News

Erik Feig’s Picturestart and podcast studio Meet Cute are partnering on ice skating audio series Fire & Ice, executive produced by Olympian Nancy Kerrigan.

The project is also executive produced by Lindy Goldstein through her Lindy Goldstein Productions banner and follows skating champions who must navigate romance and rivalry, while trying to achieve their dreams on the Olympic stage.

Chiara Aurelia (Cruel Summer) and Jack Martin (La Brea) lend their voices to the audio series, along with Kennedy Holmes (The Voice), Laura Schein, Clayton Farris, Ashley Eskew, Yuriy Sardarov, Kendall Johnson, Sydney Battle, Kathleen Leary, Jenni Barber, Gabe Greenspan and Scott Golden. The series is directed and produced by Eskew.

Picturestart, Kerrigan and Goldstein have been developing a feature film adaptation of Fire & Ice written by Ashleigh Powell, who is known for Disney’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. Meet Cute will be an executive producer on that project.

Veteran entertainment attorneys Eric Feig and Harry Finkel are joining forces to form Feig Finkel Llp, a new firm focused in film (including film financing and production legal), television, new media, licensing, merchandising, podcasts, and publishing.

They are joined in the venture by three partners: Panayiotis “Pano” Spanos, Andrew Barcello, and Riccardo Maddalosso.

“Feig Finkel is dedicated to protecting its clients’ interests with two underlying principles: integrity and creativity,” said Feig.

Feig – whose clients include William Zabka (Cobra Kai) and Martin Kove(Cobra Kai), writer Max Borenstein, David Berenbaum, Kamillion (Rap Sh!t), writer Ashleigh Powell (Nutcracker and the Four Realms), Noah Stollman (Fauda), Australian Director Elissa Down (Black Baloon, Ivy & Bean) writer Kc Perry and director Chris Eyre – will continue to focus on serving talent clients.

Finkel brings years of experience specializing in independent film finance and production legal,...

The Walt Disney Company has lately made something of an artform out of reimagining its own animated features into (often) billion-dollar live-action films, starting with Alice in Wonderland in 2010 and continuing with Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin, as well as the photorealistic computer animated remake of The Lion King.

A live-action version of Mulan, said to be more faithful to the original Chinese folktale than Disney’s 1998 animated film, is set to premiere this Spring, with Cruella, The Little Mermaid, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Peter Pan & Wendy, The Sword in the Stone, Lilo & Stitch, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Bambi, as well as Jungle Book and Aladdin sequels and possible Tinker Bell and Prince Charming projects, slated to be remade over the coming years.

According to The DisInsider, a potential live-action Rapunzel film has now been added to that extensive list as well, though...

Exclusive: Ashleigh Powell is adapting Kim Liggett’s novel The Grace Year which hits store shelves today, a project that Elizabeth Banks will direct for Universal.

Back in January, we broke the news about Banks optioning the novel to direct for Universal and produce through her and Max Handelman’s Brownstone banner alongside New Leaf Literary & Media’s Pouya Shahbazian. Liggett and Brownstone’s Alison Small will executive produce.

Powell wrote the Disney’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms which grossed close to $174M at the worldwide box office. She is repped by 3 Arts and Eric Feig Entertainment & Media Law, Inc.

The Grace Year from Wednesday Books examines the complex and sometimes twisted relationships between girls, the women they eventually become, and the difficult decisions they make in between. Ebury/Penguin is the publisher of the book in UK, Australia and New Zealand. The translation rights to...

Stars: Mackenzie Foy, Kiera Knightley, Morgan Freeman, Misty Copeland, Tom Sweet, Meera Syal, Ellie Bamber, Matthew Macfadyen, Nick Mohammed, Charles Streeter, Jayden Fowora-Knight, Helen Mirren, Omid Djalili, Jack Whitehall, Eugenio Derbez, Richard E. Grant | Written by Ashleigh Powell | Directed by Lasse Hallström, Joe Johnston

Disney’s latest hollow attempt at once again crafting another franchise in the same vein as the early Pirates of the Caribbean, and Alice in Wonderland, A Wrinkle in Time pictures etc comes in the guise of The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. Directed by both Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston (don’t worry we’ll get onto that a little later) their dual attempt to craft something worthy of entertainment almost, not quite, but almost verges on a criminal offence to the eyes and ears of any audience subjected to it.

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms takes all the worse attributes from Alice in Wonderland,...

