End of Week Production Notes 12/3/21: Alec Baldwin Speaks out on Rust Shooting, Early Awards Given, and More News
Happy Friday! Last night, actor Alec Baldwin appeared on an ABC special, dubbed Alec Baldwin Unscripted, talking to long-time reporter George Stephanopoulos. On the taped special, Baldwin described a play-by-play for what happened on the fateful day when Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on the set of the Baldwin-produced indie Western, Rust, back in October. Baldwin said that the DP was guiding the actor to rehearse the... »
Above the Line Newsflash: Channing Tatum’s Magic Mike Reprise, the Ubiquitous Pete Davidson, the McKay-Ferrell Split
Magic Mike 3 in the Works Because Channing Tatum’s Gotta Eat Channing Tatum is ready to take it all off and shake his stuff onscreen again, as he’s set to revisit his signature role as stripper Mike Lane in Magic Mike’s Last Dance. That’s a great title for this sexy sequel, which will be made... »
The Accidental Turitz: A Credo to Live By… and Kevin Spacey
Last week, it was reported that Kevin Spacey owed MRC, the company that produced the massive Netflix hit House of Cards, $31 million for breach of contract, after they had to fire him from the show in 2017. This is quite a large sum for any one person to pay, which means that the... »
Hump Day News Update 12/1/21: Lost Daughter Scores at Gothams, Nicolas Cage is Dracula, and More News
It’s December… and it’s Wednesday… so here’s the latest news. On Monday night, the 31st Annual Gotham Awards were handed out by the Gotham Film & Media Institute, and Maggie Gyllenhaal‘s The Lost Daughter scored big, winning Best Feature, Best Screenplay, and Gyllenhaal winning the Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director award, it being her directorial debut. Also for The Lost Daughter, Olivia... »
Union Roundup: Building Solidarity Using Anti-Racism and Anti-Oppression Practices (Guest Column)
As 2021 near its end and 2022 draws closer, there are a few things to consider as it relates to building and strengthening union solidarity across diverse groups. This is particularly true when it comes to addressing systemic racism, discrimination, and other forms of exclusion faced by union members from racialized and historically underrepresented... »
Over the Weekend 11/29/21: Stephen Sondheim Dies, Disney’s Encanto Wins Box Office, and More News
Happy Monday and welcome back from hopefully a great long Thanksgiving weekend for those who celebrate. Unfortunately, we need to start today’s news wrap-up with a number of tragic passings. Probably saddest and the most significant news from the weekend was the death of Broadway icon, Stephen Sondheim, at the age of 91, in his... »
The Accidental Turitz: Introduction to Creative Accounting 101
Anthony McCarten filed suit last week against Graham King, the producer of Bohemian Rhapsody, which won four Oscars and grossed close to a billion dollars at the global box office. It’s a movie that McCarten wrote, earning sole screenplay credit while sharing screen story credit with Peter Morgan. As part of McCarten’s deal with... »
Hump Day News Update 11/24/21: Spacey Loses Arbitration, Anderson Returns to Law and Order, and More News
Part of me wanted to just go with “End of Week Production Notes” a couple days early, because most of us will be off for the next few days as we head into the official holiday season. Presumably, some productions may still be catching up due to COVID shutdowns and will continue to work... »
Union Roundup: Out with the New, In with the Old
The holiday homestretch is almost upon us, and we’ll be taking a few of the ensuing days off, so the next time we see you in this columnar space will be a little deeper into December. We’re also undergoing a name change, from “Strike Alert,” since, it would appear the main specter of a... »
Director Series: Filmmaker Johannes Roberts Reinvents Resident Evil with a Faithful-to-Game Prequel
After directing the shark movies, 47 Meters Down and its sequel, 47 Meters Down: Uncaged, filmmaker Johannes Roberts had to figure out what to do next. Although Sony Pictures and Screen Gems had already made six Resident Evil movies with Paul WS Anderson, Roberts came upon a way of rebooting the franchise with the... »