Latest news with #Emmy-nominee
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Flight 149' Director Hopes Evidence Uncovered During Filming Will Help Hostages Win Legal Case Against UK Government & British Airways
EXCLUSIVE: The director of Sky's Flight 149: Hostage of War about one of the darkest events of the Gulf War hopes the doc will help a group of former hostages win their legal case against the UK government and British Airways. Emmy-nominee Jenny Ash said her team uncovered evidence during the research phase that she had wanted to use in the feature doc but was dissuaded from doing so by lawyers for the hostages, who said they wanted to save it for the upcoming trial. More from Deadline Trailers For 'The Traitors India' & 'Flight 149' Doc; Disney+ Readies Sunghoo Park Anime - Global Briefs First Pics Land Of Tom Hollander & Niamh Algar In Sky's 'The Iris Affair'; 'White Man Walking' To Storyville; BBC Adapting 'Crookhaven'; Adam Curtis Unveils Next Project; 'Patience' Season 2 - Global Briefs 'Britannia' Theft Lawsuit Thrown Out Of Court; Producer Laments Wasted Time & Money Flight 149, which launches June 11, recounts one of the most extraordinary – and until recently, officially denied – chapters of the Gulf War. Just after Saddam Hussein's forces had stormed Kuwait in 1990, a British Airways flight from London to Malaysia touched down in Kuwait and the passengers and crew were held as hostages by Hussein for weeks as they became pawns in an international crisis. Hostages alleged they were subject to rape, mental abuse, mock executions and living in unsanitary conditions with little food. An image of one of the youngest hostages, Stuart Lockwood, having his hair stroked by Hussein is etched in many people's memory. For three decades the UK government denied the public had been misled over Flight 149 until November 2021 when they finally admitted the Foreign Office were warned before the flight about the Kuwaiti invasion. The government, however, refuses to acknowledge that the flight was being used for a secret intelligence mission. Passengers and crew last year sued the government and British Airways for 'deliberately endangering them' and a recent Financial Times article revealed that British Airways denies the charges and is preparing to fight the lawsuit, with the airline's legal team describing the claims as an 'abuse of process'. 'This whole chapter of the Gulf War has been shrouded in secrecy,' Ash told Deadline. 'This is something the government denied for 30 years until they had no choice. I really hope this film will help [the hostages] win the case and bring them the justice they deserve. They deserve compensation but more than anything they just want to be told the truth and get an apology from both the government and British Airways.' Ash's team worked closely with the hostages' lawyers and in some instances were told to hold newly-uncovered evidence back for the upcoming trial. 'There was a bit of give and take,' she added. An unlikely inspiration It was an unlikely figure that first got Ash thinking about Flight 149. Virgin boss Richard Branson was involved with helping a charter plane rescue some of the hostages and Ash met Branson more than three decades on while working on a branded content project. 'We were making conversation during a coffee break and I asked him what he was most proud of in his career, expecting him to talk about a rocket going into space or some such, but instead he talked about this rescue flight going into Baghdad,' Ash explained. 'I vaguely remembered Stuart Lockwood having his hair stroked by Saddam but I'd totally forgotten about that chapter of history. That got me talking to hostages about how they felt they had been gaslit for years.' The idea percolated with Ash for some time and at one point she was developing a factual drama about the tragedy with Mr Bates vs the Post Office network ITV. But the project was given fresh impetus following the British government's 2021 apology and it was eventually commissioned as a straight documentary feature by Sky, before premiering at the recent SXSW. 'Having that present tense narrative was really useful and made us feel it was the perfect time to tell a story of a miscarriage of justice,' she added. 'It felt like the post office [scandal]. People have been silenced and gaslit.' Ash and her team took a three-pronged approach to Flight 149: telling the stories of the hostages, charting the 'political cat and mouse game that played out on the world stage which feels resonant today,' and covering the 'quite complicated legal case' that rumbles on as Deadline goes to press. For the third prong, Ash, who was Emmy nominated for 2010's America: The Story of the US and has made docs on Osama bin Laden and the Nuremberg trials, wanted to imbue a sense of drama by constructing a stylized legal office and then having the lawyers – a small firm called McCue Jury & Partners that has previously taken on Vladimir Putin and Andrew Tate – interview the hostages. She worked with Sex Education cinematographer Jamie Cairney to bring this sense of drama and help tease out experiences that were almost 'metaphysical' for the hostages. One, for example, discusses how 'the sand became a character in his head.' 'In this genre it's important to do drama in a literal way, it's got to be fragments of memory,' added Ash. 