It feels like only yesterday that Universal Pictures was in over their heads with their “Jurassic World” reboot, with director David Leitch exiting the project in February and Gareth Edwards signing on for it weeks later.  But now, less than six months later, the studio has new stills, a synopsis, and a snazzy new title for the blockbuster to show off to “Jurassic Park” fans.

Continue reading ‘Jurassic World: Rebirth’: Gareth Edwards’ Blockbuster With Scarlett Johannson & Mahershala Ali Gets A Title, First-Look Images at The Playlist.

Before Wes Anderson skipped this year’s Oscars to film “The Phoenician Scheme” in Germany, fans already knew which actors would be at the heart of the director’s latest ensemble.  Benecio del Toro and Mia Threapleton star as a father and daughter whose family business leads them into a dark espionage tale, with Michael Cera, Riz Ahmed, and Anderson regular Bill Murray also starring.  

Continue reading ‘The Phoenician Scheme’: Wes Anderson’s Espionage Flick Reportedly Also Stars Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Willem Dafoe & More at The Playlist.

Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey have their first “Jurassic World” co-star. THR reports that Rupert Friend is the latest actor cast to star in Gareth Edward‘s upcoming installment.  Friend also joins Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, the only other name on the call sheet, as the film inches closer to its mid-June production start.

READ MORE: Glen Powell Passed On New ‘Jurassic World’ & ‘Bourne’ Films & Says He Won’t Do A Marvel Project

Friend in a big-budget blockbuster?  Maybe it was bound to happen.  The British actor’s biggest career roles up to this point have been for Wes Anderson, in “The French Dispatch, “Asteroid City,” and “The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar And Three More.” But Friend, typically in supporting roles, has a career that stretches back two decades.  Other recent roles include the Disney+ limited series “Obi-Wan Kenobi” and the Apple TV+ series “High Desert.”  

Meanwhile, Universal is moving fast on its new “Jurassic World” film, a soft reboot of the franchise centered around a brand-new set of characters.  The blockbuster starts shooting next month before a rapid post-production, so the film hits July 2, 2025 theatrical release.  Edwards directs a script from “Jurassic Park” and “The Lost World” screenwriter David Koepp.  Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley returns to produce Edwards’ film through Kennedy-Marshall, with Steven Spielberg executive producing through Amblin Entertainment.  Sara Scott also serves as executive vice president in production development, with Jacqueline Garell overring the film for Universal.

Continue reading ‘Jurassic World’: Rupert Friend The Latest To Join Gareth Edwards’ Upcoming Franchise Installment at The Playlist.

Yesterday, we got the first poster for the upcoming comedy audaciously titled “The American Society Of Magical Negroes,” and today, the trailer has arrived. A movie that will debut at Sundance of next year, leave it to a Sundance indie to be this bold and outrageous. What’s it about?

Well, it’s the directorial debut of filmmaker Kobi Libii and “The American Society of Magical Negroes” is a fresh, satirical comedy about a young man, Aren, who is recruited into a secret society of magical Black people who dedicate their lives to a cause of utmost importance: making white people’s lives easier.” LOL, that’s going to make people squirm uncomfortably in the best way possible.

Continue reading ‘The American Society Of Magical Negroes’ Trailer: Justice Smith Stars In A Satire About Black People Making White People More At East at The Playlist.

After earning rave reviews after its recent Venice premiere, “Memory” (read our review here) has become one of the most buzzed-about films of the festival season. And it made people anxious to see whether or not Jessica Chastain would reteam with director Michel Franco in the future. Well, not only will they collaborate on a new film, but they already filmed it, and it’s called “Dreams.”

According to a report from THR, Jessica Chastain and Michel Franco went ahead and filmed a brand-new feature, “Dreams,” in secret before the world premiere of “Memory.” Joining Chastain in the film are Isaac Hernandez and Rupert Friend.

Continue reading ‘Dreams’: Jessica Chastain Has Already Filmed A Secret Movie With ‘Memory’ Filmmaker Michel Franco at The Playlist.

Wes Anderson fans were surprised when the filmmaker revealed earlier this summer that his upcoming Netflix project “The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar” is only 37 minutes long. But there’s a good reason for its short length. Variety reports that, while at the Venice Film Festival for the “Henry Sugar” world premiere, Anderson announced that he has three other Roald Dahl story adaptations on the way, making a Netflix-exclusive anthology.

Continue reading ‘The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’: Wes Anderson Reveals His Short Anthology Adapts Three More Roald Dahl Stories at The Playlist.

When people think of the desert of Southern California, they often think of Palm Springs with its grand mid century mansions, replete with sleek breeze blocks, teal atomic doors, and pool parties that go all night as the palm trees sway against the mountain landscape. It’s in this kind of idyllic space where we first meet Peggy (Patricia Arquette, “Severance”), in her desert finery hosting a Thanksgiving party for her extended family.

