The Little Things Still Going Strong
Box Office Mojo reports crime thriller The Little Things remained at the top of the weekend box office, grossing $2,1 million in its third week in cinemas. This is hardly surprising, considering the lack of any real competition in the US cinemas. The Little Things was written and directed by John Lee Hancock, best known for his sports movies (The Rookie, The Blind Side) and period dramas (Saving Mr. Banks, The Founder). The movie stars Denzel Washington (Training Day) as a country sheriff teaming up with an LAPD detective (Rami Malek – Mr. Robot) investigating a repair station worker (Jared Leto – Blade Runner 2049) who might be a serial killer. Up till now, The Little Things earned $7,8 million domestically.
The list of the top five highest-grossing movies of the weekend remains pretty much unchanged from previous weeks. In second place with almost $1,7 million is the unshakeable The Croods: A New Age. After eleven weeks, this CGI-animated family-friendly adventure earned $46 million in US cinemas. Liam Neeson’s action film The Marksman dropped to third place with almost $1 million. After four weeks, its current domestic gross stands at a bit over $9 million. Wonder Woman 1984 earned $905,000 last weekend, bringing its total US gross a bit above $40 million. And in fifth place is once more Thomas W. S. Anderson’s science-fiction actioner Monster Hunter with $586,000 and total domestic earnings of $11,9 million.
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey Cast in The Last of Us TV Series
SlashFilm reports HBO cast Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as leads in the TV series adaptation of the horror survival game The Last of Us. Pascal will play Joel, one of the survivors of the zombie apocalypse, hired to smuggle 14-year old Ellie across the zombie-plagued ruins of the United States. Ramsey will portray Ellie, an orphan who grew up in one of the rare surviving outposts of civilization.
Pascal proved his acting chops and earned geek cred by appearing on Game of Thrones and playing the lead role in the Star Wars series The Mandalorian. Bella Ramsey conquered the hearts of Game of Thrones fans by playing Lady Lyanna Mormont, a 13-year old noblewoman (noble girl?) whose young age belies her courage and strength of presence. Ramsey also appeared in HBO’s His Dark Materials and voiced the titular character in the Netflix animated series Hilda.
First released in 2013 by Naughty Dog, The Last of Us became one of the most popular and praised titles of the year. The sequel followed seven years later. As for the TV series, HBO first announced it back in March 2020 with Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) as showrunner. Neil Druckmann, who penned both Last of Us games, has also been hired to help adapt them for a new medium.
Dan Harmon Developing a New Animated Show for FOX
Dan Harmon, the creator of Community and Rick and Morty, will be developing a new animated TV series for FOX, says BloodyDisgusting. According to the article, the show will be set in the mythological version of ancient Greece. This will undoubtedly provide Harmon – an avid D&D fan – with plenty of opportunities to insert RPG jokes into the story. The official statement describes the show as “centered on a flawed family of humans, gods, and monsters that tries to run one of the world’s first cities without killing each other.”
Harmon has been working for over two decades in Hollywood as a writer, producer, comedian, and, occasionally, an actor. One of his best-known creations is the sitcom Community that premiered on NBC in 2009. While the show struggled with ratings throughout its run, it nevertheless became a fan favorite. Then, in 2013, Harmon and Justin Roiland created an animated science fiction series Rick and Morty for Adult Swim. Their series quickly drew attention due to its pitch dark humor and a barrage of references to other works of science fiction and pop culture in general.
At the moment, we know barely anything about Harmon’s new show, including its title. FOX announced the show will first air in 2022.