Pedro Pascal to Star in Ari Aster’s Latest Film “Eddington”

Pedro Pascal is going west(ern) once again…

The 48-year-old Chilean actor, who recently won his first SAG Award, will star in Ari Aster’s latest film Eddington.

Pedro PascalPascal, who recently starred in Pedro Almodovar’s Spanish Western drama short film Strange Way of Life, will star opposite Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, Luke Grimes, Austin Butler, Deirdre O’Connell, Micheal Ward and Clifton Collins Jr. in the project.

Aster is the visionary filmmaker behind the horror films Hereditary and Midsommar, as well as the dark comedy Beau Is Afraid.

Plot details are under wraps, though the project has been discussed as a Western.

Aster will direct from his own script and produce alongside Lars Knudsen under their Square Peg banner. Darius Khondji, the Academy Award-winning cinematographer behind Bardo and Uncut Gems, is also aboard the project for his first collaboration with Aster.

Production on the film kicks off this week.

Pascal’s credits include The Last of Us, Narcos and The Mandalorian.

Warner Bros. & Legendary Move Up Release Date of Javier Bardem’s “Dune: Part Two” to March 1

Javier Bardem has been given his March-ing orders for his highly-anticipated film.

Warner Bros. and Legendary have moved up the release of Denis Villenueve’s Dune: Part Two, starring the 54-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning actor.

Javier BardemThe second half of the space epic will now open nationwide on March 1.

The new date is two weeks earlier than the March 15 date Warner Bros. set in August when it moved Dune: Part Two out of 2023 amid the Hollywood strikes. The sequel was originally set to open on November 3.

Dune: Part Two is the second chapter in Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal science-fiction novel.

The first film opened simultaneously in theaters and on Max (then known as HBO Max) in November 2021 and grossed $402 million at the worldwide box office. It also earned 10 Academy Award nominations, including best picture, and won the Oscars for original score, sound, film editing, cinematography, production design and visual effects.

In addition to Bardem, Villeneuve’s original Dune cast members Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Dave Bautista, Stellan Skarsgård and Charlotte Rampling are all back for the second chapter.

Newcomers to the franchise include Christopher Walken, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh and Léa Seydoux.

“I just I loved the first film so much,” Butler previously told Variety about stepping into Villeneuve’s world. “It was this cinematic masterpiece, so the idea of getting to be a part of that world is just incredibly exciting and Denis is one of my favorite filmmakers and just an amazing human being. He’s so kind and I’m a fan of every one of those actors in the film, so I I felt really honored.”

In a recent interview with Empire, Villeneuve shared his hopes for a third installment in the sci-fi epic film series, saying, “If I succeed in making a trilogy, that would be the dream.”

On his Dune: Part Three progress, Villeneuve teased, “I will say, there are words on paper.” The project would be based on Dune Messiah, the direct sequel to Dune author Frank Herbert’s 1965 original novel.

The official Dune: Part Two synopsis from Warner Bros. and Legendary reads: “This follow-up film will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a warpath of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, he endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.”

Warner Bros. Releases New Trailer for Javier Bardem’s “Dune: Part Two”

Javier Bardem is returning to the desert…

Warner Bros has released a new trailer for Dune: Part Two, starring the 54-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning actor as Stilgar.

Javier BardemDenis Villeneuve’s second film in a planned three-film saga is based on Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi novel.

The Warner/Legendary Pictures film is set to hit theaters on November 3, 2023.

Timothée Chalamet returns as Paul Atreides and Zendaya as Chani in the film, which picks up after the events of the first Dune, which bowed in 2021 and grossed more than $402 million at the global box office.

In addition to Chalamet, Zenday and Bardem, returning cast members also include Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Dave Bautista, Charlotte Rampling, Stephen McKinley Henderson and Stellan Skarsgård.

They’ll be joined by newcomers Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Christopher Walken and Léa Seydoux.

The middle film in the series finds Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen out for revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, Paul endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee (The film’s tagline is “Fury Will Rise”).

Villeneuve co-wrote the screenplay with Jon Spaihts from Herbert’s novel.

The new trailer, which comes after the first official trailer dropped in May following its showing at CinemaCon, shows off the scope that helped the original pic score 11 Oscar nominations including Best Picture.

Dune: Part One won six Oscars in the crafts categories and returns several from that team here, including editor Joe Walker, production designer Patrice Vermette, composer Hans Zimmer and VFX supervisor Paul Lambert. Costume designer Jacqueline West, who was nominated last go-around, also returns.

Anjelah Johnson-Reyes to Serve as Presenter at This Year’s PGA Awards

Anjelah Johnson-Reyes is headed to the PGA Awards

The Producers Guild of America has revealed the presenters lineup for the 34th annual PGA Awards, to be held on Saturday at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles, with the 40-year-old half-Mexican American actress/comedian making the list.

