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Aamir Khan Sparks Release Speculations Again(Photo Credit –Instagram)

Aamir Khan is known for making bold choices, both on and off-screen. After a brief break following Laal Singh Chaddha, the superstar is gearing up for a major comeback with Sitaare Zameen Par. But in a surprising twist, Aamir may be skipping not just a theatrical release, but also Ott. Yes, you heard that right. The actor seems to be rewriting the film release rulebook altogether.

Aamir Khan’s Pay-Per-View Plan Might Disrupt Bollywood’s Release Model

According to a Hollywood Reporter update, Aamir is exploring a pay-per-view model for Sitaare Zameen Par. That means no theatrical launch and no Netflix-Amazon type Ott drop. Instead, Khan reportedly wants to release the movie on YouTube as a paid viewing experience.

A source close to the development said, “Aamir doesn’t want to release his films directly on streaming after their theatrical run,...

Will Aamir Khan’s Sitaare Zameen Par Face A Release Delay? (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Aamir Khan’s next film Sitaare Zameen Par, which is reportedly based on the Spanish movie Campeones, is scheduled to be released in theatres on June 20th, 2025. But will the makers postpone the movie to a later date amid the ongoing situation, or could they opt for a direct-to-ott release? Here is what we think might happen.

Is Sitaare Zameen Par’s Release Delay Imminent?

After the makers unveiled the film’s first poster a few days back, film enthusiasts anticipated that the Sitaare Zameen Par trailer would be released on May 8th. But that didn’t happen. According to a report by India Today, Aamir Khan has reportedly decided to push the trailer release of his upcoming film because of the India-Pakistan tensions. The question is: Will Aamir Khan and his team stick to the...

We have your first look of the poster of the highly anticipated Sitaare Zameen Par. The film, starring Aamir Khan, will be released on June 20th, and we can’t wait!

Directed by Rs Prasanna, the film, which also stars Genelia D’Souza, is based on the Spanish movie Campeones (2018) and will follow the journey of an unwilling coach and a championship team of basketball players with intellectual disabilities. According to Aamir Khan, all the team players are played by specially abled actors — ten promising new talents including Aroush Datta, Gopi Krishna Varma, Samvit Desai, Vedant Sharma, Ayush Bhansali, Ashish Pendse, Rishi Shahani, Rishabh Jain, Naman Mishra, and Simran Mangeshkar. “It contains 10 actors who have done such wonderful work that maybe I will never be able to do in my life. I really hope people like it,” Aamir revealed.

As you probably know, Sitaare Zameen Par is within the same world...

Campeones-Inspired International Remakes (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Aamir Khan is gearing up for his next theatrical release, Sitaare Zameen Par, which is reportedly based on the Spanish film Campeones. It’s being described as the spiritual sequel to Taare Zameen Par. The sports drama has been directed by R.S. Prasanna and is scheduled to be released in theatres on June 20th, 2025. Fans are waiting with bated breath for the trailer, which should arrive soon.

But did you know that Sitaare Zameen Par is not the only film to have drawn inspiration from Campeones? In fact, three films based on the same subject in different languages have already been released. Continue reading to learn more.

English Language Film

The English language Campeones-inspired film, titled Champions, is the most popular adaptation of the Spanish film (for obvious reasons). Directed by Bobby Farrelly, the film featured Hollywood actor Woody Harrelson in the...

Sitaare Zameen Par, starring Aamir Khan, is set to hit the big screen this December and fans cannot wait. Directed by Rs Prasanna, the film, which also stars Genelia D’Souza, is based on the Spanish movie Campeones (2018) and will follow the journey of an unwilling coach and a championship team of basketball players with intellectual disabilities.

It is being called a ‘spiritual sequel’ to the brilliant Taare Zameen Par — the same world and themes but a new story. “It [Sitaare Zameen Par] is not a sequel in the sense that the characters do not continue from the previous one. So, it is a fresh set of characters with completely fresh situations and plot. Thematically, it is a sequel to Taare Zameen Par. It is saying the same things… actually, it is saying a lot more actually. Sitaare Zameen Par, it is 10 people with challenges who help me… the supposedly normal person.

Here’s some exciting movie news! Aamir Khan’s highly anticipated film, Sitaare Zameen Par, is finishing up its final schedules and will, according to Aamir Khan, hit the big screen in December. Directed by Rs Prasanna, the film, which also stars Genelia D’Souza, is based on the Spanish movie Campeones (2018) and will follow the journey of a championship team of basketball players with intellectual disabilities and their unwilling coach.

Aamir says the film showcases a different perspective than the 2007 drama Taare Zameen Par, which he directed and starred in. That film focused on young Ishaan and his struggles in school with dyslexia. “Sitaare Zameen Par is a sequel to Taare Zameen Par, a film that I directed some years ago. However, it is not a sequel in the sense that the characters do not continue from the previous one. So, it is a fresh set of characters with completely fresh situations and plot.