'A lot of the hostages' experiences were really nightmareish and we wanted to get inside their heads.' On researching the 'political cat and mouse game' that was the Gulf War, Ash spent time in Kuwait 'visiting dusty garages, talking to people and finding all this footage from the Kuwaiti resistance.' Her cause was helped by a production team including Mark Henderson, who himself was kidnapped two decades ago in South America, and Syrian producer Mowaffaq Safadi who introduced 'the Middle Eastern side of the story' and a Kuwaiti perspective. 'I didn't just want a Western perspective,' added Ash. 'People didn't realize what a deep betrayal it was when Iraq invaded Kuwait because the two were like brothers. People have traditionally seen Kuwait as this very rich people who were victims in this invasion and the truth is there was this incredible Kuwaiti resistance and amazing stories.' Flight 149 is produced by Drum Studios in association with Sky Studios. Best of Deadline 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More Everything We Know About 'Nobody Wants This' Season 2 So Far List Of Hollywood & Media Layoffs From Paramount To Warner Bros Discovery To CNN & More
CNN
19-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
BJ Novak jokes that Mindy Kaling loves being famous at her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony
Mindy Kaling is known for many things, but according to her longtime friend and 'Office' costar B.J. Novak, she especially loves being known for, well, being well known. Kaling was honored on Tuesday when she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, where Novak made a heartfelt speech that also poked fun at Kaling's love of being famous, even if it's a 'weird' part of the job that she never really signed up for. 'Mindy respects and understands this in a very intuitive way,' Novak joked. 'Because in addition to being a brilliant and wildly successful showrunner, an incredible mother-of-three, a deep and caring daughter and friend and mentor to so many, Mindy is also, in her spare time, I assure you, very superficial.' Novak continued to genuinely say that he and Kaling's loved ones always knew she'd be famous, 'but we had no idea how beautifully you'd handle the job.' Later, Kaling thanked Novak when she made her speech, saying that he is 'such an important and integral part of my family that sometimes I forget the reason that I know him is because we work together professionally.' 'I'm as starstruck by him now at age 29 as I was when I first met you, at (age) 24,' Kaling joked. 'I love you.' (Kaling and Novak are both in fact 45.) Kaling is best known for playing Kelly Kapoor on NBC's 'The Office' between 2005 and 2013. She also served as a writer and an executive producer on the series until its final season aired. The Emmy-nominee went on to star in, write and produce 'The Mindy Project' on NBC and is a writer and producer on HBO's 'Sex Lives of College Girls.' She has also starred in dozens of films including 'Late Night,' 'A Wrinkle in Time' and 'Ocean's 8.' Hilariously, Kaling proved Novak's point during her Walk of Fame speech when she declared that 'this is one of the times where I'm just gonna force myself to be in the moment.' 'I'm so happy,' she said, with a smile. 'I love recognition and this is just incredibly nice.'
CNN
19-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
BJ Novak jokes that Mindy Kaling loves being famous at her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony
Mindy Kaling is known for many things, but according to her longtime friend and 'Office' costar B.J. Novak, she especially loves being known for, well, being well known. Kaling was honored on Tuesday when she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, where Novak made a heartfelt speech that also poked fun at Kaling's love of being famous, even if it's a 'weird' part of the job that she never really signed up for. 'Mindy respects and understands this in a very intuitive way,' Novak joked. 'Because in addition to being a brilliant and wildly successful showrunner, an incredible mother-of-three, a deep and caring daughter and friend and mentor to so many, Mindy is also, in her spare time, I assure you, very superficial.' Novak continued to genuinely say that he and Kaling's loved ones always knew she'd be famous, 'but we had no idea how beautifully you'd handle the job.' Later, Kaling thanked Novak when she made her speech, saying that he is 'such an important and integral part of my family that sometimes I forget the reason that I know him is because we work together professionally.' 'I'm as starstruck by him now at age 29 as I was when I first met you, at (age) 24,' Kaling joked. 'I love you.' (Kaling and Novak are both in fact 45.) Kaling is best known for playing Kelly Kapoor on NBC's 'The Office' between 2005 and 2013. She also served as a writer and an executive producer on the series until its final season aired. The Emmy-nominee went on to star in, write and produce 'The Mindy Project' on NBC and is a writer and producer on HBO's 'Sex Lives of College Girls.' She has also starred in dozens of films including 'Late Night,' 'A Wrinkle in Time' and 'Ocean's 8.' Hilariously, Kaling proved Novak's point during her Walk of Fame speech when she declared that 'this is one of the times where I'm just gonna force myself to be in the moment.' 'I'm so happy,' she said, with a smile. 'I love recognition and this is just incredibly nice.'
