Untitled-4 1 1/7/20 1:01 PM In a rare interview, longtime 007 stewards Barbara Broccoli and Michael G.Wilson muse about the legacy of the hit franchise and brace for the loss of Daniel Craig | BY BRENT LANG Untitled-17 1 1/14/20 11:37 AM A C A D E M Y A W A R D® N O M I N A T I O N S INCLUDING 6 •

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Untitled-17 2 1/14/20 11:37 AM Bond Vivant The late Roger Moore started his stint as 007 in 1973’s “Live and Let Die.”

P.36 P.42 P.63 P.91 To Hollywood, A Mighty 2020 Oscar Ken Ehrlich:

VARIETY.COM With Love Island Nominations 4oth Anniversary Producers Barbara Broccoli and The U.K. is second only to the U.S. Variety breaks down each The veteran TV producer talks Michael G. Wilson keep the when it comes to creating category after the Academy’s with Variety as he prepares to venerable James Bond franchise entertainment that crosses big announcement and examines step down from his long-running relevant for a new generation. cultures and borders. Variety the consequences of the duties with the Grammy Awards. By BRENT LANG examines its wide reach. accelerated awards season. By CHRIS WILLMAN JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY 4 EVERETT COLLECTION (THIS PAGE) FRANCESCO FRANCAVILLA; BY ILLUSTRATION (C0VER)

Untitled-15 1 1/14/20 12:09 PM Untitled-15 2 1/14/20 12:09 PM P.70 Robert De Niro will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award CONTENTS from SAG

TOP BILLING 17 Two Steps Back? #OscarsSoWhite activist April Reign reflects on lack of diversity in 2020 nominations 19 Courtroom Drama Charges filed against Harvey Weinstein in L.A. put county DA in the spotlight 20 BAFTA Imbroglio Lack of diversity among recent nominations bring a call for voting overhaul ALSO INSIDE 21 No Host for Actor Kudos Producers say the SAG 12 Awards will forgo an emcee Field Notes 23 Facetime Musings Recording artist Ella Mai on on hot topics helping to revitalize R&B 13 Plugged In What’s EXPOSURE trending at Variety.com 25 Parties Critics’ Choice Awards; 142 National Board of Review Final Cut Gala; “Like a Boss,” ‘Sand “The Outsider” bows Pebbles’ co-star Mako 32 Dirt launched Dr. Phil looks for buyer for his L.A. theater son’s outrageously decorated forum for Tuscan-style McMansion Asian actors A: APPLE TV+. FOCUS 124 Santa Barbara Film Fest Event lineup aims to balance global and local fare 130 NATPE Miami Confab celebrates Florida city it’s called home for a decade

ARTISANS P.32 133 Promising Forecast Tom Shadyac buys “Weathering With You” signals Sunset Strip digs shift for Japanese animation from Aaron Paul 134 Making Some Noise Sound pros talk about the nuances of their craft 135 Keeping It Real Shortlisted doc filmmakers “I’ve played everything. I’ve been a talk about their key scenes cop and a robber and a doctor and a professor and different ethnicities. VARIETY.COM I’ve been animals; I’ve been Donkey. REVIEWS I even played a spaceship once — that shit didn’t go too well, though. That’s 137 TV the one thing when young actors “Little America” P.137 come up to me on the street and they 141 Film say, ‘Do you have any advice?’ I say, “Little ‘Don’t play a spaceship.’” JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY “Weathering With You” America” Eddie Murphy, on his role in 2008’s “Meet Dave,” review while accepting the Lifetime Achievement Award

8 at the 25th annual Critics’ Choice Awards P.26 LITTLE AMERIC ROB LATOUR/SHUTTERSTOCK; MURPHY: HOUSE:& BERG PARTNERS; NOEL KLEINMAN/SMITH SHADYAC’S DE NIRO: BRIGITTE LACOMBE; We wish to congratulate our clients on their honors this Awards Season FREDERICK ELMES, ASC American Society of Cinematographers Lifetime Achievement Award ARJUN BHASIN IAN PHILLIPS A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD THE GOOD PLACE Costume Designers Guild Award Nomination “Employee of the Bearimy”, for Excellence in Contemporary Film “Help is Other People” Art Directors Guild Award Nomination JENNY EAGAN for Excellence in Production Design KNIVES OUT (Half Hour Single - Camera Series) Costume Designers Guild Award Nomination for Excellence in Contemporary Film FRED RASKIN, ACE MARK FRIEDBERG ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD JOKER British Academy Film Award Nomination British Academy Film Award Nomination for Excellence in Production Design (Period Film) for Excellence in Film Editing Art Directors Guild Award Nomination for American Cinema Editors Award Nomination Excellence in Production Design for a for Best Edited Feature Film (Comedy) Feature Film (Period Film) Critics’ Choice Award Nomination Critics’ Choice Award Nomination for Best Editing for Best Production Design JESS GONCHOR BOB SHAW LITTLE WOMEN THE IRISHMAN Critics’ Choice Award Nomination for Academy Award Nomination for Best Production Design Achievement in Production Design BARBARA LING British Academy Film Nomination for ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD Excellence in Production Design (Period Film) Academy Award Nomination for Art Directors Guild Award Nomination Achievement in Production Design for Excellence in Production Design for British Academy Film Nomination a Feature Film (Period Film) for Excellence in Production Design (Period Film) Critics’ Choice Award Nomination for Best Production Design Los Angeles Film Critics’ Association Award Winner for Best Production Design Critics’ Choice Award Winner for MARK WORTHINGTON Best Production Design THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY “We Only See Each Other Art Directors Guild Award Nomination for at Weddings and Funerals” Excellence in Production Design for Art Directors Guild Award a Feature Film (Period Film) Nomination for Excellence in Production Satellite Award Nomination for Best Art Design (One Hour Contemporary Direction and Production Design Single - Camera Series)

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Our U.K. Issue

VARIETY IS OWNED & PUBLISHED BY PENSKE MEDIA CORPORATION FIELD NOTES Shakes and Stirs Jay Penske CHAIRMAN & CEO ’m delighted to present our first-ever U.K. issue, which is chock-full of great stories about Britain’s creative and GEORGE GROBAR CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER business influencers and the empire’s enormous cultural GERRY BYRNE impact as a global entertainment powerhouse. As our VICE CHAIRMAN departing international editor, Henry Chu, wrote in his SARLINA SEE I CHIEF ACCOUNTING OFFICER sweeping overview, “It probably ranks second only to the U.S. CRAIG PERREAULT in how widely its content crosses cultures, countries and continents.” EVP BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT TODD GREENE I want to thank Henry for overseeing this amazing edition as his EVP, BUSINESS AFFAIRS & GENERAL COUNSEL swan song and for his countless contributions and guidance over DEBASHISH GHOSH MANAGING DIRECTOR the past several years as a brilliant editor steering our international JENNY CONNELLY coverage. He will be profoundly missed. SVP, PRODUCT It is with great joy and excitement that I introduce our new KEN DELALCAZAR SVP, FINANCE international editor, Manori Ravindran, a dynamo in her own right TOM FINN who, from her London perch, will help take Variety to new heights SVP, OPERATIONS and expand our footprint and influence as the top entertainment NELSON ANDERSON VP, CREATIVE and media brand around the globe. JONI ANTONACCI VP, PRODUCTION OPERATIONS

THE VOICES BEHIND THE ISSUE THE VOICES The growth of the U.K.’s entertainment sector indisputably REBECCA BIENSTOCK continues to contribute to and help fuel Britain’s economy with VP, TALENT RELATIONS its robust roster of TV and movie productions, including the cover STEPHEN BLACKWELL subject of this issue, the James Bond franchise. HEAD OF PORTFOLIO SALES GERARD BRANCATO For our anchor story by Brent Lang, we scored a rare sit-down VP, PMC DIGITAL ACQUISTION with the highly protective keepers of the 007 series, Barbara Broccoli ANNE DOYLE VP, HR and her half-brother, Michael G. Wilson. I have been trying to land MARA GINSBERG an interview with Broccoli, daughter of the famed 007 producer VP, HR Cubby Broccoli, for more than 15 years, going back to 2004 when I YOUNG KO VP, FINANCE wrote a front-page Los Angeles Times story on Bond’s “off-camera GABRIEL KOEN bodyguards” and she and Wilson declined to participate. VP, TECHNOLOGY KEVIN LABONGE But the wait was well worthwhile, as Lang expertly succeeded in VP, GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS & LICENSING getting the two producers to discuss the evolution of Hollywood’s NOEMI LAZO VP, CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE longest-running franchise over the decades and how they’ve been AND MARKETING OPERATIONS forced to adapt to changing consumer tastes and cultural norms, BRIAN LEVINE VP, REVENUE OPERATIONS including toning tone down the famous secret agent’s machismo and JUDITH R. MARGOLIN creating strong new female characters not named Pussy Galore. VP, DEPUTY GENERAL COUNSEL “The growth My favorite part of the interview? Broccoli’s confession that as JULIE TRINH of the U.K.’s VP, GLOBAL TAX a young child she thought James Bond was a real person: “He was LAUREN UTECHT entertainment always talked about, so I didn’t think of him as a ﬁctional character.” VP, HR & CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS sector MIKE YE VP, STRATEGIC indisputably PLANNING & ACQUISITIONS CHRISTINA YEOH continues VP, TECHNICAL OPERATIONS to help fuel JULIE ZHU Britain’s VP, AUDIENCE MARKETING & SUBSCRIPTIONS Claudia Eller NICI CATTON economy.” Editor-in-Chief ASSOCIATE VP, PRODUCT DELIVERY KARL WALTER ASSOCIATE VP, CONTENT GURJEET CHIMA SENIOR DIRECTOR, INTERNATIONAL MARKETS EDDIE KO SENIOR DIRECTOR, ADVERTISING OPERATIONS Uncovered ANDY LIMPUS SENIOR DIRECTOR, TALENT ACQUISITION AMIT SANNAD VARIETY.COM Francesco Francavilla is an Italian comic book artist SENIOR DIRECTOR, DEVELOPMENT known for his Dark Horse Comics series “The Black CONSTANCE EJUMA Beetle” as well as pulp-inspired comic covers (for DIRECTOR, SEO which he won a 2012 Eisner Award) and the blog Pulp LAURA ONGARO EDITORIAL & BRAND DIRECTOR, Sunday.Within the industry, he has become known INTERNATIONAL for his pulp-and retro-inspired style. Francavilla has KATIE PASSANTINO

JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY worked as an interior artist for both Marvel Comics DIRECTOR, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (“Black Panther: The Man Without Fear,” among DEREK RAMSAY

12 others) and DC Comics. SENIOR PRODUCT MANAGER NOVI LUIGI FRANCAVILLA: 15% They should try something new Variety Poll Should Oscars Have a Host? ABC Entertainment head Karey Burke 39% 46% Emcee Ideas PLUGGED IN announced that the 2020 Oscars will go without No Yes If the Oscars were to have a a host for the second year in a row. We asked host, commenters threw in Kate McKinnon, Trevor Noah Variety.com readers if they think the Oscars and even Golden Globes host should have a host. Ricky Gervais as possibilities.

Say What? WHAT’S ON VARIETY.COM O/SOUTH BEACH PHOTO/SHUTTERSTOCK BEACH O/SOUTH News “It’s not like comedic acting, where you wait Billie Eilish for a close-up and give 13 different versions of this funny thing. It’s Goes Bond like the New England Patriots; you have to run the route, and the ball “IT FEELS CRAZY to be a part of this will be there. It’s not just in every way,” said Billie Eilish, who about running fast. The will perform the theme song from challenge is getting the the upcoming James Bond ﬁlm “No Time to Die” — a tune written part down — but getting by Eilish with her brother and some of my personality

ONG: STEPHEN LOVEKIN/DEADLINE/SHUTTERSTOCK; LAWRENCE: GUSTAVO CABALLER GUSTAVO LAWRENCE: LOVEKIN/DEADLINE/SHUTTERSTOCK; ONG: STEPHEN musical collaborator Finneas. in there.” “To be able to score the theme Chris Rock on starring in song to a film that is part of such “Fargo” Season 4 a legendary series is a huge hon- or,” noted Eilish. “James Bond is the coolest film franchise ever to exist. I’m still in shock.” Finneas added, “Writing the theme for a Bond film is something we’ve been dreaming about doing our entire lives. There is no more iconic pairing of music and cinema than the likes of ‘Goldfin- ger’ and ‘Live and Let Die.’ We feel

UREGROUP/SHUTTERSTOCK; DOWNEY: LUMEIMAGES/SHUTTERSTOCK; L LUMEIMAGES/SHUTTERSTOCK; DOWNEY: UREGROUP/SHUTTERSTOCK; so, so lucky to play a small role in such a legendary franchise. Long live 007.” The announcement came after two days of social media teas- es about the ﬁlm, which bows in April. Eilish reps a dramatic change “When we started of direction for the franchise’s long history of theme-song performers, [‘The Bachelor’], there who have included Shirley Bassey, was no such thing as Paul McCartney and Duran Duran a smartphone, much over the decades. • For the full story, head to Variety.com. less social media, blogs, Twitter, Instagram — none of that stuff VID BUCHAN/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK; ROCK: SCOTT KIRKLAND/FX/PICT ROCK: SCOTT VID BUCHAN/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK; existed. There was only the written word as far “I don’t want to Stars of Upcoming Releases as magazines coming out and talking about be beholden the show. And then to something.” you would do the basic VARIETY.COM 1000 52 46 press: ‘Entertainment Richard Price, exec producer of HBO’s Robert Downey Jr. Justin Long Martin Lawrence Tonight, ‘Extra,’ ‘Access,’ “The Outsider,” spoke with Variety Dolittle The Wave Bad Boys for Life that kind of stuff. about making changes to Stephen The animals are all He’s hit a seven-point He’s gained two ticks King’s 2018 novel — in particular, the talking about his trough in advance of since Dec. 1, prior to a And it’s taken on this character of Holly Gibney, a modern perfect score. this sci-fi/fantasy pic. reunion with Will Smith. whole new life. But so King mainstay. “I’m not beholden to 15, 2020 JANUARY Vscore, powered by Variety Business Intelligence, identifies the social footprint, has dating.” fans or loyalists,” he added. familiarity and availability of over 25,000 actors. For more info please Vscore.com NOAH: EVAN AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; EILISH/O’CONNELL: DA EILISH/O’CONNELL: AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; EVAN NOAH: Variety.com/RichardPrice visit Chris Harrison, host 13 Untitled-15 1 1/14/20 10:11 AM Untitled-15 2 1/14/20 10:12 AM

COASTCOA ISN’T CLEAR SYSTEM FAILURE NewNe rape charges in Los Angeles against Harvey U.K. Acad vows change after WeinsteinWe put DA Jackie Lacey in the spotlight p.19 all-white BAFTA noms p.20

With a Mostly White and Male Academy, What Did We Expect?

It’s time for a systemic change in the voting process to recognize the wealth of talent above and below the line By April Reign

WHEN I CREATED #OscarsSoWhite in 2015, the Academy membership was 92% white and 75% male. The Academy has improved those numbers a bit, and now its membership is 84% white and 68% male. So Monday’s nominations did not come as a surprise. When I saw them, I was disappointed that there were so many talented filmmakers who were not going to be acknowledged and recognized by their peers. Since I started #OscarsSoWhite, the pushback has often been, “Well, there just weren’t enough diverse films to nominate.” But that clearly was not the case in 2019, with films like “Just Mercy,” “Us,” “Luce,” “Clemency,” “The Farewell” and so many others. When we have this wealth of talent in front of and behind the camera, and they are still not recognized by what is considered the pinnacle in the industry, then we need to take a closer examination of who the Academy membership is, what the voting process is and see where we can make systemic change. I believe in a meritocracy; cast a wide net, nominate the most talented and most qualified individuals, and the best person should win. But if you aren’t viewing the films, then you cannot be sure that you have actually seen the most talented and qualified. Overwhelmingly, what we saw in 2019 with these nominations was that most of them are films that reflect the experienc- VARIETY.COM es of straight white men. Since the majority of the Academy are white males, and the nominations are viewed through their lens, Not Standing that may explain why we are seeing the on Ceremony nominations that we are. I am not using Activist April

Reign attends last words like racism or discrimination or 15, 2020 JANUARY year’s Oscars. bigotry; I am saying we all bring our own

WEINSTEIN: MARK LENNIHAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; REIGN: ETHAN SANDS MARK LENNIHAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; WEINSTEIN: lens and our own experiences to our enter- 17 TOP BILLING | NEWS

tainment consumption. And it’s a problem “It’s a problem that the Academy’s voting these issues. With respect to issues of inclu- that the Academy’s voting membership membership is not required to view the films sion and representation, I have never had a is not required to view the films before they before they vote, so it really does become conversation with someone from the Acad- vote, so it really becomes a popularity con- a popularity contest — a popularity contest emy about how to improve things within test — a popularity contest among mostly among mostly straight white males.” the Academy and in Hollywood as a whole. I straight white males. knew doubling the number of people of col- The movie studios have a limited budget or from 8% to 16% within the Academy was for marketing, promotion and advertising. If But none of the cast did. And then obviously not going to be sufficient. The fastest-grow- they are releasing half a dozen or more films we can talk about some of the female direc- ing demographic of moviegoers is the Latinx a year, they have to make very tough deci- tors who were not nominated, like Kasi Lem- community. They’re almost never represent- sions about which films they believe have mons for “Harriet,” Lulu Wang for “The Fare- ed with respect to Academy nominations, or the best chance of winning awards. Those well” and Lorene Scafaria for “Hustlers.” within the ranks of the Academy. That’s not are the ones that they promote during #OscarsSoWhite has always encompassed the way it should be. I would love to have awards season. Unfortunately, smaller films, all traditionally underrepresented those conversations — making the films films that may not be blockbusters but are communities, not just race and ethnicity: available online is just one of many ways incredibly important works of art, are left It’s also gender identity, sexual orientation, that I would suggest the Academy adopt by the wayside. I would love to see a world disability, First Nations status and age. In structural changes. where all of the movies that are eligible are the 91-year history of the Oscars, only five The last thing I will say is that some available to Academy membership online. women have been nominated for best of the onus is on the Academy; some of That puts more responsibility on Academy director, and only one has won. The Academy the onus is on Hollywood. But there’s also members to actually expand their network cannot stand for the idea that there’s only onus on us as consumers, as regular movie- and view these films. Then there’s no excuse. been one woman worthy of being named goers who pay our hard-earned dollars to Yes, Cynthia Erivo was nominated for best director in more than 90 years. either sit in a theater or stream movies at playing Harriet Tubman in “Harriet.” But of What I am encouraged by is that there home. We must choose not to reward medi- the black actors who have been nominated are more marginalized filmmakers who are ocrity. We must continue to use our platform for best actress or best supporting actress, creating their own production companies — our ratings and our dollars — to support the vast majority play women dealing with and saying, “We’re no longer going to wait films that reflect a myriad of experiences. trauma: women in abject poverty, women for the big studios to create the art that we And we need to support the smaller films, who were enslaved or women who were sub- want to see. We’re going to do it ourselves.” the ones not playing at the cineplex but at servient to others. What does it mean when Michael B. Jordan is a great example of the smaller art-house theaters where very Lupita Nyong’o can win for her performance that, not only creating Outlier Society pro- often the magic happens. And to lift those in “12 Years a Slave,” playing an enslaved ductions but also being an early adopter films up to our friends, our family members woman, but is completely shut out when of the inclusion rider, ensuring that people and our online colleagues. she’s playing not just one, but two fully real- behind the camera are getting opportunities —As told to Kate Aurthur ized characters in “Us”? Those are the ques- as well. Because I’ve always said it’s not tions we need to be asking. just about the faces that we see on the April Reign created the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, It’s hard to say who else should have screen. It’s about who’s telling the story, a viral call to action that turned into a social movement and spurred the Academy to change been nominated this year, because then the and whose stories are being told. the composition of its membership, adding next question is whose place would they We’re going into year number six of more women and people of color. A former lawyer, have taken? “Parasite” received six Academy #OscarsSoWhite, and the Academy has she travels internationally as a speaker and an Award nominations, all very well-deserved. never reached out to me directly about inclusion consultant. VARIETY.COM

Notable Snub Lupita Nyong’o played twin roles in Jordan Peele’s horror film “Us”

JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY but wasn’t nominated for an Oscar.

18 PICTURES BARIUS/UNIVERSAL CLAUDETTE JUSTIN LANE/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK By GENEMADDAUS sexual assaulttrial. day ofhisrape and the endoffourth York City onJan.10at leaves courtinNew Harvey Weinstein Reckoning Continues TOP BILLING history withcelebrity prosecutions. The casewillalso revive theoffice’s troubled goes ontrial, probably sometimenext year. “There really nothing.” hasbeen covered theL.A. courthouse for decades. Deutsch, theretired APcorrespondent who in theofficesince shecamein,” says Linda herpredecessors.that bedeviled far largely avoided thehigh-pressure trials ning for athird term onMarch 3—hasthus ture Angeles. inLos But Lacey —who isrun- in2013. period assaulting two women withinatwo-day ducer, accusinghimofraping andsexually ey new announced charges against thepro- les. week, Last District Attorney Jackie Lac- drama willhave Ange- runinLos asecond ﬂash mob. frenzy media a full-court andafeminist underway inNew York, accompanied by THE HARVEY WEINSTEIN burned beforebyburned celebrity trials The county’s prosecutors have been Los AngelesD.A. on Puts Spotlight Weinstein Case TOP BILLING @genemaddaus Gil Garcetti, who heldthejobfrom 1992 Weinstein willendthatdrought when he “There hasn’t abig, been high-proﬁle case Celebrity trialsare abigpart ofthecul- Once itclosesinManhattan, thelegal |NEWS |XYXYXYXYXYX trial isnow

the way to theattorney general’s office.” “He was going to ridetheO.J. guilty verdict all conference ontheSimpsoncase. ly —for holdingpress conference after press was faulted atthetime —andsubsequent- suchabout casesto aminimum. Garcetti aneffort been to keep public statements take timeto decide.” lawyer. “They dotthei’s andcross thet’s, and prosecutor who now isacriminaldefense charges,” says Gorin, Dmitry aformer L.A. more deliberate whether indeciding to file a high-profile case, theD.A.’sbe officewill nearly ayear to charge Blake. profile casesintheoffice.Cooley waited that appears to thepattern be withhigh- years to filecharges against Weinstein. But victed andsentenced to 19years inprison. Tribune. But was Spector subsequently con- read theheadline inThe San Diego Union- narrative was set. murder inahung trialended jury, the oftheO.J.win because loss, andthey didn’t.” They thinkthey know Blake.” Robert “They thinkthey know thesecelebrities. he said, according to Angeles theLos Times. Blake case, hesaid, were “incredibly stupid,” Angeles.celebrities inLos The jurors inthe thedifficultiesof about prosecuting ers murder in2005. case, when Blake Robert was acquitted of But he, too, suffered adefeat inacelebrity Steve Cooley, vowed to dothingsdifferently. the O.J. Simpsoncasein1995. Hissuccessor, to 2000, isstill remembered best for losing “That was hisundoing,” Cooley tells Since theSimpsoncase, there hasalso “As ageneral rule, my isifit’s experience criticized forLacey waiting hasbeen two “L.A. prosecutors can’t win ‘big one,’” In 2007, when Phil Spector’s first Says Deutsch: “They wanted desperately to At thetime, Cooley groused to report- Variety. executive dirtbag.” Weinstein case. with celebritiesshould afactor notbe in the this time,” she told reporters. and we’re very limited inwhat we cansay at did notreach for aheadline-grabbing quote. read from acarefully worded statement and stein case. At last week’s press conference, she subduedbeen inherhandlingoftheWein- inaplea.case ended rapecuted mogulSuge Knight, though that and last five months. Lacey’s officealso pros- tured inHBO’s “The Jinx,” willstart inMarch against Durst, Robert thereal estate heirfea- trial comingthisyear.ed The murder case he says. the rulesofgravity don’t necessarily work,” figure out how to approach because ajury there was acelebrity factor, andyou have to thecase handled “the old-fashioned way.” fired intheBlake case. The prosecutor, hesays, celebrities like anyone elsemay have back- bargain andturning thecaseinto acircus. Mark Geragos, for refusing to acceptaplea lifting. Hehaslongblamed Ryder’s attorney, Winona Ryder, who was convicted ofshop- gestions thathewas unduly being harsh on other defendant. In2002, hebristledatsug- would treat celebritiesthesame asevery him offin2000. badly wounded when Cooley finished ing hishandlingofthecase. Heremained Johnwith hisopponent Lynch hammer- defeat. Henearly lost reelection in1996, “He’s notacelebrity,” hesays. “He’s arich, Cooley argues thattheoffice’s problems “Please case, remember thisisapending Lacey, who was Cooley’s top deputy, has Lacey’s officehasonehighly anticipat- “She didnotbuild into that theequation Cooley believes thestrategy oftreating ofsayingCooley madeapoint thathe Garcetti was thepublic face ofthe

19 DATEHERE,JANUARY 15, 2020 2020 VARIETY.COM VARIETY.COM 20 JANUARY 15, 2020 VARIETY.COM Awards Process Votein forChange BAFTA to Urged By STEWART CLARKE actor, fail nominees director diversity test Many callforsystemic overhaul after of all-membership voting, voting jury and 2013 for “Zero Dark Thirty.” received Bigelow sinceKathryn anod in inees. Moreover, nofemale director has anotherlineupofall-whiteduced nom- that three years ago, BAFTA voters pro- done.” donewillbe be place for next year where whatever to needs careful review. anddetailed We ina willbe tions as “infuriating,” vows: “There a willbe the immediate aftermath ofthenomina- Samuelson, who thesituation described in heard.be BAFTA filmcommittee chairMarc thattheunionandallothervoicesised will BAFTA, andtheBritish Academy hasprom- is present inour industry.” think thatreflects thediversity oftalent that retary ofactors unionEquity. “We donot white,” says Matt Hood, assistant general sec- supportingbest actor oractress were non- BAFTA nominationsfor actor, best actress or score abrace ofnoms. Margot Robbie andScarlett Johansson each those snubbed inactingcategories thatsaw phy (“Dolomite IsMyName”) were among Jamie Foxx (“Just Mercy”) andEddieMur- (“The Farewell”), Cynthia Erivo (“Harriet”), right for round one. Idon’t thinkthey have.” for BAFTA ishave they got thevoting system in theirmakeup,” heexplains. “The question and itisnoticeable they are more diverse of theaward categories are decisions, jury are section) mentary more inclusive. “Some groupspeer (for instance, thoseinthedocu- noting thatBAFTA nominationschosenby issue BAFTA’s about voting system,” hesays, body Directorsindustry U.K. “For me, thisan by voters, says Andrew Chowns who heads exist —it’s whether they’re getting seen from women directors anddiverse talent way are nominees chosen. have suggested itistimefor achange inthe tion aswell asthoseinthewiderindustry tion, many withintheorganiza- members As thehashtag #BaftasSoWhite trac-gained ofexclusivelyselection maledirector noms. actors ofcolorinthemaincategories anda earlyannounced last week, no included answers after BAFTA Awards nominations, THE BRITISH ACADEMY TOP BILLING @varietystewart Nominees are determined from amix The situation isexacerbated by thefact Equity with ameeting hasdemanded “Over thepast only decade 5%of about Jennifer (“Hustlers”), Lopez Awkwafina The question isn’t whether worthy films |NEWS isscrambling for in whichMargot Robbie isadoublenominee. Five Four Become “Over 5% onlyabout thepastdecade for theholidays. theproblem: Compounding are alsoworking onprojects andplanning 100 filmsto view inDecember, while many ters they’re in, canhave members more than tions are made. onwhat Depending chap- lem withtheway nominating-round selec- themselves, concurthatthere’s aprob- no women amongthefive director noms. acrossthe 20nominees four categories and diversity, withjust oneblackactor among but thisyear’s lineupagain features little had produced more inclusive Oscarresults, international members. Subsequent years ing membership, welcoming younger and Arts andSciencesmadechanges to its vot- nominees, theAcademy ofMotionPicture which noactors ofcolorwere amongthe consecutive years —2015and2016in themselves to nomore thantwo. chapters; BAFTA asks to members restrict whoits decide andexpertise canjoinwhich those nominated. Inmost cases, filmcred- the widermembership among thenchooses votes ofdedicated chapters; ofthemembers gories, comesfrom thelist ofnominees the awards inround one. For many othercate- film andthemainsupporting acting gible BAFTA cancast members votes for best chapter votes, oncategory. depending Alleli- Matt Hood,Equity talent thatispresent inourindustry.” thediversitythink thatreflects of actress were non-white. We donot actoror supporting actress orbest of BAFTA actor, nominationsforbest Many inBAFTA, includingmembers After theOscars suffered through two Asa ButterfieldandEllaBalinska announce theBAFTA nomsinthesupporting actress category, They to can decide change it.” says. “It’s as well infuriating asembarrassing. tions list thatisconspicuously notdiverse,” he this agony every year ofproducing anomina- problem. “I don’t thinkBAFTA cango through my to correct arecurring what hasbecome duce abetter voting system. films. He’s hoping thisyear’s review canpro- easier forbecome exhibitors Netflix to book with theindustry, Samuelson says ithas picturebest trophy. After a review and talks — andNetflix’s “Roma” upthe duly scooped gibility for films distributed by streamers draw support for the org after itallowed eli- year where exhibitors threatened to with- toHe points theresolution ofacrisislast and isoptimistic thatBAFTA candobetter. to outlining members plansfor thereview, says Samuelson, who isasignatory ofaletter or Lulu Wang (“The Farewell”). Céline Sciamma(“Portrait ofaLady onFire”) no room for Greta (“Little Women”), Gerwig side Todd Phillips Joon andBong Ho, leaving directortino allmadethebest cutalong- Mendes, MartinScorsese andQuentinTaran- and from big-namedirectors. This year, Sam toward talent filmswithlong-established up to multicultural Britain. BAFTA’s membership fails to holdamirror in turn ispart ofabigger problem whereby difficultsee allofthe to movies sent, which says. Parti says thevoting system makes it withmypointed fellow BAFTA voters,” she those demandingchange. “I was really disap- Parti, who hasadeal withSony, isamong The viewing window was shorter thisyear. Chowns says it’s upto theBritish Acade- “No onehere issaying everything isfine,” With little time, often members gravitate Producer andBAFTA Nisha member

JAMIE SIMONDS/BAFTA/SHUTTERSTOCK SAG Awards Return to the No-Host Trend

New producers Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner aim to add more entertainment by cutting out the emcee

By MICHAEL SCHNEIDER @franklinavenue SEAN HAYES KNOWS what it’s like to be a guest, a voter, a nominee and a winner at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. But this year, he’ll experience the show from an entirely different angle: backstage, as a producer. Format Change Hayes and his longtime producing partner, Todd Milliner, Kathy Todd Milliner, are behind the latest awards Connell and Sean Hayes show, partnering with veteran SAG Awards will produce this year’s producer Kathy Connell. “I think what I have SAG Awards show (top); Rami Malek accepts the to offer to the team, in addition to creative award for outstanding ideas with Todd, is the emotional experience performance by a male actor at the 2019 that goes into being there and arriving there,” ceremony while Rachel Hayes tells Variety. “What it feels like to be a Weisz (far right) looks on. nominee, what it feels like to win and what you go through the second you get out of the car on the red carpet to the entire evening.” Hayes and Milliner’s previous kudos credits include the Tony Awards in 2010, when Hayes was host. This time out, Hayes will strictly stick to producing — as a matter of fact, there won’t be a SAG Awards host this year at all. That returns the show to the host-free model that it has employed throughout most of its existence. It ran without an emcee from the time it launched in 1995 until 2018, when Kristen Bell was named host. Last year, Megan Mullally took the gig. This year, the producers decided to once again cut the position. him but had somebody else in that role,” Mil- est audience you could possibly have,” she The awards show host-or-no-host debate liner says. “So we’ll have a segment that’s says. “How do you make these people in this has raged since last year, when the Oscars ‘Movies Without Robert De Niro.’ It’s a pre- room with these stars feel like they’re hav- wound up not having one — and ratings taped piece, and we’re doing a few others as ing fun when they’re also nervous? Because improved. The Emmy Awards also didn’t well. That’s something new — we’re trying to four out of five of them are going to walk employ a host, but the reviews (and audience inject a little levity into the evening.” away without a statue.” numbers) weren’t so kind. The producers say they also plan to lean Connell says the producers’ other big chal- The SAG Awards have a good reason not into the wide range of film and TV nomi- lenge is finding room in the Shrine Auditori- to spend much time with a host: Unlike nees. “What an eclectic mix of nominations um’s Expo Hall for all of the nominated film most major awards shows, which clock in at this year,” Milliner says. “From ‘Parasite’ to and TV casts — particularly for shows with three hours or more, the SAG Awards have ‘The Irishman,’ the breadth of genre within extensive rosters, like “Game of Thrones.” to cram everything into just two hours. Even the genre is cool.” “‘Orange Is the New Black’ was our with a brief monologue, a host can eat up Much of the show, however, will emulate largest by far,” Connell recalls. “I think too much time; in this case, that doesn’t those of previous years — including the sig- there were 49 actors, which makes seating leave much room to do anything other than nature opening, which features a variety of a little interesting.” hand out its 13 kudos — plus a life achieve- nominees in the audience, telling an anec- As for Hayes and Milliner, the produc- ment award — on camera. dote or making a joke about why they are ers are juggling the SAG Awards job with Without a host, Hayes, Milliner and Con- proud to be an actor. their Hazy Mills production slate. The shin- nell say they will rely more on presenters “To me, it’s really the best award to get gle, which is based at Universal TV, is next VARIETY.COM to provide the entertainment and move the because, sure, we entertain as actors for collaborating with Mike Schur on the adult show along. That has also freed up space to the approval of audiences,” Hayes says, “but animated Netflix comedy “Q-Force,” which include a few comedic moments between when you get a pat on the back from a peer, revolves around a “gay James Bond.” And categories. One pre-taped bit aims to have it’s pretty awesome.” Hayes is wrapping the “Will & Grace” revival fun with this year’s life achievement honor- Given that this is SAG-AFTRA honoring after a three-episode run.

ee, Robert De Niro. its own members, Connell says the produc- “We’ve got to get a lot in before they 15, 2020 JANUARY “We’re going to look at what would have ers are cognizant of making the show plea- launch ‘Will & Grace’ for a third time,”

MILLINER/CONNELL/HAYES: RICHARD HARBAUGH/ IGLA/ SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS®; MALEK: RICHARD SHOTWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK GUILD AWARDS®; IGLA/ SCREEN ACTORS RICHARD HARBAUGH/ MILLINER/CONNELL/HAYES: happened if a few of his movies didn’t have surable for attendees. “This is the tough- Milliner jokes.” 21 TOP BILLING | IN THE RUNNING | FACETIME

Marc Malkin In the Running Making the Academy Diverse Isn’t Enough

More inclusive membership is just one factor in fixing Oscars’ noms process

s the nominations for the 92nd Oscars have shown us, the industry and the Motion A Picture Academy have a problem substantially moving the needle on diversity and inclusion. In the last few months, Jennifer Lopez, Eddie Murphy, Awkwafina, Zhao Shuzhen, Lupita Nyong’o and Jamie Foxx have received accolades at awards shows and from critics groups, but Academy voters failed to nominate any of them. Except for Cynthia Erivo (“Harriet”), all of the acting nominees are white. Female directors like Greta Gerwig (“Little Women”), Lulu Wang (“The Farewell”), Missed Opportunity Lorene Scafaria (“Hustlers”), Melina Matsou- “Dolemite Is My Name” (top) and kas (“Queen & Slim”), Alma Har’el (“Honey “The Farewell” were strong awards Boy”) and Marielle Heller (“A Beautiful Day season contenders, but the Academy completely shut them out. in the Neighborhood”) have received praise for being leaders of a more diverse generation of filmmakers. Even so, all of the nominated directors are men. were nominated for its film awards. The numbers but we also increase consider- It’s been four years since Hollywood Academy has to do the same. If a change ation,” Franklin says. “And that’s going to be promised to change in the aftermath of needs to be made, the Academy won’t know a cultural shift. It’s going to be a corporate #OscarsSoWhite, but here we are. what that is unless it takes a thorough shift. It’s going to be a practical shift. But all So what happened? inventory of how votes are cast. of these things are going to have to work Sure, the Academy lived up to its promise The organization also must review the together in order for it to be the change we to diversify and grow its membership. Last directors branch. “Little Women” earned six really want to be.” year, 50% of new members were women and nominations, but Gerwig wasn’t nominated Simply greenlighting films by wom- 29% were people of color. Today, 16% of the for directing. Perhaps there is a reasonable en and people of color isn’t enough either. nearly 9,000 total members are people of explanation, but again, we won’t know what Studios have to make sure they support color, compared with just 8% in 2015. it is unless an assessment is made. these films from the beginning of the race But something’s still very broken, inside When queried about what the Academy through the entire awards season. The work and outside the Academy. is doing to further address the issue, Frank- can’t be left to the smaller studios like A24 “There’s still progress to be made,” says lin says, “You’re asking a great question, and and Neon. A24 did what it could for “The Academy governor-at-large DeVon Frank- I don’t have the answer to that yet.” Farewell,” but imagine if the movie had the lin. While he is “excited” by the year’s crop He adds that the Academy brass is hun- same marketing budget as “The Irishman” of nominees, “there’s still a ways to go as an kering down to determine the next steps. or an awards campaign like that of “Once industry to make the change that I think “We’ve been taking a series of high-lev- Upon a Time in Hollywood.” (Of course, will make everyone feel like they have a el meetings to really, once and for all, figure big-money campaigns don’t necessarily seat at the table.” out what we as an industry need to do to yield awards. No matter how much Netflix VARIETY.COM Diversifying the Academy wasn’t enough. solve it. It’s complex. There’s not one answer threw at “The Irishman,” it was shut out of The Academy must take the lead on mak- suits all. But we’re committed to finding the Golden Globes on awards night.) ing sure the Oscars aren’t straight and white. a solution.” “The work that needs to be done and All eyes are on the association because it’s He says the industry also has to come the work that’s going to matter is the work responsible for the film industry’s most together as a whole and identify ways in that is done day to day, that goes well important night of the year. which it can bring about systemic change. beyond the Oscars and well beyond the

JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY Just days before the Oscar noms were “We actually have to put into practice telecast,” Franklin says. “I think a telecast announced, BAFTA said that it would review some speciﬁc things that will help move the can’t actually produce the change. I think

22 its voting process after no actors of color needle in ways where we not only increase it’s the grind.” A24 DOLEMITE IS MY NAME!: FRANÇOIS DUHAMEL/NETFLIX; FAREWELL:

Caption Here Nam re rem rernatiat. Hent volupti a poritis nitio tem sequamus aut volorPretty aut apitiin Pink ut Ella Mai’s self-titleddoluptiamus debut eat album istet is nominatedex for experiantur? a Grammy.

Your album is the most suc- able to accept two [awards] play her all the time when I was cessful of the Grammy nomi- onstage because the R&B growing up. My mom’s a huge Ella Mai nees for best R&B album. Do categories are not always the jazz fan. My brother is named you think you’ll win? televised awards. after Miles Davis, so you To have a Grammy-nominated can tell how much of a jazz debut album is incredible, and What do you think about fan she is. ‘A Lot of Us Have I’m excited because I’m the only R&B often being treated as female in the category. The men second-class music? Did being the namesake of a are doing incredible things, and It’s been like that for a while jazz icon give you a lot to live I’m actually a fan of all the other because everyone had this up to? Proven There’s albums in the category, so it’s notion that R&B was dead and Funny story. My mom named definitely a tough competition. R&B wasn’t really mainstream. me after her because that was If I was to win, I feel like it would Hopefully, that’s about to her favorite musician, but when be recognition for all of us as change. That’s something all of I was born, she told my grandma a Huge Market female R&B artists. us would love to see. In the last that she hoped I could sing. And two or three years, a lot of us that’s why she called me Ella. You’ve won a Grammy, three have proven that it can be still But she never pressured me for R&B’ Billboard Music Awards mainstream and that there’s — or I never felt pressured to and two Soul Train Music a huge market for R&B. We’ll try and live up to the name. It’s Along with SZA and H.E.R., London-born Ella Awards, among many other continue to fight and work great knowing that I was named Mai has brought old-school soul singing back accolades. Which honor has hard to make sure people see it after a singer, and sometimes to mainstream R&B after a long hiatus. Her meant the most to you? as just as big as hip-hop. I do wonder if that’s really the All of them. Last year, I got so reason I can sing. My mom did a talent already has earned her a best R&B song many nominations that I wasn’t What is the biggest change good job there. Grammy for her 2018 hit “Boo’d Up,” and this expecting, so to be able to get that success has brought to year, her self-titled debut is in the running for the nominations and then win your everyday life? so many was incredible. The Before I started music, I was in Things You Didn’t Know best R&B album. While she’s on the cusp of a About Ella Mai BET viewer’s choice award that school and still lived with my possible second Grammy win on Jan. 26, Mai I won in the summer meant mom. I live in L.A. now. I can AGE: 25 BIRTHPLACE: London talks rising stardom with Variety. a lot to me because it’s fan provide for my family. I can wake TOP FIVE MUSICAL INFLUENCES: VARIETY.COM Lauryn Hill, Chris Brown, voted, and I was up against a up and say what I want to do for Jazmine Sullivan, Mary J. lot of really big mainstream the day. I still have to work, but Blige, Alicia Keys FIRST LOVE: artists [including Cardi B, it’s a different type of working. It Soccer FAVORITE CONCERT Childish Gambino, J. Cole, doesn’t feel like work. AUDIENCES: New Zealand and Drake and Travis Scott]. I was St. Kitts SURPRISING HOBBY:

the underdog, so I was really You were named after Ella Adult coloring books 15, 2020 JANUARY excited to win that. But it’s Fitzgerald. Are you a fan?