Disney+ has released an international trailer for its upcoming original Spanish comedy series “Shared Custody,” directed by “Champions” creator Javier Fesser, which will debut globally on the platform on Jan. 24.

An accomplished filmmaker, Fesser, who makes his TV debut with “Shared Custody,” is best known for creating the Goya-winning and Oscar-submitted heartwarming comedy “Campeones” (“Champions”), adapted in 2023 as the Woody Harelson starrer “Champions.” In 2007, his short film “Binta y la gran idea” was nominated for the live-action short film Oscar. “Shared Custody” marks his series debut.

Over eight episodes, the series will examine the challenges faced by two parents, Cris and Diego, after their separation. The show delves into the complexities of modern co-parenting as the couple strives to maintain a mature, amicable relationship for the sake of their young daughter.

However, financial difficulties force them to move back in with their respective parents, setting the stage for awkward and often humorous family dynamics.

Una comedia dramática sobre la vida post separación. © Disney Plus+

El director Javier Fesser (“Campeones”), se embarca en su primera serie de ficción en una comedia dramática original de Disney+ sobre lo que supone hoy en día separarse teniendo hijos.

En “Custodia Repartida”, Cris y Diego acaban de separarse de mutuo acuerdo. Su intención es ser unos adultos maduros, responsables y amigables por el bien de su hija de 5 años. Pero ninguno de los dos se puede permitir vivir solo y cuidar de ella. El trabajo de Cris lo consume todo y Diego no tiene un sueldo fijo, por lo que ambos se ven obligados a una solución drástica: mudarse de nuevo a casa de sus respectivos padres. Los abuelos están encantados de que sus hijos y, sobre todo, su nieta, vuelvan a formar parte de sus vidas. Pero las cosas se deterioran rápidamente. Lo que empezó como una separación...

Exclusive: Disney+ has boarded Shared Custody, the comedy-drama series that marks Champions maker Javier Fesser’s first directing gig in TV.

We can reveal that the streamer will launch Shared Custody in January 2025, with filmmaker Fesser directing the eight-episode series, which was announced over two years ago and explores what happens when parents separate. Fremantle-backed producer The Immigrant is making the show, which is written and created by Juanjo Moscardó Rius, who created the Goya-nominated A Shitty Therapy, and María Mínguez (Vivir dos Veces).

In Shared Custody, parents Cris and Diego have just separated by mutual agreement. Their intention is to be mature, responsible and friendly adults for the sake of their five-year-old daughter, but neither of them can afford to live alone and take care of her. Cris’ work is very absorbing and Diego does not have a fixed salary,...

Kalki Trailer

The first trailer has been unveiled for “Kalki 2898 Ad,” the Indian sci-fi epic starring Prabhas, Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan, Deepika Padukone and Disha Patani. The film, which is directed by Nag Ashwin and backed by Vyjayanthi Movies, was teased at the San Diego Comic-Con last year. While a budget for the film has not been revealed, Variety understands that it is in the region of $72 million, which will make it one of the most expensive Indian films of all time.

In Hindu mythology, Kalki is the 10th and final incarnation of the god Vishnu who appears in order to end the Kali Yuga, the darkest period in mankind’s history.

The film is due a worldwide theatrical release on June 27 in the Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and English languages.

Thai Tearjerker

Thai film “How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies” earned S$1.16 million during its second...

Sales and production company Other Angle is hoping to drum up remake interest for upcoming French comedy A Little Something Extra with a screening at the fourth edition of its French Comedy Club in L.A. this weekend.

Actor and comedian Artus directs and co-stars with Clovis Cornillac as father and son bank robbing team, who infiltrate a bus taking a group of disabled youngsters to a holiday camp, in a bid to escape the police. The cast is made up mainly of youngsters with different types of disability.

Other Angle co-founder Olivier Albou suggests the comedic storyline, the disabled cast and sensitive storytelling makes for a rare combination.

“Even if the pitch is not the same, the film has similarity with the Spanish movie Campeones (Champions) which sold really well as an original film and as a remake as well,” he says, referring to Javier Fesser’s drama about...

The international endurance of Spanish film adaptations was front and center this year at the Malaga Festival Industry Zone’s (Mafiz) Remake Day event on Thursday, with a presentation of Shanghai-based Aim Media’s “Lose to Win,” the Chinese adaptation of the Latido Films-sold 2018 hit “Campeones” (“Champions”), directed by Javier Fesser.

“Champions” is produced by Luis Manso at Fesser’s Madrid-based Películas Pendleton (“Historias Lamentables”) alongside Alvaro Longoria at Spain’s Morena Films (“Everybody Knows”).

Global remakes of “Champions,” about a basketball coach who coaches a team of people with disabilities as community service, have so far included Arabic, German, U.S. (starring Woody Harrelson and directed by Bobby Farrelly) and Indian versions, not to mention a hugely successful Spanish sequel.

Discussing “Lose to Win,” directed by Gao Hu, ahead of a special screening of the film, Aim Media’s Emily Ruan detailed the benefits and challenges presented by the production.

