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Mere days after she wrapped Dying for Sex, Jenny Slate chopped off all her hair.

She’d had basically the same style all her adult life, but through the process of filming the FX cancer comedy, her locks began to take on new meaning. “I felt that my long hair held the sadness, and I just needed to reboot my physicality,” she says, explaining how she got what was left of her character out of her head. “Usually an extreme haircut means, ‘Oh hey, looks like you’re getting divorced!’ ” she notes. “But this was the first time I’ve changed my appearance because something good happened to me.”

And really, Dying for Sex should be very good to, and for, Jenny Slate. It’s the sort of sure-to-get-noticed prestige limited series — debuting April 4 — that can potentially alter an actor’s career trajectory. Not that Slate, 42, needs much of a course correction.

The Romantic-Comedy genre has served cheeseballs to audiences who have often flocked to them for a pat on the back for years. It has not only provided the audience with the much-needed hope that love is around the corner but has also entertained them with neatly packed humor that makes a dolly out of life’s most lovable moments. However, with changing times, the genre has undergone a makeover of sorts. More films have established the idea of a rom-com but have twisted the narrative to serve the greater good. Subverting the genre has thus become a common trait. Indie films of late have often done wonders within the genre itself. The best romantic comedy movies of the decade have thus come out from the indie cinema. 24 of those are as follows:

24. Two Night Stand (2014) | Director: Max Nichols

“Two Night Stand” revolves around Megan (Analeigh Tipton) and Alec (Miles Teller...

Plot: Begins with fraternal twins Devin and Cece adjusting to life with their recently divorced dad, Anthony. When the duo discovers a threat stirring, they quickly realize that dark secrets are among them, triggering a chain of events that unravel a profound mystery.

Review: Growing up, I was slightly too old to enjoy Goosebumps. While I was graduating from Christopher Pike novels and R.L. Stine’s Fear Street series to the more mature novels of Stephen King, tons of kids entered the gateway horror of Stine’s fun brand of scary stories to tell in the dark. The anthology series was a hit with kids looking for a good scare, and the big-screen films starring Jack Black amped up the comedy for a big-budget adventure. Disney+ and Hulu’s reboot of the franchise was a successful, scary take on the source material back in 2023, and this year’s sophomore entry is equally good.

By turns tender and raucous, Pamela Adlon’s feature-length directorial debut, Babes, spins the uneasy, unwelcome, weirdly cool corporeal realities of pregnancy into heartfelt comic gold. The film often feels like a kindred spirit or companion piece to Gillian Robespierre’s Obvious Child, with star and co-writer Illana Glazer stepping into the Jenny Slate role as a woman whose arrested development brushes up against the realities of potential motherhood.

Babes stars Glazer as Eden, a yoga instructor who’s Thanksgiving plans are waylaid when her bestie, Dawn (Michelle Buteau), goes into labor with her second child. After a chance subway encounter and one-night stand with a charming actor (Stephan James), Eden finds herself pregnant. Woefully unprepared and estranged from her sole remaining parent (Oliver Platt), Eden leans on Dawn and her husband, Marty (Hasan Minhaj), to help her through the pregnancy and transition into single motherhood. But dealing with the...

Abortion rights took center stage at a rally Tuesday for striking film and television writers, who gathered with their supporters outside the New York City headquarters of Amazon on the first day of the retail and streaming giant’s “Prime Day” summer sale.

Linking abortion rights to labor rights, speakers said that film and TV workers in anti-abortion states are less protected today from pregnancy-related health emergencies than they were before the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade last summer. That ruling turned abortion rights and restrictions into a state-by-state patchwork after the high court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

They also said production companies such as Amazon — which reimburses employee travel expenses for medical procedures including abortions — could be more vocal in their support of women’s reproductive freedom and medical care.

One speaker, Maya Rupert of the Center for Reproductive Rights,...

Deadline revealed today that David Corenswet has been cast as D.C. films’ new Superman in James Gunn’s Superman: Legacy. But beyond the requisite piercing blue eyes, exactly who is the 29-year-old Corenswet?

Who Is He?

Corenswet graduated from Julliard in 2018 and two years later landed a role on House of Cards. He then starred in Ryan Murphy’s Netflix series The Politician, which ran from 2019–2020, and Hollywood (on which he was an EP). In 2022, he appeared in the Netflix’s Look Both Ways, the HBO miniseries We Own This City and A24’s Pearl.

For Corenswet, Superman: Legacy will mark his first major leading role in a major studio film.

How Did He Get The Job?

The Superman: Legacy casting process has gone on for months From the start of the auditioning process, Corenswet’s name has floated to the top of the list and, following a final audition in costume,...

Exclusive: Universal and Amblin Entertainment have rounded out their Twisters cast with the addition of Maura Tierney (The Affair), Harry Hadden-Paton (Downton Abbey), Sasha Lane (American Honey), Kiernan Shipka (Mad Men), Nik Dodani (Atypical), David Corenswet (Pearl), Tunde Adebimpe (Spider-Man: Homecoming) and Katy O’Brian (The Mandalorian).

