Drug-induced decadence is nothing new in Los Angeles, but director Damien Chazelle sought to capture it in its extreme in Babylon, his exploration of 1920s Hollywood during the advent of the “talkies era.”
04.11.2022 - 16:37 / deadline.com
The clocks have gone back in the UK, meaning longer, darker nights and the sense summer is long gone. Happily, there’s plenty of news to keep us occupied. Jesse Whittock here taking you through the first Insider of the month. Let’s go.
Roku Gets Down With Weird Al
Eilenberg! Right ahead!: I sat down, albeit virtually, with Roku’s Head of Originals David Eilenberg for an exclusive interview as the free streaming service launched feature Weird: The Al Yankovic Story this week. Roku’s a company that many in the content game are watching closely, as it begins rolling out internationally under the command of former Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier, who unexpectedly made the switch at the end of October. Eilenberg, the former Chief Content Officer of ITV America, has been working on a slate of films and TV shows since he joined earlier this year. “It’s an exciting time to be part of the organization,” he told me. “Roku itself has been around for the past two decades but Roku Originals are only a year old so the fact we’re up and active in four big territories means it’s an exciting time for the channel and my time spearheading originals.” With the digital ad market dipping and the global economy in a perilous place right now, all content companies with big ambitions are assessing their plans but Roku is clearly setting out its stall to be a key player. The fact it held loud and colourful screenings for Weird in London and New York this week points to confidence and Eilenberg was bullish, saying: “If there’s a key statement here, it’s that we’re setting out to surprise and delight viewers.”
Getting FASTer: The advertiser-funded streaming market saw the entrance of Netflix this week, which debuted low-cost tier ‘Basic
Drug-induced decadence is nothing new in Los Angeles, but director Damien Chazelle sought to capture it in its extreme in Babylon, his exploration of 1920s Hollywood during the advent of the “talkies era.”
Insiders: it’s Friday, you’re hungry for a recap of big international film and TV news and I’ve got a pot of stories boiling on the hob. Jesse Whittock here dishing up the scoops of the week.
Actor Kevin Spacey will be charged with a further string of sex offences against one man.
Kevin Spacey is facing a further seven sexual offense charges in the UK.
Good afternoon, Insiders. Jesse Whittock back again this week, taking you through the week’s top headlines, with reports from LA, Greece and the Qatar World Cup. Here we go.
Kevin Spacey is set to take part in a public masterclass at Italy’s National Museum of Cinema in Turin where he will also be awarded a lifetime achievement award.
A psychologist who testified for Anthony Rapp in his failed case against fellow actor Kevin Spacey took the stand Friday, again for the plaintiff, in the New York sexual assault civil trial of filmmaker Paul Haggis.
Good afternoon Insiders, Max Goldbart here following another busy week in our world. Read on for our dissection of the biggest headlines.
Welcome back to Insider, Jesse Whittock guiding you through this time around. It’s been a week of excitement from the international TV industry in Cannes and another one of utter chaos at Downing Street in the UK. All the latest news and views follow, so let’s go.
Anthony Rapp has issued a statement following his defeat today in a $40 million sexual misconduct lawsuit against actor Kevin Spacey. The jury came in after just an hour of deliberations and found two-time Oscar winner Spacey not liable for damages.
A jury has concluded Kevin Spacey did not sexually abuse fellow actor Anthony Rapp in the 80s, something he has always denied.
Kevin Spacey rested their case on Wednesday, while attempting to paint Anthony Rapp as a narcissist who is bringing a $40 million sexual misconduct lawsuit against the Oscar-winning actor in order to draw attention to himself. Rapp only wanted to attend a “highly publicized hearing with media attention,” Spacey’s attorney Chase Scolnick asserted at one point. To push that line of attack, Scolnick grilled forensic psychiatrist Alexander Bardey about Rapp’s emotional state. He claimed the actor was attention-seeking and showed no signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, citing the fact that Rapp told friends about the encounter with Spacey over the years, but never revealed the incident to his therapist.
Matthew Perry is opening up about his struggles with addiction. Ahead of the release of his memoir, , the 53-year-old actor tells about how his struggles with alcohol and opioids impacted his time on .Perry was 24 when he was cast as Chandler Bing on the long-running sitcom. At the time, his struggle with alcohol wasn't totally unmanageable.
Naman Ramachandran Indian media and entertainment company Shemaroo Entertainment is collaborating with Indian Media Entertainment Network (IMEN) to reimagine 1990 Bollywood hit “Jamai Raja,” that starred Anil Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit and Hema Malini. The news was revealed on Oct. 19, the 32nd anniversary of the film’s theatrical release. The film, which revolves around a mother-in-law and son-in-law conflict, was originally made in the Telugu language in 1989 by writer-director A. Kodandarami Reddy as “Attaku Yamudu Ammayiki Mogudu,” starring Chiranjeevi and Vijayshanti. It was remade in Tamil the same year as “Mappillai,” starring Rajinikanth, and another Tamil-language remake of the same name, starring Dhanush, released in 2011. Reddy also directed “Jamai Raja.” A Bengali-language remake “Sasurbari Zindabad,” starring Prosenjit Chatterjee, released in 2000.
Kevin Spacey finished testifying on Tuesday in the $40 million sexual misconduct lawsuit brought against the “House of Cards” star by Anthony Rapp. The Oscar-winning actor was cross-examined by Rapp’s attorney Richard Steigman, and remained calm, smirking at points, as he was grilled about his drug use and memories of encountering Rapp in 1986 when they were both appearing in stage productions. Rapp was 14 and starring in “Precious Sons”; Spacey was on Broadway in the Jack Lemmon-led revival of “Long Day’s Journey Into Night.” The conversation was meandering — Spacey continued to deny Rapp’s claims that he tried to seduce the then-teenager — and at one point even touched upon a key sequence in “American Beauty” in which Spacey’s character Lester Burnham masturbates to an image of his daughter’s best friend bedecked with rose petals while lying in an oversized tub.
Kevin Spacey remained composed Tuesday during cross examination at a civil trial, repeatedly rejecting suggestions that he wasn't telling the truth when he denied an actor’s claims that he made a sexual advance on him when he was 14 in the 1980s. His testimony for several hours on cross examination by a lawyer for actor Anthony Rapp, 50, went smoothly enough that Spacey's lawyer did not ask any questions after the examination was completed by early afternoon.
the Star Trek: Discovery actor accused Spacey of sexual misconduct, which led the latter to apologise while coming out as gay and claiming he had no memory of the alleged incident.“I was being encouraged to apologise and I’ve learned a lesson, which is never apologise for something that you didn’t do,” Spacey said on Monday (October 17) according to Variety. “I regret my entire statement.”The publication goes on to claim Spacey broke down in tears in court, adding: “It’s my responsibility.