This year’s nominees for the 66th Southern California Journalism Awards were released today by the Los Angeles Press Club and IndieWire received a site-record nine nominations. Coming on the heels of our wins last year for Criticism of TV and Entertainment Reporting and following our 2022 win for Best Website, Traditional News Organization, the entire IndieWire staff has been nominated for Best Website, News Organization Exclusive to the Internet. IndieWire writers also earned nominations for individual accolades in eight categories.
“The nominated work illustrates the scope, insight, and unparalleled quality of our team,” said Dana Harris-Bridson, Senior VP and Editor-in-Chief at IndieWire. “We are thrilled and sincerely appreciate the Los Angeles Press Club for the Southern California Journalism Award nods.”
After winning the award for Best Criticism of TV last year, IndieWire’s Deputy TV Editor and TV Critic Ben Travers is a finalist in the category again for a number of his reviews,...
“The nominated work illustrates the scope, insight, and unparalleled quality of our team,” said Dana Harris-Bridson, Senior VP and Editor-in-Chief at IndieWire. “We are thrilled and sincerely appreciate the Los Angeles Press Club for the Southern California Journalism Award nods.”
After winning the award for Best Criticism of TV last year, IndieWire’s Deputy TV Editor and TV Critic Ben Travers is a finalist in the category again for a number of his reviews,...
- 5/9/2024
- by Harrison Richlin
- Indiewire
Alden Ehrenreich (Fair Play) is the newest addition to the cast of Weapons, New Line’s horror thriller from writer-director Zach Cregger.
While details as to the film’s plot and Ehrenreich’s role are under wraps for now, the actor joins an ensemble that also includes Julia Garner and Josh Brolin. Pic is Cregger’s follow-up to Barbarian, the horror film marking his debut solo outing which opened #1 at the box office in 2022 and sits at 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. Starring Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård, and Justin Long, that film grossed ten times its production budget of $4.5 million to ultimately take in more than $45 million worldwide.
Cregger will also produce Weapons alongside his Barbarian producing team, Roy Lee of Vertigo and J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules of BoulderLight Pictures. Vertigo’s Miri Yoon also produces.
Ehrenreich is coming off of Chloe Domont’s acclaimed romantic drama Fair Play, which Netflix...
While details as to the film’s plot and Ehrenreich’s role are under wraps for now, the actor joins an ensemble that also includes Julia Garner and Josh Brolin. Pic is Cregger’s follow-up to Barbarian, the horror film marking his debut solo outing which opened #1 at the box office in 2022 and sits at 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. Starring Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård, and Justin Long, that film grossed ten times its production budget of $4.5 million to ultimately take in more than $45 million worldwide.
Cregger will also produce Weapons alongside his Barbarian producing team, Roy Lee of Vertigo and J.D. Lifshitz and Raphael Margules of BoulderLight Pictures. Vertigo’s Miri Yoon also produces.
Ehrenreich is coming off of Chloe Domont’s acclaimed romantic drama Fair Play, which Netflix...
- 4/29/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Rian Johnson and Ram Bergman’s company T-Street has signed a two-picture producing deal with Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group.
Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy, who took over as the studio’s co-chairs and CEOs in 2022, orchestrated the deal. It marks the producers’ first collaboration with Warner Bros., having previously worked with Lionsgate on the box office hit “Knives Out,” Netflix on its sequel “Glass Onion,” Disney on “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” and Focus Features on the neo-noir thriller “Brick.” It’s unclear if Johnson will direct either of the two films that he’ll be overseeing at Warner Bros.
“Mike and Pam’s renewed commitment to original storytelling and the theatrical experience make Warner Bros. Discovery an ideal place to help us bring the filmmakers we love to audiences around the world on a grand scale,” said Johnson and Bergman. “We’re thrilled to have them as partners.
Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy, who took over as the studio’s co-chairs and CEOs in 2022, orchestrated the deal. It marks the producers’ first collaboration with Warner Bros., having previously worked with Lionsgate on the box office hit “Knives Out,” Netflix on its sequel “Glass Onion,” Disney on “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” and Focus Features on the neo-noir thriller “Brick.” It’s unclear if Johnson will direct either of the two films that he’ll be overseeing at Warner Bros.
“Mike and Pam’s renewed commitment to original storytelling and the theatrical experience make Warner Bros. Discovery an ideal place to help us bring the filmmakers we love to audiences around the world on a grand scale,” said Johnson and Bergman. “We’re thrilled to have them as partners.
- 3/18/2024
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: A24 and Star Thrower Entertainment have partnered on director David Freyne’s romantic comedy Eternity with Miles Teller, Elizabeth Olsen and Callum Turner in talks to star. Freyne will direct the pic, with Teller and Olsen exec producing.
A24 will finance and produce, with Oscar-nominated producers Trevor White and Tim White under their Star Thrower Entertainment banner, which is best known for producing The Post and King Richard. Pat Cunnane wrote the script, which appeared on the 2022 Black List.
Plot details are being kept under wraps, but the film is said to be a romantic comedy where everyone must decide who they want to spend eternity with. A24 will handle the global release.
After starring in the global blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick, Teller has continued to stay busy and next will be seen in Apple Original Films’ The Gorge opposite Anya-Taylor Joy. He is currently filming the Michael Jackson biopic Michael,...
A24 will finance and produce, with Oscar-nominated producers Trevor White and Tim White under their Star Thrower Entertainment banner, which is best known for producing The Post and King Richard. Pat Cunnane wrote the script, which appeared on the 2022 Black List.
Plot details are being kept under wraps, but the film is said to be a romantic comedy where everyone must decide who they want to spend eternity with. A24 will handle the global release.
After starring in the global blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick, Teller has continued to stay busy and next will be seen in Apple Original Films’ The Gorge opposite Anya-Taylor Joy. He is currently filming the Michael Jackson biopic Michael,...
- 3/14/2024
- by Justin Kroll
- Deadline Film + TV
There comes a time in every heterosexual woman or queer man’s life where we have to wonder: What is it about men that is at once so despicable and so alluring?
There are statistically more male serial killers, more male sociopaths, and — let’s be real — more male assholes than there are female counterparts. That’s just scientific fact. Sure, you can click on the hyperlinks, but do you really need to read a Psychology Today post between looking at this review and scrolling through the dating apps?
But the foundation of heteronormative rom-coms goes as follows: Girl meets boy, girl falls for boy, girl changes herself slightly for boy, and boy proposes. The end, happily ever after, everyone is great and good. Yeah, if you’re currently dating (or have been on dates at all in the 21st century), you know that’s not how it works, especially when situationships,...
There are statistically more male serial killers, more male sociopaths, and — let’s be real — more male assholes than there are female counterparts. That’s just scientific fact. Sure, you can click on the hyperlinks, but do you really need to read a Psychology Today post between looking at this review and scrolling through the dating apps?
But the foundation of heteronormative rom-coms goes as follows: Girl meets boy, girl falls for boy, girl changes herself slightly for boy, and boy proposes. The end, happily ever after, everyone is great and good. Yeah, if you’re currently dating (or have been on dates at all in the 21st century), you know that’s not how it works, especially when situationships,...
- 3/9/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any individual contender. As other formal (and informal) polls suggest, competitions are fluid and subject to change based on buzz and events. Predictions are updated every Thursday.
Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:
Oscars | Emmys | Grammys | Tonys
2023 Oscars Predictions:
Best Original Screenplay Past Lives, from left: Teo Yoo, Greta Lee, John Magro, 2023. © A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection
Weekly Commentary: Following its victories at the Golden Globes for best screenplay and the BAFTA for original screenplay, it appears almost inevitable that “Anatomy of a Fall” will secure the Oscar for its co-writers,...
Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:
Oscars | Emmys | Grammys | Tonys
2023 Oscars Predictions:
Best Original Screenplay Past Lives, from left: Teo Yoo, Greta Lee, John Magro, 2023. © A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection
Weekly Commentary: Following its victories at the Golden Globes for best screenplay and the BAFTA for original screenplay, it appears almost inevitable that “Anatomy of a Fall” will secure the Oscar for its co-writers,...
- 3/7/2024
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Sofia Carson (Purple Hearts), Kyle Allen (A Haunting in Venice), Sebastian De Souza (Fair Play), and Connie Britton (The White Lotus) have signed on to star in The Life List, a new Netflix rom-com from writer-director Adam Brooks.
