Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Ben Stiller + WW2. Jake Gyllenhaal + Kevin Costner. Keeper + Keeper.
Let’s go!
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In the last moment of Season 2 of Apple TV+’s Severance, Adam Scott boldly chooses to embrace his identity as an “innie.”
For those who don’t watch the show, without giving away anything, this moment is a metaphor for Scott breaking free and embracing his true self, free of guilt, depression, and shame.
To me, it seems like a pretty darn good parallel for the creative moment Ben Stiller (dir: Severance) is having right now.
Follow me for a second…
Stiller’s outer self is best known for his pitch-perfect 90s-2000s comedy, where he plays zany, heartfelt, and childishly innocent characters, such as those in Zoolander, Meet the Parents, and Night at the Museum.
All the while, a true artist burned in Stiller, as evidenced by his stellar directorial work on 11 episodes of Severance (including the S2 finale).
Now, Stiller is ready to make the jump back into film directing, with his first feature film in almost a decade, a World War II film.
Synopsis:
The true story of a downed airman in occupied France and how he got involved with the French Resistance.
In fact, he’s so committed to the WW2 film that he’s forgoing directorial duties on Severance Season 3.
That’s a shocker, but he’s a more than capable feature director, having helmed the likes of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, as well as some mega comedies like Zoolander and Tropic Thunder.
We look forward to seeing him grow as a filmmaker. And won’t be too cynical that this seems like Oscar bait.
For More:
Want to see Stiller back, acting in silly comedy?
Well, Apple TV+ just picked up the pickleball-focused comedy The Dink. Jake Johnson (New Girl) co-stars with Stiller as a washed-up tennis pro.
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Amazon MGM greenlights Honeymoon with Harry with Jake Gyllenhaal & Kevin Costner.
Legendary is in talks to partner with Paramount on distribution.
Netflix orders kids’ competition series from YouTuber Mark Rober.
Barstool develops first scripted faux-doc comedy Les Mascots.
MSNBC rebrands as MS NOW.
Netflix renews Dept. Q for Season 2.
Glenn Close to star as ruthless killer in Channel 4/Sony drama Maud.
Natalie Dormer joins Netflix’s Extraction series.
David Gyasi leads The Bard as enslaved poet George Moses Horton.
Kal Penn joins What the Fck Is My Password?!
Chris Rock’s A24 directorial debut adds Daniel Kaluuya.
Mandy Moore joins Dan Fogelman’s Hulu NFL series.
Dogwoof boards Venice/TIFF doc The Tale of Silyan.
Jeremiah Zagar (We the Animals) directs Nothing to See Here for Sony’s 3000 Pictures.
India’s Bombay Fables announces five-film slate including Japani.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
After 20 years in development hell, Honeymoon with Harry is finally going forward at Amazon MGM.
Amazon continues its relationship with Road House star Jake Gyllenhaal and also adds Kevin Costner to the bill. Based on Bart Baker’s novel, it follows a grieving groom who goes on his honeymoon with his would-be father-in-law after his fiancée’s sudden death.
Obviously, the premise leans into a very dark comedy territory with a script written by Dan Fogelman (Crazy Stupid Love, Paradise). The tale behind this one is kind of crazy- the project, first set up in 2004, passed through filmmakers like Paul Haggis, Jonathan Demme, and Nick Cassavetes, with stars once circling, including Vince Vaughn, Jack Nicholson, Bradley Cooper, and Robert De Niro.
Producer Mike Karz (Good Luck Chuck) championed it for decades. Now, finally, after 20 years, Harry gets his honeymoon.
Science rules! Netflix is bringing on mega-YouTuber Mark Rober for a kids-and-family competition series. Rober, who has 68M YT subs, is best known as the ex-NASA scientist who created those revenge glitter/fart spray Amazon packages.
Rober will port over some of his YouTube content to Netflix. It’s a move very similar to Amazon’s nearly $100M deal to work with MrBeast on Beast Games. These studio streamers want more market share, and if they can eat YT’s lunch with large payouts for their top creators, they will continue to do so.
