• Ted Farnsworth pleaded guilty to defrauding investors in MoviePass and Vinco.
• Farnsworth has been in prison since August 2023.
• MoviePass's $10 plan led to its popularity but was unsustainable, causing bankruptcy.

Ted Farnsworth pleaded guilty on Tuesday to defrauding investors in the movie-ticket subscription service MoviePass, the US Department of Justice announced. He bought the company in 2017 while CEO of Helios and Matheson Analytics (HMNY).

Farnsworth, 62, also pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge for a second scheme related to a video-sharing platform he was involved with while under investigation for MoviePass.

Farnsworth has been in federal custody since August 2023.

"Farnsworth was anxious to accept responsibility for his conduct," Farnsworth's lawyer, Sam Rabin, told Business Insider in a statement. "The most important step in doing that was to plead guilty to the crimes with which he is charged. He did that today."

The Department of Justice charged Farnsworth and then MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe with securities fraud in 2022. The DOJ alleged that Lowe and Farnsworth "engaged in a scheme to defraud investors through materially false and misleading representations relating to HMNY and MoviePass's business and operations to artificially inflate the price of HMNY's stock and attract new investors."

The DOJ also recently charged Farnsworth and others with using "the same strategy to defraud" investors in Vinco Ventures, another publicly traded company.

Lowe, the former MoviePass CEO, pleaded guilty to securities fraud conspiracy in September 2024.

The rise and fall of MoviePass

In 2017, HMNY became the parent company of MoviePass. Farnsworth and Lowe launched a $10-a-month plan that made the service very popular. As subscriptions soared into the millions, HMNY's stock skyrocketed.

However, the $10 plan — which allowed subscribers to see a movie a day in theaters — was not sustainable, and the company burned through hundreds of millions of dollars. By 2020, both MoviePass and HMNY went bankrupt.

MoviePass founder Stacy Spikes, who was ousted by Lowe and Farnsworth from MoviePass in 2018, bought back the company in 2021.

MoviePass — under Spikes' leadership — is currently available nationwide.

The story of the rise and fall of MoviePass is chronicled in the documentary "MoviePass, MovieCrash," which was released in May and is based on BI's award-winning reporting.

• Demi Moore has had a wide range of memorable roles in her career.
• She starred in classics like "Ghost" and "A Few Good Men" and won a Golden Globe for "The Substance."
• Here are her best and worst movies according to critics.

After 40-plus years in show business, Demi Moore has finally received award-season acclaim.

Her haunting performance in "The Substance," as a fading celebrity who takes a drug to create a younger version of herself, won her a Golden Globe Sunday. In her acceptance speech, Moore reflected on how the movie renewed her faith in her own career.

"Thirty years ago, I had a producer tell me that I was a popcorn actress, and at that time, I made that mean that this wasn't something that I was allowed to have," Moore said while clutching her Golden Globe onstage.

"I bought in, and I believed that, and that corroded me over time, to the point where I thought a few years ago that maybe this was it," she continued. "Maybe I was complete, maybe I've done what I was supposed to do. And as I was at kind of a low point, I had this magical, bold, courageous, out-of-the-box, absolutely bonkers script come across my desk called 'The Substance,' and the universe told me you're not done."

The movie is a career high for Moore, whose performance has garnered rave reviews and plenty of Oscar buzz in addition to a brand new Golden Globe.

But while "The Substance" is one of Moore's highest-rated movies — it holds a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes — she has a few duds in her catalog, too.

Below are the 10 best and 10 worst movies of Moore's career according to critics on Rotten Tomatoes.

Note: This list does not include documentaries.

Here are the worst movies of Demi Moore's career.

10. "Passion of Mind" (2000)

This psychological romantic thriller stars Moore as a woman who confuses fantasy with reality, leading to her living a double life.

Fun fact: "The Substance" director Coralie Fargeat was a trainee to the assistant director on this movie.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 19%

9. "Bunraku" (2010)

Moore plays the love interest of a crime boss in this forgettable action movie.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 18%

8. (tie) "Nothing but Trouble" (1991)

Moore and Chevy Chase team up to play a couple who find themselves in a bizarre town after being arrested for running a stop sign.

Dan Aykroyd, who wrote, directed, and stars in the movie, looks unrecognizable as the 100-plus-year-old judge of the town. John Candy also stars in dual roles.

Despite the star power, the movie was panned by critics.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 15%

8. (tie) "Parasite" (1982)

No, we're not talking about the beloved Oscar-winning movie from Bong Joon-ho.

Here, Moore plays one of a group of friends running from a deadly parasite that's been let loose on the world.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 15%

8. (tie) "The Seventh Sign" (1988)

Moore stars as a pregnant woman who learns humanity is on the cusp of destruction when she rents her room to a mysterious traveler.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 15%

5. "LOL" (2012)

In the unfortunately-named "LOL," Moore plays the mother of a teen (Miley Cyrus) navigating the burgeoning world of social media. Not very many laughs were had.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 14%

4. (tie) "The Scarlet Letter" (1995)

Critics were not sold on Moore's performance as Hester Prynne in this adaptation of the classic Nathaniel Hawthorne novel.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 13%

4. (tie) "Striptease" (1995)

Regarded as one of the worst movies ever made, Moore plays a stripper who finds herself trying to make a living as a single mother while stumbling into a political scandal.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 13%

2. "Songbird" (2020)

This pandemic-era thriller about people living in a dystopian quarantine never made it into theaters and went straight to streaming.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 9%

1. "Blame It on Rio" (1983)

In "Blame It on Rio," Moore plays the daughter of Michael Caine's character, Matthew. The two go on vacation with Matthew's coworker Victor (Joseph Bologna) and his daughter Jennifer (Michelle Johnson). Things get complicated when Matthew begins having an affair with Jennifer.

If you understood this plot, you did better than the critics, who clearly weren't into this comedy.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 7%

Here are Demi Moore's best movies, according to critics.

10. "Beavis and Butt-Head Do America" (1996)

Moore voices the character of Dallas Grimes, who tries to pull a fast one on Beavis and Butt-Head in their hit movie based on their popular MTV show.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 71%

9. "Deconstructing Harry" (1997)

In this Woody Allen comedy, the writer-director also stars as a novelist named Harry Block. In the telling of the story, Allen intersects moments from Block's life with moments of his characters from his books. Moore plays one of the book characters.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 74%

8. "Ghost" (1990)

This classic romantic drama stars Moore as Molly, who is grieving the loss of her boyfriend, Sam (Patrick Swayze), who was murdered. Sam, now a ghost, must stop his killer from doing the same to Molly.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 75%

7. "Please Baby Please" (2022)

In this musical, Moore plays the neighbor of a young couple who witness a murder.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 77%

6. "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1996)

In this Disney animated classic, Moore lent her voice to the Esmeralda character.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 80%

5. "A Few Good Men" (1992)

Moore held her own amongst the likes of Jack Nicholson, Tom Cruise, and Kevin Bacon in this beloved courtroom drama.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 84%

4. "Margin Call" (2011)

Moore knocks it out of the park in this ensemble drama about the 2007 financial crisis, which also stars Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, and Stanley Tucci.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 87%

4. "The Unbearable Weight of a Massive Talent"

Moore plays the ex-wife of Nicolas Cage in this fictional look at Cage's life.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 87%

2. "If These Walls Could Talk" (1996)

The last time Moore received a Golden Globe nomination was for this HBO movie focused on three women and their separate experiences with abortion. Moore, Cher, and Sissy Spacek star.

Moore, who was also an executive producer, garnered an Emmy nomination for outstanding made-for-TV movie.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

1. "The Substance" (2024)

Moore has received the best reviews of her career for this horror movie in which she plays Elisabeth Sparkle, a celebrity whose star has faded to the point that she hosts an aerobic TV show.

Sparkle takes matters into her own hands by taking a mysterious drug called The Substance that creates a younger version of herself, which she calls Sue (played by Margaret Qualley).

Sue becomes a sensation, but it leads to a horrific ending for them both.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 90%

• 2025 is full of must-see sequels and intriguing original movies.
• Get ready for additions to the "Mission: Impossible," "Jurassic World," and "Knives Out" franchises.
• Brad Pitt stars in the sports drama "F1," and Ryan Coogler teams up with Michael B. Jordan in "Sinners."

From anticipated sequels like "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" to Marvel blockbusters like "Thunderbolts*," there's much to be excited about at the movies in 2025.

Here are the 32 titles we're most excited to see this year.

"Wolf Man" (January 17)

Director Leigh Whannell follows up his acclaimed remake of "The Invisible Man" in 2020 with another remake of a horror classic.

With "Wolf Man," he again teams with Blumhouse to modernize this thriller. Here, Christopher Abbott plays a father attacked by a werewolf who transforms into something horrifying, especially when there's a full moon.

"Flight Risk" (January 24)

In this thriller set inside a small plane, Michelle Dockery plays an FBI agent who transports Topher Grace, who's playing a mafia informant.

Mark Wahlberg portrays the plane's pilot, who turns out to be a hitman hired to take out Grace's character.

Mel Gibson directs this movie, which will surely be one of the wackiest thrill rides of the year.

"Captain America: Brave New World" (February 14)

Anthony Mackie returns as Sam Wilson, the latest Captain America.

Wilson must uncover the mastermind behind an incident that follows the election of President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford).

"Paddington in Peru" (February 14)

In the latest installment of the popular franchise, the beloved Paddington Bear (voiced by Ben Whishaw) returns to his native Peru with the Brown family in tow to check in on his Aunt Lucy.

"Sinners" (March 7)

Writer-director Ryan Coogler took a break from the "Black Panther" franchise to make this horror movie.

It stars Michael B. Jordan as twin brothers who, after a tough stretch, return to their hometown for a restart only to encounter a great evil.

Hailee Steinfeld, Jack O'Connell, and Delroy Lindo also star.

"Snow White" (March 21)

This is the latest live-action remake of a beloved Disney animated movie.

Rachel Ziegler plays Snow White, while Gal Gadot is cast as the evil Queen.

"A Minecraft Movie" (April 4)

Jack Black, Jason Momoa, and Danielle Brooks star in this big-screen take on the popular video game Minecraft.

Expect a lot of zany comedy, as "Napoleon Dynamite" director Jared Hess is at the helm.

"Mickey 17" (April 18)

Six years after his acclaimed movie "Parasite" became the first non-English-language movie to win the best picture Academy Award, director Bong Joon-ho finally gives us his next movie — and he's going in a different direction.

In this sci-fi black comedy, Robert Pattinson plays an "expendable," a disposable employee who sets out on extremely dangerous tasks that always result in his death. Afterward, his body always regenerates, leading to an unusual situation when one of his iterations survives.

"Thunderbolts*" (May 2)

Kicking off the 2025 summer movie season is this Marvel movie that focuses on the anti-heroes of the MCU. It includes Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), and Red Guardian (David Harbour).

"Lilo & Stitch" (May 23)

We will get two live-action Disney remakes in 2025.

Here, Dean Fleischer Camp, the director of "Marcel the Shell with Shoes On," will update the beloved 2002 animated movie.

Chris Sanders, who directed that movie, will voice Stitch as he's done since 1985 when the character was originated . Zach Galifianakis, Bill Magnussen, Tia Carrere, Courtney B. Vance, and Hannah Waddingham also star.

"Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning" (May 23)

Marking the eighth installment in the "M:I" franchise and the direct sequel to 2023's "Dead Reckoning" (that's the one where Tom Cruise drove his motorcycle off a cliff), get ready for a thrilling end to this latest chapter that's certain to be full of dazzling stunts.

"Ballerina" (June 6)

Ana de Armas stars as Eve Macarro, a ballerina turned assassin.

The movie is set between chapters 3 and 4 in the "John Wick" franchise.

"Elio" (June 13)

In the latest movie from Pixar, we follow Elio, a young boy who accidentally becomes Earth's ambassador when aliens from the Communiverse make contact.

Now, Elio must form bonds with lifeforms across the galaxy to fix a major intergalactic crisis.

"28 Years Later" (June 20)

In the latest movie in the zombie franchise, original director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland return.

Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes, Jack O'Connell, and Cillian Murphy returns are starring this time.

"F1" (June 27)

In this sports drama from "Top Gun: Maverick" director Joseph Kosinski, Brad Pitt plays a popular Formula 1 driver from the 1990s who was forced to retire after a horrific crash.

Now, an old friend (Javier Bardem) convinces him to come out of retirement and join his team to mentor a rookie (Damson Idris).

"M3GAN 2.0" (June 27)

When the summer hits, Blumhouse is blessing us with the sequel to its hit 2022 horror movie. Allison Williams returns to battle M3GAN, presumably AI, after her doll form was destroyed at the end of the first movie.

"Jurassic World Rebirth" (July 2)

Hollywood and moviegoers seemingly can't get enough of the "Jurassic" franchise.

Three years after closing out the "Jurassic World" trilogy, we now fast-forward five years later after the events of "Dominion" to follow a covert operations expert, played by Scarlett Johansson. She leads a team to secure genetic material from three massive dinosaurs that will bring life-saving benefits to mankind.

Gareth Edwards ("Rogue One," "The Creator") is directing the movie, which also stars Mahershala Ali.

"Superman" (July 11)

We all have July 11 circled to catch a glimpse of James Gunn's anticipated take on the Man of Steel.

It will star David Corenswet as Superman/Clark Kent, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor.

Untitled "I Know What You Did Last Summer" sequel (July 18)

Despite not having an official title yet, we have a good idea there will be a lot of slashing in the fourth movie in this horror franchise, created in the late 1990s.

Madelyn Cline ("Outer Banks," "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery") stars along with Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jennifer Love Hewitt, who both appeared in the first two movies.

"The Fantastic Four: First Steps" (July 25)

The latest reboot of the beloved superhero team is set in a 1960s retro-futuristic Earth where they take on Galactus and Silver Surfer.

Pedro Pascal plays Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby is Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn plays Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach is Ben Grimm/The Thing.

"The Bad Guys 2" (August 1)

The characters from the popular children's book series return for a sequel.

Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Awkwafina, Craig Robinson, Anthony Ramon, Richard Ayoade, Zazie Beetz, Alex Borstein, and Lilly Singh all reprise their roles.

"Freakier Friday" (August 8)

Twenty one years after the beloved body swap tale, starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, the two return for another freaky tale.

