Maggie Q as Tess in the action/thriller, ‘Fear the Night,’ a Quiver Distribution release. Photo courtesy of Quiver Distribution.
Preview:
Another ‘Bosch’ series is in development at Prime Video.
Maggie Q will star as the character of Renée Ballard.
Titus Welliver is likely to show up as Harry Bosch.
The “Bosch-iverse” based on author Michael Connelly’s grumpy LAPD (and now retired) detective character has proven to be quite the fertile franchise ground for Amazon’s Prime Video.
We had seven seasons of the main ‘Bosch’ show adapted from the books and starring Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch between 2014 and 2021. He’s a man unafraid of digging into Los Angeles’ darkest corners to figure out cryptic violent crimes, partially driven by the ghosts of his past, including the unsolved murder of his mother.
That was followed by the ongoing series ‘Bosch: Legacy’ on ad-supported sibling channel Freevee, which sees a retired Harry working as a private eye and allied with his one-time enemy Honey Chandler (Mimi Rogers).
(L to R) Mimi Rogers as Honey “Money” Chandler and Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch on ‘Bosch: Legacy’ season 2. Credit: Tyler Golden/Amazon Freevee. Copyright: Amazon Freevee.
Looking to keep the ‘Bosch’ party going (and this time back on the main Prime Video service), the company has now commissioned a second spin-off, this time one not featuring Harry Bosch.
Instead, Maggie Q will star in an untitled new show about Detective Renée Ballard, a character from another series of Connelly’s books, albeit one where Bosch pops up from time to time.
It’s personal for Harry Bosch (Titus Welliver) as season 2 of ‘Bosch: Legacy’ kicks off with a two episode premiere this fall on Amazon Freevee. Photo Credit: Tyler Golden.
The new series follows Ballard, who is tasked with running the LAPD’s new cold case division — a poorly funded, all-volunteer unit with the largest case load in the city. Ballard approaches these frozen-in-time cases with empathy and determination. When she uncovers a larger conspiracy during her investigations, she’ll lean on the assistance of her retired ally, Harry Bosch (Welliver), to navigate the dangers that threaten both her unit and her life.
This new show will be based on the Ballard books, of which there are six. The character was introduced in 2017 tome ‘The Late Show’, named after the night shift, called “the late show,” that she works. It was followed by ‘Dark Sacred Night’ in 2018, ‘The Night Fire’ in 2019, ‘The Dark Hours’ in 2021 and ‘Desert Star’ in 2022. The sixth book, ‘The Waiting’, is scheduled for release on November 5th.
Who is making the new ‘Bosch’ spin-off?
Author and ‘Bosch: Legacy’ Season 2 executive producer Michael Connelly.
Michael Alaimo and Kendall Sherwood will run the new show, which is now in pre-production, while Connelly is as usual involved as a writer and producer.
Now, if only Amazon and Netflix could work out a deal, so we can have the TV version of Connelly’s other big character, ‘The Lincoln Lawyer‘ (with Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller) crossover with the Bosch-iverse…
When will the new ‘Bosch’ spin-off be on screens?
With the show at a relatively early stage, there is no official release date on the books just yet. ‘Bosch’ fans will for now have to content themselves with the third season of ‘Bosch: Legacy’, which is filming and could well be out later this year.
Maggie Q as Tess in the action/thriller, ‘Fear the Night,’ a Quiver Distribution release. Photo courtesy of Quiver Distribution.
Prime Video has unveiled the first trailer for ‘Fallout,’ the long-awaited series based on the iconic post-apocalyptic video game franchise that first began publishing back in 1997, yielding four games in the main narrative and more than half a dozen spinoffs since then.
In the games, nuclear war has rendered the United States (and the world at large) into what’s called the Wasteland, with pockets of survivors living underground in highly protected shelters known as Vaults. The games are set further and further in the future each time out, with inhabitants of the Vaults venturing out into the Wasteland on various missions and encountering dangerous creatures (such as the artificially created bioweapons known as Deathclaws), mutants, and irradiated humans.
‘Fallout,’ the streaming series, takes much of this premise and the popular ‘Fallout 3’ game – which is set 200 years after the war – as its starting point. Ella Purnell stars as Lucy, a character created for the show, who ventures outside her Vault and learns the hellish nature of life on the surface. Along the way she meets Maximus (Aaron Moten), a member of the militaristic technology cult The Brotherhood of Steel, and The Ghoul (Walton Goggins), a mysterious figure with a connection to the past and the Vaults.
(L to R) Aaron Moten, Ella Purnell, Todd Howard, and Walter Goggin from ‘Fallout’ attend The Game Awards 2023 at the Peacock Theater on December 7, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Scott Kirkland/PictureGroup.
After years of rumored films and false starts, ‘Fallout’ comes to streaming thanks to husband-and-wife team Jonathan (Jonah) Nolan and Lisa Joy, whose previous sci-fi series was HBO’s ‘Westworld.’ Joining Nolan and Joy as executive producers and showrunners are Geneva Robertson-Dworet (‘Captain Marvel’), Graham Wagner (‘Portlandia’) and Todd Howard of Bethesda Game Studios, along with James Altman for Bethesda Softworks.
