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Kathleen Kennedy could step down from Lucasfilm when her contract is up at the end of the year, at least according to one report. While her retirement has yet to be confirmed by Disney or Lucasfilm brass, even the idea of her retiring has Hollywood buzzing like a lightsaber that’s been left on for too long.

Kennedy’s tenure at the company, if it is coming to an end, has been one of ambition and controversy. As she tried to chart new territory in a galaxy far, far away and serve her corporate overlords, she frequently waded into controversy and fan unrest. Attempting to sum up her time at Lucasfilm is difficult and troublesome, met with some historic highs and almost subterranean lows. Through it all, she never gave up. When the Empirical forces attempted to squash her, she always resisted.

“She knows or knew what she was doing,...

Flight Risk landed the top spot at the weekend box office, but the Mark Wahlberg-led action thriller only managed to make an estimated $12 million domestically (per The Numbers). Unfortunately, Lionsgate’s second No. 1 movie of the year — Den of Thieves 2: Pantera being the other — premiered during the lowest-grossing weekend of 2025 ($66.3 million) thus far. Certainly, the NFL stole some audiences as both the NFC and AFC Championship games aired on Sunday, Jan. 26, but it’s still a disappointment for the industry.

Historically, studios aren’t going to open any blockbusters in January because the month is typically a dead zone for the theatergoing experience. However, when compared to 2024, the numbers actually trended upward, even with the much-maligned Flight Risk leading the way. Over the fourth weekend of January a year ago, the box office’s domestic total of $56.6 million tallied $10 million less, even with a far more well-received title,...

26 years into his career, Christopher Nolan is charging along on one of the most remarkable creative and commercial runs the film industry has ever seen. Since he burst onto the scene with his breakthrough second feature "Memento" in 2001, all he's done is make one critically acclaimed box office hit after another. Considering the sizable budgets he's become accustomed to working with, it's a winning streak that any of our big-swing maestros can't match. Even Steven Spielberg experienced critical and/or commercial turbulence at this point in his career, with films like "1941," "Empire of the Sun," "Always," and "Hook." But aside from "Tenet" (which would've been a blockbuster had the Covid pandemic not kept the vast majority of moviegoers out of theaters over the summer of 2020), all of Nolan's films have doubled their production budgets at the global box office, and are currently rated fresh at Rotten Tomatoes.

How best...

Steven Spielberg was playing with house money as he prepared to make his fifth feature. His previous two films, "Jaws" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," had combined to gross the 2024 equivalent of $4.4 billion. He could've gotten a shot-for-shot remake of "Andrei Rublev" greenlit if he'd pressed the issue. He also could've hedged his bets and directed "Jaws 2." Whatever he made next, he was going to make it wholly on his own terms.

Spielberg turned that house money into f***-you money, and shot an anarchic comedy that's like watching the richest kid in town craft an immaculate model train set over the course of months, mainline Jolt Cola for a day, and lay complete and total waste to his creation in a shade under two hours.

"1941" is a madcap movie about reckless and irresponsible Americans who've gone wild over an impending Japanese sneak attack on the shores of California.

Despite improving its reputation over time, "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" remains notorious in its own way. The prequel to 1981's "Raiders of the Lost Ark" saw Indy team up with a new sidekick, Short Round (Ke Huy Quan), and Kate Capshaw's nightclub singer Willie Scott for a decidedly darker tale than its predecessor. Though it has since been reappraised, "Temple of Doom" was met with a mixture of confusion and consternation upon its 1984 release, even while it became a box office success. None of this should have been all that surprising for director Steven Spielberg, however, seeing as the original "Temple of Doom" writer was scared away by the story he and George Lucas had in mind.

Now, some 40 years after it first debuted, "Temple of Doom" occupies an odd space in the "Indiana Jones" lineage, simultaneously overcoming its initial reaction while still trailing some controversy,...

Thought may be the most powerful force in the space-time continuum. As Doctor Emmett L. Brown says in "Back to the Future," the act is the one and only key to guaranteed success: "If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything." This is why any system of control seeks to quell (if not eradicate) free thought as its primary goal because those behind such systems rightfully understand that thought is the biggest threat to their maintaining power. Although governments and censorship boards banning art can be done under a variety of pretenses — this is deemed obscene, that is deemed offensive, and so on — what censoring or outright banning art really does is keep people in line.

Of course, that doesn't mean censorship always makes a ton of sense. Numerous instances of censored or banned art feel absolutely baffling. For instance, did you know that depicting someone head-butting...

Bob Yerkes, the acrobatic stunt performer who slid down a clock tower cable for Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future and hung around the Statue of Liberty under repair for Fred Ward in Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, has died. He was 92.

Yerkes died Tuesday of natural causes in Northridge, Darlene Ava Williams, a stunt performer and one of his many mentees, announced.

