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Exclusive: Academy Award winner Jim Rash (Bros) has signed on to star alongside Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum in Project Artemis — the high-profile Apple Original, to be directed by Greg Berlanti.

Specifics as to the film’s plot have thus far been kept under wraps, though we hear that it will be set against the space race of the 1960s.

While unconfirmed, sources say that Rash will play Lance, a fashionable, chic commercial director. Flamboyant and determined to create art, Lance is known for constantly going over budget on set, being incredibly opinionated and is perpetually un-hirable.

Apple acquired the hot package for upwards of 100M when it hit the market this past spring, as we told you first. Jason Bateman had at that point been set as director, with Johansson’s Avengers co-star Chris Evans tapped for Tatum’s role, though both have since departed — Bateman, due to creative differences,...

For many years, Hollywood didn't know what to do with Ryan Reynolds. Possessed of an infectious, smartass sense of humor, a swimmer's physique, and matinee idol good looks, he couldn't manage to find a project that was ideally suited to his talents. He was the romantic lead in several lightweight Hollywood comedies like "The Proposal," starred in intense indie/horror acting showcases like "The Nines" and "Buried," and tried out effects-driven blockbusters like "R.I.P.D." and "Green Lantern" before finally hitting the big time with films like "Deadpool," "Free Guy," and the memorable, memorable "Red Notice." Reynolds currently remains wealthy as the part-owner of Mint Mobile, Aviation Gin, and...

The post Filming Just Friends Almost Left Ryan Reynolds Frozen appeared first on /Film.

Ryan Reynolds has announced that he’s taking “a little sabbatical from movie making” after wrapping production on his latest project.

The actor took to Instagram on Saturday to share that he had completed work on “Spirited,” his upcoming holiday movie for Apple TV Plus. Reynolds had been working on the production since July.

“That’s a wrap for me on Spirited. Not sure I’d have been ready to say yes to a film this challenging even three years ago,” Reynolds wrote in his Instagram post. “Perfect time for a little sabbatical from movie making. I’m gonna miss every second working with this obscenely gifted group of creators and artists. These days, kindness matters as much as talent. I’ve been lucky to work with folks who are flush with both.”

Along with expressing his praise for the “Spirited” team, Reynolds also shared his excitement about working alongside...

It seems that viewers have seen the last of the Cloud 9 gang from NBC's Superstore. The series ended its run after six seasons last week, and now it appears that a potential spin-off, focusing on Bo (Johnny Pemberton) and his wife Cheyenne (Nichole Sakura), is not moving forward. The spin-off would have followed the couple as they “balance their big dreams with the harsh realities of being a blue-collar family in America.”

Read More…...

Just days after Cloud 9 shut its doors for good, Superstore couple Bo & Cheyenne’s journey has also come to an end at NBC.

The spinoff from co-executive producers Bridget Kyle and Vicky Luu, which Deadline learned about exclusively in December, is not moving forward with the network. The spinoff would have followed Nichole Sakura’s Cheyenne and her beaux, Bo played by Johnny Pemberton.

“Unfortunately, yesterday NBC notified us that they’re not going forward with the ‘Superstore’ spinoff,” Kyle told Cleveland.com, which broke the news on Friday. “So, it will just have to live on in our hearts and on my hard drive.”

Creator Justin Spitzer told Deadline ahead of the Superstore finale that the spinoff would focus more on the couple’s home life with their child Harmonica, as opposed to Cheyenne’s time at Cloud 9 or Sturgis & Sons, the hardware shop she ends up...

(Warning: This post contains spoilers for Thursday’s series finale of “Superstore.”)

After six years on NBC, “Superstore” closed for good on Thursday with an hourlong finale that saw the return of America Ferrera and the end of Cloud 9, an episode that sent the main cast off in new directions and laid the groundwork for a potential spinoff.

“You’re trying to do something different and tie up loose ends and give the characters nice landing place to reassure the audience that these relationships will continue,” showrunner Gabe Miller said of planning the final ending for the comedy. “We looked back on everything from classics like ‘Cheers’ to– Jonathan and [“Superstore” creator] Justin Spitzer and I worked on ‘The Office’ together.”

“We had the experience of working on that finale and seeing how Greg Daniels worked,” said Miller’s co-showunner Jonathan Green. “We got an inside look at the...

Spoiler Alert: This post includes details about the series finale of NBC’s Superstore.

Superstore gave fans one last bang for their buck before closing the doors to Cloud 9 for good. The NBC workplace comedy wrapped its six-season run with a two-part series finale, which saw a happy ending for Amy (America Ferrera) and Jonah (Ben Feldman), and marked a brand new chapter for other members of the Cloud 9 family.

