HBO has ordered to series the half-hour comedy The Franchise, featuring the 45-year-old Spanish-German actor.
From Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes,Armando Iannucci and writer Jon Brown, the series takes a wry look at superhero movie-making.
Work on the pilot was completed before the SAG-AFTRA strike began, and production on the series won’t begin until the strikes have concluded.
Himesh Patel and Aya Cash have joined as series regulars on the comedy, which revolves around the crew of an unloved franchise movie who fight for their place in a savage and unruly cinematic universe.
The Franchise shines a light on the secret chaos inside the world of superhero moviemaking to ask the question: How exactly does the cinematic sausage get made? Because every f*ckup has an origin story.
Patel and Cash are featured in the pilot, but their roles never were announced.
In addition to Brühl in a recurring role, the previously announced cast includes series regulars Jessica Hynes, Billy Magnussen, Lolly Adefope, Darren Goldstein, and Isaac Powell.
“With a deft touch only he can bring, Sam has brilliantly captured the romance and the reality of filmmaking today, said Amy Gravitt, EVP, HBO Programming, Head of HBO & Max Comedy. “Jon is superb at sending up worlds we think we already know. Together, with Armando, they have delivered a truly hilarious comedy ensemble. I can’t wait to see more.”
The series comes from the mind of Mendes and marks his first U.S. TV directorial project. He won a Best Director Oscar for American Beauty and earned three Academy Award nominations for 1917, for Best Picture, Director and Original Screenplay.
Patel stars as Daniel, Cash as Anita, Hynes as Steph, Magnussen as Adam, Adefope as Dag, Goldstein as Pat and Powell as Bryson. Brühl recurs as Eric.
The pilot was directed by Mendes and written by Jon Brown, who serves as showrunner.
It’s a special first (lady) for Leslie RodriguezKritzer.
The 43-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress has been cast in Showtime’s upcoming anthology series The First Lady.
Rodriguez Kritzer will star opposite Aya Cash, Jake Picking , Cayden Boyd, Marc Hills, Ben Cook, Thomas E. Sullivan (Roswell, New Mexico) and Patrice Johnson Chevannes in the series, joining previously announced stars Viola Davis, Michelle Pfeiffer and Gillian Anderson.
The First Lady, created by Aaron Cooley and produced by Lionsgate Television and Showtime, is a revelatory reframing of American leadership, told through the lens of the women at the heart of the White House. Season 1 focuses on Eleanor Roosevelt (Anderson), Betty Ford (Pfeiffer) and Michelle Obama (Davis).
Previously announced cast also includes Lexi Underwood as Malia Obama, O-T Fagbenle as Barack Obama and Derek Cecil as Donald Rumsfeld.
Kritzer will play Martha Graham, an American modern dancer and choreographer whose technique reshaped American dance. Graham instructed Betty as a young and hopeful dancer living in New York City in 1939.
The 36-year-old half-Puerto Rican actor has landed a recurring role in Fox’s This Country,Jenny Bicks’ and Paul Feig’s remake of the BBC comedy.
In the half-hour series, a documentary crew goes to a small town to study young adults and their current concerns. Their focus is the daily lives of cousins Kelly (Chelsea Holmes) and Shrub Mallet (Sam Straley) and their idiosyncratic surroundings.
Seann William Scott, Aya Cash, Taylor Ortega, YouTuber Krystal Smith and Justin Linville also star.
Borges will play Jimmy Jameson, the rival editor to Cheryl (Cash) in the town next to Flatch. Borges will join the series, currently filming in North Carolina, beginning in Episode 2. Feig is directing the series’ first three episodes.
This Country is based on the eponymous BBC Three series, which ran on the British public broadcaster’s youth-skewing network for three seasons from 2017-20. The BAFTA-winning series, which was written by and starred Daisy May Cooper and Charlie Cooper, was set in the Cotswolds in rural England.
The role reunites Borges with Cash, his former You’re the Worst co-star. Borges portrayed Edgar Quintero on five seasons of the FX comedy-drama. He also stars as Dan on the Netflix limited series Living with Yourself opposite Paul Rudd, as well as in films like Private Life, alongside Paul Giamatti, Kathryn Hahn, Molly Shannon, John Carroll Lynch and Denis O’Hare. Borges most recently can be seen as Wilson Wilson in Amazon’s Utopia, co-starring John Cusack and Rainn Wilson.
This Country is produced by Lionsgate, BBC Studios, Fox Entertainment and Feigco Entertainment.
