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Wes Anderson’s “Asteroid City,” fresh from its triumphant world premiere at the Cannes fest, opens the 38th Guadalajara Film Festival (FICG) which touts new sections this year, including a branded series showcase and midnight screenings of Italian fright maestro Dario Argento’s horror films.

Eva Longoria’s feature directorial debut, “Flamin’ Hot,” which had its West Coast premiere at the LA Latino Film Festival (LALIFF) May 31, marks its Mexican debut at the fest.

The Series Showcase includes Patricia Martinez’s fact-based “La Narcosatánica,” which will stream on the rebranded Max, and Maite Alberdi’s “Libre de reir,” a Gato Grande production that centers on inmates in a Mexican prison who enroll in a stand-up comedy workshop. Alberdi’s Sundance-winning docu “The Eternal Memory” also vies for a prize in the festival’s documentary sidebar.

According to festival director Estrella Araiza, the festival has recovered its funding and will screen a total of 170 films in this edition. “Documentaries are very strong and prolific this year but the fiction films are just as good and varied,” she said.

FICG’s fast-expanding animation section is highlighted by the screening of the acclaimed “Black is Beltza II: Ainho,” Fermin Muguruza’s deep dive into Basque culture and the independence movements of ‘80s Spain. Rising Mexican animation talent Rita Basulto screens her short “Humo” in the festival’s Premio Rigo Mora sidebar which awards the winner with 200,000 Mexican pesos ($11,000+) and a statuette. The winner is eligible for consideration in the Academy Awards’ animated short film category.

Jesse Garcia and Dennis Haysbert in FLAMIN’ HOT. Photo by Anna Kooris. Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2023 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved.
Anna Kooris / Courtesy of Searchlight pcitures

The festival pays homage to its late founder and chairman of the board of Trustees, Raul Padilla, with various events, including the exhibit “Peninsula, Views of a Mexican traveler through Italy,” a retrospective of films that he supported, an exhibition of portraits and “Letters to Raúl,” an open space to share memories. The Premio Maguey “M” award will also be dedicated to him.

Lorena Padilla’s soulful “Martinez,” which shot in Jalisco, competes in both the Made in Jalisco as well as the main Premio Mezcal sections. Sold by Paris-based Luxbox, “Martinez” first screened at the festival’s pix-in-post showcase, Guadalajara Construye. 

The Premio Mezcal also takes in Sofia Auza’s debut feature “Adolfo,” a Berlin Generation 14plus winner, and David Zonana’s well-reviewed military academy drama-thriller “Heroic.”

Adolfo

Aside from “Flamin’ Hot,” other films marked by galas are Berlin winner “20,000 Species of Bees” by Spain’s Estibaliz Urresola, “Strays” by Josh Greenbaum and “When you Finish Saving the World” by Jesse Eisenberg.

Italy is the Country of Honor for the third time, with helmer-scribe Paolo Genovese (“Perfect Strangers”) serving as a juror and delivering a Master Class along with Roberto Perpignani whose stellar editing credits include Bernardo Bertolucci’s “Last Tango in Paris” and Orson Welles’ “The Trial.”

This edition sees the return of Italian Screens, a showcase of the best of Italian cinema abroad.

FICG 2023 runs June 3 – 9.

 38th FICG OFFICIAL SELECTION

 PREMIO MEZCAL 

 FICTION

“Adolfo,” Sofía Auza (México, U.S.)

“Amor y matemáticas,” Claudia Sainte-Luce (México)

“Heroico,” David Zonana (México, Sweden)

“Martínez,” Lorena Padilla (México)

“Mujeres del alba,” Jimena Montemayor Loyo (México)

“Rabia,” Jorge Michel Grau (México)

DOCUMENTARY

“Ch’ul be, senda sagrada,” Humberto Gómez Pérez (México)

“La frontera invisible,” Mariana Flores Villalba (México)

“Kenya,” Gisela Delgadillo (México)

“Toshkua,” Ludovic Bonleux (México, U.S., France)

“Una jauría llamada Ernesto,” Everardo González (México)

IBERO-AMERICAN FICTION 

 “20,000 especies de abejas,” Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren (Spain)

“Almamula,” Juan Sebastián Torales (Argentina, France, Italy)

“Las buenas compañías,” Silvia Munt (Spain, France)

“Diógenes,” Leonardo Barbuy La Torre (Peru, France, Colombia)

“Great Yarmouth – Provisional Figures,” Marco Martins (Portugal, UK, France)

“Las hijas,” Kattia G. Zúñiga (Panama, Chile)

“La pecera,” Glorimar Marrero-Sánchez (U.S., Puerto Rico, Spain)

“La piel pulpo,” Ana Cristina Barragán (Ecuador, México, Greece, Germany, France, Italy)

“Tengo sueños eléctricos,” Valentina Maurel (Belgium, France, Costa Rica)

IBERO-AMERICAN DOCUMENTARY 

“Ara La Llum Cau Vertical,” Efthymia Zymvragaki (Spain, Germany, Italy, Netherlands)

“Los Bilbao,” Pedro Speroni (Argentina)

“El castillo,” Martín Benchimol (Argentina, France)

“Fauna,” Pau Faus (Spain)

“Isla Alien,” Cristóbal Valenzuela Berrios (Italy, Chile)

“Llamadas desde Moscú,” Luis Alejandro Yero (Cuba, Germany, Norway)

“La memoria infinita,” Maite Alberdi (Chile)

“Notas para una película,” Ignacio Agüero (Chile, France)

“O auto das ánimas,” Pablo Lago Dantas (Spain)

“Samuel y la luz,” Vinícius Girnys (France, Brazil)

PREMIO MAGUEY

“20,000 especies de abejas,” Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren (Spain)

“Almamula,” Juan Sebastián Torales (Argentina, France, Italy)

“Las buenas compañías,” Silvia Munt (Spain, France)

“El castillo,” Martín Benchimol (Argentina, France)

“Cross Dreamers,” Soledad Velasco (Argentina)

“Desperté con un sueño,” Pablo Solarz (Argentina, Uruguay)

“In Bed,” Nitzan Gilady (Israel)

“Kenya,” Gisela Delgadillo (México)

“Kokomo City,” D. Smith (U.S.)

“Little Richard: I Am Everything,” Lisa Cortés (U.S.)

“Liuben,” Venci D. Kostov (Bulgaria, Spain)

“Llamadas desde Moscú,” Luis Alejandro Yero (Cuba, Germany, Norway)

“Medusa Deluxe,” Thomas Hardiman (U.K.)

“Mutt,” Vuk Lungulov-Klotz (U.S.)

“Passages,” Ira Sachs (France)

“Till the End of the Night,” Christoph Hochhäusler (Germany) 

ANIMATION FEATURES

 “Art College 1994,” Liu Jian (China)

“Black is Beltza II: Ainhoa,” Fermín Muguruza (Spain, Argentina)

“Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman,” Pierre Földes (France, Canada, Netherlands, Luxembourg)

“Chicken for Linda,” Chiara Malta, Sébastien Laudenbach (France, Italy)

“Little Nicholas – Happy as Can Be,” Amandine Fredon, Benjamin Massoubre (France, Luxembourg)

“No Dogs or Italians Allowed,” Alain Ughetto (France, Switzerland, Italy, Bélgium, Portugal)

“Un reino para todos nosotros,” Miguel Ángel Uriegas (México)

SERIES SHOWCASE

“La Narcosatánica,” Patricia Martinez (Mexico)

“Libre de reír,” Maite Alberdi (México); two episodes

“El show,” Diego Enrique Osorno (México)

“La vida de nosotras,” Bárbara Barrera Morales (Chile)

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Wes Anderson’s “Asteroid City,” fresh from its

Tom Holland has given an update on the development of his fourth “Spider-Man” movie.

At the premiere of his new Apple TV+ show “The Crowded Room” in New York City on Thursday night, Holland told Variety that though he can’t share too much, he has “been having meetings” about the next chapter in the Marvel franchise. However, those conversations have been put on hold for now due to the ongoing writers strike.

“I can’t talk about that, but I can say that we have been having meetings. We’ve put the meetings on pause in solidarity with the writers,” Holland said. “There’s been multiple conversations had, but at this point it’s very, very early stages.”

Holland echoed what “Spider-Man” producer Amy Pascal told Variety on Wednesday night at the premiere of another movie in the Spidey universe, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.”

“Are we going to make another movie? Of course we are,” Pascal said. “We’re in the process, but the writers strike, nobody is working during the strike. We’re all being supporters and whenever they get themselves together, we’ll get started.”

Holland stars in psychological thriller “The Crowded Room” as Danny Sullivan, who is arrested for his involvement in a New York City shooting in 1979. Through a series of interviews with an interrogator named Rya (Amanda Seyfried), Sullivan slowly reveals his darkest secrets.

In addition to starring in the series, Holland also served as an executive producer, which allowed him to help shape the show from the ground up.

“When we started ‘The Crowded Room,’ there was nothing but a beat sheet. There was nothing but, ‘This is what we think this show will be about,’” he said. “Developing that with Ellise Shafer Akiva Goldsman, figuring out how we should pivot to a piece of fiction, working on casting our wonderful cast, finding the locations, picking the costumes, being involved in all of that stuff was just a dream come true. I loved every second of it. It was also the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I can’t wait to do it again.”

ElizaBeth Taylor contributed to this report.

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Tom Holland has given an update on

Tom Holland
Photo: Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for SiriusXM

Tom Holland confirmed this evening that development on a fourth film centered on his version of Spider-Man is in the works—or, at least it was.

Per Variety, Holland was doing the red carpet rounds for his new Apple TV+ show The Crowded Room, which unkind people might describe as Holland’s latest attempt to convince the world he can play creepy murderers, bank robbers, and more, just as easily as he plays fresh-faced superheroes or gives an elaborately impressive lip-sync performance. Conversation, naturally, turned to the Peter Parker of it all, which led the famously loose-lipped Holland to say this: “I can’t talk about that, but I can say that we have been having meetings. We’ve put the meetings on pause in solidarity with the writers, There’s been multiple conversations had, but at this point it’s very, very early stages.”

This isn’t the first indication we’ve gotten that Holland’s tenure in the role will continue past 2021’s highly lucrative multiverse adventure Spider-Man: No Way Home. MCU mastermind Kevin Feige has previously stated (back in February) that he and the studio “have the story” for a return engagement, but indicated that no script had been penned yet. And Amy Pascal, who’s been a producer on pretty much every Spidey-related movie since 2017’s Homecoming—give or take a Morbius—made comments similar to Holland’s at the premiere for new animated feature Across The Spider-Verse earlier this week, noting that, “We’re in the process, but the writers strike, nobody is working during the strike. We’re all being supporters and whenever they get themselves together, we’ll get started.”

Viewers will remember that No Way Home ended on a pretty weird storytelling note that could have served as an endpoint for Holland’s tenure as the character; it looks like it’ll instead be a jumping off point for a new set of adventures, presumably with a whole new supporting cast who hopefully won’t get subjected to that dang amnesia magic that screwed up Peter’s life the last time around.

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Tom HollandPhoto: Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for SiriusXMTom

Many fans will reach the end of Spider-Man Across the Spider-Verse and wonder if there’s a post-credits scene. One of the most current themes in superhero movies is a post-credit scene that sets up a potential sequel or features the titular hero dealing with some funny situation. So, should fans be aware of any post credit scenes in the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse sequel?

Is there a Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse post-credit scene?

There is no footage after the last scene in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

The film just features a reminder that Miles Miles (Shameik Moore) will return in the upcoming Beyond the Spider-Verse. Still, the credits are very artistic, so fans might want to check them out. They appear to be some artwork from the movie featuring the main characters. It doesn’t even feel like Across the Spider-Verse needs a post-credit scene, as the plot already does an excellent job of setting the already-announced sequel. It doesn’t come as much surprise that new adventures await Miles and his Spider-friends since the movie ends with a cliffhanger. Fans must wait until March 29, 2024, to see what will happen next.

Producers took a different route than the one followed in 2018’s Into the Spider-Verse, where a post-credit scene introduced LYLA and Miguel O’Hara, a.k.a. Spider-Man 2099. O’Hara (Oscar Isaac) travels across the multiverse to meet Spider-Man from the 1967 animated series in a fantastic encounter that takes inspiration from the well-known meme of two Spider-Men pointing at each other, which was also heavily referenced in the freshly-released Across the Spider-Verse.

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With a duration of 2 hours and 20 minutes, Across the Spider-Verse set the record for the longest U.S. animated film ever made, overcoming 2012’s Consuming Spirits and its 2 hours and 16 minutes. Directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson, the film makes the most of its runtime by exploring the whys and the hows of many Spider-Verse characters.

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Many fans will reach the end of

Netflix shareholders voted against a motion to approve pay packages for the streamer’s top executives, right after the WGA told them to do just that.

In a shareholder meeting that streamed Thursday, shareholders voted “no” on a “Say on Pay” proposal that pertained to how much compensation Co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos and co-founder and board chair Reed Hastings would receive.

It’s a non-binding vote, so it may be little more than symbolic in terms of how much Netflix’s top brass are paid this year, but it’s rare that shareholders would swat it down. Sarandos and Hastings last year each saw their pay rise to a little over $50 million each, up from $38 million, according to an SEC filing from April. The streamer’s stock plummeted in 2022 after the streamer faced a major drop in subscribers. 

Netflix held a similar vote on executive pay back in 2019 and the company engaged with its shareholders on how to adjust the pay packages. Last year, only 27 percent of shareholders supported the pay package. 

WGAW president Meredith Stiehm sent a letter to Netflix shareholders May 31 urging them to vote the proposal down. She also sent a similar one to Comcast’s shareholders, which holds its own meeting next week. 

“While investors have long taken issue with Netflix’s executive pay, the compensation structure is even more egregious against the backdrop of the strike,” she wrote. 

The letter continued: “Netflix’s content pipeline has been blocked, with dozens of projects that were in development or ordered to series as of May 1st unable to move forward until WGA negotiations conclude… “A delay in the writing, production, and release of new content may impact Netflix’s ability to attract and retain subscribers and viewers just as the company asks customers to watch advertising and pay more for its content.”

It’s worth noting that many shareholders likely voted before the letter was sent. The full results of the vote will be revealed in a future SEC filing. 

The WGA has made Netflix its top villain of this strike. Picketing outside of Netflix’s offices in Hollywood has been a hot spot for WGA members, while planned protests disrupted Netflix’s first-ever Upfronts presentation, forcing it to go virtual.

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Netflix shareholders voted against a motion to

In April, after teasing it at Coachella, Latto released the single “Put It on da Floor.” She’s now recruited Cardi B for the remix. Check out the new song, “Put It on da Floor Again,” below.

“Put It on da Floor” caused a bit of a stir upon release due to a line that Coi Leray initially perceived as a diss: “Smokin’ on that gas, blunt big as Coi Leray.” Latto later said that the lyric was meant lovingly, and Coi Leray mostly accepted the concession.

Latto released 777 last year, and it contributed to her being nominated for Best New Artist and Best Melodic Rap Performance at the 2023 Grammy Awards. “Put It on da Floor” and its remix follow Latto’s February single, “Lottery.”

“Put It on da Floor Again” marks Cardi B’s first guest appearance of 2023. Last year, she appeared on “No Love (Extended),” “Shake It,” “Tomorrow 2,” “Despechá Rmx,” and “The Seaweed Sway,” as well as her own “Hot Shit.”

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In April, after teasing it at Coachella,

Methodology

Audiences decide whether a film is good or bad, but regular moviegoers often remain blissfully ignorant of the quality of the acting and the dialogue, the consistency of the plot or of the editing. This is where film critics come in, dissecting and judging every aspect of the movie – professionally and, most of the time, impartially. So in order to select truly “bad” films, the team at SlotsMove looked at those productions that received a 10% approval rating or lower from the Rotten Tomatoes critics.

The review-aggregation website has a rating scale known as the Tomatometer, which measures the quality of the film in percentages – or more precisely, its approval rate from professional critics. The percentage simply represents the ratio of reviews that are positive, so films way above a 50% rating are considered good, while those on the lower end of the Tomatometer are universally known as bad. Productions below the 10% mark are typically disliked by both critics and audiences.

This does not mean that they always flop, however. We also examined the worldwide box office revenues tracked and published by Box Office Mojo in order to see how these films performed in theaters. In addition, film budget figures were sourced both from the revenue tracking platform and the film industry data website The Numbers. We did not include movies that were released as “direct-to-video” films or received a limited theatrical release, and we selected only films with at least 20 reviews and were more significant releases with wider impact.

What Does Box Office Success Really Mean?

Box office revenue from ticket sales is only one of the many sources of revenue for film productions. Still, it is extremely important as it shows whether audiences like the movie or not. Of course, many movies were not meant for theaters – TV movies, digitally released films or independent productions, which cannot afford the distribution and advertising costs.

Typically, box office hits are those movies that bring in hundreds of millions of dollars from ticket sales. As of May 2023, there are 52 films that grossed more than $1 billion and 6 movies with a worldwide box office revenue of $2 billion or more. Clearly, those are true blockbusters, but what about the hundreds of others that brought in millions to their creators?

