TIFF at 50: Cameron Bailey Reflects on Building Cinema Community in an Era of Constant Change
One of the many pleasures of attending the annual Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is the moments when festival CEO Cameron Bailey strides onto the stage to introduce a premiere or talk with a filmmaker. It’s during those screenings that this festival’s unique blend of art, accessibility, and audience engagement comes fully into focus.
“I never think that people who know movies and love movies should ever be snobby about it.
Venice Knockout: Dwayne Johnson’s “The Smashing Machine” Gets 15-Minute Standing Ovation at Venice Film Festival
Dwayne Johnson might have entered the Oscars ring.
The star got a very Oscar-friendly reception at the Venice Film Festival on Monday night, where he was on hand for the world premiere of Benny Safdie’s The Smashing Machine. Johnson stars as MMA legend Mark Kerr, sporting a prosthetic and an accent, marking an intriguing career pivot into prestige films. The result? A 15-minute standing ovation from the audience,
Emmy Nominees Cathy Sandrich Gelfond & Erica Berger on Casting the Scrappy Young Doctors of “The Pitt”
When The Pitt started streaming on HBO Max in January, the influx of intense young actors just kept coming. ER star Noah Wyle anchors the medical drama as the cracked tower of strength, Doctor Michael “Robby” Rabinovitch; nearly all the other characters on his fractious emergency room team are portrayed by relatively unknown talents delivering performances that are, by turns, wrenching and highly technical.
The Pitt,
Bella & Edward Return: The “Twilight” Saga Rerelease Dates Revealed for Special Five-Day Run
The film franchise that turned Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson into global stars is returning to theaters, and now we know when.
Lionsgate has announced that all five Twilight films will return to theaters from October 29 to November 2. Twilight (2008) will kick off the series on October 29, followed by New Moon (2009) on October 30, Eclipse (2010) on October 31, Breaking Dawn –
First Image From “Star Wars: Starfighter” Drops as Film Begins Production, Amy Adams & Aaron Pierre Join Cast
We’ve got our first look from the set of Star Wars: Starfighter, and it comes with a major update—Amy Adams and rising star Aaron Pierre have joined Ryan Gosling in the upcoming film from Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy.
“I feel a profound sense of excitement and honor as we begin production on Star Wars: Starfighter,” Levy said in a statement as production kicks off in the United Kingdom.
The Studio Giant You’ve Never Heard Of: How MBS Group Powers James Cameron and Some of Hollywood’s Biggest Productions
You might not recognize the name The MBS Group right away, but if you ever wandered through legendary studio lots like Radford Studio Center, Culver Studios, Raleigh Studios, or Symmetry Park Studios London, you’ve stepped onto one of the nearly 50 studio campuses they operate globally. The company is the world’s largest studio operator, running top-tier campuses in iconic entertainment hubs like Los Angeles, New York, and London. But they’re not just renting out space — they’re the behind-the-scenes powerhouse designing studios,
Cinematographer Matthew Libatique on Shooting Back-to-Back NYC Thrillers for Spike Lee & Darren Aronofsky
Cinematographer Matthew Libatique grew up in Queens. He knows New York City, which is a good thing because his knowing eye lends luster to a pair of urban thrillers hitting screens this month courtesy of directors Spike Lee and Darren Aronofsky. Libatique, Oscar-nominated for Black Swan, A Star Is Born, and Maestro, shot four previous movies for Lee before helping the iconic New Yorker in his latest,
“The Roses” Director Jay Roach & Writer Tony McNamara On Benedict Cumberbatch & Olivia Colman’s Comedic Chemistry
Director and producer Jay Roach, known for making some of the most iconic comedies of the last 25 years, is now helming a reimagining of another classic with The Roses. Written by two-time Oscar-nominee Tony McNamara, The Roses is a fresh take on Danny DeVito’s classic 1989 movie The War of the Roses.
While the original boasted the iconic pairing of Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner,
“Hamnet” First Look: Chloé Zhao’s Oscar Contender Stars Paul Mescal & Jessie Buckley
There’s a very healthy cross-section of book and movie lovers who are eager, dare I say thrilled, that writer/director Chloé Zhao’s upcoming feature is an adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s moving novel, “Hamnet.” In that piece of brilliant historical fiction, O’Farrell treated us to the tortured origin story, if you will, of William Shakespeare’s deathless work “Hamlet,” which, we learn, was inspired by his wife’s struggle to overcome the loss of their only son, Hamnet. Hamnet was taken from them by the Black Death,
Jessica Chastain Hunts Domestic Terrorists in Chilling “The Savant” Trailer
The first trailer for The Savant offers a chilling statistic—between 1994 and 2020, there were 893 extremist attacks in America. The people committed to doing their best to protect us from even more of them aren’t often the ones who might think of it. In fact, we mostly don’t know they exist. Jessica Chastain’s character in Savant is one such person—a suburban mom by day, a tireless hunter by night. Chastain,
Keira Knightley’s Luxury Cruise Becomes a Nightmare in “The Woman in Cabin 10” Trailer
All aboard the first trailer for director Simon Stone’s The Woman in Cabin 10, starring Keira Knightley as a travel writer who boards a luxury cruise ship that looks just a little too good to be true. Knightley plays Laura Blacklock, an award-winning journalist who finds herself at the center of a dangerous mystery once the yacht sets sail. A passenger is thrown overboard—Laura sees it happen—only to find that her fellow passengers,
Why Ron Howard’s “Eden” Isn’t the Movie You’d Expect – And That’s the Point
Two-time Oscar-winning filmmaker Ron Howard knows that Eden isn’t the kind of movie you’d expect him to make, which is one of the reasons he made it.
