Netflix keeps growing in pandemic, tops 200 million subscribers

SAN FRANCISCO - Netflix on Tuesday delivered stronger-than-expected subscriber growth in the past quarter, keeping ahead of new streaming rivals competing for viewers stuck in their homes during the coronavirus pandemic.

The streaming television leader added some 8.5 million paid subscribers in the quarter to reach 203 million, topping 200 million despite recent price hikes, its quarterly earning update showed.

Netflix shares jumped more than 12 percent in after-market trades following the release.

Profits dipped to $542 million in the fourth quarter, compared with $587 million in the same period in 2019. But overall revenue in the quarter surged 21.5 percent to $6.6 billion.

For the full year, Netflix added a record 37 million paid memberships, according to the earnings report.

"We're enormously grateful that in these uniquely challenging times we’ve been able to provide our members around the world with a source of escape, connection and joy while continuing to build our business," Netflix said in a letter to investors.

Paid membership increased 23 percent in the final quarter of 2020 when compared with the same period a year earlier, but average revenue per membership was flat, according to the Silicon Valley based company.

While Netflix raised rates slightly in the US late last year, the majority -- some 83 percent -- of its new subscribers were from outside North America, the earnings report indicated.

FILMS TO LAUNCH

Netflix has invested heavily in original shows and films to make itself a must-have service in the increasingly competitive streaming television market.

Apple, Comcast, Disney and others have taken on Netflix with streaming television services of their own

"The big growth in streaming entertainment has led legacy competitors like Disney, WarnerMedia and Discovery to compete with us in new ways, which we’ve been expecting for many years," Netflix said in the letter.

"This is, in part, why we have been moving so quickly to grow and further strengthen our original content library across a wide range of genres and nations."

Netflix executives said its productions are back up and running in most regions after being derailed by the pandemic.

Netflix boasted having more than 500 titles in post-production or being readied for release on the service, with the plan being to launch at least one new original film weekly.

Already the master of the pandemic-era movie landscape, Netflix last week offered a preview of upcoming 2021 releases, a list with no fewer than 70 star-studded feature films. 

From drama, comedy and science fiction to horror and even Westerns, the slate will take in every major film genre before the year is out, with some releases poised as potential competition for major awards. 

Among the most-anticipated titles is "Don't Look Up," from filmmaker Adam McKay of "The Big Short" and "Vice" fame and starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

"The Harder They Fall," a Western co-produced by Jay-Z and with a primarily Black cast including Regina King and Idris Elba, also promises to be one to look out for. 

The announcement -- via a brochure on the streamer's website -- was accompanied by a short video presented by "Wonder Woman" star Gal Gadot, "Jumanji" lead Dwayne Johnson and "Deadpool" actor Ryan Reynolds. 

Johnson, Gadot and Reynolds will appear in "Red Notice," an action film with a $160 million budget, according to US media. 

Agence France-Presse

Universal Pictures will make movies available at home and in theaters on the same day

(Reuters) - Universal Pictures, a division of Comcast Corp-owned NBCUniversal, will make its movies available at home on the same day they are released in theaters worldwide, beginning with the DreamWorks Animation film “Trolls World Tour” - which opens in the United States on April 10.

The decision, announced by NBCUniversal on Monday, is a response to changing consumer behavior as the coronavirus spreads. It upends the traditional practice of keeping a movie exclusively in theaters for what is typically a 90-day window before releasing it on other platforms.

NBCUniversal will “continue to evaluate the environment as conditions evolve,” the company said in a statement, adding it will revisit the strategy when the current situation changes.

On Sunday night, the mayors of New York and Los Angeles ordered movie theaters in their respective cities to close in response to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak.

NBCUniversal said that by Friday, recently released films including “The Hunt,” “The Invisible Man” and “Emma” will be available from sister companies Sky and Comcast and on a variety of on-demand services. The suggested price will be $19.99 in the United States for a 48-hour rental, and the equivalent price elsewhere.

“Rather than delaying these films or releasing them into a challenged distribution landscape, we wanted to provide an option for people to view these titles in the home that is both accessible and affordable,” said NBCUniversal Chief Executive Officer Jeff Shell in a statement.

Between this past Friday and Sunday, North American movie box office sales hit their lowest levels in over two decades, according to Comscore, as viewers stayed home and theaters capped their seating capacity to create more space between moviegoers.

Reporting by Helen Coster in New York; Editing by Matthew Lewis

Netflix to release 'Top 10' feature in push toward transparency, ease of search

Netflix Inc on Monday announced plans to launch a new Top 10 feature that will allow users to see the most popular TV series and films in their country.

The Los Gatos, California, company has guarded its viewership data for years and only recently started revealing information about how many people watch its shows.

Director of Product Innovation Cameron Johnson wrote in a company blog post that Netflix would update the Top 10 feature daily. It will include an overall top 10 list as well as lists for the most popular TV series and films.

Shows that make these lists will be designated with a "Top 10" badge elsewhere on the platform. The streaming giant has been experimenting with top 10 lists in Mexico and the United Kingdom for the last six months, wrote Johnson.

Netflix uses an algorithm to serve up content based on a user's viewing history, but still faces criticism that it is difficult to browse. The Top 10 list addresses that criticism, and also reflects a trend by the company to be more transparent about how its shows are performing.

In December Netflix released a list of its most popular shows and films of 2019 in the United States, based on the number of households watching at least two minutes of a series, movie or special during its first 28 days on the service. The numbers were not verified by a third party.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

'Sonic' booms to top of N.America box office

LOS ANGELES - Defying expectations, Paramount's new adventure comedy "Sonic the Hedgehog" took in $57 million this weekend to leap to the top of the North American box office, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported Sunday.

That figure, based on a Friday-through-Sunday estimate, is expected to grow to $68 million when Monday's Presidents Day holiday in the US is included, proving an exception to the rule that films based on video games rarely excel at the box office.

