Lee Daniels Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

EJ Panaligan editor Actress and singer Patti LaBelle is set the guest star in ABC’s “The Wonder Years” for its upcoming season in a two-episode arc. The new season is set to premiere midseason, but a premiere date has not been announced. LaBelle will play the mother of Bill Williams (Dulé Hill), Shirley Williams, who serves as the local church’s choir director. In the show, she also goes by “Mother Williams,” and is described as “sweet as can be, but there is another side to her that comes out when her choir members can’t hit the right notes.” The longtime singer and actress has appeared in films and television shows like “A Soldier’s Story,” “A Different World,” “American Horror Story” and more. She has also put up notable performances on competition shows such as “Dancing with the Stars” and “The Masked Singer.” LaBelle launched a record label in 2017 called GPE Records, and released her first jazz album, “Bel Hommage,” under her own banner.

Oprah Winfrey sure knows how to throw a party.

EXCLUSIVE: Apple Original Films And Skydance Media’s partnership looks to be building on its already strong slate with another A-list star at the center of it. Sources tell Deadline, Apple has landed The Family Plan, a new action-comedy feature from Skydance Media, starring Academy Award-nominee Mark Wahlberg with Simon Cellan Jones directing. The film will reunite Wahlberg with director Jones following their recent collaboration on Arthur the King.

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Recorded Music has unveiled a new global joint venture with Oscar-nominated filmmaker Lee Daniels’ (The United States vs. Billie Holiday) company, Lee Daniels Music.

have made amends — and now she will get her own comedy special.The Oscar-winning entertainer, 54, announced the collaboration in a video message posted Tuesday on Netflix’s Twitter account.“Can y’all believe this s–t?” the “Precious” star joked — twice — before delivering the good news. “I’m excited to say that I’ll be shooting my first Netflix special, in addition to reuniting with my friend, director Lee Daniels on the Netflix film ‘The Deliverance,’” she said with a smile. “You won’t want to miss either of them, so stay tuned,” the Grammy-nominee continued.

After settling a lawsuit filed by the comedienne that claimed racial and gender bias, Netflix today announced that Mo’Nique will film her first stand-up comedy special for the streamer this year in Atlanta.

Mo'Nique is coming home to Netflix! On Tuesday, the Oscar- and Golden Globe-winning actress and comedian announced she will soon be shooting a fresh original comedy special for the streamer. In a video posted to the streamer’s Twitter account and the Strong Black Lead initiative account, the 54-year-old tells fans that she is «so excited to share that I'll be shooting my first Netflix comedy special.»She also reminds viewers that she will be reuniting with friend and director Lee Daniels for the Netflix film. «You won’t wanna miss either of them, so y'all stay tuned,” the GRAMMY nominee continues.

Mo’Nique is planning a new comedy special for Netflix.

A live-action “Matchbox” movie, inspired by the iconic real-world die-cast toy vehicle line, is being developed by Skydance Media and Mattel Films, the companies announced on Tuesday.The screenplay will be written by three-time Black Lister David Coggeshall, who wrote the upcoming “Orphan: First Kill” for Paramount as well as Lee Daniels’s untitled Netflix possession thriller filming in Pittsburgh and drafts of “Thundercats” for Warner Bros.“For nearly 70 years, Matchbox has carried enormous cultural relevance and inspired generations of kids to unleash their imaginations, combining what they see in the world every day with what they dream their own world to be,” Mattel Films executive producer Robbie Brenner said in a statement. “We look forward to working with our incredible partners at Skydance Media to craft a story for the big screen that evokes the same, imaginative spirit of this beloved Mattel franchise and delights fans of all ages.”Feature Films of Skydance president Don Granger added: “We are thrilled to be working with Robbie Brenner and her amazing creative team at Mattel.

Angelique Jackson Oscar- and Golden Globe-winning actor and comedian Mo’Nique is planning a fresh new comedy special for Netflix.Mo’Nique made the announcement in a video message posted to the streamer’s Twitter account on Tuesday, saying, “I’m excited to say that I’ll be shooting my first Netflix special, in addition to reuniting with my friend, director Lee Daniels on the Netflix film ‘The Deliverance.'”“You won’t want to miss either of them, so stay tuned,” the Grammy-nominee continued. “Thank you all and I love y’all to life!”Thrilled to announce that Netflix is the home for the next original stand-up special from the groundbreaking, trailblazing, and iconic Mo’Nique! pic.twitter.com/VzBJ1H92RH— Netflix (@netflix) July 19, 2022The yet-to-be-titled special is set to film later this year in Atlanta, with additional details to be announced in the coming months.News that Mo’Nique is bringing her comedy stylings to Netflix marks a happy (albeit surprising) resolution to a years-long standoff between the star and the streamer.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorColman Domingo says his younger brother gave him the best compliment about his new autobiographical animated short, “New Moon.”“He was overcome,” Domingo tells me on this week’s episode of the “Just for Variety” podcast. “He said, ‘More than anything, you brought the feeling of mom back.’”“New Moon” tells the story of a little boy who is shown how to dream by his hardworking single mom. It is based on Domingo’s play “A Boy and His Soul.”Domingo is the voice of the narrator as well as the mother.

