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Sometime in the 2000s, comedian Eddie Murphy began experiencing a career slump that, quite sadly, would remain with him for years. Ron Underwood's 2002 sci-fi comedy "The Adventures of Pluto Nash" was a notorious bomb, making only $7.1 million on a $100 million budget. Murphy's cinematic update of "I Spy" from the same year also lost money, and Murphy turned to making mediocre but popular kiddie flicks like "The Haunted Mansion" and "Daddy Day Care" to make ends meet.

In 2006, Murphy received an Academy Award nomination for his performance in "Dreamgirls," but he immediately chased it with the universally hated "Norbit" only months later. "Norbit" made money, but no one seemed to like it. Some have even said that the presence of "Norbit" in theaters harmed Murphy's chance of winning an Oscar that year. He lost to Alan Arkin in "Little Miss Sunshine."

Murphy's next few films were all panned by critics,...

One of the most famous restaurants in Hollywood is on the market.

Yamashiro and its surrounding 7.3 acre property are asking $100 million. Such films as Kill Bill, Gone in 60 Seconds, and Teahouse of the August Moon used the location, as have TV shows I Spy, Perry Mason, Route 66, and My Three Sons.

The Japanese restaurant is currently owned by producer and nightlife impresario Elie Samaha. 

The property is on National Register of Historic Places. As such, the 20,432-square-foot building will be protected, and the restaurant is likely to continue.

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Akira Toriyama created some of the most memorable and beloved characters and designs in manga and video game history. From Dragon Ball to his work on the Dragon Quest series, it would t be an exaggeration to claim that Toriyamas art has truly changed the world. With the genius art he has created, from iconic monsters to instantly recognizable haircuts, it can be easy to overlook the smaller-scale triumphs he has achieved, like the beautiful artwork on each volume of the Dragon Ball manga.

As one of the greatest manga artists of his era, the artwork on each volume of Dragon Ball is a joy to look at, and thats especially true as he came into his own in the latter period of the manga that was later dubbed Dragon Ball Z. DBZs manga cover art is at once simplistic yet surprisingly intricate,...

Tubi, Fox’s free streaming service, has announced its list of April titles. The April 2024 slate features new Tubi Originals as well as numerous action, Black cinema, comedy, documentary, drama, horror, kids and family, romance, sci-fi and fantasy, thriller, and Western titles.

As a leading ad-supported video-on-demand service, Tubi engages diverse audiences through a personalized experience and the world’s largest content library, which includes over 200,000 movies and TV episodes, a growing collection of Tubi Originals, and nearly 250 Fast channels.

You can watch the Tubi April 2024 lineup for free on Android and iOS mobile devices, Amazon Echo Show, Google Nest Hub Max, Comcast Xfinity X1, and Cox Contour.

You can also watch the service on connected television devices such as Amazon Fire TV, Vizio TVs, Sony TVs, Samsung TVs, Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast, Android TV, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and on the web at Tubi.tv.

Tubi Originals

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The "Twilight Zone" episode "The Midnight Sun" took place on an Earth that had fallen out of its orbit and was drifting very slowly closer and closer toward the sun. The episode was an exploration of humanity during its waning hours, as seen through the eyes of Norma (Lois Nettleton), a painter who tried desperately to hang on to water and stay cool as temperatures rose and rose. Norma's only recourse is to paint the fires she sees out the window and the burning, growing sun in the sky. Eventually, her neighbor breaks down and implores Norma to paint something cool and refreshing, like a waterfall. The episode ends with Norma being overwhelmed by the heat and her neighbor dying of heat stroke.

There is a twist, of course. Norma wakes up in bed, having dreamed the entire episode. It's revealed that the Earth is, in fact, drifting away from...

Just one year after HBO’s “Succession” broke new ground as the first drama series to ever receive four male guest acting Emmy nominations at once, the same network’s “The Last of Us” has matched the impressive feat. Included among those currently recognized for their special appearances on the post-apocalyptic video game adaptation is Lamar Johnson, who has built an extensive acting resume over the past 15 years. Having just turned 29 in July, he ranks as the fourth youngest Best Drama Guest Actor nominee ever and has a shot at becoming the category’s all-time youngest victor.

Johnson’s very first Emmy notice comes for his portrayal of Henry Burrell, a one-time government informant attempting to evade capture by ruthless resistance leader Kathleen (Melanie Lynskey). The actor’s episode submission, “Endure and Survive,” shows that Henry never has much time to dwell on his dire situation as an apocalypse survivor...

Stephen Kandel, the prolific screenwriter whose work over four decades in television spanned Sea Hunt to Star Trek, Batman to Barnaby Jones and Mannix to MacGyver, has died. He was 96.

Kandel died Oct. 21 of natural causes in his Boston apartment, his daughter Elizabeth Englander told The Hollywood Reporter.

