Reboot News: Sony Set The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo reboot-quel for October 2018; Warner Bros. Exploring The Matrix

Two major reboot news have dropped this week – one a little more concrete than the other. Sony have formally announced that their follow-up to David Fincher’s 2011 adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo will be an adaptation of the 4th book in the series (The Girl In The Spider’s Web, the first in the series not to be written by Larsson) helmed by Dont Breathe‘s Fede Alvarez and featuring an entirely new cast. And elsewhere, there is word that Warner Bros. and writer Zak Penn are exploring a possibility of returning to the universe of The Matrix, with Michael B. Jordan as lead; Penn later took to Twitter to clarify that this will not be a reboot. [Deadline/NME]

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Casting News: Alicia Vikander In Talks For Ben Wheatley’s Freakshift, Henry Cavill Joins Mission: Impossible 6

A pair of intriguing casting updates – just a couple of weeks before the UK bow of the director’s excellent Free Fire, Alicia Vikander is said to be in talks to star in ben Wheatley’s next feature, the monster action thriller Freakshift. And director Christopher McQuarrie took to Instagram earlier this week to announce that Superman himself, Henry Cavill, has nabbed a role in next summer’s (2018, that is) Mission: Impossible sequel. [Deadline 1/2]

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Alfonso Cuarón’s Roma Wraps Production

The Gravity director’s next project isn’t too far off now – the Mexico City-set family drama Roma has wrapped production earlier this week, calling the project the film he’s “always dreamed of making”. An interesting tidbit out of the press info for the film is that regular collaborator Emmanuel Lubezki has been replaced for this film by Galo Olivares… [IndieWire]

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Netflix To Complete Orson Welles’ The Other Side of the Wind

In another move to solidify the company’s game-changer status, Netflix have announced that they will be financing the completion and restoration of the famed filmmaker’s final production, as well as releasing it globally. The streaming service have come on board filmmaker Filip Jan Rymsza’s Indiegogo campaign to restore and finish the film, with producer Frank Marshall and one of the stars of the film Peter Bogdanovich also overseeing the project. [THR]

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Matthew Vaughn Eyed To Direct Man Of Steel Foll0w-Up

While we’ve already gotten a direct sequel to Zack Snyder’s reintroduction of Superman to today’s audiences in the form of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, there’s still the question of whether the superhero will get a new solo film as part of the DCEU. Reports have come out that Kingsman director Matthew Vaughn has been eyed to direct the film. There has been a very positive fan response to the news, especially from fans hoping for Warner Bros. to take the character closer to the more optimistic portrayals made famous by Christopher Reeve and Richard Donner following Snyder’s Justice League arriving this November. [Collider]

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Trailer of the Week: Transformers: The Last Knight

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What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

‘Avatar 2’ Delayed (Again)

In what will come as a surprise to absolutely no one, James Cameron announced earlier this week that his Avatar sequel, which was previously set to release December 2018, will not be releasing on that date. With that lucrative window freed up though, and the lack of Star Wars movie in that period, who will move in? [Variety]

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Hugh Jackman Is Michael Mann’s Enzo Ferrari

The famed director’s Ferrari biopic is getting revved up again, with Hugh Jackman and Noomi Rapace currently in talks to star as the Italian automobile mogul and his wife. Of course, cue the jokes about how he doesn’t have to get ripped Wolverine-style for this role… [Deadline]

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Damien Chazelle’s First Man Set For October 2018 Release

Looks like we have our Best Picture winner at the 2019 Oscars. Universal have announced that the La La Land director’s re-team with Ryan Gosling, with Gosling starring as the Neil Armstrong, will be released in the U.S. on October 12, 2018. Expect this to get more than a few festival premieres in the lead-up – from Venice, to Toronto, and on to London… [AwardsDaily]

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Trailers Galore: Atomic Blonde, Two Baby Driver Trailers, Wonder Woman & More

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What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

Surprise Concept Teaser For Deadpool Sequel Drops

In a total shock that not even yours truly saw coming, screenings of Logan in the U.S. and Canada carried a special surprise – the first look at David Leitch’s Deadpool sequel in the form of a hilarious short film helmed by the John Wick co-director. And said short has now officially landed online thanks to Ryan Reynolds himself. If you’ve ever dreamed of the Merc with a Mouth messing around in the Wick universe (at least visually), this is it… [TrailerTrack]

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Emily Blunt Is Mary Poppins In First Look At Sequel

Disney have dropped a first look image from the upcoming Mary Poppins Returns, which is currently in production – featuring Emily Blunt as the beloved magical nanny. Rob Marshall is directing the sequel, with Meryl Streep and Colin Firth also starring. [THR]

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The Future Of TRON: Joseph Kosinski Talks Ascension, Jared Leto Eyed For Reboot?

