News

Good Omens season 2 is bringing back Beelzebub, but with a new face as the character was recast due to scheduling conflicts. Shelley Conn has replaced Anna Maxwell Martin as Beelzebub, the leader of the forces of Hell. The show's writers can easily explain the recasting by having Beelzebub casually address her new face, as demons can change their appearance in the world of Good Omens.

Good Omens season 2 is bringing back the most important characters from season 1, among them Beelzebub, though with a change as the character was recast. Back in 2019, Amazon Prime brought Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett’s novel Good Omens to life, with Michael Sheen as the angel Aziraphale and David Tennant as the demon Crowley. Although they work for opposite organizations, Aziraphale and Crowley have formed an unlikely but strong friendship over the centuries, and Good Omens season 1 saw them joining forces one more time in...

“Supergirl” star David Harewood has boarded Karen Bryson’s directorial debut “Monochromatic” as an executive producer, Variety can exclusively reveal.

Bryson, who played Elinor Stone in Zack Snyder’s “Justice League,” was awarded the Goldfinch Female First Flights Short Film Fund to make the project.

“Monochromatic” tells the story of a young girl of color set in 1970s London. The film “shares a story of the inevitable moment a six-year-old girl realises the world operates with bias when it comes to the color of her skin,” reads the logline.

Bryson used real footage of a 1977 National Front March in the short, which is set to premiere this year.

“My aim for ‘Monochromatic’ is to hold a mirror up, inviting an audience to ask questions of themselves,” Bryson said in a statement. “It touches on the concept of nurture, what we see and hear, consciously or unconsciously shape who we are,...

London Thor (Shameless) has joined the cast of Prime Video’s upcoming spinoff of The Boys as a lead, replacing Reina Hardesty weeks after the actress’ exit, which Deadline exclusively revealed.

Thor is the latest actor to join the untitled spinoff in a recasting amid a number of recent departures. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina‘s Chance Perdomo came to the project replacing Shane Paul McGhie, who departed the series with Aimee Carrero and Hardesty.

Also joining the cast as series regulars are Derek Luh (Shining Vale), newcomer Asa Germann and Shelley Conn (Bridgerton). They will join previously announced cast members Jaz Sinclair, Lizze Broadway and Maddie Phillips. The series hails from showrunners Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters.

The Untitled The Boys spinoff, which is now in production, is described as an irreverent, R-rated series that explores the lives of hormonal, competitive Supes as they put their physical, sexual, and moral boundaries to the test,...

Though Marvel has decided to consolidate all of its cinematic universe offerings onto Disney+, some outliers still live on for other streaming services. In May 2021, Hulu is set to premiere the latest non-canon Marvel series.

The animated comedy Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K. is set to premiere on May 21 and stars Patton Oswalt as the titular Marvel villain. Oswalt’s Modok is every bit the devious floating head that he’s depicted as in the comics. He’s also your every day family man and the show will take on the format of a workplace sitcom. Sounds kinda fun! It’s no wonder that M.O.D.O.K. is the last Hulu Marvel show standing.

In non-Marvel offerings this month, Shrill will debut its third and final season on May 7. This comedy based on Lindy West’s memoir and starring SNL‘s Aidy Bryant has been a consistently bright presence on the streaming scene since...

‘Ach Du Scheisse!’ is the feature debut for Lukas Rinker.

Arri Media International will handle world sales for writer/director Lukas Rinker’s feature debut, the “confined space” comic thriller Ach Du Scheisse! (working title), which began shooting in Offenbach near Frankfurt on Monday (March 1).

The action takes place in real time over 90 minutes, as architect Frank (Thomas Niehaus) regains consciousness in a locked portaloo – known in German vernacular by local brand name Dixi Klo – on a building site where a detonation is being prepared.

As he seeks to escape this prison in a race against time before being blown to smithereens,...

In December on Sky Cinema, Robert Downey Jr. talks to the animals, Sonic the Hedgehog has gotta go fast, and Cats arrives in all its glory.

