Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Johnny Depp’s Carol, Netflix’s Black Hole, and a Python Hunt.
Let’s go!
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THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Johnny Depp stars as Ebenezer Scrooge in Paramount’s A Christmas Carol.
Netflix orders Black Hole, a surreal teen horror series from Jane Schoenbrun.
IMAX Q3 revenue hits $106.7M, up 17% YoY.
HBO inks two-year overall deal with The Sympathizer producer Amanda Burrell.
Netflix’s Stranger Things finale to debut Dec 31, in 350+ theaters.
Matthew Modine producing Full Metal Jacket BTS doc.
Michael B. Jordan leads Joseph Kosinski’s Miami Vice reboot for Universal.
Glenn Close joins Penélope Cruz in Spanish drama The Black Ball.
Oscilloscope acquires SXSW winner The Python Hunt from Artists Equity.
Neon begins filming Brides starring Olivia Cooke.
Vertical picks up Alexi Wasser’s comedy Messy.
Janus Films acquires TIFF title Blue Heron.
Brainstorm Media, Appian Way team on thriller Sleepwalker.
Tribeca Enterprises names Jane Rosenthal Co-Chair & Rebecca Glashow as CEO.
Sky overhauls UK film division to focus on acquisitions.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Johnny Depp returns to Hollywood.
Depp will star as Ebenezer Scrooge in Paramount’s new horror adaptation of A Christmas Carol.
Depending on how he plays it, this is the kind of larger-than-life character work Depp was known for. Like Captain Jack Sparrow (best scene), Edward Scissorhands (trailer), and his Hunter S. Thompson-esque character in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (any clip will do).
Returning back into Hollywood’s good graces after leaving his last big role in Fantastic Beasts 3 in 2018, Depp finds an interesting partner for A Christmas Carol in horror director Ti West (X, Pearl, MaXXXine). West’s cinema of horror generally centers on performers (actors, porn stars, etc.) whose desire leads to destruction.
A Christmas Carol has been adapted many, many times, including by the Muppets, not to mention the Robert Eggers and Willem Dafoe version that is currently in development for Warner Bros.
Paramount is shooting for a November 13th 2026 release.
Netflix strikes again! This time, Jane Schoenbrun, the auteur filmmaker behind last year’s hauntingly daring I Saw the TV Glow (trailer), is writing and directing Black Hole, a new Netflix series based on Charles Burns’ comics. The pick couldn’t be more perfect: just as Schoenbrun works in the surreal and unsettling, Burns’ graphic novels explore adolescence and body horror with a similarly eerie and dreamlike sensibility as her two prior films.
Synopsis:
A group of high school students are afflicted by an STD known as “teen plague” or “the bug”. Symptoms may include flaky skin, rash, growing a new limb or turning into a new kind of creature.
While Schoenbrun recently finished production on their third feature, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, Black Hole seems like a very fitting new project for their psychologically heavy canon.
IMAX Q3 2025 revenue increases. We broke down their numbers and how they stacked up against last year:
$368M global box office
↑50%
$106.7M revenue
↑17%
$22.6M net income
↑48%
The top earner:
$120M+ combined from Demon Slayer and F1
Nowhere close to $164M from Ne Zha 2 earlier this year
IMAX expects to deliver a record box office of more than $1.2 billion in 2025.
WGA East and West are against the WBD + Paramount merger. They will work with regulators to block any forthcoming deal, stating:
“Merger after merger in the media industry has harmed workers, diminished competition and free speech, and wasted hundreds of billions of dollars better invested in organic growth.”
Read the latest on Paramount’s efforts to buy WBD here:http://theindustry.co/p/hbos-top-showrunner-returns
Tidbits:
The Sympathizer producer, Amanda Burrell, is deepening her partnership with HBO through a new two-year overall deal with the premium network. Her production company, Ginger, has several projects in development with HBO, even as Burrell wraps up her tenure as president at RDJ’s Team Downey. While it was not officially announced at the time, HBO finalized the production deal with Ginger back in January.
The Upside Down is hitting the big screen. If Stranger Things fans weren’t excited enough for the long-awaited final season, they can now experience the series finale in over 350 theaters across North America starting on Dec. 31st, the same time it drops on Netflix. Can’t wait to see the popcorn bucket for this one.
