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It's been a long road, getting from there to here. 

Jon Turteltaub's 2018 shark thriller "The Meg" was based on Steve Alten's novel "Meg" that was published way back in 1997. The book was optioned for a film adaptation by Hollywood Pictures, a Disney subsidiary, the year prior, and several screenplay drafts were immediately written. Jeffrey Boam was said to have written an adaptation of "Meg," but Disney didn't like it. Indeed, none of those screenplays were deemed good enough to develop into an actual feature, and three years passed without any movement on the project. In 1999, the rights reverted to Alten. 

Then, in 2005, the book was optioned again, this time by New Line Cinema. The new version of "Meg" was going to be an impressive affair, with Shane Salerno as its screenwriter, and Jan de Bont as director. A 2008 report in the Los Angeles Times even noted that "Meg...

David Schmoeller's 1989 film "Puppet Master" was almost going to be a theatrical release in the summer of 1989, but pivoted to the VHS market at the last minute. Looking at the 1989 supper movie season, one can see why producer Charles Band made the decision. "Puppet Master" would have opened against "Batman," "Ghostbusters II," "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," "Back to the Future Part II," "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier," "License to Kill," and "Lethal Weapon 2." There were just too many blockbusters it would've had to compete with.

Its movement to the straight-to-video market might have reduced its prestige, but "Puppet Master" spawned many, many sequels (not to mention a few crossovers) that persist to this day (the most recent "Puppet Master" film was released in 2022). The killer puppets in the film have become minor horror icons and often serve as the face of Full Moon Features, a...

Detective Murtaugh sees a mysterious man pull out a weapon in the middle of a police station. He heroically jumps into action to protect, serve, and tackle. But it turns out it is just good ol’ Mel Gibson, who overpowers and flips this 50-year-old character, played by a 40-year-old actor, Danny Glover. Humiliated and hurt, Danny Glover spits out an iconic line that has come to define his career and become a meme, “I’m too old for this shit.” Danny Glover was too old for this shit three decades ago… but he has kept on grinding, making motion pictures ever since. But maybe Danny Glover is too old for this shit… if that “shit” is good movies. Oh, I kid! I kid!

Glover may not have any Oscars, but he did get a late start in his movie career, having broken out in his 40s. So, what has Danny Glover,...

After a stellar 1989, the Hollywood box office of 1990 was expected to be even better – but the film industry got taught some tough lessons.

Browsing the worldwide box office charts for 1989, and many a major studio executive would have been stroking their chin with some degree of comfort. The same old was working. The new things were working. Everything was getting better. The Christmas party was clearly going to be on the impressive side.

What 1989 had proven, after all, was the growing feeling that big stuff worked too. Tim Burton’s Batman had firmly introduced the idea of the huge opening weekend at the box office, and that a movie could become a cultural phenomenon. That patrons would leave the cinema and promptly seek out the soundtrack, the computer game, the book, the T-shirt, the novelty undercrackers.

But it wasn’t just Batman. 1989 proved to Hollywood that, for the most part,...

Turning into a cultural phenomenon following its release in 1990, the Home Alone franchise thereafter became the universal theme for the holiday season. Further, appearing in memes and other forms of media, the franchise became a huge box-office success. And certainly, the credit goes to its iconic cast, including Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, and Daniel Stern.

Joe Pesci, Macaulay Culkin, and Daniel Stern in Home Alone (1990) | 20th Century Fox

However, despite demonstrating its enduring popularity through generations and making staggering profits during every year’s holiday season, Daniel Stern revealed a dark reality about the films. Recalling how he was stripped of his deserving salary, despite his co-stars getting eye-watering amounts, Stern mentioned how he had to fight with producers for his demands.

Home Alone 2 Producers Initially Low-Balled Daniel Stern

In a surprising revelation, Daniel Stern, the actor who played Marv Murchins in the iconic Home Alone franchise, disclosed in his...

Matt Sweeney, a pioneering special effects artist who was Oscar-nominated for his work on Ron Howard’s 1995 space epic Apollo 13, died February 19 of lung cancer at Burbank’s Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center. He was 75.

His death was announced by the Alliance of Special Effects & Pyrotechnic Operators board of directors. Sweeney was a founder and past president of the trade organization.

“A special effects guru, industry legend, Asepo founding member and past president, recipient of three technical achievement awards, and Oscar nominee, Matt is well recognized for his generous spirit and deep love of his craft,” the board said in a statement posted on social media. “He etched his marks on this crazy business in so many ways that will persist long after all of us are gone. He never quit, even after his retirement.”

Sweeney, whose roster of special effects credits stretches back to such 1980s hits as 9 to 5, The Goonies,...

