereotypes in six Disney animated classics including Peter Pan, The Jungle Book, Lady and the Tramp, The Aristocats, Dumbo and Swiss Family Robinson are being flagged on the Disney+ streaming site with warnings and detailed explanations of the “negative depictions” in each title.

“These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now,” reads an explanation on Disney’s Stories Matter website regarding the new advisory notices.

Accompanying the 1970 film The Aristocats, for example, is the following advisory about the Siamese cat character Shun Gon, voiced by Paul Winchell:

The cat is depicted as a racist caricature of East Asian peoples with exaggerated stereotypical traits such as slanted eyes and buck teeth. He sings in a poorly accented English voiced by a white actor and plays the piano with chopsticks. This portrayal reinforces the “perpetual foreigner” stereotype, while the film also features lyrics that mock the...

Nearly one year after its initial launch, Disney+ has updated a disclaimer that appears before Peter Pan, Dumbo and other films, warning viewers of racist stereotypes found in those movies.

When the streamer first debuted in November 2019, the films in question — which also include Fantasia and Lady and the Tramp — featured a shorter content warning that read, “This program is presented as originally created. It may contain outdated cultural depictions.”

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Disney Plus has added a new content warning label on several classic animated movies, including “Peter Pan,” “Dumbo,” “Fantasia” and “Lady and the Tramp.”

Last year, the streaming service added content warnings to content considered to have outdated depictions that appeared as a smaller text box on screen. The updated disclosure appears when a user clicks on the film, with the label lasting onscreen for about 10 seconds.

“This program includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures,” the new label reads. “These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together. Disney is committed to creating stories with inspirational and aspirational themes that reflect the rich diversity of the human experience around the globe.”

In November 2019, a shorter content warning was added to movies...

“The whole world ’bout to testify,” Janelle Monáe promises on the song and music video for “Turntables.” It is the multifaceted artist’s first song since 2019’s “That’s Enough,” for the Disney+ live-action remake of Lady and the Tramp.

The song is featured in All In: The Fight for Democracy. Directed by Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortés (The Remix: Hip Hop X Fashion), the Amazon Studios documentary is about voter suppression which is being released in tandem with the studio’s #AllInForVoting bipartisan campaign. The campaign intends to inspire voter turnout during the 2020 presidential election season. And what is more inspiring than a Janelle Monáe song? Her last album, Dirty Computer, which was released two years ago, ended with the anthemic “Americans.”

Working with long-time collaborator Nate “Rocket” Wonder, Monáe amplifies the voices of people putting themselves on the front line. Directed by Child, the song’s accompanying emotion...

Exclusive: Disney’s live-action team is in early development on a movie for Disney+ about the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles and its founder, artistic director and longtime conductor Charles Dickerson III.

The studio picked up the pitch from writer Bobby Smith Jr (Jason’s Lyric), who will serve as writer and executive producer. Longtime Disney production executive and producer Brigham Taylor will produce via his Taylor Made Film Productions banner.

Founded in 2009, the Icyola is the largest majority African-American orchestra in America and has helped transform the lives of hundreds of young Angelenos who go on to perform in settings including the Getty Center, Walt Disney Concert Hall and Staples Center, as well as throughout South Los Angeles’ church community.

Dickerson, who has spent decades trying to make classical music more inclusive to communities of color, was a guest on...

It is hard to believe that Disney's animated Lady and the Tramp premiered in 1955. The beloved film is a family favorite, which is why it got a live-action remake in 2019. The more recent movie is adorable and is a great addition to the franchise's legacy.

Related: 5 Live-Action Disney Remakes That Are Better Than The Original (& 5 That Aren't)

To say that Disney has capitalized on revamping their old material would be an understatement. Some fans love to see old favorites like Lady and the Tramp in a new light, especially when there are exciting behind-the-scenes details to uncover.

Paramount Animation and producer Gary Dauberman are ready to let the dogs out, and I’m so very sorry I opened this story with that sentence, I had no choice. Anyway, Dauberman is producing Stray Dogs, a movie based on an upcoming Image Comics title from Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner. Plot details aren’t readily available, but the […]

The post ‘Stray Dogs’ Movie, Described as ‘Silence of the Lambs’ Meets ‘Lady and the Tramp’, in the Works From Paramount Animation appeared first on /Film.

This shouldn’t need pointing out, but Disney doesn’t have a great track record when it comes to the representation of Asian people in its films, and we’re including both its live-action movies and its animations in that statement. Although the company has been trying to take steps forward and redress the balance in reach years, Disney productions tend to be very white, and very American even when they’re set in parts of the world that are thousands of miles away from America. Not all of the blame for that should be laid at the feet of the people who run Disney today, as many of the company’s ‘classic’ animations were made during the mid 20th century when views weren’t as progressive as they are today, but there’s still something of a historical dearth when it comes to positive representations of Asian characters.

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“Dora and the Lost City of Gold” and “I Carry You With Me” are among this year’s Imagen Awards nominees, which span a range of new categories including best director in television, best music composition for film and television and best music supervision for film and television.

The Imagen Foundation president Helen Hernandez announced 114 nominees across 20 categories for the 35th annual Imagen Awards.

“This year’s list of nominees is a far cry from four honorees 35 years ago,” Hernandez said in a statement. “The level of creativity and talent in our community is bountiful and is exemplified in this year’s list. The judges were challenged with the overwhelming increase of quality submissions for consideration. It’s clear that we are making some strides, but have a way to go to achieve significant equity and inclusion in the industry. Until then, Imagen is committed to be the means to...