Tech

Who’s ready to learn, sing and play with Ms. Rachel on Netflix? YouTuber and educator Rachel Accurso, aka Ms. Rachel, is set to make her Netflix debut in January. Four 30- to 60-minute episodes of “Ms. Rachel” will be available to stream on Jan. 27, with more episodes launching later this year. The four-episode season

A new true-crime podcast about the theft of iconic Austrian empress Sisi’s diamond in the 1990s is set to launch on Curiouscast later this month. Written by Emma Jane Kirby and hosted by Seren Jones, “A Most Audacious Heist” will introduce listeners to Daniel Blanchard, who in 1998 stole the Star of Empress Sisi, a

TikTok denied a report that China is looking at potentially facilitating a sale of the app to tech billionaire Elon Musk to keep TikTok operational in America amid a looming U.S. government ban. On Monday, Bloomberg reported that “Chinese officials are evaluating a potential option that involves Elon Musk acquiring the US operations of TikTok”

On the heels of the massive success of award-winning indie poker-themed deck-building game “Balatro,” mobile game giant King is getting in on the playing-card trend with the launch of “Candy Crush Solitaire.” Per King’s description for the new “Candy Crush” franchise game, “‘Candy Crush Solitaire‘ offers players a fresh, exciting way to enjoy solitaire by

Meta chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg went on Joe Rogan’s podcast to defend his recent decision to end fact-checking on the internet giant’s platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. “I’ve been working on this for a long time, so, I mean, you’ve got to do what you think is right,” Zuckerberg said on Friday’s episode of

A partnership between licensing startup Lumiere Ventures and AI dubbing startup ElevenLabs is targeting the international cinema market, starting with Sylvester Stallone-starring action film “Armor,” which is set to premiere on Amazon France in March. For nearly 50 years, Alain Dorval has been the French voice of Stallone in dubbed movies. Following Droval’s passing in

is set to headline TikTok‘s second annual Global Live Fest, hosted by Jason Derulo. TikTok’s Global Live Fest will bring together creators from around the world on Jan. 16 in London. It will feature several musical performances from artists who have come up on TikTok Live, headlined by Larsson, who is fresh off the resurgence

From AI to webtoons to advertising and distribution innovations, the discussions featured Jan. 8 at the annual Variety Entertainment Summit at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas ran the gamut of hot topics driving the business of media and entertainment. The daylong conference opened with a panel of top programming executives who weighed in

Will.i.am has a long list of accomplishments as a member of the mega-platinum hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas (“Imma Be,” “Boom Boom Pow,” “I Gotta Feeling”) and a songwriter and producer for superstars including Michael Jackson, Rihanna, Nicky Minaj, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga and U2. But in his conversation with Variety senior entertainment and crafts

Golf media personality and content creator Tisha Alyn will launch her first podcast, “Welcome to the Par-Tee,” with iHeartPodcasts on Jan. 15. “Welcome to the Par-Tee” will be the first women’s golf-focused podcast to join iHeart Women’s Sports, the first-ever audio platform dedicated exclusively to amplifying women’s sports. The podcast will feature interviews with top

Audible has signed Ronan Farrow, the award-winning investigative reporter and bestselling author, to a multi-project deal. Farrow’s first podcast under the pact is slated to premiere this spring. Farrow hosts “Not a Very Good Murderer,” which is described as “a wild, genre-bending investigative podcast.” It will release March 20, 2025, exclusively on Audible as the

The nominations for the 14th annual New York Game Awards were revealed Tuesday. Among the games nominated for the top honor, Big Apple Award for Best Game of the Year, are: “Balatro,” “Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth,” “Astro Bot,” “UFO 50,” “1000xResist,” “Indiana Jones and the Great Circle,” “Metaphor: ReFantazio” and “EA Sports College Football 25.”

Jon Hamm is redonning his fedora for the role of Jack Bergin, an FBI agent turned private investigator, in the new Audible original series “The Big Fix: A Jack Bergin Mystery.” The eight-part series, created by John Mankiewicz and directed by Aaron Lipstadt, is a sequel to Audible’s cinematic audio drama “The Big Lie” from

Discovery+ is increasing the price for both its ad-free and ad-supported tiers by $1. As of Tuesday, the price for the streaming service in the U.S. will be $5.99 for the ad-supported monthly plan and $9.99 a month for the ad-free option. The prices are effective immediately for new customers, while existing subscribers will not

Roku reached more than 90 million streaming households in the first week of the new year. For the third quarter, streaming tech giant Roku reported streaming households of 85.5 million. According to Roku’s Tuesday announcement, it ended 2024 with 89.8 million streaming households, adding the remainder that pushed it over the 90-million mark in the