JONATHAN MANNION JONATHAN weird because I’ve only been I love her. My mom used to Interview by JEREMY HELLIGAR 23 Congratulates

Variety Artisans Award Honoree

Untitled-13 1 1/13/20 2:32 PM YAAAS, QUEEN! PINKMAN’S PAD RuPaul premieres his Netﬂix comedy Tom Shadyac takes over Aaron ‘AJ and the Queen’ in Hollywood p.29 Paul’s Hollywood Hills cottage p.32

ANIMALANIMAL HHOUSEOUSE RamiRami Malek, Selena Gomez and Robert Downey JrJr.. laulaughgh it up at the Jan. 11 premiere in Los AnAngelesgeles ofof “Dolittle“Dolittle,”,” a reboot ofof the “Dr. Dolittle” filmsfilms aaboutbout a veterinarian who can talk to animals. ) 2 ( ATT BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK ATT MATT BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK (2) BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK MATT M VARIETY.COM 2020 , UARY 15 JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY JAN

Edited by MARC MALKIN 25 EXPOSURE | PARTIES

Florence Pugh Critics’ Choice and Billy Porter Awards BARKER HANGAR, SANTA MONICA, JAN. 12

The 25th annual awards boasted the biggest names in TV and film, and even more than their nominations, the stars were mostly excited to meet each other. “Little Women” star Florence Pugh was introduced to “Pose” lead Billy Por- ter on the red carpet, telling Variety afterward, “It was pretty magic.” Supporting actress in a comedy winner Alex Borstein brought her father, Irv, along for her big night, saying, “He lives for this crap; this is his thing. It’s like coursing through his veins; it’s his crack. He’s really proud, and he’s really enjoying ROB LATOUR/ KEY: DRIVER/KEEGAN-MICHAEL LEGUIZAMO/BLAKE, it. He’s got his ‘Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’ sneakers on.” Alex Borstein with father

Robert De Niro and Al Pacino

Noah Reid, Annie Murphy, Sarah Levy, Emily Hampshire, Nicole Kidman and Daniel Levy

Beanie Feldstein and Kristen Bell

Eddie Murphy (4); BORSTEINS: MATT BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK; DE NIRO/PACINO, FELDSTEIN/BELL, MURPHY, DUVERNAY/WELSH/JEROME/NASH/ROSENTHAL/ BLACKK/ DUVERNAY/WELSH/JEROME/NASH/ROSENTHAL/ FELDSTEIN/BELL, MURPHY, DE NIRO/PACINO, BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK; MATT BORSTEINS: (4);

Alison Brie and Rachel Brosnahan Brett Gelman, Isobel Waller- Bridge, Phoebe Waller-Bridge Ava DuVernay and the Mj Rodriguez and Andrew Scott “When They See Us” cast and Our Lady J ALLER-BRIDGE/SCOTT: MEDIAPUNCH/SHUTTERSTOCK ALLER-BRIDGE/SCOTT: VARIETY.COM JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY Adam Driver and Keegan-Michael Key SHUTTERSTOCK (5); GELMAN/WALLER-BRIDGE/W SHUTTERSTOCK 26 J: MICHAEL BUCKNER/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK LADY BRIE/BROSNAHAN, RODRIGUEZ/OUR REID/MURPHY/LEVY/HAMPSHIRE/KIDMAN/LEVY, PUGH/PORTER,

MaryMa Kay ‘Like a Boss’s’ PlacePla Premiere SVA THEATRE, NEW YORK, JAN.. 7

Salma Hayek, who teamed up with TiffanyTiffany Haddish and Rose Byrne on the comedy,dy, told Variety, “For once this is a movie thatt is not about a woman looking for a man or nneedingeeding a man.” The Oscar nominee is hopefull about the future for women in Hollywood. “What“What I can tell you is that a lot more womenen are directing and acting and writing and pproduc-roduc-

TERSTOCK; CHALAMET: ANDREW H. WALKER/SHUTTERSTOCK; ANDREW H. WALKER/SHUTTERSTOCK; CHALAMET: TERSTOCK; ing. … We’re on the right path. And we’ree’re not going to stop.” She added: “I’m about creat-creating an opportunity. … People say I’m loudoud and Salma Hayek, obnoxious, but sometimes it’s the squeakyueaky Rose Byrne and wheel that gets the oil and gets thingss done.done.”” Tiffany Haddish Los Angeles Film Critics Assn. Awards Edward Watts, Martin Scorsese and Waad al-Kateab Bruce Springsteen INTERCONTINENTAL LOS ANGELES, and Hamza CENTURY CITY, JAN. 11 al-Kateab Jennifer Lopez explained why she was drawn to “Hustlers” while accepting for best supporting actress. “I’ve been in this business for a while, longer than I’d like to admit,” she said. “But there was something that spoke to me about this

TEAB: PETER FOLEY/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK; SCORSESE/SPRINGSTEEN: MEDIAPUNCH/SHUT SCORSESE/SPRINGSTEEN: TEAB: PETER FOLEY/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK; film and this role, not only at this time in my life but at this time in our world. I was offered an opportunity to shine a light on women who are usually spinning on the periphery of the action — complicated, multidimensional women, beautifully drawn, who are both heroes and victims of a system that preceded them. I imme- Timothée diately felt like I had to get this film made, Chalamet Lena Waithe and no matter the obstacle.” Melina Matsoukas /EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK; WATTS/W. AL-KATEAB/H. AL-KA AL-KATEAB/H. WATTS/W. /EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK;

JenJennifernifer LopLopezez

Brad Pitt National Board of Review Gala CIPRIANI 42ND STREET, NEW YORK, JAN. 8 VARIETY.COM

Lena Waithe presented “Queen & Slim” director Melina Matsoukas with the award for best directorial debut. “I appre- ciate the effort to move into the future, to begin to break down the confines that discredit and disregard films like mine and so many filmmakers that have come before and will come after

me,” the helmer said. “Thank you for being on the right side 15, 2020 JANUARY of the future, the right side of the revolution. Thank you for WAITHE/MATSOUKAS: LEXIE MORELAND/WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; PITT: EVAN AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK EVAN PITT: LEXIE MORELAND/WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; WAITHE/MATSOUKAS: HAYEK/BYRNE/HADDISH: EVAN AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; PLACE: WILLY SANJUAN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; LOPEZ: NINA PROMMER LOPEZ: SANJUAN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; WILLY PLACE: AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; EVAN HAYEK/BYRNE/HADDISH: coming on this black-ass ride that is ‘Queen & Slim.’” 27 EXPOSURE | PARTIES

Pedro Almodóvar Zhao Shuzhen AARP Movies for and Tzi Ma Grownups Awards BEVERLY WILSHIRE, BEVERLY HILLS, JAN. 11

Laura Dern was among the honorees at the annual celebration of films made for the 50-plus audience. “Thank you for inviting me into your club, because guess what, guys?” said Dern, who turns 53 on Feb. 10. “It’s sexy, it’s fun, it’s amazing, it’s creative, it’s inventive — I’m having the time of my life!” “Knives Out” star Don Johnson admitted that he was less enthusiastic when his AARP card arrived in the mail. “I got pissed off,” he said. “So I immediately went out and had three more children.”

Annette Bening EN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; STEWART/WESTMORE: ANNIE LESSER/IMAGESPACE/SHUTTERSTOCK; ANNIE LESSER/IMAGESPACE/SHUTTERSTOCK; STEWART/WESTMORE: EN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK;

Laura Dern flanked by RianRian Johnson, daughter Jaya Harper JamieJam Lee Curtis and mom Diane Ladd anandd Don Johnson H O SHUTTERST / AP Patrick Stewart and / Michael Westmore ‘The INVISION / R. JOHNSON/CURTIS/ D. JO D. R. JOHNSON/CURTIS/ Outsider’r’ , BENING ,

Premierere CynthiaCynthia EriErivovo ALMODOVAR, BENING, R. JOHNSON/CURTIS/ D. JOHNSON, HARPER/DERN/LADD: ROB LATOUR/AARP/SHUTTERSTOCK (4); SHUZHEN/MA: MARK VON HOLD SHUZHEN/MA: MARK VON (4); JOHNSON, HARPER/DERN/LADD: ROB LATOUR/AARP/SHUTTERSTOCK D. R. JOHNSON/CURTIS/ BENING, ALMODOVAR, ALMODOVAR SANJUAN WILLY ERIVO: DIRECTORS GUILD OF AMERICA,ERICA, SANJUAN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK WILLY ERIVO: LOS ANGELES, JAN. 9 Cynthia Erivo plays Hollyolly Gibney, a private investigatorgator who uses unconventional metmethodshods to help solve a grisly murderer case in the HBO series, which iss bbasedased Make-Up Artists and Hair on a Stephen King novel. TToo tatapp into the mindset of the character,aracter, Erivo paid special attentionn to herher Stylists Guild Awards look. “I wanted her to havee longlong VARIETY.COM THE NOVO AT L.A. LIVE, LOS ANGELES, JAN. 11 braids. … I knew I wanted her to have a button-up collar andd chinos Patrick Stewart accepted the Distinguished Artisan Award, receiving and boots, because I wanteded herher recognition for his six-decade career on stage, TV and film. Onstage, the to feel normal in her uniform,m, cocom-m- actor shared a story about how he became a wigmaker’s dream when he pared with the fact that shehe isn’t started losing his hair at 19. “I’ve worn many wigs over the years and have uniform in her thinking,” Erivoivo told Variety JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY been proud and happy. I have loved every one of them,” he said. “I have . “She’s so far to thee llefteft in loved the people who made them for me and helped me with makeup,” he the way she thinks, I wanteded her 28 added, praising his “Star Trek” makeup supervisor Michael Westmore. to be centered when you sawaw hher.”er.”

Antonio Banderas New York FFilm Critics CircleCircle AAwardsw Gala TAOTAO DDOWNTOWN,OWNTOWN NEW YORK, JAN. 7

In a reversal of roles,roles, the A-listA- stars roasted the critics at Lupita the annual ceremony.ceremony. “I knowknow what you have said about me Nyong’o over the years,” Adam SandlSandlere quipped. “It’s fine. I have two words to sasayy to yyou:ou: You’re mmean.”e Best actress winner Lupita Nyong’oNyong’o praised her “Us” writer-directorwr Jordan Peele: “He offered me a chance to exist inin an imaginative world uncontex- tualized by the color ofof my skinsk or the content of my cultural history,history, and that is a radical, meaningful and liberating act.”

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Bong Joon Ho, Quentin Tarantino and Song Kang Ho

Reese Witherspoon Mati Diop STOCK; JOON-HO/TARANTINO/HO: KRISTINA BUMPHREY/STARPIX/SHUTTERSTOCK; BUMPHREY/STARPIX/SHUTTERSTOCK; KRISTINA JOON-HO/TARANTINO/HO: STOCK; ERSTO SHUTT Michael Schwartz, UNCH/ Zack Gottsagen

EDIAP and Tyler Nilson ’O: M ’O: NYONG (4); (4); TOCK TOCK TTERS Y/SHU

ARIET RuPaul

KIN/V and Izzy G. LOVE EPHEN TEPHEN LOVEKIN/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK (4); NYONG’O: MEDIAPUNCH/SHUTTER NYONG’O: (4); TEPHEN LOVEKIN/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK P: ST Hollywood Critics ‘AJ and the Queen’ , DIO

SPOON Assn. Awards Premiere ITHER VARIETY.COM

IE, W TAGLYAN COMPLEX, LOS ANGELES, JAN. 9 EGYPTIAN THEATRE, HOLLYWOOD, JAN. 9

SAFD Zack Gottsagen picked up the Newcomer Award at the third annual RuPaul, who teamed up with Michael Patrick King to create the Netflix series, ER/B. event. “I’ll see you next year — I’m not going nowhere,” he said. “There’s also stars as drag queen Ruby Red, who sets out on a tour across America in

SANDL a lot more coming.” Thanking his “Peanut Butter Falcon” writers and an RV. Things take a turn when Ruby discovers that a 10-year-old girl (played

FDIE/ directors, Gottsagen added, “They have been there and gave so much by Izzy G.) has stowed away in the van. “This show is a love letter to the J. SA

time, so much, and they have been [the most] wonderful friends I’ve ever United States of America and beyond,” RuPaul said. “It is an adjustment to 15, 2020 JANUARY RAS, had. Because this is my dream come true for myself, so please stand up a world that feels so fractured right now. This is a show that is saying, ‘Let’s SCHWARTZ/GOTTSAGEN/WILSON: MARK VON HOLDEN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; RUPAUL/IZZY G.: CHARLEY GALLAY/GETTY IMAGES FOR NETFLIX IMAGES CHARLEY GALLAY/GETTY G.: RUPAUL/IZZY HOLDEN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; MARK VON SCHWARTZ/GOTTSAGEN/WILSON: BANDERAS, J. SAFDIE/SANDLER/B. SAFDIE, WITHERSPOON, DIOP: S SAFDIE, SAFDIE/SANDLER/B. J. BANDERAS, BANDE SCHWARTZ/GOTTSAGEN/WILSON: MARK VON HOLDEN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; RUPAUL/IZZY G : CHARLEY GALLAY/GETTY IMAGES FOR NETFLIX and give … a round of applause for Tyler [Nilson] and Michael [Schwartz].” get together and recognize our similarities rather than our differences.’” 29 film20nomsAnnounceAdVariety01_EC.indd 1 09/01/2020 12:10 Untitled-4 1 1/9/20 11:47 AM film20nomsAnnounceAdVariety01_EC.indd 2 09/01/2020 12:10 Untitled-4 1 1/9/20 11:48 AM Dirt

$2.2m

HOLLYWOOD HILLS 2,900 SQ. FT. 4 BEDROOMS 3 BATHS

Tom Shadyac Buys Aaron Paul’s Sunset Strip Digs

“Breaking Bad” actor Aaron Paul has unloaded his Hollywood Hills cottage for $2.2 million, and records reveal the multilevel home’s new owner is industry multi-hyphenate Tom Shadyac. Tucked away on a quiet cul-de-sac just steps off the bustling Sunset Strip, the relatively modest house, which spans less than 2,900 square feet, was acquired by Paul in 2012 for about $1.4 million and was once occupied by Brad Pitt back in his juvenescent showbiz days. VARIETY.COM The renovated 1930s residence, which includes four bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms, sits on a knoll high above the street-level garage. A zigzagging ﬂight of stairs climbs to the antique front door and into a traditional center-hall foyer with a wood-beamed ceiling and stone staircase. There’s a kitchen with a groin-vaulted ceiling and a full range of luxury stainless appliances; a ﬁreplace-equipped living room; and a dining room with picture-

JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY James McClain perfect views of the downtown L.A. skyline.

32 Tucked discreetly into a coved space under the house lies an alfresco dining ERIC CHARBONNEAU/SHUTTERSTOCK SHADYAC: & BERG PARTNERS; HOUSE: NOEL KLEINBAHN/SMITH PARTIES

area. A separate outdoor lounge area has a banquette, ﬁrepit and an oversize Buddha statue. More adventurous guests can explore the terra cotta-tiled rooftop deck, with its stunning city vistas. F. Ron Smith and David Berg of Compass held the listing and also repped Shadyac.

Linkin Park’s Brad Delson Lists 90210 Digs Linkin Park founding member Brad Delson and wife Elisa Doren are looking for a change of scenery, having re-hoisted their longtime main L.A. residence onto the market with a nearly $8 million thud. The cou- m ple has been attempting to sell the prop- $5.75 erty since May, when it was first listed with BEVERLY HILLS a more aggressive, $8.5 million price tag. 6,170 SQ. FT. The charming East Coast traditional is partially vine-encrusted, sequestered at the 5 BEDROOMS end of a quiet cul-de-sac behind tall hedges 6 BATHS and gates, and sited within a guard-gated community in the mountains above Bev- erly Hills. There are six bedrooms and seven bathrooms in 5,000 square feet. Records On the upper level are four bedrooms from mangled tree branches, the half-acre show Delson purchased the house in early — all of them en suite — including the lot offers a roomy motor court and a three- 2006 for $4.75 million, and the 1987-built roomy master, outfitted with a spa-style car garage. structure, which was “recently updated,” per bath with built-in soaking tub. A plus-size From outdoors, the house appears to be the listing, remains impeccably maintained. gazebo overlooks the pool/spa area, while a rather ordinary Tuscan-style McMansion; The traditional center-hall floor plan the grassy entertaining spaces are numer- inside, however, the 6,170-square-foot beige offers trendy ebony black hardwood floor- ous and shaded by mature trees and tower- manor, which includes five bedrooms and ing, a cook’s kitchen with marble counter- ing hedges. Victoria Risko of Sotheby’s Intl. six bathrooms, is an eye-popping hot mess of tops, milky white custom cabinetry and Realty holds the listing. lurid colors, clashing textures and assorted top-of-the-line stainless appliances, plus an decorative debauchery. There’s a soaring attached breakfast area. Other main floor foyer with a staircase whose banisters appear spaces include an expansive formal living to be covered in slithering snakes, a vaguely room, formal dining room and a family/bil- Dr. Phil’s Son Looks for medieval wet bar with chairs that wouldn’t liards room with marble-surround fireplace. look out of place in “Lord of the Rings,” and Wild Buyer in BevHills a moody dining room with a glass-encased A remarkably wacky house — technically gun wall and an oversize anime pig. Other owned by stalwart talk show host Dr. Phil interior spaces are jammed in an offhanded McGraw and his longtime wife Robin — in manner with random figurines and artifacts the mountains above Beverly Hills recently that include a Kelly Wearstler bowl, a vintage popped up for sale with an asking price Louis Vuitton trunk and multiple “Star Wars” of $5.75 million. But the couple has never action figures. actually lived in this house; rather, the effu- It’s not clear who’s in the market for a sively decorated villa, purchased in 2007 for nearly $6 million mansion decorated in just under $5 million, has long been occu- such a brazenly bizarre manner, though m pied solely by Jordan McGraw, their younger the listing, held by Billy Dolan of Hilton & $8 son, an aspiring singer who previously Hyland, gently implies that a future owner opened on tour for the Jonas Brothers. may want to rip everything out and start BEVERLY HILLS P.O. 6 BEDROOMS Invisible from the street and privately afresh. “[The] eclectic finishes can be kept 5.000 SQ. FT. 7 BATHS sequestered at the end of a long driveway or transformed into your own vision,” behind whimsical gates that appear hewn according to digital marketing materials.

Digs Sweden’s Icehotel: created intricate ice sculptures More Than Cold Comfort depicting Arctic reindeer, African For the past 30 years, the Iceho- big cats and more. Despite its Ins- Zayn Malik’s SoHo tel has been constructed annually tagrammable beauty, this crys- VARIETY.COM Penthouse Is ‘History’y’ from 2,500 tons of ice and snow talline palace isn’t for the faint of Erstwhile One Direction band-d- in the village of Jukkasjärvi, Swe- heart — the hotel’s temperature mate Zayn Malik has sold hiss den, with a mission to merge the is always kept at 17 to 23 degrees snazzy SoHo home, purchaseded worlds of conservation, art and Fahrenheit. Icehotel will be open for $10.61 million in 2018 afterer hospitality. About 125 miles above like the midnight sun and north- until April when the structure

he broke up with supermodelel the Arctic Circle, the hotel is in ern lights. This year, there are 15 returns to its humble beginnings 15, 2020 JANUARY Gigi Hadid, for $9.45 million — a prime location to experience themed “art suites,” where more as water in the Torne River. MAE

MALIK: ANDREW H WALKER/WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; ICEHOTEL: DANIEL KREHER/IMAGEBROKER/SHUTTERSTOCK DANIEL ICEHOTEL: MALIK: ANDREW H WALKER/WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; a massive loss. MAE HAMILTONN awe-inspiring natural phenomena than 30 international artists have HAMILTON 33 Untitled-17 1 1/14/20 11:38 AM A C A D E M Y A W A R D® N O M I N A T I O N S INCLUDING 6 • THE“ YEAR’S BEST MOVIE LOS ANGELES TIMES”

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

Untitled-17 2 1/14/20 11:38 AM

Producers Broccoli Barbara andMichaelG. Wilson, oversight whoassumed of Bondinthelate ’90s, have the helped THE U.K. ISSUE

GUTTER CREDIT superspy navigate changing geopolitical and cultural waters to remain relevant in a new millennium

GUTTER CREDIT

BY BRENT LANG THE U.K. ISSUE

Eon Prods., the family’s company, splits profits with MGM/UA, the studio that has the right to finance and distribute all of the Bond movies. “For better or worse, we are the custodians of this character,” says Barbara Broccoli, who oversees the franchise with her half-brother Michael G. Wilson. “We take that responsibility seriously.” It’s an arrangement that was first hammered out by For nearly 60 years on the Broccoli’s father, the producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli, when John F. Kennedy was president and the Twist silver screen, James Bond, the was all the rage. Miraculously, that pact has prevailed through the decades and generations, enduring every- rakish secret agent who jets thing from corporate mergers and bankruptcies to shifting consumer tastes and geopolitical upheavals. The from one exotic port of call to elder Broccoli died in 1996. but not before ceding control to his two children with the 1995 release of “Golden- another, romancing women Eye,” a film that proved a sexist superspy, conceived by novelist Ian Fleming in the 1950s, still had a role to play and besting bad guys in the in post-Cold War cinema. Hollywood’s longest-running — and one of its most name of queen and country, lucrative — franchises, the spy series has spawned 24 films that have collectively amassed $16.3 billion in has answered to one person. global ticket sales, adjusted for inflation, according to a 2018 Forbes story on Bond by the numbers ($6.9 billion M, the no-nonsense intelligence unadjusted, per data site The Numbers). On April 10, “No Time to Die,” Eon’s 25th Bond adven- chief, is the only one who ture, will hit U.S. theaters, representing a moment of both triumph and uncertainty for the series. It serves as the cul- can revoke the British spy’s mination of Daniel Craig’s critically acclaimed, massively successful five-film run as 007; this time, after threatening license to kill. And even M isn’t to turn his back on the series for years, the star is insistent that he is finally holstering Bond’s Walther PPK for good. always successful at reining “I’m in total denial,” says Broccoli. “I’ve accepted what Daniel has said, but I’m still in denial. It’s too traumatic in 007. ¶ Off screen, it’s a for me.” Broccoli, who joined Wilson in a rare sit-down inter- different story. One family, the view with Variety last month, conducted in a drab Brook- lyn studio far removed from the casinos, five-star hotels Broccolis, has long maintained and villas that Bond habituates, weighs her words carefully. She’ll cast a reproachful eye at Wilson when his an iron grip on the franchise. attempts at humor strike her as ill-considered. “Amer- icans don’t do irony,” he notes at one point, gesturing Thanks to a highly unique deal, toward his U.S.-born interrogator. Unlike the famously chatty Bond villains who have a they have been able to exert penchant for spilling every detail of their deadly schemes instead of concentrating on killing off 007, the plot details an unprecedented level of of “No Time to Die” are being closely held. There’s a paper-thin logline, one that states that Bond, having creative control, serving as retired from active duty, finds himself pulled back into the world of espionage after a scientist is abducted. Nei- the final arbiter on everything ther Broccoli nor Wilson will reveal much beyond that, but they do promise that the film will tie up loose narra- from the scripts to the casting tive threads left over from previous Craig outings. “We have come to an emotionally satisfying conclu- to the promotional materials. sion,” says Broccoli.

BOND AT THE BOX OFFICE Eon’s 007 movies have minted a total of $6.9 billion at the global box office

May 1963 May 1964 December 1964 December 1965 June 1967 December 1969

DR. NO FROM RUSSIA GOLDFINGER THUNDERBALL YOU ONLY LIVE ON HER MAJESTY’S WITH LOVE TWICE SECRET SERVICE

$60m $79m $125m $141m $112m $82m

38 VARIETY On the press tour for 2015’s “Spectre,” Craig complained about the physical BOND’S BOSSES “You think of him as being from Britain or the Com- toll of playing Bond, saying that he would rather “slash my wrists” than return Barbara Broccoli monwealth, but Britain is a very diverse place,” Wil- and Michael G. for another outing. After giving him time to rest and recuperate, Broccoli pre- Wilson oversee the son says. vailed upon him to reconsider. nearly 60-year-old There are certain things the duo appears open to “Barbara doesn’t take no for an answer,” says Craig. “It’s not in her wheel- franchise. considering, and other conversations that are nonstart- house. I had a nice long break, which I really needed. And then she was just ers, when it comes to selecting the next Bond. “He can persistent and came to me with some ideas, which we started formulating, and be of any color, but he is male,” says Broccoli. “I believe I got excited again.” we should be creating new characters for women — Already, the media has begun speculating about who could step into Bond’s strong female characters. I’m not particularly interested impeccably tailored tuxedo, with everyone from Idris Elba to Richard Madden in taking a male character and having a woman play it. I ﬁnding himself at the center of chatter. Broccoli and Wilson insist they haven’t think women are far more interesting than that.” started to map out a post-Craig world; they’re focused on completing “No Time If anything, Broccoli and Wilson’s experience with to Die,” an enormous, $250 million production. But they seem open to broaden- Craig has emboldened them to shake up the Bond for-

GREG WILLIAMS GREG ing the search beyond the usual suspects. mula. On paper, the choice was shocking. Craig, with his

U.S. RELEASE DATES. SOURCE: COMSCORE

December 1971 June 1973 December 1964 July 1977 June 1979 June 1981

DIAMONDS ARE LIVE AND LET DIE THE MAN WITH THE THE SPY WHO MOONRAKER FOR YOUR EYES ONLY FOREVER GOLDEN GUN LOVED ME

$116m $162m $98m $185m $210m $195m

VARIETY 39 THE U.K. ISSUE

blond hair, boxer’s swagger, creased face and gruff vola- sparkling waters of the Caribbean in a white bikini while filming an iconic scene tility, didn’t fit the mold. He wasn’t conventionally hand- from “Dr. No,” a diaper-wearing Broccoli, all of a year old, looked on from her some, he didn’t smack of fine living and chateaubriand mother’s lap. One of her earliest memories is of being sick on a remote Jap- and he lacked the black or brown locks that previous anese island during the shooting of 1967’s “You Only Live Twice.” Connery Bonds, from Sean Connery to Pierce Brosnan, had all intervened, lending the Broccoli family his personal doctor. School vacations rocked — though in Connery’s case that was courtesy of were spent at Pinewood Studios, which designer Ken Adam would transform a toupee. Craig’s selection was considered to be such an into the high-tech layers for various Bond adversaries; or in whichever tropi- affront to 007 purists that websites, dubbed CraigNot- cal paradise or European ski resort was being featured in the 007 installment

Bond, sprang up to decry his casting. Even the actor was Sean Connery 1963-67; 1971 of the moment. surprised to win the role. Bond was such a vivid part of the family’s life that a young Broccoli became “I thought I was just on a conveyor belt of actors who confused. “I thought James Bond was a real person until I was 7 or 8,” she says. go through their door,” remembers Craig. “I assumed “He was always talked about, so I didn’t think of him as a fictional character.” they were just casting their net very wide. I thought I’d Wilson, who at 77 is 18 years Broccoli’s senior (his mother, Dana, married go and meet them and then have a story to tell friends Cubby Broccoli in 1959), had a different entry to the franchise that formed the about that time I was considered for Bond. When they basis of the family fortune. During a break from law school, he worked as one of suggested they were serious about me doing it, I was the extras in the climax of “Goldfinger,” playing a Fort Knox guard. When Cubby completely flattered but perplexed.” Broccoli began having tax problems, Wilson, who specialized in that issue, grew It turned out, however, that Broccoli and Wilson were more involved. interested in doing something entirely different with the “I was a partner in a law firm at the time, but once I came in and got a taste character. Although 2002’s “Die Another Day,” the last of for it, I never looked back,” Wilson says. Brosnan’s four-film run, had been the most financially From advising on legal matters, Wilson quickly moved into the creative successful movie in the series’ history with a worldwide realm. He started as an assistant to the producer on 1977’s “The Spy Who Loved gross of $432 million, its climax, replete with a giant Me,” becoming executive producer on 1979’s “Moonraker” and moving on to space laser and an invisible car, pushed the story in a full producer with 1985’s “A View to a Kill.” He also co-wrote five scripts for the preposterous direction. series, beginning with 1981’s “For Your Eyes Only” and carrying through to “We got too fantastical,” says Wilson. “We had to 1989’s “License to Kill.” Wilson has continued to pop up in Bond films, making George Lazenby 1969 come back to Earth.” cameo appearances in every installment since 1977’s “The Spy Who Loved Me,”

They were also looking at a much different global playing blink-and-you-miss-them roles as varied as “Greek priest at wedding” DANJAQ/EON/UA/KOBAL/SHUTTERSTOCK situation than the one in which “Die Another Day” was and “Man in corridor when M and C meet.” conceived. “The world obviously had changed,” says People who have labored on the franchise say that Broccoli’s and Wilson’s Broccoli. “We’d had 9/11, and the stakes were higher abilities are complementary. “They both have strong points,” says Robert Wade, ,and we felt we needed a more realistic Bond.” who has co-written seven Bond films, from “The World Is Not Enough” to “No Martin Campbell, the director of “GoldenEye” and Time to Die.” “Barbara is very much concerned with the emotional side of the “Casino Royale,” says finding the right man to play a fresh story as well as the relevance of it to now. Michael’s got a very good story brain version of the legendary superspy involved whittling the and has a macabre dimension that allows us to keep the Ian Fleming flavor of final list down to eight candidates. Craig, just off a red- the thing.” eye from the U.S. set of “The Invasion,” was subjected Privately, those who have worked with the pair describe Wilson as “cerebral” to a series of screen tests. In one, he read a tense tête- and keenly interested in exploring the inner workings of MI6. Broccoli is viewed à-tête in an office from “Casino Royale,” while in another as more finely attuned to what’s going on in the industry. She’s also willing to he re-created a seduction scene that Connery performed go toe-to-toe with studio heads, making it clear that she’s outlasted previous in “From Russia With Love.” regimes and will still be standing when one film czar is deposed for another. “To be honest, it took me a little while to see it,” With the cast and crew, many of whom are long-standing Bond veterans, it’s admits Campbell. “Daniel’s acting was terrific, but he another story. The pair tries to create a familial atmosphere on set.

wasn’t a pretty-boy. Barbara was adamantly in favor of Roger Moore 1973-85 “Barbara never stops taking care of the crew,” says Cary Joji Fukunaga, the him.” Campbell won’t say who else was considered, but director of “No Time to Die.” “When I was sick, she’d make me homemade soup. one insider says Craig beat out the likes of Sam Worth- And Michael is like one of those old-school coaches who takes you aside and ington and Gerard Butler for the part. Despite the push- gives you a pep talk to keep your chin up if he thinks you might be down.” back, Broccoli knew she made the right call. They take their conservatorship seriously, reading and rereading all of Flem- “He brought flesh and blood to the character,” she ing’s novels to ensure they are remaining true to the essence of the character, says. “Bond in the novel is a silhouette. Daniel has even occasionally pulling out a dog-eared edition on the set of a film to prove a given him depth and an inner life. We were looking for point. They see themselves as preserving a legacy, one they hope outlives them a 21st-century hero, and that’s what he delivered. He both. “Michael once told me, ‘No one wants to make the last Bond movie,’” says bleeds; he cries; he’s very contemporary.” Neal Purvis, who has co-written seven Bond films with Wade. “The first time we went off to start writing, he said, ‘Don’t screw it up.’” BARBARA BROCCOLI GREW UP immersed in the world The duo will also use its authority to nix ideas — such as a “Smallville”-like

of Bond. In 1961, as Ursula Andress rose out of the television series that would have followed a teenage Bond at Eton — or to push BROSNAN: UNITED ARTISTS/PHOTOFEST; (2); DALTON: (2); MORRE, CRAIG: MOVIESTORE/SHUTTERSTOCK SNAP/SHUTTERSTOCK LAZENBY: CONNERY,

June 1983 May 1985 July 1987 July 1989 November 1995 December 1997

OCTOPUSSY A VIEW TO A KILL THE LIVING LICENSE TO KILL GOLDENEYE TOMORROW DAYLIGHTS NEVER DIES

$187m $153m $191m $156m $356m $339m

40 VARIETY for casting choices: The Broccolis were able to successfully tap Eva Green as tapped Fukunaga, best known for overseeing the first the female lead in “Casino Royale” over studio concerns that the French star season of “True Detective” and the child-soldier drama couldn’t master an English accent. “Beasts of No Nation.” Commentators were surprised They haven’t won every battle. In the early aughts, Broccoli’s ambitions to that Fukunaga, who had spent the bulk of his career have a James Bond spinoff film focused on Jinx, the secret agent played by Halle making dark dramas, would want to shoot a popcorn Berry in “Die Another Day,” were foiled when MGM got cold feet about the film’s pic. But he’d been on the producers’ radar for a long $80 million budget. That decision left Broccoli incensed. One of her main goals time. Broccoli initially had conversations with Fukun- as steward of 007 has been to shake off some of the chauvinism that character- aga about directing “Spectre” before Sam Mendes, who

ized Bond’s appearances in the novels and early films. Timothy Dalton 1987-89 had helmed “Skyfall,” came on board. Later, during a With Craig in the lead, Bond has matured. He’s not just engaged in one-night meal at En, a Japanese brasserie in New York, Fukunaga stands (though he’s had his fair share of those). He fell in love with Green’s Ves- asked to be considered for future opportunities. per Lynd only to have his heart broken, then embarked on a mature relation- “We talked at length about who the next Bond could ship with Léa Seydoux’s Dr. Madeleine Swann, the psychologist he first met in be — this was before Daniel had decided to come back “Spectre.” Those ties will be strained at the beginning of “No Time to Die,” when — and concluded it may take years to find someone else Swann’s past returns to haunt the couple in unexpected ways. The franchise as compelling,” Fukunaga remembers. Having grown up has come a long way from the time when female characters were often named watching the movies, he was eager to slide behind the after sex acts or anatomical attributes (see: Pussy Galore or Dr. Holly Goodhead). camera. “It’s the longest-running, most iconic film fran- But “No Time to Die” presents other challenges. It will be the first Bond movie chise,” he says. “You get to travel the world, work with released in the Time’s Up era. Issues of consent and workplace harassment the best talent, the finest actors out of the U.K. and go on have been fiercely debated since the last time Bond was on screen, launching a real adventure. Who would say no to that?” his trademark double entendres. Broccoli says that the filmmakers were very When production was supposed to begin on “No careful to reflect the current mood and moment in thier portrayal of women. Not Time to Die,” Fukunaga was unavailable, but his dance only does Swann return, but “No Time to Die” will also include Ana de Armas as card freed up by the time Boyle left the project. Purvis a CIA field agent and Lashana Lynch as an 00 operative — both are fully capable and Wade were tapped to write an entirely new script of holding their own in the action department. with Fukunaga, while Broccoli and Wilson enlisted “Bond’s been evolving along with all the other men in the world,” says Broc- “Fleabag” creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge to do a polish, Pierce Brosnan 1995-2002 coli. “Some have just gotten there more quickly than others.” punching up dialogue and working on character development. Broccoli and Wilson say they’re thrilled with “NO TIME TO DIE” IS EXPECTED to dominate the box office when it opens in April, what Fukunaga delivered, calling it a visually arresting but it faced significant setbacks on its road to the big screen. Danny Boyle, the adventure that follows Bond from Jamaica to Norway, Oscar-winning director of “Slumdog Millionaire,” was originally tapped to over- with a stop in the ancient Italian city of Matera. see the film, and had reportedly wanted to make a movie that dealt with tensions “He’s brought a fresh new approach,” says Broccoli. between the West and Russia. Instead, he left the project shortly before shooting “He’s made an emotionally engaging film. It’s epic both was to start, with the official reason being “creative differences.” Broccoli and in the emotional scale and on the landscape scale.” Wilson aren’t deviating from that line. Fukunaga and cinematographer Linus Sandgren “It was hard on both sides because we had mutual respect and admiration, pushed to have “No Time to Die” shot on film instead of but better to know [the differences] before you embark on a project,” says Broc- digital, believing it enhanced the look of the picture. They coli. “We worked together well for a number of months, but there came a point also used Imax cameras for key sequences. These deci- when we were discussing the sions were made with an eye toward boosting the theatri- kind of film that we wanted to cal run of “No Time to Die.” But the film is hitting theaters make, and we both came to the at a moment of transition for the industry. Netflix has conclusion we were not aligned. upended the way that people consume movies, provid- “For better Movies are very hard to make ing a direct challenge to the exhibition industry. In the

when you’re all on the same Daniel Craig 2006-20 process, Disney has launched a streaming service and or worse, page. When you’re not, it’s basi- Comcast and WarnerMedia are preparing their own sub- we are the cally impossible; We recognized scription offerings. For now, Broccoli says Bond’s future that, and in a respectful way we will remain on the big screen, but she doesn’t rule out the custodians of realized that it wasn’t going to possibility that a future 007 adventure could debut on a this character. work out.” streaming platform. The film’s release was ulti- “We make these ﬁlms for the audiences,” Broccoli We take that mately pushed back from Octo- says. “We like to think that they’re going to be seen pri- ber 2019 to April 2020, while marily on the big screen. But having said that, we have responsibility the producers scrapped the to look to the future. Our fans are the ones who dictate seriously.” script that Boyle had been craft- how they want to consume their entertainment. I don’t ing with his collaborator, John think we can rule anything out, because it’s the audience Barbara Broccoli Hodge. In Boyle’s place, they that will make those decisions. Not us.”

Notes: Two other films based on Bond, 1967’s Woody Allen parody “Casino Royale” and 1983’s “Never Say Never Again,” are not part of Eon’s official canon.

November 1999 November 2002 November 2006 November 2008 November 2012 November 2015

THE WORLD IS NOT DIE ANOTHER DAY CASINO ROYALE QUANTUM OF SOLACE SKYFALL SPECTRE ENOUGH

$362m $431m $594m $576m $1.1b $881m

VARIETY 41 THE U.K. ISSUE

PRIME LOCATION “Victoria,” starring Tom Hughes and Jenna Coleman, is filmed on a former air force base in Northern England.

