Fred Armisen to Appear on Netflix’s New Scripted Comedy “Unstable”

Posted on June 15, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Fred Armisen has landed an unstable project…

The 55-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor/comedian/musician will star in Netflix’s new scripted comedy Unstable.

Armisen will appear on the comedy in a recurring role. He joins a roster of cast members that includes Sian Clifford, Rachel Marsh, Emma Ferreira and Aaron Branch as series regulars, as well as Tom Allen and JT Parr as recurring actors.

Clifford will play Anna, the Chief Financial Officer of the company run by Ellis (Rob Lowe), who has been with him since its founding. Strong, smart, opinionated, and one hundred percent loyal to her boss, Anna is one of the only people in Ellis’s life who can go toe-to-toe with him.

Marsh will play Luna, a genius biotech engineer who works in the lab with her friend and research partner Ruby (Ferreira). Shy and awkward, Luna is happy to let her more outgoing partner do the talking for the two of them.

Ferreira will play Ruby, also a biotech genius (let’s just stipulate everyone who works here is a friggin’ genius). Ruby is outgoing, friendly, and accessible … the opposite of Luna.

Branch will play Malcolm, longtime friend of Jackson (John Owen Lowe). He’s the project manager for the game-changing venture the company has been working on. An extrovert who is actually insecure since he’s a non-scientist in a world of scientific geniuses.

Armisen will play Leslie, Ellis’s board-appointed therapist who is desperate to be liked.

Allen and Parr will respectively play TJ and Chaz, not very bright brothers who only have each other and are adversaries to Ellis. They got their board position because their rich father helped fund Ellis’s company.

Unstable follows an introverted son (John Owen Lowe) who goes to work for his very successful, wildly eccentric father (Rob Lowe) in order to save him and his successful biotech company from disaster. It is inspired by Rob and John Owen Lowe’s social media relationship, in which John Owen often humorously trolls his dad.

The series is co-created and executive produced by both Lowes and Victor Fresco. Marc Buckland is an executive producer.

IFC Films & AMC+ Acquire North American Rights to Aubrey Plaza’s “Spin Me Round”

Posted on April 23, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Aubrey Plaza will be spinning into theaters this summer…

IFC Films and AMC+ have acquired the North American rights to Jeff Baena’s Spin Me Round, starring the 37-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress/comedian.

The film, which made its world premiere at SXSW last month, will open in theaters and VOD and stream exclusively on AMC+ this summer.

Spin Me Round represents filmmaker Baena’s reteam with Alison Brie, Plaza and Molly Shannon, who star in the film.

Brie co-wrote and produced Spin Me Round, in which she plays the manager of an Italian restaurant chain who wins the opportunity to attend the franchise’s educational immersion program in Italy. What she thought would be a romantic getaway devolves into chaos and catastrophe.

Baena and Brie previously teamed on Horse Girl, she starred in and co-wrote with Baena, who also directed. Brie also appeared in Baena’s The Little Hours and Joshy. Plaza has starred in Baena’s The Little Hours, Joshy and Life After Beth. Shannon starred in Baena’s Little Hours, Horse Girl and Life After Beth.

Spin Me Round also marks the third IFC Films feature with Brie, who most recently starred in The Rental, the Dave Franco-directed thriller that was a hit at drive-ins nationwide and on VOD in the summer of 2020, when a majority of theaters were closed down due to COVID-19; that pic grossed $1.6M.

Rounding out the cast is Alessandro Nivola, Zach Woods, Ayden Mayeri, Ben Sinclair, Tim Heidecker, Debby Ryan and Fred Armisen.

Spin Me Round is a Duplass Brothers and Limelight Production. Limelight’s Chris Parker and Dylan Sellers produced and fully funded Spin Me Round.

“We have long admired Jeff Baena’s films and are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with him and his incredible filmmaking team on this fun and hilarious ride,” said Arianna Bocco, President of IFC Film. “Jeff, Alison and the Duplass Brothers are true creative geniuses and icons of independent cinema, and we can’t wait for audiences to experience this all-star cast over the summer.”

Baena added: “I was really impressed with Arianna and her team’s passion, thoughtfulness and innovation coupled with their track record of ushering in so many incredible independent films. I’m so grateful to have an opportunity to finally partner with IFC Films and share Spin Me Round with the world.”

