Innholdsfortegnelse for 1/17/2023 i Variety

Is NTR Jr. (1) inching closer to joining the MCU? As I first told you in last week’s “Just for Variety,” the “RRR” star says he’d love to do a Marvel movie. Well, I am doing my part to make this happen. I introduced NTR Jr. to top Marvel Studios executive Victoria Alonso (2) at Billboard’s official Golden Globes after-party on Jan. 10. The two chatted for only a moment, but let’s hope this is the start of something big. Just a few hours before, “RRR” co-star Ram Charan (3) told me he’d also be up for a super-hero role. “Absolutely,” he said with a big smile. “Captain America! Why not? We also have amazing superheroes in India. Why not invite one of our superheroes to come here?” Don’t look…

The Sundance Film Festival is returning in-person for the first time since 2020 and all the same rules apply: Stay hydrated, dust off your most comfortable snow boots and leave the formal wear at home. An in-person Sundance will surely reinvigorate the festival, but some attendees might be feeling a bit overwhelmed after two years at home. Not to worry. Below are Variety’s essential tips for surviving the Sundance Film Festival. Keep Drinking Water The altitude in Park City can be a doozy, so get ahead of it by doubling your daily water intake. Sundance veterans know to start hydrating a week before flying to Park City. Bring a reusable bottle or Thermos with you to Park City so you always have water by your side. Pack COVID Tests and…

For documentary filmmakers seeking distribution for independently made projects, Sundance is the golden ticket. It’s where a few lucky doc directors can nail down seven-figure deals with major distributors including Netflix, Amazon or Apple TV+ every year. But this year, with streamers not only tightening their purse strings but also increasingly commissioning their own content, and even shunning more provocative political-leaning fare, the Park City market for indie nonfiction features will be more competitive and likely less lucrative. Last January at Sundance 2022, which was an online-only event, the doc market got off to a strong start. Several Sundance nonfiction titles sold, including “Aftershock” (Disney’s Onyx Collective and ABC News), “All That Breathes” (HBO), “Descendant” (Netflix), “Last Flight Home” (MTV Documentary Films), “Fire of Love” (National Geographic), “Mija” (Disney+), “Nothing…

Awards voters love a transformation: Gary Oldman in “Darkest Hour,” Jessica Chastain in “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” and Christian Bale in “Vice” are just some of the recent winners who disappeared into their roles. And the recent Makeup and Hairstylists Guild (MUAHS) nominations seem to be an indicator of the trend continuing this year. Among this year’s MUAHS nominees are “The Batman,” which, despite being released in March 2022, has shown up on numerous guild honors lists including American Society of Cinematographers, Motion Picture of Sound Editors. The transformation in the film belongs to Colin Farrell, who plays Oswald Cobblepot, the scarred and pudgy midlevel Gotham City gangster with the (unwelcome) nickname of “the Penguin.” Prosthetic makeup artist Michael Marino designed the look. Director Matt Reeves cites John Cazale,…

THEATRICAL FEATURE • “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20TH CENTURY STUDIOS)• “The Banshees of Inisherin” (SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES)• “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” (MARVEL STUDIOS)• “Elvis” (WARNER BROS.)• “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (A24)• “The Fabelmans” (UNIVERSAL)• “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” (NETFLIX)• “Tár” (FOCUS FEATURES)• “Top Gun: Maverick” (PARAMOUNT)• “The Whale” (A24) ANIMATED FEATURE • “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (NETFLIX)• “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On” (A24)• “Minions: The Rise of Gru” (UNIVERSAL)• “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” (UNIVERSAL)• “Turning Red” (PIXAR) For the complete PGA nominations list, please go to Variety.com.…