Variety recently sat down with several Hollywood screenwriters and asked them what they thought the best movie lines of all time are, and they offered their favorites.

The writers that were interviewed include Bryan Woods and Scott Beck of A Quiet Place, Ashleigh Powell of The Nutcracker and The Four Realms, Micah Fitzerman Blue from You Are My Friend, Jac Schaeffer of Timer and Charlie Wachtell and David Rabinowitz of Blackkklansman, and a few others.

Each of the writers also offer some insight on why they think these lines are so great. The lines range various film genres from The Lord of the Rings to Cool Hand Luke to The Goonies.

There are some great lines of dialogue here. A few of my own personal favorite movie lines were in the video, like the one mentioned from The Lord of the Rings. Watch the video and let us know what...

“We really wanted to take the story that everyone knew from the ballet and expand it and turn it into more of a character journey for Clara the heroine,” screenwriter Ashleigh Powell tells Gold Derby (watch the exclusive interview above). It is her debut film, “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,” which is now in theaters with Mackenzie Foy in the lead role and Keira Knightley receiving top billing as the Sugar Plum Fairy. In our red carpet chat she adds, “It’s very beautiful and whimsical, but it’s a little bit of a fever dream that there’s no real emotional arc for her over the course of it, so we wanted to [use the source material as] the starting point of a much larger adventure into the world that we haven’t necessarily seen before on the big screen.”

SEEour video interviews with top awards contenders.

“This movie started as a spec...

There’s a big conversation happening about diversity and gender equality in film and the Whistler Film Festival is helping to fan the flames.

The fest, which runs Nov. 28 to Dec. 2, launched its Women on Top series a couple of years ago, when about 100 women ascended the top of the Whistler mountain to have breakfast with Canada Media Fund’s president & CEO Valerie Creighton.

Last year’s guest was Susan Cartsonis, film producer and co-founder of Resonate Entertainment. The goal was to bring inspiring women to speak about issues relating to representation.

“We need to create content that reflects society and includes a gender and diversity pass from script to screen to production,” says the festival’s executive director Shauna Hardy Mishaw. “If we want to change the story, it has to start with the story. Women deserve to work in a safe and equitable environment, and we need to...

In today’s film news roundup, Molly Shannon’s “Wild Nights with Emily” and Motke Dapp’s “Other Versions of You” get distribution, Robert Patrick is up for a role as an FBI agent and “Nutcracker” writer Ashleigh Powell signs with CAA.

Acquisitions

Greenwich Entertainment has bought “Wild Nights with Emily,’ a dramatic comedy about Emily Dickinson starring Molly Shannon.

The film, which had its world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival, was written and directed by Madeleine Olnek. Greenwich will release the film theatrically early next year.

Shannon’s role captures the vivacious, irreverent side of the poet that was covered up for years — most notably Emily’s lifelong romantic relationship with another woman, using Dickinson’s own words.

“Madeleine’s witty, madcap yet poignant and absolutely necessary version of Emily’s life is an Emily we’ve never seen before, but one that has been hiding in plain sight all along,...

Variety has announced this year’s 10 Screenwriters to Watch.

For the seventh year in a row, the Whistler Film Festival will host the 10 Screenwriters to Watch event in Whistler, B.C. The screenwriters to be honored will share their stories and discuss the challenges of succeeding in today’s film industry during a conversation on Dec. 1 as part of Wff’s Signature Series, followed by the awards ceremony at Wff’s Awards Celebration on Dec. 2.

Canadian media personality George Stroumboulopoulos will host the evening as industry veterans discuss tips and tricks for navigating the film landscape in 2018, as well as sharing a few sneak peaks at current and upcoming projects.

Variety’s class of 2018 screenwriters and notable credits include:

Joe Robert Cole, “Black Panther” Bryan Woods and Scott Beck, “A Quiet Place” Ashleigh Powell, “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” Jay Longino, “Uncle Drew” Elizabeth Chomko, “What They Had” Sofia Alvarez,...

“Bohemian Rhapsody” is heading for a rhapsodic debut from 4,000 North American locations with an estimated $46 million.

The Fox biopic starring Rami Malek as Queen frontman Freddie Mercury earned $18.4 million Friday. Bryan Singer directed the film from Anthony McCarten’s screenplay. Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy, Joseph Mazzello, Aidan Gillen, Tom Hollander, and Mike Myers also star.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” is sitting at a 59% on Rotten Tomatoes, with an A CinemaScore.

