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Science fiction is one of cinema's most historical and important genres. Since Georges Méliès' 1902 loose adaptation of Jules Verne's From the Earth to the Moon, filmmakers have been obsessed with exploring the far corners of our universe and using the vast expanse to highlight and critique aspects of our life here on earth. The interstellar dreams of creatives only accelerated when Star Wars exploded onto screens, becoming the highest grossing film of all time and inspiring a whole new generation of artists and audiences.

Brendan Fraser’s Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008) is no less than a classic family adventure. While the critics may have polarizing opinions on it, you can’t disagree that it was an entertaining watch at least. A few years later, Journey returned to the theatres, only this time, there was no Brendan Fraser in sight, only Dwayne Johnson. Along with Josh Hutcherson and Vanessa Hudgens, the group made their way to a mysterious island to carry out a rescue mission.

Brendan Fraser in Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008) | Credits: Warner Bros. Pictures

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island faced a similar fate to that of its predecessor when it came to the critics’ reviews. It made more money than Brendan Fraser’s Og film and left the fans wondering if there would be more coming from the Journey franchise. While the future is hazy, one thing...

Three years after “Boys State” won the Emmy for Best Documentary Special, its first companion film, “Girls State,” is competing for the same honor. While it has solid potential to directly follow “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” as the third Apple TV+ special to take this prize, it will have to stand out from a crowd of strong contenders, including the same platform’s “Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in 2 Pieces.”

Unlike most Primetime Emmys, Best Documentary Special is a non-competitive area award that is bestowed upon any nominee that earns the approval of 90% of the members of the TV academy’s documentary peer group. This means that the five programs in the 2024 lineup are not vying for a single trophy and could all potentially prevail. However, if no nominees hit said 90% threshold, only the highest-rated one will win.

In order to determine which of this year’s nominees...

Based on Donald L. Miller’s book of the same name, and scripted by John Orloff, “Masters of the Air” follows the men of the 100th Bomb Group (the “Bloody Hundredth”) as they conduct perilous bombing raids over Nazi Germany and grapple with the frigid conditions, lack of oxygen and sheer terror of combat conducted at 25,000 feet in the air. Portraying the psychological and emotional price paid by these young men as they helped destroy the horror of Hitler’s Third Reich, is at the heart of “Masters of the Air.” Some were shot down and captured; some were wounded or killed. And some were lucky enough to make it home. Regardless of individual fate, a toll was exacted on them all.

The series received three Emmy nominations for Outstanding Sound Editing For A Limited Or Anthology Series, Movie Or Special, Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Limited Or Anthology Series...

Yes, I see that title and I immediately picture “ole’ blue eyes”, a trench coat draped over a shoulder, crooning that catchy 1954 Bart Howard classic. And that’s just what the producers want to evoke, to get you in a nostalgic mood for a frothy romance set against the backdrop of the “space race”. Mission accomplished, but could a “rom-com” really work against the somber historical backdrop we’ve seen in heavy, serious films like First Man, A Million Miles Away, Hidden Figures, Apollo 13, and the HBO miniseries, “From the Earth to the Moon”.Now, that’s the trick, much like the possible results facing NASA, Will it blast off or crash land? But it’s “star power” rather than rocket fuel that propels Fly Me To The Moon.

Modern movie audiences need a short primer on events 55 years ago, and the filmmakers provide a brief one for the film’s prologue,...

Most any film school syllabus will likely cite Georges Méliès' 1902 film "A Trip to the Moon" (French title: "Le Voyage Dans la Lune") as the very first science fiction film ever made. Even the British Film Institute lists it as such, citing only a 1901 film called "Mister Moon" as the progenitor, and "Mister Moon" hardly counts as it is merely a musical short wherein actor Percy Honri dresses up as the moon and plays the ukulele. The film was meant to accompany a live performance. Not even the most hardcore sci-fi fans would classify that as "science fiction."

"A Trip to the Moon" is certainly one of the most recognizable silent sci-fi films, and many are likely familiar with the image of the Moon wincing in pain when a human rocket lands in its eye. "A Trip to the Moon" takes a lot of visual cues and ideas from the novels of Jules Verne,...

One of the most popular and historic attractions at Disneyland is Space Mountain. The indoor roller coaster gives guests the feeling of being blasted off into outer space with projections of planets and stars while flying through the darkness. Over the years, multiple variants have been created, such as the popular From the Earth to the Moon, which was themed after French author Jules Verne and featured at Disneyland Paris from 1995 to 2005.

In recent years, another variant was developed called Hyperspace Mountain, which temporarily gives the attraction a Star Wars theme, having you pilot an X-Wing in the middle of a space battle. The variant’s first debut was in November of 2015 as a tie-in to the then-upcoming release of The Force Awakens. Since then, every year, the re-theme would appear at Disneyland for a limited time while the variant permanently took over the Disneyland Paris location in 2017.

Now, the galaxy far,...

