Belgium Showbiz Latest News and Updates

The unscripted business has had a somewhat tumultuous twelve months but things have been picking up in 2024 with a number of network and streamer commissions and renewals.

EXCLUSIVE: Money Heist: Berlin actor Julien Paschal has signed with international management company Alta Global Media.

Phil Foden and Kevin De Bruyne have a telepathic relationship that helped Manchester City take control of their Champions League last-16 tie against Copenhagen.

Keanu Reeves’ band Dogstar have shared details of a tour of the UK and Europe – set to kick off this summer. Find ticket details below.The ‘90s alt-rock trio – comprising vocalist Bret Domrose, drummer Rob Mailhouse and bassist Keanu Reeves – are set to embark on a series of 13 headline shows across the continent later this summer.The live dates will commence at the end of May, when the band kick off with a slot at La Sala Teatro in Madrid, Spain on May 30, followed by a gig in Paris on June 2 – taking place at La Cigale.

It's been a long time coming, but in the 85th minute of Manchester City's 36th game of the season, Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland finally combined for the first time in 2023/24. A through-ball played with precision and a finish that required strength and then poise, it was a classic combo from the Etihad's star turns.

Kevin De Bruyne has surprised his own Manchester City teammates with the way he has returned from injury.

The British producer of Ruben Östlund’s Triangle of Sadness has sounded the alarm on the state of the UK’s independent film industry.

Philippe Clement has revealed how he was warned by Rangers insiders and fans of the Light Blues history of collapsing on their return from winter training camps.

Annika Pham Banijay Benelux’s Belgian banner Jonnydepony has set rising star Willem De Schryver from Netflix’s YA hit show” High Tides” (“Knokke Off”) for the title role of “I Was a Cop in the 80s,” ordered by Amazon Prime Netherlands and Flemish streamer Streamz. The period crime drama in development will be pitched by seasoned showrunner Philippe De Schepper (“Arcadia,” “Missing Persons Unit”), co-writer Bas Adriaensen and producer Helen Perquy (“Tabula Rasa”) as part of a Focus on Flanders at Göteborg’s forthcoming TV Drama Vision (Jan. 30-31).

Annika Pham Belgian group Lumiere has signed as co-producer – via its production arm Lunanime – and distributor for Benelux of the Icelandic crime drama “Haze” from Iceland’s seasoned showrunner Sigurjón Kjartansson (“Trapped” Season 1 & 2, “Katla”). The eight-part series, produced by Kjartansson’s S800 for Icelandic pubcaster RÚV, will be showcased at Göteborg’s TV Drama Vision among a handful of standout Nordic series in development.

A formally rigorous and free-associative dive into a decade’s worth of political fighting in the Congo, from roughly 1955 to 1965, Johan Grimonprez’s “Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat” is a fascinating and sprawling historical overview. Eschewing the usual mix of contextual talking heads, the Belgian filmmaker and multimedia artist instead adopts its narrative approach from the jazz that flows freely throughout the film and helps frame the political struggles of the Congo.

Wednesday 13 has announced a UK and European tour celebrating 20 years of Murderdolls – find all the details below.The horror punk musician – real name Joseph Poole – will be marking 20 years of his former band with the late Joey Jordison of Slipknot.The tour will see Wednesday 13 and his current band – featuring former Murderdolls members Roman Surman and Jack Tankersley – perform full sets of tracks from their 2002 debut album, ‘Beyond The Valley Of The Murderdolls’ along with 2010 comeback album ‘Women And Children Last’.The stint will kick off on October 24 at Riverside in Newcastle, followed by stops in Glasglow, Manchester, Southampton, Nottingham, London and more, before they close out with a show at Roadmender in Northampton.The European leg will then pick up at De Casino in Sint-Niklaas, Belgium on November 12, with shows planned for Milan, Rome, Cologne and more, rounding up at Melkweg Oz in Amsterdam on November 24.Hardcore Superstar will perform at support across select dates. Tickets go on sale this Friday (January 26) at 10am GMT, and UK dates can be purchased from here.

The upcoming 74th Berlin Film Festival looks set to be its starriest edition in years with Kristen Stewart, Adam Sandler, Cillian Murphy, Lena Dunham, Sebastian Stan, Amanda Seyfried and Rooney Mara among the talent due to attend this year.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Spain’s fast-growing Secuoya Studios has tapped seasoned Sony Pictures Television International exec Brendan Fitzgerald for the newly-created position of CEO. His most recent position as SPTI’s senior VP of international English-language co-productions makes him the perfect fit for the company’s lofty ambitions.

