David Hemingson’s The Holdovers at Focus Features won original screenplay and Cord Jefferson’s Oscar-winning American Fiction from Amazon MGM Studios took adapted honours at the strike-delayed Writers Guild Awards on Sunday.
This was a second major adapted screenplay award in relatively short order for Jefferson after last month’s Oscar win.
The Holdovers prevailed in an original screenplay category that included Barbie and May December, but not the Oscar winner Anatomy Of A Fall, rendered ineligible here because it was not produced under a Writers Guild of America (WGA) contract.
The best documentary screenplay award went to Errol Morris for The Pigeon Tunnel.
This was a second major adapted screenplay award in relatively short order for Jefferson after last month’s Oscar win.
The Holdovers prevailed in an original screenplay category that included Barbie and May December, but not the Oscar winner Anatomy Of A Fall, rendered ineligible here because it was not produced under a Writers Guild of America (WGA) contract.
The best documentary screenplay award went to Errol Morris for The Pigeon Tunnel.
- 4/15/2024
- ScreenDaily
David Hemingson’s The Holdovers at Focus Features won original screenplay and Cord Jefferson’s Oscar-winning American Fiction from Amazon MGM Studios took adapted honours at the strike-delayed Writers Guild Awards on Sunday.
This was a second major adapted screenplay award in relatively short order for Jefferson after last month’s Oscar win.
The Holdovers prevailed in an original screenplay category that included Barbie and May December, but not the Oscar winner Anatomy Of A Fall, rendered ineligible here because it was not produced under a Writers Guild of America (WGA) contract.
The best documentary screenplay award went to Errol Morris for The Pigeon Tunnel.
This was a second major adapted screenplay award in relatively short order for Jefferson after last month’s Oscar win.
The Holdovers prevailed in an original screenplay category that included Barbie and May December, but not the Oscar winner Anatomy Of A Fall, rendered ineligible here because it was not produced under a Writers Guild of America (WGA) contract.
The best documentary screenplay award went to Errol Morris for The Pigeon Tunnel.
- 4/15/2024
- ScreenDaily
Writer/director Cord Jefferson on the set of ‘American Fiction’ (Photo credit: Claire Folger © 2023 Orion Releasing LLC)
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) stretched out the awards season, handing out their annual awards during ceremonies held in Los Angeles and New York on April 14, 2024. Niecy Nash-Betts (Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story) had the honor of hosting the Writers Guild of America West’s ceremony while Josh Gondelman (Desus & Mero) handled hosting duties for the Writers Guild of America East.
The final season of Succession was recognized with Drama Series and Episodic Drama awards, and the first season of The Last of Us snagged the New Series trophy. The Bear and Beef continued their winning streaks, scoring Comedy Series and Limited Series wins.
David Hemingson’s The Holdovers and Cord Jefferson’s American Fiction were recognized as the best original and adapted screenplays of 2023. And Errol Morris’ The Pigeon Tunnel took...
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) stretched out the awards season, handing out their annual awards during ceremonies held in Los Angeles and New York on April 14, 2024. Niecy Nash-Betts (Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story) had the honor of hosting the Writers Guild of America West’s ceremony while Josh Gondelman (Desus & Mero) handled hosting duties for the Writers Guild of America East.
The final season of Succession was recognized with Drama Series and Episodic Drama awards, and the first season of The Last of Us snagged the New Series trophy. The Bear and Beef continued their winning streaks, scoring Comedy Series and Limited Series wins.
David Hemingson’s The Holdovers and Cord Jefferson’s American Fiction were recognized as the best original and adapted screenplays of 2023. And Errol Morris’ The Pigeon Tunnel took...
- 4/15/2024
- by Rebecca Murray
- Showbiz Junkies
With the 2024 Oscars and the 2023 Emmys firmly in the rearview mirror, the film and TV awards calendar is all but ready to return to normalcy after last years Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes disrupted the first half of award season. The last major event to be impacted by the altered schedule is today’s WGA Awards, which took place in an unusual post-Oscars slot after the strikes forced the guild to delay its voting process. As most of Hollywood looks ahead to the 2024 film and TV slate, today’s concurrent ceremonies in Los Angeles’ Hollywood Palladium and New York City’s Edison Ballroom gave award watchers one last chance to celebrate the best screenwriting of 2023.
David Hemingson’s “The Holdovers” won the night’s marquee award for Original Screenplay, beating out heavyweights including Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach’s “Barbie” and Celine Song’s “Past Lives.” In the Adapted Screenplay category,...
David Hemingson’s “The Holdovers” won the night’s marquee award for Original Screenplay, beating out heavyweights including Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach’s “Barbie” and Celine Song’s “Past Lives.” In the Adapted Screenplay category,...
- 4/15/2024
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
Nominees have been announced for the 76th annual Writers Guild Awards, and Star Trek: Picard squeaked in just under the wire.
The concluded Paramount+ quasi-revival saw its series finale nominated in the Episodic Drama category. Other first-time nominees include freshman shows Shrinking, The Last of Us, The Curse and The Diplomat.
More from TVLineThe Last of Us: Catherine O'Hara Confirmed for Season 2 Mystery RoleThe Diplomat Season 2: The West Wing's Allison Janney Elected Vice PresidentThe Last of Us Casts 100 Things to Do Before High School's Isabela Merced as Someone Very Important to Ellie
Of course, usual suspects like Succession,...
The concluded Paramount+ quasi-revival saw its series finale nominated in the Episodic Drama category. Other first-time nominees include freshman shows Shrinking, The Last of Us, The Curse and The Diplomat.
More from TVLineThe Last of Us: Catherine O'Hara Confirmed for Season 2 Mystery RoleThe Diplomat Season 2: The West Wing's Allison Janney Elected Vice PresidentThe Last of Us Casts 100 Things to Do Before High School's Isabela Merced as Someone Very Important to Ellie
Of course, usual suspects like Succession,...
- 2/21/2024
- by Michael Ausiello
- TVLine.com
The Writers Guild of America’s west and east arms have announced nominations for this year’s honors in screenwriting, television, new media, news, radio/audio, and promotional writing during 2023. Delayed due to the Hollywood strikes, this year’s ceremony will take place on Sunday, April 14, 2024. Here are the nominees:
Screenplay Nominees
Original Screenplay
“Air,” Written by Alex Convery; Amazon MGM Studios
“Barbie,” Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach; Warner Bros. Pictures
“The Holdovers,” Written by David Hemingson; Focus Features
“May December,” Screenplay by Samy Burch, Story by Samy Burch & Alex Mechanik; Netflix
“Past Lives,” Written by Celine Song; A24
Adapted Screenplay
“American Fiction,” Screenplay by Cord Jefferson, Based upon the novel “Erasure” by Percival Everett; Amazon MGM Studios
“Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.,” Screenplay by Kelly Fremon Craig, Based on the book by Judy Blume; Lionsgate
“Killers of the Flower Moon,” Screenplay by Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese,...
Screenplay Nominees
Original Screenplay
“Air,” Written by Alex Convery; Amazon MGM Studios
“Barbie,” Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach; Warner Bros. Pictures
“The Holdovers,” Written by David Hemingson; Focus Features
“May December,” Screenplay by Samy Burch, Story by Samy Burch & Alex Mechanik; Netflix
“Past Lives,” Written by Celine Song; A24
Adapted Screenplay
“American Fiction,” Screenplay by Cord Jefferson, Based upon the novel “Erasure” by Percival Everett; Amazon MGM Studios
“Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.,” Screenplay by Kelly Fremon Craig, Based on the book by Judy Blume; Lionsgate
“Killers of the Flower Moon,” Screenplay by Eric Roth and Martin Scorsese,...
- 2/21/2024
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
The 2024 Writers Guild Awards nominations have been revealed.
The nominees in the category of original screenplay are Air, Barbie, The Holdovers, May December and Past Lives.
In the adapted screenplay category the nominees are American Fiction, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, Killers of the Flower Moon, Nyad and Oppenheimer.
In an unusual move this year, the WGA Awards will take place after the Oscars, with the winners awarded on April 14.