Based on the 2013 novel by Lori Nelson Spielman, The Life List‘s logline is as follows: When Alex Rose’s (Carson) mother sends her on a quest to complete her childhood bucket list, it takes her on a journey that will make you both laugh and cry as she uncovers family secrets, finds romance, and discovers herself along the way.
Liza Chasin is producing for 3dot Productions. The film falls under Chasin’s first-look deal with the streamer, announced in 2019, which also covers her upcoming Morocco-set love story Lonely Planet starring Laura Dern, Liam Hemsworth, and Diana Silvers. Exec producers of The Life List include Hutch Parker,...
Based on the 2013 novel by Lori Nelson Spielman, The Life List‘s logline is as follows: When Alex Rose’s (Carson) mother sends her on a quest to complete her childhood bucket list, it takes her on a journey that will make you both laugh and cry as she uncovers family secrets, finds romance, and discovers herself along the way.
Liza Chasin is producing for 3dot Productions. The film falls under Chasin’s first-look deal with the streamer, announced in 2019, which also covers her upcoming Morocco-set love story Lonely Planet starring Laura Dern, Liam Hemsworth, and Diana Silvers. Exec producers of The Life List include Hutch Parker,...
- 3/5/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Phoebe Dynevor Says There Are Limited Roles for Actresses Her Age: ‘There Is Not Enough Room for Us’
Phoebe Dynevor is calling out a sexist and ageist double standard in Hollywood.
The “Younger” breakout star, 28, noted there are more roles for “older women” actresses and “young men” but not female stars her age. The buzzy “Bridgerton” alum told The Evening Standard that to remedy this and create roles for herself, she is looking to produce.
“I have read some great scripts recently. And yeah, I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but there is still, like, not that many parts going,” Dynevor said. “There is such a space for male actors…There are so many of them. And they’re all great. They’re all very talented young men, and they do not stop working, and good for them. But you know, when I think about the girls my age…There’s way more room for them and there is still not enough room for us.”
The “Fair Play” star added,...
The “Younger” breakout star, 28, noted there are more roles for “older women” actresses and “young men” but not female stars her age. The buzzy “Bridgerton” alum told The Evening Standard that to remedy this and create roles for herself, she is looking to produce.
“I have read some great scripts recently. And yeah, I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but there is still, like, not that many parts going,” Dynevor said. “There is such a space for male actors…There are so many of them. And they’re all great. They’re all very talented young men, and they do not stop working, and good for them. But you know, when I think about the girls my age…There’s way more room for them and there is still not enough room for us.”
The “Fair Play” star added,...
- 2/8/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Exclusive: T-Street filmmakers Rian Johnson and Ram Bergman have set Katie McNeill to become a producer at their independent studio. McNeill joins the film side of the company alongside producers Ben LeClair, Leopold Hughes and Nikos Karamigios.
McNeill joins T-Street on the heels of a big year for the company in both film and TV, where they produced the highly acclaimed films American Fiction and Fair Play, from first time writer/directors Cord Jefferson and Chloe Domont, respectively. American Fiction this week got five Oscar nominations including Best Picture. MRC/T-Street collaborated on the film, which was acquired by Orion and released by Amazon MGM.
Fair Play was acquired by Netflix in a bidding war at last year’s Sundance Film Festival launching the breakout writer/director Domont.
T-Street is gearing up to make the third installment of the Benoit Blanc franchise for Netflix later this year. The yet to...
McNeill joins T-Street on the heels of a big year for the company in both film and TV, where they produced the highly acclaimed films American Fiction and Fair Play, from first time writer/directors Cord Jefferson and Chloe Domont, respectively. American Fiction this week got five Oscar nominations including Best Picture. MRC/T-Street collaborated on the film, which was acquired by Orion and released by Amazon MGM.
Fair Play was acquired by Netflix in a bidding war at last year’s Sundance Film Festival launching the breakout writer/director Domont.
T-Street is gearing up to make the third installment of the Benoit Blanc franchise for Netflix later this year. The yet to...
- 1/25/2024
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Netflix has scrapped the release of “The Mothership,” a science-fiction film starring Halle Berry.
The movie finished filming in 2021, but it couldn’t be completed after multiple delays in post-production, Variety has confirmed.
“The Mothership” is the latest Hollywood movie to disappear even though filming had wrapped. Since 2022, Warner Bros. has axed three movies — John Cena’s “Coyote vs. Acme,” the $90 million budgeted DC adventure “Batgirl” and the animated “Scoob! Holiday Haunt” — for the purpose of tax write-offs.
“Bridge of Spies” writer Matthew Charman directed “The Mothership,” which takes place one year after the husband of Berry’s character mysteriously vanishes from their rural farm. Now a single mother, Sara Morse and her children discover an extraterrestrial object underneath their home. It (hopefully) leads them to discover the truth about the patriarch’s disappearance. Molly Parker and Omari Hardwick round out the cast.
Berry will continue to work with Netflix...
The movie finished filming in 2021, but it couldn’t be completed after multiple delays in post-production, Variety has confirmed.
“The Mothership” is the latest Hollywood movie to disappear even though filming had wrapped. Since 2022, Warner Bros. has axed three movies — John Cena’s “Coyote vs. Acme,” the $90 million budgeted DC adventure “Batgirl” and the animated “Scoob! Holiday Haunt” — for the purpose of tax write-offs.
“Bridge of Spies” writer Matthew Charman directed “The Mothership,” which takes place one year after the husband of Berry’s character mysteriously vanishes from their rural farm. Now a single mother, Sara Morse and her children discover an extraterrestrial object underneath their home. It (hopefully) leads them to discover the truth about the patriarch’s disappearance. Molly Parker and Omari Hardwick round out the cast.
Berry will continue to work with Netflix...
- 1/24/2024
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
No one quite knows what to expect of the 40th edition of the Sundance Film Festival, the first major fest following the end of the dual Hollywood strikes.
The strikes, which stopped production during the months when many Sundance features normally film, have had some impact on the lineup of U.S.-produced titles, with insiders noting that many titles needed some more time, post-strikes, to finish production than the Sundance submissions deadlines allowed. A slimmed U.S. Dramatic Competition section is now 10 films, down from 13.
As for sales, a top agent pegs this year’s market as landing “somewhere between last year’s Sundance and this year’s Toronto.” That is to say, there likely will be several big sellers like Chloe Domont’s Fair Play (Sundance) and Richard Linklater’s Hitman (Toronto), both of which landed at Netflix in big eight-figure deals, followed by a long tail of...
The strikes, which stopped production during the months when many Sundance features normally film, have had some impact on the lineup of U.S.-produced titles, with insiders noting that many titles needed some more time, post-strikes, to finish production than the Sundance submissions deadlines allowed. A slimmed U.S. Dramatic Competition section is now 10 films, down from 13.
As for sales, a top agent pegs this year’s market as landing “somewhere between last year’s Sundance and this year’s Toronto.” That is to say, there likely will be several big sellers like Chloe Domont’s Fair Play (Sundance) and Richard Linklater’s Hitman (Toronto), both of which landed at Netflix in big eight-figure deals, followed by a long tail of...
- 1/18/2024
- by Mia Galuppo
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
After teaming on forthcoming Uni monster thriller Abigail, both of the newest films in the Scream franchise, and Searchlight horror comedy Ready or Not, Project X and Radio Silence have entered into a new joint venture with MRC for the production and financing of modestly budgeted genre features.
Under the pact, the companies will pool their resources, expertise, and creativity, with an eye toward producing 2-3 new films per year. Levering both original scripts and untapped IP, the collaboration will allow the companies to move toward generating inventive and engaging horror and thriller projects, from both up-and-coming and established writers and directors. They’re currently sourcing and developing projects to kickstart the initiative and will be announcing their initial slate soon.
“Our partnership with Radio Silence, combined with MRC’s stellar track-record, innovative deal-making and creative and production support, will enable us to explore new horizons in...
Under the pact, the companies will pool their resources, expertise, and creativity, with an eye toward producing 2-3 new films per year. Levering both original scripts and untapped IP, the collaboration will allow the companies to move toward generating inventive and engaging horror and thriller projects, from both up-and-coming and established writers and directors. They’re currently sourcing and developing projects to kickstart the initiative and will be announcing their initial slate soon.
“Our partnership with Radio Silence, combined with MRC’s stellar track-record, innovative deal-making and creative and production support, will enable us to explore new horizons in...
