“Star Trek” legend George Takei does not currently have a new film or television series or play or voice role for a video game or an animated project in the works, and it’s because the 87-year-old actor, who is constantly involved in one or more of the above gigs, has written a graphic memoir. And it’s not even his first. It’s called “It Rhymes With Takei” and it’s all about his career in entertainment, from his early closeted days to his late-career coming out and popularity renaissance. It’s the follow up to his childhood memoir, “They Called Us Enemy,” and will hit bookshelves and online retailers in June of 2025. You have time to catch up on that earlier one before Pride month catches you checking out this one. As for the author, he’ll move on to the next job, of course. No one ever said getting old meant you had to slow down.
Eddie Murphy, his “Dreamgirls” director, and the P-Funk
When one speaks of the gay sensibility in cinema, one is necessarily talking about queer filmmaker Bill Condon’s 2006 showstopper of a musical cake, “Dreamgirls.” It was the movie that brought Eddie Murphy a truly meaty dramatic role and an Academy Award nomination. It makes perfect sense, then for the director and star to reteam for yet another music-based film, an untitled biopic of the legendary George Clinton with a script by Virgil Williams, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter for “Mudbound.” Clinton’s Parliament-Funkadelic collective pushed every kind of psychedelic/R&B/rock boundary in the 1970s with still-beloved hits like “Flashlight.” And since Murphy is no stranger to musical performance himself, to headline this project seems like the perfect collaboration. It’s still early in development, with no other details announced, but there’s no doubt the supporting cast is going to be special and, who knows, maybe Oscar lightning will strike twice.
Kaitlyn Dever shooting “See You When I See You”
Queer actor Kaitlyn Dever came out in high school as her career was in its early days. At 27 she has a long list of solid credits including the teen comedy “Booksmart” and the horror film “No One Will Save You.” And she’s currently working on the latest project from filmmaker Jay Duplass (“Jeff, Who Lives At Home” and “Cyrus”), a dark family comedy-drama called “See You When I See You.” Comedian Adam Cayton-Holland has adapted his own award-winning memoir, “Tragedy Plus Time,” for the project, a story of the impact his younger sister’s suicide had on his family. “See You” will explore that grief and healing process and co-stars David Duchovny, Hope Davis (“Succession”), Cooper Raiff (“Cha Cha Real Smooth”), Lucy Boynton (“Bohemian Rhapsody”) and Ariela Barer (“How To Blow Up a Pipeline”). Look for this one to show up sometime later in 2025.
Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna’s trans drama
Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna, the men from “Y Tu Mama Tambien,” and a million other things, have taken their collective production power and used it for good over and over. This time they’re the producers of a new Argentine film, “Thesis on a Domestication,” from director Javier Van de Couter (“Mia,” “Implosion”). It’s already won the Gold Q-Hugo award at the Chicago International Film Festival and is based on a novel by Argentine trans author and screenwriter Camila Sosa Villada. She stars in the film, as well, alongside Mexican actor Alfonso Herrera (“Ozark”). “Thesis” is the story of a successful Argentine trans actress who becomes involved with a lawyer, eventually marrying him. And though that may sound traditional, nothing that happens fits the usual pattern of domestic life as she demands right to defy every kind of conservative structure. The trailer has dropped online so be on the lookout for this one at an arthouse theater near you.
Romeo San Vicente is probably at an arthouse near you right now.
