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The horror movie Heretic starring Hugh Grant is surprisingly focused on food. Some Heretic screenings are making use of a marketing ploy called Smell-o-Vision. The directors of the film had a strong reaction to this decision — which they did not make themselves.

The idea of using Smell-o-Vision at ‘Heretic’ screenings made the director’s laugh

We don’t think about it, but a lot of horror films center on food. From the barbecue of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre to the meat pies of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street to the stuff from The Stuff, we occasionally find horror in what’s on our plates. Heretic might be the first scary movie with a plot that revolves around blueberry pie. Interestingly, some theaters are showing the film with a Smell-O-Vision gimmick that lets viewers smell blueberry pie while the film plays.

During a 2024 interview with GQ,...

When it comes to the net worth of A-list Hollywood celebrities, Oprah Winfrey is in a league all her own. Known as the queen of media who turned her talk shows into groundbreaking networks has redefined success on her own terms. Winfrey didn’t just earn her fortune, she has transformed every interview, book club pick, and business venture into an empire.

Credits: Oprah Winfrey in CBS Mornings

Born into poverty, Winfrey’s early years were anything but easy but that didn’t stop her from becoming a household name. Rising from a local news anchor in Nashville to becoming the most influential talk show host in the world with The Oprah Winfrey Show, she has captivated millions with her unique ability to connect with people. The business mogul has seized opportunity after opportunity and turned herself into a global phenomenon. For Winfrey, it’s not just about the money,...

With his new World War II drama Blitz, uncompromising filmmaker Steve McQueen is once more tackling weighty, vital material. He tells us about his ongoing mission to break new ground…

Here’s what you need to know about Steve McQueen, as a man and as a filmmaker: he will not waste your time. Not with false modesty, nor with empty boasting. Not by suffering fools or flattering royalty. This is sometimes mistaken for brusqueness. It isn’t. It’s a guarantee that when a single shot of a priest conversing with a prisoner lasts 17 minutes and 11 seconds (as in 2008 feature debut Hunger), or when his 2023 Holocaust documentary Occupied City takes four hours and 26 minutes (not including interval), every moment is necessary and accounted for.

It’s this disciplined focus on what McQueen emphatically calls “the work... The W-O-R-K” which has enabled the 54-year-old to frequently...

It’s showtime! Yes, everyone’s favourite eccentric bio-exorcist, Betelgeuse, is coming back to the big screen, with Tim Burton’s much-anticipated sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice heading to cinemas very soon. That makes now the perfect time to revisit the gothic, gruesome tale that started it all – Burton’s original Beetlejuice, released back in 1988, which first established Michael Keaton as the striped-suited ghost with the most.

A movie that pushed the boundaries when it came to makeup and hairstyling, prosthetics and special effects, Beetlejuice is the story of Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder), a self-proclaimed ‘strange and unusual’ girl who feels increasingly isolated from her father and stepmother as they move into their new suburban home, which just happens to be haunted by the couple that previously lived there.

The Maitlands aren’t happy either, as new matriarch and high-maintenance sculptor Delia Deetz (Catherine O’Hara) sets about redecorating the home they had...

Phil Donahue, known as the “King of Daytime Talk,” has died at the age of 88. He passed away in his home surrounded by family on Sunday, August 18. To remember the daytime television legend, here is a look at the talk show host’s long, successful career.

A Look Back At Phil Donahue’s Career

The daytime talk show host kickstarted his career in the late 1950s. He got his start on radio and television before pitching his own talk show, The Phil Donahue Show. The show was created in 1967 in Dayton, Ohio. Over the years, he gained credibility for talking about controversial topics. He also took viewers behind bars at the Ohio State Penitentiary in 1971, which gained him a lot of recognition among journalists.

The show’s hour-long broadcast dedicated itself to single issues. Each episode would cover things like abuse in the Catholic Church, race relations, and feminism, all hot topics at the time.

Here’s How Oprah Winfrey Became A Billionaire. (Photo Credit – Instagram)

People who are television fans are very familiar with the alleged Queen of All Media, Oprah Winfrey. The media mogul is an inspiration for millions of people. She is widely known for The Oprah Winfrey Show. From working at a grocery store to becoming an illustrated media personality, Oprah has built an empire, and today, we have brought you a detailed story of her vast fortune.

Oprah’s early life

She was born Orpah Gail Winfrey in 1954, but people often mispronounced it and called her Oprah. It eventually stuck, and she became Oprah from Orpah. She was born in the Mississippi to Vernita Lee and Vernon Winfrey, but her parents were never married. Lee was a housemaid, and Oprah spent her first six years in poverty while she was with her maternal grandmother. They were so poor that the...

