Paramount+ today announced that Academy Award® winner Morgan Freeman will join the cast of the upcoming original series LIONESS alongside series lead and executive producer Zoe Saldaña, Academy Award winner and executive producer Nicole Kidman, and Laysla De Oliveira. Freeman will play Edwin Mullins, the United States secretary of state. From Academy Award nominee Taylor Sheridan, LIONESS is produced by MTV Entertainment Studios and 101 Studios exclusively for Paramount+.

LIONESS is based on a real-life CIA program and follows Cruz Manuelos (De Oliveira), a rough-around-the-edges but passionate young Marine recruited to join the CIA’s Lioness Engagement Team to help bring down a terrorist organization from within. Saldaña will play Joe, the station chief of the Lioness program tasked with training, managing and leading her female undercover operatives.

LIONESS will also star series regulars Dave Annable, Jill Wagner, LaMonica Garrett, James Jordan, Austin Hébert, Jonah Wharton, Stephanie Nur and Hannah Love Lanier. The series is executive produced by Taylor Sheridan, David C. Glasser, Zoe Saldaña, Nicole Kidman, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, David Hutkin, Jill Wagner, Geyer Kosinski, Michael Malone and John Hillcoat.

Academy Award-winning actor Morgan Freeman ranks within the top 10 highest-grossing actors of all time, with his films having earned over $5 billion in cumulative ticket sales. In 2005 Freeman won the Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his role in “Million Dollar Baby.” Freeman also received an Academy Award nomination in 1987 for Best Supporting Actor for “Street Smart,” in 1994 for Best Actor for “The Shawshank Redemption” and in 2010 for Best Actor for “Invictus.” He also won the Golden Globe for Best Actor for his performance in “Driving Miss Daisy” in 1990. Freeman has been honored with the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, the Golden Globes’ Cecil B. DeMille Award and the AFI Lifetime Achievement Award. Freeman also received the coveted Kennedy Center Honor for his distinguished acting and was honored with the Hollywood Actor Award from the Hollywood Film Festival.

In addition to his Academy Award nomination for his role as Nelson Mandela in “Invictus,” Freeman also won the National Board of Review Award for Best Actor, received a Golden Globe nomination and a Broadcast Critics Association nomination. Freeman will next be seen in feature films “A Good Person,” “Paradise Highway” and “Muti.” Other feature films include “Vanquish,” “Coming 2 America,” “The Comeback Trail,” “The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard,” “Angel Has Fallen,” “The Poison Rose,” “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms,” “Just Getting Started,” “Going in Style,” Paramount Pictures’ “Ben-Hur,” “Now You See Me 2” “London Has Fallen,” “Ted 2,” “Last Knights,” “Lucy,” “Dolphin Tale 2,” “Transcendence,” “The Lego Movie,” “Last Vegas,” “Now You See Me,” “Oblivion,” “Olympus Has Fallen” and “The Dark Knight Rises.” Other credits include “Dolphin Tale,” “Born to be Wild 3D,” “The Dark Knight,” “The Bucket List,” “Glory,” “Clean and Sober,” “Lean on Me,” “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves,” “Unforgiven,” “Se7en,” “Kiss the Girls,” “Amistad,” “Deep Impact,” “Nurse Betty,” “The Sum of All Fears,” “Bruce Almighty,” “Coriolanus,” “Attica,” “Brubaker,” “Eyewitness,” “Death of a Prophet” and “Along Came a Spider.”

In television, he was most recently seen in his Emmy-nominated guest star role in “The Kominsky Method” and the sci-fi anthology series “Solos.” He also starred in the children’s program “The Electric Company.” Freeman has served as an executive producer on “Madam Secretary” for CBS, the true drama “The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain” and “Princess of the Row.” Freeman also hosted and produced a nonfiction series entitled “Great Escapes with Morgan Freeman.” He narrated the documentary “March of the Penguins 2: The Next Step,” for which he received an Emmy nomination, “The C-Word,” “Island of Lemurs: Madagascar,” “Stem Cell Universe with Stephen Hawking” and “We the People.” Other narrations include two Academy Award-winning documentaries, “The Long Way Home” and “The March of The Penguins.” 

