No one knows about the dearth of film and television opportunities for South Asian actors better than the actors themselves. "A lot of my early work deals with the issues around the war on terror or Islamophobia, but I'm proud to say it deals with and engages those issues in creative ways and I hope in ways that move us forward rather than doubling down on lazy stereotypes," said Riz Ahmed, the Emmy-nominated lead of HBO's The Night Of (and a star of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), during THR's TV Drama Actor Roundtable this spring. "There was a lot of, like, Terrorist No. 3 stuff — I just made a decision I wasn't going to do it. I thought, 'I'd rather be broke.'" That decision helped Ahmed build a TV and film career that made Silicon Valley and The Big Sick star Kumail Nanjiani, who was born and raised in Pakistan (Ahmed is a Pakistani Brit), a little irked ... that is, until the two finally met over dinner. Here, Nanjiani shares their meeting of the minds in his … [Read more...]

The British comic asks, in an age of chaos, "How do you match Trump?" U.S. President Donald Trump's idiosyncratic policy announcements and public comments are making the lives of comedians harder than ever before, according to British comic John Cleese. Speaking during the 23rd Sarajevo Film Festival, where he received top honorary award the Heart of Sarajevo, Cleese, a founder member of iconoclastic British comedy show Monty Python, claimed that Trump was stealing comedians' best lines. "Trump has done comedians a great disservice," Cleese said Thursday during an open-air chat with members of the public. "How can you match that? You cannot be funnier than Trump because [what he is doing] is real!" Cleese added that he and Scottish comedian Billy Connolly had long ago noted that "life was getting crazier, making comedy harder." He added: "It is even harder now." That does not mean, Cleese said, that he no longer finds life funny. Asked for an example of something he finds … [Read more...]

Steven Soderbergh's first film in four years features an all-star cast including Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Riley Keough and Daniel Craig. If tracking is correct, The Hitman's Bodyguard is expected to shake down Steven Soderbergh's star-studded Logan Lucky when opening nationwide at the North American box office this weekend. From Lionsgate, Hitman's Bodyguard stars Ryan Reynolds opposite Samuel L. Jackson. Pre-release surveys show the movie collecting as much as $18 million. Logan Lucky is Soderbergh's first movie in four years. The filmmaker has made a point of saying he is releasing the movie outside of the Hollywood studio system, raising his own marketing funds and partnering with indie distributor Bleecker Street. Tracking shows Logan Lucky — starring Channing Tatum, Adam Driver, Daniel Craig, Riley Keough, Seth MacFarlane, Katie Holmes and Hilary Swank — debuting in the $8 million range, although there's plenty of room for upside. (The comedy caper sports a … [Read more...]

Joining James at APA Canada is his clients Nickelback, 54-40, Big Sugar, Billy Talent, I Mother Earth, Danko Jones, Marianas Trench, Walk off the Earth, The Trews and The Watchmen. APA has hired Ralph James and Jack Ross to run a new Canada office for the company, Jim Gosnell, president and CEO of APA, and Steve Martin, EVP/Partner and head of worldwide music announced Thursday (Aug. 17). “It’s an honor to be in business with such accomplished and respected industry vets as Ralph and Jack,” a joint statement reads. “We’re very excited to be investing in Canadian artists and The City of Toronto as we continue to expand APA’s global footprint.” Joining James at APA Canada is his clients Nickelback, 54-40, Big Sugar, Billy Talent, I Mother Earth, Danko Jones, Marianas Trench, Walk off the Earth, The Trews and The Watchmen. Jack Ross’ clients include Bruce Cockburn, Paul Brandt, Sam Roberts Band, Arkells, Lights and Alan Doyle, among … [Read more...]

The deal is in line with the company's strategy to "further expand the distribution ecosystem and our ongoing commitment to engage fans with premium content they crave across all platforms," says Turner's David Levy. Time Warner's cable networks unit Turner and UEFA, the governing body of European soccer, on Thursday unveiled a three-year multi-platform rights agreement for the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League tournaments, beginning with the 2018-2019 season. Turner  also announced plans to launch a new standalone premium sports streaming video service "with the expansive collection of UEFA matches serving as a core pillar of the direct to consumer offering." The new over-the-top sports service will debut in 2018. With the deals, Turner will be the exclusive media partner in the United States for English-language coverage of two of the most popular sporting events in the world and the most prestigious club competition in European soccer. Turner will present more … [Read more...]