Before entering the DC franchise as Black Adam, Dwayne Johnson had many successful action films under his belt. The former WWE champion-turned-actor featured in films like San Andreas and Rampage apart from being a pivotal presence in The Fast and the Furious franchise. However, apart from this popular film series, The Rock’s other films have surprisingly not expanded into sequels.

Dwayne Johnson in Black Adam

Johnson’s producing partner Hiram Garcia attempted to explain the reasons behind this back in 2022. It appeared from Garcia’s revelations that The Scorpion King star’s commitment to DC and his character Black Adam could have been the deciding factor behind a film like Rampage not getting the greenlight for a sequel. As fate would have it, Johnson’s long-term desires for DC went up in smoke.

Was Dwayne Johnson’s Rampage Sequel Thwarted By Black Adam?

In 2018, Dwayne Johnson starred in Rampage,...

The 2008’s Journey To The Center Of The Earth, based on the novel by Jules Verne, starring Brendan Fraser and Josh Hutcherson has been a classic film, that earned repeated viewership. As the movie turned into a solid hit, the studio thus decided to capitalize on the film’s success and came up with a sequel starring Dwayne Johnson, who replaced Fraser.

Dwayne Johnson as Black Adam

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island was yet again adapted from Jules Verne’s novel and became an even bigger hit than the original. Garnering praise due to Dwayne Johnson’s appearance, the studio thus decided to turn Johnson into the franchise’s leading man. Following the success of the sequel, Journey 3 was soon confirmed, which was going to be filmed alongside Journey 4. However, according to recent reports, it has been revealed that the third installment has been stalled and canceled.

Dwayne Johnson’s...

Alan Ruck has had a successful Hollywood career with over 100 film and TV appearances, including iconic roles in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and "Succession." Ruck's TV guest appearances span decades and include popular shows like "Scrubs," "CSI," and "Justified," showcasing his versatility as an actor. Ruck has starred in notable films such as "Twister" and "Speed" and recent projects like "The Burial" and "Freaky," demonstrating his ongoing presence in the industry.

Alan Ruck has enjoyed a very successful Hollywood career as a prominent actor in both film and television. The 67-year-old actor has appeared in more than 100 individual movies and television shows, which include a vast number of guest appearances in some of the most well-known entertainment projects of all time. Ruck made his feature film debut with the 1983 crime thriller Bad Boys which starred a young Sean Penn. Ruck was featured in a few television movies during the...

The Portuguese festival showcases documentaries from around the world.

The 21st edition of DocLisboa will open with Wang Bing’s Man In Black, and will close with Baan from Portuguese director Leonor Teles.

Man In Black premiered at Cannes and Baan made its debut at Locarno earlier this year.

The festival will take place in Lisbon from October 19-29.

Wang Bing, via videoconference, and Telles both participated in the festival press conference on September 28 at which festival director Miguel Ribeiro revealed this year’s programme in full.

Bing explained his film profiles 86-year-old Wang Xilin, one of China’s most important contemporary classical composers,...

Tom Hanks is heading back to space.

The two-time Oscar-winner is set to co-write and narrate The Moonwalkers, an immersive art exhibition in London based around the stories of the Apollo space missions. Hanks will pen the exhibition — which will be mounted at the Lightroom in London’s Kings Cross — with double BAFTA-nominated writer Christopher Riley.

The Moonwalkers will be directed and designed by 59 Productions, the team behind the Lightroom’s recent immersive exhibition David Hockney: Bigger & Closer, based on Hockney’s work. The 59 Productions team’s previous work also includes Apollo 50: Go for the Moon at the Washington Monument in collaboration with The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, marking fifty years since Apollo 11 touched down.

The exhibition will feature original NASA footage and images from Apollo Remastered, the classic photography book by Andy Saunders, who will also serve as consultant producer. Hanks will also interview astronauts...

Most of this year’s limited or anthology series Emmy frontrunners had several choices on where to compete. “Dahmer: Monster — The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” is part of a new “Monster” anthology series, but it could have gone drama. “Beef” might have found a home in drama or comedy, but landed in limited (same goes for “Mrs. Davis”).

All of these series have a trailblazer to thank for the flexibility that comes with the limited/anthology category: HBO’s “From the Earth to the Moon.” It’s been 25 years since that landmark miniseries was an Emmy contender — and it’s remarkable to look back at what a controversial decision it was at the time to even call it a “miniseries.”

Of course, in hindsight, it was much more of a miniseries than, say, “Downton Abbey” or “The White Lotus” — two winners in the category that conveniently moved to the drama field...

With HBO Max turning into Max, Warner Bros. Discovery is introducing a higher-priced plan — $19.99 per month — with an expanded bouquet of 4K Ultra HD content aimed at pushing customers to the pricier package.

On Monday, the company announced that the 4K tier will feature more than 1,000 films and episodes in 4K Uhd, an increase of nearly eightfold over what has been available in HBO Max.

