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TNT will also debut the first-ever NBA awards show, set to air annually at the end of the season, and will introduce other ancillary events around opening

telecasts and one Conference Finals series (alternating between the Eastern and Western Conference each year).

ABC will also remain the exclusive home of the NBA Finals.

OCTOBER 7, 2014

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ABC/ESPN and Turner will broadcast more regular-season games under their new nine-year agreements with the NBA.

MAR

K D

UN

CAN

/AP

Staff report

THE NBA HAS REACHED NEW,

deals with Time Warner’s Turner Broadcasting and The Walt Disney

Company, which owns ABC and ESPN, continuing the league’s partnership with both companies, it was announced Mon-day. The NBA will take in $24 billion in rights fees over nine years, as the new pacts run from the start of the 2016-2017 season through the 2024-2025 season.

Under the deal, ABC/ESPN and Tur- ner will broadcast more regular-season games: 12 more on TNT each year, bring-ing its total to 64; and 10 more on ABC/ESPN, bringing their total to 100.

TNT’s 12 additional games will air during the second half of the season on another night of the week than the network’s traditional Thursday night doubleheaders. The deal also will give TNT more NBA playoff coverage than any other network, including live first- round coverage, exclusive second-round

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night, all-star week and the playoffs.The agreement also gives Turner

enhanced digital rights to NBA content for Bleacher Report, its Team Stream app and Turner’s social media accounts. Turner Sports will also maintain TV Everywhere streaming rights to the NBA content that airs across Turner Broadcasting’s networks.

ESPN will also be granted enhanced digital rights to NBA content for ESPN.com and its WatchESPN app.

ESPN and the NBA have also estab- lished a framework for a new over-the-top offering, in which the league would receive an equity interest. Details will be announced at a future date.

Turner Sports will also continue to manage the NBA’s digital assets, and Turner gets expanded digital-media rights and sales opportunities.

“The Walt Disney Company and Turner Broadcasting share responsibility for the growing popularity and interest the NBA enjoys, and we are thrilled to extend our partnerships,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “With these new agreements, our fans will continue to benefit from the outstanding NBA coverage and programming provided by ABC, ESPN, TNT, NBA TV and their digital platforms.”

David Levy, president of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. added: “This is a significant deal for our company and we are pleased to continue our long- standing partnership with the NBA, its fans, owners and players. The agreement locks in some of the most valuable, orig-inal, premium live sports programming that we’ll continue to monetize across TNT and all other platforms within our extensive portfolio and will help further grow our businesses into the next decade.”

ESPN president John Skipper said: “The NBA has never been more popular and it continues to grow under Adam’s leadership. By acquiring significantly more NBA content for both existing and yet-to-be created platforms, we will estab- lish a vibrant, year-round NBA presence

for fans. For ESPN, this agreement continues our fruitful, longstanding relationship with the NBA and bolsters what is already the sports industry’s most impressive and impactful collec-tion of media rights.”

Both pacts, which had been antici-pated, were originally reported by The Wall Street Journal, which added that the NBA is planning to launch an online video service with ESPN that would stream regular-season games live.

The new long-term agreements reportedly more than double the fees that the league received under its previ-ous contracts with the two companies. Under their current contracts, which expire after the 2015-16 season, Disney is paying $485 million a year and Turner $445 million a year.

The NBA’s current eight-year deals with ABC/ESPN and TNT expire at the end of the 2015-16 season.

ABC and ESPN will also continue to air WNBA games and feature enhanced in-progress highlight reels for those games on its digital platforms under a new deal. ESPN’s networks will also air at least 20 NBA development and summer League games, starting with the 2016-2017 season.

ESPN will also continue to be the exclu-sive home to the NBA Draft.

TWIN PEAKS REVIVAL LANDS AT SHOWTIMEBy Philiana NgTWIN PEAKS IS GETTING A SECOND

chance.Showtime is reviving the cult favorite

from David Lynch and Mark Frost as a nine-episode limited series for a 2016 pre- miere, the premium network said Monday. Lynch and Frost will pen all episodes, with Lynch directing. Production is expected to begin in 2015. It is unclear whether any original castmembers will appear.

“What more can I say — Twin Peaks with David Lynch and Mark Frost on Showtime in 2016!” said David Nevins, president of Showtime Networks, in a

statement. “To quote Agent Cooper, ‘I have no idea where this will lead us, but I have a definite feeling it will be a place both wonderful and strange.’ ”

Lynch and Frost added in a joint statement: “The mysterious and special world of Twin Peaks is pulling us back. We’re very excited. May the forest be with you.”

Lynch and Frost both teased the show’s possible return on Twitter, writing the same cryptic message on Friday, prompting spec-ulation that a revival was coming: “Dear Twitter Friends: That gum you like is going to come back in style!”

The original Twin Peaks launched on April 8, 1990, on ABC and followed a police investigation of the murder of homecoming queen Laura Palmer. It was one of the top-rated programs that year, earning a renewal before it ended its run on June 10, 1991.

The show has continued to resonate in popular culture. Several castmembers even reunited on USA’s Psych during a Twin Peaks-inspired episode in 2010. And in July, the series received an up- dated DVD set that included 90 minutes of previously unseen footage.

Kyle MacLachlan, Madchen Amick, Michael Ontkean, Lara Flynn Boyle, Sherilyn Fenn and Peggy Lipton were among the stars on the original show.

The news comes as television creatives continue to look to the past in hopes of guaranteeing future success as the trend of reinventing and modernizing popular titles with avid fanbases becomes stan-dard practice.

NBC LINES UP LEVINSON FOR LOPEZ DRAMA SHADESBy Lesley GoldbergNBC HAS ENLISTED AN ACADEMY

Award winner to direct and executive

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produce its upcoming Jennifer Lopez drama Shades of Blue.

