John Pasquin To Direct & Exec Produce ABC Comedy Pilot ‘Shifting Gears’

Naman Ramachandran Raven Banner Entertainment has launched sales at the Cannes Film Festival‘s market on the reboot of Roger Corman‘s cult sword and sorcery film series, “Deathstalker,” which is currently shooting in Canada. Daniel Bernhardt (“John Wick,” “The Matrix Reloaded”) stars as the titular character in this reimagined instalment, directed by Steven Kostanski (“The Void,” “Psycho Goreman”). Bernhardt plays a barbarian cursed by a magical talisman, leading him into conflict with a malevolent wizard and monstrous assassins.

EXCLUSIVE: Andy Wilman looks like a man who’s not seen sunlight for a while. Peering down the barrel of a Zoom call, he’s got a touch of man flu after a spell in his editing bunker. Wilman is perpetually “in an edit.” He’s currently honing the final episode of The Grand Tour, but he could just as well be looking at rushes from Clarkson’s Farm Season 4. It is his happy place.

The Young Sheldon finale should go down as not just one of , but also one of the finest hours of television, period. The tricky balance of devastation and humor following George's death in last week's episode also had to be intertwined with Sheldon and Amy in the future (Jim Parsons and Mayim Bialik, reprising ) in a way that made sense to the viewer.

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.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor Everyone’s in the Emmy race, but the Television Academy has forced John Mulaney to make a change that may only benefit his awards run. Netflix‘s live smash “John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in L.A,.” featuring the Emmy-winning stand-up comedian celebrating the quirks and unique personality of his beloved city, was massively popular on the platform.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Thursday’s nights Academy of Country Music Awards program will provide further evidence that we are entering a Post country music period. But not as in “post-country,” let’s be clear… we’re talking about a Post Malone country era.

Following William Levy‘s (Star, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter) success starring in ViX‘s Montecristo last year, the TelevisaUnivision streamer has signed Secuoya Studios and William Levy Entertainment to a production deal. Together, the companies will develop two new projects – the series, Arcadia (w/t) and the film, Bajo Un Volcán (w/t) – both starring Levy, who will also executive produce.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The renaissance of “Doctor Who,” which started its latest season this week, is a 20-year journey that is entwined with the establishment of a thriving TV production scene in South Wales, where it shoots, and the meteoritic rise of the production company Bad Wolf. This dates back to 2003 when writer Russell T. Davies was asked by the BBC’s then head of drama, Jane Tranter, to revive the show and to base the production in South Wales, an area hitherto known for coal mining and heavy industry.

Hulu has given a pilot order to Downforce (working title) from ABC Signature. 

Selome Hailu Hulu has given a piot order to “Downforce” (working title), a comedy pilot written and executive produced by “Silicon Valley” writers Alec Berg and Adam Countee. The official logline for “Downforce” reads, “When the heiress to a dynastic racing team is thrust back into the family business, she needs to make some hard choices about the future of the team and her family’s legacy.” The pilot will be produced by ABC Signature, where Berg and Countee both have overall deals.

Katcy Stephan What really happened during the 48 hours leading up to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy — at least according to mob bosses — is heading to the big screen in the upcoming film “November 1963: The Killing of a President.” The mob’s version of events were passed down to Chicago mob boss Sam Giancana’s nephew, Nicholas Celozzi, by Sam’s brother, the late Joseph “Pepe” Giancana, who drove around with his brother Sam during those two days. “The reason why there’s this fascination or anxiety is because people know that what they’ve heard so far doesn’t make sense,” Celozzi tells Variety of the ongoing interest in the circumstances surrounding JFK’s assassination, even 60 years later.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter The ABC comedy pilot “Shifting Gears” has cast Daryl “Chill” Mitchell and Froy Gutierrez, Variety has learned exclusively. The pair join previously announced series leads Tim Allen and Kat Dennings in the multi-cam comedy, which was originally ordered to pilot at ABC back in March. In the show, “Matt (Allen) is the stubborn, widowed owner of a classic car restoration shop.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Studio 100 Intl., in collaboration with Germany’s Caligari Film and Studio Isar Animation, and Spain’s 3 Doubles Producciones, is to produce action-comedy CGI movie “Dougie Dolittle.” Targeting a core demographic of 8-12 year olds and a family audience, the movie is planned for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2026. Studio 100 Film is handling global sales and will introduce the film at Marché du Film in Cannes.

EXCLUSIVE: ABC is adding to its collection of game shows.

EXCLUSIVE: Leonardo DiCaprio and revered environmental activist Jane Goodall will executive produce Howl, a film following an abandoned family dog and a young wolf, which will unfold from the animals’ perspective. The Promethean Pictures movie has just entered production, we can reveal. It is not an environment film per se, but the team behind it plans to give moviegoers a transformative view of the natural world.

Angelique Jackson “Black-ish” and “Grown-ish” star Yara Shahidi has signed on to executive produce the documentary “Paint Me a Road Out of Here,” which will make its world premiere at the DC/DOX Film Festival next month. Directed by Catherine Gund, “Paint Me a Road Out of Here” features artists Faith Ringgold and Mary Enoch Elizabeth Baxter and “uncovers the whitewashed history of Ringgold’s masterpiece ‘For the Women’s House,’ following the painting’s 50-year journey from the Rikers Jail to the Brooklyn Museum in a heartbreaking, funny and true parable for a world without mass incarceration.” Of the painting Ringgold has said: “The women wanted to be free, they wanted to be out of there of course but it was obvious to me that the reason many of them were there was because they had a lack of freedom in the first place.

‘Leather Tour’ all over North America in early 2024, country star Cody Johnson is coming back for seconds.From May through November, the “Son of a Ramblin’ Man” singer announced he will return to the road for more concerts at stadiums, arenas and festivals in the U.S. and Canada.While he won’t hit New York or New Jersey on this upcoming run, CoJo will get close when he performs at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center on Friday, Nov.

EXCLUSIVE: Emily The Criminal, the 2022 crime thriller starring Aubrey Plaza, is the latest movie set to be turned into a television series.

EXCLUSIVE: Paul Rudd (Ant-Man) and Nick Jonas (Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle) are set to star in musical comedy Power Ballad from Once and Sing Street director John Carney, we can reveal.

EXCLUSIVE: Timbaland is getting into graphic novels and television.