Kandel also wrote multiple episodes of such shows as The Millionaire, The Rogues, Gidget, I Spy, Ironside, The Wild Wild West, It Takes a Thief, Dan August, The New Mike Hammer, Mission: Impossible, Room 222, The Magician, Medical Center, Cannon, Hawaii Five-o and Hart to Hart.

Plus, he co-created Iron Horse, a 1966-68 drama from ABC and Screen Gems that starred Dale Robertson, as a gambler turned railroad baron, Gary Collins and Ellen Burstyn.

“His résumé reads like a Baby Boomer’s dream list of must-see TV,” Tom Weaver wrote in his 2005 book, Earth vs. the Sci-Fi Filmmakers.

Kandel had a hand...

When NBC premiered "The Cosby Show" on September 20, 1984, the network effectively claimed ownership of Thursday night primetime television for several decades. This was the unofficial beginning of Must-See TV (the moniker wouldn't be coined until 1993), and the series' ratings prominence throughout the mid- to late-'80s anchored NBC's lineup, allowing them to switch out sitcoms in the 8:30 and 9:30 slots as needed.

The other Thursday half-hour slot deemed untouchable by the network was the 9 p.m. post dominated by "Cheers." Created by James Burrows, Glen Charles, and Les Charles, the show built around a neighborhood Boston bar where everybody knows your name bounced around during its first two seasons before permanently bellying up to 9 p.m. for the rest of its 11-season run. It was the lightly ribald counterpart to the family-friendly antics of "The Cosby Show," and it never had a bad season.

These two series changed television history forever,...

Robert Butler, a television director for the pilot shows for Star Trek, Batman, Hill Street Blues, and Moonlighting, has died. He was 95.

Butler’s family announced that the Emmy award-winning director died on Nov. 3 in Los Angeles.

Graduating from UCLA where he majored in English, Butler started his career in entertainment as an usher at CBS. His first credit as a director would come in 1959 when he directed an episode for the military comedy-drama Hennesey which starred Jackie Cooper and Abby Dalton.

Over the years, Butler was sought out to direct pilots for shows like Hogan’s Heroes (1965), the original Star Trek (1966), Batman (1966), the first mini-series on television The Blue Knight (1973), Hill Street Blues (1978), Moonlighting (1985), Sisters (1991) and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993).

Butler won two Emmy Awards, the first one for The Blue Knight pilot in 1973 and the second one in 1981 for Hill Street Blues. In 2015 he was...

Robert Butler, the Emmy-winning, go-to pilot director who helmed the first episodes of such acclaimed shows as Batman, Star Trek, Hill Street Blues and Moonlighting, died Nov. 3 in Los Angeles, his family announced. He was 95.

Butler also co-created the Pierce Brosnan-starring Remington Steele (and helmed its pilot, of course), directed the first episode of Hogan’s Heroes in 1965, and called the first shots and set the tone for, Glenn Gordon Caron’s Moonlighting, Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Sisters and The Division.

In 1973, he directed the William Holden-starring The Blue Knight — the first four-hour television miniseries — at NBC and then got the CBS series adaptation of the Joseph Wambaugh novel that starred George Kennedy off on the right foot.

Butler also helmed two episodes of The Twilight Zone (the fifth-season installments “Caesar and Me,” starring his old friend, Jackie Cooper, and “The Encounter”) and worked on The Dick Van Dyke Show,...

Robert De Niro and Asa Butterfield form an unlikely friendship over eating food and going places in a new ad for Uber One.

The Oscar-winning actor joins the Sex Education star for the three-minute vignette, which was directed by David Shane. The ad, designed to grow Uber One’s U.K. subscribers, sees the two actors forming an unlikely friendship. It’s the latest celebrity Uber ad campaign, following commercials in the U.K. and U.S. for both its Uber Eats delivery service and separate membership service Uber One, featuring Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Coolidge, Trevor Noah, Sarah Silverman and Nicholas Braun.

The ad begins with the duo on a set as Butterfield tries to connect with the veteran actor while the performing veteran quietly eats his Uber delivery. After a somewhat cringey, minute-long exchange of questions around whether De Niro eats and likes going places, The Irishman and Killers...

Oliver Wood, whose work as a cinematographer included such big-budget action films as The Bourne Identity and two of its sequels, along with studio comedies like Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, has died. He was 80.

Wood died Monday, Feb. 13, surrounded by loved ones at his Hollywood home following a battle with cancer, his agent Ann Murtha told The Hollywood Reporter.

He is known for working with a long list of prominent directors, including John Woo on Face/Off (1997); Adam McKay on Talladega Nights (2006), Step Brothers (2008), The Other Guys (2010) and Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013); Edward Zwick on Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016); Antoine Fuqua on The Equalizer 2 (2018); and Daniel Espinosa on Safe House (2012), Child 44 (2015) and Morbius (2022). His work on Paul Greengrass’ The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) earned Wood a BAFTA Award nomination for best cinematography.

