Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Plastic Toys, Simple Joys and the Theory of Eddie Redmayne.
Let’s go!
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It’s been a long week in the film industry.
We’re still recovering from Sundance, are in Oscar overdrive, prepping for SXSW, gearing up for Emmys, under an extinction threat from AI, etc. etc.
So to cheer everyone up, we thought we’d share three trailers for some BIG NEW PROJECTS that just released. Why? Because for me, a good trailer pulls me into a trance, where time and space blur away.
Maybe these will help…
Pixar’s Toy Story 5
Cast: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen and Greta Lee (LilyPad)
Release: June 19
Synopsis:
Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the rest of the gang’s jobs are challenged when they’re introduced to electronics, a new threat to playtime.
No one tackles the themes of our age (assuming you grew up in the 90s) better than the Toy Story team. With the threat of AI looming, we can’t wait to see what wisdom this film will bring.
Focus Features’ Pressure
Cast: Brendan Fraser (as Eisenhower), Andrew Scott, Kerry Condon
Prod Co: StudioCanal
Release: May 29th
Synopsis:
In the seventy-two hours leading up to D-Day, all the pieces are in place except for one key element--the British weather. Britain’s chief meteorological officer James Stagg (Scott) is called upon to deliver the most consequential forecast in history.
We love a didactic Scott and a self-righteous Fraser, so it’s a really fun ticking clock premise with an all-star cast from the folks that brought us Darkest Hour.
Netflix’s Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man
Cast: Cillian Murphy, Rebecca Ferguson, Barry Keoghan, Stephen Graham
Wri: Steven Knight
Prod. Comp: BBC Film
Release: Mar. 20th
Synopsis:
During World War II, Tommy Shelby returns to a bombed Birmingham and becomes involved in secret wartime missions based on true events, facing new threats as he reckons with his past and rising national stakes.
A guilt-ridden Tommy Shelby at the lowest we may have ever seen him, yes please. Set against the backdrop of wartime destruction, Shelby returns to confront a ruthless new generation of Peaky Blinders, settling unfinished business once and for all.
For more:
Toxic trailer - it’s gory and gloriously stylized.
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Eddie Redmayne is set to star in a new Searchlight film from Kore-eda (Shoplifters).
Netflix picks up Ballast, an action-thriller spec from writer Justin Piasecki (Relay).
Warner Bros. named Mike Ireland President of Production (ex-Paramount).
Susan Posner joins Samuel Goldwyn Films as Head of Worldwide Strategy & Sales.
Lionsgate TV vice chair Sandra Stern exits.
Rob David promoted to SVP of Animation at Mattel.
Mads Mikkelsen joins Scorsese’s What Happens at Night (w/ DiCaprio, Lawrence).
Shirley MacLaine leads Margret and Stevie from Matthew Weiner.
Eric Dane (Grey’s Anatomy) dies at 53.
Tiffany Haddish joins horror The Lesson.
Emilia Jones co-stars in Netflix’s The 99ers.
Joe Pantoliano joins Raising Kanan S5.
Matthew McConaughey predicts an Oscar category for AI film in 5 years.
Bill Hader directs/writes/stars in horror film They Know backed by MRC.
Carlos López Estrada launches Indie Institute.
Iko Uwais returns to Indonesia for action feature Warrior.
Yesterday’s correct answer: John Wick was NOT a film Bad Bunny was in.
74% got it correct.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
From Peacock to Shoplifters. Eddie Redmayne is jumping into a film with Japanese cinema auteur Hirokazu Kore-eda (Shoplifters) in a new film for Searchlight.
We don’t know any plot or character details, but Redmayne has an inherent warmth and coldness that makes him great at playing Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything (2014), and also an elite sniper in The Day of the Jackal (2024).
Kore-eda’s cinema is flush with improvised families that make tiny, ruinous moral choices. So Redmayne’s knack for bouncing between ecstatic and icy could let him swing to both extremes inside a family unit.
