#Eddie Murphy Productions

[of-fear-and-love]

Halle Berry in Boomerang (1992)

[redcarpetview]

Eddie Murphy to Receive the Cecil B. deMille Award at the 80th Golden Globe® Awards

Courtesy of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association®.

    The Hollywood Foreign Press Association® (HFPA) has announced that Golden Globe Award® winner and six-time nominee Eddie Murphy will be honored with the coveted Cecil B. deMille Award at the 80th Annual Golden Globe Awards.

     The highly acclaimed star of legendary films such as 48 Hours, Trading Places, Beverly Hills Cop, Coming to America, The Nutty Professor, Dreamgirls, and others will accept the honor at the 2023 Golden Globe Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023 airing live coast-to-coast from 5-8 p.m. PT/8-11 p.m. ET on NBC and streaming on Peacock.

     “We’re honored to present this year’s Cecil B. deMille Award to the iconic and highly esteemed Mr. Eddie Murphy,” said HFPA President, Helen Hoehne. “We’re thrilled to be celebrating the lasting impact on film and television that his career – in front of and behind the camera - has had through the decades.”

     The Cecil B. deMille Award, historically chosen by the HFPA Board of Directors, is presented to a talented individual for their outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment. Past recipients of the Award include Jane Fonda, George Clooney, Morgan Freeman, Oprah Winfrey, Robert De Niro, Audrey Hepburn, Harrison Ford, Jodie Foster, Sophia Loren, Steven Spielberg, Denzel Washington, Robin Williams, Tom Hanks, and more.

    In a career that has spanned five decades, Murphy’s multi-faceted and moving performances, such as his role as singer James Thunder in “Dreamgirls,” have earned him a Golden Globe Award, SAG Award, Emmy Award, and Academy Award nomination.

     Murphy was most recently seen starring in the Amazon streaming hit “Coming 2 America,” the long-awaited sequel to his 1988 box-office hit, as well as portraying legendary underground comic personality Rudy Ray Moore in the Netflix biopic “Dolemite Is My Name,” a performance that garnered him Golden Globes nominations for Best Picture Comedy/Musical and Lead Actor Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

      In 2020, he received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his return to Saturday Night Live.

    Murphy starred in the 1997 hit comedy The Nutty Professor in which he portrayed multiple characters and received Golden Globe and other award nominations. He also was the voice of Donkey in the Oscar-winning animated film Shrek and its sequel, Shrek 2, which is the top-grossing animated film of all time. Murphy won an Annie Award and earned BAFTA and MTV Movie Award nominations for his performance in the first Shrek, and he reprised the role of Donkey in the final installment of the hugely successful franchise, Shrek Goes Fourth.

     Murphy’s additional feature credits include Mulan, Dr. Dolittle, and Dr. Dolittle 2, Life, Bowfinger, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, Daddy Day Care, Norbit, and the drama Mr. Church. Murphy’s upcoming projects include co-starring in the romantic comedy You People and producing and starring in Beverly Hills Cop 4. In 2015, Murphy received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor Award from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

     Produced by Dick Clark Productions and Jesse Collins Entertainment in association with the HFPA, the Golden Globe® Awards are viewed in more than 210 territories worldwide. Helen Hoehne is president of the HFPA. Adam Stotsky, President of dick clark productions, and Barry Adelman, Executive VP of Television at dick clark productions will serve as executive producers.

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[marisatomay]

Eddie Diaz is literally the best Ryan Murphy Productions character since Santana Lopez

[menouthis]

Buddie Karaoke Scenes

In the middle of the deleted karaoke scene debacle, I think people forgot one important fact. Before I talk about that, I understand why they cut off that part. It's mostly cost-benefit. In order to include that scene, they need to pay royalty to the song owner. Normally this isn't a big deal. But this time there's limited space for it (they only got around 1 minute play time they could include in the midst of all the madney contents). In comparison, "Island in the Stream" as performed by JLH and KC has a total of 2m36sec play time. 1 minute is miniscule, probably only 1 or 2 verse of the song can be included.

So from the production POV, it's not worth paying the royalty for the song when they can only include 1 minute play of the song. It's not even worth it for BTS content if they don't have enough footage to cover the song. They'll probably release the footage without the song but I wouldn't hold my breath for it. Personally I'm not too hot of the song choice either. I wanted something more romantic similar to "Island in the stream" and from the 80s. So my hope is that they'll create another karaoke scene in the future that is longer and for more appropriate content (Buck and Eddie episode).

Anyway now I get to the point of the most important part: even though they didn't use the footage, they scripted and shot the footage. In media production, you don't shoot scene just because you feel like it. It takes a lot of efforts, production crew, actors needing time and courage to perform the song, etc. Basically it's a lot of money spent just to shoot the scene. Unless it's intentional and had good reasoning about it, the stakeholders which includes Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuck, and Angela Bassett (she's an EP/Executive Producer btw) will grill production and Tim.

