VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE devastates in its debut at the Box Office this weekend, taking top spot with $90.1 million from 4,225 theatres, a best opening during the Pandemic. This outdoes its 2018 predecessor which opened with $80.3 million for Sony Pictures. Critics gave this 59% on the Tomatometer.
THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2 debuts in second spot with $15.8 million from 4,207 theaters for Universal Pictures. This installment gets 27% on the Tomatometer from Critics. The previous film in 2019 made $30 million opening weekend.
THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK, a Prequel to The Sopranos, earns $7 million from 3,181 theaters for Warner Bros. The Drama gets a passing 74% on the Tomatometer.
Four week champion SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS makes $5.8 million this weekend, bringing its five week tally to $205.9 million for Marvel/Disney.
DEAR EVAN HANSEN rounds-out the Top Five with $2.4 million for Universal Pictures. Its two week run has seen $11.7 million domestically.
DEAR EVAN HANSEN is now in theatres and audiences are loving it. The Adaptation of the Tony Award-winning Musical, just debuted in second spot at the Box Office this weekend.
See the Trailer:
We’ve got amazing official merchandise from this beautiful Movie, including notepads and T-Shirts!
To Enter to win a set, please “like” this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK and indicate your City there and preference for T-Shirt size. Re-Tweet this Contest Tweet below for an additional chance.
Enter for a chance to #win a #DearEvanHansen Prize Pack including official Notepad and T-Shirt!
— MR. WILL WONG 📸 (@mrwillw) September 27, 2021
How: https://t.co/EqX7KZoUVG pic.twitter.com/24KLPM6Al7
Rules and regulations here.
Universal Pictures Canada release DEAR EVAN HANSEN, now in theatres.
(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures Canada)
There’s just no stopping SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS which takes the top spot for a fourth straight week at the Box Office with $12.8 million from 3,952 theatres for Marvel/Disney! This means it has eclipsed BLACK WIDOW as the highest-grossing film during the Pandemic with a tally of $196 million. BLACK WIDOW had grossed $186.7 million domestically.
In second spot is DEAR EVAN HANSEN with a respectable $7.3 million from 3,364 theatres for Universal Pictures. Projections for the Musical were pegged at up to $12 million going into the weekend. The Film which premiered as Opening Night Gala at TIFF a couple weeks back, got 33% on the Tomatometer from Critics.
FREE GUY lands in third with $4.1 million from 3,175 theatres for 20th Century Studios, a total $114.1 million over seven weeks.
CANDYMAN is showing some resilience with $$2.4 million from 2,556 theatres for Universal Pictures, earning $56.9 million over six weeks.
CRY MACHO rounds things out in fifth spot with $2.1 million from 4,022 theatres, a total $8.4 million earned in two weeks for Warner Bros.
We don’t believe we made it through another TIFF! While this year’s Festival certainly was a bit more scaled-back we definitely were not short of things to do, equally putting in long days. So thankful to the Team for contributing their Reviews of the most key titles to surface at TIFF ’21 including Dave Baldwin, Amanda Gilmore and George Kozera. So thankful to be a Torontonian and be gifted every year with this amazing Festival. We’re so appreciative of the considerations for our safety and the fact that we were able to enjoy the Festival both in-person and at-home. We will never take for granted this flexibility.
Once again we must thank some of our official partners in our coverage of the Festival this year! We couldn’t have done it without their generosity and support and we’re always thrilled to get our Readers and Followers excited about their amazing products and services.
View this post on Instagram
The lucky winner of our TIFF ’21 Survival Pack Giveaway was Jessica (@SheBakesHere), who won an amazing haul of products from our official partners!