The 4K Uhd content on Max will include “Game of Thrones,” “The House of the Dragon,” “The Last of Us,” the Harry Potter films, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Dark Knight trilogy, the Matrix films and more. Additionally, all Warner Bros. movies released this year and going forward will be available in 4K Uhd when they arrive on Max following their theatrical windows.

Max’s new Ultimate Ad-Free tier also will offer four concurrent streams, up to 100 offline downloads and Dolby Atmos and...

Presidents of the United States (both sitting and former) have won. So have former Beatles. And a First Lady. And a lot of other unlikely movie types. The truth is, with so many Primetime Emmy Awards handed out – well over 100 annually – it’s easy for some intriguing victors in both the deeper past and more recently to slip through the cracks.

So as a public service, here are a few dozen-plus Emmy winners you may have missed.

Barack Obama – Yes, our 44th President took home an Emmy trophy in 2022 as best narrator for an episode of the doc series “Our Great National Parks.” He thus became the second President to be so honored. To find out the first, see below. Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr – It may have escaped your gaze, but the former Beatles won an Emmy last year for top documentary/nonfiction series (shared with Peter Jackson and...

The Screen Actors Guild presented legendary comic actor Eddie Cantor with the first annual Life Achievement Award back in 1962. Over the past six decades, the award for ‘outstanding achievement in fostering ideals of the acting profession” has been given to such Hollywood icons as Stan Laurel, Bob Hope, Barbara Stanwyck, Gregory Peck, Jimmy Stewart, Frank Sinatra, James Cagney, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. More recently, Mary Tyler Moore, Charles Durning, Debbie Reynolds, Rita Moreno, Carol Burnett, Helen Mirren and Robert De Niro have received the honor.

Two-time Oscar and three-time Emmy Award winning Sally Field is the latest recipient of the Life Achievement Award. The 76-year-old actress, who came to fame as the ultimate teenager “Gidget” in the 1965-66 ABC sitcom, is currently starring with Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Rita Moreno in the hit feature comedy “80 for Brady.” She appeared with Jim Parsons last year in the drama...

Science fiction movies have shared a close relationship with their literary counterparts for as long as they've existed. The first sci-fi film ever made, Georges Méliès' 1902 short "A Trip to the Moon," was inspired by two Jules Verne novels, "From the Earth to the Moon" and "Around the Moon," as well as H.G. Wells' serialized novel "The First Men in the Moon." From there, countless movies — including some of the greatest of all time — have been based on sci-fi novels, novellas, and short stories.

Let's put it this way: Without the vast cosmos of sci-fi literature to draw from, we would never have experienced "Metropolis," "Frankenstein," "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," "2001: A Space Odyssey," "A Clockwork Orange," "Solaris," "Planet of the Apes," "Blade Runner," "Total Recall," "Starship Troopers," "The Thing," "Jurassic Park," "Minority Report," "Children of Men," "Arrival," "Annihilation," "Edge of Tomorrow," and a hell of a lot more.

One of the top TV casting executives in the business, Meg Liberman, currently EVP and head of casting at CBS Studios, has announced her retirement after 47 years in casting, the last 14 at the studio. The studio’s new casting department structure is expected to be announced shortly.

“As I look back on my 40-plus-year career in casting, I’ve decided that I’m ready to embark on my next adventure and will be retiring,” Liberman said in her farewell note to staff. (You can read it in full below.)

Liberman, an Emmy-winning casting director, joined then-CBS Television Studios in August 2008 as SVP, Casting, and was promoted to EVP in September 2017. During her time at the studio, she has overseen casting of more than 350 projects – series and pilots across broadcast, streaming and cable, including The Good Wife and The Good Fight, the NCIS and Star Trek franchises, Dead To Me,...

Updated: CBS Studios has tapped Deborah Aquila to lead casting for both CBS Studios and Paramount Television Studios. The news comes after Meg Liberman announced her retirement as the head of casting for CBS Studios earlier on Wednesday.

In the new role, Aquila will report directly to Ptvs president Nicole Clemens and CBS Studios president David Stapf. Both studios casting teams will report to Aquila. She will assume oversight of the combined department this spring following a transitional period with Liberman.

Aquila has overseen casting at Paramount TV Studios since early 2020, where she led talent efforts on series such as “The Offer,” “Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan,” as well as the upcoming “Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies” and “Fatal Attraction.”

Her resume includes the Academy Award-winning films “Coda” and “La La Land,” as well as “Sex, Lives and Videotape” and “The Shawshank Redemption.” On the TV side, she’s worked...

Emmy-winning casting executive Meg Liberman, EVP of casting at CBS Studios, is retiring after a 40-plus-year career, she and CBS Studios announced on Wednesday.

Later Wednesday, it was additionally announced that Deborah Aquila, who currently heads casting for Paramount TV Studios, will step up as head of casting for both Ptvs and CBS Studios. Aquila will resume joint responsibilities for casting across studios this spring.

