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.
Hannah John-Kamen is Red Sonja
Hannah John-Kamen (Ant-Man and the Wasp) has been cast in the titular role of Red Sonja, based on the character from Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian series in the 1970s. Joey Soloway, who is slated to direct the film from a script co-written with Tasha Huo, praised John-Kamen’s casting.
Per THR: “Hannah is a very talented actress who we’ve been following for years and she IS Red Sonja,” said Soloway. “Her range, sensibilities and strength are all qualities we have been looking for and we couldn’t be more excited to embark on this journey together.”
Dominique Fishback Joins New Transformers Movie
Dominique Fishback (Judas and the Black Messiah) has boarded the upcoming Transformers movie. She will star opposite Anthony Ramos (In the Heights), and the two just so happen to be close friends. Hopefully that means that the humans might not be the worst part of a Transformers movie this time around!
Steven Caple Jr. is directing the film with Darnell Metayer and Josh Peters writing from a script by Joby Harold.
Leonardo DiCaprio Might Star in Another Round Remake
Another Round is barely a year old and already it’s getting remade! Well, it’s getting an English-language remake that could become a potential star vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio. A writer is quickly being sought ought to adapt the film.
Another Round follows “four teacher pals in midlife crisis who decide to experiment with raising their blood alcohol levels as a way to make life more interesting.” As you can probably guess, things eventually get out of hand.
Disenchanted Casts Maya Rudolph and More
Maya Rudolph, Yvette Nicole Brown, and Jayma Mays have all joined Disenchanted.
The upcoming sequel to Enchanted will reunite Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden, and Idina Menzel. It is rumored that the three new additions to the cast will be playing the villains. The first Enchanted cleverly parodied and updated classic Disney princess tropes, so I’m looking forward to seeing what the writers of the sequel come up with this time.
Vin Diesel is the Muscle
It looks like Vin Diesel is gearing up for a life after Fast & Furious. The actor recently boarded a Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em movie, and now he’s set to star in a new action-comedy titled Muscle.
There are no details about what the film might be about, but it will be directed by F. Gary Gray making this a reunion between Gray and Diesel. The two worked together on The Fate of the Furious. Scott Taylor and Wesley Jermaine Johnson wrote the script. The film project is set up at STXfilms and it will shoot later this year.
Uli Latukefu Joins Black Adam
Uli Latukefu, who plays a younger version of Dwayne Johnson in Young Rock, has joined the cast of Black Adam. Will Latukefu be playing a younger version of Johnson’s titular character in the upcoming DCEU film? I’m going to say yes, but details on Latukefu’s role are being kept under wraps.
In addition to Katukefu and Johnson, the rest of the ensemble for Black Adam includes Pierce Brosnan as Dr. Fate, Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher and Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone. Marwan Kenzari, Sarah Shahi, Mohammed Amer, James Cusati-Moyer, and Bodhi Sabongui also round out the cast.
David Cronenberg Assembles Stellar Cast for New Film
David Cronenberg is ready to make his next film. The acclaimed filmmaker will direct the science-fiction thriller Crimes of the Future. Viggo Mortensen, Kristen Stewart, and Léa Seydoux are set to star in the story that is set in the “not-so-distant future where humankind is learning to adapt to its synthetic surroundings.”
Scott Speedman, Welket Bungué, Don McKellar, and Lihi Kornowski also star in the upcoming film which will shoot in Greece this summer. The screenplay was written by Cronenberg, his first original screenplay since eXistenZ in 1999.
The film will focus on “humankind learning to adapt to its synthetic surroundings. This evolution moves humans beyond their natural state and into a metamorphosis, altering their biological makeup. While some embrace the limitless potential of transhumanism, others attempt to police it. Either way, in this perfectly crafted Cronenberg world, which marks the iconic filmmaker’s return to sci-fi, “Accelerated Evolution Syndrome”, is spreading fast.
Saul Tenser is a beloved performance artist who has embraced Accelerated Evolution Syndrome, sprouting new and unexpected organs in his body. Along with his partner Caprice, Tenser has turned the removal of these organs into a spectacle for his loyal followers to marvel at in real time theatre. But with both the government and a strange subculture taking note, Tenser is forced to consider what would be his most shocking performance of all.”
The film is coming from NEON and Serendipity Point Films.
Idris Elba to Stay Frosty
Idris Elba is set to star in a new action film called Stay Frosty. The film will be directed by Sam Hargrave (Extraction) and is set up at Warner Bros., who won the rights at a “wild spec auction.”
Tyler Marceca wrote the script which has the following synopsis: “After miraculously surviving a bullet to the head, a man has to figure out who wants him dead and why. He needs to stop the assassin while still making it back home in time to spend Christmas with his son.”
That’s it for last week. What projects mentioned are you interested in seeing once completed? Tell us down in the comments!
