During an interview, actress Patti Lupone revealed her new character debuting in the MCU‘s upcoming Disney+ series Agatha: Coven of Chaos .
Patti Lupone To Play Lilia Calderu in Coven of Chaos
Patti Lupone
As a guest on The View, via The Wrap, Patti Lupone revealed that she’s portraying the character of Lilia Calderu in Marvel’s Agatha: Coven of Chaos on Disney+.
Lupone excitedly described Calderu during her appearance on the talk show:
“Well it’s a coven of witches, and I play Lilia Calderu, who apparently is in the Marvel world. And I researched her, she’s hot! She’s really hot! She is! She’s got a great body, raven hair.”
Marvel Comics
The actress continued on, noting that her character has quite an extensive lifespan when she’s introduced:
“I play Lilia Calderu, a 450-year-old Sicilian witch, whose power is divination, and whose trial is tarot.”
Since then, creator Neil Gaiman has been at the front lines when it comes to hyping up the show’s sophomore run on the streamer.
The Stardust and American Gods author previously shared a reassuring update, with him telling fans that “the scripts have been written and the VFX department has been working on it” even before the official announcement.
Neil Gaiman Shares Promising The Sandman Season 2 Update
Netflix
When a fan asked The Sandman creator Neil Gaiman on Tumblr about an update on the pre-production of Season 2, the English author shared that “scripts are written” and “sets are being designed:”
Q: “Hi Mr Gaiman, hope you’re having a good day! I’ve not seen or heard much news on ‘The Sandman’ Season 2, could you perhaps give us a little news on how that’s coming on if that’s okay? Thanks!”
Gaiman: “Scripts are written. We are casting the first episode we will be shooting. Sets are being designed.”
Netflix’s head of UCAN scripted TV Peter Friedlander, via Variety, previously shared exciting comments about the upcoming season, noting that they have made “some great decisions around where this will go:”
“I’m very excited about what we have in store and we have made some great decisions around where this will go. So it’s a stay-tuned and watch. Like you, I am a major ‘Sandman’ fan and to be able to watch Neil and Allan do what they do is extraordinary.”
Friedlander also offered high praise for the show’s first season:
“I think what they did with Season 1 — it’s refreshing, it’s breathtaking, it’s iconic. It’s all of those descriptions and to know that it connected with audiences is just so rewarding.”
Interestingly, when The Sandman was finally renewed on November 2, Netflix didn’t actually refer to it as a second season, but rather “a continuation of ‘The Sandman’ world.
While Friedlander remained tight-lipped about that key reveal, the Netflix executive can only say that they are considering “batching approaches” while describing the series as an “innovative show:”
Variety: “It’s not called Season 2 because it’s going to be handled more in line with the comics, where it’s ‘volumes’ and based on the story in the issues, rather than being labeled as a season? Is that it?”
Friedlander’s response: “There are decisions that haven’t been made, but we are considering batching approaches. Everything’s on the table when it comes to ‘Sandman.’ It’s an innovative show.”
This story is developing. Please check back for updates!
Electronic Arts has claimed that The Sims 4 “now reaches more than 70 million players around the world”.
That makes the 2014 release the most widely played game in the 23-year history of the life simulation franchise.
According to EA, the latest entry in the series has attracted more than 16 million new players since the base game went free-to-play in October 2022, and average weekly users have increased 53 percent.
The Sims 4 Growing Together: Official Gameplay Trailer
The game’s latest premium expansion pack, Growing Together, was released in March and had the biggest launch week sales of any pack since EA started releasing them in 2015, the company said.
“It’s incredible to see how much our community has grown over the past eight years, and our players continue to inspire us with the countless ways they explore life in The Sims 4,” said Phillip Ring, executive producer of The Sims 4.
““We know The Sims 4 continues to be a creative outlet for people, and our team strives to deliver new and innovative gameplay content that empowers our players to embrace the chaos that comes with self-discovery.”
The Sims 4 was originally released for PC in September 2014 before making its way to Mac in 2015, and to PS4 and Xbox One in 2017.
The game had generated over $1 billion in revenue as of February 2019 and been played by more than 33 million people as of February 2021, according to EA.
The reveal included a brief look at some of the creation tools players will be able to use when they get their hands on the game, which is in early development at Maxis.
It will let users play solo or collaboratively, and the same experience will be available across all supported devices including mobile.
“We are building the next-generation Sims game and creative platform,” said Lyndsay Pearson, VP of franchise creative for The Sims. “Reimagining The Sims you know and love with new ways to play. This is the future of The Sims, built on a foundation of charming Sims, powerful tools, and meaningful stories.”
Pearson said EA will continue sharing work-in-progress updates “over the next couple of years” and “start to open up early access to Project Rene software to small groups over time”.
The game is the debut title from Paradox Tectonic, a studio established in 2019 and headed by Rod Humble, the former boss of EA’s The Sims label and the ex-CEO of Second Life creator Linden Lab.
The Sydney Film Festival will present ‘Jane Campion – Her Way,’ a retrospective of films by the pioneering director. Campion herself will appear in conversation with David Stratton on June 10 at the 2023 edition of the festival, its 70th anniversary presentation (June 7-18).
Held in association with ACMI and the National Film and Sound Archive, ‘Jane Campion – Her Way’ will encompass screenings of all nine of Campion’s feature films, as well as a selection of her short films. The selection will go on to tour the ACMI in Melbourne (June 15 – July 2) and at NFSA in Canberra (July 20-30).
“For our 70th edition, we wanted to present a retrospective commensurate with the milestone, reflecting the audacious and boundary pushing filmmaking synonymous with our festival and region. Campion is a ground-breaking filmmaker who has made a profound impact on cinema with her daring and unforgettable films,” said Sydney Film Festival director Nashen Moodley.
“Campion has broken barriers for women in the industry, winning two Academy Awards and becoming the first woman to receive the Palme d’Or at Cannes. She has changed the landscape of cinema around the world, crafting films now etched in film history. It will be remarkable to see the full suite of her talents in one program, which take us to unexpected and exciting places with every frame and film.”
“Jane Campion, The Cinema Woman,” a 2022 documentary from French director Julie Bertuccelli, about the Campion, her life and work, will also be screened as part of the retrospective.
HOME FOR HARPER
Sophie Harper has been appointed as executive director of the Australian Directors’ Guild. She will take up the role on May 29. Harper is currently the senior fund manager at Screen Canberra where she has most recently managed programs including the A$5 million ($3.5 million) CBR Screen Fund for the state government. Previously, Harper was based in Denmark from 2009 – 2015, holding a variety of roles at the European Film College including vice principal, head creative documentary, principal (acting) and head of producing. On her return to Australia, Harper created and hosted the hit podcast “Not By Accident,” which has been downloaded more than two million times. Previously she worked at both Screen Australia and the Australian Film Commission in various roles including that of governance and compliance manager.
VENICE MARKET
Projects from Germany and Quebec seeking gap financing will be the focus of this year’s Venice Production Bridge, the informal market of the upcoming Venice Film Festival. The market will take place on the Lido Aug 31-Sept. 5, while the 80th edition of the festival will run Aug. 30–Sept. 9.
SLUNG OUT
The Singapore High Court has issued an order to block 20 streaming sites and associated domains responsible for the distribution of illegally streamed content in Singapore. Under the order, internet service providers must disable access to these sites and their associated domains. The order is the latest in an ongoing campaign by Coalition Against Piracy members BBC Studios, LaLiga, the Premier League and TVB International, that has seen the blocking of almost 300 sites that were offering access to sought-after content including premium sports, drama and entertainment.
LIV ACTION
Sony LIV’s 1st Malayalam-language original, “Jai Mahendran,” a political drama, has begun production. The show focuses on the life of Mahendran, a manipulative officer who believes in getting things done through powerplay and by use of his influence within the system. However, his freedom within the office comes to a halt and his ideologies get challenged, as he becomes the victim of the same powerplay. In an attempt to safeguard his job and restore his reputation, he plans to sabotage an entire system to his advantage.
“Jai Mahendran” is overseen by award-winning filmmaker Rahul Riji Nair as writer, producer and showrunner and the show is directed by Srikanth Mohan. The show features a cast including: Saiju Kurup, Suhasini, Miya, Suresh Krishna, Maniyanpilla Raju, Balachandran Chullikad, Vishnu Govindan, Sidhartha Siva, and Rahul Riji Nair in pivotal roles.
DEADLY TRAILER
Prime Video, has unveiled the trailer of Indian true crime docu-series “Dancing On The Grave.” The Amazon Original series documents and investigates the sudden disappearance and mysterious murder of Shakereh Khaleeli, who belonged to an illustrious family in Bangalore. Produced by India Today OriginalsProduction, written and directed by Patrick Graham and co-written by Kanishka Singh Deo, “Dancing on The Grave” will premiere worldwide on April 21.
The trailer provides a glimpse into the life and the gruesome death of Shakereh Khaleeli (nee Namazie), a beautiful heiress who left everything behind to marry another man. The series examines her motivation for upheaval and the events that led to her disappearance without a trace?
Jonathan Majors is no longer repped by management firm Entertainment 360, with the move coming as the actor faces criminal charges in New York, sources confirm to The Hollywood Reporter.
The public relations firm The Lede Company, also stepped aside last month and is no longer repping him, sources tell THR.
Majors was arrested on suspicion of strangulation, assault and harassment in New York on March 26, after a woman sustained minor injuries in what police described as a domestic dispute. Majors was charged with two counts of assault in the third degree, aggravated harassment in the second degree, attempted assault in the third degree and harassment in the second degree.
Majors, through an attorney, has denied wrongdoing.
“Jonathan Majors is completely innocent and is provably the victim of an altercation with a woman he knows,” the actor’s criminal defense lawyer, Priya Chaudhry, told The Hollywood Reporter in a statement at the time. “We are quickly gathering and presenting evidence to the district attorney with the expectation that all charges will be dropped imminently.”
Those charges have not gone away, however. His next court appearance is scheduled for May 8.
Majors, who has been one of Hollywood’s top up-and-coming actors, has filmed a role in season two of Marvel Studios’ Loki as villain Kang the Conqueror, where he is said to appear in about half of the episodes. The series is expected to return later this year. Kang is slated to be a big part of Marvel’s future plans, with him serving as the title character in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, which is dated for May 2, 2025. The actor recently stared in Creed III and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. He also has the Sundance drama Magazine Dreams set to open in the awards season friendly date of Dec. 8 from Searchlight, which acquired the project before Majors’ arrest.
Majors remains repped by WME. Deadline was first to report the news of Entertainment 360 dropping the actor.
Finally, you soon might be able to actually understand Christopher Nolan movies without subtitles.
Amazon’s Prime Video is rolling out a streaming feature that will allow viewers to increase the dialogue in movies and TV shows.
The feature is called Dialogue Boost and, according to Amazon, it lets you raise the volume of dialogue relative to background music and effects, “creating a more comfortable and accessible viewing experience that cannot be found on any other global streaming service.”
Dialogue Boost analyzes the program’s audio and uses AI to spot points where dialogue may be tough to hear. Then speech is isolated and its audio enhanced to make dialogue clearer. Amazon points out this is actually different than using a traditional center channel speaker in a home theater setup because it “delivers a targeted enhancement to portions of spoken dialogue instead of general amplification.”
The issue of muddled and tough-to-understand dialogue has been a growing problem due to dialogue competing with increasingly dynamic music and sound effects, viewers watching more content that’s produced overseas with accented actors, and directors having actors deliver lines in a more realistic, throwaway style instead of the more articulated, stage-influenced style of Hollywood’s past.
In this week’s episode of HBO’s Succession, for example, some key stammer-murmured dialogued delivered by Logan Roy’s devastated mistress Kerry (Zoe Winters) amid a chaotic moment of picking up items off a floor was missed by many of the show’s viewers who discussed the scene afterwards on social media. Nolan’s films have been considered peak mumblecore, with the director often deliberately opting for dialogue that’s part of an artistic sound landscape in films like Tenet and Interstellar, rather than always being the audio focus of a scene.
Twostudies, in 2021 and 2022, found more than 50 percent of viewers are using subtitles — particularly on streaming services — and that young people are far more likely to have them on (anywhere from 70 to 80 percent of adults 18-24 or Gen Z, depending on the study).
“At Prime Video, we are committed to building an inclusive, equitable and enjoyable streaming experience for all our customers,” said Raf Soltanovich, vp of technology at Prime Video and Amazon Studios. “Our library of captioned and audio described content continues to grow, and by leveraging our technological capabilities to create industry-first innovations like Dialogue Boost, we are taking another step to create a more accessible streaming experience.”
Unfortunately, the feature is currently only available on select Amazon Originals like Jack Ryan, but the streamer is pledging to continue rolling it out wider. The feature was previously only available for customers with high-end audio setups, but is now available across all devices that support Prime Video playback. You can find the feature in the audio and subtitles drop down menu labeled “English Dialogue Boost: Medium” and “English Dialogue Boost: High.”
When Khani and Matt met on a dating app, they had no idea COVID-19 would turn their spur-of-the-moment trip to Costa Rica into a months-long adventure.
Certificate:Suitable for ages 15 and up
Year: 2023
Duration: 1hr 15m
Audio: German, English – Audio Description, English [Original], European Spanish, French, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese
Subtitles: Arabic, English, French, Polish, Ukrainian, Traditional Chinese
Episode Length: 1hr 15min
– English Audio Description
Cast and Crew
Production & Box Office Details:
“Longest Third Date” was produced by ITV Studios America and Civilian 7 Entertainment and was originally released on April 18th 2023.
With “The Late Late Show With James Corden” coming to an end, crew members took advantage of Corden’s interview with “Late Night” host Seth Meyers to ask for a job.
On Monday night, the routine interview between these two late night colleagues was interrupted by several members of Corden’s team asking if there’s room for them at “Late Night With Seth Meyers.” Even bandleader and comedian Reggie Watts got in on the joke.
The segment started off as usual before one of Corden’s cameramen — identified only as Will — interrupted the pair. “Just wanted you to know, man, this shot looks great. Got just the right amount of headroom, perfectly centered. Really captures your essence,” the cameraman told Meyers.
“Well that’s great. Thank you,” a baffled Meyers said.
“Yeah, yeah. And if you need a cameraman on your show, I’m available as soon as tomorrow,” Will said, setting off a chain reaction. In short order, a talent booker named Molly, a security guard named Carl, and a teleprompter operator named Karina all echoed his sentiments. Whenever Meyers emphasized that he already had these positions filled on his own staff, they all countered with variations of the same question: What if something suddenly happened to Meyers’ staff?
Carl the security guard took the joke a step further. “Whatever you need. I’ll break legs, I’ll hide bodies. Just say it. I know how to make illegal stuff look like an accident,” he said.
True to form, it was bandleader Watts who brought the bit home. After asking Meyers to hire his band while threatening the current “Late Night” band, Watts debuted a jingle for perhaps Meyers’ best-known segment, “A Closer Look.”