Stars: Saori Izawa, Akari Takaishi, Tatsuomi Hamada, Iwanaga Joey, Junpei Hashino, Atom Mizuishi, Tsubasa Tobinaga | Written and Directed by Yugo Sakamoto

Two years ago, Yugo Sakamoto’s quirky action comedy Baby Assassins came out of nowhere and blew me away with its story of Mahiro and Chisato two high school girls who live secret lives as assassins.

Now the girls are back in Baby Assassins 2 Babies, and they haven’t gotten any better at dealing with day-to-day things like paying their bills. A gym membership that’s been collecting late fees for five years and their insurance needs to be paid immediately. But when robbers strike the bank as they’re trying to, they intervene and get suspended from the Assassin’s Guild for using their skills off the clock.

But finding another job to pay the bills is the least of their problems. Makoto and Yuri are looking...

Exclusive: Steve-o has set a November 14th launch for Steve-o’s Bucket List, his new stand-up special, which will be released through his website SteveO.com, in partnership with Moment and Patreon. Pre-sales for the special, filmed at Hackney Empire in the comedian’s hometown of London, begin November 1st.

If you thought Steve-o was crazy before, then you’ll have to brace yourselves for his new act, which has been known to make some audience members pass out. His new unrated special, filmed in front of a sold-out crowd, sees him in top form as he brings his multimedia comedy tour straight into your living room with his hilarious stand-up and stunts deemed “too extreme” for Jackass… oh, yeah… and it’s a love story too! Indeed, Steve-o’s Bucket List not only pushes the performer to his limits but also finds him his ‘happily ever after.’

Directed by Eric Abrams and Steve-o,...

Gareth Edwards‘ The Creator takes place in a post-apocalyptic future in which Americans dedicate themselves to hunting beings of artificial intelligence protected by people in a Southeastern country known as New Asia who treat sad beings as equals.

A former United States Army soldier, Joshua Taylor (John Taylor Washington), who after five years of losing his wife, Maya Fey-Taylor (Gemma Chan), to an attack from American soldiers, is recruited by the United States Army to go to New Asia and find the weapon known as Alpha-o.

The weapon was created by Nirmata (the word for “Creator” in Hindi), the person responsible for New Asia’s advancements in artificial intelligence. He is told that Fey-Taylor is still alive. Taylor finds out that the weapon is a robotic simulant created in the form of a child (Madeleine Yuna Voyles), whom he nicknames “Alphie.”

After going rogue and taking Alpha-o for himself, Taylor...

The 11th episode of “Survivor 42” aired on Wednesday night and concluded with host Jeff Probst snuffing out the torch of Drea Wheeler. The 35-year old from Montreal will join Chanelle Howell, Rocksroy Bailey, Tori Meehan and Hai Giang on the jury. Did the tribe make the right decision by voting out Drea? And what were the dumbest, most shocking and most exciting moments of the last episode?

See Jeff Probst praises ‘Survivor 42’ cast for ‘fierce gameplay and camaraderie’ after [Spoiler] exits the game laughing

Below, read our “Survivor 42” Episode 11 Top 5 moments. Then be sure to sound off in the comments section about your favorite castaways on CBS’s reality TV show, who annoys you the most and who you think will ultimately join the “Survivor” winners list and take home the 1 million grand prize.

See Everything to know about ‘Survivor 42’

Top 5 moments of Episode 11:

“Survivor” never ceases to amaze me.

On a remote hillside, far from the swinging 60s, garrulous shepherds exasperate the police in this elegant parable about power and the state

If there was ever an Armenian new wave or maybe an Armenian absurdist wave, then this sprightly and bittersweet 1969 movie – now revived by the Klassiki streaming service as part of a season of Armenian cinema – would be at the vanguard. It was adapted by the Armenian writer Hrant Matevosyan from his own novel and directed by Henrik Malyan. It’s an elegant, elusive parable of a movie about power and the state.

The deadpan coup de cinéma that opens the film is rather brilliant: a frenzied montage of all the exciting things that are happening in the 1960s – pop music, dancing, sports. But all of it is suddenly snuffed out with a hard cut to the silent rural world of the Armenian highlands where four shepherds are living the same tough,...

The final production of the historic 2021-2022 Broadway season reaches back to the early modern era for inspiration with a remounting of William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” Tony-winner Sam Gold (“Fun Home”) once again brings his unique style to the Bard, having previously worked on productions of “King Lear” on Broadway and “Hamlet” and “Othello” Off-Broadway.

Daniel Craig stars as “Macbeth” in his third appearance on Broadway, Ruth Negga makes her Broadway debut as Lady Macbeth, and Tony-nominee Amber Gray returns to the boards as Banquo. “Macbeth” opened at the Longacre Theatre on April 28 for a limited run.

See 2022 Tonys predictions: Complete odds for 75th annual Tony Awards nominations

“Macbeth” received mixed and negative reviews from critics. Jesse Green (New York Times) calls the production “uneasy” and “overthought,” one that feels like “an endless rehearsal rather than a Broadway revival.” He has compliments for the two stars, though, describing Craig as...