Creator Justin Spitzer, who stepped down as showrunner back in 2019, returned to co-write the emotional final episodes with executive producers Jonathan Green and Gabe Miller.

Part one of the series finale, “Perfect Store,” picks up from America Ferrera’s surprise appearance at the end of the “Lowell Anderson” episode, when Cheyenne (Nichole Sakura) calls up Amy Sosa to confirm rumors of a Cloud 9 closures due to the pandemic. Amy returns to St. Louis from California to help...

In the Season 6 episode of “Superstore” titled “Customer Appreciation,” Jonah (Ben Feldman) gets put in his place.

The corporate executives at Zephra — a tech conglomerate that owns the Cloud 9 superstore chain — have been stressing the importance of customer appreciation surveys, using those oft-ignored links at the bottom of every receipt to rank the efficiency, popularity, and general value of each store — never mind that, as Dina (Lauren Ash) says, people only use receipts “to spit out gum and for murder alibis.”

Still, if that’s what matters to corporate, that’s what matters to the workers. Cheyanne (Nichole Sakura) puts the most people-pleasing employees on the registers, hoping their charm will buoy the store’s score, and then she discovers a harsh truth: Jonah is not good with customers. Maybe he once was, but now there are complaints that he talks too much at checkout and makes the store’s guests uncomfortable.

Attention, Cloud 9 shoppers: if you weren’t expecting Amy to return quite so soon, you weren’t the only one.

“Superstore” star and executive producer America Ferrera didn’t anticipate her character Amy would head back to St. Louis during the same season she left for a corporate gig at the big-box retailer’s headquarters in California, but news that Season 6 would be the NBC series’ last dramatically shifted the trajectory of her storyline.

“I expected and hoped that the show would go on after my departure for many, many years,“ she tells Variety. “So it was definitely coming back sooner than I think any of us imagined. But at the same time, we knew that in the setup of how Amy left, it really lent itself to how she could come back.”

Without giving too much away about the “Superstore” two-part series finale, which airs Thursday night, Cloud...

The end is near for Superstore. On Wednesday, March 24, the NBC comedy treated fans to a look at the cast's original audition tapes ahead of the upcoming series finale. In the just released video below, we watched as Mark McKinney, Lauren Ash, Nico Santos and more auditioned for their now beloved characters. First up, there's McKinney finding his voice as Glenn, the super positive Cloud 9 manager. What made the footage even more special? It's played opposite the scene that made it into the series. In fact, the way Santos introduced himself as Mateo was very similar to the cut that made it into the pilot. We can't say that's entirely surprising...

Did Mouch, Gallo, Ritter, and Mackey prove to be forces in Firehouse 51?

On Chicago Fire Season 9 Episode 9, things took a turn when it emerged that they had to return to training.

Meanwhile, a nasty blow to the head brought Casey unimaginable pain as he tried to seek help.

Did he get some much-needed leave from Firehouse 51?

Watch Chicago Fire Season 9 Episode 9 Online

Use the video above to watch Chicago Fire online right here via TV Fanatic.

Catch up on all your favorite shows and reviews and join in the conversations with other fanatics who love TV as much as you.

TV Fanatic is your destination for the latest news, spoilers, reviews, and so much more!

Warner Animation Group is developing an animated musical based on the Michael Morpurgo children’s book “Toto: The Dog-Gone Amazing Story of the Wizard of Oz,” according to an individual with knowledge of the project.

“Aladdin” screenwriter John August wrote the script based on the HarperCollins book, which is described as an uplifting take on “The Wizard of Oz” that centers on Dorothy’s pet dog, Toto.

Alex Timbers, a veteran Broadway director who co-created and executive produced “Mozart in the Jungle,” is set to direct. Additionally, Derek Frey will produce, and Jared Stern is executive producing.

Along with “Aladdin,” August’s credits include “Big Fish,” “Dark Shadows,” “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” and the first two “Charlie’s Angels” movies for Sony. August also wrote and directed fantasy film “The Nines,” which starred Ryan Reynolds. August is repped by Verve and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller & Gellman.

Exclusive: Two-time Tony nominated director Alex Timbers is closed to direct a feature musical adaptation of the Harper Collins Michael Morpurgo book Toto: The Dog-Gone Amazing Story of the Wizard of Oz for Warner Bros..

John August penned the script which is loosely based on the book, which tells the story of The Wizard of Oz from the point of view of Dorothy’s loyal companion, and as we all know, they’re not in Kansas anymore.

Jared Stern is serving as executive producer, and Derek Frey, who previously ran Tim Burton Productions and was Burton’s producer, will produce.

Timbers is in Tony contention this year for directing the Moulin Rouge! musical and when the shutdown occurred had Beetlejuice on Broadway as well. In addition he received a creative credit on David Byrne’s American Utopia.

