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Tag: julia stiles

  • New ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ Movies Planned

    (L to R) Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles in '10 Things I Hate About You'. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.
    (L to R) Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles in ’10 Things I Hate About You’. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.

    Preview

    • A new trilogy of movies spun off from ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ is planned.
    • Director Gil Junger is behind the new development.
    • The 1999 original starred Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger.

    It might not have run with the popular crowd at the box office, but fizzy, witty comedy ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ certainly made an impact in the popular culture, riding a wave of Shakespeare-to-modern times adaptations (see also: ‘Clueless’) and helping to boost the careers of stars Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger, who both brought considerable charisma to the roles of unlikely high school sweethearts.

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    There have been some minor developments since the original (more on that lower down the page), but if original director Gil Junger has his way, there could be much bigger ideas on the horizon. He’s working with original producer Andrew Lazar to develop a new movie called ’10 Things I Hate About Dating’ based on the original that could launch a potential trilogy.

    Junger had this to say to People about the new film:

    “‘ 10 Things I Hate About Dating’ is definitively in the works as a feature film. We’re developing it right now. We have some pretty good ideas.”

    If all goes to plan, Junger, Junger — who is currently co-writing the script with Naya Elle James — plans to make it the first in a trilogy, with two more subsequent installments titled ‘10 Things I Hate About Marriage’ and ‘10 Things I Hate About Kids.’

    There’s no specific word yet on how closely the movie would link to the original, but it appears Junger has plans for cast cameos from the first film:

    “If it resonates with the original cast and I can have some cameos or even real parts, I’d love that. I’d love Larry Miller to come back because he’s so great.”

    And while the original had Shakespearian DNA, the new movie is inspired by Molière’s 1666 play ‘The Misanthrope.’

    Related Article: 50 Best Romantic Comedy Movies of All Time

    What’s the story of ‘ 10 Things I Hate About You?

    Julia Stiles in '10 Things I Hate About You'. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.
    Julia Stiles in ’10 Things I Hate About You’. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.

    The 1999 teen comedy, based on William Shakespeare’s spiky romantic comedy play ‘The Taming of the Shrew,’ follows teen Kat Stratford (Stiles), a high-achieving, sharp-tongued loner who is constantly compared to her perky, popular younger sister Bianca (Larisa Oleynik) by their overprotective single dad, Walter (Miller).

    But Kat’s world is soon turned upside down by Patrick Verona (Ledger), an edgy new student who changes her life.

    Karen McCullah and Kirsten Smith wrote the script, with plenty of nods to the Bard, and the cast also included Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Allison Janney, Andrew Keegan, Gabrielle Union, David Krumholtz and more, with Gordon-Levitt playing Cameron, who longs to date Bianca, but can’t get past the parental rule.

    Until, that is, he hatches a plan with Patrick to sweep Kat off her feet –– no easy task.

    While the movie, made for $30 million, only ended up with $53 million at the worldwide box office, it still sparked a healthy fanbase.

    Here’s what Junger told People about appreciating the movie following a 25th anniversary screening:

    “I thought, ‘God, I was so on my game.’ I remembered exactly where I was standing, what notes I gave there and what I did. And then I look out to the audience during my Q&A, and my 22-year-old and my 19-year-old were sitting in the front row with their dates. And they weren’t born when the movie came out. They weren’t even a thought.”

    What else has spun off from ’10 Things I Hate About You’?

    (L to R) Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles in '10 Things I Hate About You'. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.
    (L to R) Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles in ’10 Things I Hate About You’. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.

    There have been follow-ups since the original movie. A ’10 Things’ TV series landed on ABC Family in 2009, featuring little of the original cast save Larry Miller, and seeing Kat and Bianca navigating other high school challenges. It only lasted one season.

    Even now, as has been the case for a variety of movies, a Broadway musical is in development with musician Carly Rae Jepsen co-writing the score with Ethan Gruska, and filmmaker/ ‘Girls’ creator/star Lena Dunham working on the book with playwright Jessica Huang.

    Jepson took to Instagram recently to enthuse about working on the stage show:

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    A post shared by Carly Rae Jepsen (@carlyraejepsen)

     

    Junger himself has had sequel ideas before now, admitting that he offered Ledger a role in a follow-up he was developing shortly after the original movie called ‘10 Things I Hate About Me.’

    He’s confident that any new movie would feature a nod to the star, who died in 2008 aged 28:

    “I think that’s a beautiful idea, and the answer is now going to be yes. He deserves to be loved.”

    When might we see the first new ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ movie?

    There’s the rub right now –– since the movies are only in development, we’ll have to wait and see if it makes it to the greenlight stage.

