Andy Cheng To Direct Comic Book Pic ‘Shadow Ghost’ For ‘The Meg’s Atchity Productions

Welcome to Global Breakouts, Deadline’s fortnightly strand in which we shine a spotlight on the TV shows and films killing it in their local territories. The industry is as globalized as it’s ever been, but breakout hits are appearing in pockets of the world all the time and it can be hard to keep track. So we’re going to do the hard work for you.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Coralie Fargeat’s Demi Moore-starring feminist body horror film “The Substance” has been set as the closing night title for the New Zealand International Film Festival. The picture is one of 16 which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last month selected for the NZIFF which is now under the artistic leadership of Paolo Bertolin.

A feature version of the buzzy Three-Body Problem sci-fi novels is in the works from veteran Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou. 

She's an independent election candidate vying to upset the odds in the safe Labour seat of Wigan and dislodge one of Sir Keir Starmer’s brightest front-bench stars - Lisa Nandy. It’s a daunting task facing Maureen O’Bern, but one she says she is unfazed by ahead of the July 4 General Election.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Zhang Yimou, director of many of China’s most spectacular and successful movies, is to try his hand at sci-fi. He will direct a film adaptation of “The Three-Body Problem.” The project was announced Sunday by Wang Changtian, founder and CEO of Enlight Media, one of China’s top three studios, at a forum organized within the Shanghai International Film Festival. Wang said that Zhang is in the early stages of preparations for the film.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Japanese animation film “Haikyuu!! The Dumpster Battle” took a clear lead at the mainland China weekend box office – despite only being available for two of three days. Data from consultancy firm Artisan Gateway showed the film scoring $9.8 million (RMB69.4 million) in China, more than double that of second placed film “Be My Friend.” The win came despite “Haikyu!!” only being released on Saturday and measuring up against other tiles available throughout the whole of the Friday-Sunday period. “Haikyu!!” is the third Japanese film so far this year to lead the mainland Chinese box office, following “The Boy and the Heron” and “Doraemon the Movie: Nobita’s Earth Symphony.” It was produced by Production IG, Toho Animation and Sony Music Entertainment Japan and released by Crunchyroll in multiple territories.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief All Rights Entertainment, the Paris, Hong Kong and Los Angeles-based international film agency has picked up international sales duties on animated children and family feature “Out of the Nest.” The film had its world premiere this week at the Annecy International Animation Festival. In the Kingdom of Castilia, days from the coronation of the new Emperor and Empress, their seven royal fledglings are taken and it’s up to one hero to return them safely; a teenage delivery boy, Arthur the Goat. His dreams of becoming a world-class barber are put on hold when he becomes the unwitting guardian of the royal heirs.

Crunchyroll Senior Vice President of Global Commerce Mitchel Berger was in ebullient mood as he gave a talk on the growing global reach of anime at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival this week.

Jack Dunn Several Asian American groups gathered in the Chinatown district of Los Angeles Thursday afternoon to call for comedian Shane Gillis to apologize for using “offensive racial remarks” in his stand-up performances. Leaders of the Media Action Network for Asian Americans, Chinese American Citizens Alliance Los Angeles and the Greater Los Angeles Japanese American Citizens League gathered at the Chinese American Citizens Alliance Lodge for a press conference, in which the groups also implored Netflix to cancel Gillis’ new sitcom “Tires” and that Bud Light cut all promotional funding toward his comedy tour unless an apology is issued.

Kenan Thompson and Bowen Yang have had very different “Saturday Night Live” trajectories. And yet, they both have made history. Thompson, who joined the show in 2003, is the longest-tenured cast member in the show’s history.

Marc Malkin Senior Editor, Culture and Events Will Smith and Martin Lawrence arrived at the Los Angeles premiere of “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” on Thursday night atop a double decker bus, where they were greeted by cheering fans lining Hollywood Boulevard. “It’s not just here,” Smith told Variety about the fans who continued to support him, even when his reputation faltered in the wake of the Oscars slap. “It’s all over the world.

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence attended the LA premiere of “Bad Boys: Ride or Die” at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on May 30, 2024.

Costco has become one of the most well-known warehouse stores in the world!

Murder with the Stars.” Craig Shoemaker penned the screenplay and will serve as a producer, with Jonathan Silverman set to direct and act in the movie. “This concept came to me several months ago, and I knew I was onto something unique and fun,” Shoemaker said. “Since then, the creative process has unfolded effortlessly with two old friends signing on, Jonathan Silverman and Jeff Franklin.

The 24th Hour: Is This the End?James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Little, Brown and Company)The latest “Women’s Murder Club” installment finds San Francisco police sergeant Lindsay Boxer and Co. investigating the death of a prominent billionaire couple.

Brandy is back in action as Cinderella alongside Rita Ora‘s Queen of Hearts in the trailer for Descendants: The Rise of Red!

Anita Gou is no stranger to the festival circuit. Her L.A.-based Kindred Spirit banner saw a raft of its first projects debut at Sundance (think Lulu Wang’s Mandarin-language comedy The Farewell, which made $23M worldwide, Shia LaBeouf-starrer Honey Boy and Sam Levinson’s Assassination Nation) but, more recently, her co-production Silent Twins was selected in Un Certain Regard in 2022, while Dominic Savage’s Close To You premiered in Toronto last year. The company’s Mubi-acquired doc The Last Year of Darkness, which explores the lives of alternative Chinese youth, was awarded a Special Mention prize in the Next:Wave section at the Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival last year.

Jack Dunn Before becoming one of Hollywood’s most beloved leading men, Chris Pratt lived in an apartment behind the TLC Chinese Theater. Well into the early morning, he would wander on the Walk of Fame and stare at the stars beneath his feet, wondering if his time in the spotlight would ever come. Pratt returned to the Hollywood landmark on Sunday, not to lament over broken dreams, but to help introduce Garfield creator Jim Davis as he cemented his signature outside the TLC Chinese Theater at “The Garfield Movie” premiere.

XG have added new dates to their 2024 ‘The First Howl’ world tour, featuring concerts in Asia, North America, Europe and more.In March, XG announced that they would be embarking on their first-ever world tour, title ‘The First Howl’. It kicked off with a two-date show at the Osaka-Jo Hall in Osaka, Japan on May 18 and 19.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “The Last Frenzy,” a comedy film about a dying man’s last hurrah, returned to the top spot in mainland Chinese cinemas in its third weekend of release. “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” which a week earlier had been the biggest title, slipped to fourth place. In another China disappointment for Hollywood, “The Fall Guy” opened outside the Chinese top ten.