Month: April 2020

Pierce Brosnan Wants to Return in a Future James Bond Movie as a Villain

Pierce Brosnan is open to coming back to the James Bond franchise, but as a villain instead of the iconic MI6 agent. Brosnan played Bond in four movies beginning with 1995’s Goldeneye and certainly has a big place in the history of the long-running series. But the idea of him returning to the franchise, in a completely different capacity, as a foe to a new actor’s Bond, would undoubtedly be wandering into uncharted territory.

Recently, the 66-year-old actor participated in a live watch party for Goldeneye. During the event, he answered a few fan questions. At one point, Pierce Brosnan was asked if he would return as a villain in a future Bond movie. Here’s what Brosnan had to say about it.

For the most part, Pierce Brosnan has talked about his time as Bond with a great deal of affection, and during the watch party he attributed the sustained success in his career to the role. So it’s not too surprising that he would consider returning, albeit in a very different capacity. The big question is, could something like this truly work within the scope of James Bond? That is a far more difficult question to answer, as it would be unprecedented.

Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Daniel Craig and Pierce Brosnan have all played James Bond, but none of them have returned for another major role during another actor’s tenure. There were alleged discussions for Sean Connery to return in Skyfall as the keeper of Bond’s family home, but that didn’t come to pass. Not that Bond is averse to tongue-in-cheek moments, but would it be too distracting to have someone so synonymously associated with the role portraying a villain? It’s hard to say. Though, on the surface, getting to see a different side of Brosnan in that universe could be intriguing.

When Goldeneye was released in 1995, it had been six years since Bond had graced the screen in Timothy Dalton’s final entry, License to Kill. The franchise had rarely faced such pressure to deliver, but Pierce Brosnan’s debut proved to be a huge hit, both critically and commercially. That paved the way for three more Brosnan-led entries, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World is Not Enough and Die Another Day. Collectively, they grossed more than $1.4 billion at the global box office. For a time, Quentin Tarantino considered directing a Pierce Brosnan James Bond movie, but that never came to pass.

Daniel Craig then picked up the torch with 2006’s Casino Royale. Craig is set to end his run with No Time to Die, which is set to arrive later this year. At that point, it will once again be time for a new actor to take up the 007 mantle. That means it will be time for a new villain as well. Maybe, just maybe, that villain should/could be played by Pierce Brosnan. Feel free to check out the full Goldeneye commentary for yourself. This news comes to us via Esquire.

This content was originally published here.

‘Good Morning America’ Gets First Meghan Markle Interview Since Megxit – Deadline

Meghan Markle will talk with Good Morning America on Monday, marking her first television interview since she and Prince Harry split from the royal family. The subject? Elephant, the Disney documentary film that she narrated.

Markle and Harry have been seen recently delivering food to Los Angeles shut-ins for the Project Angel Food charity. The couple recently relocated to Los Angeles and reportedly are living in Malibu while searching for a permanent home and establishing their new business endeavors.

The ABC morning show is promoting Markle as a special guest for Monday’s show, as a voiceover says she’ll offer “an exclusive first look” at the documentary. Hard-hitting questions on their Megxit decision and President Trump’s recent vow not to provide taxpayer paid security are likely off the table.

The documentary is a Disney+ streaming film that follows an elephant herd on a journey through Zimbabwe and Botswana.

This content was originally published here.

Broadway star Nick Cordero has leg amputated due to coronavirus

Tony Award-nominated actor Nick Cordero has had his his right leg amputated after suffering complications from the coronavirus, his wife says.

Amanda Kloots on Instagram wrote late Saturday that Cordero “made it out of surgery alive and is headed to his room to rest and recover.”

Cordero had been treated with blood thinners to help with clotting in his leg, but his doctors had to stop the treatment because it was causing internal bleeding.

“We took him off blood thinners but that again was going to cause some clotting in the right leg, so the right leg will be amputated today,” she said earlier Saturday.

Cordero entered the intensive care unit at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on March 31 and has been on a ventilator and unconscious after contracting COVID-19.

His wife has been sending him daily videos of her and their 10-month-old son, Elvis, so he could see them when he woke up, and urging friends and fans to join a daily sing-a-long. A GoFundMe fundraiser has raised over $200,000.

Cordero played a mob soldier with a flair for the dramatic in 2014 in Broadway’s Woody Allen 1994 film adaptation of “Bullets Over Broadway,” for which he received a Tony nomination for best featured actor in a musical. He moved to Los Angeles to star in “Rock of Ages.”

The lanky Cordero originated the menacing role of husband Earl opposite his estranged wife, played by Jessie Mueller, in “Waitress” on Broadway, as well as the role of Sonny in Chazz Palminteri’s “A Bronx Tale.”

On the small screen, Cordero appeared in several episodes of “Blue Bloods” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” as well as “Lilyhammer” and he had a role in the film “Going in Style.”

