It’s been more than a decade since Tim Blake Nelson directed a feature, enough time that his other career has almost overshadowed how serious a filmmaker he is. Since 2015’s “Anesthesia,” Nelson has remained ubiquitous as an actor, working with filmmakers including the Coen brothers, Steven Spielberg, Denis Villeneuve, Guillermo del Toro, Brady Corbet, and Mona Fastvold.

Continue reading Tim Blake Nelson On ‘The Life And Deaths Of Wilson Shedd’ & Why Ethan Coen Told Him, “Jesus, You Went There” at The Playlist.

For every career-altering role an actor lands, others narrowly slip away—and some opportunities unravel before a role is even discussed. Matthew McConaughey experienced both while emerging as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars in the late 1990s: he auditioned for “Titanic,” and later became so intimidated during dinner with Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, and John Malkovich that he left convinced he had blown his chance to work with the filmmaking brothers.

Continue reading Matthew McConaughey Says He Never Turned Down ‘Titanic’ & Recalls “Blowing” His Chance With The Coen Brothers at The Playlist.

The second installment of Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke‘s lesbian genre trilogy, “Honey Don’t!,” hits theaters this weekend. After the odd-couple road trip caper of last year’s “Drive-Away Dolls,” this one, also starring Margaret Qualley, is a neo-noir detective movie, albeit one tinged with Coen and Cooke’s kinky screwball touches. As for the trilogy capper? The duo hinted at what it’ll be on Deadline’s “Crew Call” podcast.

Continue reading Ethan Coen & Tricia Cooke Say Next Lesbian Genre Trilogy Film Is A Horror Movie About A Women’s Crew Team at The Playlist.

What’s the official story on the Coen Brothers and their split after 2018’s “The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs“? According to Ethan Coen, it wasn’t anything acrimonious at all, but instead him taking a break. And yes, they’ll reteam soon, but there’s no official timetable for that yet.

READ MORE: ‘Honey Don’t!’ Review: Margaret Qualley Sleuths, Seduces & Struts Through Ethan Coen’s Shaggy, Lesbian Noir-Comedy [Cannes]

Ethan clarified why he and his brother Joel have been working separately for the past several years on the latest edition of Deadline’s “Crew Call” podcast, available to stream now.

Continue reading Ethan Coen Says His Temporary Retirement Split Coens, But He’s Written A Script With Joel & Looking For Schedules To Align at The Playlist.

The opening credits of Ethan Coen’s “Honey Don’t!” walk us through the derelict corners of Bakersfield, California, a small, rugged town where news spreads fast — and gossip even quicker. Cutting through the streets in a bright blue open-top Camaro is Margaret Qualley’s Honey O’Donahue, a too-cool-for-school private investigator whose work mainly comprises catching cheating partners and keeping up with small-time crooks and no-gooders. When a dead woman is found inside a car in a clearly staged accident, the resolute detective goes on a journey that will lead her to the door of a suspicious local church and an even more suspicious criminal network within. 

READ MORE: Cannes 2025 Most Anticipated Films: ‘Sentimental Value,’ ‘Eddington,’ ‘Die My Love’

Carl Perkins’ titular classic song — although the film goes for Wanda Jackson’s rendition and its rockabilly swagger – goes “let me know, honey, how you feel.

Continue reading ‘Honey Don’t!’ Review: Margaret Qualley Sleuths, Seduces & Struts Through Ethan Coen’s Shaggy, Lesbian Noir-Comedy [Cannes] at The Playlist.

While the Coen Brothers seemingly “broke up” a few years ago (though technically untrue and they are already plotting a reunion), the younger Ethan Coen has been the most prolific of the two siblings. Having directed three films in four years, though barely a soul saw his Jerry Lee Lewis documentary in 2022, Ethan follows up last year’s “Drive-Away Dolls” with a new detective dark comedy called “Honey Don’t!”

READ MORE: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2025 

And the filmmaker apparently loved his “Drive-Away Dolls” star Margaret Qualley because she once again leads, “Honey Don’t!”

Featuring the excellent cast of Qualley, Aubrey Plaza, Charlie Day, Billy Eichner, and Chris Evans, the movie is a dark comedy about Honey O’Donahue, a small-town private investigator, who delves into a series of strange deaths tied to a mysterious church.

Continue reading ‘Honey Don’t!’ Teaser Trailer: Ethan Coen’s New Cannes-Bound Comedy Stars Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza & Chris Evans  at The Playlist.

Yesterday, sixteen new titles were added to the 2025 Cannes Film Festival lineup, including Ethan Coen’s “Honey, Don’t!” But now, thanks to distributor Focus Features, fans know when Coen’s latest dark comedy hits theaters.

READ MORE: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2025

“Honey Don’t!” arrives in multiplexes on August 22 after its world premiere in the Midnight Screenings section at Cannes. The comedy stars Margaret Qualley as Honey O’Donahue, a detective in Bakersfield, California, who investigates a series of strange deaths connected to a mysterious church.

