Innholdsfortegnelse for 8/10/2022 i Variety

At Flix Brewhouse, a Texas-based luxury movie theater chain, chief revenue officer Chris Randleman is known as Mr. Sunshine. But his upbeat attitude is about to be put to the test. After a rebound summer at the box office, thanks to hits like “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Elvis” and A24’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” he and fellow movie theater operators are bracing for a steep downturn in admissions before Labor Day weekend. The biggest concern: a dearth of major releases to ride out the dog days of the season. “As great as the summer has been, we’re about to hit a lull,” Randleman says. “The problem isn’t that people don’t want to go to theaters. We don’t have movies to show in August or September.” Hit movies in August aren’t…

When Wanuri Kahiu first received the script for Netflix’s “Look Both Ways,” the Kenyan director felt like she was, in a certain sense, reading her own story. The dramedy focuses on Natalie (Lili Reinhart), who takes a pregnancy test on the eve of her college graduation. Her life then diverges into two parallel worlds: one where she stays in Texas and becomes a young mother, and the other in which she isn’t pregnant and moves to L.A. to pursue a career in animation. “I felt it was partially my life, in the sense that I remember the exact moment I realized I was pregnant and how I literally saw my life take a parallel route,” Kahiu, now a mother of two, tells Variety. “I believe in parallel lives and multiple…

Kathryn Busby, brought in as Starz president of original programming last year, joined a premium cable network with two major tentpoles: The “Outlander” and “Power” franchises. So she did what any good network executive might do: She leaned into them. “They are monsters,” she says of the two worlds. “Power” ended its run in 2020 but spawned the spinoffs “Power Book II: Ghost,” “Power Book III: Raising Kanan” and “Power Book IV: Force.” “Outlander,” which recently wrapped its sixth season, is about to get its first scripted spinoff as well: the prequel “Outlander: Blood of My Blood,” which the network confirmed this month. Busby says the two series help define Starz and its programming focus. “I like to say they’re shows that have swagger,” she says. “As other networks out…

Don Roy King, director of “Saturday Night Live” for more than 15 years, didn’t just work the show from behind the scenes, but he also guided an important landmark in the show’s history, passing the baton to Liz Patrick. Patrick took over in 2021, but not before observing King in his element. No stranger to directing live television — she can count “Ellen” and “MTV Movie Awards” among her credits — this gig brought all her experience in music, sketches and handling last minute changes together. Patrick worked closely with King, moving the show into a new era. Here, the directors share how they pulled off the transition. What was your relationship to the show coming in? Liz Patrick: I’ve been a fan of the show since I was a…

ABBOTT ELEMENTARY (ABC) Quinta Brunson, “Pilot” Triple nominated, this could be the best place to reward the ABC show’s creator Brunson, similar to Michaela Coel’s win last year for “I May Destroy You.” BARRY (HBO) Duffy Boudreau, “710N” The episode that is nominated is also up for directing honors — one of the few categories where “Barry” is competitive, besides in the lead actor heat for Hader. BARRY (HBO) Alec Berg and Bill Hader, “Starting Now” Another Hader special, this time co-written with Alec Berg, the comedy series managed two noms, but this may be a harder category to conquer with so many acclaimed episodes. HACKS (HBO MAX) Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky, “The One, the Only” Last year’s winner is back, and if “Hacks” is actively…

Nicholas Braun SUCCESSION As fan favorite Cousin Greg, Braun rode in with a wave of support for the HBO drama series, nabbing his second Emmy nomination. Is there a day that could find him a surprise winner for his efforts? Billy Crudup THE MORNING SHOW After winning an Emmy for the first season of the Apple TV+ series, Crudup has become somewhat of a default selection for the TV Academy. As the only nominee in the lineup without a co-star to split the vote, and with more screen time in Season 2, he could find himself with another statuette on his mantle. Kieran Culkin SUCCESSION Long believed to be the front-runner here, Culkin is walking into the final Emmy voting period with a significant win from the Critics Choice Awards.…

