We understand that this has been in the works for a while, but the Media Rights Capital/Paramount comedy The Lovebirds is heading over to Netflix.
The movie was originally expected to open April 3 theatrically, but like several other titles, was pulled from the release schedule due to the exhibition coronavirus shutdown. A streaming date for the title will be announced soon. I hear the deal is being papered at the moment. Details in regards to foreign are forthcoming, but I believe this was a global deal.
The film, directed by Michael Showalter, stars Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae as a couple who experience a defining moment in their relationship when they are unintentionally embroiled in a murder mystery.
The movie was originally set to make its world premiere at SXSW, and in the final moments, before the actual Austin, TX festival cancelled on March 6, the movie’s cast and director decided not to attend the festival for safety reasons.
Not a real shocker here given the fate of a number of other theatrical releases now heading into the home, i.e. Sonic the Hedgehog, The Invisible Man, Onward, I Still Believe, Bloodshot, The Hunt, Emma, Birds of Prey and The Way Back.
Paramount has done deals with Netflix before in the past. Bad Robot’s The Cloverfield Paradox skipped a theatrical release and went straight to Netflix with surprise debut following The Super Bowl in 2018. Netflix had foreign, while Paramount handled domestic on the Natalie Portman sci-fi movie Annihilation. Also, Netflix had foreign on New Line’s Rebel Wilson movie Isn’t It Romantic, while Warners gave that a theatrical release.
Some in town will aim to make a lot of hay about the window being broken, but theaters and studios have no choice right now when it comes to monetizing products out there. There shouldn’t be any fear: I hear that many studios still recognize the window system as being the most potent revenue-making stream for a movie, especially expensive event titles, however, a straight-to-home situation on a thrifty comedy like Love Birds is less of a financial bust, and likely the quickest means to make money. For intents and purposes, despite Universal rubbing exhibition the wrong way with their home release of Dreamworks Animation’s Trolls World Tour, that’s largely experiment on NBCUni’s behalf.
Source: Deadline
Coming Online and On-Demand on March 20 from Saban Films is the romantic comedy ‘Hooking Up,’ directed by Nico Raineau and starring Brittany Snow, Sam Richardson, Jordana Brewster, Anna Akana, Vivica A. Fox, and Amy Pietz.
Brittany Snow and Sam Richardson star in this wildly funny romantic comedy. Darla (Snow) is a sex columnist pumping out scandalous content for a lifestyle magazine. Bailey (Richardson) is a hopeless romantic who’s just been dumped by his high school sweetheart and received a medical diagnosis that has made him reevaluate his life. After a chance meeting, the mismatched duo hit the road on a cross country trip in search of some much needed healing.
Raineau is making his feature directorial debut after a number of short films and other TV work previously. The screenplay is co-written by Nico Raineau and Lauren Schacher. Produced by Jordan Beckerman, Jon Keeyes, Jordan Yale Levine, and Brittany Snow.
Several media outlets are reporting that Oscar-winner Jamie Foxx has signed on to direct When We Pray, a faith-based feature from Cinema Libre Studio and Hong Kong-based Fight to Fame Films. Foxx co-wrote the script with Donald Ray “Speedy” Caldwell. The pic marks Foxx’s sophomore directorial outing following his debut film, All-Star Weekend.
The plot is about two brothers who become pastors at different churches in the same community. One brother develops his church into a modern, high-tech congregation that uses digital devices and ATMs. The other brother follows a humbler path but soon finds his church in decline and in need of financial help.
Production will commence sometime before the end of the year. Cinema Libre Studio will produce in conjunction with Fight to Fame Films, which will finance the pic for a budget under $5M.
Foxx is coming off a critically acclaimed performance in Warner Bros’ legal drama, Just Mercy opposite Michael B. Jordan and Brie Larson and directed by Destin Cretton. Next up, he can be heard in Disney/Pixar’s first Black character-led animation film, Soul, which is currently slated to hit theaters June 19.
In accordance with new health guidelines laid out by the CDC, the Netflix Is A Joke comedy festival has officially been postponed.
The inaugural event was set to take over a number of Los Angeles venues from April 27 through May 3 and feature sets from top comics like Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Amy Schumer, Kevin Hart, Wanda Sykes, Jerry Seinfeld and more.
“Based on the latest CDC guidelines we’ve decided to postpone our Netflix Is a Joke Fest, which was scheduled to begin April 27,” Netflix said in a statement. “We’ve been blown away by the excitement from fans and we will work to reschedule it when we can. In the meantime please everyone take care, hold onto your tickets and we look forward to seeing you all soon. More information for ticket holders will be available on NetflixIsAJokeFest.com in the weeks ahead.”
