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The Alto Knights North America Box Office: Release Day Update(Photo Credit –YouTube)

Robert De Niro’s starrer biographical crime drama film, The Alto Knights, is headed for a disappointing affair at the box office on its release day. The movie has collected even less than the second Friday collection of Cate Blanchett’s Black Bag. Keep scrolling for the deets.

It was directed by Barry Levinson and distributed by Warner Bros Pictures. It has opened to mixed reviews from the critics. De Niro appears in a dual role as the 1950s mob bosses Vito Genovese and Frank Costello. It also features Debra Messing, Cosmo Jarvis, Kathrine Narducci, and Michael Rispoli in supporting roles. It has received poor ratings from the critics on Rotten Tomatoes; they gave it 38%, and their collective consensus states, “A competent but tired retread of mob movie tropes, it pits De Niro vs. De Niro with no real victor emerging.

Being partly responsible for turning George Clooney into a movie star, Steven Soderbergh knows a thing or two about spotting a hitmaker. Sure, Clooney had the looks, the charm, and a juicy part on the hit medical drama “E.R.” that gave him the opportunity to hone his craft, but in casting him to lead “Out of Sight,” and their most successful collaboration, “Ocean’s Eleven,” Soderbergh gave him a leg up few stars manage to receive today. Nowadays, it seems acting is a talent you have to be born with, and no one knows this better than recent Oscar-nominee Timothée Chalamet.

“It would appear Timothée Chalamet is a movie star,” said Soderbergh in a recent interview with Men’s Health. “Like, this guy can make movies hits, and they’re a wide range of movies. So, everybody’s chasing him. I don’t know him, but he seems to be making interesting choices.

Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio are frequent collaborators, and one of their most exciting projects was their first, 2002’s Gangs of New York. The crime period drama was lauded by audiences and critics alike for its writing and performances, and featured a stellar cast.

Martin Scorsese’s Gangs of New York is moving to Peacock this April, making the multiple Academy Award-nominated film available for streaming at home. The movie follows Amsterdam Vallon as he returns to the Five Points seeking revenge for the death of his father. “Priest” Vallon, played by Liam Neeson, was one of the most prominent gang leaders in New York at the time, heading up the Dead Rabbits, a band of Irish Catholic immigrants. The extraordinary Daniel Day-Lewis plays William “Bill the Butcher” Cutting, the leader Anglo-Protestant Confederation of American Natives. When Bill the Butcher killed Amsterdam’s father, DiCaprio’s character was sent to...

A live-action reboot of the 2010s DreamWorks animated fantasy trilogy, How to Train Your Dragon, is set to premiere in a couple of months, and as timing would have it, fans can catch up on the originals just in time for the live-action film. The entire How to Train Your Dragon trilogy will hit Peacock on April 1.

The first film, released in 2010, earned $494.8 million worldwide and starred Jay Baruchel as the voice of Hiccup, Gerard Butler as Stoick the Vast, and America Ferrera as Astrid. The movie follows Hiccup, a misfit Viking teenager who tries to change the course of the future of his people after he makes friends with an injured dragon named Toothless. The first film has a nearly-perfect Rotten Tomatoes critic score of 99%.

The 2 Sequels Were Box Office Hits

How to Train Your Dragon 2 dropped in 2014 and also featured Baruchel, Butler, and Ferrera, with the addition...

Chicago – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Scott Thompson for Wbgr-fm on March 20th, 2025, reviewing the new film “Magazine Dreams,” featuring Jonathan Majors as a competitive bodybuilder. In select theaters beginning March 21st.

Majors is Killian Maddox, an isolated man who is taking care of his aging and ill grandfather (Harrison Page). Mentally damaged from a childhood trauma, Killian keeps obsessing on various elements of his lonely life, including his unhealthy fan following of pro bodybuilder Brad Vanderhorn (Mike O’Hearn). His bodybuilding routine features steroid abuse, and the side effects includes a rage state, equivalent to a real-life Hulk Smash. When the spiral downward enters a darker place, the situation becomes life and death.

”Black Bag” is in theaters beginning on March 14th. Featuring Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett, Tom Burke, Marisa Abela, Naomi Harris and Regé-Jean Page. Written by David Koepp. Directed by Steven Soderbergh.

Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett would prefer if the biggest nights in Hollywood were kept within the industry.

Blanchett said during Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang‘s “Las Culturistas” podcast that she would prefer to go “back to the day” when awards shows weren’t televised to the public. That way, those nominated and attending could instead focus on being part of a “great party” and not dealing with photographers and lip readers on social media.

“There’s so few spaces that you can go now where you are private,” Blanchett said. “That’s what I loved about the late ’80s, going to all of the dance parties in Sydney for Mardi Gras. People were just there. They were so present, you know, they were just together, collectively, having a great time. It was non-aggressive. No one was being recorded. No one cared what anyone did.”

