Howard Cohen: Last News

Independent films in the theatrical marketplace are weathering a particularly fierce storm in the post-pandemic world with theatre closures and the struggle to get older audiences back into the cinema but Roadside Attraction’s Howard Cohen says that it will take one indie hit to drive numbers back up. 

Roadside Attractions has acquired the Titus Kaphar Sundance World Premiere Exhibiting Forgiveness. A fall theatrical release for awards consideration is planned.

Brent Lang Executive Editor “City of Dreams,” an upcoming drama about a young Mexican boy who gets smuggled across the border, is lining up some heavy-hitting producers as Roadside Attractions looks to debut the film over Labor Day. Sean Wolfington, the executive producer of “Sound of Freedom” and most recently “Cabrini”; Luis Fonsi, a five-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, musician and producer; and songwriter Linda Perry have joined the producing team for the film. It’s a group that also includes Oscar-nominated “Roma” star Yalitza Aparicio.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Roadside Attractions has acquired North American rights to “Accidental Texan,” a comedy about a Harvard grad and actor stranded in the “Lone Star State” where he stumbles into the role of lifetime. The film, which stars Thomas Haden Church and Rudy Pankow, will open in theaters on March 8, 2024. According to the official plot description, “Accidental Texan” kicks off when Erwin (Pankow), a recent Ivy League student, flames out of his first professional acting gig when he forgets to turn off his phone and triggers an explosive nightmare on set.

EXCLUSIVE: The TIFF Midnight Madness movie, Boy Kills World, has been picked up by Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions. The action movie starring Bill Skarsgård, Michelle Dockery, Jessica Rothe, and Famke Janssen has set a wide theatrical release for April 26.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Roadside Attractions and Samuel Goldwyn Films have acquired U.S. rights to “Bring Him to Me,” a mob thriller starring Barry Pepper (“Saving Private Ryan”) and Sam Neill (“Jurassic Park”). The film will open in select theaters and on digital on Jan.

Ray Price, the respected indie movie producer who championed the likes of Tran Anh Hung, Gurinder Chadha and Carl Franklin, has died aged 75. Price’s death after a long battle with cancer was confirmed by his long-term partner, Meg Madison.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Roadside Attractions has acquired the U.S. rights to “Camp Hideout” and will release the family comedy theatrically in the fall. The film follows a troubled teen named Noah (Ethan Drew), who nearly gets caught stealing a top-secret gadget from some big city thugs. He then barely escapes by hiding in a summer camp run by the eccentric Falco (Christopher Lloyd) and counselors Jake (Corbin Bleu) and Selena (Amanda Leighton). While Noah tries to blend in with the rest of the rowdy campers, his crooked partners show up to steal the classified item from Noah. What follows is a series of wacky and zany events complete with home-made booby traps as Noah tries to escape the goons.  

Roadside Attraction’s Moving On grossed an estimated $798k at about 800 theaters, about status quo this weekend for a specialty sector that’s better but still looking to break out.  

Two icons are back in action this weekend as Roadside Attractions presents comedy Moving On with Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin on close to 800 screens, hoping it will connect with female audiences.Focus Features also opens Willem Dafoe-starring Inside from Vasilis Katsoupis on 350+ screens.

A preview for the forthcoming dramatic comedy My Happy Ending, starring Andie MacDowell, was released on Thursday.In the motion picture, MacDowell - who has been seen sporting stunning silver tresses as of late - stars as a famous actress 'who goes incognito to seek treatment for a medical issue,' according to a studio synopsis.It continues: 'While at the hospital, she meets three unique and remarkable women - an aging rocker, a young mother, and a forever single retired schoolteacher.'Together, they help her face adversity with humor and camaraderie while coaching her for the most challenging role she has ever played…herself.'In the trailer for the forthcoming movie - which is based off the 2011 Israeli play Happy End from the late Anat Gov - MacDowell's character Julia is seen discreetly checking into a treatment center, at one point pretending to other patients that she's preparing for a part. A preview for the forthcoming dramatic comedy My Happy Ending, starring Andie MacDowell, 64, was released on Thursday Amid her chemotherapy treatment, she befriends three women also battling the disease: Judy (Miriam Margolyes), Mikey (Sally Phillips) and Imaan (Rakhee Thakrar).The quartet bond amid their treatment sessions and travel with one another in their imaginations.Deadline reported earlier this week that Roadside Attractions has obtained the North American rights to the motion picture.'Andie MacDowell is one of the industry’s finest actors,' Roadside co-president Howard Cohen said, according to the outlet.

EXCLUSIVE: Roadside Attractions, Grindstone Entertainment, and Lionsgate have picked up North American distribution for Charlie Day’s feature directorial debut Fool’s Paradise.

EXCLUSIVE: Roadside Attractions has acquired Moving On, an original comedy written and directed by About a Boy Oscar nominee Paul Weitz starring Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin as estranged friends who reunite to seek revenge on the petulant widower (Malcolm McDowell) of their recently deceased best friend. Along the way, Fonda’s character reunites with her great love (Richard Roundtree) as each woman learns to make peace with the past and each other.  

Three films opening this weekend highlight women’s rights, class and racism — nothing ripped from today’s headlines exactly, but features with a distinctive moment and point of view that appear particularly relevant today. Call Jane, Holy Spider and Armageddon Time join Tár, Till, The Banshees of Inisherin and others already in theaters as it gets crowded out there in specialty.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions nabbed “Somewhere in Queens,” a heartfelt comedy from writer-director Ray Romano. Romano, who stars in the movie as a working-class dad, also directed, co-wrote and produced “Somewhere in Queens” in his feature filmmaking debut. The film will be released theatrically by Roadside Attractions in 2023.  “I am so excited to know that Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions will be bringing this movie to theaters everywhere,” Romano said. “I lived with every facet of this production for years, as a director, co-writer, actor and producer. It’s such a personal story for me, and it’s inspiring to see these two companies step up because they believe in the movie as much as I do.”

Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions have picked up Ray Romano’s feature directorial debut Somewhere in Queens, which previously had a world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. The three-time Emmy winner also co-wrote, stars and produced the film. Roadside plans to give Somewhere in Queens a theatrical release next year. The pic currently stands at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

The Independent Film & Television Alliance today unveiled new details, as to the programming and speakers to be featured at this year’s American Film Market.

Roadside Attractions has taken domestic rights for To The End, the follow-up film from Rachel Lears (Knock Down The House), and set a Dec. 9 theatrical-only release date.

Roadside Attractions following their release on the big screen can now be found on Hulu.

A handful of smaller films will start to test audience enthusiasm for movie theaters without big tentpoles. It’s been a rocky summer for specialty releases, and an uphill climb as arthouses emerge from Covid jitters with franchise films sucking up oxygen and screens. But superheroes are on hiatus.

The Forgiven with Jessica Chastain opens in 122 theaters this weekend as the flow of indie films continues to build with well-reviewed, festival-pedigreed product including Mr. Malcom’s List and Clara Sola. Meanwhile, producers and most other U.S. businesses are hoping economic storm clouds won’t ding their industry’s nascent revival.