The CDC this week issued a new recommendation that public gatherings of more than 50 people be restricted for the next eight weeks. As a result, the MLB has extended the delay of its season and numerous other event cancellations and postponements have since been announced.
Highlights of the six-day festival include a stand-up set from Dave Chappelle at the Hollywood Bowl and different Netflix Is A Joke showcases hosted by Jamie Foxx, Amy Schumer, Martin Lawrence and Jane Fonda & Lily Tomlin. In addition, Netflix planned special sets like Stand Out, which celebrates LGBTQ+ entertainers, and The Hall, a tribute show honoring late comedy legends George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Joan Rivers and Robin Williams. Many of the live shows were to be filmed and later available to stream exclusively on Netflix.
Netflix Is A Joke is now the latest in a string of festivals to be postponed. Other California-based gatherings Coachella and Stagecoach were among the first to change their dates in response to COVID-19, moving the Indio festivals from April to October.
Chris Rock’s highly-anticipated horror Spiral has been postponed by studio bosses due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
The movie, a reboot of the Saw franchise, was due to be released on 15 May, but was pulled after cinema chains across the U.S. and around the world temporarily closed their doors in response to the virus, which has claimed the lives of more than 8,000 people.
Executives have also halted the release of Janelle Monae’s historical drama Antebellum, and thriller Run, starring Sarah Paulson.
A studio spokesperson said alternative release dates for the three movies have not yet been decided, but they will announce more information once cinemas “safely and fully resume operations”.
Spiral, which also features Samuel L. Jackson and Max Minghella, follows Rock’s veteran detective Ezekiel ‘Zeke’ Banks as he investigates a serial killer who is targeting police officers.
Antebellum, from directors Gerard Bush and Christopher Renz, focuses on Veronica, played by Monae, a successful author who finds herself transported back to the 19th century as a slave in the United States.
And Run features American Horror Story star Paulson as an overprotective mother, desperate to keep a sinister secret from her home-schooled daughter.
Also pulled from release in the wake of the global pandemic is Marvel’s standalone superhero movie Black Widow, starring Scarlett Johansson.
Other big-budget films affected by the coronavirus crisis include Fast & Furious 9, A Quiet Place II, and the 25th installment in the James Bond saga, No Time To Die.
With over $200 million domestically at the box office the Will Smith-Martin Lawrence film Bad Boys For Life is now the second-biggest January release between American Sniper ($350m) and The Revenant ($183 million after expanding in early 2016). It’s also the highest-grossing film in the Bad Boys franchise.1995’s Bad Boys took in $65m domestically and 2003’s Bad Boys II grossed $138m domestically.
Not only that, but with a total worldwide gross of $415m so far, this is the 2nd highest-grossing BLACK film behind Marvel’s Black Panther ($1.3B).
Produced with a $90m budget, the film opened on Jan. 17 and took over the #1 spot at the box office with a $48 million gross over the four-day MLK weekend. It would go to take first place for two more weekends.
After many false starts, it seems that time was on the producers’ side. Audiences enjoyed seeing their favorite duo of Mike Lowery (Smith) and Marcus Burnett back on the screen (Lawrence).
The new installment centers on the Miami PD and its elite AMMO team’s attempt to take down Armando Armas, head of a drug cartel. Armando is a cold-blooded killer with a vicious, taunting nature. He is committed to the work of the cartel and is dispatched by his mother to kill Mike Lowery.
Along with Smith and Lawrence, other returnees include Joe Pantoliano as Captain Howard along with Theresa Randle as Theresa, Marcus’ wife and Bianca Bethune as their daughter Megan. New cast members included Paola Nuñez, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Charles Melton, Jacob Scipio and DJ Khaled.
Directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah directed the latest entry from a script by Peter Craig (Bad Boys 2), Joe Carnahan (The A-Team) and Chris Bremmer.
HBO has released the official trailer its hit series Insecure, which will return for its ten-episode, fourth season SUNDAY, APRIL 12 (10:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT). INSECURE follows our favorite characters as they evaluate their relationships, both new and old, in an effort to figure out who and what comes with them in this next phase of their lives.
The series will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO, HBO On Demand and partners’ streaming platforms.
Season four follows the main characters in the aftermath of the decisions they made in the last season. Issa pursues a passion project she actually cares about, Molly navigates a real relationship for the first time, Lawrence figures out what leveling-up means for him, and we see the effect of Tiffany’s new baby on the dynamic of the friend group. Along the way, we’ll see these characters evaluating relationships, both new and old, in an effort to figure out who and what comes with them in this next phase of their lives.