Aamir Khan On Laal Singh Chaddha failure ( Photo Credit – IMDb )

Aamir Khan starrer Laal Singh Chaddha was released in 2022. The film is a remake of Tom Hanks’ 1994 Hollywood film, Forrest Gump. The Hindi remake, directed by Advait Chauhan, also stars Kareena Kapoor Khan, Mona Singh, Naga Chaitanya, Manav Vij, Ahman Ibn Umar and others. When the film was announced, fans were excited to see the Hindi remake on the big screen. However, it didn’t receive the desired response when it was released.

Despite many positive reviews from critics, the audience didn’t appreciate the Aamir Khan starrer. The film failed to do a decent collection at the box office. It is very rare for an Aamir starrer to perform poorly at the box office. After all, he’s called the Mr Perfectionist of the Hindi film industry. After the film didn’t do well, there were reports of how...

Buenos Aires-based sales outfit FilmSharks has closed major territories on dark comedy “Lobo Feroz,” from director Gustavo Hernández (“La Casa Muda”), and on “The Forgotten Killings,” the latest from Ines Paris (“Miguel and William”).

Produced by Uruguay’s Mother Superior, FilmSharks and Spains’ Bowfinger Intl. Pictures, “Lobo Feroz” is a remake of Israeli film “Big Bad Wolves” from Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado.

Bingo Films picked up “Lobo Feroz” rights for the U.K. following prior sales to Av Jet for Taiwan, Palace Films for Australia, AMC for Eastern Europe and Nashe Kino for Russia. Netflix picked up Spanish rights via Filmax, ViX will take Latin America and the U.S.

Negotiations for Korea, Japan, France and Germany are underway. FilmSharks handles remake sales for “Big Bad Wolves.”

“We’re very happy with the international performance of ‘Lobo Feroz.’ IP and film have proven outstanding and deals always bring more deals.

Update: Here we are with a sort of hybrid weekend at the international box office: there were fresh entries from the Hollywood studios, as well as major new titles timed to holiday play in local markets, and a holdover that’s continuing to rack up records.

On the studio side, Paramount/Spin Master’s Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie took top dog status in its expanded rollout. The family title had, last week, released in Australia and New Zealand before adding 43 offshore markets this session for a total $23.1M to date overseas. The global start is $46.1M.

Word of mouth is strong with these pups, who are out in just 53% of the international marketplace to date. On a like-for-like basis including previews, the overseas opening result is 70% ahead of Paw Patrol: The Movie, giving this Cal Brunker-directed title the best opening for the franchise.

Amid heavy competition, but also with praise from local media,...

Champions is a feel-good sports movie that follows a team of intellectually disabled players overcoming obstacles, based on the 2018 Spanish film Campeones. The American remake, Champions, makes some changes to the story but retains the overall spirit of the original film, which was a big hit and the highest-grossing Spanish film of its year. Both films draw inspiration from the true story of the Aderes basketball team, a Valencia-based team of players with intellectual disabilities who achieved success and multiple championships in Spain.

The Woody Harrelson-starring vehicle, Champions, may not be an original premise, but it certainly makes the story its own. There have been plenty of films like Champions, feel-good sports movies that follow a team of memorable characters who must overcome a variety of obstacles before the end of the film. The 2023 film takes its cues from another, and the inspiration behind it drives the narrative about...

Few European arthouse-crossover film sales agents have better weathered the ebb and flow of international market dynamics than Madrid’s Latido Films, which turns 20 in 2023.

Proof of that came at April’s Platino Awards, where Latido scored six statuettes, split between an acting double for Alauda Ruiz de Azúa’s “Lullaby” and four for Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s “The Beasts,” which has already swept Spain’s Goya Awards and scored a French Cesar for foreign film.

Scoring €6.8 million ($7.5 million) in Spain, and 327,000 admissions in France, “The Beasts” also rates as one of the top-performing recent Spanish-language movies.

If Latido has survived for so long, insists director general Antonio Saura, it’s because of a core strategy of “working with talent, our search for talent.” Beyond that, other keys have been “collaboration with production companies that understand long-term relationships, and well-established relationships with clients.”

Companies with which Latido has held or holds...

Based on the 2018 Spanish dramedy “Campeones” by Javier Fessar, Bobby Farrelly’s 2023 movie “Champions” is about a group of intellectually disabled basketball players. The movie stars Woody Harrelson in the role of the alcoholic coach Markus Marakovich with an anger issue who finds himself coaching a group of basketball players with special needs upon being sentenced to community service after a DUI. The movie features Markus and the group’s journey from being a hapless and disorganized group to the fiery breakthrough stars who manage to arrive in the Regionals thanks to their team spirit. Do they manage to win the trophy and become champions? Here’s what happens in this lighthearted, feel-good movie:

Spoilers Ahead

‘Champions’ Plot Synopsis: What Happens In The Film?

When Assistant Basketball Coach Markus Marakovich is fired from his job at the J-League of Iowa Stallions for drunk driving, he’s served a court order...