As the winner, Jessica received:
•1 $50 Starbucks Canada Gift Card
•1 $50 Chatime gift card + 1x T-shirt +1x Tumbler + 1x Stainless Steel Straw set
•1 $50 Gift Card at Lone Star Texas Grill
•1 $50 Gift Card at Frankie’s Nashville Hot Chicken
•1 Happy Gift Set including 1 Rose Quartz Roller + Gua Sha set, 1 Happy Face Mask, 1 bottle 250ml Happy Sanitizer and a Happy 3-Toothbrush set
•1 The Beauty of Eczema’s Bathing Oil and Bath Salts At-Home Spa Set
•1 Antipodes Manuka Honey Skin-Brightening Beehive Box
•1 boscia Skin Nutrition Body Collection
•1 bottle of Nature’s Sunshine new Hair, Skin & Nails capsules and BioGuard Hand and Body Cream
•1 H&M Canada VIP Card
•1 Official MR. WILL WONG Baseball Cap
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Team Mr. Will also share their favourites of the Festival and also their predictions which Film will win that coveted People’s Choice Award!
AMANDA GILMORE (Twitter: @GilmoreAmanda)
Belfast
Titane
The Worst Person in the World
Petite Maman
Spencer
Would Also Highly Recommend: The Eyes of Tammy Faye, The Power of the Dog, Dune & The Humans
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Belfast
DAVID BALDWIN (Twitter: @DaveMABaldwin)
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Belfast
TIFF’21 was a substantial upgrade from TIFF’20. Full Stop. The quality of films was substantially stronger, the in-person and digital offerings were better, and the all-around experience was so much closer to the TIFF we all know and love from those simpler, pre-pandemic times. There are some learnings the programming team will need to reflect on for next year’s festival, but I sincerely hope they continue with the hybrid experience despite some of the hiccups they encountered this year. It allows for an easier and more efficient means of discovery for everyone, and lets audiences still feel like they are part of the action even if they are watching from home. I had a blast watching so many movies this year, and am already looking forward to endlessly re-watching many of them. Yet I know in my bones that I would not have been able to see nearly as many had it only been an in-person festival. And while I am bummed to have missed out on Last Night in Soho and Spencer, I am overjoyed at everything I did get to see — including some of the more forgettable titles. Next year will no doubt look different again, but here’s hoping it will still feel like TIFF because where else can you go from watching a hit Broadway musical adaptation like Dear Evan Hansen to an Oscar-prestige play like The Power of the Dog to the absolute madness of the Palme d’Or winning Titane?
GEORGE KOZERA (Twitter: @PartyG)
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Belfast
JUSTIN WALDMAN (Twitter: @DubsReviews)
Titane
Belfast
Petite Maman
Encounter
Violet
People’s Choice Prediction: Belfast
MR. WILL (Twitter: @mrwillw)
People’s Choice Award Prediction: Spencer
We’re still mesmerized by Kristen Stewart’s work in Spencer, which almost is side-by-side as our favourite with Jessica Chastain‘s mind-blowing portrayal of Tammy Faye Bakker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye! We still are obsessed with Last Night in Soho and can’t wait to see it again in October! We missed The Power of the Dog but are thankful it will be available soon on Netflix! So excited to see some of these titles propel into Awards Season success.
#TIFF21: Can we talk about #Spencer for a second? #KristenStewart pic.twitter.com/HnsQqLL4lS
— MR. WILL WONG 📸 (@mrwillw) September 10, 2021
_______________________________________________
Last but not least, some of our favourite moments with the talent at the Festival:
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View this post on Instagram
Until next TIFF!
We hope you had a blast following our adventures and Reviews. In case you missed them, you always can catch-up right here.
Do not forget to check-out the TIFF TRIBUTE GALA AWARDS, airing Saturday, September 18, 2021 at 7PM ET on CTV and the CTV App!
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Press has begun for many of the Films premiering at TIFF ’21 and since Red Carpets aren’t public this year, we have to use a bit more creativity getting that snap! No worries, we’re managing!
We spotted the Cast of DEAR EVAN HANSEN out and about today as they did the rounds and captured a few lovely moments among Ben Platt, Julianne Moore, Danny Pino, Nik Dodani and Director Stephe n Chbosky!
We also were thrilled to attend the Premiere of Clint Bentley‘s JOCKEY which had won much acclaim at Sundance, winning Clifton Collins Jr. the award for Best Actor. Collins and Bentley were at TIFF ’21 today to premiere the Film at Scotiabank Theatre, giving the audience to understand an authentic story about the world of Horse Racing and what it’s like to be an aging athlete. Bentley tells the audience he is actually from a family involved very much with the industry. Don’t forget to check our running TIFF ’21 link here for the Review.