As is the case with all good comedy bits, it’s one that’s rooted in truth. Back in 2022, Corden announced that he would be leaving “The Late Late Show” in the spring of 2023. CBS then announced earlier this year that the late night show would be coming to an end once Corden left.
“The Late Late Show” first debuted in 1995 with hot Tom Snyder. Over the course of its nearly 5,000 episodes, it’s been hosted by Craig Kilborn, Craig Ferguson and Corden, who has been the face of the series for nine seasons. The CBS staple will air its final episode April 27. Tom Cruise, Will Ferrell and Harry Styles are all expected to make appearances in this star-studded last hurrah, which will be available to watch on both CBS and Paramount+.
Watch the bit with Seth Meyers in the video above.
Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks, hosts of the upcoming Academy of Country Music Awards, star in a fun and playful promotional video for the 2023 ACMs that was released on Tuesday (April 18). The 45-second spot, titled “First Time,” plays off the fact that Parton is an experienced host and this is Brooks’ first time as a host.
The scene takes place in Parton’s dressing room. Parton asks, “Are you ready for our big night?”
“Yeah, I’m a little nervous to be honest,” Brooks responds. “First time and all.”
Parton seeks to reassure her skittish partner by saying “Oh, don’t be nervous, I’m going to be right here with you.”
Brooks asks, “You’ve done this before, right?”
Parton responds, “Oh, I’ve done this before. Plenty of times – plenty of people.”
This, of course, makes Brooks even more nervous. “Really?”
“And I personally am going to make this the best night of your life,” Parton promises.
After a beat, Brooks asks, “We’re talking about hosting the ACM award show, right?”
Parton and Brooks handle the script’s comic double-entendres like the pros they are. The spot concludes with Parton saying, “If you have any problem, you just look at me.”
“Yes ma’am,” Brooks responds.
“Up here,” Parton reminds him.
The 58th Academy of Country Music Awards, dubbed “country music’s party of the year,” will stream live exclusively for a global audience on Prime Video on Thursday, May 11 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT from the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas.
Established in 1966, the ACM Awards is the longest-running country music awards show. The show made history in 2022 as the first major awards ceremony to exclusively livestream, in partnership with Prime Video.
In the realm of film, marketing is a crucial component. Studios, especially large ones, spend a lot of time in marketing. Because of this, most independent filmmakers set this as their blueprint to get their films across.
Even though there are many free online marketing courses available, it can be challenging to imagine applying common strategies for movie promotion. Here are some tips for building a successful marketing strategy for your film.
1. Know Your Goals and Audience
“Buyer personas” are significant in traditional B2B or B2C marketing. These personas assist a firm in anticipating and comprehending the demographics they are targeting, including the needs, wants, and pain points of potential customers.
The same ideas are crucial in the creation of films. Identify what demographic you want to reach. Think beyond genre. Consider other comedies this audience enjoys instead of picturing a group of comedy fans. Would they look for projects with female leads, diverse casts, or other noteworthy features that your project provides?
On the other hand, if you’re an independent filmmaker, you’ll want your work to speak to business people. If you were the film’s author, your target audience would include literary agents, producers, managers, and studios. Once more, be specific. Targeting specific professions interested in your brand and voice will be much more successful than generalizing your audience.
Take into account your project objectives. Are you promoting it to grow your audience, make relationships with industry insiders, or create clips for your reel? Setting this goal early on will help you select where to invest time and attention in further marketing your movie.
2. Set Your Mindset
It is much simpler to recognize your value once you have your target audience in mind and your goals established. Not everyone will like your project, and that’s a fact. If you want to achieve an effective growth marketing strategy, reach out to those that are interested in what you have to give. Creatives are reluctant to put themselves out there and perform the job when they lack faith in their unique vision. Spend some time learning about your target audience, your worth, and your distinct viewpoint so that you can confidently and effectively promote both your creative vision and yourself.
3. Create Marketing Content Early
Content marketing is the cornerstone of any promotional material. So, during pre-production, plan how you’ll produce behind-the-scenes videos and additional features like bloopers or cast interviews. Think about any promotional photos your team may use to promote the project. Creative posters are fantastic, but so are candid photos taken on the set, photos taken while in character, and stills from the finished product. Include the necessary social media usernames so people can tag you. Everyone on the team, including you, becomes more discoverable when you actively tag people in photos or highlight those who participated in the production.
Setting aside time on your calendar to produce press releases, host events, or submit festival applications is a good idea. You’ll stay on course by using these points of reference. Knowing how and when to achieve your goals makes it simpler to remain committed to them.
4. Never Undervalue the Influence of Social Media
The marketing potential of social media for your movie is enormous.
It allows you to get in touch with millions of individuals worldwide. Nevertheless, despite its vast potential, careful planning is necessary. Don’t just upload your movie on YouTube and hope for the best.
Larger productions like web series, TV episodes, and feature films generate excitement and a devoted fan base through new social media accounts and a project website. The production will benefit from having specialized online profiles because these projects have longer timelines and more content to give.
Ultimately, learn to build anticipation so that when the movie or TV show is released, people will wait for it.
5. Encourage Reviews
Feedback is crucial. Whether favorable or unfavorable, it reveals the true state of a movie and teaches the director where they can improve.
Ask others to post reviews of your movie to promote it. You can also create a Facebook survey to encourage engagements. Doing this will help you develop as a filmmaker and win people over. In social media marketing, reviews are essential because they boost search engine rankings on sites like Google.
6. Look For Alternate Coverage or Collaborations
Alternative means of promotion include podcasts, YouTube channels, social media pages or groups devoted to the filmmaking industry, and alumni news. Although sending a press release and an invitation for an interview is an excellent approach to getting in touch, feel free to be more casual and provide a personal link to your movie or marketing materials. If your outreach leads to collaboration, make sure to publicize it.
7. Learn From What Others Are Doing
Copying and pasting might not work, as we have stated, and this is still true. However, studying what others are doing and incorporating it into your movie doesn’t harm.
One thing to remember, though: you must customize. Any other plan can work for you if you modify it. Bring things down to your level, look through the essential details, and proceed.
Bottom Line
The art of filmmaking involves more than just making movies; it also consists in engaging audiences and cultivating interest. While it can be challenging to have movies seen and noticed, promoting films can be a lot of fun, especially when you can find and interact with new audiences that are enthusiastic about your work. You get to communicate and share some happiness with your devoted following, who can’t wait to watch all your hard work come to life on the big screen.
Chatty is a freelance writer from Manila. She finds joy in inspiring and educating others through writing. That’s why aside from her job as a language evaluator for local and international students, she spends her leisure time writing about various topics such as lifestyle, technology, and business.
Andrew Scott doesn’t know for sure yet, but the Biden administration may cost Hyundai his business.
The 37-year-old Chicago attorney is in the market for a new vehicle and was considering an Ioniq 5 electric SUV. He may end up buying a plug-in hybrid instead for one reason: The Hyundai model didn’t make the just-released list of EVs eligible for up to $7,500 US tax credits.
“If it’s not on there, I’m not going to buy it,” Scott said of the Ioniq 5. “Buying a car with a subsidy really kind of shifts my buying power. It allows me to purchase a more expensive car.”
Hyundai’s electric model getting snubbed was no surprise. The Inflation Reduction Act that President Joe Biden signed into law in August limited credits to EVs assembled in North America, and the South Korean automaker won’t have a new $5.5 billion Georgia factory up and running until late next year.
But more consumers like Scott are likely to change their car-buying calculus on account of Biden making credits more elusive starting Tuesday. In addition to needing to build their EVs in North America, car companies must line up supply of battery components and raw materials from the US and its free-trade partners to qualify.
The stringent content rules are the stick Biden is using to get automakers and their battery suppliers to invest in the US. The carrot — manufacturing incentives that could render the country the most profitable place in the world to produce battery cells — is helping make the massive spending necessary an easy sell in board rooms. Companies announced plans for more than $52 billion worth of EV and battery manufacturing projects in the six months after the IRA passed, according to BloombergNEF.
Biden’s hands were tied by West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, who insisted on EV incentives being conditioned upon making the US and its allies less dependent on China for batteries and raw materials. The result of that hardline: Only 10 electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles will be eligible for the full tax credit for now, and seven will qualify for $3,750.
Source: U.S. Treasury Department
General Motors lays claim to half the EV models in line for the $7,500 incentive for months to come. One of those — the Chevrolet Bolt — ended up with a customer earlier this month who’d been wavering over whether to buy a new EV, until the tax credits got her off the fence.
“I’ve been waffling back and forth,” said Ashley McDonnell, a 33-year-old podcaster in Cinnaminson, New Jersey, who purchased her Bolt the first week of April. She knew changes were coming and didn’t want to chance missing out on the federal incentive.
Six vehicles that, like the Chevy Bolt, had been eligible for the full tax credit earlier this year will qualify for only the half amount now that battery-sourcing requirements are taking effect, including a lower-priced version of Tesla’s Model 3 sedan and Ford’s Mustang Mach-E SUV. Only four manufacturers have EVs in line for credits: GM, Tesla, Ford and Stellantis.
Source: U.S. Treasury Department
That may rankle leaders in the rest of the world who’ve criticized the IRA as protectionist industrial policy.
Jennifer Safavian, the CEO of Autos Drive America, an advocacy group for international automakers including Toyota, Volkswagen and Kia, praised trade agreements the US recently struck with Japan and is working on with the European Union to make critical minerals sourced from those countries count toward carmakers’ sourcing requirements. She worries, though, that the new rules will be too complex for potential EV buyers to quickly decipher in showrooms.
“The biggest problem with all of this is it’s so confusing, so complex for consumers,” Safavian said. “How are they going to be able to figure it out?”
“It’s whatever,” the “Havana” songstress, 26, wrote via Instagram on Monday, April 17, alongside a carousel of snaps from the Indio, California, music festival. The slideshow began with a closeup of Cabello holding a Chanel necklace in her teeth followed by a couple of bikini pics and a shot of the pop star playing guitar in her bathing suit.
Mendes, 24, was not pictured, but plenty of Cabello’s followers mentioned her ex in the comments. “Here for the comments about Shawn ?,” wrote one Instagram user. Another offered a theory, writing of the guitar photo: “Shawn took the last one I JUST KNOW IT.”
Camila CabelloCourtesy of Camila Cabello/Instagram
“They weren’t holding hands, but stayed together all night,” an eyewitness exclusively told Us Weekly of the duo’s PDA session. “They were in a VIP table, trying to stay out of sight.”
The source added that the twosome started showing more affection as the night went on and they took in Burna Boy‘s set. “Camila was nuzzling her face into Shawn’s shoulders and they looked like a couple,” the witness said. “They also kissed and were making out during Burna Boy’s final song.”
While the pair’s makeout session came as a shock to fans, an insider told Us that the hookup doesn’t mean the former couple are giving their romance another shot. “Shawn and Camila are not back together,” the source explained, noting that the kisses were “no big deal” to the duo. “They were simply having fun and just feeling good in the moment at Coachella.”
Cabello and Mendes went public with their romance in 2019 after years of friendship. Two years later, however, the pair announced their split.
“Hey guys, we’ve decided to end our romantic relationship but our love for one another as humans is stronger than ever,” they wrote in a joint Instagram statement in November 2021. “We started our relationship as best friends and will continue to be best friends. We so appreciate your support from the beginning and moving forward.”
After their breakup, both artists released songs with lyrics hinting at the end of their relationship. In March 2022, Cabello released “Bam Bam,” which included the lines: “We were kids at the start, I guess we’re grown-ups now / Couldn’t never imagine even havin’ doubts, but not everything works out.”
That same month, Mendes dropped “When You’re Gone,” in which the narrator reflects on the end of a romance. “You never know how good you have it / Until you’re starin’ at a picture of the only girl that matters,” read the lyrics to the song’s first verse. “I know what we’re supposed to do / It’s hard for me to let go of you / So I’m just trying to hold on.”
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Following his split from Cabello, the “Lost in Japan” crooner has been linked to Dr. Jocelyne Miranda and Sabrina Carpenter. The Cinderella actress, for her part, sparked dating speculation with Austin Kevitch in 2022, but the duo’s connection ultimately fizzled out.
SAN FRANCISCO — Israeli spyware maker NSO Group deployed at least three new “zero-click” hacks against iPhones last year, finding ways to penetrate some of Apple’s latest software, researchers at Citizen Lab have discovered.
The attacks struck phones with iOS 15 and early versions of iOS 16 operating software, Citizen Lab said in a report Tuesday. The lab, based at the University of Toronto, shared its results with Apple, which has now fixed the flaws that NSO had been exploiting.
It’s the latest sign of NSO’s ongoing efforts to create spyware that penetrates iPhones without users taking any actions that allow it in. Citizen Lab has detected multiple NSO hacking methods in past years while examining the phones of likely targets, including human rights workers and journalists.
While it is unsettling to civil rights groups that NSO was able to come up with multiple new means of attack, it did not surprise them. “It is their core business,” said Bill Marczak, a senior researcher at Citizen Lab.
“Despite Apple notifying targets, and the Commerce Department putting NSO on a blacklist, and the Israeli ministry cracking down on export licenses — which are all good steps and raising costs — NSO for the moment is absorbing those costs,” Marczak said.
Given the financial and legal fights NSO is involved in, Marczak said it was an open question how long NSO could keep finding or buying new exploits that are effective.
As NSO’s prominence has made it a symbol of government-level hacking, its repeated high-profile targeting has exposed it to researchers who are learning more of its tricks.
Working together and armed with new electronic evidence of attacks, Citizen Lab and Apple went back to old phones and found traces of other attack methods. That deeper knowledge will continue to grow, making future detections easier.
NSO spokesman Liron Bruck declined to say whether the company was behind the hacks or whether it had still more attacks that are equally effective. He faulted Citizen Lab for failing to disclose its underlying data.
“NSO adheres to strict regulation, and its technology is used by its governmental customers to fight terror and crime around the world,” Bruck said by email.
It was unclear how many people were hacked with the newly discovered methods, and Citizen Lab declined to identify the ones it knew about.
An Apple spokesman, who provided information on the condition that he not be named, said the threats affected “a very small number of our customers” and that it would continue to build more defenses into its products.
In one encouraging sign, some of the most recent attacks failed against users who had activated Apple’s recently introduced Lockdown Mode, which stops some communications from unknown callers and reduces the number of programs that are automatically invoked.
In an attack chain that used HomeKit — Apple’s framework for apps that control home lighting, temperature and other smart devices — iPhone users were warned that someone had tried to access the program but been blocked, researchers said.
Those warnings stopped showing up after a time, presumably because the attackers figured out a way to access the program without triggering the warning or because they abandoned the method.
Marczak urged other likely targets to use Lockdown Mode as well.
YouTube will remove additional videos related to eating disorders, including content that shows or discusses “imitable behavior,” the company announced today.
