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On March 17, Jeremy Zimmer, the co-founder and CEO of UTA, informed staff at the agency that he would be stepping aside.

In a choreographed succession maneuver, 66-year-old Zimmer named the 56-year-old David Kramer (who he had elevated to president of UTA just a couple years prior) his successor at the agency. Zimmer told staff that he would stick around for the year as executive chairman, and remain on the UTA board.

“Let’s be honest, the chances that I’m going to start an aluminum company in Alaska or a cement company in Cleveland are pretty slim. So this is not goodbye,” he quipped in his note to staff.

Zimmer’s exit and Kramer’s ascension, however, comes at an intriguing moment for talent agencies, which are seeking to adapt to the new world of media just as much as Hollywood writ large.

UTA’s changing of the guard also...

Update: The stars will be out today at the Oscars, but Kamala Harris won’t be among them after all.

Expected to attend the 97th Academy Awards according to several sources, the former Veep is staying home Sunday. The new plan was made public by ex-Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff just now.

Oscars watch party prep. pic.twitter.com/vOU3D1jubQ

— Doug Emhoff (@DouglasEmhoff) March 2, 2025

Amidst much heavier than usual security, the decision not to attend was made earlier this afternoon for a variety of reasons, we’re told. While AMPAS did not respond earlier Sunday to request for comment from Deadline on Harris’ attendance at the Conan O’Brien hosted ceremony, an Academy source did tell us “not true” about the VP coming.

Previously, 12:45 Pm: No word if Kamala Harris is presenting or not, but there’s a very good chance the former Vice President will be attending the 97th Academy Awards today.

The stars are gathering in Hollywood for Oscars weekend!

Jane Fonda and Jane Fonda joined Vin Diesel, Guy Pearce, and Adrien Brody at The CAA Pre-Oscar Party on Friday night (February 28) held at The Living Room in Los Angeles.

Other stars at the party included Sebastian Stan, Ana de Armas, Kerry Washington, and Jon Hamm.

Following the event, we compiled photos of all the stars in attendance so that you can see who was there!

The 2025 Oscars will be taking place on Sunday, March 2 with host Conan O’Brien. Make sure to check out the full list of nominations!

Keep reading to find out more…Keep scrolling to see the stars in attendance…

Jane Fonda & Jennifer Lopez

Will.I.Am

Samara Weaving & husband Jimmy Warden

Andrucha Waddington & Fernanda Torres

Jerry Bruckheimer with Jon Hamm & wife Anna Osceola

Metallica’s Lars Ulrich & Sacha Baron Cohen

Maha Dakhil & Denis Villeneuve

Seth Rogen

Channing Tatum,...

Exclusive: A couple of weeks after Issa Rae canceled her sold-out Kennedy Center show over Donald Trump’s “infringement” of the DC institution, the Insecure creator had signed with CAA.

Exiting UTA, Rae and her Hoorae media company will be represented by the Bryan Lourd-run uberagency in all areas, I’m told. The Emmy-nominated Rae will continue to be repped by 3 Arts Entertainment, Am PR Group, and Hansen Jacobson Teller Hoberman Newman Warren Richman Rush Kaller Gellman Meigs & Fox Llp.

On the other side of the country, all tickets to the scheduled March 16 An Evening with Issa Rae at the Kennedy Center will be refunded, the Rae pledged.

Not that Rae will be out of sight for long. She produced the upcoming HBO documentary Seen and Heard, which is having its world premiere next month at the SXSW Film & TV Festival. To that end, the Barbie star will...

Joe and Anthony Russo were honored this weekend with a handprint and footprint ceremony at the Tcl Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, but it's their next steps — the ones not in wet concrete — that fans are most curious about. Deadline have confirmed, via the directors, that they will be starting work on Avengers: Doomsday in London in April, and they will also be shooting Avengers: Secret Wars back-to-back with Doomsday. Attendees at the ceremony included Guardians of the Galaxyand The Electric State star Chris Pratt, Alison Brie, Yvette Nicole Brown, Bryan Lourd, Bela Bajaria, and Marvel’s Kevin Feige and Louis D’Esposito.

Ahead of tonight’s premiere of their newest film The Electric State on Netflix, directors and Agbo cofounders Anthony and Joe Russo got their hands dirty this weekend. They were honored with a handprint and footprint ceremony at the Tcl Chinese Theatre Hollywood. It comes at a busy time for the Russos, who’ve clocked over $7 billion in global box office, making them the third highest-grossing directors in history. They will add to their TV work this fall with the second season of the spy series Citadel, and beyond The Electric State, they will start production in April on two more Avengers sequels for Marvel and Disney.

Onlookers included Guardians of the Galaxy and The Electric State star Chris Pratt, Alison Brie, Yvette Nicole Brown, Bryan Lourd, Bela Bajaria, and Marvel’s Kevin Feige and Louis D’Esposito. From Agbo, there was screenwriters Chris Markus and Stephen McFeely; Donald Mustard, Chris Brearton,...

