Bryan Cranston and Diane Lane in a scene from ‘Trumbo’ (Photo Courtesy of Bleecker Street)
Oscar nominee Diane Lane will star opposite Oscar nominee Liam Neeson in Felt, a spy thriller set up with MadRiver Pictures, Scott Free Productions, Playtone, and Cara Films. Peter Landesman wrote the script and is directing the thriller. Landesman will also produce along with Ridley Scott, Gary Goetzman, Tom Hanks, Giannina Scott, Marc Butan, Christopher Woodrow, and Jay Roach.
Felt will start shooting next March.
The Felt Plot:
Felt is a taut spy thriller, centering on “Deep Throat”, the pseudonym given to the notorious whistleblower for one of the greatest scandals of all time, Watergate. The true identity of the secret informant remained a mystery and source of much public curiosity and speculation for more than 30 years. That is until, in 2005, special agent Mark Felt (Neeson) shockingly revealed himself as the tipster. This unbelievable true story chronicles the personal and professional life of the brilliant and uncompromising Felt, who risked and ultimately sacrificed everything – his family, his career, his freedom – in the name of justice.
Lane (soon to be seen in the dramatic film Trumbo) will play Mark Felt’s brilliant, ambitious and troubled wife, Audrey, who shoulders the burden of Felt’s isolated and dangerous struggle against the White House.
The robot competition series BattleBots will be back on ABC for a second season. The network just announced they’ve picked up the series from executive producers Lloyd Braun, Chris Cowan, Ed Roski, Greg Munson and Aaron Catling for season two, and viewers can expect bigger, faster, and stronger robots battling it out next year.
The first season earned high ratings, placing first in its Sunday night time slot with an average of 5.4 million viewers. And according to the network the series was a hit with young viewers, finishing its season one as the “top-rated broadcast show of the summer with Kids 2-11.”
The BattleBots Details:
The robots will again wage battle in a single elimination tournament until there is one champion. The tournament will double in size and feature an expanded field to include expert roboticists, garage builders, families on a mission, as well as past winners returning to defend their turf. Viewers will see new technologies, more destructive bots, and even the possibility of drones and flying battlebots. The tournament will be open invitation with the bots and builders casting process beginning immediately.
Jonathan Bennett hosts ‘Cake Wars: Christmas’ on Food Network.
Food Network is set to debut the new competition series Cake Wars: Christmas on November 9, 2015 at 9pm ET/PT. The holiday-themed edition of Cake Wars is hosted by Jonathan Bennett and features seven teams made up of a sugar sculptor, master food carver, and a cake artist competing for a $50,000 grand prize. Season one will consist of six one-hour episodes.
“Viewers loved the sugar rush of Cake Wars, so we wanted to make a bigger, more spectacular edition celebrating the most wonderful time of the year. These talented teams of food artists ring in the holidays in the most extraordinary way – crafting cake, sugar and edibles into sensational holiday-themed creations that will absolutely blow your mind,” said Bob Tuschman, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Food Network.
The Details: “The teams will battle it out in two rounds of challenges to design over-the-top cake confections. First, in the Stocking Stuffer Challenge, it is a race against the clock to create an edible Christmas-themed cake. One team will earn a vital advantage in Santa’s Mega Challenge, where the teams must create an eye-popping, larger-than-life masterful cake display. Holiday crafter extraordinaire Charles Phoenix and renowned pastry chef Sherry Yard, as well as special guest judges will decide who will jingle all the way home with the $50,000 grand prize.”
Cake Wars: Christmas November and December 2015 Episodes
Premiere Monday, November 9th at 9pm ET/PT
“Ultimate Christmas Lights”
Seven teams go head-to-head to create mind-blowing Christmas cake creations and the chance to take home the $50,000 grand prize. The competition kicks off with the Stocking Stuffer Challenge, where they must construct a cake based on the Frozen character Olaf. Chris Buck, co-director of the movie, will help decide who gets a special advantage in Santa’s Mega Challenge, where the teams must create an eye-popping, delicious, and edible display of ultimate Christmas lights. At the end of the battle, one team will be eliminated.