Barry Levinson, who took home the Oscar for directing 1988’s Rain Man, will helm the pilot and executive produce the 13-episode series, The Hollywood Reporter

has learned. Levinson, whose credits also include Academy Award nomina-tions for his work on Bugsy (1991), Avalon (1990) and Diner (1982), will have a hands-on role in developing the series.

Shades centers on Harlee McCord (Lopez), a single mother and dirty cop re- cruited to work undercover for the FBI’s anti-corruption

task force. Part of a close-knit unit known for its conviction record, Harlee has become compromised by her colleagues — all of whom also pitch in to help raise her daughter — and finds herself faced with the moral dilemma of working against her cop brothers in order to redeem herself.

Adi Hasak (3 Days to Kill) is attached as the project’s writer and executive pro-ducer, alongside Lopez’s American Idol colleague Ryan Seacrest and Ryan Sea- crest Productions executive Nina Wass. Joining them as fellow executive produc-ers are Lopez, Nuyorican Productions executive Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas and manager Benny Medina.

Production on Shades is slated to begin in 2015 for broadcast during the 2015-16 season. Universal Television, Nuyorican, RSP, EGTV and H’s Films will produce. A premiere date has not been announced.

“It’s an exciting project to be work-ing on with Jennifer,” said Levinson in a statement. “Adi has written a police drama that gets into the fascinating dirt behind law enforcement with a female character we haven’t really seen before.”

Levinson is repped by ICM Partners, manager Goldsmith-Thomas and Hirsch Wallerstein.

NAT GEO REVEALS CAST OF TELEPIC KILLING JESUSBy Lesley GoldbergMORE THAN A YEAR AFTER SIGNING

on to adapt Bill O’Reilly’s Killing Jesus, National Geographic Channel has set the all-star cast for the TV movie.

Haaz Sleiman (The Visitor) will star as Jesus and will be joined by Kelsey Gram- mer, Stephen Moyer, Emmanuelle Chriqui and John Rhys Davies, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Based on the best-selling book by O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, the telefilm chronicles the life of Jesus of Nazareth through the retelling of the political, social and historical conflicts during the Roman Empire that ultimately led to his death.

Grammer (Boss) will star as King Herod, the unrelenting and ambitious Roman King of Judea, who attempted to kill Jesus at his birth. Moyer (True Blood) is set as Pontius Pilate, aka the Roman governor who ordered Jesus’ crucifixion.

The cast also includes Rufus Sewell (Hercules) as Caiaphas, high priest of Jerusalem and conspirator in Jesus’ death; Chriqui (Entourage) as Herodia, Herod II’s ex-wife who married his brother Antipas, who manipulated her husband and daughter into killing John the Baptist; Eoin Macken (The Night Shift) as Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee and Perea and co-conspirator in Jesus’ death; Rhys Davies (The Lord of the Rings) is as Annas, a high priest in Jerusalem who first questioned Jesus and his teachings; Abhin Galeya will be John the Baptist, considered a prophet who was arrested and killed by Antipas; and Stephanie Leonidas (Defiance) is Salome, daughter of Herod II and Herodias, who led to the demise of John the Baptist.

Rounding out the cast will be Aneurin Barnard (The White Queen) as James, one of Jesus’ 12 apostles; Vernon Dobt-cheff (Before Sunset) as Isaiah, the prophet who King Herod claimed came to him in a dream and prophesied his death; Tamsin Egerton (The Look of Love) as

Claudia, the wife of Pontius Pilate; John Lynch (Sliding Doors) as Nicodemus, a Pharisee and member of the high court in Israel, who was sympathetic to Jesus; Joe Doyle (Reign) as Judas, the apostle who eventually betrayed Jesus; and Alexis Rodney (Guardians of the Galaxy) as Simon Peter, one of Jesus’ 12 apostles and his closest confidant.

“The film Killing Jesus will break new ground in chronicling the life of the most famous human being who ever lived,” said O’Reilly, who also serves as an executive producer. “The superb cast and script reflect much thought and research. Viewers are in for something very differ-ent and very special.”

Killing Jesus will premiere globally on National Geographic Channel in 2015 in 171 countries and 45 languages, and in Spanish on Nat Geo Mundo. The movie hails from the Emmy-nominated team behind Killing Kennedy, including O’Reilly, Scott Free Productions’ Ridley Scott, David Zucker, Mary Lisio and Teri Weinberg. Heather Moran and Charlie Parsons will exec produce for NGC.

The movie marks the third collab-oration for NGC with Scott Free and O’Reilly, joining Killing Lincoln, which drew a then-record 3.4 million viewers to the cable network, and Killing Kennedy, which topped its predecessor.

Production on Killing Jesus is set to begin with Chris Menaul on board to direct. Oscar- and Emmy-winning screenwriter Walon Green (The Hell-strom Chronicle) will pen the teleplay.

“The combined talent of this incredible cast is unparalleled, and we can’t wait to see what this team of actors can do,” said NGC’s Moran. “With this stellar cast and breath-taking script by Walon based on Bill’s page turner, we are going to explore the seismic political and historical events that surrounded the life and death of Jesus as never before.”

Sleiman is repped by Gersh and Man-agement 360; Grammer is with UTA, Category 5 Entertainment and Surpin Mayersohn; and Moyer is with WME, Luber Roklin and Bloom Hergott.

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By Borys KitIN ONE HECK OF AN EYE-POPPING

move, Sony is in the midst of making a seven-figure deal to buy a pitch centering

on Robin Hood.Cory Goodman and

Jeremy Lott are behind the pitch, which is titled Hood.

The figure for the deal, according to sources, is $1 million against $2 million.

