By Josh Dickey and Lucas Shaw
TheWrap

Zach Braff loves Sundance, and Sundance loves him back.

It’s been 10 years since Braff made a big Sundance splash with “Garden State,” and now the “Scrubs” star is back with “Wish I Was Here,” which earned rapturous applause following its Saturday premiere at the Marc, and a standing ovation for Braff as he took the stage for the trailing QA.

It was an auspicious start for the first Kickstarter-backed project made by a known Hollywood star to play in front of an audience — Rob Thomas’ “Veronica Mars” won’t premiere until March — and bodes well for a quick sale in Park City. “Garden State” was picked up by Fox Searchlight and Miramax for $5 million in 2004, and went on to gross $35 million worldwide.

Braff also stars in his return to directing — he s spent the past 10 years focused on his acting career — and has drawn both applause and ire for his use of Kickstarter, where he raised more than $3 million of the film’s $5 million budget. Braff thanked producer Stacey Sher for encouraging him to mount the crowdfunding campaign.

Also read:  New Zach Braff Movie Hits Kickstarter Goal, Could It Threaten ‘Veronica Mars’ Record?

“The goal was a month — and in 48 hours it was funded by my fans, 47,000 people,” Braff said. “I’ll thank Stacey ’til the day I die.”

Many of those fans were in attendance — though some were left out in the cold, and reportedly vocally grumbled about helping pay for a film they didn’t get to see premiere. But there was no grumbling inside: the crowd at the Marc cheered the contributors when their names showed up in the credits.

In “Wish I Was Here,” Braff plays a 35-year-old struggling actor, father, and husband still trying to find purpose in his life. Braff assembled a starry ensemble for his movie, including Kate Hudson — who’s already drawing rave reviews, including from mom Goldie Hawn, also in attendance — Mandy Patinkin, Josh Gad, Ashley Greene and Joey King. Jim Parsons and the late James Avery both have cameos.

Braff acknowledged onstage that he knew people might have gone “apes—” over his decision to crowdfund the film — but said it was worth it to make the exact movie he had in mind. That included helping to pay for the film’s sparkling soundtrack — another trademark of “Garden State” — including original music from Bon Iver and James Mercer of the Shins. 

It helped that the “Garden State” soundtrack was itself a hit.

“People called me back quicker,” Braff joked.

The post Sundance: Zach Braff’s Starry, Kickstarter-Fueled ‘Wish I Was Here’ Rapturously Applauded, Sure to Sell appeared first on TheWrap.

David O. Russell’s “American Hustle” has won the Screen Actors Guild award for outstanding cast, setting up the con-artist comedy as the film to beat at the Academy Awards.

The other nominees Saturday night at the ceremony at Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium were “12 Years a Slave,” ”Dallas Buyers Club,” ”August: Osage County” and “Lee Daniels’ The Butler.” Because actors make up the largest branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the SAG Awards are considered one of the most predictive tea leaves of the Oscars.

Photos: 2014 SAG Awards red carpet

Saturday’s awards were a somewhat low-key affair with a few memorable speeches but no earthquakes in a rapidly solidifying award season. The night’s acting winners — Matthew McConaughey (“Dallas Buyers Club”), Cate Blanchett (“Blue Jasmine”), Lupita Nyong’o (“12 Years a Slave”) and Jared Leto (“Dallas Buyers Club”) — are each probably the favorites of their categories.

“It really shines a great light on this bull ride we call acting,” said McConaughey, honored for lead actor in the Texas HIV drama. “I’ve been able to recently find some characters that I can humble myself to their humanities and get feverishly drunk on their obsessions.”

Coming two days after Academy Award nominations, the SAG Awards are particularly monitored for predicting Oscar momentum. The outstanding cast category, the night’s top honor, was perhaps a showdown between “American Hustle” and “12 Years a Slave.” The two very different films were kept separated by drama and comedy categories at the Golden Globes.

Photos: TwitPics from the 2014 SAG Awards

Nyong’o won for supporting actress for her performance as the singular slave Patsy in Steve McQueen’s historical drama. She thanked McQueen “for taking a flashlight and shining it underneath the floorboards of this nation and reminding us what it is we stand on.”

The Kenyan actress, who has been hailed for her red-carpet grace this awards season, recalled her celebratory phone call to her father when she got the part — her first feature film.

