Elizabeth Banks is returning to the stomping grounds that cemented her as a career producer and box office draw: the rowdy college comedy. Banks’ Brownstone Productions will mount “Betas,” a film set in the viral world of sorority rush culture. Sammi Cohen (“You’re So Not
With election season around the corner, the Federal Communications Commission issued a broadside on Wednesday aimed at late-night and daytime shows that air political interviews. The agency stated that shows like “The View” and “The Tonight Show” may not be considered “bona
Hot off the hype of its Labubu dolls last year, accessories brand POP MART has unveiled a new collaboration with Disney’s “Zootopia 2,” with the release of four keychain figurines inspired by the characters in the film. The POP MART “Molly” Zootopia 2 series features variations
Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine reprise their roles in Amazon MGM's follow-up to the 2023 romance 'Red, White & Royal Blue.'
Bruce Bilson, who won an Emmy for directing “Get Smart” and directed hundreds of TV episodes, died on Jan. 16 in Los Angeles. He was 97. Bilson was best known for directing the secret agent sitcom parody “Get Smart,” for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding
David Siegel, a veteran producer who worked on films including “The Hangover” trilogy, “Crazy, Stupid, Love” and more, died on Jan. 8 in Los Angeles. He was 70 years old. Over the last four decades, Siegel contributed to a number of the most enduring studio films, collaborating
Newly unsealed messages show how Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds leaned on the support of their industry friends amid growing tension with Lively's It Ends With Us co-star Justin Baldoni
The literary set is in for a treat this year, with a swelling slate of movies and T.V series based on bestselling books releasing throughout 2026. Just this month saw the HBO Max release of “Heated Rivalry,” adapted from Rachel Reid’s romance series, in addition to Netflix’s
Luminate, the data research company owned by Variety parent PMC, published its year-end 2025 film and TV report on Wednesday, and among the surprises: Peacock’ “Love Island USA” was the most-watched streaming original TV season — growing its year-to-year viewership by 150%.
Tenacious D’s Kyle Gass sparked controversy back in July 2024 after commenting on the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump during a concert in Australia. A year-and-a-half later, Gass is speaking out about the moment that caused his duo with Jack Black to cancel
Unifrance, the French promotional film organization, celebrated rising stars at this year’s Rendez-Vous in Paris. The 10 up-and-coming actors and filmmakers named 2026’s Talents to Watch kicked things off with a ceremony at France’s Ministry of Culture before hitting a yearlong
Variety will moderate six panels, presented by Adobe, at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. The panels will take place from Jan. 23-25 at the Adobe House. “Anatomy of a Doc: The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist” will be held on Jan. 23 at 10:30 a.m. The conversation
If you were to ask hardcore Beach Boys cultists what they want more at this point — a boxed set devoted to the cult-classic “The Beach Boys Love You” album, or a very belated release of the shelved “Adult/Child” album recorded after that — it might very well be a draw.
Clermont-Ferrand, the world-leading short-form film festival nested in the French region of Auvergne, returns for its 47th edition with a keen awareness of the “vital” role of short filmmaking in our current times. Taking place between Jan. 30 and Feb. 7, the festival will
Tammie Rosen, the Sundance Institute’s chief communications officer, died in December at the age 49. While the indie film world has mourned her in recent weeks, Rosen will surely be top of mind on Thursday when the 42nd annual Sundance Film Festival kicks off. This Sundance is
Dissident filmmaker Nadav Lapid will shoot his next feature in France, describing the project — still in the earliest stages of development — as a thematic echo of his Paris-set Berlin Golden Bear winner “Synonyms.” “You could say it’s the guy from ‘Synonyms’ meeting his older
The Hollywood Reporter's executive editor of awards coverage projects that the field will be led by 'Sinners' (with a record-breaking 15 noms), 'One Battle After Another' (12), Frankenstein (11) and 'Hamnet' (11).
“The Abandons” and “The Vince Staples Show” have been canceled at Netflix, Variety has confirmed. The former, a Western drama from “Sons of Anarchy” creator Kurt Sutter, ends after one season. The latter, a satirical comedy starring rapper Vince Staples, will be discontinued
Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety chief awards editor Clayton Davis.
Rising star Théodore Pellerin (“Nino,” “Beau Is Afraid,” “Becoming Karl Lagerfeld”) will star opposite Félix Kysyl (“Misericordia”) and Filippo Scotti (“The Hand of God”) in the queer-tinged palace intrigue drama “By the King’s Favor” (“À la Faveur du Roi”). Set for production
Josie Rourke directs the feature that hails from StudioCanal and Rabbit's Foot Films and counts Sweeney as a producer.
Sydney Sweeney will star in and produce a film adaptation of “Custom of the Country.” Josie Rourke (“Mary Queen of Scots”) is directing and writing the adaptation of the classic Edith Wharton novel. Sweeney plays Undine Spragg, an ambitious Midwest woman who attempts to ascend
The “Legally Blonde” prequel series has set its official premiere date on Amazon Prime Video, with the streamer also renewing the show for a second season. “Elle” Season 1 will debut in its entirety on Prime Video on July 1. Production on the second season will begin this
At this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Adobe’s Film & TV Fund announced that it is committing $10 million in grants and donated products in 2026 to help “unlock creative opportunities and career advancement for creators.” The software giant also announced new partnerships with
Netflix has served up a handful of first-look images of “Beef” Season 2, debuting on April 16. In the teaser images, Charles Melton lifts weights, Cailee Spaeny looks worried on a hospital bed, Oscar Isaac drives a golf cart and Carey Mulligan considers a facelift. “Beef”
After nearly 10 years at sports giant ESPN, Elle Duncan departed last month to join Netflix — coming on board as the streamer’s first sports anchor. Her first tour of duty for Netflix: This Friday’s “Skyscraper Live,” in which free-solo climber Alex Honnold will attempt to
Phil Collins is speaking out about his health issues, revealing that he recently underwent five knee surgeries and developed kidney problems from drinking. In a new interview with BBC Two, Collins elaborated on the chronic ailments that previously prompted him to retire from
Raelle Tucker, a writer-producer whose credits include “True Blood,” “Jessica Jones” and “Supernatural,” will release her debut novel, titled “Obscura.” The sci-fi story asks, “What if everything we were taught that was make-believe is actually real?” Per the logline: “The
NBC has set a crossover event between the three series in its “One Chicago” franchise: “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago Med” and “Chicago P.D.” On March 4, the “One Chicago” series will air back-to-back episodes following one storyline. Though NBC typically airs “Chicago Med” at 8 p.m.
