Television

Bob Odenkirk is trading Cinnabon for Italian beef, as the “Better Call Saul” star has joined Season 2 of FX’s delicious hit dramedy series “The Bear,” Variety has learned exclusively from sources. Character details for Odenkirk are being kept under wraps, but the actor is said to be boarding the show in a guest role.

Fresh off of her turn in Amazon’s “Swarm,” Heather Alicia Simms has joined Gabourey Sidibe’s “1266” pilot at Onyx Collective as a recurring guest star. She’ll portray Lashanna. According to her official character description, Lashanna is Imagine Inc.’s most dichotomous employee: a phone sex worker who is a very religious Christian with quite conservative views

Years after she released her series “Dummy” on the now-defunct Quibi, Cody Heller decided to go into her next project without expectations. In doing so, she’s had her mind blown by the positive reaction she saw online as people received her latest work, “Jury Duty.” Starring James Marsden, the documentary-style comedy takes one unsuspecting civilian

Frank Agrama, founder and chairman of Harmony Gold, died on Tuesday. He was 93. Agrama’s career as an entertainment pioneer saw him founding several production companies including the Film Association of Rome and then Harmony Gold, which launched television series such as “Shaka Zulu” and “Robotech.” He was born on Jan. 1, 1930, and became

SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers from the final season of “Workin’ Moms,” now streaming on Netflix. After seven seasons and more than 80 episodes, “Workin’ Moms” has retired: The seventh and final season hit Netflix on April 26. Creator, writer, sometimes director and star Catherine Reitman knew she wanted to end the series while crafting

Priyanka Chopra Jonas admits she’d rather not do stunt work if given the choice. “I didn’t want to do my stunts,” she says of her new action-packed spy series, “Citadel.” But the acting veteran is a victim of her own success. “I trust myself to do it,” Chopra Jonas tells me. “The mandate from the

NBC’s “The Office” ended after nine seasons and 201 episodes in May 2013, about seven years before the COVID pandemic disrupted jobs around the world. In a new interview on “The Drew Barrymore Show” (via Entertainment Weekly), cast member Rainn Wilson said it would’ve been a thrill to do pandemic-themed episodes of the sitcom. Wilson,

Amazon has acquired the animated film “Merry Little Batman” after it was previously scrapped at HBO Max. “Merry Little Batman” has been picked up alongside the spinoff series, “Bat-Family.” The acquisitions follow the previously announced two-season order for “Batman: Caped Crusader,” which was similarly axed at HBO Max in 2022. “We are excited to partner

WME has hired Carly Frankel as an agent in the digital department and Samantha Korn as an agent in the talent department focused on comedy, Variety has learned exclusively. Frankel will focus on the agency’s podcasting business, including the comedy, personal development, and narrative nonfiction verticals. Prior to joining WME, she was senior development executive

“Saint X,” Alexis Schaitkin’s acclaimed 2020 novel, has roiling depth beneath its placid surface, much like the pristine waters of the Caribbean island where it takes place. The body of a young American girl washes ashore in those tropical tides, and because her death incites the story, “Saint X” initially cuts the figure of a

It’s an idea that would make any news executive salivate. What if MSNBC revived CNN’s old “Crossfire” show, enlisting Tucker Carlson from the right and Don Lemon from the left? Such a concept would normally be unthinkable. Tucker Carlson is known for his work on Fox News. Don Lemon has long held forth for CNN.

As Carol Burnett turns 90, she bristles at the idea of looking back at her legacy. She’s not one to watch old episodes of her iconic “The Carol Burnett Show,” for example. “I’m not like Norma Desmond,” she quips, referring to the fading star in “Sunset Boulevard.” “The only time I do it is if

Tubi founder and CEO Farhad Massoudi is stepping down as Fox Corporation is forming the Tubi Media Group led by Paul Cheesbrough. Massoudi will remain with Tubi through a transition period until the end of June. A new CEO of Tubi Streaming will be announced at a later date. “Our strategic acquisition of Tubi in

“Neighbors” co-stars Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne are reuniting on the small screen for the new Apple TV+ comedy series “Platonic.” In the new series, Rogen and Byrne play Will and Sylvia, two former BFFs approaching midlife who attempt to rekindle their friendship after a falling out. According to the show’s official logline, Will and

Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino have scored a two-season order for a series set in the world of ballet at Amazon, Variety has learned. Titled “Étoile,” the series will take place in both New York and Paris. Each season will consist of eight episodes. The official logline states that the show “follows the dancers and

