Isabela Merced to Star as Hawkgirl in Warner Bros. DC Film “Superman: Legacy”

Posted on July 10, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Isabela Merced has landed a super role…

The 22-year-old half-Peruvian American actress has joined the cast of Warner Bros. DC franchise resetter Superman: Legacy, as announced by studio chief Peter Safran in a new article with Vanity Fair.

Merced, who starred in Dora and the Lost City of Gold, is among new cast additions that includes Nathan Fillion and Edi Gathegi.

Merced will portray Hawkgirl, while Fillion will portray Guy Gardner — one iteration of the superhero Green Lantern — and Gathegi as Mister Terrific. David Corenswet will play Clark Kent aka Superman, as previously announced.

Studio boss James Gunn is directing from his own script, which draws on DC characters created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Safran is serving as producer.

Merced has a full dance card up ahead with roles in everything from Sony’s Madame Web to the Fede Alvarez-helmed Alien: Romulus, action thriller Ballerina Overdrive and Hannah Marks’ Turtles All the Way Down. Recent credits for the actress on the film side include Rosaline and Father of the Bride.

Isabela Merced to Star in 20th Century’s New “Alien” Movie

Posted on March 2, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Isabela Merced has landed an out of this world role…

The 21-year-old half-Peruvian American actress and singer will star opposite Cailee Spaeny in 20th Century’s new Alien movie.

Fede Alvarez is directing with Scott Free producing the film.

Not much is known about the film other than the iconic ferocious race of alien beings called Xenomorphs will be front and center, again reigning terror against the humans that cross their paths.

Merced recently starred as Juliet in the feature film Rosaline, 20th Century’s revisionist Romeo & Juliet tale opposite Kaitlyn Dever, streaming now on Hulu.

She can be seen next as the lead in New Line’s Turtles All the Way Down, the upcoming film adaptation of John Green’s New York Times best-selling novel for HBOMax.

She is also set to star alongside Dakota Johnson and Sydney Sweeney in Sony Pictures’ Madame Web, based on the Marvel comics.

Merced most recently appeared in Warner Bros.’ remake of Father of the Bride with Andy Garcia and Gloria Estefan. She also starred in the Netflix original thriller motion picture Sweet Girl opposite Jason Momoa and was the voice of Lucky Prescott in DreamWorks Animation’s Spirit Untamed.

Daniel Zovatto to Star Opposite Russell Crowe in Screen Gems’ Supernatural Thriller “The Pope’s Exorcist”

Posted on July 29, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Daniel Zovatto exorcising his right to work…

The 31-year-old Argentinian-Costa Rican actor will star opposite Russell Crowe in Screen Gems’ supernatural thriller The Pope’s Exorcist.

Directed by Julius Avery, the film stars Crowe as Father Gabriele Amorth, the legendary Italian priest who performed over 100,000 exorcisms for the Vatican—drawing on his international bestselling memoirs An Exorcist Tells His Story and An Exorcist: More Stories.

Father Amorth, who died in 2016, left behind a trove of additional accounts of his exploits pulling the devil out of people all over the world.

Screen Gems acquired his life rights for the project, along with rights to his memoirs.

Details on Zovatto’s role have not been disclosed.

The Pope’s Exorcist has been gestating at Screen Gems for a number of years, with Ángel Gómez having previously been attached to direct as of 2020.

Evan Spiliotopoulos wrote the current draft of the script, with revisions by Chuck MacLean, which is based on Michael Petroni-revised original drafts by Chester Hastings & R. Dean McCreary.

Zovatto can currently be seen on HBO Max’s Station Eleven and has also appeared on series like Penny Dreadful: City of Angels and Here and Now.

His other notable film credits include Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, Drake Doremus’ Newness, Fede Alvarez’s Don’t Breathe, David Robert Mitchell’s It Follows, and the late Lynn Shelton’s Laggies.

Fede Alvarez to Direct Hulu’s Original “Alien” Film

Posted on March 4, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Fede Alvarez has landed an out of this world project…

The 44-year-old Uruguayan filmmaker will write and direct an original Alien film for 20th Century Studios.

The Don’t Breathe filmmaker will direct the film for Hulu as part of studios deal to provide 10 films a year to the Disney-owned OTT service.

Alvarez’s pitch is reportedly completely separate from the previous films, according to Deadline.

