Tag: Chris Rock

Netflix: Chris Rock Live Comedy Stand-Up Cracks Top 10 English-Language TV Chart

Netflix’s expensive foray into live content streaming was a success as comedian Chris Rock’s controversial “Selective Outrage” stand-up act March 4 in Baltimore, Md., placed No. 7 on the streamer’s weekly top 10 English-language TV chart through March 5 — just 24 hours after the live performance. Netflix reportedly paid Rock $20 million for the show, which included pre-and post-performance content featuring a host of stars.

For the second week in a row, season three of “Outer Banks” finished atop the English TV list with 99 million hours viewed. Seasons one and two also remained on the chart with 34.05 million hours viewed and 27.75 million hours viewed, respectively. New to the list is season two of love triangle drama “Sex/Life” with 43.89 million hours viewed, and season two of fashion competition series “Next in Fashion,” starring supermodel Gigi Hadid and designer Tan France, with 16.2 million hours viewed. “Perfect Match” (42.66 million hours viewed), “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal” (33.36 million hours viewed), season five of “Formula 1: Drive to Survive” (26.23 million hours viewed), and “Wednesday” (16.41 million hours viewed) all returned to the chart. 

The family-friendly horror movie We Have a Ghost remained in the No. 1 spot on the English films chart with 42.62 million hours viewed and appeared in the top 10 in 93 countries, while the thriller The Strays tallied 14.57 million hours viewed. Romantic comedy Your Place or Mine remained on the chart with 7.5 million hours viewed. 

New entrants on the non-English films chart included Polish drama Tonight You’re Sleeping With Me (12.17 million hours viewed), Spanish rom-com Love at First Kiss (10.93 million hours viewed), and Turkish mystery 10 Days of a Good Man (4.84 million hours viewed). Mainstays included Japanese drama Call Me Chihiro, Korean mystery Unlocked, Oscar-nominated German drama All Quiet on the Western Front, Swedish military drama Black Crab and Norwegian thriller Viking Wolf all charted. 

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Mexican thriller “Triptych” pulled in an additional 39.65 million hours viewed to remain No. 1 on the non-English TV chart. Korean titles, including “Crash Course in Romance” and “Physical: 100,” as well as Mexican drama “La Reina del Sur” and Italian drama “The Law According to Lidia Poët,” all remained on the chart. Season two of Spanish drama “Wrong Side of the Tracks,” Germany’s “Too Hot To Handle” and French docuseries “Monique Olivier: Accessory to Evil” all entered the chart. 

Amsterdam

4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY REVIEW:

20th Century;
Mystery;
Box Office $14.95 million;
$29.99 DVD, $34.99, $39.99 UHD BD;
Rated ‘R’ for brief violence and bloody images.
Stars Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Chris Rock, Rami Malek, Robert De Niro, Zoe Saldaña, Anya Taylor-Joy, Mike Myers, Michael Shannon, Timothy Olyphant, Andrea Riseborough, Taylor Swift.

Director David O. Russell’s Amsterdam may have been slammed by critics and flopped at the box office, but can any movie that features Taylor Swift being run over by a car really be all that bad?

Amsterdam tells the story of three friends from World War I who reconnect in 1933 when they are embroiled in a murder mystery. Christian Bale plays Dr. Burt Berendsen, who spends his time crafting cosmetic prosthetics for war veterans and experimenting with developing more-potent painkillers. He’s contacted by a war buddy named Harold (John David Washington) who now serves as a lawyer, regarding the death of their former commanding officer.

Swift plays the general’s daughter, who suspects foul play and enlists Berendsen to conduct an autopsy despite the authorities ruling he died from natural causes. After being warned to drop the inquiry, she’s pushed into the street by a hitman (Timothy Olyphant), who immediately pins the blame on Harold and Burt when she’s immediately mangled by a passing vehicle.

As the police investigate the pair, they reveal that the general was indeed poisoned, and set forth to clear their names. The clues lead them to their old friend Valerie (Margot Robbie), who they haven’t seen since the war, when she was their nurse helping them recover from war wounds in Amsterdam.

With her help, they learn about a plot to overthrow the U.S. government and install a famous general (Robert De Niro) as dictator.

The story is based on a real conspiracy from the 1930s called the Business Plot, though the names of the real-life particulars have been changed for the purposes of this fictionalized recount.

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The film offers some engaging performances and glitzy visual style, but the meatiness of the fascinating source inspiration for Russell’s screenplay is lost a bit in the breezy way it tells the story, touching on themes of racism and corporate politics for good measure.

What ends up on screen is more of a muddled conflagration of eccentric characters and a hyperkinetic obsession with the trappings of the period, coming across like the underwhelming love child of Wes Anderson and the Coen Brothers.

The lone extra on the Blu-ray is the 15-and-a-half-minute “Welcome to Amsterdam” featurette, a typical assemblage of behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the cast and filmmakers praising each other for their skill and craftsmanship. It’s not unearned, but there’s too much unrealized potential given the level of talent involved.

Netflix Announces Date for Live-Streamed Chris Rock Comedy Special

Netflix has revealed that March 4 will be the date for its first-ever live-streamed event, a stand-up comedy performance by Chris Rock. While this is the streamer’s first-ever live event, it is not Netflix’s first production with Rock, which streamed the actor/presenter/comedian’s Tamborine show in 2018.

The live-stream event will be Rock’s first live national appearance since the infamous 2022 Oscar telecast where he was slapped on stage by actor Will Smith.

“Chris Rock is one of the most iconic and important comedic voices of our generation,” Robbie Praw, VP of stand-up and comedy formats, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled the entire world will be able to experience a live Chris Rock comedy event and be a part of Netflix history. This will be an unforgettable moment and we’re so honored that Chris is carrying this torch.”

