‘Aquaman 2’ Reportedly Nixes Batman Cameo As Film Finishes A Third Round Of Reshoots

Billy Friedkin remains a uniquely unforgettable figure to his friends and colleagues — an eternal contradiction, both cantankerous yet kindly, argumentative yet thoughtful. He was a brilliant creator of popular entertainment but, to his close friends, also was brooding and cerebral.

“You never want to rush to ER in the middle of the night and then have to stay in the hospital,” reads a cryptic message posted to Aquaman director James Wan’s Instagram Story yesterday. “It has been an extremely rough and scary couple of days and nights,” the missive reveals in text over a picture of Wan in a hospital bed with what looks to be an IV in one arm and a bandage on the other.

Ellise Shafer Diane Kruger is set to receive the Golden Eye Award at this year’s edition of Zurich Film Festival. Throughout the course of her career, Kruger has worked with high-profile directors such as Quentin Tarantino, Wolfgang Peterson and Robert Zemeckis. She is best known for her roles as Helen of Sparta in “Troy” (2004), Abigail Chase in “National Treasure” (2004) and its sequel “Book of Secrets” (2007), Bridget von Hammersmark in Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds” (2009), Anna in “Mr.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Zurich Film Festival will honor the chief executive of German film and TV company Leonine Studios, Fred Kogel, with its Game Changer Award, which is presented to a leading personality from the film industry whose “extraordinary efforts serve to advance the sector.” Kogel set up Leonine four years ago, and it has grown rapidly to become Germany’s leading independent film company, as well as a major TV producer. Its successes as a film distributor have included the release of “The School of Magical Animals,” “Knives Out” and the “John Wick” franchise.

Risks in Hollywood pay off. “Barbie” has already grossed half a billion dollars after nine days in theaters, with no signs of slowing down as the film heads into its second box office weekend.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Beta Film has sold more than 100 hours of drama series to PBS Distribution-backed Walter Presents for the U.S., and Channel 4-backed Walter Presents for the U.K. Five seasons of Italy’s gritty crime series “Rocco Schiavone” as well as Canadian mystery dramas “The Wall – The Chateau Murder” and “The Wall – The Orchard” will be available in both territories.

Ariana Madix is reportedly still not ready to film alongside her cheating ex Tom Sandoval.

Way back in 2019, it was reported that Daniel Kaluuya was involved as a producer in a new feature film adaptation of “Barney,” the classic kids’ show featuring the iconic purple dinosaur. Since then, there have been a few tidbits here and there about the film, but it many people are curious why one of the best actors working today is so excited about making a film about a huge, silly purple dinosaur.

Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera is refusing to row back on his decision to invite controversial movie-biz bigwigs Roman Polanski, Woody Allen and Luc Besson to the late summer event, which will take place despite the potential disruption by the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. “Luc Besson has been recently fully cleared of any accusations. Woody Allen went under legal scrutiny twice at the end of the ’90s and was absolved,” Barbera said in a new interview with Variety.

Way back in 2019, it was reported that Daniel Kaluuya was involved as a producer in a new feature film adaptation of “Barney,” the classic kids’ show featuring the iconic purple dinosaur. Since then, there have been a few tidbits here and there about the film, but it many people are curious why one of the best actors working today is so excited about making a film about a huge, silly purple dinosaur.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Discovery’s Shark Week has been a TV institution for 35 years, a summertime staple that has never changed its core purpose: Celebrating the great white and its brethren. But a lot has changed around Shark Week in the decades since, including an explosion of popularity (as “30 Rock” once put it, we all now strive to “live every week like it’s Shark Week”), more competition, a few controversies and one giant corporate acquisition. In 2023, the Warner Bros. Discovery-produced TV event now has a few more boxes to check: From keeping its linear ratings (which grew 10% year-over-year in 2022) up to driving customers to two streaming platforms, Max and Discovery+. Shark Week has also been enlisted to help promote other TV shows and movies in the WBD family. But it also faces lingering concerns over the makeup of its programming (often criticized for lacking enough scientific research or proper experts), while simultaneously competing with younger copycat programming from rival companies Nat Geo’s Sharkfest.

As the SAG-AFTRA strike begins its second week, there’s no indication that negotiations will resume between that guild or the WGA with AMPTP any time soon. And that’s bad news for studios, as actors on strike will begin not only to affect the production of new work, but the premieres of upcoming schedule films.

Vulture, Jackson said some tear-jerking scenes that were ultimately cut from the movie “kept [him] from getting an Oscar.”“But also the things they took out kept me from getting an Oscar,” Jackson said. “‘Really, motherf–kers? You just took that s–t from me?’ My first day working on that film, I did a speech in a room with an actor and the whole f–king set was in tears when I finished. I was like, ‘Okay.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer The sequel to Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic “Dune” may be riding a sandworm all the way to 2024. Amid two contentious Hollywood labor strikes, Warner Bros. Film Group is strongly considering pushing the Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya tentpole to next year, three individuals with knowledge of discussions told Variety. The film is a co-production with Legendary Entertainment and both parties must agree on a new release date, said one insider. Legendary has yet to be approached by WB about a move, they added. Another source familiar with Warner Bros. said that releases are moving forward as originally planned and no formal discussions have been had, but noted that the duration of the union battles are completely unpredictable.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is undergoing some changes.

Filmmaker James Mangold’s “Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny” is in theaters now, and while it seemed to underwhelm at the global box office in its opening weekend, the film has grossed $305 million worldwide so far, so maybe there’s hope it can have some minor legs. If anything, it maybe shows how making a blockbuster with an 80-year-old star can only take you so far with audiences.

On-location filming in Los Angeles has plummeted during the ongoing Writers Guild strike to levels not seen since the dog days of the Covid pandemic, according to FilmLA, the city and county film permit office.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Les Films du Losange has unveiled the trailer for “Un Silence,” Joachim Lafosse’s thought-provoking film starring Daniel Auteuil and Emmanuelle Devos that will world premiere in competition at San Sebastian Film Festival. Tackling themes of abuse, the timely film revolves around Astrid (Devos), the wife of an acclaimed lawyer (Auteuil). Silenced for 25 years, her family balance suddenly collapses when her children initiate their own search for justice. One of Belgium’s leading filmmakers, Lafosse is best known internationally for 2012’s “Our Children,” a heart-wrenching drama based on a true story starring Emilie Dequenne and Tahar Rahim. “Our Children” represented Belgium in the Oscars race. “Un Silence” will mark Joachim’s follow up to “The Restless,” which competed at Cannes in 2021 and also explored imploding family dynamics.

BAFTA has made changes to the voting regulations and eligibility criteria for its 2024 Film Awards. Scroll down for the changes in full.

It’s been a little while since it was announced that rapper Travis Scott had struck a deal with film studio A24 for an unnamed project. That happened back in 2021, and since then, we haven’t heard much about what could be the fruits of this union.