In addition to being this year’s Oscar nominations leader with a dozen bids across 11 categories, “The Power of the Dog” is the 38th film in the academy’s 94-year history to amass at least four acting nominations. Star Benedict Cumberbatch is up for the Best Actor award, while his castmates Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, and Kodi Smit-McPhee have all been recognized as supporting players. In a matter of weeks, their film will either be the 26th to score at least one win from four or more acting bids or the 13th to lose them all.

On average, a film of this kind earns a total of 10 nominations. 33 of them have received Best Picture bids and 13 have won the top honor. “The Power of the Dog” is nominated there as well as in the next seven non-acting categories where its predecessors have most often landed: Best Director (33; 12 wins), Best Film...

Law and Order: Organized Crime As Iago Is to Othello Plot Synopsis and Air Date — NBC‘s Law & Order: Organized Crime: Season 2, Episode 12: As Iago Is to Othello plot synopsis and air date have been released. Cast and crew Law and Order: Organized Crime stars Christopher Meloni, Danielle Moné Truitt, Tamara Taylor, [...]

Continue reading: Law & Order: Organized Crime: Season 2, Episode 12: As Iago Is to Othello Plot Synopsis & Air Date [NBC]...

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By Todd Garbarini

Having been a film fanatic my entire life I was thrilled when, in June 1982, a new magazine burst onto the scene and quickly caught my attention. Devoted exclusively to new and upcoming motion picture releases, Coming Attractions cost $2.50 per issue and was published on a bi-monthly basis. It didn’t last long, unfortunately, but I recall that a bit of an uproar occurred over the cover of the March/April 1983 issue which featured a half-naked Valerie Kaprisky in a promo for the Breathless remake. Seriously, back in the day who complained about a beautiful naked woman on a magazine cover??

In one of the earlier issues, there was an article published about an upcoming horror film entitled Trick or Treats starring David Carradine. I don’t recall the film ever opening in my area and wondered whatever happened to it...

When Daniel Craig signed on as James Bond in 2005, he found himself under attack by snipers more vicious than any 007 had ever faced: the media.

The naysayers immediately lamented the “blond Bond” and criticized his blue eyes. The London Daily Mirror on Oct. 15, 2005, ran his photo with the headline “The Name’s Bland … James Bland.”

Two days later, the Mirror interviewed a man actually named James Bland. He had a statement for Craig: “I’d make a better Bond than you.” Bland added, “He must be the most boring 007 ever.” This was nearly three months before filming had begun.

At Craig’s first meeting with the press, he arrived via a speedboat on the Thames; he was wearing a lifejacket, which led to endless media mockery. Reporters were even more appalled that he chewed gum during the press conference.

Websites immediately sprang up with names like DanielCraigIsNotBond .com, CraigNotBond .com and blondNotBond.

Even after 15 years as the head of one of the biggest franchises ever, Daniel Craig can still find himself surprised. As his final bow as Bond approaches, with “No Time to Die” hitting U.S. theaters on Oct. 8 after nearly two years of delays due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Craig will also be receiving another iconic honor: a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 6.

“The idea that my name will be alongside those of so many actors who have inspired me during my life is really quite incomprehensible and not something I could have ever imagined,” Craig tells Variety. “So all I can really say is that it is an enormous, mind-boggling privilege to have been invited to join the road.”

A recent clip from the Apple TV Plus documentary “Being James Bond” shows the actor in 2019, on his final day on set as 007,...

Daniel Craig will return to Broadway next spring in the starring role of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, with Ruth Negga taking on Lady Macbeth in an all-new, 15-week production to be directed by Tony Award winner Sam Gold, producers announced today.

Macbeth will begin performances on Tuesday, March 29, 2022, at Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre, with an official opening on Thursday, April 28, 2022.

Additional casting will be announced at a later date.

“Daniel is not only a great film actor but a magnificent theatre actor as well,” said Macbeth producer Barbara Broccoli, who also produces the James Bond film franchise that featured Craig in the title role. “I am thrilled that he will be supporting the return of Broadway playing this iconic role with the exquisitely talented Ruth Negga making her Broadway debut and under the expert direction of Sam Gold.”

Gold, who was Tony-nominated in 2017 for A Doll’s House, Part 2 and won...

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There’s no denying that William Shakespeare is one of the most well-known and widely respected literary figures in history: a fountainhead for so much of storytelling to follow. His works from the late 1500s are still relevant today, and several of his plays have been adapted into films. The latest of which, “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” will arrive in theaters on Christmas Day, and on Apple TV+ on January 14, 2022.

Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand star in the spare, Dreyer-esque black-and-white film directed by Joel Coen. If you’re not familiar with the story, Macbeth is met by three witches who reveal great fortunes for his future. Once these fortunes begin to come true,...