At a special screening of TRON: Legacy last week, director Joseph Kosinski got a chance to briefly talk about the currently ‘cryogenically frozen’ third instalment TRON: Ascension, which the director describes as an “invasion movie”. But, just days after that interview, it could be said that Disney are returning shots, as trade reports have come out regarding the studio exploring a total reboot of the franchise, with Jared Leto circling the lead role. [Collider/THR]

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Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobby Brown and Kyle Chandler Board Godzilla: King of Monsters

Just days before the release of the second instalment in Legendary’s MonsterVerse franchise – Kong: Skull Island – there have been developments with Michael Dougherty’s sequel to Godzilla. Over the past few weeks, the main cast have been officially announced – with the film seemingly centring on a family unit consisting of Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things), Kyle Chandler (Manchester By The Sea) and Vera Farmiga (The Conjuring). [Variety]

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Trailers Of The Week – Kong: Skull Island and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Final Trailers

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What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

In Memoriam: Bill Paxton

We are extremely saddened to learn that famed character actor Bill Paxton passed away this weekend aged 61. He was best known for his appearances in Aliens, The Terminator, Titanic, Twister, Edge of Tomorrow; as well as TV turns in Big Love and Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and his directorial debut Frailty. Paxton will next be seen in James Ponsoldt’s The Circle. Fellow Hollywood stars came out with an outpour of support and remembrance following the news, including Jennifer Aniston who delivered an emotional tribute to the actor at last night’s Oscars. [BBC]

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The Oscars – Moonlight and The Salesman Upset & More

The bitter months-long rivalry between the two frontrunners could not have ended more perfectly. The Academy Awards were handed out last night at L.A.’s Dolby Theatre, with La La Land, as expected, scoring big by picking up 9 awards including Best Director and Best Actress. But the big surprises came closer to the end of the night – not only did Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman beat out favourite Toni Erdmann in the Best Foreign Language Film category, the night ended with a big twist as La La Land was mistakenly awarded Best Picture instead of Moonlight. [THR]

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Matt Reeves Officially Announced As The Batman Director; Nightwing Movie In The Works From LEGO Batman Director

The DC Universe drama has finally concluded – Warner Bros. have officially announced that Matt Reeves will indeed direct the in-development Batman solo film starring Ben Affleck. And elsewhere, reports have surfaced that the studio are also working on a film centred around the character of Nightwing, with The LEGO Batman Movie director Chris McKay in talks to helm the project. [THR]

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Fox Debuts Prologue Short Film For Alien: Covenant

The build up to Ridley Scott’s return to the Alien franchise continues – Fox have released a special 4-minute ‘prologue’ for Alien: Covenant this week. Directed by Luke Scott and packed with Alien references galore, this short (which will not appear in the final film, like similar ‘prologue’ promos for The Martian) nicely introduces us to the crew of the to-be-doomed colony vessel and is an absolute must-watch ahead of the film’s May release.

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Trailer Of The Week: Bright

 

Fantasy has become reality. Will Smith and Joel Edgerton star in Bright, only on @netflix. pic.twitter.com/FJueEhMFCO

— Bright Film (@BrightNetflix) 27 February 2017

What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

The big day is nearly here – the festival debuts, clever (or not so clever) campaigning, (leaked) screeners, rants over total wild cards somehow making it (oh hi, Deadpool), the hot takes, the think pieces, the frontrunner backlash and ‘frontlash’, the guild awards, the Golden Globes, the BAFTAs: they have all led to this moment. Or rather, will lead to Sunday night/early Monday morning, which is when the 89th Academy Awards will be handed out at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre.

Before flicking on that Sky box (with a bit of Twitter on the side) for what is sure to be an eventful late night, we’ve gathered the team here at the FilmSoc blog to deliver our predictions. Given there’s more than a few of us on the team, we have decided to do this by a vote; and given all the factors outside of a film’s actual merit, each of the 24 categories will have both a Will Win and a Should Win choice. So without further ado, read on after Screen Junkies’ brilliant Honest Trailer for our picks:

Best Picture

Arrival (SHOULD WIN) – our Best Picture Spotlight

Fences – our review

Hacksaw Ridge – our review

Hell or High Water – our Best Picture Spotlight

Hidden Figures – our review

La La Land (WILL WIN) – our review

Lion – our review

Manchester by the Sea – our review

Moonlight – our review

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Best Actor In A Leading Role

Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge

Ryan Gosling, La La Land

Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic

Denzel Washington, Fences

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Best Actress In A Leading Role

Isabelle Huppert, Elle

Ruth Negga, Loving – our review

Natalie Portman, Jackie (tied SHOULD WIN) – our review

Emma Stone, La La Land (WILL WIN/tied SHOULD WIN)

Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins

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Best Actor In A Supporting Role

Mahershala Ali, Moonlight (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water

Lucas Hedges, Manchester by the Sea

Dev Patel, Lion

Michael Shannon, Nocturnal Animals

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Best Actress In A Supporting Role

Viola Davis, Fences (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Naomie Harris, Moonlight

Nicole Kidman, Lion

Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures

Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea

Best Animated Feature Film

Kubo and the Two Strings (SHOULD WIN)

Moana

My Life as a Zucchini

The Red Turtle

Zootopia [aka Zootropolis] (WILL WIN)

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Best Cinematography

Bradford Young, Arrival

Linus Sandgren, La La Land (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Greig Fraser, Lion

James Laxton, Moonlight

Rodrigo Prieto, Silence

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Best Costume Design

Joanna Johnston, Allied

Colleen Atwood, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Consolata Boyle, Florence Foster Jenkins

Madeline Fontaine, Jackie (tied SHOULD WIN)

Mary Zophres, La La Land (WILL WIN/tied SHOULD WIN)

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Best Director

Denis Villeneuve, Arrival

Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge

Damien Chazelle, La La Land (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea

Barry Jenkins, Moonlight

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Best Documentary Feature

Fire at Sea

I Am Not Your Negro

Life, Animated

O.J.: Made in America (SHOULD WIN)

13th (WILL WIN)

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Best Documentary (Short Subject)

Extremis (tied WILL WIN)

4.1 Miles

Joe’s Violin (tied SHOULD WIN)

Watani: My Homeland (tied WILL and SHOULD win)

The White Helmets

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Best Film Editing

Joe Walker, Arrival (SHOULD WIN)

John Gilbert, Hacksaw Ridge

Jake Roberts, Hell or High Water

Tom Cross, La La Land (WILL WIN)

Nat Sanders and Joi McMillon, Moonlight

Best Foreign Language Film

Land of Mine

A Man Called Ove

The Salesman

Tanna

Toni Erdmann (WILL and SHOULD WIN) – our review

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Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Eva von Bahr and Love Larson, A Man Called Ove 

Joel Harlow and Richard Alonzo, Star Trek Beyond (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Alessandro Bertolazzi, Giorgio Gregorini, and Christopher Nelson; Suicide Squad

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Best Original Score

Mica Levi, Jackie

Justin Hurwitz, La La Land (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka, Lion

Nicholas Britell, Moonlight

Thomas Newman, Passengers

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Best Original Song

“Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” from La La Land – Music by Justin Hurwitz; Lyric by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (SHOULD WIN)

“Can’t Stop The Feeling” from Trolls – Music and Lyric by Justin Timberlake, Max Martin and Karl Johan Schuster

“City Of Stars” from La La Land – Music by Justin Hurwitz; Lyric by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (WILL WIN)

“The Empty Chair” from Jim: The James Foley Story – Music and Lyric by J. Ralph and Sting

“How Far I’ll Go” from Moana – Music and Lyric by Lin-Manuel Miranda

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Best Production Design

Patrice Vermette and Paul Hotte, Arrival

Stuart Craig and Anna Pinnock, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Jess Gonchor and Nancy Haigh, Hail, Caesar!

David Wasco and Sandy Reynolds-Wasco, La La Land (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Guy Hendrix Dyas and Gene Serdena, Passengers

Best Animated Short Film

Blind Vaysha

Borrowed Time

Pear Cider and Cigarettes

Pearl

Piper (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

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Best Live Action Short Film

Ennemis Intérieurs

La Femme et le TGV

Silent Nights (tied WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Sing (tied WILL and SHOULD WIN)

Timecode (tied SHOULD WIN)

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Best Sound Editing

Sylvain Bellemare, Arrival (SHOULD WIN)

Wylie Stateman and Renée Tondelli, Deepwater Horizon

Robert Mackenzie and Andy Wright, Hacksaw Ridge

Ai-Ling Lee and Mildred Iatrou Morgan, La La Land (WILL WIN)

Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman, Sully

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Best Sound Mixing

Bernard Gariépy Strobl and Claude La Haye, Arrival (SHOULD WIN)

Kevin O’Connell, Andy Wright, Robert Mackenzie, and Peter Grace, Hacksaw Ridge

Andy Nelson, Ai-Ling Lee, and Steve A. Morrow, La La Land (WILL WIN)

David Parker, Christopher Scarabosio, and Stuart Wilson, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush, and Mac Ruth, 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

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Best Visual Effects

Craig Hammeck, Jason Snell, Jason Billington, and Burt Dalton, Deepwater Horizon

Stephane Ceretti, Richard Bluff, Vincent Cirelli, and Paul Corbould, Doctor Strange (SHOULD WIN)

Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones, and Dan Lemmon, The Jungle Book (WILL WIN)

Steve Emerson, Oliver Jones, Brian McLean, and Brad Schiff, Kubo and the Two Strings

John Knoll, Mohen Leo, Hal Hickel, and Neil Corbould, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

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Best Adapted Screenplay

Arrival – Eric Heisserer, based on the short story “Story of Your Life” by Ted Chiang (SHOULD WIN)

Fences – August Wilson, based on the play by August Wilson

Hidden Figures – Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi, based on the book “Hidden Figures” by Margot Shetterly

Lion – Luke Davies, based on the book” A Long Way Home” by Saroo Brierley

Moonlight – Barry Jenkins, story by Tarell Alvin McCraney, based on the play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue” by Tarell Alvin McCraney (WILL WIN)

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Best Original Screenplay

Hell or High Water – Taylor Sheridan

La La Land – Damien Chazelle

The Lobster – Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthymis Filippou

Manchester by the Sea – Kenneth Lonergan (WILL and SHOULD WIN)

20th Century Women – Mike Mills – our review

Agree? Disagree? Who do you think will win? Let us know in the comments…and stay tuned for the Oscars themselves, airing on Sky Movies Oscars at 1:30am GMT, Monday February 27.

DC Director Drama – Matt Reeves Possibly Out Of ‘The Batman’, Mel Gibson For ‘Suicide Squad’ Sequel?

The drama over at Warner Bros. following Ben Affleck’s exit as director of the in-development Batman solo film is still going on – on Friday, it has been reported that negotiations between Matt Reeves – who appeared to be the favourite to replace Affleck – and the studio have broken down. While on the other side of the DC universe – Hacksaw Ridge director Mel Gibson has had a ‘first date’ with the studio about directing Suicide Squad 2 (the first film’s director David Ayer will be directing Skwad spin-off Gotham City Sirens with Margot Robbie producing and starring). [THR/ScreenRant]

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BAFTA Film Award Winners Announced

BAFTA have handed out their film awards at the Royal Albert Hall exactly a week ago – with Oscars Best Picture frontrunner La La Land not winning a landslide of awards, walking away with 5 in total including Best Film. Other highlights of the night included Viola Davis winning Best Supporting Actress for Fences, I, Daniel Blake taking home the Best British Film award, and in a surprise – complete lack of wins for Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight. [The Guardian]

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‘Logan’ Scores Rave Reviews Following Berlin Film Festival Premiere

James Mangold’s Logan held its world premiere at the Berlinale this Friday, and had its review embargo lifted following the screening – with critics hailing it the perfect swan song to Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. The film currently holds an impressive 97% and an average rating 8.2/10 on Rotten Tomatoes after 59 reviews, with critics highly praising the film’s grounded tone and a primarily dramatic as opposed to action-based story, as well as performances by Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart and newcomer Dafne Keen who plays the young mutant Laura. (We’ve seen it as well, and fully agree) [The Independent]

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Disney Live Action Remake News – Niki Caro In Talks To Direct ‘Mulan’, Donald Glover And James Earl Jones Cast In ‘The Lion King’

With Beauty and the Beast on the horizon, things are moving forward over at Disney with their live-action remakes. The Zookeeper’s Wife director Niki Caro is now in talks to direct Mulan, with the studio originally first approaching Ang Lee and then focusing on female filmmakers – with a shortlist including Patty Jenkins and Michelle MacLaren. And with The Lion King – Donald Glover (who is currently filming the Han Solo Star Wars spin-off) has been cast as the voice of Simba, with the legendary James Earl Jones reprising his role from the original as Mufasa. [Empire/THR]

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Trailer Of The Week – Terrence Malick’s Song To Song

What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

Last week, we were delighted to welcome two exciting industry professionals for guest workshops at UCLU Film & TV Society – acclaimed director of Radiator and actor Tom Browne; and UCL alumni Chantal Rickards, who is currently the CEO of BAFTA’s Los Angeles branch.

During his workshop on Monday, Browne talked primarily about working on his critically acclaimed directorial debut Radiator – a touching story based on Tom’s own experience with his father. He touched upon how the project got off the ground, and how the script by collaborators Daniel Cerqueira and Tom Fisher came together; as well as how this marked a career shift for Tom, who was primarily an actor at the time and previously only directed short films. In response to questions from society members present, Tom also talked about how the ‘James Bond family’ of producers Barbara Broccoli, Michael G. Wilson, title designer Daniel Kleinman and actress Rachel Weisz came on board as executive producers; as well as the challenges presented by the current festival and distribution landscape for films like Radiator (crediting the film’s London Film Festival bow to Weisz). In a surprise, Tom also briefly mentioned his most recent work alongside Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon on Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s The Current War, which is currently filming across London – and took over UCL’s Portico recently.

