Cicely Tyson called her friend Arthur Mitchell soon after learning she’d be honored with an Oscar to celebrate her legendary acting career. A trailblazer like her, the former ballet dancer accompanied her to the Oscars in 1973, when she was nominated for lead actress in “Sounder.” Tyson starred as the matriarch in a sharecropping family
When the intl. Academy hands Sophie Turner Laing its 2018 Directorate Award in November, it will recognize an executive who has worked her way up from the ground floor to become one of the most important figures in global TV. She has been focused on the potential sale of Endemol Shine, but with 21st Century
David Foster disappeared into the wilds of retirement for Michael Buble’s last album, but he’s back in the fold for the singer’s emoji-titled new one. In a Q&A with Variety, he explains why he couldn’t stay away. You’re presenting Michael Bublé with his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Why does he deserve it? DAVID FOSTER: I
The Gameband, a smartwatch packed with retro mini-games that hit its $75,000 Kickstarter goal in less than a day early last year, is officially dead, the project creator tells Variety. Feargal Mac Conuladh said that those involved in the Kickstarter, which went on to receive $500,000 in support, will not be “going forward” with the smartwatch’s development,
November 16, 2018 10:19AM PT Netflix will produce “Escape From Hat,” an upcoming animated feature film from “Kung Fu Panda” director Mark Osborne. The announcement is part of a larger drive by the streaming service to become a major player in family entertainment. Netflix has recently unveiled a bold slate of films and shows aimed
Veteran American publicist and producer Richard Lormand, a well-loved fixture on the international festival circuit, where he was instrumental in launching and championing scores of auteurs such as Fatih Akin, Amos Gitai, Lav Diaz and Alice Rohrwacher, has died. Lormand, who was based in Paris, was 56. The cause of death was complications from cancer.
Michael Bublé has released eight studio albums over a 15-year career. On the eve of his latest, he took a look back at the previous seven: “Michael Bublé” (2003) I felt powerless. I didn’t have as much control of how the project turned out, or at least the process. I was a songwriter, and I
With 14 series across broadcast, cable and streaming networks, Greg Berlanti is the current record-holder for the busiest small-screen producer in the business. But he shows no signs of slowing down, having re-signed his overall deal with Warner Bros. to develop and produce additional projects. “What allows me to go from thing to thing more
“Are you comfortable? You don’t look like you’re as comfortable as you could be,” says Michael Bublé, who is standing bedside on one leg as he slips off a shiny black loafer. “You want to lay back? Lay back.” Before I know it, he’s untucking the bed covers and fluffing the pillows behind my head.
Lalo Schifrin has been writing movie and TV music for 60 years, including such iconic themes as “Mission: Impossible,” “Dirty Harry” and “Cool Hand Luke.” And while he has been nominated for six Oscars, he’s never won. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will rectify that oversight when it awards him an Honorary
November 16, 2018 10:04AM PT Facebook has been testing social video co-viewing in Messenger, according to code snippets discovered by Twitter user Ananay Arora. The feature seems to be similar to Facebook’s Watch Party, which launched globally this summer. In Messenger, the new feature allows users to invite their friends to watch a video together.
