December 2020 – Page 16

The Goonies Cast Reunite for Script Reading for No Kid Hungry Charity

The Goonies cast reunite for script reading for No Kid Hungry charity

After gathering together for Josh Gad’s Reunited Apart back in April, the cast of the fan-favorite adventure film The Goonies are reuniting virtually for a special script reading event to raise funds for No Kid Hungry, an organization working to help feed kids and families during the pandemic and beyond.

Exciting news! The cast of The Goonies will be reuniting for a LIVE virtual script read next Saturday, December 5, at 8pm ET benefiting @nokidhungry.

Learn more: https://t.co/eBJYT5jr85 #GooniesLive pic.twitter.com/7bZ1TLhawM

— No Kid Hungry (@nokidhungry) November 25, 2020

The special event, which is set to air on Saturday, December 5 at 5 p.m. PST, will include Josh Brolin, Corey Feldman, Sean Astin, Kerri Green, Martha Plimpton, Ke Huy Quan, Jeff Cohen, Joe Pantoliano and Robert Davi as well as special guests Zach Braff, Cary Elwes, Donald Faison and Gad!

“The same spirit of bravery, sacrifice and camaraderie that the Goonies showed in our movie is what families all over the world are experiencing as we all face this pandemic,” director/producer Richard Donner said in a statement. “We are honored to have the opportunity to help No Kid Hungry and to hopefully bring a little light and love into homes across the globe.”

The virtual reunion will be broadcast and available for viewers to watch and donate at the official site, with the event being free to the public though No Kid Hungry encouraging donations even as small as $1 as, due to the global pandemic, one in four kids could face hunger this year and every dollar will go towards their plan to make sure kids are fed during this crisis and all year long.

“Millions of kids in America rely on the meals they receive at school for the nutrition they need,” Tom Nelson, President and CEO at Share Our Strength, the organization behind the No Kid Hungry Campaign, said in a statement. “With more students learning virtually than ever before with record jobs and wages lost, an unprecedented number of kids are going hungry during this crisis. Amidst this increased need and an uncertain school year, kids need our support more than ever. We’re grateful to the cast of The Goonies, Warner Bros., Warner Media and those tuning in to the reunion special to help ensure kids have access to the food they need.”

The movie will also be on sale on VUDU for $7.99 through Sunday!

The post The Goonies Cast Reunite for Script Reading for No Kid Hungry Charity appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

CS Interview: Marshall Bell On Playing Kuato in Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall

CS Interview: Marshall Bell On Playing Kuato in Paul Verhoeven's Total Recall

CS Interview: Marshall Bell On Playing Kuato in Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall

ComingSoon.net had the opportunity to speak with Total Recall star Marshall Bell on playing Kuato and George in director Paul Verhoeven’s Oscar-nominated 1990 sci-fi thriller which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and will soon be released on 4K and Blu-ray on December 8! You can check out the interview below and pre-order your copy of the 30th Anniversary Edition here!

Directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Ronald Shusett, Dan O’Bannon, and Gary Oldman from a story by Shusett, O’Bannon, and Jon Povill, the classic sci-fi feature tells the story of a construction worker who suddenly finds himself embroiled in espionage on Mars and unable to determine if the experiences are real or the result of memory implants.

Inspired by the short story “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale” by Philip K. Dick, the movie also stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, and Ronny Cox.

Total Recall reportedly had a budget of $65 million, making it one of the most expensive movies made at the time of its release. The film earned $261.3 million at the box office following its debut on June 1, 1990.

ComingSoon.net: It’s so interesting because I was just thinking about this Orson Welles quote, where he was talking about his performance as Harry Lime in The Third Man. He’s like, oh, this is a Mr. Wu role. This is the role where everybody for the first act says, “Where’s Mr. Wu? You know, when’s Mr. Wu coming?” And then when he shows up, you’re just, ah, you’re just awestruck. And it occurred to me that that’s the same thing with Kuato.

Marshall Bell: Wow. That happens to be one of my most — when I think about it, that movie, as just a spy freak, that movie is one of my favorite movies of all time. I’ve actually seen it in Vienna.

CS: Oh wow.

Bell: Even on New Year’s Day. So and I remember that. That’s pretty great. I wouldn’t go that far. But thank you.

CS: Well, it is true, though.

Bell: I mean, I hadn’t thought of that, but now that I do think of it, it is kind of like that.

CS: Yeah. No other character in the picture —

Bell: They do kind of less of a build-up, but they do — when Kuato’s here, and then you wait for Kuato, and wait. Again, that’s true. George isn’t there very much, so he doesn’t have much time to say it, but yeah, you’re right.

CS: Yeah and there’s graffiti all over the movie and everybody’s talking about Kuato and Kuato this and Kuato that.

Bell: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

CS: At the time, you were the go-to character guy. You popped up in this and that and you’re always great.

Bell: I have been around very long. Since the movie Twins increased my profile a little bit so that I seem to have popped up. Well, I mean, I was around. I was in Stand By Me and a few things. Yeah, you’re right. But I only started about three years before that, period.

CS: Wow.

Bell: I mean, there are five years, I started in 1984.

CS: That’s true. And you tended to play these kind of stern like, authority figure type of people. And here, you’re playing this kind of unassuming guy, and then it turns out you’re actually playing the big hero of the film.

