Tag Archives: Jessica Hynes

Jenna Ortega Starring Opposite Paul Rudd in A24’s Dark Comedy “Death of a Unicorn”

Posted on by
Reply

Death becomes Jenna Ortega.

The 21-year-old Mexican American actress has wrapped work on A24’s dark comedy Death of a Unicorn, which co-stars Paul Rudd.

Jenna OrtegaThe ensemble cast includes Richard E. Grant, Téa Leoni, Will Poulter, Anthony Carrigan, Sunita Mani, Jessica Hynes and Stephen Park.

Filmed over the summer under a SAG-AFTRA interim agreement, Death of a Unicorn marks the directorial debut of Alex Scharfman, who also penned the script.

The film follows a father (Rudd) and daughter (Ortega) who accidentally hit and kill a unicorn while en route to a weekend retreat, where the former’s billionaire boss (Grant) seeks to exploit the creature’s miraculous curative properties.

A24 will globally distribute the film after co-financing alongside Ley Line Entertainment.

Halloween’s John Carpenter is composing music for the film alongside son Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies. Larry Fong is on board as Director of Photography, with Amy Williams as Production Designer, Avy Kaufman as Casting Director and Andrea Flesch as Costume Designer.

HBO Orders Half-Hour Comedy “The Franchise,” Featuring Daniel Brühl, to Series

Posted on by
Reply

Daniel Brühl is a franchisee…

HBO has ordered to series the half-hour comedy The Franchise, featuring the 45-year-old Spanish-German actor.

Daniel BruhlFrom 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.