    But given rights holders Disney’s love for classic IP it can exploit (see: the TV version, the musical, etc.), we’d say this could be more than love’s labour’s lost.

    Heath Ledger in '10 Things I Hate About You'. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.
    Heath Ledger in ’10 Things I Hate About You’. Photo: Touchstone Pictures.

    Julia Stiles Movies and TV Shows:

    Buy ’10 Things I Hate About You’ On Amazon

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  • ‘Wish You Were Here’ Interview: Director Julia Stiles

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    Opening in theaters on January 17th is the new romantic drama ‘Wish You Were Here,’ which is based on the novel of the same name by Renée Carlino and marks the directorial debut of actress Julia Stiles (‘The Bourne Identity’ and ‘Orphan: First Kill’). The film stars Isabelle Fuhrman (‘Orphan’), Mena Massoud (‘Aladdin’), Jennifer Grey (‘Dirty Dancing’) and Kelsey Grammer (‘X-Men: The Last Stand’).

    Related Article: Julia Stiles and Isabelle Fuhrman Talk Prequel ‘Orphan: First Kill’

    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles behind the scenes of the romance film 'Wish You Were Here', a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles behind the scenes of the romance film ‘Wish You Were Here’, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with actress turned filmmaker Julia Stiles about her work on ‘Wish You Were Here’, adapting the novel into a screenplay, achieving the right tone for the movie, her directing process, what she’s learned from watching other directors throughout her career, the pos-production process, casting her ‘Orphan: First Kill’ co-star Isabelle Fuhrman, and if she will direct again.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Julia Stiles, Isabelle Fuhrman, Mena Massoud, and Gabby Kono-Abdy.

    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles talks 'Wish You Were Here', a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles talks ‘Wish You Were Here’, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about the process of adapting the novel into a screenplay and why you wanted to direct this specific story?

    Julia Stiles: I’ve been wanting to direct a movie for a long time, maybe a little shy about it, but was actively looking for the right story. Then this twenty-five-year-old actress and producer (Gabby Kono-Abdy) with a ton of chutzpah slid into my DMs and then also went through my agency, but said, “What about this book?” I fell in love with it. That was kind of the thing that nudged me towards being more confident that this was the story that I’m ready to tell. What drew me to it initially was a couple of things. It was sent to me during Covid, and I was taken by this desire that we all had at the time to connect with other human beings in real life and not digitally. So, there’s all the sort of rom-com elements of the movie where her mother and her friends are pressuring her to get on a dating app and find the perfect guy and get her life together that I found really humorous and kind of refreshing, but then also just fundamentally, it was that this is a story where the main characters are very young, but the love story is so much more mature and deeper than just that, and it doesn’t just look at love at first sight or that initial dating period. They do this thing where they play a game and kind of pretend that they’re an older couple looking back on their past. I thought, “Oh wow, that’s so powerful”, the idea that we should be so lucky to create a lifetime of memories with someone.

    MF: The movie has both comedic and dramatic moments, can you talk about the challenges of balancing the right tone?

    JS: I wanted to pull the audience in with the more humorous moments of levity with the family, with her family and her friends and her dumb job, and then also have this exciting first date with a guy, and then we kind of ease into the drama and the tragic love story. That was my intention, and I also really wanted ultimately for the movie to be hopeful. That was very important to me. Without being saccharine, my radar was up because there’s a tradition of movies like this and some are great, and then some can very much veer into the too sugary, and I just thought, “Okay, how do I keep this grounded in reality and something that we can relate to?”

    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles behind the scenes of the romance film 'Wish You Were Here', a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles behind the scenes of the romance film ‘Wish You Were Here’, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.

    MF: Can you talk about your process as a director? Do you rehearse with the actors, do you storyboard your shots, and what was it like working with the rest of your crew?

    JS: We had zero rehearsal time because that’s what happened, but I was confident enough with my actors. I think one of the things that I’ve discovered as an actress and now also as a director is that the camera loves spontaneity, so I’m of the ilk that you don’t want to over rehearse something because you want to capture the spontaneous thing that happens in real time. I was confident enough that my actors could do that, and they did. In terms of my crew, my DP and I had a shot list. We would get together every weekend and even in advance of being in production, go through each scene in each location, talk about different angles and how we wanted to shoot it, and we were very much a good team. We were very in sync about movie references. I remember reading a book about directing by David Mamet, and he had this one quote in it that was “Fail to prepare, prepare to fail.” So, I really went in there with a plan. Then I also had to, which I also enjoyed, be ready to pivot if we had obstacles or if the plan wasn’t going to work.

    MF: As an actress, you have worked with many great directors throughout your career. How did your previous experience on sets with other filmmakers help prepare you to direct this movie?