The amiable Yerkes, who started out in the circus and was a skilled trapeze aerialist and tightrope walker, also plummeted from a helicopter through a roof in Breakout (1975), starring Charles Bronson.

“I was getting ready for the stunt and the guy said, ‘Break a Leg!,” and I broke them both,” he recalled in a 2017 interview. He said he also broke legs while working on Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) and Her Alibi (1989), but, in a career that spanned eight decades, that was the extent of his serious injuries.

The 1970s were truly an extraordinary time for movie comedies, as many incredible films broke down social and political boundaries. This was an era where it became possible to joke about subjects related to sex and vulgarity that had previously been off-limits, and many iconic comedians became household names. While this was the decade in which filmmakers like Mel Brooks and Woody Allen took Hollywood by storm, even those acclaimed directors had some comedies that barely anyone remembers today.

The very best comedies of the 1970s have remained beloved classics that film lovers rewatch and enjoy countless times over. However, when digging deep to rediscover some long-forgotten hidden gems, it's striking just how many underappreciated releases with stars like John Belushi, Jack Nicholson, and Gene Wilder there are out there for those willing to wade through the rough. Although there are some 1970s comedies that have been forgotten for a reason,...

For a good while, it seemed as though everything Steven Spielberg touched turned to gold. Having established the very concept of the blockbuster with "Jaws" in 1975, the director went on to make hit after hit with "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" (1977), "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981), and "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" (1982). Even 1984's "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" was a box office success, despite shocking some viewers who weren't used to such a dark and oddly violent effort from the director. Critical response to the movie was also more mixed than it had been for its predecessor. Of course, anyone following Spielberg's career closely would have known that "Temple of Doom" was not the first time the seemingly infallible director had fallen afoul of the critics.

Sandwiched between "Close Encounters" and "Raiders" in Spielberg's filmography is "1941." Made in 1979, this war comedy featured an ensemble cast that included Dan Aykroyd,...

Everyone knows that Steven Spielberg's "1941" was a notorious box office flop. And everyone ... is wrong. Despite its reputation over the years, Spielberg's 1979 war comedy was not a box office failure. It just looked that way because, well, it was a Steven Spielberg movie. In '79, in the wake of the record-breaking box office juggernaut that was "Jaws" and its successful follow-up "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," Steven Spielberg seemed untouchable. It felt like the wunderkind director could not fail — that, like a cinematic King Midas, everything he touched would turn to gold.

"1941" changed that. While the film went on to become a modest box office success, taking in $94.9 million on a $35 million budget, it was not well received. Critics were mixed at best on the film. As Roger Ebert wrote, "The movie finally reduces itself to an assault on our eyes and ears, a nonstop series of climaxes,...

Steven Spielberg made sure that Jaws had one of the most iconic opening scenes in film history, so much so that he parodied it four years later. Steven Spielberg is responsible for many film classics from different genres, and in 1975, he conquered the branch of thriller and horror with Jaws. Based on the 1974 novel of the same name by Peter Benchley, Jaws was a massive critical and commercial success, becoming the prototypical summer blockbuster and earning a spot in film history, as well as on countless lists of the best horror movies of all time.

Jaws takes the audience to the New England beach town of Amity Island, where a giant white shark has been killing swimmers. While Mayor Larry Vaughn (Murray Hamilton) worries about these incidents ruining the towns tourism, Chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) teams up with marine biologist Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) and local fisherman Quint (Robert Shaw...

Actor Whitney Rydbeck, who was popular with horror fans for his unforgettable role in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, has died. He was 79 years old.

Per THR, Jason Lives director Tommy McLoughlin confirmed that Rydbeck passed away. The actor died on Monday due to complications from cancer while in hospice care in Chatsworth, California. McLoughlin also shared a tribute to Rydbeck on social media, including some screenshots of Rydbeck's role in the Friday the 13th franchise film along with the poster for Jason Lives.

McLoughlin shared a statement that said, "We lost not only a truly funny comedian and actorbut one of the most good hearted human beings Ive ever known. God Bless You and Rest in Peace Whitney Rydbeck. Our Loss is Heavens Gain."

In Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, Rydbeck played Roy, a steroypically-nerdy man who comes across Jason Voorhees (C.J. Graham) during...

Whitney Rydbeck, the actor and mime who portrayed the last of the paintball victims in Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI and one of the original crash test dummies in an iconic public service campaign that promoted seat belt safety, has died. He was 79.

Rydbeck died Monday of complications from prostate cancer while in hospice care in Chatsworth, California, his longtime friend Tommy McLoughlin, the director on Jason Lives, told The Hollywood Reporter.

“We lost not only a truly funny comedian and actor … but one of the most good-hearted human beings I’ve ever known,” McLoughlin wrote in a tribute on Instagram.