A complete list of this year’s nominees follows.
Screenplay Nominees
Original Screenplay
Air, Written by Alex Convery; Amazon MGM Studios
Barbie, Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach; Warner Bros. Pictures
The Holdovers, Written by David Hemingson; Focus Features
May December, Screenplay by Samy Burch, Story by Samy Burch & Alex Mechanik; Netflix
Past Lives, Written by Celine Song; A24
Adapted Screenplay
American Fiction, Screenplay by Cord Jefferson, Based upon the novel Erasure by Percival Everett; Amazon MGM Studios
Are You There God?...
The nominees in the category of original screenplay are Air, Barbie, The Holdovers, May December and Past Lives.
In the adapted screenplay category the nominees are American Fiction, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, Killers of the Flower Moon, Nyad and Oppenheimer.
In an unusual move this year, the WGA Awards will take place after the Oscars, with the winners awarded on April 14.
A complete list of this year’s nominees follows.
Screenplay Nominees
Original Screenplay
Air, Written by Alex Convery; Amazon MGM Studios
Barbie, Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach; Warner Bros. Pictures
The Holdovers, Written by David Hemingson; Focus Features
May December, Screenplay by Samy Burch, Story by Samy Burch & Alex Mechanik; Netflix
Past Lives, Written by Celine Song; A24
Adapted Screenplay
American Fiction, Screenplay by Cord Jefferson, Based upon the novel Erasure by Percival Everett; Amazon MGM Studios
Are You There God?...
- 2/21/2024
- by Hilary Lewis
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Writers Guild Of America has announced its feature nominees and the roster includes The Holdovers, May December and Barbie for original screenplay and American Fiction, Oppenheimer and Killers Of The Flower Moon in the adapted category.
Air is the surprise among the original contenders and takes its place alongside Past Lives. Barbie earned an Oscar nod in the adapted screenplay category.
Anatomy Of A Fall was ineligible as it was not produced under a WGA contract. Justine Triet’s film, like Maestro, which was not in Wednesday’s announcement, earned an Oscar nod.
Competing for the adapted screenplay prize are...
Air is the surprise among the original contenders and takes its place alongside Past Lives. Barbie earned an Oscar nod in the adapted screenplay category.
Anatomy Of A Fall was ineligible as it was not produced under a WGA contract. Justine Triet’s film, like Maestro, which was not in Wednesday’s announcement, earned an Oscar nod.
Competing for the adapted screenplay prize are...
- 2/21/2024
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: Veteran UTA Motion Picture Literary Agent Bill Zotti has joined Kaplan/Perrone Entertainment as a manager. Zotti spent the last five years at UTA and before that at CAA, repping high profile writers, directors, and producer that included Scott Neustadter & Michael Weber (Daisy Jones & the Six), Katie Silberman (Don’t Worry Darling), Dan Gregor & Doug Mand (Naked Gun), Gemma Burgess (My Lady Jane), Leah McKendrick (Scrambled), Flora Greeson (The High Note), Carrie Solomon (Ocean’s Prequel), Amy Aniobi (Insecure), Tess Morris (Sooner Or Later), Darren Lemke (Kung Fu Panda), Dave Green (Coyote Vs. Acme), Mike Mitchell (Kung Fu Panda), Yassir Lester (War Machine), Rodney Barnes (Winning Time), and Ryan Kalil & Blake Griffin. Zotti was at CAA for 12 years prior to joining UTA.
They are figuring out which clients he’ll rep as manager, but by all accounts the move is an amicable one.
“Bill is a wonderful person...
They are figuring out which clients he’ll rep as manager, but by all accounts the move is an amicable one.
“Bill is a wonderful person...
- 1/9/2023
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: We hear that Kris Rey is set to direct Sooner or Later, a romantic comedy that’s early in the works at 20th Century Studios from scribe Tess Morris and produced by Logan‘s Scott Frank.
Sooner or Later focuses on Nora, a cynical British journalist who is hired to write a puff piece for a legendary Hollywood playboy attempting to reinvent his image.
Rey’s most recent comedy feature I Used To Go Here premiered at SXSW in 2020 and starred Gillian Jacobs and Jemaine Clement. The pic was acquired stateside by Gravitas Ventures. Previously, she wrote and directed the feature Unexpected, which premiered in competition at the Sundance Film Festival and stars Cobie Smulders, Anders Holm, Gail Bean, and Elizabeth McGovern.
Up next on the feature side, Rey is attached to direct Higher Ground, a natural disaster rom-com written by Olivia Wolfe and Neel Shah. Dave Bernad and Ruben Fleischer are producing.
Sooner or Later focuses on Nora, a cynical British journalist who is hired to write a puff piece for a legendary Hollywood playboy attempting to reinvent his image.
Rey’s most recent comedy feature I Used To Go Here premiered at SXSW in 2020 and starred Gillian Jacobs and Jemaine Clement. The pic was acquired stateside by Gravitas Ventures. Previously, she wrote and directed the feature Unexpected, which premiered in competition at the Sundance Film Festival and stars Cobie Smulders, Anders Holm, Gail Bean, and Elizabeth McGovern.
Up next on the feature side, Rey is attached to direct Higher Ground, a natural disaster rom-com written by Olivia Wolfe and Neel Shah. Dave Bernad and Ruben Fleischer are producing.
- 12/7/2022
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Before the Indie Spirits, before the Oscars, there are the guilds, and as Hollywood inches its way through a protracted awards season, it’s up to each voting body to dole out their own accolades. On Sunday night, it was time for the writers to shine, as the Writers Guild of America presented their awards for film, television, news, and more, all voted on by fellow writers. For writers, by writers!
As IndieWire’s own Anne Thompson has noted, the WGA’s film nominees are less predictive than an indication of what’s losing and gaining heat, from the missing early 2020 releases “I’m Thinking of Ending Things,” “The King of Staten Island,” and “Da 5 Bloods,” to such surging movies as “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Sound of Metal,” and “Promising Young Woman,” all of which recently earned Best Picture nods from the Academy.
At the Sunday night event, Emerald Fennell...
As IndieWire’s own Anne Thompson has noted, the WGA’s film nominees are less predictive than an indication of what’s losing and gaining heat, from the missing early 2020 releases “I’m Thinking of Ending Things,” “The King of Staten Island,” and “Da 5 Bloods,” to such surging movies as “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Sound of Metal,” and “Promising Young Woman,” all of which recently earned Best Picture nods from the Academy.
At the Sunday night event, Emerald Fennell...
- 3/21/2021
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
The Writers Guild of America Awards were handed during a virtual ceremony on Sunday, March 21. But don’t base your Oscar predictions on these kudos. Every year a slew of Oscar-nominated scripts are deemed ineligible for consideration here due to guild guidelines. Indeed, over the past 12 years only 80 of the Writers Guild of America Awards nominees have numbered among the 120 screenplays that reaped Academy Awards bids. Scroll down for the 2021 Writers Guild of America Awards winners list.
Our odds predict that “Nomadland” will win Best Adapted Screenplay winner at the Oscars but it was not allowed to compete at the WGA Awards. Neither was another Oscar contender in that category: “The Father.” The guild did match the academy three-for-five in this category, with “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” “One Night in Miami” and “The White Tiger” competing at both. “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “News of the World” round out the guild nominees.
Our odds predict that “Nomadland” will win Best Adapted Screenplay winner at the Oscars but it was not allowed to compete at the WGA Awards. Neither was another Oscar contender in that category: “The Father.” The guild did match the academy three-for-five in this category, with “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm,” “One Night in Miami” and “The White Tiger” competing at both. “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “News of the World” round out the guild nominees.
- 3/21/2021
- by Zach Laws and Paul Sheehan
- Gold Derby
The Writers Guild of America announced their WGA Awards TV nominations for on Wednesday, February 3. After getting just one bid from the Golden Globes earlier in the day, AMC’s “Better Call Saul” rebounded to top all shows with five nominations including for Drama Series along with Amazon Studios’ “The Boys,” Disney +’s “The Mandalorian” and Netflix’s “The Crown” and “Ozark.”