An early trailer for the film had bombed, Variety reported, prompting the studio to redesign the title character. The result: a Sonic boom. 

Far back in second place was last week's leader, Warner Bros superhero film "Birds of Prey," at $17.1 million for the three-day weekend ($19.5 million for four days). Margot Robbie stars as former Joker girlfriend Harley Quinn.

In third was another new release, Sony's horror film "Fantasy Island," at $12.4 million ($14 million). Michael Pena and Maggie Q star in the remake of a 1970s TV show, which has drawn some vicious reviews ("a tide of numbing stupidity," said CNN).

Another new film, Universal's romantic drama "The Photograph," opened in fourth place, at $12.3 million ($14 million). It stars Lakeith Stanfield and Issa Rae.

And in fifth, after weeks at or near the top, was Sony's action comedy "Bad Boys for Life," with Will Smith and Martin Lawrence as wise-cracking detectives. It took in an estimated $11.3 million ($12.8 million).

Rounding out the top 10 were:

"1917" ($8.1 million for three days; $9.4 million for four)

"Jumanji: The Next Level" ($5.7 million; $7 million)

"Parasite" ($5.5 million; $6.7 million)

"Dolittle" ($5.1 million; $6.3 million)

"Downhill" ($4.7 million; $5.2 million)

bbk/jm

Agence France-Presse

'Crazy Rich Asians' sparkles at N. America box office

LOS ANGELES -- Highly anticipated rom-com "Crazy Rich Asians" -- the first Hollywood film with an mainly Asian cast in a generation -- dazzled the North American box office in its debut weekend, claiming the top spot, industry estimates showed Sunday.

The Warner Bros. adaptation of Kevin Kwan's best-selling novel of the same name raked in $34 million since hitting theaters on Wednesday, box office tracker Exhibitor Relations said. Of the total, the film took in $25.2 million at the weekend.

Starring veteran actress Michelle Yeoh, British-Malaysian former BBC host Henry Golding and American sitcom star Constance Wu, the film tells the story of a American economics professor who meets her super-wealthy boyfriend's family in Singapore -- and all the drama that ensues.

It is the first Tinseltown film with a predominantly Asian cast since "The Joy Luck Club" in 1993.

Shark thriller "The Meg" tumbled to second place in its second week, taking in $21.2 million. It stars action movie regular Jason Statham as a rescue diver who tries to save scientists in a submarine from an attack by a huge, prehistoric shark.

"Mile 22" -- a new spy thriller-action flick starring Mark Wahlberg -- opened in third place at $13.6 million.

Another debut film, prehistoric adventure tale "Alpha," shared fourth place at $10.5 million with summer blockbuster "Mission: Impossible - Fallout."

The latest installment in the "M:I" franchise has now taken in $180.7 million overall.

Rounding out the weekend's top 10 were:

"Christopher Robin" ($8.9 million)
"BlacKkKlansman" ($7 million)
"Slender Man" ($5 million)
"Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation" ($3.7 million)
"Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" ($3.4 million)

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Cate Blanchett set to crown winner at politically charged Cannes fest

A jury led by Cate Blanchett will crown the winner of the coveted Palme d'Or for best film at Cannes Saturday, after a politically charged festival rocked by controversy and the #MeToo movement.

Movies by Spike Lee, South Korea's Lee Chang-dong, Turkish master Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Nadine Labaki of Lebanon—one of three female directors among the 21 in contention—drew critical acclaim ahead of the famously unpredictable awards night.

But beyond the prize winners, the 71st Cannes festival may linger for its off-screen moments, in the first edition since the Harvey Weinstein sexual assault scandal broke.

Hollywood stars including Blanchett, Kristen Stewart, Helen Mirren and Salma Hayek and directors Ava DuVernay and Patty Jenkins joined a red-carpet protest to demand equal opportunity and a "safe workplace".

Two days later, festival organizers signed a pledge to encourage more diversity in its selection by 2020, saying they hoped it would set an industry standard. 

Despite being one of the most sought-after tickets, the premiere of Danish bad boy Lars von Trier's "The House That Jack Built" saw audience members walk out in droves from what they called a misogynistic orgy of violence. 

Both its female stars, Uma Thurman and Riley Keough, were conspicuously absent from the red carpet, where Stewart on another night staged a kind of protest of her own by slipping off her high heels and climbing the vaunted Cannes stairs barefoot. 

Anti-Trump tirade
The glamour-drenched festival spotlighted dissident directors, including Jafar Panahi of Iran and Russia's Kirill Serebrennikov, who were barred by their governments from attending.

Their films drew lengthy standing ovations, while a single seat marked with their names remained empty.

Polish Oscar winner Pawel Pawlikowski, who won the foreign-language movie Oscar for "Ida" in 2015, caused a scandal at home when he told AFP at the festival that the film had been "blacklisted" by the nationalist government. Warsaw denied the claim.

Critics swooned over Pawlikowski's latest, the slow-burn period love story "Cold War" set against the backdrop of the Iron Curtain.

Labaki won hearts with "Capernaum" set among the poorest of the poor in Beirut and featuring a devastating performance by a 13-year-old Syrian refugee boy.

"While this is unquestionably an issue film, it tackles its subject with intelligence and heart," industry bible Variety said.

Spike Lee scored a hit with "BlacKkKlansman", the stranger-than-fiction story of an African-American police officer who manages to infiltrate the highest levels of the Ku Klux Klan.

The film, which several critics called a return to form for the "Do the Right Thing" director, explicitly links the 1970s tale and white nationalism in the Trump era. Lee attacked the US president with an expletive-filled tirade at his press conference that quickly went viral.

Asian masters like Lee Chang-dong created a sensation, scoring a record 3.8 out of 4 stars in a Screen magazine poll for "Burning", about a young man's mounting rage over unrequited love and set near the North Korean border.