The actors join an ensemble for the disaster pic, following on the heels of the 1996 storm-chasing blockbuster Twister, that also includes Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos, Brandon Perea and Daryl McCormack, as previously announced. No character details have been disclosed.

Details as to the plot of the new film are also under wraps. The original starring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton was written by Michael Crichton and directed by Speed‘s Jan de Bont, with Steven Spielberg on board as an EP. Twister was lauded for its groundbreaking special effects and scored $494M+ at the worldwide box office.

Lee Isaac Chung (Minari) is...

Even though there's been a significant rise in raunchy comedies that put female characters in the driver's seat, thanks in part to the success of movies like "Bridesmaids" and "Trainwreck," most of them are rom-coms that firmly rely on the blend of both romance and R-rated comedy. However, "Scrambled," from writer-director Leah McKendrick, stands out among the crowd as a movie that isn't nearly concerned with finding true love. Instead, the film focuses on thirtysomething Nellie (played by McKendrick) as she begins to explore the peaks and valleys of female fertility. 

Nellie is swimming in a sea of weddings, engagement parties, baby showers, and friends who are leaving their younger transgressions behind in favor of a future with a family. While attending her friend Sheila's (Ego Nwodim) nuptials, where Sheila reveals that she's also pregnant, Nellie takes some Molly and reconnects with her old friend Monroe (June Diane Raphael), the...

The FX pilot based on the Catherine Lacey novel “The Answers” is rounding out its main cast with six new additions, Variety has learned.

Lucy Hale, Raul Esparza, Krys Marshall, Melanie Field, Pallavi Sharda, and Kineta Kunutu have all joined the drama pilot alongside previously announced cast member David Corenswet.

Per the official logline, the show takes place in the near future and follows “a heartbroken young woman who joins an enigmatic experiment that promises to hack love. But after moving into an idyllic, secluded location with her fellow female participants, she and the other women start questioning what’s really happening in the experiment, and why they’ve all been tasked with dating the same mysterious man.”

Corenswet will star as Christopher Skye. Hale will star as Mary. Esparza will star as Dr. Crowe. Marshall will play Ellis. Field will play Dani. Sharda will play Ash. Kunutu will play Nic.

FX has rounded out the series regular cast for its hourlong pilot The Answers, the network’s adaptation of Catherine Lacey’s novel. Lucy Hale (Pretty Little Liars) is set to star alongside Raul Esparza (Retreat), Krys Marshall (For All Mankind), Melanie Field ( A League Of Their Own), Pallavi Sharda (Wedding Season) and Kineta Kunutu (Citadel) in the project from Sorry for Your Loss creator Kit Steinkellner, Dopesick creator Danny Strong, Requiem for a Dream director Darren Aronofsky and 20th Television. They join previously announced male lead David Corenswet.

The story, which has drawn comparisons to The Handmaid’s Tale, is set in the near future, where a heartbroken young woman, Mary (Hale), joins an enigmatic experiment that promises to hack love, but after moving into an idyllic, secluded location with her fellow female participants, she and the other women start questioning what’s really happening in the experiment, and why...

Exclusive: David Corenswet has been tapped as the male lead in hourlong pilot The Answers, FX’s adaptation of Catherine Lacey’s novel, from Sorry for Your Loss creator Kit Steinkellner, Dopesick creator Danny Strong, Requiem for a Dream director Darren Aronofsky and 20th Television.

The story, which has drawn comparisons to The Handmaid’s Tale, is set in the near future, where a heartbroken young woman, Mary, joins an enigmatic experiment that promises to hack love, but after moving into an idyllic, secluded location with her fellow female participants, she and the other women start questioning what’s really happening in the experiment, and why they’ve all been tasked with dating the same mysterious man, Christopher Skye (Corenswet).

Christopher Skye, a movie star, is a man of contradictions. When we first meet him, we are so taken with his talent, charisma, and raw power, we absolutely believe he is...

Darren Aronofsky may be more well-known as a movie director, but with "The Answers," the Oscar-nominated filmmaker behind "Black Swan," "The Wrestler," and "Requiem for a Dream" will be working on a new television series in the capacity of an executive producer. This won't be the first time Aronofsky has dabbled in the TV arena, as he's also got the Octavia Butler miniseries "Kindred" in the pipeline, and has done some documentary work on the small screen. However, like Aronofsky's upcoming film festival darling "The Whale," (based on the novel by Samuel D. Hunter) "The Answers" is a high-profile literary adaptation.

For anyone seeking, well, answers about "The Answers," here's everything we know so far.

When And Where To Watch The Answers

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "The Answers" has received a pilot order for FX. This means that, if the network likes what it sees with the first episode...

FX has placed a pilot order for “The Answers” with Kit Steinkellner set to write and executive produce. Darren Aronofsky and Danny Strong will also executive produce. The one-hour drama pilot will be produced by 20th Television, a part of Disney Television Studios.

Based on the novel of the same name by Catherine Lacey, the official logline for the series states that it “follows a young woman who, out of heartbreak embarks on a mysterious experiment that promises to ‘hack love.’ But after the program moves her to a private location with the other fellow female participants, she and her cohorts soon realize they’ve all been simultaneously dating the same man.”

