Diane Patrone and Chris Zander have partnered to form The Family, New York. The pair is handling East Coast representation for Backyard Productions, Venice, Calif., Cut + Run, bicoastal and London, and stimmüng, Santa Monica….Marci Miles of Reelize Reps, Chicago, has been named to handle the Midwest for Los Angeles-based Rhythm & Hues Studios….Northern Lights Post, New York, has signed Rich Schafler of Schafler Artists Management, New York, for East Coast sales….New York-based animation studio Noodlesoup Productions has signed Perry Schaffer and Corey Rogers of independent rep firm SchafferRogers, New York, to cover the East Coast….Julie Vargo of Julie Vargo and Associates, Chicago, will handle Midwest representation for ONDA Music + Sound Design, New York….Finger Music, West Los Angeles, has signed Kristina Kovacevic of KK Reps, Chicago, for Midwest representation….Lauren Kretzmer has joined Convergence, New York, as director of client relations….Mitch Rabin has been named VP/sales and marketing for Opus 1 Music Library, Studio City, Calif….Graciella Creazzo at GoGoGo Films, Miami, will be repping director Sergio Guerrero on the East Coast and in Texas. Darcy/Fox Productions, Santa Monica, will rep Guerrero on the West Coast and in the Midwest….Global Production Network, Los Angeles, has taken on exclusive U.S. representation for Media Pro Pictures and its subsidiary Domino Films, both established in the Romanian and Eastern European production arena. Media Pro, which provides production services and facilities to theatrical features, is headed by Andrei Boncea. Domino Films is Media Pro’s commercial production arm, which is under the aegis of executive producer Mihai Cociasu….Production designer Marcos Lutyens has signed with Radiant Artists, Los Angeles, for representation in commercials and music videos….Wardrobe stylist Hala Bahmet has signed with Montana Artists, Los Angeles, for exclusive representation. Also, DP Crescenzo Notarile has finished work on the TV series Hawaii and is again available for spotwork via Montana Artists….
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More