Here we are again, Insiders. The Berlin International Film Festival has begun, an indicator the year is now in full swing. Jesse Whittock coming to you from London, with several of our gang in Germany reporting on the ground. Sign up to the newsletter here.
Berlin Begins
Setting the scene: It’s back to an icy Germany as the first of the year’s big film festivals cranks into gear. The 76th Berlin International Film Festival began this week with an opening ceremony presided over by Festival Director Tricia Tuttle and jury prez Wim Wenders, followed by a red carpet and a world premiere of No Good Men, the latest pic from Afghan director Sharbanoo Sadat. Tuttle had explained the intriguing choice of film in a pre-fest interview with Deadline. With the likes of Honorary Golden Bear recipient Michelle Yeoh and Anora director Sean Baker in attendance on the first night, there was star power in town and we can expect plenty more, with 22 films in competition and the likes of Josephine, The Only Living Pickpocket in Town and The Weight all bringing big names to town. Controversy is rarely far away from festival openings and so it was with Berlin, which had to deny censorship was at play when the live feed for the opening jury press conference dropped just as an awkward question about Israel and Palestine was posed. A spokesperson told Mel it was all a case of bad timing, with a technical fault causing the issue, and the entire presser was later posted on the Berlin website. Looking ahead, you can expect our usual level of reporting from the German capital and have access to our entire catalog of fest movie reviews here, along with extensive news on packages, deals and more from the festival-adjacent European Film Market. The Berlin Film Festival runs from now until February 22.
Amazon Shows Off Wares
Clemens weather: Prime Video was the latest global streamer to parade content down the catwalk this week, as it held its first international edition of a Prime Video Presents… showcase online yesterday. The audience heard from the likes of Culpables creator Mercedes Ron and star Nicole Wallace, Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt and Stanley Tucci, along with regional leads from Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Prior to the event, Stewart scooped the news Amazon’s streamer was adapting BookTok fave ‘Boys of Tommen’ as a series. The news came in an exclusive interview with Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios’ international content chief Nicole Clemens, who joined in July last year, swapping L.A. for London in the process. The exec said she’s been taking a “really hands on” approach in pitch meetings and creative readings since making the switch. The full interview, which outlines exactly how Clemens is acclimatizing to the UK, is here. I bet she can’t believe it has officially rained every day of 2026 so far. Well done, Britain.
‘Billy’s Back
Billy & Baz: It was a week of great interviews from Deadline’s international team, as our journalists spoke to those in every corner of the industry. Seriously, there were loads! Breaking Baz conducted two supremely strong ones, both of which came with exciting news lines. First up, Baz spoke to Stephen Daldry and Working Title’s Eric Fellner for an exclusive about Billy Elliot returning to London’s West End for the first time in 11 years. Then he caught up with theater director Michael Longhurst in an article about swaggering Bridgerton star Regé-Jean Page’s role in a new adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. I truly could have picked from about a dozen great one-on-ones this week, and you’ll find a number of them in The Essentials below.
The Essentials
🌶️ Hot One: The Empress showrunners Robert and Katharina Eyssen, producer Sommerhaus and Netflix have gotten back together for Witches (working title), a dark historical drama set during the European witch hunts of the 17th century.
🌶️ Another One: Fremantle’s Red Planet Pictures has beaten out competition to land the option for It’s Not What You Think, the upcoming novel from bestselling author Clare Mackintosh.
🔥 A Third: Kerry Godliman and Nina Singh have been cast as the lead detectives in BritBox and ITV’s reboot of Dalziel and Pascoe.
🎙️ Doc and pod: Mindhouse Productions has confirmed it is making Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere for Netflix, and is launching a podcast division, we reported in an interview with the veteran filmmaker.
👩🏼 Poehler opposite: Zai Bennett told Max BBC Studios is developing U.S. versions of sleeper hit family comedy Here We Go and time travel series Mammoth, with Universal Television and Amy Poehler’s Paper Kite attached to the former and Fox to the latter.
🌏 Globie: We went to India to hear about SonyLIV’s breakout series Real Kashmir Football Club.
✅ Confirmed: As we tipped in November, Don McGregor will become Paramount’s global content licensing chief.
⛸️ Skates on: Finding Her Edge showrunner Jeff Norton told us about the unexpected Netflix breakout hit.
⛅ A taste of ‘Heaven’: How to Get to Heaven From Belfast writer Lisa McGee revealed why her new Netflix comedy-drama is “wish fulfilment.”
☝️ Sold!: John Gore Studios bought AI production specialist Deep Fusion.
🗓️ Date for the diary: HBO Max will complete its European rollout with debuts in the UK and Ireland on March 26.
🍿 Box office: Stray Kids: The dominATE Experience danced to a revised $19.9M global win from 61 territories, Anthony D’Alessandro reported.
International Insider was written by Jesse Whittock and edited by Max Goldbart.
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