Anjelah JohnsonIn addition to Johnson-Reyes, other notable celebrities set to take the stage to present throughout the evening include Angela Bassett, Austin Butler, Billy Eichner, Bob Odenkirk, Brendan Fraser, Cate Blanchett, Danielle Deadwyler, Dave Burd, Diego Luna, Eugenio Derbez, Hannah Einbinder, Hong Chau, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jay Ellis, Kate Hudson, Ke Huy Quan, Kerry Condon, Leslie Odom, Jr., Michelle Williams, Michelle Yeoh, Mo Amer, Monica Barbaro, Nicole Byer, Paul Dano, Robert Rodriguez, Ron Howard, Sacha Baron Cohen, Sandra Oh, Sherry Lansing and Stephanie Hsu.

The PGA Awards celebrate the producers behind the best films, television series, and new media projects of the year.

Widely known as a reliable bellwether for the Best Picture category at the Oscars, the PGA has nominated Avatar: The Way of Water, The Banshees of Inisherin, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Elvis, Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Fabelmans, Glass Onion: Knives Out Mystery, Tár, Top Gun: Maverick and The Whale for its Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures Award.

The 2023 Producers Guild of America Awards is produced by Anchor Street Collective for the Producers Guild of America.

MTV Renews Baquero’s “The Shannara Chronicles” for a Second Season

Ivana Baquero will have more to chronicle in the near future…

MTV has ordered a second season of The Shannara Chronicles, starring the 21-year-old Spanish actress.

Ivana Baquero

An adaptation of the international best-selling fantasy novels by Terry Brooks, the fantasy series hails from Smallville and Into the Badlands creators Al Gough and Miles Millar and Iron Man and Jungle Book director Jon Favreau.

It had a modestly-rated premiere run on linear television but did well in young demos, delayed and multi-platform viewing as well as on social media.

The series averaged a 0.98 L+3 rating in MTV’s core P12-34 demo, ranking as MTV’s top-rated new series this year.

Shannara also saw the highest average L+7 lift (+106%) for a freshman series in MTV history. A strong digital performer, the series pulled in 16.6 million streams across all MTV’s digital properties and ranks as the highest grossing digital download for a single season on MTV ever.

The Shannara Chronicles follows a trio of heroes who’ve embarked on a quest to stop a demon army bent on destroying humanity’s world. It stars Poppy Drayton as Amberle, an Elvin Princess; Baquero as Eretria, a Human Rover; Austin Butler as Wil, a Half-Elf, Half-Human, and Aaron Jakubenko as Ander.

In the season finale, Baquero’s character stays behind in Safehold to give the others time to escape from the Trolls following them. It is revealed that Eretria has been captured by Trolls; and she recognizes one of her captors .

The Shannara Chronicles is co-produced by MTV, Sonar Entertainment and Farah Films.

“This dream team delivered a beautiful, ground breaking show with compelling stories and character journeys which brought in new viewers,” said Mina Lefevre, EVP and Head of Scripted Development at MTV.

Trailer Released for Baquero’s MTV Sci-Fi Fantasy Series “The Shannara Chronicles”

Ivana Baquero is making her English-language television debut on MTV

The 21-year-old Spanish actress, best known for her starring role in Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, is starring in the cable network’s The Shannara Chronicles, based on the best-selling books by Terry Brooks.

The Shannara Chronicles

Set thousands of years in the future, the sci-fi fantasy series follows a trio of heroes who’ve embarked on a quest to stop a demon army hell bent on destroying humanity’s world.

The heroes are Amberle (Poppy Drayton), an Elvin Princess; Eretria (Baquero), a Human Rover; and Wil (Austin Butler), a Half-Elf, Half-Human.

The trailer for the series debuted during the MTV Video Music Awards.

Jonathan Liebesman directed the first two episodes.

MTV is producing with Sonar Entertainment.

Baquero, who won the Goya Award for Best New Actress for her role in Pan’s Labyrinth, has also starred in The New Daughter and The Anarchist’s Wife.

Baquero Cast in MTV’s Fantasy Series “Shannara”

Ivana Baquero is ready for her MTV

The 20-year-old Spanish actress, who gained acclaim as the star of Guillermo del Toro’s Oscar-nominated Pan’s Labyrinth, has been cast opposite Poppy Drayton and Austin Butler in Shannara, the cable network’s 10-episode straight-to-series drama based on Terry Brooks’ massive fantasy book series.

Ivana Baquero

Written by Smallville creators Al Gough and Miles Millar, Shannara is set in our world, thousands of years after the destruction of our civilization. The story centers on the Shannara family, whose descendants are empowered with ancient magic and whose adventures continuously reshape the future of the world.

Baquero will play Eretria, a young woman from the wrong side of the tracks who’s been forced to use her beauty and wits to survive. She’s a human who has been raised in a den of thieves known as the Rovers. When she rescues Wil from danger she becomes unwittingly tied to he and Amberle’s (Drayton) quest to save the Four Lands.

Baquero can currently be seen in Spanish film El Club de los Incomprendidos and recently wrapped Gelo, a Portuguese fantasy love story.

She will next be seen in Fox International’s My Other Me.