“‘Daddy, do you know who Brad Pitt is? I’m going to be in a movie with him!'” recalled Nyong’o. “And he said, ‘I don’t know him personally, but I’m glad you got a job.'”

Leto was honored for supporting actor for playing the gaunt transsexual Rayon, alongside McConaughey’s Texas cowboy. He dedicated the award to those who have died of AIDS and to “the Rayons of the world.”

The “Breaking Bad” victory lap continued as the show took honors for outstanding dramatic cast and for lead actor Bryan Cranston. For his indelible performance as teacher-turned-meth dealer, Cranston added his second lead actor SAG Award, to go with his recent Golden Globe win and his numerous Emmys.

“We have the nicest bunch of white supremacist Nazis I have ever worked with,” said Cranston, looking over his former cast mates. “I swear to you I would kill you all over again.”

Two big-screen veterans won awards for TV films: Michael Douglas for HBO’s Liberace drama “Behind the Candelabra,” and Helen Mirren for the biopic “Phil Spector,” also on HBO.

“I am not here without Matt Damon,” said Douglas, after making a gay sex pun that made his co-star wince.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus has been a mainstay at award shows recently, both for her acclaimed HBO series “Veep” (for which she won an Emmy) and the romantic comedy “Enough Said” (for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe). She won a SAG trophy for female actor in a comedy series for “Veep,” and slyly mocked the award season crush by first thanking the Hollywood Foreign Press and then the Academy of Motion Picture Arts Sciences.

“It’s hard you know because it’s awards season and things get confusing, much like elections,” said Louis-Dreyfus. It’s the sixth SAG Award for the former “Seinfeld” star, whose “Enough Said” co-star James Gandolfini was nominated posthumously for his supporting performance.

The ABC sitcom “Modern Family” enjoyed another round of awards, winning for ensemble in a comedy series and taking the male actor in a comedy series honor for Ty Burrell.

SAG and the academy don’t always agree: Neither “August: Osage County” nor “The Butler” were nominated for best picture, and “The Butler” was snubbed entirely. The effects-heavy, sparsely peopled “Gravity” was predictably overlooked by SAG (except for a best actress nomination to Sandra Bullock), while it garnered 10 Oscar nods.

The SAG Awards are one of the more collegial stops on the awards circuit, with winners almost uniformly express gratitude for an honor chosen by their peers. A good speech (like Nyong’o’s) can help stoke Oscar support.

Emma Thompson, a surprise snub in Thursday’s Oscar nominations for the “Mary Poppins” making-of tale “Saving Mr. Banks,” was just as much the witty, winning award-show attendee she’s been all season. As a presenter, the lead actress nominee noted the show’s cheesy elevator music soundtrack: “Is this music available on CD?”

SAG’s lifetime achievement award was given to Rita Moreno, the 81-year-old “West Side Story” actress whose career has spanned Broadway, television and music. Introduced by Morgan Freeman, the much-honored Latina legend danced to the podium before a standing ovation and let out a gleeful expletive.

“I hope the man with the button was there,” she said. (He was.)

Moreno serenaded the SAG audience with a few bars from “This Is All I Ask”:

“And let the music play/ As long as there’s a song to sing/ And I will stay younger than spring.”

Complete list of winners at the 2014 SAG Awards

Photos: 2014 SAG Awards red carpet

By Jeff Sneider
TheWrap

Hot off a star-making performance as Leonardo DiCaprio‘s wife in “The Wolf of Wall Street,” Margot Robbie is in negotiations to play Jane in David Yates’ “Tarzan,” TheWrap has learned. She is also in talks to replace Amanda Seyfried in Craig Zobel’s “Z for Zachariah.”

Representatives for both films did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Robbie plans to shoot “Zachariah”  before taking on Warner Bros’ big-budget remake of the classic “Tarzan,” which is slated to star Alexander Skarsgard, Christoph Waltz and Samuel L. Jackson, according to individuals with knowledge of her schedule.

Warner’s go-to “Harry Potter” filmmaker Yates is directing the adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ series of novels about the King of the Jungle, with Skarsgard in the title role.