The “Black Bag” and “Disclaimer” star continued,...

There have been multiple takes on the life of British Intelligence Officers. While the James Bond franchise is considered by many to be the epitome of the genre, Kingsman provided a fresh take for many. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was another film about the life of British Intelligence Officers that turned the world on its head.

Fans can now add another name to this illustrious list—Steven Soderbergh’s Black Bag. The Michael Fassbender starrer, which hit the theatres in the US on 14 March 2025, has already carved its place in fans’ (and critics’) hearts.

Steven Soderbergh knows a thing or two about delivering quality movies Steven Soderbergh has an illustrious list of movies to his credit || Image by Nicolas Genin, licensed under Cc By-sa 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes with your first venture isn’t a small feat after all. That is just what Steven...

It's a common complaint among a certain group of moviegoers: they would watch more foreign films... if they didn't have to read the subtitles. English dubs are a decent substitute, but they can also be distracting due to the words not matching the movement of the actors' mouths. For anyone in this camp, artificial intelligence company Flawless has a solution they are calling a "game changer" in the realm of foreign film distribution.

For the first time, a non-English movie will hit theaters with a special version made specifically for the U.S. and other English-speaking countries using AI to create the dub. The film, titled Watch the Skies, is a UFO-themed action comedy from Sweden, originally shot in its native tongue, according to an official report from Variety. In addition to dubbing the movie in English, Flawless applied generative AI to the faces of the actors so it appears...

Fans of Bridgerton and French literature rejoice, as Season 1 standout Regé-Jean Page is working with independent production company Department M on an adaptation of Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo. The announcement — via an exclusive report from Deadline — shared that Pagewill not only star in the film, but also produce it, alongside his producing partner Emily Brown under their A Mighty Stranger banner. Also on board to bring the classic tale of revenge to life is writer Patrick Ness, who also penned Chaos Walking and A Monster Calls.

The Count of Monte Cristo is the story of Edmond Dantès, a man falsely accused of treason, who is thrown into the grim prison Château d'If without trial. Dantès learns from fellow prisoner, Abbé Faria, about the location of a fabulous treasure and, after escaping and finding the cache of wealth, becomes part of high society and enters the world of...

The beloved “Star Wars” sequel “The Empire Strikes Back” is set to open this year’s TCM Classic Film Festival on April 24, with director George Lucas presenting the film for its 45th anniversary.

“’The Empire Strikes Back’ is like ‘The Godfather Part II.’ Yes, technically, they’re sequels, the second movie in a series. But they are so much more,” TCM’s primetime anchor Ben Mankiewicz said in a statement. “The first ‘Star Wars’ picture in 1977 ignited a new era in Hollywood and turned a generation of young people into passionate movie fans for life. Then, somehow, three years later, along comes ‘Empire,’ which might even be better. It’s a stunning accomplishment and surely stands one of the great achievements in the history of film.”

Additional titles that will screen at this year’s TCM Classic Film Festival include “The Fabulous Baker Boys,” “The Lady Eve,” “Cinderella,” “Apocalypse Now,...

Cate Blanchett believes the Oscars shouldn't be televised.The 55-year-old actress has won a host of accolades during her career, including two Academy Awards - but Cate has now suggested that award shows would actually be better, and more enjoyable, if they weren't televised at all.During an appearance on the 'Las Culturistas With Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang' podcast, Cate said: "I mean, I say, I know it’s blasphemy, go back to the day when it wasn’t televised. Bring that back and just have a great party where people can just let go."The movie star previously won the Best Supporting Actress gong for 'The Aviator', and the Best Actress Oscar for 'Blue Jasmine'.But Cate believes that the performers would actually have much more fun at the Oscars if their actions weren't being scrutinised so closely.She explained: "I mean, the industry is so...

Exclusive: Regé-Jean Page is continuing to build on an already busy slate as we are hearing he has signed on to star and produce The Count Of Monte Cristo from Department M, the independent production studio founded by industry-leading producers Mike Larocca and Michael Schaefer. Page will produce alongside his producing partner Emily Brown throgh their A Mighty Stranger banner alongside Larocca and Schaefer as well as Youtchi von Lintel via his YouRoc banner. Patrick Ness is attached to write.

The original classic novel was penned by Alexandre Dumas and follows a young sailor falsely accused of treason, who, after years of imprisonment, escapes and seeks revenge against those who wronged him, ultimately becoming the wealthy Count of Monte Cristo. Hollywood has always been fond of this property with several iterations including the 2002 film starring Guy Pearce and Jim Caviezel.

For Page it gives him another fun leading man role...