Christmastime pic “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” should debut in second with about $18 million from 3,766 domestic sites. That marks a disappointing start for the Disney film, which stars Keira Knightley and has an estimated production budget of well over $100 million.

Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston directed the film, with Ashleigh Powell writing the script. Mackenzie Foy, Eugenio Derbez, Matthew Macfadyen, Richard E. Grant, Misty Copeland, Helen Mirren, and Morgan Freeman also star. “Nutcracker” follows a young girl who must...

Rami Malek and Fox hit a high note with “Bohemian Rhapsody,” drawing $3.9 million in Thursday night showings as it stays on track for a $40 million box office bow.

For comparison, Warner Bros.’s critical and commercial hit “A Star is Born” earned $3.2 million in early Thursday showings on its way to a $42.9 million opening weekend. “Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again” hit theaters with $3.4 million in early previews, pulling in $35.0 million in its first weekend for Universal. Independent trackers are looking for “Bohemian Rhapsody” to open to the tune of $35-$40 million.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” has been heavily criticized for its series of events and its effectiveness as a biopic for Queen front-man Freddie Mercury.

Also Read: 'Bohemian Rhapsody' Film Review: Queen Bio Won't Exactly Rock You

The film has a 59 percent score on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, and critics have panned the film’s screenplay for leaning on...

Yesterday evening Mackenzie Foy and Keira Knightley came to the capital to deliver the Christmas present that is The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. This is Disney’s live-action adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker about a young girl who finds a Nutcracker doll among the family’s gifts and is charged by her parents to take special care of it.

Mackenzie Foy talked about the physicality of the role, how her martial arts training helped her, and if she’d be up for a sequel and what she thinks of her fans. Keira Knightley told us how she cherished the opportunity to do something less serious than her recent roles such as Colette, and what it felt like to be a cake. She also talked about finding her voice through the music. Ellie Bamber talked about...

Chicago – Film has always felt like a much more accessible way to get cultured than, say, going to watch a play or opera. Watching a foreign film can educate you about the world and history as well as any play. “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” promised that kind of experience, but your time is better served catching the actual ballet at a local theater instead.

Rating: 2.0/5.0

This film was based on the magnificent Tchaikovsky ballet, which was in turn inspired by E.T.A. Hoffmann’s fantasy story, “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.” What this film does it try to combine the two mediums—a gorgeous dance movement with a beautiful set design with hardly any plot, and a story full of fleshed out characters and adventure—to create something that is simultaneously both and neither. First-time writer Ashleigh Powell crafts the film’s story and plot to fit the children’s film mold,...

Watching a visually spectacular but virtually soulless new family movie like “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,” it’s tempting to wonder if such eye-popping dreck has any hope of sticking with impressionable young audiences. Is there any chance that the kids of today might be nostalgic for this hyper-saturated nonsense tomorrow?

It’s a sincere question about a film that often seems like it was only made or Disney shareholders. Is this really that much worse than the stuff that millennials were raised on, and read about on Buzzfeed lists, and flock to see at semi-ironic repertory screenings? In a world where “Hocus Pocus” has become something of a genuine holiday classic, is it actually possible to gauge how good the studio offerings of 2018 might look 20 years from now? Judging by “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,” the answer to both of those queries is a resounding “yes.”

Read...

Between now and doomsday, it’s unlikely that we’ll get a movie that will defile the work of Tchaikovsky and E.T.A. Hoffman more than 2010’s “The Nutcracker in 3D,” the movie that took the classic story and ballet and added Holocaust metaphors, Tim Rice-penned hip-hop lyrics, and a bizarre turn by Nathan Lane as Albert Einstein. But while it may not be quite as terrible, “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” earns runner-up status on the list of worst cinematic “Nutcracker” misfires.

Maybe it was the massive reshoots — directorial credit is shared by Lasse Hallstrom, who shot the first go-round, and Joe Johnston — or perhaps the script by first-timer Ashleigh Powell was always muddled and convoluted, but the results are singularly dispiriting. Rather than harken back to an elegant, whimsical earlier period of history, this “Nutcracker” calls to mind the early 2010s, when the success of...

Conceived just a smidge over two centuries ago, E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 short story “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” has been told and retold so many times over the years — as a ballet by Tchaikovsky, as a novel by Dumas, as a Christmas cartoon by Barbie — that we can reasonably conclude there’s no one right way to reinterpret the beloved classic. That said, there are certainly wrong answers, and Disney’s dazzlingly hollow, superficially PC live-action adaptation, “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,” veers dangerously close to blowing it, squandering a talented cast and some of the most spectacular design work this side of “My Fair Lady” on a version with precious little dance and even less chemistry.

