ITV

Tag: House of Cards

  • Netflix launches service in Cuba

    Netflix launches service in Cuba

    MUMBAI:  Netflix, the Internet film and TV subscription service, will offer a broad range of great global entertainment to Cuban consumers as Internet access improves and credit and debit cards become more widely available.

     

    Starting 9 February, people in Cuba with Internet connections and access to international payment methods will be able to subscribe to Netflix and instantly watch a curated selection of popular movies and TV shows.

     

    Among the premium and unique Netflix series available will be the Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning series House of Cards and Orange is the New Black; the global adventure Marco Polo, kids shows like DreamWorks Animation’s All Hail King Julien and The Adventures of Puss in Boots and Academy Award-nominated original documentaries including Virunga and The Square. Netflix will also offer a wide range of films, series and kids programming, as it does throughout Latin America.

     

    “We are delighted to finally be able to offer Netflix to the people of Cuba, connecting them with stories they will love from all over the world. Cuba has great filmmakers and a robust arts culture and one day we hope to be able to bring their work to our global audience of over 57 million members,” said Netflix co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings.

     

    Since launching its online service in 2007, Netflix has revolutionized the way people enjoy entertainment. With a constantly improving user experience, advanced personalization technology and a curated selection of films and TV series, members are able to create their own viewing experience and can easily discover new favorites, while reconnecting with popular characters and stories.

     

    Netflix began offering its service in Latin America in 2011 and now counts over five million members, enjoying millions of hours of films and TV series for a low monthly price.

  • Star to live simulcast 66th Primetime Emmy Awards across 5 channels

    Star to live simulcast 66th Primetime Emmy Awards across 5 channels

    MUMBAI: For the first time ever, television’s most celebrated and premiere awards night will be simulcast live in India across the Star bouquet of channels. Touted as TV’s biggest night, the glamorous gala held annually witnesses the best names from the television fraternity walking the red carpet pre-show. From first time nominees to returning favorites each year, the best on prime television are rewarded. Viewers wait in anticipation, rooting for their favorite shows and actors to win the iconic Emmy award.  

     

    Nominations for the 66th Emmy® Awards were announced last night by the Television Academy in California. For the first time, they implemented online voting for the nominations phase of the Emmy Awards.  The Academy’s membership embraced this change with a meaningful increase in voter participation, nominating programs and performers from broadcast, cable, premium cable and digital outlets.  These nominations underscore the membership’s dedication to recognizing quality content regardless of platform.

     

    While Game of Thrones was the most nominated program with with 19 nominations, celebrated miniseries Fargo received 18 nominations and American Horror Story: Coven that aired on Star World Premiere HD received 17 nominations.  Other programs receiving ten or more nominations include Breaking Bad (Currently airing on FX), The Normal Heart, Saturday Night Live, House of Cards, Downton Abbey (Due to air on FX), Orange Is The New Black, True Detective and Modern Family (aired on Star World), among others.

     

    Additionally, the many Drama and Comedy series receiving multiple performer nominations include The Big Bang Theory (Star World), Homeland (Star World), House of Cards, Mad Men (Star World Premiere HD), The Newsroom, Portlandia, Saturday Night Live, Shameless and Veep, among others.

     

    This year’s performer nominations include a renowned group of actors many of whom are past Oscar nominees and winners.  This includes Chiwetel Ejiofor in Dancing On The Edge, Matthew McConaughey in True Detective and Julia Roberts in The Normal Heart, all of whom were nominated for an Oscar this past year.

     

    Kevin Vaz, General Manager, Star India Pvt Ltd- English cluster says, “This is our first year as official broadcast partner for the Primetime Emmy Awards in India. Our vision is to make Emmy’s a household name in India like The Oscars and it’s for this very reason that we will simulcast the original airing and its repeat across our English GE Channels. Some of our biggest shows like Homeland, Breaking Bad and Mad Men have been nominated and we are glad that this year we will celebrate International TV’s biggest night on India’s biggest English Entertainment Network.”

     

    Hosting the “66th Primetime Emmy® Awards”, will be Primetime Emmy winner Seth Meyers, a dynamic and multifaceted television personality all set to charm audiences with his inimitable wit. He shot to fame for his no-hold-barred style of commentary as a television anchor in the widely popular series Saturday Night Live, and is now the host of the talk show, Late Night with Seth Meyers. The event will be held at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at will be telecasted at 5:30 am IST with a primetime repeat telecast at 7 pm IST on the 26th August 2014. After telecasting the celebrated Academy Awards, known as The Oscars on Star Movies, the Emmys is yet another premier broadcast acquisition to Star’s prolific portfolio.