Born on Feb. 21, 1942, in London, Wood moved to New York City at age 19 and...

Mark Miller, the prolific actor and screenwriter writer best known for Please Don’t Eat The Daisies and Guestward, Ho! has died. His daughter, actress Penelope Ann Miller, confirmed the news on Twitter. He was 97.

Miller portrayed college professor Jim Nash on Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, which ran from 1965-1967 and then in syndication. The NBC-MGM sitcom, which ran for 58 half-hour episodes, was loosely based on the theatrical film of the same name starring Doris Day and David Niven. The series did well initially, but its ratings took a hit in Season 2 when it was moved opposite The Jackie Gleason Show.

Miller had substantial runs on other big shows, most notably Desilu’s Guestward Ho! on ABC in 1960. He played one half of a New York City couple, the Hootens, who relocate to a dude ranch in New Mexico. Guestward Ho! ran for one season alongside The Donna Reed Show on Thursday evenings.

In horror news that makes you go "hmm," apparently 2008's terrifying home invasion movie "The Strangers" is getting a remake. Deadline is reporting (via Fangoria) that a new "Strangers" movie is not only going to happen but that it's already in production. And while the idea of messing with such a heart-poundingly intense original film might raise a few eyebrows, plot details about the new film honestly don't sound like a direct remake so much as a continuation of the film's universe a la 2018's "The Strangers: Prey at Night."

The new version of "The Strangers" will apparently feature "Riverdale" star Madelaine Petsch, Aka Cheryl Blossom, which is an inspired bit of casting if you ask me. Petsch will star alongside "Teen Wolf" actor Froy Gutierrez and "The Kings of Summer" actor Gabriel Basso. The film has already set a director, too: Renny Harlin, who's helmed films as varying as...

Barry Berkman went bust. Bill Hader’s quest for a third Emmy for Best Comedy Actor for his portrayal as “Barry’s” leading (hit)man was cut short Monday evening when he went suffered his first loss in the category at the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards and came up short on making history.

In the lead-up to the ceremony, many predicted Hader to return to the Emmy stage for his work on “Barry’s” excellent third season, which saw a troubled Barry attempt to make things right with his one-time acting coach, Gene Cousineau (Henry Winkler), after the latter man discovered the former was responsible for murdering his girlfriend in Season 1. Defending champ Jason Sudeikis ultimately went home with the statuette instead, triumphing over Hader, as well as fellow nominees comedy legends Steve Martin (“Only Murders in the Building”) and Martin Short (“Only Murders in the Building”), former winner Donald Glover...

Nehemiah Persoff, an actor who went from the uncredited role of a cab driver in On The Waterfront‘s iconic “coulda been a contender” scene to become one of the busiest character actors in television and film for five decades, died Tuesday at a rehabilitation facility in San Luis Obispo, California. He was 102.

Persoff had retired from acting in recent decades after suffering a stroke and other health issues. His death was reported to Deadline by a family friend.

Born in Jerusalem, Palestine, Persoff and his family moved to the United States in 1929, and after serving in the U.S. Army in World War II he relocated to New York to pursue a career in theater. He became a member of the famed Actors Studio in the late 1940s, studying with Elia Kazan, who would pay him a reported 75 to play the silent cab driver in Waterfront.

Persoff was also performing...

W. Kamau Bell is readying himself for Black Twitter’s response to his new Showtime docuseries We Need to Talk About Cosby.

The four-parter premieres this Sunday at 10/9c and allows Bell to unpack Cosby’s storied career from clean-cut comedian and I Spy star to America’s Dad. The series also takes a closer and very uncomfortable look at the breadcrumbs the one-time luminary and cultural pioneer dropped about his unsavory predilection for drugging and raping women. (Cosby was convicted of sexual assault in 2018 and released last year when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned his conviction.)

More from TVLinePhylicia...

At one point in his four-part documentary We Need To Talk About Cosby, W. Kamau Bell hands an iPad to his interview subjects and invites each of them to watch the iconic scene from The Cosby Show where Cliff Huxtable’s family lip syncs to Ray Charles’ “Night Time is the Right Time” as an anniversary present for Cliff’s parents:

One by one, you see many of Bell’s guests beaming despite themselves. And why shouldn’t they? The Cosby scene is a master class in pleasing its viewers...

“When you leave here, Google ‘Bill Cosby, rape,'” the guy in the grainy video says. You know the clip we’re talking about. It’s Hannibal Buress, a stand-up working out material in the middle of a set in 2014. The bit starts with him talking about Cosby’s smugness, how he was telling Buress’ generation of Black men to pull up their pants. It ends with the young comic calling out the actor/comedian/educator/TV-sitcom king for being a rapist. “That shit is upsetting if you didn’t know about it,...

