Michael Schneider Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “Ghosts” hit another landmark on Thursday night, as this week’s episode of the hit CBS comedy revealed the truth behind Flower’s disappearance — while also, on a much more profound level, explored the truth behind Hetty’s death in 1895. In the episode, “Holes are Bad,” when Sam (Rose McIver) and Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) go away for the weekend, the ghosts are left alone — and discover that Flower (Sheila Carrasco) hadn’t been “sucked away” to the afterlife as they thought.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 11, Episode 8 of “The Masked Singer,” “Girl Group Night,” which aired April 24 on Fox. Jenifer Lewis spent a year recovering from a devastating 10-foot fall while on safari in Tanzania. It was while she was still in bed, convalescing, that she got a call from “The Masked Singer.” “I still couldn’t walk,” she told Variety. “And my friends encouraged me to get out of bed and go do what I love to do.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large PBS landed 11 nominations, by far the most of any outlet, as Peabody Awards Board of Jurors announced this year’s 41 nominees across its documentary, news, public service and radio/podcast categories. The pubcaster’s Peabody noms include “20 Days in Mariupol,” which recently won the Oscar for best documentary feature film.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The National Academy of Televison Arts & Sciences is rolling out the nominations for Daytime Emmys, announcing a handful of categories on Thursday night and revealing the rest on Friday morning. More categories will be announced this afternoon at 4:30 p.m. PT, and then at 8:30 p.m.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Dan Abrams has enjoyed a tremendously successful career, which currently includes roles as chief legal analyst at ABC News and host of NewsNation’s “Dan Abrams Live.” But he knows it was the O.J. Simpson murder trial almost 30 years ago that put him on the map — and he has complicated feelings about it. “I’ve always had a little bit of guilt about the idea that the murderers of two innocent people helped start my career,” says Abrams, who was working for Court TV at the time.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 11, Episode 7 of “The Masked Singer,” “Queen Night,” which aired April 10 on Fox. “The Masked Singer” dropped a bomb on us: Singer/songwriter Charlie Wilson, who has enjoyed a tremendous career as a solo artist in addition to his time as lead vocalist for the Gap Band, was one of two celebrities revealed on Wednesday night’s edition of “The Masked Singer.” Also unmasked: “The Office” star Kate Flannery (who played the frequently inebriated Meredith). Wilson was unveiled during the show’s Group A finals as Ugly Sweater, while Flannery was Starfish. For the Ugly Sweater, Robin Thicke got it right with Charlie Wilson.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” is finally resurrecting its outdoor concert stage, starting on Wednesday, April 17, with musical guest Chris Stapleton. The singer-songwriter will appear on the show to relaunch the space and perform his song ““It Takes A Woman.” Up until the pandemic, the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” outdoor stage, located in the parking lot behind the show’s Hollywood studio, was a staple for the late-night talker. But it hasn’t been in use since February 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large As “Suits” continues to overperform as a streaming acquisition on Netflix, the hit legal drama is finally coming to broadcast TV. Primetime programming service MyNetwork TV has picked up an off-network run of “Suits” for this fall, making its broadcast TV debut. The pickup was announced Monday by Frank Cicha, executive VP of programming for Fox Television Stations.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Syndicated talk strip “Tamron Hall” has been picked up for a sixth season, ABC News was set to announce on Monday. The show, distributed nationally by Disney Entertainment, airs on the ABC-owned TV stations, as well as on stations owned by groups including Hearst, Scripps, Nexstar, Tegna, Gray and AMG. The news keeps “Tamron Hall” on the air through the 2024-2025 TV season.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Last week, Amazon Studios/Prime Video senior VP announced that Chris Brearton was leaving Amazon “to pursue a new opportunity outside the company.” Now we know what that opportunity is: Brearton, who had most recently served as vice president of Prime Video Studios Corporate Strategy at MGM+ and MGM Alternative Television, has joined indie media company AGBO as a partner. At AGBO, he will join company leaders Anthony and Joe Russo (the directors who co-founded the company in 2017) and partner Donald Mustard.