Timbers’ theater credits include Disney Theatrical’s Peter and the Starcatcher which won...

It seems that barely a week goes by these days without a new Ryan Reynolds movie getting announced, as the 43 year-old looks to emulate his close friend Dwayne Johnson by becoming the busiest actor in the business. The former gin magnate appears to have developed a close working relationship with Netflix, and the majority of the most recent projects he’s signed on for have been for the streaming service.

The bad news for fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is that every time the Deadpool star adds something else onto his already packed schedule, the Merc with a Mouth’s debut in the world’s biggest and most popular franchise gets that little bit further away. Many of Reynolds’ upcoming titles have made a lot more progress than Deadpool 3, and unless Kevin Feige and his team start making some serious moves, it could be years before the irreverent...

Ryan Reynolds is heading Upstate. The 6 Underground star has struck up his next project with Netflix, teaming with his The Nines director John August to co-write an original feature comedy called Upstate, which is being eyed as a starring vehicle for Reynolds. Deadline broke the news that Netflix has made a deal with Reynolds and August for the […]

The post ‘Upstate’: Ryan Reynolds to Star in and Co-Write Netflix Comedy With John August appeared first on /Film.

Ryan Reynolds is teaming with John August to co-write and executive produce the Netflix feature comedy “Upstate,” which is being developed as a starring vehicle for him.

Reynolds is executive producing through his Maximum Effort banner. August is also executive producing.

Reynolds and August collaborated on the 2007 sci-fi thriller “The Nines,” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. August directed from his own script. Hope Davis, Melissa McCarthy and Elle Fanning starred in the pic.

Reynolds, best known for starring in the two “Deadpool” movies, worked with Netflix on the action movie “6 Underground,” and has been shooting the streamer’s “Red Notice” with Gal Gadot and Dwayne Johnson. Reynolds is also starring in Lionsgate’s upcoming “The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard” with Samuel L. Jackson and Salma Hayek.

Earlier this month, Reynolds came on board to produce and star in the monster comedy “Everyday Parenting Tips” for Universal Pictures. The...

It seems Netflix enjoys working with Ryan Reynolds. But then again, who doesn’t?

The Canadian actor is without a doubt one of Hollywood’s biggest stars at the moment and currently has no less than 10 films in various stages of development. Proving that he likes to keep himself busy, he’s just added another one to his slate in the form of Upstate, a new comedy headed to Netflix.

Reynolds will pen the pic alongside John August, following the duo’s work together on 2007’s The Nines. The Deadpool star will also executive produce though his Maximum Effort label, while August will act as an EP as well. Beyond that, however, details on this new project are basically non-existent.

Described only as an original comedy, no plot information has been made available and aside from Reynolds, no other cast members have been named. Given that it’s still early days,...

Exclusive: Netflix has made a deal with Ryan Reynolds and John August to co-write Upstate, an original feature comedy that is eyed as a star vehicle for Reynolds. The project reunites Reynolds and August, who last worked together on 2007’s The Nines.

They are keeping plot under wraps. Reynolds and August will be executive producers, Reynolds through his production company Maximum Effort.

For Netflix Reynolds starred in the Michael Bay-directed 6 Underground and stars with Dwayne Johnson and Gal Gadot in the Rawson Marshall Thurber-directed Red Notice. The Deadpool star has upcoming the Shawn Levy-directed action comedy Free Guy and the sequel The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard. He’s repped by WME and attorney David Weber.

August, who wrote Big Fish and the book for the Broadway musical transfer, most recently scripted the Disney live action blockbuster Aladdin. He also wrote the book series Arlo Finch and the Brett Haley...

Counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway appeared on Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” Wednesday morning, attempting to take a shot at the World Health Organization — and has been brutally mocked for her seemingly scientifically inaccurate comment. The White House, however, claims she did not misspeak.

“This is Covid-19, not Covid-1, folks,” she declared, “and so you would think the people in charge of the World Health Organization, facts and figures, would be on top of that.”

Covid-19 means, in reality, “coronavirus disease 2019,” a reference to the year the strain currently causing a global pandemic was first discovered. It has nothing to do with the number of previously-discovered strains, as Conway seemingly suggested.

Also Read: Fox News Contributor Bill Bennett Inaccurately Says Coronavirus 'Is Not a Pandemic' (Video)

“No wonder the Who has lost the plot, they didn’t even bother watching the first 18 COVIDs,” sniped New York Magazine’s Jonathan Chait on Twitter.

With so many folks out there looking for ways to keep themselves entertained at home right now, perhaps this new batch of home media releases might have something to offer you this week. If you missed it in theaters last year, the controversial Black Christmas remake hits both Blu-ray and DVD this Tuesday, and Scream Factory has put together a fourth volume in their Universal Horror Collection series, which looks like a must-own for all classic genre fans out there.