"Nobody 2" (August 15)

Bob Odenkirk returns as the unlikely badass.

Connie Nielsen, RZA, and Christopher Lloyd return for the sequel, complete with new characters played by Sharon Stone and Colin Hanks.

"The Bride!" (September 26)

Maggie Gyllenhaal writes, directs, and produces this remake of the 1935 classic "Bride of Frankenstein."

Jessie Buckley ("The Lost Daughter") will play Frankenstein's bride with Christian Bale portraying Frankenstein's monster.

The movie is a family affair as Gyllenhaal's husband, Peter Sarsgaard, and her brother, Jake, will star. Penélope Cruz, Annette Bening, and Julianne Hough also star.

"Michael" (October 3)

Director Antoine Fuqua takes on the complex life and legacy of Michael Jackson.

Jaafar Jackson, the nephew of Michael, is playing the late King of Pop. Colman Domingo and Nia Long also star as Michael's parents.

"The Black Phone 2" (October 17)

Ethan Hawke returns as The Grabber in the sequel to Scott Derrickson's spooky 2021 horror from Blumhouse.

"The Running Man" (November 7)

This marks the second adaptation of the Stephen King novel; the first famously starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1987.

In this version, directed by Edgar Wright, Glen Powell stars as Ben Richards, the latest contestant in the deadly game show where you literally have to run from hunters to win your freedom.

Josh Brolin, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, and William H. Macy also star.

"Wicked: Part Two" (November 21)

We return to the Land of Oz for the thrilling conclusion of the box-office hit musical.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande return to once more play the leads.

"Zootopia 2" (November 26)

After the original was released in 2016 and grossed over $1 billion at the worldwide box office, you knew it was only a matter of time before Disney hit us with a sequel. Eight years later, it's finally here.

Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) return to use their detective skills to crack the latest big case in Zootopia.

"Five Nights at Freddy's 2" (December 5)

Following the surprising 2023 box-office success of the big-screen adaptation of the popular video game series, Blumhouse gives us a sequel.

"Avatar: Fire and Ash" (December 19)

We once again return to Na'vi and catch up with Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his family following the events of 2022's "Avatar: The Way of Water."

"Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery" (TBD)

We cannot wait for Daniel Craig to play detective Benoit Blanc again for Rian Johnson's latest chapter in his whodunit franchise.

Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Josh O'Connor, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Thomas Haden Church, Cailee Spaeny, and Andrew Scott star this time.

Though Netflix has not shared a release date yet, if the previous films are any hint, it will likely come out around Thanksgiving 2025.

• These are the best movies to watch on Netflix in January.
• Watch Christopher Nolan's "Interstellar" and "Inception."
• You can also check out 1990s hits like "I Know What You Did Last Summer" and "Rush Hour."

From Christopher Nolan classics to Jennifer Garner doing the "Thriller" dance, here are the best movies on Netflix in January.

"13 Going on 30" (January 1)

This fun rom-com never gets old. Jennifer Garner plays a 13-year-old who suddenly awakens to find herself a thriving 30-year-old living in New York City.

What follows is loads of laughs, Mark Ruffalo being charming, and a "Thriller" dance line.

"Apollo 13" (January 1)

In Ron Howard's look at the 1970 Apollo 13 lunar mission, which became a race to save the astronauts on board after a craft malfunction, Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, and Bill Paxton are fantastic as the astronauts who must use science and improvisation to get back to Earth.

"I Know What You Did Last Summer" (January 1)

This classic 1990s horror movie stars some of the biggest heartthrobs of the time — Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, and Freddie Prinze Jr. — as they play friends being stalked by a hook-wielding killer.

"Inception" (January 1)

Christopher Nolan's trippy heist movie stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Cobb, a skilled thief who steals information from his targets' subconscious. But he meets his match when he's tasked with implanting an idea into a target's mind.

The movie has a fantastic score from Hans Zimmer and a top-notch supporting cast that includes Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Elliot Page, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Ken Watanabe, and Cillian Murphy.

"Interstellar" (January 1)

Make it a Nolan double feature tonight. Here the Oscar-winning director takes us to deep space with Matthew McConaughey as he pilots a team of scientists who enter a wormhole in search of a planet humanity can inhabit as Earth is on the cusp of dying.

Like with "Inception," Zimmer delivers another amazing score. Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine, a young Timothée Chalamet, and Bill Irwin, as the voice of the robot TARS, round out a great supporting cast.

"Meet the Parents" (January 1)

Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro make a surprising comedic one-two punch in this hilarious comedy, which follows Stiller's character, Greg Focker, as he experiences a disastrous first encounter with his girlfriend's parents.

And if you need more laughs, the sequel "Meet the Fockers" is also available.

"Melancholia" (January 1)

Lars von Trier mixes lush visuals and haunting performances by Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg in his look at the final hours before a rogue planet collides with Earth.

"Rush Hour" (January 1)

This blockbuster action comedy from the late 1990s stars Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker as police officers who couldn't be more opposite but are the only hope to save the day.

"Rush Hour 2" and "Rush Hour 3" are also available.

Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" trilogy (January 1)

Watch the movies that finally cracked the code of comic book adaptations finding success on the big screen.

Director Sam Raimi delivered a memorable trilogy (2002's "Spider-Man," 2004's "Spider-Man 2," and 2007's "Spider-Man 3") with Tobey Maguire in the lead as Spidey, which weren't just box office hits but also paved the way for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"Back in Action" (January 17)

This Netflix original action comedy stars Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz. It marks Diaz's first movie in 11 years (the last was 2014's "Annie").

• For 12 years, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were one of Hollywood's most iconic couples.
• They met around 2003 and wed in 2014 — Jolie filed for divorce in 2016.
• The pair reached a divorce settlement in December 2024, after eight years of legal battles.

For 12 years, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were one of Hollywood's most prominent couples. 

But what started as a pairing of two mega powers, who met on the set of "Mr and Mrs Smith" while Pitt was married to Jennifer Aniston, dissolved into eight years of legal fighting. Jolie accused Pitt of physical abuse (no charges were filed) and Pitt sued Jolie for selling her stake in their French winery.

Here's a timeline of their relationship.

2004: Pitt and Jolie met on the set of "Mr. & Mrs. Smith."

Pitt was married to Jennifer Aniston and Jolie had recently filed for divorce from Billy Bob Thornton at the time of filming around 2003.

People reported that in a 2006 interview, Jolie confirmed to Vogue that they began developing feelings for each other. She said, "I think we found this strange friendship and partnership that kind of just suddenly happened. I think a few months in I realized, 'God, I can't wait to get to work.'"

She added: "It took until, really, the end of the shoot for us, I think, to realize that it might mean something more than we'd earlier allowed ourselves to believe. And both knowing that the reality of that was a big thing, something that was going to take a lot of serious consideration."

January 2005: Pitt and Aniston announced they were separating.

After months of rumors that Pitt and Jolie had an affair on the set of "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," Pitt and Aniston released a statement about their separation to People: "For those who follow these sorts of things, we would like to explain that our separation is not the result of any of the speculation reported by the tabloid media."

March 2005: Aniston filed for divorce from Pitt.

Shortly after the announcement, People reported that Aniston filed for divorce, citing "irreconcilable differences."

April 2005: Pitt and Jolie were photographed on vacation together in Kenya.

A month later, Us Weekly published photos of Pitt and Jolie with Jolie's son, Maddox, in Kenya. 

In September 2005, Aniston told Vanity Fair: "The world was shocked, and I was shocked."

July 2005: Pitt and Jolie were featured in a W magazine spread titled "Domestic Bliss," and Jolie adopted Zahara.

The now-iconic spread included many photos of the two as a couple with a family. 

That same month, People reported that Jolie adopted 6-month-old Zahara from Ethiopia with Pitt by her side.

January 2006: The pair confirmed they were expecting a child.

Less than a year after Pitt's divorce from Aniston was finalized, People confirmed Jolie and Pitt were expecting a child.

That same month, a judge granted a request to change Maddox and Zahara's last names to Jolie-Pitt.

May 2006: The couple's first biological daughter was born in Namibia, Africa.

In May, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt was born in Namibia. Their obstetrician told People that Pitt was in the operating room the whole time.

 

March 2007: Pitt and Jolie adopted Pax from Vietnam.

In March, Pax, 3, became the newest member of the Jolie-Pitt family, after the couple traveled to Vietnam to adopt him.

Reuters reported that Jolie supposedly filed the papers without Pitt because Vietnamese law does not allow unmarried couples to adopt children, but single individuals can. 

May 200: Jolie revealed she was pregnant with twins.

Jolie announced she was expecting twins at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival,

She told Access Hollywood, "We weren't expecting twins. So it did shock us."

July 2008: The twins were born in Nice, France.

Knox Leon and Vivienne Marcheline were born in Nice, France in July.

A month later, they appeared on the cover of People. Jolie talked about their family life in an interview with the magazine, saying, "It is chaos, but we are managing it and having a wonderful time."

February 2010: The couple sued News of the World for reporting they had split.

In February 2010, News of the World reported the couple had split. The couple later sued the publication for the false report.

In July, BBC News reported that the couple was paid damages from the company that owns the newspaper and planned to donate it to their charity, the Jolie-Pitt foundation. 

April 2012: Pitt and Jolie's engagement was confirmed.

Pitt's manager confirmed to People that the couple was engaged, saying: "It is a promise for the future and their kids are very happy. There's no date set at this time." 

May 2013: Jolie revealed she underwent a preventative double mastectomy.

Jolie wrote a New York Times op-ed about undergoing the surgery, writing: "I am fortunate to have a partner, Brad Pitt, who is so loving and supportive … Brad was at the Pink Lotus Breast Center, where I was treated, for every minute of the surgeries."

She added: "We managed to find moments to laugh together. We knew this was the right thing to do for our family and that it would bring us closer. And it has."

August 2014: Pitt and Jolie secretly married in France.

Pitt and Jolie privately wed at their Chateau Miraval in France and all of their six children were involved in the ceremony.

Maddox and Pax walked their mom down the aisle, Zahara and Vivienne were flower girls, and Shiloh and Knox were ring bearers. Jolie wore an Atelier Versace gown and a veil that featured designs from her kids' drawings embroidered into the fabric.

2015: They worked on their first movie together since "Mr. & Mrs. Smith."

Pitt and Jolie starred in their second film together, a relationship drama called "By The Sea" which Jolie directed.

That same year, Jolie wrote another op-ed about having her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed.

After an annual blood test showed markers that could be "a sign of early cancer," Jolie decided to have her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed as a preventative measure.

July 2016: Pitt and Jolie were seen together in public for one of the last times.

One of the last times Pitt and Jolie were publicly spotted together as a couple was in July 2016, when they were photographed with Shiloh.

Prior to this, they had been apart for months while working on various projects.

September 2016: Jolie filed for divorce from Pitt.

Citing irreconcilable differences, Jolie officially filed for divorce. She petitioned for primary custody of the six children.

Shortly after, in September 2016, Pitt was accused of physically abusing one of his children. He was later cleared by authorities.

In September, during a family flight on the couple's private jet, Pitt was reportedly "drinking heavily." Early reports alleged that Pitt physically hurt 15-year-old Maddox Pitt-Jolie during the flight, but later reports stated that Jolie separated Pitt from their kids.

Pitt was later investigated by The LA Department of Children and Family Services and the FBI, but both cleared Pitt of all charges in November.

 

 

January 2017: the couple hired a private judge to keep their divorce proceedings quiet.

The couple then hired a private judge and reportedly signed agreements to keep the details of their case private. After that, they were relatively quiet about their split for a while. 

August 2018: Jolie's camp accused Pitt of not paying "meaningful" child support.

Jolie's attorneys said in a court filing that Pitt hadn't paid any "meaningful" child support since they split. It was not clear at the time of the filing what constituted "meaningful" support.  

Pitt's lawyers said in return that Pitt had in fact paid Jolie more than $1.3 million in contributions over the past two years and that Pitt gave Jolie an $8 million loan to buy a new property. Her camp denied that he was meeting his legal obligations for child support. Pitt's attorneys also accused Jolie via court filing of trying to "manipulate media coverage" of their divorce. 

 

 

 

April 2019: both Pitt and Jolie became legally single.

Though their divorce was still in progress, Judge John W. Ouderkirk entered a judgment saying the couple was no longer married. Her name was also restored to Jolie, not Jolie Pitt.

May 2021: Pitt was reportedly granted "significantly" more "time with the kids."

Business Insider reported that the private judge hired by both stars awarded Pitt more custody of his children following months of witness testimony.

"Pitt has always been seeking the opportunity to have more time with his children and prioritized their well being while the other side did everything to try and stop that," a source familiar with the situation told BI in May 2021.

February 2022: Pitt sued Jolie for selling her stake in their $28 million coowned French winery.

Pitt and Jolie purchased a controlling stake in Château Miraval and its vineyard behind the popular wine in 2008. The two were also married on the estate in 2014. 

According to court documents, lawyers for Pitt say Jolie sold her stake in the Château to the Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler without her ex-husband's knowledge.

"She sold her interest with the knowledge and intention that Shefler and his affiliates would seek to control the business to which Pitt had devoted himself and to undermine Pitt's investment in Miraval," the lawsuit claimed.

The lawsuit continued to state that Jolie's sale was intended to cause Pitt "gratuitous harm" after he had "poured money and sweat equity" into the business. Pitt's lawyers also said that the pair had previously agreed to never sell their respective financial interests in the Château without the other's consent.

According to August 2022 reports, Jolie told the FBI that Pitt "grabbed her by the head" in a 2016 altercation aboard a private jet.

According to a leaked FBI report obtained by Rolling Stone and Puck, Jolie alleged in an interview with the FBI that Pitt "grabbed her by her head," shook her, "pushed her into the bathroom wall," and repeatedly punched the ceiling of the private plane during an "outburst" about 90 minutes into a flight from Paris to Los Angeles on September 14, 2016.

The report added that Jolie alleged Pitt was intoxicated during the flight, saying that he poured beer on her at one point. Jolie told the FBI that by the time the plane landed, there was $25,000 worth of damage from Pitt spilling red wine, Rolling Stone reported.

Rolling Stone reported that Jolie alleged her children were scared at the time of the incident. She told the FBI that one child called Pitt a "prick," prompting him to lunge at the kid, only to be stopped when Jolie grabbed him from behind "like in a choke hold."