After a 15 months delay, the 74th annual Tony Awards honoring the best of Broadway will be held September 26 on CBS and Paramount +. And there a lot of familiar faces expected at the ceremony at the Winter Garden Theatre including six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald, who is nominated for the revival of “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune”; Jane Alexander, who won her first Tony Award 52 years ago for “The Great White Hope” and contends for “Grand Horizons”; and 90-year-old Lois Smith, who made her Broadway debut nearly 70 years ago, is up for “The Inheritance.”

The Tony Awards first ceremony, held April 6 1947 at the Grand Ballroom of the famed Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York City, was a vastly different affair. Awards were handed out in only eight categories. Producer, director and Tony founder Brock Pemberton was the host of the evening which was broadcast on Wor and Mutual Network radio stations.

Film can be multiply ephemeral. Not just depicting a time and place but a way of seeing, a way of constructing, and from these mechanisms different forms of loss. Films locked away while there are disputes over rights, lost in vaults where there is descent into rot, left in archives when tastes and habits change. Two Cents Worth Of Hope is perhaps in that latter category, a remastered version screened at the 2021 Edinburgh Film Festival might signal a revival. It's of its time in any number of ways, and all the more charming for it.

It was not neglected at time of release. It shared the prize at Cannes in 1952 with Welles' Othello, its director Renato Castellini may be best known for his own Shakespearean adaptation, the 1954 Romeo & Juliet. It's set in a small village outside Napoli, filmed in the streets and trees of Boscotrecase....

The Paris Theater, a beloved arthouse cinema in New York City, is reopening its doors next month.

To celebrate its return on Aug. 6, filmmaker Radha Blank is curating a slate of repertory titles to screen alongside her directorial debut “The Forty-Year-Old Version.” Her movie, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival, is playing through Aug. 12.

The Paris opened in 1948 and is the only single-screen movie theater in Manhattan. Netflix acquired the 545-seat venue in 2019 and, prior to Covid-19, held premieres, special events and screenings of its films in the storied institution, which is just south of Central Park.

“I made ‘Forty-Year-Old Version’ in 35mm Black & White in the spirit of the many great films that informed my love of cinema,” says Blank. “I’m excited to show the film in 35mm as intended and alongside potent films by fearless filmmakers who inspired my development as a storyteller and expanded my vision...

The Paris Theater, an NYC cinematic landmark rescued by Netflix in 2019, will officially reopen August 6 with the streamer’s The Forty-Year-Old Version by Radha Blank and a week of repertory films programmed by the director.

The only single-screen movie theater in Manhattan and the borough’s largest, with 545 seats, has hosted limited theatrical engagements since March that included Netflix’ 17 Oscar-nominated films, retrospectives of Charlie Kaufman and Orson Wells, zombie movie classics and a Bob Dylan film series.

The Paris closed in August of 2019 after its lease with City Cinemas expired. That November, Netflix entered an extended lease agreement, said to be for ten years with owner the Solow Family, to keep the theater open and use it for events, screenings and theatrical releases of its films. The first was Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story. The theater was shuttered by Covid-19 last spring.

(In May of 2020, Netflix acquired another storied theaters,...

There’s an old saying in Hollywood: You haven’t truly lived until Richard E. Grant causes you to bend over in laughter by pointing out his — and your — physical shortcomings.

At least, that’s what happened when the Oscar-nominated character actor — from 2018’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” to 2001’s “Gosford Park” to 1987’s “Withnail & I” — spoke with Variety about his scene-stealing turn on last week’s episode of the Marvel Studios series “Loki.” The penultimate episode of the season finds Tom Hiddleston’s titular god of mischief trapped in the Void, a limbo plane of existence that plays home to dozens of other variant Lokis who’ve been pruned by the Time Variance Authority. Along with Grant’s Classic Loki (who escaped death by living alone on a remote planet), Hiddleston meets Kid Loki (Jack Veal), Boastful Loki (Debbie Oparei), and Alligator Loki — basically, an alligator wearing...

Paul Huntley, the celebrated wigmaker for film, stage and television who provided Dustin Hoffman with the coif that transformed the actor into Tootsie and did the same decades later for when Santino Fontana originated the role in a Broadway musical, died this morning at his London home following a short illness. He was 89.

His death was announced in a post today on his Instagram page.

During his more than five-decade career, he helped give the felines of Cats their sheen, topped Patti LuPone’s Evita with the now famous blonde bun and styled the signature black and white job Glenn Close wore as Cruella de Vil in 101 Dalmations.

Huntley, who moved back to his native London recently from his longtime Manhattan home, retired earlier this year when Broadway’s Covid pandemic shutdown halted his professional opportunities, and after becoming bedridden following a fall at his Upper West Side home. His...

Rooney as Japanese? Stone as Native Hawaiian? TheWrap looks at history of racially misguided castings

Katharine Hepburn in “Dragon Seed” (1944)

Caucasian Hepburn played a Chinese woman in this big-screen adaptation of the Pearl S. Buck novel.