Jerry Weintraub and Alan Riche are producing, while Mike Richardson will executive produce with Yates. Warner Bros executive Jesse Ehrman will oversee the project on behalf of the studio, which plans to start production this summer. The studio is already high on Robbie, who stars opposite Will Smith in Warner’s con artist movie “Focus.”

Also read: ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Co-Stars Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie Survive Teleprompter Snafu (Video)

“Z for Zachariah” is a psychological thriller that Nissar Modi adapted from Robert O’Brien’s post-apocalyptic novel. Michael Benaroya is fully financing the picture, which is expected to star Chris Pine and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Tobey Maguire and Matthew Plouffe will produce through their Material Pictures banner alongside Zik Zak Filmworks’ Skuli Malmquist and Thor Sigurjonsson, as well as Palomar Pictures’ Joni Sighvatsson.

Robbie is in negotiations to play a young woman who believes she’s the only survivor after a devastating nuclear event, though she comes to learn she is not alone when two strangers wander onto her farm from the forest.

“Zachariah” was initially supposed to start filming in August 2013 before production was delayed until November, when Ejiofor was in the midst of an important Oscar campaign for “12 Years a Slave.” That, in addition to several other factors, delayed production until early 2014.

That delay forced Seyfried to drop out of the project to film “Fathers and Daughters” with Russell Crowe, after which she’ll star alongside Rebel Wilson in the Universal comedy “He’s F-ing Perfect.”

Also read:  ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Backlash: 10 Other Movies That Made Crime Seem Cool (Photos)

Robbie next co-stars alongside Michelle Williams, Matthias Schoenaerts and Kristin Scott Thomas in the Weinstein Company’s romantic drama “Suite Francaise.” The stunning Australian actress got her start on the Aussie series “Neighbours” before landing the lead in the short-lived ABC series “Pan Am.” In addition to playing the ‘Duchess of Bay Ridge’ in Martin Scorsese’s Oscar-nominated “Wolf of Wall Street,” Robbie recently appeared in Richard Curtis’ “About Time.”

She’s represented by CAA, Management 360, Australian agent Aran Michael and attorney Jeff Bernstein.

The post ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Star Margot Robbie in Talks for ‘Tarzan’ She’s Jane (Exclusive) appeared first on TheWrap.

By Josh Dickey and Lucas Shaw
TheWrap

Kristen Stewart‘s return to Sundance with “Camp X-Ray” was looking like a success — at least initially — as festivalgoers began to tweet positive things about her starring turn in the Guantanamo Bay drama that premiered midday Friday to a partial standing ovation at the cavernous Eccles Theater in Park City.

“I think Kristen Stewart thrives in realistic material. She’s recognizable, human in Camp X-ray. Movie demanded it,” tweeted freelance film reporter and reviewer Matt Patches.

Photos: Stars at the Sundance Film Festival

The film, written by first-time feature director Peter Sattler, follows Amy (Stewart), a solider who’s assigned to prison guard duty at Guantanamo Bay, where she befriends an inmate (played by “A Separation” star Payman Maadi. Sattler has said that Stewart had a lot of input on the character and script, which was shot at a juvenile prison outside of Los Angeles.

Also on TheWrap: 18 Must-See Movies at Sundance (Photos)

“Camp X-Ray” is in U.S. competition in Park City, where Stewart flew in from Los Angeles on Thursday to attend the premiere. But K-Stew is no Sundance newbie: She came to Park City in 2010 for the premiere of “The Runaways,” in which she played rocker Joan Jett, and has attended other years without a film in competition.

Stewart’s post “Twilight” career has been mixed; her performance as the moody Marylou in Walter Salles’ “On the Road” was generally well-received, but her Blockbuster followup “Snow White in the Huntsman” was less so: TheWrap critic Alonso Duralde wrote that “Even swaddled in armor and chain mail, it’s hard to imagine this blank-faced debutante stirring an army to follow her to Forever 21, much less to battle against a powerful necromancer.”

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By Brent Lang
TheWrap

Going to the movies got pricier last year as 3D films and higher ticket costs made catching the latest Blockbuster a more expensive proposition, according to new data by the National Association of Theater Owners.

The average ticket price rose a little more than 2 percent in 2013 to $8.13, compared to $7.96 in the previous year. It was a record-high annual average, NATO said.

