Higher Ground, President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s media company, announced the expansion of its audio team with a trio of executive hires. In addition, the company promoted Mukta Mohan to head of audio content; her previous title was VP of audio. The three new hires are: Corinne Gilliard, who joins Higher Ground as senior
Following the successful path plowed by the first part of the saga, Madrid-based Latido Films has taken international sales rights outside Spain and Latin America to “A todo tren 2” (“The Kids Are Alright 2”), the latest family comedy from “Torrente” creator-star Santiago Segura, one of the biggest comedic talents in the Spanish-speaking world. Released
British film industry pioneer Sydney Samuelson, who served as the first British film commissioner and was a BAFTA leader, died Dec. 14. He was 97. Samuelson joined the business in 1939 aged 14 in the projection box of the Luxor Cinema in Lancing, West Sussex, going on to work as a relief operator in several
Popular Bollywood actor Vicky Kaushal (“Sardar Udham”) will headline an as yet untitled film that is being coproduced by Amazon’s Prime Video, Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and Leo Media Collective. While a plot wasn’t revealed, Dharma CEO Apoorva Mehta described the film as “an eclectic mix of drama, emotions and a dash of comedy which
The world’s cinema exhibition market may grow by 12% next year to reach $29 billion, according to a new forecast. But that follows a 2022 where recovery was slowed by multiple shocks. And it leaves the industry down by more than a quarter compared with the pre-pandemic era. An early forecast from consultancy firm Gower
David Fincher is set to receive the Honorary Cesar Award, France’s highest film prize, during a ceremony which will take place Feb. 24 in Paris. “Fincher is one of these rare filmmakers whose entire filmography has become cult over the years,” said the Cesar Academie in a release. The French organization described Fincher as being
ITV Studios, Fremantle and Federation Studios, partnering with Apple Tree Productions, Elisa Viihde and TV 2 Norge, will go head to head with Nordic powerhouses Glassriver and DR at next year’s Nordisk Film & TV Fond Prize which promises to underscore the large breadth of current Scandinavia scripted series. Backed by the Göteborg Film Festival
The world’s cinema exhibition market may grow by 12% next year to reach $29 billion, according to a new forecast. But that follows a 2022 where recovery was slowed by multiple shocks. And it leaves the industry down by more than a quarter compared with the pre-pandemic era. An early forecast from consultancy firm Gower
Noah Centineo is, perhaps, the archetypal Netflix star, a performer whose career has been in large part comprised of his work in teen romantic comedies for the streamer. Like the films in which he’s starred, Centineo has a charm that’s ephemeral; he’s an amiable presence, but one who slips out of mind shortly after viewing.
“High Heat” is a hoot. Though it may sound in synopsis like standard-issue genre fare suitable for quick-serve consumption on digital and streaming platforms, this satisfying mashup of crime thriller and dark comedy plays almost like a wink-and-a-nod sendup of such cookie-cutter time-killers. Indeed, director Zach Golden and scripter James Pedersen go so far as
In a pleasant Tirana apartment washed in pale morning light, a handsome young man is blearily preparing breakfast. In time he’s joined by his brother — the two are identical twins — and his brother’s girlfriend, who turns on the radio and leads the guys in an impromptu little dance before they settle around the
Jung Ju-ri’s “Next Sohee” is cleaved in half by a tragic death. Indeed, the incident at the center of Jung’s sobering South Korean drama is so shocking that it tilts what initially bills itself like a workplace drama into a full-blown investigative thriller, replete with whistleblowers, unhelpful witnesses, and, true to that genre, a wearied
SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers from “The Christmas Spirit,” Episodes 9 and 10 of “Ghosts” Season 2. As is typical with a second season sitcom, CBS’ “Ghosts” has now gotten to try its hand at one of the hallmarks of the genre: the Christmas episode. The two-part midseason finale “The Christmas Spirit” sees Sam
“Avatar: The Way of Water” is projected to achieve a gross box office of RMB2.5 billion, or $357 million at current rates of exchange, according to a leading Chinese ticketing firm. The forecast was published by Maoyan on Friday morning within the first hours of the film enjoying its commercial release in the Middle Kingdom,
Robert De Niro is set to star in and executive produce “Mr. Natural,” a crime drama series in the works at Entertainment One, Variety has learned. The project follows Louis “Mr. Natural” Baron (De Niro), who, fresh off a 30-year stint in federal prison, hits Palm Springs driven by a dream to reunite with his
Twitter appeared to suspend the accounts of several high-profile journalists who cover Elon Musk on Thursday night, including Keith Olbermann and Aaron Rupar. The New York Times’ Ryan Mac, The Washington Post’s Drew Harwell, CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan, Mashable’s Matt Binder, The Intercept’s Micah Lee and Tony Webster have also been suspended, according to NBC News.