In conjunction with the arrival of the trailer, Prime Video held a virtual press conference featuring Nolan (who directed the first three episodes), Robertson-Dworet, Wagner, and Howard, along with Purnell, Moten, and surprise remote guest Walton Goggins.
Here are 10 things we learned at that press conference, edited for clarity and length.
Jonathan Nolan says that his obsession with ‘Fallout’ was so intense that, ironically enough, he spent more time early in his career playing the game than looking for writing opportunities.
Jonathan Nolan: I think it started, for me, with ‘Fallout 3,’ which devoured about a year of my life. You know, I was an aspiring young writer at that point. It almost derailed my entire career. It’s so ludicrously playable and fun. I mean, seriously, the games were just incredible. It’s such a rare thing and such an unbelievable thing — and I’ve gotten to do it twice in my career — to take something that you love and get a chance to play in that universe, to create your own version, I guess, of that universe. The first go-round for me was Batman (Nolan co-wrote ‘The Dark Knight’ and ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ with his brother, Christopher Nolan), and this time with ‘Fallout,’ a series of games that I absolutely loved. About five years ago, Todd and I went and had lunch together — it was a bit of a fanning-out moment for me — and just started talking about the possibilities of how you could take this incredible universe… we came out of lunch with a handshake deal that we’re going to try to make this work.
Graham Wagner says that the show is a continuation of the mythology from the games but also a new story, not an adaptation of the existing games.
Graham Wagner: It’s set in the world of ‘Fallout,’ but it’s a new story that comes, sort of, after the events we’ve seen. So the show is really built on 25 years of creativity and thinking and building. We sort of thought the best thing to do is to continue that [rather than] retread it. Because that’s sort of what has worked with ‘Fallout’ over the years. It’s traded hands, it’s changed, it’s been altered, and it’s a living thing. We kind of felt like we ought to take a swing at trying to build a new piece on top of all of that.
3) What Canada Has to Do With A Post-Apocalyptic Wasteland
(L to R) Actors Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell, Co-Showrunner Geneva Robertson-Dworet, and Actor Aaron Moten attends ‘Fallout’ Cast and Creators Presentation at The Game Awards at Peacock Theater on December 07, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Anna Webber/Getty Images for Prime Video.
According to Geneva Robertson-Dworet, a big factor in the appeal of adapting ‘Fallout’ was the underlying themes of the story.
Geneva Robertson-Dworet: The themes of ‘Fallout’ are also what really drove us to want to adapt this with Jonah, and we were really especially drawn to the social commentary inherent to the idea of these Vaults. Graham is a citizen of Canada. I’m a dual citizen of the US and New Zealand, and we often talk about how those countries are sort of celebrated as these wonderful, peaceful utopias…But what would it mean if those countries were to open their borders and let everyone in, and everyone could have a better life? Well, they would change, right? We saw the Vaults as basically a mirror to that. This idea that, like, ‘What if we create a Vault that is very peaceful and wonderful?’ But what does it mean that not everyone gets to live there, and people suffer on the surface?
4) Why It Took Years to Bring ‘Fallout’ to the Screen
Todd Howard of Bethesda Game Studios says that the company was very deliberate in allowing ‘Fallout’ to be adapted to another medium.
Todd Howard: People would approach us over, I would say, a 10-year period after ‘Fallout 3’ came out, from 2009 on, to adapt ‘Fallout’ to film or television. We took a very cautious approach, and Jonah was somebody [who] I was such a fan of the movies he did and the TV he was doing, and I actually had someone reach out. And when I first talked to Jonah, I mean, honestly, it was like someone I had known for a long time: [he] obviously played the games a ton, and his approach, right from the get-go, was in sync with what I was thinking.
5) Why Ella Purnell and Aaron Moten Were Thrilled to Be Part of ‘Fallout’
Actor Ella Purnell attends ‘Fallout’ Cast and Creators Presentation at The Game Awards at Peacock Theater on December 07, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Anna Webber/Getty Images for Prime Video.
British actor Ella Purnell and ‘Emancipation’ star Aaron Moten described what made their characters so exciting to play.
Ella Purnell: Lucy is a Vault Dweller, and what excited me about playing her was that she is so innocent and naive and obviously very privileged as well. It was exciting for me to start in that place. She’s essentially a newborn baby. She hasn’t had any real-life experiences. All she knows is what she was taught and what she’s read in books that she has in the Vault. It’s limited. Then you put her in the Wasteland, and what happens? What happens with that? That’s a really exciting place for me to start in.
Actor Aaron Moten attends ‘Fallout’ Cast and Creators Presentation at The Game Awards at Peacock Theater on December 07, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Anna Webber/Getty Images for Prime Video.
Aaron Moten: I play Maximus. He’s part of the Brotherhood of Steel. I guess what excited me was a little bit of what Ella’s talking about — that starting place, and where you go from there. [He’s] a person who’s lived in the Wasteland for his entire life, and he has to have a certain type of moral ambiguity that is forced upon him, living in the world that he lives in. Where do you go from there? How do you hold onto what is your unique, pure self, how does that change, and how do you discover what it is that you want?
Not able to participate in the press conference, acclaimed actor Walton Goggins (‘Ant-Man and the Wasp’) beamed in with a pre-recorded message about his character. Alive since before the war and once known as Cooper Howard, he’s now a mutated bounty hunter called The Ghoul.
