News

Asian Pop-Up Cinema is set to hold its 10th anniversary gala on Saturday, April 5, 2025, with filmmakers, actors, and cinephiles in attendance to celebrate the milestone, emceed by Fox 32’s Joanie Lum at CineCity Studios Chicago (2429 W. 14th St.). The centerpiece of the event features a conversation with the directors of six films in this year’s 19th Asian Pop-Up Cinema festival, representing six different regions throughout Asia. Tickets (starting at $350) available at www.asianpopupcinema.org/2025-Gala.

Behind The Lens: Six Directors, Six Perspectives

Moderated by Asian Pop-Up Cinema founder and executive director Sophia Wong Boccio, “Behind the Lens: Six Directors, Six Perspectives” presents a wide-ranging conversation about the Asian film industry and its role in global cinema. The panel guests include:

Anselm Chan, director of The Last Dance: Extended Version (Hong Kong) Junichi Yasuda, director of A Samurai In Time (Japan) Tom Lin Shu-Yu, director of Yen And AI-lee (Taiwan) Lee Mi-Rang,...

The Vampire Diaries followed Elena Gilbert and the Salvatore brothers. The three took on all matters of supernatural enemies while falling in and out of love with each other. With high-stakes and epic finales, there are some episodes that get overlooked or fly a little under the radar.

The game-changing final episode of season two is one of the highest-rated episodes of the series and one of the best episodes for Damon fans, but an earlier episode in the season has tons of brilliant Damon moments and is a fantastic episode. “The Last Dance” is when audiences first see Klaus in action when he possesses Alaric’s body. He learns that Bonnie is super-charged and confident she can kill Klaus if he shows up.

“The Last Dance” Is Eclipsed by the Intense Season 2 Ending

"The Last Dance" is just as good as the finale, but it doesn't get the same praise,...

Exclusive: While Hong Kong’s film industry has not had the easiest ride since the pandemic, it continues to defy expectations by throwing up locally produced films that have been breaking records at the local box office.

The most recent of these, Emperor Motion Pictures’ The Last Dance, released in November 2024, has become the highest-grossing Hong Kong film of all time – indeed the highest-grossing Chinese-language film ever at the Hong Kong box office – grossing more than $20M (Hk$161M).

The film has also performed strongly on its international release – taking more than $800,000 in the UK, where it’s the third highest grossing Hong Kong film of all time behind Stephen Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle and Wong Kar Wai’s In The Mood For Love. It has also done well in other territories, including North America, Australia, New Zealand and Malaysia, grossing $4M (RM18M) in the latter, a...

International distributors are bringing The Last Dance, Hong Kong’s biggest local film of all time, back to cinemas on April 4 with the release of an extended version.

The 139-minute version of the funeral rites drama, directed by Anselm Chan and starring Michael Hui and Dayo Wong, is scheduled for a day-and-date release in Hong Kong through producer Emperor Motion Pictures (Emp), Malaysia (Lotus Five Star), Singapore (Clover Films), Australia and New Zealand (Magnum Films) and North America (Magnum Films).Taiwan will release the extended version in May through Sky Films.

Emp, which also handles international sales, has closed a...

The world premiere of The Brightest Sun by Japan’s Nakashima Tetsuya will open the 49th Hong Kong International Film Festival (Hkiff), along with Pavane For An Infant by Malaysia’s Chong Keat-Aun.

Johan Haugerud’s Dreams (Sex Love), winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlinale last month, has been set as the closing film.

The full line-up of the festival, which runs from April 10-21, was announced on the first day of Filmart with Hong Kong star Louis Koo, this year’s filmmaker in focus, and Angela Yuen, the new festival ambassador, in attendance.

Nearly 200 films from 69 countries...

The 18th annual Asian Film Awards (Afa) announced the winners and special award recipients at a ceremony held at the West Kowloon Cultural District’s Xiqu Centre in Hong Kong on March 16, 2025. Sixteen competitive prizes and five honorary prizes were given out. The Afa ceremony featured a glamorous Red Carpet and Award Ceremony attracting participants from all over Asia, and was a great success. At this year’s Afa, the Hong Kong actor-director Sammo Hung served as the jury president leading other jury and voting members composed of filmmakers from around the world in selecting the winners. Daishi Matsunaga, along with fellow director Stanley Kwan, served as presenters.

Here are all the awards and nominees of this year’s edition

Best Film

All We Imagine as Light (India, France, Netherlands, Luxembourg)

Black Dog (Mainland China)

Exhuma (South Korea)

Teki Cometh (Japan)

Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (Hong Kong)

Best...

Despite the challenges currently faced by the Hong Kong film industry, a wave of new filmmakers has emerged in recent years. Backed by government funding and the mentoring of experienced local producers and directors, these talents have seen encouraging box office results at home as well as festival play and some commercial success overseas.

