Now, via Deadline, there is news that Cooper may also re-write and direct the new movie, in addition to his acting duties.
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The news comes on the heels of ‘Twisters’ director Lee Isaac Chung stepped away from the movie, citing creative differences with the studio and star/producer Robbie.
Yet Deadline also cautions that Cooper has signed no deals yet, so all this is still up in the air.
The cast of 2001’s ‘Ocean’s Eleven’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
The script remains a secret, though previous stories hinted that it’ll be set in 1962, and focus on a pair of thieves who target expensive earrings during a mansion event followed by a plot to steal precious diamond in Monte Carlo.
Seeking payback after something goes wrong, they recruit a team to sabotage his Monaco Grand Prix victory and swipe the gem. And, if the connection to the ‘Ocean’s franchise holds true, they might just be the parents of Danny Ocean, as played by George Clooney in the main movies.
Carrie Solomon wrote the most recent draft of the screenplay, but Cooper, assuming he does actually end up working on the movie, may start afresh.
When will the ‘Ocean’s’ prequel movie be on screens?
We’ve yet to learn when the film will land in cinemas, and Deadline’s story mentions an attempt to have it shooting before the end of this year, so 2027 is still possible.
Margot Robbie at the Los Angeles World Premiere of ‘Wuthering Heights’. Photo Credit: David Jon Photography.
(L to R) John Corbett and Nia Vardalos in ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding’. Photo: IFC Films.
A young Greek woman (Nia Vardalos) falls in love with a non-Greek (John Corbett) and struggles to get her family to accept him while she comes to terms with her heritage and cultural identity.
Poppy’s (Emily Bader) a free spirit. Alex (Tom Blyth) loves a plan. After years of summer vacations, these polar-opposite pals wonder if they could be a perfect romantic match.
Reunited after 15 years famous chef Sasha (Ali Wong) and hometown musician Marcus (Randall Park) feel the old sparks of attraction but struggle to adapt to each others worlds.
Heiress Joanna Stayton (Goldie Hawn) hires carpenter Dean Proffitt (Kurt Russell) to build a closet on her yacht—and refuses to pay him for the project when it’s done. But after Joanna accidentally falls overboard and loses her memory, Dean sees an opportunity to get even.
Everyone deserves a great love story, but for 17-year-old Simon Spier (Nick Robinson), it’s a little more complicated. He hasn’t told his family or friends that he’s gay, and he doesn’t know the identity of the anonymous classmate that he’s fallen for online. Resolving both issues proves hilarious, terrifying and life-changing.
(L to R) Meg Ryan, Ross Malinger and Tom Hanks in ‘Sleepless in Seattle’. Photo: TriStar Pictures.
When Sam Baldwins (Tom Hanks) wife dies he is left to bring up his eight-year-old son Jonah (Ross Malinger) alone and decides to move to Seattle to make a new start. On Christmas Eve Jonah rings a radio phone-in with his Christmas wish to find a new wife for his dad. Meanwhile in Baltimore journalist Annie Reed (Meg Ryan), who is having doubts about her own relationship is listening in.
Expecting the usual tedium that accompanies a summer in the Catskills with her family, 17-year-old Frances ‘Baby’ Houseman (Jennifer Grey) is surprised to find herself stepping into the shoes of a professional hoofer—and unexpectedly falling in love.
William Thacker (Hugh Grant) is a London bookstore owner whose humdrum existence is thrown into romantic turmoil when famous American actress Anna Scott (Julia Roberts) appears in his shop A chance encounter over spilled orange juice leads to a kiss that blossoms into a full-blown affair. As the average bloke and glamorous movie star draw closer and closer together they struggle to reconcile their radically different lifestyles in the name of love.
In the edgy comedy Anyone But You, Bea (Sydney Sweeney) and Ben (Glen Powell) look like the perfect couple, but after an amazing first date something happens that turns their fiery hot attraction ice cold – until they find themselves unexpectedly thrust together at a destination wedding in Australia. So they do what any two mature adults would do: pretend to be a couple.
More than a dozen Angelenos navigate Valentine’s Day from early morning until midnight. Three couples awake together but each relationship will sputter. A grade-school boy wants flowers for his first true love. Two high school seniors plan first-time sex at noon. A TV sports reporter gets the assignment to find romance in LA. A star quarterback contemplates his future. Two strangers meet on a plane. Grandparents together for years face a crisis. And an “I Hate Valentines Day” dinner beckons the lonely and the lied to.
Dakota Johnson in ‘Materialists’. Credit: Atsushi Nishijima.
A young, ambitious New York City matchmaker (Dakota Johnson) finds herself torn between the perfect match (Pedro Pascal) and her imperfect ex (Chris Evans).
In an afterlife where souls have one week to decide where to spend eternity, Joan (Elizabeth Olsen) is faced with the impossible choice between the man she spent her life with (Miles Teller) and her first love (Callum Turner), who died young and has waited decades for her to arrive.
In 1980s Italy, a relationship begins between seventeen-year-old teenage Elio (Timothee Chalamet) and the older adult man (Armie Hammer) hired as his father’s (Michael Stuhlbarg) research assistant.
In the not so distant future, Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix), a lonely writer, purchases a newly developed operating system designed to meet the user’s every need. To Theodore’s surprise, a romantic relationship develops between him and his operating system (Scarlett Johansson). This unconventional love story blends science fiction and romance in a sweet tale that explores the nature of love and the ways that technology isolates and connects us all.
In Shotgun Wedding, Darcy (Jennifer Lopez) and Tom (Josh Duhamel) gather their lovable but very opinionated families for the ultimate destination wedding, just as the couple begin to get cold feet. And if that wasn’t enough of a threat to the celebration, suddenly everyone’s lives are in danger when the entire party is taken hostage. “’Til Death Do Us Part” takes on a whole new meaning in this hilarious, adrenaline-fueled adventure as Darcy and Tom must save their loved ones—if they don’t kill each other first.
When their beloved dog Merv loses his spark after their split, Anna (Zooey Deschanel) and Russ (Charlie Cox) are forced into the world’s most awkward co-parenting arrangement. Hoping to shake Merv out of his funk, Russ takes him to Florida for a much-needed getaway-only for Anna to show up unexpectedly. As Merv slowly gets his groove back, turns out fixing their dog’s broken heart may lead to a few sparks of their own.
After Ashley (Adria Arjona) asks for a divorce, good-natured Carey (Kyle Marvin) runs to his friends, Julie (Dakota Johnson) and Paul (Michael Angelo Covino), for support. He’s shocked to discover that the secret to their happiness is an open marriage, that is until Carey crosses the line and throws all of their relationships into chaos.
When carefree Nyles (Andy Samberg) and reluctant maid of honor Sarah (Cristin Milioti) have a chance encounter at a Palm Springs wedding, things get complicated when they find themselves unable to escape the venue, themselves, or each other.
The origin story of former Special Forces operative turned mercenary Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds), who, after being subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopts the alter ego Deadpool. Armed with his new abilities and a dark, twisted sense of humor, Deadpool hunts down the man who nearly destroyed his life.
The night after another unsatisfactory New Year’s party, Tim’s father (Bill Nighy) tells his son ( Domhnall Gleeson) that the men in his family have always had the ability to travel through time. They can’t change history, but they can change what happens and has happened in their own lives. Thus begins the start of a lesson in learning to appreciate life itself as it is, as it comes, and most importantly, the people living alongside us.
(L to R) Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling in ‘La La Land’. Photo: Lionsgate.