Check out the full December line-up below…

Premieres

Dolittle (2020) – 4th December

Robert Downey Jr. followed up his long run as Marvel’s Iron Man with this family adventure film based on the kids books by Hugh Lofting. Despite a big supporting cast that includes Emma Thompson, Michael Sheen, Rami Malek and Tom Holland, it’s not brilliant. Any Downey Jr. completists will want to check it out regardless.

Emma (2020) – 5th December

Anya Taylor-Joy leads this new adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel playing Emma Woodhouse, a gal who spends so much time setting up the people she knows with ‘happily ever after’, she forgets about her own romantic possibilities.

Critical Thinking (2020) – 6th December

This 90s-set drama focuses on the story of Cuban-American teacher Mario...

“Saint Maud,” “White Riot” and “Calm With Horses” are among the leading titles on the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) longlists announced Tuesday.

Riz Ahmed, star and co-writer of Berlin-winner “Mogul Mowgli” is on the longlist in the debut screenwriter long list, alongside Billie Piper for “Rare Beasts.”

Rose Glass, director of “Saint Maud,” which won an honorable mention at the BFI London Film Festival in 2019, makes it to the BIFA debut director and screenwriter longlist, as does producer Oliver Kassma, in the breakthrough producer category.

“White Riot” won awards at Berlin, London, Krakow and IndieLisboa, and director Rubika Shah duly makes it to the debut director list and Ed Gibbs in the breakthrough producer category.

“Calm With Horses” won at the Irish Film and Television Awards, and director Nick Rowland finds a place in the director longlist, Joseph Murtagh in the debut screenwriting category and Daniel Emmerson as breakthrough producer.

‘Parasite’.

Over six months after local cinemas were first forced to close due to the arrival of Covid-19 in Australia, exhibition is still in the throes of a protracted crisis – but perhaps not in the ways that some might have anticipated, writes Cinema Nova CEO Kristian Connelly.

Every year my colleagues and I run an industry event to celebrate the Academy Awards. Only 24 hours before the big day, eventual 2020 ceremony Best Picture winner Parasite had become Cinema Nova’s top-grossing film of all time. Having professionally invested over eight months into the South Korean psychodrama, watching a foreign language flick triumph over Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman – a passion project for the director that streaming service Netflix had sunk untold millions into both producing and crafting a no-holds-barred awards season campaign – felt like a watershed moment. High on champagne I called my mother in tears of joy to predict, “this...

‘Parasite’.

Over six months after local cinemas were first forced to close due to the arrival of Covid-19 in Australia, exhibition is still in the throes of a protracted crisis – but perhaps not in the ways that some might have anticipated, writes Cinema Nova CEO Kristian Connelly.

Every year my colleagues and I run an industry event to celebrate the Academy Awards. Only 24 hours before the big day, eventual 2020 ceremony Best Picture winner Parasite had become Cinema Nova’s top-grossing film of all time. Having professionally invested over eight months into the South Korean psychodrama, watching a foreign language flick triumph over Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman – a passion project for the director that streaming service Netflix had sunk untold millions into both producing and crafting a no-holds-barred awards season campaign – felt like a watershed moment. High on champagne I called my mother in tears of joy to predict, “this...

‘Mama Weed’ starring Isabelle Huppert, is also opening in France.

France, opening Wednesday September 9

The French box office appeared to be on route to recovery in the first week of September thanks to the launch of Tenet and a wider range of titles on release generally. It now remains to be seen if this momentum can be sustained with further US studio releases remaining elusive and the country on high alert following a spike in Covid-19 cases.

French cinemas this week will mainly be reliant on local films to draw spectators.

This week’s biggest release is Jean-Paul Salomé’s...

Takings remain small as cinemas steadily reopen following Covid-19 closures.

RankFilm (Distributor)Three-day gross (Jul 10-12)Total gross to date Week 1 Onward (Disney) £48,142 £5.43m 6 2 Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (Disney) £32,556 £83,067 2 3 Trolls World Tour (Universal) £23,586 £115,437 2 4 Black Water: Abyss (Altitude) £16,093 £60,000 2 5 Dirty Dancing (30th anniversary) £14,498 £293,319 166

Gbp to Usd conversion rate: 1.26.

Disney has continued to lead the post-lockdown box office in the UK and Ireland with Pixar animation Onward and a re-release of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back taking the top two slots.

