‘Christopher Robin’ R-Rated Hybrid Comedy Series In The Works

Frankie Goes To Hollywood biopic is in the works, and will feature It’s A Sin star Callum Scott Howells.Just a few days since Frankie Goes To Hollywood reformed for the first time in almost four decades, it has been announced that they will be the subject of a new biopic, titled Relax.Named after their 1983 hit single, the movie is being developed by UK production companies Working Title (Bridget Jones, Les Miserables) and Independent Entertainment, and will be based on the memoir from frontman Holly Johnson, A Bone In My Flute. It has also been confirmed that it will star It’s A Sin breakout start, Callum Scott Howells, as the band’s leading man.Producers include Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner and Luc Roeg, and the film was written by Bernard Rose — the director for the original ‘Relax’ music video, as well as the 1992 horror Candyman.“Frankie Goes To Hollywood were an unflinching ground-breaking band that paved the way for so many young performers today,” said Roeg of the upcoming project (via Deadline).

EXCLUSIVE: Just a couple of days after they reunited for the first time in almost 40 years, we can reveal that UK band Frankie Goes To Hollywood are the subject of a new movie biopic from UK powerhouse Working Title and sales and production company Independent Entertainment.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any individual contender. As other formal (and informal) polls suggest, competitions are fluid and subject to change based on buzz and events. Predictions are updated every Thursday. Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:

Tony Danza reunited with his Taxi co-stars 40 years after the show ended its five-season run.

EXCLUSIVE: Starz’ The Venery of Samantha Bird has shut down production as a result of the writers strike.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor The TV Academy has denied the petition for Apple’s “Schmigadoon!” to move from submitting for outstanding comedy series to the scripted variety category, Variety has learned exclusively. It had been reported that the streamer had filed an official petition to move the show into the newly titled scripted variety category where it would face off against “A Black Lady Sketch Show,” “Saturday Night Live” and “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.” However, the news seemed to be premature, with the Television Academy confirming the petition has been denied and Apple has been notified. Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Emmy predictions in all categories.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Inkas the Ramferinkas,” a story about a small flying dinosaur, is being adapted into an animated feature film. Independent film producer Niels Juul and Sherman Theatrical Entertainment have teamed up to develop the project, which is inspired by music from the Sherman Brothers. It’s the first and final musical from the late Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman, the songwriting duo behind Walt Disney classics from “The Jungle Book,” “Winnie the Pooh,” “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” and “Mary Poppins.” The Sherman brothers won Oscars for their work on “Mary Poppins,” including best song for “Chim Chim Cher-ee” and best score. They went on to earn nine Oscar nominations, two Grammy Awards, 23 gold and platinum records and have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Perhaps their biggest contribution to the pop culture landscape, however, is writing the song “It’s a Small World (After All).”

EXCLUSIVE: Unstable, the Netflix comedy series starring Rob Lowe and his son John Owen Lowe, is the latest show to have production hit by the writers strike.

Bupkis can be loosely translated into English as “nothing” — which is the comedic point of Pete Davidson’s eponymous, semi-autobiographical series premiering May 4 on Peacock.Think of “Bupkis” as a “Seinfeld”-type “show about nothing” … but writ large.“I think our goal was to capture the relentless and absurd reality that is Pete’s world,” said showrunner Judah Miller, who co-created and co-wrote “Bupkis” with Davidson and Dave Sirus. (Stacy Keach delivers the opening, jokey “legal announcement” in his unmistakable baritone.)“When we were coming up with ideas, there were no fictitious concepts or situations that were going to rival the opportunities for comedy and satire that Pete’s actual life provides,” Miller said.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter A “Babylon 5” animated movie is in the works from original series creator J. Michael Straczynski. “BABYLON 5 ANIMATED MOVIE [sic] coming from Warner Bros. Animation & WB Home Entertainment!” Straczynski announced via Twitter. “Classic B5: raucous, heartfelt, nonstop, a ton of fun through time and space & a love letter to the fans. Movie title, release date and other details coming one week from today.” The original “Babylon 5” was produced by Warner Bros. Television. The series ran in syndication and on TNT for five seasons, 110 episodes, and seven TV movies, including the 1993 pilot film. The show is considered one of the best sci-fi series ever made by many critics and won numerous awards throughout its run, including two Hugo Awards and a Saturn Award.

