John Wick and the Power of Myth
Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
John Wick, David Fincher, and a Dreambreaker.
Let’s go!
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Breaking: It’s just past midnight, and I’ve just heard Val Kilmer has passed away. RIP Val Kilmer. Tomorrow, we’ll have a piece on Kilmer’s legacy.
John Wick has reached the level of myth.
In fact, he’s the most recent cinematic character to achieve this status.
He’s Orpheus returning from the underworld, he’s Achilles in a bulletproof suit, and by Chapter 3, he even has Cerberus by his side. The cultural snowball effect is laid bare in the film’s financials, with each sequel surpassing the box office gross of the previous.
Lionsgate, the studio behind the series, went full force in their CinemaCon presentation yesterday to further build out the Wick world.
Here are the new projects:
John Wick: Chapter 5, starring Keanu Reeves (not dead?!) and directed by Chad Stahelski (John Wick 1-4)
John Wick animated prequel telling the origin story of how Wick killed all his enemies in a single night to be with the love of his life. Shannon Tindle (Ultraman: Rising) will direct, and Vanessa Taylor (The Shape of Water) will write.
Caine-centered film (the blind assassin from JW4). Donnie Yen will reprise the role and also direct.
This is, of course, in addition to Ana De Armas’ Ballerina film (set in the John Wick world, with Keanu Reeves co-starring) and the John Wick: Under The High Table series.
What elevates Wick to legend is that not only does he seem to have eternal life, but a hero’s tragic past. The first Wick waits a full 30 minutes before the first kill, building a remarkable, touching backstory before Reeves goes full fire and brimstone.
His arc mirrors myth: love lost, hell descended, legend reborn.
For More Lionsgate annoucements:
Hurry Up Tomorrow - Trailer 2 - Release date May 16th
Stephen King’s The Long Walk - Starring Cooper Hoffman, Judy Greer, Mark Hamill - First Trailer - Release Date Sept 12
Now You See Me: Now You Don’t (#3 in the series) - Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Morgan Freeman - teaser trailer - Release date Nov 14th
Now You See Me 4 - In development with director Ruben Fleischer (Now You See Me 3)
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping - Written by Billy Ray (writer: 1st Hunger Games) - teaser trailer - Release Date Nov 20, 2026
Also, Luca Guadagnino (Challengers, Queer) confirmed his American Psycho film with Scott Z. Burns (writer: Contagion).
Paul Feig and his production company, Feigco Entertainment, signed a first-look deal with Lionsgate. His next film with the studio is The Housemaid, starring Sydney Sweeney & Amanda Seyfried:
Follows a struggling woman who is happy to start over as a housemaid for an affluent, elite couple.
Also, Lionsgate’s Michael Jackson biopic Michael was not announced; they’re re-shooting their third act due to a legal issue, and the film is most likely delayed until next year.
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
David Fincher is directing a sequel to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, with a script being written by Quentin Tarantino.
Warner Bros. drops a bundle of new trailers at CinemaCon.
Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the film rights to adapt the Tony-winning production of Merrily We Roll Along.
Murray Bartlett (White Lotus) will play Pamela Anderson’s brother in Place to Be.
J. Smith-Cameron (Succession) is cast in FX’s drama pilot Seven Sisters.
Tribeca Films will release Born Hungry a doc produced by Priyanka Chopra Jonas.
Canneseries, the international TV festival, has rolled out its schedule.
A24’s Bring Her Back releases a full trailer.
Criterion Channel has acquired Burnt Milk.
Kate Hollowell will direct Something Murdered for Amblin Entertainment.
ITV Studios acquires a majority stake in Moonage Pictures (The Gentleman).
Chilean writer-director Felipe Gálvez has announced his sophomore feature, Impunity.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Once Upon a Time in David Fincher. This is too good to be true, so maybe it’s an April Fool’s joke, but David Fincher is supposedly directing a sequel to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood with a script being written by Quinten Tarantino, an evolution of his abandoned The Movie Critic project. This $200M film is set up at Netflix and is said to star Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio.
CinemaCon Day 2. Warner Bros.
Big announcements:
James Gunn’s Superman is out July 11. New footage revealed.
Zach Cregger’s Weapons. First look revealed Julia Garner as a teacher whose entire class goes missing. Josh Brolin plays a furious parent in this Magnolia-esque horror film. Release date: August 8th.
PT Anderson’s One Battle After Another – Extended DiCaprio sneak peek. Release date: September 26th.
Mortal Kombat 2 stars Karl Urban as Johnny Cage. First footage revealed an F-bomb-wielding Cage. Release date: October 24.
Maggie Gyllenhaal’s The Bride – starring Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale. First footage unveiled. Release date: March 6, 2026.
Also, F1 showed off its first 10 minutes.
Break a leg? More like lights, camera, action!
Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the film rights to adapt the Tony-winning production of Merrily We Roll Along, which was led for over 300 shows by Daniel Radcliffe, Hamilton’s Jonathan Groff, and singer and veteran Broadway actress Lindsay Mendez (Carousel revival).
In a stark contrast from the original 1981 stage production, which infamously flopped, the Stephen Sondheim show took home several Tony awards last year, including Best Musical Revival and acting awards for both Radcliffe and Groff.
A critical and commercial hit, the stage show helmed by Maria Friedman said:
“[The film] is, at its core, a universal story about friendship: how it changes, how it lasts, and how it shapes who we become.”
SPC has yet to announce any plans of the film getting a theatrical run.
