ID PR’s Alla Plotkin Departs Company; Rebecca Sides Capellan Promoted to SVP (EXCLUSIVE)

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer The Darnell Ferguson-hosted primetime competition “Superchef Grudge Match” has been renewed for Season 2 at Food Network. Production on the eight-episode second season is set to begin later this year, with new episodes scheduled to debut in early 2024. Hosted by “Tournament of Champions” alum Ferguson, “Superchef Grudge Match” seeks to settle two long-standing personal and professional food feuds in one-round, one-dish winner-takes-all heavyweight battles. Per Food Network’s official description: “The food world is filled with rivalries and on ‘Superchef Grudge Match,’ host Darnell Ferguson stages battles between chefs who have beefs with each other to finally bury the hatchet and win $10,000 cash, a prized knife from the losing chef and lifelong bragging rights over their food foe. From food competition rivalries and business partner squabbles to mentor vs. protégé grudges, sparks fly in and out of the kitchen in this one-hour series.”

Naman Ramachandran Emmy, SAG and Golden Globe nominee Evan Rachel Wood (“Westworld”) has joined the cast of D.W. Waterson’s feature directorial debut “Backspot.” Executive produced by Elliot Page and starring Devery Jacobs and Kudakwashe Rutendo in lead roles as queer young athletes, the film has wrapped principal production after weeks of filming in the Toronto area. Wood stars as professional cheer coach Eileen McNamara, head coach of the high-performance Thunderhawks squad who pulls Riley (Jacobs) and Amanda (Rutendo) from their mid-level cheer team to be a part of her group of intensely competitive athletes. Matthew Jordan Smith, J.C.Davidson and Katisha Shaw serve as executive producers alongside page. The film is produced by Alona Metzer, Waterson, Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs and Martin Katz.

T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach are partners in life and in fitness.

T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach are partners in life and in fitness. A source tells ET that both Amy and T.J. have always been fitness enthusiasts, taking exercise very seriously, working out daily, eating right, and maintaining an active, healthy lifestyle.«Amy has been an avid long-distance runner the majority of her life, she's on KETO, and has always used the open road to clear her mind, focus her energy, and channel it into bettering herself,» the source says. «And while T.J. has always been very active/into sports, Amy inspired his newfound love of long-distance running, and it's been a shared passion ever since. Expect to see the two on the open road, running together, in future races,» the source adds.On Nov. 7, 2022, Amy and T.J.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent French-Moroccan director Sofia Alaoui made a splash at Sundance with her sci-fi thriller “Animalia,” which used genre to explore dark sides of Moroccan society. The filmmaker is now employing similar tropes in the early stages on a TV series titled “Let the Earth Burn.” “Animalia,” winner of the Special Jury Award for Creative Vision within Sundance’s World Cinema Dramatic Competition, is about a pregnant young woman from a rural Berber background who winds up emancipating herself as aliens land in Morocco. “Let the Earth Burn,” unveiled during the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra Arab film and TV series projects incubator this week, takes its cue from real abductions and slayings in remote areas of Morocco of kids known as “Zouhri” whom the kidnappers believe have supernatural powers.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Satellite radio and podcast company SiriusXM extended its relationship with Kevin Hart and his entertainment company, Hartbeat, in a new multiyear deal. Under the agreement, Hartbeat will continue to curate content on Hart’s Laugh Out Loud Radio (SiriusXM channel 96), where all of Hartbeat’s audio programs will premiere exclusively — and the channel will have the exclusive first window on a previously unreleased stand-up album from late comedy legend Bernie Mac. Hart, who first struck a deal with SiriusXM in 2017, will continue to host his show and podcast, the newly renamed “Gold Minds With Kevin Hart” (formerly called “Comedy Gold Minds”), which debuts its new season Wednesday (March 15) at 7 p.m. ET exclusively on SiriusXM. In the season premiere, the comedian-actor-producer-entrepreneur will host filmmaker Ryan Coogler, and the duo will discuss his career journey, working with Michael B. Jordan across multiple projects including “Creed III,” and receiving guidance from the likes of Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Sylvester Stallone and Christopher Nolan along the way.

