Variety

‘Supergirl’ Star David Krumholtz Posts and Deletes Plans to Retire From Acting: ‘And Now, New Life’

David Krumholtz, who played Kor-El in this year’s “Supergirl” and appeared in “Oppenheimer” and “The Studio,” said on Threads Monday that he’s done with acting and ready to start a “new life.” However...

1 week ago

John Irvin, Director of ‘Hamburger Hill,’ ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,’ Dies at 86

John Irvin, the British director of “Hamburger Hill,” the “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” miniseries and 1981’s “Ghost Story,” died Aug. 11. He was 86. His producers confirmed he died at the home of his ...

1 week ago

‘Heroes’ Creator Tim Kring Pays Tribute to Hayden Panettiere as a ‘Singularly Talented Actor’ With a ‘Deep Understanding of Human Nature’

Hayden Panettiere was a seasoned professional by the time she auditioned for “Heroes” at the age of 16. But unlike many actors who start working as kids, Hayden had no sense of jaded child actor quali...

1 week ago

Felicia Day, Wil Wheaton on New Tabletop Gaming Show ‘Conludo,’ How ‘The Guild’ Reunion Movie Will Be Impacted by a Denied California Tax Credit

Reunions all around for Felicia Day these days: Amid a massive fundraiser for a movie reunion of her series “The Guild,” Day is reteaming with longtime friend and collaborator Wil Wheaton for a new ki...

1 week ago

Walmart Touts Free Peacock Access for Walmart+ Members on Heels of Streamer’s Latest Price Hike

Walmart is offering up some new deals, discounts and special offers right now, including a way to get a Peacock streaming subscription for free. While Walmart is touting its back to school deals right...

1 week ago

Clive Barker Announces Kickstarter-Exclusive Anthology Book Series ‘Library of the Dead’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Horror master Clive Barker is set to release the new “Library of the Dead” anthology project Aug. 18 exclusively on Kickstarter. The three-book horror anthology consists of three books: “Fear Eternal,...

1 week ago

How ‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,’ ‘Fallout’ and ‘Spider-Noir’ Production Designers Built Out Their Worlds While Honoring the Source Material

This year, an unprecedented number of genre and fantasy shows broke into the Emmys race, including “Widow’s Bay,” “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” “It: Welcome to Derry,” “Fallout,” “Spider-Noir” and...

1 week ago

California Lawmakers Near Deal to Address Impact of Tax Cap on Film Credits

California lawmakers are closing in on a deal to help film producers who are facing new limits on their ability to monetize production tax credits. The agreement falls short of the entertainment indus...

1 week ago

Why a Reunion Between the Two Rival TV Academies Is Long Overdue

Last month’s news that the two rival TV academies are looking to reunite was welcome and overdue — but it won’t be as easy as flipping a switch. The Los Angeles-based Television Academy and the New Yo...

1 week ago

Oscars Budget, ‘Engaging’ With AI and Hot Memorabilia: Inside the Academy’s Annual All-Members Meeting (EXCLUSIVE)

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences got down to business on Tuesday, setting its agenda for the next year in an all-hands meeting with its membership. The official purpose, as noted in the...

1 week ago

Robin Williams’ Kids Revive Instagram Account to Combat AI Slop: ‘As Technology Evolves, We Want This to be a Safe, Trusted Place’

Nearly a month after the late Robin Williams’ 75th birthday, his three children have revived his Instagram account as a hub for honoring their father’s legacy — and to combat the “rampant AI abuse” of...

1 week ago

Dale Dickey on Her First Emmy Nomination for ‘Widow’s Bay’ and the Monologue That Made Her Say, ‘What the F—‘

A few years back, Dale Dickey walked into a department store looking for a dress. She was wearing what she usually wears — T-shirt, shorts, flip-flops, no makeup — and a salesperson gave her the once-...

1 week ago

Sundance Prizewinner Blerta Basholli on Kosovar War Drama ‘Dua’: ‘Teenagers Growing Up in Conflict Zones Are No Different From Any of Us’

Kosovar filmmaker Blerta Basholli’s debut “Hive” won the Grand Jury Prize, the Directing Award and the Audience Award in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at the Sundance Film Festival in 2021. In...