42 VARIETY Smitten With Britain

For a small island nation, the U.K. exerts an outsize inﬂuence — critically and commercially — in the realm of entertainment

BY HENRY CHU

THE SUN NEVER SETS on the British entertainment empire. boxing above its weight class, Britain does that better than almost any country Whether it’s the BBC’s “Blue Planet II” wowing TV view- in the world,” says Josh Berger, head of Warner Bros. U.K. and chairman of the ers in Beijing or Paddington Bear’s new movie making British Film Institute. “The impact that British talent has on the entertainment kids squeal in Bulgaria or the latest West End hit thrilling industry is massive.” theater buffs on Broadway, Britain’s cultural offerings But all is not easy on fair Albion’s shores. This is a nation wrestling with its have conquered consumers the world over. Like the identity in a troubled and increasingly polarized era, with the never-ending U.K.’s diplomatic prowess and its military might, the Brexit saga dominating dinner-table discussion and exposing the cracks in a local entertainment industry boasts a reach and impact not-so-United Kingdom. That fretfulness is reflected in the stories being told disproportionate to the nation’s size. on screen and stage, as in Channel 4 and HBO’s “Brexit: The Uncivil War” and It probably ranks second only to the U.S. in how the National Theatre’s “My Country; a work in progress.” The British enter- widely its content crosses cultures, countries and con- tainment industry overwhelmingly favors remaining in the European Union; tinents, heightening Britain’s soft power and burnish- about half of the U.K.’s exports in the visual, performing and musical arts cross ing its international image. From “Fantastic Beasts” to the English Channel. Local players are bracing for the impact of Britain’s with- “Fleabag” to “Phantom of the Opera,” the U.K.’s films, drawal, including potentially greater difficulty hiring artists and skilled workers shows and plays attract global followings, as do many of from the Continent or using a U.K. broadcasting license in other parts of Europe. its stars, whose names regularly appear on prestigious But for all the hand-wringing and uncertainty, the world continues to beat a awards lists. Since 2010, seven Brits have flown back path to Britain’s door. Nowhere is that more evident than in the screen sectors. across the pond from L.A. clutching acting Oscars, most Film and television production spending in the U.K. has more than doubled in recently Olivia Colman in 2019 for “The Favourite” and the past 10 years, setting a record in 2017 at $4.3 billion and coming in slightly Gary Oldman in 2018 for “Darkest Hour.” shy of that in 2018. (Figures for 2019 are not yet available.) The U.K. doesn’t just dispatch people and content To cope with — and cash in on — the boom, studio construction and expansion abroad; it also draws them in. With its wealth of talent, projects are cropping up in every region of the U.K. The hit ITV and PBS series the country has become such a powerful production “Victoria” is filmed in Northern England, on a disused air force base where Buck- magnet that it can barely meet the demand for facili- ingham Palace interiors have been lavishly re-created on two soundstages. Car- ties and expertise. Disney and Netflix are setting up diff, the capital of Wales, hosts production of “Doctor Who.” Some of “Avengers: shop at Pinewood-run studios, and Warner Bros. owns Infinity War” was shot in Scotland on an old industrial site being groomed for pos- Leavesden, sparking a bit of grumbling by local produc- sible redevelopment as a permanent studio, and “Game of Thrones” has turned ers about getting squeezed out on home turf. The dance Northern Ireland into a pilgrimage destination for the show’s obsessive fans. cards of leading British directors, actors, writers and London, the nerve center of Britain’s creative industries, has ambitious plans craftspeople are booked for months, even years. to build a large studio complex on the east side of the city, with up to a dozen It all adds up to a stellar résumé for a country whose stages and an event space. “It will attract major new projects, boost the area

ITV PLC FOR MASTERPIECE ITV PLC population is barely a ﬁfth that of the U.S. “In terms of with hundreds of new jobs and show that London is open to talent, business and

VARIETY 43 THE U.K. ISSUE

imagination,” Justine Simons, London’s deputy mayor British Entertainment for culture and the creative industries, tells Variety. “Our capital has been the backdrop for so many great movies, by the Numbers

and this studio will welcome production companies from Dollar conversions are at exchange rate on Jan. 10, 2020 (£1 = $1.30) around the world.” Brits certainly love the big screen. Local cinemas Film raked in about $1.7 billion in both 2017 and 2018, making the U.K. the world’s fourth-largest ﬁlm market in box Movie Screens Admissions office terms, after North America, China and Japan. Movie ticket sales in 2018 were at their highest (177 million) in nearly 50 years. Although U.S. blockbusters usu- 4,399 177m

ally rule, plenty of love gets shown to homegrown ﬂicks 2018; 20% increase from 2008 2018; Highest since 1970 and franchises, some of which, such as the “Paddington” and “Kingsman” movies, travel well. Driven mainly by Hollywood, English remains the lingua franca of ﬁlmed Top 10 Films of All Time entertainment, which puts the mother country in prime (U.K. and Ireland)

position to peddle its wares internationally. Star Wars: The Force Awakens £123.2m ($160.2m) Britain’s storytellers are also blessed to be the inher-

itors of a national past that is the subject of global fas- Skyfall £103.2m ($134.2m) cination — a history full of crowned heads, colorful Spectre £95.2m ($123.8m) leaders, colonial excesses and courageous wartime Avatar £94.0m ($122.2m) exploits. The first non-Hollywood film to bag an Acad- Avengers: Endgame £88.7m ($115.3m) emy Award was “The Private Life of Henry VIII,” which Star Wars: The Last Jedi £82.7m ($107.5m) earned Charles Laughton a statuette in 1934 for his Titanic £80.3m ($104.4m) portrayal of the multiply married king. Indeed, playing a British monarch or prime minister seems like a The Lion King £75.9m ($98.7m) fast track to Oscar glory; just ask Colman (Queen Anne), Toy Story 3 £74.1m ($96.3m) Oldman (Winston Churchill), Helen Mirren (Elizabeth Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 £73.1m ($95.1m) II), Colin Firth (George VI), Judi Dench (Elizabeth I) and As of Dec. 8, 2019 Meryl Streep (Margaret Thatcher). Besides tales of the great and the good, the U.K. produces intimate, socially engaged fare that captivates Television moviegoers. The British indie sector, like its American counterpart, often struggles for attention and money in Most-Watched Programs a sea of studio tentpoles. But backed by industry organi- (2010-19) zations such as Film4, BBC Films and the BFI, pictures like Ken Loach’s 2016 Palme d’Or-winning “I, Daniel The X Factor 2010 Blake” and Francis Lee’s 2017 rural gay love story “God’s Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton 2011 Own Country” add luster to Britain’s cinematic reputa- London Olympics Closing Ceremony 2012 tion. (Yes, there are also duds.) New Year’s Eve Fireworks 2013 “The breadth and depth of filmmaking — both global,

blockbuster-type filmmaking and the vibrancy of Brit- World Cup Final: Germany vs. Argentina 2014 ish independent cinema — amounts to a very impressive The Great British Bake Off 2015 record of British achievement,” says Berger, an American The Great British Bake Off 2016 who has worked in London for nearly a quarter-century Blue Planet II 2017 and is a naturalized Brit. “All of us in the last 20 years have World Cup Semifinal: England vs. Croatia 2018 just seen this grow from what seemed like a cottage indus- I’m a Celebrity … Get Me out of Here! 2019 try to a global competitor right alongside Hollywood.” If the U.K.’s success in film inspires envy, its television business is another high achiever, especially in this Television Exports (2018-19) time of Peak TV. From drama to comedy, natural history to reality shows, British programs delight critics and audiences the world over. They also rake in money: £1.4b ($1.8b) In the 2018-19 financial year, television exports rose to £531m ($690.3m) to North America; £470m ($611m) to Europe a record high of about $1.8 billion, an increase of 7% from the previous year. Britannia may no longer rule the waves, but on the airwaves it still does a jolly good job. Theater The U.S. gobbled up nearly a third of those exports, with the result that British stars and shows were out in Box Office (2018) force at the 2019 Emmys, even if their branding got a bit lost somewhere over the Atlantic. Talk in the States of West End Non-West End “Amazon’s ‘Fleabag’” and “Netflix’s ‘Bodyguard’” triggered some embarrassed throat-clearing and apologetic £765.9m £510m

reminders from the U.K. that both shows originated in ($995.7m) ($663m) Britain, at the BBC. The attributions stung all the more SOURCES: BRITISH FILM INSTITUTE, BROADCASTERS’ AUDIENCE RESEARCH BOARD, COMSCORE, PRODUCERS ALLIANCE FOR CINEMA AND because the Beeb and other British broadcasters regard TELEVISION, SOCIETY OF LONDON THEATRE, U.K. CINEMA ASSN., U.K. THEATRE

44 VARIETY FLEABAG: AMAZON; TINA: MANUEL HARLAN/BONEAU/BRYAN-BROWN; KINGSMAN: GILES KEYTE/20TH CENTURY FOX talented people toNetflix.” people talented I know that hasn’t lost oneormaybe even theirtwo most inthesector. people most talented There’s nobusiness the buildingtheirbusiness by cherry-picking “they’re firmEndersAnalysis. research Enders ofmedia But try, thekudos it’s anditdeserves getting,” says Claire giant. withthestreaming ure multiyear deal aneight-fig- tobe what isbelieved whosigned Morgan, Crown” suchas“The talent, local the best writerPeter ment totheU.K. —anditsintentiontokeep onpoaching Studios, at signalsitscommit- Shepperton term lease That alongwiththecompany’s huge sum, new long- U.K. over year, thepast anamountheexpects willgrow. recently that morethan$500millioninthe Netflix spent to thecreative economy. CEOReed Hastings revealed andasignificantcontributoron theBritishlandscape tional players, Netflix isafirmlyestablished presence asexistential Americanstreamers the big-footed threats. to andexplore currentaffairs, inplays like “Albion” by quickercan oftenbe thanfilmand televisiontoreact put onnewandexperimental productions. Thestage world-class.” “Itallows ustohavedon. theNational Theatre, whichis in northwest directoroftheKilnTheatre singham, Lon- us totake innovative,” risksand be says IndhuRuba- toallow ismeant [industry] ment subsidyinourtheater termsover inreal govern- decade.quarter thepast “The publicfundingof thestagecaused tofallby morethana West Endvenues cuts, inaneraof spending whichhave a collective audience of 18.8millionthroughtheyear. across theaters theU.K. OutsideLondon, lion.) attracted $1.8bil- andgrossed lion duringthe2018-19season Broadwaycomparison, attendance logged of 14.8mil- 2018, whichbroughtinalmost $1billioninreceipts. (By record attendance inthe West End—15.5millionin spur That affinityhelped speare, was aplaywright. figure, William literary Shake-whose most important York. —TheTinaTurner Musical.” Samewith“Tina a successful inLondonbefore transferring toNew run young gay Americans, contemporary about kicked offwith front of U.S. audiences. Inheritance,” “The play atwo-part Americanlifeabout debutintheU.K. before landingin whereevencross-fertilization apoint works hasreached Evanmusicals suchas“Dear Hansen” and“Wicked.” The simultaneously,running most ofthemcrowd-pleasing West Endand Broadway had10of thesameproductions the legitworld Remarkably, aswell. at theendof2019, rials” and“KillingEve.” to make pricey shows like “Chernobyl,” “HisDark Mate- between BritishandAmericanproducers partnerships —hasalsogivenof risetomoretransatlantic Netflix” singlemost heinousimpact — whichEnderscalls“the Thesteeplyination. climbingcost ofpremiumdrama dom- onglobal bent to helpitcounter theinterlopers BritBox, intheU.K., whichhasjust launched service and Channel4areallfeeding content todigitalSVOD is thenameof thegame. Longtimerivals ITV, theBBC ers willonlyintensify. Joining forces tostay competitive vices enteringthefray, broadcast- thepressure onlocal With Disney’s andApple’s ser- direct-to-consumer “It’s makingamassive investment inourcoun- atDespite thehostility directed itfrom sometradi- In spiteof thecutbacks, Britishplayhouses regularly maskthechallenges facingnon- The rosynumbers itis, intheater; acountry afterall, Britain issteeped The busytwo-way encompasses trafficacross thepond “Kingsman: TheGolden The TinaTurner and PedroPascal, stage hit“Tina— outside theU.K. Adrienne Warren;and Circle,” withTaron have alltraveled Egerton, ColinFirth Phoebe Waller- Bridge’s “Fleabag”; CREATIVE WAVE Musical,” starring is really good.”is really Berger says, addingwithadash ofBritishunderstatement: we make “What here skills programs, ifthecontent isn’t itdoesn’t great, matter,” really Warner Bros.’ keeps tappingintothat richvein, itshouldcontinue toexcel. andthecarecraftthat IftheU.K. go told, intothetelling. being industry stage onboth andscreen:thequalityof thestoriesthe fieldof entertainment, together intheaudience. It’s tellingstories about that connect us.” together. roleinbringingpeople important has avery Literally, you bringpeople into theirdifferentother,” andthrows at each tribes rocks shesays. “Theater the divisionsthat have splitthecountry. “We’re gets inatimewhereeveryone around theU.K. aftertheBrexit To referendum. canhelp ease art Rubasingham, work inprogress,” interviewed people whichfeatures thewords of ordinary Mike whichdelves intoEngland’s Bartlett, a identitycrisis, and“MyCountry; “No matter how many you taxcredits have, how many and dramaschools that’sIn theend, what of liesat Britain’s theroot success extraordinary in VARIETY 45 THE U.K. ISSUE 46 WHEN CHANNEL4LAUNCHES BARRACLOUGH BY LEO nation at large representative of the moremake industry outside Londonto Business diversifies the wake of the2016 Brexit referendum, whichhas for theU.K.’s nations andregions. put,” says Rocks, Sinead Channel4’s managing director of thechannelanditsout- apart tobe get themready on-screen talentthat able we better todevelop willbe to wouldn’tperhaps have able totapintobefore, been new overshadowedtorically been by theBritishcapital. ing Wales, that Scotland have Ireland, andNorthern his- new stories oftheU.K., andnewvoices fromparts includ- and resources. andidentify thewealth tospread Thegoal: theindustry’swhich haslonghogged attention, talent outofLondon, toshiftproduction industry entertainment Channel 4’s newnational headquarters. ofLondonandisthehome of 200milesnorth about live broadcast fromthecityofLeeds,will be whichlies of daytime,head inGlasgow, whoisbased It Scotland. McGovern, was commissioned bythenetwork’s new Steph Show,” starring journalist andpresenterSteph heavily London-centric. Bycontrast,nel 4hasbeen “The mark amilestone intheU.K. broadcaster’s output. itwill thisspring, StephShow” affairs program“The It’s that aneffort hastaken on newurgency in “[It’s] different about really ideas, different stories we moveThe programisemblematic ofabroader inthe Like industries, most oftheBritishfilmandTV Chan- VREY VARIETY

itsdaytime current- Geography Lesson Geography

GUTTER CREDIT GUTTER CREDIT Silverback Films,isbased show’s productioncompany, VARIETY The “OurPlanet”nature California desert.The series filmsworldwide — hereintheSouthern in Bristol,England. GROWING FIELD 47 THE U.K. ISSUE “The Brexit referendum was awake-up calltoall 48 cern of instead just aphilosophicalexercise. amatter hasbecome don inthesouth, ofpracticalcon- a whole, ofLon- andnotjust aprojectionofthebigbeast as morerepresentative ofthecountry tainment industry Suddenly, tomake theneed theU.K.’s thrivingenter - ofBritishsociety. polarization upanincreasing pointed erning quotasfor expenditure andprogramhours both regulator gov- Ofcom therules industry hastightened and itsvarious agencies. Inthecaseofbroadcasting, geographically by isbacked theBritishgovernment full range of opinion.” broadcaster,lic service toreﬂectthat Channel 4needs society,fractured we areadiverse society, andasapub- ence asonehomogenized lump,” Rocks says. “We area intheU.K.broadcasters that you can’t thinkoftheaudi-

Channel 4needstoreflect that fullrangeof opinion.” are adiverse society, andasapublicservice broadcaster, broadcasters intheU.K. ...We areafracturedsociety, we “The Brexit referendum was“The awake-up calltoall The move industry todiversify theentertainment

Sinead Rocks, VREY VARIETY Channel 4 BBC, 35% for Channel4andITV, and10%for Channel5. For madeoutsideLondon. of productions thecoming year, that’s 50%for the since itwas founded in 2002. wherethecompany based England, hasbeen innortheast shot inSheffield, Irishman”a hard-hitting seriesstarring “The actorStephenGrahamthat was well for Warp Films, Virtues,” ShaneMeadows’ “The whichrecently produced notadisadvantage. farfromLondonisabenefit, ers findingthat being Itworks to make some of the bolder decisions that helped shape thecompany.”to make shape decisionsthat some of thebolder helped know you inaLondonenvironment need —thenthat mighthave trickier been I’ve madehave theriskierones, been andifIhadamassive overhead —that you ative,” Warp’s says MarkHerbert, decisions adding:“Someofthebest co-CEO, elsewhere, itwould nothave cre- orthetimetobe tobreathe hadthespace prefers. Meadows the semi-improvised approach “Ifwe’d hadtomake ‘Virtues’ have five ofthetypical10weeks, instead months’preparation and facilitated suite.duction base, andediting space to rehearsal theproduction Thisenabled New players andhubsaresproutinguparoundtheU.K., withsomeproduc- The lower rentsinSheffieldallowed Warp totake over as apro- anoldschool

(PREVIOUS SPREAD) SKYLAR SHERBROOKE/SILVERBACK/NETFLIX (THIS PAGE) CHANNEL 4 (OPPOSITE PAGE) HIS DARK MATERIALS: ALEX BAILEY/HBO; SHAUN THE SHEEP: JAK BENNETT/STUDIOCANAL UK Herbert frequently travels to other cities to meet potential creative part- One of the aims of the various relocations has been ners. “When you’re outside that London bubble, you tend to look elsewhere to establish clusters of expertise around the country. for content, stories and talent. Somehow you are more open to explor- The city of Bristol, in southwest England, is one of the ing, meeting talent, going to see regional theater, regional writers,” he says. world’s centers of the creation of wildlife and nature “That has helped us find some of the talent and projects we’ve gotten to first.” programming. As well as housing the BBC’s famed Nat- Past British global hits set in lesser-known parts of the country have included ural History Unit, the city is home to production compa- “Trainspotting” (Edinburgh), “The Full Monty” (Sheffield) and “Billy Elliot” nies such as Silverback Films, whose “Our Planet” series (County Durham) on the big screen and “Poldark” (Cornwall) and “Peaky Blind- for Netflix nabbed two Emmys. ers” (Birmingham) on TV. But many of those productions were conceived and According to Silverback co-founder Alastair Foth- ordered in London. ergill, who refers to Bristol as Green Hollywood, more As part of its relocation, Channel 4 has moved some of its top commission- than half of the world’s wildlife shows are produced ers from London to Leeds, including the head of drama and the head of sports. in the city. His own company’s blue-chip natural his- About 300 of the broadcaster’s 900 jobs will be based outside the British capital tory programs receive 80% of their funding from the by the end of next year, including 250 in Leeds. (CEO Alex Mahon will continue international market, and Fothergill often travels to Los to be based mostly in London, however.) Channel 4 says it intends not only to Angeles to meet with clients. “Our perspective is very, meet its Ofcom quota but to surpass it by spending 50% of its production bud- very global, and so whether [we are based in] Bristol get outside London by 2023. or London, it’s a very small movement on a very large The success of the network’s “Derry Girls,” a comedy set in Northern Ireland map,” he says. in the 1990s against a backdrop of civil strife, demonstrates how a show made It’s not just the creatives who contribute to the city’s outside London can strengthen a broadcaster’s output. It gave Channel 4 its ecosystems but ancillary services like post-produc- biggest comedy launch in 15 years. “It’s that kind of storytelling that we hope tion, graphics and facilities such as Bottle Yard Studios. we’ll see more of when we’re fully embedded in these different communities,” “There’s a real sense of community here in Bristol. We Rocks says. “The likes of ‘Derry Girls’ will give commissioners confidence that help each other out, and we share talents, and we coop- having something with a very clear geographical setting doesn’t have to mean erate as much as we can,” Fothergill says. it is in any way parochial.” The city is also home to world-famous Aardman Ani- Another rapidly developing creative hub is in South Wales, with an empha- mations, the creators of “Wallace & Gromit” and “Shaun sis on drama series, which kicked off when then-BBC executives Jane Tranter the Sheep”; and Plimsoll Prods., which makes wildlife and Julie Gardner decided to base production for the rebooted “Doctor Who” documentary shows and other types of unscripted con- in Cardiff. In 2015, the duo set up production company Bad Wolf in the region, tent. Channel 4 is planning to set up a small creative supported by a loan from the Welsh government. They’re producing “His hub in Bristol and another in Glasgow. Dark Materials” at their production facility there, Wolf Studios Wales, for the Bad Wolf’s Hale applauds the shift from the tradi- BBC and HBO. tional center of gravity of Britain’s film and TV indus- The company continues to work closely with Welsh officials. One example: tries. “The audience isn’t all in London, and the a training and education program it set up. As in other regions, the quality and audience’s stories and experiences [in other parts of depth of below-the-line staff is a potential brake on further growth. “We can’t train the U.K.] are different,” she says. “That needs to be rep- the crew quickly enough,” says Natasha Hale, Bad Wolf’s chief operating officer. resented properly.”

THINKING REGIONAL Lin-Manuel Miranda (above) stars in “His Dark Materials,” which is being shot in Wales. Director Richard Phelan (right) surveys a shot in “Shaun the Sheep,” from Aardman Animations, which is based in Bristol.

VARIETY 49 THE U.K. ISSUE Report Impact U.K. 50 drawing onhisothercareer asahigh-profile rapper. roots.” Coming up, hestars inrap tale“MughalMowgli” (which healsoco-wrote), tree,” theOxford gradsays. thetree, “Iwant tobe to provide shelter, toputdown projects he’s “Idon’t developing. for nutsbythe asquirrellooking want tobe TV. through Ahmed seekstopromotethecareersof otherminorityperformers activism inraisingfundsfor Syrianrefugee childrenandadvocating diversity in Emmy —thefirst manof SouthAsian descent todoso. Theprofile his alsoflagged crawler,” “Girls,” “Jason NightOf,” Bourne” and“The forhe won which anacting in“Night- for hisperformances inpart intheworld, most influentialpeople Time magazine Ahmed onits featured Riz Ahmed BY TIMDAMS burstingcoming withboth. stars inacountry creativity, comprising established andup-and- U.K.’s reputation asanincubator of talentand Following are30influencers burnishingthe ACTOR AND RAPPER VREY VARIETY

cover in2017,declaringhimoneof the later thisyear. due tostartshooting Dollar Spy,” whichis thriller “TheBillion tion onColdWar She’s inpre-produc- America” series. ments ofFX’s “Mrs. is helmingtwo install- Handmaid’s Tale” and two episodesof“The screen. Shedirected been seenonthesmall Asante’s work has Festival. More recently, the 2016London Film Kingdom,” opened Her third, “A United period drama“Belle.” second feature, 2013 further acclaimfor her of Life,” andscored film, 2004’s “A Way a BAFTA for herfirst and director. Shewon camera asawriter moved behindthe as achildactor, then in theBritishindustry Asante cutherteeth Writer-director “Pashmina” for Netflix. of graphicnovel animated adaptation She’s working onan “Viceroy’s House.” and BerlinFest title “Bride &Prejudice” most memorablyin and Western cultures, between SouthAsian explores theclash work consistently Springsteen. Chadha’s in themusicofBruce and findinginspiration in Britain a Pakistanifamily in about growing up in Manzoor,by Sarfraz based onthememoir Light,” afeature film hit “Blindedby the for andSundance ITV ma “BeechamHouse” last year: perioddra- projects tothescreen brought two major Beckham” director The “BendItLike Writer-d AMMA ASANTE CHADHA GURIND irector the 1980 ER ILLUSTRATIONS BY ANDREWBASTOW s the environment. of humanson addresses theimpact One Planet,” also “Seven Worlds, His latestseries, plastic intheoceans. a globaldebateabout Planet II”unleashing his shows, with“Blue mental concernsinto to weave environ- at 93, hehasstarted know it.More recently, programming aswe style ofnaturalhistory on toinvent theepic borough hasgone Quest” in1954, Atten- wildlife series“Zoo woman). Startingwith was themost-admired (Queen ElizabethII men inBritain2019 of themost-admired the listinasurvey broadcaster topped The naturalhistory Natu Them AllTalk.” Max comedy“Let Soderbergh’s HBO Meryl Streep in Steven also starsalongside out inNovember. She pole “TheEternals,” vel’s superhero tent- co-starring role inMar- exposure. Next upisa added toherglobal Rich Asians” hasonly Find Them.” “Crazy Beasts andWhere to Ya Zhouin“Fantastic of Scots” andMadam wick in“MaryQueen Marvel,” BessofHard- Minn-Erva in“Captain geance. She’s played Hollywood withaven- educated Chanhashit “Humans,” Oxford- role asarobot in Girl” andabreakout “Secret DiaryofaCall in “DoctorWho,” with appearances in Britishtelevision Beginning hercareer Act presenter ATTENBOROUGH DAVID GEMMA CHAN or ral history to airinthespring. sent. Theseriesisset explores sexual con- “January 22nd,” which ical BBC-HBOdrama loosely autobiograph- wrote andstarsinthe ence intoherart:She channeled thatexperi- project. Butshe’s a London housing young blackgirlfrom industryasa the TV attempts tonavigate suffered duringher and sexual assaultshe discussed theracism burgh Festival, TV she Lecture attheEdin- 2018’s MacTaggart Goodman. Delivering Earth Rising”withJohn Last Jedi”and“Black Mirror,” “Star Wars: The appeared in“Black Gum,” Coelhas 2015 sitcom“Chewing creating andactingin (and two BAFTAs) for After winningfame Actor-writer-produce for Bellamy. for Studios,and ITV as akey moment Talpa Mediawas seen “The Voice” producer 2015 acquisitionof from advertising. The strategy todiversify broadcaster ITV’s crucial tocommercial tion banners,hasbeen more than50produc- Studios, now hometo ery Networks Intl.ITV sioning chiefatDiscov- and isformer commis- programs atChannel4 liked, hewas headof Respected andwell- ... GetMeoutofHere!” mats as“I’m aCelebrity guard,” andsuchfor- Street,” drama“Body- soap “Coronation sible for long-running Studios,respon-ITV and distributiongroup, largest production TV Bellamy runstheU.K.’s S ITV Managing director, MICHAELA COEL JULIAN BELLAMY tudios r

ASANTE: MICHELLE QUANCE/SHUTTERSTOCK; ATTENBOROUGH: ALEX BOARD/BBC; BELLAMY: ROBERT SEVERI; CHADHA: TAYLOR JEWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; CHAN: ANTHONY HARVEY/SHUTTERSTOCK; COEL: PHOTOGRAPH BY SHAYAN ASGHARNIA BERRY: JAMES VEYSEY/BAFTA/SHUTTERSTOCK; BOYEGA: STEWART COOK/SHUTTERSTOCK; BROCCOLI: EVAN AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; BROWN: SHUTTERSTOCK; CRAIG: MAGNUS SUNDHOLM/SHUTTERSTOCK; DAVEY: SKY; EJIOFOR: TAYLOR JEWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK CEO in theindustry. ronmental initiatives rassment andenvi- anti-bullying, anti-ha- is attheheartof ensuring thatBAFTA respect aswell for movie.) She’s won it a“made for TV” (Exhibitors called BAFTAs lastyear. “Roma” won four after Netflixfeature who complained a row withexhibitors had tosmoothover film industry. Berry nature and oftheTV with thechanging She’s alsodealing to addanewfloor. Circus headquarters its grandPiccadilly zation, renovating roof for theorgani- literally raisingthe Awards, Berryisnow tion oftheBAFTA Film international reputa- Having grown the and Léa Seydoux. co-stars RamiMalek my agents)alongside (plus anumberofene- has licensetokillit big screen. But Craig had alongroad tothe “No Time toDie” has The highlyanticipated dunit, “Knives Out.” Rian Johnson’s who- Dragon Tattoo” and “The GirlWith the such as“Defiance,” a rangeofotherfilms mantle, he’s starred in taking onthe007 want for work. Since tre.” Ifso, hewon’t “Skyfall” and“Spec- “Quantum ofSolace,” Royale,” followed by in 2006’s “Casino rebooted franchise galvanizing the as JamesBondafter Craig donshistuxedo mark thelasttime Time toDie” likely will April’s release of“No Acto DANIEL CRAIG AMANDA BERR , BAFTA r Y NBC andUniversal too. studio canpartnerwith part ofComcast,the HBO co-production. As Third Day,” another tional drama,“The Studios’ firstinterna- also underway onSky nobyl.” Production is co-production “Cher- Golden Globe-winning Sky-HBO Emmy- and major success:the on thecontinent.A European producer TV Studios thebiggest which would make Sky year withinfive years, reported $1.2 billiona in programming toa company’s investment task istodoublethe sion SkyStudios.His new production divi- pay-TV giant:leading sition oftheEuropean cast’s $40 billionacqui- last year afterCom- Davey gotanewrole Longtime Skyexec CEO, Sky early ’80s. the late1960s through Indian communityin set inLondon’s West series, “Small Axe,” upcoming anthology Steve McQueen’s British castindirector He headsanall-star thriller “Rebel Ridge.” andinNetflix larity” drama “Naked Singu- He’s settostarinheist “Pacific Rim:Uprising.” and sci-fiblockbuster torical drama“Detroit” Kathryn Bigelow’s his- tials withleadroles in burnished hiscreden- “Attack theBlock” and in 2011sci-ficomedy prominence intheU.K. Londoner rose to wrapped. TheSouth Skywalker sagahas Disney andLucasfilm’s the finalchapterof opportunities now that to explore lotsmore Boyega willhave time Actor GARY DAVEY JOHN BOYEGA Studios imagination.” on filmorTV.much better served Thetheater isabout the in thetheater. Ifyou want todosomethingrealistic, you’re Elliott says: “Idon’t well works particularly thinkrealism ChrisHarper.ing partner asadirector, Of herapproach own company, Elliott Prods., &Harper alongsideproduc- instincts,” Elliott says. her hertostart Thoseinstincts led you’re you acreative have orartist, person tofollow your London staging Mil of Arthur ler’s of “Death aSalesman.” “If can Americanfamilyfor theusuallywhitecharactersina New York Morerecently, inMarch. Elliott anAfri- swapped received ofinstead aman, four OlivierAwards; in itopens heim’s “Company,” whichmakes theprotagonist awoman three Tonys. HerWest of StephenSond- Endproduction transferred toBroadway inMarch2018. Itwent ontowin ica,” andNathan Lane, starring AndrewGarfield which where sheoversaw revival the lauded of “Angels inAmer- whereElliott wasdon, anassociate directorfor and 10years Night-Time.” at Bothdebuted theNational Theatre inLon- for “War CuriousIncidentof theDogin Horse”and“The Elliott was thefirst female directortowintwo Tony Awards, intellectually challengingandcommercially successful, generation, withaknackfor creating theater that’s both One of directorsof themost her acclaimed andtalented Elliott Marianne DIRECTOR

ma IsaTime Machine.” Angelica Zollo’s “Trau- Choe’s and “Nancy” Section,” Christina Morano’s “TheRhythm ects, includingReed female-directed proj- championed other to Die.” Broccoli has 007 film“NoTime lend perspective to hired asawriter to Waller-Bridge was film industry. Phoebe diversity withinthe to encouragegreater promoted initiatives Atlantic, Broccoli has both sidesofthe Well-connected on continued tothrive. Bond franchisehas ensured theJames in 1995, andhave “Cubby” Broccoli, from theirdad,Albert Wilson tookover Eon brother MichaelG. Broccoli andstep- Produc Fuqua’s “Infinite.” Theron, andinAntoine alongside Charlize “The OldGuard” comic bookpicture him thisyear inNetflix King.” Look outfor Scar in“TheLion he lenthisvoice to tions. More recently, Golden Globenomina- received Oscarand he won aBAFTA and a Slave,” for which most notably“12Years Ejiofor hasstarred in, stirring adaptations a seriesofintelligent, story, it’s thelatestin film. Basedonatrue international feature Oscar contenderfor submitted astheU.K.’s Harnessed theWind,” debut, “TheBoy Who ing anddirecting with hisfeature-writ- delivered lastyear Ejiofor more than Actor-director- BROCCOLI BARBARA EJIOFOR CHIWETEL er, EonProds. writer VARIETY Bee Geesmovie. in Paramount’s untitled Sister isalsoinvolved zon. Through Snider, “The Power” for Ama- of NaomiAlderman’s up isanadaptation and theU.S. Coming studios intheU.K. casters, platforms and andfilmtobroad-TV supplier oftop-quality help keep itgoingasa in Sister, whichshould Snider have invested Fox Film chairStacey former 20thCentury Elisabeth Murdoch and non-executive chair Former ShineGroup for limitedseries. and directing Emmy tures, earnedawriting new shingle,SisterPic- “Chernobyl,” from her drama producers. of Britain’s leading Featherstone isone Sister Pictures Producer, of “Mythbusters.” and Tory Belleci of “TheGrandTour” Richard Hammond engineering serieswith and asurvival-cum- ty format “Love Island” French version ofreali- tions. Inthepipeline:a is keen onco-produc- stressing thatAmazon to commissioning, collaborative approach plaudits for laying outa markets. She’s alsowon execs infive priority Europe, appointing productions across the digitalgiant’s local a rapidexpansion in executive hasoverseen The former Fremantle business withAmazon. who want todo for European producers self asthepointperson quickly establishedher- Hired in2017, Brown Studios originals, Amazon Director ofEuropean FEATHERSTONE JANE GEORGIA BROWN 51 THE U.K. ISSUE 52 Al Smith. Sami Ibrahimand Debris Stevenson, Alistair McDowall, is newwork from Churchill. Comingup playwrights, Caryl U.K.’s mostcelebrated Imp.,” by oneofthe “Glass. Kill.Bluebeard. 2019, sheprogrammed nearly seven years. In at theRoyal Courtfor Featherstone hasbeen Theatre of Scotland, director oftheNational The founding artistic and abusesofpower. sexual harassment of behavior toprevent theater industrycode the publicationofa scandals. Thisincluded industry’s harassment the entertainment swift response to been laudedfor her Featherstone has Royal Court Theatre Artistic director, FEATHERSTONE VICKY kick someass, andI’llsay, I’m ‘OK, done.’” says. onetime, “Itcan just be andI’llhave acool outfitand form-fitting Lycra oneday. “Iwant toplay asuperhero,” she uel in“Fast &Furious shehopes, 9”thisyear —and, in outfor Emman- Look bytheclassic film. miniseries inspired ring roleasMaya in“Four Weddings andaFuneral,” theHulu Scorch Trials.” Morerecently, shehastaken herfirst star- hacker in“Furious 7”andhadarolein“Maze Runner: The had.” happywas being really Emmanuelplayed acomputer ahugesparked conversation, aconversation Iwas really, cially,” Emmanuelsays. byher. felt represented “They It ized how for muchMissandei women meant of color espe- about lackof diversitybacklash ontheshow. “Ihadn’t real- apublic triggered inthefinalseason demiseearly her brutal afanfavorite; Thecharacterbecame everything. changed EmiliaClarke’ssandei, sassy sidekickin“Game of Thrones,” tofindwork untilacasting callfor theroleofstruggled Mis- known intheU.K. “Hollyoaks” but teensoap inpopular intheWest LionKing” “The morewidely Shebecame End. as a10-year-old playing Nala intheoriginalstage version of Emmanuel hascome alongway since landingherfirst break Nathalie Emmanuel ACTOR VREY VARIETY head Fred Hampton. activist andchapter about assassinated Homeboy,” abiopic in “Jesus Was My real-life BlackPanther Next, heportrays a thriller “Queen &Slim.” Matsoukas’ road-movie Turner-Smith inMelina starred alongsideJodie ows.” More recently, he and“Wid- Panther” Out” toroles in“Black went straightfrom “Get winner in2018, Kaluuya EE RisingStarAward on thestage.ABAFTA and “BlackMirror” and as “Skins,” “TheFades” mances inseriessuch hard work, withperfor- more thanadecadeof success; itcameafter a storyofovernight nation. Butitwasn’t actor Oscarnomi- Out” earnedhimalead turn inhorror hit“Get Kaluuya’s breakout Actor DANIEL KALUUYA James Gay-Rees. with producer partner Corner, setupalong tion company, Onthe through hisproduc- docs are produced ematic impact.His for maximum cin- footage and editing ingly researched screen withpainstak- narration, fillingthe ing talkingheadsfor filmmaking: eschew- to documentary signature approach has developed a for “Senna.” Kapadia “Amy” andaBAFTA Oscar andBAFTA for him adocumentary The three filmswon “Diego Maradona.” andlastyear’s(2015) “Senna” “Amy” (2010), tragic effects of fame: films chronicling the trio ofbiographical Kapadia hasmadea director Documentary ASIF KAPADIA

side Keira Knightley. “Misbehaviour,” along- beauty pageantfilm “Come Away”; and Seacole; fantasy drama Jamaican nurseMary based onthelife of stars in“Seacole,” Mbatha-Raw thisyear indie film“Farming.” Morning Show” and Plus’Apple TV “The “Motherless Brooklyn,” in Edward Norton’s slate ofprojects: to anequallydiverse in thepastyear thanks been intheascendant “Hamlet.” Herstarhas Lawopposite Jude in or onstageasOphelia “Beauty andtheBeast” “Belle,” Disneymusical in Time,” perioddrama sci-fi feature “A Wrinkle of herroles, whetherin the rangeandvariety Mbatha-Raw, suchis It’s hard topigeonhole Actor MBATHA-RAW GUGU Prize winner’s work. spective of the Turner putting onaretro- year, Tate Modernis schools. Laterthis children from London photographs of76,000 613 billboard-size project encompasses ed artist:Hislatest is alsoacelebrat- Year’s HonoursList, in thequeen’s New received aknighthood But McQueen,who the seriesfor theU.S. Amazon haspicked up an all-starBritishcast. John Boyega heading with Letitia Wright and BBC series“Small Axe,” small screen withhis year hemoves tothe Years aSlave.” This Oscar-winning “12 “Widows” andthe “Hunger,” “Shame,” of credits, including has adistinguishedlist As adirector, McQueen Director andartist STEVE MCQUEEN ers totheBBC. can winyounger view- herstrategy hoping ment, Moore willbe broadcasting environ- challenges ofthenew as ready totake onthe executive who’s seen “His DarkMaterials.” An bigger storiessuchas an emphasisonfewer, and newtalent,with home ofBritishstories pitched theBBCas able longer. She’s also making shows avail- the BBCiPlayer by viewing, focusing on prioritized on-demand the U.K. market. She’s of thestreamers into against theincursion the broadcaster’s fight to leave, Moore hasled Hall whenhedecides director general Tony didate toreplace BBC Seen asastrong can- BBC Director ofcontent, MOORE CHARLOTTE King ofScotland.” “Rush” and“TheLast include “Frost/Nixon,” and theatercredits that a longlistoffilm,TV Rhapsody,” buildingon feature hit“Bohemian gan alsohadahandin Duffer Brothers. Mor- Things” creators the in, including“Stranger that Netflixhaslocked an elitecorpsoftalent total tosix.He’s oneof bringing theseries of “TheCrown,” least two more seasons deal willresult inat at leastfour years, the projects. Saidtolast both filmandTV streaming giantfor overall dealwiththe signed alucrative royal drama,Morgan season ofhislavish the launchofthird with Netflix.Aheadof is staying inbusiness The “Crown” creator Showrunner PETER MORGAN

FEATHERSTONE: PAUL COOPER/SHUTTERSTOCK; KALUUYA: AMY SUSSMAN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; KAPADIA: AALOK SONI/HINDUSTAN TIMES/SHUTTERSTOCK; MBATHA-RAW: PHOTOGRAPH BY CAITLIN CRONENBERG; MCQUEEN: GUY BELL/SHUTTERSTOCK; MOORE: BBC; MORGAN: JOEL C RYAN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK SHINDLER: DAVID FISHER/BAFTA/SHUTTERSTOCK; THORNE: DAN WOOLLER/SHUTTERSTOCK; TRANTER: ANTHONY HARVEY/SHUTTERSTOCK; WILSON: POLLY THOMAS/BAFTA/SHUTTERSTOCK Barbara Broccoli alsoappearson the 2019Variety 500report. destruction of thatdestruction war.” tounderstand thescaleof tobegin to allow the people had ajourney we could take theaudience onthat was going thosestories,” whenIheard opened hesays. “We felt we his grandfather’s recollections of theGreat War. “Myheart inthepraisefor “1917,”basking on partly whichisbased company,his production For Street. Neal now, he’s though, and“Pennyas “Informer” Cityof Angels” Dreadful: through don toBroadway. Healsoexecutive produces dramassuch Ferryman,”and “The of whichtransferred both fromLon- LehmanTrilogy” “The acclaimed theatrical productions outlets:HedirectedQueen Elizabeth II,hasotherartistic between.” Mendes, whowas by just awarded aknighthood lion movie again ora$20millionmovie, butnotmuchin ably contrive asituation whereIcould make a$300mil- are theonesthat aregoing away,” hesays. “Icould prob- becoming ararecommodity. movies middle-budget “The “Spectre” and“Skyfall.” Films like “1917,” hesays, are big-screen directorialoutingswere Bondﬁlms blockbuster OscarwinnerMendes, whoseprevioustwo can Beauty” inations. Italsomarksachange indirectionfor “Ameri- reviews, winsandseveral threeGoldenGlobe BAFTA nom- of asanOscarcontenderup seriousheat strong ontheback Mendes’ latest World ﬁlm, War Idrama“1917,” ispicking Mendes Sam DIRECTOR

For more namesof leadersandinfluencers intheU.K. entertainme output intheU.K. charge offilm andTV the company, taking moted in2017torun 2013, Shindlerwas pro- by StudiocanalU.K. in After Red was bought Harlan Coben’s “Safe.” “Happy Valley” and as Folk,” “Clocking Off,” shows suchas“Queer ing groundbreaking Red, in set uphercompany, way through hers.She very muchonlymid- producer, Shindleris as anacclaimeddrama illustrious career, but one attheendofan prize isgiven tosome- Usually thiskindof cial Award lastyear. BAFTA Television Spe- that shereceived the industry the BritishTV Shind respect inwhich It’s amarkofthe CEO, StudiocanalU.K. drama production. as aglobalcenterfor Welsh capitalCardiff plaudits for cementing Tranter haswon Through BadWolf, drama“Tenacity.”ITV and thriller “Industry” “I HateSuzie,” HBO Prebble’s Skyoriginal Billie PiperandLucy Discovery ofWitches,” is Season2ofSky’s “A up in2020. Ontheway “Succession,” won’t let and “The NightOf” include “DoctorWho,” Wolf, whosecredits the co-founder ofBad BBC OneandHBO. But the U.K. —aired on dramas ever madein — oneofthebiggest Pullman adaptation on theday thePhilip ducer Tranter said of my life,” über-proof thepastfew years was “the culmination “His DarkMaterials” Co-founder, BadWolf SHINDLER NICOLA JANE TRANTER ler is held within ler isheldwithin 1998, pr oduc- of “TheSecret Garden.” his feature adaptation “Enola Holmes”; and ary’s detective movie, project;TV Legend- Damien Chazelle’s first flix original“TheEddy,” released thisyear: Net- raft ofprojects willbe is indemand.Another award-winning Thorne Tony andOlivier wonder thattheBAFTA, to thestage.It’s little and theCursedChild” bring “HarryPotter he helpedJ.K. Rowling London’s OldVic; and Carol” isrunningat tation of“A Christmas Aeronauts”; hisadap- screenplay for “The the BBC;hewrote the primetime successon Dark Materials” enjoyed Philip Pullman’s “His ers. Hisadaptationof and sought-afterwrit- the U.K.’s mostprolific Thorne ranks asoneof Writer greatest collections. built oneoftheworld’s phy collector, andhas influential photogra- film, Wilson isan Bond films.Outside screenplays for five and went ontowrite Loved Me” in1977 on “TheSpy Who a producer’s assistant Wilson startedoutas vided real continuity. and Broccoli have pro- lead actors, Wilson Bond directors and the many changesin release inApril.Amid JojiFukunaga,Cary for to Die,” directed by is readying “NoTime Eon Prods. bannerand Broccoli through their stepsister Barbara eight Bondfilmswith produced thelast business. Wilson very muchafamily James Bondremains Producer, EonProds. JACK THORNE WILSON MICHAEL G. nt industry, visitvariety.com/variety-500. subversive.” same timeprovocative andslightly butatthat the entertaining feels really love atwist onagenre. We love stuff We interesting. really things canbe can’t helpit—that’s wherewe think “We leftﬁeldsometimes, go too butwe that upwithbrilliant voices,” shesays. syncratic, thoughtfulIPandpairing at adventurous,looking really idio- up. “We’ll continuing be togrow by some movie-to-TV projects, coming slate of drama,including authored but hercompany hasanambitious ontheseries, spent has been of energy huge hits. Woodward Gentlesays alot whose ﬁrst have two seasons been and Emmy-winning “KillingEve,” of theBAFTA-tion onthethirdseason stake in2018.SidGentleisproduc- amajorityin 2013;BBCStudiostook company,her production SidGentle, at theBBC, Woodward Gentlefounded producer Carnival FilmsAbbey” and mer creative directorat “Downton four successful onITV. seasons Afor- last year after Durrells”wrapped “The Keeley Hawes-starring familysaga dramaticof atangled web, whilethe less andstylish woman at thecenter ture thezeitgeist withitstaleof afear- Durrells.” tocap- Theformer seemed “Killing Eve” andSimonNye’s “The Waller-Bridge’srecent years: Phoebe pleasurable hitstothesmallscreenin twohas steered different butequally Drama producer Woodward Gentle Gentle Woodward Sally CO-FOUNDER, SIDGENTLE