“The Deliverance,” Lee Daniels’ demonic possession feature for Netflix.Also boarding the project are Miss Lawrence (“The United States vs. Billie Holiday,” “Bros”) and Anthony B.

BET has signed comedian, actress and producer Patricia “Ms. Pat” Williams to a multi-year overall deal under which she will produce, write and perform in new series and other projects—both scripted and unscripted— across BET and Paramount Global.

The fate of Leah Franklin Dupont may remain unsolved after Fox canceled freshman drama Our Kind of People. 

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterYaya DaCosta-led drama “Our Kind of People” has been canceled after just one season at Fox, Variety has confirmed.Based on Lawrence Otis Graham’s book “Our Kind of People: Inside America’s Black Upper Class” and produced by Lee Daniels and Karin Gist, the series takes place in the aspirational world of Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, a historical stronghold where the rich and powerful Black elite have come to play for more than 50 years.“Our Kind of People” follows strong-willed, single mom Angela Vaughn (DaCosta) as she sets out to reclaim her family’s name and make an impact with her revolutionary haircare line that highlights the innate, natural beauty of Black women. But she soon discovers a dark secret about her own mother’s past that will turn her world upside-down and shake up this community forever.

ABC will share more on the Williams family with The Wonder Years set to return for Season 2.

shared news of the casting Monday on Instagram, writing: “Guess who I got in ‘BMF’ this season. GOLDIE! I don’t miss.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterBenjamin Bratt has been cast in the Natasha Lyonne-led Peacock series “Poker Face,” which hails from creator Rian Johnson.Variety has learned exclusively that Bratt is the latest addition to the rapidly expanding cast. Another recently announced cast members include Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Stephanie Hsu, and David Castañeda. Plot and character details for the series are being kept largely under wraps, though sources say the show will follow a procedural format and see Lyonne’s character working to solve different murders in each episode.Bratt most recently appeared opposite Rosario Dawson in the HBO Max limited series “DMZ,” which debuted in March on the streamer.

Mathew Rosengart arrives on the rooftop restaurant of the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills wearing a wheaten wool coat from Barney’s, steeled against the early February cold snap that has whipped across Los Angeles. The sky is awash in Monet watercolors, the twinkling lights of Beverly Hills are aglitter. “It’s imperfect, and the clichés are often true, but there is something magical about L.A.

After directing “The United States Vs. Billie Holiday,” Lee Daniels is returning to the world of period biopics with a new dramatic series focused on singer/actor Sammy Davis Jr., one of the most charismatic and accessible black entertainers of the last century.

The candy man is coming to Hulu! The streamer has ordered eight episodes of a limited series about Sammy Davis, Jr. from Lee Daniels and 20th Television. It’s based on the Wil Haygood book, “In Black and White: The Life of Sammy Davis, Jr.”

Mo'Nique and Lee Daniels are putting their years-long feud to rest! The pair has been at odds since the release of the Academy Award-winning film in 2009.After winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 2010 for her critically acclaimed performance as the titular character's abusive mother Mary, the 54-year-old comedian made headlines when she claimed she was «blackballed» from Hollywood, naming Daniels as one of the culprits.Years later, on Saturday, the actress brought the director onstage during her  show on Staten Island, New York.«I am so sorry for hurting you in any way that I did. She was my best friend, my best friend.

Lee Daniels and Mo’Nique have finally ended their feud!

Reconciled. Nearly seven years after Mo’Nique — full name Monique Angela Hicks — alleged that her Precious director, Lee Daniels, had “blackballed” her from the film industry, the pair are on much better terms.

Lee Daniels, 62, and Mo’Nique, 54, are ending their feud after 13 years. The director, who directed the actress’ 2009 film Precious, made an appearance on stage at her Mo’Nique and Friends: April Fools Day with The Queen of Comedy event at St. George Theatre on Staten Island on April 1, and made a public apology after she previously claimed he told her she’d been “blackballed” in the industry when she expected a pay increase due to winning an Oscar.

Lee Daniels and Mo’Nique are patching things up.

Mo’Nique will be reuniting with Lee Daniels for his next film, Demon House.

Mo’Nique and Lee Daniels have worked out their feud just in time for his new Netflix movie.

EXCLUSIVE: After not speaking for 13 years, Oscar-winning Precious star Mo’Nique has been set by that film’s director Lee Daniels to replace Octavia Spencer in Demon House, an exorcism film package that Netflix acquired after a brisk auction in January. Spencer had to bow out of the star-studded film because of a scheduling conflict with her Apple TV+ television show Truth Be Told.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterCBS’ Pete Holmes bowling sitcom “How We Roll” entered the broadcast comedy lane on Thursday with an impressive debut audience that landed it the No. 2 slot on the 2021-2022 broadcast season’s list of freshman comedy premieres ranked by viewership.In first place is “How We Roll’s” time slot lead-in, “Ghosts,” a critical darling that has already been renewed at CBS for Season 2.