One could argue that the films with the largest profit are the most successful. According to The Numbers, Avatar (2009) had a record-high profit of $1.552 billion, followed by Avengers: Endgame (2019) with $1.03 billion, and Star Wars Ep. VII: The Force Awakens (2015) with an estimated profit of $841.8 million. But the larger the production, the larger the costs – including production cost, cast and crew salaries, marketing and promotion, story rights, and film score.

Big Hollywood Productions Hated by the Critics

There are many blockbusters that received low ratings and bad reviews from critics; some even getting Oscar nominations while also being nominated for the Golden Raspberries. Wall Street is the only film to win both an Oscar and a Razzie, with Michael Douglas receiving an Academy Award for Best Actor in 1987, while Daryl Hannah won a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actress.

John Carter, Tomorrowland, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Green Lantern, and Waterworld are just some of the films that flopped spectacularly at the box office. The reviews were bad to moderate, although later, some of these films built a cult following, namely Waterworld and John Carter. Compared to them, there are productions with enduring notoriety and much lower reviews.

The The Emoji Movie is a great example, as is M. Night Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender. Sony’s widely advertised animated comedy The Emoji Movie had a massive budget of $50 million, but once it was released, it became clear how absurd a film about the life of emojis really is. It was a critical flop, earning only 6% on Rotten Tomatoes, but at the same time, it made $217.8 million at the box office. This is four times its budget, which suggests that this is the biggest earner among the big Hollywood productions with bad reviews.

Fantasy film The Last Airbender was released in 2010 and was widely rejected for its bad directing, poor acting, lack of respect of the source material, and even racism. It remains the worst-rated film by Shyamalan and by Nickelodeon Movies, and it won 5 Razzies out of its 9 nominations. It has a 5% approval rate on Rotten Tomatoes, while its budget was massive – $150 million. It managed to earn only $319.7 million, however.

Some movies such as Adam Sandler’s comedy Grown Ups and its sequel Grown Ups 2, were not particularly ambitious and not made for the critics. Although the two films have scores of 10% and 8% respectively, they were received well by audiences, earning $271.5 million and $247 million at the box office. This is 3 times their $80-million budgets.

Another box office success is Couples Retreat, a 2009 romantic comedy starring Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, Kristen Bell, and Jean Reno, among others. The film received largely unfavorable reviews but earned $171.8 million on a budget of $70 million.

Based on Marvel Comics’ superhero team of the same name, 2015’s Fantastic Four was a huge disappointment for the studio. It barely returned its massive budget of $120 million, earning $167.9 million worldwide, while reviews were mostly negative. Currently, it has an approval rating of 9% based on 263 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, making it the lowest-rated film on the platform of all movies based on Marvel Comics.

Speed 2: Cruise Control is yet another critical and box office flop, earning only $164 million on a budget of $160 million. The sequel to the highly successful action movie starred Sandra Bullock but it seems audiences were expecting Keanu Reeves to return – he did not. The film received negative reviews and currently has only 4% on the Tomatometer. In contrast, the original film was a critical and commercial success, grossing $350.4 million worldwide on a small budget of only $30 million.

Catwoman performed even worse – the film received seven Golden Raspberry Award nominations, winning four of them. This included a Razzie for Halle Berry’s performance, which brought her the Worst Actress trophy for 2014. On Rotten Tomatoes, Catwoman scored an 8% approval rating, while its box office performance was even worse. On a budget of $100 million, the film earned $82.1 million, turning it into a financial disaster.

Bad Movies That Turned Out To Be Highly Profitable

Taking all this into consideration, calculating the actual profit of a film is practically impossible without access to official documents and insider information. This is why we decided to focus on those films with box office revenues at least three times their budget and consider them “profitable”.

It seems one of 2023’s most poorly received films of the horror genre is the most profitable movie production. This is Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey, which despite its mere 3% on the Tomatometer made $4.9 million on a budget of around $100,000. According to the filmmakers, the budget was actually under $100K. After the beloved children’s book Winnie the Pooh entered the public domain in January 2022, director Rhys Frake-Waterfield decided to turn the story into a slasher. It surprised everyone when it reached $4.9 million at the box office or 49 times its budget – especially considering it was screened only in selected theaters.

The sequel to the 1980s action comedy classic Crocodile Dundee also turned out to be a true box office success, bringing $239.6 million in ticket sales, which is 17 times its budget of only $14 million. Meanwhile, Crocodile Dundee II has a score of 9%, which is quite embarrassing compared to the original film’s 89%.

Third in the ranking is 1990’s Problem Child, for which the critics’ consensus reads “mean-spirited and hopelessly short on comic invention”. While the 0% score is really damning, the film was received well at theaters (at least compared to its budget), making $72.3 million on a $10 million budget. Another notable entry is Movie 43, a strange collection of stories featuring a star cast – Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Elizabeth Banks, Emma Stone, Chris Pratt, Halle Berry, Richard Geere, and many others. Unfortunately, these names could not save the film from getting only 4% on Rotten Tomatoes. Still, grossing $32.4 million worldwide, it turned out to be a box office success – it had a micro budget of $6 million.

Parodies Fifty Shades of Black and Epic Movie also appear in the top 10, scoring only 4% and 2%, respectively, yet earning more than 4 times their original budget. Marlon Wayans’ spoof of the hit movie Fifty Shades of Gray made $22.2 million at the box office, while Epic Movie earned $82.3 million. Sony’s widely advertised animated comedy The Emoji Movie had a massive budget of $50 million, but once it was released, it became clear how absurd a film about the life of emojis really is. It was a critical flop, earning only 6% on Rotten Tomatoes, but at the same time, it made $217.8 million at the box office.

Other films that were heavily criticized but managed to earn three or more times their budgets are the Scary Movie V (4%) with Charlie Sheen and Lindsey Lohan, Dirty Grandpa (10%), which stars Robert De Niro and Zac Efron, as well as the third and final film in the Meet the Parents series, Little Fockers (9%). The comedy, starring once again De Niro, alongside Ben Stiller, Teri Polo, Blythe Danner, Owen Wilson, Dustin Hoffman, and Barbra Streisand, made $310.6 million over a $100 million budget, bringing the box office revenue for the trilogy to over $1.15 billion.

This story was reprinted with permission and originally appeared here. 

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Methodology Audiences decide whether a film is good

With lots of sunshine expected this weekend, beachgoers headed to Port Dover will still only have a small area of sand in the town they can actually use.

No trespassing signs are still up along sections of the larger beach with privately-owned sections off limits to the public while Norfolk County politicians and landowners hammer out a deal to resume public access.

Much of Port Dover beach is owned by private landowners, with only a small part actually owned by the county from the end of Walker Street to the water.

Local local restaurateur Peter Knechtel, whose company F.W. Knechtel Foods Ltd. owns a section of the beach in question, told Global News large crowds in recent years have left garbage and created liability concerns that he says he doesn’t have the resources to mitigate.

On top of that, many beaches in southern Ontario aren’t free anymore, reducing their crowds via user fees, implementing paid parking and requiring reservations.

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“The other parks and the other beaches have put a lot of restrictions in their locations, which we don’t have in ours,” said Knechtel who also owns the nearby Callahan’s Beach House.

“So we’re working with the county so that we can we can come up with a plan so that we can open the beach.”

Friday is considered an unofficial beach day in Norfolk, on which teens have been known to ditch school and descend on Port Dover, Turkey Point and Long Point.

Knechtel says while they usually don’t see many students at the Port Dover beach, he’s been in contact with the OPP and was told they’ll be patrolling all three beaches.

In mid-May, Norfolk councillors directed staff to start negotiating with the private owners on a solution acknowledging the beach plots are an “important part of our tourism strategy.”

Norfolk County mayor Any Martin says staff are continuing that dialogue and are expected to update council on their progress during a special council meeting next week.

“We remain optimistic and confident that all issues will be resolved soon,” Martin said in an email.

&copy 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

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Making Bravo history. After news broke of

To get to and from the space station, NASA currently relies on SpaceX, the company founded by Elon Musk. SpaceX carried its first team of astronauts to orbit in May 2020, aboard its Crew Dragon capsule, and has since lifted eight more crews to the space station.

But NASA has also hired Boeing to build a capsule, so that one can serve as a backup if something goes wrong with the other.

“NASA desperately needs a second provider for crew transportation,” Steve Stich, the Commercial Crew Program manager at the agency, said during Thursday’s news conference.

NASA once relied on the space shuttle to carry astronauts to and from orbit. When those vehicles were retired in 2011, the agency had to rely on Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft, and did so for nearly a decade.

To restore its autonomy, the agency started a program, Commercial Crew, that would rely on private companies to build spacecraft that could transport astronauts on NASA missions. Moreover, NASA would become a customer of the companies, paying for rides on the vehicles rather than owning them outright as it did the space shuttles.

SpaceX is one of those providers, and Boeing was to be the other.

Boeing’s Starliner capsule has flown to orbit twice already with no astronauts aboard. The first flight, in December 2019, was intended to precede a flight with astronauts aboard. But a series of software errors in space imperiled the flight, leading NASA to label it a “high-visibility close-call” after an investigation.

A second uncrewed flight in May 2022 was more successful. But it was originally supposed to have occurred in August 2021. Before that flight, engineers found that valves in Starliner’s propulsion system were stuck, and the vehicle had to be recalled from the launchpad and sent back to the factory for repairs.

The technical problems have been a burden for Boeing, which has reported $883 million in losses on the vehicle through October 2022.

But the company said it had no plans to abandon its bid to build Starliner.

“There’s growing pains in developing a vehicle and flying a vehicle — we’re really close,” said Mark Nappi, the vice president and program manager at Boeing for Starliner. “This is just part of the business to have these kinds of issues.”

Mr. Stich said it was possible that the Starliner could visit the space station this fall but that it would depend on how quickly the problems with the parachutes and wiring could be resolved.

After re-entering Earth’s atmosphere, the Starliner capsule returns to Earth gently under three parachutes. Engineers discovered that parts of the lines that connect the spacecraft to the parachutes could not tolerate the load from the capsule if only two of the three parachutes deployed properly. Boeing said in a statement that it anticipated doing parachute testing before another launch attempt would be scheduled.

The wiring problem involves the hundreds of feet of tape wrapped around Starliner’s internal wiring. In some scenarios, the tape adhesive could be flammable. Mr. Nappi said that engineers were considering putting another kind of wrapping around the tape in areas where the fire risk was greatest.

“You could say we’re disappointed because it means a delay,” Mr. Nappi said. “But the team is proud that we’re making the right choices.”

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Why It Matters: NASA needs two rides

When Lena Waithe first approached Peabody and Emmy-winning filmmaker James Adolphus about the prospect of directing a documentary about her idol Mary Tyler Moore, she was confident that he was the right man for the job, even though he didn’t know anything about the TV icon.

“Mary was a name I’d heard in a Weezer song and I had a cursory knowledge of who she was,” Adolphus says, discussing the making of the film for Variety’s “Doc Dreams.” “But I hadn’t seen a single episode of ‘The Dick Van Dyke Show’ or ‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show.’ And I managed to skirt through both undergrad and graduate film school without even seeing ‘Ordinary People.’”

So, the filmmaker started his research with Moore’s own words, diving into her 1995 autobiography, “After All,” where he, too, “quickly fell in love.”

“Within the first 3 chapters of her book I was in,” Adolphus recalls. “I felt a deep kinship to Mary, mostly because of how she opened her story, with her vulnerabilities and early childhood traumas.”

Those intimate revelations made a real impression, considering how rare it was for a woman of Moore’s generation to share such truths with her audience — and how uncomfortable many people are with expressing such vulnerability today. “Because Mary led with that, I felt a responsibility to protect those vulnerabilities on screen,” he explains.

Thus began Adolphus’ three-and-a-half-year journey to bring Moore’s truth to the screen in HBO’s “Being Mary Tyler Moore,” working closely with Moore’s widower Dr. Robert Levine and producers Waithe and Debra Martin Chase.

With more than 400 hours of footage of Moore in TV and movies and her personal videotapes at their disposal, plus interviews with entertainers she’d influenced, including Waithe, Chase, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bernadette Peters and Phylicia Rashad, the first cut of the film clocked in at around eight hours. In time, Adolphus and his editors whittled it down to the two-hour documentary, which premiered May 26 on HBO and is now streaming on Max.

Read on (and watch the full interview above) as Adolphus explains how a piece of advice from Waithe proved key to shaping Moore’s story.

As you’re sorting through these hundreds of hours of footage — between the archive footage of her on screen, then interviews, and all her personal footage — where do you decide to introduce that thesis and start the story?

We had set out to tell a story about a woman who had to break through ceilings. We wanted to tell a story about womanhood and American patriarchy. But finding that entry was difficult, and we had to be very patient. As a documentary filmmaker, patience is a virtue, but we also got very lucky.

We were three months into the edit. We were spending a lot of time combing through every interview Mary ever gave throughout her life when we came upon David Susskind [host of “The David Susskind Show”] berating Mary Tyler Moore. In that moment, I decided that’s the opening of the film.

I am Black and Puerto Rican. I think it’s easy to imagine a world where I don’t wouldn’t have any personal connection to Mary. I don’t have any real access to what it means to be a woman, but I do have an intrinsic knowledge of what it means to be under the thumb of American patriarchy. For me, as a filmmaker, as a cis man, that was my way into telling Mary’s story.

The film looks at Mary’s career as it intersected with the feminist movement. How did you find a way to weave those together and really cement her place?

It’s funny because, in the 1970s, the [second-wave] feminist movement came down fairly hard at different moments on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” for not going far enough. The film explains “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” was in 40 million homes; that accounted for 100 million people, 1/3 of the country, every single Saturday night sat in front of the television to watch Mary Tyler Moore. How pointed can we be with any of our messaging, when you have to appease 100 million people? I think it’s really difficult, and I think the show did a really brilliant job.

But I love that Mary who was — as her friends have called her — a “feminine feminist.” She was a reluctant feminist, even though she understood that she was breaking down doors, she was smashing glass ceiling, she was a role model and continues to be for millions of individuals. [Mary’s story] forced us to really think about what it means to be a good feminist in the first place. Do you necessarily have to be on the streets marching? Or you could lead by example? Sometimes that feels like a softer approach, but in the end, that Mary’s legacy continues to inspire speaks volumes.

We didn’t want to take away points from Mary because she wasn’t an outspoken and devout second wave feminist. She was a woman. By default, Mary Tyler Moore is a feminist because Mary Tyler Moore, existed in the world that didn’t want her to be. She existed in the world that had a very specific design for her that she pushed back against. That’s feminist.

Tell me about the decision not to show video of any talking-head interviews. On occasion you’ll see a reporter, but for the most part, it’s only Mary that you see speaking in the film.

That note came directly from Lena.

We were eight months into the edit, and we hadn’t yet stumbled upon the trove of tapes. We were having a very difficult time expressing a lot of the sentiments that Mary spoke about and wrote about in her autobiography, so we were playing around with archival materials. We were using a lot of early cinema as visual metaphors for Mary’s life to explain details.

When Lena finally got around to watching the rough cut, she loved the weird things we were doing with the archival material. She looked at it and was like, “Every time we jump back into the world of archive, it’s magic.” And she’s like, “I’m a fan. Her fans are going to watch this. Why can’t we just live in the magic of the archive?”

To get a note from your executive that is, “You don’t have to rely on some of the conventions of documentary filmmaking, just go that way. I know that’s where your heart is, so lean into that.” That was probably one of the greatest notes we were given on this journey.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

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When Lena Waithe first approached Peabody and

Mumbaikar Review: Big cities bring both advantages and disadvantages. The opportunities they offer are vast, but the sense of isolation that comes with being a part of such a city can be all-consuming – regardless of whether you are a resident or a visitor. The city spares none. With its central theme of mistaken identities and the predicament of those trapped in adverse situations, the characters in this Santosh Sivan- directorial, an official Hindi remake of Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Maanagaram, learn the importance of kindness and gain valuable insights along the way.

At the very outset, Hridhu Haroon, in the role of a young man, who thrusts into the bustling metropolis from a small town, tells the HR (played by Tanya Maniktala), “If I embrace Mumbai as my own, the city, too, will count me as its own.” But, Mumbai, City of Dreams for some and not quite as welcoming for others, had other plans. Things go awry soon after in this urban thriller that spans over 48 hours and offers a glimpse into the lives of multiple characters who encounter a range of challenges.

Sanjay Mishra in a still from the film.

Tanya’s boyfriend, played by Vikrant Massey, is a rebel to pursuing a decent and meaningful life. Hridu, meanwhile, gets mistaken for Vikrant and is beaten up by thugs and ends up losing his important documents. In another track, there is a slightly eccentric man (Vijay Sethupathi) who has his heart in the right place. He aspires to make it big in life, both in terms of wealth and fame, and joins a criminal gang in Mumbai with help from a friend. His first task involves kidnapping a young boy named Rahul from his school. In a twist of fate, he abducts the wrong boy who happens to be the son of a notorious criminal, PKP (Ranvir Shorey). Then there is a cabbie (Sanjay Mishra) who works at one of PKP’s businesses that rents out cars to the same BPO that Tanya and Hridhu work at. In the botched kidnapping, the stories coverage and the characters find themselves entangled in a situation involving ruthless gangsters and corrupt police officers.

