“Survivor” returned to decent ratings numbers for its landmark 40th season on Wednesday night. The CBS show’s two-hour premiere scored a 1.3 rating among adults 18-49 and drew 6.7 million total viewers, which represents a 6% increase in total viewership on last season’s premiere, and a significant up tick on both metrics from the season
Netflix is hoping to convert fans of “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” into subscribers — if they’re not already — by letting anyone stream the YA rom-com movie for free for a limited time. The original 2018 movie is free to watch (no Netflix subscription required) now through March 9 in the U.S.
ProSiebenSat.1 will regroup several of its channels, digital brands and marketing subsidiaries under a shared roof and with a new name: SevenOne Entertainment Group. This new structure will merge the group’s broadcast arm ProSiebenSat.1 TV Deutschland with digital marketing firm SevenOne Media to create a single point of access and pronounced focus on non-linear offerings.
She may have been robbed of an Oscar nomination, but Jennifer Lopez is moving on with her life… and with her wardrobe. Today, the superstar announced a new project with The Camuto Group for JLO JENNIFER LOPEZ–an accessories line in all caps, thank you very much. A sketch by Jennifer Lopez Camuto Group The range
Hengdian World Studios, one of China’s largest, cautiously reopened for business today after it shut down all production in recent weeks to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus. The move comes a day after Chinese authorities released an official statement pledging government support for the struggling entertainment sector. Huge portions of the world’s second
February 13, 2020 6:46AM PT The NBA today announced that Jennifer Hudson will perform a special tribute to the late Kobe Bryant at the All-Star Game on Sunday at Chicago’s United Center.
The tribute will also honor Bryant’s daughter Gianna and seven others who died with them in a helicopter crash on Feb. 26. The
February 13, 2020 4:30AM PT Colin Kaepernick is publishing a memoir this year. The activist and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback announced plans to release the book through Kaepernick Publishing, his own newly launched publishing company that is meant to “reinforce the importance of Black ownership” and “give power to Black and Brown voices globally,
The fourth season of hit French drama “Call My Agent!” will be its last, according to the show’s producers. Aurélien Larger and Harold Valentin of Paris-based Mother Production, which produces the show with Mon Voisin Productions, have confirmed to Variety that the comedy – originated by French public broadcaster France Télévisions and known locally as
The Hong Kong International Film Festival will be postponed from its scheduled date in March and early April. The decision was a response to the growing fear of the novel coronavirus which has spread from mainland China to reach more than 20 countries and territories so far. The festival’s organizer, the Hong Kong International Film
Fear of the spread of coronavirus has taken a heavy toll on the South Korean entertainment industry, where many scheduled concerts and events have been canceled. The K-pop sector has been especially hurt. Leading music talent management agency, JYP Entertainment postponed boy band GOT7’s concert at Thailand’s Rajamangala Stadium that had been scheduled for Feb.
Speaking at U.K. pay-TV operator Sky’s programming showcase at London’s Tate Modern art museum, on the banks of the Thames River Wednesday evening, its CEO, Jeremy Darroch, said: “In the 12 years I’ve been running Sky I’ve never seen a lineup on screen that we are going to have in the next year or so.”
