Aquí y Allí Films Partners with Daniel Guzmán to Produce Drama Thriller “La Deuda”

Daniel Guzmán has a new partner…

Madrid-based Aquí y Allí Films, one of Spain’s most successful auteur movie production houses, is joining forces with the 49-year-old popular Spanish actor turned writer-director to produce drama thriller La deuda.

Daniel Guzmán,  Backed by Spain’s pay TV giant Movistar+ and public broadcaster RTVE, La deuda will be produced by Aquí y Allí’s Pedro Hernández and Guzmán at El Niño Producciones.

The film is scheduled to roll in Madrid by the fall.

Written by Guzmán, La deuda tells the story of Lucas, a 37-year-old man and the 86 year-old woman Antonia, who live together in a city too big to be alone. Lucas is looking for a job but the job seems not to be looking for him.

Despite the economic difficulties they are going through, and their generational difference, they live day to day with a certain enthusiasm. Until Lucas’ decision will change the rest of their lives.

“I share with Pedro a vision and a cinematographic style that is essential to develop and produce a project as personal as this one,” Guzmán said.

“Dani’s managed to bring together in La Deuda many of the elements that make a film work with the audience without losing auteurship,” Hernández added.

“It is a human story, with wonderful, deep characters. It’s tender, sometimes hard, and has a lot of rhythm. And most importantly, it has his stamp,” Hernández observed.

Guzmán’s directorial debut Nothing in Return scored best picture, director and a Critics’ Prize at 2015’s Malaga Film Festival, going on to scoop Spanish Academy Goyas for new director and breakout actor (Miguel Herrán).

Its follow-up, Canallas, a Movistar+ original movie production released by Universal Pictures, world premiered at the 2022 Málaga Festival.

Froy Gutierrez to Star in Renny Harlin’s Lionsgate “The Strangers” Remake

It’s a strange(r) time Froy Gutierrez

The 24-year-old Mexican American actor will star opposite Madelaine Petsch and Gabriel Basso in a Lionsgate remake of the 2008 horror film The Strangers, which has entered production in Slovakia.

Froy GutierrezRenny Harlin is directing the film, which will be the first in a trilogy, having locked in a deal to helm the subsequent pair.

The original film The Strangers was a home invasion film that Bryan Bertino wrote and directed in his feature debut, with Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman starring.

It registered as a sleeper hit upon its May 2008 release via Universal Pictures and came to be appreciated in the years following as a cult classic, with the sequel The Strangers: Prey at Night being released in March 2018.

The new Strangers film will follow Petsch’s character as she drives cross-country with her longtime boyfriend (Gutierrez) to begin a new life in the Pacific Northwest. When their car breaks down in Venus, Oregon, they’re forced to spend the night in a secluded Airbnb, where they are terrorized from dusk till dawn by three masked strangers.

Lionsgate plans from there to expand the story in new and unexpected ways with its sequels.

Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland wrote the franchise launcher, to be distributed worldwide by Lionsgate.

“My mother instilled the love of movies in me through the world of Hitchcock and other masters of suspense and horror. My breakthrough to Hollywood happened with the success of A Nightmare on Elm Street 4,” noted Harlin. “It is only fitting that I get to return to my favorite genre with the incredibly well written trilogy of The Strangers. The characters and the storyline are all grounded in reality and offer me an endless tapestry of haunting visuals in bringing these movies alive.”

“When setting out to remake The Strangers, we felt there was a bigger story to be told, which could be as powerful, chilling, and terrifying as the original and could really expand that world,” said Solomon. “Shooting this story as a trilogy allows us to create a hyperreal and terrifying character study. We’re fortunate to be joining forces with Madelaine Petsch, an amazing talent whose character is the driving force of this story.”

“When you’ve got two horror aficionados like Courtney Solomon and Renny Harlin coming together, you’ve got all you need to create some incredibly smart, lean-forward-in-your-seat, addictively thrilling entertainment,” said Mark Canton. “Fans of the original film will be blown away; new audiences will discover the intensely unnerving world of The Strangers.”