Steinkellner created and executive produced the Facebook Watch series “Sorry For Your Loss,” a half-hour series starring Elizabeth Olsen. That series ran for two seasons and earned a 97 critical approval score on Rotten Tomatoes. An award-winning playwright and graphic novelist,...

Catherine Lacey’s novel The Answers is being adapted for television by Sorry for Your Loss creator Kit Steinkellner, Dopesick creator Danny Strong and Requiem for a Dream director Darren Aronofsky with Gillian Robespierre (A Teacher) directing.

The quartet have scored a pilot order for the project at FX.

The story is set in the near future, where a heartbroken young woman joins an enigmatic experiment that promises to hack love, but after moving into an idyllic, secluded location with her fellow female participants, she and the other women start questioning what’s really happening in the experiment, and why they’ve all been tasked with dating the same mysterious man.

The book, which was published in 2017, has been likened to The Handmaid’s Tale. It follows Mary Parsons, who becomes an emotional girlfriend in the “Girlfriend Experiment, the brainchild of a wealthy and infamous actor Kurt Sky.

Kit Steinkellner, who...

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Kit Steinkellner, creator of the critically praised former Facebook Watch drama Sorry for Your Loss, is returning to television in a big way at FX.

The Disney-owned basic cable network has handed out a pilot order for an adaptation of Catherine Lacey’s novel The Answers, with Steinkellner set to write the script and exec produce alongside Danny Strong and Darren Aronofsky.

The Answers is set in the near future and follows a heartbroken young woman who joins an enigmatic experiment that promises to hack love. But after moving into an idyllic, secluded location with her fellow female participants, she and the other women start questioning what’s really happening in the experiment, and why they’ve all been tasked with dating the same mysterious man.

Steinkellner penned the pilot for the script, which is being produced by Disney’s 20th Television. Exec producers include Strong (Dopesick,...

David Yates’ Netflix film The Pain Hustlers has begun rounding out its cast, with Andy Garcia (Father of the Bride), Catherine O’Hara (Schitt’s Creek), Jay Duplass (Industry), Brian d’Arcy James (West Side Story) and Chloe Coleman (My Spy) signing on to star alongside Emily Blunt and Chris Evans.

The film billed as tonally similar to The Big Short, American Hustle and The Wolf of Wall Street follows Liza Drake (Blunt), a high-school dropout dreaming of a better life for her and her young daughter. Liza lands a job with a failing pharmaceutical startup in a yellowing strip mall in Central Florida. Her charm, guts and drive then catapult the company and her into the high life, where she soon finds herself at the center of a criminal conspiracy with deadly consequences.

Netflix acquired global rights to the film written by Wells Tower for 50M out of this year’s Cannes Film Festival,...

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court voted to overrule Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to an abortion after nearly 50 years. The news sent a shockwave across America and around the world, but it was not unexpected, as a draft version of the decision leaked to the media in early May. During that time, IndieWire ran this interview with Caren Spruch, the national director of arts and entertainment engagement for Planned Parenthood, who has been consulting on film and TV projects that deal with abortion challenges in America for years.

In a statement following the release of the Supreme Court decision, Planned Parenthood wrote on Twitter: “We know you may be feeling a lot of things right now — hurt, anger, confusion. Whatever you feel is Ok. We’re here with you — and we’ll never stop fighting for you. If you need an abortion, help is available to make...

Josh Andrés Rivera will be returning to work with his West Side Story star Rachel Zegler in Lionsgate’s growing ensemble prequel The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

The prequel centers around 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth), who as we know will become the tyrannical President of Panem. He is the last hope for his fading lineage, a once-proud family that has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol. With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, the young Snow is alarmed when he is assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Zegler), the girl tribute from impoverished District 12. But, after Lucy Gray commands all of Panem’s attention by defiantly singing during the reaping ceremony, Snow thinks he might be able to turn the odds in their favor. Uniting their instincts for showmanship and newfound political savvy, Snow and Lucy’s race against time to survive will...

Josh Andrés Rivera (“West Side Story”) is set to play the role of Sejanus Plinth in the “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” for director Francis Lawrence and producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson, TheWrap has exclusively learned.

Sejanus Plinth is a close friend of young Coriolanus Snow and the mentor to a tribute from District 2. Tom Blyth is playing the role of Coriolanus Snow. Rivera also joins his fellow “West Side Story” alum Rachel Zegler, who is set to play Lucy Gray Baird in the film.

The prequel film in the franchise, which has grossed over 3 billion globally, is based on the best-selling novel by Suzanne Collins and is slated to hit theaters on Nov. 17, 2023.

Also Read:

Rachel Zegler to Lead ‘Hunger Games’ Prequel ‘The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’

Francis Lawrence returns to the series, having directed the sequels “Catching Fire” and both parts of “Mockingjay.

Job security in the film industry is never a sure thing. In this moment, it might look particularly fragile if you work in a vulnerable department of Netflix or a redundant division of Warner Bros. To that list, you could also add film festival programmers — and they should have some of the most secure jobs in the industry.