In the absence of any new major releases, Onward returned to the top of the box office with £48,142 across...

Altitude’s ‘Black Water: Abyss’ entered the top five.

Rank Film (Distributor) Three-day gross (Jul 10-12) Total gross to date Week 1 Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (40th anniversary) £50,511 £50,511 1 2 Onward (Disney) £35,540 £5.4m 5 3 Trolls World Tour (Universal) £20,911 £65,768 2 4 Black Water: Abyss (Altitude) £19,524 £28,066 1 5 Dirty Dancing (30th anniversary) £115,134 £265,098 165

Gbp to Usd conversion rate: 1.26.

Disney’s 40th anniversary re-release of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back topped the box office in the UK & Ireland this past weekend, as cinemas continued to reopen following the coronavirus shutdown.

The film played in 94 locations; it has grossed £50,511 from those that have returned figures, with a £500 average.

The second...

The top five titles took a combined £82,000.

RankFilm (Distributor)Three-day gross (Jul 3-5)Total gross to date Week 1 Onward (Disney) £21,626 £5.3m 4 2 Trolls World Tour (Universal) £16,941 £25,777 1 3 Bad Boys For Life (Sony) £16,070 £16.1m 11 4 The Greatest Showman (Disney) £14,499 £49.4m 118 5 1917 (eOne) £12,744 £43.8m 12

Gbp to Usd conversion rate: 1.25

Disney animated feature Onward topped the first UK & Ireland box office weekend following the permitted reopening of cinemas in England (July 4-5).

However, the small number of cinemas open and films playing meant that takings were low.

72 cinemas reported figures in England and the Republic of Ireland only, with venues in Scotland opening from July 15, and Wales...

‘The Personal History of David Copperfield.’

The floodgates opened last weekend with more than a dozen new releases led by The Personal History of David Copperfield, plus several re-issues as more cinemas turned the lights back on.

However the grosses per title reflect the “new normal,” with limited seating capacity and reduced sessions.

The safe distancing rules mean there is a cap of 20 people per session in Victoria, between 20 per cent and 45 per cent in New South Wales and 50 per cent in South Australia.

The top 20 titles racked up nearly $2.5 million, up 251 per cent on the previous frame, according to Numero.

Released by Roadshow, Armando Ianucci’s The Personal History of David Copperfield, a re-imagination of the Charles Dickens novel starring Dev Patel, Tilda Swinton, Hugh Laurie, Peter Capaldi and Ben Whishaw, rang up $330,000 on 203 screens and $376,000 including previews.

“Cinemas in some states only just reopened and it takes time...

"We make our bakery something to remind them of home." Parkland Pics has debuted an official trailer for a British comedy titled Love Sarah, marking the feature directorial debut of filmmaker Eliza Schroeder. This initially premiered at the Glasgow Film Festival earlier this year, and is set to arrive on VOD in the UK starting this September. A young woman wishes to fulfill her mother's dream of opening her own bakery in Notting Hill, London. To do this, she enlists the help of an old friend and her grandma. Celia Imrie stars with Shannon Tarbet, Shelley Conn, Rupert Penry-Jones, and Bill Paterson. This seems charming and enjoyable in a rather cliche uplifting, feel-good way. But then again, who doesn't love baked goods? And watching a mishmash of nice people build a London bakery from scratch does look quite delectable. Dig in. Here's the official trailer (+ UK poster) for Eliza Schroeder's Love Sarah,...

Only three new titles will be playing on the opening weekend.

The UK film release schedule is coming together for July and August as the industry approaches the first weekend that cinemas are allowed to reopen.

However, a lack of venues and the difficulty of coordinating international releases means only two films have confirmed new releases for the first weekend of July, with another beginning previews.

As of July 1, 18 new films will be released into UK cinemas in July. The majority of these are small releases, with none coming from the major studios.

The new titles confirmed for the reopening...

Titles include Us box office hit ‘Becky’ and Sundance title ‘Spree’, starring Joe Keery of ‘Stranger Things’.

Australasia’s Rialto Distribution has acquired a raft of new features, including recent Us box office hit Becky and Sundance social media satire Spree.

