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Joey King stars in Netflix's A Family Affair, continuing her streak of poorly reviewed Netflix films after the Kissing Booth trilogy. Despite negative reviews, A Family Affair became the number-one movie on Netflix. Critics find the film predictable but praise the cast's performances, highlighting a divide in opinions.

Joey King stars in the hit Netflix film A Family Affair, and despite its popularity on the streaming service, it also adds to one of the actress' most discouraging trends. The 2024 rom-com, directed by Richard Lagravenese and written by Carrie Solomon, chronicles the complications that arise when King's character, Zara, finds her mother, Brooke, played by Nicole Kidman, hooking up with her nightmare of a boss, Chris, played by Zac Efron. Chris is a self-absorbed movie star, and Zara is his young assistant who is waiting for Chris to promote her. However, Brooke uncovers a different side to Chris.

Joey King...

Brandon Evans and Todd Slater’s Brick Lane Entertainment - the newly-formed sales, financing and production partnership between between the US’ Convoke Media and Ireland’s Brick Lane Pictures – has added a trio of features to its slate and will sell them at Cannes.

Tiffany Kim Stevens’s Trigger Happy centres on a repressed husband attempting to murder his wife for her life insurance, starring Tyler Poelle, Elsha Kim and Christina Kirkman. Kyle Herman produces for Los Angeles-based West 36 Productions.

Matt McClung’s Inhabitants is a psychological horror starring Anna Jacoby-Heron, West Side Story’s Josh Andrés Rivera and comedian Kevin Nealon.

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off reinvents the franchise by focusing on its world & story rather than pandering to fan nostalgia. The anime includes clever Easter eggs for fans of the Scott Pilgrim film, comic, and video game to enjoy. While the film's cast returned to voice their beloved characters, several big-name celebrities also lent their voices to the series.

Warning: Minor Spoilers For Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

Netflix's Scott Pilgrim Takes Off anime has arrived, and it includes many clever Easter eggs for fans of the film, comic, and video game to enjoy. Canadian artist Bryan Lee O'Malley's comic series, Scott Pilgrim, grew a huge following, especially after Edgar Wright's 2010 film Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World. Viewers who have consumed everything the franchise has officially released may have spotted a few of Scott Pilgrim Takes Off's Easter eggs. Still, some are more well-hidden than others.

While the...

Leading Chilean TV producer Maria Elena Wood, whose multiple credits include “News of a Kidnapping,” “Ramona” and “Dignity,” is developing a follow up to her company’s latest hit documentary “Operation Chile: Top Secret,” which, until the end of September, was the most-watched Chilean TV program that marked the 50th anniversary of the military coup d’état in Chile.

Wood will be at Ventana Sur to present the first animation feature she has boarded, “Lucila,” which has its market debut at this year’s Animation! Pitching Sessions.

“Our original idea is to make a documentary for a global audience and that is what we are working on now,” said Wood of the upcoming “Chile: An American Secret,” a Canada-Chile co-production, with Canada represented by director- producer Orlando Arriagada of Pimiento Prods. and Chile repped by her company Maria Wood Producciones and local partner Un día en la vida. They are...

This post contains spoilers for "Scott Pilgrim Takes Off" and "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World."

You might have varied expectations from "Scott Pilgrim Takes Off" — the animated Netflix series that is based on the "Scott Pilgrim" graphic novels by Bryan Lee O'Malley — but it is not a recreation of 2010's "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World." The film, rightfully, is beloved for various reasons throughout its journey from box-office bomb to cult classic, be it its fun videogame-style aesthetics or the unabashed celebration of its quirky, inventive core. Instead of using the film as a base to expand upon its arcade-fighting structured narrative, "Scott Pilgrim Takes Off" completely flips the script and dives right into mystery-thriller territory while still retaining the quirks of the original.

The ensemble cast from the film adaptation has returned for this new adventure, lending more immersion to this fresh story from the get-go, as these are...

Even if you’ve read Bryan Lee O’Malley’s seminal Scott Pilgrim Oni Press graphic novel series and even if you’ve seen Edgar Wright’s 2010 live-action Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, O’Malley and BenDavid Grabinski’s new Netflix animated series Scott Pilgrim Takes Off isn’t what you’re expecting it to be.

Because of Netflix’s very restrictive requests regarding what critics can and cannot reveal about Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, I can’t tell you how or why it’s different or what the differences do to the themes of O’Malley’s fantastical story. Heck, I can’t even tell you if there are guest stars, much less who they are or who they play.

Darn.

So to boil it down: Scott Pilgrim Takes Off is probably my third favorite incarnation of this story, and I don’t think the reconfiguration of the story entirely works,...

