Latest news with #Weisz
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
FilmNation Boards Tomas Alfredson's Psychodrama ‘Séance on a Wet Afternoon' Starring Rachel Weisz, Penned by ‘Adolescence' Writer Jack Thorne (EXCLUSIVE)
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways Tomas Alfredson's anticipated psychodrama 'Séance on a Wet Afternoon,' starring Oscar winner Rachel Weisz ('The Favourite'), has been boarded by FilmNation ahead of the Cannes Film Market. Domestic rights are being repped by UTA Independent Film Group and CAA Media Finance. Penned by 'Adolescence' writer Jack Thorne, 'Séance on a Wet Afternoon' is based on Mark McShane's bestselling 1961 suspense novel of the same name. Weisz will star as Myra, a self-proclaimed medium who convinces her husband Billy to kidnap the son of a wealthy family so she can lead the police to the 'missing' child and legitimize her psychic abilities. When Myra's true intentions come to light, however, Billy realizes her plan threatens to consume them both. More from Variety The novel was previously adapted into a critically acclaimed 1964 film starring Richard Attenborough and Kim Stanley, who earned a best actress Oscar nomination for her performance. Alfredson, who is best known for directing the BAFTA-winning 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' and the cult Swedish genre film 'Let the Right One In,' said in a statement: 'I'm drawn to complex characters, and Jack Thorne's edge-of-your-seat script blends psychologically deep characters with unnerving twists and turns. With Rachel Weisz at the core of this project, both producing and starring as Myra, the film is sure to be powerful and unnerving. It is a haunting exploration of desperation and the fragile line between reality and delusion.' 'Séance on a Wet Afternoon' will be produced by Robyn Slovo; Astral Projection's Polly Stokes and Rachel Weisz; and Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe for Element Pictures (a Fremantle company), whose credits include Yorgos Lanthimos' 'Poor Things.' The project is a part of the first-look and development deal that Astral Projection, the banner set up by Weisz and Stokes ('American Honey,' 'Wild Rose'), signed with Fremantle last year. Alfredson is repped by UTA. Weisz is repped by Independent, CAA, Linden Entertainment, ID PR and Hirsch Wallerstein Hayum Matlof and Fishman. Thorne is repped by UTA and Sloane, Offer, Weber and Dern. Weisz is also currently preparing to exec produce and play the lead role in Netflix's limited series 'Vladimir,' based on the novel by Julia May Jonas, about a woman who becomes obsessed with her captivating new colleague. FilmNation's Cannes market slate also includes Olivia Wilde's next movie 'The Invite,' in which she will star alongside Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton. Best of Variety Sign up for Variety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Frozen yogurt shop in Duluth is transforming to focus on burgers
One Chilly Billy's location in Duluth is getting a refresh. The frozen yogurt and breakfast hub will transform into MadHouse Burgers, a smash burger concept that will ditch the breakfast menu but keep the frozen yogurt. MadHouse will officially open at 1608 Woodland Ave. on April 26, celebrating its grand opening with free burgers for the first 150 diners. "This is an exciting new chapter," says Andrew Weisz, co-owner of Chilly Billy's. "MadHouse brings the energy, the attitude, and most importantly, incredible food." The revamped menu includes the Pulled Pork Smash Burger, Jalapeño Popper Smash Burger, and Bacon Smash Burger, with basic smash burgers starting at $7.99. The restaurant will also serve beer and retain its self-serve frozen yogurt station. Weisz and co-owner Adam Daoust took over Chilly Billy's in 2023, purchasing the company from founder Bill Marker, who was retiring but hoping to keep the Duluth shop alive. While MadHouse opens this month, Chilly Billy's breakfast will stick around on the menu through May 14. Weisz tells Bring Me The News that the company will continue to operate standalone Chilly Billy's locations at the Miller Hall Mall in Duluth and at 2421 Tower Ave. in Superior. MadHouse Burgers will be open from 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. daily.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Senate lawmakers weigh questions of fairness in North Dakota property tax debate