Marlon Brando in “The Teahouse of the August Moon” (1956)

Brando starred as an Okinawan translator for the U.S. Army in this comedy about the American occupation of the island nation.

John Wayne in “Conquerer” (1956)

Wayne was cast as Mongol conquerer Genghis Khan in what’s considered by many to be one of the worst films of all time.

Charlton Heston in “Touch of Evil” (1958)

Heston starred as Ramon Miguel Vargas in the 1958 crime film, a Mexican narcotics officer.

Mickey Rooney in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961)

More caricature than character, Rooney starred as the buck-toothed, Japanese Mr. Yunioshi in the 1961 film, which has faced volumes of criticism since.

Natalie Wood in “West Side Story” (1961)

Wood plays...

Producer Tendeka Matatu’s London and South Africa-based production company Ten10 Films is expanding and rebranding as Ten10 Entertainment.

The Ten10-produced neo-noir thriller “Cold Harbour” is currently streaming on Netflix.

The name change reflects the outfit’s rapidly growing global slate of original series and film projects, which will be overseen by new head of development Jafta Mamabolo, an actor, writer, director and producer from Johannesburg.

Based out of South Africa, Mamabolo’s primary mandate is to expand the company’s Africa-focused entertainment slate. The first projects that he will oversee include young adult series “Abel & Ashanti” with producer Bill Borden; the African-futuristic “Akebul-an Chronicles” with Fremantle; and a limited series based on the book “Call Me American” by Abdi Nor Iftin.

Mamabolo first found continental acclaim in Africa at age 11 when he landed a prime role on “Soul Buddyz,” then Southern Africa’s most-watched youth program. His acting...

Orson Welles once had help financing a film thanks to Winston Churchill. The legendary filmmaker (and masterful raconteur), who was born this day in 1915, recounted the wild and hilarious tale to Dick Cavett in 1970.

Welles does not specify, but from the timeline he gives, it appears the incident happened in 1945 after the British statesman Churchill was voted out of the office of prime minister following the end of World War II.

“He had great humor and great irony,” recalled Welles, adding that when he starred in Othello in London years prior, Churchill came to the show and ...

Orson Welles once had help financing a film thanks to Winston Churchill. The legendary filmmaker (and masterful raconteur), who was born this day in 1915, recounted the wild and hilarious tale to Dick Cavett in 1970.

Welles does not specify, but from the timeline he gives, it appears the incident happened in 1945 after the British statesman Churchill was voted out of the office of prime minister following the end of World War II.

“He had great humor and great irony,” recalled Welles, adding that when he starred in Othello in London years prior, Churchill came to the show and ...

Henry Lloyd-Hughes and Thalissa Teixeira will star alongside Lucy Hale in the AMC-Alibi series “Ragdoll,” Variety has learned.

The six-episode show, which was ordered to series back in February, is set to begin production on April 19 in London. The series is based on the novel of the same name by Daniel Cole. Variety exclusively reported Hale’s casting in March.

Assigned to a shocking new case, nicknamed The Ragdoll, are DS Rose (Lloyd-Hughes), Di Baxter (Teixeira) and DC Edmunds (Hale). The “Ragdoll Killer” taunts the police by sending them a list of his next victims, with Rose’s name at the very end. And with those victims to protect, our heroes soon come under intense public scrutiny.

“We’re thrilled to have Lucy, Thalissa and Henry on board as three ideal leads to bring Ragdoll to life,” said Dan McDermott, president of original programming for AMC Networks and co-head of AMC Studios.

MollywoodDirector Jayaraj tops the list, having adapted three celebrated plays of the Bard into his films.Tnm StaffStills from 'Kaliyattam', 'Annayum Rasoolum' and 'Joji'Actors and writers of theatre have time and again forayed into the world of cinema, bringing with them the magic of the stage. Makers of Malayalam cinema have adapted several renowned plays into films. And William Shakespeare, the Bard loved all over the world, has also influenced a number of movies. Director Jayaraj tops the list, having adapted three celebrated plays of the Bard into his films. There have been others down the lane. Here is a list of Malayalam films adapted, loosely or otherwise, from Shakespeare plays. 1. Kaliyattam (1997): This Jayaraj movie of Suresh Gopi and Manju Warrier is perhaps the first noticed Shakespearean adaptation in Malayalam. The actors play a married couple, in this adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello. Suresh Gopi plays Kannan Perumalayan, a Theyyam artiste,...

Robert Fletcher, a prolific costume designer who worked on the original four “Star Trek” films and had a long career in theater, has died. He was 98.

Fletcher died peacefully in Kansas City, Mo., on April 5. No cause of death was provided.

