Bleecker Street’s new trailer for the adult relationship comedy Together focuses on a married couple dealing with being in constant close quarters for far too long during the Covid-19 pandemic. The R-rated dark comedy stars James McAvoy (It Chapter Two, Glass) and Emmy nominee Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe) as the couple with issues who appear to be on the verge of killing each other. Samuel Logan co-stars as their young son.
Together comes from three-time Oscar nominated director Stephen Daldry (The Reader, The Hours, Bill Elliot) and screenwriter Dennis Kelly (Utopia).
Bleecker Street’s set an August 27, 2021 release date.
The Plot, Courtesy of Bleecker Street:
“Academy Award nominee Stephen Daldry’s new comedy, Together, starring James McAvoy and Sharon Horgan, is the story of a family, like so many, who found a way to survive – together. This hilarious and heartbreaking story intimately shows two partners forced to re-evaluate themselves and their relationship through the reality of lockdown.”
Poster for the dark comedy, ‘Together’ (Photo Courtesy of Bleecker Street)
Amazon Studios releases the first photo from ‘The Lord of the Rings’ series
Amazon Studios’ much-anticipated The Lord of the Rings (the working title) series will arrive on Prime Video on Friday, September 2, 2022. Yes, you read that right. 2021 is no longer an option, thanks to delays in production due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and now Amazon’s aiming for September 2022.
The official premiere date announcement was accompanied by the first photo from the series.
“The journey begins September 2, 2022 with the premiere of our original The Lord of the Rings series on Prime Video,” stated Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios. “I can’t express enough just how excited we all are to take our global audience on a new and epic journey through Middle-earth! Our talented producers, cast, creative, and production teams have worked tirelessly in New Zealand to bring this untold and awe-inspiring vision to life.”
Filming wrapped up today in New Zealand on the series’ first season.
Season one stars Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Robert Aramayo, Owain Arthur, Maxim Baldry, Nazanin Boniadi, Morfydd Clark, Ismael Cruz Córdova, Charles Edwards, and Trystan Gravelle. Sir Lenny Henry, Ema Horvath, Markella Kavenagh, Joseph Mawle, Tyroe Muhafidin, Sophia Nomvete, Lloyd Owen, Megan Richards, Dylan Smith, Charlie Vickers, Leon Wadham, Benjamin Walker, Daniel Weyman, and Sara Zwangobani are also part of the huge ensemble cast bringing to life J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth.
J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay guide the series as showrunners and executive producers. Lindsey Weber, Callum Greene, J.A. Bayona, Belén Atienza, Justin Doble, Jason Cahill, Gennifer Hutchison, Bruce Richmond, and Sharon Tal Yguado are also involved as executive producers. Charlotte Brändström directs, Christopher Newman produces, and Wayne Che Yip is a co-executive producer.
“As Bilbo says, ‘Now I think I am quite ready to go on another journey.’ Living and breathing Middle-earth these many months has been the adventure of a lifetime. We cannot wait for fans to have the chance to do so as well,” stated co-showrunners Payne and McKay.
The Plot, Courtesy of Amazon:
Amazon Studios’ forthcoming series brings to screens for the very first time the heroic legends of the fabled Second Age of Middle-earth’s history. This epic drama is set thousands of years before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and will take viewers back to an era in which great powers were forged, kingdoms rose to glory and fell to ruin, unlikely heroes were tested, hope hung by the finest of threads, and the greatest villain that ever flowed from Tolkien’s pen threatened to cover all the world in darkness.
Beginning in a time of relative peace, the series follows an ensemble cast of characters, both familiar and new, as they confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. From the darkest depths of the Misty Mountains, to the majestic forests of the elf-capital of Lindon, to the breathtaking island kingdom of Númenor, to the furthest reaches of the map, these kingdoms and characters will carve out legacies that live on long after they are gone.
Netflix has set a September 3, 2021 premiere date for the dramatic film, Worth. Starring Oscar nominee Michael Keaton (Birdman), the film delves into the process of compensating families of the 9/11 victims.
