Broadway actor Nick Cordero, known for his roles in “Rock of Ages,” “Waitress,” “Bullets Over Broadway” and “A Bronx Tale The Musical,” died on Sunday after battling complications from COVID-19 for several months. He was 41. His wife, Amanda Kloots, made the sad announcement on her Instagram account on Sunday night. View this post on
Television
A car from the 1979 show “The Dukes of Hazzard” with a Confederate flag painted on the top of it will continue to be displayed at an auto museum in Illinois. Due to the ongoing protests against racism toward Black citizens in the U.S., statues of Confederate leaders have been taken down around the country.
“Expecting Amy,” a new docu-series on HBO Max, opens with its subject, the comedian Amy Schumer, weeping happy tears in a self-shot video. She’s trying to distract herself from the massive personal upheaval soon to be wrought by her pregnancy — or trying to compound her sudden joy — by doing something touristy and cute;
Pharrell Williams has set a gospel series, titled “Voices of Fire,” at Netflix, Variety has learned. The show will follow the musician’s uncle, Bishop Ezekiel Williams, a well-respected musical genius in the area of Hampton Roads, Va., which includes Pharrell’s hometown of Virginia Beach. The unscripted series will center around the town, as it builds
“Hamilton” fans rejoiced as Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical was finally released on Disney Plus on Friday, giving people the long holiday weekend to watch the groundbreaking performance. Originally released in 2015 on Broadway, the hip-hop infused musical about founding father Alexander Hamilton became an instant smash hit. Most people had to pay hundreds or thousands of
With the passing of comedy legend Carl Reiner, tributes have poured in from all over the world. “Modern Family” executive producer Steven Levitan shared with Variety his memories of the landmark television comedy that Reiner created. Early in the run of Modern Family, I got a call from our show’s publicist asking if I’d be
The crew members of Amazon Prime Video’s television adaptation “The Lord of the Rings” and Netflix’s upcoming take on Japanese animated series “Cowboy Bepop,” have both been granted permission to enter New Zealand to begin or resume production, along with five other projects. According to New Zealand media website Stuff, the Ministry of Business, Innovation
“Days of Our Lives” producers plan to resume production later this summer. In a memo sent Friday to cast and crew, producer Corday Productions announced plans to begin work on new episodes of the long-running NBC daytime drama Sept. 1. Production on “Days of Our Lives” was halted in March with the onset of the
The owner of the Washington Redskins said Friday that the NFL team had launched a review of its name, after of resisting entreaties to do so. The decision was announced less than 24 hours after FedEx, a prominent sponsor that enjoys naming rights to the team’s playing field, made its own request for the Redskins
Israel’s leading pay TV operators YES (“Fauda”) and HOT (“Euphoria”) are getting ready to restart filming thanks to an agreement signed with local broadcasting regulators that will cover potential damages caused by COVID-19. The agreement will cover damages totalling up to 10% of production costs. That effectively means that if a $10 million show has
When the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements made headlines in 2017, discussions centered on the importance of believing survivors. It was a rallying cry a long time coming for women who had been harassed, assaulted and ignored for decades. But allegations of sexual misconduct are complex, and now, two-and-a-half years later, Pat Kondelis’ new docuseries
After screening the season one finale episode of HBO Max’s “Love Life,” Variety‘s Angelique Jackson hosted a panel discussion with Anna Kendrick, Sam Boyd, Zoë Chao, Bridget Bedard and Paul Feig to talk about its unexpected ending, writing their personal experiences into the show and what to expect in its second season. Kendrick — who
Demands for change and representation across the U.K.’s film and TV industry are being heard loud and clear, and opening doors and dialogue with the BBC, Netflix, Amazon, Working Title and Film 4. As revealed by Variety, a recent open letter signed by more than 5,000 members of the U.K. industry called on gatekeepers to
Carl Reiner amassed many accolades during his eight decades in showbiz, from nine Emmys and a Grammy to the Mark Twain Prize to a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The multi-hyphenate master of comedy, who died June 29 at age 98, also claimed another prestigious tribute — his name on the menu at
The 2020 Emmy Awards are just around the corner, with this year’s nominations set to be announced on July 28. As awards season continues, Variety senior editors Danielle Turchiano and Michael Schneider are putting this year’s major contenders under the microscope to examine their chances and declare some personal favorites. In this edition of Variety’s “Awards Heat”
