Month: January 2021

Daniel Kaluuya’s performance in “Judas and the Black Messiah” has garnered a lot of awards buzz for the actor, who plays Fred Hampton, the iconic Chairman of the Black Panther Party. “It’s not about me,” he told Variety’s Awards Circuit Podcast. “This film is bigger than us. There was something coming through us. It’s hard
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The Oscars were built to highlight the cinematic year’s most audacious and outstanding achievements. Past snubs have left many of the industry’s finest filmmakers, actors and technical artists waiting for their first Dolby Theatre invitation. This year, multiple contenders are angling for an inaugural mention, even though it should be one of many. So who
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Music manager Adam Mersel has brought his Immersive Records label to Interscope Geffen A&M (IGA). First to join the Immersive/Geffen roster is TikTok star LILHUDDY (aka Chase Hudson). The Los Angeles-based Mersel will continue to manage actor and singer Ben Platt. “Adam is a rising executive star with great taste and a remarkably intuitive business
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As promised, Billie Eilish has finally dropped her long-awaited collaboration with Spanish singer Rosalia, “Lo Vas a Olvidar (You Will Forget Her),” is dropping Thursday, Jan. 21, at noon ET / 9 a.m. PT. The song will be part of the HBO hit series “Euphoria”’s “Part Two: Jules’” soundtrack. [embedded content] The episode’s teaser on social
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Spotify and filmmaker Ava DuVernay signed a multiyear deal for a slate of exclusive podcast shows, the latest high-profile podcast pact for the audio streamer. Spotify and DuVernay will develop and produce exclusive original audio programming through Array, DuVernay’s multiplatform arts and social impact collective, in concert with Spotify’s Gimlet studio. The scripted and unscripted
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George Clooney (“The Midnight Sky”) and Michelle Pfeiffer (“French Exit”) sat down for a virtual chat for Variety‘s Actors on Actors, presented by Amazon Studios. For more, click here. In Netflix’s “The Midnight Sky,” George Clooney — also the film’s director and producer — plays dying scientist Augustine Lofthouse. The year is 2049, the setting
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Oscar and BAFTA-nominated writer Steven Knight (“Dirty Pretty Things”) is a busy man these days. Production on the sixth season of his hit series “Peaky Blinders” is underway, to be followed by a film; his take on the Lady Diana story, “Spencer,” starring Kristen Stewart and directed by Pablo Larrain, is due to roll soon;
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ViacomCBS International Studios (VIS) has unveiled a new slate of projects tapping talents as diverse as “Guilt” writer-creator Neil Forsyth, “The Great” writer Vanessa Alexander, “Wild District” originator Cristian Conti and “High School Musical” writer Peter Barsocchini. Underscoring VIS’ ambitions to play in the big league of international local content producer-distributors, both in production volume
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Lady Whistledown has made it official to her readers: “Bridgerton” is back for Season 2. To almost no one’s surprise, Netflix has renewed the hit Shondaland series created by Chris Van Dusen after teasing the news in its fourth-quarter earnings report Tuesday. The announcement, in the form of a cheeky little letter from Whistledown herself
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Late on the day that Lil Wayne officially received his long-rumored pardon from former President Trump, he dropped a new song called “Ain’t Got Time.” While the song’s lyrics don’t specifically address the pardon, he does reference the December 2019 federal weapons charges that were cleared by it. Wayne pleaded guilty to illegal possession of a firearm
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Dallas Martin, the Atlantic Records A&R executive whose successes include records by Roddy Ricch and Meek Mill, has been promoted to executive vice president of A&R at Atlantic and president of Asylum Records, the company announced. Based in Los Angeles, he will dual-report into Eliah Seton, president of independent music & creator services for Atlantic
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Nithin Lukose’s Malayalam-language “Paka: The River of Blood,” Chhatrapal Ninawe’s Marathi-language “Ghaath” (Ambush) and Sreejith Karanavar’s Konkani-language “Aiz Maka Falea Tuka” (Today Me Tomorrow You) were among the winners at India’s Film Bazaar project market that concluded on Thursday. “Paka” and “Ghaath” were presented in the Work in Progress lab strand of the Bazaar, while
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Understanding what audiences want at any given time, creating services that switch seamlessly between linear and VOD, and providing in-app interactivity for live programming are key to attracting audiences, according to a NATPE Miami panel on the subject. First up was Jessica Rodriguez, president of entertainment and chief marketing officer of Spanish-language network Univision, which
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Pluto TV, the free streaming service owned by ViacomCBS Networks International, is set to launch in France on Feb. 8 as it aims to grow its presence further across Europe. The service, which doesn’t require a registration, will boast 40 curated channels for French audiences with a library of content from ViacomCBS brands, as well
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There are two songs that are completely guaranteed to be played over the PA at any 4th of July celebration in America: Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA” and Katy Perry’s “Firework.” Since Greenwood allowed himself to become the closest thing Donald J. Trump had for a house band, there wasn’t much suspense over what
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During his brief appearance in the primetime special honoring his inauguration, President Joe Biden nonetheless insisted that he and Vice President Kamala Harris “wanted to make sure our inauguration wasn’t about us, but about you, the American people.” It was a nice sentiment, even if it wasn’t especially possible to achieve; by default, the first
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