News

Congratulations to Hudson Williams ( @hudsonwilliamsofficial ) on his 2026 Canadian Screen Academy Award Win! ‘Best Lead Performance – Drama Series’ for ‘Shane Hollander’ in Heated Rivalry @thecdnacademy #hudsonwilliams #heatedrivalry @heatedrivalrycrave

Congratulations to our 2026 Leo Award Nominees! BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE MOTION PICTURE Alison Thornton – What Comes Next BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE MOTION PICTURE Stephen Lobo – What Comes Next Gabrielle Rose – Final Destination: Bloodlines BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE DRAMATIC SERIES Sarah Dugdale – Virgin River – Beautiful Child Sarah Dugdale – Virgin River – It Takes a Village BEST PERFORMANCE MUSIC, COMEDY OR VARIETY PROGRAM OR SERIES James Kot – The Chicken Sisters – Storm’s Brewing, Y’all BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE TELEVISION MOVIE Kaitlyn Bernard – Surviving My Father: The Rachel Jeffs Story Tahmoh Penikett – Before Your Father Finds Us BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE TELEVISION MOVIE Michael Eklund - Surviving My Father: The Rachel Jeffs Story Zak Santiago – If I Run BEST PERFORMANCE WEB SERIES Irene Karas Loeper – The Dressing Room Season 2 – The Whole Being Dead Thing BEST SCREENWRITING TELEVISION MOVIE Kimberley Sustad (w. Paul Campbell) – Three Wise Men @leoawardsbc #bcfilm @ali.g.thornton #stephenlobo @gabriellerose9456 @sarahdugdale @kotjameskot @kaitlynjbernard @peniketttahmoh @michaelseklund @zaksantiago @irenekarasloeper @kimberleysustad

Coming to theatres on May 29 is survival horror ‘Pitfall’ starring our Alexandra Essoe ( @alexessoe ). @pitfallmovie From @bdisgusting If the fall doesn’t kill you… he will. After playing on the film festival circuit to acclaim, gory survival horror movie Pitfall is coming to theaters nationwide on May 29, 2026, and Bloody Disgusting is premiering the very first exclusive look at the official theatrical trailer. Based on a story by director James Kondelik (Behind The Walls) and a screenplay by Canadian writer Victor Rose, Pitfall made its debut at Los Angeles’ Screamfest Film Festival in October 2025, earning praise from critics, who said it was “one of the major highlights” of the festival’s 25th year. The film was produced by Wai Sun Cheng and Alex Bogolomov for Vancouver-based production Pandapix Pictures in partnership with Dragon Bear Pictures. In Pitfall, a young man becomes separated from his friends in the woods and plunges into a ten-foot pit lined with spikes, impaling his leg and leaving him helpless. As reality sinks in and his situation grows dire, he realizes the fall wasn’t an accident. Collider calls Pitfall “thrilling, crowd-pleasing survival horror.” The outlet raves that the film “effectively combines the thrills of Friday the 13th with the survival suspense of 127 Hours.” The film stars Richard Harmon (Final Destination: Bloodlines), Alexandra Essoe(The Pope’s Exorcist), and UFC champion Randy Couture (The Expendables) as the ruthless killer who stalks his prey in the woods. Marshall Williams (The Ice Road), Jordan Claire Robbins (The Umbrella Academy), and Matt Hamilton(Murder for Sale) also star. Copy and paste link to trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgcqAaxTyHo&t=97s #horrormovie #pitfallmovie #survivalhorror

Congratulations to Tantoo Cardinal ( @tantoocardinal ) on her upcoming tribute and X-Files casting! @banffmedia @thexfilestv @hulu From @variety Hulu’s reboot of The X-Files from Ryan Coogler has cast eight in guest roles, including recent Weapons best supporting actress Oscar winner Amy Madigan, Steve Buscemi, Ben Foster, Devery Jacobs, Lochlyn Munro, Tantoo Cardinal, Joel D. Montgrand and Sofia Grace Clifton. The group joins previously cast leads Himesh Patel and Danielle Deadwyler, who play two highly decorated but vastly different FBI agents. They form an unlikely bond when they are assigned to a long-shuttered division devoted to cases involving unexplained phenomena. From @hollywoodreporter The Banff World Media Festival has unveiled honorees for its Rockie Awards gala in June, led by Community star Ken Jeong, who will receive the Sir Peter Ustinov comedy award, and Beverly Hills, 90210 actor Jason Priestley, who will receive an award of distinction. Also set for tributes in the Canadian Rockies are Tantoo Cardinal (Killers of the Flower Moon, Dances with Wolves), being honored with a career achievement award, and Wayward creator and star Mae Martin, who will pick up the Creative Voice Award. The quartet will be recognized for their talent achievements and work that has had an impact on the global entertainment industry. The Rockie Awards gala will be hosted by Emmy Award-winning multi-hyphenate Allana Harkin (Full Frontal with Samantha Bee) on June 16. #indigenousactor #x-files #xfilesrevival #scifiseries

