Motion Picture: Dev Patel’s ‘The Peasant’ Wraps Production In India, Run-A-Muck To Develop Sports Romantic Comedy ‘Courtside’
Action/Sc-fi/Thriller: First images of Star Wars alum John Boyega in The Punishing revealed at Cannes over the weekend. Boyega will be starring alongside Cara Delevingne (Club Kid) in buzzy new market horror from Chris Sparling (Buried). The production houses Spooky Pictures, Redwire Pictures, and Tiki Tane Pictures are behind the project which is said to be in post production. The film is rooted in Scandinavian folklore and set on a remote Icelandic island “where a man miraculously recovers from a terminal illness—but his wife soon discovers the land’s healing powers come at a terrifying price”. WME, UTA, and Ignite will be launching international sales for the picture at the Cannes market.
A24 has wrapped production on Dev Patel’s action-thriller The Peasant. This will be the studio’s first production to shoot abroad in India. Patel will be writing, directing as well as starring in the revenge film. The rest of the cast is composed of Christian Friedel (The Zone of Interest), Sebastian Bull (Sons), Saurabh Sachdeva (Animal), Anasuya Sengupta (The Shameless) and Vipin Sharma (Monkey Man). Patel wrote the screenplay alongside Will Dunn (Ms. Marvel), the premise of the film “follows a 14th-century shepherd seeking revenge against mercenaries who ravaged his community. As he hunts them down, his true nature emerges.” Production wrapped this month in India across multiple shooting locations: the states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan.
camille hyde - Daniel Zuchnik/Stringer
Comedy: Run-A-Muck to develop a romantic comedy: Courtside with WNBA players Gabby Williams, Theresa Plaisance, and Syd Colson all set to appear. “This is exactly the kind of story we want to be telling at Run-A-Muck,” said Run-A-Muck co-founder and Chief Creative Officer Ilene Chaiken. “Women’s sports are driving culture in a way that feels undeniable, and there’s a real appetite for character-driven queer stories that reflect that world authentically. With REIGN, we’re creating space to tell those stories across formats, grounded in the voices and experiences of the athletes themselves.” The screenplay was written by Brittani Nichols and directed by Carly Usdin, the story centers around “an injury-plagued women’s hoops superstar whose championship ambitions are upended when she falls for her teammate.” This will be the second feature film collaboration between Nichols and Usdin, whosefirst film, Suicide Kale, won Audience Awards at both Outfest and NewFest.
Camille Hyde joins the cast of Jacob and the Wolf from writer-director Josh Monkarsh. The film recently wrapped production in Los Angeles after a couple of months. The cast includes, Richard Kind (Only Murders in the Building), Bronson Pinchot (The Residence), Oliver Cooper (Project X), Louis Lombardi (24), Pete Gardner (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), Timothy Hornor (The Residence) and Chris Webster (Reacher). The movie is now in post production and slated for a 2028 festival run. “Jacob and the Wolf centers on a young couple who inherit a seemingly ideal home but soon learn of its dark and Nazi-affiliated past, leading to deadly consequences as their beliefs are questioned.”
Drama: A Micheal sequel is in the works at Lionsgate with Film Chief, Adam Fogelson, promising a bigger and better story. “We are really excited about the progress we’re making with respect to a second ‘Michael’ film,” Adam Fogelson, the company’s film chief, said. “All the conversations that we’ve been having with all of the appropriate parties continue to go exceptionally well.” The film ends in 1987 in the middle of the “Bad” tour. Thus leaving several decades of the king of pop’s life to be covered in the upcoming sequel: such as the success of Dangerous. As well as several child sexual abuse allegations that haunted Jackson for the rest of his life and career. “I would say that there is a ton of incredibly entertaining Michael Jackson story, and much of the biggest and most popular parts of his music catalog that were not touched upon in the first film,” Fogelson added. “There are so many other events that happened, even in the time frame of the original movie that weren’t touched upon, so we’re very, very confident that we’ve got an incredibly entertaining movie that will appeal once again to a global audience as the pieces come together.” Fogelson also claimed “We think we’ve got 25 to 30% of a second movie already shot from the prior production activity, and so obviously that will have some [financial] benefit ultimately, but we’re going to make sure we make a big and satisfying movie for a global audience once again,”
John Ashima - Michael Tullberg
Animation: John Aoshima to direct new Hello Kitty film alongside David Derrick Jr. and Ramsey Naito, who joins as a producer alongside Beau Flynn. New Line and Warner Bros. to produce.“I am extremely pleased that Hello Kitty and other popular Sanrio characters will be making their Hollywood debut,” Sanrio founder Shintaro Tsuji said in a statement back in 2019. “Hello Kitty has long been a symbol of friendship and we hope this film will only serve to grow that circle of friendship around the world.”Plot details are being kept under wraps. The film is set to premiere in theaters sometime in 2028.