In her 14 years at the studio, Liberman oversaw casting of more than 350 projects, including the “NCIS” and “Star Trek” franchises, “The Good Wife” and “The Good Fight,” “Dead to Me,” “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” and “Jane the Virgin.”

Prior to joining CBS Studios, she cast such illustrious series as “Seinfeld,” “The Comeback,” “The Larry Sanders Show,” “Band of Brothers,” “Fame,” “From the Earth to the Moon,” “That ‘70s Show,” and “3rd Rock from the Sun.”

Also Read:

20 Most Anticipated TV Shows of 2023, According to Fans | Chart

Liberman began casting with her mother,...

Acquisition

Factual content specialist Zinc Media Group has fundraised £5 million (6.1 million) and is using £2.1 million of it towards acquiring award-winning production company The Edge Picture Company, which operates from its bases in London, Doha, Vancouver and Paris. The rest of the cash will be invested in talent, potential IP, and in future acquisitions and collaborations. The Edge’s clients include Amazon, BT Group and FIFA.

The Edge joins Zinc Media Group at the end of August, subject to approval by Zinc shareholders. The Edge will continue to operate in line with other companies wholly owned by Zinc Media Group and it will continue to be run by the same management team, but benefit from the opportunities presented by being part of an enlarged organisation.

Zinc’s TV business includes the labels current affairs, contemporary history and investigations focused Brook Lapping, which was recently commissioned for “Tom Daley: Illegal To Be Me,...

Four top TV documentary filmmakers will reveal secrets behind their projects when they join Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&a event with 2022 Emmy Awards contenders. They will participate in two video discussions to premiere on Wednesday, June 1, at 4:00 p.m. Pt; 7:00 p.m. Et. We’ll have a one-on-one with our senior editor Joyce Eng and a roundtable chat with all of the group together.

RSVP today to our entire ongoing Emmy contenders panel series by clicking here to book your free reservation. We’ll send you a reminder a few minutes before the start of the show.

This “Meet the Experts” panel welcomes the following 2022 contenders:

Janet Jackson (Lifetime)

Synopsis: The untold story of Janet Jackson filmed over the span of three years featuring archival footage, never before seen home videos and star-studded interviews.

Bio: The career of Rick Murray has included “Idris Elba: No Limits,...

Exclusive: Succession‘s Alan Ruck is the latest addition to the cast of Amazon Studios’ film The Burial, which is currently in production. He joins an ensemble that also includes Jamie Foxx, Tommy Lee Jones, Jurnee Smollett, Mamoudou Athie, Bill Camp, Dorian Missick, Pamela Reed, Amanda Warren and Jim Klock.

The film from director Maggie Betts is based on the New Yorker article by Jonathan Harr. It follows a charismatic personal injury lawyer famous for his impressive track record and loudly unconventional approach who decides to help a funeral home owner save his family business from a predatory corporate behemoth. In a move to bring emotional resonance to a dry contract law case, the lawyer digs up an unexpected and complex web of race, power and oppression that forces everyone to examine long-buried prejudices they didn’t know they had.

Doug Wright adapted the screenplay. Bobby Shriver is producing for Bobby Shriver Inc.

“Why Women Kill,” Paramount Plus’ popular original anthology series starring Allison Tolman, Lana Parrilla, Veronica Falcón and Nick Frost, has been renewed for a third season. The dark comedy, created by Marc Cherry, the man that brought us “Desperate Housewives” and “Devious Maids,” also features Jordane Christie and B.K. Cannon in its cast.

“’Why Women Kill’ explores the intricate lives of its female characters with a style, charm and dark humor only Marc Cherry can provide,” said Nicole Clemens, president of Paramount Plus’ original scripted series branch. “We’re so excited that the audience for the series continues to grow, with the second season of ‘Why Women Kill’ ranking within the top 10 series on Paramount Plus in terms of both overall engagement and new subscriber acquisition. We can’t wait to share the new cast of riveting, scandalous characters Marc Cherry has created when the series returns for its third season.

The Motion Picture Sound Editors said Thursday that Ron Howard will receive the organization’s Mpse Filmmaker Award during its annual awards ceremony in March.

Howard, who won Oscars for producing and directing A Beautiful Mind in 2001, has been moving between directing documentaries and narrative features of late, with recent docs including last year’s Rebuilding Paradise and films on Pavarotti and The Beatles. On the narrative side, he most recently directed 2020’s Hillbilly Elegy and 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story.

As a producer with Brian Grazer for Imagine, they recently produced the Lin-Manuel Miranda-directed tick, tick…Boom! and Hillbilly Elegy. He is in post on Thirteen Lives, a film telling the story of the Thai cave rescue, an on a documentary about renowned chef José Andrés and his World Central Kitchen.

Howard’s executive producer credits also include NatGeo’s anthology series Genius, Fox’s Arrested Development,...

