‘Dune: The Sisterhood’ Director and Star Depart HBO Max Series Amid ‘Creative Changes’

Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck not only gained a wife, but also an actress for his movies!The actor has been promoting his upcoming film Air, which he directed and stars in, produced in collaboration with Matt Damon, who also stars in the biopic about Sonny Vaccaro and Nike co-founder Phil Knight and how Michael Jordan became the face of the brand.The film marks their very first project from their newly founded production company, Artists Equity, and not only are they already working on their second project, but they have also called in "a favor" from none other than J.Lo herself, who her husband says has been "a joy" to work with.WATCH: JLo and Ben Affleck argue at the Grammy's: but what did they say?MORE: Jennifer Lopez covers up in tiny towel in rare post-shower clipThe acting and producing duo confirmed during an appearance on CBS News that the multi-hyphenate will be the star of their next big project. The couple have a lot of projects on their plate as of late, as they recently moved into a new house together.Sharing details of the movie in the works, Ben said: "We're just getting rolling on working again with Amazon, to do the story of a wrestler named Anthony Robles, who was born with one leg and won a National Championship for Arizona State."MORE: Jennifer Lopez's revelation about her twins' different lives and personalities will surprise youHowever, he wasn't so forthcoming at first about confirming his wife was also a part of the project.

Demi Lovato is ready to explore new career paths. The talented singer will be making her directorial debut in an upcoming Hulu documentary, diving into the complexities and struggles of child stars, using her “first-hand experience and personal relationships” for the “exploratory film.”Many details of the upcoming project titled ‘Child Star’ have yet to be revealed, including the rest of the participants.

EXCLUSIVE: Theo Rossi has been tapped for a key recurring role opposite Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti in the HBO Max original series The Penguin (working title) from Warner Bros Television and DC Studios.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “The Penguin” series at HBO Max has added Michael Zegen, James Madio, and Scott Cohen to its cast in recurring roles, Variety has learned exclusively. The three join a cast that includes series lead Colin Farrell, who will reprise the role of Oswald “The Penguin” Cobblepot from “The Batman, as well as Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz, Michael Kelly, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Deirdre O’Connell, and Clancy Brown. HBO Max is not releasing character details for three new additions, but sources say that Zegen is set to play Alberto Falcone. Alberto is the son of Gotham City crime boss Carmine Falcone, who was played by John Turturro in “The Batman,” and the brother of Sofia Falcone, who will be played by Milioti in “The Penguin.” In the comics, Alberto takes credit for being the serial killer known as The Holiday Killer, who targets Gotham gangsters on a holiday each month.

Last night, director Edward Berger officially became an Oscar-winning filmmaker thanks to the Best International Film win for “All Quiet on the Western Front.” And it doesn’t appear that Berger is going to even stop to take a breath as the filmmaker’s next project has just been announced. According to Deadline, Edward Berger is signed on to direct and produce a new Amazon series, “Helltown,” which will be produced by Robert Downey Jr.

It’s been a busy week for Marvel’s “Daredevil: Born Again” as production is ramping up in NYC. First, it was announced that Jon Bernthal would be returning to the role of Frank Castle, aka, The Punisher, in the Disney+ series alongside fellow former “Daredevil” cast members Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio in their respective Marvel roles.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer J.J. Abrams and Matt Reeves’ animated series “Batman: Caped Crusader” has been picked up at Amazon after being scrapped at HBO Max, Variety has confirmed. The streamer has placed a two-season order for the cartoon, which is described as “a reimagining of the Batman mythology through the visionary lens” of executive producers Abrams, Reeves and Bruce Timm. “Batman: Caped Crusader” was ordered to series at HBO Max in May 2021. In August 2022, the show was scrapped along with five other upcoming animated series set up at the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned streamer, including “Merry Little Batman,” “The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie,” “Bye Bye Bunny: A Looney Tunes Musical,” “Did I Do That to the Holidays: A Steve Urkel Story” and “The Amazing World of Gumball: The Movie.”

Joe Otterson TV Reporter HBO Max’s “The Batman” spinoff series “The Penguin” has cast Clancy Brown in a recurring role, Variety has learned. Brown joins a cast that includes series lead Colin Farrell, who will reprise the role of Oswald “The Penguin” Cobblepot from “The Batman, as well as Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz, Michael Kelly, Shohreh Aghdashloo, and Deirdre O’Connell. Brown will appear as Salvatore Maroni, a notorious Gotham City crime boss. The character was referenced repeatedly in “The Batman,” as his arrest by corrupt Gotham officials and the collapse of his criminal empire allowed for Carmine Falcone’s organization to rise. Maroni has previously been portrayed onscreen by actors like David Zayas in “Gotham” at Fox and by Eric Roberts in “The Dark Knight.”