Bell: Well, kind of. I mean, kind of. It’s totally a joint deal. We’ve really turned out — after the fact to be a fortunate thing is kind of Kuato and George. I mean, George’s real thing is he is kind of second fiddle to Kuato because he’s really Kuato’s carrier. And he defers to Kuato himself. I mean, I felt very much like Kuato was the deal. And it turns out when people mention his name, they don’t mention George, they mention Kuato. The fortunate thing was they say, “Did you play Kuato?” And I get to say, “Yes.” I actually auditioned for Kuato after the movie was in the can.

CS: Oh really?

Bell: Yeah. That voice was me. So when people say, “You’re Kuato,” I go, “Yes, I am.”

CS: Oh okay. I had no idea that they did some kind of digital thing to your voice?

Bell: No, I kind of made that up. I mean, I suppose, yeah, of course they did. But Paul and I, you know, Paul was my pal by then, and Paul and I dicked around in the recording room a little bit with that voice. But that was me.

CS: That’s interesting. Yeah.

Bell: I think they digitized it some, yeah.

CS: Yeah, so I guess you kind of had a little bit of an Edgar Bergen, Charlie McCarthy kind of thing going.

Bell: You’re giving me all this new material. I like that. I’ll go with that. I don’t mind that at all, no. I’ll go there. But it’s not quite, because I wasn’t ventriloquiding or anything.

CS: Right.

Bell: I don’t know if that’s a word.

CS: No, but I’m just learning now that you did this voice and to me, the voice was so powerful because it’s like, it’s not like Yoda. It’s not like some booming, powerful voice. It’s very kind of — it almost sounds like he’s like, struggling to talk and he’s very weak and it’s — yeah, it makes him very sympathetic.

Bell: Well, this is like when you go into an ADR room and it’s dark and you start recording. And usually, you’re just doing your own stuff over. But we just made this up, so there was Paul next to me. And so, it was a day’s work. We were creating that and we took a long time to create that. You know, and no, no, no, that’s horrible. No, you know, so but then, I mean, he actually liked my instincts, because he was very good to me actually, on that.

CS: That’s so cool.

Bell: And there were other people who auditioned for that, by the way. I had to audition for it.

CS: Oh wow. Do you remember who you were competing against?

Bell: Who I was competing with?

CS: Yeah.

Bell: Well, the most famous name — I don’t know if I like — I’m such a fan and I got to eat lunch with him. I did a movie with him. But the most famous name that I heard was Don Ameche.

CS: Oh wow. That would’ve been different.

Bell: And I revered him. I’m a groupie for that era. I care about Brad Pitt because he’s a nice guy, but Brad Pitt or I could have dinner with Don Ameche, I’m going with Don Ameche.

CS: Oh of course. Yeah, and he’d been around forever. He’d been in freaking Love Boat and stuff.

Bell: I heard that name. And then there were others I didn’t hear. I was competing for that. I didn’t realize I was, but I was.

CS: Wow. And can you talk a little bit about, of course, the other big component of this performance is Rob Bottin’s amazing makeup work.

Bell: He became a very, very close friend of mine. I think he’s the kind of Rembrandt or better, the Leonardo da Vinci of prosthetics people. I’ve worked with him a lot more than one time. I’ve done commercials with him. He’s gotten me work on commercials. I mean, I think I’m qualified — he’s the best that there ever was.

CS: I’m sort of inclined to agree with you. Stan Winston was really good, Rick Baker was really good, but there was something about what Rob did that had just this extra layer of just super realism to it.

Bell: Hey man, you want a demon, just forget about it… Nobody gets [demons] like him.

CS: Yeah. And he’s sort of become the J.D. Salinger of makeup people now. Is he still working and stuff?

Bell: Yeah, no, totally. He won’t call me back.

CS: Oh wow.

Bell: But I mean, even speaking of demon, though I say that, even Kuato, what made him so kind of interesting was given any other kind of circumstance, that could’ve been a demon. But then, it was the opposite of that.

CS: Yeah.

Bell: Well, if he just took that look, you could say — but it wasn’t. It was the opposite of a demon is what was so cool about that.

CS: Yeah, he kind of looked like an old Jewish guy you would see at a bathhouse or something.

Bell: You don’t know any of those, do you? I wish bathhouses were open, I want a sauna.

CS: I wanted to ask about one other film before we have to go just because I saw it again recently and it’s one of those movies, I’m sure you have some of these yourself, but it’s one of those movies where I want to love it so bad because it’s a great director, it’s a great idea for a movie, and it just didn’t really work. And I watched it like three times, and it’s never quite worked for me and that’s Innocent Blood.

Bell: Yeah. Oh, I just was going to — I have that DVD here and I was about to pull it out. And I will look at it again. I don’t agree with you, but then I’m in the tank for the director and I refuse to not say everything he does is the greatest movie ever made. That’s where I’m coming from on it. I got it, actually. I did not agree with that. I got it. But then, if you know the guy and you know where he’s coming from, it’s like when Paul did the Showgirls. Well, okay, everybody hated it, but I didn’t hate it because Paul made all those choices. In other words, he didn’t make a mistake. He chose that.

CS: Well, yeah.

Bell: And it didn’t work. And Landis, man, come on… To be in his movies is just a big deal.

