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Sydney Sweeney will team with "Fast & Furious" director Justin Lin on a fresh take on the 1964 French film "That Man From Rio." The adventure comedy is in development at Apple Original Films with Lin set to direct and produce, and Sweeney onboard to star and executive produce. The script was written by Chase Palmer ("The Alienist"), and Kevin Walsh will also produce for The Walsh Company under his first-look deal with Apple TV. Lin will serve as producer on behalf of his Perfect Storm Entertainment banner....

Eighty-six films have been assigned to voters in the Oscars' Best International Feature Film category, one more than qualified in last year's race. The assignments came in emails obtained by TheWrap and sent by the Academy on Friday to members who volunteered to vote in the category. The record of 93 entries was set in 2020. The number of contenders topped 90 for the first time in 2017, and did so five times in the ensuing six years. But it fell to 88 in 2023 and then 85 last year and 86 this year. First-round voting will take place from Dec. 9 to 12, with a shortlist of 15 films announced on Dec. 16. A second round of voting, open to any member who has seen 15 shortlisted films, will narrow the shortlist down to five nominees. At the time the assignments were made, 57 of the 85 titles were available in the Academy Screening Room devoted to the category...

Sony/Crunchyroll's "Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc" won't break the box office out of its October slowdown, but it will ease the slump slightly as it has earned a $17.2 million opening weekend from 3,003 locations. "Chainsaw Man" does rank among Crunchyroll's top 5 highest openings ever, with high marks from the fan-heavy audience akin to a faith-based film with an A on CinemaScore, 5/5 on PostTrak, and a 99% Rotten Tomatoes audience score. And while not on the scale of "Demon Slayer," "Chainsaw Man" is also performing well in overseas markets, particularly in the anime-loving Asia, grossing $108 million worldwide so far with $60 million coming from Sony-distributed markets. With anime fans showing increasing interest in showing up to theaters for films from their favorite series, Crunchyroll is becoming a key calendar gap filler for theaters on weekends where major tentpoles aren't coming out...

This year marks the 10th time TheWrap has ranked the top 50 U.S. film schools and the second year we've partnered with the data research company Screen Engine/ASI to implement a data-driven ranking system. Kevin Goetz's company created a detailed survey and used the answers to score each institution on a wide variety of factors, which are explained in greater detail in the methodology page at the bottom of this post. The results were similar to last year's rankings, with NYU retaining its No. 1 position and 35 of the top 50 institutions landing within five spots of their 2024 ranking. Schools that made substantial jumps this year included the Savannah College of Art and Design, Biola University and California State University, Northridge. Penn State University and Belmont University made the list for the first time, and in addition we've included a couple of honorable mentions to watch out for in the future. It's also worth noting that almost everybody told us they were planning new classes in AI. (Courtesy TheWrap Staf)...

Animation has been among the key drivers of the Chinese film industry's rapid development over the past two decades, and the past 12 months have showcased just how far this art form has come in the country. Obviously much of the noise has been centered about the stunning box office success of Beijing Enlight Pictures' Ne Zha 2, the tale of the plucky little demon boy that is now the world's biggest animated hit of all time, surpassing Pixar's Inside Out 2 with estimated box office of more than $2.2 billion globally. According to Chen Liaoyu, art director and executive producer,"Chinese animation has continued to grow and evolve," explains Chen. "While earlier stages of development prioritized quantity, the past decade has marked a transition toward quality. A new generation of animation creators has reached a stage of creative maturity, and a new, broader audience is emerging." Chinese filmmakers are looking beyond the domestic market with storytelling that Chen says has the potential for global appeal: "Although the story is rooted in the Chinese literary classic Journey to the West, it is, above all, a story about ordinary people. It is not a tale of traditional heroism, but one of self-awareness and staying true to one's inner self. Most importantly, it is a film filled with humor and joy from beginning to end — a story that anyone, regardless of age or background, can enjoy."..

While Japan has bolstered its production incentives ecosystem, infrastructure remains a key challenge in the country, Shogun producer Eriko Miyagawa highlighted at an MPA seminar at the Tokyo International Film Festival. Although Japan's incentives for large-scale international projects are robust and generous (offering support up to 50% of production costs in some cases), Miyagawa pointed out that the country still needs to build more sound stages, production facilities and production offices, and set aside space for back office staff, art and costume departments — and critically, have these in close proximity with a diverse range of locations, like beaches and old castle walls. On the topic of AI, Miyagawa added: "We should have a cooldown and understand what VFX is and what AI is. Multiplying background has been done for decades and that's a very different technology. In that respect, we have not had to pay background as much. I think the train has left the station. There are so many possibilities, and I think we should do our best to improve our storytelling and see how we can take advantage of this new technology, while finding ways to protect people who work in the industry."...