Danny Ramirez to Star in Season 2 of HBO’s “The Last of Us”

You haven’t seen the last of Danny Ramirez.

The 31-year-old Colombian & Mexican American actor has joined the cast for the second season of HBO’s The Last of Us.

Danny RamirezRamirez is among a roster of new cast additions that includes Ariela Barer, Tati Gabrielle and Spencer Lord.

Based on Naughty Dog’s video game, The Last of Us takes place 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed.

Joel, played by SAG Award-winnerPedro Pascal, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie (Bella Ramsey), a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal and heartbreaking journey as they both must traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.

Ramirez will play Manny, a loyal soldier whose sunny outlook belies the pain of old wounds and a fear that he will fail his friends when they need him most.

Barer portrays Mel, a young doctor whose commitment to saving lives is challenged by the realities of war and tribalism.

Gabrielle is Nora, a military medic struggling to come to terms with the sins of her past.

Lord plays Owen, a gentle soul trapped in a warrior’s body, condemned to fight an enemy he refuses to hate.

In addition to Pascal and Ramsey, Season 1 also starred Gabriel Luna, Anna Torv, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett, Nick Offerman, Melanie Lynskey, Storm Reid, Merle Dandridge, Jeffrey Pierce, Lamar Johnson, Keivonn Woodard, Graham Greene, Elaine Miles, Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker.

The Last Of Us Season 2 is written and executive produced by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann. The series is a co-production with Sony Pictures Television.

Ramirez’s previous credits include Top Gun: Maverick, The Gifted, On My Block and Black Mirror. He’ll portray Joaquin Torres in Captain America: Brave New World.

A24 Releases New Trailer for Wagner Moura’s “Civil War”

There’s more war in Wagner Moura’s life…

A24 has released a new trailer for Civil War, starring the 47-year-old Brazilian actor, director and filmmaker, giving viewers a new gl;impseat the domestic carnage in store in the original action film.

Wagner Moura

The footage kicks off with an address from the President, played by Nick Offerman, who calls citizens to arms against “the Florida alliance and the Western forces of Texas and California” for their secession from the United States.

The trailer also teases new battle sequences taking place in New York City and Washington, D.C. — including a rocket launch obliterating the Lincoln Memorial.

Civil War is written and directed by Alex Garland, who previously teamed with A24 for the sci-fi thrillers Ex Machina and Men. He also helmed Annihilation and has notched screenplay credits for“28 Days Later, Sunshine and Dredd. He created, executive produced and wrote the FX limited series Devs.

“Civil War” stars Kirsten Dunst as a war photographer. The ensemble also includes Offerman, Moura, Cailee Spaeny, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Jesse Plemons and Sonoya Mizuno. A24 produces, alongside Gregory Goodman and DNA’s Andrew Macdonald and

Unlike the limited rollout of some A24 movies, “Civil War” will hit theaters nationwide with a wide release on April 12. The film is also getting premium large-format play with bookings in Imax auditoriums.

A24 Releases First Trailer for Wagner Moura’s Action Epic “Civil War”

It’s War time for Wagner Moura.

A24 has released the first trailer for he action epic Civil War, starring the 47-year-old Brazilian actor, director and filmmaker.

Wagner MouraHailing from Alex Garland, the film will be released in theaters (including on IMAX screens) on April 26, 2024.

While the film’s plot has been kept under wraps, it’s now described as chronicling a race to the White House in a near-future America balanced on the razor’s edge.

Moura, Kirsten Dunst and Cailee Spaeny appear to play journalists at a time when the United States has become a literal battleground, with 19 states seceding from the Union.

While not previously announced as part of the cast, Nick Offerman is introduced in the trailer as playing a fascist U.S. President, who’s at war with the so-called “Western Forces” of Texas and California. Also making an appearance as a threatening figure along our central trio’s path to D.C. is Dunst’s husband, Oscar nominee Jesse Plemons. Rounding out the cast are Stephen McKinley Henderson and Sonoya Mizuno.

Garland directed Civil War from his own script. In addition to serving as distributor, A24 produced the film alongside Andrew Macdonald and Allon Reich of DNA and Gregory Goodman.

Moura’s previous credits include the films The Gray Man, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish,and Wasp Network, as well as the television series Narcos.

Prime Video Renews Roberta Collindrez’s “A League of Their Own” for Second & Final Season

Roberta Collindrez will have more time in the batting cage…

Prime Video has renewed A League of Their Own, starring the 36-year-old Mexican actor and writer, for a second and final season.