Champions is a comedy movie directed by Bobby Farrelly starring Woody Harrelson and Ernie Hudson.

Remake of the Spanish film Campeones. No one dared to trash the Spanish film, but this one has been given its due by specialized critics.

Sometimes you have to judge cinema as cinema, and sometimes even film critics get it right.

Sentimental and trite.

Movie Review

Is it better than the Spanish version? Of course, Hollywood exhibits all its industry muscle, and what was a European production in the Hispanic film – with its own merit but lacking on a production level, here the industry exhibits its potential and gives a quick polish to everything: the editing, the sound, and puts a star, Woody Harrelson, in the spotlight.

It takes everything from the Spanish film, except for the great campaign that was made to judge a film not by its cinematic content but by its more social side.

Malaga, Spain — “My Parents’ Great Bazar,” from “Ane is Missing” co-scribe Marina Parés, bio “Costus,” on the iconic Madrid Movida artists, and “Villa Futuro,” a queer old age drama from “Locked Up” star Alberto Velasco, all feature among eight winners of Tell Us the Stories That Nobody Tells, a diversity drive contest for movies and TV shows backed by Netflix and Dama, the Spanish audiovisual authors’ rights collection body.

Announced Wednesday at an awards ceremony hosted by the Malaga Film Festival, the winners of the competition, which forms part of the partners’ Cambio de Plano initiative, will receive €6,000 a piece.

Two will also get a teaser financed by Netflix and Dama. As importantly, the partners will pay for mentoring for the development of their projects from Daniela Fejerman, director of Malaga’s opening film, “Someone Who Takes Care of Me,” TV critic and screenwriter Bob Pop (“Maricón perdido”), screenwriter Valentina Viso,...

Bobby Farrelly’s redemptive crowdpleaser casts Harrelson as an irascible minor league basketball coach ​tasked with training ​a team with learning disabilities

The Farrelly brothers, Peter and Bobby, made their name with blunt slapstick comedies such as There’s Something About Mary, Me Myself & Irene and Shallow Hal – films with a gross-out edge that tended to delight audiences while dividing critics. Peter struck awards gold with Green Book, a bland period road movie that became the Driving Miss Daisy of its time when it won the Oscar for best picture in 2019. Now Bobby makes his solo feature directorial debut with this very likable sports comedy – a remake of the 2018 Spanish film Campeones (inspired by the real-life story of the Aderes basketball team in Burjassot) that delivers belly laughs and heartfelt charm in equal measure.

Woody Harrelson, who starred in the Farrellys’ 1996 bowling comedy Kingpin, plays Marcus Marakovich, an irascible assistant...

Scream VI is scaring up a series-best opening of $43.5 million from 3,675 theaters at the domestic box office after starting off Friday with roughly $19.3 million, including $5.7 million in Thursday previews.

The film — which is earning strong exits and received a B+ CinemaScore — will easily win the weekend, thanks to moviegoers between the ages of 18 and 34.

The last Scream film, released in January 2022, opened to $30 million domestically in an impressive showing for the pandemic era. The biggest North American start of the franchise belongs to 2000’s Scream 3 ($34.7 million), not adjusted for inflation.

Scream VI, which cost a reported $33 million to make before marketing, follows survivors of last year’s installment as they leave Woodsboro for New York City. Unfortunately, the menacing killer Ghostface isn’t far behind. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who run Radio Silence Productions with Chad Villella, returned to direct.

Melissa Barrera, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding, Jenna Ortega,...

Matthew Von Der Ahe stars in “Champions,” Bobby Farrelly’s refreshingly unsentimental, hilarious and rather gritty remake of the 2018 Spanish hit “Campeones.” The story follows a disgraced minor league basketball coach (Woody Harrelson) who, after a DUI, is sentenced by a judge to coach a local Special Olympics basketball team, the Friends. Von Der Ahe, who has Down syndrome, plays the saucy Craig, who loves the game, his teammates and the ladies, and stars with Kaitlin Olson, Cheech Marin and a large cast of actors with intellectual and developmental disabilities [Idd]. Von Der Ahe has been acting since he was 7, and his credits include “Code Black,” “Weeds” and “Yo Gabba Gabba.” He’s also a state ambassador for Idd advocacy and volunteer organization Best Buddies, works at a restaurant called the Village, paints watercolor art, takes drum lessons and works out with a personal trainer, “who pushes me to do my best.

Scream VI is already drawing blood at the box office, where it earned $5.7 million in Thursday previews from 3,125 theaters, including a special fan event.

That compares to $3.5 million in previews for last year’s Scream, and the $5.5 million in previews for last weekend’s Creed III.

Scream VI expands into a total of 3,675 cinemas today and should post a series-best domestic debut of at least $35 million over Oscar weekend for Paramount and Spyglass.

The last Scream film, released in January 2022, opened to $30 million domestically in an impressive showing for the pandemic era. The biggest North American start of the franchise belongs to 2000’s Scream 3 ($34.7 million), not adjusted for inflation.