THE U.K. ISSUE The BBCBattles 54 “Killing Eve,”ashow Jodie Comerstarsin times beforefinally the BBCpassedonthree TAKEN BYSURPRISE buying therights. multiple Emmywinner VREY VARIETY

GUTTER CREDIT GUTTER CREDIT for ItsFuture revamp isn’t just younger about viewers. a fullyear, Hallinsists ofjust the instead asinglemonth. nals, andcontent personalization greater available for to offer moreorigi- morelivehauled programming, which was once acatch-up platform over- butisbeing resourcescaster service, is pouring intothestreaming the question ishow you get tothem.” strong andconsistent —andinfactrising slightly. Then they believe intheBBC,” Halltells onyoungerour polling audiences tellingus isthey’re of thepubcaster’s value. like Ireally all about “What sayseral, it’s notamatter ofconvincing young people asitattempts toreinventservice itself. aroundtheworldpanies have theireyes fixed onthe ence andcontent broadcasters andreputation, com- most urgent priorities. Andgiven thepubcaster’s influ- last November. report tary more timewatching according Netflix, toaparliamen- BBC channelshashalved since far 2010,andwhospend steepest among16-to34-year-olds, whoseviewingof sent downturns fromthepreviousyear, withthedecline jump for joy. But allofthose2018-19statistics repre- the company of theBBC. Adults intheU.K.tain. 18hoursaweek about in spend outitsmandate toinform,andenter- educate carrying say itiseffectively Almost once aweek. three-quarters and intheU.K., hasatake everyone ontheBBC. entire generation of viewers, onyour depending take — fighting-fit for thedigitalage orindanger of losingan most iseithermakingitself famouspublicbroadcaster clamoring toholdontorights options andproducers queuing upfor streaming toyoungerappeals viewers must navigate acourse that The venerable pubcaster BY STEWARTCLARKE AS ITHEADSTOWARD ITS A key answer for HallistheBBC’s iPlayer. Thebroad- Tony theBBC’s Hall, ever-optimistic directorgen- Winning younger back viewers isoneoftheBBC’s wouldSuch numbers make aU.S. network boss More than90%ofBritsconnect withtheBeebat least centenary in2022,theworld’s centenary VARIETY Variety . “That’s very 55 THE U.K. ISSUE ideas aswellideas asclassic drama.” take Britishvoices risks. toback Itneeds andinventive tostayeasy safe andnotscarethehorses, to butitneeds tegic alliances tohave thecreative impact,” shesays. “It’s “It’s moredaring. tobe needs going tohave tostrike stra- on iPlayer withyounger popular andisespecially viewers. show hassince become oneof thebiggest box-set sellers The times before finally buyingtherightstoairinBritain. BBC America,whichtheinU.K. onthree passed GB” for thebroadcaster. “KillingEve” Italsoproduced for BBCStudios,cial arm, andhasmadeshows including“SS- Sid GentleFilms, by whichisbacked theBBC’s commer- is oneoftheU.K.’s best-known andruns dramaproducers they SallyWoodward have on. toknock moredoors Gentle how you Netflix andtherest beat of them.” time, upmoreslotsanddonewthings. andopen That’s that itwillgive clearer is be usallsomethingsomeof the says. “Itain’t gonna work like todo What that. itneeds allofthetime,” everyone BBC triestosuper-serve he McVay, association Pact. “The ofindieproducers’ head ensure itgets ofBritishcreativity, thebest says John lucrative thanwiththeBBC. withthestreamers hire, withoutgetting toown therightstoshows, ismore tor anddrive since themtoNetflix, working asagunfor would ahuge blow indiesec- be tothehighlyregarded Producersthe rules. say that changingthetermsoftrade window onshows for theiPlayer, isattempting torewrite that andfear ing content, theBBC, for alonger bylooking builtbusinesses byowningcerns andsell- rights. They’ve changing world, thequestion areaskingcon- producers lion by 2022.It’s abouthalfway tothat goal. ment todeliver cost savings of slightlymorethan$1bil- ($5 billion)—butithasanagreement withthegovern- license fee onhouseholdsbringsin£3.8billion levied deep pockets. TheBBCisnothardup—thetelevision Thetwoence alsohave companies Research Board. theU.K.’sand Amazonper 6million, Audi- Broadcasters’ first-mover advantage were lost. andtorevamp theiPlayer,ITV butvaluable timeand allowing the BBCtolaunchBritBox onhomesoilwith Theregulator recentlyinhibit competition. relented, saying service, to establish itwould ajointon-demand a decadeago broadcasters by theBBCandotherlocal now seenasamajormistake, Ofcom anattempt blocked them actquicklytoadaptmarket shifts. Inadecision tor Ofcom, like butstreamers Netflix aren’t, whichlets caster, regula- by theBBCissubjecttoscrutiny media of Licissays. suchservices, broad- Asapublicservice U.K.? That’s atallorder, given oversight theunequal streamers, withDisney tohitthe Plusabout especially of strategyhead at analysts K7Media. forof BBC,” itsbusiness isimportant says Licis, Girts platform onlinestreaming at positioned thecore clearly with3.6billioninallof 2018.“A— compared strong and year onyear increase months of 2019—adouble-digit ontheplatformprogram requests throughthefirst 10 themainroutetomarketwill be for allage groups.” usestheBBC,”way inwhicheverybody hepredicts. “It 56 The lesson, WoodwardThe lesson, Gentlesays, isthat theBBC Relations when withprogrammakers areall-important tokeep needs The pubcaster suppliershappy to If anewandimproved iPlayer istheBBC’s answer toa Netflix hasalmost 12millioncustomers intheU.K., But caneven iPlayer arefurbished take ontheU.S. Usage Therewere growing. iscertainly 3.55billion threeyears,“Within maybe four, iPlayer the willbe VREY VARIETY “Within three

age groups.” to market for all be themainroute the BBC. Itwill everybody uses the way inwhich iPlayer willbe years, maybe four,

Tony Hall, BBC directorgeneral one istellingyou they’d love aBBC.” the envy of other countries, Hall says. “As asyou soon leave theseshores, every- caster remainsa … again you totheBBC.” go back It’s still theBBC. Ifyou at nurture, whocanbest look enable anddevelop talent he says. aroundbigevents? “How andbringpeople [do]you joinupthecountry news andmisinformation aweek,” by — BBCNews 426millionpeople isused BBCistheanswer Hallargues. world, a confusing tofake andfragmented “The lutely everybody.” others rollingout,” hemaintains. atoughermarket “Itisgoing tobe for abso- too,admiration for butit, will“face Netflix, achallenge fromDisney, Apple and isonthehorizon, Hall says. thedisruptors” Heprofessesphase ofdisrupting foruled launchlater thisyear. sched- service shown streaming content tobe onanewDiscovery global tory for theBeeb’s $400milliondeal nearly decade-long, world-famous natural his- a year (2018-19).Hall alsostruck inthemostthe broadcaster recent reporting of thisplacestructure inageneration.” BBCStudios generated $320millionfor entity, BBCStudios, as“one whichhedescribes of thebiggest changes tothe London Film Festival. didn’t BBCandBritishbroadcasters “The have theability.” were theonlyplace “They offer,” that madeareal pocketbook. at the hetoldapanel recently that theshow could nothave existed withoutNetflix anditsenormous cially inaneraofskyrocketing costs. Crown,” AndyHarries, of producer “The said cal politicians — are just beginning. —arejust beginning. cal politicians young— towinback viewers, keep in thefold producers andsatisfy skepti- But even for dramasthat theBBCcanslipthroughitsfingers, seemperfect espe- That might be true inplentyof places. far-off true That mightbe But thebigbattles onhometurf As theU.K. tiesitselfinknotsover thebroad- Union, itsexit fromtheEuropean The upheaval makes theBBCmore, notless, relevant asaunifyingforce in “a landinginBritain, With new services that andotherdirect-to-consumer armsintoone itscommercial theBBChasrolled andproduction Under Hall, major contributor toBritishsoft power aroundtheworld and is

(PREVIOUS SPREAD) PARISA TAGHIZADEH/BBCAMERICA (THIS PAGE) PHOTOGRAPH BY DAVID VINTINER Untitled-7 1 1/11/20 9:28 AM THE U.K. ISSUE Diversity 58 “Blue Story”cast (with clapboard). director Rapman Stephen Odubolaand Rohan Neddflank Ramsay, MichaelWard, members Kadeem MIRROR TOSOCIETY VREY VARIETY

GUTTER CREDIT GUTTER CREDIT Breakthrough points out that the infrastructure exists out that theinfrastructure points now for stories theEmmy-winningAhmed, NightOf,” star of “The world.cemented theirplace intheentertainment DevPatelMichaela Coel, whohave andIdrisElba, David GemmaChan, Oyelowo, RizAhmed, McQueen, audiences at homeandaroundtheworld. multiculturalBritainto reflectsmodern, screen better on ing through—andhelpingensure that what appears arewinningeyeballs. DiverseBoy” risingtalentisbreak- and commercial success at thecinema.Serieslike “Top areregisteringship amidgangconflict, criticalacclaim Springsteen, andRapman’s “Blue Story,” ataleof friend- Light,” aBritishPakistani about teenager’s love of Bruce that change isafoot. major projectsfeaturing therearehopes diverse talent, tions list for its2020filmawards. But withaslewof BAFTA recently unveiled anall-whiteactingnomina- those definingmoments—andtherewas outrage as The filmandtelevisionindustries haven’t hadmany of center stagetook andsettheculturalagenda intheU.K. FestivalGlastonbury last summer, blackBritishmusic BY STEWARTCLARKE society multiculturalits modern toresembleis finallystarting U.K. business filmandTV talent intheworks, the from new andemerging With standout projects WHEN RAPPER STORMZYWHEN RAPPER LANDED The newwave isfollowing inthefootsteps of Steve Movies suchasGurinderChadha’s by the “Blinded VARIETY a headlining slotat the aheadlining 59 THE U.K. ISSUE “When you seeobstacles, you become mission-driven 60 there.”space you mightseeifthere’sSo ifmusicisapassion, more you canfindyourself intoanother.one medium, leaning sity ofself-reliance,” hesays. “Ifthereareobstacles in ative “It’s muscles;italsostems fromneed. theneces- Riz MC).But that’s notjust flexing about different cre- writer, rapsunderthename andmusician(he producer the overall surge inprogramming. as thecameraarerising inthesameproportion behind whether projectswithethnicdiversity infrontofand made,” hetells ing networks. isbeing amount[ofcontent] Anincredible landscape. Therearedifferent distribution andstream- and talentofallstripes. “There’s adifferent storytelling greater diversity.greater you seeobstacles, “When you become an address totheBritishParliament for ontheneed delivered In2017,Ahmed alongwithhim. backgrounds tobringothertalentfromunderrepresentedmined

open andembracingencouragingother people.” creatively. Andpartof that missionismakingsureyou are in Amazon’s“Sound Having found success insomany areas, he’s deter- Ahmed isthedeﬁnitionof amultihyphenate: actor, of Metal.” Riz Ahmedstars HE GOTTHEBEAT

Riz Ahmed VREY VARIETY Variety . The question Ahmed poses is. Thequestion poses Ahmed Akpojotor, thefilm’s producer. whowouldaudience —people notnormally go tothecinema,” says Joy Gharoro- in theU.K. andahitwithcritics. thefilmhasdoneisbringoutadifferent “What ers went “BlueStory,” withhim. was asensation whichhewroteanddirected, Whenhemoved system, thosefollow-viral. intothetraditionalentertainment YouTube, rapsongsandthe“Shiro’s posting short-film series, whichwent Story” culture.”and blackurban YouHumza hadthat. seeRapmanandhissuccess, andit’s inmusic embedded a lotoftalentthat isnow onscreenhadsomeaffiliation tomusic. Adam [and] forsays. minoritygroupsthat were infilmandTV sofew “There opportunities mercial armof theBBC. andhasinkeddiverse afirst-look talent, agreement withBBCStudios, thecom- Films BigDeal and digitalprojectswithcomedian HumzaArshad. targets TV former BAFTArepped risingstar and“Kidulthood” actorAdam and Deacon Films smarts. ofBigDeal Theboss musicandproduction hasmanagement, you andembracingencouraging areopen otherpeople.” creatively,”mission-driven hesays. “And of that mission part ismakingsure Rapman (whose nameisAndrewOnwubolu) found real hisaudience through “I was scene, established intheurban whichisessentially blackmusic,” Joshi Like Dhanny Ahmed, Joshi moves ofworlds, between anumber usinghis

(PREVIOUS SPREAD) CHRISTOPHER RAPHAEL/PARAMOUNT PICTURES (THIS PAGE) AMAZON STUDIOS (OPPOSITE PAGE) BLINDED BY THE LIGHT: NICK WALL/WARNER BROS.; TOP BOY: CHRIS HARRIS/NETFLIX Those mostly young fans mobilized as a real-life drama played out last November around the film, which was yanked by British theater chain Vue, citing vio- lent incidents surrounding some screenings of “Blue Story.” The mainstream media pegged the picture as a “gang movie,” but fans took to social media in droves to point out that it was much more than that, sparking a national debate. “Real word of mouth spread on social media about how beautiful and engaging it was,” says Gharoro-Akpojotor. Vue reinstated the movie, and BBC Films and Para- mount, which backed “Blue Story” financially, defended LEADING it throughout the media storm. Crucially, it fared well BY EXAMPLE at the box office. As the industry attempts to enact both Viveik Kalra transformative and disruptive change, belatedly rec- (above) is a British Pakistani ognizing the need to be more reflective of the society teen who idolizes around it, healthy bottom-line numbers for projects Bruce Springsteen from diverse talent help push that effort along. in “Blinded by the Light”; “Top Boy” is “There is an importance culturally to telling [diverse] set in the streets stories,” says actor Himesh Patel, but “ultimately you of East London. have to convince people that they are financially viable as well, there is an audience there, they will pay money to watch.” Now with examples of such success, “there’s no leg to stand on when it comes to saying these sorts of stories don’t work,” says Patel, who stars in the high-end BBC adaptation of the Booker Prize-winning novel “The Luminaries” and will appear in HBO’s new post-pandemic series, “Station Eleven.” What happens behind the camera is also key to prog - ress. The number of high-ranking decision-makers and company bosses from diverse backgrounds in the U.K. remains paltry. Among the exceptions are Channel 4 drama chief Caroline Hollick, BBC Films head of development Claudia Yusef and Netflix vice president of originals Anne Mensah. “The way you will get the most exciting and most diverse projects is when you have people in those senior creative and financial decision-making roles who are diverse,” says Mensah, who previously held top drama posts at the BBC and Sky. Organizations such as Creative Access, Screen Skills and indie producers’ trade body Pact are promoting and training talent from underrepresented groups. The British Independent Film Awards has introduced uncon- to tell it was a different proposition from what had been seen as black British scious-bias training for judges. The British Film Insti- cinema,” director Shola Amoo says. “Ultimately it was about the immediacy of tute, the U.K.’s main movie-funding organization, has its the story and a desire to render it in a way I hadn’t really seen.” own diversity standards, which projects must meet to be A diverse crew helped make that vision a reality. “All you can do is lead by eligible for some of BAFTA’s film awards. example,” Amoo says. “Look at the work I’ve been doing and the way the produc- “We are seeing a healthy percentage of productions tion team is broken down. It makes sense to have that myriad of different ideas that have adopted the BFI diversity standards demon- and different representation, and it all filters into the material.” strating good representation of ethnicity on screen,” The “Last Tree” team used discovery casting to seek out new talent. “Rocks,” says BFI deputy CEO Ben Roberts, who will ascend to another critically lauded coming-of-age drama, took that principle to a new the CEO post in February. “We know behind-the-camera level. Casting started out with 1,300 East London schoolgirls before 10 were continues to be more challenging. … This is something selected. The final story then emerged and was refined through workshops and we will continue to address with the industry in terms of discussions with that group. “What we wanted to do was open the door for those hiring practices, training programs and easier access to first-time child actors,” producer Ameenah Ayub Allen says. skilled professionals from all backgrounds.” It was also important to have a team behind the camera that reflected what One beneficiary of BFI funding is “The Last Tree,” was being made. “Inclusion meant having a crew who were diverse in different the story of a Nigerian-born British boy’s passage into ways — ethnically, socioeconomically,” she says. “And not just the trainees but adulthood. It unspooled at Sundance, and won actors also at mid-level and with heads of department.” Sam Adewunmi and Ruthxjiah Bellenea the prizes for Ahmed will be front and center — and pulling strings behind the scenes — most promising newcomer and best supporting actress, in 2020. Amazon has picked up Toronto Film Festival title “Sound of Metal,” respectively, at the British Independent Film Awards in in which he stars. Also coming from Ahmed are new music, the BBC series December. The movie’s locations range from the sun- “Englistan” and an adaptation of “Hamlet” from his shingle, Left Handed Films. splashed English countryside to inner-city London to The film, TV and music star looks forward to the day when the conversation Lagos, Nigeria. “It was a combination of wanting to tell a about him and other talent of color finally changes. “I wish people would ask me personal story but also knowing that the way we wanted about my creative process as much as my identity,” he says.

VARIETY 61 SUNDAY 8ET/5PT

TM & © 2020 Turner Entertainment Networks, Inc. A Warner Media Company. All Rights Reserved. SAG-AFTRA and Screen Actors Guild Awards are registered trademarks and the Actor statuette and SAG-AFTRA logo are TM and © SAG-AFTRA. © 2020 Screen Actors Guild Awards, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Untitled-9 1 1/11/20 10:24 AM CONTENDERS

NO KIDDING “Joker” scored 11 Oscar nominations, including a best actor nod for Joaquin Phoenix.

OSCAR

NOMINEES

2020 NIKO TAVERNISE/WARNER BROS. TAVERNISE/WARNER NIKO

VARIETY CONTENDERS 63 CONTENDERS | OSCAR NOMINEES Oscar Makes Eclectic Choices

‘PARASITE’ COULD MAKE AWARDS HISTORY, BUT ONCE AGAIN, WOMEN ARE SCARCE

By CAROLE HORST : FRANÇOIS DUHAMEL/UNIVERSAL PICTURES; ONCE UPON A TIME: ONCE UPON A TIME: PICTURES; : FRANÇOIS DUHAMEL/UNIVERSAL

FORD V FERRARI THE IRISHMAN JOJO RABBIT Fox Netflix Fox Searchlight WEBB/SONY PICTURES; MARRIAGE STORY: WILSON WEBB/NETFLIX; 1917 STORY: MARRIAGE PICTURES; WEBB/SONY

JOKER LITTLE WOMEN MARRIAGE STORY Warner Bros. Sony Netflix ICTURES; JOKER: NIKO TAVERNISE/WARNER BROS.; LITTLE WOMEN: WILSON TAVERNISE/WARNER JOKER: NIKO ICTURES;

1917 ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD PARASITE Universal Sony Neon

Best Picture

SURE, THERE ARE no surprises here in the best picture wide gross also surprised the biz. “Marriage Story” also Oscar winners such as “Green Book” and “La La Land.” list, cynics may say, but optimists see the nine films as impressed audiences and critics at Venice, although it Aside from those flashy festival players, the rest of the proof of a terrific year for motion pictures — and the list did not take home any prizes. “Once Upon a Time in field is so strong, it’s going to be hard for voters to could have even included three or four more films. This Hollywood” competed at Cannes to much praise but choose: “The Irishman” is being praised as Martin year, the best picture category may be more competi- didn’t earn any prize there; however, “Parasite” — the Scorsese’s masterpiece, while Greta Gerwig’s “Little tive than ever, featuring projects that wowed the top South Korean hit that grabbed a whopping six Oscar Women” is a hit with audiences, as is James Mangold’s film festivals in 2019. “Joker’s” path to the Oscars began noms — took home the top Cannes award: the Palme “Ford v Ferrari.” Sam Mendes’ “1917” might be the at the Venice Film Festival, where it took home the d’Or. “Jojo Rabbit” nabbed the Toronto festival’s Peo- upsetter, though, following its Golden Globe win and Golden Lion in a surprise win. Its $1 billion-plus world- ple’s Choice Award, which has been won by eventual strong box office after its wide release Jan. 10. FORD V FERRARI: MERRICK MORTON/20TH CENTURY FOX; THE IRISHMAN: NIKO TAVERNISE/NETFLIX; JOJO: KIMBERLEY FRENCH/FOX SEARCHLIGHT P KIMBERLEY FRENCH/FOX JOJO: TAVERNISE/NETFLIX; THE IRISHMAN: NIKO FOX; CENTURY FORD V FERRARI: MERRICK MORTON/20TH ANDREW COOPER/SONY PICTURES; PARASITE: NEON PARASITE: PICTURES; ANDREW COOPER/SONY

64 VARIETY COCONTENDERSNTENDERS THIS HAS BEEN Renée Zellweger’s to lose all sea- LIKELY THE MOST competitive lead actor cate- son since she burst onto the festival circuit with gory in years — with a lot of performers coming her stunning portrayal of Judy Garland in her final and going from discussions — the nominees cho- days in “Judy.” The Oscar-winner (for “Cold Moun- sen are an impressive final five, leaving tain”) has already snagged the Golden Globe and acclaimed turns by the likes of Robert De Niro, Critics’ Choice Award and is nominated for SAG, George MacKay, Adam Sandler, Taron Egerton BAFTA and Spirit prizes. Her narrative has every- and Eddie Murphy in their wake. Two veteran per- thing voters love: it’s a transformative perfor- formers, Antonio Banderas (“Pain and Glory”) and mance, she’s playing a beloved icon and she’s Jonathan Pryce (“The Two Popes”), landed their returning to spotlight after a hiatus. Her closest first nominations — particularly impressive after competition is likely previous winer Charlize both missed out on SAG Award noms. And Leon- Theron, also playing a real person as Fox News ardo DiCaprio landed his sixth acting nom for his Lead Actress host Megyn Kelly, or four-time nominee Saoirse Lead Actor turn as a fading star in “Once Upon a Time in Hol- Ronan in “Little Woman,” which had a strong lywood” (he also has a producer nom to his tally CYNTHIA ERIVO showing with six nominations. Though she’s only ANTONIO BANDERAS and a win for “The Revenant”). But the race may “Harriet” 25 years old, Ronan is already perceived as over- “Pain and Glory” come down to two previous nominees: Adam SCARLETT JOHANSSON due in many ways. New to Oscar noms are two LEONARDO DICAPRIO Driver, who landed his second consecutive nom “Marriage Story” actors who both happen to be double nominees “Once Upon a Time in for a divorcing dad in “Marriage Story,” and Joa- this year: Cynthia Erivo, also nominated in the Hollywood” quin Phoenix, who grabbed his fourth nomination SAOIRSE RONAN song category for “Stand Up” from “Harriet,” and for taking on the iconic “Joker.” Both have won all “Little Women” ADAM DRIVER Scarlett Johansson, nominated in supporting for the precursor nods, and Phoenix has the edge “Marriage Story” CHARLIZE THERON “Jojo Rabbit.” Both landed Globe and SAG nomi- with wins from Globes and Critics’ Choice Awards “Bombshell” nations for their lead roles, though Erivo missed JOAQUIN PHOENIX — not to mention a box office for his film totaling “Joker” RENÉE ZELLWEGER out on a BAFTA nom. — Jenelle Riley over $1 billion worldwide. — Jenelle Riley “Judy” JONATHAN PRYCE “The Two Popes”

E A CATEGORY FULL of previous winners (Brad Pitt IN AN EVER-SHIFTING category in which only has won as producer of “12 Years a Slave”), sup- Laura Dern seemed a sure thing, the final five LIONSGAT

/ porting actor is also perhaps the most unsurpris- ended up being hard to predict. Dern’s sharp turn LE/LIONSGATE ing category of the day. It’s a total match with as a savvy divorce attorney already landed her a Golden Globe nominations and a four out of five Golden Globe and Critics Choice Award and noms match with SAG Awards — Jamie Foxx was ousted from BAFTA and SAG. Previous winner Kathy Bates by Anthony Hopkins for “The Two Popes.” The big managed to score a nom for her tender turn as news is that Tom Hanks, playing Mr. Rogers, has Richard Jewell’s mother despite missing out on a ROBBIE: HILARY B GAYLE ROBBIE: HILARY ; returned as an Oscar nominee after an almost SAG nom — her only precursor nod was from the 20-year hiatus — the last time he was recognized Golden Globes. SAG, Globe, BAFTA and Critics’ was for 2000’s “Cast Away,” despite heralded Choice nominee Margot Robbie landed her sec-

SONY PICTURES performances in “Captain Phillips” and “Sully” ond nomination for her turn as an ambitious pro- / Supporting since then. Also returning after long absences are Supporting ducer in “Bombshell.” And Scarlett Johansson is Al Pacino and Joe Pesci — neither has been nomi- simultaneously a first-time and a two-time Actor nated since their winning roles in 1992’s “Scent of Actress nominee thanks to her supporting work in “Jojo a Woman” and 1991’s “Goodfellas,” respectively Rabbit” and lead work in “Marriage Story.” Flor- BRAD PITT — in “The Irishman.” Yet it looks like the edge KATHY BATES ence Pugh managed to land her first nomination HANKS: LACEY TERRELL LACEY HANKS: ; “Once Upon a Time in might be on the side of the one nominee who has “Richard Jewell” despite missing out on SAG and Globes noms, Hollywood” never won an acting Oscar, with Pitt having LAURA DERN though her turn as Amy in “Little Women” did land Jenelle Riley AL PACINO already picked up Globe and Critics’ Choice “Marriage Story” BAFTA and Critics’ Choice nods. — WARNER BROS. WARNER

/ “The Irishman” Awards for his turn as Cliff Booth, the driver/ SCARLETT JOHANSSON stuntman/therapist to a struggling star in “Once JOE PESCI “Jojo Rabbit” Upon a Time in Hollywood.” This marks Pitt’s “The Irishman” fourth acting nomination — he has three noms as FLORENCE PUGH TOM HANKS a producer. — Jenelle Riley “Little Women” “A Beautiful Day in the MARGOT ROBBIE Neighborhood” PHOENIX: NIKO TAVERNISE PHOENIX: NIKO ; “Bombshell” ANTHONY HOPKINS “The Two Popes” ZELLWEGER: ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS; PHOENIX: NIKO TAVERNISE/WARNER BROS.; HANKS: LACEY TERRELL/SONY PICTURES; ROBBIE: HILARY B GAY ROBBIE: HILARY PICTURES; TERRELL/SONY LACEY BROS.; HANKS: TAVERNISE/WARNER PHOENIX: NIKO ATTRACTIONS; ATTRACTIONS ROADSIDE ZELLWEGER:

VARIETYV ARIETY CONTENDERSCONTENDERS 65 CONTENDERS | OSCAR NOMINEES

BLAME THE ENDLESS lead-up to the Oscar nomi- IT’S THE JOB of screenwriters to make preexist- nations, perhaps, but most of the final five candi- ing source material their own when crafting the dates for Oscar’s director category arrived with cinematic adapations of said stories. But this an air of inevitability. Bong Joon Ho has been year’s batch of screenplays borne of books and penciled in as a contender ever since his Palme plays faced an especially challenging task: imbu- d’Or win at Cannes. The “Parasite” helmer has ing fresh, new life into some of the most promi- collected an array of awards in advance of his nent characters to have ever been bandied about movie’s big morning, with noms in other catego- in the pop cultural and global political realms — ries including editing, screenplay, production from Adolf Hitler to Popes Benedict and Francis. design, international film and best picture con- In Taiki Waititi’s “Jojo Rabbit,” Hitler functions as firming his broad support in the Academy. Though the cartoonish imaginary sidekick to a young Ger- hailing from different generations, bona- fide Hol- man boy during World War II. In “Two Popes,” Director lywood legends Martin Scorsese and Quentin Adapted Anthony McCarten pits Pope Benedict and Pope Tarantino were likewise considered shoo-ins, and Francis against one another in their effort to find MARTIN SCORSESE support for their respective films, “The Irishman” Screenplay common ideological and theological ground in “The Irishman” and “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” is likewise the screenplay he adapted from his play. And in “THE IRISHMAN” TODD PHILLIPS widespread across the nominations. Sam “The Irishman,” Steven Zaillian plumbs the oft- Steven Zaillian “Joker” Mendes’ “1917” has been a hit with both audi- traversed turf of mobsters (the Bufalino crime ences and awards voters, with Mendes picking up “JOJO RABBIT” family and the relationship of union president SAM MENDES a Golden Globe for directing shortly before the Taika Waititi Jimmy Hoffa to the gangsters). In “Joker” Todd “1917” Oscar voting window closed. The closest thing to Phillips and Scott Silver underscores the hot- “JOKER” QUENTIN TARANTINO a surprise is Todd Phillips, for “Joker,” though he button topic of mental illness in crafting the story Todd Phillips, Scott Silver “Once Upon a Time can count on a massive box office haul and top of Arthur Fleck, a failed comedian who descends in Hollywood” prize at Venice as indications of the film’s sup- “LITTLE WOMEN” into madness and morphs into infamous com- BONG JOON HO port. As in years past, all five of the nominees are Greta Gerwig ic-book criminal mastermind the Joker. And Greta “Parasite” male, with filmmakers including Greta Gerwig, “THE TWO POPES” Gerwig achieves one of the most difficult, and Melina Matsoukas, Alma Har’el and Marielle Anthony McCarten rewarding feats, of all: she refashions a beloved Heller denied a chance to become the second book in American literature, “Little Women,” woman to win the director prize, another statistic emphasizing its feminist overtures, and creating a in the long history of omission that will likely only work that’s as inspiring on screen as it is in print. increase the calls for change in both the Acad- — Malina Saval emy and Hollywood at large. — Andrew Barker

THEMATICALLY, there’s a lot linking this year’s ALL FIVE FILMS in this category are festival Oscar nominations in the original screenplay faves, winning prizes from Sundance to Venice. category, namely in the idea of the familial unit “Parasite,” Bong Joon Ho’s Cannes Palme d’Or as the driving force behind so much of the ten- winner, is a front-runner here as the Korean film IOS sion and drama in each film. In Rian Johnson’s has also nabbed six nominations in other catego- “Knives Out,” a detective investigates the myste- ries including best picture, director and editing. rious death of one unconventional family’s octo- It’s also a favorite for best picture, so voters genarian patriarch — who just happens to be a might want to throw their support in this category crime novelist. In the critically hailed “Marriage behind another Cannes favorite, Pedro Almodó- Story,” Noah Baumbach chronicles a New York var’s “Pain and Glory,” a strong challenger. The couples’ high-conflict divorce. Bong Joon Ho’s film’s star, Antonio Banderas, also received a lead “Parasite,” one of the favorites in the best pic- actor Oscar nom, having won the lead actor prize Original ture category, explores issues of greed and International at the French festival. The only other film in this social class between the impoverished Kim fam- category with more than one nom is Macedonia’s Screenplay ily and the wealthy Park brood. In “1917,” penned Feature “Honeyland,” competing in the doc category. by Sam Mendes, who won an Oscar for directing Tamara Kotevska and Ljubo Stefanov directed “KNIVES OUT” “American Beauty” in 2000, and newcomer Kry- “CORPUS CHRISTI” this heartbreaking story about beekeepers in Rian Johnson sty Wilson-Cairns, two soldiers must race Jan Komasa Macedonia trying to keep the traditional way of “MARRIAGE STORY” against the clock to save nearly 1,600 men, “HONEYLAND” making honey. “Honeyland” premiered at Sun- Noah Baumbach including one soldier’s brother, from stepping Tamara Kotevska, Ljubo dance 2019 in the World Cinema documentary into a deadly trap. And in “Once Upon a Time in Stefanov competition and won the Grand Jury Prize, the “1917” Hollywood,” written by two-time Oscar winner Special Jury Award for Impact for Change and Sam Mendes and “LES MISERABLES” Quentin Tarantino, the relationship between a the Special Jury Award for cinematography. Krysty Wilson-Cairns Ladj Ly fading TV star and his stunt double in 1969 Los Poland’s “Corpus Christi” and France’s “Les “ONCE UPON A TIME Angeles underscores the relationships of differ- “PAIN AND GLORY” Misérables” round out the Euro-centric nominees. IN HOLLYWOOD” ent types of families within the Hollywood com- Pedro Almodovar Directed by Ladj Ly, “Les Misérables” also bowed Quentin Tarantino munity, with the deadly Manson “family” poking “PARASITE” at Cannes and won the grand jury prize. “Corpus “PARASITE” through the film’s edges until it eventually takes Bong Joon Ho Christi,” Jan Komasa’s story about a young man Bong Joon ho, Jin Won Han center stage in the pic’s climax. — Malina Saval who takes a short cut to reach his goal of being a priest, premiered at Venice, where it won the Europa Cinemas Label and Edipo Re Inclusion honors.— Shalini Dore IRISHMAN: NIKO TAVERNISE/NETFLIX; JOJO: FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES; KNIVES OUT: CLAIRE FOLGER/MRC II; LES MISERABLES: AMAZON STUD II; LES MISERABLES: AMAZON CLAIRE FOLGER/MRC KNIVES OUT: SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES; FOX JOJO: TAVERNISE/NETFLIX; IRISHMAN: NIKO

66 VARIETY COCONTENDERSNTENDERS UNFORTUNATELY, the exclusion of mega-block- IN STARK CONTRAST to the all-male nominees buster “Frozen 2” from the animated feature cate- for director, the documentary category provided gory, as well as the snubbing of all films on the a breath of fresh air in terms of gender parity, GKids roster, including Japanese hit “Weathering with four of the five nominated films coming With You,” will overshadow the fantastic lineup of from female directors or co-directors. This is toons that did get nominations, and the big story hardly a new phenomenon in the category, nor in this category: Netflix. The streamer earned two is it new for one of the highest-grossing docs of noms, a huge accomplishment considering that the year to miss the cut, with “Apollo 11” joining the streamer is a relative rookie in the feature last year’s “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” among toon world. Both of its nominated films are in tra- the also-rans. There is certainly a new wrinkle ditional 2D animation: Cannes Critics’ Week here, however, with Macedonia’s “Honeyland,” player “I Lost My Body” from Jérémy Clapin (Net- by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov, Animated flix picked the pic up after its screening on the Documentary becoming the first film to gain nominations for Croisette), and “Klaus,” a Netflix original from both documentary and international feature. It Feature Sergio Pablos, the talent behind “Despicable Me.” Feature was hardly alone in reflecting an internationalist As with other Netflix pickups and originals, each focus: Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts’ “For “HOW TO TRAIN film is auteur-driven with a distinctive and wholly “AMERICAN FACTORY” Sama” and Feras Fayyad’s “The Cave” both YOUR DRAGON: THE original point of view. That said, the rest of the Julia Rieichert, explored the Syrian civil war through intimate HIDDEN WORLD” field is strong: blockbuster “Toy Story 4” delivered Steven Bognar angles — the former a self-portrait of a young Dean DeBlois a mature, satisfying ending to the franchise, as “THE CAVE” Syrian mother, the latter a chronicle of a Syrian “I LOST MY BODY” did “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden Feras Fayyad doctor. Petra Costa’s “The Edge of Democracy” Jeremy Clapin World,” from director Dean DeBlois, whose “THE EDGE OF DEMOCRACY” took a personal approach to alarming trends in authorship of the trilogy deserves to be acknowl- Brazilian politics. And speaking of electoral poli- “KLAUS” Petra Costa Sergio Pablos edged. “Missing Link” took home the Golden tics, Barack and Michelle Obama were executive Globe in a surprise win, and Laika’s stop-motion “FOR SAMA” producers through their Higher Ground Prods. “MISSING LINK” film could find some big fans among the Acad- Waad al-Kateab, on Steve Bognar and Julia Reichert’s “American Edward Watts Chris Butler emy voters. — Carole Horst Factory,” the only solely American production of “TOY STORY 4” “HONEYLAND” the nominees, which itself examined the clash of Josh Cooley Tamara Kotevska, cultures when a Chinese company takes over a Ljubo Stefanov Stateside factory. — Andrew Barker

THIS CATEGORY IS ALL period. Roger Deakins is ELTON JOHN could take home his second Oscar on the fast track to his second Oscar with “1917.” and longtime writing partner Bernie Taupin his It only took Deakins 14 previous attempts before first, as their song “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” his first win in 2018 for “Blade Runner 2049.” from “Rocketman” was among the 2019 Oscar Deakins and director Sam Mendes worked closely song nominees. John won a 1994 Oscar for “Can to achieve what seems like one continuous shot You Feel the Love Tonight” from the original ani- as the film follows two soldiers on a mission. mated “Lion King,” but this is Taupin’s first nomi- Rodrigo Prieto scores Oscar nom number three nation. The song closes the movie about the pop for “The Irishman,” his second collaboration with star’s tumultuous life. Three other songs are by Martin Scorsese, the first being “Silence.” Prieto Oscar veterans. Two-time winners Robert Lopez worked with ILM’s three-faced camera to help and Kristen Anderson-Lopez (“Let It Go” from with the digital de-aging of its cast. Todd Phillips “Frozen” and “Remember Me” from “Coco”) are Cinematog- calls his “Joker” cinematographer Lawrence Sher Original nominated for “Into the Unknown” from “Frozen rapher “a fantastic collaborator.” It was Sher who found Song 2.” Another two-time winner, Randy Newman,

FROZEN 2: FROZEN DISNEY Newark, N.J., as the perfect stand-in for circa scored his 21st and 22nd nominations this year; ;

A24 1980s Gotham City. Robert Richardson lands his up for song is his lighthearted “I Can’t Let You / “THE IRISHMAN” 10th Oscar nomination (with three wins) for “Once “I CAN’T LET YOU Throw Yourself Away” from “Toy Story 4” (he Rodrigo Prieto Upon a Time in Hollywood.” Richardson shot on THROW YOURSELF AWAY” also nabbed an original score nom for “Marriage “Toy Story 4” “JOKER” Super 8, 16mm and 35mm in order to fully exploit Story”). Both of Newman’s prior wins are also for Lawrence Sher director Quentin Tarantino’s vision of Hollywood “I’M GONNA LOVE Pixar films (“Monsters, Inc.” and “Toy Story 3”). in 1969. Jarin Blaschke earned his first nomina- ME AGAIN” Veteran Diane Warren received her 11th nomina- “THE LIGHTHOUSE” tion for Robert Eggers’ “The Lighthouse,” a stark “Rocketman” tion (so far without a win) for the anthem “I’m

LIGHTHOUSE: ERIC CHAKEEN Jarin Blaschke ; black and white drama shot in a 1.19:1 aspect “I’M STANDING WITH YOU” Standing With You” from “Breakthrough.” The “1917” ratio that gives the film that whole vibe of making “Breakthrough” newcomers are Cynthia Erivo and Joshuah Brian Roger Deakins it feel like it was shot in the 1890s, the period in Campbell for “Stand Up,” the end-title song from “INTO THE UNKNOWN” “ONCE UPON A TIME IN which the film is set in. — Jazz Tangcay the “Harriet.” Erivo, who is also nominated as “Frozen 2” HOLLYWOOD” lead actress for playing abolitionist Harriet Tub- Robert Richardson “STAND UP” man, co-wrote and performed the gospel-R&B “Harriet” tune. The big surprise in the category was the AMERICAN FACTORY: NETFLIX FACTORY: AMERICAN ; omission of “Spirit,” the Beyoncé song from “The Lion King.” — Jon Burlingame OY STORY 4: DISNEYPIXAR STORY OY TOY STORY 4: DISNEYPIXAR; AMERICAN FACTORY: NETFLIX; LIGHTHOUSE: ERIC CHAKEEN/A24; FROZEN 2: FROZEN DISNEY NETFLIX; LIGHTHOUSE: ERIC CHAKEEN/A24; FACTORY: 4: DISNEYPIXAR; AMERICAN STORY TOY T