Walton Goggins: The Ghoul is, in some ways, the poet Virgil in ‘Dante’s Inferno.’ He’s the guide, if you will, through this irradiated hellscape where we find ourselves in this post-apocalyptic world. He is a bounty hunter, an iconic bounty hunter. He is pragmatic, he is ruthless, he has his own set of moral codes, and he has a wicked sense of humor — much like me [laughs]. No, he’s a very, very, very complicated guy, and to understand him, you have to understand the person that he was before the war. He had a name. His name was Cooper Howard, and he was a vastly different person than the ghoul that you’ve seen so far. Over the course of the show, through his experience back in the world before the nuclear fallout, you will understand how the world was, and he is the bridge between both these worlds.
7) The Level of Detail in ‘Fallout’ Is Off The Charts
Both executive producer Todd Howard and star Ella Purnell emphasize that there is an incredible amount of detail and world-building in the show, with Purnell adding that most of the show was done practically instead of digitally, as per the wishes of Jonathan Nolan.
Todd Howard: The authenticity they brought to it [is] obsessive. We like to say when we make the games that we obsess over every pixel. And Jonah and crew, they obsessed over every pixel [laughs] of every frame, just to make it authentic. The other thing, watching that trailer, the trick with ‘Fallout’ is it has so many different tones. It goes between the serious, the dramatic, and the action, and some humor and nostalgic music and dramatic music…it weaves those different things together in a very unique blend that only ‘Fallout’ can bring, and they’ve done just an awesome job.
Ella Purnell: This was so much fun, working on this show. Every shoot is hard, not every shoot is fun, and this one was just so fun for an actor. No two days were the same. Every prop, every costume, every location, every set was just bonkers. One of the joys of working with Jonah is he loves to do everything, as much as he can, for real. So you’re not working with that much green screen or dudes in green leotards. You get to really work with practicals, and you don’t have to imagine so much. It’s real and you can really do it.
Two completely different aspects of ‘Fallout’ – the physical protective suits known as power armor, worn by the Brotherhood of Steel, and the more elusive overall vibe of the show – are the two elements that Jonathan Nolan cites as difficult to pin down.
Jonathan Nolan: We talked a lot about the power armor. The tone was a big thing. I think the tone was maybe the most challenging and the most intimidating thing for me. But working with Geneva and Graham, you knew that we were going to be in a really good place with that incredibly ambitious story. On a technical level, the scope of the world and the power armor in particular was one of those things where you go, ‘Oh, how on earth are we going to do that?’ But we got there.
9) What Sets ‘Fallout’ Apart From a Million Other Shows
There are tons of shows out there now on many different platforms competing for our eyes, and quite a number of them are actually set in post-apocalyptic landscapes. But ‘Fallout,’ says its creators, is different.
Geneva Robertson-Dworet: It’s not just the incredible tone, which is, as people have talked about, this unbelievable blend of action and comedy and just weirdness. But I think it’s these incredibly prescient themes, factionalism being maybe the most obvious. When you play the game ‘Fallout,’ you go from settlement to settlement or from faction to faction. That was something we were really excited to manifest with our heroes.
Jonathan Nolan: I think you also have a moment that we’re in right now in which the world seems to be ever more frightening and dour. So [this is] an opportunity for us to work on a show that gets to look that in the eye, right, and we get to talk about the end of the world, but to do it with a sense of humor. I think, honestly, there’s a thread of optimism woven into the show as well, that I think for us, you know, is a bit of expiation to be able to work on this every day.
10) Pleasing ‘Fallout’ Fans is Not the First Priority
(L to R) Actors Aaron Moten, Ella Purnell, and Walton Goggins speak onstage during ‘Fallout’ Cast and Creators Presentation at The Game Awards at Peacock Theater on December 07, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Anna Webber/Getty Images for Prime Video.
Video game adaptations are notoriously hard to get right – the filmmakers often try (and fail) to walk a tightrope between servicing the fans of the game and attracting new viewers who couldn’t care less about the game. Jonathan Nolan doesn’t think that’s the right approach.
Jonathan Nolan: I don’t think you really can set out to please the fans of anything, or please anyone other than yourself. I think you have to come into this trying to make the show that you want to make, and trusting that as fans of the game, we would find the pieces that were essential to us about the games and try to do the best version of those that we can. I think it’s kind of a fool’s errand to try to figure out how to make people happy in that way. You’ve got to make yourself happy. And I’ve made myself very happy with the show.
(L to R) Actors Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell, and Aaron Moten attend with ‘Fallout’ Cast and Creators at The Game Awards at Peacock Theater on December 07, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Anna Webber/Getty Images for Prime Video.
What is the Plot of ‘Fallout’?
The show depicts the aftermath of an apocalyptic nuclear exchange in an alternate history where advances in nuclear technology after WWII led to the emergence of a retrofuturistic society and a subsequent resource war. The survivors took refuge in fallout bunkers known as Vaults, built to preserve humanity in the event of nuclear annihilation. Two centuries later, a young woman (Ella Purnell), a descendant of the original “Vault Dwellers” from one of many Vaults, leaves behind the only life she has ever known to venture out into the dangerously hostile and savage Wasteland of a devastated Los Angeles.
