City Athens Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Marta Balaga It has been over 20 years since Cédric Klapisch delighted audiences with his 2002 comedy “Pot Luck” about a group of twentysomethings sharing a flat in Barcelona.  Featuring the likes of Romain Duris, Audrey Tautou, Cécile de France and “Yellowstone” star Kelly Reilly, the film – also known as “The Spanish Apartment” – has spawned two sequels: “Russian Dolls” and “Chinese Puzzle.”  Now, French director is putting the old team back together in the Amazon Prime Video series “Greek Salad,” which opens Series Mania on March 17. But there is a twist. 

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent With an International Panorama spangled by gems  – think Spain’s “Apagón,” Sweden’s “Blackwater,” and Canada’s “Disobey” and “Little Bird” – Series Mania also weighs in this year with one, if not the, strongest and most mouthwatering of international competitions in its history.  Including the opening and closing series, Amazon’s “Greek Salad” and Netflix’s “Transatlantic,” nearly all the global streamers have titles in the lineup, from Apple TV+’s “Drops of God” and Paramount+’s “Fleeting Lies.” The lineup also features some A-List international writing talents, such as the U.K.’s Jack Thorne and Israel’s Ron Leshem and Amit Cohen, whose “The Virtues” and “No Man’s Land” rank among the most memorable of recent Series Mania competition titles, and closing the festival, out of competition, “Unorthodox’s” Anna Wenger.”Fleeting Lies” also represents one of the first series from Pedro and Agustín Almodóvar’s El Deseo label in Madrid, opening series “Greek Salad” Cedric Klapisch’s first works a TV series creator.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is reportedly lining up Sir Dave Brailsford to lead the overhaul of Manchester United should his bid for the club be successful.

Brian Eno is the recipient of the Venice Biennale’s Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement in its music section this year.The influential experimental musician, composer, producer and visual artist – formerly of Roxy Music – is being honoured for his “research into the quality, beauty and diffusion of digital sound and for his conception of the acoustic space as a compositional instrument,” according to a press release seen by Pitchfork.Eno will receive the award at a ceremony on October 22 at the arts festival held in the Italian city where he will also take part in a conversation with music critic Tom Service.“Brian Eno’s compositions have been conceived in terms of a generative process that evolves in a potentially infinite time dimension, foreshadowing many of today’s compositional trends linked to digital sound,” composer Lucia Ronchetti wrote in a statement included with the Biennale’s announcement.Additionally, Eno will be the subject of a video art installation at the festival called Nothing Can Ever Be The Same. It’s set to premiere the same day that Eno is awarded the Golden Lion.Meanwhile, a rare live concert featuring brothers Eno and his brother Roger premiered in cinemas across the UK earlier this month.Live At The Acropolis was filmed at Athens’ Odeon of Herodes Atticus amphitheatre in August 2021 as part of the annual Epidaurus Festival.The concert included a backdrop of Brian’s images projected onto the walls of the amphitheatre, as Brian and Roger performed music from their 2020 album ‘Mixing Colours’.They were joined by Roger’s daughter and Brian’s niece, Cecily Eno, on vocals, ukulele and mandolin.

It was on May 23, 2007, when Italian icon Paolo Maldini wrote his name into the history books and secured his place in Champions League folklore.

EXCLUSIVE: The Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival in Northern Greece will cancel its closing ceremony Sunday as the country continues to mourn following a fatal train crash that killed at least 57 people, Deadline can reveal.

Tara Karajica In Valerie Kontakos’ fourth feature, “The Queen of the Deuce,” the New York native, Athens-based director and NYU Tisch School of the Arts alumna, gives an alternate take on cultural history as seen through the eyes of Chelly Wilson, queen of the porno industry in 1970s New York and unconventional feminist, against the backdrop of the rise of feminism, the sexual revolution and gay pride. The film plays in the International Competition at the Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival. Kontakos says she knew Wilson through her mother, whose brother was a producer of Greek films who, in the ‘60s and ‘70s, would provide Wilson with Greek family films for her Sunday programs. “When I turned 15 or 16, I said to [my mother]: ‘Now that I can work part time, I am going to get myself a job because I want to start making my own money and I want to be independent.’ And, because when she went to New York, my uncle had asked her to go see Chelly to see what kind of operation she was running, they had become friends. So, I guess my mom told her that I was interested in working. She was then still showing Greek films on Sundays. So, I worked selling tickets there at the box office on Sundays, when they showed the Greek films, and the rest of the week they would show porn.”