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The Writers Guild of America is honoring the best of 2023’s television and film via its annual WGA Awards, held this year at the Hollywood Palladium for the West Coast edition and at New York’s Edison Ballroom for the East Coast ceremony. In Los Angeles, Niecy Nash-Betts, who recently won an Emmy for her role on Netflix’s “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,” hosted this year’s event. L.A.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Netflix has acquired “Rather,” the documentary about veteran journalist Dan Rather‘s landmark career in news. The film, which premieres April 24 on the streamer, utilizes the story of of Rather’s life on television to also explore the evolution of broadcast journalism, the troubles a free press now faces, along with the slide of American society from hard-fought advances in social justice and democratic freedoms.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “The Talk” is going silent. CBS is ending the long-running daytime chat show, which will get an abbreviated final season (its 15th) this fall, before signing off for good with what it’s calling a “celebratory sendoff” in December.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 11, Episode 6 of “The Masked Singer,” “Transformers Night,” which aired April 10 on Fox. Former “The Bachelor” star Colton Underwood knows the symbolism of his being unmasked on a reality show — in this case, “The Masked Singer” — is huge. Underwood, a former pro football player who made history as the first star of “The Bachelor” to come out as gay, was one of two celebrities to be revealed on Wednesday night’s show — the other being another ex-NFL player, the Hall of Fame, former pro football linebacker DeMarcus Ware.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Apparently TV can’t get enough “Melrose Place.” The campy sudser from the 1990s, which was already rebooted once in the 2010s, is looking to make another comeback — and this time with three of the OG stars. Heather Locklear (who was always billed as a “special guest star” back in the day, although once joining the drama she quickly took lead), Laura Leighton and Daphne Zuniga are all back to reprise their roles in the latest reboot, this time from writer Lauren Gussis. Gussis will also exec produce with Leighton, Zuniga, Tiffany Grant and Jason Weinberg.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “Jeopardy! Masters” is back for its second tournament, with hour-long episodes over three weeks starting May 1 on ABC. The “Jeopardy! Masters” event features the six highest-ranked current “Jeopardy!” contestants battling it out in two games per hourlong episode. “Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings also hosts “Jeopardy! Masters.” Contestants on this tournament include “Jeopardy! Masters” 2023 champion James Holzhauer, as well as returning contestants Matt Amodio and Mattea Roach, and newcomers Yogesh Raut and Victoria Groce.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Chris Brearton is exiting Amazon MGM Studios after a long career at MGM to pursue other opportunities, the company announced on Wednesday. In a memo to staff, Amazon Studios and Prime Video senior vice president Mike Hopkins revealed that Brearton “has decided to leave Amazon to pursue a new opportunity outside the company.” Brearton had most recently served as vice president of PVS Corporate Strategy at MGM+ and MGM Alternative Television.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large If TV is all about football these days, so are the Sports Emmys. The New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences revealed the nominations for its 45th annual Sports Emmy Awards, and the NFL Network’s “NFL 360” led the pack with 11 nods — followed closely by the CBS and Nickelodeon coverage of Super Bowl LVIII, with ten. Also in the hunt: ESPN’s “E60” doc series and Amazon Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football, with nine each.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large A star-studded group of veteran “Saturday Night Live” guest hosts were on hand this evening to welcome Kristen Wiig into the “Five-Timers Club.” But much to Wiig’s chagrin, most of them haven’t matched her feat of actually hosting “SNL” five times. The former “Saturday Night Live” cast member made her fifth appearance as host — having previously hit the stage in 2013, 2016 and twice in 2020. The stolen “SNL” valor actually began with a legit five-timer: Paul Rudd, on hand to welcome her from the audience.