Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Will Ferrell’s Judgement, Johnny Depp’s End, and a getaway driver.
Let’s go!
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THE INDUSTRY TLDR
Will Ferrell and Zac Efron will star in Judgment Day, a comedy in production at Amazon MGM Studios.
Giannina Scott (Ridley Scott’s wife) is producing Children of the Jungle for 20th Century.
Final Destination: Bloodlines, the 6th film in the horror franchise, drops a Rube Goldberg-esqueue trailer.
The sequel series to the beloved Buffy the Vampire Slayer is officially happening with Hulu.
Hildy Gottlieb (agent: Kathy Bates, Jeff Goldblum, Sam Neill) is retiring.
Netflix drops the new trailer for Cobra Kai.
Chevy Chase unleashes terror in CATnip.
Star City Apple TV+’s soviet spinoff of For All Mankind has found a lead, Rhys Ifans.
European Film Market (EFM) Berlin is launching a carnival of projects, including one by director Terry Gilliam and another starring Dave Franco.
Juliette Binoche was named the president of the jury for the Cannes Film Festival this year.
Trey Edward Shults's (dir: Krisha, It Comes at Night) latest Hurry Up Tomorrow, starring Jenna Ortega and Barry Keoghan, will be released by Lionsgate.
Hulu will stream 2024’s Sundance Grand Jury Prize (U.S. Dramatic) winning film In the Summers.
The dark and fable-like The Accidental Getaway Driver (Winner: 2023’s Sundance Directing Award) is finally getting a theatrical release.
Sony nabs international rights for A24’s Bring Her Back.
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Will Ferrell will star as a TV Judge in Judgment Day (IMDBPro link), a comedy directed by Nicholas Stoller (dir: Neighbors) and in production at Amazon MGM Studios.
Here’s the synopsis:
A newly released prisoner (Zac Efron) takes over a TV courtroom, holding hostages while confronting the egotistical judge (Ferrell), whose previous verdict he believes destroyed his life.
Ferrell, as an “egotistical judge,” feels like the perfect power trip as some of his best comedy comes when he’s ultra-entitled (handsome devil trailer).
It is interesting that Efron will play a homicidal prisoner in a comedy as his breakout dramatic role was as a homicidal prisoner in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile (Efron as Ted Bundy trailer).
Nicholas Stoller recently directed Ferrell in the wedding comedy You’re Cordially Invited, which just launched on Prime.
Judgment Day is currently in the midst of production.
Giannina Scott (Ridley Scott’s wife) is producing Children of the Jungle for 20th Century. Giannina serves as Ridley’s occasional producing partner for House of Gucci (2021) and Concussion (2015), which was done under Ridley’s Scott Free Production Company.
Here’s the synopsis for Children of the Jungle:
In June 2023, four children—Lesly, Soleiny, Tien, and Crispin—were found alive in the Colombian Amazon, forty days after the aircraft they were traveling in had crashed and killed the three adults on board
This may sound familiar as Netflix released a documentary, The Lost Children (2024, trailer) based on the same harrowing true story.
It’s one of the craziest survival stories of all time, so this should be an interesting one for Giannina and Scott Free Productions. No word on if Ridley will direct.
Roberto Bentivegna (writer: House of Gucci) is writing the script.
Look, no matter what you think about Final Destination. The kills were ultra horrific and ultra engrossing.
And nothing has changed 14 years later with the new Rube Goldberg-esque death trailer for Final Destination: Bloodlines (the 6th film in the franchise) from Warner Bros.
They kept making these films as they were relatively cheap and had great box office results:
FD 1 (2000)
$23 M budget
$112.9 M worldwide
FD 2 (2003)
$26 M budget
$90.9 M worldwide
FD 3 (2006)
$25 M budget
$118.9 M worldwide
FD 4 (2009)
$40 M budget
$118.2 M worldwide
FD 5 (2011)
$40 M budget
$157.9 M worldwide
As long as WB doesn’t overspend on this one, it should see a big box office draw when it releases on May 16th. And hopefully, some easy cash as indie distributors have been earning asymmetrically in the horror category over recent years.