Consider how Netflix stock hits a new low each day in part to an overreliance on algorithms and too much content that not enough people watch. The overwhelming amount of global content production has forced even the biggest streamers to realize that curatorial decisions matter more than pure data, which means the skillsets of a programmer — and it is a skill — should be at their highest demand. This is particularly true for film festivals, which are defined by curation.

And yet recent events speak to the fragility of the profession. Last month,...

Audrey Diwan’s Happening launched New Directors/New Films in April, mesmerizing viewers with the story of a brilliant literature student from a working-class background seeking an abortion to keep her life from derailing. In 1963 France the procedure was illegal. The suspense builds with each week a new chapter title as she seeks help from doctors, friends, the boy she slept with, and her body continue to change. Everyone backs away, judgmental, terrified of being thrown in prison for helping, or both.

‘Happening’ took the Golden Lion in Venice last year. Star Anamaria Vartolomei won the César Award for best newcomer Deadline review here. Diwan and Marcia Romano wrote the screenplay based on the 2000 novel of the same name by Annie Ernaux.

IFC Films releases ‘Happening’ (L’événement) in four theaters this weekend – IFC Center/Lincoln Plaza in New York, the Landmark/the Grove in LA, expanding thereafter a bit faster than anticipated.

HBO Max announced on Tuesday the renewal of the Sex and the City sequel series And Just Like That... for a second season.

Both series executive producer Michael Patrick King and HBO/HBO Max Chief Content Officer Casey Bloys boasted about the show’s success in interviews with Deadline.

It performed well for the streamer – becoming its most-viewed series premiere of a new original on the service and ranking in its top ten across all movie and series debuts.

And Just Like That… stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, and Kristin Davis reprising their characters from the original series, which aired from 1998-2004 on HBO. While the original series showcased the women navigating the journey from the complicated reality of life and friendship in their 30s, the revival tackled the complicated reality of life and friendship in their 50s.

“I am delighted and excited to tell more stories about these vibrant,...

Hello, lovers! Some good news from the New York City girls. “And Just Like That …” is coming back for another season.

HBO Max announced the show’s Season 2 pickup on Tuesday.

The series is from executive producer Michael Patrick King, and stars (and is executive produced by) Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis.

According to the streamer, “And Just Like That …” had the strongest debut of any HBO Max Original show in the streamer’s history.

“I am delighted and excited to tell more stories about these vibrant, bold characters — played by these powerful, amazing actors,” King said in a statement. “The fact is, we’re all thrilled. ‘And Just like That…’ our ‘Sex’ life is back.”

The show follows the lives of Sjp’s Carrie, Nixon’s Miranda, and Davis’ Charlotte in their 50s. It’s predecessor, “Sex and The City,” focused on their lives in their 30s.

Exclusive: Gillian Robespierre and Mathilde Dratwa (Milk and Gall) have been tapped to executive produce and pen the adaptation for Separation Anxiety, a limited series based on Laura Zigman’s bestselling novel, which has Julianne Nicholson attached to star and executive produce. Robespierre also will direct the pilot for the project, from independent studio wiip.

Separation Anxiety is described as an honest and humorous portrait of a wife and mother in limbo. Upon realizing that her life has not turned out as she hoped, Judy (Nicholson), a formerly successful children’s author and now an anxious mother and wife, sets out on a path to reclaim happiness on her own terms. Her first step? Carrying her beloved dog in an old baby carrier wherever she goes…

Wiip optioned the rights to the novel to develop as a premium TV series headlined by Nicholson. In addition to starring,...

Independent film supporter Rooftop Films announced the 2022 Filmmaker Fund winners February 28, exclusively on IndieWire.

The prestigious Water Tower Feature Film Cash Grant was awarded to “The 40-Year-Old Version” writer-director-producer-star Radha Blank, for her upcoming untitled dark dramedy.

Environmental director Eleanor Mortimer also won a Water Tower grant for an untitled deep sea taxonomy documentary, which “follows biologists through the intricate process of discovering deep-sea species as they piece together the unknown ecosystems of the largest biome on the planet.”

The $15,000 grants are made possible by generous support from the Laurence W. Levine Foundation.

The Rooftop Filmmakers Fund grants are available to Rooftop Films alumni directors who have previously had their work screened during the annual Summer Series in New York City. Blank screened her debut feature, “The Forty-Year-Old Version,” with Rooftop Films in 2020 at the Queens Drive-In. Mortimer screened her award-winning short film “Territory” at Rooftop Films in 2016.

This year,...

Josh Andrés Rivera, who plays the pivotal role of Chino in Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of West Side Story, has signed with Paradigm for representation. Rivera stars opposite Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler and Ariana DeBose in the film that is currently in theaters nationwide. Rivera recently wrapped production on Susanna Fogel’s anticipated psychological thriller Cat Person for Studiocanal and New Yorker Studios, based on Kristen Roupenian’s short story. Rivera also was a series lead in the HBO Max pilot Vegas High, directed by Gillian Robespierre and produced by Michael Showalter. On stage, Rivera most notably performed in the original company on the first national tour of the Tony-winning musical Hamilton. He continues to be repped by Silver Lining Entertainment.

