The prolific Guy Ritchie has been on a filmmaking tear over the past half-decade. Since 2019, the British director has shot eight films (two of them, “In The Grey“ and “Fountain Of Youth“ are in post-production now) and also worked on two TV series: Netflix’s “The Gentlemen“ and the upcoming “Young Sherlock.” So is Ritchie going to keep churning out projects?

Continue reading ‘Guy Ritchie’s The Associate’: Tom Hardy, Helen Mirren & Pierce Brosnan In Final Talks To Star In Brit Director’s Upcoming Paramount+ Series at The Playlist.

The list of actors who almost appeared in Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” is becoming almost as long as the star-studded cast of the Best Picture nominated film. So far, we know actors like Saoirse Ronan and Timothée Chalamet were either cut from the film or weren’t able to shoot their scenes, Ben Affleck was recently touted for an action scene that never happened. Additionally, Bowen Yang, Dan Levy, Ben Platt, and Jonathan Groff were among desired actors who couldn’t make the production due to COVID.

Continue reading Helen Mirren Says Olivia Colman Almost Appeared In ‘Barbie’ In A Clashing Of British Dames Appearance at The Playlist.

Helen Mirren is a fantastic actress. One of the best in the world, without a doubt. However, when it was revealed that Mirren, under prosthetics, would play Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir in a new film, people were a bit shocked. Some were even upset over passing over Jewish actors for Mirren in the role. However, when the film debuted at the Berlin Film Festival, the filmmaker behind “Golda” defended the casting and spoke highly of his star.

Continue reading ‘Golda’ Trailer: Helen Mirren Dons Prosthetics To Play The Iconic Israeli Prime Minister In Guy Nattiv’s Drama at The Playlist.

One of the things that made “Shazam!” so engaging, entertaining, and different was that it brought humor, an endearing irreverence, and an exploration and development of character that satisfied the initiated but also drew in the unfamiliar. It felt natural, full of vigor, and inspired.

READ MORE: ‘Shazam’: David F. Sandberg Talks’ Fury Of The Gods’ & The Future Of The Franchise [Interview]

An attempt to recapture that with “Shazam!

Continue reading ‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods’ Review: The Magic Fizzles As Lightning Doesn’t Strike Twice On This DC Franchise at The Playlist.

Much to the chagrin of fans around the world, there are plenty of actors who sign on for superhero films and aren’t massive fans of the properties. Sometimes, these actors are just professionals who get paid to show up and do their job. The bastards! How dare they not understand the intricacies of the plot and how it relates to the source material? All kidding aside, even though it’s perfectly fine for actors to not be huge nerds, it’s still funny when they say something silly in an interview and further show just how unsavvy they are.

Continue reading Helen Mirren Can’t Explain The Plot Of ‘Shazam 2’: “It’s Too Complicated” at The Playlist.

War is perhaps cinema’s most enduring — and prolific — muse. From Francis Ford Coppola’s “Apocalypse Now” to Stanley Kubrick’s “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb” and Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan,” war movies are some of the greatest classics within cinema history, from the sense-numbing bloodbaths of battlefields to the adrenaline that lingers within operation rooms as history-making calls are about to be made. 

Continue reading ‘Golda’ Review: Not Even Helen Mirren Can Save Disjointed Golda Meir Biopic [Berlin] at The Playlist.

So, James Gunn and Peter Safran have taken over the DC Universe with DC Studios. So far, that’s meant Henry Cavill out as Superman, Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman fate is unclear (though director Patty Jenkins threequel was rejected), Jason Momoa with vague but good news about his future, and everyone else with a big fat TBD.

READ MORE: Warner Bros.

Continue reading ‘Shazam! Fury Of The Gods’ Trailer: It’s Time For Billy Batson & The Family To Grow Up at The Playlist.