Videos promoting or glorifying eating disorders are already banned on YouTube, but this policy update expands the rules to include content that shows or describes eating disorder behaviors that audiences could imitate. Videos that show or describe “weight-based bullying in the context of eating disorders” will also be banned under the new policy.
Image: YouTubeResources for eating disorders will appear below videos.
YouTube will also begin restricting young viewers from accessing content related to eating disorders, including videos that discuss recovery. Videos about recovery where the creator discusses past eating disorder behaviors may require viewers to be over 18 years old or prompt users to sign in if they’re not already. Additionally, eating disorder resource panels will appear below relevant videos in the US, UK, India, Canada, Japan, Korea, Mexico, France, and Germany, with more regions to come in the future.
Other platforms where eating disorder and weight loss content has proliferated have taken different measures to address the problem. In 2021, Pinterest banned all weight loss ads on the platform with guidance from the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), which embraced the change. Last year, TikTok banned content promoting disordered eating symptoms like overexercising and short-term fasting that are “under-recognized signs of a potential problem.”
Lana Del Rey, Boygenius, Maggie Rogers, and Carly Rae Jepsen lead the lineup for the 2023 All Things Go Festival, which will return to Merriweather Post Pavilion, just outside Washington D.C., Sept. 30 and Oct. 1.
Rogers and Jepsen top the bill on day one, which will also feature Tegan and Sara, Mt. Joy, Fletcher, Sudan Archives, Lizzy McAlpine, Dayglow, Peach Pit, Suki Waterhouse, Wombats, and Raye. On day two, Lana Del Rey and Boygenius will headline, with performances from Muna, Beabadoobee, Arlo Parks, Alex G, Ethel Cain, Alvvays, Meet Me @ the Altar, Samia, and Leith Ross. A full lineup is available on the poster below.
Tickets for All Things Go 2023 will go on sale this Friday, April 21, at 10 a.m. ET, with a fan pre-sale taking place on April 20 at 10 a.m. ET. Registration for the fan pre-sale is open now on the All Things Go website.
For Del Rey, All Things Go is one of just a handful of North American festival shows she’s booked this summer in support of her most recent album, Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd. She’ll also play Lollapalooza in Chicago and Outside Lands in San Francisco, as well as festivals in Quebec, South America, and the U.K.
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For Boygenius — the supergroup trio of Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker — All Things Go is yet another stop on an already packed summer touring itinerary in support of their debut, The Record. They’ve got a bunch of headlining dates scheduled (including some with Jepsen), and they’ll also be taking part in the traveling Re:SET concert series, playing shows around the country with Clairo, Dijon, and Bartees Strange.
Meanwhile, Maggie Rogers will also be on the road this summer in support of her 2022 LP, Surrender. Upon announcing the trek earlier this month, Rogers gave fans a chance to skirt some Ticketmaster fees by making tickets available with a reduced surcharge directly from some of the venues’ box offices for one day only.
New York-based comic Hari Kondabolu preps for every stand-up performance the same way: drinking lots of water, peeing and pacing.
“It’s the same thing over and over, and I think there’s a comfort in that,” he said. “I’ve been doing this 20 years, and I’m still absolutely a mess until I go on.”
The Queens-raised, Brooklyn-based comedian is gearing up for the release of his latest special, “Vacation Baby,” which he will self-release on YouTube on Tuesday. Named for his son, who was born during the pandemic but conceived just before lockdown, the special’s nontraditional release is a gamble for Kondabolu, who is no stranger to betting on himself.
“It just felt like I had this major life thing happen, and I had so much to talk about from those two years of the pandemic,” he said. “And I’m just sitting on it waiting for what exactly? For a network to give me the right to say what I want to say publicly?”
Alongside the special, Kondabolu will release an accompanying album on the music streaming services and will self-release a digital album, “(Extended) Vacation Baby,” on Bandcamp.
The Times caught up with Kondabolu to discuss the comedy climate of today, performing in L.A. versus New York and the origins of his more political comic material.
What made you want to name your special ”Vacation Baby”?
The special is very much about having a kid during the pandemic. It felt like the worst time in the world, and yet me and my partner were bringing this child into the world. I thought about naming this special “Pandemic Baby” or “Pandemic Dad” or something like that, but I wanted it to be positive.
What made you decide to release this special on YouTube?
I feel like I just got sick of waiting. With comedy specials, there’s a handful of people at a certain level who can say, “I want to make this special,” and then one of the streamers or the networks makes it because it’s good business. There was this era where [corporations were] really investing in stand-up. And it feels like we’re starting to see a decrease in that again as maybe there are fewer streamers, as things are consolidating, as the industry is in flux right now in a lot of ways.
The idea of waiting some indefinite period to release material just didn’t sit well with me. I do stand-up because I like to record hours. That is a fundamental part of the job for me. I don’t feel like I’m developing unless a new hour comes out and I clean the slate and start fresh with the next one. And I started seeing all these other comics start to release their specials on YouTube, which really initially didn’t sit well with me because it means you as a comic are taking the financial risk. You’re gambling and saying, “I’m betting it on myself,” and stand-up is a lot of that already. It’s a lot of risk, and 1681829560 we have to make it ourselves as well? But at the same time, I’m like, it’s freedom. Like I’m literally doing what I want and it’s in a forum that anyone can get to. You don’t need to pay to watch it, you can pass the link around. And so part of me is like, “Well, maybe I need to try this.” I feel like I always end up seeing something happen and I get in too late. And instead of waiting on an industry stamp to say, “You can make this,” it’s betting on yourself and saying, “I trust my instincts, I trust the people that like me, and I feel like more people will like me if they see this.” Whether I will go for it again is dependent on how this does, but I definitely am proud of this hour. I think it’s smart, I think it’s unique, I think it’s a personal and creative progression.
Do you have a favorite joke you’ve told?
Of all time, it’s probably my white chocolate/white Jesus joke. I love that joke. I think it’s the first joke on my first album, “Waiting for 2042,” and the joke covers racism, religion, pop culture, food. It’s like a perfect review of everything I talk about in one joke. So that one would be my favorite, probably of all time.
Do you have a pre-show routine?
Yes. I pace a lot. I talk to myself, especially if it’s the first show in a run. Like if I’m doing a bunch of shows, the first couple are where I’m the most nervous. I’m always pacing, always thinking about getting the joke order right, remembering the new jokes I added to an old joke.
I don’t like when other people are in the room talking when I’m pacing; I want it to be quiet. I just want to be in my head. I hate when the bathroom isn’t in the greenroom so if I have to pee, I have to be with the general public. It ruins the illusion because all of a sudden it’s like, “Oh yeah, the guy that I saw pee is onstage.”
Named for his son, who was born during the pandemic but conceived just before lockdown, the special “Vacation Baby” is a nontraditional release and a gamble for Kondabolu, who says he’s no stranger to betting on himself.
(Ali Imam)
What made you want to do comedy?
I knew I wanted to do comedy when I saw Margaret Cho on TV. Seeing an Asian American person do stand-up, even though she wasn’t Indian, was incredible to me. She had command of an audience, she was sharing her stories, people were laughing. I didn’t think that was even possible. There was no reason to assume that we were allowed to exist that way because the country very much speaks in a binary of Black [and] white. So when you’re not those things — especially in the late ’80s, ’90s — to see her be so confident and share her stories like that made me want to do it. And I’ve been hooked ever since.
When did you first consider trying stand-up?
The first time I did stand-up was at a comedy night that I started at my [high] school. I just wanted to scratch the itch, and so I got to perform in front of my class. The material was terribly unoriginal, but I got to do it and that was the important part. I figured that was that, and then I went to college up in Maine, and I did not necessarily love that. My decision there was, “Well, if everyone’s gonna look at me [anyway], at least I’m going to control how they view me.”
It wasn’t until after I graduated and moved to Seattle to work as an immigrant-rights organizer when I decided to make stand-up my full-time [job]. My boss at the time was Pramila Jayapal, who’s now a congresswoman out of Seattle. It was just that post-9/11 era, and I was working with [people] whose family members were being detained and deported, victims of hate crimes. It was a lot. So I did comedy at night, and it was this incredible stress reliever. And I somehow got discovered doing that while I was doing something that’s far more important than what I’m doing now.
Do you think that your experience there informed you becoming a “political comic”?
I think it developed into that. The same thing that made me want to work in immigrant rights is the same thing that made me want to write honest, confrontational material. It was this idea that things aren’t fair and I want to do something about it. And then after a while, you start to realize comedy is not going to fix anything. But initially, I just had this fire of “I want to say something.” Post-9/11, everything changed. Before that, I was a kid sheltered in the diversity of Queens, New York, and really didn’t question U.S. history as much as I probably should have. And after 9/11, I’m all of a sudden thinking about war critically. I thought a lot about racism and how that manifests. It made me rethink everything I thought about the country. And so that really spurred my intellectual curiosity, and that spurred my stand-up development.
How do you think history will remember the comedy climate today?
There are all these social movements happening at the same time at a much faster rate as a result of the internet, and people, for the first time, are getting their voices heard. And that comes with the power dynamics that come with any form of expression in this country. Generally it’s mostly a white audience in the mainstream who controls the studios, and it’s usually white people that have control of most of these things. There’s institutional racism in this country, and so everything you’re creating as an artist is always up against that background. And all of a sudden you’re seeing this period of great change, or at least great questioning. There’s growing pains in [that] people don’t know how to communicate with each other. They don’t know how to talk about critical things. And certainly Twitter doesn’t help, the internet doesn’t really help that. And navigating that is really hard, especially as an artist, especially as a stand-up who edits live. Unlike other art forms, we make mistakes as part of the gig. And so I think people will look at this period as one of great transition and like a tug of war of ideologies and also of opinions on how free speech works and how it should work.
As a comedian, do you feel like cancel culture is a true threat to your career? Does it impact you whatsoever?
Not really. I feel like who really gets canceled? Louis C.K. won a Grammy last year. There’s comics who fill out huge stadiums or at least 1,000-seat theaters, saying, “You can’t say anything anymore!” Like how can you say you can’t say anything anymore when you’re in front of 1,000 people, when you’re on TV and specials? So I don’t even think cancellation is a real thing. I think criticism is real. And I think people, particularly comics, aren’t used to accountability. It’s uncomfortable. Look, I’ve had people call me out, I don’t like it either. You always want to be the one that people think is funny and will make a good point. Nobody wants to be [told] “that was ridiculous” or “that’s offensive,” but that’s how it works when you throw your ideas into a public sphere. If anything, as a stand-up, the fact that people react the way they do is a sign of respect that what you say matters. Stand-ups always complain about “nobody cares about us, we’re never heard, we’re the workhorses of the entertainment industry,” and then when someone actually values the words that come out of your mouth, you get upset. Well, it doesn’t work that way. People love you because of what you say, but that also runs the risk of you stumbling and saying something you maybe later regret. To me, it’s like, if you believe something, stand by it, and if you don’t, apologize for it. Neither of those things makes you weak. And if you made a mistake and a joke didn’t hit right or you said something maybe you shouldn’t have said, then own that. Apologizing is just growth.
“I’m literally doing what I want, and it’s in a forum that anyone can get to,” Kondabolu says of his YouTube special. “You don’t need to pay to watch it, you can pass the link around. And so part of me is like, “Well, maybe I need to try this.”
(Ali Imam)
How do you think growing up in New York City has informed your comedy?
I see the way people talk about what they fear the country is going to become, with multiple languages and this mix of different races. “It’s not our country anymore, get the country back.” All they’re describing is where I grew up. That’s what Queens, New York, is. That’s what New York City is. It’s every language, every culture, every mix of human being. So it’s frustrating because it’s like, you like to visit but you don’t like to stay, is what I’m hearing. You like to come here and look, but you don’t want to live in it. It’s such a beautiful place to grow up. It’s not to say it’s perfect and there isn’t racism or homophobia or all the stuff that comes with any place, but everyone’s represented here and present in a way that you don’t get in other parts of the world. I feel really privileged, and I feel like that has definitely colored my view.
How does the comedy scene in New York compare to L.A.?
I think New York is a stand-up city. There’s so many shows in New York, and there’s such a tradition of it. And not to say there aren’t great comics who have come out of L.A. and that the L.A. scene isn’t a healthy one, but I feel like New York is … you get your butt kicked there, and you become a better comic. And I don’t know if the same is true for L.A., but I know with New York you go through fire. You become tougher, you become sharper. I think you see where the bar is. When you’re on the road having started in New York, the road feels so much easier because you’ve been through one of the hardest places to play.
And L.A. I think has a great scene. Largo is incredible, the UCB tradition, obviously there’s a great alt scene there. It has had a really great history, and there’ve been great comics that have come out. But you’ll see more comics in L.A. who clearly just want to be on TV and do acting work, and they build the material for the purpose of that. Which, look, that’s a way to do it. But New York is New York.
Do you have a favorite city or venue to perform in?
It’s either Seattle or Oakland. I recorded my first album in Oakland. It feels like Oakland audiences are as smart as San Francisco audiences, except they’re also more expressive. It isn’t just like, “I get the joke.” It’s like, “I feel the joke. It has resonated with me on more than just one level, and I’m going to let you hear it.” And that is incredible. And I started in Seattle, so I always have a loyalty to that city, and the Neptune Theatre is one of my favorite places to play. A beautiful theater where I recorded my first Netflix special and that is, without a doubt, one of my favorite venues.
What’s the worst part of the job?
Travel. Travel is hard. I think that’s [true] for any touring performer. I love performing and I love going to other cities, but the process of getting to those cities and staying in a hotel and stuff that was exciting when I was 28, at 40 it’s like, “I have a kid and I have a partner. I have a life. I want my kid to see me.” And I also take shows that don’t go well a little harder now because it’s just like, “I left my kid for this?!” It makes you more focused in a way. It makes you do the best you can with the time you have and not waste any time. But being away is not easy, and as much as I love performing, I think a lot of comics at a certain place feel the same way. I love this job, but it’s brutal. Brutal on the body, brutal on the mind. How many friends’ birthdays did I miss? How many weddings did I miss? That’s part of what comes with you going where the gigs take you.
With Major set to appear before a judge on May 8, his defense team has publicly declared the actor is innocent.
“Jonathan Majors is completely innocent and is probably the victim of an altercation with a woman he knows,” Majors’ criminal defense attorney Priya Chaudhry told Deadline in a March 27 statement. “We are quickly gathering and presenting evidence to the District Attorney with the expectation that all charges will be dropped imminently.”
Photo: Entertainment Weekly
Majors’ arrest came during a time when the actor was the king of the box office. He starred in both Creed III and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which grossed a combined $745 million.
What Will Marvel Do?
While speculation has run rampant that Marvel could evict Majors from the MCU, Deadline is reporting that no such discussions have taken place.
Majors made his MCU debut in Season 1 of Loki. He portrayed He Who Remains, a variant of Kang of the Conqueror.