Catherine Hardwicke, who would later make a name for herself with the vampire romance “Twilight,” first went to Sundance in 1989. It would be the year that put the festival on the map, though Hardwicke couldn’t have known it at the time. She had studied film at UCLA and was
The nominees for 2026 Ambies have been announced, with 10 podcasts — including “Call Her Daddy,” “SmartLess,” “Crime Junkie,” “Pod Save America” and “Pablo Torre Finds Out” — vying for the top honor of Podcast of the Year. The 6th Annual Awards for Excellence in Audio (aka the
Max Parker is the latest addition to Amazon Prime Video’s “God of War” live-action TV series, Variety has learned. Parker will appear alongside previously announced series lead Ryan Hurst and fellow cast member Teresa Palmer. Parker will star as Heimdall. As previously
The superstar singer-songwriter calls Baldoni a "bitch" while the actress asks her 'The Town' co-star and director for his feedback.
The guest list is set for a “Red, White & Royal Wedding.” Uma Thurman, Sarah Shahi, Rachel Hilson, Ellie Bamber and Clifton Collins Jr. are among the returning cast for the sequel to Amazon MGM Studios’ hit rom-com “Red, White & Royal Blue,” which is now in production. Nicholas
Actor Patrick Schwarzenegger, actor and comedian Alex Edelman, actor Jeff Hiller, director and producer Poh Si Teng, and creator and executive producer Sterlin Harjo are slated to participate in Variety’s Spirituality & Entertainment Brunch, presented by the Coalition for Faith
Jamie Lee Curtis’ forthcoming adaptation of the beloved Angela Lansbury series “Murder She Wrote” has landed a director. Jason Moore, helmer of the franchise-launching “Pitch Perfect” and the forthcoming “Legally Blonde” prequel series, is on the case at Universal. Moore will
AGC Studios, Stuart Ford’s independent content studio, has promoted Zach Garrett to the senior executive role of head of film, effective immediately. Garrett will oversee the company’s film strategy and slate development, including sourcing and developing projects, guiding
Universal Music Group’s $775 million acquisition of the music-services giant Downtown Music Holdings is likely to be approved by the European Commission in the coming weeks, according to a new report in Reuters citing sources with “direct knowledge of the matter.” The deal was
Hollywood is feeling nostalgic as Sundance prepares for its final hurrah in Park City. If distributors really want to give the indie film festival a proper sendoff, they’ll engage in a few of the all-night bidding wars that gave the mountain resort its storied electricity. This
The Yellow Affair has come on board as the sales agent for “Shame and Money,” the new feature by writer-director Visar Morina, which is set to have its world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at the Sundance Film Festival. A first-look clip debuts here. “Shame
The ultimate zombie-killing crossover is on the horizon as “World War Z” has announced the release date for its upcoming collaboration with AMC’s “The Walking Dead.” Based on Paramount’s “World War Z” film, the co-op zombie shooter video game will launch its “TWD”-themed DLC
Director William David Caballero and his mother bring loved ones back to – audio and visual – life via a range of tools, "discovering that every act of creation is also an act of letting go."
Endemol Shine North America (ESNA), a Banijay Americas company, has named two new executive vice presidents. Variety has learned exclusively that Michael Heyerman has been promoted to the role of EVP of unscripted series, while Sean Loughlin has been promoted to EVP of
Andy Muschietti remains involved as director as the studio takes a measured approach in its development.
Zane Phillips and Andrew Matarazzo have joined SXSW jury prize winner and Independent Spirit Award nominee Annapurna Sriram in headlining the arthouse horror short “Still Hungry?” from writer-director Zachary Solomon. “Still Hungry?” follows “Sydney (Phillips), a toxic
In this age of late-stage capitalism, the drudgery of working to barely make ends meet can feel like living in a simulation. In Prime Video’s latest thriller, “Steal,” created by Sotiris Nikias, Zara (an impeccable Sophie Turner) finds herself in the middle of the biggest heist
John Glenn has signed with Range Media Partners, Variety has learned exclusively. The prolific writer and producer continues to be repped by CAA and Sloane Offer. Glenn is currently the showrunner, executive producer, and co-creator of the MGM+ series “Robin Hood” alongside
Two former Google and YouTube content executives have launched Artie, a new venture that will connect creators with cash and back-office infrastructure, on the eve of this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Matt McDonald and Derek Scobie want Artie, named after McDonald’s dog, to
Chris Pratt’s sci-fi thriller “Mercy” will aim to knock down the James Cameron juggernaut “Avatar: Fire and Ash” at the weekend box office. “Mercy” is aiming for $10 million to $13 million from 3,400 North American theaters over the weekend. Meanwhile “Avatar 3,” which has
Loco Films has come on board as the sales agent for Aitore Zholdaskali’s hard boiled thriller “Sicko,” which has its international premiere in the Bright Future Competition section of the International Film Festival Rotterdam on Feb. 1, following its successful release in its