Basically there was an intent to progress Buck and Eddie's relationship and hint of their future direction. Unfortunately there wasn't enough time for it and the hint was already served in the early portions of the episode and the fact that they kept Buck and Eddie together for the majority of the episode. They made sure to show Eddie displaying hints of jealousy/discontentment when he sees Buck and Tommy having physical interaction. They also put Buck and Eddie in partner outfits, where both cosplay as Crockett the queer-coded character from Miami Vice.

There was a reference to The Wedding Singer, a film about two star-crossed lovers who fall in love with each other while engaged to the wrong people. The writing also showed that Eddie was the only one who didn't leave Buck during the Bachelor's party. Eddie was then shown practically all over Buck once everyone had left.  Finally the episode ended up showing Eddie running around with Buck fixing problem they didn't actually caused in the first place (at least not directly). This pretty much a way to highlight the fact that they'll always be there for one another whether it's for fun or in crisis. 

[mazzystar24]

this episode really burnt any last hope i had of buddie actually becoming canon

i just knew they were gonna force bucktommy and then have eddie just be ‘supportive best friend’ but now that it’s actually out there i’m so disappointed

just completely ignoring the past 6 years of buildup between buck and eddie

anyway ig it was fun while it lasted

I wouldn’t lose hope AT ALL

Like yeah they’re pushing buck and Tommy and Eddie and Marisol a little bit but there are SO MANY things that warrant buddie optimism:

• the fact that they gave us bi buck in the first place

• THE INTERVIEWS bro I only saw snippets so far of the newest because travelling and yada yada but in one when asked about Tommy and buck, lou flat out said we should be happy abt bucktommy and that it can be a trial run to work out the kinks if buddie were to go canon and also Ryan saying that as far as Eddie’s sexuality goes, Eddie is very catholic and grew up a certain way but is learning he can explore a little more (aka unlearning comphet🫡) and something about how there is/will be the amount of queer rep expected in a Ryan Murphy/tim minear show (a lot) - I love Ryan sm cos he FEEDS us

• they saw ratings stay HIGH (I think they rose even??) with the Tommy and buck kiss so now all the issues Tim described as being factors to consider when deciding whether to make buddie canon are now non issues- actors= on board, Network and higher ups= love queer rep, Ratings = staying high (and I think rose from the kiss but i don’t wanna misinform)

• Eddie’s whole storyline this episode is just confirming the existence of his catholic guilt, like it’s the most ridiculous stupid storyline they could’ve chose but maybe this was its purpose cos that’s the only thing that makes sense to me

• the parallels and POINTED lines this season are off the charts- as a general rule in film EVERYTHING IS INTENTIONAL think checkovs gun type thing SO MANY LINES just have to mean something

• it seems the leaked script was legit and the fact they scrapped the “brother” line is VERY telling, this means either the script was a draft and they didn’t like it and it didn’t feel right orrr that they edited the line out in post production which could be recent and could mean they waited to see the ratings for the bucktommy kiss before either confirming buddie platonic to please whatever homophobes that popped up or to roll with buddie and not confirm or deny yet

•also we knew Tommy is here briefly

Look maybe I am just delusional and enjoying it but seriously I do NOT think anyone should lose hope at all

Love ya guys and stay delulu comrades🤝🫡🫡

[awardseason]

2023 Critics’ Choice Awards — Film WINNERS

Best Picture “Avatar: The Way of Water”  “Babylon” “The Banshees of Inisherin”  “Elvis”  “Everything Everywhere All at Once” — WINNER “The Fabelmans”  “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”  “RRR”  “Tár”  “Top Gun: Maverick”  “Women Talking” 

Best Actor Austin Butler – “Elvis” Tom Cruise – “Top Gun: Maverick” Colin Farrell – “The Banshees of Inisherin”  Brendan Fraser – “The Whale” — WINNER Paul Mescal – “Aftersun”  Bill Nighy – “Living”

Best Actress Cate Blanchett – “Tár” — WINNER Viola Davis – “The Woman King”  Danielle Deadwyler – “Till”  Margot Robbie – “Babylon”  Michelle Williams – “The Fabelmans”  Michelle Yeoh – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” 

Best Supporting Actor Paul Dano – “The Fabelmans”  Brendan Gleeson – “The Banshees of Inisherin” Judd Hirsch – “The Fabelmans”  Barry Keoghan – “The Banshees of Inisherin” Ke Huy Quan – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” — WINNER Brian Tyree Henry – “Causeway” 

Best Supporting Actress Angela Bassett – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” — WINNER Jessie Buckley – “Women Talking” Kerry Condon – “The Banshees of Inisherin”  Jamie Lee Curtis – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” Stephanie Hsu – “Everything Everywhere All at Once”  Janelle Monáe – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” 

