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Bob Nelson, who earned an Oscar nomination for
Nebraska, has written
Highston, a half-hour coming-of-age comedy, written by Nelson, executive produced by
Borat and
Bruno‘s Sacha Baron Cohen and to be directed by the
Little Miss Sunshine duo of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris.
(DH)
Network’s pilot presentation — which the network is considering for a straight-to-series order — follows Jim Henson’s iconic characters behind the scenes as they launch a new TV show. The series will be shot mock-documentary style, like
Parks and Recreation and
The Office. In what’s being billed as a first for
The Muppets, the personal lives of the characters will be explored.
(EW)
Sony and Marvel have narrowed the list down to five. The quintet of young gentlemen are Nat Wolff, Asa Butterfield, Tom Holland, Timothee Chalamet and Liam James, the oldest of whom, Wolff, is just 20. Sony is preparing to make test offers to several young stars next week, with a decision expected in the next two to three weeks, though a deal may take longer to hammer out.
(TW)
The LEGO Movie directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller are creating an animated Spider-Man film that will be released on July 20, 2018. They'll write and produce the project, but are not currently signed on to direct. Plus, the new Marvel and Sony live-action film has been dated for July 28, 2017.
(THR)
James’ husband Niall Leonard, himself an author and screenwriter, has been tapped to write the screenplay for
Fifty Shades Darker. Apparently, Leonard did some uncredited work on the script for
Fifty Shades of Grey (screenwriter Kelly Marcel and James reportedly clashed during the development of the script) so he’s worked in this world before. There is still no director attached to the project.
(COL)
Sony has officially greenlit the film after rumors of a follow-up began months before the R-rated auctioneer opened in September. It was the film’s strong box office results and home entertainment sales that ultimately pulled the trigger on the second installment. Washington is expected to reprise his role as vigilante Robert McCall in
Equalizer 2. Chloe Moretz and Marton Csokas co-starred in the original.
(VAR)
Common is the latest in an incredibly long list of actors to join the project, in an unnamed role. He joins Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney, Cara Delevingne, Jared Leto, Joel Kinnaman, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Karen Fukuhara, Viola Davis, Jay Hernandez, Adam Beach, Ike Barinholtz, Scott Eastwood and Raymond Olubowale in the film, currently filming in Toronto under the direction of David Ayer. It hits theaters August 5th, 2016.
(CS)
There has been a lot of talk that the movie industry is in trouble as box office totals dipped last year and younger have tended to stray away from going out to the movies as much as they once did. According to one theater executive, there’s a very simple reason for this trend: going to the movies costs too much and young people don’t have much money.
(CB)
Our viewing patterns are shifting and can now watch where we want, when we want. The explosion of devices has given us more access to content and brands than ever before. While the television is still the screen of choice for viewing video content, device proliferation and social-media interaction is shifting the power from the provider to the people.
(NTV)
You’ve written the script, now you want to film it. There are a few things you need to know before you (or your director) yell, “ACTION!” – so take some advice from someone who knows where you’re going and is willing to lay out some guideposts for your journey.
(SM)