As Kamala Harris maps out her next moves after a grueling general election campaign against Donald Trump, the former vice president has found Hollywood representation.

The California politician has inked with Creative Artists Agency, a spokesperson said on Tuesday. The agency plans to focus on speaking gigs and publishing opportunities as Harris plots options after the end of her term.

The move reunites Harris with her former boss, President Joe Biden, who re-signed with the Century City-based representation giant earlier this month. “CAA will work closely with Harris on her post-White House initiatives, creating strategic opportunities that expand her platform in support of the issues she has championed throughout decades-long career in public service,” the agency announced.

CAA’s co-chiefs, Richard Lovett, Bryan Lourd and Kevin Huvane, were among the industry’s prominent backers of Biden and Harris’ re-election bid.

Harris has published two books, 2019’s The Truths We Hold:...

Fighting tooth and nail to stop depositions in the ongoing arbitration between the uberagency and its former employees over vested equity, Range and its Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher lawyers were dealt a blow this week by a LA Superior Court judge, again.

“The request to stay all discovery is Denied,” wrote Santa Monica-based Judge Mark Young after a hearing on Tuesday.

“Here, the Court will not stay all discovery pending a demurrer,” Judge Young wrote in his second ruling in the matter in as many weeks. The suit was filed by CAA against “unlawful” Range in September 2024. “The Court has not ruled on the merits of the demurrer, and, in fact, Plaintiff has not even filed their opposition. Even if the Court was to grant the demurrer, there are scenarios where Plaintiff would be granted leave to amend and discovery would be appropriate.”

In terms of Range’s desire to “quash subpoenas,...

Joe Biden has signed with Creative Artists Agency for representation as he begins his post-presidential era.

“President Biden is one of America’s most respected and influential voices in national and global affairs,” said Richard Lovett, co-chairman of CAA. “His lifelong commitment to public service is one of unity, optimism, dignity, and possibility. We are profoundly honored to partner with him again.”

Lovett, along with fellow co-chairs Bryan Lourd and Kevin Huvane, has been among Hollywood’s prominent backers of Biden and Kamala Harris’ re-election campaign as well as other Democratic candidates.

The Century City-based mega agency already reps his White House predecessor via Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions, as well as Democratic-leaning pols like Joe Manchin, Susan Rice, Beto O’Rourke and many others across the aisle as part of its speakers bureau.

And the move for the Delaware politician marks a homecoming for Biden and the agency,...

Updated, 6:12 Pm: The many turns in and out of court in the equity and competition disputes between CAA and Range Media Partners has seen the legal script flipped again.

Two days ago, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge denied a request by the David Bugliari-, Peter Micelli- and Jack Whigham-created Range’s request for a pause in the wide-ranging lawsuit filed last October by the Bryan Lourd-run CAA. That order would have seen the former CAA agents having to testify in the ongoing arbitration the parties have been fighting for a couple of years over CAA cutting off vested equity for the Range founders when they jumped to form their own company.

On Wednesday, a judge on the Second Appellate court said that a pause was on now, at least temporarily.

“The petition for writ of supersedeas filed on January 28, 2025, has been read and considered...

It’s never a challenge for Zendaya to get attention, especially on a red carpet or during an award show.

The Challengers star got plenty on Sunday night at the Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton where the veteran star celebrated a nomination for best performance by a female actor in a motion picture musical or comedy. Making her first showing at the Globes since 2016, Zendaya had quite the night.

After turning heads with a show stopping custom look by Louis Vuitton paired with Bulgari gems (as always styled by Law Roach), the 28-year-old Emmy Award winner made her way inside the Beverly Hilton ballroom where The Hollywood Reporter spotted her catching up with her Euphoria cast mate and good friend, Colman Domingo, a fellow Globes nominee for his work in Sing Sing. In another candid moment, she said hello to Adam Sandler before the first award was handed out.

It’s been over a year since SAG and the WGA ended their months-long strikes with agreements that sought to address the coming impact of artificial intelligence on film and TV production.

But in that time, the technology has grown by leaps and bounds, with Open AI last week releasing its long-awaited Sora AI video generator which allows users to make a video from scratch using just a text prompt. Earlier today, Google launched its own video generation tool, Veo 2, which it says supports output in resolutions up to 4K. The tech giant plans to offer the video generation tool on YouTube Shorts and “other products” in 2025.

In that context, CAA and YouTube today announced a partnership which the Google-owned video giant says includes “plans to develop tools that will give creators and artists more awareness and control over how AI is being used to depict them on YouTube.” If effective,...

In a major deal that could have implications for the broader use of generative artificial intelligence in Hollywood, YouTube and CAA are teaming up on tools that will let celebrities manage their likenesses on the platform, including on videos that may use generative AI to recreate a star’s appearance.

The Google-owned video platform and talent agency announced the deal Tuesday morning, framing it as a way to responsibly use AI tech while protecting artists and creators. YouTube says that over the next few months, it will also begin testing the tools with “top YouTube creators, creative professionals, and other leading partners representing talent.”

