How do you top Barbie? And who's playing that goat?

This week's industry news curated for the working actor

šŸŽ¬ Welcome to The Reelarc Rundown šŸŽ¬

šŸ”ø Margot Robbieā€™s coming for the Monopoly Man
šŸ”ø We finally know whoā€™s playing the goat in Wicked
šŸ”ø Dakota Fanning reveals her favorite on set lessons

All that and more on this weekā€™s Rundown ā¤µļø

Industry News

CinemaCon: First Looks, Crossover Confirmations, Deal Extensions Galore

CinemaCon- the biggest gathering of movie theater owners worldwide- wrapped Thursday in Las Vegas and brought no shortage of bombshell industry news. Some of our favorite tidbits:

Movie owners pointed to the viral success of last summerā€™s Barbenheimer fever in hopes of future ticket sale success, but also admitted that blockbusters arenā€™t enough. Michael Oā€™Leary, president/CEO of the National Association of Theater Owners, emphasized ā€œto have a truly successful filmed entertainment industry, a variety of movies that appeal to movie goers is critical.ā€ For him that includes ā€œa strong and vibrant market for movies with smaller or medium sized budgets.ā€

From Barbie to Board Games

Perhaps our favorite CinemaCon announcement is Margot Robbieā€™s production company LuckyChap officially taking the reins of a feature film Monopoly adaptation. Who will star as Mr. Monopoly? (Personally we think Tom Hanks can pull off the monocle.) Will they use the old game pieces or new? Will there be free parking? We have so many questions. Of course, people are already wondering how you translate a board game into a blockbuster- but if anyone can do it, itā€™s the creatives behind Barbie.

Emmy Season Is Upon Us

Is it too early to start Emmy predictions? Never. Emmy consideration cut off is nearing (May 31st) and forecasts are heating up. Standout contenders for Best Drama Series include The Crown and The Morning Show while The Bear, Abbott Elementary, and Hacks are solid bets for Comedy Series.

Box Office Numbers

  1. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire - 31.2 mil (134.5 total) - Warner Bros.

  2. Monkey Man - 10.1 mil - Universal

  3. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire - 9 mil (88.9 total) - Sony Pictures

  4. The First Omen - 8.4 mil - 20th Century Studios

  5. Kung Fu Panda 4 - 7.8 mil (166 total) - Universal

Expert Insights

Ripley star Dakota Fanning spoke to Backstage about the best lessons sheā€™s learned on set. From I Am Sam to War of the Worlds to Twilight to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood- thereā€™s been plenty of learn. Here are some of our favorite quotes-

On still honing her process:
ā€œIt has always been, even now, about holding onto that childlike imagination, because I really think thatā€™s what acting is at the end of the day.ā€

On learning young from powerhouse directors:
ā€œ[Spielberg] is about the emotion first and about what the characters are experiencing. The actors arenā€™t there to service the special effects; rather, the special effects are there to heighten the story.ā€

On understanding your why in a role:
ā€œWhen you donā€™t know what youā€™re saying, then you can just feel like a clown in a costumeā€¦But if you can hold onto why youā€™re doing it, then it doesnā€™t feel weird or goofy or embarrassing. Iā€™m usually just trying to not be aware of the ridiculous aspects of what Iā€™m doing and that usually comes from deep understanding of why youā€™re doing it.ā€

Reelarc Casting Board

Quiz Time

In honor of CinemaCon hosted by the National Association of Theater Owners, can you put the highest grossing films worldwide from last year in order?

1- Oppenheimer

2- Fast X

3- The Super Mario Bros. Movie

4- Barbie

5- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

A. 1.45 Billion

B. 1.36 Billion

C. 968 Million

D. 846 Million

E. 705 Million

Trends on your FYP

Kirsten Dunst stopped by Variety to get quizzed on lines from her over three decade-long career. Indiewire recently called Dunst ā€œour most reasonable movie starā€ and itā€™s not hard to see why. (Yes, of course she remembers the Bring It On cheer.)

What Weā€™re Watching This Weekend

šŸŽ„ For your A24 fix - Alex Garlandā€™s anticipated Civil War is in theaters now

šŸŽ„ For the Michael Douglas fans - the first three episodes of Apple TV+ā€™s Franklin drop today

šŸŽ„ For the gamers - Fallout season one is finally here on Prime

šŸŽ„ For a good scare - Blumhouseā€™s Night Swim streaming on Peacock starting April 15th

šŸŽ„ For some Pulitzer prize-winning source material - limited series (based on the novel) The Sympathizer streaming on Max April 13th

Quiz Answers: 1C, 2E, 3B, 4A, 5D
(P.S.- Have a story or industry info you think should be featured on the Rundown? Let us know - [email protected]!)