Bono gave Bruce Springsteen a hard time for refusing to license his song “Girls in Their Summer Clothes” for a commercial for the clothing brand Gap in partnership with Bono’s AIDS foundation (RED). While presenting Springsteen with the Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award at Tribeca Festival, Bono started to praise the Boss’ ability […]

Amy Adams said during a recent appearance on “Late Night With Seth Meyers” that while hosting “Saturday Night Live” in 2008, she turned down a “graphic” sketch idea from Andy Samberg to protect the young fans of her fairytale comedy, “Enchanted,” which hit theaters four months earlier. “I’ll give you the gist without telling you […]

In a title bout for the championship, San Antonio-native Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez takes on Houstonian boxer Antonio Vargas in a 12-round match. What’s on the line? Vargas’ WBA bantamweight title belt. At the end of the contest, one of these fighters will have the title — or it will end with a draw. On Saturday, […]

“Disclosure” has become a cult word. It shouldn’t be, since all it means, technically, is to reveal something. But the new wave of alien conspiracy theorists have made “disclosure” into a teasingly passive-aggressive code word. They will say: We’re awaiting disclosure — which means the day the U.S. government bows down and releases all its […]

2026 might very well be the year of Colman Domingo. He’s in the hit Michael Jackson biopic “Michael,” and has recently wrapped up his role as Ali on HBO’s “Euphoria.” He also stars in Netflix’s “The Four Seasons,” in addition to directing one episode. This weekend, audiences will see him as Hugo in Steven Spielberg‘s […]

After premiering at Rome’s Cinecittà Studios and Lincoln Center in New York, Oscar winner Giuseppe Tornatore’s docudrama, “Brunello: The Gracious Visionary” – about Brunello Cucinelli, the fashion designer known as Italy’s “King of Cashmere” —  is set to kick off its world tour, the next stop being the upcoming Shanghai Intl. Film Festival.   The […]

Wanda Sykes says Bill Maher confronted her after she dissed him on the Golden Globes stage in January. Presenting the award for best performance in stand-up comedy, Sykes joked, “There’s some people pissed off that a queer Black woman is up here doing the job of two mediocre white guys … but first I want […]

Tyra Banks sued Netflix on Saturday for defamation, claiming her testimony was manipulated for the streamer’s recent “America’s Next Top Model” docuseries. Banks is suing Netflix, 89 Blocks Holdings, EverWonder Studio, Netflix Music and co-directors Mor Loushy and Daniel Sivan for false light, defamation by implication, breach of contract and false endorsement. According to the […]

There is a quiet truth about the Emmy race for outstanding television movie, and it runs directly counter to everything the Oscars have trained pundits to expect. At the Academy Awards, the safest path to a best picture nomination is the prestige drama. At the Emmys, the movie category can be where comedies and other […]

As audiences search for an escape from the never-ending doomsday headlines, television creatives are looking at what brings people together instead: namely, love. “It seems so hard to open your phone and not see something that is really upsetting,” says “Nobody Wants This” creator Erin Foster. “It makes sense that there would be this draw […]

The best boxers in the world travel to England, where British fighter Tommy Fury (11-0-0) takes on fellow-Brit boxer Eddie Hall (0-1-0) in the main event on Saturday, June 13. The Beauty vs. The Beast: Fury vs. Hall pay-per-view event takes place at AO Arena in Manchester, United Kingdom. Coverage and free-to-watch prelims begin at […]

“I’ve been waiting for this moment,” says Anna Faris. The celebrated actress and comedian is on top of the box office once more, as “Scary Movie,” the sixth installment in the popular horror-spoof series, opened to a franchise-best $55 million last weekend. It all came to fruition thanks to Marlon Wayans, whose family was callously […]

Russell Crowe proudly recalled “sticking to his guns” about not having sex scenes with Connie Nielsen in Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator.” Speaking at the Taormina Film Festival, the New Zealand-born actor was asked about a “certain attitude” he showed about the 2024 sequel to his 2000 Oscar-winning epic.  Crowe elaborated on the sequel’s issues by speaking […]

Claire Danes got some very valuable advice from a future Oscar winner. In her Variety Actors on Actors conversation with “Half Man” star Richard Gadd, the “The Beast in Me” performer reminisced about shooting 1996’s “Romeo + Juliet” with Leonardo DiCaprio. While the shoot — like the film — was emotionally intense, Danes, at 17, […]

Beware: AMC’s “The Walking Dead: Dead City” Season 3 is coming. And it might be the best one yet.  “This is our best season – by far. This is such a different relationship now,” said Jeffrey Dean Morgan at Monte-Carlo Television Festival on Saturday, following the premiere of the first two episodes at the festival […]

This interview is part of Variety and CNN’s Actors on Actors series. Watch the full video interview now at CNN.com/Watch (or on the CNN app) and on Variety’s YouTube channel starting at 11:59 pm ET. Claire Danes and Richard Gadd both flirted with madness in high-profile acting duets this season. On “The Beast in Me,” veteran actress Danes played […]

