News, buzz & rumours
THE DORK SIDE OF THE FORCE
Like any extreme cult, hardcore Star Wars fans are proving to be the galaxy’s most punishing bunch. After they bullied The Last Jedi star Kelly Marie Tran off of social media with racist and misogynistic rhetoric, another sect of Lucasloving mouth-breathers are now attempting to raise $200 million (U.S.) to reshoot the film in its entirety. Yes, an anonymous campaign called “Remake the Last Jedi” sees a group of Rian Johnson haters attempting to raise enough money to create a high-budget proxy of the film — somehow wrangling the franchise’s expensive rights from Disney in the process.
QUITE A PACE
Scott Beck and Bryan Woods pulled off what seemed impossible by writing a terrifying horror movie with virtually no sound in A Quiet Place. Hoping to maintain their streak of excellence, the pair are set to adapt Stephen King’s short story The Boogeyman. Published in 1973 as part of King’s Night Shift collection, the story was made into a short film in 1982, but the Quiet boys are turning it into a feature. They made us scared of talking to our loved ones, so we’re pretty sure they can pull it off.
FIVE-SECOND RULE
Hollywood is enacting big changes in grappling with myriad #MeToo scandals, and part of that includes updated sexual harassment policies. According to The Sun, a new rule for Netflix productions suggests that crew members can’t make eye contact for more than five seconds. “Looking at anyone longer than five seconds is considered creepy,” a runner from the Black Mirror set told the British tabloid. “It has sparked jokes, with people looking at each other, counting to five, then diverting their eyes.”
DRE AND GAYE
From F. Gary Grey to Lenny Kravitz to Julien Temple, many have attempted a Marvin Gaye biopic and failed. That said, with his piles of Beats money and can-do attitude, Dr. Dre might have better luck. According to Variety, Dre has secured the rights to Gaye’s music and is currently in “the early stages of getting the project off the ground.”
NFB EQUITY
The National Film Board of Canada is making big strides toward achieving workplace equity. Having previously allocated half of its budget for women directors, the organization has now backed 35 projects from Indigenous directors. That’s just for the first year of its Indigenous Action Plan — the three-year goal for the move is to have 15 percent of all funds allocated to Indigenous projects by 2020.