Television

Existence is absurd. At least, that’s what Nathan W. Pyle believes. Birthed out of his very cute and very literal comics, Pyle’s upcoming Apple TV + series “Strange Planet” dares to grapple with the oddity that is life and how we all manage to get through it. Since the start of 2019, Pyle has been

Three days after “Big Brother” Season 25 premiered, a controversy has hit the house. On Tuesday night, houseguest Luke Valentine casually dropped the N-word in a conversation captured on the Paramount+ live feed — and now, he has been removed. “Luke violated the ‘Big Brother’ code of conduct and there is zero tolerance in the

Sydney Sweeney would rather play Cassie from “Euphoria” over Olivia from “The White Lotus” because of the character’s “challenging, crazy, deep” nature, she revealed in a game of This or That for Variety Cover Stars presented by Ford.  “Olivia is a fun, snarky character,” Sweeney said. “But Cassie challenges me in so many different ways

Lisa Cloud, the mother of late “Euphoria” actor Angus Cloud, recently shared to Facebook a link to her son’s first casting tapes, which helped him nab a formal audition for the role of Fezco “Fez” O’Neill on the Emmy-winning HBO drama (via Rolling Stone). Angus was just 19-year-old when he was discovered on the street and

Gordon Ramsay’s “MasterChef” has been renewed for a 14th season at Fox ahead of airing its milestone 250th episode Wednesday at 8 p.m. “I cannot believe 250 episodes have flown by since we started this journey in 2010,” Ramsay told Variety. “For me, seeing the growth of home cooking firsthand over the last 13 years

HBO has ordered Sam Mendes and Armando Iannucci’s superhero movie-making comedy “The Franchise” to series. Himesh Patel and Aya Cash star alongside previously announced cast Jessica Hynes, Billy Magnussen, Lolly Adefope, Darren Goldstein, Isaac Powell, Richard E. Grant and Daniel Brühl. Jon Brown (“Succession,” “Avenue 5”) wrote the pilot and serves as showrunner, while Mendes

An investigative documentary on Andrew Tate, the former kickboxer who rose to fame on social media before facing rape and human trafficking charges, is underway at BBC Three. The doc, which has the working title “Andrew Tate: The Man Who Groomed the World?,” promises to take viewers inside the international network of Andrew Tate and

ITV’s evidence during a parliamentary inquiry into the Phillip Schofield scandal has been branded “inconsistent” and “contradictory,” letters reveal today. Earlier this summer ITV boss Carolyn McCall, head of media Kevin Lygo and the network’s general counsel Kyla Mullins appeared before the committee for Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) to discuss Schofield and the events

DOCUMENTARY Fremantle and Ukraine’s STB are teaming on “Power of Talent,” a feature documentary on the lives of previous “Ukraine’s Got Talent” contestants, revealing the obstacles they face amidst the ongoing conflict. The documentary will follow the journeys of Ukrainian acts including Light Balance Kids, Natasha Korotkina and Artem Fesko as they take to various

Beta Film has acquired international distribution rights to “I Know Your Soul,” a new series from Oscar nominee Jasmila Žbanić (“Quo Vadis, Aida?”) that premieres Out of Competition next month at the Venice Film Festival. The six-episode limited series is led by European Film Award-winning actress Jasna Đuričić, who plays Nevena Murtezic, a prosecutor in

Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) will produce its eighth fundraising telecast on Aug. 19 at 8 p.m. ET to raise money for cancer research and treatments. The one hour special, titled “How It Started, How It’s Going,” will acknowledge how SU2C has impacted cancer research over the past 15 years. Founded in 2008, the program

“The Conners” is making its way to off-net syndication, as Tom Werner’s Werner Entertainment has stuck a deal with both Lionsgate Worldwide Television Distribution Group and Debmar-Mercury to distribute the sitcom’s first five seasons (and future seasons as well). “The Conners” will be sold for a fall 2024 launch in domestic syndication. Under the deal,

SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers from the first two episodes of “Only Murders in the Building” Season 3, “The Show Must…” and “The Beat Goes On,” now streaming on Hulu. When “Only Murders in the Building” picks up at the start of Season 3, fans aren’t greeted with the familiar faces of crime-solving trio

Series regular Alexa Davalos will not be returning for Season 5 of CBS’ “FBI: Most Wanted,” Variety has confirmed. Hailing from Dick Wolf, “FBI: Most Wanted” focuses on the Fugitive Task Force, an elite unit that relentlessly pursues and captures the notorious criminals on the Bureau’s Most Wanted list. David Hudgins and Todd Arnow executive