The lanky Rydbeck appeared on dozens of TV shows during his busy career, from The Brady Bunch, Phyllis, M*A*S*H, Cagney & Lacey and Highway to Heaven to Star Trek: The Next Generation, Sisters, Living Single, Party of Five and Scrubs.

In the sixth Friday the 13th film,...

Heartbreak comes frequently for Friday the 13th fans. The franchise has had a rough ride over the last couple decades, getting bogged down in legal issues and creative false stars. We get a video game, then the rug is pulled out from under it when it’s just getting started. A movie almost happens, then gets scrapped just weeks before filming was scheduled to begin. The Crystal Lake TV show was just a couple months from filming, then the showrunner gets fired. But worse than all of that is the fact that we’re in a time when actors from our beloved films are passing away very often. Just last month, we lost Erich Anderson, who was in the cast of Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter. Now Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI director Tom McLoughlin has broken the news that Whitney Rydbeck, who played the ill-fated paintball player Roy in his film,...

Steven Spielberg, the master auteur, had somewhat of a crash course in the interdependent working relationship between a director and the studio quite early on in his career. Despite his natural expertise and ingrained talent for producing cinematic masterpieces, Spielberg is not entirely immune to box office failures.

Steven Spielberg on the sets of 1941 [Credit: Amblin]

The director of the aquatic thriller, Jaws, and sci-fi alien film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, had ridden the wave of success and glory for far too long to realize that without studio interference, a project can sometimes go downhill too. And Spielberg was quick to learn that on the evening of the premiere of 1941.

Steven Spielberg and His Radical New Hollywood Era

No studio production enters the final theatrical lineup without the absolute say-so of the higher-up execs. The Hollywood of today is entirely guided by the principle of equal collaboration between the suits and the creatives.

In a resplendent career spanning five decades, Steven Spielberg has undoubtedly come to master the art of filmmaking, with astronomical hits like E.T. and Schindler’s List attesting to the same. But even the most illustrious director like him isn’t invincible to the occasional theatrical flop.

Steven Spielberg | Photo by Elena Ternovaja licensed under Cc By-sa 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Turns out, Spielberg had already been advised against making one of his films that not only botched commercially but failed to get into critics’ good books as well. So, maybe he could’ve avoided that one, albeit he doesn’t regret it by any means.

Steven Spielberg Was Forewarned Of Not Making This Flop

If there’s one Steven Spielberg movie that is unanimously regarded as perhaps his most disastrous work in an otherwise flourishing career, it would be the war comedy starring John Belushi. Based on the epochal events that unfolded at Pearl Harbor,...

Actor and comedian Dan Aykroyd has had a long and steady career ever since he first began doing improvisational comedy with the famed Second City troupe in both their Chicago and Toronto theaters.

Fame came to Aykoyd when he was hired for what seemed like a low expectations comedy/variety show NBC was beginning for late Saturday evenings. “Saturday Night Live” became a bit of a phenomenon launching all the original “Not Ready for Prime Time Players” (as the cast was called) into stardom. Aykroyd along with Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman and Garrett Morris suddenly found themselves among the most talked about television stars working in the business.

Aykroyd and Belushi became especially close friends during the series run and began working in films together such as “Neighbors,” “The Blues Brothers” and potentially “Ghostbusters,” but Belushi’s overdose at the age of 33 caused Bill Murray...

Steven Spielberg, the maestro behind some of Tinseltown’s greatest spectacles, embraced the pandemonium in his 1979 war comedy odyssey, 1941. This film is often cited as Spielberg’s out-of-control gamble, but what many don’t realize is the unique space it occupies in the director’s illustrious career.

Following the colossal success of Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Spielberg went where few dared, proving that even legends can afford a playful detour. Having said that, critics & audiences were initially mixed, and the actor John Wayne himself bristled at its irreverence toward the film’s plot circling “World War II”.

Steven Spielberg’s 1941 | Universal Pictures

But Spielberg never harbored “embarrassment” for this quirky war comedy. In fact, statistics show that 1941 was not the flop it’s reputed to be; it earned more than its production costs at the box office.

1941: Revisiting the War Comedy That Holds a...

Over the years, there have been a lot of filmmakers who have been game-changers when it comes to filmmaking. Michael Bay has been receiving audiences by presenting them with movies such as ‘Transformers’ and the ‘Bad Boys' series. Denis Villeneuve has been recently wowing his audiences with Sci-fi epics like ‘Blade Runner 2049’ and the 2021 adaptation of ‘Dune,". Steven Spielberg is well-known for being a movie maker who influenced filmmakers who rose to fame after him. Just like the director Ridley Scott, Spielberg is an adaptable screenwriter by experiments in almost any genre, and he continues to successfully do so. Things to do: Subscribe to The Hollywood Insider’s YouTube Channel, by clicking here. Limited Time Offer – Free Subscription to The Hollywood Insider Click here to read more on The Hollywood Insider’s vision, values and mission statement here – Media has the responsibility to better our world – The Hollywood Insider...

