Pablo Larrain on Portraying Pinochet as a Vampire in ‘El Conde’ to Counter Fascism ‘That Comes in Different Shapes and Forms’ Around the World

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Rotting in the Sun (★★★★☆). Cinema itself might soon go missing, Silva fears, portraying himself in this twisting tale of his own disappearance.

Back in July, Donald and Stephen Glover took over writing duties from “Dear White People” creator Justin Simien on the long-gestating “Lando” series over at Disney+. But now there’s new intrigue on the “Lando” front, with Stephen hinting that the project he and Donald are working on may no longer be series.

Take That have announced details of their new single, marking the iconic boyband's first new material in five years. The trio have been on a five-year long hiatus and are said to be working on their ninth studio album, following the release of Wonderland in 2017.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent “The Eternal Memory,” Chilean documentarian Maite Alberdi’s follow-up to the Oscar-nominated “The Mole Agent,” is smashing box office records in Chile. Bowing Thursday Aug. 24 in 70 theaters and shooting straight to No.

It’s interesting how the Venice Film Festival has gone from one of the festivals of the fall festival season to arguably the best film festival in the world now, even overshadowing Cannes in recent years thanks to the fact that Netflix now avoids the Croisette for the most part because of France’s theatrical laws and save their Oscar contenders for the Lido. Venice has had an amazing run, arguably since 2017 when Guillermo del Toro’s “The Shape Of Water” won the top prize and then went on to win the Oscar for Best Picture, which has happened one more time since with “Nomadland” and several key Oscar contenders since).

As is the case every year, September remains a notable film month mainly because so many overlapping and concurrent film festivals are taking place. As Venice, Telluride, and the Toronto International Film Festival begin and come to a close, with others such as Fantastic Fest and the New York Film Festival upcoming, there’s plenty on the horizon for exciting films even if they won’t be playing theatrically, for a few months.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director The fall movie season officially begins with the Labor Day holiday weekend, but it’s one of summer’s biggest blockbusters that’s set to dominate streaming this September. That would be Disney’s live-action “The Little Mermaid,” starring Halle Bailey as Ariel. The film earned a mighty $297 million at the domestic box office over the summer, while its worldwide gross tapped out at the $569 million mark.

Ellise Shafer The stars were out in Venice for Variety and the Golden Globe Awards’ party on Thursday night, featuring Chase Stokes, Kelsea Ballerini, Lukas Gage and Pablo Larraín. Presented by Iervolino and Lady Bacardi Entertainment, the event celebrated breakthrough talent and excellence in Italian filmmaking, handing out several awards under the moonlight.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Venice Gap-Financing Market is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year with record-breaking attendance and impressive new figures on the projects that the core component of Venice’s industry side has helped bring to the big screen. All told, over the span of a decade, “We have had 370 films (including immersive) from 70 countries and 80% of them have been completed within six months after the festival,” says Pascal Diot who heads the Venice Production Bridge, as the Lido’s market is known.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent France’s UFO Distribution has acquired French rights to Venice Horizons entry “An Endless Sunday” by first-time Italian director Alain Parroni from Fandango Sales. The film will segue from Venice to Toronto where it screens in the fest’s Discovery section.

At first glance, it might seem like Pablo Larraín’s last two films share only a couple of superficial commonalities: they are both biopics in the sense they tell stories of real-life people, Princess Diana in 2021’s “Spencer” and Augusto Pinochet in 2023’s “El Conde”; and they have both premiered in competition at the glitzy Venice Film Festival. Alas, scratch the surface and both films stand as an unlikely diptych about dysfunctional families dealing with the generational sins that have made and broken their bloodlines.

Pablo Larraín’s Maria Callas biopic starring Angelina Jolie, a mystery thriller created by Jim Keeble and Dudi Appleton are the first projects to be backed by Fremantle and IBI Investment House’s €150M ($162.7M) Scripted Fund.

Pablo Larraín’s string of mostly 20th century biographical dramas hits a pinnacle of audacious brilliance with El Conde (The Count), a madly inspired reinvention of events embedded in the notion that longtime Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet became a vampire who ultimately tires of life and wants out after living some 250 years. 

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent As Chile prepares to mark 50 years since the Sept. 11, 1973 coup by Augusto Pinochet, Chilean auteur Pablo Larraín is back in Venice – following “Spencer” in 2021 – with scathing satire “El Conde,” in which Pinochet, a symbol of global fascism, resurfaces as a 250-year old vampire living in a rundown rural mansion after faking his death. “Pinochet had never been portrayed in film or TV before,” Larrain said.

Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larraín returns to Venice this evening with his latest pic El Conde, a black-and-white satire of dictator Augusto Pinochet, which he co-wrote and directed for Netflix.

With six feature credits in the last decade, Pablo Larraín is among the most prolific filmmakers working today, but he returns to the Lido this week with a new proposition. 

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The 80th Venice Film Festival kicked off on Wednesday with World War II drama “Comandante” by young Italian auteur Edoardo De Angelis packing a strong political punch. Tensions due to the SAG-AFTRA strike lurked in the background, though without stealing the thunder of strong expectations for this year’s lineup.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The 80th Venice Film Festival kicks off tomorrow with a robust roster of awards season hopefuls making their bows, such as Michael Mann’s “Ferrari,” Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro,” Sophia Coppola’s “Priscilla” and David Fincher’s “The Killer,” accompanied by a smattering of stars. As previously reported by Variety, the festival has confirmed that Adam Driver will be in Venice to promote “Ferrari” while Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi, who play Priscilla and Elvis Presley in “Priscilla,” as well as Priscilla Presley herself, are also expected to be on the Lido.

Emiliano De Pablos Brazil’s Raccord Produções, Chile’s Araucaria Cine and France’s Nord-Ouest Films are teaming to produce acclaimed Brazilian filmmaker Gabe Klinger’s feature drama project “Okonomiyaki.” “Okonomiyaki” will topline celebrated Brazilian actor-helmer Leandra Leal (“A Wolf at the Door,” “The Oyster and the Wind”), Yuki Sugimoto, star of Disney+ series “Mila in the Multiverse,” and Marco Pigossi, of Netflix’s “Invisible City” and “Tidelands.” The feature-length project has been selected for the San Sebastian Film Festival’s Europe-Latin America Co-production Forum, its industry centerpiece, which runs Sept. 25-27.