Alex Borstein THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL Recognized in this category before for her role as Susie Myerson in the Prime Video comedy series, Borstein is an Emmy darling with numerous previous nominations. She could be a safer, industry choice for this TV Academy to make. Hannah Einbinder HACKS The likely runner-up last year to Hannah Waddingham, Einbinder’s work as Ava Daniels is a cherished force in the HBO Max comedy series. With that said, she might be in her best position yet to win her first Emmy alongside her front-running co-star Jean Smart. Janelle James ABBOTT ELEMENTARY The scene-stealing and hysterical James nabbed her first Emmy nom for her turn as the hilarious principal in the ABC sitcom. A welcome newcomer to the race, she could serve as an interesting,…

Choreographer Jamal Sims and DP Adam Santelli helped director Tamra Davis realize her vision in adapting “13: The Musical” from the Broadway stage to Netflix, where it debuts Aug. 12. Davis, who had directed more than 150 music videos, and had done episodes of Disney+’s “High School Musical: The Musical,” says she wanted not only to acknowledge classic Broadway tropes but also to “bring all my knowledge from music videos and pop culture and what I think will appeal to contemporary kids.” She and Sims created high-energy numbers that reference classic musicals as well as TikTok trends in dance and camera moves. New York has a natural upbeat pace to it already — the cabs going by, the cars going by, the people walking by.”— Jamal Sims, choreographer “13: The…

“Broad City” co-creator Abbi Jacobson and “Mozart in the Jungle” executive producer Will Graham give “A League of Their Own” a modern makeover for the upcoming Ama-zon Prime Video series, emphasizing LGBT storylines and the struggles of Black female athletes to play baseball during the World War II era. The show, debuting Aug. 12, follows the basic outline of Penny Marshall’s 1992 movie of the same name: A catcher with a husband away at war quickly becomes a team leader, played in the update by Jacobson, and Nick Offerman has stepped into the equivalent shoes of Tom Hanks as a disgraced star player-turned-manager. Here’s how the show stacks up against the 30-year-old movie, which introduced Rosie O’Donnell to pal Madonna and was itself an adaptation of a late-1980s documentary of…

Patricia Arquette SEVERANCE Working with director Ben Stiller has proven to be a good luck charm for Arquette. He helmed “Escape at Dannemora,” for which she won an Emmy, and he directed this Apple TV+ drama series. Her episode submission, “What’s for Dinner?,” is a strong one. Julia Garner OZARK A two-time Emmy winner for playing Ruth Langmore in Netflix’s crime thriller, Garner is also nominated this year in lead actress limited series for her role in “Inventing Anna.” A win here would be her third for the series, whose final season received glowing reviews and had an impressive Emmy showing. Jung Ho-yeon SQUID GAME As Kang Sae-byeok, Hoyeon has become the heart and soul of the Netflix drama, shown by her big win at the SAG Awards for lead…

When the first edition of what would become the Sarajevo Film Festival was held in 1995, the Bosnian capital was in the final year of a devastating, four-year siege. Electricity shortages plunged the city into darkness, while food and hard currency were scarce. The inaugural screenings were held in the basement of a bombed-out building — a literal hole-in-the-wall — where tickets could be purchased with cigarettes instead of cash. The annual event that emerged from the rubble didn’t just contribute to the cultural life of the city. In the early days after the siege, organizers and local clean-up crews got to work around Sarajevo, refurbishing historic buildings that had been destroyed by the shelling and converting them into festival venues. “Everyone who was involved felt that they were contributing…

“A League of Their Own” costume designer Trayce Field wanted to give each character her own costume arc and palette to help tell a visual story about women, many of whom had been housewives, leaving home for the first time to live their dreams. Based on Penny Marshall’s 1992 movie, the series, coming to Prime Video on Aug. 12, is a fictional story based on the real women’s baseball league that started during World War II. Abbi Jacobson’s Carson and Chante Adams’ Max are both homemakers at the start of the series. Carson is prim and proper, while Max, a Black woman, feels trapped. They mirror one another when it comes to personal growth, Field explains. For Carson, “we went with hints of pinks, soft green and a little bit…