CS: Right. Well, and you’re in Oscar, too which is a movie I actually think is really underappreciated.

Bell: Another guy said that. I agree with that, too.

CS: On Innocent Blood, do you remember the discussions about the tone of it? It’s a very kind of tricky tone he’s trying to do, because it’s a little bit comedic, it’s a little bit scary.

Bell: On working on Innocent Blood, well, look. He reached out, too. He took an actress that was a French star, but was iffy to go say, well, it’s going to work in America. And I got it and I loved her in it and I loved Anthony in it a lot. But you know, I liked it. But again, I’m not going to say I don’t like it because I like everything he does.

CS: Me too. I agree with you.

Bell: I just saw the remake of, there’s a new remake of “Thriller”. Come on, man. And it’s just ridiculous how good he is.

CS: Oh yeah, I love John. He’s great. I guess that’s it for us today. But it was a pleasure talking to you.

Bell: Yeah, it was fun.

CS: Hopefully we’ll get to chat again sometime.

Bell: I’m going to have to work with the comment about Kuato being an old Jewish guy in a bathhouse. I thank you for all those things.

CS: You’re welcome.

Bell: That line, what was the other one? You gave me a line.

CS: Oh I did? It was like Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy.

Bell: Yes, yeah, those three things, yeah.

The post CS Interview: Marshall Bell On Playing Kuato in Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

CS Interview: Star Aaron Eckhart Talks Crime Thriller Wander

CS Interview: Star Aaron Eckhart talks crime thriller Wander

ComingSoon.net got the opportunity to chat with Golden Globe-nominated actor Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight, Thank You for Smoking) to discuss his role in the mystery crime thriller Wander, which is now available on digital platforms and VOD! Click here to rent or purchase the film!

ComingSoon.net: So Wander is an interesting little film. But what about it really drew you to want to be a part of it?

Aaron Eckhart: Well, you know, it’s really just the actor in me. I like the story. I like the fact that the guy is going in the late stages in grief or the middle stages of grief and he has to deal with the fact that his daughter is gone and his wife is pretty much gone from him and he’s got to deal with life. It’s sort of how a man deals with those characteristics of grief and picks himself back up and then he gets in this conspiracy thing. I just felt it was a fun character to play and it was and he has a lot of idiosyncrasies and he’s kind of a weird guy and I just thought that would be cool.

CS: What would you say were some of the biggest creative challenges getting to the heart of your character?

AE: Well, it’s always how you feel about your loved ones. You know, I think that’s pretty universal in movies, and movies are all about destruction and death and all of that, the hurtful things in life. So that’s what an actor has to go through. I felt getting in touch with a daughter that I’ve never had personally, but, you know, what would happen if a family member died in said circumstances or when one’s faced with having to contend with something that’s larger than himself, like a government conspiracy that you believe isn’t right. What are your morals and what are your ethics and what are you willing to do? Are you willing to put your life on the line? What are you willing to stand up to in this life? And those are all things that I admired in Arthur. I also admired in him that he sort of got out of life. He’s living in a trailer and a piece of land in New Mexico and he’s sort of checked out and found his own groove. I liked that, I liked the fact that he removed himself from the world because I think at all, certainly in these times, you know, we’re all sort of feeling that way. And sort of looking up at the stars and saying, ‘Hey, what’s this all about?’

CS: So then, given the real conspiratorial paranoia nature of the character, did you find you had to do some research of your own to sort of get in that mentality, look at some crazy conspiracy sites out there?

AE: Yeah, I did, I absolutely did. You know, interestingly enough, when you start scratching the surface, you kind of figure out, ‘Hey, there might be something to this.’ Certainly, in Arthur’s case, he was worried. I think people for the most part are worried about control. Everybody, I think everybody does, wants to be free and to live the life that they choose to live. But when somebody else, because of power or greed or whatever it is, decides that through coercion or violence they are going to take that freedom away from you in order to experiment or whatever it is, things get real, and that’s what happened to Arthur, when he saw that these people were being duped. They were being brought to Mexico for a particular reason — freedom or whatever it was — and building a new life and they get injected with this little mechanism that basically has power over their life and controls their movement, controls their thoughts and can kill them in an instant. When you start scratching the surface about that with all this new technology and all that sort of stuff, you realize that it can happen. So in Arthur’s case, too, it’s interesting. In order to shut people up about these things, they’re called conspiracy theories and paranoid and that sort of stuff and Arthur has a radio show that he does on the internet and he starts looking like a whack job. So that all plays into it. But there are forces out there, I guess, that are trying to do some bad things and Arthur came up against them. And again, that’s what I liked about the film was that Arthur stood and faced them and stared them down and tried to get to the bottom of it.

CS: Just watching it, even though there’s not a lot of action in it, it felt like it must’ve been a really physically draining role. Was it very taxing for you to portray the character?

