Tag: Kerry Washington

Apple TV Debuts Trailer for New Series ‘Imperfect Women’

Apple TV has released the trailer for the limited series “Imperfect Women,” a new psychological thriller starring Kerry Washington and Elisabeth Moss. The eight-episode series will debut March 18 with the first two episodes followed by new episodes every Wednesday through April 29.

Based on Araminta Hall’s novel of the same name, “Imperfect Women” examines a murder investigation that shatters the lives of a decades-long friendship of three women. As the investigation unfolds, so does the truth about how even the closest friendships may not be what they seem. The thriller examines love, betrayal and the compromises that alter lives irrevocably.

The ensemble cast for “Imperfect  Women” also includes Kate Mara, Joel Kinnaman, Corey Stoll, Leslie Odom Jr., Audrey Zahn, Jill Wagner, Rome Flynn, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Sherri Saum.

“Imperfect Women” is a co-production of 20th Century Television and Apple Studios.

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Apple TV Unveils First Look at ‘Imperfect Women,’ Due March 18

Apple TV has unveiled the first look at “Imperfect Women,” the new psychological thriller starring and executive produced by Elisabeth Moss (“The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Shining Girls,” “Mad Men”) and Kerry Washington (“Scandal,” “Little Fires Everywhere,” “UnPrisoned”).

Created for television by Annie Weisman (“Physical,” “Based on a True Story”), who also serves as showrunner, the eight-episode series will make its global debut on Apple TV with the first two episodes on March 18, followed by new episodes every Wednesday through April 29.

Based on Araminta Hall’s novel of the same name, “Imperfect Women” examines a crime that shatters the lives of three women in a decades-long friendship. The thriller explores guilt and retribution, love and betrayal, and the compromises we make that irrevocably alter our lives. As the investigation unravels, so does the truth about how even the closest friendships may not be what they seem.

The ensemble cast starring alongside Emmy Award winners Moss and Washington includes Kate Mara (“House of Cards,” The Martian), Joel Kinnaman (“For All Mankind”), Corey Stoll (“House of Cards”), Leslie Odom Jr. (Hamilton, “Central Park”), Audrey Zahn (“Wildcat”), Jill Wagner (“Special Ops: Lioness”), Rome Flynn (“With Love”), Sheryl Lee Ralph (“Abbott Elementary”), Violette Linnz (“Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty“), Indiana Elle (“The Housemaid”), Jackson Kelly (“The Pitt”), Keith Carradine (“Madam Secretary”), Ana Ortiz (“Ugly Betty”) and Wilson Bethel (“All Rise”).

“Imperfect Women” is a co-production between 20th Television and Apple Studios. The limited series is executive produced by Moss and Lindsey McManus, who initially optioned the book via their production company Love & Squalor Pictures. Washington executive produces for Simpson Street alongside Pilar Savone. Author Hall serves as executive producer along with writer Kay Oyegun. Lesli Linka Glatter (“Homeland,” “Love & Death”) serves as director and executive producer of the first episode.

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Wake Up Dead Man

STREAMING REVIEW:

Netflix;
Mystery;
Rated ‘PG-13’ for violent content, bloody images, strong language, some crude sexual material, and smoking.
Stars Daniel Craig, Josh O’Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, Thomas Haden Church, Annie Hamilton, James Faulkner, Noah Segan, Jeffrey Wright.

The third and best of the mystery films featuring Daniel Craig as private detective Benoit Blanc, Wake Up Dead Man gives writer-director Rian Johnson a chance to work through his misgivings about organized religion.

The multi-layered mystery story centers on troubled young Catholic priest Father Jud (Josh O’Connor), a former boxer whose temper earns him reassignment to a small-town parish where he can keep an eye on the firebrand Monsignor Wicks (Josh Brolin).

Jud’s arrival is met with resistance by Wicks, whose intensity at the pulpit has driven away most of the local parishioners, leaving a core group of loyal followers.

They see Wicks as a holy avenger defending the faith from a wicked world. One of the flock, a podcaster, even posts Wicks’ sermons online, hoping to turn him into a cult figure to the outside world.

Nine months into his tenure witnessing Wicks’ domineering nature, Jud declares that Wicks must be removed for the parish to survive. Shortly afterward, Wicks is stabbed to death in a storage room near the pulpit while taking a break from his Good Friday lecture.

Since Wicks was unharmed walking into the room, and no one could have entered or exited it without being detected, the local police chief (Mila Kunis) is stumped by the seemingly impossible crime, and calls in Blanc.

Though Jud’s disagreements with Wicks make him the prime suspect, Blanc enlists his help to give him perspective on Wicks’ clique and sort through the clues that are, at first glance, contradictory.