Ranvir Shorey as a gangster in the film.

It’s a potboiler with a good mix of action, drama, romance and comic relief. Vijay Sethupathi is effortless as a peculiar man with unique quirks but a compassionate nature. He does crimes to establish himself as a famous ‘Don’, but his conscience begins to betray him. He gets the bigger share of the punchlines and delivers a solid performance.

Vikrant Massey delivers a convincing performance as a rebellious man torn between his desire to do what’s right and his limited patience for those who cross him. He effortlessly transitions between a lovelorn romantic pursuing a scorned girlfriend and an angry guy willing to go to any lengths to seek vengeance when threatened. At the same time, Massey beautifully plays a compassionate citizen who lends a hand to help a stranded little boy reach home. Ranvir Shorey delivers a solid performance as feared gangster PKP, showcasing both his terrifying presence and his emotional depth as a desperate father on a mission to rescue his son. As the plot thickens, Shorey’s frustration grows and he delivers standout scenes that leave a lasting impact. Sanjay Mishra and Brijendra Kala (as a police sergeant) do justice to their parts, while Tanya has very little part in the whole script. Hridu makes up for his inconsistencies in the second half.

Vikrant Massey in a still from the film.

The parallel storylines in the film move swiftly between each other, but unfortunately, the dialogues fail to make a significant impact. At times, the accents are thick, taking away the clarity of the dialogue delivery, and overall, they fall short of the expected impact. The film falters in detailing that is supposedly meant to add to the quirky script. There’s a Bengali character thrown into the mix, who speaks surprisingly faulty Bangla, and then there’s a promiscuous woman, caught in a raid, who feels the need to cat-call a man while still at the police station. On the flip side, the inter-connections don’t feel forced, but reflect the reality of life in a metro, where the sheer population leaves enough room for misplaced identities and a comedy of errors.

If you haven’t watch the Tamil version, the unpredictability of the hyperlink thriller will be enjoyable. A good, one-time watch.

The film is currently streaming on JioCinema.

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Mumbaikar Review: Big cities bring both advantages

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is finally here, but when will fans be able to watch it at home on streaming, digital, Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD?

After five years since the award-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse swung into theaters and the hearts of fans around the world, the Miles Morales-led sequel has finally arrived in theaters to massive acclaim. 

Across the Spider-Verse continues to expand the animated franchise with a host of new Spider-People through a Multiversal group led by Oscar Isaac’s Miguel O’Hara, aka Spider-Man 2099.

Spider-Verse 2 comes as the first chapter of a two-part event featuring The Spot as the lead antagonist, with the story set to continue next March with the release of Beyond the Spider-Verse.

When Will Spider-Verse 2 Begin Streaming?

Marvel

After ending its Pay-One streaming deal with Starz in April 2021, Sony entered into a multi-year agreement with Netflix to bring all of its new movies from 2022 onward to the legendary streamer after their theatrical and home releases.

As such, Across the Spider-Verse‘s first streaming destination is expected to be Netflix, but when will it actually arrive on the service?

Looking at its three biggest movies of last year, the theatrical-to-streaming window ranged from the low 120 days of Bullet Train to the high 175 days for Uncharted.

Based on these windows, the earliest fans could expect to stream Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse on Netflix is the end of September. Or, if the Spider-Man flick were to take a page out of Uncharted‘s book, audiences could be waiting until late November. 

In the meantime, its predecessor, Into the Spider-Verse, cannot currently be found on any mainline streamers. But it is currently available on Fubo TV, FXNow, and Sling.

When Will Spider-Verse 2 Release on Disney+?

Spider-Man Miles Gwen
Marvel

Although Netflix will be the first stop for Across the Spider-Verse, Sony also has an agreement with Disney to “bring Spider-Man and other Marvel properties” to Disney+, starting out with its 2022 theatrical slate.

Netflix’s deal with Sony allowed the service to have exclusive streaming rights of its movies for the first 18 months of their streaming windows. After that year and a half, the doors for Sony films to also become available to rival streamers.

Sony’s only Marvel movie of last year was Morbius, and with that having only been released on Netflix in September, the service will be holding onto it exclusively until around March 2024, at which point it will likely make its way to Disney+.

So, with Spider-Verse 2 not likely to hit Netflix until sometime between September and November, the animated sequel probably won’t be coming to Disney+ until 2025.

Predicting When Spider-Verse 2 Will Be Available to Purchase

Spider-Verse 2 Miles Morales
Marvel

Before Across the Spider-Verse comes to Netflix or Disney+, the movie will have its first home release tour through 4K Ultra HD, Blu-Ray, DVD, and digital sales.

Looking at Sony’s other recent major releases, Uncharted and 65 came to physical media 81 days after their theatrical debut, while Morbius and Bullet Train came in one week lower at 74 days.

Based on these patterns, Spider-Verse 2 should come to Blu-Ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD in mid-to-late August.

Turning attention to the digital release, these numbers fluctuated wildly from 28 days to 67 days. However, there does seem to be a pattern of Sony awarding longer theatrical-to-digital release windows to its box office hits.

As Spider-Verse 2 is expected to be a big win for Sony at the box office based on the anticipation and marvelous early reviews, its digital release will likely fall at the latter end, probably coming in late July or early August.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse hits theaters on Friday, June 2.

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Ms Jacky Oh!, who rose to fame with her presence on the MTV and VH1 series Wild ‘N Out, has died. The news was announced on the official Instagram page for the series, though no cause of death was given. TMZ reports that the television star, whose real name was Jacklyn Smith, passed away on Wednesday in Miami, reportedly while in town to undergo a “mommy makeover.” She was 32 years old.


“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Jacklyn Smith, known to the world as Jacky Oh, a talented Wild N’ Out family member whose impact will be forever treasured and missed,” the announcement reads. “Jacky Oh was a loving friend and beloved colleague of the Wild N’ Out cast throughout five seasons. More importantly, she was a tremendous mother to three beautiful children. The BET Media Group extends our sincere condolences to the Smith family, DC Young Fly, B Simone, Nick Cannon, and all friends who loved and cared for Jacky Oh during this difficult time.”

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Smith had been romantically linked to DC Young Fly after the couple first met on the set of Wild ‘N Out in 2015. At the time, Smith was already starring on the show, and though she had since left, DC Young Fly remains a big part of the show. Per ET, was reportedly filming in Atlanta when he heard about Smith’s passing. The couple had three children together: Nova, Nala, and Prince.

Related: Sergio Calderon, Pirates of the Caribbean and Men in Black Actor, Dies at 77


Smith had been active on social media leading up to her sudden death. Just days before her passing was announced, she posted a video to YouTube of a trip she had taken to the movie theater with her three children to watch The Little Mermaid. She had also recently documented a trip to Disney World, showcasing more of her family life and the quality time that she would have with her children before her untimely demise would come soon after. Smith’s final Instagram post, shared on May 19, reveals her three children all fast asleep.

“So glad she documented stuff. Her kids will have so many memories and videos to look at,” reads one top comment on the YouTube video.

Another fan wrote, “I’m so glad you documented so much of your life. Not for us but so that the kids can look back and know how much you loved them and how you were a celebrity mom who focused on quality time with your kids. So sorry your life was cut short.”

Smith had since departed Wild ‘N Out to focus on pursuing new endeavors. She had found new work as a realtor and had also recently launched a lipgloss line, called the J Nova Collection.

Our thoughts are with Smith’s children and other loved ones at this time. Rest in peace, Jacklyn “Ms Jacky Oh!” Smith.

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Ms Jacky Oh!, who rose to fame

The Office is making a comeback in Australia with the first-ever female-led version of the show. Reported by Deadline, Prime Video Australia has ordered a remake of The Office, and it’s set to premiere in 2024.

Standup comedian Felicity Ward is slated for the lead role in the series, where she’ll play Hannah Howard, manager of packaging company Flinley Craddick. The series will have a remote work spin, as Howard tries to keep her “work family” together after learning that corporate plans to shut down her branch and move everyone to at-home setups.

Alongside Ward, the rest of the cast includes Edith Poor, Steen Raskopoulos, Shari Sebbens, Josh Thomson, Jonny Brugh, Pallavi Sharda, Susan Ling Young, Raj Labade, Lucy Schmit, and Firass Dirani.

Felicity Ward will play Hannah Howard in Australia’s remake of The Office. Image credit: Scott Howard/Getty Images.

This is the first time in The Office’s many iterations that a woman will play the lead role. The manager role was originally made famous by Ricky Gervais’ David Brent, and the most famous iteration is Steve Carrell’s Michael Scott.

The U.S. version of The Office ended back in 2013, and there have been talks of a reboot. Last year, The Office creator Greg Daniels compared his reboot idea to The Mandalorian, saying it would be “an extension of the universe”.

Lately, fans have only had easter eggs and product tie-ins to keep their fandom going, with an official chili cookbook from Kevin, a nod to the show in The Last of Us Part I, and a LEGO set.

For more, check out the 25 best episodes of The Office.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over seven years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

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The Office is making a comeback in

Stormtroopers always lead the way for Vader.

Just this month, the RED Komodo-X Stormtrooper edition was released. The X versions of the Komodo series offered a bit more production oomph but kept the tool affordable enough for budget filmmakers and owner-operators. 

But now, the “real” camera is about to hit the market. The all-black RED Komodo-X is officially available for pre-order. If you’d like to read up on all the updates and specs for the new camera, check out the comparison article. 

Stormtrooper vs. All Black

For those not already in the know, what’s the difference between the initial Stormtrooper release and the final all-black version?

Absolutely nothing, besides a different coat of paint. The white Komodo-X is just a special limited edition release to hype the camera up and get it into the hands of filmmakers who want it the most. 

The approach has been so popular even Aputure wanted a piece of the action. 

The rear I/O and battery plate is all different too. Credit: RED

The Performance Filmmakers Need?

One of the standout features of the RED Komodo-X, much like the original Komodo, is its compact design. It’s no taller or wider than the original release and just a few centimeters longer. 

RED Komodo vs Komodo-X
Komodo vs Komodo-X size comparisonCredit: RED

With dimensions of just 4 x 4 x 4.5 inches and weighing in at only 2 pounds, the Komodo-X takes the stunt-camera/C-camera philosophy and makes it into a production workhorse.

We can wax poetic about the specs, utility, and workflow until the sun comes up. So here’s a quick video from CVP that gives us a great breakdown of the RED Komodo-X.

Is This Camera For You?

During the DSMC2 days, everyone wanted to own a RED. It was, at times, a status symbol and, at others, a validation of your hard work and artistic vision. But those cameras were always super expensive. Even the cheapest RED Raven still cost around $15,000. 

I’m a big proponent of affordability. While I understand how and why a tool can be priced as much as a luxury car, there is a world where high quality and affordability can live together. 

With the Komodo and Komodo-X, RED has finally embraced that mindset, and I think there’s a reason why I see so many more owner-operators out in the field. More people can now own a RED, which means more creatives are able to utilize those professional tools we all dream about. While the Komodos aren’t the cheapest tools on the market, they are on par, and sometimes cheaper, than other alternatives. This means the RED tax isn’t a thing anymore. 

But what do you think? Have you already pre-ordered the Komodo-X? Let us know in the comments!     

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Stormtroopers always lead the way for

WGA isn’t giving up its crusade for a fair wage and job security any time soon. As its fellow unions, the Directors Guild of America (DGA) and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), enter their own negotiations this month, the WGA sent a letter to members assuring them they will not allow AMPTP to “divide and conquer,” again.

The renewed commitment to the strike, which has been going on for a month now, comes as DGA and SAG-AFTRA contracts expire on June 30. The DGA has already entered talks with AMPTP, and SAG-AFTRA goes to the table on June 7. Regardless of how those talks go, the WGA is ready to keep going—even if its sibling unions get a new contract.

In the letter, the WGA argues that in the 2007-08 strike, AMPTP pitted the unions against each other, cutting a deal with the DGA “far ahead of its contract expiration, which included some (but not all) of the goals writers sought.” This set the stage for contract renegotiations for the next few years, a strategy the letter refers to as “divide and conquer.” The Negotiating Committee explains the strategy as “Hold off a deal with the DGA until after the WGA contract expiration date so that in the event of a writers’ strike, the AMPTP could force a DGA pattern on the WGA.”

While solidarity between unions has been, thus far, more robust than in 2007, “AMPTP remains committed to its strategy.” As such, AMPTP “pretended” to deny negotiations with the WGA in May, so it could enact its strategy when DGA talks began. The letter states that the tactic will not shake the WGA’s resolve. The strike will continue regardless, hopefully with broad support from the other unions. AMPTP put itself in this position, and the only way it’ll get out is by paying people what they’re owed.

Read the full letter below:

DEAR MEMBERS,

The AMPTP playbook has been to divide and conquer…labor.

The AMPTP was formed in the 1980s when the industry’s major employers decided they were tired of the decades of gains made by unions when engaging in their own divide and conquer strategy – choosing an employer (or employer group) to get a good deal that the rest of the industry studios had to follow.

The AMPTP strategy of corporate unity has been wildly successful for the companies. Labor costs have been contained in an industry where workers have tremendous power while the companies reaped billions on billions in profit, year after year. During the last 35 years, there have been only two strikes – 2007/08 and now.

While the employers were united, labor has been less so. Until recently.

During the last WGA strike, SAG was supportive but relations with some of the other unions were strained. While writers were out on picket lines, the DGA negotiated its own deal far ahead of its contract expiration, which included some (but not all) of the goals writers sought.

In the intervening contract cycles, union solidarity in Hollywood was limited. The DGA negotiated first, far ahead of their deadline, and the implicit message from the AMPTP was that the WGA or other unions would have to strike to get a better deal than the pattern already set.

This bargaining cycle, the industry began beating the strike drum far in advance of the WGA’s formulation of bargaining demands, let alone the start of actual negotiations. The AMPTP set a strategy in motion designed to be a repeat of 2007/08. Divide and conquer. Hold off a deal with the DGA until after the WGA contract expiration date so that in the event of a writers’ strike the AMPTP could force a DGA pattern on the WGA. Even better if they could also sew up a deal with SAG-AFTRA. They would then claim that the writers were being unreasonable.

That strategy, however, depends on divided unions. This year is different. Every union in town came out in support of the WGA, both during negotiations and after the start of the strike. The DGA has been clear that it is facing a tough and critical negotiation to address its members’ needs. Yesterday, we joined a statement along with SAG-AFTRA, IATSE and Teamsters 399 in solidarity with the DGA in their negotiations. SAG-AFTRA is taking a strike authorization vote as they enter negotiations to address the existential issues its members are facing. Teamsters, IATSE, and other entertainment union members have been honoring WGA picket lines across the country.

Still, the AMPTP remains committed to its strategy.

They pretended they couldn’t negotiate with the WGA in May because of negotiations with the DGA. That’s a lie. It’s a choice they made in hope of breathing life into the divide and conquer strategy. The essence of the strategy is to make deals with some unions and tell the rest that’s all there is. It’s gaslighting, and it only works if unions are divided.

Our position is clear: to resolve the strike, the companies will have to negotiate with the WGA on our full agenda.

The AMPTP should have made a fair deal with writers by May 1st. But they didn’t, as they are seemingly intent on continuing their efforts to destroy the profession of writing. For the last month, writers have followed in the footsteps of many generations before who went on strike to secure their collective future in this business. We will continue to march until the companies negotiate fairly with us. We do it now with the support of our sister guilds and unions, and we will support them whenever it’s their turn. The era of divide and conquer is over.

IN SOLIDARITY,
WGA NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE

[via IndieWire]

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Dwayne Johnson’s Fast & Furious return as Luke Hobbs isn’t exactly exciting fans on social media. The actor recently took to social media to confirm that he is fully back as Hobbs following his cameo in Fast X, and that another Hobbs-related spinoff is in the works at Universal; it could release before Fast X: Part 2 comes out. Johnson also confirmed that he has squashed his long-time beef with Dom Toretto actor Vin Diesel after they clashed during the filming of The Fate of the Furious, and expressed his excitement at returning to the saga.

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However, this news isn’t being received well by fans. On Twitter, many are discussing how the franchise will seemingly never end, even if Fast X: Part 2 and the potential Part 3 will supposedly end the main saga. Others are mocking how the next movies could be titled in the vein of the franchise’s inconsistent titles, and many are also discussing how Johnson seems desperate for a successful franchise in response to Black Adam underperforming at the box office. Check out many tweets on the matter below:


Luke Hobbs’s Return The Fast Franchise Isn’t Getting Its Intended Response

While fans should naturally be excited at seeing Johnson return to the Fast & Furious franchise, which made him an even bigger movie star than he was, many Twitter users aren’t particularly thrilled at the prospect of seeing him headline his own spinoff. However, this seemingly has more to do with the fact that the Fast & Furious franchise does not want to end, even if the stars have consistently teased that “the final chapter” is coming. Aside from the second Hobbs-related spinoff, a female-centered Fast & Furious film has also been discussed, alongside Fast X‘s expected follow-ups.

This also comes after repeated occasions in which Johnson expressed that he was not interested in returning to the Fast & Furious franchise, even after Diesel himself pleaded for his return on Instagram. However, plans seem to have quickly shifted after Black Adam was a critical and commercial failure, with the character no longer a part of James Gunn’s new DC Universe. Johnson wanted to create his own franchise with Black Adam, even getting Henry Cavill to return as Superman in a post-credits scene. However, Gunn had plans of his own when he was appointed co-CEO of DC Studios.