AE: Yeah, it was. It was extremely, emotionally and also physically because I mean, there’s a lot of stuff that is not in the film that we did, but first of all, you have to look at the movie in terms of its geography, its landscape. We’re out there in the middle of New Mexico in the heat — beautiful place, has its own sort of magic and mystery and enigma to it, you know, with the running train, the day and the night and how Arthur, how he responds to those forces. There was a lot of running around, a lot of heat. But mostly, emotional damage. I thought the role was tough in that way, and Arthur has a limp and that sort of thing. You know, that’s what I found fun about the movie was I tried to inject any sort of action I could into it or any sort of impediment that I could get into the movie, I really tried to be affected by the sun and all the issues that the movie covered and really get into it. Half the time I lived in a small little house in the middle of nowhere and was dealing with rattlesnakes and all that sort of New Mexico landscape. And it can work on a man, and I tried to get that into the movie.

CS: Well, I think it comes across very well. What would you say was one of the more challenging moments to film in it?

AE: Oh challenging was it’s always challenging just staying in any sort of crazy emotion. You know, when you see a horror film and if you look at a horror film and you say, ‘Wow, over the course of weeks or months, that person had to stay in that place for that long like they were scared to death or whatever it was,’ and it really is taxing mentally and to be believable. When you see the death of somebody on the news or whatever and they’re newly kneeling over the dead body of their son and their daughter, whatever it is, that’s not acting. I mean, that’s the real deal. And to give homage to that or to really get that right, you have to put yourself there and that’s always what I find to be the hardest part about acting, is the sustainability and how much concentration it takes and the sacrifices that you have to make on a daily basis while you’re filming in order to stay in that place because everybody’s buoyant. They want to come up for air every once in a while. But in filming sometimes, especially when you see films that you like or characters that you admire, they often have to stay in a pretty dark place.

CS: So one of the things, too, I really found interesting about Arthur was his voice and I’m curious, was that from you, was that from the script, was that from director April?

AE: No, I think that was me and it’s just, as a voice, when I started rehearsing it and putting the limp in there and all that sort of stuff. You know, the train is such a great symbol for this because you’re in America, Middle America, out in the middle of nowhere in the desert and this train blows past you with that hot wind. And it’s sort of like “Crazy Train.” It’s sort of like you hear the song “Crazy Train,” and that’s what the voice is. It’s “Crazy Train.” It’s that voice that’s been beaten down, that’s not sure of himself, that’s in agony, that’s tired, mentally tired. And that’s what I tried to do with the voice.

CS: I think it worked well for the character, I dug it. So what was it then like getting to work alongside fellow Two Face alum Tommy Lee Jones for the film?

AE: [Laughs} It was good. I think Tommy looks very cool in this movie. He fit right in from day one, and Tommy’s a great actor. What can you say? I mean, he’s an Academy Award winning actor and I’ve been a big fan of his for my whole career and admire him greatly. And to have him out there — plus, he’s from New Mexico or he lives in New Mexico and knows New Mexico like the back of his hand. I mean, he has that sort of “Crazy Train” element about him. So he was a great addition to the movie and was a great sidekick and partner to work with.

CS: And you two have such great chemistry in the film. What was it like building that up off camera before they started rolling?

AE: Well, Tommy got there — we didn’t have a lot of time for that, but it just comes through. I’ve always admired actors because that’s what I do and I love to hear their stories, and especially such seasoned actors as Tommy Lee Jones. I just have a love in my heart for them and I’m just like a kid in a candy store. I like to sit at their feet and listen to stories and that sort of stuff. So it doesn’t take very much for me to appreciate and ingratiate myself to those guys and that’s what we did offscreen, you know. ‘Tell me this, tell me that, what happened, blah, blah, blah.’ It just was effortless and as soon as Tommy put on those, I think they were yellow-colored glasses, I was like, ‘Right on, man. Let’s go make this movie. It’s so cool.’

CS: What was it also like trying to build that rapport with Heather Graham for the film?

AE: Well, Heather is, again, she’s great. She’s an actress and Heather plays my friend in it. So there’s a totally different energy from Tommy Lee Jones. When you were with Heather, you would open up to her and have nice, I don’t know the word, soft conversations. You just want to be vulnerable around her because she’s so sweet and helpful, emotionally helpful. So it was a relief to be around her in that sense. She’s very giving and it’s interesting when you look at how you are, because I don’t really look at that in that sense, but how you are with different characters on a daily basis while you’re making a movie. With Tommy, it’s one energy, and with Heather, it’s another. With Katheryn, it’s another because Katheryn, she double crosses me the whole time. And so, I think that even the energy with Katheryn and Heather was different.

CS: To look away for the film for the last question, you were one of the main stars in the first two Has Fallen movies. We didn’t get to see you in the third one. But with a few more in the works, I’m curious if they found a way to bring you back, would you be open to returning?

AE: No. No. No, I’m done with that. I’m done with that. The President has retired. He’s golfing.

CS: Just like the current one.

AE: Just like, yeah [chuckles]. So no, I’ve got other things to do.

After getting hired to probe a suspicious death in the small town of Wander, a mentally unstable private investigator becomes convinced the case is linked to the same ‘conspiracy cover up’ that caused the death of his daughter. The film is directed by April Mullen from a screenplay she co-written with Tim Doiron.

Wander stars Aaron Eckhart (Erin Brockovich, The Dark Knight), Tommy Lee Jones (The Fugitive, Men in Black films), Heather Graham (Boogie Nights, The Hangover trilogy), Katheryn Winnick (Bones, Vikings), Raymond Cruz (The Closer) and Brendan Fehr (Roswell).