    JS: I think my whole career as an actress has been film school, and I realized I’ve absorbed so much just being on film sets for so long, but I did in pre-production reach out to a couple directors that I had worked with. I called Rodrigo Garcia, and I was like, “I cannot believe you hid the stress so well. You were so calm on set. You kept it from us.” He was like, “I did that on purpose because you don’t want the children to know how stressful your workday was. You want to keep the actors set up for success in terms of being relaxed.” Then I also called Doug Liman who directed ‘The Bourne Identity’, because there was this specific sequence on the sailboat and I knew that it was going to be challenging, and he’s directed a bunch of action movies, and he also has a sailboat. So, I asked him about filming on water, and I was just complaining about it. I was saying, “Oh, it’s really challenging, but this is part of being a director is working within a budget and time constraints and managing that.” He was like, “Remember this time, because when they start giving you more money, they start telling you what to do.” He was right.

    MF: Do you think as an actress you now have a different appreciation for directors?

    JS: Oh, a hundred percent. I feel like I want to call most of them and be like, “Oh my God.” Also, the next time I’m on a film set as an actress, I’m going to be super-duper reverent to my director. I understand now, it’s a lot to manage and everybody’s coming at you, but it’s also so exhilarating and energizing because you’re the one in the driver’s seat.

    Isabelle Fuhrman as “Charlotte” in the romance film 'Wish You Were Here', a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Isabelle Fuhrman as “Charlotte” in the romance film ‘Wish You Were Here’, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.

    MF: You first worked with Isabelle Fuhrman as an actress on ‘Orphan: First Kill’, which is a very different type of performance than what she gives in this movie. What made you think she’d be right to play Charlotte?

    JS: It is a very different role, and it’s the first time I think, really that we see her, or audiences can see her as a grown up and a leading lady in a romantic movie. But I was confident about it because I knew that as a leading lady and the main character of the film in every scene, working every day, having to pour your heart and soul into it and emote as much as this character does and go through such a transformation, that takes a lot of stamina. I saw her have that stamina on the set of ‘Orphan’ that she was a real workhorse and always dedicated and giving a hundred percent, even if it was exhausting.

    MF: As a director, did you enjoy the post-production process?

    JS: I did. I really loved it, and I think that might be my favorite part of it, working with my editor, Melody London. It’s just more relaxed. You have the footage there. You can take your time and really sew the quilt together or rearrange puzzle pieces and see experiment. It’s very creative and the final place where the story is told, and I found it enjoyable. I also loved putting music to the film that was special, and it’s also a more manageable schedule.

    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles behind the scenes of the romance film 'Wish You Were Here', a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
    Director/Co-Writer Julia Stiles behind the scenes of the romance film ‘Wish You Were Here’, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.

    MF: Finally, do you have plans to direct again in the future?

    JS: I would love to direct again. I’m totally hooked. Again, I would love to, I hope I get to make a second movie. Also, creatively, I’m just surfacing from the whole process of making ‘Wish You Were Here’. It’s just opened a part of me. Now I’m thinking about what the next genre or story would be, so I’m looking.

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    What is the plot of ‘Wish You Were Here’?

    The film follows Charlotte (Isabelle Fuhrman), a woman searching for a spark in her life, who experiences a whirlwind night of romance with a man (Mena Massoud) she meets. The next morning, she discovers he is terminally ill and commits to helping him spend his remaining time meaningfully.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Wish You Were Here’?

    • Isabelle Fuhrman as Charlotte
    • Mena Massoud as Adam
    • Jennifer Grey as Mom
    • Kelsey Grammer as Dad
    • Jimmie Fails as Seth
    • Jordan Gavaris as Chucky
    • Gabby Kono-Abdy as Helen
    • Mike Carlsen as Jon Jon
    'Wish You Were Here',opens in theaters on January 17th. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
    ‘Wish You Were Here’,opens in theaters on January 17th. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.

    Julia Stiles Movies and TV Shows:

    Buy Julia Stiles Movies on Amazon

     

  • ‘Orphan: First Kill’ Interviews: Julia Stiles and Isabelle Fuhrman

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    Opening in theaters, on digital, and streaming on Paramount+ August 19th is the new prequel to 2009’s horror movie ‘Orphan,’ entitled ‘Orphan: First Kill,’ which was directed by William Brent Bell (‘The Boy’).

    Beginning years before the events of ‘Orphan,’ the film follows Leena (Isabelle Fuhrman) as she escapes from an Estonian psychiatric facility and travels to America by impersonating Esther Albright, the missing daughter of a wealthy family. Led by matriarch Tricia Albright (Julia Stiles), a woman willing to do anything to keep her family together, Leena may have finally met her match.