Black Bag may not have found extraordinary success at the box office thus far, but the film has just jumped onto an elite list for director Steven Soderbergh. At the time of writing, Black Bag has grossed $9.2 million at the domestic box office and $5.3 million internationally for a global total of $14.5 million. This is enough to make it one of the top 25 highest-grossing movies ever that Soderbergh has been involved in either as a writer, director, or producer. Just in terms of films he has directed, Black Bag is currently the 17th-highest-grossing movie of his career. Black Bag stars Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett in lead roles, with Pierce Brosnan, Tom Burke, Regé-Jean Page, and Naomie Harris filling out the supporting ensemble.

A new spy movie starring Michael Fassbender and Pierce Brosnan has pulled off a box office feat. Fassbender is a versatile actor who is perhaps best known for playing the young Magneto in the X-Men prequel movies beginning with 2011's First Class. However, in addition to starring in big-budget genre movies such as the superhero franchise, Assassin's Creed, and Prometheus, he has starred in a variety of dramas such as Shame, A Dangerous Method, Song to Song, Steve Jobs and 12 Years a Slave, the latter two of which earned him Oscar nominations.

While Pierce Brosnan does not have any Oscar nominations under his belt, he does have ample experience in the spy genre, having starred in four James Bond movies between 1995 and 2002. He played the iconic superspy in GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, and Die Another Day, stepping into the role after the two-movie tenure...

Sandra Bullock’s Ocean’s 8 had the glitz, the glam, and the star power – but it missed the magic. Unlike George Clooney’s Ocean’s 11, where the heist was The thrilling centerpiece, Bullock’s version treated it like an afterthought.

Sandra Bullock in The Proposal | Credits: Touchstone Pictures

While Clooney’s crew made scheming look effortlessly cool, Ocean’s 8 focused more on style than strategy. If a sequel happens, it better learn from the original, because a slick con without the thrill is just a fashion show with diamonds.

Sandra Bullock’s Ocean’s 8 missed the heist thrill that made George Clooney’s Ocean’s 11 a classic Sandra Bullock, Sarah Paulson and Rihanna in Ocean 8 | Credits: Warner Bros

Sandra Bullock spelled it out herself – she cared more about the camaraderie than the crime. And that was Ocean’s 8’s biggest problem. Unlike George Clooney’s Ocean’s 11, where the...

With just three weeks until the line-up for the Cannes Film Festival 2025 is announced on April 10,Screentakes a look at the films from around the world looking increasingly likely to debut on the Croisette.

North America

English-language auteurs Wes Anderson, Lynne Ramsay, Spike Lee, Jim Jarmusch and Kelly Reichardt could all unveil their anticipated next films at the Cannes – and if they do, it will drum up the kind of red-carpet glamour Thierry Fremaux loves.

Two years after The French Dispatch played in Competition, Anderson looks a safe bet to return with The Phoenician Scheme, a spy comedy thriller featuring...

Steven Soderbergh's spy movieBlack Bag has captivated audiences with its mix of espionage and character-driven intrigue. Viewers are in the thick of it as George Woodhouse tries to identify a traitor among a select group of people -- including his wife Kathryn. Borderlands star Cate Blanchett portrays Kathryn, alongside Naomie Harris as Dr. Zoe Vaughan and Tom Burke as Freddie Smalls. The movie takes a classic idea in the spy genre and lifts it to another level.

Blanchett, Harris and Burke joined Cbr for an interview to discuss the twists and turns in Black Bag. The stars explained how they approached their characters in the midst of all the spy drama, and reflected on working with Soderbergh. Plus, find out what some of their favorite moments were in the film.

Cbr: Cate, the core of Black Bag is the marriage between Kathryn and George, played by Michael Fassbender. How...

Hollywood has long had a turbulent relationship with Donald Trump, with many actors, and musicians, openly opposing him. However, as Trump assumed office as the 47th U.S. President, shifting circumstances have prompted several Hollywood stars to seek his support in pushing for stronger regulations on AI.

Donald Trump via Donald J Trump | Credits: YouTube

Concerned about the impact of artificial intelligence on the film industry, they are now calling on his administration to intervene and protect creative professionals from AI-driven exploitation.

Hollywood urges Donald Trump to protect copyrights from AI exploitation

Hollywood is facing another AI-related controversy and is now urging Donald Trump to maintain strong copyright protections and resist pressure from AI companies seeking to weaken them.

More than 400 Hollywood insiders, including actors, directors, and musicians, have signed an open letter to the Trump administration’s Office of Science and Technology Policy, urging them not to roll back...

Cate Blanchett is longing for a pre-social media era of awards shows.

The 2x Oscar winner recently made the case for non-televised awards shows after she discovered the “blasphemy” of lip readers on TikTok who reveal what celebs are saying in videos from the exclusive events.

