Pedro Pascal Reportedly Inching Closer to Deal to Portray Mr. Fantastic in Marvel Studios’ “Fantastic Four”

It appears Pedro Pascal may be in for a Fantastic time…

Following months of speculation about who may be playing Reed Richards aka Mr. Fantastic in Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four, the 48-year-old Chilean actor’s name has emerged as a top contender for the role.

Pedro PascalWhile a deal is nowhere near complete, Deadline is reporting that three-time Emmy nominee  is in talks to play the leader of the iconic superhero team.

Insiders add that scheduling is still being worked out, but multiple sources close to the negotiations say it’s headed in the right direction for Pascal to take on this role and his other future projects.

Pascal has a full dance card that includes Gladiator 2, which is expected to go into production before the end of the year, as well as the second season of his popular HBO series The Last Of Uswhich is expected to shoot next year. He’s also expected to shoot Zach Cregger’s Weapons.

Marvel had no comment.

Director Matt Shakman is currently in pre-production at Pinewood Studios in England.

Pedro Pascal Awarded Gold Derby TV Awards’ Performer of the Year Prize

It’s the Golden hour for Pedro Pascal

The 48-year-old Chilean actor has claimed the Performer of the Year award, the most coveted prize, at this year’s Gold Derby TV Awards.

Pedro PascalThat award honors a performer for their overall impact throughout the television season; Pascal’s one-two punch of The Last of Us and Saturday Night Live (for which we also awarded the Best Comedy Guest Actor prize, not to mention his Emmy-nominated narration for the nature program Patagonia helped him secure that prize for the first time, bringing his career total to four Gold Derby TV Awards.

He previously won Best Drama Guest Actor and Best Drama Guest Actor of the Decade (2010-2019) for his stint on Game of Thrones.

More than 1,400 registered Gold Derby users voted worldwide to decide the winners of the 20th annual Gold Derby TV Awards, which honor the best achievements in television and streaming programs from June 2022 through May 2023.

Here’s a look at the complete list of winners:

DRAMA SERIES:
“Succession”

DRAMA ACTRESS:
Sarah Snook, “Succession”

DRAMA ACTOR:
Kieran Culkin, “Succession”

DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Rhea Seehorn, “Better Call Saul”

DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Matthew Macfadyen, “Succession”

DRAMA GUEST ACTRESS:
Harriet Walter, “Succession”

DRAMA GUEST ACTOR:
Nick Offerman, “The Last of Us”

DRAMA EPISODE:
“Succession” – “Connor’s Wedding”
Writer: Jesse Armstrong
Director: Mark Mylod

COMEDY SERIES:
“The Bear”

COMEDY ACTRESS:
Quinta Brunson, “Abbott Elementary”

COMEDY ACTOR:
Jeremy Allen White, “The Bear”

COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Ayo Edebiri, “The Bear”

COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Anthony Carrigan, “Barry”

COMEDY GUEST ACTRESS:
Taraji P. Henson, “Abbott Elementary”

COMEDY GUEST ACTOR:
Pedro Pascal, “Saturday Night Live”

COMEDY EPISODE:
“The Bear” – “Review”
Writer: Joanna Calo
Director: Christopher Storer

LIMITED SERIES:
“Beef”

TV MOVIE:
“Weird: The Al Yankovic Story”

LIMITED/MOVIE ACTRESS:
Ali Wong, “Beef”

LIMITED/MOVIE ACTOR:
Steven Yeun, “Beef”

LIMITED/MOVIE SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Niecy Nash-Betts, “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story”

LIMITED/MOVIE SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Paul Walter Hauser, “Black Bird”

VARIETY SCRIPTED SERIES:
“Saturday Night Live”

VARIETY TALK SERIES:
“The Problem with Jon Stewart”

COMPETITION PROGRAM:
“RuPaul’s Drag Race”

REALITY HOST:
RuPaul Charles, “RuPaul’s Drag Race”

ANIMATED PROGRAM:
“Harley Quinn”

PERFORMER OF THE YEAR:
Pedro Pascal

BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMER OF THE YEAR:
Ayo Edebiri

ENSEMBLE OF THE YEAR:
“Succession”

Pedro Almodóvar to Take Part in Toronto International Film Festival’s Conversation With… Series

Pedro Almodóvar is preparing for a special conversation

The 73-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning film director and screenwriter will appear as part of the Toronto International Film Festival’s Conversation With… (ICW) series for this year’s fest.

