Nominated for seven Academy Awards, filmmaker Wes Anderson won his first Oscar this past weekend, the Best Live Action Short Film for his 33-minute short, “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” starring Benedict Cumberbatch. But during the Oscar ceremony, Anderson was nowhere to be found and couldn’t accept in person.

Was the director thumbing his nose at the Academy? Not at all. As many suspected, Anderson wasn’t available as he’s about to shoot his new movie, rumored to be called, “The Phoenician Scheme.”

READ MORE: Wes Anderson’s Roald Dahl Shorts Review: The Preciousness Of Wes Anderson-Isms Are Pushed To Their Artisanally-Crafted Limits [Netflix]

“If I could have been there, I (along with [producer] Steven Rales) would have said ‘Thank you’ to: the family of Roald Dahl; the team at Netflix; our cast and crew,” he wrote in a statement, explaining his absence “And also: if I had not met Owen Wilson in a corridor at the University of Texas between classes when I was 18 years old, I would certainly not be receiving this award tonight — but unfortunately, Steven and I are in Germany and we start shooting our new movie early tomorrow morning, so I did not actually receive the award or get a chance to say any of that.”

While not an official title, “The Phoenician Scheme” is said to be a spy/espionage and family drama that stars Benicio del Toro, Michael Cera, and Bill Murray.

Continue reading Wes Anderson Missed The Oscars To Shoot New Spy Movie, While ‘Henry Sugar’ Shorts Turn Into Netflix Anthology [Trailer] at The Playlist.

Wes Anderson was first nominated for an Academy Award in 2022 in the Original Screenplay category for “The Royal Tenenbaums.” He’s earned seven nominations since. At the 96th Academy Awards, the celebrated American filmmaker in Paris won his first Oscar in a somewhat unlikely category, Live Action Short. But, it was for “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” the adaptation of a literary figure close to Anderson’s heart, Roald Dahl.

Continue reading Wes Anderson Wins His First Oscar For ‘Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’ at The Playlist.

The artisanally-hand crafted worlds of Wes Anderson are obviously whimsically delicate, precious, often delightful, frequently ornate, and are globally renowned for their visual distinctiveness: precise, symmetrical, soft-hued pastel color-inflected, and rigorous to the point of being lovingly caricatured on social media TikTok videos. Perhaps what isn’t as apparent to the viewer is just how detailed and fastidious Anderson’s screenplays have become in recent years, like prescriptive miniature novels in their own right.

In other words, the written word is really just as important to Anderson’s film, though often overshadowed by his eccentric and idiosyncratic visual style (though he’s been nominated for Best Original Screenplay three times, so someone is paying attention).

Continue reading Wes Anderson’s Roald Dahl Shorts Review: The Preciousness Of Wes Anderson-Isms Are Pushed To Their Artisanally-Crafted Limits [Netflix] at The Playlist.

How far would you go to win every bet?  Benedict Cumberbatch stars as Henry Sugar in “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.” The short film, based on a Roald Dahl story, sees a rich man seek his own rewards over doing the right thing; in the process, he seeks out a guru who may give him a gambling advantage. What follows is a story that shows what we wish for and what we get are two very different things. 

Continue reading ‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar’ Trailer: Wes Anderson Gets Whimsical With Benedict Cumberbatch On Sept 27 at The Playlist.

Earlier this year, Wes Anderson released the highly-anticipated film, “Asteroid City.” That film had a fancy festival debut and earned rave reviews, placing the filmmaker in his familiar awards season territory. But “Asteroid City” isn’t the only Anderson project coming to screens this year. Later this month, Netflix is the home of what might be the most experimental Anderson project we’ve ever seen. 

READ MORE: ‘The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’ Review: Wes Anderson & Roald Dahl Are A Match Made In Cinema Heaven [Venice]

In a recent post on Netflix’s TUDUM, we got details about Wes Anderson’s upcoming series of Roald Dahl shorts, headlined by the recently premiered “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.” And over the past several months, there was discussion about how Netflix would release the anthology.

Continue reading Netflix Releasing Wes Anderson’s Roald Dahl Shorts As A 4-Night Event This Month at The Playlist.

As is the case every year, September remains a notable film month mainly because so many overlapping and concurrent film festivals are taking place. As Venice, Telluride, and the Toronto International Film Festival begin and come to a close, with others such as Fantastic Fest and the New York Film Festival upcoming, there’s plenty on the horizon for exciting films even if they won’t be playing theatrically, for a few months.

