Lionsgate’s action movie “Midway” is topping expectations and is expected to take the No. 1 spot at the box office over supernatural thriller “Doctor Sleep” with about $21 million for the weekend, early estimates showed Friday. “Doctor Sleep” is heading for about $18 million at 3,855 locations, coming in well under expectations of $25 million
Lizzo surprised a classroom of Pittsburg, Calif. elementary school students on “Good Morning America” after their G-rated remix of “Truth Hurts” went viral earlier this week. Said Lizzo in a video message to the students: “I saw the wonderful video that y’all made. Your teacher is very cool. I want to thank you so much
Since the dawn of digital music, the MP3 has been the main format for downloads and streaming — and for just as long, audiophiles great and small have been complaining about the format’s low quality. Well, Qobuz, the French hi-res audio service that recently launched in the U.S., has said “Ça suffit!” (“Enough!”) The company
November 8, 2019 11:24AM PT Octavia Spencer will receive the Producers Guild of America’s visionary award. Spencer will be feted at the 31st Annual Producers Guild Awards on Jan. 18 at the Hollywood Palladium. The prize honors producers who share “inspiring, uplifting stories that add unique value to society and culture.” Kenya Barris was the
Showtime’s upcoming “Halo” series has added three more series regulars. Danny Sapani, Olive Gray, and Charlie Murphy have all joined the show, which is based on the video game franchise of the same name and is set to begin production this month in Budapest. They join previously announced series lead Pablo Schrieber, who will play
NBC has set its midseason premiere dates, including that of the highly anticipated adaptation of Jeffrey Deaver’s bestselling crime novel “The Bone Collector.” The three new shows whose debut dates have been revealed are “Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector,” premiering Jan. 10 in the Friday 8 p.m. time slot, “Indebted,” debuting Feb. 6
Spinal Tap reunited this week, after a good number of years apart. Unfortunately, it was to settle a collective lawsuit against Universal Music. Apart from saying “Gimme Some Money” to a corporate nemesis, it looks unlikely the three principals will be sharing a stage again any time soon — and so the duty of providing
Adam McKay has signed a first-look feature film deal with Paramount Pictures for his new production company, Hyperobject Industries. It’s the second first-look deal McKay has inked in about a week following a five-year television deal to develop content for both HBO and the streaming service HBO Max. He’s developing a limited series under that deal about
In the age of streaming media, what’s the contemporary answer to the cheap, disposable, direct-to-video Disney sequels that used to clog up VHS shelves in decades of yore? The answer may look something like “Lady and the Tramp,” the latest of many nominal “live-action” remakes of beloved titles from the studio’s animated canon — but
BAFTA Los Angeles announced this year’s prestigious Newcomers Program participants. With 25 participants hailing from Australia, China, France, Hong Kong, India, Nigeria, Poland, South Africa and Turkey, the 2019 cohort is the largest and most international group since the program’s launch in 2007. This year the group is 52% female and includes actors, directors, producers,
When Charlize Theron received word that the American Cinematheque wanted to honor her with its award this year, her response was somewhat unique. “My go-to reply is always: ‘Are you sure?’” Theron says with a laugh. “The human being inside of me still can’t believe all of this is happening.” Theron might be the only
“Sesame Street” bowed 50 years ago, on Nov. 10, 1969, one week after the launch of PBS. A month later, Variety reporter Les Brown gushed, “It may be just the show to put public television on the ratings map.” He was right. “Sesame Street” drew 1.9 million households — especially impressive since it was seen
Listening to the enveloping beauty of Gene Clark’s 1974 album “No Other” in a new surround mix at a Thursday night playback at West L.A.’s Village Recorder — in the same small, dimly lit studio where the record was cut 45 years ago — one wound up thinking that the record does not sound 45
The joys — and complexity — of making movies often can be found in different aspects of creating a scene. For Focus Features’ “Harriet,” director of photography John Toll was challenged by a sequence in which 19th-century abolitionist Harriet Tubman, played by Cynthia Erivo, calls upon her faith for support as she crosses a deep
November 8, 2019 9:44AM PT Demian Bichir is set to join George Clooney in Netflix’s adaptation of Lily Brooks-Dalton’s novel “Good Morning, Midnight.” Felicity Jones, David Oyelowo and Kyle Chandler are also on board, with Clooney set to helm the pic — his first feature film directing gig since 2017’s “Suburbicon.” “The Revenant” screenwriter Mark
