Peter Farrelly Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

EXCLUSIVE: Deadline has learned that Prime Video has taken global rights to Ricky Stanicky from Oscar-winning Green Book director Peter Farrelly.

Bob Odenkirk’s next series for AMC has a premiere date. Lucky Hank, an eight-episode series about an English department chairman having a mid-life crisis, will bow March 19 on AMC and AMC+.

EXCLUSIVE: Kasey Inez (The Sex Lives of College Girls), Jahking Guillory (Black Lightning), Pedro Correa (The Middle) and Damon Gupton (Babylon) will topline Summer of Violence — the first feature written and directed by actress Nicki Micheaux (Lincoln Heights), which has wrapped production.

John Cena (Peacemaker) and Jason Momoa (Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom) have signed on to star in the action-comedy Killer Vacation from Warner Bros., Deadline can confirm.

Deadline has confirmed that the NYPD has identified a body found dumped outside a Bronx sheet-metal manufacturing factory Monday as Frank Vallelonga Jr., a sometime actor most notable for his role in 2018’s Green Book. He was 60.

Frank Vallelonga Jr., an actor who appeared in “Green Book” and “The Sopranos,” died Monday of unknown causes in the Bronx, New York, the NYPD confirmed to TheWrap. He was 60.Police responded to a call at 3:50 a.m.

EXCLUSIVE: Maggie Q, Zoe Colletti, Van Crosby and Ciaran Hinds have rounded out the cast of Apple Original Films and Skydance Media’s action comedy The Family Plan starring Mark Wahlberg and Michelle Monaghan. Simon Cellan Jones, who recently collaborated with Wahlberg on Arthur the King, will direct.

EXCLUSIVE: In what is turning into one of the more hotter projects in town, Skydance’s The Gorge starring Miles Teller, looks to have found its distributor and Teller’s co-star. Sources tell Deadline, Apple Original Films have come on to the pic with SAG Award-winner Anya Taylor-Joy set to star alongside Miles Teller in the genre-bending love story. Scott Derrickson is on board to direct with Zach Dean penning the script, which he sold on spec to Skydance last year. In addition to starring, Teller will serve as executive producer on the film.

J. Kim Murphy In a surprise shift to this year’s awards season, Will Smith’s next film “Emancipation” will release in 2022 after all. Apple announced the news Monday, releasing the first trailer for the Antoine Fuqua-directed historical drama. “Emancipation” premieres in theaters on Dec. 2 and will stream on Apple TV+ starting Dec. 9. Though “Emancipation” had originally been set for a 2022 release date, Apple elected to delay the film to 2023 after Smith became embroiled in controversy for slapping Chris Rock onstage at the Academy Awards. The embattled actor has since publicly apologized for his actions, sharing an emotional video released online in June, but has largely steered clear of the public eye since the Oscar ceremony.

AMC has released first-look photos of their upcoming shows that feature stars like Bob Odenkirk, Alexandra Daddario, Harry Hamlin, Okieriete Onadowan, Krysten Ritter, Martin Lawrence and many more. Click through the gallery above to see the images.

Naman Ramachandran Universal’s ‘Ticket to Paradise,’ starring Julia Roberts and George Clooney, and Warner Bros.’ “Don’t Worry Darling,” with Florence Pugh, Harry Styles and Chris Pine, were in a close tussle at the U.K. and Ireland box office, with the former winning narrowly. “Ticket to Paradise” collected £2.8 million ($3.03 million) to top the box office, edging “Don’t Worry Darling,” which took £2.7 million ($2.99 million) to second place, according to numbers released by Comscore. Disney’s “Avatar” rerelease placed third with £1.2 million. After two weeks atop the box office, Disney’s “See How They Run” dropped to fourth position in its third weekend with £473,222 for a total of £3.6 million.

