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    'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' Prequel Leans Toward Casting Female Actor as Willy Wonka

    The upcoming movie that will revolve around the eccentric chocolatier character has ‘Paddington’ director Paul King serving behind the lens, and Simon Rich working on its script.
    Feb 1, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Producers of a new movie centred on Roald Dahl’s beloved character “Willy Wonka” are reportedly considering casting a female actress in the role of the eccentric chocolatier.
    Warner Bros acquired the rights to the character from the Dahl estate in 2016 and are in the process of putting together a production team for a “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” prequel, which is to be set before the construction of the iconic chocolate factory.
    “Paddington” director Paul King has signed on to direct the film, which is being produced by “Harry Potter” producer David Heyman, with a script by Simon Rich, and a source told Britain’s The Sun newspaper, “A female lead is being considered.”
    “Film bosses realize it could spark a backlash but believe a female Wonka is a great way to give the classic story a fresh look,” they added.
    Producer David Heyman has previously said the film will not be a straight remake, telling Slash Film, “They’ve (already) done two films, quite different. But it’s possibly an origin story.”
    The late Gene Wilder was the first to play Wonka onscreen, opposite child actor Peter Ostrum as Charlie Bucket, in the 1971 musical, “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory”. Johnny Depp later took on the role for a 2005 version, under the direction of filmmaker Tim Burton.
    Brad Pitt was previously linked to the role for the upcoming prequel.

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    Ralph Fiennes in Talks to Play Evil Miss Trunchbull in 'Matilda'

    WENN

    While the ‘Harry Potter’ villain is linked to the gender-bending role in the film adaptation of ‘Matilda the Musical’, Emma Stone is said to be eyed to play Miss Honey.
    Feb 1, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Ralph Fiennes is reportedly in negotiations to play sinister headmistress Agatha Trunchbull in the upcoming movie version of “Matilda the Musical”.
    According to Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper, the actor, who notably played Harry Potter villain Lord Voldemort in the hit movies, is being tapped to play a gender-bending version of the character, in the movie helmed by Matthew Warchus.
    While Fiennes has yet to star in a musical he showcased his vocal abilities in the film “Bernard and Doris”, in which he sang a duet with Susan Sarandon of Peggy Lee’s “I Love the Way You’re Breaking My Heart”.
    Meanwhile, Warchus and his collaborators are rumoured to be seeking “La La Land”‘s Oscar-winning actress Emma Stone to play Miss Honey, the kind-hearted teacher who becomes Matilda’s mentor. Casting directors also announced a search two weeks ago to find a youngster, no taller than four foot three inches, to play the title role.
    “Matilda the Musical” debuted in 2010 before hitting London’s West End the following year. It transferred to Broadway in 2013 and ran for four years, before closing in 2017.
    The movie, which follows the story of a young bookworm prodigy mistreated by her ignorant parents and abusive school headmistress, will be a collaboration between Sony Pictures and Netflix, and will receive a limited theatre release in the U.K. before hitting the streaming service worldwide.
    The novel was previously made into a film in 1996, starring Mara Wilson as the title character, with appearances from Danny DeVito, Rhea Perlman, Embeth Davidtz and Pam Ferris.

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    Helen Mirren Calls Out BAFTA Over All-White Nominations

    WENN/Instar

    The ‘Berlin, I Love You’ star urges people to demand change in the British awards show following the lack of nomination to non-white stars for this year’s ceremony.
    Jan 31, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Dame Helen Mirren has called on British film and TV fans to demand more from BAFTA Awards voters, after they failed to hand a single acting nomination to non-white stars.
    The Oscar winner is also irked that no women are represented in the directing category at the prizegiving, which will be staged at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Sunday, February 2.
    “People should be impatient,” she told the Mail Online, “and they should keep demanding change. It will come, incrementally, but it will only come if people demand it. And keep demanding it.”
    “Put your banner up for more roles for women, more roles for black women, especially, and more women directors. Keep demanding change. It’s good to be impatient.”
    But she doesn’t want to see tokenism at awards shows, adding, “I don’t think any director or actor would want to be nominated because of the colour of their skin, or because of their gender. It’s about the work, and there should be more of it.”