Mike (Tatum), an experienced stripper, takes a younger performer called The Kid (Alex Pettyfer) under his wing and schools him in the arts of partying, picking up women, and making easy money. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the film also stars Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer, Riley Keough, Olivia Munn, and Matthew McConaughey.
Cal Weaver (Steve Carell) is living the American dream. He has a good job, a beautiful house, great children and a beautiful wife, named Emily (Julianne Moore). Cal’s seemingly perfect life unravels, however, when he learns that Emily has been unfaithful and wants a divorce. Over 40 and suddenly single, Cal is adrift in the fickle world of dating. Enter, Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling), a self-styled player who takes Cal under his wing and teaches him how to be a hit with the ladies.
Two modern-day cowboys (Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal) meet on a shepherding job in the summer of ’63, the two share a raw and powerful summer together that turns into a lifelong relationship.
Harvard Law student Oliver Barrett IV (Ryan O’Neal) and music student Jennifer Cavilleri (Ali MacGraw) share a chemistry they cannot deny – and a love they cannot ignore. Despite their opposite backgrounds, the young couple put their hearts on the line for each other. When they marry, Oliver’s wealthy father (Ray Milland) threatens to disown him. Jenny tries to reconcile the Barrett men, but to no avail.
During their travel from Chicago to New York, Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan) debate whether or not sex ruins a friendship between a man and a woman. Eleven years later, and they’re still no closer to finding the answer.
(L to R) Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in ‘A Star Is Born.’ Photo: Warner Bros.
Seasoned musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) discovers — and falls in love with — struggling artist Ally (Lady Gaga). She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer — until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally’s career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.
In this enchantingly cracked fairy tale, the beautiful Princess Buttercup (Robin Wright) and the dashing Westley (Cary Elwes) must overcome staggering odds to find happiness amid six-fingered swordsmen (Christopher Guest), murderous princes (Chris Sarandon), Sicilians and rodents of unusual size. But even death can’t stop these true lovebirds from triumphing.
101-year-old Rose DeWitt Bukater (Gloria Stuart) tells the story of her life aboard the Titanic, 84 years later. A young Rose (Kate Winslet) boards the ship with her mother and fiancé. Meanwhile, Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Fabrizio De Rossi (Danny Nucci) win third-class tickets aboard the ship. Rose tells the whole story from Titanic’s departure through to its death—on its first and last voyage—on April 15, 1912.
When a millionaire wheeler-dealer (Richard Gere) enters a business contract with a Hollywood hooker Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts), he loses his heart in the bargain.
(L to R) Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in ‘The Notebook.’ Photo: New Line Cinema.
An epic love story centered around an older man (James Garner) who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer’s (Gena Rowlands). From a faded notebook, the old man’s words bring to life the story about a couple (Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams) who is separated by World War II, and is then passionately reunited, seven years later, after they have taken different paths.
(L to R) Laura Dern and Will Arnett star in ‘Is This Thing On?’
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Will Arnett and Laura Dern about their work on ‘Is This Thing On?’, how Arnett got the idea for the film and developing the screenplay with Bradley Cooper and Mark Chappell, Dern’s first reaction to the screenplay and her experience working with Arnett.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.
MF: To begin with, Will, can you talk about how you got the idea for this movie and the process of developing the screenplay with Bradley Cooper and Mark Chappell?
Will Arnett: I became aware of John Bishop‘s story, the great comedian, John Bishop. I had a chance to meet him, and he told me the story of how he became a stand-up and what it did for him and at that point of his life. He was going through a divorce, and he had no connection to stand-up and how going up and speaking in front of audiences transformed him as a person and really helped reshape his relationship with his soon to be ex-wife. That really stuck with me. So, I was like, “Oh, this is a great story that needs to be told”, and I talked about with Mark Chappel, my writing partner, and we started writing it. Then we got to a place where we were kind of at a fork in the road. Bradley stepped in and said, “I think the movie should go here.” So, he started writing it with us, and then he said, “I think that Laura would maybe do this”, and she jumped in and starred in it for me. So, it was almost like those videos of people building a barn and everybody comes and helps. It was kind of like that. It was like one guy said, “I think we need a barn,” and somebody’s like, “Yeah, I’m going to help you.” Then this person, and another person comes in and says, “The roof needs to be a little bit better.” That’s how we did it.
MF: Finally, Laura, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay, the relationship between these two characters and exploring that relationship with Will on screen?
Laura Dern: Well, when I read it, it reminded me of building a barn. You know, I had never seen an attempt at capturing what it feels like to fight for a relationship, dismantle a relationship, long for a relationship, without the writer manipulating language as if we people know what the hell we’re feeling or how to talk about it. No matter how much therapy anyone has ever had, it’s not a language many of us know when we are in the middle of it. They captured it so beautifully. They allowed us as characters simultaneously with the audience to not know how we got here, not know what happened before, not know who we are in context anymore to the marriage and must find our way toward ourselves to figure out if there is a marriage to save. That felt so real, unfortunately, so incredibly relatable and profound. As an actor, there is a beauty to lyrical, incredible language. You get to do a Shakespeare play for the first time when you’re studying, and you feel lucky and blessed. The good fortune of dialogue written where you feel a character not knowing how to find words for themselves, is so deep and beautiful, and takes such skill in the writing. To then do that and be with Will in that and his incredibly deeply honest, broken open eyes, I mean, that was just the best gift ever.
‘Is This Thing On?’ opens in theaters on December 19th.
What is the plot of ‘Is This Thing On?’?
After many years together, Alex (Will Arnett) and Tess (Laura Dern) have reached an amicable end to their marriage, thus beginning the awkward stage of figuring out how to live separately while raising two boys and maintaining their friendships. Alex discovers a new hobby and, in the process, learns more about himself and his relationship.
Seth Rogen in ‘The Studio,’ premiering March 26, 2025 on Apple TV+.
Hollywood loves telling stories about itself!
Premiering on Apple TV+ March 26th is the new series ‘The Studio‘, which stars Seth Rogen as newly appointed studio head trying to navigate his way through Hollywood.
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And returning to Max for its fourth season on April 10th is the award winning series ‘Hacks‘, which stars Jean Smart as legendary stand-up comedian, Deborah Vance.
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In honor of the release of both series, Moviefone is counting down the 20 best movies about the entertainment industry.
NOTE: For this list, we are including any film that revolves around the movie, television, radio, or music industries.
The cast of 2015’s ‘Entourage’ movie. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Movie star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier), together with his boys, Eric (Kevin Connolly), Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) and Johnny (Kevin Dillon), are back…and back in business with super agent-turned-studio head Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven). Some of their ambitions have changed, but the bond between them remains strong as they navigate the capricious and often cutthroat world of Hollywood.
(L to R) Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo in ‘The Artist’. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.
Hollywood, 1927: As silent movie star George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) wonders if the arrival of talking pictures will cause him to fade into oblivion, he sparks with Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo), a young dancer set for a big break.
Margot Robbie plays Nellie LaRoy in ‘Babylon’ from Paramount Pictures.
A tale of outsized ambition and outrageous excess, it traces the rise and fall of multiple characters during an era of unbridled decadence and depravity in early Hollywood.
Jonno Davies as “Robbie Williams” in ‘Better Man’ from Paramount Pictures.
Follow Robbie Williams‘ journey from childhood, to being the youngest member of chart-topping boyband Take That, through to his unparalleled achievements as a record-breaking solo artist – all the while confronting the challenges that stratospheric fame and success can bring.
