Following the success of MAYOR OF KINGSTOWN, Paramount+ announced today that upcoming Series RABBIT HOLE starring and produced by Kiefer Sutherland, has begun production in Toronto!

Synopsis:

In RABBIT HOLE, nothing is what it seems when John Weir, a master of deception in the world of corporate espionage, is framed for murder by powerful forces with the ability to influence and control populations.

RABBIT HOLE introduces a dynamic cast including Charles Dance (“Game of Thrones”) as Dr. Ben Wilson, Meta Golding (“Empire”) as Hailey Winton, Enid Graham (“Mare of Easttown”) as Josephine “Jo” Madi, Jason Butler Harner (“Ozark”) as Valence, Walt Klink (“Arctic Circle”) as The Intern and Rob Yang (“Succession”), who was recently announced as Edward Homm.

Sutherland serves as executive producer for RABBIT HOLE, alongside writer-directors John Requa and Glenn Ficarra (“This Is Us,” “WeCrashed”), Charlie Gogolak (“The Sinner,” “WeCrashed”), Suzan Bymel (“Designated Survivor”) and Hunt Baldwin (“Longmire,” “The Closer”).

The series will be available exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. later this year and will also be available on Paramount+ internationally in Canada, Australia, U.K., Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and France.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)

The 2022 Cannes Film Festival, now in its 75th edition, has officially begun and we’re so thrilled to be a part of the festivities this year! Our Amanda Gilmore is on-foot out on the French Riviera as the Festival runs today through May 28, 2022.

Canada certainly is making its presence felt and even has its own Festival Village! Canada Tent set-up, the Pavillion having been absent for two years. Our Country is represented by CRIMES OF THE FUTURE (David Cronenberg) – which also will be getting a Canadian Premiere in June at TIFF BELL LIGHTBOX – and FALCON LAKE (Charlotte Le Bon).

Academy Award winner Forrest Whitaker in addition to producing Documentary For the Sake of Peace, is receiving an honourary Palme d’Or as well. He says this is the first time he has ever felt internationally-recognized as an Artist!

The Festival’s Jury Conference featured some deep talent with names like Deepika Padukone, Rebecca Hall, Noomi Rapace, Jasmine Trinca, Asghar Farhadi, Ladj Ly, Jeff Nichols and Joachim Trier.

Some key quotes from the Panel conducted in both French and English. A recurring theme with the Jury is their humility and love of Cinema, helping spotlight talent versus “judging” and “critiquing”, which is refreshing.

Noomi Rapace: “It’s a dream come true. Thank you. Thank you for having me.”.

Rebecca Hall: “Not here was no hesitation it was obviously a tremendous honour.”. On bring a Juror, the Actress/Director says, “I don’t like the word judge…There is a huge responsibility, but also a creative responsibility.”.

Deepika Padukone: “We made a promise to each other that we won’t burden ourselves with the responsibility.”. The Bollywood icon tells the room, “Cinema is such a powerful tool and medium it has the ability to impact people’s lives.”.

Joachim Trier: “Together we will have some really interesting and difficult conversations.”. The Director of acclaimed THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD also reveals, “I’m looking forward to watching 21 movies.”.

Jeff Nichols: “I once waited tables at the American Pavilion and someone tipped me a ticket and I was blown-away by how beautifully this Festival honours Filmmakers.”. Nichols, excited like Trier about seeing some movies says, “I guarantee you I will watch every single one of these films with the same energy and awe as when I was 21. “.

A view of the Grand Auditorium Louis Lumière Red Carpet:

The famed Theatre Debussy Red Carpet:

TOP GUN: MAVERICK also will get is eagerly-awaited Premiere tomorrow night. See this amazing installation set-up to celebration the Blockbuster!

Bookmark this link and check daily as we will be bringing you your latest Reviews from Cannes!

So excited to deliver you our coverage on the world stage!

(Photo credit: Amanda GIlmore for Mr. Will Wong)

Alaqua Cox stars as Marvel Studios’ ECHO, which is coming next year to Disney+. Production for the upcoming Series is now udnerway in Atlanta! Cox will star as Maya Lopez, whom you might remember from Marvel Studios’ HAWKEYE last year.

Synopsis:

Streaming exclusively on Disney+ in 2023, the origin story of Echo revisits Maya Lopez, whose ruthless behavior in New York City catches up with her in her hometown. She must face her past, reconnect with her Native American roots and embrace the meaning of family and community if she ever hopes to move forward. “Echo” also stars Chaske Spencer (“Wild Indian,” “The English”), Tantoo Cardinal (“Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Stumptown”), Devery Jacobs (FX’s “Reservation Dogs,” “American Gods”) and Cody Lightning (“Hey, Viktor!” “Four Sheets to the Wind”), with Graham Greene (“1883,” “Goliath”) and Zahn McClarnon (“Dark Winds,” FX’s “Reservation Dogs”).