"It is important that Australia has a strong local platform for its great sports and for homegrown creativity" as "the world of content is becoming more complicated and competitive, says News Corp CEO Robert Thomson. News Corp and Australian telecom giant Telstra said Thursday that they have agreed to combine the media company's Fox Sports Australia and their pay TV joint venture Foxtel into a new company. They said the combined entity will be "well positioned to deliver premium sports, as well as homegrown, original and international entertainment in a rapidly evolving and competitive marketplace." The deal comes "at a time when more Australians are consuming premium content across more technologies and platforms than ever before," they said. The deal, which is still subject to the conclusion of definitive agreements, a regulatory review and the satisfaction of certain other conditions, would see News Corp own a 65 percent stake in the new company, with Telstra holding 35 … [Read more...]

Next Entertainment World unveited the news not long after major local theaters boycotted the Netflix film. Next Entertainment World (NEW), the South Korean investor-distributor that handled local distribution for Bong Joo Ho's Netflix film Okja, unveiled Thursday that it is entering the exhibition business. NEW will begin operating its first Cine Q theater on Aug. 24 in Gyeongju, a southeastern city known for being home to South Korea's top historical attractions. The city also famously serves as the backdrop for the eponymous film by Hong Sang-soo, Gyeongju. NEW plans to open a second Cine Q theater in Gumi in the country's North Gyeongsang province by the end of the year, followed by other locations across the country in the near future, including Sindorim, Seoul; Chungju, North Chungcheong Province; as well as Mokpo and Namyangju in South Jeolla Province. Cine Q Gyeongju will serve as the city's biggest multiplex, housing six screens and a total 773 seats. According to NEW, the … [Read more...]

His new film ‘Victoria & Abdul’ will have its world premiere on the Lido. The Venice Film Festival's 2017 Jaeger-LeCoultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award will be presented to English director Stephen Frears at a special ceremony on Sept. 3, before the world premiere of his new film Victoria & Abdul. The director of films including Philomena, High Fidelity and Dangerous Liaisons will receive the festival’s prestigious lifetime achievement award which honors filmmakers known for innovation in contemporary cinema. Frears has received two Oscar nominations for best director for The Grifters and The Queen. Frears has a long relationship with Venice. In 2000 his film Liam won actress Megan Burns the Marcello Mastroianni Award. In 2002 he premiered Dirty Pretty Things in Competition. In 2006 Helen Mirren won both the Venice Volpi Cup and Oscar for Best Actress for The Queen. And in 2013, Philomena won the Best Screenplay award in Venice, and was later … [Read more...]

Pauline Hanson sat wearing the black head-to-ankle garment before explaining that she wanted such outfits banned on national security grounds. An Australian senator provoked an angry backlash from lawmakers by wearing a burqa in Parliament on Thursday as part of her campaign for a national ban on Islamic face covers. Pauline Hanson, leader of the anti-Muslim, anti-immigration One Nation minor party, sat wearing the black head-to-ankle garment for more than 10 minutes before taking it off as she rose to explain that she wanted such outfits banned on national security grounds. “There has been a large majority of Australians (who) wish to see the banning of the burka,” said Hanson, an outspoken fan of President Donald Trump, as senators objected. Attorney-General George Brandis drew applause when he said his government would not ban the burqa, and chastised Hanson for what he described as a “stunt” that offended Australia’s Muslim minority. “To … [Read more...]

The live-action 'Beauty and the Beast,' 'Fifty Shades Darker' and 'Fate of the Furious' boost revenue while video sales dip German box office revenue ticked up a healthy 7.7 percent to $607 million (€518.7 million) in the first half of 2017, according to official figures released Wednesday. A front-loaded release schedule that included sequels to hit franchises Fifty Shades of Grey and Fast & Furious, along with Disney's live-action reboot of Beauty and the Beast, helped German cinemas to their second-best ever result for the period, beaten only by the €544.6 million earned in the first half of 2015, when a similar combination: the first Fifty Shades film, Furious 7 and Disney's live-action Cinderella, gave the local box office an early-year boost. German cinemas sold a total of 60.2 million tickets over the six-month period, just less than five percent more than a year earlier. Local-language films did not fare as well as Hollywood imports. German films' share of the … [Read more...]

