EMMA LAIRD, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI TO LEAD MARIE ANTOINETTE COURT SET MOVIE DRAMA VERMILLION

    VERMILLION   

MARIE ANTOINETTE ERA SET MOVIE DRAMA

British director Jon Amiel is preparing a French revolution set movie drama VERMILLION. Leading the cast is Emma Laird as Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, a daughter of the lower middle classes who uses her skills as a portrait painter to hustle her way into the royal court of Versailles.

Emma Laird will lead the new movie

 She has an affair with the left leaning, impoverished Count Alexis de Ligne, a handsome aristocrat who makes his living as a toy-boy for wealthy older women, to get a commission to paint the naive young Queen Marie Antoinette. Isabella Rossellini plays the formidable Madame de Noailles, an old-school aristocrat devoted to Marie Antoinette and haunted by a lost love. Millicent Simmonds plays Berthe, Élisabeth’s young servant and frequent muse. Her portraits will make her as immortal as ‘The Girl With the Pearl Earring'. But each underestimates the subversive power of love. As the deadly firestorm of the French Revolution erupts and the guillotine looms, all three will come to learn the true meaning of loyalty, friendship and courage.

FIRST LOOK AT JOAN COLLINS AND ISABELLA ROSSELLINI IN WALLIS SIMPSON BIOPIC THE BITTER END FROM MIKE NEWELL

    THE BITTER END   

FIRST IMAGE OF JOANNE COLLINS

First image has been released of our favourite soap star diva Joan Collins as the lead in Wallis Simpson biopic THE BITTER END from legendary Mike Newell about the American woman who married King Edward VIII and upended the British monarchy. The film will bring us the shocking untold story of Simpson’s final years. Isabella Rossellini joins her as Suzanne Blum, the formidable French lawyer and confidante of Simpson who at the hands of Blum found herself ensnared in a menacing grip of obsession and coercive control. Lambert Wilson also stars.

 

RALPH FIENNES IS A CARDINAL IN THE PAPAL CONCLAVE IN A NEW CONSPIRACY THRILLER TRAILER

 CONCLAVE MOVIE TRAILER 

The Conclave is out this November

WITH RALPH FIENNES AS A CARDINAL

The movie based on Robert Harris’ novel centers on the secret papal conclave electing a new Pope. After the death of a beloved Pope, Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with running this covert process inside the back corners of the Vatican. Lawrence quickly finds himself the center of a conspiracy, as the cardinals forge factions and rivalries to serve their own ambitions. As ambitions, divisions and scandals start to boil over and the political machinations inside the Vatican intensify, Lawrence realizes that the departed Pope had kept a secret from them that he must uncover before a new Pope is chosen. Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow and Isabella Rossellini also star in the movie out this November!

CELIA IMRIE, ISLA FISHER, ANDIE MACDOWELL, FRANCO NERO, RUPERT EVERETT, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI TO STAR IN THE TEMPTATION OF GRACIE MOVIE

   THE TEMPTATION OF GRACIE   

GATHERS A RATHER STELLAR CAST

Straight from Cannes comes news that Celia Imrie will lead new movie THE TEMPTATION OF GRACIE which will also star Franco Nero, Isla Fisher, Andie

Celia Imrie will take the lead role of Gracie

MacDowell, Rupert Everett and Isabella Rossellini! Based on Santa Montefiore's novel, it will see Imrie star as Gracie Burton, an ordinary widow who lives quietly in Devon, but who splashes out on a week’s cookery course at a beautiful castello in Italy. Unbeknownst to everyone, she is hiding an extraordinary secret. With her estranged workaholic daughter Carina (Fisher) and teenage granddaughter Anastasia reluctantly in tow, the three women rediscover each other and the sensual delights of Italy. And Gracie starts to peel back the secret past she has not faced in over 40 years.

RALPH FIENNES, STANLEY TUCCI, JOHN LITHGOW, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI ARE IN THE PAPAL CONCLAVE IN A NEW CONSPIRACY THRILLER

 CONCLAVE MOVIE THRILLER 

STARRING RALPH FIENNES, STANLEY TUCCI AND JOHN LITHGOW

The movie based on Robert Harris’ novel centers on the secret papal conclave electing a new Pope. After the death of a beloved Pope, Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with running this covert process inside the back corners of the Vatican. Lawrence quickly finds himself the center of a conspiracy, as the cardinals forge factions and rivalries to serve their own ambitions. As ambitions, divisions and scandals start to boil over and the political machinations inside the Vatican intensify, Lawrence realizes that the departed Pope had kept a secret from them that he must uncover before a new Pope is chosen. Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow and Isabella Rossellini also star in the movie out next year!

