Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Lord and Miller’s Claus, Michael Fassbender’s Sr., and a Madagascar story.
Let’s go!
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THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Phil Lord and Chris Miller are teaming with Netflix for holiday comedy The In-Claus.
Hulu orders Prison Break spinoff.
Netflix signs Taraji P. Henson (actress: Benjamin Button) to a two-picture deal.
Will Smith’s Westbrook producing Jessica Alba–Tom Hopper thriller The Mark.
Lionsgate promotes Jenefer Brown to President, Global Products & Experiences.
Netflix’s Blair Fetter (EP: BoJack Horseman) exits after 13 years.
Stranger Things series finale dated for Dec 31 theatrical release.
Michael Fassbender to star as Joseph Kennedy Sr. in Netflix’s Kennedy.
Colman Domingo to play Cowardly Lion in Wicked: For Good.
Leslie Jones guests on the CBS comedy DMV.
Grasshopper Films acquires Czech doc I’m Not Everything I Want to Be.
Tim Heidecker & Tatiana Maslany to star in dystopian satire The Comedy Hour.
Macro Film Studios hires Jeremy Stein as EVP of Dev & Production.
Cohen Media Group acquires The Great Arch (Cannes, Un Certain Regard).
Madagascar submits Disco Afrika: A Malagasy Story as its first-ever Oscar entry.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (dir: The Lego Movie) are teaming up with Netflix for a fun holiday film, The In-Claus, based on a short story written by Black List honoree Travis Braun (Cars: Lightning Racers).
Plot details are secret, but anything Lord and Miller touch is immediately elevated to something worth a second look.
I really started to notice a pattern of consistency from their movies, starting with The Lego Movie. They create a family-fun atmosphere constructed out of jokes that come a bit out of left field, and the emotional throughline just feels modern and grown up.
From The In-Claus title, I am getting Meet the Parents vibes, like what if you find out your new fiancé’s parents are Mr and Mrs. Claus, the inciting disbelief, and then cue the trip to the North Pole. Spirit of Christmas, you get the gist.
All in all, Lord and Miller create great work warm enough for the whole family, but with little creative bites in between to keep things interesting.
Lord Miller’s upcoming stacked slate includes Project Hail Mary (MGM, March 20, 2026), The Last Expedition, Everyday Parenting Tips, and Spider-Noir (Nicolas Cage) for MGM+ and Prime Video.
Tidbits:
Hulu has officially ordered Prison Break creator Elgin James’ new spinoff series. The reimagined Prison Break follows Cassidy (Emily Browning), a soldier-turned-corrections officer who takes a job at one of America’s deadliest prisons. While set in the same universe, the show will not feature original leads Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller) or Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell). The pilot was filmed in June.
Adam Driver gave us a bit of tragic insight into a canceled Star Wars project that would have been directed by Steven Soderbergh (Oceans 11). The duo apparently worked for two years on a spin-off of The Hunt for Ben Solo. Which would follow Kylo Ren’s (Driver’s) redemption arc after The Rise of Skywalker. Instead (spoilers for a bad movie), Kylo Ren gets killed off, and the project was scrapped, thus no redemption. Another disappointing notch in Disney’s torpedoing of a once-loved franchise. (Not Andor, though, that one’s perfect).
Netflix has its own star system. They’ve signed Taraji P. Henson for a two-picture deal. Henson recently starred in Netflix’s Straw (dir: Tyler Perry, who has his own deal with Netflix). That film has over 100M views. Henson was Oscar-nominated back in 2016 for her fantastic portrayal of Brad Pitt’s quasi-mother in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (clip). With her new deal, she will star in and produce two films for Netflix.
Lionsgate’s Jenefer Brown has been promoted to President, Global Products & Experiences, having worked for over a decade with the studio. Brown’s biggest venture has been after a seven-year uphill battle, finally seeing The Hunger Games: On Stage begin previews in just a few weeks. Other Lionsgate properties like La La Land and Dirty Dancing are also headed to the stage under Brown’s oversight.
Mini Tidbits:
Relativity Media’s former Head of Sales and Distribution, Rosanna Canonigo, is joining the Newell Law Group. Canonigo will oversee Global Sales, Film Packaging, and Sales Division for the L.A.-based entertainment legal firm.