Hulu lands two shows in contention for Comedy Series with “The Great” and “PEN15,” making the streaming service the only company to score multiple nominees in the category. They are joined by HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” Apple TV+’s “Ted Lasso” and FX’s “What We Do in the Shadows.”
Another notable feat belongs to “The Simpsons,” which dominates the animation category with four of the six nominations. Despite premiering over 30 years ago, the Fox series shows no signs of writer’s fatigue. “Bob’s Burgers” and “BoJack Horseman...
Hulu lands two shows in contention for Comedy Series with “The Great” and “PEN15,” making the streaming service the only company to score multiple nominees in the category. They are joined by HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” Apple TV+’s “Ted Lasso” and FX’s “What We Do in the Shadows.”
Another notable feat belongs to “The Simpsons,” which dominates the animation category with four of the six nominations. Despite premiering over 30 years ago, the Fox series shows no signs of writer’s fatigue. “Bob’s Burgers” and “BoJack Horseman...
- 2/4/2021
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
The WGA on Wednesday unveiled nominations for its 2021 WGA Awards in the categories of TV, new media, news, radio/audio and promotional writing during 2020. Winners will be honored March 21 in a virtual ceremony.
AMC’s Better Call Saul topped all shows with five nominations including for Drama Series, joining a list that includes Amazon Studios’ The Boys, Netflix’s The Crown (which led the way on the TV side at the Golden Globe nominations earlier today) and Ozark and Disney+’s The Mandalorian.
Also making noise today is Hulu, the only other company to have multiple noms in the top categories; it scored in Comedy with Tony McNamara’s The Great and Pen15 and FX on Hulu’s What We Do in the Shadows, which are joined in the race by HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm and Apple TV+’s Ted Lasso.
Lasso is also nominated in the New Series,...
AMC’s Better Call Saul topped all shows with five nominations including for Drama Series, joining a list that includes Amazon Studios’ The Boys, Netflix’s The Crown (which led the way on the TV side at the Golden Globe nominations earlier today) and Ozark and Disney+’s The Mandalorian.
Also making noise today is Hulu, the only other company to have multiple noms in the top categories; it scored in Comedy with Tony McNamara’s The Great and Pen15 and FX on Hulu’s What We Do in the Shadows, which are joined in the race by HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm and Apple TV+’s Ted Lasso.
Lasso is also nominated in the New Series,...
- 2/3/2021
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
The nominations for the 2021 Writers Guild Award TV categories were announced on Wednesday, with streaming series dominating the lineup.
Both the drama series and the comedy series categories were majority streaming, with hits like “The Queen’s Gambit,” “The Mandalorian,” “The Crown” and “Ozark” sitting alongside fan-favorites like “PEN15,” “The Great” and “Ted Lasso.” Other nominees included HBO Max’s “The Flight Attendant,” HBO’s “Lovecraft Country” and Showtime’s “Good Lord Bird.
“Better Call Saul” also landed three additional nominations for individual episodes, with “Ozark” picking up another. “The Great” and “Ted Lasso” both picked up nomination for individual episodes as well as for Best New Series.
Comedy and variety nominees included Peacock’s fledgling late-night show, “The Amber Ruffin Show,” Amazon’s “Yearly Departed,” the one-off “30 Rock” reunion special and Stephen Colbert’s 2020 election coverage on Showtime.
Nominations in the film categories will be announced later this month,...
Both the drama series and the comedy series categories were majority streaming, with hits like “The Queen’s Gambit,” “The Mandalorian,” “The Crown” and “Ozark” sitting alongside fan-favorites like “PEN15,” “The Great” and “Ted Lasso.” Other nominees included HBO Max’s “The Flight Attendant,” HBO’s “Lovecraft Country” and Showtime’s “Good Lord Bird.
“Better Call Saul” also landed three additional nominations for individual episodes, with “Ozark” picking up another. “The Great” and “Ted Lasso” both picked up nomination for individual episodes as well as for Best New Series.
Comedy and variety nominees included Peacock’s fledgling late-night show, “The Amber Ruffin Show,” Amazon’s “Yearly Departed,” the one-off “30 Rock” reunion special and Stephen Colbert’s 2020 election coverage on Showtime.
Nominations in the film categories will be announced later this month,...
- 2/3/2021
- by Reid Nakamura
- The Wrap
“Better Call Saul” are among the top nominees for this year’s Writers Guild Awards, landing a nod for best drama series, as well as three nominations in the episodic drama category. “The Simpsons” landed four nominations in best animation, while newcomers “Ted Lasso” and “The Great” both scored nominations in best comedy, new series and episodic comedy. Winners will be honored at a joint 2021 Writers Guild Awards virtual ceremony on Sunday, March 21, 2021. Here’s the complete list of nominations, announced on Wednesday morning:
Drama Series
“Better Call Saul,” Written by Ann Cherkis, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Ariel Levine, Heather Marion, Thomas Schnauz, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock; AMC
“The Boys,” Written by Eric Kripke, Ellie Monahan, Anslem Richardson, Craig Rosenberg, Michael Saltzman, Rebecca Sonnenshine; Amazon Prime Video
“The Crown,” Written by Peter Morgan, Jonathan Wilson; Netflix
“The Mandalorian,” Written by Rick Famuyiwa, Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni; Disney Plus
“Ozark,” Written by Laura Deeley,...
Drama Series
“Better Call Saul,” Written by Ann Cherkis, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Ariel Levine, Heather Marion, Thomas Schnauz, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock; AMC
“The Boys,” Written by Eric Kripke, Ellie Monahan, Anslem Richardson, Craig Rosenberg, Michael Saltzman, Rebecca Sonnenshine; Amazon Prime Video
“The Crown,” Written by Peter Morgan, Jonathan Wilson; Netflix
“The Mandalorian,” Written by Rick Famuyiwa, Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni; Disney Plus
“Ozark,” Written by Laura Deeley,...
- 2/3/2021
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
This The Great review contains no spoilers.
In The Great, Elle Fanning anchors a deceptively biting romp punctuated with the visceral realities of the 18th century Russian court of Peter III. With a passing resemblance to history, The Great tracks Catherine’s trajectory from a naive German princess obsessed with romance to a savvy woman managing affairs of state and plotting a coup against her husband. A wild ride through the romance, grit, and plotting it takes to become the storied Catherine the Great, Hulu’s new series is frothy fun with a deadly dark side.
Billed as “an occasionally true story,” The Great is history in the style of Apple TV+’s Dickinson, albeit without the needle drops. The asterisk on every title card allows The Great’s playful nature to apply to its take on the historic record as well as gender roles, dialogue, and probably the behavior of bears.
In The Great, Elle Fanning anchors a deceptively biting romp punctuated with the visceral realities of the 18th century Russian court of Peter III. With a passing resemblance to history, The Great tracks Catherine’s trajectory from a naive German princess obsessed with romance to a savvy woman managing affairs of state and plotting a coup against her husband. A wild ride through the romance, grit, and plotting it takes to become the storied Catherine the Great, Hulu’s new series is frothy fun with a deadly dark side.
Billed as “an occasionally true story,” The Great is history in the style of Apple TV+’s Dickinson, albeit without the needle drops. The asterisk on every title card allows The Great’s playful nature to apply to its take on the historic record as well as gender roles, dialogue, and probably the behavior of bears.
- 5/1/2020
- by Alec Bojalad
- Den of Geek
The effects of the WGA and Ata breakup are being felt beyond Hollywood.
Speculation has been growing in UK industry circles about how local agencies might be affected by the mass firing of agents by WGA members in the U.S.
On Friday, WGA West president David A. Goodman wrote to UK WGA members reminding them that their UK agents must adhere to the guild’s Agency Code Of Conduct when it comes to future WGA-covered work.
In an effort to shore up any potential cracks, Goodman said that “in accordance with Working Rule 23, both U.S. and UK-based agencies must sign the Code of Conduct in order to represent you for WGA-covered work.” (Read the letter in full below.)
The message was clear: the WGA’s new regulations extend across borders. Workarounds will not be tolerated. But it’s not yet clear if any UK agencies have signed up...