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Innovative Artists has signed Iantha Richardson for representation. Richardson is known for her starring role as Tessa on BET’s American Soul. She also recurs on Freeform’s Good Trouble...

HBO Max’s new trailer for “And Just Like That,” its revival of “Sex and the City,” expands on the teaser, revealing where Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) and the gang are more than 11 years after we saw them in the movie “Sex and the City 2.”

Along with Parker, Kristin Davis has returned as Charlotte and Cynthia Nixon once again plays Miranda. Kim Cattrall has chosen not to come back as fan-favorite Samantha, due to issues that have been well documented over the years. “Sex and the City” mainstays Chris Noth, Mario Cantone, David Eigenberg, Evan Handler and Willie Garson — who died in September — reprise their past roles. New cast members Sara Ramírez, Sarita Choudhury, Nicole Ari Parker and Karen Pittman join them.

The trailer appears to reveal that the three women are still married — at least for now — and spotlights Big on a Peloton, kissing Carrie, and saying to her,...

HBO Max has debuted the official trailer for “And Just Like That…” the 9-episode series return of HBO’s flagship comedy “Sex and the City.” As expected, the series will be full of high fashion, quippy dialogue, and beloved characters — with some exciting new additions as well. Franchise talents Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, Kristin Davis are all returning to reprise their career-defining roles. Only Kim Cattrall is awkwardly absent. Following two blockbuster movies in 2008 and 2010, a third film was shelved in 2017 when Cattrall refused to return, saying she’d “had enough” playing Samantha Jones. Determined to forge ahead without their bawdiest broad, the remaining trio banded together and reshaped the revival for television, returning “Sex and the City” to its original form. And just like that, “And Just Like That…” was born.

As the MCU for women and gay men of a certain age, it was tough to keep...

“Only Murders in the Building” just killed it on Hulu. The Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez-starring whodunnit just had the most-watched premiere day for any comedy series in Hulu’s history, a spokesperson for the streaming service told TheWrap.

Yes, that includes “Seinfeld” — and about 400+ additional comedies that have streamed to-date on Hulu.

Of course, Hulu had far fewer subscribers when reruns of “Seinfeld” premiered on the platform in 2015. When the streaming service announced it had acquired those rights, the platform had about 9 million subscribers. Today, Hulu has nearly 43 million subs.

This whole internal-record-breaking thing seems to be going around at Hulu. “Nine Perfect Strangers” recently became the most-watched Hulu Original series premiere ever, and movie “Vacation Friends” just had the best opening weekend for a Hulu Original film.

“Nine Perfect Strangers” had a stronger premiere day than “Only Murders” did, we’re told. But again, different genres.

Kyanna Simone (Chambers) is joining the Season 3 cast of the CW’s All American as recurring. She’ll play Nhani Rivers, a confident, fun, and energetic student at South Crenshaw High. Season 2 found Spencer James (Daniel Ezra), now a football state champion, with a tough decision to make. Does he stay in Beverly Hills and play for Coach Billy Baker (Taye Diggs)? Or does he move back home to South L.A., reunite with his mother, Grace (Karimah Westbrook), brother, Dillon (Jalyn Hall), and play for his father, Corey (Chad Coleman), the new head coach for the South Crenshaw Chargers? Simone can currently be seen in Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman’s Power Power opposite Jamie Foxx and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Previously, she starred opposite Uma Thurman in the Netflix series Chambers, and was seen in Ma opposite Octavia Spencer. She was most recently a series regular on the HBO Max pilot,...

Back in 2018, “A Very English Scandal” was released and earned series stars Hugh Grant and Ben Whishaw a ton of acclaim and awards recognition. While that series doesn’t necessarily lend itself to a sequel, it appears that Amazon and BBC One have figured out how to make a follow-up, “A Very British Scandal.”

Read More: Claire Foy Teams With Director Gillian Robespierre For Erotic Merman Infatuation Tale, ‘The Pisces’

According to Variety, Claire Foy and Paul Bettany have signed on to star in the upcoming limited series, “A Very British Scandal.” The series won’t follow the same characters and story of the previous show, but instead, will focus on the real-life divorce between the Duke (Bettany) and Duchess of Argyll (Foy), which devolved into one of the more brutal legal battles in recent memory.

Continue reading Claire Foy & Paul Bettany To Star In Amazon/BBC’s ‘A Very...

Exclusive: HBO Max has opted not to proceed with Vegas High, its coming-of-age period drama pilot from writer Sarah-Raquel Jimenez, director Gillian Robespierre and Michael Showalter’s Semi-Formal Prods.

The pilot, which starred newcomer Raegan Rozas, Jordana Spiro and Josh Andrés Rivera, was inspired by Jimenez’s own experience. It is a 1990s-set coming-of-age story about Laura (Rozas), a girl who’s caught between two worlds: the fast-paced lifestyle of Las Vegas and her strong Mormon faith and community.