On stage, Freeman won a Drama Desk Award and a Tony Nomination for his role as Zekein “The Mighty Gents.”Other stage credits include the Alfred Uhry play “Driving Miss Daisy.” In 1973 he co-founded the Frank Silvera Writers’ Workshop, now in its 37^th season, which seeks to serve successful playwrights of the new millennium. 

LIONESS is the latest addition to Sheridan’s growing slate on Paramount+, which includes 1883, MAYOR OF KINGSTOWN, TULSA KING and 1923 as well as the upcoming series BASS REEVES and LAND MAN.

(Photo credit: Nigel Parry)

Amazon Prime Video‘s star-studded new Series SOLOS is coming soon. Here’s your first look including a new Trailer.

Synopsis:

These character-driven stories contend that even during our most seemingly isolated moments, in the most disparate of circumstances, we are all connected through the human experience. Amazon Studios’ Solos is executive produced by Weil and Laura Lancaster with Pixie Wespiser serving as a producer.  Weil makes his directorial debut, helming three episodes. Sam Taylor-Johnson directs and executive produces two episodes. Additional directors include Zach Braff and Tiffany Johnson.

Trailer:

New stills:

SOLOS arrives on Amazon Prime Video May 21, 2021.

(Photo/video credit: Amazon Prime Video)

17-year-old Mackenzie Foy already has built an outstanding resume of work including starring roles in blockbusters Interstellar, The Conjuring and The Twilight Saga. She’s in Toronto for the first time ever today to promote her breakout starring role in Disney’s THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS and she even made time to meet some special young talents in celebration of the Film!

Donning her favourite colour purple, the Actress did the rounds today including CITY‘s Breakfast Television, Global‘s The Morning Show and CP24 Breakfast, Foy also stopped by at Union Station to visit an installation perfect for an Instagram-obsessed Toronto inspired by one of the Film’s four realms. We caught-up with Foy as she visited The National Ballet of Canada, meeting a group of students who will rotate the roles of Misha and Marie at the school’s holiday production of The Nutcracker.

Foy, herself an athlete learning Taekwondo, took her time chatting with the students asking for advice on dancing and stretching, kidding that the kids were the real deal when meanwhile she was just “the movie version”. She took a moment to hug the youngsters before heading-off to her next destination, making it a special moment for them.  They will be seeing the Film shortly!

Synopsis:
All Clara (Mackenzie Foy) wants is a key – a one-of-a-kind key that will unlock a box that holds a priceless gift. A golden thread, presented to her at godfather Drosselmeyer’s (Morgan Freeman) annual holiday party, leads her to the coveted key—which promptly disappears into a strange and mysterious parallel world. It’s there that Clara encounters a soldier named Phillip (Jayden Fowora-Knight), a gang of mice and the regents who preside over three Realms: Land of Snowflakes, Land of Flowers and Land of Sweets. Clara and Phillip must brave the ominous Fourth Realm, home to the tyrant Mother Ginger (Helen Mirren), to retrieve Clara’s key and hopefully return harmony to the unstable world. Starring Keira Knightley as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Disney’s new holiday feature film “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” is directed by Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston, and inspired by E.T.A. Hoffmann’s classic tale.

See the Trailer:

See some Snaps:

Don’t forget also to check-out while it lasts, THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS Instagram experience. Details here.

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada x Mr. Will want to give Readers in Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton and Ottawa and a chance to win Advance Passes to see THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS on Monday, October 29, 2018.

Synopsis:
All Clara (Mackenzie Foy) wants is a key – a one-of-a-kind key that will unlock a box that holds a priceless gift from her late mother. A golden thread, presented to her at godfather Drosselmeyer’s (Morgan Freeman) annual holiday party, leads her to the coveted key—which promptly disappears into a strange and mysterious parallel world.

