SSN ORIGINALS
AFM 2015: Cutting Through the Buzz To Pick the 10 Most Bankable Films For U.S. Audiences
As the 36th American Film Market (AFM) winds down at the Loews in Santa Monica SSN Insider is here with our annual pick list of the ten most bankable titles out of the 2,000 films from the 391 exhibiting companies. Nearly 1,600 buyers were in attendance from more than 70 countries. Four hundred and seven films were screened in more than 30 languages, including 87 world premieres and 242 market premieres. (SSN)
TV Development For 11/10/15: Olivia Munn Sets First TV Project At The CW, Amazon Gives Multiple Orders, and More
There is just no stopping Phil Lord and Chris Miller, as the duo’s Son Of Zorn gets a series order from Fox. Meanwhile, Casey Wilson and June Diane Raphael, Adam and Naomi Scott, Johnny Depp, and Kal Penn and his Harold and Kumar writer/directors also set up new projects. Click on the link for the full skinny. (SSN)
OTHER HEADLINES
It’s Promotion Day At Showtime, Which Ups Gary Levine To President Of Programming
With boss David Nevins’ moving into the role of CEO, Levine will now oversee casting and program operations for the premium network. He will continue with his prior duties, too, including being responsible for the development and creative oversight of all Showtime original series, docs and specials. Levine has been with Showtime since 2001, and has been a key player in expanding the network’s reach in recent years. (HRT)
In What Should Be a Surprise To Absolutely No One, FX Wants a Sixth Season Of ‘American Horror Story’
The as-of-yet untitled sixth installment will air on FX in 2016 with the next chapter of the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning franchise co-created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. Tim Minear, Brad Buecker, Jennifer Salt, James Wong and Alexis Martin Woodall also serve as Executive Producers. The American Horror Story franchise is produced by Twentieth Century Fox Television. (CS)
Twentieth Century Fox & Temple Hill Make Franchise Play With Kazu Kibuishi’s ‘Amulet’
Graphics novel series follows the story of a young girl named Emily, her younger brother Navin, and their mother Karen as they move to their great-grandfather’s house to start a new life. The house proves to contain a dangerous portal, and after a creature pulls Karen through it, the kids set out to save her in an alternate world inhabited by demons, giant robots, elves and highly intelligent animals. Temple Hill partners Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey will produce. (DH)
Scarlett Johansson Gets Some Familiar Company In Her Upcoming Action Movie
Danish actor Pilou Asbæk has landed the male lead in Rupert Sanders‘ adaptation of the Japanese manga, Ghost In the Shell. After working with ScarJo on Lucy, Asbæk will reteam with the actress for DreamWorks’ live-action adaptation of the popular Japanese manga created by Masamune Shirow. Story follows the exploits of a member of a covert ops unit of the Japanese National Public Safety Commission, which specializes in fighting technology-related crime. (TW)
Paramount Gets Writer Drew Pearce To RSVP For Its ‘The Wedding Sting’ Project
Based on an incredible true story first published in The Atlantic, tale centers on Flint, Michigan at a time when it was overrun with drug dealers, leading to Flint being labeled as “one of the worst cities in America to live in” in 1987. With the police department lacking funds to round up dealers, a group of officers decided to organize a fake wedding, invite the suspects, and arrest them. The case became so legendary that agencies all began using it as a case study. (TB)
Brian De Palma Sets Up His Next Film, Will Direct Chinese Co-Production ‘Lights Out’
Lamont Magee and Jeff W. Byrd wrote the script, which finds a blind Chinese girl with heightened other senses who is caught up in a plot to expose a top-secret assassination program. No casting has been locked in yet, but De Palma will be looking for an A-list Chinese actress to take the lead, and likely some US stars in supporting roles. De Palma replaces Xavier Gens who had been attached but has moved on. (EMP)
Ever Wonder About All Those Jame Bond Gadgets? Check Out This Supercut Of Every Single One Of Them
The James Bond franchise persists because it’s reflective. Politics, culture, and current events force each installment to reconsider the enigmatic super spy. Spectre, for instance, tackles a surveillance-stricken world without much need for a 00 program. If it didn’t go that direction, the film would still be verifiably 2015. It would have to be. Unlike most blockbuster confection, the success of Bond depends on relevancy. A pro and con of 007 being only human. (ESQ)
Trailer Buzz: ‘Transparent’
Amazon has released the first look at the second season of its Emmy Award-winning original series, along with news that the studio has renewed the show for a third season. The upcoming second season will become available on the site on December 11th. (COL)