Armie Hammer reportedly returning to movies with independent Western
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Armie Hammer, whose Hollywood career derailed in 2021 after a series of sexual assault allegations — which he denied, and for which authorities declined to charge him for lack of evidence — is reportedly getting back to acting.
Deadline is reporting that Hammer will star in Frontier Crucible, a Western from the producers of the hailed Western movie Bone Tomahawk and the gritty Mel Gibson/Vince Vaughn crime drama Dragged Across Concrete.
The trade says Hammer will star opposite The Predator and The Punisher lead Thomas Jane, and the movie will get underway in November in Monument Valley and Prescott, Arizona.
Hammer was dropped by his representation after the sexual assault allegations broke and was forced to drop out of various projects, including the 2023 action comedy Shotgun Wedding opposite Jennifer Lopez.
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Jeff Goldblum, who famously played mathematician and chaos theorist Dr. Ian Malcolm in several Jurassic Park movies, will be passing the torch to Bridgerton’sJonathan Bailey, who will play paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis in the franchise’s upcoming seventh film, Jurassic World: Rebirth — and Goldblum couldn’t be happier.
Goldblum tells Variety, “The hope of the world resides, and I can think of no better baton receiver to carry on the ‘da da da da da,’” referencing John Williams‘ classic Jurassic Park theme. “It’s Jonathan Bailey! It’s like no other!”
“I had the invitation to join the ‘Jurassic’ world, to join the conga line led by Jeff,” adds Bailey, sharing that he and Goldblum discussed the role on the way to CinemaCon earlier this year. “The original film was a seminal cinematic moment, purely because of Jeff, but also, I went with my family, and the multi-sensory experience of going to see a film so perfectly realized.”
“There’s so much that I am so proud to join. But obviously … there is a sense of responsibility,” says Bailey. “And if I can match half of what Jeff and Sam Neill and Laura Dern achieved, I’ll be very lucky.”
Jurassic World: Rebirth takes place five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, per Universal Pictures. “The planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived.”
However, “The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.”
Bailey stars opposite Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, Homeland alum Rupert Friend and The Lincoln Lawyer‘s Manuel Garcia-Rulfo.
Essence Atkins stars on the new sitcom Poppa’s House with Damon Wayans Sr. and his namesake son, Damon Wayans Jr. As one would imagine, her experience working with the comedians on set has been nothing short of laughter.
“It’s fun. We laugh all day. We try to make each other laugh all day. We are constantly kind of mining for what is funny and trying things. And sometimes they work and sometimes we know they don’t,” she tells ABC Audio. “We make fun of ourselves, but it’s such a playful atmosphere.”
This energy permeates across the screen to viewers, as she says the show is for “people who want to laugh” and “people who feel like the world is worlding and … need to laugh.“
“You can look forward to laughter — real laughter, like, out loud, not where you’re just like, ‘Oh that’s funny,’ but like, you actually are laughing,” Essence says of Poppa’s House. “And I think you can look forward to stories that you will find a point of view that you connect with.”
She adds the show is also for “people who grew up with the classic sitcoms and loved them because we definitely have a throwback kind of feel.”
“I think if you loved My Wife and Kids, or if you loved Half & Half or if you loved Girlfriends or if you loved The Wayans Bros. or if you loved, you know, even Friends … or Living Single. I think that the elements are there,” Essence says. “But in addition to that, you have something that’s unique to the show, which is that you have a real-life father and son playing father and son.”
Poppa’s House airs Mondays on CBS at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT.
Legendary actor James Earl Jones, best known for his innumerable movie roles and the booming voice of the character of Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise, has died, his representative confirmed to ABC News.
He was 93 years old.
Jones died on Monday morning at his home in Dutchess County, New York, surrounded by his family, according to longtime agent Barry McPherson.
The thespian, whose powerful, deep voice brought to life the iconic villain, acted for more than six decades. In the 1950s and ’60s, Jones was a Broadway staple. From On Golden Pond to The Best Man, his work earned four Tony nominations, winning for The Great White Hope in 1969 and Fences in 1987.
Almost simultaneously, he was garnering acclaim on TV, as well. The eventual two-time Emmy Award winner earned his first nod in the 1960s for his work on East Side/West Side.
He picked up both his Primetime Emmy wins in 1991, for best supporting actor in the miniseries Heat Wave and best actor for the series Gabriel’s Fire. He also won a Daytime Emmy for the children’s special Summer’s End in 2000.
Jones later earned his first Oscar nod, adapting The Great White Hope to the silver screen in 1970, playing boxer Jack Jefferson. Jones was just the second Black actor after Sidney Poitier — who was nominated in 1958 and 1963 — to be recognized by the academy with a nomination.
For the better part of the 1970s, Jones continued to juggle his work on stage, TV and film. Then, in 1977, he was cast as the voice of a new villain, Darth Vader, in the space saga Star Wars: A New Hope.
While bodybuilder David Prowse would be the figure behind the black mask of the Sith lord, Jones was the voice that uttered so many iconic lines in the film and its sequels — including “I find your lack of faith disturbing,” and then, of course, to Luke Skywalker in 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back, his big reveal, “No, I am your father.”
From 1977 to 1983, the three original Star Wars films would become some of the most revered and original movies of their time, not just for special effects, but also for the shocking plot and themes.
After Star Wars, Jones made memorable appearances in Eddie Murphy‘s 1988 film Coming to America, then starred opposite Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams in 1989. A few years later, he once again lent his voice to a famous character, starring in the Disney animated feature The Lion King as Mufasa.
Jones had almost 200 credits to his name, according to IMDB, as he stayed active for more than 60 years.
In 2011, Jones was given an honorary Academy Award for the breadth of his acclaimed work and in March 2022, it was announced that Broadway’s Cort Theatre would be renamed the James Earl Jones Theatre.
Jones married twice. His second wife, Cecilia Hart, died in 2016 after 34 years of marriage. The couple is survived by their son, Flynn Earl Jones.