     

    Watch the three-hour Emmys Live on 26th of August at 5:30 am and at 7: 00 pm (repeat) on Star World, Star World HD, Star World Premiere HD, Fox Crime and FX.

  • House of Cards actress cast in Mount Everest disaster film

    House of Cards actress cast in Mount Everest disaster film

    MUMBAI: Golden Globe Award winning actor Robin Wright (House of Cards) and Sam Worthington (Clash of the Titans) join Everest, Deadline reports. Everest is an upcoming film based on the 1996 Mount Everest Disaster, when eight people were caught in a blizzard and died on Mount Everest during summit attempts. In the entire season, fifteen people died trying to reach the summit, making it the deadliest single year in Mount Everest’s history.

     

    Academy Award winning actor Jake Gyllenhaal (Brokeback Mountain) and Academy Award nominee Josh Brolin (Milk) have also been cast in the disaster epic. Joining them are actors Jason Clarke (The Great Gatsby) and Academy Award nominee John Hawkes (Winter’s Bone). Wright will play the wife is Brolin’s character, a doctor who braves the elements over an arduous night. Worthington is set to play the role of a scaling expert from New Zealand.

     

    Everest is being directed by Academy Award nominee Baltasar Kormákur (The Deep). The film is currently being shot on location in Nepal and will soon also shoot in the Italian Dolomites and at Cinecitta Studious in Rome and Pinewood Studios in the UK, according the Hollywood Reporter.

  • Cast of new Fantastic Four film reboot announced

    Cast of new Fantastic Four film reboot announced

    MUMBAI: According to The Hollywood Reporter (THR), 20th Century Fox is close to signing off deals with four actors’ viz., Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Michael B. Jordan and Jamie Bell for its new film based on Marvel’s Fantastic Four (FF) comics created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee.

     

    Playing the roles will be Kate Mara (House of Cards) as Sue Storm, also known as the Invisible Woman, Jamie Bell (The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn) will take on the role of Ben Grimm, also known The Thing; while Miles Teller (The Spectacular Now) will be Reid Richards, also known as Mr. Fantastic and finally rounding out the fourth member is Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale Station) as Johnny Storm, also known as The Human Torch making him the first African-American to take on that role.

     

    The contemporary update is based on the comic book “The Ultimate Fantastic Four,” and will completely focus on the characters as young men and women. Josh Trank (Chronicle) will helm the pic with Simon Kinberg (Sherlock Holmes), Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass) and Gregory Goodman (X-Men: First Class) serving as producers.

     

    Now that the Fantastic Four have been shortlisted, you can expect to hear more about who they will be battling against over the next few months. More information on the film will be released as the project moves further along into production. The film is scheduled to premiere in US theatres on 19 June, 2015.

  • Zee Café brings home the biggest show of 2014; House Of Cards

    Zee Café brings home the biggest show of 2014; House Of Cards

    MUMBAI: The American political drama; “House of Cards” is all set for its Indian television premiere this February on Zee Café. Starring Academy award winner Kevin Spacey as the protagonist along with Golden Globe winner Robin Wright, House of Cards is the story of Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey), a politician, who exacts his revenge on those who betrayed him. The show also stars Corey Stoll and Kate Mara in lead roles.

    The show is helmed by noted American playwright and screenwriter, Beau Willimon with Hollywood bigwig David Fincher onboard as one of the executive producers. The first few episodes have been directed by David Fincher, who is well known for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, “The Social Network” and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” amongst other Hollywood blockbusters.

    Touted as one of the best political drama series of the year, House of Cards more than proved its mettle with the numerous nominations and wins at prestigious award ceremonies. It garnered a total of 9 Emmy nominations and 3 wins including the prestigious “Outstanding directing for a Drama Series”, creating history with this win as it was the first time that a major category award was given to an online video provider. The show also earned 4 Golden Globe nominations including, best drama, best actors for leads Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright and best supporting actor for Corey Stoll, with Robin Wright bagging the Globe for “Best Actress in a TV series-Drama” category. The show also made a mark at the SAGs with Kevin Spacey’s nomination for the Best Actor in a TV series category. Awards aside the show has also become immensely popular with a massive fan following including the likes of President Obama and Amitabh Bachchan amongst others.

    Anurag Bedi; Executive VP and Business Head, Zee Café states, ‘House Of Cards is a ground breaking show and there is already a lot of buzz and excitement surrounding it.  The content has a universal appeal and the viewers here are definitely going to enjoy watching the show.’

     House Of Cards premieres on Zee Café on 20th February, Monday to Friday at 11.00 pm.

     

  • Netflix becomes bigger than HBO

    Netflix becomes bigger than HBO

    NMUMBAI: Orange is the New Black may have helped make Netflix the new HBO with investors.