- 1/17/2024
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Since the academy expanded the Best Picture category at the Oscars in 2010, Best Original Screenplay has gone to writers of a wide-range of genres: dramas; comedies (“Midnight in Paris”); biopics; true-life stories (“Spotlight”); memoirs (“Belfast”); period pictures (“Django Unchained”); war movies (“The Hurt Locker”); sci-fi (“Her”), thrillers horror (“Get Out”) and fantasies (“Everything Everywhere All at Once”) . (Scroll down for the most up-to-date 2023 Oscar predictions for Best Original Screenplay.)
Regardless of the type of film, a nominee needs broad academy support to win this race. Indeed, all 14 of the most recent Best Original Screenplay winners were, at the least, Best Picture nominees. And seven of them won the big prize, bringing the total number of Best Picture champs with Oscar-winning original screenplays to 18. By comparison, 42 films have done this on the adapted side including the 2022 double dipper “Coda.”
In 2023 all five nominees for Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards were crafted by writer/directors.
Regardless of the type of film, a nominee needs broad academy support to win this race. Indeed, all 14 of the most recent Best Original Screenplay winners were, at the least, Best Picture nominees. And seven of them won the big prize, bringing the total number of Best Picture champs with Oscar-winning original screenplays to 18. By comparison, 42 films have done this on the adapted side including the 2022 double dipper “Coda.”
In 2023 all five nominees for Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards were crafted by writer/directors.
- 1/11/2024
- by Paul Sheehan and Jacob Sarkisian
- Gold Derby
As we head into Oscar balloting on Thursday, let’s not forget about Chloe Domont’s Fair Play which reawakened the erotic thriller, and specifically spoke to the Me-Too era. The MRC and T-Street production went into Sundance last year under the radar and became the fest’s first big deal with Netflix scooping up the Alden Ehrenreich and Phoebe Dynevor movie for $20M.
The movie further propelled Domont from being a working TV episodic director on shows such as Billions, Ballers and Star Trek Discovery, to auteur status with this original screenplay she had been “compounding for years.”
You can listen to our Crew Call interview:
Fair Play tells the story about a promising, young, very successful couple, who are engaged to marry — except they work at the same Wall Street hedge fund. She winds up getting a promotion over him, which leaves the man spiraling as his fiancée...
The movie further propelled Domont from being a working TV episodic director on shows such as Billions, Ballers and Star Trek Discovery, to auteur status with this original screenplay she had been “compounding for years.”
You can listen to our Crew Call interview:
Fair Play tells the story about a promising, young, very successful couple, who are engaged to marry — except they work at the same Wall Street hedge fund. She winds up getting a promotion over him, which leaves the man spiraling as his fiancée...
- 1/8/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Following The Film Stage’s collective top 50 films of 2023, as part of our year-end coverage, our contributors are sharing their personal top 10 lists.
In 2023, I wanted to laugh. Perhaps more than I realized, because when I finally calculated my top-rated films that came out this year, a great portion of my selections turned out to be either straight-up comedies or gripping comedy-dramas. 2023 was the year I embraced funny and moving movie coming-of-age stories probably more than any other, but to me, that genre isn’t only limited to what happens when 11-year-old girls experience their period for the first time or when Elvis Presley decides to take a child bride. For example, Paul Giamatti’s acidic classics teacher experiences something like a middle-aged puberty when he’s forced to care for an abandoned prep school kid during Christmas break in The Holdovers. In Beau is Afraid, we watch a stunted...
In 2023, I wanted to laugh. Perhaps more than I realized, because when I finally calculated my top-rated films that came out this year, a great portion of my selections turned out to be either straight-up comedies or gripping comedy-dramas. 2023 was the year I embraced funny and moving movie coming-of-age stories probably more than any other, but to me, that genre isn’t only limited to what happens when 11-year-old girls experience their period for the first time or when Elvis Presley decides to take a child bride. For example, Paul Giamatti’s acidic classics teacher experiences something like a middle-aged puberty when he’s forced to care for an abandoned prep school kid during Christmas break in The Holdovers. In Beau is Afraid, we watch a stunted...
- 1/1/2024
- by Robyn Bahr
- The Film Stage
Following The Film Stage’s collective top 50 films of 2023, as part of our year-end coverage, our contributors are sharing their personal top 10 lists.
Something you often hear cinephiles proclaim is that “Every year is a good year in film.” Well, that’s obviously true––if one pays attention and knows where to look––but then there are also years that are simply better. To me, 2023 has turned out to be one of those.
It’s a year where the top festivals like Cannes, Berlin, and Venice all overperformed with stellar lineups. Geographically speaking, American/UK cinema can be proud of its output while productions from the rest of the world, especially France, Japan, Latin America, didn’t disappoint either. It’s also a year where not only indie/arthouse films delivered, but (some) blockbusters dared to get smart too. Even the presumed Oscar contenders this season include legitimate masterpieces in the mix.
Something you often hear cinephiles proclaim is that “Every year is a good year in film.” Well, that’s obviously true––if one pays attention and knows where to look––but then there are also years that are simply better. To me, 2023 has turned out to be one of those.
It’s a year where the top festivals like Cannes, Berlin, and Venice all overperformed with stellar lineups. Geographically speaking, American/UK cinema can be proud of its output while productions from the rest of the world, especially France, Japan, Latin America, didn’t disappoint either. It’s also a year where not only indie/arthouse films delivered, but (some) blockbusters dared to get smart too. Even the presumed Oscar contenders this season include legitimate masterpieces in the mix.
- 12/29/2023
- by Zhuo-Ning Su
- The Film Stage
From its subtly orchestrated opening scene to its devastating and explosive climax, writer-director Chloe Domont’s “Fair Play” is one of the most confident and controlled feature debuts in years, a provocative and brainy drama with the propulsive aggression of a classic thriller. As in the best films of Alfred Hitchcock and Claude Chabrol, Domont uses the mechanisms of genre to explore personal and complicated ideas about class, sex, gender, and power; and like those directors, Domont is a master when it comes to marshaling all of the cinematic tools at her disposal to pull it off. “When I was writing the script, I described it as an emotional thriller,” Domont told IndieWire. “The intention was to use genre to shine a light on an emotional terror that I feel is too often normalized.”
Although “Fair Play” contains only a few minutes of overt physical violence, emotional violence is pervasive and relentless.
Although “Fair Play” contains only a few minutes of overt physical violence, emotional violence is pervasive and relentless.
- 12/22/2023
- by Jim Hemphill
- Indiewire
Rachel McAdams as Barbara Dimon and Abby Ryder Fortson as Margaret Simon in ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret’ (Photo Credit: Dana Hawley)
The San Diego Film Critics Society’s 2023 nominees and winners are in step with the group’s reputation for marching to the beat of a different drummer. Barbie earned 12 nominations but was absent from the Best Picture category. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, which has only made a few appearances on awards lists, picked up eight nominations and was ultimately named the Best Picture of 2023.
The San Diego Film Critics Society’s winners were announced on December 19, 2023.
Best Picture
American Fiction
Winner: Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Runner Up: Oppenheimer
Best Director
Kelly Fremon Craig, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Runner Up: Greta Gerwig, Barbie
Cord Jefferson, American Fiction
Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
Winner: Martin Scorsese,...
The San Diego Film Critics Society’s 2023 nominees and winners are in step with the group’s reputation for marching to the beat of a different drummer. Barbie earned 12 nominations but was absent from the Best Picture category. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, which has only made a few appearances on awards lists, picked up eight nominations and was ultimately named the Best Picture of 2023.
The San Diego Film Critics Society’s winners were announced on December 19, 2023.
Best Picture
American Fiction
Winner: Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Runner Up: Oppenheimer
Best Director
Kelly Fremon Craig, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Runner Up: Greta Gerwig, Barbie
Cord Jefferson, American Fiction
Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
Winner: Martin Scorsese,...
- 12/19/2023
- by Rebecca Murray
- Showbiz Junkies
Ambition paired with jealousy can be a dangerous cocktail. Especially when gender expectations are thrown into the mix.
Prestige offerings, from “Fair Play” and “Oppenheimer” to “Past Lives” and “Lessons in Chemistry,” have mined that tricky terrain this year. “Maestro” and the latest seasons of female-led “Julia” and “The Morning Show” have tackled it as well.
And while men suffer the slings and arrows of jealousy in several high-profile Oscar contenders, women arguably experience more fallout from it than their male counterparts. This goes for female characters who are ambitious themselves or those partnered with men who suck all the air out of the room, as in “Oppenheimer” and “Maestro.”