Rep. Robin Weisz, R-Hurdsfield, testifies in favor of a property tax reform bill to a Senate committee on March 11, 2025. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) Members of a Senate committee debated meaningful versus equitable property tax reform during hearings for two bills that would drastically affect how property tax is collected in the state. House Bill 1575, one of three bills advanced by the House earlier this session, would reduce property tax rates for residential, agriculture and commercial properties. Sponsor Rep. Robin Weisz, R-Hurdsfield, proposed an amendment Tuesday that would add centrally assessed properties, such as railroads, to be equitable across all property types. 'House Bill 1575 is a property tax relief bill that is simple, clean and it covers all of the property tax classes,' Weisz told members of the Senate Finance and Taxation Committee. The bill under the amendment he proposed would reduce the residential property tax rate from 9% to 6.25% and the rates for agriculture, commercial and centrally assessed property would drop from 10% to 8.75%. The bill also would cap annual increases in a property's taxable value at 3%. Any local taxing district could opt out of the cap for six years with approval from voters during a primary or general election. Weisz said a competing property tax proposal that focuses on the primary residence tax credit disproportionately benefits the state's more urban areas. 'This makes it more equitable,' he said. 'The people that are supporting our local government with their property tax dollars should receive somewhat of an equitable relief.' The bill received support from several agriculture groups. Another proposal, House Bill 1176, sponsored by Rep. Mike Nathe, R-Bismarck, focuses on increasing a tax credit for homeowners but does not address agricultural or commercial land. Sen. Dale Patten, R-Watford City, asked during the hearing whether it was better to give meaningful tax relief or equitable tax relief. 'When we spread the dollars that we have available across so many different interests and so many different entities … in the interest of being fair, do we lose meaningful?' Patten said. Weisz acknowledged that under his bill some homeowners may receive a smaller property tax cut than the $500 primary residence tax credit lawmakers approved in 2023. He added the $500 primary residence tax credit was only authorized as one-time funding. Patten said he was worried that if relief is spread too thinly, when residents check their property tax statements, they may not find that relief adequate. The push for property tax reform comes after voters initiated a ballot measure last year that would have eliminated property taxes based on assessed value. Though the measure failed, many voters now expect legislators to reduce property taxes this session. Weisz's bill would also increase the Homestead Tax Credit available for property owners and increase the state's renters credit from $400 to $600, similar to House Bill 1176. House Bill 1575 as approved by the House would provide citizens with about $703.2 million in property tax relief for the 2025-27 budget cycle, according to Tax Commissioner Brian Kroshus. That does not reflect the amendments introduced Monday. The bill would be funded with a combination of the general fund and Legacy Fund earnings. The committee on Tuesday also discussed another property tax option, House Bill 1168, sponsored by Rep. Scott Louser, R-Minot. His proposal would use state funds to buy down a portion of property taxes that would have been levied by school districts, reducing property taxes for residential, commercial and agricultural land. The bill would also limit local political subdivisions to increasing property tax levies by no more than 3% each year, not including school districts. Unused increases could be carried over one year. 'I think this bill is complementary and it's not competing with other bills that the House passed to the Senate,' Louser said during the hearing. 'This does maintain local control and has a relief valve, if needed.' Taxing districts that want to exceed the limits imposed by the bill could put the measure to a primary or general election ballot for their voters to decide. In its current form, Louser's bill is the least expensive of the three property tax proposals at an estimated $121 million, according to a Legislative Council fiscal note. However, he strongly recommended the Senate committee amend his bill to buy down a larger portion of school district property taxes, as he had initially proposed before House lawmakers reduced it. North Dakota House sends 3 property tax reform bills to Senate 'Please listen to our constituents and provide substantial property tax relief and reform,' Louser said. Representatives of political subdivisions testified mostly in favor of the property tax bills but some advocated for more flexible caps, such as tying the limits to inflation rates. 'We feel like that is a better way to give us some flexibility to meet the needs of the citizens in real time,' said Matt Gardner, executive director for the North Dakota League of Cities. Gardner also suggested not requiring caps for cities with populations under 1,300. Another amendment Louser proposed to the committee would tie local taxing districts' caps to the consumer price index, plus 1% or 2%. No action was taken by the committee on either property tax reform bill. House Bill 1176, backed by Gov. Kelly Armstrong, will have its committee hearing next week, according to Sen. Mark Weber, R-Casselton, chair of the Senate Finance and Taxation Committee. House Bill 1176 would allow homeowners to claim up to a $1,450 annual primary residence credit. The bill also features a 3% cap on the amount local subdivisions could levy for property taxes. That bill would benefit North Dakota residents, while the other two bills would also benefit out-of-state property owners. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