American director Gore Verbinski, who is at the Taormina Film Festival in competition with “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die,” spoke about the challenges of labelling the use of AI in films as the technology continues to grow exponentially.  Verbinski’s latest, a genre-bending sci-fi that sees Sam Rockwell as a time-travelling madman recruiting help to […]

Workers began the process of prying “Donald J. Trump” off the facade of the Kennedy Center in the early morning hours on Saturday, after a court found the president’s renaming of the Washington, D.C., landmark was illegal. After crews set up scaffolding Friday in front of the Kennedy Center, they started pulling off the letters […]

The best and brightest driving teams from around the world, such as Ferrari AF Corse, Cadillac Hertz Team Jota, Toyota Gazoo Racing, BMW M Team WRT and others, travel to France to compete during the 94th running of 24 Hours of Le Mans. It takes place at the Circuit de la Sarthe in the city […]

Argentine-Swiss writer-director Milagros Mumenthaler is preparing a new project that will mark a notable shift in her filmography: for the first time, it will center on a young male protagonist. Speaking to Variety on Thursday afternoon, June 11, after her ECAM Forum masterclass in Madrid, Mumenthaler said the film is still at a very early […]

The Directors Guild of America has secured a provision in its new contract that limits actors and others who work on TV series from directing episodes, as it seeks to preserve jobs for career TV directors. The provision is meant to address the 40% downturn in production jobs over the last four years, which has […]

“Open Door,” Kevin Cate’s viral sci-fi short with nearly 15 million views across YouTube shorts, TikTok and Instagram, will be adapted into a feature-length film through a six-figure development deal. The news follows the success of breakout horror films “Obsession and “Backrooms” as the industry invests in YouTube creators and younger filmmakers with established audiences. […]

While the premise of “The Furious” is simple — a father named Wang Wei (Xie Miao) must find his daughter after she is kidnapped by a child trafficking ring — it’s the springboard for a nonstop flurry of action. Kenji Tanigaki’s Hong Kong epic, which opens in American theaters today via Lionsgate Films, stars some of the world’s […]

Longtime WABC-TV/ABC7 news anchor Bill Ritter is stepping down from the “Eyewitness News” chair after being diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer’s. Ritter announced on Friday’s 6 p.m. newscast that it would be his last. Ritter has anchored the station’s 6 p.m. “Eyewitness News” broadcast since 2001. “After a series of tests, my doctors have told […]

SPOILER ALERT: This story contains significant details about “Blue Film,” now available on VOD. Kieron Moore hopes that people don’t know much about “Blue Film” before they watch the movie. “I think it’s really good to go in as blind as you can,” the actor tells me. “That’s getting harder to do but I think […]

“Lilo & Stitch” co-creator Chris Sanders, who also voices Stitch, will take the reins and direct the forthcoming live-action sequel. Last year, Disney’s live-action remake of “Lilo & Stitch” delivered the biggest Memorial Day weekend opening in box office history ($183 million) and went on to become Hollywood’s first billion-dollar-grossing movie of the year. Dean […]

Gene Shalit, the bushy-haired mustachioed television personality who reviewed books and movies on “The Today Show” for 40 years, died Friday. His family told NBC News he “passed away peacefully today after 100 years of an amazing life.” Shalit appeared on NBC’s “The Today Show” from 1970 until his retirement in 2010, sporting his signature […]

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers from the sixth episode of “Dutton Ranch,” “A Cowboy Saint,” which is now streaming on Paramount+. Last week’s “Dutton Ranch” was a big one, as Rip (Cole Hauser) and Beth (Kelly Reilly) both now work at the 10 Petal Ranch for Beulah (Annette Bening). But things won’t be easy, since […]

Arise Sir Peter Lord and Sir David Sproxton, but very slowly, just a little bit at a time. The founders of Aardman Animations, the legendary stop-motion pioneers behind “Wallace and Gromit,” “Shaun the Sheep” and “Chicken Run,” have been knighted in King Charles’ birthday honors, issued annually to celebrate outstanding achievements and contributions to British […]

Amazon MGM Studios and Warner Bros. veteran Adam Keen has founded Agenda Collective, a new full-service entertainment PR firm, designed to support across film, TV, corporate and awards campaigns. Agenda Collective officially enters the market after a strategic buildout period, working with clients including A24, Artists Equity, Amazon MGM Studios, CBS, Focus Features, IFC, Lionsgate, […]

This weekend, the “Drag Race” universe is expanding and getting ready to slay moviegoers with “Stop That Train.” The disaster movie parody comes via Bleecker Street Films and World of Wonder, delivering 92 minutes of absurd silliness. Helmed by Adam Shankman and produced by World of Wonder co-founders Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, the film stars RuPaul as […]

It is oddly encouraging that a film like Ryuya Suzuki’s “Jinsei” — not that there are many films like Ryuya Suzuki’s “Jinsei” — should be released within weeks of “The Odyssey” and “Disclosure Day.” Those two 2026 tentpoles are unalike in most ways, except that each will be the product of hundreds of people moving […]

What do Buzz Lightyear, Steven Spielberg and the New York Knicks have in common? The answer is Taylor Swift. The pop star has been everywhere this week: On Monday, she made a surprise appearance at the “Toy Story 5” premiere, performing her new song “I Knew It, I Knew You” — as well as a […]