The Strangers taps into such primal fears that it will always be relevant,” added Eda Kowan, Lionsgate’s EVP of Acquisitions & Co-Productions. “But what truly sets this project apart is the way the filmmakers have expanded the story and given these characters a new life.”

Gutierrez plays Jamie Henson on the Freeform series Cruel Summer, which has been renewed for a second season, and has also been seen on shows like Light as a FeatherTeen Wolf and One Day at a Time. Also coming up for the actor is the long anticipated Hocus Pocus 2, which is slated for release on Disney+ on September 30th.

Guillermo Díaz Wraps Production on Indie Thriller “You Can’t Stay Here”

Guillermo Díaz isn’t staying here

The 47-year-old Cuban American actor has wrapped production in New York of his upcoming indie thriller You Can’t Stay Here.

Guillermo Diaz, You Can’t Stay HereThe film is loosely inspired by real events in New York City in the 1990’s. It follows a photographer (Díaz), who witnesses the brutal murder of a gay man in Central Park. When the cops take little interest in the crime, a relationship develops between the photographer and the killer.

“I have been a fan of Guillermo since his first film and when he approached me about wanting to work on something together, I jumped at the chance and came up with the story for You Can’t Stay Here, ” said director Todd Verow, who produces through his Bangor Films. “It is a film about queer cruising and finding love and real human connections in the most unlikely places. While set in the 1990s, the film’s themes of homophobia, social hysteria, and finding oneself in a dangerous and intolerant world are as resonant as ever today.”

The script was penned by Verow and his longtime collaborator James Derek Dwyer.

The cast also includes Becca Blackwell, Justin Ivan Brown, Vanessa Aspillaga, Marlene Forte, Jack Waters, Karina Arroyave, Jordan Hall and Michael Vaccaro.

Díaz, who will be seen in Universal Pictures’ upcoming comedy Bros, also serves as one of the film’s producers alongside Verow, James Kleinmann, and Christian DiPillo.

Diaz’s television credits include Scandal and Law & Order: Organized Crime.

Tristan Mack Wilds to Star in Universal’s Music-Competition Feature Comedy “Praise This”

Tristan Mack Wilds is ready for a little praise (this).

The 32-year-old halfAfro-Dominican American actor has been cast in Universal Pictures’ film Praise This, starring Chloe Bailey.

Tristan Mack WildsAlso signing on for roles include Anjelika WashingtonQuavo, Druski, Koryn Hawthorne and Jekalyn Carr.

Other new cast members include newcomers Kiara Iman Heffner and Ilario Grant, Birgundi Baker, Loren Lott, Crystal Renee Hayslett, Cocoa Brown, Vanessa Fraction and Kountry Wayne.

Praise This is a music-competition feature comedy set in the world of youth choirs, announced earlier this year as one of three Universal films coming to Peacock in 2023.

Tina Gordon is directing, having penned the latest draft of the script, which was based off an original idea by The Story Company.

Earlier drafts were written by Camilla Blackett and Brandon Broussard, Hudson Obayuwana and Jana Savage—the trio otherwise known as Murder Ink.

The film falls under Will Packer Productions’ first-look deal with Universal.

Production kicked off in Atlanta in June.

Wilds currently stars in the Apple TV+ series Swagger. Past credits include the Spike Lee miniseries Miracle’s Boys, the critically-acclaimed HBO series The Wire, the award-winning feature Half NelsonThe Secret Life of Bees and George Lucas’ Red Tails.

Jai Rodriguez to Star in Universal Pictures’ Groundbreaking LGBTQ+ Rom-Com “Bros”

It’s Bros time for Jai Rodriguez.

The 42-year-old half-Puerto Rican actor, musician and former Queer Eye for the Straight Guy co-host is starring in Nicholas Stoller’s groundbreaking LGBTQ+ rom-com Bros for Universal Pictures.

