Nicely Entertainment Launches Thriller-Genre Division Darkly Entertainment — AFM

Peter Hook & The Light have announced a huge 2024 world tour that will see the band play the ‘Substance’ albums from Joy Division and New Order in full – find dates and ticket information below.The New Order and Joy Division co-founder will be touring with his band from May next year, spanning New Zealand, Australia, North America, the UK and Ireland.The tour will open at the Opera House in Wellington, New Zealand on May 16, followed by eight more dates across New Zealand and Australia. From August 31, they’ll continue with a North American run that starts at History in Toronto, Canada.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Jacob Elordi revealed in a new interview with GQ magazine that he turned down a request to audition for Superman. While the actor did not name the specific superhero movie project, it’s likely he was referring to James Gunn’s 2025 tentpole “Superman: Legacy” as the film went through casting in the spring and summer months. David Corenswet was announced in June as Gunn’s Superman, with Rachel Brosnahan cast as Lois Lane.

Festival and specialty fare crowded the top ten this weekend with Priscilla (A24) and The Holdovers (Focus Features) expanding to hit nos. 4 and 6 respectively. Yash Raj Films’ Bollywood thriller Tiger 3 is at no. 8, and world of mouth continued to buoy Radical (Pantelion/Participant) with Eugenio Derbez, rounding out the list at no. 10.

Pledis Entertainment, home to K-pop group SEVENTEEN, has announced the upcoming debut of a brand-new boyband in early-January 2024.South Korean media outlet JTBC reported on November 7 that Pledis Entertainment is planning to debut their first boyband in nine years in early January 2024. The report claimed that the group will consist of five to six members, including some who are not native Korean.Shortly after speculations surfaced, the company confirmed the news in an official statement to SPOTV News.

EXCLUSIVE: XYZ Films has taken global distribution rights, excluding Canada, on the eco-thriller The Well, the first narrative feature by Academy Award-nominated documentary director Hubert Davis. 

BtoB and Hongseok of PENTAGON have left long-time agency CUBE Entertainment.CUBE Entertainment announced today (November 6) that all six members of K-pop boyband BtoB would not be renewing their contracts, with the agency saying that it was “mutually decided”, as translated by Koreaboo.The news comes just days after it was reported that the contracts of five BtoB members had ended, with CUBE Entertainment saying that it and the K-pop idols were “working through this situation with an open mindset, looking at various options”.According to a new report today by Sports Chosun, BtoB had decided to leave CUBE Entertainment as early as last week over the trademark of the group’s name. Meanwhile, the K-pop agency told Dispatch that it is “positively discussing trademark rights with the BTOB members”.“We cannot provide details about the trademark rights discussions,” CUBE Entertainment added.

Stefan Ruzowitzky (The Counterfeiters, Netflix series Barbarians) is set to direct the thriller Ice Fall, produced by Arclight Films and Addam Bramich.

Ellise Shafer Cineflix Media, a leading independent producer and distributor, is expanding its operations by opening a Vancouver branch of Cineflix Studios run by industry veteran Mark Miller. The Vancouver office will “focus on producing and co-producing scripted series, movies, and factual content for North American and international streamers and broadcasters,” according to a press release.

EXCLUSIVE: Vanessa Kirby and Lauren Dark have come aboard as exec producers for Swiss Oscar entry Thunder from writer-director Carmen Jacquier. Kirby & Dark’s Aluna Entertainment will back the awards push for the film in the race for Best International Feature. 

In what will be welcome news for the UK sector, former Lionsgate UK & Europe CEO and Marv Studios Group CEO Zygi Kamasa is launching a new UK theatrical distributor called True Brit Entertainment, which will focus exclusively on British feature films and TV.

