Wes Anderson's Scheme, Tom Cruise's End
Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Wes Anderson, Tom Cruise, and Gravitas.
Let’s go!
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The wacky world of Wes Anderson is getting a little bit bigger.
The distinctive auteur known for his bright colors, expeditious dialogue, and keen attention to symmetry has a zippy trailer for his newest, The Phoenician Scheme.
His King Lear-esque espionage black comedy sees his usual all-star ensemble cast:
Benicio del Toro
Benedict Cumberbatch
Scarlett Johanson
Tom Hanks
Bryan Cranston
Jeffrey Wright
Tilda Swinton
Jason Schwartzman
Michael Cera, in his first collaboration with Anderson
and many, many more.
Anderson’s recent films, like his love letter to journalists The French Dispatch (2021) or his quirky sci-fi meditation Asteroid City (2023), are spread thin across character depth, instead leaning on Anderson’s baroque stylistic prowess to produce their beauty.
However, his early film, The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), is a prime example of Anderson’s character-driven storytelling.
The film explores the dysfunctional dynamics of the Tenenbaum family and each member’s unique personal struggles clashing against each other. In his 60s period film Moonrise Kingdom (2012), he tapped into the anguish of childhood romance told through two youngsters, offering a vivid portrait of growing older and longing for real connections.
We look forward to seeing how The Phoenician Scheme unfolds.
Release date May 30th before expanding wider on June 6th.
For More:
The Phoenician Scheme trailer.
The Royal Tenenbaums trailer.
Moonrise Kingdom trailer.
THE INDUSTRY TLDR
The Paramount Global-Skydance merger has been stalled for at least 90 days.
Sony Pictures Entertainment hires Jay Levine as EVP, Chief Strategy Officer, and Business Operations.
John Aoshima (dir: Ultraman: Rising) signs an exclusive multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Pictures Animation.
Pressman Film (American Psycho) has promoted COO Paula Paizes.
AMC will adapt Great American Stories into an anthology series. First up, The Grapes of Wrath.
Jaume Collet-Serra (Dir: Netflix’s Carry On) is back with a new thriller, An Innocent Girl, for Netflix.
Alexander Skarsgård is a sarcastic killing machine in Apple TV+’s Murderbot.
Jefferson White (God’s Country) will play Lee Harvey Oswald in JFK thriller November 1963.
Brooke Shields is a bestselling author trying to solve a murder in AMC’s Allie & Andi.
Gabrielle Union (Bad Boys, Riff Raff) has joined Forbidden Fruits.
Cannes will award Robert De Niro an honorary Palme d’Or.
Michael Sarnoski (dir: Pig) will adapt the twisted video game Death Stranding for A24.
Shout! Studios has acquired distributor Gravitas Ventures.
Film Movement acquires North American rights for Peaches Goes Bananas.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
How do you end a franchise?
That’s the question Paramount will reckon with on May 23rd when Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning premieres (maybe at Cannes?).
Paramount has already poured $400M into the production of the 8th Mission: Impossible movie, eclipsing the budget for MI:7’s $290M and more than doubling MI:6’s $178M.
The marketing will need to lean heavily on this “end of the franchise” narrative to bring in an outsized audience, as the highest-grossing Mission: Impossible movie took in $786M. Even if MI:8 meets that number, it would not be sufficient to cover the budget + marketing.
It would be an easier task for Paramount if the audience’s trust in studios to end franchises hadn’t been eroded. Look at John Wick 4; Keanu Reeves clearly dies at the end, but they’ve brought him back for the 5th film.
Even Daniel Craig in James Bond took a final bow.
So the real question is: will Cruise die on screen—and will it actually mean the end? It’s only occurred once in his career (clip). All the other deaths he’s revived (clip).
We’ll see what MI:8 holds (new trailer).
The Paramount Global–Skydance merger drags on. Though approved by the SEC and European Commission, the FCC has yet to sign off, triggering an automatic 90-day extension until July 7th. If approval doesn’t come by then, another 90-day extension kicks in, or the deal can be terminated, with Paramount owing $400M. The signoff remains uncertain under Trump-appointed chairman Brendan Carr.
