Japan: Celebs Rumors

Catherine Bray Some films prioritize a strident political cause, others set out to terrify or thrill. This touching and simple story from Japanese filmmaker Hiroshi Okuyama, premiering in Un Certain Regard at Cannes, is a gentler affair, with modest ambitions that it realizes effectively. Set on a small Japanese island, the film’s slight but sweet narrative follows a quartet of characters — young hockey player Takuya (Keitatsu Koshiyama), proficient skater Sakura (Kiara Nakanishi), figure-skating tutor Arakawa (Sōsuke Ikematsu) and his boyfriend (Ryûya Wakaba) — as they navigate subtly shifting interpersonal dynamics while a cold but beautiful winter waxes and wanes around them.

Pop sensation Harry Styles and actress Taylor Russell have reportedly called time on their blossoming romance just 14 months after the pair started dating.The heartthrob, known for his chart-topping hits and former One Direction fame, and the 'Bones And All' starlet, were an item for over a year before deciding to go their separate ways last month, insiders say. The couple, who had been inseparable, faced a turning point during a getaway to Japan in April, which was said to be a 'make or break' vacation.

Harry Styles and actress Taylor Russell have reportedly ended their relationship.

Refresh for latest…:  After starting early offshore release on John Krasinski’s IF last weekend, Paramount expanded the imaginary friends film to another 56 international box office markets this session. The overseas frame was worth $20M, bringing the international running cume to $24M. With domestic’s $35M debut, the worldwide total is now $59M.

In Japan the very first few snowflakes begin to fall signaling the change of seasons. Another clue is we see young Takuya (Keitatsu Koshiyama) and his baseball-playing buddies taking those final swings at bat and moving on to ice hockey. That is basically how this quiet and lilting charmer of a coming-of-age story is introduced, and it sets the table perfectly for what is to follow.

When Hayao Miyazaki’s long-awaited and supposed swansong The Boy and the Heron opened at No. 1 at the North American box office last December with a record-breaking $12.8 million tally, it was not only the first original anime title to achieve such a feat, but it was the biggest ever opening for U.S. distributor Gkids. It kickstarted what would be a whirlwind few months for the now 16-year-old company as it took the Studio Ghibli film, (which had opened the Toronto Film Festival in September) to an enormous $46.7 million box office gross (more than double their initial projections) in North America and, later a Best Animation win at the Oscars.

Ellise Shafer Cate Blanchett‘s new film “Rumours” took its name from the iconic Fleetwood Mac album, it was revealed on Sunday at a Cannes Film Festival press conference. The dark comedy, directed by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson, follows a group of world leaders who meet at the G7 — a political and economic meeting of the minds between Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States — but get lost in the woods while trying to compose a joint statement.

Karen Idelson When Studio Ghibli receives its honorary Palme d’Or May 19 at the Cannes Film Festival, the creative home to Hayao Miyazaki — arguably the most admired and influential living animation director — will make history. This marks the first time an honorary Palme d’Or has been given to a group, which sits well with the helmer.

Cate Blanchett blew kisses to the Cannes Film Festival audience as her new film, “Rumours,” earned a four-minute standing ovation at Cannes Film Festival on Saturday night. The crowd welcomed the film’s dark humor, laughing throughout the entirety of the late-night screening. While some of the auditorium emptied out while the credits rolled, the majority of filmgoers waited patiently to pay their respects to the film’s stars.

Steven Naismith reckons Kyosuke Tagawa has one of the toughest jobs in Scottish football trying to dislodge Lawrence Shankland. But he’s convinced the Japanese striker can hit the ground running next season.

EXCLUSIVE: Goodfellas has acquired world sales rights for Japanese filmmaker Chie Hayakawa’s Tokyo-set drama Renoir ahead of the project’s presentation in the Investors Circle event at the Cannes Marché du Film on Sunday.

A Japanese man splashed out more than £10,000 to fulfil his extraordinary ambition of becoming a dog. The man, known as Toko, spent a whopping two million Yen commissioning a hyper-realistic costume of his favourite breed, a Border Collie, from Zeppet.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Through the Lens Entertainment, the East-West film studio that made a splash at Cannes last year, is expanding into manga. It has launched Hoshi Studios, a manga development and publishing startup with outposts in Singapore and Japan. The outfit will create teams combining western film and TV talent with established Japanese manga artists to create books and other comic-book properties.

Babes by Pamela Adlon, co-written and starring Ilana Glazer, debuts in limited release with films by Hang Song-soo and Bertrand Bonello and docs on a controversial Venice Biennale, ground-breaking female clerics, and the Blue Angels Navy Squadron. A trio of festival favorites expand. While eyes now are on fare at Cannes — where Neon has been making high-profile moves — each week Stateside remains a test of indie film’s theatrical boundaries in a post-Covid, streaming-centric marketplace.

