Tag Archives: Amazon MGM Studios

Amazon Targeting Younger and Female Audiences for Films, Says Exec

Amazon MGM Studios is doubling down on its unique movie enterprise.

The studio arrives at MIPCOM Cannes with practically all its eggs in Earth Abide‘s basket, an unique collection starring Alexander Ludwig (Vikings) and Jessica Frances Dukes (Ozark). The present is a post-apocalyptic story, primarily based on George R. Stewart’s 1949 novel, concerning the fall of civilization from lethal illness — which Chris Ottinger, president of worldwide distribution and acquisitions at MGM, says represents “a number of the sensation of now, when it’s a really unusual time to be on this earth.”

The manager sat down with The Hollywood Reporter in Cannes to debate the studio’s slate of reveals and movies getting their distribution launch at MIPCOM together with the ultimate season of The Handmaid’s Story, The Accountant 2 and the sequel to A Easy Favor.

What the group at Amazon has actually found lately is their unique titles are having fun with success with international broadcasters similar to theatrically launched tasks. Ottinger cites 2021 apocalyptic movie The Tomorrow Conflict, starring Chris Pratt, which stunned the studio with a formidable run three years after it first premiered. On France’s TF1, The Tomorrow Conflict outperformed Aquaman, Marvel Lady: 1984, and Black Widow. In Spain, it beat Terminator: Darkish DestinyThe King’s Man and Quick & Livid 9.

“These films had been older, they weren’t theatrically launched, and but they carried out the identical means that huge theatrical titles carry out,” Ottinger tellsTHR. “So it was our learnings from this that made us assume we must always actually double down on our movie enterprise.”

He continues: “Now we have an unimaginable movie slate. Courtenay Valenti leads our movie division and she or he’s an incredible govt. Now we have an attention-grabbing hybrid mannequin, the place we’re releasing theatrically however then rapidly going to streaming.”

The momentum is firmly with Amazon’s unique movies, with the studio already bringing their 2025 slate to the MIPCOM market this 12 months. “That’s an enormous push,” Ottinger provides. “The info is tremendous clear. We all know they work rather well for our broadcasters. It really works effectively for us on the service, so we prioritize that. And we went tremendous onerous. That was a extremely huge initiative, and we’re an enormous firm, so it’s a sturdy choice making course of with a number of dialogue.”

Probed on the sort of demographic Amazon needs to hone in on and domesticate off the again of their service information evaluation, Ottinger says: “Youthful and feminine audiences.” He names The Thought of You, which launched in March with Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine, as an enormous indicator of the ripe soil in feminine audiences and female-led tales. “The Thought of You labored extremely effectively for us, so we’re creating that house fairly a bit,” he mentioned. “The Summer season I Turned Fairly, too, is an effective instance.”

“The youthful viewers is the toughest one to catch,” he continues. “We all know that they’re spending rather a lot [of time] on TikTok and YouTube. How will we catch them in our service? So we’re making an actual effort to make programming that’s actually related for youthful audiences as effectively, in order that product can discover a dwelling someplace abroad.”

The corporate can also be pushing onerous on its native originals, producing round 120 native collection and films a 12 months throughout all territories. “These reveals, they’re performing very effectively on our service, they usually’re extremely focused for these dwelling international locations,” Ottinger says. “One of many issues that’s been crucial for us on this means of broadening our distribution technique is basically listening to our shoppers, and we we completely say to them: ‘Inform us what you need, after which we’ll see if we will clear it, if it is sensible to clear it.’ So we’ve accomplished a number of that, and what we hear rather a lot is: ‘Native originals.’ And in order that’s an enormous push for us proper now, bringing our native unique content material to market. We’re doing a ton of labor internally on that proper now.”

Aldis Hodge in ‘Cross’ Trailer Hunts a Twisted Serial Killer

Aldis Hodge as detective Alex Cross pursues a ruthless serial killer within the official trailer for Cross, the crime collection for Prime Video debuting Nov. 14.

Hodge performs Metro PD’s star detective who makes use of forensic psychology to get into the minds of killers and their victims to establish and finally seize murderers. However the newest teaser has Cross pressured right into a lethal sport as he pursues a psychotic genius who makes use of a menacing masks, and probably a couple of killer, to remain forward of Cross.

“I’m not a monster. I don’t kill for enjoyable… And once I’m carried out, the world will know the reality,” a person seemingly out for revenge says at one level within the trailer. Cross is stumped as a result of the serial killer he hunts seems to alter the looks of his victims and stage their murders as a suicide or an unintentional drug overdose.

CROSS - Official Trailer | Prime Video

“Whoever killed him needed to change him into one thing else first,” Cross tells skeptical colleagues. However he’s higher within the interrogation room than in his non-public life, as Cross grieves after the homicide of his spouse a yr earlier and is simply too fragile to simply accept the love he’s determined for.