Netflix is losing TV executive Blair Fetter (EP: BoJack Horseman) after 13 years. His exit from his position as VP, Spectacle Series UCAN (U.S. and Canada) comes just two months after the exit of his superior, Peter Friedlander, who is now at Amazon. It is unclear if Fetter will also move over to Amazon.
Will Smith’s Westbrook Studios is producing The Mark, an action-thriller starring Jessica Alba and Tom Hopper (The Terminal List: Dark Wolf), continuing the company’s slate of high-energy, globally minded projects following titles like Bad Boys: Ride or Die (2024) and Emancipation (2022), blending intensity with broad audience appeal.
Trailer:
Picture Tree’s Hello Betty
Channel 4’s Will AI Take Your Job
Trailer (hosted by an AI)
First look:
Amazon MGM’s I Am Rocky
First look at Anthony Ippolito as Sylvester Stallone (still)
Netflix’s Run Away
Harlan Coben series, co-starring Minnie Driver
Premiere: Jan
Release date:
Netflix’s Stranger Things (series finale)
Streaming and Theatrical release date: Dec 31st
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
Michael Fassbender stars as Joseph Kennedy Sr. in Netflix’s new series Kennedy.
Synopsis:
Beginning in the 1930s, the series chronicles the rise of Joe (Fassbender) and Rose Kennedy and their nine children, including rebellious son Jack, revealing the intimate lives, rivalries, and tragedies of America’s most iconic dynasty.
Before fathering nine children (including a US president), Kennedy Sr. had a propulsive ability to gather wealth, moving from stocks to real estate to even refinancing Hollywood Studios. He later became the first chairman of the SEC and the 44th US Ambassador to the UK.
Watch this clip of Kennedy arriving in England, sounding very stately, and imagine how Fassbender could be equally slick and a tad slimy (e.g., his performance in Prometheus).
The series will be guided by director Thomas Vinterberg (The Hunt, Another Round).
“I’ll be brave. I’ll do anything! Just as long as you’ll help me.” Colman Domingo has officially been announced to bring the Cowardly Lion’s yearning for courage in life in Jon M. Chu’s highly anticipated Wicked: For Good.
While it may seem like a stretch at first, stick with me… In Domingo’s Oscar-nominated performance in Sing Sing (2023, scene), he exemplifies the power of vulnerability and the strength to confront one’s fears. His character, Divine G’s journey of self-discovery in learning that true courage comes from within, aligns seamlessly with The Cowardly Lion’s timeless quest for bravery.
From Sing Sing to something more playful like Netflix’s The Four Seasons (trailer), Domingo carries some heart, subtle humor, and a level of lovable gravitas in everything he does, making him a great fit for Oz’s most endearing and chaotic hero.
Wicked: For Good flies into theaters everywhere on Nov. 21st.
Tidbits:
BAFTA winner Stephen Dillane is joining Andrew Garfield in The Uprising… literally. Focus Features and Paul Greengrass’ epic period drama follows the tyrannical rule of King Richard II and the rebellion that brings his reign to an end. The acclaimed character actor, best known as the stoic but misguided lord Stannis Baratheon in HBO’s Game of Thrones (clip), now shifts from portraying a single-minded pursuer of power to inhabiting a world where power itself is contested and torn apart. The Uprising is currently in the middle of filming.
Eric Dane (Grey’s Anatomy) will guest star on Season 2 of NBC’s Brilliant Minds as Matthew, a heroic firefighter facing an ALS diagnosis he struggles to reveal to his family. Brilliant Minds, starring Zachary Quinto as Dr. Oliver Wolf, has set itself apart by drawing heavily on real-life stories, such as Dane’s real-life battle with ALS, which he publicly disclosed earlier this year. It’s great to see Dane make a return to television, as an injury from his condition made him unable to attend the Grey’s Anatomy reunion at the Emmys.