Pedro AlmodovarIn addition to Almodovar, others taking part in the series include Hong Kong actor Andy Lau and Concrete Utopia Korean stars Lee Byung-hun and Park Seo-jun.

“TIFF’s 2023 In Conversation With… series exemplifies our belief that film can ignite perspectives and fuel transformation,” said Anita Lee, TIFF Chief Programming Officer. “We are delighted to welcome a powerhouse lineup of international iconoclasts from Spain, South Korea, and Hong Kong for film lovers of all genres.”

Almodóvar is already set to receive TIFF’s Jeff Skoll Award in Impact Media this year at the fest’s Tribute Awards. His short, Strange Way of Lifewhich played at Cannes, will also make its North American premiere at TIFF. Short follows the relationship between a sheriff (Ethan Hawke) and a rancher (Pedro Pascal) and their shared past.

Sony Pictures Classics to Release Pedro Almodóvar’s “Strange Way of Life” Short Film in U.S. Theaters

Pedro Almodóvar’s latest short film will be hitting theaters in the United States this fall.

The 73-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning filmmaker’s Strange Way of Life, which had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in the spring, will arrive in theaters in New York City and Los Angeles on October 4 thanks to Sony Pictures Classics.

Pedro AlmodovarThere will be an expansion nationwide on Oct. 6.

The short film, starring Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal, will play in theaters alongside Almodóvar’s 2020 short film, The Human Voicestarring Tilda Swinton, which was also distributed by Sony Pictures Classics. Together, the two shorts represent Almodóvar’s only English-language projects to date.

Strange Way of Life follows two gunmen who reunite after many years. In the film, a man rides a horse across the desert that separates him from Bitter Creek. He comes to visit Sheriff Jake. Twenty-five years earlier, both the sheriff and Silva, the rancher who rides out to meet him, worked together as hired gunmen. Silva visits him with the excuse of reuniting with his friend from his youth, and they do indeed celebrate their meeting, but the next morning Sheriff Jake tells him that the reason for his trip is not to go down the memory lane of their old friendship…

Pedro Pascal, Strange Way of LifeProduced by Almodóvar’s El Deseo and presented by Saint Laurent by Anthony VaccarelloStrange Way of Life, stars Pedro Casablanc, Manu Ríos, George Steane, José Condessa, Jason Fernández and Sara Sálamo. It is produced by Agustín Almodóvar, with Esther García as EP and Bárbara Peiró, Diego Pajuelo, and Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello as associate producers.

The score is composed by four-time Oscar nominee Alberto Iglesias, a regular Almodóvar collaborator who received his most recent Oscar nomination in 2022 for Almodóvar’s Paralell Mothers. All characters are costumed by Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello.

SPC has long-teamed with Almodóvar on a majority of his films, including most recently Parallel Mothers in 2021 and Pain and Glory in 2019. Sony Pictures Classics, which received two Oscar nominations each.

Pedro Pascal Earns TCA Awards Nod from Television Critics Association

Pedro Pascal is a critics’ choice…

Television Critics Association has announced the nominees for its 39th annual TCA Awards, with the 48-year-old Chilean actor earning a nod.

Pedro PascalPascal, a SAG Awards nominee for being part of the ensemble cast of Game of Thrones, is up for Individual Achievement in Drama for his work on HBO and Max’s The Last of Us, which received five total nods.

The 2023 nominees for the TCA Awards boast an eclectic lineup from across the entertainment spectrum,” said Melanie McFarland, TCA President and TV Critic for Salon.com. “This season truly had something for everyone—from innovative comedies and gripping dramas to immersive documentaries and refreshingly cerebral storytelling set in a galaxy far, far away. I am eager to see which stars and series our members have chosen to honor when the winners are revealed.”

Winners will get their hardware during the ceremony on Monday, August 7.