Directed by Sara Colangelo, Worth premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and currently sits at 65% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. IndieWire’s Katie Erland writes, “While Worth is most literally concerned with a stupefying question – what is a life worth? – it’s more precisely about the price of calculating such a wrenching ask.” And, prior to Sundance, RT included Worth on its list of 11 movies that could be breakout hits.
In addition to Michael Keaton, the cast features Oscar nominee Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones), Oscar nominee Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone), Tate Donovan (MacGyver), Shunori Ramanathan (The Big Sick), and Talia Balsam (Divorce). Laura Benanti (2021’s Gossip Girl), Ato Blankson-Wood (BlacKkKlansman), Chris Tardio (Younger), Carolyn Mignini (The Deuce), and Victor Slezak (Blue Bloods) also star.
Max Borenstein wrote the screenplay and produced with Michael Keaton, Marc Butan, Anthony Katagas, Michael Sugar, Bard Dorros, and Sean Sorensen.
The Plot, Courtesy of Netflix:
Following the horrific 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, Congress appoints attorney and renowned mediator Kenneth Feinberg (Keaton) to lead the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. Assigned with allocating financial resources to the victims of the tragedy, Feinberg and his firm’s head of operations, Camille Biros (Ryan), face the impossible task of determining the worth of a life to help the families who had suffered incalculable losses. When Feinberg locks horns with Charles Wolf (Tucci), a community organizer mourning the death of his wife, his initial cynicism turns to compassion as he begins to learn the true human costs of the tragedy.
Based on true events, Worth is a moving reminder of the power of empathy and the value of human connection.
The CW’s Stargirl finally returns for its sophomore season with episode one, “Summer School: Chapter One.” Series creator Geoff Johns promises season two will be scarier than the first season and says he’s amped up the horror with the introduction of the new season’s villain, Eclipso.
“Eclipso is an amazing character for those who don’t know, he’s from the ’60s and he’s more of a demonic force in the same vein as like a Freddy Krueger or a Pennywise, and to have the kids and the adults go up against something like that this season, something that gets inside their heads and tries to expose their fears and their regrets and their guilt and use it against them and see if these heroes can rise up and stop it, it was all about darkness vs. light which is very perfect for somebody like Stargirl,” explains Johns.
Season two episode one was directed by Andi Armaganian from a script by Johns and will air on Tuesday, August 10, 2021 at 8pm ET/PT.
Brec Bassinger returns to lead the cast as Courtney Whitmore/Stargirl. Luke Wilson is Pat Dugan, Amy Smart is Barbara Whitmore, Yvette Monreal is Yolanda Montez/Wildcat, and Anjelika Washington is Beth Chapel/Dr. Mid-Nite. The cast also includes Cameron Gellman as Rick Tyler/Hourman, Trae Romano as Mike Dugan, Hunter Sansone as Cameron Mahkent, Meg DeLacy as Cindy Burman/Shiv, and Nick Tarabay as Eclipso.
“Summer School: Chapter One” Plot: SCHOOL’S OUT — With summer break around the corner, Pat (Wilson) suggests the family take a vacation after seeing that Courtney (Bassinger) has been spending too much time focused on being Stargirl and not enough time on her schoolwork. Meanwhile, as Beth (Washington) attempts to reconnect with Chuck, she stumbles upon a major secret her parents have been keeping from her.
Elsewhere, Yolanda (Monreal) continues to be haunted by Brainwave’s death, and Rick (Gellman) secretly tracks Solomon Grundy after suspecting he may still be in the area.
Series Description, Courtesy of The CW:
The CW drama series DC’S Stargirl follows high school sophomore Courtney Whitmore and her stepfather Pat Dugan as she leads an unlikely group of young heroes to take on the legacy of DC’s very first superhero team, the Justice Society of America. In the thrilling second season, Courtney and her friends take on one of the most frightening adversaries in DC’s mythology – the dark entity of corruption known as Eclipso.
The series focuses on the character that started creator Geoff Johns’ career as a comic book writer when he created her in 1999, lovingly inspired by his late sister who was killed in a 1996 plane crash.
Michael Caine wonderfully portrayed Ebenezer Scrooge in 1992’s family film The Muppet Christmas Carol and now the two-time Oscar winner takes on another of Charles Dickens’ characters, Fagen, in Twist, the latest (unnecessary) modern adaptation of Dickens’ classic novel, Oliver Twist.