The sequel series to the beloved Buffy the Vampire Slayer is officially happening with Hulu. The chosen one, Sarah Michelle Gellar, is in talks to reprise her role as the titular character but would be second to a new slayer rather than leading the series.
Nora Zuckerman and Lila Zuckerman (EPs Poker Face) are writing the pilot, with Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao (Nomadland) attached to the series set to direct the pilot. Originally a film (1992) of the same name, Gellar’s series ran for six years and quickly became a cultural phenomenon, making this sequel something fans will most definitely look out for.
Tidbits:
Hildy Gottlieb is retiring. She kicked off her career at ICM working there from 1980 - 1997 and then again from 2007 - 2022. She is currently at CAA, where she reps:
Olivia Coleman
Lewis and Bill Pullman
Walton Goggins
Kathy Bates
Jeff Goldblum
Sam Neill
She has a sublime knack for gravitating to actors that have an other-worldly range. She will be missed!
Trailer for the new season of Netflix’s Cobra Kai:
Season 6 pt 3 -Trailer
Premiere: Feb 13
THE ACTOR SPOTLIGHT
Chevy Chase unleashes terror. No that’s not an old headline from the set of Community, but a tidbit of the logline from Chase’s latest CATnip.
The film, which also stars Bruce Dern (Nebraska), sounds bonkers:
A struggling family's fresh start in a run-down apartment building turns into a fight for survival as a horde of feral cats unleashes terror, revealing the dark and deadly horrors lurking within its walls.
No word on who Chase will be playing, but it’s easy to see him as a curmudgeon who complains about the feral cat problem to the new family as they move in.
What will be more interesting is if Chase’s character is allowed to grow and become selfless, maybe even self-sacrificing.
That was the rough character journey on Community, although, let's face it, even a self-righteous Chase always felt a little forced (advanced laughter clip).
We look forward to checking out a trailer for this one. No word yet on when that’ll drop, as this is kicking off production this month.
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Tidbit:
Star City Apple TV+’s soviet spinoff of For All Mankind has found a lead, Rhys Ifans.
Ifans can be seen across many cinematic universes, from GOT’s House of the Dragon to Harry Potter (career retrospective supercut). Our favorite is his gloriously frolicking Rasputin in The King’s Man (evil dancing clip).
It’ll be interesting to see what character he plays in Star City. No word on production dates.
Corey Stoll, known for portraying a tragically addicted politician in House of Cards, is the newest actor to join the Skydance/Mattel live-action Matchbox from Apple. While there is no word yet on his role, Stoll will be starring alongside Jessica Biel and John Cena in the toy car origin story.
FESTIVALS
European Film Market (EFM) Berlin is launching a carnival of projects. Here are a few of the most interesting
Dir: Terry Gilliam
Cast: Johnny Depp (as Satan)
Co-star: Jeff Bridges (As God), Adam Driver, Jason Momoa
Prod/Financier: Andrea Iervolino (Ferrari)
Synopsis:
God, disappointed with what's gone down on planet earth, wants to wipe out humanity and the only one who wants to save them is Satan, who convinces God that two young people he's found are the new Adam and Eve.
There is supposed to be a glorious amount of CGI in the film. We got so excited about this project when it was first announced we wrote a full cover story on Terry Gilliam’s love for the end of days:
https://theindustry.co/p/johnny-depp-plays-satan
Gilliam and co hope to shoot in April.
Dir: Macon Blair (EP/Writer 2024’s Brothers)
Cast: Dave Franco, O’Shea Jackson Jr & Peter Dinklage
US Sales Rep: CAA + WME
International Sales Rep: WME
Prod: Jeremy Saulnier (Rebel Ridge)
Prod Company/Financier: Gramercy Park Media (The Surfer)
Synopsis:
Cynical degenerate Mark (Franco) and bumbling idealist Davis (Jackson) as they’ve both hit rock bottom. Paired for a job by a shady transport service, their task seems simple: transport Sheridan, a wealthy troubled teen, to rehab
Dave Franco is coming off the top-selling project at Sundance (Together), so this will likely find distribution.