    Moviefone recently had the chance to speak with Julia Stiles and Isabelle Fuhrman about their work on ‘Orphan: First Kill,’ Fuhrman’s experience reprising her role, Stiles’ approach to playing her character, and working with director William Brent Bell.

    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures 'Orphan: First Kill,' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures ‘Orphan: First Kill,’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.

    You can read our full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Julia Stiles, Isabelle Fuhrman, and director William Brent Bell.

    Moviefone: To begin with, Isabelle, can you talk about the aspects of Leena/Esther that you wanted to explore with this prequel?

    Isabelle Fuhrman: Revisiting this character was so fun for me. I got to take out my old script from the first ‘Orphan’ with all these notes that I had written when I was 10. I got to re-watch the movie and really dive into figuring out how we could make a more human Esther this time around, because she’s less of a mystery in this movie. We know her secret and now it was more about finding a way to invite the audience in and have them follow her in this story rather than stand on the outside, kind of wondering what’s going on.

    For me, that was a really exciting challenge as an actor, to look at a villain and find a way to make her likable and lovable at times while at the same time, still maintaining the integrity of who Esther is. I just felt like it was a no brainer for me to come and revisit this role. I was lucky that we had so many wonderful people like Brent, who believed that I could take back this character and we could still make it believable that I could play a 10-year-old, like Lena does in this story.

    MF: You were closer in age to Esther when you shot the first film, and now you are closer in age to Leena. How did that change the way you played the character this time around?

    IF: It definitely informed a lot of the decisions and choices that I wanted to make in the script but there’s something about revisiting this character. I had to go back to my old script and really look at what I thought of her when I was 10. Because I created this character when I was so young and as much as you could say, “Oh, I was a kid. I didn’t really know,” I mean, clearly I created something that people really loved.

    So, I can’t just come back to this with my own, fresh, at-this-age perspective. I had to find a way to marry the two worlds. Where I was when I was 10 years old and made decisions and choices for Esther as a character, and where I am right now in my life and how I can kind of inject the wisdom that I now have as I’ve grown older and am closer to Leena’s age.

    I very often would go through the script and make decisions for me as an actress. What I wanted to do as I am today, and then I would go back and go, “Well, what would I have said at 10 years old? What would I have thought at 10 years old about this?” Not only did those decisions help me in my performance on a daily basis, but they helped me talk to Kennedy and Sadie who are my body doubles every single day.

    Because I had to explain to them how to do these scenes in a way that wouldn’t jeopardize their innocence and their wonderful, childlike quality that they brought to it. I really felt like it was such a combination and a great group. The three of us of really recreated Esther together.

    Julia Stiles as "Tricia" in 'Orphan: First Kill' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Julia Stiles as “Tricia” in ‘Orphan: First Kill’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.

    MF: Julia, Leena has really met her match in Tricia, can you talk about having the opportunity to play such a strong character?

    Julia Stiles: I mean, that’s what drew me to the part. I think Tricia is somebody who is determined to keep her family together. I say in the trailer, “A mother protects her family, no matter what.” In that desperation to heal the family, they welcome Esther back into their lives and Tricia is looking at Esther going, “I want to make this work but something’s off here and it doesn’t feel quite right. I can’t put my finger on it.”

    What is fun about this movie is that, because we’re in on the secret, you’re kind of going, “How much longer is Esther going to be able to get away with this? How much longer is Leena going to be able to get away with this?” And Tricia, as you say, she’s kind of met her match because Tricia isn’t buying it and what she does with that information is really exciting to watch, and what drew me to the part.

    MF: Finally, what was it like working with director William Brent Bell and watching him execute his unique vision for this project?

    JS: He was great. He was such a great director to work for and he was very collaborative, but also had a very clear vision. It was my first time, and I think a lot of people’s first time working during COVID. The pandemic had already been underway and safety protocols were in place, so there were added challenges like we’d have to rehearse with masks on.

    Then there were all the challenges of ridiculous tricks to make me look taller than Isabelle, like these platform boots that I had to wear. Brent really held it together for everybody and made us feel safe, and also made us really invest in making the movie.

    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures 'Orphan: First Kill,' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures ‘Orphan: First Kill,’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
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  • ‘Orphan: First Kill’ Trailer Starring Isabelle Fuhrman

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    If you’ve been craving more horror in your summer, then the ‘Orphan: First Kill’ trailer is here to deliver.

    2009’s ‘Orphan’ famously revealed that its titular character was – spoiler alert for anyone who hasn’t seen it – not actually an orphaned girl, but a murderous, height-challenged woman who posed as a nine-year-old and was adopted by a family grieving the death of their daughter.