Premiere Monday, November 16th at 9pm ET/PT
“Who’s Coming Down the Chimney?”
In the Stocking Stuffer Challenge, the six remaining teams must take on the iconic tradition of ugly Christmas sweaters. Then, they’ll be challenged to combine their skills to show us who is coming down the chimney when Santa takes a sick day in the gigantic Santa’s Mega Challenge. Guest judges Chanda Bell and Christa Pitts, Co-CEOs of The Elf on the Shelf® help decide which team will be sent home.
Premiere Monday, November 23rd at 9pm ET/PT
“Santa’s New Ride”
Five remaining teams battle it out in the Stocking Stuffer Challenge, as they are challenged to make amazing and imaginative edible toys that Santa’s elves come up with when left unsupervised in the workshop. Then, when Santa’s sleigh is broken the teams must create magical and mysterious displays of Santa’s new ride. Joy Cho, author and founder of the OH JOY! Blog, will help choose which team will be eliminated in this holiday race.
Premiere Monday, November 30th at 9pm ET/PT
“Holiday Song”
In the Stocking Stuffer Challenge, the four remaining teams will be challenged to take Christmas intergalactic and show us what happens when Santa is in space! Then, in Santa’s Mega Challenge, they must bring world-famous Christmas songs like “Deck the Halls” and “Jingle Bells” to life in a huge edible creation. Home Alone actor Devin Ratray will help decide which team will be sent home.
Premiere Monday, December 7th at 9pm ET/PT
“Charlie Brown Celebrates”
Only three teams remain and they must prove their talents in challenges celebrating the 50th anniversary of A Charlie Brown Christmas. In the Stocking Stuffer Challenge, they will deck out Snoopy’s dog house for the holidays. Then, in Santa’s Mega Challenge, they will be tasked to create the ultimate Charlie Brown Christmas party. Lindsay Schultz, artist and grand-daughter of Peanuts creator Charles M. Schultz will help decide who takes the cake and moves on to the finale.
Premiere Monday, December 14th at 9pm ET/PT
“Ultimate Gingerbread House”
The final two teams battle one last time. First, in the Stocking Stuffer Challenge, they must make eye-popping, edible Snow Globes. Then, in Santa’s Mega Challenge, they will be challenged to create the ultimate gingerbread house. Golden Globe-nominated actress Monica Potter will guest judge the grand finale. Only one team will jingle all the way home as the winner of $50,000.
One of the films on this list will be the 2016 Oscar winner in the Animated Feature Film category, with 16 animated films are eligible for consideration by members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Some of the animated movies on the list haven’t yet had their theatrical releases but will by the end of the year in order to comply with the Academy’s rules. Because there are 16 animated films eligible this year, the Best Animated Feature Film category can consist of a maximum of five nominees.
Animated films are also eligible to be nominated in the Best Picture category.
Eligible 2015 Animated Feature Films:
“Anomalisa”
“The Boy and the Beast”
“Boy and the World”
“The Good Dinosaur”
“Home” “Hotel Transylvania 2” “Inside Out”
“Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet”
“The Laws of the Universe – Part 0” “Minions”
“Moomins on the Riviera”
“The Peanuts Movie”
“Regular Show: The Movie”
“Shaun the Sheep Movie”
“The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water”
“When Marnie Was There”
Chris Rock has been tapped to host the 88th Academy Awards set for February 28, 2016. Nominees will be announced on January 14, 2016.
Mike Myers and Dana Carvey on the ‘Saturday Night Live: 40th Anniversary Special’
Amateur impressionists will battle it out on the new unscripted comedy series First Impressions from Dana Carvey. Carvey, best known for his work on Saturday Night Live, will mentor the contestants who’ll be competing for votes from viewers. The series will also feature special celebrity guests.
USA Network just greenlit the series and Renegade 83 and Gaspin Media are producing. Carvey will executive produce along with Jeff Gaspin, David Garfinkle and Jay Renfroe.
