From Brazilian oil-rig workers to a German U-boat crew, from a Chinese concubine to a Spanish spy in Ava Gardner’s home, international TV has served up some memorable characters this year. Variety’s international correspondents take a trip around the world and pick a dozen buzzed-about shows — some of which can be seen soon on Hulu, Amazon
Television
In the almost 18 months since a report was released that alleged R&B singer R. Kelly (nee Robert Sylvester Kelly) was holding young women captive as part of a sex cult, the #MeToo movement swept the nation. It first went viral in October 2017 and inspired dozens of individuals to come forward with their own
Peter Masterson, director of the movie “A Trip to Bountiful” and co-writer of the musical “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,” died Tuesday at his home in Kinderhook, N.Y. He was 84. Masterson’s son, also named Peter, told the Associated Press that his father died from complications of Parkinson’s disease. Masterson, a native of Houston,
December 20, 2018 10:00AM PT Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier will keynote the Executive Leadership Summit held as part of the National Association of Broadcasters’ annual convention in Las Vegas in April. Collier’s address will mark one of the TV veteran’s first appearances at a major industry event since taking the helm of entertainment operations
At times it may have felt like late-night talk shows were completely dominated by political talk this year, from biting commentary by way of “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” and “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah.” However, quite a few shows did what they could to keep it light — and perhaps go viral
Billy Crystal has landed his next role, but he won’t need a script this time around. The award-winning comedian and nine-time Oscar host has been tapped to serve as color commentator for the entire Jan. 31 game between the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers and the team’s crosstown rival Lakers. A diehard Clippers fan and courtside
December 20, 2018 9:00AM PT “Ray Donovan” has been renewed for a seventh season at Showtime. Production of the new season is set to begin in spring, 2019 in New York. The season six finale is set to air on Showtime Jan. 13. A Showtime production, “Ray Donovan” is executive produced by Hollander, Mark Gordon,
“Luke Cage” showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker has set an overall TV development deal with Amazon Studios. Coker comes to Amazon as the studio has been steadily beefing up its roster of exclusive talent deals under the direction of Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke, an alum of NBC, 20th Century Fox TV and other studios. The
December 20, 2018 2:29AM PT Post-#MeToo era bestseller “That’s What She Said” is coming to the small screen in dramatic form. In Joanne Lipman’s 2018 book – “That’s What She Said: What Men Need to Know (and Women Need to Tell Them) About Working Together” – the former USA Today editor-in-chief wrote about her own
December 20, 2018 1:51AM PT “Medici blood must be spilled,” says a sinister Sean Bean in the Netflix trailer for the second season of “Medici,” which drops on the streaming service in the U.S. and U.K. next month. Bean plays scheming aristocrat Jacopo Pazzi and joins Daniel Sharman, who stars as Lorenzo, in “Medici: The
Tucker Carlson regularly devotes his 8 p.m. hour on Fox News Channel to railing against, as he often says, “lying, pomposity, smugness and groupthink.” On Wednesday night, however, he had fewer major advertisers lined up to support his regular mission. The host, one of the most popular on the 21st Century Fox-owned cable-news network, tried
SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched “The Lost Moment,” the Dec. 19 episode of “Vikings.” Given that the series revolves largely around issues of power struggles, raiding and war, “Vikings” has never treaded lightly in terms of killing off notable characters and actors. But as the series continues its next-generation
December 19, 2018 5:10PM PT Josh Wakely’s production company Grace: A Storytelling Company has hired Alaric McAusland as chief operating officer and head of studio and production, Variety has learned exclusively. In his new role, McAusland will oversee all of Grace’s global business operations and partnerships as well as production and development across television, film and live
In today’s TV news roundup, Ken Jeong is set to guest star on an episode of ABC’s “The Kids Are Alright,” Showtime sets the Season 4 premiere date for “Billions” and AMC released first look images for the upcoming midseason return of “The Walking Dead.” DATES Showtime has set the “Billions” Season 4 premiere date
“Game of Thrones” star Iain Glen has lifted the lid on the efforts of the show’s producers to avoid spoilers and leaks from the eagerly anticipated final season. “They’re absolutely paranoid now about anyone finding out anything about the series and spoiling it,” he said in a BBC radio interview to be broadcast Friday. “We