On Friday, Chantal hosted an incredibly charismatic and inspiring workshop, detailing her path through the industry – starting with how she went from a French degree at UCL to a job in marketing at Channel 4, to her work producing and directing episodes of Through The Keyhole (then hosted by the legendary David Frost), and further career moves to the BBC and other networks and agencies. She gave a crash course on the importance and value of branded content such as product placement, and the role it plays in getting a TV show or film off the ground, and also talked about the current distribution landscape in general. Lastly, she talked about coming on board BAFTA as their Los Angeles branch’s first CEO, and the events she organises, such as the annual Tea Party, as well as regular initiatives in less well-off schools in L.A..

A big thank you to both Tom and Chantal for joining us! Be on the lookout for more guest workshops starting from next week – with a FemFilm x PhotoSoc workshop next Tuesday with acclaimed documentary photographer and filmmaker Poulomi Basu.

Director News: Matt Reeves For ‘The Batman’ And David Fincher For ‘World War Z’ Sequel?

Following Ben Affleck’s exit from The Batman in a directorial capacity, Warner Bros. are hastily looking for a replacement director. Dawn of… and War for the Planet of the Apes director Matt Reeves, who has been top of the shortlists since last week, has now formally met with the studio and is said to be ‘committed’ to the project. And there has also been an update on David Fincher’s next project – the filmmaker was previously rumoured to be re-teaming with Brad Pitt for a sequel to World War Z. Following Paramount pulling the film from their release schedule for the time being, new reports have come out suggesting that Fincher is still interested in the project, with Paramount’s Brad Grey holding things up… [Variety/THR]

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Marvel Drops Avengers: Infinity War First Look Featurette As Production Ramps Up

Just a couple of weeks following the start of production on what is said to be the ‘conclusion’ of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios have released a behind-the-scenes featurette – featuring concept art from the two-parter as well as interview snippets with directors Anthony and Joe Russo, MCU showrunner Kevin Feige and cast members Robert Downey Jr, Chris Pratt and Tom Holland. [The Verge]

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Remake News: Jack Nicholson And Kristen Wiig In ‘Toni Erdmann’ Remake; Coen Brothers Rewriting ‘Scarface’

Just as the film’s popularity is ramping up ahead of the Oscars (as well as following the UK release – review coming this week), Jack Nicholson has ‘come out of semi-retirement’ to get an English-language remake off the ground at Paramount. The project currently has Nicholson set to star as Erdmann (originally played by Peter Simonischek) in his first role since 2010, and Kristen Wiig as Sandra Hüller’s daughter character. Despite earlier reports however, original director Maren Ade is unlikely to be involved in the remake. Also on the remake front – Joel and Ethan Coen are set to take a crack at the script for the upcoming remake of Scarface, with Rogue One: A Star Wars Story‘s Diego Luna currently attached as the lead. Following Antoine Fuqua’s exit from the project, Hell or High Water‘s David Mackenzie and Peter Berg are currently the two frontrunners to direct. [THR/SlashFilm]

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Thandie Newton In Talks For Han Solo ‘Star Wars’ Spin-Off

Following her resurgence with a critically acclaimed turn in Westworld, the BAFTA winner is currently in negotiations to star in Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s currently in-production Han Solo Star Wars Story – joining Alden Ehrenreich, Donald Glover, Woody Harrelson and Emilia Clarke. [Variety]

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Trailer of the Week – The Beguiled

What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

New Looks At ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ & More Debut At Super Bowl

There are two times a year we get lots of new trailers – the lead up to a new Star Wars movie, and the Super Bowl. In the lead up to and during last night’s game, studios dropped brand new looks for the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel, The Fate of the Furious (a.k.a. Fast & Furious 8), Transformers: The Last Knight and more. And TV didn’t miss out on the action either – as Netflix dropped the first teaser for the highly anticipated second season of Stranger Things. [The Guardian]

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DC: Ben Affleck Won’t Direct ‘The Batman’, Nicole Kidman & More In ‘Aquaman’

Maybe it’s just the pressure – following a whirlwind press tour for Live By Night which had Affleck fielding questions left and right regarding this project, Warner Bros. have announced that he will be stepping down as director on the in-development Batman solo film that’s part of the current DC Films roster. Affleck will still star, produce and write the film alongside DC’s Geoff Johns and frequent collaborator Chris Terrio – with the new director shortlist topped by Matt Reeves (of Cloverfield and the recent Planet of the Apes films fame). However, better news came hours later as James Wan’s Aquaman starring Jason Momoa as the titular character landed a number of great stars – including Nicole Kidman and The Get Down‘s Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. [Variety/Collider]

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James Cameron Completes ‘Avatar’ Sequel Scripts – Filming Begins August

In a new interview with The Daily Beast, the famed filmmaker confirmed that he has completed work on the screenplays for Avatar 2, 3, 4 and 5! He’s planning to begin shooting the sequels this summer, with Avatar 2 penciled in for release on December 20, 2018 – almost definitely going up against a Star Wars movie of some sort.

