Central Partnership Drops Trailer for Danila Kozlovsky’s Debut, ‘Chernobyl’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Chris Willman Music WriterFor Burt Bacharach, what it’s all about is continuing to write and record music. Not many pop legends in their 90s are releasing new music this year instead of fondly gazing at their trophy shelves, but Bacharach, one of the most celebrated songwriters in pop history, has found a new partner and muse in Daniel Tashian, the Nashville-based singer, songwriter and producer.

Tom Grater International Film ReporterEXCLUSIVE: Chernobyl the big-budget Russian action drama about the titular nuclear disaster, has been acquired by Capelight Pictures for North America and German-speaking territories, with the company partnering with MPI Media Group on the U.S. release.Moscow-based sales agent Central Partnership continued sales efforts on the title during the Cannes online market last week, as well as the Russian Virtual Content Market earlier last month.

Elle Fanning's portrayal of Catherine II, the longest-reigning Empress of Russia, on .The actress steps strikingly into the Golden Era of the empire's 18th century Enlightenment on the lauded Hulu series, though it takes her character a moment to see past the glitz and glamour.

“Welcome to Chechnya,” directed by David France, is about an underground pipeline created to rescue LGBTQ Chechens from the Russian republic where the government has for several years waged a crackdown on gays. In the predominantly Muslim region in southern Russia ruled by strongman Ramzan Kadyrov, LGBTQ Chechens have been detained, tortured and killed.

When the embrace of one’s true self becomes a protest, and when protest is treated by the state as tantamount to treason, small acts of humanity can carry the weight of the world. Director David France wades into this awful reality with his newest documentary, “Welcome to Chechnya,” which tracks a group of activists in Russia and Chechnya who operate an LGBTQ+ Underground Railroad of sorts.

Anthony D'Alessandro Editorial Director/Box Office EditorSolstice Studios is partnering with Fast and Furious producers Original Film on the original action thriller Shadow Run by Magnum P.I. and upcoming Cliffhanger reboot scribe Joe Gazzam.Shadow Run tells the story of a CIA agent who devoted five years of his life to capturing the Russian spy who killed his wife.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorWithin two weeks of David France reading an article in The New Yorker about the persecution of LGTBQ people in Chechnya, he was on a plane headed to Moscow.It’s there that he first met the men and women who are featured in his new documentary “Welcome to Chechnya,” which premieres Tuesday on HBO.

Dino-Ray Ramos Associate Editor/ReporterThe mistreatment and persecution of the LGBTQ community in Chechnya has been an ongoing issue, but in March 2017 a glaring spotlight was put on the Russian republic as reports of gay and bisexual men being abducted, tortured, beaten and even killed at the hands of authorities started coming to the forefront.

“Welcome to Chechnya,” directed by David France, is about an underground pipeline created to rescue LGBTQ Chechens from the Russian republic where the government has for several years waged a crackdown on gays. In the predominantly Muslim region in southern Russia ruled by strongman Ramzan Kadyrov, LGBTQ Chechens have been detained, tortured and killed.

Daniel D'Addario Chief TV CriticPaul Mescal is one of the TV season’s breakouts as Connell, the lovelorn young man whose romance with a classmate follows an uneven path on “Normal People.” On “The Great,” Nicholas Hoult is also caught in a bad romance — tormenting his wife, Empress Catherine II of Russia, in his role as Emperor Peter III. They talked to each other over video chat for Variety‘s Actors on Actors issue.Paul Mescal: Nick, you’re a legend.

Andreas Wiseman International EditorAGC has closed a raft of Cannes virtual market deals on Nick Jonas-Laurence Fishburne action-thriller The Blacksmith.Sizeable pre-sales have closed in Germany & Switzerland (Constantin), France (Metropolitan), UK (Entertainment Film), Latin America (CDC & CVT), Russia (Paradise/MGN) and South Korea & Vietnam (Joy’N’Content).Pacts have also been sealed with Benelux (The Searchers), Greece (Odeon), Middle East (Salim Raima), Eastern Europe (Prorom), Asian Pay TV

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentStarring actor-singer-songwriter Nick Jonas and Laurence Fishburne, action thriller “The Blacksmith,” which is financed and produced by AGC Studios, has become the first major new U.S.

never truly left. But after a smash run on Broadway — temporarily halted by theater closures after the coronavirus outbreak — the bio-musical is now headed to the screen with a new film on Disney+.

Christopher Vourlias Russian filmmaker Kirill Serebrennikov (“Leto,” “The Student”) is developing a limited series based on the life of legendary Soviet filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, Variety has learned exclusively.The series will be written and directed by Serebrennikov, and produced by Ilya Stewart, Murad Osmann and Pavel Burya of Moscow-based Hype Film.“Andrei Tarkovsky and his iconic masterpieces greatly influenced world cinema and continue to be a source of endless inspiration for filmmakers

Leo Barraclough Senior International CorrespondentVariety has been given exclusive access to the first-look image for “Naked Singularity,” starring John Boyega and Olivia Cooke, which is being sold in international markets by Anton, and in the U.S.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentDreamWorks Animation has dropped a first trailer to “To: Gerard,” from writer-director Taylor Meachem, a short feature parable about the sense of magic that a parent or parental figure can spark in an dazzled child, still enchanting them 60 years on – and prompting them to inspire others.Having been selected for this year’s Tribeca Festival, “To: Gerard” will celebrate its European premiere at France’s Annecy Festival, which runs June 15-30.In the

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentRussian actor Chulpan Khamatova is known internationally for key roles in “Good Bye, Lenin!,” and more recently Aleksei Alekseivich German’s drama “Under Electric Clouds,” and Ralph Fiennes-directed Rudolf Nureyev biopic “The White Crow.” Last month, as Russia was deep in lockdown, Khamatova found herself embroiled in controversy sparked by TV series “Zuleikha Opens Her Eyes” in which she plays a young woman deported to Siberia during the Stalin-era