Best Young Actor/Actress Frankie Corio – “Aftersun” Jalyn Hall – “Till”  Gabriel LaBelle – “The Fabelmans” — WINNER Bella Ramsey – “Catherine Called Birdy”  Banks Repeta – “Armageddon Time”  Sadie Sink – “The Whale” 

Best Acting Ensemble “The Banshees of Inisherin” “Everything Everywhere All at Once” “The Fabelmans”  “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” — WINNER “The Woman King” “Women Talking”

Best Director James Cameron – “Avatar: The Way of Water” Damien Chazelle – “Babylon”  Todd Field – “Tár” Baz Luhrmann – “Elvis” Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” — WINNERS Martin McDonagh – “The Banshees of Inisherin” Sarah Polley – “Women Talking”  Gina Prince-Bythewood – “The Woman King”  S.S. Rajamouli – “RRR”  Steven Spielberg – “The Fabelmans” 

Best Comedy “The Banshees of Inisherin” “Bros” “Everything Everywhere All at Once” “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” — WINNER “Triangle of Sadness” “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent”

Best Animated Feature “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” — WINNER “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On” “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” “Turning Red” “Wendell & Wild”

Best Foreign Language Film “All Quiet on the Western Front” “Argentina, 1985” “Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths” “Close” “Decision to Leave” “RRR” — WINNER

Best Original Screenplay Charlotte Wells – “Aftersun” Martin McDonagh – “The Banshees of Inisherin”  Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” — WINNER Steven Spielberg, Tony Kushner – “The Fabelmans” Todd Field – “Tár”

Best Adapted Screenplay Rian Johnson – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”  Kazuo Ishiguro – “Living”  Rebecca Lenkiewicz – “She Said” Samuel D. Hunter – “The Whale” Sarah Polley – “Women Talking” — WINNER

Best Cinematography Russell Carpenter – “Avatar: The Way of Water” Linus Sandgren – “Babylon”  Roger Deakins – “Empire of Light” Janusz Kaminski – “The Fabelmans” Florian Hoffmeister – “Tár” Claudio Miranda – “Top Gun: Maverick” — WINNER

Best Production Design   Dylan Cole, Ben Procter, Vanessa Cole – “Avatar: The Way of Water” Florencia Martin, Anthony Carlino – “Babylon” — WINNER Hannah Beachler, Lisa K. Sessions – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” Catherine Martin, Karen Murphy, Bev Dunn – “Elvis” Jason Kisvarday, Kelsi Ephraim – “Everything Everywhere All at Once”  Rick Carter, Karen O’Hara – “The Fabelmans” 

Best Editing Stephen Rivkin, David Brenner, John Refoua, James Cameron – “Avatar: The Way of Water” Tom Cross – “Babylon”  Matt Villa, Jonathan Redmond – “Elvis”  Paul Rogers – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” — WINNER Monika Willi – “Tár” Eddie Hamilton – “Top Gun: Maverick”

Best Costume Design Mary Zophres – “Babylon” Ruth E. Carter – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” — WINNER Catherine Martin – “Elvis”  Shirley Kurata – “Everything Everywhere All at Once” Jenny Eagan – “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”  Gersha Phillips – “The Woman King”

Best Hair and Makeup “Babylon”  “The Batman”  “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”  “Elvis” — WINNER “Everything Everywhere All at Once”  “The Whale” 

Best Visual Effects “Avatar: The Way of Water” — WINNER “The Batman”  “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”  “Everything Everywhere All at Once”  “RRR” “Top Gun: Maverick” 

Best Song “Lift Me Up” – “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” “Ciao Papa” – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” “Naatu Naatu” – “RRR” — WINNER “Hold My Hand” – “Top Gun: Maverick” “Carolina” – “Where the Crawdads Sing”  “New Body Rhumba” – “White Noise”

Best Score Michael Giacchino – “The Batman” Justin Hurwitz – “Babylon” John Williams – “The Fabelmans”  Alexandre Desplat – “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio”  Hildur Guðnadóttir – “Tár” — WINNER Hildur Guðnadóttir – “Women Talking” 

[rabbitcruiser]

Star Trek Day

People around the world mark Star Trek Day on September 8 to celebrate the legacy of one of the best stories, films, and T.V. shows in history. As one of the most beloved works of pop culture, “Star Trek” still enjoys a loyal fan base even after so many years. Ever since the release of the first T.V. show in the series, the “Star Trek” universe kept garnering attention and wonder at its hope-filled and futuristic vision.

History of Star Trek Day

“Star Trek” was initially conceived as a T.V. series about the cosmos. The first episode was aired in 1966, on September 8, the date of the holiday. Although the ratings of this first series kept dropping throughout the season, later installations proved much more successful. The show was canceled after some years. However, in 1969, reruns of the show helped garner a cult following.

