Film News Roundup: Scoot McNairy Joins Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’
In today’s film news roundup, Scoot McNairy becomes the newest cast member of Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” and deals close for “40 Years in the Making: The Magic Music Movie” and “1985.”
CASTING
Scoot McNairy has been cast in Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” opposite Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt.
The drama, set against the backdrop of the Manson Family murders, hits theaters on Aug. 9, 2019 — the 50th anniversary of the murders of actress Sharon Tate and four others at the hands of Manson’s followers.
DiCaprio will play Rick Dalton, former star of a western TV series, while Pitt will play his longtime stunt double, Cliff Booth. McNairy will play the role of a fictional cowboy named Business Bob Gilbert, a character in the western TV series. The cast also includes Margot Robbie, Timothy Olyphant, Luke Perry, Damian Lewis, Dakota Fanning, Al Pacino, Emile Hirsch, Clifton Collins Jr, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Keith Jefferson and Nicholas Hammond.
McNairy portrayed Joe Stafford in best picture winner “Argo” and starred for four seasons on AMC’s “Halt and Catch Fire.” He’s in a lead role in the third season of HBO’s “True Detective” and is starring in “Destroyer” opposite Nicole Kidman, “The Parts You Lose” opposite Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and “The Sound of Philadelphia.”
McNairy is repped by WME and The Group. The news was first reported by Deadline Hollywood.
ACQUISITIONS
Paladin has acquired the music documentary “40 Years in the Making: The Magic Music Movie” for an Aug. 3 national theatrical release.
The Orchard will follow with a digital release on Sept. 4. Lee Aronsohn (“Two and a Half Men,” “Big Bang Theory”) directed as part of his own mission to reunite the scattered members of the elusive jam band, Magic Music, in the hopes of getting them to play one last show. The Orchard will also release the film’s soundtrack.
“40 Years in the Making” has screened at Woodstock, Napa, Newport, Richmond, Florida, and Boulder Film Festivals. The band was based near Boulder, Co., and lived in a makeshift camp in the mountains. They gained acclaim for their original songs and light harmonies but they never signed a record deal and eventually broke up in 1975.
Producers are Fleur Saville and Jeff Jampol and executive producers are Aronsohn and Lisa Haisha.
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Wolfe Releasing has acquired Yen Tan’s “1985,” starring Cory Michael Smith, Virginia Madsen, Michael Chiklis and Jamie Chung, for a theatrical release in October.
The Texas-set family drama had its world premiere at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival. The film was produced by Hutch and Ash Christian and inspired by Tan’s short film of the same name about a closeted young man — played by Smith — returning to his Texas hometown for Christmas during the first wave of the AIDS crisis.
Burdened by a tragedy in New York, he struggles to divulge his dire circumstances to his religious parents (Madsen and Chiklis). The deal was negotiated by Jim Stephens of Wolfe Releasing and Paradigm’s Derek Kigongo on behalf of the filmmakers.
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RockYou Media has acquired editorial brands CafeMom, Revelist, MamásLatinas and BabyNameWizard from CafeMedia.
“RockYou Media continues to scale our business by acquiring proven digital brands,” said Lisa Marino, CEO, RockYou Media. “Pairing compelling stories with passionate video content, our new properties are thriving and continue to reach diverse audiences throughout all stages of life.”
CafeMom is a motherhood-focused platform; Revelist has fashion and beauty content for millennial women; MamásLatinas is a digital destination for bilingual and bicultural Latinas; and BabyNameWizard is a site for expectant parents looking for baby names.
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