Based on real events, it tells the story of a group of outsiders who settle on a remote island in the Galapagos but quickly find out that the biggest danger they face isn’t the environment or the wildlife, but each other. Eden boasts an ensemble cast including Jude Law,
Nicolas Cage Circling Starring Role in “True Detective” Season 5
It feels like a piece of casting that has to happen. Nicolas Cage is in talks to star in season 5 of HBO’s moody, character-driven crime drama True Detective, a series in which the lead detectives get plum, multifaceted roles that feel tailor-made for a performer who loves nothing more than to disappear into a role.
The last season of the anthology series, True Detective: Night Country,
Dr. Robby and The Staff Return for a Second Shift in “The Pitt” Season 2 Trailer
HBO Max has just dropped the first trailer for season two of The Pitt, and it manages, in just over a minute, to remind you what made the first season such a thrill ride. The 15-episode first run, nominated for 13 Emmys, covered one 15-hour shift at the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center (inspired by the Allegheny General Hospital, which was used in filming for the entrance, helipad, and rooftop). The shift, usually 12 hours,
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” Adds “Severance” Breakout Star Tramell Tillman
Mr. Milchick is about to go from Lumon Industries to New York City.
Tramell Tillman, one of the breakout stars from Apple TV+’s Emmy-darling Severance, has been cast in director Destin Daniel Cretton’s upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Variety reports. Tillman will join Tom Holland, returning for his fourth swing as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Jon Bernthal, playing Frank Castle/Punisher, Mark Ruffalo,
Creating a Corporate Dystopia With “Severance” Season 2’s Set Decorator David Schlesinger
Leading this year’s Emmys pack with 27 nominations, the sophomore season of Severance goes deeper into the cult-like and twisted Lumon Industries, where a group of employees chose a surgical procedure that permanently bifurcates their work memories (“innies”) from their true selves (“outies”). Created by Dan Erickson, the slow-burn workplace thriller follows severed employee, Mark (Adam Scott), and his colleagues who work on the labyrinthine severed floor under the supervision of Mr.
From Stage to Screen for “SNL50”: How Production Designers & the Editing Team Shaped 5 Decades of Comedy
As the longest-running sketch comedy show in US television history, Saturday Night Live has not only shaped generations of comedians and cultural commentary, but it’s also become an institution for live performance. Some of its most iconic moments are when cast members can’t help but laugh themselves. But behind the humor is a bustling backdrop of production design, costumes, hair, makeup, lighting,
80 Wigs & Zero Dress Rehearsal: Inside the Hair and Makeup Magic That Made “SNL50” Possible
When Saturday Night Live first aired in October 1975, no one could have predicted it would become a cornerstone of American culture. Now, five decades later, Lorne Michaels and company have celebrated another milestone with SNL50: The Anniversary Special, a three-hour telecast directed by Liz Patrick, which brought together Studio 8H legends onto one stage.
With a star-studded cast that included current performers, alumni,
From “Better Call Saul” to Better Call for Backup: How Bob Odenkirk and 87North Are Redefining Action Comedy
In just six years, including five of the film industry’s most challenging periods, powerhouse filmmakers David Leitch and Kelly McCormick have founded and grown 87North Productions, making it a formidable force in Hollywood and beyond.
Anchored in the action genre, the production and action design company’s catalog includes the third and fourth John Wick movies, Bullet Train, Violent Night,
“Freakier Friday” Costume Designer Natalie O’Brien on Creating a Four-Way Body Swap
Freakier Friday, directed by Nisha Ganatra, really is freakier than its predecessor, 2003’s Freaky Friday, as the number of characters unwittingly swapping bodies has risen to four. Anna (Lindsay Lohan) and her teenage daughter, Harper (Julia Butters) land in each other’s corporeal forms, while even weirder for the group, Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her step-granddaughter-to-be, Lily (Sophia Hammons) find themselves swapped.
The medium for this switch is a disarmingly hacky multi-hyphenate palm reader,