Anthony Hopkins in ‘Hitchcock’. Photo: Fox Searchlight Pictures.
Following his great success with ‘North by Northwest,’ director Alfred Hitchcock (Anthony Hopkins) makes a daring choice for his next project: an adaptation of Robert Bloch‘s novel ‘Psycho.’ When the studio refuses to back the picture, Hitchcock decides to pay for it himself in exchange for a percentage of the profits. His wife, Alma Reville (Helen Mirren), has serious reservations about the film but supports him nonetheless. Still, the production strains the couple’s marriage.
The cast of 2006’s ‘For Your Consideration’. Photo: Warner Independent Pictures.
The possibility of Oscar gold holds the cast and crew of an independent film in its grip after the performance of its virtually unknown, veteran star generates awards buzz.
Johnny Depp in ‘Ed Wood’. Photo: Buena Vista Pictures Distribution.
The mostly true story of the legendary “worst director of all time”, who, with the help of his strange friends, filmed countless B-movies without ever becoming famous or successful.
James Franco in ‘The Disaster Artist’. Photo: A24.
An aspiring actor (Dave Franco) in Hollywood meets an enigmatic stranger by the name of Tommy Wiseau (James Franco), the meeting leads the actor down a path nobody could have predicted; creating the worst movie ever made.
(L to R) Gilda Radner (Ella Hunt), Jane Curtain (Kim Matula), Dick Ebersol (Cooper Hoffman), Rosie Shuster (Rachel Sennott), Garrett Morris (Lamorne Morris), Alan Zweibel (Josh Brener) and Lorne Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle) in ‘Saturday Night’. Photo: Sony Pictures.
At 11:30pm on October 11, 1975, a ferocious troupe of young comedians and writers changed television forever. This is the story of what happened behind the scenes in the 90 minutes leading up to the first broadcast of ‘Saturday Night Live‘.
Peter O’Toole in ‘My Favorite Year’. Photo: MGM/UA Distribution Co.
Fledgling comic Benjy Stone (Mark Linn-Baker) can’t believe his luck when his childhood hero, the swashbuckling matinee idol Alan Swann (Peter O’Toole), gets booked to appear on the variety show he writes for. But when Swann arrives, he fails to live up to his silver screen image. Instead, he’s a drunken womanizer who suffers from stage fright. Benjy is assigned to look after him before the show, and it’s all he can do to keep his former idol from going completely off the rails.
(L to R) John Travolta and Gene Hackman in ‘Get Shorty’. Photo: MGM/UA Distribution Co.
Chili Palmer (John Travolta) is a Miami mobster who gets sent by his boss, the psychopathic “Bones” Barboni (Dennis Farina), to collect a bad debt from Harry Zimm (Gene Hackman), a Hollywood producer who specializes in cheesy horror films. When Chili meets Harry’s leading lady (Rene Russo), the romantic sparks fly. After pitching his own life story as a movie idea, Chili learns that being a mobster and being a Hollywood producer really aren’t all that different.
(L to R) Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling in ‘La La Land’. Photo: Lionsgate.
Mia (Emma Stone), an aspiring actress, serves lattes to movie stars in between auditions and Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), a jazz musician, scrapes by playing cocktail party gigs in dingy bars, but as success mounts they are faced with decisions that begin to fray the fragile fabric of their love affair, and the dreams they worked so hard to maintain in each other threaten to rip them apart.
(L to R) Steve Martin and Heather Graham in ‘Bowfinger’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
On the verge of bankruptcy and desperate for his big break, aspiring filmmaker Bobby Bowfinger (Steve Martin) concocts a crazy plan to make his ultimate dream movie. Rallying a ragtag team that includes a starry-eyed ingenue, a has-been diva and a film studio gofer, he sets out to shoot a blockbuster featuring the biggest star in Hollywood, Kit Ramsey (Eddie Murphy) — only without letting Ramsey know he’s in the picture.
Howard Stern in ‘Private Parts’. Photo: Paramount Pictures.
The life and career of shock-jock superstar Howard Stern is recounted from his humble beginnings to his view from the top. Possessing a desire to be an on-air personality since childhood, Stern meanders through the radio world, always with his supportive wife, Alison (Mary McCormack), by his side. Landing a gig in Washington, D.C., Stern meets Robin Quivers, who will become his long-time partner in crime. When the two move to New York, they face the wrath of NBC executives.
The cast of ‘Boogie Nights’. Photo: New Line Cinema.
Set in 1977, back when sex was safe, pleasure was a business and business was booming, idealistic porn producer Jack Horner (Burt Reynolds) aspires to elevate his craft to an art form. Horner discovers Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg), a hot young talent working as a busboy in a nightclub, and welcomes him into the extended family of movie-makers, misfits and hangers-on that are always around. Adams’ rise from nobody to a celebrity adult entertainer is meteoric, and soon the whole world seems to know his porn alter ego, “Dirk Diggler”. Now, when disco and drugs are in vogue, fashion is in flux and the party never seems to stop, Adams’ dreams of turning sex into stardom are about to collide with cold, hard reality.
(L to R) Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in ‘A Star Is Born.’ Photo: Warner Bros.
Seasoned musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) discovers — and falls in love with — struggling artist Ally (Lady Gaga). She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer — until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally’s career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.
(L to R) Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt star in ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.’
Los Angeles, 1969. TV star Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), a struggling actor specializing in westerns, and stuntman Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), his best friend, try to survive in a constantly changing movie industry. Dalton is the neighbor of the young and promising actress and model Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie), who has just married the prestigious Polish director Roman Polanski (Rafał Zawierucha).
Though she’s one of the most recognizable people in the music world and has certainly made an impact on film (particularly in ‘A Star is Born’), having Lady Gaga in a project is not always a guarantee of success, as the team behind ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ might be able to tell you (in between the wailing, gnashing of teeth and rending of garments over the movie’s lackluster box office).
Still, given that her song “Bloody Mary” was used by TikTokers recreating the dance scene from ‘Wednesday’s first season, it somehow makes sense that she’ll be making a cameo appearance in the second.
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According to Variety, while the producers had hoped she might take on a bigger role, she’s only going to be a small part of the show. Still, a cameo is better than nothing if you want people talking about your show.
Not that ‘Wednesday’ necessarily needs the help: the series, starring Jenna Ortega, ranks as the most-watched English language show that Netflix has ever released and was nominated for 12 Emmys, winning four.
Season 1 had to be delayed due to the double punch of the writers’ and actors’ strikes last year, and Ortega’s filming schedule on ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.’
(L to R) Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams, Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams, Luis Guzmán as Gomez Addams, and Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley Addams in Netflix’s ‘Wednesday.’
The first season told the tale of Wednesday’s enrollment at the Nevermore Academy, where she discovers she has inherited her mother’s psychic abilities, allowing her to solve a local murder mystery.
Season 2 will pick up the threads of that, while plunging her into a new mystery, likely with fresh creatures to deal with. The expanded roles for her family members means we can expect more of the Addams clan this time around.
When will ‘Wednesday’ Season 2 land on Netflix?
The streaming service has yet to confirm a formal date, but the show should return next year.
Adam Driver and Lady Gaga in ‘House of Gucci’. Photo: Universal Pictures.
Bradley Cooper attends Netflix’s ‘Maestro’ LA special screening at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on December 12, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Netflix.
Bradley Cooper has not only emerged as one of the finest actors of his generation, but he is also one of the most accomplished filmmakers working today.
But it was his incredible work in front of and behind the camera on ‘A Star is Born‘ that solidified Cooper as one of the top directors working today.
