In today’s TV news roundup, HBO Max announces Kate Winslet and Priyanka Chopra Jonas as narrators for its series “A World of Calm,” and Dr. Anthony Fauci returns to “The Daily Show With Trevor Noah.” CASTING Kate Winslet and Priyanka Chopra Jonas will join HBO Max’s “A World of Calm,” a 10-episode series that combines
The fate of TikTok isn’t fully settled yet. In a sign that the talks over the ownership transfer of TikTok to U.S.-controlled parties — forced by the Trump administration — could potentially get derailed, Oracle and ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent, are making different claims about who will own what in the newly reincarnated TikTok Global.
Former Writers Guild of America West president Patric Verrone and negotiating committee co-chair Betsy Thomas have won re-election to WGA West board seats. Incumbents Deric A. Hughes, Ashley Gable, Patti Carr, David Slack and Travis Donnelly also won re-election along with “Empire” and “Power” co-executive producer Eric Haywood. Other candidates were Katherine Beattie, Daniel Kunka, Rob
Hollywood unions have reached an agreement with the major studios on protocols to allow the industry to safely restart production amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The agreement was announced Monday, three and a half months after the unions issued their “Safe Way Forward” guidelines on June 12 following a June 1 “white paper” by the Industry-Wide
There’s never been a better time to binge “Schitt’s Creek.” Fresh off of the show’s historic night at the Emmy Awards, the final season is not only heading to Netflix, but the whole series will air on Comedy Central as well. Comedy Central will air all six seasons of “Schitt’s Creek” beginning Oct. 2, in
Tomorrow — Tuesday, Sept. 22 — is National Voter Registration Day and the HeadCount non-profit organization is leading a coordinated music industry effort involving hundreds of artists, concert venues, and digital platforms. For starters, more than 300 notable musicians will post messages and photos on their social media wearing “VOTE” masks and a call for
Actor-auteur Maïwenn bills herself last in the principal cast credits for “DNA,” adding the distinguishing curlicue of an “and” citation when her name eventually pops up on screen. On the one hand, it seems a courtesy to the formidable ensemble of her fifth feature as director, stacked as it is with stars from Fanny Ardant
Natasha Lyonne and Alia Shawkat are developing a half-hour series at Amazon, Variety has learned exclusively. Titled “Desert People,” the series follows a family of Iraqi immigrants who run a gentleman’s club in Palm Springs. Shawkat will star as the parents’ adult daughter in LA who is coming to terms with her sexuality and identity
Tim Pastore is stepping down as CEO of All3Media America, exiting the role after two years at the top of the “Fleabag” and “The Circle” production group. Pastore joined All3Media back in Sept. 2018, having previously served as president of original programming and production at National Geographic. “It’s been a privilege to lead such a
Netflix will not be returning to the planet of Thra. The streamer has canceled its fantasy puppet series “The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance” after only a single season, Variety has confirmed. The show was a prequel series to the original 1982 Jim Henson film, which tells the story of a group of young Gelflings who discover
A particularly strange year in television and beyond got a fittingly strange Emmys show to match, with nominees awaiting the results from home while Jimmy Kimmel threw jokes into an empty Staples Center. But with a smart, lively production and a string of winners both expected and surprising, the 2020 Emmys ended up more memorable
Due to COVID-19, London Fashion Week is almost unrecognizable this year. Still, designers are proving that the show doesn’t stop and some have even surpassed all expectations. Molly Goddard, known for her cheeky take on taffeta princess gowns beloved by Rihanna, Zendaya, and Killing Eve fans alike, delivered a spring-summer collection worthy of a couch-sitting
A screenwriter has filed a lawsuit against actor Gary Oldman and NBCUniversal, claiming that the film “Darkest Hour” lifted certain historical inventions from his unproduced Winston Churchill script. Ben Kaplan, a teacher and writer who has worked on several History Channel series, filed the suit in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday. He alleges that
AFI Fest will close its 34th edition on Oct. 22 with the world premiere of Showtime’s Timothy Leary documentary “My Psychedelic Love Story,” directed by Errol Morris. The film explores the dark side of the Leary saga and how his doomed relationship with his former partner Joanna Harcourt-Smith served as the final nail in the coffin
Phillipa Soo and Jake McDorman have joined the cast of Hulu’s upcoming drama “Dopesick” in recurring guest star roles, Variety has learned exclusively. The series looks into the epicenter of America’s struggle with opioid addiction, taking viewers from a distressed Virginia mining community, to the hallways of the DEA, and to the opulence of “one
Will Arnett’s horoscope must have told him that great news is heading his way. And that news is that his “Your Daily Horoscope” animated series has been picked up for a second season by Quibi, Variety has learned exclusively. The short-form content platform has ordered another 26-week run of the show, which airs five episodes per week.