Viaplay’s first U.K. drama commission, “Rebus,” has gone into production in Scotland. The show has also added some new cast members including “Line of Duty’s” Lucie Shorthouse, Brian Ferguson (“The Ipcress File”) and Stuart Bowman (“The Serpent”). They will join Richard Rankin (“Outlander”) as John Rebus, the much-loved character John Rebus from Ian Rankin’s bestselling

“Love & Death” feels familiar, as it should. The Max drama is the second series in less than a year to take on the same story: the case of Candy Montgomery, a Texas housewife who killed her friend and neighbor Betty Gore with an ax in 1980. This version follows closely on the heels of

HBO is seeing solid success in audience size as it sends off two of its most loved series: “Barry” and “Succession,” which are both airing their fourth and final seasons. Episodes 1 and 2 of “Barry” Season 4 have reached an average of 2.5 million viewers since they both debuted on April 16. As previously

Political thrillers led Netflix’s Top 10 chart this week as “The Diplomat” took the No. 1 spot following its April 20 release date. During the April 17-23 viewing window, the series quickly picked up 57.48 million hours viewed in its first four days of availability and appeared in the Top 10 in 86 countries. It

CNBC has lost some of its avarice for the long-running primetime series “American Greed.” The documentary program, which examines white-collar crime, scams and embezzlement, among other business-focused wrongdoing, has been running on the NBCUniversal business-news channel since 2007, completing 15 seasons and 222 episodes, along with three spin-offs. In 2023, however, the series order was

Apple TV+ is opening its own FYC activation pop-up this year, taking over Hollywood’s Goya Studios to launch the “Think Apple TV+ FYC” space from May 1 to May 14. The streamer’s signature Emmy-winning hit “Ted Lasso” will open the space on May 1 with a fan event that includes a series trivia game, followed

German broadcasters ZDF and ZDFneo are partnering with Berlin-based Pyjama Pictures to develop a high-end series about notorious scam artist Ruja Ignatova, also known as the Cryptoqueen and the most wanted woman on the planet. Tentatively titled “Take the Money and Run,” the six-part series will tell the story of Ignatova, who shot to fame

Peri Gilpin is the latest original “Frasier” cast member to join the series’ revival at Paramount+. Gilpin will guest star in an episode of the series, reprising the role of Roz, whom she played throughout the original show’s 11-season run on NBC. As previously announced, Kelsey Grammer will reprise the role of Frasier Crane, with

“Emperor of Ocean Park,” the best-selling novel by Stephen L. Carter, is being adapted into a TV series at MGM+. MGM+ (formerly Epix) has ordered 10 episodes of the show. The order brings the book’s long road to the screen to near completion. It was originally optioned back in 2001 ahead of the book publishing.

Think of a British TV series about the royal family that launched in 2016 and features some of Britain’s best writing and acting talent. No, not “The Crown” but “The Windsors,” the royal comedy show from Channel 4 that is poised to steal “The Crown’s” well, crown. A soap opera-style sitcom, it shows Charles, William,

Endeavor has struck a deal to sell Florida-based sports education institution IMG Academy to private equity firm BPEA EQT for $1.25 billion. The all-cash transaction, done in partnership with Nord Anglia Education, is expected to close in Q3. Located in Bradenton, Florida, IMG Academy was founded in 1978 as the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy. The

J.K. Rowling is well aware many “Harry Potter” fans intend to boycott Max’s upcoming television series adaptation due to her involvement as an executive producer on the show. The Warner Bros. Discovery streamer officially announced the series on April 12, confirming each book in Rowling’s series will be adapted into a full season of television.

It’s raining the Bard. In the wake of “Peaky Blinders” creator Steven Knight and “Happy Valley” star Sarah Lancashire’s recently announced series on William Shakespeare, another production with the Bard as topic has revealed some of its cast. Conspiracy drama series “The Rosy Cross: The Rebels who wrote Shakespeare,” being brought to the screen by

Some yardsticks are hard to break. The nation’s TV companies have for months worked to edge out Nielsen from the business of measuring TV audiences. They had good reason: Nielsen failed to count viewership properly during the coronavirus pandemic, leading to a lack of confidence in its abilities and a removal of its national accreditation

It’s time for another season of monster hunting.  Netflix has released the first official teaser trailer for Season 3 of “The Witcher,” revealing a glimpse at the final episodes starring Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia before Liam Hemsworth takes over the role in Season 4. The five-episode Volume 1 will be released globally on