The 2021 action drama focuses on Twist (Raff Law, Jude Law’s son) who is a talented graffiti street artist and freerunner. After being chased out of his favorite museum because he was hassling the police for fun, Twist falls in with a bunch of street hustlers who work for an ex-art dealer named Fagen (Caine).
He’s initially hesitant to trust Fagen’s merry band of criminals, but puts those issues aside after quickly falling for Red (Sophie Simnett, Daybreak), another freerunner and the girlfriend of Fagen’s right-hand person, Sikes (Lena Headey, Game of Thrones). Without many other options, and being encouraged by Red to join the group, Twist decides to take Fagen up on his offer to become one of his crew. It’s not long before he is ready to help Fagen in a big art heist against Fagen’s former partner and current nemesis, Losberne (David Walliams, Murder Mystery).
Boring and passionless, Twist is a terrible, ridiculous, and insipid modernized adaptation of the classic Dickens story. It adds nothing fresh to the plot except an unimaginative heist-by-numbers subplot. The performances are one-dimensional and forgettable, including Caine’s.
Director Martin Owen (Killers Anonymous) seems to be trying to copy Guy Ritchie’s early style of filmmaking with the quick shots of London and the editing of the chase scenes and the heist – all of which look and feel like a shoddy knockoff. With horrible dialogue, unoriginal directing, and uninspired performances, Twist is not just a wasted opportunity but an insult and butchering of Dickens’ exemplary tale.
The CW’s The Outpost season four episode four is packed with action, not the least of which involves Garret leading a rebellion. Directed by Kurt Knight from a script by Justin Partridge, episode four – “Going to Meet the Gods” – will air on August 5, 2021 at 9pm ET/PT.
The cast is led by Jessica Green as Talon and includes Jake Stormoen as Captain Garret Spears, Anand Desai-Barochia as Janzo, and Reece Ritchie as Zed. Izuka Hoyle is Wren, Jaye Griffiths is Yavalla, Georgia May Foote is Falista, Maeve Courtier-Lilly is Luna, Nikki Leigh Scott is Vorta, and Adam Johnson is Munt.
“Going to Meet the Gods” Plot: TURN – Garret (Stormoen) leads a rebellion. Talon (Green) and Zed (Ritchie) track a Lu Qiri to find a new enemy. Falista (Foote) recruits Wren (Hoyle) and Janzo (Desai-Barochia) to serve a specific purpose. Luna (Courtier-Lilly) faces her greatest challenge yet.
The Season 4 Plot:
After Gwynn (Imogen Waterhouse) sacrificed herself to destroy Yavalla, the Outpost needs a new ruler. But while Talon and Garret try to establish new leadership, a sinister threat awakens, revealing the true origin of the mysterious kinjes. Talon and her kinj-bearing friends all share dark visions from god-like beings who are hell-bent on reclaiming the kinjes for themselves. A would-be assassin named Luna hunts Talon down to get vengeance for crimes of the past, but soon discovers that her own heritage is wrapped up in Talon’s fate.
Mourning the recent loss of her beloved Tobin (Aaron Fontaine), Falista is mentored by Two to dedicate herself to the new “gods” in exchange for a costly favor. But when the Lu Qiri go missing, Talon and Zed track them down to discover the greatest threat the Realm has ever faced… a new race of beings that will ultimately explain Talon’s own dark origins.
When Janzo and Wren are forced to unlock an ancient city beneath the Outpost, they struggle to uncover who their real allies and enemies will be, while a secret they share gives them new motivation to save the world.
As she and her friends are hunted down one by one, while diabolic forces are tearing her world apart, Talon endures the darkest challenge she has ever faced, as she struggles to embrace the heroes of her past and somehow survive the villains that only she has the power to destroy.