The Primetime Emmy Awards were unable to capitalize on its historic and diverse nomination fields, with all major acting trophies going to white actors.

Actors that were seen as solid contenders included Billy Porter and Mj Rodriguez (“Pose”), the late Michael K. Williams (“Lovecraft Country”) and Kenan Thompson and Bowen Yang (“Saturday Night Live”) — but in the end, all ended up empty-handed.

Michaela Coel, nominated for four Emmys, picked up the writing limited category for “I May Destroy You,” the third time a Black creative has won the category and first for a Black woman. Past Black winners have included David Mills (“The Corner”), Anthony Hemingway (“American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson”) and Stephen Williams and Christal Henry (“Watchmen”).

A record number of 49 non-Anglo creatives were recognized in the acting and reality competition categories. While many didn’t expect anyone to unseat Jason Sudeikis (“Ted Lasso”), Jean Smart...

Every Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony seems to set a few new records, and Sunday’s 73rd Emmy show will be no different. For starters, if “Saturday Night Live” wins anything — and let’s face it, “SNL” always wins something at the Emmys — it will break and extend its own record as the winningest program in Emmy history.

But there are other records that could fall on Sunday, too, among them records for diversity and a potential new mark for a network or platform in a single year. Here are a dozen records to watch:

• If Netflix wins in 11 of the 19 categories in which it is nominated on Sunday, which is possible if “The Crown” and “The Queen’s Gambit” clean up, it will break CBS’ record for the most wins by a network in a single year. Netflix goes into the ceremony with 34 wins from last weekend’s Creative Arts Emmys,...

Maya Rudolph has picked up a second consecutive guest comedy actress Emmy for “Saturday Night Live,” just hours after she picked up her second consecutive character voice-over performance Emmy.

With these wins, Rudolph also becomes only the second woman of color and the fourth person of color overall to pick up back-to-back acting wins in the same category from the Television Academy. Bill Cosby was the first to achieve this, with consecutive lead drama actor wins for “I Spy” in 1966, 1967 and 1968. Charles S. Dutton became the second, winning a guest drama actor statue in 2002 for “The Practice” and then the same race in 2003 for “Without A Trace.” Regina King was the first woman to do this, winning the supporting limited series/TV movie actress race first in 2015 and then again in 2016, both times for “American Crime.”

“I feel really honored to be a part of something like that,” Rudolph told...

History was made in a monumental way with the announcement of the 2021 Primetime Emmy nominations as Mj Rodriguez (“Pose”) became the first trans lead acting nominee. This year also marks the first instance of three Black women being included in the same Best Drama Actress lineup, as Rodriguez is up against Uzo Aduba (“In Treatment”) and Jurnee Smollett (“Lovecraft Country”). Any of them would be only the third Black winner of this award, and a victory by Rodriguez or Smollett would be even more distinctive in that either of them would be the first actress in a quarter century to snag this award for a final season.

“Pose” wrapped its three-season run in June with a proper two-part finale, while “Lovecraft Country” was unexpectedly cancelled in July after having aired its inaugural season’s last episode nine months earlier. While female stars of drama series have been nominated for final...

Youth is wasted on the young, but the Emmys might not be. “The Crown” duo Emma Corrin and Josh O’Connor are predicted to take home Best Drama Actress and Best Drama Actor Emmys, respectively, and if that happens, they’ll be one of the youngest pair of drama lead acting winners of all time.

Corrin is 25 and O’Connor is 31, making them practically zygotes compared to the ages of a majority of the acting winners. The good news for Corrin is that there has been a youth movement as of late in drama actress. Jodie Comer (“Killing Eve”) became the category’s youngest winner in 2019 at 26, dethroning Lindsay Wagner, who was 28 when she won for “The Bionic Woman” in 1977. Comer’s reign was short-lived as Zendaya, then 24, prevailed last year for “Euphoria.” Corrin, obviously, wouldn’t beat Zendaya’s record, but she’d be the category’s second youngest champ...

Sunni Welles, an actor and musician who accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault, died on Monday in Downey, California, after battling lung cancer, as Variety reports. She was 72. Her son Shaun O’Banion confirmed the news via Twitter.

Welles began her acting career at the age of 10 and appeared in popular TV shows such as Leave It to Beaver and My Three Sons. Born Nancy Kay Rihl in Caracas, Venezuela, she adopted her stage name when she was a teen.

Her entertainment career spanned music and dancing in addition to acting,...

Sunni Welles, a former actor and singer who was among the women who accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault, has died, her son Shaun O’Banion announced on Twitter todeay. She was 72.