'This doesn't appear in computer simulations': Hubble maps chaotic history of Andromeda galaxy, and it's nothing like scientists expected
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. An ambitious new survey by the Hubble Space Telescope provides the first-ever bird's-eye view of all known dwarf galaxies orbiting the Andromeda galaxy. The results reveal that over billions of years, Andromeda and its family of dwarf galaxies have experienced markedly chaotic interactions — like a game of bumper cars — compared with the relatively placid evolution of the galaxies circling the Milky Way. The findings, published in The Astrophysical Journal, demonstrate that we may not be able to extrapolate information about other galaxies from our understanding of our own galaxy, the study authors said. "There's always been concerns about whether what we are learning in the Milky Way applies more broadly to other galaxies," study co-author Daniel Weisz, an associate professor of astronomy at the University of California, Berkeley, said in a statement. "Our work has shown that low-mass galaxies in other ecosystems have followed different evolutionary paths than what we know from the Milky Way satellite galaxies." At about 2.5 million light-years away, Andromeda is the closest major galaxy to our own, and getting closer; Andromeda and the Milky Way are predicted to collide and merge in about 5 billion years time. To the naked eye, it appears as a faint, spindle-shaped object that covers about the same amount of sky as the full moon. What isn't visible without powerful telescopes and is not well studied is the swarm of three dozen smaller galaxies scattered around Andromeda, like bees around a hive. Related: The Andromeda Galaxy glows rosy red in gorgeous new Hubble Telescope image Starting in late 2019, Hubble spent two years cataloging images — as well as measurements of the locations and motions — of three dozen galaxies swirling up to 1.63 million light-years from Andromeda. These data provided Weisz and his team the first comprehensive 3D map of our galactic neighbor's ecosystem. Using this information, the researchers studied the processes that drove the evolution of these dwarf galaxies over nearly 14 billion years of cosmic time. "Everything scattered in the Andromeda system is very asymmetric and perturbed," Weisz, principal investigator of this Hubble program, said in the statement. "It does appear that something significant happened not too long ago." That something, the researchers posit, was a collision between Andromeda and a large galaxy a few billion years ago. The possible culprit could be Messier 32, a satellite galaxy of Andromeda and its brightest companion. Astronomers suspect that M32, which is visible to Andromeda's bottom left, is the remnant core from the merger. Analysis of the Hubble observations also revealed a unique population of galaxies around Andromeda that has not been observed around the Milky Way, according to the new study. This group began forming most of its stars early on and continued to do so at extremely low rates and for much longer than astronomers would expect. Given the intense gravitational pull of Andromeda, these galaxies should have been stripped of their star-forming gas long ago, similar to what is observed around the Milky Way. "This doesn't appear in computer simulations," study lead author Alessandro Savino, an astrophysicist at the University of California, Berkeley, said in the same statement. "No one knows what to make of that so far." The survey also revealed that half of Andromeda's dwarf galaxies orbit in a unique, flat plane, all moving in the same direction — a configuration not observed around other galaxies, including our own. RELATED STORIES —Unproven Einstein theory of 'gravitational memory' may be real after all, new study hints —Fast radio burst traced to the outskirts of an ancient 'graveyard' galaxy — and the cause remains a mystery —Euclid telescope spots rare 'Einstein ring' hiding near Earth — and an ancient, unnamed galaxy behind it "That's weird," Weisz said in the statement. "It was actually a total surprise to find the satellites in that configuration and we still don't fully understand why they appear that way." The galaxies assembled into the "Great Plane of Andromeda" don't exhibit distinguishable traits, such as patterns in star formation. This suggests the plane is not a physically distinct structure but rather a serendipitous configuration whose origins are not yet fully understood, the researchers say. "There is a lot of diversity that needs to be explained in the Andromeda satellite system," Weisz said in the statement. "The way things come together matters a lot in understanding this galaxy's history."
USA Today
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Is Zoe Saldaña the best supporting actress Oscar winner ever? We rank them.