Producer deals are still being negotiated. One reason for high figure is that the

pitch involves the magic words “universe” and “Avengers.” The plan is to make a series of movies focusing on the outlaw archer and his band of merry men includ- ing Little John, Friar Tuck and Will Scar- lett. One could say they were the super-hero team of England’s Middle Ages.

The story’s tone has been compared to that of Mission: Impossible and the recent Fast & Furious movies.

Michael De Luca brought the project and will oversee for the studio.

Goodman and Lott were behind Lore, a sci-fi action project set up at Warner Bros. that has Dwayne Johnson attached to star (and was also a seven-figure deal,

although that one had a script already written).

Separately, Goodman, repped by WME, Aperture and Hansen Jacobson, wrote vampire pic Priest and Black List script The Last Witch Hunter, which is in pro-duction with Vin Diesel starring. He is also rebooting the Underworld franchise.

Lott, repped by CAA, Aperture and Bloom Hergott, penned The Falling, a supernatural mystery set up at Warner Bros. with Zac Efron attached to star.

FOX DRAWN TO DARK SIDE; FILM RITES TO PRODUCEBy Tatiana SiegelFOX HAS PREEMPTIVELY BOUGHT film rights to hot Frankfurt Book Fair title The Dark Side by Anthony O’Neill for Steve Zaillian and Garrett Basch’s Film Rites to produce.

Dark Side is an elevated sci-fi noir story set in a future where the moon is utilized as a penal colony, housing crim-inals, psychopaths and curious tourists alike. As an anarchic android begins wreaking havoc on the area and bodies

start turning up dead, an exiled detec-tive arrives to investigate. The project is described as in the vein of Avatar, Blade Runner and Philip K. Dick’s work.

Simon & Schuster just acquired world- wide rights to the novel and plans to pub- lish the book in the spring.

Basch and Zaillian, whose first look deal is with Fox, are currently in produc-tion on upcoming HBO series Crime. Zaillian co-wrote Fox’s upcoming Ridley Scott epic Exodus: Gods & Kings.

Fox’s book scout Drew Reed got an early jump on the material and the studio scooped it up before any other company had a chance. Fox’s Kira Goldberg is overseeing for the studio.

CAA repped the author.

VACATION REBOOT SET FOR OCT. 2015 RELEASEBy Austin Siegemund-BrokaNEW LINE HAS SCHEDULED ITS

Vacation.The studio has set Oct. 9, 2015, as the

release date for its reboot of the classic comedy series National Lampoon’s Vaca-tion. The new movie is a sequel of sorts to the 1980s film, which was written by John Hughes and directed by Harold Ramis. It picks up with Rusty Griswold, (played by Anthony Michael Hall in the

Sony in Talks to Buy Pricey Hood Pitch

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MOVIE NEWS

original), as a grown-up taking his own family on a comically hellish vacation.

It’s the directorial debut of Horrible Bosses 2 co-writers John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein, who wrote the script. Shooting began last month.

Ed Helms is set to play Rusty, with Christina Applegate playing his wife and Leslie Mann portraying Audrey, Rusty’s sister. Chris Hemsworth will appear as Audrey’s husband, an up-and-coming anchorman, and Charlie Day will cameo as a river-rafting guide.

Cameos are also expected from Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo, who starred in the ’80s version as the Griswold parents who set out on a trip to the Walley World theme park that doesn’t go quite as planned.

Chris Bender and David Dobkin are producing New Line’s reboot, with Marc S. Fischer executive producing.

The comedy shares its Oct. 9 date with Jon Favreau’s The Jungle Book at Disney and thriller Kidnap, starring Halle Berry.

THIRD PURGE FILM GIVEN GREENLIGHTBy Rebecca FordGET READY FOR ANOTHER 24 HOURS of mayhem and murder. Universal, Blumhouse and Platinum Dunes are gearing up for a third installment in The Purge franchise, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

James DeMonaco, who wrote and directed The Purge and The Purge: Anarchy, will return to write the third installment with an eye towards direct-ing. Sebastian Lemercier, Jason Blum, Michael Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form will return to produce.

The first film, which hit theaters in 2013 and starred Ethan Hawke, earned a stunning $89.3 million worldwide, far surpassing its $3 million budget. The follow-up, which was released in July and starred Frank Grillo, has earned $108.8 million globally.

DONOVAN JOINS CASTOF MARVEL’S ANT-MAN By Rebecca FordVETERAN TELEVISION ACTOR MARTIN

Donovan, known for his role on Weeds and his numerous collaborations with Hal Hartley, has been added to the cast of Marvel’s Ant-Man.

Peyton Reed is directing the Disney and Marvel movie, which is toplined by Paul Rudd. Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll and John Slattery co-star.

Donovan’s role is being kept under wraps, but sources say it is pivotal to the story. The film, sched-uled for release on July 17, 2015, centers on con man Scott Lang (Rudd), who has the ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength. He must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym (Douglas), protect the secret behind his Ant-Man suit from a new generation of world- ruining threats.

Gabriel Ferrari, Andrew Barrer and Adam McKay penned the screenplay for Ant-Man, which is produced by Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso and Alan Fine through Marvel Studios, along with Michael Grillo, Stan Lee and Nira Park.

Donovan, who appeared in numerous Hartley movies including Trust (1990), Simple Men (1992) and The Book of Life (1998), will next be seen in Paul Thomas Anderson’s hotly anticipated next film, Inherent Vice, starring Joaquin Phoenix. It hits theaters on Dec. 12. Donovan also is featured in indie Ned Rifle opposite Aubrey Plaza, which is the third install-ment in Hartley’s trilogy.

The actor also has a busy TV career, appearing on Homeland, Hannibal, Boss and Lifetime summer series The Lottery. Along with having a recurring role on DirecTV series Rogue, he also directed an episode. Donovan is repped by DBA and Gary Goddard Entertainment.