CNN
14-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
‘White Lotus' Season 3 cast would love to see Season 4 set in either of these two destinations
As TV viewers get ready to lose themselves in another immersive, chaotic and dangerous luxury experience at the White Lotus, it's difficult not to wonder where the resort might open its next location, now that the award-winning series is set for a fourth go-round. Ahead of this weekend's Season 3 debut of 'The White Lotus,' the cast of the latest iteration of the Mike White-created anthology series – set on the lush island of Ko Samui in Thailand – kept coming back to two destinations for where things might go next: the desert, most likely somewhere in Africa, or the snowy slopes of a ski resort. Emmy-nominee Carrie Coon, who is featured this season, said 'there was a lot of speculation' about future settings for the show, and that White 'was openly talking about some ideas he had' for where Season 4 might be shot while they were on location in Thailand. 'I would love to be somewhere cold,' Coon allowed, when asked where she would like to film if asked to come back to the series for another outing like Natasha Rothwell does this season (and Jennifer Coolidge did from Season 1 to Season 2). 'It's hard to act when your brain is boiling,' Coon added, in reference to the heat in Thailand. 'I would go to a ski resort because I could survive there!' Fellow cast member Sarah Catherine Hook, however, doesn't think a chillier destination is likely: 'I know Mike (White) isn't really into the cold,' she said, even though she 'would love a ski lodge vibe.' Hook said while on location in Thailand, the cast 'would predict' potential future locations for the show, 'but we never pried.' While other Season 3 cast members mentioned their desire for a winter destination – like Arnas Fedaravicius, who plays wellness consultant Valentin this season – the idea of an African safari or desert destination kept coming up for many others. 'We're all trying to guess where Season 4 could be,' Shalini Peiris, who plays Amrita, said. 'I think it would be very special to have it somewhere in the African continent, or the Middle East.' 'Give me Morocco!' Walton Goggins exclaimed. 'Give me somewhere warm and dry,' he added, referencing the challenge of filming in the humidity in Bangkok. Rothwell, for her part, touched on the specific perspective her returning character Belinda provides, as a Black traveler within the context of a luxury vacation destination, and also got into the speculation for where 'White Lotus' might go next. 'Belinda's presence in the series is so important. It requires audiences to reconcile the fact that in a lot of these spaces, it is homogenous, and you don't get to see a lot of people of color,' she observed. 'And she's able to infiltrate these spaces, and learn about them, and now she's in one, not as an employee. So it's really cool to see that this season.' 'Doing a season on the (African) continent – Morocco, Egypt, South Africa,' Rothwell added, when asked for her pick on where Season 4 should be. 'I feel like it would be a really amazing, rich opportunity to have these conversations.' 'The White Lotus' Season 3 premieres Sunday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO, with the episode available to stream on Max. HBO and Max, like CNN, are owned by the same parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.
CNN
13-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
‘White Lotus' Season 3 cast would love to see Season 4 set in either of these two destinations
As TV viewers get ready to lose themselves in another immersive, chaotic and dangerous luxury experience at the White Lotus, it's difficult not to wonder where the resort might open its next location, now that the award-winning series is set for a fourth go-round. Ahead of this weekend's Season 3 debut of 'The White Lotus,' the cast of the latest iteration of the Mike White-created anthology series – set on the lush island of Ko Samui in Thailand – kept coming back to two destinations for where things might go next: the desert, most likely somewhere in Africa, or the snowy slopes of a ski resort. Emmy-nominee Carrie Coon, who is featured this season, said 'there was a lot of speculation' about future settings for the show, and that White 'was openly talking about some ideas he had' for where Season 4 might be shot while they were on location in Thailand. 'I would love to be somewhere cold,' Coon allowed, when asked where she would like to film if asked to come back to the series for another outing like Natasha Rothwell does this season (and Jennifer Coolidge did from Season 1 to Season 2). 'It's hard to act when your brain is boiling,' Coon added, in reference to the heat in Thailand. 'I would go to a ski resort because I could survive there!' Fellow cast member Sarah Catherine Hook, however, doesn't think a chillier destination is likely: 'I know Mike (White) isn't really into the cold,' she said, even though she 'would love a ski lodge vibe.' Hook said while on location in Thailand, the cast 'would predict' potential future locations for the show, 'but we never pried.' While other Season 3 cast members mentioned their desire for a winter destination – like Arnas Fedaravicius, who plays wellness consultant Valentin this season – the idea of an African safari or desert destination kept coming up for many others. 'We're all trying to guess where Season 4 could be,' Shalini Peiris, who plays Amrita, said. 'I think it would be very special to have it somewhere in the African continent, or the Middle East.' 'Give me Morocco!' Walton Goggins exclaimed. 'Give me somewhere warm and dry,' he added, referencing the challenge of filming in the humidity in Bangkok. Rothwell, for her part, touched on the specific perspective her returning character Belinda provides, as a Black traveler within the context of a luxury vacation destination, and also got into the speculation for where 'White Lotus' might go next. 'Belinda's presence in the series is so important. It requires audiences to reconcile the fact that in a lot of these spaces, it is homogenous, and you don't get to see a lot of people of color,' she observed. 'And she's able to infiltrate these spaces, and learn about them, and now she's in one, not as an employee. So it's really cool to see that this season.' 'Doing a season on the (African) continent – Morocco, Egypt, South Africa,' Rothwell added, when asked for her pick on where Season 4 should be. 'I feel like it would be a really amazing, rich opportunity to have these conversations.' 'The White Lotus' Season 3 premieres Sunday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO, with the episode available to stream on Max. HBO and Max, like CNN, are owned by the same parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.