Kang the Conqueror himself then appeared in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, once again portrayed by Majors.
Photo: Marvel
With Kang set to be the main antagonist in the next Avengers film, Marvel will not be removing the character completely. Instead, if need be, the studio would likely recast Kang.
Majors has however already filmed Season 2 of Loki, adding another headache for Marvel to deal with.
Photo: D23
In the end, Majors will get his day in court. What Marvel will do next however, is anybody’s guess.
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Families are complicated. Being around each other for more than one lifetime certainly does not make things easier. Stefan and Damon face many problems in the 145 years they spend since becoming vampires, and deal with more hurdles when they reunite in Mystic Falls. The Salvatore brothers have many issues that start when Katherine entered their lives in 1864, and it takes decades for their relationship to look brighter. But, while Damon and Stefan may have been the original struggling family on The Vampire Diaries, they are not the only siblings to squabble or family to handle critical problems.
The Mikaelson siblings are even more dysfunctional than the Salvatore brothers. Having been around for over one-thousand years, they have had centuries to work together, betray, fight, come back together, and dagger each other. Although Elijah and Klaus reveal a taste of the Mikaelson drama, when Rebekah, Kol, and Finn wake up, and Esther and Mikael join the party, things get much more exciting. Even Caroline, Elena, and Jeremy have their fair share of drama in Mystic Falls. In Legacies, familial issues also continue due to Hope taking on her father’s enemies and Josie and Lizzie facing the Gemini Coven Merge.
One of Elena’s biggest problems is how her desperation to keep Jeremy and Jenna safe results in her making decisions for them and keeping them in the dark about the supernatural. Jeremy’s discovery that Vicki had become a vampire is shocking, but at least he has answers about what happened to her and knows she died when Stefan staked her. However, Jeremy grieving another lost loved one results in Elena asking Damon to wipe Jeremy’s memory, disregarding how Jeremy would feel about it.
Regarding Jenna, Elena determined that no information was the best action. She ignored that Jenna knowing the truth may have allowed her to be safer, as she would have been prepared. Elena never even warns Jenna that her birth mother has still been around and has been married to Alaric.
9 Caroline’s Parents Rejected and Tortured Her
Warner Brothers Television Distribution
When Liz first learns Caroline is a vampire, she is the furthest thing from supportive. She believes her daughter is gone, and a soulless creature lives in her place. Although Liz eventually came around and understood that Caroline was still there, she put her daughter through much pain before getting there. Bill’s reaction was far more violent. He captured and physically tortured Caroline for being a vampire, as if his methods could change her. Instead, all he did was give her a traumatic experience and memories.
8 Stefan and Damon’s Eternity of Misery
The CW
Damon follows through on his threat of giving Stefan an eternity of misery over the decades. While they are not always fighting in flashbacks, none of their meetings end well. Their reunion in Mystic Falls helps them work together for a bigger purpose, which does help heal their relationship. Still, Damon and Stefan have significant problems. Damon has no issues ruining his brother’s relationship with Elena. Meanwhile, Stefan could never not help Damon, even when it dragged him down.
Perhaps one of the worst portrayals of his inability to trust came from Klaus choosing to dagger his siblings. Whenever his siblings disappointed Klaus, or he felt like he had been betrayed, Klaus jumped to the dagger, which meant leaving his family in coffins for decades, or in Finn’s case, centuries. Klaus’ actions steal time from his siblings and cause them to resent him for daggering them as often as he does. Klaus does not have it in him to let his siblings go, even for the sake of a more healthy relationship, and out of fear, he places them in boxes instead.
6 Esther, Mikael, and Finn Try to Kill the Others
The CW
Esther and Finn are against vampirism and want to right the wrongs of the past. But, to do that, it usually means attempted murder on the rest of the Mikaelsons, which always ends up failing. In The Originals, Esther schemes to place her children in the bodies of witches to strip them of their immortality. Finn actually does kill Kol and happily obliges his mother’s requests to cause harm to the rest of the family. Over the centuries, Mikael had searched for and hunted down Klaus, wishing to get rid of the boy who had killed Esther and had never been his biological son.
5 Giuseppe and Lily Salvatore Are Terrible Parents
CW
Giuseppe Salvatore is a horrible father. He is harsh and abusive to the boys, and one of the spearheads of the movement against vampires. He even kills his sons for being Katherine’s allies. The first moment that proves Stefan’s Ripper instincts is when he kills his father and cannot stop drinking his blood. Lily Salvatore is not the best mother either, becoming a vampire and never trying to re-create a relationship with the sons she left behind. Instead, Lily creates a new family and even fights against Damon and Stefan when they reunite after she and the Heretics come out of the Prison World.
4 Kai Tried to Kill Lizzie and Josie
Warner Brothers Television Distribution
To prevent the next generation of Gemini witches from growing up and eventually taking on the role of Coven Leader, Kai attempted to kill them. The first attempt occurred when Jo was still pregnant and backfired when Jo died, and the twins were magically placed into Caroline. His second attempt came when the girls were young. On Legacies, Kai tried for a third time after spending the day with Josie. He joins forces with Alyssa to have her destroy his link to the Prison World, which would kill everyone inside it, even Lizzie and Josie.
3 The Gemini Coven Merge
Warner Brothers Television Distribution
No matter which show it occurs, the Gemini Coven Merge is a great way to show a dysfunctional and messy family dynamic. In The Vampire Diaries, Kai is revealed to have killed nearly his entire family, other than his twin, to take on the position of Coven Leader. The more emotional side of what it would mean is portrayed through Liv and Luke, who do not wish to lose each other. In Legacies, Lizzie and Josie face the emotional ramifications of learning only one might survive passed twenty-two years old. During the Dark Josie arc, she sets up the Merge against Lizzie early on a technicality.
2 Hope Inherits Her Father’s Enemies
Warner Brothers Television Distribution
If it was not bad enough that Klaus made thousands of years worth of enemies, when he died, Hope inherited them. Although Legacies does not spend all of its time showing Hope face off against her father’s remaining rivals, the fourth season does examine the complicated dynamic between Hope and Aurora. Aurora had loved and hated Klaus, and due to the time she grew up, she had never received a proper examination for her mental health. Aurora does not need to be an enemy, but her wish to get back at Klaus results in Aurora temporarily waging war against Hope.
1 Rebekah Calls for Mikael
Warner Brothers Television Distribution
Perhaps one of the most outstanding examples of betrayal in the Mikaelson family was when Rebekah and Marcel brought Mikael to New Orleans. Rebekah and Marcel wanted to be happy together, and never thought Klaus would back off and allow their relationship to flourish. Rebekah and Marcel bring Mikael to New Orleans to give themselves a chance at happiness, to force Klaus to run. It does not work out in their favor, though. Not only must Klaus flee from the home he built. The city itself goes up in flames, and Rebekah is forced to run with Klaus when she believes Marcel is dead.
Writer-director James Gunn is not only the co-head of DC Studios, but he’s also the writer for the next Superman movie, Superman Legacy. That film has now crossed a major milestone, as Gunn confirmed that Superman Legacy is now in “early” pre-production.
Gunn made the announcement today, April 18, to celebrate Superman Anniversary Day. What this means for Superman Legacy is that efforts to create costumes, design sets, and establish other aspects of the movie’s production are now “up and running,” Gunn said.
“I’m honored to be a part of the legacy,” he said.
Gunn went on to share a few more tidbits about Superman Legacy. Starting off, he confirmed that he will not announce the actor playing Superman anytime soon. He said a casting announcement will not be made in April or May, so June is the theoretical soonest that could happen. Earlier in April, Gunn confirmed that a casting search is now underway. A casting announcement at San Diego Comic-Con in July would seem to be fitting, but that’s just conjecture.
Gunn said he is a fan of Cavill’s and believes he is a “great guy.” But unfortunately for Cavill, Gunn said the actor is getting “dicked around by a lot of people,” including people who were formerly in charge of the DC movie universe. “But this Superman is not Henry, for a number of reasons,” Gunn said.
Superman Legacy is a prequel film that will follow a young Clark Kent during his time as a Daily Planet reporter, according to a previous story from The Hollywood Reporter.
Cavill may yet return to play Superman once again, but not yet. “In the initial stages, our story will be focusing on an earlier part of Superman’s life, so the character will not be played by Henry Cavill,” Gunn explained. “But we just had a great meeting with Henry and we’re big fans and we talked about a number of exciting possibilities to work together in the future.”
Superman Legacy releases on July 11, 2025. Gunn is writing the movie but there is no word yet on a director. Gunn’s next film is Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which releases in May.
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Having given filmmakers the storage foundation they need, Lexar is bringing an amazing list of creatives to NAB.
Lexar has been making storage solutions for cameras and mobile workstations for years. The tech is powerful and allows creatives to focus on their story instead of the specs of their gear. Now that NAB 2023 is a few days away, we’re excited to share Lexar’s plans for the show.
If you’re attending NAB 2023, visit booth C5441 at Central Hall to get a deep dive into the new storage tech that Lexar is bringing to market, as well as the full panel of presentations and events the company has planned.
Tools, Creators, and Filmmakers
Lexar has been making storage devices for decades. Its SD cards, Solid State Drives, and now some new CFexpress are the cornerstone of any production, no matter how big or small. The new Professional CFexpress Type B Cards come in both GOLD and DIAMOND versions, offering a staggering 1500MB/s and1700MB/s write speeds, respectively.
On the other hand, the Professional CFexpress Type A Cards offer speeds up to 900MB/s read and up to 800MB/s write. Also, the accompanying card readers offer quick downloads for both Type A and Type B cards.
But this year, Lexar is also bringing some amazing creators and filmmakers to the show floor. Not only will these creatives share their knowledge and experience, but they will also teach those who attend some valuable tools on how to succeed in our visual medium.
Credit: Lexar
Andy To is an NYC-based filmmaker whose YouTube Channel film, tech, and travel. He’ll be talking about travel filmmaking for beginners and how to become a better storyteller. Jenny Alice is a UK freelance commercial videographer and Director of Photography who will talk about her video production workflow and how to build a career as a freelance videographer. Finally, filmmakersJakob Owens and Rory Kramer will discuss filmmaking basics that every beginner needs to know and give a beginner’s guide to post-production.
Credit: Lexar
An Event To Remember
NAB is one of the most significant events of the year for gearheads, creatives, filmmakers, and broadcast veterans. While many seem to think the focus is always on the gear, this show is more than that. It’s about community, where filmmakers, creatives, manufacturers, and tech nerds all come together to share their love of the tools that make our stories great.
Thanks to the amazing presentations that Lexar is bringing to NAB, that community is growing larger. See you at the show!
EXCLUSIVE: Head Gear Films has announced a formal partnership with asset management firm Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI), which solidifies the company’s international stronghold in media funding.
Together, the two companies will focus on expanding investment in film, television and gaming productions globally and will build upon Head Gear’s robust track record of more than 350 funded projects with more than $300M of deployed capital across the last two decades. AllianzGI, which has more than $600BN in assets under management, has been investing in Head Gear projects across the last three years, such as How To Have Sex, which is screening in Cannes Un Certain Regard this year, Fisherman’s Friends 2, He Went That Way, Book of Love, And Mrs and Kill Room.
“We’ve been fortunate to build a world-class team here at Head Gear and are now one of the oldest private lending companies in the film industry, although we still have the same source of capital as we did 21 years ago,” said Head Gear CEO Phil Hunt. “We are now taking the natural next chapter of our business evolution and partnering with a financial institution. We’re excited to have AllianzGI join us as we expand. Their global leadership and footprint is not only impressive but aspirational for our company’s continued growth.”
Martin Opfermann, Allianz Global Investors Lead Portfolio Manager said: “We are delighted having co-invested with Head Gear over the past few years and extremely satisfied with the professionalism and market access that the team has demonstrated. Expanding our co-investments aims to offer our strategy an even bigger access to short-term loan investments with compelling risk return.”
The company released its monthly streaming report, The Gauge, on Tuesday, which reported that viewers watched 4.6B minutes of Outer Banks following the release of Season 3 in February — more than any other streaming program. Also on Netflix, You tallied 3.6B viewing minutes for the month. As always, Nielsen didn’t break down viewing by season.
Streaming on Netflix accounted for about 7.3% of total TV usage in March, which was comparable to February. Disney+ also had a comparable share of TV usage vs. February (1.8%), earning the second most-viewed series of the month. The Mandaloriandrew more than 3.6B viewing minutes.
Also on the streaming front, Pluto TV saw the largest increase in usage at 4.6%, which bumped its total share to 0.8% of TV. Peacock usage climbed to 3.1%, reaching a platform-high of 1.1% of total TV usage.
Streaming viewership was down overall in March, but it still finished the month with the largest share of TV usage at 34.1%.
In fact, TV usage was down 2% overall in March, which is fairly in line with seasonal trends, according to Nielsen. Total TV usage dropped 4.6% over the same period last year. Cable was the only category to see an increase in viewership, which shouldn’t be surprising considering the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament aired throughout the month. It was the first time since August that cable had seen a monthly uptick in viewing.
Viewership for this year’s March Madness, especially the finals, was down slightly compared to last year. That could explain why, despite the uptick in cable usage, the category still saw a 13.7% decrease in usage compared to the same time last year.
Broadcast made up 23.3% of TV usage in March, which is a 4.4% decrease from February and about 4% down from the year prior. The Oscars actually drove a 153% increase in the awards/ceremonies genre to account for a little more than 1% of viewing in the broadcast category. Nielsen credits the “general drama genre” for the largest share of broadcast viewing at 30.5%.
Netflix has hundreds of TV shows in development at any one time, and sifting through the full list is a chore. So we’re going to list what you’re most looking forward to in the coming months and years with the help of IMDb. Here’s the Netflix Original series you’re most looking
To compile the list below, we used IMDb’s Movie Meter data as one of the world’s largest movie and TV show databases. Every Monday, their list of the hottest titles is updated. These updates are based on the site’s traffic, which continues to draw in over half a billion monthly visits.
One quick note is that this list is only for the upcoming debut series. That means big returning series like Stranger Things aren’t going to be listed below.
Note: MovieMeter scores are correct as of April 11th, 2023.
Created by: Steve Knight, Shawn Levy Genre: Drama, History, War | Cast: Lars Edinger, Louis Hofmann, Aria Mia Loberti, Hugh Laurie, Mark Ruffalo Netflix Release Date: TBA Moviemeter: 9860
Shawn Levy has been one of the busiest producers for Netflix from Stranger Things to the Adam Project, and for the first time will explore a story set in WW2.
The story of Marie-Laure, a blind French teenager, and Werner, a German soldier, whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.
14. Turn of the Tide
Created By: Augusto Fraga Genre: Action, Thriller | Cast: José Condessa, Helena Caldeira, Rodrigo Tomás, André Leitão, Maria João Bastos Netflix Release Date: May 2023 Moviemeter: 9812
Four friends whose lives changed forever with the arrival of a ton of cocaine.
