BY Laura Berger
Trailer Watch: Keira Knightley Plays an Iraq War Whistleblower in “Official Secrets”
Keira Knightley risks it all to stand up to the British government — and stand up for the British people — in a new trailer for “Official Secrets.” Set in 2003, the political...
Swati Bhise’s “The Warrior Queen of Jhansi” Lands at Roadside Attractions
Swati Bhise’s directorial debut has secured distribution stateside. Roadside Attractions acquired U.S. rights to historical epic “The Warrior Queen of Jhansi,” Deadline reports....
Trailer Watch: Mindy Kaling and Emma Thompson Give “Late Night” a Makeover
“You’re welcome, America,” says Emma Thompson in the final trailer for “Late Night.” The spot suggests that filmgoers have plenty to thank the Brit for, with critics and...
Ilana Glazer Has a Stand-Up Special in the Works at Amazon
Yas queen! “Broad City” star Ilana Glazer’s first stand-up special is coming to Amazon. The “Rough Night” actress announced the news via her Instagram account. The...
Tina Gordon to Direct Youth Choir Comedy “Praise This” for Universal
“Sister Act” fans, take note: another musical comedy about a choir is on the way. “Little” helmer and co-writer Tina Gordon has been tapped to direct Universal Pictures’...
“Russian Doll” Renewed for Season 2
Prepare for “Gotta Get Up” to get stuck in your head again: “Russian Doll” is coming back. Netflix has renewed the critically acclaimed Natasha Lyonne-starrer for a second...
Julianne Moore and Patricia Clarkson to Be Honored at Karlovy Vary Film Fest
“Far from Heaven” co-stars Julianne Moore and Patricia Clarkson are set to reunite at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF). Both are being honored at the 2019 edition of...
Stunt Coordinator Shauna Duggins to Make Directorial Debut with “Guardian”
The Emmy-winning stunt coordinator behind Zoya the Destroyer and Liberty Belle’s epic battles in the ring is stepping behind the camera. “GLOW’s” Shauna Duggins is set to make...
Trailer Watch: Elsa and Anna Go North in “Frozen 2”
Elsa is following in Arya Stark’s footsteps and embarking on an epic mission into the unknown. A trailer has dropped for “Frozen 2,” and sees Disney’s game-changing sisters,...
Sophia Lillis to Topline Netflix High School Drama “I Am Not Okay With This”
“Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase” star Sophia Lillis has a new case to crack — the mysterious superpowers growing inside her. The “Stranger Things” and...
Marti Noxon and Jessica Rhoades Option YA Novel “Like A Love Story”
Two of the women behind HBO’s award-winning adaptation of Gillan Flynn’s “Sharp Objects” are teaming up on another project based on a novel. Marti Noxon and Jessica Rhoades,...
Angela Chen Receives Inaugural AGBO/AFI Conservatory Development Grant
Angela Chen’s next project just received a major boost. The writer, director, editor, and producer has been named as the inaugural recipient of the AGBO/AFI Conservatory Development Grant, a...
“Bunny” Adaptation in the Works at AMC with Megan Mostyn-Brown Attached to Write
“Bunny” won’t hit shelves until June 11, but the novel is already being developed for the small screen. AMC Networks acquired the rights to Mona Awad’s book about a creative...
Trailer Watch: Alice Englert Questions Her Faith and Faces a Snake in “Them That Follow”
Set deep in Appalachia, “Them That Follow” tells the story of Mara (Alice Englert), a young woman preparing for her wedding day. Mara’s got a lot more than floral arrangements and...
Trailer Watch: Krysten Ritter’s Hero’s Journey Concludes in “Jessica Jones'” Final Season
Yet another bad guy wants Jessica Jones to die — but this one really has it in for her, and he’s determined to prove her a fraud. A trailer has dropped for the third and final season of...
Tayari Jones Wins the Women’s Prize for Fiction
American novelist Tayari Jones is this year’s recipient of the Women’s Prize for Fiction. She’s being recognized for “An American Marriage,” described by chair of judges...
Trailer Watch: Jillian Bell Takes Control of Her Life in “Brittany Runs a Marathon”
A failed attempt to score some Adderall from a new doctor leads Jillian Bell to unexpected places in a new trailer for “Brittany Runs a Marathon.” The Sundance Audience Award winner sees...