We also finally saw Pablo Larrain‘s SPENCER starring Kristen Stewart and were floored! So much detail and a super portrayal of Diana by Stewart. While our Review is coming shortly, here is a short thread on Twitter I Tweeted:
#TIFF21: Can we talk about #Spencer for a second? #KristenStewart pic.twitter.com/HnsQqLL4lS
— MR. WILL WONG 📸 (@mrwillw) September 10, 2021
We are positively exhausted. Going to rest-up early for along day ahead including the TIFF Tribute Gala bright and early!
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong)
TIFF ’21 is officially in full swing and while things are a little less hectic this year, we’re still keeping fully busy, Team Mr. Will catching as many Films as we can and fitting in as many sightings as we can!
We are thrilled to have gotten to see this year’s Opening Night Gala, the uplifting and heartfelt DEAR EVAN HANSEN. We absolutely loved it, and while we’ve never seen the original Musical it was based on, the Film by Stephen Chbosky stands on its own strongly. Floored by star Ben Platt‘s work in this and the Music by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul is incredible.
See our thoughts below and Capsule Review here.
We were also lucky enough to find the After Party for the Film, which took place at hotspot Sofia in Yorkville, where we by chance saw Platt leaving, as well as Co-Stars Amandla Stenberg, Danny Pino and Colton Ryan. I cannot wait for you to discover this Film. Bawled my eyes out!
A huge “thank you” also to official TIFF ’21 sponsor RBC for gifting us with tickets which we gave to one lucky Reader to see DEAR EVAN HANSEN at the RBC Lakeside Drive In! Mark Greeno was so lucky to get to see Ben Platt and Amandla Stenberg also in-person as they introduced the Film!
Many thanks to @RBC, official sponsor of #TIFF21! Thanks to them we were able to send @leos_lover_2000 to the RBC Lakeside Drive-In to see #DearEvanHansen! Hope you had fun, Mark! pic.twitter.com/VkGFA2ka5G
— MR. WILL WONG 📸 (@mrwillw) September 10, 2021
It was quiet for most of the day, but so thrilled we saw Justin Bateman here to present her directorial Feature debut, VIOLET, which continues to get warm reception on the Festival circuit. We saw the Film at SXSW and were overjoyed to see THE MALLORY KEATON of Family Ties, here in-person. She was so sweet and even handed me some swag, official VIOLET pens to keep.
It will be another hectic couple days cramming-in as much as we can and we’re so excited to see SPENCER tomorrow morning – this is the Princess Diana film starring Kristen Stewart which has put her in the early lead for the Best Actress race.
Stay tuned for more. Continue bookmarking and checking this rolling link as we post our updates through out the day!
Our next scheduled CP24 appearance will be Saturday morning. Don’t forget to check it out!
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong)
By Mr. Will Wong
While many Broadway plays have been given the Big Screen treatment, not all have succeeded. Fortunately, Stephen Chboksy‘s DEAR EVAN HANSEN is the real deal!
The deeply-heartfelt coming-of-age story centers on Evan (Ben Platt) who finds himself caught in a spiraling lie after a classmate’s family confuses him aa their son’s secret best friend. The problem is they were never actually friends.
The Musical explores the aftermath of a tragic loss, how we construct the truths we want and at what cost this comes. And ultimately what it means to find your own truth.
Headlined by an outstanding reprised performance by role-originating Platt, the Film is a visceral journey. The odd thing is while many read the humour as Comedy, I could feel his Evan‘s deep anxiety and pain, which was truly palpable.
Supporting turns from Amy Adams, Julianne Moore and Kaitlyn Dever are deeply-affecting. The glue that binds it all is that mesmerizing Soundtrack by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul.
Chbosky ambitiously covers a lot of ground but nails it! Fans are going to love this wonderful translation.