    In that film, directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, Isabelle Fuhrman played Russian girl “Esther”, who ends up causing violent, murderous problems for adoptive parents played Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, at least until they discover the truth.

    Esther (AKA Leena Klammer) suffers from Hypopituitarism, a condition where a lack of hormone generation leads to dwarfism, which in her case allowed the 33-year-old woman to pose as a child.

    ‘Orphan: First Kill’ is the prequel to that movie. Fuhrmann returns as “Esther” (though we know from the start that she’s actually Klammer), for a story that takes place before the events of that movie.

    Originally titled ‘Esther’, the movie has William Brent Bell (‘The Boy’, ‘The Devil Inside’) in the director’s chair, while David Coggeshall wrote the script based on story concepts from David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick and Alex Mace, who worked on the original ‘Orphan’.

    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures 'Orphan: First Kill,' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures ‘Orphan: First Kill,’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.

    Here’s your synopsis: After orchestrating a brilliant escape from an Estonian psychiatric facility, Esther travels to America by impersonating the missing daughter – who at this point has been gone for four years – of a wealthy family. Yet, an unexpected twist arises that pits her against a mother who will protect her family from the murderous “child” at any cost.

    Julia Stiles plays the proactive mother of the family Tricia Albright, with Rossif Sutherland as her husband Allen, who is initially convinced that his wife is suffering from paranoia and hallucinating, and Leena sees this as an opportunity to drive a wedge between them.

    Matthew Finlan, Hiro Kanagawa, Jade Michael, Samantha Walkes, Kristen Sawatzky, Andrea del Campo and Kennedy Irwin are also all in the cast.

    With Fuhrmann returning, the filmmaking team had to rely on even more clever techniques to make her into a convincing child, including make-up and forced perspective (sizing tricks utilized by movies such as the ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy and ‘Elf’ to make actors appear different sizes.

    The trailer promises plenty of creepiness, including “Esther” plotting something with rats (that can’t end well), unusually skilled artwork for a youngster, warped music and chaos when the truth is discovered. And while the prequel story means that Leena survives to kill again, don’t expect everyone to survive this initial encounter…

    There was also some CG deployed alongside child doubles (including Irwin, who also plays Lena at a younger age.

    ‘Orphan: First Kill’ will be making its way into theaters, digital and streaming via Paramount+ on August 19th.

    Isabelle Fuhrman as "Esther" in 'Orphan: First Kill' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Isabelle Fuhrman as “Esther” in ‘Orphan: First Kill’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Julia Stiles as "Tricia" in 'Orphan: First Kill' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Julia Stiles as “Tricia” in ‘Orphan: First Kill’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Rossif Sutherland as "Allen" and Julia Stiles as "Tricia" in 'Orphan: First Kill' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    (L to R) Rossif Sutherland as “Allen” and Julia Stiles as “Tricia” in ‘Orphan: First Kill’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    (L to R) Matthew Finlan as "Gunnar" and Julia Stiles as "Tricia" in 'Orphan: First Kill' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    (L to R) Matthew Finlan as “Gunnar” and Julia Stiles as “Tricia” in ‘Orphan: First Kill’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    ‘Orphan: First Kill’ will be making its way into theaters, digital and streaming via Paramount+ on August 19th.
    ‘Orphan: First Kill’ will be making its way into theaters, digital and streaming via Paramount+ on August 19th.
    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures 'Orphan: First Kill,' from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
    Isabelle Fuhrman in Paramount Pictures ‘Orphan: First Kill,’ from Paramount Players, eOne, and Dark Castle Entertainment.
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  • Kelsey Grammer on His New Movie: I’m Crying When I Watch It

    Kelsey Grammer on His New Movie: I’m Crying When I Watch It

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    ‘The God Committee’ tells the story of a group of health professionals on an organ transplant committe that have only one hour to decide who is going to get a heart from a recently-deceased donor. Based on the play by Mark St. Germain, the movie stars Kelsey Grammer and Julia Stiles, who recently sat down with Moviefone to talk about the film.

    Moviefone: Kelsey, how much did you know about these committees before this movie?

    Kelsey Grammer: Absolutely nothing. I really had no idea. I mean, I anticipated it. Yeah, that surely there must be a group of people that make these decisions, but had I spent any time wondering about it? No, not at all. It was wonderful to kind of discover it and realize what a strange sort of place it must be to be in that room.

    MF: What type of research did you do?

    Grammer: Really, just within the context of the script, and I checked with a couple of buddies that are in that business. You know, the heart biz. Yeah, it was real. Organ transplants, somebody’s got to pick who gets them. It’s tough.