Trailer Watch: Petra Costa Captures Brazil at “The Edge of Democracy”
“I fear our democracy was nothing but a short-lived dream,” says Petra Costa in a new trailer for “The Edge of Democracy.” The Sundance documentary explores the evolving...
AFI to Honor Lesli Linka Glatter
Lesli Linka Glatter is set to receive an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from the American Film Institute (AFI). A press release announced that the prolific director will be recognized for her...
Trailer Watch: A Supernatural Agent Can’t Remember Her Past in “The Rook”
Myfanwy Thomas has no recollection of who she is. Her memory is a “massive black hole,” a terrifying condition worsened by the fact that she wakes up to find herself surrounded by a...
Charlize Theron to Receive American Cinematheque Award
Charlize Theron has been named the 2019 recipient of the American Cinematheque Award. A press release announced that the Oscar winner will be presented with the honor November 8 in Beverly Hills. The...
Sandi Tan to Write and Direct Adaptation of Elif Batuman’s “The Idiot”
Sandi Tan is set to tell another autobiographical coming-of-age story, but this time she’s working with someone else’s source material. The “Shirkers” helmer will write and...
“Dead to Me” Is Coming Back for Season 2
Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini have plenty of laughing, crying, and screaming sessions in store. Netflix has renewed “Dead to Me” for a second season, Variety confirms. Created...
Jane Fonda Will Be Honored with BAFTA LA Britannia Award for Excellence in Film
Already a two-time BAFTA winner, Jane Fonda has been named as the 2019 recipient of BAFTA LA’s Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film. The honor is given in recognition of...
Karen Moncrieff to Write and Direct Adaptation of Alice Sebold Memoir “Lucky”
Another Alice Sebold adaptation is in the works. Ten years after Saoirse Ronan-starrer “The Lovely Bones” hit theaters comes word that Sebold’s award-winning memoir...
The Academy to Honor Lina Wertmüller and Geena Davis
The Academy is set to honor the first woman to receive an Oscar nomination for directing and an Oscar-winning trailblazer who pushed the conversation about gender equality in the entertainment...
Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” Acquired by Netflix
Netflix has snagged most worldwide rights to Jane Campion’s latest, “The Power of the Dog.” The streamer is planning a 2021 theatrical and streaming premiere for the adaptation of...
Sally Rooney’s “Normal People” Heading to Hulu
“Normal People” is coming to the small screen. Hulu handed out a straight to series order on a 12-episode, half-hour drama based on Irish author Sally Rooney’s buzzy best-selling...
Trailer Watch: Marianne Jean-Baptiste Dons a Killer Dress in “In Fabric”
Marianne Jean-Baptiste’s daring sartorial choice may lead to fatal consequences in a new trailer for “In Fabric.” The horror-comedy sees the “Homecoming” actress playing...
Debra Granik to Receive Honor from Boston Society of Film Critics
Writer-director Debra Granik has been named as the inaugural receipt of the Boston Society of Film Critics’ (BSFC) Career Spotlight Award, an honor celebrating mid-career filmmakers. “Debra...
Sundance London 2019 Women Directors: Meet Alison Klayman – “The Brink”
Alison Klayman’s directorial debut, “Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry,” won a U.S. Documentary Special Jury Prize for Spirit of Defiance at Sundance Film Festival and was shortlisted for the...
Trailer Watch: Alia Shawkat and Holliday Grainger Are “Animals” in Sophie Hyde’s Latest
Alia Shawkat’s not ready for the party to end in a new UK trailer for “Animals.” An adaptation of Emma Jane Unsworth’s novel of the same name, the dramedy tells the story of...
Trailer Watch: Nanfu Wang & Jialing Zhang Revisit China’s One Child Policy in “One Child Nation”
Born during the height of China’s controversial, headline-making attempt to address its population crisis, Nanfu Wang never gave much thought to the One Child Policy. That all changed when the...
Naomi Kawase Begins Filming “Comes Morning”
Cannes darling Naomi Kawase has kicked off filming on her latest project, “Asa ga Kuru,” or “Comes Morning.” Inspired by a 2015 Mizuki Tsujimura novel, the Japanese...
Inside Out 2019 Directors: Meet Neelu Bhuman – “Transfinite”
Neelu Bhuman was born in the South Indian small town of Madanapalle. As an independent artist filmmaker, they explore social and political themes as they play out in close relations. Their films...
