Cinema Guild Takes N. America On Pedro Costa’s Cannes Title ‘The Daughters Of Fire’; Plots Hong Sangsoo’s ‘In Water’ Double Bill

Megan Thee Stallion returned to the stage on Sunday for the first time since Tory Lanez was sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting her in the feet.

Britney Spears’ teenage sons, Sean Preston, and Jayden, moved to Hawaii with their father just days before tragic wildfires spread through Maui. While many are thinking about the locals that have lost their homes, loved ones, or their lives, Kevin Federline’s attorney shared an update about how the kids are doing.

Naman Ramachandran Niv Art Movies, producer of Rotterdam winner “Sexy Durga,” and Little Lamb Films, the outfit behind Tallin, Santa Barbara and Edinburgh film “The Cloud and the Man,” have teamed for Locarno title “Whispers of Fire & Water.” An exclusive clip from the film has been provided to Variety. Lubdhak Chatterjee, who has previous shorts and documentaries to his credit, makes his fiction feature debut with the film. The narrative revolves around an audio installation artist who visits the coal mines of eastern India, an area plagued by depleting natural resources where fire burns constantly.

John Bleasdale Guest Contributor “The Vanishing Soldier” is a coming of age story, as breathless as its protagonist: the kind of film that will make cinephiles of seventeen-year-olds. Which is one of the reasons that Dani Rosenberg, the film’s 43-year-old director, is delighted to be in Locarno, where the film, sold by Intramovies, is screening in main competition, and has just got a trailer, and poster, shared in exclusivity with Variety. “We had options for other festivals,” Rosenberg told Variety at the Swiss fest.

In this first trailer for Shout! Studios' new caper, Uma Thurman stars as a high-end art gallery owner who gets in over her head in a money laundering scheme with a hitman (Joe Manganiello) and his handler (Samuel L. Jackson).The film also brings Thurman together on-screen for the first time with her real-life daughter, star Maya Hawke — whom she shares with ex-husband Ethan Hawke.It also serves as a reunion for Thurman and Jackson, who haven't starred together in a film since in 1994.In the film, Jackson stars as an assassination facilitator who turns to Thurman to launder money by selling artwork made by Manganiello, a hitman who uses his tools for murder (specifically, plastic bags he suffocates victims with) as materials for Avant-Garde artworks.Unexpectedly, the hitman — going by the name The Bagman — becomes an overnight sensation in the art world and begins attracting media attention, to the frustration of his boss.

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic Lately, in the overwrought majority of Hollywood blockbusters, nothing less than the fate of the planet hangs in the balance, as some natural disaster or dastardly supervillain threatens to annihilate life as we know it. Such impossibly large stakes may be necessary to justify the CG spectacle of certain Marvel movies, but instead of inspiring excitement, they mostly leave me ambivalent and bored.

Ellise Shafer “Lost in Paris” directing duo Dominique Abel and Fiona Gordon have shared a first look at their new film “The Falling Star,” which premieres at this year’s Locarno Film Festival. Abel and Gordon also star in the film, which follows Boris (Abel), a former activist who works at a bartender at the Falling Star. According to the film’s official synopsis, Boris’ “guilty past resurfaces when a victim finds him and wants revenge.

Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes went on a little getaway with their daughters!

Marta Balaga Starring Deva Cassel, Laura Luchetti’s “The Beautiful Summer” (“La Bella Estate”) has bowed sales and a trailer, ahead of its world premiere at this week’s Locarno Festival. In a first deal to go down for sales agent True Colours, Palace Films has swooped on distribution rights to Australia and New Zealand. Xenix Filmdistribution will release in Switzerland “The Beautiful Summer,” which is loosely based on Cesare Pavese’s novel.

EXCLUSIVE: The Daily Wire’s streaming service DailyWire+ is lining up a September start in Europe for what it is calling its biggest-budget production to date, a fantasy series inspired by Arthurian legend.