Now, fans believe Johnson is desperate for a franchise after Black Adam failed to create one and draw moviegoers. Additionally, with each Fast & Furious installment experiencing diminishing returns at the box office, it is unclear if the franchise could even last beyond Fast X: Part 2, especially if many spinoffs are planned before the second installment of the final chapter releases. Time will tell how the Fast & Furious saga will evolve with Johnson back as Luke Hobbs for future installments.

Source: Various (See above)

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Dwayne Johnson's Fast & Furious return as

The judge appointed in the Disney vs. Ron DeSantis free speech lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker, recused himself on Thursday over a family member’s shares in the multimedia giant.

Walker, who ruled against DeSantis last year in a separate First Amendment case, said that he’s not he’s not biased against the Florida governor, but that an extended family member who owns stock in The Walt Disney Company “could be substantially affected by the outcome of this case.”

“Even though I believe it is highly unlikely that these proceedings will have a substantial effect on The Walt Disney Company, I choose to err on the side of caution — which, here, is also the side of judicial integrity — and disqualify myself,” he said in a public statement. “Maintaining public trust in the judiciary is paramount, perhaps now more than ever in the history of our Republic.”

Lawyers for DeSantis had previously accused Walker of bias, stating in a court filling that the judge “offered ‘Disney’ as an example of state retaliation.”

In an April 1, 2022, hearing, Walker had asked, “is there anything in the record that says we are now going to take away Disney’s special status because they’re woke?” In a separate case in June, Walker wrote that state’s battle over the company’s tax status was due to Disney “[running] afoul of state policy of the controlling party.”

U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor, an appointee of former president Donald Trump, will take over the case. Earlier this year, Winsor dismissed a lawsuit challenging the conservative-driven Parental Rights in Education Law, otherwise known as the controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

Despite significant public outcry over the bill, including from Disney, DeSantis signed it into law in May 2022.

Reps for Disney did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.

Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.

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The judge appointed in the Disney vs.

Burna Boy is back with the new summer anthem “Sittin’ on Top of the World,” which he released Thursday (June 1) via Atlantic Records.

The African Giant makes a triumphant return nearly a year after he released his sixth studio album Love, Damini on July 8, 2022, which peaked at No. 14 on the Billboard 200 and received a 2023 Grammy nomination for best global music album. And after his hit single “Last Last” soundtracked all of last summer, “Sittin’ on Top of the World” aims to do the same for the summer of 2023. Much like “Last Last,” which contains a sample of Toni Braxton‘s 2000 track “He Wasn’t Man Enough,” “Sittin’ on Top of the World” has its own hint of nostalgia: The song features a sample of Brandy‘s 1998 song “Top of the World,” featuring Mase. Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, Fred Jerkins III and LaShawn Daniels have writing credits on Brandy’s “Top of the World” as well as Braxton’s “He Wasn’t Man Enough” and therefore have earned credits on Burna’s “Last Last” and “Sittin’ on Top of the World” records.

In the accompanying visual, Burna is seen standing on top of a floating platform at one of his shows during his Love, Damini Tour, and from there, fans follow his journey across the globe, including red-carpet pit stops (like one before the 2022 Billboard Music Awards, where he closed out the show), long walks to private jets, greetings with famous friends from J Balvin to Damson Idris, performances, club appearances and much more.

Burna will perform “Sittin’ on Top of the World” live at his sold-out London Stadium stop on Saturday, June 3. The superstar will make history at his July 8 show at NYC’s Citi Field when he will become the first Nigerian artist to headline a U.S. stadium.

Watch the “Sittin’ on Top of the World” music video below.

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Burna Boy is back with the new

June 1, 2023 · 12:01 PM

The following past Sundance Film Festival documentaries are scheduled for release this month:

>June 7:
In Theatres

SQUARING THE CIRCLE (THE STORY OF HIPGNOSIS)
Sundance 2023

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Director:
Anton Corbijn

About:
An inside look at the studio responsible for some of the most iconic and recognizable album covers of all time. From Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon to Led Zeppelin’s Houses of the Holy, the studio ruled the ’70s.

>June 9:
In Theatres

USERS
Sundance 2021

Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Natalia Almada

Director:
Natalia Almada

About:
A thought-provoking essay about the unexpected consequences of our dependence on technology.

>June 13:
On DVD/VOD

NAM JUNE PAIK: MOON IS THE OLDEST TV
Sundance 2023

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Director:
Amanda Kim

About:
The quixotic journey of Nam June Paik, one of the most famous Asian artists of the 20th century, who revolutionized the use of technology as an artistic canvas and prophesied both the fascist tendencies and intercultural understanding that would arise from the interconnected metaverse of today’s world.

>June 15:
Streaming: OVID

MERU
Sundance 2015

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Director:
Jimmy Chin, E Chai Vasarhelyi

About:
Three elite mountain climbers sacrifice everything but their friendship as they struggle through heartbreaking loss and nature’s harshest elements to attempt the never-before-completed Shark’s Fin on Mount Meru, the most coveted first ascent in the dangerous game of Himalayan big wall climbing.

>June 21:
Streaming: Max

THE STROLL
Sundance 2023

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Director:
Kristen Lovell, Zackary Drucker

About:
The history of New York’s Meatpacking District, told from the perspective of transgender sex workers who lived and worked there. Filmmaker Kristen Lovell, who walked “The Stroll” for a decade, reunites her community to recount the violence, policing, homelessness, and gentrification they overcame to build a movement for transgender rights.

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June 1, 2023 · 12:01 PM The following

Full spoilers follow for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Proceed at your own risk.

After a four and a half year wait, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has majestically swung into theaters. And yes, there’s a fair amount to unpack from its stunning, albeit abrupt ending.

Before we dive into the latest Spider-Man movie’s explosive conclusion, whether there are any post-credits scenes worth sticking around for, and how it sets up forthcoming sequel Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, you’ll need to read our Across the Spider-Verse review to see if it’s worth watching (spoilers: it is). Oh, and then you’ll actually need to book a trip to your local theater to take in one of the best superhero movies of all-time.

Oh, you’ve done all of that? Great! Let’s discuss Across the Spider-Verse‘s biggest talking points.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ending explained: where does Miles end up?

Things aren’t looking good for Miles in this new dimension. (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Answer: Earth-42, i.e. another parallel universe.

To explain why Miles (Shameik Moore) doesn’t travel back to his own reality – Earth-1610 – after he uses the Spider Society’s Matrix-style teleportation machine, we have to go back to one of our first encounters with The Spot (Jason Schwartzman).

As Across the Spider-Verse‘s chief villain reveals, Wilson Fisk’s Super Collider – a glorified particle accelerator – which The Spot, who was then just an ordinary scientist called Jonathan Ohnn, helped to build. During one particular test, the Super Collider brought a genetically engineered spider into Miles’ universe. The reality it traveled from? Yep, Earth-42.

It’s this superpowered bug that bites Miles in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, thus giving him his powers. 

But there’s a problem. The Spider Society’s teleportation device sends its users to the universe where its spider-based DNA originated. As Miles was bitten by an Earth-42-dwelling arachnid, he’s sent to that dimension instead of his own, meaning he’s trapped in a universe he doesn’t recognize (and proving that your fan theories were, in fact, way off base).

He’ll also be unable to save his dad from being killed in just two days time – as Miguel O’Hara/Spider-Man 2099 (Oscar Isaac) tells Miles during one of their heated discussions, the death of Miles’ father is a “canon event”, a fixed point in time that can’t be changed. If canon events are tampered with, they can lead to the breakdown of reality, and destroy the Spider-Verse as we know it. 

What Spider-Man 2099 doesn’t know, however, is that the now-incredibly powerful Spot has the ability to render canon events null and void, as he possesses the capacity to destroy universes singlehandedly, including Earth-1610. Why target the universe he hails from? Because Miles inadvertently ruined Ohnn’s life when the destroyed the Super Collider in Into the Spider-Verse, which turned Ohnn into The Spot. Now, he wants to exact revenge on Miles, and that means destroying everyone and everything Miles holds dear.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ending explained: who is the new Prowler? And how is Uncle Aaron alive?

Miles Morales fires his webshooters in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Miles, meet Miles. (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Answer(s): that’s another Miles Morales and Earth-42’s version of Aaron Davis.

Viewers won’t need reminding that Miles’ Uncle Aaron (Mahershala Ali), who masqueraded as Earth-1610’s version of the villainous Prowler, died in Into the Spider-Verse. He was shot by Wilson Fisk for not killing Miles.

On Earth-42, however, Uncle Aaron is still alive, meaning he’s able to meet the Miles we know – and inevitably take him prisoner when he realizes this Miles isn’t the one he looks after in this universe.

Even worse, uncle Aaron is working for a different kind of Prowler on Earth-42. Initially, it seems that he’s adopted the superhero pseudonym here, just as he does on Earth-1610. However, Across the Spider-Verse pulls a fast one on us, eventually revealing that it’s Earth-42’s Miles Morales – complete with braids – who is the metal-clawed antagonist.

He’s not the only supervillain who’s seemingly got a strangehold on Earth-42, too. As Miles was bitten by this universe’s radioactive spider, Earth-42 doesn’t have a Spider-Man to protect it from those with questionable/dark morals wanting to take advantage of such a situation. Before Earth-42’s Miles is revealed to be this dimension’s Prowler, we hear a brief message from a news anchor on TV mention the Sinister Six, a collection of some of Spider-Man’s most notorious villains, who seem to be the rulers of Earth-42. Our Miles – who, without one of Spider-Man 2099’s multiverse-traversing devices, is starting to glitch out as his molecules break down in this alternate reality – certainly has his work cut out here…

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ending explained: who is in Gwen’s Spider-Force?

Gwen and Peter B Parker looked concerned as they hang onto a train in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Gwen and Peter B Parker, to the rescue! (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Answer: all of our favorite Spider-People. Well, the ones who want to rescue Miles, anyway.

After she’s kicked out of the Spider Society for standing with Miles, and after she reconciles with her father in her universe (Earth-65), Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld) travels to Earth-1610 – using Spider-Punk’s multiverse device, which he gifts to her – to aid Miles in his attempts to save his father and stop The Spot.

When Gwen realizes Miles has traveled to the wrong dimension, though, she embarks on a new quest to save her friend (and potential love interest, don’t forget). Using Spider-Punk’s interdimensional wristwatch, she journeys to Peter B Parker’s (Jake Johnson) universe (Earth-616) to seek his help to rescue Miles. And, as Miles’ former mentor, who is Peter to resist?

Gwen doesn’t stop there, though. As one of Across the Spider-Verse’s final scenes shows, she’s assembled her own Spider Society – or Spider-Force, if you will. Among the group are Hobie Brown/Spider-Punk (Daniel Kaluuya), Pavitr Prabhaker/Spider-Man India (Karan Soni), and Margo Kess/Spider-Byte (Amandla Stenberg), who warmed up to Miles as the movie’s plot progressed.

Even more crowd-pleasing are the returns of a trio of Into the Spider-Verse characters: Peni Parker (Kimiko Glenn), Spider-Ham, and Spider-Man Noir, who also answered Gwen’s call to arms to aid their friend in his time of need. Peni actually makes a brief cameo in Across the Spider-Verse – she’s another Spider Society defector – but the other two weren’t expected to appear here as voice actors Jon Mulaney and Nicolas Cage weren’t asked to return. Delightfully, though, they do so, albeit in silent roles.

Of course, we know Miles has the capability of escaping his captors – we see him begin to charge up his Venom Strike ability before the movie cuts to black – but Gwen and company don’t know that he’s plotting his own jailbreak. Either way, here’s hoping he’s reunited with Gwen’s Spider-Force sooner rather than later before they tackle the multiversal threat that The Spot poses in Beyond the Spider-Verse‘s climactic battle.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ending explained: will the Spider Society return?

Spider-Man 2099 leaps towards Miles on a train in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Will Miguel O’Hara appear in Beyond the Spider-Verse? (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Answer: we don’t know, but we would expect them to.

Unfortunately for Miles and Gwen’s team of Spider-People, the Spider Society are likely still chasing them to stop Miles from saving his father. Oh, and from threatening the integrity of the Spider-Verse as they know it.

Across the Spider-Verse doesn’t specify which Spider Society members we’ll see again, but we suspect its leaders will show up in Beyond the Spider-Verse. That should include Miguel O’Hara/Spider-Man 2099 and Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman, who lead the supergroup, and potentially Andy Samberg’s Ben Reilly/Scarlet Spider, whose fate is unknown after Spider-Gwen webbed him to a building o Earth-1610 as she tried to locate Miles.

As for the rest of the Spider Society? We’d be surprised if any other members show their faces in the threequel flick. There are a few other Spider-People who speak briefly in Across the Spider-Verse – namely, Patrick O’Hara/Web-Slinger (voiced by Taran Killam), the Spectacular Spider-Man’s animated counterpart (Josh Keaton), and Insomniac Games’ Spider-Man (we believe it’s Yuri Lowenthal who reprises this role) – but we don’t expect them to have big roles next time out.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ending explained: are there any post-credits scenes?

Gwen leans against Miles as they hang upside down in an inverted shot from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Across the Spider-Verse is a rare breed of superhero movie where post-credits scenes are concerned. (Image credit: Sony Pictures)

Answer: no, there’s not a single mid- or post-credits scene.

In a rare move for a comic book movie, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse doesn’t have any post-credits stingers. That’s because it’s the first installment in a two-part ending to Miles’ animated big screen adventure. Adding in a mid- or post-credits scene, then, would detract from its cliffhanger-based conclusion.

Instead, viewers are simply treated to an end card that reads: “Miles Morales will return in… Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse“. Not an impactful ending, sure, but one that begins to generate new excitement over the third and potentially final entry in this film series. In short: sit through the credits to appreciate the sheer number of people who worked on this amazing film, but don’t stick around once they’re over.

For more Spider-Man based coverage, learn more about how to watch the Spider-Man movies in order. Additionally, read our ranking of the best Spider-Man movies, find out why we don’t need a live-action Miles Morales movie at this moment in time, or read our exclusive chat with the movie’s directors about how Across the Spider-Verse found the freedom to swing into new animated frontiers.

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Full spoilers follow for Spider-Man: Across the

There are parts of “Schmigadoon!” Season 2 that have the vibe of a summer camp reunion, where old friends come together to put on a show. After being a key part of the Apple TV+ show’s opening season, Dove Cameron returned to the second season’s ensemble to play Jenny Banks, a freewheeling spirit cut partly from the mold of “Cabaret” heroine Sally Bowles.

Though he wasn’t in the first batch of episodes, Tituss Burgess fit seamlessly into this world of winking, lovingly told musical theater riffs. As the Season 2’s Narrator, he welcomes viewers into most episodes set inside the town of Schmicago, a land brimming with references to the enduring stage shows of the 1970s.

In a conversation for IndieWire’s Awards Spotlight, Cameron and Burgess spoke about the chances each of them had to move around inside this hyper-specific stylized tonal playground, overseen by showrunner and series co-creator Cinco Paul.

“If there is time, Cinco will always let you do a ‘fuck-it’ pass,” Cameron said. “If you’ve done everything, that’s always my favorite thing. I’m like, ‘Fuck-it pass?’ where you just do whatever your vision is for the scene. And so often the performers on this show are so dreamers themselves that they come up with some weird other thing that makes it in.”

For as much freedom as the pair had, they each credited Paul and the series’ writing staff for giving them enough in the text to act as a constant guide.

“He creates an atmosphere that is playful. This man, rarely do you find a showrunner who does not operate out of ego. Working with him, working with them, and everyone on this show is probably the most creatively satisfying, collaborative experience I’ve had on camera to date,” Burgess said. “He sets the tone and allows us to go in and fuck it up, and then we see what is left in the debris, because a lot of good stuff is on the ground.”

Having that firm foundation is even more important when filming a musical TV show. Production demands are wholly different from the flow of the stage, where part of the process is discovering things through repetition and getting a show on its feet over the course of weeks of rehearsing. Here, all of those individual components got compressed to a fraction of the time.

“These numbers are musical-theater-stage scale, with no rehearsal time,” Cameron said. “Normally you would have months and months of prep to feel the rhythm of the number. You don’t get that on a show like this. And so it really is just about staying on the balls of your feet and doing the work at home and then crossing every limb that you pull it off.”

A huge part of finding that same kind of daily spontaneity of theater was getting to sing on set. Sometimes, certain logistical sequences required actors to work with some pre-recorded tracks, but some scenes wouldn’t have captured the same spark unless the people on screen had the chance to sing to each other (or the audience).

“We always want to sing live because that’s what we do. That’s our jam. So for me, that’s not a problem,” Burgess said.

“You don’t know what the character is when you’re recording at the jump. And if I got stuck with the character choices I made in the booth two months before I shot a number I’d be so upset with myself,” Cameron said. “Especially for the more intimate numbers like mine and Aaron [Tveit]’s number, you just have to harmonize in person. You just have to harmonize and be in love and be kissing and all that while you’re singing. Otherwise it feels stale.”