Conceptually speaking, who better than Disney to make a definitive big-screen version of “The Nutcracker”? And yet, both the film’s title and the peculiar circumstances that led co-helmers Lasse Hallström...

After an October that blew by everyone’s expectations and set industry records, the calendar now turns to a November that should eventually keep the momentum going after a relatively slow start this weekend, with Fox/New Regency’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” leading the release slate and expected to take No. 1 this weekend with a $35-40 million opening from 4,000+ screens.

The Queen biopic is facing mixed reviews with a 56 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics have panned the film’s screenplay for leaning on biopic cliches and heavily altering the history of the famed British rock band, while failing to reveal anything insightful about them.

The parts of the film that did earn praise are the elements that mainstream moviegoers are likely to be interested in, namely the lead performance by Rami Malek as Queen’s iconic frontman Freddie Mercury. The role is getting buzz for potential Oscar contention this winter,...

Disney has released a new trailer for Lasse Hallström’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms.

Disney’s live-action feature is an adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker about a young girl who finds a Nutcracker doll among the family’s gifts and is charged by her parents to take special care of it.

The film is directed by A Dog’s Purpose and Chocolat’s Lasse Hallström from a screenplay by Ashleigh Powell. The film stars Mackenzie Foy as Clara, Keira Knightley as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Eugenio Derbez as the Flower Realm King, Miranda Hart as Drew Drop Fairy, Jack Whitehall as Harlequin, Misty Copeland as The Ballerina, Morgan Freeman as Drosselmeyer, and Helen Mirren as Mother Ginger.

Also in trailers – Olivia Colman is anything but regal in new trailer for The Favourite

The film hits UK cinemas November 2nd,...

It’s been some time since we’ve been privy to any news regarding Disney’s The Nutcracker And The Four Realms. In fact, it was mid-December 2017 we had an opulent teaser trailer land on our doorsteps, finally, Disney has seen fit to release the first full-length addition alongside a whole host of new images.

Disney’s live-action feature is an adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker about a young girl who finds a Nutcracker doll among the family’s gifts and is charged by her parents to take special care of it.

The film is directed by A Dog’s Purpose and Chocolat’s Lasse Hallström from a screenplay by Ashleigh Powell. The film stars Mackenzie Foy as Clara, Keira Knightley as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Eugenio Derbez as the Flower Realm King, Miranda Hart as Drew Drop Fairy,...

Former Disney Channel star Caroline Sunshine, 22, is joining the White House staff as a press assistant after completing an internship. “Caroline Sunshine was a White House intern. In college, she was involved with the American Enterprise Institute and an active member of her school’s Model United Nations team,” White House spokesperson Lindsay Walters said in a statement to CNN Tuesday. Also Read: Ashleigh Powell to Adapt Ya Fantasy Novel 'The Hazel Wood' for Columbia Pictures (Exclusive) “Prior to her internship at the White House, Caroline interned for the Office of House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the College Republican National Committee and the...

Ashleigh Powell has signed on to adapt the YA fantasy novel “The Hazel Wood” for Columbia Pictures, TheWrap has exclusively learned.

Powell previously wrote “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” for Disney. Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher (“Divergent,” “The Great Gatsby”) at Red Wagon are producing. VP Lucas Wiesendanger is overseeing for Red Wagon.

“The Hazel Wood,” a novel written by Melissa Albert, has been on the NY Times Young Adult Bestseller list for seven weeks and is currently at Number five. Flatiron Books publishes in the U.S. and...

Author: Zehra Phelan

Disney has released a magically opulent teaser trailer and poster for their 2018 holiday feature offering, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms.

Disney’s live-action feature is an adaptation of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker about a young girl who finds a Nutcracker doll among the family’s gifts and is charged by her parents to take special care of it.

The film is directed by A Dog’s Purpose and Chocolat’s Lasse Hallström from a screenplay by Ashleigh Powell. The film stars Mackenzie Foy as Clara, Keira Knightley as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Eugenio Derbez as the Flower Realm King, Miranda Hart as Drew Drop Fairy, Jack Whitehall as Harlequin, Misty Copeland as The Ballerina, Morgan Freeman as Drosselmeyer, and Helen Mirren as Mother Ginger.