Jai RodriguezRodriguez is starring alongside previously announced cast members including Billy EichnerLuke MacfarlaneTS Madison, Miss LawrenceSymoneGuillermo DiazGuy Branum, Monica Raymund, Jim Rash, Harvey Fierstein, Bowen Yang, Amanda Bearse, Dot-Marie Jones and more.

Bros is the first romantic comedy from a major studio about two gay men. The film written by Eichner and Macfarlane is billed as a smart, swoony and heartfelt story about gay men—played by Eichber and Macfarlane—maybe, possibly, probably, stumbling towards love. Maybe. They’re both very busy. Pic is scheduled to arrive in theaters on September 30th.

Judd Apatow is producing the project alongside Stoller and Josh Church, with Eichner exec producing.

Rodriguez won an Emmy in 2004, as co-host of Outstanding Reality ProgramQueer Eye for the Straight Guy, and will also soon be seen in the Amazon series Bosch: Legacy.

He’s also appeared on series like The RookieEastsidersDollfaceThe Resident and Kingdom, among others.

His film credits include The Producers and The New Guy.

Guillermo Diaz to Star in Universal Pictures’ Historic LGBTQ+ Film “Bros”

Guillermo Diaz is ready for Bros time…

The 46-year-old will star in Universal Pictures’ in Bros, which will make history as the first romantic comedy from a major studio about two gay men, and the first studio film featuring an entirely LGBTQ+ principal cast, with queer actors taking on queer roles, as well as all heterosexual characters.

Guillermo Diaz

Diaz will star opposite Billy Eichner, Luke Macfarlane, TS Madison, Miss Lawrence, Symone and Guy Branum in the project.

Nicholas Stoller is directing the film, which he co-wrote with Eichner. The latter will make history of his own as the first openly gay man to co-write and star in his own studio film.

Bros is billed as a smart, swoony and heartfelt comedy about two gay men—played by Eichber and Macfarlane—maybe, possibly, probably, stumbling towards love. Maybe. They’re both very busy.

The film is scheduled to arrive in theaters on August 12, 2022.

Judd Apatow is producing the project alongside Stoller and Josh Church, with Eichner executive producing. The film is a co-production of Stoller’s Global Solutions and Apatow’s Apatow Productions.

“I could not be more proud or excited about the historic nature of the all openly LGBTQ+ cast of Bros. After queer actors have spent decades watching straight actors capitalize both artistically and professionally by playing LGBTQ+ characters, it is a long overdue dream come true to be able to assemble this remarkable, hilarious cast,” said Eichner. “And while Bros may be the first of its kind in several ways, my real hope is that it is only the first of many opportunities for openly LGBTQ+ ensembles to shine and show the world all we are capable of as actors, beyond just being the wacky sidekick, token queer or a straight movie star’s ‘gay best friend.’ And beyond all of that, this cast is f*cking hysterical and you’re going to love them.”

Diaz is best known for portraying Diego “Huck” Muñoz in the drama series Scandal. Díaz has made guest appearances on Chappelle’s ShowLaw & OrderWeedsERBroad City, and Girls.

Danny Pino to Appear on Soundtrack for Film Adaptation of Broadway Musical “Dear Evan Hansen”

Danny Pino isn’t just starring in Dear Evan Hansen… He’s also appearing on the soundtrack.

Universal has announced the track list for the film adaptation of the award-winning Broadway musical Dear Evan Hansen, with the 47-year-old Cuban American actor among the talents appearing on the album.

Danny Pino

Pino appears on the film’s track “Requiem,” alongside Kaitlyn Dever and Amy Adams.

The soundtrack, which will be available on September 9 – the same day as the film’s theatrical release via Interscope Records, will also feature Sam Smith with Summer WalkerSZACarrie Underwood with Dan + Shay, Finneas, and Tori Kelly. They’ll be performing reimagined versions of the musical’s Tony Award-winning songs and as well as original recordings from the film’s score.