Ridley Scott, who directed the 1979 original and two millennial editions, will produce through his Scott Free banner.

The new Alien film also will be distinct from Noah Hawley’s FX TV series, which network boss John Landgraf has said won’t feature Sigourney Weaver’s alien hunter Ripley.

“Alien takes place before Ripley. It’s the first story that takes place in the Alien franchise on Earth,” said Landgraf about the series. “So, it takes place on our planet. Right near the end of this century we’re in — so 70-odd years from now.”

Despite five scripts already being in for Alien, and Fargo only one, Hawley will shoot the latter series first as it needs to go into production this winter given its Midwest setting.

Rosario Dawson to Star in Apple TV+’s Genre-Bending Auditory Adaptation of Canal+’s “Calls”

Posted on March 5, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Rosario Dawson is placing some calls…

Apple TV+ announced the cast, which includes the 41-year-old Puerto Rican and Cuban American actress and activist, and set the premiere date for its genre-bending auditory adaptation of Canal Plus’ Calls.

In addition to Dawson, the stars featured in the first season of the nine-part drama, include Nick Jonas, Pedro Pascal, Lily Collins, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Aubrey Plaza are among the stars featuring in the first season of the nine-part drama.

Launching on Friday, March 19, the show uses audio and minimal abstract visuals to tell nine short-form stories. Each episode follows a dark mystery that unfolds through a series of seemingly average, unconnected phone calls that quickly become surreal as the characters face growingly unsettling experiences.

Based on a French series created by Timothée Hochet, it is directed by Fede Álvarez, who directed 2013’s Evil Dead feature and 2016’s horror film Don’t Breathe.

Nicholas Braun, Clancy Brown, Mark Duplass, Karen Gillan, Judy Greer, Paul Walter Hauser, Danny Huston, Riley Keough, Joey King, Stephen Lang, Jaeden Martell, Paola Nuñez, Edi Patterson, Danny Pudi, Ben Schwartz and Jennifer Tilly also appear in the first season.

Calls was the streamer’s first international series order back in June 2018 and it also marks its first global co-production – a tie up with French pay-TV broadcaster Canal+. Apple will launch the series, which is produced with Studiocanal and Bad Hombre, in 100 countries, while Canal+ will premiere a French-language version in a number of markets.

Apple will launch the series in a number of Spanish-speaking Latin America markets as Llamadas with Spanish-language custom graphics.

Fede Alvarez Agrees to Overall Deal with Legendary Pictures

Posted on November 21, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Fede Alvarez has a legendary deal…

The 41-year-oldUruguayan filmmaker, the writer and director behind Sony’s The Girl in the Spider’s Web starring Claire Foy, and his writing partner Rodolfo Sayagues have closed an overall deal with Legendary Pictures.

Under the pact, Alvarez and Sayagues will create, develop and produce films through their Bad Hombre Films banner starting with a Washington, D.C.-based horror film written by Joe Epstein, which Alvarez will direct.

Plot details are being kept under wraps, but the pic is described as The Shining set in the White House. Bad Hombre is also set to produce a reboot of the 1974 cult classic, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which will be penned by Chris Thomas Devlin.

Past projects from the duo include scripting Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe, both of which were directed by Alvarez. The former went on to gross $100m worldwide, while Don’t Breathe has a global cum of $157 million.

Sony Pictures Moving Forward with Alvarez’s “The Girl in the Spider’s Web”

Posted on March 15, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Fede Alvarez is definitely walking into a spider’s web…

Sony Pictures will move forward with The Girl in the Spider’s Web, the long-in-the-works follow-up to the studio’s 2011 pic The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, with the 39-year-old Uruguayan filmmaker still on board to direct.

Principal photography is set to begin in September with a release date scheduled for October 5, 2018.

The Don’t Breathe helmer has been aboard to direct the new pic based on the Millennium book series created by Stieg Larsson.

It will feature a whole new cast, including the role of the books’ linchpin Lisbeth Salander, played by Noomi Rapace in the original Swedish trilogy and Rooney Mara in Sony’s Dragon Tattoo directed by David Fincher.

Steven Knight, Alvarez and Jay Basu penned the script for the new movie.

