101 Studios Makes Overall Deal With Smokehouse TV Partners George Clooney & Grant Heslov

Hugh Grant had a choice description for himself during the Oscars on Sunday night.

Naman Ramachandran “Emily in Paris” star Lucas Bravo is thankful to George Clooney and Julia Roberts, who starred with him in hit 2022 romcom “Ticket to Paradise.” The dashing French star, who is also known for “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris,” was speaking at a press meet for the 16th Asian Film Awards in Hong Kong, where he is a presenter. “George and Julia happen to be the most generous, kind and protective people I’ve ever worked with — they go out of their way to make the set a safe place,” Bravo said. “They gave me an opportunity to improvise, they made me feel loved and accepted. And I’ve learned with them that the bigger the star, the nicer the person, so it gives me a lot of fuel for the rest of my career.”

EXCLUSIVE: Following the success of Netflix’s Wednesday and Oscar contender Elvis, Andrew Mittman has renewed his overall deal with MGM Television.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor In the final stretch to the Oscars, Hollywood’s A-List and industry insiders get their party on in the days and nights leading up to the big show. From Gina Prince-Bythewood being among the honorees at Essence’s Black Women in Hollywood Awards and a Friday night Versace fashion show to a celebration of Kerry Condon, Jessie Buckley and Eve Hewson at the Oscar Wilde Awards, this year’s Academy Award soirres and events are in full swing. Of course, the partying continues into the wee hours after the awards are handed out. Here, Variety gives you this year’s ultimate Oscar party guide.

Joni Mitchell made a rare live appearance to perform at the Library of Congress as part of the Gershwin Prize awards this week.Mitchell appeared at the Library of Congress in Washington DC on Thursday (March 2) as part of the LOC’s Gershwin Prize week. Footage shared on social media from the event shows Mitchell performing her 1966 hit ‘The Circle Game’ and ‘Summertime’ – see below.The Canadian folk singer was at the Library as part of the Live at the Library series in conversation with Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden.

When a movie gets tangled up in all kinds of financial problems, delayed for over a year, played out internationally, sent straight to streaming in Canada, and then finally getting the green light to open in the U.S. via a new distributor and thrown into theaters with virtually no notice or time to mount a marketing campaign, you have to think there must be something very wrong here.

Amy Grant is releasing new music after a decade-long break!

Naman Ramachandran For a solid decade, the U.K. contributed some of the most iconic floppy-haired lotharios, airport dashes and front-door confessions in romcom history. Films such as “Four Weddings and a Funeral” (1994), “Notting Hill” (1999) and “Love Actually” (2003) basically invented such hallmarks of the genre. But in the last decade, the global-facing British romcom has all but disappeared from cinemas. Richard Curtis, the brains behind the aforementioned hits as well as the “Bridget Jones” adaptations, says the heavy lifting keeping romcoms alive has largely been carried out in the television ranks. The writer cites examples such as the BBC’s “Gavin & Stacey” and “Fleabag” and Channel 4’s “Catastrophe” as “blazing examples.”

George Clooney has reportedly been giving his friend Brad Pitt advice on his latest relationship.

EXCLUSIVE: Five years after Netflix inked their first ever European overall series deal with Dark creators Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, the studio has re-upped with the duo in a splashy eight-figure pact, we can reveal.

Prime Video has secured the return of Dave Bautista (Knock at the Cabin), Chloe Coleman (Avatar: The Way of Water), Kristen Schaal (What We Do in the Shadows), Ken Jeong (The Afterparty) and others for their My Spy sequel, My Spy: The Eternal City. Among the new additions to the ensemble in the second installment are Anna Faris (Mom), Craig Robinson (The Office) and Flula Borg (Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin).

Amy Winehouse’s father Mitch has joked that he wanted to be played by George Clooney over Eddie Marsan in biopic Back To Black.Directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, the biopic stars Marisa Abela (Industry) as the late singer, alongside Jack O’Connell as Amy’s ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil, Marsan as Mitch, and Lesley Manville as her maternal grandmother.Speaking to The Mail On Sunday about the casting, Mitch said: “I told my friend that Eddie was playing me and he said – excuse my French – ‘Eddie fucking Marsan! He’s not very good-looking.’ I said, ‘I know – I wanted George Clooney!’”Mitch said he requested script changes to Taylor-Johnson over his portrayal, adding: “I sent the first script back. It made me look like a saint – like I should be knighted.