Actor Peter Scolari is dead at age 66 after a two-year battle with cancer. He starred alongside Tom Hanks in “Bosom Buddies” for two years in the early 1980s for ABC. He then followed up with a long-running role as a small town TV producer opposite Bob Newhart on “Newhart,” which brought him three Emmy nominations.

He finally won an Emmy Award in 2016 as Best Comedy Guest Actor after initially not even being nominated. Following Gold Derby’s reporting that summer (see report here), Peter MacNicol was deemed ineligible for “Veep” due to appearing in too many episodes of that HBO comedy. Scolari was just out of a nomination in seventh place for “Girls” on HBO where he played the father of Lena Dunham‘s character Hannah, so the Television Academy gave him that nomination slot instead. Watch our short backstage video in the Emmy press room has Scolari discusses that unusual turn of events.

Peter Scolari, the prolific television and stage actor who found instant fame and a lifetime friendship with Tom Hanks when the two co-starred in the hit 1980 TV comedy Bosom Buddies, died early this morning following a two-year battle with cancer. He was 66.

His death was announced by Ellen Lubin Sanitsky at Wright Entertainment.

Scolari’s 43-year show business career included such highlights as his Emmy-nominated series regular role of producer Michael Harris on Bob Newhart’s 1984-90 comedy Newhart, an Emmy-winning recurring role as the father of Lena Dunham’s character on HBO’s Girls, and, most recently, his role as Bishop Thomas Marx on the CBS supernatural drama Evil.

A partial roster of other TV credits include Fosse/Verdon, Madoff, The Good Fight, Murphy Brown, The West Wing, ER, Gotham, Law & Order: Svu, Ally McBeal, From The Earth To The Moon and Honey I Shrunk The Kids: The TV Show,...

NCIS: Los Angeles started a new chapter of crime-fighting when it returned to CBS for its Season 13 premiere on Sunday. However, series stars Chris O’Donnell, Daniela Ruah and LL Cool J weren’t the only ones in the spotlight in the premiere. Longtime crew member Michele Poulik was celebrated at the end of the episode, titled “Subject 17.”

“In loving memory of Michele Poulik, whose smile, presence, and and laughter, lit up every day,” a dedication card read ahead of the credits.

Poulik served as a set decorator on the long-running CBS drama, starting from 2009 to her final days. Poulik died Tuesday August 2, in her Los Angeles home after a long battle with cancer, per the Set Decorators Society of America. She is survived by her sister Janet.

The Toronto-born decorator began her entertainment career with the independent film Singing Birds, which she wrote and produced. Poulik worked on a...

FIms from Brazil, Ukraine, Russia and Romania are among those that have been selected.

Films from Ukraine, Brazil and Russia are among seven world premieres selected for the international competition of Doclisboa, taking place as a physical event in Portugal from October 21-31.

Ukrainian director Eva Neymann’s Pryvoz about one of the oldest and largest European shopping markets will be screening, while Brazil is represented in this year’s line-up with two world premieres: Thiago B. Mendonça’s Short Journeys Into Night and Aline Lata and Helena Wolfenson’s The Safest Place In The World.

Mendonça’s film follows...

Michael Collins, the astronaut who piloted the Apollo 11 spacecraft Columbia as Neil Armstrong and Col. Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, died of cancer today. He was 90.

His family, which includes daughter Kate Collins, a longtime star of the ABC soap opera All My Children, announced the death on Twitter.

“Please join us in fondly and joyful remembering his sharp wit, his quiet sense of purpose, and his wise perspective gained both from looking back at Earth from the vantatge of space and gazing across calm waters from the deck of his fishing boat,” the family wrote.

NASA Administrator Steve Jurczyk today called Collins “a true pioneer and lifelong advocate for exploration,” noting that as “pilot of the Apollo 11 command module – some called him ‘the loneliest man in history’ – while his colleagues walked on the Moon for the first time, he helped our nation achieve a defining milestone. He also...

Veteran casting director and executive Sharon Klein has been named EVP of Casting, Walt Disney Television. In the new, expanded role, she will lead the casting teams of ABC Entertainment, 20th Television, ABC Signature, 20th Television Animation, Walt Disney Television Alternative, Hulu Originals and Freeform. Klein will be responsible for the casting of all series and pilots and identifying talent for holding deals across all entities under her purview.

Klein, who signed a new multi-year contract with Disney as part of the promotion, was most recently EVP, Casting for Disney Television Studios and FX Entertainment, overseeing casting for 20th Television, Touchstone Television (now part of 20th TV), ABC Signature, FX and FX Productions.

Her new responsibilities reflect the recent major restructuring of Disney’s TV operations where Hulu and ABC were put under the same top programming executive, Craig Erwich, and a new Disney Branded Television unit was created, with...