Owen Gleiberman Chief Film Critic Film-festival awards don’t usually have much lasting impact, but four years ago, when “Green Book” played at the Toronto International Film Festival and won the People’s Choice Award, it had a seismic effect. It set the film on what would become its road to Oscar glory. Since that turned out to be a very bumpy road, with many critics dumping on the film for what they perceived to be its outdated liberal race consciousness (not me — I thought “Green Book” was terrific), the Toronto award kept coming back into the conversation. It was used to signify the nature of the movie’s appeal — namely, that maybe this wasn’t a film destined to be embraced by the most elite levels of the establishment, but it was one that “the people” went for. And that’s just what ended up happening. (The people, in this case, including a great many Oscar voters.)

Zac Efron is back on the red carpet for the first time in more than three years!

William Earl Jennifer Lawrence brought serious starpower to the Toronto International Film Festival on Saturday, appearing at the world premiere of her new film “Causeway.” But despite the big, Hollywood name “Causeway” was a quieter character study. Lawrence stars in and produces the film, in which she plays a soldier returning to civilian life in New Orleans. The film also stars Brian Tyree Henry, Linda Emond, Stephen McKinley Henderson and Russell Harvard. “Causeway” is the feature directorial debut of theater veteran Lila Neugebauer, with a script written by Elizabeth Sanders, Luke Goebel and Ottessa Moshfegh.

Zac Efron and John Cena could be starring in a new movie together!

EXCLUSIVE: Picnic star Olivia Scott Welch has been tapped as a lead opposite Bob Odenkirk and Mireille Enos in Straight Man, AMC’s series adaptation of Richard Russo’s novel, from former The Killing writer-producer Aaron Zelman and The Office alum Paul Lieberstein.

EXCLUSIVE: In a Deadline interview this morning, writer/director Peter Farrelly revealed he is planning an early 2023 start for Ricky Stanicky, his first R-rated comedy in years. He is in talks with Zac Efron and John Cena, with the latter playing the title role. He cautions deals aren’t done, but he is sparked to move forward on a film he’s been working on through the making of Best Picture Oscar winner Green Book, and The Greatest Beer Run Ever. The latter makes its World Premiere Tuesday at TIFF, where Farrelly launched Green Book five years ago.

EXCLUSIVE: For the first time since launching eventual Best Picture Oscar winner Green Book five years ago, writer/director Peter Farrelly returns to the Toronto Film Festival with another drama built around an obscure and difficult to be believed but fact-based road trip set in the turbulent ‘60s.

is an inspiring story about friendship, beer and the Vietnam War. ET has a first look at Zac Efron’s transformation into Chickie Donohue, a man who felt as though he wasn’t doing enough to support his friends while they were away fighting in the war. So, he decides to pack up cases of beer -- and himself -- and make the trek from New York to Vietnam to give his buddies a couple of cold ones.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Taylor Swift is about to become the hottest ticket at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival. The singer and songwriting star will appear in conversation with TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey and introduce her short film, “All Too Well,” at the annual celebration of movies. “In Conversation With… Taylor Swift” will take place on Friday, Sept. 9, at 7 p.m. at TIFF Bell Lightbox, so start lining up now (only kind of joking). The event will mark the first-ever screening of “All Too Well” on 35mm. “We love the intersection of film and other art forms, and Taylor Swift is a brilliant visual thinker,” said Bailey. “We’re excited to hear Taylor’s version of how absorbing influences from cinema led to her creating ‘All Too Well: The Short Film.'”

Brent Lang Executive Editor “Causeway,” a new drama starring Jennifer Lawrence as a soldier adjusting to life after returning home to New Orleans, will premiere on Apple TV+ on Nov. 4. The streaming service also announced that “Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues,” a documentary about one of the founding fathers of jazz, will hit Apple TV+ on Oct. 28. Both films are world premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, where the company is screening five features, the largest number of Apple Originals to debut at a single film festival. The Canada-bound Apple lineup also includes “Sidney,” a documentary about Oscar-winning actor and barrier-breaking star Sidney Poitier that is produced by Oprah Winfrey and directed by Reginald Hudlin; “Raymond & Ray,” which features Ewan McGregor and Ethan Hawke as half-brothers; and “The Greatest Beer Run Ever” with Zac Efron and Russel Crowe in a new dramedy from “Green Book” director Peter Farrelly.

