Liam Neeson in talks to star in Naked Gun reboot... as fans wonder if Neeson can match the original

German financier-distributor Night Train Media has bought factual indie Curve Media, the prolific UK producer behind Discovery’s Salvage Hunters and Line of Duty star Vicky McClure’s BBC doc series Our Dementia Choir.

Studiocanal veteran Isabel Hund has been tapped as CEO of the new Legendary Entertainment and Tobis joint venture.

Variety examines the Oscar selection process in an array of international markets to see what works, what’s broken and what needs fixing. Despite being over-represented in competition lineups at major festivals like Cannes and Venice, France has had a cursed track record in the international feature film race, and has been overshadowed by smaller countries like Denmark in recent years. The French haven’t been able to claim an Oscar victory in the category since 1993 with Regis Wargnier’s win for “Indochine.” In the past 15 years, only four French films submitted have landed a nomination: Ladj Ly’s “Les Miserables” in 2020, Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s Turkish-language film “Mustang” in 2016, Jacques Audiard’s “A Prophet” starring Tahar Rahim in 2010 and Laurent Cantet’s Palme d’Or-winning “The Class” in 2008. Ironically, some French-language films repping other countries in the international feature race have been more successful, such as Michael Haneke’s “Amour,” which was submitted by Austria in 2013 and won. In the upcoming race, France is vying for a nomination with Alice Diop’s Venice Golden Lion-winning “Saint Omer,” a politically minded feature debut based on the real-life trial of Fabienne Kabou, a Senegalese immigrant accused of murdering her 15-month-old baby. This year’s Oscar committee, which included the likes of Audiard (“A Prophet”), Philippe Rousselet (“CODA”) and Hengameh Panahi (“Persepolis”), was bitterly split between “Saint Omer,” acquired by Neon’s Super label after Toronto, and “One Fine Morning,” Mia Hansen-Løve’s romance drama starring Lea Seydoux, which was picked up by Sony Pictures Classics in Cannes. The heated deliberations ended with a vote, as it almost always does.

Water seems to be on the brain in big franchises of late, a final frontier not that many films have been able to pull off. DC struck $1 billion with “Aquaman,” defying the odds, and soon, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” will introduce audiences to Namor and the underwater world of Talocan.

Who do you think of when you think of Scrooge? Ryan Reynolds? Me neither. But the casting directors over at Apple TV+ are clearly working on a different wavelength from all of us because this holiday season they’re promising just such an unlikely pairing with “Spirited,” their musical adaptation of Dickens’ classic story, “A Christmas Carol.” And the brilliant chaos continues, with none other than Will Ferrell set to play The Ghost of Christmas Present.

As the sun sets on the 2022 film festival season and we head into awards season, we are starting to see many of the films screened making their theatrical and streaming debuts. One of the well-received films we have listed as a 2023 Oscars shortlist contender is “The Box” (previously titled “La Caja”).  “The Box,” tells the story of Hatzín, an orphaned teenager who lives in Mexico City with his grandmother.

, Adele is a pretty common name in the English speaking world, so you might be thinking, how far off could we have been? The answer: Very. Very far off. During a happy hour with fans last week in celebration of the just-released music video for “,” fielded questions from the crowd, including one video submission from a Londoner named Annie, who asked a question about her songwriting journey.However, it was Annie's accent that caught Adele's attention."Is she from Enfield?" she exclaimed.

STRIPPED of the Government whip, and chastised and mocked by MPs and his local Tory party, former Health Secretary Matt Hancock today writes exclusively in The Sun to explain his decision to swap Westminster for the jungle . . .  Next week I’m going into the jungle, as part of this year’s I’m A Celebrity . . . Get Me Out of Here. Some may think I’ve lost my marbles or had one too many drinks, swapping the comfortable surroundings of Westminster and West Suffolk for the extreme conditions of the Australian outback, going where there will be few creature comforts, not enough food, and a load of physical tasks involving snakes, spiders and plenty of other creepy-crawlies.

EXCLUSIVE: LA-Based production, financing, and sales company Premiere Entertainment today announced that Shout! Studios has picked up North American rights to the action western Gunfight at Rio Bravo, starring Alexander Nevsky (Showdown in Manila).

Andy Walker reckons under pressure Gio van Bronckhorst has three games to save his Rangers career off the back of the dismal Champions League campaign.

Lorraine Kelly's daughter has taken the plunge and bought her very first property.

EXCLUSIVE: Ron Perlman (Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio), Yolonda Ross (The Chi) and Daniel Diemer (The Midnight Club) will star opposite Liam Neeson in the mob thriller Thug, reteaming the Oscar nominee with Cold Pursuit director Hans Petter Moland.

Liam Neeson is in talks to star in an upcoming “The Naked Gun” reboot directed by Lonely Island musician, comedian and filmmaker Akiva Schaffer, according to Deadline. The original “Naked Gun” movie was released in 1988 starring the late comedian Leslie Nielsen as the clueless Detective Frank Drebin and went on to become a worldwide success spawning two more movies.

A new Naked Gun reboot is moving forward, with Liam Neeson in negotiations to star and Akiva Schaffer set to direct.

Naked Gun, according to reports.The actor, who has previously expressed an interest in a revival of the action-comedy film franchise, is said to be in talks with producer Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy) and The Lonely Island member Akiva Schaffer, who is set to direct the reboot.According to Deadline, Schaffer will direct and executive-produce the project from a script by writers Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, who he collaborated with on animated comedy Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers. The Disney+ film won an Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie earlier this year.While plot details are being kept under wraps, it’s claimed Neeson might be playing the son of detective Frank Drebin, instead of stepping into the role made famous by Leslie Nielsen.MacFarlane and Erica Huggins are said to be producing the reboot through their company, Fuzzy Door.In February this year, Neeson said he’d been approached by MacFarlane to lead a Naked Gun reboot, although the project wasn’t officially announced.Speaking on People (the TV Show!), Neeson said: “I’ve been approached by Seth MacFarlane and Paramount Studios to maybe resurrect the Naked Gun films.“It’ll either finish my career or bring it in another direction,” he joked.

Liam Neeson has demonstrated his particular set of skills in countless “Taken” movies, but he may soon be demonstrating his flair for comedy in a reboot of one of the biggest comedy film franchises of the late 1980s and early ’90s.

Are you missing Police Squad Sgt. Frank Drebin in your life? Of course, you are; you’re only human.

Liam Neeson for Paramount’s “Naked Gun” remake. Neeson is in talks to lead the film, Variety confirms. “Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers” director and Lonely Island member Akiva Schaffer will direct and executive produce the movie. Schaffer wrote the script with “Chip ‘n Dale” scribes Dan Gregor and Doug Mand. MacFarlane and Erica Huggins are producing via their company Fuzzy Door.Earlier this year, Neeson sparked chatter online after telling “People (The TV Show)” that McFarlane and Paramount had been pursuing him to resurrect the “Naked Gun” films. “It’ll either finish my career or bring it in another direction. I honestly don’t know,” Neeson told “People (The TV Show)”.

EXCLUSIVE: One of Hollywood’s classic slapstick comedy franchises is looking to make its way back to the big screens as sources tell Deadline that Paramount Pictures is moving forward with a new Naked Gun reboot. Liam Neeson is in negotiations to star and Akiva Schaffer set to direct.