Meta is replacing its fact-checking systems on Facebook and Instagram with a “community notes” model similar to Elon Musk’s X, Mark Zuckerberg said on Tuesday. In a video message posted on the platforms, Zuckerberg said, “It’s time to get back to our roots around free expression on Facebook and Instagram.” He cited “widespread debate” over

The second season of the HBO and Sony Pictures TV drama “The Last of Us” will launch in April, Sony confirmed Monday during the electronics giant’s presentation at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. During the hourlong press session, Sony officials also disclosed that Columbia Pictures and Sony PlayStation are working on a movie

In a project bringing together multiple Sony businesses, Crunchyroll announced a new anime series adapted from Sucker Punch Productions’ popular “Ghost of Tsushima” video game and its “Legends” cooperative multiplayer experience. The series is slated to premiere exclusively on Crunchyroll in 2027. The announcement was made as part of Sony’s 2025 CES press conference in

Dana White, CEO of mixed martial arts powerhouse UFC — and a good friend of Donald Trump — is joining Meta’s board. Meta announced White’s election to its board of directors Monday, alongside John Elkann, CEO of European investment firm Ekon, and Charlie Songhurst, former head of global corporate strategy at Microsoft. The three additional

Disney announced a deal with pay-TV streaming provider Fubo to combine Hulu + Live TV with Fubo’s operations in a joint venture. Under the deal, Fubo will drop its antitrust lawsuit seeking to derail Venu Sports, the sports-focused streaming package from Disney, Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery. The Hulu subscription video-on-demand service is not

The NAACP is launching original podcast series “Our Culture, Our Stories,” promising intimate and “unfiltered” conversations with an array of media and entertainment luminaries about navigating adversity, celebrating excellence and fostering community strength. Guests appearing in the 12-episode series include: actors Sterling K. Brown, Ryan Michelle Bathé, Hill Harper and Aja Naomi King; comedian Roy

Canela Media has hired media and entertainment veteran exec Philippe Guelton as global president, where he’ll be tasked with leading the Hispanic digital media company’s growth and profitability in the U.S. and international markets. Guelton joins New York-based Canela after his previous employer, Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, shut down after filing for bankruptcy

Kylie Kelce‘s “Not Gonna Lie” podcast made a huge impression when its debut episode hit No. 1 on the Spotify charts, dethroning “The Joe Rogan Experience.” The two podcasts continue to trade between first and second place on Spotify, while Kelce remains in the top spot on the Apple podcasts charts. On her Jan. 2.

Meghan Markle is celebrating the new year by returning to Instagram after a five-year hiatus. The Duchess of Sussex, who along with her husband Prince Harry stepped down from royal duties in January 2020, posted a video on the new account @meghan on Wednesday. The caption-less clip shows Markle, clad in all-white, frolicking on the

Apple is hoping those who don’t subscribe to Apple TV+ will ring in 2025 by binge-watching some of its original TV shows and movies — free for anyone with an Apple ID for three days. The full Apple TV+ catalog will be free to stream to users worldwide the first weekend of the year (from

The Palestinian Authority has shut down the operations of Qatar-based news network Al Jazeera in the West Bank, according to local reports. In a statement, Al Jazeera condemned Fatah, the Palestinian Authority ruling party in the West Bank, for what it described as an “incitement campaign” against the news organization and its reporters. The ban

Netflix‘s rookie start as an NFL media partner — so far — hasn’t drawn any flags. The streamer’s first Christmas Day game, Kansas City Chiefs vs. Pittsburgh Steelers, commenced at 1 p.m. ET, following two hours of pregame coverage. Next up is Baltimore Ravens-Houston Texans (starting at 4:30 p.m. ET), with superstar Beyoncé taking the

Liz Plank, who co-hosts “The Man Enough” podcast with Justin Baldoni, announced her resignation on Monday after Blake Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and launching a smear campaign against her. “I’m writing to you today to let you know that I have had my representatives inform Wayfarer that I will no longer be co-hosting

The second season of “Squid Game” launches Thursday and Netflix is doing everything in its power to get viewers to start watching as soon as the episodes drop — including offering free in-game rewards for the TV series’ new companion mobile game, “Squid Game: Unleashed,” for each episode you binge. Released Dec. 17, “Squid Game:

Ring in the new year with a fresh slate of releases on Disney+, including “Goosebumps: The Vanishing,” the next season of Disney’s “Goosebumps” anthology series starring David Schwimmer. For nature lovers, National Geographic’s “A Real Bug’s Life” returns for Season 2, while true crime devotees can sink their teeth into “Gypsy Rose: Life After Lockup.”