Episodes of the series are directed by Sydney Freeland (Navajo) and Catriona McKenzie (Gunaikurnai). Executive producers are Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Brad Winderbaum, Stephen Broussard, Richie Palmer, Marion Dayre and Jason Gavin (Blackfeet). Co-executive producers are Amy Rardin, Sydney Freeland, Christina King (Seminole) and Jennifer Booth.

(Photo credit: Disney)

Chris Hemsworth is back this Summer in Netflix‘s SPIDERHEAD. The new Trailer has just been released for this FIlm from Director Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick)

Synopsis:

In a state-of-the-art penitentiary run by brilliant visionary Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth), inmates wear a surgically attached device that administers dosages of mind-altering drugs in exchange for commuted sentences. There are no bars, no cells, or orange jumpsuits. In Spiderhead, incarcerated volunteers are free to be themselves. Until they’re not. At times, they’re a better version. Need to lighten up? There’s a drug for that. At a loss for words? There’s a drug for that, too. But when two subjects, Jeff (Miles Teller) and Lizzy (Jurnee Smollett), form a connection, their path to redemption take a twistier turn, as Abnesti’s experiments start to push the limits of free will altogether. Based on The New Yorker short story by George Saunders, SPIDERHEAD is a genre-bending and darkly funny psychological thriller directed by Joseph Kosinski (TRON: Legacy, Top Gun: Maverick) and written by Rhett Reese & Paul Wernick (Deadpool, Zombieland).

SPIDERHEAD arrives June 17, 2022 on Netflix.

(Photo/video credit: Netflix)

Huge news! Hot off its Premiere at Cannes, David Cronenberg‘s CRIMES OF THE FUTURE will get a Canadian Premiere in Toronto at TIFF BELL LIGHTBOX on May 30, 2022. This event is brought to us by TIFF, Sphere Films (known formerly as MK2 | MILE END) and Seredipity Point Films.

The event will be followed by Q&A with the Director, the Producer, and members of the Cast at TIFF Bell Lightbox, the exclusive Canadian venue to screen the film’s North American premiere. The Film opens across North America on Friday, June 3, 2022 including TIFF Bell Lightbox.
 
Tickets for the Crimes of the Future special one-night-only event as well as tickets for the film’s regular theatrical screenings go on sale starting at 10am on Wednesday, May 18, 2022 for TIFF Members, and to the general public on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Tickets will be limited and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Synopsis:
 
Crimes of the Future is a meditation on human evolution. As the human species adapts to a synthetic environment, the body undergoes new transformations and mutations. With his partner Caprice (Léa Seydoux), Saul Tenser (Viggo Mortensen), celebrity performance artist, publicly showcases the metamorphosis of his organs in avant-garde performances. Timlin (Kristen Stewart), an investigator from the National Organ Registry, obsessively tracks their movements, which is when a mysterious group is revealed… Their mission — to use Saul’s notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution.
 
Following its North American premiere on May 30, Crimes of the Future will start its theatrical run at TIFF Bell Lightbox on June 3, 2022. On Tuesday, May 31, the day after the premiere, TIFF will screen Crash (1996), setting the stage for both the theatrical release of Crimes of the Future and a four-film TIFF Cinematheque series spotlighting Cronenberg’s earlier work, titled Cronenberg: Crimes of the Past and running July 2 to July 10. The series features screenings of Videodrome (1983), Dead Ringers (1988), eXistenZ (1999), and a second screening of Crash. Tickets for Cronenberg: Crimes of the Past go on sale Wednesday, June 22 for TIFF Members and to the public the following week on June 29. All screenings will take place at TIFF Bell Lightbox.  Pieces from David Cronenberg‘s collection will be on-display also throughout TIFF Bell Lightbox in celebration of the Film.

(Photo credit: Sphere Films)
 

Right in time for its Premiere at Cannes, comes these new Posters from Baz Luhrmann‘s ELVIS!

Synopsis:

From Oscar-nominated visionary filmmaker Baz Luhrmann comes Warner Bros. Pictures’ drama “Elvis”, starring Austin Butler and Oscar winner Tom Hanks. The film explores the life and music of Elvis Presley (Butler), seen through the prism of his complicated relationship with his enigmatic manager, Colonel Tom Parker (Hanks). The story delves into the complex dynamic between Presley and Parker spanning over 20 years, from Presley’s rise to fame to his unprecedented stardom, against the backdrop of the evolving cultural landscape and loss of innocence in America. Central to that journey is one of the most significant and influential people in Elvis’s life, Priscilla Presley (Olivia DeJonge).