Robert “Bob” Fletcher worked as a costume designer for over six decades, crafting the iconic look of the Klingons and the Vulcans in the original “Star Trek” movies, starting with “Star Trek: The Motion Picture” in 1979. His last feature film was “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” in 1986, and he’s credited with imagining the “monster maroon” Starfleet uniforms worn by William Shatner and company.

Fletcher also had an extensive career in theater, working as a costume designer on the original Broadway productions of the musicals “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” and “Walking Happy.” He also worked alongside Orson Welles as an actor in a 1956 production...

Robert Fletcher, a costumer designer whose more than six decades of credits on screen and the Broadway stage included the first four Star Trek films, died April 5 in Kansas City, Missouri. He was 98.

A cause of death was not disclosed, but a spokesman for the three-time Tony-nominated Fletcher said the designer died peacefully.

Fletcher’s work on the Star Trek films – Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock and The Voyage Home – earned him three Saturn Awards nominations including a win in 1987 for the fourth film in the series. He was especially remembered for establishing the look and style of the movie franchise’s Klingon and Vulcan characters.

For the stage, Fletcher designed sets and costumes for Lincoln Kirstein’s ballet and opera projects, worked with Jerome Robbins, designed the costumes for the original Broadway productions of...

Yapeht Kotto, the prolific character actor who starred in Alien, the James Bond film Live and Let Die, and the long-running TV series Homicide: Life on the Street, died Monday night at the age of 81.

Kotto’s wife, Thessa Sinahon, announced his death in a Facebook post, though a cause of death was not immediately available.

“You played a villain on some of your movies but for me you’re a real hero and to a lot of people also,” Sinahon wrote on Facebook. “A good man, a good father,...

Yaphet Kotto, an actor known for his performances in “Alien,” the James Bond film “Live and Let Die” and the television series “Homicide: Life on the Street,” has died, his agent Ryan Goldhar confirmed to Variety. He was 81.

Kotto’s wife, Tessie Sinahon, first posted about Kotto’s death on Facebook Monday night.

“I’m saddened and still in shocked of the passing of my husband Yaphet of 24 years. He died last night around 10:30pm Philippine time,” sge wrote. “…You played a villain on some of your movies but for me you’re a real hero and to a lot of people also. A good man, a good father, a good husband and a decent human being, very rare to find. One of the best actor in Hollywood a Legend. Rest in Peace Honey, I’m gonna miss you everyday, my bestfriend, my rock.”

In 1973’s “Live and Let Die,...

Yaphet Kotto, who is best known for playing technician Dennis Parker in “Alien” and in his starring role on “Homicide: Life on the Street,” died Sunday night of unknown causes, his widow announced on his official Facebook page.

“I’m saddened and still in shocked [sic] of the passing of my husband Yaphet of 24 years. He died last night around 10:30pm Philippine time,” she wrote.

“This is a very painfall [sic] moment for me to inform you all fans, friends and family of my husband. We still have a lot of plans honey that we discussed you have a lot of interviews waiting and you have movie offers like G.I. Joe and the movie of Tom Cruise and others,” she continued.

“You still have plan [sic] to release your book and build a religious organization based on Yogananda’s Teachings. You played a villain on [sic] some of your movies but for me...

Updated: The Night Shift star Eoin Macken has been tapped as the male lead opposite Natalie Zea in NBC’s drama pilot La Brea. Another NBC series star, Chicago P.D.‘s Jon Seda, is one of three actors, originally cast in the project a year ago and released in June, who have been brought back to reprise their roles, along with Veronica St. Clair and Chiké Okonkwo.

Jack Martin and Lily Santiago also have been newly cast in the pilot, joining Zyra Gorecki.

In La Brea, written by David Appelbaum, when a massive sinkhole mysteriously opens in Los Angeles, it tears a family in half, separating mother (Zea) and son (Martin) from father (Macken) and daughter (Gorecki). When part of the family find themselves in an unexplainable primeval world, alongside a disparate group of strangers, they must work to survive and uncover the mystery of where they are and...

Training Day’s “King Kong” monologue stands tall among the great speeches of cinema. Denzel Washington elevates the iambic pentameter of Iago, the villain of William Shakespeare’s Othello, to syncopated street rhythms. It is on par with Marlon Brando’s reflections on the horrors of war as Col. Kurtz in Apocalypse Now, it is the inverse of Gregory Peck’s monologues as Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird, and it ranks with Joe Pesci’s “Do you think I’m funny?” scene in Goodfellas or Groucho Marx’s breakdown in the middle of reconciliation in Duck Soup. But the single line of dialogue which hits it home wasn’t in David Ayer’s screenplay. It was pure Denzel.

“King Kong ain’t got shit on me,” LAPD Det. Sgt. Alonzo Harris declares in the most memorable scene in Training Day. Washington improvised the line in the heat of the moment.

Indian filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj is developing a film franchise based on the works of Agatha Christie. The series will feature an entirely new pair of lead investigators.