FUQUA, IM GLOBAL SET TO MAKE PEACEBy Rebecca FordJUST A COUPLE WEEKS AFTER HIS

latest film, The Equalizer, had a strong debut in theaters, Antoine Fuqua has attached himself to another project.

IM Global has optioned the book The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League by Jeff Hobbs, and attached Fuqua as director. Fuqua Films will produce with Rebecca Hobbs, and IM Global’s Matt Jackson is also producing, with Stuart Ford execu-tive producing.

The story centers on Peace, a young African-American man who left the crime-ridden streets of Newark to attend Yale. There, he studied molecular bio-chemistry and biophysics and excelled at school, but the troubles from his up- bringing continued to plague him until his violent and all-too-soon end. Hobbs was his college roommate and friend.

The book hit shelves Sept. 23 via Scribner. Hobbs previously wrote 2008 novel The Tourists.

This is the first project to come out of the recently announced production deal between IM Global and Fuqua Films. The deal was negotiated by Ford and Deborah Zipser on behalf of IM Global with CAA on behalf of Fuqua Film and Hobbs. Hobbs is also repre-sented by David Black for publishing and manager David Hollander. He and Rebecca Hobbs are represented by attorney Kimberly Stenton at Myman Greenspan.

Fuqua’s Equalizer, starring Denzel Washington, had a strong performance at the box office after hitting theaters in late September, earning $34.1 million in its domestic debut. He previously helmed 2013’s Olympus Has Fallen and is in post- production on his next film, Southpaw, starring Rachel McAdams and Jake Gyllenhaal. Fuqua is repped by CAA and Ziffren, Brittenham.

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BUSINESS NEWS

OCTOBER 7, 2014

By Matthew BelloniJEFF BERG’S RESOLUTION TALENT

agency is winding down, Berg told employees on Monday.

The agency has been besieged for months by rumors about its future. Berg, the former longtime ICM chairman, launched Resolution in January 2013 with financial backing from Phoenix-based investor Jahm Najafi. Resolution set about aggressively hiring agents and moved into lavish offices in Century City, but without major stars and lucrative television packaging fees, the agency has lagged behind competitors.

In March, Berg announced that China- based Bison Capital would take a stake in Resolution, becoming the first Chinese company to invest in a U.S. talent agency. But Bison apparently was late on fund-ing for months and often would be short on payments, and the situation came to a head this weekend. After a negotiation that is said to have been extremely con-tentious between Berg and reps for the Chinese company, a decision was made to cease operations.

A Resolution spokesperson confirmed the shutdown to The Hollywood Reporter but declined to comment further. Berg is said to be helping agents and clients find new homes. Resolution represents Lindsay Lohan, Rose McGowan, Nick Cassavetes and Danny Elfman. It is un- clear at this stage where many of the agents will end up. Also unclear is where the remaining talent — Ray Winstone and Paul Verhoeven are among the more high-profile names repped — will land.

The fate of Resolution illuminates the challenges inherent in Hollywood com-panies working with Chinese financiers. Berg is said to have been assured that support from Bison would be ongoing

and was blindsided when the company refused to continue its support.

The agency had been trying to stem some losses of key players. In July, Steve Alexander departed to ICM Partners, taking with him key clients such as David Duchovny, Tatiana Maslany and Joy Bryant. But in September, Resolution hired Brehan Fitzgerald, a vp in Fox’s casting division. Now however, she, along with others, face the prospect of having their last payroll be Nov. 1, according to sources. The agency employed around 50 staffers.

SUPREME COURT DENIES SUPERMAN RIGHTS REVIEWBy Eriq GardnerNEW YORK — Warner Bros. can rest a bit easier today after the U.S. Supreme Court denied review of a challenge to its Superman rights.

The request for a hearing came from the estate of Superman co-creator Joseph Shuster, which attempted to exploit the termination provisions of the 1976 Copy-right Act to reclaim their portion of the lucrative character.

In November 2013, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a ruling that a 1992 agreement made by Jean Peavy, the sister of Shuster, precludes the estate’s attempt to terminate a copyright grant.

That agreement was executed in the aftermath of Shuster’s death, when Peavy wrote to Warner subsidiary DC and asked the company to pay her broth-er’s final debts and expenses. DC agreed and also increased survivor benefits, but the company’s executive vp at the time, Paul Levitz, admonished, “This agree-ment would represent the author/heir’s last and final deal with DC and would fully resolve any past, present or future

claims against DC.”As a result, a federal judge ruled, “the

broad and all-encompassing language of the 1992 agreement unmistakably oper-ates to supersede all prior grants.”

The Shuster estate, represented by attorneys Marc Toberoff and ScotusBlog founder Tom Goldstein — the same pair that recently took a since settled case involving Marvel’s rights to the high court — looked to challenge the assessment.

The appellants’ brief posed the issue as “whether and under what circum- stances may the Copyright Act’s inalien-able termination right be eliminated by contract?”

But without much comment, the Su- preme Court denied cert on Monday. The only thing that was noted was that Chief Justice John Roberts took no part in consideration. An explanation wasn’t given.

PALTROW’S GOOP TAPS GERSH AS NEW CHIEFBy Ashley LeeNEW YORK — Lisa Gersh has found a new home at Goop, Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle and e-commerce company.

The former executive of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and NBC-Universal will head the expansion of the digital brand, founded in 2008. As CEO, she will oversee exclusive fash-ion collaborations with top designers, including Stella McCartney and Diane Von Furstenburg, and eventually will introduce Goop’s own label. More pop-up stores and live events are also in the works.

“Lisa is a visionary leader with un- paralleled creativity and savvy,” said Paltrow in a statement. “She’s the per-fect person to build on the momentum we have already created at Goop and to diversify our opportunities to bring Goop’s positive energy directly to con-sumers in what they read, what they try, what they buy and how they live.”