Starring alongside Hanks and Butler, award-winning theatre actress Helen Thomson (“Top of the Lake: China Girl,” “Rake”) plays Elvis’s mother, Gladys, Richard Roxburgh (“Moulin Rouge!” “Breath,” “Hacksaw Ridge”) portrays Elvis’s father, Vernon, and DeJonge (“The Visit,” “Stray Dolls”) plays Priscilla. Luke Bracey (“Hacksaw Ridge,” “Point Break”) plays Jerry Schilling, Natasha Bassett (“Hail, Caesar!”) plays Dixie Locke, David Wenham (“The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy, “Lion,” “300”) plays Hank Snow, Kelvin Harrison Jr. (“The Trial of the Chicago 7,” “The High Note”) plays B.B. King, Xavier Samuel (“Adore,” “Love & Friendship,” “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse”) plays Scotty Moore, and Kodi Smit-McPhee (“The Power of the Dog”) plays Jimmie Rodgers Snow.

Also in the cast, Dacre Montgomery (“Stranger Things,” “The Broken Heart Gallery”) plays TV director Steve Binder, alongside Australian actors Leon Ford (“Gallipoli,” “The Pacific”) as Tom Diskin, Kate Mulvany (“The Great Gatsby,” “Hunters”) as Marion Keisker, Gareth Davies (“Peter Rabbit,” “Hunters”) as Bones Howe, Charles Grounds (“Crazy Rich Asians,” “Camp”) as Billy Smith, Josh McConville (“Fantasy Island”) as Sam Phillips, and Adam Dunn (“Home and Away”) as Bill Black.

To play additional iconic musical artists in the film, Luhrmann cast singer/songwriter Yola as Sister Rosetta Tharpe, model Alton Mason as Little Richard, Austin, Texas native Gary Clark Jr. as Arthur Crudup, and artist Shonka Dukureh as Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton.

Oscar nominee Luhrmann (“The Great Gatsby,” “Moulin Rouge!”) directed from a screenplay by Baz Luhrmann & Sam Bromell and Baz Luhrmann & Craig Pearce and Jeremy Doner, story by Baz Luhrmann and Jeremy Doner. The film’s producers are Luhrmann, Oscar winner Catherine Martin (“The Great Gatsby,” “Moulin Rouge!”), Gail Berman, Patrick McCormick and Schuyler Weiss. Courtenay Valenti and Kevin McCormick executive produced.

The director’s behind-the-scenes creative team includes director of photography Mandy Walker (“Mulan,” “Australia”), Oscar-winning production designer and costume designer Catherine Martin (“The Great Gatsby,” “Moulin Rouge!”), production designer Karen Murphy (“A Star Is Born”), editors Matt Villa (“The Great Gatsby,” “Australia”) and Jonathan Redmond (“The Great Gatsby”), Oscar-nominated visual effects supervisor Thomas Wood (“Mad Max: Fury Road”), music supervisor Anton Monsted (“Australia,” “Moulin Rouge!”) and composer Elliott Wheeler (“The Get Down”).

Principal photography on “Elvis” took place in Queensland, Australia with the support of the Queensland Government, Screen Queensland and the Australian Government’s Producer Offset program.

A Warner Bros. Pictures Presentation, A Bazmark Production, A Jackal Group Production, A Baz Luhrmann Film, “Elvis” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is set to release in theatres in North America on June 24, 2022, and internationally beginning 22 June 2022.

(Photo/video credit: Warner Bros. Pictures Canada)

After its Premiere at Sundance, comes this first look at BRIAN AND CHARLES, coming to theatres soon.

Synopsis:

BRIAN AND CHARLES follows Brian, a lonely inventor in rural Wales, who spends his days building quirky, unconventional contraptions that seldom work. Undeterred by his lack of success, Brian attempts his biggest project yet. Three days, a washing machine, and various spare parts later, he’s invented Charles, an artificially intelligent robot who learns English from a dictionary and has an obsession with cabbages. What follows is a humorous and entirely heartwarming story about friendship, family, finding love, and letting go.

Universal Pictures Canada/Focus Features will release BRIAN AND CHARLES in theatres on Friday, June 17, 2022.

(Photo/video credit: Focus Features)

Netflix present a new Preview of GEEKED WEEK 2022, the five-day virtual fan event celebrating their genre series, films, and games returns on Monday, June 6 – Friday, June 10, 2022 with tons of your favorites.

See this new Trailer with snippets from The Sandman, The Umbrella Academy, Manifest, Stranger Things, The Gray Man, Alice in Borderland, Day Shift, The Sea Beast and for the first time ever, exclusive Netflix games.