One of the most iconic movie scenes of all time is the terrifying opening of Steven Spielberg’s horror classic Jaws, wherein a young female swimmer is ruthlessly devoured by the film’s killer shark during a solo night swim. That swimmer was Susan Backlinie, forever immortalized on the silver screen as the ill-fated Chrissie Watkins in one of the greatest movies ever made.

We are saddened to learn that Susan Backlinie has passed away at the age of 77.

An actress and stuntwoman, Susan Backlinie appeared in a handful of movies in the wake of her unforgettable big screen debut in Jaws, including The Grizzly & the Treasure (1975), Two-Minute Warning (1976), A Stranger in My Forest (1976), Day of the Animals (1977), 1941 (1979), The Great Muppet Caper (1981), and Catalina C-Club (1982). She also appeared in episodes of “The Quest,” “Quark” and “The Fall Guy,” in addition to working as a stunt performer for the 1979 movie...

Susan Backlinie, who played the first shark attack victim in Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws,” has died. She was 77.

Backlinie died Saturday morning at her California home due to a heart attack, Convention All Stars owner Sean Clark confirmed to Variety. The former actor and stuntwoman was one of the company’s clients.

Backlinie was best known for her role as Chrissie Watkins in “Jaws,” who is dragged to her death by a killer shark in the 1975 film’s iconic opening scene. Backlinie specialized in swimming work as a stunt performer.

Contrary to widespread belief, Backlinie’s screams of anguish in the “Jaws” opening scene were not due to her being injured by the harness that jerked her back and forth. However, no one warned Backlinie when she would be pulled underwater in order to get a genuine reaction from her.

Variety‘s “Jaws” review said of the shark attack sequences:...

When Steven Spielberg set out to helm "1941" (a film John Wayne tried to stop him from making), he was seemingly unbeatable. Here was the man who invented the summer blockbuster with "Jaws," then followed it up with the big hit "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." He was on top of the world, and it felt like anything he put his name on was going to be a success. Then "1941" crashed and burned. 

Sort of. 

Here's the thing: in the grand scheme of things, "1941" was not relly a flop. However, because critics were mixed on the flick and it wasn't as big of a hit as Spielberg's previous two movies, it was seen as a failure. Spielberg the wunderkind was showing signs of fatigue. And to be fair, "1941" is definitely one of Spielberg's weaker efforts. Based very loosely on true events, the film follows several...

The year was 1985 when Super Mario Bros. took the Nintendo Entertainment System by storm; Bill Watterson’s Calvin and Hobbes debuted in newspapers, and two unlikely friends named Marty McFly and Emmett Lathrop Brown piloted cinema’s most iconic time machine to a year when Panama hats and kitten heels were all the rage, 1955.

Fiercely protected at a level akin to Ghostbusters and Star Wars by millennials worldwide, Robert Zemeckis’s Back to the Future sits enthroned at Nostalgia Mountain’s top. The original film has spawned two sequels, a cartoon series, video game adaptations, a Broadway musical, and more. But how does it hold up by today’s standards? Strap on your seatbelt, and prepare yourselves to see some serious shit because this is Back to the Future Revisited.

In 1977, Robert Zemeckis did the unthinkable. He bulldozed into Amblin Entertainment without an appointment, heading straight for Steven Spielberg’s office.

Joe Flaherty, founding member of “Sctv” and ubiquitous comic actor for decades including a stint as the Dad on “Freaks and Geeks,” has died at the age of 82, according to multiple reports.

The Pittsburgh-born performer (a rare American in the Canadian comedy sphere) got his start with the Chicago-based Second City Theater, first appearing on the “National Lampoon Radio Hour” before resettling in Toronto to become part of Second City’s core in the Great White North. He was one of the initial writer/performers on “Sctv,” a vanguard sketch comedy series co-starring John Candy, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, Rick Moranis, Catherine O’Hara, Harold Ramis (for a little while), Dave Thomas, and, later, Martin Short, that mixed parody programming with behind-the-scenes shenanigans at a low rent television station in “Mellonville.” Indeed, if “Sctv” could be said to have a main character, it would be Flaherty’s Guy Caballero, the corrupt,...

When Gene Roddenberry began developing the screenplay for "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" in 1975, expectations for how a science fiction film could look and feel were rapidly shifting. "2001: A Space Odyssey" offered moviegoers a 70mm trip to outer space, while "The Omega Man," "Soylent Green," and the "Planet of the Apes" series fed off the sociopolitical tumult of the times to thrust audiences into dystopian futures of our own foolish making.

Where did a show that was, at its core, a dream of racially and ethnically inclusive space exploration fit in an era of consciousness-raising spectacle and pessimistic earthbound forecasting? Though the series had failed to enthrall a sizable enough viewership to survive more than three seasons during its initial run on NBC in the late 1960s, "Star Trek" had become popular in syndication with 1970s couch potatoes. There was clearly a hunger for more, and there weren't any...