Goop’s CEO role was last held by Sebastian Bishop, who left in April.

Berg

Berg’s Talent Agency Resolution to Close

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BUSAN 2014

OCTOBER 7, 2014

By Lee Hyo-wonBUSAN, South Korea — Undoubtedly the Busan International Film Festi-val’s biggest headline-maker this year, the Sewol ferry disaster documentary The Truth Shall Not Sink With Sewol premiered at a sold-out screening on Monday that was attended by victims’ families, top filmmakers, festivalgoers and members of the press.

Co-directed by journalist Lee Sang-ho and documentary filmmaker Ahn Hae-ryong, The Truth accuses the South Korean government of incompe-tence and a cover-up for the April 16 tragedy that resulted in 304 dead or missing. The filmmakers hope that their work will help shed light on the truth as the investigation of the highly politicized incident continues.

“Most of the things reported through the press have been lies,” said co-helmer Lee during a packed Q&A session after the screening. “The government had an intricate plan to cover up its botched [handling of the rescue] and intended to control the media.

“As time passed, Sewol was quickly being forgotten. I felt the need to bring it to the screen and did so with director [Ahn Hae-ryong], who has been making documentaries for 20 years. We put together the project in just a short amount of time in order to premiere it at Busan.”

Lee was fired from Munhwa Broad-casting Corporation, one of South Korea’s three major broadcasters, while covering the incident for becoming “too involved,” he said.

The journalist added that the film is “far from being perfect in terms of cinematic value,” but he hopes it can inspire other filmmakers to tackle the subject to help unveil the truth.

Several top local and international

filmmakers were in the audience at the premiere. Joshua Oppenheimer, director of last year’s Oscar-nominated documentary The Act of Killing, said he was struck by the “incredibly incompe-tent rescue mission” depicted in the film, and was led to question the role of the media in South Korea and elsewhere.

“It is sad, pitiful and infuriating. I hope the film can help push for the Sewol Special Bill,” Chung Ji-young, the veteran South Korean director whose political thriller National Security created controversy at the Busan fest in 2012, told The Hollywood Reporter, referring to a nationwide campaign calling for an official inquiry into the incident. Chung and some 1,000 other Korean filmmakers have been holding petitioning events for the bill during the festival.

On the eve of the festival’s opening on Oct. 1, a group of the victims’ fami-lies hand-delivered a letter protesting the film’s screening to festival chair-man and Busan mayor Seo Byung-soo, calling the film insensitive and politi-cally one-sided.

Several South Korean filmmakers’ organizations have issued statements supporting the artistic freedom of the festival, while other politicians urged the event to cancel the premiere.

Regarding the opposition, Lee said, “What the victims’ families want right now is to have the facts revealed. I believe they will side with us after watching the film.”

Several members of the victims’ fam-ilies were spotted among the audience, shedding tears while listening to the con-versation and applauding at the end.

Lee, however, voiced concern about distributing the film in Korea. “The Busan Film Festival might be the last chance to witness the uncomfortable truth [about the disaster]. But we are doing our best to bring the movie to local theaters sometime this month,” he said.

“I’ve been to the Busan Film Festival many times and I’ve never seen such a commotion,” said 22-year-old univer-sity student Kim Yui-ie. “I really hope more people will be able to watch the film and that this won’t be short-lived hype.”

South Korean Ferry Disaster Documentary Creates Stir

AP

A group comprising some 1,000 South Korean filmmakers is staging petitioning events during the ongoing Busan International Film Festival to pressure the government into launching a formal inquiry into the Sewol ferry disaster.

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BUSAN 2014

OCTOBER 7, 2014

By Lee Hyo-wonBUSAN, South Korea — Choi Min-Sik is “the most popular actor in the world,” filmmaker Luc Besson said recently, as Lucy topped box offices in over two dozen countries while South Korean epic The Admiral: Roaring Currents broke all-time box office records at home. The 52-year-old thesp spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about finally making his Hollywood debut 10 years after his international breakthrough in Park Chan-wook’s Oldboy, his chemistry with Scarlett Johansson and the spec-tacular success of Admiral.

HOW’S IT FEEL TO BE THE STAR OF SOUTH KOREA’S HIGHEST-GROSSING FILM EVER?It is overwhelming, and honestly I can’t believe it. The film has been subject to some controversy and negative criti-cism, but I actually appreciate this. It’s a very healthy indication. Not everyone can, and should, have the same opinion of a creative work.

YOU’VE BEEN OFFERED COUNTLESS ROLES IN FOREIGN FILMS SINCE OLDBOY. WHY DID YOU WAIT SO LONG?I wasn’t being particularly stubborn, but there are linguistic and cultural differences. Actors need to directly use their bodies, and my lack of English is a hurdle in delivering nuances. It was always a dilemma for me. [Exporting actors] is different from exporting cars. I also don’t think going to Hollywood is necessarily a career boost. I personally am more comfortable working in Korea.

HOW DID LUC BESSON CONVINCE YOU TO BE IN LUCY?There was the comfort of being able to deliver lines in Korean, and Besson came to Korea himself to explain the project with such sincerity. Luc is always

taking on new challenges, and this was a very big inspiration for me.

YOU DELIVERED LINES IN KOREAN WHILE JOHANSSON ANSWERED IN ENGLISH. HOW WAS THE CHEMISTRY?Me speaking in a foreign language was supposed to intensify the fear and con-fusion Scarlett’s character Lucy felt during our first encounter. When I said things in a threatening voice, Scarlett would look at me with knowing eyes. There was a mutual understanding in spite of the language barrier, and I felt a kind of thrill I’ve never felt before.