Writer Shane Black pretty much invented the "buddy cop" movie with "Lethal Weapon," his gloriously violent Christmas-set action pic that introduced moviegoers to LAPD Detectives Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover). The basic set-up of the franchise, which was helmed entirely by Richard Donner: Murtaugh plays things by the book and is close to retirement (he somehow remains "close to retirement" through a series of four films). Riggs, in sharp contrast, is a trigger-happy psycho, suicidal in the wake of the death of his wife. These two mismatched cops become partners and, of course, friends. Also, they kill a lot of people. While this is one franchise that should probably finally retire (just like Murtaugh), there's a fifth film in the works. 

But we're not here to talk about that. Instead, let's go back to the days when Mel Gibson sported a mullet and wasn't problematic!

Killer cyborgs, A-list megastars, groundbreaking visual effects And a kick-ass soundtrack! It can mean only one thing. Yes, that’s right, good friends of JoBlo, uber director James Cameron is back to show us exactly how to follow up one of the biggest smash hits of your career with a sequel that had to surpass the expectations of even the most hardcore fan of the original movie, and also show the world how to revolutionize modern VFX…Again. Cameron had already wowed audiences with The Terminator back in 1984 and had proven that he could create impressive sequels to existing sci-fi franchises with the action-heavy Aliens in 1986. He’d also made great strides with visual effects in 1989’s The Abyss so could his original vision of having a liquid terminator in the franchise really work?

That’s right, sci-fi fans, we’re giving one of the greatest sequels ever made a...

Veteran British actor known for his many and varied film, TV and stage roles in a career that spanned more than 70 years

There was something grand, large, embracing about the actor Joss Ackland, who has died aged 95. He was a fixture in British films for several decades and a stalwart of the Old Vic, the Royal Shakespeare Company – he played Falstaff in the opening RSC production of Henry IV, Parts One and Two, in the new Barbican Centre in 1982 – and the West End stage.

He appeared in more than 100 films, and countless TV plays and series, usually, in later years, white-haired and bearded, but always with energy and force, whether as the cuckolded husband, Jock Delves Broughton, in Michael Radford’s White Mischief (1987) with Greta Scacchi and Charles Dance, or as the drug-running heavy in Lethal Weapon 2 (1989) with Mel Gibson and Danny Glover.

Veteran British actor Joss Ackland, best known for his roles in the films Lethal Weapon 2 and White Mischief, has died. He was 95. Ackland passed on Sunday, November 19, with his representative, Paul Pearson, confirming the death. “Joss was a long-term client and great friend who remained lucid, erudite and mischievous to the very end. He died peacefully with his family this morning,” Pearson said in a statement. Born on February 29, 1928, in London, England, Ackland trained at London’s Central School of Speech and Drama before making his professional stage debut at 17 years old, starring in the 1945 production of The Hasty Heart. He became a regular at the Old Vic Theatre, appearing alongside the likes of Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, and Tom Courtenay. Ackland starred in several British television shows throughout the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, including opposite Alec Guinness in the 1979 adaptation of Tinker Sailor Soldier Spy. He also appeared...

Joss Ackland, a veteran character actor known for his work on stage as well as screens big and small, has died. Ackland was 95 and familiar to film fans for the likes of Lethal Weapon 2, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, The Hunt For Red October. "It is with great sadness that I can confirm the passing of my great friend and long-term client Joss Ackland," :a[the actor's manager Paul Pearson told The Wrap]{href='https://www.thewrap.com/joss-ackland-lethal-weapon-2-actor-dies-at-95/' }. "He died of old age this morning with his family around. He was lucid, erudite, and mischievous to the end. I loved him deeply and for me, he is the reason we have the word magnificent in the dictionary."

Ackland was born in Ladbroke Grove, London on 29 February 1928. He studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama and made his stage debut at the age of 17 in a production of The Hasty Heart.

Joss Ackland, the British actor known for Lethal Weapon 2, Mighty Ducks and White Mischief, has died. He was 95.

Ackland died peacefully of old age, surrounded by his family Sunday morning, his longtime rep and friend Paul Pearson told The Hollywood Reporter. “He was lucid, erudite and mischievous to the end,” the rep added. “I loved him deeply, and, for me, he is the reason we have the word Magnificent in the dictionary.”

The actor was described as a “beloved father,” in a family statement obtained by BBC. It read, “With his distinctive voice and commanding presence, Ackland brought a unique intensity and gravitas to his role. He will be remembered as one of Britain’s most talented and beloved actors.”

In addition to his film roles in Lethal Weapon 2, Mighty Ducks and White Mischief, Ackland was known for parts in The Hunt for Red October, Daisies in December...

Joss Ackland, a familiar face to eighties and nineties movie fans, is dead at 95. According to Variety, the actor died of natural causes. Famous for playing the loathsome South African villain in Lethal Weapon 2, Ackland had a long and distinguished career in film, TV and on-stage. Arguably, his most memorable screen moment came at the climax of Lethal Weapon 2 when, after pumping Mel Gibson’s Riggs full of bullets, he taunts Danny Glover’s Murtagh by boasting “diplomatic immunity,” to which Murtagh, in a crowd-pleasing moment, cocks his head and blows the bad guy away.