Matt Sweeney, the inventor and special effects artist who received an Oscar nomination for his work on Apollo 13 and three Technical Achievement Awards during his long career, has died. He was 75.

Sweeney died Monday at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank after a long battle with lung cancer, Dave Burle, who worked alongside Sweeney at his company for many years, told The Hollywood Reporter.

Sweeney also handled effects for films in the Lethal Weapon and Fast & Furious franchise and for 1941 (1979), 9 to 5 (1980), On Golden Pond (1981), Goonies (1985), The Color Purple (1985), The Lost Boys (1987), Big Top Pee-wee (1988), Arachnophobia (1990), Natural Born Killers (1994) and Galaxy Quest (1999), among many other movies.

Sweeney won his Technical Achievement Awards in 1987 for an Automatic Capsule Gun, which simulates bullet hits and is known as the “Sweeney Gun”; in 1998 for a Liquid Synthetic Air system, which mixes liquid nitrogen and liquid oxygen to produce safe,...

Even the best directors can produce duds, often due to experimentation or working outside their comfort zone. Some of the greatest directors have blemishes in their filmographies, including Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, and David Fincher. Movies like "1941," "Boxcar Bertha," and "The Ladykillers" represent wasted opportunities for talented directors to excel in different genres.

Even the greats slip up on occasion, and incredibly talented directors can still produce bad movies. In careers which can last for decades, it's no shame if an amazing director ends up with a dud or two. Sometimes this is a result of experimenting with different genres or styles, and the lessons they learn from these projects can benefit them later on. Nevertheless, these flops are still curious to watch, as it's interesting to see how directors with such high standards can misfire. Looking back on these poor efforts can be amusing, but it also reveals...

An American filmmaker, Steven Spielberg has several high-quality and well-known films under his belt, like Jaws (1975) and Jurassic Park (1993). He's dabbled in various genres throughout the years, making several historical dramas and even a few fantasy films. He's arguably the greatest director to ever work in science fiction, thanks to movies like Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Minority Report (2002), and more.

But from 1941 (1979) and Empire of the Sun (1987) to Saving Private Ryan (1998) and War Horse (2011), this director has also mastered the art of war films. And while he's the most popular name to do so — he's arguably the most famous filmmaker, in general — plenty of other directors throughout cinema history have perfected the war genre. Their work is entirely worth noting before delving into the greatness of Steven Spielberg.

Other Directors Known for Their War Films

Off the bat, there's one name most prominently worth...

Wall-e took a storytelling risk by having its protagonist, a robot, remain silent throughout the film, a rarity in Disney's history. The absence of dialogue in Wall-e and Dumbo requires viewers' full attention to engage with the narrative, making it a challenging storytelling choice. Despite the lack of dialogue, both Wall-e and Dumbo captivate audiences through their expressive animation, conveying emotions and creating a powerful cinematic experience.

Pixar's sci-fi romance film Wall-e took a significant storytelling risk, which had only been attempted once before. Wall-e takes viewers to the year 2805, where a solitary robot named Wall-E, works daily to clean up a deserted Earth. Humanity now resided in space on a giant starliner, awaiting the day they can travel back to their clean home planet. An emotional and character-driven tale, Wall-e is one of the best Pixar movies.

Wall-e brought to life lovable characters, beautiful animation, and a captivating storyline,...

After John Carpenter made "Halloween" in 1978, the director wasn't terribly interested in making a sequel. When it came time to write the screenplay for "Halloween II," however, a reluctant Carpenter sat in front of his typewriter, hammered on beers, kind of at a loss as to where this story was going to go. It was only by mere creative desperation that Carpenter conceived of the notion that Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) was secretly Michael Myers' sister. 

In the first "Halloween," Michael Myers was played by various actors, although mostly by Nick Castle, an old friend of Carpenter's and a film director in his own right. In "Halloween II," Michael was played by a stuntman named Dick Warlock, an experienced performer who appeared in films like "The Love Bug" (he drove Herbie), "Blazing Saddles," and Carpenter's "Escape from New York." 

For Warlock, it seems, playing Michael Myers was far more...

He's one of the greatest, most successful filmmakers in the history of the moving image, but there were times throughout his career when even Steven Spielberg needed a hit. Badly.

One such crucial juncture arrived in 1980. After the unprecedented blockbuster combo of "Jaws" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," Spielberg face-planted with the critically reviled World War II comedy "1941." Turns out a lot of folks thought making hay out of the Pacific Coast's gun-toting freakout in the immediate wake of Pearl Harbor was in poor taste. In any event, though the film was a moderate box office hit, it was perceived as a full-scale fiasco for the Hollywood wunderkind. Had success spoiled Steven Spielberg?