The first “Star Trek” convention was organized in 1972, which was attended by thousands of fans, surprisingly. This attested to the success of the show and the originality of its premise, which later led to the network, Paramount, reviving the series. Paramount produced the “Star Trek” animated series, which won an Emmy Award, as well as The Motion Picture, which performed fairly well at the box office.

The first major success of the Star Trek saga would be “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,” the second film in the series. Star Trek would eventually amass six film productions, all of which are now considered classics. Later on, in 1987, Paramount would reintroduce the Star Trek universe back into television, with the production of “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” As of the 2000s, “Star Trek” is by far the most successful franchise for Paramount, and will continue to release additional installations to the original work. Even now, several “Star Trek”-themed T.V. shows, animated series, and movies are still in production. This cultural significance is what makes “Star Trek” deserving of a dedicated annual celebration.

Star Trek Day timeline

1966

The First Episode

'The Man Trap,' which is the first Star Trek episode, is broadcast.

1980

The First Movie

The Motion Picture is the first “Star Trek” feature film, and is directed by Robert Wise.

1988

“The Next Generation” Begins

One of the most memorable “Star Trek” series, “The Next Generation,” begins its first installation.

2009

The Reboots

“Star Trek” releases the earliest eponymous reboot film, intended to revive the “Star Trek” legacy for younger audiences.

Star Trek Day FAQs

Who is Star Trek’s most popular character?

Although there are many answers to this, and Star Trek fans are constantly debating this point, Mr. Spock is largely considered the most famous character in all of the series.

What was Captain Kirk’s catchphrase?

Captain Kirk, played largely by William Shatner, is by far the main protagonist of the series. However, he didn’t have a catchphrase.

Did Captain Kirk ever meet Archer?

Captain Kirk started out very young; Archer was around 40 years old at that time and so the two never meet.

Star Trek Day Activities

Binge watch the series: Star Trek is considered one of the greatest media franchises in the world. It offers amazing stories and an expansive universe. Watching the series and its productions is one of the best ways to celebrate this special day.

Host watching parties: Watching parties are incredibly popular amongst loyal Trekkies. It is one of the best ways to share your passion for this series, as well as to discover the great stories it offers.

Attend the convention: Star Trek Day is usually celebrated as part of the “Star Trek” Convention. Attending this event will put you at the center of “Star Trek” related festivities. Make sure you check out all the organized events and participate.

5 Interesting Facts About “Star Trek”

Captain Spock was originally red: In the original screenplays, Captain Spock was supposed to have red skin but was later changed.

Eddie Murphy turned down a role: Eddie Murphy was going to be cast in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home,” but he turned down the role.

The only person to play himself: Stephen Hawking, the American cosmologist, is the only person to play himself in the series, “The Next Generation.”

A Royal fan: Abdullah II, the King of Jordan, is a huge fan and even has a silent cameo appearance in the Voyager episode, “Investigations.”

William Shatner has never watched the series: Although he played a protagonist role, William Shatner has never watched the series.

Why We Love Star Trek Day

It’s one of the most recognizable series: Star Trek is still one of the most recognizable series in the history of T.V. and cinema. It is still an important part of pop culture and yields an important fan base. This celebration is indeed a recognition of the series’ significance.

“Star Trek” is fun to watch: It has amazing stories and is very fun to watch. If you’re wondering what to binge-watch next, “Star Trek” is definitely a winning choice.

Popular among different generations: “Star Trek” is one of the very few series that can yield fans from different generations. Be it the original series, the great movies produced in the ‘80s, or the recent reboots, “Star Trek” indeed offers something for everyone.

Source

[the-plot-blog-thing]

For Fun: Here's My Favorite Disney Songs That Were Deleted/Changed In The Final Film (Part 4)

"Someday" was meant to be Esmeralda's song in Hunchback of Notre Dame, but was replaced by "God Help the Outcasts" in the final version. It was sung over the credits, however, and both would be sung in the stage adaptation.

"Shooting Star" was the original "I Want" song from Hercules, but was cut for being "too soft". I could take either or, but "Go the Distance" is still a classic.

"I Can't Believe My Heart" was Meg's original song. It was cut for similar reasons as "Shooting Star". I definitely prefer the version we got.

Stephen Schwartz, who wrote the lyrics for Pocahontas and Hunchback with Alan Menken as well as all the music for Wicked, was originally tapped to write the music for Mulan. He left early in production to work on the music for "The Prince of Egypt" at DreamWorks. "Written In Stone" is the only song of his version available to listen to. It would've been in the spot where "Reflection" exists in the final film.

Speaking of "Reflection", when composers Matthew Wilder and David Zippel joined the film after Schwartz left, they wrote a much longer version of the song. The fact that this version is not in the film is a crime.

"Keep 'Em Guessin'" would've been Mushu's song as he introduces himself to Mulan, but Eddie Murphy's dialogue worked much better, and made things much more succinct. The song is enjoyable imo, tho.