Created By: Kasper Barfoed Genre: Biography, Crime, Drama | Cast: Fanny Louise Bernth, Josephine Park, Peter Zandersen, Dick Kaysø, Selma Kjær Kuscu Netflix Release Date: April 27th, 2023 Moviemeter: 7374
The Danish nurse who was convicted of attempted manslaughter of four patients at Nykøbing Falster Hospital.
Created By: Steven Maeda, Matt Owens Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy | Cast: Tig Notaro, Monica Barbaro, Anya Chalotra, Christian Slater, Vanessa Hudgens Netflix Release Date: 2023 Moviemeter: 7304
Originally, we thought that the animated prequel of Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead would be released in 2022, however, it has since been pushed back to 2023.
Scott Ward and his rescue crew’s efforts to protect all they love during the first phases of the mysterious zombie outbreak in Vegas.
Over the past several years Nicole Kidman has been starring in some fantastic television roles, and The Perfect Stranger will be the Australian actress’s very first Netflix Original series.
When one lavish wedding ends in disaster before it can even begin – with a body discovered in Nantucket Harbor just hours before the ceremony – everyone in the wedding party is suddenly a suspect.
Created By: Guy Ritchie Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy | Cast: Iñaki Godoy, Emily Rudd, Mackenyu, Stevel Marc, Taz Skylar Netflix Release Date: 2023 Moviemeter: 5137
Moving into television for the first time is director Guy Ritchie, who will be expanding upon the world of The Gentlemen with an exclusive new Netflix series.
The series follows Eddie Halstead, who has inherited his father’s sizeable estate only to discover that it’s sitting on top of a weed empire owned by the legendary Mickey Pearson. Has this straight-up soldier got what it takes to master the dark arts of the British criminal underworld and take control of the entire operation?
Created By: Ui Seok Cho Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi | Cast: Jiseung Cho, Song Seung-heon, Kim Eui-sung, Esom, Kim Woo-bin Netflix Release Date: May 12th, 2023 Moviemeter: 4554
A brand new and exciting dystopian K-drama is headed to Netflix globally in May 2023. Black Knight has the potential to be the biggest K-drama on Netflix so far in 2023.
A legendary delivery driver “5-8” with exceptional battle skills And a refugee “Sawol” who dreams of following in his footsteps.
Created by: Shonda Rhimes Genre: Biography, Drama, History | Cast: Michelle Fairley, Ruth Gemmell, Adjoa Andoh, Golda Rosheuvel, Corey Mylchreest Netflix Release Date: May 9th, 2023 Moviemeter: 3843
Over the past couple of years, Bridgeton has grown to become one of the most popular series on Netflix. So it shouldn’t come as any surprise that the streaming service is expanding the franchise by exploring the back story of one of the show’s most polarising characters, Queen Charlotte.
Centered on Queen Charlotte’s rise to prominence and power, this Bridgerton-verse prequel tells the story of how the young Queen’s marriage to King George sparked both a great love story and a societal shift, creating the world of the Ton inherited by the characters in Bridgerton.
Created By: David Benioff, D.B. Weis, Alexander Woo Genre: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy | Cast: Eiza González, Benedict Wong, Liam Cunningham, John Bradley, Alex Sharp Netflix Release Date: 2023 Moviemeter: 3762
The reputation of David Benioff and D.B. Weiss was left in disarray after the disappointing ending to the final season of Game of Thrones. Seeking their fortunes outside of Warner, the pair are now working on the adaptation of The Three Body Problem, from popular Chinese author Liu Cixin.
Set against the backdrop of China’s Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space to establish contact with aliens. An alien civilization on the brink of destruction captures the signal and plans to invade Earth. Meanwhile, on Earth, different camps start forming, planning to either welcome the superior beings and help them take over a world seen as corrupt, or to fight against the invasion. The result is a science fiction masterpiece of enormous scope and vision.
Created By: Mike Flanagan Genre: Drama, Horror | Cast: Carla Gugino, Ruth Codd, Willa Fitzgerald, T’Nia Miller, Michael Trucco Netflix Release Date: 2023 Moviemeter: 3710
While The Midnight Club wasn’t the best of what we’ve seen from Mike Flanagan. his upcoming series, The Fall of the House of Usher, has the potential to be one of his best Netflix projects yet. As expected, the cast will feature many familiar faces from Flanagan’s previous projects, including the likes of Kate Siegel, Rahul Kohli, Henry Thomas, and Zach Gilford.
A man who has been invited to visit his childhood friend Roderick Usher. Usher gradually makes clear that his twin sister Madeline has been placed in the family vault not quite dead. When she reappears in her blood-stained shroud, the visitor rushes to leave as the entire house splits and sinks into a lake.
Created By: Albert Kim Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy | Cast: Gordon Cormier, Tamlyn Tomita, Ken Leung, Daniel Dae Kim, Yvonne Chapman Netflix Release Date: 2023 Moviemeter: 3582
When you take into consideration how beloved Avatar: The Last Airbender is by its fans, there’s a huge amount of pressure on Netflix to get the live-action adaptation correct. Easily one of the most anticipated Netflix titles of 2023, if done correctly, Netflix will claw back some of its lost reputations from recent adaptations.
Set in an Asiatic, war-torn world where certain people can “bend” one of the four classical elements: water, earth, fire, or air. Aang is the “Avatar”, the only one capable of bending all the elements, and is destined to bring peace to the world from the Fire Nation. With his new companions Katara and Sokka, Aang sets out to master the elements while being pursued by the exiled Fire Nation prince Zuko, who seeks to regain his honor by capturing the Avatar.
Created By: Steven Maeda, Matt Owens Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy | Cast: Iñaki Godoy, Emily Rudd, Mackenyu, Stevel Marc, Taz Skylar Netflix Release Date: August 2023 Moviemeter: 2850
With a 25-year publication history and over 1060 chapters of the manga, One Piece is one the longest-running and most beloved fictional franchises from Japan. This is why a live-action adaptation of the series is one of Netflix’s most ambitious yet, but if it pays off, then Netflix has a brand new series that could span well over ten years.
An alternate version of Earth, and one that is currently in the midst of the ‘Golden Age of Pirates’. Ruthless cut-throat pirates rule the seas, and only the strongest have the chance to lay claim to the mythical treasure known as ‘One Piece’ that was left behind by the greatest pirate of them all Gol D. Roger. Years after the death of Gold Roger, a young boy by the name of Monkey D. Luffy has dreams of raising his own crew, finding One Piece, and declaring himself as Pirate King. After eating a devil fruit that grants Luffy the power to make his body like rubber, it gives him enormous strength and agility. When Luffy finally comes of age, he sets sail from Foosha Village in East Blue and sets upon his grand adventure to become the next Pirate King.
Created By: Debora Cahn Genre: Drama, Thriller | Cast: Keri Russell, David Gyasi, Rufus Sewell, Rory Kinnear, Ato Essandoh Netflix Release Date: April 20th, 2023 Moviemeter: 1242
In the midst of an international crisis, Kate Wyler a career diplomat lands in a high-profile job for which she was not suited for, with tectonic implications for her marriage and her political future.
Created By: Becca Barnes, Alwyn Dale Genre: Action, Adventure, Family | Cast: David Yost, Catherine Sutherland, Johnny Yong Bosch, Walter Jones, Richard Steven Horvitz Netflix Release Date: April 19th, 2023 Moviemeter: 873
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Power Rangers franchise, Netflix is giving us a blast from the past with some of the original members of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers returning to reprise their iconic roles.
The Rangers come face-to-face with a familiar threat from the past. In the midst of a global crisis, they are called on once again to be the heroes the world needs.
What upcoming Netflix TV show are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments below!
Luc Jacquet, the Oscar-winning French director ofMarch of the Penguins, will be honored with the 2023 Locarno Kids Award, an honor celebrating a film personality who has brought cinema to younger audiences, giving them “a sense of discovery about the big screen.”
Jacquet will receive his award in Locarno on Aug. 7, ahead of an open-air screening of March of the Penguins on Locarno’s legendary Piazza Grande. Jacquet will also take part in a panel discussion on Aug. 8. Locarno will screen a selection of Jacquet’s other films, which include documentaries Once Upon a Forest, 2015’s Ice and the Sky and Penguins sequel Penguins 2: The Next Step (2017), as well as the 2007 feature The Fox & the Child.
“Luc Jacquet is a director who has masterfully woven together the magical charm of observation and the pure poetry of storytelling, taking our gaze to dimensions of the planet never before explored,” said Giona A. Nazzaro, the festival’s artistic director. “By turning documentary into epic, but intimate, adventures he has drawn new generations of viewers into the magic of motion picture storytelling and at the same time engaged them on behalf of protecting life in all its forms.”
Jacquet’s new film, Magnetic Continent, will explore the director’s decades-long obsession with the Antarctic.
The Locarno Kids Award was created in 2021. Previous editions went to Japanese anime director Mamoru Hosoda (Mirari, Wolf Children) and Indian director Gitanjali Rao (Bombay Rose, October).
Locals have targeted former TOWIE star Elliot Wright’s Spanish restaurant with graffiti calling him a ‘killer’ less than two days after his doorman was killed while trying to break up a fight at the eatery.
The front of the popular Olivia’s La Cala restaurant in Marbella was spray-painted bright pink with Spanish words which translate to ‘Killer Elliot’ and ‘Mafia’.
The restaurant was vandalised after Mr Wright announced he was closing the eatery for two days following the death of doorman Jose Rafael Pisano Pardo, 55.
The father-of-two died in hospital on Sunday after suffering life-threatening injuries when he intervened in a brawl at Olivia’s La Cala restaurant.
Insiders have since confirmed that police are hunting a British man amid unconfirmed reports that Mr Pardo had been pushed or punched in the altercation before losing his balance.
Locals have targeted former TOWIE star Elliot Wright’s Spanish restaurant with graffiti calling him a ‘killer’ less than two days after his doorman was killed while trying to break up a fight at the eatery
The front of the popular Olivia’s La Cala restaurant in Marbella was spray-painted bright pink with Spanish words which translate to ‘Killer Elliot’ and ‘Mafia’
Elliott Wright has temporarily closed his restaurant in the resort of La Cala de Mijas for two days following Mr Pardo’s death. The former TOWIE star is pictured at Olivia’s La Cala
Father-of-two Jose Rafael Pisano Pardo, 55, (pictured) died in hospital on Sunday evening after suffering life-threatening injuries when he intervened in a fight at Olivia’s La Cala restaurant in Marbella
Olivia’s La Cala went up in flames in the early hours of April 26, 2021 in an arson attack which is still being investigated and is never believed to have led to any arrests. Pictured: The scene of the fire
Mr Pardo, a bodybuilder from Venezuela, was knocked unconscious on Saturday night and taken in a serious condition to a hospital in Malaga, Spain, where he was admitted to intensive care.
Well-placed sources said he had been declared brain dead and his life support machine was switched off after hitting the back of his head. He is thought to have fallen to the ground during attempts to eject one of the men involved in the fracas.
Mr Wright closed his restaurant in the resort of La Cala de Mijas yesterday and today following Mr Pardo’s death. The reality TV personality said his ‘heart was broken’ and his staff had ‘lost a much loved and valued member of our team’.
Now, the restaurant has been targeted in yet another attack, with locals spraying graffiti all over the white walls of the eatery.
It came just two years after Mr Wright’s restaurant went up in flames on April 26, 2021 following what he said was an arson attack.
At the time, Mr Wright said in an emotional video that someone had taken ‘his whole dream away’ in the suspected arson attack.
‘Someone’s come and took my whole dream away, for whatever reason I’ll never know, because I don’t have any enemies as far as I’m aware, I didn’t think I did. Whether it’s jealousy or competition, it doesn’t really matter,’ he said following the fire.
It is not clear who was behind that arson attack – as police have still made no arrests – or who is behind the latest targeted attack which saw the eatery vandalised.
The vandals called Mr Wright a ‘killer’ after his bouncer Mr Pardo was killed in an altercation between customers at the restaurant.
The front of the popular Olivia’s La Cala restaurant in Marbella was spray-painted bright pink with Spanish words which translate to ‘Killer Elliot’ and ‘Mafia’
TOWIE star Elliott Wright’s is pictured in 2021 surveying the scene of the fire at his restaurant
It came just two years after Mr Wright’s restaurant went up in flames on April 26, 2021 following what he said was an arson attack (pictured)
It is not clear who was behind that arson attack – as police have still made no arrests – or who is behind the latest targeted attack which saw the eatery vandalised
Mr Pardo was a father of two grown-up children believed to be a previous relationship. He married Romina Acuna, a personal trainer and gym instructor in Las Vegas, in November last year.
Ms Acuna described her new fitness fanatic husband as the ‘love of my life’ in an emotional social media post after they wed and posed for photos near a white stretch limousine.
She moved to Mijas on the Costa del Sol at the start of 2021 from her previous base in Barcelona and the couple enjoyed a holiday together in Chile before getting married.
A police investigation into Mr Pardo’s death, led by the Civil Guard in Malaga, is ongoing but detectives confirmed last night that no arrests have yet been made.
Officers have taken CCTV footage from Mr Wright’s restaurant, which was gutted in an arson attack two years ago, on Sunday after interviewing staff.
The results of a post-mortem, believed to have taken place yesterday, have not been revealed and are not expected to be officially made public. They will instead be sent to an investigating judge heading an ongoing judicial probe into Mr Pardo’s death.
Local reports said the doorman hit his head on the corner of a table as he tried to intervene in the fracas.
But sources said he hit the back of his head directly on the floor and not a table.
Elliott Wright has shut his Olivia’s La Cala restaurant (pictured) for two days as police continued to probe the Saturday night tragedy
Jose Rafael Pisano Pardo was knocked unconscious and evacuated in a serious condition to a hospital in Malaga, Spain where he was admitted to intensive care. He died on Sunday
Unconfirmed local reports have pointed to the doorman (pictured) receiving a punch as he tried to intervene in the fight which led to him hitting his head on the corner of a table as he fell and lost his balance
The restaurant released a statement on Instagram yesterday paying tribute to Mr Pardo
One said: ‘The local reports talk of a group of people fighting but it was between two people.
‘The doorman went down as he tried to eject one of the two men.’
Another added: ‘Elliott had a great relationship with the dead guy and is devastated at what’s happened.
‘He had worked for him for two years.
‘There was an argument between two people in the restaurant and he’s fallen on the floor and hit his head after intervening.
‘It looks like he slipped after one of the guys he was kicking out pushed or punched him but that’s something the police are still investigating.
‘He landed awkward and banged his head as he fell backwards.
‘The ambulance took about 45 minutes to an hour to come and he was rushed to hospital.’
Mr Pardo had been working as a doorman at Olivia’s La Cala for the past two years.
The source added: ‘He had swelling on the brain and brain damage because of a lack of oxygen and they said at the hospital he was brain dead.
‘They switched the machines off on Sunday.