Hirokazu Kore-eda of Japan also moved audiences with "Shoplifters", about a family of small-time crooks who take in a child they find on the street. 

Turkey's Ceylan, who took home the Palme d'Or four years ago for "Winter Sleep", earned rave reviews for his epic homecoming drama "The Wild Pear Tree".

And Matteo Garrone of Italy, best known for mafia tableau "Gomorrah", delighted cinemagoers with "Dogman" about a soft-spoken pooch groomer who stands up to a local heavy.

As the festival wrapped up, director Terry Gilliam presented "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote", his "cursed" project which was two decades in the making.

"I have no life ahead of me, it's so sad after working so long to be so depleted, to have no future," he joked with a wry smile. "I can only think of death now." 

'Less America-centric'
In 2017, the top prize went to Ruben Ostlund's "The Square," an art world send-up that went on to bag an Oscar nomination.

This year there were less-lavish parties and fewer A-listers on the Croisette seaside boulevard.

However industry insiders dismissed talk of a festival in crisis, saying Cannes was returning to its core mission in the face of showbiz "disruption".

US magazine Vanity Fair called 2018 a "pivot year", as movie studios plump for social media to promote their blockbusters instead of the splashy French Riviera promotions of old.

"In making the festival a little less America-centric than it has been lately, Cannes has re-asserted itself as the premier destination for daring, provocative international cinema," it said.

Spike Lee told AFP that for directors doing edgy work, "Cannes is the greatest film festival in the world, there is no argument. This is the Mecca, this is the greatest stage."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

'Wonder Woman' stumbles, 'Get Out' surprises at Oscar nominations

LOS ANGELES -- "Wonder Woman" failed to conquer Oscar voters on Tuesday despite riding to one of the biggest box office hits of 2017 on a wave of female empowerment, making it one of the biggest snubs for Hollywood's highest honors.

The Warner Bros. movie, featuring Gal Gadot as the sword-wielding Wonder Woman, was the first stand-alone female superhero film since 2005 and earned some $825 million globally, making its filmmaker Patty Jenkins, 46, the highest-grossing female director in Hollywood.

But at Tuesday's Oscar nominations, Jenkins was left off the director's race and the film was snubbed in the best picture category, despite nods for other movies about women and made by women.

   

Instead, it was Guillermo del Toro's surreal fantasy romance "The Shape of Water" that led the Oscar nominations with 13 nods.

Speaking to Reuters, del Toro said that despite the omission of "Wonder Woman" at the Oscars, the impact of the film was "undeniable."

"Not only did ('Wonder Woman') break this archaic notion that this grand superhero-sized myth was done for 'the boys,' but it delivered it at a level of excellency that is a high watermark," the filmmaker said.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has traditionally disdained big action and superhero movies in favor of smaller art-house fare, like last year's Oscar champion "Moonlight" and this year's dark comedy "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," which landed seven nods.

Since 1990, only the 2003 fantasy epic "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" snapped that trend to win the top Oscar honor. Sci-fi movie "Avatar," still the biggest box office movie of all time, received a best picture nomination in 2010 but lost out to "The Hurt Locker."

SUCCESS FOR 'GET OUT' 

This year's surprises include four nominations - including best picture, and best actor for Daniel Kaluuya - for Jordan Peele's "Get Out," in which an African-American man finds himself trapped at his white girlfriend's house with her strange family.

The $5-million horror movie from Universal Pictures became a box office success with more than $250 million globally and became a talking point around modern day race relations in America.


"I think that there's a piece of the black experience that is communicated in the film and through Daniel's performance that people of color recognize and haven't seen and that people not of color needed to see as well," Peele told Reuters.

Veteran actor Christopher Plummer, 88, was also a surprise contender in the supporting actor race for Sony Pictures' Getty kidnapping film "All the Money in the World." Plummer boarded the movie a month before its release, replacing actor Kevin Spacey because of sexual misconduct allegations.

Plummer stepped in after Spacey was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple men. Spacey issued an apology for the first reported incident, involving actor Anthony Rapp.

"Everything has happened so quickly of late that I am still a trifled stunned but excited by it all," Plummer said in a written statement of his nomination.

James Franco was excluded from the best actor race for "The Disaster Artist" after facing accusations of sexual misconduct earlier this month following his Golden Globe win.

Franco said the accusations were "not accurate." He lost out on Sunday at the Screen Actors Guild awards to Gary Oldman for "Darkest Hour."

Other snubs included Steven Spielberg in the directing race for press freedom movie "The Post," and its star Tom Hanks. "Mudbound" was left out of best picture and its filmmaker, Dee Rees, was also excluded from the directing race, but she landed a nod for adapted screenplay.

German film "In The Fade," which won the Golden Globe for best foreign language film and received praise for its lead star Diane Kruger, was left out of the Oscar foreign language race.

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'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Tops $1 billion worldwide

LOS ANGELES - Disney-Lucasfilm's "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" has cleared the $1 billion milestone in worldwide grosses in less than three weeks.

"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" pulled in $120.4 million globally on the New Year's Eve weekend with $52.4 million at 4,232 domestic venues and $68 million internationally during the Friday-Sunday period.

"The Last Jedi" is now the eighth highest-grossing domestic movie of all time with $517.1 million -- only $15 million behind last year's "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" in the seventh spot. On the worldwide chart, it's now 24th with $1.04 billion, edging Universal-Illumination's "Despicable Me 3." The tentpole's international total, currently at $523.2 million, will see a significant jolt when it opens on Jan. 5 in China, its final market.

"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" has also topped Disney's "Beauty and the Beast," which grossed $504 million in North America, for the top spot among 2017 releases domestically. It's the fourth 2017 title to go past $1 billion worldwide, along with "Beauty and the Beast" at $1.26 billion, "The Fate of the Furious" at $1.24 billion and "Despicable Me 3" at $1.03 billion.