AMC one-ups Spark Notes. They will adapt Great American Stories into an anthology series, with each novel being a new season. First up is John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath with Rolin Jones (creator: AMC’s Interview with the Vampire, Supervising Producer: Friday Night Lights will oversee the development. Mark Johnson (EP: Breaking Bad, Mayfair Witches). AMC is trying to go big with this one - think Walking Dead levels of expansions. I would love to see a season of Blood Meridian.
Tidbits:
Jaume Collet-Serra (Dir: Netflix’s Carry On) is back with a new thriller, An Innocent Girl, for Netflix. Logline: When a young and ambitious woman is seduced by a high powered D.C. couple, she’s drawn into a dangerous world of sex, power and murder. Collet-Serra has a keen eye for psychological thrillers, keeping the tension very intimate after being honed on big-budget productions like Black Adam and Jungle Cruise. The script was written by Michael Mohan (Immaculate). No word on shoot dates.
The next up for Animation? John Aoshima, director of Ultraman: Rising, has signed an exclusive multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Pictures Animation to develop feature projects. He’ll also guest-direct Blue Eye Samurai Season 2 for Netflix. A CalArts alum with 25+ years’ experience, Aoshima’s past work includes Gravity Falls and Kubo and the Two Strings.
Mini Tidbits:
Nat Geo acquires the 10-part doc-series Missing Presumed Dead for US rights (trailer). UK’s Spirit Studios was the production company.
Amazon acquires global rights for the doc #Nova from Israel’s Yes Studios.
The revised weekend box office numbers for A Minecraft Movie put the film at $163M, topping Warner Bros. previous most successful post-COVID opening weekend, Barbie (2023), which made $162M domestically. Is a viral social media trend of throwing popcorn at the screen helping drive sales?
Executive promotions and shuffling at Comcast, Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Pressman Films:
https://theindustry.co/p/comcast-sony-pictures-entertainment
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
Alexander Skarsgård is a sarcastic killing machine in Apple TV+’s Murderbot.
Here’s the official synopsis:
A security android struggles with emotions and free will while balancing dangerous missions and desire for isolation, evading detection of its self-hacking as it finds its place.
The original book series captures a compelling first-person portrayal of Murderbot, characterized by its sarcastic yet endearing voiceover. The series is directed by Paul Weitz and his brother Chris, who wrote The Creator, another story about a human-like robot.
Described more as a slice-of-life comedy than a gritty sci-fi, this could be a pattern for Apple subverting the genre as it did for Severance.
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A killer cast. In the upcoming JFK thriller November 1963, Lee Harvey Oswald will be played by Jefferson White, who was astonishing in the underseen Thandiwe Newton Sundance film God’s Country (2022) as a local hunter whose deep xenophobia toward Newton is the driving force (trailer). Seems like a great fit for Oswald. Robert Carlyle (Franco in Trainspotting) will play Jack Ruby, the man who killed Oswald. November 1963 stars John Travolta and will shoot this spring in Canada.
Brooke Shields is breaking out her investigative skills as a bestselling author trying to solve a murder in the new mystery series Allie & Andi. The AMC Network’s six-episode crime drama will see Shields star and EP reuniting the longtime actress with Robin Bernheim, the director of last year’s Netflix hit Mother of the Bride. A co-production between AMC Studios and Dynamic Television, Allie & Andi is set to start production this fall and air in 2026 only on Acorn TV.
Gabrielle Union (Bad Boys, Riff Raff) has joined IFC Films and Shudder’s Forbidden Fruits, a horror film directed by Meredith Alloway. Starring Alexandra Shipp and Emma Chamberlain, the story follows a secret femme cult operating in a small basement, which faces turmoil when a new recruit disrupts their dynamic. Set for 2026 release.
Tom Hardy stars in Netflix’s Havoc from The Raid director Gareth Evans. New trailer here.
FESTIVALS
Cannes will award Robert De Niro an honorary Palme d’Or for his contribution to cinema.
The festival stated:
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