The Flash may be losing a father, but the Scarlet Speedster is gaining a mother. Maribel Verdú has been cast as Barry Allen’s mom in “The Flash,” a character that’s expected to play a pivotal part in the upcoming comic book adventure. At the same time, Billy Crudup is departing the project and will no
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If the Grammys had a dress code this year, it might be: Wear your cardigan to the disco. It’s sweater weather, but also the season of the Studio 54 minidress, as Taylor Swift and Dua Lipa look likeliest to make headlines for picking up top honors Sunday night after the close of the Grammys. The
Breaking News Elizabeth Holmes won’t be standing trial in July — instead, she’ll be giving birth, so prosecutors are hitting the pause button on criminal proceedings. According to new legal docs, prosecutors and her defense team agreed to postpone Holmes’ trial after the Theranos founder revealed she’s pregnant and due in July. That’s also when
It’s no secret that for the past several years, the most adventurous and innovative music in the rock and alternative spaces has largely been made by female artists — something that is reflected in the Grammy nominees for those categories this year, particularly the all-female Best Rock Performance category, which comprises Fiona Apple, Big Thief,
L. Scott Caldwell will star in Blumhouse and Amazon’s “Bingo,” the latest thriller on the “Welcome to the Blumhouse” slate. The Tony Award-winning actor, known for her roles as Rose in “Lost” and in “The Fugitive” will star as Delores, the “witty, loyal and tough grandmother” at the center of “Bingo’s” story. Caldwell joins previously
Oscar winner Viola Davis will receive the Icon Award from the African American Film Critics Assn. during the 12th annual AAFCA awards on April 7. Previous recipients of AAFCA’s Icon Award are Sidney Poitier and Kenya Barris. Announcing the honor, AAFCA president Gil Robertson said: “Viola Davis has excelled in every single format available to
Eliane Raheb’s documentaries stress that stories are never black and white, and what people say may be an unconscious reflection of what they want their interlocutor to believe rather than what is factually true. With “Miguel’s War” she goes one step further, diving headfirst into the role of prodding psychologist to coax out a heap
Another week, another step toward the world as we knew it before COVID-19, thanks to nationwide vaccination efforts and the gradual reopening of theaters. A week after New York cinemas cautiously reopened, Los Angeles plans to do the same, and distributors are serving up movies they’d kept on the sidelines to serve the venues that
“Life Is Beautiful” is hopeful — very hopeful — that life will be carefree for festival-goers by September, when Las Vegas will host what could be the first major post-quarantining music festival in the West. Ticket buyers returned that optimism in major numbers by selling out three-day passes for the annual festival “in record time”
A special-purpose acquisition corporation targeting tech, media and telecom firms led by two former senior Disney execs — Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer — raised $350 million in its upsized initial public offering. The SPAC, Forest Road Acquisition Corp. II, is led by Staggs (former Disney COO) and Mayer (previously chairman of Disney’s Direct-to-Consumer and
“Think about Michael Jackson’s stake in music publishing,” says Nick Jarjour, global head of song management for Hipgnosis. “How much would his half of Sony/ATV have been worth if we were using today’s valuations?” The answer to his hypothetical question, without adjusting for inflation, is that the $95 million Jackson got for selling 50% of
Netflix’s new test to verify subscription credentials of users — and convert password freeloaders into paying customers — could help the global streamer grow its subscriber count, according to a Wall Street analyst. “We view any potential password crackdowns as tailwind and Netflix is in a strong position to continue price increases in 2021,” Bank
This past year in entertainment has been a patchwork quilt of oddities, cobbled together with ingenuity, impressive wit and grim determination. While it was tempting to retreat into the old and familiar (I can’t tell you how many times I watched “Sex and the City” all the way through — literally, I lost count), some
Since 1996, The SAG Awards have been honoring the art of the ensemble, both in film and in comedy/drama categories in television. In 2008, they also added stunt ensemble categories for both film and television. Variety editors Clayton Davis and Jenelle Riley break down this year’s film nominees. On the stunt side, nominees include “Da
Pour one out for the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. “Avengers: Endgame,” the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink Marvel superhero blockbuster, is poised to relinquish its title as the highest-grossing movie in history to “Avatar,” the previous record-holder. Prior to the release of “Endgame” in April 2019, James Cameron’s groundbreaking sci-fi epic held the ultimate box office crown for a decade