(L to R) Actors Aaron Moten, Ella Purnell, and Walton Goggins speak onstage during ‘Fallout’ Cast and Creators Presentation at The Game Awards at Peacock Theater on December 07, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Anna Webber/Getty Images for Prime Video.
The development of the next Bond film will take the next couple of years.
Producer Barbara Broccoli talked about the challenges of finding the right tone and actor.
Reality TV competition series ‘007: Road to a Million’ kicks off next month to help fans through the quiet period.
It has been two years since Daniel Craig put down his Walter PPK and handed in his license to kill as –– spoiler alert for anyone who has yet to watch 2021’s ‘No Time to Die’ –– his take on secret agent James Bond went out in a missile-fueled blaze of glory.
So of course, ever since Craig left the gig playing one of the most famous movie characters in big screen history, talk turned to the likely candidates who will next tackle it. Names who have popped up in the past include Idris Elba and Tom Hiddleston.
The people in charge of those decisions are producers/franchise shepherds Barbara Broccoli and half-brother Michael G. Wilson. And according to Broccoli, the pair are taking their time to decide on the next Bond.
“I go back to ‘GoldenEye’ when everyone was saying ‘the cold war is over, the wall is over, Bond is dead, no need for Bond, the whole world’s at peace and now there’s no villains’ –– and boy was that wrong! Daniel gave us the ability to mine the emotional life of the character… and also the world was ready for it.”
And her comments on where they are with the next phase of the franchise:
“I think these movies reflect the time they are in, and there’s a big, big road ahead reinventing it for the next chapter, and we haven’t even begun with that.”
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What of James Bond TV series spin-offs?
Daniel Craig as James Bond in ‘Casino Royale.’
According to Broccoli, beyond one planned show (see below), there are no TV Bond series on the way (even if MGM owners Amazon might love it).
Here’s what Broccoli said:
“Our focus is making the feature films. When we get going on a Bond movie it takes our full attention for three or four years so that’s our focus. We make the Bond movies for the big theatrical screen and everything about the Bond movies is for audiences to see around the world on that format, so we’ve not wanted to do television.”
So yes… We’ll have to wait for more big screen Bond. But there is something to help tide you over…
Brian Cox in Prime Video’s ‘007: Road to a Million.’ Credit: Jemma Cox. Copyright: Prime Video.
While we wait for the next Bond film the producing duo are involved in a reality competition show tied to the franchise.
In the show, nine pairs of everyday people are unleashed on an epic adventure through a series of James Bond-inspired challenges, to find questions hidden around the world, all for a shot at winning a life-changing £1 million prize (roughly $1,281 million).
The Controller (Brian Cox) is the on-screen mastermind behind the game, he dictates where the pairs go, and what they must do and sets their questions. He watches on from the shadows following the pair’s every move, reveling as his often merciless and punishing plans unfold in front of him.
In total, The Controller has hidden 10 questions around the world for each pair, who each have a chance of winning a £1 million.
Find them, answer them, win £1 million… But it won’t be that easy!
To reach these questions, the pairs face gut-wrenching Bond-inspired challenges which will push their physical strength and mental reserves to the limit. Each question is worth an increasing amount of money, if answered correctly, they bank the cash and continue to the next question, get it wrong their journey is over.
From the wilds of the Scottish Highlands and the remote Chilean desert to the bustling streets of Venice and the luxurious Caribbean coastline of Jamaica. Packed with drama, epic locations, nail-biting challenges, and emotions running high, ‘007: Road to a Million’ promises a series that will have you on the edge of your seat.
‘Invincible’ Season 2 official trailer unveiled during New York Comic Con
Season 2 trailer teases multi-verse and dimension jumping
Who are the new characters in season 2?
It’s been over two years since the season one finale of ‘Invincible’. Finally, the second season is just around the corner. The first four episodes will air on November 3rd, with four more episodes releasing in early 2024.
The series, created by Robert Kirkman, premiered its first season on March 25, 2021. Before it was adapted into an animated series, ‘Invincible’ was a comic book series published by Image Comics.
The teaser trailer for season 2 was released on July 21, 2023, announcing the premiere date as well as returning and new voice talents. The official trailer was released during Prime Video’s panel at New York Comic Con.
Season 1 left us with Mark and his dad Omni-Man engaged in a brutal battle. The fight resulted in Omni-man fleeing Earth, and Mark Grayson was left clinging to life. Once Mark has healed in a special hospital. He and his mom Debbie went home to resume their lives, telling everyone that Nolan had passed away in an explosion.
In season 2, we’ll be introduced to new characters as Mark/Invincible faces new enemies, as well as his internal fear that he will turn out just like his father, “When I was a kid, I always wanted to be my dad.” says Mark in the trailer. “What if that happens?”
It seems like things will become quite devastating in this season. Toward the end of the trailer, a destroyed city sets the background as Mark appears on a large screen broadcasting a message to the people of Earth, “the more you resist, the worse this gets. And if you think you can stop us, don’t forget – I’m invincible.”
“For some, the pain will never fade.” The battle between Invincible and Omni-Man may be over for the time being, but as new threats arise while Mark tries to rebuild his life. One of the new villains this season is Angstrom Levy, voiced by Sterling K. Brown. Angstrom Levy is from the comics and has the ability to travel to other universes – so it looks like there’ll be some dimension-hopping this season.