“Nobody likes an ambitious woman,” Sarah Lancashire’s Julia Child advises a female colleague in Season 2 of the Max series named for her, explaining why she credited men at Wgbh with advocating for “The French Chef” when the show had...
Prestige offerings, from “Fair Play” and “Oppenheimer” to “Past Lives” and “Lessons in Chemistry,” have mined that tricky terrain this year. “Maestro” and the latest seasons of female-led “Julia” and “The Morning Show” have tackled it as well.
And while men suffer the slings and arrows of jealousy in several high-profile Oscar contenders, women arguably experience more fallout from it than their male counterparts. This goes for female characters who are ambitious themselves or those partnered with men who suck all the air out of the room, as in “Oppenheimer” and “Maestro.”
“Nobody likes an ambitious woman,” Sarah Lancashire’s Julia Child advises a female colleague in Season 2 of the Max series named for her, explaining why she credited men at Wgbh with advocating for “The French Chef” when the show had...
- 12/15/2023
- by Diane Garrett
- Variety Film + TV
“Busy” is a relative concept in Hollywood, but it’s safe to say actors Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Alden Ehrenreich haven’t taken many vacation days recently. She’s the breakout star of Alexander Payne’s heartwarming comedy “The Holdovers,” where she portrays Mary, the head cook of a boarding school in the 1970s. (She also showed her range as the jaded manager to a troubled pop star in HBO’s controversial summer series “The Idol.”) He’s the familiar face who played a young Han Solo in the “Star Wars” franchise and, this year, shows off his dramatic chops as a toxic boyfriend and financial analyst in Chloe Domont’s Sundance darling “Fair Play.” Here, they compare notes on preparation, keeping momentum and dating other actors.
Alden Ehrenreich: How did you get involved with Alexander Payne?
Da’Vine Joy Randolph: I recently found out that Alexander had me in mind [for “The Holdovers”] initially,...
Alden Ehrenreich: How did you get involved with Alexander Payne?
Da’Vine Joy Randolph: I recently found out that Alexander had me in mind [for “The Holdovers”] initially,...
- 12/14/2023
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
While a number of films and TV shows received repeated recognition from the Golden Globes when nominations for the 2024 awards show were announced on Monday, a handful of other awards hopefuls were completely left out of this year’s nods.
Michael Mann’s Ferrari, starring Adam Driver and Penelope Cruz; Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, starring Joaquin Phoenix (who was nominated in the musical/comedy categories for his role in Beau Is Afraid); and Ava DuVernay’s Origin, starring Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, a possible contender for a best actress Oscar nod, are just three awards hopeful movies with star directors and performers that failed to receive any nominations from the Golden Globes.
Similarly, other awards hopeful films didn’t fare as well as expected during Monday’s nominations. Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla and Andrew Haigh’s All of Us Strangers each only earned one nomination. In the case of Strangers, Andrew Scott...
Michael Mann’s Ferrari, starring Adam Driver and Penelope Cruz; Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, starring Joaquin Phoenix (who was nominated in the musical/comedy categories for his role in Beau Is Afraid); and Ava DuVernay’s Origin, starring Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, a possible contender for a best actress Oscar nod, are just three awards hopeful movies with star directors and performers that failed to receive any nominations from the Golden Globes.
Similarly, other awards hopeful films didn’t fare as well as expected during Monday’s nominations. Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla and Andrew Haigh’s All of Us Strangers each only earned one nomination. In the case of Strangers, Andrew Scott...
- 12/11/2023
- by Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
What part of writing do writers actually enjoy? The answers from the six panelists on the 2023 THR Writer Roundtable — Fair Play’s Chloe Domont, All of Us Strangers’ Andrew Haigh, American Fiction’s Cord Jefferson, Poor Things’ Tony McNamara, Killers of the Flower Moon’s Eric Roth and Past Lives’ Celine Song — run the gamut from “everything” to “none of it.”
The answer to that question is not the only thing that differentiates the participants. Three were born in America, while one hails from South Korea (Song), another from Australia (McNamara) and still another from England (Haigh). One has been writing screenplays for more than a half-century (Roth), while three had never written a script that was turned into a film (Domont, Jefferson and Song). Two of their 2023 films were original (Domont and Song), while four were adapted from books (Haigh, Jefferson, McNamara and Roth). And two handed their scripts...
The answer to that question is not the only thing that differentiates the participants. Three were born in America, while one hails from South Korea (Song), another from Australia (McNamara) and still another from England (Haigh). One has been writing screenplays for more than a half-century (Roth), while three had never written a script that was turned into a film (Domont, Jefferson and Song). Two of their 2023 films were original (Domont and Song), while four were adapted from books (Haigh, Jefferson, McNamara and Roth). And two handed their scripts...
- 12/8/2023
- by Scott Feinberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The erotic thriller is back, and you'd have to be a prudish killjoy to lament its return.
The subgenre has its roots in the pre-code movies of the 1920s, and '30s, and films noir of the '40s and '50s, but the formula as it exists today was codified in 1980 with Paul Schrader's "American Gigolo" and, most vitally, Brian De Palma's "Dressed to Kill". And thanks to Karina Longworth's deep dive into best and worst of the subgenre via her indispensable podcast "You Must Remember This," younger viewers who weren't there for the '80s and '90s heyday are now revisiting the stylish highs and Skinemax lows of films in which people occasionally take a break from screwing to commit a string of murders (or investigate said murders with alarming aloofness).
As movies (especially studio productions) got progressively less sexy throughout the 2000s, the...
The subgenre has its roots in the pre-code movies of the 1920s, and '30s, and films noir of the '40s and '50s, but the formula as it exists today was codified in 1980 with Paul Schrader's "American Gigolo" and, most vitally, Brian De Palma's "Dressed to Kill". And thanks to Karina Longworth's deep dive into best and worst of the subgenre via her indispensable podcast "You Must Remember This," younger viewers who weren't there for the '80s and '90s heyday are now revisiting the stylish highs and Skinemax lows of films in which people occasionally take a break from screwing to commit a string of murders (or investigate said murders with alarming aloofness).
As movies (especially studio productions) got progressively less sexy throughout the 2000s, the...
- 12/2/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
It’s almost an understatement to say that 2023 was the year for cinephiles.
The best films of the year marked a return to auteur season with new features from Martin Scorsese (“Killers of the Flower Moon”), Michael Mann (“Ferrari”), Sofia Coppola (“Priscilla”), Ridley Scott (“Napoleon”), Christopher Nolan (“Oppenheimer”), David Fincher (“The Killer”), Richard Linklater (“Hitman”), Jonathan Glazer (“The Zone of Interest”), Yorgos Lanthimos (“Poor Things”), Todd Haynes (“May December”), Ari Aster (“Beau Is Afraid”), and Greta Gerwig (“Barbie”).
Of course, Barbenheimer proved that theaters were back with billion-dollar box office numbers, but 2023 was also the year for high-brow streaming features to shake up the system. Netflix’s Leonard Bernstein ode “Maestro” saw Bradley Cooper get back into the director’s chair following Oscar-winning “A Star Is Born,” plus the streamer hosted first-time filmmakers Chloe Domont and Cord Jefferson’s respective films “Fair Play” and “American Fiction,” both produced by Rian Johnson.
The best films of the year marked a return to auteur season with new features from Martin Scorsese (“Killers of the Flower Moon”), Michael Mann (“Ferrari”), Sofia Coppola (“Priscilla”), Ridley Scott (“Napoleon”), Christopher Nolan (“Oppenheimer”), David Fincher (“The Killer”), Richard Linklater (“Hitman”), Jonathan Glazer (“The Zone of Interest”), Yorgos Lanthimos (“Poor Things”), Todd Haynes (“May December”), Ari Aster (“Beau Is Afraid”), and Greta Gerwig (“Barbie”).
Of course, Barbenheimer proved that theaters were back with billion-dollar box office numbers, but 2023 was also the year for high-brow streaming features to shake up the system. Netflix’s Leonard Bernstein ode “Maestro” saw Bradley Cooper get back into the director’s chair following Oscar-winning “A Star Is Born,” plus the streamer hosted first-time filmmakers Chloe Domont and Cord Jefferson’s respective films “Fair Play” and “American Fiction,” both produced by Rian Johnson.
- 12/1/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
So many stars attended the 2023 Wif Honors presented by Women In Film at The Ray Dolby Ballroom on Thursday night (November 30) in Hollywood, Calif.