Unlike Hong Kong’s previous generation of filmmakers, which specialized in crime thrillers and martial arts action movies, these younger directors tend to work with much smaller budgets and focus on realistic characters and social issues relevant to their hometown of Hong Kong. Few of these filmmakers are aiming for mainland Chinese audiences, due to the high costs, cultural differences and censorship issues that complicate releasing films in that market.

For nearly two decades now, the Hong Kong Film Development Council (Hkfdc) has provided a range of funding programmes to support local filmmakers, including the Film Production Financing Scheme,...

Payal Kapadia’s Indian co-production “All We Imagine as Light” won best film at the 18th Asian Film Awards in Hong Kong, capping a remarkable journey that began with a Grand Prix win at Cannes last year.

Yoshida Daihachi won best director for “Teki Cometh,” while Sean Lau won best actor for “Papa” and Shahana Goswami best actress for “Santosh.” Sandhya Suri won best new director for “Santosh,” capping a strong year for Indian co-productions at the awards, where the country has been a bridesmaid in recent years.

Honors were evenly spread otherwise, with “Exhuma,” “Stranger Eyes” and “Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In” all collecting a brace of awards each.

Proceedings kicked off with a performance featuring the composer of the film that is the toast of Asia at the moment – “Ne Zha 2,” Chu Wan Pin, alongside Jonathan Wong.

During the awards, Dr. Wilfred Wong, chair of the Asian Film Awards Academy,...

Running during the same week as Hong Kong’s Filmart, the Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum (Haf) is one of Asia’s longest-running project markets. In its 23rd edition this year, the three-day Haf will feature 25 shortlisted projects in-development from March 17 to 19.

This year’s projects include Yellow, which is produced by top Japanese fillmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda for new director Miyoh Yamaura, as well as Republic of Mahalaxmi Apartment, the debut feature from Niladri Mukherjee, which is produced by Indian director Aditya Vikram Sengupta.

According to Hkiff Industry Director Jacob Wong, Haf received 276 in-development project submissions from 45 countries and regions this year, including Hong Kong, Thailand, Turkey, Kazakhstan and South Korea.

“Geographically, Hong Kong is at the southernmost of East Asian and northernmost of Southeast Asia, and seems like an ideal place to bring together people from both regions,” Wong tells Deadline. “We do all the other things because we...

UK-based, pan-European distributor Trinity CineAsia has acquired theatrical rights from Beijing Enlight Media for record-breaking Chinese animation Ne Zha 2 across 37 territories, including the UK, Ireland, Germany, France and Spain.

The film has grossed more than $2Bn, overtaking Inside Out 2, and ranking sixth among the highest-grossing films worldwide, behind Avatar, Avatar: The Way Of Water, Avengers: Endgame, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Titanic.

A theatrical release in UK and Ireland has been set for March 21 with previews from March 14. Other European releases will follow with theatrical outings expected for France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Benelux and Scandinavian territories. Trinity CineAsia managing director Cedric Behrel told Deadline that he plans to give the film a theatrical release in as many other European territories as possible.

It’s understood that streaming rights for the film are being negotiated separately. Four Hong Kong companies – Intercontinental Film Distributors, Emperor Motion Pictures, Mandarin Films...

Dhoom Dhaam Ott Verdict (Week 3) (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Yami Gautam and Pratik Gandhi are truly creating Dhoom Dhaam in the digital world. Their romantic action comedy, which premiered on Valentine’s Day, February 14, has become the most-viewed Indian film of 2025 on Netflix. It has surpassed the viewership of Allu Arjun’s blockbuster Pushpa 2: The Rule by a huge margin. Scroll below for our exclusive week 3 Ott verdict.

Continues its successful streak among global top 10 non-English films

Dhoom Dhaam has found its spot among the Global top 10 non-English films for the third week on Netflix. It has amassed a viewership of 2.5 million in the week between February 24 and March 2. It was trending among the top 10 in as many as 11 countries across the globe.

However, Yami Gautam and Pratik Gandhi starrer slipped to the 8th spot from the 2nd spot this week. A dip was expected since the Rishab Seth’s...

Maika Monroe raised her profile significantly with what was arguably 2024's most terrifying horror movie "Longlegs." The film from director Osgood Perkins, who's just now delivered the Stephen King adaptation "The Monkey," was a modest sensation when it arrived last summer, propelled in part by a marketing campaign that did everything right to make "Longlegs" a hit. Though the film didn't quite live up to the frankly unreasonable amount of hype this marketing campaign built, it was a big enough hit that it not only made distributor Neon feel like an emerging A24 rival worthy of the label, it introduced wider audiences to both Perkins and Monroe, both of whom had been toiling away for years before "Longlegs" captured the public's attention.

In Monroe's case, the Australian actress gained some notoriety for her role in 2014's "It Follows," one of the best horror movies of the 2000s — even if it...