That Lisa Marie Presley named her 2003 debut album “To Whom It May Concern” says a lot about the budding singer-to-be she was at the time. Until that point, she was known for being the daughter of Elvis Presley and onetime wife of Michael Jackson. For most of her life, Presley, who died Jan. 12 at age 54, was tabloid fodder. At 35, Presley was a little smug and very self-assured, as if to convey: Take it or leave it, this is me. From the album’s grungy opening track, unapologetically titled “S.O.B.,” to the reflective, rollicking, undeniably hooky single “Lights Out,” Lisa Marie dropped her guard and let the world in. She even agreed to interviews, which allowed junior music journalists like me to take in the Presley presence while…

When Joana Vicente was a producer and later an independent film executive, she would take her young children with her to Sundance so they could learn to ski while she saw the latest movies. The plane trip from New York City to Utah was always a festive occasion, as artists and executives greeted each other and talked excitedly about that year’s lineup. But it gave her children a false sense of what air travel is really like. On a subsequent vacation, Vicente’s son had a question for her mother. “My son was surprised that we didn’t know anyone on the plane,” remembers Vicente. “He was so used to what happened when we went to Sundance. And the plane is where the conversation starts. Where there’s a sense of a community…

The 29th annual SAG Awards nominations bring a bit of focus to what has been an unpredictable race all season. Here’s a look at the major film categories that will face off Feb. 26. Female Actor in a Leading Role With an embarrassment of riches in the category, there were bound to be some surprises, and many were shocked Michelle Williams didn’t make the cut for “The Fabelmans.” Golden Globe winners Cate Blanchett (“Tár”) and Michelle Yeoh (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) secured their spots, though they will have to face off against each other once again at the SAG Awards. They were joined by fellow Globe nominees Ana de Armas (“Blonde”) and Viola Davis (“The Woman King”). The fifth slot ultimately went to Gotham Award winner Danielle Deadwyler (“Till”)…

This year’s list of Directors Guild nominees for theatrical feature film includes one 800-pound gorilla and four other scrappy contenders, promising an exciting competition in a season without a clear front runner. Steven Spielberg, whose “The Fabelmans” won him the director trophy from the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn., the National Board of Review, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and others, is undeniably first among equals in the category — his semi-autobiographical story marks his 13th DGA nomination, not counting a lifetime achievement award that he received back in 2000. But even the film’s consistent presence as a recipient of accolades does not guarantee that Spielberg will take home what would be his fourth win from the guild. Among his competitors, only Martin McDonagh has previously received a DGA nomination,…

TV REVIEW Docuseries: Hulu (6 episodes; all reviewed); Jan. 26 It is easy to see why Nikole Hannah-Jones so frightens her ideological adversaries. “The 1619 Project,” the editorial franchise she created in her capacity as a journalist at The New York Times, is entering its fourth year. What began as a long-form effort in 2019 became a 2021 book and now a 2023 television series, all expanding on Hannah-Jones’ contention that our nation’s true founding occurred with the introduction of enslaved Africans in colonial America. In carrying this thesis forward, finding resonances throughout history and amplifying it across media, Hannah-Jones, who executive produces Hulu’s new “1619 Project” series and appears on-camera and in voice-over, seems both a nimble thinker and an unusually adaptable messenger. This helps make the documentary feel…

In February 2022, a battle was brewing between two Sundance factions over the documentary “Jihad Rehab,” a film that earned critical raves during its run at the virtual festival a month earlier but was being targeted by a small group of vocal detractors. The two sides — festival programmers and non-programmers — converged to discuss the spiraling controversy over the Meg Smaker-helmed film, which depicts a handful of Guantanamo detainees who have been released from the U.S. prison into a 12-month Saudi de-radicalization program. “If you look at what happened to me, look at ‘UnRedacted,’ ‘woke’ is silencing artists of color and women.”–“Waking Up Dead” director Terracino Sources describe a knock-down, drag-out showdown between programming director Kim Yutani, defending the film, and some members of the institute, who hadn’t watched…