“Neal and I started speaking earlier this year about the importance of creating a responsible AI ecosystem that protects artists, while unlocking new possibilities for creative expression,” CAA CEO and co-chairman Bryan Lourd says. “At CAA, our AI conversations are centered around ethics and talent rights,...

The director Luca Guadagnino has an eye for leading men. This past year, Guadagnino put Josh O’Connor through a complicated game of sex, betrayal and tennis in “Challengers,” written by Justin Kuritzkes. And the director took Daniel Craig on a journey through the emotional depths of “Queer,” based on William Burroughs’ short novel. O’Connor and Craig, both known for playing iconic Brits — the first as Prince Charles in “The Crown,” the other in the five most recent James Bond movies — spent this past summer working on the next installment in Netflix’s “Knives Out” franchise, “Wake Up Dead Man,” which will stream on the platform next year.

Daniel Craig: Where did you first meet Luca Guadagnino?

Josh O’Connor: I met him at his favorite hotel in London.

Craig: Claridge’s?

O’Connor: Claridge’s. I got a text from our friend Jonathan Anderson saying, “Do you want to come for lunch?...

Did Carrie Fisher have an affair with Harrison Ford? (Photo Credit – Wikimedia)

Star Wars’ world-shifting debut in 1977 gave the galaxy more than just unforgettable characters; it also gave us one of Hollywood’s most unexpected behind-the-scenes romances. Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford had a secret affair on set. The truth emerged decades later in Fisher’s memoir The Princess Diarist, where she spilled the galactic tea about their brief but intense fling. The Star Wars phenomenon set the stage for their secret romance. Just 19 and fresh off as Princess Leia, Fisher was wrapped up in a whirlwind with the 33-year-old married Ford, who was already a rising star. The affair was kept under wraps—until Fisher decided to tell the world in 2016. She described it as more of a “three-month one-night stand” with plenty of emotional baggage. According to Fisher, when you’re filming on location, “everything is permitted,” but...

Larry Auerbach, a top agent at William Morris Agency for nearly 50 years who also served 25 years at USC School of Cinematic Arts, died Nov. 23 at his home in Beverly Hills. He was 95.

Auerbach represented a wide range of talent during his 47 years with William Morris, including Alan Alda, Bea Arthur, Marlo Thomas, Robert Wagner, Aaron Spelling, Sammy Davis Jr., Aretha Franklin, Sam Cooke, Harry Belafonte and such prestige-movie directors as Norman Jewison and Bernardo Bertolucci. Auerbach worked his way up to a leadership role at the agency after starting there in New York at age 15, working part-time while in high school sweeping floors and doing other less-than-glamorous duties during World War II.

After ending his Wma career in 1992, Auerbach segued to USC film school, where he used his matchmaking skills to create the Office of Industry Relations. He retired from USC as associate dean and head of student-industry relations in...

Veteran William Morris agent, Larry Auerbach, who ended his career helping USC students make connections with people in the film and TV industries, died Saturday. He was 95.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Auerbach spent 47 years as an agent at William Morris, where he started part-time in the mailroom. While there, he was known as “the man with the golden rolodex,” securing Elvis Presley’s first TV performance, Aretha Franklin, Sam Cooke and Sammy Davis, Jr.

He went on to represent Alan Alda, Bea Arthur and Aaron Spelling and helped create and package The Cosby Show, which he recalled in a 2003 interview with the Television Academy.

After he left the William Morris Agency, he was considering going into producing, but USC came calling, hoping to use his expertise to help students break into the entertainment industry.

“There was a little story in the paper that I was leaving William Morris,...

If you’re planning on attending Tom Rothman’s party in November, you’ll need a costume. Rumor has it the Sony chairman is asking invitees to the event — which is a joint birthday bash with his wife, actress Jessica Harper — to dress up as characters from movies made under his reign. Luckily, it’s a long list of wardrobe choices, stretching back a multitude of decades. You could go as Jack Dawson from 1997’s Titanic. Or Satine from 2001’s Moulin Rouge! Or Miranda Priestly from 2006’s The Devil Wears Prada. Or Rick Dalton from 2019’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

The point here is, Rothman is turning 70 and has been in charge at Sony (and before that, Fox) for a very, very long time.

As it happens, he’s not the only silver mogul in Hollywood these days. Bob Iger is 73 and has been running Disney off and on for nearly 20 years.

Lynda Obst, the pioneering producer who put her mark on beloved films like Sleepless in Seattle, Contact, Flashdance, The Fisher King, Adventures in Babysitting, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and Interstellar, died Tuesday. She was 74.

Obst died at her Los Angeles home surrounded by loved ones, her son, manager-producer Oly Obst, told The Hollywood Reporter.

“My mom was a trailblazer and a fierce advocate for women. Also, she was an amazing mother, sister and best friend,” he said in a statement. “[My wife] Julie and I are incredibly grateful that she was my mom and that my daughters got to have her as a grandmother. We will miss her.”