Another character from the comics to be introduced in the upcoming season is the Shapesmith, and just as his name suggests, has the ability to shape-shift. He is a Martian and made his first appearance in Invincible issue #18 in 2004.
‘Invincible’ is created by Robert Kirkman, Cory Walker, and Ryan Ottley. Executive producers for the series are Robert Kirkman, David Alpert, Catherine Winder, Simon Racioppa, Margaret M. Dean, Rogen and Evan Goldberg, with Helen Leigh and Walker as co-executive producers.
Opening in theaters on September 15th before premiering on Prime Video September 22nd is the new biopic ‘Cassandro,’ which is based on the life of lucha libre wrestler Saúl Armendáriz and was directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Roger Ross Williams (‘Music by Prudence’)
‘Cassandro’ director Roger Ross Williams.
What is the plot of ‘’Cassandro’?
When Saúl Armendáriz (Gael García Bernal) starts competing in the macho world of Mexican Lucha Libre wrestling, he’s always cast as the runt. After he meets Sabrina (Roberta Colindrez), Saúl gains not only a professional trainer but also a friend who helps him create a new character in the ring. Together they debut ‘Cassandro,’ a radical subversion of Lucha Libre’s stereotypical role known as the Exótico. Flamboyant and powerful, Cassandro turns lucha on its head. But Cassandro also upends Saúl’s own life, throwing into tumult his relationships with his mother Yocasta (Perla De La Rosa), his secret lover Gerardo (Raúl Castillo), and his absent father Eduardo (Robert Salas).
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Who is in the cast of ‘’Cassandro’?
Gael García Bernal (‘Werewolf by Night‘) as Saúl Armendáriz / Cassandro
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Roger Ross Williams about his work on ‘Cassandro,’ why he wanted to make a movie about the popular Mexican luchador, why Gael García Bernal was the only actor who could play the role, and how his background as a documentary filmmaker uniquely qualified him to direct this particular movie.
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 learning of Saúl Armendáriz’s incredible story and his relentless spirit, why you wanted to make a movie about him and the themes that you wanted to explore?
Roger Ross Williams: The first time I met Cassandro, I went down to interview him and I fell completely in love with him. He has this positivity and inner spirit, inner glow that I just couldn’t believe. He’s so charismatic and he’s so positive. Even the challenges in life, he’s embraced them and used them in his character, and he’s authentically himself. I thought that was just a beautifully inspirational story to tell, and that’s why I wanted to tell the story. I want to make inspirational films, I want to tell inspirational stories about people who’ve overcome great odds. To me, it was about self-love, and he is someone that exemplifies that.
MF: Why was Gael Garcia Bernal the right actor to bring Cassandro’s story to the screen?
RRW: What other actor could play this role? He is one of the greatest actors in Mexico. He had the emotional and the physical chops to take this on, where he learned to wrestle. He spent months working with real luchadors learning to wrestle. He did most of his own stunts himself. It’s like he really threw himself into this role and I knew that that’s the kind of actor he is. So, ever since I saw ‘Y Tu Mamá También,’ and then of course ‘Bad Education,’ I knew that Gael was the actor. There was no other actor who could play this role, so I didn’t stop until I got him to say yes.
MF: Finally, since this is a biopic, do you think that your background in documentary filmmaking uniquely qualified you to make this movie?
RRW: I was open and flexible to, really, changes and creating things, and making magic happen on set, but also I was obsessive about the authenticity of the film. It’s a border story, it’s about a very specific community, it’s about a very specific world of lucha libre, in a very specific place of Juarez and El Paso. So capturing that in an authentic way was so important and so key to the story. I think because I’m a documentarian, those little details that, when I talk to someone either from that community or from the Latinx community, they’re like, “Wow, you nailed it. You got this world so right.” Because I did the research, and I spent time there. I spent time with the real Cassandro, and it was really important to me.
Opening in theaters on September 15th before premiering on Prime Video September 22nd, ‘Cassandro’ introduces mainstream American audiences (at least those who may not have seen 2019 documentary ‘Cassandro, the Exótico!’) to a boundary-pushing Mexican wrestler.
Gael García Bernal plays the main man in affecting and well-rounded fashion, though the movie itself never quite channels the flair of subject Saúl Armendáriz.
When Saúl Armendáriz (Bernal) starts competing in the macho world of Mexican Lucha Libre wrestling, he’s always cast as the runt.
After he meets Sabrina (Roberta Colindrez), Saúl gains not only a professional trainer but also a friend who helps him create a new character in the ring. Together they debut ‘Cassandro,’ a radical subversion of Lucha Libre’s stereotypical role known as the Exótico.
Flamboyant and powerful, Cassandro turns Lucha on its head. But Cassandro also upends Saúl’s own life, throwing into tumult his relationships with his mother Yocasta (Perla De La Rosa), his secret lover Gerardo (Raúl Castillo), and his absent father Eduardo (Robert Salas).
Co-written (with David Teague) and directed by Roger Ross Williams, ‘Cassandro’ takes an understated approach to the world of someone who never was, at least in the ring. Armendáriz’ story is one of struggle and triumph, ego and self-destruction, pride and hope. And, yes, while it has previously been chronicled by the 2019 documentary, that doesn’t detract from the appeal of the movie.
