Brent Lang Executive: Last News

Brent Lang Executive Editor Roadside Attractions has acquired North American rights to “Dreamin’ Wild,” a drama about the rediscovery of singer and songwriter Donnie Emerson after years spent in obscurity. The film, which was directed by Bill Pohlad, a filmmaker who unearthed gold from another music industry saga with his 2014 Brian Wilson film “Love & Mercy,” premiered at Venice. “Dreamin’ Wild,” a reference to an album that Donnie released with his brother Joe Emerson, will open nationwide only in theaters on August 4, 2023. Roadside previously released “Love & Mercy,” making this a reunion for the filmmaker and distributor. The film centers on the critical reevaluation of “Dreamin’ Wild,” and the impact that second chance has on Donnie, his wife Nancy, brother Joe, and father Don Sr. as they must come to terms their new fame. Pohlad uses two different actors to explore the real-life characters in different time periods, just as he did in “Love & Mercy” with Paul Dano and John Cusack sharing the role of The Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson. This time, Oscar-winner Casey Affleck (“Manchester by the Sea”) plays the older Donnie Emerson and Noah Jupe, who appeared in “Honey Boy,” plays the younger. Walton Goggins (“Justified”) and Jack Dylan Grazer (“It”) take on Donnie’s brother Joe, while Beau Bridges plays the family patriarch. Zooey Deschanel plays Donnie’s wife Nancy.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” a historical drama about the serial targeting and murder of members of the oil-rich Osage tribe, will open in limited theaters starting Oct. 6. The film will then have a wide release on Oct. 20. “Killers of the Flower Moon,” which is being produced by Apple Original Films, will then begin streaming on Apple TV+ at an unspecified date. Paramount Pictures will partner with Apple on the theatrical release of the movie, which has an impressive ensemble that includes Oscar winners Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro and Brendan Fraser, as well as Jesse Plemons and Lily Gladstone. Given the top talent involved, “Killers of the Flower Moon” is expected to be a major awards season player.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Neon has purchased North American rights to “Eileen,” an adaptation of Ottessa Moshfegh’s acclaimed novel of the same title. The movie debuted to strong reviews at Sundance, but its high price tag, said by sources to be in the range of $15 million, made it difficult for the film to score a distribution deal. It languished on the market for roughly two months as several studios kicked the tires. This despite the combined star wattage of “Jojo Rabbit’s” Thomasin McKenzie and Oscar-winner Anne Hathaway and a twisty plot. The rest of the ensemble includes Shea Whigham, Marin Ireland, and Owen Teague. William Oldroyd (“Lady Macbeth”) directs from a script by Moshfegh who adapted “Eileen” with Luke Goebel. Neon will release the film theatrically this fall. 

Brent Lang Executive Editor Warner Bros. Discovery U.S. Hispanic has partnered with GroupM and Cocina Media on “El Toque de Aarón.” The all-new original seriesfollows celebrity chef Aarón Sánchez and his team as they help Latino restaurants in the Los Angeles area reach new heights. Kimberly Clark’s VivaÒ Paper Towels Brand will be an integrated sponsor, with other GroupM clients featured throughout the series. Sánchez will also act as an executive producer. The six-part series unfolds in Latino restaurants with great potential, ready to seize the opportunity to optimize their business – from devising a more exciting menu to improving the overall aesthetics to streamlining their execution and raising their public profile. Sánchez will help reimagine these restaurants to bring out their true soul, with a revamped menu and a refreshed space. In each 30-minute episode, the culinary wizard will put his personal touch on each menu item, while mentoring each restaurant’s chef and sharing tips and tricks of the trade along the way. Helping to round out the renewals with much-needed renovations are designer Cris Mercado (“HGTV Star; Remodelaciones con Celebridades“) and project manager Ángel Riveros (“Hogar Star”). Complicating matters is the fact that they have only four days to achieve this mission. The clock is ticking.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Viola Davis, Michelle Yeoh and Jenna Ortega may have topped the box office and won rave reviews in the likes of “The Woman King,” “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “Scream,” but Hollywood still tended to bank on movies with male leads. A new survey of the top 100 grossing domestic releases found that women only accounted for 33% of movie protagonists. That represented an infinitesimal two percentage point increase from 2021, according to the report by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University. And don’t expect actresses to get as many lines as their male counterparts. Females accounted for 37% of all speaking characters in 2022, up 3 percentage points from 34% in 2021. Men had 63% of speaking roles, and 0.1% of speaking characters were transgender. One speaking character was non-binary.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Producers Ken Davenport and Primary Wave Music are developing “The Ten,” a new musical project that will feature music and lyrics by the Grammy Award-nominated team Future Cut (Tunde Babalola and Darren Lewis), and Emily Phillips. The show will draw on a wide range of musical influences including hip-hop, bluegrass, R&B, soul, and the blues. It will feature a book by Nambi E. Kelley and will be directed by Tony Award-winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson. Sandi Moranwill also serve as producer on “The Ten.” A reading is planned for early 2023. In a statement, Santiago-Hudson said the show is “…loosely based on the story of Moses and The Ten Commandments [and] set in our current times.” He went on to predict that the finished product “…will wonderfully alter what our ideas of what a modern musical can be. So be prepared for a thrilling ride.”