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Chris Rock to Perform Netflix’s First-Ever Live Stand-Up Comedy Special

Netflix Nov. 10 announced it would stream its first-ever live comedy show in 2023, which would feature comedian Chris Rock. The streamer has previously run pre-recorded comedy specials starring Rock, whose profile went global earlier this year after being assaulted by Will Smith onstage at the nationally televised 2022 Oscars.

Chris Rock

“Chris Rock is one of the most iconic and important comedic voices of our generation,” Robbie Praw, VP of stand-up and comedy formats at Netflix, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled the entire world will be able to experience a live Chris Rock comedy event and be a part of Netflix history. This will be an unforgettable moment and we’re so honored that Chris is carrying this torch.”

This is Rock’s second stand-up special for Netflix, after 2018’s Tambourine. The “Saturday Night Live” alum has won four Emmys for his work in comedy, including two for his 1996 special “Bring the Pain.” He’s also appeared in films ranging from Madagascar to Spiral: From the Book of Saw and carved out a career as a writer/director of films like Top Five.

The special follows Netflix’s heightened investment in live comedy via the Netflix Is a Joke festival in Los Angeles featuring more than 330 comedians performing 295 shows across more than 35 venues — including the first-ever comedy show performed at Dodger Stadium and starring Gabriel Iglesias — an event the comic known as “Fluffy” called the greatest day of his life.

Comic Dave Chappelle Tackled on Stage at ‘Netflix Is a Joke’ Festival at Hollywood Bowl, Suspect Arrested

Comedian Dave Chappelle was tackled on stage at the Hollywood Bowl late May 3 by a man reportedly carrying a replica handgun and knife. The incident, which occurred near the end of Chappelle’s routine at the “Netflix Is a Joke” comedy festival, didn’t result in any injuries to the comic who has garnered controversy for past comments some critics contend is hate speech.

The suspect, identified in media reports as Isaiah Lee, was arrested on stage at the amphitheater by Los Angeles Police Department officers and booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon.

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The incident comes just weeks after actor Will Smith rushed the stage at the 2022 Oscars and slapped comedic Chris Rock on national television after he made a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

Rock, who reportedly was in attendance at Chappelle’s performance, rushed to the comic’s side backstage following the attack. He couldn’t resist throwing another punch.

“Was that Will Smith?” Rock joked.

In a statement, Netflix said it doesn’t condone violence targeting content creators and performers.

“We strongly defend the right of stand-up comedians to perform on stage without fear of violence,” said the streamer.

‘Saw’ Spinoff ‘Spiral’ Soars in Weekend Box Office Derby

Lionsgate’s horror thriller Spiral, a new chapter in its successful “Saw” franchise, cut its way to the top of the domestic weekend box office with a projected $8.7 million in revenue across 2,811 screens from May 14 to 16. The movie, starring Chris Rock, Samuel L. Jackson and Max Minghella as law enforcement officials on the trail of a grisly killer, added an additional $3.3 million internationally.

The weekend gross underscored ongoing sluggishness among domestic movie theaters operating at 65% seating capacity to an unsure consumer during a pandemic. Spiral’s opening weekend paled in comparison to the previous “Saw” movie, 2017’s Jigsaw, which grossed $16.6 million in its opening weekend. The amount was still good enough to drive the franchise near the $1 billion threshold in total box office.

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Jason Statham’s Wrath of Man dropped to No. 2, generating $3.7 million in ticket sales; $14.6 overall. When factoring in another $7.1 million in the film’s Chinese debut; $13.5 million internationally, the Guy Ritchie-directed vigilante actioner has generated $56 million in revenue.

Angelina Jolie’s actioner, Those Who Wish Me Dead, debuted No. 3 with $2.8 million across 3,188 screens. The paltry opening was driven by limited marketing and mixed reviews, suggestingmore viewers might be willing to stream the title concurrently on HBO Max.

Other movies playing in the U.S., included former Funimation chart topper Demon Slayer: Mugen Train, with $1.85 million in ticket sales, $42 million total domestically. Rounding out the Top 5 was Disney’s venerable Raya and the Last Dragon, which generated another $1.72 million, $46.1 million since its theatrical debut.

Lionsgate Bringing Back ‘Saw’ Horror Franchise, Thanks to Chris Rock

Saw the comedy?

Lionsgate is going back to the vault with a reboot of its successful Saw horror franchise. In a twist, the newest theatrical edition — slated for release in 2020 — was conceived by stand-up comic Chris Rock, who will executive produce.

“When Chris Rock came to us and described in chilling detail his fantastic vision that reimagines and spins-off the world of the notorious Jigsaw Killer, we were all-in,” Joe Drake, chairman of the motion picture group, said in a statement.

Chris Rock

“I’ve been a fan of Saw since the first film,” Rock said. “I am excited by the opportunity to take this to a really intense and twisted new place.”

Indeed, Saw is one of Lionsgate’s biggest movie franchises, with the eight films generating more than $1 billion in combined ticket sales since the original 2004 release from co-creator/director James Wan, who, along with co-creator Leigh Whannell, will also executive produce.

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While Lionsgate isn’t divulging Rock’s storyline for the Oct. 20, 2020, release, previous editions focused around Jigsaw, a demented torturer subjecting morally-compromised victims to ingenious fates.

Saw has been a retail hit as well, selling more than 30 million DVD/Blu-ray Disc units. In 2010, Guinness World Records proclaimed the franchise as the “most successful horror movie series”.

“This upcoming film will still be as mind-bending and intense as all the previous Saw films,” Drake said. “Chris conceived this idea and it will be completely reverential to the legacy of the material while reinvigorating the brand with his wit, creative vision and passion for this classic horror franchise.”