Welcome to this week’s “Just for Variety.” I just got back from New York City, where I covered the MTV VMAs red carpet. To see Lil Nas X blazing his rainbow trail continues to amaze me in the most beautiful way. He is LGBTQ power and awareness personified. And then to top it all off,
Vivendi, the parent company of Canal Plus and Universal Music Group (UMG), is planning to acquire an additional 17.93% stake in Lagardere, the French media, publishing and travel retail conglomerate, from its leading shareholder Amber Capital. The move comes as Vivendi is getting ready to list UMG, its biggest money-making asset and the world’s largest
Amid a wave of misinformation stemming from Nicki Minaj’s comment Monday that she would not attend the Met Gala that night due to its COVID-19 vaccine requirement, the White House confirmed that it offered to put her on the phone with a doctor to discuss vaccine safety. “As we have with others, we offered a
Genius Media, the widely used lyrics-database company formerly known as Rap Genius, has been acquired by app and internet media holding company MediaLab for $80 million. Genius confirmed its agreement to sell the company to MediaLab. “MediaLab’s commitment to investing in artists and fan-driven communities makes them the ideal partner to propel Genius forward,” Genius
In 1978, Elvis Costello looked at a society’s collective eagerness to move on to the next thing and snipped, “This is your punishment: You’re last year’s model.” Stick around for another 43 years, though, and you may find out that this is your reward: There’s a sort of brand new version of his classic sophomore
Julio Vaqueiro will be the next anchor of Telemundo’s signature evening newscast “Noticias Telemundo,” filling a role that had previously been held by Jose Diaz-Balart. Vaqueiro had been anchoring the NBCUniversal-backed network’s late-night newscast, which airs at 11:35 p.m. eastern. His new assignment will have him leading a 6:30 p.m. news show. “Julio embodies the
Controversial British media personality Piers Morgan has signed a global deal with Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News and News Corp. Under the terms of the deal, Morgan will host a daily TV show that will air on weeknights in the U.K., U.S. and Australia, write a weekly column for Murdoch’s U.K. tabloid The Sun and the
Kate Mara and Adam Scott have boarded psychological thriller “Ghostwriter,” a “podcast movie” from C13Features, the feature-length podcast studio division of Audacy’s Cadence13. “Ghostwriter” is currently finalizing production plans and is scheduled to debut worldwide Dec. 6, 2021, on major podcast platforms. The project is the second scripted audio feature from C13Features studio, which is
STREAMING Netflix has unveiled a release date for its first Spanish Original reality show “Insiders,” which will premiere around the world on Oct. 21. Hosted by “Money Heist” actor Najwa Nimri (“Locked Up,” “Open Your Eyes”), the show has been billed as something completely new to the reality landscape in which its contestants believe, through
Pop icon Elton John has postponed his keenly anticipated “Farewell Yellow Brick Road” tour across Europe and the U.K. to 2023. The popular performer released a statement on social media on Thursday revealing the postponement due to a persisting injury. “At the end of my summer break I fell awkwardly on a hard surface and
The estate of David Bowie and Warner Music Group have announced a global partnership that will bring the late artist’s vast recorded-music catalog from 1968 through 2016 under the Warner umbrella. The new deal sees Bowie’s albums from 2000 through 2016, which were originally released via Sony Music, joining his 1968-1999 catalog at Warner. The
BBC Three, the digital platform behind such global-facing hits as “Fleabag” and “Normal People,” is on track to return to TV screens early next year. U.K. media regulator Ofcom provisionally approved the return of BBC Three as a channel on Thursday — six months after the transition was first announced by the BBC after months
Maria Schrader’s screwball romantic comedy “I’m Your Man” (“Ich Bin Dein Mensch”) has been selected as Germany’s contender for the Academy Award for the best international feature film. The film’s premise is that of a scientist who, in order to obtain research funds, agrees to live for three weeks with a humanoid robot specifically engineered
In a new episode of the “No Time To Die: The Official James Bond Podcast,” Billie Eilish discusses her approach to the latest film in the franchise with critic James King, detailing how she wanted to add her own touch but also “honor Bond, the songs in the past and the original guitar riff.” Episode
BBC director general Tim Davie has said that the government’s shock cabinet reshuffle on Wednesday, which saw the ousting of yet another Culture Secretary, points to a dire need for a “really serious, grown-up” dialogue with government to discuss the future of the creative industries. Davie, whose Thursday morning keynote opened the second and final