Why didn’t Rober go with Amazon? Maybe it was all his stolen packages.
Tidbits:
Legendary (Dune trilogy, Godzilla x Kong, Interstellar, A Minecraft Movie) is in talks to partner with David Ellison’s Paramount to distribute their films. This would, of course, exclude some of their most lucrative properties like the Godzilla-Kong and Dune series, both at Warner Bros. The first film of the Paramount/Legendary deal may be Street Fighter, starring Jason Momoa. Legendary has been busy. Recently, they considered buying Lionsgate.
Barstool Sports is launching its first scripted comedy series, Les Mascots, after finding success with the unscripted Out of Order YouTube sketch series. The show will be shot in a faux-documentary style, following two Times Square performers, “Elmo” and “Cookie Monster,” as they try to figure out their lives and avoid being failed actors. The 7-episode series has not found a streaming home yet. Trailer here.
Mini Tidbits:
The Academy’s 8-year broadcast rights deal with ABC has ended. They are now exploring YouTube as a partner for the show. They’re also talking with Netflix and other networks. ABC has been the distributor of The Oscars for nearly 50 years.
MSNBC will now be MS NOW (not to be confused with Microsoft). The cable network is rebranding both its name and logo, forgoing its longtime Peacock symbol, just ahead of the launch of spinoff company Versant.
Dana Tafoya-Cameron will be Fox Entertainment Studios’ new EVP and Head of Bento Box Entertainment (Bob’s Burgers). Fox also brought on Netflix’s Michelle Huynh as EVP of studio content operations.
Fans of Downton Abbey can bring a piece of the Crawleys’ home to theirs. Auction house, Bonhams, is launching an auction of costumes and props from the Downton Abbey franchise. Take a peek here.
Emmy Voting has started and will run through 10 p.m. PT on Aug. 27.
Trailers:
IFC’s Good Boy
Premiere: SXSW
Release: Oct 3
Netflix’s The Diplomat (S3)
Cast: Allison Janney, Rufus Sewell
Release: Oct 16
Release Dates:
Netflix’s Frankenstein
Dir: Guillermo del Toro
Theatrical release: Oct 17
Streaming release: Nov 7
Paramount+’s Winter Spring Summer or Fall
Cast: Jenna Ortega
Release: Sept 1
Netflix’s House of Guinness
Creator: Steven Knight (Peaky Blinders)
Release: Sept 25
Prime Video’s Fallout
Renewals:
Netflix’s Dept. Q (renewed for S2)
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
A masterclass in murder. Glenn Close is a seasoned, ruthless killer in Channel 4 and Sony Pictures Television’s Maud (working title), based on Swedish author Helene Tursten’s short stories.
While this marks her first literal turn as a murderer on the small screen, fans of her Emmy-winning performance as the cunning and ruthless litigator Patty Hewes in Damages (2007-12, scene) will recognize the same chilling presence here. From courtroom battles to cold-blooded killing, Close’s ability to command the screen makes this an especially exciting new project for the acclaimed actress.
Filming on Maud will take place later this year in London.
Netflix’s upcoming series takes on Extraction, adding Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones) as a series regular.
Produced by the Russo brothers’ AGBO, Dormer will play Clayton Wisper, the leader of a private military contractor. While the new series will see Dormer involved more directly in the action, she similarly played a military leader in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 & 2, as Cressida (scene), a vital member of the rebellion.
There is no word yet when Extraction will drop on the streamer.
David Gyasi (The Diplomat, Cloud Atlas, Interstellar) takes his first film lead in The Bard, portraying enslaved poet George Moses Horton, the first Black American published despite the risk of death.
Kevin Willmott (BlacKkKlansman) directs from a script co-written with E. Paul Edwards. Gyasi has a suave elegance that could easily translate into playing a poet and man of words.
Now shooting in North Carolina.