‘Earlier the same day police took all the camera footage away and took down statements from the staff.’
In a statement released yesterday, Olivia’s La Cala said: ‘This weekend we lost a much loved and valued member of our team.
‘Our hearts are broken and we have closed the restaurant today and tomorrow out of respect.
‘We are supporting our staff and the family whilst awaiting news of further investigations.’
Olivia’s La Cala went up in flames in the early hours of April 26, 2021 in an arson attack which is still being investigated and is never believed to have led to any arrests.
The restaurant, which opened in August 2015, had to close so it could be rebuilt.
CCTV footage handed to police showed two masked men with jerrycans breaking into the site shortly before it went up in flames.
The devastating blaze occurred just five weeks after Mr Wright’s dad Edward George died from coronavirus.
At the time, Mr Wright said in an Instagram post after it was confirmed the fire had been started deliberately: ‘I can say now that it is arson.
‘Someone’s come and took my whole dream away, for whatever reason I’ll never know, because I don’t have any enemies as far as I’m aware, I didn’t think I did.
‘Whether it’s jealousy or competition, it doesn’t really matter.’
Rakuten TV has announced the launch of two new owned and operated FAST channels, bolstering its role as a curated channel programmer in the free ad-supported streaming TV services space.
The channels, announced during MipTV’s FAST Summit, will see the growing pan-European video-on-demand streaming service enter the TV series landscape by launching a reality/factual entertainment channel in the U.K. and crime series channels across German speaking territories and in France, Italy and Spain.
Rakuten’s Real channel which was launched in the U.K. on April 12, will feature shows such as culinary bootcamp series “Worst Cooks in America”; reality show “My New BFF”, with Paris Hilton; and “Undercover Boss.”
It’s new Crime channel, which launched on April 12 in Italy, includes British detective show “Wallander” and “Boss” starring Kelsey Grammer. The channels will roll out to other countries in coming months. Programming is being curated to vary depending on each market. In France Crime will be the home of evergreens such as German crime series “Alerta Cobra 11” and “Un Flic,” which is one of the most successful crime series in French Television.
More FAST platforms on Rakuten will follow, according to a statement.
During MIP’s FAST Summit Rakuten TV’s CEO Cedric Dufour underlined how providing free content supported by ads has become a vital aspect of the company’s business model. “FAST and AVOD currently represent a significant portion of our business, with healthy double digit year-on-year growth,” he said.
The Rakuten CEO also noted that they plan to continue to invest in original productions which are key to creating strong engagement with new customers.
For the sixth week in a row, Morgan Wallen’s “One Thing at a Time” tops the albums chart at No. 1 and its leading single, “Last Night,” adds a third nonconsecutive week atop the singles chart.
In its latest tracking week, “One Thing” (released via Big Loud/Mercury/Republic Records) collected the equivalent of 167,000 album sales in the United States and 211 million on-demand official streams of the country set’s 36 songs, according to data by Luminate. “Last Night” leads the Hot 100 with 36.6 million streams after dominating the chart for the first time last month as the singer-songwriter’s first No. 1 single.
New in the top 10 of the songs chart this week is Drake’s Kim Kardashian-sampling “Search & Rescue,” which launched to No. 2 on the list. As Drake has been known to do, the track was announced just a day prior to its official release on April 7, and still, the song logged nearly 34 million streams as the Toronto rapper’s 35th top-five hit.
The song features dialogue from Kardashian, pulled from the reality star’s television show: “I didn’t come this far, just to come this far and not be happy,” she can be heard saying around the one-minute mark.
Jumping ahead to No. 10 on the Hot 100 is Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s “Ella Baila Sola,” an all-Spanish-language track from the bubbling Mexican music genre which has gained widespread attention in the last few years thanks to its resurgence among young audiences.
“Ella Baila Sola” notched 24.4 million streams, up 30% as it climbed from its previous No. 17 slot to No. 10 in the latest tracking week. It’s the first top-10 hit to ever have come out of the genre and also marks the first top-10 hit for both Peso Pluma and quartet Eslabon Armado — and their respective indie labels, Prajin Parlay and DEL Records.
Peso Pluma currently boasts five tracks on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart and is also currently ranked No. 5 on Spotify’s Global Artists chart, behind Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, the Weeknd and Drake. His and Yng Lvcas’ “La Bebe” sits at No. 17 on the Hot 100 as the second-highest-charting regional Mexican single.
Back in the top five of the songs chart, former No. 1 holders Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers,” and SZA’s “Kill Bill” are at No. 3 and 4, respectively. Metro Boomin, the Weeknd and 21 Savage’s “Creepin’ ” is at No. 5 and Rema and Selena Gomez’s “Calm Down” is at No. 6, where the Afrobeats favorite enjoys a new peak.
The Weeknd is featured on the list for a second time alongside Ariana Grande for their duet “Die for You,” which is at No. 7. Rounding out the top 10 is PinkPantheress and Ice Spice’s “Boy’s a Liar, Pt. 2” at No. 8 and Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” at No. 9.
As for the albums chart, the list saw the No. 2 debut of NF’s “Hope” as the American rapper/producer’s fourth top 10-charting effort behind 2021’s “Clouds (The Mixtape).” The 13-song album debuts with the equivalent of 123,000 album units and 57 million streams. The package was sold in a variety of physical variants including a signed CD, four deluxe CD/merch box sets, a Target-exclusive CD and vinyl.
Linkin Park’s second studio album, “Meteora,” is back on the charts following the album’s 20th-anniversary deluxe reissue. It debuted at No. 8 with 38,500 equivalent album units earned and 23.65 million on-demand official streams of the songs including unreleased tracks like “Lost” which was recorded for “Meteora,” but didn’t make the original album’s final tracklist. “Lost” features the late Chester Bennington, lead singer of the American rock band, who died in 2017.
Elsewhere, country music continues its chart domination with Wallen’s record-breaking “Dangerous: The Double Album,” a 2021 release, lifting to No. 6 (47,000 units) and Luke Combs’ “Gettin’ Old” at No. 7 (46,000 units).
Former chart leaders fill out the top 10 of the albums chart’s remaining slots: Taylor Swift’s “Midnights” is back in the top five at No. 3; SZA’s “SOS” is at No. 4; Metro Boomin’s “Heroes & Villains” is at No. 9; and Bad Bunny’s “Un Verano Sin Ti” closes at No. 10.
Athiya Shetty pens a birthday note for husband KL Rahul.
Athiya Shetty got married her long-time boyfriend KL Rahul on January 23, 2023.
After dating KL Rahul for many years, Athiya Shetty tied the knot with him in January. On his birthday, the actress shared a bunch of dreamy photos and penned a heartwarming note which read, “Happiest birthday to my biggest blessing ”
Earlier in the day, Suniel Shetty had also penned a special post for his son-in-law. Sharing an unseen picture from his daughter Athiya and KL’s wedding, he wrote, “Blessed to have you in our lives… Happy birthday baba.”
Even Athiya Shetty’s brother Ahan Shetty wrote a heartfelt birthday note for his brother-in-law. On his Instagram Story, Ahan shared a photo wherein the duo sported white and black outfits and posed for the camera. “Happy birthday brother KL Rahul.” he wrote.
KL Rahul and Athiya tied the knot on January 23 this year at Suniel’s farmhouse in Khandala. It was an intimate wedding affair with only close friends and family members in attendance.
KL Rahul is currently leading the IPL team Lucknow Super Giants. Suniel Shetty had earlier told the media that the couple might host a lavish wedding reception post IPL.
Aditi Giri, Senior Sub-Editor at News18. She is a Bollywood and Biryani enthusiast. She loves talking to your favourite BTown celebrities, and brings …Read More
Hong, who works on low budgets, controls much of the production process and makes repeated use of a small pool of actors, is one of the most prolific feature directors in the world. This is already his second feature this year. His earlier, “In Water” played in the Encounters section at Berlin in February
His films are known for their minimalist style, a focus on female characters, serial chance encounters and oblique references to the media industry. On paper, “In Our Day” fits exactly in that groove.
Finecut pitches the synopsis as: “A woman in her early 40s, is temporarily living at the home of a friend, who is raising a cat. Another person, a man in his 70s living alone, had his cat die of old age. Today each of them had a visitor — a woman in her 20s for the woman, and a man in his 30s for the old man. Both visitors came with serious questions to ask. The woman answered them rather briefly while standing up, while the old man ended up giving longer answers in an extended conversation. Both of them had ramyun for lunch in front of their guests, and coincidentally enough, they both added hot pepper paste to their ramyun. It’s not a very common thing to add hot pepper paste to ramyun.…”
Its cast includes Ki Joobong (“Kill Boksoon,” “Daemuga,” “Hotel by the River”) and Hong regular Kim Minhee (“The Novelist’s Film,” “The Woman Who Ran,” “On The Beach At Night Alone”).
Although his works divide critics, Hong and his frenetic output appear to have been rehabilitated among selectors (and juries) at the major European festivals.
Hong’s 2020 “The Woman Who Ran” earned Berlin’s silver bear for best director. His 2021 film “Introduction” won another silver bear for best screenplay at that year’s delayed festival. His other film of 2021, “In Front of Your Face” played in competition in the July 2021 edition of the Cannes festival, but came away empty-handed. In 2022, Hong had “The Novelist’s Film” in Berlin and “Walk Up” in Toronto and San Sebastian.
In a recent interview, Haley Lu Richardson addressed her experience auditioning for Marvel and not being cast in superhero roles.
Over the years, Richardson has compiled a broad resume ranging from Disney Channel’s Shake It Up to The Edge of Seventeen, as well as 2016’s Split, and most recently, 2022’s White Lotus.
Back in 2021, the actress almost added Batgirl to her resume; and while she ultimately didn’t land the now-axed Warner Bros. DCU film, she recently discussed her experience auditioning for a Marvel role as well.
Haley Lu Richardson Almost Joined the Marvel Universe
On the Happy Sad Confused podcast, actress Haley Lu Richardson opened up about auditioning for superhero films, including a role within the Marvel universe.
After Josh Horowitz noted how she was considered for Batgirl, he went on to ask if that was her first superhero audition to which Richardson admitted “No, I’ve done quite a few:”
“No, I’ve done quite a few and they’re just so much, you know what I mean?”
When asked if she’s ever had to get into costume, the actress brought up her Marvel audition, describing the experience as a “big screen test” with “real cameras there” and “hair, and makeup, and stuff,” indicating that this was for a significant role:
“I’ve never gotten to do that. I did test do like a big screen test for a Marvel character, and there was like real cameras there, and they did our hair, and makeup, and stuff. But they just directed us in what kind of street clothes to wear, like what colors and stuff. We didn’t actually get in a superhero costume.”
But even more revealing was her admitting how “overwhelming” her Marvel audition was as it required a major commitment when “you haven’t even seen a script:”
“But yeah, it’s just so overwhelming, because you’re just committing to something, and you haven’t even seen a script.”
Josh Horowitz confirmed this actuality, explaining how actors sign on “for the next five movies:”
“Right, well, people don’t know like you sign literally like, ’Yeah, I’m in for the next five movies, if you so choose to take me.’”
But according to Richardson, “it’s not even just five movies” anymore, and even though it’s “exciting” it’s also “a lot:”
“Yeah, and now it’s not even just five movies. It’s like seven years of literally whatever they want you for, which, you know… there’s something that’s so exciting about that if you meet… because hopefully you get to meet the director, and the producers that would be making it, and you get to you look up, and read all the comics on the character… So there’s something that’s really exciting if you feel like all the other things align. It’s something that you could just like trust and throw yourself into. But it is a lot.”
Circling back on Batgirl which ultimately went to Leslie Grace, Horowitz questioned whether that role was the one she felt “most excited about” at the time.
Richardson confirmed that it was, especially since “JK Simmons being my dad would have been pretty cool:”
“Yeah. And yeah, JK Simmons being my dad would have been pretty cool. Yeah, ‘Batgirl,’ I mean… it was pretty iconic. But yeah, I was very excited, but you know.”
After Horowitz pointed out there will be more opportunities and joked about how studios just might make “one or two more superhero movies,” the actress, also teasing, said, “I think they might make a couple more, yeah. They seem to do pretty well.”
An Actor’s Take On Marvel and DC Auditions
Even though it’s no secret that Haley Lu Richardson was on the shortlist for Batgirl, she didn’t confirm which Marvel character she screen-tested for.
Regardless, it was still fascinating to learn an actor’s perspective of a Marvel audition and their screen testing process, as well as how the multi-project commitment can be “overwhelming.”
But as Josh Horowitz said, neither Batgirl nor Richardson’s mysterious Marvel audition is likely to be her last.
Not only are comic book studios churning out more projects in the coming years, but more than one of those studios already has Haley Lu Richardson’s number.
The penultimate episode of Star Trek: Picard gave long-time Trekkers something we never thought we’d see again. The starship Enterprise-D from Star Trek: The Next Generation, fully restored to her classic ’80s/’90s look, flying once more. Somehow, the producers of Picard and Paramount+ were able to keep this one a secret from the public. Because when the crew set foot on that old bridge once again, fans on social media went wild. No one saw it coming. Now that the Enterprise has returned, Paramount+ has revealed a new Picard digital billboard in New York City, showcasing the old girl’s glorious comeback.
Seeing that really cool 3D effect, it really looks like the Enterprise (a much tinier Enterprise) just flew into Times Square and docked. The fans on the street went nuts seeing the iconic ship again, and you can hear folks shouting “D! D! D!” in reference to the TNGEnterprise’s corresponding registry letter. If you really look carefully, you can also see a fan shoot up their hand and do the Vulcan salute. Another fan can be heard shouting “Everybody remember, the D is the fat one!” This was a fun fan callback to episode one of Picard season three, where someone said no one wants toy models of the TNG Enterprise, and calls that ship “the fat one.”
Paramount+
With only one episode of Star Trek: Picard left to go, we likely only have one more ride left with the Enterprise-D. Will she save the Earth from another Borg invasion? Probably. But what happens to her afterward? Will she have more adventures? Will she go back to the Starfleet Museum? That seems the more likely scenario here. Whatever happens, here’s hoping that the Picard finale is not the last time we board this Enterprise. So much work went into recreating that set, it would be a shame if we don’t see it at least a few more times. As Spock might say, it would be highly illogical.
Bloomberg anticipates that the PSVR2 sold between 270k and 300k units from launch through the end of March, which would actually make it the fastest selling wired headset ever released. In fact, it took PSVR five months to reach 915,000 units, while PSVR2 may have managed a third of that in one.
Cannes Directors’ Fortnight has announced the selection for its 55th edition, running May 17 to 26.
The once renegade Cannes parallel section – launched in 1969 and overseen ever since by the French Directors Guild (Société des Réalisateurs de Films) – will present 20 features and 10 shorts this year. Scroll down for the full list.
The selection is the inaugural line-up of incoming Delegate General Julien Rejl, who was announced as predecessor Paolo Moretti’s replacement last June.