For more of the conversation between Dove Cameron and Tituss Burgess, see the whole video embedded above.

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There are parts of “Schmigadoon!” Season 2

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Let’s get this upfront: “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” was the best comic-book film of the last decade.

With an animation blizzard blown straight in from the pages of comics, “Into the Spider-Verse” took a supercollider to all the conventions of the superhero movie. Solemnity was out. Gone, too, was the idea of a chosen one. Spider-Man could be anyone, including a graffiti-tagging kid from Brooklyn, including a pig named Spider-Ham. The possibilities of the comic book movie were suddenly limitless. With Post Malone and Swae Lee’s “Sunflower” thumping, the vibes were, as they say, immaculate.

So a lot to live up to. Yet five years later, the Spider-verse is still expanding in thrilling ways. “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” is the rare sequel that dazzles as much as the original did. It’s something to behold. Colors drip, invert and splatter in a shimmering pop-art swirl.

If “Into the Spider-Verse” reveled in the head-spinning collision of universes, “Across the Spider-Verse” turns the multiverse blender up a notch, or 10. Worlds bump into each other like shoppers in a crowded bodega. Spider-Men and Spider-Women tumble forth like unloaded clown cars. In this frenetic, freewheeling thing that dares you keep up with its web-slinging pace, the sheer muchness of what’s in the frame can be almost overwhelming.

But despite all that’s going on, “Across the Spider-Verse” is remarkably grounded as a coming-of-age tale. The masterful flair of writers-producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who penned the script with David Callaham, lies in how they detonate convention and then assemble the leftover, splintered shards to build something deceptively sweet and simple.

The directing team has been entirely swapped out. Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson take the reins in this second chapter, which finds Miles Morales (voiced by Shameik Moore) now a 15-year-old with a better handle on his crime-fighting powers. He’s less adept, though, at communicating with his parents, Jefferson (Brian Tyree Henry) and Rio (Luna Lauren Vélez), who still don’t know their son’s secret identity and are growing increasingly concerned about his strange behavior.

Similar issues bedevil Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld), who by revealing to her police captain father (Shea Whigham) that she’s Spider-Woman has caused a huge rift in their relationship. (He blames her for Peter Parker’s death.)

When Miles and Gwen, stuck in worlds apart, meet again and swing in tandem through New York, they’re less a romantically linked Spidey pair than they are a couple of teenagers whose parents just don’t understand. When they sit together, on the underside of a ledge on the Williamsburgh Savings Bank Tower, gazing at an upside down Manhattan, hazy and blue in the distance, the lingering image perfectly encapsulates an electrifyingly downside-up movie franchise.

In its chaotic and jumbled way, “Across the Spider-Verse” keeps playing with these notions. Miles and Gwen, rightly, feel exceptional — that their problems are unique to being enormously gifted kids. But the movie again and again reinforced that, yes, they’re supremely talented, but, no, they’re far from alone. “I’m Spider-Woman,“ Gwen says when a pregnant superhero (Issa Rae) peels in on a motorbike. “Me, too,” she replies.

This being a “Spider-Verse” movie, though, there more than just a few Spider-Men lurking about. There are actually gobs of them, each from some parallel world. (Among those here are a Mumbai-like New York, a Lego land and a nightmarish alternate reality.) The portals start opening thanks to The Spot (Jason Schwartzman), a supervillain-in-training who looks like a splotchy blank page with ink drops on him.

But Spot’s powers grow, bringing the attention of the Spider-Society, a gaggle of Spider-People who guard over order in the multiverse. Some of them are pretty cool — most notably Daniel Kaluuya’s Spider-Punk, a British rocker who looks like he dropped out of The Clash. Others, like the leader Miguel O’Hara (Oscar Isaac), are more serious and haunted.

When worlds start colliding, prescribed storylines get upset. Seemingly anything goes in these multiverse realms, but, Miguel informs us, there is Canon that needs to be obeyed. Certain foundational narrative beats must occur, in some form, for every Spider-Man, including the sacrifice of a loved one.

When Miles tests these tenets, he brings about a cataclysmic battle across the Spider-Verse, and a movie series hellbent on deconstruction faces-off against formula. For Lord and Miller, the post-modern makers of “The Lego Movie” and “The Mitchells vs. The Machines,” it’s a battle they’ve been girding for their whole lives.

The danger in all these crisscrossing dimensions is that no reality seems to mean all that much. By exponentially multiplying worlds and Spider-Men, “Across the Spider-Verse” risks making itself dizzy. Yet it surprisingly, even movingly, stays true to the teenage emotions at its core and the parent-kid relationships driving all these multiverse convulsions.

It’s the first Marvel movie that I felt in the theater a palpable disappointment that it was over. (“Across the Spider-Verse” is a sequel in two parts, and ends here in full-on cliffhanger fashion.) That “Across the Spider-Verse” earned that response is surely partly due to its giddy design just as it is to its conviction that we all contain multitudes. As Rachel Dratch’s principal says in the film: “Every person is a universe.”

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse,” a Sony Pictures Animation release, is rated PG by the Motion Picture Association for sequences of animated action violence, some language and thematic elements. Running time: 117 minutes. Three and a half stars out of four.

___

Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP

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A former Playboy model submitted a lawsuit Thursday accusing Bill Cosby of drugging and raping her in 1969.

Victoria Valentino, 80, is suing Cosby, 85, for sexual assault and sexual battery in Los Angeles. The complaint arrives five months after California temporarily lifted the statute of limitations for adults who say they were sexually abused by another adult.

In the lawsuit, Valentino claims that the “I Spy” star approached her and a friend while they were getting dinner at Café Figaro in Los Angeles in 1969. The actor and singer — who had met Cosby while auditioning for an acting role earlier that year — was “inconsolably crying” over the death of her 6-year-old son when Cosby walked up to their table and engaged in conversation with her and her friend, the complaint alleges.

Cosby allegedly offered to pay for the women to get a steam bath and a massage at a nearby spa and vowed to “treat” them to dinner afterward. The TV actor later took the women to Sneaky Pete’s, a then-new steakhouse on the Sunset Strip, where he presented the women with pills and pretended to take one himself, the lawsuit claims.

“Here! Take This!” Cosby allegedly told Valentino and her friend. “It will make you feel better. It will make us ALL feel better.”

Shortly thereafter, Valentino’s “head began nodding and she struggled to keep her head up and stay awake,” the complaint states. Feeling nauseated and like her head was spinning, Valentino claims she said she wanted to go home.

Instead of taking the women home, Cosby then allegedly took them to his office, which contained work supplies, “I Spy” memorabilia and two small couches. The filing claims that Valentino’s friend “immediately passed out” on one of the couches while she sat down on the other and closed her eyes.

When she opened her eyes, Cosby was allegedly staring at her unconscious friend “with predatory intensity.” Valentino tried to distract Cosby after noticing he had an erection and fearing he was going to assault her friend, the lawsuit continues.

“Angry and exasperated by” Valentino’s attempts to stop him, Cosby allegedly began walking toward her instead “with a terrifying expression on his face” as she failed to stand up. He then allegedly unzipped his pants, sexually assaulted and raped Valentino.

In a statement provided Thursday to The Times, Cosby’s publicist, Andrew Wyatt, accused Valentino of going “from town to town promoting her alleged allegations against Mr. Cosby to anyone that would give her platform, without any proof or facts.” He dismissed Valentino’s claims as part of “a formula to make sure that no more Black Men in America accumulate the American Dream that was secured by [Cosby].”

Cosby’s rep also deemed legislation lifting the statute of limitations “a sheer violation of all American’s Constitutional Rights.”

“Statutes of Limitations reside in The Constitution, in order to protect those who are victims of a crime and to protect those that are accused of a crime,” Wyatt continued.

“Unfortunately, these ‘Look Back Windows’ are brought to life because our political figures are being driven by click-baiters, likes and followers, in order to excel to their political aspirations.”

Valentino is seeking unspecified monetary relief for medical and legal fees, among other expenses. But she told the Washington Post that her lawsuit is “about accountability,” not money.

“Rape steals something from you that cannot be repaired or restored,” said Valentino, who felt empowered to take legal action against Cosby after a New York jury found last month that former President Donald Trump had sexually assaulted journalist E. Jean Carroll.

“It impacts everything in your life,” Valentino added. “It’s like a stone dropped into a still pool and all of those expanding ripples touch shores you could never have imagined.”

Valentino previously accused Cosby of raping her before a Pennsylvania judge sentenced him to prison for sexual assault in 2018. At the time, Valentino called the day of the sentencing a “great day for women and a great day for rape survivors.”

Cosby was later released from prison after Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned the 2018 conviction because a former district attorney once promised Cosby he wouldn’t be charged in that case.

In June 2022, a Santa Monica jury determined that Cosby sexually abused Judy Huth at the Playboy Mansion in the 1970s when she was 16. The disgraced comedian was ordered to pay Huth $500,000.

At least 60 women have accused Cosby of sexual misconduct.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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A former Playboy model submitted a

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse opens in theaters tomorrow, although many cineplexes won’t wait.

Some are showing the film today! In fact, I’m leaving to watch the movie as soon as I finish this article!

The Across the Spider-Verse Collection

Miles Morales Jacket

Image: Marvel

For fans like me, the debut of the sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has been a long time coming.

Disney knows this and has prepared a staggering array of merchandise for fans like you and me!

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Backpack

Image: Marvel

Toy and clothing manufacturers have aligned to create truly epic gear for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

You can buy Spidey merchandise from Funko, Hasbro, Her Universe, Loungefly, Our Universe, shopDisney, and more!

Spider-Man Eyes Wallet

Image: Marvel

Let’s take a look at some of the terrific apparel, Funko POP!s, and more that you’ll be able to buy soon!

For instance, here’s the front of a Miles Morales jacket you can buy on Hot Topic for $89.90:

Miles Morales Jacket

Image: Marvel

But let’s say that you’re more of a Gwen Stacy fan. You’re gonna love everything released this week! Check this out:

Spider-Gwen hoodie

Image: Marvel

She looks cool!

Spider-Gwen Outfit Pose

Image: Marvel

You can also find plenty of t-shirts like this one for Spider-Man 2099:

Spider-Man 2099 Tee

Image: Marvel

This shirt costs $29.90 at my beloved Box Lunch.

Across the Spider-Verse Toys for Children (of All Ages)

Marvel wants kids to join in on the fun, too. Here’s a previously obscure Marvel character you’re about to adore:

Spider-Ghost costume

Image: Marvel

That’s Spider-Ghost! And that children’s costume gets even better in the dark!

Lit Up Spider-Ghost mask

Image: Marvel

That’s right! Spider-Ghost’s mask lights up! Disney has done some other cool tricks with masks as well. Here’s Spider-Punk:

Spider-Punk Mask

Image: Marvel

Childhood me would have lost his mind at a Spider-Man mask with horns!

Spider-Punk merch is definitely gonna be a thing this year. Just look at this:

Spider-Punk Web Blaster Guitar

Image: Marvel

That’s a Nerf toy that shoots spiderwebs from a guitar! Spider-Gwen gets her own Hasbro toy set, too:

Spider-Gwen blaster toy

Image: Marvel

Don’t worry, parents! The parts are perfectly safe:

Spider-Gwen blaster components

Image: Marvel

The Across the Spider-Verse Funkos

Personally, I’m here for the Funko POP!s. I already own hundreds of them, including every Spider-Gwen.

Generally, these POP!s have an MSRP of $12, and you can find them on Funko’s official site.

Amazon sometimes sells them cheaper, though. Here’s a look at the new ones:

 

 

Spider-Gwen Keychain Pop

Image: Marvel

The keychains are adorable, but I prefer the full-sized POP!s. Here’s Spider-Gwen’s latest iteration:

Gwen Stacy Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Of course, Miles Morales is the hero of the tale. So, he gets a miniature and a keychain as well:

Miles Morales as Spider-Man Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Miles Morales Keychain Pop

Image: Marvel

Meanwhile, The Spot will become the villain in the next two movies. His POP! is…hypnotic.

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse The Void Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Spider-Man 2099 will also become of the main characters in the next two films. His color scheme is gorgeous:

Spider-Man 2099 Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Perhaps the most visually interesting new characters are Spider-Man India:

Spider-Man India Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

The new Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman:

Across the Spider-Verse Jessica Drew Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

and the one I know the least, Spider-Byte. This character’s hair is 10 out of 10, would recommend.

Spider-Byte Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Still, I’m a Spider-Gwen loyalist, and I love this Gwen Stacy pose as a normal teenager:

Gwen Stacy Student Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Across the Spider-Verse Figurines

Meanwhile, the sheer volume of Spider-Punk merch suggests that Marvel holds great expectations for the character:

Spider-Punk Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Spider-Punk Vinyl Funko Pop

Image: Marvel

Hasbro has also designed a movable Spider-Gwen, complete with interchangeable hand gestures!

Marvel Legends Spider-Gwen

Image: Marvel

Jessica Drew gets one of these, too:

Across the Spider-Verse Jessica Drew Figurine

Image: Marvel

Then, there’s this character. I’ve literally never heard of Cyborg Spider-Woman until this moment, but I’m choosing her as my fighter.

Cyborg Spider-Woman Figurine

Image: Marvel

The MSRP on these toys is $24.99. Again, you can usually find them on Amazon for cheaper, though.

Finally, collectors take note! You can also buy a complete collection of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse figurines:

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Deluxe Figure Set

Image: Marvel

The full set costs $26.99 on shopDisney.

All in all, this merchandise line looks so good that I weep for my bank account.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some Spider-Gwens to buy…

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Spider-Man: Across the

I was inordinately excited for Hideaki Anno’s very long-awaited Shin Kamen Rider. Not only a 50th anniversary tribute to the 1971 original Kamen Rider series—delayed because of the darn pandemic—but another entry in the writer-producer’s reimaginings of Japanese pop culture legends. Shin Godzilla, which he co-directed with Shinji Higuchi, was the first truly singular Japanese Godzilla movie in decades. Shin Ultraman, which Higuchi solo directed, was a lovely and touching update of the 1966 original series. So a new take on the o.g. Kamen Rider, of which I’m a big fan, made me hope it would be the best yet. It isn’t. It’s not bad; but if you’re looking to get into Kamen Rider, or even see what it’s all about, this ain’t it.

Toei Company

The legendary mangaka Shotaro Ishinomori created Kamen Rider for TV in the early ’70s. During its initial 98-episode run, the style and tone changed pretty drastically. Starting as a dark, moody horror-inspired superhero show, it eventually lightened up considerably. The lead character changed, then changed back, and the legend of cybernetic, insect-themed motorcyclist grew. Anno tried to squeeze too much of that into a single two-hour film. The pace is about 20 mph over breakneck. As a result, the movie loses a lot of nuance, especially in the baddie department.

Shin Kamen Rider begins literally in the middle of a chase. Ruriko Midorikawa (Minami Hamabe) and Hongo Takeshi (Sôsuke Ikematsu) speed away on a motorcycle away from big semi-trucks. Only after they get away to a safehouse do we, and Hongo, get a sense of what’s going on. Ruriko is the daughter of Professor Hiroshi Midorikawa (cult filmmaker Shin’ya Tsukamoto). The professor is a scientist working for the SHOCKER organization, who had promised to help humanity but, go figure, are actually plotting to steal humanity’s life force via human cyborgs with animal themes.

Evil Spider in Shin Kamen Rider.
Toei Company

Midorikawa and Ruriko have decided to thwart SHOCKER and designed the latest cyborg, Hongo, to fight them as the Masked Rider. From there, we begin a succession of Hongo and Ruriko attempting to fight the various other “Augs” with beast themes. These follow roughly the same order as the first 13 episodes of the series. A spider, bat, scorpion, chameleon, mantis, and wasp all trek through quickly. All the while, the pair get closer without ever really speaking above a low monotone.

Part-way through the movie, we meet Ichimonji Hayato (Tasuku Emoto), a second grasshopper-themed cyborg whom SHOCKER has successfully brainwashed. People who know the original series will know that he doesn’t remain brainwashed for long.

It’s entirely possible that via reading this you’ve realized one of the major problems with Shin Kamen Rider: way too much plot but almost no story. It’s just learning about the evils of SHOCKER, quick banter with the various kaijin one-by-one, a high-velocity fight sequence, rinse, repeat. On the surface, this is not entirely a bad way to do it, but this outline totally misses some of the best parts of every Kamen Rider episodes. The build up to the showdown, seeing the villain do villainous things is more than half the fun. Yes, the show hangs its hat on its hand-to-hand fight sequences, its monster designs, and the visceral thrill of seeing Kamen Rider in action. But we need to know the stakes and care about the characters for any of it to matter.

Takeshi Hongo wears his bug-like motorcycle helmet and looks at his mutating hand in the trailer for Shin Kamen Rider.
Toei Company

I don’t want to compare Shin Kamen Rider to Shin Godzilla or Shin Ultraman too much, but I think the other major problem is entirely down to them. This movie uses the same cinematographers as the previous two movies and has largely the same style of shooting. Government types sit around computers or talk in rooms while big monsters attack and/or a big alien hero fights them.