"The Last Jedi" is also winning the domestic weekend box office crown for the third time with $52.4 million, edging Sony's "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle," which took in $50.6 million at 3,765 locations for the Friday-Sunday. However, Sony's projection showed the "Jumanji" sequel grossing $16.5 million on New Year's Day on Monday -- well above Disney's forecast of $13.2 million for "The Last Jedi." Should those numbers hold, "Jumanji" would edge "Jedi" over the four-day period with $67 million, winning by $1.4 million.

"Jumanji" has been "The Last Jedi's" biggest competitor by far since it opened on Dec. 20. The action-comedy should wind up with an 11-day domestic total of $186.3 million by the end of Monday. The action-comedy, starring Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart, has a $90 million budget. It's also performed impressively in international markets with $107 million thr0ugh Dec. 28.

"Jedi" and "Jumanji" helped lift the entire domestic box office for 2017 to $11.12 billion, down 2.3% from last year's $11.38 billion and off slightly from 2015's $11.14 billion, according to comScore. The gap for 2017 had been more than 6% at the end of the worst summer in a decade but performances by "It," "Thor: Ragnarok," "Justice League," "Jedi" and "Jumanji" closed most of that margin.

"With another $11 billion plus year on the books, the industry looks ahead to awards season and a 2018 packed with blockbuster titles and a hope for a year slightly less volatile than 2017," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst with comScore. Universal's "Pitch Perfect 3" led the rest of weekend's domestic pack with a projected $22.7 million at 3,468 locations for Friday-Monday, lifting its 11-day total to $69.2 million. The comedy trilogy, starring Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson, took in $13.1 million this weekend from 34 international markets for a foreign total of $28.6 million.

Hugh Jackman's musical drama "The Greatest Showman" is finishing a close fourth with $20.3 million at 3,316 theaters forecasted for the four days. The Fox-Chernin Entertainment title showed the biggest gain in the top 10 movies from the Christmas Eve weekend with an impressive 73% surge. The domestic total should hit $53.8 million through Monday.

Fox's second weekend of "Ferdinand" -- the only film to open on the same weekend as "The Last Jedi" -- followed in fifth with $15.1 million at 3,337 North American venues, giving the animated comedy $57.3 million in 18 days. Disney-Pixar's seventh weekend of "Coco" finished sixth with a projected $8.8 million at 2,845 sites for a domestic total of $181.1 million and $539 million worldwide.

Sony's "All the Money in the World" and Focus Features' "The Darkest Hour" were in a battle for seventh place at about $7.2 million for the four days. "All the Money" opened on Christmas Day as the final wide release of the year at 2,074 locations after director Ridley Scott excised Kevin Spacey's scenes and reshot them with Christopher Plummer as J. Paul Getty, following the early November sexual abuse allegations against Spacey. Its eight-day total will be around $14.4 million.

Awards contender "Darkest Hour," starring Gary Oldman as the 1940 version of Winston Churchill, expanded to 943 venues in its sixth weekend and will have taken in $19.8 million by the end of the weekend. Focus reported strong performance in Washington, D.C./Maryland, Phoenix, Boston, Salt Lake City, and Florida markets.

"'Darkest Hour' is taking America by storm," said distribution chief Lisa Bunnell. "We're seeing audiences coming out in big numbers. It's a movie they found inspiring over the holiday break and the word of mouth gives us a strong outlook for the upcoming weeks."

Matt Damon's comedy-drama "Downsizing" finished ninth with a projected $6 million at 2,664 sites for the four days for Paramount. The 11-day total for "Downsizing," which carries a $65 million budget and was directed by Alexander Payne, should come in around $18.5 million.

Warner Bros.-Alcon Entertainment's second weekend of R-rated comedy "Father Figures" rounded out the top 10 with a projected $5.5 million at 2,902 locations. The 11-day total for the Owen Wilson-Ed Helms vehicle, which has a $25 million price tag, should hit about $14 million.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

2017 Manila Film Festival Winners

Winners of the 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival pose for media during the awards night at the Kia Theatre, Quezon City on Wednesday. “Ang Larawan” was named Best Picture, while acting trophies were given to Joanna Ampil (best actress, Derek Ramsay (best actor), Jasmin Curtis Smith (best supporting actress) and Edgar Allan Guzman (best supporting actor).

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Netflix vs. cinema: Will Smith, David Ayer weigh in

TOKYO, JAPAN – For director David Ayer, doing a movie with Netflix is just like working on a film with a traditional studio.

His latest movie, “Bright,” is Netflix’s biggest project to date and marks his reunion with Hollywood superstar Will Smith after “Suicide Squad.”

It premiered on the video streaming service last December 22.

“The basics of filmmaking never change. It’s about script, the actors, and the camera and you grow and learn from everyone,” Ayer said in a recent press conference for “Bright” at The Ritz-Carlton in Tokyo.

“I have to own everything that happened with ‘Suicide Squad,’ and it really taught me a lot of amazing lessons as a director. I learned about large-scale action, computer imagery, and makeup, and I was able to bring those lessons into ‘Bright,’” he added.

Perhaps the only major difference Ayer saw between a Netflix movie and a film that is meant for cinema is that the former gave him more freedom as a director.

Noting the flexibility and adaptability of Netflix as a platform for creative storytelling, the director said: “Making ‘Bright’ was wonderful for me because Netflix is very nourishing to filmmakers and they really let me have my voice.”


Smith shared the same sentiment, saying that he could not imagine a traditional studio spending more than a $100 million for a rated R movie.

“With Netflix, everything about the production was identical to a major big-budget Hollywood feature,” said Smith, who has starred in movies like “Men in Black,” “I Am Legend,” and “Independence Day.”