Wander is produced by Doiron, Mullen, Andre Relis, Chad A. Verdi, Douglas Falconer and Mary Aloe.

The post CS Interview: Star Aaron Eckhart Talks Crime Thriller Wander appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

CS Interview: Writer/Director Braden R. Duemmler on What Lies Below

Just in time for the film’s digital and VOD release, ComingSoon.net got the opportunity to dive into the mind of writer/director Braden R. Duemmler to discuss his feature debut, the sci-fi thriller What Lies Below, which is now available on Apple TV, Amazon and other digital platforms! Click here to rent or purchase the film!

ComingSoon.net: How did the concept for the film come to your mind?

Braden R. Duemmler: The impetus of the film is really the light in the lake scene. When I first pictured the image in my head, however, it was a beam of light from the sky hitting a man in the chest. I have no doubts the image was borrowed from some poster or still-frame of a movie that’s so deeply buried in the recesses of my mind that I can no longer access it. Nevertheless, I was obsessed with that moment, that image, and wanted to build something around it. I started to ask myself; who sees the man and the light? What is their relationship to that person? And that’s when I was reminded of my own childhood; when my first ever crush blossomed at 5 years old towards my future Stepmother, Sandy. Looking back on the affections Sandy and I shared, we can still laugh at their innocence, but if the roles were reversed and I was a little girl and Sandy was a man, our adorable flirtations feel a lot more problematic. So, I began to synthesize that family dynamic of a girl and her future stepdad into my light idea, allowing the relationship to shape the story and the ethos I created around John Smith. Ultimately, the story is horror and thriller and drama, but it was always driven by its mystery. What does John want? What will he do? And what is that light in the lake?

CS: What was it about this film drove you to want to make it your feature directorial debut?

BRD: Before I wrote What Lies Below, I felt the industry was turning a corner; it seemed as though filmmakers were suddenly producing more and more female-driven stories. As a man who grew up very close to his Mother and Stepmother and has three sisters, I wanted to support that movement the only way I knew how, by writing. Of course, I was completely intimidated, at first, by the prospect of scripting a teenaged, female, protagonist. However, I took my time and spoke with my sisters and Moms and read enlightening literature on Female psychological development through the teenage years, as well as the sociological context of teenage America, and slowly felt more-and-more prepared to capture a female perspective with my writing and the lens. While I hope What Lies Below captivates everyone, I’ve often felt most encouraged when any of my female collaborators read the script or watch the film and say, “you wrote that? Really?”

CS: What were some of the biggest challenges, creatively and practically, in making this your debut?

BRD: Oh man, there were so many challenges it’s hard to choose. The lampreys, for instance, were incredibly difficult to get on set. They are actually a very invasive species that are considered a cancer to any ecosystem they infest. As a result, whenever they are caught, they are supposed to be immediately exterminated. That means they can’t be stored, can’t cross state lines, and therefore can’t be brought to set. We were only able to shoot the lamprey (that’s right, one lamprey) that you see because I had a friend who is a biologist and happens to be studying their effects on a lake in Vermont. So, that one, single, lamprey (the one they caught) was shot many times to look like a multitude.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention the challenges of the light in the lake scene. We shot in Lake George, which was incredibly beautiful, but also had very steep and jagged beaches in its most isolated areas. As a result, it was really hard to find a slow, gradual, decline into the water that I felt was necessary to facilitate John’s hauntingly casual descent. When we finally found a perfect location, I was relieved, though we had to use three different houses, to look like one, in order to make it work. Finally, on the day of the actual shoot, the 4,000 watt light we were using in the lake not only wasn’t as powerful as we had hoped, but a screw that kept the casing together broke! So, our team struggled for hours trying to figure out a way to get the light to hold together long enough, and stay straight enough, so we could get our shot. We lost 3 hours on that day because of a single screw! Which shows you how important every little detail is when making a movie.

CS: Given the smaller cast list, what was it like searching for the perfect performers for their respective roles?

BRD: I was very fortunate that our Producers Abel Vang and Stephen Stanley found our Casting Director, Katrina Wandel George. From the outset, Katrina believed in the script because she felt a personal connection to it. So, she shot for the stars which ultimately lead to Mena coming on board. In a million years, I never expected to land such a talented actress to headline our cast! Personally, I very much relied on Mena’s wealth of experience and knowledge. She is such a powerhouse and consummate professional, and her faith in me pacified my own insecurities, instilling in me even more confidence in the material.

I still remember shooting the living room scene (where Michelle slaps Libby) and due to our schedule, we had to shoot Mena last, even though it was a very emotionally and physically draining scene for her and her character. When our Assistant Director asked if it was okay to shoot Mena’s coverage at the end, I knew without-a-doubt, it would be fine. And sure enough, as Mena had proven time-and-time again throughout the shoot, it didn’t matter if it was the first take or the last, she was going to bring all the energy, emotion and depth needed for every moment and beat. I’ll always be amazed by that fierceness, determination and talent. To this day, I’m convinced her reputation had a great impact on the talent we were able to attract through the audition process for the other roles.