Spielberg not only felt the heat, he thought he'd barely escaped disaster with his two smashes. He'd come close to getting fired when "Jaws" went way over schedule (as he scrambled to shoot around a...

When George Lucas and his special effects house Industrial Light and Magic finished shooting "Star Wars" back in the late 1970s, they boxed up all of their props and widgets -- then stored in the San Fernando Valley -- and moved their operation north, just north of the San Francisco Bay. While most of the "Star Wars" props made the trek undamaged, at least one of the X-wings models remained behind by accident. "Star Wars" fans will instantly note X-wings as the single-occupancy, biplane-like spacecraft that the film's heroes used to attack the Death Star in the film's climax.

One of the more forwardly visible models used to shoot the Death Star sequence -- the Red Leader X-wing -- was 20 inches long and was equipped with lights and servos to control the "expanding" of the ship's four wings. It was massively detailed and was painted to look like it had seen some action,...

Arthur “Buddy” Botham, who served as a cinematographer on The Dukes of Hazzard and handled second-unit shooting on films including Blake Edwards’ Skin Deep and John Carpenter’s Village of the Damned (1995), has died. He was 88.

Botham died June 26 at his home in Woodland Hills, his daughter Julia Bergeron announced.

Botham also worked on several Stephen J. Cannell-produced series, from The A-Team, Hardcastle and McCormick and Hunter to Riptide, Stingray, Sonny Spoon and Stone, and he was a generator operator on James Cameron’s Titanic (1997) and Bill Lawrence’s Scrubs.

Born in Chicago on March 19, 1935, Arthur Ronald Botham joined the Chicago Stage Guild at age 21 and starred in Uncle Vanya and other productions. After a stint in the U.S. Marine Corps as a helicopter repairman, he returned to Chicago, resumed acting and became a cinematographer.

As the in-house director of photography for Encyclopedia Britannica, he shot dozens of educational...

John Wayne is one of the defining movie stars of the 20th century, but his career is filled with missed opportunities. “The Duke” had a signature swagger and commanding presence that saw him star in numerous iconic roles across Wayne’s impressive movie career. However, the same decisive character and spirited beliefs that allowed Wayne to resonate with film-going audiences also caused the star to turn down some of the most memorable film roles in history.

John Wayne was a fervent patriot, a staunch traditionalist, and a stubborn holder of grudges. While The Duke turned in memorable performances in many films that speak to fairly straightforward values and themes, his reluctance to embrace some of the more subversive filmmaking that began to emerge in the latter part of the 20th century, as well as his own interpersonal issues, led to his missing out on some of the most significant films of the era.

The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock has made some of the greatest films of all time, but his first and only Best Picture winner might also be his best. While not Hitchcock's first feature film, this 1941 Academy Award winner was the first time Hitchcock was introduced to wider audiences, particularly in the United States, as this film was Hitchcock's first Hollywood production. With two Academy Award wins out of an astounding eleven nominations, Alfred Hitchcock really could not ask for a better Hollywood debut than Rebecca (not to be confused with the less stellar Netflix remake from 2020).

As the world mourns the sudden death of “Hair” and “Everwood” actor Treat Williams, new details of his fatal motorcycle accident are surfacing.

Williams, 71, died Monday at Albany Medical Center in New York after being airlifted away in a helicopter from the collision in Vermont, according to Vermont State Police Department Pio Adam Silverman and Lt. Steve Coote, who held a virtual press conference covering the incident.

The crash happened around 5 p.m. Monday on Route 30 by Long Trail Auto near the southwestern Vermont town of Dorset. The accident involved Williams’ motorcycle and a 2008 Honda SUV. Investigators believe the driver of the car was turning left into a parking lot and didn’t see the motorcycle. The driver had his turn signal on, according to police.

“Williams was unable to avoid a collision and was thrown from his motorcycle. He suffered critical injuries and was airlifted to Albany Medical Center in Albany,...

Colleagues, friends and fans are remembering Treat Williams, the versatile and prolific actor who died in a motorcycle crash today at 71. Have a look at a sampling of reaction posted on social media below.

The actor from Rowayton, Ct, amassed more than 125 film and TV credits during a career that spanned nearly half a century. He was the widowed brain surgeon who moves his kids from Manhattan to small-town Colorado on the WB’s 2002-06 drama Everwood. He recurred as the ex-firefighter dad of Kelly and Katie Severeid on Chicago Fire, starred opposite Shelley Long in the 1993-94 CBS sitcom Good Advice and guested or did arcs on dozens of series including Law & Order: Svu, White Collar, Hawaii Five-o, Leverage and The Simpsons.

Related: Emily VanCamp Pays Tribute To ‘Everwood’ Co-Star Treat Williams

More recently he was a series regular for the full six-season run of Hallmark Channel’s Chesapeake Shores.

