Women and Hollywood's Weekly Newsletter
July 11
NEWS & HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK
In case you missed our latest interviews, we recently heard from writer-director Fawzia Mirza about her new feature, “The Queen of My Dreams,” as well as from directors Salima Koroma, Alice Gu, and Cecilia Aldarondo about their work on HBO Max docuseries “Dear Ms: A Revolution in Print,” and from director and actor Janicza Bravo about directing Lena Dunham’s new show for Netflix, “Too Much.”
New high score alert: Scarlett Johansson has officially become the highest-grossing lead actor in box office history. Thanks to “Jurassic World: Rebirth’s” massive $318M global opening over the holiday weekend, Johansson’s films have now earned a combined $14.9B at the global box office, putting her ahead of fellow Marvel Cinematic Universe veterans Samuel L. Jackson ($14.6B) and Robert Downey Jr. ($14.3B).
Greta Lee, star of Celine Song’s “Past Lives,” is set to make her directorial debut with psychological horror project “The Eyes Are The Best Part” at Searchlight Pictures. Lee will also write the script, an adaptation of Monika Kim’s bestselling novel, which was published last year - Kim will exec produce, while Lulu Wang (“The Farewell,” “Expats”) is among the producers, via her banner Local Time. The novel follows a Korean-American woman, Ji-won, whose father’s affair has ripped her family to shreds, leaving her to piece their crappy lives back together.
All synopses are courtesy of press materials, unless otherwise noted.
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN AND NON-GENDERED PERSONS OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD
Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight – Written and Directed by Embeth Davidtz (Now in theaters)
Based on Alexandra Fuller’s memoir of the same name, “Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight” captures the childhood of eight-year-old Bobo (Lexi Venter) on her family farm in Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) at the end of the Zimbabwean War for independence in 1980. Growing up in the midst of this long running war, Bobo internalizes both sides of the struggle, and tries to make sense of her life in a magical way. Through her gaze we witness Rhodesia’s final days, the family’s unbreakable bond with Africa, and the deep scars that war leaves on survivors.