Franchise Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Carmel Dagan Staff Writer Michael Gambon, the Irish-English actor best known for his role as Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in six of the “Harry Potter” movies, has died, Variety has confirmed. He was 82.

Naman Ramachandran The world of detective Charlie Chopra, based on characters created by Agatha Christie, is set to have a prolonged life in India as a franchise. “Charlie Chopra & The Mystery Of Solang Valley,” based on Christie’s 1931 novel “The Sittaford Mystery,” was adapted as a series for Indian streamer SonyLIV by renowned filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj. Set in the mountains of Himachal Pradesh, northern India, the series follows the journey of Charlie Chopra and her quest to uncover a murder mystery alongside her sidekick Sitaram.

Alison Herman TV Critic Is “The Boys” a satire of superhero franchises or a superhero franchise itself? Such is the question posed by a show that is, among other things, a cautionary tale about corporate monopoly that airs on Amazon. So far, though, the answer is both — a delicate balance “The Boys” has sustained through three acclaimed seasons, an animated anthology series and, now, a live-action spinoff, the college-set “Gen V.” The contradictions of success may eventually take their toll on the pitch-black comedy and its satellites, which portray so-called superheroes as pawns of the rapacious Vought International.

If Prime Video’s “The Boys‘” slow submission to superhero franchising’s demands over the course of its four years on streaming has left your stomach roiling, slam a shot of Pepto-Bismol and relax; it’s part of the routine. Superhero projects are nothing if not designed for easy spin-offs, an expectation codified in contemporary television and movies 10 years ago when “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” premiered on ABC and initiated the second phase of superhero Content™’s ruthless campaign against all other extant forms of visual storytelling.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Martin Scorsese revealed in an interview with GQ magazine that Warner Bros. wished to turn his Oscar winner “The Departed” into a franchise, much to his disagreement. The movie stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a Massachusetts State Police officer and Matt Damon as a Boston gang member who go undercover to infiltrate each other’s organizations.

When you are a legendary filmmaker with a career that spans six decades, there are inevitably people who are going to argue about which films are best. In the discussion surrounding Martin Scorsese’s career, narrowing it down is difficult enough, with many people having an issue trying to pinpoint which of his crime thrillers are best, let alone which is his overall best film.

A theme running through most recent (within the past five years or so) interviews with Martin Scorsese is about how the filmmaker laments the current state of the film industry. Particularly, the legendary filmmaker isn’t pleased with Hollywood filmmaking and the content being produced—mostly comic book films and franchise projects.

J. Kim Murphy Audiences don’t seem to intend to attend the latest “Expendables.” The fourth entry in the ensemble action franchise is notching a series-low opening day from 3,518 theaters with about $3 million, a figure that includes a meagre $750,000 in Thursday previews. Produced by Millennium Media and released by Lionsgate, “Expend4bles” is projecting a debut that’ll fall well short of the $15 million to $17 million range that had been expected heading into the weekend, and also behind the $15.8 million sum that “The Expendables 3” put up nine years ago.

Michael Nordine author Much like its protagonist — a ghastly superhero who gains his powers after falling into a vat of chemical waste — “The Toxic Avenger” refuses to die. Made for a paltry $500,000 in 1984, Troma’s cult classic spawned three direct sequels, a rock musical, two video games, a short-lived animated series and now a remake starring Peter Dinklage. Given the eco-friendly, anti-pollution message at the improbable franchise’s core, perhaps its reemergence shouldn’t be surprising.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent It’s 6:34 a.m., and the sun is rising as Gerry Turner hands out his final rose of the night. His bedtime came and went long ago. Giddy producers are watching him from a control room, 11 hours into an overnight shoot that’s not done yet.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter “Expend4bles,” the fourth action-thriller starring Jason Statham and Sylvester Stallone as elite mercenaries on a mission, is expected to top the box office in its debut. It’s aiming for $15 million in its opening weekend, which would be the lowest of the franchise. There’s a chance, though, it could slightly exceed expectations with $17 million.

