China this week became the first global market to make a “full box office recovery” according to targets developed by the U.K.-based film industry analytics firm Gower Street, the company said Thursday. The firm created five targets to track and compare the paths of different territories’ exhibition sectors back to recovery. The indicators move from
When it came time to film the “Lowkey Happy,” the eighth episode in season 4 of HBO’s hit show “Insecure,” director Ava Berkofsky and cinematographer Kira Kelly knew that creating the right ambience for Issa (Issa Rae) and Lawrence’s (Jay Ellis) reunion date would be essential. In the latest episode of Artisans presented by HBO,
It sounds like the ultimate retail riddle: Is there a way to sell as much product in one day as possible, while having as few customers in-store as possible, at least at one time? “How to throttle store traffic” has rarely led the agenda when music shop owners and managers talk amongst themselves… until 2020.
“Cowboys” taps directly into the myth of the American male, with his leather boots and blue jeans, square jaw and wide stance, as immortalized in the collective imagination by painter Frederick Remington, director John Ford and decades of Marlboro tobacco advertising. But it does so with a twist: This debut feature from Anna Kerrigan explores
Tylor Norwood’s documentary, “Robin’s Wish,” which releases on demand Sept. 1, documents the last days of Robin Williams’ life. Close friends, neighbors and his wife, Susan Schneider Williams, tell a story of a man and his struggles before the death that took the world by surprise. The documentary is led by Schneider Williams, who wants
With moviegoing slowly returning to life after five months, a quartet of new titles are arriving amid the serious challenge of attracting customers worried about the COVID-19 pandemic — and Hurricane Laura. Disney’s “X-Men” spinoff “The New Mutants” opens at 2,412 North American locations and should lead the weekend in the $7 million to $10
If ever there was a time to fall in love with The Killers during the band’s 20-year existence, it’s now. One week after the release of “Imploding the Mirage,” which Variety described in its review as “vintage Killers … perfect for singing emotively with an impassioned fist over the chest,” Brandon Flowers’ role as frontman
“Bill & Ted Face the Music” has a high-fluff effervescence. It’s about how Bill (Alex Winter) and Ted (Keanu Reeves), those chuckle-brained metal heads who speak like Jeff Spicoli with a thesaurus, have just 77 minutes to travel through time and get the song — from themselves! Because they wrote it already! Whoa!! — that
Once loaded with connotations of exoticism and movie-star glamor, Ava now ranks annually among the most popular girls’ names in America, and it seems its ubiquity is extending to the film world: Tate Taylor’s female-starring shoot-’em-up “Ava” is the third film bearing that title to crop up in as many years. It, too, has the
John Harlan Kim has been upped to series regular on the upcoming fourth season of “9-1-1-” at Fox, Variety has learned exclusively. Kim recurred last season as Albert Kim, the younger half-brother of firefighter Howie “Chimney” Kim (Kenneth Choi). The brothers had never met until Albert surprised Chimey by showing up on his doorstep from Korea.
In today’s TV news roundup, “The Bachelorette’s” Rachel Lindsay has been named “” correspondent for Season 27, and Netflix set”The Queen’s Gambit’s” premiere date. DATES “That Animal Rescue Show,” from filmmakers Richard Linklater and Bill Guttentag, will premiere on CBS All Access on Oct. 29. The 10-episode docuseries follows unique animal rescue communities in and
Max Evans, whose New Mexico cowboy novels “The Rounders” and “Hi-Lo Country” were made into movies, died on Wednesday in hospice care at the VA Medical Center in Albuquerque, N.M. He was 95. His widow, Pat Evans, told the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper that her husband rode off to the “great mystery in the
Lionsgate, Shawn Levy and Dan Cohen are developing the horror film “Mother Land,” based on the spec script by Kevin Coughlin and Ryan Grassby. Lionsgate bought the project in a competitive situation. Levy and Cohen will produce through their 21 Laps banner. The duo are executive producers on Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” Levy directed and produced
Keira Knightley is the latest actor to take on narrating duties for an animated short film relaunched by environmental activists Extinction Rebellion. Titled “Climate Crisis, and Why We Should Panic,” the film, translated into 14 different languages, is the second of a two-part explainer video series for Extinction Rebellion, focusing on the climate and ecological
Though they only just put their Hollywood Hills starter house up for sale last week, Sophie Tweed-Simmons and Nick Simmons — the adult children of rock music icon-turned-reality TV star Gene Simmons — have wasted little time in upgrading their L.A. residential circumstances, shelling out $2.3 million for a brand-new contemporary showpiece with multiple flights of
The MTV VMAs are coming up fast, and the network has revealed its lineup of presenters: Anthony Ramos, Bebe Rexha, Bella Hadid, Drew Barrymore, Jaden Smith, Joey King, Kelly Clarkson, Machine Gun Kelly, Madison Beer, Nicole Richie, Sofia Carson and Travis Barker. Performers include Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, BTS, Doja Cat, CNCO,
Federal prosecutors charged three men for their alleged involvement in an international piracy operation. In a release that includes the Manhattan federal court filing, Jonatan Correa, Umar Ahmad and George Bridi were indicted on charges of copyright infringement conspiracy, with Bridi also being charged for wire fraud conspiracy and conspiracy to transport stolen property interstate.