It’s there that Clara encounters a soldier named Phillip (Jayden Fowora-Knight), a gang of mice and the regents who preside over three Realms: Land of Snowflakes, Land of Flowers and Land of Sweets.

Clara and Phillip must brave the ominous Fourth Realm, home to the tyrant Mother Ginger (Helen Mirren), to retrieve Clara’s key and hopefully return harmony to the unstable world.

See the Trailer:

Artwork:

To enter to win, click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK and indicate your City. Re-Tweet this Tweet from @mrwillw for an extra chance!

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada release THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS Friday, November 2, 2018.

©Disney

Don’t forget to check-out THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS installation in Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto and Calgary! More here.

(Photo/video credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada)

If you’re stoked for THE NUTRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS, here’s an amazing opportunity across Canada to experience it with a super-cool Photo Op for your Instagram!

From Monday, October 22 to Sunday, November 4, 2018, you can join-in on the fun!

VANCOUVER Waterfront Station, 601 West Cordova St.

THE LAND OF SWEETS is delicious with its gumdrop décor framed by candy cane trees. With bright, bold saturated colousrs, this realm just screams yummy—even theground is made of chocolate.

ARTIST: Tyler Towes
Tyler has worked as a professional mural artist since the year 2000 (and a street artist for longer). With his childhood friend, he co-founded a business calledCanadian Murals in 2002 and continued as a solo artist in 2011. Since its inception Canadian Murals has completed well over 100 public works of art for cities, municipalities, and businesses that are enjoyed across Canada.

Instagram: @canadianmurals Facebook: Canadianmurals CanadianMurals.com

MONTREAL St James Cathedral, 463 Saint-Catherine St. W

THE LAND OF SNOWFLAKES is a stunning winter wonderland with ice castles and alpine villages set against a white-peaked mountain backdrop.

ARTIST: Monk-E

French-Canadian born in the province of Quebec, Monk-e is a self-thought visionary urban artist, multilingual poet and globe-trotter. Rooted in the world of graffitiand contemporary urban art since 1996, he renamed his art form under the term Calligraffiti Alchimographic.

CALGARY Chinook Centre, 6455 Macleod Trail

THE LAND OF FLOWERS is both fragrant and colourful with flowers that explode to life.

ARTIST: Curtis Van Charles

Curtis Van Charles is best known for his paintings of animals playfully jumping above the horizon such as his piece ‘Grizzlies in the Foothills.’ Throughhis work, Van Charles narrates an authentic adventure through the wilderness near his home in the Canadian Rockies where he finds inspiration for his large-scale mixed media artworks.

Instagram : @vancharlesart Facebook: @curtisvancharles

TORONTO Union Station, York Concourse

THE FOURTH REALM is a dark and ominous island suffering deep battle scars, with spooky forests carpeted with a velvety red colour inspired by traditional toadstools.

ARTIST: Bruno Smoky

The artist Bruno, also known as “Smoky” has dedicated his life to visual art. Since his childhood, drawing and creativity was always part of his daily routine.In 2004, he began painting on walls with spray paint in Brasilandia where he grew up, a precarious neighbourhood of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Smoky has gained international and professional recognition through his artistic journeys throughout Brazil, Chile, the DominicanRepublic, Venezuela, Argentina, Canada, Paraguay, Sweden, England, the Netherlands, Germany and the USA.