Famously, Disney was working on a film set to release in late 2000 called Kingdom of the Sun. It was a sort of an Incan retelling of The Prince and the Pauper, with some magic and gods thrown in for good measure. It was supposed to be another grand musical on the scale of The Lion King, even sharing its co-director, Roger Allers. To match that scale, they brought in musician Sting to write the songs, thinking he'd bring the same energy that Elton John brought to Lion King's songs. Sting and co-composer David Hartley wrote three songs for this version. The first, "Walk the Llama Llama", would've been the opening song. It was to be sung by the main character, Pacha (here played by Owen Wilson), a teenage llama herder who coincidentally looks exactly like the spoiled teenaged Emperor Manco (played by David Spade). The song is Pacha expressing his love for the llama as he herded them. Pacha's singing voice would've been Sting himself in the final film. There also would've been a reprise halfway through the film and at the end, though nothing from these reprises has appeared online. Unfortunately, the only clean version of the song is this country-fied version by Rascal Flats on the Emperor's New Groove soundtrack.

The second song, "Snuff Out the Light", would have been sung by the villain of the film, Yzma (as played by Eartha Kitt). In this version, Yzma would have been an aging sorceress who hated the sun for causing her wrinkles. She would've discovered that Manco and Pacha swapped, and turned the real Pacha into a non-speaking llama. She would've manipulated Pacha into doing what she wanted. She planned to summon the Dark God, Supai to block out the sun so she wouldn't grow old. This song was fully recorded, and the sequence had quite a bit of animation finished on it before the story changed.

The third song, "One Day She'll Love Me" would have been the love song of the film, and been sung by Pacha and the emperor's betrothed, Nina. Pacha has fallen in love with Nina, but feels guilty for living a lie. Nina is starting to fall in love with him, but still believes he's Manco, and doesn't know why he's changing.

Continued in Part 5!

[hit-song-showdown]

Year-End Poll #37: 1986

[Image description: a collage of photos of the 10 musicians and musical groups featured in this poll. In order from left to right, top to bottom: Dionne Warwick, Lionel Richie, Klymaxx, Patti LaBelle, Mr. Mister, Whitney Houston, Eddie Murphy, Survivor, Mr. Mister, Robert Palmer. End description]

More information about this blog here

R&B is having its moment, as is the rise of adult contemporary, a genre with stylistic roots in soft rock and easy listening. The charity single is also continuing to be a popular staple of the decade, with Dionne Warwick, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and Gladys Knight coming together to record That's What Friends Are For to raise money for the American Foundation for AIDS Research. Adult contemporary tracks have been charted by Billboard since the 1960's, but the genre will really reach its commercial peak in the 1980's. We even see some of the characteristics of the genre (slow tempo, lush production, specific keyboard/synth sounds, etc) appearing in some new wave tracks.

1986 also marks the rising popularity of "The Voice", Whitney Houston. While there was a lot of hype behind her in the music industry, her earlier singles found some difficulty taking off in the States. As I mentioned in a previous poll, MTV had an issue with refusing to play videos by Black artists, and Whitney's music was victim to that. Although, she has stated that the rejection was mostly from her music being too R&B for the channel. However, How Will I Know was released and the colorful music video was put into MTV's heavy rotation, introducing Whitney to a much wider audience.

[belleandkurtbastian]

I agree in principle with “Buck and Eddie hooking up at the bachelor party would be cheating and bad and a horrible thing to do to Tommy and Marisol” takes…

HOWEVER, the issue I have is that this exact storyline is something I have seen Ryan Murphy Productions do with its queer characters just… eleven years ago…

in S4 of Glee, Kurt has a new boyfriend, and then at a wedding he hooks up with Blaine, while stating that he’s unsure about his and Adam’s relationship status.

… to be clear, I am 100% certain that this ISN’T going to happen in 9-1-1, but the echoes of it are just… weird.

[imagitory]

Just for the record, guys? I've seen the new Haunted Mansion movie multiple times now, and it's really good. Like -- really good. It's like the filmmakers took into account all of the problems I had with the Eddie Murphy film after my mum and I first saw it in theaters back in 2003 while working on their project.

In the Eddie Murphy film, I felt like just about everyone -- excluding the actors playing Edward Gracey and the butler -- were miscast. The child actors weren't that great, the two servant ghosts weren't that memorable (aside from Wallace Shawn reminding me of Vizzini the entire time), Jennifer Tilly as Madame Leota was as terrible of a casting choice as Kristen Chenowith playing Maleficent (sorry, Descendants fans, but -- what??), and Eddie Murphy himself...yeesh. Worst of all though, the woman playing Eddie Murphy's wife was a wooden plank of an actor, which made it so hard to engage with her when she's arguably one of the most important characters in the narrative.