For whatever reason, Sony became convinced that crafting an entire franchise set in the Spider-Man universe without featuring the webslinger himself was a good idea. In fairness, Kevin Feige and the folks at Marvel Studios did create the most successful box office franchise in history by taking lesser-known characters and giving them the A-list character treatment. But the key thing there was that those early Marvel Cinematic Universe films were actually pretty good. At the least, they were solid blockbuster entertainment. Sony, on the other hand, has pumped out a string of truly bewildering films based on the Marvel characters to which it owns the rights.

"Morbius," for example, became nothing short of a joke upon its 2022 release, with Sony then trying to double down on that joke with a theatrical re-release that also flopped. Just in case the studio hadn't already doomed its then lamentably-titled "Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters (Spumc)," Sony delivered,...

Tom Hardy is back in action — literally. The “Venom” star leads Gareth Evans’ highly-anticipated Netflix action-thriller, “Havoc.” Hardy plays Walker, a bruised detective fighting his way through the criminal underworld that is threatening to engulf an entire city.

The film’s official synopsis reads: “In the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong, Walker finds himself with a number of factions on his tail: a vengeful crime syndicate, a crooked politician, as well as his fellow cops. When attempting to rescue the politician’s estranged son, whose involvement in the drug deal starts to unravel a deep web of corruption and conspiracy, he is forced to confront the demons of his past.”

“The Raid” filmmaker Evans writes and directs the film, which co-stars Jessie Mei Li, Justin Cornwell, Quelin Sepulveda, Luis Guzmán, Michelle Waterson, Sunny Pang, Jim Caesar, Xelia Mendes-Jones, Yeo Yann Yann, Timothy Olyphant, and Forest Whitaker. Evans also produces along with Hardy,...

Asian Pop-Up Cinema has announced the full program for its 19th edition, running March 20 – April 13, 2025. The Festival is dedicated to showing works from regions throughout Asia, with films screened at the AMC Newcity 14 (1500 N. Clybourn Ave.), and select presentations at the Chinese American Museum of Chicago and the Shultz Auditorium at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Opening the 19th edition of the film festival on March 20 is Taiwan’s Dead Talents Society, a supernatural comedy with director John Hsu appearing in person alongside star Chen Bo-Lin, who is set to receive the Festival’s Bright Star Award.

The Festival’s Centerpiece presentation is the U.S. premiere of director’s cut of Hong Kong drama The Last Dance on April 4, featuring a career-defining performance from star Michelle Wai, who will receive the Festival’s Extraordinary Actors Award.

The Closing Night on April 13 presents the first, and last, film by Keizo Murase,...

Venom: The Last Dancebrings Eddie Brock's story to a dramatic conclusion, with the 2024 Sony hit now set to be released on streaming. The film depicts a symbiote invasion of Earth orchestrated from the shadows by the villainous Knull, forcing Eddie and Venom to protect their world from the extraterrestrial threat. Meanwhile, a shady government organization also hunts the pair, giving them yet another obstacle in their final adventure.

The Last Dance introduces plenty of new characters, some of whom have a major role in the Marvel Comics universe. The sequel also features several major actors joining the Sony Spider-Man Universe for the first (but perhaps not the last) time. These are the most important characters that fans need to know before they see Venom 3 on Netflix when it hits the streaming service on February 25.

Updated by Timothy Blake Donohoo on February 19, 2025: Venom: The Last Dance was the final entry in Sony's Venom trilogy,...

Not many people can say they’ve been kicked out of a locker room at the Olympics or have made NBA superstar Kevin Durant cry, but director Jake Rogal got an all-access pass to the Paris Summer Olympic Games for Netflix’s basketball documentary “Court of Gold.”

Rogal, who produced the Michael Jordan documentary “The Last Dance,” returned to the basketball court but took a much more international lens for the Olympics action. He traded Jordan for current basketball superstars like LeBron James, Steph Curry and Durant, plus foreign talents including Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama. Across six episodes, “Court of Gold” follows basketball teams from the U.S., France, Serbia and Canada as they chased Olympic glory in Paris last summer. Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground produced the series.

“What Jake did a masterful job of is the diplomacy and the management of so many moving parts,...

Hong Kong Filmart prides itself on the fact that each year it alerts the global entertainment industry to which way the winds of the content business are flowing across Asia.

So expect much attention going into this year’s 29th in-person edition of the event to be on what’s happening online and, specifically, the event’s decision to sharpen its digital platform into what organizers are describing as “a comprehensive IP Catalogue.”

Whereas the primary focus of the online platform across previous editions was on “exhibition planning and operation” — meaning it functioned “like an online booth” — this new format will allow exhibitors “to showcase their projects in detail, creating a more efficient marketplace for IP trading,” according to event organizers, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (Hktdc).

It will also help those heading to Hong Kong to prepare for what’s ahead. While the physical edition of Filmart is...

Thailand’s M Studio is beginning talks with buyers at the EFM for Death Whisperer 3, following-up the biggest local film of all time at the Thai box office.