Actor Treat Williams died in a motorcycle accident near his southern Vermont home on Monday. As per The New York Times, Williams – who was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident – suffered critical injuries and was pronounced dead at a medical center in Albany, New York, after being airlifted there. The driver of the other vehicle was not hospitalized, and a police investigation is underway. Williams was 71 years old.

The film, television, and theater performer first came to prominence in the original production of “Grease” in the role of Danny Zuko. In 1979, he starred in Milos Forman’s film version of the musical “Hair” and, in 1981, he played the lead role in Sidney Lumet’s epic NYPD film “Prince of the City,” based on an actual investigation into police corruption. (Both roles landed him Golden Globe nominations.) In 1996, he was nominated for an Emmy for the HBO film “The Late Shift,...

Treat Williams, star of “Hair” and “Everwood”, has died after being involved in a motorcycle accident, Et confirmed. He was 71.

Williams’ agent of 15 years, Barry McPherson, released the news in a statement to People, telling the outlet that the actor died Monday following the fatal crash.

“He was killed this afternoon. He was making a left or a right [and] a car cut him off,” McPherson told People. “I’m just devastated. He was the nicest guy. He was so talented.”

The statement continued, “He was an actor’s actor. Filmmakers loved him. He’s been the heart of Hollywood since the late 1970s. He was really proud of his performance this year. He’s been so happy with the work that I got him. He’s had a balanced career.”

Though local authorities have not yet confirmed his identity, Jacob Gribble, the fire chief for Dorset, Vermont, told People that...

Treat Williams, the actor who starred in the 1979 musical film Hair and on the WB series Everwood, died Monday from a motorcycle accident at age 71.

His death was confirmed by his family in a statement to Rolling Stone.

“It is with great sadness that we report that our beloved Treat Williams has passed away tonight in Dorset, Vermont, after a fatal motorcycle accident. As you can imagine, we are shocked and greatly bereaved at this time,” read the statement. “Treat was full of love for his family, for his life and for his craft,...

Treat Williams, the actor best known for playing Dr. Andy Brown on the Greg Berlanti-produced Everwood, has died, Deadline has confirmed. He was 71.

Williams played the kindhearted lead on Everwood for four years, a role that seemed to fit the actor perfectly. The show was never a ratings blockbuster, but it helped launch the careers of Chris Pratt, Emily VanCamp and Gregory Smith. Williams’ was well-seasoned by the time the show came around.

More recently, the actor was seen on the Hallmark Channel’s called Chesapeake Shores.

Williams made his film debut in the 1975 thriller film Deadly Hero. The following year he played a supporting role in The Ritz. His breakthrough came in 1979, when he starred as George Berger in the Miloš Forman’s Hair, which was based on the 1967 Broadway musical. Williams was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his role in the film. Other films include...

Treat Williams, the versatile actor who starred as a New York City neurosurgeon who moves his family to Colorado on the WB series Everwood and in such films as Sidney Lumet’s Prince of the City and Milos Forman‘s Hair, died Monday in a motorcycle accident in Vermont. He was 71.

His agent, Barry McPherson of APA, confirmed Williams’ death in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.

Williams, of Manchester Center, Vermont, was aboard a motorcycle and wearing a helmet when he collided with a car on Route 30 near Dorset, the Vermont State Police said in a statement.

An initial investigation indicated that the driver of the car “stopped, signaled a left turn and then turned into the path of a northbound 1986 Honda VT700c motorcycle operated by Williams. Williams was unable to avoid a collision and was thrown from his motorcycle. He suffered critical injuries and was airlifted to Albany Medical Center in Albany,...

In movies, the word “bomb” has always meant two things, generally at the same time. The first and most important definition of bomb is that a movie has lost a disastrous amount of money. Movies, in general, can’t afford to do that — they’re too expensive to produce. Bombs happen, but as a business model they’re not sustainable. A movie that bombs commercially has never been something to write off as a trivial matter.

The second definition of bomb, which is linked to the first (though not automatically), is that a film is spectacularly bad. It is, of course, not axiomatic that a movie that bombs commercially has failed as a work of art. There are movies we think of as classics that crashed and burned at the box office — like “It’s a Wonderful Life” or “Blade Runner” or “Intolerance” or “The Long Goodbye.” It’s become almost...

The Oscar-winning "Saving Private Ryan" and Emmy-winning "Band of Brothers" have more in common than just the involvement of Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks. "Band of Brothers" was based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Stephen E. Ambrose, who worked as a historical consultant on "Saving Private Ryan" and helped inspire its narrative. Ambrose's "D-Day June 6, 1944: The Climactic Battle of World War II" informed the visceral D-Day sequence in "Saving Private Ryan," while his "Band of Brothers" book provided a loose sketch of the titular Private Ryan (Matt Damon), in the form of U.S. soldier Fritz Niland, the only one of four real-life brothers who was believed to be alive before he was recalled home during the war.