Two films add 4 to the cast:
What the Fck Is My Password?! The new movie starring Alexander Ludwig follows a new bitcoin millionaire who must now remember his password from 13 years ago.
New ensemble casting announced:
Kal Penn (Harold & Kumar)
Adam Pally (Happy Endings)
Chris Redd (Saturday Night Live)
David Castañeda (The Umbrella Academy)
Currently filming in New Jersey.
Chris Rock's A24 directorial debut:
Anthony Anderson (Black-ish)
Kelli Garner (Lars and the Real Girl)
Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out)
Topher Grace (That ’70s Show)
The story follows Misty Green (played by Rosalind Eleazar), a gifted actress whose career has been derailed. When someone from her past reappears, they offer her a chance at a comeback.
Mini Tidbits:
This isn’t This Is Us, but it is Mandy Moore and Dan Fogelman. Moore is the newest cast addition to Fogelman’s new untitled Hulu series set in the world of the NFL. She will play the daughter of the team owner, played by William H. Macy. Plot details are being kept mostly under wraps.
Ana Brun, the one and only Paraguayan actress to win a Berlinale Silver Bear (The Heiresses), leads a new LGBTQ+ drama feature titled I Thought I Was Swimming (Anoche creí que nadaba). The period film traces two intertwined love stories with Brun’s character written with her in mind.
English actress Jasmine Blackborow is joining the cast of Netflix’s Pride and Prejudice series remake. Blackborow will portray Elizabeth Bennet’s (Emma Corrin) best friend Charlotte, not to be confused with her role as Lady Charlotte in Netflix’s The Gentlemen.
Return of the Kings: Ian McKellen has teased the return of Gandalf and Frodo (Elijah Wood) in Andy Serkis' new Lord of the Rings series, The Hunt for Gollum. De-aging AI is getting warmed up as we speak. Did The Lord of the Rings need a prequel trilogy? No. It's clearly a cash grab, but now it's a nostalgic cash grab.
FESTIVALS
Dogwoof just picked up international sales rights for Berlin Film Festival Out of Competition doc The Tale of Silyan.
Synopsis:
A farmer's bond with a white stork intertwines with North Macedonian folklore.
Next playing at Venice and TIFF. Directed by Tamara Kotevska (Neon’s Honeyland). UTA is repping domestic (they also rep Kotevska).
Milk Teeth playing in Venice’s Orizzonti section was picked up for world sales by Cercamon (sales rep: Film Movement’s The Sparrow in the Chimney).
Synopsis:
In communist Romania's last days, a 10-year-old girl must face growing up alone after her sister vanishes without a trace, while their world crumbles around her.
Directed by Mihai Mincan, the film will also play at TIFF.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT
Jeremiah Zagar roars back! The Sundance darling director has lined up his next film, Nothing to See Here, for Sony’s 3000 Pictures (Klara and the Sun).
Synopsis:
Lillian and Madison, roommates at an elite boarding school until drugs are discovered in their room. Madison's wealthy father pays Lillian to take the blame.
If you went to Sundance in 2018, then you’re familiar with Zagar’s narrative feature directorial debut, We the Animals. There, it won the NEXT Innovator Award.
In that film, Zagar captured the raw beauty of three young brothers (each around 9) struggling to find their place in their family, reckoning with forces greater than themselves. Sure, it sounds a little like Beasts of the Southern Wild or The Tree of Life, but Zagar carved his own style, somehow a little bit more gritty and a bit more real than either. Trailer.
Zagar’s surreal, naturalistic style should throttle us into the POV of these Nothing to See Here roommates and allow for the wealth disparity to boil over like bile—while finding the beauty.
Neon’s Marketing department is very good. If the trailer for Osgood Perkins (Dir: Longlegs) new film, Keeper, is to be taken at face value, the movie will show two sides of the same horror story, one from the girlfriend, one from the boyfriend.
That tilts it in the direction of a trio of radical indie films:
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