Beta Film Boards French Thriller ‘Homejacking’ From ‘Lupin’ Writer Tigran Rosine; Will Launch Sales At Series Mania

Willow Smith has released her new single, “Symptom of Life.” The song came accompanied with a music video, which she also directed, and explores complex topics. She shared some of them in an Instagram post. Jada Pinkett Smith reflects on her Wicked Wisdom metal days and the backlashWillow and Jaden Smith’s fashion evolution through the yearsA post shared by ∴ W ∴ (@willowsmith)The photo is a screenshot of a text related to esotericism, a concept that relates to the secret knowledge that a small group of people hold.

Oscar winner Kevin Macdonald has won the €50,000 ($54,000) Series Mania Seriesmakers award.

Rhys Ifans (The King’s Man), Olivia Cooke (House of Dragon), Paapa Essiedu (The Lazarus Project), Mia McKenna-Bruce (How to Have Sex) and Antonia Thomas (The Good Doctor) have all joined new comedy-horror feature The Scurry from Eternal Beauty helmer Craig Roberts. 

Holly Jones Germany’s Beta Film (“Babylon Berlin”) sets its sights on the Croisette for the world premiere of Dutch Royal drama “Máxima,” selected to screen out-of-competition at Canneseries on April 9. In tow, Delfina Chaves (“The Secret of the Greco Family”), who portrays the titular character in the series that Variety recently likened to Emmy-Award-Winning Netflix Drama “The Crown.” Teased at last month’s London TV Screenings, the six-part drama series unravels the love story between then Dutch Crown Prince Willem-Alexander (Martijn Lakemeier) and his enigmatic Argentine love interest, Máxima, who goes on to become Queen, at his side.

EXCLUSIVE: More citizens will head to the polls this year for elections than any other in history, and the political fever has reached Series Mania.

Beau DeMayo, head writer and executive producer of Disney+’s X-Men ’97, Marvel Animation‘s revival of the classic ’90s animated series, has parted ways with Marvel just ahead of the series premiere, sources close to the project tell Deadline.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor SPOILER ALERT: This article discusses major plot points for “Kung Fu Panda 4,” now playing in movie theaters. Everyone’s favorite panda Po is back in “Kung Fu Panda 4,” with Jack Black returning to voice the martial arts master. This time, he’s on a grand adventure as he sets out to become the spiritual leader of the Valley of Peace and train a Dragon Warrior.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer (below) for dinosaur bone trade documentary “The Bones,” which will have its world premiere at CPH:DOX as part of the festival’s Science program. The producer is Ina Fichman, Oscar nominated for “Fire of Love.” Dogwoof is handling world sales.

Michelle Williams and Jenny Slate have started production on their new FX limited series.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Beta Cinema has revealed further sales on its Berlinale and Europe Film Market lineup, including “500 Miles,” “Führer and Seducer,” “Hammarskjöld,” “The Light” and “From Hilde, With Love.” After a first deal on the upcoming Bill Nighy-roadmovie “500 Miles” with True Brit Ent. for U.K. was announced during the market, Beta Cinema has confirmed further territories have picked up the dramedy: Australia and New Zealand (Kismet), Middle East (Front Row), Italy (Maestro Distribution), Benelux (September Film), Greece (Feelgood) and former Yugoslavia (Discovery).

Morgan Matthews‘ upcoming road movie 500 Miles, starring Academy Award nominee Bill Nighy and buzzy teen actor Roman Griffin Davis, has sold to multiple territories for Beta Cinema, following its launch at the Berlinale’s European Film Market (EFM) last month.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Jacob Scipio is headed back to the “Bad Boys” universe. Actor Scipio, who most recently starred opposite Pedro Pascal and Nicolas Cage in the meta adventure “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent,” will reprise his role as Armando Aretas – the estranged son of Will Smith’s Miami-Dade police detective character Mike Lowery. Scipio is getting a narrative upgrade from his debut in 2020’s “Bad Boys for Life,” we hear, as the script will see him play the main antagonist in the action film led by Smith and Martin Lawrence.