New York Fashion Week will go forward, but with a new format. The Council of Fashion Designers of America has released the official lineup for the spring 2021 season, along with a digital initiative that will allow designers to present their collections to both industry professionals and the general public. Titled Runway360, the platform is
Simon Kinberg and David Weil’s Apple series “Invasion” has set its main cast. Apple TV Plus has cast “Jurassic World: Dominion” and “Peaky Blinders” star Sam Neill, “Wynnona Earp” alum Shamier Anderson and three others to star in the alien drama. “Invasion” follows an alien invasion through multiple perspectives around the world. The series, which is
Before making her mark as a visual effects supervisor on “Stranger Things” and “Tales from the Loop,” Andrea Knoll was a multi-faceted actress, director, producer and writer whose credits include “The Boss Baby” and “Monsters vs. Aliens.” Knoll spoke with Variety about her start in the world of VFX and addressed the issues and barriers women within
Executive Shakira Gagnier has been named vice president of diversity and inclusion at Paradigm Talent Agency, CEO Sam Gores announced Thursday. In her new role, Gagnier will oversee the development and execution of D&I strategies that fulfill agency commitments to improving the diversity and development of its employees worldwide. Gagnier will work with senior leadership,
NBC has announced its premiere dates for the fall, which will see September and October be packed with mostly unscripted fare, while most scripted originals have been pushed. The majority of the network’s big scripted shows, including “This Is Us,” its three “Chicago” dramas and “Law & Order: SVU” have been shunted back to November
“Nailed It” host and Emmy nominee Nicole Byer has been tapped to host the five-night presentation of the 2020 Creative Arts Emmy Awards, the Television Academy announced Thursday. Additionally, the organization announced some presenters for the virtual event: Monica Aldama (“Cheer”), Jeff Bridges (“The Old Man”), Rose Byrne (“Mrs. America”), Bobby Cannavale (“Homecoming”), guest drama
Night 3 of the Republican National Convention delivered the smallest viewership tally to date, dropping 13% from the previous night. Wednesday night’s proceedings drew around 15.8 million total viewers across all the broadcast and cable news networks, roughly a 2 million viewer dip on Tuesday night. For comparison, the third night of the Democratic National
As the 72nd Emmys goes virtual, so will the media that covers it. ABC and the Television Academy are launching a virtual media center that will serve as a home base for reporters and TV news crews covering this year’s ceremony from home. “In lieu of the traditional press rooms that have occurred on-site during
Maya Rudolph’s first auditions were usually for parts in commercials or music videos. It was the mid-90s when she snagged work as an extra in a Dr. Dre video. “It was a night shoot and we got paid nothing,” Rudolph recalls on Thursday’s episode of the Variety and iHeart podcast “The Big Ticket.” “They were
Time really does fly when you spend months cooped up at home. Fall will be here before you know it, so get ready to trade in your shorts and sandals for cozy knits and a great pair of boots. If you want to add some new shoes to your wardrobe, Amazon is slashing the prices
Animation writer and executive Joe Ruby, who created cartoon series including “Scooby-Doo” along with his partner Ken Spears, died of natural causes Wednesday in Westlake Village, Calif. He was 87. At Hanna-Barbera, Ruby and Spears created series including “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?,” “Dynomutt” and “Jabberjaw.” “He never stopped writing and creating, even as he aged,”
Disney’s FX Networks is hiring an ombudsman with the title senior vice president of diversity and culture, who will report to CEO John Landgraf. Revealing this during his closing address at the Edinburgh TV Festival on Thursday, where he was in conversation with BBC director of creative diversity June Sarpong, Landgraf said, “We are right
Justin Lin, director of five of the “Fast & Furious” movies, has signed multi-year production deals with Universal Pictures and Universal Studio Group for feature films and television through his Perfect Storm Entertainment. “Universal gave me my shot when they offered me the ‘Fast’ franchise a decade and a half ago,” Lin said. “Over the