Obst’s brother Rick Rosen, the longtime and respected partner of TV at WME, said: “Our family is immensely proud of the career that she had and the role model she was for women in the industry, but beyond that,...

Exclusive: CAA and Range Media Partners already are in arbitration over equity the agency canceled for the agents who made up the 2020-formed management company. Now the Bryan Lourd-led CAA is after Range in open court for alleged theft and some big bucks.

“Range is an unlicensed talent agency built on deceit,” reads the four-claim lawsuit filed September 30 in Los Angeles Superior Court.

“Seeking a shortcut to success, Range’s initial founder, Peter Micelli (a former CAA literary agent and CAA member) found four highly paid CAA leaders to act as his accomplices: posing as loyal CAA members, sitting shoulder to shoulder in confidential CAA meetings about clients and business, all the while covertly working to benefit Range and themselves, and to harm CAA,” adds the suit, which seeks large but unspecified damages.

Click to read CAA’s four-claim lawsuit.

“Put simply, Range’s business model is the pursuit...

A slew of stars and influential figures, including former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, converged at the academy museum for A+E’s History Talks, drawing upon the past while offering inspiration for the future in a series of weighty conversations.

Kate Winslet, Kevin Costner, Kerry Washington, Nicole Avant, John Legend, Eva Longoria, Chuck Todd and a handful of historians and experts were among the other speakers during the A&e Networks event.

The Bush conversation was off-the-record. Meanwhile, Obama and Malcolm Gladwell spoke at length, touching upon a variety of topics including the importance of storytelling, the Reconstruction era and the Affordable Care Act. The pair stayed away from conversation about the current presidential race.

Obama told a story about his grandmother’s younger brother, just a teenager at the time, being part of an army unit that liberated a concentration camp during World War II. The...

Queer, an upcoming film by director Luca Guadagnino, and a film he has wanted to make for some time, has finally come to fruition. After debuting at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, Guadagnino discussed his experiences making this film, the adaptation process, and the casting of former James Bond actor Daniel Craig. In an interview with Variety, Guadagnino spoke about how the casting of Craig came to be, with the filmmaker initially thinking that the actor would not be interested in playing main character, William Lee. Thankfully, Guadagnino's agent Bryan Lourd knew Craig would be on board.

"Once Justin wrote the script, I spoke to my agent, the great Bryan Lourd, and I gave it to him. And Bryan, who knew the book by heart, was really so sharp in understanding what we were trying to do. And we were chatting about who could be the incarnation [of Burroughs] and I said,...

Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix soaked up the applause as Todd Phillips’ villainous musical sequel, “Joker: Folie à Deux” earned an 11-minute standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival on Wednesday night.

Before the premiere, Phoenix showed up early and generously worked the carpet, taking selfies with fans. Phillips asked a guest to borrow her paper fan to fan himself and keep cool in the hot temperatures. Gaga arrived to chants of her name as the paparazzi created one of the biggest frenzies of this year’s festival, with photographers tripping over each other on the carpet to get a shot of the star. One fan with pink hair held up a sign that read, “Gaga I just wanna hold your hold for a while.” The Harley Quinn star needed help maneuvering in her dress as a handler took her hand to fans and signed a long line of autographs.

Local Italian hero Luca Guadagnino swept into the Venice Film Festival Tuesday to debut his much-anticipated erotic period drama, Queer, starring Daniel Craig and Drew Starkey as fleeting lovers in 1950 Mexico City.

Craig, speaking at the film’s first press conference in Italy, described the process of building a rapport with Starkey to shoot the film’s quite graphic sex scenes, noting that they began by rehearsing some choreography together months before shooting kicked off.

“Dancing with someone is a great icebreaker,” Craig explained. “We all know there’s nothing intimate about filming a sex scene on a movie set — there’s a room full of people watching you — so we just wanted to make it as touching, real and natural as we possibly could.”

“Drew is just a wonderful, fantastic, beautiful actor to work with, and we just kind of had a laugh,” Craig added. “You know, we tried to make it fun.

Daniel Craig cruised to Italy and is now on land at the Venice Film Festival for the Queer world premiere.

Ahead of the Luca Guadagnino film’s festival debut — taking place at Palazzo del Cinema’s Sala Grande in the early evening on Tuesday — Queer was toasted at a pre-premiere celebration courtesy of Loewe creative director Jonathan Anderson and W Magazine’s editor-in-chief Sara Moonves. Anderson served as costume designer for the A24 release, marking his second straight collaboration with Guadagnino after Challengers. Also keeping it in the family, Craig stars in Loewe’s new campaign.

Held at Il Porticciolo, the restaurant inside Hotel Cipriani, A Belmond Hotel, Venice, the intimate affair drew a shortlist of actors from Queer, fashion insiders from Loewe and festival stars. Craig arrived arm-in-arm with actress wife Rachel Weisz, who is here to support her husband as he breaks free of his James Bond persona...

