Chinese e-commerce and entertainment giant Alibaba has taken a $1.2 billion goodwill impairment charge against its video-streaming operation Youku. The move was disclosed on Wednesday as Alibaba revealed its financial results for the October to December 2023 period, the third quarter of its current financial year. Group revenues in the quarter were up by 5%
Taskovski Films Sales has picked up Iranian documentary “Maydegol,” which will have its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival in the Generation 14plus section. The film, directed by Iranian filmmaker Sarvnaz Alambeigi, focuses on an Afghan teenage girl, living with her parents in Iran. The film follows her as she strives to pursue her
Lille-based Series Mania, Europe’s biggest TV festival and forum, has revealed its impressive 2024 main competition, which includes three streamer bows – from Peacock, and MGM+ and Disney+/HBO Europe world premieres. The starry lineup features, for example, the much-anticipated new Liane Moriarty adaptation “Apples Never Fall” with Annette Bening as the matriarch who suddenly disappears,
Eight Chinese-language films release simultaneously this weekend in mainland China and will vie for a slice of the Lunar New Year holiday box office business. The week-long nationwide holiday period has in recent years become the most lucrative season for cinemas, and key films stake out their slot in the release calendar months or years
Banijay Asia is expanding into Southeast Asia with the formation of new entity CreAsia Studio. The outfit will focus on collaborations in the region to create local originals and produce localized Banijay IP adaptations. The move is in keeping with the Mumbai-headquartered company’s plans to grow in the Southeast Asian market, which Deepak Dhar, founder
Top Bollywood star Sushmita Sen conquered a heart attack and returned triumphantly to complete Disney+ Hotstar series “Aarya.” It is the second such comeback for Sen, a former Miss Universe, who headlines the series. The show is an adaptation of Dutch show “Penoza,” in which a woman has to join a mafia gang and avenge
Saoirse Ronan and Jack Lowden are stepping down from their production banner Arcade Pictures. The company’s debut feature, “The Outrun,” is set to have its international premiere at the Berlin Film Festival next week. The film world premiered at Sundance last month. Lowden, who’s currently starring in “Slow Horses,” set up Arcade Pictures in 2019
Paris-based company The Party Film Sales has boarded international rights to “Aicha,” Mehdi M. Barsaoui’s follow-up to the Venice-premiering “A Son,” and “Transamazonia” by Pia Marais (“Layla Fourie”). WME Independent is repping North America and multi-territory deals on “Transamazonia.” Both films are in post-production and will be teased by The Party Film Sales at the
Kumail Nanjiani revealed during an appearance on the “Inside of You With Michael Rosenbaum” podcast that the negative reviews for “Eternals” took a toll on his mental health. “The reviews were bad, and I was too aware of it,” said Nanjiani, who played Kingo in the 2021 Marvel film. “I was reading every review and
Kevin Spacey will pay $1 million to MRC, the production company behind “House of Cards,” to settle claims that he sexually harassed young male staffers on the show. Spacey was dropped from the final season of the show in 2017. He was facing a $31 million judgment in the case, after an arbitrator found that
The 2024 summer season at the Hollywood Bowl was announced by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Tuesday, with highlights including a first-time Marvel Studios night; LA Phil-accompanied shows by Laufey, Beck, Natalia Lafourcade and Harry Connick Jr.; the inaugural edition of a west coast iteration of hip-hop’s celebrated Roots Picnic; tributes to Henry Mancini and Sammy
A judge has dismissed the $100 million lawsuit that Byron Allen‘s Allen Media Group filed last year in California state court against McDonald’s. Allen’s lawsuit, filed last May in Los Angeles Superior Court, asserted that the fast good giant had reneged on its promise to spend more of its annual advertising budget with Black-owned media
For the first time, the Hallmark Channel presented at the Television Critics Association press tour on Tuesday morning with three panels: one featuring their Hallmark Mystery (the channel formerly known as Hallmark Movies & Mystery) talent, one highlighting their “Loveuary” film, “Sense and Sensibility;” and the final with the cast of “The Way Home.” The
The 2024 Sundance Film Festival was essentially one giant reunion for the flyboys of “Top Gun: Maverick,” with Danny Ramirez, Glen Powell and Jay Ellis all starring in films playing the festival. The trio trekked to Park City, UT just days after news broke that a third “Top Gun” movie was in the works at
Kathryn Newton channeled her inner “Lisa Frankenstein” for a special screening of the film at the Hollywood Athletic Club, donning a dramatic black corseted Vera Wang gown with exaggerated tulle hips. “There was no other dress option. I have a little heart I took from my last boyfriend,” Newton told Variety on the black carpet,