A quartet of book adaptations are in the works from major studios:
Fifth Season’s erotic TV show
Amazon Studios’ rags to riches scripted series
Amazon MGM’s YA villain film
20th Century’s Studios’ rom-com bestseller
Breakdown on all four book adaptations, plus which one we think is most likely to be a hit.
Tidbits:
Netflix has scooped up spec, Ballast, from Relay writer Justin Piasecki and Thunder Road (John Wick) on board to produce. The action-thriller spec sees a shipping engineer and her crew face a deadly crisis in the middle of the Atlantic, when bombs are discovered hidden among the thousands of cars on board. Just as Relay kept you on the edge of your seat, Ballast seems to bring that same unpredictable, constant tension.
Warner Bros Picture Group’s new President of Production is Mike Ireland, former chief of Paramount Pictures Motion Picture Group. Ireland joins during the studio’s ninth straight No.1 opening with Wuthering Heights, He will play a major role in WB meeting its plan of 16+ theatrical releases annually worldwide.
Mini Tidbits:
Samuel Goldwyn Films (Another Round) has hired Susan Posner as Head of Worldwide Strategy & Sales. Coming from time at both MGM and Lionsgate, Posner will now be overseeing all worldwide sales for Samuel Goldwyn’s film division.
After 23 years, Lionsgate TV group is losing their vice chairman Sandra Stern. The company vet oversaw countless prestige shows from Mad Men and Nurse Jackie to recent hits like Apple’s The Studio. Stern will stay with Lionsgate as a long-term consultant, leaving her current position by the end of next month.
Mattel Studios has upped Rob David (Masters of the Universe: Revelation) to SVP of animation. Former VP for television, David will now oversee all development and production of kid and adult content across all broadcast and streaming platforms.
Longtime MTV and VH1 exec Jason Shumaker has died at 55 years old. He most notably worked as a lead publicist for RuPaul’s Drag Race helping the show rise in popularity.
Greenlit/Renewed:
Netflix’s Dang! (greenlit animated series)
The Jennifer Hudson Show (renewed for S5)
Trailers:
Magnolia’s Normal
Cast: Bob Odenkirk
Release: April 17
Max’s House of the Dragon (S3)
Release: June
Nickelodeon’s Bedtime Stories with Ryan
Cast: Ryan Reynolds
Release: Mar 2
Netflix’s Tyler Perry’s Beauty in Black (S2)
Release: Mar 19
Greenwich Entertainment’s Fantasy Life.
Release: Mar 27
Release dates:
Apple TV’s The Hunt
Release: Mar 4
Originally delayed because of a plagiarism claim. To clear up any issues, prod Co Gaumont bought the rights what was discovered to be the source material.
A24’s The Invite
Bought at Sundance for $10-$12M
Dir: Olivia Wilde
Cast: Wilde, Edward Norton, Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz
Release: Jan 26
Prime’s House of David (S2)
Release: Mar 27
Apple TV’s F1 Grand Prix races
Apple now owns domestic rights to F1
5 races screening IMAX kicking of May 3
Level 33’s Bring the Law
Cast: Mickey Rourke
Release date: Feb 27
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
Mads Mikkelsen will play a charismatic faith healer in Martin Scorsese’s next film, What Happens at Night. This is the pair’s first collaboration. And it’s about time. Mikkelsen had a dark grit that feels perfect for Scorsese’s worlds. But the actor also has a beautiful buoyancy (on full display in the sublime Another Round) that has been more endemic in Scorsese’s later work.
Also cast are Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, and Patricia Clarkson. This hails from Apple Studios and StudioCanal and follows a married American couple who travel to a remote European town to adopt a baby, only for the trip to slip into a dream-like, disorienting nightmare where nothing is quite as it seems.
Currently shooting. Expected to premiere in fall 2027.
Even at 91 years young, Shirley MacLaine (Terms of Endearment) continues to prove why she is one of Hollywood’s most iconic actresses. The Oscar-winning legend will lead Margret and Stevie, the sophomore feature film from Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner.
