By Carolyn Giardina For director Edward Berger, his riveting film “Conclave,” which is nominated for eight Academy Awards including best picture, is two stories. “You could call it a thriller, but also a wonderful inner journey. … It’s about Cardinal Lawrence’s inner journey.” The thriller, set around the election of a new pope, …read more
By Jamie Lang The Party Film Sales has sold “We Believe You,” directed by Charlotte Devillers and Arnaud Dufeys, to Spain (Filmin and Karma Films) and Benelux (O’Brother Distribution). In France, the film’s release will be overseen by TPFS’s sister company jour2fête. Produced by Makintosh Films, “We Believe You” premieres in Berlinale’s Perspectives section, …read more
By Alex Ritman Kezia Williams is set to join Universal Pictures International as its managing director for the U.K. and Ireland. Williams will report to Paul Higginson, executive Vice President, EMEA for Universal Pictures International and will manage day-to-day operations in the territory when she joins at the end of February. She replaces …read more
By Todd Spangler As YouTube marks its 20th anniversary this year, CEO Neal Mohan is positioning the video platform as a core player in the media and entertainment ecosystem — and the culture at large. Mohan, a longtime Google and YouTube exec, is now in his third year as CEO after assuming the …read more
By Matthew Minton Stephen Curry is officially teaming up with Comcast to tell the true story of the underdog cheer team that made history, Variety has exclusively learned. Curry and Erick Peyton are executive producing “Spirit” with their multimedia company, Unanimous Media, in partnership with The WorkShop Content Studios and FreshFly. The four-part …read more
By Jack Dunn Armie Hammer is addressing the allegations that derailed his Hollywood career four years ago. And while he spoke candidly about his harmful behavior, he insisted his actions were “not illegal.” “People were sort of like my bags of dope with skin on them,” Hammer said on “The Louis Theroux Podcast.” …read more
By Emily Longeretta Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio, best known for competing on two dozen seasons of MTV’s “The Challenge,” is under fire for a message posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Feb. 4. It all began days earlier, as he shared multiple messages about the competition between “Challenge” cast members and members of “Big …read more
By Selome Hailu The Super Bowl has achieved its biggest audience ever for the second year in a row: An average of 126 million viewers watched the Philadelphia Eagles play the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 9. That’s a 2% improvement from last year’s telecast, which was already reported by Nielsen as the …read more
By Varietybrentlang It could have been a cash grab, but Jeremy Strong prepared for his Dunkin’ Donuts commercial like an actor getting ready to play Hamlet. He spent days thinking about how to make the Super Bowl spot unique before landing on the idea to send up his own reputation for going …read more
By Brian Steinberg Celebrities may no longer be winning at the Big Game. An array of Super Bowl advertisers turned up with creative ideas that shunned the typical famous faces making quick-paced jokes in favor of concepts meant to inspire. Nike burnished a host of female athletes backed by the Led Zeppelin chestnut …read more