Author: Empire

Forget jam-packed, this week’s episode of the Empire podcast is positively marmaladen with great guests, folks! To kick things off, Chris Hewitt talks to Paddington In Peru stars Hugh Bonneville and Emily Mortimer (the new Mrs. Brown) about tarantulas, Paddington tantrums, and shooting in the wilds of Basingstoke [20:47 — 35:27 approx]. Then, that man Hewitt peels back the layers of magical-social-realist drama Bird with the great British director Andrea Arnold as the duo discuss working with non-actors, switching between TV and filmmaking, and shooting in Gravesend [51:56 – 1:07:39 approx]. And as if that weren’t treat enough (seriously, orange…

10 years ago today, Disney and Lucasfilm celebrated principal photography finishing on the first film in their new Star Wars trilogy, revealing its name — The Force Awakens — to the world and spawning a gazillion fan theories in the process. Now, one decade, five films, a fistful of Disney+ series, and a whole lot of online discourse later, today appears to mark the beginning of a bold new chapter for the universe George Lucas built. Per Deadline’s reporting, Lucasfilm and Disney have sealed a deal for X-Men franchise alumnus and Rebels co-creator Simon Kinberg to write and produce an…

Yesterday was a difficult day. A disappointing day. A day where millions of people’s dreams were crushed, replaced by a mounting sense of dread and an overwhelming urge to ask, simply, “Why? Why? WHY?!” After months of nervous anticipation, we had dared to believe it was finally happening, only to have hope snatched at the last second by an inexplicable twist of fate. We are of course referring to the profoundly dismaying announcement last night that Bong Joon Ho’s Robert Pattinson starring sci-fi joint Mickey 17 has been delayed yet again. (What else could we have been talking about?) Per…

Whilst the eyes of the world may be locked firmly on the other side of the Atlantic this morning, back here in Blighty there is at least some positivity still to be shared yet. Having shone last year when the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes brought Hollywood to a standstill, the independent British cinema scene has continued to shine throughout 2024, with revered greats, rising stars, returning masters, and bold new narratives all emerging to ensure the flame for indies from these shores has never burned brighter. As such, it comes as no great surprise that the announcement of this year’s…

Here’s some *ahem* buzzy horror movie news for your Tuesday morning. David Cronenberg’s seminal 1986 body horror masterpiece The Fly is set to be the basis for a seemingly Nia DaCosta’s Candyman style, universe expanding spin-off at 20th Century Studios. Per Deadline’s reporting, Nanny filmmaker Nikyatu Jusu is actively developing, well, The Fly, on which the in-demand rising name in horror will serve as both writer and director. As Deadline are quick to note, whilst plot details for Jusu’s films are being kept shtum at the moment, “sources stressed that it’s set in the universe of Cronenberg’s film, rather than…

Ever since his Venice Silver Lion winning first movie Little Odessa way back in 1995, James Gray has time and again proved himself one of America’s most introspective, thoughtful filmmakers. From the railroad drama of The Yards, to inner and outer Odyssean epic The Lost City Of Z, to space bound father-son fictive Ad Astra, Gray’s movies are always worth paying close attention to. Now, having made perhaps his most personal film yet in the shape of 2022’s Armageddon Time, the auteur is reuniting with his leads from that picture and welcoming a new face into the Gray fray for…

Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. Do you hear that? It’s the unmistakable sound of colossal Godzilla news, wading in from the sea to smash a city to smithereens. And it’s the news Godzilla fans have been hoping for ever since Godzilla Minus One dropped. The most recent kaiju outing from Japan proved to be a major success – an outstanding film that made fans across the globe, and even crashed the Oscars by winning the Visual Effects award. That was, in large part, down to Takashi Yamazaki – not only the writer-director of the film, but also its visual effects producer, having…

We’ve another double interview episode of the Empire Podcast for you this week, folks. First up, Hugh Grant returns to the pod for an in-depth chat with Evolution Of Horror host and friend of Empire Mike Muncer about his new movie, Heretic, and whether or not he’s into horror [24:54 — 38:02 approx]. The, our very own man who is super, Chris Hewitt, has a lovely chat about Christopher Reeve with Ian Bonhote and Peter Ettedgui, directors of a new documentary about the late Superman star, Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story [58:32 – 1:17:42 approx]. Either side of those, Chris…

The clocks have gone back. Winter is coming. And that can only mean one thing. No, not Christmas — news from Westeros, of course! With prequel series House Of The Dragon proving a hit with fans and critics alike (even if not always Thrones author George R. R. Martin), and spin-off show A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms well on its way, stock in Game Of Thrones — five years after HBO’s eight season fantasy epic concluded — has scarcely been higher. And now, as THR are reporting, it looks like A Song Of Ice And Fire may be about…

Over the last decade, perhaps no filmmaker has expressed lust, longing, and simmering sensuality on the big screen with as much verve as Luca Guadagnino. From the May-December, sun-kissed romance of Call Me By Your Name, to the cannibals-on-the-lam love affair of Bones And All, to this year’s intoxicating tennis-based ménage à trois Challengers, the Italian auteur has been bringing sexy back since long before it seemingly went away. And with his latest, William S. Burroughs adaptation Queer, the filmmaker — working from a script by his Challengers collaborator Justin Kuritzkes — looks to have done it again. The movie…