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 11, Episode 5 of “The Masked Singer,” “Group C Finals: Shower Anthems Night,” which aired April 3 on Fox. After two weeks of being on “The Masked Singer” chopping block, Sisqó is finally gone-guh-gone-gone-gone. I think I’ll sing it again: Sisqó’s been dumped like a truck, truck, truck. “The Masked Singer” has removed his butt, butt, butt.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Warner Bros. Television Group chairman/CEO Channing Dungey is returning to the Banff World Media Festival this June to serve as one of its keynote speakers, the event announced on Wednesday. Dungey joins a lineup that also includes Fox Entertainment CEO Rob Wade as a summit series keynote.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Game Show Network is bulking up its stable of original series, adding three new strip series to its lineup. As announced on Tuesday morning as part of its 2024 upfronts pitch to advertisers, Game Show Network revealed it has ordered a new version of classic gamer “Tic Tac Dough,” this time hosted by Brooke Burns (“Master Minds,” “The Chase”), as well as a U.S. version of the U.K.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Sherri Shepherd is staying put. Her first-run syndicated talker strip “Sherri” has been officially renewed for a third season via Lionsgate’s Debmar-Mercury.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 11, Episode 4 of “The Masked Singer,” “TV Theme Night,” which aired March 27 on Fox. “Extra” host Billy Bush won’t get an extra shot at “The Masked Singer.” The entertainment newsmagazine anchor and one-time morning drive radio host was the next celebrity to be unmasked on Wednesday’s “TV Theme Night” edition of “The Masked Singer.” “I’m not a great singer,” Bush said. “If you can’t make it with the lips, make it with the hips. If you’ve never done something that’s a little on the scary side — and this is scary — say yes!” For Bush, none of the panelists got it right.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large When NBC recently resurrected its long-dormant “Deal or No Deal,” it came with a new format: “Deal or No Deal Island.” The game show was originally a “shiny floor” in-studio contest where players had to guess how much money was inside a large briefcase. The updated iteration takes things outdoors, raising the stakes by adding interpersonal dynamics, physical challenges and survival to the mix. At producer Endemol Shine North America, they call adding a fresh spin to existing IP the “ESNA twist.” And it’s become a hallmark for CEO Sharon Levy, who took over the shingle — part of Banijay Americas — a little more than a year ago.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Hit faith-based drama “The Chosen,” which just launched its fourth season in theaters via a partnership with Fathom Events, is already prepping the start of production for Season 5 next month. Variety has confirmed that cameras will begin rolling on “The Chosen” Season 5 in Utah starting April 11; the series will shoot there for six weeks before shifting to the show’s home base in Texas for the remainder of the production. “The Chosen” has been mapped out as a seven-season series; for Season 5, the show will pick up where Season 4 left off, during Holy Week before the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Disney Channel has given an official series order to its “Wizards of Waverly Place” sequel, this time with the working title “Wizards.” Original stars Selena Gomez and David Henrie are set to exec produce, while Gomez will appear in a guest role and Henrie will be back full time as a series regular. Production will begin next month in Los Angeles on “Wizards,” which is aimed for a premiere later this year on both Disney Channel and Disney+.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Niecy Nash-Betts, who recently won an Emmy for her role on Netflix’s “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,” has signed on to host the Los Angeles portion of next month’s Writers Guild Awards. The 2024 event, which was pushed back in the wake of the Hollywood strikes, will take place on Saturday, April 14 at the Hollywood Palladium.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “Bupkis” Season 2 is bupkis. Star Pete Davidson has confirmed that he has opted not to continue with his semi-autobiographical Peacock comedy, which had previously been renewed for a second season. “I’ve always seen Bupkis as a window into my life, since it is so personal and about my struggles and family,” Davidson said ina.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Dick Wolf is in for another busy season at NBC. No surprise here, the Peacock network has renewed “Chicago Med,” “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago P.D.,” “Law & Order” and “Law & Order: SVU” for the 2024-25 broadcast TV season.