REJOICE! JULIA CHILD IS VISITING FRANCE IN FIRST IMAGES FROM HBO'S JULIA TV SERIES SEASON 2 WHICH RETURNS THIS AUTUMN!

   JULIA SEASON TWO   

ARRIVES THIS AUTUMN

Two of our favourite HBO shows are finally coming back and beside Gilded Age which returns October 29th, JULIA is also coming back with season two but November 16th when it will premiere with three new episodes and other five will air weekly till late December. Sarah Lancashire is back as the acclaimed chef Julia Child and David Hyde Pierce as her husband, Paul. 

 

IN THE SECOND SEASON

first three episodes will be set in Paris and the French Riviera while Julia grapples with her rising fame and celebrity with her show up and running on the air, and with a weekly cooking program virtually unheard of at the time. After spending some much needed time in France while preparing for her second season of her cooking show The French Chef, Julia visits a wide variety of renowned restaurants and chefs across both the South of France and the U.S in Washington D.C. and of course, Boston. Social issues prevalent in today’s social landscape are mirrored in Julia’s journey as she and her team spearhead female-driven public television.

 WHO IS IN THE CAST?

Also back in the cast are Bebe Neuwirth, Brittany Bradford, Fran Kranz, Fiona Glascott and Robert Joy while Rachel Bloom will join the series in the recurring role of Elaine Levitch, a dynamo who comes to WGBH by way of CBS to work with Julia on The French Chef. Stockard Channing, Craig Bierko, Judith Light, Isabella Rossellini, Tosin Morohunfola and Christian Clemenson all have guest roles in the new season. It has been a year and a half since the first season aired in spring 2022. They have used a real 1,000 years old market in France to shoot the scenes where Julia is shopping for groceries while on the trip there. Hope we get a trailer soon!

RALPH FIENNES, STANLEY TUCCI, JOHN LITHGOW, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI TO CHOOSE POPE IN CONCLAVE MOVIE! KEVIN SPACEY, ERIC ROBERTS, CHRISTOPHER LAMBERT, JEREMY NEUMARK JONES TO LEAD 1242 MONGOLIAN BATU KHAN EPIC

   FIENNES AND TUCCI   

TO PLAY PRIESTS IN CONCLAVE

And they won't be alone, as Edward Berger's conspiracy movie CONCLAVE will also have John Lithgow as one of the cardinals next to Ralph Fiennes and Stanley Tucci and Isabella Rossellini as a nun.Following the death of the Pope, the reluctant Cardinal Lomeli (Fiennes)

Stanley Tucci and Ralph Fiennes will be the cardinals

is tasked with overseeing the group of Cardinals (Lithgow and Tucci) from across the globe responsible for selecting a new leader for the Church. But as the political machinations inside the Vatican intensify, he realizes that the departed Pope had kept a secret from them that he must uncover before a new Pope is chosen.

Kevin Spacey will lead the cast

  KEVIN SPACEY TO LEAD  

1242 MONGOL EMPIRE EPIC

When it comes to updates from the historical genre, Kevin Spacey will star in 1242 epic movie a co-production between UK, Hungary and Mongolia. Eric Roberts, Christopher Lambert, Terence Stamp and Jeremy Neumark Jones and Genevieve Florence will also star under the helm of Hungarian director Peter Soos! The film tells the story of Genghis Khan’s grandson Batu Khan, who was elected commander in chief of the western part of the Mongol empire. A skilled military commander, he won battles from China to Persia and was given responsibility for the invasion of Europe but in 1242 Khan is confronted by a deeply spiritual

Genevieve Florence and Jeremy Neumark Jones will also star

man and a castle in Hungary that halts his invasion of Europe and ultimately causes his downfall. Stay tuned for more information on this interesting historical movie project.