The virus has sickened other Broadway veterans, including the actors Danny Burstein, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Gavin Creel, Aaron Tveit and Laura Bell Bundy as well as composer David Bryan. It has also claimed the life of Tony-winning playwright Terrence McNally.

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Cate Blanchett Favorite Comfort Movie Is Long Day’s Journey Into Night | IndieWire

A missing woman, doomed romance, the cigarette stench of ennui. Bi Gan’s 2018 Cannes Film Festival premiere “Long Day’s Journey Into Night” has all the makings of a neo-noir classic. The Chinese film, released by Kino Lorber last year, is known for its 50-minute long take that plays out in 3D, but now it’s also going to be known as actress Cate Blanchett’s favorite comfort movie.

As discussed on Josh Horowitz’s “Happy Sad Confused” podcast (via The Film Stage), Blanchett nerded out over Bi Gan’s film, introduced to her by her son. “My son is a cinephile, so he has great taste. We watched my comfort movie actually, the other night, which he actually put me on to. It’s Bi Gan’s film ‘Long Day’s Journey Into Night,’” she said.

Blanchett also revealed a flair for some even deeper cinematic cuts. “For me, I’m a huge Tarkovsky fan and an enormous fan of Chantal Akerman and Wong Kar-wai,” she said. As for Bi Gan, “it’s like he ingested all of those filmmaking reference points and then regurgitated up something of exquisite, painful beauty. [It’s] so complex, layered, and engrossing. It’s about love and memory and time, which I think we’re all thinking about at the moment, and place, which we’re all thinking about at the moment. But it’s strangely meditative and obviously dreamlike and profoundly relaxing. It’s one of those films that even though it’s relatively recent — because I was thinking, should I say ‘Stalker,’ but no, no — it’s this film because it contains all of those things, I think.”

Her love for the film continued as the actress, who presided over the Cannes jury that year but in Un Certain Regard where “Long Day’s Journey” premiered, told Horowitz, “It’s such a synthesis for my love of theater, being present in those long, slow takes often. It deals with prismatic meaning. Certain times, film can be such a literal medium, but when you encounter a film like this, you realize it doesn’t have to exist on that ellipse. You are saying that you watched it, but I actually allow it to wash over me. I think we’re so obsessed in the world in which we live where everything has to make sense and we grasp hold of a narrative and [this film] takes away all of those security footholds. It really slows your blood.”

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Blanchett currently stars in the FX original series “Mrs. America” as Phyllis Schlafly, a conservative author who held staunchly opposed views to feminism and abortion in the 1970s, circa the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. Just before quarantine took hold, Blanchett was filming Guillermo del Toro’s “Nightmare Alley” in Canada with Bradley Cooper, Toni Collette, and Willem Dafoe.

This content was originally published here.

Lady Gaga Performs “The Prayer” With Celine Dion And Andrea Bocelli

As a part of Global Citizen’s ‘One World: Together At Home’ broadcast for coronavirus relief, Lady Gaga, Celine Dion, Andrea Bocelli, John Legend, and pianist Lang Lang came together to perform “The Prayer.” This song was the closing number for the virtual performance that was streamed Saturday, April 18th. 

“The Prayer” was originally performed by Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli back in 1999, but Lady Gaga, John Legend, and Lang Lang have decided to add a fresh twist to this classic for the ‘Together At Home’ broadcast. 

The celebrities all abided by social distancing guidelines by performing via webstream from the comfort of their own homes. Everyone wore all back, except for Dion, who caught viewers’ eyes in a blue suit. 

apost.com

Lady Gaga didn’t only just perform for the Global Citizen event, she also helped curate many artists and celebrity appearances. Celebrities in attendance included Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lopez, former first ladies Michelle Obama and Laura Bush, Oprah Winfrey, Priyanka Chopra Jones, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kerry Washington, and many others. 

Lady Gaga also took to her Twitter and Instagram to share updates as she watched the event from home and cheered on other performers. She posted an Instagram shoutout to her fellow fundraisers that included her boyfriend, Michael Polansky. 

The ‘Together At Home’ event was first announced by Global Citizen earlier in April, and even before the live stream they had begun successful fundraising for COVID-19 relief efforts. 

What do you think of their new version of “The Prayer?” Did you tune in live to watch the performance? Which song was your favorite? Let us know your thoughts and be sure to pass this on to others so they don’t miss the fresh version of this beloved classic!

This content was originally published here.

Guardians of the Galaxy 3 Director James Gunn Doesn’t Think Thanos Should Ever Return

Filmmaker James Gunn has been a big part of the MCU, with his take on the Guardians of the Galaxy widely considered one of the high points of the Marvel universe. Recently, Gunn hosted a Q&A on Instagram where fans were free to ask him all kinds of questions relating to the various projects he’s working on. When a fan asked whether Gunn would like to see Thanos make a return to the MCU, the filmmaker had a firm response.