Continue reading 15 Films To See In September: ‘El Conde,’ ‘Henry Sugar,’ ‘The Creator’ & More 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.

British author Roald Dahl has long been referred to as one of the best storytellers for children of the 20th century, a seemingly flattering but objectively flawed observation. Dahl is, after all, not just one of the best storytellers for children of the 20th century. He is one of the best storytellers of the 20th century period. 

This sentiment guides many cinematic Dahl adaptations, whether or not they come wrapped as children’s films.

Continue reading ‘The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’ Review: Wes Anderson & Roald Dahl Are A Match Made In Cinema Heaven [Venice] at The Playlist.

The Venice Film Festival is upon us again, and we can’t believe it. While we are a little sad that it means that summer is winding down, the positive is that it implies that audiences everywhere are about to have a treasure trove of sure-to-be spectacular films to look forward to.

READ MORE: Fall Film Preview: 60+ Most Anticipated Movies To Watch

When the news of the Hollywood strikes hit the wire, many were concerned about how it would impact what would happen the rest of the year and how it would impact every facet of the business, including film festivals.

Continue reading Venice Film Festival 2023: The 17 Most Anticipated Movies To Watch at The Playlist.

Is Wes Anderson entering a prolific period of his career? It certainly appears so, as after premiering “Asteroid City” at Cannes in May, he has a new short ready for the Venice Film Festival. And after “The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar” debuts on the Lido, it will be a Netflix streaming exclusive.

READ MORE: Venice 2023: New Films From Bradley Cooper, David Fincher, Sofia Coppola and…Woody Allen

The streamer now has the exact date when subscribers should expect Anderson’s short film to arrive: September 27.

Continue reading ‘The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’: Wes Anderson’s New Short Arrives On Netflix On September 27 at The Playlist.

Despite an ongoing SAG strike, which could mean that the event features no major stars, the Venice Film Festival announced an incredibly star-studded slate of films for 2023. Seriously, even by Venice standards, the festival features an absolutely ridiculous number of major films that will have an impact on the rest of the year, especially during awards season. And one of the most anticipated is the latest from Wes Anderson, the short “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” which is expected to have its debut out of competition.

Continue reading ‘The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’ First Look: Wes Anderson’s New Film To Debut At Venice & Stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Ben Kingsley & More at The Playlist.

Despite “Asteroid City” receiving mixed-to-positive reviews, it appears Wes Anderson still has a ton of fans out there excitedly rushing to theaters to see his work, with the film earning a really solid opening weekend box office. However, while “Asteroid City” has only just hit theaters, all eyes are on what he has next, a new Netflix film, “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar,” which is expected to arrive later this year.

Continue reading Wes Anderson Talks ‘Henry Sugar’ & Experimenting With A Narrative Method That “Doesn’t Exist In Any Other Film” at The Playlist.

Earlier today, Netflix unveiled its teaser trailer for all of the major film releases the streamer will debut in 2023. Yes, there were the usual suspects, folks like Kevin Hart, Adam Sandler, and Chris Hemsworth all have new projects coming to Netflix, per usual. But that doesn’t mean all of the news today was Netflix was filled with somewhat forgettable entries. We also got official news of when we’re going to see David Fincher’s “The Killer” and confirmation that two Wes Anderson films are coming in 2023. 

Continue reading Netflix: David Fincher’s ‘The Killer’ Arrives November 10 & 2 Wes Anderson Films Are Coming In 2023 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.

Well, it was never really in doubt. Still, now it’s 200% official, Wes Anderson’s next next film, the one happening after “Asteroid City” with Tom Hanks, Scarlett Johannsson, and Margot Robbie, is an adaptation of Roald Dahl’s short story collection, “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More,” for Netflix. And yes, Benedict Cumberbatch (“The Power Of The Dog”) will star, but there’s much more.

Continue reading Wes Anderson’s Roald Dahl Anthology Film Will Also Star Ralph Fiennes, Dev Patel & Ben Kingsley at The Playlist.

Cinematographer Robert Yeoman wasn’t kidding when he said Wes Anderson was heading to England to shoot yet another film—his second production shot within the span of six months— because tonight, we have details on that film. According to Baz Bamigboye, one of the few certifiably reliable (and airtight) reporters at the otherwise often-dubious UK Daily Mail, who has been spot-on for a decade-plus, Wes Anderson’s next film is a Roald Dahl adaptation for Netflix starring Benedict Cumberbatch.

Continue reading Wes Anderson’s Next Film Is ‘The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar’ With Benedict Cumberbatch For Netflix at The Playlist.