Scream VI, which cost a reported $35 million to make before marketing, follows survivors of last year’s installment as they leave Woodsboro for New York City. Unfortunately, the menacing killer Ghostface isn’t far behind. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett,...

Out in UK cinemas today is Champions, the Bobby Farelly-directed feel-good movie starring Woody Harrelson, Kaitlin Olson, Ernie Hudson, Cheech Marin, and Matt Cook. The underdog story is a remake of Javier Fesser’s 2018 film Campeones, and we were invited to talk to the cast and crew about the new film. Sarah Cook asks the questions.

Firstly we sit down with the wonderful Ernie Hudson who told us about goofing around with Woody Harrelson on set & the story of the coach who inspired him.

Then we caught up with Champions producer Paul Brooks who talked about discovering the original film, finding the perfect cast & why we love an underdog story

Plot:

A heartwarming story of a former minor-league basketball coach who, after a series of missteps, is ordered by the court to manage a team of players with intellectual disabilities. He soon realizes that despite his doubts, together, this team...

The pitch for “Champions” is simple enough — a salty, washed-out basketball coach can only avoid jail time for a drunk driving charge by coaching a team of intellectually disabled adults, known as the Friends, and he learns to be a better person along the way — though the director behind it might give some people pause. Wait, Bobby Farrelly? Like, “Dumb and Dumber” and “There’s Something About Mary” and “Stuck on You” Bobby Farrelly? The very same.

Four years after his brother (and frequent collaborator) Peter Farrelly won Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay for his “Green Book,” Bobby is offering up his own, slightly unexpected new feature. Based on the Spanish film “Campeones,” Farrelly’s “Champions” casts his “Kingpin” star Woody Harrelson as said washed-out coach, who has to learn a few things when he starts working with a plucky gang of young adults with intellectual disabilities. It’s sweet and straightforward,...

If comedy is your bag, chances are you’re a fan of Peter and Bobby Farrelly, better known as the Farrelly Brothers. The directing duo dominated the ‘90s and early 2000s with their “raucous” comedies, from the iconic Dumb and Dumber to There’s Something About Mary to Shallow Hal. Now, Bobby Farrelly returns to the helm with his first feature since 2014, Champions, a heartwarming movie about beating the odds and betting on the underdogs. The film, starring Woody Harrelson, is based on the 2018 Spanish film Campeones and is inspired by a true story, which Farrelly calls a “feel-good” film in his interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub.

Photo: Focus Features In Champions, a remake of the 2018 Spanish film Campeones, Woody Harrelson plays a basketball coach who, by force of circumstance, must take the helm for a team of intellectually challenged Special Olympians. Of course, Harrelson launched his career playing the charmingly not-so-bright Woody on Cheers. And the...

One day, Hollywood will finally realise that marginalised people deserve to be at the centre of their own stories. Until then, we’ve got Champions – the latest film in which a bigot is patiently taught not to be a bigot by the very targets of his ignorance, while we’re all expected to stand up and applaud his bravery. It’s a sports comedy, directed by Bobby Farrelly, in which Woody Harrelson’s disgraced basketball coach Marcus is charged with community service after a drunk driving incident. For the next 90 days, he’ll head up a local team of intellectually disabled adults, with an eye to helping them land a spot at the Special Olympics.

With his brother Peter, Farrelly spent the 1990s and early 2000s making occasionally funny, largely offensive comedies like There’s Something About Mary (1998) and Me, Myself & Irene (2000). Champions, Bobby’s first solo project, exists at...

The masked killer Ghostface is back and he’s looking as terrifying as ever. Paramount and Spyglass’ Scream VI opens over Oscar weekend at the domestic box office, where it has a shot at a series-best $35 million-plus opening.

The previous Scream film, released in 2022, opened to $30 million domestically in a strong showing for the pandemic era. To set an overall franchise record, Scream VI will have to best the $34.7 million debut of Scream 3 in 2000.

The latest installment in the iconic slasher franchise follows survivors of the 2022 film as they leave Woodsboro for New York City. Unfortunately, the menacing Ghostface isn’t far behind. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who helmed last year’s Scream, returned to direct.

Melissa Barrera, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding, Jenna Ortega, Hayden Panettiere (last seen in Scream 4) and Courteney Cox likewise return alongside franchise newbies Dermot Mulroney, Jack Champion, Henry Czerny, Liana Liberato Devyn Nekoda,...

From director Bobby Farrelly (There’s Something About Mary), Champions is a heartwarming movie about beating the odds and betting on the underdogs, based on the 2018 Spanish film Campeones and inspired by a true story. The sports comedy stars Woody Harrelson, most notably known for his roles in the Zombieland movies, True Detective, and Natural Born Killers, and Kaitlin Olson, best known for her long-running character “Sweet Dee” in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The two comedians give each other a run for their money as co-stars and love interests, and according to Olson in their interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub, they’re “perfect scene partners.”...