Speculation has been growing in UK industry circles about how local agencies might be affected by the mass firing of agents by WGA members in the U.S.
On Friday, WGA West president David A. Goodman wrote to UK WGA members reminding them that their UK agents must adhere to the guild’s Agency Code Of Conduct when it comes to future WGA-covered work.
In an effort to shore up any potential cracks, Goodman said that “in accordance with Working Rule 23, both U.S. and UK-based agencies must sign the Code of Conduct in order to represent you for WGA-covered work.” (Read the letter in full below.)
The message was clear: the WGA’s new regulations extend across borders. Workarounds will not be tolerated. But it’s not yet clear if any UK agencies have signed up...
- 4/15/2019
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
After whittling down a list from more than 1,200 applicants, The Black List has the seven screenwriters to participate in its fifth annual Feature Writers Lab.
The writers, none of whom has made more than $100K in their writing careers, and their scripts are:
Amber Alexander, Juniper’s Point
Chris Basler, The Enclosed
Ryan Jow, Windfall
Halia Meguid, Monsters of Philsdelphia
Cody Newton, American Patriot
Kim & Mai Spurlock, The Breakline
All seven writers will participate in a residential workshop from August 5-11 in Manhattan Beach, CA, Each writer will workshop one screenplay through peer workshops and one-on-one sessions with working professional screenwriting mentors. They also will attend a series of events and screenings that will further expose them to the realities of a life as a professional screenwriter.
Read their official bios below.
The Black List today also named its 2018 Feature Writers Lab mentors:
Max Borenstein (Kong: Skull Island)
Phil Hay...
The writers, none of whom has made more than $100K in their writing careers, and their scripts are:
Amber Alexander, Juniper’s Point
Chris Basler, The Enclosed
Ryan Jow, Windfall
Halia Meguid, Monsters of Philsdelphia
Cody Newton, American Patriot
Kim & Mai Spurlock, The Breakline
All seven writers will participate in a residential workshop from August 5-11 in Manhattan Beach, CA, Each writer will workshop one screenplay through peer workshops and one-on-one sessions with working professional screenwriting mentors. They also will attend a series of events and screenings that will further expose them to the realities of a life as a professional screenwriter.
Read their official bios below.
The Black List today also named its 2018 Feature Writers Lab mentors:
Max Borenstein (Kong: Skull Island)
Phil Hay...
- 8/2/2018
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Did you hear the meet-cute gimmick of the British romantic-slapstick farce Man Up? Lake Bell plays a 34-year-old single woman whom a 40-year-old divorced man played by Simon Pegg mistakes for his blind date, and — given that she seems to be more in sync with him than she was with her last few dates — she doesn’t tell him the truth, opting to see where the evening will lead. Given that her decision is so gutsy, it’s strange that the movie comes down to other characters telling her that she needs to take more chances and risk disappointment — to “man up.” But this is not a film that suffers from the hobgoblin of consistency.It does have its funny stretches. Writer Tess Morris and director Ben Palmer make a strong choice and have the courage to see it through: Every character — every character — is a crazed extrovert...
- 11/16/2015
- by David Edelstein
- Vulture
Whether or not you’re a fan of the genre, romantic comedies — you know, rom-coms — are abundant and, well, unavoidable. That’s not to say they aren’t enjoyable, they certainly are, especially when penned by someone like Woody Allen or Nora Ephron. Though no matter who is behind the pen or the page, romantic comedies tend to stick towards a genre-specific checklist. In other words, there are seven qualities all rom-coms have, and if you follow them, ideally you can complete your own screenplay, too. Read More: 20 Great Films About Relationships in Crisis In a video essay by BFI Films, writer Tess Morris of the upcoming “Man Up” (starring Lake Bell and Simon Pegg — read our review here) discusses how to strategize when developing a film based on a specific relationship. Morris recommends Billy Mernit’s book “How to Write a Romantic Comedy,” and she summarizes the seven beats these films will need.
- 11/13/2015
- by Samantha Vacca
- The Playlist
Romantic comedies aren't always my thing. But when they happen to star Simon Pegg and Lake Bell, that's an entirely different story. In Man Up, the latest feature from director Ben Palmer - with a smart script from Tess Morris - you have something very special. Not surprisingly, both Bell and Pegg are incredible together. It is a sweet and honest portrait of the cruel dating world. It is... Read More...
- 11/13/2015
- by JimmyO
- JoBlo.com
Read More: Lake Bell on Going Full-On British for 'Man Up' and Fooling the Film's Crew Mishaps, misadventures and misunderstandings tend to fuel the wackiest of rom-coms, but the Tess Morris-penned "Man Up" stays mostly rooted in the real world — it was, after all, partially inspired by some of Morris' own experiences in the dating pool — to tell a story that manages to be funny while also keeping things from turning too silly. The films stars Lake Bell and Simon Pegg as a pair of hapless daters who get thrown together by chance and spend one wild night (maybe) connecting in an unexpected way. As Nancy, Bell is a perpetual loser in love who can't seem to find the right guy, while Pegg's Jack is a bit of a smoothie who has been dating way too long. When Jack spies Nancy waiting under the clock at Waterloo Station,...
- 11/11/2015
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Though the romantic comedy has fallen out of favor in recent years, Ben Palmer's pleasantly cynical "Man Up," starring Simon Pegg and Lake Bell, may do a bit to bring it back into fashion. Read More: Tribeca: Lake Bell on Going Full-On British for 'Man Up' and Fooling the Film's Crew On her way to begrudgingly celebrate her parent's anniversary, perennial relationship doubter Nancy (Lake Bell) runs into 40-year-old divorcee Jack (Simon Pegg), who mistakes her for the blind date he's been set up with. Deciding to just go with it, the two embark on a messy and often riotous journey of friendship and discovery to see what happens when you just roll with the punches. In the hilarious clip, we get a glimpse at Nancy's anti-relationship status (and her impressive bologna sandwich) as she struggles to relate to an overly chipper woman she meets on the train.
- 10/29/2015
- by Aubrey Page
- Indiewire
Simon Pegg and Lake Bell prove a winning couple, British-Asian noir takes to the Yorkshire moors, while a fine Nigerian drama hits the UK care of Netflix
“When you’re writing a romcom, you’re writing chemistry on to the page,” observed screenwriter Tess Morris recently, writing for Bafta on that least fairly credited of film genres. Having written Man Up (Studiocanal, 15), fortunately, she’s in a position to talk. A cleverly but comfortingly structured romp of mistaken identity and stolen opportunity, it’s a rare contemporary romantic comedy in which attraction doesn’t seem predetermined; its characters actually work toward an appreciation of each other. That’s despite one of the more neatly contrived premises the genre has seen in recent years: boy mistakes girl for his blind date, girl runs with the charade, hijinks ensue.
Morris’s quick, quippy script writes chemistry into this farcical setup; luckily, the casting follows suit.
“When you’re writing a romcom, you’re writing chemistry on to the page,” observed screenwriter Tess Morris recently, writing for Bafta on that least fairly credited of film genres. Having written Man Up (Studiocanal, 15), fortunately, she’s in a position to talk. A cleverly but comfortingly structured romp of mistaken identity and stolen opportunity, it’s a rare contemporary romantic comedy in which attraction doesn’t seem predetermined; its characters actually work toward an appreciation of each other. That’s despite one of the more neatly contrived premises the genre has seen in recent years: boy mistakes girl for his blind date, girl runs with the charade, hijinks ensue.
Morris’s quick, quippy script writes chemistry into this farcical setup; luckily, the casting follows suit.
- 9/27/2015
- by Guy Lodge
- The Guardian - Film News
Read More:'bfi London Film Festival Adds 'Steve Jobs,' 'A Bigger Splash,' 'High Rise,' 'Black Mass,' & More The BFI has revealed its three-month, UK-wide 2015 series, "Love: Films to Fall in Love With... Films to Break Your Heart," sponsored by UK internet provider, Plusnet. News that Mike Newell, Tess Morris and Jenni Murray will discuss love on the big and small screen at the BFI Southbank has also just been announced. Heather Stewart, Creative Director of the BFI said, "Film can bring love to life more powerfully than any other art form – it is cinema's most seductive illusion and has transformed the way we see ourselves, and our love lives. Our season is not about sex. We’re getting back to Love: embracing the intimacy of the close-up and the anticipation of the much longed-for screen kiss: the very language of cinema itself." With this aim,...