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Peter Capaldi To Depart ‘Doctor Who’

The new season of Doctor Who drops this April, but this will be the last season for Peter Capaldi, who played the role from 2014 onwards. Departing the series following the 2017 Christmas Special, speculation is abound as to who will replace him. He isn’t the only major force of the show leaving though – with current showrunner Steven Moffat also departing alongside Capaldi. [i09]

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‘Fifty Shades Darker’ Box Office Tracking Well Behind First Film

And closing off with what may be some good schadenfreude – it doesn’t appear that Fifty Shades Darker (released in the UK and US this Friday) will do well at the box office at all this time round. Prerelease box office tracking suggests that Darker is set to open to $35-40 million range in North America this weekend – over 50% lower than the surprising breakout performance of the first film ($85 million opening weekend, $571 million globally overall). Coupled with the massive creative changes between the films including series author E.L. James getting final cut – and the merciless ribbing from John Wick: Chapter 2 which opens the same day stateside – this will be interesting to watch… [THR]

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What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

In Memoriam: John Hurt and Emmanuelle Riva

Over the course of the last few days, we’ve lost two screen legends – Sir John Hurt and Emmanuelle Riva have both passed away this week, aged 77 and 89 respectively. Hurt was best known for his roles in Alien, The Elephant Man, V For Vendetta and has most recently starred in Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy, Doctor Who and Jackie. The BAFTA-winning actor was currently in production on Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour, where he plays Neville Chamberlain. Riva best-known work included Krzysztof Kieślowski’s Three Colours: Blue and Michael Haneke’s Amour, which earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress – the oldest nominee ever for an Actor or Actress in a Leading Role award. [BBC/AV Club]

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2017 Oscar Nominees Announced

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have announced the nominees for this year’s Oscars, which take place on Sunday, February 26th. Damien Chazelle’s La La Land (our review) earned 14 nominations in total – tying the record set by Titanic and All About Eve. Other top nominees include fellow Best Picture nominees Arrival and Moonlight (8 each), Hacksaw Ridge, Lion and Manchester by the Sea (6 each), and Fences and Hell or High Water (4 each) – with major surprises including yet another Meryl Streep nod for Best Actress, nominations for Suicide Squad and Passengers; and snubs for Amy Adams’s performance in Arrival, as well as Martin Scorsese’s Silence which earned a sole Cinematography nod. [THR]

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Richard Kelly May Return To World Of ‘Donnie Darko’

With the cult classic Donnie Darko now re-released on Blu-ray with a brand new restoration, director Richard Kelly expressed his desire to return to the world of the film, describing a potential sequel as ‘bigger and more ambitious’ in a recent interview. He also touched upon needing a big budget to make it happen, and that he will look into developing the idea following the release of his next film. [HMV]

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Marvel Studios’ Black Panther And Avengers: Infinity War Begin Production

Marvel Studios have announced this week the start of production for both Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther as well as Anthony & Joe Russo’s Avengers: Infinity War. Both announcements came with casting confirmations – Andy Serkis and Martin Freeman will be joining Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan and Lupita Nyong’o in the February 2018 release, with recent additions to the Avengers threequel’s cast including Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2‘s Dave Bautista and Pom Klementieff. [Deadline/Collider]

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Two Movies And A…Perfume Ad – Terrence Malick’s 2017 Plans Revealed

The famed director is debuting Song To Song – starring Ryan Gosling, Rooney Mara, Natalie Portman and Michael Fassbender – this March at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas; but that’s not all. Word is that Malick not only has another upcoming project – war drama Radegund  (featuring a notably less star-studded cast than Song To Song, save for Matthias Schoenaerts) due to make its festival debut closer to the end of this year – but he also reportedly shot a perfume ad campaign for Guerlain starring none other than Angelina Jolie. Once the campaign launches in March, Malick will join the ranks of Sofia Coppola, Spike Jonze and Nicolas Winding Refn who all recently directed spots for Dior, Kenzo and Gucci respectively. [Collider]

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Poster Of The Week – Ghost In The Shell

What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

Earlier this week, we were delighted to welcome back UCL alumnus Chris Rowe, who is currently a director/producer at virtual reality (VR) production company VRscape. Over the course of his presentation, Chris gave VR first-timers a chance to have a go at experiences such as Chris Milk’s Evolution of Verse as well as the recent Rogue One: A Star Wars Story tie-in from ILMxLab!

