When it comes to TV series chemistry, the old jazzman might say, “You either got it or you ain’t.” The stars of IFC’s “Brockmire,” Hank Azaria and Amanda Peet, most definitely got it. Their sizzling, sexy comic chemistry was a key factor in transforming an initial cult hit into a hilarious, time-jumping must-watch in its
Netflix is bolstering its global entertainment formats team, hiring “The Circle” exec producer Daisy Lilley to work out of its London office, Variety has confirmed. Lilley has joined Netflix as a manager in its London-based operation, working closely with former ITV commissioner Ben Kelly. She reports in to Sean Hancock, Netflix’s U.S.-based director of unscripted
Warner Music Group Corp. announced today that it has launched the initial public offering of 70,000,000 shares of its Class A common stock, pursuant to a registration statement on Form S-1 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The initial public offering price is expected to be between $23.00 and $26.00 per share, which
Universal Music Group today announced the launch of Def Jam Africa, a new label division within the continent. According to the announcement, the new label is dedicated to representing “the best hip-hop, Afrobeats and trap talent in Africa, and will follow the blueprint of the iconic Def Jam Recordings label,” one of the most important
Darren Criss returns to original songs in the new Quibi series “Royalties.” Playing a songwriter for hire alongside Kether Donohue in the 10-episode comedy, the duo navigates the sometimes shameless world of jingles and pop songs. Criss co-wrote and executive-produced the series with longtime collaborators Nick and Matt Lang, fellow co-founders of YouTube sensation Team Starkid.
“CBS This Morning” anchor Gayle King became emotional on air Tuesday morning while discussing two racially charged incidents involving black men that transpired on Monday. Visibly shaken, King told viewers: “I am speechless. I am really, really speechless about what we’re seeing on television this morning. It feels to me like open season … and
The Panama Film Festival (IFF Panama), with support from the Inter-American Development Bank, is unspooling a five-day online festival, running May 22-26, which includes film screenings and round tables. Held on May 22, 23 and 24, three online round-tables – two moderated by festival director Pituka Ortega Heilbron and one by TIFF’s senior director, film,
Many U.K. independent cinemas say they are unlikely to reopen before September. A survey of the sector by U.K. organization the Independent Cinema Office (ICO), found that independent cinemas felt pressure from the commercial exhibition sector and the wider film industry to open before then, when it is not financially viable or even safe for
Agnieszka Zwiefka’s “Wika!” Angeliki Antoniou’s “Green Sea” and Wong Fei-pang’s “Dear Immigrants: What Was Your First Meal?” will all feature at the Marché du Film’s 2020 Goes to Cannes, one of the highest-profile industry events at the Cannes Film Market. This year’s Gors to Event runs June 22-23, at the beginning of the Marché du
Distributor NENT Studios U.K., formerly DRG, has made its first drama acquisition since rebranding, picking up New Zealand fantasy action-adventure series “The Dead Lands.” NENT Studios U.K. acquired the rights to the eight-hour series from New Zealand producer GFC Films, which itself reclaimed the rights after the show’s former distributor Kew Media Distribution collapsed into
Russian film promotion body Roskino has unveiled the program for its digital Key Buyers Event, a virtual content market that will present over 300 projects from more than 120 leading Russian companies to international buyers. Presented with the support of the Ministry of Culture and the Moscow city government, the digital market will run from
The U.K.’s Channel 4 has acquired rights to season one and two of Canadian public broadcaster CBC’s original drama “Coroner” from distributor Cineflix Rights. Channel 4 will make the series available to U.K. viewers on its More 4 channel. The deal follows The CW Network’s acquisition of “Coroner” for the U.S. market earlier this month,
When the bottom fell out of the Russian economy during the crisis of 2014, sending the ruble into a tailspin, the shockwaves reverberating across the country had a seismic impact on the film industry. For many accustomed to the old ways of doing business, a dramatic rethink was at hand. “Until 2014…Russian producers were never really
Roskino topper Evgenia Markova was just weeks into her job at the head of the Russian film promotion body when the coronavirus pandemic struck. With her ambitious plans to mount a splashy showcase for the local industry at this year’s Cannes Film Festival suddenly scrapped, she quickly realized that those plans would have to be
Hannah Gadsby is the Michael Jordan of standup in one way — her stated plans to retire shouldn’t be taken seriously. “Nanette,” her performance that toured widely and was released on Netflix in 2018, was premised on the idea — not, seemingly, meant literally even in the moment — that Gadsby was walking away from
There was, clearly, no expense spared in the making of “Space Force.” Imagining what a Space Force branch of the military might actually look like outside the bounds of President Trump’s imagination (though the show never mentions him by name), the new comedy is a splashy flex of Netflix’s powers. It boasts the co-creator team
“Suicide Squad” director David Ayer says it would be easy to make a director’s cut of his movie. The 2016 supervillain team-up movie received mostly negative reviews from fans and critics, and many wondered what had been left on the cutting room floor. Since his movie’s release, Ayer has been vocal about how his original
Fellow “Bachelorette” star Rachel Lindsay has opened up on how she was disappointed by Hannah Brown’s apology for saying the N-word while singing the lyrics to a song on Instagram. Lindsay, who is the only black series lead in the history of “The Bachelorette” and “The Bachelor,” said Brown told her she was going to
One of TV’s most deliciously awkward shows, “90 Day Fiancé” recently wrapped its seventh season on TLC and continues to be a fascinating experiment in love and culture wars. Which couples are still together? And who called it quits? Here’s an update on all 34 couples from the hit reality series.