There is something comforting and appealing about “Champions” in that it’s the type of film that used to be multiplex mainstays in the ’80s and ’90s but now usually pops up on a streaming service’s carousel without much fanfare. Audiences need accessible and entertaining movies like this.

It’s an adaptation of the 2018 Spanish film “Campeones,” which drew its inspiration from a real-life team of people with intellectual disabilities.

Continue reading ‘Champions’ Review: An Entertaining Feel-Good Underdog Sports Comedy That Wins On Charm at The Playlist.

Grumpy coach Harrelson trains a team of teens with learning disabilities in this remake of the Spanish film Campeones

This big-hearted underdog sports comedy runs on rails, with no great surprises, but it’s likable. It’s the story of Marcus (Woody Harrelson), a washed-up, grumpy basketball coach with a booze problem who gets busted for drunk driving: the judge sentences him to 90 days’ community service coaching a basketball team of teens with learning disabilities.

It’s a remake of a Spanish film called Campeones and inspired by a true story from Spain, but the fact that this film is directed by the broad comedy maestro Bobby Farrelly might remind you of The Ringer, the Johnny Knoxville comedy from 2005 that Farrelly produced with his brother Peter. The Ringer had Knoxville pretending to have a mental disability to compete in the Special Olympics. That film toyed with some grossout bad taste...

There’s scarcely a word or move in Champions that you haven’t seen somewhere else before, but in a very modest way this goofball minor-league basketball yarn throws off enough amiable and vaguely raucous charm to keep a smile on sports fans’ faces much of time. Woody Harrelson makes the exasperated most of his role as a been-around-the-block minor-league coach whose likely final hope at employment is to whip a bunch of physically challenged misfits into presentable shape. It’s very easy to imagine gobs of middle-aged guys sitting around the tube at home or in a bar chugging a few while having a good time with this one.

Mark Rizzo’s script is based on the 2018 Spanish comedy Campeones, directed by Javier Fesser and inspired by a real team. The new film is set securely in the American Midwest, though many of its biggest fans might end up...

Does “Champions” have its heart in the right place? That question, with regards to Bobby Farrelly’s latest starring Woody Harrelson, is honestly harder to answer than one might think. The film, directed by Farrelly and written by Mark Rizzo (who adapted it from the 2018 Spanish feature “Campeones”), casts Harrelson as a troublemaking basketball coach who, after a DUI gets sentenced to 90 days of community service helping a team of young adults with intellectual disabilities.

On one hand, Farrelly has made an earnest attempt at a feel-good comedy, complete with its share of moments meant to tear-jerk about an underdog team subverting prejudice. On the other, it operates from a place of ignorance that assumes its audience will laugh at that ignorance and recognize it in themselves. “Champions” makes jokes about the r-word being a “no no word,” but it also seems a little too eager to use that word itself,...

While Peter Farrelly was off winning Oscars for “Green Book,” younger brother Bobby has been largely absent from feature directing. It’s been nearly a decade since the siblings shared credit — the last time being 2014’s “Dumb and Dumber To.” Now, rather than competing with Peter at the respectability game, Bobby sticks to what he knows with “Champions,” in which Woody Harrelson plays a minor-league basketball coach court-ordered to assist a Special Olympics team for 90 days — just long enough to take the team from bumbling incompetents to national finalists.

There are zero surprises in “Champions,” unless you count the not-inconsiderable shock that such a movie exists at all. A remake of 2018 Spanish box office sensation “Campeones,” this awkward (if presumably well-intentioned) comedy might have felt enlightened 25 years ago — back when “Forrest Gump” was an Oscar favorite — but today makes for a patronizing portrayal of people with intellectual disabilities. That’s...

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. An irascible, down-on-his-luck coach is reluctantly put in charge of a ragtag team of misfits who can barely play the game. Although he can hardly disguise his initial disgust, the players’ enthusiastic attitudes and general lovability soften him up until he becomes not just their coach but also their most ardent cheerleader. In the process, he becomes a better person.

That’s the Bad News Bears-style template for the latest cinematic variation on the subject, starring Woody Harrelson in a role he was seemingly born to play. You don’t need to have seen the 2018 Spanish hit comedy Campeones, which won multiple Goya Awards including Best Film, to think that its American remake, Champions, feels overly familiar. But that doesn’t make this sure-to-be crowd-pleaser any less winning, especially with the endlessly likable Harrelson at its center.

In this case, the...

Woody Harrelson steps onto the court once again in the heartfelt sports comedy “Champions.” Directed by Bobby Farrelly, the remake of the 2018 Spanish film “Campeones” sees Harrelson as Marcus, a former minor-league basketball coach who leads a team of intellectually disabled players called the Friends.

“It’s really hard to make an authentically funny and emotionally vulnerable film, and I thought they did such a wonderful job,” Kaitlin Olson, who plays Alex in the movie, told Variety Monday night at the New York premiere of “Champions.” “I met all the Friends and they’re such an incredible cast. They all showed up ready to play, and we just had the most amazing time.”