February 13, 2020 1:38AM PT Banking on a long-running partnership with Entertainment One, NBCUniversal Intl. has picked up German, Austrian and Swiss licensing rights for the popular series “Deputy,” “Upright,” “Nurses,” and “Burden of Truth.” Brokered by eOne’s Christian Fritzsche, the deal will offer NBCUniversal Germany pay television rights to the four scripted dramas, all
Hong Kong FilMart, Asia’s largest film and TV trade fair, will be postponed from its scheduled date in March to a new slot in August. The decision was a response to the growing fear of the novel coronavirus which has spread from mainland China to reach more than 20 countries and territories so far. The
A new survey has revealed a major mental health crisis is permeating the U.K. film and TV industry, with close to 90% of off-screen professionals experiencing mental health issues on the job – significantly worse than the general population, in which 65% struggle with mental health at work. Commissioned by The Film and TV Charity,
For all the kerfuffle that erupted in the spring of 2019 over the visual design of Sonic the Hedgehog, the blue-furred speed-demon mascot of the Sega video game–turned–live-action kiddie adventure, you wish that the creators of “Sonic the Hedgehog,” who went back and redesigned the character after being pressured (I almost wrote bullied) by his
February 12, 2020 10:30PM PT The annual Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy is to add a works-in-progress section to its Focus Asia industry services for the first time this year. The section will be curated by Marie-Pierre Valle, an executive with sales agency Wild Bunch. It will focus on Asian films in post-production,
February 12, 2020 9:34PM PT In this week’s edition of the Variety Movie Commercial Tracker, powered by the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company iSpot.tv, Paramount Pictures claims the top spot in spending with “Sonic the Hedgehog.” Ads placed for the video game film adaptation had an estimated media value of $4.27 million through
Boldly declaring itself “the first musicians union in the country to take a position in the 2020 Democratic primary,” the 7,000-member American Federation of Musicians Local 47 announced Wednesday that it has has endorsed Bernie Sanders for president, a little less than three weeks out from the California primary. In making the announcement, the union
By its very nature, science is supposed to be an impartial judge. But is it really? In her thought-provoking documentary “Coded Bias,” director Shalini Kantayya questions the neutrality of technology, arguing that computers have a built-in bias that reflects the faulty assumptions of the people (usually men) who program them. Her emphasis is on the
Almost a week after creating a firestorm by calling Gayle King “a dog-head b—” and telling her to beware “before we come get you,” Snoop Dogg took to his Instagram account again Wednesday, this time to formally apologize to the newscaster. “Two wrongs don’t make no right. When you’re wrong, you gotta fix it,” he
SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead, if you have not watched Season 3, Episode 3 of “The Masked Singer,” which aired Feb. 12 on Fox. Chaka Khan, I feel for you. The iconic singer and songwriter, who had been disguised as Miss Monster, was the next celebrity to be eliminated on Season 3 of “The
Jason Blum’s Blumhouse Productions has ruled the box office when it comes to the horror genre in recent years, so when “The Hunt” cancelled its planned September 2019 release, it was a major shock. The film — a satiric thriller that follows a group of liberal elites who try to track down and kill “red
In today’s film news roundup, “Apollo 13” gets a three-day re-release, “Calm With Horses” gets a home, and Malin Akerman’s action-comedy “Chick Fight” rounds out its cast. ANNIVERSARY RELEASE “Apollo 13” will be re-released to 600 North American theaters on April 5, 6 and 8, nearly 50 years after the liftoff of the ill-fated 1970
February 12, 2020 5:44PM PT One of the hardest and most crucial parts of writing a love story is making sure it has ample chemistry, maybe by finding actors who naturally spark, playing with classic rom-com tropes, or weaving in irresistible banter. You don’t necessarily need to have all three to be successful, but some
With new horizons to pursue, “Aladdin” is getting a sequel. Following the massive success of last summer’s reboot, Disney is developing a follow-up to the film with writers John Gatins and Andrea Berloff. Sources say the movie is in early development, but after spending the last six months figuring out what direction to take the
Winner of both prizes awarded in the Next category of the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, “I Carry You With Me” tells the true story of an undocumented gay couple from Mexico who risk their lives for love, liberty and the American Dream. Making her first foray into narrative filmmaking, documentary helmer Heidi Ewing began the
Taylor Swift made a surprise appearance to pick up a trophy at Wednesday’s NME Awards in England, calling it “the craziest awards show I have ever been to.” In the United States, some might save that description for the Grammys, which Swift did not attend, but then, that would only apply behind the scenes. The
In today’s TV News Roundup, Variety obtained an exclusive first look at John Legend in “The Simpsons” and NBC announced premiere dates for a slew of its returning unscripted series. CASTING Alexis Ren and Jaime Ray Newman have been cast in “Deputy.” Ren will appear in an upcoming episode as the suspicious lover of a
WarnerMedia Entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt will deliver the keynote conversation at the 2020 NAB Show Executive Leadership Summit on April 19 at the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas. Greenblatt will participate in a Q&A with Variety business editor Cynthia Littleton to discuss opportunities for WarnerMedia and upcoming plans for its newly aligned sister companies HBO,
February 12, 2020 4:00PM PT Another hit game is getting the big-screen treatment. Sony Pictures is partnering with South Korean game developer Smilegate on the film adaptation of the mega-hit game “Crossfire.” Chuck Hogan penned the movie from “Fast and Furious” producer Neal H. Moritz. Tencent Pictures will co-produce and co-finance the movie, which is