Mini Tidbits:
Lou Ferrigno, best known for his iconic role in The Incredible Hulk, will lead in the indie comedy drama Forgotten Fortune. Ferrigno will play Brian Franks, an 82-year-old retired mailman battling memory loss who believes he’s witnessed a murder no one else, including his family, will acknowledge. Now filming in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Garrett Hedlund (Tulsa King) saddles up for Netflix’s Heartland, joining Jessica Chastain in the upcoming tense mystery feature from writer-director Shana Feste (Boundaries). Hedlund’s casting was announced with former Disney actor Ross Lynch (My Friend Dahmer) and The Righteous Gemstones’ Jennifer Nettles. Filming has recently begun in Nashville.
The actress who led the Scream reboot, Melissa Barrera, has her next film, Black Tides, a survival thriller alongside John Travolta. Barrera will star as Travolta’s estranged daughter, with Grease actor Travolta’s real daughter, Ella Bleu Travolta (The Poison Rose), also joining the film. Production is ongoing in Spain.
Rising comedian Nate Jackson is the newest addition to season two of Apple TV’s dark comedy Bad Monkey. With the success of his Netflix special, Nate Jackson: Super Funny, and his recurring role on The Paper, he seems like a great fit to join Bad Monkey’s growing ensemble.
SNL alum Leslie Jones has joined CBS comedy DMV in a guest role. Jones had a bombastic laugh and presence on SNL. Her new character, Sally, the spirited and devoted executive assistant to the DMV director, would be a great fit for her comedic style. Clip.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT
Award-winning Czech documentary, I’m Not Everything I Want to Be (trailer) has been acquired by Grasshopper Films (Fela, My Living God) for U.S. rights.
Made entirely of photographs from Czech photographer Libuše Jarcovjáková, the film follows his decades-long career, highlighting minorities and marginalized groups in Czechoslovakia’s Communist era.
Beyond just being Czech’s official international submission, Grasshopper has also entered the film for the Best Documentary Feature category for the upcoming 98th Academy Awards.
Alt comedy great Tim Heidecker (Tim and Eric Awesome Show) will team up with Tatiana Maslany (She-Hulk) to star in The Comedy Hour, a dystopian satire from writer-director Colby Day (Spaceman).
Heidecker plays a late-night host trying to keep his show alive amid collapse, while Maslany portrays his ambitious producer.
Day’s Spaceman starring Adam Sandler was a bizarre mind fuck about a talking spider and loneliness, add on Maslany’s wit and Heidecker’s true strangeness, and I think we have something really exciting.
No word yet on where it will land, but with UTA handling sales, it’s bound to hit somewhere.
Tidbits:
Macro Film Studios (Fences) brings on producer Jeremy Stein (EP: Mortal Kombat) to join as the company’s EVP of Development & Production. With Davis Entertainment, Stein has EP’d films like Amazon’s The Pickup and the Kevin Hart film 72 Hours (2024).
Cohen Media Group (Merchant Ivory) picks up The Great Arch for US Distribution. The film premiered at Cannes in Un Certain Regard and co-starred filmmaker Xavier Dolan and Swann Arlaud (Anatomy of a Fall). It follows an architect teacher who wins a worldwide open call competition from the president of France. No release date has been set.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Madagascar submitted its first-ever Oscar entry with Disco Afrika: A Malagasy Story (trailer) from native filmmaker Luck Razanajaona (Madame Esther). First premiering at Berlinale last year, the timely film follows 20-year-old Kwame as he struggles to make a living in the mines of modern Madagascar. The shortlist for the 98th Oscars International Film category will be announced on Dec. 16th.
Channel 4’s Nevine Mabro has been hired as Head of Storyville, the BBC’s international docs strand. Mabro most recently worked as a commissioning editor for Channel 4, with thirty years of experience in world news and international docs, most notably leading the long-running foreign affairs program Unreported World. Mabro will start her new role in early January.
The producer behind Radu Jude’s Dracula, Nabis Film Berlin, is developing a period-set feature, Michael M., from filmmaker Laura Bierbrauer (dir. Berlin’s Far From Us). The film, “a story of longing and exile,” follows an exiled writer in Buenos Aires.
ON THIS DAY
1956. Carrie Fisher born in Burbank, California.
Written by Gabriel Miller, Spencer Carter, and Madelyn Menapace.
Editor: Gabriel Miller.
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