Also headed to Blu this week is The Nines, which is one of my favorite underseen films from Ryan Reynolds, as well as Cannibal Apocalypse, featuring John Saxon. We also have Glenn Danzig’s Verotika coming out on Tuesday and if you need something to keep the kiddos busy, Jumanji: The Next Level should do the trick.

Other releases for March 17th include Uncaged, By Day’s End, Witch Hunters,...

Exclusive: Aladdin screenwriter John August has been set to write Toto, an animated musical for the Warner Animation Group. Pic is based on the book Toto: The Dog-Gone Amazing Story of the Wizard of Oz, written by Michael Morpurgo and illustrated by Emma Chichester.

Jared Stern’s A Stern Talking To is attached to produce. Toto tells the Wizard of Oz story from the point of view of Dorothy’s dog.

August has a strong track record in writing fantastical movies, co-writing with director Guy Ritchie the Aladdin live action film that grossed $1 billion worldwide last year, and before that films that include Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and The Nines. Toto becomes the second high-profile musical for August, with the Grease prequel Summer Nights in development at Paramount Players.

August is also the author of the international best-selling middle grade fantasy trilogy of novels Arlo Finch in the Valley of Fire,...

Kirsten Howard Mar 29, 2019

Will we ever get sick of Taika Waititi popping up in stuff? The answer is no.

Thor: Ragnarok helmer Taika Waititi is becoming one of the busiest men around. Not only is his directing career going rather smashingly, but he's now an actor in demand, too.

News broke this week via Deadline that Waititi is joining the cast of Free Guy, a Ryan Reynolds comedy vehicle from Night at the Museum director Shawn Levy about a humble bank teller who realizes he's just one player inside a massive, violent, open-world video game. You may remember Reynolds flirted with this genre a little previously in 2007's little-seen The Nines opposite Melissa McCarthy. Time for a do-over!

Free Guy has been written by Zak Penn (Ready Player One) and Matt Liberman (The Christmas Chronicles), and Waititi is signing up to an already-burgeoning cast here that includes Jodie Comer, Joe Kerry,...

Melissa McCarthy has once again teamed with her husband Ben Falcone to write, direct and star in her latest comedy film “Life of the Party” in which she plays a divorcee who goes back to college. The complication in this plot is that she is attending the same college as her daughter. McCarthy also has another film opening this fall entitled “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” which has already been getting some Oscar buzz in Gold Derby’s forums as a possible contender for Best Actress for McCarthy. This film is a rare dramatic turn for the actress and tells the true-life story of a professional biographer who gets herself into financial and ethical trouble.

SEEWho’s the best Comedy Actress Emmy winner this decade: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Melissa McCarthy or Edie Falco? [Poll]

McCarthy started her career doing improvisational comedy at The Groundlings Theater in Los Angeles, which is also where she met Falcone.

Ryan Reynolds has been in some solid movies that haven’t required him to use his fast-talking jokester persona (Buried, The Nines, etc), but sometimes an actor crafts a persona so well that it becomes difficult for audiences to accept them doing anything else. And Reynolds is good at being an exasperated, sarcastic badass, so he might as well lean into it, right? Toss somebody […]

The post ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ Trailer: Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson Brawl and Bicker Across Europe appeared first on /Film.

There are, in every generation of filmmakers, certain archetypes that repeat themselves over and over. For example, every generation has its playful prankster, the talented visual artists who are delighted by their own ability to take beautiful pictures of horrible things. I’ll be the first to admit that I am drawn to filmmakers who use cinema as a way of pushing buttons, and I am a fan of the outrageous and the extreme. When I saw De Palma, the new documentary about Brian De Palma and his filmography, it sent me scrambling to watch a number of his older films again. They are so familiar at this point, so well-worn, that it surprised me to see how new they still feel when I took a step back. The next day, I went to a screening of the latest film from Nicolas Winding Refn, and the back-to-back timing of the two films made me laugh.

‘He’s one of few actors to play both Marvel and DC superheroes and, in 2011, he narrated a film about a whale. Yet to many Reynolds remains difficult to place’

Ryan Reynolds has tried everything. He’s done gross-out comedy in Van Wilder, intellectual posturing in The Nines and mega-budget action in R.I.P.D. He’s one of relatively few actors to play both Marvel and DC superheroes (Deadpool and the Green Lantern respectively) and, in 2011, he narrated a film about a whale. Yet to many he remains difficult to place: a forgettable midpoint on the spectrum of Hollywood’s famous Ryans, slap bang between Gosling and Phillippe.

