Jessica Alba To Take Part in Creative Artists Agency’s Amplify Summit 2023

Posted on June 25, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Jessica Alba is amplifying her voice…

The 42-year-old half-Mexican American actress and entrepreneur has joined the list of Hollywood speakers and attendees for the Creative Artists Agency’s Amplify Summit 2023.

The invitation-only event kicks off on June 26 in Ojai, Calif., and will convene leading artists, thought-leaders, and executives of color from the industries of entertainment, sports, media, brands and technology.

While there, invitees will have the opportunity to explore business and social justice initiatives, as well as potential collaborations that could “accelerate transformational change in rooms of leadership and popular culture,” according to the event’s organizers.

“CAA Amplify has long utilized CAA’s role as conveners and connectors to create business opportunities for our communities, bringing decision makers together in one room,” CAA’s Natalie Tran, who has been a lead organizer for the summit since its inception. “Now, more than ever, the collective expertise and influence of the CAA Amplify network are essential to drive stronger collaborations in storytelling and partnerships that will help spark change across our industries.”

The complete list of attendees frequently straddle multiple industries and titles, and have notable award nominations and wins.

That includes actors Lupita Nyong’o, Steven Yeun, Xolo Maridueña, Thuso Mbedu, Yara Shahidi and Jillian Mercado; directors Ava DuVernay and Blitz Bazawule; showrunners Quinta Brunson and Sierra Teller Ornelas; recording artists Chloe and Halle Bailey, and Becky G.; comedians Roy Wood Jr. and Ego Nwodim; NBA pro-athletes Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul; author Anand Giridharadas; media personality Tabitha Brown; The Honest Company founder Alba and CEO Carla Vernón; Planned Parenthood president Alexis McGill Johnson; president of the Ford Foundation Darren Walker; and co-founder and CEO of Inflection AI, Mustafa Suleyman, among other leaders.

Brandon Perea to Star in Upcoming “Twister” Sequel, “Twisters”

Posted on May 13, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Brandon Perea is getting twisted…

The 27-year-old half-Puerto Rican actor will star in the upcoming Twister sequel.

Perea, a standout in Jordan Peele’s Nope, joins Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell and Anthony Ramos in Twisters, directed by Lee Isaac Chung from a script by writer Mark L. Smith.

The film, from Universal Pictures, Warner Bros. and Amblin Entertainment, is described as a “new chapter” of the 1996 movie, which followed a team of storm chasers as they hunted down the most powerful tornado in decades.

Plot details, including Perea’s role, are being kept under wraps.

Twisters is slated for release on July 19, 2024.

The original Twister was a massive hit, earning more than $494 million at the worldwide box office, which is often credited to the film’s groundbreaking special effects. Starring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton, the film was helmed by director Jan De Bont and executive produced by Steven Spielberg, from a screenplay by Michael Crichton.

Before Nope, Perea was best known for his work in Netflix’s The OA, where he played Alfonso “French” Sosa for two seasons. Then, Perea auditioned for Peele, delivering such a compelling performance that the Oscar winner rewrote the part of Angel Torres to suit the actor, casting him alongside Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, Steven Yeun and Michael Wincott.

“This is the greatest miracle to ever experience,” Perea told Variety on the red carpet at the film’s world premiere last July. “For Jordan to change the role for me is just truly a blessing. And I’m glad I just went with my gut feeling of, like, you know what, let me go do something different. I know Jordan is just full of surprises, so I was just like, ‘Let me surprise him.’ So I’m glad that I was able to.”

In another interview with Variety, Perea explained that Angel, who works as a tech expert at Fry’s Electronics, was written as more of a cheery, can-do guy, but Perea brought a more downbeat, angsty approach to the part.

Following his scene-stealing performance, Perea was selected as one of BAFTA’s Breakthrough Artists for 2022 and honored with the rising star award for film at the Critics Choice second annual Celebration of Latino Cinema and Television.

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

Posted on June 16, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

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.

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.

“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.”

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.’”

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

Posted on April 27, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

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 Netflix–DreamWorks Animation movie Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans.

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.

CBS All Access Orders Second Season of Zabryna Guevara’s “The Twilight Zone”

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Zabryna Guevara is still zoning out…

CBS All Access has ordered a second season The Twilight Zone, itsanthology series starring the 47-year-old Afro-Latina American actress.

The CBS All Access series is a modern reimagining of Rod Serling’s original, which aired from 1959-64 on CBS and became a worldwide phenomenon, using socially conscious storytelling to explore the human condition and culture of the times.

“Jordan Peele and Simon Kinberg’s reimagining of The Twilight Zone is off to an amazing start on CBS All Access, driving the most viewers on its premiere day for an original series to date,” said Julie McNamara, EVP Original Content at CBS All Access. “Jordan, Simon, the creative team and cast have done a phenomenal job translating the series’ legacy of socially conscious storytelling for modern-day audiences. They are master storytellers, and we look forward to bringing fans further into The Twilight Zone with a second season.”

CBS announced in 2017 that it would revive The Twilight Zone for streaming service CBS All Access with Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions and Simon Kinberg’s Genre Films.

The anthology series features Peele as host and narrator with cast members including Guevara, Ike Barinholtz, Zazie Beetz, John Cho, Lucinda Dryzek, Taissa Farmiga, James Frain, Betty Gabriel, Ginnifer Goodwin, Percy Hynes-White, Greg Kinnear, Luke Kirby, Sanaa Lathan, Kumail Nanjiani, Chris O’Dowd, Seth Rogen, Adam Scott, Rhea Seehorn, Alison Tolman,Jacob Tremblay, Jefferson White, Jonathan Whitesell, Jessica Williams, DeWanda Wise and Steven Yeun.

The first season of The Twilight Zone is airing on-demand at CBS All Access. The series’ first five episodes are available with new episodes dropping weekly on Thursdays.

The Twilight Zone is produced by CBS Television Studiosin association with Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions and Kinberg’s Genre Films. Peele and Kinberg serve as executive producers.

Guevara’s previous television credits include appearances in New Amsterdam, The Handmaid’s Tale, Gothamand Chicago Med.

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

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Tom Castaneda

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.

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 Aboutboul, Chris Obi, Uzo Aduba, Cheryl Hines, Tom 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 Yeun, Cole 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.

Rodriguez Joins Voice Cast of Sony Pictures Animation’s “The Star”

Posted on January 19, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Gina Rodriguez is wishing on a Star…

The 32-year-old Puerto Rican actress has joined the A-list voice cast of Sony Pictures Animation’s The Star.

The story follows a small but brave donkey named Bo (Steven Yeun) who yearns for a life beyond his daily grind at the village mill. As the logline states: “One day he finds the courage to break free, and finally goes on the adventure of his dreams. On his journey, he teams up with Ruth, a lovable sheep who has lost her flock and Dave, a dove with lofty aspirations. Along with three wisecracking camels and some eccentric stable animals, Bo and his new friends follow the Star and become accidental heroes in the greatest story ever told – the first Christmas.”

In addition to Yeun and Rodriguez, the Golden Globe-winning star of the CW’s Jane the Virgin who will voice Mary in the film, the star-studded voice cast includes Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, Tracy Moran, Kris Kristofferson, Kristin Chenoweth, Kelly Clarkson, Gabriel Iglesias, Ving Rhames and Christopher Plummer who will voice King Herod.

Directed by Oscar-nominated writer-director Timothy Reckart, the family-friendly film will be released wide on November 10.

The screenplay was written by Carlos Kotkin from a story by Kotkin and Simon Moore.

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