(Photo/video credit: Netflix)

The 51st edition of the JUNO AWARDS took place tonight at Toronto’s Budweiser Stage, a return to an in-person format after the Pandemic halted celebrations last year. Held outdoors to pivot around Covid-19, the event was a welcomed return to outdoor music and this also is the first time the event was held in Toronto since 2011’s edition at Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena). Tonight’s Broadcast Gala, aired live on CBC, concluded a weekend of celebrations honouring the best in the Canadian Recording Industry, including a Comedy Showcase, the Cadillac Fairview JUNO Fan Fare allowing fans to meet some of their favourite emerging Artists, plus the Opening Night Awards, held at Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

It was a star-studded affair on the outdoor Red Carpet as stars, including those performing, being honorued and nominated, made their way through, including the like of Shawn Mendes, Avril Lavigne and fiancé Mod Sun, Deborah Cox, Chris Bosh, Mustafa, Charlotte Cardin and several more. Host Simu Liu, star of Marvel’s SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS also graced us with his presence in a hot pink suit.

See Liu‘s Opening tonight, getting a little help from Michael Buble, Kim’s Convenience Co-star Andrew Phung.

Winning top honours tonight was Montreal’s Charlotte Cardin, who has had a career year and now is touring in support of her Album PHOENIX, which garnered her Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, Pop Album of the Year and Single of the Year for “Meaningless” which she performed live on the Broadcast.

Pickering’s Shawn Mendes also fared very well not only being honoured with the International Achievement Award, but also received the TikTok JUNO FAN CHOICE AWARD, based on fan votes.

Scarborough’s Deborah Cox was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. The R&B Vocalist known best for her smash hit “Nobody’s Supposed to Be Here“, was supposed her ber friend and NBA Hall of Famer Chris Bosh who surprised. Several stars like Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Angela Bassett and John Legend recorded video greetings congratulating her.

Global Superstar Avril Lavigne might not have received any awards tonight, but added tons of starpower to the Awards this year, performing a Medley of her hits including “Complicated”/”Bite Me”/”Girlfriend”/”Sk8r Boi” and “I’m With You”. At her Ricoh Colisseum show last night, her label honoured her with a plaque for single “Bite Me” which has reached gold status in Canada.

The 2022 Humanitarian Award Presented by Music Canada was given to Susan Aglukark, recognizing her commitment to improving the lives of children and youth in Northern Indigenous communities.

Some magical Red Carpet moments we snapped tonight:

Guests tonight got to experience this amazing Photo Op Booth courtesy of SONOS!

What a weekend!

The JUNO Awards return to Edmonton in 2023. Complete list of winners here.

(Photo/video credit: CBC/Mr. Will Wong)

The 2022 JUNO Opening Night Awards were held tonight at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, in advance of tomorrow night’s Broadcast Gala at Budweiser Stage!

Taking home top honours was Montreal’s CHARLOTTE CARDIN, taking three awards: Single of the Year Presented by Live Nation Canada, Artist of the Year Presented by SiriusXM Canada and Pop Album of the Year for PHOENIX. Scarborough’s THE WEEKND followed Cardin with two awards for Contemporary R&B Recording of the Year and Songwriter of the Year Presented by SOCAN. 

The Opening Night Awards marked the first time 24 Artists won JUNOs, including the likes of Allison Russell (Contemporary Roots Album of the Year), Andrea Jin 金玉琪 (Comedy Album of the Year Presented by SiriusXM Canada), Charmaine (Rap Single of the Year Presented by ADVANCE, Canada’s Black Music Business Collective), youngest ever JUNO winner Kairo McLean at age 13 (Reggae Recording of the Year), MONOWHALES (Breakthrough Group of the Year Presented by FACTOR, The Government of Canada and Canada’s Private Radio Broadcasters), Mustafa (Alternative Album of the Year Presented by CBC Music) and more. Global Pop sensation Olivia Rodrigo also won International Album of the Year for her debut LP SOUR.

Major honourees tonight also included Denise Jones, posthumously awarded the Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award. Accepting the award on behalf of Denise were her two sons Jesse and Jerimi. Three-time JUNO Award winner, Susan Aglukark, was recognized with the 2022 Humanitarian Award Presented by Music Canada. Aglukark was honoured for her commitment to improving the lives of children and youth in Northern Indigenous communities. Dallas Green was named the MusiCounts Inspired Minds Ambassador Award Presented by Canadian Scholarship Trust Foundation with the award for his dedicated support of MusiCounts and music education.

Complete list of winners here.

The Broadcast Gala, hosted by Simu Liu, airs 8 PM ET on CBC.

(Photo credit: CARAS)