Also on TheWrap: 3D Still A Hit With Foreign Audiences, But Domestically It’s a Different Story

The fourth quarter average was even higher — $8.35, a 3.7 percent jump from the year-ago period — although short of a high-water mark set earlier in the year. The fourth quarter culprit was likely a series of high-profile 3D and IMAX releases such as “Gravity” and “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.” Movies in those formats carry a surcharge.

During the third quarter, the average ticket price topped out at $7.84, but that was a period in which the major hits such as “The Conjuring” and “We’re the Millers” arrived in two dimensions.

During the second quarter, average ticket prices hit a record high of $8.38. “Iron Man 3? and “Man of Steel” were among the major 3D releases in theaters during that three-month period ending June.

NATO is the main lobbying arm for exhibitors.

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By Jeff Sneider
TheWrap

Robert Redford lobbed a blame bomb at his “All Is Lost” distributor Roadside Attractions on Thursday, suggesting that he may have been snubbed for a Best Actor nomination because the film “suffered from little to no distribution.”

In Redford’s opening remarks on the first day of the Sundance Film Festival, the veteran actor lamented: “We had no campaign to help us cross over to the mainstream. I don’t know what they were afraid of. They didn’t want to spend money or they were incapable.”

Photos: Oscar snubs and surprises | More: ‘Gravity’ and ‘American Hustle’ lead the pack

In one of the most competitive races in ages, Redford missed out on a nomination in favor of Christian Bale (“American Hustle”), Bruce Dern (“Nebraska”), Leonardo DiCaprio (“The Wolf of Wall Street”), Chiwetel Ejiofor (“12 Years a Slave”) and Matthew McConaughey (“Dallas Buyers Club”).

While Roadside Attractions didn’t shell out for a lavish awards campaign like the major studios did for “Gravity,” “American Hustle” and “12 Years a Slave,” Redford may want to look in the mirror: The actor did little to no campaigning for his tour-de-force performance in “All Is Lost,” allowing writer-director J.C. Chandor to stump for the film in his place.

“Would it have been wonderful to be nominated? Of course, but I’m not disturbed by it. I’m fine,” Redford said in front of a packed house at the Egyptian Theater.

The Sundance founder did his best to keep the attention on the 30th anniversary of the festival, saying “I don’t want it to get in the way of why we are here.”

Also read: Oscar Nominations: The Complete List

“These films are reliant on campaigns. It can get very political,” said Redford, who reminded the crowd that Hollywood is a business and one he respects.

“The film I made with J.C. Chandor is something I’m very proud of. It was for me a pure cinematic experience. For me as an actor, it gave me a chance to go back to my roots,” said the 77 year-old actor, who has only been nominated once before as an actor for his work in the 1973 caper “The Sting.”

Roadside Attractions chief Howard Cohen and parent company Lionsgate did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s requests for comment, though we will update this post if and when they do.

The post Robert Redford Slams Roadside Attractions for Oscar Snub: ‘We Had No Campaign’ appeared first on TheWrap.

By Brent Lang
TheWrap

Steven Soderbergh may have retired from movies, but that doesn’t mean he’s stopped directing.

The Oscar-winning filmmaker will make his New York theater debut directing “The Library” with Chloe Grace Moretz at the Public Theatre this spring.

It’s provocative sounding fare, centering on a school shooting survivor who finds that her story is distorted in the media coverage of the tragedy. Moretz, who is best known for her work in the ultra-violent “Kick-Ass,” will make her New York theater debut, as well.

Scott Z. Burns wrote the script. He previously collaborated with Soderbergh on “Side Effects” and “Contagion.”

After completing “Side Effects,” Soderbergh swore off directing films.  In a speech last spring at the San Francisco International Film Festival, he made it clear that he no longer saw a place for himself in a business run by studio executives who don’t know or love movies.

He previously directed for the stage in 2009 at Australia’s Sydney Theatre Company, where he oversaw a play called “Tot Mom,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

“The Library ” will debut March 25 at the Public and will open officially on April 15.  It is scheduled to close on April 27.

The post Steven Soderbergh, Chloe Grace Moretz Team for School Shooting Play appeared first on TheWrap.

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By Jethro Nededog
TheWrap

Leonardo DiCaprio‘s newest Oscar nomination has his fans going nuts over his journey to winning one of the coveted film awards, one that started two decades ago.