The Emmys may have had a “Friends” reunion with Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow and Courteney Cox, but Tuesday night the celebrated sitcom is getting revamped for a new generation. Gabrielle Union is hosting an all-Black cast reading of “Friends.” The star-studded Salli Richardson-Whitfield-directed event, taking place Tuesday from 6 p.m.-7 p.m. ET at Zoom Where
CAA has promoted theater agent Kevin Lin and multicultural business executive Ruben Garcia to co-heads of cultural business strategy. Lin and Garcia will work with CAA president Richard Lovett and the CAA board to strengthen companywide strategies that maximize creative opportunities and business growth for the agency’s diverse clients. “CAA is on a mission,” Lovett
In her second career iteration as a talk-show host, Ellen DeGeneres has been buoyed by generalities. Her show’s success lies in the degree to which it could conceivably be for any viewer; other than an occasional tension thrumming under the show’s studious politeness when DeGeneres is at odds with a guest, the show is sanded
Superstar DJ Tiesto, alt-rock group Fitz & the Tantrums, bluegrass artist Billy Strings and funk-jam band Lotus will perform concerts from Red Rocks Amphitheater that will be livestreamed in 4K via Nugs.net, from Thursday to Sunday this week. There will be an “extremely limited number” of in-person tickets made available for purchase via axs.com and redrocksonline.com and in strict accordance with
The good news that people in the live music industry foresee is that there will not only be a resurgence of concertgoing at the end of the pandemic but maybe even a “Roaring Twenties” level of enthusiasm for hitting the town. The bad news is that few independent venues are equipped to weather a shutdown
Tiffany Haddish has joined Nicolas Cage in Lionsgate’s action-comedy “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.” Pedro Pascal and Sharon Horgan are also starring in “Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent,” in which Cage portrays a fictionalized version of himself as he accepts a $1 million offer to attend the birthday of a super fan (played by
Quibi, the mobile subscription TV startup founded by Jeffrey Katzenberg, is exploring “strategic options” including a potential sale, the Wall Street Journal reported. Launched in April 2020, Quibi has raised about $1.75 billion from major studios and other investors and has banked dozens of original series from Hollywood A-listers. The major question is who, exactly,
“Mr. Mercedes” will live on, with Peacock officially picking up the Stephen King crime drama for its third season. The show previously aired on Audience Network and had been renewed for a third season, but Audience Network shutdown before the season aired. AT&T pulled the plug on Audience Network in January, leaving the show’s remaining
Starz is in early development on a drama series titled “The Venery of Samantha Bird,” Variety has learned exclusively. The project hails from writer and executive producer Anna Moriarty. Should the show get ordered to series, it would mark her first TV writing credit. Jessica Rhoades will also executive produce, with Jessica Yu attached to executive
The producers of this year’s 72nd Emmy Awards promised some unexpected moments, and it didn’t take long for that to come true. That is, if you classify “almost burning down the Staples Center” as unexpected. While announcing the very first Emmy on Sunday night with presenter Jennifer Aniston, host Jimmy Kimmel sprayed the envelope with
RECORDS, the joint-venture label between Sony Music and veteran executive Barry Weiss, will open an office in Nashville this month. Ash Bowers, a manager, songwriter, producer and former recording artist based in the city, has been named President of RECORDS Nashville, marking his first position as a music label executive. “We’re already stocked with talented
Like everyone else, BTS and NPR have been forced to pivot during the pandemic — and for their first performance on NPR’s “Tiny Desk” concert series, the K-pop superstars performed from the record store VINYL & PLASTIC in BTS’s hometown of Seoul. The group drew more than half a million viewers for the premiere of
“All In: The Fight for Democracy,” a documentary that examines voter suppression in the United States, will be available for free on Amazon Prime Video on Sept. 22 in support of National Voter Registration Day. Viewers will have access to the film in front of the paywall for 24 hours, without needing a Prime membership
French actor Michael Lonsdale, who was known internationally for his roles as the villain Hugo Drax in the 1979 James Bond film “Moonraker” and detective Claude Lebel in “The Day of the Jackal,” has died. He was 89. AFP confirmed news of the actor’s death, via his agent, on Monday. Lonsdale won France’s Cesar for