ESPN muscled aside the upstart Barstool Sports and struck a major sports-betting pact with operator Penn Entertainment that will put the Disney-owner sports giant into gaming and wagering in a major way. Under terms of the deal, Penn will pay $1.5 billion in cash to ESPN over a ten-year term and grant ESPN approximately $500

A tough advertising market sent dollars toward Disney’s sports and streaming properties, the company said Tuesday, but not flocking at the same rate to its traditional TV networks. “Overall revenue and volume commitments made in the Upfront are in line with the prior year,” the company said in a statement. Disney secured $9 billion in

Season 2 of “Heartstopper” soared to second place on the Netflix Top 10 during the July 31-Aug. 6 viewing window as fans jumped to reunite with Nick and Charlie. After premiering on the service on Aug. 3, the new installment recorded 6.1 million total views. Just as the new chapter joined the English TV List,

Boutique PR agency Smithhouse Strategy has tapped executive VP Hillary Povar to serve as its chief creative officer, the agency announced Tuesday. Working alongside company founder and CEO Dustin Smith, Povar will continue to handle client services and campaign management while also focusing on strategic efforts and finding new opportunities for Smithhouse.  “As a strategic

In the summer of strikes and labor action, calls for reality TV personalities to form a union are gaining steam. Bethenny Frankel unleashed a storm last month with her unvarnished criticism of Bravo and other unscripted-focused platforms for the way that unscripted stars are treated behind the scenes. Frankel was not shy about detailing what

Hallmark Media president and CEO Wonya Lucas will depart the company at the end of the year. Upon her departure, Lucas will continue to serve on the Hallmark Media board of directors. “I am honored to have led this company and am tremendously proud of the progress we’ve made by creating an evolved entertainment experience

Television and radio personality Tanya Rad has signed with CAA for representation. She continues to be represented by Schreck Rose Dapello & Adams. During the weekdays, she hosts KIIS FM’s “On Air With Ryan Seacrest” and iHeartRadio’s “The Vibe With Tanya Rad & EJ.” Born and raised in Orange County, California, she started working for

“The Long Shadow,” a true crime drama by “Hijack” and “Lupin” creator George Kay, has revealed a stellar cast. Directed by BAFTA-winner director Lewis Arnold (“Sherwood,” “Time,” “Des”) the 7 x 60′ for U.K. broadcaster ITV and streamer ITVX, drama is a depiction of the five-year hunt for serial killer Peter Sutcliffe, focusing on the

Production has kicked off on “A Better Place,” which is produced by Komplizen Serien and Studiocanal Series in Germany. It is the first German TV show to be produced by Studiocanal Series, the German arm of the French production powerhouse. The German production unit is headed by Nicolas Loock. Komplizen Serien, headed by David Keitsch,

Meryl Streep has taken on some transformative roles in her time, but in the third season of “Only Murders in the Building,” the star takes on her biggest stretch yet. In her return to serialized TV, Streep plays Loretta, an actress without a scrap of Streep’s acclaim or success. It’s a part that pushes her

Nexstar reported its second-quarter 2023 earnings Tuesday, revealing the TV stations group giant had turned a profit of $153 million in Q2, while its CW broadcast network posted a loss of $78 million for the April-June quarter. For the CW, which was formally acquired by Nexstar in October 2022 from Paramount Global and Warner Bros.

Fox Corp. relied more heavily on its ability to drive revenue from the transmission of the Fox broadcast network and its Fox stations, as it grappled with downturns in advertising during its fiscal fourth quarter. The owner of Fox News, Fox Sports and the Fox broadcast network said it generated profit of $375 million, or

NBC has long been the home of the popular sports broadcast “Sunday Night Football.” Now it wants to get the word out about football on Saturday nights. Thanks to a new deal that starts in earnest this year, NBC has gained rights to air Big Ten college football games on Saturday nights commencing September 2,

Revenues at Bertelsmann’s Luxembourg-based RTL Group, a media giant which owns Fremantle, slid 5% to €3.1 billion ($3.4 billion) for the first half of 2023, financial results released on Tuesday have revealed. Adjusted EBITA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, and Amortization) was down to down to €250 million compared to €501 million during the same period

MGM+’s “Domina” actress Joelle goes by one name like Madonna and Cher. She steps back in time this season and into a Roman world, post Julius Caesar as Tiberius’ wife Vipsania. In the series, Joelle worked with the hair and makeup team to create a look fitting for the show’s themes, death, manipulation and a

Paramount Global hosted its second-quarter earnings call Tuesday amid the ongoing writers and actors strikes in Hollywood. Just like every other major media company that has reported its Q2 results already, the CBS parent company’s execs addressed the work stoppages with hopes for a timely resolution and comments on how it will affect their business