Nadech Kugimiya continues to lead the cast of the hit horror franchise, also known by its original Thai title Tee Yod. This time, his character sets out on a rescue mission when his youngest sister is kidnapped by a mysterious cult that leads him to a cursed village.

Dated for release on October 8, it is directed by Narit Yuvaboon who steps up from his producer’s role on the first two films.

Anselm Chan’s The Last Dance leads the pack going into the 43rd Hong Kong Film Awards (Hkfa) with 18 nominations.

It is followed by Soi Cheang’s Twilight Of The Warriors: Walled In with 14 nods and Philip Yung’s Papa with 11 nominations. All three films will face off alongside Adam Wong’s The Way We Talk and Ray Yeung’s All Shall Be Well, in both the best film and best director categories.

The 18 nominations secured by The Last Dance is the highest in Hkfa’s history since Teddy Chen’s Assassins And Bodyguards received the same number in 2010. Chan...

On February 10, 2025 Asian Pop-Up Cinema announced key highlights of its 19th edition, running March 20 – April 13, 2025. The Festival is dedicated to showing works from regions throughout Asia, with films screened in person weekends at AMC Newcity 14 (1500 N. Clybourn Ave.) This year’s program is the first to include a juried competition. The full program for the 19th Asian Pop-Up Cinema film festival will be announced on February 24, 2025; tickets for Opening, Closing, and Centerpiece presentations are on sale now on the official website Here, with full program tickets going on sale February 24.

Opening the 19th season of the groundbreaking film festival on March 20 is Taiwan’s Dead Talents Society, John Hsu‘s supernatural comedy follow-up to his horror blockbuster Detention. A raucous mash-up of Monsters, Inc. and All About Eve, the hilarious satire of influencer culture and horror tropes and moving ode to underachievers won the Audience Award at Fantastic Fest and...

HBO has announced that its original nine-part documentary series Celtics City will debut on Monday, March 3 at 9:00 p.m. Et/Pt on HBO and will be available to stream on Max. New episodes will debut weekly through April 28.

Celtics City was directed by Emmy-winner Lauren Stowell (Taquarius Wair: Unstoppable), executive produced by Bill Simmons and Connor Schell, and co-executive produced and showrun by Gabe Honig (The Captain).

Celtics City chronicles the remarkable saga of the Boston Celtics, the NBA’s winningest and most storied franchise, from its founding as one of the league’s original teams to its triumphant 2024 championship – along the way delving into the fierce rivalries, defining moments, and societal forces that have shaped the organization’s enduring legacy.

Featuring never-before-seen archival footage and over 80 interviews with past and present Boston Celtics legends – from Bob Cousy and Larry Bird to Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown – the series...

Despite negative reviews, Venom was a hit in 2018. Grossing $856 million at the worldwide box office on a reported $116 million production budget, the movie's success continued when it hit physical media (it's said to have earned $70.7 million in DVD and Blu-ray sales).

Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Venom: The Last Dance weren't quite as successful - earning $501.5 million and $474.5 million, respectively - but Sony Pictures has still made a lot of money from the Lethal Protector.  

Todd McFarlane and David Michelinie co-created the iconic villain who has little in common with Tom Hardy's interpretation of Eddie Brock. Talking to Cbr, McFarlane shared his thoughts on how Venom has been translated to screen and his evolution from bad guy to anti-hero.

"Well, I didn't have, I didn't have any input into any other and again, it doesn't bug me, right? Like I understand what the rules are. So they did their movie.

Get ready for an exciting celebration of Asian cinema! Besides the awards ceremony, the 18th Asian Film Awards presents a series of special programmes, including Asian Cinerama, Masterclasses, and the In Conversation series.

A Palette of Cinematic Delights — Asian Cinerama

The Asian Film Cinerama will present a selection of nominated films and special screenings, with filmmakers and actors participating in post-screening Q&As to share their creative journeys. Last year, screenings were a full house, with prominent filmmakers including Japanese master Hirokazu Koreeda, Sri Lankan director Prasanna Vithanaga, and China’s award-winning actress Jiang Qinqin discussing their filmmaking experiences. This year, top international filmmakers will return, giving audiences the chance to enjoy the best of Asian cinema on the big screen.

Inspiration from the Legend — Masterclass

Film enthusiasts can attend masterclasses hosted by the biggest names in Asian cinema, diving into the art and philosophy of filmmaking. Last year, the...

In our latest review, we dive into Anselm Chan‘s “The Last Dance“, one of the most anticipated Hong Kong films of 2024! Starring comedy legends Michael Hui and Dayo Wong, this unique blend of drama and comedy explores the clash between tradition and modernity, life and death, and family and duty—all wrapped in an engaging and visually stunning story.

Plot Overview: Debt-ridden wedding planner Dominic (Dayo Wong) is forced to shift careers to the funeral business, partnering with the traditionalist Taoist priest Hello Man (Michael Hui). Their conflicting views on life, death, and business spark both hilarious and heartfelt moments. Meanwhile, Man’s daughter, Yuet (Michelle Wai), a struggling emergency worker, adds another emotional layer to the story, bringing an intriguing contrast between saving lives and honoring the dead.