On Thursday, the actor was nominated for “The Wolf of Wall Street,” his fourth Academy Award nomination. “I am deeply humbled by this honor,” DiCaprio said of the nom.

He added, “‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ has been a passion project of mine, and I found the role to be one of the most challenging and rewarding of my career. Congratulations to all of my fellow nominees and thank you to the Academy for this extraordinary recognition.”

Photos: Oscar snubs and surprises | More: ‘Gravity’ and ‘American Hustle’ lead the pack

The nom represents his latest opportunity for a win since earning his first nomination in 1993 for Best Supporting Actor for “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?” Nominations for “The Aviator” and “Blood Diamond” followed, yet DiCaprio has yet to win an award.

And the 0-3 record has clearly become an aggravation for his fans. They’re proving to be very gifted at expressing their desire for the actor to finally win. DiCaprio’s statement was very humbled, but his fans’ reactions ranged from hopeful to crazy, sometimes violent levels.

Take a look at some of what the Leo fandom is saying on Twitter:

If Leo doesn’t win an oscar this year, I’m actually going to blow up Hollywood. Gonna let it burn. Just gonna stand there and watch it burn.

— Dina Michelle (@dinaamichelle) January 16, 2014

@AnjaWintour UGH. Side note: if Leo doesn’t get an Oscar this year I’m going to punch a baby in the mouth.. But not really.

— Venezia Fanner (@VeeLovesMusic) January 16, 2014

IF LEO DOESNT GET AN OSCAR THIS YEAR I WILL THROW A FIT

— Baddest Bitches (@Baddest_Bitches) January 16, 2014

So The Wolf of Wall Street is out on Friday and I’m also guessing that Leo DiCaprio won’t get an Oscar either. Sort it out Academy!

— Tom (@Tomtheycallme) January 16, 2014

Leo DiCaprio better win that damn Oscar. Long overdue.

— Chase Dechnik (@ChaseDech) January 16, 2014

If leo doesn’t win an oscar this year I will burn the academy to the ground like he’s brilliant just give him what he deserves #loveleo

Leo is nominated for an Oscar AGAIN and if he doesn’t win I will CRYYY

— Alejandra (@alepinkmann) January 16, 2014

I hope Leo Dicaprio wins an Oscar for Best Actor !! Please Lord give the man a Break

— Brandon Mohan (@TheBrandonMohan) January 16, 2014

Awww yaaayy Leo got nominated for an oscar! Pleaseee win, his acceptance speech just has to be one word: “finally.”

— Aya Gad (@_ohmygad) January 16, 2014

I say this every year but 2014 it’s serious. If Leo doesn’t win an Oscar, I am DONE. Cars will explode, houses will burn, the whole 9 yards.

— Elisabeth Jackson (@Elisabethh_J) January 13, 2014

If leo doesn’t win an oscar this year I will burn the academy to the ground like he’s brilliant just give him what he deserves #loveleo

The post Leonardo DiCaprio Fans Are Going Crazy Over His Oscar Nomination — Literally Nuts appeared first on TheWrap.

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WENN

Anne Hathaway may have been a double winner at the Oscars last year if she hadn’t dropped out of “Silver Linings Playbook” due to creative differences with director David O. Russell.

The film’s producer, Harvey Weinstein, has revealed Hathaway was the first choice to play mentally-unstable Tiffany Maxwell in the movie, but she had a falling out with Russell and was replaced by Jennifer Lawrence. Both women won Oscars — Lawrence took home a Best Actress award and Hathaway a Best Supporting Actress honor for “Les Miserables.”

Weinstein told radio host Howard Stern, “‘Silver Linings Playbook’ was originally going to be with Anne Hathaway and Mark Wahlberg … and then Anne wasn’t doing it. And she’s marvellous, and wonderful and she was my choice, I love her. … We had Annie and then we had Mark … then whatever happened, happened … David and Anne had some creative differences. They didn’t see eye-to-eye.”

“Then Jennifer Lawrence and two or three other actress came in, and the minute we saw Jennifer Lawrence’s tape … I said, ‘How the hell are we gonna replace Annie?’ And then this amazing creature walked in.” Wahlberg’s role went to Bradley Cooper, who was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his performance.