His new directing effort, ‘Maestro,’ where he plays Leonard Bernstein, opened in theaters on November 22nd and will be available to stream on Netflix beginning December 20th.
In honor of ‘Maestro,’ Moviefone is counting down the 30 best movies of Bradley Cooper’s career, including his latest.
Bradley Cooper as Rory Jansen in ‘The Words.’ Photo: CBS Films.
The Words follows young writer Rory Jansen (Cooper) who finally achieves long sought after literary success after publishing the next great American novel. There’s only one catch – he didn’t write it. As the past comes back to haunt him and his literary star continues to rise, Jansen is forced to confront the steep price that must be paid for stealing another man’s work, and for placing ambition and success above life’s most fundamental three words.
After his retirement is interrupted by Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale), a galactic killer who seeks the extinction of the gods, Thor Odinson (Chris Hemsworth) enlists the help of King Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), Korg (Taika Waititi), and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who now wields Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor. Together they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.
More than a dozen Angelenos navigate Valentine’s Day from early morning until midnight. Three couples awake together, but each relationship will sputter. A grade-school boy wants flowers for his first true love. Two high school seniors plan first-time sex at noon. A TV sports reporter gets the assignment to find romance in LA. A star quarterback contemplates his future. Two strangers meet on a plane. Grandparents, together for years, face a crisis. An ‘I Hate Valentine’s Day’ dinner beckons the lonely and the lied to.
Earl Stone (Clint Eastwood), a man in his eighties, is broke, alone, and facing foreclosure of his business when he is offered a job that simply requires him to drive. Easy enough, but, unbeknownst to Earl, he’s just signed on as a drug courier for a Mexican cartel. He does so well that his cargo increases exponentially, and Earl hit the radar of hard-charging DEA agent Colin Bates (Cooper).
Remember that really cute girl/guy who said they’d call – and didn’t? Maybe they lost your number. Maybe they’re in the hospital. Maybe they’re awed by your looks, brains or success. Or maybe… They’re just not that into you.
Bradley Cooper as Adam Jone in ‘Burnt.’ Photo: The Weinstein Company.
Adam Jones (Cooper) is a Chef who destroyed his career with drugs and diva behavior. He cleans up and returns to London, determined to redeem himself by spearheading a top restaurant that can gain three Michelin stars.
Based on the true story of two young men, David Packouz (Miles Teller) and Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill), who won a $300 million contract from the Pentagon to arm America’s allies in Afghanistan.
When former getaway driver Charlie Bronson (Dax Shepard) jeopardises his Witness Protection Plan identity in order to help his girlfriend (Kristen Bell) get to Los Angeles, the feds and Charlie’s former gang chase them on the road.
As the Avengers and their allies have continued to protect the world from threats too large for any one hero to handle, a new danger has emerged from the cosmic shadows: Thanos (Josh Brolin). A despot of intergalactic infamy, his goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones, artifacts of unimaginable power, and use them to inflict his twisted will on all of reality. Everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment – the fate of Earth and existence itself has never been more uncertain.
The setting is Camp Firewood, the year 1981. It’s the last day before everyone goes back to the real world, but there’s still a summer’s worth of unfinished business to resolve. At the center of the action is camp director Beth (Janeane Garofalo), who struggles to keep order while she falls in love with the local astrophysics professor. He is busy trying to save the camp from a deadly piece of NASA’s Skylab which is hurtling toward earth. All that, plus: a dangerous waterfall rescue, love triangles, misfits, cool kids, and talking vegetable cans. The questions will all be resolved, of course, at the big talent show at the end of the day.
After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War, the universe is in ruins due to the efforts of the Mad Titan, Thanos (Josh Brolin). With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers must assemble once more in order to undo Thanos’ actions and restore order to the universe once and for all, no matter what consequences may be in store.
Bradley Cooper as Templeton “Face” Peck in ‘The A-Team.’ Photo: 20th Century Fox.
A group of Iraq War veterans goes on the run from U.S. military forces while they try to clear their names after being framed for a crime they didn’t commit. Along the way, Col. Hannibal Smith (Liam Neeson), Capt. H.M. ‘Howling Mad’ Murdock (Sharlto Copley), Sgt. Bosco ‘B.A.’ Baracus (Quinton Jackson), and Lt. Templeton ‘Faceman’ Peck (Cooper) help out various people they encounter.
A charming thief (Chris Pine) and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people. ‘Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves’ brings the rich world and playful spirit of the legendary roleplaying game to the big screen in a hilarious and action-packed adventure.
John (Owen Wilson) and his buddy, Jeremy (Vince Vaughn) are emotional criminals who know how to use a woman’s hopes and dreams for their own carnal gain. Their modus operandi: crashing weddings. Normally, they meet guests who want to toast the romantic day with a random hook-up. But when John meets Claire, he discovers what true love – and heartache – feels like.
Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), still reeling from the loss of Gamora (Zoe Saldana), must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.
A paranoia-fueled action thriller about an unsuccessful writer (Cooper) whose life is transformed by a top-secret “smart drug” that allows him to use 100% of his brain and become a perfect version of himself. His enhanced abilities soon attract shadowy forces that threaten his new life in this darkly comic and provocative film.
Bradley Cooper as Chris Kyle in ‘American Sniper.’ Photo: Warner Bros.
U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle (Cooper) takes his sole mission—protect his comrades—to heart and becomes one of the most lethal snipers in American history. His pinpoint accuracy not only saves countless lives but also makes him a prime target of insurgents. Despite grave danger and his struggle to be a good husband and father to his family back in the States, Kyle serves four tours of duty in Iraq. However, when he finally returns home, he finds that he cannot leave the war behind.
(L to R) Zach Galifianakis as Alan, Bradley Cooper as Phil, and Ed Helms as Stu in ‘The Hangover.’ Photo: Warner Bros.
When three friends (Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifanakis) finally come to after a raucous night of bachelor-party revelry, they find a baby in the closet and a tiger in the bathroom. But they can’t seem to locate their best friend, Doug (Justin Bartha) – who’s supposed to be tying the knot. Launching a frantic search for Doug, the trio perseveres through a nasty hangover to try to make it to the church on time.
Bradley Cooper as Avery in ‘The Place Beyond the Pines.’ Photo: Focus Features.
A motorcycle stunt rider (Ryan Gosling) considers committing a crime in order to provide for his wife (Eva Mendes) and child, an act that puts him on a collision course with a cop-turned-politician (Cooper).
(L to R) Bradley Cooper, Cooper Hoffman and Alana Haim in ‘Licorice Pizza.’ Photo: United Artists Releasing.
The story of Gary Valentine (Cooper Hoffman) and Alana Kane (Alana Haim) growing up, running around and going through the treacherous navigation of first love in the San Fernando Valley, 1973.
Bradley Cooper as Stanton “Stan” Carlisle in ‘Nightmare Alley.’ Photo: Searchlight Pictures.
An ambitious carnival man (Cooper) with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychologist (Cate Blanchett) who is even more dangerous than he is.
2014’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy.’ Photo: Marvel Studios.
Light years from Earth, 26 years after being abducted, Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) finds himself the prime target of a manhunt after discovering an orb wanted by Ronan the Accuser (Lee Pace).
(L to R) Christian Bale, Amy Adams, and Bradley Cooper in ‘American Hustle.’ Photo: Sony Pictures.
A conman (Christian Bale) and his seductive partner (Amy Adams) are forced to work for a wild FBI agent (Cooper), who pushes them into a world of Jersey power-brokers and the Mafia.