With a nuanced, emotional and typically great central performance by Bernal, the movie is anchored by his portrayal of the man, who suffered rejection from his father and had to hide who he truly was from most of the people around him.
Aside, that is from his doting mother Yocasta, (Perla De La Rosa, proving to be every bit the match for her onscreen son) with whom the young Armendáriz has spent most of his life. Their relationship is one of the highlights of the movie, wreathed with sadness but also joy at their close bond.
When Saul starts to develop the persona that will change the macho world of Lucha Libre, you see him come alive in a way he’s never been able to before. Williams chronicles it all with a steady eye and calm perspective, letting the story unspool in slow-burn style.
There are familiar beats to be found for sure, but Armendáriz’ story is a fascinating one. And refreshingly, the script doesn’t shy away from the fact that despite his game changing impact on his sport, Armendáriz’ fame doesn’t automatically translate into full acceptance in his private life, as his main relationship has to be kept a secret.
This gives the film some extra power and significance, and makes it stand out from others of the genre –– be they sports or other biopics (and it’s for good reason, since we are suddenly, pleasingly inundated with stories about Latino people achieving long-held dreams that offer different takes on the culture). It’s something worth celebrating.
Not everything about the movie works as well as its central performance(s).
The slow, focused approached to Armendáriz’ life works well when it is showing him struggling to find acceptance, working menial jobs or facing barriers in his personal life, but it sticks around for the wrestling scenes, and that only sporadically succeeds.
Cassandro as a character is wild and spontaneous, and the matches might have benefitted from a little more flair to keep up with him. There are fleeting moments where his skill as a wrestler translates (and Bernal clearly threw himself into training to be convincing), but it’s never quite as entertaining as the man himself.
Also, for a story about such a unique real-world character also hits a few of the standard points that you’d expect in a sports biopic such as this, though those are thankfully kept to a minimum.
There will, of course, be concerns about a straight actor such as Bernal playing a gay icon, but he quickly puts aside such worries with his sympathetic portrayal. Outside of that, his affair with a closeted fellow luchador is rarely quite as authentic.
Yet perhaps the biggest issue with the role is not one of sexuality, but of age. While Bernal at 44 does convincingly channel the much younger Armendáriz during his early days (he debuted as a wrestler in his pre-Cassandro era) at the age of 18, and the movie stars there.
It can be distracting at times to see Bernal playing the role, and it might have worked to have someone else play him as a teen (as Williams obviously does when he’s shown as a young boy), so as not to make you wonder why someone of at least 30 is in such a situation.
‘Cassandro’ is certainly an underdog story worth telling, even if the dramatic film that has resulted isn’t always able to properly contain it. But it looks at his life with an unflinching gaze and, when it lets him be himself, and as in Lucha itself, it shines.
‘Cassandro’ receives 7.5 out of 10 stars.
“Cassandro’ will release globally on Prime Video in 2023.
Opening in select theaters on September 8th before premiering on Prime Video on September 15th, ‘A Million Miles Away’ chronicles the fascinating, ambitious true story of José M. Hernández, who went from picking crops with his family as a migrant worker to blasting off on the Space Shuttle.
Michael Peña plays Hernández, with Rosa Salazar as his equally ambitious and talented wife Adela, and the story is one to inspire anyone who dreams of making it to orbit.
‘A Million Miles Away’ follows Hernández and his devoted family of proud migrant farm workers on a decades-long journey, from a rural village in Michoacán, Mexico, to the fields of the San Joaquin Valley, to more than 200 miles above the Earth in the International Space Station.
With the unwavering support of his hard-working parents, relatives and teachers, José’s unrelenting drive & determination culminates in the opportunity to achieve his seemingly impossible goal.
It’s been quite the year for inspirational Latino stories, between ‘Flamin’ Hot’ and now ‘A Million Miles Away’. And if you thought breaking into the world of corporate America’s snack business was hard, try going from picking crops to riding on the Space Shuttle!
Director Alejandra Márquez José, working with co-writers Bettina Gilois and Hernán Jiménez, here adapts Hernández’ book, ‘Reaching for the Stars: The Inspiring Story of a Migrant Farmworker Turned Astronaut’, written with Monica Rojas Rubin.
The raw true story is one that has plenty of fuel for a movie, and Abella brings it to the screen with verve, energy and power. Hernández’ journey to NASA was far from an easy one; a bright child with a talent for math, he was nevertheless forced to move schools a lot at a young age as his family followed where the farm work was to be found. Yet, supported by his parents, he still managed to become and engineer and then, yes, an astronaut, helping to complete construction of the International Space Station.
Peña, who has long stolen scenes in much bigger movies (and has onscreen astronaut experience thanks to ‘The Martian’), here makes for an ideal leading man, his natural exuberance matching well with Hernández’ own.
Around him, the director has cast some great performers, with his family standing out –– not the least of which is Rosa Salazar as his dedicated wife. She’s vibrant and, unlike some biopics where the wife is reduced to standing by their husband or popping out kids at the expense of their own dreams. Adela managed to combine both.
By the time Hernández made it into the Astronaut Candidate program, the couple had five children and Adela was ready to turn her well-honed cooking abilities into running a Mexican restaurant near the Johnson Space Center.