HOW WAS YOUR FIRST HOLLYWOOD EXPERIENCE OVERALL?I was very curious how this director, whose works I’ve been a fan of since the 1980s, made movies. It’s amazing how such opportunities come around when you pursue one thing — acting, in my case — as long as I have. But personally I am not very satisfied with my acting in Lucy. There seemed to be a lack of focus. However, it was a great learning experience, something that could help me deliver a better performance in a foreign film if the opportunity presents itself again.

CHINA LION TAKES GOLDEN ERA FOR U.S.By Clifford CoonanBUSAN, South Korea — China Lion Film Distribution has picked up Hong Kong director Ann Hui’s historical epic The Golden Era for the U.S. and Canada, as well as Australia and New Zealand, from Edko Films.

Hui was named Asian Filmmaker of the Year at the Busan International Film Festival this week, and Golden Era is the official Hong Kong selection for the foreign-language category of the Oscars.

The movie, its director and its star have all been nominated for November’s Taipei Golden Horse Awards, generally considered to be Asia’s equivalent of the Oscars.

Golden Era, which is set against the backdrop of 1930s China and stars Tang Wei, is screening at Busan as part of the gala presentation. It is set to have its U.S. premiere today in Los Angeles.

SOOFILM TO ADAPT FRENCH BEST-SELLERBy Lee Hyo-wonBUSAN, South Korea — South Korea’s Soofilm will adapt best-selling novel Will You Be There for the big screen, marking the first time an Asian com- pany has purchased the rights to a work by popular French author Guillaume Musso.

Soofilm has produced several recent South Korean hits, such as romantic dramas Finding Mr. Destiny (2010) and All About My Wife (2012).

Will You Be There, which has been published in 22 countries, is about a man dying from cancer who revisits himself as a young person.

Several of Musso’s books have been adapted in the West, such as Afterwards (2008) starring John Malkovich. CO

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Actor Choi Min-Sik waited 10 years after his breakout performance in Oldboy to appear in a Hollywood movie.

Q&A: Choi Talks Hollywood Crossover

PAGE 10 OF 13OCTOBER 7, 2014

BUSAN REVIEWS

CRUELBy Elizabeth KerrBUSAN, South Korea — Only the French would tackle the serial killer film as an existential noir drama, and author Eric Cherriere does exactly that in his feature debut Cruel, a metic- ulously crafted and mesmerizing de- construction of the mind of a murderer. Moody, esoteric, thought-provoking and, not surprisingly, literary, writer- director Cherriere is more interested in examining his main character’s inner life and twisted motivation than assign-ing blame or making statements of condemnation. Violent without being needlessly explicit and curious without being sensational, Cruel is sure to find a home on festivals around the globe, and arthouse releases in Europe and North America seem highly likely.

Pierre (Jean-Jacques Lelte) is an intensely anonymous 40-year-old living in Toulouse with his advanced Alzheimer’s afflicted father, Gabriel (Maurice Poli). He works temp labor jobs — at a recycling plant, an aircraft facility — caught in an endless loop of routine mundanity, and to make mat-ters worse he’s not making ends meet. Above all that, he seems to be trapped in a happier past, specifically a day during his childhood spent frolicking on the beach with his dead mother.

His respite from tedium and oblivion is murder. When he’s not caring for his dad, Pierre kidnaps, toys with and eventually kills random strangers in a bid to feel alive and, more crucially, recognized. Ironically, Pierre keeps his victims in underground caverns built by his grandfather during WWII to protect Jews. Unhappy with his on- going invisibility, Pierre steps up his game quite brutally, finally getting the attention of the press, the public and the police.

But then Pierre meets Laure (Magali Moreau) and his compulsions, while never completely vanishing, take a back seat to his burgeoning romance.

Now that he has the kind of attention he’s wanted for so long he can take a step back from homicide. It doesn’t last, however, as Laure’s complicated past finally catches up to both of them.

Cruel’s driving tension is in the pull of Pierre’s dark side, his lonely ano-nymity and the violence that springs from it and his respectful, tender rela-tionship with Laure. And he is indeed cruel, carefully picking and choosing his victims and abducting them at times that will inflict maximum pain on friends and family. Lelte plays Pierre with a stillness that simultane-ously belies how dangerous he is and shouts it from the rooftops; the steady intoning of Pierre reading from the journals in which he documents his kills never alters pace or pitch. It’s an unsettling effect and Lelte is completely in control of it.

In addition to impeccable images created with cinematographer Mathias Touzeris, Cherriere and his sound mix-ers do a clever job of creating the private haven Pierre slips off to every so often. By the time the inevitable conclusion rolls around (and it hews closely to noir conventions) the film has raised more questions than it’s answered but avoids feeling unfinished thanks to Cherriere’s focus and clarity of vision.

Venue: Busan International Film Festival. Cast: Jean-Jacques Lelte, Magali Moreau. Director: Eric Cherriere. Not rated, 109 minutes.

JALAL’S STORYBy Elizabeth KerrBUSAN, South Korea — Be it one boy or three, the story is the same for too many children like the one at the center of Abu Shahed Emon’s debut, Jalal’s Story, a rambling three-part chronicle of life as a voiceless orphan in rural, mercenary Bangladesh. Though ceaselessly down-beat, writer-director Emon tackles issues ranging from women’s rights, or lack thereof, to the enduring hold superstitions have on some parts of modern Bangla-desh. The current subject matter and the country’s relatively small film industry will demand some attention internation-ally, but this is firmly festival fare.

Told in three parts, Jalal’s Story chronicles the life of a child by that name, as fate literally carries him down the river from one unwelcoming home to the next. Part 1 begins with Jalal the 20-year-old-budding gangster (Arafat Rahman), adopted by Sajib (Mosharraf Karim) as an orphan boy. He’s learning how to strong-arm Sajib’s rivals and anyone who gets in the way of his polit-ical aspirations. Sajib kidnaps a young woman, Shila (Moushumi Hamid), and keeps her as a sexual hostage. When she inevitably gets pregnant, her value to him drops and he orders the baby dis-appeared. The infant is set adrift on the river, with Jalal trying his best to rescue him despite his inability to swim.