One of the most robust of Latin America’s emerging film industries, Dominican Republic cinema boasts a standout presence at this year’s Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival.

On Monday, Nov. 13, following a two-year alliance inked at the Cannes Festival by Dominican Republic film commission DGCine and the Huelva Festival, four Dominican projects at development stage will be presented at an event intended for film producers interested in Ibero-American co-production.

“The four projects are representative of the current Dominican cinema landscape, made by a new generation of filmmakers which demonstrates the diversity of voices and issues [addressed] in our film industry,” says Marianna Vargas Gurilieva, general director at DGCine.

“Víctor Piñeyro’s ‘El sueño’ is a universal and popular story, interesting for its references; Karlina Veras’ ‘La mansa’ has a singular tone, with passages through Spain; a striking project, Juliano Kunert’s “Maguana Racing” offers a tremendously peculiar premise, and Yinna de la Cruz...

West Hollywood-based indie distribution outfit Indican Pictures (“Gossamer Folds”) has secured North American rights for Santiago Fillol’s political thriller “Matadero” (“Slaughterhouse”).

The debut fiction feature from the Argentine director saw its world premiere in competition at Locarno in 2022, with further festival bows at Mar Del Plata and Seville before December theatrical runs in Argentina and Spain via Cinetren and Begin Again Films, respectively.

Negotiations were handled by Randolph Kret of Indican Pictures alongside Brett Walker and partner Miguel Angel Govea at Alief (“Driving Mum”), who handle world sales on behalf of the filmmakers outside of Argentina, France, Spain and Switzerland.

“Indican Pictures is pleased to acquire the Argentinian film “Matadero”– it’s a compelling story that will have viewers on the edge of their seat,” Indican co-founder Randolph Kret told Variety.

Set up in the Argentine pampas, 1970, the narrative nods to the shocking, hyper-realistic cinema of the era and follows U.

This article appears in the new issue of Den Of Geek magazine. Get your copy here.

It’s been 13 years since the popular comic book series Scott Pilgrim, created by Bryan Lee O’Malley, was adapted into cult classic live-action film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. O’Malley and co-showrunner BenDavid Grabinski are bringing a new vision of Scott Pilgrim to life on Netflix this November with the eagerly anticipated original anime series Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, crafting an engagingly fresh take on O’Malley’s action-packed coming-of-age story. The duo aren’t alone, with filmmaker Edgar Wright, who helmed Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, joining the anime production as an executive producer, along with the fan-favorite cast from the 2010 movie reprising their roles.

For the uninitiated, Scott Pilgrim follows the eponymous 20-something as he and his band try to make a name for themselves in their native Toronto. After falling hard...

The huge ensemble cast of Scott Pilgrim vs The World reunite for Netflix’s new Scott Pilgrim anime series, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off. The first teaser trailer provides a very basic look at the anime series, just enough to hype the show without revealing too much.

The promo video’s release was accompanied by confirmation of the official title, a batch of stills, and news that the series will premiere on November 17, 2023.

Reprising their roles from the film for the series are:

• Michael Cera is Scott Pilgrim

• Mary Elizabeth Winstead is Ramona Flowers

• Satya Bhabha is Matthew Patel

• Kieran Culkin is Wallace Wells

• Chris Evans is Lucas Lee

• Anna Kendrick is Stacey Pilgrim

• Brie Larson is Envy Adams

• Alison Pill is Kim Pine

• Aubrey Plaza is Julie Powers

• Brandon Routh is Todd Ingram

• Jason Schwartzman is Gideon Graves

• Johnny Simmons is Young Neil

• Mark Webber is Stephen Stills

• Mae Whitman...

The cast of 2010’s Scott Pilgrim vs. the World will be reprising their roles for Netflix’s Scott Pilgrim anime series. The film’s director Edgar Wright is on board as an executive producer, and the graphic novels’ author Bryan Lee O’Malley will write, executive produce, and serve as a co-showrunner with writer and executive producer BenDavid Grabinski (Are You Afraid of the Dark?).

“We’re getting the band back together! Cera and Winstead, Bhabha, Culkin, Evans, Kendrick, Larson, Pill, Plaza, Routh, Schwartzman, Simmons, Webber, Whitman, and Wong. A stellar cast, perfectly assembled by Edgar Wright. And, with Science Saru leading the phenomenal animation, we couldn’t ask for a better team for this adventure,” stated Bryan Lee O’Malley and BenDavid Grabinski. “We can’t wait for fans and newcomers alike to see what we and our partners at Science Saru have been cooking up. It’s going to be a wild ride.

