Exec Shuffle for 5/9/16: Ellen DeGeneres Launches Digital Network, Cinetic Opens Int’l Sales Division Ahead of Cannes, Kim Dong-ho Named Chairman of Busan Film Festival
Meanwhile, in other news, Comcast’s online video division makes a major buy, Skydance acquires a game developer, Revolution Studios buy a stake in a Latino digital entertainment company, and Fullscreen has a name change. Click the link for more. (SSN)
Case Dismissed: Judge Throws Out Sumner Redstone Health Lawsuit
The trial was cut short, but the legal fight over media mogul Sumner Redstone’s healthcare is far from over. Judge David J. Cowan today dismissed with prejudice a petition over Redstone’s competency to amend a healthcare directive, after just one full day of a trial that was expected to take more than a week. Moments after the decision, Manuela Herzer filed a new lawsuit against Redstone’s daughter, Shari Redstone. (HESQ)
Syfy Does the Obvious, Picks Up Superman Prequel ‘Krypton’ To Pilot
It’s official: Syfy is in the Superman business. The NBCUniversal-owned cable network has handed out a formal pilot order to the drama, set two generations before the destruction of the legendary Man of Steel’s home planet. Krypton will follow Superman’s grandfather as he fights to redeem his family’s honor and save his beloved world from chaos. David S. Goyer will exec produce through his Phantom Four banner. Damian Kindler will exec produce and showrun. (LF)
What Took So Long? Andre The Giant Biopic Now In the Works
Lion Forge Comics and producers Scott Steindorff and Dylan Russell have partnered to develop a feature film about the life of iconic pro wrestler Andre “The Giant” Roussimoff. The project is based on the authorized graphic novel biography published last year, Andre The Giant: Closer to Heaven. Roussimoff’s daughter Robin Christensen-Roussimoff will consult on the film and assigned the exclusive rights for the biography to the producers. (VAR)
‘Captain America: Civil War’s’ Joe and Anthony Russo Developing Showtime Pot Comedy
Half-hour sitcom focuses on a larcenous family of marijuana dealers whose world is turned upside down when their illegal enterprise suddenly becomes legal in their home state. As the family struggles to adapt to new world of legitimate business, they must depend on the business acumen of their son, whose straight and narrow leanings have always made him a “black sheep.” Project will be written by comedian Moshe Kasher and writer/actor Zach Cregger. (TW)
Hot On the Heels Of ‘Deadpool’s Success, Word Comes That ‘Wolverine 3’ Will Definitely Be Rated ‘R’
Producer Simon Kinberg has confirmed the news, as well as the fact that the film has indeed already begun filming. While Kinberg wouldn’t go so far as confirming that Patrick Stewart is co-staring in the movie, he did confirm the R rating and said the film “takes place in the future.” (COL)
Aardman Studios’ Next Film Lands an Oscar Winner To Voice the Lead Role
Eddie Redmayne has joined Nick Park’s new prehistoric comedy adventure Early Man as the voice of Dug. Pictured below in the studio this week, Eddie Redmayne is the first cast member to be revealed as production begins. Film marks Nick Park’s first feature film since Academy Award-winning Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. (CS)
Michael Shannon Is the Latest To Join the Cast Of Guillermo del Toro’s Supernatural Cold War Romance
The one-time Oscar nominee will play a villain in the as-yet-untilted project set up at Fox Searchlight, and joins Sally Hawkins, Octavia Spencer, and Michael Stuhlbarg. The plot of the project is under wraps, but one report indicates that the story would involve a janitor (Hawkins) who falls in love with a merman and frees him from the lab where he is being kept. (SF)
New Biopic And TV Projects In Works Based On Life Of Mexican-American Superstar Jenni Rivera
Rivera tragically passed away in a 2012 plane crash, but her legacy is about to live on in a very big way. Now, multiple television projects and a new film about the singer and actress’ life are currently in the works. All of the projects are “in early development and details will be announced later,” but they are expected to include a music-heavy television series “based on the lives and stories of The Rivera Family as a musical dynasty.” (IW)
Trailer Buzz: ‘Inferno’
Sony Pictures has released the first look at director Ron Howard’s latest adaptation of a Dan Brown novel, which once again stars Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon. Also starring in the film are Felicity Jones, Ben Foster, Omar Sy, and Irrfan Khan. Film is set to open in the U.S. on October 28th, though the film will see an international rollout starting October 12th. (YT)