Paramount Theatrical Marketing and Distribution Exec Cameron Saunders Exits

Afternoon subscribers. Max Goldbart here with your weekly dose of International Insider news and analysis and it’s been as busy as ever over the past seven days. Scroll down for more.

Livingston are set to finally welcome Russian goalkeeper Ivan Konovalov to West Lothian – but he won’t be available for Saturday’s clash with St Mirren.

ViacomCBS unveiled a slew of new news Tuesday during an investor day presentation that followed the release of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings.

Paramount+, which has been rolling out to dozens of global territories over the past year, will reach the key European market of France as part of a wide-ranging partnership with Canal+.

There is a Sexy Beast prequel series happening after all.

Manori Ravindran International Editor“Sexy Beast” is back, and it’s part of a slate of six international scripted originals heading to Paramount Plus, Variety can reveal.The long-simmering “Sexy Beast” prequel series has evidently been resuscitated for the streamer after being scrapped for Paramount Network in 2020.The U.K.-originated show, based on the cult classic film of the same name, centers on the characters of Gal Dove and Don Logan (originally played by Ray Winstone and Ben Kingsley, respectively) as they descend into London’s criminal underbelly during the volatile 1990s.Paramount Plus describes the series as “a love story between two men — à la Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” It’s produced by Chapter One and VIS, with showrunner Michael Caleo (“The Sopranos”) attached. Also heading to Paramount Plus out of the U.K.

ViacomCBS is supersizing reality competition franchise The Challenge.

Jamie Lang After a banner 2021 for high-end genre films, industry vets are hopeful that the fantastic can resurrect the corpse of pre-COVID theatrical distribution.As bolts of lightning reanimated the body of Frankenstein’s monster, Julia Ducournau’s “Titane,” which turned heads when it took the Palme d’Or at Cannes, and Sundance Grand Jury prize-winner “Nanny,” a supernatural tale from director Nikyatu Jusu, have revitalized the festival scene.While “Nanny” may have been the jewel in the genre crown at Sundance, the influence that genre cinema held over 2022’s first major festival was wide-ranging and undeniable. Chloe Okuno’s psychological thriller “Watcher” impressed — segueing into several sales deals — as did Hanna Bergholm’s psycho-horror feature “Hatching,” sold by Wild Bunch and Charades-sold Spanish standout “Piggy,” the follow-up to Carlota Pereda’s 2019 Spanish Academy Award-winner “Cerdita.” Among genre titles at Berlin this year are Dario Argento’s serial killer thriller “Dark Glasses” in the Berlinale Special section, while Bertrand Bonello’s subconscious voyage “Coma” and Peter Strickland’s gory “Flux Gourmet” (pictured above) feature in Encounters.

EXCLUSIVE: Growing theatrical distributor and streamer MUBI has picked up all rights from The Match Factory to Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Oscar breakout Drive My Car for Latin America, India, Malaysia, Africa (excluding French language Pay-TV rights) and the Middle East (excluding Israel and Turkey).

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentEuropean cinema admissions rose an estimated 38% in 2021, with over 590 million total tickets sold, generating a 42% rise in box office to €3.7 billion ($4.2 billion) compared with the all-time low year of 2020.The preliminary figures were released on Monday by the International Union of Cinemas (UNIC), the trade org representing European cinema associations. It comprises cinema exhibitors and their national trade associations across 39 European territories, some of which do not belong to the European Union.At a EU level — which covers the U.K.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent“Kompromat,” an anticipated spy thriller directed by Jerome Salle (“Zulu,” “L’Odyssée”) with Gilles Lellouche (“The Stronghold”) and Joanna Kulig (“Cold War”), has been sold by SND to distributors in key territories. Inspired by a true story, “Kompromat” stars Lellouche as a French diplomat working Siberia who discovers he is being framed by FBI and has to find his way out of the trap.

Paramount+ is heading to the honky tonk.

The Flashdance series reboot has moved a step closer to the ballroom after Justin Simien boarded the Paramount+ project.

Paramount Pictures EVP of International Marketing & Distribution, Cameron Saunders, is leaving the studio to pursue other opportunities.

Wyatte Grantham-Philips editor“Free Chol Soo Lee” has been acquired by global distributor, streamer and production company MUBI.The documentary, which premiered last week at the Sundance Film Festival, will come to U.S. theaters in 2022, with release plans in other territories (Latin America, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Turkey, the U.K.

Kate Middleton's stepped out today in a chic khaki animal print dress as she visited Shout, to meet with clinical supervisors, volunteers and fundraisers to thank them for their invaluable efforts to ensure that vital mental health support is available across the UK at any time of day or night. Kate, who turned 40 this month, has certainly developed her own signature style in recent years, and seems to be growing with confidence and maturity at each new outing we see of her.