As a property, Kamen Rider does not lend itself to this type of depiction at all. The action sequences work decently, but are way too dependent on CGI rather than the hallmark of the franchise, which is martial arts battles heightened to a ridiculous degree. Hongo even finds himself tentatively working with anti-SHOCKER government types, which simply does not fit. The surveillance-style shooting that worked so well for Godzilla and Ultraman just doesn’t work here. We need more atmosphere, we need passion and scares. We need some kind of heart! It felt surprisingly cold.

Hongo Takeshi stands as the titular hero in Shin Kamen Rider.
Toei Company

This isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy it at all. The redesigns of the suits are excellent, the sounds and music are all spot-on. I really like the subtle way the beginning of the movie focuses on extreme violence and slowly it becomes less monstrous by the end, much the same way the show did. And moments certainly made the rabid fans I saw it with cheer. References and allusions to the classic series (and other Ishinomori creations) are fun for those who get them. Would it matter at all to anyone who doesn’t?

And maybe that’s ultimately the reason Shin Ultraman spent a year in the festival circuit before becoming a Fathom Event while Shin Kamen Rider bypassed festivals entirely. This isn’t the kind of movie that encapsulates the ethos of the show while replicating some of the best episodes. This movie is for people who know Kamen Rider already and just want to see people put on and take off helmets 500 times while punching viscera out of thugs like so many juiced memberberries.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

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I was inordinately excited for

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a big escalation from the first movie. Last time out, we mostly hung out in Miles Morales’ home dimension–but now, Miles is going all the way down the multidimensional rabbit hole, and he’s going to find some things he really doesn’t like down there.

Warning: This article contains major spoilers for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, including the full details of how it ends.

Across the Spider-Verse makes its intentions known right from the start, with a lengthy opening sequence that takes place in Gwen’s universe, Earth-65. We get Gwen’s backstory, with the tragic tale of her universe’s Peter Parker, and how his death eventually led her to the cross-dimensional Spider-Society.

Then we catch up with Miles, who hasn’t seen any of the other Spider-folks in over a year. He encounters and fights a new villain named The Spot, who has dimensional portals on his body, and not long after that, Gwen shows up. She’s after The Spot, but visits with Miles while she’s there. She tells Miles he’s not allowed to be in the Spider-Society, then tracks The Spot to a dimension where Earth is dominated by an extremely awesome Mega City called Mumbattan (that’s a portmanteau of Mumbai and Manhattan).

Miles sneakily follows her through a dimensional portal and ends up fighting alongside Gwen, Spider-Woman Jessica Drew, Spider-Punk, and Spider-Man Pavitr Prabhakar as they face off against The Spot in Mumbattan. The battle results in a sort of draw, as The Spot gets what he wants, but the Spider-People manage to save everybody. However, they may have saved too many, it turns out. We’ll circle back to that.

Since Miles is already with them, the gang brings Miles back to Spider-Society HQ in Neuva York, 2099. Here we meet Spider-Man 2099, Miguel O’Hara–the boss of the Spider-Society and an all-around cranky guy. Miguel explains that Miles is the catalyst for all sorts of multiversal chaos, because he was bitten by a radioactive spider that wasn’t from his home dimension–he’s from Earth-1610, and that spider was from Earth-42.

The consequence of that, Miguel says, is that that spider’s home dimension has no Spider-Man, and that the Peter Parker from Miles’s world, who died in an early scene in the first movie, would have lived and defeated Kingpin during that scene had that spider not bitten Miles. And so, in essence, all this Spider-madness traces back to Miles–and that is why he wasn’t supposed to be a part of the Spider-Society.

Miguel then describes how every Spider-person has to go through essentially one or more of the same group of personal tragedies–specifically the deaths of a parental figure (like uncle Ben), a love interest (like Gwen/Peter), and/or a police captain the person is close to (like both Gwen’s and Miles’s fathers). In Mumbattan, Miles saves Pavitr’s girlfriend’s dad, police Captain Singh–this was supposed to be Pavitr’s first big tragic moment. And Miguel says that because Singh is still alive, Mumbattan’s dimension might unravel.

To keep Miles from causing any more perceived problems, Miguel wants to lock him up until his dad, a police lieutenant about to be promoted to captain, is murdered. Miles goes on the run in a delightful chase sequence through the Spider-Society building, before attempting to use the “go home machine”–which detects which dimension you belong to and sends you there.

But instead of sending him home to Earth-1610, the machine drops him in Earth-42, the reality his spider was from that has no Spider-Man. Miles doesn’t realize he’s in the wrong place at first, but then he sees his Uncle Aaron, who died in the last movie. He tries to play it cool, but Aaron immediately realizes he’s the wrong Miles–and moments later he’s tied up and facing the Prowler. But this time, the Prowler isn’t Aaron. In this dimension, Miles is the Prowler. And he’s got a very bad and sinister vibe.

Gwen, recognizing where Miles ended up, also decides to take matters into her own hands, going rogue to assemble a team of Spiders (including Spider-Ham, who had been absent to this point) to invade Earth-42 and save Miles. And that’s when Across the Spider-Verse hits us with the “To Be Continued.”

Does Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse have a post-credits scene?

No. There is no additional content after the credits start rolling, beyond a “Miles Morales will return in Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse” title card during the part of the credits where a mid-credits scene would normally go. If you really need to hit the bathroom when the credits start–understandable, since the movie is 140 minutes long–you can do so without worrying you’re going to miss anything.

What does “Beyond the Spider-Verse” even mean?

You’re going to be tempted to assume that the third movie’s title refers to the story moving outside the scope of this spider-oriented multiverse into some kind of greater context. Like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, for example. But I think the title means something else. I think that title is referring directly to Earth-42, the dimension that has no Spider-Being. It’s notable that Earth-42 does not exist in the comics–it’s the only dimension in the film that’s original to the movie. That puts Earth-42 outside the Spider-Verse in a very literal sense.

Does that preclude any sort of MCU shenanigans in the next movie? Nope. Across the Spider-Verse directly references the MCU twice, first when Miguel obliquely mentions the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home and then again when we see Donald Glover’s version of Uncle Aaron in a Prowler suit locked up at the Spider-Society. It’s been a minute, so in case you forgot: Glover played Davis in a brief appearance in Spider-Man: Homecoming.

The MCU never has any real interjections into the plot, though, and Sony has shown over and over that they want to keep full creative control of as much of their Marvel stuff as they can. That likely precludes any kind of significant MCU story crossover, but cameos and Easter eggs on the level of Donald Glover’s appearance in this film (two scenes and a couple lines) should still be possible.

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The Tribeca Festival, which gets under way Wednesday in New York, has announced members of the jury who will decide winners in 15 award categories.

The jury roster of several dozen includes Brendan Fraser, Stephanie Hsu, Zoey Deutch, Dianna Agron, Zazie Beetz, Kate Siegel, Mark Duplass, Stephen Kay, Nina Dobrev, Clea DuVall, Piper Perabo, Chance the Rapper, Noah Centineo, Jeremy O. Harris, Andrew Ahn and Chloe Grace Moretz. Along with the competitive categories, the Nora Ephron Award will be presented in the memory of the filmmaker and writer.

While the festival removed the word “film” from its name several years ago to reflect its broad range of offerings in games, podcasts, music and other areas, the film slate has continued as an identifying aspect of the event. This year’s U.S. narrative feature jury includes Hsu, Ramin Bahrani, Zoey Deutch, Mike Flanagan and Tommy Oliver; the international feature jury includes Fraser, Zazie Beetz, Alfredo Jaar, Shirin Neshat and Kate Siegel; and the documentary feature jury includes Mark Duplass, Adam Goldberg, Stephanie Linus, Alexandra Pelosi and Ryan White.

Award categories span narrative and documentary features and shorts as well as the immersive Storyscapes vertical, games and audio storytelling. Winners will be announced June 15. The festival runs June 7 to 18.

The Tribeca Festival was founded in 2001 by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff. In 2019, James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems bought a majority stake in festival parent Tribeca Enterprises. After a year in virtual mode in 2020 due to Covid, the 2021 edition was the first North American festival to be held in person coming out of the pandemic. The last two Tribecas have unfolded in June, a change from the festival’s longtime berth in April. Organizers have indicated the new timing offers a lot of upside, including more favorable weather in New York, which helps with attendance and logistics for the many outdoor events typically on the schedule.

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The Tribeca Festival, which gets under way

This story about “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” first appeared in the Race Begins issue of TheWrap’s Emmy magazine.

Davis Guggenheim, the Oscar-winning director of “An Inconvenient Truth” and “Waiting for Superman,” has made an intimate chronicle of Michael J. Fox’s meteoric rise to TV and film stardom in the 1980s, followed by his shocking diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease. In keeping with Fox’s usual approach, “Still” is light instead of ponderous, even as it delves into the inexorable progression of a disease about which Fox’s doctor told him, “You lose this one.”

How did you get involved with this movie?
It was during COVID. I was in a rut, I hadn’t had a movie that excited me in a while. And I read this interview with Michael in the New York Times. Of course he was funny, but his storytelling was so strong that I said, “I gotta read his books.” And after I read his books, I approached him and he was very open right away. The only thing he said was, “No violins.” That was the only note he gave me in the three years that we made this.

So does the score have any violins?
Well, it’s funny. I did panic. We were in the mixing stage with the composer, John Powell, who had never done a documentary before. One of my favorite parts was with one violin [laughs] and I thought, “I hope Michael was talking metaphorically.”

You tell Michael’s story in a variety of ways, often accompanied by his readings from his audiobooks. There are reenactments at times, and also clips from his movies and TV shows that serve as a kind of playful autobiography of sorts.
Sometimes when you’re making a movie, you say, “God, I hope there are no battles.” But a conflict-free movie is a boring movie. And [editor] Michael Harte and I had a battle, which was, “How do you express these moments in Michael’s life when there’s no archives?”

My solution was reenactments, which we shot up in Vancouver. And his solution was Michael’s movies and TV shows. I would storyboard a scene for reenactments, and he would cut over the storyboards with footage from a movie or TV show. We’d go back and forth. Sometimes I would win and sometimes he would win. It was really tricky — and he never wanted to do this, but I would screen the movie every two weeks to learn what the audience would accept. Those battles were essential.

But you also had one-on-one interviews with a very open and honest Michael J. Fox. 
My first instinct was not to do any interviews. I thought it was going to be totally re-creation and archive. But I did a commercial where I was introduced to a shot where you could sit really close to a person you were interviewing. You’re, like, four feet away. We were looking right into each other’s eyes and laughing, and I was asking tough questions. It’s very intimate and raw and real in a way that I didn’t imagine. And it was so good that we just kept going back to it. We did six interviews over more than a year. You see his decline in those interviews, you know?

Toward the end, you also confront him with a blunt statement: You’ve never told me that you’re in pain.
We had a full movie, which we’d shown to people and was pretty great. But I had seen him struggle, seen bruises on his face, seen pictures of him in emergency rooms — but he never talked about being in pain. And so I was like, “I’m gonna do one more interview. I’m gonna confront him.” And he’s like, “You didn’t bring it up. I’m not gonna lead with it.”

You said you were in a rut when you first approached Michael. Did that change over the course of this film?
Making this movie changed my life in a fundamental way. It brought the joy back into my filmmaking. You start directing by rote when you get to a certain age. I’m turning 60 in November, and there’s a little bit of “poor me.” [Laughs] I feel more fragile, my kids are leaving, I feel like my best days are behind me. And Michael’s attitude towards his own life has helped reinvigorate me. This movie has changed my life and Michael has changed my life.

Read more from the Race Begins issue here.

Diego Luna, Melanie Lynskey, Dominique Fishback - TheWrap Magazine Cover "Genre TV Strikes Back"
TheWrap Race Begins issue with Diego Luna, Melanie Lynskey and Dominique Fishback/Photo by Jeff Vespa for TheWrap

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This story about “Still: A Michael J.

Darth Vader is one hell of a personal trainer. (We’ll get to that in a second.) Used to be if you wanted a jacked actor, you had to dig up a retired athlete. Johnny Weissmuller and Jim Brown slid into the movies on account of their intimidating bodies. But when you cast ex-wrestlers like Thor Johnson or Norbert Grupe (Vigo the Carpathian), it was for the role of the goon or the bad guy, not as the big-name ticket-seller.


In an interview with David Letterman in 1985, Arnold Schwarzenegger recounted his struggle to get anyone in Hollywood to take him seriously on account of his proportions, yet he was confident that his background would open doors for him in a crowded business. “You have a weird body … Just go back to body-building,” an agent told him in the seventies. A half century later, hitting the gym and achieving that Mr. Olympian physique is precisely the secret to securing a giant payday.

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Old-time beefcakes of the fifties like Burt Lancaster and Marlon Brando wouldn’t even stand out in a Hollywood casting call, and if anything, probably get some insulting comments for their lack of abdominal definition and lifting technique. The uncomfortable truth is that it has probably gone too far. Dwayne Johnson doesn’t even look that big today. If Die Hard was made today, Bruce Willis would be laughed out of the room by casting directors.


Breaking the Taboo

Warner Bros.

Christopher Reeve, refusing to wear a padded suit, packed on the pounds when thrust into the Superman role. It was a little risky, audiences appreciating a buff male hero, but not one that could play Hercules. Superman director, Richard Donner, mocked him as too lanky. To ensure he had a fitting hero to look good in the blue and red spandex, Donner called up David Prowse, the guy in the Darth Vader suit, to help Reeve get fit. “During the course of the period I had him, I took him from 170 pounds when we started and he was 212 [pounds] when he went into the suit,” Prowse boasted. Sure, Sly Stallone could go nuts in his personal gym to bulk up for a Rambo sequel, he was already famous, and was specializing in action movies, but it was still out of the ordinary.

Related: Arnold Schwarzenegger Names His Most Underrated Movie

In perspective, when Stallone made Rocky in 1976, he was considered a lunkhead though he would probably be considered out of shape by modern action-hero standards. When Saturday Night Live standout Joe Piscopo got shredded people looked at him like a freak of nature. “Some people in Hollywood think I’m nuts with this bodybuilding stuff,” he said, accurately predicting the end of his career. Yes, Joe Piscopo was a visionary ahead of his time. Quote us on that.

In 1998, the thought of Robert Downey Jr. — the guy who won acclaim playing Charlie Chaplin, drug addicts, and shlubby journalists — saving his career by getting a six-pack in his 40s was completely unimaginable. The trend toward muscles was lagging only slightly behind the artistic curve: superhero movies. Take a good look at any script exchanging hands in Hollywood, and you’ll see creatine-smudged fingerprints.

Jacking Up

wolverine first appearance in x-men 1
20th Century Fox

Long before pudgy comedian Kumail Nanjiani summoned his inner giga-Chad for his role in Eternals, Hugh Jackman really popularized the trend of male actors putting their bodies where their paycheck was. His first outing in X-Men as Wolverine looks puny compared to his later films, leading to some allegations his ridiculous gains were the result of steroids.

The same could be said for Tom Hardy, with a tendency toward actors going for more muscle mass rather than settling for the mundane appearance of an athlete. Chris Evans and Chris Pratt turned themselves from goofy side characters into leading men through the one most reliable method possible, hitting the leg press and downing plenty of protein bars. The next Best Actor-winner will rightfully need to thank his spotter before his agent when he picks up that Oscar.

Related: Hugh Jackman Training Clip Welcomes Us to New Installment of Becoming Wolverine Again

Will anyone ever accept a guy like Michael Keaton as Batman again after we’ve seen Robert Pattinson and Christian Bale go the Adonis route? Even Zac Efron has attempted to alter his persona from prancing high schooler with a Justin-Beiber haircut to a living Rob Liefeld drawing. Maybe he’s filming a Lou Ferrigno biopic or something.One is thing certain, this guy’s on a first-name basis with the cashier at the local GNC. The arms race shows no sign of relenting any time soon.

The Other Gender Gap

Thor-Love-and-Thunder-Trailer
Marvel Studios

Interestingly, while it is all but essential for a man to get shredded to nab a superhero role, women don’t need to bother. For her turn as Mighty Thor, Natalie Portman let the CGI crew do the heavy lifting for her, digitally adding biceps and abs, pasting muscles onto her body, which had to be a little infuriating for every man who was pressured to push his body the extra mile to get extra definition. She tried, but still needed a lot of help from the special effects to make her seem imposing. Based on the results, it might be the last time. There’s still no reason for her to put herself through the strain when the emphasis on muscular women is so minute. Don’t expect Gal Gadot or Brie Larson to do so either. The mesomorphic look is necessary only for men.

For whatever reason, either out of personal preference or vanity, this one issue is a glaring contradiction to the notion of gender standards. Because if you’re a young actor today, the possibility of landing a gig in an action film with a body like Roger Moore or Errol Flynn is nil. It’s enough to make you nostalgic for the Jack Nicholson-days when a guy with a receding hairline, a wacky laugh, and no upper body could headline as a tough guy. Now, even an established TV star and 60-year-old writer like Bill Odenkirk feels compelled to get cut to have any chance of ever starring in a mainstream movie. Drama kids, the writing is on the wall; dump the Stanislavski classes and get some kettlebells already before it’s too late.

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Darth Vader is one hell of a

AMC Theatres has transferred its streaming library over to Fandango’s Vudu as the theater chain prepares to sunset its own streaming platform, AMC Theatres On Demand.