“Violence has always haunted this family,” Elsa Dutton (Isabel May), from “1883,” says at the beginning of “1923,” the new “Yellowstone” spin-off from creator/writer Taylor Sheridan, a familiar if still watchable show thanks to its cast. “Where [violence] doesn’t follow, we hunt it down, we seek it,” she adds for good measure. And well, you get the gist of the heavy-handed metaphors.

Continue reading ‘1923’ Review: Harrison Ford & Helen Mirren Light Up Taylor Sheridan’s Otherwise Familiar ‘Yellowstone’ Spin-Off at The Playlist.

After the success of “Yellowstone” and “1883,” Taylor Sheridan’s empire keeps growing (not to mention there are crime shows, “The Mayor Of Kingstown” and “The Tulsa King”). Next up for Sheridan is yet another “Yellowstone” spin-off, another Dutton family origin story with some huge names attached.

READ MORE: ‘1923’ First Look: Harrison Ford & Helen Mirren Star In Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Yellowstone’ Prequel

“1923, the next installment of the ongoing interconnected story, introduces a new generation of Duttons led by patriarch Jacob (Harrison Ford) and matriarch Cara (Helen Mirren).

Continue reading ‘1923’ Trailer: Greed Will Be The Thing That Kills Us All In New ‘Yellowstone’ Spin-Off at The Playlist.

Academy Award nominee Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” TV dynasty keeps growing. Already having the most popular show on cable television with “Yellowstone,” Sheridan’s been giving us glimpses into the origin story of the Dutton family legacy. The one-off limited series, “1883,” showed us John Dutton’s great-great-grandfather, and the next generation, “1923: A Yellowstone Origin,” story shows us the next chapter.

READ MORE: ‘1923’ First Look: Harrison Ford & Helen Mirren Star In Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Yellowstone’ Prequel

And Sheridan’s empire is convincing major talent to participate.

Continue reading ‘1923’ Teaser Trailer: Violence Has Always Haunted The Yellowstone Dutton Family at The Playlist.

As “Yellowstone” Season Five and “Tulsa King” approach their premieres on Paramount Network and Paramount+ this weekend, another Taylor Sheridan series is on the horizon. Enter “1923,” Sheridan’s second “Yellowstone” spinoff after “1883.” “1923” picks up forty years after the events of “1883,” with a new couple leading the Dutton family in Montana.

Continue reading ‘1923’ First Look: Harrison Ford & Helen Mirren Star In Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Yellowstone’ Prequel at The Playlist.

“1923,” the second “Yellowstone” spin-off series after “1883,” finally has a release date. IndieWire reports that the Paramount+ drama with Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren has an official premiere date of December 18 on the streaming platform. It’s the latest series in Taylor Sheridan‘s “Yellowstone” TV universe about the Dutton family, who own the largest cattle ranch in Montana. 

Continue reading ‘1923’: ‘Yellowstone’ Prequel With Harrison Ford & Helen Mirren Premieres On December 18 On Paramount+ at The Playlist.

2017’s “Wonder,” about a boy with Treacher Collins syndrome trying to fit in at a new school, tugged at a lot of people’s heartstrings. And it did well at the global box office, too, earning $306 million on a $20 million budget. So, naturally, Lionsgate has a new film based on R.J. Palacio‘s follow-up novel ready to hit theaters this Fall.

READ MORE: ‘White Bird’: Marc Forster To Expand The ‘Wonder’ Cinematic Universe With His Latest Film For Lionsgate

A sequel of sorts, “White Bird: A Wonder Story” shifts focus from Auggie Pullman, the protagonist from “Wonder,” to his classmate and adversary Julian Albans.

Continue reading ‘White Bird: A Wonder Story’ Trailer: Marc Forster’s Spiritual Sequel To 2017’s ‘Wonder’ Hits Theaters On October 14 at The Playlist.

Wowza, Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone”-verse is not playing. Today, Paramount+ announced that Academy Award-winner Helen Mirren and Academy Award nominee Harrison Ford will star in the highly anticipated next installment of the “Yellowstone” origin story, previously announced as “1932” (working title).