The film tells the story of Curious George co-creator Margret Rey (MacLaine) as she faces publishers trying to reshape her legacy. Leading a character-driven feature-length film is a testament to MacLaine’s enduring appeal and versatility, bringing her career full circle as she embodies a pioneering creator fighting to reclaim her own story.
Filming has not yet begun.
After a courageous battle with ALS, Grey’s Anatomy actor Eric Dane has sadly died at 53. Over the past year, he’s become a fierce advocate for those fighting against ALS and has continued working while being vocal about his diagnosis.
Beginning his career on Saved by the Bell (1991), Dane steadily worked in TV before his breakout as McSteamy on the Shondaland medical drama for five seasons. And to watch him in that series was to get swept up in his charm and his sly bravado that had the hospital swooning (clip).
Just a few months ago, Dane wrapped filming on the anticipated third season of HBO’s Euphoria, returning as Jacob Elordi’s father, the complex Cal Jacobs. He will be very missed.
Tidbits:
Emmy winner Tiffany Haddish (Girls Trip) is joining Rosario Dawson (Ahsoka) in The Lesson, a layered horror feature from American Heist producer JoJo Ryder. The movie is about former students who are haunted by their late teacher. While best known for her comedy, Haddish has tried out dramatic work before, with her most recent role was as a talent manager in Paul Schrader’s The Card Counter (2021). Filming for The Lesson will take place in LA later this year.
Casting Tidbits:
Emilia Jones
Joe “Guido the Killer Pimp” Pantoliano
Chelsea Handler
Leslie Bibb
And a new White Lotus cast member
All the above casting tidbits and more.
FESTIVALS
Berlin Special Gala film, Heysel 85, lands international sales agent:
Int. Sales Rep: Salaud Morisset (To a Land Unknown)
Dir: Teodora Ana Mihai (2024’s Traffic)
Cast: Matteo Simoni (Safety First), Fabrizio Rongione (Two Days, One Night)
Prod. Company: Leitwolf Filmproduktion (Smalltown Girl)
Synopsis:
When 39 people get killed before the start of the European Cup at the Brussels Heysel stadium in 1985, the daughter of the mayor and a journalist with Italian roots are torn between their professional assignment, family and human nature.
Think September 5 (2024) but with football trailer.
TECH SECTION
Alright. Alright. Alright. Matthew McConaughey, the first actor to try to trademark himself and his “Alright, Alright, Alright” catchphrase in a first move against AI deepfakes, is predicting that we’ll have a Best Oscar category for AI film in 5 years. Watch his take here.
At the same time AI films have not yet made their way into theaters. In fact a short AI film, the winner of Frame Forward AI Animated Film Festival was supposed to play at AMC. But after backlash, AMC is refusing to screen it.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT / INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Bill Hader turns a comedy premise into his first horror feature. Beloved Bill Hader from SNL is directing, writing and starring in a horror film, They Know.
Synopsis:
Follows a divorced dad (Hader) who grows suspicious that his ex-wife is secretly dating a mysterious man who is having a strange influence on their children.
Hader tapped into some of this energy in his wild sketch, where he plays the Cat in the Hat, who walks in on his ex, who is now married to Thing 2 (clip).
Funding comes from MRC (Knives Out, Ozark), so this is going to go places for sure.
Mini Tidbits:
Oscar-nominated director Carlos López Estrada (Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon) is launching Indie Institute through his Antigravity Academy (Focus Features’ Didi) banner. The accelerated filmmaking program will offer both mentorship and instruction for every step of the production process with weekly classes starting next month.
Stuntman and actor Iko Uwais (Raid) is returning to Indonesia for Warrior, a new action feature. Warrior follows an exonerated prisoner whose vow to leave his violent past behind him is short-lived as a local crime syndicate threatens the safety of his neighborhood. K-Movie Entertainment (The Outlaws) is handling international sales.
ON THIS DAY
1952. The African Queen is released in the US.
Written by Gabriel Miller and Madelyn Menapace.
Editor: Gabriel Miller.
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Is 5 to many of the toy story sargue ??