Netflix has just revealed the cast list for the upcoming animated adaptation of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. And great news! They’re reuniting the cast of the 2010 Edgar Wright film! The anime, currently sporting the title Scott Pilgrim, was recently confirmed to be in production with Netflix and the production company UCP. UCP is a division of Universal Studio Group, as Universal released the film adaptation. Science Saru Serves as the Animation Studio with Executive Producer Eunyoung Choi and Director Abel Gongora. Wright will also return to serve as an executive producer.

All your favorites are returning to the new series:

Michael Cera is Scott Pilgrim and Mary Elizabeth Winstead is Ramona Flowers Satya Bhabha is Matthew Patel Kieran Culkin is Wallace Wells Chris Evans is Lucas Lee Anna Kendrick is Stacey Pilgrim Brie Larson is Envy Adams Alison Pill is Kim Pine Aubrey Plaza is Julie Powers Brandon Routh...

The “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” cast is reuniting once more, this time for an anime series at Netflix.

Bryan Lee O’Malley, the author and artist of the “Scott Pilgrim” graphic novel series, and BenDavid Grabinski (“Are You Afraid of the Dark?”) will serve as executive producers/writers/showrunners, while Edgar Wright – co-writer/director/producer of the cult favorite 2010 film adaptation – serves as executive producer. Award-winning animation house Science Saru serves as animation studio with executive producer Eunyoung Choi and director Abel Gongora.

“We’re getting the band back together! Cera and Winstead, Bhabha, Culkin, Evans, Kendrick, Larson, Pill, Plaza, Routh, Schwartzman, Simmons, Webber, Whitman and Wong. A stellar cast, perfectly assembled by Edgar Wright. And, with Science Saru leading the phenomenal animation, we couldn’t ask for a better team for this adventure,” said Bryan Lee O’Malley and BenDavid Grabinski in a statement. “We can’t wait for...

Recently, there has been a consistent tide of well crafted and highly regarded films coming out of Spain. “Alcarràs,” “The Beasts,” “Lullaby,” “La Maternal,” “Prison 77,” to name just the five that the Spanish Academy Goyas singled out in early February.

This level of quality, over a short period, is getting noticed internationally. Last week the Glasgow Film Festival, Scotland’s largest, shone a light on eight films in its Viva el Cine Español program. A cultural moment is a strange beast, hard to fathom, but there are strong signals that Spanish Film is having one.

In addition to the aforementioned five, Glasgow added Andrea Bagney’s debut “Ramona,” “Wild Flowers,” from Jaime Rosales, another debut with Elena López Riera’s “The Water,” and a Penelope Cruz starrer, in Juan Diego Botto’s “On The Fringe.”

Glasgow’s Festival co-director Allison Gardner told Variety: “We seem to be seeing films...

Joey King has been acting professionally since the age of seven. It started with brief appearances as extras on hit sitcoms such as Malcolm in the Middle and Disney Channel’s The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. As she grew older, she started gaining more prominent roles, such as playing the main character, Ramona Quimby, alongside Selena Gomez on Ramona and Beezus.

Growing up, I knew Sarah Polley as both Beverly Cleary's lively, imaginative heroine, Ramona Geraldine Quimby in the 1980s "Ramona" TV series, and then as the equally spirited Sara Stanley on the '90s Canadian (and Disney Channel) TV period drama staple, "Road to Avonlea." Nowadays, of course, Polley is better known for her celebrated efforts as a writer-director on the relationship dramas "Away from Her" and "Take This Waltz." Her latest venture behind the camera, "Women Talking," has even secured a Best Picture nod at the 2023 Academy Awards ceremony, in addition to landing Polly a nomination for her adapted screenplay.

Based on Miriam Toews' 2018 novel of the same name (which was itself inspired by horrifying real-life events), "Women Talking" takes place in an isolated Mennonite colony circa 2010. When it's discovered the men have been drugging and sexually assaulting the community's women in their sleep, the local authorities intervene,...

Ahead of its world premiere screening as part of Berlinale’s Generation 14plus strand, Alief has swooped on global sales to Dominican director Victoria Linares Villegas’s second non-fiction feature, “Ramona,” and has provided Variety exclusive access to its first look trailer.

After its Berlin run, “Ramona” is set for a North American bow at the True False Documentary Film Festival in Columbia, Missouri this March, where Linares will receive the Visionary Award.

A postmodern look into the class divide and lives of an already vulnerable population, the project has emerged as a documentary with glimpses of scripted narrative, which the director credits to the adolescents she interviewed; their predicaments became paramount.

“I started developing ‘Ramona’ in 2016 as a fiction film, about a pregnant teenager who escapes the outskirts of Santo Domingo in search of a casting call for her favorite telenovela,” Linares recounted in a statement.

“As I was writing the screenplay,...