Continue reading ‘Honey Don’t!’: Ethan Coen’s New Comedy Hits Theaters On August 22 After Its 2025 Cannes World Premiere at The Playlist.

While the world awaits the imminent Coen Brothers reunion (reportedly a horror film!), Ethan Coen is busy at work with partner Tricia Cooke on their second film together, “Honey Don’t!.” The film’s in production now, and Deadline reports that Coen & Cooke had added a slew of new names to their cast list. Among the new players? “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia” Charlie Day and comedian Billy Eichner, among others.  

Continue reading ‘Honey Don’t!: Ethan Coen & Tricia Cooke’s Upcoming Comedy Adds Charlie Day, Billy Eichner & More at The Playlist.

It’s apparently time to rejoice for those who thought the Coen Brothers had forsaken them and broken up for good. In a new Associated Press interview promoting “Drive-Away Dolls,” Ethan Coen confirms reports that he’s going to make a horror movie with his brother Joel Coen after he makes his next movie, “Honey Don’t.”

“We talked about it for a long time, but we hadn’t actually written anything,” Coen said, the AP describing it as a horror film that they wrote fresh, not from an old screenplay.

Continue reading The Coen Brothers Will Reteam For A Horror Film After Ethan Coen’s Next Movie’ Honey Don’t!’ at The Playlist.

Who are the winners and losers in the SAG-AFTRA strike post-mortem? It might be a bit simplistic but given the box office for films like “The Marvels” that didn’t have its cast to help promote it, and all the studios that pushed some of their projects into 2024, giving them a bit more runaway to work with, you could argue the winners are all those who waited out the strike. Take Focus Features.

Continue reading ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Trailer: Ethan Coen’s New Comedy Caper With Margaret Qualley & Geraldine Viswanathan Arrives This Month at The Playlist.

Last week, Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke, the co-writer of Coen’s upcoming “Drive-Away Dolls” film, led a Master Class in conversation with critic Kaleem Aftab for the audience at the Tromos International Film Festival in Norway.

And according to the Norwegian site Montages, near the end of the conversation,  Coen revealed that he and Joel have written a new script together (something that Coen already said a week ago).

Continue reading Ethan & Joel Coen Reportedly Working On A “Pure Horror” Film at The Playlist.

Ethan Coen’s first feature-length narrative feature outside of work with his brother Joel Coen isn’t even out yet (“Drive-Away Dolls”), but the filmmaker is already charting his next movie. The dark comedy, “Honey Don’t!,” will star Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza, and Chris Evans. Co-written with Coen’s wife and new creative partner Tricia Cooke, the film will be the second in what’s been described as a lesbian comedy trilogy.

Continue reading Ethan Coen’s ‘Honey Don’t!’ Will Star Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza & Chris Evans at The Playlist.

Last summer, news broke that the Coen Brothers were reuniting after a five-year hiatus. Granted, the “news” there was Ethan Coen‘s throwaway comment to Empire while discussing his upcoming “Driveaway Dolls” that the brothers planned to work on an upcoming feature together. And now here’s a new, similar throwaway comment to Empire that puts those plans into focus. Ethan told the outlet that he and Joel are “working on writing something” but didn’t disclose what it was.

Continue reading Ethan Coen Confirms He And Joel Are “Working On Writing Something” Together at The Playlist.

After fives years apart, it looks like The Coen Bros. are finally reunited. /Film reports (via Empire magazine) that Ethan Coen confirmed in a new interview that he and brother Joel Coen plan to work on a feature together soon. Will it be their next project? Ethan remained coy on that, instead focusing on his upcoming lesbian road comedy “Drive-Away Dolls,” which he co-wrote (and co-directed) with his wife, Tricia Cooke.

Continue reading Ethan Coen Says He’s Reuniting With His Brother Joel For An Upcoming Project Together at The Playlist.

While it was sad when it was initially revealed that Joel and Ethan Coen, aka the Coen Brothers, would be taking a break from making movies together to focus on solo outings, what has happened is really interesting. Not only are we getting twice the Coen goodness, with both making films of their own, but we’re seeing just how different each approaches their solo work. For Joel Coen, his first directorial outing is “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” a serious black-and-white drama where he adapts one of Shakespeare’s greatest works.

Continue reading Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Will Be The First Film In A “Lesbian B-Movie Trilogy” at The Playlist.

Will The Coen Brothers ever make a film together again? That remains to be seen. But they’re both doing their own thing right now, with Joel Coen directing “Macbeth” and Ethan Coen focusing on theaters and made the doc “Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble In Mind” with the help of his wife Tricia Cooke. Now Ethan and Cooke team up for another film, Ethan’s first feature without his brother: “Drive-Away Dolls.”

READ MORE: The 100 Most Anticipated Films Of 2023

In the upcoming comedy, Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan star as two friends who embark on an impromptu road trip to Florida that gets out of hand fast.