The Girl in the Spider’s Web is the fourth book in the Millennium series and was written by David Lagercrantz after Larsson’s death; the fifth, also from Lagercrantz, was just launched at the London Book Fair.

Columbia Pictures president Sanford Panitch announced the new pic at the post-launch cocktail party and said Alvarez is meeting with actresses to play Salander. David Beaubaire is overseeing the project for the studio, which holds rights to the entire Millennium book series.

Columbia/Sony’s 2011 film was based on the first book in Larsson’s hot international-bestselling series centering on Salander, a tough-as-nails hacker with a steel-trap mind and a heart of gold. It was nominated for five Oscars including for Mara as Best Actress and won one for Editing. The film made $232.6 million worldwide, but a planned sequel never materialized.

Larsson died suddenly in 2004 before the books were published.

“I’m hugely excited and grateful for this opportunity,” Alvarez said in the announcement. “Sony has become family to me, and I can’t think of a more thrilling project to celebrate our relationship. Lisbeth Salander is the kind of character any director dreams of bringing to life. We’ve got a great script and now comes the most fun part — finding our Lisbeth.”

Alvarez Partners with Good Universe to Launch Content Company “Bad Hombre”

Posted on February 7, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Fede Alvarez is taking Donald Trump’s words to task…

The 38-year-old Uruguayan filmmaker, best known for directing Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe, has partnered with Good Universe to launch Bad Hombre, a new content company that will produce films across the horror, thriller and sci-fi genres.

“Bad Hombre” will ring bells for many…

During the third and final presidential debate Trump, who has favored deporting those who have arrived in the U.S. illegally, said, “We have some bad hombres here, and we’re going to get them out.”

Most recently, A White House official confirmed that Trump told Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto earlier this month that he might send U.S. troops to deal with “bad hombres down there” if the Mexican military doesn’t.

The deal marks an ongoing relationship between Good Universe and Alvarez. Good Universe co-founders Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane served as executive producers on Alvarez’s first two feature films as director — Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe via Ghost House Pictures — both of which were successful at the box office.

Evil Dead grossed $97.5M worldwide in 2013, while Don’t Breathe grossed $156.4M.

Alvarez will lead Bad Hombre creatively and has hired longtime collaborator Rodo Sayagues as an executive help build the slate of genre films.

Alvarez In Talks to Direct “Dante’s Inferno.”

Posted on September 18, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Fede Alvarez’s career is on fire…

The 35-year-old Uruguayan filmmaker is currently in talks to direct Dante’s Inferno.

Universal Pictures is setting Alvarez, the man behind the Evil Dead remake, to helm the live action adaptation of the Electronic Arts video game, which is rooted in the famous literary work.

The protagonist, Dante Aligheri is a knight who with the help of the poet Virgil ventures into the nine rings of hell to rescue his beloved Beatrice. In the process, he becomes an

unwitting pawn in an ancient war between heaven and hell. Rights to the video game were won by Universal several years ago in a bidding battle.

The game was released in 2010 for Xbox and PlayStation.

Álvarez’s “Evil Dead” Remake This Weekend’s Box Office Champ

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

The first time’s the charm for Fede Álvarez at the box office…

The 35-year-old Uruguayan filmmaker’s highly anticipated Evil Dead remake, his first feature film, proved to be the big winner at the North American box office in its opening weekend, earning an estimated $26 million.

The remake of Sam Raimi’s tale of demonic possession beat out the previous champ G.I. Joe: Retaliation, which came in No. 1 with an estimated $41.2 million last week.

Among the remakes of horror films, the Álvarez’s thriller earned more on opening weekend than Texas Chainsaw 3D, which opened to $21.7 million in January. But Evil Dead made less than Guillermo del Toro’s Mama, which earned $28.4 million in February. Receiving a “C+” from CinemaScore, it is predicted to wind up with around $50 million.

Here’s a look at this weekend’s Top 10 films at the box office:

1. Evil Dead – $26 million

2. G.I. Joe: Retaliation – $21.1 million (tie)

2. The Croods – $21.1 million (tie)

4. Jurassic Park – $18.2 million

5. Olympus Has Fallen – $10.4 million

6. Tyler Perry’s Temptation – $10 million

7. Oz: The Great and Powerful – $8.1 million

8. The Host (2013) – $5.2 million

9. The Call – $3.5 million

10. Admission – $2.05 million

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