Samsung, SodaStream and Pfizer Inc. joined the list of advertisers cutting ties with Tucker Carlson’s Fox News Channel program in the wake of the host’s recent charged comments about immigration, increasing pressure on the 21st Century Fox-owned cable outlet, which has grappled for months with offensive remarks from several of its guests and hosts. Approximately
Actor Eliza Dushku has slammed CBS and her former “Bull” co-star Michael Weatherly in a scathing story for the Boston Globe that details the allegations of harassment that led to her $9.5 million settlement with the network earlier this year. “I took a job and, because I did not want to be harassed, I was
December 19, 2018 11:54AM PT OWN has canceled “Love Is__,” the relationship drama from husband-and-wife team Salim Akil and Mara Brock Akil. The move comes just weeks after Salim Akil was sued by a woman claiming that the producer abused her during an extramarital affair. Sources tell Variety that Warner Bros. Television, which produces “Love
CBS is considering ending its longstanding contract with TV ratings provider Nielsen as it looks for new ways to measure audiences in the multiplatform universe. The nation’s most-watched TV network is prepared to drop Nielsen’s measurement services if the two sides can’t come to an agreement by the end of this month, according to a
Merry doesn’t even begin to describe the crowd gathered at UTA on Tuesday night for the fourth annual Holiday Soul Party. Organized by the Committee of Black Writers of the WGA, the African-American Steering Committee of the DGA and the African-American Film Critics Association, and hosted by the Ghetto Film School Roster, the networking event
“Brooklyn Nine-Nine” star Chelsea Peretti will host the 2019 Writers Guild Awards on Feb. 17. The show will be held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. “I’m excited for people to judge the writing of my jokes!” Peretti said. “Chelsea Peretti is hosting the Writers Guild Awards, and she will do a
Alexander Rodnyansky, producer of the Oscar-nominated films “Leviathan” and “Loveless,” has set prize-winning Hungarian director Kornel Mundruczo to develop and direct “Everybody’s Woman,” a drama series centering on a woman working in the porn industry. Kata Weber will write and develop the series with Mundruczo. Mundruczo and Weber have previously collaborated on several projects, including
On the occasion of “Schitt’s Creek” dropping a (lovely!) Christmas special tonight, it’s a safe bet that you’re either reading this as a big fan or a confused bystander wondering when and why the hell this low-key Canadian show became so beloved. To be a “Schitt’s Creek” fan who watched it from the start (or
“This Is Us,” “Pose” and a 10-year reunion panel for “Parks and Recreation” are the first shows announced as participating in PaleyFest LA 2019, the Paley Center for Media revealed Wednesday. “Every year PaleyFest presents the best of television, providing fans with a rare behind-the-scenes look at both the hottest new shows as well as
New Year’s Eve is the night on which most CNN anchors let their hair down. Well, except for Anderson Cooper. Cooper has been CNN’s on-air host for New Year’s Eve since 2002, and his most memorable moments from the stint typically surface as he tries to rein in others who appear with him – hoping
“I don’t think I would still be at Microsoft or in technology if I hadn’t found gaming.” Bonnie Ross, Microsoft Corporate vice president and head of 343 Industries, will be inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in February 2019 for her work in video games, in helping to expand
After a tumultuous period involving harassment scandals, job losses and restructuring, Vice has registered a small profit in the U.K., according to the company’s latest results. The uptick is welcome news for Vice as its new international boss, Dominique Delport, scopes out new production and partnership possibilities for the company’s content business. The U.K. was
December 18, 2018 9:12PM PT Leslie Moonves was known to take an active dislike of David Letterman making fun of him during that host’s tenure on CBS’ “The Late Show.” He probably isn’t enjoying being mentioned by Stephen Colbert either. Colbert used his monologue on Tuesday’s broadcast to poke fun at the former CBS Corp.
A movie version of crime series “Luther” is moving forward, with writer-creator Neil Cross working on the script, the show’s star Idris Elba confirmed at the launch of Season 5 in London. “We are really advancing on getting a movie version [of the show] up on the screen,” Elba said. “Neil is beavering away on
December 18, 2018 3:32PM PT In today’s roundup, NBC reveals midseason premiere dates for six shows, including “The Voice.” DATES NBC has announced midseason premiere dates for four returning and two new series. “The Voice” will air Feb. 25 at 8 p.m. ET/PT, Feb. 26 at 8 p.m., and March 5 at 8 p.m. It will