Netflix has acquired the rights to Park Chan-Wook’s In Waves after a sluggish opening week at the Cannes Market. “Netflix took worldwide rights outside of France for the animated film In Waves, which opened Cannes Critics’ Week. The hand-drawn French animated feature, from Franco-Vietnamese director Phuong Mai Nguyen, is an adaptation of the graphic novel by AJ Dungo and is a love story set in L.A. between AJ, a shy, skateboard and art-loving teen, and Kristen, a surfer girl. Will Sharpe and Stephanie Hsu voice the English-language version. Charades is handling sales.”
Quinta Brunson to star in and develop Betty Boop film for Fleischer Studios and Fifth Chance Productions. “Betty Boop is one of our nation’s most beloved cartoon characters, yet somehow still remains pleasantly niche,” Brunson wrote in a statement. “She has had a quiet but undeniable impact on culture for nearly a century. After Erin and I met with Mark and learned more about his grandfather’s creation of Betty, I realized there was a much deeper story to tell. One that could be explored in a way that feels refreshing, subversive, and timeless, much like Betty herself.” The film is said to trace the origin and evolution of the character of Betty Boop from the perspective of her creator Max Fleischer. The project is “examining the relationship between the artist and his creation as he navigates the creative and commercial pressures of building one of the world’s first animated icons, particularly as that icon begins to take on a life of its own.” Mark Fleischer added: “When Quinta first approached me with the unique concept of a movie about the relationship of my grandfather, Max Fleischer, and his creation, Betty Boop, I was breath-taken. Quinta so embodies Betty’s love of life, intelligence, humor, sassiness and compassion that the relationship between her as Betty and Max burst into life at its mere mention.”
Mo Amer - Manny Hernandez
Industry: Sony Picture Classic Co-presidents Tom Bernard and Micheal Barker seemingly not worried aboutthe Paramount-Warner Bros merger and how it might impact the industry. Over the weekend at a Q&A session at Cannes Film Festival’s Marché du Film, Bernard said “I think there’s going to be room for us.” He also elaborated on what he thinks of CEO David Ellison’s 15-picture promise. “You can’t make 10 to 15 commercial hits,” he added, referring to Paramount’s initial promise for a 15-picture slate (since the merger announcement, Paramount CEO David Ellison has promised 30 feature films annually).” Barker also shared his thoughts on the current state of movie going. “There are trends with these audiences going to the multiplex that are different from the past. And the AMCs are recognizing this. On a specialized film, the Monday through Thursday gross could be as high as the weekend gross. That’s never happened before. And they’re concerned about people coming to their theaters Monday through Thursday because they’re fine Friday through Sunday. What happens is that they’ll give certain deals for seniors on Tuesday night. And the young people like to party on the weekend and see the movie on the weekday. We have to pay attention to these current trends.”
Cate Blanchett announces that her displacement film fund (DFF) will be getting behind short films by Mo Amer, Annemarie Jacir, Akuol de Mabior, Rithy Panh and Bao Nguyen in a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival. “Each of the nominated filmmakers will receive a production grant of $116k to make the short films. The completed projects will then world premiere at IFFR’s next edition, running from January 28 to February 28, 2027.” Blanchet launched this fund back in 2025, “Our first round of DFF shorts have been met with huge enthusiasm from both the industry and our partners, while challenging expectations about what stories of displacement can look like on screen,” said Blanchett. “The short form is a fantastic medium for these narratives and the way audiences are connecting with the first five films is extraordinary. I’m heartened by the success of our first cohort and thrilled to be revealing the next group of artists to be supported. We’re grateful to be hosted by Thierry Frémaux and the Cannes Film Festival who continue to champion our cause and make space for us in this most celebrated annual gathering of cinema.”