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Thanos was the main antagonist of the Infinity War saga within the MCU, spanning 22 movies. The character, played by Josh Brolin, was a huge fan favorite despite only getting two films to truly dig deep into his psyche and explore his motivations. Thanos met his demise at the hands of Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame. But this is the comics universe, where characters make a habit of repeatedly dying and getting resurrected in fresh story arcs.

Many fans have been demanding that Thanos get the same treatment, and even behind-the-scenes chatter at Disney has revealed the company may be mulling bringing back the Mad Titan in future movies because of his popularity. But Gunn’s response makes it unlikely that Thanos would be coming back in any of the MCU projects he is involved with.

This is not the first time that Gunn has gone against fans’ wishes for seeing favorite comic book characters return from the dead. Yondu from Guaridans of the Galaxy, sacrificed his life in the second film to save Starlord. Many fans asked for Gunn to bring the character back, but he stayed firm in insisting that doing so would cheapen the storyline and Yondu’s sacrifice.

Comic book movies have always walked a fine line between having a singular vision and becoming a patchwork of fans and studio expectations. This goes back to the very nature of the comics industry itself, which needs to pander to its fan base pretty heavily in order to have readers continue to buy new installments of a series on a monthly basis. Or watch a new movie like Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

One of the biggest complaints about superhero comics is that they rarely feature any lasting consequences, with the deaths and losses incurred during a major storyline getting rebooted and done away with the next time a new writer takes over the series.

Now, Comic book movies are starting to suffer from the same storytelling issue. There have been only a handful of major deaths in the MCU across 22 movies, and the pressure is always on filmmakers to reverse what few deaths actually manage to stick, like Yondu or Thanos.

On his part, Gunn has made his stance on Thanos’s resurrection clear, and he makes a valid point about the many new stories the MCU can explore once they move away from the shadow cast by the Mad Titan. After all, Doctor Doom is still waiting in the wings, while Galactus is also out there somewhere, biding his time until he can come to Earth and begin to feast. This news was originally reported on ComicBook.com.

Neeraj Chand

This content was originally published here.

‘The Office’ Alum Ranjit Chowdhry Passes Away at Age 64

By Mae Harrington O’Neill | Apr 19 2020

'The Office' alum Ranjit Chowdhry passes away.

“Confidence… It’s the food of the wise man, but the liquor of the fool!” For those who do not recognize this quote, it comes from a character named Vikram, portrayed by Ranjit Chowdhry, who Michael Scott meets on Season 4 of The Office. As reported by PopCulture.com, the Bollywood actor and Office alum sadly passed away on Wednesday.

Indian theatre actress and casting director Dolly Thakore released a statement about Chowdhry’s death to let people know what happened to him, which reads, “He got a ruptured ulcer in the intestine on April 14. A physician was called who said he needs to go to the hospital. They operated on him but he died at 4 am (on Wednesday). The funeral was held at 9.30 on Thursday with close family members in attendance.”

Many people took to Twitter to mourn his death and celebrate his work in cinema.

This guy made magic out of nothing, filling paper thin roles with so much depth. I always saw my father when I was with him- the same humor, stubbornness and brilliance. Heartbroken, dear friend. RIP
#RanjitChowdhry pic.twitter.com/r8qM2iLCAI

— Poorna Jagannathan (@PoornaJags)

Each role, pretty much, was memorable. #KhattaMeetha #Khubsoorat, #BaatonBaatonMein #SamAndMe #Fire #Kaante. And that delivery, it was unique. If you heard him, you knew it was /#RanjitChowdhry. Rest well, actor, good human.

— shubhra gupta (@shubhragupta)

Chowdhry had years of experience in the industry, from his roles in Bollywood films, to his part on The Office, and even an appearance on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, among others. The All India Mahila Congress spoke about Chowdhry’s death on Twitter, writing, “We are saddened by the passing away of acclaimed actor Ranjit Chowdhry, who played key roles in films like Baton Baton Mein, Khatta Meetha, Khoobsurat and more recently in series such as The Office, Prison Break. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and admirers.”

Another touching remembrance came from journalist Shubhra Gupta, who added, “In the kind of ‘family ensembles’ that Basu Chatterjee and Hrishikesh Mukherjee assembled, Ranjit Chowdhry stood out. He was angular, wryly funny, self-deprecating, qualities mainstream Bollywood didn’t quite know what to do with.”

Condolences to Chowdhry’s family and loved ones.

This content was originally published here.

Shedflix! Father, 72, and his daughter reach 3.5 million views a week through classic movie channel | Daily Mail Online

As media nerve centres go, it is a far cry from the usual glass-and-chrome Soho office, stuffed with plush designer furniture and high-tech gadgetry.