Ackland also made for a memorable bad guy in Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, where he played the villain, De Nomolos. He was also in The Hunt for Red October, K-19: The Widowmaker, and played Emilio Esteves’s kindly former coach in The Mighty Ducks. He also famously appeared in the Pet Shop...

British actor Joss Ackland has died at the age of 95, his family said in a statement. No cause or location were given.

The stage and screen actor had been in more than 100 movies and TV series, among them the films White Mischief and 1989’s Lethal Weapon 2.

The family statement said: “With his distinctive voice and commanding presence, Ackland brought a unique intensity and gravitas to his role. He will be remembered as one of Britain’s most talented and beloved actors.”

Born in 1928 in London’s Ladbroke Grove area, Ackland grew up in Kilburn, North London.

He appeared in dozens of films throughout the 1980s and 1990s, including The Mighty Ducks and Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey.

He was awarded a Cbe in 2000 for his services to acting.

No information on survivors or memorial plans was immediately available.

Joss Ackland, a longtime stage and screen actor best known for his roles in “Lethal Weapon 2” and “White Mischief,” has died at age 95.

Ackland, who amassed more than 130 credits, also enjoyed parts in films such as “Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey,” “The Hunt for Red October” and the TV movie “Shadowlands.” His death was confirmed in a statement by his family. They said, “With his distinctive voice and commanding presence, Ackland brought a unique intensity and gravitas to his roles.”

“He will be remembered as one of Britain’s most talented and beloved actors.”

Ackland’s manager Paul Pearson told TheWrap, “It is with great sadness that I can confirm the passing of my great friend and long-term client Joss Ackland. He died of old age this morning with his family around. He was lucid, erudite, and mischievous to the end.”

“I loved him deeply and for me, he...

Joss Ackland, the veteran British stage and screen actor who was known for starring in “White Mischief” and “Lethal Weapon 2,” died on Sunday. He was 95.

“Joss was a long term client and great friend who remained lucid, erudite and mischievous to the very end, he died peacefully with his family this morning,” said his rep, Paul Pearson.

In Richard Donner’s “Lethal Weapon 2,” his villainous diplomat character notably utters the line “Diplomatic immunity!” before being shot by cop Roger Murtaugh, played by Danny Glover.

With over 130 film and television credits, Ackland appeared in a wide range of projects, including “K-19: The Widowmaker,” “Bill & Ted” and “The Hunt for Red October,” where he starred alongside Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin. His television work includes “Shadowlands,” where he played C.S. Lewis, and “Midsomer Murders.”

Ackland was made a Cbe for services to drama in 2001. He earned two BAFTA nominations...

Harry Bosch is back where he belongs. After an earthquake rendered the Bosch character’s iconic home uninhabitable, he spent most of the first season of the spinoff series Bosch: Legacy living in temporary quarters with a far less impressive view. But in season 2 of the Amazon Freevee series, he’s back in his hillside home.

Harry Bosch’s house was red-tagged in ‘Bosch: Legacy’ Season 1 Madison Lintz and Titus Welliver in ‘Bosch’ | Hopper Stone/Amazon Studios

Prime Video’s Bosch often featured Harry (Titus Welliver) surveying the sprawling city of Los Angeles from his glass-walled perch above the city, jazz records playing in the background. His small but architecturally impressive abode was a fixture across all seven seasons of the show and helped give the noir-ish crime drama its uniquely LA feel. It also closely matched the description of the house in author Michael Connelly’s novels. In The Black Echo,...

Initially, Joe Pesci’s character, Leo Getz, was only meant to be in Lethal Weapon 2. But Getz became a fan favorite and was invited back not only for Lethal Weapon 3, but also Lethal Weapon 4. At the time of Lethal Weapon 2’s release, Pesci spoke to us about how he brought the character to life. (Click on the media bar below to hear Joe Pesci) https://www.hollywoodoutbreak.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Joe-Pesci_Lethjal_Weapon_2_.mp3

The Lethal Weapon films are available on DVD, Blu-Ray, and most digital platforms.

The post How Joe Pesci Got To ‘Lethal Weapon’s’ Getz appeared first on Hollywood Outbreak.

Watching it in 2023, one might find themselves a little baffled as to why Martin Brest's 1984 crime comedy "Beverly Hills Cop" was such a massive success. Made for a modest $13 million, "Beverly Hills Cop" caused a sensation, earning over $234 million domestically which is, when adjusted for inflation, closer to $700 million. It made Eddie Murphy a household name and more or less codified an emerging genre of R-rated buddy cop movies that would remain ascendant throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s. The success of "Beverly Hills Cop" might confuse people, however, as it seems wildly basic these days. The jokes are not particularly funny, and while Murphy is as charismatic as they come, his Snobs vs. Slobs shtick seems trite and tired.

