Ali Jaafar

EXCLUSIVE: Andrea Riseborough has signed on to play the role of Romaine in the BBC’s adaptation of Agatha Christie’s The Witness for the Prosecution. The two-parter will be a Christmas special for the broadcaster. Penned by Sarah Phelps, a longtime writer on popular soap Eastenders, the story is based on one of Agatha…

EXCLUSIVE: Bollywood actor Ali Fazal (Happy Bhaag Jayegi, Furious 7) has boarded Stephen Frears’ Victoria and Abdul opposite the previously announced Judi Dench in the Working Title-BBC-Focus Features pic. Fazal takes the role of Abdul Karim, the young servant from India who became an unlikely confidant and teacher to…

EXCLUSIVE: Dominic West has joined Elisabeth Moss in Ruben Ostlund’s The Square. The pic will be the English-language debut for the Swedish filmmaker, whose Force Majeure was shortlisted for the foreign-language Oscar in 2015 but was the big surprise to be omitted from the nomination list. The Square follows an artist…

Sean Penn is in early talks to board Mel Gibson’s long-gestating Professor and the Madman, an adaptation of Simon Winchester’s bestseller about the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary. Gibson has been working to adapt the book for the best part of two decades. Voltage Pictures has come on-board to finance and…

EXCLUSIVE: Chloe Sevigny, Salma Hayek and Jay Duplass have joined indie pic Beatriz At Dinner, written by Mike White and to be directed by Miguel Arteta. The story follows a holistic medicine practitioner who finds herself a fish out of water when her car breaks down at a wealthy client’s house and she joins a…

The UK government has closed a loophole that had allowed users of the BBC’s popular catchup service iPlayer to watch the service for free. Starting September 1, anyone who uses the BBC iPlayer musy pay for a TV license, the £145-a-year charge that fund the BBC. While it is a legal requirement for all households who…

Sony Pictures Division, the Japanese conglom’s unit comprising Sony Pictures’ studio and TV networks, posted a loss of $103 million for the April to June quarter despite a 7% increase in revenue. That is partly down to the strong Yen, which has meant less earnings for the company when converted into dollars. Across…

Turkey’s hardline President Recep Erdogan is bringing down the hammer on the country’s media following on from the failed coup earlier this month. More than 130 media outlets, including 16 television stations, 23 radio stations, 45 newspapers, are being shut down as the Turkish government moves to consolidate its…

Pinewood Studios, one of the world’s leading production facilities companies, is nearing a $425 million deal to be taken over by U.S. property investment fund Venus Grafton.  Pinewood chief exec Ivan Dunleavy has been looking for an investor to come in to the group for some time. Pinewood owns studios and facilities…

Mike Mills’ 20th Century Women, starring Annette Bening and Greta Gerwig, will have its world premiere as this year’s New York Film Festival centerpiece. The announcement was made today by the Film Society of Lincoln Center. The 54th NYFF runs September 30-October 16. The gala screening of Mills’ film, the story of…

China's largest theater group Wanda has acquired China’s leading movie portal Mtime for $350 million. The move gives the ever-expanding Wanda a stronger digital presence. That’s particularly key in China, where digital ticket sales are the primary platform for consumers to buy tickets. Mtime’s business covers media…

French media giant Vivendi is looking to change the terms of its deal with Mediaset over the Italian company’s pay TV unit. Vivendi confirmed that it is no longer looking to take control of 100% of Mediaset’s loss-making pay TV unit, earning the chagrin of Mediaset execs, who have fired back and accused Vivendi of…