Sony is chugging along with its latest group of projects. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the studio announced updates and release dates for a number of upcoming titles. One of the projects is Tom Hanks’ A Man Called Otto. It has been given a holiday release date a it is set to hit theaters on Dec. 25, 2022.
A Man Called Otto will be a remake of the 2015 Swedish comedy-drama, A Man Called Ove. Based on the book of the same name, by Swedish author Fredrick Backman, the story follows a retired man who strikes up an unlikely friendship with his new neighbors. The 2015 Swedish film adaptation was a hit, and earned two Oscar nominations, one of them being best foreign language film. The new adaptation will star Tom Hanks in the title role, and his costars will be Mariana Treviño, Rachel Keller, and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo. The film will be directed by Marc Foster and will feature a script based on David Magee. The film sold a few weeks earlier at the Berlin Film Festival in a bidding war.
The synopsis reads: "The film will tell the story of Otto, a crotchety, irritable, and fiercely strict widower. He holds his whole neighborhood bound to his principles as he judgmentally observes them all every day. Just as this isolated (and deep-down lonely) man who's still grieving the loss of his wife seems to have completely lost the spark for life, wishing for death, he strikes an unlikely friendship with his new neighbors. Slowly but surely, Otto begins to change. But the road to change is not an easy one when old habits die hard."
Also given an update was the upcoming sci-fi thriller 65. The film was initially set for release on April 29, 2022, but has been officially pushed back to April 14th, 2023. The film will star Adam Driver as an astronaut who crash lands on a strange planet, only to discover he’s not the only one there. The film is co-written and co-directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, who are both best known for co-writing John Krasinski’s 2018 hit, A Quiet Place. Alongside Driver, the film will also star Ariana Greenblatt and Chloe Coleman.
Keep on Dancing with the Whitney Houston Biopic
Another title in the announcements was iconic singer Whitney Houston’s musical biopic I Wanna Dance with Somebody. The film has officially moved up two days and is set for December 21, 2022. The film will star Naomi Ackie as the late singer, alongside her will be Stanley Tucci, Nafessa Williams, Clarke Peters, Tamara Tunie, and Ashton Sanders. Credited as director is Kasi Lemmons, and Anthony McCarten penned the screenplay.
Additionally, a film called Umma will be released on March 18, 2022. The film, written and directed by Iris K. Shim, will star Sandra Oh as Amanda and Fivel Stewart as her daughter. The film will tell the story of the pair living on a farm, but when news of Amanda’s mother reaches them, old wounds begin to bubble over. Starring alongside Oh and Stewart will be MeeWha Alana Lee, Tom Yi, Odeya Rush and Dermont Mulroney. The film draws its title from the Korean word for “mother.”
Finally, the film Oh Hell No is no longer on the schedule. The film was initially planned for June 17, 2022, but according to an October report by Hollywood Reporter, there were complications with filming. According to the report, Ice Cube refused to get vaccinated and eventually left the project. He would have co-starred with Jack Black in the upcoming comedy. The film was set to begin shooting in Hawaii in the winter with Kitao Sakurai as director.