It seems that "Beverly Hills Cop," however, was merely outstripped by its imitators. In the wave of imitators that spawned, filmmakers pushed the action and the humor to higher and higher degrees,...

If you’re a fan of Mel Gibson’s classic action flicks, be sure to stream them before they leave Max at the end of August.

All four “Lethal Weapon” movies and “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome,” starring the late, great Tina Turner, will be leaving the streaming service. Luckily, you’ll have all month to watch them.

Watching the new “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” animated movie in theaters? Max has several films featuring the radical reptilians: the live-action “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze” (1991)

and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III” (1993), as well as the animated “Tmnt” (2007).

Kaiju fans will want to check out “Godzilla” (2014), “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” (2019), “King Kong” (1933) and “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” (2012).

Finally, if horror is your thing, six “Hellraiser” films and “The Ring Two” make great summer scares.

Here’s everything leaving Max in August 2023

August 5

Hard Knocks:...

It’s often claimed that good things come in threes, but try telling that to anyone who sat through the Big Momma’s House trilogy. Film sequels, in essence, are nothing new in Hollywood—the very first sequel came back in 1916 with the silent film The Fall of a Nation, Thomas Dixon Jr.‘s follow-up to D. W. Griffith’s jaw-droppingly racist epic, Birth of a Nation.

However, the concept only became commonplace in the 1970s when a string of follow-ups to successful dramas made waves at the box office. The Godfather, Part II, Rocky II, and The French Connection II were among the first movies that helped usher in this new era of filmmaking. Today though, moviedom has expanded beyond even the sequel and into new territory where the word “franchise” is king. Buoyed in recent times by the dominance of comic book movies and an increasing appetite for nostalgia,...

Summer is heating up on Max.

Back in May, Max added programming from TLC, HGTV and Food Network. That means Discovery’s popular Shark Week will be available to stream when it kicks off on July 23, with programming to be announced soon.

For fans of unscripted series, Season 3 or “90 Day Fiancé: Love in Paradise: Pillow Talk” (July 4) and Season 5 of “90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way” (July 10) are both streaming, as well as the series premiere of “90 Day Fiancé: UK.”

Home renovation fans will want to catch Season 16 of “Barnwood Builders” (July 6) and the special “Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge” (July 16), hosted by Ashley Graham, just in time for the feature film.

Also Read:

Here’s What’s New on Amazon Prime Video in July 2023

“Project Greenlight” (July 13) returns, with executive producer Issa Rae along with Kumail Nanjiani and Gina Prince-Bythewood serve as mentors throughout the season.

Finally, the six-episode Max Original limited series “Full Circle,...

Max is following DC’s lead with its list of new releases for July 2023.

The two big ticket items this month are of the superhero variety. My Adventures with Superman arrives to Max on July 7 after making its Adult Swim premiere the night before. The end of the month sees Harley Quinn season 4 making its long-awaited debut on July 27. Other original TV titles of note are the Steven Soderbergh-directed Full Circle (July 13) and the third and final season of How To With John Wilson on July 28.

On the movie side of things, documentary Glitch: The Rise and Fall of HQ Trivia premieres on July 20. Before that on July 13 is both a fresh reboot of filmmaking competition Project Greenlight and the movie that came of it, Gray Matter. Library movies in July include Pulp Fiction, V for Vendetta, Lethal Weapon, and more on July 1.

Here is everything else coming to HBO and Max this month.

The original Max series “Full Circle” debuts on July 13. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the new drama investigates a kidnapping gone wrong in New York, revealing the secrets and lies of multiple characters. Or as the trailer warns: “Everything is connected.” The six-episode limited series stars Zazie Beetz, Claire Danes, Jim Gaffigan, Jharrel Jerome, Timothy Olyphant, and Dennis Quaid.

Watch the “Full Circle” trailer:

The four-part documentary “Last Call: When A Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York” is set in the early 1990s as the AIDS crisis worsens. The media’s distorted coverage of the gay victims, coupled with the homophobic biases of the criminal justice system, undermine the investigation. The docuseries — which premieres on Max on July 9 — illustrates how the LGBTQ+ community fought to solve the murders and demand attention for those murdered.

Preview “Last Call: When A Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York”:

Arriving on the platform on...

Timothy Olyphant, Claire Danes, and Dennis Quaid in ‘Full Circle’ (Photograph by Sarah Shatz)

Max’s July 2023 schedule includes the premiere of the drama Full Circle and the return of Shark Week. The hot summer month’s lineup also includes the final season of How To With John Wilson, the premiere of Project Greenlight, and the final episodes of the popular comedy The Righteous Gemstones.

The two-part documentary The Golden Boy about the life and career of Oscar De La Hoya joins the streaming service’s lineup on July 24th. Shaun White: The Last Run, a docuseries about the Olympian, is set to premiere on July 6th.