“There is no better talent to mentor these contestants than the master of impressions, Dana Carvey,” stated Jackie de Crinis, Executive Vice President of Original Programming, USA Network. “The expertise and humor that he will bring to the series is unsurpassed and we can’t wait to have his world famous celebrity impersonations on our network.”
“There are so many great impressionists and First Impressions gives them an opportunity to showcase their talents,” said Carvey, “Besides, I’ve always enjoyed watching an impressionist nail somebody….as in capture their voice. Now I get paid to watch.”
USA Network did not announce the details on the competition, the prizes, or the anticipated release date.
Gerard Butler stars in the action film ‘ London Has Fallen’
Gramercy Pictures is releasing the Olympus Has Fallen sequel, London Has Fallen, in 2016 and while we’re still months away from checking out the film in theaters, the first official trailer provides a pretty extensive look at what we can expect. The action drama once again stars Gerard Butler as a Secret Service agent assigned to protect the President (Aaron Eckhart). The cast also includes Morgan Freeman, Alon Moni Aboutboul, Angela Bassett, Robert Forster, Jackie Earle Haley, Melissa Leo, Radha Mitchell, Sean O’Bryan, Charlotte Riley and Waleed Zuaiter. Babak Najafi directed from a script by Creighton Rothenberger & Katrin Benedikt and Christian Gudegast and Chad St. John.
London Has Fallen opens on March 4, 2016.
The London Has Fallen Plot:
The sequel to the worldwide smash hit Olympus Has Fallen, a non-stop, suspenseful action thriller that delivers high-octane excitement through a heightened sense of authenticity. The visceral intensity springs from a timely premise: after the British Prime Minister passes away, his funeral becomes a target of a terrorist organization to destroy some of the world’s most powerful leaders, devastate the British capital, and unleash a terrifying vision of the future. The only hope of stopping it rests on the shoulders of the President of the United States (Aaron Eckhart) and his formidable Secret Service head (Gerard Butler), and an English MI-6 agent (Charlotte Riley) who rightly trusts no one. Morgan Freeman also stars as the Vice President of the United States.
The Weinstein Company’s The Hateful Eight has been in the news recently because the film’s writer and director Quentin Tarantino caused quite a controversy with his remarks about police officers. TWC is either striking while the iron is hot or just trying to change the conversation by releasing the full trailer for the Western drama.
The Hateful Eight will be released on December 25, 2015 in limited theaters, followed by an expanded release on January 8, 2016. The ensemble cast includes Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, Demian Bichir, and Channing Tatum.
The Hateful Eight Plot:
In The Hateful Eight, set six or eight or twelve years after the Civil War, a stagecoach hurtles through the wintry Wyoming landscape. The passengers, bounty hunter John Ruth (Kurt Russell) and his fugitive Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh), race towards the town of Red Rock where Ruth, known in these parts as “The Hangman,” will bring Domergue to justice. Along the road, they encounter two strangers: Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson), a Black former Union soldier turned infamous bounty hunter, and Chris Mannix (Walton Goggins), a southern renegade who claims to be the town’s new Sheriff.
Losing their lead on the blizzard, Ruth, Domergue, Warren, and Mannix seek refuge at Minnie’s Haberdashery, a stagecoach stopover on a mountain pass. When they arrive at Minnie’s, they are greeted not by the proprietor but by four unfamiliar faces. Bob (Demian Bichir), who’s taking care of Minnie’s while she’s visiting her mother, is holed up with Oswaldo Mobray (Tim Roth), the hangman of Red Rock, cow-puncher Joe Gage (Michael Madsen), and Confederate General Sanford Smithers (Bruce Dern). As the storm overtakes the mountainside stopover, our eight travelers come to learn they may not make it to Red Rock after all…
Julia Roberts, Nicole Kidman and Chiwetel Ejiofor star in ‘Secret in Their Eyes’
STX Entertainment’s released the second Secret in Their Eyes trailer featuring Julia Roberts, Nicole Kidman, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. The dramatic thriller was written and directed by Billy Ray (Captain Phillips) and adapted from Juan Jose Campanella’s Oscar-winning foreign language film. Secret in Their Eyes will be released in theaters on November 20, 2015.
