The 67-year-old Brazilian film director, producer and screenwriter and Marc Munden will direct episodes of The Sympathizer, a drama series adaptation of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel.
Produced by and co-starring Robert Downey Jr., the HBO/A24 series is an espionage thriller and cross-culture satire about the struggles of a half-French, half-Vietnamese communist spy during the final days of the Vietnam War and his resulting exile in the United States.
Described as a “blistering exploration of identity and America, a gripping spy novel and a powerful story of love and friendship,” the novel is hailed as a new classic of war fiction and has been compared to the works of Kafka, Orwell, and le Carré.
Munden will direct episodes 5,6, and 7 and Meirelles will direct episode 4.
The main cast also includes Sandra Oh, Kieu Chinh, Ky Duyen, Hoa Xuande, Fred Nguyen Khan, Toan Le, Vy Le and Alan Trong.
The series is currently in production, with filming in Los Angeles and Thailand.
The series is a co-production between HBO, A24 and Rhombus Media in association with Cinetic Media and Moho Film.
Meirelles received a Best Director Academy Award nomination for his renowned film City of God. He most recently directedThe Two Popes, which earned Academy Award, Golden Globes and British Film Academy nominations.
Fernando Meirelles is shining a spotlight on the environment…
The 65-year-old Brazilian Oscar-nominated film director, producer and screenwriter, best known for hit films The Two Popes, The Constant Gardenerand City Of God, is launching a slate of environmental films in association with UK production firm Make Waves.
Four of the projects on the $20M documentary slate have already attracted talent and funding.
Meirelles himself will direct Soil, a feature-length documentary about the little-known microscopic world beneath our feet, which will reveal the revolutionary solutions that could help avert a planetary food crisis.
The “flagship” film on the slate is Blue Carbon, which will be directed by BAFTA and Emmy-winning filmmaker Nicolas Brown (Serengeti Rules). With 2021 Grammy-nominated DJ Jayda G as its protagonist, the feature will spotlight a movement to grow an ocean forest across the planet to help combat climate change. The film will weave together stories of ocean activists, scientists and frontline communities, and will feature music from Brazilian samba artist Seu Jorge (The Life Aquatic). The film’s development is being funded by HHMI/Tangled Bank Studios (The Serengeti Rules).
The Shackleton Solutionwill look at what iconic explorer Ernest Shackleton can teach the world about how to save a continent facing a catastrophe. It will draw parallels between Shackleton’s epic Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914-1917) and a planet on the cusp of imminent environmental emergency.
Also on the slate is Law Of The Landfrom filmmaker Coral Brown, which asks the fundamental question: what if nature, like corporations, had the same legal rights as you and me? The feature doc will follow grassroots lawyers and Indigenous communities as they take the battle for the Rights of Nature movement into the courtrooms and onto the streets.
The slate has been co-created by Meirelles, former UN environment diplomat/producer Alexander and Irish author Don Mullan, and BAFTA-winning producer Sarah Macdonald and former Director of BBC World NewsSian Kevill, all of whom will serve as EPs on the slate. Two additional films are due to be added to the lineup later in 2021.
Meirelles, a passionate environmentalist, most recently teamed up with Make Waves, Asen and Mullan on green documentary The Great Green Wall, which debuted at the Venice Film Festival two years ago.
“There is nothing more urgent than the climate crisis,” says Meirelles. “Information is what can turn the tide. Our goal is to make films that not only inform, but that enchant and engage. For my grandchildren and the grandchildren of others, that will be the theme of my work until the day I die.”
Former BBC journalist Macdonald heads investigations and documentary specialist Make Waves with former BBC journalist and executive Kevill.
Antonio Banderas is gettin’ a little glory from mature audiences…
The AARP, formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons, has announced the nominations for its 19th annual Movies for Grownups Awards, with the 59-year-old Spanish actor earning a nod.
Banderas is nominated for Best Actorfor his performance in Pedro Almodovar’s acclaimed Spanish-language film, Pain and Glory.
But Banderas isn’t the only Latino nominee…
Jennifer Lopez has earned a nod this year for Best Supporting Actress.
The 50-year-old Puerto Rican superstar, who earned a Spirit Awards nod earlier this month, received the nomination for her performance in Hustlers.
Fernando Meirellesis being called out…
The 64-year-old Brazilian filmmaker is nominated for Best Director for his celebrated work on Netflix’s The Two Popes.
Ana de Armashas earned some love from the AARP…
The 31-year-old Cuban and Spanish actress and her Knives Out cast mates are nominated in the Best Ensemble category.
Tony Danza will host the Movies for Grownups Awards ceremony on January at the Beverly Wilshirein Beverly Hills.
Earlier this month, the group chose Annette Bening to receive AARP’s MFG’s Career Achievement Award.
Here’s a look at this year’s nominees:
Best Picture/Best Movie for Grownups The Irishman Bombshell Marriage Story A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Once Upon a Time in Hollywood The Farewell The Two Popes Little Women
Best Actress Isabelle Huppert, Frankie Helen Mirren, The Good Liar Julianne Moore, Gloria Bell Alfre Woodard, Clemency Renée Zellweger, Judy
Best Actor Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory Robert De Niro, The Irishman Eddie Murphy, Dolemite Is My Name Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes Adam Sandler, Uncut Gems
Best Supporting Actress Laura Dern, Marriage Story Nicole Kidman, Bombshell Jennifer Lopez, Hustlers Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey Zhao Shuzhen, The Farewell
Best Supporting Actor Jamie Foxx, Just Mercy Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes Al Pacino, The Irishman Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Best Director Noah Baumbach, Marriage Story Fernando Meirelles, The Two Popes Sam Mendes, 1917 Martin Scorsese, The Irishman Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Readers’ Choice A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Bombshell Downton Abbey The Irishman Joker Little Women Marriage Story Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Richard Jewell The Two Popes
Best Ensemble Bombshell Dolemite Is My Name Downton Abbey Knives Out Little Women
Best Intergenerational A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Little Women Parasite The Etruscan Smile The Farewell
Best Buddy Picture A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Ford v. Ferrari Just Mercy The Lighthouse The Two Popes
Best Screenwriter Noah Baumbach, Marriage Story Kasi Lemmons, Harriet Anthony McCarten, The Two Popes Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon A Time in Hollywood Steven Zaillian, The Irishman
Best Time Capsule Harriet Judy Little Women Motherless Brooklyn Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Produced by and co-starring Robert Downey Jr., the HBO/A24 series is an espionage thriller and cross-culture satire about the struggles of a half-French, half-Vietnamese communist spy during the final days of the Vietnam War and his resulting exile in the United States.