If you thought the Wicked craze was almost over, think again. Universal’s still got some tricks up its sleeve. On Nov. 19th, NBC will air Wicked 1 to promote the sequel, Wicked: For Good, premiering two days later. The official broadcast joins the over 400 brand partnerships and approximately $150M marketing push behind the first film, so expect the sequel to be even more Oztacular.
Bosch’s Fabel Entertainment names Christel Miller as Senior Creative Executive of Special Projects. The new role will focus on the expansion of the production company’s scripted content wing as they prepare season two of Ballard and Bosch: Start of Watch.
Born to Kubrick. A BTS doc on Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket is happening with one of the original stars, Matthew Modine, on board to produce. The film, A Modern Art Masterpiece: The Untold Story Of Full Metal Jacket, has some rare, unreleased BTS interviews with Kubrick.
Renewals/Release dates:
USA’s The Rainmaker (renewed for S2)
CNN’s The Heist: The Louvre’s Stolen Crown Jewels
Release: Oct. 26th 8pm
Trailers:
Amazon MGM’s Crime 101
Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Barry Keoghan, Halle Berry. And Nick Nolte!
Release: Feb 13
Vertical’s Bunny
Premiere: SXSW
Release: Nov 14
Brave Cat (animated)
From Oscar-winning Chilean filmmakers
AMC+’s Dark Winds (S4)
Release: Feb. 15, 2026
Well Go USA’s Altered
Cast: Tom Felton (Draco in Harry Potter)
Theatrical/VOD: Release: Nov 21
Bleecker Street’s Spinal Tap at Stonehenge - The Final Finale (concert film)
Release: 2026
Watermelon Pictures Palestine 36
Premiere: TIFF
Release: early 2026
Mother Bhumi
Premiere: TIFF
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
Miami’s crime scene is about to get a serious upgrade. Michael B. Jordan is in talks to bring Ricardo Tubbs into the 21st century in Joseph Kosinski’s (Dir: Top Gun: Maverick) Miami Vice reboot.
Universal’s film version will be inspired by the first season of the era-defining NBC show (1984-89) and not the interesting Michael Mann movie from the early 2000s.
A legendary TV detective, Philip Michael Thomas (scene) originated the role of New York native Detective Tubbs, and as the series thrived on style, swagger, and high-stakes undercover work, Jordan has been delivering on all three. From Black Panther’s (2018) magnetic villainy to Creed’s (2015, scene) relentless drive, and his layered performance in Sinners (2025, trailer), he carries a blend of cool, charm, and smarts (plus the action chops) needed to bring Tubbs’ calculated energy to the big screen.
Jordan is currently filming his own updated version of the romantic heist film The Thomas Crown Affair, which he also directs and stars in. So if you crave neon lights and car chases, you’ll have to wait till 2027 to see Kosinski, Universal, and Jordan’s take.
Mini Tidbits:
Movistar Plus+’s Spanish drama The Black Ball (La Bola Negra) casts Glenn Close to join Penélope Cruz in the reflective drama based on the unfinished work of playwright Federico García Lorca. The film marks Close’s first involvement in a Spanish-language project, and while her role is unknown, she certainly brings a level of star power and talent to impress audiences worldwide.
French actress Laëtitia Eïdo (Fauda) has been cast as the lead in the upcoming historical drama Children of Nowhere, based on harrowing real events from the 60s. The film will look at the corrupt government scheme that displaced thousands of children to rural France under false pretenses, with Eïdo set to portray a civil servant forced to relocate.
Actress from 9-1-1: Nashville, Isabelle Tate, has sadly passed away at just 23. The police procedural series was her first ever audition, credited as Izzy Tate in its pilot episode. Her talent agency posted a tribute honoring the young star.
FESTIVALS
AFM Projects:
Alone Together
Cast: Adria Arjona, Callum Turner
Dir: Ben Sharrock (Limbo)
Prod: Florian Zeller (Dir: The Father)
Sales Rep: HanWay Films (La Cocina, Bucking Fastard)
Synopsis:
Sam (Turner), a British director, grapples with divorce, career doubts, and parental guilt. A chance storm sparks connections with enigmatic Inma (Arjona) and guide Abdullah, leading him through an unexpected journey of self-discovery.