“But what happens with studios is if they’re going to spend more than a hundred million dollars on a movie, they will have certain creative demands because of the risk profile,” he continued.

“So what happens with the demand is it jams the creative process. In a way, you can’t make a movie like ‘Bright’ in a studio because of how much it costs. Just the very cost of it changes the entire creative process. [In the end] It has to be PG-13. They’re not going to make a hundred-plus-million rated R movie that’s not about an IP (intellectual property) that is historically proven.”

  
CHALLENGE 

But doing a big-budget Netflix movie like “Bright” was not without its challenges, according to Smith.

And the biggest challenge for them, he believes, is making sure the movie will have “the same kind of emotional penetrating power” to viewers as they watch it from their electronic devices at home instead of the cinema.

“So the question is, does the big cinematic experience of seeing it in the theater have any emotional reaction? Can you get that same emotional reaction if you’re watching it in your house? That’s what I’m not certain yet, that’s the big question,” he said.

“Does it penetrate the human mind and the human heart? Does it penetrate in the same way that it does in the cinematic experience, that you have to drive an hour to get to the cinema with hundreds of other people? Does it have that same kind of emotional penetrating power?” he added.

Actress Noomi Rapace, who plays the elf villain Leilah in “Bright,” also recognized people’s difficulty in focusing on a movie because of distractions like smartphones and tablet computers.

“I think one of the biggest problems today is that it’s really hard for people, including myself, to stay concentrated. And when you watch a film at home, you have your iPad, you have your computer, you have your iPhone, all your devices next to you. To actually switch them off and decide that you are watching a film as if you are watching it in the theater, that is a decision that you have to do,” she said.

“You want to check your e-mails and text, and you respond to them and you miss out on the film because you’re going between different things… So it’s something that you really need to decide on, that you’re watching the movie and putting everything else away. So I would love everyone to do that [with ‘Bright’],” she ended.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

'The Last Jedi' tops Christmas box office in North America

LOS ANGELES - The force was with Disney as the latest Star Wars movie "The Last Jedi" beat out the competition to top the Christmas weekend box office, according to industry estimates released Sunday.

The eighth installment of the blockbuster space saga topped the charts in North America for a second week, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations, pulling in $68.5 million to rack up total earnings of $365 million since it opened last weekend.

Its triumph echoed last year's Christmas number one, "Star Wars: Rogue One," which told the backstory to the original 1977 hit.

The movie has so far netted $745.4 million worldwide, according to industry analyst Paul Dergarabedian, although the record to beat remains 2009's "Avatar,"
which earned $2.7 billion.

"Star Wars: The Force Awakens," the 2015 predecessor to the "The Last Jedi," made just under $2 billion.

Christmas week is traditionally a time when studios flood the screens with new releases, and the Star Wars epic was trailed by three new films.

In second place was the Dwayne Johnson family adventure "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" which made $34 million for Sony.

"Pitch Perfect 3," which follows the continuing adventures of glee singers the Bellas, led by Anna Kendrick, was in third, earning $20.5 million for Universal.

That was followed by "The Greatest Showman," a musical in which Hugh Jackman plays the legendary circus impresario PT Barnum. That earned $8.6 million over the three-day weekend period.

Animated feature "Ferdinand," the story of a pacifist bull forced to face down the greatest bullfighter in the world, was fifth. It netted weekend receipts of $7 million in the United States and Canada in its second week.

Rounding out the top ten were:

"Coco" ($5.2 million)

"Downsizing" ($4.6 million)

"Darkest Hour" ($4.1 million)

"Father Figures" ($3.2 million)

"The Shape of Water" ($3.1 million)

jh/acb

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'Coco' wins box office as 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' waits in wings

LOS ANGELES -- With anticipation building for "Star Wars: The Last Jedi," Disney-Pixar's animated comedy "Coco" handily won its third straight crown at a moderate North American box office with $18.3 million at 3,748 sites.

"Coco" joined "The Hitman's Bodyguard," "Fate of the Furious" and "Split" as 2017 titles to top the domestic box office for three weekends in a row. The major studios have held off on any new openings since the Thanksgiving holiday but that changes on the evening of December 14 when previews start for Disney-Lucasfilm's "The Last Jedi" amid expectations of an opening weekend in the $200-million range.

"Coco," a colorful celebration of Mexico's Day of the Dead, showed impressive holding power with a 33% decline from its second weekend to lift its 19-day domestic total to $135.5 million. It's performed similarly to Disney's animated "Moana," which opened at the same time last year and had totaled $144.7 million after three weekends.

There was a single wide opening this weekend with Broad Green Pictures' final movie, "Just Getting Started," showing little traction with moviegoers with $3.2 million at 2,146 locations. "Just Getting Started," a poorly reviewed action comedy starring Morgan Freeman and Tommy Lee Jones, wound up in 10th place behind A24's sixth weekend of awards contender "Lady Bird" with $3.5 million at 1,557 venues.

The fourth weekend of Warner Bros.-DC Entertainment's superhero team-up "Justice League" finished with just over half of "Coco" with $9.6 million at 3,508 locations with a 42% decline. "Justice League" has taken in $212.1 million in 24 days and is the 10th biggest movie of 2017 -- but it's also the lowest performer among the five DC Extended Universe movies. "Wonder Woman" had hit $318 million domestically at the 24-day point in June.

"Justice League" has gone past $600 million worldwide with an international total of $401 million. Its performance pushed Warner Bros. past the $5-billion mark worldwide for 2017. The studio announced Sunday that it's become the first studio to cross the $2-billion mark for the year, led by "Wonder Woman" with $412 million and "It" with $327 million.