“Go back to the day when it wasn’t televised,” she said on the Las Culturistas podcast, from iHeartMedia and Will Ferrell’s Big Money Players Network. “Bring that back and just have a great party where people can just let go.”

Blanchett continued, “I mean, the fashion is great, and all of that stuff. We’ll find out in the end who won or who didn’t win. But it would be so nice that that happened behind closed doors. Absolutely a very different evening.”

During the podcast, the Black Bag actress also decried the lack of privacy amid the age of social media.

Cate Blanchett thinks Hollywood’s most glamorous nights would be better without cameras.

During an appearance on Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang’s Las Culturistas podcast, the trio discussed the invasive nature of social media and phones. Blanchett said of the issue, “There’s so few spaces that you can go now, where you are private. That’s what I loved about the late ’80s, going to all of the dance parties in Sydney for Mardi Gras. People were just there. They were so present, you know, they were just together, collectively, having a great time. It was non-aggressive. No one was being recorded. No one cared what anyone did.”

The conversation shifted to the litany of celebrity annoyances at award shows, like photographers and “lip readers.”

“Lip readers?” Blanchett asked. The hosts went on to explain that there is a segment of social media dedicated to reading stars’ lips...

Cate Blanchett would prefer awards shows not to be aired on television.

The two-time Oscar-winning actress made a recent appearance on the Las Culturistas With Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang podcast — from iHeartMedia and Will Ferrell’s Big Money Players Network — where she suggested that the Oscars should “go back to the day when it wasn’t televised.”

The conversation started when Blanchett noted that there are “so few spaces that you can go now, where you are private,” without phones and the risk of someone recording you.

“That’s what I loved about the late ’80s [was] going to all of the dance parties in Sydney for Mardi Gras. People were just there,” she recalled. “They were so present, you know, they were just together, collectively, having a great time. It was non-aggressive. No one was being recorded. No one cared what anyone did.”

Hosts Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang...

Jack Quaid has understandably gathered a lot of attention lately within the film and television world. From his performance as Hughie Campbell in The Boys to his most recent role as Nathan Caine in the newly released film, Novocaine,it is clear that Quaid possesses a talent and charm that entertains audiences. Additionally, within the past five years, Quaid has attached himself to a variety of large projects, including the Scream franchise and Companion. Given his recent successes, it is no surprise that some of his worth-the-watch movies have gotten lost in his expansive filmography.

One of these films is Logan Lucky, a 2017 heist comedy directed by Steven Soderbergh (Ocean's Eleven). The film is packed with stars, including Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Daniel Craig, Hilary Swank, and many more. With a 92% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, it is clear that Logan Lucky is just as enthralling as other films in which Quaid has appeared.

Cate Blanchett thinks the Oscars would be a lot more enjoyable if they weren’t on TV.

Speaking with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang on their Las Culturistas podcast, Blanchett was surprised to hear that lip readers are analyzing every televised moment.

That line of thinking kicked off when Blanchett lamented the pervasive presence of phones, noting, “there’s so few spaces that you can go now, where you are private. That’s what I loved about the late ’80s [was] going to all of the dance parties in Sydney for Mardi Gras. People were just there. They were so present, you know, they were just together, collectively, having a great time. It was non aggressive. No one was being recorded. No one cared what anyone did.”

Rogers and Yang recommended a club in New York City called “Basement,” which forbids cell phones inside, a policy Blanchett said is “such a relief.

Cate Blanchett has some feelings about awards shows.

The 55-year-old Tár actress spoke out on Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang.

“Go back to the day when it wasn’t televised,” she said, noting that there are too many ceremonies during awards season.

Keep reading to find out more…

“Bring that back and just have a great party where people can just let go. I mean, the industry is so scattered in such a point of which I think could potentially be exciting or it could be really depressing. But it’s at a pivot point,” she continued.

“So we need to gather together and celebrate what it is that we do without it having to have any public facing. I mean, the fashion’s great and all of that stuff. We’ll find out in the end who won or who didn’t win. But it would...

Gwyneth Paltrow has named a $128 million 1999 psychological thriller movie among her top 5 favorite movies that she has made, as well as suggesting that her co-star should have won an Oscar for his performance. With a dynamic and varied career in film and TV, Paltrow came to prominence with roles in movies like Seven, Emma, Sliding Doors, and A Perfect Murder, before achieving international acclaim for her Academy Award-winning turn in Shakespeare in Love. Parenthood resulted in a reduction in roles in the mid-2000s before she enjoyed a career revival as Pepper Potts in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Paltrow's best films include quirky comedies like The Royal Tenenbaums, as well as independent dramas like Hard Eight, and blockbusters such as Avengers: Infinity War. One of her best and most underrated movies came with Steve Soderbergh's medical thriller ensemble movie Contagion. Among many other big-name stars, such as Kate Winslet and Marion Cotillard,...