Courtney Thomasma, General Manager of AMC+, said: “Spin Me Round is the perfect summer fare for our subscribers, who continue to come to AMC+ as a premium destination for compelling new feature films with their favorite stars. We are huge fans of Alison Brie, who our audience knows well from the iconic Mad Men, and we’re excited to be working with her, Jeff Baena and the entire producing team on this delightful new movie.”

First Trailer Released for Judd Apatow’s Lockdown Comedy “The Bubble,” Starring Pedro Pascal

Posted on March 6, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Pedro Pascal’s latest project is bubbling up…

The first trailer has been released for Judd Apatow’s lockdown comedy The Bubble, starring a stacked cast that includes the 46-year-old Chilean actor.

The film looks at the high stakes and high jinks involved in filming a studio tentpole film during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The scenario unfolds somewhere in England during the dark days of October 2020 as a group of actors is quarantining at a posh hotel while shooting Cliff Beasts 6, the latest in an action franchise about people battling dinosaurs. And it’s no walk in the Jurassic Park.

“Thank you for wearing proper PPE,” the ensemble is told. “Physical touch is, of course, off the table, so I would recommend making sweet eyes at each other.”

But there’s an incentive to keep the cameras rolling: “We are one of two movies in production right now — if we fail, the studio’s going to go down.”

So the show goes on, and we get the lighter side of greenscreen acting.

Karen Gillan, Iris Apatow, Fred Armisen, Maria Bakalova, David Duchovny, Keegan-Michael Key, Leslie Mann, Kate McKinnon and Peter Serafinowicz also star in the Apatow-directed film.

Apatow wrote the script with Pam Brady.

The film-within-a-film will hit Netflix in the spring.

Fred Armisen Stars in Official Video for George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord”

Posted on December 16, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Fred Armisen has a sweet new project…

It only took 50 years, but George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” finally has its first official video, with a special appearance by the 55-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor/comedian/musician.

In the star-packed effort directed by Lance Bangs and executive produced by Harrison’s son Dhani Harrison with David Zonshine, the new “My Sweet Lord” video stars Armisen and Vanessa Bayer as “metaphysical special agents” searching for something that can’t be seen. Sending them on the mission: Star Wars’ Mark Hamill himself.

With seemingly most of Hollywood and New York celebrities showing up for cameos, the video includes appearances by Darren Criss, Jon Hamm, Rosanna Arquette, Joe Walsh, “Weird Al” Yankovic, Reggie Watts, Moshe Kasher, Natasha Leggero, Patton Oswalt, Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, Garfunkel and Oates (Kate Micucci and Riki Lindhome), Taika Waititi, Shepard Fairey, Aimee Mullins, Rupert Friend and Harrison’s wife Olivia Harrison and their son Dhani.

Harrison’s former bandmates Ringo Starr and Jeff Lynne also appear

“Making this was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life,” said director Bangs in a statement. “The approach was to represent the song visually while these agents and inspectors kept missing the metaphysical wonder around them. Images are choreographed to the sounds of vocal melodies, guitar strums, drum patterns, chord changes.

“George threaded a sense of humor through all of his videos, so we kept that spirit and filled the cast with friends and admirers of his music, many coming from the current comedy landscape. I tracked down vintage prime lenses from some of the films George’s HandMade Films had produced, and I hope that viewers can feel a sense of wonder and searching while they watch it, and that the song continues to add to all of our lives.”

The video for “My Sweet Lord” features the new 2020 mix of the song mixed by engineer Paul Hicks released August 6 for the 50th anniversary editions of Harrison’s All Things Must Pass.

Anya Taylor-Joy Among Cast for Illumination’s ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Animated Film

Posted on September 24, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Anya Taylor-Joy is preparing for her next royal excursion…

Illumination and Nintendo have announced the powerhouse voice cast for their upcoming Super Mario Bros. animated film, which includes the 25-year-old Argentine American actress.

Taylor-Joy, who earned an Emmy nomination for her performance in Queen’s Gambit, will star as Princess Peach in the film, which will hit cinemas on December 21, 2022.

