Michael Schneider Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Former Jax Media president Brooke Posch has opened her own shingle, Good&Done, aiming to focus on comedy projects from new and undiscovered voices. As part of the launch, Posch has hired former Broadway Video and Universal TV exec Hannah Kitziger to serve as head of development.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Pro tip for Screen Actors Guild Awards viewers: Watch it live. That’s because even those Netflix subscribers on the cheaper advertising tier will still get a commercial-free experience when the telecast runs live on Saturday at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 3, Episode 2 of “Ghosts,” titled “Man of Your Dreams,” which aired Feb. 22 on CBS. “Ghosts” just revealed a game changer of a storyline that could help give Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) more interaction with the show’s spirits. In the Season 3, Episode 2 installment “Man of Your Dreams,” viewers discovered the ghost power that Sasappis (Román Zaragoza) has been harboring: The ability to enter the dreams of the living.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Cheers to Paramount+‘s “Frasier” revival, which has just landed a Season 2 order at the streamer. The new “Frasier,” which stars Kelsey Grammer in the role he first made famous on “Cheers,” and then on the original “Frasier” (1993-2004), premiered in October with 10 episodes. Last November, Grammer expressed his desire to keep the new “Frasier” going for as long as possible.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large We don’t talk much anymore about live+same day ratings, since it’s the earliest measurement of a long tail that now includes time-shifted, streaming and more viewership. But if we look at good ol’ fashioned linear live viewing for the week of February 12, CBS has quite the story to tell. Thanks to the halo effect of its Super Bowl LVIII coverage on Feb.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Former NBC Universal Television Entertainment chairman Jeff Gaspin is taking a job as VP of unscripted series at Netflix — reporting to Netflix VP of nonfiction series Brandon Riegg. It’s a bit of a reversal for the two execs: In 2010, Riegg joined NBC as vice president of alternative series & development, reporting to the heads of alternative programming there, who in turn reported to Gaspin.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched the Season 3 premiere of “Ghosts,” titled “The Owl,” which aired Feb. 15 on CBS. Flower, hopefully you’re finally getting to cuddle a few bears up there in the sky. Yes, you read that right: There’s one less ghost on “Ghosts,” as the characters said farewell to Flower on the Season 3 premiere of CBS’ hit comedy.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Sony Pictures Television vet Suzanne Prete, who has driven the studio’s game show division since its launch in 2022, has been upped to president. The exec will continue to report to Sony Pictures TV chairman Ravi Ahuja, who announced the news Thursday in a memo to staffers.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Katy Perry caused a bit of a Firework on Monday night, revealing on ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live” that this upcoming season of “American Idol” will be her last one as a judge. Perry was a guest on Monday night’s “Kimmel.” When the host asked Perry how much longer she would stick with “Idol” — she’s been on the show for seven seasons, ever since it moved to ABC in 2018 — the singer said she was plotting her exit after this upcoming season.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Tyler Perry is expanding his deal with Netflix, adding TV series to the mix. Netflix announced Monday that it had added a multi-year, first-look series pact with Perry to the previous feature film pact he sealed in October with the streamer. As part of the expanded relationship with Netflix, Perry is developing the 16-episode hour-long drama “Beauty in Black,” which he will write, direct and executive produce.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large CrimeCon has announced its call for submissions for the 3rd annual Clue Awards, which will take place on Saturday, June 1, in Nashville, Tenn. The awards ceremony takes place as part of the three-day 2024 CrimeCon at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large It’s a semi-annual tradition during the PBS executive session at the Television Critics Assn.: Asking president/CEO Paula Kerger about the state of funding for the public broadcaster. And so it went on Monday, during the public broadcaster’s portion of the winter 2024 press tour — and despite the ongoing gridlock in Washington, Kerger said things, at least for now, are going “OK.” “We are advanced funded, and that we always have been,” Kerger told reporters. “And the idea behind it is that you need to know that when you finish a project, you’re going to actually have the funds for it.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Deaf artists Anjel Piñero, Shaheem Sanchez and Daniel Durant were set to perform ASL during this year’s Super Bowl — but viewers watching the CBS telecast may not have actually seen them on air. That’s according to Oscar winner and Deaf actor Marlee Matlin, who expressed her frustration with the network on social media. “I am absolutely SHOCKED at CBS for introducing the Deaf performers at today’s pregame #SuperBowl and then not showing even one second (or more) of their performance… as has been tradition for the last 30 years.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The 76th Emmy Awards have been given an official airdate: Sunday, Sept. 15 at 8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Peak TV has finally peaked. At FX‘s portion of the Television Critics Assn. press tour on Friday, chairman John Landgraf revealed his research team’s annual tally of adult original scripted series across U.S.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Media talent discovery app Husslup has moved from invite-only beta phase to a public launch of its service. The app, which allows allows media industry users a database to find above- and below-the-line freelancers for hire, has also introduced a demographic report of hires for companies to achieve their diversity goals.