Ontario talent has long starred onscreen in Hollywood, from Ryan Gosling and Mike Myers to Rachel McAdams and Sandra Oh. But just as the province has become a key Hollywood production hub for the major studios and streamers, top global film and TV producers are also embracing
Kevin Costner spoke on the scrapped theatrical release of his second “Horizon” film on Saturday during its Venice Film Festival press conference, saying that “it probably was a reaction” to the underperformance of the first movie at the box office. “It didn’t have overwhelming
Visit Films has snapped up world sales rights (excluding Canada) to R.T. Thorne’s feature bow, “40 Acres,” a dystopian survival thriller, which is screening in Toronto’s Special Presentations. “R.T. is an exciting director who has proved himself in other formats,” said Visit
From Palestinian filmmaker Scandar Copti, the Israel-set “Happy Holidays” is a piercing, realistic family drama, the inflection points of which reveal deep cultural and political dimensions surrounding gender and ethnicity. Like his Oscar-nominated crime drama “Ajami” (which he
Saudi Arabian film industry pioneer Faisal Baltyuor is opening the first arthouse cinema in Riyadh in what amounts to a milestone in the kingdom’s moviegoing trajectory ever since Saudi lifted its 35-year ban on cinema in late 2017. The plush state-of-the-art 80-seat venue,
“The Quiet Son,” a French film exploring family dynamics amidst far-right radicalization, has won the 2024 Collateral Impact Award at the 81st Venice Film Festival. The award, presented by Think-Film Impact Production and Impact Europe, recognizes films with significant
Some people claim you can’t touch anything Ingmar Bergman was involved in. Tomas Alfredson is not one of these people. “Not everything Bergman did was genius, but a lot of it was,” he tells Variety. Swedish director is behind new series “Faithless,” premiering in Toronto and
There won’t be more seasons of Rebecca Hall BBC series “The Listeners,” says director Janicza Bravo. But don’t worry – it’s a good thing. “I think that miniseries or limited series are a great gift. ‘Make more!’: that’s the American model. But there’s something so sexy about
Say hello to the Ukrainian family of four (Roman Lutskyi, Anastasiia Karpienko, Sofiia Berezovska, Fedir Pugachov), enjoying their Canary Islands holiday. That is, until the invasion begins and they are stuck in their nice hotel, surrounded by others who are still in the party
Porn king Riccardo Schicchi was, according to Giulia Louise Steigerwalt’s bubbly, shallow “Diva Futura,” named after Schicchi’s now-defunct multimedia adult-entertainment enterprise, a really sweet guy. Moreover, the film insists, his vision for pornography was similarly
One moment, award-winning chef Almut (Florence Pugh) is waking her beloved Tobias (Andrew Garfield) and asking him to sample her latest concoction, the next, it’s the middle of the night, and now-pregnant Almut is parked on the toilet while he times her contractions. Effective
Like a football player emerging from the huddle, Florence Pugh squatted and grunted as she reenacted a dramatic scene from “We Live in Time” after the film made its splashy debut on Day 2 of the Toronto International Film Festival. During a post-screening Q&A with co-star
Elton John opened up about fame and family on Saturday night after the world premiere of Elton John: Never Too Late at the Toronto Film Festival. “Fame is a dangerous thing if you don’t have something else, and that something else is honesty, and if you don’t have honesty to go
The Toronto International Film Festival reserves its opening weekend for world premieres — as in, films that did not previously screen at Sundance, Cannes, Venice or Telluride. Unfortunately for the fest, it seems like most of this season’s movies with serious awards prospects
“I have one question… who is wearing sequins?” It’s a fair query for Cameron Bailey, Toronto International Film Festival’s CEO, to ask at Friday night’s world premiere of “Elton John: Never Too Late,” a revealing look at the generation-spanning musical (and fashion) icon.
