LAST RESORT FILMS: THE STORY SO FAR (SEASONS 11-15)

 

Welcome to Last Resort Films: The Story So Far! Chad Taylor checking in here with the latest installment in this series looking back at LRF’s illustrious past, five seasons at a time. In this third edition, we will cover seasons 11-15. Let's get started...

Season 11
Coming off of the high highs of landmark Season 10, LRF’s eleventh season was quieter all around. Many of the studio’s biggest franchises were absent and, for those that were present, it was typically some featuring more minor characters (like the DC Studios output of Martian Manhunter and Vixen). Dramas, some tense and some contemplative, filled the rounds between the likes of Suzanne, Beartown, and eventual Best Picture winner Buried Child.

Two highlights of this season for me were The Raven and Newbury Street. The Raven marked the completion of an LRF original series starting back in Season 1 with The Raven in the Night, continuing to Cosa Nostra in Season 5, and finishing in Season 11. The series remains one of the high points of crime storytelling at LRF. Meanwhile, Newbury Street brought a bit of a different vibe to the crime genre, with a match made in heaven between director Todd Field, writer Lon Charles, and star Matt Damon, who gives one of the best performances of his career.

Best Picture: Buried Child
Best Director: J.J. Abrams - The Stand
Best Actor: Matt Damon - Newbury Street
Best Actress: Patricia Clarkson - Suzanne
Best Adaptation: Buried Child - Chad Taylor
Best Original Story: The Raven - James Morgan

Season 12
When I think back on Season 12, I remember it fondly for being one of the most variety show-esque seasons in LRF’s storied history. LRF tends to be a little light on comedy, in part because it is hard for that genre to translate to international audiences. But Season 12 marked a high point for the genre, with Booster Gold: Lost in Time topping the box office and films like Don’t Hang Up and Doctor Love proving financial hits AND popular at the GRAs (including a rare comedy Best Picture win for the former).

In general, it was a strong time for critical hits at the box office. GRA contenders like Torso, Ypsilanti, and Cold rode positive word-of-mouth to big numbers for dark dramas. The star-studded casts certainly didn’t hurt! In general, I think all three are worth checking out as they feel a little lost in the annals of time. This why the variety sticks out so much to me, because it was a time where these “cold” crime thrillers were thriving right alongside the lighter comedic fare.

Best Picture: Don’t Hang Up
Best Director: Steven Soderbergh - Doctor Love
Best Actor: Brendan Gleeson - Our Father
Best Actress: Emma Stone - Under Pressure
Best Adaptation: Torso - John Malone
Best Original Story: Don’t Hang Up - Mo Buck & Dominic Wilkins


Season 13
This season was arguably the peak of the video game adaptation period of the studio’s history. Video game blockbusters dominated screens as many of the biggest franchises of early LRF were nearing their conclusion. Splinter Cell and Mass Effect saw their final entries this season, while Halo, God of War, and Skyrim also produced hits. Even the biggest hit of the season, Batman: Arkham, surely benefitted a bit from its associations with the popular video game franchise of the same name (in addition to featuring, you know, Batman).

One of the most notable events of the season, in retrospect, is the first collaboration between John Malone and Jimmy Ellis. Elysian was an immediate home run in their first at-bat, nabbing a rare trio of Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Actress. It marked Alden Ehrenreich’s second Best Actor win and solidified him a spot in LRF’s Hall of Fame, as if he wasn’t there already.

Best Picture: Elysian
Best Director: David Lowery - The Crucible
Best Actor: Alden Ehrenreich - Elysian
Best Actress: Shailene Woodley - Elysian
Best Adaptation: The Crucible - Lon Charles
Best Original Story: Elysian - Jimmy Ellis & John Malone

Season 14
By Season 14, LRF felt like it had fully entered a new era after those early years. Over 400 films in, the studio now had a thriving stable of writers putting out quality work. This season alone featured projects from 22 different writers!