- 9/22/2015
- by Elle Leonsis
- Indiewire
Now we've passed the halfway point of the year and summer blockbuster season is beginning to wind down, what better time to deliver our half-term report on 2015 so far?
From Oscar contenders like Selma and Foxcatcher to blockbusters Mad Max: Fury Road and Jurassic World, it's been a strong year for cinema. Read on to find out our rankings then comment below with your favourites...
15. Fast & Furious 7
The Fast & Furious saga's latest instalment carried with it all the insane action sequences and stunts we've come to expect, but few could have predicted just how emotionally affecting the film turned out to be.
The death of Paul Walker in November 2013 meant that production had to be called off while the filmmakers figured out how to complete the movie without him, and they gave him (and character Brian O'Connor) the perfect send off. Sometimes life presents a fork in the road...
From Oscar contenders like Selma and Foxcatcher to blockbusters Mad Max: Fury Road and Jurassic World, it's been a strong year for cinema. Read on to find out our rankings then comment below with your favourites...
15. Fast & Furious 7
The Fast & Furious saga's latest instalment carried with it all the insane action sequences and stunts we've come to expect, but few could have predicted just how emotionally affecting the film turned out to be.
The death of Paul Walker in November 2013 meant that production had to be called off while the filmmakers figured out how to complete the movie without him, and they gave him (and character Brian O'Connor) the perfect send off. Sometimes life presents a fork in the road...
- 7/19/2015
- Digital Spy
Pegg and Bell share an accidental blind date and then a sometimes combative romance in this romcom from Inbetweeners Movie director Ben Palmer
Related: Simon Pegg: ‘I find it very hard to write for women’
Romcoms and blind dates have much in common: there’s no real telling what’s going to work, and what looks good on paper often turns out to be a disaster. There is nothing particularly promising about this set-up – middle-class 30- to 40-year-old Brits, one of whom is actually American – but where a dozen other Bridget Jones imitators have failed, Simon Pegg and Lake Bell really hit it off. They’re fine partners in quick-witted repartee and goofy dance steps, yet both sympathetically fallible underneath. A blind date is involved: his rebounding divorcee mistakes her frustrated singleton for his rendezvous; she decides to play along, despite not being a high-flying, 24-year-old triathlete. They have a lot in common,...
Related: Simon Pegg: ‘I find it very hard to write for women’
Romcoms and blind dates have much in common: there’s no real telling what’s going to work, and what looks good on paper often turns out to be a disaster. There is nothing particularly promising about this set-up – middle-class 30- to 40-year-old Brits, one of whom is actually American – but where a dozen other Bridget Jones imitators have failed, Simon Pegg and Lake Bell really hit it off. They’re fine partners in quick-witted repartee and goofy dance steps, yet both sympathetically fallible underneath. A blind date is involved: his rebounding divorcee mistakes her frustrated singleton for his rendezvous; she decides to play along, despite not being a high-flying, 24-year-old triathlete. They have a lot in common,...
- 5/28/2015
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Director: Ben Palmer; Screenwriter: Tess Morris; Starring: Simon Pegg, Lake Bell, Olivia Williams; Rory Kinnear; Running time: 88 mins; Certificate: 15
Cupid's arrow takes a circuitous route before finding its mark in Man Up, a truly rib-tickling rom-com that delivers the heady buzz of a great first date. But it's American actress Lake Bell (doing a fine English accent, here) who looks set to win viewers' hearts, more so than leading man Simon Pegg who generously acts as her 'straight man' - albeit slightly dizzied by the whirlwind of weird that Bell creates around him.
Bell, who also impressed with her 2013 writing/directing debut In a World..., stars as Nancy, vaguely depressed at still being single and incorrigibly goofy at 34 years old. However, judging by the way she tucks into a baguette on a crowded train, simultaneously complaining about her love life, she's not overly self-consciousness either. Sharon Horgan (recently seen in...
Cupid's arrow takes a circuitous route before finding its mark in Man Up, a truly rib-tickling rom-com that delivers the heady buzz of a great first date. But it's American actress Lake Bell (doing a fine English accent, here) who looks set to win viewers' hearts, more so than leading man Simon Pegg who generously acts as her 'straight man' - albeit slightly dizzied by the whirlwind of weird that Bell creates around him.
Bell, who also impressed with her 2013 writing/directing debut In a World..., stars as Nancy, vaguely depressed at still being single and incorrigibly goofy at 34 years old. However, judging by the way she tucks into a baguette on a crowded train, simultaneously complaining about her love life, she's not overly self-consciousness either. Sharon Horgan (recently seen in...
- 5/28/2015
- Digital Spy
Simon Pegg has no doubt that William Shatner could play Captain Kirk again
As well as being a rare romcom success, Simon Pegg's new film Man Up also shows off London in a way rarely seen on screen - as it actually is.
The Gloucestershire-born Crouch Ender told Digital Spy that he enjoyed writing a "love letter" to his adopted home city.
Away from the suburbs of Shaun of the Dead, the film "embraces the tourist part of London in a way which is just a little bit more truthful".
The actor's frequent collaborator Edgar Wright is currently locked down working on his new movie Baby Driver, but Pegg promised us that the reunion they teased last summer will most definitely be happening.
Written by Tess Morris and directed by Ben Palmer, Man Up features Pegg alongside Lake Bell and is in cinemas tomorrow (May 29).
As well as being a rare romcom success, Simon Pegg's new film Man Up also shows off London in a way rarely seen on screen - as it actually is.
The Gloucestershire-born Crouch Ender told Digital Spy that he enjoyed writing a "love letter" to his adopted home city.
Away from the suburbs of Shaun of the Dead, the film "embraces the tourist part of London in a way which is just a little bit more truthful".
The actor's frequent collaborator Edgar Wright is currently locked down working on his new movie Baby Driver, but Pegg promised us that the reunion they teased last summer will most definitely be happening.
Written by Tess Morris and directed by Ben Palmer, Man Up features Pegg alongside Lake Bell and is in cinemas tomorrow (May 29).
- 5/28/2015
- Digital Spy
Simon Pegg chats to us about rom coms, Man Up, writing, Tintin 2, visiting Andy Serkis on The Jungle Book set, directing, and more...
Before he heads off to make the next Star Trek film, Simon Pegg is back in UK cinemas this weekend for the really rather good romantic comedy, Man Up. He co-stars with Lake Bell in the movie, and ahead of its release, he spared us some time to chat about the film, and what he's up to next...
It's an interesting sign of the times that BBC Films, which started out making movies that couldn't be made really, back with Truly Madly Deeply....
Another South Bank movie!
True. Back then, BBC Films was making niche films that were struggling to get made anywhere else. And here, with Man Up, a rom com seems to have become one of those niche films.
Absolutely, yeah. You make a very good point.
Before he heads off to make the next Star Trek film, Simon Pegg is back in UK cinemas this weekend for the really rather good romantic comedy, Man Up. He co-stars with Lake Bell in the movie, and ahead of its release, he spared us some time to chat about the film, and what he's up to next...
It's an interesting sign of the times that BBC Films, which started out making movies that couldn't be made really, back with Truly Madly Deeply....
Another South Bank movie!
True. Back then, BBC Films was making niche films that were struggling to get made anywhere else. And here, with Man Up, a rom com seems to have become one of those niche films.
Absolutely, yeah. You make a very good point.
- 5/27/2015
- by simonbrew
- Den of Geek
Exclusive: Funding body greenlights shorts from women directors.
Creative England has greenlit six comedy shorts for its iShorts+ Funny Girls initiative, run in partnership with Big Talk and Baby Cow, as part of the BFI Net.Work.
The initiative aims to find “bold, entertaining and original stories” from new female screen comedy talent.