1 week ago

Motion Picture Academy Names Sean Baker and Samantha Quan as Chairs of Marquee Theater Committee

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Sean Baker and his partner, producer Samantha Quan, as the co-chairs of the new Marquee Theater Committee, which reviews submissions and recom...

1 week ago

Hayden Panettiere’s Estranged Mom Speaks Out After Actor’s Death: She ‘Lost Her Way’ and ‘I Wish She Had Stayed True to Herself’

Hayden Panettiere’s estranged mother and former manager, Lesley Vogel, has spoken out about her daughter’s shocking death at the age of 36. In an interview with NBC News, Vogel said, “I think Hayden w...

1 week ago

Frank Beard, Longtime ZZ Top Drummer, Dies at 77

Frank Beard, ZZ Top’s longtime drummer for the past 56 years, has died. He was 77. A representative for Beard confirmed that he died while in hospice care at his ranch in Richmond, Texas, with his fam...

1 week ago

How the ‘Hacks’ Production Team Created a ’70s Sitcom Set and Overcame Las Vegas-Sized Challenges

In the “Hacks” universe, “Who’s Making Dinner?” is a fictional sitcom celebrating its 50th anniversary at PaleyFest with a screening and party. The story goes that the sitcom was created in the 1970s ...

1 week ago

Tyler, the Creator, Future, Leon Thomas to Perform at Camp Flog Gnaw 2026

Tyler, the Creator has released the lineup for his 12th annual Camp Flog Gnaw Festival, taking place at Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium on November 14-15. The rapper revealed the slate of performers via a...

1 week ago

Laci Mosley’s ‘Scam Goddess’ Comedy Podcast Launches Video Episodes on YouTube, Joins Will Ferrell’s Big Money Players Network at iHeart

“Scam Goddess,” comedy podcast in which Laci Mosley and friends feast on crazy stories about frauds past and present, is now coming at you in video. “Scam Goddess” has joined iHeartMedia and Will Ferr...

1 week ago

Round Hill Music Sues Suno, Anthropic for Copyright Infringement, Seeking Up to $1 Billion in Damages

The independent music publisher Round Hill Music sued Suno and Anthropic, accusing the two AI companies in a federal court in California of infringing its copyright by illegally scraping hundreds of i...

1 week ago

Cinemark Joins AMC Theatres and Regal in Supporting Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery Merger

Cinemark has endorsed the Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery merger, meaning all three of the country’s major theater chains are backing the $111 billion deal. “The enduring success of our industry ...

1 week ago

Ella Langley on Spotlighting Female Country Artists on Tour, Wanting to Work With Harry Styles and Miranda Lambert Advice

For Ella Langley, 2026 has been one long victory lap. The Alabama-born country star’s “Choosin’ Texas” has become a bona fide crossover phenomenon, spending 15 weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 — a rec...

1 week ago

Kevin Hart and Henry Cavill’s Netflix Spy Comedy Adds Jason Isaacs, Justine Lupe and Aja Naomi King (EXCLUSIVE)

Kevin Hart and Henry Cavill’s spy comedy at Netflix has added three to its cast. Jason Isaacs (“Harry Potter,” “The White Lotus”), Justine Lupe (“Nobody Wants This,” “Succession”) and Aja Naomi King (...

1 week ago

Phyllida Law, Scottish Actress and Mother of Emma and Sophie Thompson, Dies at 94

Phyllida Law, the Scottish actress and mother of Emma and Sophie Thompson, has died. She was 94. “It is with great sadness we have to announce that Phyllida Law died supremely peacefully at home, surr...

1 week ago

‘Hidden Heroes: A Descendants Story’ Adds 6 to Cast, Including Darren Criss as Jiminy Cricket and Sherry Cola as Yzma From ‘Emperor’s New Groove’

The Disney Channel and Disney+ movie “Hidden Heroes: A Descendants Story” is rounding out its cast with six new additions. The new cast members are: Darren Criss (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace:...