November 16, 2018 10:01AM PT Brazilian writer-director Beatriz Seigner’s “Los Silencios” won this year’s Impact Award at Stockholm Film Festival. The film, which world premiered at Cannes’s Directors Fortnight, is a supernatural drama about a family torn by Colombia’s civil conflict. Seigner’s sophomore outing, “Los Silencios” beat out strong contenders including Brady Corbet’s “Vox Lux”
If anyone needs proof that peak TV is a global phenomenon, then a glance at the nominees for the 2018 Intl. Emmy Awards should provide enough evidence. This year’s nominees come from all five continents — from Amazon Studios’ Indian cricketing drama “Inside Edge” and Spanish hit “La Casa de Papel” (“Money Heist”) through to
In “Creed II,” Michael B. Jordan, all hardened fury and wounded tenderness, reprises the role of Adonis Creed, the ardent bruiser who’s got boxing in his blood as much as his father, Apollo Creed, ever did. The movie is a sequel to “Creed,” Ryan Coogler’s astonishingly vibrant and soulful 2015 spinoff/reboot. But you could also
What’s next for Ken Jeong after “Crazy Rich Asians”? For one thing, kibitzing with a ton of Santas. The actor-comedian is starring in “Ken Jeong Cracks Christmas,” a half-hour YouTube original comedy special set to premiere Dec. 12. It will be available free to watch on BuzzFeed’s YouTube channel. The special is presented by YouTube
In the offices of MSNBC, Rachel Maddow is known for the meticulous preparation she puts into the network’s signature primetime program, “The Rachel Maddow Show.” Somehow, she has found time to take on two other projects that don’t have much to do with her daily showcase. At the end of October, Maddow and MSNBC launched “Bag
November 16, 2018 9:38AM PT Warner Bros.’ “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” is showing magic at the international box office, grossing $31 million at 24,350 screens in its first two days. The tentpole, which added 45 markets on Thursday, is the top movie in all but one of 55 territories. The top markets are
Jim Acosta Wins Bid To Get White House Credentials Back 11/16/2018 7:26 AM PST Breaking News President Trump had it out for CNN White House Correspondent Jim Acosta … so says a federal judge who has just ordered The White House to give Acosta his press credentials back. CNN and its chief White House reporter, Jim
November 16, 2018 9:00AM PT CBS has announced that “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” will air after Super Bowl LIII on Feb. 3. The late-night show, which has recently closed the gap in the key adults 18-49 demographic with “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” will air at approximately 11:35 p.m. ET depending on
“Back in the USSR” is back in the top 10. Or the album that contains it is, anyway. Newly released 50thanniversary editions of “The Beatles,” popularly known as the White Album, are selling in strong enough amounts that the group’s 1968 landmark is expected to easily reenter the top 10 of the sales chart for
Tupac is being resurrected for a new apparel and accessories collection that merges the late rapper’s lyrics and iconography with images from the film “Black Panther.” The “Tupac x Black Panther” collection is believed to be one of the first times the rapper’s estate has licensed his imagery for use since his death. Tupac’s estate teamed
Iggy Azalea, who earlier this month announced she’d parted ways with Island Records, claims that she signed a new $2.7 million “deal/partnership” that apparently includes a custom label and allows her to keep the rights to her master recordings. “Proud to say I literally just signed my new deal/partnership!,” she wrote on Twitter Thursday night.
Embattled Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg has strongly denied that the company engaged a PR firm to smear rivals and creative fake news about the social media giant that has been at the center of the national storm about fake news. CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell landed the first interview with Sandberg following a damning New York
Warner Bros.’ magical tentpole “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” conjured $9.1 million on Thursday night in North America. The figure is slightly above the $8.8 million generated from previews for 2016’s “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.” Fox/New Regency’s “Widows” and Paramount’s comedy “Instant Family” also held previews on Thursday night, with “Widows”
WASHINGTON — A federal judge ruled that the Trump administration must at least temporarily reinstate CNN correspondent Jim Acosta’s hard pass, delivering a victory to the network and other news organizations. The judge, Trump appointee Timothy J. Kelly, granted CNN’s request for a temporary restraining order to restore Acosta’s access. “I will order defendants immediately
November 16, 2018 7:18AM PT Pandora has unveiled its Artists to Watch for 2019, a diverse group that ranges from Fifth Harmony member Normani and rap groups the City Girls and Brockhampton to Glassnote singer-songwriter Jade Bird to South Korean boy band Monsta X. The annual list uses a combination of curation and data from
Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider were on hand during one of the most memorable seasons in the recent history of “Saturday Night Live.” They are hoping for a repeat of sorts at Comedy Central. When “The Other Two” debuts on Comedy Central on January 24, it won’t have impressions of President Trump or clever music
William Goldman, who won Oscars for his original screenplay for “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and his adaptation of “All the President’s Men,” died on Friday in his Manhattan home, according to the the Washington Post. He was 87. His daughter Jenny Goldman cited complications from colon cancer and pneumonia as the cause of his
Netflix has launched trials of a lower-cost streaming plan, priced at around $4 per month — which will let you watch only on mobile devices. The mobile-only tests are running in select countries, including Malaysia, Netflix said, and may not become widely available. The trials are aimed at appealing to smartphone-centric users in Asia and
Enzo Amore Explains Airplane Incident … I Wasn’t Vaping!! 11/16/2018 6:26 AM PST EXCLUSIVE Enzo Amore is telling TMZ Sports what went down when he got kicked off his flight on Thursday … saying he was NOT vaping — he just ain’t a snitch. The ex-WWE superstar was booted off his Delta flight from JFK to