This fearless love story chronicles the complicated lifelong relationship between music legend Leonard Bernstein (Cooper) and Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan).
(L to R) Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in ‘A Star Is Born.’ Photo: Warner Bros.
Seasoned musician Jackson Maine (Cooper) discovers — and falls in love with — struggling artist Ally (Lady Gaga). She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer — until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally’s career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.
Although Bernstein was known for operas, symphonies, film scores (‘On the Waterfront’) and several iconic musicals (‘West Side Story’), as well as being a teacher and ceaseless advocate for music education, Cooper’s film – just his second as a director after 2018’s acclaimed ‘A Star is Born’ – focuses primarily on the relationship between Bernstein and Felicia. The couple had three children and shared a lifelong love for each other, despite Bernstein’s many dalliances with men and his abuse of drugs and alcohol.
‘Maestro’ probes into the peaks and valleys of their longstanding romance, while also providing an overview of Bernstein’s colorful life and career, and the sheer joy and passion he had for making music.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of attending both a live and virtual press conference for ‘Maestro.’ Taking part in the first were Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan, while Mulligan returned for the second with Jamie Bernstein, daughter of Leonard Bernstein.
Here are 10 things we learned from the ‘Maestro’ press conferences, edited for clarity and length.
Bradley Cooper did not actually know a whole lot about Leonard Bernstein when he first came aboard the project. He was more interested in the art of conducting music.
Bradley Cooper: I did not know about Leonard Bernstein. I had an absolute obsession with fake conducting [laugh] when I was a kid. But I was obsessed with it. Like oddly obsessed with it. I spent hundreds of hours conducting. So I always felt this calling, quite honestly. Then when there was a project about a conductor…I asked Steven Spielberg, who was in control of the property at the time, if I could maybe take that on. That’s how it began. Then I started to research trying to figure out what was the script that I could write, what’s the story that I felt that I could tell. It was these two wonderful characters, Felicia and Lenny, and their relationship.
Even though Bradley Cooper was directing the movie and in almost every scene, Carey Mulligan says that there was one thing about him which she never noticed.
Carey Mulligan: I couldn’t tell you a day I saw him be tired. He must have been, because he was getting to work at two in the morning to be there to do the prosthetics and fully become Lenny five hours before anyone else got there. But I didn’t see tired, ever. Sarah Silverman was talking about this — the joy in the way that Bradley made the film. Every day. Just so delighted to be doing it, and to be making it, and to be able to tell this story. That was so infectious. So that part of it, it was only ever energizing to be around him.
One of the most distinctive characteristics of Leonard Bernstein — well-documented in interviews and recordings — was his voice. Cooper started working on it six years ago.
Bradley Cooper: Six years ago it was terrifying, and just became a little bit easier. There’d be like five steps back at certain points when I was, “I’m never going to get the voice.” I mean I don’t know what I sounded like, but it certainly didn’t sound like a human. But I just worked so hard for years. I mean, I really had the benefit of years. Six years of prep. I started working on Lenny’s voice before ‘A Star is Born’ even came out. Then Tim Monich, this incredible dialect coach that I started working with on ‘American Sniper‘ — and then we did ‘A Star is Born’ and ‘Nightmare Alley,’ and we have a wonderful way of working together — he moved basically into my house in New York. We worked five days a week for four and a half years until it was an organic thing where I could just inhabit the voice.
4) Bradley Cooper Cast Personal Friends in the Film
For a number of supporting roles in the film, Bradley Cooper cast people — mostly longtime friends — from his own private life.
Bradley Cooper:Aaron Copeland is [played by] my best friend since I’m 10 years old, Brian Klugman. They were best friends, Leonard and Aaron, and I thought, well, we don’t have to act. I just try to do anything I can not to act. The doctor in the film is actually my doctor. That’s Bernard Kruger, who was my doctor for years. Four and a half years ago, I was like, “Bernard, there’s going to be a scene. Will you play a doctor?” Actually, the first day of shooting, the first scene that we shot was the scene where older Lenny teaches William conducting. It was such a terrifying day just because it was the first time I was really being Lenny in front of a crew and having to direct. So I asked one of my best friends, Gabe Fazio, who I went to grad school with, to play Lenny’s assistant who arrives with him in the Jaguar. Just knowing Gabe was there, I thought I was going to be okay.
Bradley Cooper revealed that the scene recreating Leonard Bernstein’s legendary 1973 conducting of the London Symphony Orchestra at Ely Cathedral — in which Bernstein seems almost transcendently possessed by the music as he conducts Mahler’s 2nd Symphony — was the scene he was most afraid of.
Bradley Cooper: If I mess that up, the whole movie doesn’t work…That’s me conducting the London Symphony Orchestra, and that’s six minutes and 21 or 23 seconds of music that luckily, I had Gustavo Dudamel and Yannick Nézet-Séguin (music directors of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Philadelphia Orchestra, respectively) who were kind enough for years to teach it to me. I had the video of him conducting that orchestra in the ’70s in that space. But even with all that, conducting is impossible. So the first day I messed up, I kept getting behind tempo. I was forgetting where the time change happened. It was that moment where you’re like, “I can’t believe actually I’m messing it up in front of one of the top three orchestras in the world.” I went to bed, texted Steve Morrow, the sound mixer. “Do we have it?” He wrote back like, “I think we have it.” I knew we didn’t…I asked everybody back in, I actually said a prayer in front of everybody to Lenny, thanking him, and we did it one more time. That’s what’s in the movie. I did conduct them and it was crazy.
It can be a nerve-wracking experience for actors to meet the real person they’re portraying, or in the case of Carey Mulligan, the children of the woman she plays in ‘Maestro,’ Felicia Montealegre Bernstein. But Mulligan’s experience with the Bernstein kids was incredibly helpful to her.
Carey Mulligan: I think it just helped, honestly, having the family. Once I’d met them and they were so sweet, and once we did our first couple of Zooms where they were just full of the most amazing anecdotes and stories about Felicia, I suddenly just felt like all I had from them was blessing and encouragement, so I didn’t feel like they were waiting for me to not get her right. I just felt like they were like, “Here’s more about her. Here’s why we loved her. Here’s more things that you should know about her,” and all of that stuff was just like gold.
Jamie Bernstein: One of the elements that we anticipated would make it difficult to portray our mother is that she had this weird combination of confidence and fragility, and that was what Carey was so good at conveying, this very tricky combination. It’s like a tightrope walk, really. Somehow both of those elements were very palpable in her performance.
Jamie Bernstein says that her dad was a multifaceted, complicated man, and that Bradley Cooper nailed the performance because he operates on much of the same wavelength.
Jamie Bernstein: Bradley’s portrayal is incredibly multifaceted, which made it very authentic to the way my father actually was. He himself was incredibly multifaceted, and it was a complicated business to have him for a father. He was, in many ways, a fantastic dad, and he loved having us around. I never felt, and neither did my brother and sister, unwelcome in his presence. He loved having us around. He took us with him on the road and loved taking trips with us and hanging out in the swimming pool with us and playing tennis and word games, so there was this conviviality that was really there. But he was also a larger-than-life public figure with an ego to go along with that, and he was very competitive, so that made things complicated as well. It turns out that Bradley actually is quite a lot like our dad, principally in his open-heartedness and his emotionality. We didn’t see that in the beginning. We didn’t grasp it until the whole process was underway. Then the more time went by, the more we realized that everything he did came from this essential emotional core. That was so like our own dad, because that was the way he worked with everyone, all his colleagues, and his process with orchestras and collaborators always came from this incredibly open-hearted emotional place.
