‘Lumberback The Monster’ Trailer: Takashi Miike’s Latest Pits A Psychopathic Lawyer Against A Masked Serial Killer

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer “Joker” fans who are theorizing about the reported musical aspects of the upcoming Joaquin Phoenix-led sequel film finally have a little bit more clarity, thanks to star Zazie Beetz. “I think people will be surprised. I don’t think it’s going to be what they expect, around it being musical,” Beetz, who is reprising her role as Sophie Dumond for “Joker: Folie à Deux,” told Variety Monday at Chanel’s Tribeca Film Festival Artists Dinner in New York. “We all sort of express musically and dancing in our lives day-to-day. I think it’s going to work really well.” Todd Phillips returns to the director’s chair for the “Joker” sequel, which is rumored to take place prominently in Arkham Asylum.

Naman Ramachandran Sony’s “Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse” led the U.K. and Ireland box office for the second consecutive weekend with £4 million ($5.1 million), according to numbers from Comscore. The web-slinging animation now has a total of £16.2 million. Paramount’s “Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts” debuted in second place with a healthy £2.9 million. In its third weekend, in second position, Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” collected £2.1 million for a total of £19.9 million. In fourth place, another Disney title, “Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 3” earned £511,837 in its sixth weekend for a total of £35.5 million. Rounding off the top five in its fourth weekend was Universal’s “Fast X” with £475,640 and a total of £14.2 million.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent British actors Julia Ormond (“Ladies in Black”) and Lydia Page (“Blue Jean”) are set to soon appear in psychological horror movie “Home Education” directed by Italy’s Andrea Niada. Set in the scenic Sila plateau in Italy’s Southern Calabria region, “Home Education” revolves around a family that are followers of an esoteric cult and live in a secluded house deep in the woods. Warner Bros Entertainment Italia, Italy’s Indiana Production and BlackBox Multimedia are producing with support from the Calabria Film Commission. Germany’s SquareOne Productions is handling international sales. Warner Bros. Pictures will release the film in Italian theaters.

Ezra Miller is speaking out in public for the first time since August 2022.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Ezra Miller made a public showing for the first time in nearly two years on Monday night, attending the Los Angeles premiere of DC Studios’ “The Flash.” The embattled actor spoke openly about misconduct allegations levied against them and various legal woes, addressing fans and many industry players at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Miller, who is non-binary and uses they and them pronouns, made a big show of acknowledging Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, Warner Bros. Film Group heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy and DC Studios stewards James Gunn and Peter Safran for “your grace and discernment and care in the context of my life. And in bringing this moment to fruition.”

Warner Bros. held the premiere for the long-awaited DC spinoff The Flash today in Hollywood with its star Ezra Miller, who has been the subject of several tabloid headlines from alleged assaults in Hawaii to unlawful trespassing at a neighbor’s house in Vermont, making their red carpet debut since such incidents.

hinted to return for an additional season “or two” by DC head James Gunn, who said in January that “it’s a show everybody likes, so it’s gonna keep going for a little bit.”Starring Tyler Hoechlin as Clark Kent and Elizabeth Tulloch as Lois Lane, the third installment of the superhero series will be produced by Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television.

J. Kim Murphy It’s curtains for “Gotham Knights” at The CW. The network will not move forward with a second season of the DC Comics series, Variety has learned. The series was absent from a statement of upcoming programming from the CW, which announced renewals for both “Superman & Lois” and “All American: Homecoming” for the 2023-2024 broadcast season. The news about “Gotham Knights” comes more than two weeks ahead of the date that the series is slated to air what would now be its series finale. The program premiered on March 4 and was set to conclude its 13-episode season on June 27.

The CW has renewed Superman and Lois for a 10-episode fourth season, following months of negotiations. The series was one of three shows on the network in collaboration with Warner Bros. pending renewal alongside All American: Homecoming and Gotham Knights.

Amazon Freevee has teamed with MGM and Warner Bros. Discovery in a deal to add 23 FAST Channels.

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” PremiereRegency Village Theatre, WestwoodThe Spider-verse opened a portal into Westwood for the world premiere of “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” the long-awaited sequel to the 2018 smash hit film “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” and the stars celebrated. The actors who were delighted to have returned to the next ultra-cool vision of Spidey from the minds of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller were Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson, Issa Rae, Jason Schwartzman, Daniel Kaluuya and recent Oscar nominee Brian Tyree Henry.Hailee Steinfeld, who reprises her role as Spider Gwen in the animated movie, slayed the red carpet at the Regency Village Theatre by wearing a complete ensemble from Bally’s spring 2023 collection.