Shaken, stirred, or even streamed, spy movies make up many of the most exciting, edge-of-your-seat stories the movies have to offer. From the harrowing heights of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise to the suave savvy of six James Bonds, espionage has become the thematic ground on which some of cinema’s most epic dramas, thrillers, and comedies are built. Even films primarily centered on other subject matter make frequent use of spy drama beats, proving it’s a bedrock source for onscreen entertainment.

The espionage genre is as old as filmmaking itself with silent spy movies set against the backdrop of World War I (1914’s “The German Spy Peril” is on YouTube) testing the medium’s limitations early in the 20th century. Literary works inspired many more of the spy movies to follow. Over the years, filmmakers have repeatedly adapted the works of John le Carré, Robert Ludlum, Ian Fleming, and...

It's been ten years since Disney released its live-action version of Cinderella, starring Lily James and Cate Blanchett. Directed by Kenneth Branagh, the movie was overall a critical and commercial hit, and ushered in a new era of Disney remakes, kicking off a trend that was already being announced with 2010's Alice in Wonderland and 2014's Maleficent, sparsely produced films that didn't yet give signs of the industrial levels of production that were to come. Indeed, Cinderella is a pretty fun adventure-romance, with good performances and a story and look that don't necessarily follow the 1950 classic all that closely. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the movies that came after it. While some, like the unfortunately direct-to-streaming release Peter Pan & Wendy, are entertaining and inventive. Most, however, like the photorealistic version of The Lion King or the absolute mess that was Pinocchio, are well below the quality standards that...

Two-time Oscar nominee Michael Fassbender has showcased his phenomenal range as a performer in a slew of celebrated hits, including Inglourious Basterds, 12 Years a Slave, Prometheus, and Steve Jobs, with his latest silver screen project being Steven Soderbergh's critically acclaimed spy thriller Black Bag. In the newly-released 2025 espionage caper, Fassbender stars alongside Cate Blanchett and portrays an intelligence agent who is tasked with discovering whether or not his fellow agent and wife is guilty of committing treason.

Black Bag isn't the first time Fassbender has tried his hand at the gripping thriller genre, as the decorated leading man joined forces with directing legend David Fincher for his 2023 passion project, The Killer. In the sleek and stylish Netflix film, Fassbender knocks it out of the park as an assassin who goes on a revenge-seeking mission after he uncharacteristically botches a hit and sets out to eliminate his adversaries before they get to him first.

Is the Academy ready to embrace Adam Sandler?

On Tuesday, Netflix released the first trailer for Happy Gilmore 2, the long-awaited sequel starring Sandler as the unconventional and irascible pro golfer. The short teaser quicly trended online, sparking a fresh round of love and appreciation for its star following Sandler’s well-received appearances at the Golden Globes, the Saturday Night Live 50th anniversary special, and the Oscars this year. However, all the goodwill feels like prologue to Sandler’s next big project: a juicy role in Noah Baumbach’s new film, Jay Kelly, opposite George Clooney and coming this fall also via Netflix. On paper, the Baumbach project is the type of movie that will find itself in the middle of the awards conversation, meaning the beloved Sandler could finally receive recognition from the Academy after snubs for Uncut Gems and Hustle. Ahead is the extremely early case for Sandler...

Since its launch half a decade ago, Apple TV+ has built up a strong reputation for adopting a quality over quantity approach in order to deliver some of the best shows and documentaries streaming has to offer. It's a platform filled wall-to-wall with lavish productions to watch and auteur filmmakers to appreciate, star-studded weekly-drop series to devour and cutting edge documentaries you simply must see. And it's because of this that, despite the vast content libraries of Netflix, Disney+, and Prime Video, the house that Tim Cook built has become many a discerning viewer's chosen streaming home. Now, we know what you're thinking: with so many buzzy shows and docs to pick from, wouldn't it be great if there existed some sort of nifty, hand-curated guide to the best the streamer has to offer?

Well, whaddaya know? Team Empire have pooled the expertise of our crack team of critics from...

Netflix continues to be a go-to destination for movies and TV shows for many streaming service users. In addition to having plenty of licensed content, Netflix also boasts a healthy library of original movies and TV shows that continues to grow with each passing year. Major hits from past years include movies like Damsel (2024), The Gray Man (2022), and The Adam Project (2022), as well as TV shows like Wednesday (2022–), Stranger Things (2016–), and Bridgerton (2020–).

2021 saw the release of Adam McKay's Don't Look Up, a comedy about a planet-killing comet heading straight for Earth. The Netflix film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett, and Jonah Hill, earned somewhat mixed reviews but became a massive viewership success. Don't Look Up previously ranked as the second most popular movie of all time on Netflix behind Red Notice (2021), but a newer movie has now just taken its spot.