Jimenez and Robespierre executive produced alongside Showalter and Jordana Mollick for Semi-Formal and Michael Lewen.

HBO Max also recently passed on psychological thriller drama pilot Red Bird Lane starring Susan Sarandon while picking up to pilot Julia Child pilot Julia.

It’s been a minute since we’ve had a film from indie filmmaker Gillian Robespierre, known for “Obvious Child” (2014) and “Landline” (2017). That said, unlike years of past when indie filmmakers might sit and wait for a green light for years, opportunity is everywhere and she’s been extremely busy directing TV over the last few years, episodes of “Silicon Valley,” “Casual,” “Crashing, “Shrill,” HBO’s “Mrs.

Continue reading Claire Foy Teams With Director Gillian Robespierre For Erotic Merman Infatuation Tale, ‘The Pisces’ at The Playlist.

Exclusive: Claire Foy has signed on to star in the upcoming feature, The Pisces, based on author Melissa Broder’s critically acclaimed novel of the same name. Broder and Gillian Robespierre penned the script that Robespierre will direct. Foy, who is the latest addition to the project, will play a PhD student plagued with writer’s block and romantic obsession.

The Pisces is centered on Lucy’s erotic infatuation with a merman. But as fantastical as that sounds sounds, it is more than just a lady-fishman love story. It’s an exploration of the boundaries between pleasure and possession, fantasy vs. reality and the way women choose the men in their lives.

Archer Gray’s Anne Carey developed the script with Broder and Robespierre. Carey and Amy Nauiokas will produce under their Archer Gray banner.

The novel was published in 2018 by Hogarth Press in the U.S. and Bloomsbury Publishing in the UK.

After watching all 10 episodes of “A Teacher,” there’s no doubt where it ultimately stands. Claire (Kate Mara) might be lonely, bored and self-loathing, but as she indulges her curiosity about her charismatic student Eric (Nick Robinson) to the point of seducing him, it’s clear that she’s committed an enormous violation for which there’s no excuse. Exploring three specific stages of their lives — the initial “relationship,” the terrible fallout, a chance encounter ten years later — the series delves into the damage Claire’s caused and the quietly devastating ripple effects that Eric will experience throughout his entire life. As a whole piece of work, “A Teacher” is an intensive, immersive study of how abuse works and the intimate damage it can wreak. When broken up into individual episodes, though, the series stands on far more tenuous ground.

In its original form, Hannah Fidell’s “A Teacher” was...

When a filmmaker newly arrived to television perceives the medium as “movies, but longer,” it typically means they don’t know or care about how to structure individual episodes, or why that matters. (Though in some cases, as with Luca Guadgnino and We Are Who We Are, those who talk the “10-hour movie” talk somehow walk the episodic walk.) With FX on Hulu’s A Teacher, however, the concept becomes quite literal — and not very effective.

The 10-part limited series is Hannah Fidell’s adaptation of her own 2013 indie film...

Comedy Couple movie review is here. The ZEE5 original movie is produced by Yoodlee Films and stars Saqib Saleem, Shweta Basu Prasad in lead roles.

Comedy Couple premieres on ZEE5 on October 21, 2020.

Comedy Couple story

Deep Sharma (Saqib Saleem) and Zoya Batra (Shweta Basu Prasad) are in a live - in relationship and are an upcoming stand up comedians who perform together. The movie is about their relationships and the ‘jokes’ they say and happen around.

Comedy Couple story

He is an ex It wala belonging to a traditional family, She is the darling daughter of an independent artiste – her mother happily settled abroad - Zohra Batra (Pooja Bedi).

Together, they set the stage on fire – cracking jokes on those typical stand up themes – small town munda, saher ki ladki, khee khee, hee hee, sex, beer and oh dear that gaumutra, all is happening in Gachchi (Marathi 2017) fame director Nachiket Samant...

Obvious Teen: Maine Finds Nostalgia in a Hopeless Place

Of the many aspects particular to the late 1990s and early 2000s, where cell phones were in the evolutionary transition from advanced pagers to the devices which would rule our lives and when AOL chatrooms provided many people of a certain age with their introduction to sexuality, there’s a lot which hasn’t been astutely conveyed on film in this timeframe outside of nostalgic homage.

Karen Maine, co-writer of Gillian Robespierre’s Obvious Child (2014), makes her directorial debut with Yes, God, Yes, based on a previous short film which is also a semi-autobiographical take on growing up a Catholic schoolgirl in the early 00s of the conservative Midwest.…...

In today’s film news roundup, UTA promotes agents Chelsea McKinnies and Emerson Davis, “A Deadly Legend’ finds a home and the Black Life Film Fest is unveiled.

Promotions

United Talent Agency has promoted veteran agents Chelsea McKinnies and Emerson Davis to partner status.

“As champions of powerful and unique voices, Chelsea and Emerson have been integral to the growth and evolution of UTA,” said UTA co-president David Kramer. “It is essential our partnership is comprised of dynamic and deserving leaders, particularly as we strive for our company to better reflect the world in which we live. Chelsea and Emerson make us better as a whole and will provide leadership and inspiration to colleagues who have been underrepresented in our partnership. UTA is fortunate to have such esteemed colleagues to help lead us in these times.”

