By Kurt Balingit
Nicole Kassel has been hired as the director by New Line Cinema for the upcoming “the Wizard of Oz” remake. New Line Cinema has been searching for a visionary filmmaker to re-imagine L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz“. Baum’s story has be retold on all levels of theatre and cinema, so it was imperative for New Line to approach the story with a fresh take on the Land of Oz.
New Line Cinema believes Kassell is the right woman for the job based on her performance directing the HBO series “Watchmen” & “Westworld“. It is her ability to create worlds with striking visual tones with no details overlooked that landed her this directing role for “The Wizard of Oz”.
Kassel stated, “I am incredibly honored to join Temple Hill and New Line in bringing this beloved classic to the screen, While the 1939 musical is part of my DNA, I am exhilarated and humbled by the responsibility of re-imagining such a legendary tale. The opportunity to examine the original themes, the quest for courage, love, wisdom and home, feels more timely and urgent than ever. These are profoundly iconic shoes to fill, and I am eager to dance alongside these heroes of my childhood as we pave a newly minted yellow brick road!”
There is currently no information on the cast for the movie as it is still in early development, but with the land of Oz in the hands of Kassel, it is sure to be a great crew.
by Emily Nagle
For the first time in 6 years, the Golden Globes has recognized female filmmakers, nominating not one, but three women for the best director award this year.
Natalie Portman received media attention at the 2018 Golden Globes for pointing out the lack of female representation in the nominee lineup, remarking, “Here are the all-male nominees.” The women nominated for the 78th Golden Globe Awards are Chloe Zhao (Nomadland), Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman), and Regina King (One Night in Miami). They will be running against David Fincher (Mank) and Aaron Sorkin (The Trial of the Chicago 7).
Women are heavily underrepresented in film, comprising only 16% of directors for the highest-grossing films of 2020. The percentage is slowly increasing each year, but this still demonstrates the gender imbalance in the film industry. In the 77 years that the Golden Globes have run for, five female directors had been nominated — Barbra Streisand (Yentl, The Prince of Tides), Jane Campion (The Piano), Sofia Coppola (Lost in Translation), Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty); and Ava DuVernay (Selma). Other film award shows exhibit a similar pattern. Over the past 92 years, the Academy Awards has nominated five women: Lina Wertmüller (Seven Beauties), Jane Campion (The Piano), Sofia Coppola (Lost in Translation), Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) and Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird).
The 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards will air on February 28th, 2021 on NBC.
by Emily Nagle
A Disney+ series set in Wakanda has been confirmed to be in the works, making it the latest show set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to be on the streaming platform.
The series is part of a five-year deal that has been made between Disney and Coogler’s media company, Proximity. This was negotiated by WME, Charles King of M88 and Jonathan Gardner, Esq. of Cohen & Gardner on Proximity’s behalf.
Coogler expressed his excitement for the new pact in a statement, “It’s an honor to be partnering with The Walt Disney Company. Working with them on Black Panther was a dream come true…We look forward to learning, growing, and building a relationship with audiences all over the world through the Disney platforms…we will be working closely with [members of the Disney team] on select MCU shows for Disney+. We’re already in the mix on some projects that we can’t wait to share.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, a Black Panther sequel has been confirmed with a release date of July 8, 2022, with production set to begin in Atlanta in July of this year. However, at the moment Disney is more focused on its many series that have yet to be produced.
by Emily Nagle
[usr 4.5]
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010), directed by Edgar Wright, is a live-action film adaptation of the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels by Bryan Lee O’Malley. It follows 22-year-old Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera), a bassist for a Toronto garage band called Sex Bob-Omb, as he tries to win the heart of mysterious Amazon delivery girl Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). However, this is no simple task – in order to get with Ramona, he must defeat her seven evil exes. At the same time, Sex Bob-Omb is trying to score a record deal by competing in a Battle of the Bands competition.
What I love most about this movie is how it’s fun to look at. They managed to maintain the cartoonish aspect of the comic book it’s based on with, most notably with the onomatopoeia words that pop up onscreen during the fight scenes. It even features some animated segments that use art from the comic, like when Ramona is recalling her time dating her first evil ex, Matthew Patel (Satya Bhabha). It also gives off a bit of an anime vibe at certain points, like when Matthew Patel smashes through the ceiling of the venue during the competition and challenges Scott to a fight. Lastly, the soundtrack is one of my favorites. Beck wrote and performed all of the songs for the Sex Bob-Omb, and did well at replicating the scratchy, rough sound that comes to mind when you think of a garage rock band.
Despite all these positives, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World was a box-office bomb when it hit theaters in summer 2010. Why? The only negative I can think of for the movie is that the video game references may not be appealing to everyone. The movie is filled to the brim with video game sound effects and graphics that teens and young adults who grew up gaming will get a kick out of, but people may not feel the same way if they’re not as familiar with gaming.
by Emily Nagle
Variety has officially confirmed that Netflix’s On My Block has been renewed for a fourth and final season.
The show was created by Lauren Iungerich, Eddie Gonzalez, and Jeremy Halt, and stars Sierra Capri, Jason Genao, Brett Gray, and Diego Tinoco. On My Block follows four teens living in a rough South Los Angeles neighborhood as they navigate high school, romance, and friendships. It also explores difficult topics including PTSD, gangs, and death. The previous season was released on Netflix in March 2020.
On My Block‘s third season left off on a cliffhanger, leaping forward a couple years into the future to show the splintering of the core friend group of the show. Due to the ongoing pandemic hindering television and film production, the premiere date for the upcoming 10-episode season has not yet been confirmed. Fans of the series will have to wait to find out what becomes of Monse, Cesar, Ruby, and Jamal.
The legendary stage and screen actress Cloris Leachman passed away in the company of family on January 27, 2021 at the age of 94 due to natural causes. Leachman was legend in the entertainment industry with 22 Emmy nominations, holding the record for most Emmy nominations of all time. She is also tied with Seinfeld actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus with the most Emmy Wins with 8 under her belt.
Leachman competed in the 1946 Miss America pageant as Miss Chicago. Although she didn’t win, she used her pageant money to move to New York City where her acting career would soon take off. She attended the Actors Studio studying acting alongside future icons Marlon Brando, Julie Harris, and Eli Wallach.
Although her breakout came on the big screen, with her role in ‘The Last Picture Show’ which snatched her an Academy Award nomination, television was where she shot her career into legendary status. She played Phyllis Lindstrom in the iconic ‘Mary Tyler Moore Show’. Phyllis was the Snobbish landlord where Mary and Rhoda Morgenstern (Valerie Harper) lived.
She received Emmy nominations for her for roles in ‘A Brand New Life’,’Cher’, ‘The Woman Who Willed a Miracle’,’Promised Land’ and most recently ‘Malcolm in the Middle. With an acting career spanning over 7 decades, the entertainment industry will never be the same.
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