Edinburgh Film Fest’s 2019 Lineup Includes “Go Back to China,” “The Black Forest,” & More
Nearly 43 percent features and shorts screening at the 2019 Edinburgh International Film Festival are directed or co-directed by a woman, the BBC reports. Slated to take place June 19-30, this...
Trailer Watch: Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish, and Elisabeth Moss Run “The Kitchen”
“Pretty doesn’t matter. It’s just a tool that women use,” says Melissa McCarthy in the first trailer for “The Kitchen.” Set in the ’70s, Andrea...
Mindy Kaling Has a New Essay Collection on the Way
Mindy Kaling and Amazon’s lovefest continues. Amazon Studios is dropping Kaling-starrer “Late Night” in theaters next week, and Kaling recently announced that she has a new essay...
Cannes 2019 Winners Include “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Atlantics,” and “For Sama”
Trailblazer Mati Diop has taken home Cannes Film Festival’s second-most prestigious prize. The French-Senegalese director made history as the first black female filmmaker to screen a feature in...
Mary Laws Is Taking “North American Lake Monsters” to Hulu
Mary Laws is bringing werewolves and fallen angels to Hulu. The streamer just picked up a new genre anthology series from the “Preacher” alumna and “Neon Demon” scribe. A...
Louise Courvoisier’s “Mano a Mano” Takes Home Cannes Cinefondation Top Honor
Louise Courvoisier is leaving Cannes with a €15,000 grant (about $16,000 USD), the guarantee of having her debut feature screen at the fest, and the distinction of being named the first prize...
Quote of the Day: Gina Prince-Bythewood on Changing the Narrative About Women Directors
“I am seeing a definite shift, but it doesn’t mean that the numbers are not still absolutely abysmal,” Gina Prince-Bythewood tells Deadline in a new feature about the fight for gender parity...
Series Adaptation of Akwaeke Emezi’s “Freshwater” in the Works at FX, Tamara P. Carter On Board
“Freshwater” may be heading to the small screen. A series inspired by Akwaeke Emezi’s celebrated debut novel is in “early development” at FX, Variety reports. The 2018 book...
Trailer Watch: Laura Linney and Ellen Page Have a Tense Reunion in “Tales of the City”
Living at Barbary Lane is a life-changing experience for its queer residents. A new trailer for Netflix’s “Tales of the City” revival emphasizes how the house in San Francisco is...
Trailer Watch: A Writer Loses Her Mother and Gains a Double in Patricia Rozema’s “Mouthpiece”
Cass, a woman who has recently and unexpectedly lost her mother, is told “grief can manifest itself in unexpected ways” in a new trailer for Patricia Rozema’s latest....
Cannes: Annabelle Attanasio’s “Mickey and the Bear” Lands at Utopia
Father-daughter story “Mickey and the Bear” has found a home. Utopia acquired worldwide rights to Annabelle Attanasio’s feature debut just after it screened in Cannes’ ACID...
Cannes: Céline Sciamma’s “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” Sold to Neon and Hulu
Buzz is growing for Céline Sciamma’s Palme d’Or contender ‘”Portrait of a Lady on Fire.” The pic has been acquired following its well-received world premiere at Cannes. Neon and...
Jokha Alharthi Makes History as the First Arabic Winner of the Man Booker International Prize
Jokha Alharthi is the recipient of this year’s Man Booker International Prize, making her the first Arab writer to collect the honor. BBC confirmed the news. The author already made history as...
“The Farewell” Writer-Director Lulu Wang to Receive Sundance’s Vanguard Award
Lulu Wang and “The Farewell” are collecting another honor in advance of the film’s release. Wang is set to receive Sundance Institute’s 2019 Vanguard Award, the Los Angeles...
Kari Skogland to Direct Disney+ Marvel Miniseries “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”
Kari Skogland is making her way from Gilead to the Marvel universe. The Emmy-nominated “Handmaid’s Tale” director has signed on to helm six-part Disney+ miniseries “The Falcon...
Sharon Maguire in Talks to Direct Hailee Steinfeld-Starrer “Voicemails for Isabelle”
Hailee Steinfeld may be teaming up with the director behind one of the most beloved romantic comedies of all time. “Bridget Jones’s Diary” helmer Sharon Maguire is in talks to...