Davis is a 14-year UTA veteran and part of UTA’s Motion Picture Literary Group.

United Talent Agency (UTA) has promoted Chelsea McKinnies and Emerson Davis to partner status, the agency announced on Monday.

“As champions of powerful and unique voices, Chelsea and Emerson have been integral to the growth and evolution of UTA,” UTA Co-President David Kramer said in a statement. “It is essential our partnership is comprised of dynamic and deserving leaders, particularly as we strive for our company to better reflect the world in which we live. Chelsea and Emerson make us better as a whole and will provide leadership and inspiration to colleagues who have been underrepresented in our partnership. UTA is fortunate to have such esteemed colleagues to help lead us in these times.”

Davis is a 14-year UTA veteran and has been a part of UTA’s Motion Picture Literary Group. He started in the UTA mailroom and was promoted to agent in 2010, and his clients include Hiro Murai,...

UTA has promoted Chelsea McKinnies and Emerson Davis to partner status. The two rose through the agency ranks and collectively share 25 years of experience.

McKinnies jointed UTA in 2015 and is an agent in UTA’s talent department. She began at CAA in 2008 on the reception desk in New York and was promoted to agent in 2012. Her clients include Constance Wu, Tracee Ellis Ross, Amandla Stenberg, Cynthia Erivo, Anna Faris, Aidy Bryant, Martin Lawrence, Kiersey Clemons, Michael Che, Jemaine Clement, Jodie Turner-Smith, Phillipa Soo, Adriana Ugarte, Greta Lee and Yvonne Orji. McKinnies is originally from Bloomington, Minnesota, and graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Davis is part of UTA’s Motion Picture Literary Group and a 14-year vet of the agency. He rose through the UTA mailroom, and was promoted to agent in 2010. His client roster includes Hiro Murai, Kogonada, Terence Nance, Shaka King, Gillian Robespierre...

Exclusive: Rapper Coolio has joined the cast of the HBO Max drama pilot Vegas High.

In what would be a recurring role, the Grammy winner will play Ray, a Las Vegas businessman who is uncle to Olive, played by Kyanna Simpson. It will be the rapper’s first recurring role in a TV drama.

The 1990s-set coming-of-age story follows a girl who’s caught between two worlds: the fast-paced lifestyle of Las Vegas and her strong Mormon faith and community.

Starring are Jordana Spiro (Ozark), Josh Andrés Rivera (West Side Story), newcomer Reagan Rozas in the lead role, Simpson (Chambers), Emma Meisel (American Horror Story: 1984), Lexi Simonsen (2nd), Kevin Rahm (Madam Secretary) and All American‘s Da’Vinchi.

The show heralds from writer Sarah-Raquel Jimenez, director Gillian Robespierre and Michael Showalter’s Semi-Formal Prods and is inspired by Jimenez’s own experiences.

Rapper, producer, actor and chef Coolio, born Artis Leon Ivey Jr.

Exclusive: Newcomer Reagan Rozas, Kyanna Simpson (Chambers), Emma Meisel (American Horror Story: 1984), Lexi Simonsen (2nd), Kevin Rahm (Madam Secretary) and All American‘s Da’Vinchi are set as series regulars opposite Jordana Spiro and Josh Andrés Rivera in Vegas High, HBO Max’s coming-of-age period drama pilot from writer Sarah-Raquel Jimenez, director Gillian Robespierre and Michael Showalter’s Semi-Formal Prods.

Written by Jimenez and directed by Robespierre, Vegas High is inspired by Jimenez’s own experience. It is a 1990s-set coming-of-age story about Laura (Rozas), a girl who’s caught between two worlds: the fast-paced lifestyle of Las Vegas and her strong Mormon faith and community.

Rozas’ Laura Hernandez is a sweet, poetic soul and devout Mormon who lives in Las Vegas with her blended family while attending Vegas High.

Meisel will play Maddie, Laura’s best friend, Maddie is a devout Mormon girl, and is regularly seen attending events with...

Exclusive: West Duchovny is set as a series regular opposite Jordana Spiro and Josh Andrés Rivera in Vegas High, HBO Max’s coming-of-age period drama pilot from writer Sarah-Raquel Jimenez, director Gillian Robespierre and Michael Showalter’s Semi-Formal Prods. HBO Max is the studio.

Written by Jimenez and directed by Robespierre, Vegas High is inspired by Jimenez’s own experience. It is a 1990s-set coming-of-age story about Laura, a girl who’s caught between two worlds: the fast-paced lifestyle of Las Vegas and her strong Mormon faith and community.

Duchovny will play Paige, the President of the Mormon Church’s “Young Women” organization, who firmly believes in wholesome values.

Jimenez and Robespierre executive produce alongside Showalter and Jordana Mollick for Semi-Formal Productions and Michael Lewen.

Vegas High is the first major TV role for Duchovny, the daughter of David Duchovny and Tea Leoni. She previously recurred on Syfy’s The Magicians...