The first film, due to shoot in early 2021, will introduce a young heroine who is thrown into solving a murder, and teams up with an unlikely companion to solve the case. Details of which Christie novel is being adapted for the film have not been revealed yet. The cast is currently being finalized.

Future films will follow the duo as they continue to investigate multiple murder mysteries.

Bhardwaj is best known internationally for his acclaimed Shakespeare trilogy “Magbool,” (Macbeth) “Omkara” (Othello) and “Haider” (Hamlet).

Christie’s books have sold over two billion copies across the globe in English and translations. Agatha Christie Limited (Acl) manages the literary and media rights to Christie’s works.

“Agatha Christie had a tremendous skill of defining emotional chaos,...

by Cláudio Alves

The Supporting Actress Smackdown of 1965 will be up on Sunday afternoon so here's an extra list before we get there. Before each event, I like to watch every nominated movie, even those I have already seen. Because of that, I found myself with the unenviable penance of revisiting 1965's Othello. Many of you surely did the same, exposing yourself to one of Sir Laurence Olivier's most problematic star turns, a Blackface version of Othello. I figured if I was going to force myself to watch this dirge, I should something productive with it. Hence, this write-up, in which that famous thespian's ten acting Oscar nominations are ranked...

Each month before the Supporting Actress Smackdown Nick Taylor selects performances for an alternate ballot...

Of the Golden Globes’ Supporting Actress nominees in 1965, three of their five were transplanted to Oscar’s lineup. Globe winner Ruth Gordon in Inside Daisy Clover, Joyce Redman in Othello, and Peggy Wood in The Sound of Music (who we all basically agree was not the best option from her movie) all made the cut, while Redman’s co-star Maggie Smith was imported from the Globes' Lead Actress-Drama category. Only Shelley Winters, who wound up winning the damn Oscar for A Patch of Blue, failed to show up anywhere at the Globes. The two Globe nominees left out to pasture come Oscar nomination morning were Nbr winner Joan Blondell in The Cincinnati Kid and never-winning Academy regular Thelma Ritter in Boeing Boeing. Both of the unlucky actresses co-starred in films that were blanked by the Academy completely.

Exclusive: Audrey Corsa, who recurred on the first season of All Rise, has been promoted to series regular for the second season of the CBS courthouse drama.

Corsa plays Samantha Powell, a young, ambitious law clerk in the Dda’s office bullpen. Incredibly smart, unintimidated, with a dry humor, she’s determined to make herself an invaluable member of the team.

She appeared in eight episodes in the first season.

All Rise follows the chaotic, hopeful and sometimes absurd lives of its judges, prosecutors and public defenders, as they work with bailiffs, clerks and cops to get justice for the people of Los Angeles amidst a flawed legal process. Among them is newly appointed Judge Lola Carmichael (Simone Missick), a highly regarded and impressive deputy district attorney who doesn’t intend to sit back on the bench in her new role, but instead leans in, immediately pushing the boundaries and...

Maggie Smith's first Oscar nominationAs we keep promising you, the Smackdowns are much more fun if you play along at home. Up next is 1965 and there are only four movies to watch (all of which received multiple Oscar nominations) to prepare for the discussion on October 9th.

Supporting Actress Nominees Of 1965

• Ruth Gordon from Inside Daisy Clover (3 Oscar noms) - Amazon

• Maggie Smith and Joyce Redman from Othello (4 Oscar noms) - YouTube

• Shelley Winters from A Patch of Blue (5 Oscar noms)- Amazon

• Peggy Wood from The Sound of Music (10 Oscar noms) - Disney+

Once you're done watching those, send in your votes (1 to 5 hearts for each lady) by October 8th. Easy! You're then part of the Smackdown!

If you Really wanna dive into the cinema of 1965 before the event, here are key 1965 movies that are currently streaming for free.

Oscar Nominated 1965 Titles Currently Streaming...

CinemaFrom 'Kanmadham' to 'Asuran', Manju Warrier has delivered several unforgettable performances.Tnm StaffManju Warrier turned 42 on Thursday. The actor, who made her debut at 17, after winning the prestigious Kalathilakam in the Kerala Youth Festival twice, went on to establish herself as the most sought-after woman actor in the Malayalam film industry. In a span of just three years, Manju acted in about 20 films, many of them blockbusters. She made a comeback to cinema 15 years later and became one of the few women actors to continue playing the lead despite the long break. Here's a look at 10 Manju Warrier films that you should watch if you're a fan, starting with the most recent: Asuran: Manju made her debut in Tamil cinema in this Vetrimaaran film where she acted with Dhanush. She played the fiery Pachaiyamal, who stands up to caste oppression. The film is on land rights and a...

