Zendaya’s Moonlight
Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Moonlight, Avengers, and Charlotte Gainsbourg.
Let’s go!
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A24 takes a ride with its first music biopic.
They will re-team with director Barry Jenkins, who earned a Best Picture win for Moonlight (2016).
The upcoming film, Be My Baby, will center on the life and career of Ronnie Spector, the lead singer of The Ronettes (artist: Be My Baby), who will be played by Zendaya.
Much of the biopic will focus on Ronnie’s catastrophically abusive relationship with her husband, the famed music producer Phil Spector, who died in prison while serving a sentence for the murder of a nightclub hostess.
During Ronnie’s divorce hearing in 1974, she testified:
“He told me, ‘I’ll kill you… I’ll have a hit man kill you.’”
This is prime territory for Jenkins, whose Moonlight is a careful dissection of abuse.
In that film, the main character cycles from lost innocence to teenage ostracization to hardened adulthood. Perhaps there will be a similar trajectory for Ronnie Spector, who one can see moving from a storybook romance with a close collaborator to a nightmare relationship with a crazed power dynamic.
Jenkins has a sharp ability to transform trauma into an intimate epic. Perhaps lightning can strike twice for him and A24.
No word on the production or release date.
For More:
Be My Baby, the memoir on which the film is to be based.
Moonlight trailer.
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Avengers: Doomsday reveals a long list of cast.
CA may increase their tax incentive from 25% to 35% for projects filming in LA.
Netflix orders an eight-episode live-action Scooby-Doo origin series.
Mel Gibson’s sequel epic The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection will move into production in August.
Charlotte Gainsbourg (Antichrist) is rocking a sassy attitude in Prime’s Étoile.
Julie Delpy will board (literally) Ruben Östlund’s The Entertainment System Is Down.
Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building casts Renée Zellweger.
Flophouse America (premiering at CPH:DOX) is an unflinching look at a young boy being raised by alcoholic parents.
The late cinematographer Halyna Hutchins’s gorgeous, atmospheric Western Rust has a trailer.
Fruit Tree, Emma Stone’s prod company, has signed a first look deal with Fremantle.
HBO returns to Billy Joel with And So It Goes, a two-part doc premiering this summer.
Samuel Goldwyn Films scoops U.S. rights to M.J. Bassett’s reboot of Red Sonja.
Paramount’s Iceland-set thriller The Darkness has been acquired by Channel 4.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Pull Up a Chair: Avengers: Doomsday is now in production, and they made a whole deal about it. For over 5 hours, the cast's chairs were laid out. There were the usual suspects, previous Avengers, a few of the new Thunderbolts, and a few surprises. Black Panther’s Namor was unexpected to return, we had a few X-Men pop up, including Jame's Marsden’s Cyclops, and lastly, we capped it off with the man himself, RDJ, and we heard a brief clip of his new theme as Doctor Victor Von Doom.
Here's the full 5 hour stream if you are a maniac.
Here's the announcement version.
Here are the cliff notes with the dozens of actors revealed:
https://theindustry.co/p/avengers-doomsday-cast
Avengers: Doomsday has officially started production and is aiming to be in Theaters May 1st 2026.
CA may increase their tax incentive from 25% to 35% for projects shooting in LA to lure more productions back to the state.
The Senate’s bill proposal would extend the tax credit to:
TV shows with episodes running 20 min (previous minimum length was 40 min)
Animation films, series, shorts, and large-scale competition shows (with budgets of $1M or more)
Double tax incentives to $750M
This increase from the current $330M/year would help bring production back to the state after COVID, labor strikes, an M&A hellscape, and the wildfires.
Recently, things have started to turn around, with the California Film Commission awarding a record 43 indie films with tax credits.
Tidbits:
Netflix orders an eight episode live-action Scooby-Doo origin series exploring Mystery Inc.’s first case. Written by Midnight Radio’s Josh Appelbaum & Scott Rosenberg (Cowboy Bebop), who will also act as showrunners. This one promises to lean a bit darker than past outings for the gang.
Eva Longoria’s Hyphenate Media Group (Land of Women) along with AMC Studios are developing a TV adaptation of Jennine Capó Crucet’s latest novel Say Hello To My Little Friend. Described as Scarface meets Moby Dick the dark comedy is being adapted for the small screen by Capó Crucet herself.
Renewals:
CBS’s Watson (Season 2)
CBS is possibly launching another Yellowstone spinoff, its fourth after The Madison, 1883 and 1923. It would star Luke Grimes reprising his role on Yellowstone as a a livestock commissioner and ex Navy SEAL
Mel Gibson’s sequel epic The Passion of the Christ: Resurrection is officially shooting in August. With it being almost two decades since the Apocalypto director’s raw and gripping original.
Linda Woolverton, known for Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King joins Kartoon Studios' Winnie the Pooh series as head writer, aiming to modernize the classic characters. Looks like a stop motion direction for the beloved characters. First look.
Side Quest is now streaming on Apple+. The Mythic Quest spin-off answers some questions, and we finally get a prolonged peek inside the game. Comedically, it's maybe not as strong as the original but a must for any fan already invested in Mcelhenney's world. Trailer Here.
Innovative Artists (talent agency with clients: Amanda Seyfried, F. Murray Abraham, Dean Norris) sells a minority stake to Coral Tree Partners (media private equity), marking its first equity partnership. Founder Scott Harris will stay president with aims to expand the roster.