After watching hundreds of auditions during an open casting call across the U.S. and Canada, the production team found the ideal Friends: Kevin Iannucci, Joshua Felder, Madison Tevlin, Ashton Gunning, Matthew Von Der Ahe, Tom Sinclair,...

“Championext”(“Campeonex”), the anticipated follow-up to Javier Fesser’s Spanish comedy triumph “Champions” (“Campeones”) which scooped Forqué, Goya, and Feroz awards for best picture and delighted audiences to the tune of a stellar €18.5 million (21.4 million) box office grab, has been acquired for international sales by Latido Films (“The Beasts”).

Written by Fesser (“Camino”) and Athenea Mata (“El Secreto de Lilith”) in collaboration with David Marqués, the film follows nearly the same cast of beloved characters two years after they’ve left the fierce competition behind. A Los Amigos reunion will see “the landscape move from the world of basketball to the world of athletics for people with disabilities while making room to explore the fascinating world of metaverses and virtual reality,” Fesser revealed in a statement.

Delving further into the world of its protagonists, the film allows for a broader reveal while cementing the feel-good sentiment and relatability that brought the original high-acclaim.

When the world met Mindy Kaling on The Office, her status as a TV power player was yet to come. In the US spin-off of the British sitcom, Kaling played Kelly Kapoor, an optimistic, man-crazy customer service operative. Even though she was a supporting character, Kelly’s scenes always sparkled and provide meme fodder even today. “My resolution was to get more attention,” she quipped in a season seven scene, one of many examples of her causing a fuss in order to get her way.

But while Kelly made us laugh on screen, Kaling was honing her comic skills behind the scenes as a writer – when the show’s staff were hired in 2004, Kaling was the only woman and sole person of colour in an eight-person writers’ room. “The way that writers’ rooms look now versus when I started at The Office in 2004 is night and day,” she told Variety in 2019. Now,...

“Tequila, Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll,” from Goya Award-winning producer-helmer Alvaro Longoria, has been acquired for international sales by Latido Films.

Set up at Madrid’s Morena Films, which Longoria co-founded, doc marks a return to directing for Longoria, whose 2012 debut, “Sons of the Clouds,” produced by Javier Bardem, scored a Spanish Academy Goya while 2015’s “The Propaganda Game” nabbed a nomination. Meanwhile, just in the last few years, Longoria has produced Asghar Farhadi’s Cannes opener “Everybody Knows” and Spanish box office juggernaut “Champions.”

“I produce, that is how I make a living, but I direct documentaries as a passion.’ said Longoria.

Set to world premiere at this month’s San Sebastian Festival as part of its Made in Spain showcase, “Tequila” charts the rise of the Argentine-Spanish rock band fronted by Ariel Rot and Alejo Stivel.

The two are set to perform again in a series of post-film screening concerts.

Madrid — Disney. An extraordinary Mouse House septet, all ranking in Spain’s Top 10, drove its 2019 box office to its biggest cinema theater ticket sales in the decade, according to Comscore figures released Thursday.

The last time movies in Spain scored more spectators was 2009, said David Rodríguez, general manager, Spain & Portugal, Comscore Movies.

In all, Spain’s B.O. gross for movies of any nationality came in at €624.1 million ($699.0 million), 7% up on 2018, and the best figure for Spain since 2011’s €630 million ($705.6 million). Admissions totaled 105.5 million, a year-on-year increase of 8%, and the best score since 2009, Comscore announced.

Disney’s “The Lion King” alone grossed €37.2 million ($41.7 million), the best result in Spain for any individual movie since 2014’s “Ocho apellidos vascos” (“Spanish Affair”), which earned €56.1 million ($62.8 million).

No. 3 at 2019’s box office was “Avengers: Endgame,” which made the best opening of any film last year with €10.4 million ($11.6 million) over April 26-29, accounting for...

Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher’s untitled Netflix series has found its lead.

Maitreyi Ramakrishnan was chosen after Kaling put out a tweet for an open casting call for the role in April. Over 15,000 people responded to it. This will be Ramakrishnan’s first on-screen role.

The series, which was inspired by Kaling’s childhood, revolves around Ramakrishnan as Devi, who Netflix describes as an overachieving high school sophomore who has a short fuse that gets her into difficult situations.

Also Read: Netflix Orders Mindy Kaling Coming-of-Age Comedy

Kaling’s casting call outlined two other roles for women of South Asian descent that have yet-to-be-announced — one character in her mid-40s and one in her mid-20s.

Kaling and Fisher are co-creators, co-writers, executive producers, and showrunners. Howard Klein David Miner and Tristram Shapeero (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”) will also executive produce.

The 10-episode series is under Kaling’s deal with Universal TV,...

Mindy Kaling has signed a multi-year overall deal with Warner Bros. Television, leaving her longtime home at Universal, TheWrap has learned.