Trump admitted that Florida governor Ron DeSantis is “probably” his biggest challenger for the GOP presidential nomination.Of course, he immediately added that “we’re not going to have much of a challenge.” But Fallon thinks there was one other addendum to that.“Trump said his only other rivals are the Justice Department and high cholesterol,” he said. Indeed, the former president remains under several investigations, though not all of them are specifically from the Justice Department.

Oscars.ET was inside at rehearsals for the 95th Academy Awards Saturday, for an exclusive look at Sunday's show, which saw everyone from presenters and performers to the crew and even stand-in winners perfecting all the last minute details to ensure that everything goes smoothly on the big night.Mindy Kaling and John Cho nailed their parts after one or two tries, with the pair workshopping their jokes throughout. A discussion of whether to say «the winner is,» or «the Oscar goes to,» was had, with Kaling practicing opening the winner's envelope as well.

Oscars.ET was inside at rehearsals for the 95th Academy Awards Saturday, for an exclusive look at Sunday's show, which saw everyone from presenters and performers to the crew and even stand-in winners perfecting all the last minute details to ensure that everything goes smoothly on the big night.Mindy Kaling and John Cho nailed their parts after one or two tries, with the pair workshopping their jokes throughout. A discussion of whether to say «the winner is,» or «the Oscar goes to,» was had, with Kaling practicing opening the winner's envelope as well.

Tatiana Siegel For the past year, Volodymyr Zelensky has been greeted with open arms by awards shows, film festivals and even the New York Stock Exchange. But when it comes to landing airtime on the most coveted telecast of all — the Oscars — the Ukrainian leader is being met with a cold shoulder. For the second year in a row, the Academy has snubbed Zelensky, who was hoping to follow up his Berlin Film Festival (remote) appearance last month with a virtual spot on Sunday’s Oscar telecast on ABC. Sources say WME power agent Mike Simpson made a plea to the Academy to include the comedic actor-turned-politician but was shut down. The Academy declined comment. 

*WINNER.   ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” Written by Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert *WINNER“The Fabelmans,” Written by Steven Spielberg & Tony Kushner “The Menu,” Written by Seth Reiss & Will Tracy “Nope,” Written by Jordan Peele “Tár,” Written by Todd Field   ADAPTED SCREENPLAY “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” Screenplay by Ryan Coogler & Joe Robert Cole, Story by Ryan Coogler, Based on the Marvel Comics “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” Written by Rian Johnson “She Said,” Screenplay by Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Based on the New York Times Investigation by Jodi Kantor, Megan Twohey and Rebecca Corbett and the Book She Said by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey “Top Gun: Maverick,” Screenplay by Ehren Kruger and Eric Warren Singer and Christopher McQuarrie, Story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks, Based on Characters Created by Jim Cash & Jack Epps, Jr.

*WINNER.   ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” Written by Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert “The Fabelmans,” Written by Steven Spielberg & Tony Kushner “The Menu,” Written by Seth Reiss & Will Tracy “Nope,” Written by Jordan Peele “Tár,” Written by Todd Field   ADAPTED SCREENPLAY “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” Screenplay by Ryan Coogler & Joe Robert Cole, Story by Ryan Coogler, Based on the Marvel Comics “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” Written by Rian Johnson “She Said,” Screenplay by Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Based on the New York Times Investigation by Jodi Kantor, Megan Twohey and Rebecca Corbett and the Book She Said by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey “Top Gun: Maverick,” Screenplay by Ehren Kruger and Eric Warren Singer and Christopher McQuarrie, Story by Peter Craig and Justin Marks, Based on Characters Created by Jim Cash & Jack Epps, Jr.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor Former ID PR publicists Rachel Karten and Lindsay Krug have launched their own firm, Origin Public Relations. Their client roster already includes Kathy Bates, Hannah Einbinder, Tracee Ellis Ross, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Kumail Nanjiani, Emily Hampshire, D’Arcy Carden, Gillian Jacobs, Uzo Aduba, Abbi Jacobson, Christopher Storer, Jen Statsky, Andrea Savage, Busy Philipps, Ilana Glazer, Chris Estrada, Martha Plimpton, Lennon Parham, Jessica St. Clair, Liam James, May Calamawy, Michaela Watkins, Annabel Oakes, Jillian Bell, Abe Sylvia, Katy Mixon and Ellen Rapoport. Karten and Krug left ID PR — founded by power player Kelly Bush Novak in 1993 — in early February after 16 years with the company. “We are grateful to ID for their guidance and mentorship over the past 16 years. We are thrilled to be launching our own publicity firm and embark on this next chapter of our careers,” Karten and Krug told Variety in a joint statement shorting after announcing their departures.

