Lionsgate released the first trailer for the action film The Protégé with Michael Keaton, Samuel L. Jackson and Maggie Q, directed by Martin Campbell, filmed in Romania, and announced its release date: August 20, 2021.

Written by Richard Wenk, The Protégé (the working title was The Asset) is centered on the story of a young woman named Anna (Maggie Q), saved as a child by the legendary assassin Moody (Samuel L. Jackson) and trained to become one of the the best paid assassins in the world. When Moody is murdered, Anna searches for the killer to get revenge and everything turns into a game of seduction and domination against an enigmatic killer (Michael Keaton).

The production lasted for 10 weeks in Bucharest and Snagov from the beginning of January 2020 until the beginning of the March lockdown, with a team of over 200 Romanian technicians as well as over 100 extras.

In Bucharest, sets from Laos, Vietnam or London were recreated. Part of the action takes place right in Bucharest, for the first time the location for an action film of such caliber.

The cast also includes a series of Romanian actors, among them Florin Piersic Jr, Tudor Chirilă, George Piştereanu and Cosmin Dominte.

The Director of Photography for this film is David Tattersal, who worked with writer/director George Lucas for three of his Star Wars movies (Phantom Menace - 1999, Attack of the Clones - 2002 and Revenge of the Sith - 2005).

The Protégé has a team of internationally acclaimed producers, people who have been behind some of the most successful action films of recent years: Christopher Milburn and Moshe Diamant (Hurricane Heist), Robert Van Norden (Rambo, Last Blood), Arthur Sarkissian (Rush Hour).

From the Romanian side for Frame Film, the producers are: Andrei Boncea (Amen, Callas Forever, Joyeux Noel, California Dreamin', The Wanderers), Dragoș Buliga (Las Fierbinți, The Wanderers) and Gabriel Popescu (Bunraku, Gunpowder, Treason and Plot, Dark is Rising).

Prorom will release The Protégé in cinemas from Romania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia soon.

Wasp Network is a captivating and elegant political thriller, who is bringing you a veritable gallery of Cuban crooks and Cuban-American exiles, who have engaged in a complex battle and deeply nuanced by competing ideologies and changing loyalties.

Directed by Olivier Assayas (Clouds of Sils Maria, Personal Shopper) and starring Penelope Cruz, Edgar Ramirez and Gael García Bernal, Wasp Network can be seen starting today in the Happy Cinema network and online on Play.HappyCinema.ro

The thriller 3096 Days is the true story of a young Austrian girl who is kidnapped and held in captivity for eight years. Based on the factual case of Natascha Kampusch. The movies is on the 4th place in the Top 10.

In Redemption (Hummingbird), Jason Statham is a veteran from Afghanistan, haunted by his dark past, and adopts a new identity. After his girlfriend is killed, everything risks to be revealed. The movie is on 5th place in the Top 10.

In The Wedding Year, a young woman's relationship with a phobia of commitments is put to the test when she and her new boyfriend have to go to no less than 7 weddings in the same year.

7 weddings in a year! Will Mara and Jake end up living "happily ever after"? Find out by watching the comedy The Wedding Year for the first time in Romania in cinemas, and on the VOD platform Play.HappyCinema.ro

The comedy is directed by Robert Luketic (Legally Blonde, 21, The Ugly Truth) and stars Sarah Hyland, Tyler James Williams, Jenna Dewan, Anna Camp, Keith David, Patrick Warburton and Wanda Sykes.

The Wedding Year will be release in 5 cinemas of the Happy Cinema network from Romania: Buzau, Focsani, Alexandria, Bistrita, Bacau on Friday, March 12th.

The Wedding Year can be seen both at the cinema and online on the Play.HappyCinema.ro platform.

For cinema program: https://www.happycinema.ro/happy-buzau/m/anul-nuntilor-1448

For watching online: https://play.happycinema.ro/programs/anul-nuntilor-the-wedding-year

Following the presentation of exclusive footage at the European Film Market last week, highly anticipated title Official Competition – reuniting Spanish stars Antonio Banderas and Penélope Cruz – has seized sales to major distributors for sales agency Protagonist Pictures and producer The Mediapro Studio.

Official Competition is a comedy about the fierce rivalry between two actors with massive talent but even bigger egos.

The film is directed by Argentinian duo Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat, whose credits include 2016 black comedy The Distinguished Citizen, which played in Venice Film Festival Official Competition.

George Hamilton, head of sales at Protagonist, said: “Official Competition has landed with amazing distribution partners all around the world and they are all just as excited as we are for the film’s launch later this year!”.

Axel Böhm, COO and Head of Acquisition, Sales & Marketing at Prorom said: „We are delighted to bring Official Competition to our audience in Central & Eastern Europe this year, and together with them we can’t wait to see the sparks fly between Penelope Cruz and Antonio Banderas on the screen!”.

Prorom will release Official Competition in cinemas soon.

Image ©ProtagonistPictures.com
Source: Variety.

Directed by Ric Roman Waugh, Shot Caller stars Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Jon Bernthal, Benjamin Bratt and Lake Bell.

Shot Caller tells the story of Jacob, a mild mannered finance executive, who makes the biggest mistake of his life and winds up in prison on a manslaughter charge. He must climb the ranks of the top prison gang in order to survive, earning the nickname “Money,” but his ordeal doesn’t end there.

After being released for good behavior, he is forced by the leaders of the gang to orchestrate a major crime on the streets of Southern California… Where we learn just how far this man will go to protect his family.

The movie can be viewed on Netflix by accessing the following link: https://www.netflix.com/title/80125671

By the same director, we recommend the movie Snitch (starring Dwayne Johnson), which is also available on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/70241758