Roberta ColindrezFollowing months of talks with Sony TV, the series will end with a four-episode Season 2, sources have confirmed.

The hourlong series, created by Will Graham and Abbi Jacobson, is an adaptation of Penny Marshall’s 1992 film.

It follows the formation of the WWII-era women’s professional baseball team, weaving in the experiences of both diverse and queer women at the center — earning the show a cult following.

Jacobson also stars alongside Chanté Adams, D’Arcy Carden, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Collindrez, Kelly McCormack, Priscilla Delgado, Molly Ephraim, Kate Berlant, Melanie Field, Nick Offerman, Rosie O’Donnell, Patrick J. Adams, Patrice Covington, Sadiah Ekulona, Lea Robinson, Andia Winslow, Rae Gray and Lil Frex.

Amazon Studios and Sony Pictures Television produce in association with Field Trip Productions. The series is co-created and executive produced by Graham and Jacobson.

The first season was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award, NAACP Image Award and Independent Spirit Award for Ikumelo for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series.

HBO Renews Pedro Pascal’s “The Last of Us” for Second Season

You haven’t seen the last of Pedro Pascal

HBO has renewed its high-profile drama The Last of Us, starring the 47-year-old Chilean actor, for a second season.

Pedro PascalThe announcement comes just after two episodes of the video game-based series from Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann.

Earlier this month, The Last of Us scored the second-largest premiere after House of the Dragon since Boardwalk Empire’s launch in 2010.

Episode 1 has surpassed 22 million viewers domestically, up nearly five times from its premiere-night audience on January 15. Episode 2 drew 5.7 million viewers across HBO Max and linear telecasts in the U.S. Sunday night. That’s about a million more than the audience that tuned in for the premiere episode and it marks the largest Week 2 audience growth for any HBO Original drama series. The series also is strong on social media, trending No. 1 both in the U.S. and worldwide on Twitter during its series debut.

“Craig and Neil, alongside EP Carolyn Strauss, and the rest of our phenomenal cast and crew, have defined a genre with their masterful debut season of The Last of Us,” said Francesca Orsi, EVP of HBO Programming, Head of HBO Drama Series and Films. “After pulling off this unforgettable first season, I can’t wait to watch this team outshine themselves again with Season 2.”

Based on Naughty Dog’s award-winning video game, The Last of Us takes place 20 years after modern civilization has been destroyed.

Joel, played by Pascal, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie (Bella Ramsey), a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal and heartbreaking journey as they both must traverse the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.

“I’m humbled, honored, and frankly overwhelmed that so many people have tuned in and connected with our retelling of Joel and Ellie’s journey. The collaboration with Craig Mazin, our incredible cast & crew, and HBO exceeded my already high expectations,” said executive producer Druckmann. “Now we have the absolute pleasure of being able to do it again with season two! On behalf of everyone at Naughty Dog & PlayStation, thank you!”

In addition to Pascal and Ramsey, Season 1 also stars Gabriel Luna, Anna Torv, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett, Nick Offerman, Melanie Lynskey, Storm Reid, Merle Dandridge, Jeffrey Pierce, Lamar Johnson, Keivonn Woodard, Graham Greene, Elaine Miles, Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker.

“I’m so grateful to Neil Druckmann and HBO for our partnership, and I’m even more grateful to the millions of people who have joined us on this journey,” said executive producer Mazin. “The audience has given us the chance to continue, and as a fan of the characters and world Neil and Naughty Dog created, I couldn’t be more ready to dive back in.”

The Last of Us is written and executive produced by Mazin and Druckmann. The series is a co-production with Sony Pictures Television.

Netflix & DreamWorks Animation Release Full Trailer for Guillermo del Toro’s “Trollhunters: Rise Of The Titans”

Guillermo del Toro on the hunt

Netflix and DreamWorks Animation have released the first full trailer for Trollhunters: Rise Of The Titans, which was co-written and executive-produced by the 56-year-old Mexican Oscar-winning filmmaker.

Guillermo del Toro

The animated film, which will be released on the streaming service on July 21, is set in the world created by del Toro in his epic Emmy-winning Tales Of Arcadia trilogy.