Part 2 picks up when a couple takes S EE PA G E 1 1

French author Eric Cherriere’s helming debut Cruel explores the mindset of a serial killer.

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BUSAN REVIEWS

the baby into their home when he washes ashore near their house. A series of for- tunate coincidences has the villagers convinced he’s blessed by Allah — an idea the couple exploits for profit. But a jealous neighbor stirs up trouble and the baby, named Jalal, is abandoned to the river again. The final chapter takes place in another aspiring politician’s home, that of Karim (Tauquir Ahmed), who rescued the baby and kept the name but has little to do with him as an 8-year-old (Mohammod Emon). His latest wife, Rahima (Shormi Mala), takes a shine to Jalal, but when a skeevy shaman is summoned to solve the couple’s infertil-ity problems, Jalal is branded a demon and set on the river once again.

Are we to believe the boy abandoned in the last segment is, by some narra-tive temporal slip, the dispirited young gangster of the first? Or is he just one of many kids like him, left alone and destined for an unsavory existence he can’t avoid? Despite its gratuitous length (the movie could easily stand to lose 20 minutes), it is oddly compelling, and the helmer has plenty on his mind. In addition to gender inequality and lin-gering traditionalism, Emon points an unsubtle finger at political corruption at the community level and the contem-porary penchant for placing material wealth ahead of humanism.

The cast is strong across the board, with Rahman in particular leaving an impression as the 20-year-old Jalal, effec- tively reduced to a cog in the wheel of his own life rather than an actor with agency.

Venue: Busan International Film Festival. Cast: Mosharraf Karim, Arafat Rahman, Moushumi Hamid. Director: Abu Shahed Emon. Not rated, 121 minutes.

END OF WINTERBy Elizabeth KerrBUSAN, South Korea — Bringing new meaning to “awkward family photos,”

Kim Dae-hwan’s debut is an assured, if occasionally labored, exercise in un- comfortable family dynamics rooted in the simmering resentment and repressed rage that only families can engender. Unfolding over two snowy nights in a small Korean town, End of Winter suffers the malady of too much wasted space and fails to understand the distinction between long and too long, but ulti-mately overcomes those minor flaws to deliver a keenly observed portrait of a family living in a communication vac-uum and how that leads directly to an irreversible tipping point. Premiering in Busan’s New Currents, Winter is prime material for the section but doesn’t over- extend itself with showy artistry. Fests should show strong interest and art-house distribution in Asia is a possibility.

Following his retirement ceremony from teaching school in provincial Cheor- won, Kim Seong-geun (Moon Chang-kil) announces he plans on getting a divorce. Why, what he plans to do next and from where this sentiment arose are mysteries to his family, particularly his nagging, controlling, oblivious wife (Lee Young-ran). With the snow pounding down and the roads back to Seoul closed, the perplexed clan is compelled to stay at Seong-geun’s home, leading to an uncomfortable two nights for all.

Nothing really happens in Winter; there’s no shocking revelation or long- held grudge that emerges to drive the story forward. But the simple observa-

tions and little details of Korean social and familial protocols make up for a lack of action and play a significant part in telling the story. Through it all Seong-geun himself says next to nothing, and his motivations are never fully explored. It’s just as well. His baffling decision in- spires confusion but never discussion, leaving room for guesswork and inter- pretation. As time ticks by, deeply buried frustration and anger bubbles to the surface in everyone, leaving us to wonder if Seong-geun hasn’t committed a self-less act that will yield better results in the long run for all involved.

The absence of a score serves to increase the awkward tension during the meals the family continues to share, but also creates a distancing tone that hovers over the film. The expected emotional payoff never comes, partly because the family is so disconnected from each other and partly because Kim the director hasn’t generated any real emotional traction. Winter is astute, but it’s also dispassionate in its observations.

The cast is uniformly strong and the film is technically polished, with Kim and cinematographer Kim Bo-ran’s suffocating steel-gray palette adding to the overall reflective tone without ever overwhelming it.

Venue: Busan International Film Festival. Cast: Moon Chang-kil, Lee Young-ran. Director: Kim Dae-hwan. Not rated, 102 minutes.

The nuances of Korean family relations are explored in Kim Dae-hwan’s End of Winter.

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CONCERT REVIEW

ELTON JOHNBy Steven MirkinIT WAS A RELATIVELY SUBDUED

Elton John production that pulled into Staples Center for the first of two shows Saturday night.

Sure, there was a chandelier hanging above the stage (which would be lowered, Phantom of the Opera style), and there was plenty of pomp (courtesy of “Funeral for a Friend,” which kicked off the two-hour, 24-song performance), but the stage was an uncluttered affair, and John, wearing a sparkly blue suit, made unassuming entrances and exits. The sartorial over-statement he was once known for was limited to the audience, where oversized eyeglasses, skyscraping platform shoes, and even a few Donald Duck outfits dotted the sold-out house.

He is, he proudly states late in the evening, “comfortable in his own skin.” He’s still a showman, leaping up from his bench after every song, pumping his fists, pointing into the audience, blowing kisses, trying to goose up the already enthusias-tic crowd. He teases them, striking the opening chord for “Bennie and the Jets,” then waits a moment before pounding the full riff, and lounges on top of his grand piano like a film noir siren. But it’s the songs that take center stage.