HBO Max, the prepping WarnerMedia streaming service, is casting a pilot for the 1990's 'coming-of-age' drama "Vegas High", from writer Sarah-Raquel Jimenez and director Gillian Robespierre, inspired by Jimenez' own experiences, about a girl caught between the fast paced lifestyle of Las Vegas and a strong 'Mormon' background of faith and community:

"For the TV Show 'Vegas High' coming to Las Vegas in February:

"We are looking for 'SAG' and 'Non Union' College age Talent (18 – 25 years of age) who are at a 'Pool Party' — who end up jumping in the pool in their underwear. This works Thursday, February 27. Rate is $350 for 8 hours for females and $250 for 8 hours for males.

"This TV show takes place in 1999.

"Please submit a picture(s) — can be selfies — and email them to davidanthony444@gmail.com

Please include your name, height and weight, and cell number. Please put 'Party' in the Subject Line. Thank You.

Exclusive: Jordana Spiro (Ozark) and Josh Andrés Rivera (West Side Story) have been cast as leads in Vegas High, HBO Max’s coming-of-age period drama pilot from writer Sarah-Raquel Jimenez, director Gillian Robespierre and Michael Showalter’s Semi-Formal Prods. HBO Max is the studio.

Written by Jimenez and directed by Robespierre, Vegas High is inspired by Jimenez’s own experience. It is a 1990s-set coming-of-age story about Laura, a girl who’s caught between two worlds: the fast-paced lifestyle of Las Vegas and her strong Mormon faith and community.

Spiro plays Laura’s mom, Diane. The epitome of a Mormon housewife, Diane is compassionate, complicated and funny. But as a young mother of four, she struggles with the repetitive efforts to keep her family, home and church duties up and running.

Rivera is playing Josh, Diane’s reckless, charismatic son and Laura’s brother who lives unapologetically. Inappropriate but hilarious,...

HBO Max, the upcoming WarmerMedia streaming service, has given pilot orders to single-camera comedy Gumshoe, from writers Aaron Brownstein & Simon Ganz, director Randall Einhorn (The Kids Are Alright) and Conan O’Brien’s Conaco; and 1990s drama Vegas High, from writer Sarah-Raquel Jimenez, director Gillian Robespierre (Mrs. Fletcher) and Michael Showalter’s Semi-Formal Prods. HBO Max is the studio on both.

Written by Brownstein and Ganz (Santa Clarita Diet) and directed by Einhorn (The Kids Are Alright), Gumshoe is about a sweet, optimistic young cop and a creepy, crime-obsessed teenager who secretly team up to solve a murder.

Longtime writing partners Brownstein and Ganz wrote Gumshoe on spec and sold it to HBO Max. They will serve as showrunners on the pilot, which they will executive produce with Einhorn as well Conaco’s O’Brien, David Kissinger, Jeff Ross, and Larry Sullivan.

Written by Jimenez and directed by Robespierre, Vegas High...

HBO Max has ordered two shows to pilot, one a comedy and the other a drama. The streamer will produce both pilots.

The comedy is titled “Gumshoe.” It follows a sweet, optimistic young cop and a creepy, crime-obsessed teenager who secretly team up to solve a murder. Aaron Brownstein and Simon Ganz will write, executive produce, and serve as showrunners with Randall Einhorn set to direct and executive produce. Conan O’Brien, David Kissinger, Jeff Ross, and Larry Sullivan for Conaco.

Brownstein and Ganz have previously worked together on shows such as “Santa Clarita Diet” and “About a Boy.” They are repped by Anonymous Content and Gang Tyre.

Einhorn, meanwhile, a comedy directing veteran, having helmed multiple episodes of shows such as “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” “Parks and Recreation,” “The Office,” “Modern Family,” and “Wilfred.” He is repped by Wme, Odenkirk Provissiero Entertainment, and Goodman Schenkman & Brecheen.

O’Brien continues...

Premiering on Sunday night, October 27, HBO’s “Mrs. Fletcher” is a limited series told in seven half-hour episodes about a college-bound young man (Jackson White) coming of age and his mother (Kathryn Hahn) coming of middle age. Like “The Leftovers” it’s based on a novel by Tom Perrotta, and also like “The Leftovers” it was created by the author himself. But do critics admire this adaptation as much as they did Perrotta’s last one?

As of this writing the series has a MetaCritic score of 72 based on 10 reviews counted: seven positive, three mixed. The consensus on Rotten Tomatoes is similar. They rate movies and TV shows on a pass/fail scale, and they score it 77% fresh based on 13 reviews — 10 of which are positive. So most critics are admiring of it, but even more so of the woman who plays the title character.

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When a stranger at a party asks the title character of HBO’s new comedic miniseries Mrs. Fletcher what she does, she replies, “I watch a lot of porn.” She’s not joking.

Eve Fletcher (a wolfishly perfect Kathryn Hahn) has a day job working at a senior center, but the moment her son Brendan (Jackson White) heads off to college, her imagination and most of her spare minutes are consumed by the same activity for which she once scolded him. (Alternate title suggestion: Hahn If You’re Horny.)

Tom Perrotta,...