Luca Guadagnino wanted an "iconic" actor in the lead role for 'Queer'.The 53-year-old filmmaker has helmed the historical romantic drama and revealed how he and his agent Bryan Lourd came up with the idea of Daniel Craig starring in the adaptation of William S. Burroughs' 1985 novel.Luca told Variety at the Venice Film Festival: "We were chatting about who could be the incarnation (of Burroughs) and I said, 'I don't know. I think it should be someone iconic.' And he said, 'What about Daniel Craig?'"I said, 'Well, I thought about him, but I don't know. I would never dare to ask. He goes like, 'Why? He would love that.'"He gave the script to Daniel, and Daniel and I were on the phone a week later. Then, a week passed, and he was in the movie."The former James Bond star has been tipped for...

While the world knows Daniel Craig for his iconic portrayal of James Bond, the actor also has several other well-acclaimed movies under his belt. Currently, he’s in Venice presenting his upcoming movie Queer alongside Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino.

Daniel Craig stars as James Bond in Skyfall || Credits: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures/Columbia Pictures

But while the actor’s presence in the movie marks a major shift from his past projects, he almost missed the chance to feature in it. The reason being that Guadagnino was just too afraid to ask Craig to be a part of the movie.

Italian Filmmaker Luca Guadagnino Was Afraid to Ask Daniel Craig to Be a Part of Queer Daniel Craig as James Bond in Casino Royale || Credits: Columbia Pictures

Based on William S. Burroughs’ 1985 short novel of the same name, Queer is an upcoming historical romance drama. In the movie, Daniel Craig will play the...

Luca Guadagnino’s adaptation of the William S. Burroughs novella “Queer,” which premieres Tuesday in competition at the Venice Film Festival, is his most personal film yet — and one that he’s been dreaming of making for many years.

The stars aligned when producer Lorenzo Mieli and Fremantle’s head of literary acquisitions Raffaella de Angelis were able to get the book rights and Guadagnino rapidly paired up again with “Challengers” writer Justin Kuritzkes. Then, CAA chief exec Bryan Lourd brought Daniel Craig on board to play the renowned counterculture author’s alter ego, Lee, an outcast American expat who lives in Mexico, and “Outer Banks” star Drew Starkey was cast as a younger man with whom he becomes madly infatuated.

From the director of “Call Me by Your Name,” the film features intimate love scenes between the two men that will certainly make it one of the buzziest indie movies of the year.

Disney, CAA, and Miramax lost a bid to toss out a lawsuit by Julia Ormond, who alleged the companies failed to protect her from now-incarcerated Harvey Weinstein.

“The complaint sufficiently alleges that CAA failed to protect plaintiff from Weinstein, failing to warn her of his alleged reputation while at the same time negotiating the production company agreement between the plaintiff and Miramax, and later arranging the dinner meeting between plaintiff and Weinstein,” said the court’s ruling stated, per The Los Angeles Times. At the time of the alleged assault,...

CAA has lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit from Julia Ormond faulting the agency for failing to warn her about Harvey’s Weinstein’s history of sexual misconduct before she took a meeting with the former movie mogul that led to her assault.

Ormond last year filed a wide-reaching lawsuit accusing her ex-agency, Miramax and Disney of turning a blind eye to Weinstein’s crimes. After she was assaulted, she said her agents at the time, who were allegedly told by another client that Weinstein proposed sex in exchange for career opportunities, discouraged her from reporting the incident to law enforcement.

In an order rejecting dismissal of the case, New York judge Suzanne Adams found on Monday that the allegations “suggest that CAA knew or had reason to know of a potential assault by Weinstein” that could constitute a breach of agency’s fiduciary duties to Ormond, who rose...

A judge on Monday allowed Julia Ormond to proceed with allegations that Disney and CAA failed to protect her from Harvey Weinstein in the mid-90s.

Suzanne J. Adams, a state court justice in Manhattan, denied the companies’ motions to dismiss the lawsuit, which claims that the entertainment conglomerate and the agency enabled Weinstein’s predatory behavior because he “made them too much money.”

Ormond sued the companies last October, alleging that Weinstein sexually assaulted her in New York in December 1995. CAA represented Ormond the the time, and had negotiated a deal for her at Weinstein’s company, Miramax, which was owned by Disney. Miramax was also named as a defendant.

The British actress rose to stardom in the mid-90s with lead roles in “Sabrina” and “Legends of the Fall.” She alleges that after the assault, her CAA agents, Bryan Lourd and Kevin Huvane, discouraged her from reporting the...

(Updated with CAA statement) Julia Ormond’s lawsuit against Disney, CAA and Miramax over an alleged 1995 sexual assault by the now-incarcerated Harvey Weinstein will be going forward.

“Upon the foregoing documents, and oral argument having been held before the court on May 20, 2024, it is ordered that the motions of defendants The Walt Disney Company, Creative Artists Agency, LLC, and Miramax Film NY, LLC are denied,” New York State Judge Suzanne Adams ruled today.

