It’s more than a coincidence that Jamie Dornan took on the role of Pa in “Belfast.” Having been born in the Northern Ireland town, Dornan jumped at the opportunity to take on this deeply personal story, a semi-autobiographical take on Kenneth Branagh’s childhood. Dornan even grew up with a picture of his own father and
Kanye West’s wildly unfiltered interview on Revolt TV’s “Drink Champs” program broke viewership records for the Black-owned multimedia platform, Variety has confirmed exclusively. West’s conversation with hosts N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN, spanning two-and-a-half hours, had 3 million viewers in its first 12 hours of release, which is the most viewers Revolt TV has had for a single
Crush Ventures, the investment arm of Crush Music, home to management clients Green Day, Weezer (pictured), Lorde, Sia, Panic! at the Disco, and Miley Cyrus, among others, has invested in the company 237 Global, which offers tech and services related to VIP ticketing that connects artists, athletes, influencers and celebrities directly with their fans virtually
Nohara Tadashi is one of only two Japanese directors with films in the Tokyo International Film Festival’s main competition section. “Third Time Lucky” is his first theatrical feature. Born in 1983 and a 2009 alumnus of the Graduate School of Film & New Media, Tokyo University of the Arts, Nohara is no industry newcomer. He
After attending the Venice and Telluride Film Festivals in the summer, Kristen Stewart’s highly anticipated interpretation of Princess Diana in Pablo Larraín’s “Spencer” is finally here. Generating an immense amount of Oscar buzz for her performance, along with the visual artistry demonstrated by the film’s impressive artisans, it felt like a good time to remind people this is not Stewart’s first dramatic and awards-worthy
Emilio Estevez will not be returning for Season 2 of Disney Plus’ “The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers,” Variety has confirmed. According to a source close to the production, Estevez’s departure is due to a disagreement over ABC Signature’s COVID-19 vaccination requirement, as he would not confirm that he would comply with the policy. Therefore, the studio
Whether Ed Sheeran would fulfill his “Saturday Night Live” booking this weekend was a matter of suspense for a lot of people — but not for Sheeran himself, who says that “I was always playing that,” no matter what anyone else expected. He discussed his brief bout with the disease on SiriusXM’s “The Howard Stern
SPOILER WARNING: Do not read this story until you’ve seen Marvel Studios’ “Eternals,” currently playing in theaters worldwide. Major spoilers are ahead. The day after the red carpet premiere of Marvel Studios “Eternals,” director Chloé Zhao looked relaxed, almost serene, as she sat in a hotel suite awaiting her next interview. Her face lit up
A24 acquired U.S. rights to Nicole Holofcener’s new comedy “Beth & Don,” starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, at AFM. Last week, Variety exclusively revealed that Louis-Dreyfus and Holofcener would reunite for the movie after their 2013 hit “Enough Said.” Louis-Dreyfus stars as Beth, a New York novelist in an unbelievably happy marriage to Don, who loves her
Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” will temporarily shut down production while actor Letitia Wright recovers from an on-set injury she suffered in August, Variety has confirmed. Production will pause starting the week of Thanksgiving and start back up in early 2022. Wright’s injury occurred more than two months ago in late August while shooting a sequence
Legendary Television and Scholastic Entertainment are developing a TV series based on “The Royal Diaries” books, Variety has learned exclusively. “The Royal Diaries” is a series of 20 fiction books published by Scholastic Press between 1999 and 2005. Each book is written as the fictional diary of a real female royal at a key moment in
In the first season of “Taste the Nation,” Padma Lakshmi tasked herself with visiting immigrant communities across the country, explaining their entire trajectories from country of origin to the United States, and how they and their food adapted to their new home — in 30 minutes or less. It’s a hugely ambitious premise that succeeded
Annapurna has promoted its interactive chief Nathan Gary to president of the company. Megan Ellison, CEO of the indie studio, announced on Friday that Gary will now oversee all of the company’s divisions, including film, TV, theater and interactive. He joins the existing executive team of Ellison, chief content officer Sue Naegle and Chris Corabi,
Viola Davis’ warrior epic “The Woman King” will hit theaters in September 2022. Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, Davis stars in the historical movie as Nanisca, general of the all-female military unit in the Kingdom of Dahomey, one of the most powerful states of Africa in the 18th and 19th centuries. Inspired by true events, the
In a clear indication of its record growth and that of the region’s burgeoning film and TV industry, Chile’s Sanfic Industria wrapped Thursday Nov. 4 with an avalanche of prizes, 49 in total, for its multiple participants in the various sections, which included series and for films, works in progress, documentary and fiction project labs,