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    'Parasite' Dominates 2020 London Film Critics' Circle Awards

    NEON

    The Bong Joon Ho-directed comedy thriller brings home two top honors from the prizegiving event, while Joaquin Phoenix and Renee Zellweger land acting kudos for their work on ‘Joker’ and ‘Judy’.
    Jan 31, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Comedy thriller “Parasite” landed the top prize at the 40th annual London Film Critics’ Circle Awards on Thursday night, January 30.
    The South Korean movie landed the Film of the Year honour, while Bong Joon Ho was named Director of the Year.
    Bong took the stage at the Mayfair Hotel and thanked his cast and crew for their work on the movie, calling his wins a “huge honour”.
    His film is also up for four awards at Sunday’s (February 02) Baftas – two weeks after it became the first foreign language movie to land the top prize at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, picking up Best Ensemble.
    “Parasite” will also compete for six Oscars, including Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Original Screenplay.
    “The Souvenir” and “Marriage Story” were also double winners at the London Film Critics’ Circle Awards, while Joaquin Phoenix and Renee Zellweger took home the top acting prizes for their work on “Joker” and “Judy”, respectively. Both are expected to repeat their wins at the Oscars on 9 February.
    The full list of London Critics’ Circle Film Awards winners is:
    FILM OF THE YEAR: “Parasite”
    FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM OF THE YEAR: “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”
    ACTRESS OF THE YEAR: Renee Zellweger, “Judy”
    ACTOR OF THE YEAR: Joaquin Phoenix, “Joker”
    BEST BRITISH/IRISH FILM: THE ATTENBOROUGH AWARD: “The Souvenir”
    BRITISH/IRISH ACTRESS: Florence Pugh, “Fighting with My Family”/”Midsommar”/”Little Women (2019)”
    TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”, Barbara Ling
    DOCUMENTARY OF THE YEAR: “For Sama”
    DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR: Bong Joon Ho, “Parasite”
    SCREENWRITER OF THE YEAR: Noah Baumbach, “Marriage Story”
    SUPPORTING ACTRESS OF THE YEAR: Laura Dern, “Marriage Story”
    SUPPORTING ACTOR OF THE YEAR: Joe Pesci, “The Irishman”
    BRITISH/IRISH ACTOR: Robert Pattinson, “The Lighthouse”/”High Life”/”The King (2019)”
    YOUNG BRITISH/IRISH PERFORMER: Honor Swinton Byrne, “The Souvenir”
    BRITISH/IRISH SHORT FILM OF THE YEAR: “The Devil’s Harmony”
    BREAKTHROUGH BRITISH/IRISH FILMMAKER: THE PHILIP FRENCH AWARD: Mark Jenkin, “Bait”
    THE DILYS POWELL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN FILM: Sally Potter & Sandy Powell

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    Sebastian Stan Appears to Diss Captain America and Bucky's Ending in 'Avengers: Endgame'

    Marvel Studios

    The Bucky Barnes depicter agrees with a fan who is taken aback by the ‘out-of-character writing’ for his character and Steve Rogers’ storyline in the last ‘Avengers’ movie.
    Jan 31, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Sebastian Stan is apparently not a fan of the ending of Bucky Barnes and Steve Rogers’ storyline in “Avengers: Endgame”. Almost a year since the movie was released in theaters, the actor has just let his actual feelings be known about Chris Evans’ Captain America passing his shield to Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson instead of his longtime friend Bucky.
    The Romanian-born actor posted on Instagram Stories a screenshot of a fan’s complaint on Twitter about the so-called “out-of-character writing” in regards to Steve and Bucky’s friendship in the movie. The fan reacted to a post by Marvel U.K. & Ireland’s official Twitter account which wrote, “Together until the end of the line,” along with a photo of then-skinny Steve and Bucky in his soldier outfit.
    The said fan replied sarcastically to the post, “together until the end of the line. Or until bad, inconsistent, out-of character writing turns Steve Rogers into his own anti-thesis. Shouldn’t it be ‘together until the end of the lie’ now?” Stan added a flushed face emoji over it.
    Apparently understanding Stan’s feelings, “Star Wars” actor John Boyega posted on Twitter, “Welcome Mr Stan ! Welcome,” along with a gif of Emperor Palpatine laughing. Boyega himself has previously shaded the decision regarding the franchise’s handling of Rey, Finn and Kylo Ren relationship in “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”.
    Stan has not responded to Boyega’s tweet and it’s not clear if he was just trolling “The Avengers” franchise with his post. Regardless of his apparent shade, the 37-year-old clearly has no issue being a part of the MCU as he’s currently working with Mackie again on Disney+ series “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”, for which they reprise their respective role.
    Set after events in the 2019 “Avengers: Endgame”, the upcoming series will also bring back Daniel Bruhl and Emily VanCamp who have previously starred in 2016’s “Captain America: Civil War”. The new series is expected to premiere in late 2020.