Nonetheless, Reynolds is clearly a likable man and a capable actor, which perhaps explains why directors from Tarsem Singh to Atom Egoyan are still keen to work with him. Out this week on DVD, The Voices sees him unite with Persepolis director Marjane Satrapi...

Playing Off-key: Satrapi’s English Language Debut a Grating Misfire

Iranian born director Marjane Satrapi, best known for her 2007 debut, Persepolis, and a 2011 follow-up, Chicken With Plums, breaks into the English language market with The Voices, a rather oddly concocted mixture of slapstick, black comedy, and grisly violence as it attempts to explore the point of view of a schizophrenic serial killer. Oh, and he’s played by Ryan Reynolds. While there are certainly enough elements to attract intriguing minds, especially for those with a humorous morbid streak, Michael Perry’s screenplay is only superficial at best, launching a series of grotesqueries at us with a heap of buttery antics on the side. While profane violence and guilty guffaws are certainly possible, though generally hard won, whether they be from more high (Coen Bros.) or low (John Waters) brow vantage points, here we have a rather sluggish and tonally awkward...

Birdman, Fury and Leviathan among main competition titles; Roland Joffé to preside over main jury.

Alejandro G Ińárritu, Yimou Zhang, Mike Leigh and Jean-Marc Vallée are among the directors with films screening in competition at the 22nd Camerimage (Nov 15-22), the International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography.

The main competition at the festival, held in the Polish city of Bydgoszcz, comprises:

Alejandro G Ińárritu’s Birdman (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance); USA, 2014; Cinematographer: Emmanuel Lubezki

Yimou Zhang’s Coming Home (Gui lai); China, 2014; Cinematographer: Zhao Xiaoding

Richard Raymond’s Desert Dancer; UK, 2014; Cinematographer: Carlos Catalán Alucha

Lech J. Majewski’s Field of Dogs - Onirica (Onirica - Psie pole); Poland, 2014; Cinematographers: Paweł Tybora and Lech J. Majewski

Krzysztof Zanussi’s Foreign Body (Obce cialo); Poland, Italy, Russia, 2014; Cinematographer: Piotr Niemyjski

David Ayer’s Fury; USA, 2014; Cinematographer: Roman Vasyanov

Tate Taylor’s Get on Up; USA, 2014; Cinematographer: Stephen Goldblatt

Łukasz Palkowski’s Gods (Bogowie); Poland, 2014; Cinematographer:...

Polish film festival sets competition juries; Roland Joffe to preside over main competition.

Camerimage (Nov 15-22), the International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography, has set an impressive roster of jurors for its various competition categories.

The Killing Fields director Roland Joffe will preside over the main competition jury, which incldues cinematographers Christian Berger and Manuel Alberto Claro.

Caleb Deschanel has been appointed president of the Polish Films Competition.

The full list of jurors is below.

Main Competition

Roland Joffé – Jury President (director, producer; The Killing Fields, The Mission, Vatel)

Christian Berger (cinematographer; The Piano Teacher, Hidden, The White Ribbon)

Ryszard Bugajski (director, screenwriter; Interrogation, General Nil, The Closed Circuit)

Ryszard Horowitz (photographer)

David Gropman (cinematographer; The Cider House Rules, Chocolat, Life of Pi)

Arthur Reinhart (cinematographer, producer; Crows, Tristan + Isolde, Venice)

Oliver Stapleton (cinematographer; The Cider House Rules, Pay It Forward, Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark)

Manuel Alberto Claro (cinematographer; Reconstruction, Melancholia, Nymphomaniac...

Today’s film is the 1998 short God. The film is written and directed by John August, and stars Sam Pancake, Martin Yu, and Melissa McCarthy. McCarthy rose to prominence with her role as Sookie St. James on the tv show Gilmore Girls, going on to roles in tv shows such as Samantha Who? and Mike and Molly, as well as movies such as The Nines (where she reprises the character from this short film), Bridesmaids, and The Heat. Her newest feature, titled Tammy, which she also co-wrote, is now playing in wide release in American theatres.

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The post Saturday Shorts: ‘God’, starring Melissa McCarthy appeared first on Sound On Sight.

Ryan Reynolds can't catch a break. Increasingly, he's becoming the go-to guy for crafting gripping and often great performances in movies that fail to rise to the occasion (see also: The Voices, The Nines etc). The Captive is the latest super-divisive thriller to hit Cannes, and while it's far from terrible, it can't help but sit uncomfortably - and glaringly - in the shadow of last year's superior child abduction thriller Prisoners. Atom Egoyan's effort is another tale of a sudden and senseless childhood abduction from a sleepy...

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Odd List Ryan Lambie Simon Brew 6 Feb 2014 - 06:08

Our series of lists devoted to underappreciated films brings us to the year 2007, and another 25 overlooked gems...

