Aubrey Plaza to Star in Legendary’s Live-Action & Animated Film “Animal Friends”

 Aubrey Plaza is makin’ time for her (animal) friends

The 38-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress has joined the all-star cast of Legendary’s forthcoming film Animal Friends.

Aubrey PlazaCombining live-action and animated characters, the project hails from writing duo Kevin Burrows and Matt Mider.

In addition to Plaza, the film will also star Ryan ReynoldsJason Momoa and Vince Vaughn.

Plot details for the project, described as an R-rated road trip adventure, are being kept under wraps. Emmy-winning director Peter Atencio is at the helm.

The idea for the film came from a general meeting between Burrows & Mider and Patrick Gooing, an executive at Reynolds’ production company, Maximum Effort. Producing alongside Legendary are Maximum Effort and Namit Malhotra’s Prime Focus Studios. Visual effects and animation will be provided by leading visual entertainment services company, DNEG.

Plaza is coming off one of the strongest years of her career, having generated major heat with her starring turn alongside Will Sharpe, Meghann Fahy and Theo James in the second season of Mike White’s HBO smash The White Lotus, for which she was recognized with a Golden Globe nomination. The SAG Award winner also recently notched Independent Spirit and Gotham Award nominations for her lead turn in John Patton Ford’s acclaimed indie crime thriller, Emily the Criminal, which she produced under her Evil Hag Productions banner.

She recently wrapped production on Francis Ford Coppola’s sci-fi epic Megalopolis and is currently shooting a role in Disney+’s Marvel series Agatha: Coven of Chaos.

Salma Hayek Named to Time’s “100 Most Influential People in the World” List

Salma Hayek is being feted for her sway

Time magazine has released its list of the “100 Most Influential People in the World,” with the 56-year-old Mexican Oscar-nominated actress and film producer making the cut.

Salma Hayek

Each year, the media outlet honors 100 individuals that it perceives as holding sway, pairing the list with praiseful blurbs from contemporaries. The logrolling list contains comedians, sports stars, authors and other influential figures.

“Salma is a great observer and feels everything deeply. She’s strong yet sensitive, and she can read people very well. That’s what makes her a great actor, her ability to put herself in someone else’s shoes, from her breakthrough portrayal of Frida  Kahlo to her most recent performance as Maxandra in Magic  Mike’s Last Dance,” says Penelope Cruz in her write-up. “Her huge heart, great intelligence, and charisma are a winning combination, but the thing I’m most proud of is that she’s always entirely herself. As one of the first Latinas working in Hollywood, she’s opened so many doors for people who followed. She is a total revolutionary, and there’s still so much she will do.”

But Hayek isn’t the only Hispanic/Latinx artist to make the list.

Aubrey Plaza, who won a SAG Award this year for being part of the ensemble cast of HBO’s The White Lotus, received her special tribute from Amy Poehler.

“I met Aubrey, a deeply versatile actor and producer, almost 15 years ago on Parks  and Recreation, where she played the droll and mischievous intern April Ludgate. I knew two things immediately: I was working with a determined and profoundly talented woman with big plans, and I had met a dear friend for life,” says Poehler of the 38-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress/comedian. “Her work over the past decade has been acutely truthful and always surprising—whether conveying fear-based choices in Emily the Criminal, manic breakdowns in Black Bear, chilly secret keeping in The White Lotus, or whatever big and ballsy swing is up next in Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis.”

Zoe Saldaña, who became the first performer to appear in the top three highest grossing films globally earlier this year, received a tribute from Mila Kunis.

“Whether she’s kicking butt in Guardians of the Galaxy, saving humanity in Avatar, or making you bawl your eyes out in From Scratch, she’s always on top of her game,” writes Kunis of the . Zoe has also been a trailblazer for women and people of color in Hollywood, breaking down barriers and advocating for greater diversity and representation. She’s not afraid to speak out for what she believes in, and uses her platform to make a positive impact.

Other honorees include international soccer star Lionel Messi; Chilean actor Pedro Pascal; executive director of OnPoint NYC, Sam Rivera; Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; Colombian president Gustavo Petro and Mexican activist María Herrera Magdaleno.

The list was first published in 1999. Nominations are secured from Time 100 alumni and the international writing staff. The final list is exclusively chosen by Time editors. There is also a commemorative gala held to celebrate the list winners.

For the full list of nominees, visit Time.com/Time100.

Aubrey Plaza to Make “Saturday Night Live” Hosting Debut This Month

Aubrey Plaza is preparing to make a special debut…

The 38-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress will be hosting Saturday Night Live’s first show of 2023.

Aubrey PlazaMaking her hosting debut, Plaza will host on January 21, with Sam Smith as the musical guest.

Plaza’s star has been on the rise following her acclaimed starring role in Emily The Criminal and her work on season two of The White Lotus, which earned her a first-ever Golden Globe nomination.

