Antoine Fuqua to Direct Feature Documentary About Nelson Mandela (EXCLUSIVE)

Christopher Vourlias Akin Omotoso, the filmmaker behind Disney Plus’ Giannis Antetokounmpo biopic “Rise,” has been attached to direct “The Plot to Save South Africa,” an adaptation of Justice Malala’s gripping book about a 1990s white supremacist plot that almost plunged the young democracy into civil war. “The Plot to Save South Africa” will be produced by Johannesburg-based production outfit Ochre Moving Pictures, which signed a deal with Netflix last year to adapt multiple books for the streaming service alongside Omotoso.

Willie Nelson is going all out for this year’s ‘Outlaw Music Festival.’From June through September, the 90-year-old’s annual, star-studded traveling jamboree will include Bob Dylan at all concerts as well as Robert Plant, John Mellencamp and Billy Strings on select dates.New Yorkers and New Jerseyans are in luck, too.On Saturday, June 29, Nelson, Dylan and Plant will drop into Wantagh’s Jones Beach Theater.The next night, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame trio are scheduled to perform at Holmdel’s PNC Bank Arts Center.They’ll also stop into Syracuse, Bethel and Buffalo along the way.“This year’s Outlaw Music Festival Tour promises to be the biggest and best yet with this lineup of legendary artists,” Nelson told Rolling Stone. “I am thrilled to get back on the road again with my family and friends playing the music we love for the fans we love.”And if you want to catch this legendary group live, you can snatch tickets up as soon as today for all 2024 ‘Outlaw Music Festival’ concerts.Although inventory isn’t available on Ticketmaster until Friday, March 1, fans who want to ensure they have tickets ahead of time can purchase on sites like Vivid Seats before tickets are officially on sale.Vivid Seats is a secondary market ticketing platform, and prices may be higher or lower than face value, depending on demand.They have a 100% buyer guarantee that states your transaction will be safe and secure and will be delivered before the event.A complete calendar including all tour dates, venues, support acts and links to buy tickets can be found below.Note: All tour dates include Willie Nelson & Family and Bob Dylan; they are not listed as support acts in the calendar. On top of the tour, the Red Headed Stranger is hitting the road on

Banijay’s powerhouse lineup at what promises to be one of the biggest presentations at next week’s London TV Screenings. Mixing third-party pick-ups and Banijay productions, further scripted titles take in second seasons of two Banijay hits, the sumptuous and revisionist “Marie Antoinette,” and “Rogue Heroes,” a big WWII special ops adventure story which hit high ratings on BBC. Unspooling over Wednesday Feb.

The Beatles will be the subjects of four brand new movies!

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Nelson Peltz, the activist investor who runs hedge fund Trian Partners, believes urgent change is needed at Disney. He’s waging a proxy-fight battle to install himself and ex-Disney CFO Jay Rasulo as directors, a vote that will go up at Disney’s 2024 annual shareholders meeting April 3. What does Trian want? “Fundamentally and crudely, we want the stock to go up,” Peltz says in a video on Trian’s Disney proxy-fight site.

Alex Ritman Bella Thorne now has two films that she’d set to direct in 2024. Fresh off the recent announcement that she would make her feature directorial debut with “Color Your Hurt,” the actress-turned-filmmaker will next be getting behind the camera for “Ash Beneath the Current.” The film is slated to go into production this summer after Thorne completes post-production on “Color Your Hurt.” Based on a story by Thorne that she adapted alongside Leaf Lieber, “Ash Beneath the Current” will be shot at Tuscany Film Studios in Italy, the new facility opened by Andrea Iervolino.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Variety is premiering the trailer (below) for feature documentary “Transition,” which follows Australian filmmaker Jordan Bryon, a trans man, as he embeds with a Taliban unit as they retake control of Afghanistan. The film, directed by Monica Villamizar and Bryon, will be released in the U.S. on March 26 by Gravitas Ventures.

EXCLUSIVE: People’s Cup, a documentary feature about Argentina’s 2022 World Cup win led by Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi, is being repped for international sales at the European Film Market by Filmsharks. 