8) Carey Mulligan Shared Similar Feelings About Acting with Felicia
Before she married Leonard Bernstein, Felicia Montealegre was a screen star with her own career — although she was ambivalent about the craft of acting herself. Carey Mulligan says she and Felicia were alike in that way.
Carey Mulligan: She talks about how she went to the Actor’s Studio as a young actress, and she was sort of forced to go, because she didn’t want to go, and she found the whole thing really embarrassing. It was all actors pretending to be animals or fried eggs and writhing around on the floor and crying a lot. She said it just seemed sort of psychotic, and she was sort of really dismissive of it. I remember thinking that sounds exactly like the way I felt as an untrained actor. I didn’t go to drama school. My first job was when I was 18, and then I went into theater and I felt like these people are all crazy and I have no idea what they’re doing. For years and years, I would keep work at somewhat of a distance, like, “Well, I’m not going to stay in the accent all time, and I’m not going to do this. I’m not going to do that,” all the things that make you a proper actor, like, “That’s not for me,” and for some reason was just always really afraid of it — until this job. I really felt like ‘Maestro’ was the first job where I felt like I gave my craft everything, and it was the most amazing experience because of it, but it was terrifying to do it.
9) The Movie Became About Both Leonard and Felicia
As he and screenwriter Josh Singer dove into their research for the film, Bradley Cooper realized that it wasn’t just about Leonard Bernstein, but about Felicia Montealegre as well.
Bradley Cooper: I would come away from a day of research just sort of filled with their energy. I mean, they really were very powerful people. They were always spoken about as “Lenny and Felicia.” They never said “Lenny and his wife.” It was always clear that both had made an impact on people. That’s what seemed very fascinating: this unorthodox, mysterious, also very open, wistful, haunting, funny relationship that I thought, wow, if we can really explore this truthfully, it’s, number one, cinematic because it will be [set] to his music…and then if we could really be truthful to them, we have a shot at making something [where you say], “I wouldn’t think I would have anything in common with Leonard, this iconic, sort of mythological figure.” But hopefully with this movie, you do.
10) The Journey From ‘A Star is Born’ to ‘Maestro.’
(L to R) Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in 2018’s ‘A Star Is Born.’
Bradley Cooper’s only other directorial effort before ‘Maestro’ was ‘A Star is Born,’ and he says that he took lessons from that film — and other movies on which he was solely an actor — and applied them to ‘Maestro.’
Bradley Cooper: I learned so much in making that film, and then also shooting ‘Nightmare Alley’ after that with Guillermo Del Toro and then ‘Licorice Pizza‘ with Paul Thomas Anderson. He was kind enough to let me be a part of his prep. I spent three weeks with him just looking at lenses and watching camera tests and just soaking up everything I could…each project I’ve ever been involved with, I’ve just soaked up everything I can and I think hopefully I just keep evolving as a filmmaker. With ‘A Star is Born,’ more than anything, I found something that felt like this is exactly what I’m supposed to do. My major takeaway from ‘A Star is Born’ was, “Oh, wow, I finally have found my center as an artist.”
‘Maestro’ will be in theaters in limited release on November 22nd before it premieres on Netflix December 20th.
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What is the plot of ‘Maestro’?
This fearless love story chronicles the complicated lifelong relationship between music legend Leonard Bernstein (Bradley Cooper) and Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan).
Opening in theaters and available to rent or buy starting September 29th is the new sports comedy ‘Warrior Strong,’ which was directed by Shane Belcourt (‘Red Rover’).
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What is the plot of ‘Warrior Strong’?
When Bilal Irving (Jordan Johnson-Hinds) left his small hometown bound for a basketball career worthy of his athletic gifts, he was sure he would never return. When he’s suspended from the Chinese pro basketball league, he finds himself desperate for an opportunity to repair his image, and what could change a ‘coach-killer’ narrative better than returning home to coach his old high school team? The only problem: his old coach, Avery Schmidt (Andrew Dice Clay), still holds the reins to the team with an iron fist. It’s only after a near-fatal heart attack that Coach Schmidt is forced to accept a co-coach he stubbornly doesn’t think he needs.
What everyone can agree on is that this ragtag team of high school basketball players desperately needs help from someone. They barely get along, let alone know how to play together, and that’s not the only hurdle the team has to overcome. Bilal and Coach Schmidt have some very different opinions on how the team should be run, not to mention a deep emotional rift about their past which has never been resolved. Forced to work together, Bilal and Schmidt have to learn from each other and realize that they both have to grow before they can teach the kids the life lessons they will need to become champions.
( L to R) Jordan Johnson-Hinds and director Shane Belcourt on the set of ‘Warrior Strong.’ Photo courtesy of Knorth Photography.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Shane Belcourt about his work on ‘Warrior Strong,’ his first reaction to the screenplay, other sports movies that influenced him, casting Andrew Dice Clay and his impressive performance, why Jordan Johnson-Hinds was the right actor to play Bilal, if he is based on any real NBA players, Coach Schmidt and Bilal’s relationship, working with the cast of kids, shooting the basketball sequences, and the themes of the film that he wanted to explore.
(L to R) Jordan Johnson-Hinds, director Shane Belcourt, and Andrew Dice Clay on the set of ‘Warrior Strong.’ Photo courtesy of Shane Belcourt.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.
Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay and were there any other sports movies that influenced you while making this film?
Shane Belcourt: I first got the script for ‘Warrior Strong,’ from the original writer Dan Gordon, who’s written ‘The Hurricane,’ and a whole bunch of other things. He is a legit writer, so the script was great. It was exciting. The weird thing about this sports movie is it had this dual protagonist co-coaching conflict, which was in some other films. But what was challenging with this one was how to focus it on each one having the right amount of balance. So Dan and I worked on getting that balance as well as the kids to really feel the team. Then from there, because it’s these two coaches, like this dual protagonist going at it, oddly, I was watching ‘48 Hrs.’ with Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy and ‘Lethal Weapon’ with Danny Glover and Mel Gibson. These movies with two people forced together, where they’ve got to battle it out, and there’s usually a seniority conflict with the youth. That was something that I was looking to the most. Of course, with the basketball stuff, everybody in my generation, we started with ‘Hoosiers’ and then ‘He Hot Game’ by Spike Lee, then into things like even recently ‘The Way Back,’ which was a phenomenal basketball film. So every basketball movie was a part of the crib sheet for how to do this.
(L to R) Jordan Johnson-Hinds and Andrew Dice Clay in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: I grew up in the late 80’s and 90’s, so Andrew Dice Clay was a huge part of my childhood. Did you have a similar experience and what was it like working with “The Diceman”?
SB: It’s interesting because I was thinking about how I was able to work with Dice. We got along so well in prep, working on the project and the character because everybody in our generation knows who Andrew Dice Clay is, for sure. He’s this rock and roll comedian who’s sold out Madison Square Garden, and been in ‘Ford Fairlane.’ I recognize that he’s a huge star. But for me, I was always into the depressed comics like Steven Wright and Jerry Seinfeld, of course, and that entire group. So I was interested in comedy, for sure, but Andrew Dice clay wasn’t somebody who I had a poster of up on my wall. Like if I was working with Robin Williams from the comedian world, I would’ve been out of my mind, and I couldn’t focus. But with Andrew Dice Clay, I recognized the fame, the talent, how hard he worked, but he wasn’t necessarily somebody who I had the album of. So I was kind of relieved of what you were describing as like this childhood connection to him. It was more like, “Oh, hey, great. This is amazing. You’re so accomplished.” He was just so interested in being vulnerable in a new way as a character. I think he touched on some of that in ‘Blue Jasmine’ and definitely, in ‘A Star is Born,’ sort of in his esteemed age and working with that a bit more, allowing it to come across on camera. This character of Coach Avery Schmidt allowed Dice to click into some of where he is in this transition period from sort of a younger guy rocking it out to being an older guy who’s still doing a lot. How do you sort of transition with grace and then also mentor the new generation? So for him, that was a connection to the script and the character, and it was lots of fun to work on it that way. I’m actually kind of thrilled that it wasn’t like Eddie Murphy or somebody that I would’ve been crazy with and I couldn’t focus, but I could focus with Dice and he was amazing to work with.