Continue reading ‘High Desert’ Review: Patricia Arquette Is Hilarious in Raymond Chandler-Esque Ode To Desert Weirdness at The Playlist.

Patricia Arquette and Ben Stiller already have something good going on at Apple TV+ with “Severance.” Will they catch lightning in a bottle twice with “High Desert“? Arquette stars in the dark comedy series, set for a premiere next month, about a down-and-out addict who decides to become a private investigator. Both her and Stiller serve as executive producers on the series.

Continue reading ‘High Desert’ Trailer: Patricia Arquette & Ben Stiller Team Up For Another Apple TV+ Series On May 17 at The Playlist.

Shallow soap opera dialogue and an absolutely ludicrous plot twist about 2/3rds of the way through a six-episode season hold the admittedly talented ensemble of Netflix’s “Anatomy of a Scandal” back from creating anything that resembles realistic characters or genuine drama. And yet, this adaptation of the book by Sarah Vaughan can’t even commit to the kind of broad, goofy escapism that resulted in recent hits for the streamer like “Clickbait” or “Pieces of Her.” It’s caught in some numbingly dull valley between thinking it’s a high-brow commentary on privileged toxic masculinity and just leaning into the fact that it doesn’t give a damn about any of its characters and doesn’t really have anything to say that’s deeper than a puddle.

Continue reading ‘Anatomy Of A Scandal’ Review: A Shallow, Ludicrous, Soap Opera From David E. Kelley & Netflix at The Playlist.

Television magnate David E. Kelley has the Midas touch. While the writer/producer was king of TV in the ’90s and 2000s (everything from “L.A. Law,” “Alley McBeal,” “Doogie Howser M.D.“). the creator saw a lot of his series in the 2000s, and 2010 get canceled one after another (“Monday Mornings,” “The Crazy Ones,” “The Law Firm”).

Continue reading ‘Anatomy Of A Scandal’ Trailer: Sienna Miller, Michelle Docker & Rupert Friend Star In A New David E. Kelley Sexual Affair Thriller at The Playlist.

Are you familiar with the phrase, “The rich get richer?” Well, in the case of Wes Anderson, that is most definitely the case. With every new film project the director works on, he brings in more and more big-name actors to join his ever-growing troupe. It’s bad enough the man was able to snag Tom Hanks and Margot Robbie for the upcoming “Asteroid City.” But for his new-new film, “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” Anderson got Benedict Cumberbatch to headline.

Continue reading Rupert Friend & Richard Ayoade Join Wes Anderson’s ‘Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’ at The Playlist.

While many are still waiting to watch director Wes Anderson‘s October release “The French Dispatch,” the filmmaker is already assembling a cast for his next pic, an untitled film reportedly heading into production this week in Spain.

READ MORE: ‘The French Dispatch’: Wes Anderson’s Latest Premieres At Cannes Then Set For October U.S. Release

The Hollywood Reporter has revealed two more additions to the secretive film’s cast.

Continue reading Wes Anderson Adds Rupert Friend & Jason Schwartzman To Latest Film: Begins Shooting This Week In Spain at The Playlist.

Mark Wahlberg and filmmaker Antoine Fuqua love to make lots of meat and potatoes thrillers and actioners, but their latest, “Infinite,” might be more notorious for its quick push (dump?) to streaming. Paramount Pictures was going to release the film theatrically, and then suddenly and quickly announced it was coming out on Paramount+ instead, and yeah, like next week. So the promo for “Infinite” in that regard has been sudden and whiplash-y.

Continue reading ‘Infinite’ Trailer: One Soul, Many Lives, Mark Wahlberg Gets Reincarnated A Lot Or Whatever at The Playlist.

After numerous delays and tons of fan speculation, it appears that Lucasfilm is ready to begin production on the long-awaited “Star Wars” live-action series, “Obi-Wan Kenobi.” And with production scheduled to begin in April, the studio is ready to pull back the curtain and unveil the ensemble cast that will help bring the prequel series to life.

Previously, we already knew that Ewan McGregor is going to return to play the title character, after portraying Obi-Wan in the three “Star Wars” prequel films.

Continue reading ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’: Kumail Nanjiani, Joel Edgerton, Benny Safdie & More Join The ‘Star Wars’ Series at The Playlist.

There have been all sorts of haunted house horror films in recent years, thanks to the popularity of franchises like “The Conjuring” and “Insidious.” But perhaps there hasn’t been a recent horror film dealing with such a personal haunting as seen in “Separation.”