FILM REVIEW Director: Han Jae-rim Starring: Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Yim Si-wan If I were put in charge of a film school, the first thing I would do is build a set — the cockpit and cabin of a modern airliner — and order all directing students to make a film that takes place aboard the plane. It’s my belief that creativity works best within constraints, and this seems as good a test as any to see what someone can do with a single location. Case-in-point Korean adrenaline rush “Emergency Declaration” begins at the airport, where a nervous young man buys a ticket aboard the most crowded flight he can find: KI501 to Honolulu. In the bathroom, the suspicious-looking traveler, Ryu Jin-seok (Yim Si-wan), slices a hole under his arm…

FILM REVIEW Director: Peggy Holmes With: Eva Noblezada, Simon Pegg, Jane Fonda Full disclosure: I don’t believe in luck, but I do believe that “Luck” — the first feature-length toon from David Ellison-backed Skydance Animation, available exclusively on Apple TV+ — represents a force for good in the world. It’s not easy developing both a pipeline and a project that could compete with the Disneys and DreamWorks out there. (This was famously the film that Emma Thompson quit in protest when the company hired ex-Pixar honcho John Lasseter.) While the new studio’s debut can’t touch “Toy Story,” it’s an auspicious start for a talented group of storytellers. After Lasseter got involved, “Luck” changed direction — and directors — picking up choreographer-turned-helmer Peggy Holmes and shifting to a plot full of…

Where’s the bottom? That’s one of several big questions swirling around Warner Bros. Discovery as the newly merged company goes through what one analyst charitably described as “post-merger growing pains.” In the span of a few days last week, WB Discovery’s new regime led by CEO David Zaslav managed to anger a wide swath of Hollywood’s creative community and alarm media biz watchers on Wall Street. From grounding DC Comics’ “Batgirl” to canceling TBS’ “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee,” the company took a series of steps that underscore the depth of its financial and operational challenges now that the hurrahs and hoopla around the merger have long passed. The how-low-can-it-go question applied to WB Discovery stock’s price last week, with shares plunging and market capitalization ($32 billion as of Aug.…

With streamers making their biggest bets yet on content — and more of them about to include advertising options — Variety spoke with Dan Erlij and Allan Haldeman, UTA co-heads of TV literary, about the state of the television industry. In a rare joint interview, the two covered a wide range of topics, such as Netflix’s and HBO’s domination of the Emmys, and how AVOD streaming could bring “transparency we can find in terms of making deals.” The duo have more than 40 years at the agency between them, as well as a roster of A-list clients that includes “Succession” creator Jesse Armstrong, “The Good Fight” duo Robert and Michelle King, and “Atlanta” director and executive producer Hiro Murai. HBO and HBO Max got 140 Emmy nominations and Netflix 105.…

In July 2012, I showed up at the office of legendary Hollywood litigator Bert Fields for a Variety Q&A in one of those nondescript Century City steel-and-glass skyscrapers. Once ushered into Fields’ inner sanctum at Greenberg Glusker, I stepped into a bespoke space of dim lighting, hushed tones, wood paneling and tomes of case law lining the walls. “Hold all my calls,” Fields told his assistant, “unless it’s Tom Cruise.” By then, Fields had long held a top position in the pantheon of entertainment attorneys. In addition to Cruise, clients included Michael Jackson, Warren Beatty, James Cameron, Madonna and the Beatles — not to mention Spielberg, Lucas, Ovitz and Katzenberg. On the darker side of the business, he represented shadowy showbiz detective Anthony Pellicano. More than just an attorney, Fields…