Hear this story Best actress contenders arguably get more of the Oscar spotlight, but the supporting actress category at the Academy Awards always gives us scene-stealing winners that pop off the screen in amazing ways. Sometimes it's a mother who's nowhere near maternal, like in Mo'Nique in 'Precious' or Allison Janney in 'I, Tonya." Other times it's the showstopping highlight of a movie musical – for example, Jennifer Hudson making 'Dreamgirls' her own or Catherine Zeta-Jones killing showtunes in 'Chicago.' And interestingly the newest supporting actor winner, Zoe Saldaña, marries song-and-dance charms with the drama of a lawyer caught in a tough spot in "Emilia Pérez." How does Saldaña compare with past winners like Viola Davis and Anne Hathaway? We're ranking every best supporting actress of the past 25 years. Love movies? Live for TV? USA TODAY's Watch Party newsletter has all the best recommendations, delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now and be one of the cool kids. 25. Patricia Arquette, 'Boyhood' (2015) Filming over 12 years with the same actors, Richard Linklater's coming-of-age tale is innovative in its making. Arquette's performance is more simple but just as effective, giving hope and soul to a divorced single mom trying to do her best for her kids but with a tendency to bring home the wrong guys. Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle. 24. Melissa Leo, 'The Fighter' (2011) The true-life sports biopic unleashes Leo as Alice, the loud, over-the-top matriarch of a large Boston family and manager mom to Micky Ward, a championship boxing contender trained by his drug-addict pugilist half-brother Dicky. The siblings butt heads and trade fists, though no one throws verbal barbs like Leo. 23. Alicia Vikander, 'The Danish Girl' (2016) Eddie Redmayne has the showier role as 19th-century trans pioneer Lili Elbe, the first person known to receive gender confirmation surgery. Still, Vikander is no slouch, giving a heartbreaking performance as the wife (and fellow painter) who never falters in being there for her spouse. 22. Rachel Weisz, 'The Constant Gardener' (2006) Weisz's righteous, emotional performance grounds the high stakes involved in the thriller, based on the John le Carré novel. Ralph Fiennes is a British diplomat trying to solve the murder of his activist wife (Weisz) in Kenya, where she uncovers a conspiracy involving the pharmaceutical industry. 21. Renée Zellweger, 'Cold Mountain' (2004) The love story of a Confederate deserter (Jude Law) journeying back to his North Carolina home and his love (Nicole Kidman) drives the Civil War drama. Also key is another relationship, as Zellweger brings Southern verve and a bit of eccentricity to a spirited farmer who strikes up a close bond with Kidman's character. 20. Marcia Gay Harden, 'Pollock' (2001) The Jackson Pollock biopic cast Ed Harris as the famous title painter and Harden as his artist wife, Lee Krasner. While the film honestly portrays how Pollock's drinking and womanizing affect his marriage, Harden searingly delivers as the two clash over his issues, including one scene where Lee strongly refuses to have children with him. 19. Yuh-jung Youn, 'Minari' (2021) Many filmgoers had never seen "the Meryl Streep of South Korea' until Youn delivered a touching, electric performance as a caring grandma in the family drama. She's also the most American of this bunch, watching pro wrestling and pounding Mountain Dew when not bonding over planting herbs with her precocious grandson. 18. Jamie Lee Curtis, 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' (2023) Curtis, the original "Halloween" final girl and blockbuster Hollywood star, dove into the multiverse of absurdity in "Everything" and absolutely made it her own. She stole scenes as an acerbic IRS agent and a significant other with hot dog fingers in the mind-blowing movie, yet won hearts in a memorable laundromat convo with Michelle Yeoh. 17. Jennifer Connelly, 'A Beautiful Mind' (2002) Ron Howard's biopic about mathematician John Nash (played by Russell Crowe) tracks how his work in cryptography with the government severely affects his mental health. The love story in the tale is just as important thanks to Connelly, who plays Nash's wife Alicia as she reminds him of what's real in his most trying times. 16. Tilda Swinton, 'Michael Clayton' (2008) Swinton and George Clooney make exceptional adversaries in the engrossing legal thriller. Clooney plays a fixer hired to clean up a crisis involving an agricultural company's shady dealings while Swinton is all nervy unease as the corporation's lawyer trying to keep it together amid a series of bad deeds. 15. Cate Blanchett, 'The Aviator' (2005) One movie legend channels another one in the Howard Hughes biopic. Blanchett is fabulous as Katharine Hepburn opposite Leonardo DiCaprio and she's the most magnetic presence onscreen, whether the mercurial Kate is breaking down Hughes' golf game or being a steadying love interest before his descent into madness. 