In a still-young 2021, the ubiquity of Nick Jonas is stunning. Along with coaching duties on NBC’s singing competition “The Voice,” Jonas has already appeared as host and guest of “Saturday Night Live,” will release his Lionsgate film “Chaos Walking” momentarily, is prepping for the role of Frankie Valli in a streaming theater version of
Will Forte is attached to star in a drama series in development at Peacock from Harry and Jack Williams. Titled “Expiration Date,” the series is described as a dark suburban soap about Robin (Forte), who, consumed by grief, finds a life insurance policy that covers suicide, provided that the individual doesn’t carry out the deed
Kristin Dodson has been cast as a series regular in the upcoming Kevin Iso and Dan Perlman co-created comedy series for Showtime, “Flatbush Misdemeanors,” Variety has learned exclusively. The premium network made a straight-to-series order of the 10-episode half-hour comedy from the “High Fidelity” and “That’s My Bus!” comedians and writers last October. The show, which
HBO Max has given a first season order to the revival of Fremantle’s hit comedy game show “Tattletales,” hosted and executive produced by Ayesha and Stephen Curry. The series will bring together celebrity couples to reveal insights about their relationships through challenges and games. “Ayesha and Stephen put a fresh new spin on a classic
Holly Robinson Peete, one of the original hosts of CBS’ “The Talk,” has resurfaced claims that her co-host Sharon Osbourne complained Peete was too “ghetto” for the show, resulting in Peete’s dismissal. Peete and fellow host Leah Remini were released from “The Talk” after its first season in 2011. “I’m old enough to remember when
With the Grammy Awards coming up on Sunday, it’s remarkable that interim Recording Academy president/CEO Harvey Mason, jr. has time to talk with the press — although that could have been said at virtually any point in the past 14 months. Suddenly dropped into the job after Deborah Dugan’s surprise ouster in January, Mason has
Associated Newspapers, publisher of U.K. tabloid the Daily Mail, has written to ViacomCBS over alleged distortion of newspaper headlines in the bombshell Oprah Winfrey interview with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Variety has confirmed. In a letter obtained by Variety that was also sent to OWN and ITV, Associated Newspapers wrote to CBS head of
“The Daily Show” host Trevor Noah is developing and may star in a remake of “The President’s Analyst,” the 1967 political satire that starred James Coburn as the Oval Office’s resident psychiatrist. Paramount Pictures will back the film. Noah will have a critical helping hand when it comes to navigating White House life. Pat Cunnane,
Producer and songwriter Louis Bell, who has worked extensively with Post Malone, says a key aspect of his creative process is assessing his own visceral reaction. “Whether it’s using every sound I’ve wanted to use or making that sound sound special to me, and when I play it back, do I keep getting that same
Exclusive Sebastian Telfair‘s sister just fessed up in court and admitted to threatening to kill the ex-NBA star’s estranged wife — and now, she’s facing up to 5 years in prison over it all. Octavia Telfair had been arrested in May 2019 after federal investigators said she spewed vile threats toward Samantha Telfair. Prosecutors claimed
“Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” is officially in production, Paramount Plus announced Friday. The announcement came in the form a video featuring series leads Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, and Ethan Peck, as well as newly added series regulars Babs Olusanmokun, Christina Chong, Celia Rose Gooding, Jess Bush, and Melissa Navia. The full announcement can be
Apple TV Plus has ordered a docuseries from the team behind “McMillion$,” Emmy-nominated filmmakers James Lee Hernandez and Brian Lazarte, about the memorable 1996 TV commercial that advertised a Harrier Jet in exchange for seven million Pepsi points. Hernandez and Lazarte will direct and executive produce “The Jet” through their FunMeter banner. The Jet” will
Director Michael Polish has been sued for allegedly assaulting a member of the crew during a production in Montana last fall. Jack Renner, an art director based in Washington, D.C., was hired to work on a project entitled “Bring on the Dancing Horses.” Renner alleges that shortly after he arrived, he and Polish had a
AT&T has refined its pitch to Wall Street on the rationale for owning WarnerMedia. As it approaches the third anniversary of completing its $85.4 billion acquisition of Time Warner, the telco giant held an Investor Day presentation Friday morning that was long on talk of “software-based entertainment” and global subscriber predictions for the next four
For Jhené Aiko, a Grammy nominee in three categories, songwriting and healing are cosmically connected. No, really: For her album of the year contender “Chilombo,” the 32-year-old singer-songwriter incorporated crystal sound bowls or “singing bowls” — a Tibetan tradition in which the round vessels, when played, vibrate at a certain frequency connected to a chakra — into