As previously mentioned, BI reported in 2016 that the FBI cleared Pitt of child abuse allegations regarding that incident.

December 2024: The two reached a divorce settlement.

Jolie and Pitt signed off on their divorce on December 30, 2024, People reported.

No details of the divorce settlement were revealed.

"More than eight years ago, Angelina filed for divorce from Mr. Pitt. She and the children left all of the properties they had shared with Mr. Pitt, and since that time she has focused on finding peace and healing for their family," Jolie's lawyer James Simon told BI in a statement. "This is just one part of a long ongoing process that started eight years ago. Frankly, Angelina is exhausted, but she is relieved this one part is over." 

Pitt's representative declined to comment when contacted by BI. 

 

• James Mangold considered Joaquin Phoenix for Johnny Cash in "A Complete Unknown."
• Phoenix played Cash in Mangold's 2005 movie "Walk the Line."
• Mangold decided Phoenix would be too old and didn't want to service "meta-movie universe stuff," he told BI.

"A Complete Unknown," James Mangold's look at the life of Bob Dylan, almost gave us another taste of Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash.

Mangold, who previously directed Phoenix in his acclaimed performance as Cash in the 2005 movie "Walk the Line," recently revealed to Business Insider that he thought of calling up Phoenix to play The Man in Black again in his new movie. Cash was pals with Dylan at the start of the folk singer's career, which is what "A Complete Unknown" covers.

"The thought occurred to me," Mangold told BI about the possible casting. "But then I realized he'd be 20-30 years too old to be playing the part."

But wouldn't the hair and makeup departments (and perhaps a little CGI) have gotten Phoenix back to looking like he did playing Cash in 2005?

"Okay, but then what am I servicing?" Mangold responded. "This kind of meta-movie universe stuff that has plagued us enough? I'm a big fan of making a movie and giving the public the movie. Don't try to suture the movie to another movie, just own it. Otherwise movies just become this hyper-expensive television series in which we never stop making new episodes every couple of years."

The Cash role in "A Complete Unkown" would eventually go to Boyd Holbrook, who has starred in other Mangold movies like "Logan" and "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny."

In the movie, Cash is a great admirer of Dylan (played by Timothée Chalamet). The two are pen pals and later share the same bill at the Newport Folk Festival. It's there that Dylan famously plays an electric guitar for the first time — a controversial move, given that the festival was known for only playing acoustic music. The crowd boos him, but Cash stands by his friend, giving him words of encouragement backstage.

Though Mangold didn't go full "meta-movie universe," "A Complete Unknown" and "Walk the Line" are very much linked. In "Walk the Line," Cash speaks to his wife, June (Reese Witherspoon), about Dylan's talents and plays his music in one scene.

"A Complete Unknown" is now playing in theaters.

• Nicole Kidman has played a wide range of roles on the big screen.
• She won an Oscar playing Virginia Woolf, was the villain in "Paddington," and even played Aquaman's mom.
• She next stars in the erotic thriller "Babygirl."

Nicole Kidman has done everything in her career from winning an Oscar portraying legendary author Virginia Woolf to playing Aquaman's mother.

In her latest movie, "Babygirl," she plays a powerful CEO in a kinky, illicit love affair with one of her young interns.

It's yet another example of her impressive range, which has captivated audiences for decades.

But not all of her choices have been winners. Though "Practical Magic" has found a cult following in the years since its release, it was largely panned by critics at the time. And "The Goldfinch," an adaptation of the beloved book of the same name, didn't measure up to the source material.

With the help of Rotten Tomatoes, we've broken down the 10 best and 10 worst movies of Kidman's career, according to critics.

Note: This list does not include movies that were released straight-to-cable or documentaries Kidman narrated.

Here are the worst movies of Nicole Kidman's career.

10. (tie) "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom" (2023)

In the panned sequel to the 2018 DC Comics movie "Aquaman," Kidman returns as Atlanna, Aquaman's mother and the former queen of Atlantis. One critic said the movie "spectacularly misfires."

Rotten Tomatoes score: 33%

10. (tie) "Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus" (2006)

Critics didn't get this movie, in which Kidman plays the famed photographer Diane Arbus, saying it wasn't nearly as daring as its subject.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 33%

8. (tie) "Practical Magic" (1998)

Though audiences weren't into Kidman and Sandra Bullock playing sisters descended from witches, the movie has since found a following and a sequel is in development.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 26%

8. (tie) "The Stepford Wives" (2004)

This adaptation of the famed 1972 novel didn't sit well with critics. In this version, Kidman plays a TV executive who moves to the quaint Connecticut town of Stepford and quickly realizes nothing is what it seems.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 26%

6. "The Goldfinch" (2019)

This adaptation of the beloved book of the same name was criticized for being boring and flattening its characters into broader ideas.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 24%

5. "Bewitched" (2005)

In this meta remake of the classic TV series, Will Ferrell plays an actor cast in the remake of "Bewitched," only to find out that his wife (Kidman) is, in fact, a witch. Unfortunately, critics complained the movie wasn't genuinely funny.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 23%

4. "The Invasion" (2007)

If you haven't figured out yet, remakes and Nicole Kidman don't mesh. Here she stars opposite Daniel Craig in a remake of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." It didn't turn out well.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 20%

3. "Just Go With It" (2011)

Kidman shows off her comedic chops in this Adam Sandler/Jennifer Aniston rom-com, but the movie was panned as cliché and predictable.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 19%

2. "Queen of the Desert" (2015)

Werner Herzog cast Kidman in this forgettable biopic on British archaeologist Gertrude Bell.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 18%

1. "Trespass" (2011)

Kidman teamed with Nicolas Cage for this dull crime thriller in which they play a married couple who are taken hostage by extortionists.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 9%

Here are Nicole Kidman's best movies, according to critics.

10. (tie) "Boy Erased" (2018)

Kidman plays a Baptist parent who forces her gay son (Lucas Hedges) to take part in a conversion therapy program.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 80%

10. (tie) "The Hours" (2002)

Kidman won a best actress Oscar for her portrayal of famed author Virginia Woolf.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 80%

6. (tie) "The Others" (2001)

This supernatural thriller stars Kidman as a mother with two photosensitive children who believe ghosts are in their house (or are they really the ghosts?).

Rotten Tomatoes score: 84%

6. (tie) "Lion" (2016)

Kidman plays the adoptive mother of an Indian boy who was separated by his family back in India and reconnects with them 25 years later.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 84%

6. (tie) "Dead Calm" (1989)

This Australian thriller stars Kidman and Sam Neill as a couple sailing through the Great Barrier Reef when they come across a man (Billy Zane) fleeing a sinking ship. Things get complicated from there.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 84%

5. "Rabbit Hole" (2010)

Kidman stars alongside Aaron Eckhart in this drama as a couple grieving after the death of their child.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 86%

4. "To Die For" (1995)

Kidman scored a Golden Globe win for her portrayal of a small-town weather reporter who wants her husband Larry (Matt Dillon) killed and enlists a high school boy Jimmy (Joaquin Phoenix) who has the hots for her to do the deed.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

3. "The Northman" (2022)

In this Viking tale from Robert Eggers, Kidman plays the Queen mother to a prince, played by Alexander Skarsgård.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 90%

2. "Flirting" (1990)

In one of the final Australian-produced films Kidman made before jumping to Hollywood, she plays one of the lead roles in this coming-of-age drama set in a New South Wales boarding school.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 96%

1. "Paddington" (2014)

In the first movie based on the beloved children's book character, Kidman plays evil taxidermist Millicent Clyde, who is on the hunt for Paddington.

Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%

• James Mangold spoke to Business Insider about his Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown."
• Mangold explained why Timothée Chalamet spoke in Dylan's voice on set even when he wasn't filming.
• He called the real Dylan's willingness to give notes on the script a "huge gift."

Writer-director James Mangold remembers exactly where he was and what he was doing five years ago when he decided to make a Bob Dylan biopic.

He was in a hotel room in Canada for the Toronto International Film Festival when he paused prepping for the world premiere of his 2019 movie "Ford v Ferrari" to take a meeting with Timothée Chalamet, then a young actor on the cusp of superstardom.

It didn't take long for Mangold to realize he'd found his Dylan. By the time Chalamet left the room, the two agreed to make a movie on the life and times of one of the most beloved singer-songwriters in American music.

Things might not have gotten off the ground as quickly as they'd hoped — COVID happened, Chalamet went and made the first "Dune" movie, Mangold made "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" — but throughout those five years, the two continued to stay in contact and made separate pilgrimages to see Dylan.

Finally, "A Complete Unknown," which depicts Dylan's rise to fame alongside Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro) and his controversial switch from acoustic guitar to electric in the mid-1960s, is in theaters.

Mangold is one of the few directors working today who has the skill and Hollywood studio experience to pull off a Bob Dylan biopic. After finding success with his 2005 Johnny Cash biopic "Walk the Line," which earned its stars Joaquin Phoenix an Oscar nomination and Reese Witherspoon an Oscar win, Disney's Searchlight Pictures arm knew the project was in capable hands.

"A Complete Unknown" is not a carbon copy of "Walk the Line." While the latter delved deep into the dynamic between Johnny Cash and June Carter, "A Complete Unknown," which Mangold co-wrote with Jay Cocks ("Gangs of New York"), examines the myth-building of Dylan and how his talents elevated the 1960s folk music scene.

But just as Mangold used "Walk the Line" as a showcase for Phoenix's talents, he's done the same with Chalamet in "A Complete Unknown." From talking in Dylan's voice even when the camera wasn't rolling to doing his own singing and even growing out his fingernails (more on that later), Chalamet immersed himself in the aura of Dylan, resulting in the best performance his career so far.

Business Insider spoke to Mangold over Zoom about Chalamet's dedication to the role, whether the disappointing box office for "Dial of Destiny" has made him hesitant about developing his upcoming "Star Wars" movie, and if he thinks Bob Dylan will ever watch "A Complete Unknown."

Business Insider: You've now had sit-downs with Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan while making their biopics. Have you developed a go-to icebreaker for when you first meet legends?

James Mangold: No. I don't have one. But the good thing is the script is the icebreaker. They've invited me into their homes or their spaces because they've read a script I've written. So we have something to talk about. I mean, when I met with Bob the ice breaker was, charmingly, him waxing poetic about loving my old movie "Cop Land." So that in itself was trippy and flattering. 

Do you think Dylan will ever watch "A Complete Unknown"?

I have no idea.

What's your gut telling you?

I honestly have no idea. The reality is I spent a lot of good time with him and I felt like I got a good feeling for him. He does things when he's ready, he gets involved with things when he's ready, he makes comments when he's ready.

I sympathize with his quandary. Do I ever want to watch a movie where some dude is playing me and acting out significant moments in my life? Is that going to be nothing but pleasant or is it going to be weird as hell? So the fact that he took the time to read my script, give me notes, give me advice, chip in ideas, show me where he would make lifts in some songs, and give me the benefit of his wisdom and his insight about that period so I might even dig deeper into those scenes, that was a huge gift and all the generosity I could ever expect from him. 

Watching D.A. Pennebaker's Bob Dylan documentary, "Dont Look Back," confirmed something that's in your movie: Dylan had some gnarly fingernails.

Yeah. 

Did Timmy grow those out or were fake nails put on him?

Yeah, he was growing them. If you look earlier in the movie, there are some scenes where they aren't as long. By the end, he had some full-on Nosferatu going on. 

A lot has been written about Timmy being Method during filming, specifically speaking in the Dylan voice when you weren't shooting. I would imagine a lot of that has to do with him just not wanting to lose the voice, right?

Timmy's not the only person who's ever done that, that's true for most of the actors in my movies doing dialects, they don't just do it and fall out of it the second the scene ends because —

There's a fear of losing the voice.

Well, you're also trying to make it more and more internalized. You're trying to make it something you don't have to think about. So, if you're turning it on and off, you're kind of making yourself hyper-aware of it. If you're just deciding to live in it, that's a whole other deal. 

Boyd Holbrook plays Johnny Cash in the movie. Was there ever a thought to call Joaquin Phoenix to see if he would do the Johnny Cash scenes?

The thought occurred to me, but then I realized he'd be 20-30 years too old to be playing the part. 

But you know movie magic, James! The hair and makeup department would have helped him look younger. 

Okay, but then what am I servicing? This kind of meta-movie universe stuff that has plagued us enough? I'm a big fan of making a movie and giving the public the movie. Don't try to suture the movie to another movie, just own it. Otherwise movies just become this hyper-expensive television series in which we never stop making new episodes every couple of years. 

Speaking of episodic films, you're currently developing a "Star Wars" movie. Are you less confident working on that seeing what happened with the reception for "Dial of Destiny"?

Well, "Dial of Destiny" has an 87% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. I mean, yes, they would have hoped it made more money, but I actually don't have a lot of shame about a movie that's liked by 87% of its fans.

The issue with "Star Wars" isn't my worrying about if there's an angry or resentful group that is somehow disappointed in what I did in "Dial of Destiny." Honestly, that's their prerogative, that's part of what makes movies great is you can think they're awesome or you can think they're terrible. I can't please everyone and I'm sorry they don't like it.

But in relation to "Star Wars," the bottom line is I don't even know if that's the next movie for me. That's something that Beau Willimon and I are working on writing and all the other tripwires and judgments along the way. I don't want to make it unless it's excellent.

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

• Crisis PR is in the spotlight after Blake Lively filed a blockbuster complaint against Justin Baldoni.
• Lively's suit alleges Baldoni smeared her in the press in retaliation for harassment complaints.
• Crisis management experts say tough tactics are part of the game but warned against going too far.

What started as the story of a bombshell lawsuit from a famous actor against her director and costar has since turned into a tale of two PR campaigns and a reckoning in the broader public relations industry.

After Blake Lively filed a complaint Friday accusing Justin Baldoni of sexual harassment on the set of their film "It Ends with Us" and a retaliatory smear campaign in the press, publicists were abuzz picking apart how both camps responded to the news.

A key asset in Lively's suit is the reams of messages included that paint a picture in which Baldoni, his publicist Jennifer Abel, and crisis management expert Melissa Nathan detail plans to direct the conversation away from Lively's sexual harassment allegations by enlisting journalists and an online fixer to create, publish, and amplify negative stories about her.