READ MORE: Isabel May Talks About Her ‘1883’ Experience, ‘Yellowstone,’ & More [Bingeworthy Podcast]

From Academy Award nominee Taylor Sheridan, the new series follows the record-breaking performance of “1883,” a series that Paramount is touting as the most-watched title ever on Paramount+ globally.

Continue reading Harrison Ford & Helen Mirren Will Star In Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Yellowstone’ Spin-Off Series ‘1932’ On Paramount+ at The Playlist.

Helen Mirren is a living legend and one of the best actresses to ever grace film. So, when it was announced, years ago, that she was happily joining the ‘Fast & Furious’ film franchise, people were slightly taken aback. The Helen Mirren in a ‘Fast & Furious’ film? Now, after three appearances in that franchise, Mirren is a fixture in Vin Diesel’s “family.” And according to the actress, this isn’t by mistake. 

Continue reading Helen Mirren “Begged” Vin Diesel To Cast Her In A ‘Fast & Furious’ Film at The Playlist.

When you think of heist films, you typically imagine thieves to be this group of attractive loners that have specific skills that make them perfectly suited for a life of crime. Well, in the film, “The Duke,” one of the biggest art heists in modern history is actually perpetrated by one of the most unlikely criminals you could think of.

READ MORE: Jim Broadbent Will Charm You Senseless In ‘The Duke’ An Irresistible Art-Heist Britcom Co-Starring Helen Mirren [Venice Review]

As seen in the trailer for the new feel-good drama, “The Duke,” the film follows the incredible true story of Kempton Bunton, a 60-year-old taxi driver in 1961, who was able to steal a Goya masterpiece from an art gallery.

Continue reading ‘The Duke’ Trailer: Jim Broadbent Steals A Priceless Work Of Art For Charity In Sony Pictures Classics New Film at The Playlist.

Producer/creator David Weil (the writer behind the controversial “Hunters”) returns to Amazon Prime with this week’s “Solos,” a pandemic production filmed in late 2020 that wastes so much talent that it can be almost hard to comprehend how this many award winners fell victim to its thin ideas and manipulative melodrama. They must have been sick. At the beginning of the pandemic, a clip of celebrities singing “Imagine” was widely criticized for feeling like a tone-deaf representation of where the world was at the time.

Continue reading ‘Solos’: A Corny, Pandemic-Influenced Melodrama That Feels Like Tone-Deaf Celebrities Singing “Imagine” [Review] at The Playlist.

Amazon’s new anthology series, “Solos,” is simple in that it explores human connection. “A lot of the inspiration for [it] came from things I’m not allowed to do as a writer,” creator David Weil (“Hunters“) told EW recently. “In film and television, you’re really not allowed to have a 30-minute monologue, though I would love to in every episode of something I write.”

READ MORE: Summer TV Preview: Over 40 Series To Watch

But perhaps the biggest draw is the cast.

Continue reading ‘Solos’ Trailer: Anne Hathaway, Anthony Mackie, Dan Stevens & More Star In Amazon’s New “Human Connection” Anthology Series at The Playlist.

A couple of months ago, Amazon announced plans for a new anthology series from the creator of “Hunters.” The series, titled “Solos,” features an all-star cast and is expected to be one of the most anticipated titles coming to the Prime Video streaming service this year. And in a series of first-look photos (via EW), the star power of “Solos” is pretty unbelievable.

While not a whole lot is known about “Solos,” we know the series showcases eight separate stories featuring one character in a room, as the show explores the depths of human connection.

Continue reading ‘Solos’ First Look Photos: Anne Hathaway, Anthony Mackie, Constance Wu & More Star In Amazon’s Anthology Series at The Playlist.

Director David F. Sandberg‘s ‘Shazam!‘ was an endearing family-focused superhero film that explored one of the more interesting power fantasies in comic books, with a kid being endowed with super-human abilities and becoming an adult in the process. The hero has been around as long as the likes DC Comics royalty such as Superman and Batman but still has a ways to go to capture pop-culture at the same level. 