Mini Tidbit:
Adolescence is now the 9th most popular English-language Netflix series of all time, with 96.7M views in just 3 weeks.
Netflix is lauding the return of Tires Season 2 on June 5. This loosely scripted workplace comedy from the mind was a big hit from the mind of Shane Gillis. Not a huge surprise because Gillis is probably one of the top 10 grossing comedians. This teaser shows that lightning-quick wit he is known for. Clip.
Mickey 17 will top out with a 32-day theatrical release before it becomes available for purchase/rental on April 8th. The film, although wonderfully goofy, is set to lose $100M.
IMAX keeps expanding. Working with AMC, they will add 12 new theaters and update 68 existing locations with IMAX with laser.
Universal’s Wicked made roughly $100M on PVOD. The film has made $743.5M at the worldwide box office.
Greenlights/Renewals:
Hulu’s The Testaments (Handmaid’s Tale sequel series) greenlit
Paramount+’s Dexter: Original Sin (renewed for season 2)
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
The White Lotus and The Last of Us actor Murray Bartlett is returning to his native Australia to play Pamela Anderson’s brother in Place to Be, a drama from Kornél Mundruczó (dir: White God). The feature will follow siblings who plot to acquire their late artist father’s hefty inheritance. Bartlett’s role in Lotus as the wiry hotel manager exploited to the point of mania seems to have a similar essence to his new hapless character who “presents as prickly” and has a lot on his plate. Production on Place to Be is ongoing in Australia.
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J. Smith-Cameron (Succession) and Anthony Edwards (Top Gun) play wife and husband in FX’s drama pilot Seven Sisters. The series follows a family unraveling after one of the daughters, Elizabeth Olsen, begins hearing a mysterious voice. No actress is more gifted at leveling hawkish criticism than Milioti (The Penguin). Seven Sisters is directed by Sean Durkin (Iron Claw).
Chris Coy joins HBO’s Lanterns as mysterious guest star Waylon Sanders, alongside a star-studded cast in a murder mystery led by Green Lantern heroes. This character doesn't exist in the comics, so this looks like an OC.
FESTIVALS
Sometimes, a tearjerker just gets you. Tribeca Films will release Born Hungry a doc about a “steet kid” from India who got adopted and became a renown Canadian chef. His story of going back to try to discover his parents feels like it could be cliched, but the subject, Sash Simpson, is vulnerable (trailer). Priyanka Chopra Jonas produces. Releases April 8th.
Canneseries, the international TV festival, has rolled out its schedule.
Highlights include:
Max’s Duster (Out of Competition)
Paramount+ with Showtime’s The Agency (Out of Competition)
Canal+/Studiocanal’s The Corsican Line (Out of Competition)
Check out the full list here.
Two twin sisters are ensconced in a barren landscape in King Matt the First. The film comes from the Polish Institute of Film and will premiere at Hot Docs (trailer).
Todd Haynes will receive Cannes’ top directing honor.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT
I am not totally sure what Bring Her Back is about, but it looks awesome. Danny and Michael Philippou (dir: A24’s Talk To Me) have launched their next horror film, Bring Her Back. A24 will distribute, and Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water) will star.
Here’s the synopsis:
A brother and sister uncover a terrifying ritual at the secluded home of their new foster mother.
The trailer evokes a series of images, each more creepy than the last: blood-stained hands, coffins, and a creepy VHS that looks like a hostage situation. We see corpses reanimated, scalps rubbed, and some things my brain couldn't even comprehend! The full trailer is incredibly disturbing but also disjointed like a dream, it's honestly kind of beautiful.
The Philippou brothers hit the jackpot when their film Talk To Me premiered at Sundance and was purchased for the high 7-figures by A24 and then earned $92 M at the box office.
Bring Her Back will be released in theaters on May 30th.
Criterion Channel has acquired Burnt Milk, a short film from British-Jamaican filmmaker Joseph Douglas Elmhirst (dir. MADA) that the British Pavilion commissioned. Coming in at just under ten minutes, it follows an older Jamaican woman in 1980s England who, after making burnt milk, is flooded with spiritual imagery that takes her back home (trailer).
Burnt Milk debuted at the Venice Architecture Biennale in 2023, the first time a film was ever included as part of the Pavilion’s official offerings. Burnt Milk is now playing on the Criterion Channel.
Sundance, Spielberg and Shia LaBeouf:
https://theindustry.co/p/sundance-spielberg-and-shia-labeouf
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
ITV Studios acquires a majority stake in one of the U.K.'s Moonage Pictures (The Gentleman, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder), after a recent BBC exit. BBC Studios will continue to distribute returning series, including A Good Girl’s and The Famous Five.
Established in 2018, Moonage is responsible for numerous high-end dramas that will now have their international distribution handled by ITV. This announcement is in line with ITV’s focus on expanding international content business, with this being one of many recent acquisitions. Moonage’s newest project is an adaptation of Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusas’s epic novel The Leopard for Netflix.
Chilean writer-director Felipe Gálvez has announced his sophomore feature, Impunity, a 90s spy thriller based on an upcoming book titled 38 Londres Street by Philippe Sands. The film will be based around the arrest of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and the ex-spy in charge of preventing his escape. This is Gálvez’s first project since his directorial debut The Settlers (trailer) premiered at Cannes in 2023.
ON THIS DAY
1968. 2001: A Space Odyssey premieres at the Uptown Theater in Washington, D.C.
See you tomorrow!
Written by Gabriel Miller, Spencer Carter, and Madelyn Menapace.
Editor: Gabriel Miller.
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