An excerpt from director Ed Zwick‘s new memoir “Hits, Flops, and Other Illusions: My Fortysomething Years in Hollywood” (published by Vanity Fair) reveals the tensions that existed on the set of his 1994 Western epic “Legends of the Fall.” Zwick writes that he had a rocky relationship with leading man Brad Pitt, who was cast
The Songwriters Hall of Fame is gathering Oscar nominees for the best original song category — Scott George, Jon Batiste, Diane Warren, Billie Eilish, Finneas, Mark Ronson, Andrew Wyatt and Diane Warren — for a virtual panel conversation moderated by Nile Rodgers and Paul Williams. Rodgers, who currently serves as Songwriters Hall of Fame Chairman, and Williams, a
Bill Maher revealed that he sat down with Kanye West for a two-hour interview on his “Club Random” podcast, but he will not release the episode due to the disgraced rapper’s bigoted views against Jews. “I thought it was going to be a learning moment.” Maher said on a Feb. 5 episode of “TMZ Investigates”
Henry Cavill is not a fan of sex scenes. During an interview on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast with his “Argylle” director Matthew Vaughn, the actor said it is often better for a television series or movie not to show sex scenes and leave it up to the viewer to fill in the pieces as
“Animal Control” has been renewed for Season 3 at Fox. The news comes before the Season 2 premiere of the single-camera comedy. The second season is scheduled to premiere on March 6. As the name suggests, the series centers on a group of animal control workers. The cast is led by Joel McHale, who stars
The Anne Rice Immortal Universe continues to progress at AMC Networks, with “Mayfair Witches” heading into production on its second season and adding new actors to its cast while “Interview With the Vampire” has set its Season 2 premiere date and added a guest cast. Alyssa Jirrels has joined “Mayfair Witches” Season 2 as a
AMC has ordered Season 3 of the supernatural anthology series “The Terror.” The third installment of the series will be based on the novel “The Devil in Silver” by Victor LaValle. AMC has ordered six episodes, with the series slated to debut on AMC and AMC+ in 2025. Chris Cantwell, who previously worked on the
The Braxtons are returning to We TV — two years after the death of Traci Braxton, a singer, actress and TV/radio personality who appeared on all seven seasons of their previous series for the AMC Networks-owned cabler, “Braxton Family Values.” “The Braxtons” will feature remaining family members Toni, Towanda, Trina, Tamar and matriarch Ms. Evelyn,
It’s a game-changer. Fox Corp., Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney are set to launch a new streaming joint venture that will make all of their sports programming available under a single broadband roof, a move that will put content from ESPN, TNT and Fox Sports on a new standalone app and, in the process, likely
Snap‘s revenue came in lighter than expected and its net loss was wider than anticipated — leading the Snapchat parent’s stock to drop more than 30% in after-hours trading Tuesday. Snap reported fourth-quarter 2023 revenue $1.361 billion, up 5% year-over-year, and a net loss of $248 million, or a loss of 15 cents per share.
Actor Gina Carano sued Disney and Lucasfilm on Tuesday for firing her from “The Mandalorian” in 2021, over a social media post in which she compared being a Republican to being Jewish during the Holocaust. The suit, filed in California federal court, alleges wrongful termination and discrimination, as well as a demand that the court
New Regency has hired Netflix’s former director of U.S. overall deals Laura Delahaye as head of domestic television. In her new role, Delahaye will oversee the company’s growing slate of U.S. television projects, while the international lineup continues to be led by Ed Rubin. She will report to New Regency chairman and CEO Yariv Milchan
“Stranger Things” is heading into its fifth and final season, which likely won’t premiere on Netflix until sometime in 2025. Cast member Gaten Matarazzo recently appeared at MegaCon Orlando (via CBR) and was asked if there were any changes he would make to the show’s first four seasons, to which the actor didn’t hesitate to
Apple Original Films has landed the global rights to “Fancy Dance,” which made its debut at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. The drama, starring Lily Gladstone, marks the feature directorial debut for Erica Tremblay, who also co-wrote and produced the film. “Fancy Dance” will debut in theaters and on Apple TV+ this year. The announcement comes
Actors and married couple Dave Franco and Alison Brie are set to star in the horror film “Together.” The feature comes from first-time writer/director Michael Shanks. “Together” will explore “the horror of co-dependency told in a unique way,” with additional details being kept under wraps. Franco and Brie will also produce the film, alongside Picturestart,