‘Overlord’s Julius Avery to Direct Sony Pictures ‘Gantz’, Based on the Popular Manga Comic Series

Clifton Collins Jr. has been delivering affecting supporting work in major films like “Traffic” and “Capote” for over 20 years, but the actor is hardly what you would call a household name.

Jenny Mollen’s debut novel City of Likes is getting the television treatment even before its hits shelves in 2022. The Nacelle Company, which published the book, will adapt the novel for television under its first look comedy deal with Sony Pictures Television.

Starz has set a March premiere date for Shining Vale, starring Courteney Cox, Greg Kinnear and Mira Sorvino. The genre-bending horror comedy series will debut Sunday, March 6 at 10 PM across all Starz platforms in the U.S. and Canada, and will air day and date internationally on StarzPlay across Europe, Latin America and Japan.

Folks who are longtime readers of The Playlist will no doubt be familiar with our love of the work of filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda. And sadly, since the release of his 2019 film, “The Truth,” just a year after his Palme d’Or-winning “Shoplifters,” we have yet to see a new feature from the acclaimed director.

Netflix Makes Deal With ‘Shoplifters’ Director

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefKore-eda Hirokazu, the celebrated Japanese director of Palme d’Or winning film ‘Shoplifters,’ is developing multiple projects for Netflix.He is currently at work developing a big-budget film that he will direct and a series, where he will be the showrunner and direct some episodes.

EXCLUSIVE: With her Emmy-winning show Pose coming to an end, write and director Janet Mock looks to have found her follow-up feature as she has signed on to direct and rewrite The International Sweethearts of Rhythm for Sony Pictures. A previous draft was written by Pulitzer Prize winning writer Suzan-Lori Parks with Amy Pascal, Susan Tarr, Elizabeth Banks and Max Handelman will produce

EXCLUSIVE: The second ACA Cinema Project series, “Flash Forward: Debut Works and Recent Films by Notable Japanese Directors,” has set its lineup for a hybrid program that will run from December 3-23. Presented by the New York-based non-profit Japan Society and the Japanese government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs, in collaboration with the Visual Industry Promotion Organization, the event will be comprised of 20 films streaming in the U.S.

Christopher Vourlias Magnet Releasing, the genre arm of Magnolia Pictures, has acquired worldwide rights (excluding Africa and Japan) to “Indemnity,” an action-thriller written and directed by South African filmmaker Travis Taute that had its world premiere at Montreal’s Fantasia Film Festival.

Mark Schilling Japan CorrespondentJapanese death game series “Alice in Borderland” had already been a success for Netflix.

EXCLUSIVE:  As AFM kicks off, Deadline has learned about some executive changes at Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions and Stage 6 Films.

EXCLUSIVE: The Lamorne Morris and Jackie Earle Haley movie Death of a Telemarketer has landed at Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions.

Sony Pictures Entertainment recorded $288M in operating profits for the three months ending September 30, repping a 7% dip from the same period last year. Revenues in the division, however, were up 35% to $2.37B.

Jamie Lang Kids First will collaborate with Amazon Kids Plus on a new original kids’ program set in the Hello Kitty universe titled “Hello Kitty: Super Style!” The new series is being produced with a global audience in mind, and will be made available in major territories around the world, including the U.S. Paris-based Watch Next.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film WriterThe lives and epic love story of rocker Ozzy Osbourne and manager and personality Sharon Osbourne will be the subject of an upcoming feature film.The untitled project comes from Polygram Entertainment, and will follow a biopic format centering on their decades-long bond — one that exploded to the heights of pop culture with the flagship MTV reality series “The Osbournes.”  Oscar nominee Lee Hall (“Billy Elliot”) is scripting the project.“Our relationship at times

EXCLUSIVE: The venerable Power Rangers TV series is on the move. Netflix will be the exclusive US home for the upcoming second season of Power Rangers Dino Fury — Power Rangers‘ 29th season overall — which will debut on the streamer in spring 2022. Netflix has incensed the series from Entertainment One and Hasbro.

EXCLUSIVE: Sony Pictures International Productions’ original comedy Tequila Re-Pasado recently wrapped filming in Mexico and we’ve got first-look images from the film (see above and below).

Sony Pictures Entertainment has sold GSN Games, a division of its Game Show Network subsidiary, to mobile gaming specialist Scopely for $1 billion.

GSN Games, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment’s Game Show Network LLC, for approximately $1 billion, the companies announced on Monday. The companies said in a statement that the acquisition would strengthen Scopely’s ability to “create and deliver engaging, long-lasting game experiences.”The $1 billion purchase price of the transaction will be paid half in cash and the remainder in preferred equity, the companies said in the statement.