Benito Skinner, the sketch comic and social media star, has joined the cast of Billy Eichner’s forthcoming romantic comedy “Bros.” Set up at Universal Pictures, the Judd Apatow-produced project has been unveiling its ensemble cast over recent weeks, comprised exclusively of LGBTQ+ talent in principal roles. Skinner, who was named one of Variety‘s 2021 Comics
Giancarlo Nasi’s Quijote Films, one of the lead producers of Chile’s current Oscar entry “White on White,” has closed a co-production deal with France’s Les Valseurs at the American Film Market for “The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo,” the first feature from Diego Cespedes, the Cannes Festival’s 2018 Cinefondation first prize winner. Mexico’s Varios Lobos,
Top Chilean production outfit Parox, producer for Movistar Play of “Los Prisioneros,” the series which closed this week’s Santiago Industria, has tapped crucial backing from Chile’s National TV Council for its flagship international series, “Silver Bridge” and “La Pergola de las Flores.” Billed by Parox as a narco feminist action romance inspired by true facts,
Longtime colleagues and college friends Gabriel Govela (“Dark Rain”), Irma Deschamps (“Champs”) and Juan Carlos Montes have reunited to launch TresTresTres Films, a young, fresh independent production house based out of Mexico City. The trio are currently participating in the Sanfic Industria Morbido Lab for feature genre projects with Govela’s hardcore horror project “Zarzal.” It’s
WME has signed five-time Grammy winning blues musician Keb’ Mo’. A prolific singer-songwriter and guitarist, born Kevin Roosevelt Moore, he’s also carved out a significant resume in composing for the screen. His credits include “Mike and Molly,” “Memphis Beat,” “B Positive” and “Martha Stewart Living.” Keb’ Mo’ has also appeared as himself in work like
In “Passing,” Tessa Thompson stars as Irene Redfield, a Black woman living in Harlem amid the Renaissance, whose life with her doctor husband Brian (André Holland) and their two sons is turned upside down when she reconnects with Clare Kendry (Ruth Negga), a childhood acquaintance who’s since begun passing for white and is married to
Netflix announced that Dolly Parton will guest star on “Grace and Frankie’s” seventh and final season. The streamer did not announce who she would be playing or how she would interact with stars Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, though. In the show, Fonda and Tomlin play rhe titular characters who found their lives turned upside
For the second year in a row, Variety and the History channel are joining forces, teaming up on a television special that pays tribute to veterans and military families. “Variety Salute to Service,” hosted by Robin Roberts, will premiere on the History Channel at 9 p.m. ET on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, and showcase those
Need an easy holiday gift that still seems like you put in effort? Something special? Something personalized? Forget monograms and nameplate necklaces. Starting in early November, you can get cheeky by stamping your name on a pair of Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty boxer briefs. The popular lingerie brand’s new initiative, called Savage X You, allows
Kim Cattrall has been cast in the comedy series “How I Met Your Father” at Hulu, Variety has confirmed. The show is considered a sequel series to the hit CBS sitcom “How I Met Your Mother.” In the near future, Sophie (Hilary Duff) is telling her son the story of how she met his father:
Define American has released “Telling Authentic Immigrant Stories: A Reference Guide for the Entertainment Industry,” a best practices’ guide in telling immigrant stories, with a focus on film and television. The guide is aimed at individual content creators, as well as production companies and studios at large, and it features detailed descriptions, definitions, historical timelines
The stellar box office performance of “No Time to Die,” “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” and “Dune” have boosted the U.K. and Ireland box office to £158.7 million ($214.1 million) in October, 2021, 30% more than October last year. Figures released on Friday by Comscore also revealed that October is the highest grossing month of
LGBTQ comic book and superhero fans have long been waiting to see themselves reflected in the pages and stories of the heroes they love. While progress has been made in the books themselves, that content has often been minimized or entirely erased when it comes to adapting those stories for the big screen. Now, in
An air of claustrophobia inhabits “Spencer,” Pablo Larraín’s psychological drama that follows a distressed Princess Diana (Kristen Stewart) as she spends the Christmas of 1991 at the Royal Family’s Sandringham estate. That confinement spawns a sensation equal parts austere and foreboding despite all the opulence that surrounds it, one that veteran Production Designer Guy Hendrix
When Alena Smith sat down to tell the untold tale of famed poet Emily Dickinson, she imagined a three-year television series. She sold the show straight to series to Apple TV Plus in May 2018, more than a year before that streamer would even launch. To say that Smith’s goal of three seasons at an