There’s a lot of breaking news in Hollywood happening every minute. In the age of the blockbuster, it’s easy for some smaller movie and television news to slip through the crack. Last Week in Hollywood is our new weekly series highlighting all the interesting news from the last week that we thought didn’t warrant its own post, but was still worth mentioning. It’s less personal opinions and more a hearty roundup of what you might have missed.
Chris Evans Joining Dwayne Johnson in Red One
Chris Evans is set to star opposite Dwayne Johnson in Red One, an upcoming holiday action film from Amazon Studios. The film is described as a “globe-trotting, four-quadrant action-adventure comedy imagining a whole new universe to explore within the holiday genre.”
Jake Kasdan (Jumanji franchise) is directing from a screenplay by Chris Morgan (Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw). The project is aiming to begin shooting this year.
Kirsten Dunst to Star in Alex Garland’s Civil War
Kirsten Dunst is set to star alongside Wagner Moura, Stephen McKinley Henderson, and Cailee Spaeny in Civil War, the latest Alex Garland film from A24.
We don’t know much about the plot besides it being set in a “near future America.”
Chicken Run Sequel Voice Cast Revealed
The voice cast for Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget has been announced. Thandiwe Newton and Zachary Levi will voice Ginger and Rocky (succeeding Julia Sawalha and Mel Gibson) while Bella Ramsey will voice their headstrong daughter, Molly, “a true chick-off-the-old-block who completes the family trio in this new chapter.”
Jane Horrocks, Imelda Staunton, and Lynn Ferguson are the only actors who return from the original film. Other new additions to the cast include Josie Sedgwick-Davies, David Bradley, Romesh Ranganathan, Daniel Mays, and Nick Mohammed.
The upcoming stop-motion animated sequel will hit Netflix in 2023. In the movie, “the heroic chickens have to summon up all their resources to break into an impenetrable fortress.” Sam Fell (ParaNorman) will direct.
Side note: Aardman is also working on a new Wallace & Gromit movie for Netflix for a 2024 release. The plot is as follows: “Gromit’s concern that Wallace has become over-dependant on his inventions proves justified, when Wallace invents a ‘smart gnome’ that seems to develop a mind of its own. As events spiral out of control, it falls to Gromit to put aside his qualms and battle sinister forces – or Wallace may never be able to invent again!”
All Star Cast Assembled for Lee Daniels’ Next Film
Netflix has come out on top after winning an auction for a star-studded exoricsm film to be directed by Lee Daniels. Apparently, Netflix beat out multiple bidders, including MGM and Miramax, with a final offer around the $65 million mark. It is fast-tracked to begin production by the middle of this year.
The cast for the upcoming picture includes Andra Day, Octavia Spencer, Glenn Close, Rob Morgan, Caleb McLaughlin, and Aunjanue Ellis. Day will play “the mother of an Indiana family whose children purportedly became demonically possessed in a thriller inspired by an actual case.” That case, which was widely covered at the time, involved “Latoya Ammons and her three children experienced strange incidents in their Gary, IN, home that grew progressively worse, with the children levitating, becoming violent with one another and speaking in growls and deep voices with no recollection afterward.”
McLaughlin will play the son of Day’s character, at an older age. Close will play Day’s character’s mother. Morgan will play the boyfriend of Day’s character, and Spencer plays the clergy member who tries to help Day’s character navigate through the hauntings and the exorcisms.
Other Casting Updates
- Andrew Burnap has nabbed the male lead in Disney’s live-action remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Burnap is set to portray a new male character (i.e., not the prince) created for the film and will sing. (THR)
- Laura Donnelly (The Nevers) has been cast in Marvel Studios’ upcoming Halloween special for Disney+. No word on who she is playing, but the rumor is it could be Nina Price / Vamprie by Night, a vampire/werewolf hybrid. (Deadline)
- Rupert Friend and Richard Ayoade are the latest actors to join Wes Anderson‘s The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar. The rest of the cast includes Benedict Cumberbatch, Dev Patel, Ralph Fiennes, and Ben Kingsley. (Deadline)
- Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day) has replaced Samara Weaving in Boy Kills World, a “one-of-a-kind action spectacle set in a dystopian fever dream reality.” Production begins next month. (THR)
- Ivory Aquino (When They See Us) has joined the cast of Batgirl, the currently filming DC Films/HBO Max original film. Aquino will play Barbara’s best friend, bartender Alysia Yeoh, “the first major transgender character ever to appear in a live-action film adaptation of DC comics.” (Deadline)
- Josh Duhamel has joined the cast of The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers season 2. Duhamel will play “NHL player-turned-coach Gavin Cole” who is described as “inspirational, charming and hardcore, Gavin is big on the hockey metaphor that applies to life. He runs the super-intense summer hockey institute where The Mighty Ducks land for Season 2.” (Deadline)
That’s it for last couple of weeks. What projects mentioned are you interested in seeing once completed? Tell us down in the comments!