The six finalist films were selected from around 240 applicant teams nationwide, after they attended seminars by comedy writers such as The Inbetweeners’ Simon Bird and Man Up’s Tess Morris, among others. There were also sessions with development executives and comedy script editors.
Each of the finalists has now received £10,000 ($15,000) towards the budget of their films from Creative England, as well as additional financial contributions and mentoring, and will all go into production in the next three months.
Celine Haddad, senior film executive at Creative England, said: “We’re incredibly excited to give the six selected filmmakers a platform to showcase and further hone their...
Creative England has greenlit six comedy shorts for its iShorts+ Funny Girls initiative, run in partnership with Big Talk and Baby Cow, as part of the BFI Net.Work.
The initiative aims to find “bold, entertaining and original stories” from new female screen comedy talent.
The six finalist films were selected from around 240 applicant teams nationwide, after they attended seminars by comedy writers such as The Inbetweeners’ Simon Bird and Man Up’s Tess Morris, among others. There were also sessions with development executives and comedy script editors.
Each of the finalists has now received £10,000 ($15,000) towards the budget of their films from Creative England, as well as additional financial contributions and mentoring, and will all go into production in the next three months.
Celine Haddad, senior film executive at Creative England, said: “We’re incredibly excited to give the six selected filmmakers a platform to showcase and further hone their...
- 4/30/2015
- ScreenDaily
Read More: Interview: Lake Bell Wants to Vanquish 'Sexy Baby Talk' Via Her Directorial Debut 'In a World...' Lake Bell proved she's a pro at accents in her directorial debut "In a World...," which won her the Screenwriting Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and made her one of the most promising new filmmakers on the scene. In that winning comedy, Bell played an aspiring voiceover artist struggling to make a name for herself in a male-dominated industry. She's back showing off her impressive vocal range in the Tribeca Film Festival world premiere "Man Up," a romantic comedy in which she's tasked with playing a British lass who thinks she's done with dating until she meets a man (Simon Pegg) who mistakes her for his blind date. The film is directed by Ben Palmer, who made "The Inbetweeners Movie," and written by first-time screenwriter Tess Morris. Indiewire sat down...
- 4/23/2015
- by Nigel M Smith
- Indiewire
Man Up (2015)
Written by Tess Morris
Directed by Ben Palmer
UK, France, 2015
At 34, Nancy (Londoner-accented Lake Bell) is a flakey journalist on the reluctant look for love at the pestering of friends and family. Through a case of mistaken identity hinging on a self-help book, she winds up on a date turned epic day with Jack (Simon Pegg), an online marketing manager. Charming, right? It’s this on-the-nose “charm” which will divide audiences into lovers and haters (with this viewer falling more towards the latter). In spite of a stellar cast, Man Up falls flat on its promising premise of being a rom-com for nonbelievers.
From the very outset, Nancy is the cool-not-cool girl of quirky nonchalance – watching Silence of the Lambs, writing affirmations in her moleskine, chomping on a baguette, flailing in interactions with members of the opposite sex. Everything she does and says denotes a certain out-of-place yet above-it-all persona,...
Written by Tess Morris
Directed by Ben Palmer
UK, France, 2015
At 34, Nancy (Londoner-accented Lake Bell) is a flakey journalist on the reluctant look for love at the pestering of friends and family. Through a case of mistaken identity hinging on a self-help book, she winds up on a date turned epic day with Jack (Simon Pegg), an online marketing manager. Charming, right? It’s this on-the-nose “charm” which will divide audiences into lovers and haters (with this viewer falling more towards the latter). In spite of a stellar cast, Man Up falls flat on its promising premise of being a rom-com for nonbelievers.
From the very outset, Nancy is the cool-not-cool girl of quirky nonchalance – watching Silence of the Lambs, writing affirmations in her moleskine, chomping on a baguette, flailing in interactions with members of the opposite sex. Everything she does and says denotes a certain out-of-place yet above-it-all persona,...
- 4/23/2015
- by Diana Drumm
- SoundOnSight
The distributor has pounced following the April 19 world premiere of the rom-com starring Lake Bell and Simon Pegg.
Ben Palmer directed from a screenplay by Tess Morris about a woman who is mistaken for a blind date and goes along with it. Rory Kinnear and Olivia Williams round out the key cast.
StudioCanal handles world sales and co-produced alongside Big Talk Pictures’ Nira Park, James Biddle and Rachael Prior.
Matthew Justice, Pegg, Dan Cheesbrough, Jenny Borgars, Danny Perkins, Christine Langan and Joe Oppenheimer are executive producers. StudioCanal co-financed with BBC Films.
Saban launched a year ago and released The Homesman last November. The maiden slate includes How To Make Love Like An Englishman starring Pierce Brosnan, Salma Hayek and Jessica Alba; The Forger starring John Travolta; American Heist with Hayden Christensen, Adrien Brody and Jordana Brewster; Tracers starring Taylor Lautner; and The Trust with Nicolas Cage.
Ben Palmer directed from a screenplay by Tess Morris about a woman who is mistaken for a blind date and goes along with it. Rory Kinnear and Olivia Williams round out the key cast.
StudioCanal handles world sales and co-produced alongside Big Talk Pictures’ Nira Park, James Biddle and Rachael Prior.
Matthew Justice, Pegg, Dan Cheesbrough, Jenny Borgars, Danny Perkins, Christine Langan and Joe Oppenheimer are executive producers. StudioCanal co-financed with BBC Films.
Saban launched a year ago and released The Homesman last November. The maiden slate includes How To Make Love Like An Englishman starring Pierce Brosnan, Salma Hayek and Jessica Alba; The Forger starring John Travolta; American Heist with Hayden Christensen, Adrien Brody and Jordana Brewster; Tracers starring Taylor Lautner; and The Trust with Nicolas Cage.
- 4/21/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Simon Pegg’s new romantic-comedy, Man Up, eschews all the modern dating paraphernalia – Tinder, Happn, etc – and takes the more old-fashioned route to romance: a blind date and a case of mistaken identity. The movie, which pairs him up with the equally winning Lake Bell, has a new poster to share with the world. Click on the image to blow it up at least three times bigger. It's not a poster for ants. Written by Tess Morris and directed by The Inbetweeners Movie's Ben Palmer, Man Up follows Bell’s Nancy, sick of the frustrations of dating and the endless pointless set ups provided by her friends. But in a weird circumstance, she meets divorcee Jack (Pegg), who mistakes her for his blind date. Deciding to take a chance, Nancy goes along with it, and what follows is a chaotic night of drinking, dancing, bowling and what both of...
- 4/16/2015
- EmpireOnline
Simon Pegg and Lake Bell star as inadvertent lovers in a new trailer for Man Up.
The romantic comedy sees introverted Nancy (Bell) wishing that she had more confidence to 'put herself out there'.
She meets a stranger (Ophelia Lovibond) on a train off to meet a blind date. The man will recognise his date from the book she is carrying.
However, when the stranger leaves her book behind and Nancy chases her to return it, she is intercepted by the woman's blind date Jack (Pegg).
After Jack mistakes Nancy for his date, she decides to take a chance and go along with the idea.
Man Up is directed by The Inbetweeners director Ben Palmer and written by Tess Morris. It is produced by Pegg alongside Nira Park under their Big Talk Productions banner in collaboration with Studio Canal.
Man Up is released in the UK on May 29.
The romantic comedy sees introverted Nancy (Bell) wishing that she had more confidence to 'put herself out there'.
She meets a stranger (Ophelia Lovibond) on a train off to meet a blind date. The man will recognise his date from the book she is carrying.
However, when the stranger leaves her book behind and Nancy chases her to return it, she is intercepted by the woman's blind date Jack (Pegg).
After Jack mistakes Nancy for his date, she decides to take a chance and go along with the idea.
Man Up is directed by The Inbetweeners director Ben Palmer and written by Tess Morris. It is produced by Pegg alongside Nira Park under their Big Talk Productions banner in collaboration with Studio Canal.
Man Up is released in the UK on May 29.