David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance has cleared a big regulatory hurdle in advancing toward completing its $111 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery — although it’s still not a done deal and could face other legal challenges. The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division has approved the deal, Variety has confirmed. As first reported by Politico, the regulator […]

Shares of Roku hit a 52-week high Friday on a report that the streaming platform company is in talks to sell itself. Roku’s stock closed at $143.66/share Friday, up 20% for the day, pushing its market cap up to about $21.3 billion. That came after Bloomberg reported that Roku has been “in discussions with at […]

Ronnie Schell, the versatile actor known for his comedic work in “Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.” and “That Girl,” died Friday in Los Angeles of natural causes, his publicist confirmed to Variety. He was 94. Known for his work in film, TV and on stage as a comedian, the San Francisco native amassed over 140 credits over […]

When Katherine LaNasa set out to build the voice of Dana Evans, the unflappable charge nurse on HBO Max’s hit medical drama “The Pitt,” she didn’t consult a dialect coach first. She started in the bathtub. The reigning Emmy winner for supporting actress in a drama series immersed herself in prestige television while studying Dana’s […]

Jason Bateman is living dangerously. The actor-director enters this Emmy cycle with a problem most performers would envy: two acclaimed limited series, two wildly different roles and a directing-producing resume that keeps expanding even as he approaches the age when peers start thinking about slowing down. “Our tolerance for taking on more actually grows even […]

Jeremy Strong’s take on Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg officially debuted with the launch of the first trailer for Aaron Sorkin’s “The Social Reckoning,” a follow-up to 2010’s “The Social Network.” Sorkin won an Oscar for his screenplay of the first movie and returns to write and replace David Fincher as the director of the new […]

Trevor Phillips, a longtime British writer and anchor and former U.K. politician, has been named senior global affairs correspondent at CBS News, where Bari Weiss, the unit’s editor in chief, has articulated an interest in focusing on provocative voices and thinkers, potentially over traditional newsgathering. Phillips most recently hosted Sky News’ flagship program “Sunday Morning […]

The upcoming horror comedy film “Best Friends Forever” has added some fresh blood to its cast. The new names include Aristotle Athari (“Saturday Night Live”), Ally Maki (“Toy Story 4”), Zac Oyama (“Game Changer”), influencer Lynley Eilers and “Dead Meat” hosts James A. Janisse and Chelsea Rebecca. These actors join a previously announced cast which includes […]

Netflix mega-hit “The Platform” and “Rosa’s Wedding,” from top Spanish auteur Iciar Bollaín will be pitched June 21 at the Shanghai Film & TV Market during an event focused on one of the key growth axes in cutting-edge movie dealing: Remake rights. Latido Films will present “The Platform” and Cinema Republic “Rosa’s Wedding.” They will […]

“House of Guinness,” Netflix’s boozy period drama based on the famed Irish brewing family, is coming back for another round. Variety understands that a second season of the show, created by Stephen Knight, has now been greenlit by the streamer, with production due to kick off in early 2027. Netflix declined to comment. Set in […]

The “Candy Crush All Stars” competition has named Luana from Bahia, Brazil as its 2026 champion. After weeks of remote competition among millions of “Candy Crush” players across 25 countries, art student Luana secured a spot in the Live Final. Last week, she came out victorious in the closing game of the tournament’s biggest-ever Live […]

This interview is part of Variety and CNN’s Actors on Actors series. Watch the full video interview now at CNN.com/Watch (or on the CNN app) and on Variety’s YouTube channel starting at 11:59 pm ET. Noah Wyle and Sally Field first worked together on “ER,” when Wyle was among that show’s breakout stars and Field was already an established […]

As we say every year, the annual Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony is a combination of an awards show and a family reunion — an annual gathering of superstars virtually everyone recognizes, iconic behind-the-scenes songwriters that a few people recognize, and top executives from the music industry who hardly any normal person recognizes. And every […]

As the Weeknd kicked off the 2026 Europe and U.K. leg of his years-long “After Hours Til Dawn” stadium tour with a sold-out performance at Etihad Stadium in Manchester on Thursday night, he celebrated several milstones. The tour surpassed $1 billion in global gross last year following the addition of 2026 dates across Europe, the […]

Indian actor-politician Pawan Kalyan’s “They Call Him OG 2” is officially happening. Pawan Kalyan Creative Works confirmed to Variety that the the sequel is in active development, with the shoot expected to commence after November this year. Discussions will begin as soon as director Sujeeth returns from abroad. The production house addressed the timeline directly […]

Olivia Rodrigo’s third album, “You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love,” is finally here — and with it comes a raft of new lyrics to quote, analyze and obsess over. As the title suggests, “You Seem Pretty Sad” takes listeners through the lifespan of a relationship, from giddy beginnings full of butterflies […]

Sanjay Kapoor, Shaheer and Mouni Roy headline “Ab Hoga Hisaab,” a revenge drama series produced by Arré Studio that will stream free exclusively on India’s Amazon MX Player from June 18. The show also marks the streaming debut of actor Avinash Mishra. Set in Punjab, the series centres on two brothers – Bobby and Bunty […]