Series & Films Arriving On Max In July 2023:

July 1

300 (2006)

17 Again (2009)

20th Century Women (2016)

A Life Less Ordinary (1997)

A Walk in the Woods (2015)

American Sniper (2014)

Angels Sing (2013)

Ballet 422 (2014)

Barbershop (2002)

Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004)

Beauty Shop (2005)

Because of Winn-Dixie (2005)

Brandi Carlile: In the...

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Lionsgate has officially noted that the four “John Wick” films have topped $1 billion at the global box office. Its new cume, $1.011 billion in all, comes from a combined production budget of just $245 million, for a 4.12 times rate of return just through theatrical revenue. It again shows the value of at least trying to create new or outright original IP amid a sea of revamps and revivals.

That total gross includes $87.8 million for “John Wick” in 2014, $171.5 million for “John Wick: Chapter 2” in 2017 (plus 97% from “John Wick”), $326.7 million for “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” in 2019 (plus 90%) and a running total of $425.3 million for “John Wick: Chapter 4” (plus 30%) which opened in late March of this year.

Commenting on the announcement, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chair Joe Drake said, “This milestone is...

Hang on for some truly nail-biting news: Sylvester Stallone will reprise his role as Gabe Walker in a reboot of his 1993 mount-climbing thriller “Cliffhanger.” He’ll also produce. Taking over for director Renny Harlin is Ric Roman Waugh (the upcoming “Kandahar”). Neal H. Moritz’s Original Film will produce with Rocket Science and Stallone and Braden Aftergood’s Balboa Productions, and sales will launch in Cannes this month.

Stallone starred in the original film as Walker, a ranger in the Colorado Rockies suffering from trauma following a fatal accident who soon gets embroiled in a scheme involving a sinister former Military Intelligence officer who is after some missing Treasury money. Since the money was lost in the mountains, the bad guys turn to Walker to try and find it.

Also Read:

‘Robocop,’ ‘Legally Blonde’ and ‘Stargate’ Projects in Development as Amazon Studios Leverages MGM Titles

“Growing up with the biggest...

Over 100 popular films are leaving HBO Max at the end of the month, but luckily you have the whole month to stream them.

They include cinema classics like “Ben Hur,” the winningest film in Oscars history

Leaving April 5

The Inside Story, 1948

Reminiscence, 2021 (HBO)

Leaving April 11

Adult Swim Yule Log (aka The Fireplace)

Leaving April 12

About Face: Supermodels Then and Now, 2012 (HBO)

Leaving April 13

The Last Duel, 2021

Game Theory With Bomani Jones, Season 1

Leaving April 18

The Lego Batman Movie, 2017

Leaving April 24

Tom and Jerry Cowboy Up!, 2022

Leaving April 27

Malignant, 2021 (HBO)

Leaving April 30

47 Ronin, 2013 (HBO)

3 Godfathers, 1948

Accepted, 2006 (HBO)

The Adventures of Robin Hood, 1938

A Private War, 2018 (HBO)

An American in Paris, 1951

The American President, 1995

Any Given Sunday, 1999

Australia, 2008 (HBO)

Before I Fall, 2017 (HBO)

Ben-Hur, 1959

Black Legion, 1937

Blade, 1998

Blood Diamond, 2006

Blow Out, 1981 (HBO)

The Bodyguard, 1992

Boogie Nights, 1997

The Book of Eli, 2010

The Bourne Identity, 2002 (HBO)

The Bourne Supremacy, 2004 (HBO)

Bringing up Baby,...

Lethal Weapon was an unexpected smash when it came out in March of 1987. The film was such a sensation that it revitalized the buddy cop genre and made Mel Gibson a legitimate superstar. For the follow-up, Warner Bros would boost the budget, injecting more comedy into the mix and toning down the pathos and darkness of the original to deliver a sequel that was such a blast they threw it into the summer movie marketplace. It would become an even bigger hit than the original and one of the top-grossing movies of 1989. In this episode of Revisited, we dig into the making of what’s considered one of the best sequels ever made.

The post Lethal Weapon 2 Revisited appeared first on JoBlo.

As far as Christmas action movies go, most would say John McTiernan’s Die Hard takes the crown as the greatest of all time. However, another action classic that hit theaters a year before, Lethal Weapon, is also set around the holiday. Written by a young Shane Black (using the Christmas setting that would become his trademark), this wound up being perhaps the most influential action movie of all time, maybe even more so than Die Hard (although that’s debatable). While not the first buddy cop movie (older films like Freebie and the Bean and Best Movie You Never Saw fave Running Scared are also part of the genre), it set the tone for many films to follow. There was something so perfect about the pairing of Mel Gibson’s crazed Martin Riggs and Danny Glover’s family man Roger Murtagh, along with Richard Donner’s ace direction. The three men loved each other,...