What We Cover in This Review:

The long-awaited reunion of Michael Hui and Dayo Wong on screen

How tradition vs.

Sony Pictures' Kraven the Hunter is now available on Digital platforms, and its final box office numbers are in.

The studio's latest Ssu movie took in just $59 million worldwide over the course of its box office run. While this doesn't put it on the same level as something like 20th Century Fox's The New Mutants (just over $20 million), for example, factoring in Kraven's budget - reportedly over $150 million before P&a - and length of time in theaters marks it as one of the lowest-grossing superhero movies of all time (even the much-maligned Madame Web managed to pass $100M).

Kraven's failure may have effectively served as the final nail in the coffin for these Spider-Man-less Spider-Man spin-offs, but there may be life in the Ssu yet. Deadline recently reported that Sony is "taking this misfire very seriously," and "has a reset in store."

We're not sure what this...

Lace up your Nike's (or any other brand of basketball sneaker) and practice your jump shot, because Space Jam, the 1996 Michael Jordan x Looney Tunes crossover, is about to make its way to Netflix. Space Jam was released at the height of Michael Jordan's fame, during the Chicago Bulls' famous six NBA Championship run from 1991 to 1998. When he wasn't earning another championship ring for the Bulls, Jordan was busy saving the Looney Tunes from intergalactic slavery, the only way you can in a campy '90s movie... basketball.

Space Jam slam dunks onto Netflix on February 1. After retiring from basketball to pursue his baseball career, Michael Jordan gets abducted by the Looney Tunes, who need his help after a group of aliens took over Tune Town, and want to enslave the beloved cartoon characters. Does Michael Jordan use his superior physicality to beat up the aliens? Hell no! He...

It's... Kraven time?

Sony Pictures' latest Ssu movie, Kraven The Hunter, was not a box office success (to say the least), only managing to take in about $60 million worldwide on a reported budget of $110 million. The R-rated Marvel Comics adventure was also lambasted by critics, and now sits at 16% on Rotten Tomatoes (though it does have a much better Audience Score of 74%).

Kraven's failure may have effectively served as the final nail in the coffin for these Spider-Man-less Spider-Man spin-offs, but the movie has proven to be very popular on Digital platforms, and has actually become the No. 1 film on Apple TV+.

Of course, any new content usually does pretty well initially, so it remains to be seen how Kraven fares in the long term. That said, this is still a pretty impressive feat when you consider that the mighty Wicked also made its VOD debut recently.

Despite Kraven tanking,...

While the Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni legal battle heats up, what many don’t know is that Baldoni is already fighting another legal battle over rights. Justin Baldoni’s Wayfarer had struck a deal with former NBA superstar Craig Hodges to make a biographical documentary about him.

Justin Baldoni in It Ends With Us | Credits: Sony Pictures

Based on his 2017 book Long Shot: The Triumphs and Struggles of an NBA Freedom Fighter, the documentary was supposed to take a look at his struggles as one of the few Black men in the early 90s who took a stand for justice and faced repercussions for it.

The deal was signed in 2021, and while things seemed to go well at first, creative differences soon forced them to put a halt on it. Troubles arose when Hodges demanded the rights back to the project after Baldoni’s company decided to shelve the...

It’s no secret that Kraven the Hunter wasn’t the hit that Sony hoped for, but I’m surprised to see just how badly it’s doing. The film was essentially doomed before it even premiered. The reputation of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe was already at an all-time low thanks to Morbius and Madame Web, leading to the inevitable end of the Ssu. The fact that Kraven the Hunter was premiering in a dead franchise was enough to deter people from seeing it.

For those who did see Kraven the Hunter in theaters, most audiences left unimpressed with the quality of the film. While the main actors did a decent job in their roles, it was no use due to the poorly written script and the distractingly bad visual effects. Characters and a story that actually had potential were just executed in a painfully average project. It’s not...

Whether you love underdog stories, historic championships, or personal triumphs, ESPN+ has it all.

A great sports documentary does more than show highlights - it tells the human story behind the unforgettable moments in sports history. They let you experience the intensity of a close game, the pressure of extreme expectations, and get you closer to understanding how the best athletes in the world achieve what us mere mortals only dream of. If you’re into comeback stories, intense rivalries, or a closer look at sports icons, there’s one streaming platform that consistently delivers: ESPN+. Here’s why I think it’s the best streamer for sports documentaries.

Everything you need to know about the best streamer for sports documentaries:

What popular sports docs can you stream on ESPN+?

What other streaming platforms carry sports documentaries?

What popular sports docs can you stream on ESPN+?

In my mind, ESPN...