Matthew McConaughey personally delivered a carload of face masks to hospitals fighting coronavirus in Texas. The actor and his wife Camila Alves McConaughey dropped off 110,000 face masks ahead of Memorial Day weekend. McConaughey posted a photo of his car and the boxes of masks on his Instagram account on Thursday. “Thanks to @lincoln for
Taylor Swift may have finally started to make good on her vow to re-record her entire Big Machine back catalog — although she never said she was going to put her brother, Austin, on lead vocals for the entire epic project. Okay, so the siblings’ (alleged) cover of “Look What You Made You Do,” as
Cole Sprouse has been making good use of his time in lockdown, playing lots of video games — specifically “Animal Crossing” — and growing some epic facial hair. His mustachio’d appearance was originally for his role in the upcoming Lionsgate comedy “Undercover” and was recently documented in (socially distant) photoshoot that went viral. The “Riverdale”
Following weeks of heated debate and clashes, France’s film and audiovisual guilds as well as labor unions have finally agreed a set of production guidelines for filming during the pandemic. The guidelines were approved by the CCHCST (Central Committee for Hygiene, Security and Working Conditions in the Production of Films, Shorts and Commercials) and have
Consumers have never had more options for streaming entertainment directly to their TVs, smartphones or computers. Which video streaming services are the best? Players jostling for share in the crowded subscription-video landscape include Netflix, Disney’s Disney Plus and Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV Plus, and (starting this week) HBO Max. Which of these is
Veteran news executive Bill Small, who served as the Washington bureau chief of CBS News and president of NBC News, died on Sunday following a brief illness unrelated to the coronavirus, CBS News announced. He was 93. Small led CBS News’ political coverage from 1962-1974, covering such major events as Watergate, Vietnam and the Civil
Dakota Johnson, with her sun-dazed smile and wary doe-eyed glow (the look of an innocent who knows how to thread her way through a world of predators), can be a winsomely appealing performer, but what is she doing in “The High Note” playing Maggie, the personal assistant to an imperious pop-star diva? It’s the kind
Jazz drummer Jimmy Cobb, who brought subtlety and swing to Miles Davis’ epochal “Kind of Blue” and many other classic albums, died at his home in New York on Sunday, according to NPR and other outlets. He was 91. His wife, Eleana Tee Cobb, said the cause was lung cancer. While best known as a
Queen guitarist Brian May revealed he’s recovering after suffering a heart attack that he called a “near-death experience.” In a video posted to Instagram on Sunday night, May shared details about a series of health scares that began last month after he injured his gluteus maximus in a gardening incident. However, May said he was
The Producers Guild of India (PGI) has published a comprehensive protocol document that will govern shoots after the coronavirus pandemic subsides. The 37-page “Back to Action’ protocol explains hygiene matters such as mandatory hand-washing, triple-layer mask and gloves, the avoidance of handshakes and shared cigarettes, and how two metres of social distancing should be maintained.
In a major reboot of its pix-in-post strands, which in turn forms part of a new streamlining, the San Sebastian Film Festival, the highest-profile film event in the Spanish-speaking world, has launched two new pix-in-post showcases, WIP Latam and WIP Europa. WIP Latam replaces Films in Progress, launched in 2003 as a joint venture with