Several decades ago, authors Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir teamed up to start a pulp paperback series called The Destroyer. The first book was titled Created, The Destroyer, and introduced a hero named Remo Williams. More than 150 novels in The Destroyer series have been published over the years, and in 1985 there was an attempt to bring the concept to the big screen in the film Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins. That movie was a box office failure, so the adventure also ended right there. But nearly forty years later, Remo Williams is being revived by Sony Pictures Television – and Better Call Saul executive producer Gordon Smith is on board to write the Destroyer / Remo Williams TV series.

Smith will also executive produce the show alongside Adrian Askarieh of Prime Universe Films.

As Deadline reminds us, the Destroyer books center on a U.S. government operative named Remo Williams, a former...

Joe Pesci is looking back fondly on his time with “Home Alone”.

Speaking with People by e-mail for the 20th anniversary of “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York”, the actor said retaining the original cast and crew from the first film was essential. It gave the film “the same, if not more, energy and enthusiasm as the original.”

That’s not to say the sequel didn’t differentiate itself from the first. Pesci argued there was “more spontaneity and creativity on the set” due to the shared work experience.

“It was a nice change of pace to do that particular type of slapstick comedy,” Pesci recalled, who at that point had a number of dramatic roles under his belt including 1983’s “Easy Money” and 1989’s “Lethal Weapon 2”. “But the ‘Home Alone’ movies were a more physical type of comedy, therefore, a little more demanding.”

Read More: Joe Pesci...

"Weird" Al Yankovic' was riding high as pop music's preeminent parodist when he opted to make his feature filmmaking debut in 1989 with "Uhf." The film stars the musician as a lovable loser who's put in charge of Channel 62, a bare-bones operation buried deep in the Uhf dial. He's tasked with upping the outlet's atrocious ratings, at which he fails until the station's janitor, Stanley Spadowski (Michael Richards), accidentally transforms into a wildly popular children's show host.

The notion of Yankovich having to fill programming space with original shows perfectly complemented his gift for sketch-length goofs of popular culture. The gags hit more often than they miss, which is all you can ask for from a movie like this. It should've been a hit. Instead, it opened in eleventh place on a late July weekend where it was the only major new release. For the first time in his career, audiences had completely rejected Yankovic.

Much has been made of titles being quietly removed from HBO Max over the last few week, but while the number of films departing the service in September is substantial, at least subscribers have a heads up.

As is the case every month, various movies are due to leave HBO Max in September, and below we’ve got the full list of which films are leaving and when so you can prioritizing some viewing options. Noteworthy removals include the 2021 Warner Bros. thriller “The Little Things” starring Denzel Washington (leaving Sept. 16), the 2020 “Freaky Friday” horror riff “Freaky,” Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill” films, the “Lethal Weapon” franchise, “Super 8,” “Tootsie” and the Nancy Meyers classic “The Holiday.”

Check out the full list of what’s leaving HBO Max in September below.

September 4

Meet the Patels, 2014

September 5

Turner Classic Movies: Follow the Thread, 2022

September 8

Teen Titans Go! To The Movies, 2018

September 9

Horrible Bosses 2,...

If you’ve been waiting to watch Christopher Nolan’s confounding sci-fi thriller “Tenet,” now is the time to finally get to it on your HBO Max watchlist. Nolan’s latest film is one of many movies leaving HBO Max in July, the full list of which you can read below.

Also leaving HBO and HBO Max this month is another Nolan classic, “Inception,” Baz Luhrmann’s “The Great Gatsby,” as well as two rom-com favorites “Bridget Jones’s Diary” and “You’ve Got Mail.”

If you’re looking to prioritize some selections, “American Gigolo” was Richard Gere’s break-out role — and it would be a good time to watch ahead of the upcoming TV series starring Jon Bernthal.

Also Read:

The Best Movies on HBO Max Right Now

July 9:

Horrible Bosses 2, 2014

The New Mutants, 2020 (HBO)

July 11:

Black Mass, 2015

July 13:

Blue Exorcist (Subtitled), 2016

July 23:

Human Capital, 2020 (HBO)

July 26:

The Accountant,...

Stars: Kevin Dillon, Anna Harr, Lydia Hull, Mel Gibson, Eddie Steeples, Shannen Doherty, Sam Asghari | Written by Collin Watts, Leon Langford | Directed by James Cullen Bressack

Hot Seat, is the new thriller from director James Cullen Bressack, working from a script by Collin Watts and Leon Langford. And, at least on the surface, it seems to have taken its cue from his other recent thriller, Fortress, one of whose plot threads involved a former hacker forced to break into a financial company’s systems.

Here, that goes from subplot to the main storyline as reformed hacker Orlando Friar’s day goes from bad to worse. After he’s called in on his day off, which also happens to be his daughter Zoey’s birthday his wife Kim serves him with divorce papers. But the worst is yet to come. Almost as soon as he gets to work his computer is...

Veteran producer Joel Silver (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang), Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey’s Team Downey and Amazon Studios are partnering to develop a series of feature film and television projects based on Donald E. Westlake’s series of highly popular Parker crime fiction novels, written under the pseudonym Richard Stark.