Eva Longoria, America Ferrera, Fran Drescher, Danai Gurira and Phoebe Dynevor were just a few big names who posed on the red carpet at the event.
In fact, it was such a star-studded guestlist that we counted more than 30 popular celebrities in attendance. We put together a handy photo guide for you to peruse to see who all was there!
Head inside to see every star who was on the guestlist for the 2023 Wif Honors…
Keep scrolling to see photos of every star who walked the red carpet at the 2023 Wif Honors…
Diane Warren
Jodi Long
Sharon Lawrence
Abby Ryder Fortson and Christie Lynn Smith
Kay Cannon
Lake Bell
Lara Worthington
Leonie Hanne
Celine Song
Jesse Garcia
Holland Roden
Bella Heathcote
Nicole Kang
Diane Warren
Karen...
Eva Longoria, America Ferrera, Fran Drescher, Danai Gurira and Phoebe Dynevor were just a few big names who posed on the red carpet at the event.
In fact, it was such a star-studded guestlist that we counted more than 30 popular celebrities in attendance. We put together a handy photo guide for you to peruse to see who all was there!
Head inside to see every star who was on the guestlist for the 2023 Wif Honors…
Keep scrolling to see photos of every star who walked the red carpet at the 2023 Wif Honors…
Diane Warren
Jodi Long
Sharon Lawrence
Abby Ryder Fortson and Christie Lynn Smith
Kay Cannon
Lake Bell
Lara Worthington
Leonie Hanne
Celine Song
Jesse Garcia
Holland Roden
Bella Heathcote
Nicole Kang
Diane Warren
Karen...
- 12/1/2023
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
Five top film directors will reveal secrets behind their projects when they join Gold Derby’s special “Meet the Experts” Q&a event with 2024 awards contenders. They will participate in two video discussions to premiere on Tuesday, December 5, at 4:00 p.m. Pt; 7:00 p.m. Et. We’ll have a one-on-one with our senior editor Christopher Rosen and a roundtable chat with all of the group together.
RSVP today to our entire ongoing contenders panel series by clicking here to book your free reservation. We’ll send you a reminder a few minutes before the start of the show.
American Fiction (MGM)
Synopsis: A novelist who is fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment uses a pen name to write a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.
Bio: Cord Jefferson was an Emmy winner for “Watchmen.” Other...
RSVP today to our entire ongoing contenders panel series by clicking here to book your free reservation. We’ll send you a reminder a few minutes before the start of the show.
American Fiction (MGM)
Synopsis: A novelist who is fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment uses a pen name to write a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.
Bio: Cord Jefferson was an Emmy winner for “Watchmen.” Other...
- 11/28/2023
- by Chris Beachum and Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
[Editor’s note: The following article contains spoilers for “Saltburn,” “Fair Play,” “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” and “Bram Stoker’s Dracula.”]
All’s fair in love, war, and other bloody battles, according to the not-quite-feminist trend of watching period sex play out onscreen.
Two of the year’s buzziest films — Chloe Domont’s Sundance stunner “Fair Play” and Emerald Fennell’s recent (and very viral) “Saltburn” — exist in the same vein (quite literally) of destigmatizing period sex, showing off cunnilingus onscreen. And yet, both films argue that the man performing this specific sexual act isn’t just pleasuring the woman in question: He’s actually taking her life force. Is that only reinforcing the symbolism of menstrual blood being a marker of the so-called “weaker sex”?
“Saltburn” has been billed as a sort of “vampire movie” by filmmaker Fennell. The scene in question shows Oliver (Barry Keoghan) taking a bite out of his current prey: Venetia (Alison Oliver), the sister of his real obsession,...
All’s fair in love, war, and other bloody battles, according to the not-quite-feminist trend of watching period sex play out onscreen.
Two of the year’s buzziest films — Chloe Domont’s Sundance stunner “Fair Play” and Emerald Fennell’s recent (and very viral) “Saltburn” — exist in the same vein (quite literally) of destigmatizing period sex, showing off cunnilingus onscreen. And yet, both films argue that the man performing this specific sexual act isn’t just pleasuring the woman in question: He’s actually taking her life force. Is that only reinforcing the symbolism of menstrual blood being a marker of the so-called “weaker sex”?
“Saltburn” has been billed as a sort of “vampire movie” by filmmaker Fennell. The scene in question shows Oliver (Barry Keoghan) taking a bite out of his current prey: Venetia (Alison Oliver), the sister of his real obsession,...
- 11/24/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Exclusive: Deadline’s annual Read the Screenplay series spotlighting awards season’s most talked-about scripts kicks off this year with Fair Play, Chloe Domont’s debut feature that Netflix acquired after its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.
Domont, whose TV directing credits include Billions and Suits, made her feature screenwriting and helming debut with the pic, which was spawned via T-Street and MRC’s Emerging Filmmaker Program and counts Rian Johnson and Ram Bergman among the executive producers.
The script for the relationship thriller follows Emily (Bridgerton‘s Phoebe Dynover) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich), who work together at a cutthroat financial firm and are also a couple. When a coveted promotion arises, the pair’s once supportive exchanges begin to sour as power and gender dynamics irrevocably shift, forcing them to face the true price of success and the limits of ambition.
Dumont said the film’s themes resonate in these times.
Domont, whose TV directing credits include Billions and Suits, made her feature screenwriting and helming debut with the pic, which was spawned via T-Street and MRC’s Emerging Filmmaker Program and counts Rian Johnson and Ram Bergman among the executive producers.
The script for the relationship thriller follows Emily (Bridgerton‘s Phoebe Dynover) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich), who work together at a cutthroat financial firm and are also a couple. When a coveted promotion arises, the pair’s once supportive exchanges begin to sour as power and gender dynamics irrevocably shift, forcing them to face the true price of success and the limits of ambition.
Dumont said the film’s themes resonate in these times.
- 11/20/2023
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Contenders Film: Los Angeles photo studio hosted talent on November 18 at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles as cast members of films stopped by including Cillian Murphy from Oppenheimer; The Color Purple director Blitz Bazawule and actors Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks & Fantasia Barrino; director Cord Jefferson & Jeffrey Wright from American Fiction, Rachel Sennott & director Emma Seligman from Bottoms & Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan for Maestro.
Talent that attended the afternoon panels included director Chloe Domont & actor Alden Ehrenreich from Fair Play; director Todd Haynes with actors Julianne Moore, Natalie Portman & Charles Melton from May December; Coleman Domingo for Rustin; director Greta Gerwig with Margot Robbie & America Ferrera from Warner Bros. Barbie, Lily Gladstone from Killers of the Flower Moon and Eve Hewson & Joseph Gordon-Levitt from Flora and Son.
Scroll through the gallery for up-to-date coverage of Deadline Contenders Film: Los Angeles.
Presenting Sponsor United for Business.
Flights, Camera,...
Talent that attended the afternoon panels included director Chloe Domont & actor Alden Ehrenreich from Fair Play; director Todd Haynes with actors Julianne Moore, Natalie Portman & Charles Melton from May December; Coleman Domingo for Rustin; director Greta Gerwig with Margot Robbie & America Ferrera from Warner Bros. Barbie, Lily Gladstone from Killers of the Flower Moon and Eve Hewson & Joseph Gordon-Levitt from Flora and Son.
Scroll through the gallery for up-to-date coverage of Deadline Contenders Film: Los Angeles.
Presenting Sponsor United for Business.
Flights, Camera,...
- 11/19/2023
- by Robert Lang
- Deadline Film + TV
Fair Play star Alden Ehrenreich and writer-director Chloe Domont said they have been approached by many viewers who describe similar experiences to those portrayed in the film. The pic premiered at Sundance and is streaming on Netflix, so they have had many such encounters in 2023.
“At Sundance, the whole world there was very interesting,” Ehrenreich shared Saturday at Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles. “You’re walking down the street and having people come up to you. This woman came up to me and said, ‘Me and my husband work together at this place.’ She makes more money than him. They were secretly dating and didn’t tell anybody. ‘This is our story.’”
Ehrenreich and Phoebe Dynevor play Luke and Emily, a couple working together at a financial firm. When Emily gets a promotion Luke was expecting for himself, it puts a strain on both their relationship and careers.
“I...
“At Sundance, the whole world there was very interesting,” Ehrenreich shared Saturday at Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles. “You’re walking down the street and having people come up to you. This woman came up to me and said, ‘Me and my husband work together at this place.’ She makes more money than him. They were secretly dating and didn’t tell anybody. ‘This is our story.’”
