By Romeo San Vicente
Dan Levy cooks up a ‘Big Brunch’
We don’t know if Dan Levy is a Brunch Gay, but it’s clear that his character from “Schitt’s Creek” is. So call it typecasting if you like, but Levy is about to host an HBO Max reality cooking competition series called “The Big Brunch.” Levy is also the creator (OK, real-life Brunch Gay status confirmed, which means it’s not mere typecasting but rather a brand building monetization of a hobby) and “Chef’s Table” production company Boardwalk Pictures is along for the ride, as well. The chefs in competition will be food-fighting for an undisclosed “life-altering” prize, while sharing their stories and career aspirations along the way to frittata triumph or crushing defeat. At this point, everything from knitting to glass-blowing is its own competition series now, so why not brunch? This feels like the kind of show we’re going to watch with a tall stack of blueberry pancakes and some champagne.
‘The Mattachine Family’ gets a queer cast and creators
Nico Tortorella (“Younger”) will star alongside Heather Matarazzo, Juan Pablo Di Pace (“Fuller House”), Carl Clemons-Hopkins (“Hacks”) and Emily Hampshire (Schitt’s Creek”) in the film “The Mattachine Family.” Andy Vallentine, a video and commercial director, will make his feature directorial debut from a screenplay by his husband Danny Vallentine. And if the word “Mattachine” leads you to believe this is a period film about the queer civil rights movement, you’d be mistaken. Instead, it’s a drama about a queer foster family. Tortorella and Di Pace play a couple who foster a child, and when that child returns to his birth mother, questions about and perspectives on what makes a family suddenly come into play. We’re fully into the queer family angle here, but what we’re really pleased with is the fact that the screenwriter, director and all the main cast are queer people. So now, with the Billy Eichner rom-com turning into a roll call of LGBTQ+ performers, we think we as audience members should just start demanding it every time a new queer film goes into production. If DC Comics fanboys can yell about the Synder Cut long enough and get their way, we can too. (P.S. We won’t be doing this because it’s obnoxious. Or maybe just once to flex our entitlement muscles. Why not?)
‘Spinning Gold’ updates its disco-making cast
We reported on the Neil Bogart/Casablanca Records movie “Spinning Gold” a while back. But since then a lot has changed. For those not around in the 1970s, Casablanca Records dominated the charts with artists like Donna Summer, The Village People, Parliament and KISS, which means those boogie nights were destined for the cinematic treatment. The film, written and directed by Timothy Scott Bogart, son of the disco mogul, originally planned to cast Samuel Jackson and Kenan Thompson in key roles, but now the roster has shifted to include Wiz Khalifa as George Clinton, singer-songwriter Tayla Parx as Donna Summer, “SNL” actor Chris Redd as Frankie Crocker, Pink Sweat$ as R&B star Bill Withers, and Ledisi as Gladys Knight, with Sam Harris as Paul Stanley. Add them to an impressive band of actors including Jason Derulo, Jay Pharoah, Michelle Monaghan, Jason Isaacs, Dan Fogler, James Wolk and Michael Ian Black, and that makes for a densely populated dance floor. We’ve been waiting an extended remix amount of time for this one, so at this point we’re just going to watch it to play Spot the Musical Legend and see if the ’70s wigs are good enough.
Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo plan to get ‘Wicked’
Can it be true? Does the film adaptation of “Wicked” with Jon M. Chu in the director’s chair really have a cast? Does this mean the movie will be actually made soon? The latest development in the seemingly endless development stage is the announcement that powerhouse singers Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo will take the main roles of Glinda and Elphaba, respectively. The stars announced it all on their Instagram accounts, sending fans into an elated frenzy. And we’re happy, too. In fact, we’re thrilled. But at this point we just want to know that the movie is actually being made, that people are singing and dancing and acting and cameras are rolling. Anything “Oz” related is automatically queer, which is perhaps why we’ve become so invested, more than we ever were for “Cats” (no shade, because we’ll drink-watch that one anytime). But we’ve been waiting so long we’re about to be as old as Auntie Em and Uncle Henry. Oh, you say production is set for summer of 2022? OK, we’ll keep waiting.
Romeo San Vicente prefers the company of evil queens and wicked witches.
