Based on a ’70s manga by Japanese master Osamu Tezuka, a bored writer’s affair with his beguiling young muse gets the live-action treatment in “Tezuka’s Barbara.” Primarily concerned with the story’s excursions into erotic surrealism and the occult while playing down its social and political themes, this handsomely packaged item isn’t deep or meaningful but
As larger-than-life rock stars go, St. Vincent may be a slightly slippery character, but Annie Clark, the woman who records under that name, isn’t so much so. At least that’s the impression you’ll take away from the new audio project that has just been released as one of the pilot projects for Audible’s new Words
Social media giant, Facebook says that it would rather cut people’s access to news in Australia than comply with the country’s proposed law which would make it pay local news publishers. On Tuesday local time Facebook said that it would stop allowing news publishers and individuals in Australia from sharing local and international news via
Michael B. Jordan has shared a touching tribute to his “Black Panther” co-star Chadwick Boseman, following the actor’s shocking death due to colon cancer on Aug. 28. The two starred together in the blockbuster “Black Panther,” which made Boseman a household name, in addition to the star of Marvel’s first Black superhero film. Jordan played
In the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, Amy Hill packed her bags in Hollywood and returned home to her family in Hawaii, thinking she would quarantine there. But the actor-comedian’s short-lived break from production came to an end with a surprise Zoom call in April. Hill, 67, stars in director Quentin Lee’s sci-fi feature
Amazon is developing a series about human rights lawyer Jared Genser with Orlando Bloom attached to executive produce, Variety has learned. The untitled series is inspired by Genser and his firm. He and his team work to free prisoners of conscience (Human Rights prisoners) in high-risk areas throughout the world’s most difficult Hot Zones. Per the
Both “The Big Show Show” and “Ashley Garcia: Genius in Love” have not been renewed at Netflix. However, both multi-camera comedies taped Christmas specials prior to the pandemic, with both set to air this December. According to an individual with knowledge of the situation, both specials are standalone episodes and do not continue the storylines
More than 7,900 people have signed a petition calling for a statue of Chadwick Boseman to replace a Confederate memorial in Anderson, S.C., the late “Black Panther” star’s hometown. On Friday, Boseman died after a private, four-year battle with colon cancer, shocking many fans around the world. He was 43. “The Confederate Monument belongs in
Prolific producer Mark Gordon is setting sail with a new production company, Mark Gordon Pictures. The venture is backed by Entertainment One, where Gordon served as president until July 2019 in the wake of friction with the group. He then transitioned to a development and production deal with the company, which has since been acquired
In today’s TV news roundup, “The Bay” will move to Popstar TV, and Facebook Watch announced the mid-season premiere date for “The Real Bros of Simi Valley” Season 3. DATES The third season of “The Real Bros of Simi Valley” will resume Sept. 4 at 3 p.m. onFacebook Watch. The season picks up from Xander
The 2020 MTV Video Music Awards performed pretty strongly in the ratings department, given the unprecedented COVID-19 circumstances. This year’s ceremony, hosted by “Hustlers” star Keke Palmer, was down only 5% on last year in terms of total linear viewership. A total of 6.4 million viewers tuned in across MTV and the 12 other ViacomCBS
It takes a great man to play a great man; Chadwick Boseman did it four times! To have the gravity, the intelligence, the physicality to portray any of his signature roles — Jackie Robinson, James Brown, Thurgood Marshall and T’Challa, the Black Panther — is a breathtaking feat, but to give four entirely different performances
It seems only natural that filmmaker Ninian Doff recruited music supervisors Sophie Urquhart and producer-turned-supe Bobby Perman, aka S-Type, for his off-kilter feature debut “Get Duked!” (previously known as “Boyz in the Wood”), since it marries horror and satire. Doff didn’t want a traditional horror sound; he sought a score and soundtrack that were reflective
MONDAY, AUG. 31 Shailene Woodley, Julie Bowen Join ‘Fallout’ Shailene Woodley and Julie Bowen have joined the cast of Jenna Ortega’s high school drama “Fallout,” which has been shooting in Los Angeles. John Ortiz, Will Ropp, Maddie Ziegler and Niles Fitch are also starring in “Fallout.” Megan Park is directing from her own script about
For “Drunk History” co-creator and host Derek Waters, it’s pretty bittersweet to still be campaigning for an Emmy now that his show has been canceled. Comedy Central, which is mostly getting out of the live-action comedy business, announced earlier this month that it had rescinded a Season 7 order for “Drunk History,” and Waters admits