- 3/22/2015
- Digital Spy
“Childrens Hospital” star Lake Bell affects a British accent to pose as Simon Pegg’s blind date in the first trailer for “Man Up,” a romantic comedy that debuts at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 19 in advance of its UK premiere. Ben Palmer (“The InBetweeners Movie”) directed from a Brit List script by Tess Morris. Bell plays Nancy, a cynical single woman who has sworn off dating until she meets Jack (Simon Pegg), a charming romantic who mistakes her for his 24-year-old blind date. Will Nancy “man up” and come clean, and if she does, can Jack “man up” and.
- 3/21/2015
- by Jeff Sneider
- The Wrap
There may have been some worries as to whether a romantic comedy starring Simon Pegg and Lake Bell would be a good idea or not. But with the first trailer of the duo's latest film Man Up having dropped, most of those worries can now be put to rest. The new trailer, which you can view below, has many elements that could make it one of the best rom-coms to grace our screens in years. This is writer Tess Morris' first sole feature screenwriting credit. As for the director, Ben Palmer, this is his first feature film since his 2011 flick The Inbetweeners, based off his TV series of the same name. With that said, there isn't much to go on as far as a film track record for either, but from the looks of the footage here, it appears they have gotten the job done... potentially even done ...
- 3/20/2015
- cinemablend.com
The first day of Spring usually ushers in thoughts of flowers, sunny days and romance. What better way to celebrate the day than with this great first trailer for the feel-good British comedy Man Up.
Directed by Ben Palmer (The Inbetweeners Movie), written by Tess Morris (The Love Punch) and starring Lake Bell & Simon Pegg, the film will have its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 19.
Nancy (Lake Bell), is done with dating. 10 times bitten, 100 times shy, she’s exhausted by the circus. So when Jack (Simon Pegg) blindly mistakes her for his date, no one is more surprised than her when she does the unthinkable and just —- goes with it.
It’s going to take a night of pretending to be someone else for Nancy to finally Man Up and be her painfully honest, awesomely unconventional self… but will Jack also Man Up, and be...
Directed by Ben Palmer (The Inbetweeners Movie), written by Tess Morris (The Love Punch) and starring Lake Bell & Simon Pegg, the film will have its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 19.
Nancy (Lake Bell), is done with dating. 10 times bitten, 100 times shy, she’s exhausted by the circus. So when Jack (Simon Pegg) blindly mistakes her for his date, no one is more surprised than her when she does the unthinkable and just —- goes with it.
It’s going to take a night of pretending to be someone else for Nancy to finally Man Up and be her painfully honest, awesomely unconventional self… but will Jack also Man Up, and be...
- 3/20/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Even though Simon Pegg will return to the final frontier for Star Trek 3 next year, for which he's also co-writing the script, this year he's heading back to romantic comedy territory. Man Up is a new romantic comedy slated to hit the United Kingdom this summer which sees Pegg starring opposite Lake Bell (In a World) in the story of two people who mistakenly come together on a blind date that never should have been. It looks like standard romantic comedy fare, but the presence of Bell and Pegg certainly elevates it a bit, and it might be a good one to see. At the very least, it's fun to see Pegg outside of sci-fi and fantasy fare. Here's the first UK trailer for Ben Palmer's Man Up, originally from Yahoo UK: Man Up is directed by Ben Palmer (The Inbetweeners Movie) and written by Tess Morris (the...
- 3/20/2015
- by Ethan Anderton
- firstshowing.net
Dating. It can be a tough, pitiless, painful, heart-breaking, terrifying, apocalyptically awful experience that leaves your soul shrivelled and your emotions as though they’ve been in a blender. It can…. Sorry, back to writing about a film. Man Up is the new romantic comedy featuring one Simon Pegg esquire and the comedy stylings of the ace Lake Bell. The trailer is now up and can be viewed below. brightcove.createExperiences(); Written by Tess Morris and directed by Ben Palmer, Man Up follows Bell’s Nancy, sick of the frustrations of dating and the endless pointless set ups provided by her friends. But in a weird circumstance, she meets divorcee Jack (Pegg), who mistakes her for his blind date. Deciding to take a chance, Nancy goes along with it, and what follows is a chaotic night of drinking, dancing, bowling and what both of them see is a real connection.
- 3/20/2015
- EmpireOnline
Following his success in the wonderfully wacky British TV series Spaced, Simon Pegg’s leap to the big screen has seen him catapulted into mega-franchises like Star Trek and Mission: Impossible (and possibly even Star Wars). One step of that journey involved dabbling in a few rom-coms which landed with mixed results (Run Fatboy Run, Hector and the Search For Happiness). While he’s switching up the material for the forthcoming assassin comedy Kill Me Three Times, which is getting a Us release next month, he hasn’t quite abandoned the romance oeuvre just yet.
In Man Up, Pegg joins Lake Bell as a couple who inadvertently share a romantic evening together. His hopeless singleton initiates a date with a prospective partner he recently met online. In a twist of incident, however, as is often the case in the world of rom-com matchmaking, he doesn’t meet who he’s...
In Man Up, Pegg joins Lake Bell as a couple who inadvertently share a romantic evening together. His hopeless singleton initiates a date with a prospective partner he recently met online. In a twist of incident, however, as is often the case in the world of rom-com matchmaking, he doesn’t meet who he’s...
- 3/20/2015
- by Gem Seddon
- We Got This Covered
Apart from acquitting himself well in the romantic scenes in Edgar Wright films, the perpetually charming Simon Pegg doesn't have a great track record with respect to romantic comedies (see the dreadful “Hector And The Search For Happiness”), yet that could change with “Man Up,” a British romcom produced by Nira Park, Wright’s longtime producer. The script is written by Tess Morris and was featured on the 2011 Brit List, which bodes well. Starring Pegg and Lake Bell, the film centers around a chaotic first date between a recent divorcee and a disillusioned singleton involving lost divorce papers, a stalker and some competitive indoor sport. You can probably guess who plays who. A StudioCanal chief called the film a “big UK, feelgood rom-com." The official synopsis: Nancy (Lake Bell), is done with dating. 10 times bitten, 100 times shy, she’s exhausted by the circus. So when Jack (Simon Pegg) blindly mistakes her for his.
- 3/20/2015
- by Edward Davis
- The Playlist
Exclusive: Deals include multi-territory accord by Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions.
StudioCanal has been notching up sales on upcoming, London-set rom-com Man Up, starring Simon Pegg and Lake Bell.
The film, directed by Ben Palmer and produced by London-based Big Talk Pictures, was written by Tess Morris.
It revolves around a chaotic first date between a recent divorcee (Pegg) and a disillusioned singleton (Bell) involving lost divorce papers, a stalker and some competitive indoor sport.
StudioCanal head of sales Anna Marsh said: “Tess is a such a talented writer that the film already generated a lot of interest at Berlin on the basis of the script alone - it’s a real page-turner - but sales really took off in Cannes on the back of the promo-reel. There’s a real chemistry between Simon and Lake on screen.”
The film has sold to much of the world including Benelux (eOne Benelux), Switzerland (Impuls Pictures), Portugal (Lusomundo), Israel (Forum...
StudioCanal has been notching up sales on upcoming, London-set rom-com Man Up, starring Simon Pegg and Lake Bell.
The film, directed by Ben Palmer and produced by London-based Big Talk Pictures, was written by Tess Morris.
It revolves around a chaotic first date between a recent divorcee (Pegg) and a disillusioned singleton (Bell) involving lost divorce papers, a stalker and some competitive indoor sport.
StudioCanal head of sales Anna Marsh said: “Tess is a such a talented writer that the film already generated a lot of interest at Berlin on the basis of the script alone - it’s a real page-turner - but sales really took off in Cannes on the back of the promo-reel. There’s a real chemistry between Simon and Lake on screen.”
The film has sold to much of the world including Benelux (eOne Benelux), Switzerland (Impuls Pictures), Portugal (Lusomundo), Israel (Forum...
- 5/29/2014
- ScreenDaily
Birds Eye View its launching its new training programme Filmonomics at this year’s Loco London Comedy Film Festival on Jan 26.