The story is, of course, focused on José, but it doesn’t neglect Adela, charting her own complicated, funny clan, their early dating life and how they coped with challenges (such as José’s string of rejections from NASA –– it took him 12 years just to get into the program).
NASA enthusiasts will enjoy the latest peek at astronaut training procedures, but the story doesn’t simply take off –– pun entirely intended –– when José realizes his dream; it is compelling and entertaining long before he’s glimpsed in the trademark blue jumpsuit.
Adella has crafted a film that makes you root for everyone involved, not just its central figure, and you’d have to have a heart frozen in the depths of space not to have a lump in your throat during certain moments. Watching a real-life story of determination and drive is as emotional as it is rousing.
‘A Million Miles Away’ might not break much new ground when it comes to biopics, but it’s a story worth telling, and it tells it well.
This movie largely sidesteps some common biopic issues –– after all, Hernández’ story is not as well-known as some others.
Still, there are a few issues. Given everything that happens in Hernández’ life, there is a lot to cram into the story between his family life and his career. It can sometimes feel as though you’re watching the movie on fast-forward, as events speed up and we cross several years.
It is, of course, largely unavoidable, given even a generous near two-hour running time, but it’s still jarring at times.
And while the story is a fascinating one (and some moments you might think were added for dramatic emphasis, such as his inspirational elementary school teacher Ms. Young, who ends up attending his launch on Discovery, are completely real), the script does occasionally flirt with cliché, people (who, we can assume were invented for the movie) spouting things that sound like a screenwriter made them up rather than an actual human.
Another noticeable concern is the make-up at different times of the story. We’re supposed to believe that Peña, 47, is Hernández through the use of some make-up and a filter. Some other scenes of the younger Hernández don’t completely convince either, and the same can be said for Salazar when portraying the older Adela Hernández.
Despite any small issues, ‘A Million Miles Away’ is most definitely worth a watch, especially for anyone of any age who is harboring a dream that people are trying to convince them is impossible. Hernández’ drive and grit pulse through the movie, and it certainly finds some fun ways to bring the story to life. And for anyone who might think, ‘well, an inspirational biopic of a real hero isn’t rocket science…’ this time, it actually is.
‘A Million Miles Away’ receives 8 out of 10 stars.
Opening in select theaters on September 8th before premiering on Prime Video on September 15th is the new biopic ‘A Million Miles Away,’ which is based on the book “Reaching for the Stars: The Inspiring Story of a Migrant Farmworker Turned Astronaut” by José Hernández and was directed by Alejandra Márquez Abella (‘The Good Girls’).
What is the plot of ‘A Million Miles Away’?
Inspired by the real-life story of NASA flight engineer José Hernández, ‘A Million Miles Away’ follows him and his devoted family of proud migrant farm workers on a decades-long journey, from a rural village in Michoacán, Mexico, to the fields of the San Joaquin Valley, to more than 200 miles above the Earth in the International Space Station. With the unwavering support of his hard-working parents, relatives and teachers, José’s (Michael Peña) unrelenting drive & determination culminates in the opportunity to achieve his seemingly impossible goal.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with director Alejandra Márquez Abella about her work on ‘A Million Miles Away,’ why she wanted to tell José Hernández’s story, meeting Hernández and his family, working with Michael Peña, casting Rosa Salazar as José’s wife, and making the NASA scenes as authentic as possible.
‘A Million Miles Away’ director Alejandra Márquez Abella.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.
Moviefone: To begin with, what intrigued you about Jose’s Hernández’s real life story, and what were some of the themes that you wanted to explore with this movie?
Alejandra Márquez Abella: Well, the fact that he was a migrant farm worker and astronaut was enough. The apparent contradiction in that sentence was fascinating for me. I wanted to explore not only having such an admirable character because I’ve done more of a despicable character sort of thing before, and I really wanted to explore having a nice guy to portray in front of me. That was a challenge in a way, and I wanted to elevate his story. I wanted everyone to see that you can achieve anything almost.
MF: What kind of research did you do for this project? Did you have a chance to meet Jose, his family, and his friends and colleagues?
AMA: I visited him and his family in Stockton, California. I spent some days with them. I met his kids and his parents. We talked a lot. I saw the Mazda. Then, Michael and I got to visit NASA, so that was a very fun part of the researching stage.
MF: Why was Michael Peña the right actor to bring Jose’s story to the big screen and what was it like for you collaborating with him on this movie?
AMA: Michael is the Mexican American superstar of all times. I think he is other than that, the most amazing, hardworking actor there is. He was such an incredible nerd about this role. He was all into it, and I was impressed how he used to come two weeks before he had a scene and discuss it with me, and he was open to hear whatever I had in mind. So I think we both enjoyed the collaboration a lot. It was a nice time.
MF: Can you talk about Rosa Salazar’s performance as Adela Hernández, and how she really supported José following his dreams?
AMA: When I met the real life Adela, I was shocked. I was impressed because she is a force you can’t imagine. Adela is, I like to say she’s the boosters on Jose. Jose got to leave this planet and go so far because she was behind or by his side making things happen. She had some opinions on the story we were about to tell. So when I was invited to her home, she cooked this really spicy dish and she was letting me know her opinions. So I always remember this anecdote because it was like a mafia kind of, “I’m going to do whatever, Adela. You’re going to be okay in the film, I promise.” Then Rosa, Rosa is like light. When Rosa comes, everything lights up, and I think that happens in the film as well. When she comes into the film, everything is like a hurricane, a revolution, and I just love her sensibility, and her creativity. I think she’s just amazing.