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Comedian Bert Kreischer is sticking with Netflix, signing with the streamer to film two more stand-up comedy specials. This reps the fourth and fifth specials for Kreischer at Netflix, following “Razzle Dazzle” (2023), “Hey Big Boy” (2020), and “Secret Time” (2018). The first of the two specials will be filmed by Kreischer at the Mahaffey Theater in St.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large JoJo Siwa is returning to “So You Think You Can Dance” as a judge for the show’s reimagined Season 18. Siwa, who was previously a judge on the show’s Season 17 in 2022, replaces Nigel Lythgoe — who stepped down earlier this month in the wake of two lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault. Siwa will now join choreographer Allison Holker and pro dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy on the show’s judging panel.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Discovery Channel’s hit franchises, like “Gold Rush” and “Deadliest Catch,” featured plenty of blood and sweat. But where were the tears? That’s something Howard Lee immediately began asking, upon taking control of the network at the end of 2022. After Lee was handed the keys to Discovery that December, “I spent my entire Christmas vacation devouring, scrutinizing, every single Discovery Channel show and familiarizing myself with it, like a fanboy.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large TV promo firm Planet 365 has created a new service dubbed “Brandit247” and targeted at local TV stations with limited marketing departments and resources. The marketing content would be tailored for the station, which can then insert footage of its on-air team and other local elements.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large James Corden’s new SiriusXM interview series “This Life of Mine with James Corden” will launch Feb. 1 on a new channel dubbed “Stars” (Channel 109), as well as on the satcaster’s app. SiriusXM was set to announce the premiere date on Thursday, along with the inaugural list of guests: Martin Scorsese, Kim Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Tom Ford, Jeremy Renner, David Beckham, Billy Porter, Julianne Moore and Odell Beckham Jr.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Judge Judy Sheindlin is heading back to linear TV — again. Amazon MGM Studios and Sox Entertainment have scored a multi-year broadcast syndication deal with station groups in more than 100 U.S. broadcast markets, including Nexstar, Sunbeam, Cox Media, Weigel and Mission Broadcasting, to premiere repeats of Amazon Freevee’s “Judy Justice” in syndication.

Michaela Zee Charlotte Stoudt, showrunner of Apple TV+’s hit “The Morning Show,” will receive the Variety Showrunner Award at the 12th annual SCAD TVfest. The festival returns this year in Atlanta from Feb.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Channing Dungey first joined Warner Bros. TV Group as chairman in late 2020 — right in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, which made for an interesting first year on the job. Then came the Warner Media-Discovery merger in 2022, and the restructuring that came with it.

Elizabeth Taylor “Big Little Lies” Season 3 is coming along nicely. “We’re at work on it,” Nicole Kidman told Variety Sunday night at the New York premiere of her new series “Expats.” Kidman says she and Reese Witherspoon are “texting every day” about the third season. “And there’s a timeline and we’re doing it.” She laughed when asked for more details.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large SPOILER ALERT: This article discusses plot points in Episode 2 of “True Detective: Night Country,” titled “Part 2.” One of Liz Danvers’ favorite sayings its “shit bowl.” And the case of the eight missing men from an Alaska research station — and how it relates to the earlier murder of Native midwife and activist Annie Kowtok — is an absolute “shit bowl.” “True Detective: Night Country” is slowly peeling back details behind the show’s Season 4 mystery, and in Episode 2, there’s one name that rocketed to the top of the list of suspects. In last week’s premiere, viewers were introduced to Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis), two law enforcement officers in the fictional mining town of Ennis, Alaska. The duo aren’t exactly pals, as Navarro believes Danvers dropped the ball in investigating the murder of Annie.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “KCET” is infinitely no more. Well, sort of. The Los Angeles-based public broadcaster still exists, and “KCET” remains its legal call letters.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large As the possibility of a third season of “Big Little Lies” picks up steam, HBO and Max content chairman/CEO Casey Bloys is ready for it. Bloys confirmed to Variety that he has heard “a little bit about the idea. I think it could be great.” “Big Little Lies” stars and executive producers Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman have teased the prospect of a new season of the series — which last aired in 2019 — while speaking to reporters in recent weeks.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large CBS gave its new late night series “After Midnight” a bit of a soft launch on Tuesday night, premiering the show with minimal fanfare in its 12:37 a.m. timeslot behind “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” Comedian Taylor Tomlinson hosts the series, which tapes on the Paramount lot in Hollywood. The decision to keep the “After Midnight” premiere lowkey is by design: Allow the new show to find its voice over the next few weeks, prior to the Super Bowl and return of first-run scripted series in February, when more eyeballs will be back at the broadcast networks.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Cheryl Fair, the president and general manager of ABC-owned KABC Los Angeles, is departing ABC’s owned TV stations group after 50 years with the company. Fair, who has spent the last 30 years at KABC and before that, 20 years at WPVI Philadelphia, revealed the news to staff on Tuesday. Attending the meeting to share the news were Debra OConnell, president of Disney Entertainment TV’s networks and TV business operations, and Chad Matthews, the president of ABC Owned Television Stations.