Kevin De Bruyne has been tipped to end up playing alongside Rodri in the Manchester City team.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Brussels-based company Best Friend Forever has acquired international rights to Lenny and Harpo Guit’s new feature “Heads or Fails,” the duo’s follow-up to Sundance comedy “Mother Schmuckers.” Now in post, “Heads or Fails” tells the story of Armande Pigeon, a queen of shenanigans in Brussels who struggles to make ends meet because she can’t stop gambling on everything, always ending up on the wrong side of luck. When she teams up with Ronnie one night, everything changes – they win it all.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba will be coming to the big screen, along with a sneak peek at the new season.Described as an extra-sized blockbuster experience, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba -To the Hashira Training- will allow fans to revisit the finale of the Swordsmith Village Arc while also getting a glimpse at the highly anticipated Hashira Training Arc (season four).The upcoming event marks the first time the finale of the Swordsmith Village Arc has ever been shown in cinemas, and also the first-ever showing of the Hashira Training Arc‘s beginning.Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba -To the Hashira Training- will screen in UK cinemas from February 23.

Small Things Like These, an Irish-Belgian production. Directed by Tim Mielants from a screenplay by Enda Walsh, the international cast includes Cillian Murphy, Eileen Walsh, Michelle Fairley and Emily Watson.

Ellise Shafer “Small Things Like These,” a historical drama starring Cillian Murphy, is set to open this year’s Berlin Film Festival. Directed by Tim Mielants from a script by Enda Walsh, the film will have its world premiere in the festival’s competition on Feb. 15.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Film and TV Producers’ Groups Call for Government Regulation of Streamers, Protection of Indie Sector Against ‘Market Failure’ and Loss of IP Streaming platforms could be subject to tighter regulation and forced to loosen their control of intellectual property if national governments heed a call for action launched Thursday by film and TV producers’ trade organizations around the world. The “global screen producers’ statement on streaming platform regulation and intellectual property protections,” was published by some 20 groups including Australia’s Screen Producers Association, Germany’s Produzentenverband, Screen Producers Ireland, multinational Spanish-language group Federación Iberoamericana de Productores Cinematográficos y Audiovisuales and Belgium’s Union des Producteur.ices Francophones de Films & Series. They say that they, “share a commitment to securing regulation from our respective governments that will ensure that our industry continues to both be sustainable and maintains our nation’s cultural sovereignty.” Among the nine principles, that the groups want governments to follow, two stand out and would likely require regulation.

With its streaming operations facing scrutiny as 2024 gets under way, Paramount Global continues to pursue a diversified approach to distributing its flagship, Paramount+.

Ben Croll Premiering out of Sundance’s World Cinema Documentary Competition, the impressionistic essay film “Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat” refracts the plot against Patrice Lumumba through a kaleidoscopic lens. Cutting between historical footage of the UN General Assembly and home movies shot in liberation-era Congo, weaving in a diverse set of perspectives, and setting the pace to a non-stop rhythm of bebop, rumba and classic jazz, director Johan Grimonprez evokes the euphoria of post-colonial possibility and the heartbreak of the dashed hopes and violent reprisals that would ensue.

Danny Brown has shared the music video for his recent track ‘Y.B.P.’ and announced a UK and European tour for 2024.‘Y.B.P.’ featuring Bruiser Wolf appeared on the US rapper and singer’s 2023 album ‘Quaranta’, his first full-length solo outing in four years.Brown and Bruiser Wolf star in the new music video as a claymation versions of themselves roaming around their home city, as they reflect on being “young, black and poor being raised in Detroit”.The video was created by UK-based directors and animators Edem Wornoo and Will Child. Check it out below.‘Quaranta’ was released digitally in November and will be available on vinyl from Friday (January 19) via Warp Records.Alongside the video drop, Brown has announced a 21-date tour of the UK and Europe in support of the new album, which follows the previously announced North American tour taking place in March.Brown will kick off the UK leg at John Dee in Oslo, Norway, before stopping off in Copenhagen, Berlin, Vienna, Prague and more.

The British Film Institute has revealed the list of TV, film, and animation companies that have won funding from its latest £3.3M ($4.2M) Global Screen Fund payout.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Jean-Claude Van Damme, the global martial artist turned action hero whose 2021 movie “The Last Mercenary” was a hit on Netflix, has another film on the horizon. He will star opposite Michaël Youn (“BDE”) in “Le jardinier,” another high-voltage action-comedy reuniting him with “The Last Mercenary” director David Charhon.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor September Film has acquired all rights for Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg for “In the Land of Brothers,” which has its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition section. The film is written and directed by Iranian filmmakers Raha Amirfazli and Alireza Ghasemi. Alpha Violet is handling world sales.

Rangers boss Philippe Clement looks likely to escape a touchline ban after his La Manga dismissal.

An iconic Salford pub is set to close ahead of a major refurbishment that will see it turned into an old-school English boozer.

Manchester City will take more care over Kevin De Bruyne's return after his injury issues with Pep Guardiola aiming to get his playmaker ready to play a string of 90-minute games at the business end of the season.

EXCLUSIVE: German director Wim Wenders has scored his best box office performance in 15 years with Japan-set, comeback feature Perfect Days, according to collated figures released by sales agent The Match Factory.