“Black Mirror: Bandersnatch,” the new “Black Mirror” choose your own adventure-style or interactive fiction game episode has been the subject of many articles in the past week. It took social media by storm with both the gaming community and TV fans exchanging thoughts and theories, sparking the hunt for all possible pathways and endings, including
January 2, 2019 12:16PM PT According to a report in TMZ, Kanye West, one of the rumored headliners for the 2019 Coachella Festival, will not be performing due to a disagreement over staging. The publication cites “multiple sources” as saying that West found the festival’s traditional 60×40-foot stage “artistically limiting,” and Goldenvoice, which produces the
How do you get millions of people to talk about your movie or TV show with almost zero promo dollars? Netflix has once again demonstrated its prowess in exploiting the social-media zeitgeist with a warning about the so-called “Bird Box Challenge”: The company is urging people to not get hurt if they’re emulating Sandra Bullock
Nearly three decades after “The Simpsons” became a fixture on Fox, Bart Simpson is still 10 years old. Call it “the Peter Pan effect”: a never-grow-up miracle in which hand-drawn characters defy age in a way that flesh-and-blood actors find impossible. And then there’s DreamWorks Animation’s “How to Train Your Dragon” series, which has taken
In a succession first announced nearly two years ago, Mitch Glazier has formally taken office as Chairman and CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America, with Michele Ballantyne promoted to Chief Operating Officer, effective immediately. Longstanding CEO Cary Sherman, who had been with the organization for more than two decades, retired from that post
Ashton Kutcher has sold his remaining stake in A Plus, the digital-media company dedicated to feel-good human-interest news stories, to Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment. Kutcher, best known for “That ’70s Show,” co-founded A Plus in 2014. In 2016, Chicken Soup for the Soul — the company founded around the brand of best-selling inspirational
Kevin Smith has launched pre-production on his long-promised “Jay and Silent Bob” reboot with Jay Mewes and producer Jordan Monsanto. Smith, who first announced the project in August, 2017, made the announcement in Jan. 1 tweet: “Spent the first day of 2019 having a #JayAndSilentBobReboot pre-pre-production meeting.” Smith and Mewes made their film debut in
January 2, 2019 11:11AM PT Bob Einstein, an offbeat comedian and writer whose career stretched from “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour” to “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” has died. He was 76. Einstein was known most recently for playing Marty Funkhouser, the aggravating old friend of Larry David on HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” Einstein also created the
Slightly Mad Studios is developing a “stand alone console,” that will support VR, CEO Ian Bell revealed Wednesday. The Twitter account of Ian Bell, CEO of Slightly Mad Studios cryptically tweeted “The Mad Box is coming” on Wednesday. When reached for more details, Bell told Variety that the console will ship in “around three years
Check out the official Captain Marvel TV Spot starring Brie Larson! Let us know what you think in the comments below. ► Buy Tickets to Captain Marvel: https://www.fandango.com/captain-marvel-2019-188283/movie-overview?cmp=MCYT_YouTube_Desc US Release Date: March 8, 2019 Starring: Gemma Chan, Brie Larson, Lee Pace Directed By: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck Synopsis: Carol Danvers becomes one of the universe’s
“Aquaman” started off the new year swimmingly, dominating the domestic box office and clearing the $200 million mark in North America. DC’s superhero tentpole collected $16.78 million on Tuesday, marking the fourth best New Year’s Day haul behind “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” ($34 million), “Avatar” ($25 million), and “Meet the Fockers” ($18 million). A
January 2, 2019 10:17AM PT Musician and actor Troye Sivan will be honored with Variety’s Creative Conscience in Film Award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival on Friday, Jan. 4, at the annual 10 Directors to Watch Brunch, presented by AT&T at the Parker Palm Springs Hotel. Sivan is being recognized for his work in
January 2, 2019 9:49AM PT [embedded content] Wireless charging product maker Powercast unveiled new wireless charging grips for Nintendo Joy-Con controllers ahead of CES 2019. The Wireless Charging Grips for Nintendo Joy-Con Controllers are meant to replace the need for players to dock their Joy-Con controllers to juice them up. Instead, Switch owners can leave
Nearly all regional film critics groups (36 so far) have chimed in with picks for the best of 2018 cinema. So it’s time for a cross-section before the industry continues weighing in with guild announcements this week and next. Critics have singled out 11 films as the year’s best, but one stands above the rest.
