Venice 2023 Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Love him or hate him, Nicolas Winding Refn continues to be a voice of sanity in a film industry beset by upheaval. Variety reports that the Danish auteur went off again about what ails cinema today at the Venice Film Festival in a tribute to Ruggero Deodato.

For a few beautiful years in the early 2000s, Michael Pitt’s spine-chilling blue eyes wreaked havoc in world cinema, from Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Dreamers” to Michael Haneke’s “Funny Games.” Then, due to quite a few controversies, the actor stepped away from the limelight, taking on smaller projects here and there and leaving an abyssal gap in the industry: a blue-eyed menace whose presence in any given film immediately signaled some form of psychological torture. Many have tried their hand at filling this gap, from the sprawling Skarsgårds to Dane DeHaan, but no one has come as close to it as Caleb Landry Jones.

Watching Michael Mann’s “Ferrari,” one may wonder whether it’s even possible to make a film about an Italian figure and have it not be at least 80% about style. An admittedly rather inane thought, but one made a little more legitimate by the central presence of Adam Driver as the titular Enzo Ferrari.

The Venice Film Festival is now underway, albeit without a lot of actors on the Lido thanks to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike. But Variety reports that “Ferrari” star Adam Driver is at the festival to support Michael Mann‘s latest film (as it’s not part of the AMPTP), and he didn’t hold back about certain companies refusing to meet guild demands.

While he’s now 50 years old, former enfante terrible filmmaker Harmony Korine is still a little mischievous boy at heart. While he’s seemingly mellowed somewhat—and kinda stopped telling tall tales— unless his recent comments about potentially directing a Terrence Malick script is one of his fibs—he’s also not against doing wild experimental sh*t.

To drum up hype for EDGLRD, his new creative collective/design studio, Harmony Korine put one of America’s greatest living filmmakers in his sights. EW reports (via a new GQ profile) that, with the recent advances in gaming technology (the same Korine uses to make his new film “Aggro Dr1ft“), videogames now look better than movies visually.

Is Wes Anderson entering a prolific period of his career? It certainly appears so, as after premiering “Asteroid City” at Cannes in May, he has a new short ready for the Venice Film Festival. And after “The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar” debuts on the Lido, it will be a Netflix streaming exclusive.

While many intriguing films will vie for the Golden Lion at this year’s Venice Film Festival, Michael Mann‘s “Ferrari” may be at the top of the list. It’s Mann’s first film since 2015’s “Blackhat,” the first outright flop of Mann’s career since 1983’s “The Keep.” That’s a strange lapse for a director among today’s most esteemed American filmmakers.

Netflix has a slew of intriguing titles getting their world premiere at the Venice Film Festival soon, including David Fincher‘s “The Killer,” Bradley Cooper‘s “Maestro,” and Pablo Larráin‘s “El Conde.” But don’t sleep on J.A. Bayona‘s “Society Of The Snow,” tapped as the festival’s closing night film.

As Bradley Cooper‘s “Maestro” approaches its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, some have criticized the actor-director’s use of prosthetics to adapt more of a likeness to Leonard Bernstein. Certain critics have gone as far as to call the prosthetic nose Cooper wears for the film as anti-semitic.

Pablo Larraín already has an excellent track record premiering biopics at the Venice Film Festival with 2016’s “Jackie” and 2021’s “Spencer.” But the director’s latest biopic takes a different approach than those two films. How different? Well, “El Conde” takes the already horrifying story of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and turns him into a literal vampire.

Pablo Larraín already has an excellent track record premiering biopics at the Venice Film Festival with 2016’s “Jackie” and 2021’s “Spencer.” But the director’s latest biopic takes a different approach than those two films. How different? Well, “El Conde” takes the already horrifying story of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and turns him into a literal vampire.

While SAG-affiliated actors may not be on the Lido for the Venice Film Festival at the end of the summer, two filmmakers with less than stellar reputations will be: Woody Allen and Roman Polanski. Venice creative director Albert Barbera said he doesn’t “see where the issue is” for both filmmakers bring their new films to the festival, albeit out of competition.

It’s been three years since Woody Allen‘s last film, “Rifkin’s Festival,” which came and went without much fanfare, even with the COVID-19 pandemic going on. And at age 87, many didn’t expect Allen to keep working post-pandemic.

Cinephiles already know that “Ferrari,” Michael Mann‘s first film since 2015’s “Blackhat,” will have its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival in September. But now Mann fans know when his biopic will have its North American premiere: as the closing film of the New York Film Festival on October 13.

Earlier this week, the Venice Film Festival announced the line-up for its 80th edition, including new films from Michael Mann, Bradley Cooper, David Fincher, Woody Allen, and more. Now it’s time for Venice’s parallel section, Giornate Degli Autori (previously known as Venice Days), to promote the line-up of its 20th edition.

Earlier today, the full lineup of films selected for this year’s Venice Film Festival was announced. Some of the highlights include new films from David Fincher, Ava DuVernay, Wes Anderson, and Bradley Cooper.

Despite an ongoing SAG strike, which could mean that the event features no major stars, the Venice Film Festival announced an incredibly star-studded slate of films for 2023. Seriously, even by Venice standards, the festival features an absolutely ridiculous number of major films that will have an impact on the rest of the year, especially during awards season.

The red carpet may not have as many stars as in previous years, but the 2023 edition of the Venice Film Festival will feature a slew of highly anticipated films. And, likely, their directors taking center stage.

Bad news out of the Venice Film Festival: Variety reports that Luca Guadagnino‘s “Challengers” will no longer be the opening film on the Lido this year. What’s more, MGM/Amazon Studios have pushed back the tennis love triangle drama’s US theatrical release to next spring, too.

So what film will win the coveted Golden Lion at the 80th edition of the Venice Film Festival this year? Well, there’s no front-runner right now because festival director Albert Barbera hasn’t even anvnounced the in-competition line-up yet. But now we know who will choose the winners alongside jury head Damien Chazelle.

Well, it’s official: Variety reports that Luca Guadagnino‘s latest, his tennis love triangle film “Challengers,” will open the 80th edition of the Venice Film Festival. No surprise there, as Guada has premiered five of his seven feature films on the Lido.

With Cannes and Tribeca in the rearview, it’s time to set our sights on the next major festival coming our way, which is Venice. And sure, we’re still a month or so away from the Venice folks announcing their lineup, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do what everyone loves to do—selection speculation! READ MORE: Summer 2023 Movie Preview: 52 Must-See Films To Watch And according to a new report from Variety, we have several films that seem to be locked up as debuting in competition at this year’s Venice Film Festival.