Izuka Hoyle as Wren and Jessica Green as Talon in ‘The Outpost’ season 4 episode 4 (Photo: Aleksandar Letic/NBCU International 2020 Outpost TV LLC. Courtesy of Electric Entertainment)Aaron Fontaine as Tobin in season 4 episode 4 (Photo: Aleksandar Letic/NBCU International 2020 Outpost TV LLC. Courtesy of Electric Entertainment)Reece Ritchie as Zed and Jessica Green as Talon in “Going to Meet the Gods” episode (Photo: Aleksandar Letic/NBCU International — 2020 Outpost TV LLC. Courtesy of Electric Entertainment)Jessica Green as Talon and Reece Ritchie as Zed in season 4 episode 4 (Photo: Aleksandar Letic/NBCU International — 2020 Outpost TV LLC. Courtesy of Electric Entertainment)Georgia May Foote as Falista in season 4 episode 4 (Photo: Aleksandar Letic/NBCU International — 2020 Outpost TV LLC. Courtesy of Electric Entertainment)Reece Ritchie as Zed in season 4 episode 4 (Photo: Aleksandar Letic/NBCU International — 2020 Outpost TV LLC. Courtesy of Electric Entertainment)Jake Stormoen as Garret Spears in the “Going to Meet the Gods” episode (Photo: Aleksandar Letic/NBCU International — 2020 Outpost TV LLC. Courtesy of Electric Entertainment)
Marvel’s Kevin Feige says Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings examines the very beginnings of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the time when Tony Stark became Iron Man. “He’s forced to build these weapons for an organization and that organization was the Ten Rings,” explained Feige in the new two-minute behind the scenes featurette.
“And there was this wonderful character that we really wanted to do something with someday, and that was Shang-Chi,” said Feige. “The backstory of Shang is really unique in that he discovered that his father was this evil overlord.”
The film’s star, Simu Liu, also discussed the setup during the featurette. “He’s brought back into his father’s world and has to deal with coming face to face with him again, and this is a much meaner and more hardened father. And then crazy stuff happens after that.”
Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton (Short Term 12, Just Mercy) promises the upcoming Marvel Studios production is going to be a crazy, wild ride for audiences.
Joining Simu Liu in the action epic are Awkwafina as Shang-Chi’s friend, Katy; Tony Leung as Wenwu; and Michelle Yeoh as Jiang Nan. The cast also includes Fala Chen, Meng’er Zhang, Florian Munteanu, and Ronny Chieng. Kevin Feige and Jonathan Schwartz produced, with Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, and Charles Newirth executive producing. Director Cretton co-wrote the screenplay with David Callaham and Andrew Lanham.
Marvel Studios’ Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings will premiere in theaters on September 3, 2021.
The Plot:
Marvel Studios’ Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings stars Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, who must confront the past he thought he left behind when he is drawn into the web of the mysterious Ten Rings organization.
Poster for Marvel Studios’ ‘Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings’
Netflix just released a freaky new trailer for Brand New Cherry Flavor, a twisted limited series coming to the streaming service on Friday, August 13, 2021. The trailer was accompanied by the release of five new character posters featuring the series’ main characters.
The cast is led by two-time Oscar nominee Catherine Keener (Being John Malkovich, Capote) and Rosa Salazar (B Positive, Undone). Eric Lange (Perry Mason), Jeff Ward (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), and Manny Jacinto (The Good Place) also star.
Per Netflix, the limited series consists of eight one-hour episodes.
Nick Antosca (The Act, Channel Zero) and Lenore Zion (Billions, Channel Zero) are the writers, showrunners, and executive producers.
The Plot:
Lisa Nova (Salazar) comes to LA dead set on directing her first movie. But when she trusts the wrong person and gets stabbed in the back, everything goes sideways and a dream project turns into a nightmare. This particular nightmare has zombies, hit men, supernatural kittens, and a mysterious tattoo artist who likes to put curses on people. And Lisa’s going to have to figure out some secrets from her own past in order to get out alive.
Rosa Salazar stars in Netflix’s ‘Brand New Cherry Flavor’Catherine Keener in Netflix’s ‘Brand New Cherry Flavor’Jeff Ward in Netflix’s ‘Brand New Cherry Flavor’Eric Lange in Netflix’s ‘Brand New Cherry Flavor’Manny Jacinto in Netflix’s ‘Brand New Cherry Flavor’
Victor (Michael Cimino) and Benji (George Sear) in ‘Love, Victor’ season 2 (Photo by: Greg Gayne/Hulu)
Hulu made it official; Love, Victor has been renewed for a third season. Season two’s 10 episodes debuted on June 11, 2021. Hulu hasn’t confirmed when we can expect the just-announced third season to arrive.