Dir: Guy Ritchie
Cast: Rosamund Pike, Anthony Hopkins, Cosmo Jarvis, Benedict Cumberbatch
Prod Company/Sales Rep: Black Bear
Synopsis:
A brilliant scientist uncovers a leading pesticide's toxicity, igniting a battle against its powerful manufacturer amid rising paranoia and anger. Based on true events.
Black Bear is coming off of Sundance’s 2nd biggest sale for Train Dreams, which Netflix bought for a cool $16 M.
Berlin Film Festival Tidbits:
Check out the wild music video style teaser for Reflection In A Dead Diamond. The odd action thriller will be played in a competition in Berlin.
Tidbit:
Juliette Binoche was named jury president for the Cannes Film Festival this year.
INDIE FILMMAKER SPOTLIGHT
Trey Edward Shults (Krisha, It Comes at Night) is one of the most exciting filmmakers working today. His latest is Hurry Up Tomorrow, starring Jenna Ortega and Barry Keoghan.
Here’s the synopsis:
A musician plagued by insomnia is pulled into an odyssey with a stranger who begins to unravel the very core of his existence.
We have two fantastic first look images:
Barry Keoghan as Lee and Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye as Abel (first look)
Jenna Ortega in the rain (first look)
Shults pressure-cooker feature debut, Krisha, is a claustrophobic familial masterpiece (trailer). His follow-up film, It Comes at Night, is equally suffocating but less powerful.
While plot details are thin for Hurry Up Tomorrow, it seems to follow the same structure as Stephen King’s Misery (1990), where a writer (James Caan) is captured by a fan, played by the horrifyingly perfect Kathy Bates.
The Weekend, who serves as a co-writer on the script, is supposedly being stalked by Ortega.
If all the elements coalesce and the center of the action is once again a house, which Shults is adept at mining the psychology of the space better than any indie director, he may have another hit on his hands.
Lionsgate will release on May 16th.
Hulu will stream 2024’s Sundance Grand Jury Prize (U.S. Dramatic) winning film In the Summers.
The film follows the formative years of two sisters who navigate their loving but violent father during their yearly summer visits to his home in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
Alessandra Lacorazza, who won the directing award at Sundance, discussed her reason for making the film:
“As a way to understand my father and our fractured relationship and to see a different kind of queer and Latin representation. My inspiration was my beautiful but often chaotic childhood. The beauty, the joys, the pain of being a child of an addict, and the importance of having my sister as an ally and a witness.”
Music Box released the film theatrically last September where it took $89 K, playing on a total of 25 screens at its peak. It’ll be nice for more people to catch it on Hulu when it drops Feb 5th.
Here’s the trailer.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
The dark and fable-like The Accidental Getaway Driver (Winner: 2023’s Sundance Directing Award) is finally getting a theatrical release.
Here’s the synopsis:
During a routine pickup, an elderly Vietnamese cab driver is taken hostage at gunpoint by three recently escaped Orange County convicts.
The new trailer turns the California terrain into a surreal other-world, filtered through the mania of an elderly man.
Utopia is releasing. Bless them for picking up indies like these that we thought were lost to the tides of time.
No word on the release date.
Sony nabs international rights for Bring Her Back. This is Australian directors Danny and Michael Philippou's (dir: A24’s Talk To Me) next horror film. A24 will distribute, and Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water) will star.
The Philippou brothers hit the jackpot when their film Talk To Me premiered at Sundance and was purchased for high 7-figures by A24 and then earned $92 M at the box office.
What it captured was the poignant authenticity of a daughter in grief and how she attaches herself to a very dangerous totem: a medium’s severed hand, which acts as a portal to hell (trailer).
No plot details for Bring Her Back are available. The film is currently in post. A24 is distributing domestically, and Sony is distributing internationally (minus Canada, China, Japan, and Russia).
No word on the release date.
ON THIS DAY
1970. Patton premieres in New York (Academy Awards Best Picture 1971).
See you tomorrow!
Written by Gabriel Miller, Spencer Carter, and Madelyn Menapace.
Editor: Gabriel Miller.
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