The messages in the suit — and its allegations of astroturfing, a controversial practice in public relations that exists in a legal grey area — offer a peek behind the curtain of crisis PR, one that industry figures who spoke with BI say is giving their profession a bad name.

"Who is the real victim behind the smear campaign?" Molly McPherson, a crisis communications manager, said in an Instagram post breaking down her thoughts on Lively and Baldoni's ordeal. "It's PR. It's public relations."

The lawsuit introduced crisis PR and the practice of astroturfing to the general public

Hollywood is full of public relations firms big and small. Most work with studios, distributors, or directly with talent in the day-to-day grind of promoting their work, building relationships with the media and influencers.

Crisis management is an entirely different animal. They're called in when a controversy or scandal hits the client that's too out of hand for the publicist to deal with on their own.

"A crisis management person is hired to make sure all the assets are protected," a veteran crisis management publicist told BI. Unlike regular publicists, who "don't want to get their hands dirty," crisis PR firms are trained for this very purpose. "I know how to bob and weave, jump in and jump out," the source added.

The proposed campaign to damage Lively's reputation, as outlined in her complaint via quotes from Nathan's messages to Abel and Baldoni, included "social manipulation" on platforms like Reddit and "full social account take downs." In the messages, Nathan suggested having a full social crisis team on hand to "start threads of theories" about Lively and Baldoni's rumored feud, and the "creation of social fan engagement to go back and forth with any negative accounts, helping to change [sic] narrative and stay on track."

"All of this will be most importantly untraceable," Lively's suit quotes Nathan as saying.

Lively's lawsuit argues that these tactics in Abel and Nathan's alleged smear campaign on behalf of Baldoni went "well beyond standard crisis PR" by deploying the controversial practice of astroturfing, a tactic that, when applied to public relations, involves publishing sentiments on the internet or in the media to falsely create the illusion of public consensus or a "grassroots movement."

"Millions of people (including many reporters and influencers) who saw these planted stories, social media posts, and other online content had no idea they were unwitting consumers of a crisis PR, astroturfing, and digital retaliation campaign," Lively's suit reads, adding that the campaign blurred "the line between authentic and manufactured content, and creating viral public takedowns."

The crisis management experts who spoke to BI didn't see anything wrong with Baldoni's team coming up with worst-case scenarios for how to change the narrative were Lively to take her harassment allegations public. Several PR people say tough tactics are part of the game. But they were split on the tactic of astroturfing.

"It's not frowned upon, just amateurish," the veteran crisis management publicist said. "It gives experts a bad name. Like they saw it work in a movie and thought it was a brilliant idea."

Other Hollywood publicists were more stern in their assessment.

"I honestly thought it was used more in politics than entertainment," one longtime entertainment publicist told BI. "That's just a dirty tactic."

Baldoni's lawyer Bryan Freedman called Lively's claims against Baldoni "completely false, outrageous, and intentionally salacious."

In a follow-up statement, he said Nathan's company The Agency Group (TAG PR), which was hired by Baldoni, "operated as any crisis management firm would when hired by a client experiencing threats by two extremely powerful people with unlimited resources," a reference to Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds.

"The standard scenario planning TAG PR drafted proved unnecessary as audiences found Lively's own actions, interviews and marketing during the promotional tour distasteful, and responded organically to that which the media themselves picked up on," the statement added.

BI contacted Abel and Nathan and didn't receive a response about PR tactics.

Experts say Baldoni's camp also made one key mistake

For all the PR wizardry happening as both sides respond to the story in the press, there's one move Abel and Nathan made that the veteran crisis management publicist said was a huge mistake.

"Never put anything in texts," the vet crisis management publicist said. "That was a rookie move."

The consequences are still unfolding. On Tuesday, Stephanie Jones, the owner of the publicity firm that represented Baldoni before Abel broke out on her own, sued the actor, Abel, and Nathan accusing Abel and Nathan of orchestrating a smear campaign against both Lively and herself behind her back and accusing Abel of covertly stealing Jones' clients when exiting the firm.

In an email Tuesday, Abel provided BI with a different account of how she left Jones' firm, including text messages showing she submitted her resignation and was open with plans to start her own public relations firm.

Now, even crisis managers need crisis managers to repair the profession's image.

"It does give the industry a black eye, and I think it should be a cautionary tale," a prominent industry figure who runs a crisis management firm told BI.

"If you don't know that you can't go that far," the person said, if you don't know that you can't "dupe media, that's troublesome."

• James Mangold spoke to Business Insider about his Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown."
• Mangold explained why Timothée Chalamet spoke in Dylan's voice on set even when he wasn't filming.
• "A Complete Unknown" is in theaters now.

Writer-director James Mangold remembers exactly where he was and what he was doing five years ago when he decided to make a Bob Dylan biopic.

He was in Canada for the world premiere of his 2019 movie "Ford v Ferrari" at the Toronto International Film Festival. In the midst of final prep for the screening in his hotel room, he paused to have a meeting with Timothée Chalamet, then a young actor on the cusp of superstardom.

It didn't take long for Mangold to realize he'd found his Dylan, and by the time Chalamet left the room, the two agreed to make a movie on the life and times of one of the most beloved singer-songwriters in American music.

Things might not have gotten off the ground as quickly as they'd hoped — COVID, Chalamet went and made the first "Dune" movie, Mangold made "Indian Jones and the Dial of Destiny" — but throughout those five years, the two continued to stay in contact and made separate pilgrimages to see Dylan.

Finally, "A Complete Unknown," which depicts Dylan's rise to fame alongside Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro) and his controversial switch from acoustic guitar to electric in the mid-1960s, will see the light of day (it hits theaters Christmas Day).

Mangold is one of the few directors working today who has the skill and studio maneuvering know-how to pull off a Bob Dylan biopic. Already having found success doing a Johnny Cash biopic in 2005 with "Walk the Line," which earned Joaquin Phoenix as Cash a best actor Oscar nomination and Reese Witherspoon as June Carter an Oscar win, Disney's Searchlight Pictures arm knew the project was in capable hands.

"A Complete Unknown" is not a carbon copy of "Walk the Line." For "Line," Mangold delved deep into the Cash/Carter dynamic, with "Unknown," which he co-wrote with Jay Cocks ("Gangs of New York"), the filmmaker examines the myth-building of Dylan and how his talents elevated folk music in the 1960s beyond what musicians in the genre like Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy) and Pete Seeger (Edward Norton) ever dreamed.

But just as Mangold used "Walk the Line" as a showcase for Phoenix's talents, he's done the same with Chalamet for "A Complete Unknown." From talking in the unique Dylan voice, doing his own singing, and even growing out his fingernails (more on that later), Chalamet immersed himself in the auro of Dylan, resulting in the best performance so far of his career.

Business Insider chatted with Mangold over Zoom about Chalamet's dedication to the role, whether the disappointing box office for "Dial of Destiny" has made him hesitant about developing his upcoming "Star Wars" movie, and whether he thinks Dylan will ever watch "A Complete Unknown."

You've now had sit-downs with Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan while making their biopics. Have you developed a go-to icebreaker for when you first meet legends?

No. I don't have one. But the good thing is the script is the icebreaker. They've invited me into their homes or their spaces because they've read a script I've written. So we have something to talk about. I mean, when I met with Bob the ice breaker was charmingly him waxing poetic about loving my old movie "Copland." So that in itself was trippy and flattering. 

Do you think Dylan will ever watch "A Complete Unknown"?

I have no idea.

What's your gut telling you?

I honestly have no idea. The reality is I spent a lot of good time with him and I felt like I got a good feeling for him. He does things when he's ready, he gets involved with things when he's ready, he makes comments when he's ready. I sympathize with his quandary. Do I ever want to watch a movie where some dude is playing me and acting out significant moments in my life? Is that going to be nothing but pleasant or is it going to be weird as hell? So the fact that he took the time to read my script, give me notes, give me advice, chip in ideas, show me where he would make lifts in some songs, and give me the benefit of his wisdom and his insight about that period so I might even dig deeper into those scenes, that was a huge gift and all the generosity I could ever expect from him. 

Watching D.A. Pennebaker's Bob Dylan documentary, "Dont Look Back," confirmed something that's in your movie: Dylan had some gnarly fingernails.

Yeah. 

Did Timmy grow those out or were fake nails put on him?

Yeah, he was growing them. If you look earlier in the movie, there are some scenes where they aren't as long. By the end, he had some full-on Nosferatu going on. 

A lot has been written about Timmy being Method during filming, specifically speaking in the Dylan voice when you weren't shooting. I would imagine a lot of that has to do with him just not wanting to lose the voice, right?

Timmy's not the only person whose ever done that, that's true for most of the actors in my movies doing dialects, they don't just do it and fall out of it the second the scene ends because —

There's a fear of losing the voice.

Well, you're also trying to make it more and more internalized. You're trying to make it something you don't have to think about. So, if you're turning it on and off, you're kind of making yourself hyper-aware of it. If you're just deciding to live in it, that's a whole other deal. 

Boyd Holbrook plays Johnny Cash in the movie. Was there ever a thought to call Joaquin Phoenix to see if he would do the Johnny Cash scenes?

The thought occurred to me, but then I realized he'd be 20-30 years too old to be playing the part. 

But you know movie magic, James, the hair and makeup department would have helped him look younger. 

Okay, but then what am I servicing? This kind of meta-movie universe stuff that has plagued us enough? I'm a big fan of making a movie and giving the public the movie. Don't try to suture the movie to another movie, just own it. Otherwise movies just become this hyper-expensive television series in which we never stop making new episodes every couple of years. 

And speaking of episodic films, you're currently developing a "Star Wars" movie. Are you less confident working on that seeing what happened with the reception for "Dial of Destiny"?

Well, "Dial of Destiny" has an 87% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. I mean, yes, they would have hoped it made more money, but I actually don't have a lot of shame about a movie that's liked by 87% of its fans. The issue with "Star Wars" isn't my worrying about if there's an angry or resentful group that is somehow disappointed in what I did in "Dial of Destiny," honestly, that's their prerogative, that's part of what makes movies great is you can think they're awesome or you can think they're terrible. I can't please everyone and I'm sorry they don't like it. We do our best, if I could please 100% of everyone all the time, I would, but that's a tough thing. But in relation to "Star Wars," the bottom line is I don't even know if that's the next movie for me. That's something that Beau Willimon and I are working on writing and all the other tripwires and judgements along the way. I don't want to make it unless it's excellent.

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

• Beyoncé performed at halftime during the Christmas Day game between the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans.
• The performance paid homage to Texas and Mexican cultures through costumes and cameos.
• Beyoncé also wore a custom look designed by Lindsey James Show Clothing, styled by Shiona Turini.

Beyoncé took over the field at halftime during the Christmas Day game between the Baltimore Ravens and the Houston Texans, which streamed live on Netflix. And it was such a visual and musical spectacle that you might've missed some things.

The Houston native performed eight songs from her "Cowboy Carter" album during her 12-minute performance at NRG Stadium in Houston. The spectacle fittingly included several nods to Texas, Mexican, and rodeo culture and an appearance from her daughter, Blue Ivy.

Since you might have missed some easter eggs, cameos, references, and details, we rounded them up:

Beyoncé's performance included several nods to her hometown culture of Houston.

During her performance, Beyoncé included several nods to Texas and Houston culture, superficially Western and rodeo culture.

She began the sprawling show singing "16 Carraiges" while sitting on a white horse. She wore a custom white cowboy hat designed by ASN Hats, a Cowboy Carter sash, and a Roberto Cavalli coat from the designer's archive.

The horse was pulled by a man always wearing a cowboy hat, wide belt buckle, and cowboy boots.

As the horse walked into the stadium, it passed several low-rider cars, popular in Houston, that sat in front of an American flag seemingly wrapped in plastic.

Later in the performance, Beyoncé performed a line dance, another nod to Texas and rodeo culture.

Cameos in the performance also made clear that Bey wanted to celebrate rodeo culture, such as the inclusion of bull-riding icon Myrtis Dightman, Jr. and the first Black Rodeo Queen in Arkansas, Ja'Dayia Kursh.

Beyoncé also paid tribute to Mexican culture.

During her performance on the field, Beyoncé said, "One, two, tres!" It seems as if the pop star was attempting to include the 2.7 million Spanish speakers in the city of Houston.

One of her outfits also resembled the pattern of a mariachi singer.

Lastly, Mexican Cowgirl Melanie Rivera was spotted among the crowd of performers.

Beyoncé performed with her daughter, Blue Ivy.

Beyoncé has collaborated with her firstborn, Blue Ivy, many times over her career, and Christmas Day was the latest. It marked the first time the 12-year-old performed onstage with her mom since 2023's Renaissance World Tour.

While Blue Ivy performed choreography behind and beside Beyoncé, she notably appeared to be the only dancer on the field who didn't wear a platinum blonde wig.

Beyoncé's longtime dance captain, Ashley Everett, returned.

The biggest Beyhive fans spotted Beyoncé's longtime dance captain, Ashley Everett, was among the hundreds of dancers on the field. Her appearance comes after she was absent from Bey's Renassaince World Tour.

Everett became famous as one of two dancers in Beyoncé's iconic "Single Ladies" music video.

Even the Houston Texans owners got in on the fun.

During the performance, Beyoncé recreated a traditional homecoming parade, complete with a car caravan and the appearance of two "homecoming" queens — Miss Rodeo Texas Princess 2004 and Miss Rodeo Texas 2015.

In one of the cars was also Texans owner Cal McNair and his wife Hannah — another nod to Houston.

The performance had a homecoming feel.

Beyoncé had her own homecoming, as the Houston native returned to perform during this Christmas Day performance. She made that plain by bringing a Texas homecoming game vibe to her performance, complete with drum majors, line dancing, and performers sporting sashes. She also featured 200 members of Texas Southern University's Ocean of Soul Marching Band.

• Warning: Major spoilers ahead for "The Brutalist."
• Guy Pearce told BI that the ending and how his character exits the movie is "brilliant."
• "It's important what the audience imagines," he said.

Brady Corbet's three-and-a-half-hour epic "The Brutalist" is filled with eye-popping visuals and moving sequences as it chronicles the life of László Tóth (Adrien Brody), a Hungarian Jew who survives the Holocaust and emigrates to post-World War II America. It all leads to a shocking end centered around Guy Pearce's character, the bombastic wealthy industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren.