NME’s compiled a list of musicians and bands performing in the continent this year, from pop heavyweights like Olivia Rodrigo and Anne-Marie to metal favourites like Arch Enemy and more.And if you’re wondering where all the K-pop concerts and fanmeets have gone – we’ve got a whole other list for them, which you can check out here. And here’s a small sample of the K-pop artists who are coming to Asia in 2024: aespa, RIIZE, (G)I-DLE and many more.If music fests are more up your alley, you can check out NME’s list of Asia festivals taking place in 2024.

Shōgun is being developed two more seasons, FX has confirmed.FX and Disney revealed, per The Hollywood Reporter, yesterday that two more seasons of the hit historical drama series are in development, and that writer rooms are being assembled. FX will be working with late author James Clavell’s estate to piece together seasons two and three.However, this does not mean that seasons two and three of Shōgun have been confirmed, as an official renewal will be based on the progress made in the writers’ room and if all parties involved are happy with the direction that the show heads in.So far, no production has been scheduled for more episodes.

K-pop boyband SEVENTEEN’s performance unit have released a music video for their new song ‘Spell’.Back in April, SEVENTEEN dropped their first compilation album ‘17 Is Right Here’ led by the single ‘Maestro’. In addition to the new single, the record includes brand-new tracks by the group’s performance, hip-hop and vocal units.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Leading Hong Kong actor Tony Leung has been set as the president of the jury that will decide the main competition prizes at the Tokyo International Film Festival later this year. “Japan is close to my heart in more ways than one. And to be involved in celebrating film in this way, is a big deal for me.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor “Shōgun” is officially in the drama race for the Primetime Emmys. FX has confirmed that the once limited or anthology series heavyweight has been officially submitted and accepted in the drama categories, where it will compete against Netflix’s “The Crown,” Apple’s “The Morning Show” and Prime Video’s “Fallout.” In addition, the network has shared exclusively with Variety the complete list of 40 Emmy submissions, which includes six submissions for directing, four for writing, and two eligible guest actors.

Now that FX has decided to make more episodes of its breakout hit Shōgun, it is changing its Emmy strategy for the James Clavell adaptation.

Led Zeppelin‘s long awaited documentary Becoming Led Zeppelin is finally set for a cinema release.The authorised film, which was first announced in 2019, has been acquired for release by Sony Classics Pictures in a number of countries including North America, Latin America, Southeast Asia (except for Japan) and the Middle East. No announcement has been made for the UK or Europe yet.An official release date for the documentary is yet to be announced.

Forbes has released its annual 30 Under 30 list for 2024 in Asia, which features the likes of Voice Of Baceprot, IVE and more.Released today (May 16), the annual Forbes 30 Under 30 list shines a light on individuals aged below 30 who have made a significant impact in their respective fields, including entertainment and sports, science and activism, entrepreneurship and more.This year’s entertainment and sports portion of the list is headlined by Indonesian metallers and stars of NME’s The Cover, Voice Of Baceprot. Trailing behind them are K-pop outfit IVE, Japanese pop-rock group Atarashii Gakko!, Filipino rapper Ez Mil, Indian rapper Arpan Kumar Chandel (aka King), Japanese singer Aina The End and Indonesia’s Mahalini Raharja.The list also includes Chinese-New Zealand actress Jess Hong, Thai singer-actor Vachirawit Chivaaree, also known as Bright, and Indian singer-songwriter Pavithra Chari.This year’s North American 30 Under 30 list featured the likes of Boygenius, Ethel Cain, Dominic Fike, Gracie Abrams, Latto, Reneé Rapp, Ice Spice, Peso Pluma, Trippie Redd, Kali Uchis and more.This year’s European 30 Under 30 list features PinkPantheress, Nia Archives, Cat Burns, FLO, Holly Humberstone and more.Last year’s Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 list included K-pop girl groups NewJeans and Le Sserafim, Cambodian rapper VannDa, Singaporean singer Shye, South Korean singer LØREN, Indian singer-rapper Ambika Nayak – known professionally as Kayan – and Hong Kong singer Michael “MC” Cheung Tin-fu.The entertainment and sports category of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list was judged by ONE Championship co-founder and Group President Hua Fung Teh and Caldecott Music Group CEO and founder Kuok Meng Ru.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Korea’s Barunson E&A has picked up world sales rights to Vietnamese horror-comedy “Don’t Cry Butterfly.” Sales will be launched this week at the Cannes Market. Written and directed by Duong Dieu Linh, the Hanoi-set film follows a housewife who uses voodoo to try and get her cheating husband fall back into love with her, but instead invites a mysterious presence into the house.