Here are all the nominees for the 2023 TCA Awards:

INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA
Christine Baranski, The Good Fight – Paramount+
Kieran Culkin, Succession – HBO | Max
Dominique Fishback, Swarm – Prime Video
Betty Gilpin, Mrs. Davis – Peacock
Pedro Pascal, The Last of Us – HBO | Max
Bella Ramsey, The Last of Us – HBO | Max
Rhea Seehorn, Better Call Saul – AMC
Sarah Snook, Succession – HBO | Max
Jeremy Strong, Succession – HBO | Max

INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY
Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary – ABC
Ayo Edebiri, The Bear – FX
Harrison Ford – Shrinking – Apple TV+
Bill Hader, Barry – HBO | Max
Janelle James, Abbott Elementary – ABC
Natasha Lyonne, Poker Face – Peacock
James Marsden, Jury Duty – Amazon Freevee
Jeremy Allen White, The Bear – FX

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN NEWS AND INFORMATION
30 for 30 – ESPN
Free Chol Soo Lee – PBS
Frontline – PBS
Pepsi, Where’s My Jet? – Netflix
Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence – Hulu
Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi – Hulu
The 1619 Project – Hulu
The U.S. and the Holocaust – PBS

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN REALITY
Couples Therapy – Showtime
Jury Duty – Amazon Freevee
RuPaul’s Drag Race – MTV
The Rehearsal – HBO | Max
The Traitors – Peacock
Top Chef – Bravo
Vanderpump Rules – Bravo
Welcome to Wrexham – FX

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN CHILDREN’S PROGRAMMING 
Alma’s Way – PBS Kids
Bluey – Disney+
Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood – PBS Kids
Donkey Hodie – PBS Kids
Eva the Owlet – Apple TV+
Molly of Denali – PBS Kids
Ridley Jones – Netflix
Sesame Street – HBO | Max
Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures – Disney Junior/Disney+

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN FAMILY PROGRAMMING 
American Born Chinese – Disney+
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series – Disney+
Jane – Apple TV+
Love, Victor – Hulu
Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur – Disney Channel
Ms. Marvel – Disney+
Never Have I Ever – Netflix
Star Trek: Prodigy – Paramount+
The Mysterious Benedict Society – Disney+

OUTSTANDING NEW PROGRAM
Andor – Disney+
Interview with the Vampire – AMC
Jury Duty – Amazon Freevee
Mrs. Davis – Peacock
Poker Face – Peacock
Shrinking – Apple TV+
The Bear – FX
The Last of Us – HBO | Max

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN MOVIES, MINISERIES OR SPECIALS
A Small Light – National Geographic
Beef – Netflix
Black Bird – Apple TV+
Daisy Jones & The Six – Prime Video
Fleishman is in Trouble – FX
Mrs. Davis – Peacock
The Patient – FX
Weird: The Al Yankovic Story – The Roku Channel

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMA
Andor – Disney+
Better Call Saul – AMC
Interview with the Vampire – AMC
Succession – HBO | MAX
The Good Fight – Paramount+
The Last of Us – HBO | Max
The White Lotus – HBO | Max
Yellowjackets – Showtime

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY
Abbott Elementary – ABC
Barry – HBO | Max
Poker Face– Peacock
Reservation Dogs – FX
Shrinking – Apple TV+
The Bear – FX
The Other Two – HBO | Max
What We Do in the Shadows – FX

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN VARIETY, TALK OR SKETCH
The Amber Ruffin Show – Peacock
|A Black Lady Sketch Show – HBO | Max
I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson – Netflix
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver – HBO | Max
Late Night with Seth Meyers – NBC
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert – CBS
Saturday Night Live – NBC
Ziwe – Showtime

PROGRAM OF THE YEAR
Abbott Elementary – ABC
Andor – Disney+
Better Call Saul – AMC
Poker Face – Peacock
Succession – HBO | Max
The Bear – FX
The Last of Us – HBO | Max
The Other Two – HBO | Max
The White Lotus – HBO | Max

Jenna Ortega to Appear on This Season’s “Variety Studio: Actors on Actors”

Jenna Ortega is talkin’ shop with a fellow former child star…

Variety’s Actors on Actors series returns featuring the biggest stars in this year’s Television Emmys race for Season 18, including the 20-year-old Puerto Rican & Mexican American actress.