PREMIUM SPOTLIGHT ON DOMINA EPIC TV SERIES ON ROME'S 1ST EMPRESS LIVIA DRUSILLA WITH KASIA SMUTNIAK, MATTHEW MCNULTY, BEN BATT, LIAM CUNNINGHAM, CLAIRE FORLANI, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI, LEX SHRAPNEL

  DOMINA EPIC TV SERIES  

READY TO START NEXT WEEK

Domina begins next week on Sky's channels

Her grandson emperor Claudius proclaimed her a goddess back in 42AD, but Roman empress Livia Drusilla was also a grandmother or great grandmother to some of history's greatest maniacs Caligula and Nero, and also the mother of Tiberius and the wife of emperor Augustus Caesar! New eight part historical drama DOMINA is ready to start next week May 14th on Sky channels around Europe (Italy, UK, Ireland, Germany and Spain) and their Now streamer, and will then swim over to USA and Epix on June 6th for the Northern American audience! The series will begin with her patrician father siding with the murderers of Julius Caesar in order to save Rome’s traditional republican

The series will also air on Epix in USA later in June

system of government from dictatorship. Due to his death in the battle at Philippi, and the defeat of the republicans, young Livia and her first husband

Actress Kasia Smutniak plays the lead role of Domina

Tiberius Nero will have to runaway before eventually returning to Rome. Although the history has remembered her as nasty to the core, manipulative

Matthew McNulty is the first emperor of Rome Augustus

and evil, I have a very strong feeling that the series will, in the light of the modern revisionist feminist movements, depict Livia as a strong, good and,

The costumes in the series were done by Oscar winning designer

what is that word that they like so much... ah, yes, empowering woman, so the only thing I can say to that is: just read a book or two, people.

DOMINA EPIC TV SERIES 

will, similar to the legendary I, Claudius classic series which followed her grandson, probably have that subdued tone filled with dialogues, intrigues and

Ben Batt is Augustus' friend Agrippa in the series

interior scenes, rather than be a dynamic adventure filled with battles and action, at least judging from the photos and trailer. The story follows Livia

Liam Cunningham is Livia's father in the new historical series

Drusilla, a naïve young girl, whose world crumbles in the wake of Julius Caesar’s assassination. But using plenty of intrigue she eventually becomes

Our dear Lex Shrapnell plays Crassus in the new series

Rome's empress by conniving to marry emperor Augustus. She then ends up navigating her way through a brutal male dominated society by means of

Agrippa and Augustus fight together for Gaius to become emperor

conspiracy, seduction and murder to become Rome’s most powerful and influential empress and to secure power for her son, Tiberius (who wasn't even Augustus' son, but came from her marriage to Tiberius).

WHO'LL ELSE BOW TO DOMINA?

Kasia Smutniak is playing Livia Drusilla, with the young Livia played by Nadia Parkes who was scandalously awful in the atrocious Spanish Princess.

Tom Forbes will be Sextus in the new series

They are supported by an international stellar cast including Liam Cunningham playing Livius, Livia’s father, and Colette Tchantcho as

Augustus was known as a great orator of Rome

Antigone, Livia’s best friend, ex-slave and closest ally. Created and written by Simon Burke, the series also stars Matthew McNulty as the future emperor Augustus, the first emperor of Rome, and Livia's second husband,

Isabella Rossellini plays an old enemy of Livia's

Christine Bottomley as Augustus' ex wife Scribonia, Ben Batt as Agrippa, Agustus' friend and a consul who helped him become emperor,  Enzo Cilenti as Tiberius Claudius Nero Livia's first hsuband, while Claire Forlani

The series will air in eight hourlong episodes in the first season

plays Claudia Octavia, Augustus' sister who wants her son to succeed his uncle and not one of Livia's sons from her first marriage. Our dear Lex Shrapnel is

Oscar winner Gabriella Pescucci created the costumes for the series

Crassus. Isabella Rossellini makes an appearance playing Balbina, an early enemy. Tom Glynn Carney plays young Gaius Augustus. Ewan Horrocks plays Livia's second son Drusus. 

 

1ST TEASER IS HERE FOR SKY'S DOMINA ANCIENT ROME SET SERIES WITH KASIA SMUTNIAK, LIAM CUNNINGHAM, MATTHEW MCNULTY, BEN BAT, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI, CLAIRE FORLANI

  DOMINA TEASER IS HERE  

FOR ANCIENT ROME SET SERIES

The fully unexpected surprise last night was the release of the first teaser and photos from new Ancient Rome set series DOMINA which will arrive to

Domina will arrive to Sky and Now TV this May

Sky this May and also on their streamer Now TV. This highly anticipated eight episode series will see Kasia Smutniak playing famous Livia Drussila, the first empress of Rome!