The bulk of the movie focuses on Van Buren commissioning Tóth, an architect, to create a massive community center. The endeavor stretches Tóth's talents and patience for most who work with him, but he seems to always have Van Buren's support. Van Buren even helps Tóth get his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) to the US and allows them to live on his estate during the center's construction.

Years into the project, Tóth and Van Buren travel to Italy to order the marble needed to complete the community center. The two enjoy a party there one evening, and Van Buren rapes Tóth. Tóth returns home a changed man, filled with anger towards everyone.

By the end of the movie, Tóth tells his wife what happened in Italy. She then barges in on Van Buren and his family having dinner with guests. Erzsébet calls Van Buren a rapist in front of everyone, which leads to an argument, and Van Buren's son Harry (Joe Alwyn) forces Erzsébet from the room.

Once things calm down, Van Buren has disappeared. Harry begins to search the house for his father while also seemingly having a panic attack. When no one can find Van Buren in the house, they expand their search around the estate and through the unfinished community center.

He is never found.

Pearce doesn't know what happened to Van Buren — but that's not the point

Pearce told Business Insider he didn't have much discussion with Corbet, who cowrote the screenplay with his wife Mona Fastvold, about Van Buren's dramatic exit.

"That was on the page," Pearce said. "It was pretty clear in the script that we go out of the room, we come back, and the dinner guests say, 'He's gone to bed,' and then Joe goes looking for me, and I'm not in bed, and we just don't know where he's at. He's become nothing."

Pearce said looking for answers to what really happened to Van Buren isn't the point. "It's not important even to know what happened to him, it's important what the audience imagines," he said.

"I think the unsatisfactory nature of a character who is so present and so dominant and so controlling then just evaporates — I thought it was brilliant."

After watching the movie, Pearce said what struck him about the scene was how it raised the question of if this was the first time Van Buren sexually assaulted someone.

"Watching how that scene played out — while I was busy hiding behind a chest of drawers in that dining room so I wasn't caught on camera — watching Joe run around as desperate as he was looking for me, there was something there that tells us that there's more to this," Pearce said. "It was harrowing stuff." 

"The Brutalist" is now playing in theaters.

• Disney is remaking a number of animated classics into live-action movies.
• Some are remakes while others are origin stories or sequels to existing live-action adaptations. 
• Among its current remakes are a live-action "Moana" and "Lilo & Stitch."

Despite Disney's late 2024 live-action release, "Mufasa: The Lion King," making substantially less ($35 million) than its 2019 "The Lion King" CGI-fueled release ($191.7 million) in its opening weekend at the domestic box office, the studio still has plans for two live-action adaptations of beloved animated movies coming in 2025: "Snow White" and "Lilo & Stitch."

And there are plans for more beyond that. Here's everything we know about the upcoming live-action releases of Disney's animated classics. 

Kirsten Acuna contributed to a previous version of this story.

"Snow White" is set for March 21, 2025.

Disney is working on a live-action version of its first animated classic, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." Marc Webb ("The Amazing Spider-Man") directs the upcoming adaptation with "West Side Story" star Rachel Zegler playing the iconic Disney princess. Gal Gadot assumes the role of her stepmother, the Evil Queen.

"Snow White is the girl you remember, but she's definitely made for the modern age," Zegler told the D23 crowd in 2022. "There's such an emphasis on what it really means to be the fairest of them all. For Snow White, it's coming to terms with finding herself and finding her inner voice and finding a sense of agency so that she can be a just ruler and a wonderful queen."

The fairy tale will have new music by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, who wrote the songs for "The Greatest Showman" and "La La Land." 

Disney will release a live-action adaptation of "Lilo & Stitch" on May 23, 2025.

Emmy winner Courtney B. Vance will play Cobra Bubbles in the film, according to Deadline. Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen will also star. Maia Kealoha will play Lilo. Dean Fleischer Camp ("Marcel the Shell With Shoes On") will direct.

The director of the original movie, Chris Sanders ("The Wild Robot"), will return to once more voice Stitch.

"Moana" will be released July 10, 2026.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson announced Disney's working on a live-action "Moana" during a pre-recorded video for a Disney shareholders meeting in early April 2023.

Johnson will reprise his role from the hit 2016 movie as Maui.

"I'm deeply humbled and overcome with gratitude to bring the beautiful story of 'Moana' to the live-action big screen," Johnson said in a statement released by Disney.

"This story is my culture, and this story is emblematic of our people's grace and warrior strength," he added. "I wear this culture proudly on my skin and in my soul, and this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reunite with Maui, inspired by the mana and spirit of my late grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia, is one that runs very deep for me."

Auli'i Cravalho announced on Instagram she won't reprise her role as the Disney princess. Instead, she'll serve as an executive producer.

This follows the animated box office hit "Moana 2" released at the end of 2024, which has become the studio's "hottest IP."

A live-action "Hercules" is expected to get a theatrical release.

The DisInsider first reported the 1997 animated film about the son of Zeus will get a live-action remake.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Avengers: Endgame" directors Anthony and Joe Russo will produce, but not direct, the film. Guy Ritichie, who directed "Aladdin," will direct.

Joe Russo described the film in November 2022 as a musical that will be "a little bit more experimental in tone."

Danny DeVito and James Woods lent their voices in the animated film. Ariana Grande performed a solo six-part harmony of the movie's "I Won't Say I'm In Love" in 2020, prompting many fans to suggest she'd be the perfect Meg. It's unclear at this time whether music will be a part of the film.

Disney is working on an adaptation of 1996's "Hunchback of Notre Dame," but it's in limbo.

Deadline reported in 2019 that a live-action version of Disney's 1996 movie about an orphaned Quasimodo living in the bell tower of Notre Dame was in the works. Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz, who teamed up on "Pocahontas," will write the music, while Josh Gad ("Frozen") is producing.

Deadline reports the live-action film will adapt both the 1996 Disney film and the Victor Hugo novel. It's not clear whether or not the remake will be for Disney's streaming service or a theatrical release. 

Gad has said the script is "one of the best" he has read and expressed his hope that Disney will let them make the live-action adaptation.

In May 2023, Menken gave ComicBook.com an update: "It's a tough one, because the Hunchback movie, Hunchback story involves a lot of real, real issues that are important issues and should be explored to be discussed. And there has to be an agreement about how we deal with those issues... It sits in this limbo right now."

"Robin Hood" is getting remade for Disney+.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the remake will be directed by Carlos Lopez Estrada and will head to Disney+.

In June 2022, Chris Evans said he'd love "a crack" at playing the character since he's a big fan of the animated film.

A sequel to the live-action "Aladdin" may still be in the works, but the star doesn't seem hopeful.

Variety reported that John Gatins and Andrea Berloff are writing a sequel to the 2019 film with producers Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich returning.

Lin told Business Insider in August 2019 they were discussing a sequel.

"I can't talk too much about the sequel just yet, but know that we are hearing fans' desires to see another 'Aladdin' movie and feel like there's more story to tell," Lin told BI after the film crossed $1 billion at the box office.

Director Guy Ritchie told Collider in February 2023 he "would very much like to" return for a sequel, adding they've "been kicking some ideas around."

However, in March, star Mena Massoud sounded less hopeful, telling fans on Twitter a sequel was "very unlikely at this point."

Disney released two popular direct-to-video sequels for "Aladdin" in the '90s, including "The Return of Jafar" and "Aladdin and the King of Thieves." Variety reported the sequel will be completely original and not based on the straight-to-video films.

Disney has not officially announced the sequel.

An Aladdin spinoff, featuring Prince Anders, is in development at Disney+.

In 2019, THR reported that Billy Magnussen's "Aladdin" character would get his own spin-off movie on Disney Plus. The film is not supposed to be a sequel.

Anders is a prince who unsuccessfully sought Princess Jasmine's hand in marriage in the 2019 film.

In May 2022, Magnussen told Screen Rant the film was still moving forward and in the process of rewrites.

 

Disney is reportedly remaking 1963's "The Sword in the Stone," which follows a young King Arthur and his lessons with the wizard Merlin.

The remake will be written by "Game of Thrones" writer and producer Bryan Cogman. Juan Carlos Fresnadillo was named as the director in January 2018.

In 2024, Fresnadillo, who directed the Netflix movie "Damsel," gave an update to Collider on the project: "I was attached a long time ago, and I prepped a lot for Disney for that movie. I don't know exactly what happened, but the studio decided to hold the project. So right now it's in a holding situation, and I don't know what's going to happen, to be honest. But I think it's a great story. I would be so keen to make it if they decided to greenlight the project."

"Bambi" will be getting remade for a new generation.

According to Variety, the remake of the 1942 film won't be live-action with a real deer, rabbit, and skunk. Disney will utilize the technology that helped bring "The Lion King" remake to life to look photorealistic.

In 2023, Deadline reported that Sarah Polley ("Women Talking") was on board to direct, but a year later The Wrap reported that she had exited the project.

We haven't heard updates on the rest of these films in a while. "The Jungle Book" sequel was originally announced years ago.

Before the release of Disney's remake of 1961's "The Jungle Book," the studio already started planning a sequel. The movie was a huge success, grossing nearly $1 billion at the box office.

According to The Hollywood Reporter in 2016, Jon Favreau was expected to return to the director's chair for "The Jungle Book 2" along with Justin Marks to return for the sequel. There is no set release date for the movie.

Peter Pan's fairy companion Tinker Bell was reportedly getting her own live-action film, too.

The Hollywood Reporter wrote about a movie in 2015 that would star Reese Witherspoon. 

Disney was reportedly in talks to remake Roald Dahl's "James and the Giant Peach," which was adapted as a stop-motion film in 1996.

No new information has been released since 2016. 

• Blake Lively sued her "It Ends with Us" costar and director Justin Baldoni for sexual harassment on December 20.
• Lively also alleged Baldoni made attempts to damage her reputation.
• Here's everyone who's spoken out in support of Lively, including former costars and directors.

Blake Lively sued her "It Ends with Us" costar and director Justin Baldoni on December 20 for sexual harassment and an attempt to damage her reputation.

The news comes months after the movie's promotion leading up to its August release was overshadowed by rumors of a feud between the stars.

In the complaint, obtained by Business Insider, Lively said she met with Baldoni and producer Jamey Heath during production to address the "hostile work environment that had nearly derailed production of the film."

The meeting resulted in all parties agreeing to a number of stipulations, including "no more showing nude videos or images of women, including the producer's wife," to Lively (who is addressed as "BL" in other parts of the complaint) or her employees.

It also required "no more mention of Mr. Baldoni or Mr. Heath's previous 'pornography addiction' or BL's lack of pornography consumption to BL or to other crew members."

During the movie's late summer press tour, social media users criticized Lively's lighthearted approach to the movie's marketing, which led to a wave of backlash. Reports also began to surface that Lively and Baldoni feuded during production and had made separate cuts of the movie (Lively's ultimately won).

Lively said in the complaint that Baldoni and his team engaged in "social manipulation" to destroy her reputation through a "sophisticated press and digital plan in retaliation for Ms. Lively exercising her legally protected right to speak up about their misconduct on the set, with the additional objective of intimidating her and anyone else from revealing in public what actually occurred."

Bryan Freedman, an attorney for Baldoni and his company, Wayfarer Studios, said in a statement to BI that the claims made in the complaint were "categorically false" and "intentionally salacious with an intent to publicly hurt and rehash a narrative in the media."

"It is shameful that Ms. Lively and her representatives would make such serious and categorically false accusations against Mr. Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and its representatives, as yet another desperate attempt to 'fix' her negative reputation, which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film; interviews and press activities that were observed publicly, in real time and unedited, which allowed for the internet to generate their own views and opinions," the statement said.

A representative for Lively referred BI to a statement shared with The New York Times on Saturday.

"I hope that my legal action helps pull back the curtain on these sinister retaliatory tactics to harm people who speak up about misconduct and helps protect others who may be targeted," the statement said.

She also told the outlet that neither she nor her representatives ever spread negative stories about Baldoni or Wayfarer Studios.

Since the lawsuit, Lively has received a wave of support from family and people she has worked with in Hollywood.

Here's who has spoken out in support of Lively.

Her "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" costars America Ferrera, Amber Tamblyn, and Alexis Bledel released a joint statement.

Since starring in the 2005 movie "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" and its 2008 sequel, Lively, Ferrera, Tamblyn, and Bledel have remained close friends.

In a joint statement released on Instagram, Ferrera, Tamblyn, and Bledel showed support for Lively.

"As Blake's friends and sisters for over 20 years, we stand with her in solidarity as she fights back against the reported campaign waged to destroy her reputation," the statement reads. "Throughout the filming of 'It Ends with Us,' we saw her summon the courage to ask for a safe workplace for herself and colleagues on set, and we are appalled to read the evidence of a premeditated and vindictive effort that ensued to discredit her voice. Most upsetting is the unabashed exploitation of domestic violence survivors' stories to silence a woman who asked for safety. The hypocrisy is astounding."

"We are struck by the reality that even if a woman is as strong, celebrated, and resourced as our friend Blake, she can face forceful retaliation for daring to ask for a safe working environment," the statement continued. "We are inspired by our sister's courage to stand up for herself and others. For anyone seeking more information or engaging in this important conversation online, please read the full legal complaint in the investigative reporting by Megan Twohey, Mike McIntire, and Julie Tate for the New York Times."

So has "It Ends with Us" author Colleen Hoover.

In an Instagram Stories post, the author wrote:

"@blakelively, you have been nothing but honest, kind, supportive and patient since the day we met."

"Thank you for being exactly the human that you are. Never change. Never wilt."

And Lively's "A Simple Favor" director Paul Feig.

The "Bridesmaids" filmmaker directed Lively in the 2018 whodunit "A Simple Favor," and the two recently wrapped on a sequel.

"I've now made two movies with Blake and all I can say is she's one of the most professional, creative, collaborative, talented and kind people I've ever worked with," Feig wrote on X. "She truly did not deserve any of this smear campaign against her. I think it's awful she was put through this."

Lively's half-sister Robyn also showed her support.

Robyn Lively, Blake's half-sister who also starred in "It Ends with Us," posted on Instagram to show her support.