The film hits UK cinemas October 26th, 2018.

The Nutcracker...

Disney's The Nutcracker and the Four Realms will be gifted to audiences next year.

The live-action remake will hit theaters on Nov. 2, 2018, the studio announced during its D23 Expo. The holiday film takes over the previously announced release date of the live-action Mulan remake. It will open opposite Fox's X-Men: Dark Phoenix and an unnamed Paramount film.

Directed by Lasse Hallstrom from a script by Ashleigh Powell, the new version of the classic ballet is based on The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by E.T.A. Hoffmann. The Christmastime-set story centers on a young girl named Clara whose favorite toy, a nutcracker, comes...

Helen Mirren has joined the cast of Disney’s “The Nutcracker,” an individual with knowledge of the project told TheWrap. Keira Knightley, Mackenzie Foy, Misty Copeland and Morgan Freeman are already attached. Lasse Hallström will direct the film, based on a script by Ashleigh Powell. Also Read: Keira Knightley to Star in Live-Action 'Nutcracker' Movie The movie is based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s 1816 tale “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.” The upcoming film’s entire title will be “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms.” As the title suggests, it revolves around Clara’s (Foy) Nutcracker doll, which comes...

For those who have long been clamoring to see a sequel to one of the century’s finest comedies, Step Brothers, that day has yet to arrive. However, Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly will once again reteam, this time for a the Sherlock-inspired Holmes & Watson. Directed by Etan Cohen, Ferrell will take the role of Holmes and Reilly will take on the Watson role. It’s not said yet which time period the film will take place in, but production on the Sony Pictures production begins later this year, so expect more news soon.

Next up, Deadline reports Keira Knightley and Alexander Skarsgård are set to star in an adaptation of the best selling novel The Aftermath, which Fox Searchlight have acquired the rights to after an intense bidding war. The story is set in post-war Germany and concerns a Rachael (probably Knightley) who reunites with her husband (probably...

Not content with remaking their animated classics in live action, Disney is now moving into the world of plays and will adapt The Nutcracker for the big screen in a film called The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. Variety reports that Pirates of the Caribbean star Keira Knightley has signed on to play the Sugar Plum Fairy, while Mackenzie Foy (Interstellar, The Little Prince) will play Clara, a young girl who gets sucked into a battle between toys that come to life and the forces of the evil Mouse King. Misty Copeland and Morgan Freeman are also attached to star.

I went on a field trip to see The Nutcracker in elementary school, but that particular story has never been a Christmastime staple for my family, so I've forgotten all of the details about what happens and even how the Sugar Plum Fairy is involved. Knightley seems like she has...

Morgan Freeman is in negotiations to join the live-action take on E.T.A. Hoffmann's story "The Nutcracker" for Disney Pictures.

The Christmas-set story, which inspired the famous Tchaikovsky ballet, follows a young girl named Clara (Mackenzie Foy) whose favorite toy, a Nutcracker, comes alive. After he defeats the Mouse King, he takes Clara away to a magical kingdom inhabited by dolls.

Freeman will play the mysterious Drosselmeyer alongside Misty Copeland as the lead ballerina. Lasse Hallstrom is directing from a script by Ashleigh Powell. Mark Gordon is producing.

Source: THR...

Ozark

Laura Linney is returning to television with the actress tapped to star opposite Jason Bateman in the Netflix drama series "Ozark". Bill Dubuque ("The Judge") is onboard as writer-executive producer alongside Bateman who will also direct and "Hell on Wheels" producer Chris Mundy who will serve as showrunner.

Set in the world of drug-money laundering, the pair play a financial planner couple who must suddenly relocate from Chicago to a summer resort community in the Ozarks. The series will premiere worldwide on Netflix in 2017. [Source: The Live Feed]

Disney's The Nutcracker

Mackenzie Foy ("Interstellar," "The Twilgiht Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2") has scored the role of Clara in its latest retelling of "The Nutcracker and the Four Realms" at Walt Disney Pictures. Foy joins Misty Copeland who was recently announced as the lead ballerina in the film's sole dance number.

Based on the 1816 story by E.T.A. Hoffmann which subsequently became the 1892 Tchaikovsky ballet, Foy's...

The upcoming live-action Disney movie The Nutcracker And The Four Realms has welcomed its first cast member – legendary ballerina Misty Copeland. Her appearance in the movie will mark her first involvement in narrative cinema, having already featured on television reality shows, as well as a documentary about her own early career, A Ballerina’s Tale.