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OSCAR WELCOMED just one newcomer to the ALL THE FILMS nominated in this category are original-score category on Jan. 13: “Joker” com- also best picture nominees, and front-runners poser Hildur Guðnadóttir, who became only the here include “Parasite,” “Joker” and “The Irish- fifth woman in Academy history to be nominated man.” “Parasite’s” Yang Jinmo earned one of the for writing original dramatic music for films. Pre- six nominations for the South Korean hit, a sur- ceding her were Ann Ronell (“Story of G.I. Joe”) in prise and an indication that the Academy really 1945; Rachel Portman and Anne Dudley, who won likes Bong Joon Ho’s film. It’s Yang’s first Oscar for “Emma” and “The Full Monty,” respectively, in nomination. What’s not surprising is Thelma 1996 and 1997; and Mica Levi, nominated in 2017 Schoonmaker making the list — Martin Scosese’s for “Jackie.” (Composer Angela Morley was nomi- go-to editor has eight noms total and three wins nated twice in the 1970s for adaptation scores, a — earned a nomination for “The Irishman,” mak- category long since discontinued.) The Icelandic ing her the only woman to have made the cut, so Original cellist Guðnadóttir’s competitors are Oscar veter- Editing to speak. Editor Michael McCusker scored his ans, including 87-year-old John Williams, who second nomination for “Ford v Ferrari,” cutting Score scored a record 52nd Oscar nomination for “Star “FORD V FERRARI” the racing action of James Mangold’s film. Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.” He is the most nom- Michael McCusker, Rookie nominee Tom Eagles cut Nazi black-and- “JOKER” inated living person — and has five Oscars Andrew Buckland white propaganda footage of Hitler while a Ger- Hildur Guðnadóttir already, including one for the first “Star Wars” in “THE IRISHMAN” man version of the Beatles singing “I Want To “LITTLE WOMEN” 1977. Two-time winner Randy Newman was nomi- Thelma Schoonmaker Hold Your Hand” sets the tone for Taika Waititi’s nated for “Marriage Story” (and, as he received a vision. Jeff Groth scored his first nomination for Alexandre Desplat “JOJO RABBIT” song nomination, too, his tally is up to 22). Ran- “Joker.” His biggest challenge was to not reveal “MARRIAGE STORY” Tom Eagles dy’s cousin Thomas Newman received his 15th too much information as the Joker emerges. Randy Newman nomination (so far without a win) for “1917,” his “JOKER” — Jazz Tangcay “1917” seventh film for director Sam Mendes. Another Jeff Groth Thomas Newman two-time winner, French composer Alexandre “PARASITE” “STAR WARS: THE Desplat (“Grand Budapest Hotel,” “Shape of Jinmo Yang RISE OF SKYWALKER” Water”) was cited for his music for “Little John Williams Women.” — Jon Burlingame

MAYES C. RUBEO made history by becoming DENNIS GASSNER built World War I trenches and the first Latina to be nominated for an Oscar in battlefields on soundstages in the U.K. to help costume design. She created a vibrant early plunge viewers into the story of two British sol- 1940s war-time wardrobe — seen through the diers on a life-or-death mission in “1917.”Going PICTURES UNIVERSAL 1917: eyes of a little boy — for “Jojo Rabbit.” Sandy back to 1969, Barbara Ling re-created historic Powell recruited Christopher Peterson to carry Los Angeles locations for “Once Upon a Time in out the gigantic task of costuming “The Irishman” Hollywood.” Bob Shaw had to cover five decades — Robert De Niro needed 102 costume changes in “The Irishman,” finding various period-looking alone — earning her 15th Oscar nomination. locations in New York and New Jersey to stand in Mark Bridges drew his fourth nomination for for Philadelphia. Ra Vincent went location scout- “Joker.” For the working-class style of Arthur ing in Europe for World War II-set “Jojo Rabbit.” Fleck (played by Joaquin Phoenix), Bridges col- The baroque architecture of the Czech Republic Costume laborated with the actor to find the right look. Production was the perfect location to create the world of Three-time nominee Arianne Phillips, who has the young boy fascinated by the Nazis. Lee Ha Design worked with Tom Ford and Madonna and created Design Jun went modern as he earned South Korea’s first the #Times Up logo, is seeking her inaugural nomination in production design for “Parasite.” ”THE IRISHMAN” win after collaborating for the first time with “THE IRISHMAN” Lee contrasted two socio-economic worlds, most Sandy Powell, Christopher Quentin Tarantino on the 1969-set “Once Upon Bob Shaw and Regina Graves startlingly in the disparity between the spacious Peterson a Time in Hollywood.” Jacqueline Durran earned “JOJO RABBIT” Park home and the cramped Kim basement apart- “JOJO RABBIT” her sixth nomination for “Little Women.” Durran Ra Vincent and Nora ment. — Jazz Tangcay Mayes C. Rubeo researched artists and radicals, people who were Sopkova outside the mainstream in the 1800s to find ideas “JOKER” “1917” for costuming the film based on the beloved Mark Bridges Dennis Gassner and novel. — Jazz Tangcay Lee Sandales “LITTLE WOMEN” Jacqueline Durran “ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD” “ONCE UPON A TIME Barbara Ling and IN HOLLYWOOD” Nancy Haigh Arianne Phillips “PARASITE” Lee Ha Jun and Cho Won Woo STAR WARS: DISNEY/LUCASFILM LTD./ILM; FORD V FERRARI: MERRICK MORTON/20TH CENTURY FOX; LITTLE WOMEN: WILSON WEBB/SONY PICTURES; LITTLE WOMEN: WILSON WEBB/SONY FOX; CENTURY FORD V FERRARI: MERRICK MORTON/20TH LTD./ILM; DISNEY/LUCASFILM WARS: STAR

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Coincidence? Maybe. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sci- Hidden Facts in ences traditionally held the Oscars in March or April, but moved the ceremony a month earlier, beginning with the Oscarcast on Feb. 29, 2004. Oscar history offers other evidence that the date Oscar Date Change change can have an impact. — The bellwethers changed. For the 16 years MOVING THE CEREMONY HAS SOME UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES before the date switch, the film that earned the most nominations won the best picture award By Tim Gray 14 times, or 87%. For the 16 years after that date change, the film with the most nominations won only six times, or 37%. — Before the switch (1987-2002), the Golden Globes predicted the Oscar best pic in 13 of the 16 years (81%). After the switch, that match was cut in half, to seven of 16 times (43%). — Every best-picture winner from 1987 to THIS YEAR, there are 8,469 eligible Oscar voters, a jump of 35% from four years 2002 had a cold opening — i.e., debuted in the- ago. The membership increase may affect the outcome, but without seeing a aters commercially, without previous runs on numerical breakdown of branches, gender and geographic location of voters, we the festival circuit. Of those 16 winners, 10 had will never know for sure. launched in November or December. (In 2002, There is another important factor affecting the results: The changing calendar. the year “Chicago” won, all five best-pic nomi- This year’s ceremony, on Feb. 9, is the earliest ever. The accelerated schedule has nees opened in the U.S. in December.) In 2019, been the source of anxious jokes for months; the attitude seemed to be that this it’s doubtful if most of them would have been year’s awards season is filled with familiar stuff, but at a faster pace. nominated. However, it is NOT the same stuff. The differences affect two key areas: the — For the past 11 years (i.e., since the 2008 all-important buzz, and voters’ access to watching the films. “Slumdog Millionaire”), every one of Oscar’s best If a film hasn’t established itself by mid-October, it’s an uphill battle. The faster WAR HORSE picture winners had debuted at Venice, Telluride schedule removes the opportunity for people to discover films, especially late- While “1917” has or Toronto, or some combo of those three. year openers. earned awards Clearly, awards strategists are using the fests attention, most As always, the SAG Awards nominations include six categories for film, picked late-year entries to begin their buzz. In theory, there’s no harm by SAG-AFTRA voters (who were randomly selected to be part of this year’s nomi- had a harder time, in that. But in the past, a later Oscar-voting date nating committee). This year, no film that began public screenings after Oct. 15 got as the abbreviated allowed some films to build word-of-mouth. season didn’t allow a nomination. Most nominees had debuted via the September festivals and had voters to discover Exhibit A is Halle Berry, who was not high on been frequently screened since then. those films. the awards radar in December 2001. But “Mon- ster’s Ball” from Lionsgate built support. Voters no longer have time to discover little films that began screening late. That list includes “Clemency,” “A Hidden Life,” “Just Mercy,” “Dark Waters,” “Honey Boy,” the French “Les Misérables,” “Waves,” “The Peanut Butter Falcon,” “Give Me Liberty,” “Uncut Gems” and even such latecomers as “Bombshell,” “Little Women” and “1917,” which won the Globe for drama. The earlier awards are meant to help Oscar- cast ratings. But the big question is: Are they helping to encourage moviegoing? FRANÇOIS DUHAMEL/UNIVERSAL PICTURES FRANÇOIS DUHAMEL/UNIVERSAL

VARIETYVARVAA IETETT Y CONTENDERSCONCOONTENENN DERERS 6969 CONTENDERS | SAG LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Robert De Niro Opens Up a Little

THE SAG LIFE ACHIEVEMENT HONOREE AND ‘IRISHMAN’ STAR REFLECTS ON THE PAST AND LOOKS TO THE FUTURE

By Jenelle Riley

ROBERT DE NIRO is a big winner. It’s the after- noon of the AFI Luncheon, honoring the best in film and television, and De Niro has just left the ceremony with three certificates. “There they are, yeah,” he gestures to a table in his hotel room at the Four Seasons when asked, as if it’s no big deal. Because De Niro, widely considered one of the Greatest of All Time, makes it look easy. The three awards are actually for his producing work: for the Netflix miniseries “When They See Us” and two films he also appears in, “Joker” and “The Irishman.” Accolades are nothing new to De Niro; he’s a multiple Oscar nominee (and two-time winner for “The Godfather, Part II” and “Raging Bull”), a nine-time Golden Globe nominee (he won for “Raging Bull” and received the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2011), and a five-time SAG Award nominee, including this year for his work in the “Irishman” ensemble. “The Irishman” is De Niro’s passion project. Based on the 2004 book “I Heard You Paint Houses,” the film reunites him with his longtime De Niro is famous for being low-key in per- Festival, which he founded in 2002 with Jane collaborator Martin Scorsese for the first time son; he’s polite, thoughtful and chooses his Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff.) His first role was since 1995’s “Casino.” De Niro plays hitman Frank words carefully. It’s a strange juxtaposition with in De Palma’s “The Wedding Party,” shot in 1963 Sheeran, leading a spectacular cast that includes the man who brought to life such powerhouses and released in 1969. Al Pacino as Jimmy Hoffa. as Jake LaMotta, Vito Corleone, Travis Bickle and “I think it was around the time I did ‘Greetings’ But even if “The Irishman” isn’t called at the Max Cady. But that’s part of what makes the actor and ‘Hi, Mom’ with Brian De Palma,” he says of his SAG Awards ceremony Jan. 19, De Niro can relax so fascinating — we literally have no idea how SAG card. By the time he did the studio film “The knowing he’s not going home empty-handed; he does what he does. And while much is known Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight” in 1971, he he is receiving the SAG Life Achievement Award about his career and collaborations, here are a was definitely a member. for career achievement and humanitarian few things that you might not know. accomplishment. He’s aware that he can be intimidating to others. “It’s a nice thing,” De Niro says in his typically He’s not sure when he got his SAG card. Perhaps because of the roles he plays or understated way. But rather than focus on him- De Niro got his start in the world of low-bud- because of his towering reputation, De Niro self, he quickly shifts the attention to his peers. get filmmaking, working with the likes of Roger can cut an intimidating figure. And he rec- “I was so happy about the ensemble nomination Corman and Brian De Palma. (His love for indie ognizes that when he shows up to a set, some for ‘Irishman.’ It’s great.” film continues to this day with the Tribeca Film people are going to be in awe. “I’m aware of it PHOTOGRAPH BY MARCO GROB BY PHOTOGRAPH

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Best Picture GOLDEN GLOBE WINNERS 1917 PGA Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a JAYNE-ANN TENGGREN Outstanding Producer of Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television PRODUCER Theatrical Motion Pictures Best Action Movie JAYNE-ANN TENGGREN PATRICIA ARQUETTE PRODUCER The Act Avengers: Endgame 1917 Best Motion Picture - Drama MICHAEL GRILLO Outstanding Producer of Episodic 1917 EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Television – Drama JAYNE-ANN TENGGREN Spider-Man: Far From Home ANDREA ARNOLD PRODUCER THOMAS M. HAMMEL EXECUTIVE PRODUCER EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Big Little Lies (Season 2) 1917 Outstanding Game & ADG JAYNE-ANN TENGGREN Competition Television Excellence in Production Design for a Period or Fantasy Film PRODUCER MICHELE MILLS DENNIS GASSNER Best Production Design CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCER 1917 DENNIS GASSNER RuPaul’s Drag Race (Season 11) RICK CARTER 1917 TEDDY VALENTI KEVIN JENKINS BEST EDITING CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker LEE SMITH The Voice (Season 16, Season 17) Excellence in One Hour Period or 1917 Outstanding Children’s Program Fantasy Single-Camera Series Best Sci-Fi or Horror Movie JEFFREY ADDISS BILL GROOM Avengers: Endgame WILL MATTHEWS The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS/WRITERS MICHAEL GRILLO Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal ANDREW L. JONES EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Mandalorian TELEVISION Excellence in Production Design for Short Format, SAG Best Comedy Series Variety, Web Series or Commercial Outstanding Performance by a EMMA FAIRLEY Pen15 Male Actor in a Leading Role Don’t Call Me Angel MAYA ERSKINE ADAM DRIVER CREATOR/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER Marriage Story ANNA KONKLE ASC CREATOR/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Board of Governors Award Schitt’s Creek Movie or Limited Series WERNER HERZOG ANDREW BARNSLEY PATRICIA ARQUETTE EXECUTIVE PRODUCER The Act Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Episode DAVID WEST READ of a Series for Commercial Television EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Outstanding Performance by a POLLY MORGAN, ASC, BSC Male Actor in a Television Movie Best Drama Series Legion, “Chapter 23” or Limited Series Watchmen SAM ROCKWELL RON SCHMIDT FOSSE/VERDON BAFTA EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Outstanding Performance by Lead Actor Best Limited Series a Cast in a Motion Picture ADAM DRIVER The Loudest Voice Marriage Story ALLISON JANNEY TOM MCCARTHY Bombshell CREATOR/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/WRITER Best Film SAM ROCKWELL JAYNE-ANN TENGGREN Best Drama Actress Jojo Rabbit PRODUCER MJ RODRIGUEZ 1917 Pose Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Outstanding British Film Best Comedy Supporting Actress MERRIN DUNGEY JAYNE-ANN TENGGREN ANNIE MURPHY Big Little Lies PRODUCER Schitt’s Creek 1917 BEN DANIELS Best Limited/Movie Actor The Crown Production Design SAM ROCKWELL JEROME FLYNN DENNIS GASSNER Fosse/Verdon PRODUCTION DESIGNER ISAAC HEMPSTEAD WRIGHT 1917 NOAH WYLE Game of Thrones The Red Line Best Editing CHARLIE HEATON TOM EAGLES Best Limited/Movie Actress JOE KEERY Jojo Rabbit MEGAN HILTY PAUL REISER Patsy & Loretta Best Costume Design WINONA RYDER JANY TEMIME Best Limited/Movie Supporting Actress Stranger Things Judy PATRICIA ARQUETTE The Act Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series CDG STEPHEN ROOT DGA Barry Excellence in Variety, Reality-Competition, Live Television Outstanding Directorial Achievement in LISA EDELSTEIN Variety/Talk/News/Sports – ZALDY GOCO Regularly Scheduled Programming PAUL REISER Ru Paul’s Drag Race JIM HOSKINSON MELISSA TANG The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Kominsky Method CRITICS CHOICE AWARDS “A. Ocasio-Cortez; Incubus” KEVIN POLLAK Outstanding Directorial Achievement The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel FILM in Reality Programs Best Actor PATRICK MCMANUS DUSTIN MILLIGAN ADAM DRIVER American Ninja Warrior ANNIE MURPHY Marriage Story “1116 Las Vegas National Finals Night 4” Schitt’s Creek

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to a point,” he admits. “But not to where people have behaved differently — you get word people feel this way. I just say, ‘Well, they’ll get over that soon enough.’ We’re just all there to get it done.” Ray Romano, who plays Sheeran’s lawyer in the film, confesses to being one of those people. The first scene they were in together, they were sitting in a booth with a group and when Scorsese yelled cut, Romano didn’t want to get up to leave until De Niro did. “In my head I’m like, ‘I can’t get up until he does, it seems that would be disrespectful!’” Romano recalls. “Five, six, seven minutes went by. He was friendly and warm, but I didn’t know what to do or say. “ Finally, much to Roma- no’s relief, “He got up, and I got up.” Two days later, when they shot their big one- on-one scene, Romano says his insecurities really kicked in. “I’m ad-libbing a little and adding little things and it was going on for hours with Martin Scorsese right there, not in video village, watching,” he recalls. “We finally wrap and listen, I’m not the needy actor who needs to hear, ‘That was wonderful!’ But in that situation, I needed something.” Romano says he called his wife from the car ride to the hotel and was airing his insecurity. “I was saying, ‘I don’t know if I can get fired at this point but I have no idea if Marty liked it or Bob liked it, I don’t know.’ ” While checking in at the hotel, he heard someone call his name and looked over to see De Niro standing there. “He just walked over, put me in a headlock and gave me a kiss on the cheek,” Romano reveals. “It wasn’t a conversation, but everything was said in the gesture. I went to the room and called my wife and said everything was going to be OK.” FAMOUS FACES De Niro in some iconic roles: (clock- He took the idea of playing Robert Mueller on wise from top) “Goodfellas,” “Meet “Saturday Night Live” to Lorne Michaels. the Parents,” “SNL” and “Irishman.” An outspoken opponent of President Trump, De Niro has been earning laughs (and an Emmy nom for guest star) for his frequent spots on “Saturday Night Live” as prosecutor Robert Mueller, the spe- for months, De Niro shows no sign that he’s for the film, she confessed she wasn’t sure cial counsel for the Department of Justice who tired of discussing the world of Frank Sheeran. what to expect from his performance. “I was led an investigation into Trump. It was actually When he first told Scorsese about “I Heard a little concerned, I hadn’t edited a film with De Niro who initially approached “SNL” producer You Paint Houses,” he says he got very emo- Bob since ‘Casino’ and hadn’t seen a lot of Lorne Michaels. tional. “I said, ‘Jesus, Marty, you gotta read this.’” his work in between then,” she admitted. “I felt it was my civic duty to do Muel- Even though Sheeran is an unrepentant killer, Her fears were soon allayed. “From the moment ler because of what’s going on with this whole his work eventually costs him everything, leav- we started, I just could not get over this beau- administration,” he says. “Whatever I can do to ing him alone and estranged from his daughter. tiful, amazing performance he was giving,” she contribute to that, I’ll do.” While he knows some “The book has a lot of heart,” he says. “The guy raved. “Some of it is so subtle, but you just see people don’t like actors speaking out about poli- did these things, he has a lot of guilt and I said, him sink into the character and all these remark- tics, De Niro disagrees. ‘That’s a great story.’ It also includes historic, big- able things he was doing and how heartbreaking “I think there is a responsibility at some point,” ger than life characters that have unresolved end- he is in those final scenes, it just broke my heart.” he notes. “There’s right and there’s wrong and ings. There was so much there, so much for Marty there’s common sense and there’s abuse of power and I to do.” The film he wishes had gotten more love is and as a citizen I have as much right as anybody “Everybody’s Fine.” else. And if I have a bigger voice because of my Scorsese’s longtime editor Thelma Schoonmaker Asked what movies people want to talk to situation I’m going to use it against what I feel is was blown away by his work in “Irishman.” him about, De Niro says it all “depends on a blatant abuse of power.” There’s probably no one who has watched who you’re talking to.” Classics including De Niro’s performance in “The Irishman” “Raging Bull” are often brought up, whereas He can get passionate discussing “The Irishman.” more than Schoonmaker, who spent count- younger people might cite “Meet the Parents.” Though he’s been talking about “The Irishman” less hours editing the film. In a recent Q&A With a resume as long and varied as De Niro’s, GOODFELLAS: MOVIESTORE/SHUTTERSTOCK; IRISHMAN: NIKO TAVERNISE/NETFLIX IRISHMAN: NIKO GOODFELLAS: MOVIESTORE/SHUTTERSTOCK;

72 VARIETY CONTENDERS CONTENDERS | SAG LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

SAG Awards Honor Peers

A LOOK AT WHAT MAKES THE AWARDS SHOW STAND OUT

The 26th annual SAG Awards will be held Jan. 19 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and broadcast live on both TNT and TBS at 8 p.m. EST. The SAG Awards are different from typical awards ceremonies for a number of reasons — beginning with length. The show, which comes in at two hours, is always the shortest of the major kudofests, as it only honors acting categories. However, it is one of the few to present awards in film, television and stunts. The SAG Awards nominees and winners are also voted on entirely by their peers. The nominees are picked by separate film and TV committees, but the winners are voted on by the approxi- mately 160,000 members of the SAG-AFTRA union. This spirit of camaraderie is celebrated in the opening “I Am an Actor” segment in which performers directly address the audience about how they became actors, about early jobs or what acting means to them. Last year’s intros included “Bohemian Rhapsody” ensemble nominee Mike Myers and Geoffrey Owens, the former “The Cosby Show” star who went viral after being photo- graphed working at a Trader Joe’s. The SAG Awards were the first major awards show to honor the ensemble cast. At the first SAG Awards ceremony in 1995, TV ensembles “NYPD Blue” and “Seinfeld” won drama and comedy, respectively. The following year, the awards added film ensemble, making “Apollo 13” the first film ensemble to be honored. And as an Oscar predictor, the SAG Awards are regarded as one of the best — perhaps because the largest voting body in the Academy is actors. Last year was a bit of an anomaly, as Emily Blunt’s MWORKS supporting win for “A Quiet Place” couldn’t be duplicated as she wasn’t nominated for an Oscar, and Glenn Close took home the SAG Award for “The Wife” but Olivia Colman went on to win the Oscar. Still, both Rami Malek (“Bohemian Rhap- there are going to be some hits and misses, some him “the greatest actor of his generation” whose sody”) and Mahershala Ali (“Green Book”) went on ﬁlms that didn’t get the attention he would have “creative impact in acting will always be felt so to take home Academy Awards. –Jenelle Riley liked. One in particular that stands out is the long as there are actors to express their art.” 2009 family drama “Everybody’s Fine,” in which Says De Niro: “We had mutual friends who Tipsheet he played the widowed father of Sam Rockwell, went back and forth between his group and my Kate Beckinsale and Drew Barrymore. “I liked the group.” De Niro estimates he hadn’t seen Scors- WHAT: The 26th annual SAG Awards director, I liked the story,” he notes, adding that ese in about 10 years when he ran into him at WHEN: Jan. 19, 2020, 8 p.m. EST it was released by Miramax at a time when the a friend’s party. “I had seen Marty’s ﬁlm ‘Who’s WHERE: Shrine Auditorium company was about to go under. “Still, I never like That Knocking at My Door?’ and told him how WEB: sagawards.org

: WILL HEATH/NBC; GREEN BOOK: UNIVERSAL PICTURES/PARTICIPANT/DREA GREEN BOOK: UNIVERSAL : WILL HEATH/NBC; to blame a distributor because if a movie is going much I liked it and understood it,” he recalls. to hold up, it’s going to hold up. I like that people “And we started talking about ‘Mean Streets.’ are discovering that one.” He basically let me decide which of the characters I was going to play, other than Har- He’s known Scorsese longer than you might think. vey Keitel’s character, which was already cast.” De Niro and Scorsese are considered the ulti- And while it may have taken over 20 years for mate example of a fruitful partnership between the pair to reunite for “The Irishman,” fans need actor and director, with films like “Taxi Driver,” not worry: they’re already working on their next “Raging Bull” and “Goodfellas” to their credit. film together, “Killers of the Flower Moon.” The While they’ve been collaborating since 1973’s film will also star Leondardo DiCaprio, who in OSCAR WINNER “Mean Streets,” they go back even further. a lovely bit of kismet, is presenting De Niro with Mahershala Ali in “Green Book” “We met when we were 16,” Scorsese says, calling his Life Achievement Award. MEET THE PARENTS: UNIVERSAL/DREAMWORKS/KOBAL/SHUTTERSTOCK; SNL UNIVERSAL/DREAMWORKS/KOBAL/SHUTTERSTOCK; MEET THE PARENTS:

VARIETY CONTENDERS 73 CONTENDERS | PGA AWARDS Guild Program Combating Sexual Harassment Kicks Into Gear

HUNDREDS RECEIVED FREE PGA TRAINING LAST YEAR

By Addie Morfoot

PRODUCERS GUILD co-presidents Gail Ber- In the two-plus years since blockbuster report- the issues. Funding comes from a $2 million man and Lucy Fisher are headed to the org’s ing about allegations against Weinstein, the grant from CBS, which disbursed $20 million annual awards celebration Jan. 18 with a big cultural consciousness about the issue has irre- that was originally earmarked for severance accomplishment under their respective belts: its vocably changed. But Berman is cautious about for its former CEO Leslie Moonves to 18 differ- anti-harassment program kicked into high gear progress made thus far. Despite people being ent organizations that work to eliminate sexual in 2019, providing free training to 350 people in more aware of workplace sexual harassment and harassment in the workplace. six months. The Independent Production Safety gender parity, she says both issues aren’t going to On-set training includes one hour of anti-ha- Initiative (IPSI), established in late 2018, is a high go away quickly. rassment interactive training that is speciﬁc to priority for Berman and Fisher, along with gen- “Things are moving in a positive and strong each set and helps foster a culture of respect. der parity and health care for members. direction, but there is a lot to overcome,” Berman The PGA also assigns an expert attorney to “We are really encouraging every one of our says. “There are many, many years of entrenched each qualifying production. Upon completion members to create an environment in which behavior and thought process. But it’s progress of the on-set training session, each production people feel really comfortable speaking up,” that now this is a subject that’s on people’s minds receives up to two hours of free legal advice Fisher says. She was appointed to the guild on a daily basis. A couple of years ago, frankly it from an assigned attorney. Aside from the 350 co-presidency with Berman in June 2018, when was, ‘Oh yeah. Let’s do something about that.’ ” people that have applied for and received train- the industry was still reeling from sexual-mis- The IPSI program was established to help ing since July, there have been six IPSI training conduct allegations against longtime producer provide more resources and training to produc- sessions for production companies, including Harvey Weinstein, among others. “Also, an envi- tions that might not otherwise have access to it. Atlanta-based School of Humans and L.A.-based ronment where it’s OK to point out little things, It provides free training and advice to smaller Blumhouse Prods. because if you stop small behaviors then it productions that have more than 20 workers, “We have been adjusting our training based hopefully won’t escalate.” but no HR or legal department conversant in on feedback that we got from those who have used IPSI,” says Susan Sprung, national executive director of the PGA. “We started out doing what

POWER PAIR was very traditional training and have shifted PGA co-presidents it to being much more conversational because Gail Berman and what we were ﬁnding is that in many cases over Lucy Fisher at last year’s kudofest. 90% of the [initiative’s attendees] have gone through traditional sexual harassment training. So they do obviously go through the legal points and if someone requests what is a traditional training session we provide that, but we really have limited it to make it much more conversational and much more participatory.” The grant, which Sprung secured for the guild, is expected to fund the program for three years. Fisher and Berman both acknowledge there is still much work to be done on gender parity. “The more you identify the problem and spotlight it, hopefully there is more pressure to change,” Fisher says, regarding recognition for female directors. “And we all know the statistics. They’re horrible. It’s a long haul to change people’s entire mindset.” Entrenched mindsets may have played a role in Gabrielle Union’s ouster from “America’s Got Talent” after she complained about racial insen- sitivity, Berman suggests. MICHAEL BUCKNER/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK

74 VARIETY CONTENDERS CONTENDERS | PGA AWARDS

Key PGA Nominees Tipsheet FILM WHAT: PGA Awards 1917 WHEN: Jan. 18 WHERE: Hollywood Ford v Ferrari Palladium The Irishman WEB: producersguild.org/ Jojo Rabbit page/pga_awards Joker Knives Out Little Women Marriage Story Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Parasite

‘TALENT’ TRIBUTE Gabrielle Union, ANIMATED FILM left, accused Abominable “America’s Got Talent” producers Frozen 2 of racism after How to Train Your Dragon: she was ousted from The Hidden World the show. Missing Link Toy Story 4

DOCUMENTARY FILM

Advocate American Factory Apollo 11 The Cave For Sama Honeyland One Child Nation

TV DRAMA

Big Little Lies (Season 2) The Crown (Season 3) Game of Thrones (Season 8) “Sometimes shows that have been on for a during our tenure.” Succession (Season 2) long time, there’s less new thought going into The prognosis is better for a Producers Mark Watchmen (Season 1) them then perhaps a show that’s just starting,” certification for television productions. The says Berman, a former studio and network head accreditation on screen credits is designed to TV COMEDY who now heads SideCar Content Accelerator for identify the producers who did the heavy lifting Barry (Season 2) Fox. “But I have to say that I see no reason why on any given project, and combat the spread of Fleabag (Season 2) progress can’t be made on that show. Change is the credit to managers, financiers and others who The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel afoot. It just is.” do not serve in the traditional role on a project. (Season 3) When appointed PGA co-presidents, Berman It took some 18 years of fighting to get studios to Schitt’s Creek (Season 5) and Fisher had an agenda for the guild that adopt the mark for features starting in 2012 with Veep (Season 7) included establishing a health care plan for mem- the Red Wagon-produced “Lawless.” bers. But the plan has yet to come to fruition. “We are bringing it into streaming movies and LIMITED SERIES TV Sprung says it has been difficult to come up into TV movies,” says Berman. Chernobyl with a group plan. “We hired an outside consul- In June the duo’s two-year term will end, but Fosse/Verdon tant and we’ve been working with them since Berman and Fisher say they are far from done True Detective 2018,” she says. “They are trying to come up with fighting to make things the best they can be for Unbelievable something creative for our members. It is really the guild’s 8,200 members. When They See Us indicative of a much larger issue with the health “Producers like to solve problems,” Fisher says.

care in our country.” “That’s just what we do. So Gail and I came at this TV MOVIE Berman says getting PGA members a health- from a pretty practical bent. We want to acknowl- American Son care plan remains a priority. edge problems and establish something concrete Apollo: Missions to the Moon “It’s been disappointing,” Berman admits. “And [to help solve] them. Not just talk about it or com- Black Mirror: Striking Vipers it has been eye-opening, that’s for sure. But it’s plain about them. But obviously the more you Deadwood: The Movie still something that I want to see accomplished look at, the more you want to accomplish.” El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie TRAE PATTON/NBC TRAE PATTON/NBC TRAE PATTON/NBC

VARIETY CONTENDERS 75 CONTENDERS | PGA AWARDS

TED SARANDOS, who has helped to upend the way audiences receive and consume entertainment as Netflix’s chief content officer, will be honored with the Milestone Award at the 31st annual Producers Guild Awards on Jan. 18. Game-changers including Ste- Netflix Leader ven Spielberg, Sherry Lansing, Robert Iger, Jeffrey Katzenberg and Ron Meyer have previously received the recognition, and Sarandos admits it’s not an honor he imagined himself receiving before he entered showbiz. Plans Creative “Growing up, my escape was always television and movies,” Sarandos tells Variety. “Some of the biggest influences of my life were on screens, big and small. My younger self would never have imagined that I would be a part of the community that brings so Push for the Future much joy to the world. I did not grow up on sets or in pitch meetings. I grew up as a fan, and I am proud to have played a role in this new golden era of filmed entertainment.” TED SARANDOS HAS HELPED TRANSFORM VIEWING A former video exec who began producing shows after joining HABITS AS STREAMER’S TOP CONTENT BOSS Netflix in 2000, Sarandos spearheaded the streaming service’s foray into original content production. Knowing the company was tak- By Scott Huver ing a big swing, he barely envisioned the seismic effect to follow. “When we made that big bet on ‘House of Cards,’ I actually had no idea if it would even be eligible for an Emmy,” Sarandos recalls. The series would become the first series that never aired on traditional broadcast or cable to win a Primetime Emmy. “It was an early lesson that if you were going to make changes to long-established systems, the shows and films better be undeniable.” Recruiting top-tier talent was crucial in launching a staggering succession of addictive, watercooler-worthy television, from originals to revivals and re-imaginings to comedy specials, he says. A major foray into film followed, again fueled by visionary creators, resulting in popular and award-contending fare. “It was also a reinforcement of the idea that if you choose well and support artists and try to stay out of the way, people will do the best work of their lives,” he says. Throughout the process, he’s found tremendous creative challenges and satisfaction as a producer. “Producing is all about emotion and human intuition,” he says. “The same things you think about when choosing what to watch are the same things I think about when we consider greenlighting a new show or film: Is this something I’ve seen before? Are these characters I care about? Do I want to follow this journey over a few seasons, or might this actually be a film? There is no shortage of ideas, but someone who has a vision and can execute it is pretty rare, so know what you are looking for. “Being able to tell new stories and discover new storytellers is something that drives us every day, and finding the best formats for those stories is a unique proposition that Netflix can offer,” he says. “We have traditional showrunners making films, we have doc- umentarians making narrative features. Looking forward, I’m really interested in continuing to break down boundaries that may have historically prevented creators from telling their stories in a more traditional system. “It is hard to imagine how much the world of TV and film has changed in just these few years that we have been at it,” says Sarandos. He is prepping for new challenges as Netflix enters its next MILESTONE MAN phase, which includes broadening its film slate, launching its first Ted Sarandos will animated features and making 130 seasons of local-language tele- receive the Mile- stone Award at the vision around the world. “The one thing that is true across all of PGA Awards. these efforts is that we need to entertain our members, and everything else is chatter.” MICHAEL BUCKNER/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK

76 VARIETY CONTENDERS born with cinema

proudly congratulates

TED SARANDOS on receiving this prestigious Milestone Award !

Almost a decade together We look forward to the next one !

Untitled-5 1 1/10/20 5:12 PM CONTENDERS | PGA AWARDS

N O R M A N L E A R A C H I E V E M E N T B CROWD AWARD IN TELEVISION Jeremy Kleiner, Dede Gardner and Brad Pitt Showrunner Revels in ‘Grace’

‘FRIENDS’ CO-CREATOR HAS EXPANDED BEYOND TV INTO FILM PRODUCING

As fate would have it, Norman Lear gave Marta Kauffman her first job in television development close to 35 years ago. The result was “The Powers That Be,” which Kauffman created with David Crane and Lear executive produced. The NBC sitcom aired for two seasons between 1992 and 1993. Like Lear, Kauffman is prolific. In addition to “Friends,” she is responsible for co-creating “Dream On,” “Veronica’s Closet” and most recently, “Grace and Frankie.” During “Friends’ ” 10-season run between 1994 and 2004, the show received 62 Emmy nominations and won for outstanding comedy series in 2002. When “Friends” came to a close, Kauffman admits that she was in “a state.” “That year David [Crane] and I decided, amicably, that we wouldn’t be writing together anymore,” Kauffman says. “I was also turning 50, my oldest daughter was going SELZNICK AWARD to college and I was going through menopause.” While the time was “scary,” Kauffman ultimately discovered that she could successfully write without Crane and was good at creating and show- Diversity Pays running multi-camera sitcoms and single-camera comedies. Under her Okay Goodnight banner, which she founded with Robbie Tollin and Hannah K.S. Canter in 2015, Kauffman executive produced Off for Plan B the 2019 documentary “Seeing Allred,” about women’s rights attorney Gloria Allred, and co-created Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin series “Grace and PRODUCERS RECEIVE SELZNICK AWARD Frankie.” The show, currently in production on its seventh and final season, has become one of Net- By Scott Huver flix’s longest-running original series to date. During the show’s run, Kauffman tried her hand at directing, which she says she wants to do more of, and co-wrote 12 episodes with Howard J. Morris. “The thing that I always tell writers is that you have to follow your heart,” Kauffman says. “A show will be “FOR A LONG time people tried to figure out book or a piece of journalism.” better if you are passionate about it.” ‘What is Plan B?’” says Plan B principal Dede “Brad’s a true cinephile, and genuinely blows — Addie Morfoot Gardner, who along with fellow executives Jer- our mind constantly with the amount that he

emy Kleiner and Brad Pitt will receive the David sees, the depth to which he does to investigate FROM THE HEART O. Selznick Award at the 31st annual Producers as a filmmaker,” Gardner says. “His curiosity is an Marta Kauffman Guild Awards on Jan. 18. “I remember Brad came inspiring thing to be around.” hopes to direct more. to us the year that we released ‘12 Years a Slave’ Kleiner also praises Pitt’s cinematic insights. and ‘World War Z’ with a grin on his face: ‘That’s “The language he uses is as specific as his choices Plan B.’ Truthfully, it’s narratively driven. We are are as an actor.” real lovers of stories, and that’s been the singular Gardner, Kleiner says, demonstrates the cour- guidepost since the very beginning.” age to tackle complicated material that inspires Those films, along with a prestigious, awards respect, while she praises her partner for keen and nomination-heavy output including “Selma,” intuition for the needs of a disparate array of “The Big Short,” “Moonlight,” “Vice” and “If Beale filmmakers. Plan B’s enduring partnership is also Street Could Talk,” form the sort of enviable body key to its success. of work over the course of Plan B’s two decades — “Longevity is an underrated characteristic in one Kleiner says is informed by the fluid Pitt-in- creative industry,” Gardner says. “We have a lot fluenced development culture “of trying to stay of moments in meetings where we don’t say a present tense and be inspired, when the inspira- word to each other, but we know exactly what tions arrive in whatever form: a filmmaker or a the other person is saying.” KLEINER/GARDNER/PITT: TODD WILLIAMSON/JANUARY IMAGES/SHUTTERSTOCK; KAUFFMAN: TAYLOR JEWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK TAYLOR KAUFFMAN: IMAGES/SHUTTERSTOCK; WILLIAMSON/JANUARY TODD KLEINER/GARDNER/PITT:

78 VARIETY COCONTENDERSNTENDERS STANLEY KRAMER HONOREE ‘Bombshell’ Star Helped Save the Day in Producing Role MULTIHYPHENATE Octavia Spencer CHARLIZE THERON LED SEARCH FOR FILM BACKER used her clout as an actor to By Addie Morfoot produce.

PGA VISIONARY AWARD EXACTLY TWO WEEKS before “Bombshell” was Two days later, Lionsgate was signed on to set to begin shooting, Annapurna backed out distribute. ‘Ma’ Star Fought of the $35 million production. Producer Char- The movie, which is being honored with the lize Theron, who also stars in the film, was on Stanley Kramer Award at the PGA Awards, tells Hard to Become a location scout with production department the story of former Fox News female anchors heads when she heard the bad news. who brought down Roger Ailes (Lithgow), a Showbiz Hit “We had [cast] Nicole Kidman and Mar- and stars Theron as Megyn Kelly, Kidman as PGA RECIPIENT CONSIDERED got Robbie — two of the busiest people in the Gretchen Carlson and Robbie as a fictional Fox whole wide world, as well as John Lithgow, up-and-comer. Securing last-minute financing HERSELF A PRODUCER FIRST who weirdly is almost busier,” Theron says. “So and a new distributor wasn’t welcome news, but we knew that if we couldn’t stay on our origi- Theron didn’t exactly mind taking a break from Octavia Spencer never believed she would be in nally scheduled start date that we would not her acting duties. front of the camera. Instead, she always saw herself as a producer. be able to make the movie. Their schedules just “You can only work on becoming Megyn Kelly Her award-winning performances in movies wouldn’t permit it.” for a certain amount of hours every day,” Theron such as “The Help,” “Hidden Figures” and “The With the film’s shutdown imminent, Theron admits. “At a certain point you have to switch off. Shape of Water” helped Spencer, recipient of the immediately went into power producing mode. Being a producer is good for me because some- Visionary Award at the PGA Awards this year, to do By the end of day, with help from her fellow times I have OCD about things [as an actor]. So I both. But getting traction in Hollywood wasn’t easy producers and director Jay Roach, Theron had think I’m better when I can actually switch my for the Alabama-bred multihyphenate. secured Bron Studios as the pic’s new financier. brain off. Producing forces me to do that.” “It took me 15 years to become an overnight success,” says Spencer, who appeared in films including “Never Been Kissed” and “Coach Car- ter” earlier in her career. “That’s the case for the majority of people. It took a little time, a lot of relationships. Building relationships with the people I worked with. I don’t take it for granted. “I’ve always been a big dreamer. If you don’t dream big and you don’t see yourself where you want to be, it’s hard to put yourself there.” Spencer first gained recognition as a producer with Ryan Coogler’s “Fruitvale Station,” and has since produced films and TV series including 2018’s “Green Book,” starring Mahershala Ali — Spencer received an executive producer credit for the Oscar best picture winner — as well as Apple TV Plus’ “Truth Be Told” and Netflix’s “Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker.” “What pushes me is what pushes me as an actor,” says Spencer, whose production company Orit Entertainment is managed in partnership with her former WME agent and partner Brian Clisham. “It’s passion. It’s a part of who I am, it’s in my DNA. Content is very important. People want CREATIVE CONFAB to be entertained. We have to remember to allow Charlize Theron confers for escapism — especially in these dark times,” she with “Bombshell” director says. “I’m excited about the prospect of getting to Jay Roach on set. continue to do what I love.” — BreAnna Bell SPENCER: REBECCA CABAGE/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; BOMBSHELL: B GAYLE/LIONSGATE HILARY CABAGE/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; SPENCER: REBECCA

VARIETYV ARIETY CONTENDERSCONTENDERS 79 CONTENDERS | ACE AWARDSAWARDS

CUTTING EDGE Lulu Wang’s “The Farewell” is nominated in the comedy category.

