Kiefer‘s back! Toronto’s pride and joy makes his way back to the City for new series DESIGNATED SURVIVOR. Filming between March and October, the eOne-distributed Series centers on a low level cabinet member named Tom Kirkman (Kiefer Sutherland) who suddenly is appointed POTUS after a catastrophic attack on the United States.
We spotted Co-stars LaMonica Garrett (Transformers: Dark od the Moon, Daddy’s Home) and Adan Canto (X-Men: Days of Future Past, The Following) out and about as the Series gears up for production this week. Garrett plays a secret service officer to Sutherland‘s Tom. Canto plays White House Deputy Chief of Staff, Aaron. Both handsome lads were more than kind to stop for a Snap. Â We’re really curious about this Series which also stars Maggie Q, Italia Ricci and Natascha McElhone.
See our Snaps with Barrett and Canto:
Hmm… curious if we’ll see Kiefer next weekend at the Canadian Screen Awards? His brother Rossif is nominated for his Film, RIVER.
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
As preparations are under way for  FOX‘s Rocky Horror Picture Show, the star spottings continue to roll-in. Christina Milian provided significantly to our soundtrack becoming an adult in the early ’00s. Hits like Between Me and You (with Ja Rule), AM to PM, Dip it Low were staples for the MTV generation.
Since her Pop days, Milian has enjoyed popularity as a television personality on E!’s Christina Milian Turned Up and a correspondent on The Voice.
While shopping at Pusateri‘s we ran into Milian who was stocking up for the week ahead and it appears she’s on a high protein diet in preparation for her role as Magenta.
The FOX TV Movie remake of the 1975 Cult Classic, stars also Staz Nair in the titular role, Reeve Carney, Adam Lambert, Laverne Cox, Victoria Justice and Tim Curry, who starred in the original although still has yet to arrive. We also spotted Cox out and about in an Uber and Justice with her family too! Cox however, made it clear she wanted her privacy.
See her shock at getting a limo for her Uber today!
See our Snap with the amazing Milian:
We also spotted Co-Star Ben Vereen (Reading Rainbow, Webster, Top Five) who stars as Dr. Everett Scott. He was just too gracious!
There still is no confirmed release date for Rocky Horror Picture Show, but we are hoping for Halloween?
We met some of the other cast members of the upcoming Remake last month. More on that here.
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Disney makes a victorious debut with latest Animated Feature ZOOTOPIA, earning $73 million from 3,827 theatres this weekend. Voiced by the likes of Kristen Bell, Ginnifer Goodwin and Jason Bateman, it receives unanimous praise from Critics and Audiences alike with 98% on the Tomatometer and an A CinemaScore. This sets an all-time record for best original non-Pixar/Disney original Film, besting 2013’s Frozen which debuted with $67 million.
Debuting a respectable second with $21 million is LONDON HAS FALLEN with $21 million from 3,490 theatres for VVS Films/Focus Features. The follow-up to Olympus Has Fallen gets a 26% on the Tomatometer, but Audiences adored it with an A- CinemaScore, giving it legs to run on in coming weeks as word of mouth spreads. This however doesn’t best Olympus‘ $30-million opening in 2013 en route to $160 million worldwide.
DEADPOOL slips to third spot this weekend with $16.8 million for 20th Century Fox, now in its fourth week out. Already it has surpassed $311 million domestically.
WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT debuts in fourth with $7.3 million for Paramount Pictures from 2,374 theatres. Based on the Memoir by Kim Baker, it stars Tina Fey and Margot Robbie, garnering a passing 61% on the Tomatometer and a B CinemaScore.
GODS OF EGYPT in its second week out lands in fifth with $4.7 million for eOne Films/Lionsgate Films, a second Film for Gerard Butler in the Top Ten this week alongside LONDON HAS FALLEN. Egypt has grossed $22.6 million in its North American run so far.
THE REVENANT gets a boost from its Oscars exposure last weekend, in seventh with $3.6 million for 20th Century Fox, now impressively in its 11th week out. It has made $176 million thus far in these parts.
THE WITCH rounds-out the Top Ten with $2.4 million for Elevation Pictures/A24 Films in its third week out, just surpassing the $20-million mark.
Emily Kinney is emerging as a major force in Hollywood. The Actress/Singer/Songwriter gained wide popularity for her work and a Satellite Award nomination for her work on AMC‘s The Walking Dead as Beth Greene and she currently is in Toronto working on new TV Pilot CONVICTION.