Jenna OrtegaOrtega, who stars in Netflix’s acclaimed series Wednesday, will sit down with The Great actress Elle Fanning for their segment.

But Ortega isn’t the only Latinx artist to participate this season…

Pedro Pascal, the star of HBO’s The Last of Use, will sit down with Steven Yeun, who stars in Netflix’s Beef.

Meanwhile, in a Star Wars themed conversation, Diego Luna, the star of Andor, will appear opposite opposite Hayden Christensen of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

The four episodes will debut on PBS SoCal on Thursday, June 15th starting at 8:00 pm, followed by encores on KCET and public television stations across the country and the WORLD Channel (check local listings). All episodes will stream on pbssocal.org and the free PBS App following their premieres.

Variety’s Actors on Actors issue will hit newsstands on June 7th and the conversations will start airing on Tuesday, June 6th on Variety.com and its social media channels.

This year’s “Actors on Actors” lineup includes:

Katherine Heigl (“Firefly Lane”) with Ellen Pompeo (“Grey’s Anatomy”)
Jeremy Allen White (“The Bear”) with Jennifer Coolidge (“The White Lotus”)
Ali Wong (“Beef”) with Jason Segel (“Shrinking”)
Jenna Ortega (“Wednesday”) with Elle Fanning (“The Great”)
Kieran Culkin (“Succession”) with Claire Danes (“Fleishman Is in Trouble”)
Melanie Lynskey (“Yellowjackets”) with Natasha Lyonne (“Poker Face”)
Brett Goldstein (“Ted Lasso”) with Theo James (“The White Lotus”)
Steven Yeun (“Beef”) with Pedro Pascal (“The Last of Us”)
Diego Luna (“Andor”) with Hayden Christensen (“Obi-Wan Kenobi”)
Meghann Fahy (“The White Lotus”) with Elizabeth Olsen (“Love and Death”)
Sheryl Lee Ralph (“Abbott Elementary”) with Jennifer Garner (“The Last Thing He Told Me”)
Brian Cox (“Succession”) with Emily Blunt (“The English”)
Rachel Weisz (“Dead Ringers”) with Taron Egerton (“Black Bird”)

Variety Studio: Actors on Actors won a Daytime Emmy Award in 2019, as well as the Los Angeles Area Emmy Award for best entertainment programming in 2015 and 2016.

The series is produced by PBS SoCal in partnership with Variety Media, LLC.

Pedro Pascal in Final Negotiations to Star in Paramount’s Untitled “Gladiator” Sequel

Pedro Pascal is ready to Rome

The 48-year-old Chilean actor is thisclose to joining the cast of the untitled Gladiator sequel for Paramount.

Pascal would join Paul Mescal, who will star as Lucius, as well as Barry Keoghan, Joseph Quinn, Connie Nielsen and Denzel Washington.

Ridley Scott is returning to direct.

Pascal’s role is unknown.

The new film follows the 2000 blockbuster Gladiator, which earned more than $460 million in worldwide box office and was nominated for 12 Oscars, winning five including Best Picture.

The role of Maximus, the Roman general-turned-gladiator, was a career-changer for Russell Crowe, not only delivering him the Best Actor Oscar but also launching him to the top of every leading-man list. Once it was made clear last year that the sequel would be Scott’s next movie, every male actor in town that fit the profile began chasing the part.

David Scarpa penned the script.

Also returning from the original film are John Mathieson (director of photography), Arthur Max (production designer) and Janty Yates (costume designer).

Paramount Pictures has dated the film for November 22, 2024.

The first film was co-production between Universal and DreamWorks, and while DreamWorks will not be involved in the sequel, Universal has the right to partner again when the project is packaged.

Pascal has been a major player following his scene-stealing role in his one season on Game of Thronesbut his star has blasted off following The Last of Uswhich has become one of the most popular shows in HBO’s history. While HBO is looking to get the show up and going next year, Pascal had been weighing a number of options to shoot before jumping back in to that and the opportunity on this film was too hard to pass up.

Besides The Last of Us, which will certainly have him in award season chatter this Emmy season, he also reprised his role on the Disney+ series The Mandalorianwhich just had its Season 3 finale last week.

Pascal can next be seen starring alongside Ethan Hawke in Pedro Almodovar’s short film Strange Way of Life, which will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and will be distributed by Sony Pictures Classics this fall.

