Month: January 2023

Sade Adu, Snoop Dogg, Gloria Estefan, Electric Light Orchestra mastermind Jeff Lynne, Alanis Morrisette collaborator Glen Ballard, New Jack Swing icon Teddy Riley and Taylor Swift collaborator Liz Rose will be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame at the organization’s 52nd annual Induction and Awards Gala. The event is scheduled for Thursday, June 15, at its longtime
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Aubrey Plaza is making her “Saturday Night Live” hosting debut this weekend with musical guest Sam Smith, but it’s not the first time Plaza has been in the orbit of the long-running NBC sketch comedy series. While on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” Plaza revealed that she auditioned for “SNL” back in the day
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GLAAD has announced the nominees for its 34th annual GLAAD Media Awards, with Variety earning two nods for outstanding print article (Angelique Jackson’s piece on Aunjanue Ellis) and magazine overall coverage. Other nominees include “A League of Their Own,” “Abbott Elementary,” “Anything’s Possible” and “Bros.” GLAAD is the largest LGBTQ media advocacy group, and its
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Australian writer Kodie Bedford has signed with CAA for representation.  Bedford co-wrote, executive produced, and script produced ABC series “All My Friends Are Racist,” which won Best Short Form Comedy at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards in 2021. Created and co-written by Enoch Mailangi, the show follows Casey and Belle who live together and
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Palestinian-American comedian Mo Amer (“Mo,” “Ramy,” “Black Adam”) will host of the next season of the televised debate series Doha Debates. The series is an entertaining, educational tool funded by the non-profit Qatar Foundation. Filmed in front of a live studio audience in Qatar’s Education City, each episode of the Doha Debates show will feature a
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 Lisa Joy, the Emmy-nominated writer, director and executive producer (“Pushing Daisies,” “Westworld”), is set to preside over this year’s Series Mania Festival and its international competition. Joy is best known as the co-creator, writer, director, and executive producer of the HBO science-fiction drama series “Westworld” which earned 54 Emmy nominations for its first three seasons. She recently produced “The Peripheral,” the
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Fatima Salaria, managing director of Fremantle’s Naked Television, which has produced shows including “Planet Sex With Cara Delevingne,” is stepping down from the role. Salaria has led the company since moving over from Channel 4, where she was head of specialist factual, in 2020. She will step down this spring while Naked looks to appoint
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Sepideh Farsi’s “La Sirène” (“The Siren”) is opening the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama strand. The program, which comprises 35 films from 30 countries, including 28 world premieres and 11 debuts, includes new films by Patric Chiha, İlker Çatak, Frauke Finsterwalder, Maite Alberdi, Milad Alami and Apolline Traoré. They feature a galaxy of well-known protagonists and actors
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Paris-based sales company Indie Sales has boarded Swedish-Iranian filmmaker Milad Alami ’s sophomore feature “Opponent” ahead of the film’s premiere at the Berlinale. The banner has unveiled the trailer (below) for the movie which will bow in the Panorama section. “Opponent” is headlined by popular Iranian actor Payman Maadi, who previously starred in Asghar Farhadi’s
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Somesuch, the company behind Riz Ahmed’s Oscar-winning live action short “The Long Goodbye,” is launching a feature film division, Variety can exclusively reveal. The new division, which will focus on film development and production, will be headed by BAFTA-winning producer Scott O’Donnell (“Surge,” “Home”). Among the first feature-length productions they are working on is Leo
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Pluto Film has boarded Giovanni Bucchieri’s debut feature “100 Seasons,” set to world premiere in Intl. Film Festival Rotterdam’s coveted Tiger Competition later this month. “The film immediately caught us with its honesty, originality, and sensitivity. It offers a colorful mix of passion, tenderness and romance,” Daniela Cölle, CEO and acquisitions head, says. Produced by
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Kristin Chenoweth has opened up about “long-standing injuries” that she received on the production of CBS’ “The Good Wife” in 2012. Chenoweth’s comments came during an interview on “Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen” on Monday. The actor joined the program to promote her new book, “I’m No Philosopher, But I Got Thought,” in
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Nickelodeon Animation Studios has agreed to voluntarily recognize 177 production workers as members of the Animation Guild, avoiding the need for an NLRB election. The Animation Guild — also known as IATSE Local 839 — already represents about 400 artistic workers at Nickelodeon, including storyboard artists, character designers and writers. The new members include production
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At 5 p.m. PT, voting for the 95th Academy Awards nominations closed. It seems mundane, but we venture into the unknown each year, trying to determine the tastes of over 9,500 Academy members. I’ve had dozens of conversations with voters, industry experts and awards strategists, trying to determine which way the Academy could be leaning
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If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. You can now watch “The Fabelmans” from home. After hitting theaters in November, the Steven Spielberg film is now available to purchase digitally on Prime Video, Vudu and Google Play Movie for $19.99. The
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Three young stars will round out the A-list cast of Oscar winner Todd Haynes’ new drama “May December.”  Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman anchor the intense portrait of the scandalous romance of an older woman (Moore) and her young employee (Charles Melton). Almost 20 years after the affair made headlines, the couple are preparing to
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Lil Yachty has revealed the artwork and release date for his forthcoming album, “Let’s Start Here,” set to debut Jan. 27 on Quality Control Music and Motown Records. Ever the provocateur, the rapper’s new cover art previews an AI-generated image of what seems to be seven executives sitting next to each other in suits. With
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SZA’s “SOS” holds at No. 1 on Billboard’s album chart for a fifth consecutive week, accomplishing more than one notable victory on the way. Fueled by the release of a new music video for “Kill Bill,” a track inspired by Quentin Tarantino’s female-fronted martial arts movies, “SOS” collects the equivalent of 125,000 album units sold
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Bruce Gowers, the Emmy award-winning director of “American Idol: The Search for a Superstar” and the original video for “Bohemian Rhapsody,” died Jan. 15 in his Santa Monica home after suffering from an acute respiratory infection, according to family members. He was 82. Between 2002 and 2011, Gowers directed 234 episodes of “American Idol” over
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