MF: Finally, can you talk about making the NASA sequences as authentic as possible?
AMA: Well, I think the days that we spent in NASA where pivotal. I think we don’t get to see these kind of scenes in astronaut films that much. It’s never about the training, and so we thought it would be interesting to have the new buoyancy lab and the mock-up training building and everything that’s not common in this sort of film and just have it explode in the screen.
We’re more used to seeing Jenna Coleman either running around with Matt Smith (and later Peter Capaldi) in classic British sci-fi series ‘Doctor Who’ or dealing with ruling a country as a young woman in ‘Victoria’.
Bur what if she’s a wife who is cheated on by her husband? New Prime Video series ‘Wilderness’ offers the chance to see her playing a character in just such a dilemma. One who, from the evidence of this, is not ready to forgive or forget…
What’s the story of ‘Wilderness’?
Jenna Coleman as Liv in Prime Video’s ‘Wilderness.’ Copyright: Prime Video
Based on B.E. Jones’ novel of the same name, ‘Wilderness’ features British couple Liv (Coleman) and Will (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) who seem to have it all: a rock-solid marriage; a glamorous new life in New York thousands of miles from their provincial hometown; and still young enough to feel that their whole lives are ahead of them.
Until Liv learns about Will’s affair.
Oliver Jackson-Cohen as Will Taylor in Prime Video’s ‘Wilderness.’ Credit: Kailey Schwerman. Copyright: Prime Video.
Heartbreak is swiftly followed by another emotion: fury. Revenge is her only option, and when Will proposes a trip around some of America’s most beautiful vistas to give their relationship a fresh start (and a hedonistic weekend in Las Vegas as their ultimate destination), Liv knows just how to get it… For Will, it’s a chance to make amends, for Liv, it’s a very different prospect — a landscape where accidents happen all the time.
Whilst in the epic American National Parks, the couple bump into Will’s colleague Cara (Ashley Benson), a young American woman with a glittering career and an adoring boyfriend, Garth (Eric Balfour). Liv’s best-laid plans are wrecked and, as the foursome go hiking together, Cara and Garth soon find themselves enmeshed in Will and Liv’s lives in a way that will change the course of all their future’s forever.
The new series comes from Marnie Dickens, who has worked on shows such as ‘Ripper Street’, ‘The Musketeers’ and ‘Gold Digger’, with Elizabeth Kilgarriff (a veteran of buzzy shows such as ‘Luther’, ‘Bodyguard’ and ‘Poldark’) as executive producer.
So Yong Kim, the director behind movies including ‘For Ellen’ and ‘Lovesong’ and series such as ‘Dr. Death’, ‘Tales from the Loop’ and ‘Roar’, oversaw all six episodes.
This first look at the show is also noticeable for featuring the first chance to hear ‘Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor’s Version)’, the latest re-imagined track from musical superstar Taylor Swift, currently selling out stadiums on her national ‘Eras’ tour.
Marnie Dickens talks ‘Wilderness’
Ashley Benson as Cara in Prime Video’s ‘Wilderness.’ Credit: Kailey Schwerman. Copyright: Prime Video.
Here’s series creator/book adaptor Dickens on the show:
“Who doesn’t know someone who’s been cheated on? That gut punch on discovery, the trail of paranoia and suspicion it leaves behind, the difficulty of trusting again. It’s enough to tip anyone over the edge. And that’s where we meet our heroine, Liv, as she’s lied to over and over by the man she loves. Of course, she wants revenge, and I, for one, hope she gets it.”
‘Wilderness’ lands on Prime Video globally on September 15th.
Prime Video’s ‘Wilderness.’ Copyright: Amazon Studios.
An official teaser trailer for ‘Gen V’ has been released. As a spin-off for the superhero Prime Video series ‘The Boys’, the trailer gives us a look at what we can expect from the upcoming show ahead of its September 29th premiere. The spin-off will follow a group of new students attending Godolkin University – a school named after John Godolkin, where the superpowered can train and learn more about their abilities. Setting the scene, the teaser opens up with familiar faces of A-Train, Queen Maeve, and Homelander, followed by quick flashes of things going terribly wrong.
Just like ‘The Boys,’ the teaser trailer for ‘Gen V’ promises the same amount of blood, gore, and strong language with images of blood, guts, and violent action sequences. While a school welcome announcement calls the university “a safe space to thrive,” the teaser shows just how competitive the students can be. Lead character Marie Moreau who dreams of being the first Black woman in The Seven is told she could be the top-ranking freshman in the history of the school, but given the competitive nature of the school, it will also place a target on her back.
It seems there’ll be more than just a group of highly competitive superpowered students doing the damage in the series, as there’s a line in the trailer alluding to more, “There are dangerous, evil people at that school.” Clancy Brown’s Richard “Rich” Brinkerhoff (also known as Coach Brink) ominous line of “Being a hero is not about glory, it’s about sacrifice,’ hints that not everyone will graduate from Goldolkin University. And from the looks of it, aside from the blood and gore, we’re getting dismembered puppets as well.
The series is set to premiere with three episodes, with subsequent episodes airing weekly.