Facebook: @Brunosmoky Instagram @brunosmoky Twitter: @brunosmoky

Synopsis:

All Clara (Mackenzie Foy) wants is a key – a one-of-a-kind key that will unlock a box that holds a priceless gift. A golden thread, presented to herat godfather Drosselmeyer’s (Morgan Freeman) annual holiday party, leads her to the coveted key—which promptly disappears into a strange and mysterious parallel world. It’s there that Clara encounters a soldier named Phillip (Jayden Fowora-Knight), a gangof mice and the regents who preside over three Realms: Land of Snowflakes, Land of Flowers and Land of Sweets. Clara and Phillip must brave the ominous Fourth Realm, home to the tyrant Mother Ginger (Helen Mirren), to retrieve Clara’s key and hopefully return harmony to the unstable world. Starring Keira Knightley as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Disney’s new holiday feature film “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” is directed by Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston, and inspired by E.T.A. Hoffmann’s classic tale.

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada release THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS Friday, November 2, 2018.

(Photo/video credit: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Canada)

Mongrel Media + Mr. Will want you to win on Blu-ray a copy of TIFF ’14 Selection, 5 FLIGHTS UP starring Academy Award Winners Morgan Freeman + Diane Keaton!

Official Synopsis:
Over one crazy weekend, long-time married couple Ruth (Diane Keaton) and Alex (Morgan Freeman) discover that selling their Brooklyn apartment isn’t about winding down, but starting a new adventure.

After living in their apartment for 40 years, Ruth and Alex have a hard time imagining living anywhere else. The retired couple let Ruth’s niece list their property to see how well it would do in the market now that their neighborhood is hip and trendy. The pair realize their bond is the most important thing and will guide them through the chaotic adventure.

See the Trailer:

Artwork:

To enter to win, simply click “like” on this Post at Mr. Will on Facebook!

Mongrel Media release 5 FLIGHTS UP on Tuesday, July 21, 2015 on Blu-ray and Digital.

(Photo/video credit: Mongrel Media)

It absolutely is our favourite time of the year again and announced this morning is the official list of Talent coming to Toronto for TIFF ’14! We look forward to seeing plenty of returning names – some just here last year like the likes of Jennifer Aniston and Kate Winslet – and also plenty of Stars from years past making their way back here once more!

Among the names attending TIFF ’14 this year include:

Jon Stewart, Martin Scorcese, Richard Gere, Andrew Garfield, Viggo Mortensen, Gael Garcia Bernal, James Franco, Jane Fonda, Chloë Moretz, Brit Marling, Laura Dern, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Vanessa Redgrave, Vera Farmiga, Al Pacino, Tina Fey, Haley Joel Osment, Robert Pattinson, Ansel Elgort, Alice Eve, Sam Rockwell, Amanda Seyfried, Michael Shannon, Dax Sheppard, Robert Duvall, Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Hailee Steinfield, Justin Chatwin, Method Man, Jennifer Connelly, Bobby Cannavale, Kuoth Wiel, Cassie Williams, Danny Webb, Dominic West, Jung Woo-Sung, John Boylan, Sam Worthington, Tye Sheridan, Andrew Scott, Timothy Spall, Alan Rickman, Connie Britton, Reese Witherspoon, Evan Bird, Zhao Wei, Han Ye-Ri, Melissa Benoist, Haley Bennett, Sonja Bennett, John Travolta, Julianne Moore, Isaach De Bankolé, Dan Stevens, Jason Bateman, Corey Stoll, Xavier Dolan, Peter Stormare, Ben Schnetzer, Abigail Spencer, Ellen Barkin, Bill Pullman, Charlotte Aubin, Kate Winslet, Ryan Reynolds, Rene Russo, Roger Waters, Simon Pegg, Rosamund Pike, Loreto Aravena, Tobey Maguire, Aubrey Plaza, Tobey Maguire, Gemma Arterton,  Juliette Binoche, Zhang Yimou, Rosemarie DeWitt, Kristen Wiig, Adam Sandler, Rose Byrne, Channing Tatum, Chris Evans, Jake Gyllenhaal, Dustin Hoffman, Mark Ruffalo, Bill Murray, Daniel Barber, Liam Aiken, Mike Leigh, Olivier Assayas, Richard LaGravenese, Diane Keaton, Kevin Kline, Anna Kendrick, Morgan Freeman, Benicio del Toro, Michael Douglas, Rosario Dawson, Chris Rock, John Cusack, Benedict Cumberbatch, Octavia Spencer, Keira Knightley, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Kevin Costner, Anthony Mackie, Patricia Clarkson, J.K. Simmons, Miles Teller, Priyanka Chopra, Daniel Bruhl, Michael Winterbottom, Justin Chon, Steve Carell, Gong Li, Hayden Christensen, Tory Kittles, Jordana Brewster, Holliday Grainger, Max Irons, Lone Scherfig, Sam Claflin, Douglas Booth, Paul Bettany, Daniel Barnz, Noah Baumbach, Barry Avrich, Jennifer Aniston, Akon, Nick Kroll, Holly Hunter, Catherine Keener, Greta Gerwig, Omar Sy Jennifer Garner, Salma Hayek, Kevin Smith, Eddie Redmayne,  Felicity Jones, Faye Marsay, Bill Nighy, Justin Long, Christopher Plummer, Marton Csokas, David Cronenberg, Sarah Gadon, Tom Schilling, Tom Hardy and more!