"She is one of the kindest, most honest and loving humans I know. Blake isn't a villain. She's a mama bear to her core, a loving and supportive wife, a sister, a friend, and someone who worked her ass off on a film in abominable working conditions," she wrote.

Lively's "In Ends with Us" costar Brandon Sklenar has shown support.

Sklenar, who starred as Atlas in "It Ends with Us," wrote on his Instagram Stories, "For the love of God read this," linking to The New York Times story that highlighted the lawsuit. He also included a heart emoji next to Blake Lively's handle.

Another of Lively's "It Ends with Us" costars, Jenny Slate, says she stands by her "loyal friend."

Slate, who plays Allysa in the movie, gave a statement to Today.com supporting her costar.

"As Blake Lively's castmate and friend, I voice my support as she takes action against those reported to have planned and carried out an attack on her reputation," Slate said. "Blake is a leader, loyal friend and a trusted source of emotional support for me and so many who know and love her."

She continued: "What has been revealed about the attack on Blake is terribly dark, disturbing, and wholly threatening. I commend my friend, I admire her bravery, and I stand by her side."

Amy Schumer, who has mocked Lively in the past, has shown support.

The comic posted on her Instagram Stories the words "I believe Blake."

It's a surprising show of support as Schumer back in 2015 mocked Lively on her show "Inside Amy Schumer."

"Deadpool & Wolverine" director Shawn Levy posted the New York Times article in a show of support.

Levy, who has worked with Lively's husband Ryan Reynolds multiple times, most recently on "Deadpool & Wolverine" (and gave Lively a cameo in the movie), took to his Instagram Stories to support Lively.

"Proud to call @blakelively a friend," he wrote, and linked to the New York Times story.

Nick Viall supports Lively and said he tried to warn everyone about Baldoni.

The Bachelor Nation alum took to TikTok to show support for Lively. He also noted that he received pushback when he tried to warn his listeners about Baldoni on an episode of his podcast "The Viall Files" back in August.

"I'm not here to gloat; I'm honestly just happy that the truth is out about this guy and, more importantly, how wrong ya'll were about Blake," he said.

Christina Ricci showed her support.

Ricci posted an Instagram Story in which she shared a quote about misogyny and tagged the writer Rebecca Woolf.

"Re: Blake Lively (and Amber Heard TBH) misogyny exploits the jealousy women feel for each other — specifically when it comes to beautiful women & girls. The fact that 'mean girls' are always beautiful is no coincidence. The ease in which women are manipulated into hating each other (even feminist women) is something no one wants to talk about. This is (yet another!) reminder to question our willingness to burn ANY woman. That includes beautiful, successful women who dare to have a voice."

So did Kaitlin Olson.

Olson stars in "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" alongside her real-life husband, Rob McElhenney, who co-owns the soccer team Wrexham A.F.C. with Lively's husband, Ryan Reynolds. She posted an Instagram Story supporting Lively, calling her "a kind, lovely, honest and generous person (and an incredible mom) FYI."

• 2024 was full of great movies.
• Big spectacles like "Wicked" and "Dune: Part Two" captured viewers' and critics' attention.
• Smaller dramas like "Civil War" and "The Substance" also packed a punch and prompted discourse online.

Giant sandworms! Singing witches! Horny tennis players! The best movies of 2024 offered a wide array of cinematic pleasures — and a double dose of Zendaya.

Below are Business Insider's best movies of 2024. Scroll to the end to see entertainment correspondent Jason Guerrasio and senior editor Caralynn Matassa's personal top five movies of the year.

"A Complete Unknown"

Almost twenty years after director James Mangold gave us the Johnny Cash biopic "Walk the Line," he's returned to the space with a look at Bob Dylan's transition from acoustic to electric.

As much as the music will dazzle Dylan fans, it's the acting that's the highlight. Timothée Chalamet delivers one of the best performances burgeoning career, getting Dylan's voice and mannerisms down perfectly. — Jason Guerrasio

"A Different Man"

Sebastian Stan gives one of two standout performances this year in "A Different Man." The surreal, twisty psychological thriller follows Stan as Edward, an introverted, struggling actor with neurofibromatosis (a disorder causing facial differences) who is cured through an experimental procedure. Reinventing himself as "Guy" doesn't quite give him the dream life he'd hoped for, though.

The darkly comic film from writer-director Aaron Schimberg also features great supporting performances from Renate Reinsve (who had her breakthrough in 2021's "The Worst Person in the World") and Adam Pearson as Oswald, a confident and charismatic man who also has neurofibromatosis. — Caralynn Matassa

"Alien: Romulus"

For this latest trek back into the sci-fi world of "Alien," director Fede Álvarez takes full advantage of the IP by weaving a story that touches on the original movie and the world of "Prometheus." The result is a thrill ride that will satisfy fans of the franchise and scare the hell out of the newbies who have never seen an "Alien" movie. — JG

"Anora"

Sean Baker made a name for himself as one of the most acclaimed independent filmmakers, and for good reason. He excels at slice-of-life movies (2017's "The Florida Project" and 2021's criminally underrated "Red Rocket") that spotlight marginalized communities.

His latest, "Anora," centers on the titular sex worker played by "Scream 5" standout Mikey Madison. The film landed the Palme d'Or, the Cannes Film Festival's highest honor, thanks to Madison's subtly powerful performance and Baker's propulsive script. — CM

"The Apprentice"

It shouldn't come as a shock that the most polarizing movie of the year was one about Donald Trump's rise to power as a New York City real estate tycoon.

But take away your political views and opinions on Trump (which, I know, is hard), and this movie from director Ali Abbasi is a fascinating exploration of how those with power and influence move through the world.

And then there are the performances by Sebastian Stan as Trump and Jeremy Strong as Trump's fixer and mentor Roy Cohn, both of which should be recognized during award season. — JG

"Babygirl"

Nicole Kidman gives one of the best and boldest performances of her decadeslong career in "Babygirl." The erotic thriller, written and directed by "Bodies Bodies Bodies" filmmaker Halina Reijn, puts the female gaze on a distinctly male, often-problematic genre, tackling female sexuality, gender, and power dynamics as Kidman's Romy Mathis, a high-powered CEO, pursues a secret affair with her intern (Harris Dickinson). — CM

"Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F"

I wasn't expecting a "Beverly Hills Cop" sequel made on Netflix to give me some of the biggest laugh-out-loud moments this year, but that's exactly what happened.

Director Mark Molloy certainly understood the assignment: lean in to what made the first two movies so beloved (let's not talk about the third one).

Focusing on Eddie Murphy's jokes, big action sequences, and that memorable soundtrack, the fourth movie in the franchise became one of the surprise delights at the movies this year. — JG

"The Brutalist"

One of the boldest epics made in some time, this three-and-a-half-hour drama shot on VistaVision is an exquisite exploration of one immigrant's drive for the American Dream in post-World War II America.

Directed and co-written by Brady Corbet ("Vox Lux"), "The Brutalist" follows fictional character László Tóth (Adrien Brody), a Hungarian-born Jew who survives the Holocaust and emigrates to the US in the late 1940s. Over three decades, Tóth, a talented architect, struggles to make a living and get his wife (Felicity Jones) to the States. Then a wealthy man (Guy Pearce) changes his life.

With masterful production design, photography, score, and performances, this is a movie that will stay with you long after you've seen it. — JG

“Challengers”

Zendaya dazzles in Luca Guadagnino's sporty, steamy drama.

As a former tennis great thrust into a love triangle with two other players, her now-husband Art (Mike Faist) and her ex-boyfriend Patrick (Josh O'Connor), Zendaya delivers one of the most layered performances of her career as she navigates love, lust, and mind games. — JG

“Civil War”

Alex Garland's latest showcases a United States that has been ravaged by civil unrest.

Kirsten Dunst is magnificent as a hardened war journalist in an existential crisis who travels from New York City to Washington, D.C. to cover the story. The war scenes are brutal and devastating, but that's the point. — JG

"Conclave"

Ralph Fiennes leads a drama filled with Shakespearian-level mystery, backstabbing, and intrigue as the Cardinal-Dean in charge of the papal conclave. In the process, he finds himself investigating scandals and secrets as the choices narrow for who will become the next pope.

Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Isabella Rossellini are also outstanding in supporting roles. — JG

"Deadpool & Wolverine"

After a bevy of delays that included Fox being bought by Disney, COVID, and the strikes by the writers and actors in Hollywood, we finally got the third "Deadpool" movie. And it was worth the wait.

From the brawls with Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), the endless Disney IP jokes, and a fight with countless Deadpools, the movie is the rare payoff for fans of superhero movies in the post-"Endgame" era of the MCU. — JG

“Dune: Part Two”

Denis Villeneuve's continuation of his adaptation of Frank Herbert's beloved sci-fi novel takes us back to Arrakis, where Paul (Timothée Chalamet) goes from the hunted to the hunter as he teams with the Fremen to fight his enemies and becomes a Messiah in the process.

Like the first movie, the visuals are stunning, but the sequel also features more Zendaya as Paul's love interest, heightening the stakes by the end. — JG

"The Fall Guy"

Though "The Fall Guy" underperformed at the box office, David Leitch's love letter to stunt performers is one of the most enjoyable movie-watching experiences of the year.

A big reason for that is the performances from Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, whose chemistry as they navigate an on-and-off relationship while coping with movie-making madness is off the charts. — JG

"Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga"

George Miller's latest trek into the Wasteland may not be as jaw-dropping as his magnum opus "Mad Max: Fury Road," but the auteur of action still dazzles with breathtaking shots of desolate sandy vistas and ultra-violent car chases.

The major highlight is Anya Taylor-Joy as Imperator Furiosa (originally played by Charlize Theron in "Fury Road"). With very little dialogue, Taylor-Joy must use facial expressions and a multitude of stunts to convey her character's origin story and complex emotional arc. It's well worth the ride. — JG

"Gladiator II"

Twenty-four years after the Oscar-winning original, Ridley Scott returns to the Coliseum with a new star (Paul Mescal) and bigger fights. The result is an enjoyable mix of blockbuster thrills and nostalgic callbacks to the first movie.

But what sets "Gladiator II" apart is Denzel Washington, whose devilish, scenery-chewing performance as a gladiator owner with plans of getting his hooks into the Roman Senate elevates the movie whenever he's on the screen. — JG

“The Greatest Night in Pop”

The song "We Are The World" brought together the greatest musicians in pop and rock, but the story of how it came together makes the song even more remarkable.

This Netflix documentary from Bao Nguyen features never-before-seen footage and candid interviews recounting a single evening in Los Angeles that would become a defining moment for pop culture in the 1980s.

The documentary is replete with fascinating details about how the song and its ensuing celebrity spectacle came to be. From seeing how Michael Jackson created the hook to watching musicians like Cyndi Lauper and Huey Lewis give it their all recording long into the night, "The Greatest Night in Pop" is a must-see for anyone who lived through or loved the '80s music scene. — JG

"Hard Truths"

On a surface level, Pansy Deacon, the lead character of "Hard Truths," isn't someone you'd root for. She's a deeply depressed, angry middle-aged British woman who takes her fury out on anyone and everyone around her, from fellow shoppers at the supermarket to her own browbeaten husband and adult son.

The film starts out almost comically, as Pansy finds every imaginable reason to rant and rave at everything from babies with pockets (what do babies need pockets for anyway?) to the salesperson attempting to help her buy a couch. Marianne Jean-Baptiste infuses Pansy with so much heart and deep-seated pain that you can't help but feel for her, even as you're horrified by her behavior.

Writer-director Mike Leigh's unique filmmaking process (he and his cast start off without a script and collaboratively develop the characters) results in one of the most stunning performances of the year. — CM

"Incoming"

Hollywood is still trying to perfect this generation's high school movie. "Incoming" gets pretty close.

Following a group of friends who are the only freshmen invited to a party thrown by a senior, this raunchy comedy uses staples from the high school genre and mixes them with today's culture to concoct a hilarious movie. — JG

"Inside Out 2"

After a lot of confusion and frustration within the walls of Pixar over its COVID-era release strategy, the beloved animation house is having a much-deserved big-screen resurgence thanks to "Inside Out 2."

In the sequel to the Oscar-winning 2015 original, we catch up with Riley's key emotions like Joy (Amy Poehler) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith) right when Riley hits puberty. And just like that, new emotions like Anxiety (Maya Hawke) and Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser) show up wanting to be in control of Riley's feelings.

The movie is a funny and emotionally charged journey that highlights those impressionable years when we can no longer lean on our parents to make the right choices; it's now on us. — JG

"Longlegs"

Beyond having the most brilliant marketing campaign of the year, "Longlegs" is also genuinely freaky.

Osgood Perkins channels "Silence of the Lambs," mixed with devil worship and possessed dolls for good measure, for a crazy genre mashup: a police procedural horror movie. Maika Monroe gives an understated performance as traumatized FBI agent Lee Harker, who's investigating a series of murder-suicides that all point back to one mysterious figure: Longlegs.

The eventual reveal of what's going on — and the physical reveal of Nicolas Cage's Longlegs, a noteworthy entry in the actor's list of batshit roles — is disturbing and memorable. — CM

"The Last Showgirl"

Pamela Anderson gives a career best performance as an aging Las Vegas showgirl who must come to terms with losing her job when her revue abruptly closes.

Anderson holds nothing back as she plays a character who still is intoxicated by the glitz and glamour of the strip of yesteryear but comes to the harsh realization that show business has nothing left for a woman her age.

Ironically, after decades in the limelight, this is the role that is finally getting Anderson the recognition for her acting that she deserves. — JG

"Moana 2"

Originally planned as a TV series, Disney made the right move by turning this instead into a feature-length sequel to the beloved 2016 original.

This time, Moana (Auli'i Cravalho) must defeat an evil God who controls an island so that all islands across the sea can be reconnected.

The higher stakes, new characters, and catchy songs make the movie a worthwhile continuation of a story audiences couldn't wait to return to. — JG

"Nickel Boys"

Some viewers criticized RaMell Ross's bold decision to shoot "Nickel Boys," an adaptation of Colson Whitehead's 2019 novel, in a first-person point-of-view, where we see through the eyes of the character speaking. To that, I politely say: You're wrong, sorry.

The immersive filming style works perfectly to put the audience right in the mix as Elwood and Turner, two Black boys sent to a reform school called the Nickel Academy (based on an actual school in Florida), struggle to survive amid the racist institution's many often deadly abuses.