Ehrenreich and Phoebe Dynevor play Luke and Emily, a couple working together at a financial firm. When Emily gets a promotion Luke was expecting for himself, it puts a strain on both their relationship and careers.
“I...
- 11/18/2023
- by Fred Topel
- Deadline Film + TV
Deadline’s annual daylong awards-season kickoff event, Contenders Film: Los Angeles hosted stars and talent of films vying for the top honors during awards season.
Held at the Director’s Guild of America in Los Angeles, on November 18, the event featured 28 movies from film studios to promote their latest releases.
Panelists in the morning were Cilian Murphy from Universal Pictures’ Oppenheimer; Warner Bros. The Color Purple director Blitz Bazawule and actors Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks & Fantasia Barrino; director Alexander Payne from Focus Features The Holdovers; Kemp Powers & Amy Pascal from Columbia Pictures Spider-Man: Across the Universe; director Cord Jefferson & Jeffrey Wright from American Fiction, Rachel Sennott and director Emma Seligman from Amazon MGM Studios Bottoms & Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan and the crew of Maestro from Netflix.
Afternoon panelists included director Chloe Domont & actor Alden Ehrenreich from Fair Play; director Todd Haynes with actors Julianne Moore, Natalie Portman & Charles Melton...
Held at the Director’s Guild of America in Los Angeles, on November 18, the event featured 28 movies from film studios to promote their latest releases.
Panelists in the morning were Cilian Murphy from Universal Pictures’ Oppenheimer; Warner Bros. The Color Purple director Blitz Bazawule and actors Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks & Fantasia Barrino; director Alexander Payne from Focus Features The Holdovers; Kemp Powers & Amy Pascal from Columbia Pictures Spider-Man: Across the Universe; director Cord Jefferson & Jeffrey Wright from American Fiction, Rachel Sennott and director Emma Seligman from Amazon MGM Studios Bottoms & Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan and the crew of Maestro from Netflix.
Afternoon panelists included director Chloe Domont & actor Alden Ehrenreich from Fair Play; director Todd Haynes with actors Julianne Moore, Natalie Portman & Charles Melton...
- 11/18/2023
- by Robert Lang
- Deadline Film + TV
“We’re in a post #MeToo world. Now what?” declares “Fair Play” writer/director Chloe Domont. For our recent webchat about her new erotic thriller she adds, “I made this film to start conversation and debate around that subject matter,” she says. “My intention was to create something thrilling and riveting and entertaining, but ultimately asking important questions that I don’t think have been asked.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.
See ‘Fair Play’ reviews: Chloe Domont’s feature directorial debut is ‘sexy, intelligent thriller for an adult audience’
In “Fair Play,” Phoebe Dynevor (“Bridgerton”) and Alden Ehrenreich (“Solo: A Star Wars Story”) star as Emily and Luke, a newly engaged couple whose passionate relationship is pushed to the brink following an unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund firm. The psychological drama, which was written and directed by Domont (making her feature directorial debut), was snapped up by...
See ‘Fair Play’ reviews: Chloe Domont’s feature directorial debut is ‘sexy, intelligent thriller for an adult audience’
In “Fair Play,” Phoebe Dynevor (“Bridgerton”) and Alden Ehrenreich (“Solo: A Star Wars Story”) star as Emily and Luke, a newly engaged couple whose passionate relationship is pushed to the brink following an unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund firm. The psychological drama, which was written and directed by Domont (making her feature directorial debut), was snapped up by...
- 11/16/2023
- by Rob Licuria
- Gold Derby
Air
Amazon
Ben Affleck directs this corporate tale that goes behind the scenes of Nike’s partnership with Michael Jordan, in which the shoe company placed a massive bet on the then-rookie basketball player to create the now-ubiquitous Air Jordan shoe line. Matt Damon plays Sonny Vaccaro, the Nike exec who attempts to woo the up-and-coming athlete into signing a major deal, while Viola Davis delivers a meaty supporting performance as Jordan’s mother, Deloris Jordan.
All of Us Strangers
Searchlight
Andrew Haigh’s metaphysical drama, adapted from Taichi Yamada’s 1987 novel Strangers, stars Andrew Scott as a London screenwriter who begins a relationship with a mysterious neighbor played by Paul Mescal. Struggling to write a film inspired by his deceased parents, he is drawn back to his childhood home — only to discover his mother and father (Claire Foy and Jamie Bell) living as if they had not died in a car accident 30 years earlier.
Amazon
Ben Affleck directs this corporate tale that goes behind the scenes of Nike’s partnership with Michael Jordan, in which the shoe company placed a massive bet on the then-rookie basketball player to create the now-ubiquitous Air Jordan shoe line. Matt Damon plays Sonny Vaccaro, the Nike exec who attempts to woo the up-and-coming athlete into signing a major deal, while Viola Davis delivers a meaty supporting performance as Jordan’s mother, Deloris Jordan.
All of Us Strangers
Searchlight
Andrew Haigh’s metaphysical drama, adapted from Taichi Yamada’s 1987 novel Strangers, stars Andrew Scott as a London screenwriter who begins a relationship with a mysterious neighbor played by Paul Mescal. Struggling to write a film inspired by his deceased parents, he is drawn back to his childhood home — only to discover his mother and father (Claire Foy and Jamie Bell) living as if they had not died in a car accident 30 years earlier.
- 11/13/2023
- by Tyler Coates
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Netflix thriller “Fair Play” has been stoking debate among viewers since its debut earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival. But as the project’s breakout writer-director Chloe Domont explains in an exclusive featurette provided by Netflix and available below, that was the general point of her relationship thriller.
“Everyone is going to come out of this film feeling a certain way based on who they are and what experiences they had. I think it’ll fuel conversation and debate and I think that is essential,” Domont says in the featurette. “The whole film is teeing up this thriller undertone, and I believe that no matter how much you twist and manipulate genre, you still have to pay it off at the end. As a thriller, the philosophy of every choice was just creating as much tension as possible.”
Set in the high-stakes financial world likely familiar to...
“Everyone is going to come out of this film feeling a certain way based on who they are and what experiences they had. I think it’ll fuel conversation and debate and I think that is essential,” Domont says in the featurette. “The whole film is teeing up this thriller undertone, and I believe that no matter how much you twist and manipulate genre, you still have to pay it off at the end. As a thriller, the philosophy of every choice was just creating as much tension as possible.”
Set in the high-stakes financial world likely familiar to...
- 11/13/2023
- by Christopher Rosen
- Gold Derby
Appearances scheduled for late night talk shows, screenings, receptions.
Après tentative SAG-AFTRA-amptp deal, le déluge. Now that the 118-day Hollywood actors work stoppage has been suspended and the deal is pending approvals, talent is rushing back to the promotional circuit – and studios and awards campaigners are not dragging their heels.
Thus far directors have been front and centre of awards campaigns. Christopher Nolan has been talking up Universal’s Oppenheimer, and Martin Scorsese has supported Apple’s Killers Of The Flower Moon which he took to Cannes.
And while Bradley Cooper may have shied away from publicity for Netflix...
Après tentative SAG-AFTRA-amptp deal, le déluge. Now that the 118-day Hollywood actors work stoppage has been suspended and the deal is pending approvals, talent is rushing back to the promotional circuit – and studios and awards campaigners are not dragging their heels.
Thus far directors have been front and centre of awards campaigns. Christopher Nolan has been talking up Universal’s Oppenheimer, and Martin Scorsese has supported Apple’s Killers Of The Flower Moon which he took to Cannes.
And while Bradley Cooper may have shied away from publicity for Netflix...
- 11/10/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Can a romantic relationship be truly democratic? Even the most sure-footed bonds are characterized by a sense of un-evenness, where the truth lies in consciously meeting halfway. Two people can never be completely in sync, but what makes such a symbiotic bond work is mutual respect and thoughtful consideration that is constant and reciprocal. What happens when a seemingly perfect romantic relationship is destabilized at the core?
This is what Chloe Domont's "Fair Play" digs deep into. Domont's corporate drama is a brutal, unflinching portrait of a relationship that starts to rot after an unexpected development, revealing uncomfortable truths about expected gender roles, deeply entrenched patriarchal mindsets, and the terrible cost of upholding a problematic status quo. When the equilibrium shatters, so does the rose-tinted veneer of individual reality.