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    'The Lion King' Takes Home Top Honor From 2020 Visual Effects Society Awards

    Walt Disney Pictures

    Other winners in film category include ‘The Irishman’ and ‘Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’, while the TV section sees ‘The Mandalorian’ and ‘Game of Thrones’ come out triumphant.
    Jan 31, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Jon Favreau’s photorealistic remake of Disney’s “The Lion King (2019)” was the big winner at America’s Visual Effects Society Awards on Wednesday, January 29.
    The movie won the top award for outstanding VFX (visual effects) in a photoreal feature, as well as in the outstanding creating environment, and virtual production categories.
    Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” won awards for supporting VFX and compositing, while “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” claimed the effects simulations prize and “Alita: Battle Angel” was honoured for animated character in a photoreal feature.
    “Missing Link”, “Toy Story 4”, and “Frozen II” won awards in the animated feature sections, and the visual effects teams on “The Mandalorian”, “Game of Thrones” and “Stranger Things” triumphed in the TV categories.
    Scorsese accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award via video from New York, while Favreau, J.J. Abrams, and Rian Johnson were on hand to present prizes.
    Here are the winners of the 18th annual Visual Effects Society Awards:
    Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal “The Lion King (2019)”, Robert Legato, Tom Peitzman, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones
    Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature: “The Irishman”, Pablo Helman, Mitch Ferm, Jill Brooks, Leandro Estebecorena, Jeff Brink
    Outstanding Visual Effects in an Animated Feature: “Missing Link”, Brad Schiff, Travis Knight, Steve Emerson, Benoit Dubuc
    Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode: “The Mandalorian” – “The Child”, Richard Bluff, Abbigail Keller, Jason Porter, Hayden Jones, Roy Cancinon
    Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode: “Chernobyl” – “1:23:45”, Max Dennison, Lindsay McFarlane, Clare Cheetham, Paul Jones, Claudius Christian Rauch
    Outstanding Visual Effects in a Real-Time Project: “Control”, Janne Pulkkinen, Elmeri Raitanen, Matti Hamalainen, James Tottman
    Outstanding Visual Effects in a Commercial: Hennessy: “The Seven Worlds”, Carsten Keller, Selcuk Ergen, Kiril Mirkov, William Laban
    Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project: Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance; Jason Bayever, Patrick Kearney, Carol Norton, Bill George
    Outstanding Animated Character in a Photoreal Feature: “Alita: Battle Angel” – Alita; Michael Cozens, Mark Haenga, Olivier Lesaint, Dejan Momcilovic
    Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature: “Missing Link” – Susan; Rachelle Lambden, Brenda Baumgarten, Morgan Hay, Benoit Dubuc
    Outstanding Animated Character in an Episode or Real-Time Project: “Stranger Things 3” – Tom/Bruce Monster; Joseph Dube-Arsenault, Antoine Barthod, Frederick Gagnon, Xavier Lafarge
    Outstanding Animated Character in a Commercial: “Cyberpunk 2077” – Dex; Jonas Ekma, Jonas Skoog, Marek Madej, Grzegorz Chojnacki
    Outstanding Created Environment in a Photoreal Feature: “The Lion King (2019)” – The Pridelands; Marco Rolandi, Luca Bonatti, Jules Bodenstein, Filippo Preti
    Outstanding Created Environment in an Animated Feature: “Toy Story 4” – Antiques Mall; Hosuk Chang, Andrew Finley, Alison Leaf, Philip Shoebottom
    Outstanding Created Environment in an Episode, Commercial, or Real-Time Project: “Game of Thrones” – The Iron Throne, Red Keep Plaza; Carlos Patrick DeLeon, Alonso Bocanegra Martinez, Marcela Silva, Benjamin Ross
    Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a CG Project: “The Lion King”, Robert Legato, Caleb Deschanel, Ben Grossmann, AJ Sciutto
    Outstanding Model in a Photoreal or Animated Project: “The Mandalorian” – The Sin, The Razorcrest; Doug Chiang, Jay Machado, John Goodson, Landis Fields IV
    Outstanding Effects Simulations in a Photoreal Feature: “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”, Don Wong, Thibault Gauriau, Goncalo Cababca, Francois-Maxence Desplanques
    Outstanding Effects Simulations in an Animated Feature: “Frozen II”, Erin V. Ramos, Scott Townsend, Thomas Wickes, Rattanin Sirinaruemarn
    Outstanding Effects Simulations in an Episode, Commercial, or Real-Time Project: “Stranger Things 3” – Melting Tom/Bruce; Nathan Arbuckle, Christian Gaumond, James Dong, Aleksandr Starkov
    Outstanding Compositing in a Feature: “The Irishman”, Nelson Sepulveda, Vincent Papaix, Benjamin O’Brien, Christopher Doerhoff
    Outstanding Compositing in an Episode: “Game of Thrones” – “The Long Night”: Dragon Ground Battle; Mark Richardson, Darren Christie, Nathan Abbott, Owen Longstaff
    Outstanding Compositing in a Commercial: Hennessy: “The Seven Worlds”, Rod Norman, Guillaume Weiss, Alexander Kulikov, Alessandro Granella
    Outstanding Special (Practical) Effects in a Photoreal or Animated Project: “The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance” – “She Knows All the Secrets”, Sean Mathiesen, Jon Savage, Toby Froud, Phil Harvey
    Outstanding Visual Effects in a Student Project: “The Beauty”, Marc Angele, Aleksandra Todorovic, Pascal Schelbli, Noel Winzen