Dated but good-humoured, this 1967 adaptation includes all the era’s popular elements, from villain Terry-Thomas to penny-farthings in haystacks

There’s an serious outbreak of top hats and mutton chops in this amiable adaptation of Jules Verne’s From the Earth to the Moon, originally released in 1967, when the real world was gearing up for the Apollo moonshot a couple of years later. Produced by the prolific Harry Towers, it adopted the rambling wacky-races format that had proved enduringly popular throughout the 1950s and 60s; most recently with the 1965 hit Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines, which it shamelessly capitalised on with its US title (Those Fantastic Flying Fools) as well as redeplying the ubiquitous Terry-Thomas, who played yet another moustache-twirling cad.

Rocket to the Moon is watchable in a bored-Sunday-afternoon sort of way: it’s about whether an international consortium, led by Burl Ives (as Phineas T Barnum) and Dennis Price,...

The Disney+ series, The Right Stuff, is about trailblazers, but as a TV show, it stands in a crowd.

Shows about astronauts and space agencies seem to be back in vogue because For All Mankind, Space Force, Away, and Moonbase 8 made their debuts, too.

Mega franchises, Star Trek and Star Wars continue to boldly go and explore a galaxy far, far away.

And since the 1983 film version is beloved and iconic, the comparisons between the two were inevitable.

Yet, as I was watching The Right Stuff, I wasn't comparing it to any of those other shows or the film. What I kept being reminded of, and wanted to watch instead, was HBO's From The Earth To The Moon.

Produced by Ron Howard and Tom Hanks (who also directed and acted in it), From The Earth To The Moon was HBO's 1998 mini-series chronicling the U.S. space program from NASA's reaction...

Wednesday, Oct. 21 Saban Schedules ‘Wander’ for Theaters, On Demand

Saban Films has scheduled a Dec. 4 opening in theaters, on demand and on digital for the conspiracy thriller “Wander,” with Aaron Eckhart starring.

“Wander” is directed by April Mullen from a script by Tim Doiron. It also stars Katheryn Winnick, Heather Graham and Tommy Lee Jones.

Echhart’s character is hired to probe a suspicious death in the small town of Wander, then becomes convinced the case is linked to the same conspiracy cover up that caused the death of his daughter. The film was shot last year in New Mexico.

Jonathan Mostow Directing Refugee Thriller

Jonathan Mostow has signed on to write and direct the feature film based on the true story of American businessman Chris Catrambone, founder of the Migrant Offshore Aid Station.

“Chris Catrambone is living proof of how one person’s passion can save lives,” said Mostow.

Space and space exploration are having a moment in the pop culture zeitgeist. Just in the past year, we’ve seen Netflix alone trot out “Space Force,” “Away,” and “Over The Moon.” It’s with that in mind that the streaming space race takes flight with Disney+’s “The Right Stuff” debuting on the streamer roughly a year since it launched in November 2019.

“The Right Stuff,” which states that it is not only based on Tom Wolfe’s novel of the same name, but additionally Philip Kaufman’s 1983 adaptation for the screen, is Disney+’s first attempt at a more mature series since both “High Fidelity” and “Love, Victor” were ported over to Hulu for fear that the content wouldn’t sit well alongside Disney’s more family-friendly fare. Including the screenplay in the credits is notable because the specter of the 1983 film iteration haunts every moment of the series,...

In 1972, Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner sent New Journalism titan Tom Wolfe to cover Apollo 17, the last manned mission to the moon. While researching the piece, Wolfe fell in love with the stories of the original Mercury 7 astronauts, and instead churned out a four-part series of articles titled “Post-Orbital Remorse,” which he then adapted into the 1979 book The Right Stuff, which in turn was adapted by Philip Kaufman into a 1983 movie, and this weekend becomes — kind of, sort of — a new streaming series for the National Geographic hub of Disney+.

Stuart Beattie.

Screenwriter/producer Stuart Beattie’s illustrious career is in overdrive, with multiple projects bubbling in the US, Australia and Germany.

Some 28 years after the Aussie moved to LA, he is cashing in on his hard-earned reputation and extensive network of creative contacts.

One Australian-based project is a biopic about speed skater Steven Bradbury, who overcame seemingly insurmountable odds to win Australia’s first ever Olympic Winter Games Gold Medal.

The other is Interceptor, an action thriller to be directed by LA-based Australian novelist Matthew Reilly.

His US-based slate includes Rain, a 10-part drama based on a series of books by Barry Eisler about the exploits of a Japanese-American contract killer named John Rain.

Beattie is writing the bible and pilot and executive producing for Bedrock Entertainment, a new production banner founded by director Daniel Sackheim and producer Tony To in partnership with ITV Studios America.

Sackheim will direct the pilot,...

Exclusive: Producer Tony To (Band of Brothers) and director/producer Dan Sackheim (True Detective) have teamed with ITV Studios America to launch Bedrock Entertainment, part of ITV Studios’ expansion of its U.S. scripted TV business under the leadership of Philippe Maigret. The company, led by To and Sackheim, will develop and produce premium television content for the global marketplace across network, cable and streaming platforms. Infrastructure and financial support will be provided by ITV Studios America.