Foreign Films Crash Eddies Party

‘PARASITE’ COMPETES AGAINST ‘IRISHMAN’ AND ‘FORD V FERRARI’

By JAZZ TANGCAY

which started from the exquisite storyboard.” ideas were unique, the immigration idea was Matt Friedman, who cut Lulu Wang’s “The universal. THE AMERICAN CINEMA Editors Eddie Awards, Farewell” — the second film they teamed on — “We worked to make those things under- which will be handed out Jan. 17, will for the calls his relationship with the director “incredi- standable,” says Friedman. “It was one of the fin- first time give voters a choice of selecting a for- bly collaborative.” est lines I’ve ever walked as an editor.” eign-language film in each of the three catego- When it comes to the art of the cut, Friedman Benjamin Massoubre, who received a nomi- ries. The trio in contention are: “The Farewell” is a firm believer in the story being told within nation for the animated “I Lost My Body,” was (comedy), “Parasite” (dramatic) and “I Lost My every single frame. tasked with building empathy for his characters Body” (animated). “If there are frames in there that are not con- through the cut. “This is the first time in our history that tributing to the story, we fight to get them out,” The film jumps in time as it tells the story this has happened,” says Stephen Rivkin, pres- he says. of Naoufel and his severed hand, which is trav- ident of the guild. “We’re very proud that our That approach was important to “The Fare- eling through Paris in search of the rest of its membership is growing and has expanded into well,” because Wang shot the film with extended body. Massoubre found the task more challeng- several international territories over the past moments. ing with the severed limb as it has no facial couple of years.” “She wanted to make the audience sit with expressions. That’s where director Jérémy Clapin “Parasite” director Bong Joon Ho story- uncomfortable emotions in a way that main- came in. boarded the film and included editing deci- stream movies don’t often do. In ‘The Farewell,’ “By always filming it at ground level and sions in the design. Longtime collaborator and those empty frames were still telling the story,” using a lot of POVs, Jérémy managed to immerse editor Jinmo Yang could cut exactly as Bong had Friedman says. the viewer with it,” Massoubre says. “Cutting its storyboarded. Those extended moments stand out from the memories and its fantasies in parallel also made “It only has 960 cuts in total,” Yang says. rest of the film when the pacing moves faster. it possible to give a soul to this otherwise mute “The reason why ‘Parasite’ is so immersive and His main challenge was in telling a moving and faceless character.” rhythmical is because of the harmony of accu- story that appealed to everyone: Chinese, immi- The ACE nomination gives him a lot of rate camera work and timing of the editing, grant and non-immigrant. While the cultural pride, he says, as if he’s “entering some kind CASI MOSS/A24 CASI

80 VARIETY COCONTENDERSNTENDERS CONTENDERS | ACE AWARDS

of ancient secret society. I used to sit through humor to that devastating shot.” episode earned a nomination instead of the the end credits of movies and see amazing edi- Timing the laughs was also key to comedy Emmy- winning “Please Remain Calm” segment. tors like Walter Murch, Michael Kahn or Thelma nominee “Dolemite Is My Name.” Editor Billy Rivkin says, “ACE continues to dedicate itself Schoonmaker with those three letters ‘ACE’ Fox, who previously collaborated with director with committees to reviewing hundreds of behind their names.” Craig Brewer (“Hustle & Flow”) says: “It’s really a hours of television, and the crop of shows that’s Schoonmaker is a front-runner this year for drama with a lot of laugh beats, a drama about nominated represents cable, streaming and “The Irishman,” on which she collaborated again funny people doing funny stuff. So the cuts and broadcast television. The quality of both feature with Martin Scorsese. the timing are not quite comedy cuts and tim- films and television this year is outstanding.” When it came to “The Irishman,” Scorsese ing, but they’re not quite drama either. It’s a Honorary awards will be given to producer didn’t feel the need to explain everything to hybrid. That was interesting, to walk that line.” Lauren Shuler Donner, who will receive the the viewer, and he didn’t want the movie to feel What drove the art of the cut for Fox was Golden Eddie; Cathy Repola, the national exec- like a documentary. “He wanted it to be quiet,” Brewer’s love for music. “Craig’s movies are utive director of the Editors Guild, IATSE Local Schoonmaker says. always so much about the music, particularly 700, will receive the Heritage Award; and former For her, the process begins with the script the source music. So cutting the picture to these ACE presidents Allen Heim and Tina Hirsch will and once she’s read it, she lets the film evolve iconic R&B songs was very important. There are be honored with career achievement trophies. in the editing. many places where the timing and emotion of Schoonmaker is on set during shooting and the music completely drives the cut, particularly is there through to the end. Scorsese, who loves in the montages.” Tipsheet the editing process, sits with her and together While the ACE Eddie film nominations over- WHAT: 70th annual ACE Eddie Awards they weave the film. lap somewhat with the Oscars, the same cannot WHEN: Jan. 17 Another front-runner is dramatic nominee be said of the Emmys. WHERE: Beverly Hilton Michael McCusker for “Ford v Ferrari.” McCusker, For instance, “Chernobyl’s” “Vichnaya Pamyat” WEB: americancinemaeditors.org who has edited five of James Mangold’s films, says when it came to cutting “Ford v Ferrari” and creating the fast-paced action of the Le Mans race, the director went for the same approach as always: character first. “What is that character feeling? That’s what guides his choices,” McCusker says. “And, sometimes, he changes the plan. Sometimes, he doesn’t like to rehearse a lot. He wants to see what the actors bring to the scene and respond to that in the moment. The shooting is a discovery process.” Jennifer Lame, nominated in the dramatic category for “Marriage Story,” also found it help- ful to be editing from the script stage. Working with director Noah Baumbach and having calls up to three times a day was particularly useful, she says. Of the film’s opening sequence, Lame says: “The great stuff, the compliments are all there, but so are the problems. It’s such a beautiful sequence that shows the love story, but underneath it all is this love story that’s coming to an GLOBAL GEMS end. It’s not Noah tricking the audience.” “Parasite” Lame had to balance the dueling comedic (above) and “I Lost My Body” and dramatic aspects of the film. In the scene in are among for- which Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) serves Char- eign-language lie (Adam Driver) with divorce papers, the tone nominees. switches from a moment of humor to one of devastation. “I cut so many different versions. What I wanted to do was maintain the humor from the raw dailies. When he gets served it hits this devastating moment. I remember how devas- tated I was watching Adam’s dailies when he got served. “It was fun creating this comedic moment, but then when he’s served, I wanted to make sure it was really felt and didn’t want the audience to still be laughing. It was fun to have those two sequences next to each other, going from PARASITE: NEON; I LOST MY BODY: NETFLIX NETFLIX MY BODY: NEON; I LOST PARASITE:

VARIETYV ARIETY CONTENDERSCONTENDERS 818 1 THANK YOU TO OUR ANNUAL GALA PRESENTING SPONSOR

CHAIRS

LYNNE + MARK BENIOFF ALEXANDRA + SEAN PARKER JOLENE + MICHAEL RAPINO

AND HONOREES

BEN CRUMP ROSETTA + BALTHAZAR GETTY ED RUSCHA FERNANDO SULICHIN

Untitled-14 1 1/13/20 3:07 PM FOCUS HALL OF FAME FOCUS

U.K. HONOURS GEORGE MACKAY IS AMONG THE RISING STARS TO BE HONORED, ALONG WITH VARIETY’S 10 BRITS TO WATCH DAN ROWLEY/SHUTTERSTOCK DAN

JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | 83 FOCUS 10 BRITS TO WATCH

CELEBRATING CREATIVES ACROSS THE POND

Variety, the Newport Beach Film Festival and Visit Newport Beach are teaming together for the fourth consecutive year to toast British talent. Held days before the BAFTA Awards in London, the U.K. Honours fetes established and rising talent, while 10 Brits to Watch salutes creatives with exciting projects in the past year as well as in the months ahead.

ZAWE ASHTON SHEILA ATIM “BETRAYAL,” “VELVET BUZZSAW” “HARLOTS,” “THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD”

Actor, playwright and author Ashton vel stars Charlie Cox and Tom Hid- Though a relative newcomer, Atim London with a degree in biomedical is coming off a year that includes dleston in London; the play then has already garnered accolades and science. While attending art college her Broadway debut, the publica- transferred to Broadway for a suc- awards normally reserved for those on the weekends, she was asked by tion of her memoir and a starring cessful limited run in the fall. “It was with decades more experience. a teacher to be in a play he’d writ- role in a Sundance hit. Considering a huge bucket-list moment,” Ash- Among many acting awards, ten and the rest sorted itself out. she was planning on quitting acting ton raves. As if that weren’t enough, including a Laurence Olivier Award “I was doing something very differ- at the end of 2017, it’s all the more a play Ashton wrote, “For All the for supporting actress in a musical ent; it makes so much more sense impressive. Women Who Thought They Were in 2018 for her performance in “The now that I’m here,” she says. “It just She had just penned her book, Mad,” made its debut both in Lon- Girl From the North Country,” Atim’s required the universe to give me a “Character Breakdown,” and notes, don and New York. turn opposite Mark Rylance’s Iago nudge in that direction.” “in the writing of it, I realized just With “Character Breakdown” in “Othello” garnered rave reviews. Onscreen, she has appeared in how long I’ve been doing this job coming out in paperback in Febru- She topped off a busy 2019 with a the series “Harlots” and “Bounty and how costly what we do can ary, Ashton is also at work writing a Member of the Most Excellent Order Hunters,” and will be seen in be sometimes.” She quickly adds, pilot and a feature. She also “aiming of the British Empire (MBE). upcoming projects as varied as “We’re not heart surgeons or scal- to direct something feature length.” “It’s so lovely to have work rec- Barry Jenkins’ “The Underground ing oceans or anything, but when “We’ve always had these voices ognized in that way; that’s not the Railroad” for Amazon, “The Irregu- you start acting as a child and you and these stories as women and as primary reason why I do it,” says lars” for Netflix, the Agatha Christie become an adult, you realize there women of color,” she adds. “It just Atim, calling her love of acting a drama “The Pale Horse” and Halle really is some catch up work to do happens that there’s a landscape form of expression and communi- Berry’s directorial debut “Bruised.” in terms of your psyche.” now where people are realizing not cation. “But it’s always a nice cherry “I don’t really have a specific But a message came through in only is there an appetite for these on the top to know that people are plan,” she says. “My part so far has early 2018 asking her to screen test stories, but they’re lucrative. It’s a being affected by the work you’re been saying ‘yes’ to the things that with Jake Gyllenhaal for Dan Gil- very exciting time.” —Jenelle Riley doing in a positive way.” present themselves to me and that’s roy’s “Velvet Buzzsaw”; the expe- Along with acting and mod- an ethos I’m trying to follow.” rience on the Netflix film changed REPRESENTATION: Agency: CAA; eling, Atim is also a singer, com- — Paul Plunkett her. “This was exactly what I’d been The Artists Partnership (Literary) poser (the score for the play “Time looking for,” she says. “I felt like an INFLUENCES: Pedro Almodóvar, is Love”) and playwright, with her REPRESENTATION: Agency: Mid- artist again.” Noah Baumbach, Marion Cotillard, play “Anguis,” debuting at last year’s dleweek Newton Talent Manage- Ashton followed that with a star- Viola Davis, Luca Guadagnino, Yor- Edinburgh Festival. ment; Management: Fourward. ring role in the revival of Harold gos Lanthimos, Terrence Malick, She only began acting after INFLUENCES: Angela Bassett, Nao- Pinter’s “Betrayal” opposite Mar- Gaspar Noé, family graduating from King’s College in mie Harris, Lauryn Hill, Alicia Keys ASHTON: TAYLOR JEWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; ATIM: SHUTTERSTOCK ATIM: JEWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; TAYLOR ASHTON:

84 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 CHAPMAN: MATT BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK; HENWICK: REBECCA CABAGE/SHUTTERSTOCK; PERDOMO: ITV/SHUTTERSTOCK “CHILLING ADVENTURES OFSABRINA” “1917,” “GAME OFTHRONES” CHANCE PERDOMO DEAN-CHARLES CHAPMAN age afterhisoldersistercaughtthe involved inlocaltheateratayoung start aschildren, Chapmangot following two humanbeings.” not justfollowing soldiers,you are George MacKay inthefilm.“You’re him tosignonstaropposite man says regarding whatcompelled epic “1917.” co-writer SamMendes’ World War I difficult missionindirector and two young soldierstasked witha AMC’s drama“IntotheBadlands.” of Thrones” andwarrior on Castor men BaratheononHBO’s “Game roles includingtheboy kingTom- earning memorabletelevision cal adaptationof“BillyElliot”before starring in,theWest End’s theatri- mative years inthecast,andthen and film.Hespentmuchofhisfor- conquered roles onstage,television Essex-born Chapmanhasalready Barely intohisseconddecadeand law degree whenhebooked apart My Debt.” Hescrappedplansfor a the BBCThree bio-drama“Killedby BAFTA nomination for TV starringin National Youth Theatre andhasa Southampton, trainedatLondon’s learned toperfect aSouthernaccent. time inNorthCarolina, where he the U.K. asakid.Heeven spentsome in theUnitedStatesbefore moving to ing Adventures ofSabrina,” was born Ambrose SpellmanonNetflix’s “Chill- fan-favorite necromancing warlock known intheU.S. for playing the a technicality. Theactor, whoisbest this listofBritishtalenttowatch on Some may countPerdomo outof Like alotofperformers who “It’s avery humanstory,” Chap- Now, hetoplinesasoneofthe But Perdomo, whowas raisedin (U.S.), Troika (U.K.) Robert DeNiro — Whitney Friedlander boy oneday. Thatwould benice.” at theminute.Maybe I’llbeacow- being “a bitobsessedwithWesterns another. Although,headmitsto overone mediumofstorytelling job andme.” I always learnabiglessonaboutmy it like that,” hesays. “Every jobIdo, a timeinmy life andIlookbackon Doyle novel. the Young Men,” basedontheRob the upcomingIrishdrama“Here Are Shakespeare’s plays, andstarringin in thisyear’s “TheKing,” basedon eventually alsoincludeappearing more high-profile partsthatwould commercials before graduatingto months, buthebegantobookTV acting bug.Shegave itupaftertwo INFLUENCES: REPRESENTATION: that mirrors ourpoliticalclimate, I’ll portraying clichés.” authentic representation” and“not “I naturallymigrateto[roles with] what thattermmeans,Perdomo says and explore positive portrayals of ual characterallows himtoresearch “Sabrina,” inwhichplaying apansex- est onhisunpaidtrafficfines,or cide afteraccruingtoomuchinter- a 20-year-old whocommitted sui- which isbasedonthetruestoryof his exams. realized filmingwould overlap with kids’ show “HettyFeather” afterhe with two linesofdialogueonthe Chapman says hedoesn’t favor “Every role Iplay, Ithinkofitas “If there’s somethinggoingon Whether it’s roles suchas“Debt,” Leonardo DiCaprio, Agency:

WME Brando, Robert DeNiro George Clooney, Brad Pitt,Marlon ment: Marshall Partners(U.K.); — Whitney Friedlander multi-faceted individuals.” flict andtheemotionalcontentof he says. “I’m justdrawn tothecon- ment basedonthataswhotheyare,” that], orhasacommentarystate- a characterthathasreflection [of probably bemore drawn toplaying nstein Trattner &Klein Wertheimer MandelbaumMorrisBer- ary; INFLUENCES: REPRESENTATION: Legal: Authentic Talent andLiter- Jackoway Austen Tyerman Dwayne Johnson, Agency: Manage- “UNDERWATER,” MATRIX “THE 4” JESSICA HENWICK Sofia Coppola’s “ ture-comedy “MonsterProblems,” anticipated “TheMatrix4,” adven- ing projects includethehighly anything inany genre, asupcom- ten Stewart. sea thriller“Underwater” withKris- currently onscreens inthedeep- file releases inthenearfuture. She’s will appearinnumerous high-pro- British televisionseries,Henwick descent toplay theleadrole ina her asthefirstactress ofEastAsian riors,” thatlatterofwhichmarked “The ThickofIt,” and“Spirit War- Atlantic’s “Fortitude,” BBC’s “Silk,” Fist,” HBO’s “Game ofThrones,” Sky on theMarvel/Netflix series“Iron Best known for televisionroles Heart oftheForest” and“Baliko.” and starred intheshortfilms“In Vs. Kong.” Shealsorecently wrote ture-feature smack-down “Godzilla “a dream cometrue”) andcrea- (an experience sherefers toas It’s clearthatHenwick isupfor She’s gototherplansinaddition Scott On theR ocks” JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | | VARIETY.COM 2020 15, JANUARY — NickClement dous personalexperience.” female travel andthiswas atremen- 40 days. I’m abigproponent ofsolo under 600milesover thecourseof France toSpain,whichwas just mountains. “Ihiked onmy own from good, ifratherlongtripthrough the she’s notworking, Henwick loves a But inthoserare momentswhen the candleonbothends,” shesays. hats atonce,andI’m always burning “Ilove jugglingmany creative tainment. and acomedywithVertigo Enter- ducer, includingaBritishminiseries two televisionseries aswriter-pro- to acting,having recently optioned stein Trattner &Klein heimer MandelbaumMorrisBern- Jackoway Austen Tyerman Wert- (U.S.), CurtisBrown (U.K.); Bong JoonHo Bridge, Wong Kar-wai, BritMarling, INFLUENCES: REPRESENTATION: PhoebeWaller-

Agency: Legal:

CAA CAA

85 FOCUS 10 BRITS TO WATCH

LAURA SOLON NATHAN STEWART-JARRETT “BACK TO LIFE” “DRACULA,” “CANDYMAN”

Solon co-created and co-wrote the spread across various genres con- Approaching different roles inspires in the works including the Jor- critically acclaimed BBC Three com- sidering that she counts “Thelma Stewart-Jarrett to invent different dan Peele-produced horror reboot edy series “Back to Life,” from “Flea- and Louise,” “Ghostbusters,” “Lost processes. “Candyman,” appearing with Yahya bag” producers Harry and Jack Wil- in Translation,” “The Squid and The “Sometimes it might be [a piece Abdul-Mateen II and Colman liams. It was recently picked up for Whale,” and “Brief Encounter” as of] music, sometimes it might be Domingo. a second season for U.S. distribu- personal cinematic favorites. art,” he says. “You have to follow Other upcoming projects tion by Showtime, thus ensuring She had a busy year in 2019, hav- your instinct with each one. I just include a “Dracula” series from wider exposure to the Brit hit. “Writ- ing developed “School for Good and try to not think so much, try to get “Sherlock” creators Stephen Mof- ing ‘Back to Life’ with the fantas- Evil” for Netflix, while also receiving out of my own way.” fat and Mark Gatiss and a role in tic Daisy Haggard is something I’m primary shared credit on the Netflix He’s also something of a the AMC anthology series “For Life” very proud of,” says Solon, who has holiday feature “Let It Snow.” She’s sponge, absorbing the lessons from Brett Goldstein and “Black Mir- also developed projects with ABC, also been packaging her original and habits of other actors, such as ror” writer Will Bridges. and has appeared on TV Land’s “Hot spec screenplay “Work It” for Uni- Nathan Lane and Andrew Garfield, While Stewart-Jarrett loves film- in Cleveland.” When she’s not busy versal/Amblin Partners. In 2018 she whom he appeared with on Broad- making and considers even the writing, Solon “follows cricket, espe- developed a number of projects for way in the 2018 revival of “Angels in worst day on a set to be a great cially test cricket where the games Universal Pictures, including “Pep” America.” day, he keeps an open mind to the can last five days! I love being with for director Jay Roach with Amy Poe- “I always watch; naturally I try future. “You re-check in [with your- my 5-year-old daughter and 2-year- hler attached to star, as well as “Unti- to steal from every other actor I self] every few years,” he says. “I old son.” tled Manny Project” for Josh Gad. work with,” he says with a chuckle. ask myself, ‘Do I still like this?’ and She’s really excited about a cou- Solon also co-wrote “Office Christ- “I’m constantly observing, trying to then I say, ‘Yeah, I do,’ and then ple of big projects, including “the mas Party.” thieve it away from them.” carry on.” second season of ‘Back to Life.’ I’m — Nick Clement Having spent years on televi- — Paul Plunkett also starting work on an animated sion, including on shows such as feature with Sony Pictures Anima- REPRESENTATION: Agency: Gersh; “Misfits” and “Utopia,” Stewart-Jar- REPRESENTATION: Agency: tion [“Bad Mermaids”] that I wake up Legal: Jackoway Austen Tyerman rett still finds something in theater ICM (U.S.), Curtis Brown (U.K.); very happy about each day.” Making Wertheimer Mandelbaum Morris he can’t get on screen. “I love feel- Management: Silver Lining Enter- eclectic choices on creative mate- Bernstein Trattner & Klein ing the audience,” he says. “I don’t tainment; Legal: Jackoway Austen rial comes naturally to Solon, who INFLUENCES: Judd Apatow, Nora think I’ve had that experience on Tyerman Wertheimer Mandelbaum says she’d like to tackle “a female- Ephron, Noah Baumbach, the screen thus far.” Morris Bernstein Trattner & Klein led action movie.” It’s no wonder that Victoria Wood, Emma Thompson, He’ll have plenty of chances INFLUENCES: Bob Hoskins, Julianne she’s attracted to all types of stories Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro in the days ahead, with projects Moore, Olivia Colman

Tipsheet

WHAT: NBFF U.K. Honours and Variety’s 10 Brits to Watch reception WHEN: Jan. 29 WHERE: Langham Hotel, London WEB: visitnewportbeach.com/uk-honours SOLON: RICHARD SHOTWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; STEWART-JARRETT: TAYLOR JEWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK TAYLOR STEWART-JARRETT: RICHARD SHOTWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; SOLON:

86 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 STORMZY “HEAVY IS THE HEAD”

It’s not every year that you get to per- ping Sheeran collaboration, “Take Me Rascal 10 years ago, but will he be the form at Adele’s 30th-birthday party, Back to London,” a 2019 track that was one to finally break British-accented but then, 2019 was rife with milestones also supposed to feature Jay-Z — until rap in America? Despite their aban- for British grime rapper Stormzy (real Stormzy most respectfully objected doned collaboration, Jay-Z seems to name: Michael Ebenazer Kwadjo Omari during a songwriting session. He told think so. “Culture moves the world,” Owuo Jr.). In addition to helping the British TV host Jonathan Ross: “I was the hip-hop icon said in a video intro- “Hello” superstar ring in her 30s in like, ‘I know how it goes, Mr. Z. You ducing Stormzy’s Glastonbury turn. May, the 26-year-old became the first are the most brilliant, busy man, and “When you step on that stage, you’re black British solo artist to headline I probably never will get this opportu- going to see it because they are really Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage in June, nity ever again, but hand on my heart, I ready for it.” and in December, he released his sec- don’t think this is the right song for us. — Jeremy Helligar ond album, “Heavy Is the Head,” which I don’t know why I’m saying this to you produced a pair of No. 1 U.K. singles, … but this is not the song.’ ” REPRESENTATION: Agency: “Vossi Bop” and “Own It,” a collabora- Such moments to remember are Paradigm (U.S.), Primary Talent Intl tion with Ed Sheeran and Burna Boy. becoming increasingly frequent for (U.K.); Management: #Merky; Legal: The latter will go down in his- the 6-foot-5 rapper. Stormzy is argu- Lee & Thompson. tory as the first U.K. No. 1 single of the ably the biggest British rhymer to hit INFLUENCES: Skepta, Drake, Frank 2020s and follows another chart-top- the scene since the heyday of Dizzee Ocean, Lauryn Hill, Raleigh Ritchie

HONOR SWINTON BYRNE JODIE TURNER-SMITH “THE SOUVENIR” “QUEEN & SLIM”

Plenty of Hollywood scions find No one may be more surprised Turner-Smith left an indelible mark also was cast in the Cinemax series their way into the family business. by this career choice than Swin- on the stylish indie crime thriller “Jett,” which premiered in June. Not all of them break through in ton Byrne herself. Apart from a “Queen & Slim,” which was released Splitting her time between Los a film sharing scenes with their non-speaking role in 2009’s “I Am last year to critical acclaim and Angeles and London, Turner-Smith Oscar-winning mother. Swin- Love,” directed by Luca Guadagnino sleeper box-office hit status. Turn- most recently wrapped filming ton Byrne, daughter of Tilda Swin- and starring her mother, her screen er-Smith approached the material on the A24 release “After Yang,” ton and playwright and artist John time has been limited. Born in Lon- with anticipation. “I’m very proud which was directed by Korean art- Byrne, has done just that by head- don and raised in the Scottish High- of ‘Queen & Slim,’” she says. “It was ist-turned-filmmaker Kogonada lining her mother’s childhood friend lands, she told W magazine that her my first time starring in a movie, (“Columbus”). Other upcoming Joanna Hogg’s Sundance darling mother and Hogg approached her and that is an accomplishment I will projects include Paramount’s new “The Souvenir,” a piece of art that is for the part, and that while she “was never forget. I’m so proud of myself big-budget Tom Clancy adapta- also an emotional and semi-autobi- really sure that it was what I wanted for taking that journey because tion “Without Remorse” opposite ographical coming-of-age story. to do” she also “really, really didn’t while I remember being terrified the Michael B. Jordan. The plum role “Swinton Byrne beautifully see it coming.” entire time, I never let it stop me. could serve as a launching pad into plays a formless woman at vary- Turns out mom did know best. That’s growth.” a major new franchise. ing stages of self-awareness, her Swinton Byrne will reprise her Born in Peterborough, England, — Nick Clement backbone forming before our eyes role in the upcoming “The Souve- to Jamaican parents, Turner-Smith as her heart splits into fragments,” nir Part II.” got her start in the music- video REPRESENTATION: Agency: UTA; Variety’s Guy Lodge wrote of the — Whitney Friedlander world as a background and featured Management: Untitled Entertain- 22-year-old in his review of “The performer, and then landed work ment; Legal: Ziffren Brittenham Souvenir.” He also describes her REPRESENTATION: Agency: on such TV programs as TNT’s “The INFLUENCES: Mati Diop, Melina on-screen chemistry with co-star Hamilton Hodell (U.K.) Last Ship” and HBO’s “True Blood.” Matsoukas, Alma Har’el, Ava DuVer- Tom Burke, who plays her charac- INFLUENCES: Bong Joon Ho, Jeff She scored a major role on the Net- nay, Lulu Wang, Lorene Scafaria, ter’s elder and troubled suitor, as Goldblum, Tilda Swinton, Jodie flix science fiction series “Nightfly- Marielle Heller, Naomie Harris, Lau- “intensely interlocked.” Turner-Smith ers” from George R.R. Martin and ryn Hill, Alicia Keys STORMZY: DAVID FISHER/SHUTTERSTOCK; BYRNE: CHRISTOPHER TAMCKE/SHUTTERSTOCK; TURNER-SMITH: PHOTOGRAPH BY ALEX GITMAN BY PHOTOGRAPH TURNER-SMITH: TAMCKE/SHUTTERSTOCK; CHRISTOPHER BYRNE: FISHER/SHUTTERSTOCK; DAVID STORMZY:

JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | 87 FOCUS NEWPORT BEACH U.K. HONOURS

BREAKFAST CLUB Bel Powley (left) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw star in “The Morning Show.”

TOASTING BRITISH TALENT Newport Beach Film Festival will fete performers before the BAFTA Awards

BY COURTNEY HOWARD

“1917” is very little actual fighting depicted,” says ophone. She’s conquered the small screen OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN GLOBAL CINEMA producer Pippa Harris. “Instead, the main on such shows as “Black Mirror” and “Doc- themes of the movie, which resonate with tor Who,” as well as capturing our atten- audiences, are those of friendship, sacri- tion on the big screen, in films includ- Adjectives like immersive, harrowing, fice and love of home and family. It makes ing “Belle,” “Beyond the Lights,” and most breathtaking and astounding feel like me remember the true human cost of recently “Fast Color.” understatements when describing “1917.” war, not just for those fighting but for While there wasn’t one singular role It’s a fully cinematic experience. The real- all of those left behind.” McKay states, that cemented her purpose as an actor, time epic, filmed as if in one take, has “The fact that there has been recognition Mbatha-Raw found her love of the craft already been named best motion pic- attached is a beautiful thing given that through the theater community. “For me, ture — drama by the Hollywood For- the making of that film was so forma- it was more a process of loving theater eign Press Assn., with co-writer and direc- tive to all of us making it, and Schofield a and continuing to pursue what I had fun tor Sam Mendes also picking up a Golden character that is very dear to me.” doing, from school musicals, to my local Globe for directing. Telling the story of drama group, to local and national youth two British soldiers in World War I sent GUGU MBATHA-RAW theaters,” she says. “Finding other kindred on a mission to deliver a message to call ARTIST OF DISTINCTION spirits in National Youth Theatre and off a battle, the film stars George MacKay Oxford Youth Music Theatre when I was (this year’s breakout honoree) and Dean- 16 definitely gave me the confidence to Charles Chapman (one of our 10 Brits to Mbatha-Raw has played a multitude of dif- apply to drama school. I just wanted to do Watch.) Their task leads them into treach- ferent characters in her career, from a sci- what I loved.” erous territory, all at once becoming a entist, to a singing sensation, to a commu- What propels her career forward isn’t death-defying adventure as well as an nity activist, to her current role as a talent merely a desire to keep working, but also introspective journey. booker on Apple TV Plus’ “The Morning the need to deliver a creatively satisfying Although “1917” is set during WWI it Show.” She’s a multi-faceted performer experience. “[It’s] the opportunity to tell isn’t a traditional combat film, and there who sings, dances and even plays the sax- inspiring stories that move me and hope- APPLE

88 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 fully move others. The privilege to stay Still, it wasn’t until he worked with film- formances in “The Diary of a Teenage playful, but also find work that creates maker Paul Wright on “For Those in Peril” Girl” and “Carrie Pilby,” but she also deliv- conversations and uplifts people.” that he melded the two formative expe- ers notable work in “White Boy Rick” riences. “All these things have been clear and now, in Apple TV Plus’ “The Morning ERIN DOHERTY moments that have guided my desire to Show.” In the culturally relevant drama, BREAKOUT HONOREE work, and way of working.” she plays a clever production assistant While MacKay appreciates the recog- navigating the waters of a fictional nition for the parts he’s played, he rel- morning show while also pursuing a Doherty’s star is shining bright thanks to ishes these characters’ integral roles in the secret workplace romance. “I’m thrilled her breakthrough turns on popular pro- larger story. “It’s a wonderful thing to be a that people are enjoying the show, but grams such as “Call the Midwife” and “The part of a piece, or to play a character that I’m even happier that people resonate Crown.” Later this year, she will be fea- is recognized,” he says. “But I mean that with it.” tured in the television adaptation of Vic- more so in a deeper personal sense, for Before her career took off, Powley tor Hugo’s masterpiece “Les Misérables.” that’s what stories are. found energy for her ambitions in plays Her love for the craft was birthed in “Recognition in work, especially work — by watching them, that is. “The the- her final year of secondary school when so personal, feels validating, though I ater in London is so rich, innovative and she performed in a production inspired don’t want to put a huge amount of store smart. The new writing on stage was by Timberlake Wertenbaker’s play “The in it. If I go too much towards that feeling, incredibly inspiring to me.” Now that Love of the Nightingale” at Bosnia’s it’d compromise my trust in what I am she’s the one people come to see, the Mostar Theatre Festival. “There were no drawn to myself.” young actress has a refreshingly hum- words in it; it was electric,” she says. “It ble approach to stardom. “I’m proud of was on the flight home that I realized BEL POWLEY myself and the work I’ve done, but I don’t I wanted to act for the rest of my life. BREAKOUT HONOREE believe in making it.” she says. “As you Something happened out there that solid- grow, there’s always more to achieve.” ified a love for the ability to share stories, regardless of language barriers, purely as Powley is a fearless performer — and human beings.” that’s what makes her a superstar. In each Despite her growing appeal across of her roles, she exudes strength, con- the pond, she doesn’t yet feel like she’s fidence and magnetism, but can easily truly arrived. access the softer, nuanced facets of vul- “I’m constantly in awe of the people I nerability and empathy. It’s an impres- get to work with and the work I get to be sive skill that began to blossom with her a part of. I’m not sure it’ll ever sink in.” first role on stage, as Maggie in Polly Sten- Though Doherty is happy to be recog- ham’s “Tusk Tusk” at the Royal Court The- nized for her accomplishments, she says atre. “It was my first experience of really it’s also surreal. “It’s an odd thing to expe- delving deep into the psyche of a charac- rience because, from my perspective, all ter,” she says. And just like that, she knew I’ve been doing is trying to make honest acting was her true calling. “The fact that and exciting work,” Doherty says. “It feels I could do that as a job blew my mind!” a bit like a moment of coming up for air. Not only does the Londoner command Actually, it makes me even more deter- attention with her character-driven per- mined to dive back down and get creating again.”

GEORGE MACKAY ROYAL BREAKOUT HONOREE ROLES “1917” (above) features a His is a name that’s been garnering chat- star-studded cast; Erin ter this awards season, and with good rea- Doherty has son. MacKay delivers a phenomenal per- earned raves as Princess formance as dogged soldier tasked with Anne in “The a harrowing mission in Sam Mendes’ Crown.” immersive action-drama, “1917.” How- ever, his career’s auspicious ascent began much earlier when he landed a part in P.J. Hogan’s “Peter Pan.” “From then, the people and happenings that sparked my want to be an actor, and to treat it as a craft, were a number of things,” he says. His inspirations include his drama teacher and “his respect for the absurd, and his openness as a storyteller.” MacKay’s first lead role, as Tommo in “Private Peaceful,” was also instrumen- tal: “This experience gave me a sense of ownership of my work I had not felt before, and being involved much more was a feeling I wanted to go towards.” 1917: FRANÇOIS DUHAMEL/UNIVERSAL PICTURES; THE CROWN: DES WILLIE/NETFLIX PICTURES; FRANÇOIS DUHAMEL/UNIVERSAL 1917:

JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | 89 Untitled-2 1 1/7/20 11:44 AM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

GRAMMYS’ CAN-DO MAN

As KEN EHRLICH signs off from 40 years of music’s BY CHRIS WILLMAN biggest night, the TV vet reflects — and roars a little

JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | 91 FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

TO SHAKE KEN EHRLICH’S hand is to know that you are no more than two degrees of separation from just about any living pop, rock, R&B, country, hip-hop or gospel musician of note — and more than a few who are no longer with us. They, or at least someone close to them, have all passed across his stages and telecasts since the 1970s, when he started his TV career as a producer for “Soundstage” and “Midnight Special,” before making the fateful leap in 1980 to become executive producer of the Grammy Awards, a position he’s held for 39 of the past 40 years. (More on that lone gap year, later.) He’s not retiring from television, but on Jan. 26, he’s helming his last “music’s biggest night” — an evening that’s going to seem smaller without popular music’s greatest Rolodex, and one of its greatest raconteurs, guiding the ship. To commemorate his 40th anniversary as captain, Variety had its own “Grammy moment” with Ehrlich, sitting down in his office to talk about his tenure as music television’s most storied name. Although that name may be leaving the Grammys credit roll after this year, he plans to still keep as full a roster of specials as possible. To riff on a few of the songs that were up for record of the year when he took over the show in 1980: Like Kenny Rogers, he’s been a gambler; unlike Barbra Streisand and Neil Diamond, he will be brought ﬂowers; as the Doobie Brothers might say, only a fool would believe this means LIVE FOR THE APPLAUSE retirement; and like Gloria Gaynor, Lady Gaga shares an emotional backstage moment with Ken Ehrlich after winning for pop solo performance for “Joanne (Where Do You Think You’re Goin’?)” at the 61st Grammy Awards in 2019. he will, well, you know. JOHN SHEARER/GETTY IMAGES FOR THE RECORDING ACADEMY IMAGES JOHN SHEARER/GETTY

92 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 TTERSTOCK; KEVORK DJANSEZIAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK KEVORK TTERSTOCK; K OC

THANKS FOR ALL THE MEMORIES, KEN AND CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR 40th ANNIVERSARY Elton and David PHOTO CREDITS: (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP) JOHN SHEARER/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; MATT SAYLES/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; MATT BARON/SHU MATT SAYLES/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; MATT JOHN SHEARER/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; FROM TOP) (CLOCKWISE CREDITS: PHOTO

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You’re not done, but this is a point at which you’re being asked to assess an entire career, and not just the 40 years of Grammys. I’ve loved every bit of it. It’s been hard, not easy. I vacillate between thinking I’m BROADCAST BREAKTHROUGHS overappreciated and underappreciated, Brandi Carlile performs “The Joke” (below) at the 61st annual Grammy Awards; Ehrlich preps the audience (bottom) at “Motown 60: A Grammy Celebration” but don’t we all? I don’t have any regrets. I’m not a mogul. I ain’t Mark Burnett. I’m not even Simon Cowell. But I’d much rather have done what I did, because I was in the trenches. I love making television. I don’t like selling it.

This past year, you produced a fairly insane number of shows — an Elvis tribute, an Aretha Franklin tribute, a Motown tribute, a Pentatonix Christmas special, your annual Global Citizen Festi- val in Central Park … and, obviously, the Grammys. How is that manageable? It was an unusual year. There were seven or eight shows in that period from August to March 2019. Normally in that period, it’s five shows. But, for instance, Aretha died, and Live Nation was going to do something and that fell apart, so Clive [Davis] came to me. … We always have the post-Grammy show, and so Motown fell into that. Just the idea of doing two shows back to back — you do arguably the biggest show on television on Sunday night, and then two nights later you’re taping a two-hour special. … There’s a part of me that thinks that I just need to keep proving, if to no one else but myself, that I can still do it. I don’t know if you noticed: I’m not a kid. But I have adrenaline. I love the fact that when I walk around a building, even now, I’m usually in the front of the line, and the people are trail- ing after me. I know if I look back, they would be looking at each other and saying, “What the fuck is he trying to prove?” in terms of ratings. Critically, I don’t I don’t know. I don’t find it hard to do know; take your pick of who you want to what I do, or I don’t let it feel that way. read and what they say. The show contin- I have a great support group of people ues to be successful, and I would take a that work with us, particularly [writer] certain amount of credit for the vision for David [Wild], [booker] Chantel [Sausedo] the show. They’ll go with me, both on the and [producer] Ron [Basile], and I think network side and on the Academy side, they’re probably able to temper some of more often than not. the excesses that I exhibit under certain circumstances. I mean, the juices flow. How do you feel about the 2019 show a I’m not ready to quit. I think I’d proba- year later? bly shrivel or wither if I did. So I want to I was really happy, and the ratings were keep working; I want to keep doing stuff. good. It went up to 22 million when [Niel- I don’t know what at this point, but there sen] added the [live-] plus-threes in. I think are at least two or three things out there part of it was that the audience had a hun- that I’m looking at. ger to see Brandi Carlile, to see Kacey Mus- graves, to see these people that were fresh As you exit the Grammy stage, what kind to them. And I honestly believe, as deluded of shape is it in? as it may sound — I can say this now There are critics, and granted, the show’s because I’m 40 years in, and almost out — not going to get the 40 share that it got there’s a certain segment of the audience, in 1979 or 1980 because there’s a lot and it might be even bigger than I think more TV out there. But it’s still more suc- it is, of people who don’t necessarily look cessful than any other music awards at the listings to see [which superstars are show, and runs pretty close to the Oscars on]. They know that they’re going to see CARLILE: ROB LATOUR/SHUTTERSTOCK; EHRLICH: CHELSEA LAUREN/SHUTTERSTOCK ROB LATOUR/SHUTTERSTOCK; CARLILE:

94 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 Throughout my entire dearestcareer you’ve been one of my biggest supportersken and I am forever grateful for everything you’ve done for me. You already know how fond René was of you, and the two of us were fortunate that you shared your talent, vision and creativity with us in so many ways....on so many shows. I wish you and Harriet continued happiness and peace, and most of all, the very best of health. with all my love Celine xx...

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Untitled-9 1 1/11/20 9:54 AM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

things that are different on the Grammys and song of the year, that was nice. than they see on the AMAs — let’s just be Brandi Carlile’s “The Joke” was a high- honest about it — or the other shows for light for me. The lyric of that song is so that matter. important. And on television, especially I love Miley Cyrus and what she did as bare as she did it, and as dark as she with Shawn Mendes’ [“In My Blood”]. The did it. … We were in a meeting and I said, Camila [Cabello] opening with “Havana” “You know what I’d like to do, not the was big. And I loved the Aretha tribute in whole song, but I want to write out the the show. It’s not just about superstar art- lyrics to the choruses.” At first I think one ists — I was able to get Andra Day and of her people said, “Oh, I don’t know . ...” Fantasia and Yolanda Adams on that, you Then we did it, and to this day when I see know? With H.E.R., she had this song and her, she thanks me for it. Because those she said, “It’s not done yet, but I really lyrics, which were displayed behind her, think it could be something good.” And are just so critical. she hadn’t done it anywhere, but she did But the thing that I’m most proud it that night, called “Hard Place.” Together of last year — really one of my favor- we developed that song into a perfor- ite things I’ve done ever on the show — mance where it was wonderful, and when was that Dolly Parton segment, because these latest [2020] nominations came out, it encompassed so much of a brilliant and that song was nominated for record career. In that case, Dolly wanted to do a THESE MAGIC MOMENTS

THE GRAMMY AWARDS EXECUTIVE PRODUCER RECOUNTS A FEW OF HIS UNFORGETTABLE BROADCAST MEMORIES, ON AND OFFSTAGE

ARETHA FRANKLIN is Luciano Pavarotti’s understudy for “Nessun Dorma” (1998) Ehrlich recalls ’98 as “the wildest night in the history of the Grammys,” with the shirtless party crasher forever known as Soy Bomb slamming through Bob Dylan’s set and Ol’ Dirty Bastard snatching a Grammy from Shawn Colvin. But not all the surprises were rude ones, as Aretha Franklin proved the greatest pinch hitter ever when it came to showing Puccini respect.

