BuzzFeed told employees of BuzzFeed News who staged a walkout Thursday — protesting what their union claims is the media company’s refusal to negotiate on key contract terms — that their pay would be docked by one day, unless they retroactively applied for paid time off. “This morning, after learning our union members were walking
Naya Rivera’s “Glee” co-stars are reuniting for their second annual fundraiser in her memory. The Snixxmas Charity, named after the late actor’s annual holiday party, raises money for Alexandria House — a transitional housing program in Los Angeles for women and children in emergency shelter. A livestreamed event with several cast members, including Amber Riley,
Fans of Black A-list actors and Jay-Z went hard for Netflix’s revisionist Western banger “The Harder They Fall,” which shot up to No. 1 overall on Nielsen’s streaming rankings and to No. 1 on Nielsen’s Top 10 SVOD Movies list in the first week of November. “The Harder They Fall,” which debuted on the streamer
HBO has cast Juliebeth Gonzalez, Maya Eshet, Tyson Ritter, Kate Lyn Sheil, Liz Sierra and Finley Rose Slater in “The Idol,” the upcoming modern-day cult drama from “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson, multi-hyphenate The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) and Reza Fahim. The hourlong drama series, which is currently in production, centers on a self-help guru and sect
Some artists launch themselves into the world with a cautious toe in the water; some make a huge splash. Lana Del Rey’s “Video Games,” which may have been one of the first songs to “go viral,” was more than just a song — it was a statement of intent and a blueprint for everything she’s
A suspect has been arrested in the killing of Jacqueline Avant, the Beverly Hills Police Department announced in a press conference Thursday. Police arrested Aariel Maynor, 29, who allegedly shot and killed Avant after breaking into her Beverly Hills home early Wednesday morning. Avant was the wife of music industry legend Clarence Avant, the mother
Gaming media and esports company 100 Thieves said it secured a $60 million third round of funding, which the company claimed brings its valuation to $460 million. The Series C was led by Green Bay Ventures with participation from existing and new investors including Breyer Capital, Aglae Ventures, Tao Capital, Willoughby Capital and Artist Capital
After spending much of this year promising and then implementing various reforms, the first test of the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn.’s evolution may come on Dec. 13. That’s when the org will announce the 79th Annual Golden Globe Awards nominations, at 6 a.m. PT from the Beverly Hilton. How and what that might look like
Ours is an age of nostalgia. Now that the rose-tinted glasses have increasingly turned their gaze toward the 1990s — they’re literally making a “That ’90s Show,” in case you didn’t already feel old enough — “Mixtape” almost feels timely. With a pre-Y2K setting, soundtrack featuring the likes of Vitamin C and Lit, and plot
Michelle Monaghan, Jodie Turner-Smith and Meredith Hagner have all been cast in the upcoming Apple drama series “Bad Monkey,” with Marcos Siega (“Dexter,” The Flight Attendant”) now onboard to direct the first episode and executive produce. The trio of actresses join previously announced series lead Vince Vaughn in the show, which is being written by
“Ray and Manny,” “Witch’s Business” and “Worldoscope” feature among the five animation projects chosen for the 2nd Women Animation Directors Mentoring Program, run by Ventana Sur’s Animation! Launched with the aim to boost gender parity and build a more equitable and diverse animation industry, the initiative has been launched in alliance with the Annecy Festival’s
How do you follow an all-conquering, Grammy-nominated hit like BTS’ “Dynamite”? By strategically crafting an even bigger one. That was the goal a group of songwriters and producers set for “Butter.” And, remarkably, they achieved it. The K-pop group’s second English-language single, Variety’s Hitmakers Record of the Year, broke YouTube and Spotify marks during its
Big news for Paul Thomas Anderson’s awards campaign as his film “Licorice Pizza” was named the best picture of the year by the National Board of Review. The MGM and United Artists Releasing film also picked up prizes for directing and shared the breakthrough performance award for newcomers Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman. Another newcomer
The theatrical experience is unique, important and akin to an experience of “shared dreaming,” says Hans Zimmer, whose scores for 2021’s “Dune” and “No Time to Die” are among those in next year’s awards conversation — and who is being honored by Variety as Composer of the Year, presented by ASCAP. “It’s an incredible honor
Fresh off his Gotham Award win for breakthrough series, “Reservation Dogs” co-creator Sterlin Harjo is developing a new miniseries with a Native female lead at FX. The untitled series will see Harjo direct, as well as co-write with bestselling novelist Jonathan Lee. Harjo will also executive produce with Garrett Basch, through the latter’s new label