Lionsgate's third weekend of inspirational drama "Wonder" finished in third place with $8.5 million at 3,519 North American sites with a 35% decline. "Wonder" became the 27th movie of the year to cross the $100-million mark -- and one of the least costly among that group, given its $20 million budget. Production companies on the Jacob Tremblay vehicle are Mandeville Films, Participant Media, Walden Media and TIK Films.

A24's expansion of James Franco's comedy-drama "The Disaster Artist" came in fourth with a solid $6.4 million at 840 venues, up from 19 last weekend. That edged the sixth weekend of Disney-Marvel's "Thor: Ragnarok" with $6.3 million at 3,047 sites, which put its domestic total above $300 million. The third Thor movie was a key factor in November's box office staying ahead of the same month last year.

Paramount's fifth weekend of "Daddy's Home 2" finished sixth with $6 million at 3,263 locations, down only 21%, to lift its 31-day total to $91.2 million. The original "Daddy's Home" wound up its domestic run two years ago with $150.4 million.

Fox's fifth frame of "Murder on the Orient Express" followed with $5.1 million at 3,201 sites for a total of $92.7 million. The Kenneth Branagh vehicle, which has a $55-million budget, has been a solid performer internationally with $182 million in grosses outside the U.S.

Sony's fourth weekend of faith-based animated drama "The Star" came in eighth with $3.7 million at 2,976 venues, off only 10%. The film, co-financed by Walden Media and released through the Affirm label, has totaled $32.3 million in 24 days.

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'Wonder Woman,' 'The Post' among AFI's movies of the year

LOS ANGELES - Press freedom movie "The Post," gay romance "Call Me By Your Name," World War Two film "Dunkirk" and superhero movie "Wonder Woman" were among 10 films of the year chosen by the American Film Institute (AFI) on Thursday, in a list likely to be echoed at Hollywood's high-profile awards shows next year.

Racial psychological thriller "Get Out," coming-of-age drama "Lady Bird," fantasy romance "The Shape of Water," romantic comedy "The Big Sick," dark comedy "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" and social drama "The Florida Project" were also on the AFI's annual list.

The AFI's list is non-competitive with no overall winner. The movies are selected because they "advance the art of the moving image, enhance the rich cultural heritage of America's art form, inspire audiences and artists alike and make a mark on American society," the AFI said in a statement.

The list was announced as Hollywood's awards season moves into high gear with nominations next week for the Golden Globes and the Screen Actors Guild awards. Oscar nominations will be announced in January.

The AFI list covered a wide range of movies spanning personal, political, racial and women's issues. "Lady Bird" and "Wonder Woman" are both directed by women, while "The Big Sick," "The Shape of Water" and "Get Out" were written and directed by people of color.

The AFI also picked its top television shows of the year, with HBO's medieval fantasy "Game of Thrones," female-led drama "Big Little Lies," Netflix's 1980s science-fiction series "Stranger Things" and Hulu's dystopian thriller "The Handmaid's Tale" making the list.

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'Annabelle: Creation' leads N. American box offices

Los Angeles, United States - Horror, war or animal-centered comedy -- take your pick. This weekend, horror prevailed on North American movie screens, with "scary as hell" film "Annabelle: Creation" pulling in $35 million in its first week out, more than paying off the $15 million Warner Bros. spent on it, analysts said.

The estimated three-day opening take for "Annabelle," the fourth installment in the popular "Conjuring" franchise, was considered healthy for a supernatural horror flic. The film stars Stephanie Sigman, Talitha Bateman, Miranda Otto, Lulu Wilson and Anthony LaPaglia.

While this has been a weak summer overall for film, it was a good weekend for Warner Bros., which saw another of its productions, war movie "Dunkirk," hold steady at second in the box-office race, with ticket sales of $11.4 million, industry site Exhibitor Relations reported.

That movie, starring One Direction singer Harry Styles, depicts the heroic 1940 evacuation of hundreds of thousands of Allied troops from northern France. The film has a global take of $363.6 million so far, and has yet to be released in China, Japan or Italy, according to boxofficemojo.com.

In third spot is the Open Road film "Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature," at $8.9 million, less than half the opening weekend take of the first "Nut Job" movie. The animated adventure tells the story of a group of animals trying to save their home from the bulldozer.

Sony's "The Dark Tower" placed fourth, at $7.9 million, slipping from the No. 1 spot a week earlier. The sci-fi production, based on best-selling novels by horror/fantasy master Stephen King and starring Tom Taylor and Idris Elba, tells about a boy trying to save the world from enemies including bad guy Matthew McConaughey.

In fifth place, also from Sony, was "The Emoji Movie," with $6.6 million in ticket sales. The computer-animated comedy, based on the expressive little symbols on cell phones, has an all-star voicing cast including James Corden, Anna Faris, Maya Rudolph, Christina Aguilera and Sofia Vergara.

Rounding out the top 10 were:

"Girls Trip" ($6.5 million)

"Spider-Man: Homecoming" ($6.1 million)

"Kidnap" ($5.2 million)

"The Glass Castle" ($4.9 million)

"Atomic Blonde" ($4.6 million)

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Passionate speeches take spotlight at MTV Movie and TV Awards

LOS ANGELES -- Spirited speeches were front and center at the MTV Movie and TV awards on Sunday, where the night's top winners at the usually irreverent awards show took to the stage to champion diversity and inclusion.

A rare spell of wet weather in Los Angeles shut down the red carpet before the awards show, but inside, drinks were flowing as host Adam Devine literally set the stage on fire as he kicked off MTV's first awards celebrating both television and films.

Streaming platform Netflix enjoyed the night's biggest spotlight when its 1980s sci-fi series "Stranger Things" won the inaugural Show of the Year award.

"Thank you to Netflix, where would we be without Netflix? Like literally, when you're having a bad day, what do you do when you go home?," "Stranger Things" star Caleb McLaughlin said on stage, as the audience shouted back "Watch Netflix."