Dear Evan Hansen

Songwriting duo Benj Pasek and Justin Paul also wrote original tracks for the movie adaptation of Dear Evan Hansen. The album also features 16 tracks that include recordings by the film’s cast.

“Pasek and Paul’s songs from the Dear Evan Hansen stage play are so amazing and timeless — newly recorded by our film’s cast for the soundtrack (and freshly produced by Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, Alex Lacamoire and Dan Romer, and supervised by Jordan Carroll) — and they’re now also complemented by two new original songs written for the film (with one of them co-written and performed in the film by Amandla Stenberg),” Mike Knobloch, president of global film music and publishing at Universal Pictures, tells Billboard.

Pino portrays Larry Mora in the film.

 

Focus Features Releases Trailer for Anya Taylor-Joy’s Psychological Thriller “Last Night in Soho”

Anya Taylor-Joy is preparing for her last night

The first trailer has been released for Edgar Wright’s psychological thriller Last Night in Soho, starring the 25-year-old Argentine-British actress.

Anya Taylor-Joy, Last Night in Soho

Focus Features will release the film on October 22.

The film stars Taylor-Joy, Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, Matt Smith, Terence Stamp and Diana Rigg in a story set in 1960s Soho, London.

It follows a young girl (McKenzie), passionate in fashion design, who is mysteriously able to travel back in time where she encounters her idol, a dazzling wannabe singer (Taylor-Joy), but her journey isn’t without consequences.

Last Night in Soho originally was due to debut in September before being disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, it was then scheduled for April 23 before being pushed back again.

Universal is handling the international release. The film had been tipped for a Cannes Film Festival premiere, but there’s no confirmation yet on whether it could turn up at the French festival, which announces its lineup next week.

Universal Releases First Trailer for Danny Pino’s Film Adaptation of the Broadway Musical “Dear Evan Hansen”

It’s a Dear moment for Danny Pino

Universal Pictures has released the first trailer for the much-anticipated film adaptation of Broadway’s award-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen, starring the 47-year-old Cuban American actor.

Danny Pino

Stephen Chbosky directs, with Ben Platt reprising the lead role that made him a Broadway star.

Over Platt’s rendition of the musical’s breakout song “You Will Be Found,” the trailer includes clips from the film featuring Platt, Kaitlyn Dever, Amy Adams, Julianne Moore, Amandla Stenberg, Nik Dodani, DeMarius Copes, Pino and Colton Ryan.

The musical follows Evan Hansen, an anxious and isolated high school student whose letter to himself is found in the pocket of a classmate (Ryan) who died by suicide, with the note misinterpreted by the classmate’s parents as a suicide letter.

The film is written for the screen by the musical’s Steven Levenson with music and lyrics by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul.

Dear Evan Hansen is produced by Marc Platt and Adam Siegel, and is executive produced by Michael Bederman, Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. Universal Pictures will distribute the film in all territories.

The movie opens in theaters on September 24.

Universal to Release Penelope Cruz’s Highly Anticipated Femme Action Feature “The 355”

Penelope Cruz is heading to the 355 a week earlier…

Simon Kinberg’s femme action feature The 355, starring the 47-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning actress, will be released a week earlier, on January 7, 2022.

Penelope Cruz

The film was original scheduled to be released over MLK Weekend.

In the film, five women band together to stop a global organization from acquiring a weapon that could thrust the teetering world into total chaos.

The film was bought by Universal for domestic distribution at the Cannes Film Festival back in 2018 for a reported $20M.

The foreign partners, arranged through FilmNation, are hoping for a global launch for what they hope will be another Bourne Identitylike franchise, this one led by an all female lead cast including Jessica Chastain, Diane Kruger, Lupita Nyong’o, Cruz and Fan Bingbing, with Édgar Ramirez and Sebastian Stan also appearing.

The 355 is directed by Kinberg. He co-wrote the screenplay with Theresa Rebeck.