As the end of the first decade of the Finnish Film Affair nears, the industry event’s director, Maria Pirkkalainen, who also heads Nordic Flair, notes its phenomenal growth, with more than 200 Finnish film projects showcased, more than 500 international guests brought to Helsinki, and the establishment of a major platform and networking forum for
Sky’s outgoing director of drama Cameron Roach has launched Rope Ladder Fiction, a Manchester-based independent production company. The company’s focus will be on providing training and development opportunities to new talent and to create scripted content. It is already working with some of the industry’s most prolific broadcasters and commissioners on a range of projects,
Helsinki International Film Festival – Love & Anarchy’s return to live, in-person screenings is an occasion for national celebration, says Anna Möttölä, the executive director of the event, now marking its 34th edition. While cinemas in Helsinki must still be limited to 50% capacity for pandemic precaution reasons, screenings of hot new titles such as
Kevin Mayer, chair of live sports streaming service DAZN, has confirmed his ambitions of acquiring rights to the globally popular English Premier League (EPL) soccer championship. In May, rights to the EPL, worth £5 billion ($7 billion) remained with the existing trio of Sky, Amazon, and BT Sport and DAZN was not permitted to participate
Japanese stars Ito Hideaki (“Tokkai”), Kasamatsu Sho (“Flowers and Rain”) and Yamashita Tomohisa (“The Man from Toronto”) have joined the cast as series regulars on “Tokyo Vice.” The series is backed by streaming service HBO Max, Japanese pay-TV leader Wowow and Endeavor Content. The Japanese and English-language crime drama series boasts a previously announced headline
Robert Pattinson and H.E.R. are helping the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures open its doors. The two are co-chairs, along with museum director and president Bill Kramer and Vanity Fair’s senior west coast editor Britt Hennemuth and , of Premiere, a party on Sept. 29 to celebrate the opening of the Los Angeles museum. Invites
“The Activist,” a CBS series that had itself become the target of online activism in recent days, is being reconfigured in response to the firestorm of criticism, and will now become a one-time documentary special instead of a five-episode competition series, Variety has learned. Although footage for the original incarnation of the series had already
Hillary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton have outlined the strategy behind their nascent film and TV company HiddenLight Productions, revealing that they have optioned a number of books, including Jacqueline Winspear’s “Maisie Dobbs” series. Speaking at the Royal Television Society conference in Cambridge on Wednesday, the Clintons appeared via a virtual live-link, in conversation with British
Regional Australian funding body Screen Queensland has set up two projects, one a feature film, one a TV series, emanating from its relationship with fan-driven literary platform Wattpad Webtoon. Both will enjoy further input from super-fans before heading into production. Writer Dominic Morris and producer Nadine Bates from Brisbane production company Like A Photon Creative have been chosen to adapt “The
Since launching her YouTube channel in 2009, Claudia Sulewski has taken the digital world by storm. At 18, the then-beauty vlogger was named the host of Teen Vogue’s official YouTube channel in 2015. Since then, she’s transitioned into acting. Sulewski recently landed her biggest acting role to date, playing Becca in writer-director James Morosini’s “I
In 1985, after thousands of gay men had died of AIDS in the U.S., Tammy Faye Bakker interviewed an openly gay pastor with HIV/AIDS named Steve Pieters on a national Christian television program. “How sad that we as Christians, who are supposed to love everyone, are so afraid of an AIDS patient that we will
Stacey Snider has run major movie studios and a very well-heeled independent production company over her long career in Hollywood. Now for the first time, she’s working for herself as a partner with Elisabeth Murdoch and producer Jane Featherstone in Sister. The executive, who has steered Universal Pictures, DreamWorks and 20th Century Fox is now
The next star of “The Bachelor” will be an unfamiliar face — but not for long. Sources tell Variety that ABC’s new leading man for Season 26 of the hit dating show is Clayton Echard, though ABC and Warner Bros. TV declined to comment for this story. If Echard’s name doesn’t ring a bell, it’s because
“Forget My Name,” “Life” and “Stolen Kids” proved some of the big winners at the 2021 Conecta Fiction awards ceremony in Pamplona, northern Spain on Wednesday night as the Europe-Latin America co-production forum reached its climax. A female spy drama-thriller charged emotionally by an effective mother-daughter relationship, “Forget My Name” won one of the most
When Frank Scherma was elected as chairman and CEO of the Television Academy three years ago, he came to office with grand plans to reform the organization. What he didn’t plan on was a global pandemic interrupting that focus. That’s why, as Scherma confirmed to Variety on Wednesday morning, he plans to run for re-election