Audience Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Ellen DeGeneres is back! Uh, kind of. On Wednesday night, the 66-year-old superstar did a standup comedy set at the Largo in El Lay. During her routine on stage — and also afterwards in a fan Q&A session — she opened up a bit to attendees about her controversial recent past!

Plans have been drawn up on how an iconic Manchester venue that has stood empty and decaying for decades could be saved.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic The tide of Black women in country is a phenomenon that much of the world has suddenly become aware of, thanks to Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” and the lesser-known artists being championed through guest slots on the album. Does this mark the true signal change that advocates for diversity in country have long dreamed of? Or is the real progress within the ranks of the music industry that could allow young Black country artists so lacking that the current excitement might be destined to go down as a glorious blip? These were among the topics of a presentation by the Black Music Action Coalition at Live Nation’s Beverly Hills headquarters Wednesday, with Mickey Guyton, songwriter-artist INK (who is a key contributor to “Cowboy Carter”) and academic researcher Dr.

Addie Morfoot Contributor A first clip has been unveiled from Shaul Schwarz and Christina Clusiau’s Nat Geo documentary “Fly,” which will screen at Hot Docs on Sunday. The doc follows three couples entwined in the world of base jumping, one of the world’s deadliest sports. Schwarz and Clusiauoree began working on “Fly” for seven years following the death of well-known climber Dean Potter, who lost his life while base jumping at Yosemite National Park.

Zendaya is back on the big screen this weekend in her first-ever leading role for a feature film with the tennis movie Challengers.

Todd Gilchrist editor In “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” Lucasfilm resurrected more with its 2022 series for Disney+ than just the eponymous Jedi Master, who’d gone into hiding after the events of “Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith.” The show also rekindled his greatest conflict — perhaps his greatest failure — with former apprentice Anakin Skywalker, transformed by the dark side of the Force into Sith Lord Darth Vader. And it additionally brought back multiple elements of franchise iconography that go all of the way back to the original films — in particular, the bacta tank.

Addie Morfoot Contributor Over the last several years Hulu has become known for a zeitgeisty documentary slate that covers topics including celebrities, crimes and cults. Among the watercooler hits the streamer’s doc division has released recently: “Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence,” “God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty,” “Captive Audience,” and “Victoria’s Secret: Angels and Demons.” Its latest nonfiction release, “Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story,” fits into the celebrity side of Hulu’s doc sweetspot.

EXCLUSIVE: New York Times best-selling author Neil Gaiman is teaming with Graphic India for the English-language animated movie, Cinnamon.

Steven J. Horowitz Senior Music Writer For electronic duo Justice, everything comes down to timing. When the French group debuted with 2007’s “Cross,” Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay entered the music space at the exact moment when bloghouse — a cultural moment defined by its skittery, electroclash sound and propagated by music-sharing blog sites — was opening audiences to developing strains of dance music.

Peter Kay has said he 'can't believe it' after his shows at Manchester's new Co-op Live arena were cancelled for a second time.The comedian was due to officially open the landmark entertainment venue on Tuesday, April 22. He was also due to perform at the 23,500-capacity music venue in Eastlands on Wednesday. But both shows were cancelled and rescheduled to next week as behind-schedule power tests and safety issues continued.

The Cannes Film Festival has unveiled fresh news details about its 77th edition (May 14-25), including a Rendez-vous with…Valeria Golino event.

Rafa Sales Ross Guest Contributor The seventh edition of The Changing Face of Europe, a section in Toronto’s Hot Docs Film Festival, explores the cultural, economic and political forces shaping contemporary Europe. From an investigation of a right-wing group in Fabien Greenberg and Bård Kjøge Rønning’s “Norwegian Democrazy” to the fight for bodily freedom in Elina Psykou’s “Stray Bodies,” this year’s selection broaches a series of urgent — and, at many times, highly-sensitive — sociopolitical topics at the forefront of European society from filmmakers who may not always get the support they need within the international festival landscape.

Naman Ramachandran Usman Riaz’s Annecy selection “The Glassworker” has unveiled its first trailer. The film will also screen at the Cannes Film Market and has set a date for theatrical release in Pakistan. The animated film will debut in Annecy’s Contrechamp strand.