1 week ago

‘What Will I Become?’ Review: Transmasculine Lives Take Center Stage in a Poignant Portrait of Loss

At an early point in “What Will I Become?,” co-director Logan Rozos explains to the camera, “We are not taken seriously, so we have to take ourselves very seriously.” The film he has made, with Lexie ...

1 week ago

Bill Rasmussen, ESPN’s Founder, Dies at 93

Bill Rasmussen, a former local-news sports director who parlayed an interest in the nascent business of satellite television into the launch of the sports-media giant known as ESPN, has died after a b...

1 week ago

Fulvio Lucisano, Italian Producer of ‘Planet of the Vampires’ and ‘What Have You Done to Solange?,’ Dies at 98

Italian producer Fulvio Lucisano, who shepherded a slew of cult B-movies such as “Planet of the Vampires” and “What Have You Done to Solange?” and had a close rapport with Roger Corman, has died. He w...

1 week ago

C+C Music Factory Co-Founder Robert Clivillés Sues Freedom Williams for $30 Million, Alleging He Wrongfully Claimed Trademark Despite Never Being a Gr...

Whatever fallout came as a result of the canceled Freedom 250 concerts on the National Mall in Washington this summer, we can add a lawsuit that otherwise might not have happened. One prominent figure...

1 week ago

Angélique Kidjo Talks ‘Hope,’ Her Mother’s Legacy and Making History With a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Two things have been crucial to a restless Angélique Kidjo since her childhood in Benin, West Africa: diverse, universal, nuanced brands of truthful musical storytelling in all its forms, and her moth...

1 week ago

Ascend Literary Management Signs ‘Average Joe’ Creator Robb Cullen (EXCLUSIVE)

Ascend Literary Management has signed Robb Cullen for representation, Variety has learned exclusively. Cullen continues to be repped by IAG and Jared Levine, Sabrina Padwa and Jonathan Leiter of Yorn ...

1 week ago

Shakira, Global Citizen, Live Nation and CAF Commit $1.25 Million to Rebuild Schools in Colombia Following Earthquake

Shakira, the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, Live Nation and CAF have announced a $1.25 million initial commitment to rebuild schools following the devastating earthquake in Colombia last week. Th...

1 week ago

SXSW Sets Podcast Festival, Locals-Only Perks and Changes in Music Venues for 2027 Event in Austin

South by Southwest has unveiled plans for a podcast festival, new locals-only perks and temporary changes in music venues for the 2027 event that will unfold on the streets of Austin, Texas in March. ...

1 week ago

‘Mother’ Director Teona Mitevska Preps Sequel to Feminist Satirical Drama ‘God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunya’ (EXCLUSIVE)

North Macedonian filmmaker Teona Mitevska (“Mother”) is prepping a sequel to her satirical drama “God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya,” which premiered in competition at the Berlinale in 2019, the direct...

1 week ago

Nonprofit Production Waterwell Doubles Funding for Unseen Iran Grants to Artists Representing the Diaspora in Film, TV, Theater and More

Nonprofit production venture Waterwell, co-founded by “Succession” player Arian Moayed, and nonprofit Nimruz has doubled the funding for their program of Unseen Iran Grants now in its second cycle. Fu...

1 week ago

Madonna Leads VMAs Nominations With 11, Followed by Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Ariana Grande

It’s no time warp — Madonna leads all other divas in nominations for the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, with 11 nods, it was announced Tuesday morning. She’s followed by Taylor Swift, with nine nominati...

1 week ago

Nicolas Altmayer, Beloved French Producer Behind ‘OSS 117,’ and Dior Executive Mathilde Favier Die in Car Crash

Nicolas Altmayer, the prolific French producer behind the “OSS 117” franchise and films by François Ozon, Bertrand Bonello and Julia Ducournau, and his partner Mathilde Favier, a prominent Dior public...

1 week ago

War Child U.K. Kicks Off Secret 7″ Record Auction, Featuring Tracks From John Lennon, the Last Dinner Party, Glass Animals and More

War Child U.K. has officially kicked off the 10th edition of its Secret 7″ record auction, featuring 700 sleeves designed by world-renowned artists and tracks from John Lennon, the Last Dinner Party, ...