This edition also marks the section’s first outing under the new French name of Quinzaine des Cinéastes.
The name change from Quinzaine des Réalisateurs was announced back in June as a move to make its French-language banner title more gender-inclusive. This year, seven of the 21 filmmakers in the 20-title feature selection are women.
Rejl and his new selection team have pulled together an eclectic line-up mixing confirmed directors, buzzed-about newcomers and a handful of off-the-radar titles.
French actor and director Cédric Kahn’s The Goldman Case opens the selection. The drama revolves around the 1976 trial of Pierre Goldman, a real-life, left-wing revolutionary who was convicted of several armed robberies and then mysteriously murdered.
In Our Day (c) Joenwonsa Film Co.
Korean director Hong Sangsoo will close the section with In Our Day.
Little has been announced about the project until now which stars Kim Minhee as a woman in her early 40s, who is temporarily living at the home of a friend, who is raising a cat, and Ki Joobong as a man in his 70s living alone, whose cat has died of old age.
According to the enigmatic synopsis, both characters receive a visitor, a woman in her 20s for the woman, and a man in his 30s for the old man, and eat ramyun noodles with hot pepper paste as they talk.
Hong has previously premiered most of his films in the Cannes Film Festival’s Official Selection and was in Berlin’s Encounters section this year with In Water.
Other big hitters in the line-up include Oscar-winning director Michel Gondry with The Book of Solutions. The French-language comedy-drama – starring Pierre Niney as a filmmaker dealing with a creative block – is the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind director’s first feature in seven years.
Gondry previously screened in Directors’ Fortnight in 2012, with The We And The I, having made his Cannes debut in Official Selection in 2001 with Human Nature.
The selection also includes a trio of films by U.S. indie directors: Sean Price Williams’s The Sweet East, Joanna Arnow’s The Feeling That The Time For Doing Something Has Passed and Weston Razooli’s Riddle Of Fire.
The Sweet East is the debut feature of cinematographer Sean Price Williams, whose many Director of Photography credits include the Safdie Brothers’ Good Time and Heaven Knows What as well as Abel Ferrara’s Zeros And Ones.
The road movie, written by Nick Pinkerton, is described as a picaresque journey through contemporary America by a young woman who is granted access to the strange sects and cults proliferating in the country.
Brooklyn-based actress and filmmaker Arnow’s The Feeling That The Time For Doing Something Has Passed follows the life of a woman as her life slips away in a long-term casual BDSM relationship and a low-level corporate job.
Executive produced by Sean Baker, the film was supported by Berlinale Script Station, Gotham Week 2021 and When East Meets West at the project stage. Arnow won Berlinale Silver Bear in 2015 for her short film Bad at Dancing.
Riddle Of Fire is Los Angeles-based filmmaker Razooli’s debut feature after shorts Anaxia and Jolly Boy Friday.
There is a strong Asian presence with films from China, India, Pakistan and Vietnam making the cut.
From China, Geng Zihan’s debut film A Song Sung Blue is a coming-of-age tale about a teenager who is sent to live with her chaotic father for the summer after her mother goes to Africa on a medical posting.
Indian director Kanu Behl, whose 2014 film Butterfly (Titli) played in Un Certain Regard, will present his new film Agra, exploring the sexual dynamics within a multi-generational family living together in the same cramped home.
Vietnamese director Pham Thien An’s debut feature Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell follows a careless man who returns to his rural home and reluctantly starts a search for his long-lost brother during which he makes a discovery that questions his faith.
The selection also features the Pakistani Urdu-language horror film In Flames by Zarrar Kahn, for which XYZ Films is handling North American sales rights.
The Karachi-set film follows a mother and daughter, living a precarious existence following the death of the family patriarch, who fall prey to evil forces.
Other highlights include cult French experimental director Bertrand Mandico’s new work She Is Connan, inspired by Robert E. Howard’s 1930s character, but played by actresses at different stages of the character’s life.
There will also be a Special Screening for late Portuguese director Manoel de Oliveira’s 1993 Abraham’s Valley, to fete the 30th anniversary of its screening in Directors’ Fortnight.
The Madame Bovary-inspired drama starred Leonor Silveira as a young woman, dissatisfied with her marriage to an older doctor and takes several lovers. This year’s Directors’ Fortnight poster pays tribute to the work.
As previously announced, Malian filmmaker Souleymane Cissé will receive the section Carrosse d’Or honorary award.
Directors’ Fortnight 2023 Feature Selection
Abraham’s Valley (Val Abraão) Dir. Manoel de Oliveira – SPECIAL SCREENING
The Goldman Case (Le Procès Goldman)OPENING FILM Dir. Cédric Kahn
Agra (India) Dir. Kanu Behl
The Other Laurens (Fr) Dir.de Claude Schmitz
Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell * (Viet-Sing-Fr) Dir. Thien An Pham
Dubai-based sales agency Cercamon has picked up international rights to “Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell” by first-time feature director Pham Thien An. The film will have its global premiere next month in the Directors Fortnight section of the Cannes film festival.
Pham Thien An previously made short films “The Mute” in 2018 and the one-take “Stay Awake, Be Ready” in 2019. Both enjoyed a busy festival career, with “Stay Awake” earning the Illy Prize in Cannes followed by additional awards at the Palm Springs, Busan, Kyiv and Flickerfest events.
“Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell” follows the emotional journey of Thien, who is entrusted with the responsibility of delivering his sister-in-law’s body to their hometown after a tragic motorcycle accident in Saigon. Amidst this heartbreaking task, Thien also takes care of his nephew, Dao, a five-year-old survivor of the accident. As they traverse the mystical landscapes of rural Vietnam, Thien embarks on a quest to find his long-lost brother and reunite him with Dao, a journey that ultimately leads him to question his faith.
“We found ourselves deeply engaged with the story, its characters, and the cinematography which was truly beautiful. We are incredibly honored to represent Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell,” said Sébastien Chesneau, Cercamon CEO. “This film is a testament to the power of storytelling to transcend cultural boundaries and captivate audiences with its compelling narrative and stunning visuals.”
“Sébastien and his team noticed right away the intricate, ambitious craftsmanship employed in the placement of the camera, the blocking of actors, the meticulous set design and the occasional spontaneous surprises that make our director and film so special,” said producer Jeremy Chua. “We are proud to present a young and unique voice for Southeast Asian cinema under his bold label.”
The film is produced by Vietnam’s JK Film and Singapore’s Potocol in coproduction with France’s Deuxième Ligne Films and Spain’s Fasten Films. It was supported by the Singapore Film Commission, Purin Pictures, Normandie Images and the Hubert Bals Script & Development Scheme. It was also presented at Cannes Focus COPRO’ in 2019 and the Locarno Open Doors Hub in 2020, where it was awarded a grant for development support from Visions Sud Est.
“The Traitors,” the reality game show that sees contestants holed up in a castle working to eliminate one another in order to claim a grand prize, became one of last winter’s break-out hits when it dropped on BBC One.
But it nearly didn’t get commissioned. Syeda Irtizaali, BBC editor for unscripted, revealed when someone first suggested she take a look at the Dutch version (titled “De Verraders” and repped by All3Media International) she wasn’t convinced. “I think it’s a pretty difficult show to sell on paper,” Irtizaali said during a panel discussion about the format at MipTV on Tuesday morning. She said it was a contact at NBC (with whom the BBC has a creative partnership) that told her about it, saying. “’There’s people being murdered, they’re wearing hoodies. Watch it, I think you’ll like it.’”
“I was like, ‘No,’” Irtizaali laughed. “So for a while, I was like, ‘This is not for us.’ And then of course, as soon as I saw it, the Dutch version, we knew this is the show that we wanted to get. We were looking for a show for BBC One, a big reality show. We knew that this was the one. And I think the mise en scene, the hoodies, the flames, everything was part of the joy of that. And I think for us, we just had to really lean into the campery of that, the campness. We were very tongue in cheek about it […] we just went for it. And it’s been amazing for the BBC.”
The BBC’s version did tweak the original Dutch format a bit, namely by eschewing celebrities for civilians. “I knew for us it would have to be real people,” she said. “And that was because we wanted to make it feel like it was a broad range of viewers that will be able to watch it and we knew it wouldn’t really work with celebrities for us.”
Another change was culling two contestants in the first 10 minutes of episode one. “I think [that] was the moment that the public sat up and took notice and just went, ‘Oh, this isn’t what we expected to see on the BBC.’ And from then on in it we just played with it. Because I think because everything’s out there, the format, the game plays, the brutality, it’s all on the screen, nothing else is going on behind the scenes. So it’s all up front. So it’s not cruel. It’s just a brutal game.”
Such has been the popularity of the show in the U.K., Irtizaali revealed 17,000 people had applied to take part in the second season.
Also speaking on the panel was Celine Cauderlier, head of creation and development at Studio 89/M6, who oversaw a French version of the series. The key to its success, she said, is that “it’s not a TV show you’re producing, it’s a game you’re filming, and [that] works so well.” With the French version featuring celebrities, it also brings “authenticity” to the celebrity gameshow genre. “We see celebrities cry, we see celebrities like we’ve never seen them before,” she said. “Then of course, the whole the castle device – that was so different visually, from what you’re used to seeing on TV.”
John and his friends’ journeys will continue into the 2023-24 television season. The Rookie has been renewed for a sixth year on ABC. The fifth season finale airs on May 2nd.
A police drama series, The Rookie TV show stars Nathan Fillion, Alyssa Diaz, Richard T. Jones, Melissa O’Neil, Eric Winter, Mekia Cox, Shawn Ashmore, and Tru Valentino. Lisseth Chavez recurs. John Nolan (Fillion) is a middle-aged divorced man from Pennsylvania who owns a construction company. He decides to give up his old life to pursue a new career as a police officer in the Los Angeles Police Department. He graduates from the Police Academy, is the oldest rookie on the force, and eventually becomes a training officer. He works with Sergeant Wade Grey (Jones), Detective Angela Lopez (Diaz), training officers Nyla Harper (Cox) and Tim Bradford (Winter), fellow rookie Lucy Chen (O’Neil), and the station’s newest rookie, Aaron Thorsen (Valentino).
The fifth season of The Rookie is averaging a 0.43 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 3.86 million viewers. Compared to season four, that’s up by 20% in the demo and up by 21% in viewership in the live+same day ratings (including DVR playback through 3:00 AM). In the live+7 day ratings, the show picks up about 70% more viewers thanks to delayed viewing.
The Rookie is currently ABC’s second-highest-rated show in total viewers and is one of a few series on the Alphabet network to see its ratings rise year-over-year. The numbers immediately increased when The Rookie moved from Sundays to Tuesday nights.
There’s been no official word on the fate of The Rookie: Feds spin-off yet, but word is that it’s expected to be renewed for a second season.
What do you think? Have you kept up with The Rookie TV show on ABC? Are you glad this police drama has been renewed for a sixth season?
Check out our ABC status sheet to track the alphabet network’s new series pickups, renewals, and cancellations. You can find lists of cancelled shows here.
The show follows prominent mafia don Dwight Manfredi (Stallone), who upon his release from prison after 25 years, finds that his empire has been dismantled and he must start anew. Despite the setback, Manfredi sets up shop in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and finds new henchmen to help grow his new criminal organization.
Will’s Tyson, is one of the first characters Dwight connects with once he settles in Oklahoma, eventually becoming his confidant and business partner. On the panel, Will explained what drew him to play a role in the sprawling Taylor Sheridan television universe.
“It was honestly the level of relatability,” Will said. “Tyson reminds me of not only myself but also a lot of young Black men who grew up in the neighborhoods that I come from who aren’t really on this side or that side but more in between. I think his relationship with his father not really wanting him to get too deep into the mob lifestyle but at the same time wanting him to make a name for himself and wanting him to find his own independence [is relatable].”
The actor also praised his working relationship with his co-star Stallone for keeping him realistic and grounded in the various scenes they had to portray together. “[He] made it easy for me to just do my own thing and be myself. There were a couple of times where he knew that I would do things that weren’t of my personal nature, and he would be like, ‘Yo, come on,’ whenever I would force or push [myself in a way that didn’t fit the scenario]. He could see right through it. And people like that, you always want to keep them close.”
Few things are less scary than the one sentence premise of a horror movie/thriller that the studio doesn’t want to spoil. Case in point: Blumhouse and Universal’s American remake of Danish film Speak No Evil (a.k.a. Gaesterne), which a Hollywood Reporter story says “centers on a family that takes a dream holiday to an idyllic country house, only to have the vacation turn into a psychological nightmare.” That could mean anything! And it could describe so many existing movies!
Merle Dandridge on “The Last Of Us,” “Station 19,” and more
But that’s beside the point, which is that Christian Tafdrup’s Speak No Evil is getting an American remake from Blumhouse and Universal. James Watkins, who previously made The Woman In Black (a movie about a man visiting a house in the country who later experiences a psychological nightmare), will direct. James McAvoy, star of Split (in which a man… sort of takes women on a vacation that ends up being a psychological nightmare), will star in this, though The Hollywood Reporter doesn’t say if he’s part of the family or part of the psychological nightmare.
For those who haven’t seen the original film and don’t care about some light spoilers, the great A.A. Dowd once wrote that Speak No Evil involves a “hellish weekend of intensifying social discomfort” rather than wall-to-wall horror scares, saying it “offers a pointed tweak to the motives of The Strangers and an exaggerated lesson on the consequences of holding your tongue.” (Spoiler alert: Heh heh.) There’s a family with a kid, a slightly weird family with a slightly weird kid, and it plays with the classic horror/thriller trope of the audience asking why the characters don’t just run away the second things start to take a turn.
The American Speak No Evil is set to come out on August 9, 2024.
Lola Quivoron’s Rodeo utterly defies expectations. The director’s kinetic, visceral, unconventional drama is not a sports movie, although it takes place in the world of dirt biking. Quivoron and Antonia Buresi didn’t write an underdog story, nor a rags-to-riches tale either. It is, first and foremost, a blistering character study, raw in its power and realism, its beats as unpredictable as its protagonist. I’d say buckle up, but dirt bikes don’t have seat belts.
Rodeo is about Julia (Julie Ledru), a young misfit with questionable morals and ambitions. She’s obsessed with dirt bikes, stealing them from unsuspecting eBay sellers. “I was born with a bike between my legs,” she tells one of them before taking off, sticking out her middle finger as she flees. Though Julia seems to care little about money, her family, or anything else but bikes for that matter, she does harbor an ambition: the ultimate heist, Fast & Furious-style.
Soon Julia joins a group of male bikers who work for the mysterious Domino (Sébastien Schroeder), an incarcerated criminal. They steal, renovate, and resell bikes in a garage that, for some, functions as a part-time home. Among this oddball “family” is Kaïs (Yannnnis Lafki), who becomes a mentor of sorts to Julia, despite the reluctance of his brothers to let this borderline feral young woman join their tightly-knit circle. She ends up utilizing her thieving skills for Domino, who sends her on a multitude of dangerous tasks.