The first project emerging from the deal will be the film Play Dirty, in which Downey Jr. (Marvel’s Avengers franchise) is set to star as Parker, a professional thief who approaches his job with a straightforward, no-nonsense work ethic. He’s a craftsman. He’s brutal, brilliant. He’s also deadly. He’s whatever it takes to get the money and get away clean. The Parker character was first introduced in 1962’s The Hunter from Pocket Books and featured in 23 other titles from Westlake, subsequently serving as the basis for such films as Parker with Jason Statham,...

Robert Downey Jr. and writer-director Shane Black are reuniting once again. The pair are teaming at Amazon Studios to develop a series of movie and television projects adapted from Donald E. Westlake’s “Parker” crime fiction series, Variety has confirmed.

The first project emerging from the deal will be a feature film titled “Play Dirty,” in which Downey Jr. stars as Parker, a professional thief with a brutal, mercenary work ethic. Black will direct and pen the adaptation alongside Charles Mondry and Anthony Bagarozzi. Joel Silver is attached to produce alongside Susan Downey for Team Downey and Marc Toberoff. Ezra Emanuel will co-produce.

“Play Dirty” serves as reunion for Silver, Black and both Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey. The four worked together on the 2005 neo-noir “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,” which served as Black’s directorial debut and saw Downey star alongside Val Kilmer and Michelle Monaghan. Black and Downey Jr.

by Cláudio Alves

Danny Glover's cameo in Bamako

Despite his fantastic career as an actor, Danny Glover isn't receiving an Honorary Oscar to recognize that work. Instead, AMPAS is honoring him with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award as a way of celebrating his lifelong actions as a community activist, fighting for worldwide justice, and other such efforts. If anything, those values are more imminently evident in Glover's filmography as a producer rather than as an actor. Since the early 90s, after becoming a box-office star, the American thespian started leveraging his success to try and make specific projects happen. Charles Burnett's To Sleep with Anger marked Glover's first experience as a producer, and the funding was mainly secured through his participation in Lethal Weapon 2. From then on, Danny Glover has been a strong supporter of underrepresented filmmakers, helping them make their cinematic dreams come true…...

Director Richard Donner, who died on Monday at age 91, was once compared to Victor Fleming (“Gone with the Wind”) and Michael Curtiz (“Casablanca”), old-school filmmakers who worked hard to give their studio bosses what they wanted (and to give the public what they thought it wanted).

Donner may have come into his own as a hit-maker during the New Hollywood of the 1970s, but no one ever accused him of being an auteur. He made accessible entertainments — and if that were an easy task, everyone would have done it — and helped usher in the modern era of superhero cinema with 1978’s “Superman,” a thrilling and utterly unironic take on the comic-book icon that feels more influential to contemporary moviemaking with each passing year.

Born Richard Donald Schwartzberg in the Bronx, Donner moved to Los Angeles in the 1950s with hopes of becoming an actor. He was soon mentored by director Martin Ritt,...

Alan Robert Murray, a two-time Oscar winner and sound editor who has worked on films such as “American Sniper,” “Joker” and “Letters From Iwo Jima,” has died. He was 66.

Murray’s passing was confirmed by his family via Kim Waugh, an executive with Warner Bros. Sound, where Murray has been based since 1979. His family said he died Wednesday. His cause of death was not mentioned.

“I, along with my Warner Bros. family grieve the loss of our dear friend Alan. His contribution to film sound is unrivaled. He will live in our hearts forever,” Waugh told TheWrap.

Murray was a frequent collaborator with Clint Eastwood and won his Oscars for two Eastwood films, “American Sniper” and “Letters From Iwo Jima.” In all, he would collaborate with Eastwood on 32 films, as well as worked as an editor on several more starring Eastwood.

Murray shares both of his Oscars with another frequent collaborator,...

Alan Robert Murray, the supervising sound editor and decades-long collaborator with Clint Eastwood who earned Oscars for his work on the director’s American Sniper and Letters to Iwo Jima, died Wednesday, a source told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 66.

Last year, Murray set a sound editing record with his 10th career Academy Award nomination, for Todd Phillips’ Joker. His first two noms came for his contributions to Richard Donner’s Ladyhawke (1985) and Lethal Weapon 2 (1989).

Murray also received Oscar noms for the Eastwood-helmed films Space Cowboys (2000), Flags of Our Fathers (2006) and Sully (2016) and for Chuck Russell’s Eraser (1996) and Denis Villeneuve’s Sicario (2015).

He worked ...

Alan Robert Murray, the supervising sound editor and decades-long collaborator with Clint Eastwood who earned Oscars for his work on the director’s American Sniper and Letters to Iwo Jima, died Wednesday, a source told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 66.

Last year, Murray set a sound editing record with his 10th career Academy Award nomination, for Todd Phillips’ Joker. His first two noms came for his contributions to Richard Donner’s Ladyhawke (1985) and Lethal Weapon 2 (1989).

