Kerkorian on the prowl for acquisitions

Kirk Kerkorian, who bought and sold MGM three times, is on the prowl for acquisitions in the entertainment business, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal Sunday night, a development that could add a major wild card to the already complex and fast-changing landscape. In an interview with the paper, Jay Rakow, an exec at Kerkorian's investment firm Tracinda Corp., said the billionaire is looking at all types of deals including online film distribution, and in emerging markets. He said Kerkorian has hired MGM's former chief operating officer Charles Cohen to head the search and taken on Raine Group to advise him. There were no particular targets or dollar figures given. Rakow told the WSJ that Kerkorian's investment could include a technology company, a studio or mini-major. Kerkorian last exited MGM and the movie biz in 2005 when he sold the studio for $5 billion to a consortium led by Sony Corp. and including Comcast and private equity firms Providence Equity Partners and Texas Pacific Group. The deal didn't go well for the buyers and debt-laden MGM filed for bankruptcy in 2010. It emerged last year restructured and under new management. But given the high profile of the equity funds that lost their shirts and the large number of debt holders that were burned, its fall rocked the industry and some say is one factor behind the reluctance of Wall Street - private equity and hedge funds in particular -- to invest in Hollywood. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com

Exclusive The Woman In Black premiere report

[brightcove]1412779318001[/brightcove]Above, you will see a distinctive video report within the premiere in the Lady In Black, the Hammer chiller that delivers Daniel Radcliffe his initial role publish-Harry Potter.Around the options of concentrating on something quite different, Radcliffe states, "It's wonderful. It absolutely was very refreshing. Even on day one in the shoot, only to see my title alongside another character's title round the call sheet was wonderful."Radcliffe plays making it through lawyer Arthur Kipps inside the film, which he heads with a creepy village to remain the estate from the recently deceased lady.He's grew to become part of by Harry Potter As Well As The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 co-star Ciarán Hinds, who talks about coping with Radcliffe on movies.You'll find also contributions from director James Watkins and film author Jane Goldman, consider getting watching now.The Woman In Black opens on 10 February 2012.Read Total Film's The Woman In Black review.

Kinetic, Calamari team for 'Parole'

Kinetic Content and Calamari Prods. are joining forces on the new reality skein. First of all is "Parole," that provides understanding of the juvenile parole process and it is effect on youthful people, their loved ones and society. Calamari practical knowledge using the subject material, getting professional created MTV's "Juvies" and MSNBC's "Youthful Kids, Hard Occasions," and can access the juvenile justice system that couple of other shingles can provide. The partnership between Calamari, that is run by topper Karen Grau, and Chris Coelen's Kinetic Submissions are likely to include other projects. Before developing Kinetic this year, Coelen was the previous chief of reality giant RDF USA. NBC's "Betty White's Off Their Rockers" can also be around the Kinetic programming slate, together with "You Deserve It," which broadcast on ABC Kinetic is possessed by Red-colored Arrow Entertainment, a subsidiary or European-based ProSiebenSat.1 Media. Contact Stuart Levine at stuart.levine@variety.com

Rob Who Lives In Your House Trailer Arrives

Segel! Helms! Duplass brothers and sisters!After noodling inside the much much deeper area in the indie world for any very long time using the type of The Puffy Chair and Baghead, writing/pointing sister team Jay and Mark Duplass soundly cracked the top bigger awareness level with 2010's achingly sharp comedy-drama Cyrus. Now they're back by having an execllent cast together with a brand new comedy that wades over the line involving the bitter as well as the sweet, Rob Who Lives In Your House. The trailer's up at Apple.Rob (Jason Segel) is actually all accounts a directionless loser, content to lounge about inside the basement of his mother Sharon (Susan Sarandon) despite the fact that away his days on meaningless errands. His brother Pat (Erection dysfunction Helms), however, appears to own developed a existence for themselves, getting employment together with a wife (Judy Greer). But an chance meeting involving the siblings and siblings leads to details, fights then among the opportunity for the happy couple of these to bond. Specially when they stumble on Pat's wife meeting another guy...Within the looks from the, the brothers and sisters Duplass have develop another little made by hand delight. The film arrives here on April 20.

Noms searching for KidsPickFlicks honours

"Harry Potter as well as the Deathly Hallows: Part 2," "The Muppets," "Diary from the Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules," "Mr. Popper's Penguins" and "Rio" will be the five PICK movie nominees for your sixth Annual KidsPickFlicks.com honours. Individuals who win will probably be introduced Feb. 20. KidsPicksFlicks offers children age groups 7 to 17 an area to see reviews. The web site was founded in 2004 by Cole McNamara at 9. While using KidsPickFlicks.com honours, kids election for favorite films and youthful stars online. "Diary" star Zachary Gordon also received a nom for PICK actor, and Madeline Carroll of "Penguins" was nominated inside the actress category. "Super 8" acquired two acting noms, for Joel Courtney and Elle Fanning, while "Dolphin Tale" was famous for thesps Nathan Gamble and Cozi Zuehlsdorff. "Hugo" stars Asa Butterfield and Chloe Moretz are usually inside the running for your actor and actress groups. Also inside the mix are Dakota Goyo for "Real Steel" and Jordana Beatty for "Judy Moody as well as the Not Bummer Summer season." Inside the ICK movie category, through which kids select the photos that disappointed them, the nominees are "Eco-friendly Lantern," "Hugo," "Monte Carlo," "Red-colored-colored Riding Hood" and "Three Musketeers." The youthful theps nominated for Scene Stealer are Jonah Bobo ("Crazy Stupid Love), Colin Ford ("We Bought a Zoo"), Kerris Dorsey ("Moneyball"), Bailee Madison ("Pass Using ItInch) and Boo Boo Stewart ("The Twilight Saga: Breaking Beginning"). Contact the number newsroom at news@variety.com

Best Laid Plans Trailer Online

Stephen Graham joins the ideal gameWe don't cover many British crime dramas around these parts, but the presence of Stephen "27%-er" Graham introduced that certain towards the attention. In Best Laid Plans, Graham plays a man in hock to gangsters and expected to steer uncle Ernest (The Thing's Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) through numerous unlicensed cage fights to have the ability to pay them.We'd say "that's what pals are for", except we're confident it's not. Clearly, the circumstances in which the two finish up puts a significant severe force on their friendship.Director David Blair is presently putting the finishing touches on Best Laid Plans. The cruel-as-tungsten Brit thriller will probably be in cinemas on February 3, and also on DVD and Blu-ray on February 20.

30 Rock to Address Kim Jong-Il's Death in Season 6

30 Rock Kim Jong-Il's death has sent the 30 Rock writers' room into a frenzy. Last season, Jack's wife Avery (Elizabeth Banks) was kidnapped in North Korea while on assignment, and forced to marry Jong-Il's son. Executive producer Robert Carlock says Jong-Il's death will eventually be addressed, but not until later in the season. Check out the rest of today's news "We sort of went back to the script, because we'd already shot eight or nine episodes, and we realized that luckily we hadn't referred to Kim Jong-Il by name yet - just to North Korea in general," Carlock told US Weekly. "We can't go back and address the changes there, but the fun puzzle is turning around and trying to figure out how to get her out of there and how to continue things." Carlock says they're looking at the possibility of having Margaret Cho reprise her role as North Korea's late leader, who died in December. "Maybe we'll have to have Margaret Cho showing up again having faked her death, because she wants to get a gig on a morning talk show," he said.