Jericho Ridge which is coming to screens a little bit later this year from The Movie Partnership in the UK. Debut feature director Will Gilbey is behind the camera for this one, an action thriller set for a cinema release in April.is lead by the BAFTA nomintated Nikki Amuka-Bird (Knock At The Cabin) and also stars EastEnders’ Zack Morris and Chris Reilly (Slow Horses).

EXCLUSIVE: Beta Film‘s Crown-esque high-end drama series Maxima has sold to networks in Lat Am, Israel and across Europe.

Emiliano De Pablos “Professor T,” the crime series produced by Eagle Eye Drama, and starring Ben Miller (“Bridgerton”), has been greenlit for a fourth season by ITV and PBS Distribution. Attracting audiences of over four million viewers on ITV and making a successful debut on France 3, the highly acclaimed drama has been sold to almost 120 territories worldwide. Most recently, Telekom acquired rights in Germany, TV3 bought the series for Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova 1 for Moldova, and BBC and TVP for Poland.

EXCLUSIVE: Beta Film has has sold a slew of dramas to Australia’s SBS including big-budget TIFF entry Estonia as part of the pair’s multi-year license deal.

Breaking Bad star Laura Fraser and Malpractice‘s Ella Maisy Purvis will play a detective duo in six-part drama series Patience from Eagle Eye Drama, PBS Distribution and Beta Film.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent European giant Beta Film, known for ambitious titles such as “Babylon Berlin” and “The Swarm,” has shared with Variety in exclusivity a first-look picture of 1o-part series “Rise of the Raven,” which it hails as “one of the most epic European TV productions of all time.” “Rise of the Raven” weighs in as a passion project of Hungarian-born and Canada-based producer Robert Lantos, behind “Sunshine,” “The Sweet Hereafter,” “Barney’s Version,” “Eastern Promises” and “Crimes of the Future.” A highlight at Beta Film’s showcase this Tuesday at the London TV Screenings, “Rise of the Raven” turns on the extraordinary feat of Hungarian army commander Janos Hunyadi, played by discovery Gellért L. Kádár, who in 1456 won a bloody, brutal Battle of Belgrade against a vast Ottoman force twice the size of his troops who were often farm labourers armed with just slings and patriotic fervor. Hunyadi largely halted a full Ottoman expansion in Europe for the next 70 years, allowing its Renaissance to lift off in Italy.

Call Of Duty titles will launch day and date on Xbox Game Pass, according to an interview with Microsoft gaming chief Phil Spencer.Spencer spoke about how Xbox Game Pass will work with new studios that have been purchased by Xbox in an interview with Gamefile‘s Stephen Totillo.“Our intent is the full portfolio from ZeniMax, Activision Blizzard and XGS- Xbox Game Studios – will be on Game Pass, day one,” Spencer said in the interview. It’s important to note however, that there’s still work to be done before they’re ready to launch day and date on the system.“We’re doing the back end work to make them come to PC and console simultaneously,” Spencer confirmed.In the same interview, Spencer also spoke about what he believes the future of physical media is in regards to the Xbox platform, stating that while Xbox themselves are fans of physical media, they “don’t have a need to drive that disproportionate to customer demand”.“Gaming consoles themselves have kind of become the last consumer electronic device that has a drive.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent In early Series Mania business, Europe’s Beta Film has pounced on international distribution rights to “30 Days of Lust,” a half-hour dramedy from Munich’s Trimafilm, in which a couple, high-school sweethearts but now knocking 30, experiment with 30 days of free sex. Beta Film has also shared in exclusivity with Variety a first clip from the eight-part series which world premieres in International Panorama Competition at next month’s Series Mania, a section whose value is rising fast as companies seek to leverage TV festival selection as a sign of distinction in a still hugely crowded fiction TV marketplace. In the clip, from the early going of Ep.