For its part, HBO's 10-hour "Band of Brothers" miniseries was told on a much larger scale than "Saving Private Ryan," which clocked in just shy of three hours.

The Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy, is back in full force in 2023, celebrating its 25th anniversary edition from April 21–29.

A key component of the celebrations will be a focus on the Asian films of the 1980s. “We have never programmed these films, nor put together this kind of program before,” says Thomas Bertacche, the Feff’s co-head. “But these were the films and directors that inspired us to shape Udine into the festival that it is today.”

Pitching the historical lineup as “hidden treasures,” the selection is expected to include early works by Japan’s Kurosawa Kiyoshi, Thailand’s Nonzee Nimibutr and South Korea’s Jan Sung-woo.

Roger Garcia, former executive director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival, is set to curate a section on Leung Po-chi, the 83-year-old British-Hong Kong director who made the leap from commercials to TV and into film. Leung was at the...

Steven Spielberg is one of the fathers of the modern blockbuster. In an era where studios operate with the philosophy that producer Mike Medavoy coined as "you're only as good as your next one," it's no wonder that Spielberg continually tops himself. The director has been responsible for some of Hollywood's most memorable blockbusters for nearly five decades.

The director came from what is called the New Hollywood movement of the 1970s, largely comprised of the first generation of filmmakers formally trained in college film programs. After the fall of the studio system, New Hollywood directors (also known as the Movie Brats) enjoyed unprecedented artistic freedom. Notable alumni from the New Hollywood group include John Landis, George Lucas, Brian De Palma, Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, and of course, Spielberg.

New Hollywood was built on the back of a film movement that occurred a decade prior across the Atlantic. Influential...

Although Steven Spielberg was only 36 when "E.T." came out in theaters, he was already an established filmmaker. He'd directed "Jaws," "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," "1941," and "Raiders of the Lost Ark." At this point, even if "E.T." had been a total flop, it didn't seem like he'd have too hard a time bouncing back. As the man himself told Rolling Stone in a 1982 interview: "When I started 'E.T.,' I was fat and happy and satisfied with having the films I had on my list. And I just didn't feel I had anything to lose."

Spielberg, of course, didn't end up losing anything. "E.T." went on to beat "Star Wars" as the highest-grossing film of all time, only getting beaten at the box office a decade later by "Jurassic Park," which he also directed. The movie was so big that Neil Diamond made a whole hit song about it,...

Like many people passionate about movies, particularly those who grew up in the golden age of trash-talking critics like Pauline Kael, Judith Crist, Rex Reed, Gene Siskel, and Roger Ebert, Quentin Tarantino isn't shy about throwing an elbow or twelve when discussing cinema. He doesn't vacillate, nor does he spend much time discussing films that elicit a ho-hum response. You could say he likes to play contrarian, but that would suggest he's basically the Skip Bayless of film discourse. While you may vehemently disagree with Tarantino from time to time, he is anything but a full-of-it blowhard who spouts off inflammatory opinions to get a rise out of low-information fanatics. Tarantino knows his subject inside and out. If you want to enter his arena, you better come armed with ardor and a lifetime's worth of film knowledge.

This doesn't mean Tarantino can't be infuriating on occasion. This is, after all,...

Watching Damien Chazelle’s “Babylon,” in all its superficially titillating, occasionally exciting and mostly exhausting wretched excess, I thought to myself: We’ve been here before, so many times.

You sit down to watch a movie by a director whose work you love. He’s swinging for the fences. His ambition is on full display and so, in fits and spurts, is his talent. Yet something else is on display too: a lack of judgment that starts out like a worm, wriggling through the proceedings, before growing and metastasizing until it’s eating everything in its path.

I’ll leave the D-word out of this, since “Babylon,” a watchable if weirdly joyless movie, never turns into a disaster of incoherence like, say, “Amsterdam.” Yet the movie reminded me of how many great directors have had a compulsive epic misfire in them. Probably most of them; it may be inherent in the imagination of moviemaking.

Steven Spielberg has been directing movies for over 50 years, and the release of The Fabelmans marks his 35th movie rated by Rotten Tomatoes, almost all of which have received Fresh ratings. The Fabelmans is inspired by Spielberg's childhood and his love for directing, and with such a prolific career, it's a great time to look back at how review scores for all of Spielberg's movies compare in Rotten Tomatoes.

Rotten Tomatoes is a far from perfect system, especially when comparing modern releases to movies that came out before Rotten Tomatoes was launched or the internet was even invented (which includes a sizable chunk of Spielberg's filmography), but it's still a useful tool to help provide insightful comparisons of critic and audience reactions of every movie directed by Steven Spielberg. From Jaws to Indiana Jones to Schindler's List to Minority Report to Ready Player One to West Side Story to The Fabelmans,...