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    Linda Hamilton Gets Real About Being Done With 'Terminator' Franchise

    Paramount Pictures

    While she would be ‘quite happy to never return,’ the Sarah Connor depicter does suggest that future movies ‘should definitely not be such a high-risk financial venture.’
    Jan 31, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Linda Hamilton would be happy to “never return” to “The Terminator” franchise – unless she can star in a stripped down smaller film.
    The 63-year-old actress returned to the franchise after nearly three decades for “Terminator: Dark Fate” last year (19), which received strong reviews but disappointed at the box office – putting creator James Cameron’s plans for a trilogy in jeopardy.
    Linda says that she’d be happy to not make another “Terminator” film – but if plans for a new movie go ahead, she insisted it should be less risky financially, with fewer expensive special effects.
    “Something says to me… I don’t know. I would really appreciate maybe a smaller version where so many millions are not at stake,” she tells The Hollywood Reporter. “Today’s audience is just so unpredictable.”
    “I can’t tell you how many laymen just go, ‘Well, people don’t go to the movies anymore.’ That’s not Hollywood analysis; that just comes out of almost everybody’s mouth.”
    Revealing she doesn’t think that she’ll return, Linda adds: “It should definitely not be such a high-risk financial venture, but I would be quite happy to never return. So, no, I am not hopeful because I would really love to be done.”
    “But, if there were something new that really spoke to me, I am a logical person, and I will always consider viable changes.”

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    Blake Lively Considers Reactions to Her 'Rhythm Section' Transformation 'Very Offensive'

    Paramount Pictures

    Speaking to Jimmy Fallon, the star in this Reed Morano-directed action film stresses that the images people mistakenly thought as before and after makeup actually took an hour to produce.
    Jan 31, 2020
    AceShowbiz – Blake Lively has spoken out after fans mistook a set of images from behind the scenes of her new movie “The Rhythm Section” for before and after shots from a make-up session.
    The 32-year-old star plays a grieving widow who sets out for revenge after discovering the plane crash that killed her family wasn’t an accident, and for part of the movie sports a haggard look.
    Blake shared snaps of her changing appearance in the flick online but, speaking on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”, she revealed fans completely misunderstood the point of the images – which she found “very offensive.”
    “(The make-up artist) did this really rough look, because my (character’s) family has experienced a lot of tragedy,” she explained. “And then this after I clean up but when I posted it, people were saying, ‘Wow, Blake bravely shows what she looks like before and after makeup.’ ”
    “Some people think that’s what I look like without makeup (pointing at the after picture), which I find very offensive because that takes an hour for her to make me look like that.”
    She added, “I’m sort of vacillating between my vanity, which is like wanting to be like, ‘I don’t actually look like that!’ But also being a feminist and being like, ‘Why do we expect women to wake up looking like this? This isn’t realistic that you wake up this beautiful!’ But I would like people to believe that I wake up looking this beautiful.”
    [embedded content]
    “The Rhythm Section”, also starring Jude Law and Sterling K. Brown, hits cinemas on Friday, January 31.

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