“At 8:03 or 8:04, with the show on the air, Ron (Basile, a longtime producer for Ehrlich) came to me and said, ‘You have to call Pavarotti.’ He was home and said, ‘I cannot come and sing for you tonight. But I will come and sing for you next year, I promise you!’ I said, ‘OK’ and thought, ‘What the fuck am I going to do now?’ Then I realized Aretha had sung the aria two nights before at MusiCares. So Phil Ramone and I ran up three flights of stairs, and walked in her dressing room. She was scheduled to perform on the show, [saluting] the Blues WHAT A WAY TO Brothers movie with John Goodman and Dan MAKE A LIVING Aykroyd. She’s sitting there eating a chicken Maren Morris [laughs], like a lot of times I saw her like that. I (top, from left), Katy Perry, Little said, ‘How’d you like to sing twice tonight? How Big Town’s Jimi would you like to go out and do “Nessun Dorma” Westbrook and Kimberly with a 70-piece orchestra and 30-voice choir, like Schlapman, you did the other night?’ And she said, ‘Yeah, I Dolly Parton, could do that.’ And then she realized, as I knew, Ehrlich, LBT’s Karen Fairchild that it was in Pavarotti’s key, and you can’t trans- and Philip Sweet, pose a 70-piece orchestra in 45 minutes or an Miley Cyrus and hour. So I got Pavarotti’s conductor, grabbed a Kacey Musgraves during rehearsal boom box and the cassette of his rehearsal and for Parton’s 2019 went up to the dressing room and played it for her. tribute; Bottom: Ehrlich and Parton She scrunched her eyes a few times and said, ‘I in rehearsal can do this.’ That was that. You don’t forget those.” FRANKLIN: MARL LENNIHAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; REHEARSAL, EHRLICH/PARTON: THE RECORDING ACADEMY (2) (2) THE RECORDING ACADEMY REHEARSAL, EHRLICH/PARTON: FRANKLIN: MARL LENNIHAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK;

98 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 Untitled-10 1 1/13/20 10:17 AM FOR 40 YEARS YOU HAVE BROUGHT UNFORGETTABLE GRAMMY MOMENTS TO MUSIC LOVERS ALL OVER THE WORLD.

Congratulations, Ken! MICK JAGGER

40 YEARS OF MAGIC 40 YEARS OF CREATING ICONIC MOMENTS

40 YEARS OF BELIEVING IN THE IMPOSSIBLE THANK YOU, KEN FOR BELIEVING AND ALWAYS PUSHING FOR GREATNESS.

Congratulations from Beyoncé and the team at 3KRWR.ULVWLQD%XPSKUH\6WDUSL[6KXWWHUVWRFN Untitled-10 1 1/13/20 10:14 AM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

“THE ARTISTS I LIKE WORKING WITH HAVE ALWAYS HAD THIS SENSE THAT THEY ARE MORE THAN MUSIC AND LYRICS.”

year that Camila Cabello introduced U2 on a barge with the Statue of Liberty behind them. It was the year that Logic did his thing at the end of the show, and it was brilliant, this kid, just brash and in your face. Oh, and it was the year we opened with Kendrick Lamar on stage killing a whole bunch of people! Which was reasonably socially relevant. We had backlash from that show, that we had CHANGING TIMES gone over the edge. Kendrick Lamar’s opening number for the 2018 That desire to make the show Grammys (top), relevant to the times has seemed Macklemore, stronger lately. Mary Lambert, Madonna, Ryan The best way I can explain it: From get- Lewis and Queen ting to know the artists that we work Latifah (left) with — who I’m very careful to say are after the “Same Love” wedding not my friends, but I like working with in which 30 them — what I’ve learned is that not all couples were married at the of them, but many of them, particularly Grammys. younger artists today, are incredibly aware. … The artists I like working with have always had this sense that they are more than music and lyrics. And I felt that, whether it’s right or wrong, it was a mandate of the Academy, and thus the show, to allow at least freedom of speech by artists who wanted to express themselves, primarily but not exclu- sively through their music. “Same Love,” where we married 30 couples of all persuasions, I’m very proud of that. The whole idea for it came from my daughter, who’s a lesbian. When I told her Macklemore & Ryan new song, and I was kind of resistant Which highlights come to mind as you Lewis [had been booked], she said, “Oh, because I wanted to go with the hits. I think back through the past few years? you’re gonna do ‘Same Love’? You know, don’t want to out her, but I don’t think The Kesha number, “Praying,” I really kids go to concerts and get engaged to she knew much about Little Big Town. thought was beautiful, because it was that song.” So I thought, OK, engaged — She said, “Are you sure they can do this very socially relevant, because of what maybe we could marry some people. song?” “Dolly, I’m sure they can do it.” happened [and the #MeToo movement]. There was a Katy Perry song called “By At the first rehearsal, she put her On the New York show in 2018, there were the Grace of God,” which was about vio- arms around me, which is always a at least four moments like that. That was lence against women in particular, and good experience with Dolly Parton, and the year that the whole thing broke with I set it up with a woman named Brooke said, “Thank you for Little Big Town.” Neil [Portnow, the Recording Academy Axtell, who was a survivor of campus It was 12 minutes, which was a contro- chairman/CEO who got in hot water for rape. This was during a time when there versy within the Academy: “You’re not suggesting that underrepresented women was a major program in the Obama going to keep an audience!” It was the “step up”]. But what got lost was that it administration called It’s on Us to try highest-rated minute-by-minute part was probably the most socially relevant and call attention to the serious prob- of the show. show that we had ever done. It was the lem of rape on college campuses. LAMAR, SAME LOVE WEDDING: MATT SAYLES/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK (2) SAYLES/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK WEDDING: MATT LOVE LAMAR, SAME

102 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 Untitled-1 1 1/9/20 11:44 AM 14323 - VP Ken Ehrlich Variety ad - FINAL - HG - FINAL.indd 1 1/8/20 10:51 AM Untitled-9 1 1/11/20 10:31 AM FOR OVER 40 YEARS YOU AND YOUR TEAM HAVE BROUGHT VISION, SPIRIT AND ENERGY TO MUSIC’S BIGGEST NIGHT.

WE SALUTE YOU ON AN AMAZING CAREER.

Untitled-13 1 1/13/20 2:33 PM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

WORTH THE WAIT But I think I just recognized, in the early It took Ehrlich more than 10 years to persuade U2’s Bono to perform on the Grammys. aughts. … Obviously you can’t hang around Bono, and you can’t hang around John Legend, Paul Simon and all these artists that I gravitated toward without recognizing the feelings and the compas- sion that they have for how they can use that platform to do good. So I guess probably just by association, some of that rubbed off on what I thought the show could address. And two years ago when we did this, and I’d rather not say where it came from, there was some pushback from people. “Why are the Grammys …? We just want to watch a music show and watch people sing and dance.” OK, well, I want to do more. And I had a very com- patible group of people that work with us who felt the same way.

On a more mundane level: How do you approach the competition now? It seems like there used to be a rule that if you did the American Music Awards, you couldn’t do the Grammys, and that’s out the window now. Half of my show is going to be on the AMAs. I used to be able to ask them to resist the AMAs. When they moved to November, I don’t have any leverage anymore. I can’t deprive them of that whole Christmas market selling. I couldn’t hold the line anymore. I didn’t feel right doing it. There are artists that I will do it with.

The case that I’ll make to the artist and HUDSON: CHRIS PIZZELLO/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK RECORDING ACADEMY; KEVIN MAZUR/WIREIMAGE/THE BONO/EHRLICH: label and manager is, pragmatically, do

Let’s take it from another angle. I actually grew up in the ’50s. I don’t like to admit that, so I say the ’60s, but I was a teenager in the ’50s. I went from the early days of rock ’n’ roll — Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, the doo-woppers, all of that stuff I THERE WAS PUSHBACK FROM loved — to the ’60s and Bob Dylan, Joan PEOPLE: “WHY ARE THE Baez, Judy Collins and the whole singer- GRAMMYS ...? WE JUST WANT songwriter, protest movement, and I loved TO WATCH A MUSIC SHOW that. I was in Chicago for the ’68 [Demo- cratic] convention, in Lincoln Park, where AND WATCH PEOPLE SING my wife and I got gassed. AND DANCE.” So I’ve always felt, not that the show should rest on that, but if music touches us in so many different ways — it makes us happy, all the clichés — it also makes us think. Can I say for all 40 of these years, that’s been important to me? Prob- HUDSON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM ably not. I probably spent the first X number of years thinking, “Yeah, I’m just gonna put some great music on.” And I WHITNEY HOUSTON’S “I didn’t want it to turn into a Whitney Houston memorial, but I still want to make people clap and cry. INSTA-MEMORIAL (2012) knew that it had to be recognized,” he recalls. “I found Rickey I don’t know that the social aspect News of Whitney Houston’s Minor, and I found Jennifer Hudson on her way to Clive’s, and of it crept in until I started seeing more death came the night before the I said, ‘All I think we should do is one verse of “I Will Always of it after we got to the millennials. The Grammys as guests were arriv- Love You” with you and a piano.’ The next morning, I put her early years of my reign, if that’s what you ing at the Beverly Hilton for Clive up on stage before the dress [rehearsal], because I didn’t want to call it, were the ’80s and Wall Davis’ A-list pre-party. Ehrlich, want a house full of people. Everybody was crying, and she Street and all this other shit, so I prob- meanwhile, was in rehearsals. was crying; she could barely make it through it.” ably bought into some of that. My wife and myself never shied away from being involved with causes and philanthropy.

106 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 Untitled-2 1 12/10/19 1:21 PM Ken, thanks so much for all your work and support.

All the best CONGRATULATIONS KEN EHRLICH ON YOUR 40TH GRAMMY TELECAST!

YOUR FRIENDS AT

0115 WV Red Light Management.indd 1 1/13/20 1:12 PM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

“OVER THE YEARS, THERE HAVE BEEN COUNTLESS TIMES WHEN THEY WANTED TO GET RID OF ME, AND I WOULDN’T GO AWAY.”

you want to expose that performance to What’s the backstory there? an audience of 7 [million] to 8 million I don’t know if I should tell the people, or do you want to expose it to an story, but I’ll let your editors decide. audience of 22 million? That’s number That was the year Pierre [Cossette, one. Number two is the way we do it and then-producer] fired me. Michael Jack- the care we take with it. It’s simple. It’s a son was on the show, and Pierre came Grammy moment or it’s not. I don’t want up on stage [when] I was in the mid- to start a war. It’s way too late for that. dle of a whole thing with Michael. He was standing there next to me, and Your famous collaborations, or with Michael, you needed to be with HUMANH U MAN NATURENATU RE “Grammy moments,” are something Michael. Honestly, either I didn’t see InIn Ehrlich’s other shows have emulated, or tried Pierre or I didn’t pay any attention to eexperience,xperience, ddealingealing with to, but usually with a little more predict- him. He didn’t say a word about it, but MichaelMichael ability in the pairings. I knew he was pissed, because he was JacksonJackson The AMAs have followed me into hell pouting. So we finished the show, and requiredrequired specialspecial time and time again with that. I look at he didn’t say a word. About a week handling;handling; some of the things these other shows do after the show, he called and said, (below)(below) with in trying to put [artists] together [for a “Come on Ken, let’s have lunch.” At Neil PPortnow.ortnow. performance], and all they think about lunch he said to me, “I just want you is, OK, this one’s No. 3 on this chart and to know that next year I’m going to this one’s No. 4. I try and find out what do the show, but you’re not. You’ll be the compatibility factor is of the artists. back the year after, but you’re going to Do they really belong together? Those take a year off.” I said, “Pierre, the rat- people over at that other show — [to his ings were great! We had Michael Jack- publicist, nearby] you’re gonna kick me son. I don’t understand — what?” And — they would never think of that. They he said, “You were disrespectful to me, think about, “Oh yeah, Shawn Mendes and I’m not over it. So you go into the and Camila Cabello have a duet together. penalty box for a year.” And I did. That would be great.” And by the way, [Former NARAS head] Mike Greene it was great. Because it was already tried to get rid of me for years. There there [as an existing single, “Señorita”]. was always a lot of pressure. And there But I look at some of the other things were always other producers nipping where they try and shoehorn one artist at my heels with this show. It’s not a with another artist … I guess I’m bitter. particularly wholesome business. This [Laughs.] is the most arrogant thing you’ll hear me say: To me, I’m there because I Are you spending a lot of time thinking deliver every year, you know? Some about the 40-year milestone going into years are better than others. I’m not Even though this is your last Grammys, this year’s show? proud of the 17.6 rating we had a few do you think you might still do some of There is a lot of that. I have to confess, years ago. I’m pretty proud of most of the Grammy tertiary shows? it’s a milestone that not many people can the shows, though. It’s gotten progres- We haven’t really talked about it. I say they’ve reached. I guess I can say this: sively stronger over the years, because believe so. There’s a real sea change Over the years, there have been count- frankly, Neil [Portnow] was very sup- with Deborah [Dugan, Recording Acad- less times when they wanted to get rid portive with regard to creating more emy president] and with Harvey Mason, of me, and I wouldn’t go away. And it was of these Grammy moments, even at who’s the new chairman. So far, really, so never because of the ratings, or we need the expense of maybe the currency good. I like them both a great deal. And a change. It was more related, in all hon- of the show — not much, but a little there have been vague references to the esty, probably to my personality, and I bit. But until the 2000s, I never had future. So I don’t know — we’ll see. I’d pissed somebody off. I’ve been with the more than a one-year contract with probably like to keep doing the tribute Grammy organization for 40 years. It’s the show. I had one year at a time, shows and other specials like that. I’ve 40 years since I did my first show, but I certainly from 1980 to at least 2000. just been a part of this organization for missed a show. That’s not a nice way to live. so long. JACKSON: REED SAXON/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; PORTNOW/EHRLICH: CHELSEA LAUREN/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK PORTNOW/EHRLICH: REED SAXON/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; JACKSON:

110 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 CONGRATULATIONS KEN ON YOUR

IT’S BEEN A PLEASURE WORKING WITH YOU ON SO MANY SPECIAL MOMENTS. thank you for all the memories! XOXO, Carrie

0115 WV Carrie Underwood - ken ehrlich.V2.indd 1 1/2/20 1:28 PM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

Some people love to hate the Gram- Serve Somebody” when he was in his gos- mys, but the fact is, the awards and the pel period; Neil and Barbra duetting on show are taken seriously now in a way “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” — a pair- they weren’t in the early ‘80s. When you ing that was created before they made started, there would be jokes about Toto the hit record together — were all that or Christopher Cross sweeps. Does it feel year. I still couldn’t get the Stones. I more credible now? still couldn’t get Led Zeppelin. But the Well, again, not to be self-aggrandizing, show began to become more legitimate, but I started in 1980. The year before I did despite some of the awards. the show, there was a one-year producer- director named Bob Henry — a lovely guy — who opened the show with Alicia Bridges doing “I Love the Nightlife.” But the awards, in knowing the history of the organization, were really prestigious. Sina- tra was on the first televised show, and maybe from ’58, it followed pop culture pretty well — until the Beat- les. And then all of a sudden when the music shifted, the people who founded WHEN MAJESTY the show were getting a little older. There were some great songs then, but in the COMBINES ’70s, it lost its way more. Even though it recognized Stevie Wonder three years in a row [with] album of the year, and Paul BEYONCÉ SEES THE PRINCE-LY LIGHT Simon and “Hotel California” won. But as (2004) Irving Azoff would say, “We’ll come and There was less internet to break then, but it nearly do your show if you tell me [whether] we exploded anyway when Beyoncé stepped into a won.” Pierre [Cossette], to his credit, said, Prince medley — in many minds, still the peak of “No, we don’t do that.” Ehrlich’s signature “Grammy moment” collabora- The ﬁrst year that I did the show, it tions. In those days, though, there was a one- changed a lot: Bob Dylan doing “Gotta appearance-per-show limit, and the still freshly solo Beyoncé wasn’t sure she wanted to cede her

spot for a guest shot. SERVING UP RELEVANCE Stevie Wonder and Ehrlich (right); Bob Dylan (below) accepts a Grammy Award for his song “Gotta Serve Somebody” at the Shrine Auditorium “I had to talk [Beyoncé] into doing it. I would call in Los Angeles with presenters Ted Nugent and Prince every year and say, ‘I’d love you to do the Michelle Phillips. Grammys,’ and nine times out of 10 he would say no. One time he said to me, ‘Yeah, I’ll do the Gram- mys. How much you got? You got $3 million?’ So, one year I called and he said, ‘You know who I’d really like to do something with? Beyoncé.’ And the next day he called and said, ‘Can you come out to CenterStaging?’ He took us into a rehearsal hall room, with the whole band there, and he just played the whole medley. He had done the music layout, the lyric layout, who sang when, when Beyoncé entered — it was unbelievable. And then I went to a photo shoot she was doing to ask her. And all she wanted to do was do her number, that’s all. She said to me, ‘I love Prince. I really do, but why can’t I just do what I do?’ And I said, ‘Because this is more than what you do. This is all part of who you are as an artist, that you have this capacity.’ At the end of the day, I gave into her, and I’m glad I did, because I agreed to give her the ‘Dangerously in Love’ number and to do the thing with Prince — the first time that I had ever given anybody more than one appearance on the show. And needless to say it wasn’t bad. They rehearsed it a few times. He came down a staircase and she came up from underneath. He knew the moves and exactly what he wanted. He even knew the [camera] frame. When you look at the tape, she’s got her hand on the mic because he’s playing guitar. She’s told me since then, ‘I can’t tell you how much I learned from those five minutes with Prince.’”

112 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 CONGRATULATIONS KEN on 40 incredible years of telecasting the Grammys! It’s been a pleasure being a part of your journey.

Untitled-7 1 1/9/20 11:54 AM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

“WE’VE DONE THE SHOW SEVERAL TIMES WITHOUT A HOST, AND IT’S WORKED OUT FINE ... I’M A BIG FAN OF HOSTS WHEN THEY’RE RIGHT.”

Were there other acts that were difficult some of them. And by the way, I have no to get? clue. I don’t know who’s on that commit- It took me 10 years to get U2 on the show. tee. I feel this way about all committees. I It took me 10 or 12 years to get Bruce grew up with the quotation, “A camel is a Springsteen. Part of the reason I started to horse put together by a committee.” get them was because of some of the spe- X MCLENDON/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK X MCLENDON/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK cial things we did. We got Bruce because You’ve said you’re not a fan of hostless- we did a Curtis Mayfield tribute. The ness for awards shows … eclecticism became the honey and the fly. Did I say that? Because actually I am. The first time I met Bono, he said, “I know We’ve done the show several times with- is, people tune in to see this show because you … I was in a bathtub at the Gram- out a host, and it’s worked out fine. I they love music. And I don’t want any- ercy Park Hotel, and I had the TV on and don’t think that a host is critical. But on body to get on stage and take shots at ’em. all of a sudden I heard Pops Staples doing the other hand, when you have some- … Alicia had the perfect tone last year. ‘Nobody’s Fault But Mine.’ And I said to one like Alicia Keys or LL Cool J, or there You could tell that she revered most if myself, ‘That’s on an American TV show? were a couple years where Queen Latifah not all of the people that she was talking What the fuck’s going on there?’” And did it, I’m a big fan of hosts when they’re about and interacting with. But she also he logged it. It gained importance to the right. If you go back and look at the his- was there for the fun factor. labels as well as the artistic community. It tory of the Grammys, we [had] Billy Crys- didn’t always have that. tal before he went to the Oscars. I never What’s meaningful to you now? booked a lot of comedians. I wanted peo- My three grandchildren. And none of them Inevitably, and more so in the age of social ple that were organic, that had some real live here. My grandson and daughter and media, there are those who claim favorit- connection to music, as opposed to just son-in-law live in Northampton, Mass. My ism in the committee process. being, as Billy certainly was, a music fan. two granddaughters and their parents live Your thoughts? Ellen [DeGeneres] did three or four years in Birmingham, Ala. They’re now 6, 4 and The controversy about the committees that were terrific, but Ellen loves music; 3, and I want to see them more. [that narrow down the top nominees] it’s a big part of her life. AWARD and all the rest of that stuff, it hasn’t BRANCHES In your 2007 book, “At the Grammys,” you Ehrlich and LL helped, but it also hasn’t devalued what In your memoir, you say you loved hav- Cool J (left) revealed having had a quadruple bypass the show is at all. And I don’t think it’s ing Rosie O’Donnell one year, and then attend the 12 years ago. The reflectiveness that scare devalued the Recording Academy, either. she came back the following year and was Governors Ball put into you back then, is that something at the Creative But it’s made it a little more, what’s the nasty to people, a la Ricky Gervais now. So Emmy Awards; you’ve been able to carry forward? word, quizzical. You know, the choices with comedians, is that a risk? Alicia Keys (right) Well, unfortunately, the warning that you hosted in 2019 sometimes are, I don’t want to say they’re It’s a risk that I frankly don’t like to take. I and will reprise get when something like that happens questionable, but there’s a lack of logic to really believe that, as snarky as this world that role this year. that you would really hope changes (THIS PAGE) EHRLICH/COOL J: FRANK MICELOTTA/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; KEYS: ROB LATOUR/SHUTTERSTOCK KEYS: J: FRANK MICELOTTA/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; EHRLICH/COOL (THIS PAGE) (PREVIOUS PAGE) PRINCE/BEYONCE: KEVORK DJANSEZIAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; WONDER/EHRLICH: ALEX BERLINER/BEI/SHUTTERSTOCK; DYLAN: LENNO DYLAN: WONDER/EHRLICH: ALEX BERLINER/BEI/SHUTTERSTOCK; DJANSEZIAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; KEVORK PRINCE/BEYONCE: (PREVIOUS PAGE)

114 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 IT’S BEEN NICE NOT GROWING UP WITH YOU… CONGRATULATIONS KEN! FROM BONO, THE EDGE, ADAM AND LARRY

Untitled-9 1 1/11/20 10:38 AM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

“WHAT A WONDERFUL THING IT IS TO BE ALIVE, AND TO CONTINUE TO DO WHAT YOU LOVE.”

your lifestyle — that you become this I do or not, I’m not gonna go away. I just ascetic, that you think you need to go won’t be doing this show anymore. But I ﬁnd some guru or something, or at least have other plans and other things I want change your diet — I didn’t do a lot of any to do. I know people who are like me, and of that. On the other hand, from that day it’s easier for me to see it in them than it on, I’ve had an appreciation of life that is in me. Paul McCartney, God, how can I can only happen to someone who’s in a compare myself to Paul McCartney? But life-threatening situation. And I’ve never the guy just doesn’t stop. And doesn’t need forgotten that. the money — let’s start there — but he I haven’t looked at that book in a long loves what he does. And there are others, time, but hopefully it ends with the fact like Herbie Hancock, I think he’s my age that three months later I did the Gram- or a little older (Hancock is 79; McCartney mys! There were some people, not a lot, and Ehrlich, 77) … Granted, they’re per- who, when they weren’t calling me “ass- formers, but I think people just have this hole,” were calling me the Energizer Bunny, thing inside them. I know I do. because I just kept on going. And to this I don’t like to self-analyze, but there’s day, probably now that I’m more conscious something. Is it because my great-grand- of it, when it comes to my walk and my parents emigrated from Russia because Was it because when I was 6 or 7 years thought process, I’m still out in front, you the Cossacks were after them, and if they old, my father gave me this little pam- know. Whatever happens with other things didn’t get out, they’d have been killed? phlet about the Warsaw ghetto and how the Jews were killed there? Was it because I was a little height challenged — well, I still am; I haven’t grown a lot — and probably had some sort of lack of confidence, until I got to college and then became an overachiever? It’s probably all of those things. But the fact of the matter is, I love life. After the bypass, I had an operation about six years ago, where I thought I had lung cancer but it turned out I didn’t. And my new measure of how important life is, is that I have three grandchildren under the age of 6. And I think about, how could I possibly have ever missed that? As you get older, you do reflect more. You don’t live in the past, but you do have this appreciation. Since we moved out to Westlake Vil- lage, I get up and I look at mountains in the morning. Come on, I’m a Jewish kid from Cleveland Heights, Ohio, that lived on a street where there were houses and maybe there were four trees, you know. All of a sudden now I look across this little valley that’s across from us, and I see these ridges and I see mountains. Last fall, I saw a fire. But it’s like, God, what a wonderful thing it is to be alive, and to continue to do what you WHO’S THE BOSS Ehrlich and Paul McCartney (top) at the 54th Grammys; McCartney, Ehrlich and Bruce Springsteen rehearse love. It kills you, sometimes. It gets you for an “Abbey Road” medley in 2012. crazy. But boy, it’s good. EHRLICH/MCCARTNEY: KEVIN MAZUR/WIREIMAGE/THE RECRODING ACADEMY; MCCARTNEY/EHRLICH/SPRINGSTEEN: THE RECORDING ACADEMY MCCARTNEY/EHRLICH/SPRINGSTEEN: RECRODING ACADEMY; KEVIN MAZUR/WIREIMAGE/THE EHRLICH/MCCARTNEY:

116 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 congrats ken on 40 years of unforgettable music moments on the GRAMMYs stage!

ITIT HHASAS BBEENEEN AN HHONORONOR TO BE A PART OOFF A FEFEWW OF TTHEMHHEM AANDND SSOO IINSPIRINGNSPIRING TTOO WWITNESSITNESS THTHEE RREST!EST! NOBODY DOES IT LIKE KENNY!

YOURYOUR FRIENDFRIEND JUSTIN TIMBERLAKEIMBERLAKE

0115 WV Justin Timberlake.indd 1 1/13/20 1:13 PM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS

As you might imagine, working on the Grammy KEN TALES Awards for Ken over nearly two of those decades, I have enjoyed the tremendous and enduring pleasure of sharing a variety of the moments with Ken GONE WILD and the rest of a team that’s become like a family — occasionally like the Manson Family, but still, a family all the same. Although I had attended A longtime associate shares some many of Ken’s productions both as a music fan and as a journalist for Rolling Stone, I first met history of working with Ehrlich Ken in April 1994 at the grand opening of the BY DAVID WILD House of Blues on Sunset while we were both waiting to see Aerosmith — who are, coinciden- tally, playing on this year’s Grammy show. My wife, A LOT WILL BE SAID IN THE DAYS and years to come about all the Fran, and I being seated with Ken and his wife, Harriet, that night would ultimately play a sig- amazing and unforgettable moments that Ken Ehrlich has somehow made nificant part in turning me into the grateful and happen decade after decade live on the Grammy Awards. Likely, a lot of grizzled TV writing and producing veteran that I am today. For the record, that House of Blues was it has already been said by my longtime mentor and lifelong friend Ken demolished not long ago, but thankfully we’re all himself to Chris Willman in the surrounding pages of this publication that still here livin’ on the edge. shares a name with the precise and splendid quality Ken has consistently So as to avoid stepping directly on the boss’s toes, here are just a few alternative, notable, scat- brought to Music’s Biggest Night for four decades — VARIETY. tered backstage Grammy moments from my times David Wild is a script writer for the Grammys and a longtime Rolling Stone contributor. to date toiling in the TV trenches alongside Ken.

VISION CHECK I was standing onstage at the Grammys, and having my lifelong musical hero Stevie Wonder tell Ken and me, “You guys are looking good” — as only Stevie ever could … or ever would.

A DUO’S DETENTE I watched with a lot of awe and a little concern as Ken negotiated a Simon & Garfunkel reunion in 2003, like a kind of special musical envoy to Madison Square Garden, trying his best to broker some measure of harmony and peace. Having grown up with my mom playing the duo’s eight-track tapes while carpooling me, this was a dream come true. Sure, the sound of silence may have been broken by raised voices a few times in the process. Yet by the end, the tension lifted and everyone was feeling groovy, thanks to Ken’s unique ability to get exactly what he wants and still serve as a bridge over troubled waters.

PRIVATE JOY Ken and I sat down with Prince — who previously only knew me as a rock critic — at CenterStaging in early 2004 to discuss what would become his triumphant Grammy opening performance with Beyoncé. After we finished our fascinating conversation, Prince asked us if we’d like to get a private concert for two so he could show us his vision for the performance we had just brainstormed. Not being complete idiots, we said yes enthusiastically, and so Prince and his band then treated us to the single greatest show of our lives — and perhaps the only one ever by a truly towering musical genius, even though Ken and I were both technically taller. WONDER: WILLY SANJUAN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; PRINCE: KEVORK DJANSEZIAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; DJANSEZIAN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; PRINCE: KEVORK SANJUAN/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; WONDER: WILLY FRANK FRANKLIN/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK SIMON & GARFUNKEL:

118 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 Congrats On

40 Years

We Love You.

www.friendsatwork.com

Untitled-5 1 1/9/20 11:50 AM FOCUS KEN EHRLICH: 4O YEARS OF GRAMMYS Y

THE PRODUCER AS PIANO MAN Seeing Ken sit in — rather effectively, too — on piano with a few acts, including Al Green, during rehearsals over the years, I remember thinking that if this whole TV thing didn’t work out, Ken could still make a decent living playing in roadhouses and honky-tonks. I also once heard Ken sing a duet of “That’s Life” with Usher at our Grammy salute to Sinatra, but suffice to say, Ken should probably keep his imaginary day job as a piano man.

SUSSING OUT A SMASH Ken doggedly insisted on having John Legend play a recent single called “All of Me” that had only done OK and was slipping down the charts. He was telling me, “Don’t worry, that song is a smash — and it will be after our show.” And legendarily, Ken was exactly right. SHUTTERSTOCK; EHRLICH/GAGA: LESTER COHEN/WIREIMAGE/THE RECODING ACADEM COHEN/WIREIMAGE/THE LESTER EHRLICH/GAGA: SHUTTERSTOCK;

HOSTS WITH THE MOST

COOL INVOCATION Many times, I’d be BUCK/EPA/ PAUL LATIFAH: LL COOL J: THE RECORDING ACADEMY; The two of us stood up together for the ultimate standup guy — our long- standing with Ken time host and friend LL Cool J — when he surprisingly but quite rightly backstage in awe of wanted to add a prayer for Whitney Houston as part of his first-ever Grammy the extraordinary tal- monologue that we totally rewrote in the wake of Whitney’s tragic passing. ent and commitment The longer I work in live television, the more I believe in the power of prayer. of every Grammy host we worked with together — Jon Stew- art, Queen Latifah, LL, James Corden and now Alicia Keys, a brilliant artist and talent who quite literally has grown up on EGG OVER EASY the Grammy stage. SHUTTERSTOCK; LEGEND: CHRIS PIZZELLO/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; LEGEND: CHRIS PIZZELLO/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; SHUTTERSTOCK; Ken asked me where Lady Gaga was during one Grammy night, and telling him, “She’s backstage near my pre- QUEST FOR SLIDERS AFTER-SHOW PARTY senter prompter area Ken — the hardest-working With Staples Center located across the hanging out in a Plexi- man in show business street from Katsuya at L.A. Live, we walked glass egg,” then hearing since James Brown left the straight into dinner after one Grammys my own words, and stage — is never too busy and found ourselves at the bar watching thinking, thanks in part to see how far he’s the rebroadcast starting on CBS. As we to Ken, I had somehow located from an open downed spicy tuna rolls, Ken looked at ended up in exactly the White Castle burger the TV in front of us and said, “You know, right business. establishment. this is a pretty good show.” GREEN: PAUL MILLER/EPA/SHUTTERSTOCK; USHER: KATIE JONES/VARIETY/ USHER: KATIE MILLER/EPA/SHUTTERSTOCK; GREEN: PAUL

120 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 CONGRATULATIONS KEN ON

OF THE GRAMMY AWARDS®

FRED

0115 WV Alfred Haber.v2.indd 1 1/6/20 11:36 AM CONNECT WITH THE ENTERTAINMENT & MEDIA COMMUNITY

MARCH 26 LOSLOS ANGELESANGELES

PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES SEAN SOPER | [email protected] #ENTERTAINMENTMARKETING

SUPPORTING PARTNER MEDIA PARTNER congratulations KEN 40 YEARS at the Grammys®

IT’S BEEN OUR HONOR TO BE PART OF YOUR AMAZING JOURNEY. HERE’S TO OUR CONTINUING FRIENDSHIP.

BOOEY AND YOUR KOBER POST FAMILY

0115 WV Kober Post.v4.indd 1 1/10/20 10:52 AM FOCUS SANTA BARBARA INT’L FILM FESTIVAL

‘BUMP’ AHEAD “A Bump Along the Way” opens the fest this year.

COASTAL FEST SURFS ART FILM GEMS U.S. premiere of Irish ‘Bump Along the Way’ kicks off this year’s gathering

BY THOMAS J. MCLEAN

costume designers Christopher Peterson He inaugurated a then-rare showcase and Sandy Powell, cinematographer Law- for Spanish and Latin American films to rence Sher, editor Lee Smith and VFX reflect the town’s Latino population and ABOVE ALL THE TITLES SCREENING supervisor Adam Valdez. then further reflected community inter- at the 35th Santa Barbara Intl. Film Fes- Durling says in an age of instant media, ests by adding a focus on films about tival, a 13-minute world premiere short festivals thrive on community experience. surfing and the outdoors. He also moved stands as perhaps the ultimate example Festivals “bring people together,” he says. the dates from spring to January, allow- of the event’s goal of presenting films that The U.S. premiere of “A Bump Along the ing the festival to tie itself into the Oscars’ balance local interests and global perspec- Way,” a comedy out of Northern Ireland nominations phase. tives. Titled “Santa Barbara,” the short is directed by Shelly Love, opens the fest, Durling is especially proud of the fes- about director Diana Markosian’s mother, which pared down its submissions into 14 tival’s educational efforts, which have who came to the coastal California town as shorts programs, 11 sidebars and six com- blossomed into a year-round program. A a Russian mail-order bride after seeing the petitions, ranging from the Jeffrey C. Bar- major turning point came in 2010 when NBC soap opera of the same name. bakow Intl. Competition to Nordic cinema James Cameron, riding high on the suc- “It was the first thing to be broadcast on and social justice documentaries. cess of “Avatar,” agreed to teach a master Russian television following the fall of the Among the titles Albright was happy to class for third- though fifth-graders from Soviet Union,” says programming director land for the international competition are schools in local low-income areas. Michael Albright. “If Only,” the drama directed by Ginevra “We jumped that year from 300 to The short — one of a record 4,000 feature Elkann that opened last year’s Locarno 4,200 kids,” Durling says. And it’s stayed and short films submitted this year — came Film Festival; and Canadian feature “Kues- there, with this year’s edition featuring in as a Russian sidebar was being planned. sipan,” from Myriam Verreault, which pre- filmmakers from Disney’s “Frozen 2” and “There was this weird phenomenon where miered at the Toronto Intl. Film Festival. Pixar’s “Toy Story 4.” we were thinking about doing this section Sidebar highlights include a Bong Joon In 2008, footwear company Ugg and this submission came in, sort of bring- Ho retrospective with a free screening became a presenting sponsor and the fes- ing it all together.” of “Parasite” followed by a Q&A with the tival scored guests including Javier Bar- Synchronicities aside, that balancing director; Russian Arcs, which aims to put a dem, who went on to win the supporting act is a hallmark of the festival, which has human face on the people of that nation; actor Oscar for “No Country for Old Men” grown over the past 17 years under exec- and Crossing Borders, which is almost an and double Oscar nominee Cate Blanch- utive director Roger Durling into a pre- analogy for the festival’s goal of bringing Tipsheet ett. “I think I understood we’d grown, and miere event that this year features 47 world together audiences and filmmakers from we were on the right path,” he says. and 71 U.S. premieres from 50 countries around the world, Albright says. WHAT: Santa And two years ago, the festival became Barbara Intl. Film and will fete talents including Renée Zell- The closing-night film is a series of Festival a focal point for the community as it weger, Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, short local documentaries. WHEN: Jan. 15-25 recovered from the devastating Thomas Variety Laura Dern and Brad Pitt. The Arti- The festival has come a long way since WHERE: Santa Fire and the mudslides that followed. san Awards, presented Jan. 19, will recog- the Panama-born Durling took over 17 Barbara “It totally crystalized what our pur- nize the work of songwriters Kristen Ander- years ago. “Every town seems to have a film WEB: sbiff.org pose was, and our purpose was to bring son-Lopez and Robert Lopez, composer festival, and I understood when I took over people together in good times and bad Michael Giacchino, production designer that Santa Barbara needed an identity, a times,” he says. “Art is there to help us Barbara Ling, sound mixer Steve Morrow, raison d’etre,” Durling says. process what is happening around us.” BUMP FILMS

124 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 FOCUS SANTA BARBARA INT’L FILM FESTIVAL

FEST PAYS STARRY TRIBUTE TO LUMINARIES

RENÉE ZELLWEGER, ADAM DRIVER ARE AMONG THIS YEAR’S HONOREES

LAURA DERN starring in “The Report” and praise since the Quentin VIRTUOSOS AWARD CINEMA VANGUARD AWARD reprising his role of Kylo Ren Tarantino film debuted at in “Star Wars: Episode IX — Cannes. Earlier this month, 2020’s selections include “The Dern, who has high-profile The Rise of Skywalker.” he won the Golden Globe in Farewell” star Awkwafina, who awards in two awards-season 8 p.m. Jan. 17, Arlington Theater the supporting actor category. recently won a Golden Globe movies, won the Golden His last Oscar nomination was for her performance; fellow Globes trophy for her turn as LUPITA NYONG’O for producing 2015 release Globe winner and “Rocket- high-powered divorce attorney MONTECITO AWARD “The Big Short.” man” star Taron Egerton; “Har- Nora Fanshaw in Noah Baum- 8 p.m. Jan. 22, Arlington Theater riet” star Cynthia Erivo; bach’s “Marriage Story” and The supporting actress winner “Booksmart” star Beanie Feld- VARIETY ARTISAN AWARDS praise for her performance as for “12 Years a Slave” has stein; Aldis Hodge, who por- Marmee in Greta Gerwig’s earned strong reviews and trays a man on death row in adaptation of “Little Women.” awards buzz for her dual role Every year, Variety honors a “Clemency”; George MacKay, 8 p.m. Jan. 21, Arlington Theater in “Us,” Jordan Peele’s fol- series of artisans in conjunc- a soldier with a mission in low-up to “Get Out.” The style tion with the fest. This year’s “1917”; “Little Women” and ADAM DRIVER AND icon portrays Adelaide Wilson honorees include Kristen “Midsommar” star Florence SCARLETT JOHANSSON and her doppelganger, Red, in Anderson-Lopez and Robert Pugh; and Taylor Russell, the OUTSTANDING PERFORMERS the horror movie about an Lopez (songwriting, “Frozen resilient teen in “Waves.” OF THE YEAR African American family visit- 2”), Michael Giacchino (com- 8 p.m. Jan. 18, Arlington Theater ing Santa Cruz. Pic was posing, “Jojo Rabbit”), Kazu Driver and Johansson play a released in March and co-stars Hiro (makeup/hairstyling, RENÉE ZELLWEGER theater couple that tries to Elisabeth Moss. “Bombshell”), Barbara Ling AMERICAN RIVIERA AWARD uncouple amicably in “Mar- 8 p.m. Jan. 20, Arlington Theater (production design, “Once riage Story,” depicting the Upon a Time in Hollywood”), Previously an Oscar-winner for strains on their marriage and BRAD PITT Steve Morrow (sound mixing, “Cold Mountain,” Zellweger has even greater stress once MATLIN MODERN MASTER AWARD “Ford v Ferrari”), Christopher been generating awards buzz divorce attorneys try to Peterson and Sandy Powell for her performance as Judy unwind their union. Both are Pitt’s lone Oscar win comes (costume design, “The Irish- Garland toward the end of her appearing in more than one from his producing work on man”), Lawrence Sher (cinema- life ever since “Judy” first high-profile movie this season, “12 Years a Slave,” but his turn tography, “Joker”), Lee Smith screened. Earlier this month,

/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; ZELLWEGER: SHUTTERSTOCK ZELLWEGER: /INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; with Johansson also receiving as stuntman Clint Booth in (editing, “1917”) and Adam Val- she won a Golden Globe for kudos for her supporting turn “Once Upon a Time in Holly- dez (VFX, “The Lion King”). that performance. in “Jojo Rabbit” and Driver wood” has been receiving 8 p.m. Jan. 19, Lobero Theater 8 p.m. Jan. 16, Arlington Theater INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; PITT: JORDAN STRAUSS JORDAN PITT: INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; O: EVAN AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; DERN: CHARLES SYKES/ AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; O: EVAN JOHANSSON/DRIVER: EVAN AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; NYONG’ AGOSTINI/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; JOHANSSON/DRIVER: EVAN

POWER OF LAW | APRIL 9, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | 125 FOCUS VARIETY ARTISANS AWARDS

GET TO KNOW THIS YEAR’S ARTISANS AWARDS HONOREES

For the sixth year, Variety will salute these below-the-line craftsfolk for their contributions to contending films

BY JAZZ TANGCAY

VARIETY’S SIXTH ANNUAL ARTISANS AWARDS, presented at the Santa Bar- is given to the celebrity aspect of cinema. Awards shows are all about the bara Intl. Film Festival, celebrates the talent essential to the ﬁlmmaking pro- actors. I grew up enthralled by the work of editors, costume designers, and cess by honoring those who have exhibited the most exciting and innovative cinematographers. work of the year in their respective ﬁelds. The tribute evening will take place “Can you think about ‘Roman Holiday’ without the costumes of Edith Head? on Jan. 19 at the Lobero Theatre and will be moderated by Variety senior VP ‘Cabaret’ without the songs of Kander and Ebb? Or ‘To Catch a Thief’ without and awards editor Tim Gray and artisans editor Jazz Tangcay. the cinematography of Robert Burks?” “The Artisans Awards have become one of the most important events at Durling notes that “2019 has been a milestone in cinema and that is clearly SBIFF,” says Roger Durling, exec director of the festival. “I feel too much focus displayed in the artisans we’re celebrating.”

