Drew Barrymore is speaking out in a candid new interview.
26.05.2023 - 11:59 / deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: Sophie Holland has been among the UK’s busier casting directors in recent years. The London-based professional has worked on shows including The Witcher, Wednesday, You and The Continental, as well as upcoming movies such as Heads Of State with Priyanka Chopra and Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice sequel. Set up seven years ago, her company Sophie Holland Casting now has a headcount of five.
Amid broader industry upheaval and clamoring for change, casting has been through its own growing pains of late, as evidenced by the passionate response on Deadline to the self-tape issue.
At the heart of the self-tape debate is concern from actors about a lack of in-person auditions and the costs associated with self-taping. For their part, casting directors are dealing with a growing number of tapes and, until the recent strike action, a heavy volume of film and TV projects.
We spoke to Holland about the self-tape debate, some of her recent projects, actors to look out for, and plenty more.
DEADLINE: The self-tape debate has been a real flashpoint of late. What’s your take on where we’re at?
SOPHIE HOLLAND: It’s a very divisive topic, and it feels like the first time I can recall where there’s a schism between actors and casting directors, who are usually very close. It’s very sad. We need a new way forward that works for everybody. For years there were concerns about actors not being able to get in the room but things have evolved. Because of the pandemic and the need for self-taping, we have been able to see more people. Self-taping helped democratize the audition process in that it has allowed more of a level playing field with those who live in London where most auditions take place. Casting directors such as myself got
Drew Barrymore is speaking out in a candid new interview.
Michael Keaton is reuniting with Tim Burton to revive filmdom’s most beloved bio-exorcist in a long-awaited sequel to “Beetlejuice”.
Wednesday actress Jenna Ortega made headlines a few weeks back when she was spotted smoking a cigarette during an outing with fellow actor Gideon Aldon. The 20-year-old actress was captured on camera in Notting Hill, London, enjoying a drink and a smoke, seemingly oblivious to the "no smoking" sign above her.
Jenna Ortega’s mother posted about the risks of lung cancer in response to widely shared images of the star smoking on Wednesday.
were clearly disappointed to see their fave smoking a cigarette, nobody has had a better response than t actual mom. This content can also be viewed on the site it from.Pictures and videos of Ortega having a smoke went viral in late May, causing an impromptu antismoking campaign among the on the internet. “WTF JENNA SMOKES? NOOO,” read one tweet. “Yh she’s off the roster,” another lamented.
Jenna Ortega is being called out by her own mother.
Wednesday” has been one of Netflix’s biggest hits, in large part, thanks to its lead star. Jenna Ortega has been slowly and steadily building a career, with “Wednesday” launching her status to new heights and earning her a Golden Globe nomination. The series creators, Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, have a great amount of respect for Ortega, calling her a “once in a generation” type of talent.
Jenna Ortega’s mum has responded to a viral video showing her daughter smoking.Last week, a clip showing the Wednesday actor appearing to smoke a cigarette was circulated by fans online, with some raising concerns for her health.In response, Jenna’s mum, Natalie Ortega, uploaded various posts to her Instagram Story on Tuesday (May 30) to highlight the dangers of smoking.The 13-post breakdown starts with a meme showing Gollum from The Lord Of The Rings, with the caption: “Don’t believe those lies about cigarettes being bad for you. I’ve been smoking for most my 21 years and I feel great!”After various slides which highlight the diseases and “repulsive” smell that smoking can cause, Natalie closes out with a quote about motherhood.
having a baby with his 29-year-old girlfriend. Pacino’s news comes just weeks after De Niro revealed that, at 79 years old, he is also a new father once again.And while the hosts of “The View” didn’t judge the actors for having children with much younger women, especially considering the fact that the men have the means to take care of their families, host Sunny Hostin expressed concern for the children’s futures.“The only thing that I do worry about is the grief that a child will suffer if that parent passes away sooner rather than later,” she said, before adding a caveat.