Nine titles were co-acquired by Rialto and the UK’s Vertigo Releasing, as part of a partnership forged earlier this year, and were closed during the ongoing Covid-19 lockdown. The films will receive a mix of theatrical and digital debuts in Australia and New Zealand across the second half of 2020.

They include action thriller Becky, starring Lulu Wilson and Kevin James,...

However the total box office for the week was just 17% of the comparable week last year.

The Trip To Greece – the fourth and final film in Michael Winterbottom’s The Trip franchise – has led the New Zealand box office chart after the first week since all Covid-19 restrictions were lifted.

Starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon and distributed in New Zealand by Madman Entertainment, the UK comedy took Nz$82,128 in its first seven days on 74 screens.

The top five was rounded out by Love Sarah, Sonic The Hedgehog, The Assistant and Bloodshot.

Total cinema box office revenue for the week...

New Zealand is due to end social distancing and all other domestic coronavirus restrictions beginning tomorrow, the government has announced. In doing so, the South Pacific nation with a population of about 5M, becomes the largest market to so far eliminate transmission of Covid-19.

Announcing today that there were no active coronavirus cases in New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said, “While we’re in a safer, stronger position there’s still no easy path back to pre-covid life, but the determination and focus we have had on our health response will now be vested in our economic rebuild.” She added, “Now we’ll safely be able to fill those planes, fill those buses and cafes will be able to get a few more tables in as well.” Ardern’s strict handling of the outbreak has drawn global praise.

The move from midnight tonight local time to so-called Level 1, also means public and private events,...

It is also putting three planned theatrical releases on hold until later in 2020.

UK distributor Parkland Entertainment has revealed plans to release a raft of new titles onto digital platforms early, including three new acquisitions, as cinemas remain closed nationwide due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Astronaut, starring Richard Dreyfuss, was set to be released on 65 screens on March 20 – three days before theatres shut their doors – but will now be available to rent and own from digital platforms on April 27.

Documentary Camino Skies will be released as a premium VOD title on Curzon Home Cinema from May 8, the original theatrical release date,...

Film sells to UK and Ireland, Australia/New Zealand and Japan.

UK sales outfit Film Seekers has secured its first deals on Eliza Schroeder’s drama Love Sarah, starring Celia Imrie.

Rights have been pre-sold to the UK and Ireland (Parkland Entertainment), Australia/New Zealand (Rialto), and Japan (New Select). Film Seekers said offers are also on the table for Airlines, South Korea and Benelux.

Love Sarah is about three generations of women who open a bakery in London and is now in production.

Bill Paterson, Shannon Tarbet, Shelley Conn and Rupert Penry-Jones co-star and Candice Brown, winner of UK...

Robert Davi is set to star in 8 Winds, which is said to be a neo-noir thriller along the lines of Robert Altman’s The Long Good Bye and Chinatown. Written and directed by Daniel J. Coplan, the pic centers on an over the hill filmmaker, a comedy club owner, and John Conover as they are drawn into an intrigue where a Russian Oligarch fights for control of California’s water. Davi is John T. Conover, an eccentric and reclusive billionaire who made his money selling bottled Wise Water. After his son commits suicide, he disappears from public view. 15 years later he is trying to make amends for some bad choices and ease his guilt. Leona Paraminski, Joe Sabatino and Chris Game co-star in the film which is currently shooting in Los Angeles. Exec producers are Eric Doctorow and Tom Skouras. Random Media will be releasing the film in this fall.

Great British Bake Off winner Candice Brown to make guest appearance.

Celia Imrie has signed to star in Love Sarah, a feel-good drama from first-time filmmaker Eliza Schroeder, written by Jake Brunger, an alumnus of the BBC’s 2017 New Talent Hotlist and BBC TV Drama Writers’ Programme.

The film is about a young woman who enlists the help of her mother’s best friend and her eccentric estranged grandmother to fulfil her late mother’s dream of opening a bakery in Notting Hill. It is now shooting in London.

Bill Paterson, Shannon Tarbet, Shelley Conn and Rupert Penry-Jones will co-star and Candice Brown,...