Travis Scott is taking aim at Timothée Chalamet in one track off his latest album. At least that’s what fans think!

The third season of Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building” (which streams in Canada on Disney+) is right around the corner, with a whole new hilarious whodunit to be tackled by the unlikely trio of Charles Haden-Savage (Steve Martin), Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez) and Oliver Putnam (Martin Short).

There's a turning point in the movie, when Margot Robbie's Stereotypical Barbie realizes that the human influence that's been causing turmoil in her perfect Barbie Land life — flat feet, thoughts of death, and, worst of all, — is not a child at all, but a nostalgic mother.Mattel employee Gloria, played by America Ferrera, has been playing with the doll in the Real World and reminiscing about happier times with her now-sullen tween daughter, Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt). But as her adult-level worries took over, they also crept into Barbie Land, making things far less perfect then usual.When the trio return to Barbie Land to find that the Ken-led patriarchy has taken over, Barbie's existential crisis begins in earnest, but a rousing, epic monologue from Ferrera's character helps break the spell of masculine brainwashing and motivates the Barbies to take back their lives.The film was co-written by director Greta Gerwig and her partner, Noah Baumbach, but the monologue has Gerwig's signature style all over it.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Gianluca Matarrese’s “The Zola Experience,” which will have its world premiere at Venice Days, has been picked up for international sales by Syndicado. Cinecittà will distribute the film in Italy. According to Matarrese, the film “explores the boundaries between fiction and documentary.” It centers on Anne, a theater director, who has separated from her husband and is moving house.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent Starring “Bones and All’s” Taylor Russell, Ewan McGregor and Ellen Burstyn, “Mother, Couch!” the feature debut of Sweden’s Niclas Larsson, features in a currently 11-title lineup of San Sebastian’s 2023 New Directors section, the most important sidebar at the highest-profile movie event in the Spanish-speaking world. Of just announced titles, also in the mix is “The Other Son,” Juan Sebastian Quebrada’s anticipated coming-of-age drama picked up by Film Factory. “Carefree Days,” the second feature from Chinese actor-director-screenwriter Liang Ming (“Wisdom Tooth”), will open New Directors.

Determined Dumfriesshire parents, Jenny and Nigel Pike, are calling for donations to help the Eden Valley Hospice in memory of their late daughter, Anna.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers for “Barbie,” now playing in theaters nationwide. America Ferrera’s epic “Barbie” monologue left the entire set in tears, Greta Gerwig recalled in a new interview with The Atlantic. Even the male cast members were left emotional, which the director reasoned was because they have their own speech to make.

Hilarie Burton can't help but gush over Jeffrey Dean Morgan's girl-dad skills.The alum took to Instagram to share some adorable photos of Morgan with their 5-year-old daughter, George, and praise her husband and his special relationship with their little one.Set to Betty Who's «I Love You Always Forever,» the post features a quick slideshow of photos of actor, 57, and George, hugging and spending time together, with their love for one another beaming across the screen.«Going through my camera roll, and damn near every picture is just these two in love,» Burton, 40, captioned the sweet post. «They are the same person.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers for “Barbie,” now playing in theaters nationwide. America Ferrera’s epic “Barbie” monologue left the entire set in tears, Greta Gerwig recalled in a new interview with The Atlantic. Even the male cast members were left emotional, which the director reasoned was because they have their own speech to make.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent In one of the big deals announced out of Canada’s Fantasia Film Festival, XYZ Films has boarded North American sales rights to “New Life,” John Rosman’s feature directorial debut which is hailed by Fantasia itself as “one of the major discoveries of Fantasia 2023.” “New Life” stars Sonya Walger (“For All Mankind,” “Lost”) and Hayley Erin (“Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists,” “General Hospital”) and Tony Amendola (“Annabelle,” “Curse of Llorona”). XYZ Films has also dropped the film’s first teaser, shared in exclusivity with Variety, ahead of “New Life’s” world premiere on Aug.