It’s official: Netflix announced that Spencer Neumann — previously CFO of games company Activision Blizzard and a former Disney finance exec — is joining the company as chief financial officer. Netflix didn’t provide a start date for Neumann. He will succeed David Wells, the 14-year veteran of the company who is leaving after serving as
January 2, 2019 9:07AM PT Maybe Paul McCartney’s “FourFiveSeconds” session with Kanye West had more of an effect than it first seemed — McCartney has quietly dropped a new song called “Get Enough” that features some heavy autotune that actually at times recalls West’s work circa “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.” The song, which arrives
With its new installment “True Detective,” one of TV’s most baroque series, is keeping things simple — relatively speaking. Some things haven’t changed: Yes, the third season restlessly jumps through time. (It moves between 1980, 1990 and 2015, to be exact.) And as Det. Wayne Hays, a cop investigating the disappearance of two children in small-town
Check out the official Happy Death Day 2U trailer starring Jessica Rothe! Let us know what you think in the comments below. ► Buy Tickets to Happy Death Day 2U: https://www.fandango.com/happy-death-day-2u-215139/movie-overview?cmp=MCYT_YouTube_Desc Want to be notified of all the latest movie trailers? Subscribe to the channel and click the bell icon to stay up to date.
January 2, 2019 7:11AM PT Cardi B is planning a new album for 2019, possibly as soon as Spring, the rapper said Tuesday during an interview on Instagram Live. “Of course it’s gonna be an album in 2019,” she said. “Hopefully, I could get my album done around the same time that ‘Invasion of Privacy’ came out,
Drake’s NYE Party Kendall, Kylie & Travis All Attend … Despite Kanye Feud 1/2/2019 6:39 AM PST Drake‘s keeping his friends close and his frenemy’s family even closer … based on who showed up to his New Year’s Eve bash. As you know … Kanye West went on the attack last weekend and issued a
Netflix yanked an episode of “Patriot Act With Hasan Minhaj” in Saudi Arabia after the government there leveled a legal threat over a segment in which the comedian criticizes U.S. ties to the regime and ridicules Saudi attempts to explain the murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Netflix removed the episode from its service in Saudi
Streaming device maker Roku is officially getting into the subscription marketplace business: Later this month, Roku will begin to sell premium video subscription services like Showtime, and Starz and Epix via its Roku Channel, the company announced Wednesday. The offer is similar to Amazon’s existing Amazon Channels video subscription marketplace, and is going to provide
If not for “Up All Night With Rhonda Shear,” there would be no “Barry.” A linear precursor to binge viewing, USA’s horror-movie schlock block, which ran from late evening to early morning in the 1990s, attracted no small number of teens who had nothing better to do on a Friday or Saturday night. Bill Hader
January 2, 2019 5:08AM PT “Absolutely Fabulous” star Joanna Lumley has been tapped to host the BAFTA Film Awards ceremony for the second consecutive year. Lumley will reprise her emcee role at the Feb. 10 gala in London’s iconic Royal Albert Hall. “We’re thrilled that Joanna has agreed to return as our host for a
Spain’s box office dipped slightly last year, edging down 1.9% in theatrical revenues and 2% in admissions, according to a Comscore report published Wednesday. In all, Spain’s B.O. gross came in at €585.7 million ($673.1 million), with 97.7 million cinema tickets sold. “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” from Universal Pictures Intl., which dominated last year in
MADRID — In what looks like a transition year to a more robust 2019, Spain’s box office broadly held last year, edging down just 1.9% in cinema theater gross and 2.0% in admissions, according to a ComScore report, published Wednesday. In all, Spain’s B.O. gross came in at €585.7 million ($673.1 million), while cinema tickets
China’s total box office revenue grew 9% in 2018 to $8.87 billion (RMB60.98 billion). But the rate of expansion was slower rate than the year before, when it rose 13.5%, state media and government reports said. Nevertheless, the country met its government-set 2018 box office target of RMB60 billion yuan in ticket sales on December
Theatrical box office in Hong Kong grew by nearly 6% in 2018. Gross takings hit HK$1.96 billion, compared with HK$1.85 billion in 2017, in local currency terms, according to data from Hong Kong Box Office Ltd. As the Hong Kong dollar is closely pegged to the American currency, most of that gain can be translated
Usher Burglary Suspect Arrested … Cops Find Millions in Stolen Property 1/2/2019 12:50 AM PST EXCLUSIVE A man suspected of burglarizing celebrity and high-end homes — including Usher‘s — has been nabbed by police, who found lots of stolen property worth millions …TMZ has learned. Law enforcement sources tell us cops have arrested a guy
Lil Xan St. Louis Gun Threat … Criminal Investigation Closed 1/2/2019 12:30 AM PST EXCLUSIVE Lil Xan has one less thing to stress about as he completes rehab treatments … because we’ve learned Xan and the St. Louis rapper who threatened him with gun violence are putting their beef behind them. Law enforcement sources tell