The “Disney Family Singalong” continued to waltz its way to the top of the ratings charts for the week of April 13. After seven days of delayed viewing, almost 13 million viewers have tuned in to the special which saw the likes of Ariana Grande, Josh Gad, John Stamos, Auliʻi Cravalho, and Christina Aguilera belt
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will be on the “frontlines” when it comes time to encourage people to return to movie theaters, say president David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson. “We’ll be leading that campaign. We’re already talking to filmmakers about that,” Hudson told Variety on Tuesday afternoon. “We’re already talking about
Universal Music Publishing has unveiled UMPG Music Solutions, combining its worldwide networks of sync and custom music offerings for film, television and advertising. Client inquiries will be managed by UMPG’s local sync offices, as well as through Universal Publishing Production Music, according to the announcement. More information is available at http://www.umpgmusicsolutions.com/. The service provides a single point of access
T-Pain has been thinking a lot about TP lately. “I finally found out that my wife poops,” the artist joked from his isolation at his home in Atlanta during a “Variety Live!” interview. “We’ve been married for 17 years, but I think she waits to poop until I go on the road. Now that I
If you want to consider how far we’ve come since early March, when the debate over whether South by Southwest should be held went on nearly to the eve of the festival, consider this: Folk Alliance International, the top annual conference for acoustic musicians, has made the decision to cancel its next conference… 10 months
AMC Theatres has hit hard at Universal Pictures, announcing it will no longer play any of the studio’s films in the wake of NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell’s promise to open titles on premium and in theaters at the same time. Universal used the PVOD format to release “Trolls World Tour” on April 10 amid the
Lionsgate has hired “American Hustle” scribe Eric Warren Singer to write “Now You See Me 3,” the latest installment in the franchise based on a fresh take by Singer. The first two movies in the “Now You See Me” series have taken in $687 million worldwide cumulatively. The previous films starred Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson,
Leaders of the Writers Guild of America have told members that the guild will press on in its legal battle with WME, CAA and UTA over packaging fees in the wake of a federal judge’s decision to dismiss most of the guild’s lawsuit against the talent agencies. The WGA sent a message to members Tuesday,
In a new interview with U.K. publication The Sunday Times, Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette made some revelatory comments concerning the #MeToo movement in the music industry as she reflected on her decades-long career. With her iconic breakthrough record “Jagged Little Pill” celebrating its 25th anniversary in June, Morissette — who began her career as a
Julie Nathanson, a veteran publicist who served as a senior executive at Rogers & Cowan for more than 20 years, died of cancer April 26 at her home in Hollywood. She was 68. During her long career Nathanson represented such stars as Raquel Welsh, Michael Urie, Terry Bradshaw, Frank Langella, Bruce Greenwood and “American Pickers”
Making half an hour of scripted, original television in the middle of a pandemic isn’t easy, but “Parks and Recreation” co-creator Mike Schur told press Tuesday that the current climate presented a “compelling reason” to create one more story for Leslie Knope and other beloved characters from the NBC series for the fundraising special that
Viewership for all three of the nation’s main cable-news outlets soared in April as viewers tuned in at all hours for information on the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. While Fox News captured the most viewers during the month, CNN notched the biggest audience gain across its total day, scoring an increase of 179% in
42West, the powerhouse PR firm with clients including Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep, received a $725,200 small business loan under the Paycheck Protection Program, according to a securities filing. The publicity agency — which also represents Martin Scorsese, Tom Cruise and Woody Allen — was acquired in 2017 by Dolphin Entertainment, in a deal that
Chip and Joanna Gaines forthcoming Magnolia Network has a solid foundation to build on, if its sneak peak ratings are anything to go by. The former “Fixer Upper” stars aired a four-hour preview of their new venture on DYI, drawing over 2.3 million viewers across a marathon runtime. The episode block delivered a 0.38 rating
YouTube generated $4.04 billion in ad revenue for the first quarter of 2020, up 33% from the year prior. Alphabet, the parent company of Google and YouTube, topped Wall Street estimates for Q1 revenue but fell short on net profit — and said ad sales had significantly fallen in March amid the coronavirus crisis. Overall,
