Arabic Adaptation of French Hit ‘Intouchables’ Sets Director, Writer, Start of Shoot Date

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.

Kanye West is enjoying a night out with his friends!

Netflix will release its first ever original film in Arabic next month, a remake of the Italian hit movie “Perfect Strangers.” “Perfect Strangers,” the 2016 film from director Paolo Genevese, has been remade 18 times across countries such as France, Spain, South Korea, Germany, Greece and more, making it the most remade film ever. Now, the Arabic version will gather up a cast of Pan-Arab talent, as led by Lebanese director and actor Nadine Labaki (“Capernaum”) and Egyptian star Mona Zaki.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentNetflix has swooped on the Arabic adaptation of hit Italian concept movie “Perfect Strangers” as its first Arabic original film.

Netflix has boarded the upcoming Arabic-language version of hit movie property Perfect Strangers, which becomes the streamer’s first Arabic-language Original movie.

Season 5 of Netflix’s “The Crown” will dive deep into the love affair between the late couple. The Princess of Wales and the Egyptian film producer both died during a car crash in Paris on Aug.

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Internationally known DJ David Guetta has made a home for himself in the Persian Gulf. The French DJ is a resident of the United Arab Emirates, where he has performed multiple times — the latest being on the helipad at the landmark Burj Al Arab hotel, and was one of the first artists invited to perform in Saudi Arabia when the kingdom opened its doors to tourists and began allowing concerts and entertainment.

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Brad Pitt might soon find himself hosting some jam sessions after he finishes the next phase of renovation on the lavish $164 million French estate he formerly co-owned with Angelina Jolie. The "Once Upon a Time in… Hollywood" actor, 57, is set to reopen Miraval Studios – a storied recording space created French jazzman Jacques Loussier in 1977 but has gone unutilized on the 1,000-acre Château Miraval since the early 2000s.

Dubai-based Front Row Filmed Entertainment has set writer/director duo Amr El Daly and Jad Aouad to develop an Arabic adaptation of global box office hit Intouchables. Front Row acquired the Arabic remake rights to the original French title which released in 2011 and made $427M worldwide. It was later notably adapted in a 2019 U.S. version, The Upside, starring Bryan Cranston, Kevin Hart and Nicole Kidman.

Levan Koguashvili’s Brighton 4th has scooped up the Best Film prize at Saudi Arabia’s inaugural Red Sea Film Festival. The title is Georgia’s entry in the Academy Awards international feature category this year.

Brad Pitt is breaking into the music industry.

Brad Pitt and French producer and composer Damien Quintard have teamed up to renovate and reopen a recording studio in France that the actor has owned since 2012.Miraval Studios, which has been inactive since the early 2000s, will begin hosting sessions in summer 2022.In the past the likes of Pink Floyd’s ‘The Wall’ and The Cure’s ‘Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me’ have been recorded there.

EXCLUSIVE: Universal Pictures has acquired the John Fusco spec script Phantom, a package that includes producers Harvey Mason Jr of Harvey Mason Media, and John Legend and his Get Lifted Film Co producing partner Mike Jackson. Pic will be an adaptation of the 1910 Gaston Leroux novel Phantom of the Opera, set in contemporary New Orleans.

Following a worldwide casting search, newcomer Aria Mia Loberti has been tapped as the female lead in All The Light We Cannot See, a four-part limited series adaptation of Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize-winning bestseller, from Shawn Levy and Steven Knight.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentThe rape claim against French director Luc Besson has been dismissed by a Paris judge following a lengthy judicial investigation.A source close to the public prosecutor’s office in Paris confirmed to Variety that the case, which stemmed from a lawsuit filed by Belgian-Dutch actress Sand Van Roy accusing Besson of rape in 2019, has been dismissed.

A Saudi national suspected of playing a part in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi has been detained by French police, according to multiple reports. The man in custody is a former member of the Saudi Royal Guard. He was arrested based on a Turkish arrest warrant, according to AP.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentA new study from the advocacy group Collectif 50/50 surveying French films from 2019 has revealed that 62% of local film protagonists are perceived as white, highlighting the underrepresentation of visible minorities in French cinema. The study, titled Cinégalités, was unveiled during a day-long conference hosted by Collectif 50/50 on Dec.

Bring on the beauty! Lily Collins made quite the statement with her glam during the first season of Emily in Paris. And after sitting down with the Aurélie Payen, the makeup artist for the show, we can pretty much promise that the second season, which launches on December 22, is going to serve up some seriously stunning looks. 

Liza Foreman Eric Lagesse, the CEO/president of Paris-based arthouse distributor and world sales outfit Pyramide Films, received the Industry Tribute Award at Cairo Film Festival on Friday. Variety spoke with him about his relationship with Arab cinema, and the state of the independent film business in France.How do you feel about receiving this tribute?It’s great, but I have had a year to get used to it.