English animator Robert Morgan has deservedly accrued a shelf of awards over the past quarter-century or so for shorts like “The Cat With Hands,” “The Separation” and ickily awesome “Bobby Yeah.” Their macabre, surreal nightmares are at once threatening and oddly winsome, with a sinister aesthetic equally redolent of the Brothers Quay, early David Lynch
Lionsgate‘s “John Wick” spinoff “Ballerina,” starring Ana de Armas, has been pushed to 2025. Rupert Sanders’ “The Crow” remake will take over its release date of June 7, 2024, while “Ballerina” will bow on June 6, 2025. Studio insiders say Chad Stahelski, who oversees the “John Wick” franchise along with Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee
The Los Angeles City Ethics Committee has voted down a proposed settlement by the city with former CBS Corp. head Leslie Moonves for “aiding and abetting the disclosure of confidential information and inducing or attempting to induce the misuse of a City position.” In a unanimous 4-0 vote, committee president Jeffery J. Daar, VP Manjusha
The new Apple TV+ series “Constellation” is a space drama, a category in which its deep-pocketed platform has developed something of a preoccupation. (There’s also “For All Mankind,” “Foundation” and, technically, the most recent season of “The Morning Show.”) But the show also exemplifies a type of series so recognizable it’s become practically a genre
From a Christopher Nolan set to the Marvel Cinematic Universe? It’s the path “Oppenheimer” star David Krumholtz wanted to take by campaigning for the role of Ben Grimm/The Thing in the upcoming Marvel tentpole “The Fantastic Four.” The actor recently revealed to Entertainment Weekly that he met with the film’s director, Matt Shakman, to play
The embrace of “Barbie” at this year’s People’s Choice Awards — where it won six accolades, including movie of the year — is testament to one fact: Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie and the cast have created a work that speaks to everybody, not just to women and the doll-owning young girls they used to be. A
As the American Federation of Musicians and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers resumed contract negotiations Wednesday, the AFM has released statistics that shed light on the changing nature of employment for industry musicians who play on many of the film and TV shows now being made. When a film or TV show
Natalie Portman is the latest actor to speak about the decline of the movie star. In an interview with Vanity Fair, the “Black Swan” Oscar winner noted that kids these days like her own have no idea who movie stars are but are widely familiar with popular YouTubers. “The striking thing has been the decline
Jay Pharoah, known for “Saturday Night Live” and “The Blackening,” will host “The Quiz with Balls,” a new Fox game show. Each episode will feature two families competing for $100,000 in a “battle of the balls,” combining a high-stakes quiz show with a large-scale physical competition. “When I got hit up about hosting an epic
Oscar nominee America Ferrera has been cast in her next role outside of Barbie World. Ferrera has signed on to star in Oscar nominee Paul Greengrass’ upcoming drama “The Lost Bus” alongside Academy Award winner Matthew McConaughey, Variety has learned exclusively. Being developed, produced and distributed by Apple Original Films with an original script by
Sylvester Stallone revealed on “The Family Stallone” Season 2 premiere that he never recovered from an injury he endured during the making of “The Expendables” (via People). The stunt gone wrong occurred during a scene in which Stallone got tackled by co-star and WWE legend Steve Austin. It left Stallone with dislocated shoulders and a fractured
Despite three new releases, Paramount’s Bob Marley biographical drama “One Love” is projected to top the box office again. This weekend’s newcomers, Hilary Swank’s inspirational drama “Ordinary Angels” and director Ethan Coen’s comedic thriller “Drive-Away Dolls,” are targeting single digits in their debuts. With those paltry ticket sales, “Bob Marley: One Love” looks to repeat
Mindy Kaling‘s new Netflix comedy series set in the world of pro basketball has added five new cast members, Variety has learned. The new cast members are: Fabrizio Guido (“Good Burger 2,” “Perry Mason,” “Mr. Iglesias”), Toby Sandeman (“Power Book III: Raising Kanan,” “The Game,” “Love Is_”), Chet Hanks (“Your Honor,” “Shameless,” “Empire”), Keyla Monterroso
Roku Channel has released a teaser trailer for the upcoming series “The Spiderwick Chronicles,” after it acquired the show after Disney+ chose not to move forward with it. All eight episodes will be available to stream on April 19. Adapted from the book series by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black, “The Spiderwick Chronicles” follows a
BuzzFeed has sold Complex — the youth-culture media company it bought three years ago — and will pink-slip another 16% of BuzzFeed’s remaining staffers in a restructuring designed to get back on financial track. BuzzFeed announced Wednesday that it closed the sale of Complex to ecommerce platform Ntwrk in a $108.6 million all-cash deal. L.A.-based