We’re happy to share the news that ‘Hope Valley: 1874’ has been renewed. With our Chelsea Hobbs ( @chelseaxhobbs ). @hallmarkplus From @deadline Hope Valley: 1874 will be back for another go-round. Touting the series’ debut as “the most successful launch of a Hallmark+ series to date,” the streamer has renewed the popular When Calls The Heart prequel for a second season. The eight-episode Season 2 will premiere in 2027. The renewal news comes just ahead of the Season 1 finale, Thursday, May 7. Bethany Joy Lenz stars along with Benjamin Ayres, Jill Hennessy, Roan Curtis and Lachlan Quarmby. Also featured are Jedidiah Goodacre, Mila Morgan, Brad Abramenko and Chelsea Hobbs. Based on Janette Oke’s novel When Calls the Heart, the series explores the earliest days of the frontier settlement that later became Hope Valley, chronicling the courage, resilience and relationships that laid the foundation for the close-knit town viewers have come to love. Lenz portrays Rebecca Clarke, a recent widow who travels with her 11-year-old daughter Sarah (Morgan) to the Western Canadian frontier to escape a threat back home and make a fresh start following her husband’s death. When she discovers the boarding house she purchased sight unseen needed extensive renovations, Rebecca faced a tougher road ahead than she had imagined. Thanks to the fledgling community that embraces them – including local rancher and confirmed bachelor Tom Moore (Ayres), with whom she becomes close, and Hattie Quinn (Hennessy), a widow herself who runs the trading post with the help of her daughter Olivia (Curtis) – Rebecca and Sarah become an intrinsic part of the settlement and they begin to find their way. Helping keep the peace between the ranchers and gold prospectors who are at odds with each other is Constable Alexander Vaughn (Quarmby), who becomes smitten with Olivia, much to the dismay of local blacksmith Clayton Cooley (Goodacre), who has long harbored feelings for her. As the season comes to a close a sudden turn of events leaves their futures uncertain. #hopevalley1874 #hallmarkseries

The talented Rukiya Bernard ( @rukiya.bernard ) joins the cast of ‘Sundowning.’ From @deadline EXCLUSIVE: Principal photography on Ian McDonald’s Sundowning, the latest production from horror-focused banner Spooky Pictures, is underway in Vancouver and Deadline can reveal the cast. Elizabeth Dulau (Andor), Susanne Wuest (Industry) Rukiya Bernard (Yellowjackets) and Robbie G.K. (Heated Rivalry) have signed up to star in the psychological thriller. His new film follows a young musician with gerontophobia, whose irrational fear of ageing and death sees her neglect her dying parents. She seeks redemption by taking a position at a secluded end of life facility, but what begins as an act of penance soon unsettles her as she discovers the idyllic sanctuary hides a terrifying secret. Bernard is best known for her three seasons on Showtime’s Yellowjackets and Fox’s Chicken Sisters. She will next be seen in the hit AMC series The Audacity. #thriller #thrillerfilm

Julia Sarah Stone ( @reel.jss ) & Chad Willett ( @chad._.willett ) work the red carpet at last night’s ‘Off Campus’ premiere in Los Angeles. The Off Campus TV series, based on the novels by Elle Kennedy, premieres on Prime Video on May 13, 2026. All episodes of the first season, which follows the elite hockey team at Briar University, will be released at once, with the series already renewed for a second season #offcampus #offcampusseason2 #primevideo

An exciting new project for Hudson Williams ( @hudsonwilliamsofficial ) with a killer cast. @amazonmgmstudios From @deadline EXCLUSIVE: David Weil has commenced production on Tyrant, with four new additions to the L.A.-lensed Amazon MGM culinary thriller: I May Destroy You‘s Paapa Essiedu, Heated Rivalry breakout Hudson Williams, musician Omar Apollo (Queer), and fashion and lifestyle creator Nara Smith. Character details are under wraps. The actors join an ensemble led by Charlize Theron, Julia Garner, and Demi Moore. One of the few high-profile films shooting in Los Angeles this year, Tyrant‘s logline is being kept under wraps, but it’s said to be a high-stakes thriller in the vein of Wall Street and Whiplash set within New York City’s elite fine dining scene. Weil is directing from his own script, based on a story conceived with Cody Behan. Williams is one of the breakout stars of HBO Max and Crave’s cultural phenomenon Heated Rivalry, the queer hockey romance series now heading into its second season. He’s currently in production on the film Apparatus and will also be seen coming up in Netflix’s The Altruists and Crave’s Yaga. He is repped by CAA, Red Management, and Hansen Jacobson. #tyrantfilm #culinarythriller #thriller

This is going to be grand! Our hilarious Dustin Milligan ( @deucestain ) goes to Ireland. Can’t wait to see ‘Committed.’ From @deadline EXCLUSIVE: Canada‘s CBC and BBC Northern Ireland have greenlit Committed, a ten-part comedy co-production starring Schitt’s Creek actor Dustin Milligan and Derry Girls‘ Diona Doherty. The series will follow Milligan as Canadian Peter Hooley (Schitt’s Creek, Hot Frosty) as a recently divorced accountant who falls head over heels for Northern Irish woman Julie Johnston, played by Doherty (Derry Girls, Blue Lights), after a whirlwind weekend in Toronto. He crosses the Atlantic to declare his love, only to find himself in old-fashion and eccentric village in rural Northern Ireland. “Audiences are going to fall in love with this bold new comedy series,” said Jason Butler, BBC Northern Ireland Commissioning Editor. “We’ve a brilliant cast that viewers will be familiar with on both sides of the Atlantic – we’re delighted to welcome Dustin to these shores starring alongside our own Diona Doherty. And it’s fantastic for BBC Northern Ireland to link up with CBC on this innovative project helping to further develop and support the creative industry here and to bring a flavour of our Northern Ireland humour to comedy fans further afield.” “Committed brings together so many of the elements we value in great television: sharp writing, memorable characters and a story that bridges cultures in a genuinely entertaining way,” said Amy Cameron, co-founder and executive producer at Cameron Pictures. @bbcni @cbc @cbcgem