Haskiri was the last cast member we found through that audition process. I immediately gravitated to her because she had a fire in her belly that was so critical to Marley’s character. I still recall a particular shot where I had to help Haskiri hold a very difficult position (we’ll have to leave it at that because I don’t want to give too much away), by grabbing her hips. Of course, I wanted to be respectful of her boundaries and didn’t want to grab her too tightly, but eventually Haskiri turned around and said, “Brad, it’s fine; just grab me!” Like Marley, Haskiri was blunt, outspoken, and viciously dedicated and I saw that shine through whenever she performed. Trey was another standout from the casting process. I remember his audition so clearly because he had this incredible penchant for expanding the depth of the material. He made lines that weren’t creepy, completely sinister and actions that were rudimentary became dynamic. Trey’s creativity continued on set and although we maintained our game-plan, we always afforded ourselves extra takes for any and all ideas.

In addition to that boldness, I found Trey possessed incredible control over his facilities as a performer. I knew that control would be intrinsic to our shoot because when first sharing the script, I found readers would react in extremely varying degrees to the same subtleties on the page. So, I had to decide what would be the best way to maintain a bit of control over a viewing experience that may arouse very divergent reactions. Since we could never be sure how an audience would react to an edit, I felt I needed an actor who could give me plenty of options and variations of the text, so I could alter and adjust the edit accordingly. So, in moments like the shoulder rub in the dining room, for instance, Trey and I were able to create a creep barometer and Trey would literally dial the creep up or down depending on the take. In many cases, with our limited time, we would just run a series where Trey would perform the action and I would simply say 1, 3, 6, or 10 to give us the different degrees of John Smith’s creepiness. Having those options in the edit was an unsung hero of the film and allowed us to control the viewer’s expectations throughout the story.

Ema was another incredible talent we were fortunate to find through the audition process. I still remember being so intrigued by her tape that I had to share it with a friend. The friend said, “she has a real Jack Nicholson quality to her” to which I replied… “ahhh… What?” That’s when he explained, “she’s either completely crazy or a genius.” It didn’t take long on set for me to realize the latter was true. Ema is incredibly cerebral and calm when she works. I’m usually pacing in the hall, staring at the ground, while she’s swaying in her makeup chair with a similarly fixated gaze. Between every setup she is in her head, thinking about the moment, the scene, the beat. We would talk and prepare, and she would internalize every note, and then once I said action it would explode in front of my eyes in the most mesmerizing ways. Her presence is so strong and captivating that she can make the subtlest shift in her look or her eyes or her smile and it will feel like something completely fresh and raw. It was incredible to watch her command and her ability to ground Libby very much anchored the film through what is a very turbulent and twisting plot. I’m so thankful for her and her talent. She is the star of our story.

CS: Without outright spoiling it, the ending is really quite the shocker, what was the thought process behind it?

BRD: I’m glad it shocked you a bit as that is the intention. I would encourage anyone who is startled by the ending to re-watch the film with it in mind. At its core, What Lies Below is a mystery and there are clues littered throughout the film that culminate in those final scenes and that last shot. I fear I’m teetering on a tight rope here between cryptic and lucid so I’ll just say this: the final scene was one of the earliest shots in my head. For me, it answers the who, what, where, and why of our mystery. Part of the why, for instance, is distinguished by a physical trait shared by all the subjects in the shot. That trait influenced our casting, our makeup, and much of our dialogue. But, it only becomes fully evident in that final shot.

CS: There’s a really detailed feeling to the science behind the film, how much research did you have to compile on the science behind it all before penning the script?

Ha! I’m so glad it felt detailed. As a writer, I believe authenticity and empathy emanate from specifics rather than generalities. So, whenever I write a script, I work as hard to find the right word or phrase for a specific moment, as I do to plot the entire story. I think that’s why writers hate writing so much; we torture ourselves over every single word! When researching the science for What Lies Below, I first placed the cart before the horse; meaning I spent a lot of time, perhaps a week, reading any science that could relate to the story (much of which never made it onto the page). Then, once the story started to take shape, I would research, in great detail, any moment that was important to a particular story beat. For instance, the experiment at the dining room table, which was a combination of a real experiment and artistic liberty (wink), took a while to find because I knew I needed something specific to John and his research. This also holds true of the lampreys which I found because I looked for a species that checked a bunch of boxes I had in my head based on the initial research for the story.

So, overall, the research was constant and ongoing from ideation to final draft. I hope it feels authentic to the audience. I feel I’ve accomplished my goal if you can’t tell what’s made up and what’s real.

Liberty, a socially awkward 16-year-old, returns from two months at camp to a blindsided introduction of her Mother’s fiancé, John Smith, whose charm, intelligence and beauty paint the picture of a man too perfect to be human. The cast for the film includes Ema Horvath (The Gallows Act II, The Lord of the Rings), Trey Tucker (The Space Between Us, The Outpost) and Mena Suvari (American Woman, American Horror Story: Apocalypse).

What Lies Below is now available on digital platforms and VOD!

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Premiere Episodes of Showtime’s Your Honor & Shameless Season 11 to Stream for Free

Premiere Episodes of Showtime's Your Honor & Shameless Season 11 to Stream for Free

Premiere Episodes of Showtime’s Your Honor & Shameless Season 11 to Stream for Free

Showtime is making some of its content available for free, including the premiere episodes of the limited series Your Honor starring Bryan Cranston and Shameless Season 11, available online, On Demand, and on streaming platforms through mid-January, according to Deadline.

