Variety 01/11/2024

The last time Kristen Stewart graced the cover of Variety, she had a whole new joie de vivre. Clad in Chanel and headed to the 2016 Cannes Film Festival to promote “Personal Shopper,” her latest collaboration with favorite auteur Olivier Assayas, the 26-year-old star known for playing the ingénue in the “Twilight” franchise was owning the spotlight — and her identity as a queer woman. “I’m not hiding shit,” she told us. “And I’m very obviously …” She trailed off without finishing that sentence. Now, at 33, with an Oscar nomination to her name for 2021’s “Spencer,” Stewart is no longer speaking in ellipses. She’s fully claimed her place in the industry as a grown-up movie star who still makes art her own way. (And yes, she still reps Chanel, putting…

Senior entertainment writer Adam B. Vary was still feeling a bit dizzy from his interview with Kristen Stewart when Jodie Foster called him to talk about her “Panic Room” co-star. He’s been in and out of a gay coma since. Executive editor Brent Lang interviewed Steven Soderbergh for the 35th anniversary of “Sex, Lies, and Videotape,” a movie he first saw in high school when he worked in a video store. (Remember those?) Though senior editor Todd Gilchrist won’t be on the ground at Sundance this year, he found it thrilling to trade emails with Brian Eno about the generative AI doc about him that’s premiering at the festival. Cover photographer Emily Soto says, “Photographing Kristen Stewart was an absolute inspiration. She was so collaborative, and she brought her own…

Nominees OUTSTANDING ANIMATED PROGRAM BOB’S BURGERS Executive Produced by Jon Schroeder, Co-Executive Produced by Jameel Saleem, Supervising Producer Lindsey Stoddart, Produced by Katie Crown ENTERGALACTIC Executive Produced/Written by Ian Edelman RICK AND MORTY Co-Executive Producer Alex Rubens THE SIMPSONS Executive Produced/Written by Matt Selman, Co-Executive Produced/Written by Ryan Koh, Co-Executive Produced by Christine Nangle OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY FOR VARIETY OR REALITY PROGRAMMING JAMAL SIMS Choreographer, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST: A 30TH CELEBRATION DEREK HOUGH Choreographer, DANCING WITH THE STARS JAMAL SIMS Choreographer, ENCANTO AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY FOR SCRIPTED PROGRAMMING JAMAL SIMS Choreographer, GREASE: RISE OF THE PINK LADIES OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY FOR A SERIES (HALF-HOUR) CARL HERSE Director of Photography, “Tricky Legacies” BARRY CHRIS TEAGUE Director of Photography, “I Know Who Did It” ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING OUTSTANDING…

“Barbie” may have won the box office, but “Oppenheimer” won the awards. The Golden Globes firmly cemented Christopher Nolan’s three-hour historical drama as the Oscar front-runner, forcing other contenders to regroup and rethink their campaign strategies. As Hollywood recovers from an epic night of schmoozing and partying, it’s an excellent time to take stock of the state of the awards race. Here are five takeaways from the 81st Golden Globes. “OPPENHEIMER” FLEXED ITS OSCAR MUSCLE Universal Pictures’ after-party was the place to be on Sunday, with the studio’s executives and the Nolan crew giddy over their haul. And they had every reason to be. After all, “Oppenheimer” walked away with five statuettes, the most of any film. Most notable was its best picture in a drama triumph over its closest…

Jo Koy will be fine. That was the general consensus at the Golden Globes after-parties, where most agreed that Koy flopped — but he remains a popular talent. The stand-up comedian has two specials coming to Netflix, including one this year that taped last November in Brooklyn. He has millions of fans and is constantly touring. Plus, the Globes grew by a whopping 50% — averaging 9.4 million viewers — after bottoming out in 2023. In other words, Jo Koy is OK. Still, with that kind of global platform, his misstep stung a bit. This was a milestone for the comedian, and his hiring was a proud moment for many Filipino Americans — a group often ignored by Hollywood. (Case in point: The Globes put out a press release noting…

Not even Gwyneth Paltrow’s ski instructor could predict the terrain on the slopes of Park City, Utah — and so it goes for the crop of independent movies seeking splashy distribution deals at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Buzzy titles with notable names — Kristen Stewart, Pedro Pascal, Kieran Culkin and Steven Yeun are just a few of the stars popping up in festival movies — will vie for release slots from major studios and streamers. But the evergreen questions remain: Which films will win over audiences on the ground, and how much cash are distributors willing to cough up for these crowd-pleasers? There are indicators that this year is shaping up to be a seller’s market, according to more than half a dozen sales agents and industry players who…