In the animated fantasy adventure, Arcadia may look like an ordinary town but it lies at the center of magical and mystical lines that makes it a nexus for many battles among otherworldly creatures including trolls, aliens and wizards. Now, the heroes from the Trollhunters series team up in their most epic adventure yet, where they must fight the Arcane Order for control over the magic that binds them all.

Trollhunters: Rise Of The Titans

“From the beginning, I tried to get together a group that would bring things to the table that were different,” says del Toro of the team behind the project.

He says the project was conceived as “three series that you can put together like a diorama and then you see how on an early episode of Trollhunters you’re going to see the characters of wizards and 3Below interacting, and then go back on a Möbius strip and see other episodes from the others’ point of view. Then finish with a movie.” He noted, “It sounded really crazy, but we were very careful in how we developed the assets, but also in the storytelling.”

Trollhunters: Rise Of The Titans

del Toro previously pitched the series as live-action and set in the 1980s. Per del Toro, then-DWA chief Jeffrey Katzenberg replied, “We don’t do TV.” So, del Toro explained, “we started to try to cram it all into a feature. It was impossible.” Then, “One fateful morning Jeffrey invited me for breakfast, and when he pays for breakfast there’s something about to go, and he said, ‘Don’t kill me, but what do you think about doing it as a TV series?’ And I said, ‘That’s the best news we’ve ever had.’”

Trollhunters: Rise Of The Titans

The extensive voice cast includes Emile Hirsch, Lexi Medrano, Charlie Saxton, Kelsey Grammer, Alfred Molina, Steven Yeun, Nick Frost, Colin O’Donoghue, Diego Luna, Tatiana Maslany, Cole Sand, Nick Offerman, Fred Tatasciore, Brian Blessed, Kay Bess, Piotr Michael, James Hong, Tom Kenny, Angel Lin, Amy Landecker, Jonathan Hyde, Bebe Wood, Laraine Newman, Grey Griffin and Cheryl Hines.

Along with del Toro, writers are Marc Guggenheim, Dan Hageman and Kevin Hageman.

Guillermo del Toro’s Animated “Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans” Film to Premiere on Netflix in July

Guillermo del Toro will be troll-ing Netflix this summer…

The 56-year-old Mexican filmmaker and two-time The Shape of Water Oscar has shared the release date and first teaser for his NetflixDreamWorks Animation movie Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans

Guillermo del Toro

Executive produced by del Toro, the filmwill hit the service on July 21.

The film is set in the world created by del Toro in his epic Tales of Arcadia trilogy. Arcadia may look like an ordinary town but it lies at the center of magical and mystical lines that makes it a nexus for many battles among otherworldly creatures including trolls, aliens and wizards. Now the heroes from the Trollhunters series team up in their most epic adventure yet where they must fight the Arcane Order for control over the magic that binds them all.

The film features the voices of Emile Hirsch, Lexi Medrano, Charlie Saxton, Kelsey Grammer, Alfred Molina, Steven Yeun, Nick Frost, Colin O’Donoghue, Diego Luna, Tatiana Maslany, Cole Sand, Nick Offerman, Fred Tatasciore, Brian Blessed, Kay Bess, Piotr Michael, James Hong, Tom Kenny, Angel Lin, Amy Landecker, Jonathan Hyde, Bebe Wood, Laraine Newman, Grey Griffin and Cheryl Hines.

https://twitter.com/NetflixFilm/status/1387074059884634118

Johane Matte, Franisco Ruiz Velasco, and Andrew L. Schmidt directed from a screenplay written by Marc Guggenheim, Dan Hageman, and Kevin Hageman. EPs with del Toro are Guggenheim, Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman and Chad Hammes.

Aubrey Plaza to Appear in NBC’s Special “Parks and Recreation” Reunion Episode

Aubrey Plazais going back to Pawnee, to Pawnee…

The 35-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress/comedian and her fellow Parks and Recreation cast mates will return to Pawnee, Indiana, for a one-time special amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

Aubrey Plaza

The half-hour scripted special to benefit Feeding America’s COVID-19 Response Fundis set to air on Thursday, April 30 at 8:30 pm ET/PT.

All of the original characters from the series will return in the Universal TV-produced special, played by original cast members Amy PoehlerRashida Jones, Aziz AnsariNick Offerman, Plaza as April Ludgate, Chris PrattAdam ScottRob LoweJim O’Heir, and Retta.

Parks and Recreation

 

Several guest stars from the Pawnee universe may pop in as well.