Welles died Monday after a battle with lung cancer at a hospice care center in Downey, CA, O’Banion told Deadline in a statement.

Welles’ acting career began when she was a child at age 10, appearing in episodes of such popular shows as Leave It to Beaver and My Three Sons.

She alleged at a 2015 news conference that Cosby raped her twice when she was an aspiring singer in the mid-1960s by drugging her drink. She said Cosby invited her to a jazz club after she ran into him on the set of I Spy. Welles said the first time he attacked her, she was drinking Champagne; after the second time, she never saw him again. It really affected my trust,...

Sunni Welles, an actress, singer and one of the woman who accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault, has died. She was 72.

Welles’ passing was announced Tuesday by her son Shaun O’Banion, who referred to her as an “extraordinary woman.” She died Monday in a hospice care center in Downey, California.

Welles first got her start as a child actress, appearing on shows such as “Leave It to Beaver” and “My Three Sons,” taking her stage name from the word “Sunshine” and her surrogate father, screenwriter Halsted Welles.

Welles said in a statement through Gloria Allred in 2015 that she had met Cosby on set of “I Spy” when she was just 17 in the mid 1960s when her mother was working as a story editor at Paramount Studios. In meeting him she described her love of jazz and that she could do a good Nancy Wilson impression for him. She claimed she...

Sunni Welles, a TV actor, musician and performer who later accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault, died on Monday in Downey, Calif., after a battle with lung cancer, her son, Shaun O’Banion, confirmed to Variety. She was 72.

Welles was born Nancy Kay Rihl in Caracas, Venezuela, and moved to the United States with her family when she was three years old. She became a child actor at the age of 10 and appeared in “Leave It to Beaver” and “My Three Sons.” Welles started going by her stage name as a teenager, taking it from her nickname “Sunshine,” as she was known by friends and family, and the surname of television writer Halsted Welles, who was a surrogate father to her.

During her career in the entertainment industry, Welles became friends with Elvis Presley while she toured the world as a singer and dancer. She later married singer and actor John O’Banion,...

With diversity among key nominees at the 73rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards up 17% year over year, there is great potential for even more records to be shattered come the Sept. 19 ceremony.

Four of the six slots for lead drama actor went to Black actors, two of whom are former winners — Sterling K. Brown (“This Is Us”) and Billy Porter (“Pose”). If either of those two win, he would be only the second Black actor to repeat a victory in this category.

In the Emmys’ 73-year history there have only been two people of color who won back-to-back acting trophies in the same category (and both were men). In addition to Cosby, Charles S. Dutton picked up statues for “The Practice” in 2002 and “Without a Trace” in 2003, both in the guest drama actor category. After winning guest comedy actress last year for “Saturday Night Live,” Maya Rudolph can join that list...

The Emmy nominations were announced Tuesday, and the TV Academy provided historic representation across its acting categories, despite a couple of questionable hiccups.

Jonathan Majors and Jurnee Smollett of the now-canceled “Lovecraft Country” made history as the first two Black leads to be nominated from the same drama series. “Pose” also joins for achieving the same feat with Billy Porter and Mj Rodriguez. It’s also the first piece of visual art to have a Black actor nominated in every eligible acting category, with Michael K. Williams and Aunjanue Ellis also picking up mentions.

Disney Plus’ “Hamilton” now has the second most nominations in the limited series/TV movie acting categories with seven. With the nominations for Lin-Manuel Miranda, Leslie Odom Jr, Daveed Diggs, Anthony Ramos, Jonathan Groff, Renée Elise Goldsberry and Phillipa Soo, it surpasses “And the Band Played On” (1993), “The Glass Menagerie” (1973) and “The Normal Heart” (2014) that all...

The Oscars had their moment of historic diversity, and it could be time for the Emmys to have one as well.

The biggest takeaway from the nominations-round ballots is that each acting category across drama, comedy and limited series/TV movie should have more than one Poc nominated in their respective races. If the stars continue to align, we could actually have two or more nominated in each, which would be a first in the 73-year history of the ceremony.

But it’s not all about diversity. There are a lot of other areas of opportunity for the voting members of the Television Academy to make history with this year’s Primetime Emmy Award nominations (and eventual wins).

Lead comedy actor nods look likely for Anthony Anderson (“Black-ish”) and Kenan Thompson (“Kenan”), while in supporting comedy actress Naomi Ackie (“Master of None”) and Ego Nwodim (“Saturday Night Live”) are strongly in the running.

Joanne Linville, who played the Romulan commander in a memorable 1968 Star Trek episode and had scores of other screen credits, died Sunday. She was 93. CAA made the announcement but did not disclose a cause of death.