Theaters are still months away from reopening in California, according to a plan laid out on Tuesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom. In his daily briefing, Newsom outlined a four-stage plan to reopen the economy. He did not offer a specific timetable, but the plan calls for theaters to reopen in “Stage 3,” which Newsom said
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has tweaked its Oscar eligibility rules in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. During a meeting on Tuesday, the board of governors approved a temporary hold on the requirement that a film needs a seven-day theatrical run in a commercial theater in Los Angeles County or New
Fewer than half of Americans plan to go to concerts, movies, sports events and amusement parks when they reopen to the public until there is a proven coronavirus vaccine, according to a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll released on Tuesday. The Reuters/Ipsos poll surveyed 4,429 American adults from April 15 to 21, asking about their previous attendance
Vice TV is launching a new weekly business show hosted by Scott Galloway, a New York Times best-selling author, tech entrepreneur and New York University business professor. Named after his popular newsletter, “No Mercy, No Malice with Professor Scott Galloway” will reveal what’s really happening on Wall Street in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and
Netflix has picked up “Social Distance,” a new anthology series from “Orange is the New Black” production team. The show, produced remotely, will focus on the “new, bizarre, bewildering reality we are all experiencing” in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the producers said in a statement. “We feel passionate about finding connection as
Lionsgate-backed streamer StarzPlay is growing its international footprint with a launch in Japan. The roll-out comes a year after StarzPlay was launched in a host of territories via Apple TV Channels, including the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Columbia and Mexico. The OTT platform is now available to Japanese customers through Apple
Former Democratic Party presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has officially endorsed Joe Biden for president, following in the footsteps of other major Democratic figures in an attempt to beat President Donald Trump in his race for re-election. Clinton made the announcement at the beginning of Biden’s virtual town hall on Tuesday, during which Biden introduced Clinton
For a long time, Olivia Munn didn’t fully grasp a question that she got asked all the time in interviews: Journalists would want to know about the difference between being a man and woman in Hollywood. “I got it for years before it clicked with me one day when I answered it,” Munn said. “I
Bleecker Street will release the film “Military Wives” directly on digital platforms next month, with half of the proceeds going to participating community cinemas, military organizations and performing arts organizations. “Military Wives” — starring Kristin Scott Thomas and Sharon Horgan — will be available on AppleTV, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu and other video on demand
YouTube is launching fact-check information panels for U.S. users searching for specific debunked topics, with the video platform citing the coronavirus outbreak as underscoring the need to quickly flag misinformation. YouTube is introducing the new feature as a number of hoaxes related to COVID-19 continue to circulate on the service and elsewhere online. For example,
Taking up the hashtag and motto “Wake up Nick!,” former cast members of the Broadway musical “Waitress” — including Sara Bareilles, Keala Settle and Jessie Mueller — have recorded a tribute to another alumnus, Nick Cordero, who remains in a medically induced coma as he struggles with severe COVID-19 complications. They banded together from their
Showtime has promoted Erin Calhoun to the role of executive vice president of communications. She will succeed Johanna Fuentes, who is leaving Showtime Networks to head up global communications at Warner Bros. Calhoun will assume her new role on May 4, relocating to Showtime’s west coast office. She is currently the senior vice president of
Check out newly announced release dates, which movies are coming to home video this week, and recommendations from your host Khail Anonymous and Rotten Tomatoes editor Jacqueline Coley in this new episode of ‘Weekly Ticket’! ► Buy or Rent Movies on FandangoNOW: https://www.fandangonow.com?cmp=MCYT_YouTube_Desc Tune-in to Weekly Ticket every Tuesday to help you decide what to
U.S.-based distributor Neon has promoted Elissa Federoff to president of distribution and Christina Zisa to president of publicity. Both Federoff and Zisa have been with Neon since its inception in January of 2017. Federoff, previously executive VP of theatrical distribution, has been overseeing the company’s release strategy across all its titles. She previously held posts
DaBaby has officially become the first artist of the pandemic to portray himself wearing a face mask on the cover of a No. 1 album. The prolific rapper’s third album in 13 months, “Blame It On Baby,” debuted atop the Rolling Stone Top 200 Albums chart with 120,000 album units. Fiona Apple has kept up