For some reason, the number three was a common factor in several blockbuster movies of 2007. The third film in the Pirates Of The Caribbean series (At World's End) dominated the box office, Spider-Man 3 marked Sam Raimi's last entry as director in the series, while Mike Myers went for a hat trick of hits with Shrek The Third.

I Am Legend was the third and most financially successful attempt to bring Richard Matheson's classic novel to the big screen, Rush Hour 3 marked Jackie Chan's last action pairing with Chris Tucker, while Zack Snyder's musky sword-swinger 300 was notable for having the number three in the title.

Iffy attempts at numerology aside, 2007 was also a superb for year for movies in general - particularly underappreciated ones,...

There’s a certain kind of oddball film that seems like it could only have its coming-out party at a place like Sundance. Marjane Satrapi’s dark serial killer comedy The Voices is one of those films. The best way I can think to describe it is: imagine Fight Club if Brad Pitt’s part was played by a talking dog and cat.

Tyler Durden comparisons aside, Satrapi, the Iranian director of 2007′s Persepolis, has created a totally unique, genre-defying film. Which isn’t to say The Voices is great. Far from it. It’s wildly uneven and it never...

Ryan Reynolds finds a creepy niche as a meds-skipping murderer advised by a dog and cat in Marjane Satrapi's grisly thriller

• Full coverage of Sundance 2014

Ryan Reynolds is a Hollywood star whose matinee idol looks are so cartoonishly clean-cut that they verge on the cheesy, whose high-voltage grin can be positively creepy. The actor has appeared in blockbusters, indie flicks and stinkers alike, but he finds what may be his perfect niche in The Voices, Marjane Satrapi's lurid tale of an ostensibly ordinary Joe who skips his medication and becomes a psycho-killer assailed by demons.

Iranian-born Satrapi started out as an illustrator, won the Cannes jury prize for her animated Persepolis and melded cartoons with live-action on 2011's winsome Chicken With Plums. On The Voices, working off a script by Michael Perry, she rustles up a kind of flesh-and-blood horror comic. Everything here is deliberately exaggerated and amplified and soaked in gore.

Screenwriter John August is perhaps best known for his work with Tim Burton on Big Fish and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory as well as Go and erm…Charlies Angels. In 2007 August debuted his first directorial effort at the Sundance film festival. The Nines stars Ryan Reynolds as three different men and also features Melissa McCarthy and Hope Davis as recurring characters in each scenario. On the surface it would be easy to dismiss this as an exercise in pretension but there is much more going on below the surface. I have actually found this film to be something of a comforting spiritual journey and approached with an open mind it’s a very moving experience.

Our first scene shows Ryan Reynolds against a white background, tying something around his wrist, a scene that seemingly means nothing but will come to be very important later on. We then find Reynolds...

Director Greg Mottola made a minor splash on the 90s independent cinema scene with the film The Daytrippers in 1996. Mottola then did something rather unexpected, instead of riding the wave of this minor success into a breakout hit like Pulp Fiction or Memento he instead went straight into directing TV with credits on Arrested Development and Undeclared.

Whilst unexpected, this may have given him suitable grounding when it came time to directing a full on comedy feature. His second feature credit, Superbad was an American Pie level success for a new generation. It had the gross out comedy and dick jokes but also had a level of warmth and heart previously unseen in the genre for a while. It helped immensely that Superbad was based on real life hijinks that writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg had been through. Something about the situations and dialogue rang especially true. So it...

Screenwriter John August has been Tim Burton.s go-to guy. His last few credits include Frankenweenie, Dark Shadows and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. When he isn.t writing for Burton, he.s penning The Nines and two Charlie.s Angels movies. What tone will he attempt to strike with Wonder, a Ya bestseller he might adapt for Lionsgate? Variety links August.s name with the adaptation of R.J. Palacio.s book, which addresses bullying in a unique way by following main character August Pullman, a 10-year-old boy born with a facial deformity. The look, up to this point of his life, has kept him out of mainstream schools. But as he tries to assimilate into Beecher Prep in time for fifth grade, August only wants to fit in as a normal kid, even though his classmates can.t get over his face. Variety notes all of this conversation...

Lorene Scafaria is one of those talents for whom the forward slash (/) was invented. Starting out as an actress who appeared in films such as The Nines, Mayhem Motel and several shorts before getting one of her own screenplays made into a film with Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. All this and she still makes time to write songs for films like Whip It and make music with her band The Shortcoats. This year saw her make her directorial debut with Seeking a Friend For The End of The World which came out in a crowded summer filled with superheroes and as a result went by fairly unnoticed which makes it one of the years hidden gems. Moving and poignant it is a film well worth seeking out now it’s on DVD.

