Erich Hoeber Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

K.J. Yossman The sequel to Jason Statham-fronted shark thriller “The Meg” has begun shooting in the U.K., Variety can confirm.Production on “Meg 2: The Trench” has kicked off with a splash at Warner Bros.-owned Leavesden Studios outside London, where the Harry Potter and Batman franchises were also shot.The film, about a murderous 80-foot prehistoric shark, is directed by “Rebecca” helmer Ben Wheatley, who takes the reins from Jon Turteltaub.

Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia‘s Seven Bucks Productions has brought in former senior Sony TV comedy executive Scott Landsman as Head of Television. Meanwhile, Verve’s Melissa Fried has come on board as VP of Film Development & Production.

As she heads into the third weekend of release, Warner Bros’ Barbie has hit two new milestones, crossing both $500M at the international box office and the nine-century mark worldwide. The Greta Gerwig-directed phenomenon added $16.8M from 69 offshore markets on Thursday, bringing the overseas total to $509.7M through yesterday. Globally, the doll is standing tall with $916.1M as she looks to rollerblade past $1B this weekend. 

This summer, experience the ultimate adrenaline rush when “Meg 2: The Trench” hits theatres.

McKinley Franklin editor Jason Statham comes face to face with another deep sea-dwelling prehistoric creature — the Kronosaurus — in the official trailer for “Meg 2: The Trench.” Shortly after “The Meg” grossed $530 million worldwide in 2018, its sequel was confirmed. The original film followed a group of scientists whose submarine was attacked by a Megladon —  a species of giant shark previously thought to be extinct. While details about “Meg 2” have been under wraps since production began in early 2022, Warner Bros. has pulled back the curtain on the film after debuting its first trailer ahead of the movie’s Aug. 4 premiere. As the title suggests, the team of scientists will return to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean where the Megalodon was discovered in the original film. Picking up a few years after the timeline in “The Meg,” Statham’s character, Jonas Taylor, and his research team discover the thought-to-be extinct Kronosaurus, an alligator-adjacent creature that lived during the Early Cretaceous period over 100 million years ago.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer The Writers Guild of America officially began negotiations on Monday with the studios, as the union seeks to increase compensation and set minimum standards for the size and duration of writers rooms. Over the decades, bargaining has become a highly ritualized process, with each step carefully scripted. The guild has already told members that the initial round of talks will last for two weeks. At that point, the WGA will advise the membership on “what next steps we believe are necessary,” said writer-director Kay Cannon in a video posted on Friday. If it’s anything like the last contentious negotiation, in 2017, the guild will seek a strike authorization vote, which would give negotiators leverage for the final round of talks.

EXCLUSIVE: A slew have just boarded Paramount’s upcoming Transformers: Rise of the Beasts including Peter Dinklage (as the voice of Scourge), Liza Koshy (as the voice of Arcee), John DiMaggio (as the voice of Stratosphere), David Sobolov (as Rhinox/Battletrap), Michaela Jaé Rodriguez (as Nightbird), Cristo Fernández (as Wheeljack), and Tobe Nwigwe (as Reek).

Actor Will Smith is returning to the world of action filmmaking partnering with director David Leitch (“Hobbs & Shaw,” “Deadpool,” “Atomic Blonde“) for “Fast & Loose” at STXfilms. Screenwriters Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber are behind the film’s high-concept script that sees Smith playing a man that “wakes up in Tijuana with no memories.

Actor Will Smith is returning to the world of action filmmaking partnering with director David Leitch (“Hobbs & Shaw,” “Deadpool,” “Atomic Blonde“) for “Fast & Loose” at STXfilms. Screenwriters Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber are behind the film’s high-concept script that sees Smith playing a man that “wakes up in Tijuana with no memories.

EXCLUSIVE: In what marks another big starry package for Netflix the streamer has acquired worldwide rights to the action thriller Fast & Loose from STXfilms, with Will Smith set to star and David Leitch to direct. Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber penned the script.