Additionally, Pascal is in Ethan Coen’s film Drive-Away Dolls, distributed by Focus Features and releasing in September. Pascal also stars in Anna Boden’s Freaky Tales, which is likely to come out later this year.

He also hosted Saturday Night Live earlier this year, earning rave reviews, and is also in contention for some Emmy love this awards season.

Sony Pictures Classics Acquires Worldwide Rights to Pedro Almodovar’s “Strange Way of Life,” Starring Pedro Pascal

Pedro Pascal’s strange way of life will be on full display globally…

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the worldwide rights (outside of the UK, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Italy and Latin America) to Strange Way of Life, the buzzy short film starring the Chilean actor.

Pedro Pascal, Strange Way of LifeThe film, from Pedro Almodóvar, also stars Ethan Hawke.

The short will premiere as an official selection of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.

The film, acquired at the pre-production phase, is slated for release this fall and will almost certainly be positioned for awards consideration, given the caliber of talent behind it.

Following two gunmen who reunite after 25 years, Strange Way of Life marks the latest in a long line of collaborations between Almodóvar and SPC, coming on the heels of the filmmaker’s first English-language project The Human Voice — a short also distributed by SPC, which starred Tilda Swinton.

Almodóvar describes the plot as follows: “A man rides a horse across the desert that separates him from Bitter Creek. He comes to visit Sheriff Jake. Twenty-five years earlier, both the sheriff and Silva, the rancher who rides out to meet him, worked together as hired gunmen. Silva visits him with the excuse of reuniting with his friend from his youth, and they do indeed celebrate their meeting, but the next morning Sheriff Jake tells him that the reason for his trip is not to go down the memory lane of their old friendship…”

Produced by Almodóvar’s El Deseo and presented by Saint Laurent by Anthony VaccarelloStrange Way of Life also stars Pedro Casablanc, Manu Ríos, George Steane, José Condessa, Jason Fernández and Sara Sálamo.

Agustín Almodóvar produced, with Esther García as executive producer, and Bárbara Peiró, Diego Pajuelo and Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello as associate producers.

Four-time Oscar nom and regular Almodóvar collaborator Alberto Iglesias penned the score, with Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello handling the costumes.

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.

Pedro Almodóvar’s Short Film “Strange Way of Life” to World Premiere at Cannes Film Festival

Pedro Almodóvar’s latest project is headed to the Cannes Film Festival.

The 73-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning director’s short film Strange Way of Life will have its world premiere at the upcoming 76th edition of the festival, which will run from May 16-27.

Pedro AlmodovarThe Western shot in southern Spain stars Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal and is the filmmaker’s second English-language experience, after The Human Voice in 2020.

The film had been widely expected to play at Cannes after the director told singer-songwriter Dua Lipa that he expected it to premiere the festival in an interview for her At Your Service podcast in January.

Pedro Almodóvar, "Strange Way of Life"The screening of Almodóvar’s Strange Way of Life will be followed by a conversation with the director and the filmmaking team.

The work revolves around a reunion between a sheriff and a rancher who knew one another in a previous life.

The synopsis provided by Almodóvar and posted by the festival reads: “A man rides a horse across the desert that separates him from Bitter Creek. He comes to visit Sheriff Jake. Twenty-five years earlier, both the sheriff and Silva, the rancher who rides out to meet him, worked together as hired gunmen. Silva visits him with the excuse of reuniting with his friend from his youth, and they do indeed celebrate their meeting, but the next morning Sheriff Jake tells him that the reason for his trip is not to go down the memory lane of their old friendship.”

“I must say no more so as not to give away all the surprises of the script,” adds the director. “The strange way of life referred in the title alludes to the famous fado by Amalia Rodrigues, whose lyrics suggest that there is no stranger existence than the one that is lived by turning your back on your own desires.”

The film is produced by Agustín Almodóvar with Esther García as executive producer and Bárbara Peiró, Diego Pajuelo and Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello as associate producers.

Further cast members alongside Hawke and Pascal include Pedro Casablanc, Manu Ríos, George Steane, José Condessa, Jason Fernández, Sara Sálamo, Ohiana Cueto and Daniela Medina.