    MF: Yeah, I was surprised too.

    Grammer: After that, then they just dive in.

    MF: I think I felt like it was more of a list, a national list or regional list, and that it was more kind of just like where you were in the luck of the draw. You know, you were number one, two, et cetera, on the list. I didn’t realize there were these committees. What was surprising to you, Julia, in doing any research or preparing for this movie?

    Julia Stiles: Yeah. I think if you’ve ever had anyone who’s dealt with serious medical issues or certainly everybody in the world in the last year has come to understand and has been confronted with how superhuman doctors have to be. But I had never really thought about the challenges that they face in terms of the administration and financial burdens on a hospital, or financial constraints on a hospital. And that we also think of doctors as having good intentions, a good skill set, and if something tragic happens or there’s a loss, it’s out of their hands.

    I had never really thought about it in this situation, it’s an actual decision by committee that whoever gets the transplant is going to survive, and therefore the other patients are probably not going to make it. I just had never thought about that before. I mean, the movie really is a love letter to doctors and I think it’s just trying to expose an imperfect system.

    MF: And, the only one we have, I guess, at the moment. Kelsey, in 2014, when we see Dr. Boxer, where is he in his career? Do you think he has some disillusionment?

    Grammer: Well, that’s an interesting sort of tightrope to walk. He is definitely disillusioned about all sorts of things. I mean, he had a pretty tough childhood, and he has a bit of a… I guess you could say he has a bit of a sentence, a cloud hanging over his head that would probably have influenced another man, a weaker man, to just quit. But this guy is relentless.

    He’s quite heroic in his way, even though he’s not particularly attractive in another way. He has robbed himself of certain human emotions that aren’t serving him anymore, that don’t do him any good. He’s got a sense of purpose and there’s only one thing stopping him from getting there, and that’s dying. He just plays out the clock. It’s a hard part to play. It upset me a lot. I mean, it upsets me when I see it. I’m crying when I watch it.

    But, you still hope the best for him in a weird way. He’s completely unappealing on so many levels, but there’s this thing in him as well that is… He’s a remarkable man in the face of a really, really tough situation, he still fights. That’s somebody to be admired.

    MF: Julia, taking into light of everything that Kelsey just said, what is the relationship between Dr. Boxer and Dr. Taylor? Why do you think she has a relationship with him?

    Stiles: Well, we meet them when the relationship is really imploding. She seems to be kind of fed up with some of his cutoffness, but we get glimpses in later scenes of the hope that she had for… And, she kind of makes fun of herself, too. She says, “I blame myself. I feel stupid for thinking that I could change you or that you could be anything but…” She calls him some names.

    Then you see them in the conference room and there’s this combativeness that’s like an intellectual thing that I think was probably the root of their attraction early on, but before the movie started. But, as I said, you see them after it’s already kind of ending. I think there are also other scenes where you see how hopeful she was that he was going to surprise her, and he doesn’t.

    Actor Colman Domingo and writer/director Austin Stark also took time to talk with Moviefone about the movie.

    Moviefone: Colman, were you aware of these “god committees” before this movie?

    Colman Domingo: Absolutely not. Who was aware of that? No one is. What a question. I think that’s why I was drawn to it because it was something that I’m like, oh my God, I can’t believe, I know that these decisions are made, but you don’t know how and all the detail that goes into that. So I think it gives it even more, it sheds a light on that and more respect on that. You’re like, this is very tricky, trepidatious territory, and everyone’s trying to do the right thing with what they have.

    MF: I’m so glad you said that because I thought there was a national list or maybe regional lists. And you just were on a list, one through 10, and it was more of a luck of a draw and not so personalized. For you, Austin, why did you make this movie?

    Austin Stark: Because it spoke to me and I thought that… I made this movie because once I really started to look into it, I felt like the worldwide organ shortage is seriously not talked about. It’s just not spoken about enough. I mean, there’s 120,000 people currently on the waiting list. Over 10 people die every day. And one donor can save eight lives. I mean, those are things that we don’t talk about enough as a society, and I wanted to shed light on that. And I was hoping to also perhaps get somebody just to donate that wouldn’t have before. And I think that would be the biggest win for us.

    MF: What actually is the percentage of people who are donors? Do you know? Who have said, if something happens, I want to be a donor.

    Stark: I actually don’t, but certainly not enough.

    Domingo: The one thing we found out is that the fact that if you do donate, if you are on the donor list, you could possibly save eight people’s lives.

    MF: That’s a lot of people. Colman, who is your character, and what is his position on the committee?