Bedrock Entertainment has multiple projects in the pipeline for television development, including Barry Eisler’s bestselling book series centered around Japanese-American assassin John Rain. Starting with A Clean Kill in Tokyo and spreading across the globe, Rain wrestles with demons while having to navigate between shifting global forces and governments that contract his unique services. Stuart Beattie (Collateral) is writing and is executive producer. Other projects are with writers and executive producers Julia Ruchman...

The last time Tom Hanks played the captain of a big ship, he was fighting Somali pirates in “Captain Phillips,” a kinetic, immersive big-screen experience that was nominated for six Academy Awards. He’s now back at sea in “Greyhound,” but this time Hanks plays the commander of a World War II destroyer fighting Nazi submarines in the North Atlantic — and this time the film will be seen on a small screen, because Sony sold it to Apple TV+ for release this week.

That makes “Greyhound” the third recent war-related film to be given a predominantly streaming release, following Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods” and Rod Lurie’s “The Outpost” — and like those two films, this one at times screams out to be seen on a bigger screen than most viewers will be able to give it.

On the other hand, “Greyhound” is pretty modest as war movies go.

Apollo 13 turned 25 this week, and it remains a movie I can watch anytime. It’s not because I’m incredibly into space mission stuff, but because it’s a movie that’s all about solving problems, which is unusual for most narratives. Traditional narratives thrive on conflict, especially interpersonal conflict. Apollo 13 has one big problem—how to get astronauts Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks), Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon), and Fred Haise (Bill Paxton) …...

Editors’ Note: Deadline’s Reopening Hollywood series focuses on the complicated effort to get the industry back on its feet while ensuring the safety of everyone involved. Our goal is to examine numerous sides of the business and provide a forum for leaders in Hollywood who have a vision for how production could safely restart in the era of coronavirus.

Mark Sawicki is a Clio-winning VFX and opticals artist whose credits include HBO’s Tom Hanks miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, The Dark Knight Rises, Bullet to the Head, Tropic Thunder, 3:10 to Yuma and X-Men among several films, and he’s the co-author with Juniko Moody of the upcoming book Filming the Fantastic With Virtual Technology: Filmmaking on the Digital Backlot. As film and TV productions grapple with new guidelines for social distancing, and the re-assessment of crowd scenes, Sawicki offers his thoughts on how VFX can...

Everybody loves good adventure movies, and Journey to the Center of the Earth and its sequel Journey 2: The Mysterious Island still rank highly as some of the most memorable. In particular, the sequel which starred Dwayne Johnson became a box office hit, and fans were eager to see the franchise grow with Journey 3: From the Earth to the Moon.

Related: 10 Things You Didn't Know About The Canceled Treasure Planet 2

Unfortunately, after years in development, the film just never got off its feet. However, there is still a lot of interesting facts about it, so we have put together a list of ten things that you probably didn't know about the canceled Journey 3: From the Earth to The Moon.

Exclusive: Rome and Generation Kill executive producer Anne Thomopoulos is reuniting with her former HBO boss Chris Albrecht at Legendary Global.

Thomopoulos has joined the joint venture between Legendary and Albrecht as a partner, and comes from CAA’s Global Television department. She has been tasked with focusing on identifying and acquiring international content that Legendary Global can develop, produce and finance for local and global platforms.

Thomopoulos and Albrecht are reuniting after a successful run together at HBO, where Albrecht served as chairman and CEO and Thomopoulos created and oversaw the network’s dramatic series department. Kicking off with Oz, she first established HBO’s miniseries division with projects including From the Earth to the Moon, Band of Brothers and The Corner, before going on to exec produce Rome and Generation Kill.

She subsequently served as exec producer on Camelot for Starz, where she had a first-look producing deal.

When Tom Hanks jogged onto screen in his feature film debut in the 1980 slasher pic “He Knows You’re Alone,” one probably couldn’t have predicted he would go on to become one of the most successful and beloved actors of all time. Playing a psychology student who postulates about the appeal of fear, Hanks makes manages to the most of his few minutes of screen time. And even though it’s brief, you can catch some of the hallmarks of what would later become a Tom Hanks performance — charismatic but a little goofy, handsome but non-threatening, and able to make any line sound like it has a handful of meanings.

It’s been a long journey from that low-budget horror movie to two-time Academy Award-winning actor, Emmy-award winning producer and Hollywood’s Nicest Guy. On Jan. 5, the eight-time Golden Globe winner will receive the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn.’s special honor,...

Mara Mikialian, senior vice president of media relations at HBO, has decided to leave the premium cable network to will pursue other opportunities amid ongoing restructuring at parent company WarnerMedia, an individual with knowledge of the situation tells TheWrap.