According to Synopsis, the ABC Pilot starring Hayley Atwell, centers on the the daughter of a former president, who is blackmailed into taking a job as the head of Los Angeles’ newly created Conviction Integrity Unit. Along with a team of lawyers, investigators and forensic experts, she’ll investigate cases where there’s credible suspicion that the wrong person may have been convicted of a crime.  This certainly is timesd perfectly with Netflix‘s Making a Murderer exploring similar themes and opening the dialogue about wrongful conviction, to much acclaim.
In addition, Kinney has had high-profile turns on The Knick, The Following, The Flash, Masters of Sex and The Big C.
Just having released her new disc THIS IS WARÂ late last year, Kinney will be in the City till the end of the month.
Check out the Album’s Title Track:
We spotted the beautiful Kinney out and about today after a pre-weekend arrival and she was in great spirits out exploring her new home for the month! Â She is just as awesome as we’d imagined!
See our Snap:
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong/Universal Music)
Universal Pictures Canada + Mr. Will want to take Readers to see THE BOSS starring fan fave, MELISSA MCCARTHY! Screenings take place on Wednesday, April 6, 2016 in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.
Synopsis:
Michelle Darnell (Melissa McCarthy), the wealthiest woman in America with an ego to match, is arrested for insider trading and imprisoned. When Michelle is released six months later, she has no where to go, so her bullied employee Claire (Kristen Bell), takes her in.
Michelle takes Claire‘s daughter Rachel to her Dandelions‘ meeting, where she finds out how much the girls earn by selling cookies. She decides to form her own girls’ group called Darnell’s Darlings, in which she teaches the girls aggressive business skills and makes a mint by having them sell brownies.  Ben Falcone directs this comedy.
See the Trailer:
Artwork:
To enter to win, simply click “like” on this Post at Mr. Will on Facebook. Also tell me your City and about one time in your life you got a second chance! Click “share” from there for an extra chance or Tweet out the below:
http://www.mrwillwong.com/theboss @MRWILLW wants us to #win Advance Passes to see #THEBOSS! Out 4.8.16.
G’luck, Willionaire$!
Universal Pictures Canada release THE BOSS Friday, April 8, 2016.
Melissa + Mr. Will:
Words cannot describe our excitement. We had our doubts about this new GHOSTBUSTERS Film, but this Trailer should alleviate that. It looks awesome!
Synopsis:
Ghostbusters makes its long-awaited return, rebooted with a cast of hilarious new characters. Thirty years after the beloved original franchise took the world by storm, director Paul Feig brings his fresh take to the supernatural comedy, joined by some of the funniest actors working today – Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Chris Hemsworth. This summer, they’re here to save the world!
See the Trailer:
Sony Pictures Canada release GHOSTBUSTERS Friday, July 16, 2016.
(Photo/video credit: Sony Pictures Canada)
By Siobhán Rich for Mr. Will Wong
St. Patrick’s Day is almost here so that means the Toronto Irish Film Festival (TIRFF) is ready to take over the TIFF Bell Lightbox. From March 4th through 6th, the 6th annual installment of the Festival will boast an array Features, Documentaries and Shorts sure to thrill Film Lovers. This year, TIRFF will also be introducing a great new family-friendly addition to the lineup with the Best of Irish Animation.
Here are some day-by-day highlights to guide you through this busy weekend of Irish Film.
The festival kicks off Friday night with Mark Noonan’s You’re Ugly Too. Will (Game of Thrones’ Aidan Gillen) has just been released from prison on compassionate grounds so that he can care for his recently orphaned niece, Stacey (Lauren Kinsella). In order to rebuild a lost sense of family, the two head to the Irish Midlands and a caravan park where they are confronted with problems neither could have anticipated. On top of all that, Stacey’s very defined sense of right and wrong compels her to unravel the mystery behind her uncle’s incarceration before she can fully accept him into her life. This beautifully shot film will have the audience aching for the characters on screen to find the missing pieces of themselves in each other.
Friday, March 4, 2016 7:00 p.m.
Director Mark Noonan will be in attendance for a Q&A.
On Saturday, tune in for some Canadian history with the documentary, Forgotten. In the early part of the 20th century, over 100,000 children were brought to Canada and forced into indentured servitude. What happened to these children once they arrived in Canada and how their current families have come to terms with the past are just some of the issues sensitively addressed in this touching film.
Saturday, March 5, 2016 4:00 p.m.