In this film, just about every single person is perfectly cast. Every last one. Danny DeVito, Rosario Dawson...even Owen Wilson surprised me! Chase Dillon as Travis...that kid is going places, I'm saying it now! LaKeith Stanfield in particular was absolutely stellar: I even cried at one point, watching his performance, when I almost never cry at movies. Even Jared Leto -- who I admittedly don't know if I would've hired, given his history -- wasn't a bad choice, just as an actor. He certainly gave off "unlikable creep" vibes as the Hatbox Ghost -- so hey, I guess we have type casting, at least! I admittedly wouldn't have picked Jamie Lee Curtis to play Madame Leota, but she was still an infinitely better choice than Jennifer Tilly.

In the Eddie Murphy film, it leaned a lot on slapstick and pop culture humor, as opposed to any of the macabre dark comedy that the Haunted Mansion ride is known for. Eddie Murphy's style of humor really just didn't fit in with the tone of the original ride and the objectively beautiful Gothic sets the filmmakers had designed.

Yes, admittedly, the new Haunted Mansion movie uses pop culture references too (often in the form of rather forced product placements), but I won't lie, they still got a chuckle out of me, particularly since they weren't the only source of humor in the film. There were snappy retorts, cynical asides, subverted expectations, and -- of course -- dark humor, on tone with the ride. One rather funny bit ends up involving Ben and Father Kent trying and failing to convince elderly Bruce not to come to the Mansion after the old man says he's having heart surgery the following week, and later on, Bruce gets the particularly macabre one-liner "I'm too old to die!" right as he's being thrown in front of a speeding truck. We have Bruce cracking a joke to offer comfort during a really heartbreaking scene, rather than just to divert attention away from Ben's grief. We even have the rhyming headstones at one point!

The Eddie Murphy film focused way too much on Eddie Murphy's character being a "bad" father for working so much, rather than the way more interesting ghost story about Master Gracey and Elizabeth. We also get almost no references to the Haunted Mansion-canon characters aside from "Master Gracey" and Madame Leota.

In this new film, the backstories and personalities of the human characters tie INTO the story line with the ghosts, rather than distracting from it. Ben's dealing (very badly) with the grief of losing his wife Alyssa, which makes him particularly vulnerable to the Hatbox Ghost's machinations. Gabbie and Travis are similarly coming to grips with the loss of their husband/father. Travis is also having to contend with being the new kid in town and not having any friends while living in this haunted house that makes both things even harder. "Father Kent" gets hired to do an exorcism for Gabbie and Travis, only to get trapped by the ghosts himself, when he's not even a real priest, but he ends up using his own skill for persuasion and his strong emotional intelligence to bring in the other people they need to stop the Hatbox Ghost. Bruce has been obsessed with the lore surrounding the Mansion and similarly haunted houses for years, which makes him a valuable resource for exposition about the Mansion and later about the Hatbox Ghost's backstory. Harriet, as the resident medium, not only serves as the main combatant force against the Hatbox Ghost at the end since she has the power to banish him, but she gives great exposition about how our world fits in with the spirit world and this universe's "rules" about how they relate to each other. I kind of miss any real use of the Ghost Host, and I admittedly don't love this film's interpretation of Constance Hatchaway, since in the ride she's much more greedy and conniving, rather than just a flat-out maniac (plus, I'm sorry, but the story has both a ghost who chops people's heads off and another ghost who lost their head via decapitation and didn't connect their backstories together??) -- but we still have WAY more love for both the Disneyland and Walt Disney World's incarnations of the ride in this film than in its predecessor. There are even references to the creepy wallpaper and the bat-gargoyle stanchions in the queues!

And then there was my biggest gripe with the Eddie Murphy film -- that at the end, the curse is broken and all the little ghosts are "set free," leaving the "Haunted Mansion" largely abandoned. You know -- when the whole POINT of the Haunted Mansion is that it's filled with 999 happy haunts who want to be there? It'd be like ending a Pirates of the Caribbean film with Captain Jack Sparrow joining the Navy! Yeah, screw that -- this new film has their ghosts stay and make themselves comfy alongside their new living residents. Talk about an awesome fantasy for kids -- I would've loved living in a house like this Mansion, full of fun happy haunts who host rocking parties every Halloween!

But yeah -- I wouldn't say this film is perfect, of course...but if you're a fan of the Haunted Mansion ride, and want a film that captures its sense of creepy, Gothic beauty and dark humor without being needlessly gory or graphic, there's a damn good chance you'll love this. I know this movie should've been released in October and it's not really the "spooky time of year" right now, but please consider giving it some support in theaters, where the actors and writers who deserve your love will get a larger piece of the profit pie for their hard work than when films go to streaming.

[outrunningthedark]

Um does Oliver even have control over his IG anymore? It's all work stuff. He posted his dog on his photography account the other day lol. I really think the big account is just a promo thing right now, not Oliver, so this is definitely the time when no should be looking into his posts on there.