Carry-On Moves...

More than 400 of Hollywood's biggest creatives have come together to hopefully dissuade Donald Trump from allowing tech companies like OpenAI and Google to undermine copywriting laws in their pursuit of solidifying America as a leading force in AI. Lily Wachowski, co-creator of The Matrix, Ben Stiller, Paul McCartney, Cate Blanchett, and many, many more recently signed their names to a letter addressing the importance of keeping copyright laws in the age of AI. But the question is, will Trump listen to artists appealing to reason, or tech bros appealing to profits? Not a hard one to guess, unfortunately.

After the long and taxing SAG AFTRA strikes of 2023, actors made some ground in regards to AI copyright law and prevention of image stealing, but, of course, the big production companies only gave an inch when what was required to protect artists was miles and miles of negotiations to ensure AI developers couldn't steal voices,...

Major Hollywood figures are pushing back against OpenAI and Google’s appeals to the U.S. government to allow their AI models to train on copyrighted works.

Film, television and music figures including Ron Howard, Cate Blanchett, Cynthia Erivo, Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, Taika Waititi and Ava Duvernay have signed on to a letter expressing alarm at the tech giants’ suggestions in recent submissions to a White House office that they should be able to access publicly available intellectual property.

“We firmly believe that America’s global AI leadership must not come at the expense of our essential creative industries,” the letter states, adding that the arts and entertainment industry provides more than 2.3 million jobs and bolsters America’s democratic values abroad. “But AI companies are asking to undermine this economic and cultural strength by weakening copyright protections for the films, television series, artworks, writing, music, and voices used to train...

Over 400 US-based actors, writers, directors, producers, musicians and executives have signed an open letter calling on the US government to uphold copyright laws for the training of artificial intelligence.

Among the signatories to the letter are Guillermo del Toro, Natasha Lyonne, Paul McCartney, Cynthia Erivo, Cate Blanchett, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Cord Jefferson, Ben Stiller, Bette Midler, Cate Blanchett and Ava Duvernay.

The open letter has been sent to the White House Office of Science and Technology (Ostp) in response to the US AI Action Plan.

It is a response to recent submissions from OpenAI and Google that claim domestic law either...

Over 400 actors, writers, directors, producers, musicians and executives have signed an open letter calling on the US government to uphold copyright laws for the training of artificial intelligence.

Among the signatories to the letter are Guillermo del Toro, Natasha Lyonne, Paul McCartney, Cynthia Erivo, Cate Blanchett, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Cord Jefferson, Ben Stiller, Bette Midler, Cate Blanchett and Ava Duvernay.

The open letter has been sent to the White House Office of Science and Technology (Ostp) in response to the US AI Action Plan.

It is a response to recent submissions from OpenAI and Google that claim domestic law either allows...

Paul McCartney, Ava DuVernay, Taika Waititi, Cate Blanchett, Natasha Lyonne, Alfonso Cuarón, Matrix co-creator Lilly Wachowski, Ben Stiller, Carrie Coon and Lily Gladstone are among more than 400 entertainment industry power players who want the Trump administration to hold the line when it comes to artificial intelligence and tech companies’ desire to weaken copyright rules.

“We firmly believe that America’s global AI leadership must not come at the expense of our essential creative industries,” the group wrote the White House Office of Science and Technology in an open letter that began circulating over the weekend.

“America’s arts and entertainment industry supports over 2.3M American jobs with over $229Bn in wages annually, while providing the foundation for American democratic influence and soft power abroad,” the 12-page letter adds. “But AI companies are asking to undermine this economic and cultural strength by weakening copyright protections for the films, television series, artworks,...

[Editor’s note: this list was originally published in August 2024. It has since been updated with new entries, including “Black Bag.”]

When director Todd Field sat down and wrote his film “Tár,” there was only one option to play the title character. As he described to IndieWire in an interview, the film wouldn’t have been made if Cate Blanchett hadn’t agreed to take the part of lauded conductor Lydia Tár. “I had no backup plan,” he told IndieWire. “I’d met Cate 10 years ago and I knew coming out of that meeting that I had just been in conversation with somebody that had one of the great brains I ever met. And it was someone that I was really, really desperate to be able to collaborate with.”

It might seem silly to hinge your entire film on the participation of a single actor; the Australian Blanchett doesn’t share any notable biographical details with the fictional American conductor that makes her casting meaningful in a meta sense.

At an artificial intelligence summit in Paris last month, Vice President Jd Vance slammed the European Union for what he called “excessive regulation” around the advancement of artificial intelligence, adding that such regulation will hinder innovation in the tech industry.

His comments were music to the ears of tech giants like Google and OpenAI, who last week submitted formal proposals to the White House Office of Science and Technology (Ostp) regarding the U.S. AI Action Plan. Their suggestions, essentially: Regulation? Who needs that?