Blanc likens the case to a classic “locked-room mystery,” paying homage in particular to the 1935 John Dickson Carr novel The Hollow Man and its laundry list of ways such a crime could be committed. However, as he and Jud dig deeper, the case proves bigger than they could have imagined, intertwining at least three generations of Wicks family controversies.

Like the previous Benoit Blanc films, Wake Up Dead Man is a master class in misdirection, as each new reveal gives new context to earlier scenes and enhance the film’s rewatchability. The film is capable of pulling this off thanks to its stellar cast, not just the terrific lead performances by O’Connor and Craig, but in subtleties provided by the supporting cast, particularly Glenn Close as the devout church secretary Martha in a performance adept at conveying multiple levels of information depending on how the viewer reads the scene.

The film also manages to be quite funny despite some of the darker tones of the story. Johnson’s choice to use the mystery plot to examine the relationship between a church and its followers is bound to garner some heat not only for its overt observations about religious doctrine, but also its allegorical subtext about modern American politics. While these provide another level of potential discussion about interpretations of the film and accuracy of Johnson’s social commentary, they shouldn’t detract from what is otherwise a solidly constructed mystery story on its own.

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Lionsgate Releasing Kerry Washington, Omar Sy Actioner ‘Shadow Force’ in Theaters May 2

Lionsgate Feb. 21 announced the May 2 theatrical debut of Shadow Force, starring Kerry Washington and Omar Sy as former leaders of a multinational special forces (“Shadow Force”) paramilitary group who broke the rules by falling in love.

To protect their son and relationship, they go underground. With a large bounty on their heads, and a vengeful Shadow Force on their trail, one family’s fight becomes all-out war.

Written and directed by Joe Carnahan (Blood, Guts, Bullets and Octane; Narc; Smokin’ Aces; The A-Team; The Grey; and Boss Level), the movie is also produced by Washington, who currently appears in the Netflix original war drama The Six Triple Eight. 

French actor Sy made his name in 2011’s The Intouchables and the Netflix series “Lupin.”

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Apple TV+ to Bow Drama ‘Imperfect Women,’ Starring Elisabeth Moss and Kerry Washington

Apple TV+ will expand its drama slate with “Imperfect Women,” a new limited series based on Araminta Hall’s novel of the same name that will star and be executive produced by Emmy Award-winners Elisabeth Moss (“The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Shining Girls,” “Mad Men”) and Kerry Washington (“Scandal,” “Little Fires Everywhere,” “UnPrisoned”).

An unconventional psychological thriller examining a crime that shatters the lives of a decades-long friendship of three women, “Imperfect Women” is a mystery that explores guilt and retribution, love and betrayal, and the compromises that alter lives irrevocably. As the investigation unravels, so does the truth about how even the closest relationships can change over time.

The new series will be adapted for television, written and executive produced by Annie Weisman, marking her latest collaboration with Apple TV+ following the dramedy “Physical,” and will be produced for Apple TV+ by 20th Television and Apple Studios. 

“From the moment I received Araminta’s novel, I couldn’t put it down. It was such an electrifying read; I fell in love with it immediately,” Moss said in a statement. “I’ve admired Kerry and her work as an actor and producer for many years, and have been looking for something to work with her on and was so thrilled that she responded to the material when we sent it to her and Pilar at Simpson Street. They were the first and only people we thought of. We are so happy that Apple and 20th Television agreed to partner with us on this, as well. It’s all an absolute match made in heaven.”

“I could not have been more thrilled to get this call from Elisabeth,” Washington said in a statement. “I have been an immense fan of hers — both as a brilliant actor and groundbreaking producer — for years. Elisabeth and Lindsey have impeccable taste, as evidenced by the way they have championed Araminta’s gripping novel, and I can’t think of a better person to bring this project to life on screen than the amazing Annie Weisman. ‘Imperfect Women’ is exactly the type of exciting, complex, raw storytelling we strive to create at Simpson Street. Pilar and I are tremendously inspired by the opportunity to team up with Love & Squalor Pictures, and we are thankful to everyone at Apple Studios and the team at 20th Television for believing in this project as much as we do.”

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“I’m honored that Apple is once again trusting me to help bring complex, layered female characters to the screen,” Weisman said in a statement. “Elisabeth, Kerry and Araminta are the perfect collaborators to bring these ‘Imperfect Women’ to life.”

“I couldn’t be happier that my book has found a home at Apple, home of some of my favorite programs,” Hall said in a statement. “And to be working with Elisabeth and Lindsey is a dream. They have an incredible talent for story telling and immediately understood my book in exactly the way I meant it to be read. And then to have Kerry Washington on board is like a bonus on top of a bonus. My book couldn’t be in better hands.”