TIFF also will be hosting a series of In-Conversations-With as part of their Mavericks Programme. Joining-in are the likes of Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, Denzel Washington, Richard Gere, Juliette Binoche, Jon Stewart, Dan Savage, Julie Taymor and several more!

As is the case always, it’s sometimes not just who’s coming – it’s who they’re bringing.  Don’t be surprised if Jennifer Garner brings Husband Ben Affleck along and be warned if Andrew Garfield brings Emma Stone along!

Who’s on our list of Must-Meets?  Plenty!  We hope finally to get a positive moment with Reese Witherspoon and Kate Winslet!  Excited about Martin Scorcese, J.K. Simmons, Bobby Cannavale, Miles Teller, Corey Stoll, Tobey Maguire, Rose Byrne, Michael Douglas and newer names like Max Irons and Douglas Booth, that’s for sure.  And did we read TINA FEY!?!?  Finally!  AND WHERE IS TOM HARDY?!?!

The list is always subject to surprise and no-shows as we know all too well!

Visit the official TIFF Website for more.

TIFF ’14 runs September 3 – 14, 2014.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)

When the Trailer first surfaced for LUCY earlier this year, I’m sure many of us can agree that we absolutely had to see it right away. Starring Megastar Scarlett Johansson and directed by acclaimed Filmmaker Luc Besson, the Film soon will be hitting theatres and we expect Box Office Madness!

Official Synopsis:

From La Femme Nikita and The Professional to The Fifth Element, Writer/Director Luc Besson has created some of the toughest, most memorable Female Action Heroes in cinematic history. Now, Besson directs Scarlett Johansson in LUCY, an Action-Thriller that tracks a Woman accidentally caught in a dark deal who turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic.

LUCY also stars Academy Award® Winner Morgan Freeman.

Mr. Will and Universal Pictures Canada want to take Readers across Canada to an Advance Screening on #LUCYMOVIE! Screenings are available in Toronto, Montreal,Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa and Winnipeg on Wednesday, July 23, 2014.

Details are as follows:

Toronto – SilverCity Yonge & Eglinton

Montreal – Cineplex Forum

Vancouver – Cineplex International Village

Calgary – Landmark Shawnessy

Edmonton – Scotiabank West Edmonton Mall

Ottawa – Coliseum

Winnipeg – Landmark Grant Park

To enter to win, simply click “like” on this Post at Mr. Will Wong on Facebook.  There on this Post, tell me who your favourite female Action Hero is! Share this Post with your Friends on Facebook or Re-Tweet the below to increase your odds of winning!

http://www.mrwillwong.com/lucymovie @MRWILLW wants us to #win passes across Canada to see #LUCYMOVIE. In theatres 7/25!

Good luck, Wongsters!

Watch the official Canadian Trailer:

Official Canadian Artwork:

Universal Pictures Canada release LUCY on Friday, July 25, 2014.