The BBC have unveiled a new slate of star-studded dramas including the TV adaptation of James Graham’s football play “Dear England” starring Joseph Fiennes, a new co-pro with “Euphoria” producer A24 and the screenwriting debut from “Sex Education” star Aimee Lou Wood. Director of BBC Drama Lindsay Salt revealed the 12-strong slate – which adds
In the world of “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” a sky bison makes for the best nap spot, the young cast soon learned. Gordon Cormier, who plays the show’s main character Aang, shared that he and fellow co-stars Kiawentiio and Ian Ousley, who play siblings Katara and Sokka, bonded on set by napping on Appa, Aang’s
Nic Pizzolatto, the original creator of HBO’s “True Detective” franchise, published a bizarre Instagram post amid controversy generated in the aftermath of the show’s fourth season finale. “True Detective: Night Country,” starring Jodie Foster and Kali Reis, ended it six-episode run on Feb. 18. Pizzolatto found himself in hot water after reposting comments to his
Former NBC Universal Television Entertainment chairman Jeff Gaspin is taking a job as VP of unscripted series at Netflix — reporting to Netflix VP of nonfiction series Brandon Riegg. It’s a bit of a reversal for the two execs: In 2010, Riegg joined NBC as vice president of alternative series & development, reporting to the
Piper Perabo has been cast in the upcoming Amazon Prime Video spy series “Butterfly,” Variety has learned exclusively. Perabo joins previously announced series lead Daniel Dae Kim in the series along with cast members Reina Hardesty, Park Hae-soo, Kim Tae-hee, and Nayoon Kim. The show was originally ordered to series in May 2023 with a
“Oppenheimer” has achieved the most-watched launch for a pay-one film in Peacock‘s history. That puts it ahead of “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” which previously held the record for highest opening weekend viewership among films that landed on the streamer through its pay-one deal with Universal Pictures. An exact number of viewers, however, was not
The Oscar-nominated song “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)” by Scott George has a deep meaning. The lyrics, sung in Osage, invite listeners to stand up, be tall and be proud. “We’re still here after all of that,” George says. What George is referring to is the true story of the Osage murders and tragedy
After years of releasing loose singles in the wake of her group Fifth Harmony’s split, Normani has finally announced her upcoming debut album titled “Dopamine.” Fans took note yesterday that the singer wiped her socials, a tactic often used by artists signaling the imminent arrival of a new era. Today, she took to Instagram to
Bobbi Althoff feels misunderstood. That’s why when we talk on the phone about the second season of “The Really Good” podcast, which has so far featured interviews with Bobby Lee, Michael Cera and Wiz Khalifa. She’s eager to clear the air. She’s not a “nepo baby” or “industry plant.” She doesn’t hate everyone she interviews. And,
“Hacks” has promoted both Megan Stalter and Paul W. Downs to series regular status for Season 3, Variety has learned exclusively. Downs plays Deborah and Ava’s manager, Jimmy Lusaque Jr., while Stalter plays Jimmy’s assistant, Kayla Schaeffer. Both have appeared on the show since Season 1 of the Max comedy series. The promotion expands Downs’
“Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent” may be the biggest original TV series premiere Canada has ever had. That means, when that famous “dun-dun” opens the series on Feb. 22 via Citytv, the pressure is on. It’s notoriously hard to get a show greenlit in Canada. Funding challenges, market size and competition from U.S. acquisitions
Sean “Diddy” Combs has issued a legal response denying claims he gang-raped a 17-year-old girl in 2003. This was just one of four separate sexual assault allegations lodged against the R&B artist late last year. The plaintiff, identified as Jane Doe, alleged that she was flown on a private jet from Michigan to Combs’ recording
Never rarely means never in the music world, and nearly five years after Slayer — one of the greatest metal bands in history — officially disbanded, they’re reuniting for two festival dates this fall, and seemingly possibly more. The two dates announced so far are Chicago’s Riot Fest on Sept. 22 and the Louder Than
Four whalers are set adrift after a violent storm sinks their ship. Lost at sea, exposed to the elements and on the brink of starvation, the men must make horrifying decisions in their struggle to survive. Cannibalism may or may not be on the menu. That grim setup doesn’t scream Broadway musical! But that’s exactly
Freevee isn’t going away, Amazon says. With Amazon’s Prime Video launch of ads by default last month, rumors and speculation have heated up that the tech giant would no longer have a strategic need for Freevee — its free, ad-supported streaming service that is separate from Prime Video. A Feb. 21 report by Adweek, citing