Thank you! Even if it's Oliver posting because he gets a reminder (a post takes all of a minute at most, not out of the question) the main account has kept the promo as generic as possible. If there's Buddie content to be found, it's because of a trailer that he had no hand in piecing together, not because he's sharing the pic of Eddie with his hand on Buck's shoulder or something from the basketball scene to let us know Ryan is part of it, too. With how much ABC is (apparently) banking on Ryan Murphy Productions to become the next Shondaland, it can't come as a surprise that the cast's public social media pages are going to keep reminding followers to tune in next month. We may not be the majority, but every little bit helps.

[a-blog-for-venting-i-guess]

Watches Haunted Mansion 2023 with friends: Yeah that was alright. Product placement was insane though, took away from the serious scenes. Also it was too dark. Like literally could not see much.

Immediately watches the 2003 version with the same friends: omg that was way better, you can actually see what’s happening, the mansion set is amazing, it’s funny, and it was weirdly wholesome. The jumpscares got us good too.

My big takeaway from the experience is that the new movie suffered from fragmentation, being way too dark (likely to hide bad cgi but still), the weird Hollywood thing now where jokes and plot scenes have to be harshly separated instead of allowed to organically happen as the story progresses, and no real emotional investment. It’s hard to care when the main person with an actually tragic backstory interrupts said backstory with a Baskin Robbins ad. It doesn’t come across like the guy is telling the story and that was one of the details, it’s like it was crammed into the script. But that criticism aside, the Eddie Murphy movie was about a dad learning to put family first. What it meant to truly love them. Especially his wife, who he’d especially taken for granted.

There’s a small detail in the script that probably should’ve gotten fleshed out more, where the dad tells his daughter he works so much so he can give her and the family a better life than what he had. And the daughter is like, “wow dad, I didn’t know you had a bad childhood,” and he immediately gets defensive, saying his childhood wasn’t bad. It shows that it’s not that his life was ever hard, he’s just obsessed with prestige. Just like the main villain. Ultimately the dad is able to recognize he can’t give up so easily like he’d done before with working right before the family trip, even if it means losing something he thought he really valued, and without hesitation ruins his BMW to save his family, but the butler can’t get on that level and gets dragged to hell.

It’s not groundbreaking by any stretch but it’s something. Like, there’s an emotional through line there. A character arc.

Compare that to the 2023 version where there’s more this overall theme of, moving on and overcoming grief. And finding strength with others. Again, not groundbreaking but the difference is emotional investment. The movie takes itself more seriously but loses the connection because we only find out what happened to the guy’s wife like well over an hour into it and the bloated cast puts other reveals on the back burner too. Like the priest being a fraud or the fortuneteller’s self worth bit. The priest thing doesn’t get introduced until right before the final confrontation and no one really cares, meanwhile the fortuneteller finds her confidence, OFFSCREEN!

Instead of developing our cast or having them actually interact with the GHOSTS in a HAUNTED MANSION (beyond asking for plot details), we go on a detour to find out who the bad guy is, what his backstory was, and where his hat is. And on this detour we find out he was a horrible no good very bad man so don’t feel bad when he’s dragged down to green hell at the end.

Last note, interesting how both films ended on the saints go marching in and during the day vs at night.

Last last note, Haunted mansion 2023 just didn’t click with me for a variety of reasons. While haunted mansion 2003 isn’t a perfect movie. It’s got issues, I think the mom should’ve figured out the home owner was off way sooner and why didn’t the butler burn the letter, but I like it’s heart.

[elliehopaunt]

By Matt Grobar

EXCLUSIVE: Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary), Timothy V. Murphy (Appaloosa) and Bruce Greenwood (The Fall of the House of Usher) have boarded The Fabulous Four, a new comedy from Bleecker Street, which has entered production in Georgia under an Interim Agreement from SAG-AFTRA.

The actors join an ensemble that also includes Susan Sarandon, Bette Midler, and Megan Mullally, as previously announced. Ralph takes over the role of Sissy Spacek, who was attached as of last fall but was forced to drop out due to scheduling conflicts. Bleecker Street nabbed North American rights to the pic last October and will release the film in U.S. theaters in 2024. UTA Independent Film Group and CAA Media Finance arranged the financing and brokered the deal for U.S. rights, with Sierra/Affinity repping international sales.

Written and directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse, the Cannes prize-winner best known for her Kate Winslet pic The Dressmaker, the film follows three life-long friends (Sarandon, Mullally, and Ralph) who travel to Key West, Florida to be bridesmaids in a surprise wedding of their college girlfriend Marilyn (Midler). Once there, sisterhoods are rekindled, the past rises up again in all its glory, and there are enough sparks, drinks and romance to change all their lives in ways they never expected.

Richard Barton Lewis’ Southpaw Entertainment is producing alongside Lauren Hantz of Hantz Motion Pictures.

