Discovering a man held captive in a bunker for 30 years should be more compelling than it proves in “Inheritance.” This overlong tale spends most of its nearly two hours as a somewhat draggy, talky mystery before finally deciding to be a thriller, with credibility lacking throughout. Questionable lead casting further undermines this second directorial
The vast majority of the U.K.’s creative freelancers remain shut out from government support, with the Treasury so far refusing to commit further funds. Trade union Prospect and its entertainment division Bectu met with Treasury officials this week to continue lobbying for support for those workers who aren’t covered by the government’s Self-Employment Income Support
In a world still largely struggling with COVID-19 most film and TV productions remain halted. South Korea is one of the few places where filming has restarted – albeit hesitantly. Among the most prominent are two Netflix original series. “We worked quickly to develop safety protocols so that series such as our new drama ‘Move
U.K. pay-TV operator Sky has ordered a slate of nine original documentaries and factual shows ahead of the launch of its new factual channels Sky Documentaries and Sky Nature on May 27. The feature-length documentaries and series include biographies of Stephen Hawking, which had extensive access to his friends and family, and Tina Turner, with
Indian cinemas are shuttered, production continues to be at a standstill and the country remains in lockdown until at least May 31 due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Unsurprisingly, consumption of television and streaming services has surged during this period. But digital may not be an existential threat to the film business. India remains the
Ian McKellen, Lesley Manville, Lennie James and Joseph Fiennes are among the British talent delivering monologues as part of a new fundraising initiative by actors’ union Equity and actor Michelle Collins. The #ForTheLoveofArts monologues are between 2-5 minutes long and recorded remotely at the actors’ homes in a bid to raise money for Equity during
The Quirino Awards, a prize ceremony and industry forum for animation titles from Latin America, Spain and Portugal, will hold its third edition online with the support of Retina Latina and Filmin platforms. Event runs May 25 through June 27, when the awards ceremony takes place. Unspooling during its first two editions on Tenerife, a
Spain’s Latido Films has acquired worldwide sales rights outside Colombia to animated feature production “Len y el canto de las ballenas” (“Len and the Song of the Whales”). To be showcased at the online Annecy Intl. Animation Festival’s 2020 Work in Progress Feature section this June, the project is co-directed by Manuel Alejandro Victoria and Joan
SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 3 finale of “The Masked Singer,” which aired May 20 on Fox. “The Masked Singer” is sweet on Kandi Burruss. The singer, Grammy-winning songwriter and “Real Housewives of Atlanta” star has been unmasked as the Night Angel, the Season 3 winner of the
In today’s film news roundup, “Waiting for the Barbarians,” “Don’t Tell a Soul” and “Daddy Issues” get distribution and the African American Film Critics Association is launching a virtual Strong Summer 2020 programming slate. ACQUISITIONS Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired North American rights to Ciro Guerra’s feature film “Waiting for the Barbarians,” starring Johnny Depp,
Investment giant Goldman-Sachs has been one of the great cheerleaders for the revival of the music industry, and its projections played no small role in some of the industry’s recent successes — not least Universal Music Group being valued at $33.6 billion as part of its sale of 10% to Tencent. However, the coronavirus pandemic
Hip-hop music mogul Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith has come a long way since his days of robbing KFC franchises in the 1980s. The former gangster, born and reared in the gritty L.A. neighborhood of Watts, now reigns as one of the wealthiest producers in the music industry, presiding over one of the fastest-growing independent labels in
Casey Wasserman, the sports and entertainment entrepreneur who is the grandson of legendary talent agency mogul Lew Wasserman, is in talks to acquire the music assets of Paradigm agency, which has been hard hit by the coronavirus lockdown. Sources said the talks have been on-again, off-again and there’s a good chance that a deal may
Rock stars used to carry poor reputations when it came to handling money. Bad managers, bad advice and bad habits often made reunion/comeback tours financially necessary. But that’s all in the past. These days, rock’s megastars often invest their dollars with the acumen of a Ivy League-educated financial whiz. Besides endorsement deals, tech stocks and
Veteran film publicist Charles Lippincott, best known for handling the marketing campaign for George Lucas’ “Star Wars: A New Hope,” died Tuesday after being hospitalized in Vermont last week for a heart attack. He was 80. Lippincott’s wife, Bumpy, shared the news on social media. Lippincott joined Lucasfilm in 1975 as vice president of advertising,