Saturday Night Live is produced in association with Broadway Video. The creator and executive producer of the long-running NBC sketch-comedy series is Lorne Michaels.

Roadside Attractions & Vertical Entertainment Acquire North American Rights to Aubrey Plaza’s Thriller “Emily the Criminal”

Aubrey Plaza’s latest project is getting some roadside assistance…

Roadside Attractions and Vertical Entertainment have acquired the North American rights to the 37-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress’ indie thriller Emily the Criminal.

Aubrey Plaza, Emily the CriminaThey’ve slated the film for an exclusive theatrical release this year, with Redbox joining the partnership for home entertainment distribution.

John Patton Ford’s feature directorial debut follows Emily (Plaza), who is saddled with student debt and locked out of the job market due to a minor criminal record. Desperate for income, she takes a shady gig as a “dummy shopper,” buying goods with stolen credit cards supplied by a handsome and charismatic middleman named Youcef (Theo Rossi). Faced with a series of dead-end job interviews, Emily soon finds herself seduced by the quick cash and illicit thrills of black-market capitalism, and increasingly interested in her mentor Youcef. Together, they hatch a plan to bring their business to the next level in Los Angeles.

Ford penned the original screenplay, with Megalyn Echikunwoke and Gina Gershon rounding out the cast.

Plaza produced the film through her Evil Hag Productions banner,.

“John Patton Ford’s propulsive thriller Emily The Criminal is a spectacular directing debut with a revelatory performance from Aubrey Plaza as a wildly entertaining antiheroine that recalls Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde,” said Roadside Attractions’ Co-Presidents Howard Cohen & Eric d’Arbeloff.

“When we saw the film, we knew we had to have it. It is an exceptional story that is sure to excite and thrill audiences,” said Vertical Entertainment’s Partner & CEO Peter Jarowey. “We are excited to bring two long-standing collaborators in Roadside and Redbox together on one film that we care so deeply about. It’s a win-win for everyone involved.”

“We continue to believe in the importance of the theatrical experience and the power of watching movies together on a big screen,” added the filmmakers in a joint statement, “and couldn’t be more excited and confident in our stellar partners at Roadside and Vertical to connect our film with audiences everywhere.”

Aubrey Plaza to Star in the Second Season of HBO’s Dark Comedy “The White Lotus”

Things are in full bloom for Aubrey Plaza

The 37-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress/comedian will star as a lead in the second installment of HBO’s dark comedy series The White Lotus.

Aubrey PlazaPlaza, the Parks & Recreation and Legion alum, will be a series regular.

She is the second confirmed cast member for the upcoming follow-up to Mike White’s breakout social satire limited series, joining previously cast Michael Imperioli.

The six-part original series followed visitors vacationing at the White Lotus, an exclusive Hawaiian resort. The second installment — also written, to directed by and executive produced by White — will leave Hawaii behind for a new location and is expected to follow a different group of vacationers at another White Lotus property.

Plaza will play Harper Spiller, a woman on vacation with her husband and his friends. Imperioli plays Dominic Di Grasso, a man traveling with his elderly father and recent college-graduate son.

Of the original cast, standout Jennifer Coolidge has been rumored to be returning. White executive produces alongside David Bernad and Mark Kamine.

Plaza will next be seen starring in Guy Ritchie’s Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre opposite Jason Statham, Hugh Grant and Josh Hartnett.

Additionally, she stars in and produced Emily the Criminal, which will premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. On television, Plaza is starring in and producing the upcoming Hulu drama series Olga Dies Dreaming, which is based on the novel by Xochitl Gonzalez.

Most recently, Plaza starred opposite Michael Caine in Best Sellers, which premiered at the 2021 Berlin Film Festival.

She won the 2021 Imagen Award for Best Actress for Black Bear and the 2018 Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature for producing Ingrid Goes West.

Aubrey Plaza to Star in the Indie Film “Emily the Criminal”

Aubrey Plaza has landed an out of this (under)world role…

The 37-year-old half Puerto Rican actress/comedian will star opposite part-Spanish actor Theo Rossi in Emily the Criminal, the indie written and directed by John Patton Ford.

Aubrey Plaza

The film tells the story of Emily (Plaza), a woman down on her luck and saddled with debt, who gets involved in a credit card scam that pulls her into the criminal underworld of Los Angeles, ultimately leading to deadly consequences.

Rossi will play Youcef, a Middle Eastern immigrant who has big dreams and a lot of hustle, with Gina Gershon and Megalyn Echikunwoke co-starring.

Plaza is producing the film with Tyler Davidson and Drew Sykes. Low Spark is the film’s financier.

Plaza’s previous credits include Parks and Recreation, Legion and Ingrid Goes West.

Rossi is best known for his turn as the menacing Hernan ‘Shades’ Alvarez in Marvel’s Luke Cage, and as hacker and intelligence officer Juan Carlos ‘Juice’ Ortiz in FX’s Sons of Anarchy.