Nostalgia baiting has become so common, it’s erupted into nano-genres all its own. Take documentary filmmaking. Where once there were arguments over what was left out, what was put in, and what constituted unbiased storytelling, now the landscape is dominated by celebrity self-profiles where viewers can consider themselves lucky if the subject of the (puff) piece isn’t also a producer with final cut. What do “Beckham,” “The Greatest Love Story Never Told,” and “Sly” have to do with nostalgia? Typically, to get famous enough to merit your own “documentary,” you need a body of work that people already love — hence, even series like “The Last Dance” or films like “Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in 2 Pieces” traffic in nostalgia, tempting viewers to revisit the glory days of such-and-such or so-and-so via interviews with the talking heads of today.

Enter: “SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night,” a four-part documentary series produced by Peacock,...

The Hong Kong Film Development Council (Hkfdc) has enhanced its film financing scheme with increased funding and relaxed measures in a bid to further bolster the local film industry and sustain its long-term development.

The Film Production Financing Scheme 2.0, which was launched yesterday (January 15), will see government support increased from $1.15m (Hk$9m) to $1.28m (Hk$10m) per project. Eligible projects will be provided with the maximum financing amount equivalent to 40% of the approved production budget but no more than $1.28m (Hk$10m). Production budget must not exceed $3.2m (Hk$25m).

A bigger portion of the funding will be disbursed...

The Hong Kong Film Development Council (Hkfdc) has revamped its film financing program with the launch of a new scheme to support the local industry through a bumpy post-pandemic market.

The new scheme, “Film Production Financing Scheme 2.0”, is already active and enhances the “Relaxation Plan” that Hkfdc introduced during the height of the pandemic in mid-July 2020. Hong Kong film production ground to a halt during the pandemic, due to stringent border controls and anti-Covid measures, and while the industry has been busy for the past few years, the market has not recovered to pre-pandemic levels.

The Relaxation Plan aimed to increase local film production and create more jobs and development opportunities. It has funded 23 Hong Kong film projects, including A Guilty Conscience, which grossed $12.8M (Hk$100M) in 2023 and is now the second highest-grossing film ever at the Hong Kong box office. Other projects funded by the scheme, including Philip Yung’s Papa,...

“Comedy slowly became rock ‘n’ roll,” says Joe Piscopo, a Saturday Night Live cast member between 1980 and 1984, in the opening episode of SNL 50: Beyond Saturday Night.

The Peacock docuseries, which is exec produced by Morgan Neville, the man behind Fred Rogers doc Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, 20 Feet From Stardom and the Pharrell Williams Lego doc Piece By Piece, tells the story of the venerable NBC sketch comedy show ahead of its 50th anniversary next month.

It features a slew of cast members including Amy Poehler, Andy Samberg, Bill Hader, Bobby Moynihan, Bowen Yang, Cheri Oteri, David Spade, Tina Fey, Ego Nwodim, Fred Armisen, Heidi Gardner, Jason Sudeikis, Jay Pharaoh, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jon Lovitz, Kenan Thompson, Molly Shannon, Pete Davidson, Tracy Morgan, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Rachel Dratch, Will Ferrell, Billy Crystal and Damon Wayans as well as writers and producers such as Alan Zweibel, Al Franken, Harper Steele,...

After a series of disappointments in 2024, the future of Sony's Spider-Man Universe is in jeopardy, but I think there's one clear way the franchise could continue even stronger than before. Set adjacent to the MCU, Sony's Spider-Man Universe kicked off in 2018 with the release of Venom and came to a lackluster end in December following Kraven the Hunter's premiere. I'm not surprised the Ssu never gained the popularity that other superhero franchises such as the MCU, X-Men and Dcu franchises have earned, but I know how this can change.

Sony's Spider-Man Universe released three movies in 2024, Madame Web, Venom: The Last Dance and Kraven the Hunter, and while The Last Dance was met with some appreciation, overall, Sony's 2024 slate was a huge disappointment. However, with projects such as Spider-Noir and Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse on the horizon, I think there's still hope for the Ssu. This would...

Secuelas, secuelas… y más secuelas.

© mundoCine | Warner Bros | Disney | Universal Pictures

Queda muy poco para cerrar el 2024, pero en mundoCine no podemos decir adiós sin antes hacer un repaso de las que han sido las películas más taquilleras del año, con datos, por supuesto, recopilados de fuentes especializadas como lo es Box Office Mojo y The Numbers. Además, como siempre, os proporcionamos información muy útil sobre dónde podéis disfrutarlas en este mismo momento, por si os habéis perdido alguna de estas grandes superproducciones.

Y digo superproducciones porque el 2024 ha sido el año de las sagas. Secuelas, secuelas y más secuelas ocupan, como podréis ver, los primeros puestos de la taquilla. Y es que, de entre las diez primeras posiciones –y podríamos ampliarlo más allá del número diez y el panorama seguiría igual–, encontramos únicamente una excepción dentro del podio: Wicked. Aunque, siendo sinceros, tampoco se libra del todo, dado su...