It is tempting to describe "Fair Play" as an erotic thriller, as the film's core premise revolves around a corporate...
This is what Chloe Domont's "Fair Play" digs deep into. Domont's corporate drama is a brutal, unflinching portrait of a relationship that starts to rot after an unexpected development, revealing uncomfortable truths about expected gender roles, deeply entrenched patriarchal mindsets, and the terrible cost of upholding a problematic status quo. When the equilibrium shatters, so does the rose-tinted veneer of individual reality.
It is tempting to describe "Fair Play" as an erotic thriller, as the film's core premise revolves around a corporate...
- 11/5/2023
- by Debopriyaa Dutta
- Slash Film
One of the main reasons why the Sundance Film Festival is so popular amongst cinephiles is the total focus on purely indie stories, often handled by first-time directors, writers, actors, and many others pursuing their dreams. Fair Play was highly acclaimed at this year's edition of the event (here's Alex's review), continuing to collect positive reactions during its festival run throughout the year. As it has finally made its streaming debut on Netflix worldwide, I approached it with somewhat high expectations, hoping that Chloe Domont's feature directorial debut deserved the hype. Domont delves into complex gender dynamics, highlighting the biases faced by successful women in various fields, shining a light on the challenges of couples working side by side in a tense big city thriller that builds up to an admittedly divisive ending. Independently of each viewer's position regarding this conclusion, it's the careful study and respective messages that really matter.
- 10/24/2023
- by Manuel São Bento
- firstshowing.net
The conversation-starting Netflix thriller shows a seemingly supportive man unravel when his fiancee starts outearning him
In the beginning, Emily and Luke are golden. They’re ambitious and imminently wealthy young professionals, dressed in the sleek monochromes of quiet luxury. They’re so in love that they can’t even make it through a wedding without pawing at each other. When a bathroom tryst gets derailed by her period blood, it’s a silly prelude to their rushed engagement, a mess of passion and, in the new Netflix thriller Fair Play, an omen of pain ahead.
The caustic debut film by the writer/director Chloe Domont sets up a model relationship in a rarefied and ruthless space. Emily (Bridgerton’s Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke’s (Alden Ehrenreich) love has all the hallmarks of something incipient and promising – they share an apartment, a bed, a lifestyle. But by dating each other,...
In the beginning, Emily and Luke are golden. They’re ambitious and imminently wealthy young professionals, dressed in the sleek monochromes of quiet luxury. They’re so in love that they can’t even make it through a wedding without pawing at each other. When a bathroom tryst gets derailed by her period blood, it’s a silly prelude to their rushed engagement, a mess of passion and, in the new Netflix thriller Fair Play, an omen of pain ahead.
The caustic debut film by the writer/director Chloe Domont sets up a model relationship in a rarefied and ruthless space. Emily (Bridgerton’s Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke’s (Alden Ehrenreich) love has all the hallmarks of something incipient and promising – they share an apartment, a bed, a lifestyle. But by dating each other,...
- 10/17/2023
- by Adrian Horton
- The Guardian - Film News
Debate over the merits of the Netflix drama “Fair Play” began soon after its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
Was Chloe Domont’s film starring Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich more erotic thriller or social treatise on workplace inequality?
Yet another question lingered and has only picked up steam since the film’s streaming debut this month. How far over the workplace line did Dynevor’s Emily and Ehrenreich’s Luke take matters?
The Netflix-operated YouTube Channel “Still Watching Netflix” has the definitive answer for that question in a six-minute video, which you can watch above.
“It should be used solely as a training video for what not to do in the workplace,” an Hr manager says in the video, while another calls it “a complete Hr disaster.”
“Still Watching Netflix” screened graphic, vulgar or otherwise explicit scenes from “Fair Play” for four human resources managers to gauge their on-camera reactions.
Was Chloe Domont’s film starring Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich more erotic thriller or social treatise on workplace inequality?
Yet another question lingered and has only picked up steam since the film’s streaming debut this month. How far over the workplace line did Dynevor’s Emily and Ehrenreich’s Luke take matters?
The Netflix-operated YouTube Channel “Still Watching Netflix” has the definitive answer for that question in a six-minute video, which you can watch above.
“It should be used solely as a training video for what not to do in the workplace,” an Hr manager says in the video, while another calls it “a complete Hr disaster.”
“Still Watching Netflix” screened graphic, vulgar or otherwise explicit scenes from “Fair Play” for four human resources managers to gauge their on-camera reactions.
- 10/15/2023
- by Jeremy Bailey
- The Wrap
Consider this: you’ve made an acclaimed “Star Wars” sequel, reinvigorated the whodunit genre, scored an Oscar nomination and spawned an unlikely franchise. What do you do next? If you’re Rian Johnson, you turn around and offer a helping hand to young filmmakers coming up behind you, nurturing one of the buzziest movies of the fall in the process: “Fair Play.”
Writer/director Chloe Domont’s debut feature, a steamy erotic thriller about the power dynamics between two young people (Alden Ehrenreich and Phoebe Dynevor) who both work as financial analysts for the same cutthroat hedge fund, is an unmitigated success. After a bidding war at Sundance, the film was snatched up by Netflix for a cool $20 million, and it’s now currently one of the most-watched new titles on the platform following its release earlier this month.
Johnson and Bergman met in 2002. “I had been trying to get...
Writer/director Chloe Domont’s debut feature, a steamy erotic thriller about the power dynamics between two young people (Alden Ehrenreich and Phoebe Dynevor) who both work as financial analysts for the same cutthroat hedge fund, is an unmitigated success. After a bidding war at Sundance, the film was snatched up by Netflix for a cool $20 million, and it’s now currently one of the most-watched new titles on the platform following its release earlier this month.
Johnson and Bergman met in 2002. “I had been trying to get...
- 10/13/2023
- by Drew Taylor
- The Wrap
When writer-director Chloe Domont sat behind an audience watching her debut film, ‘Fair Play,’ at the Sundance Film Festival in January, her eyes were locked on the 80-something-year-old man sitting in front of her. “There’s no way he’s the target audience,” she thought. “I hope I don’t give this man a heart attack.”
It’s not a crazy concern. The film’s opening sequence unfolds in the bathroom of a wedding as two guests sneak away to have sex, not realizing their mid-reception quickie will be grossly betrayed by a mess of menstrual blood. It’s funny, shocking and maybe a little terrifying to imagine the racy scene playing out in front of someone who could be your grandfather.
Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich star in “Fair Play,” a rare film with substance and style and wit to match the flash, about a young couple who keep...
It’s not a crazy concern. The film’s opening sequence unfolds in the bathroom of a wedding as two guests sneak away to have sex, not realizing their mid-reception quickie will be grossly betrayed by a mess of menstrual blood. It’s funny, shocking and maybe a little terrifying to imagine the racy scene playing out in front of someone who could be your grandfather.
Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich star in “Fair Play,” a rare film with substance and style and wit to match the flash, about a young couple who keep...
- 10/11/2023
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
“The DGA unequivocally condemns terrorism.”
The Directors Guild of America (DGA) has condemned the Hamas attacks on Israel and said it stands against the “growing spread of antisemitism here in the US and abroad”.
In a statement issued on Wednesday the Guild said: “The DGA unequivocally condemns terrorism and joins the many voices in our community decrying the recent Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel and violence against innocent civilians.
“We stand against the growing spread of antisemitism here in the US and abroad, and remain committed in our actions, words and deeds to supporting the Jewish people.”
Earlier in the week MRC,...
The Directors Guild of America (DGA) has condemned the Hamas attacks on Israel and said it stands against the “growing spread of antisemitism here in the US and abroad”.
In a statement issued on Wednesday the Guild said: “The DGA unequivocally condemns terrorism and joins the many voices in our community decrying the recent Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel and violence against innocent civilians.
“We stand against the growing spread of antisemitism here in the US and abroad, and remain committed in our actions, words and deeds to supporting the Jewish people.”
Earlier in the week MRC,...
- 10/11/2023
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
David Beckham scored a goal with his latest Netflix docuseries.
Beckham took the top spot among the streamer’s English-language series in its debut week, securing 12.4M views.
That means that Sex Education Season 4 was knocked down a peg, but it still managed to hold onto No. 2 with 6.6M views — which is quite a drop from the 13.4M views it secured the week prior. It must have been a slow week for streaming though, because that was nearly twice the amount of views as Love Is Blind Season 5, which came in at No. 3 with 3.7M.