Beginning Thursday, AMC Theatres On Demand users will be able to transfer their accounts over to Vudu to rent and purchase films, as well as view previously purchased movies. New Vudu users transferring over from AMC Theatres On Demand will receive a 15 percent discount off every purchase during their first month using the service.

Vudu’s catalog, combined with AMC Theatre’s library, will give users access to more than 200,000 new releases and a collection of titles that are available to watch for free. Movies that were previously purchased on AMC Theatres On Demand will also automatically get upgraded to the highest quality format on Vudu, which could include 4K Ultra HD on applicable programming.

The move over to Vudu comes four years after AMC launched its own on-demand streaming platform in late 2019 to allow AMC Stubs members to rent and buy movies at home, with prices ranging from the $3 to $6 range for rentals and $10 to $20 for purchases.

Since then, the theater chain is recovering from economic challenges in part driven by changing moviegoing habits brought on by the pandemic. In May, the company reported first quarter losses reaching $235.5 million while revenue rose to $954.4 million.

“As the first theatrical exhibitor in the United States to bring first-rate films through the life cycle from theatres to home, we at AMC take pride in having served our guests through a multitude of platforms during the pandemic,” Nikkole Denson-Randolph, AMC’s svp content strategy and inclusive programming, said in a statement. “As we continue to evolve our business and remain focused on Making Movies Better by enhancing the theatrical experience, we’re even more excited to expand our relationship with a trusted partner, who will ensure a continued preeminent experience for those consumers who are streaming their post-theatrical movies at home.”

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AMC Theatres has transferred its streaming library

Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any individual contender. As other formal (and informal) polls suggest, competitions are fluid and subject to change based on buzz and events. Predictions are updated every Thursday.

Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:

OSCARS | EMMYS | GRAMMYS | TONYS

UPDATED: June 1, 2023

2023 Emmy Predictions:
Outstanding Documentary of Nonfiction (Series)

Courtesy of Philippe Le Tellier/Paris Match via Getty Images

Weekly Commentary: Netflix’s “Harry & Meghan” and HBO’s “100 Foot Wave” look to have the buzz at the moment. FX’s “Dear Mama: The Saga of Afeni and Tupac Shakur” and CNN’s “The Last Movie Stars” are critical darlings on the circuit and are in the discussion.

Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions in all categories.

Emmy Nominations voting runs from June 15-26. The Primetime Emmy nominations will be announced on July 12. Check back every Thursday for the latest updates. All information is preliminary and is subject to change.

2022 winner — “The Beatles: Get Back” (Disney+)


And the Predicted Nominees Are:


  1. “Harry & Meghan” (Netflix)
  2. “100 Foot Wave” (HBO)
  3. “Dear Mama: The Saga of Afeni and Tupac Shakur” (FX)
  4. “The Last Movie Stars” (CNN)
  5. “The U.S. and the Holocaust” (PBS)

Next in Line


  1. “The 1619 Project” (Hulu)
  2. “The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy” (Apple TV+)
  3. “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal” (Netflix)
  4. “MH370: The Plant That Disappeared” (Netflix)
  5. “Prehistoric Planet 2” (Apple TV+)

Other Top-Tier Possibilities


  1. “Gutsy” (Apple TV+)
  2. “The Secrets of Hillsong” (FX)
  3. “Secrets of the Elephants” (National Geographic)
  4. “Mind Over Murder” (HBO)
  5. “Menudo: Forever Young” (HBO)
  6. “My Kind of Country” (Apple TV+)
  7. “Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence” (Hulu)
  8. “Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World” (CNN)
  9. “2010s” (CNN)
  10. “Voices Rising: The Music of Wakanda Forever” (Disney+)


2023 Emmy Predictions:
Outstanding Documentary of Nonfiction (Special)

STILL: A MICHAEL J. FOX MOVIE, Michael J. Fox, 2023. © Apple Original Films /Courtesy Everett Collection
©Apple TV/Courtesy Everett Collection

Weekly Commentary: Michael J. Fox, Pamela Anderson, Judy Blume, Robert Downey Jr, Selena Gomez and Lizzo are in a competitive race for outstanding documentary (special).

Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions in all categories.

Emmy Nominations voting runs from June 15-26. The Primetime Emmy nominations will be announced on July 12. Check back every Thursday for the latest updates. All information is preliminary and is subject to change.

2022 winner — “George Carlin’s American Dream” (HBO)


And the Predicted Nominees Are:


  1. “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” (Apple TV+)
  2. “Pamela: A Love Story” (Netflix)
  3. “Judy Blume Forever” (Prime Video)
  4. “Sr.” (Netflix)
  5. “Love, Lizzo” (HBO)

Next in Line


  1. “Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me” (Apple TV+)
  2. “The Volcano: Rescue From Whakaari” (Netflix)
  3. “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields” (Hulu)
  4. “If These Walls Could Sing” (Disney+)
  5. “Sidney” (Apple TV+)

Other Top-Tier Possibilities


  1. “Love to Love You: Donna Summer” (HBO)
  2. “The Princess” (HBO)
  3. “Being Mary Tyler Moore” (HBO)
  4. “Bama Rush” (HBO)
  5. “The Sound of 007” (Prime Video)
  6. “The New York Times Presents The Sin Eater: The Crimes of Anthony Pellicano” (FX)
  7. “Music Box: Jason Isbell: Running With Our Eyes Closed” (HBO)
  8. “Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over” (CNN)
  9. “Untrapped – The Story of Lil Baby” (Prime Video)
  10. “Hi, I’m Nancy Rubin” (Magnolia)

2023 Emmy Predictions:
Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special

CNN

Weekly Commentary: CNN could dominate this category with three high-profile contenders — “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy,” “United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell” and “Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico.” Will they be able to get all three recognized?

It may be difficult with Showtime’s “Vice” and Netflix’s “Somebody Feed Phil” in the running.

Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions in all categories.

Emmy Nominations voting runs from June 15-26. The Primetime Emmy nominations will be announced on July 12. Check back every Thursday for the latest updates. All information is preliminary and is subject to change.

2022 winner — “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy” (CNN)


And the Predicted Nominees Are:


  1. “Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy” (CNN)
  2. “United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell” (CNN)
  3. “My Next Guest with David Letterman and Volodymyr Zelenskyy” (Netflix)
  4. “Vice” (Showtime)
  5. “Somebody Feed Phil” (Netflix)

Next in Line


  1. “Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico” (CNN)
  2. “The Light We Carry: Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey” (Netflix)
  3. “SmartLess: On the Road” (HBO)
  4. “Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss” (Peacock)
  5. “Great White Open Ocean” (Discovery)

2023 Emmy Predictions:
Outstanding Exceptional Merit

Descendant
Courtesy of Participant/Netflix

Weekly Commentary: A juried category but this is where the most buzzy films bubble to the top. The former Oscar contenders such as Netflix’s “Descendant,” HBO’s “Moonage Daydream” and Paramount’s “Last Flight Home” are beloved.

National Geographic’s “Wild Life” from “Free Solo” directors Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi is a wonderful tribute to conservationists Kris and Doug Tompkins.

Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions in all categories.

Emmy Nominations voting runs from June 15-26. The Primetime Emmy nominations will be announced on July 12. Check back every Thursday for the latest updates. All information is preliminary and is subject to change.


And the Predicted Nominees Are:


  1. “Descendant” (Netflix)
  2. “Moonage Daydream” (HBO)
  3. “Wild Life” (National Geographic)
  4. “Last Flight Home” (Paramount+)
  5. “Katrina Babies” (HBO)

Next in Line


  1. “Aftershock” (Hulu)
  2. “Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down” (CNN)
  3. “American Pain” (CNN/HBO)
  4. “Stutz” (Netflix)
  5. “Afghan Dreamers” (Paramount+)


Emmy Awards Predictions Categories

DRAMA SERIES | COMEDY SERIES | LIMITED OR ANTHOLOGY SERIES | TV MOVIE | LEAD ACTOR (DRAMA) | LEAD ACTOR (COMEDY) | LEAD ACTOR (LIMITED/TV MOVIE) | LEAD ACTRESS (DRAMA) | LEAD ACTRESS (COMEDY) | LEAD ACTRESS (LIMITED/TV MOVIE) | SUPPORTING ACTOR (DRAMA) | SUPPORTING ACTOR (COMEDY) | SUPPORTING ACTOR (LIMITED/TV MOVIE) | SUPPORTING ACTRESS (DRAMA) | SUPPORTING ACTRESS (COMEDY) | SUPPORTING ACTRESS (LIMITED/TV MOVIE) | TALK SERIES | SCRIPTED VARIETY | GAME SHOW | DIRECTING (DRAMA, COMEDY, LIMITED/TV MOVIE) | WRITING (DRAMA, COMEDY, LIMITED/TV MOVIE) | REALITY (COMPETITION, STRUCTURED, UNSTRUCTURED, HOST)

Creative Arts and Other Emmy Categories

GUEST ACTOR (DRAMA) | GUEST ACTRESS (DRAMA) | GUEST ACTOR (COMEDY) | GUEST ACTRESS (COMEDY) | VOICE-OVER | SHORT FORM | DOCUMENTARY | MUSIC | ANIMATED |

About the Primetime Emmy Awards

The Primetime Emmy Awards, better known as the Emmys, are given out by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). Since 1949, the awards have recognized excellence in American primetime television programming. They are divided into three classes – Primetime Emmy Awards, the Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards (honors artisan achievements), and the Primetime Engineering Emmy Awards (recognizes significant engineering and technological contributions). The typical eligibility period is between June 1 and May 31 of any given year. The Television Academy comprises over 25,000 members, representing 30 professional peer groups, including performers, directors, producers, art directors, artisans, and executives.

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Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all

Pictured: Brit, 50, who died after falling down steps at his Lanzarote bar ‘during a fight with ‘troublemaker’ German expat’

  • A British man has died in hospital after a fight in Lanzarote, Spain
  • A man is being investigated on suspicion of homicide, officials have confirmed 

Tributes have been paid to a British bar owner who died in Lanzarote after allegedly being pushed down a flight of steps during a fight.

Chris Thomas, 50, died a day after being rushed to hospital following the incident in the early hours of Sunday morning.

A German man aged 46 and described locally as a troublemaker who had reportedly been banned from several bars and pubs in the island resort of Costa Teguise, is in custody.

He was arrested on suspicion of homicide and has been remanded in jail pending an ongoing investigation after appearing before a judge on Monday.

Friends and loved ones described London-born expat Chris as caring, loving and funny in social media tributes today.

Chris Thomas (pictured), 50, died a day after being rushed to hospital following the incident in the early hours of Sunday morning

Friends and loved ones described London-born expat Chris Thomas (pictured) as caring, loving and funny in social media tributes today

Friends and loved ones described London-born expat Chris Thomas (pictured) as caring, loving and funny in social media tributes today

Dozens of Brits have left messages on the Facebook page of The Clock, the bar Chris owned and which remains closed following the tragedy.

Ken Moore wrote: ‘A huge hole has been left in our hearts and minds. A true gentleman. A lovely man. A great character. A smile that would light up any room.

‘The world has lost someone very special. He will be missed by so many.’

He added: ‘It was a pleasure and privilege to have you as a friend.’

Jen Blackburn wrote: ‘I’ve no words that could possibly help at this truly devastating time. So incredibly sorry that you should all be facing such a tragic loss. Chris was a friend to all…One of life’s real good guys. His passing will be felt so strongly by so many. I feel privileged to have known him and shared so many laughs. My heart goes out to all of you and you will all be in my thoughts.’

Stacey Lee said: ‘So sad to hear this, one thing I always noticed about Chris was his amazing smile and twinkle in his eye, may you rest in peace Chris.’

Calling him ‘caring, lovely and funny’ Tracy Wiles wrote: ‘We all will never be the same again, but every day you will be in our thoughts you beautiful man. Love you so much Chris and now our friend.’

View of Costa Teguise, a touristic resort on Lanzarote island, Spain (Stock image)

View of Costa Teguise, a touristic resort on Lanzarote island, Spain (Stock image)

Confirming it was currently closed, staff at The Clock said in a social media message: ‘As you may well be aware now or soon. We have lost Chris. The Clock is closed.

‘We will keep you informed.’

One local report said the incident that led to Chris’s death happened at The Clock, but well-placed sources said it had occurred at a nearby commercial centre by a fast food restaurant.

Police were called shortly after 3am on Sunday and assisted in providing emergency medical assistance before making the arrest.

The dead man’s parents are believed to live in Lanzarote although he has siblings thought to be based in the UK.

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This story about the docuseries “Stolen Youth” originally ran in the Race Begins issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine.

In 2019, a tight close-up of a middle-aged man’s chubby face dominated the cover of New York magazine. His eyes stared gently — though with absolute power — right at us. The article inside described the shocking story of Larry Ray, who moved into his daughter’s dorm building at Sarah Lawrence College and proceeded to systematically brainwash several students into a forced-labor and sex-trafficking cult.

The whole saga is told in “Stolen Youth,” a three-episode Hulu series that examines the sordid details of the Ray case. He was convicted on 15 criminal counts in 2022. But the show also offers an empathetic platform for his victims, some still in the throes of Ray’s mind control. Oscar-nominated director Zachary Heinzerling (“Cutie and the Boxer”) talked about his approach to this complex, tangled web.

“Stolen Youth” (Hulu)

There are many crimes at the center of this story, but it doesn’t feel like a true-crime series. Was that a genre that you were resisting?
When you think about the details of that New York magazine article, there’s the sheer shocking and bizarre factor of it. It doesn’t seem real. But I’m not someone who’s used to doing true crime, and this didn’t necessarily feel like that for me. I like projects where I can discover the story through the process of making it and where the subjects can gain perspective on their lives. This had those elements. 

You avoid showing experts talking about the phenomenon of cults and how victims can be drawn in. Was that deliberate?
That was incredibly top of mind. The goal was to have these people in Larry’s world, who I found to be eloquent, intelligent people, explain the situation themselves. And I felt that they were really good at describing the elements of control that they faced, using their own voices. It humanized their experience. 

In the third episode, you interview a woman named Isabella, who’s free from Larry but still under his spell. It seems like a delicate situation for you as a filmmaker.
It’s interesting. I got feedback from other director friends during the process of making this and, especially in regards to Isabella, they’ve asked me, “Why didn’t you push harder at her?” I thought carefully about this and I was in touch with cult experts and cult interventionists the whole time — but for me, the way I’ve done every project has been about meeting people where they are. So with Isabella, if all I did was challenge her, I felt it could have had a reverse effect, where she would feel the need to strengthen her conviction. I didn’t want to act like I knew so much more than her or was some kind of authority figure. So I was listening in a nonjudgmental way.

We were constantly trying to fight the idea that the victims were responsible. Cult survivors get asked, “How could you let this happen?” It’s insensitive and naive to think that people “join a cult.” At the time, it appears positive and helpful. We are naturally trusting as humans and don’t immediately think that the person offering to help us is an insidious psychopath.

What’s really crazy is how much incriminating audio and video content you include of Larry. It seemed like he recorded everything. Were there thousands of hours of stuff? 
Hundreds of hours, for sure. And there was audio and video that was much worse, which we did not include, if you can even imagine. The archival recording is essential because it’s so real. Larry was all about “the truth,” and there is no easier way of stamping the truth to his egregious acts than having documented evidence. The irony is that those same recordings were used to put him away in prison for 60 years. 

That’s an old story, too, of criminals recording themselves in the act.
Yeah, I think it’s common with delusional narcissists. Larry’s version of what’s on all that audio and video is completely different from the facts. The reality he lives in is one where he’s at the center as a victim. 

Read more from The Race Begins issue here.

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This story about the docuseries “Stolen Youth”

Polygram Entertainment, the film and television division of Universal Music Group, has announced that Daniel Inkeles will become the new senior vice president of film and television development and production.

Prior to his promotion, Inkeles was the vice president of scripted film and television for UMG. In that role he served as executive producer of NBC’s musical comedy “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.” During the series’ two-season run, it was nominated for seven Emmys, winning one for Outstanding Choreography for Scripted Programming. Inkeles was also an executive producer for Alison Ellwood’s Critics Choice-winning documentary “The Go-Go’s,” which centered around the American rock band of the same name, as well as the 2019 film, “Billie,” James Erskine’s documentary about Billie Holiday.

Inkeles is based in Los Angeles and will report to David Blackman, the executive vice president and head of film and television development and production for UMG.

“Since joining us in 2018, Daniel has been instrumental in shaping Polygram into an exciting producer of premium film and television projects that have touched audiences around the world,” David Blackman said in a press release. “Daniel’s work on such projects as ‘Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist’ and its feature spinoff has played an important role in the evolution of this company, and his promotion comes at an incredibly exciting time for Polygram.”

“It’s been a privilege to help build Polygram into an industry-leading producer of music-driven film and television,” Inkeles said. “UMG’s incredible artists, catalogs and labels form the foundation of everything we do, and I feel so lucky to work with such an iconic, storied and infinite source of narrative inspiration. I could not be prouder of the work we’ve done or more excited about the projects to come. I want to thank David, Michele Anthony and Jody Gerson for their continued trust and support.”