Several famous individuals auditioned to play Real Housewives over the years and were rejected, backed away, or flat out said no.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Netflix has ordered a sequel to “Troll,” the Norwegian action-adventure film directed by Roar Uthaug, who helmed Norway’s first disaster movie, “The Wave.” “Troll 2” reteams Uthaug (“Tomb Raider”) with writer Espen Aukan andproducers Espen Horn and Kristian Strand Sinkerud at Motion Blur, the Oslo-based banner whose credits include “Cadaver,” “Amundsen” and “The 12th Man.” The first installment unfolds in the aftermath of an explosion in the Norwegian mountains, which awakens an ancient troll. The story revolves around a fearless paleontologist who embarks on a journey to stop the troll from wreaking deadly havoc.

2020’s “Trolls World Tour” didn’t exactly light the box office on fire like its predecessor from 2016, “Trolls.” But maybe the COVID-19 pandemic and theater closures had something to do with it. In any case, DreamWorks has its third installment of its musical franchise ready for audiences later this Fall.

There are new projections on the horizon for Disney’s “A Haunting in Venice”.

When it comes to Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts franchise filmmaker David Yates returning to the Max TV series, he tells Deadline, “Never say never.”

The creator of the Scream franchise is backing Neve Campbell.

Jessica Liese If the first “Walking Dead” spinoff following the finale of the flagship series, “The Walking Dead: Dead City,” seemed to mark the beginning of a new era for the franchise, the second certainly feels like a continuation — tonally, if not chronologically. “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon,” which premieres on AMC on Sept. 10, builds on the tentative good will established by “Dead City,” even arguably improving on some of its strengths.

“Scream” fans’ ears pricked up last year when, amid casting news about “Scream VI,” it became clear that franchise star Neve Campbell wouldn’t return for the sequel. The actress cited salary disputes with Spyglass and said it was a “very difficult decision to move on” after being the face of the “Scream” films for nearly 25 years.

Neve Campbell, who played Sidney Prescott in the first five movies in the Scream horror franchise, did not appear in the most recent pic, this year’s successful Scream VI, amid a salary dispute. Series creator Kevin Williamson has a response for that.

The upcoming film, “The Exorcist: Believer,” holds significance for film fans for a number of reasons. First, we are just about one month past from the death of the original film’s director, William Friedkin, and secondly, we are 50 years past from the debut of the 1973 classic.

Saw X is hitting theaters at the end of September, and fans are already curious about the fate of the long-running horror franchise.

Craig Mazin is loving his career at this moment. Sure, there’s a WGA strike going on, which is hindering what exactly he can work on, but the writer-producer-showrunner of “The Last of Us” is at the top of his game, with studios desperate to work with him.

Though Labor Day is upon us domestically — and its somewhat equivalents in many overseas markets to mark the end of summer — the hits keep coming as holds this session were strong on the season’s leaders while a new entry surprised. To wit, and starting with the latter: Sony/Escape Artists’ The Equalizer 3 blazed to a $60.6M global start this weekend, to clock the franchise’s best opening ever. Of that, the $26.1M debut in 49 international box office markets was also a new record bow for the Denzel Washington-led series.

Tatiana Siegel Since January 2022, Jesse Palmer has fronted ABC’s lucrative “Bachelor” franchise as host of the flagship reality show as well as offshoots “The Bachelorette,” “Bachelor in Paradise” and the upcoming “The Golden Bachelor.” After taking the reins from Chris Harrison, who was ousted in 2021 after facing criticism for defending a contestant accused of racism, the former NFL quarterback and ESPN college football analyst has helped expand the show’s female-skewing audience to include more men. “I have this theory that the dirty little secret in Bachelor Nation was that men were always watching anyway,” says Palmer.

In a cinema that has plenty of offerings when it comes to guys with guns, what givesSony and Escape Artists’ Equalizer series with Denzel Washington that extra zhuzh?

The One Chicago franchise has some of the best TV shows on the air right now: Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD.

Holly Jones Chilean cinema continues to see traction on Prime Video with “S.O.S. Mamis 2: Mosquita Muerta” bowing Aug. 2 to become the most-watched movie of any nationality on the streamer in Chile.

Charity Lawson and Dotun Olubeko are ready to start their life together. ET's Denny Directo spoke with the couple on Tuesday, following the season finale of, which saw the child and family therapist get engaged to the integrative medicine consultant.«It's a sigh of a relief,» Charity told ET of being out in the open. «We're just so excited.

Look, interviews can be tough business. As someone who has done quite a few interviews with filmmakers and actors over the years, you hope for the best, but you never know when something can go off the rails.