Organizers of the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival said Wednesday that they are canceling their opening ceremony and “all festive events and concerts” related to the event following a tragic train crash in Greece late Tuesday that killed at least 38 people and injured more than 60.

Dozens of people have been killed after two trains collided in northern Greece. Scores more were injured when a passenger train hit an oncoming freight train early on Wednesday.

Are they really closing the case like this?

Guns N’ Roses have announced full details of their 2023 world tour – see the full list of gigs below and buy tickets here.Having already announced a huge London gig in Hyde Park for late June, the band will now tour Europe through June and July before heading to North America in August for a tour that spans three months.The tour begins in Israel on June 5 at Tel Aviv’s Park Hayarkon before gigs in Madrid, Copenhagen, Oslo and more.A second UK date in addition to the London show will come at Glasgow’s Bellahouston Park on June 27.The North American leg of the tour then begins in Hershey, Pennsylvania on August 11 and runs until mid-October when it wraps up in Vancouver, Canada.Tickets for the tour go on sale on Friday, February 24 at 10am local time. You can buy UK tickets here, European tickets here and North American tickets here.See the full list of dates below.JUNE 20235 – Tel Aviv, Park Hayarkon9 – Madrid, Civitas Metropolitan Stadium12 – Vigo, Estadio Abanca Balaídos15 – Dessel, Grasspop Metal Meeting17 – Copenhagen, Copenhell21 – Oslo, Tons of Rock27 – Glasgow, Bellahouston Park30 – London, BST Hyde ParkJULY 20233 – Frankfurt, Deutsch Bank Park5 – Bern, BERNEXPO8 – Rome, Circo Massimo11 – Landgraaf, Megaland13 – Paris, La Defense16 – Bucharest, National Arena19 – Budapest, Puskás Arena22 – Athens, Olympic StadiumAUGUST 20235 – Moncton, Medavie Blue Cross Stadium8 – Montreal, Parc Jean Drapeau11 – Hershey, Hersheypark Stadium15 – East Rutherford, MetLife Stadium21 – Boston, Fenway Park24 – Chicago, Wrigley Field26 – Nashville, GEODIS Park29 – Charlotte, Spectrum CenterSEPTEMBER 20231 – Saratoga Springs, Saratoga Performing Arts Center3 – Toronto, Rogers Centre6 – Lexington, Rupp Arena9 – St. Louis, Busch Stadium12 –

“My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3” will hit theaters worldwide on Sept. 8, 2023, distributor Focus Features announced Friday.The highly anticipated third film in the “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” franchise was written and directed by its star Nia Vardalos.

Emiliano De Pablos Athens-based company Stefi Productions is developing mini-series project “Letters to Leonard,” a real life inspired drama that explores events in the personal relationship between legendary conductors Leonard Bernstein and Greece’s Dimitris Mitropoulos. Described as a story about friendship, love, betrayal and the passion for music, the series has been co-created by Pierros Andrakakos, whose credits take in directing Antenna Studios’ series “Save Me,” plus servng as an assistant director on Universal Pictures’ “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin” and Paramount Pictures’ “Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life.”  Also co-creator and the series’ producer, Giorgos Linardakis is known for his work as line producer on Greek TV series such as “Agapi Paranomi” and “Voices in Deep.” 