Nascar inked a multiyear deal with FloSports that will make the sports streamer the exclusive global home of the Nascar Roots series of 280-plus annual racing events starting in 2022. The Nascar grassroots programming previously has been available on the NBC Sports Gold subscription streaming service, which NBCUniversal is phasing out. NBCU, which also is
Hulu on Wednesday released a new documentary special — “Astroworld: Concert From Hell,” recapping the deadly events at a Travis Scott festival in Houston last month — but quickly pulled it from the service after a social-media backlash. The news special was produced by KTRK, ABC’s owned-and-operated local station in Houston. The 50-minute documentary can
Mahershala Ali’s latest film, “Swan Song,” is the first feature film to be produced by his production company, Know Wonder, and it marks his first leading role in a movie. On this week’s Variety Awards Circuit podcast, Ali discusses what drew him as both actor and producer to the emotional sci-fi tale in which he
This year, a who’s who of Grammy-nominated artists and household names lead the original song Oscar race. But it’s still early days so anything can happen. Original song reigning queen H.E.R. has “Automatic Woman,” from “Bruised,” while “Right Where I Belong” by Brian Wilson and Jim James that plays in the doc “Brian Wilson: Long
By his own admission, Lin-Manuel Miranda went back to school this year. The Latino actor, director, writer, songwriter and composer had so many projects and commitments to juggle at once this year that the only way he made it through was to pretend he was back in college. The multi-hyphenate behind “Hamilton” saw the release
Barcelona-based production-distribution outfit Filmax has picked up international rights to Spanish holiday comedy “Our (Perfect) Xmas Retreat” (“El refugio”) following the film’s successful domestic theatrical release. Premiering in Spain on Nov. 26, the film went up against firm opposition and came away as the weekend’s top domestic release. Filmax is introducing the film to buyers
A musical trailblazer with a sixth sense of marketing and memes, Lil Nas X helped create the soundtrack of 2021 with the ubiquitous “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” and “Industry Baby.” When it comes to courting virality, the internet-savvy hitmaker is peerless — particularly in the visual medium. By gleefully pushing buttons in the
Public health officials have confirmed what appears to be the second case of the COVID-19 Omicron variant in the U.S. On Thursday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that Minnesota health officials confirmed that a male resident of the state, who is fully vaccinated, had mild symptoms due to the Omicron variant, and
The weapons expert who supplied guns and ammo for the production of “Rust” told “Good Morning America” on Thursday that the live rounds found on set did not come from him. Seth Kenney, of PDQ Arm & Prop, gave his first public comments shortly after investigators searched his business in Albuquerque, N.M., for clues that
Andrew Garfield will receive the Palm Springs International Film Festival’s Desert Palm achievement award, actor for his performance in Netflix’s “Tick, Tick … Boom!” from director Lin-Manuel Miranda. “From his numerous film roles and theatrical performances, Andrew Garfield is an outstanding actor, who puts his heart and soul into bringing the character he’s portraying to
Toronto may have shut down production for nearly four months due to COVID-19, but its film industry has come roaring back stronger than ever now that strict protocols have been launched to manage the pandemic’s impact. Local officials say production has already returned and is set to exceed its pre-pandemic levels. Some 1,500 projects, including
Netflix has bolstered its slate of Oscar short hopefuls with the acquisition of “Three Songs for Benazir.” Directed by Gulistan and Elizabeth Mirzaei, the 22-minute docu tells the story of Shaista, a young man who is a refugee living in modern-day Afghanistan. Newly married to Benazir and living in a camp for displaced persons in
It’s a frigid Friday night in Chicago, and the place to be for Gen Z is Jack Harlow’s concert at the Aragon Ballroom, a meticulously renovated, hilariously ornate 95-year-old theater that looks like the setting for a Rudolph Valentino movie. About 5,000 young people (approximately 60% female) are packed under the ballroom’s Moorish archways, mosaics
Redbox plans to run digital video ads on nearly 4,000 of its trademark DVD rental kiosks across the U.S. — inventory it hopes to sell to Hollywood studios as well as national and local marketers. The company announced it has already deployed digital video signage on the top of more than 2,000 kiosks so far,
A flock of drag queens dressed like the Spice Girls stand together on a stage, awaiting final judgement on their performance in an annual competition to win a coveted crown. A villainous blonde in a beehive wig sneers at them. A proud trollop in a neon pink micro skirt wonders aloud if she should take