AWARADS CIRCUIT Think this year’s outstanding TV movie category is a bit weird? It’s always been a category with an identity problem. Flash back for a moment to 1972, the year that the ABC TV movie “Brian’s Song” won five Emmys. “Brian’s Song” is considered one of the seminal TV movies of all time, a tear-jerker starring James Caan and Billy Dee Williams about Chicago Bears player Brian Piccolo (Caan), who discovered he had cancer soon after turning pro. Nominated for 11 Emmys overall, “Brian’s Song” was so popular, and so successful, that it helped put the ABC “Movie of the Week,” as the franchise was called, front and center — cementing the TV movie as a network staple. The “movie of the week” idea was so groundbreaking that the…

Frank Gehry Meets José Andrés Nearly two decades after the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall opened in downtown Los Angeles, the eye-catching edifice now has a sibling across the street. The Gehry-designed Grand L.A. includes luxury apartments, the Conrad Los Angeles hotel and a clutch of drinking and dining concepts from José Andrés, including San Laurel, Agua Viva and later this year, a branch of his Bazaar Meat steakhouse. Andrés’ plan to open in the area has been gestating more than 10 years. “I love the fact that we could drive traffic to a part of downtown L.A. that frankly needed a little more love,” says Sam Bakhshandehpour, president of Andrés’ ThinkFoodGroup. “It’s something José has done time and time again.” Bakhshandehpour calls San Laurel’s California-meets-Spain cuisine “an elevated…

OZARK (NETFLIX) Jason Bateman, “A Hard Way to Go” A 2019 winner in this category, Bateman is also nominated for lead actor in a drama series. Taking on the final season, let alone the final episode of a beloved series, he has a home run on his hands. If he wins lead actor, he would also be the first person to have victories in both those categories. SEVERANCE (APPLE TV+) Ben Stiller, “The We We Are” The finale of the inaugural season was a nail-biter and Stiller presents his most commanding presence in his career as a director. The final line, “She’s alive,” has never been better, or more deeply felt. He could be a true challenger. SQUID GAME (NETFLIX) Hwang Dong-Hyuk, “Red Light, Green Light” Directing an entire season…

Buzzy shows gave beloved and well-known character actors a place to shine in the 2021-22 TV season, and Emmy voters jumped on board — surprisingly, a lot of these beloved performers are first-time nominees, or have earned just a couple of notices in their careers. Take, for instance, Sheryl Lee Ralph of “Abbott Elementary,” who plays formidable teacher Barbara Howard on the ABC hit. One of the original “Dreamgirls,” she earned a Tony nomination for the hit Broad-way musical, as well as an Indie Spirit award for 1991’s “To Sleep With Anger” — plus, she’s been a staple on TV since the 1970s. But this is her first Emmy nomination. “It is amazing to be at a point in my life in my career in a show where I am…

Anthony Carrigan BARRY The HBO dark comedy was an Emmy favorite once again, and so is NoHo Hank, who plays incredibly well against triple-nominated star Bill Hader. A scene-stealer, this may be his time to have an on-stage moment. Brett Goldstein TED LASSO The reigning champ of the category for playing Roy Kent, Goldstein had an even stronger second season; he could be the first back-to-back winner since Jeremy Piven for “Entourage” in 2007-08. Toheeb Jimoh TED LASSO This is another indication that the TV Academy is in love with “Ted Lasso” and with its characters including soccer player Sam Obisanya. This serves as an excellent breakout nom and moment of recognition for Jimoh to bring him more roles and noms in the future. Nick Mohammed TED LASSO If people…

Growing up, D’Arcy Carden had three career aspirations: “Rock star, actress, baseball player.” She’s already seen success as an actor with such memorable roles as Janet in “The Good Place” and Natalie in “Barry.” In Amazon Prime Video’s “A League of Their Own,” premiering on Aug. 12, Carden had the chance to make another one of those childhood dreams come true, hitting a grand slam as fiery Rockford Peaches player Greta Gill. The new series is based on Penny Marshall’s beloved 1992 film of the same name — but don’t call it a reboot. The retelling includes what Carden calls “kisses to the original,” but features new characters, while tackling queer storylines and racism. What’s your relationship to the original movie? In the ’80s and ’90s, there were all these…