Jesy Nelson has flaunted her toned abs in a skimpy bikini top and jeans, as she enjoyed a day out in Australia with her boyfriend, Zion Foster.The 32 year old former Little Mix star has been living it up on an extended vacation Down Under with her boyfriend of almost a year. Jesy and Zion, 24, looked to have put their rumoured split behind them as they put on a cosy display, holding hands in a luxury convertible car. Bad Thing songstress, Jesy, shared a number of snaps to Instagram of her day, which included visiting a zoo and tucking into a pizza.

Naman Ramachandran Singapore’s Momo Film Co has unveiled a six-film slate that includes projects from recent prize-winners at Cannes and Locarno. Momo is one of five outfits selected at the 2024 Berlinale Co-Production Market‘s company matching program. Fresh off two wins at Locarno 2023 for Nelson Yeo’s debut feature “Dreaming & Dying,” Momo is continuing its relationship with the Singaporean filmmaker for his sophomore feature “The Drought,” a dark comedy-horror film set in the time of a drought.

Alex Ritman Will Smith has lined up another hot title to his list of upcoming projects, having signed up to lead the cast of high-octane action thriller “Sugar Bandits.” Based on the Chuck Hogan book “Devils in Exile,” the thriller centres on an Iraq War veteran who teams up with a crew of fellow vets to target the drug trade in Boston. Hogan — whose writing credits include “The Town” and “The Strain” (which he co-wrote with Guillermo del Toro) — penned the screenplay. AGC International and CAA Media Finance represent the film’s worldwide distribution rights and will introduce the film to buyers at the upcoming EFM.

Eminem‘s 2000 song “Stan,” a fictionalized account of an obsessed fan that ends in tragedy, became one of the rapper’s definitive tracks, overwhelming the collective consciousness to such a degree that “stan” became shorthand for anyone with an unhealthy attachment to a celebrity. Fast forward to 2023, and standom has become an inescapable presence in modern culture.

Activist Disney investor Nelson Peltz, whose Trian Capital is at war with CEO Bob Iger, blasted the company’s spree of earning-timed announcements last week as “spaghetti against the wall.” He also guaranteed victory in the proxy fight.

EXCLUSIVE: Gotham Award winner Dawn Porter (Luther: Never Too Much) will direct and produce a documentary about one of the most iconic, politically-charged partnerships in history: the remarkable, largely untold story of Nelson and Winnie Mandela. She’ll also produce through her Trilogy Films, alongside the Schultz Family Foundation.

As you might expect, there are a lot of people anticipating the release of Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson biopic, simply titled “Michael.” Is it going to be a warts and all look into the life of one of the most famous pop stars to ever live? Or perhaps it’s going to be more like “Bohemian Rhapsody” (it shares the same producer) and present a more family-friendly look at his life? Continue reading ‘Michael’ First Look: Here’s Jaafar Jackson Playing The Iconic Michael Jackson In Antoine Fuqua’s Biopic at The Playlist.

K.J. Yossman Director and author Christian Schwochow has signed with CAA for representation, Variety has learned. Schwochow continues to be repped by Curtis Brown in the U.K.

Caroline Brew editor “Christspiracy: The Spirituality Secret,” the follow-up to “Seaspiracy,” “Cowspiracy” and “What the Health,” will open in theaters in the U.S. for two nights of special screenings that will take place on March 20 and 24.

Naman Ramachandran “Harley” director Jean-Cosme Delaloye has wrapped production on a documentary celebrating pioneering Detroit techno music producer Carl Craig. “Desire: The Carl Craig Story” is structured as an intimate portrait of Craig and an ode to his beloved Detroit. With Detroit’s decline and recovery as a backdrop, the film follows the career of producer whose genre-defying techno has been performed to jazz enthusiasts at the Montreux Jazz Festival and in the premier classical auditoriums around the world, including Carnegie Hall.

Brent Lang Executive Editor LaKeith Stanfield, the Oscar-nominated star of “Judas and the Black Messiah” and “Atlanta,” has joined Raoul Peck’s “Ernest Cole: Lost and Found.” The upcoming documentary chronicles the life and work of Ernest Cole, one of the first Black freelance photographers in South Africa, whose early pictures showed Black life under apartheid. They were images that shocked the world. Stanfield will be the voice of Cole, helping to bring his words to life on screen.

Willie Nelson is lighting up in the new BIC Lighters 2024 Super Bowl Commercial!