“The Last Dance,” a funeral parlor-set drama film directed by Anselm Chan, has broken Hong Kong’s single day box office record.

The story depicts a former wedding planner who changes career and enters the funeral business instead. He partners up with a Taoist priest who has doubts about the man’s suitability. Together, through various funeral rituals, the pair probe questions about life and death.

The film was released in its home town theaters on Nov. 9, but broke the record a week later on Nov. 16, when it scored Hk$9.18 million in Hong Kong and neighboring Macau, according to data from Hong Kong Box Office Co., Ltd. The previous single day record was 2016’s “Cold War 2,” which collected Hk$7.56 million.

“As of Nov. 17, the film’s box office in Hong Kong and Macau has reached Hk$58.0 million, in the nine days since its release. And the box office is...

Kanguva Worldwide Box Office Day 4 (Photo Credit – Facebook)

Suriya’s Kanguva turned out to be an epic disaster in its four-day extended opening weekend. It was in talks for several reasons before the release, but it seems that the film failed to create organic buzz on the ground level. As a result, it was an underperformer right from the opening day, and with negative feedback coming in, the film crashed badly from the second day onwards. At the worldwide box office, it remained below 85 crores during the weekend.

Made on a huge budget, the magnum opus needed to fire all cylinders, but that didn’t happen at all. On the opening day, it grossed over 30 crores globally and marked an ordinary start. Things went worse when poor reviews and negative word-of-mouth spread like wildfire. The film went downhill from day 2 and has not recovered since then. Even in Suriya’s home state,...

Kantara: Chapter 1 To Register Biggest Opening On Gandhi Jayanti At The Indian Box Office? (Photo Credit – Instagram/Twitter)

We have seen how franchise films are creating havoc at the box office, especially if predecessors enjoy goodwill among the audience. So, it’s no surprise that the filmmakers are capitalizing on the viewers’ appetite. There’s already a long lineup of such upcoming films backed by the franchise’s brand value. Kantara: Chapter 1 is one such film that is already enjoying massive buzz among audiences across the nation. The film is now back in the news, as the makers announced the release date yesterday.

Kantara was released in 2022 amid minimal expectations. However, with extraordinary word-of-mouth and critical acclaim for its original Kannada version, the film was later dubbed and released in other Indian languages. In the long run, the film emerged as an all-time blockbuster, with unbelievable returns...

Amazon MGM’s “Red One” has seen its numbers improve after an uptick in ticket sales on Saturday, but it still doesn’t look like it will leave much of a mark at the box office with a domestic opening weekend of $34 million from 4,032 theaters.

Let’s start with the good news: the Seven Bucks-produced Christmas action film starring Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans performed above Friday estimates with $13.2 million grossed on Saturday, and the film earned an A- on CinemaScore and an 89% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes after getting mostly negative reviews from critics. That could help the film as it tries to leg out into December as a seasonal offering.

But a $34 million start, which hits the top end of pre-release projections, would still be considered a huge bust for a $250 million action film starring A-listers like Johnson and Evans were it released by a legacy studio that...

“Red One,” a Christmas-set action comedy starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as Santa’s head of security, unwrapped a soft $34.1 million from 4,032 North American theaters in its box office debut.

Those ticket sales were enough to top the domestic box office, ending the three-week reign of “Venom: The Last Dance.” However, the Amazon MGM film cost $250 million before accounting for global marketing efforts of roughly $100 million. So “Red One” is bound to spark yet another debate about what qualifies as a success at a time when streaming services are scrambling traditional business models. Case in point: “Joker: Folie à Deux,” which was released by Warner Bros., was instantly labeled a flop with $37 million to start against a $200 million budget. But last year’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” from Apple and director Martin Scorsese, was categorized more favorably after opening to $23 million despite a similarly huge price tag.

Overseas, where Warner Bros.

Venom: The Last Dance Box Office (North America): 4th Friday Update (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Although Venom: The Last Dance started off slowly, it has managed to stay at the top of the domestic box office chart since its release. It has now experienced a significant drop from last week owing to the release of Red One. It might experience a harsher dip and lose theatres next Friday when Gladiator II and Wicked Part 1 arrive at the theatres. Scroll below for the deets.

Gladiator II has been released in some foreign regions, including Italy, the UK, and Korea. The movie has crushed all expectations in the UK with its impressive opening day number. Ridley Scott’s film registered the fourth biggest opening day in the UK in 2024. This is expected to have a positive impact on the film’s box office in North America. Meanwhile, Venom 3 is also performing better...

( Photo Credit – Instagram )

Samuel L. Jackson, aka Nick Fury of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, is one of Hollywood’s most recognized actors. He is not only one of the most prolific but also among the highest-paid actors in the industry. Jackson has starred in more than 150 movies, including live-action features and animated flicks. He has worked with many notable filmmakers and has achieved numerous accolades over the years.

