Need a quick recap of the past week in movie news? Here are the highlights:
Another Nobody: While Lionsgate has yet to officially greenlight a follow-up to their recent action hit Nobody, there is a sequel in the works in case the studio is interested. Director Ilya Naishuller told the website JoBlo.com that screenwriter Derek Kolstad has already begun work on a script for Nobody 2, which would presumably bring back Bob Odenkirk in the lead role as unexpected assassin Hutch Mansell. Naishuller also hinted that actress Connie Nielsen would have more to do in the next installment. Now the big question is: how many movies will it take for Nobody to cross over with Lionsgate’s other Kolstad creation, John Wick?
Lily Collins is Polly Pocket: The latest toy line to get a movie deal is Polly Pocket, which consists of miniature dolls in compact play sets. According to The Hollywood Reporter, filmmaker Lena Dunham (the fittingly titled Tiny Furniture, HBO’s Girls) will direct Polly Pocket for MGM, while actress Lilly Collins (Mank, Mirror Mirror) will star as the titular character, a “pocket-sized woman” who befriends a young girl. The toy was previously adapted into a trio of straight-to-video animated features in the mid-2000s, and it inspired the Giggles McDimples character in Pixar’s Toy Story 4.
Rachel Zegler is Snow White: Speaking of actresses who’ve been cast as Snow White (Lilly Collins played the character in Mirror Mirror), Disney has found their lead for an upcoming live-action reimagining of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Deadline reports that rising star Rachel Zegler, who’ll be seen in the role of Maria in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story remake this year, will portray Snow White in the Mouse House’s retelling. The movie, which will expand upon the 1937 animated feature, will be directed by The Amazing Spider-Man helmer Marc Webb and feature new songs by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (La La Land).
Scarlett Johansson to star in Tower of Terror: In other Disney movie news, the studio is partnering with Oscar-nominated actress Scarlett Johansson for Tower of Terror. According to Collider, the Black Widow actress will star in and produce the movie, which will be based on Disney’s theme park attraction of the same name, itself inspired by the TV show The Twilight Zone. Josh Cooley, who earned an Oscar nomination for co-writing Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out and won an Oscar for directing Toy Story 4, which he also co-wrote, is handling the Tower of Terror script. The ride previously inspired a TV movie of the same name in 1997.
Blacula reborn: Another horror concept rising from the past this week is Blacula. Variety reports that MGM is rebooting the 1972 blaxploitation flick, which plays as a spin-off of the classic Dracula story and follows an 18th century African prince turned vampire who is revived in modern day Los Angeles. A sequel titled Scream Blacula Scream was released one year later. The new take on Blacula, reportedly an updated reimagining set in a U.S. city post-coronavirus pandemic, sounds more like it will involve a racially motivated revenge plot, but it also seems connected the original, as it is said to be picking up where the 1973 sequel left off.
Amy Ryan joins Disappointment Blvd.: Ari Aster’s next project, which is surprisingly not a horror effort like his first two features, Hereditary and Midsommar, has at least similarly found another Oscar-caliber actress to star. According to Deadline, Academy Award nominee Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone) will join Oscar-winning actor Joaquin Phoenix in Disappointment Blvd., as will multi-Tony Award-winners Nathan Lane and Patti Lupone. The plot of the movie, which Aster will write and direct, is said to follow multiple decades in the life of a hugely successful entrepreneur.
Naomi Ackie heads to Pussy Island: Speaking of movies about very rich industry leaders, Zoë Kravitz has found the female lead for her directorial debut, which was just picked up for distribution by MGM. According to The Wrap, actress Naomi Ackie, who portrays the Star Wars character Jannah in The Rise of Skywalker, will star alongside Channing Tatum in Pussy Island. Ackie’s role is that of the protagonist, a Los Angeles cocktail waitress who joins Tatum’s wealthy tech mogul for an intimate party on his own private island — but there’s something mysterious and frightening about the secluded hideaway.
Alexander Skarsgård dives into Infinity Pool: Another filmmaker known for his work in horror is in the news this week, also for his third feature, which is also aiming for fewer scares than his first two. Variety reports Brandon Cronenberg, helmer of Antiviral and Possessor (and son of legendary auteur David Cronenberg), has cast Alexander Skarsgård, star of The Legend of Tarzan and Godzilla vs. Kong (and son of famed actor Stellan Skarsgård), as the lead in Infinity Pool. The sci-fi thriller is about a couple on vacation at a resort, outside of which some sort of danger exists.
Samuel L. Jackson is an Oscar winner: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced four names as special Oscar winners to be honored at the 2022 Governors Awards. Samuel L. Jackson, who was nominated in 1995 for his supporting role in Pulp Fiction, Liv Ullman, who was nominated for her lead roles in 1971’s The Emigrants and 1976’s Face to Face, and filmmaker Elaine May, who was nominated for the adapted screenplays for 1978’s Heaven Can Wait and 1998’s Primary Colors, will all receive Honorary Awards. And never-nominated actor/producer Danny Glover will receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his inspiring efforts for worldwide justice.