Before Inkeles joined UMG, he was a development executive at Sony Pictures Animation and worked on projects such as “Hotel Transylvania 2,” “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2” and “Smurfs: The Lost Village.” Prior to Sony, Inkleles focused on franchise creative development for DreamWorks Animation, specializing in expanding films across multiple platforms as he helped do with “How to Train Your Dragon.” He also worked on “Shrek the Third” and “Shrek Forever After” at the start of his career.

In addition to “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist,” “The Go Go’s” and “Billie,” Polygram Entertainment has worked on Roger Ross Williams and Brooklyn Sudano’s documentary “Love to Love You, Donna Summer,” Todd Haynes’ “The Velvet Underground,” Frank Marshall’s “The Bee Gees:  How Can You Mend a Broken Heart,” Sacha Jenkins’ “Louis Armstrong’s Black and Blues” and Spike Jonze’s “Beastie Boys Story.” The company’s upcoming projects include the docuseries “James Brown: Say It Loud,” scripted movies about KISS and the Osbournes, a docuseries about the record label STAX and a new series based on Frank Sinatra’s life.

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Polygram Entertainment, the film and television division

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Sugarfina is coming to a sweet full circle with its latest line of mouthwatering treats. The Beverly Hills-based confections brand has debuted a Hollywood-inspired candy collection to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the starry town’s infamous hillside landmark.

The luxury candy boutique teamed with the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce to create the delicious Hollywood sign centennial range, which features Sugarfina’s signature vegan gummy candy-filled bento boxes and cubes, chocolate bars and popcorn canisters ($10-$70) in Los Angeles-inspired flavors and special-edition packaging. A three-piece set features the Walk of Fame stars, champagne bears and sugar lips in strawberry, cherry and watermelon flavors (all available in individual cubes), and the Hollywood x Sugarfina Tasting Collection ($34) includes the gummy stars and bears alongside mini chocolate donut cereal bites, sour rainbows and pink and white candy pearls.

There are also mini champagne bottles filled with Dom Pérignon Vintage gummy bears, dark chocolate sea salt caramel-covered popcorn and sparkling pink chocolate bars sprinkled with sugar and pop rocks. Bundles with the tasting collection and other picks are also available.

Courtesy of Sugarfina

Julia Roberts, Sofia Vergara, Reese Witherspoon and Katharine McPhee are among Sugarfina’s sweet-toothed celebrity fans. The chic candy brand recently teamed with Bling Empire stars Chérie Chan and Jessey Lee, who join the company as business partners and ambassadors. The company has previously teamed with George Clooney’s Casamigos tequila brand, star-loved coffee shop Alfred, Disney, Barbie and more. The company uses pectin (instead of animal-derived gelatin) in its vegan- and vegetarian-friendly gummy candies.

Whether you’re one of Tinseltown’s best swag bag makers, creative FYC campaigners or expert A-list gifters, or shopping for a Hollywood-bound film school grad, see more from the collection and shop it below.

Sugarfina x Hollywood Candy Bento Box

Sugarfina x Hollywood Candy Bento Box

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Candy Bento Box $34

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Champagne Bears Celebration Bottle

Sugarfina x Hollywood Champagne Bears Celebration Bottle

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Champagne Bears Celebration Bottle $20

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Premiere Bundle

Sugarfina x Hollywood Premiere Bundle $70

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Tasting Collection

Sugarfina x Hollywood Candy Bento Box

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Walk of Fame Stars Small Candy Cube

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Walk of Fame Candy Cube $9

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramel Popcorn Canister

Sugarfina x Hollywood Popcorn Canister

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Popcorn Canister $22

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Sugarfina x Hollywood Sparkling Stars Chocolate Bar

Sugarfina x Hollywood Sparkling Stars Chocolate Bar

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These scenes of Nora and Hae Sung reconnecting are pleasant, partly because Lee and Yoo are both nice to spend time with. But as the days give way to one night after another, this interlude can also feel drifty and even a little innocuous, almost like filler. That’s partly because although Yoo is awfully nice to look at, and while Song continues to add in details about Hae Sung’s life in South Korea, the character never takes deep root in the story the way that Nora does. For much of it, he is effectively a ghostly figure, a beautiful specter on a laptop screen whose open face hides very little, including Hae Sung’s vulnerability and yearning.

All this feels as specific, intentional and meaningful as the sight of different lovers embracing all around Nora and Hae Sung when, another 12 years later, they finally reconnect in person in New York. By then, each has settled into their respective lives, have separate histories, have made different memories. They have distinct personalities and ways of taking up space, and each has had a serious relationship, Nora’s with her husband, Arthur (John Magaro, wonderful). Like Hae Sung, Arthur has a sweet, transparent face that hides little, including the hurt that Nora sometimes causes him, one difference being that he actually lives with her.

It’s important to Song’s overall design that one of the most crucial and extended sequences in “Past Lives” takes place not long after Nora breaks off with Hae Sung when they’re young adults. She’s rocked by their encounter, but she is soon en route to a writers retreat, an emblem of the horizons first glimpsed in her girlhood. Here, for the only time in the movie, Song lingers over a physical space, in this case a handsome, sunlit country house, a home. Nora lingers too in these rooms, and shortly after she settles in, another writer — Arthur — follows. Song stages and shoots his arrival from Nora’s room, the camera pointing through the open window as she lies asleep in her bed. She misses Arthur’s entrance, but soon after, Nora emerges from her room, awake in a present that — for the first time — feels like the future.

Past Lives
Rated PG-13. In English and Korean, with subtitles. Running time: 1 hour 46 minutes. In theaters.

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These scenes of Nora and Hae Sung

The first trailer has been unveiled for Cannes, Emmy and Peabody-winning director Marc Levin’s documentary “It’s Basic,” which will have its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival.

The film examines several pilot programs launched in the U.S. that test the effects of giving everyday people an extra $500 to $1,000 monthly, with no strings attached. It aims to present an unbiased account of the benefits, criticisms, and outcomes of providing unconditional money to people in need, and examines whether Basic Income pilot programs eradicate child poverty and level the racial playing field through community-centric solutions.

The documentary features commentary by Michael Tubbs, the founder of Mayors for Guaranteed Income. At 26, Tubbs became mayor of Stockton, California. Under his stewardship, the city saw a 40% drop in homicides in 2018 and 2019, led the state in the decline of officer-involved shootings in 2019, was named the second most financially healthy city in California and was featured in Levin’s HBO documentary, “Stockton on My Mind.”

Tubbs also serves as executive producer on “It’s Basic.” He is currently the special advisor to California governor Gavin Newsom for economic mobility and is the founder of End Poverty in California.  

“At a time when we are bombarded by news of economic instability, inflation, debt crisis, drastic cutbacks in social services and fears of more layoffs and recession, here’s a story about a subterranean movement that has grown from one city, Stockton CA. From back in 2018, when we released the documentary ‘Stockton on My Mind,’ to now over 100 cities actually doing something to improve the lives of their citizens. ‘It’s Basic’ gives the participants themselves a chance to tell this story,” Levin said in his director’s statement.

Levin has won four Emmys, four duPont-Columbia awards, the Peabody Award, the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance and the Camera d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Career highlights include “Slam,” his breakout film about the impact of the spoken word movement; “Brick City,” the docu-series about mayor Cory Booker and the city of Newark, New Jersey; “Gang War: Bangin’ in Little Rock” and Emmy-winning “Thug Life in DC,” both for HBO; and “Chicagoland,” a docu-series for CNN and Sundance Productions, nominated for an IDA award.

“It’s Basic,” which premieres June 12 at Tribeca, also features interviews with program recipients and participating mayors across the country. Several high-profile guests are expected to join Tubbs and some of the participating mayors who are members of Mayors for Guaranteed Income, including Sumbul Siddiqui of Cambridge, Massachusetts; Ras J. Baraka of Newark, New Jersey; Shawyn Patterson-Howard of Mt. Vernon, New York; Ariel Kelley of Healdsburg, California; and former mayor Adrian Perkins of Shreveport, Louisiana; Also expected to attend is Chris Hughes, the co-founder of Facebook and author of the book “Fair Shot: Rethinking Inequality and How We Earn.”

Watch the trailer here:

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The first trailer has been unveiled for

The Walking Dead star Steven Yeun told fans what makes his new Marvel role “really interesting” as he prepares to join the MCU.

Yeun became one of The Walking Dead‘s biggest names over its 12-season run, playing the role of Glenn Rhee alongside other future MCU stars like Danai Gurira and Ross Marquand.

He’ll join the cast of 2024’s Thunderbolts as the Phase 5 movie brings together Marvel’s darkest group of heroes to date, with Yeun reported to be playing quite the powerful character himself alongside these MCU mainstays.

Steven Yeun on ‘Interesting’ Marvel Role

Marvel

Speaking during an actors’ roundtable conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Thunderbolts star Steven Yeun shared how interesting his new role in the MCU is following his long run on The Walking Dead.

Yeun noted how director Jake Schreier “saw [him] for this role” in the new MCU movie, with the actor feeling that it was “actually a really interesting role” in his mind that he wanted to explore further.

“It kind of came together in a weird way. Jake Schreier, who did episodes of ‘Beef,’ he got the gig to direct it and he kinda saw me for this role, and I read the role, and I was like ‘This is actually a really interesting role, I’d be down to explore this.'”

In terms of joining the expanding Marvel Universe, Yeun saw it as an opportunity to experience something new rather than “checking things off a bucket list:”

“I think it’s less about now checking things off a bucket list and more looking at an experience. It’s more like ‘Do I want to experience that?’ Putting it out is a whole nother thing that I’m gonna have to prepare for afterwards, but in the immediate, I’m just down to just experience that experience.”

With Steven Yeun most likely handling on the immense challenge of playing the MCU’s take on the superhero Sentry, he’ll certainly have plenty of interesting experiences embodying one of Marvel’s most powerful characters ever.

This will also be his second time taking on a superhero property after providing the leading voiceover role in Amazon Prime’s Invincible, and he even gets to take on somebody just as intense in terms of personality and powers.

Previously, Yeun explained that the “intentions of the particular character” he was cast as were “very clear,” with those intentions being what drew him to join the MCU in the first place.

And with rumors indicating that his Sentry will actually be the ultimate big bad that the Thunderbolts team up against, he’ll help to send the MCU’s Phase 5 slate out with a bang upon his arrival.

Thunderbolts is currently set to arrive in theaters on July 26, 2024.

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James Gunn’s Superman: Legacy has a new actor contender emerge as one of the frontrunners for the iconic DC Comics hero. With a new DC Universe on its way, several beloved characters are set to get recast for Gunn’s new franchise, including the Man of Steel himself. Superman: Legacy, which is eying production for 2024, is currently on the search to find its leading hero, as well as several other iconic characters from the lore.

SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAYSCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

While they haven’t locked a star yet, another actor has now joined the list of frontrunners in the Superman: Legacy casting search. According to Variety, Pierson Fodé, whose credits include The Bold and The Beautiful, is reportedly in the running for the DC icon. Per the trade, Fodé has submitted a self-tape that included “showing his very Clark Kent-like childhood on a farm in the small town of Moses Lake, Wash.” While Gunn and DC Studios have yet to comment on the story, Variety claims that the filmmaker liked what he saw from Fodé.

RELATED: 7 Details James Gunn Has Confirmed (& Debunked) About His Superman Movie


Other Reported Clark Kent Frontrunners For Superman: Legacy

While Fodé may be one of DC Studios’ top candidates, there are other reported frontrunners for the role of Clark Kent in Superman: Legacy. Almost a month ago, David Corenswet was reported to be one of the top Superman contenders. Corenswet has for a long time been suggested by fans to get cast as the big screen’s next Superman, from countless fan trailers to artwork.

Andrew Richardson and Tom Brittney have also reportedly been looked at as they were “in the early mix.” Two disclosed actors were supposedly also part of DC Studios’ list of potential actors to take on the role of the Man of Steel. While Nicholas Hoult was first rumored to have auditioned for Lex Luthor, another report later came out claiming that he was also another frontrunner for Superman.

It’s crucial to remember that since no casting decisions have been made yet, Fodé may not end up being the one who lands the gig for Superman: Legacy. With this being one of the hottest roles in Hollywood, Gunn, and DC Studios will absolutely be seeing countless more actors before they make a final decision. Hopefully, if DC Studios plan to be at San Diego Comic-Con this summer, they will have some Superman: Legacy casting ready to roll out as the world gets ready for the new DC Universe.

Source. Variety

Key Release Dates

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James Gunn's Superman: Legacy has a new

RuneScape players have waited patiently for the long-awaited new skill reveal and it seems that it was worth the wait. Jagex absolutely delivered with the announcement of Necromancy, and we’ve now been able to see a first look into the new skill. There are many enjoyable things to do whilst playing RuneScape, but I dare say one of the most popular is grinding skills to whichever goal takes your fancy. Be it a solitary 99, max cape, level 120, or 200 million XP. The grind is serious. So, when a new skill is announced, there is always buzz around what it will be. Keep reading to find out what we know so far about Necromancy – RuneScape’s 29th skill.

What Do We Know About the New RuneScape Skill Necromancy?

Jagex has provided us with a first look into the new Necromancy skill and there is something immediately different and exciting about it. Necromancy will be the first new combat skill. Since the beginning, the combat triangle has existed of melee, magic and ranged. Now, a newcomer exists to shake things up. Necromancy will exist outside of the combat triangle and on top of this it will be the first combat skill that players can level to 120. This means that the new maximum total level will now be 152. Wow!

Related: Where to Obtain the Sandy Clue Scroll in RuneScape

Necromancy will be a skill that consists of two components. The first, will consist of using Necromancy in combat. Players will be able to duel wield Necromancy weapons. The main hand being the standard weapon, and the off-hand being an item that summons the dead to help the player during battle. Magic is entwined into the combat with new spells known as Incantations, and new Necrotic Runes being used to enhance combat. Good news for Runecrafters!

The second, known as Rituals, is a way to level up Necromancy outside of combat. There are a total of twelve rituals which the player will complete, as well as associated random events. Located in the City of Um, players will train by attracting spirits to release into the Well of Souls and be rewarded with the necessary materials for the Necrotic Runes, combat, and additional equipment.

Image Via RuneScape

There will be a Talent system for Necromancy. A way to unlock new abilities in the skill. These are unlocked by collecting points through combat. These points are then spent on the talent tree. There will be a total of eight tiers to complete as the skill is leveled. Whilst the unlocks do branch in multiple directions and there is no option to undo your selection, you will be able to eventually unlock every skill with enough points and so nothing will become unobtainable.

How is the Necromancy Skill Unlocked?

Similar to that of previous skills, Necromancy will be initially unlocked as part of a quest chain that both serves to be the catalyst that unlocks the skill for the player whilst educating them regarding how the components of the skill work. The quest chain will follow on from the current Fort Forinthry line. There will be two Necromancy bosses that will be available along the way. Both will be able to be killed solo and will not require a group in order to progress through the skill.

Image via RuneScape

When Will the New Necromancy Skill Be Released?

With the recent exciting information regarding RuneScape’s new Necromancy skill. It is no wonder that eager players are wondering just when they will be able to start leveling the new combat skill. Sadly, we are no closer to knowing an exact date at the time of writing. Necromancy is still slated for 2023. It does already look fantastic and a breath of fresh air for RuneScape combat and so Jagex can take a little while longer to polish it before release.

Until then, there are so many other things that can occupy your time in RuneScape. Have you considered working towards the Golden Cape yet? What a better way to show off your RuneScape ability than equipping yourself in literal gold. Kaching!

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RuneScape players have waited patiently for the

Chanel and the Tribeca Festival’s annual Artist Award Program dinner will take place June 12 in New Yor City. Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, Paula Weinstein and Chanel host the festivities.

Artists Ana Benaroya, Beverly Fishman, Christie Neptune, Lisa Lebofsky, Natia Lemay, Patricia Encarnacion, Renee Cox, Sheree Hovsepian, Shinique Smith, and Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz will honored. Each have been invited to contribute original artwork to be presented to the 2023 Festival filmmaker winners.

“Tribeca and Chanel recognize the significance of representation and the undeniable impact women artists can have when their work and stories are in the spotlight,” Tribeca Festival co-founder and Tribeca Enterprises CEO Jane Rosenthal said in statement. “We are dedicated to celebrating creativity and culture, fostering diverse voices, and encouraging the development of a new generation of visionaries. Our eighteen-year partnership with Chanel underscores our joint commitment to honoring powerful storytelling, artistic excellence, and the spirit of artists supporting other artists. We invite audiences to join us in this celebration and discover the transformative power of women’s artistry, which reflects our reality and shapes our understanding of the world.”

This year’s art collection will be displayed at the Tribeca Festival Hub at Spring Studios throughout the Festival, which runs June 7-18 in New York City.

“When I was approached to curate the Artist Awards for a second year, it was important that this iteration have a profound social impact, showcasing the strength, beauty and diversity of women. Our focus is on giving women in the arts their flowers and celebrating their trailblazing contributions to contemporary art,” said 2023 Artist Awards curator Racquel Cevremont. “Throughout recorded history, from the cave painting to the camera, women have been driving forces in art around the world. Yet female creatives remain woefully underrepresented. It’s imperative that we continue to solicit and showcase the work of women artists.”

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Chanel and the Tribeca Festival’s annual Artist