The film will be helmed by Academy Award nominee Lasse Hallstrom (Salmon Fishing In The Yemen, The Shipping News, Chocolat), armed with a script by Ashleigh Powell, who makes her screenwriting debut here. With Mark Gordon (Grey’s Anatomy) producing the project, it is notable that the first casting choice is a strong one – recognizing that Misty Copeland is a world-renowned, award winning talent. It also indicates the tone that Hallstrom will be striving for – evidently mixing his own visual flair with the rich musical history of the tale.

While The Nutcracker is best known as a two-act ballet,...

Ballet star Misty Copeland just unveiled that she is joining the cast of Disney’s The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, the Lasse Hallstrom-directed pic based on the famed story. The live-action pic is being penned by Ashleigh Powell. Copeland will play the lead ballerina role in the film’s sole dance sequence. She tipped the news via Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BHzrvf4B3y-/?taken-by=mistyonpointe&hl=en" title="View on Instagram" rel="nofollow"…...

Disney just announced a bunch of updates to its movie release calendar, but they’re all untitled movies, so that leaves us to play the guessing game of which movies have been moved to which dates. Here are the changes to the studio’s release calendar, all for live action projects: Untitled Disney fairy tale (live action) previously dated on December 22, 2017 moves to July 28, 2017 Untitled Disney fairy tale (live action) now dated April 6, 2018 Untitled Disney live action now dated on August 3, 2018 Untitled Disney live action now dated on December 25, 2018 Untitled Disney fairy tale (live action) now dated on December 20, 2019 First things first: What does this mean for Star Wars? Star Wars Episode IX was at one point scheduled for May 24, 2019. Then Episode VIII got moved from May 2017 to December 2017, after the massive box office success of a Christmastime release for Force Awakens. After that release date change, Disney CEO...

Inspired by the ongoing global success of The Jungle Book, The Walt Disney Studios is moving ahead on its previously announced development slate including its Mary Poppins sequel to star Emily Blunt.

The roster includes the return of Jon Favreau and writer Justin Marks for The Jungle Book 2, a Tinker Bell project with Reese Witherspoon, Maleficent 2 led once again by Angelina Jolie, and Cruella with Emma Stone attached and Kelly Marcel of Saving Mr Banks and Fifty Shades Of Grey fame on board to write.

The slate features theme park adaptation Jungle Cruise pairing Dwayne Johnson with Bad Santa writers John Requa and Glenn Ficarra, Tim Burton’s Dumbo project, and adventure A Wrinkle In Time, the Madeleine L’Engle sci-fi book adaptation that last emerged from the Disney vaults as a TV movie in 2003 and sees Ava DuVerney attached to direct from a screenplay by Jennifer Lee.

The slate of reimagined classics includes The Nutcracker And The Four Realms, which...

The classic Christmas tale of the Nutcracker is coming to the big screen again.

This time around—Walt Disney Pictures is set to adapt The Nutcracker And The Four Realms into a live-action movie with Lass Hallstrom in the director’s chair.

Hallstrom has a good resume with The Hundred-foot Journey, Salmon Fishing In The Yemen, Dear John, and Casanova.

The classic ballet story by E.T.A. Hoffman follows a young girl who was given a nutcracker as a Christmas present. The nutcracker came to life as he takes the young girl into a faraway land to battle the evil Mouse King.

Ashleigh Powell is currently writing the script.

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Source: Deadlin...

Some legendary holiday stories are simply to classic to ever die out. From the tale of old St. Nick to the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, Christmas has so many accompanying stories and tall tales that it has practically become a genre itself. Who else but Disney could completely capitalize on this idea? Although winter will soon come to a close later this month, Disney has just revealed that they have begun development on a live-action adaptation of one of the world.s most iconic Christmas tales of them all: The Nutcracker.   A new report from THR indicates that Disney has begun developing a brand new live-action adaptation of the classic Christmas story, The Nutcracker. Titled The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, the project will directly adapt Tchaikovsky.s iconic ballet as well as E.T.A. Hoffmann.s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. Screenwriter Ashleigh Powell sold the script ...