“You’re not managing very nicely,” Cross’ police associate, performed by Isaiah Mustafa, says at one level. However his residence life turns weird when Cross discovers a household picture of his spouse and two children, together with her face and his eyes obscured by pen marks.

“He was in my home,” Cross says in shock because the trailer from Paramount Tv Studios, Amazon MGM Studios and Skydance Tv turns into a pulse-pounding thriller. The Cross collection is predicated on characters initially written by fashionable novelist James Patterson and created by showrunner and author Ben Watkins.

Earlier than the first-season debut, Cross was renewed for a second season, with the primary eight episodes to launch on Prime Video worldwide. Cross additionally stars Juanita Jennings, Alona Tal, Samantha Walkes, Caleb Elijah, Melody Hurd, Jennifer Wigmore, Eloise Mumford and Ryan Eggold.

Watkins government produces the collection together with Sam Ernst, Jim Dunn, Craig Siebels, James Patterson, Invoice Robinson, Patrick Santa, David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Invoice Bost.

MrBeast’s Amazon Show Accused of Unsafe Filming Conditions

MrBeast is underneath hearth once more: this time for accusations of unsafe situations and an absence of meals and medical look after members whereas filming for his upcoming Amazon MGM Studios present Beast Video games.

In a brand new report from The New York Occasions, greater than a dozen individuals who participated within the first installment of the fact competitors present in July spoke on the situation of anonymity about their experiences. Beast Video games was introduced in March and relies on MrBeast’s, actual title Jimmy Donaldson, widespread YouTube movies, which see him giving out extravagant prizes for high-stakes video games and competitions.

The contestants instructed the Occasions that they didn’t obtain ample meals or medical care throughout filming, which came about in Nevada at Allegiant Stadium, and that some opponents suffered accidents from the bodily challenges. The preliminary occasion was reportedly filmed for Donaldson’s YouTube channel as a approach to choose the members for the precise present filming later in the summertime in Toronto, Canada.

A contract for the present that candidates have been required to signal, which was reviewed by the Occasions, included the road: “I perceive that such actions could trigger me loss of life, sickness, or critical bodily harm, together with, however not restricted to exhaustion, dehydration, overexertion, burns, and warmth stroke.” (That language is pretty frequent in actuality tv contracts.)

Nevertheless, among the members didn’t anticipate the unsafe situations they claimed they endured. “We signed up for the present, however we didn’t join not being fed or watered or handled like human beings,” one competitor instructed the newspaper.

A contestant stated they noticed some folks leaving the competitors enviornment on stretchers, although no critical accidents have been reported. One other competitor recalled to the Occasions watching folks vomit and showing to go out. There have been a number of hospitalizations for seemingly minor accidents.

Some members additionally complained to the Occasions concerning the meals they got, claiming it was solely two meals a day and didn’t account for dietary restrictions and allergic reactions. However a MrBeast rep disputed the allegations, telling the newspaper that three meals have been supplied every day. There have been reportedly additionally a number of choices to fulfill dietary wants.

Some contestants claimed that their medicines, which they handed over to occasion organizers previous to the competitors, weren’t distributed on time. Others stated they waited hours and even days to obtain clear underwear that they equipped to manufacturing workers, as instructed.

Moreover, the members stated they felt misled going into the competitors as they thought it was simply 1,000 folks competing for the present’s $5 million prize quite than 2,000 contestants who have been on the July occasion. Nevertheless, the preliminary occasion was used to pick the 1,000 contestants who would really be competing on the Amazon present.

A spokesperson for MrBeast shared in an announcement to The Hollywood Reporter, “The MrBeast promotional video shoot, which included over 2,000 members, was sadly difficult by the CrowdStrike incident, excessive climate, and different surprising logistical and communications points, which we’re at present reviewing, however we’re grateful that nearly all of these invited to Toronto for our subsequent manufacturing have enthusiastically accepted our invitation.”

“We now have communicated instantly with 97 p.c of the two,000 individuals who attended to ask for suggestions, have launched a proper evaluate of the method, and have taken steps to make sure that we study from this expertise and we’re excited to welcome a whole bunch of women and men to the world’s largest sport present in historical past,” the assertion concluded.

The contestants have been allowed to depart the competitors at any time, however many stayed in hopes of profitable the grand prize, regardless of the alleged situations.

The 1,000 members who made it by means of the preliminary challenges in July with out being eradicated at the moment are getting ready for the following occasion in Toronto. One contestant instructed the Occasions that although she was nervous about her security, she nonetheless had plans to proceed to the following stage. And a number of other of the remaining contestants appeared unbothered by the expertise within the stadium, in accordance with screenshots from a bunch chat reviewed by the newspaper.