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
Charlotte Gainsbourg, best known for her wild performances in Lars von Trier's even wilder films (Antichrist, Nymphomaniac, Meloncholia) is rocking a sassy attitude in Amazon Prime’s Étoile. The series revolves around the dancers and artistic staff of two world-renowned ballet companies who swap performers to save their companies. Watching her in a brightly lit environment with characters that aren’t emotionally or physically mutualilating each other is kind of refreshing (trailer). The series premieres April 24th.
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Julie Delpy is getting on the plane. She will board (literally) the double Palme d’Or winner (dir: Triangle of Sadness, The Square) director Ruben Östlund’s A24 film, The Entertainment System Is Down.
The cast includes Keanu Reeves, Kirsten Dunst, Samantha Morton, Daniel Brühl, and Vincent Lindon. The film revolves around a broken entertainment system on a transcontinental flight, creating psychological peril among the passengers.
Delpy is an icon of cinema, pairing like a fine wine with Ethan Hawke in the dreamy romantic indie Before Sunrise (1995, trailer). If that’s the first film you saw her in, check out Mauvais Sang (1986), directed by Leos Carax (Holy Motors). She is marvelously vulnerable (clip).
No word on who Delpy will play, but we can’t wait to see.
Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building ads another A-list guest star, with Renée Zellweger as the newest addition tapped for a recurring role in its fifth season. New characters and storylines for the next season are being kept under wraps, with production in progress.
English actress Gemma Arterton goes rogue! Arterton will lead the upcoming five-part ITV spy thriller Secret Service, a series adaptation of Tom Bradby’s 2019 novel where she’ll star as a senior UK intelligence officer. This is not the first time the actress has dipped her toes in the world of espionage, as she played a similar role in both Matthew Vaughn’s The King’s Man (2021) and the 2008 Bond film Quantum of Solace. No word yet on when Secret Service will premiere.
Jonathan Majors will star in True Threat. The project shares some DNA with The Raid, with Majors playing a vengeful father whose son was killed by a gang. Majors’ task in the film is to kill his way up a 20-story building. CAT5 (A Working Man) will serve as the production company.
Clive Revill, a versatile New Zealand-born actor known for voicing Emperor Palpatine in The Empire Strikes Back, Broadway roles, and films by Billy Wilder, died at 94. A Royal Shakespeare Company veteran, Revill's career spanned decades across stage, screen, and voice acting. He will be missed.
FESTIVALS
We’re seeing a few more sales for Gold Bear (Top Prize) Berlin winner Drømmer (Dreams (Sex Love)) to distributors in Australia, Mexico, South Korea, Columbia, and more.
Synopsis:
Johanne documents her intense crush on her french teacher. Her mother, grandmother end up reading these intimate writings. They're both horrified by the contents but taken by the powerful writing and story. Johanne navigates romantic ideals vs reality, exploring emotions of self-discovery, love, sexuality.
The director, Dag Johan Haugerud, who won Berlin over with his previous film Sex, completes his Sex, Love, Dreams trilogy. Trailer.
Tidbit:
Flophouse America is an unflinching look at a young boy being raised by alcoholic parents in a cheap hotel. The doc, which will premiere at CPH:DOX has just been boarded by international sales agent Lightdox (As the Tide Comes In).
Lightdox stated:
“We witness the fragility of life on the margins and gain a powerful perspective on struggles too often overlooked.”
Here is the trailer.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT / INTERNATIONAL NEWS
The late cinematographer Halyna Hutchins’s gorgeous, atmospheric Western Rust starring Alec Baldwin has a trailer. Hutchins lost her life on the set through the reckless behavior of those around her. But her work is a testament to her impeccable eye, and watching the trailer is heartwarming if a little frightening. The images are violent ones of killing, but they’re tinged with an ethereal quality that makes them less hardened. The film will never and should never dissociate from its tragedy, but we can all appreciate Hutchins's work. In theaters and VOD May 2nd.
The production label, Fruit Tree, founded and led by two-time Oscar winner Emma Stone (Poor Things) and her writer husband Dave McCary (SNL) have signed on to a first look deal with Fremantle. Fremantle’s global drama division will be the new home for all their scripted TV projects and unscripted docuseries. Fruit Tree’s film arm (A Real Pain) currently has a first-look deal with Universal.
HBO returns to Billy Joel with And So It Goes, a two-part documentary premiering this summer. Directed by Susan Lacy and Jessica Levin, it explores Joel’s personal and musical journey, featuring unseen footage and interviews. Produced by Pentimento, Hazy Mills, and Playtone, it promises revelations even for longtime fans. Will be launching on HBO this summer.
Samuel Goldwyn Films scoops U.S. rights to M.J. Bassett’s reboot of Red Sonja targeting a theatrical release later this year. The original film starred Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bridgitte Nielsen (1985, trailer). Matilda Lutz (Coralie Fargeat’s Revenge) leads as a fierce heroine battling tyranny, promising fans a thrilling adaptation of the iconic comic's ruthless, sword-swinging legacy.
Iceland-set thriller The Darkness from Paramount and CBS studios has been acquired by Channel 4. Based on a novel of the same name by Ragnar Jónasson, it follows a dedicated investigator who takes on one final cold case after being forced into early retirement. The six-part English-language series is being led by Nordic superstar Lena Olin (The Unbearable Lightness of Being) and is now playing on Sky Showtime.
ON THIS DAY
1952. Singin' in the Rain premieres at Radio City Music Hall in NYC.
See you tomorrow!
Written by Gabriel Miller, Spencer Carter, and Madelyn Menapace.
Editor: Gabriel Miller.
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