14. Penélope Cruz, 'Vicky Cristina Barcelona' (2009) Woody Allen's romantic comedy stars Rebecca Hall and Scarlett Johansson as friends who travel to Spain and are seduced by a local painter (Javier Bardem). It's a pretty straightforward love triangle situation until Cruz arrives, all unhinged chaos, as the artist's unstable ex who enjoyably livens up the relationship dynamics. 13. Laura Dern, 'Marriage Story' (2020) Dern is the mercurial force of nature that's desperately needed in Noah Baumbach's emotionally devastating relationship drama. Scarlett Johannson and Adam Driver play theater couple going through a bitter divorce, and Dern is a joy to watch as the bulldog of a lawyer hired by Johansson's character. 12. Regina King, 'If Beale Street Could Talk' (2019) In Barry Jenkins' follow-up to the lyrical "Moonlight," King brings serious mama-bear energy and stands out among a stellar cast (including Colman Domingo). She plays a devoted, impassioned mother to a pregnant teen daughter and the girl's wrongly imprisoned fiancé, going to extreme lengths to prove his innocence. 11. Zoe Saldaña, 'Emilia Pérez' (2025) "Emilia" juggles a ton of different genres. Saldaña is a woman of many cinematic skills. So there's a serendipity to this movie showcasing the Marvel and "Avatar" star in a new way and letting her strut her stuff, in emotional and musical fashion, as a lawyer hired to help a Mexican drug kingpin transition to living life as a woman. 10. Allison Janney, 'I, Tonya' (2018) There are no winners in the darkly comic Tonya Harding biopic, except when it comes to Janney as a figure-skating parent from hell. She's brilliantly caustic as the foul-mouthed, knife-throwing antagonistic mom to Margot Robbie's Tonya, going for gold with gems like 'I didn't stay home making apple brown bettys. No, I made you a champion.' 9. Octavia Spencer, 'The Help' (2012) The 1960s-set film about Black domestic workers has not aged well and taken flak from its own stars. One good thing it did, however, was give the oh-so-talented Spencer a high-profile breakthrough role – and a crowd-pleasing one, to boot, as a housekeeper who suffers no fools and finds an unlikely friend in a social outcast (Jessica Chastain). 8. Anne Hathaway, 'Les Misérables' (2013) Hathaway's role is small yet mighty in the big-screen adaptation of the Broadway musical. Fantine is a 19th-century single mom fired from her factory job who becomes a prostitute to support her daughter. (Did we mention she's also dying?) And when she belts the standout "I Dreamed a Dream," don't even try to hold back the waterworks. 7. Ariana DeBose, 'West Side Story' (2022) In Steven Spielberg's revamp of an American classic, DeBose is a bold spitfire singing and dancing in "America." She also digs deep to make Anita – the same role that won Rita Moreno an Oscar in this category in 1962 – the most complex character of all, going from hopeful optimism in the first act to righteous anger and fury by the second. 6. Lupita Nyong'o, '12 Years a Slave' (2014) Nyong'o soared in a star-making role in Steve McQueen's pre-Civil War drama, about a free Black man (Chiwetel Ejiofor) kidnapped and sold into slavery. She makes the most of the film's most intense role, as the enslaved woman who helps the newcomer yet also draws the vicious ire of a despicable plantation owner and his wife. 5. Jennifer Hudson, 'Dreamgirls' (2007) When's the last time Beyoncé was upstaged? In the musical, she, Hudson and Anika Noni Rose play members of a 1960s Detroit girl group made stars by their manager (Jamie Foxx). Hudson's Effie is the film's talented supernova, spurned by her love, replaced as lead singer (by Beyoncé!) but bringing the house down with the movie's signature tune. 4. Da'Vine Joy Randolph, 'The Holdovers' (2024) The holiday dramedy toes a careful line between dry humor and themes of mental health and personal loss, and no one does it better in the cast than Randolph. Playing a lunch lady at a boys boarding school, she shines in comedic moments as well as the emotional bursts of a grieving mom facing a first Christmas after her son's death. 3. Mo'Nique, 'Precious' (2010) There are a few questionable mothers on this list but nothing like the antagonism Mo'Nique brilliantly displays in Lee Daniels' drama. Mary is so relentlessly abusive and cruel to her teen daughter Precious (Gabourey Sidibe) that we yearn for Precious to escape her clutches, and one tearful confession brings it home for an all-time Oscar performance. 2. Catherine Zeta-Jones, 'Chicago' (2003) Zellweger may be the lead, but from the opening number, Zeta-Jones is the real showstopper of this criminally great musical. And as incarcerated diva Velma Kelly, Zeta-Jones exudes jazz age swagger and a killer amount of envy when Zellweger's arrested newcomer Roxie Hart awaits a murder trial and takes all of Velma's jailhouse attention. 1. Viola Davis, 'Fences' (2017) Davis should have won this thing eight years earlier for her seven-minute scene/masterclass vs. Meryl Streep in "Doubt," and she certainly understands the assignment for Denzel Washington's adaptation of the 1950s-set August Wilson play. Portraying the wife of a motormouthed garbage man (Washington), Davis is the dutiful spouse until a key moment in the movie where she righteously explodes with raw, rapturous emotion, taking your breath away in the process.