THR additionally reached out to representatives for Amazon however didn’t instantly hear again.

Earlier this week, Donaldson additionally addressed “inappropriate language” he used early in his on-line profession amid an argument surrounding allegations of previous racist remarks. “When Jimmy was a teen he acted like many children and used inappropriate language whereas attempting to be humorous,” a spokesperson for the YouTuber wrote in an announcement THR on the time. “Through the years he has repeatedly apologized and has discovered that rising affect comes with elevated accountability to be extra conscious and extra delicate to the ability of language. After making some dangerous jokes and different errors when he was youthful, as an grownup he has centered on partaking with the MrBeast neighborhood to work collectively on making a optimistic impression all over the world.”

Amazon MGM Studios to Buy ‘The Rings of Power’ Home Bray Film Studios

Amazon MGM Studios mother or father Amazon’s Amazon Prime Video is buying the Bray Movie Studios in Water Oakley, Berkshire, 26 miles from central London, the studio advanced the place its The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Energy shot its second season. Different productions which were shot at Bray embrace the likes of Rocketman, Mamma Mia! Right here We Go Once more, Angel Has Fallen, The King’s Man, Amazon collection Citadel, BBC present Dracula, and BBC collection Bodyguard.

“The acquisition consists of roughly 53,600 sq. toes of soundstage area throughout 5 levels, 77,400 sq. toes of workshops, 39,400 sq. toes of workplace, 182,900 sq. toes of backlot, and 156,000 sq. toes of parking area,” Amazon mentioned on Monday. “Bray has beforehand supported Amazon MGM Studios productions with sound levels, workplaces, and manufacturing services, beginning in January 2022, when it grew to become the manufacturing dwelling for the second season of the worldwide hit Prime Video collection The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Energy.”

Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, additionally touted the deal. “With Bray as our inventive dwelling within the U.Okay., we’re dedicated to deepening {our relationships} with the U.Okay. inventive neighborhood, which is wealthy with world-class storytellers and artistic expertise of every kind,” he mentioned. “The acquisition of a studio with such a storied heritage not solely empowers us to supply extra movie and tv within the U.Okay., but in addition unveils a wealth of alternatives in the local people with respect to jobs and expertise coaching in any respect ranges of the manufacturing course of.”

Amazon MGM Studios plans to supply each new and persevering with TV collection and have movies on the studio website.

The primary Amazon MGM Studios manufacturing to be situated at Bray following the acquisition would be the second season of the Russo Brothers’ spy collection Citadel, starring Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas, which is scheduled to start filming in September.

Monetary phrases of the deal weren’t disclosed.

“Bray Movie Studios is situated on the financial institution of the River Thames,” the studio facility’s web site says. “With an 18th-century former English nation home at its coronary heart, the studios have supplied inventive area for among the best expertise in movie and music. Ridley Scott constructed and shot the miniatures for his Academy Award-winning sci-fi thriller Alien on the studios in 1978, and some years earlier than the cult traditional The Rocky Horror Image Present was delivered to life right here.”

Bray is often known as the house of British horror specialist Hammer Movies, which moved on-site in 1951 and have become recognized for tasks with the likes of Christopher Lee and such motion pictures as The Mummy, The Curse of Frankenstein, and Terence Fisher’s Dracula. “Controversial with critics on the time, Hammer delighted audiences with a recent aesthetic of gruesomeness, created by the pioneering particular results that Hammer honed throughout its tenure at Bray Movie Studios,” the studio advanced’s web site highlights. “The Hammer aesthetic was the direct results of the distinctive website at Bray, which was chosen particularly for its Georgian property, Down Place. Crew and technicians lived on-site throughout productions, creating the primary ‘house-style’ studio and fostering a heat and artistic on-set neighborhood that many award-winning administrators, producers, and actors got here to like.”

Frank Burke, chairman of Bray Movie Studios, the earlier proprietor of the positioning, mentioned concerning the sale to Amazon. “For 70-plus years, Bray Studios has held an necessary place within the historical past of British filmmaking. Throughout our interval of possession, I, along with my household and group have witnessed the rebirth of this iconic facility.”

The Amazon U.Okay. studio deal additionally acquired the blessing from the brand new Labour authorities within the nation. “From Rocketman to The Rocky Horror Image Present, for 70 years Bray Studios has introduced us a few of cinema’s most iconic moments. We’re decided to assist the massive potential for financial development in our inventive industries,” mentioned U.Okay. Tradition Secretary Lisa Nandy. “This vote of confidence by Amazon MGM Studios will be certain that certainly one of our main movie studios continues to play an important function in our first-class display screen industries. It’ll ship a significant funding in expertise and infrastructure to reinforce our standing as Europe’s prime filmmaking vacation spot.”

