For all of humanity, the stakes couldn’t be higher. The climate crisis has escalated to a terrifying degree, with daily news reports of the catastrophic effects of extreme weather, flooding from rising seas, crops compromised by drought and parasites and the devastation of unpredictable wildfires including those ablaze this summer in the Amazon rainforest. Climate
For a town whose cultural climate can be rife with toxicity, exclusion and abuse, you’d be surprised by how organized and cooperative Hollywood has become in combating climate change. At least that’s what Variety found when surveying the carbon footprint of modern show business — specifically in terms of producing film and television content at
No paper scripts or call sheets. Only hybrid cars for transportation to set. Biodegradable eating utensils. The set of Robert and Michelle King’s new fall drama “Evil,” like many of its CBS brethren, is a fully green production, working with sustainability consulting firm Earth Angel to assess the production’s waste levels and ultimately lower its
This power couple has been championing environmentalist causes for decades. Suzy Amis Cameron has led a charge toward plant-based eating in efforts to reduce the dramatic carbon footprint that meat protein creates. James Cameron, the filmmaker behind classics such as “Titanic,” has woven climate-conscious themes into franchises like “Avatar.” He tells Variety the forthcoming three sequels
These environmental warriors are on the front lines of the fight to stop climate change, working with organizations worldwide that seek to protect the ocean, provide clean water, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, stop fracking and much more. They don’t hesitate to get arrested, stand up before the United Nations, or sail the Sargasso Sea
Earlier this year, the United Nations named the Dave Matthews Band a Goodwill Ambassador for its Environment Program, and it’s hard to imagine a group of more action-oriented musicians in terms of environmental advocacy and fan engagement. Since 2005, the rock band has partnered with the nonprofit organization Reverb on the BamaGreen Project, an ambitious
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has a plan to save our planet: Pack up all those polluting factories, and relocate them to the moon. “We need to move heavy industry off Earth,” Bezos said at an Amazon event this summer. “Earth will be zoned residential and light industry.” The world’s richest man has poured billions of
Next year’s it-bags are finally starting to crop up at NYFW, and we’re taking notes. Think leather shoulder bags trimmed in ostrich feather, bedazzled evening bags you’ll re-style with denim, and, of course, the itty-bitty bag (because sometimes you choose style over practicality.) Click through to see what your favorite brands—including Brandon Maxwell, Staud, and
We’re never not shopping for new shoes, and the Spring/Summer runways at New York Fashion Week are offering up the latest goods we’re adding to our wish list. From Tory Burch’s preppy luxe loafers to the definition of a minimalist heel at Helmut Lang, click through for the best shoes from NYFW.
Margaret Atwood, upon the worldwide publication Tuesday of her sequel to “The Handmaid’s Tale,” said she was inspired to return to that repressive world because that repressive world had returned to her. “Instead of moving away from Gilead, we started moving towards it, especially in the United States,” Atwood said in London on Tuesday, in
High-end shoppers and film-goers will be able to combine both pursuits at Selfridges when it opens a permanent three-screen movie theater inside its flagship London store later this year. The iconic department store has hitherto been known as a destination for shoppers in search of upmarket fashion. It has now partnered with independent boutique exhibitor
September 10, 2019 1:30AM PT In Wayne Wang’s sensitively observed but slowly paced Korean-American cancer drama, food and family are seen interrelated within the loving relationship of a mother and son. An intimate chamber piece that tightly interlaces remembrances of food and family, Wayne Wang’s quietly sensitive “Coming Home Again” adapts Chang-rae Lee’s award-winning 1995
As one segment of Americans complacently denies racism still exists, others consider discrimination true enough to worry about their loved ones’ safety every time they go out — let alone face a law enforcement official. That is the issue addressed head-on by Christopher Demos-Brown’s “American Son,” whose Booth Theater production from last year has been
Oscar-winning screenwriter Callie Khouri has issued a strong endorsement for David Goodman for re-election as president of the Writers Guild of America West. “I have been a member of the WGA for twenty-nine years,” Khouri said in a email to members. “I’ve seen us win some and lose some. But after all these years I
Joaquin Phoenix wrestled with playing the Joker before he signed on to Todd Phillips’ latest film. The actor talked about coming to terms with the role at a Q&A following the North American premiere of “Joker” at the Toronto Film Festival on Monday night. “I mean honestly, it wasn’t an easy decision at first,” Phoenix
