Month: February 2024

No one was shocked more than Hayden Christensen when he landed the role of Anakin Skywalker in George Lucas’ “Star Wars: Attack of the Clones” and “Star Wars: The Revenge of the Sith.” Christensen was far from the biggest name that Lucasfilm was trying to lure into its galaxy far, far away. When he had
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Dwayne Johnson now officially owns title to the sobriquet “The most electrifying man in sports and entertainment.” The actor and entertainment mogul, who broke out as a WWE star two decades ago, has gained rights to a number of nicknames, insults and catchphrases from his time in the ring in the 90s and early 2000s
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Jack Antonoff has no time for anyone interested in slandering Taylor Swift‘s abilities as a songwriter. The Grammy-winning producer and longtime Swift collaborator recently told the Los Angeles Times that questioning Swift’s songwriting “is like challenging someone’s faith in God. You just don’t go there.” “I’m a little bitch sometimes,” he added. “But you come
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When “Dune: Part One” wrapped, composer Hans Zimmer continued to write more music for the sci-fi epic. He was told to stop, but Zimmer insisted he would carry on, so much so that director Denis Villeneuve would joke that the composer was locked in the studio. Except it wasn’t completely a joke. Like many, Frank
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As expected, layoffs began hitting Universal Music Group almost immediately after the company’s earnings call on Wednesday. The moves, which have been signaled by chairman-CEO Lucian Grainge since last fall, were still evolving at the time of this article’s publication, and follow the broad consolidation of the company’s labels under Interscope (West Coast) and Republic
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Oscar-winning directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, known professionally as Daniels, will debut their cinematic follow-up to “Everything Everywhere All at Once” in 2026. Universal Pictures, which recently signed an exclusive first-look deal with the filmmakers, added to its release calendar an “Untitled Event Film Directed by Daniels” on June 12, 2026. There is zero information
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Shannon Walsh’s documentary “Adrianne & The Castle,” which will make its world premiere at the South by Southwest Film & TV Festival on March 9, tells the love story of Alan St. George and his late wife, Adrianne, via fantastical musical re-enactments. Before her death, St. Georges, a mascot-maker and artist, hand-built Havencrest Castle, a
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SANTA FE, N.M. — The director called “action,” and Alec Baldwin emerged from a wooden shed and advanced toward the camera, firing shots from an old pistol. As soon as he heard “cut,” the actor wanted to do the take again. “One more! One more! One more! Right away!” Baldwin shouted. “Let’s reload!” Hannah Gutierrez
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David Israelite is the president & CEO of the National Music Publishers’ Association, the trade association representing American music publishers and their songwriting partners. Variety welcomes responsible commentary, please send ideas to music@variety.com. Songwriters have always struggled to be treated fairly. Throughout the history of the music industry, the rights of those who compose the lyrics
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“Outer Banks” Season 4 has added five new cast members, Variety has learned. J. Anthony Crane (“Dead Ringers,” “Billions”), Pollyanna McIntosh (“The Walking Dead,” “Double Blind”), Brianna Brown (“Dynasty,” “Eastsiders”), Rigo Sanchez (“Animal Kingdom,” “Station 19”), and Mia Challis (“FBI: International,” “Clickbait”) have all joined the popular adventure drama series in recurring guest star roles.
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The cheating scandal that rocked “Vanderpump Rules” is now being taken to court. Rachel Leviss has filed a lawsuit in L.A. County Superior Court against Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix for eavesdropping, revenge porn, invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Leviss, who was a cast member on the reality show, had a
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Netflix is getting into the medical procedural space, with the streamer announcing a pickup for the drama “Pulse.” The series hails from creator Zoe Robyn, who will also serve as co-showrunner alongside Carlton Cuse. In addition, Justina Machado has been cast in a series regular role. The official logline for the series states, “While the
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Shakira has shared the complete tracklist for her upcoming album “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran,” out March 22. Cardi B will appear on the album’s opening track called “Puntería,” confirming the months-long rumors of an incoming collaboration between the pair of hitmakers. The album also closes with “Puntería (Vinyl Version/Spanish Version),” which appears to be
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Food Network is breaking new ground in the intense culinary competition genre with a series that features 24 chefs taking on 24 food challenges in, you guessed it, 24 consecutive hours. Hosted by Food Network stars and iconic chefs Michael Symon and Esther Choi, “24 in 24: Last Chef Standing” is described as the Warner
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Amazon MGM Studios’ Gato Grande label will launch a new division focused on producing English language series and films sourced from Latin American intellectual properties. Its first project, “Clipperton,” is based on best-selling Colombian author Laura Restrepo’s novel “The Isle of Passion.” “Clipperton” follows the true story of a group of Mexican castaways stranded on
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Scott Speedman has been cast in a lead role of the upcoming Peacock horror thriller series “Teacup,” Variety has learned exclusively. Speedman will now star alongside previously announced cast member Yvonne Strahovski. Inspired by the Robert McCammon novel “Stinger,” the series is said to follow “a disparate group of people in rural Georgia who must
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SiriusXM named industry veteran Sarah van Mosel to the newly created position of senior VP of podcast strategy. It’s a return to SiriusXM for van Mosel, who previously served as chief revenue office at its subsidiary Stitcher. Van Mosel most recently was EVP of iHeartMedia’s iHeart Audience Network audio advertising group. At SiriusXM, she reports
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Fredrik Backman’s bestselling novel “Anxious People” is set to be adapted into a feature film by “The Little Mermaid” screenwriter David Magee. Fredrik Wikström Nicastro’s Hope Studios is producing the project. “’Anxious People’ is a heartwarming and uplifting comedy about a group of strangers that get caught up in an unusual hostage situation on Thanksgiving,”
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Will Forte posted a note to the cast and crew of “Coyote vs. Acme,” four months after Warner Bros. shelved the Looney Tunes comedy after filming was completed. Warner Bros. opted to take a $30 million tax write-off instead of release the film, then later announced it would let the filmmakers shop “Coyote vs. Acme”
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According to a new demographics report released by the Television Academy, there have been significant gains in diversity and representation among new members. The Academy’s membership has grown significantly over the past few years, from 18,686 reported members in 2021 to 23,198 according to the latest report. Of these, 81.4% (or 19,058) of the members
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