But despite operating from nothing more glamorous than a modest shed in a Home Counties village, Talking Pictures TV has become one of the most unlikely success stories in broadcasting, counting even the Queen among its fans.

Run by a 72-year-old film buff and his daughter, the channel’s reassuring blend of classic movies and vintage TV serials has proved a winning formula during the lockdown, and according to the latest ratings now reaches 3.5 million viewers a week.

While Her Majesty is known to have tuned in for Laurel And Hardy comedies, she is just the pinnacle of the station’s celebrity fan base.

Sarah Cronin-Stanley and her father Noel, are keeping Britain going by showing old films on the freeview channel Talking Pictures TV, which they run from home

Vic Reeves and Jools Holland adore its stylish 1960s crime capers, while actors Kenneth Branagh and Brian Blessed agree on a classic film they can watch at the same time and discuss afterwards.

Astonishingly, the operation is all run from Noel Cronin’s back garden in the Hertfordshire village of Chipperfield, where he uses a pad and pen to put together a schedule from his library.

It’s a collection that includes early Alfred Hitchcock thrillers, 1980s cop shows, screwball comedies from the golden age of Hollywood and forgotten masterpieces such as Sydney Poitier’s Cry, The Beloved Country; The Spy Who Came In From The Cold with Richard Burton; and Laurence Olivier’s Henry V.

British actor Alec Guinness (Sir Alec Guinness de Cuffe) and British actress Celia Johnson acting in the film ‘The Captain’s Paradise’. 1953 

Film: His Girl FridayCary Grant & Rosalind Russell

‘What I like,’ says Noel, ‘are films which don’t rely on a car chase, big booming special effects or a scantily-clad lady.

‘I also like them to have a proper ending, not a cliffhanger. Our loyal audience, which we can see growing as new viewers come for a bit of comfort and nostalgia, seems to feel the same way.’

His daughter, Sarah Cronin-Stanley, says her father – who began his career as a post boy with the Rank Organisation – has always been passionate about preserving film history and has spent years building up his eclectic library.

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy in Sons Of The Desert (1933)

‘He was very clever in the 1960s and 1970s,’ she says. ‘Buying the rights to features no one else was particularly interested in.’

At first, he sold them to mainstream channels for their ‘old black-and-white matinee slots’.

‘But the big broadcasters stopped showing them,’ she adds. ‘It was as if streaming, TV-on-demand and box-sets would render the oldies obsolete. We disagreed as we knew there was an audience who would otherwise be ignored.

‘We were also terrified that thousands of brilliant old films would be obliterated from memory, the stars and their scripts forgotten.’

The father-and-daughter team repeatedly pitched the idea of a dedicated old movie channel to terrestrial broadcasters, banks and satellite TV companies – but always in vain. So in 2015, they launched Talking Pictures TV themselves, as a free-to-view channel, in the hope it would be financed with advertising.

‘Everyone said, ‘You’re mad, no one wants to watch black and white any more,’ ‘ remembers Sarah, 31. ‘But they were wrong’ – as the latest viewing figures prove, with the channel growing from being the secret pleasure of a few connoisseurs to a mainstream hit.

Brian Blessed loves the channel so much that he sent them a fan email saying he’s watched ‘lost favourites and little-known gems’, adding: ‘We’ve all heard the cliche they don’t make them like they used to… but we neglect the arts at out peril.’

Sidney Poitier and Canada Lee Cry in The Beloved Country – 1951 Director: Zoltan Korda

At Christmas 2016 when the Queen was too ill to attend church, it was revealed she watched reruns of Laurel And Hardy on Talking Pictures. Other celebrity fans include Sir Ian McKellen and theatrical impresario Bill Kenwright who, like Blessed and Branagh, enjoy watching the same films and discussing them.

Available on Virgin, Sky, Freeview and YouView, Talking Pictures TV’s catalogue also boasts the 1940 comedy His Girl Friday with Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell; Alec Guinness and Celia Johnson in The Captain’s Paradise; and TV series such as 1960s crime drama Gideon’s Way; Second World War drama Danger UXB from the 1970s; and 1980s favourites Widows by Lynda la Plante, John Mortimer’s Rumpole Of The Bailey and The Gentle Touch, with Jill Gascoigne.

The programme viewers most ask to see is the long-running police show Z-Cars, which starred Blessed alongside Stratford Johns and Frank Windsor – but Noel and Sarah have never been able to persuade the BBC to part with it, nor with Dixon Of Dock Green, which viewers are also keen to see again.

They also struggle to locate many films that have disappeared into the vaults of major studios.

‘It’s a tragedy,’ says Sarah, ‘because they are pieces of history which should be preserved – and as we have proved, there’s an audience longing to see them again.’

This content was originally published here.