The Arrival
Cast: Kingsley Ben-Adir (Bob Marley: One Love), Archie Madekwe (Saltburn)
Co-Financiers: BFI & Film4
Prod Co: Michael Fassbender’s DMC Film
Sales Rep: Cornerstone (Pillion)
Buzzkill
Cast: Billy Magnussen (Lilo & Stitch) and Lulu Wilson (The Wrath of Becky)
Sales Reps: Anonymous Content and The Veterans
Synopsis:
A Texas town is terrorized by a monster you can only see when you’re drunk.
Mini Tidbit:
The 2026 festival circuit has started with Rotterdam, kicking off with 9 world premieres. Full breakdown here.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT
Oscilloscope buys SXSW Special Jury Award winner The Python Hunt.
Dir: Xander Robin
Prod: Lance Oppenheim (Spermworld, Some Kind of Heaven)
Prod Company: Artists Equity (Matt Damon, Ben Affleck)
Synopsis:
Every year the Florida government invites the public to compete in an invasive python removal contest in the Everglades. For 10 nights, an eclectic group of hunters confront the dangerous terrain, nocturnal creatures and their own desires.
Sounds like some sort of Floridian version of The Purge, and we’re very into it. Releasing early next year.
Production has officially begun in Budapest on Brides, the new horror feature from Watcher filmmaker Chloé Okuno.
Synopsis:
Starring Olivia Cooke as Sally Bishop, whose trip to Northern Italy turns nightmarish after she and her husband become stranded at a secluded villa. The villa’s alluring master, Vova (Harry Lawtey), presides over a coterie of immortal women (Jodie Turner-Smith, Viola Prettejohn) and their caretaker (Burn Gorman). As Sally becomes absorbed into their seductive, violent world, she begins a chilling metamorphosis.
Neon will handle distribution.
Five indie distributors pick up films:
Vertical has acquired Alexi Wasser (Girls, Poker Face, Search Party)’s sex comedy Messy for release in North America, the U.K., and Ireland. Wasser wrote, directed, and stars as Stella, a love addict navigating New York’s dating scene after a breakup. The cast includes Thomas Middleditch (Silicon Valley), Jack Kilmer (The Nice Guys), Ruby McCollister (Puppy Love), Adam Goldberg (The Equalizer) and more. Messy premiered at New/Next and Downtown festivals and draws from Wasser’s own romantic experiences. In theatres on Halloween.
Brainstorm Media (After All) has acquired North American rights to Sleepwalker, a psychological thriller from Verdi Productions and Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way. Written and directed by Brandon Auman (Star Wars: Resistance), it stars Hayden Panettiere (Scream) as an artist haunted by her daughter’s death and her comatose husband. Appian has not really shied away from horror, producing Orphan (2009) and Delirium (2019).
Indie distributor Janus Films (Flow) picks up Locarno title Blue Heron for U.S. rights. The coming-of-age film follows a Hungarian immigrant family who sees changes in their familial dynamic upon moving to Vancouver Island. Blue Heron had its North American premiere at TIFF and is the feature directorial debut of Canadian filmmaker Sophy Romvari. The drama is slated for a 2026 theatrical release.
TIFF title Forastera (trailer) has been acquired by Grasshopper Film (The Inheritance) for U.S. distribution. At the Canadian festival, director Lucía Aleñar Iglesias won the Fipresci Prize for Emerging Filmmakers for her masterful debut film, which examines grief through a coming-of-age lens. Grasshopper, known for its curatorial catalog of arthouse films, is planning a theatrical release for Forastera late next year.
Quiver Distribution has acquired North American rights to Blue Eyed Girl, a comedic drama starring Marisa Coughlan (Super Troopers) and Beau Bridges (The Descendants), following a woman revisiting family and a lost love. Coughlan wrote and produced the film, shot in Minnesota. Premieres Nov 21.
Tidbits:
Amplify Pictures (Sundance’s Come See Me in the Good Light) and Duplass Brothers Productions are partnering on Sleep King, a comedic crime-thriller about a mattress mogul being drawn into…
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