The biggest debut from this season was Superman, with the Man of Tomorrow making his first appearance for the studio from a highly-anticipated script from John Malone. This marked a symbolic step forward for the studio with bringing in some of the biggest superhero titles into the fold; before this point, most adaptations were limited to characters who were not actively being portrayed at the movies and that meant mostly B or C-list properties outside of Batman.

The Ellis-Malone combo was back in full force this season, following up their Best Picture win with an even more lauded collaboration in Control. However, it was Born in Brooklyn that nabbed the top prize at the GRAs—marking the first Best Picture win for Dwight Gallo, a season 1 original.

Best Picture: Born in Brooklyn
Best Director: Denis Villeneuve - Control
Best Actor: Robert Pattinson - Germinal
Best Actress: Florence Pugh - A Lost Sense of Heaven
Best Adaptation: Germinal - Mo Buck
Best Original Story: Control - Jimmy Ellis & John Malone

Season 15
As with any increment of five, reaching the fifteenth season felt like a huge accomplishment for this studio of ours. That door opened by Superman the previous season was clearly on display this season, with the X-Men making their debut—a franchise still going strong to this day!

Looking back, this season also feels like the last true time that the Mo Buck Writer’s Association was working in full force. This is is marked symbolically by the season starting off with Justice League Europe, a cross-team effort that had been building up over multiple seasons. The Halo franchise saw its conclusion this season with Halo 6, the fifth film in the franchise to be penned by Mo Buck. Impressively, the MBWA proceeded to put out three films rated 83 or higher on Metacritic: A Reputation, Of Rocks and Sand, and And the Birds Rained Down.

It’s hard to overestimate the impact that Buck had on the first era of LRF. The MBWA was a prolific machine, often putting out a high number of high quality films every season with a wide variety of genres. While there were still more films from Buck and company to come, this felt like a good opportunity to toast to their accomplishments and impact on LRF history.

Best Picture: Misfit
Best Director: Taylor Sheridan - Of Rocks and Sand
Best Actor: Ben Foster - Kurt & Courtney: All Apologies
Best Actress: Christina Hendricks - Misfit
Best Adaptation: And the Birds Rained Down - Mo Buck
Best Original Story: Of Rocks and Sand - James Morgan

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Box Office Top 20 (Seasons 11-15):
20. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II - $537 million
19. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic - $572 million
18. Skyrim II: Dragonborn - $580 million
17. Uncharted 3 - $589 million
16. Scion 3 - $593 million
15. Hawkworld - $611 million
14. X-Men - $642 million
13. Flash Gordon - $645 million
12. Martian Manhunter - $651 million
11. Justice League Europe - $690 million
10. Halo: The Fall of Reach - $751 million
9. Silver Surfer: The Power Cosmic - $792 million
8. Mass Effect 3 - Part 1 - $809 million
7. Splinter Cell: Blacklist - $995 million
6. Halo 6 - $1.03 billion
5. Halo 5 - $1.08 billion
4. Mass Effect 3 - Part 2 - $1.197 billion
3. Superman: The Man of Tomorrow - $1.199 billion
2. Booster Gold: Lost in Time - $1.46 billion
1. Batman: Arkham $ 1.47 billion

#TRENDING (SEASON 34)

 

In #Trending, we will look at some of the trends the studio has noticed behind the scenes and around the office water coolers....

#FullyBooked

Writers and producers may start to become frustrated as some directors have become quite in demand and have fully booked schedules until Season 40 and beyond. Directors such as Luca Guadagnino, S. Craig Zahler, Derek Cianfrance, Jeff Nichols, Leigh Whannell, Zack Snyder, Edward Berger, and Ana Lily Amirpour are reportedly among the list of filmmakers who have full schedules for the foreseeable future (until at least Season 40 if not beyond).

#HorrorGoldenAge

Thanks in part to writers like Jack Brown and Clive Steinbeck, it looks like LRF is in the midst of a "golden age" of horror films. We'll also be seeing some writers who don't traditionally write horror step into the genre, like Jimmy Ellis did last season and Joshua Collins did earlier this season. 