Netflix Producing Kerry Washington Movie

Netflix has signed a deal with Kerry Washington to star in and produce a feature film adaptation of Diane Cardwell’s memoir Rockaway.

Kerry Washington

On a routine assignment, a Manhattan journalist (Washington) unexpectedly discovers the transcendent power of surfing, and finds herself running from the comfortable life she’s always known towards a life of romance and self-discovery in eclectic Rockaway Beach.

Emmy Award winner Washington (“The Prom, “American Son,” “Little Fires Everywhere”) also stars in the upcoming Netflix film The School For Good And Evil.

Liza Chasin’s 3dot Productions, Kerry Washington’s Simpson Street, and Aevitas Entertainment are co-producers on the project.”

‘Little Fires Everywhere’ Premiere, ‘Palm Springs’ Among Hulu’s Most Watched Content in 2020

The season one premiere of “Little Fires Everywhere” was the most-watched episode while Palm Springs was the most watched movie on Hulu in 2020 through Dec. 2, the streaming service reported.

“Little Fires Everywhere,” which premiered with the episode “The Spark” on March 18, is a drama based on the novel starring Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington.

Palm Springs, which hit Hulu July 10, follows two strangers (Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti) who meet at a Palm Springs wedding only to get stuck in a time loop. Oscar-winner Parasite was the most-watched film on Hulu from March to May.

Among all Hulu viewers (live and on demand), unscripted content was the No. 1 genre in terms of content hours watched and percentage of overall consumption, according to Hulu. Minutes watched in unscripted series increased 48% year over year, driven by top unscripted titles such as “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.”

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The classic TV subgenre saw a 77% year-over-year increase in minutes watched streaming episodes of “I Love Lucy,” “M*A*S*H” and “The Twilight Zone,” among others.

Super Bowl LIV: 49ers vs. Chiefs was the top-streamed Live sports event. Five of Hulu’s top 10 Live programs in 2020 were dedicated to sports: NFL Football, College Football, NBA Basketball, SportsCenter and MLB Baseball together accounted for the majority of Live hours watched.

The top five most watched non-sports and non-news related Live shows were “Wheel of Fortune,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Family Guy,” “Jeopardy” and “The Simpsons.”

The Oscars, which aired Feb. 9, was the largest non-sports and non-news single event watched.

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The 10-week period March 15 through May 23 experienced the largest number of hours watched per week on Hulu, peaking during the week of April 12-18, according to the service. Hulu viewers watched more hours of TV on April 26 than any other single day, making it the most streamed day of the year. Some of the most-streamed titles that contributed to the record breaking day were “SNL at Home” (with Brad Pitt impersonating Dr. Fauci), all eight episodes of “Little Fires Everywhere” and episode three of the ESPN documentary The Last Dance.

From March through May, overall binge hours on Hulu were up 61% year over year and overall binge sessions were up 44%. Hulu defines “binge” as a session with playback (hours watched) from at least three episodes of the same series and at least 80% completion for each episode.

Hulu Original content dominated the platform in May, with viewers watching “Little Fires Everywhere,” “Normal People,” “Solar Opposites” and “The Great.” They also enjoyed bingeing “Letterkenny” and “The Handmaid’s Tale.”

News was the top genre among Hulu + Live TV subs this year in terms of minutes watched, as nearly 25% of minutes watched in the news category. The Top 3 news programs streamed between March through May were “ABC News Live,” “ABC 20/20” and “ABC World News Tonight with David Muir.”

  

Hulu Acquires Rights to ‘Scandal’

Hulu has acquired the rights to the ABC series “Scandal,” and all seven seasons of the drama will begin streaming exclusively on the service May 20.

The series was created by Shonda Rhimes (“Grey’s Anatomy,” “Private Practice”). Rhimes and producing partner Betsy Beers (“Grey’s Anatomy,” “How to Get Away with Murder”), Mark Fish, Mark Wilding and Tom Verica are executive producers.

“Scandal” stars Kerry Washington as Olivia Pope, Guillermo Diaz as Huck, Darby Stanchfield as Abby Whelan, Katie Lowes as Quinn Perkins, Tony Goldwyn as President Fitzgerald Grant, Jeff Perry as Cyrus, Bellamy Young as First Lady Mellie Grant, Joshua Malina as David Rosen, Scott Foley as Jake Ballard, Portia De Rossi as Elizabeth North and Cornelius Smith Jr. as Marcus Walker.

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The Washington D.C.-set drama centers on political fixer Pope and her team of associates who sacrifice their time, and often their morals, to “handle” unimaginable crises affecting the nation’s elite. Throughout six seasons, “Scandal” explores political culture, gender disparities, sexual politics and race in America.

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