Mel Gibson reportedly scouting locations in Malta for his ‘Passion of the Christ’ follow-up, ‘The Resurrection’
Mel Gibson is apparently scouting locations for The Resurrection, the follow-up to his 2004 blockbuster The Passion of the Christ.
This piece of news came from the Italian-language publication ItalPress, which reported the actor, producer and director has met with Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela and checked out locations on the island he governs, Malta.
The publication says Gibson is heading up an 11-member team in conjunction with the Malta Film Commission for the sequel, which will reportedly have Jim Caviezel reprising his role as Jesus Christ. According to ItalPress, also are on the docket for Gibson and company are locations in Morocco, Italy and Israel.
Co-written and produced by Gibson, The Passion of the Christ was for a time the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time — that is, before Ryan Reynolds put on his Deadpool suit back in 2016, a fact Reynolds in character specifically mentions in 2018’s Deadpool 2.
Gibson’s film earned more than $612 million against a budget of around $30 million.
Hulu has dropped the trailer for season 2 of the romantic drama Tell Me Lies. The new season picks up with Lucy Albright and Stephen DeMarco — played respectively by Grace Van Patten and Jackson White — returning to college and picking up their addictive dynamic, despite not speaking after breaking up at the start of the summer. Meanwhile, their friends must deal with the fallout from their breakup and the unexpected impact it has on their lives. Cat Missal, Spencer House, Sonia Mena, Branden Cook, Alicia Crowder and Tom Ellis return for season 2, along with newcomer Thomas Doherty, who plays Lucy’s new love interest. Tell Me Lies returns with two episodes Sept. 4 on Hulu …
Netflix has announced Oct. 31 as the premiere date for season 2 of The Diplomat. After Kate — played by Keri Russell — learned that Britain’s prime minister was responsible for the attack on one of its warships, she’ll have to prove it in season 2, series creator Debora Cahn tells Netflix’s Tudum. She’ll also have to contend with the bomb that exploded in the season 1 finale, in which Kate’s colleagues and her estranged husband, portrayed by Rufus Sewell, “are victims of a politically motivated attack in London that takes some lives and shatters the rest. The marriage she thought was over, the relationship she thought was beginning … all of it, in pieces.” Allison Janney will join the cast for season 2, playing Vice President Grace Penn …
The Apple TV+ comedy thriller Wolfs, starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt, is already getting a sequel ahead of its premiere at the 81st Venice Film Festival, kicking off Aug. 28, with Wolfs helmer Jon Watts to write and direct the follow-up. Wolfs features Clooney as “a professional fixer hired to cover up a high-profile crime,” per the streaming service. “But when a second fixer — played by Pitt — shows up and the two ‘lone wolves’ are forced to work together, they find their night spiraling out of control in ways that neither one of them expected.” Amy Ryan, Richard Kind, Austin Abrams and Poorna Jagannathan also star. Wolfs opens in limited release Sept. 20 and streams on Apple TV+ Sep. 27 …
Sony Pictures Classics just announced that Whiplash, the drama that netted J.K. Simmons a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for playing possibly the world’s most insane music teacher, is headed back to theaters.
The re-release is to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the film from director Damien Chazelle, who followed up the breakout movie starring Miles Teller with the Oscar-winning La La Land.
In the movie, Teller plays Andrew Neiman, a drummer who ends up under the abusive tutelage of Simmons’ Terrence Fletcher, an instructor at an elite musical conservatory.
The film also won Academy Awards for Best Film Editing and Best Sound Mixing.
Whiplash will also have a 4K HD Digital release on Sept. 20, following a special anniversary screening at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 9.
Netflix has dropped a teaser trailer for Woman of the Hour, starring Pitch Perfect‘s Anna Kendrick in her directorial debut. The “stranger-than-fiction story,” based on real events, follows “an aspiring actress in 1970s Los Angeles and a serial killer in the midst of a yearslong murder spree whose lives intersect when they’re cast on an episode of The Dating Game,” according to a synopsis in the teaser’s description. Woman of the Hour, starring Kendrick and Daniel Zovatto, premieres Oct. 18 on Netflix …
The trailer for season 3 of the Netflix drama Heartstopper, released on Sept. 17, features Charlie and Nick — played respectively by Joe Locke and Kit Connor — looking to take their relationship to the next level. As their relationship blossoms and “they learn more about each other and their relationships, plan social events and parties and start thinking about university choices, everyone must learn to lean on those they love when life doesn’t go to plan,” according to the official synopsis. Heartstopper season 3 launches Oct. 3 on Netflix …
Apple TV+ has canceled its TV adaptation of Terry Gilliam‘s 1981 cult classic Time Bandits after just one season, according to Variety. The fantasy series, created by Jemaine Clement, Iain Morris and Taika Waititi, follows “a ragtag group of thieves” — led by Friends alum Lisa Kudrow — “and their newest recruit: an 11-year-old history buff named Kevin. Together they set out on a thrilling quest to save the boy’s parents — and the world,” per the streaming service …