If you want proof of how badly HBO Max wants the “Dune” franchise to succeed, look no further than the behind-the-scenes drama surrounding the spinoff TV series, “Dune: The Sisterhood.” Before the most recent news (more on this in a second), the series has already gone through multiple showrunners (Jon Spaihts, Dana Calvo, and creator Diane Ademu-John have all stepped away) over the years it’s been in development.

exit as co-showrunner last November.“As ‘Dune: The Sisterhood (wt)’ has entered a pre-scheduled hiatus, there are some creative changes being made to the production in an effort to create the best series possible and stay true to the source material,” an HBO Max spokesperson told TheWrap. “Johan Renck has completed his work on the series and a new director will be brought on; through mutual agreement, Johan is moving on to pursue other projects.

EXCLUSIVE: HBO Max‘s Dune prequel TV series’ long journey to the screen is taking another turn.Dune: The Sisterhood (wt), which started production in late November, is undergoing a creative shift, a director change and a recasting.

Stating her truth. Sister Wives star Meri Brown addressed rumors regarding her sexuality in a recent Instagram Live video.

is expanding, with a prequel series coming to HBO Max. Set in the world of Stephen King's universe, is based on the author's novel as well as filmmaker Andy Muschietti's successful feature film adaptations, and . The series is being developed by Andy Muschietti as well as sister Barbara Muschietti and Jason Fuchs, both of whom were involved in the films.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer HBO, HBO Max and Discovery+ added 1.1 million subscribers in Q4 to end 2022 with a total of 96.1 million worldwide. That’s up from the 95 million combined global streaming customers Warner Bros. Discovery hit from July 1-Sept. 30, the quarter during which the highly anticipated “Game of Thrones” prequel “House of the Dragon” debuted. During the Oct. 1-Dec. 31 quarter, “House of the Dragon” concluded its first season the second season of HBO’s hot Mike White drama “White Lotus” premiered. Details about the upcoming combined HBO Max-Discovery+ streamer — which does not yet have a name, launch date or pricing details — will be revealed at an April 12 press day.

HBO Max is expanding the world of Stephen King‘s IT with the drama series Welcome To Derry (wt) from Warner Bros. Television and developed for TV by filmmakers Andy Muschietti and Barbara Muschietti (IT, IT Chapter Two) and Jason Fuchs (IT Chapter Two, Wonder Woman).

Joe Otterson TV Reporter HBO Max is officially moving forward with the “It” prequel series currently titled “Welcome to Derry,” Variety has learned. The show was first reported as being in development in March 2022, while Variety exclusively reported that the project had attached its co-showrunners in November. As previously reported, the series was developed for television by Andy Muschietti, Barbara Muschietti, and Jason Fuchs. “As teenagers, we took turns reading chapters of Stephen King’s ‘It’ until the thick paperback fell to pieces,” said the Muschiettis. “‘It’ is an epic story that contains multitudes, far beyond what we could explore in our ‘It’ movies. We can’t wait to share the depths of Steve’s novel, in all its heart, humor, humanity and horror.”

Andy Muschietti‘s two “IT” films from 2017 and 2019 brought Stephen King‘s 1986 epic horror novel to the big screen for the first time. Now Muschietti will develop the franchise even further.

HBO Max. The streamer announced on Thursday that “Welcome to Derry” has been ordered to series, with “It” and “It: Chapter Two” director Andy Muschietti onboard to executive produce and direct multiple episodes.

Robin Wright is just waiting for a phone call about the Wonder Woman prequel series.

Zack Sharf When James Gunn and Peter Safran unveiled the new DC Universe slate in January, the lineup included a “Wonder Woman” prequel series titled “Paradise Lost” that is set for HBO Max. Not much about the series is known other than it’s a “‘Game of Thrones’-ish story” set on the island of Themyscira before the birth of Diana (a.k.a. Wonder Woman). In a new interview with Yahoo Entertainment, Robin Wright said she would love the chance to star in “Paradise Lost” as her DC character Antiope. “I loved playing an Amazon,” Wright said. “I kinda feel like I was the leader of an Amazon tribe in my past life. I haven’t received that call [about ‘Paradise Lost’] yet. Maybe I’m too old!”