The NBC reality series “Songland” wrapped this week, naming Canadian songwriter Griffen Palmer, who’s signed with Nashville-based Big Loud Publishing, its season two winner. His ballad “Second Guessing,” co-written with “Songland” judge Shane McAnally, was chosen as the new single for Florida Georgia Line. Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley of FGL immediately identified the tune
Forty years ago this month, American art-rock band Devo released their breakthrough record, “Freedom Of Choice.” The album not only spawned the new wave smash “Whip It,” but the full-length still stands the test of time, with singles such as “Girl U Want” and especially the title track, still resonating today with fans (actor Jack
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state will issue guidelines next Monday that would allow film and TV production to start up in some counties in the state, perhaps even as soon as next week. Newsom hosted a virtual roundtable on Wednesday with industry leaders, including Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos and director Ava
Skydance Animation has nabbed one of the biggest names in family entertainment to compose the music and score for an upcoming feature. Alan Menken, best-known for creating such classic songs as “Under the Sea” and “Be Our Guest,” will bring his melodic talents to “Spellbound.” The film, which will likely be re-titled, centers on a
Writers Guild of America leaders are seeking a variety of improvements in script fees for writers as the guild launches master contract negotiations with studios this week. Representatives for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and the WGA are facing a June 30 expiration of the current film and TV contract. Talks are
Two “Game of Thrones” alums may be reuniting. Jason Momoa and Peter Dinklage are in negotiations to produce and star in the vampire movie “Good Bad & Undead” at Legendary. Dinklage will portray Van Helsing, the last in a line of vampire hunters. He has an uneasy partnership with Momoa’s vampire character, who has taken
Motown Records announced on Wednesday it has launched The ABC Initiative, a multi-faceted campaign focused on helping communities in need during the COVID-19 pandemic. Set to the tune of the The Jackson 5 classic, the campaign will bring immediate aid to the hungry, small businesses owners and those most vulnerable in the face of the
Lee Leipsner has joined S-Curve Records as Head of Pop Promotion. The veteran executive was most recently executive vice president of promotion at Columbia Records, a post he left last year after 25 years at Sony Music. Leipsner will be based in New York and will report to label president and founder Steve Greenberg. “Lee Leipsner is
For Clark Gregg, Agent Phil Coulson has been the character who just won’t die — literally. The beloved SHIELD agent was killed off in Marvel Studios’ “The Avengers,” only to be resurrected a year later on “Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD” on ABC. Then Coulson died again at the end of Season 5, only to return once
2020 was shaping up to be another huge year for The Weeknd, with a new album, a global tour and not least, a Variety cover story. Well, despite a global pandemic, the album and cover story happened as planned, but the tour obviously had to wait — and on Wednesday afternoon, The Weeknd revealed rescheduled
HBO Max’s “On the Record” is a searing look at sexual harassment allegations against music mogul Russell Simmons. The documentary follows former Def Jam Records executive Drew Dixon, who has accused Simmons of rape and sexual harassment. Other women, including Kimberlé Crenshaw, Joan Morgan and Tarana Burke, also share their stories in the doc. Directors
Had your fill of livestream concerts lately? You and Keith Urban, both. “I’m grateful that we have the technology to do ‘at home’ concerts,” says the country superstar, “but come on — without the audience, it’s just one looooong soundcheck.” That’s why he was thrilled to get some genuine human feedback on May 14, when
The Daytime Emmy Awards are heading back to TV. Nine years after the kudocast last aired on a broadcast network — and five years after it was last on TV — CBS will once again telecast the Daytime Emmys, to be held on Friday, June 26. CBS last aired the Daytime Emmys in 2011. The
Focus On SportGetty Images When ESPN premiered The Last Dance in April, the 10-part series on Michael Jordan’s final season with the Chicago Bulls hit the ratings jackpot, becoming the most-watched documentary on the network. Its final two episodes aired Sunday. Nearly two decades have passed since Jordan’s retirement from the NBA, yet he’s as
The mythical, unreleased version of the 2017 superhero film “Justice League” will finally see the light of day on Warner Media’s HBO Max in 2021. After years of campaigning from talent and comic book fans, the studio behind the DC Films ensemble “Justice League” will offer original director Zach Snyder’s cut of the film, which