And those songs have proven them-selves to be remarkably sturdy. The oldest

of the tunes, the gentle “Your Song” from 1970’s Elton John, and the two-fisted gos- pel of “Burn Down the Mission,” have an unforced immediacy and an assured sense of melody. “Hey Ahab,” from The Union, his 2010 collaboration with Leon Russell, is sharp and catchy. Even lesser known songs — the Jimmy Webb-inflected, road- weary “Holiday Inn” (from Madman Across the Water), and the Jerry Lee Lewis-esque rocker “Your Sister Can’t Twist (But She Can Rock and Roll)” — charmed. The two selections from last year’s The Diving Board, however, while fine, feel more like songs seeking a context: “Oceans Away,” a tribute to the soldiers of WWI, is some-

thing you might hear as the credits roll on Downton Abbey, and “Home Again” might work if sung by the hero in the second act, but as stand-alone songs, they’re wanting.

Still, it was the big, mid-’70s hits the crowd came for, and John delivered. Diving into Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, the double album that cemented John’s superstar status and celebrated its 40th anniversary last year, the show opened with the first side of the record and pep-pered additional favorites throughout the set. They were relatively straight- forward versions — “Rocket Man” was given a discursive, Keith Jarrett-esque intro and a bluesy first verse before land- ing into a familiar, if stately, rendition, while “Levon” built to a rousing, barrel-house coda. John tossed in extra piano flourishes — a Professor Longhair roll here, some dreamy Bill Evans runs there — and the band, especially old hand Nigel Olsson on drums and Davey Johnstone on guitar, provided sympathetic backing.

Lest anyone think John is ready to fade off into a Broadway dotage, the show’s final run of songs, “The Bitch Is Back,” “I’m Still Standing” and “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting,” were pug-naciously energetic, ending the evening on a well-earned, triumphant note.

Venue: Staples Center. Los Angeles (Saturday, Oct. 4).

BLUE MOVES: Saturday night’s alright for Elton.

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Total: $147,747,126

This week

Last week Movie Distributor Weekend

grossPercent change

# of theaters

Per-theater average

Days in release

Cumulative gross

1 NEW Gone Girl Fox $37,513,109 — 3,014 $12,446 3 $37,513,109

2 NEW Annabelle Warner Bros. 37,134,255 — 3,185 11,659 3 37,134,255

3 1 The Equalizer Sony 18,750,375 -49.5 3,236 5,794 10 64,236,992

4 3 The Boxtrolls Focus 11,979,588 -33.5 3,464 3,458 10 32,093,796

5 2 The Maze Runner Fox 11,634,764 -36.8 3,605 3,227 17 73,556,159

6 NEW Left Behind Freestyle 6,300,147 — 1,825 3,452 3 6,300,147

7 4 This Is Where I Leave You Warner Bros. 4,009,345 -46.3 2,735 1,466 17 29,012,573

8 5 Dolphin Tale 2 Warner Bros. 3,422,377 -31.6 2,790 1,227 24 37,866,130

9 8 Guardians of the Galaxy Disney 3,005,083 -25.8 1,894 1,587 66 323,331,487

10 6 No Good Deed Sony 2,500,118 -47.9 1,580 1,582 24 50,157,393

11 7 A Walk Among the Tombstones Universal 2,013,170 -56.1 2,226 904 17 24,510,525

12 NEW Bang Bang FIP 1,278,690 — 271 4,718 4 1,449,215

13 NEW The Good Lie Warner Bros. 841,422 — 461 1,825 3 841,422

14 10 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Paramount 769,590 -50.1 834 923 59 188,322,741

15 9 Let’s Be Cops Fox 738,775 -55.2 781 946 54 80,883,189

16 11 The Skeleton Twins Roadside 714,492 -47 461 1,550 24 3,513,600

17 NEW Haider UTV 508,084 — 119 4,270 4 549,372

18 15 My Old Lady Cohen 476,978 -16.2 263 1,814 26 2,229,474

19 13 If I Stay Warner Bros. 394,370 -60.4 555 711 45 49,774,414

20 25 Mommy eOne 380,896 69.8 83 4,589 17 1,623,439

21 14 The Hundred-Foot Journey Disney 318,162 -52.7 360 884 59 53,201,473

22 12 The Drop Fox Searchlight 269,973 -76.6 429 629 24 10,394,214

23 19 The Giver Weinstein 242,242 -47.6 371 653 52 44,233,405

24 29 Hector and Search for Happiness Relativity 227,924 1.5 183 1,245 17 589,490

25 34 Into the Storm Warner Bros. 226,817 48.5 260 872 59 46,925,483

26 18 When the Game Stands Tall Sony 220,835 -60.8 348 635 45 29,606,659

27 20 Lucy Universal 188,585 -54 255 740 73 125,830,080

28 16 The Song Samuel Goldwyn 186,696 -67.2 303 616 10 908,571

29 28 How to Train Your Dragon 2 Fox 173,206 -21.4 227 763 115 176,092,826

30 27 Maleficent Disney 169,365 -22.9 212 799 129 240,603,119

31 26 Boyhood IFC 143,691 -35.8 138 1,041 87 23,400,453

32 50 Planes: Fire & Rescue Disney 139,005 146.9 223 623 80 58,805,095

33 44 The Expendables 3 Lionsgate 138,670 79.5 197 704 52 39,153,545

34 17 Mas negro que la noche Lionsgate 129,163 -77.4 178 726 10 778,721

35 32 Love Is Strange Sony Classics 114,200 -36.8 134 852 45 2,027,700

36 31 Hercules Paramount 102,545 -49.9 166 618 73 72,550,355

37 42 Pride CBS 101,534 13.4 23 4,415 10 214,472

38 36 The Remaining Sony 97,637 -15.5 25 3,905 31 1,011,997

39 38 Jimi: All Is by My Side Xlrator 97,307 -11 75 1,297 10 238,837

40 21 Dr. Cabbie eOne 93,941 -69.7 45 2,088 17 1,528,321