Hulu’s upcoming six-part limited docu-series “The 1619 Project” will launch Jan. 26, Disney’s Onyx Collective announced on Thursday. The series is an expansion of the project of the same name from journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times Magazine. Hosted by Hannah-Jones, “The 1619 Project” seeks to reframe the country’s history by placing the
It’s officially Christmas movie season — in fact, at the Hallmark Channel, it begins in October. While there have been changes behind-the-scenes at the network, one thing remains the same: Their holiday cheer. The channel first launched “Countdown to Christmas,” during which more than 20 new holiday movies premiere between October and December, in 2010.
Jane Fonda’s cancer is in remission, the “Grace and Frankie” star announced Thursday on Instagram. “BEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT EVER!!!” wrote Fonda, who turns 85 on Dec. 21. “Last week I was told by my oncologist that my cancer is in remission and I can discontinue chemo. I am feeling so blessed, so fortunate. I thank
Tory Lanez’s criminal trial for the 2020 shooting of Megan Thee Stallion continued in court today with Megan’s former friend Kelsey Harris back on the stand and cross-examination underway. Deputy District Attorney Kathy Ta continued her questioning of Harris, whose first-person account had been long-awaited, as Lanez has repeatedly denied shooting Megan — whose real
The road to redemption can be difficult to walk and even harder to leave behind. Riddled with scandal and scrutiny over the past two years, the HFPA has made blundering attempts to repair its credibility. No surprise, this week’s Golden Globes nominations announcement was mostly met with an unenthusiastic shrug. While the org dropped the ball by
HBO has greenlit comedy series “Little Films” (working title) from creator, director, star and executive producer Julio Torres. Over six episodes, Torres tells the tale of when he lost a little golden oyster. The people he encounters as he searches for it, and the musings he has along the way, become points of departure for
Peacock has ridden its way back to Nielsen’s Streaming Top 10 chart with two western-themed titles. During the Nov. 14-20 viewing window, the streaming service earned the No. 8 spot on the overall programs list with “Yellowstone.” The drama, which premiered its fifth season on Nov. 13, recorded 643 million minutes viewed. While the current
CBS has ordered the drama series “The Never Game” starring Justin Hartley to series for the 2023-2024 broadcast season. The pickup marks the network’s first series order for next season. The project was originally put into development at CBS in 2021 and ordered to pilot in July 2022. Along with Hartley, the cast also includes
When former first lady Michelle Obama arrived at Revolt’s Atlanta headquarters to talk about her new book “The Light We Carry,” she walked into a unique situation. Not only was Obama sitting down for a candid conversation with a quintet of powerful women of color — Grammy winners H.E.R. and Kelly Rowland, supermodel and activist
BondIt Media Capital, fresh off increasing its credit facility to $70 million, has closed an additional equity round of financing from media investors to support the future expansion of the business. Founded in 2013, BondIt has funded over $275 million of capital into over 450 film, TV and other media projects. These include the Kevin
When Sadie Sink’s brother attended the premiere of her new film “The Whale” in New York City, her older brother called her character, Ellie, a “dirtbag” based on her actions throughout the film. “He was challenging me, saying ‘your character is pure evil,” Sink tells Variety. “I was like, ‘no, you have to see it
Go behind the scenes of your favorite Zoe Saldaña films through the years. ► Buy Tickets for Avatar: The Way of Water: https://www.fandango.com/avatar-the-way-of-water-2022-148856/movie-overview?cmp=Trailers_YouTube_Desc ► BUY THESE MOVIES: https://www.vudu.com/content/movies/filmography/Zoe-Saldana/787427?cmp=Trailers_YouTube_Desc Subscribe to the channel and click the bell icon to be notified of all the hottest trailers: http://bit.ly/2CNniBy Find this series and more on ‘The Rotten Tomatoes
Henry Cavill is officially Superman no more, but that doesn’t mean he’s going back to Netflix’s “The Witcher.” Variety has confirmed that “The Witcher” Season 4 is moving forward unchanged, meaning Liam Hemsworth will star as Geralt of Rivia. Cavill played the part for three seasons, but he confirmed his exit from the series in
With her current Grammy nomination, award-winning actress Viola Davis is one award closer to achieving EGOT status. If Davis wins, she joins the elite group of 18 artists who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony for competitive acting. Davis landed her first Grammy nomination in the audiobook, narration and storytelling recording category for