It’s no secret that Toronto loves Mike Leigh and it would be a lie to say Hard Truths, the latest from the legendary British director, didn’t get a warm welcome at its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival Friday night. Hard Truths bowed at TIFF’s Royal Alexandra Theatre
A middlebrow triumph-against-the-odds sports crowd-pleaser can be a beautiful thing — that is, if it doesn’t pander and lose itself in clichés, and if it has as much respect for reality as it does for getting an inspirational rise out of you. “Unstoppable,” a wrestling drama
The “Kevin & Sluggo Show” was noticeably missing Friday afternoon on Los Angeles’ KLOS-FM, as hosts Kevin Ryder and Doug “Sluggo” Roberts were given their walking papers. The decision to eliminate the afternoon drivetime slot at KLOS comes as owner Meruelo Media has made
No sooner had Linkin Park announced Dead Sara singer Emily Armstrong as the reformed band’s new vocalist than a torrent of criticism emerged over her previous ties to the Church of Scientology and her past support of convicted rapist and actor Danny Masterson. Late Friday, she
Some people bring happiness and positivity into the world, illuminating the lives of all around them, and some make flowers wilt and milk curdle wherever they go. As Pansy, Marianne Jean-Baptiste embodies the latter sort in “Hard Truths,” coming away from her reunion with
The “Demi-ssance” is taking the Toronto Film Festival by storm. And Demi Moore, who is at the center of the tempest thanks to her go-for-broke performance as an actress who makes a pact with the devil in return for eternal youth in “The Substance,” was celebrated on Friday
Sony is ramping up its award campaign plans for filmmaker Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night Live movie, a dramatic recreation of the 90 minutes leading up to the iconic NBC show’s first episode in the mid-1970s. The studio announced late Thursday that it will release Saturday
Jenny from the Block made her way to the Six for the premiere of “Unstoppable,” a heartfelt sports drama that debuted on Friday at the Toronto Film Festival. Jennifer Lopez, who stars as a fiercely supportive mother of five, worked on the film with her ex-husband Ben Affleck,
Unstoppable, a sports drama about a college wrestler who dreams of going pro that stars Jharrrel Jerome (Moonlight), Jennifer Lopez, Don Cheadle, and Bobby Cannavale, and was directed by William Goldenberg, stepped into the ring on Friday for its world premiere at the Toronto
Amazon Prime Video’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” had a soft start for Season 2 and couldn’t fend off Netflix’s “Worst Ex Ever” for the No. 1 spot among streaming original TV series for the Aug. 30-Sept. 5 period. Meanwhile, Lee Daniels’ “The Deliverance” topped
In Jordan Goudreau, a former Green Beret and special forces operative who planned and executed a failed attempt at overthrowing the government of Venezuela, directors Jen Gatien and Billy Corben found a fascinating subject worthy of being the main character in a documentary.
Sony and Columbia Pictures are expanding their release rollout for Jason Reitman’s “Saturday Night.” The film, which was previously scheduled to solely release wide on Oct. 11, 2024, is now getting a three-step platform release. It will first land exclusively in L.A., N.Y. and
Indie distributor Film Movement has snapped up North American rights to Swiss director Ramon Zürcher’s “The Sparrow in the Chimney” following its world premiere at the Locarno Film Festival. Described by Variety’s Guy Lodge as a “darkly engrossing psychodrama of pent-up
“The Easy Kind” isn’t the easiest kind of film to describe for someone who is getting a first look, as audiences did in its premiere screenings at the Telluride Film Festival this past weekend. On first blush, it might appear to be a documentary of the esteemed country singer
SPOILER ALERT: This article contains spoilers for “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” now playing in theaters. It’s been 36 years since Michael Keaton’s foul-mouthed demon first terrorized audiences in Tim Burton’s 1988 film “Beetlejuice,” but his legacy lives on. Especially now that a
Nathan Gary is stepping down as the president of Megan Ellison’s Annapurna, a post he has held since 2021, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. Gary will also be departing the company. The co-heads of Annapurna’s indie gaming division, Deborah Mars and Nathan Vella, are also
In the Toronto Film Festival documentary “Space Cowboy,” the triumphs and tragedies of skydiving cinematographer Joe Jennings are examined. Jennings’ desire to film an open-top automobile falling from the sky with four passengers sitting in the car is the narrative device used