DEAR EVAN HANSEN screens at TIFF ’21:
Thu, Sep 09
IN-PERSON
Visa Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre
Premium
5:30pm
Thu, Sep 09
IN-PERSON
Roy Thomson Hall
Premium
7:00pm
Thu, Sep 09
RBC Lakeside Drive-In at Ontario Place
8:30pm
Thu, Sep 09
DIGITAL PREMIERE SCREENING
digital TIFF Bell Lightbox
Premium
Availability: Canada
9:00pm
We are thrilled to give Readers a chance to win Advance Passes to see DEAR EVAN HANSEN! The Film is the TIFF ’21 Opening Night Gala! Screenings take place on September 22, 2021 in the following cities:
Toronto: Cineplex Cinemas Varsity, 7:00 pm
Montreal: Scotiabank Theatre, 7:00 pm
Synopsis:
The breathtaking, generation-defining Broadway phenomenon becomes a soaring cinematic event as Tony, Grammy and Emmy Award winner Ben Platt reprises his role as an anxious, isolated high schooler aching for understanding and belonging amid the chaos and cruelty of the social-media age.
Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being A Wallflower, Wonder), the film is written for the screen by the show’s Tony winner Steven Levenson with music and lyrics by the show’s Oscar®, Grammy and Tony-winning songwriting team of Benj Pasek & Justin Paul (La La Land, The Greatest Showman).
See the Trailer:
To enter for a chance to win, click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK. Re-Tweet this Contest Tweet below for an extra chance. You must be following.
Enter for your chance to #win Advance Passes to see #TIFF21 selection #DearEvanHansen in Toronto and Montreal!https://t.co/Vl03VEkCOY pic.twitter.com/Ouj2jYzg2S
— MR. WILL WONG 📸 (@mrwillw) September 9, 2021
Rules and regulations here.
Univeraal Pictures Canada release DEAR EVAN HANSEN September 24, 2021.
(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures Canada)
TIFF ’21 Opening Night Gala DEAR EVAN HANSEN is a highlight for many and here is a new Featurette which asks its stars about its theme of being found.
Synopsis:
The breathtaking, generation-defining Broadway phenomenon becomes a soaring cinematic event as Tony, Grammy and Emmy Award winner Ben Platt reprises his role as an anxious, isolated high schooler aching for understanding and belonging amid the chaos and cruelty of the social-media age.
Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being A Wallflower, Wonder), the film is written for the screen by the show’s Tony winner Steven Levenson with music and lyrics by the show’s Oscar®, Grammy and Tony-winning songwriting team of Benj Pasek & Justin Paul (La La Land, The Greatest Showman).
Universal Pictures Canada release DEAR EVAN HANSEN in theatres September 24, 2021.
(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures Canada)
Additional titles have been announced for the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival today and some high-profile selections like DEAR EVAN HANSEN and THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE will be debuting here in Toronto this September! The former has been selected as the Festival’s Opening Night selection and makes its way to the screen after critical adoration on Broadway, with star Ben Platt reprising his award-winning role. The Film will be premiering at Roy Thomson Hall on September 9, 2021 with additional screenings at Visa Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre, at the RBC Lakeside Drive-In at Ontario Place, and digitally on the digital TIFF Bell Lightbox platform.
Iconic Director Zhang Yimou will be presenting his latest, One Second at the Festival with the Film closing out the Festival. The Cultural Revolution-set Drama previously was censored in its homeland China.
This brings the announced titles to 11 Galas and 21 Special Presentations thus far, with more titles to come. The Festival runs September 9-18, 2021.