Brent Lang Executive Editor John Fithian, the top lobbyist for the exhibition industry, will retire as the CEO of the National Association of Theatre Owners on May 1, 2023. The group said it has already begun a search for Fithian’s successor, but he leaves big shoes to fill having been a major force at NATO, as it is called, for 30 years. Initially engaged as outside counsel to NATO in 1992, Fithian assumed the presidency in 2000. In that capacity, he helped guide the group’s members through some of the most tumultuous periods in the cinema business’s history, including its transition to digital projection, as well as the COVID-19 closures that brought the industry to its knees.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Paramount’s “Smile” debuted to a sizzling $22 million, easily topping the domestic box office. The horror film beat out the weekend’s other new wide release, Universal’s LGBTQ romantic comedy “Bros,” which landed in fourth with a paltry $4.8 million debut. “Smile” ranks as one of the better original horror debuts of the year, beating out 20th Century Studios’ “Barbarian” ($10 million) and Sony’s “The Invitation” ($7 million). As the box office enters October, the horror genre will continue to take center stage with Universal’s “Halloween Ends” releasing in two weeks and hoping to cash in on the excitement for thrills and chills. The box office result for “Smile” is a frighteningly good haul, seeing as it cost Paramount a measly $17 million to produce. The company used some clever marketing tactics this week by strategically placing paid actors, with huge, creepy smiles plastered on their faces, behind home plate during televised Major League Baseball games. Social media users quickly noticed the unsettling fans, who wore “Smile” t-shirts, when the cameras zoomed in on batters stepping up to the plate.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Riot Games has hired veteran executive Mandy Beckner as its global head of live action development, film and TV. She joins the developer and publisher after a stint as director of content for the original indie film group at Netflix. In her new role, Beckner will be in charge of developing live-action film and TV content for all of Riot’s “League of Legends”-related IP. Beckner will report to Brian Wright, Riot Games’ chief content officer. “Mandy is a dynamic executive with a successful track record that speaks to the kind of entertaining and engaging IP that Riot is known for,” Wright said in a statement. “We are thrilled to welcome her to the Riot family.”

Brent Lang Executive Editor Illumination, the studio behind the “Despicable Me” franchise, has tapped Mike Moon to form a new label, Moonlight. The goal is to broaden the range of films that Illumination makes beyond the kid-friendly fare that’s been its stock in trade. Moon most recently served as the head of adult animation at Netflix, a post he stepped down from in July to “pursue other opportunities.” His exit came as the streamer, battered by a swooning stock price, was laying off animators and dialing back its ambitions in the space. In addition to his new role as president of Moonlight, the company said that Moon will serve as a senior creative advisor to Illumination. Moonlight’s films will be distributed under Illumination’s distribution partnership with Universal Pictures. Illumination said the goal is for Moonlight to “produce animated films that push beyond the family genre.”

Brent Lang Executive Editor Yellow Veil Pictures has acquired U.S. distribution rights to “Ashkal,” following its screening at the Toronto International Film Festival. The murder mystery is the second feature from Tunisian director Youssef Chebbi and had its world premiere earlier this year at Cannes as part of the Directors’ Fortnight section. Yellow Veil Pictures plans to release the film theatrically in 2023. “Ashkal” is set amongst derelict, half-finished apartment complexes of a former regime, where a mysterious burnt body is discovered by two police officers. The corpse reveals a puzzling repetition of events. As the investigation progresses, a network of violence and corruption is uncovered throughout the city. Fatma Oussaifi and Mohamed Houcine Grayaa star in the picture.

Brent Lang Executive Editor New Slate Ventures has come on board as a production partner for Insignia Films’ “Free Money.” The announcement was made just ahead of the documentary feature’s world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival. Jordan Fudge, Jeremy Allen and Tess Cohen will join producer Amanda Pollak, and executive producers Stephen Ives, Bradwel Iro (LBX Africa), Chris Buck (Retro Report) to back the film.  The film explores what happens when universal basic income (UBI) comes to the Kenyan village of Kogutu. GiveDirectly, a non-profit organization, is sending free money for 12 years as part of an experiment. Filmmakers Lauren DeFilippo and Sam Soko juxtapose the story of these young economists, bankrolled by Silicon Valley and convinced that they have found an infallible algorithm to improve lives, with those of the villagers.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Momentum Pictures has purchased the North American and U.K. rights to Michael Morris’ “To Leslie,” a drama with Andrea Riseborough that had its world premiere at this year’s SXSW Film Festival. The film will be released in theaters and on VOD on Oct. 7. Riseborough starts as a West Texas mother who wins the lottery and drinks it away just as fast, leaving behind a world of heartbreak. She comes home in the hopes of achieving redemption. Riseborough leads an ensemble that includes Oscar-winner Allison Janney (“I, Tonya”), Marc Maron (“Maron”), Owen Teague (‘The Stand”), James Landry Hebert (“Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood”), Andre Royo (“The Wire”) and Stephen Root (“Barry”).