International Insider: Disney France Woes; 42’s Splash; Banff Incoming; ‘Lady Of Heaven’ Saga

K.J. Yossman Warner Bros.

Refresh for latest…: A wild weekend was had at the global and international box office with major milestones for Paramount/Skydance’s Top Gun: Maverick and Universal/Amblin’s Jurassic World Dominion, as well as a $50.5M result from Warner Bros’ newcomer, Elvis.

It’s Friday and that can mean only one thing, folks: another edition of International Insider. Jesse Whittock here to take you through another week in film and TV.

departed the project.The show — executive produced by Portman and Har’el — is an adaptation of Laura Lippman’s New York Times bestselling novel of the same name. Set in 1960s Baltimore, it follows housewife and mother Maddie Schwartz (Portman), who is pushed to reinvent her life as an investigative journalist following an unsolved murder. She then crosses paths with Cleo Sherwood (Ingram), a dedicated mother who is juggling several jobs, along with a commitment to advancing Baltimore’s Black community.

Léa Seydoux is set to play Lady Margot in Dune: Part Two, the next instalment of the fantasy blockbuster. Deadline reported that the French actress is still in negotiations to join the cast which includes Timothée Chalamet, Josh Brolin and Zendaya. In May it was confirmed that Christopher Walken and Austin Butler would star in the second film.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentOne year after merging with the promotion org TV France International, Unifrance is preparing a series of strategic events in key markets across Europe, the U.S., China and Japan to fast-track the global distribution of local series and movies. The French film and TV advocacy banner will host trade shows bringing together French sales outfits and international distributors in Paris in January, Biarritz (Southwestern France) in September, as well as in Roma in April, Madrid in June, Berlin in November, New York in March and Yokohama in December.

EXCLUSIVE: Striking while the iron’s hot following her critically acclaimed performances at the recent Cannes Film Festival, Denis Villeneuve has tapped Léa Seydoux play Lady Margot in Warner Bros. and Legendary’s Dune: Part Two. Seydoux is currently in negotiations and will join the all-star ensemble that includes Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya and Josh Brolin, who are expected to reprise their roles, as well Florence Pugh, Christopher Walken and Austin Butler, who were also recently announced. Villeneuve is back to write, direct and produce. Spaihts will return to co-write with Villeneuve.

Naman Ramachandran Seven international broadcast majors have teamed to launch a call for documentary proposals at the ongoing Sunny Side of the Doc market.The international documentary coproduction unit of France Televisions is uniting with partners ZDF (Germany), Channel 4 (U.K.), CBC (Canada), SVT (Sweden), ORF (Austria) and ABC Australia, seeking proposals for high-end documentaries dealing with subjects in two categories. The first category focuses on ancient civilisations, archaeology, paleontology, geology and space exploration and the second on the subject ‘How cutting-edge science can provide solutions to save the planet.’Proposals should ideally be “an epic scientific adventure with international scope, following groups of international scientists in their fieldwork,” with “wide and international audience appeal” and “factual clarity combined with an engaging and emotional approach, creating a sense of awe” and are “visually spectacular, using the best of modern image-making techniques,” according to the broadcasters.

As Paramount+ prepares for UK rollout and in advance of tonight’s swanky London do, the streamer has greenlit a seven-strong international slate including a French fantasy horror thriller, doc on the Circeo Massacre, two shows from Mexico and two from Germany including The Sheikh.

Directors Amandine Fredon and Benjamin Massoubre take home the top prize for their animated film Little Nicholas–Happy as Can Be at the annual Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France. 

‘Allo Insiders, Jesse Whittock here. The sun is scorching out there in London today (I promise you this does happen occasionally), but I’ve stayed just cool enough to bring you a rundown of this week’s biggest stories.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent“The Black Pharaoh, the Savage and the Princess,” BAFTA-winning French director Michel Ocelot (“Kirikou and the Sorceress”)’s anticipated new animated feature, has been sold by Paris-based Playtime to major territories. The colorful film is playing at this week’s Annecy International Animation Film Festival where Ocelot is the recipient of the Honorary Cristal Award paying tribute to his laureled career.

Lionsgate Chairman Kevin Beggs has said the studio is “working on a variety of projects” with 42, ramping up international productions and has put recent successes down to there being “a little more room at the broadcasters.” Beggs also defended Netflix following a period of lower-than-expected growth for the streamer but said it may need to be “more judicious and disciplined” going forwards.

Lady Gaga is ready to play a new iconic role! The singer and actress is in early talks to join the cast of the upcoming film ‘Joker: Folie à deux’ directed by Todd Phillips, which is now turning into a musical. Phillips recently unveiled the title for the sequel, posting an image of the script next to a photo of Joaquin Phoenix reading what will be the new storyline for the highly anticipated film.It has been revealed that Gaga would play Harley Quinn, previously played by Margot Robbie in Suicide Squad (2016), Birds of Prey (2020) and The Suicide Squad (2021) and by Kaley Cuoco in HBO’s animated version.Not much has been revealed about the sequel, however fans are already speculating about the rest of the characters from the DC universe that will be unveiled, as it is expected to see a new portayal of Batman on the big screen.The title for the sequel means “shared madness” in French, a phrase used to describe a shared delusion among a group of people, which raised the question of who will he be sharing the madness with.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at LargeThe Banff World Media Festival revealed the winners of the 2022 Rockie Awards International Program Competition on Monday, with big winners including the “Friends” Reunion, “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” “We Are Lady Parts” and more.The event, held in Banff and hosted by comedian Rakhee Morzaria (“Run the Burbs”) featured winners chosen by a panel of 150 international industry professionals. The Rockie Awards International Program Competition presented awards in 28 categories spanning Documentary & Factual, Arts & Entertainment, Children & Youth, Scripted, and Podcast.The competition featured 148 nominations from 45 countries including the UK, United, Canada, Australia, France, China, Germany, Italy and Norway.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterUniversal’s dino-sized “Jurassic” franchise is showing no signs of extinction at the box office.“Jurassic World Dominion,” the sixth installment in the long-running series, pulled in a monster $176 million from 72 international markets over the weekend, bringing its overseas total to $245 million. Combined with its $143 million domestic debut, the film stands at a robust $389 million and will imminently cross the $400 million mark.Directed by Colin Trevorrow and starring Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt, “Dominion” opened in 57 new foreign markets this weekend, including China, the United Kingdom and France.China, which has been increasingly hostile to Hollywood films, embraced the film, where it opened in first place with $52.5 million.

Chloe Green is reportedly set to welcome her second child as she unveiled her blossoming baby bump on holiday with boyfriend Manuele Thiella.The former Made In Chelsea star was seen looking gorgeous in photos obtained by MailOnline, where she donned a pink floral beach kaftan while enjoying the sunny weather in St Tropez, the south of France, on Friday 10 June.The 31 year old was seen walking barefoot as she held onto a pair of sandals, a navy cap and her purse, which held all her valuables in. Styling her brunette mane up into a ponytail, Chloe remained make up-free, simply enjoying the gorgeous weather during her holiday abroad with her other half.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaUniversal’s “Jurassic World Dominion” continues to cast a shadow over the worldwide box office.The film opens in 57 new markets this weekend, including China, where it’s grossed $15.3 million. The international haul for the sequel stands at a healthy $95.1 million.China, which has not been that receptive to Hollywood films, was a bright spot.