(L to R) Jordan Johnson-Hinds and Andrew Dice Clay in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: Obviously Andrew Dice Clay is a legendary stand-up comic, and was great in movies like ‘Blue Jasmine’ and ‘A Star is Born,’ as you just mentioned, but he gives an incredibly deep and emotional performance in ‘Warrior Strong.’ Did you have any idea that he was that good of an actor?
SB: Honestly, he was so good in ‘A Star Is Born,’ I actually didn’t know it was Andrew Dice Clay until the credits came up. Because I was like, “Oh, I love the dad character,” as I’m watching it. “This dad character is amazing. He’s just so dialed in. He is the dad.” Then afterwards, I was like, “Wait, that was Andrew Dice Clay?” Then immediately went through the IMDB and I started reading more about him. He actually was an aspiring actor and did a lot of acting at a younger age and then transitioned into this comedy, which even he describes as an act, as opposed to himself as a person, like it’s a combo there. So I think that, obviously, he has such amazing (acting) chops. I’m going to be honest with you, you hope that the actor is going to show up and really just bring it. You hope that they’re going to just be so in the character, in their blood and in their being that the camera’s just capturing them. So, I think about the shot of him just sitting on the bench and he’s not saying anything and to me, it’s just one of those moments when he looks so forlorn and alone. He just did that. There was not a lot of director-actor combo. He’s just he’s in his own world and says, “Get rolling, let’s go, let’s go,” and you start rolling and there it is. So every day I was looking at this, going, “This is great. He is this character.” Just like I’m sure they felt on other movies that had him like ‘Blue Jasmine’ or ‘A Star is Born.’
MF: Why was Jordan Johnson-Hinds the right actor to play Bilal?
SB: Jordan Johnson-Hinds is incredible as Bilal. There’s a couple of things. Well, behind the scenes, his character is in every scene. So as an actor who’s in every scene, every single day, you know, directors, we’re very busy with all kinds of things around the camera. But those other actors in every scene, especially the young cast, they’re sort of surrounded. They’re with Jordan Johnson-Hinds, their Bilal, their coach character, along with Andrew Dice Clay, but most of it was with Jordan. In that sense he had to be not only an amazing performer as Bilal, but he really was holding the young actors in the room, in the scenes, giving, supporting and really being a mentor. He became like a coach on set to these young actors and he was great. When I first met with Jordan, he’s from Canada, and he played Toronto basketball so we immediately went down a Toronto Raptors fan base thing. Then we got into talking about all these basketball movies, Spike Lee and ‘He Got Game,’ how much we love and adore his films, what he means to cinema and what he meant to both of us in terms of we’re about the same age group and inspiring us to think about how we could tell stories in a different way from different communities. Also, he’s just a cinema master, so we definitely kind of geeked out on that. But then we started talking about the character and he just got it. We had a whole bunch of meetings where we went through the script line by line. We really worked on it together in prep. So when he showed up on day one, it was just like a home run. He is so good and so dedicated to performing and being that lead performer in the film that I just feel so lucky that this is the first movie that he was a lead in. It was very lucky for me.
Jordan Johnson-Hinds in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: In the movie, Bilal is depicted as a temperamental ex-NBA star with a public image problem, and his last name is Irving. Was the character loosely based on the Dallas Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving?
SB: You know, it actually began with Stephon Marbury in his career, which was up and down. Obviously, he had this one focused time when he was just lightening it up in the NBA and then other things came to bear on that. Then he went to China and he became a star in China. So Stephon Marbury was really sort of the comparison. But the original character name that Dan had written was Bilal Irving and I had kept Irving. Of course, as we’re going through this, these other things are happening with Kyrie. But, it was more Stephon Marbury for me when we were going through it. For Jordan, he’s drawing on a lot of his own research and a whole bunch of players, and Kyrie would be one of them as well.
(L to R) Jordan Johnson-Hinds and Andrew Dice Clay in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: How would you describe Coach Schmidt and Bilal’s history together and their working relationship now?
SB: One of the things in the film that we really wanted to get on was this idea of the times of life when you have to transition. A lot of it is a transitioning in life as you age from a me-centric place to a we-service place. In that kind of natural aging, we have these two characters. A player who’s at a midlife point where you’re not really the player you once were anymore, your body is not able to do the things that you once were able to do. Then, We have a coach who’s sort there to mentor, but maybe not day-to-day coach because of his senior age and health issues that are coming naturally as we age. So we had these two characters at a point where neither one of them wanted to accept the transition point of their lives, you know? The older player still wants to be “The Guy.” Then for the older coach, Andrew Dice Clay’s character, “How do I also transition my legacy to somebody else and let them take over the position of coach,” the esteemed place where he finds so much meaning for himself? So that dynamic was there in this sort of, I’m expressing it in a thoughtful way, but really it was mostly about the young hotshot versus the old coach. Who could be more perfect than Andrew Dice Clay going at it with Jordan Johnson-Hinds, as they kind of just clash. It was a joy to see them really go at it and then off camera, as soon as the take was done, to hug, laugh and be high-fiving each other. It was a lot of fun in that sense and that was the way the characters were designed.
(L to R) Macaulee Cassaday and Jordan Johnson-Hinds in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: Can you talk about casting the kids on the team and working with them on set?
SB: Casting all the young performers in this film, it’s always daunting because you write it down and you need the Shlomo character to sort of have a certain look. We’re thinking like a young Jonah Hill and we want somebody who can be really confident and funny in real life, but then when they’re in front of the camera, they can just nail it and Aidan Kalechstein was just phenomenal with that. Writing the character of Bettina, a they/them character that’s also good at sports, that was like, how are we going to find that? It’s such an important part because it really transitions over the whole film. So who could act that as well as be from that community? When we found Macaulee Cassaday, it was like, “Are you kidding me?” We saw Macaulee’s tape and it was like, right away, “Book Macaulee now! That is phenomenal.” So we really got lucky. A few of the parts, we had to sort of see more tapes and eventually they came forward. On set, I can say it was amazing. We had a basketball camp before we started filming and they all became best friends. They view it as their greatest summer camp ever so they all really did bond. It was really fun to be there and witness. Every day that you show up on set and young people are that enthusiastic just to be there, it’s hard not to just feel like this is the best job ever.
(Right) Jordan Johnson-Hinds in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: Did you have to cast actors that had basketball experience, or was it more about fitting the characters with the right actors and then teaching them to play?
