TikTok is making its metaverse play — taking a page from rivals like Apple and Snap with the launch of TikTok Avatars. TikTok Avatars is “yet another way for people to showcase their individuality” on the popular short-form video app, the company said in announcing the new feature. Users can customize their avatar from an
Prince’s musical career had many peaks, but he was most on top of the world — literally — on March 30, 1985, when he and the Revolution played a concert at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York that was broadcast all over the planet in the first global telecast of its kind. Even with
TV’s battle for new yardsticks isn’t over yet. The TV companies that own ad-tech firm OpenAP intend to make a pitch at Cannes to get advertisers to move their dollars to new kinds of measurement technologies — just as the networks are trying to roll out alternate audience-tabulation systems to Nielsen, which still sets the
It’s wild to realize while watching “Ms. Marvel” that the studio’s newest heroine would have been about 2 years old in 2008, the year “Iron Man” kick-started Marvel’s sprawling cinematic universe as we know it. Like the comic books that inspired it, the on-screen MCU has officially become old enough to spawn a literal new
It’s highly unlikely that Hannah Einbinder will ever forget her auditions for “Hacks.” Not only did it land her the role of Ava opposite Jean Smart, but the entire process happened during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. “I went into a physical casting office in Santa Monica a couple days before March 13th, 2020,
Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle, who were both attacked on stage during separate events in recent months, are teaming up for a joint comedy special in London later this year. The stand-up show is set for Saturday, Sept. 3, at the 02 Arena in London, with general tickets going on sale June 10 via Live
Fuse Group has added another pillar of its strategy to assemble a diversified collection of visual effects firms with the acquisition of Madrid-based El Ranchito, known for its work on such fantasy blockbusters as “The Mandalorian,” “Game of Thrones” and “Stranger Things.” El Ranchito is the latest acquisition for the parent company of FuseFX, FOLKS
Netflix has either reached or surpassed the required 30% local content quotas in major markets in Europe, ranking ahead of its global streaming rivals, according to a new study by Ampere Analysis. The programming quota applies to all streamers operating in Europe and is part of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive of the European Commission.
The North American premiere of “Jurassic World: Dominion” has officially concluded in Los Angeles and first reactions to the dino-centric sequel are pouring in online, with entertainment writers calling the follow-up everything from a good hit of nostalgia to downright bad. As with most sequels in the “Jurassic” series, “Dominion” is being met with a
AWARDS CIRCUIT COLUMN: What’s It Like For Your Star to Rise During a Pandemic? Sam Jay Was Too Busy Working on Six Projects to Find Out As we do return to events, a common refrain seems to be the question of what we’ve all been up to the past two years. Some, more productive than
Although Harry Styles’ “As It Was” maintains its run atop the Billboard Hot 100 for the fifth week, it’s Kate Bush’s 1985 classic “Running Up That Hill” that’s the talk of the town as it has re-entered the chart at No. 8. The revival of the track on the new fourth season of Netflix’s “Stranger
Julian Casablancas, frontman and main songwriter of the Strokes, has sold a stake in his renowned Strokes catalog to Primary Wave. Primary Wave confirmed the purchase but declined to specify exactly how much of a stake in the catalog it had purchased or how much it paid in the deal. The sale gives the company
One of the most consequential events in the recent history of the U.S. is set to be dissected on Thursday night during TV’s primetime schedule. Journalists slated to cover it will have to hope America sees the broadcast as something other than entertainment. On Thursday night, most major broadcast networks and cable-news outlets are slated
The Upside Down continued to trend across Twitter following the Season 4 return of “Stranger Things.” The Netflix series placed first on Variety’s Trending TV Chart for the week of May 30 to June 5, adding another million engagements to last week’s chart-topping numbers. The series dropped the first seven chapters of its fourth season
In a letter shared with the BTS “Army” earlier today (Monday, June 6), the group announced the #MyBTStory challenge in partnership with YouTube, starting on Friday and running through July 9, exclusively on YouTube Shorts. In celebration of their new album, “Proof,” dropping on Friday, the group is inviting the Army and all music fans
