Tag: Joel Kinnaman

Posted on in Film News, News

‘They Found Us’: Neill Blomkamp’s Alien Abduction Thriller Starring Joel Kinnaman Shuts Down Just Before Filming Starts

A majority of Hollywood productions are being paused due to the SAG-AFTRA strike and its extension due to the AMPTP walking away from the recent round of negotiations. Other smaller features have been to move forward or have found workarounds like hiring non-SAG actors or getting union exemptions. Director Neill Blomkamp (“Gran Turismo”) was set to begin shooting an alien abduction thriller titled “They Found Us” with Swedish-American actor Joel Kinnaman (“Silent Night”) set to play a father who takes his daughter camping in the Utah wilderness only to be attacked by a hostile alien and fight this beastly creature to avoid being abducted to a terrifying alien world.

There is now a report from Deadline that the film, currently in pre-production, has paused its prep stage ahead of principal photography in Saudi Arabia and was backed up by AGC Studios. It isn’t expected to get back up and running until a rework of its finance structure. This is the same studio that was recently behind Richard Linkleter’s buzzy hitman comedy “Hit Man” starring Glen Powell and Adria Arjona.

“The move to restructure the finance plan behind the independent movie comes just as tension in the region is growing due to the Israel-Gaza crisis.”

“They Found Us” has a script that hails from screenwriter Jeremy Slater, who previously worked on Netflix’s “The Umbrella Academy” and Marvel’s “Moon Knight.”

AGC made the following statement to Deadline:

“We’ve taken the reluctant decision with our valued partners at Neom to pause pre-production on the film while we further explore a cross-border legal and funding structure that makes all stakeholders comfortable. In deciding when to resume pre-production we’ll obviously assess what impact macro events in the region may have on obtaining production insurances and travel plans. Our friends at Neom and Yellow Camel have been nothing but collaborative and reliable partners at every stage of the journey thus far and we look forward to returning to prep on the film with them at the earliest sensible opportunity.”

Given that it wasn’t set to begin shooting for weeks/months it could allow enough time to get things ironed out without any major disruption. Then again, plenty of films have gone on hiatus just before filming and just simply never ended up happening. Some of the previous Blomkamp projects that ended up not getting in front of cameras include “Alien 5,” “RoboCop Returns,” and a live-action “Halo” film at 20th Century Fox that was going to be produced by Peter Jackson.

Blomkamp, of course, is no stranger to the world of sci-fi and aliens as his first big feature film “District 9” focused on stranded alien refugees in South Africa alongside “Elysium” and “Chappie” set squarely within the cyberpunk genre exploring different angles of artificial intelligence and highly advanced technologies.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Film News, News, Trailers

‘Silent Night’ Trailer: Legendary Action Director John Woo Returns With Blood-Soaked Revenge Pic This December

John Woo is arguably one of the most influential action directors of the 1980s and 1990s, he basically helped make Hong Kong actor Chow Yun-Fat an international action star while also ushering in gun-fu, essentially an action sub-genre where gunplay is just as visually stunning as any martial arts fight. Those action pics such as “The Killer” and “Hard-Boiled” eventually caught the attention of Hollywood leading to him making “Face-Off,” “Broken Arrow,” “Harget Target,” “Paycheck,” and “Windtalkers.” The filmmaker is making his grand return to Hollywood after 20 years thanks to Thunder Road and Lionsgate, the folks behind the “John Wick” franchise.

Woo is very much back to the genre he helped popularize over 40 years ago with Lionsgate’s “Silent Night” starring Swedish actor Joel Kinnaman (“The Suicide Squad”) playing a grief-stricken father who is looking to get bloody revenge during the holiday season after the death of his son. The kicker and main gimmick of the film, our protagonist doesn’t speak. The film’s tagline is “Action Speaks Louder Than Words” and the trailer they dropped yesterday (See below) very much indicates that’s the case.

Here is the official logline of “Silent Night” via Lionsgate:

“From legendary director John Woo and the producer of ‘John Wick’ comes this gritty revenge tale of a tormented father (Joel Kinnaman) who witnesses his young son die when caught in a gang’s crossfire on Christmas Eve. While recovering from a wound that costs him his voice, he makes vengeance his life’s mission and embarks on a punishing training regimen in order to avenge his son’s death.”

Other cast members include Scott Mescudi, Harold Torres, and Cataline Sandino Moreno.

Another Hollywood project on the horizon for Woo is a Western remake of his iconic Hong Kong pic, “The Killer.”

“Silent Night” will be blasting into theaters on December 1 and you can watch that new trailer below.

SOURCE: LIONSGATE

Posted on in News

‘Silent Night’: John Woo & Joel Kinnaman Team For Action Flick From ‘John Wick’ Franchise Producers

John Woo is reportedly making his comeback to American action projects, after a nearly 20-year hiatus. The legend of Hong Kong action filmmaking is said to be partnering with John Wick franchise producers Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee for Silent Night, a high-concept project that will see Swedish actor play a father looking for revenge in the criminal underworld after his son is murdered.

Deadline first reported on the project that is currently being sold at the American Film Market.

The unique angle is that there will be no dialogue will be in the movie.

Woo hasn’t made a mainstream Hollywood film since 2003’s Paycheck and it’s unclear if he’ll return to making Chinese projects after this movie.

He’s likely best known in the west for films such as Hard Target, Face/Off, Windtalkers, Broken Arrow, and Mission: Impossible 2. While those movies had bigger budgets than his Hong Kong movies, the action did not live up to things like The Killer and Hard Boiled. Hopefully, Silent Night can take cues from his earlier work.

Joel Kinnaman is no stranger to action roles in Suicide Squad, RoboCop, The Suicide Squad, Run All Night, Safe House, Snabba Cash, and the cyberpunk series Altered Carbon.

Producers Iwanky and Lee are behind the upcoming John Wick: Chapter 4, the John Wick spinoff film Ballerina starring Ana De Armas and directed by Len Wiseman, and the prequel series at Starz, The Continential.

SOURCE: DEADLINE