SB: I definitely got lied to because they put in their resumes, “Special Skills: Basketball.” I’d talk to their agent, and I’m like, “No, this is a basketball movie. They got to be able to play basketball.” Most of them goofed around with basketball so that’s why we had the camp. Then we actually had a basketball trainer, a semi-professional player, Aaron Brown. So he was able to get onto sessions and Zoom sessions with them for months before filming to sort of watch them dribble, to talk about basketball, and send them links. So credit to the actors, they really got to camp, they got together and they got their skills together to be camera basketball-ready. We played a little bit of a pickup game to get loose. All the opposing players are real local basketball players, college or high school, and they were not sweating, they’re having a good time and our actors are like just totally gassed. So we definitely had to find a balance between movie magic and the real basketball.
(Center) Jordan Johnson-Hinds and Andrew Dice Clay in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: As a director, can you talk about the challenges of shooting the basketball sequences?
SB: They really were. We also had the time when it’s COVID, so all the extras, the testing, the masking, all those things were quite a challenge. But I had done, earlier in my career, I had done a documentary on dance, which is bizarre. But when I had done it, I had a chance to work with Santee Smith, a Mohawk dancer up here in Canada. So she had this performance where we brought the cameras on stage and we could reimagine all the dance moves, not for the back of the theater, but for the camera. So what I was able to sort of do with this basketball one is remind everybody we can’t just play basketball elbows out, someone’s going to get a tooth knocked out. We have to choreograph all the plays and the real basketball players have to learn to stay consistent so they don’t hurt anybody. Then our young performers who were not really basketball players had to know how to look like basketball players when they were doing their moves. So it was really just like I was doing a dance movie for those things. It wasn’t so much the basketball that was hard. It was sort of making sure everybody was repeatable and safe. That was the real challenge of that one.
(L to R) Andrew Dice Clay and Jordan Johnson-Hinds in ‘Warrior Strong.’
MF: Finally, besides the basketball story, the film has a lot of heart and touches on many important issues. As a director, can you talk about some of the themes that you wanted to explore with this movie?
SB: You know, I played high school basketball and I was just re-looking at my high school basketball team recently, a photo of us in the yearbook, and everybody is from somewhere. One person’s from Somalia, another person is from Vietnam, another person is from Laos, another person’s Jamaican, and then we had an Italian. Everybody was from all over all coming together playing this game that we love. In that, the game unifies the goal, the focus, but we really had to find our way to exist with each other. Really that was the draw I was thinking about when we were making this film, casting the film and bringing all these different kinds of characters together. Therefore, now the film can have a little bit about each of these storylines, each of these places because that was my experience on a team. How do we get to know each other to really be there for each other?
(L to R) Jordan Johnson-Hinds and Andrew Dice Clay in ‘Warrior Strong.’
(Left) Bradley Cooper at the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ World Premiere. (Right) Will Arnett in ‘Muppets Haunted Mansion.’ Photo: Disney/Mitch Haaseth.
They have been friends for years, but Bradley Cooper and Will Arnett haven’t collaborated on screen much besides both being in the casts for ‘The Comebacks’ and ‘The Rocker’. But all that is set to change now they’re teaming up for a new movie called‘Is This Thing On?’
What’s the story of Cooper and Arnett’s new movie?
Bradley Cooper at the premiere of ‘American Sniper.’
That’s the big mystery right now. In keeping with so many movies at an early stage of development, the plot details have yet to be released.
But can we postulate that the title refers to stand-up comedians? It certainly sounds like something someone on stage would say to a bad audience.
Arnett wrote the script with Mark Chappell, with whom he collaborated on Netflix comedy drama ‘Flaked’. He’ll star in the movie alongside Cooper, and the latter will direct.
According to Deadline, Arnett and Chappell completed a draft before the start of the WGA strike, but it still needs more work, but that will have to wait until the strike is over.
Bradley Cooper’s advancing career
(L to R) Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in 2018’s ‘A Star Is Born.’
But in more recent years has also become a respected director and producer, scooping up Oscar nominations for the likes of ‘A Star is Born’ and ‘Joker’.
Right now, he’s in post-production on ‘Maestro’, focused on composer Leonard Bernstein, in which he plays the music legend as well as directing, producing and co-writing. Netflix is hoping that this could be one of its big awards players this year.
Arnett’s credentials
(L to R) Michael Cera as Robin and Will Arnett as Batman in ‘The Lego Batman Movie.’
Arnett, meanwhile, is probably still best known for TV’s ‘Arrested Development’, where he played the smug Gob. He’s also the lead voice in ‘BoJack Horseman’.
Movie-wise, he’s the voice of Batman in the ‘Lego Movies’ (including leading ‘The Lego Batman Movie’) and has been seen in such movies as the live-action/CG ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ outings, ‘Blades of Glory’ and ‘Hot Rod’. He’s also one of the hosts of the ‘SmartLess’ Podcast, which has just released a documentary series on Max covering its recent live tour. Next up for the actor? The long-awaited release of Taika Waititi’s ‘Next Goal Wins’, due in theaters on November 17th.
‘Is This Thing On’ is set up at Searchlight Pictures, but, as mentioned above, there’s no idea when it’ll start shooting, which means it also doesn’t yet have an assigned release date.
Bradley Cooper at the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ World Premiere.
(L to R) Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in 2018’s ‘A Star Is Born.’
After co-writer/director Todd Phillips offered an update about the status of the sequel to 2018 hit ‘Joker’ last week, the latest developments to emerge about the movie are quite the follow-up.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, not only is Lady Gaga now in early talks to co-star, but the movie is shaping up to be a musical, or at least carry a solid musical element. As if people weren’t paying attention to the sequel already, that’s certainly something to make them.
Gaga, of course, is a big star these days, with an Oscar on her mantel and plenty of acclaim for ‘A Star is Born’ in particular (it’s perhaps little coincidence that Phillips co-produced that Bradley Cooper-directed movie).
And, if she does end up making a deal to appear, word is she’ll be playing iconic Joker character Harley Quinn, his psychiatrist at the mental institution known as Arkham Asylum who falls in love with him and becomes his sidekick and partner in crime.
This being Phillips’ own world, not connected to the DC Extended Universe, any potential Gaga Harley would be different from Margot Robbie’s Quinn, who has so far appeared in two ‘Suicide Squad’ movies and her own spin-off, ‘Birds of Prey’.
And it’s not like ‘Joker’ eschewed other Batman characters completely: we got a smattering of them in Phillips’ vision of Gotham, including a young Bruce Wayne and a corrupt version of his father, Thomas.
Joaquin Phoenix in 2019’s ‘Joker’ courtesy of Warner Bros.
The musical element is harder to pin down, but it certainly makes Gaga’s casting resonate even further. While the first ‘Joker’ movie certainly had music in it (and one iconic scene featuring Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck dancing), the idea that the sequel will be a full-blown, tune-filled affair is an intriguing one.
If you were looking to sidestep the usual cries of sequel fatigue, that’s certainly one way to go about it! Right now, it’s all up the air as Gaga still has to lock in her deal, while Phoenix is also in the midst of figuring out the financials for his return to the lead.
Co-writer Scott Silver and Phillips have been hard at work on drafts of the script, and the movie’s current working title is ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ which translates to the term for a mental disorder that affects more than one person. And that’s definitely a good way to describe the viral chaos that Arthur Fleck began spreading around Gotham in the original.
How closely the new movie will hew to established DC lore is unknown at this point – we’d honestly put money on Phillips continuing to chart his own path, picking and choosing how Fleck’s story intersects with the wider Bat-world.
The ‘Joker’ sequel doesn’t have a confirmed release date yet, but there’s a chance it could be ready for screens next year. And will it be a full-blown musical? Lady Gaga might have scored a trophy for “Shallow”, but it’s Arthur Fleck who is off the deep end.
