Hollywood Bulletin: The Academy Issues Apology, Black Excellence Celebrated, Lili Reinhart Wins Best Actress & More
The latest Hollywood news from March 28th.
A STORY THAT MATTERS
The Academy has apologized after more than 700 voters called out the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for not naming No Other Land director Hamdan Ballal in its initial statement after he was attacked on March 24, 2025.
“On Wednesday, we sent a letter in response to reports of violence against Oscar winner Hamdan Ballal, co-director of No Other Land, connected to his artistic expression. We regret that we failed to directly acknowledge Mr. Ballal and the film by name. We sincerely apologize to Mr. Ballal and all artists who felt unsupported by our previous statement and want to make it clear that the Academy condemns violence of this kind anywhere in the world. We abhor the suppression of free speech under any circumstances.”
The Academy Board of Governors met yesterday morning over their response to the beating and abduction of Oscar-winning Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal--one of the directors of No Other Land. A new statement has been composed and signed by leading members of the Academy—including actors such as Olivia Colman, Joaquin Phoenix, Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz, Emma Thompson, and directors Ava DuVernay, Errol Morris, Adam McKay, Jonathan Glazer, and writer Tony Kushner—pressing for a more proactive response to Ballal’s treatment by Israeli authorities.
The latest letter has been signed by more than 600 Academy members, representing every AMPAS branch. The letter holds the Academy's president, Janet Yang, and CEO, Bill Kramer, culpable for issuing a tardy and apathetic response regarding Ballal’s attack. The original letter did not mention Ballal's name or the title of the Academy Award-winning film. It was only after Yuval Abraham, an Israeli co-director of No Other Land, publicly posted on Twitter about Ballal’s kidnapping and assault—calling out the Academy for not speaking out on the matter—that the issue gained more attention.
This is the full list of filmmakers and signatories as of Friday morning, Pacific time. The letter is reported to still be circulating, so expect more names to be added.
TL;DR
Paradise Season 2 has begun filming.
Hollywood studios are asking YouTube to ensure ad revenue from fake AI movie trailers of their IP flows in their direction rather than being claimed through copyright.
Joshua Orpin joins the cast of Jenn Kaytin Robinson’s I Know What You Did Last Summer.
All episodes of the sitcom Mid-Century Modern are now streaming on Hulu.
Death of a Unicorn is now playing in theaters.
The live-action Legend of Zelda film will officially release on March 26, 2027.
After six years, Matthew McConaughey is back on screen in the film The Rivals of Amziah King.
Warfare debuts at 90% on Rotten Tomatoes. Stars ensemble cast D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Will Poulter, Cosmo Jarvis, Kit Connor, Finn Bennett, Taylor John Smith, Michael Gandolfini, Adain Bradley, Noah Centineo, Evan Holtzman, Henry Zaga, Joseph Quinn, and Charles Melton.
The Accountant 2 garners 84% on Rotten Tomatoes. Starring Ben Affleck, Jon Bernthal, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, J.K. Simmons.
The Avengers: Doomsday cast announcement got 275M digital views, making it Marvel’s biggest livestream ever.
James Patterson and MrBeast are writing a thriller novel together. Film and TV rights are being shopped with “8-figure offers”.
Jasmine Cephas Jones has been cast in Lanterns.
A film adaptation of Christopher Golden’s supernatural horror Road of Bones is in the works from Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill.
Chandler Kinney joins the cast of the Legally Blonde prequel series.
Posters
First poster for The Villager in the live-action Minecraft movie.
The IMAX poster for Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, starring Michael B. Jordan, has been released. In theaters April 18.
Support
Cast members from The Pitt visited Children's Hospital Los Angeles to support the 10th Annual Make March Matter campaign.
Actor Spotlight
Number One on the Call Sheet is a two-part documentary celebrating the achievements of Black actors in Hollywood.
The documentary is divided into two parts, one for the black men in Hollywood and one for black women. Part one is directed by Reginald Hudlin and features Will Smith, Eddie Murphy, Denzel Washington, Michael B. Jordan, Kevin Hart, Taye Diggs, Marlon Wayans, Morris Chestnut, and more. The actors share their testimonies and experiences as Black men both on screen and behind the scenes.
The second half of the documentary is directed by Shola Lynch, who explores the collective experiences of Black actresses navigating Hollywood success. Actresses featured include Whoopi Goldberg, Angela Bassett, Viola Davis, Halle Berry, Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and more.
Number One on the Call Sheet is available on Apple TV+ now.
Lili Reinhart wins Best Actress for Hal & Harper at Series Mania.
Lili Reinhart won Best Actress for Hal & Harper at France’s Series Mania, one of Europe’s grandest TV festivals. The indie dramedy series follows two siblings—Hal (director Cooper Raiff) and university senior Harper (Reinhart), an entry-level administrative assistant—who toil with cycles of past trauma and codependency 15 years after their mother’s suicide sent their father (Mark Ruffalo) into depression.
That’s all the news! Until next time 👋🏾
This is great.