Ethan Herisse and Brandon Wilson give a pair of breakout performances as Elwood and Turner, and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor is devastating as Hattie, Elwood's devoted grandmother. It's a tough watch, but a worthy one. — CM

"Nosferatu"

Looking back on the work of Robert Eggers, his obsession with telling stories set long ago has led up to this: an adaptation of the iconic gothic vampire tale.

With exquisite production design, makeup, and effects to transform Bill Skarsgård into the creature of the night, and a tour-de-force performance by Lily-Rose Depp as a woman overcome by a spell that fills her with desire and fear, this is Eggers' masterwork. — JG

"Queer"

Yep, both of Luca Guadagnino's 2024 releases made this list. "Queer" is a very different film from "Challengers" in many ways, but both cement Guadagnino as a filmmaker with an innate understanding of desire and a master at evoking it onscreen.

Based on William S. Burroughs' 1985 novella, the movie follows William Lee, a gay American expat living in 1950s Mexico City, who becomes obsessively infatuated with the much younger Eugene Allerton. Daniel Craig's no-holds-barred performance as Lee, a stand-in for Burroughs himself, establishes him as one of the most talented and versatile working actors today. It's also gorgeously shot, courtesy of Guadagnino's go-to cinematographer Sayombhu Mukdeeprom. — CM

"Rebel Ridge"

There's always one Netflix movie that comes out of the blue every year and grabs attention. This year, it was "Rebel Ridge."

Written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier ("Blue Ruin"), this impressive action movie gives a jolt to the genre with its gritty take. It's also a showcase for Aaron Pierre, who is on his way to big-screen stardom (he also voiced the title character in Disney's end-of-year release, "Mufasa.") — JG

"Strange Darling"

JT Mollner's thriller "Strange Darling" flew under the radar this year, but boy, is it a trip.

The story is told in a destabilizing nonlinear format; it's a clever narrative trick to make you think the movie is something it's not. Willa Fitzgerald and Kyle Gallner are knockouts as the two leads, keeping viewers transfixed and with our hearts in our throats. It's also beautifully shot by Giovanni Ribisi (yes, the actor) in his feature debut as a cinematographer. — CM

"The Substance"

"The Substance" is not for the faint of heart. French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat established herself as a genius of phantasmagoria with her debut feature, 2017's "Revenge," but she takes things up several notches in her follow-up.

The satirical feminist body-horror movie is completely insane, in the best way. It's a disgusting, disturbing, and extremely real fable of female self-hatred that goes off the rails (complimentary) like few movies I've seen before.

Demi Moore grounds it all as Elisabeth Sparkle, a washed-up middle-aged celebrity who's driven to try the mysterious drug dubbed The Substance after being fired from her aerobics show on her 50th birthday. Margaret Qualley is positively demonic as Elisabeth's younger and more perfect self Sue, the product of that black market serum fated to be Elisabeth's downfall. — CM

"Twisters"

This summer, we learned that if you mix Glen Powell and tornadoes, you've got yourself a hit.

This sequel to the 1996 hit "Twister" features more GGI-fueled storms and chemistry so hot between Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones that audiences were bummed they didn't kiss at the end — everything you need from a hit summer blockbuster. — JG

"Wicked"

I was prepared to be a hater heading into "Wicked." After all, how could someone successfully adapt one of the most successful Broadway musicals of all time? After being blown away by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande's performances, I'll gladly admit I was wrong.

As the movie's seemingly endless press tour has demonstrated, Erivo and Grande have incredible chemistry as Elphaba and Glinda, two witches who were once best friends before their paths diverged. Erivo is devastating as the lost, deeply lonely but resolute Elphaba, while Grande imbues so many layers into her performance as Glinda. The result is a thoroughly enjoyable movie experience with a showstopping finale, even if it's not the most technically impressive film on this list. — CM

"The Wild Robot"

Based on Peter Brown's popular books, "The Wild Robot" weaves one of the most emotional yarns of the year. The movie tells the story of Roz (Lupita Nyong'o), a robot who washes up on a deserted island and learns the ways of the wildlife that inhabits it, leading to her becoming the guardian of an orphaned gosling.

Beautiful to look at, with animation that has a watercolor quality, it's the uplifting story that elevates this movie from an impressive fantasy tale to a work that will be cherished by audiences for years to come. — JG

Jason's top five of 2024

1. "The Wild Robot"
2. "The Apprentice"
3. "The Brutalist"
4. "The Substance"
5. "Conclave"

Caralynn's top 5 of 2024

1. "The Substance"
2. "Hard Truths"
3. "Queer"
4. "Anora"
5. "Nickel Boys"

• Timothée Chalamet plays Bob Dylan in the movie "A Complete Unknown."
• He was so immersed in the role that he even grew his fingernails long like Dylan.
• "He had some full-on Nosferatu going on," director James Mangold told BI of how Chalamet looked by the end of filming.

If you look close enough while watching "A Complete Unknown," in which Timothée Chalamet completely immerses himself in playing Bob Dylan, you'll notice what many online have pointed out — Chalamet's nails are quite long.

Some even observed Chalamet's lengthy nails when photos from the set were released online. A TikTok video highlights them, and journalist Hunter Harris dedicated an entire post on her Substack back in June to Chalamet's "aprés nail tips."

So, are those fake nails, or did Chalamet grow his out for the role?

"Yeah, he was growing them," "A Complete Unknown" director James Mangold told Business Insider. "If you look earlier in the movie, there are some scenes where they aren't as long, but by the end, he had some full-on Nosferatu going on."

There are theories online about why Dylan grew out his nails — from the nails helping him fingerpick while playing his guitar to simply having bad hygiene. We couldn't find Dylan on the record to explain. Business Insider reached out to the 83-year-old to find out, but he didn't respond to our very important query on this matter.

For Chalamet, however, it's another example of how deep he went into the role for the biopic, which is out Christmas Day. A November Rolling Stone cover story chronicled how the actor submerged himself into the character while filming, including keeping to himself on set, always speaking in Dylan's voice, and singing his songs like "The Times They Are A-Changin.'"

'A Complete Unknown' director said he understands why Chalamet did Method acting on set

Mangold scoffed at the "Method" acting narrative, saying that Chalamet speaking like Dylan even when cameras weren't rolling is a trick actors often do when playing a character with a unique voice.

"Timmy's not the only person whose ever done that, that's true for most of the actors in my movies doing dialects," he said. "They don't just do it and fall out of it the second the scene ends."

"You're also trying to make it more and more internalized. You're trying to make it something you don't have to think about," Mangold continued. "So if you're turning it on and off, you're kind of making yourself hyper-aware of it."

"A Complete Unknown," which also stars Scoot McNairy, Edward Norton, and Elle Fanning, will be released in theaters on December 25.

Guy Pearce is the first to admit that he never wanted to be a movie star.

"I didn't have that sense of ambition," Pearce, 57, tells Business Insider in his crackling Australian accent. "I just wanted to work as an actor. On the outside, you think you want fame and big Hollywood movies; none of that is how I function."

Yet Pearce has dealt with fame for close to 40 years across two continents thanks to his wide array of memorable roles, which date back to his late teens when he was a heartthrob on the 1980s Australian soap opera "Neighbours."

Even then, being famous was disarming.

"'Neighbours' was a great experience, but the fame side of it was hard work," Pearce recalls. "Coming out of 'Neighbours' and not getting the work I wanted to get but still getting chased down the street whenever I went to the shopping center, the two things messed with my mind."

Pearce finally caught a break when turned his soap star image on its head to star as a drag queen in 1994's "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert," a role his then-agent tried to talk him out of taking. Three years later, he would make his way to the United States to play the by-the-book detective Edmund Exley in "L.A. Confidential" and break into Hollywood. He's gone on to star in over 50 movies, including Christopher Nolan's mind-scrambling neo-noir "Memento," the Australian Western "The Proposition," and Ridley Scott's "Alien" prequel "Prometheus."

Though Pearce is definitely famous, it's now on his own terms. Unlike the Hollywood stars who bring the same persona to every role, he's never played the same type of role twice.

This time, he's digging into his dark side to play Harrison Lee Van Buren, a wealthy industrialist with a sociopathic edge in Brady Corbet's award-season contender "The Brutalist," in theaters on Friday.

Pearce says he's drawn to fully-formed characters, and in reading Corbet's script about the epic journey of immigrant architect László Tóth (Adrien Brody), the Van Buren character "jumped off the page."

"I do my best work when I don't have to go back and create something," Pearce says. "Like an orchestra member who turns up, and there's the score, and you play the score. That's how acting should be."

For BI's latest Role Play interview, I caught up with Pearce — who was dressed in the casual, non-famous attire of a black t-shirt and blue jeans — at the A24 offices in Manhattan to talk about why he wasn't initially interested in acting in America, why he's never worked with Nolan since "Memento," and how "Iron Man 3" made him amenable to doing blockbuster movies again after an awful experience on 2002's "The Time Machine."

On being told playing a drag queen would ruin his career and auditioning for 'L.A. Confidential'

You found fame in Australia with "Neighbours" in the late 1980s, then followed that with a few Aussie movies, and then "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" came along. Was there any hesitation, coming off the fame of "Neighbours," to play a drag queen?

Well, I didn't sit there thinking things were good after "Neighbours." When I finished "Neighbours" at the end of 1989, I couldn't get a job to save myself. Nobody wanted to put the guy from a TV soap in their movie. So I wasn't riding a good wave.

"Priscilla" coming around, [director] Stephan [Elliott] said this at the time, he thought it was a fun joke to stick a guy from the soap in a dress. And that was fine with me. There was no question in me doing it.

I remember one of the agents at this agency in Sydney I joined after "Neighbours" told me, "I suggest you do not do this movie, this could ruin your career." And I was like, "Nope, I'm absolutely doing this, it's a fucking great script." So that was luck that I held my ground. And I'm still with the agency, but that agent left. 

So when "L.A. Confidential" came along, were you finally at ease about your career? Was your goal to get work in the States?

No. No. I never had any desire to get to America. I just thought, if I'm going to be out of work, why am I going to be out of work in America? I'd rather be out of work in Australia. What happened was I went to America to promote "Priscilla" and my agent said you should meet some agents in LA. And I said, "I'm not trying to work in Hollywood. I barely can work in Australia. Why would I try?" She said, "Meet this one agent." I said fine.

We met and I got along great with him, his name is Chris Andrews. He said, "I'll represent you." I said, "Fine, but I'm not coming over here and doing pilot season, I'm not going to do that. I don't have enough money." He said, "Come stay at my house." So I came back in 1995 a couple of different times and auditioned for stuff and would stay at his house, and that's how I got "L.A. Confidential." 

What was the audition like?

When I first went in, it was just a reading on tape. ["L.A. Confidential" director] Curtis [Hanson] wasn't even in the room. In fact, it was the last audition I did in late 1995 while I was in LA, so fight after I flew back to Australia. In January, Chris calls and tells me they want me to come back and do a proper screen test. I was like, "No, I'm not fucking flying back."

So Curtis called me and said, [speaking in an American accent] "Guy, I think you should come back." So basically, he had already decided, but he needed me to do the screen test so he could prove to the studio that I was the right guy. But he couldn't say I had the role. I showed up, and it was almost like shooting a scene; it was on a dressed set, costumes; they cut my hair to look like Ed Exley; it was a crazy thing. 

And during filming people would come up to me and say, "You got this off of 'Priscilla'? How did Curtis see you as Ed Exley in that role?" Turns out Curtis never saw "Priscilla." It call came from that first reading on tape that I did. 

How close were we to an "L.A. Confidential" sequel?

At a certain point, Curtis called me and said, "Just so you know, I'm talking to ["L.A. Confidential" author James] Ellroy about specifically writing a sequel." It would have been ten years later. And he wanted me to be involved. I told him I'm on board, no question. And Russell [Crowe] would return as well. Curtis' whole thing was it needed to be the same team, Warner Bros., me, Ellroy, Russell. It was a no-brainer for me. That got developed to a certain degree and then Curtis got sick and sadly passed in 2016. 

On why he hasn't worked with Christopher Nolan since 'Memento'

If the myth is true, "Memento" is kind of the opposite of what happened on "L.A. Confidential." Instead of the director calling you, you called the director. 

Well, I had always read these stories about directors saying how committed actors were to landing a role: "They slept on my porch, I knew he was the guy." I remember reading these and thinking, "Does that really work?" So I read "Memento" and really loved it, I met with Chris and then I watched "Following." I was really locked in and wanted to do it.

So I go to my agent, Chris, and I tell him, "I think I should ring Chris Nolan just so he knows that I'm really keen to do this." So I did, and I said, "I'm really sorry to do this but by all accounts this seems to work in this town, I'm really keen to do your movie, I would really love to do this." And in typical Chris Nolan fashion, he just said, "Well, okay, thank you for letting me know." I just felt if other actors are in the running he should know I really wanted to do it. 

I believe actors like Charlie Sheen and Alec Baldwin were also in the running.

I have no idea. I remember Jeff Goldblum was in the mix, and Brad Pitt was the first ask. I felt, this script is so good I'm going to lose this to a name actor, I have to put my hand up. Also, I was cheap. 

Are you surprised you haven't worked with Nolan since?

We nearly worked together a couple of times, but there was an executive at Warner Bros. who admitted to my agent that I was not someone he believed in and ever wanted to work with, so he was never going to work with me. And I'm glad we found that out because, for a while, it was weird that I could never get another job at Warner Bros.

But we found out because Chris offered me a role in "Batman Begins." This was at a time when he wanted Bruce Wayne's mentor to be around the same age as him. So I flew to London to see Chris, and by the time I landed, he was told that Warner Bros. was never going to employ me. So I get there and he goes, "Hey... do you wanna see the Batmobile?" And we went out to dinner and I flew home just puzzled.

I have no idea why this executive felt this way, he supposedly told Chris, "I don't get Guy Pearce, I'm never going to get Guy Pearce, I'm never going to employ Guy Pearce." So that never happened. 

Then Chris talked to me about "The Prestige." He was talking to Jude Law and I about it. And next thing you know he went and made it with Batman [Christian Bale] and Wolverine [Hugh Jackman]. [Laughs.] But, again, Warner Bros. was involved. And listen, if I can only work with Chris Nolan once in my life, I'm fine with that.  

