Author: Deadline

Mainland China stars Wang Baoqiang and Liu Haoran reunite for a fourth round of high-stakes snooping in Detective Chinatown 1900. The twist this time is that they are playing ancestral versions of the characters they have portrayed in three previous blockbuster installments. Switching the action from contemporary diaspora districts to turn-of-the-century San Francisco, the film throws the duo together to investigate a double murder that could trigger an all-out nationwide race war. Chief among the big names joining our intrepid sleuths are Hong Kong legend Chow Yun-fat, as Chinatown’s unofficial kingpin, and John Cusack, who plays a scheming politician whose…

Netflix has unveiled a new clip from The Electric State, the Russo Brothers’ sci-fi actioner starring Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt, which is slated to premiere globally on March 14. Based on the graphic novel by Simon Stålenhag, The Electric State is set in the aftermath of a robot uprising in an alternate version of the ’90s. The story follows an orphaned teenager who ventures across the American West with a cartoon-inspired robot, a smuggler, and his sidekick in search of her younger brother.  Ke Huy Quan, Jason Alexander, Woody Norman, Giancarlo Esposito and Stanley Tucci also star in…

The American Film Institute said Wednesday that the 39th edition of its AFI Fest will take place October 22-26, 2025 at the TLC Chinese Theaters in Hollywood. The event annually draws A-list world premieres as it sits in the middle of the movie awards season. This past year saw the festival launch Robert Zemeckis’ Here as its Centerpiece Gala, Laurent Bouzereau’s documentary Music By John Williams as its opening-night pic, and Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2 as its closing-night pic. AFI Fest features red carpet and special screenings, world cinema and documentary films. It also serves as a qualifying festival for…

The Sundance Film Festival has selected this year’s recipients of the Merata Mita Fellowship and the Graton Fellowship for Artists from California-Based Tribes. On Saturday, Sundance Institute announced Rhayne Vermette (Métis) as its Merata Mita Fellow, with Roni Jo Draper (Yurok) and Stefan Perez (Coast Miwok) named this year’s Graton Fellows during the Native Forum Celebration, presented by NBCUniversal LAUNCH at The Park. Named for late Māori filmmaker Merata Mita, the fellowship goes to Indigenous woman-identified artists with ambitions to direct a feature film, providing them with a cash grant, mentorship and year-round creative development opportunities, including attendance at the…

Title: Last DaysSection: PremieresDirector: Justin LinScreenwriter: Ben Ripley Logline: Determined to fulfill his life’s mission, 26-year-old John Allen Chau (Sky Yang) embarks on a dangerous adventure to convert the uncontacted tribe of North Sentinel Island to Christianity, while a detective from the Andaman Islands races to stop him before he does harm to himself or the tribe. Based on the tragic true story of a doomed missionary, the film examines an idealistic dreamer driven by overzealous faith and a reckless desire for adventure. Sales agent: Cinetic Panelists: Justin Lin (director-producer), Sky Yang (actor), Toby Wallace (actor), Marny Kennedy (actor)Key quotes: Justin Lin…

TITLE: Bunnylovr Section: U.S. Dramatic Competition Director: Katarina Zhu Screenwriter: Katarina Zhu Logline: A drifting Chinese American cam girl struggles to navigate an increasingly toxic relationship with one of her clients while rekindling her relationship with her dying estranged father. In her debut feature, writer-director and star Katarina Zhu crafts a sensitive portrait of Rebecca (Zhu), a rootless online sex worker whose yearning for connection collides with her vigilance for maintaining emotional and physical safety. Sales agent: Utopia, WME Panelists: Katarina Zhu (writer/director/producer/actor), Rachel Sennott (producer/actor), Perry Yung (actor), Austin Amelio (actor), Jack Kilmer (actor).Key quotes: “Katarina and I have known each…

TITLE: Jimpa Section: Premieres Director: Sophie Hyde Logline: Hannah (Olivia Colman) takes her nonbinary teenager, Frances (Aud Mason-Hyde), to Amsterdam to visit their gay grandfather, Jim (John Lithgow) — lovingly known as Jimpa. But Frances’ desire to stay abroad with Jimpa for a year means Hannah is forced to reconsider her beliefs about parenting and finally confront old stories about the past. Sophie Hyde, winner of the World Cinema Directing Award Dramatic for 52 Tuesdays (2014 Sundance Film Festival), returns with an expansive family portrait centered on Jimpa (John Lithgow), an aging, hedonistic patriarch living loud and proud in Amsterdam’s vibrant gay…

EXCLUSIVE: Myha’la (HBO’s Industry), Cary Elwes (Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning), and John Robinson (Elephant) are joining Gus Van Sant’s hostage thriller Dead Man’s Wire, which is currently filming in Louisville, Kentucky. Based on a true story, the film follows a former real estate developer who takes the mortgage banker who did him wrong hostage, demanding $5M and a personal apology. Script is by Austin Kolodney. As we revealed this week, two-time Oscar nominee Colman Domingo has joined Nosferatu star Bill Skarsgard and Stranger Things‘ Dacre Montgomery in the movie. The official logline reads: “The morning of February 8, 1977, Anthony…

Emilia Pérez led the pack with 13 Oscar nominations Thursday, allowing Netflix to claim bragging rights as the year’s most-nominated distributor for a second year in a row. France’s Spanish-language International Feature entry became the most-nominated non-English-language film of all time, picking up noms for Best Picture and a historical one for Best Actress Karla Sofía Gascón, along with a Supporting Actress nom for Zoe Saldaña as well as the categories of cinematography, directing, editing, international feature film, makeup and hairstyling, original score and two original songs, sound and adapted screenplay. Netflix had 16 noms overall this year, two fewer…

EXCLUSIVE: VMI Worldwide has boarded worldwide sales on horror Popeye The Slayer Man which will have its world premiere screening in the market at next month’s EFM in Berlin. This film follows a group of friends who sneak into an abandoned spinach canning factory to film a documentary on the legend of the ‘Sailor Man,’ who is said to haunt the factory and local docks. A North American theatrical release is being lined up for spring 2025 via Vantage Media. Pic stars Sean Michael Conway, Elena Juliano, Mabel Thomas, Marie-Louise Boisnier, Jeff Thomas, and Steven McCormack, along with Angela Relucio…