Read the order rejecting Disney, CAA and Miramax’s move to have Julia Ormand’s suit over an alleged 1995 sexual assault by Harvey Weinstein here.

Not trial date has yet been set for the negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, battery and more action by the Emmy winning Ormond. However, unless the two studios and the mega-agency make a settlement deal Asap, trial is where this is headed.

While a black-eye to the defendants, such dismissal attempts are...

The 2024 Democratic National Convention is about to kick off!

The event starts on Monday (August 19), running through Thursday (August 22) at the United Center in Chicago, Ill.

During the event, several celebrities will be appearing at the rally to show support for Vice President Kamala Harris and Tim Walz‘s 2024 Presidential campaign.

50,000 visitors are expected to come to Chicago for the event, including 5,000 delegates and alternates and 15,000 members of the media.

Ahead of the DNC, four celebrities were just announced to be hosting the festivities – find out who they are!

Keep reading to find out more…

There are over 100 events happening, with confirmed attendees throughout the week including John Legend, Jon Stewart, Billy Porter, Joan Jett, Octavia Spencer, DJ D-Nice, Lil Jon and stars of RuPaul’s Drag Race.

The Creative Coalition, led by Robin Bronk, has also confirmed details for a series of events, including Uzo Aduba, Sheryl Lee Ralph,...

Bill Maher has a new agency; the HBO host is moving to WME.

This deal has been brewing for some time, since Maher left CAA. He was spotting dining with Endeavor boss Ari Emanuel back in March.

At that time, news emerged that Maher supposedly fired CAA after not being invited to an Oscar party at Bryan Lourd’s house. The so-called snub happened days after HBO renewed Real Time with Bill Maher for two more seasons, running through 2026.

WME will represent Maher in all areas of entertainment. Maher is on his 22nd season of Real Time.

When his show was renewed in March, Maher said “two more years in the dream job of a lifetime, on the network so many dream of being on – I think that’s what we call a no-brainer.”...

Bill Maher has jumped to WME, months after a report surfaced noting he had grown disenchanted with his former agency, CAA, which had represented the iconoclastic comedian and satirist for years.

WME, part of the talent-and-sports consortium Endeavor, will represent Maher in all areas of entertainment. Maher is in the midst of hosting the 22nd season of his long-running HBO talk show, “Real Time,” and signed a two-year extension for the program in March, ensuring his voice will be heard through the current presidential election and through 2026. “Real Time” is seen on HBO and parent company Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max streaming service, and also airs on Saturday nights on sibling cable outlet CNN, a day after it debuts on HBO.

Maher continues to be managed by Marc Gurvitz of Brillstein Entertainment Partners.

His jump to WME may have been precipitated by a report in The Hollywood Reporter that noted...

The Avenger Black Widow had a big target in 2021. In a case full of Hollywood intrigue and contractual clashes, Scarlett Johansson challenged Disney over the release strategy for her MCU solo film. The situation ended up sparking a big legal debate and also brought up some questions about how movies were released during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Still from Black Widow (Marvel Studios)

However, although both parties reached a settlement, the situation seems to have been quite difficult for the actress, as she was going through a time of personal retreat. In the end, it was a significant learning experience for her.

What Was the Lawsuit Filed Against Disney? Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow (Marvel Studios)

Scarlett Johansson had her name involved in a major controversy this year, but in 2021, she found herself in a more critical situation when she decided to sue Disney over the simultaneous release of the film...

Hugh Grant is “miserable” due to the closure of his local movie theater.

The actor lamented Cineworld’s decision to close a quarter of its cinemas in the U.K., including his own Fulham Rd outpost.

“Fulham Rd cinema closing after 94 years. Strangely unbearable,” Grant posted on X. “Let’s all sit at home and watch ‘content’ on ‘streaming.’ While scrolling. Miserable face emoji.”

Actor Michael Warburton commented on Grant’s post, writing, “Part of my Cinema-going history for sure and therefore damnably sad & infuriating in equal measure. Once these palaces are gone they don’t come back people!”

Of course, Grant isn’t entirely removed from the shift in entertainment industry business models, as his recent film “Unfrosted” debuted solely on Netflix. His additional roles in “Wonka” and the upcoming horror film “Heretic” both have theatrical releases. Grant is also reprising his beloved role in the latest “Bridget Jones” franchise installment,...

Jacob Rees-Mogg Series Heads To Discovery+

The docu-series following controversial Conservative politician Jacob Rees-Mogg, who has previously been dubbed the “Honourable Member for the 18th century,” is landing at Discovery+. The series from At Home with the Furys producer Optomen has been widely reported on in the past couple of days. Airing on the streamer later this year, Meet the Rees-Moggs will follow the politician – who lost his seat during last week’s general election Conservative wipeout – in the run up to the poll and its aftermath. He is a controversial figure on the right of British politics who used to have a reputation for filibustering, has held several cabinet posts and was one of the most ardent supporters of Brexit within the Conservative ranks. Earlier in his career, he attracted headlines when he took his childhood nanny and a flash Mercedes with him to campaign in a traditionally working class seat in Scotland.