A 64-year-old Japanese woman was arrested this week for allegedly fatally stabbing her husband in their home. The incident occurred on Tuesday night in the c

In our first encounter with Una (Elín Hall) and Diddi (Baldur Einarsson) in the long dusk of a Reykjavik spring night, they are thinking only of the future. The immediate future: will they be able to sleep overnight together without Diddi’s flatmate noticing? The near future, meaning the next couple of days, when Diddi officially breaks off his longstanding relationship with his high-school sweetheart Klara and starts a new life with Una. And the long term. A trip to Japan. A different life with a wider scope than Iceland can provide. “Should we make babies?” Diddi murmurs into Una’s ear as they lie, wrapped around each other like kittens, in his single-pillowed bed.

EXCLUSIVE: Ubisoft podcast Echoes of History is relaunching to tie in with the latest instalment of the Assassin’s Creed gaming franchise.

Michaela Zee “Terminator Zero” has set its premiere date at Netflix. The eight-episode animated series, which revolves around new characters in the “Terminator” universe, will premiere globally on Aug. 29.

K.J. Yossman This year’s Cannes is set to be the most activist-heavy yet.

Naman Ramachandran Indian filmmaker Dr. Bijukumar Damodaran‘s next film “Papa Buka” will commence principal photography in Papua New Guinea in July. The film will follow Indian historians Romila and Anand who go to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, to write a book about the Indian soldiers who fought with the British and Australian armies against the Japanese during WWII in the country.

Annette Hess will receive the first-ever Deadline German TV Disruptor Award at Seriencamp next month. Hess has created some of the most memorable German drama series of recent years with work including Weisensee and the Ku’damm series, to Disney+ show The Interpreter of Silence, based on Hess’ novel Deutsches Haus. Ku’damm fans are currently waiting on a new series, Ku’damm 77, which Hess is in the process of writing with production set for early 2026.

EXCLUSIVE: Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired Northern American rights for Joachim A. Lang’s historical drama Goebbels and The Führer (aka Führer and Seducer) for a fall 2024 theatrical and digital release.  

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Female stunt performer Wiriya Caesar will step up into the lead performer role in upcoming Thai action film “The 24.” The film project is being launched this week in the Cannes Market by new international sales firm Boz Pictures. Wiriya (aka Porntip Wiriya, aka “Fan”) has previously been a stunt double for Mary-Elizabeth Winstead in “Kate” and Golshifteh Farahani in “Extraction,” and has other credits on “Thirteen Lives” and “Hidden Strike.” In “The 24” she will star as an assassin who wakes up with a time bomb strapped to her body. She has clear instructions to kill a hit list of 24 members of the Bangkok underground, with each successful hit buying her more time alive. Caesar is joined in the cast by Japan’s Sakaguchi Tak (“Re:Born,” “One Percenter,” “Versus”), Dan Chupong (“Ong Bak 1 &2,” “Born to Fight”), Sunny Pang (“The Night Comes for Us,” “Headshot” and Gareth Evans’ upcoming “Havoc”) and Simon Kook (“Ip Man 3,” “Mayhem”). The film, which will shoot in the fourth quarter of this year, is written and directed by Lee Thongkham (“The Maid,” “The Lake,” “Kitty the Killer”).

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Seoul-based film sales company, Finecut has notched pre-sales for its upcoming action-comedy “The Desperate Chase, which it is launching this week at the Cannes Film Festival‘s Cannes Market,. The film is an action comedy featuring a hot-blooded detective and a swindler who is also a master of disguise who team up to combat an evil mafia. Early rights buyers include Rights Cube for Japan, Apex Success Global for Taiwan and Mockingbird Pictures for Vietnam. Screening as a rough cut in the Cannes Market, the film is the second feature by Kim Jae-hoon, known for his debut with the body-switch action thriller “Devils,” which released in South Korea last year.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Asian audiences are increasingly turning to homegrown content in their streaming choices. Asian titles powering 80% of premium VOD engagement and customer acquisition, according to new research from research and consultancy firm Media Partners Asia. “The Rise of Asian Content” is based on passive tracking of 40,000 users by sister company AMPD in nine major Asian markets – Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand – over 15 months between Jan.

Naman Ramachandran Japanese director Miike Takashi, who is known for slasher film “Ichi the Killer” and stomach-churning “Audition,” has signed with CAA for representation. Miike who is also a film producer and screenwriter, is one of Japan’s most prolific and bold directors, with more than 100 feature film credits, spanning genres, including horror, comedy and action. “Ichi The Killer” and “Audition” enjoy cult followings globally.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor As Cannes Film Festival kicks off, the Paris-based international sales company MK2 Films has revealed it has acquired three films and made substantial investments in new restorations, set against the backdrop of a strong presence at Cannes Classics. MK2 Films has entered into a collaboration with the Niki Charitable Art Foundation on the global rights (excluding the U.S.) for two films directed by artist Niki de Saint Phalle: “Un Rêve plus long que la nuit” (1976) and “Daddy” (1973).