Bicoastal integrated production studio Humble has hired Mark Kovacs as executive producer. A longtime Humble collaborator, Kovacs will work alongside founder/president Eric Berkowitz and VP/exec producer Persis Koch to manage projects out of Humble’s New York office.
Kovacs is an accomplished producer and a veteran of the commercial production industry, having worked all over the world for brands including Chevy, Cadillac, Audi, BMW, Verizon, AT&T and Procter & Gamble. He cut his teeth at One Such Films, moving through the ranks from production assistant to ultimately head of production and line producer; he later embarked on a successful long-term freelance career working as both a line producer and first assistant director. During that time Kovacs also owned his own production company Commercial Vehicles Productions, which managed global projects for Jaguar, among others. He began working with Humble on a freelance basis in 2010.
“As Humble pushes into new areas including high-end effects and design, and original and long-form content, it’s a huge advantage that Mark is already innately familiar with our directors, clients, and company culture,” said Berkowitz.
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