Additionally, the full first seasons of City on a Hill, The L Word: Generation Q, Work in Progress, Ray Donovan, and The Affair are also available free of charge. Episodes of Murder in the Bayou, the feature documentaries The Kingmaker and Gringo: The Dangerous Life of John McAfee, the premieres of Love Fraud, Outcry, The Reagans, and Moonbase 8, and select episodes of Desus & Mero are among the 60-plus hours of originals available for free.

Many of the free offerings are now available on Sho.com, YouTube, and various Showtime partner platforms. The first episode of the final season of Shameless and the series premiere of Your Honor will debut on Sunday, December 6.

Showtime is currently offering a 30-day free trial for new subscribers who sign up before January 11. Those who sign up will be able to lock in a lifetime $8.99 monthly rate following the trial.

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CS Video: Love, Weddings & Other Disasters Interview With Director & Stars

CS Video: Love, Weddings & Other Disasters interview with director & stars

Ahead of the film’s select theatrical and digital release, ComingSoon.net got the opportunity to chat with Love, Weddings & Other Disasters co-writer/director Dennis Dugan (Grown Ups 2) and stars Maggie Grace (Fear the Walking Dead) and Andrew Bachelor (Black Jesus) to discuss their work on the rom-com. Our interview can be viewed in the player below!

Co-written by Dugan, Eileen Conn (Mad About You) and Larry Miller (Second Act), Love, Weddings & Other Disasters is a multi-story romantic comedy about the people who work on weddings to create the perfect day for a loving couple – while their own relationships are outlandish, odd, crazy and far from perfect.

The romantic comedy stars Keaton, Academy Award winner Jeremy Irons (Justice League), Maggie Grace (Taken franchise, Fear the Walking Dead), Jesse McCartney (Alvin and the Chipmunks franchise, Young Justice), Chandra West (I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, White Noise), Diego Boneta (Luis Miguel: The Series, Terminator: Dark Fate), Andrew Bachelor (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, When We First Met) and Veronica Ferres (Salt and Fire). Dugan, who penned the script, also served as a producer along with Align’s Adrian Politowski and Martin Metz, and Fortitude International’s Nadine de Barros.

Click here to rent or purchase Love, Weddings & Other Disasters!

“Dennis Dugan is one of the most successful comedy directors of our time and we have been huge fans of his work,” Saban Films’ Bill Bromiley said in a statement. “We knew we had to be a part of the newest addition to his collection. From box office successes and modern classics such as Big Daddy and Happy Gilmore to more recent releases such as Grown Ups, Dennis has always been a leading force.”

Bill Bromiley and Jonathan Saba negotiated the deal for Saban Films along with The Gersh Agency and Endeavor Content on behalf of the filmmakers. Executive Producer is SquareOne Entertainment’s Al Munteanu. Fortitude International is handling foreign rights. Love, Weddings & Other Disasters is now in select theaters and on VOD from Saban Films!

The post CS Video: Love, Weddings & Other Disasters Interview With Director & Stars appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

Metal Gear Solid Movie Lands Oscar Isaac to Play Solid Snake!

Metal Gear Solid movie lands Oscar Isaac to play Solid Snake!

Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts has been giving fans exciting tid bits on Twitter for months but now his Metal Gear Solid film adaptation has taken a major step forward as Star Wars franchise alum Oscar Isaac has signed on to lead the project as Solid Snake, according to Deadline.

Vogt-Roberts, who has been connected the film for over five years, had previously announced that a script from Derek Connolly (Jurassic World) was turned in to the studio July 2018, with the two aiming for an R-rating and to keep all of Kojima’s vision for the story and now it appears a new script full of the “Kojima-quirk” has been submitted. Not only has the new draft been submitted, but casting may be looking to begin soon, as he hints towards meeting with a “specific actor” for the lead role, which points towards the new draft being as close to shoot-ready as possible.

Click here to purchase Metal Gear Solid: The Legacy Collection and The Phantom Pain!

The 35-year-old director previously revealed that he is very interested in seeing Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker) step into the iconic role of Solid Snake and with the finale to his role in the Star Wars universe coming later this month and Denis Villeneuve’s Dune already being in post-production, his schedule is indeed the perfect spot to join what is sure to be a blockbuster.

Created by Hideo Kojima, the Konami video game series follows Solid Snake, a retired soldier who infiltrates a nuclear weapons disposal facility to neutralize the terrorist threat from Foxhound, a renegade special forces unit. He attempts to liberate their two hostages, the head of DARPA and the president of a major arms manufacturer and stops the terrorists from launching a nuclear strike.

Spider-Man‘s Avi Arad and his son Ari Arad are attached to produce.

(Photo Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)

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Penguin Bloom Trailer Starring Naomi Watts & Andrew Lincoln

The official trailer for Glendyn Ivin’s forthcoming film adaptation of Penguin Bloom has been released, featuring Naomi Watts as she portrays a mother having a difficult time accepting her sudden paralysis. Based on Bradley Trevor Greive and Cameron Bloom’s best-selling novel of the same name, the film’s North American distribution rights were recently acquired by Netflix and is set to make its streaming debut on January 27, 2021. However, the film is still set to hit Australian theaters on January 21. Check out the video in the player below!