Similarly to his presentation back in November 2015, Chris took us on a virtual reality crash course – from how 360 video content is filmed (spoiler alert: lots of GoPros), to how it’s all edited and stitched together in post production. Chris brought up the challenges this new format brings – from differences in acting compared to theatre and film, to how fictional narratives have to be portrayed in a fully immersive space – and talked about the history, as well as the future, of the format – with the increasing creative potential of apps such as Google’s Tiltbrush and revolutionary VR filming solutions like the Lytro Immerge.

Chris also took the opportunity to talk about his work at VRscape, which most recently included post-production for Lexus’s The Life RX 360 video promo starring Jude Law – an ambitious project for Chris, who was tasked with stitching together footage from 80 GoPro cameras following a big launch event in central London last February. VRscape’s other recent work includes multiple live concert shoots as well as music videos, hotel promotions and charity projects.

A big thank you to Chris Rowe for joining us! To see more of VRScape’s work, head to their site at vrscape.tv.

Our upcoming guest workshops before the Reading Week break include acclaimed Radiator director Tom Browne, and BAFTA LA CEO Chantal Rickards. Go to the Events section of our site or our Facebook page for more information!

Benedict Cumberbatch At UCL – ‘The Current War’ Filming This Weekend

The big news from this week for us is, of course, the big film shoot which took over the main quad this weekend. Alfonso Gomez-Rejon’s The Current War began shooting last month here in London, and transformed the Portico this weekend into the New York Stock Exchange – where Benedict Cumberbatch’s Thomas Edison (pictured at the top in the film’s first official still released by The Weinstein Company) delivered a rousing speech. Cumberbatch, no stranger to UCL students showing up at his sets with Sherlock‘s signature Speedy’s Cafe just minutes from the campus, greeted everyone (including our committee members) who stood out there in the cold watching the shoot. The film also stars Tom Holland (who, too, was spotted on set), Katherine Waterston, Michael Shannon and Nicholas Hoult. [Cumberbatch Brasil]

Sundance Film Festival Joins The Women’s March

The film world did not forget what was happening in the real one. Following Donald Trump’s inauguration on Friday; Park City, Utah – host of the Sundance Film Festival – joined hundreds of thousands assembled in major cities across the world to protest Trump’s presidency and his stance on issues from women’s and LGBTQ rights to embracing immigrants. TV personality Chelsea Handler led the march at Sundance, with stars attending the festival including Charlize Theron all joining in. Many film and TV actresses and actors also took part in the various marches in L.A., New York, London and of course the main event in Washington D.C.. [Variety]

First Reviews For Danny Boyle’s ‘T2 Trainspotting’ Are In

Ahead of its UK release this coming Friday, the highly-anticipated Trainspotting sequel was screened for press in central London on Thursday evening. With no embargo, the reviews came flooding in – with most praising the film (currently at 79% on Rotten Tomatoes) and a few critics feeling it doesn’t quite live up to the first film. In any case, we are curious to check Danny Boyle’s T2 out for ourselves next week, and we will review it here. [The Independent]

‘A Dog’s Purpose’ In Controversy Over Alleged Animal Abuse On Set

Famed ABBA music video and Salmon Fishing In The Yemen director Lasse Hallström’s new film has been plunged into controversy this week after an edited video released by TMZ went viral, allegedly depicting one of the dogs starring in the film being forced into water on set. Universal and producers Amblin Entertainment have been dealing with the fallout, with reports from those who’ve seen the full footage of the day’s shoot suggesting that the dog was fine all along and the video was specially edited and sold to TMZ to fulfil PETA’s agenda of ensuring no animals are used on set of film and TV productions. [Deadline]

‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ Passes $1 Billion Globally

Surprise, surprise, Disney are once again on a roll. The first Star Wars spin-off film has, as of just a few minutes ago, officially joined the billion-dollar club at the global box office. It has been an incredibly successful 2016 for Disney, with the (now) 6 films grossing over $1 billion all coming from the studio – and this is sure to be reassuring for the cast and crew of the untitled Han Solo spin-off, which is up next for Disney/Lucasfilm after the release of Episode VIII this December. [THR]

Trailer Of The Week – ‘Logan’ Final Trailer

What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!

For the first guest workshop of 2017, the UCLU Film & TV Society welcomed writer and director Charles Henri Belleville. Over the course of Wednesday’s 80-minute event, he talked about his beginnings in the industry, his past and upcoming projects, and a range of other topics in response to questions from society members.