ROBERT LOPEZ & KRISTEN ANDERSON-LOPEZ

SONGWRITERS, “FROZEN 2”

With two Oscar wins under their belts, for “Let It Go” from “Frozen” and “Remember Me” from “Coco,” the husband-and-wife songwriter/composer duo penned seven new songs for “Frozen 2” following a research trip to Norway and Iceland. “We got to experience the terrain,” Anderson-Lopez told Variety last year. “That trip inspired our choices. The ﬁrst movie looked at love and family through the lens of love versus fear. This movie looks at love and family and life through the lens of change and growth.” The songwriting process doesn’t always come easily. The ﬁlm’s other anthem, “Show Yourself,” took six months to write and at least three attempts. The couple says: “We thank Variety for honoring us with their Arti- sans Award for our work on the songs of ‘Frozen 2.’ Collaborating with BARBARA LING Jennifer Lee, Chris Buck and the entire team at Disney Animation once again has been the continuation of a dream come true for us.”

PRODUCTION DESIGNER, “ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD”

Ling had previously worked on re-creating music scenes of the ’60s — from the Sunset Strip to New York to Venice Beach — for Oliver Stone’s “The Doors,” and for Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” she re-created 1969 Hollywood. The key to the ﬁlm was authenticity, and Ling notes that Tarantino didn’t want to use green screens or CGI. So Ling and her team built every set and added facades to existing buildings. “He wanted it to be in 1969 in front of that TV store, the movie theater or on that street,” Ling says. “All those layers are reﬂective of how [meticu- lous] Quentin’s attention to detail is.” Ling’s work enabled that immersive-set experience, the director says. “We were able to let the lights blink again on Hollywood Boulevard,” Tarantino says. Margot Robbie, who played Sharon Tate in the movie, says: “It was incredible to be immersed in Hollywood Boulevard.” ONCE UPON A TIME: ANDREW COOPER/SONY PICTURES ONCE UPON A TIME: ANDREW COOPER/SONY

126 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 MICHAEL GIACCHINO

COMPOSER, “JOJO RABBIT”

Although Taika Waititi’s Hitler satire “Jojo Rabbit” allows for laughs, the film packs a dramatic punch, which composer Giacchino wanted to highlight. “I wanted to underline the emotional compo- nent,” he says. “Jojo’s theme” is core to the film. “I wanted to create a theme that could start out as one thing and then become something else,” he says. “In the beginning, Jojo’s theme is essentially a Nazi march. If you had translated lyrics about what those kids are singing, they seem to be all praising the Hitler Youth paradigm and what is good about fascism. My hope is that by the end of the movie, you would have a completely different interpretation of that song. I wanted to create a transformation of Jojo, who wants to sing the lyrics proudly as a Hitler Youth, but by the end of the film wants to sing as someone who is against fascism.” Giacchino adds: “Being a part of any film is a wonderful experience for an artist because of the collaborative nature of the art form. SANDY POWELL & I am particularly proud to have been a part of this film due to its CHRISTOPHER PETERSON message of tolerance and understanding that was presented by Taika in such a brave, innovative and heartfelt way.” Giacchino won an Oscar for the poignant “Up.” He has worked on COSTUME DESIGN, “THE IRISHMAN” more than 141 film scores, including “Star Trek,” “Ratatouille” and the TV show “Lost.” Three-time Oscar winner Powell recruited Peterson to help tackle the daunt- ing task of creating the outfits for Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” over the five decades spanned in the film’s story. “It was like doing three or four films in one at the same time,” Powell says. Having first worked together on “The Departed,” Peterson and Powell later collaborated on “The Wolf of Wall Street” and “Carol.” So it was only natural that she turn to Peterson this time, too. She says that the only way to handle the scale of the project was to work with a co-designer. “When he agreed to that, I felt confident we could have the energy to do it,” she adds. Their color palette changed according to the era. “The ’50s in my mind had a lot of blues and grays. In the ’60s, a lot of the colors were mustards and olives, that’s also reflected in the background and the crowd. The ’70s had burgundy and browns.” For the scenes that take place in Miami, Powell says: “It’s a breath of fresh air; all the colors are lighter. The guys in Miami are in light-colored, pas- tel-colored shirts and it’s suddenly different from all the city scenes. “How can you turn down that opportunity to work with that cast?”

LEE SMITH

EDITOR, “1917”

Smith is no stranger to editing war films — he won an Oscar for cutting “Dunkirk.” Reuniting with “Spectre” director Sam Mendes, Smith continued the one-shot concept that they had tried in the 2015 Bond film’s opening scene.

SMITH: ROB LATOUR/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK “The film needed to look seamless,” Smith says of “1917,” which was edited and shot in a linear fashion. “You have to make sure the film is working the whole time,” he says. “We couldn’t go backwards, so we were making bold decisions.” The collaboration process between director and editor was integral. “We had daily conversations. I’d edit and send the work back to Sam on location.” Tweaks in post-production were usually just in the audio and pacing. “You really have to make sure the film is working the whole time.” To say there was pressure is an understatement, but Mendes and Smith achieved the intense feeling of “1917” by immersing the viewer in the trenches with its soldiers. Smith, whose editing credits include “Interstellar,” “The Dark Knight” and “Inception,” says, “It’s always lovely to be noticed because editing is the invisible art.” POWELL/PETERSON: RICHARD SHOTWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; POWELL/PETERSON: RICHARD SHOTWELL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK;

JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | 127 CINEMATOGRAPHER, “JOKER” 128 FOCUS LAWRENCE SHER scene atthebeginning. Or, you’d himlost see inasea ofhumanity early inthemovie.” a way to theframe. dissect We’d jammed between be people, asyou inthebus see Arthur Fleck’s (Joaquin ofview, Phoenix) point andthey notto ateye-level. tried be ogy oftheaudience.” all ofthatto feel normal, but we wanted thatproximity to present be to thepsychol- distortion can suddenly off-putting be anddistort the faces and features. We wanted have thedistortion,” Shersays. “What withawide lensisthat can sometimeshappen allowed usto have theintimate shots, we lensandthatdidn’t could onamedium be prep process withtheintention ofshooting onfilm. series, and “Joker” istheirsixthcollaboration. Sher anddirector Todd Phillips have worked together onfilmssuch asthe “Hangover” “We could shoot himhighorlow. We could shoot himatafractured level. We’d find Sher alternated between handheldandstatic shots to draw theaudience into “We upshooting indigital ended we because could shoot large format, which The movie was digitally, lensed even though SherandPhillips much ofthe spent | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 15, |JANUARY |VARIETY.COM

VARIETY VARIETY ARTISANS AWARDS Santa Barbara WEB: WHERE: WHEN: WHAT: Tipsheet MAKEUP ARTIST,“BOMBSHELL” KAZU HIRO Atwood, who built Lithgow’s fat suit. collaborated withcostume designerColleen gow into Roger Ailesfor “Bombshell.” Hiro also Kidman to Gretchen Carlson andJohn Lith- transformed Theron into MegynKelly, Nicole during World War II. into British primeminister Winston Churchill Hour” inwhich hetransformed Oldman Gary Academy Award for hiswork on “Darkest Jay Roach to bringonHiro, who won an Charlize Theron asked “Bombshell” director The master ofcontouring andsculpting sbiff.org

Jan.19 Variety

Lobero Theatre, ArtisansAwards

HIRO: MASATOSHI OKAUCHI/SHUTTERSTOCK; SHER/PHILLIPS: NIKO TAVERNISE/WARNER BROS. FORD V FERRARI: 20TH CENTURY FOX; LION KING: DISNEY moment ofbrakes andacceleration, atevery speed, andcreate therace with and histeam were ableto perfectly capture thesounds at “every turn, every but Steve Morrow didit,” Mangold told Variety last year. “Ford vFerrari.” tian Bale andMatt Damon, asthebattle for Manstitlecommenced in theLe gold’s visionoffully immersing theaudience insidetherace cars withChris- Morrow through combed alibrary oftracks to enhance director James Man- and its inhabitants.” collective digital work we accomplished to represent landscape theAfrican work ofhundreds ofskilled artists atMPC, andI’mproud to represent the effects on ‘The LionKing.’ My contribution, of course, is backed up by the and very gratifying to receive thenews thisrecognition about for thevisual also integral to thefilm’s virtual production. Valdez won theOscar for achievement invisual effects. absorb andunderstand thecolors, thevast andthelight. landscapes to “The LionKing.” With thatinmind, Valdez andhisteam flew to Kenya to Director Jon Favreau’s instruction to Valdez was feel to bringadocumentary VFX, “THELIONKING” SOUND MIXING,“FORDVFERRARI” ADAM VALDEZ STEVE MORROW Even though they shot withworking reproductions, Mangold said, Morrow “The cars are soloud, it’s achallenge to record voice thespoken above this, Valdez credits theteam atMPCfor hisrecognition. “It was unexpected Technology was thetool for lightingthefilmandits animalsanditwas The two hadworked together previously on “The Jungle Book,” for which tion andthisisanamazingtribute.” rari.’ Filmmaking isacollaboration between allartists andthiswas noexcep- Award oftheentire onbehalf sound team andthefamily thatis ‘Ford vFer- Star IsBorn,” says: “I feel soincredibly honored to receive the Ford GT40 roaring around thecourse while themighty Ferrari revs its engine. engines racing around thetracks. Two very distinct sounds accompanied a all these ‘voices’ almost speaking musically.” Morrow, who hasOscar nominationsfor sound mixing Land” La “La and “A The sounds brakes, inincluded hemixed acceleration, carburetors and JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | | VARIETY.COM 2020 15, JANUARY Variety Artisan 129 FOCUS NATPE MIAMI

GLOBAL DESTINATION FOR INDUSTRY INSIDERS

NATPE keeps an eye on the future from its Miami digs BY CYNTHIA LITTLETON

THE NATPE CONFERENCE will mark its tenth iteration of dealmaking, networking, brainstorming and ocean-gazing in Miami this year. CELEBRATING SMALL- The move of the association’s annual SCREEN EXECS NATPE’s market and conference to Miami Beach in JP Bommel, Sheri Beam, Lew Klein and Greg Pitts 2011 was born out of desperate times, but celebrate an anniversary. the balmy setting has proven to be a boon for the National Assn. of Television Pro- gram Executives. Miami is a central hub for the conference’s strong contingent of Latin American attendees. And for programming executives and station managers across pound man who had lost half the weight historically bounced around several cities the U.S., there’s no doubt that a trek to and was wearing the same suit he’d worn — including New York, San Francisco and Miami Beach in the middle of winter is an the year before,” says Rick Feldman, the Houston — but the residency in Miami appealing prospect. former NATPE chief who stepped down in has helped exhibitors and attendees better “Miami is a global destination,” says 2012 after nine years at the helm. plan for the event. JP Bommel, president and CEO of NATPE, Once NATPE was free to shop around “You can’t minimize the effect of which is based in Los Angeles. “It’s a boom- again, Miami was a natural focal point. the location,” Feldman says. “What would ing area for media and entertainment and But Feldman realized that the major Mipcom be in Vegas instead of the for multiculturalism.” studios and distributors did not want to Croisette [at Cannes]? It wouldn’t have Before moving to Miami in 2011, NATPE return to a convention center setting. The the same allure.” conferences in the previous decade were days of studios spending $2 million plus Per Bommel, NATPE is committed to held in Las Vegas (with the exception of to construct lavish booths were over. The Miami for the next few years and he sees 2003’s sojourn to New Orleans). Atten- drop in attendance from the 7,000-10,000 no reason to move. The conference has dance was strong in the 2004-2007 period. range before the crash to about 5,000-5,500 settled into a regular attendance of about But after the mortgage meltdown in the made it feasible, size-wise, for the event 5,000 who make NATPE the first confer- U.S. spurred global financial crises in 2008 to relocate to Fontainebleau Hotel in the ence stop of the year. and 2009, industry participation in the heart of Miami Beach. “We have 5,000 attendees who matter,” event plummeted. And NATPE was tied The Fontainebleau went out of its way he says. “We have the opportunity to to long-term contracts for conference and to make its space work for the NATPE network with high-level executives and to exhibition space in Sin City that it could crowd. Feldman, who remains a regular meet with advertisers and to learn from no longer fill. Dark clouds on the economic NATPE attendee, also gives a lot of credit conference programming. The impor- front and empty space on the floor cast a to the surroundings and the fact that tance of this organization has never been pall on the conference for a few years. the hotel is steps away from the Atlantic greater at a time when content is changing “In 2008 and 2009, NATPE felt like a 300- Ocean. Since its inception in 1964, NATPE so much.” SIMON WILKINSON/SWPIX.COM/NATPE

130 | VARIETY.COM | JANUARY 15, 2020 BARRYMORE: SARA JAYE WEISS/SHUTTERSTOCK; CANNON: MICHAEL BECKER/FOX; CLARKSON: ADAN CHRISTOPHER/NBCUNIVERSAL; HALL: CHRISTOPHER SMITH/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; LAKE: CHELSEA LAUREN/SHUTTERSTOCK; ROBBINS: ANDREW MORALES/VARIETY/SHUTTERSTOCK; KLEIN: NATPE second season. is backingtheshowfora debuted inthefall.Disney rities on“Tamron,”which everyday peopleandceleb- and emotionalstoriesfrom focuses ontopicalissues The longtimenewsanchor The actorwhoalso are thelaunchgroup. sion Distribution.CBSO&Os in fallthroughCBSTelevi- daytime stripsettolaunch will hostandproducea of lifestyleproducts steers asuccessfulline CONVERSATION DRIVING THE New show sizzle faces talk the adding daytime to scene are Lew Klein, whoLew Klein, passed away June, in anew inspired has award at NATPE BY CYNTHIA LITTLETON LEADERSHIP HONOR Executives saidgoodbye toLew Klein,thebroadcast the NATPE Foundation educationalarmin1978 and first-run andoff-network syndication. Kleinlaunched tion thatrode thewave ofthe1980s and’90s boomin Andy Kaplan,chairman,NATPE. Leadership Award. year. Asatribute,NATPE hascreated theLew Klein and NATPE duringhislong runintelevision,last pioneerwhohelpedlaunch“AmericanTV Bandstand” Kaplan hailsKleinasadrivingforce intheorganiza “Lew was thesoulandinspirationfor NATPE,” says Nonprofit NationalAssn.ofTelevision Program HALL TAMRON BARRYMORE DREW the audience. will includefeedbackfrom a conflict-drivenshowthat Lake Show.”It’sbilledas as thehostof“TheLauren do doubledutyinthefall “Paternity Court”hopesto The judgefromMGMTV’s show inkeymarkets. Fox O&Oshavepickedupthe gate’s Debmar-Mercuryunit. be distributedbyLions- inate fromNewYorkand Cannon’s showwillorig- daytime talkinthefall. shows isreadytotakeon Masked Singer”andother The ubiquitoushostof“The -

LAKE LAUREN CANNON NICK also served asanadjunctprofessor atTemple Univer at Philadelphia’s WFIL-TV (now ABC-owned WPVI-TV) age of91. Theprogramming executive whogothisstart theunituntilhisdeath. headed conference inMiami. oftheIrisAwardspart luncheononJan.22atthisyear’s recipient —Nexstar chairman-CEO Perry Sook—as College ofMediaandCommunication. broadcasting was department renamed theLew Klein sity for in1952. 65years, starting In2017, the school’s Klein diedJune12inhishomePhiladelphiaatthe The newNATPE kudo willbepresented toitsfirst JANUARY 15, 2020 | VARIETY.COM | | VARIETY.COM 2020 15, JANUARY in daytimesyndication. spurred renewed distributed showhas of herNBCUniversalTV- numbers. Thesuccess in Septembertogood variety hourthatdebuted frontwoman ofatalk- coach hasshinedasthe The popstarand“Voice” major markets. enjoyed tractioninsome Sony PicturesTVshowhas tember debut.Buther son andHallinherSep- a softerstartthanClark- motivational speakerhad The self-helpauthorand FOCUS CLARKSON KELLY ROBBINS MEL NATPE MIAMI interest - 131 #VARIETYCES

ENTERTAINMENT SUMMIT

JANUARY 8, 2020 1 2 ARIA | LAS VEGAS

3 5 6

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14 1 John Harrison, EY; Audrey Steele, Fox; & John Curbishley, Viacom 2 George Barrios, WWE 3 Paul Feig, Lele Pons & Dawn Ostroff, Spotify 4 Shay Mitchell & Jessica Burns, Grubhub 5 Matt Derella, Twitter 6 Andrew Wallenstein, Variety & Mark Cuban 7 Farhad Massoudi, Tubi 8 Linda Yaccarino, NBCUniversal & Jeff Green, The Trade Desk 9 Jay Tucker, UCLA Anderson School of Management; André Kudelski, NAGRA; Benjamin Havey, Walt Disney Studios; Marybeth Strobel, Turner Sports; Marc Whitten, Amazon Fire TV; & Mishka Dehghan, Sprint 10 Guru Gowrappan, Verizon Media 11 Heather Dumford, MediaLink; Armin Molavi, Hilton; Janet Balis, EY; Austin Schumacher, Lyft; Grace Dolan, Samsung Electronics America; & Bill Lathrop, Coca-Cola 12 Camille Hackney, Atlantic Records 13 David Messinger, Activision Blizzard & Kim Kelleher, AMC Networks 14 Alex Piper, YouTube; Jane Latman, HGTV; Megan Colligan, IMAX; Gail Berman, Fox Entertainment; & Jayar Donlan, WWE

PREMIER PARTNERS OFFICIAL PARTNERS SUPPORTING PARTNERS JOJO: FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES; WEATHERING WITH YOU: GKIDS ‘Weathering With You,’ thenation’s foreign-language Oscarsubmission, MAKOTO SHINKAI’S Japanese Animation Changing Climate for to a $358millionglobal haul. Nevertheless, in Japan andearning accolades onits way nomenon, topping office thebox that year a body-swapping story thatwas aglobal phe- of Shinkai’s previous anime, “Your Name,” Japan’s foreign-language Oscar entry. chosenas first time ananimehasbeen less rainstorms Tokyo, pounding marks the falls for agirl withthepower to stop cease- You,” which tells thetale ofayoung boy who is aglobal hit—apromising signfor thesector The GKIDSrelease anelement echoes noms, but allinit’s avaried year for projects Movies sometimesoverlap for Reels, Golden CAS SOUNDS LIKEAGOODMIX “Weathering With tionship between vagabond teens Hodaka view conducted viaatranslator. And Ichosethelatter,” he says inaninter- I make amovie thatangers themfurther?’ so thatIdon’t anger more people, orshould come thedirector hadconsidered. low-up invites thesame criticism, anout- strike) asthebasis for entertainment. Hisfol- as well, for usinganatural disaster (a comet that filmearned Shinkai somecontroversy At the core ofthenew film istherela- “I thought, ‘Should Imake my next film By THOMAS J. MCLEAN p.134 it stopraining. who canmake love withagirl boy whofalls in focuses ona With You” “Weathering Shinkai’s Makoto New Day Bright features to point key scenes Directors ofshortlisted doc REAL CENTER ity to make stop —temporarily. works ataMcDonald’s in Tokyo,abil- hasthe mate therain, which Hina, ayoung girl who we’ve created?’” ation going to live inthiscrazy world that question becomes ‘How istheyoung gener- change itimmediately, thatmeans akey ically dosomething, but we because can’t now,” hesays. “Of course we have to polit- like it’s“It seems only getting worse right ters, includingmore rainfall each summer. an increasing ofwater-related number disas- of climate change onJapan, which hasseen time toward another,” hesays. strongly ayoung feels person for thefirst “What Ireally want to depictishow very he allows that emotioniscentral to thestory. findingfirstfriends asitisabout love. Still, he’s telling isasmuch family about and made for young people, andthatthestory Mori). Shinkai says animationshould be (voiced by Kotaro Daigo) andHina(Nana The director 2DandCGto uses both ani- Shinkai alsowas inspired by theimpact artwork here drops into right here caption style This isthe Headline Xxx Caption p.135 133 JANUARY 15, 2020 VARIETY.COM 134 JANUARY 15, 2020 VARIETY.COM ARTISANS “I thought,‘ShouldImake my And Ichosethelatter.” weather, sees thecity poundedby storms. The animepic,touching onTokyo’s worsening Waterworld the future for Japanese animation.” I’m hopingthatthisway could up open think we’re inthemiddleground, and have alotofinput inmy movies. … I are watched by many people, but Ialso says. “We dowant to make filmsthat waying-centric ofmakingfilms,” he and thatAmerica hasamore market- director-centric way ofcreating films nese animation. is bullish ontheexportability ofJapa- million inotherterritories, andShinkai grossing $126millioninJapan and$50 it’s nevertheless acommercial hit, the dizzying heights of “Your Name,” says, but it’s themost process.” fun into hisiPhone. ”It’s alotofwork,” he music andsound effects he recorded version ofthemovie the thatincluded 10 months. Then hecreated apreviz storyboards by handover of aperiod script was finished. Shinkai drew the music inthefilmby used thetime wimps, which hadcompleted the laborated withthemusical group Rad- With You.” to write “Your Name” and “Weathering he says ittook sixmonthseach about feedback from theproducing team, and finish. The process writing includes and storyboard hisfilmsfrom start to tor himself, write but thescript hedoes driven. Shinkai says he’s notananima- the approach inJapan ismore auteur- ous collaborative creative process. But success creating filmswitharigor- the young people.” so thatit’s alittle bitmore relatable to to itaswell asasupernatural element, have alittle bitmore realistic element and thereligion thatsurrounds usand base itontheculture we grew upin want itto 100%fantasy. be Iwanted to the onewe know,” hesays. ”I didn’t different world thatmight beyondexist With You.” “I really wanted to depicta supernatural approach on “Weathering tion angle, Shinkai went for amore Director Makoto Shinkai movie thatangersthemfurther?’ orshouldImakemore people, a next anger filmsothatIdon’t “People thinkJapan hasavery While “Weathering” may notreach On “Weathering,” Shinkai again col- Pixar andDisney have found global While “Your Name” hadascience-fic- category: the feature film CAS Awards in Reels andthe for theGolden the filmsup Following are Movies Nominated Rocketman Hollywood a Timein Once Upon 1917 Joker JoJo Rabbit The Irishman Ford vFerrari Endgame Avengers: (Dialogue/ADR) Sound Editing Reels Golden Rocketman Hollywood a Timein Once Upon Joker The Irishman Ford vFerrari Sound Mixing CAS

Awards Similar but Varied movies reflect ondiversity ofprojects Mixers anddesignersofyear’s top By VALENTINA VALENTINI The HiddenWorld” and “The LionKing”). “Abominable,” “How to Train Your Dragon: wood”) and animated features (“Frozen 2,” man” and “Once aTimeinHolly- Upon (“Joker,”features Irishman,” “The “Rocket- have nominationoverlaps for live action on Jan. 19for editors anddesigners. Both Sound Editors Awards Reel holdtheGolden features andTV. AndtheMotionPicture standing achievement insound mixingfor its own ceremony Jan. 25, recognizing out- bestowing awards for audio, theCAS hosts in incredibly diverse andmasterful ways.” “and thisyear’s wieldthistool nominees ema Audio Society president Karol Urban, for effectiveneeded storytelling,” says Cin- aural —andoverall —experience. plete soundscape thatenhances aviewer’s logue) into onechannel, creating acom- ent audio (foley, aspects ADR, effects, dia- latter istheprocess ofmixingallthediffer- mixing determines how they hear it. The determines what audiences hear; sound of thecinematicexperience. Sound editing pret andenjoy amovie asany otherpart toimportant how anaudience willinter- January andFebruary, but they are just as awards ceremonies throughout occurring under theradar intheslew ofHollywood Sound design, andmixingoften editing go target theirattention withintheframe. viewers’ eyes, sound tells themwhere to JUST AS THECAMERA’S FOCUS Pics Nommed for Sound @tiniv In additionto theEmmys andOscars “Sound isanincredibly visceral tool navigates of applesto applesthisyear.” nuanced andperiod. You don’t have alot and intimate but still evocatively detailed, like ‘The Irishman,’ which is quite quiet and quite visceral —upagainst something ‘Joker’ [that’s] —avillainpiece abstract thing that’s very sonically interesting like says Urban. against each otherinsimilarcategories,” satisfaction. inated projects gives sound purists challenge to work onthismovie.” and uniqueperspective thatitwas afun the ﬁnalmix. Taika hassuch vision abold out thepost-production process andinto all thecreative sound discussions through- visor-mixer allowed meto forward carry that effect.Being asound designer-super- and processing Hitler’s dialogueto achieve explains. “So Iplayed withaddingreverb of Hitleraddressing amassive rally,” Lee Taika [Waititi] wanted to evoke thesound Jojo andHitlerwhere [writer-director] “There’s ascene inJojo’s kitchen between ments” to support thechild’s ofview. point the ﬁlmuses “subliminal sonicenhance- Rabbit,” allthree performed jobs, andsays all inone. Ai-lingLee, nominated for “Jojo threat”: sound editor, designerandmixer common to what be Urban calls “a triple station Pro Tools, though, it’s more become vice versa,” she says. doesn’t mean it’s anincredible mix, and project] includesfantastic sound editing the difference simply. “Justbecause [a obvious to anoutsider, but Urban explains similar disciplinemay immediately notbe “It’s exciting asajudge. You’ve got some- “We have such different up pieces Still, thediversity instyle ofthenom- With theadvent ofdigital audio work- The reason there are two awards ina Roman Griffin Davis. Taika Waititi and Rabbit,” starring sound for “Jojo and mixed the designed, supervised Ai-ling Lee(above) Triple Threat

WEATHERING WITH YOU: GKIDS; JOJO: FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES Key Scenes in the Past Year’s Top Documentary Films

democracy, and he turned himself in Directors explain the ticking hearts at with that in mind.” the center of their shortlisted films The Great Hack Directors: Karim Amer, Jehane Noujaim By RANDEE DAWN Setting the Scene: Journalist Carole @randeedawn Cadwalladr, who broke the Face- book-Cambridge Analytica data scan- Apollo 11 dal, sees her credibility assailed Director: Todd Douglas Miller online and in the courts. Setting the Scene: The pre-launch “She says, ‘I wish this wouldn’t sequence for the first mission in get to me, but the reality is this which humans landed on the moon, stuff works — trolling, fake news,’” featuring NASA workers and regular recalls Noujaim. “She breaks down citizens alike. and explains why and how on a “It encapsulates everything and personal level she’s been attacked highlights a lost time — a hot day and her life destroyed because of the in 1969 in a fidelity that hasn’t been message she’s trying to get out into captured before,” says Miller. “It’s the the world.” bridge between what is coming and what’s come before. It’s kind of the One Child Nation pinnacle of human evolution.” Directors: Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang Setting the Scene: While illuminating American Factory the decades-long one-child policy Directors: Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert in China, Wang speaks with an Setting the Scene: Chinese billion- 84-year-old midwife who reveals aire and factory owner Cao Dewang she performed nearly 60,000 steril- reveals doubt in his life’s purpose. izations and abortions while the law “He says, ‘I’m not sure if I’m a con- was in effect. tributor or a sinner,’” says Reichert. “The conversation with her Adds Bognar: “He’s been a hard- changed the direction of the film,” charging entrepreneur, and now he’s says Wang. “I thought the film would questioning his whole life’s journey. be as simple as perpetrators and vic- It’s a turning point in how you feel tims, but meeting her I realized she about these guys, and it complicates suffered trauma and guilt and pain your feelings about what he’s doing.” and was one of the victims too. That’s how effective the propaganda [about The Edge of Democracy the one-child policy] was.” Director: Petra Costa Setting the Scene: Former Brazilian Knock Down the House President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Director: Rachel Lears

KIRKLAND/FX/PICTUREGROUP/SHUTTERSTOCK KIRKLAND/FX/PICTUREGROUP/SHUTTERSTOCK makes a dramatic speech protesting Setting the Scene: On the night of his innocence in the Petrobas scandal Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s congressio- before turning himself in nal victory, Lears’ cameras capture an to authorities. election-returns watch event that ﬂips “He was the favorite for the election into a victory party. [term limits, which had denied him a “It’s lucky that we were there, third consecutive term, had passed], but it took years of work to get to that but he decided to follow the rule of point,” says Lears. “Shooting vérité is law because he believes in the process, like performing improvisational music despite the fact that there’s evidence in a group. I and the other camera- Memorable Moments that the other side is corrupt,” says person really needed to be on at that Astronauts are at the ready in “Apollo 11”; a crowd gathers around the Costa. “The rule of law is the only thing moment — and we ended up shooting candidate in “The Edge of Democracy”; Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tends to that separates a dictatorship from a it like a well-oiled machine.” a supporter in “Knock Down the House.”

In Production

TITLE/DISTRIBUTOR GENRE PRODUCTION DIRECTOR/SHOWRUNNER CASTS SHOOT START LOCATION VARIETY.COM Chad Nasim Pedrad, Hayes Davenport Nasim Pedrad, Comedy 3 Arts Entertainment, Studio T 2/32 Vancouver TBS (showrunners) Paul Chahidi Tyler Perry’s Young Dylan Comedy Tyler Perry Studios Tyler Perry (showrunner, pilot director) Young Dylan1 1/22 Atlanta Nickelodeon Sarah Hay, Mid-Century Horror Astral Plane Sonja O’Hara (director) 1/261 Orange, Calif. Shane West JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY The Seventh Day Horror Cinestate, Fangoria Justin P. Lange (director) Guy Pearce 2/32 Dallas

APOLLO 11: NEON; THE EDGE OF DEMOCRACY; FRANCISCO VAN STEEN PRONER RAMOS/NETFLIX; KNOCK DOWN THE HOUSE: NETFLIX; PEARCE: SCOTT PRONER RAMOS/NETFLIX; KNOCK DOWN THE HOUSE: STEEN NETFLIX; PEARCE: SCOTT FRANCISCO VAN 11: NEON; THE EDGE OF DEMOCRACY; APOLLO 135 DATA PROVIDED BY VARIETY INSIGHT. FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF FILMS IN PRODUCTION, VISIT VARIETYINSIGHT.COM

COME RAIN OR COME SHINE FINAL CUT In Makoto Shinkai’s anime ‘Weathering With You,’ Mako founded theater troupe, a boy falls for a girl who can control the weather p.141 then picked up Oscar nom p.142

TV REVIEW BY CAROLINE FRAMKE Little America

Drama: Apple TV Plus (8 episodes; all reviewed); Jan. 17 Starring: Angela Li, Haaz Sleiman, Mélanie Laurent, Zachary Quinto

he arrival of a show like “Little America” is no acci- dent. Each chapter of Apple TV Plus’ new anthology series centers on the Tjourneys of immigrants and first-generation Americans who end up in the United States either by choice, neces- sity or some combination thereof. (All are fictionalized versions of real-life stories, as recently collected by Epic Maga- zine.) The show comes at a time when Hollywood is (at the very least) making overtures toward becoming more inclusive in its storytelling and on-screen representation — and as the country’s increasingly dire political situation keeps the very nature of immigration in jeopardy. “Little America,” which Apple renewed for a second season weeks before the first was set to premiere, strives to show the myriad ways and reasons why people come to the United States while also highlight- ing their individual personalities and humanity. Even though every episode is written and directed by someone different, following characters with no specific awareness of one another, all of the installments contain a similar moment of self-aware reckoning. No matter which country they came from, the protagonists of “Little America” are staring down the fundamental ques- tions of what it means to be American, VARIETY.COM and what it takes to build a life from Separation Story the ground up. A mother (Priyanka Created by Lee Eisenberg (“The Bose) says good- bye to her son Office”), Emily V. Gordon and Kumail (Eshan Inamdar) Nanjiani, the series devotes eight half- in one episode of “Little America.” 15, 2020 JANUARY WEATHERING WITH YOU: GKIDS; LITTLE AMERICA: APPLE WITH YOU: WEATHERING 137 hours to immigrant narratives span- with firsthand experience of its central in turn encourages him to apply for asy- ning decades. (It’s a familiar premise for culture clash. lum in the United States, where they can Gordon and Nanjiani, co-writers of the One particularly good chapter — “The more openly be themselves. As with all Oscar-nominated comedy “The Big Sick,” Grand Expo Winners,” a bruising portrait the best moments of “Little America,” and “Master of None” co-creator Alan of a single Vietnamese mother (Angela these episodes feature attentive directing Yang, who is executive producer here.) Lin) trying to keep her broken heart in and wrenching performances from actors On one hand, things sometimes feel one piece as her extremely American kids who, as they ably prove here, deserve far disjointed, which makes sense for a drift away — is written and directed by higher profiles — or at least more lay- show that passes the creative baton Tze Chun, the son of the woman whose ered starring roles than they have hereto- every half-hour. On the other, letting life inspired the story, whose teenage self fore been offered. another writer or director tackle the plays a crucial role in the narrative. The only episode that has more widely material means that even if one epi- Other highlights include “The Man- known actors is “The Silence,” starring sode stumbles, the next is, quite literally, ager,” written by Rajiv Joseph and Mélanie Laurent as a restless woman on another story entirely. directed by Deepa Mehta, which portrays a silent retreat headed by an intense yogi “Little America” is a thoughtful the quietly devastating childhood of a played by Zachary Quinto; as written and show, made with evident care and boy whose parents become a casualty of directed by co-showrunner Sian Heder, consideration for doing justice to the the labyrinthine immigration system and it’s a deeply wry shock to the system in heritages depicted. With just a couple wind up stuck in India for years, leav- a “Fleabag” vein, and by far the least like exceptions — including a disappointing him to run the family motel in Utah any other contribution to the series. ing episode written by Eisenberg, Gor- by himself. “The Son” follows a closeted For all the hardship and heartbreak it don and Nanjiani about an Iranian man and terrified gay Syrian (Haaz Sleiman) depicts, however, “Little America” is fun- (Shaun Toub) trying to build a house — who finds a kindred spirit in a flamboy- damentally optimistic. Each segment each installment is written by someone ant Kelly Clarkson fan (Adam Ali), who takes pains to close on a relatively hope- ful note, or even an outright triumphant one as characters find resilience, nurture their most tender relationships and beat the odds to overcome formidable obsta- cles like poverty and an immigration status hanging precariously in the balance. Several stories conclude with their sub- jects adjusting — or perhaps more accu- rately, assimilating — to American life after loosening their grip on the cultural differences that made it harder for them to adapt in the first place. Such attempts to hold on to one’s roots in a country that rarely permits the room to do so represent a frustrating dichotomy that any immigrant or first-generation American can recognize. Whether or not the writers of “Little America” realized it as they formed their individual stories, they VARIETY.COM wrote an anthology that speaks not only to the breadth of immigrant experience A Man Apart but to the bittersweet thread of loss that Zachary Quinto plays unites them all. an annoyed yogi in one installment of CREDITS: Execu- Bearman, Joshua Conphidance, Shaun

JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY tive producers: Lee Davis, Arthur Spec- Toub, Jearnest the Apple TV Eisenberg, Kumail tor. 30 MIN. Starring: Corchado, Kemiy- Plus program. Nanjiani, Emily V. Angela Li, Haaz Slei- ondo Coutinho, Pri- Gordon, Alan Yang, man, Mélanie Lau- yanka Bose, Eshan 138 Sian Heder, Joshuah rent, Zachary Quinto, Inamdar

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For advertising opportunities please contact Sadi Kuperman at [email protected] requires while dazzling us with FILM REVIEW Hello, Sunshine his usual attention to lighting and BY PETER DEBRUGE Hina (voiced by landscapes. Nana Mori) can Escaping the island where he stop the rain at will in “Weather- Weathering grew up for what he imagines to ing With You.” be a more exciting life in Tokyo, Hodaka (Kotaro Daigo) is standing With You on the deck of a ferry boat when a storm materializes overhead, ham- mering down so hard, the flash Director: Makoto Shinkai With: Kotaro Daigo, Nana Mori, Tsubasa flood nearly casts the boy over- Honda, Sakura Kiryu board. Instead, he’s rescued by Mr. Suga (Shun Oguri), a not-entirely-legit magazine publisher who gives Hodaka his card and, later, a job, after the kid realizes he’s too for the couple through some of the the massive holes in his script, n Texas, there’s a saying young to get work in the big city. story’s stranger turns. For example, though he does a nice job of dis- that goes, “If you don’t like Shinkai has a unique sense once Hina realizes she can override tracting us with details, even going the weather, wait a few of Tokyo. From crowded neon- the rain, she and Hodaka decide to so far as to incorporate cameo I minutes.” All the way over lit intersections to private roof- start a business, where clients pay appearances by Taki and Mit- in Tokyo, changing the fore- top shrines, the director captures her to call out the sun for sporting suha, the lead characters of “Your cast doesn’t come nearly so easy many facets of the famous city. events, street fairs or a family after- Name,” in such a way that suggests — and may even require a human Hodaka meets Hina (Nana Mori) at noon in the park. But that incident that the films may be part of an sacrifice to set things right — or at a McDonald’s, where he finds a gun with the gun attracts the police’s extended “Shinkai-verse.” least, that’s the premise of “Weath- left behind by another customer, attention, as does Hina’s ability to ering With You,” an inventive later using it to defend her from harness lightning in alarmingly vio- new romantic fantasy from direc- what looks to be a pimp. lent ways, and before long, they’re CREDITS: A GKids (in play: Makoto Shinkai. U.S.), Toho (in Japan) Camera (color): Ryôsuke tor Makoto Shinkai, whose 2016 Shinkai doesn’t enough back- on the run from the authorities. release of a Toho Co., Tsuda. Editor: Makoto CoMix Wave Films, Story, Shinkai. Music: Radwimps. hit “Your Name” became the first ground on either of the charac- This is where “Weathering With Kadokawa Corp., East Reviewed at Animation Is Japan Marketing & Com- Film Festival (opener), Oct. anime made by someone other ters (why Hodaka leaves home, You” proves weakest, falling back munications, Voque Ting 18, 2019. (Also in Toronto, Co., Lawson Entertain- San Sebastian, Tokyo, than Hayao Miyazaki to earn more why Hina agrees to sex work), and on tropes seen far too frequently ment production. Pro- Palm Springs festivals.) ducer: Yoshihiro Furusawa. MPAA Rating: PG-13. Run- than $100 million in Japan. Here, yet, audiences will have no trou- in kids movies, instead of charting Executive producers: Min- ning time: 112 MIN. Voices: ami Ichikawa, Noritaka Kotaro Daigo, Nana Mori, a young couple desperate to stay ble accepting that they’re meant to a fresh path. Shinkai hasn’t gone Kawaguchi. Co-produc- Tsubasa Honda, Sakura ers: Wakana Okamura, Kiryu, Se Hiraizmi, Yuki Kaji, together find themselves contend- be together, finding it easy to root far enough into fantasy to excuse Kinue Ito. Director, screen- Chieko Baisho, Shun Oguri ing with all manner of meteoro- logical freakery, with spectacular, if somewhat difficult to follow, results. As in the body-swapping sensation that preceded it, “Weather- ing With You” blends the emotional concerns of 21st-century teens with elaborate supernatural elements, making for a visually dazzling, narratively convoluted adventure that speaks to the younger generation but not necessarily American audiences, who may have trouble swal- lowing the film’s outrageous end- The WGAW wishes to honor the following members ing and J-poppy Radwimps score. for their devotion to their craft and contribution to all of our lives. The tragic impossibility of true love is once again the director’s They will be missed. secret ingredient, as a 16-year-old runaway named Hokoda falls for Hina, a so-called Sunshine Girl, an exceptionally rare specimen with CHRISTOPHER N. FERRENCE WILLIAM LUCE BERNARD SLADE the power to pray away the gray 1/7/71 11/12/19 10/16/31 12/9/19 5/2/30 10/30/19 skies. Her gift comes at a cost, however, and both teens realize that eventually, her ability to tame the RICHARD GOLLANCE ARTHUR MARKS T. S MITH III weather will reach its limit and 3/11/50 11/3/19 8/2/27 11/13/19 10/24/58 12/4/19 she’ll levitate into the clouds to be vaporized. Or something like that. In the real world, of course, PHIL HAHN JAMES O’KEEFE MARC STIRDIVANT humans have zero control over the weather. Neither do filmmak- 8/21/32 11/17/19 1/11/43 10/31/19 12/6/48 7/30/19 VARIETY.COM ers, which would make it hard to tell a story that calls for such DAVID LEVINSON JONI RHODES ERIC WARNER extreme fluctuations between rain and shine via live action. On the 8/4/39 11/4/19 3/19/40 12/4/19 7/26/52 10/24/19 other hand, by working in ani-

mation, Shinkai is free to play 15, 2020 JANUARY God, conjuring whatever kind of

GKIDS strange weather patterns his story 141 By STEVEN GAYDOS

FINAL CUT

Dec. 28, 1966 The historic Golden Globe best actress win for Asian American actor Awkwaﬁna reminds us of the pioneering work of creative trailblazers of Asian descent who preceded her. That list dates back ‘Sand Pebbles’ to 1936 with Indian-Maori-European actor Merle Oberon’s Oscar nomination for 1935’s “The Dark Angel.” Notably included: Makoto Iwamatsu, who acted under the singular moniker Mako, and Co-Star Mako not only contributed an Oscar-nominated performance to the best picture-contending 1966 ﬁlm “The Sand Pebbles” but also co-founded the groundbreaking Asian American theater group the

VARIETY.COM Established East-West Players a year earlier. L.A. Forum for Variety said of his acting work in the 1965 Norman Gerard-directed stage production of “Rashomon”: “Mako, as the motley bandit, is particularly strong in the excellent cast. He has the Asian Actors physical agility of a dancer and projects both the moody insecurity and the burly bravado a pparent in a man who lives as an animal.” JANUARY 15, 2020 JANUARY 142 • Visit VarietyUltimate.com for every issue of Variety since 1906. EVERETT COLLECTION ©20THCENTFOX/COURTESY BAFTA LOS ANGELES THANKS OUR MEMBERS, GUESTS AND PARTNERS FOR CELEBRATING WITH US AT THE BAFTA TEA PARTY, AND WISH YOU ALL THE BEST FOR THE SEASON AHEAD.

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