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.
Amazon Renews Reacher
Amazon has renewed its action-drama series Reacher for a second season. Based on the Jack Reacher novels by Lee Child, Reacher stars Alan Ritchson as the titular character, a veteran military police investigator who has just recently entered civilian life.
The renewal was announced three days after the first season began streaming on Prime Video. Amazon reports that Reacher ranked in its top five most-watched series ever in the U.S. and globally over a 24-hour period. It was also one of Amazon’s highest-rated original series, with an average subscriber rating of 4.7 out of 5.
Season 1 of Reacher was based on the first novel, Killing Floor. No word yet on which novel will be the basis for season 2.
Wes Ball to Direct Harbinger Adaptation
Wes Ball (The Maze Runner) is attached to direct a feature-length adaptation of Valiant Comic‘s Harbinger comics for Paramount. Andrew Lanham is the latest writer to tackle adapting the series to film.
The comic follows “a group of teens with superpowers who go up against the corporation that tried to exploit their talents.”
Shawn Levy to Direct Backwards
Netflix has acquired the rights to turn the short story Backwards, from mother-son duo Julianna Baggott and Finneas Scott, into a feature film. Shawn Levy will direct.
Backwards follows “a dying father [who] chooses a method to extend his life that involves reverse aging in a de-aging facility. Appointed to be his caretaker is his estranged daughter. As the years peel off, they are able to get to the core of where they went wrong as the father relives the memory of different portions of his life, experiences which made him an unlikeable person.”
Peter Ramsey to Direct Vampire Noir Blood Count
Director Peter Ramsey (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) is making the jump to live-action filmmaking. Ramsey will helm Blood Count, a vampire noir / social thriller that he also wrote.
Paramount nabbed the rights to the project and is currently developing it with Ramsey. The film will be set in the 1950s and is loosely inspired by Ramsey’s own father’s life as a jazz musician.
Beauty and the Beast Spin-off Series Delayed Indefinitely
The Beauty and the Beast spin-off series has been delayed. Josh Gad and Luke Evans were set to reprise their roles as Gaston and LeFou from 2017’s Beauty and the Beast in the musical prequel series. However, a delay with creative elements and scheduling challenges has forced Disney+ to all but cancel the project.
The news comes just days after Rita Ora was announced to have joined the cast. Production was set to begin this summer in Europe, but sources say that some creative elements were not far enough along to accommodate that timeline. Scheduling challenges with the cast also are a factor as some talent had hard outs for other projects beginning in August. All of these factors led Disney+ to put the series on hold for the time being. Whether the series will ever actually happen now is anyone’s best guess.
Rawson Marshall Thurber to Direct Dungeons & Dragons Series
Rawson Marshall Thurber (Red Notice) will write and direct the pilot for a proposed Dungeons & Dragons series for Entertainment One. He will additionally creatively oversee the live-action series, which is based on the popular fantasy role-playing game.
The hour-long series is part of eOne’s Dungeons & Dragons universe that also includes an untitled Dungeons & Dragons feature film, which recently finished production.
Kevin Costner Returns to Directing With Horizon
Kevin Costner is set to direct his fourth feature. The Field of Dreams, The Postman, and Open Range director will helm Horizon, a western movie that he will also produce and finance through his Territory Pictures production company.
Described as a historical epic, the film will “take place across a 15-year period and focus on the U.S.’ expansion across the western regions of North America both before and after the U.S. Civil War.” The film is reportedly a passion project for Costner. Casting on the film begins soon with shooting expected to begin in Utah in August.
Additional News
- Disney+ has handed a series order to Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Production is set to start this summer with casting currently underway. James Bobin will direct the pilot from a script by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson author) and Jon Steinberg (The Old Man).
- Lionsgate has scheduled its adaptation of Judy Blume’s classic novel, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret for September 16, 2022.
- Downton Abbey: A New Era has been delayed. Instead of March 18, the film will now hit U.S. theaters on May 20, 2022. It will open in the U.K. on April 29, 2022.
That’s it for last few weeks. What projects mentioned are you interested in seeing once completed? Tell us down in the comments!
