Matt Rife Sets Netflix Comedy Special ‘Natural Selection’

EXCLUSIVE: André Holland (Passing), Kate Mara (Black Mirror), Zazie Beetz (The Harder They Fall) and Stephen McKinley Henderson (Beau Is Afraid) are set to star in The Dutchman, a psychological thriller based on the Obie Award-winning play by Amiri Baraka that has landed a SAG-AFTRA Interim Agreement.

EXCLUSIVE: Netflix closed a $20 million deal on Hit Man, making the biggest deal at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival and of the year for that matter. After the Richard Linklater-directed noir comic thriller debuted to raves at Venice, the film was expected to fetch the biggest deal of the fall festivals so far. Hit Man did not disappoint. Hit Man stars Top Gun Maverick’s Glen Powell and Adria Arjona (Andor) playing the most unlikely romantic partners, in performances that will boost each of their careers. Especially Powell, who co-wrote with Linklater what will be a major star turn for him. Netflix got US, UK, Australia/New Zealand, India, South Korea, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, and Iceland. There is also a theatrical component to the deal, I’ve heard.

EXCLUSIVE: Noah Centineo has signed with WME for representation.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Netflix shelled out $20 million for global rights to “Hit Man,” a (sort of) true crime comedy from director Richard Linklater and star Glen Powell. The movie, which played to enthusiastic audiences at Telluride and Toronto film festivals, follows Powell as Gary Johnson, a mysterious gun man for hire.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Norwegian filmmaker Joachim Trier will next direct “Sentimental Value,” a family drama starring Renate Reinsve, who won best actress in Cannes for her role in Trier’s Oscar-nominated 2021 film “The Worst Person of the World.” “Sentimental Value” will follow Nora (Reinsve), an actor, and her sister Agnes, who are grieving the loss of their mother while their father Gustav reappears in their lives after a long absence. Gustav, a once-celebrated filmmaker, has written a script for a comeback movie and offered the main part to his daughter Nora, but she categorically refuses the role.

Ukraine has selected the Sundance competition title 20 Days In Mariupol, from journalist-turned-filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov, as its entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2024 Oscars.

Sara Pascoe has claimed there are two well-known predators in the UK comedy industry after the allegations of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse facing Russell Brand.

Matty Healy is making headlines lately with his love life!

Morocco has submitted Asmae El Moudir’s The Mother Of All Lies as its candidate for Best International Film at the 96th Academy Awards.

Paramount+ has set a Thanksgiving week release for Good Burger 2, the comedy sequel starring Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell. Good Burger 2 will premiere Wednesday, November 22, exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S and Canada, on Thursday, November 23, 2023 on Paramount+ in the UK and Australia. The film will also be available in additional Paramount+ international markets shortly after.

The 23rd edition of the Tribeca Festival will unspool June 5-16 in New York City, organizers said today, and submissions are now open.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “Good Burger 2” officially has a premiere date at Paramount+. The streaming service announced Monday that the followup to the beloved 1990s film will debut on Nov. 22 in the U.S.

Oscar-nominated filmmaker Phil Johnston (Zootopia, Wreck-It Ralph) has adapted The Twits, the children’s novel penned by Roald Dahl in the 1980s, into an animated feature set to hit Netflix in 2025.  

EXCLUSIVE: Studio Silverback, the environmental label of David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet producer Silverback Films, has forged an open source footage library featuring hundreds of hours of natural history content for free. A primer can be watched below.

EXCLUSIVE: The third and final season of Netflix animated series Hilda will launch on December 7. Episodes one and two of the Bella Ramsey-voiced show will premiere at the Ottawa International Animation Festival.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is celebrating 40 years of being an American citizen.

Salford’s deputy city mayor has stepped in to try to resolve a row at a care home over a delay in paying the real living wage to its staff and a host of other grievances. The workers at the Heartly Green facility in Irlam staged a protest outside the home early on Friday morning (September 15) backed by their representatives from the Unison union and deputy mayor Coun John Merry, who is also the city’s lead member for adult services.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Netflix and SK Broadband, one of South Korea’s largest internet service providers, said that they were ending all their lawsuits and would instead create a strategic partnership to provide better entertainment experiences to Korean customers. The legal dispute began in 2020 over whether content providers that generate large amounts of traffic should pay “network usage fees” in addition to the bills paid by the household end users, or whether that would go against the principle of net neutrality and lead to higher costs for consumers. Netflix said that it could offer a technological solution to traffic volume that it had provided to ISPs in other countries and to rival ISPs in Korea. But SK Telecom and its subsidiary SK Broadband held out and appeared to gain support for their position in the Korean parliament. “This strategic partnership with Netflix originates from the philosophy of SK Telecom and SK Broadband, where customer value is prioritized, and comes as part of our efforts to provide customers with an enhanced media service environment,” said SK Telecom’s Choi Hwanseok, VP of corporate strategy. “The partnership with SK Telecom, a leader in Korea’s telecommunication and innovative technology industries, holds special significance as it enables Netflix to enhance entertainment experiences for a broader Korean audience,” said Tony Zameczkowski, Netflix VP of APAC partnerships. “By teaming up with Netflix, SK Telecom and SK Broadband aim to help customers enjoy Netflix shows and films on mobile devices and IPTV (B tv) with easier access and payment options.

EXCLUSIVE: Russell Brand’s last major television job in the UK ended with him being dropped after he was repeatedly accused of being a “sexual predator” during the recording of the show.

EXCLUSIVE: Bridgerton star Claudia Jessie has joined the cast of Jack Thorne’s Netflix series Toxic Town alongside Michael Socha (The Gallows Pole) and Joe Dempsie (Game of Thrones).

Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins made "a human being" out of former health secretary Matt Hancock, apparently. The 44 year old has attracted so much vitriolic energy over the last couple of years - mainly thanks to his mid-lockdown jaunt to visit a secret girlfriend while the rest of the UK couldn't see their nearest and dearest - but by appearing in the last series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! and this month's hellish SAS show, the politician is hoping to come out smelling of roses in the public eye.