Ryan Gosling, Amazon MGM Team for Zombie Comedy

Amazon MGM Studios has landed zombie comedy movie package deal I Used to Eat Brains, Now I Eat Kale.

Ryan Gosling will produce the function with Jessie Henderson, his companion at Common Admission, the manufacturing banner the duo launched earlier this 12 months. The undertaking will fall below the corporate’s first-look cope with Amazon.

Twins Adam and Daniel Cooper wrote the unpublished 42-page quick story and can write the script adapting their very own work.

Story particulars are being saved hidden, however it’s described as being set in a “put up-post-apocalyptic” world the place former zombies wrestle to reintegrate. The undertaking hit the market earlier in June.

Gosling isn’t connected to star in it at this stage, and there’s no director on board but.

The Oscar-nominated actor is coming off Common’s The Fall Man and is because of subsequent shoot Venture Hail Mary for Amazon MGM. Phil Lord and Chris Miller are directing.

The Cooper Twins, because the duo are recognized, have written and directed a number of quick movies which have made the competition rounds. They’ve made a reputation for themselves directing advertising content material and modifying trailers for studios reminiscent of Disney, Warner Brothers, Netflix and Apple — work that has earned them Clios and Golden Trailers awards.

They’re repped by CAA, Aaron Folbe and Paul Hastings.

Road House Sequel Starring Jake Gyllenhaal in the Works at Amazon

Jake Gyllenhaal is ready to star in a Highway Home sequel introduced by Amazon MGM Studios on Tuesday.

Through the studio’s inaugural upfronts presentation, the sequel plans have been unveiled following the primary movie incomes practically 80 million worldwide viewers after debuting March 21 on Prime Video. Gyllenhaal will reprise his position as ex-UFC fighter Dalton.

“I’m so prepared, like I really like this character, I really like this world, I really like the factor that we’ve created, and I can’t wait to carry extra,” the Gyllenhaal instructed the upfonts presentation. Different plot particulars for the Highway Home sequel are being saved beneath wraps.

Amazon stated the remake of the 1989 motion basic, which starred Patrick Swayze, was its largest international film launch ever. And for the primary time for a function movie, Amazon reported 50 million viewers had watched the movie in its opening two weekends.

That made the venture Amazon MGM Studios’ most-watched produced movie debut ever on a worldwide foundation. Highway Home made headlines forward of its debut when director Doug Liman stated he would skip its South by Southwest premiere in protest of the movie not going to theaters.

He in the end acquiesced and was on-hand for the bow of the movie, which additionally made headlines when producer Joel Silver’s relationship with Amazon abruptly led to November forward of the debut, although he had already accomplished work on the movie.

It’s unclear if Liman can be concerned within the sequel, as no filmmaking offers are in place, in response to sources.

Gyllenhaal starred within the authentic movie as Dalton, who’s employed to be the bouncer of a bar within the Florida Keys.

Andrew Garfield to Join Julia Roberts in Guadagnino’s After the Hunt

Andrew Garfield has tracked down a lead position reverse Julia Roberts in a brand new thriller from Luca Guadagnino that’s set on this planet of academia.

Garfield is in negotiations to star reverse Roberts within the forthcoming Amazon MGM Studios characteristic After the Hunt. Guadagnino (Challengers) is about to direct from a script by Nora Garrett, with the movie aiming to begin manufacturing this summer time.

Hailing from Think about Leisure, After the Hunt focuses on a university professor who’s pressured to confront her personal darkish previous when a distinguished scholar makes an accusation towards one in all her colleagues.

Think about’s Allan Mandelbaum introduced the script to the manufacturing firm and labored with CAA to land Roberts and Guadagnino. Guadagnino serves as a producer alongside Think about’s Mandelbaum and Brian Grazer.

Garfield is a two-time Oscar nominee who can subsequent be seen in A24 and Studio Canal’s romantic movie We Dwell in Time reverse Florence Pugh. Garfield’s current credit embrace starring within the FX collection Below the Banner of Heaven, for which he earned his first Emmy nomination, and reprising his position of Peter Parker in Spider-Man: No Approach House. He’s repped by Gordon & French, CAA, ID and Sloane Provide.

Guadagnino is understood for guiding Name Me by Your Identify (2017), Suspiria (2018) and Bones and All (2022). After the Hunt reunites him with Amazon MGM Studios, which launched his Zendaya-led movie Challengers final month. 

Roberts’ current movie credit embrace the Common romantic comedy Ticket to Paradise alongside George Clooney and final yr’s Netflix thriller Depart the World Behind that co-starred Mahershala Ali and Ethan Hawke.

Deadline was the primary to report the information of Garfield’s casting.