The story comes from the events of the day – Pawnee’s most dedicated civil servant, Leslie Knope (Poehler), is determined to stay connected to her friends in a time of social distancing.

 “Like a lot of other people, we were looking for ways to help and felt that bringing these characters back for a night could raise some money,” said executive producer Michael Schur. “I sent a hopeful email to the cast and they all got back to me within 45 minutes. Our old ‘Parks and Rec’ team has put together one more 30-minute slice of (quarantined) Pawnee life and we hope everyone enjoys it. And donates!”

The special comes five years after viewers said farewell to the iconic comedy series.

“In such uncertain times, we can’t think of anyone better than Leslie Knope to unite our country with her unbridled enthusiasm and compassion,” said Lisa Katz and Tracey Pakosta, Co-Presidents of Scripted Programming, NBC Entertainment. “A huge thank you to Mike Schur and the cast of Parks and Recreationfor putting this wonderful special together and bringing a smile to all our faces while raising money for such a worthwhile cause.”

State Farmand Subaru of Americawill each make matching donations of $150,000 and, combined with NBCUniversaland the writers/producers/cast of Parks and Recreation, a total of $500,000 in matching donations will be made through May 21. 

Parks and Recreationreceived a Peabody Award for excellence in television programming, an AFIhonor as one of the Top 10 Television Shows of the Yearand several Emmynominations including Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing and lead actress for Poehler, who won a Golden Globe for her performance in 2014.

Guillermo Del Toro Unveils Trailer for His Diego Luna-Voiced Series “DreamWorks Tales of Arcadia: 3Below”

Guillermo Del Toro is going 3 below

The 54-year-old Mexican Oscar-winning filmmaker, screenwriter and producer has unveiled a first look at Netflix’s DreamWorks Tales of Arcadia: 3Below, the second chapter in the DreamWorks Tales of Arcadia.

Guillermo del Toro

del Toro, 3Below’screator and executive producer, shared details of the project at New York Comic Con. He was joined by voice talent Diego Luna, and fellow executive producers Rodrigo Blaas, Marc Guggenheim and Chad Hammes.

The series will feature Luna and Tatiana Maslany in the lead roles of Krel and Aja. Nick Offerman, Andy Garcia, Nick Frost, Alon AboutboulChris Obi, Uzo Aduba, Cheryl HinesTom Kenny, Haley Atwell, Danny Trejo, and Ann Dowd will be lending their voices along with returning talent from Trollhunters including Emile Hirsch, Charlie Saxton, Lexi Medrano, Steven YeunCole Sands, Kelsey Grammer and more.

Additionally, The Crystal Method created the main title theme that is heard in the opening credits video.

In 3Below,two royal teenage aliens, and their bodyguard flee a surprise takeover of their home planet by an evil dictator and crash land in Arcadia. Now on the run from intergalactic bounty hunters, they struggle to blend in and adapt to the bizarre world of high school all the while attempting to repair their ship so they can return and defend their home planet.

DreamWorks Tales of Arcadia: 3Belowpremieres on December 21 on Netflix.

Stephanie Beatriz Joins Voice Cast of Warner Bros.’ “The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part”

Stephanie Beatriz has landed a Sweet role… 

The 37-year-oldArgentine actress and Brooklyn Nine-Nine star has joined the voice cast of Warner Bros.’ The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part alongside Broad City‘s Arturo Castro.

Stephanie Beatriz

Beatriz will portray new character Sweet Mayhem; Castro will play new character Ice Cream Cone.

Also confirmed to return is Alison Brie as Unikitty and Nick Offerman as Metal Beard.

They join previously announced cast members from the first movie Chris Pratt (Emmet), Elizabeth Banks (Lucy), Will Arnett (Lego Batman) as well as Tiffany Haddish who plays a new character Queen Watevra Wa-Nabi.

Mike Mitchell, of Shrek Forever AfterTrolls, and Sky High directs.

Lego Movie 2 is being produced by the same team behind the Lego film franchise since the first feature title debuted in 2014. That film racked up $469M at the global box office.

The Lego Movie 2 reunites the heroes of Bricksburg and takes place five years after the first movie. They face a new threat: Lego Duplo invaders from outer space, wrecking everything faster than they can rebuild. The battle to defeat them and restore harmony to the Lego universe will take Emmet, Lucy, Batman and their friends to faraway, unexplored and musical worlds.

Lego Movie 2 opens nationwide in 2D and 3D on February 8., 2019.