Sony Pictures TV Executive Lauren Moffat Joins Doug Robinson Productions As EVP

Sony Pictures Classics has pushed back the theatrical release date for Eva Husson’s romantic drama Mothering Sunday, starring Odessa Young, by a month—from February 25 to March 25. It will open in theaters in New York and Los Angeles, on the heels of a one-week, awards-qualifying run in Los Angeles in November of 2021, before expanding to other markets over the following weeks.

Eddie Vedder is not a fan of Mötley Crüe — and apparently the feeling is mutual.

EXCLUSIVE: Following the massive success of Spider-man: No Way Home, Sony is looking to to expand on its Marvel Cinematic Universe as sources tell Deadline that Dakota Johnson is in talks to star in the studio’s Madame Web movie. S.J. Clarkson is on board to direct the pic.Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless. penned the screenplay.

Refresh for latest…: With a major assist from the phenomenal global box office performance of Spider-Man: No Way Home, Sony Pictures Entertainment has recorded a third-quarter profit of $1.314 billion, up a staggering 570% from the comparable period in 2020. Revenues saw a 122% increase to $4.063 billion versus the same quarter the previous year.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefSony’s pictures division achieved net profits of $1.3 billion in the three months to December 2021, boosted by a return to theatrical releasing and the blockbuster performance of “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The $1.31 billion figure compares with profits of $194 million in the equivalent quarter of 2020, and with profits of $288 million in the preceding three months to end of September 2021.Parent company, Sony Group’s net profits grew by 20% in the three months to December 2021 hitting JPY461 billion. Sales were up by 13% to JPY3.03 trillion.The bumper results, unusually, made the pictures division the largest contributor to Sony’s consolidated net profits.

EXCLUSIVE: Sarena Khan and Andra Gordon’s Athena Pictures and Starlings Television, led by Chris Philip, have teamed with Propagate Content’s Ben Silverman to co-produce Shadowland, a female-driven wildlife crime thriller series, from Jacqui Barcos, director Darnell Martin (American Rust, The Good Lord Bird) and executive producer Peter Elkoff (Sons of Anarchy, Chance).

EXCLUSIVE: Teresa Hsiao, co-creator, executive producer and showrunner of Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens, has signed an overall deal with Sony Pictures Television to develop comedy and animation for cable streaming platforms via her Red 136 Productions.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterWarner Bros. and HBO Max has nabbed “Am I OK?,” a romantic comedy starring Dakota Johnson as a woman grappling with her sexuality.

Saturday Night Live‘s Alex Moffat has joined Bill Lawrence’s Apple TV+ series Bad Monkey in a key recurring role opposite Vince Vaughn. Written and executive produced by Lawrence based on Carl Hiaasen’s popular 2013 novel, Bad Monkey tells the story of Andrew Yancy (Vaughn), a one-time detective demoted to restaurant inspector in Southern Florida. A severed arm found by a tourist out fishing pulls Yancy into the world of greed and corruption that decimates the land and environment in both Florida and the Bahamas. And yes, there’s a monkey. Moffat will play Evan Shook, an obnoxious real estate developer from Maryland who has bought the land next door to Andrew Yancy (Vaughn) on a secluded promontory in Big Pine Key and is in the process of developing a hideous spec house that is an affront to Yancy’s environmentalist sensibilities. Yancy makes it his mission to scuttle Shook’s plans, creating one problem after another for Shook as he desperately tries to find a buyer for his McMansion. Moffat has been a cast member on SNL since 2016. His other credits include features Clifford the Big Red Dog, Holidate and Someone Great and a guest-starring role on Billions.

Naman Ramachandran Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) has acquired exclusive South Asia media rights for the 2022 Asian Games taking place later this year at Hangzhou, China. SPN will have the rights to broadcast the games across its sports channels in India and the subcontinent including Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Afghanistan, Bhutan and Maldives, and on streamer SonyLIV through Sept. 2023.

Naman Ramachandran Spanish company Soul Pictures has boarded international sales on Indian filmmaker Prasun Chatterjee’s debut feature “Two Friends” (“Dostojee”).Set in 1992-93, when Hindu-Muslim tensions escalated in India in the aftermath of the demolition of the Babri Masjid and the Bombay bomb blasts and percolated down to a remote village on the India-Bangladesh border, the film follows the friendship of two eight-year-old boys. Palash, the son of a Hindu Brahmin and Safikul, whose father is a Muslim weaver, are best friends, but fate intervenes.The film world premiered at the 2021 BFI London Film Festival, played at the Dhaka International Festival and will play at the Goteborg Film Festival from this Friday.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter“Living,” an acclaimed re-imagining of Akira Kurosawa’s classic meaning-of-life story, has been sold to Sony Pictures Classics follow its premiere at Sundance Film Festival.Sony Pictures Classics, the indie division of Sony Pictures, has acquired rights in North America, Latin America, India, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, Germany, South Africa, Southeast Asia, and airlines worldwide. A release date has not been announced yet.“Living” was directed by Oliver Hermanus and written by Nobel Prize-winning author Kazuo Ishiguro.

EXCLUSIVE: Living, one of the Sundance buzz titles since its January 21 premiere, has been acquired by Sony Pictures Classics for around $5 million for North American and some international territories, Deadline hears. This after a brisk auction involving the likes of Neon, Bleecker Street, and Focus Features.

EXCLUSIVE: Living, one of the Sundance buzz titles since its January 21 premiere, is near a deal to be acquired by Sony Pictures Classics for around $5 million for North American and some international territories, Deadline hears. This after a brisk auction involving the likes of Neon, Bleecker Street, and Focus Features.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterSony Pictures Television has promoted Jennifer Turner to head of its TriStar Television, effective immediately.As the new executive vice president of the banner, Turner aims to expand the creative universe for TriStar Television, canvassing both coasts for fresh perspectives and projects that align with the label’s mission to champion diverse, authentic characters and underrepresented voices, per Sony. She will report to Jason Clodfelter, co-president of Sony Pictures Television Studios, and work closely with TriStar Television senior vice president Christina Jokanovich and director Alex Villalta.Turner, who is filling the position left vacant by Kathryn Busby following her move to Starz, will be based in New York while also traveling regularly to Los Angeles.

Sony Pictures has acquired global rights to Rosalind Ross’ feature directorial debut Father Stu, starring and produced by Oscar nominee Mark Wahlberg.

NEW YORK -- Dale Dickey tends to get “those crusty roles,” as she heard someone once call them. A familiar, craggy face from films like “Winter’s Bone” and “Hell or High Water,” Dickey has long been a riveting supporting player in rural dramas.But in the Sundance entry “A Love Song,” Dickey, long a standout character actor, finally takes the lead. Even for her, it felt a little strange.“I don’t do leads in films.