Specifically, both companies included sections in their proposals regarding copyright and argued that, when it comes to copyright laws, the government should apply the fair use doctrine to AI. OpenAI said doing so is “not only a matter of American competitiveness — it’s a matter of national security.” Google said it’s “essential for accelerating AI in science.”

The translation of Google and OpenAI’s grave...

Michael Fassbender details the most challenging scene for him to film in his new movie. The X-Men actor, best known for playing Erik Lehnsherr, aka Magneto, in 20th Century Fox's X-Men saga, has a diverse career outside of superhero movies. He portrayed Bobby Sands in the historical drama Hunger, and has starred in Ridley Scott's Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. In the comedy space, Fassbender left a memorable performance as a coach of the American Samoa soccer team in Next Goal Wins.

In recent years, Fassbender has been deep in the thriller/spy genre. Following his journey portraying an assassin in David Fincher's 2023 film The Killer, the actor starred in the 2024 Paramount+/Showtime spy series The Agency, where he plays thecovert CIA agent Martian, who struggles to cut ties with an old flame after his mission has come to an end. Fassbender's new 2025 film further sees him in...

Good thing “Novocaine” can’t feel pain, because this one hurts. Paramount’s “Novocaine” hit No. 1 at the domestic box office this weekend despite grossing just $8.7 million. That’s the lowest total for a movie to top the box office this year in a given weekend, and it led a dismally weak weekend on the whole at the domestic box office, in which the Top 10 earned just a cumulative $45.2 million, the worst of 2025 thus far.

It will come as a surprise to no one that the box office has been bleak since the pandemic, but you don’t even have to go back that far to find a weekend that had a worse No. 1. For that we look to February 9-11 2024 when the No. 1 movie in America was Universal’s “Argylle” in its second weekend in theaters, earning just $6.2 million. The biggest new release that weekend was Focus Features’ “Lisa Frankenstein,...

Update March 17, 2025: Paramount's Novocaine topped the box office in its first weekend of release, earning $8.7 million from March 14 to March 16. The action-packed comedy starring Jack Quaid came in slightly under its $10 million forecast to lead a numb weekend box office. Bong Joon Ho's Mickey 17 held on for second place, adding $7.5 million to the film's total domestic gross of $33 million. Rounding out the top five were Focus Features' Black Bag with $7.5 million, Disney/Marvel's Captain America: Brave New World with $5.5 million, and Ketchup Entertainment's The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie, which exceeded expectations with $3.2 million.

Original story published March 14, 2025: What will be the winners and the losers this week at the U.S. box office? Four new movies enter theaters this weekend led by Novocaine, Paramount's comedy-thriller from directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen. They will be facing off against the...

It was truly a terrible weekend at the box office. We're talking about one of the worst weekends in decades. That may sound hyperbolic but it's no less true. Case in point: Paramount Pictures topped the charts with its original comedic action flick "Novocaine." Starring Jack Quaid ("The Boys"), it earned $8.7 million. Indeed, the number one movie in the country in mid-March made less than $9 million. One would be hard-pressed to find weekends in the past 30 years where the number one movie made so little. 

Unfortunately, it gets worse. This weekend also saw the release of Steven Soderbergh's new thriller "Black Bag." Despite having a killer cast led by Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett, it earned just $7.5 million, coming in at number three for the weekend. Meanwhile, last weekend's winner, the Robert Pattinson-starring "Mickey 17," landed at number two with $7.51 million. A small victory there. Unfortunately, director Bong Joon Ho...

At this time last year, few likely had heard of Richard Gadd or Jessica Gunning, and the term “baby reindeer” didn’t immediately call to mind a harrowing exploration of sexual abuse and codependency. Yet, within a month, Baby Reindeer became one of last year’s most widely seen shows, and when the Emmy Awards announced its winners in the limited series and movie categories in September, Gadd, Gunning, and Baby Reindeer won. That’s illustrative of how quickly fortunes can change in the limited series race, which typically resets each season (save for an anthology series like Monsters or Fargo). Ahead, the early 2025 Emmy Awards odds in the movie/limited series categories.

Limited Series The Penguin — 17/10 Disclaimer — 9/2 Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story — 8/1 Say Nothing — 8/1 Dying for Sex — 14/1

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Potential Spoilers

Adolescence — 15/1 Zero Day — 30/1 Good American Family — 42/1 La Maquina — 100/1 Sirens — 100/1

No limited series in this Emmy cycle performed as...