The 46-year-old Afro-Cuban American actor and his The Boys cast mates will take part in Amazon Prime Video’s first-ever Amazon Virtual-Con, which will include virtual experiences and activations that you can enjoy from the comfort of your home. The Amazon Virtual-Con is part of Comic-Con@Home.
The virtual event will kick off on the San Diego Comic Con’s official YouTube channel and on the Amazon Virtual-Con portal starting at 12:00 pm PST on Thursday, July 23.
Alonso’s The Boys panel, moderated by Aisha Tyler, will take place onThursday, July 23at 3:00 pm PST, with participation by executive producer Eric Kripke, along with series stars Alonso, Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Jessie T. Usher, Chace Crawford, Tomer Capon, Karen Fukuhara and Aya Cash.
The virtual panel will offer a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming second season of The Boys. Executive producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg will also make a special appearance.
Based on The New York Times best-selling comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, The Boysis a fun and irreverent take on what happens when superheroes – who are as popular as celebrities – abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good. The even more intense, more insane Season Two finds The Boys on the run from the law, hunted by the Supes, and desperately trying to regroup and fight back against Vought.
Other Amazon series joining this year’s virtual edition Comic-Con include Upload, Truth Seekers and Utopia. Like every Comic-Con, the panels will include cast, creators and crew of the series and will feature fan Q&As, behind-the-scene-stories, breaking news from the aforementioned series.
Virtual-Con will be available free of charge to all fans in front of the Prime Video paywall from July 23-26.
Here are the full details for the panels and Amazon Virtual-Con:
Truth Seekers Thursday, July 23 at 12:00 p.m. PST A new original supernatural horror-comedy by Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead), Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz), James Serafinowicz (Sick Note) and Nat Saunders (Sick Note). Join as they discuss the making of the hilarious eight-episode series about a team of part-time paranormal investigators, who team up to uncover and film ghost sightings across the UK, sharing their adventures on an online channel for all to see. Discussion and Q&A moderated by Empire Magazine’s Chris Hewitt.
Utopia Thursday, July 23 at 1:00 p.m. PST A twisted, eight-episode thriller about a group of young comic fans who discover the conspiracy in a graphic novel is real, and embark on a high-stakes adventure to save humanity from the end of the world. Join writer and executive producer Gillian Flynn (Gone Girl) and series stars John Cusack (High Fidelity), Rainn Wilson (The Office), Sasha Lane (American Honey), Ashleigh LaThrop (Fifty Shades Freed), Dan Byrd (Cougar Town), Desmin Borges (You’re The Worst), Javon “Wanna” Walton (Euphoria), and Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day) for a Q&A moderated by Entertainment Weekly’s Christian Holub.
Upload Thursday, July 23 at 2:00 p.m. PST Join creator, executive producer and director Greg Daniels (The Office, Parks and Recreation) and stars Robbie Amell (Code 8), Andy Allo (Pitch Perfect 3), Kevin Bigley (Undone), Allegra Edwards (New Girl), and Zainab Johnson (American Koko) as they discuss how they brought this futuristic comedy to life, share behind-the-scenes details from Season One, and tease what fans can expect in Season Two. The panel will be moderated by Engadget’s Cherlynn Low. Upload Season One is a ten-episode, half-hour, sci-fi comedy that takes place in the near future, where people can be “Uploaded” into a virtual afterlife of their choice.
The Boys Thursday, July 23 at 3:00 p.m. PST Join executive producer Eric Kripke, along with series stars Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Jessie T. Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Tomer Capon, Karen Fukuhara and Aya Cash, with moderator Aisha Tyler, for a behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming second season of The Boys. Executive producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg will also make a special appearance. Based on The New York Times best-selling comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, The Boysis a fun and irreverent take on what happens when superheroes – who are as popular as celebrities – abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good. The even more intense, more insane Season Two finds The Boys on the run from the law, hunted by the Supes, and desperately trying to regroup and fight back against Vought.
AMAZON VIRTUAL-CON PROGRAMMING
ComiXology’s Comic-Con@Home Panel, Plus Live Artist Drawing Sessions, Creator Interview Series, and Comic Book Movie Trivia NightSaturday, July 25 at 3:00pm PST (Comic-Con@Home panel) Are you currently reading digital comics? Are you familiar with comiXology’s exclusive digital content program – comiXology Originals? Join comiXology’s Head of Content, Chip Mosher and a cast of beloved comic creators and rising-stars including, writer Chip Zdarsky and artist Jason Loo (Afterlift), artist Claudia Aguirre (Lost on Planet Earth), writer Curt Pires (YOUTH), along with some surprise guests, to get the scoop on the latest comiXology Originals series direct from the creators making them! They’ll intrigue you with behind-the-scenes stories about the process of bringing comics from concept to the page and what it’s like pushing the envelope with digital comics, and beyond.