The Canadian outpost will be led by Rob Zifarelli, who’s moving from UTA’s now-shuttered office in the same city. Paradigm is expanding into Canada with a new office in Toronto, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. The music-focused outpost will be led by Rob Zifarelli, part of the nine-agent team in UTA’s Toronto office, whose closure was announced on Aug. 1. Joining him are two other Canada-based agents displaced by the UTA closure, Adam Countryman and André Guérette. The trio were originally with The Agency Group, which was acquired by UTA in 2015. “We’re honored to launch Paradigm’s first Canadian office,” said Zifarelli in a statement, “and excited to be a part of this great agent team we’ve long admired.” Zifarelli was named Agent of the Year during Canadian Music Week’s inaugural Live Music Industry Awards in May 2016. The 20-year veteran’s roster includes City and Colour, Feist, Phantogram, Vance … [Read more...]

The hosts will show up at "unsuspecting locations and challenge people to karaoke battles for cash." MTV International has ordered 10 episodes of a pop-up music game show called Crash Karaoke. The Viacom network has given the green light for the show that will see hosts Hannah Rad and Dylan Landon “crash" what a series description calls "unsuspecting locations and challenge people to karaoke battles for cash." They will disrupt "business as usual" at such locations as fast-food restaurants and "attempt to charm two volunteers into a head-to-head karaoke showdown for a cash prize," MTV said. "Contestants will be asked to spin the Crash Wheel to randomly select a style of music to perform. A mix of hit songs serve as the soundtrack for the series, from current tracks and global anthems to the most iconic karaoke throwbacks from the '80s." There are no judges on the 30-minute show as the crowd ultimately decides who wins. "Crash Karaoke is an innovative twist on the traditional … [Read more...]

FremantleMedia CEO Cecile Frot-Coutaz and Viacom International Media Networks CEO David Lynn will talk about opportunities for the U.K. production sector in a panel led by Endemol Shine CEO Sophie Turner Laing. A keynote speech from A+E Networks boss Nancy Dubuc, a panel with FremantleMedia CEO Cecile Frot-Coutaz and David Lynn, president and CEO, Viacom International Media Networks, and led by Endemol Shine CEO Sophie Turner Laing and a keynote by U.K. culture secretary Karen Bradley are the latest additions to next month's Royal Television Society Cambridge Convention. The British organization previously unveiled that the biennial event, which takes place in Cambridge Sept. 13-Sept. 15, would focus on the theme "A World of Opportunity." It previously also announced a keynote from 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch and such speakers as Andy Harries, CEO of The Crown and Outlander producer Left Bank Pictures, in which Sony Pictures Television owns a … [Read more...]

Producers behind the politics infused anthology movie plan Japanese, Taiwanese and Thai versions. Ten Years, the award-winning yet controversy-dogged Hong Kong anthology film, is to get Japanese, Taiwanese and Thai remakes.  Ten Years Production, the production house behind the film which made twelve times its budget at the box office and won best film at the Hong Kong Film Awards, announced that it will be producing the three regional remakes following the enthusiastic reaction to the original on the international festival circuit.  “Although Ten Years was a film about Hong Kong, the questions it raised on political autonomy, social tensions, and human values, were universal,” said Ng Ka Leung, one of the directors of the Hong Kong film which was banned in China. Ten Years, which takes place in Hong Kong in the year 2025, examines the effects of changing education, culture and language. The international versions will follow the same outline, featuring five … [Read more...]

The "We Are Manchester" event, set for Sept. 9, will also feature Rick Astley, Courteneers and Blossoms. Manchester Arena will reopen on Sept. 9 with a special benefit concert to honor the 22 people who died following a suicide bomb attack at an Ariana Grande concert. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds will headline the one-off "We Are Manchester" gig, which will also feature performances from local acts Courteeners, Blossoms and Rick Astley, with organizers promising more artists to be announced. Poet Tony Walsh, whose recital of his poem "This Is the Place" at a vigil the day after the blast became an unofficial anthem of the city's recovery, is also on the bill. All proceeds from the concert will go towards a newly-established charity to fund a permanent memorial to the 22 people who died in the blast, the youngest of which was 8-year-old Saffie Roussos. A separate "We Love Manchester" charity fund set up in the wake of the blast has raised … [Read more...]