CUBE Entertainment has responded to reports of BtoB’s contract expirations in an official statement.Earlier today (November 1), South Korean media outletIlgan Sports reported that the contracts of five BtoB members had expired, alledging that the K-pop idols and CUBE Entertainment have yet to come to an agreement on a possible renewal.According to the report, BtoB are interested staying as group even if they leave CUBE Entertainment. Ilgan Sports also claims that several other labels have offered up to ₩6billion (approximately £3.64million) as a down payment to house the group if they decide to depart from their long-time agency.Shortly after reports of BtoB’s contract expiration surfaced, CUBE issued a brief statement to Xport News, saying that “the contract between CUBE Entertainment and some of the BtoB members has not yet concluded”, as translated by Koreaboo.“We plan on doing our best until the end of the contract,” CUBE Entertainment added.“We understand that the BtoB members are working through this situation with an open mindset, looking at various options.”In response to claims of third-party labels approaching BtoB, CUBE Entertainment said: “The amount mentioned in the article has nothing to do with our company’s position related to the matter.”BtoB debuted as a seven-member group in 2012, and have last renewed their contracts with CUBE Entertainment in 2018.

EXCLUSIVE: Vertical has taken North American distribution rights for James Rowe’s crime thriller Breakwater starring Dermot Mulroney, Darren Mann and Mena Suvari as Film Mode Entertainment kicks off sales at the AFM.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Gaumont is launching “Night Call,” a high-concept thriller set over the course of a night, directed by rising filmmaker Michiel Blanchart. Blanchart, who is repped by WME and Itaka Media, previously directed the short film “You’re Dead Hélène,” which was a festival standout and played at Clermont-Ferrand and Sitges, among other festivals. It also made the live action Oscar shortlist last year.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Quiver Distribution has picked up Uwe Boll’s crime drama “First Shift” for the U.S., Canada and selected international territories. The pic, which stars Kristen Renton (“Sons of Anarchy”) and Gino Anthony Pesi (“Shades of Blue”) as two mismatched New York City cops forced to work as partners, has also sold in Eastern Europe, Benelux, the Commonwealth of Independent States, Turkey and the Baltics.

Angus Finney Industry players treading the floors of Le Meridien Delfina, the American Film Market’s new venue, will be besieged by aggressive funding offers and fliers tubthumping diverse landscapes and state-of-the-art facilities from all around the world — marketing tools promoting incentives and driving the heated battle for productions across the globe. The incentive wars have been raging for decades, with several U.S. states and leading producing nations — such as Canada, the U.K., France, Spain, Australia, New Zealand and Germany — battling over a $177 billion worldwide production pot being spent on film, scripted TV and docs in 2019 alone, according to consultants OlsbergSPI. Given the inherent link between total production spend and automatic funding systems as a crude percentage, that indicates that some $20 billion-$30 billion of tax credits, production rebates and other automatic mechanisms are underpinning worldwide production. But just as the industry at large is reeling from strike actions, the impact of streamers and talk of a “great spend re-correction,” all is not well in the land of automatic funding incentives.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent “No Me Sigas,” the directorial debut of “Anything’s Possible” writer Ximena García Lecuona, and “Malamuerte,” from Caye Casas, a rising star of pitch black Spanish comedy, both feature in a rich and far-ranging 2023 Blood Window Lab, the project platform of Ventana Sur’s genre forum, which unspools Nov. 27-Dec. 1.

Mister Smith Entertainment has hired Augusta Charlton as Director, International Sales & Acquisitions. 

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Roadside Attractions and Samuel Goldwyn Films have acquired U.S. rights to “Bring Him to Me,” a mob thriller starring Barry Pepper (“Saving Private Ryan”) and Sam Neill (“Jurassic Park”). The film will open in select theaters and on digital on Jan.

Gaumont Launches Production Services Division

What’s Sean Baker have in store for audiences next? Variety has the scoop there, reporting that the “Red Rocket” director teams up with FilmNation Entertainment again for his upcoming film “Anora.” And the movie is already in post-production, although plot details remain under wraps. As for who stars in Baker’s latest, there’s one confirmed name: Mikey Madison, who audiences will recognize from “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood…” and “Scream 5.” READ MORE: Sean Baker Warns “Censorship” Could Be Coming To American Cinema As He Wraps Production On His Newest Film Baker shot his upcoming film in Brooklyn earlier this year.