INSECURE stars Issa Rae. Other series regulars include Yvonne Orji, Jay Ellis, Natasha Rothwell, Amanda Seales, Kendrick Sampson and Alexander Hodge.
Created by Issa Rae & Larry Wilmore; executive produced by Issa Rae, Prentice Penny, Melina Matsoukas, Michael Rotenberg, Dave Becky, Jonathan Berry, Amy Aniobi and Jim Kleverweis; co-executive producers, Laura Kittrell and Phil Augusta Jackson.
Backstage at “The Talk” Taye Diggs dishes on the possibility of a third edition of “The Best Man.”
“I do think it will happen. We’ve all been in discussions with the director, Malcolm Lee. I think it might end up being a TV series, maybe on a streaming platform, but the script has already been written, so we’ll see. I’m just waiting on Malcolm Lee.”
Regina Hall returned to her Showtime series Black Monday for a big surprise. After the historic 1987 stock market crash occurred in the Season 1 finale, Dawn Towner (Hall) has started her own brokerage firm. Hall said she did not find out this detail until she read the script.
“I was even shocked,” Hall told UPI in an interview. “It’s always fun to read and discover more about your character.”
If Dawn were a historical figure, she would be making history. She was formerly a partner in The Jammer Group, also a fictional black-run brokerage firm in the ’80s. Jammer CEO Mo Monroe (Don Cheadle), has fled from charges of financial terrorism and the double homicide of Rod Jaminski (Bruce Dern) and Lenny Lehman (Ken Marino).
“We’re talking about things that never existed, an all female firm headed by a black woman on Wall Street,” Hall said, adding that she enjoys carving a new path through the world of finance in the ’80s.
Dawn hires more female brokers and allows working mothers to breastfeed in the office.
“Maybe [this is] what it would have looked like had we had a female firm,” Hall said.
As Black Monday continues to explore drama through the late ’80s, the show also flashes back to the ’70s, when Mo and Dawn met. Mo invites Dawn to be part of The Jammer Group, but won’t make her a full partner.
Hall said she could relate to such deflating moments.
“I think we’ve all had moments where we have expected one thing and received another,” Hall said. “I think Dawn certainly felt like she deserved it — that she put in the time, the work and also had the knowledge to be able to be a partner. She kind of got [expletive]ed again. I think Dawn is probably used to it.”
Dawn stuck with Jammer and came out on top in 1987. Hall sees parallels between the personal one-upmanship she plays with Mo and the high stakes buying and selling in the market.
“For Dawn, it’s exciting because it’s about winning,” Hall said. “She’s a winner. She’s competitive and, in her mind, she’s smart and persuasive, and she’s driven to make a lot of money.”
Hall also sees Dawn’s rise on the trading room floor as an aspirational tale.
“She’s very driven to success, and Wall Street is a world where there aren’t many women who are afforded the opportunity to have success,” Hall said. “I’m sure they would have been having success [if they had the opportunity]. It’s just such a male-dominated field.”
Before Black Monday, Hall was enjoying a thriving movie career. She starred in the hit comedy Girls Trip, the acclaimed The Hate U Give, and the indie Support the Girls, and had supporting roles in Little and Shaft.
Hall wasn’t necessarily looking to transition to television. She still films movies between seasons. The role of Dawn appealed to Hall whether it would be in a film or series.
“I was looking for something that was exciting, and that my storyline didn’t have to be necessarily connected to the man as the wife,” Hall said. “This was perfect because Dawn was her own person, always in a fight to show who she was. She’s connected to Mo, but she’s her own entity. So it had the love story, it had the comedy, it had the drama.”
Hall was not aware of any movie offers she did not receive while she was committed to Black Monday. If there were, she has no regrets.
“I never feel like I’m missing out, probably because I’m really happy with what I’m doing,” Hall said. “I always feel like you only feel like you’re missing out when you’re not excited about what you’re doing. When I’m not available, I’m just not available, but I feel incredibly grateful to be where I am.”
Girls Trips fans are waiting for Hall to reunite with Tiffany Haddish, Jada Pinkett Smith and Queen Latifah for a sequel. The cast is interested, but they’re all waiting for a script.
“I did hear a rumor that they were writing it, but that’s all I know,” Hall said.
In the first film, four friends took a trip to New Orleans. Hall says she’s heard a lot of speculation on destinations for the sequel, but no draft of a screenplay.
“Everyone has an idea like, ‘We should go here’ but really people are just picking places they want to go,” Hall said.
Black Monday returns Sunday at 10 p.m. EDT on Showtime.
LOS ANGELES, (UPI)