Linville began racking up TV guest roles in the mid-1950s, appearing on such series of the era as Studio One, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Kraft Theatre and Playhouse 90. She continued to guest on drama series throughout the ’60s, including such classics as Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The F.B.I., Route 66, Ben Casey, I Spy and a two-part Hawaii Five-0.

Of her work in that era, she might be most recognizable as Lavinia Gordon, the owner of a ruined Southern mansion in the Civil War-themed 1961 Twilight Zone episode titled “The Passersby,” which also starred James Gregory.

But despite her prolific active career from the mid-’50s to the late-’80s, and included a few latter-day roles, Linville...

Joanne Linville, a character actress who had memorable guest-starring turns on episodes of Star Trek and The Twilight Zone in the 1960s, died Sunday in Los Angeles, CAA announced. She was 93.

Linville appeared on dozens of TV shows during her career, from Studio One, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The United States Steel Hour and Have Gun — Will Travel to Dr. Kildare, Route 66, Naked City, I Spy, Hawaii Five-o, Gunsmoke, Columbo and L.A. Law.

On the big screen, she worked in such films as The Goddess (1958) with Kim Stanley, Scorpio (1973) with Burt Lancaster and A Star Is Born (1976) with Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson.

Linville also played gossip columnist Hedda Hopper ...

Joanne Linville, a character actress who had memorable guest-starring turns on episodes of Star Trek and The Twilight Zone in the 1960s, died Sunday in Los Angeles, CAA announced. She was 93.

Linville appeared on dozens of TV shows during her career, from Studio One, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The United States Steel Hour and Have Gun — Will Travel to Dr. Kildare, Route 66, Naked City, I Spy, Hawaii Five-o, Gunsmoke, Columbo and L.A. Law.

On the big screen, she worked in such films as The Goddess (1958) with Kim Stanley, Scorpio (1973) with Burt Lancaster and A Star Is Born (1976) with Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson.

Linville also played gossip columnist Hedda Hopper ...

“Coming 2 America” the long-awaited sequel might have just been released, but star Eddie Murphy already wants a third film and he wants costume designer Ruth E. Carter to return.

The two sat down for Variety’s “Dream Teams” sequel to discuss their latest collaboration, and Murphy is planning, but audiences don’t have to wait thirty years, “You have to do next time,” he tells Carter. “[Set] sixteen years from now.”

Carter and Murphy have collaborated on numerous projects including, “Dr. Dolittle 2,” “I Spy” and “Dolemite is my Name.” She knows the secret to their success is a simple one, “[Murphy] doesn’t want the costume to be the funny thing. Let the clothing be the clothing and he can be the funny part,” Carter says.

He adds, “Makes clothes that make the character walk different or affect your performance so that you get a better sense of how the character moves.

Trailblazing director Betty Thomas will receive the DGA’s prestigious Robert B. Aldrich Award for her “extraordinary service to the guild and its members” at the 73rd Annual DGA Awards.

Veteran Upm Brian E. Frankish and longtime CBS operations’ associate director Joyce Thomas will receive special awards for their service to the guild and the industry. The awards show will be held on April 10, but the DGA isn’t saying yet whether it will be virtual or not.

All three recipients have long histories of service to the guild. Betty Thomas serves as the DGA’s secretary-treasurer – the guild’s second-highest elected officer.

“Betty means so much to our guild,” said DGA president Thomas Schlamme. “No matter how busy she’s been throughout her remarkable, ceiling-shattering directing career, she’s always placed service to her fellow members among her highest priorities, fighting for their creative and economic rights. And from the very beginning,...

Ruth E. Carter’s first thought when she signed up to work on the sequel to 1988’s “Coming to America” was to “not mess it up.” The film was a celebration of Black excellence, with Eddie Murphy as Prince Akeem, who ends up in Queens, N.Y., in his search for a bride. “We were all thrilled to see royalty,” Carter says of the cult classic.

Thirty years later, director Craig Brewer returns to Zamunda for “Coming 2 America,” with Murphy reprising his role. This time, Prince Akeem is set to become king, but he must find his long-lost son. He returns to Queens searching for Lavelle, played by Jermaine Fowler. The sequel features even funnier jokes, an energetic performance by Murphy — and eye-opening costumes by Oscar winner Carter.

“I wanted to bring in a little bit more of the real Africa,” says Carter, who worked with Laduma Ngxokolo, designer...

Rapper Lil Yachty is developing an action heist comedy based on Uno — yes, the card game — with Mattel Films.

Marcy Kelly wrote the screenplay for the movie, set in the underground hip hop world of Atlanta. Though the cast has not been announced, Lil Yachty is being eyed for the lead role.

“I’m so excited to be part of this film with Mattel,” said Lil Yachty, a musician best known for the songs “Broccoli” and “iSpy.” “I played Uno as a kid and still do today, so to spin that into a movie based on the Atlanta hip hop scene I came out of is really special. It hits close to home for me.”