Richard E. Grant rocked up to the 2023 BAFTA Film Awards in the Batmobile at the advice of Steve Martin, he revealed in a video skit that kicked off his BAFTA monologue tonight. “One single gag can ruin your life and career,” Martin warned him before offering up 1000 rules (most of them thankfully omitted from broadcast) for how to be the perfect awards show host. “Don’t wear white,” Martin warned Grant, already clad in a white tux. “Start working out your monologue at least a year in advance”; “Don’t pick a fight with Judi Dench”; and “Don’t invest in Helen Mirren’s cryptocurrency, she’s a scammer.”

Naman Ramachandran Editors at Penguin’s children’s imprint Puffin have taken a red pencil to the works of iconic, but divisive British writer Roald Dahl, known for “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Matilda” among many others. An extensive report by U.K. newspaper The Telegraph says “language related to weight, mental health, violence, gender and race has been cut and rewritten.” In 1964 novel “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” which has been adapted twice as films in 1971 and 2005, starring Gene Hackman and Johnny Depp respectively, for example, the phrase “enormously fat” has been edited to just “enormous.” The same phrase in 1970 book “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” adapted as an animated film by Wes Anderson with a voice cast of George Clooney and Meryl Streep in 2009, has also been edited to “enormous.”

Alison Hammon d was “shamed” by movie icon Richard E Grant in the leadup to their hosting gig at the EE British Academy Film Awards. Alison, who recently celebrated her birthday alongside her son and the likes of Holly Willoughby, is co-hosting this year's EE Baftas alongside Richard on Sunday night Before taking to the stage at the Royal Festive Hall alongside the national treasure, Richard, 65, revealed the awkward moment Alison, 48, forgot she’d already met him. While speaking with Emma Willis, who recently set off on an adventure alongside Rylan Clark and Oti Mabuse, Richard said: "I did, because I was on the show that she's on - on another channel, in the morning! "And so when we met, I said, 'Alison, we met before'.

Naman Ramachandran Singapore and India-based Mumba Devi Motion Pictures is screening two films at Berlin’s European Film Market (EFM) and has unveiled a slate of future titles. The company, headed by producer Sweta Chhabria and producer-director Aditya Kripalani, makes issue-based films focusing on stories that are mostly to do with gender and burning topics like suicide prevention and mental health. The outfit makes it a point to minimize the male gaze by bringing on board heads of department who are all women. Kripalani and Chhabria’s just-completed Singapore-set film “Grand Sugar Daddy,” which has its market premiere at EFM on Feb. 18, follows a 70-year-old widower who is introduced to the world of Sugar Daddies and Sugar Babies. The film traces his conversations with a Singaporean Chinese woman, an Indian woman and a transgender Malay.

Believe it or not, M. Night Shyamalan had his seventh #1 opening weekend at the box office with “Knock At The Cabin” earlier this month.

Poorna Jagannathan is teaming up with George Clooney and Brad Pitt in their latest Apple TV+ thriller “Wolves”.

EXCLUSIVE: Poorna Jagannathan (Never Have I Ever, Defending Jacob) has joined the cast of the untitled Apple Original Films thriller starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt from writer, producer, and director Jon Watts.

William Earl ABC Signature alum Menaka Evans has been named chief financial officer for ITV America and ITV Studios America. Evans will oversee financial planning, accounting and business operations for the wide range of production banners that fall under the umbrella of ITV Studios in the U.S. She comes to the company from ABC Signature, where she was head of finance and business planning. “Menaka brings deep experience in entertainment industry finance, as well as acute understanding of the complexities involved in producing unscripted and scripted programs in today’s content landscape,” said Philippe Maigret, ITV Studios America president and managing director and ITV America CEO David George in a joint statement. “She’s also incredibly well-versed in the cross-collaboration between U.S and UK entities, making her a unique and valuable new member of our senior teams.”