Selome Hailu Titled “Double Fantasy,” Episode 2 of “The Idol” brought in 800,000 viewers across HBO and Max on Sunday night. This marks a 12% dip from the 913,000 viewers who tuned in to last week’s series premiere. Reported by Warner Bros. Discovery, these figures represent a combination of Nielsen’s measurement of linear viewing on HBO’s cable channel as well as WBD’s own data regarding streams on Max. According to WBD, streaming of the episode through Sunday night was “nearly even” with that of the week before, meaning that the decrease in viewership happened largely on cable. Nielsen data shows that approximately 232,000 viewers watched Episode 1 on cable the night of its premiere, meaning that some 681,000 viewers streamed the episode. Therefore, if streaming remained even for Episode 2, it can be estimated that around 119,000 viewers watched it on cable.

Rotten Tomatoes. “Rise of the Beasts” will need that audience buzz as it faces competition for the 18-34 demographic — which made up 54% of its opening day audience — from Warner Bros.’ “The Flash” next weekend.

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group has signed a first-look deal with London and LA-based Locksmith Animation to develop and produce animated features for worldwide distribution.

Amy Schumer has revealed the real reason why she left the Barbie movie – and it’s not what they told us at the time. While playing Plead the Fifth on “Watch What Happens Live,” the comedian admitted that she didn’t drop out due to scheduling conflicts, but creative differences.“I think it was scheduling conflicts,” Schumer said. “That’s what we said.

The day after New York-based pickets were canceled for the week because of smoke, the gathering at Warner Bros. in Los Angeles was a bit smaller on Thursday, with less than 50 people gathering in support of the WGA strike.

EXCLUSIVE: Following months of going through dozens of audition tapes, Warner Bros and DC Films look to be getting closer to finding the stars of their Superman: Legacy movie as a second round of testing looks to be imminent.

In the wake of world premiering in Cannes to lackluster film reviews at 50% Rotten, Disney/Lucasfilm’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is currently looking at a $60M+ domestic opening.

The group of executives who are leading CNN on an interim basis made their first comments to staffers on Thursday, vowing to make “this period as smooth as possible.”

Chris Licht released a statement following his exit from CNN on Wednesday.

Chris Licht’s ouster as CEO at CNN, Joe Scarborough argued that Warner Bros. Discovery head David Zaslav should have kept Licht on for the full term of his two-year-contract. “Zaslav gave Chris two years; I wish Chris had been given the two years Zaslav promised him,” Scarborough told The New York Times.

The day that SAG-AFTRA began its talks with Hollywood studios over its own film and TV contract with a strike authorization in hand, picketing Writers Guild members on Wednesday hit up Disney and Warner Bros in Burbank.

Daniel D'Addario Chief TV Critic The departure of CNN’s Chris Licht, following his turbulent year atop the cable news network, places a pause on one of the great media stories of the decade so far. But even non-media-junkies can appreciate just how strange and how strenuously rocking had been Licht’s time at the network: It played out across screens. The trouble with being the place that invented the 24-hour news cycle is that those hours can come back to bite when you’re the story. There it was in politics, when Donald Trump’s “Town Hall,” with purported rising star Kaitlan Collins, gear-shifted into the first televised rally of the 2024 presidential cycle — with CNN’s air being used to depict an audience of Trump supporters cheering on his jibes. (No less an eminence than Christiane Amanpour, a CNN icon, registered her dissent in public.) There it was on the business pages, with Licht’s overseeing the dismantling of streaming product CNN+, on orders from Warner Bros. Discovery head David Zaslav, setting the tone for his tenure. There it was at the Oscars, when Michelle Yeoh used her best actress acceptance speech to rebuke anchor Don Lemon’s bizarre on-air comments about a woman’s “prime” years. There it was in the gossip pages, after a Variety story about Lemon’s comportment toward his female co-anchors on the network’s flagship morning show, and then his ouster, leaked into the tabloids, and never seemed to be countered by any good news about the network. And, finally, there it was at length, with an all-access profile by the Atlantic’s Tim Alberta revealing Licht’s contempt for predecessor Jeff Zucker and the depths of his disdain for and, frankly, confusion about CNN’s mission.

Fox News Digital in a Wednesday report that posted just a couple of hours before Warner Bros. Discovery brass announced the ouster of CEO Chris Licht. David Zaslav handpicked Licht last April to replace Jeff Zucker, the successful but divisive longtime CNN leader ousted after disclosing an affair with one of his direct reports.

“We are sending a message that our content doesn’t have to cost a fortune to watch,” said the CEO of fledgling streamer SkyShowtime, who said there could be more bundling in the future.

Today, Outfest announced the Opening and Closing Night gala film selections for the 41st edition of the Outfest Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival, taking place from July 13 – 23 in Los Angeles, presented by Warner Bros. Discovery and Genesis Motor America. The festival will open with Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, directed by Aitch Alberto, and the 11-day event will close with Chasing Chasing Amy, directed by Sav Rodgers. The Opening Night Gala will screen at the Orpheum Theatre, with the Closing Night Gala screening at The Montalbán Theatre.