Murray also received Oscar noms for the Eastwood-helmed films Space Cowboys (2000), Flags of Our Fathers (2006) and Sully (2016) and for Chuck Russell’s Eraser (1996) and Denis Villeneuve’s Sicario (2015).

He worked ...

One of Andrew Birkin’s lasting memories of Sean Connery is of the actor, who died over the weekend at the age of 90, digging a splinter out of Birkin’s foot.

It was the late ’60s. Birkin was working as a location manager in Spain on a Michael Caine World War II movie, Play Dirty. Down the road, they were shooting Shalko, a Western starring Connery, Brigitte Bardot and Stephen Boyd. Birkin knew Boyd and the two crews used to hang out together in the evenings.

“One night, I don’t know how it happened, I got a huge splinter ...

One of Andrew Birkin’s lasting memories of Sean Connery is of the actor, who died over the weekend at the age of 90, digging a splinter out of Birkin’s foot.

It was the late ’60s. Birkin was working as a location manager in Spain on a Michael Caine World War II movie, Play Dirty. Down the road, they were shooting Shalko, a Western starring Connery, Brigitte Bardot and Stephen Boyd. Birkin knew Boyd and the two crews used to hang out together in the evenings.

“One night, I don’t know how it happened, I got a huge splinter ...

HBO Max is out with its list of everything new coming to the streaming service in October and everything leaving at the end of the month.

The list includes HBO Originals like the limited series “The Undoing” starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant, out Oct. 25, and David Byrne’s “American Utopia” special event about Byrne’s Broadway show that electrified audiences, out Oct. 17.

There is also Nathan Fielder’s comedic docuseries “How To With John Wilson,” out Oct. 23, and the first season finale of “Lovecraft Country” on Oct. 18.

Among the things leaving at the end of the month are “Amelie,” “Ocean’s 11,” “V For Vendetta,” “Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” and “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.”

Read the full list here:

Oct. 1

A World of Calm, Documentary Series Premiere

Akeelah And The Bee, 2006 (HBO)

All-Star Superman, 2011

American Dynasties: The Kennedys, 2018

American Reunion, 2012 (HBO)

Analyze That,...

HBO Max is serving up a lot of great new movies this October. Fittingly for the spooky season, the Warner Bros. streaming service is adding a fair few classic horrors to its library next month, but there’s really something for everyone going up – from comedies to romances to sci-fi to superhero films.

Speaking of that last genre, DC lovers will be pleased to note that 2013’s Man of Steel, the movie that kicked off the Dceu, is among the titles arriving on October 1st. Besides that, there’s a bunch of animated DC pics dropping the same day, including Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and All-Star Superman. 2005’s Constantine featuring Keanu Reeves, meanwhile, also debuts on the service from the 1st.

That’s not the only film starring the beloved actor headed to the platform, though, as probably the highlight of October’s haul is the addition of the...

“The only true wisdom comes in knowing that you know nothing.”

-Socrates

There’s a reason screenwriters Ed Solomon and Chris Matheson made a point of highlighting that quote in Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989), the classic science fiction comedy adventure that kicked off a most bodacious series of joyous cinematic quests. Like another surprisingly insightful comedy about a different kind of pop culture-fanatic airhead, Being There (1979), the Bill & Ted franchise celebrates the simple wisdom embedded deep within our heroes’ blissful ignorance.

Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey (1991), thanks to its absolutely wild metaphysical adventure, incredible creatures (see below), comic ingenuity, heavy stakes, one-of-a-kind adversaries, and killer metal soundtrack, remains the favorite franchise entry of this critic. The saga returned last month, just in time to serve as something of a warm and fuzzy hug for one of the worst years in recent American history, with the reunion movie its stars never expected to materialize,...

The first theatrical release to reschedule in the face of Covid-19 was “No Time to Die.” As the 25th installment in the main 007 series, it’s part of an extraordinary franchise that’s survived nearly 60 years, with seven leading men as James Bond; someday, presuming the pandemic permits it, there will be a 28th Bond title, with an eighth leading man. (Daniel Craig has repeatedly sworn that the Cary Fukunaga Bond film will be his last.)

But first things first. “No Time to Die” is currently slated for November 20, and this week saw unconfirmed speculation that even the fall date may be unduly optimistic. There’s little assurance that American theaters will have resumed normal operations, and China also looks daunting with its announcement that until further notice all theatrical releases must be two hours or less. (Fukunaga’s film is a whopping 2:43.)

One well-placed source categorically denied the possibility of pushing again.

Imagine it’s 1990 and you’re Joe Pesci. You’ve had a solid career as a character actor for a decade. You have one Oscar nomination for Raging Bull. You’ve appeared in one big hit, Lethal Weapon 2. And you’ve just painted your masterpiece. The beginning of 1990 is pretty standard for you — small roles as scumbags in…...