ABC comedy “Fresh Off the Boat” will not be back for a seventh season. Variety has confirmed that the single-cam sitcom is set to end with its current sixth season, with an hour-long series finale set to air on Feb. 21. With its conclusion, the show will have aired over 100 episodes since it first
November 8, 2019 9:24AM PT After dropping to a season low rating last week, “Grey’s Anatomy” on ABC bounced back up to win the non-football Thursday night TV ratings ahead of “Young Sheldon” on CBS. The Ellen Pompeo-led show jumped 22% from a 1.07 rating last week to a 1.3 among adults 18-49. It also
Just in time for the launch of the new “Terminator: Dark Fate” movie, Dave & Buster’s is getting a “Terminator: Guardian of Fate” virtual reality experience, courtesy of VRStudios. The experience, which features the voice of Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor, is launching at 130 Dave & Buster’s locations across the U.S. Just like previous
Simon Beaufoy, who won the adapted screenplay Academy Award for “Slumdog Millionaire,” tells what went into writing See-Saw Film’s “A Special Relationship,” which depicts how Elizabeth Taylor’s close relationship with her assistant inspired her to become an HIV/AIDs activist. Where did the initial idea come from for the script and how did it evolve? From
Like all great documentaries, Netflix’s “Tell Me Who I Am” focuses on a unique situation but makes it universal. The Oscar-potential film centers on twins Alex and Marcus Lewis. The 18-year-old Alex went into a six-week coma after an accident. When he awoke, he didn’t remember anything about his life, and didn’t recognize anyone —
With Disney Plus now set for launch in Europe next spring, analysts say that the service’s powerhouse lineup – spanning “Star Wars,” Marvel, Pixar, Disney and National Geographic content – should position it strongly in the region’s increasingly crowded and competitive on-demand landscape. British-based consultancy Digital TV Research forecasts that, by 2025, Western Europe will
Apple has given a series order to a drama series starring Adam Scott with Ben Stiller attached to direct. Stiller will also executive produce the series, titled “Severance,” with Scott also producing in addition to starring. The show is described as a workplace thriller that introduces Lumen Industries, a company that’s looking to take work-life
November 8, 2019 7:59AM PT The Prince Estate in partnership with Warner Records today released “Don’t Let Him Fool Ya,” a third track from the forthcoming Super Deluxe Edition of the artist’s breakthrough album “1999,” to be released November 29. “Don’t Let Him Fool Ya” (also listed on occasion as “Don’t Let ‘Em Fool Ya”) was
Warner Bros.’ supernatural thriller “Doctor Sleep” roused $1.5 million in North America during Thursday night preview showings. Lionsgate’s “Midway” earned $925,000 at 2,600 locations from Thursday night previews and Universal’s “Last Christmas” made $575,000 at 2,700 sites. “Doctor Sleep,” starring Ewan McGregor, is expected to dominate moviegoing this weekend at 3,855 theaters amid forecasts between
Condé Nast Entertainment named Reginald Williams — a former top content exec at Viacom’s BET and MTV — as senior VP of programming, overseeing the studio’s global digital content production team. Williams will be based in New York and report to Oren Katzeff, president of Condé Nast Entertainment, the media company’s studio that produces original
In this week’s International TV Newswire, Amazon documents Andy Murray’s fall and hopeful rise, Banijay merges in Italy, major European productions announce casting, Spanish-language content sells in France, and Cineflix’s “Pure” heads across the Atlantic. Amazon Documents Andy Murray Recovery Amazon Prime Video’s U.K. offices have announced a new feature-length documentary, “Andy Murray: Resurfacing,” which
Tegan and Sara have shut down their Warner Records merchandise site due to a “huge backlog” that they say has marred the company’s other artist stores. The twin-sister duo say they plan to open their own independent merch store. “Today we’ve asked Warner Records to shut down the Tegan and Sara online merchandise store,” a Thursday
Breaking News TMZ/Getty Composite A$AP Rocky is heading back to the danger zone — aka, Sweden, where he was jailed and convicted of assault over the summer. The rapper’s set to return to Stockholm, Sweden on December 11 for a show at the Ericsson Globe that will include other Swedish artists, yet to be announced.
A$AP Rocky will return to Sweden for a headlining concert on Dec. 11, just under four months after he served more than three weeks in jail after a controversial altercation with fans. The announcement was short on details: “A$AP Rocky will be taking the stage at the Ericsson Globe on Wednesday, December 11th for a special headlining
“Megyn Kelly Today” was cancelled by NBC about a year ago. But “The Megyn Kelly Show,” so to speak, continues. The former star anchor from Fox News Channel and NBC took to Instagram Friday to unveil what appears to be a new social-media venture. In a video, she told followers of her newly-established account she