Penguin Bloom tells the true story of Sam Bloom, a young mother whose world is turned upside down after a near-fatal accident leaves her paralyzed. Sam’s husband, (Andrew Lincoln), her three young boys and her mother, are struggling to adjust to their new situation when an unlikely ally enters their world in the form of an injured baby magpie they name Penguin. The bird’s arrival is a welcome distraction for the Bloom family, eventually making a profound difference in the family’s life.

Pick up a copy of the book here!

The film stars Naomi Watts (Mulholland Drive, Impossible), Andrew Lincoln (Love Actually, The Walking Dead), Jacki Weaver (Animal Kingdom), Rachel House (Moana, Thor: Ragnarok), and Leeanna Walsman (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones). It will also feature Lisa Hensley, Griffin Murray-Johnston, Felix Cameron, and Abe Clifford-Barr.

Penguin Bloom is directed by Glendyn Ivin from a screenplay adapted by Shaun Grant and Harry Cripps. The film is produced by Watts and Emma Cooper through their Jam Tart Films banner along with Made Up Stories’ Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky, and Jodi Matterson. It is executive produced by Sam and Cameron Bloom along with Sonia Amoroso, George Kekeli, Meryl Metni, Ricci Swart, Greive, Joel Pearlman, Edwina Waddy, and Jill Bilcock.

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It’s Super Kids vs. Aliens in Netflix’s We Can Be Heroes Trailer

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It’s Super Kids vs. Aliens in Netflix’s We Can Be Heroes Trailer

Netflix has finally released the full We Can Be Heroes trailer for Robert Rodriguez’s newest action-adventure film, featuring the children of superheroes as they must band together to save their parents from Alien invaders who have kidnapped them. Starring Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian) and Priyanka Chopra (Quantico), the film will be available for streaming on Friday, December 25. Also featuring the return of Taylor Dooley’s fan-favorite character Lava Girl, you can check out the video in the player below along with new posters!

In We Can Be Heroes, when alien invaders kidnap Earth’s superheroes, their kids are whisked away to a government safe house. But whip-smart tween Missy Moreno (Yaya Gosselin) will stop at nothing to rescue her superhero dad, Marcus Moreno (Pedro Pascal). Missy teams up with the rest of the superkids to escape their mysterious government babysitter, Ms. Granada (Priyanka Chopra Jonas). If they’re going to save their parents, they’ll have to work together by using their individual powers — from elasticity to time control to predicting the future — and form an out-of-this-world team.

Pick up a copy of The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D here!

The movie stars YaYa Gosselin (The Purge), Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian), Priyanka Chopra Jonas (Quantico), Golden Globe winner Christian Slater (Mr. Robot), Boyd Holbrook (Logan), Christopher McDonald (Ballers), and Oscar nominee Adriana Barraza (Babel), along with Vivien Blair (Bird Box), Isaiah Russell-Bailey (Family Reunion), Akira Akbar (Captain Marvel), Lyon Daniels (Patriot), Nathan Blair (Best. Work. Weekend. Ever.), Lotus Blossom (Magic Max), Hala Finley (Man with a Plan), Andy Walken (The Kids Are Alright), Dylan Henry Lau (Here and Now), Andrew Diaz (The Kid’s New Years Party!), Taylor Dooley (The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D), Sung Kang (F9), Haley Reinhart (F Is for Family), Brittany Perry-Russell (Family Reunion), and Brently Heilbron (Red 11).

We Can Be Heroes is written, directed, and produced by Rodriguez (Spy Kids, Machete, Sin City, Alita: Battle Angel).

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Waxwork Unveils The Creature & Invisible Man Spinature Figures!

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Waxwork unveils The Creature & Invisible Man Spinature figures!

After celebrating the birthday of Boris Karloff with the debut of a Mummy figure in the specialty line, Waxwork Records has continued to expand their Spinature line with figures of Creature from the Black Lagoon and The Invisible Man. Both figures can be viewed below!

The monster you’ve been waiting for breached the lagoon! THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON Spinatures drop this Friday! Sign up to our newsletter at the link in our profile for details! pic.twitter.com/wKCMxkelbB

— Waxwork Records (@waxworkrecords) December 2, 2020

The Universal Horror line is part of a new set of figures the company has developed called Spinatures, which are highly-detailed turntable-spinner mini-busts that will feature iconic characters from pop culture, horror movies and beyond! Each figure is fitted with a hole in their base to easily attach to the spindle of a turntable and then spin along with your favorite records.

For those who don’t have a turntable, Waxwork has taken this into account for collectors with the ability to proudly display their Spinatures figures virtually anywhere. Any home or office setting is perfect for them, including computer desks, bookshelves, toy and collectible display cases, counter tops and even car dashboards.

The first Spinature figure came in the form of Frankenstein from their Universal Horror Line, an official Universal Monster product designed and produced by Waxwork and features the iconic creature from the landmark 1931 horror film with the likeness of legendary actor Boris Karloff. Other figures currently available for pre-order include The Bride of Frankenstein, Halloween II‘s Michael Myers and Halloween III‘s Skeleton, Witch and Jack-o-Lantern masks!

Many more official Universal Monster Spinatures are set to be unveiled as fall progresses, as well as throughout the 2020 holiday season including Dracula, The Mummy, The Phantom of the Opera, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, The Wolfman and The Invisible Man!