Under the terms of the deal, the “Mindy Project” creator will develop, write and produce new television projects, including ongoing and limited series, unscripted programming and digital content, for the studio.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Kaling is just the latest in a string of major TV creators to sign onto exclusive multi-year deals at traditional studios as the companies continue to vie for talent against the deep pockets of streaming outfits like Netflix and Amazon.

Also Read: Mindy Kaling Leaves Universal for Overall Deal at Warner Bros. Television

Kaling had been with Universal Television since getting her start on NBC’s “The Office.” She went on to create “The Mindy Project” for the studio, which ran for a total of six seasons on Fox and Hulu,...

Mindy Kaling has signed an exclusive, long-term overall deal with Warner Bros. Television Group, leaving Universal TV where she had been for a decade and a half.

The studio landed The Mindy Project creator in a very competitive situation. She is among a slew of A-list writer-producers who have been seeking overall deals in the past month or so, sparking bidding wars among traditional studios and Svod platforms that have sent prices through the roof.

No terms of her Wbtvg deal are being revealed but I hear it is for six years and is worth about $8.5 million a year. It’s been a strong overall deal marketplace for female writer-producers, with Fresh Off the Boat creator Nahnatchka Khan recently leaving her longtime studio home at 20th TV for a rich four-year overall pact at Universal TV, said to be comparable to Kaling’s in yearly compensation.

The two pacts follow...

The 35th Santa Barbara International Film Festival will run from Jan. 15 to Jan. 25, 2020 — a radical shift in dates that will affect Oscar strategies as well as other festivals.

Next year, Academy Award nominations will be announced Jan. 13, two days before the start of the Santa Barbara Festival. The Oscar ceremony will be Feb. 9, which is two weeks earlier than this year’s event. Those changes will continue to have a ripple effect on the dates of other festivals as well as awards planning.

The Santa Barbara Fest has enjoyed a long (but unofficial) Oscar connection. This year, Variety presented its annual Artisan Awards earlier this week to nine behind-the-camera creatives who are all Oscar nominees; other contenders saluted at Sbiff this year include Glenn Close, Viggo Mortensen, Rami Malek, Melissa McCarthy, and Richard E. Grant.

Santa Barbara next year will overlap with Sundance, which will run from Jan. 23 to Feb.

Iconic horror movie actress Julie Adams, who starred as Kay Lawrence in Creature from the Black Lagoon, has died. She was 92.

Adams died early Sunday morning in Los Angeles, her son Mitchell Danton confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter.

She rose to fame as the woman who wore a white, one-piece bathing suit to take a dip in a lagoon in the 1954 film as the Gill-man beneath copied her every movie. The scene was often recreated in movies like Jaws and The Shape of Water.

I mourn Julie Adams passing. It hurts in a place deep in me, where monsters swim.

Creature From the Black Lagoon star Julie Adams, an actress who, like Fay Wray and Evelyn Ankers before her won the hearts of classic Hollywood monsters and then generations of devoted fans, died Sunday in Los Angeles. She was 92.

Adams’ death was confirmed on her official website.

Where Wray perched atop the Empire State Building with King Kong and Ankers ran through fog-shrouded forests pursued by The Wolf Man, Adams secured her place in horror iconography underwater, notably an indelible scene in the 1954 Creature during which the actress, in a one-piece white bathing suit, swims atop the lagoon water as the creature known as the Gil-Man mimics her moves some feet below. The imagery would be echoed in countless films thereafter, memorably in both Jaws and 2017’s The Shape of Water.

“I mourn Julie Adams passing,” tweeted del Toro today. “It hurts in a place deep in me, where monsters swim.

Madrid — Javier Fesser’s “Champions” won best picture at the 33rd Spanish Academy Goya Awards, having seemed to have been locked out of major awards.

“Champions” entered the ceremony as most probably the favorite in one of the most open fields in recent years, given the diversity of best picture contenders in artistic and industry terms.

But, produced by Morena Films, Películas Oendelton and Movistar +, “Champions” had already been selected by the Academy as Spain’s Oscar entry and had proven a blockbuster hit on home turf for Upi Spain, earning €18.5 million ($21.1 million). Selling near worldwide, the comedy turns on an off-the-rails Spanish coach sentenced to train a basketball team of special-needs players.

Before director Javier Fesser climbed onto the stage on Saturday night to take best picture, however, the film had won just two of 10 nominations, for breakthrough actor (Jesús Vidal) and song (Coque Malla’s “Este es...

You’re the Worst actress Kether Donohue just got the best news: She’s joining the cast of ABC’s comedy pilot Happy Accident, TVLine has learned.

Hailing from Modern Family EPs Abraham Higginbotham and Jon Pollack, Happy Accident follows two Pittsburgh families: a father (Veep‘s Matt Walsh) with three adult daughters and a hotel lounge singer (Ugly Betty‘s Vanessa Williams) with her med student son, who are forced together after a decades-old secret is revealed.

Donohue will co-star as Danielle Bennett, the middle child of Walsh’s patriarch Bud. Described as emotionally sloppy and neurotic, Danielle is...