Oscar®-Nominated Producer Jennifer Fox to Return as Produce of 13th Governors Awards

JENNIFER FOX RETURNS TO PRODUCE 13TH GOVERNORS AWARDS

Beverly Hills, California (Wednesday, August 31, 2022) - Oscar®-nominated producer Jennifer Fox will return to produce the 13th Governors Awards for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Academy President Janet Yang announced today. It is her fourth time producing the event.

Honorary Awards will be presented to Euzhan Palcy, Diane Warren and Peter Weir, and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to Michael J. Fox on Saturday, November 19, 2022, at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles.

“We’re thrilled to have Jennifer back at the helm to help us kick off Oscar season with a tribute fitting to these four extraordinary individuals. Her contribution in past years has only elevated this truly special and joyous event,” said Yang.

“I could not be more delighted to produce the Academy’s Governors Awards again and look forward to honoring the remarkable achievements of Michael J. Fox, Euzhan Palcy, Diane Warren and Peter Weir,” said Fox.

Fox has produced or executive produced some of the most iconic films of the last 15 years, including Tony Gilroy’s directorial debut, “Michael Clayton,” which earned seven Oscar nominations. She began her film industry career in development and production at Universal Pictures, where she worked on several films, including “Erin Brockovich.” Fox spent the next six years producing with Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney’s production company, Section Eight, where she worked on such acclaimed titles as “Syriana,” “Good Night, and Good Luck.,” “A Scanner Darkly” and “The Informant!.” Her other film credits include “Duplicity,” “The Bourne Legacy,” “We Need to Talk about Kevin,” for which she received a BAFTA nomination, “Nightcrawler,” “Roman J. Israel, Esq.,” “Velvet Buzzsaw,” “The Report” and “The Last Duel.” She is currently working on her next film, “Magazine Dreams.” Fox also produced the Academy’s 10th, 11th and 12th Governors Awards.

The Honorary Award, an Oscar statuette, is given “to honor extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”

The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, also an Oscar statuette, is given “to an individual in the motion picture arts and sciences whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry.”

The 13th Governors Awards is proudly supported by Rolex, the Exclusive Watch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

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#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ANGIE THOMAS, MAKES MIDDLE GRADE DEBUT WITH CONTEMPORARY FANTASY TRILOGY

Angie Thomas c/o Valder Beebe Show

NIC BLAKE AND THE REMARKABLES: THE MANIFESTOR PROPHECY PUBLISHES IN THE US ON APRIL 4, 2023

New York, NY (August 30, 2022)— HarperCollins Children’s Books/Balzer + Bray announced the highly anticipated middle grade debut from Angie Thomas, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give, On the Come Up, and Concrete Rose. Publishing April 4, 2023, Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Manifestor Prophecy is the first in a contemporary fantasy trilogy inspired by African American history and folklore. Donna Bray bought USCPOM rights from Molly Ker Hawn at the Bent Agency.

With a literal Underground Railroad, haints, vampires, ghosts, a dragon, and tons of magic, Nic Blake and the Remarkables takes readers on a wild ride through a world that looks like, but isn't quite, our own, making for an inventive, suspenseful (and funny!) ride in this new trilogy.

Angie Thomas said: “I think I can speak for a lot of us when I say that over the past two years, I’ve desperately needed an escape. While I’m known for writing young adult fiction that hits on hard topics, whenever I want to read for enjoyment, I usually turn to middle grade fantasy novels. It only felt right to finally give the genre and category a go myself. Nic Blake is a character younger Angie longed for—a young Black girl with magical powers who gets to go on adventures, not as a sidekick, but as the center of the story.”

Donna Bray, Vice President, Co-Publisher, Balzer + Bray, said: “It’s no surprise that Angie Thomas’s prodigious storytelling gifts—rich world-building, sharp plotting, nuanced characterization, crackling dialogue, complex family dynamics—translate perfectly to middle grade fantasy. But we’ve never seen Angie in the fantasy realm, weaving her own original magic systems with African American history and legend. The result is truly dazzling. We’re thrilled to be publishing Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Manifestor Prophecy and can’t wait to introduce Angie to a whole new readership.”