is going to arrive in force, isn’t it?Please?That’s the feeling in the community I like to think of as Hollywood’s Kudo-Industrial Complex. That community limped through one year, 2020, in which theaters were closed, film festivals were canceled or moved online and almost all the shows were virtual; and a second year, 2021, that started out to be a cautiously muted season but was then blindsided by a COVID resurgence that forced a return to streaming and virtual events.Now, as the Venice Film Festival begins on Wednesday, followed by the three-day Telluride Film Festival on Friday and then the mammoth Toronto International Film Festival next Thursday, there’s a palpable yearning for things to return to normal.

Variety Staff Follow Us on Twitter Variety will return to the Toronto Film Festival this year with its annual interview studio, in partnership with King’s Hawaiian. Running from Sept. 9 to Sept. 12, the Variety Studio presented by King’s Hawaiian will include interviews with cast members and directors from the top movies premiering at the Toronto Film Festival. Talent includes Hugh Jackman, Laura Dern, Florian Zeller and Christopher Hampton (“The Son”); Mark Mylod, Ralph Fiennes and Anya Taylor-Joy (“The Menu”); Gina Prince-Bythewood, Viola Davis, John Boyega, Lashana Lynch, Thuso Mbedu, Sheila Atim and Cathy Schulman (“The Woman King”); Rian Johnson, Daniel Craig, Janelle Monáe, Kate Hudson, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr. and Madelyn Cline (“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”); Darren Aronofsky, Brendan Fraser, Sadie Sink, Hong Chau, Ty Simpkins and Sam Hunter (“The Whale”); Peter Farrelly, Zac Efron and Ruby Serkis (“The Greatest Beer Run Ever”); Tyler Perry, Solea Pfeiffer and Joshua Boone (“A Jazzman’s Blues”); and Lila Neugebauer, Jennifer Lawrence and Justine Polsky (“Causeway”). Talent and creators from the following projects will also participate in the studio: “Inspection,” “The Fabelmans,” “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story,” “Bros,” “On the Come Up,” “The Good Nurse,” “The Eternal Daughter,” “Sanctuary,” “Empire of Light,” “Devotion” and “Catherine Called Birdy.”

BreAnna Bell Mirielle Enos is on her way back to AMC, joining Bob Odenkirk in his “Better Call Saul” followup entitled “Straight Man.” The dramedy, a series adaptation of Richard Russo’s novel of the same name, hails from “The Killing” producer Aaron Zelman and Paul Lieberstein (“The Office”). Enos starred in the “The Killing” throughout its run. Odenkirk stars as William Henry Devereaux Jr., the unexpected English department chairman of an underfunded Pennsylvania college whose unhappiness stems from his tumultuous relationship with his father, a divided department he’s left to fix and the daily struggles of dealing with an entitled student body.

EXCLUSIVE: Former The Killing star Mireille Enos is returning to AMC, taking a rare comedic turn as the female lead opposite Bob Odenkirk in Straight Man, the network’s series adaptation of Richard Russo’s novel from former The Killing writer-producer Aaron Zelman and The Office alum Paul Lieberstein.

The Greatest Beer Run Ever starring Zac Efron – check it out below.Based on a true story, the film follows John ‘Chickie’ Donohue (Efron) who ventures from New York in 1967 to deliver beer to his army friends in Vietnam to show they have the support of US citizens. While there, however, he’s confronted with the realities of war.Directed by Peter Farrelly (Green Book), the film is based on the book The Greatest Beer Run Ever: A Memoir Of Friendship, Loyalty, and War by Donohue and J.T.

Carson Burton Zac Efron is heading to Vietnam in the first trailer for “The Greatest Beer Run Ever.”Apple TV+ dropped the trailer for its upcoming true-life war comedy starring Efron, Russell Crowe and Bill Murray. The film, which is based on a true story, follows Efron as John “Chickie” Donohue. Set in 1967, Donohue leaves New York to track down his army friends in Vietnam and share a few beers with them to show that they have support from the American people.

Few things spread good feeling quite like sharing a drink.