GALA PRESENTATIONS 2021
*previously announced
*Belfast Kenneth Branagh | United Kingdom
World Premiere
Clifford the Big Red Dog Walt Becker | USA/United Kingdom/Canada
World Premiere
*Opening Night Film*
Dear Evan Hansen Stephen Chbosky | USA
World Premiere
The Electrical Life of Louis Wain Will Sharpe | United Kingdom
Canadian Premiere
*Jagged Alison Klayman | USA
World Premiere
*Last Night in Soho Edgar Wright | United Kingdom
North American Premiere
*The Mad Women’s Ball (Le Bal des folles) Mélanie Laurent | France
World Premiere
*Night Raiders Danis Goulet | Canada/New Zealand
North American Premiere
*Closing Night Film*
One Second Zhang Yimou | China
North American Premiere
The Survivor Barry Levinson | USA/Canada/Hungary
World Premiere
SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS 2021
*previously announced
Ali & Ava Clio Barnard | United Kingdom
North American Premiere
All My Puny Sorrows Michael McGowan | Canada
World Premiere
*Benediction Terence Davies | United Kingdom
World Premiere
Bergman Island Mia Hansen-Løve | France
International Premiere
*Charlotte Eric Warin, Tahir Rana | Canada/France/Belgium
World Premiere
*Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over Dave Wooley, David Heilbroner | USA
World Premiere
Drive My Car Ryusuke Hamaguchi | Japan
North American Premiere
Encounter Michael Pearce | United Kingdom/USA
International Premiere
The Eyes of Tammy Faye Michael Showalter | USA
World Premiere
*The Guilty Antoine Fuqua | USA
World Premiere
I’m Your Man Maria Schrader | Germany
North American Premiere
Inexorable Fabrice du Welz | Belgium/France
International Premiere
*Lakewood Phillip Noyce | Canada
World Premiere
The Middle Man Bent Hamer | Norway/Canada/Germany/Denmark
World Premiere
Official Competition (Competencia Oficial) Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat | Spain/Argentina
North American Premiere
Paris, 13th District (Les Olympiades) Jacques Audiard | France
North American Premiere
*Petite Maman Céline Sciamma | France
Canadian Premiere
*The Starling Theodore Melfi | USA
World Premiere
The Story of My Wife Ildikó Enyedi | Hungary/Germany/Italy/France
North American Premiere
Three Floors (Tre Piani) Nanni Moretti | Italy/France
North American Premiere
Violet Justine Bateman | USA
International Premiere
The Worst Person In The World (Verdens Verste Menneske) Joachim Trier | Norway/France/Sweden/Denmark
North American Premiere
UPDATE (7/28/21): Additional titles at TIFF ’21 have been announced today in Contemporary World Cinema, Special Presentations and Galas! Among those surfacing at the Festival are ONE NIGHT, premiering as a Gala, starring Keira Knightley, Annabelle Wallis and Matthew Goode. A TIFF Rewind retrospective also will be a component of the Festival in partnership with Crave and Bell.
CONTEMPORARY WORLD CINEMA
Presented by Sunlife
Are You Lonesome Tonight? Wen Shipei | China
North American Premiere
The Box (La Caja)Lorenzo Vigas | USA/Mexico
North American Premiere
Costa Brava, Lebanon (Costa Brava)Mounia Akl | Lebanon/Norway/Sweden/France/Spain/Denmark/Qatar
North American Premiere
The Daughter (La Hija) Manuel Martín Cuenca | Spain
World Premiere
The Hill Where the Lionesses Roar (Luaneshat e kodrës)Luàna Bajrami | Kosovo/France
North American Premiere
Întregalde Radu Muntean | Romania
North American Premiere
Kicking Blood Blaine Thurier | Canada
World Premiere
La Soga 2 Manny Perez | USA
World Premiere
Maria Chapdelaine Sébastien Pilote | Canada
World Premiere
Medusa Anita Rocha da Silveira | Brazil
North American Premiere
Murina Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović | Croatia/Brazil/USA/Slovenia
North American Premiere
Nobody Has to Know Bouli Lanners | France/Belgium/United Kingdom
World Premiere
The Odd-Job Men (Sis dies corrents) Neus Ballús | Spain
North American Premiere
The Other Tom (El otro Tom)Rodrigo Plá, Laura Santullo | Mexico/USA
North American Premiere
OUT OF SYNC (Tres) Juanjo Giménez | Spain
North American Premiere
Terrorizers Ho Wi Ding | Taiwan