There’s no better feeling than gifting a present that you’re absolutely certain will be met with unadulterated elation: the type of gift someone doesn’t even know they want but becomes one of their most prized possessions. Every man is different but luckily the internet
Choosing the right gift for the leading lady (or ladies) in your life can look different for every person: no gift is one-size-fits all. In fact, the best gifts aren’t necessarily the most expensive or luxurious (although some certainly can be), but are thoughtful nudges at
Selena Gomez is officially a billionaire, according to a Bloomberg report. She is estimated to be worth $1.3 billion, making her one of the country’s youngest women with a 10-figure fortune. The publication determined a “vast bulk” of her net worth is attached to the success of
Tom Hiddleston had to learn to move and groove to play Charles “Chuck” Krantz in “The Life of Chuck,” a feel-good apocalyptic story (yes, those exist!) that premieres on Friday at the Toronto Film Festival. Adapted from Stephen King’s 2020 novella of the same name and directed
The Toronto International Film Festival upped the razzle dazzle factor on the second day of its 49th edition with the world premiere of “The Last Showgirl,” a Vegas-set drama that sees star Pamela Anderson enter the awards-season conversation for the first time in her iconic
“The Perfect Couple” is the latest show to tap into the valuable IP of a bestselling novel. The murder-mystery series, starring Nicole Kidman and now streaming on Netflix, is based on Elin Hilderbrand’s 2018 novel of the same name. Developed for the screen by showrunner Jenna
Carriage fights create some strange bedfellows. DirecTV, at loggerheads with Disney over a new deal for ESPN, ABC and other networks, announced that it would give its customers a $30 credit toward two competing streaming TV services — Sling, from longtime satellite rival Dish
Following its initial tease back in January, the original unscripted series “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” is finally here. All six episodes of the highly anticipated docuseries are now available to stream on Hulu. Jeff Jenkins Prods. (“Bling Empire,” “My Unorthodox Life”)
Frank Griffin, who nosed out another makeup artist to work with Steve Martin on Roxanne, just one of the 20 movies they did together, has died. He was 95. Griffin died Wednesday of cancer at his home in Studio City, his daughter Roxane Griffin, a veteran Hollywood hairstylist
Bruce Springsteen could sense that his current tour with the E Street Band would be unlike any of their previous efforts. Filmmaker Thom Zimny, who has collaborated with the music legend for the past 24 years, had the same hunch. This feeling of capturing a unique moment in
A few days after Ian McKellen expressed interest in returning as Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s new live-action “Lord of the Rings” movies, his co-star Orlando Bloom is adding his name to the list. When asked by Variety if he was interested in returning to the Tolkien franchise,
Jumai Yusuf’s feature debut Cocoa Doll is being launched to international buyers at the Toronto Film Festival this week. Co-producers and sales agents The Dazey Phase and Unger Media are shopping the horror pic about, Nora, a young Black woman who takes a caregiving job for the
Naomi Watts has appeared opposite some of the greatest stars in cinema — Sean Penn, Viggo Mortensen, Leonardo DiCaprio, even King Kong. But none of those leading men prepared her for Bing, the 145-pound Great Dane she co-stars with in “The Friend,” a drama about heartbreak, art
In his dystopian thriller 40 Acres, director R.T. Thorne tells the story of Hailey Freeman, a mother played by Danielle Deadwyler, and her eldest son (Kataem O’Connor) as they hold opposing beliefs about how to survive the end of the world. Set in a famine-decimated future,
There’s a massive kickboxing event in the Centennial State tonight! Jonathan “The General” Haggerty (23-4-0) defends his One Bantamweight Muay Thai World Championship against One Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Superlek “The Kicking Machine” Kiatmoo9 (138-29-4) on Friday,
The NFL travels to the “Land of Brazil” for the pro league’s first-ever regular-season game in South America. For Week 1, two NFC rivals go head-to-head with the Green Bay Packers facing off against the Philadelphia Eagles at Corinthians Arena in São Paulo, Brazil on Friday,
SPOILER ALERT: This article contains spoilers for all episodes of “The Perfect Couple.” On a quiet summer morning, a body washes up on a Nantucket beach. A scream splits the air –– and a prominent family is immediately plunged into chaos. So ends the first episode of Netflix’s
Michael Douglas reminisced about meeting his now wife Catherine Zeta-Jones at France’s Deauville American Film Festival in 1998 as he received a career tribute on Friday, the opening night of the milestone 50th anniversary edition. Douglas, who was introduced on stage by his