In this pivotal year and racially charged era, the BET Awards chose to open their show in June with a new version of Public Enemy’s iconic 1989 song “Fight the Power,” which sadly is as relevant today as it was 31 years ago. The new video includes group founders Chuck D and Flavor Flav along
COVID-19 and its long-term affects on film marketing took center stage at the Keynote Marketing Roundtable event on Wednesday, as part of Variety‘s Entertainment Marketing Summit. Brent Lang, Variety‘s executive editor of film and media, moderated the panel conversation, which featured various professionals from the marketing side of the film industry. Participants included Paul Noble, co-president
The cast of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” is reuniting at HBO Max to celebrate the show’s 30th anniversary. Series star Will Smith and series regulars Tatyana Ali, Karyn Parsons, Joseph Marcell, Daphne Maxwell Reid, and Alfonso Ribeiro will all be part of the special, as will DJ Jazzy Jeff. It is set to tape
“NOS4A2” has been canceled at AMC after two seasons. Series showrunner Jami O’Brien shared the news on Twitter. O’Brien wrote, “Well friends, I heard from AMC last week. We won’t be making a 3rd season of #NOS4A2. It’s a bummer, but I’m grateful we were at least able to finish adapting the storyline from Joe
Coronavirus upended the business of live sports, but fans have shifted to sports-inspired films and docuseries, such as ESPN Films’ “The Last Dance” and Netflix’s “Cheer” and “Last Chance U.” On Variety’s Sports & Entertainment Breakfast, which aired Aug. 28 in the Variety Streaming Room, Green Bay Packers quarterback, two-time NFL MVP and Super Bowl
Arnold Schwarzenegger has settled on his latest mission. The action star has signed on to lead and executive produce an hourlong spy series which is in the works at Skydance Television, Variety has confirmed. Schwarzenegger will be making his TV debut with the series, which is described as a global spy adventure with a father and daughter
New Jersey will allow its indoor movie theaters to open on Sept. 4, the start of the Labor Day holiday weekend. Governor Phil Murphy announced Monday that theaters — which have been closed for almost six months due to the COVID-19 pandemic — and indoor performance venues would be allowed to reopen with attendance per
Welcome back to Tune In: our weekly newsletter offering a guide to the best of the week’s TV. Each week, Variety’s TV team combs through the week’s schedule, selecting our picks of what to watch and when/how to watch them. As many across the country continue to practice self-isolation due to coronavirus, why not while away
Longtime celebrity hairstylist Rhonda O’Neal believes there’s no excuse for hair and makeup artists whose skills are limited to working with actors of their own race. Trained by her Black hair stylist mother, O’Neal, the hair craft president of the Makeup Artists and Hair Stylists Guild, now oversees the next generation of union members. “One
The singer Adele has been accused of cultural appropriation after sharing a photo of herself on Instagram with her hair in Bantu knots — a traditional African hairstyle. The photo, in which she is seen wearing a Jamaican bikini top, was posted as a tribute to London’s Notting Hill Carnival, which normally takes place this
It’s been said about the Civil War that the South lost the war but won the narrative, rewriting history to soften its motives while enacting laws to uphold a uniquely American form of apartheid. In the face of more than a century and a half of such malignant propaganda, terrifying social thriller “Antebellum” lands like
David Ushery, a veteran of WNBC who has worked as an anchor on the station’s news programs for years, has been given a new role – co-anchoring at 4 p.m. and the economically critical 11 p.m. newscast. He replaces Stefan Holt, who is returning to WMAQ, the company’s owned-and-operated affiliate in Chicago. Ushery will join
Mariah Carey is set to headline a Christmas special at Apple. “Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special” will combine music, dancing and animation. It will be driven by a a story about bringing the world together. It will premiere on the heels of the 25th anniversary of Carey’s iconic holiday anthem “All I Want For Christmas
Taylor Swift became the first artist in the history of the Rolling Stone album chart to land five consecutive weeks in the No. 1 position, as “Folklore” was held over in the top spot with 87,400 album units in its fifth frame. Although the Rolling Stone chart, which is powered by sales and streaming figures
Teddy Riley can remember the first time he experimented with the concept of 3D audio, nearly 30 years ago during the making of Michael Jackson’s “Dangerous.” Using the now-defunct Roland RSS Space Sound Compressor, Riley filtered his voice through the gear to create a surround-sound “5-4-3-2-1” countdown during the intro of Jackson’s 1991 single “Jam”