Yes it’s true: Back in 1966 Sir Laurence Olivier scored a Best Actor nomination (along with three supporting actors) for his blackface “Othello” in a hybrid stage/film production from the National Theatre. And a decade later, James Whitmore was nominated for Best Actor for his role as president Harry S. Truman in “Give ’em Hell, Harry!,” a wobbly video of a stage play that didn’t even make it to New York until 2008.

This has led folks to speculate that Thomas Kail’s film, cut together from several 2016 performances of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway musical “Hamilton” (which won 11 Tony awards including Best Musical), could make a splash at the 2021 Oscars. Well, the Academy has shut the door on that possibility. “Hamilton” is not eligible. And that’s not because it streamed on Disney+ a full year before it was supposed to hit theaters, driving up Disney}+ app downloads by...

Yes it’s true: Back in 1966 Sir Laurence Olivier scored a Best Actor nomination (along with three supporting actors) for his blackface “Othello” in a hybrid stage/film production from the National Theatre. And a decade later, James Whitmore was nominated for Best Actor for his role as president Harry S. Truman in “Give ’em Hell, Harry!,” a wobbly video of a stage play that didn’t even make it to New York until 2008.

This has led folks to speculate that Thomas Kail’s film, cut together from several 2016 performances of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway musical “Hamilton” (which won 11 Tony awards including Best Musical), could make a splash at the 2021 Oscars. Well, the Academy has shut the door on that possibility. “Hamilton” is not eligible. And that’s not because it streamed on Disney+ a full year before it was supposed to hit theaters, driving up Disney}+ app downloads by...

Six years ago I wrote a piece titled “All White At The Top,” asking why the UK film industry was painfully bereft of Black, Asian and minority ethnic executives.

I drew up a list of more than 75 leading companies in production, sales, exhibition, distribution, post-production, public and private finance, VFX, talent agencies and physical studios. None of the companies were led by professionals from an ethnic minority and few had ethnic diversity in their most senior ranks.

Among the reasons for imbalance were class, nepotism, access, lack of regulation, complacency, stigma, stereotyping, unconscious bias and public funding “jobs for life.”

The piece was written during a wave of industry soul-searching, whose cultural breakthrough was expressed globally by the #OscarsSoWhite anger that surfaced in the same year. The outrage led to reforms on both sides of the pond.

Six years on, a survey of the industry’s leading film and TV...

Exclusive: Wme has signed actor Andre Holland.

Holland is best known for his performance in the Oscar-winning Best Picture Moonlight as well as High Flying Bird, Wrinkle in Time and Selma, the latter for which he was nominated for the NAACP Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture.

In television, his work includes his breakout role opposite Clive Owen in the Cinemax Steve Soderbergh series The Knick, as the lead in the first season of the Hulu series Castle Rock, FX’s American Horror Story: Roanoke (season 6).

Holland currently stars in the lead role of the Netflix series The Eddy.

Following the success of Moonlight, in 2017, Holland portrayed Youngblood in August Wilson’s play Jitney on Broadway. Since July 2018, he has starred in a production of Othello at Shakespeare’s Globe, costarring with Mark Rylance. In 2018, he made his Off Off Broadway directing debut with a production of Greg Keller’s Dutch Master.

Ranjan Ghosh is an acclaimed Bengali scriptwriter and filmmaker, based in Kolkata, India. In 2011 Ranjan Ghosh co-authored the story and screenplay of “Iti Mrinalini”, a Bengali movie directed by noted director Aparna Sen. He started his career as a filmmaker in 2014 with critically acclaimed movie “Hrid Majhare”, inspired by Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’ and with elements of ‘Julius Caesar’ and ‘Macbeth’ in it. Screened at the New York University Tisch School of Arts in 2015, “Hrid Majharey” was included in their Ph.D. in Cinema Studies (Shakespeare and Indian Cinema). Also, the film and its screenplay were included in the Ugc Literature Archive through the Shakespeare in Bengal project conducted by Jadavpur University, Kolkata. Ghosh’s second movie “Rong Beronger Korhi” (2018) has a unique narrative where four stories are connected through one single thread- money. His latest movie “Ahaa Re” (2019) is critically acclaimed and a box-office success, is a portrayal of a...

Brazilian TV giant Globo has brought to this year’s Natpe conference in Miami one of its biggest access prime time hits in the last eight years. “A Life Worth Living” underscores that, as Globo and its Svod service Globoplay explore ever more shorter series formats – “Second Call,” “Aruanas,” telenovelas and melodrama are still kings in Latin America.

With a daily audience of 36 million, the show turns on Paloma (Grazi Massafera), a dreamy seamstress and mother of three whose life is turned upside down when she’s diagnosed with a terminal disease. Wrongly, as she later discovers, along with the really terminally ill Alberto (Antonio Fagundes) a wealthy book publisher, on the verge of death. Between them a friendship blossoms inspired by a common love of literature and an awareness of how finite life is.

Variety talked with novela writers Rosane Svartman and Paulo Halm- whose work together has...