(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures Canada)

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and Mr. Will want to give Readers across North America a chance to win THE LEGO® MOVIE on DVD/Blu-Ray Combo Pack!  We saw the Film back in February and it holds a special place in our heart and now we want you to experiencing how after seeing it, EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!!!!  Read our Review here.

Official Synopsis:

The LEGO® Movie, the first-ever, full-length theatrical LEGO® adventure, directed by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller is an original 3D computer animated story that follows Emmet, an ordinary, rules-following, perfectly average LEGO® minifigure who is mistakenly identified as the most extraordinary person and the key to saving the world. He is drafted into a fellowship of strangers on an epic quest to stop an evil tyrant, a journey for which Emmet is hopelessly and hilariously underprepared.

Chris Pratt (Moneyball) stars as the voice of Emmet. Will Ferrell (The Campaign) stars as the voice of his primary adversary, President Business, an erudite, anal-retentive CEO who has a hard time balancing world domination with micro-managing his own life; while Liam Neeson (Taken) voices the president’s powerful henchman, known as Bad Cop, who will stop at nothing to catch Emmet.

Starring as Emmet’s fellow travelers are Oscar® winner Morgan Freeman (Million Dollar Baby), as Vitruvius, an old mystic; Elizabeth Banks (The Hunger Games, Emmy nominee for 30 Rock), as tough-as-nails Lucy, who mistakes Emmet for the savior of the world and guides him on his quest; Will Arnett (Emmy nominee, 30 Rock), as the mysterious Batman, a LEGO® minifigure with whom Lucy shares a history; Nick Offerman (NBC‘s Parks and Recreation) as a craggy, swaggering pirate, obsessed with revenge on President Business; and Alison Brie (Community) as a sweet, loveable member of the team, with a powerful secret.

In addition to entering to win a copy of it, you must check-out this crazy awesome THE LEGO® MOVIE App where you can make and record your own 6-second character clip and share it with your friends on Facebook!  You even can add music!

Check it out below:

After checking-out the App, you can head over to Mr. Will Wong on Facebook and enter by clicking “like” on this Post. You are encouraged to share it with Friends on Facebook and Twitter.  In the comments section also tell us who your favourite LEGO® Character is from the Movie! Increase your odds of winning by Re-Tweeting the below:

http://www.mrwillwong.com/thelegomovie-2 @MRWILLW wants us to #win copies of #THELEGOMOVIE on DVD/Blu-Ray Combo Pack!  Now in stores!

Good luck, Wongsters!  Once again, we have the most exciting Giveaways just for you!

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment release THE LEGO® MOVIE on DVD/Blu-ray Combo Pack, available now!

(Photo/video credit: Warner Bros.)

How sweet is this?  After making a big splash in 2011, DOLPHIN TALE 2 soon will hit theatres this Summer.  Starring Ashley Judd, Harry Connick Jr., Morgan Freeman, Mae Whitman and Kris Kristofferson, the heartwarming Sequel follows the Story of a Boy and his efforts to save a Dolphin.  Aww!

Official Synopsis:
It has been several years since young Sawyer Nelson (Gamble) and the dedicated Team at the Clearwater Marine Hospital, headed by Dr. Clay Haskett (Connick, Jr.), rescued Winter. With the help of Dr. Cameron McCarthy (Freeman), who developed a unique prosthetic tail for the injured Dolphin, they were able to save her life. Yet their fight is not over. Winter’s Surrogate Mother, the very elderly dolphin Panama, has passed away, leaving Winter without the only Poolmate she has ever known. However, the loss of Panama may have even greater repercussions for Winter, who, according to USDA regulations, cannot be housed alone, as Dolphins’ social behaviour requires them to be paired with other Dolphins. Time is running out to find a companion for her before the team at Clearwater loses their beloved Winter to another Aquarium.

See the Trailer here!

Warner Bros. releases DOLPHIN TALE 2 on Friday, September 19, 2014.

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