World Premiere
Unclenching The Fists Kira Kovalenko | Russia
North American Premiere
Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash (Seperti Dendam, Rindu Harus Dibayar Tuntas) Edwin | Indonesia/Singapore/Germany
North American Premiere
The Wheel Steve Pink | USA
World Premiere
Whether the Weather is Fine (Kun Maupay Man It Panahon) Carlo Francisco Manatad | Philippines/France/Singapore/Indonesia/Germany/Qatar
North American Premiere
DISCOVERY
Presented by Dyson
Aloners Hong Sung-eun | South Korea
International Premiere
Anatolian Leopard (Anadolu Leoparı) Emre Kayış | Germany/Denmark/Turkey/Poland
World Premiere
As In Heaven (Du som er i himlen) Tea Lindeburg | Denmark
World Premiere
A Banquet Ruth Paxton | United Kingdom
World Premiere
Dug Dug Ritwik Pareek | India
World Premiere
Farha Darin J. Sallam | Jordan/Sweden/Saudi Arabia
World Premiere
The Game Ana Lazarevic | Serbia/USA
World Premiere
Learn To Swim Thyrone Tommy | Canada
World Premiere
Lo Invisible Javier Andrade | France/Ecuador
World Premiere
Paka (River of Blood)Nithin Lukose | India
World Premiere
Quickening Haya Waseem | Canada
World Premiere
Scarborough Shasha Nakhai, Rich Williamson | Canada
World Premiere
Snakehead Evan Jackson Leong | USA
International Premiere
To Kill The Beast Agustina San Martín | Argentina/Brazil/Chile
World Premiere
Tug of War (Vuta N’Kuvute)Amil Shivji | Tanzania/South/Africa/Germany/Qatar
World Premiere
Wildhood Bretten Hannam | Canada
World Premiere
GALA PRESENTATIONS
The Good House Maya Forbes, Wallace Wolodarsky | USA
World Premiere
Silent Night Camille Griffin | United Kingdom
World Premiere
The Worst Person In The World (Verdens Verste Menneske) Joachim Trier | Norway/France/Sweden/Denmark
North American Premiere
(*Previously announced as a Special Presentation)
SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS
Presented by Visa
The Falls (Pu Bu) Chung Mong-Hong | Taiwan
North American Premiere
The Humans Stephen Karam | USA
World Premiere
Inu-Oh Masaaki Yuasa | Japan/China
North American Premiere
Lingui, The Sacred Bonds (Lingui) Mahamat-Saleh Haroun | Chad/France/Germany/Belgium
North American Premiere
Mothering Sunday Eva Husson | United Kingdom
North American Premiere
The Power of the Dog Jane Campion | Australia/New Zealand
Canadian Premiere
Sundown Michel Franco | Mexico
North American Premiere
Wolf Nathalie Biancheri | United Kingdom/Ireland/Poland
World Premiere
TIFF Rewind presented by Bell
Confirmed films and guests in this program include:
Antoine Fuqua on Training Day
Director Antoine Fuqua revisits his acclaimed police thriller about a rookie cop who spends 24 hours in Los Angeles gang territory with a corrupt senior narcotics officer, which marks the 20th anniversary of its North American premiere at the Festival in 2001. The film earned Denzel Washington his first Academy Award for Best Actor after two previous nominations (and an earlier Oscar win for Best Supporting Actor).
Christopher Guest, Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara on Best in Show
Director and co-writer Christopher Guest and stars Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy revisit the making of their cult classic about the competitive world of dog shows, which made its world premiere at the Festival in 2000.
Patricia Cardoso and America Ferrera on HBO’s Real Women Have Curves
Director Patricia Cardoso and star America Ferrera discuss their breakout hit about a young Mexican American woman coming of age in Los Angeles, which was helmed by a Latina creative team and had its international premiere at the Festival in 2002.
Viggo Mortensen on Eastern Promises
Viggo Mortensen revisits his second collaboration with David Cronenberg, a crime thriller set in the nebulous, cut-throat underworld of Russian organized crime in London, which made its world premiere at the Festival in 2007 and won the People’s Choice Award.
More details to come. Visit here for more.
(Photo credit: Universal Pictures)
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