The Secret in Their Eyes Plot:
A tight-knit team of rising investigators – Ray (Ejiofor) and Jess (Roberts), along with their supervisor Claire (Kidman) – is suddenly torn apart when they discover that Jess’s teenage daughter has been brutally and inexplicably murdered.
Now, thirteen years later, after obsessively searching every day for the elusive killer, Ray finally uncovers a new lead that he’s certain can permanently resolve the case, nail the vicious murderer, and bring long-desired closure to his team. No one is prepared, however, for the shocking, unspeakable secret that will reveal the enduring, destructive effects of personal vengeance on the human soul.
The Rolling Stones on stage during the North American Zip Code Tour (Photo by Kevin Mazur)
The Rolling Stones will be on the road again in 2016 but this time they’ll be entertaining fans in Latin America. The America Latina Olé tour will kick off on February 3, 2016 in Santiago and hit cities including Rio De Janeiro, Lima, and Buenos Aires before finishing up on March 14th in Mexico City. The just-announced tour will be the band’s first in Latin America in over a decade.
“We love playing Latin America and are excited about going to some cities for the first time! The audiences are among some of the best in the world, they bring incredible energy!” said Mick Jagger.
“We had a great time performing in stadiums last summer in the US and are excited to come to Latin America for the first time in 10 years. The fans are amazing,” added Keith Richards.
Wed, Feb 03, 2016 – Santiago, Chile Estadio Nacional
Sun, Feb 07, 2016 – Buenos Aires, Argentina Estadio Único Ciudad de La Plata
Wed, Feb 10, 2016 – Buenos Aires, Argentina Estadio Único Ciudad de La Plata
Sat, Feb 13, 2016 – Buenos Aires, Argentina Estadio Único Ciudad de La Plata
Tue, Feb 16, 2016 – Montevideo, Uruguay Estadio Centenario
Sat, Feb 20, 2016 – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Estádio Maracanã
Wed, Feb 24, 2016 – São Paulo, Brazil Estádio do Morumbi
Sat, Feb 27, 2016 – São Paulo, Brazil Estádio do Morumbi
Wed, Mar 02, 2016 – Porto Alegre, Brazil Estádio Beira-Rio
Sun, Mar 06, 2016 – Lima, Peru Estadio Monumental
Thu, Mar 10, 2016 – Bogotá, Colombia Estadio El Campín
Mon, Mar 14, 2016 – Mexico City, Mexico Foro Sol
Disney’s just released the first official teaser trailer for the fantasy adventure film Alice Through the Looking Glass. James Bobin took over the director’s chair from Alice in Wonderland helmer Tim Burton, but Burton remained involved with the sequel as producer. Returning cast members include Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Stephen Fry, Michael Sheen, and Timothy Spall. Newcomers to the Wonderland world include Sacha Baron Cohen as Time and Rhys Ifans as the Mad Hatter’s father.
Alice Through the Looking Glass will open in theaters on May 27, 2016 in Digital 3D™, Real D 3D and IMAX® 3D.
The Alice Through the Looking Glass Plot:
Alice Kingsleigh (Wasikowska) has spent the past few years following in her father’s footsteps and sailing the high seas. Upon her return to London, she comes across a magical looking glass and returns to the fantastical realm of Underland and her friends the White Rabbit (Sheen), Absolem (Rickman), the Cheshire Cat (Fry) and the Mad Hatter (Depp), who is not himself. The Hatter has lost his Muchness, so Mirana (Hathaway) sends Alice on a quest to borrow the Chronosphere, a metallic globe inside the chamber of the Grand Clock which powers all time. Returning to the past, she comes across friends – and enemies – at different points in their lives, and embarks on a perilous race to save the Hatter before time runs out.