Disney's live-action fairytale "Beauty and the Beast" won Best Movie and director Bill Condon thanked the female audience, saying "women have proven that they are huge and powerful audience and it's going to change the movie business."

MTV did away with gender-specific acting categories this year for its fan-voted awards, where "Beauty and the Beast" star Emma Watson won best actor in a movie and "Stranger Things" newcomer Millie Bobby Brown, 13, won best actor in a show.

"Acting is about the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes and that doesn't need to be separated into two different categories," Watson said on stage.

MTV's annual fan-voted, youth-orientated awards show is known for its irreverent moments, explicit jokes and unconventional award categories, which Devine played up in off-kilter quips about his genitals and smoking marijuana.

But this year's show saw presenters and winners get passionate about issues on stage.

The Best Kiss award went to a tender moment between two teenage boys played by Ashton Sanders and Jharrel Jerome in the Oscar-winning film "Moonlight," and Sanders dedicated the win to "those who feel like the others, the misfits."

U.S. Representative Maxine Waters presented the award for Best Fight Against the System and said each of the nominees "pushes back against the bullies and uses their platform to inspire us all." The award went to "Hidden Figures," the story of three black female NASA mathematicians.

"Logan" stars Hugh Jackman and newcomer Dafne Keen won Best Duo, "Get Out" star Daniel Kaluuya won the Next Generation award, while NBC family drama "This is Us" won Best Tearjerker.

The MTV Generation Award went to the "Fast and Furious" action franchise and star Vin Diesel thanked "a generation that was willing to accept this multicultural franchise where it didn't matter what color your skin was or what country you're from - when you're family, you're family."

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'Furious 8' speeds into box office history

LOS ANGELES -- Universal's "The Fate of the Furious" fell just short of $100 million in domestic receipts for its debut weekend but smashed the global opening record, industry data showed on Monday.

The eighth installment of the high-octane action series starring Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriquez and Jason Statham took $98.8 million in North America, according to industry monitor Exhibitor relations.

It was a sharp drop from the $147.2-million debut by "Furious 7" in 2015 but strong performance overseas meant it was able to smash the "Jurassic World" record international opening of $316.7, with a massive $432.3 million from 63 international markets.

That included $190 million in China -- the biggest ever debut for any film in the world's second largest economy -- bringing its total global opening to $532 million and breaking the previous record of $529 million held by "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" (2015).

"It's a sign that a franchise built around muscle cars and odes to the importance of family is growing more global in scope," wrote Brett Lang, senior film and media editor for trade magazine Variety in an online commentary.

"If it wants to continue to expand its audience as it inevitably ticks through future sequels, it will need to keep building a fan base in places like China."

"The Fast and Furious" franchise, which added Charlize Theron for the latest installment, has now amassed $4.4 billion worldwide over its eight movies.

Elsewhere in the domestic top five, "The Boss Baby" beat Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" to the runner-up spot with $16 million, bringing its three-week total to $116.8 million. Alec Baldwin voices the chief baby in the DreamWorks production, distributed by Fox.

"Beauty" earned another $13.7 million to bring its five-week domestic take to $454.7 million but, as with "The Fate of the Furious," the Disney fairytale starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens is doing its biggest business abroad.

A $22-million take from foreign markets brought its global total of just over $1 billion, making it the 22nd largest worldwide release of all time.

Fourth place went to Sony's "Smurfs: The Lost Village" which added just $6.7 million to its disappointing $13.2 million opening weekend, described by the Hollywood Reporter as "one of the worst starts in recent memory for an animated offering from a major Hollywood studio."

"Going in Style," a Warner Bros. comedy starring Morgan Freeman, Alan Arkin and Michael Caine as an octogenarian bank robbers, placed fifth in its second weekend, taking in $6.3 million for a domestic total of $23.3 million, which almost covers its production budget.

Rounding out the top 10 are:

"Gifted" ($3.1 million)
"Get Out" ($3 million)
"Power Rangers" ($2.8 million)
"The Case for Christ" ($2.8 million)
"Kong: Skull Island" ($2.7 million)

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Oscars auditors apologize for best picture mix-up

HOLLYWOOD -- PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accounting firm responsible for tabulating Oscar ballots, apologized for an "error" in the announcement of the best picture award Sunday, admitting Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were handed the wrong envelope.

The embarrassing mix-up saw the Oscar incorrectly given to musical "La La Land" before the actual winner, coming-of-age drama "Moonlight," was finally handed the prize.

"We sincerely apologize to 'Moonlight,' 'La La Land,' Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, and Oscar viewers for the error that was made during the award announcement for Best Picture," the company said in a statement.

"The presenters had mistakenly been given the wrong category envelope and, when discovered, was immediately corrected," it added.

"We are currently investigating how this could have happened, and deeply regret that this occurred," it said, hailing the "grace" with which all concerned handled the situation.

The mistake made for a chaotic end to the film industry's biggest night, on which "La La Land" went home with six awards including best director, actress, score and song, to three for "Moonlight."

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'Moonlight' beats 'La La Land' amid "Steve Harvey" moment

LOS ANGELES - "Moonlight" won the Oscar for best picture on Sunday, beating favorite "La La Land" for the movie industry's most prestigious award.

But in a highly unusual mishap, presenter Warren Beatty first, mistakenly initially announced that musical "La La Land" had won, causing confusion and uproar on Hollywood's biggest night. Beatty said he had been given the wrong envelope to open.

Emma Stone won best actress for the musical, and "Manchester by the Sea" star Casey Affleck was named best actor on a night where U.S. President Donald Trump was the butt of numerous jokes, capping a Hollywood awards season marked by fiery protests at his policies.

"La La Land" director Damien Chazelle, 32, became the youngest person to ever win a best director Oscar.

Viola Davis and Mahershala Ali won their first Oscars for their supporting roles in African-American stories "Fences" and "Moonlight," in stark contrast to the 2016 Academy Awards when no actors of color were even nominated.