    Domingo: I play Dr. Frank, I play Reverend, well, maybe he’s a Reverend doctor. No, I play Reverend Frank Dunbar. And he is formerly an attorney, a disbarred attorney, and he’s now a priest. And he is hired by the board to come in and be very pragmatic and impartial, but help guide this committee to make very, very clear decisions. And hopefully question why they’re making certain decisions, et cetera, et cetera. That’s exactly his purpose. His purpose, I think he’s the audience’s way in. He watches a lot, and then he offers up a question, more than anything, not an answer, but a question.

    MF: Is he serving more as a lawyer or as a minister or a father?

    Domingo: A little bit of both. He’s serving as a man, as an everyman, I believe. With the skill set that he has as a former attorney, but also with his practice as a priest. So I think it’s a little bit of both. They’re dealing with science, and he’s bringing in law and conscience.

    MF: Austin, tell me about the decision to make it two separate timelines, two parallel timelines.

    Stark: I think it’s really compelling to explore how one decision can alter the course of many different lives. And so this was inspired by a play by Mark St. Germain which all takes place in the boardroom. And so I thought, when I started thinking about the decisions that they had to make, I started thinking about, well, what would be the consequences seven years later? Would it impact all these people’s lives potentially? And I expanded it organically from there.

    MF: Do you personally think you could be on this type of committee?

    Stark: No way.

    Domingo: No way.

    Stark: I wanted to put the audience in the committee’s shoes, and I wanted to make the decision as difficult as possible for the audience. And I truly tried to show both sides of it. That’s why it’s filmed as a love letter to doctors. I mean, it’s a really unenviable position that these people have to be in. And unfortunately, it’s not that the system itself is flawed. The reason why it’s imperfect is because there aren’t enough donors. There’s just not enough organs.

    MF: Is this dramatized a little bit or do these committees actually know the people’s names and so many details about their lives?

    Stark: I worked with medical consultants both during the script phase and during production. And I tried to get it as close to reality as possible. Of course, I’m not a doctor, but I did try to be as authentic as I possibly could. And actually last night, we had a doctor who’s actually had a transplant herself, had a heart transplant which saved her life. And she was there on behalf of Donate Life and the organization. And she said to me after the film, “This is the most realistic medical film I’ve ever seen,” which was the greatest compliment I could’ve gotten. So I tried to be authentic. If there are things that deviate, it’s possible, because I’m not a doctor. But yeah, we’ve had a lot of people weigh in and try to help us with that.

    ‘The God Committee’ is in select theaters and on demand.

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  • ‘Hustlers’ Trailer: Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu Strip and Scam Rich Men

    ‘Hustlers’ Trailer: Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu Strip and Scam Rich Men

    STX Entertainment

    Show them a lot more than a couple of dollar bills.

    The first trailer for “Hustlers” stars Jennifer Lopez and Constance Wu as strippers who come up with a devious plan: scam the rich men who watch them pole-dance.

    Wu’s Destiny just wants to take care of her barely-scraping-by family and looks to Lopez’s Ramona for tips on improving as an exotic dancer. Then, Ramona decides to get some revenge for the financial crisis of 2007.

    “These Wall Street guys … you see what they did to this country?” Lopez says. “They stole from everybody.” Well, now the ladies are stealing it right back.

    The movie is based on journalist Jessica Pressler’s 2015 New York magazine article “The Hustlers at Scores.”

    The cast also includes Julia Stiles, Keke Palmer, Lili Reinhart, and Cardi B.

    “Hustlers” opens in theaters September 13.

  • 12 Things You Never Knew About ’10 Things I Hate About You’ on its 20th Anniversary

    12 Things You Never Knew About ’10 Things I Hate About You’ on its 20th Anniversary

    Buena Vista

    Apparently the easiest way to make Shakespeare accessible to modern teens is to re-imagine his iconic stories as movies about high school romance. That’s the takeaway from “10 Things I Hate About You,” a rom-com that’s stayed fresh and relevant even after 20 years. Celebrate that anniversary with a few interesting factoids you might not have known.

    1. “10 Things I Hate About You” is a modernized retelling of Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew,” a play that follows the difficult courtship between main characters Petruchio and Katherina.

    2. Joseph Gordon-Levitt‘s character Cameron actually quotes a line from “The Taming of the Shrew” when he says “I burn, I pine, I perish!”

    Buena Vista

    3. The film was shot entirely on location in Tacoma and Seattle, Washington, with the real-life Stadium High School in Tacoma being transformed into Padua High School.

    4. Heath Ledger‘s fellow teen heartthrobs Josh Hartnett and Ashton Kutcher also tried out for the role of Patrick.

    Casey-Werner Distribution

    5. There’s a strange trend of actors who sing “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” on screen later going on to play Batman villains. Ledger became the third actor to manage that feat after Christopher Walken and Michelle Pfeiffer.

