News out of Cannes this month is offsetting a raft of exciting announcements for films across the world. We’ve managed to separately cover several news bytes thusfar including The Sword: Rebirth Of The Red Wolf, shark thriller White, the upcoming production of Muay Thai drama Nak Muay, stunt professional Can Aydin’s feature directing debut, The Healer, and Carmen Cabana’s The Black Demon: Atlantis. In the meantime, there’s much more where that came from and I’ve aggregated as much as I could nab thusfar, and may update this post as the days pass if the Cannes news is still relevant.
Read the latest:
• K-Movie Entertainment has launched world sales at Cannes for its Indonesian slate from producers Asia Media Alliance Group, Nation Pictures, Yeti Entertainment and Red Packet Media. News comes following the announcement of the production pact which includes Pendekar: Warrior which co-stars The Shadow Strays actor Ali Fikry to the Iko Uwais-led thriller, and The Furious director Kenji Tanigaki’s reunion with actor Joe Taslim for a remake of South Korean hit action noir, The Man From Nowhere. VARIETY
• Twilight Of The Warriors: The Final Chapter has secured multiple territories for Media Asia at Cannes as cameras roll for the sequel for the 2024 adaptation of the hit manhwa. Daniel Wu is also the latest addition to Soi Cheang’s sequel which is set in 1993 and surrounds the year of the notorious Kowloon conclave’s demolition. John Chong and Wilson Yip are returning to produce the script by Au Kin Yee and Shum Kwan Sin, with action sequences by Kenji Tanigaki. SCREEN
• News out of Cannes Annecy Animation Showcase revealed that Keanu Reeves will add to his voice acting credits as the lead on Hidari, a project that has been circling its proof of concept online and at festivals for sometime now. Masashi Kawamura writes and directs the stop motion action jidaigeki, inspired by the accounts of the life of legendary Edo era craftsman Jingoro Hidari. THR
• William Eubank is directing The Last Druid this summer in the Canary Islands with Russell Crowe leading the announced cast. When a Roman Emperor who discovers a secluded Druid stronghold in the mountains of Caledonia, a peaceful Celtic elder (Crowe) must take up arms to protect his family and people from annihilation. Range Media Partners and CAA Media Finance are handling U.S. rights at Cannes with AGC Internarional repping the rest of the world. DEADLINE
EARLIER BELOW (5.16):
• K5 Intl. has nabbed multiple sales for action-thriller The Butler, starring Jean Reno as “a retired World War I veteran living in quiet service on a sprawling estate before a violent reckoning from his past turns the household into a war zone.” Also starring are Tom Hollander, Bobby Gilchrist, and Molly McCann from a screenplay by Craig McInnes. VARIETY
• After years of stagnation, The Expendabelles appears to finally be taking off with efforts underway by Eclectic Pictures and Hollywood Ventures Group. A logline suggests the film would be “set in the late 1990s during the height of Y2K-era tension and geopolitical uncertainty.” The team is moving forward on the project with the blessing of Lionsgate who acquired the rights last years to the project’s conceptual root, The Expendables franchise. THR
• Film Bridge International is at Cannes with The Walk-In, picking up multiple distribution partners. Now filming in Bulgaria and starring Aaron Eckhart, Roel Reine is directing from a script by Scott Windhauser about “former CIA operative Hayes (Eckhart), who uncovers a conspiracy connected to an imminent terrorist attack targeting the G7 Summit.” DEADLINE
EARLIER BELOW (5.15):
• Jessica Alba and Michael Peña are set to star in action-packed Latin ensemble, Incógnito. Directed by Robert Rodriguez for Brass Knuckle Films, the two will “play siblings Lena and Frank Aguila in the fast-moving story involving a covert family business hiding in plain sight.” The production slate also calls for Smooth Operators from writers DJ Cotrona and Brooks McLaren, Future Proof to be directed by Carry On scribe TJ Fixman, and an untitled action film based on his original idea to star Marko Zaror. SCREEN
• Raid Pacific has Steven Luke directing a WWII epic based on a true story. Set in the aftermath of the Pearl Harbor attack, the film will see Jean-Claude Van Damme in the role of “Captain William Pierce (Van Damme), a decorated U.S.-French submarine commander tasked with transporting a small unit of Marine raiders deep into enemy-controlled waters to destroy a critical Japanese outpost — one that could shift the balance of the war. Pic hails from Dean Bloxom and Deano Prods. who launched sales via VMI Worldwide. VARIETY
• All Rights Entertainment locked multiple territories this month for Ip Man: Kung Fu Legend, including North America for July 14 through distributor and co-production label Well Go USA. Li Liming directs the Ip Man: Kung Fu Master follow-up with returning actor Dennis To back in the titular role of the Wing Chun grandmaster who finds himself thrust into battle to protect refugees in Hong Kong from gangsters and corrupt British businessmen and law enforcement, while fighting to clear his name when framed for a murder he didn’t commit. The news came days before To was announced to star in Ip Man: Kung Fu Legacy, which will bow in 2027. VARIETY, VARIETY
• Gemma Arterton is replacing Daisy Ridley in the title role of biopictoral MMA drama Killa Bee, now selling at Cannes via sales label Capture. Ewen Bremner and Olympic boxer Nicola Adams in her screen debut also star for director Kenton Oxley’s latest out of Knockout Productions filming this month about the story of a nurse who fights to save lives in the ICU by day, until the sunsets when she steps into the cage – one place she feels in control. SCREEN
• Film Mode Entertainment is at Cannes to pitch Deadlocked, reteaming Brawler pair Lewis Tan and Scott Adkins for director Roel Reine. Collin Armstrong’s script follows Tan in the role of a disgraced ex-cop-turned-bailiff tasked with protecting jurors against a team of deadly mercenaries storming a jury site searching for a secret ledger detailing citywide corruption. DEADLINE
• Martial arts thriller Relentless continues the trajectory of actor and filmmaker Bren Foster who plays a former soldier and fighter forced back into the brutal underground arena where he’s faced with the fight of his life – not against an opponent, but against time itself. Spirit Media is at Cannes with the project which also has a behind-the-scenes reel still making the rounds. Foster also just wrapped Vegas-set thriller, Marx, with director Louis Mandylor. INSTAGRAM
• Supermax was nabbed by Amazon MGM for worldwide rights ahead of Cannes. Will Smith will star in the film from director David Gordon Green out of Miramax, which follows two FBI agents investigating a murder within the world’s most secure prison. DEADLINE
• Following news that broke last October, Jackie Chan all but confirmed Armor Of God IV: Ultimatum, the fourth entry in the Hong Kong classic franchise. Set to release in 2027, filming in Kazakhstan will be helmed by Robert Kun, and produced by Salem Entertainment as the first of six projects being backed by the AIFC-registered Alem Fund. VARIETY
• Sibling directing duo Doran and Yoav Paz will direct Twilight Of The Dead for Kate Beckinsale to star with action sequences by Pak Ho-sung. The finale in the longstanding Dead franchise from George A. Romero will be “set on a decimated earth where the last vestiges of humanity are trapped between warring factions and an evolving undead threat”. Magenta Light Studios will handle the film’s North American release. DEADLINE
• In a move that could further advance prospective live action adaptations of Japanese IP, Cloverbay founder Yasuo Matsuo has launched IP Bay at Cannes where Japan is the 2026 Country of Honor. His son, Jun, will serve as CEO, with producer Frankie Seratch co-founding the label and overseeing its New York and Los Angeles locations. The announcement preambles exciting developments of properties for Western audiences like “Dragon Ball Z,” “Saint Seiya,” and “Sailor Moon.” VARIETY