Plans are afoot for a new James Bond; a feminist icon featured in the terrific doc Still Working 9 to 5 tells us how she deals with setbacks; Stacey Abrams has some thoughts on whether Hollywood should boycott Georgia (and about 25 other states.) All in today’s Movie News Rundown.
Watch Coast With Us Tonight: Join me and the team behind Coast tonight at 5:30 PT/8:30 ET. You can RSVP by going here and entering your email address, or by texting GO to 805-716-6947 to receive updates straight to your phone, or on Facebook. Coast is a punk DIY story about a high school girl who falls for the singer of a band stranded in her central coast California town. You can watch the trailer here.
Fun Fact: The film’s star, Fatima Ptacek (pictured), was previously best known as the voice of Dora the Explorer. She’ll be among the panelists tonight, along with directors and stars Mia Frampton, Mia Xitlali and Eduardo Roman.
MovieMaker Production Services: The film was made with the help of our production services wing, which you can learn more about here. We’d love to help you save money making your movie.
Carol Burnett on Better Call Saul: Though we broke the news that Burnett will guest star on our favorite show, we don’t know who she’ll play. The Better Call Saul subreddit is full of interesting guesses. My favorite? Kim Wexler’s mom.
Bond Gettin’ Reinvented: James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli said at a private London event attended by Deadline that a new Bond movie is a good two years away, that no one has been cast as 007, and that it will be, you guessed it, a reinvention. “We’re working out where to go with him, we’re talking that through,” she told Deadline. “There isn’t a script and we can’t come up with one until we decide how we’re going to approach the next film because, really, it’s a reinvention of Bond.”
Not That Anybody Asked: I did not like the last Bond movie. Terrible ending. No buildup at all to the colossal thing they did or narrative reason for it to happen. Also the movie was boring for long stretches. I liked the opening and the Ana de Armas section, though. Can she just be Bond?
Ana de Armas, the highlight of the latest Bond film, No Time to Die
Stacey Abrams on Ditching Georgia: Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams talks in this Variety interview about whether film productions should ditch Georgia and other states with limited or non-existent access to abortions. In the past, her organization has urged customers to “stay and fight.”
What Does She Say Now? “My very strong belief is that the film industry is vital in the state, and I intend to be a governor who will keep business and keep the entertainment industry here in Georgia,” she told Variety. “But we have to do so with a fervent belief in reproductive rights because of who works in this industry. So, my response to what businesses should do, is that every single business, every single woman needs to do what they feel is best for them.”
May I Editorialize? Stay and fight.
Dolly Is a Double-Edged Sword: The filmmakers of Still Working 9 to 5, a great new documentary about 9 to 5 and the issues raised by the film, were thrilled when they got interviews with 9 to 5 stars Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin. But there was a surprise drawback: Investors and others wrongly believed the production must be flush with cash. It isn’t. You can listen to our interview with the filmmakers on Apple, Spotify or here:
How a Feminist Icon Stays Motivated: The doc also features feminist icons like Zoe Nicholson, who has spent much of her life fighting for the Equal Rights Amendement. We asked her on the podcast how she stays motivated through setbacks like the reversal of Roe v. Wade. “Change comes and goes in waves,” she said. “All I have to say now to the 21-year-old to the 18-year-old who just thinks it’s the end of the world, [is] this is how the world actually works. It’s high surf, and you need a long board. This is exactly how it works, and I stay motivated because I know that.” Nicholson has had a fascinating life that includes leaving the Catholic Church because it wouldn’t let her be a priest, and you can learn more about it here.
Halyna Hutchins’ Last Film: Indiewire has a fascinating piece about Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer Alec Baldwin accidentally shot on the set of Rust. It turns out the 42-year-old had also been working on another film at the time of her death, an untitled period piece about a woman who “flees Victorian Ireland and must survive as a bounty hunter along the harsh terrain of the American frontier,” according to a synopsis by director Dennis Hauck, who is trying to raise money to shoot the remaining scenes. The film was shot in 65 mm. “She was definitely one of those DPs that lived and breathed filmmaking,” Hauck told Indiewire. “She had no ego. She just wanted to talk to everybody and learn everything she could.”
That Logline, Though: I would 100 percent see a film about a woman who flees Victorian Ireland and must survive as a bounty hunter along the harsh terrain of the American frontier.
Afterlife Afterlife: The Ghostbusters reboot Ghostbusters: Afterlife, which was totally unnecessary but which I nonetheless totally enjoyed, will have a sequel out in December 2023, The Hollywood Reporter reports from Hollywood.
Main image: Fatima Ptacek in Coast.
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