     

    On Monday, Netflix reported a U.S. paid subscriber leap, which according to analysts, puts the streaming service squarely ahead of Time Warner’s HBO.

     

    The advances by Netflix spotlight a winning formula around original programming to attract new membership. Original titles such as Orange is the New Black and the Emmy-winning show, House of Cards, were big attractions for subscribers. Binge viewing of these titles have turned Netflix into a hit maker for the new generation.

     

    Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos remarked that the only reason to adapt the forecast model for the second season of Orange Is the New Black was because they were highly confident in the model and the quality of the show.

     

    Netflix’s U.S. paid subscribers jumped to 29.9 million in the third quarter, up from 28.6 million in June, passing HBO’s 28.7 million, according to market researcher SNL Kagan.

     

    Wall Street investors applauded Netflix’s programming results. Shares of Netflix rocketed 10 percent, at $391.39, in after-hours trading on the news. Overall membership at Netflix soared in the quarter from last year. It also reported more than 33 percent jump in members from last year, at 40 million compared with less than 30 million in the prior period.

     

    Since Orange has been a great success for them, Netflix wants to do more content like Orange.

     

    Netflix quarterly results beat estimates, top to bottom, according to a survey of forecasts from Thomson Reuters. Company net income popped 315 percent, at $31.8 million, compared with a year ago. Revenue nudged past estimates by $6 million on just over $1.1 billion in the quarter. Earnings per share of 52 cents beat analyst forecasts for 49 cents in the period.

     

    Netflix’s international audience jumped by 1.4 million new members from a year ago, driven by Nordic and Netherlands expansion efforts, the company said.

  • Adrien Brody to star in Houdini miniseries on History

    Adrien Brody to star in Houdini miniseries on History

    MUMBAI: History has announced that it has ordered a four-hour miniseries about the famed magician and his wife.

     

    The Pianist star Adrien Brody will play Houdini in the Lionsgate/A&E Studios co-production, with House of Cards’ Kristen Connolly playing his wife, Bess. Oscar nominee Uli Edel will direct the project.

     

    The mini will trace the arc of Houdini’s life from desperate poverty to worldwide fame. The drama will chronicle the life of a man who can defy death through his stunts, his visions and his mastery of illusion. Production will begin in the fall.

     

    “Since my childhood, when I dreamed of being a great magician, Harry Houdini has been one of my heroes,” Brody said. “His bravery and obsessive determination still fascinate me. Houdini mastered the art of escape – not only from physical chains, but from poverty and the social constraints of a humble immigrant origin. His life story appeals to the universal longing for acceptance with which we all can identify. To portray him is beyond an honor.”

  • Netflix adds subscribers, but fewer than expected

    Netflix adds subscribers, but fewer than expected

    MUMBAI: Netflix reported earnings Monday that beat expectations as it added streaming-video subscribers, though not as many as analysts had expected.

     

    Netflix stock fell more than six per cent after the report.

     

    “The company added 630,000 new subscribers to its US streaming service, bringing the total number of domestic subscribers to 29.8 million. The gain was in the middle of Netflix’s own forecast issued in April but fell short of the average expectation from Wall Street analysts of 700,000”, Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia said.

     

    “It’s a mixed quarter, not good enough for the stock to move up a bit,” Bhatia said.

     

    Internationally, Netflix gained 610,000 new streaming users, for a total of 7.75 million international subscribers.

     

    The stock has soared 183 per cent this year, which set the bar high for second-quarter results.

     

    “The stock was priced for perfection going into the quarter, hence the sell-off,” Evercore Partners analyst Alan Gould said.

     

    The May release of comedy Arrested Development generated a “small but noticeable bump in membership,” chief executive Reed Hastings and chief financial officer David Wells said in a letter to shareholders.

     

    The company generated buzz from last week’s Emmy nominations for “Arrested Development” and an original series, political thriller “House of Cards,” the first Internet series to garner Emmy nods in major categories.

     

    Netflix, in its shareholder letter, forecast it will add up to 1.5 million U.S. streaming customers in the current quarter. That guidance “looks like a little light,” Gabelli & Co analyst Brett Harriss said.

     

    “Netflix needs to add a substantial amount of subscribers to justify the current valuation,” Harriss said.

     

    Net income rose to $29 million, or 49 cents a share, in the second quarter, from $6.2 million, or 11 cents a share, in the same period a year earlier, when the company was spending heavily to push into foreign countries.

     

    Revenue increased to $1.07 billion from $889 million a year ago.

     

    Analysts had expected the streaming-video company to report earnings excluding items of 40 cents a share on $1.07 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.

     

    For the third quarter, the company expects earnings of 30 cents a share to 56 cents a share. The median of that guidance is 43 cents a share; analysts currently expect 45 cents a share.