Since her debut in 2017, Angie has established herself as a global literary star. All her novels have debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list: The Hate U Give (249 weeks and counting in both hardcover and paperback), On the Come Up, and Concrete Rose. The Hate U Give hit theaters in 2018, in an adaptation starring Amandla Stenberg, Issa Rae, and Regina Hall. The film adaptation of On the Come Up will release on Paramount+ on September 23 starring Jamila C. Gray, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Lil Yachty, Method Man, and more. Angie has earned a total of twenty starred reviews for her three novels and has garnered numerous awards and honors, including a 2022 Printz Honor for Concrete Rose.

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Dwayne Johnson to visit Toronto this October to Promote his Upcoming DC film, BLACK ADAM

TORONTO, ON – August 29, 2022 – Warner Bros. Pictures Canada announced today that global superstar Dwayne Johnson will visit Toronto this October to celebrate the release of his upcoming DC film, BLACK ADAM. Johnson revealed via a special video message that ‘The Rock will return to Toronto, his home away from home’ later this year to share BLACK ADAM with Canadians in advance of the film’s theatrical release on October 21.

News of Johnson’s return to Toronto was first shared by FAN EXPO Canada as part of an exclusive partnership to thank and surprise die-hard Canadian pop culture fans that attended this year’s massive convention. Additional details of Johnson’s monumental visit will be revealed in the coming weeks by Warner Bros. Pictures Canada.

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AMBLIN TELEVISION, SCHOLASTIC ENTERTAINMENT, SOLO ONE PRODUCTIONS TEAM ON SIGNS OF SURVIVAL: A MEMOIR OF THE HOLOCAUST

Live-Action Limited Series, Currently in Development, Adapts Scholastic Middle-Grade Memoir

Universal City, CA – August 24, 2022 – Amblin Television is partnering with Scholastic Entertainment, the media division of Scholastic, and Marlee Matlin’s Solo One Productions to co-develop and co-produce a new live-action limited series based on the powerful Scholastic middle-grade memoir, Signs of Survival: A Memoir of the Holocaust, by Renee Hartman and written by Joshua M. Greene. This gripping true story is a testament to the power of sisterhood and love, and a reminder of how important it is to honor the past and keep telling our own stories.

Signs of Survival: A Memoir of the Holocaust tells the true story of Renee and Herta, two sisters who faced the unimaginable…together. As Jews living in 1940s Czechoslovakia, Renee, Herta, and their parents were in immediate danger when the Holocaust came to their door. As the only hearing person in her family, Renee had to alert her parents and sister whenever the sound of Nazi boots approached their home so they could hide. But soon their parents were tragically taken away, and the two sisters went on the run, desperate to find a safe place to hide. Communicating in sign language and relying on each other for strength, Renee and Herta would have to fight to survive the darkest of times.

Amblin has optioned the project, currently in development, with Scholastic Entertainment and Solo One Productions attached to produce. Oscar®-winning actress, producer, and New York Times bestselling author Marlee Matlin will executive produce alongside Jack Jason for Solo One Productions. Presidents of Amblin Television Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey (The Americans, Masters of the Air) will executive produce for Amblin with SVP Alex Maggioni working alongside them to shepherd the project. Scholastic Entertainment President Iole Lucchese (Clifford the Big Red Dog), SVP & General Manager Caitlin Friedman (Caster), and VP of TV Development Jef Kaminsky (Stillwater) will executive produce for Scholastic Entertainment.

Recognized most-recently for her role in CODA, which won Best Picture at this year’s Oscars®, Matlin won her own Academy Award® starring in Children of a Lesser God, and is known for her Emmy®-nominated television work including Picket Fences, Seinfeld, and The Practice, as well as The West Wing, The L Word, and Switched at Birth.

“As a Deaf, Jewish woman, I have been on a quest to find an authentic and never before told story of the Holocaust,” said Matlin. “This true story, based on the real-life events of two sisters, one Deaf and one hearing, inspired me even more to bring the story to the screen.”

“Renee and Herta’s story is harrowing and heart wrenching, and a powerful reminder of the importance of inter-generational storytelling,” said Frank and Falvey. “The ultimate hope is that thoughtful reflection on the past may foster a kinder future. We are fortunate to share this story alongside Marlee and Scholastic.”

“Scholastic is committed to sharing stories both in books and on screen that inspire and inform, so that all children can learn about themselves as well as the bigger world around them,” added Lucchese. “With Signs of Survival, a heroic story of two sisters surviving the Holocaust, Scholastic is proud to bring that ethos to deaf and hearing communities everywhere. There is no one we would rather partner with to tell this story than Marlee Matlin.”

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