(Ed note: WB and Nolan did not respond to BI's requests for comment.)

The job that made him swear off studio movies until 'Iron Man 3'

2002's "The Time Machine" was the first and only time you were the lead in a major Hollywood blockbuster. After that you didn't make a studio film again for years. How did your experience on that movie shape your career going forward?

I definitely realized that I wasn't cut out for the studio world. 

Did that leave a bad taste in your mouth?

Absolutely. I just wanted to get back to what I felt comfortable doing. I just felt like the studio world was too big for me. I remember one of the executives telling me three or four times on that movie, "You know, the time machine itself, that's the star of the movie." And not that I needed anyone to pump up my ego, but I just remember a couple of times going, "Okay, yep. Got it. No worries." It was difficult.

Right after doing that I went and reshot the ending of "The Count of Monte Cristo." So at that time I was fried and I had enough of Hollywood. I was a pretty horrible person to everyone around me because of exhaustion. So I realized I'm a character actor, I'm not that guy. So I took a big step back. 

Who was more fun to play, Peter Weyland in "Prometheus" or Aldrich Killian in "Iron Man 3"?

I think Aldrich Killian was probably more fun. I mean, Peter Weyland was hard work because I was literally wearing an exoskeleton and five hours of prosthetic makeup. 

Did you know what the hell was happening in "Prometheus"?

I think the movie is brilliant, but I'll say, if you don't get what's happening in the first five minutes then you're lost for the rest of the movie. And I had the benefit of listening to Ridley [Scott] talk about it before we started shooting.

I loved it, but it was a tough experience physically. I couldn't sit down because of this metal frame thing. So between shots they would just lean me against the wall. 

But with both of those roles, them being on big Hollywood movies, by then, I had a big rethink about how to function. Aldrich and "Iron Man 3" was an opportunity to kind of dip my foot back into the water of the studio world. The pressure isn't on me. It's a good character. So I got to do what I want to do in that world.  

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

More from this series

• The moment Luke Wilson knew 'Old School' would be a hit: 'There were kids high-fiving in the parking lot'
• Billy Bob Thornton ad-libbed his famous 'Friday Night Lights' speech after being betrayed
• David Duchovny had a very specific idea for how to make his 'Zoolander' cameo funny

• Guy Pearce said he missed roles in Christopher Nolan's films because a Warner Bros. executive was not a fan of his work.
• Pearce told BI that Nolan wanted him for "The Prestige" and "Batman Begins," but WB blocked him.
• "If I can only work with Chris Nolan once in my life, I'm fine with that," Pearce said.

Guy Pearce has never worked with Christopher Nolan since starring in 2000's "Memento," but it's not from a lack of trying.

Years after Nolan cast the Aussie in his backwards-told neo-noir, in which Pearce plays a man looking for his wife's killer, he wanted him to team up with another star for his 2006 movie, "The Prestige," about two rival magicians set in Victorian London.

"He was talking to Jude Law and I about it," Pearce told Business Insider in a recent interview while promoting his upcoming movie, "The Brutalist."

"And next thing you know, he went and made it with Batman and Wolverine," he continued, referring to Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman. "But Warner Bros. was involved."

Before Nolan could move forward on "The Prestige," he made the first movie in his beloved Batman trilogy, 2005's "Batman Begins." Warner Bros. would release both. ("The Prestige" was released internationally by WB and domestically by Disney).

During that time, Pearce said he and his agent realized that an executive at WB wasn't a fan of the actor since Nolan's attempt to cast him in "Batman Begins" was also halted.

"There was an executive at Warner Bros. who admitted to my agent that I was not someone he believed in and ever wanted to work with, so he was never going to work with me," Pearce told BI. "And I'm glad we found that out because, for a while, it was weird that I could never get another job at Warner Bros."

"We found out because Chris offered me a role in 'Batman Begins,'" Pearce continued. "This was at a time when he wanted Bruce Wayne's mentor to be around the same age as him. So I flew to London to see Chris, and by the time I landed, he was told that Warner Bros. was never going to employ me."

Pearce said what transpired left him "puzzled" as instead of meeting with Nolan to talk about the movie, the filmmaker showed him the Batmobile, took him out to dinner, and sent him back on his way.

"I have no idea why this executive felt this way. He supposedly told Chris, 'I don't get Guy Pearce. I'm never going to get Guy Pearce. I'm never going to employ Guy Pearce.' So that never happened," he added.

WB did not respond to comment for this story.

A year after "Batman Begins" opened in theaters, Nolan came out with "The Prestige," starring Bale, who played Batman in his trilogy, and Jackman.

Looking back, Pearce said he's not bitter about missing out on working with Nolan again. "Listen, if I can only work with Chris Nolan once in my life, I'm fine with that," he said.

Nolan did not respond to a request for comment.

• Mike Judge's film "Idiocracy" became a cult hit despite initial studio neglect.
• Like Judge's previous film "Office Space," DVD rentals helped "Idiocracy" gain popularity.
• Luke Wilson told Business Insider he has a sequel idea he's pitched to Judge.

Since its release almost two decades ago, Mike Judge's "Idiocracy" has become a beloved comedy, even and perhaps especially as people have begun drawing similarities between its plot and real-life events.

Though star Luke Wilson says it's the movie that fans still bring up to him the most, he calls its eventual success "the biggest surprise." When the film was initially released by 20th Century Fox in 2006, the studio had no faith in it.

"I'll never forget I was reading the LA Times before the movie opened, and I saw a small ad that said 'Idiocracy,' and only three theaters were listed," Wilson told Business Insider in his interview for our Role Play series. "So I called Mike Judge, and he told me the studio dumped the movie. I was bummed out."

The movie went on to only make $440,000 at the domestic box office.

Judge had been through this before. His previous movie, "Office Space," opened in 1999 with zero notice, though it would go on to become a pop-culture sensation once it hit DVD and cable in the early 2000s.

"Idiocracy" had the same post-theatrical success. In 2007, it took in $9 million in DVD rentals, 20 times its domestic gross.

In the comedy, Wilson plays Joe, who agrees to an experiment that, due to unforeseen events, results in him being in hibernation for 500 years. He awakes in a future where the population is illiterate and obsessed with big-box stores and the president is a former professional wrestler.

The movie gained pop-culture notoriety during Donald Trump's first run for president. At the time, "Idiocracy" screenwriter Etan Cohen tweeted, "I never expected #idiocracy to become a documentary."

Wilson has always been game to do a sequel, and told BI he often pitches Judge on the idea.

"I've always told him, how about me and Terry Crews and Dax Shepard coming back to the present day," Wilson said. "We see Terry's Camacho character become president, Dax's character runs a movie studio. I'm always pitching that to Mike. He gets a kick out of it."

Business Insider contacted Mike Judge for comment but didn't receive a response.

Luke Wilson's experience filming Wes Anderson's 1996 movie "Bottle Rocket" was many things: his film debut, a family affair (his two brothers Owen and Andrew also starred), and the start of a long relationship with Anderson.

It was also a bit of a nightmare.

"I love this Bob Dylan album 'Blood on the Tracks,' and he's got this quote about it where people will say to him, 'Bob, I love "Blood on the Tracks,"' and he'll say, 'I don't know how people can get enjoyment out of something that caused me such pain,'" Wilson told Business Insider.

"I read that and thought that was really funny," he continued. "That's what rings true for me with 'Bottle Rocket.'"

The offbeat crime caper about a heist gone wrong wasn't a commercial success, but it did offer Wilson a crash course in the often frustrating business of movie-making.

"All we ever heard was, 'The studio doesn't like it.' 'They don't know what you guys are doing.' 'They don't like the dailies,'" Wilson recalled. "And me being like, 'What are dailies?'"

Nearly three decades later, Wilson, 53, is a seasoned veteran who's found his niche playing soft-spoken straight-man roles in comedies like "Blue Streak," "Legally Blonde," "Old School," and "Idiocracy."

For his latest role, Wilson brings his comedic chops to Netflix in Liz Feldman's new series "No Good Deed." Like Feldman's previous Netflix hit, "Dead to Me," the series is a star-studded ensemble piece that blends elements of comedy and thriller.

Wilson stars alongside Ray Romano, Lisa Kudrow, Abbi Jacobson, Denis Leary, and his "Legally Blonde" castmate Linda Cardellini as JD, a soap opera actor who is in a bidding war for a house he believes will solve all his problems.

It was exactly the kind of role Wilson knew he could chew on. "Depressed out of work soap opera star… I thought, 'I like the sound of that,'" he said.

For the latest edition of Business Insider's Role Play series, Wilson breaks down how he and his brother launched their careers after connecting with fellow Texas native Wes Anderson, auditioning for "Blue Streak" at Martin Lawrence's house, and his efforts to convince "Idiocracy" director Mike Judge to make a sequel.

On 'Bottle Rocket' and why he's never been competitive with his brother Owen

Business Insider: 1996 marked your screen debut in the indie classic "Bottle Rocket," which was directed by Wes Anderson and cowritten by him and your brother Owen, who also stars in it. What were your acting aspirations back then? 

Luke Wilson: We always really loved movies. For me, Owen, and our brother Andrew that was our focus. Me with my friends, it was talking about what movies are coming out this weekend, if they are rated R, how are we going to get into them? What theater are they at? Do we wait for a cool-looking guy in line to buy us tickets, or does one of us go to a G movie and then open the back door? When I think back on it, that was what hooked me. I would study TV Guide to see what year a movie came out, who was in it, just like how people study box scores.

And then you're suddenly on the big screen yourself.

Yeah. But not until Owen met Wes Anderson at the University of Texas did we get the idea that we were going to try to make a very low-budget movie.

That movie launched not just your career, but your brother's. What was it like going out for work while at the same time knowing Owen was also trying to start his career? Would you two audition for the same stuff?

I'm sure it happened occasionally, and who knows what happens with casting and directors, but Owen quickly went and did some big-budget movies like "Armageddon" and things like that. I was kind of doing indie stuff and smaller roles.

People always ask if we were competitive, and we never were. I always looked at it as we're from the same company, we're from the same family, and we love each other. We're not trying to hijack each other. 

On his favorite Wes Anderson movie and the moment he knew 'Old School' would be a hit

Out of all the Wes Anderson movies you've done — "Bottle Rocket," "Rushmore," and "The Royal Tenenbaums" — which is your personal favorite? 

The most exciting and interesting thing for me was "Tenenbaums." With "Rushmore," Wes was hitting his stride, but with "Tenenbaums," suddenly you're acting with Gene Hackman, Angelica Huston, Danny Glover, Ben Stiller, and Gwyneth Paltrow. All of a sudden it was all of these people and shooting in Manhattan, which to me was the most exciting. It seemed like things suddenly exploded. 

How involved were you with the costuming of your character in "The Royal Tenenbaums"? It's become so memorable. 

It was all Wes. I do remember we did have one battle. We're at this tailor, this little place in New York downtown, and I'm standing up on a wooden crate. The person is measuring me for this suit, and the cuff is getting higher and higher, and I'm like, "Can we get below my calf muscle, please?" Wes pulled me in a corner and dressed me down, so I had to just let it go. 

Out of "Legally Blonde," "Old School," and "Idiocracy," which one of those are you most shocked is still beloved today?

I was just talking to Linda Cardellini, and we certainly had no idea that "Legally Blonde" was going to hit. It's certainly not my milieu or the kind of movie I'm into — I saw "Election" and thought Reese was great and I wanted to work with her.

With "Old School," I'll never forget the test screening in the Valley. After it I walked out and there were kids high-fiving in the parking lot and repeating Will and Vince's lines. This is ten minutes after seeing the movie for the first time. So I kind of knew that was going to work.

But "Idiocracy" might be the biggest surprise. It seemed like such an odd, funny movie, and I like Mike Judge so much and knew him from Austin. Mike has such a great offbeat sense of humor, and I thought things were funny, but I didn't know if it would translate. And Fox wasn't really giving him the money for the effects and set pieces.

I'll never forget I was reading the LA Times before the movie opened, and I saw a small ad that said "Idiocracy," and only three theaters were listed. So I called Mike Judge, and he told me the studio dumped the movie. I was bummed out.

So I was so surprised when it became popular. It is the movie that gets brought up the most to me. Not just election time but over the years. It's really special because it was something that couldn't be denied despite a studio putting the hammer down on it. 

On sweating through an audition for 'Blue Streak' at Martin Lawrence's house and his idea for an 'Idiocracy' sequel

One movie that always sucks me in whenever it's on is "Blue Streak." Honestly, for how great Martin Lawrence is in it and a young Dave Chapelle, it's your work as the straight man opposite Martin that's the glue. Did you and Martin talk a lot between scenes about how far you were going to take the straight act?

I think I've done well with comics because I have such love for them. I have such admiration for stand-up comics. I mean, "You So Crazy" to me is up there with Richard Pryor's "Live on the Sunset Strip." It's just unbelievable. I really loved "Martin" the TV show.

I had just gotten into town so I did a read with the casting director, and then they sent me to a reading with Les Mayfield, the director, and things were looking good, but I had to go read with Martin. So, I'll never forget this: I drove to Martin's house, and I'm waiting outside his house just sweating. I walk in and read with Martin and he's got some friends with him, and Martin just starts laughing with his friends about the way I look and my voice. From then on we got along great. 

Sony is developing a sequel. Have they called you?

I know we've talked to them about it. Whenever I run into Martin we've always talked about a sequel. We have also tried to work on some different things over the years and they just haven't happened. He's one of my favorite people. But hopefully, Carlson will be there if there's a "Blue 2."

How in the world did you end up in "Jackass Number 2?" 

[Laughs.] I'm not so sure how I got in that either. Probably one of those things where I got a waiver jammed in front of my face and didn't know what I was signing. 

So you weren't buddies with those guys?

No. I didn't really know those guys. 

Here's the kicker, Luke. Your footage didn't even make the final cut. It's a deleted scene. 

Yeah. I don't really have much of a memory of that. I don't know why. [Laughs.] 

Do you think Mike Judge will ever do an "Idiocracy" sequel?

Oh, I always call Mike and tell him. He's always busy and always working on a script. But I've always told him, how about me and Terry Crews and Dax Shepard coming back to the present day. We see Terry's Camacho character become president, Dax's character runs a movie studio. I'm always pitching that to Mike. He gets a kick out of it. 

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.