I had a chance to speak with Lorene about the film recently which made for an interesting and somewhat enlightening chat…...

Just a year ago, things were not looking up for Ryan Reynolds. Green Lantern, the actor’s major jump into the superhero world landed with a thud, and he even failed to make audiences and critics laugh with The Change-Up. But like most big names in Hollywood, he has found other work, with this year’s successful Safe House and the always bankable genre of animation with the upcoming Turbo and The Croods. According to Deadline, he’s now set for one of his most promising roles in quite some time.

As Atom Egoyan is currently wrapping production on his West Memphis 3 film Devil’s Knot, the director has his sights set on his next project. He’s grabbed Reynolds to lead a psychological thriller titled Queen of the Night. David Fraser‘s script was hatched from an idea by Egoyan, which sees Reynolds as “a father who discovers a...

According to The Tracking Board, Ryan Reynolds has nailed down the theoretically coveted role of Conner MacLeod for the reboot of The Highlander being directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo. Insert your own “there can be only one” joke here. So, okay. The truth is that mustering up any form of excitement for this news or this project is just too much work. It’s the movie equivalent of room temperature tap water. Of course, I can’t wait to hear Reynolds’ Scottish accent attempt, but other than that, what is there to care about? Is this really what you get rewarded with for making a flick as imaginative as Intacto? Or for showing excellent acting range in The Nines? Not to sound anti-mainstream, but there can’t be anything left in the Highlander well. There just can’t.

By Scott Mendelson

HollywoodNews.com:

For a list of the complete nominations, go Here. As always, click on the movies with links for the original theatrical review. I write a lot about the inexplicable trend of how the various year-end awards groups only consider ‘appropriate’ movies to be considered awards-material. There is and always has been a certain disdain for populist entertainment, a trend that’s only gotten worse as the independent film movement exploded in the early 1990s and the year-end Oscar bait-calender got more jam-packed over the last five weeks of the year. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part II may have received almost unanimously rave reviews (96% positive on Rotten Tomatoes), but it doesn’t count because it was a big-budget fantasy drama that is considered ‘popular’ entertainment. Bridesmaids may have been one of the most successful R-rated comedies of recent years, a well-reviewed (90% on Rotten Tomatoes...

For a list of the complete nominations, go Here.  As always, click on the movies with links for the original theatrical review.  I write a lot about the inexplicable trend of how the various year-end awards groups only consider 'appropriate' movies to be considered awards-material.  There is and always has been a certain disdain for populist entertainment, a trend that's only gotten worse as the independent film movement exploded in the early 1990s and the year-end Oscar bait-calender got more jam-packed over the last five weeks of the year.  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part II may have received almost unanimously rave reviews (96% positive on Rotten Tomatoes), but it doesn't count because it was a big-budget fantasy drama that is considered 'popular' entertainment.  Bridesmaids may have been one of the most successful R-rated comedies of recent years, a well-reviewed (90% on Rotten Tomatoes) comedy that may have been a game-changer...

Director Dennis Lee on set with Julia Roberts.

Ok, so let’s start with your short film, Jesus Henry Christ. Is that where you feel your career started rolling?

I would say so. I went to Columbia University for graduate school in film and you had to make two films at the time, one was your thesis and one was your non thesis film and I made a short called Jesus Henry Christ which was a 12 minute comedy and it was my non thesis film. We shot it, we were one of the first HD shoots — cut it on Final Cut Pro, did everything at home, and after it was done I turned it in as my non-thesis film. Then, Columbia killed the thesis requirement. So my non-thesis film became my thesis film, and it did well. It won a Student Academy Award for narrative and it got me meetings with managers,...

Academy Award-nominated actress Carey Mulligan will be honored with the “Hollywood Supporting Actress Award,” Berenice Bejo, Jean Dujardin, Elle Fanning, Amber Heard, Andrea Riseborough, Shailene Woodley and Anton Yelchin will receive the “Hollywood Spotlight Award” at the Hollywood Film Awards Gala Ceremony

Hollywood, Calif., Oct. 10, 2011 – The 15th Annual Hollywood Film Festival and Hollywood Film Awards, presented by Starz Entertainment, are pleased to announce that Academy Award-nominated Carey Mulligan will receive the “Hollywood Supporting Actress Award,” and Berenice Bejo, Jean Dujardin, Elle Fanning, Amber Heard, Andrea Riseborough, Shailene Woodley and Anton Yelchin will receive the “Hollywood Spotlight Award,” at the festival’s Hollywood Film Awards Gala Ceremony, which will take place October 24, 2011, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.

The announcement was made today by Carlos de Abreu, Founder and Executive Director of the Hollywood Film Festival. “It is a privilege to honor Carey Mulligan, Berenice Bejo, Jean Dujardin, Elle Fanning,...