Continue reading ‘Shazam 2’: Oscar-Winner Helen Mirren To Play The Sequel’s Villain Hespera at The Playlist.

The beauty of having an anthology series is that you can cast some big names, only have them for an episode and not worry about trying to get an A-lister to commit to a months-long television shoot. And if you’re Amazon, you have the money to spend on some truly massive names for the upcoming anthology series “Solos.”

READ MORE: Nicole Kidman To Star In The New Amazon Series ‘Hope,’ Based On The Acclaimed Norwegian Film

According to Deadline, Amazon has landed a cast that includes Morgan Freeman, Anne Hathaway, Helen Mirren, Uzo Aduba, Nicole Beharie, Anthony Mackie, Dan Stevens, and Constance Wu to star in the upcoming series, “Solos.” The series comes from creator David Weil, who is the man behind the recent hit drama, “Hunters.” “Solos” aims to tell the story of human connection through seven episodes that take place from a different point of view and time period, but somehow all show that we are all connected through the human experience.

Continue reading Anne Hathaway, Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman, Anthony Mackie & More Join Amazon’s ‘Solos’ Series at The Playlist.

You could dine on nothing but lard for twenty years and still not develop the hardness of heart necessary to avoid being won over by Roger Michell‘s “The Duke,” a ridiculously charming British comedy that dunks a gamely accented prestige cast into an appealingly milky true story like so many digestives into a warm, well-earned, early evening cuppa.  With the shaggy-dog tale of the 1961 theft of Goya’s portrait of The Duke of Wellington from London’s National Gallery reworked into a zippy screenplay by playwrights Richard Bean and Clive Coleman, all Michell really needed to do was find the perfect actor to embody the lead character’s daffy, unsinkable spirit.

Continue reading Jim Broadbent Will Charm You Senseless In ‘The Duke’ An Irresistible Art-Heist Britcom Co-Starring Helen Mirren [Venice Review] at The Playlist.

Every Tuesday, discriminating viewers are confronted with a flurry of choices: new releases on disc and on-demand, vintage, and original movies on any number of streaming platforms, catalog titles making a splash on Blu-ray or 4K. This biweekly column sifts through all of those choices to pluck out the movies most worth your time, no matter how you’re watching. 

Two potentially major productions caught in the wheels of the lockdown hit disc and (reasonable) VOD this week, alongside a Sundance doc on Apple TV+,  a lovely new musical bio-doc, and the usual bushel of marvelous catalog titles from Criterion, Warner Archive, and Kino-Lorber.

Continue reading The 13 Best Movies To Buy Or Stream This Week: ‘The King of Staten Island,’ ‘The Burnt Orange Heresy’ & More at The Playlist.

Movies featuring talking animals come in all shapes and sizes: the typical “dog is man’s best friend” movie, the “kid and his trusty pet” movie, the “dog is great at basketball and other sports” movie, and of course, the rapping chipmunk movies. “The One and Only Ivan,” directed by Thea Sharrock and based on Katherine Applegate’s children’s book, is what one might call a gorilla movie, even if it boasts a menagerie of furry friends.

Continue reading ‘The One And Only Ivan’: An All-Star Cast Leads This Emotional, Sweet Children’s Film [Review] at The Playlist.

In an attempt to recover from months of seeing greenlit projects go dark and in-production films grind to a halt, studios have partially turned to streaming services for revenue. Disney in particular has become increasingly liberal with this marketing play, with Kenneth Branagh‘s “Artemis Fowl” being the most recent film to feed the trend. Now, Disney’s “The One and Only Ivan,” is forgoing a big-screen debut in favor of adding itself to the Disney+ exclusives library.

Continue reading ‘The One And Only Ivan’ Trailer: Bryan Cranston Is Best Friends With A Gorilla In A Heartwarming Adventure For Disney+ at The Playlist.