projected to pull in $40 million its opening weekend. MGM is projecting $35 to $38 million, on par with “Creed II”s $35.5 million opening. The 2018 sequel brought $3.7 million from preview screenings that took place on a Tuesday night ahead of the extended Thanksgiving weekend in 2018.“Creed III” must take in more than $115 domestically and $214 million worldwide to beat its predecessor, while the first installment in the franchise made $109 million in the U.S.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor Legendary New York City drag queen Kevin Aviance has found new management following Beyoncé sampling him her album “Renaissance.” Aviance has signed with Voss Management. “Thank you, Beyoncé! I finally feel validated!,” he told me Thursday. “I never thought at 54 years of age that a Black, bald queen from the New York City underground scene would be offered an exclusive contract with a leading LGBTQ+ management firm. I’m so ready to make Kevin Aviance a household name!” Aviance’s vocals from his 1996 dance hit, “Cunty,” can be heard at the top of “Pure/Honey,” Track 15 on “Renaissance.”

Michael B. Jordan just went from man to legend. On Wednesday, the 36-year-old received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, cemented in front of Funko Hollywood on Hollywood Blvd.

In this new teaser for Paramount+’s Fatal Attraction series, Lizzy Caplan’s Alex Forrest shares an elevator with Joshua Jackson’s Dan Gallagher and asks “Do you ever push that red button?” We can be pretty sure she’s not merely talking about an emergency stop.

Michael B. Jordan's directorial debut has been a long time in the making! The 36-year-old pulled double duty as director and star for the highly anticipated third installment of the spinoff franchise, , and according to critics, he did the thing.«It feels good, it feels like people are getting the work, you know? They understand what we're trying to say, what we are doing and it feels good to be understood a little bit,» the star tells ET's Nischelle Turner.

, with Joshua Jackson, Lizzy Caplan and Amanda Peet taking over the roles first originated by Michael Douglas, Glenn Close and Anne Archer, respectively. In the extended teaser for the series, Alex Forrest (Caplan) seduces Dan Gallagher (Jackson) before the two are seen engaging in a passionate affair. The only catch is, Dan is married — and at the end of the clip, we see Alex introducing herself to his wife, Beth (Peet), who is seemingly unaware of what's going on between the two of them. Adapted by creator Alexandra Cunningham, who also serves as the showrunner, the series will reimagine the cultural touchstones of what made the psychosexual thriller an instant classic while exploring timeless themes of marriage and infidelity and issues related to views of strong women, personality disorders and coercive control through a modern lens. «Culturally, we've come a long way since 1987.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor Raven-Symoné will receive the Icon Award at this year’s Better Brothers LA Truth Awards. Broadcasting on Fox Soul, the gala, which is co-presented by Sheryl Lee Ralph and her The DIVA Foundation, will also honor Netflix’s The Upshaws (Cultural Affirmation Award), Judge Greg Mathis, Greg Mathis Jr. and “Mathis Family Matters” (Family Award), Starz #TakeTheLead (Corporate Leadership & Diversity Award), Tabitha Brown (Ally Award), Byron Perkins (Courage Award), Dr. Darnell Hunt (Excellence in Education Award), Dr. David Malebranche (Advocate Award) and the Unique Woman’s Coalition (Advocate Award). Better Brothers Los Angeles (BBLA) is a networking and social organization for members of the Black LGBTQ+ community.