‘Emilia Pérez’ dominates Cesar Awards, Neon acquires ‘Together,’ and more of today’s top stories
Gold Derby’s top news stories for Jan. 29, 2025
Oscar fave Emilia Pérez receives 12 Cesar nominations
The five Best Film nominees at the 2025 Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars, are The Count of Monte Cristo, Emilia Pérez, The Marching Band, Souleymane’s Story, and Misericordia. (See the complete list of nominations.) The Count of Monte Cristo leads all other movies with 14 Cesar bids, followed by Beating Hearts at 13 and Emilia Pérez at 12. The news comes one week after Emilia Pérez received 13 Oscar nominations, the most ever for a non-English language film, with actresses Karla Sofía Gascón and Zoe Saldaña being recognized at both kudos. The five Best Foreign Film Cesar contenders are also Oscar nominees in various categories: Anora, The Seed of The Sacred Fig Tree, The Apprentice, The Substance, and, from last year’s Oscar contest, The Zone of Interest.
Neon acquires Sundance horror hit Together
The Dave Franco and Alison Brie body horror flick Together has been acquired by Neon just days after premiering at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. The production company is expected to release the movie in theaters on Aug. 1, 2025. Together comes from Michael Shanks, a first-time writer-director, who sparked a bidding way between Neon and others. Variety reports the project is one of the biggest deals in the history of Sundance, selling for between $10 million and $15 million. In the film, the real-life married duo Franco and Brie play a couple who experience a supernatural force inside a cave in the middle of the woods.
Apple gets Lucky with Annette Bening
Annette Bening returns to TV one year after starring in Peacock’s Apples Never Fall. This time, she’s joining the Apple TV+ limited series Lucky. She will star alongside Anya Taylor-Joy, who was cast in December as a reformed criminal who tries to escape her past. The program is based on Marissa Stapley‘s 2021 thriller novel, which gained significant traction after Reese Witherspoon added it to her book club list. Bening is a five-time Oscar nominee for The Grifters (1990), American Beauty (1999), Being Julia (2004), The Kids Are All Right (2010), and Nyad (2023), and an Emmy also-ran for Mrs. Harris (2006).
Grammys ceremony update
The 2025 Grammys will include tributes to the late Quincy Jones, who died on Nov. 3, 2024, and the city of Los Angeles, which is still reeling from the recent wildfires that destroyed so many lives. CBS will broadcast the show on Sunday, Feb. 2, with Trevor Noah serving as host. Think of this year’s ceremony like a telethon, where A-listers will help to raise funds to support wildfire relief efforts and honor first responders. Earlier that day, songwriter-producer Justin Tranter will return as the host of the Grammy Awards Premiere Ceremony. He’ll be joined by performers like Yolanda Adams, Wayne Brady, Deborah Cox, Scott Hoying, Angelique Kidjo, Taj Mahal, Joe Bonamassa, Joyce DiDonato, Béla Fleck, Renée Fleming, Muni Long, Kelli O’Hara, and Kevin Puts.
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