Black Bag has only been in theaters for a few days but director Steven Soderbergh has already dropped hints about a potential sequel. The espionage thriller starring Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett debuted to rave reviews, with critics giving the film a 97% but general audiences falling slightly lower at 71% on Rotten Tomatoes. It also earned $7.5 million at the domestic box office paired with $4.2 million internationally for a worldwide total of $11.7 million. Black Bag slowly unravels a thrilling mystery that ultimately comes to a close when George Woodhouse (Fassbender) reveals he was one step ahead the whole time and during a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Soderbergh was asked about the potential of seeing these characters again in a sequel to the film:...

Every year, Jesse Shade of the Awfully Good Movies series provides us with his list of the ten worst movies of the year – and 2024 is no different! Now that the Oscars are out of the way and it has been revealed that the members of the Academy felt Anora was the best picture of 2024, Jesse Shade is here with his list of The 10 Worst Movies of 2024. You can find out what his picks are by checking out the video embedded above. Fittingly, this is also the video that has been chosen to launch the new JoBlo Awfully Good Movies YouTube channel!

If you want to know what Jesse Shade’s picks for the 10 Worst Movies of 2024 were before you start watching the video, here’s the list:

10. Joker: Folie à Deux

Directed by Todd Phillips, who also wrote the script with Scott Silver. Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga,...

A critically praised Steven Soderbergh spy thriller might have been an easy sell to moviegoers even a decade ago. But the dismal $7.5 million opening of Focus Features’ “Black Bag” shows the chicken-and-egg problem that Hollywood faces when it comes to building audiences for movies that don’t have a well-known IP attached.

“Most of the films that are in theaters right now are getting great reviews, but it is still a challenge to get moviegoers to give them a chance with their hard-earned dollars,” said Comscore analyst Paul Dergarabedian. “It’s something that has been going on for a while, as the audiences have shown that they want certainty with the dominance of tried-and-true franchises even as some have decried the lack of originality.”

Produced on a reported $50 million budget, bought by Focus as a negative pickup and running at a tight 93 minutes, “Black Bag” stars Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett...

2025 has not been the strongest of starts for the box office either domestically, in North America, or overseas. The most noteworthy example is Captain America: Brave New World, an MCU movie that's currently limping its way to $400 million worldwide. 

This weekend, it added $5.5 million in the U.S. ($185.4 million total) and $6 million internationally ($203.2 million total) for a global cume of $388.6 million.

At this rate, it will just about manage to cross $400 million worldwide by the end of its run. While it's good that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier follow-up has topped disasters like The Marvels ($207 million) and The Incredible Hulk ($264 million), it's still set to land in "disappointment" territory alongside Eternals ($402 million) and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania ($476 million).

There are those quick to blame "superhero fatigue" but it's not just Marvel Studios struggling to convince moviegoers to buy a theater ticket.

This weekend, the Jack Quaid-led Novocaine made only $10.5 million worldwide.

Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender in ‘Black Bag’: A Thriller Full of Style and Tension Xmag UK Xmag Editorial

Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender star in Black Bag, a spy thriller brimming with tension, style, and moral…

The post Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender in ‘Black Bag’: A Thriller Full of Style and Tension first appeared on Xmag UK.

Worldwide box office: March 14-16 RankFilm (distributor)3-day (world)Cume (world)3-day (int’l)Cume (int’l)Territories 1. Ne Zha 2(various) $26.4m $2.08bn $26.1m $2.05bn 8 2. Mickey 17(Warner Bros) $23.1m $90.5m $15.6m $57.2m 70 3. Black Bag(Universal) $11.8m $11.8m $4.3m $4.3m 38 4. Captain America: Brave New World(Disney) $11.5m $388.6m $6m $203.2m 53 5. Novocaine(Paramount) $10.5m $10.5m $1.8m $1.8m 20 6. Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy(various) $5.7m $120.7m $5.7m $120.7m 76 7. Paddington In Peru(Sony) $5.1m $183.9m $2.3m $142.6m 55 8. The Monkey(various) $4.8m $59.8m $2.3m $24.6m 60 9. Dog Man(Universal) $3.9m $125.6m $1.4m $32.8m 59 10. The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie(various) $3.4m $5.7m $192,000 $2.6m 9

Credit: Comscore.

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Paramount+ is ready with an entertainment-packed January next year. The upcoming month will see the premiere of one of the most anticipated Paramount+ original shows, Happy Face, and the streaming release of the political horror comedy film Rumours. Just like every month, Paramount+ is ready to overload you with great content. So, we’re here to tell you about the 5 best movies and TV shows coming to Paramount+ in March 2025.

Titles with an * will only be available with Paramount+ With Showtime plan.

*Strange Darling (March 1) Credit – Magenta Light Studios

Strange Darling is a horror thriller film written and directed by Jt Mollner. The 2023 film is set in rural Oregon, and it follows a woman who discovers that the man she just had a one-night stand with is a serial killer, and now she must run to survive as the man chases her.