Belleville touched upon his start in the film industry as a distribution intern at production company Vertigo Films, through which he met producers he’d later collaborate with on his recent Jet Trash, as well as Tom Hardy, who starred in Belleville’s BIFA-winning directorial debut The Inheritance. Charlie talked about his experience directing both films, working with the likes of Hardy and Robert Sheehan (of Misfits fame), and offered insights into his current projects. Mentioning the films of Alfred Hitchcock as inspiration for his upcoming The Blue Mauritius, he cautioned controlling one’s ambition when developing such a star-studded project (the film will star Brian Cox, John Rhys-Davies and Gérard Depardieu). He also teased another film he’s currently working on, which has been in the editing room for four years.

Taking questions from the audience, Charlie talked about the merits and disadvantages of the ‘perfect conditions’ of film school, how he best develops story ideas, and his opinions on working as a director on TV series (where ‘you get kicked out after 3-4 days in the edit’) and putting your own directional stamp on things like trailers and posters. He advised aspiring directors to ‘not wait for permission’ to make a film, and emphasised the importance and significance of post-production work, particularly in sound mixing and ADR. Throughout, Belleville illustrated his advice with anecdotes from his career: which included the discovery of a crew member’s villainous streak on the set of Jet Trash; a film-worthy story of an intern assignment to retrieve film footage from Thailand; and the BIFA award competition conflict between his first film, The Inheritance – filmed on equipment loaned from his then-employer, Vertigo – and the film Vertigo had actually hired him to work on.

A big thank you to Charlie Belleville for joining us! Future guests at our upcoming workshops this term include VRscape’s Chris Rowe and Tom Browne, director of the acclaimed Radiator. To find out more, go to the Events section on our site. See the trailer for Belleville’s Jet Trash below:

Welcome to our Weekly News Roundup, where we will be bringing together a curated selection of the week’s top stories in the world of film and television. First up…

pic.twitter.com/TNorErkZXf

— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) 13 January 2017

Deadpool – Oscar Nominee?

After a surprising pair of Golden Globes nominations including one for star Ryan Reynolds, Tim Miller’s wisecracking anti-superhero Deadpool has racked up nomination after nomination at various guild awards, including the Producers Guild of America (commonly considered to be a reliable predictor of Oscars Best Picture nominations) and a Directors’ Guild of America nomination for first-time director Miller. As we get nearer to the Oscars nomination announcement and the awards pundits across the pond rack their brains over whether Deadpool deserves a that coveted Best Picture nod or not, Reynolds posted this hilarious ‘For Your Consideration’ ad, which you can see above. [Deadline]

Woody Harrelson Cast In Han Solo ‘Star Wars’ Spin-Off

Just before the Hunger Games star takes to the streets of London for a one-off live comedy film next Thursday night (more info), Disney have officially announced his involvement in Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s untitled Han Solo Star Wars Story. The film has already cast Alden Ehrenreich (Han Solo), Donald Glover (Lando Calrissian), and Emilia Clarke. And word is that he’s playing a mentor to young Han, which has dismayed some fans, but guess we will just wait and see. [StarWars.com]

BAFTA Nominations Announced

Ahead of the awards ceremony next month, BAFTA have announced the nominations for their Film Awards. On the heels of its record-breaking Golden Gloves run, Damien Chazelle’s frontrunner La La Land scored 11 nominations. But the big surprises to land on the nominees list include Tom Ford’s Nocturnal Animals scoring 9 nominations, Ken Loach’s I, Daniel Blake earning that Best Film nod, and Emily Blunt earning a surprise nomination for The Girl On The Train. [THR]

Agent Cooper Returns In ‘Twin Peaks’ Teaser

David Lynch is back. On the heels of the premiere date announcement, Showtime have revealed a brand new (if unrevealing) teaser for the famed director’s revival of Twin Peaks, featuring none other than Kyle MacLachlan. The series -described by executinves as ‘pure heroin’ – returns to screens on May 22nd when Sky Atlantic will air the two-hour premiere at the same time as the U.S.; in the meantime, enjoy the sneak peek above. [Variety]

Lucasfilm Has No Plans To Digitally Recreate Carrie Fisher In Future ‘Star Wars’

Following the digital resurrection of Peter Cushing’s Grand Moff Tarkin for Rogue One, the BBC have reported that Disney were in negotiations with the estate of Carrie Fisher, who sadly passed away earlier this month, to digitally recreate her General Leia Organa for future Star Wars episodes. However, in a rare move last night, Lucasfilm shut these reports down, stating they have no plans to do so. Carrie gave the go-ahead to digitally replicate a younger version of Leia for Rogue One (pictured above, via ABC News), and has completed shooting on this December’s Episode VIII before passing away. [Collider]

Trailer Of The Week – John Wick: Chapter 2 ‘Symphony of Violence’

What’s your favourite piece of film/TV news from this week? Let us know in the comments or our Facebook and Twitter!