Uno was created in a Cincinnati barbershop in the ’70s as a way for families to spend time together. Five decades later, the game is available in more than 80 countries. Mattel has owned the game since 1992.

Along with Lil Yachty,...

Is it just me, or was that one of the worst episodes of the series to date?

Shameless Season 11 Episode 4 featured a string of storylines that should have been exciting, but they were bogged down by terrible execution and even worse dialogue.

We'll start with the Milkoviches moving next door. If you watch Shameless online, you know they are one of the worst families on TV, so Terry having sex with a 90-year-old to take over her house should not have been surprising. 

But the Milkoviches living next door could be a great storyline had it not been hindered by the tasteless jokes about racism.

In the UK iteration of the series, the Milkoviches were known as the Maguires. They had a much bigger presence, which appears to be an attempt at replicating the success of the original iteration of the series.

Unfortunately, it's too late in the series's run...

Mike Fenton, the legendary casting director who worked on the “Back to the Future” franchise, “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and scores of other classic movies and TV shows, has died. He was 85.

Fenton co-founded what is now known as Casting Society of America in 1982. He was a prominent casting director for more than 40 years, with a mile-long resume that stretched from “The Andy Griffith Show” and “That Girl” to “Chinatown,” “American Graffiti,” “The Godfather II,” “Blade Runner,” “A Christmas Story,” “Norma Rae,” “Footloose,” “Honeymoon in Vegas” and “Chaplin.”

“Working with Mike Fenton was like working in a candy store — he made casting a blast,” Steven Spielberg said in a statement. “His fervent support of actors was the stuff of legend, and after landing a part, any actor’s smile was rarely as wide as Mike’s. He didn’t just support actors, he launched crusades.

Mike Fenton, casting director on hundreds of films and TV shows including classics such as Chinatown, American Graffiti, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Bad News Bears, Norma Rae, The Godfather: Part 2, The Goonies, E.T., Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, Blade Runner, Back to the Future and Chaplin has died. He was 85. Fenton also co-founded what became the Casting Society of America in 1982.

Steven Spielberg worked on many projects with Fenton as both director and producer including The Sugarland Express, the director’s first feature. Spielberg was among the first to weigh in on Fenton’s passing. Among other things, he remembered Fenton as a passionate advocate for the actors he cast.

Spielberg:

Working with Mike Fenton was like working in a candy store — he made casting a blast. His fervent support of actors was the stuff of legend, and after landing a part,...

When “News of the World” opens Christmas Day, viewers will see plenty of action-packed scenes with Tom Hanks, who goes full cowboy as Civil War veteran Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd. But there’s also plenty of emotional and heartfelt moments between Hanks and his scene-stealing screen partner, 12-year-old Helena Zengel.

“News of the World” is adapted from the 2016 novel of the same name by Paulette Jiles, and co-written and directed by Paul Greengrass. Hanks stars as Captain Kidd, a former war hero who travels through frontier towns in the Southwest reading the news of the day to hardscrabble workers and farmers for spare change.

Along the way, he meets 10-year-old Johanna “Cicada” Leonberger (Zengel), an orphan twice over who was adopted by a tribe of Kiowa Native Americans before they met a tragic end. Kidd decides he’ll take the girl to her nearest next of kin in Hill Country,...

The public often assumes that if celebrities are rich and famous, their lives must be trouble-free. Actually, lots of showbiz horror stories negate that, but they’re usually about addiction and/or self-destruction. In 1967, Sammy Davis Jr. offered an insightful guest column about the everyday problems that he and others faced as Black people in America.

In the 1960s, America seemed on the brink of a second civil war, as people were divided about the civil rights movement, the Vietnam war, police brutality, drug use, the White House versus the media, and more. It was a world similar to 2020.

Davis said in 1967, “The nightmare we all face has had a massive impact on all our lives and none of us, Black or white, will walk away from this time without being scarred by its enormous effects upon the moral and physical well-being of democracy.”

Davis was in London working on the film “Salt and Pepper,...

All streaming services go through a down period after the excitement of Spooky Season, it’s only natural. Thankfully with its list of new releases for November 2020, Hulu is making the best out of a barren pop culture landscape.

For starters, Hulu is premiering one of its major 2020 reboots this month as Animaniacs arrives on Nov. 20. Yakko, Wakko, Dot, and the rest of the Warner gang are set to return for this long-awaited revival of the animated classic. That’s about it as far as original series go but Hulu is also premiering original movies Greta, about climate activist Greta Thunberg on Nov. 13; and Run, a horror film starring Sarah Paulson, on Nov. 20.

Still, despite all the Animaniacs, Gretas, and Sarah Paulsons, the biggest hits this month might just be on the library content side of things. November 1 sees the arrival of some major TV properties. For starters, racy British...