After working at the cable network for 36 years and notably leading the pay TV channel’s “Game of Thrones” PR campaigns for the show’s entire eight-season run, Mikialian’s final day at HBO will be Jan. 13. Her exit follows that of fellow longtime HBO PR execs Nancy Lesser and Quentin Schaffer.

Mikialian oversaw strategic planning and implementation of publicity campaigns for numerous other projects over the years, including “Band of Brothers,” “From the Earth to the Moon,” “Six Feet Under,” “True Blood,” “The Pacific,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Our Boys,” “The Young Pope,” “My Brilliant Friend” and “My Dinner with Hervé,” as well as earlier HBO shows, like “Not Necessarily the News,...

Another veteran HBO senior communications executive is leaving the premium cable network. Mara Mikialian, who currently serves as Svp of Media Relations, has decided to depart HBO after a 36-year tenure. Her last day will be Jan. 13.

Mikialian’s departure follows the exits of her long-time colleagues, Nancy Lesser, former Evp of Media and Talent Relations, after 35 years at HBO; and Quentin Schaffer, former Evp Corporate Communications, after 39 years with the company. They are among a number of HBO veterans, led by chairman and CEO Richard Plepler, to leave following the approval of AT&T’s acquisition of Time Warner and the subsequent reorganization of WarnerMedia’s entertainment and direct-to-consumer operations under Bob Greenblatt.

Mikialian handled strategic planning and implementation of publicity campaigns for numerous projects over the years, going back to HBO’s early days of original programming with such shows as Not Necessarily the News, Dream On and 1st and Ten.

I’m such a big Nasa nerd that when the 1202 alarm went off during an Apollo 11 simulation in For All Mankind, Apple TV+’s new alternate history of the space race, I immediately knew it was the same alert that in real life nearly scuttled the first lunar landing. I’m such a big Nasa nerd that as soon as it was established that the show’s lead astronauts, Ed Baldwin (Joel Kinnaman) and Gordo Stevens (Michael Dorman), were on the Apollo 10 mission that came within a few hundred...

Tom Hanks will receive the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the 2020 Golden Globes. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced its official selection Tuesday for this life achievement award slated for NBC’s 77th annual ceremony on January 5.

SEEGolden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award: History of every recipient (Photos)

Hanks has won at the Globes four times as a film actor for “Big” (1988), “Philadelphia” (1993), “Forrest Gump” (1994) and “Cast Away” (20001). His other movie nominations were for “Sleepless in Seattle” (1993), “Saving Private Ryan” (1998), “Charlie Wilson’s War” (2007), “Captain Phillips” (2013) and “The Post” (2017). He also has wins for producing TV limited series “From the Earth to the Moon” (1998), “Band of Brothers” (2001) and “John Adams” (2008) plus TV movie “Game Change” (2012).

During his career, he has also won two Oscars for “Philadelphia” and “Forrest Gump.” He has received the Kennedy Center Honors and American Film Institute life achievement award.

Tour our photo gallery above featuring every...

Joseph Baxter Sep 9, 2019

Mattel’s 1960s astronaut toy line, Major Matt Mason, is getting a live-action movie, with Tom Hanks set to star.

Tom Hanks has chartered another onscreen adventure in space, having signed on for Major Matt Mason, a movie based on Mattel’s 1960s line of astronaut action figures.

Hanks is set to star in the live-action film adaptation of Major Matt Mason, reports Variety. The film will see Hanks joined by a familiar face in writer Akiva Goldsman, the Oscar-winning A Beautiful Mind screenwriter, who wrote two entries of his Dan Brown movie adaptations, The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons, amongst a CV that includes recent work on DC Universe’s Titans, CBS All Access’s Star Trek: Discovery, as well as The Dark Tower movie, Transformers: The Last Knight and Rings. Goldsman is adapting the script off a short story from Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Chabon.

A legendary performer comes into focus when Pavarotti arrives on Blu-ra Combo Pack (plus DVD & Digital), Digital, and On Demand September 24 from Lionsgate.

A legendary performer comes into focus when Pavarotti arrives on Blu-ray Combo Pack (plus DVD & Digital), Digital, and On Demand September 24 from Lionsgate. Directed by Academy Award®*, Golden Globe®**, Grammy®, Primetime Emmy®, and Daytime Emmy® winner Ron Howard and produced by Grammy® and Primetime Emmy®-winning producer Nigel Sinclair, Pavarotti tells the story of global sensation Luciano Pavarotti, who quickly gained notoriety worldwide for singing the aria “Nessun dorma” at the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy. Featuring testimonies from his fellow Three Tenors members Jośe Carreras and Plácido Domingo, the film also includes archive footage featuring Spike Lee, Princess Diana, Nelson Mandela, and Stevie Wonder. Including making-of featurettes, which dive further into Pavarotti’s work and legacy, the Pavarotti Blu-ray will be available for the suggested retail...