CAA has added Cheryl Paglierani, a top music touring agent, and a client list that includes Post Malone, 21 Savage and Dominic Fike. Paglierani, who’d been at CAA once before, leaves UTA, where she was a partner. She’d also been an agent at Wma back in the day and worked at The Agency Group.

Paglierani is a strong player in the music space and also signed Flo Mili, Jessie Murp and others. She was named twice to Billboard’s “Power 100” list and has been recognized on Billboard’s “Hip Hop Power List” for the past five years. This year, she was named to both Pollstar’s “Women of Live” and “Impact 50” lists.

21 Savage recently finished a 30-date North American amphitheater tour that sold over 140,000 tickets and will be headlining a number of festivals this summer across Europe including Wireless, Roskilde, Splash! and Frauenfeld. She began working with Post...

“Everyone is talking about the doom and gloom of our industry, but we have to get over that and be optimists,” said Donna Langley today. “I really do believe that.”

“As much as things change, they stay the same,” the Chairman of NBCU Studio Group and Chief Content Officer also declared of the media industry. “The pocketbook is being impacted by how many streaming subscriptions they have. Bundling is an inevitability.”

She was referring to the consumer financial fatigue and growing moves toward the old cable mode of bundling in the dimming digital environment.

Moving from matters of bundling, the big and small screens, the state of Peacock, AI, protecting IP and the unsteady media landscape, the seasoned exec was speaking Friday with uber-attorney Ken Ziffren onstage in the marquee event of the 48th annual UCLA Entertainment Symposium.

“Consumer behavior has shifted, but it’s probably not coming back anytime soon,...

White House residents and Hollywood megastars shared the stage inside Los Angeles’ Peacock Theater on Saturday night for what turned out to be a record-setting Democratic fundraising haul as President Biden’s reelection campaign netted more than $30 million from the one-night-only event.

But even with all that cash and the glamour of A-list headliners George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Jimmy Kimmel (who moderated a 40-minute chat with Biden and former President Barack Obama), the shadow of Biden’s Republican opponent, Donald Trump, loomed large. During the conversation, the trio took turns ripping Trump’s questionable track record, his history of lying to the American people, a freshly stamped criminal record with 34 felonies, and a recent threat of bloodshed and retribution should he come out victorious in the November election.

“I could have done nothing and done better than him,” Biden said at the top of the conversation, during which much...

CAA CEO Bryan Lourd opened up about the dispute between OpenAI and one of his star clients, Scarlett Johansson.

In a Financial Times interview, Lourd also said that generative artificial intelligence could be a source of real opportunity for clients, even as the biggest AI firms like OpenAI don’t entirely understand the world of creatives.

Last month, OpenAI pulled its “Sky” chatbot voice from ChatGPT, after users noted that it sounded eerily similar to Scarlett Johansson. The star subsequently released a statement revealing that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had tried to recruit her to voice one of the chatbots, but she had declined, and that she was “shocked” and “angered” when she heard the Sky voice.

“To Scarlett’s credit, she is not afraid to tell the truth and to stand up for herself,” Lourd told the Ft. “When you become someone as globally recognised as she is, the...

Shares of Paramount Global edged lower Thursday, day three in the red, amid lingering uncertainty around Skydance’s latest offer. With bigger than anticipated sweeteners for Class B shareholders, it was approved by Par’s special board committee and sent on to controlling shareholder Shari Redstone but with no announcement forthcoming.

Redstone controls Paramount through family holding company Nai, which owns about 80% of the company’s Class A voting shares. She’s always had the last word and Skydance wasn’t necessarily going to be an immediate slam dunk. But Deadline also hears Redstone continues to explore two other options as well the Skydance offer that formally landed on her plate over the weekend.

One of the two is a bid from an investor group led by Steven Paul. Deadline hears there is one other interested party. Both of those proposals — they may not be formal offers yet — would only...

Creative Artists Agency has promoted Emma Banks, Darryl Eaton and Rick Roskin as the new co-heads of its global touring business.

The trio will oversee the department’s 340 employees across music, comedy and podcast touring, brand partnerships, tour marketing and private events. Banks is promoted after co-leading CAA’s London music office, while Eaton and Roskin have been co-heads of contemporary music for North America, running the day-to-day operations of that key regional touring department.

CAA represents touring talent like The Weeknd, Harry Styles, Katy Perry, Dua Lipa, John Mayer, Rüfüs Du Sol, Jelly Roll, Kelly Clarkson, Lady Gaga, Bruce Springsteen and David Guetta.

The new triumverate at the major talent agency follows Rob Light, who spent 25 years as head of global touring, recently being elevated to CAA managing director, working alongside CAA co-chairman and CEO Bryan Lourd, co-chairmen Kevin Huvane and Richard Lovett and president Jim Burtson on strategic business and operational matters.

Creative Artists Agency on Thursday announced the appointment of Emma Banks, Darryl Eaton and Rick Roskin to Co-Heads of Global Touring.