The series will focus on topics such as finance, teams, marketing, exhibition and distribution.
Speakers at the initial sessions will include writers Rachel Hirons and Tess Morris, Film London’s Deborah Sathe, former Paramount executive Deborah Sheppard, iFeatures executive producer Christopher Granier-Deferre, journalists Karen Krizanovich and Charles Gant.
Selected participants, almost 90% of whom are female filmmakers, will participate in a bespoke programme. Filmonomics will also include three public sessions at BFI Southbank. Two of those sessions will be held during the 10th Birds Eye View Film Festival (April 8-13).
Creative Skillset supports Filmonomics, which is created in assocation with former Screen editor Colin Brown, author of the Filmonomics blog at Slated.com.
Birds Eye View Creative Director Kate Gerova said: “We created Filmonomics because with digital cameras and low-budget filmmaking schemes everyone has access to making...
The series will focus on topics such as finance, teams, marketing, exhibition and distribution.
Speakers at the initial sessions will include writers Rachel Hirons and Tess Morris, Film London’s Deborah Sathe, former Paramount executive Deborah Sheppard, iFeatures executive producer Christopher Granier-Deferre, journalists Karen Krizanovich and Charles Gant.
Selected participants, almost 90% of whom are female filmmakers, will participate in a bespoke programme. Filmonomics will also include three public sessions at BFI Southbank. Two of those sessions will be held during the 10th Birds Eye View Film Festival (April 8-13).
Creative Skillset supports Filmonomics, which is created in assocation with former Screen editor Colin Brown, author of the Filmonomics blog at Slated.com.
Birds Eye View Creative Director Kate Gerova said: “We created Filmonomics because with digital cameras and low-budget filmmaking schemes everyone has access to making...
- 1/24/2014
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
Birds Eye View its launching its new training programme Filmonomics at this year’s Loco London Comedy Film Festival on Jan 26.
The series will focus on topics such as finance, teams, marketing, exhibition and distribution.
Speakers at the initial sessions will include writers Rachel Hirons and Tess Morris, Film London’s Deborah Sathe, former Paramount executive Deborah Sheppard, iFeatures executive producer Christopher Granier-Deferre, journalists Karen Krizanovich and Charles Gant.
Selected participants, almost 90% of whom are female filmmakers, will participate in a bespoke programme. Filmonomics will also include three public sessions at BFI Southbank. Two of those sessions will be held during the 10th Birds Eye View Film Festival (April 8-13).
Creative Skillset supports Filmonomics, which is created in assocation with former Screen editor Colin Brown, author of the Filmonomics blog at Slated.com.
Birds Eye View Creative Director Kate Gerova said: “We created Filmonomics because with digital cameras and low-budget filmmaking schemes everyone has access to making...
The series will focus on topics such as finance, teams, marketing, exhibition and distribution.
Speakers at the initial sessions will include writers Rachel Hirons and Tess Morris, Film London’s Deborah Sathe, former Paramount executive Deborah Sheppard, iFeatures executive producer Christopher Granier-Deferre, journalists Karen Krizanovich and Charles Gant.
Selected participants, almost 90% of whom are female filmmakers, will participate in a bespoke programme. Filmonomics will also include three public sessions at BFI Southbank. Two of those sessions will be held during the 10th Birds Eye View Film Festival (April 8-13).
Creative Skillset supports Filmonomics, which is created in assocation with former Screen editor Colin Brown, author of the Filmonomics blog at Slated.com.
Birds Eye View Creative Director Kate Gerova said: “We created Filmonomics because with digital cameras and low-budget filmmaking schemes everyone has access to making...
- 1/24/2014
- by wendy.mitchell@screendaily.com (Wendy Mitchell)
- ScreenDaily
• Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat) is in early talks to join the cast of Disney’s Through the Looking Glass, the sequel to Alice in Wonderland. James Bobin (The Muppets) will direct, with Johnny Depp (The Lone Ranger) and Mia Wasikowska (Stoker) reprising their roles as the Mad Hatter and Alice, respectively. Details of the plot are being kept secret, with filming expected to begin toward the end of the year with a May 27, 2016, release date. [Variety]
• Penelope Cruz (Vicky Christina Barcelona) will co-produce and star in the Spanish-language film Ma ma, directed by L.A.-based Spanish director Julia Medem (Sex and Lucia...
• Penelope Cruz (Vicky Christina Barcelona) will co-produce and star in the Spanish-language film Ma ma, directed by L.A.-based Spanish director Julia Medem (Sex and Lucia...
- 1/22/2014
- by Jake Perlman
- EW - Inside Movies
The Tale of Tales
Salma Hayek and Vincent Cassel have signed on to play the leads in Matteo Garrone's first English language film "The Tale of Tales" for Archimede Film and Le Pacte.
The only details are that it will give traditional Italian tales a modern twist. Filming begins this Spring in Italy. [Source: Variety]
Man Up
Rory Kinnear, Olivia Williams, Sharon Horgan, Harriet Walter, Ken Stott and Stephen Campbell Moore are all set to join Ben Palmer's romantic comedy "Man Up" for Big Talk and StudioCanal. Six weeks of filming kicks off in London today
Tess Morris penned the story of a disillusioned single woman (Lake Bell) who mistakenly goes on a date with a freshly-hatched divorcee (Simon Pegg). Lost divorce papers, a stalker, and an urban triathlon are all added into the mix. [Source: Screen]
Justified
Mary Steenburgen has scored a recurring role in the fifth season of the FX...
Salma Hayek and Vincent Cassel have signed on to play the leads in Matteo Garrone's first English language film "The Tale of Tales" for Archimede Film and Le Pacte.
The only details are that it will give traditional Italian tales a modern twist. Filming begins this Spring in Italy. [Source: Variety]
Man Up
Rory Kinnear, Olivia Williams, Sharon Horgan, Harriet Walter, Ken Stott and Stephen Campbell Moore are all set to join Ben Palmer's romantic comedy "Man Up" for Big Talk and StudioCanal. Six weeks of filming kicks off in London today
Tess Morris penned the story of a disillusioned single woman (Lake Bell) who mistakenly goes on a date with a freshly-hatched divorcee (Simon Pegg). Lost divorce papers, a stalker, and an urban triathlon are all added into the mix. [Source: Screen]
Justified
Mary Steenburgen has scored a recurring role in the fifth season of the FX...
- 1/20/2014
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Coming off the back of a brilliant leading performance in In a World…, Lake Bell is about to return to the world of comedy, adding a little more of a romantic flavour into the mix opposite Simon Pegg in the upcoming Man Up.
Principal photography is officially underway on the rom-com, reports ScreenDaily, with Big Talk and StudioCanal announcing the ensemble cast that will join the leading duo.
Starring alongside Bell and Pegg will be Rory Kinnear, Olivia Williams, Sharon Horgan, Harriet Walter, Ken Stott, and Stephen Campbell Moore.
Bell stars as a disillusioned single woman who mistakenly goes on a date with a freshly-hatched divorcee (Pegg). The production reveals that the “chaotic and unconventional” date includes lost divorce papers, a stalker, competitive indoor sports and an “epic venue-to-venue urban triathlon… It’s about taking chances, making decisions and rolling with the consequences.”
Ben Palmer (The Inbetweeners, The Inbetweeners Movie...
Principal photography is officially underway on the rom-com, reports ScreenDaily, with Big Talk and StudioCanal announcing the ensemble cast that will join the leading duo.
Starring alongside Bell and Pegg will be Rory Kinnear, Olivia Williams, Sharon Horgan, Harriet Walter, Ken Stott, and Stephen Campbell Moore.
Bell stars as a disillusioned single woman who mistakenly goes on a date with a freshly-hatched divorcee (Pegg). The production reveals that the “chaotic and unconventional” date includes lost divorce papers, a stalker, competitive indoor sports and an “epic venue-to-venue urban triathlon… It’s about taking chances, making decisions and rolling with the consequences.”
Ben Palmer (The Inbetweeners, The Inbetweeners Movie...
- 1/20/2014
- by Kenji Lloyd
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
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