"Moonlight," the coming of age tale of a young black boy in Miami, also won the best adapted screenplay statuette, while grief-driven independent drama "Manchester by the Sea" took home original screenplay.

Romantic musical "La La Land," the tale of a struggling actress and a jazz pianist in Los Angeles, went into the Oscars with a leading 14 nominations and emerged with six, including for its score and theme song "City of Stars."

Trump's presence loomed large at the three and a half hour show as host Jimmy Kimmel fired off political zingers and even tweeted at the Republican president, getting no immediate response.

(Additional reporting by Piya Sinha-Roy, Nichola Groom and Lisa Richwine; Editing by Sandra Maler and Mary Milliken)

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Stars shimmer on Oscar red carpet as diamonds and gold have their day

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood's A-list stars flaunted gold and silver gowns on the Oscar red carpet on Sunday, doused with a generous helping of diamonds, feathers, sequins and symbolic blue ribbons on the world's most cinematic runway.

Emma Stone, nominated for best actress in "La La Land" sparkled in a 1920s inspired gold fringed Givenchy gown, as "Hidden Figures" supporting actress contender Octavia Spencer opted for a silvery Marchesa adorned with a flounce of feathers.

Resembling a real-life - though much more chic - Oscar award, actress Jessica Biel sported a shimmering gold-copper Kaufman Franco beaded gown accessorized with a bold African-inspired necklace from Tiffany's.

"I call it perfection!" piped in husband Justin Timberlake, wearing Tom Ford.

"Lion" supporting actor nominee Dev Patel and television host Ryan Seacrest shared fashion warnings about the dangers of wearing white tuxedos jackets on a red carpet filled with women in red lipstick as Dakota Johnson floated by in a flowing gold Gucci.

Diamonds adorned the throat of "Hidden Figures" star Taraji P. Henson, poured into a cleavage-bearing midnight blue Alberta Ferretti gown with a daring split at the leg.

Isabelle Huppert, nominated for best actress for "Elle" showed her typically refined style in a long-sleeved silver Armani Prive gown, while Ruth Negga, also nominated in the same category for "Loving," chose a lacy Valentino in the fashion house's signature vibrant red.

Negga and other attendees like model Karlie Kloss added a blue ribbon to their gowns and tuxedos to show support for the American Civil Liberties Union, an organization that worked to get President Donald Trump's travel ban blocked in courts.

Also sporting a blue ribbon was Lin Manuel Miranda, best known for Broadway's "Hamilton." He had his mother on his arm as his date and noted proudly that he bought his tuxedo in Yonkers, New York, at the same shop where he bought his high school prom tux years ago.

"Chanel Pharrell!" proclaimed singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams, decked out in a fitted Chanel tux accessorized with a dramatic black bead necklace that fell down over the lapel.

Two stuffed pandas, meanwhile were the arm candy of Jackie Chan, stand-ins for the real pandas the action star adopted at a breeding facility in Chengdu, China.

"I am the panda ambassador! They go wherever I go, they take photos with famous people, Stallone, Clinton...," Chan said.

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Star-studded lineup unveiled for 73rd Venice Film Festival

The Venice Film Festival revealed a star-filled line-up for its 73rd annual edition on Thursday, featuring top Hollywood names and auteur directors in a wide selection of US and international movies.

The world's oldest film festival will open with Damien Chazelle's "La La Land", starring Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling in a musical romantic comedy-drama about a jazz pianist who falls in love with an aspiring actress in Los Angeles.

In competition for the top prize are 20 films, including Ana Lily Amirpour's "The Bad Batch", a black comedy about cannibals in a Texas wasteland, and fashion designer Tom Ford's thriller "Nocturnal Animals", featuring Jake Gyllenhaal and Amy Adams.

Serbian director Emir Kusturica will be also be vying for the Golden Lion award with his "Na Mlijecnom Putu" (On the Milky Road), featuring himself and Monica Bellucci in a story that stretches through war, love and living as a reclusive monk.

Other films in the main line-up include German director Wim Wenders' "Les Beaux Jours d'Aranjuez", Canadian filmmaker Denis Villeneuve's "Arrival", Dutch director Martin Koolhoven's "Brimstone" and Russia's Andrei Konchalovsky with "Rai" (Paradise).

Pablo Larrain's biopic "Jackie" starring Natalie Portman as first lady Jacqueline Kennedy in the aftermath of her husband's assassination was added to the competition at the last minute.

The festival's artistic direct Alberto Barbera said that this year's films spoke about universal themes but took a more subtle and less graphic approach to depict day-to-day life, violence and poverty than in previous editions.

"The great themes, philosophical and existential questions...this time are approached with film-makers taking a distance from the brutality of reality," he told a press conference announcing the line-up.

"So there are no more scenes of everyday life or footage of today's wars, but the great themes are still there. It is not an escape from the contemporary world, it is used as a way to reflect on today's world in a different way."

The first two episodes of Paolo Sorrentino's hotly anticipated mini TV series "The Young Pope", featuring Jude Law as a cigarette-smoking American pontiff Pius XIII, will screen in an out-of-competition section.

Mel Gibson's "Hacksaw Ridge", based on the true story of a World War II army medic who refused to bear arms, but later received the Medal of Honor for saving many of his comrades, will also screen out of competition, alongside Philippe Falardeau's boxer movie "The Bleeder" with Naomi Watts.

The festival will close with Antoine Fuqua's "The Magnificent Seven", showing Denzel Washington in a modern remake of the classic about hired guns in the Old West protecting a town from thieves.

British director Sam Mendes, known for James Bond movies "Skyfall" and "Spectre" heads this year's jury. The festival runs from Aug. 31 to Sept. 10.

(Writing by Agnieszka Flak Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)

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