Hollywood has been trying to crack the, uh, nut, of a live-action take on the holiday classic "The Nutcracker" for a while now. For example, five years ago, Adam Shankman ("Hairspray," "Rock Of Ages") envisioned an "action-adventure" take on the story, but it didn't get off the ground. Now Disney, who has no shortage of live-action success of late ("Maleficent," "Cinderella"), is going to put their touch on the project. Read More: Lasse Halstrom Gives Bradley Cooper 'A Dog's Purspose' THR reports the studio has tapped Lasse Hallstrom to conjure up their "The Nutcracker." The film has a script by Ashleigh Powell, which apparently mixes elements of the ballet and E.T.A. Hoffmann's original story, "The Nutcracker and The Mouse King," for what is now titled "The Nutcracker And The Four Realms." That title seems to suggest there's a bit of blockbuster sauce being thrown on this story, which...

Lasse Hallstrom is on board to direct "The Nutcracker and the Four Realms," a new live-action film adaptation of the classic Tchaikovsky ballet and E.T.A. Hoffman story at Disney Studios.

The classic story follows a young girl named Clara who gets a doll in the form of a nutcracker from her godfather on Christmas Eve.

When the girl goes to check on it, later that night, the clock strikes twelve and she finds herself thrust into a fantastical world where she is in the middle of a war between gingerbread soldiers and an army of mice.

Ashleigh Powell penned the script and Mark Gordon is producing

Source: Deadline...

Exclusive: Women may comprise only 2.9 percent of director hires at Warner Bros. in the past five years, according to a recent viral infographic (the best numbers, over at Disney, hit only 7.4 percent), but the studio is off to a solid start with their female-centric action pic The Athena Project. Neophyte scribe Ashleigh Powell has been hired to adapt Brad Thor’s New York Times bestseller about an all-lady commando team, which has Ufc fighter Ronda Rousey attached to star. If you’re keeping tabs on up and coming female voices in genre, here’s one to add to a woefully short […]...

Just in time for Halloween! Independent Lit manager, Hollywood Hustler, and all around nice gal Miss Kailey Alexis Marsh has just dropped the annual Blood List!

The Blood List is the top 13 most liked, unproduced dark genre screenplays of the year, released annually on Halloween. This is the 5th anniversary. Over 100 feature film executives vote on their top 3 favorite dark genre (horror, sci-fi, thriller) screenplays of the year. Seventy-seven of them earned votes, with screenplays requiring a minimum of four votes in order to make the final cut. I’m looking forward to reading some of these. Patrol and Family Vacation seem to be scripts that are in my wheelhouse. Coming in at number one is Ink and Bone, Zak Olkewicz’s horror spec script about a writer held hostage by his own creations that Dimension purchased earlier this year according to Deadline. Meet the 2013 class of The Blood List:...

Each year Kailey Marsh and her ghoulish creation The Blood List pick the 13 best un-produced horror scripts in Hollywood and from there the terrors come on hot and heavy! Just the way we like 'em! That being said this year's winner(s) have been picked!

In the past 2012 Blood List winner The Disciple Program was picked up by Universal with Mark Wahlberg attached to star for Morten Tyldum, and Barbara Curry’s 2011 selection The Boy Next Door is now in production under the Blumhouse banner with Jennifer Lopez starring.

This year's Big winner is Ink and Bone, Zak Olkewicz’s horror spec about a writer held hostage by his own creations that Dimension has already snapped up earlier this year. Check out the full list below.

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Ink and...

A photo of Jai Courtney in Jack Reacher, Bruce Willis and Anthony Hopkins shooting Red 2, and a shot of Jamie Foxx and Roland Emmerich on the set of White House Down.

Posters for Stoker, Hitchcock, Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters, The Impossible, On the Road, Les Miserables, and concept art from Monsters University.

"NBC's sitcom 'Community' will premiere its fourth season starting February 7th in its old Thursday 8pm timeslot. '30 Rock', which is currently in that slot, is expected to wrap its final season before then…" (full details)

"Pascal Laugier ('The Tall Man,' 'Martyrs') says he's moving away from horror as his next film is a 'sex movie' and 'I've never filmed people f--king because it's been done so many times and so badly. [The film] is a love story that turns into something very twisted'…" (full details)

"Rockstar Games' much anticipated 'Grand...

Deadline is reporting that Warner Bros. Pictures has picked up the script Somacell from first-time writer Ashleigh Powell. The thriller is described as follows: "Somacell chronicles a female prison guard in the near future who discovers that the virtual reality process that rehabilitates convicts is not all it promises to be." The Dark Knight and Man of Steel co-writer David S. Goyer will produce.