Director Eleanor McGrath will be in attendance for a Q&A.
Sunday, before you bid slán a bhaile to TIRFF, make sure you see the fantastic Deoch An Dorais (Name Your Poison). This Gaelic language documentary (with English subtitles) tells the unbelievable tale of Mike Malloy, an Irish immigrant in New York City, who proved to be very difficult to kill. After a group of men took out two life insurance policies on the Irishman, the seemingly indestructible Malloy survived multiple assassination attempts ranging from simple poison to vehicular manslaughter. Deoch An Dorais is an incredible tale that will leave audiences agog and haunted by the story of “the man who wouldn’t die.”
Sunday, March 6, 2016 4:00 p.m.
Director Paddy Hayes will be in attendance for a Q&A.
The Toronto Irish Film Festival runs from March 4-6 at the TIFF Bell Lightbox.
For more information, check out TIRFF’s website http://toirishfilmfest.com.
Dufflet Pastries has stamped itself a Toronto institution since 1975 and for years we’ve adored their cakes.  The child of Queen of Cake® Dufflet Rosenberg was birthed out of her v. own kitchen, eventually shaping our ideas of Cakes and Pastries. If you’ve visited a local upscale grocers like Longo’s or Whole Foods, you probably already have tasted their greatness without even realizing it. Their three cafe locations across Canada (Yonge + Eglinton, Queen + Bathurst and Queen + Woodbine) continue to thrive and if you were to ask me where to get the perfect Birthday Cake, you would be hard pressed to find a more established, trustworthy bakery in the City.
Whether it be Billy‘s first Birthday Cake (a Raspberry Vanilla Charlotte), a Vanilla Layer Cake for my first Album Release party, a Pink Velvet which I pop by occasionally for an individual slice… or my all time favourite, or their Lemon Coconut Cake, Dufflet has and will be a part of our future celebrations and life milestones to come.
Take a walk down memory lane with us!
Right in time for Easter, Dufflet Pastries soon will introduce its new menu offerings. Â How do these sound?
LIME COCONUT MOUSSE MINIS
MANGO RASPBERRY MOUSSE MINIS
SPRING BASKET CAKE
SEASONAL BUTTER SHAPE COOKIES
Sorry (not sorry!) to get you salivating!
The Queen of Cake® and Movie Prince of Toronto join together to give Readers in the Greater Toronto Area a chance to win a $45 Gift Card to experience a cake by the one and only Dufflet Pastries!  Dufflet has been there with us through thick and thin and we want it to be part of your memories too!
To enter to win, simply click “like” on this Post at Mr. Will on Facebook! Click “share” from there for an extra chance or Tweet the below:
http://www.mrwillwong.com/dufflet @MRWILLW wants us to #win a $45 Gift Card to experience a Cake by @TourDeDufflet!
G’luck.
Visit Dufflet Pastries for more.
“Like” Dufflet Pastries on Facebook!
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Finally a Trailer for FINDING DORY! We’ve waited 13 years for this! This follow-up to Finding Nemo has our favourite blue tang searching for answers about her past with friends Nemo and Marlin!
Watch the Trailer:
DISNEY•PIXAR release FINDING DORY Friday, June 17, 2016.
(Photo/video credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada)
Elevation Pictures + Mr. Will want to get you elevated! We want Readers across Canada to win copies of Academy Award-nominated ROOM on Blu-ray Combo Pack!
ROOM
To five-year-old-Jack, Room is the world. . . It’s where he was born, it’s where heand his Ma eat and sleep and play and learn. At night, his Ma shuts him safely inthe wardrobe, where he is meant to be asleep when Old Nick visits. Room is home to Jack, but to Ma it’s the prison where she has been held forseven years. Through her fierce love for her son, she has created a life for him inthis eleven-by-eleven-foot space. But with Jack‘s curiosity building alongside herown desperation, she knows that Room cannot contain either much longer.
In additon to being nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, ROOM, directed by Lenny Abrahamson, also is up for Directing, Actress and Adapted Screenplay. You must witness breakthrough performances by Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay.
ROOM hits stores and is on-demand Tuesday, March 1, 2016. Date to be confirmed. Brie Larson, Joan Allen and Jacob Tremblay star.
To enter to win, click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK. Canadian Readers only please.
G’LUCK.
This Giveaway brought to us by Elevation Pictures.
(Photo credit: Elevation Pictures)
For advertising opportunites please contact mrwill@mrwillwong.com