#CostlyFlops

In just the past few seasons, LRF has experienced some of the biggest box office flops in the studio's 34 season history - Ocean Pawn (lost $100 million in Season 31), Watchmen (lost $82 million in Season 33), and Robopocalypse (lost $90 million earlier this season).

The Trades with Reuben Schwartz (Season 34)

 

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of The Trades! My name is Reuben Schwartz and this is my annual look at the news, casting, rumors, and general happenings at the studio each season.

On the GRAs front, this season is lacking any major heavyweights at the top through five rounds. The highest-rated film of the season thus far is X-Men: Age of Apocalypse, the fifth film in the long-running franchise and arguably the strongest entry yet. There is something to be said of that positive momentum, though it is hard to discern the film’s chances outside of Adaptation, Ensemble, and Villain.

Elsewhere, Holden Abbott’s Exodus is likely the next closest thing to a contender. The film is in a unique position as we rarely see a writer’s debut film immediately in contention for top honors but that would be the case here if the season ended today. The last time a writer’s first film was nominated for Best Picture? Joh Malone’s Flicker all the way back in Season 2. Since then, the shortest pipeline to a Best Picture nomination has been three films (done by Wyatt Allen and Diane Esposito most recently).

Another nice consistent storyline this season has been the continued ascent of some of LRF’s top young stars. Sadie Sink, Wyatt Oleff, Lucas Hedges, Jade Pettyjohn, Toby Wallace, and Damson Idris have landed more leading roles, while Elle Fanning, George MacKay, and Sydney Sweeney all have films announced for future rounds. There’s talk in the town of Sweeney’s return after a lengthy absence (last seen in Season 23’s GRA-winning performance for Poison Ivy: Minds Games); rumor has it that she has been highly selective with her projects since so it is nice to see her back on the big screen. All together, it feels like LRF’s newest wave of homegrown talent are becoming the stars of the moment.

Looking ahead, it is hard not to get excited about the crop of films to come. A Jimmy Ellis-Robert Eggers adaptation of Macbeth feels certain to be a visual treat and the material gives a lot of room for the actors to make their mark. Chad Taylor returns after a few seasons away with a Hollywood-set drama starring two of LRF’s biggest actresses, Jennifer Lawrence and Sydney Sweeney. Also in Round 7 we will finally see a Madonna biopic penned by Diane Esposito and headlined by LRF’s Supergirl Chloe Grace Moretz. Those three films alone seem like they have the potential to flip the Best Actress race on its head.

And then we have fun genre fare down the pipeline. A Michael Bay western? Sure! A John Malone-penned comedy (or at least dramedy) from David Gordon Green? I'm intrigued (and hoping it means more mainstream comedies from the studio!). James Wan trading one popular 90s video game franchise (Resident Evil) for another (DOOM)? Sounds exciting! And of course, it's Halloween season so I've already got my ticket for LRF's take on Leatherface. Do you think this one will be bloody?

I look forward to checking back in with you all at season’s end. For now, I’ll see you at the movies!

GOSSIP RAG (SEASON 34)

 

In this segment, we will delve into the inside dirt on some of the latest and upcoming LRF releases and the studio's stars....

TODD PHILLIPS

The only invisible hand on Mises was the one pulling it straight into the red. Todd Phillips’ bold but baffling dramaedy about the rise of the Libertarian Mises Caucus — and its real-life founder Michael Heise — was a box office belly-flop, with scathing reviews targeting both its muddled messaging and lackluster execution. Lucas Hedges, portraying Heise, reportedly clashed with Phillips during production, frustrated by constant script rewrites, unclear direction, and what one source described as a “barely functioning” schedule. Even more baffling was the ballooning budget: originally projected at a more modest budget, costs spiraled out of control due to excessive reshoots and abandoned locations, ultimately landing right around $40 million — quite high for a film that mostly consists of people arguing in windowless rooms. Said one exasperated producer: “We spent Dune money to make a libertarian C-SPAN episode.”