Going forward, the trio will jointly oversee the department’s continued global growth and its more than 340 employees across music, comedy and podcast touring, brand partnerships, tour marketing, private events, and crossover opportunities in film, television and books.

Each of the three is a senior member of CAA’s leadership team who has helped drive its run as the world’s #1 music and comedy touring agency. They will build on the 25 years put in as Head of Global Touring by Rob Light, who was recently appointed as CAA Managing Director, and is now working alongside other company leaders in guiding the agency’s overall strategic direction.

“With the most talented team of agents ever at one agency, and serving the most influential artists in the world, we see unlimited opportunities ahead,...

While filming the 1977 film Star Wars: A New Hope, its leading stars Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford had a brief relationship. Despite keeping their relationship private at the time and in the subsequent years, Fisher revealed details about their affair in her memoir The Princess Diarist. The memoir discusses how they met, how their relationship started, and her enduring love for Ford over time.

Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford | Credit: Lucasfilm

However, she noted that her co-star never seemed to feel the same about her, calling it unreciprocated love as they hardly discussed their relationship. Her brief relationship had a significant impact on Fisher’s future relationships, she also disclosed how her subsequent romantic partner resembled Ford in many ways, except for one important difference, for which she felt profound, except for one important difference, for which she felt profoundly grateful.

Carrie Fisher’s Relationship with Harrison Ford Influenced Her...

It seemed appropriate that the location for the annual Women in Motion dinner in Cannes should be at Place de la Castre, atop Suquet Hill where victors of yore could survey their domain. It was certainly the case that honored guest Dame Donna Langley had captured the castle.

Cannes Film Festival president Iris Knobloch struck the right note when when she remarked to the NBCUniversal Studio Group Chair and Chief Content Officer, and other guests, that “you are sometimes introduced as one of the most powerful women in Hollywood, but in reality you are one of the most powerful people in Hollywood, regardless of gender.”

And it’s true.

Knobloch continued, ”Yes, women can be great leaders, just like you. Yes, woman can be successful, just like you. Yes, women can take risks, just like you. And yes, women can manage 10-figure budgets, just like you.”

(L-r) Bryan Lourd, Salma Hayek,...

Sony brought together a multiverse’s worth of its filmmakers past and present together Friday at Cannes for a dinner celebrating the 100th anniversary of Columbia Pictures.

The attendees at Mamo Michelangelo included Cannes jury president and Barbie director Greta Gerwig (who made Little Women for Columbia), Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Oscar winners Phil Lord and Chris Miller, Bad Boys: Ride or Die directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, Chloe Zhao, whose The Rider was distributed by Sony Pictures Classics, Anyone But You director Will Gluck and Kraven the Hunter filmmaker J.C. Chandor.

Entrepreneur and film producer Charles Finch hosted the dinner with Tom Rothman, chairman & CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment’s Motion Picture Group.

During the dinner, Rothman gave a toast in which he wandered among the tables, pointing out specific talent and giving a nod to their contributions to the studio, name checking Ghostbusters: Afterlife director Jason Reitman...

Tom Rothman, the Sony Motion Pictures Group chairman and CEO, wined and dined a select few at a splendidly swish soirée Friday at Mamo Michelangelo in Antibes, hosted by Charles Finch as part of his annual Filmmakers Dinner honoring 100 years of Columbia Pictures, and there was something he said about why movies matter that has stuck with me.

Hours earlier, Rothman had introduced a gloriously restored print of Charles Vidor’s 1946 movie Gilda, starring Rita Hayworth as the eponymous nightclub temptress and Glenn Ford as the hardboiled gambler from her past.

They hate each other, but as we all know, that’s often a prelude on the road to love both in real and reel life.

Related: Cannes Film Festival 2024 Photos

Vidor also uses the vocabulary of dance to signal Gilda’s emotional temperature.

The great choreographer Jack Cole, who later coached Marilyn Monroe on her moves in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes,...

Reflecting the breadth of Mediawan CEO Pierre-Antoine Capton’s vast network and friendships, an impressive roster of film industry players flocked to celebrate him as he received Variety‘s International Visionary Award at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday.

Attendees included CAA’s co-chairman and CEO Bryan Lourd, who said a few words about Capton on stage, as well as AGC Studios’ Stuart Ford, SPC’s Tom Bernard, Netflix’s Larry Tanz and Pauline Dauvin, and Mediawan executives including Elisabeth d’Arvieu and Justine Planchon. The event also gathered star producers within Mediawan’s galaxy, from Hugo Selignac (Chi-Fou-Mi) to Dimitri Rassam (Chapter 2), Matthias Weber (2425 Films) and Federica Sainte-Rose (Blue Morning Pictures), and entertainment attorney Elsa Huisman. There were also leaders from the various streamers, such as Sahar Baghery and Thomas Dubois from Amazon Prime Video in France and Anne-Gabrielle Dauba-Pantanacce from Netflix, among others.

The Variety award coincides...