    6. Apparently Julia Stiles‘ character Kat has a thing for Batman’s nemesis, the Joker. Not only did Ledger go on to play Joker in 2008’s “The Dark Knight,” but Kat also keeps a picture of actor Jared Leto hidden in her bedroom. Leto played Joker in 2016’s “Suicide Squad.”

    Warner Bros.

    7. Larisa Oleynik and Joseph Gordon-Levitt also played characters who date on the sitcom “Third Rock From the Sun.”

    8. Julia Stiles and Andrew Keegan would go on to star in another modernized, high school-oriented Shakespeare film in 2001’s “O.”

    Buena Vista

    9. Director Gil Junger also played a small role as a teacher at Padua High, but his scenes were cut from the final version.

    10. The final cut of the film also jettisoned a subplot involving Susan May Pratt‘s character Mandella contemplating suicide as a way of getting closer to Shakespeare.

    11. Despite playing a high schooler in the movie, Gabrielle Union was 26 at the time of filming.

    Buena Vista

    12. The movie was remade as a TV sitcom for ABC Family in 2009. While Junger returned to direct several episodes, Larry Miller was the only actor to reprise his role from the film.

  • Kelsey Grammer, Julia Stiles Starring in ‘The God Committee’

    Kelsey Grammer, Julia Stiles Starring in ‘The God Committee’

    Kelsey Grammer; Julia Stiles
    Netflix; Sky Atlantic

    Kelsey Grammer and Julia Stiles have been chosen for “The God Committee.”

    The actors nabbed starring roles in the upcoming medical thriller centering on the U.S. organ transplant system, Variety reports. The film is in production now and also stars Colman Domingo, Janeane Garofalo, and Dan Hedaya.

    The script comes from Austin Stark, who is also directing the film. It centers on a donor heart that is taken to a New York hospital and on the transplant committee’s decision as to who gets to receive it. The impact of that decision, six years later, is also part of the story. We don’t know yet what roles the actors will be playing.

    Both Grammer and Stiles are veteran actors — Grammer, especially. He is well-known for his roles on the TV series “Frasier” and “Cheers,” and he recently starred in Netflix’s “Like Father.” Stiles’s body of work includes roles in the Bourne film series, among others, and she currently stars in the Irish TV series “Riviera.”

    “The God Committee” is produced by Paper Street Films, Phiphen Pictures, and Crystal City Entertainment. Producers include Phiphen’s Molly Conners, Amanda Bowers, Vincent Morano, and Jane Oster; Crystal City’s Ari Pinchot and Jonathan Rubenstein; and Paper Street’s Benji Kohn, Bingo Gubelmann, and Stark. Meanwhile, the project’s executive producers are Joanna Meek, Ray Masucci, Erika Hampson, Richard J. Berthy, and Mark Trustin.

    [via: Variety]

  • Cardi B to Make Film Debut in ‘Hustlers’ With Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu

    Cardi B to Make Film Debut in ‘Hustlers’ With Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu

    Recording Academy

    After snagging a Grammy Award earlier this year, rapper Cardi B is set for another exciting first: Her film debut.

    STXfilms announced on Tuesday that the musician is set to star in “Hustlers,” joining a ridiculously impressive roster that includes Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu, Lili Reinhart (“Riverdale”), Keke Palmer, Julia Stiles, and Mercedes Ruehl (Best Supporting Actress winner for 1991’s “The Fisher King”). Mette Towley (“Cats”) and Trace Lysette (“Transparent”) are currently in negotiations for supporting roles.

    “Hustlers,” inspired by a 2016 New York Magazine article, tells the story of a savvy group of former strip club employees — led by characters played by Lopez and Wu — who band together to turn the tables on their Wall Street clients. Collider has the scoop on some of the character details:

    I’m told Cardi B will play Serena, one of Lopez’s best friends who becomes her close accomplice. Stiles will play a journalist who befriends Wu. Ruehl will play Mother, who runs the backstage operations at the strip club.

    Lorene Scafaria (“The Meddler”) is directing, from her own screenplay. In a statement, the filmmaker praised the “dynamic group of women” in the “powerhouse cast,” and revealed that production is set to begin at the end of this week, on March 22.

    In his own statement, STXfilms chairman Adam Fogelson noted that the company “could not have asked for a more exciting or talented lineup of performers to join our cast,” and promised that the film would be an “unexpected, entertaining and often shocking story.”

    We can’t wait to see it all unfold, especially with all of these talented actresses on board.

    [via: Collider]

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