News Roundup

Awards season is in full swing. Beasts of No Nation dropped on Netflix, and is eligible to enter the race. Spielberg’s contender, Bridge of Spies opened strong over the weekend. Steve Carell will be entering the race as lead actor for The Big Short. If you need to keep up on the latest predictions, check out the Predictions Friday post: http://www.awardsdaily.com/2015/10/16/predictions-friday-the-big-short-lands-best-actress-2016-brie-larson-vs-jennifer-lawrence/

Top stories:

• At the Box Office, Ridley Scott’s The Martian was toppled from the top spot by Goosebumps which opened with $23 million. The Martian dropped to second place but still held strong with $21 million and an 18-day total of $143 million. The brand new Spielberg spy thriller rounded out the top three with $15 million.

• Star Wars fans were given a look at the brand new poster for The Force Awakens. The official Star Wars site also revealed how some movie theaters will be celebrating the release of the film: http://www.starwars.com/news/star-wars-the-force-awakens-theatrical-poster-first-look-in-theater-exclusives-and-more.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b10Bc8mVbHo
• The winners for the London Film Festival were announced: Winners. CHEVALIER took home the Best Film Gong.
• ICYMI : Ava DuVernay graced the cover of Elle Magazine’s Women in Hollywood issue. Here’s an extract from the interview:

Selma star and rapper Common on working with DuVernay:

“[She] created an environment where we felt like we were doing something with a higher purpose.”

​On her film, Venus vs. Venus:

“It was fascinating to really explore Venus Williams as the first of her kind, the first to break down the wall—so young, so graceful, so gracious, so at the top of her game.”

​On the process of creating the Oscar-winning Selma:

“It was important to me when I took over the film and rewrote the script that there were those silences and spaces where these icons are being people.”