READ MORE: ‘In The Earth’ Trailer: Ben Wheatley Returns To His Roots In New Pandemic Horror Film

Feuds between spouses can be brutal, especially if there are children involved.

Continue reading ‘Separation’ Trailer: A Dead Wife Haunts Her Husband & Child In This New Horror Film at The Playlist.

With the appointment of a new Supreme Court justice to take the place of the recently deceased Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the idea that Roe v. Wade (and the future of reproductive rights for women) could be overturned is a real possibility. And that means there couldn’t be a better time for a film like “Call Jane.”

READ MORE: Elizabeth Banks To Direct & Star In ‘Invisible Woman’ Film For Universal

According to Deadline, Phyllis Nagy is set to direct a new film, “Call Jane,” her first since 2005’s “Mrs.

Continue reading ‘Call Jane’: Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Mara & More To Star In ‘Carol’ Writer’s New Film at The Playlist.

Fans of British dramas can look forward to the anticipated Netflix series “Anatomy of a Scandal.” Set to shoot this year in London, the new series already boasts a strong cast, according to Deadline. Leads include Michelle Dockery, best known for her work in “Downton Abbey,” Sienna Miller (“The Loudest Voice,” “American Sniper“), and Rupert Friend (“Strange Angel,” “The Death of Stalin“).

Continue reading ‘Anatomy Of A Scandal’: Netflix Reveals Strong Cast For Upcoming Limited Series From ‘Big Little Lies’ Creator at The Playlist.

Continue reading Wes Anderson Says Christoph Waltz Has Small Role In ‘The French Dispatch’ & Reveals More Details Including Possible Late-2019 Release at The Playlist.

The Film Society of Lincoln Center announced the closing film for the 2018 New York Film Festival and it’s none other than Julian Schnabel’s “At Eternity’s Gate.”  Listed as a North American premiere, the screening at NYFF will be the second for the Vincent Van Gogh drama after its world premiere at the 2018 Venice Film Festival a month earlier.

READ MORE: What TIFF’s 2018 slate tells us about the upcoming Oscar season

“Eternity’s Gate” stars Willem Dafoe as the fabled Dutch artist and the festival hypes Schnabel, co-writer’s Jean-Claude Carrière and Louise Kugelberg (also the film’s editor) and cinematographer Benoît Delhomme‘s collaboration as stripping “everything down to essentials, fusing the sensual, the emotional, and the spiritual.” It also refers to Dafoe’s performance as “shattering” which will no doubt get many excited about his potential awards prospects this Oscar season.

Continue reading Julian Schnabel’s ‘At Eternity’s Gate’ Gets Another Major Festival Berth Closing NYFF at The Playlist.

A director known for female-led comedies like “Bridesmaids” and “Ghostbusters,” Paul Feig now tries his hand at the thriller genre with “A Simple Favor,” a mystery film that was pitched to Fox 2000 as a work in the vein of “Gone Girl” and “The Girl on the Train.”

Like those two noirish pictures, ‘Favor’ is based on a novel of the same name, with Fox buying the rights to author Darcey Bell’s twisty 2017 debut prior to the book’s publication.

Continue reading ‘A Simple Favor’ Trailer: Blake Lively And Anna Kendrick Exchange Secrets In New Thriller at The Playlist.

Watch: Assassins Take Aim In New Trailer For ‘Hitman: Agent 47’ Starring Rupert Friend & Zachary Quinto

Continue reading Watch: Assassins Take Aim In New Trailer For ‘Hitman: Agent 47’ Starring Rupert Friend & Zachary Quinto at The Playlist.

Watch: Kat Dennings Finds Friendship & Recovery In Trailer For 'To Write Love On Her Arms'

Continue reading Watch: Kat Dennings Finds Friendship & Recovery In Trailer For ‘To Write Love On Her Arms’ at The Playlist.

Casting: Dwayne Johnson & Kevin Hart Form ‘Central Intelligence,’ Emily Blunt Hangs With 'Barton' & More

Continue reading Casting: Dwayne Johnson & Kevin Hart Form ‘Central Intelligence,’ Emily Blunt Hangs With ‘Barton’ & More at The Playlist.

Review: Terry Gilliam’s Uneven But Rewarding ‘The Zero Theorem’ Starring Christoph Waltz, Matt Damon & Tilda Swinton

Continue reading Review: Terry Gilliam’s Uneven But Rewarding ‘The Zero Theorem’ Starring Christoph Waltz, Matt Damon & Tilda Swinton at The Playlist.

Review: Jack O'Connell Gives A Breakthrough Performance In Prison Film Classic 'Starred Up'

Continue reading Review: Jack O’Connell Gives A Breakthrough Performance In Prison Film Classic ‘Starred Up’ at The Playlist.