Christopher Vourlias Since the launch of its cash rebate in 2018, which covers up to 40% of qualifying expenditures along with 30% in tax relief, Greece has become one of Europe’s hottest filming destinations. But domestic production is surging as well, and the industry reached new heights in 2022, with the rebate scheme supporting 132 international and domestic projects. Here’s a round-up of some of the top Greek feature films currently in the pipeline: Buzzheart (pictured, top)Director: Dennis IliadisProducers: Amanda Livanou, Dennis IliadisThe veteran director, who helmed the 2007 remake of Wes Craven’s “The Last House on the Left,” returns with a film that asks: If you had to make sure that someone could truly love without any moral limitations, how far would you go?Sales: N/A

Christopher Vourlias Athens-based Heretic has acquired worlds sales rights for “Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World,” the latest film from Berlinale Golden Bear winner Radu Jude (“Bad Luck Banging or Looney Porn”), who is serving on the international jury at this year’s Berlin Film Festival. Divided into two parts, Jadu’s latest follows an overworked and underpaid production assistant who must drive around the city of Bucharest to film the casting for a workplace safety video commissioned by a multinational company. In the film’s second half, one of her interviewees makes a statement that ignites a scandal, forcing him to re-invent his story to suit the company’s narrative.

EXCLUSIVE: Athens-based audiovisual group Tanweer is expanding its business into world sales of local language content, kicking off with an augural slate at the EFM.

The University of Georgia football community is mourning the loss of two valued members.

Prince William’s godfather King Constantine II — the last Greek monarch and Prince Philip’s nephew — has died at age 82.

By Melia Kreiling knows how to make an entrance, be it on Zoom or in Emily in Paris. In the latter, , a gorgeous Greek artist who comes to Paris to show at Camille’s gallery—and who ends up falling for the headstrong blonde; the two then engage in a hot-and-heavy romance. Only problem is (spoiler alert if you're not caught up), Camille's in a relationship (and engaged!) to Gabriel, and they're expecting a baby. As for our Zoom, Kreiling has just flown to Greece from France, and before that, Los Angeles, where she was packing up her life as she prepares to move with her rescue dog, Uzo, to New York in the New Tear.

A story line straight out of The Morning Show? Good Morning America’s Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes are sparking speculation about the nature of their relationship after being spotted together numerous times this month.

The possibility of protest and non-protests are looming large over the England vs Iran World Cup match this afternoon (5 a.m. PST).

Orestis Andreadakis, director of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, has a lot on his mind when he sits down with Deadline via Zoom from his office in Athens. Climate change, women’s rights, and the war in Ukraine are all topics he discussed, and he believes film festivals, including his own, must find a way to address and interrogate wider social issues. 

EXCLUSIVE: Production has begun on the psychological thriller The Eye, starring Shruti Haasan (Salaar) and Mark Rowley (The Last Kingdom) from Fingerprint Content. 

Viaplay Plans November 1 Launch Date For UK As Premier Sports Deal Closes

Louis Tomlinson has shared a new track called ‘Out Of My System’ and announced a 2023 UK and European tour – listen to the track below and buy tickets for the tour here.‘Out Of My System’ is the latest preview of the singer’s second solo album ‘Faith In The Future’, which follows his debut full-length effort, 2020’s ‘Walls’, and will be released on November 11. You can pre-order/pre-save the record here.Tomlinson’s forthcoming album was produced by Mike Crossey, who’s previously worked with the likes of Arctic Monkeys, The 1975 and Wolf Alice.

The plight of pregnant women living on the streets, relying on sex work and eating from bins as asylum seekers in Greece has been highlighted by Manchester-based volunteers, including former Coronation Street star Julie Hesmondhalgh.

Debbie Collier, the Georgia office manager found dead one month ago, will be laid to rest after a private memorial service, according to an obituary published in her local Athens newspaper Monday. Her killer remains at large, and investigators have not yet publicly named a person of interest or suspect. The private funeral will be held at the Lord and Stephens Funeral Home East, but the announcement did not say when.

Love Island contestant Antigoni Buxton is thought to be in talks to represent Greece at the Eurovision Song Contest next year. According to MailOnline, the reality star, 26, has submitted three songs to Greece's biggest television channel, and has already travelled to Athens to showcase her singing talents.