Cannes Sales: Actress Titles in Development

by Seán McGovern

As Le Festival de Cannes begins and films in and out of competition are set to sparkle or explode, some are generating heat without even being made yet, as Variety reports. Scattered among some the hottest titles for sale are actresses who are always deserving of a big hit or Oscar buzz.

Tomei and Gershon having a wonderful time in 2004

Shotgun
Directors: Hannah Marks and Joey Power
Cast: Maika Monroe, Jeremy Allen White, Marisa Tomei, Gina Gershon

A cancer dramedy starring Maika Monroe (It Follows). The names that stand out are Gina Gershon and Marisa Tomei, no doubt somehow aunts or mothers to the youngsters in the lead...

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Here it comes...

The 70th annual Cannes Film Festival begins in just one day -- the official website even has a countdown clock which says 1: 3:56:0 as I publish this-- with Pedro Almodóvar presiding over the jury and Nicole Kidman starring in not one, not two, not three, but four debuting projects. One a scale of 1-100 how much do you wish your were flying to the south of France right about now?

YNMS: "Home Again"

Chris here. Big Little Lies may have been the kicked off a seemingly endless lineup of projects to obsess over for both Nicole Kidman and Laura Dern (welcome, new fans of both - it's nice here), but what about those of us craving more Reese-surgence?

Fear not because Reese Witherspoon will be return to the big screen very shortly and she's back in the warm fuzzy mode this time for Home Again. Those warm fuzzies will come from the cashmere sweater universe of producer Nancy Meyers and her first-time writer/director daughter Hallie Meyers-Shyer. Witherspoon stars as a single mother who invites three young men to live with her before they all promptly fall in love with her. How could they not, right? Call it Big Little Guys.

Can you believe it's been since This Means War (eek, remember that one?) since we've had her in a romantic comedy? Take a look at the super fun trailer and we'll break down the Yes No Maybe So after the jump...

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Today's 5: "She's got Bette Davis eyes... 🎵 "

Five mood-boosting showbiz anniversaries for today, and if it's a special day for you have a great one. Take these suggestions and let us know if they helped.

MAY 16th History

2003 The fabulous and seriously undervalued Down with Love opened in theaters...

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Pedro Party: What Have I Done To Deserve This? & Volver

It's a Pedro Party. We're celebrating Almodóvar each day as we count down to Cannes 2017. Here's Daniel Crooke.

Women hold the universe together according to the peacock-feathered films of Pedro Almodóvar, and never more earthily or elegant than in his mirrored portraits of multitasking matriarchs putting out the fires of the men around them: 1984’s What Have I Done To Deserve This? and 2006’s Volver. Both domestic dramas with a hint of the supernatural, they showcase a pair of imperfect pragmatists – respectively, Gloria (Carmen Maura) and Raimunda (Penelope Cruz) – caught in the crucible of their everyday lives with no signs of slowing down, spinning an interminable amount of plates only to wash them straight after so they can serve their families dinner on time. While their inattentive lazybones husbands bark orders from the couch and fail to see the strength beyond their busts – no matter, as they’ll soon both be dead– Gloria and Raimunda are the breadwinners, juggling odd jobs and managing the affairs of family and friends to simply keep the lights on.

Strikingly feminist with an emphasis on the superhuman virtues of intergenerational sisterhood, What Have I Done To Deserve This? and Volver display two working women hustling on the verge with no time for a nervous breakdown...

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