DAMSON IDRIS

Damson Idris has been keeping secrets sharper than a vampire hunter’s katana. Long before his acclaimed turn in At Night All Blood Is Black rocketed him to awards-season royalty, Idris had already quietly locked in a deal with the studio to star as Blade in its Marvel Universe — a move kept so under wraps that even his agency wasn’t briefed on all the details. According to sources close to the project, Idris was selected after a private screen test left execs “speechless,” with one insider describing his performance as “controlled fury wrapped in leather.” Marvel reportedly began pre-vis and fight choreography around him months before his casting was even announced. 

JENNIFER LAWRENCE

It’s lights, camera, tension on the set of Starlight. Jennifer Lawrence and Sydney Sweeney are turning back the clock for the 1960s-set Hollywood drama, but insiders say the real drama is happening between takes. While Lawrence commands the higher salary and top billing, word from the set is that Sweeney has quietly become the center of attention - earning praise from the director, wooing the crew with her professionalism, and even having wardrobe and lighting tweaked to best suit her look. The tension, according to multiple sources, seems to stem less from anything Sweeney is doing and more from Lawrence's growing discomfort with how much focus has shifted to her younger co-star. “It’s not a diva clash,” one crew member noted. “It just feels like Jennifer’s used to being the golden girl - and suddenly, she’s not.”

MADONNA

Strike a pose - but not that pose. Sources say Madonna is fuming over Chloe Grace Moretz’s portrayal of her in the upcoming biopic Material Girl, which takes a gritty, unfiltered look at the pop icon’s rise from starving artist to pop dominator. The film paints a portrait of Madonna as a ruthless opportunist who used charm, sex, and sheer will to bulldoze her way to the top - leaving collaborators, lovers, and rivals scorched in her wake. While Madonna has publicly slammed the film as “fictionalized garbage” and is allegedly threatening legal action to block its release - or at least prevent use of her songs - studio insiders at Last Resort Films remain unbothered. Turns out, they quietly secured full music rights through Warner Music, which controls much of Madonna’s catalog, and didn’t need her personal sign-off. One exec summed it up with a smirk: “She may be the Queen of Pop, but we read the fine print.”

ERIC BANA

Eric Bana may scoff at method acting - he’s called it “silly” and “disruptive” in past interviews - but that didn’t stop him from putting in the work for his upcoming turn as Randy Weaver in Ruby Ridge, a dramatization of the infamous 1992 standoff that shook America’s trust in its own government. While Bana didn’t go full survivalist, he did reportedly spend weeks learning backwoods skills, wilderness isolation techniques, and handling vintage firearms to convincingly portray a man who fled society to live off the grid. When asked whether he sympathized with Weaver’s anti-government beliefs, Bana remained characteristically diplomatic, describing the story not as a political statement but as a personal one. “It’s a story about a family trying to survive,” he told one outlet.

PREMIERE MAGAZINE #335

 

The Roundup with Jeff Stockton (Season 34 Round 5)

 

 

 

3-for-3 at the box office this round. Here's The Roundup....

3. N/A

2. Tethered

While I felt there were a few plot holes, the vibe and tone throughout Tethered was always well done. The cast of the main family - Plemons, Plaza, Fisher - was also completely spot-on.

1. Profits

For the first time all season, we went an entire round with all three releases earning profits for the studio. Hopefully things continue.

3. Box Office
While this round went well at the box office, the studio does not seem to have another sure-fire blockbuster on the schedule until Superman to close out the season.

2. The Revolution

Despite Sadie Sink’s talents anchoring the film, The Revolution is a muddled and morally dubious thriller that mistakes shock value for insight. Its message about justice and revenge is disturbingly confused, blurring lines between victimhood and manipulation in ways that feel careless rather than provocative.

1. Blade

I had high hopes for Blade, but it felt surprisingly flat with a script that gets bogged down in talky scenes and a plot that feels routine, never finding the pulse a Blade story demands. The action feels confined and small-scale.

On Location (Season 34 Round 5)

 

The Revolution

- Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Tethered

- Shreveport, Louisiana, USA

Blade

- New York City, New York, USA