William Earl Variety’s Actors on Actors series returns featuring the biggest stars in this year’s TV Emmys race for Season 18. The four episodes will debut on PBS SoCal on Thursday January 15th starting at 8:00 pm, followed by encores on KCET and public television stations across the country and the WORLD Channel (check local listings). All episodes will stream on pbssocal.org and the free PBS App following their premieres. Variety’s Actors on Actors issue will hit newsstands on June 7th and the conversations will start airing on Tuesday, June 6th on Variety.com and its social media channels. This year’s “Actors on Actors” lineup includes:
William Earl Taylor Swift is such a force that her post-quarantine “Eras Tour” was a sensation the moment tickets went on sale. Despite Swift playing the biggest venues possible for multiple days in each city, the wild demand has helped to make each stop national news, especially as they are documented in real time on social media. Livestreams dominate on TikTok, “I-can’t-believe-you-got-tickets” posts rise to the top on Instagram, and the media cycle analyzes every change in Swift’s setlist, as well her famous friends in attendance. Beyond the hoopla, Swift’s May 26 NYC show at MetLife Stadium was a dazzling display of an artist at the height of her powers, able to elevate her success over her previously-set peaks. Swift paved the way to the “Eras Tour” via a wildly productive quarantine, when she recorded her sound-shifting trilogy of albums “Folklore,” “Evermore,” and “Midnights.” Those records broadened her appeal and won new fans, but her audience wondered how she’d ever be able to properly tour that trio plus her previous album, “Lover,” the tour of which was canceled because of COVID-19.
The Flash movie has let slip a huge new cameo.The DC movie, which is set for release on June 16 recently revealed that both Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck would feature in a recent trailer.Now Muschietti has revealed that Nicolas Cage will appear as Superman in The Flash.“Nic was absolutely wonderful,” Muschietti told Esquire Middle East. “He is a massive Superman fan.
#TheFlashMovie pic.twitter.com/Eadn1lVYcQAlfred Pennyworth is played by English actor Jeremy Irons, who previously played the character in the films “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” and “Justice League.” Irons brought his own spin to the iconic character, portraying Alfred as a hero with a small “h.” “Alfred’s not a superhero, but in some small, retiring way, I think he could be regarded with a small ‘h’ as a bit of a hero,” Irons previously told Screenrant. “I think he’s a good calming influence, he’s a good advisor.
The Snuts have announced their new single ‘Gloria’, and explained to NME how the single marks a new chapter for the band and why they decided to split from their record label.The new track marks the band’s first new music since 2022’s ‘Burn The Empire’ and, as frontman Jack Cochrane told NME, marks a vital new milestone in the band’s history – as they venture away from their longtime record label and seek new ways to reconnect with the indie scene.“It’s been one of my favourite tracks that we’ve done to date,” said Cochrane of venturing outside of his comfort zone with ‘Gloria’ by harnessing a more optimistic message than he’s used to. “What I tried to do was create this classic love song – just celebrate the happy things that come in relationships, you know?”“In music nowadays, there are so many heartbreak songs, but certainly with the music that I love — the golden oldies and stuff —they’re all super pure love songs,” he added.
Smiths drummer Mike Joyce appeared on BBC Breakfast today (May 21) to pay tribute to his late bandmate Andy Rourke.Rourke died after “a lengthy illness with pancreatic cancer”, confirmed a statement from bandmate Johnny Marr on Friday (May 19). He was 59 years old.Since then, tributes from across the music industry have poured in, with Joyce himself hailing Rourke’s “perpetual” musical legacy, while Morrissey said of Rourke: “I just hope … wherever Andy has gone … that he’s OK.
Refresh for updates…Sean Penn, asked about the current state of big wig studio chiefs and the plight of writers and directors, said today at the Black Flies presser, “The industry has been uspending the writers and directors for a long time. I fully support the situation with writers guild, of course.”
iconic venue announced that it was facing threat of closure due to its landlord issuing a notice of eviction, which lead to an an outpouring of upset and support from the music world.The Leadmill is owned by Electric Group — who also own London’s Electric Brixton, Bristol’s SWX and Newcastle’s NX. They bought the site’s freehold in 2017 and previously told music fans that they had no intention of closing the venue when they end the current occupiers’ lease in 2023.
U.K. Royals expert Neil Sean cast doubts on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s claim that they were involved in a "near catastrophic car chase" involving paparazzi in New York City, telling Fox News Wednesday that the couple has "proven to be liars." "The difficulty is with Harry and Meghan, they've proven to be liars previously.
Ethan Shanfeld Andy Grammer, Walk the Moon, Moby, Mike Shinoda and Grace VanderWaal are among 150 artists and songwriters participating in New York City’s Anti Social Camp, taking place June 12-17. The biggest songwriting camp in the world, Anti Social Camp is free of charge and will feature 100 recording sessions, as well as a calendar of shows and parties. The goal is for artists, songwriters and producers to gather and create hit songs in a limited timeframe. Select songs will be curated for the inaugural Anti Social Camp compilation album, which will be distributed exclusively through music company Amuse.
Timothée Chalamet is gearing up to showcase his multiple talents on Wonka, a prequel musical film based on the characters from Roal Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.