Jackson gained recognition with movies like School Daze and Do the Right Thing, but his breakthrough came with Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction. he won the BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as Jules Winnfield in the cult classic film by Tarantino. He has worked with Tarantino in a few other films as well. Before the MCU, he was also a part of another popular film franchise. Samuel played Jedi Mace Windu in the Star Wars prequel trilogy.

As per The Numbers,...

Zendaya’s Box Office Report Card 2024 (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Zendaya started her career at a very young age and is now one of the biggest talents among Hollywood’s present generation of actors. She appeared in two movies this year, Dune 2 and Challengers, both of which were in the news for good reasons. The actress has no more releases this year; thus, it’s time to look at her box office report card for 2024, which shows a 100% success ratio. Scroll below for the deets.

Zendaya’s 2024 Releases –

The Euphoria star’s first 2024 film was Denis Villeneuve’s Dune 2, which was also the first blockbuster of the year as well. It was the sequel to the 2021 movie and is based on Frank Herbert’s novel. She plays the role of Chani, a young and rebellious Fremen warrior who is also Paul’s love interest. She was praised for her...

Thalapathy Vijay Box Office Report Card 2024 (Photo Credit – Instagram)

The year 2024 hasn’t been that great for Kollywood, as all the big stars have failed to shine. Starting from Kamal Haasan to Thalapathy Vijay and Rajinikanth – no one has delivered a clean success this year. Specifically talking about Vijay, his film did fetch strong numbers at the Indian box office, but the verdict didn’t come in his favor due to the exorbitant cost involved in the making of his magnum opus.

Earlier this year, Vijay announced that he’d be quitting movies to concentrate on Tamil Nadu politics. It was a big shocker for everyone, especially fans, but to give some sort of temporary relief, he informed about completing the projects that he had already signed. Naturally, it created a buzz around his final films, one of which was The Greatest Of All Time.

The Greatest Of All Time,...

Sandra Bullock almost quit acting after facing Hollywood sexism (Photo Credit – Prime Video)

Picture this: Sandra Bullock, a bona fide icon, almost walked away from Hollywood. Yup, the Ocean’s 8-star was ready to bounce, thanks to the hardcore sexism she faced in the industry. Fast forward to 2018, and she’s headlining a major all-female heist flick, but getting to this point? It wasn’t a straight line.

Bullock’s big break came in Speed (1994), thanks to director Jan de Bont, but get this—she wasn’t the studio’s first pick. She was the “last person they wanted.” No joke. But Bullock didn’t let that stop her. With a string of lucky breaks and her mom’s empowering “you don’t need to get married, you make your path” wisdom, she dove into Hollywood with the mindset that she could do whatever a guy could do.

But then came the reality check.

The box office doldrums seem set to continue this weekend, with Dwayne Johnson’s mega-budget Christmas comedy, Red One, on track to deliver one of the star’s worst opening weekends ever. When the movie was announced, it certainly seemed like a no-brainer. After all, The Rock and director Jake Kasdan had a pair of mega-hits under their belts with their Jumanji movies, and the idea for this movie seemed to be that it would marry that formula to the holidays and possibly kick off a new franchise.

So what happened?

Initially, Red One was meant to be a streaming play for Prime Video, and had it been kept in that lane, it likely would have proven to be a hit for the streamer in the same vein as Johnson’s previous Red Notice, which still ranks as Netflix’s biggest movie ever. Yet, somewhere along the way, the decision...

In every Venom movie, there is a new symbiote who shows up to fight the odd anti-hero duo of Venom and Eddie Brock. However, as the final part of Sonys Venom trilogy, Venom: The Last Dance boasts several symbiote characters who appear throughout the film.

Many of these symbiotes have acted as background cameos in 2018s Venom as part of the Life Foundation, yet it appears they may now be the central threat. But who are these symbiotes, and where have they shown up before? While there isn't an official in-movie answer for the former, Marvel Comics has depicted most of these symbiotes in comics, giving fans the knowledge needed to identify the new symbiotes.

Updated by Jordan Iacobucci on November 13, 2024: With Venom: The Last Dance now in theaters, fans officially know all of the symbiotes in the movie. Although many die immediately, it is interesting to note precisely...

Although Venom: The Last Dance opened somewhat lower at the box office than expected, the sequel has managed to stay on top for the last three weeks and recently crossed a major milestone. The film has sped past the $400 million mark with a $405.5 million worldwide take. That works out to $118.5 million domestically and $287 million internationally, with all three films generating a total of $1.7 billion.

The first Venom grossed $856.1 million during its theatrical run, while Venom: Let There Be Carnage grossed $506.8 million. At this rate, Venom: The Last Dance could overtake Let There Be Carnage but won’t come close to the first movie.

Tom Hardy returns as Eddie Brock/Venom alongside Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, Peggy Lu, Alanna Ubach, and Stephen Graham. The Last Dance finds Eddie and Venom on the run. Hunted by both of their worlds and with the net closing in, the duo are forced...