Now that we’re just over halfway through October, it’s time to look ahead to what’s arriving on Hulu across November. And the penultimate month of the year is set to deliver a humungous haul of new movies and TV shows. In particular, fresh off their Huluween celebrations, the streaming service is celebrating Christmas early with a load of holiday-related titles dropping on November 1st.

Various films with Christmas in the name land that day – including Christmas in Compton, The Dog Who Saved Christmas and Once Upon a Time at Christmas – as well as a bunch of festive Food Network shows. A few more arrive on the 15th as well. But even if you’re not in the mood for holiday cheer until December, there’s still plenty to enjoy from what’s coming to Hulu in November.

Check out the full list below:

Released November 1

Skins: Complete...

Logan Roy and his Number One Boy’s new battleground? The Emmys. Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong both nabbed Best Drama Actor nominations Tuesday for “Succession” to become the 17th pair of co-stars to be nominated together.

The two are up against Jason Bateman (“Ozark”), Steve Carell (“Better Call Saul”), reigning champ Billy Porter (“Pose”) and former champ Sterling K. Brown (“This Is Us”).

Cox’s and Strong’s bids mark the fourth year in a row that co-stars have made the cut in this category. “This Is Us” scored nominations for Brown and Milo Ventimiglia from 2017-19, and “Westworld” fielded Ed Harris and Jeffrey Wright in 2018.

Before that, “True Detective,” competing as a drama for its first season, ended a 12-year dry spell with bids for Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey in 2014. “Six Feet Under” was the last show to do so prior to that in 2002 with Michael C. Hall and Peter Krause.

Yeah, yeah, we know “Succession” has never gotten any acting nominations from an industry group, but the drama series favorite is expected to break through at the Emmys with a handful, including double bids in drama actor for Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong. If Logan Roy and his Number One Boy make the cut, they’d be the 17th duo to be shortlisted in the category.

Double drama actor nominees from the same show have been the rage in recent years with “This Is Us” snagged bids for Sterling K. Brown and Milo Ventimiglia three years running (2017-19) and “Westworld” getting Ed Harris and Jeffrey Wright in two years ago. So the lack of aversion is good news for “Succession,” along with the unlimited nominating slots on the ballot.

Prior to this recent run, “True Detective” garnered nominations for Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey when it competed as a drama...

Cicely Tyson, whose more than seven decades of work across stage, screen and TV includes iconic small-screen roles as Jane Pittman, Coretta Scott King and the mother of Rosa Parks, was unveiled Monday as the recipient of the Peabody Awards’ Career Achievement Award. The honor is bestowed on individuals whose work and commitment to broadcasting and digital media have left an indelible mark on the field and in American culture.

Tyson has been nominated for 13 Emmys in all and won two for 1974’s The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, the start of a run that included such iconic TV series as Roots (1977), King (1978), The Women of Brewster Place (1989), Always Outnumbered (1998), A Lesson Before Dying (1999), Jewel (2002) and The Rosa Parks Story (2002).

Her TV career began in 1951 and also included credits from Naked City, I Spy and Mission: Impossible to Gunsmoke and East Side/West Side. Most recently she has appeared in...

In the past decade, African American actors and actresses made several inroads with the annual Emmy Awards. Among the winners: Donald Glover took home Best Comedy Actor in 2017 for FX’s “Atlanta,” as well as for directing the “B.A.N” episode that year. Sterling K. Brown won for his supporting role in the FX limited series “The People vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” in 2016 and then Best Drama Actor the next year for NBC’s “This Is Us.” And the openly gay Tony Award winner Billy Porter won that latter award in 2019 for FX’s “Pose.

Five years ago, Viola Davis made history as the first African American to win Best Drama Actress for ABC’s “How to Get Away with Murder.” Regina King, who will probably be nominated again this year for HBO’s “Watchmen,” won for her supporting role in the ABC’s limited series...

Billy Porter is the defending champion for Best Drama Actor at the Emmys. He stars in “Pose” as ballroom emcee Pray Tell, and his victory was a historic first in that category for a queer Black actor playing a queer character. And he could pull off another feat if he wins again in 2020: he would be the first back-to-back Best Drama Actor winner since Bryan Cranston‘s “Breaking Bad” threepeat from 2008 to 2010 (Cranston won a fourth in 2014 too). And he would be the first Black actor to win this category multiple times in more than half a century.

SEEEmmy predictions slugfest: Editors clash over ‘Schitt’s Creek,’ ‘Mrs. America,’ ‘Better Call Saul’ [Video & Audio Podcast]

In addition to a lack of back-to-back winners, the last 10 years of Best Drama Actor has also been marked by an unusual trend: every winner since Cranston’s 2010 victory has prevailed for the first or last season of his show.