For the superfan seeking even more comic book content, comiXology’s own Kiwi will host live drawing sessions on comiXology’s Twitch channel with some of the industry’s most renowned illustrators, including GLAAD Media Award-winning illustrator Tula Lotay and three-time New York Times best-selling British artist Jock. In addition to drawing sessions, Kiwi will also host an interview series with creators from comiXology’s Originals line of exclusive digital content, including Curt Pires & Dee Cunniffe (YOUTH) and the creators behind two yet to be announced original graphic novels. And if all that isn’t enough, comiXology and Eisner Award winner Chip Zdarsky will host Comic Book Movie Trivia Night on Friday, July 24 at 5:00p.m. PST on their Twitch channel.
For the schedule of live drawing sessions and creator interviews, please continue to check amazon.com/virtualcon for updates.
Amazon Prime Video’s superhero satire The Boys, starring the 46-year-old Afro-Cuban American actor, will premiere the first three episodes of its second season on Friday, September 4.
New episodes will then be made available each Friday until the season finale on October 9.
Season 2 will be “crazier, stranger, more intense, more emotional,” according to the show’s creator and executive producer Eric Kripke, who joked that “the Surgeon General has insisted we air the first three episodes on September 4, then air the remaining five episodes weekly after that. We wanted to give you time to freak out, digest, discuss, come down from the high, before we give you another dose. We only have your wellbeing in mind. Hope you love the season as much as we do.”
The new season will find The Boyson the run from the law, hunted by the Supes, and trying to regroup and fight back against Vought.
In hiding, Hughie (Jack Quaid), Mother’s Milk (Alonso), Frenchie (Tomer Capon) and Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara) try to adjust to a new normal, with Butcher (Karl Urban) nowhere to be found.
Meanwhile, Starlight (Erin Moriarty) must navigate her place in The Seven as Homelander (Antony Starr) sets his sights on taking complete control. His power is threatened with the addition of Stormfront (Aya Cash), a social media-savvy new Supe, who has an agenda of her own. On top of that, the Supervillain threat takes center stage and makes waves as Vought seeks to capitalize on the nation’s paranoia.
The Supes of The Seven also include Queen Maeve (Dominique McElligott), A-Train (Jessie T. Usher), The Deep (Chace Crawford) and Black Noir (Nathan Mitchell).
Recurring stars in the upcoming season include Claudia Doumit, Goran Visnijc, Malcolm Barrett, Colby Minifie, Shantel VanSanten, Cameron Crovetti, PJ Byrne, Laila Robbins and Giancarlo Esposito returning as Vought boss Stan Edgar, among others.
The eight-episode Amazon Original series will be available on Prime Video in more than 200 territories around the world, and is produced by Amazon Studios and Sony Pictures Television Studios with Point Grey Pictures, Kripke Enterprises and Original Film.
The 43-year-old Mexican musical theatre and television actress has been cast in FX’s high-profile eight-episode limited drama series Fosse/Verdon, starring Oscar winner Sam Rockwell and Oscar nominee Michelle Williams in the title roles.
Written by Sam Wasson and based on his Fosse bio, the limited series tells the story of the singular romantic and creative partnership between Bob Fosse (Rockwell) and Gwen Verdon (Williams). He was a visionary filmmaker and one of theater’s most influential choreographers and directors. She was the greatest Broadway dancer of all time. Together they changed the face of American entertainment – at a perilous cost. Featuring Fosse’s choreography, the series explores the hidden corners of show business, the price of pursuing greatness, and the suffering inflicted in the name of art.
Marroquin will portray the legendary Chita Rivera in the series, which will also star Norbert Leo Butz, Margaret Qualley, Evan Handler, Aya Cash, Nate Corddry, Susan Misner, Kelli Barrett, Rick Holmes, Paul Reiser, Ethan Slater, Byron Jennings and Laura Osnes.
Originally from Mexico, Marroquin made her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in Chicago in 2002 and has since appeared on Broadway inThe Pajama GameandIn the Heights. On television in Miami and Mexico City, she can be seen as a judge in Pequeños Gigantes and Mira Quien Baila, among others.
The project hails from award-winning producers Thomas Kail, Steven Levenson, Lin Manuel-Miranda and Joel Fields, FX Television Studios and FX Productions.
Production on the series is currently underway in New York City ahead of its spring 2019 premiere on FX.
From Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes, Armando Iannucci and writer Jon Brown, the series takes a wry look at superhero movie-making.