THIS EIGHT PART EPIC DRAMA

is a highly topical story, which follows the life and the extraordinary rise of Livia Drusilla, who overcame adversity to become the most powerful woman

Kasia Smutniak takes the lead role of Livia Drusilla

in the world. The story follows Livia’s journey from a naïve young girl whose world crumbles in the wake of Julius Caesar’s assassination, to Rome’s most

Matthew McNulty is future emperor Gaius in the series

powerful and influential Empress, driven by a deep desire to avenge her father and secure power for her sons. Livia and her peers navigate their way through

Liam Cunningham is Livia's father Livius in the new series

a brutal society by means of strategy, conspiracy, seduction and murder. She will soon discover that seizing power is not enough: you must be able to keep

Isabella Rossellini will guest star as Drusilla's enemy

it when everyone else wants it. This is a visceral and authentic family saga, grounded in historical accuracy and bringing to life the incredible true stories

The series was directed by Claire McCarthy who flopped with Luminaries

of the women who would create one of the most enduring and fascinating dynasties of all time. Check out the trailer below and tell us what you think.

 WHO'LL ELSE BOW TO DOMINA?

Kasia Smutniak is playing Livia Drusilla, with the young Livia played by Nadia Parkes. They are  supported by an international stellar cast including Liam Cunningham playing Livius, Livia’s father, and Colette Tchantcho

The new series will air in eight hourlong episodes this May

as Antigone, Livia’s best friend, ex-slave and closest ally. Created and written by Simon Burke, the series also stars Matthew McNulty as the future

The series was created and written by Simon Burke

emperor Gaius, Christine Bottomley as Scribonia, Ben Batt as Agrippa, Enzo Cilenti as Tiberius Claudius Nero, while Claire Forlani plays Claudia Octavia. Isabella Rossellini makes an appearance playing Balbina, an early enemy.

 

SKY SHOOTING EPIC ROMAN AGE SET TV SAGA DOMINA ON LIVIA DRUSILLA STARRING LIAM CUNNINGHAM, MATTHEW MCNULTY, ISABELLA ROSSELLINI, BEN BATT, CLAIRE FORLANI!

     'DOMINA' EPIC TV SERIES

ABOUT INFAMOUS LIVIA DRUSILLA

Polish star Kasia will take the lead role

Glorious news arrive from Imperial Rome today, spylings! We are getting a new Ancient Rome set TV series! After bringing us Catherine the Great, Jamestown and Britannia, Sky is preparing a ten part historical saga DOMINA following the life and the extraordinary rise of Livia Drusilla, the mother of the emperor Tiberius, who overcame adversity to become the most powerful woman in the world. As Hollywood Reporter writes, the shooting already started this week in Italy. Kasia Smutniak takes the lead role of  Drusilla, with Liam Cunningham playing Livius, Livia’s father, and Isabella Rossellini as Balbina, an early enemy. The cast also includes Matthew McNulty as the future emperor Gaius, Christine Bottomley as Scribonia, Colette Tchantcho as Antigone, Ben Batt as Agrippa, Enzo Cilenti as Tiberius Claudius Nero, while Claire Forlani plays Claudia Octavia. Oscar winning costume designer Gabriella Pescucci is doing the

Versailles star Matthew McNulty will be Gaius

costumes!

    Domina
created and written by Simon  Burke, follows Livia’s journey from a naïve young girl whose world crumbles in the wake of Julius Caesar’s assassination, to Rome’s most powerful and influential Empress, driven by a deep desire to avenge her father and secure power for her sons. Livia and her peers navigate their way through a brutal society by means of strategy, conspiracy, seduction and murder. This is a visceral and authentic family saga, grounded in historical accuracy and bringing to life the incredible true stories of the women who would create one of the most enduring and fascinating dynasties of all time.

Dezzy's History Lesson

As a daughter of a Roman magistrate, she will become the wife of the Roman emperor Augustus throughout his reign, as well as his adviser. She

Jamestown star Ben Batt will be Agrippa

was the mother of the emperor Tiberius, paternal grandmother of the emperor Claudius, paternal great grandmother of the emperor Caligula, and maternal great great grandmother of the emperor Nero. Although her marriage with Augustus produced only one pregnancy, which miscarried, through her sons by her first husband, Tiberius and Drusus, she is a direct ancestor of all of the Julio Claudian emperors as well as most of the extended Julio Claudian imperial family. It is believed that she was a thoroughly Machiavellian, scheming political mastermind, determined never to allow republican governance again.