Brad Pitt to star in new Edward Berger film, Joseph Kosinski boards Miami Vice, Cannes and Venice jury news, and more of today’s top news stories
Gold Derby's top news stories for April 28, 2025.
Brad Pitt to star in A24 drama from Edward Berger
Brad Pitt has signed on to star in The Riders, an A24-produced drama from Conclave director Edward Berger. The film is based on a 1995 novel by Tim Winton about a father and daughter who travel around Europe looking for their missing wife and mother. David Kajganich (The Terror) is writing the screenplay, and Ridley Scott is a producer through his Scott Free banner. The film is scheduled to shoot in multiple locations throughout Europe early next year.
Joseph Kosinski to direct Dan Gilroy-scripted Miami Vice reboot
Joseph Kosinski, director of Top Gun: Maverick and the upcoming F1, has signed on to direct a new adaptation of iconic crime thriller Miami Vice. The script is by Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler, Andor). Kosinski is expected shoot the project after his next film, a UFO project for Apple. No actors are attached to the reboot yet. Miami Vice started out as an an era-defining 1980s TV show executive-produced by Michael Mann. Mann then directed a film adaptation in 2006 that has developed a reputation as a cult classic.
2025 Tony Honorees for Excellence in Theatre revealed
The Tony Awards Administration Committee announced today that the 2025 Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre will go to four outstanding contributors to the Broadway industry: PBS program Great Performances, Goodspeed Musicals executive director Michael Price, New York City cultural nonprofit New 42, and the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. The Tony Honors are awarded annually to institutions, individuals, and/or organizations that have demonstrated extraordinary achievement in theatre, but are not eligible in any of the established Tony Award categories.
Nicole Kidman to receive Woman in Motion Award at Cannes
Nicole Kidman will be honored with the 10th Woman in Motion Award at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. The award, which is presented by luxury goods conglomerate Kering, highlights the creativity and contribution made by women, both on and off screen, in the world of culture and the arts. She will be presented with the award by Kering chairman and CEO François-Henri Pinault, Cannes president Iris Knobloch, and director Thierry Fremaux. Previous honorees include Salma Hayek Pinault, Viola Davis, and Michelle Yeoh.
Alexander Payne to head Venice Film Festival jury
Academy Award-winning writer-director Alexander Payne (The Holdovers) has been tapped to head up the main jury of the 2025 Venice Film Festival. Venice artistic director Alberto Barbera said in a statement that Payne is part of "the small circle of filmmakers-cinephiles whose passion for cinema is fueled by knowledge of films of the past and curiosity about contemporary cinema, without boundaries or barriers of any kind. These qualities — along with his experience as a screenwriter — make him an ideal candidate to preside over the work of the Venice jury, which is called upon to evaluate films from around the world." Payne was last in Venice with Downsizing, which premiered at the festival in 2017.
Halle Berry and Jeremy Strong to serve on Cannes jury
Academy Award winner Halle Berry and Academy Award nominee Jeremy Strong will serve as Palme d'Or jurors at the Cannes Film Festival next month. The jury, headed by president Juliette Binoche, will also include actress Alba Rohrwacher, directors Hong Sangsoo, Payal Kapadia, and Carlos Reygadas, writer Leïla Slimani, and documentary filmmaker Dieudo Hamadi.
Dev Patel to direct and star in action thriller The Peasant
Dev Patel is following up his directorial debut Monkey Man with The Peasant, another revenge action thriller that will find him write, direct, and star. The Peasant is described as having "shades of Braveheart and John Wick as well as notes of King Arthur as it mashes up Medieval knights with feudal India," and tells the story of a shepherd who goes on a campaign of revenge against mercenary knights who harmed his community. It's produced by Fifth Season and Thunder Road, with Patel building off a Black List script by Will Dunn.
Greg Berlanti sets up three projects in TV writing return
Greg Berlanti, the ultra-prolific producer who received the TV Academy’s Governors’ Emmy Award last year, is returning to writing shows after spending a few years amassing non-writing EP credits — and that's shows, multiple, in different genres and at different streamers. Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. have set up three projects co-written by Berlanti: horror thriller Stillwater with Watchmen's Carly Wray, which is based on a Skybound comic and has gotten a series order from Amazon; Foster Dade, a boarding school mystery based on the novel based on the 2023 novel Foster Dade Explores the Cosmos by Nash Jenkins, which Berlanti wrote with Bash Doran and to which Hulu has given a pilot order; and an untitled family drama, which is in negotiations at Max for a 15-episode season order like The Pitt.
Pamela Anderson, Dakota Fanning, and Lindsay Duncan to star in Sally Potter's Alma
Pamela Anderson will follow up her indie success in The Last Showgirl with Alma, a dramedy from writer-director Sally Potter that's slated to shoot later this year. Anderson will star alongside Dakota Fanning, Lindsay Duncan, Arinzé Kene, Esther McGregor, Esmé Creed-Miles, and Earl Cave. The film is described as following an "extended family who meet to scatter the ashes of their mother only to find that her continued haunting presence explosively, and often comically, unravels the secrets of their lives."
Emma Mackey to play the White Witch in Greta Gerwig's Narnia movie
After previously working together on Barbie, director Greta Gerwig and actress Emma Mackey are teaming up again on Narnia, Gerwig's upcoming fantasy film for Netflix. Mackey will play the White Witch, Jadis, a prominent villain role. She joins Meryl Streep, who is in talks to play Aslan, the heroic talking lion. Narnia will be in Imax theaters and on Netflix in 2026.