Asians and Pacific Islanders Are Leads in 3% of Top Films Since 2007, Study Finds

In a post-Covid world, media consumers plan, unsurprisingly, to watch more live sports, but a new study also shows they’ll seek diversity on screen and programming that’s more international, upbeat, educational and participatory that it was pre-pandemic.

Haley Bosselman editorWhen last week’s fire in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles broke out, Matt Blake did what any homeowner’s association president would do: he lent a helping hand.Blake, who is CAA’s head of comedy touring, played a key role in assisting in the arrest of the alleged arsonist who started the multiple fires that grew up to 1,200 acres in the Santa Monica Mountain National Recreation Area.

“The Donut King” (2020)From filmmaker Alice Gu, “The Donut King” traces the twisty, unexpected journey of Cambodian refugee Ted Ngoy, who arrived in California in the 1970s and, through a mixture of diligence and luck, built a multi-milion dollar donut empire up and down the west coast.After escaping the brutal Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, Ngoy started a new life in America as a church custodian and eventually parlayed hard luck and opportunity into the opening of his first donut shop in Orange

Since its controversial series premiere in 2017, Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why has taken more care in addressing mental health issues by highlighting resources and opening up the conversation more carefully. As a result teenage viewers are holding their own discussions and learning about mental health, anxiety, depression and more, a report from UCLA’s Center of Scholars and Storytellers (CSS) shows.

American actor and fashion icon Billy Porter recently revealed that he has been living with HIV aids. In a candid essay for The Hollywood Reporter, Porter, 51, revealed that he was first diagnosed with the incurable virus back in 2007.

A new study of film portrayals of Asian Pacific Islanders on the big screen makes it clear there’s a lot of room for improvement.

A new report from USC’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that only 5.9% of the 51,159 speaking roles in the 1,300 top-grossing movies from 2007-2019 were played by Asian American and Pacific Island actors, and that only 3.4% of those films had an API lead or co-lead, with only six movies featuring an API woman in a leading or co-leading role.

Armie Hammer is reportedly dating a woman in the Cayman Islands. The "Call Me By Your Name" actor has been linked to a local dental hygienist since earlier this year, People magazine reports.

It looks like Armie Hammer is moving on with his love life.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterTo highlight its Asian American and Pacific Islander creators and talent during AAPI Heritage Month, Netflix is launching a hub on the service dedicated to AAPI content, as well as a national ad campaign.The company joins other streaming services in spotlighting its AAPI shows and movies — HBO Max and Hulu are just two other streamers that debuted a dedicated collection of content featuring Asian Americans on screen.Netflix’s Celebrate Asian American & Pacific

Armie Hammer is out and about. The 34-year-old actor was recently spotted in the Cayman Islands -- his first time being seen publicly since being accused of rape last month.

[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]

Armie Hammer has been laying low in the Cayman Islands ever since a woman named Effie accused him in March 2021 of a violent rape that occurred in 2017. The actor has now been photographed for the first time since Effie’s Mar.