1 week ago

Craig Carton to Launch New Show on Fox’s Outkick

Craig Carton, the longtime sportscaster best known, perhaps, for his stints on New Yorks’ WFAN, will join Fox’s Outkick sports-media outlet, hosting a new three-days-a-week program for a national audi...

1 week ago

Edinburgh Film Festival Competition Directors on the Craziest, Most Challenging Moments Making Their First Features and Why They Can’t Wait to Do It A...

The chaos, hard graft and — ultimately — privileged thrill of feature filmmaking were the central themes of conversation at the Variety Lounge at Edinburgh International Film Festival as the rising di...

1 week ago

Publicis Groupe, 3 Arts, Travis Kelce Launch Venture to Help Advertisers Strike Deals With College Athletes

French advertising giant Publicis Groupe has a new American teammate: Travis Kelce. The ad-holding company and the popular Kansas City Chiefs tight end are forming a joint venture that aims to help ad...

1 week ago

ABC Files First Amendment Lawsuit Against FCC

Disney’s ABC filed a First Amendment lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday, raising the pitch of the company’s efforts to countermand unusual pressure from the federal gover...

1 week ago

Peacock Raises Prices Across All Plans, NBCU’s Fourth Increase in Four Years

NBCUniversal’s Peacock just turned profitable for the first time. And now the company is raising prices for all customers, marking the streamer’s fourth fee increase in four years. Starting Aug. 18, P...

1 week ago

‘Ice Princess’ Director Remembers Stars Hayden Panettiere and Michelle Trachtenberg as an ‘Amazing Pair’: ‘Two Shining Talents, Gone Far Too Soon’

“Ice Princess” director Tim Fywell has penned a sweet tribute to the two stars of his beloved 2005 ice skating movie, Hayden Panettiere and Michelle Trachtenberg, following Panettiere’s death on Sunda...

1 week ago

Oscars: Taiwan Selects ‘A Foggy Tale’ for International Feature Race

“A Foggy Tale,” directed by Chen Yu-hsun, has been selected to represent Taiwan in the best international feature film category at the 99th Academy Awards, Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture has revealed. T...

1 week ago

Diego Luna on Challenging How Migrants Are Viewed With ‘Ashes’: ‘We’re Not Thinking About What They Left Behind’

Between conducting a masterclass and attending an open-air screening of his fourth directorial feature, “Ashes,” Diego Luna dropped by the Variety Lounge presented by the Sarajevo Film Festival and BH...

1 week ago

Hayden Panettiere’s Ex Wladimir Klitschko Remembers Her ‘Immense Talent While Also Facing the Darker Sides’ of the Industry: ‘She Left This World Far ...

Hayden Panettiere’s ex Wladimir Klitschko, who is the father of her 11-year-old daughter Kaya, is mourning the actress following her death on Sunday at the age of 36. In an Instagram post late Monday ...

1 week ago

Croatian Crime Drama ‘Red Water,’ Directed by Cannes Prizewinner Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic, to Be Co-Produced by ZDF/Arte, Beta Film (EXCLUSIVE)

Beta Film has teamed up with ZDF/Arte and Antitalent to co-produce the Croatian crime drama “Red Water,” winner of the 2025 Council of Europe Series Co-Production Development Award at the Sarajevo Fil...

1 week ago

Sundance Breakout ‘Thelma’ Set for Mandarin Remake by Stars Collective, Titled ‘Grandma, Please’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Stars Collective has acquired the Mandarin-language remake rights to “Thelma,” the 2024 Sundance Film Festival breakout that became Magnolia Pictures’ highest-grossing narrative feature, and is develo...

1 week ago

‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ ‘The Odyssey’ Continue Tussle Atop U.K., Ireland Box Office

Sony’s superhero tentpole “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” dominated the U.K. and Ireland box office for a third consecutive weekend, adding £6.1 million ($8.3 million), elevating its running total to $106...

1 week ago