Playing the fraternal, mushroom digesting plumbers and squashers of turtles are Chris Pratt as Mario and Charlie Day as Luigi.

Playing bad guy Bowser is Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong, Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong, Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek, and stand-up comedian Sebastian Maniscalco as Spike.

“Each voice actor was cast for their ability to capture the unique spirit of their character,” reads the release.

The co-financed feature between Universal and Nintendo will be directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, who previously collaborated on the animated series Teen Titans Go! and the film Teen Titans Go! To the Movies.

The film’s screenplay will be written by Matthew Fogel, whose credits include The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part and the upcoming Illumination feature Minions: The Rise of Gru.

Future offshore release dates will be announced.

“Mario and Luigi are two of the most beloved heroes in all of popular culture, and we are honored to have the unique opportunity to work so closely with Shigeru Miyamoto and the widely imaginative team at Nintendo to bring these characters to life in an animated movie, unlike any film Illumination has made to date,” said Chris Meledandri who is also an outside director of Nintendo.

“We are collaborating with Chris and his experienced team to not just create a character licensed film, but a new piece of entertainment which brings Super Mario Bros. to life on the screen, and allows everyone to enjoy whether or not they know about the game. The production so far is constructive and going very well, and both parties are learning a lot from each other. We humbly ask that fans wait just a little longer for the premiere, and we hope they look forward to seeing the unique characters from Super Mario Bros. on the big screen,” said Miyamoto.

Super Mario Bros. is a huge franchise play for Universal and Illumination. Already, there’s a Super Mario Bros. land open at the Universal Japan theme park with others under construction at Universal Hollywood and Universal Orlando.

The movie has been a long awaited revival for fans. There was a live action movie in 1993 starring Bob Hoskins as Mario and John Leguizamo as Luigi and Dennis Hopper as baddie King Koopa. There was also in the late 1980s The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! animated series which starred Captain Lou Albano as the voice of Mario and Danny Wells as the voice of Luigi.

Mario Brothers was designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and Gunpei Yokoi, Nintendo’s chief engineer in 1983. Super Mario Bros. the subseries, was launched in 1985. It is the best-selling video game franchise of all time, with more than 758.06 million copies of games sold, including 388.92 million for the Super Mario games alone.

Fred Armisen to Appear on HBO Max’s Pirate Comedy “Our Flag Means Death”

Posted on August 18, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Fred Armisen is raising some flags…

The 54-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor has joined the cast of HBO Max’s pirate comedy Our Flag Means Death, joining stars Rhys Darby and Taika Waititi.

The series hails from writer David Jenkins, Garrett Basch and Dan Halsted.

Created by Jenkins, who also serves as showrunner, Our Flag Means Death is based loosely on the true adventures of Stede Bonnet (Darby), a pampered aristocrat who abandoned his life of privilege to become a pirate.

Armisen joins the cast in a recurring role. Details about his character have not been revealed.

The ensemble cast also includes Ewen Bremner, David Fane, Nat Faxon, Nathan Foad, Joel Fry, Leslie Jones, Samson Kayo, Guz Khan, Rory Kinnear, Matt Maher, Kristian Nairn, Con O’Neill and Vico Ortiz.

Our Flag Means Death is executive produced by Waititi, Jenkins, Basch and Halsted.

Armisen’s recent credits include Portlandia, Los Espookys and Documentary Now!

Aubrey Plaza to Star in the Indie Comedy “Spin Me Round”

Posted on May 6, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Aubrey Plaza is going for a Spin…

The 36-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress will star in Spin Me Round, an indie comedy directed by Jeff Baena from a script he wrote with Alison Brie, who will also star.

In addition to Plaza, best known for her work on NBC’s Parks and Recreation, and Brie, the cast also includes Alessandro Nivola, Molly Shannon and Lil Rel Howery.

The film will be produced by the Duplass Brothers Productions and Limelight, the latter of which is fully financing the picture. Production begins next month in Italy.

Tim Heidecker, Ben Sinclair, Fred Armisen, Ayden Mayeri, Debby Ryan, Zach Woods, Ego Nwodim, Lauren Weedman, and Jake Picking round out the cast.