As the industry gets used to working within the virtual space, U.K. media consultancy K7 Media has surveyed 40 clients — made up of some of the biggest international TV distributors, broadcasters, and production studios — to learn more about their experience with these new virtual events and the role trade shows will play in
Though “Schitt’s Creek” is about community and “Succession” is about power, both shows are contemporary examinations of wealth and family. Daniel Levy, who co-created “Schitt’s Creek” with his father, Eugene Levy, and Kieran Culkin of “Succession” both expertly have played spoiled sons who’ve been neglected by their fathers. For six seasons on the Pop TV
During their conversation for Variety‘s Actors on Actors issue, Daniel Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”) and Kieran Culkin (“Succession”) talked about their respective shows’ examinations of wealth, and how their characters would fare in quarantine. They also talked about Culkin’s child actor past, and the prodigious talents of “Schitt’s Creek’s” Catherine O’Hara, whom Culkin told Levy made had
Discovery Germany has acquired general entertainment free-TV channel Tele 5 from Leonine. In addition, both groups have also struck a long-term licensing deal, allowing Discovery Germany to access Leonine’s library of scripted content. The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals. Discovery Germany plans on using the deal to diversify its offering and pursue new target
It’s game over. Spain’s “Cable Girls,” Netflix’s longest-running non-U.S. original series, will soon be history, its final five episodes of a two-part season five released on Friday. No other Netflix original series made outside the U.S. has yet made it to five seasons, and only a few have been so popular. Aired on Netflix from
Sophie Turner Laing, the CEO of Endemol Shine Group, is stepping down from her role following the takeover by Banijay which received anti-trust clearance from the European Commission earlier this week. The combined group will be led by Marco Bassetti, the CEO of Banijay Group. Turner Laing’s final day will be July 10. “This deal
“Katy Keene” will not be coming back for more adventures in the world of New York fashion, at least not at the CW. The network has canceled the “Riverdale” spinoff after a single season. According to sources, the show’s producer Warner Bros. intends to explore possibilities to keep it going on another platform. “Katy Keene,”
In today’s TV news roundup, Netflix has given the green light to animated series “DeadEndia,” and ABC has revealed that Anthony Anderson and Billy Eichner will guest host “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” during the week of July 6. GREENLIGHTS Netflix has obtained 2D animated series “DeadEndia” based on the horror-comedy graphic novels created by Hamish Steele. The
Shira Haas has catapulted herself into the zeitgeist with her moving performance as Esther “Esty” Shapiro on Netflix’s “Unorthodox.” The series sees Esty married off to a man whom she barely knows (played by Haas’ real-life friend Amit Rahav) and forced to shave her head as Satmar tradition dictates. Haas recalled shooting that emotional haircut
Together, Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner make up more than half-century of romantic partnership and comedy gold. Their work together — Tomlin, the legendary actress and sketch comedian, and Wagner, the writer who has penned most of Tomlin’s famous characters, comedy albums and television specials — has shaped a specific, irreplicable canon in American social
Betty Gilpin insists she doesn’t know exactly what’s going happen during the fourth and final season of “Glow.” The Netflix series had started production on the season when the coronavirus pandemic hit. “I know generally what’s going to happen,” Gilpin, who has earned two Emmy nominations for work as Debbie Eagan on the show, says
Henry Cavill admits he thought about easing up on his workout regime in quarantine. Whether he’s playing Superman, battling Tom Cruise in “Mission: Impossible” or hunting monsters in “The Witcher,” the 37-year-old actor almost always has to fit. “After the initial, ‘I’m going to start drinking from noon thing and eating whatever I can lay
Hugh Downs, anchorman for the ABC news program “20/20” and, before that, NBC’s “The Today Show,” died Wednesday in Scottsdale, Ariz. He was 99. Downs’ career in broadcasting spanned more than half a century. And despite his assertion “I am not a talent, I am a personality,” Downs proved a first-rate interviewer and journalist time
After dropping to season low ratings last week, both “Game On!” and “Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD” bounced back this time around. The CBS game show, which is hosted by Keegan-Michael Key and features tennis ace Venus Williams and superstar tight end Rob Gronkowski as team captains, leapt up 50% to a 0.6 rating among adults
Last year, the Television Academy added a seventh category for music: composition for a documentary series or special, long sought by composers as music for non-fiction programming can have very different demands than that for dramatic narratives. The streaming services offered numerous docs during the 2019-20 season, from explorations of nature to profiles of politicians.