Aramide Tinubu There is no handbook on motherhood, but most people try their best when it comes to childrearing. Today, amid increasingly accessible resources and freedoms that weren’t afforded in the past, parenting has undoubtedly changed. However, “Mother Play,” written by Paula Vogel, is not a story about modern-day mothers.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor From “Glee” to “The Golden Bachelor,” “Empire” to “The Dropout,” “Arrested Development” to “Abbott Elementary” and “24” to “9-1-1,” Shannon Ryan has played a critical role in the launch of countless TVseries over the past three decades. Now president of marketing for Disney Entertainment Television, Ryan oversees marketing, publicity and communications for an unprecedented portfolio of more than 200 active series at any given time across Disney+, Hulu, ABC, Disney Channel, Onyx Collective, Freeform and other platforms. In recognition of Ryan’s track record at Fox and Mouse House, as well as her commitment to mentorship programs for girls and young women, the executive received Variety’s inaugural Entertainment Marketing Icon Award, which was presented April 24 as part of Variety’s annual Entertainment Marketing Summit presented by Deloitte at the Beverly Hilton.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The Miss USA pageant is expanding its relationship with The CW, sealing a three-year deal that adds Miss Teen USA to the mix. The network announced Thursday that the 73rd Miss USA Pageant will air live on Sunday, Aug. 4., at 8 p.m.

Smash-hit TV show The Equalizer has been renewed for a fifth season by CBS.

Baby Reindeer has burnished its status as a surprise Netflix hit by piling on viewers in its second week on the streaming service.

Eurovision Song Contest has been unveiled ahead of the grand final next month.Lighting and Screen Content designer Fredrik Stormby from Green Wall Designs and production designer Florian Wieder are the creative masterminds who helped create, design, and deliver a large-scale and spectacular show to a global audience of over 160million for the 2024 Eurovision final in Malmö, Sweden on May 11.This year’s stage and lighting design for Eurovision will focus on the audience more than ever by having the stage placed in the centre of the arena. By doing so, viewers will be able to experience the unique 360 degree view in the Malmö Arena.The stage will also be shaped like a cross with movable LED cubes and LED floors.

Ncuti Gatwa makes his first appearance as the 15th Doctor in the science-fiction series “Doctor Who,” he isn’t wearing any pants. In a 60th-anniversary special released in December, the previous Doctor — played by series icon David Tennant — subverts the show’s long-standing practice of regeneration: Instead of simply transforming into the next Doctor, he literally splits in half, bringing Gatwa’s Doctor into the world alongside him.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Cinephil has sold Arun Bhattarai and Dorottya Zurbó’s feature documentary “Agent of Happiness” to a wide range of key international territories ahead of the film’s Hot Docs debut this weekend. Deals are confirmed in the U.K.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Continued investment in streaming contributed to a first-quarter loss for Spanish-language media giant TelevisaUnivision, which is seeing the bulk of its growth come from its Mexican operations while U.S. revenue stays flat with year-earlier results. The company, which operates the Univision TV network, said operating expenses grew 16% during the first quarter, to $821 million, driven by continued investments in its ViX streaming service and the expansion of a third party ad-sales business in Mexico.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief David Anthony Chan’s epic fantasy novel “The Kindred Chronicles” is set to be adapted into an animated series and will be the first project flowing from a partnership between HIP Studios and hybrid publisher 8 Letters. The deal between the two companies was announced at the recent Philippine Book Festival. It aims to adapt 8Letters content into television content, movies, animations, mangas and games. A subsidiary of Singapore’s Silver Media, HIP Studios is a Singapore, Sydney and Cebu, Philippines-based IP development and management company.

Bradley Walsh did something new for the first time during Wednesday's episode of The Chase as he cheered on an impressive contestant.

Variety’s Entertainment Marketing Summit in Los Angeles, presented by Deloitte, brought together more than 600 marketing professionals, executives, creators and influencers for a daylong event that examined all aspects of marketing as a discipline at a time of massive transition in the entertainment business. Here are the highlights from the event, held April 24 at the Beverly Hilton.

Ryan Gosling attracted Saturday Night Live‘s biggest audience in years.

Angelique Jackson Tracee Ellis Ross is packing her bags and inviting audiences to join her solo travel adventures with the new Roku Original series “Tracee Travels.” The series will chronicle the award-winning actor (“Girlfriends,” “Black-ish,” and most recently the Oscar-winning film “American Fiction”) and Pattern CEO and founder as she “meticulously, laboriously, and sometimes ridiculously prepares for and travels solo to spectacular locations.” The series will shoot later this year, following Ross as she “charts her own path, exploring the intersection of beauty, fashion, design, food and culture at each stop.” “I took my first solo trip when I was 22 years old. I decided way back then that I wouldn’t wait to do the things I wanted to do or for my life to come to me,” says Ross.

Addie Morfoot Contributor The 31st edition of Canada’s influential Hot Docs Film Festival, which gets underway Thursday, could very well be the last. For the past month, the Toronto festival, one of North America’s largest dedicated to documentaries, has been roiled by staff and funding turmoil. On March 25, artistic director Hussain Currimbhoy and 10 of the fest’s programmers abruptly exited their posts.

The Spiderwick Chronicles creeped out of the woodwork to become a resounding success for The Roku Channel.

Shogun is one of the most acclaimed new shows of the season, but it has been billed as a limited series and not an ongoing one.