One Piece remains on the list for its sixth week in a row at No. 4, this time taking home an additional 2.5M views. Season 5 of Virgin River logged its fifth week on the list, taking sixth place with 2M views.
The rest of the list included several docuseries — Encounters at #5 (2M views), Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal...
Beckham took the top spot among the streamer’s English-language series in its debut week, securing 12.4M views.
That means that Sex Education Season 4 was knocked down a peg, but it still managed to hold onto No. 2 with 6.6M views — which is quite a drop from the 13.4M views it secured the week prior. It must have been a slow week for streaming though, because that was nearly twice the amount of views as Love Is Blind Season 5, which came in at No. 3 with 3.7M.
One Piece remains on the list for its sixth week in a row at No. 4, this time taking home an additional 2.5M views. Season 5 of Virgin River logged its fifth week on the list, taking sixth place with 2M views.
The rest of the list included several docuseries — Encounters at #5 (2M views), Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal...
- 10/10/2023
- by Katie Campione
- Deadline Film + TV
As sexless tentpoles have taken over the box office and online discourse has people asking if sex is "necessary" in movies (whatever that even means), the erotic thriller has nearly gone extinct. Even "Fatal Attraction" and "Unfaithful" director Adrian Lyne was only able to breathe so much life back into the fading sub-genre when he came out of semi-retirement to direct last year's "Deep Water," a straight-to-streaming release that drew respectable viewership despite lukewarm reviews. Enter first-time feature director Chloe Domont with her critically acclaimed festival hit "Fair Play," a film that's arrived just in time to give steamy mid-budget adult cinema a much-needed shot in the arm.
Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich star in Domont's thriller (which she additionally wrote) as Emily and Luke, a pair of ambitious young hedge fund analysts who, unbeknownst to their company's bosses, are secretly dating. However, when Emily is promoted over Luke, it...
Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich star in Domont's thriller (which she additionally wrote) as Emily and Luke, a pair of ambitious young hedge fund analysts who, unbeknownst to their company's bosses, are secretly dating. However, when Emily is promoted over Luke, it...
- 10/10/2023
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
The new movie Fair Play has been #1 on Netflix after debuting over the weekend and director Chloe Domont is now providing some insight into that shocking ending.
In Fair Play, an unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund pushes a young couple’s relationship to the brink, threatening to unravel far more than their recent engagement.
Bridgerton actress Phoebe Dynevor plays Emily, whose secret relationship with her co-worker Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) begins to turn sour after she receives the promotion at work that he expected to get.
Keep reading to find out more (including lots of spoilers)…
Spoiler Alert – Do not continue reading if you don’t want to know what happens in the end!
Luke becomes erratic and enraged by Emily’s power over him at work and he hits a boiling point one day at work while she’s in the middle of an important meeting with clients.
In Fair Play, an unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund pushes a young couple’s relationship to the brink, threatening to unravel far more than their recent engagement.
Bridgerton actress Phoebe Dynevor plays Emily, whose secret relationship with her co-worker Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) begins to turn sour after she receives the promotion at work that he expected to get.
Keep reading to find out more (including lots of spoilers)…
Spoiler Alert – Do not continue reading if you don’t want to know what happens in the end!
Luke becomes erratic and enraged by Emily’s power over him at work and he hits a boiling point one day at work while she’s in the middle of an important meeting with clients.
- 10/10/2023
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
“Cat Person,” the latest film from director Susanna Fogel, tells the story of a young woman (“Coda” breakout Emilia Jones) who engages in a relationship with an older man (Nicholas Braun) that might be dangerous. It’s story of the sticky dynamics between men and women in relationships is drawing commonalities to Netflix’s recent feature, Chloe Domont’s “Fair Play.”
But Fogel isn’t worried about the comparisons that risk overshadowing her film. In fact, she welcomes the connection as an opportunity to have a long overdue conversation about marginalized storytellers.
“We’re overdue to have these stories,” she told TheWrap. “We’re overdue to have many of them.”
As the director explained, there are several films about male/female power dynamics helmed by male directors or stories centered on men.
“No one movie is judged for having to speak for all men,” she said. “There’s this desire...
But Fogel isn’t worried about the comparisons that risk overshadowing her film. In fact, she welcomes the connection as an opportunity to have a long overdue conversation about marginalized storytellers.
“We’re overdue to have these stories,” she told TheWrap. “We’re overdue to have many of them.”
As the director explained, there are several films about male/female power dynamics helmed by male directors or stories centered on men.
“No one movie is judged for having to speak for all men,” she said. “There’s this desire...
- 10/9/2023
- by Kristen Lopez
- The Wrap
It’s late summer, and I’m seated across from Chloe Domont in a congested Brooklyn coffee shop. Both the writers’ and actors’ strikes are in full effect, creating an air of unease. This should be a time of celebration for Domont, whose first feature Fair Play — a sexy psychological thriller about a hedge fund couple, Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich), whose relationship unravels when he discovers that she got the promotion he thought was his — is about to be unleashed on the public after earning raves and...
- 10/8/2023
- by Marlow Stern
- Rollingstone.com
When Luke proposes to Emily within the opening ten minutes of Chloe Domont’s Fair Play, she says, “okay.” She looks visibly shocked, even excited, and maybe even happy to an extent, but she doesn’t utter the word “yes.” It doesn’t take a rocket scientist for any sensible person to get the fact that the two words are clearly not the same in the context of a life-altering decision as big as this. In the US version of The Office, Angela said the same thing when Andy proposed to her, and despite the crowd going ballistic, the two of them didn’t end up together. What happens to Luke and Emily in Fair Play is far more severe, visceral, and very bloody. Domont uses blood as a storytelling tool in this tale. The film starts and ends with it, which is a testimony to how chaotic the battle...
- 10/8/2023
- by Rohitavra Majumdar
- Film Fugitives
Actress Phoebe Dynevor ("Fair Play") poses for the October 2023 issue of "Elle" (US) magazine, wearing Loewe, Tiffany & Co., Louis Vuitton and a whole lot more, photographed by Mark Seliger:
"...in 'Fair Play', streaming October 6, 2023 on Netflix, young couple 'Luke' and 'Emily' ...
"...see their relationship start to unravel...
"...following his unexpected promotion at a hedge fund firm..."..."
"Fair Play" is written, directed by Chloe Domont...
... also starring Alden Ehrenreich, Sebastian de Souza, Eddie Marsan and Rich Sommer, streaming October 6, 2023 on Netflix.
Click the images to enlarge...
"...in 'Fair Play', streaming October 6, 2023 on Netflix, young couple 'Luke' and 'Emily' ...
"...see their relationship start to unravel...
"...following his unexpected promotion at a hedge fund firm..."..."
"Fair Play" is written, directed by Chloe Domont...
... also starring Alden Ehrenreich, Sebastian de Souza, Eddie Marsan and Rich Sommer, streaming October 6, 2023 on Netflix.
Click the images to enlarge...
- 10/7/2023
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
In Netflix’s Fair Play, a couple crumbles when the woman is promoted, an experience many can relate to as the gender pay gap tightens
They’re the luckiest boy and girl alive, Luke and Emily. Close colleagues and covert lovers at a New York hedge fund – one of those temples of capitalism where everyone is buzzed on entitlement and top-grade espresso – this young and beautiful pair of analysts want for nothing. But then disaster comes – in the form of a promotion and fat raise for Emily (Bridgerton’s luminous Phoebe Dynevor). It’s this extra stroke of good fortune that upends the equation and sets in motion their scrappy race to the bottom. Emily initially pussyfoots around her new status and Luke (a smoldering Alden Ehrenreich) can only keep telling his brilliant fiancee “I’m so happy for you” for so long. He is burning with humiliation and resentment...
They’re the luckiest boy and girl alive, Luke and Emily. Close colleagues and covert lovers at a New York hedge fund – one of those temples of capitalism where everyone is buzzed on entitlement and top-grade espresso – this young and beautiful pair of analysts want for nothing. But then disaster comes – in the form of a promotion and fat raise for Emily (Bridgerton’s luminous Phoebe Dynevor). It’s this extra stroke of good fortune that upends the equation and sets in motion their scrappy race to the bottom. Emily initially pussyfoots around her new status and Luke (a smoldering Alden Ehrenreich) can only keep telling his brilliant fiancee “I’m so happy for you” for so long. He is burning with humiliation and resentment...
- 10/7/2023
- by Lauren Mechling
- The Guardian - Film News
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