The popular coming-of-age dramedy is a sequel to/spinoff of Love, Simon and stars Michael Cimino as a teen dealing with being an openly gay athlete in high school. In addition to Michael Cimino, the cast of season two includes Rachel Hilson, Anthony Turpel, Bebe Wood, Mason Gooding, and George Sear. Isabella Ferreira, Mateo Fernandez, James Martinez, and Ana Ortiz also star.
Love, Simon‘s writers Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger executive produce along with Brian Tanen, Jason Ensler, Isaac Klausner, Marty Bowen, Adam Fishbach, Wyck Godfrey, Pouya Shahbazian, and Adam Londy.
The Plot, Courtesy of Hulu:
Following the events of the beloved film Love, Simon, Love, Victor tells the story of Victor Salazar (Cimino) – a new student at Creekwood High who has just moved with his family from rural Texas to Atlanta. On top of all the usual high school pressures of making friends and fitting in, Victor is still figuring out his sexuality – a tricky subject in his religious family. Reaching out to Simon for advice, Victor slowly but surely learns to be his authentic self and to trust the message from the film – that everyone deserves a great love story.
The popular teen dramedy returns as season two finds a newly out-of-the-closet Victor entering his junior year at Creekwood High. But being out brings with it new challenges as Victor faces a family struggling with his revelation, a heartbroken ex-girlfriend in Mia, and the difficulties of being an openly gay star athlete — all while navigating the excitement of his relationship with Benji.
An adorable kinkajou goes on a mission to deliver a love song to the woman who inspired it in Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation’s Vivo, arriving on August 6, 2021. The colorful official trailer introduces Vivo and his new best friend Gabi as they set off on a wild, music-filled adventure.
Lin-Manuel Miranda penned the original songs and voices the kinkajou. The cast also includes Zoe Saldaña (Rosa), Juan de Marcos (Andrés), Brian Tyree Henry (Dancarino), Michael Rooker (Lutador), Nicole Byer (Valentina), Ynairaly Simo (Gabi), and Gloria Estefan (Marta).
The Croods‘ Kirk DeMicco directed the family-friendly animated musical, with Brandon Jeffords serving as co-director. DeMicco also co-wrote the screenplay with Quiara Alegria Hudes (In the Heights). Lisa Stewart, Michelle L.M. Wong, and Rich Moore produced, with Lin-Manuel Miranda, Laurence Mark, Louis Koo Tin Lok, and Alex Lacamoire executive producing.
Poster for ‘Vivo’ (Photo Credit: Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation)
The Plot, Courtesy of Netflix:
Vivo follows a one-of-kind kinkajou (aka a rainforest “honey bear,” voiced by Miranda), who spends his days playing music to the crowds in a lively square with his beloved owner Andrés (Buena Vista Social Club’s Juan de Marcos). Though they may not speak the same language, Vivo and Andrés are the perfect duo through their common love of music. But when tragedy strikes shortly after Andrés receives a letter from the famous Marta Sandoval (three-time Grammy-winning Latin pop legend Gloria Estefan), inviting her old partner to her farewell concert with the hope of reconnecting, it’s up to Vivo to deliver a message that Andrés never could: A love letter to Marta, written long ago, in the form of a song. Yet in order to get to Marta, who lives a world apart, Vivo will need the help of Gabi (newcomer Ynairaly Simo) – an energetic tween who bounces to the beat of her own offbeat drum to fulfill his owner’s wishes.
Also featuring the voices of Zoe Saldaña (Guardians of the Galaxy) as Gabi’s mother, Rosa; Michael Rooker as a villainous Everglades python, Lutador; Brian Tyree Henry and Nicole Byer as a pair of star-crossed spoonbills; and Katie Lowes, Olivia Trujillo, and Lidya Jewett as a trio of well-meaning but overzealous scout troops, Vivo is an exhilarating story about gathering your courage, finding family in unlikely friends, and the belief that music can open you to new worlds.