“Funny Pages,” a scruffy, grungy, likably tossed-together sketchbook of a low-budget indie comedy, typifies a paradox that now runs through a great deal of independent cinema. The movie, set in a humdrum New Jersey suburbia, unfolds on the moldy bottom rung of the comic-book ladder. It centers on two friends who are obsessed with drawing
Jon Hamm, Juno Temple, and Jennifer Jason Leigh are set for the lead roles in “Fargo” Season 5 at FX, Variety has learned. “Fargo” Season 5 was officially announced back in February. Per FX, the new season is set in 2019 and asks the questions when is a kidnapping not a kidnapping, and what if your wife
“Surfside,” a documentary series about the 2021 collapse of Champlain Towers, is under way from director Stephanie Soechtig and former “E! News” host Jason Kennedy. The Champlain Towers South was a 12-story condominium in Miami’s Surfside community that partially collapsed on June 24, 2021. The event resulted in the deaths of 98 people, becoming one
The Washington Post suspended political reporter Dave Weigel without pay for 30 days after he retweeted a sexist joke last week and touched off a public fight on Twitter among staffers at the Jeff Bezos-owned paper. A spokesperson for the Post declined to comment. Weigel did not respond to emails seeking comment. An autoreply from
Slovak director Denis Dobrovoda’s feature debut “The Cathedral” took the best film prize in the International Documentary Competition section of the 62nd Krakow Film Festival, which runs May 29-June 12. The film focuses on Justo Gallego Martínez, who started building a cathedral in Spain’s Mejorada del Campo 60 years ago without any qualifications, architectural plans
Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are currently writing “Deadpool 3” for director Shawn Levy and star Ryan Reynolds. Reese is assuring fans that the script is not going to be “Disney-fied.” The upcoming third installment of the “Deadpool” franchise will be the first made under Disney, which acquired Fox in 2019, after Fox found immense
Even with the official start of summer still be a couple of weeks ago, the season’s spirit was in full swing for iHeartRadio KIIS FM’s Wango Tango on Saturday night, featuring appearances from Camila Cabello, Becky G and Shawn Mendes, who brought the heat with arena-level performances. As one of the night’s most anticipated acts,
The new episodic anthology series “Tales of the Walking Dead” will premiere Sunday, August 14 at 9 p.m. ET on AMC and AMC+, with the first two episodes streaming that same night on AMC+. Subsequent episodes will stream one week early, beginning Sunday, August 21. The newest addition to “The Walking Dead” universe, “Tales of the Walking
Fox has formally set its 2022 fall schedule, with the long-gestating country music drama “Monarch” set to make its debut. Fox’s announcements comes two weeks after the broadcaster’s upfront presentation on May 16, whereas other broadcasters announced their schedule the day of their presentation. However, with this announcement Fox is also announcing its fall premiere
Jabari Banks is leaning into the comparisons to Will Smith. The 23-year-old stars as Will in Peacock’s “Bel-Air,” which reimagines Smith’s famed ’90s sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” as a drama, but he began modeling his career goals after Smith’s long before the project’s conception. “It’s cosmic. I don’t know how to explain it,”
“Stranger Things 4” is going to end with the biggest bang the Netflix series has ever seen. Speaking to Empire magazine, series creators Matt and Ross Duffer revealed the upcoming season finale will include more VFX shots than all of the show’s third season combined. It’s worth noting the “Stranger Things 4” finale is super-sized
The TV upfront market doesn’t appear to compute for Microsoft. The technology giant has been telling TV networks and media buyers that it intends to bypass TV’s annual haggle for commercial inventory, according to four executives familiar with recent discussions. The company behind such products and services as Windows, LinkedIn, the Halo video games and
Apple on Monday took the wraps off iOS 16, its next major smartphone operating system release, detailing a slew of new features and enhancements. The upcoming iOS 16 — which will be generally released this fall for iPhone 8 models and later — includes a new privacy tool: Safety Check, which Apple said is designed
In a tight primary election for Los Angeles mayor, the two frontrunners — Congresswoman Karen Bass and billionaire developer Rick Caruso — have seen their support split down the middle among major Hollywood players. Tuesday’s election could lead to a November runoff if none of the candidates garner more than 50% of the votes needed
“What We Do in the Shadows” has been renewed for both Season 5 and Season 6 at FX. The announcement comes ahead of the popular comedy’s fourth season premiere. “There’s a lot of life left in our favorite vampires from Staten Island and FX couldn’t be more thrilled to commit to two additional seasons of