Saturday Night Live.The filmmaker will reunite with Ghostbusters: Afterlife co-writer Gil Kenan to pen the script for the project, which will tell the behind-the-scenes story of the show’s premiere episode on October 11, 1975.According to Deadline, the film will be based on real-life accounts of Saturday Night Live’s opening night from an extensive series of interviews conducted by Reitman and Kenan with “all the living cast, writers and crew”.This is the second film Reitman is working on for Sony Pictures. He’s also serving as a co-writer and producer on the sequel to Ghostbusters: Afterlife, directed by Kenan.Aside from the 2021 reboot of Ghostbusters, Reitman is best known for directing films Juno, Up In The Air and Young Adult.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Aidy Bryant is set to star in “Lonely Hearts Club,” a dramedy series based on an episode of the Crime Junkies podcast, currently in the works at Peacock. “Beau Is Afraid” filmmaker Ari Aster is executive producing the project. Set in the late 1940s, “Lonely Hearts Club” is described as a darkly comedic true crime thriller about a lonely woman who falls in love with a dim but handsome con man. Together they form an unlikely “Loser-Bonnie-and-Clyde”-style partnership that ends in lies, murder and the electric chair. The show is based on an episode of Ashley Flowers’ Crime Junkie podcast entitled “Infamous: The ‘Lonely Hearts’ Killers.”

CinemaCon 2023 officially drew to a close this evening in Las Vegas, with NATO handing out its Big Screen Achievement Awards to such recipients as Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas, Zendaya, Chris Meledandri and Melissa McCarthy. The evening’s sentiment continued the running theme of the four-day conference: celebrating and preserving the theatrical experience.

greenlit the untitled project.The logline is as follows: “A comedy centered on the unlikely relationship between an irreverent, outspoken, agnostic woman and an unconventional rabbi.” Erin Foster serves as creator and executive produce alongside EPs Steven Levitan, Craig DiGregorio, Bell, Sara Foster and Danielle Stokdyk. Hailing from 20th Television in association with Steven Levitan Productions, Oly Obst and Josh Lieberman serve as executive producers for 3arts.Best known for his beloved Seth Cohen on the popular teen series, “The O.C.”, Brody recently starred in “Fleishman Is in Trouble” and reprised his role as Superhero Freddy in “DC’s Shazam! Fury of the Gods.” He will appear in the upcoming reboot of the classic film “River Wild,” which also stars Leighton Meester and Taran Killam.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Adam Brody will star opposite Kristen Bell in an upcoming comedy series for Netflix, Variety has learned. The untitled series was ordered at the streamer back in March. It centers “on the unlikely relationship between the outspoken, agnostic Joanne (Bell) and unconventional rabbi Noah (Brody).” The character Noah is further described as “a charming rabbi who is stuck in his ways and used to playing things safe. He starts to stumble when he meets a brutally honest and provocative Joanne, totally upending his safe life plan.” Brody is best known for his role in the hit Fox drama series “The O.C.,” while his other TV credits include “Fleishman Is in Trouble,” “Mrs. America,” “StartUp,” and “Single Parents.” He has also appeared in films such as “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” “Jennifer’s Body,” “Sleeping with Other People,” and “Promising Young Woman.”

Adam Brody is set as the male lead opposite Kristen Bell in Netflix’s untitled comedy series created and executive produced by Erin Foster and executive produced by Steve Levitan.

Christopher Nolan kicked off Universal’s CinemaCon presentation this afternoon in Las Vegas, taking the stage to talk about his upcoming thriller Oppenheimer which releases in July. Cillian Murphy stars as the titular J Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist whose work on the Manhattan Project led to the creation of the atomic bomb.

First Look At Nicola Coughlan & Lydia West In ‘Big Mood’

EXCLUSIVE: Chris Diamantopoulos, who starred in HBO’s Silicon Valley and is currently on Peacock’s Mrs. Davis, has co-created and is set to star in a new family comedy series that is being taken out to market.

The critically-acclaimed HBO Max comedy series “The Other Two” returns with its third season next month. Starring Heléne Yorke, Drew Tarver, Case Walker, and Molly Shannon, the show was created by former “Saturday Night Live” co-head writers Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider.