Angelina Jolie and Halle Berry to Face off in New Spy Movie
With Oscar winners Angelina Jolie and Halle Berry attached to star, Warner Bros has picked up Maude v Maude following a multi-studio bidding war into the weekend. The film will be produced by Berry and Jolie, as well as Berry's partner Holly Jeter via their banner HalleHolly. Jeff Kirschenbaum and Joe Roth are also producing through RK Films.
The exact plot details are being kept secret, but an insider told Deadline that the film will be something of a "Bond vs. Bourne" type of global action thriller, with locations still to be revealed. Jolie and Berry have never collaborated despite their careers spanning three decades. However, both are seasoned pros in the genre. Jolie starred in the action thriller Salt, and Berry appeared in the Bond blockbuster Die Another Day. Among Berry's action-packed credits are John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and the X-Men movies, while Jolie's include Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Maleficent, as well as originating the role of Lara Croft in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.
The package hit the market last week and closed over the weekend, according to Deadline, with Warner Bros getting aggressive and bidding in on it. Having taken over as co-studio heads, Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy have pushed to make their future slate more movie star-centric. When this package with two of the biggest stars of the last two decades came together, it was too good to turn down, especially since Warners put in an impressive bid, which is not heard from studios so often these days, especially now that streamers seem to have unlimited resources, the outlet noted.
Aiming to produce hard-hitting dramas, comedies, action, horror, and more, Berry and Jeter joined forces in January 2022, intending to elevate complex, strong women and women of color in leading roles behind the camera and in front of them. With Jeter exec producing, Berry and Jeter are currently filming Never Let Go for Lionsgate. Alex Aja is directing, with 21 Laps producing.
In a recent interview, Berry addressed that a Black woman hasn't won Best Actress since she was awarded her Academy Award 20 years ago. "It didn't open the door," she said in an interview. "The fact that there's no one standing next to me is heartbreaking."
Berry became the first Black woman to win an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Monster's Ball in 2002. She spoke about her accomplishments and the ability to open doors in Hollywood for people of color.
Taking a look at Jolie, after receiving her Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, recently directed the film Without Blood starring Demian Bichir and Salma Hayek. In a new film, Jolie will portray the American-born Greek soprano Maria Callas. The biopic is "based on true accounts, [and] will tell the tumultuous, beautiful, and tragic story of the world's greatest opera singer, relived and reimagined during her final days in 1970s Paris," reported Deadline.