Lorenzo Mieli & Mario Gianani Launch Production Biz With Fremantle Co-Pro Deal

EXCLUSIVE: JoAnna Garcia Swisher is expanding her lifestyle platform The Happy Place with the launch of her production banner THP Entertainment, which she will co-run alongside longtime business partner and co-founder, Kate Gordon.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Lupin” star Omar Sy, “Fast X” director Louis Leterrier and “Gangs of London” producer Thomas Benski have launched Carrousel Studios, a European independent production company with offices in Paris, London, Los Angeles and Senegal. The banner will finance and produce film and TV projects, with an emphasis on elevated action, thrillers, sci-fi, fantasy and comedy. The company will look to tap into tax credits, European incentives and brands to finance content.

Louis Walsh left fans aghast when he accused Jedward of being "vile" on last night's Celebrity Big Brother. The 71-year-old managed Irish twins John and Edward Grimes, 32, after they shot to fame on the X Factor in 2009. However, in a jaw-dropping revelation he accused the duo of being nothing more than a "novelty", despite claiming to have made £5million out of the Under Pressure stars.

Anya Taylor-Joy took her father, Dennis Taylor, with her for the first time at the prestigious awards, which is a promise she made to him when she was 12.On Tuesday, The Menu star shared a gallery of photos and videos from the awards, writing in the caption, “A dreamy moment.” “At 12 I promised my dad that if I was ever invited to the Oscars, I would take him,” she wrote. “Filled with gratitude.”A post shared by Anya Taylor-Joy (@anyataylorjoy)The Amsterdam star was a presenter at the awards, joining her costar in the upcoming Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga Chris Hemsworth, to present the Academy Awards for Best Animated Short and Best Animated Feature.

Sydney Sweeney and her fiancé Jonathan Davino are saying goodbye to sunny Los Angeles!

Focus Features has firmed up release plans for Conclave, the papal thriller marking filmmaker Edward Berger‘s follow-up to his 2022 Oscar winner All Quiet on the Western Front. An adaptation of Robert Harris’ same-name bestseller, penned by Peter Straughan, the film releases in theaters in New York and L.A. on November 1st, before expanding on the 8th.

Alex Ritman Astral Projection, the production company set up by Oscar winner Rachel Weisz and British executive producer Polly Stokes (“American Honey,” “Wild Rose”) has signed a new first-look and development deal with Fremantle. The three-year deal will see Fremantle become the primary home for all TV and film projects for Astral Projection, which co-produced “Dead Ringers,” Amazon’s six-part psychological thriller in which Weisz played both lead roles in a gender-swapped reimagining of the 1988 David Cronenberg film. Stokes, a former creative executive at Film4, and Weisz have a long-standing relationship and are building a slate of projects with Rebecca Servadio as Astral’s literary consultant.

Rachel Weisz and Polly Stokes are taking their slate to Fremantle.

EXCLUSIVE: It was on the set of Sky and HBO’s We Are Who We Are where Lorenzo Mieli asked Francesca Manieri, a feminist screenwriter, to pen a TV series about Rocco Siffredi, the infamous hardcore porn star. Initially, she could barely believe it. “I laughed,” she recalls. “I was sure he was joking.”

EXCLUSIVE: Actor-producer Esha Bargate is launching a production company that aims to challenge how Hollywood views and portrays Indian culture and society.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent After making its debut at last year’s Cannes Film Festival with Jean-Luc Godard’s last work and Pedro Almodóvar’s “Strange Way of Life,” Anthony Vaccarello‘s Saint Laurent Productions has boarded Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez” as a co-producer. The musical thriller joins Saint Laurent Productions’ roster of prestige projects, including Oscar-winning director Paolo Sorrentino’s “Parthenope,” David Cronenberg’s “The Shrouds,” and the next films from Abel Ferrara, Wong Kar Wai, Jim Jarmusch and Gaspar Noé.

Alex Ritman Well-established Italian producers Mario Gianani and Lorenzo Mieli — who left their Fremantle-owned banners, Wildside and The Apartment, respectively, earlier this year — are returning to the growing TV and film powerhouse with their new scripted outfit. The duo — who co-founded “The Young Pope” and “My Brilliant Friend” production house Wildside in 2009 before Mieli exited to set up The Apartment, which was behind the recent hit “Priscilla” — are yet to reveal details of their new company.

Sonia Rovai and Annamaria Morelli have been named as the new bosses of Wildside and The Apartment, respectively.

EXCLUSIVE: Emmy nominee Rain Valdez (Razor Tongue) on Monday announced the launch of Rainbow Entertainment, an equity-centered and trans-led production company focused on elevating BIPOC and queer storytellers, both in front of and behind the camera.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have seen various Hollywood stars distance themselves from the former royal couple as they are choosing to support the King and Prince William instead, according to an expert.

Jenelle Riley Deputy Awards and Features Editor This article first appeared as part of Jenelle Riley’s Acting Up newsletter – to subscribe for early content and weekly updates on all things acting, visit the Acting Up signup page.I’m no stranger to celebrity. I’ve sat down with Leonardo DiCaprio, I’ve interviewed Angelina Jolie — and I have never been more starstruck than last week, when I hosted a press conference with the breakout star of the year. That would be Messi, the lovable pooch who plays service dog Snoop in “Anatomy of a Fall” He’s the scene stealer of an Oscar-nominated movie and the one everyone wanted to meet at the recent Academy luncheon.

Zendaya is about to take her image and shake it up, judging from the steamy first trailer for her new film.

EXCLUSIVE: LA’s J Creative Entertainment is expanding into content production, launching a production arm that will develop Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) and Filipino stories for global audiences.

In the latest major M&A deal to hit Europe, Fremantle has acquired Asacha Media Group, the growing owner of Death in Paradise producer Red Planet, Arrrow Media and Italy’s Stand By Me.

An insider is opening up about Brad Pitt‘s relationship with Ines De Ramon following a report that they moved in together.