Julia visits home, where her brother assists in her scams, while her mother has long since disowned her. The “matriarch” of the gang, Ophélie (Antonia Buresi), turns out to be Domino’s beaten-down wife, following his orders, and running his business when he can’t. A touching bond gradually develops between Julia and Kaïs. This all leads to a grim, enigmatic gut punch of a finale.
“…Julia joins a group of male bikers who work for the mysterious Domino…”
As Rodeo revolves around bikers, the few scenes depicting them in action are astounding. Cinematographer Raphaël Vandenbussche’s camera captures the extended wheelies, the bikers’ exaltation, the speed, and the exhilaration of living life on the edge with verve. Quivoron is equally adept at accentuating things without hammering them into the viewer’s head: the sexism prevalent among an all-male clique (“Ride or go sit with the chicks and wait your turn,” Julia is told early on); Domino’s ironclad grip over his wife and children, despite being stuck in jail.
The filmmaker never condemns or discriminates. She simply portrays the trials and tribulations of the working class through a very specific lens. She demonstrates how poverty and hardship can lead to misguided obsessions and dreams. Money has ceased to mean much to Julia; the anticipation of the next adrenaline rush keeps her going.
With unkempt hair and a rascally smile, Ledru is a force of nature, prone to outbursts of violent anger, both outwardly confident and deeply insecure. “I go by Unknown,” she replies drily when asked her name. When a young man rudely tells her to move, she “blows him out like a birthday candle.” It’s a screen-scorching performance from a newcomer who’s bound to be gracing magazine covers soon.
You’ve never quite seen a film like Rodeo before. A fervent mix of action, pathos, and socially-conscious commentary, its cinematic tires will leave thick skid marks in your head.
OTTAWA — The Ontario government is telling the country’s top court the disclosure of ministerial mandate letters would reveal the substance of deliberations of the premier and his cabinet — breaching a key tenet of Westminster-style government.
In a written brief filed with the Supreme Court of Canada, the Ontario attorney general says cabinet confidentiality, candour and solidarity are fundamental to a system where responsible ministers collectively decide government policy.
The court is set to hear oral arguments today concerning Ontario’s attempt to block the release of 23 letters Premier Doug Ford wrote to cabinet ministers shortly after his Progressive Conservative government took office five years ago.
The cabinet office refused the CBC’s freedom-of-information request for the letters, citing a cabinet privilege exemption in the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
The CBC appealed to the Ontario information and privacy commissioner, who ordered release of the letters to the public broadcaster.
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A divisional court dismissed the attorney general’s application for judicial review, and the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the decision.
That prompted Ontario to take its case to the Supreme Court.
The province’s information and privacy commissioner had found no evidence the records in question were tabled at a cabinet meeting, weighed the reasons for a particular course of action, or spelled out the views or ideas of cabinet members.
As a result, the commissioner found the cabinet office had not shown the letters would reveal the substance of cabinet deliberations.
In its submission to the Supreme Court, the Ontario attorney general says the commissioner’s narrow and restrictive interpretation of “substance of deliberations” is an “unwarranted incursion” into the functioning of cabinet.
In its own written brief, the commissioner asks the top court to consider whether the decision to order disclosure bears the “hallmarks of reasonableness in terms of justification, transparency and intelligibility, particularly in light of the history of the proceedings, the evidence and submissions presented, and the established case law that went unchallenged.”
The CBC is also urging the Supreme Court to dismiss the appeal.
The broadcaster argues that Ontario is inviting the top court to “decide this case afresh _ and to do so largely based on arguments, positions, and authorities that were never even put before the (information and privacy commissioner).”
“Extra’s” Rachel Lindsay caught up with Bill Hader at the premiere of the fourth and final season of “Barry.”
He spoke about directing this season, if fans will be satisfied with the ending, and the “bittersweet” last day of filming. Bill also dished on recently finding out that he and Carol Burnett are distant cousins — which she discovered while appearing on “Finding Your Roots”!
Opening up about how the show has changed his life, Hader said, “I never was the lead of anything before, and I’ve never written or directed anything before.”
As for directing the entire final season, Bill told Rachel, “I love directing. I’d love to keep doing that. I really enjoy it. It’s a lot of fun.”
The final day of filming, however, was tough.
“It was bittersweet,” Bill shared. “It was very sad. That’s the hardest part of this is saying goodbye to everybody you worked with and how much you’ve loved them.”
He’s not sure how fans will react to Season 4, saying, “I have no clue.”
Bill also recalled how Burnett reached out to him to reveal they’re family. “She emailed and said… ‘Oh, we’re related.’ And I was like… ‘What?’ So yeah, it was really cool.”
Now, after years of planning, producing and filming “Barry,” Bill is ready for more peace and quiet.
Rachel pointed out, “You said you have not had a vacation in 10 years,” asking, “Where are you going?”
He confessed, “I don’t know. I need to figure something out. I’m talking to people. I’m asking around… I’m taking a poll, because I don’t even know how it works. I’m like, ‘Yes, please, I need a vacation.’”
Microsoft is still banking on a industrial technological revolution that’s set to fundamentally change sectors like manufacturing and healthcare, and it reckons mixed reality is at the forefront.
Remote collaboration, 3D visualization, and AI-based predictions are some of the things that are set to change how we work, and Microsoft hopes that its Hololens 2 headset can still play a role.
The mixed reality headset, which the company launched prior to the pandemic, is finally getting a software update in the form of Windows 11, several months after the computer-focused operating system launched.
Windows 11 for Hololens 2
Previously limited to a variant of Windows 10, the free upgrade is hoped to bring numerous security benefits and new features along with continued support for monthly security servicing updates.
Some up-and-coming tools are also making their way into the OS in preview format ahead of a full release, including Edge WebView2 control.
Users can head to Settings > Update & Security > Check for Updates to migrate to Windows 11, however the company describes the update as “optional” and encourages users to remain on Windows 10 “if they prefer” – a totally different approach compared with the desktop OS which the company has been pushing since its launch.
On the whole, development of the headset has been pretty slow with numerous challenges faced along the way. Earlier this year, the US Congress approved funding to develop an improved Hololens for the US Army after concerns about usability, while plans for Microsoft to create a third generation were reportedly halted ahead of layoffs and financial cutbacks that affected the project’s workers.
That said, despite the sudden success in artificial intelligence kickstarted by the launch of ChatGPT, companies like Meta continue to be devoted to mixed reality. As a result, Microsoft’s continued work could land it in pole position if and when headsets finally have their age.
The final season of Barry is pure television magic. The emotional beats and existential melancholy are obviously riveting, but what I’m going to miss the most (outside of the revelatory performances) is the show’s distinct, magnetic brand of offbeat hilarity. The first two episodes of Season 4 are a perfect reminder of the show’s unique sense of humor (Noho Hank and Cristobal’s almost perfectly coordinated sales pitch at Dave & Buster’s, “Is he still mad at me?”), which always feels natural without undercutting the dramatic severity of the story. Barry has always been a masterclass at blending complex emotions with silly, sophisticated comedy. The final season is at an exceptional coda to an expertly told story.
Actor Matthew Macfadyen, who appears on HBO’s smash hit Succession, will seemingly have a major role to play in Deadpool 3.
Deadpool 3 has really been shaping up. Due out in 2024, the film’s cast list not only includes Ryan Reynolds’ Merc with a Mouth but also features a much-publicized comeback for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine.
Large Deadpool 3 Role Teased for Matthew Macfadyen
Succession
Speaking to etalk CTV (via the program’s TikTok account) Ryan Reynolds spoke about Matthew Macfadyen’s casting in Deadpool 3, lauding him as one of the best actors working today:
Reynolds: “I am always rooting for him because he was one of the best actors out there. I mean, no joke.”
Reynolds further praised his soon-to-be co-star, noting how Macfadyen is able to thrive in duplicitous roles:
etalkCTV: “I mean, we hate him in ‘Succession.’”
Reynolds: “Maybe? I love him in ‘Succession.’ I can embrace a guy who straddles the line of villain and hero. And martyr. And many other things.”
Reynolds also highlighted how Macfadyen will be on-set “each and every day” during the production of Deadpool 3, essentially confirming that the actor will have a major part in the movie:
Reynolds: “I think Matthew Macfayden is probably one of the most interesting actors working today. And the fact that he’s going to be on our ‘Deadpool’ set each and every day is kind of nerve-wracking for me. I’ll be starstruck.”
Who Will Matthew Macfayden Play in Deadpool 3?
It’s clear that Ryan Reynolds is extremely impressed with Macfadyen’s talents.
Taking into account the already mentioned Reynolds, Jackman, and Macfadyen, plus the fact that the majority of the main supporting cast from the first two Deadpool movies are returning as well, Deadpool 3 will have a multitude of familiar faces.
Indeed, Morena Baccarin (Vanessa), Leslie Uggams (Blind Al), Karan Soni (Dopinder), and Brianna Hildebrand (Negasonic Teenage Warhead) are all back for the third film. Additionally, Stefan Kapicic will again voice Colossus.
It may not be clear who Matthew Macfadyen is playing, but suffice it to say, Deadpool 3’s cast is pretty stacked!
And as for the film’s story, not much is known. It’ll feature a (perhaps begrudging) team-up between Wade and Logan though, providing plenty of fourth-wall-breaking comedy material for Wilson to work off of throughout the movie, especially after both characters duked it out in 2009’s reviled X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
Marvel Studios’ Deadpool 3 will hit theaters on November 8, 2024, and will serve as the last film in the MCU’s Phase 5.
Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Titans season 4.The twist of Titans season 4’s mid-season premiere paints a kindly picture of Lex Luthor, but it seems likely that it’s all according to a sinister plan to win the heroes’ trust. Despite only appearing in one episode of Titans season 4, Lex Luthor has been a major influence on the first half of the season’s storyline. It was his efforts to uncover the Temple of Azarath that led to the rise of the Church of Blood. It was also Luthor’s guidance that led to Superboy’s sudden change in character.
Lex Luthor continued to steer the story of Titans season 4’s second half, having planted a journal containing everything he had learned about the Church of Blood within the Temple of Azarath itself. He also left behind a letter for Superboy, instructing him to stop the Church of Blood’s leader Mother Mayhem at any cost. While these actions seemed to corroborate Luthor’s claims of wanting to make up for his wicked ways and develop a relationship with the young clone he created using his and Superman’s DNA, there is ample reason to doubt his word.
Titans Is Trying To Make Lex Luthor Seem Reasonable
Luthor was uncharacteristically helpful and forthcoming with information in Titans season 4, episode 7, “Caul’s Folly.” The letter Luthor left for Conner Kent was straightforward in instructing him to give the book he left behind regarding the Church of Blood and the prophecy of Trigon’s return to Nightwing. Granting that Luthor’s tone in the letter was snarky, saying that Nightwing “claims to be a master detective, so let him detect,” it was still atypical of Lex Luthor to openly admit that anyone might be more skilled than him at anything.
The fact that Lex Luthor made a contingency plan in case he failed is also out of character. While Luthor is a master strategist, he is also incredibly arrogant and prone to hubris, with most of his defeats coming about because of his own stubborn nature and refusal to admit weakness. It seems unlikely that the revelation of his own mortality brought on by his diagnosis of advanced Kryptonite poisoning led Luthor to reassess his life and start thinking of how to fight the Church of Blood in the event of his death.
Lex Luthor Could Be Playing Both The Titans & Mother Mayhem
Taking into account Luthor’s infamous lack of humility and history of failing to plan for failure, it seems impossible that his planting the journal and letter in the Temple of Azarath is not part of some larger scheme. While Luthor might agree to help the heroes on occasion, he will only do so if it benefits him somehow. Given Luthor’s death in Titans’ season 4 premiere, it seems likely that Luthor foresaw how things would end with Mother Mayhem and took steps to arrange his own resurrection.
Luthor began investigating the Temple of Azarath, hoping he might find some way to use it to prolong his life or cure his condition. He spoke of his research briefly with Superboy, saying that “death may no longer be the foe I once thought it to be.” Luthor also warned Superboy that Mother Mayhem “may have… even darker ideas than I do,” just before her magic killed him.
Ironically, it was Mother Mayhem’s efforts to kill Superboy that pushed him to start becoming the son that Lex Luthor hoped he might be. Beyond shaving his head in imitation of his biological father, Superboy began to behave in a more secretive manner and became more dependent upon his considerable intellect than his Kryptonian powers. This led some to theorize that Lex Luthor had taken over Superboy’s body or was somehow subtly influencing his behavior. It was also suggested that Mother Mayhem’s grudge against Lex was an act, and that he had contracted her to magically resurrect him somehow.
While all these suggestions are merely theories, they all seem equally plausible. The one common element is the idea that Lex Luthor’s death came about too easily and that he has to be manipulating someone, somehow, into helping him cheat death. The means is immaterial, as it cannot be denied that if there is anyone who can scheme their way out of the afterlife with a convoluted plan that involves pitting their enemies against one another and finding a way to come out on top, it is definitely Lex Luthor.
Superboy’s Story Is Setting Up Lex Luthor As Titans’ Final Villain
The greatest piece of evidence that Lex will return to be the final villain of Titans season 4 lies in Superboy’s storyline. The events of Titans season 4 have seen Conner Kent struggling with his identity and seeking a connection with both of his biological fathers. After Lex’s death, Conner begins to look into what sort of man Lex Luthor was outside the public record of his criminal acts, hoping to find some evidence of Luthor being a misunderstood genius.
This leads Superboy to seek out Lex’s former bodyguard Mercy Graves in Titans season 4, episode 7, “Caul’s Folly.” While Conner nominally looks for her to learn what countermeasures Luthor had begun preparing to fight Mother Mayhem before his death, Superboy also asks Mercy about what sort of man Luthor was. Mercy’s report is a glowing one, praising Luthor for “his ability to see people’s potential and harness it for his own gain.” Not only does this acknowledge Lex’s manipulative nature regarding his treatment of the Titans, but it seems to foreshadow his finding a way to win in the current battle between the Titans and the Church of Blood.
It is clear that Mercy believed her former boss had intended to use Superboy and the Titans for his own ends in some fashion. Precisely what those ends are beyond saving Luthor’s life remains unclear, but Mercy’s opinions count for much. As Lex Luthor’s right hand, she knew him better than anybody, presuming she is not directly involved in Luthor’s plan to fight against Mother Mayhem and the Church of Blood.
The unspoken implication in Superboy’s story is that Conner fears his own selfish impulses are born of Lex Luthor’s influence upon him. Thus, Superboy begins to emulate and idealize Luthor, seeking that familial connection to something he lacks, having been born without parents. The irony is that the Titans are the family Conner seeks, and they’ve been waiting for him throughout Titans.
Titans season 4 continues on Thursdays on HBO Max.
– English Audio Description
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