So I have a list of five or so actors who are so charismatic, so effortlessly likeable, so charmingly cool, that I would watch any dross that they appear in. Sadly, most of those actors appear almost exclusively in dross but its always a pleasure regardless.

In my debut 10 Reasons To Love . . . article we covered my first cinematic man-crush – The Cuse. A man who’s been lucky enough (or clever enough) to land himself a bevy of interesting and varied roles. Well now we come to the second in my personal favourites and sadly it’s rather difficult to collect together 10 quality titles he’s been involved with, but I can safely say that if you’re willing to disband your pre-conceptions, throw out your regulating taste buds, and allow a little joy into your heart then you’ll find plenty to love in my top picks to represent the...

The ten best Ryan Reynolds movies. With The Change-Up just out in the Us, the daunting Movie Moron spotlight falls on one of its stars. No, not Jason Bateman – you’re going to have to hang on for that in-depth revisit of Teen Wolf Too – but rather Ryan Reynolds, everyone’s favourite wise-cracking Canadian! Well, everyone aside from those who prefer Dan Aykroyd…

Okay, before delving into this week’s top 10, it is worth noting a few high-profile flicks which are perhaps conspicuous by their absence, starting with the recent and most high-profile, Green Lantern. Hardly a controversial omission, mind, given that cosmic comic book flick proved to be the worst superhero movies of this particular summer, as well as a costly albatross for backers Warner Bros.

And although there are plenty of eager beavers out there still hoping for a Deadpool movie proper, with Reynolds starring in the script...

Craig from Dark Eye Socket here with Take Three. Today: Melissa McCarthy

Take One: The Nines (2007)

The three things that struck me most about the twisty-turny Ryan Reynolds sci-fi drama were Melissa McCarthy. (Reynolds’ much-bared torso came a close fourth). In the film’s three loose-linked segments she plays: Margaret, a perky PR handler; Melissa, a TV actress version of ‘Melissa McCarthy’; and Mary, a housewife. There’s plenty of mystical musings about 9s being everywhere and meaning everything – though thankfully not as much number mumbling as there was in The Number 23 – but it sort of makes its own kind of brain-beaten logic by the end.

The second and third sections give McCarthy lengthy scenes opposite Reynolds: She aces “Melissa”'s cringe inducing pissed off moment where she’s told she’s being dropped from a TV show by this narrative’s version of Reynolds, and in the is-it-a-show-or-is-it-reality?...

New superhero adaptation will 'laugh at itself', says Reynolds. But questions about Scarlett Johansson are no laughing matter

Ryan Reynolds has two small, single-colour tattoos on his lower left arm. One is a series of words engraved into the tender part of his wrist, the other some kind of military gun. I ask about them and his right hand moves quickly and instinctively to cover his left arm. He forces a laugh. "Oh, it says, 'You'll regret this one day, you idiot.'" And do you? He shrugs: "Yes."

Reynolds doesn't particularly appreciate questions that creep into his personal life, although when I later find out that the words simply say "Know Thyself" and that the gun is in fact an old naval cannon, I wonder if he's being slightly sensitive. Anyway, it's clear that the personal is private: his assistant has already issued a friendly warning that there are...

Welcome to the very first edition of "Actor Spotlight," one of several new features The Screening Log will be rolling out over the course of this summer. With "Green Lantern" hitting theaters this weekend, we thought it would be the perfect time to discuss the film's leading man, Ryan Reynolds.

As you can read after the jump, Tsl's staff members have a lot of interesting things to say about Reynolds and his acting skills, but we also want to hear from you. Do you think he is a solid actor? Feel free to leave your comments and discuss our opinions below. Let's have some fun.

Oh, and just in case you have never heard of him (which is highly unlikely, I might add), his credits include "The Nines," "Definitely, Maybe," "Van Wilder," "The Proposal," "The Amityville Horror" and "Paper Man," among others. Yeah, that guy. Okay, let's get to it for real.

Ryan Reynolds is the Green Lantern in an insipid 3D extravaganza. By Peter Bradshaw

Ryan Reynolds nails down his A-lister status with a big superhero role. He is the Green Lantern in this big, baggy, flavourless 3D extravaganza in which his superheroic powers are explained with a long and tiring "mythic" prelude on a planet far, far away. Reynolds plays Hal Jordan, a test pilot and all-around hunky hothead, who discovers a green ring from another world, which gives him superpowers and a green costume, and also membership of an intergalactic green force that fights evil wherever it may be. Peter Sarsgaard plays Hector Hammond, a scientist who goes over to the dark side, having ingested alien spores that make him look like the Elephant Man. This is sometimes engagingly daft, but it simply fails to spark, and Reynolds – so good in recent movies like Buried and The Nines – just...