An icon of stage and screen, Ralph has won an Emmy and numerous other accolades for her portrayal of kindergarten teacher Barbara Howard on Abbott Elementary, the ABC mockumentary that has emerged as one the most popular scripted series on linear. The show, created by and starring Quinta Brunson, was renewed for a third season in January but only recently returned to the writers’ room, following the conclusion of the WGA strike. Otherwise perhaps best known for her Tony-nominated turn as Deena Jones in Broadway’s Dreamgirls, Ralph has also been seen in Mistress with Robert de Niro, To Sleep with Anger with Danny Glover, The Distinguished Gentlemen with Eddie Murphy, and Sister Act 2 with Whoopi Goldberg, along with such series as Moesha and Ray Donovan.

Most recently recurring on Law & Order: Organized Crime and ABC’s The Company You Keep, Murphy previously reprised his role in Uni’s comedy MacGruber on the same-name Peacock series. Other recent credits for the actor on the TV side include S.W.A.T., Snowpiercer, Westworld, and True Detective, to name just a few. Additional feature credits include In Full Bloom, The Lone Ranger, and National Treasure: Book of Secrets.

Greenwood puts in a stellar turn as Fortunato Pharmaceuticals CEO Roderick Usher in Netflix’s Edgar Allen Poe-inspired miniseries The Fall of the House of Usher from Mike Flanagan, which bowed on the platform earlier this month. He also recently starred in the Fox medical drama The Resident, which ran for six seasons, and will soon appear in fantasy pic The Invisibles with Tim Blake Nelson and Gretchen Mol, among other projects.

At this year’s Toronto Film Festival, Bleecker Street nabbed U.S. rights to James Hawes’ One Life, starring Anthony Hopkins, and the starry British comedy Fackham Hall, which goes into production next year. The company also locked down UK rights, alongside Elysian Film Group and Anonymous Content, to Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron. Upcoming releases include the Meg Ryan-helmed rom-com What Happens Later, coming to theaters November 3, which she leads with David Duchovny, and Sara Bareilles and Jessie Nelson’s Waitress: The Musical, out December 7 with Fathom Events.

[scotianostra]

Happy Birthday Scottish actor Richard Wilson.

Born Ian Colquhoun Wilson,July 9th 1936 in Greenock, he went on to study science there before completing his National Service in Singapore with the Royal Medical Army Corps. Wilson was a late convert to acting as he worked as a research scientist in Glasgow until the age of 27. He then trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) in London. Before his most famous role as Victor Meldrew, he participated in theatre productions in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester. He also directed several plays.

After several bit parts in TV shows including The Sweeney and Some Mothers Do Have 'Em' in 1978, he portrayed a regular character in the show A Sharp Intake of Breath'with David Jason between 1977 and 1980. This was followed by lead roles in the show High and Dry in 1985, and Hot Metal in 1988. It was in between these two series that I first noticed Richar Wilson in the fantastic BBC Scotland series Tutti Frutti with a host of other Scots, including Robbie Coltrane, Maurice Roëves and Katy Murphy, Richard was Eddie Clockerty, the group's devious and exploitative manager, I remember fondly the scenes he shared with Kate Murphy as his lippy secretary Miss Toner.

Wilson then won his most famous role as Victor Meldrew, although he initially turned down the part as he was younger than the character, in the sitcom One Foot in the Grave. The line 'I Don't Believe It' became the character's catchphrase, the show ran for ten years before they finally bumped him off

After One Foot in the Grave, Wilson enjoyed roles in 'High Stakes' and Life As We Know It' in 2001. Between 2002 and 2004, he appeared in several TV movies including Jeffrey Archer: The Truth and King of Fridges

Wilson returned to a recurring TV show in the form of Born and Bred' between 2004 and 2005 and has since made the transition from a grumpy old man to a wise, old apothecary in Merlin, which debuted in 2008 and finished in 2012. Since then he has been picky with his roles and not appeared in too many shows, however a wee look at Indb tells me he has two projects on the go just now, Everything I Ever Wanted to Tell My Daughter About Men also stars Alan Cummings and How Sweetly it turns.

Richard has devoted his time to working for the gay rights campaign group Stonewall he is also a patron for the Scottish Youth Theatre and has been a long-term supporter of the charity Sense.

Wilson was planning to reprise the iconic character of Victor Meldrew for one night only at The Edinburgh Fringe a few years back but in the run-up to the event the actor suddenly fell ill and had to pull out.

It was later revealed he suffered a heart attack but remembers nothing of it. He told BBC Radio 2′s Graham Norton:

“I had a heart attack and fell off a balcony. I don’t remember a thing about it.The great thing about the accident – I’m going to mention because I’d love to know who it was – the great thing about the accident is that there was a doctor walking by, and if he hadn’t been walking by, I wouldn’t be talking to you now"

The veteran actor is still working, latest roles have been in Around the World in 80 Days in 2021, A new film, Sweetly It Turns is next for Wilson.