Former Warner Bros. President of Sales and Distribution, D. Barry Reardon, passed at the age of 92 on May 27 in Vero Beach, Florida.

EXCLUSIVE: The Golden Trailer Awards has unveiled its nominees for its 23rd annual extravaganza taking place on Thursday, June 29th at The Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles. The awards show honors the creative teams that are tasked with condensing two-hour films into two-minute trailers.

The New York Times.“I gave them a gun, and they shot me with it,” Zucker said, according to those sources.Zucker’s abrupt resignation in February 2022 put a spotlight on Gollust, his longtime lieutenant and the network’s chief marketing officer. Gollust, who had worked with Zucker for decades and rejoined CNN in 2013 as his “closest colleague,” had been identified as the woman with whom he had a “consensual relationship,” which he didn’t disclose to CNN owner at the time, AT&T, in apparent violation of company policies.Gollust resigned two weeks after Zucker’s ouster and following a WarnerMedia investigation into Chris Cuomo and his efforts to help his brother, former New York Gov.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s (WBD) Jamie Cooke is supercharging “original documentaries that push the boundaries” from his Central & Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Turkey region by greenlighting around 10 docs per year.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor CNN chief Chris Licht told staffers Monday he wants to help them make the news rather than being a central figure in it. In the wake of a devastating profile of the CNN CEO published Friday by The Atlantic, Licht set about soothing frayed nerves Monday by telling employees on the news outlet’s regular morning call that “I should not be in the news unless it’s taking arrows for you. Your work is what should be written about,” according to two people familiar with the matter, The words are the first from Licht to be made public since the piece was unveiled. Thanks to a rich vein of unfettered access provided over months, the piece detailed the executive’s struggles — and some of his insecurities — during his first year on the job at the Warner Bros. Discovery-backed news outlet. David Zaslav, the CEO of the parent company, has articulated a strategy of eliminating some of the activist bent that resounded at CNN under its previous chief, Jeff Zucker. But Licht’s efforts to do so have been plagued by near-constant leaks and a restive staff, many of whom remain loyal to Licht’s predecessor, ousted after he admitted to a longstanding relationship with Allison Gollust, CNN’s former chief marketing officer.

Sigourney Weaver will premiere on Aug. 4. The seven-part series is based on Holly Ringland’s same-name debut novel. According to the synopsis, “When Alice, aged 9, tragically loses her parents in a mysterious fire, she is taken to live with her grandmother June at Thornfield flower farm, where she learns that there are secrets within secrets about her and her family’s past. Alice finds solace in the native plants and flowers growing in her Australian backyard. She, too, begins to grow from her past, but soon must fight for her life against the man she loves.”

Selome Hailu HBO said “Hello, angel” to 913,000 viewers when it aired the series premiere of “The Idol” on Sunday night. Provided by Warner Bros. Discovery, that number points to Nielsen’s measurement of linear viewers on HBO’s cable channel combined with WBD’s own data regarding streams on Max. For context, “Euphoria” drew 1.1 million viewers when it premiered in 2019. (Max had not yet launched, meaning viewers were counted across HBO, HBO Go and HBO Now.) Levinson’s second HBO outing is therefore 17% behind his first. The trajectory of “Euphoria” Season 1 viewership was mostly flat, peaking with 1.2 million viewers of the finale, meaning that “The Idol” could still manage to beat out “Euphoria’s” early performance if its audience continue to grow. But there’s only one month left to achieve that, as the drama’s first season will run for a short five episodes.

After the massive weekend success of Sony Animation’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, there are a lot of rival studios that are looking at executing their comic book IP differently on the big screen. Quite often, animated superhero projects are released directly to the home (think Warner Bros DC’s myriad superhero toon movies like 2010’s Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam and Disney+/Marvel Studio’s avant garde series What If?). Leave it to the guys who bedazzled many with the near half billion grossing The Lego Movie, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, to revolutionize the family animated genre once again.

Charna Flam With a few mystifying teasers and less than two months until the premiere of the live-action “Barbie” film, audiences still don’t know exactly how the film will unfold. But the production team has started to reveal insight into the film — including how they caused an international pink paint shortage. In a recent Architectural Digest profile with production designer Sarah Greenwood, set decorator Katie Spencer and director Greta Gerwig, the group explain that they set out “to capture what was so ridiculously fun” about Barbie’s world, but especially that of Architectural Digest’s subject: Barbie’s Dreamhouse. “I wanted the pinks to be very bright, and everything to be almost too much,” Gerwig stated. She shared that “the ‘kid-ness’ was paramount” — evoking the feeling of never forgetting “what made [her] love Barbie” as a young girl.

The Los Angeles Times in 1999. “He is one of the few people who really did change the game. Everyone who knows anything will tell you he revolutionized this business and he is a visionary.