In addition to playing the lead in Amazon's adaptation of the superhero parody, the British actor, writer and voice of Darth Maul is also behind the "Sassy Trump" videos, which he says "strips a layer" from the President's speeches, revealing his "bullshit." After two decades as a regular – and mostly comedy – face (and voice) in U.K. film and TV (The IT Crowd, Shaun of the Dead), not to mention parts in Guardians of the Galaxy (as the Nova Corps’ distinctly not amused Garthan Saal) and Spy (as handsy Italian spy Aldo), Peter Serafinowicz is finally getting his first major lead role.  In The Tick, the British actor, writer and funnyman – who also famously voiced Darth Maul in the first Star Wars prequel – has squeezed himself into the blue rubber suit of Ben Edlund’s square-jawed superhero for Amazon’s 8-part live-action adaptation, premiering on Aug. 25. But while Serafinowicz may be about to get his first taste of mainstream U.S. fame, … [Read more...]

The 2017 includes world Premieres of 'A Violent Man,' 'Touched' and 'Bernard & Huey' Germany's Oldenburg Film Festival has announced its first batch of titles for its 2017 event, including a handful of world premieres. Among them are A Violent Man, a mixed martial arts-set drama from director Matthew Berkowitz starring running back turned actor Thomas Q. Jones (Straight Outta Compton) and legendary UFC fighter Chuck Liddell. Touched, the feature debut of acclaimed shorts director Karl R. Hearne (Song) will have its world premiere in Oldenburg, as will Quest, a Bernard & Huey, a dark comedy from Dan Mirvish featuring SNL's David Koechner and actor and screenwriter Jim Rash; and Crowhurst, a biopic from Simon Rumley on the life of Donald Crowhurst, the British businessman and amateur sailor who died while competing a single-handed, round-the-world yacht race. Rumley's last feature, Fashionista, a thriller starring Amanda Fuller, will also screen in Oldenburg, celebrating its … [Read more...]

Chinese artist Xu Bing makes his directorial debut with this narrative composed entirely of surveillance footage. Actual live streams and webcam and CCTV footage are stitched together to support a rather eccentric narrative in Dragonfly Eyes (Qing Ting zhi yan), the directorial debut from Chinese artist Xu Bing. The project is conceptually interesting, with the director relying mainly on voiceovers to create a semi-coherent story that links together the many disparate shots of people and places from all over China (if anything, it becomes clear that everyone in the Middle Kingdom is constantly being watched, albeit often in grainy, pixelated images). But the narrative that Xu’s two screenwriters have concocted — about a young woman who escapes from a Buddhist monastery; milks cow at an industrial farm; is fired from a dry-cleaning job and finally, after some plastic surgery, becomes a famous YouTube-like star — is more outlandish than believable and despite the … [Read more...]

The director spoke about the U.S. political system during a masterclass at the Sarajevo Film Festival. Oliver Stone has said in response to the Charlottesville riots that the problem is not President Donald Trump, but "the system" in America. The director, whose latest work is a four-hour series of televised interviews with Russian President Vladimir Putin that aired on Showtime last June, did not specifically criticize Trump when asked for his reaction to the weekend's events in Charlottesville, Virginia, in which one woman died and several people were injured after a car plowed into non-violent demonstrators. Speaking during a Masterclass at the Sarajevo Film Festival in Bosnia on Tuesday following a screening of his movie Snowden, Stone said he had not been in America for some time but was following events. "You are all trying to get to Trump every day, but there is a bigger problem," he said when asked what he thought of President Trump's initial failure to call out white … [Read more...]

[Warning: This story contains spoilers for the fifth episode of Game of Thrones' seventh season, "Eastwatch."] Ladies and gentlemen, now presenting: the Eastwatch Eight — or Seven, if we're unpeeling the Onion Knight from the equation. In the final moments of "Eastwatch," the fifth episode of Game of Thrones' seventh season, Jon Snow (Kit Harington) finds himself marching off for war against the White Walkers with six allies in tow, all of whom are very familiar quantities for fans of the series: Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen), Gendry of Flea Bottom (Joe Dempsie), Tormund Giantsbane (Kristofer Hivju), Sandor Clegane (Rory McCann), Thoros of Myr (Paul Kaye), and Beric Dondarrion (Richard Dormer). Hanging back at Eastwatch, but still close enough to the frontline should the occasion call for a shortened-fingered friend: Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham).  After a quick mental scan of previous Game of Thrones episodes, it's hard to imagine a more riveting lineup of Westeros warriors … [Read more...]