Continue reading ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Trailer: Ethan Coen’s Road Trip Comedy With Margaret Qualley & Geraldine Viswanathan Hits Theaters This September at The Playlist.

Twenty-five years on, The Dude still abides. And Jeff Bridges would abide by a sequel to the 1998 cult classic, but only if the Coen Brothers direct it.

READ MORE: Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Tops Focus Features CinemaCon Previews

IndieWire (via People) reports that the actor would agree to a follow-up to “The Big Lebowski,” with one condition: Joel and Ethan Coen both return to helm it.

Continue reading Jeff Bridges Would Play The Dude Again In A ‘Big Lebowski’ Sequel But Only If The Coen Brothers Direct at The Playlist.

So, the Coen Brothers have “broken up,” gone their own way, and aren’t making films anymore, right? One imagines the truth is more nuanced and complicated than that. Take Carter Burwell, their longtime composer. He said Ethan Coen doesn’t “want To make movies anymore,” and Joel Coen himself said last year that “none of the decisions are definitive.” It sounds like they’re taking a break from one another in the meantime?

Continue reading Ethan Coen’s ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Starring Margaret Qualley & Geraldine Viswanathan, Lands Sept 22 Release & Adds Matt Damon & Pedro Pascal at The Playlist.

Last year, we saw Joel Coen take the first step out on his own, typically only ever working as a director with his brother, Ethan Coen. That film, “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” was acclaimed by critics and eventually earned three Oscar nominations. Ethan Coen, who seemingly was leaving film behind to focus on theatre, has decided to try the solo filmmaking path for himself, and he’s found the two stars to lead his cast. 

Continue reading Margaret Qualley & Geraldine Viswanathan To Lead The Cast Of Ethan Coen’s Upcoming Film at The Playlist.

It probably says something, in spite of their public comments to the contrary, about the severity of the Coen Brothers’ break-up that each of them has proceeded to make a movie that you not only can’t imagine them making together, but that is so easily classifiable — after all, “Shakespeare adaptation” and “musical bio-doc” are two of the most venerable film types of today. The only genre you could safely consign them to before now was their own; they made “Coen Brothers movies,” and everyone knew what that meant, even if they couldn’t precisely pinpoint it.

Continue reading ‘Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in Mind’ Review: Ethan Coen Makes His Solo Debut With A Surprisingly Anonymous Bio-Doc [Cannes] at The Playlist.

One of the topics that dominated the “The Tragedy of Macbeth” press circuit was Ethan Coen‘s absence from the film. With Joel Coen going solo, the decades-long partnership between the Coen Brothers seemed to have reached an inglorious conclusion. Granted, the narrative that emerged was less one of familial tension than industry fatigue. Joel indicated in interviews that his brother would have had no interest in making a Shakespeare adaptation, while long-time collaborator Carter Burwell – who scored “The Tragedy of Macbeth” – went so far as to say that Ethan “just didn’t want to make movies anymore.”

READ MORE: Cannes Film Festival 2022 Preview: 25 Must-See Films To Watch

Until he did.

Continue reading Ethan Coen On The Coen Brothers Split: “None Of The Decisions Are Definitive.” at The Playlist.

Last we heard, directing siblings Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, collectively known as The Coen Brothers, were going their separate ways. However, at the time, while Joel Coen was putting the finishing touches on “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” starring Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand, it appeared that Ethan Coen was done with movies altogether. According to longtime composer Carter Burwell, Ethan, didn’t “want to make movies anymore” and was shifting to the theater.

Continue reading Ethan Coen Sets Untitled Solo Film Project At Focus & Working Title at The Playlist.

While the fact that Joel Coen has ventured off by himself to craft the new Apple TV+ film, “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” might be surprising to some, considering he worked the past 40-ish years alongside his brother Ethan, that doesn’t mean there’s any sort of bad blood between the two brothers. That said, Joel Coen does admit that he would have never had the chance to make ‘Macbeth’ if he continued his relationship with Ethan.

Continue reading Joel Coen Wouldn’t Have Made ‘Macbeth’ If He Was Still Working With Ethan Coen at The Playlist.

When it was announced that Joel Coen was going solo to direct his first feature film without his brother Ethan Coen, with “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” people were surprised. Did this mean the end of the Coen Brothers, one of the best filmmaking duos of all time? Or was this just a one-off project that would act as a placeholder until the duo could combine forces once again?

Continue reading ‘Tragedy Of Macbeth’: Joel Coen Talks About The “Weird” Situation Of Making A Film Without His Brother at The Playlist.

Inquiring minds have been asking quietly for months: why is only Joel Coen credited for “The Tragedy Of Macbeth,” starring Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand, and what is going on with the Coen Brothers? Well, according to an interview with Coen Brothers composer Carter Burwell — who started his career with the siblings in 1984 with “Blood Simple,” and has worked on every one of their films except for “O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Continue reading Are The Coen Brothers Done? Longtime Collaborator Carter Burwell Says Ethan Coen Doesn’t “Want To Make Movies Anymore” at The Playlist.