September 9, 2019 9:15PM PT Disney Plus has abandoned plans for a scripted Muppets series that was being worked on by Josh Gad, Adam Horowitz, and Edward Kitsis. Though the trio’s planned take on the beloved Jim Henson characters had never been formally announced, sources confirm that it had been in the works for months
“Papicha,” the Algerian film which appeared in Un Certain Regard at Cannes this year, has received finance from two Hong Kong companies which have used modern financial techniques to “tokenize” their direct investment in the film’s equity. Directed by Mounia Meddour, the film, a female emancipation story about a woman daring to put on a
September 9, 2019 8:41PM PT “Weathering With You,” the hit Japanese animation directed by Makoto Shinkai, is set for a theatrical release in mainland Chinese theaters. Chinese state media reported on Monday that the film had been approved by China’s censors, but said that the film had not yet been given a release date. After
In today’s film news roundup, Malcolm D. Lee is developing an action comedy, a Steve McQueen biopic is in the works and the Meet the Press Film Festival is set for Oct. 7. PROJECT LAUNCHES “Girls Trip” director-producer Malcolm D. Lee is developing the action comedy “The Spoils” for Lionsgate to produce through his Blackmaled
Joaquin Phoenix has three Academy Award nominations, four Golden Globe nominations (and one win) and a lead role in another film that’s already getting Oscar buzz, but in an emotional speech Monday night, the “Joker” actor made it clear that none of it would have been possible without his late brother River Phoenix. “When I
Much was made of the fact that Abel Tesfave’s name showed up in the cast list for “Uncut Gems,” the latest film from the brother director team Josh and Benny Safdie. As it’s turned out now that the crime drama is premiering — and triumphing — on the festival circuit, “Gems” has Tesfave playing the
September 9, 2019 6:12PM PT “Joker” director Todd Phillips isn’t optimistic when it comes to a future meeting between Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker and Robert Pattinson’s recently announced Batman “No, definitely not,” he told Variety when asked if the pair would appear in a future film together. Although that doesn’t mean “Joker” will be the last
September 9, 2019 5:51PM PT Liam Neeson and Lesley Manville’s chemistry brightens a lovely but claustrophobic cancer drama Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn’s intimate drama “Ordinary Love” loves to show health-conscious husband and wife Tom (Liam Neeson) and Joan (and Lesley Manville) on their evening stroll, a contented retired couple walking the same path
David Gray and Walter Jones have been named co-heads of A&R at Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG), the company announced today (Sept. 9). Gray will be based out of New York City and Jones will continue to be work out of Santa Monica. The two will work collaboratively to oversee A&R creative strategy for UMPG
NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA) and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will present the InFocus: Latinx & Hispanic Cinema Festival on Sept. 14 at the Linwood Dunn Theater in Hollywood. The event gives the opportunity for emerging Latinx filmmakers from around the world to screen their films and network with industry luminaries. This
September 9, 2019 4:51PM PT Geetu Mohandas’ second directorial feature tells a potent if complicated story sometimes confused by gratuitously hyperactive editing. Actor-turned-writer-director Geetu Mohandas’ second feature, “The Elder One,” is a considerably busier enterprise than her first, 2014’s well-received road drama “Liar’s Dice.” Where that essentially two-character piece was linear, low-key and leisurely, this
The work of Stephen King has a long history of making its way to the big screen with wildly different results. Some land Academy Awards (“Misery”) or become classics (“The Shawshank Redemption”) while others disappear into the film ether (“The Mangler,” “Sleepwalkers,” “Thinner,” “Hearts in Atlantis,” “Graveyard Shift” … you get the idea.) But when
September 9, 2019 4:32PM PT Can a community punish a predator? Eva Orner’s compelling documentary demands justice for women bent to their guru’s will Never trust a man in Speedos who promises to change your life. That’s advice from director Eva Orner’s “Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator,” a doc that bends and snaps the self-described God
In today’s TV news roundup, Kelly Ripa will reprise her role on “American Housewife,” and Bravo sets a premiere date for the Viola Davis-produced limited series “In a Man’s World.” CASTING Beth Behrs, Joe Keery, Keegan-Michael Key, Dylan McDermott and Paula Pell are among the new guest cast members joining season three of CBS All
“Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon M. Chu has addressed screenwriter Adele Lim leaving the hit 2018 movie’s planned sequel over a pay disparity between Lim and co-writer Peter Chiarelli. In a lengthy post on social media, Chu wrote that he stands by Lim and her decision to part ways with the Warner Bros. project. He