AWARDS CIRCUIT All signs point to “The Fabelmans” dominating the Oscar noms. It would be the third Steven Spielberg film — after “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Schindler’s List” — to lead the nomination tally in a given year. On Jan. 24, AMPAS will unveil its nominees for the 95th Academy Awards. The season has been marked by the return of the blockbuster, and a love for old-fashioned movie extravaganzas will play a crucial role in how the nearly 9,600 members rank their ballots. Spielberg and Universal’s movie is predicted to rack up 10 nods, including best picture and a surprise acting nom for 20-year-old Gabriel LaBelle. Close behind is Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis” with nine, including one for star Austin Butler. Martin McDonagh’s “The Banshees of Inisherin” could follow…

Before COVID upended the film festival scene, Sundance was a hothouse of drama as studio chiefs and streaming executives tried to outmaneuver each other for the buzziest films. But, after two years of going virtual, Sundance is back in-person and it’s unclear if the bidding wars will also return in force. At a time of cost-cutting and box office struggles for indie movies, a new era of fiscal restraint may be the order of the day. But Sundance’s high altitude could cause buyers to forget about all the belt-tightening — and if that happens, here are 11 films that could leave studios writing big checks. Drift CAST: Cynthia Erivo, Alia Shawkat DIRECTOR: Anthony Chen SALES: UTA Why Buyers Are Circling: Erivo is said to be nothing short of spectacular as…

While the Screen Actors Guild Awards moves to Netflix — first to the streamer’s YouTube channel and next year, the actual platform itself — the television nominees announced on Jan. 11 prove that not everything is changing. Here, Variety takes a look at the TV categories ahead of the Feb. 26 ceremony. Drama, Drama, Drama In the ensemble in a drama category, Netflix led with “Better Call Saul,” “The Crown” and “Ozark” while Apple TV+ snuck in with “Severance,” and HBO fan favorite “The White Lotus” rounded out the group. Of course, there has been a great deal of discussion of whether the Mike White-led series belongs in limited or drama, and SAG voters decided on the latter. Overall, Netflix earned 12 nominations, the most of any network/streamer — but…

As is its custom, the Producers Guild of America will pay tribute to an elite selection of high-profile producers whose creative output has consistently reflected a high standard of quality — and the honorees at the 34th annual Producers Guild Awards are indeed titans whose producing output has dramatically shaped the industry. MILESTONE AWARD Pamela Abdy & Mike De Luca The PGA’s prestigious Milestone Award traditionally goes to producers who’ve made a historic impact on the industry, and De Luca and Abdy have indeed had a profound effect on cinema during their long and prolific careers, both separately and together. The duo recently assumed the shared mantle of co-chairs and CEOs of Warner Bros. Pictures Group, encompassing Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema and Warner Animation Group. De Luca made…

With fingers tightly crossed, the Slamdance Film Festival plans a return to in-person screenings Jan. 20-29 in Utah, but its organizers have not forgotten the lessons they learned during two years of pandemic pivots. “Something that’s become abundantly clear to us that’s important for the survival of independent film is accessibility,” festival producer Michael Morin tells Variety. “We’ve been able to do a successful online version of our festival for the last two years. It really made us reconsider what kind of program we wanted to put on when we did come back in person.” “For me, the key word here would be diversification,” says festival manager Lily Yasuda. Where a hybrid of in-person and online programming was a logistical necessity during COVID, its success in facilitating attendance underscored the…

FILM REVIEW Director: Kyle Marvin Starring: Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, Sally Field A sweet if toothless “Girls Trip” for the “Golden Girls” crowd, “80 for Brady” unites four Hollywood legends — “Grace and Frankie” duo Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno and Sally Field — as a real-life gang of octogenarian amigas who road-tripped to the 2017 Super Bowl to cheer on their favorite quarterback, Tom Brady. Selected as the opening-night cork-popper for the Palm Springs Intl. Film Festival (whose diva-worshiping audience reps the two demographics this featherweight offering serves best: gay and gray), Kyle Marvin’s directorial debut is a pleasant enough reminder that these gals are still game for a good time. More fuddy-duddy buddy comedy than sports film, the female-scripted laffer (co-written by Sarah Haskins…