Brie plays the manager of the Bakersfield, California franchise of the Italian chain eatery Tuscan Grove. She wins an all-expenses trip to the company’s gorgeous “institute” outside of Florence, Italy, and the chance to meet the restaurant chain’s wealthy and charismatic owner (Nivola). Along with a mismatched group of local American franchise managers, Amber finds a far different adventure than the romantic fantasy she had imagined.

Gravitas Ventures Acquires Distribution Rights to Fred Armisen’s Horror Comedy “Too Late”

Posted on April 7, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

It’s too late for Fred Armisen…

Gravitas Ventures has acquired the U.S. and Canadian distribution rights to Too Late, a horror comedy starring the 54-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor/comedian.

The film marks the debut feature from director D.W. Thomas and writer Tom Becker.

In addition to Armisen, the film also stars Alyssa Limperis, Ron Lynch, Will Weldon, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Jenny Zigrino, Jack De Sena and Brooks Wheelan.

Set in the Los Angeles indie comedy scene, the film centers on Violet (Limperis), who works a thankless job as the assistant to Bob Devore (Lynch), famed comedian and host of the live variety show Too Late. But what only Violet knows is that Bob is a monster both literally and figuratively. Resigned to her fate, Violet is caught by surprise when she meets aspiring comedian Jimmy Rhodes (Weldon) and sparks fly. But as her feelings for Jimmy grow and Bob starts to doubt her loyalty, she and Jimmy could end up as Bob’s next meal.

The film will bow day and date in select theaters, and on digital platforms on VOD on June 25.

“Too Late is the perfect blend between monster movie and comedy, and one that fans of both genres will be able to enjoy over and over again,” said Brett Rogalsky, Gravitas Ventures’ manager of acquisitions.

Netflix Releases Trailer for Fred Armisen’s “The Mitchells vs. The Machines”

Posted on April 3, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Fred Armisen is ready for a “robot apocalypse”…

Netflix has released the new trailer for The Mitchells vs. The Machines, featuring the 54-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor/comedian.

The animated film centers on a quirky, dysfunctional but loving clan’s together time that becomes a battle to save the planet. And if these folks are the last hope for humankind, well maybe the inanimates have the upper metal hand.

When Katie Mitchell (Abbi Jacobson), a creative outsider, is accepted into the film school of her dreams, her plans to meet “her people” at college are upended when her nature-loving dad Rick (Danny McBride) determines the whole family should drive Katie to school together and bond as a family one last time. Maya Rudolph voices the mom, and Michael Rianda is the kid brother.

Directed by Mike Rianda from a script he wrote with Jeff Rowe, the film’s voice cast includes Eric Andre, Armisen, Beck Bennett, Chrissy Teigen, John Legend, Charlyne Yi, Blake Griffin, Conan O’Brien, Sasheer Zamata, Elle Mills, Alex Hirsch, Jay Pharoah, Doug the Pug and Olivia Colman as Pal.

Sony Pictures sold worldwide rights to the animated feature to Netflix in January, after it had bounced around the release calendar during the pandemic.

Netflix will debut it as a streaming-only film on April 30.

Netflix to Release Fred Armisen’s Animated Comedy “The Mitchells vs. The Machines” in April

Posted on March 24, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Fred Armisen is ready to save the world next month…

Netflix has announce an April 30 release date for its animated comedy, The Mitchells vs. The Machines, featuring the 54-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor/comedian among the voice cast.

In addition to Armisenm new cast members include Beck Bennett, Chrissy Teigen and husband John Legend, Charlyne Yi, late-night host Conan O’Brien, Sasheer Zamata, Jay Pharaoh, Alex Hirsch, Griffin McElroy and relative newcomer Elle Mills.

Previously announced members of the Mitchells cast include Abbi Jacobson, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Eric André and Olivia Colman, among others.

Written and directed by Michael Rianda and Jeff Rowe, The Mitchells vs. The Machines centers on Katie Mitchell (Jacobson), a young woman who is accepted into her dream film school. While driving to campus, she and her family come across a tech uprising, which leaves them to figure out how to save the world.

https://twitter.com/NetflixFilm/status/1374360501849833474

The film, previously known as Connected, was sold from Sony to Netflix in January.

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