Sunday, March 22, 2020
SUNDAY TV:
AMERICAN IDOL (8p ET, ABC) — New. Hollywood Week continues.
60 MINUTES (8p ET, CBS) — New.
LITTLE BIG SHOTS (8p ET, NBC) — New.
ZOEY’S EXTRAORDINARY PLAYLIST (9p ET, NBC) — New.
NCIS: LOS ANGELES (9p ET, CBS) — New. The team investigates the disappearance of a department of defense officer who was looking into a recent UFO sighting.
THE WALKING DEAD (9p ET, AMC) — New. Michonne takes Virgil back to his mysterious island to reunite with his family. This episode will run long, until 10:13p ET.
EXTREME MAKEOVER: HOME EDITION (9p ET, HGTV) — New.
NCIS: NEW ORLEANS (10p ET, CBS) — New.
THE ROOKIE (10p ET, ABC) — New. Nolan learns his identity has been stolen and could jeopardize his position as an officer.
GOOD GIRLS (10p ET, NBC) — New.
Showbiz News and Gossip
DANIEL DAE KIM TESTS POSITIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS
Former Lost and Hawaii Five-0 star Daniel Dae Kim announced on Instagram
Thursday he tested positive for coronavirus: “Looks like I’ll be ok, but I
wanted share my journey with you in the hopes that you find it informative or
helpful. Hope you all stay safe, calm, and above all, healthy.” Kim, who was
home in Hawaii, noted that “ironically” he has been playing a doctor who “gets
recruited to help patients during a flu pandemic” as part of a guest stint on
NBC’s New Amsterdam.
… NBC sent a memo to the New Amsterdam cast and crew after learning Kim had tested positive. Kim said he started feeling symptoms on his flight back to Hawaii after New Amsterdam shut down production in New York.
CORONAVIRUS INFORMATION BLITZ IS COMING
Donald Trump said the government is partnering with major media networks,
digital platforms and the Ad Council to help bring information about the novel
coronavirus directly to Americans. The partnership is part of an effort to
combat the spread of COVID-19 through public service announcements about social
distancing, hygiene and mental health.
… NBCUniversal will create videos and graphics in both English and Spanish to explain how best to protect yourself and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Walt Disney Television and ABC will carry messaging on their channels and platforms for families and parents. Radio stations will carry messaging about social distancing and high-risk populations.
… ViacomCBS will run a campaign called #AloneTogether in partnership with the Ad Council, targeting youth and entertainment brands like MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, CMT, VH1, BET, CBS, CBS All-Access, Awesomeness, Pluto TV and Showtime.
DR. OZ TO FILM REMOTELY AFTER
STAFFER TESTS POSITIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS
Dr. Oz has suspended taping his show from his studio after a staffer tested
positive for coronavirus
DISNEY’S LOSING $20 MILLION PER
DAY FROM CLOSING THEIR PARKS
If you’ve ever wondered how much Disney makes at it’s theme parks, here ya
go. The coronavirus outbreak has
drastically affected the world in terms of business, entertainment, and simply
everyday life. Disney is losing anywhere from $20 million to $30 million a day
because of its closed parks.
TONIGHT SHOW WILL ADD FALLON’S
YOUTUBE VIDEOS TO REPEATS
Many of the nation’s most popular late-night programs have shut down, but starting
last night (Wednesday) NBC’s Tonight Show had a little extra for fans. Host
Jimmy Fallon has started making ten-minute digital episodes of the show for
YouTube and NBC will mix those ten-minute vignettes with repeats each evening.
AMERICAN IDOL SEASON 18
SHUTTING DOWN PRODUCTION
American Idol is joining the growing list of TV and movie productions shutting
down to COVID-19. The TV singing competition is suspending production effective
immediately. Hollywood Week for Season 18 began on Monday, so there are still a
few weeks left before live shows are set to begin.
TOM HANKS HAS ANOTHER UPDATE
Tom Hanks is continuing to keep his followers updated on his and Rita Wilson’s
health since the couple tested positive for the coronavirus in Australia last
week. The actor shared a photo of a corona typewriter to Instagram Tuesday and
said his symptoms have remained stable. He wrote: “Good News: One week after
testing Positive, in self-isolation, the symptoms are much the same. No fever
but the blahs. Folding the laundry and doing the dishes leads to a nap on the
couch. Bad news: My wife @ritawilson has won 6 straight hands of Gin Rummy and
leads by 201 points.”
… He finished off his post with an uplifting message: “We are all in this together. Flatten the curve.”
KEVIN DURANT AMONG FOUR NETS
PLAYERS TO TEST POSITIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS
Kevin Durant is among the four Brooklyn Nets players to test positive for the
coronavirus. Durant says that he is feeling fine and not showing any symptoms.
The Nets did not identify any players and said Tuesday that of the four
players, only one is exhibiting symptoms. All four are isolated and are
undergoing medical care from team physicians.
… Sources told ESPN that the player who has symptoms experienced aches when he woke up Tuesday.
JOEL EDGERTON, TONI COLETTE
FORCED TO SELF-QUARANTINE
Actors Joel Edgerton and Toni Colette will be forced to self-isolate for 14
days after returning to Sydney, Australia this week. Joel and his girlfriend,
Vogue Australia fashion director Christine Centenera, will now have to spend
two weeks in isolation after returning home from Turks and Caicos Island on
Tuesday, as part of Australia’s quarantine period.
… Toni Colette arrived back on Monday has been filming her latest project in Germany.
HBO MAX DELAYS FRIENDS REUNION
Filming of the Friends reunion special, originally scheduled to debut this May
on HBO Max, has been delayed due to the global coronavirus pandemic. The
special — which will reunite Friends stars Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox,
Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer for an unscripted
look back at the hit NBC sitcom — was set to film next week on the series’
original soundstage, Stage 24, on the Warner Bros. Studio lot in Burbank,
California.
… Filming has been pushed back until at least May. There’s still a chance the special could be ready in time for the May launch of HBO Max, but it’s impossible to know now whether filming will be cleared to resume at that point.
MOVIE THEATERS WANT BAILOUT
The coronavirus pandemic has become a real-life horror story for movie theater
owners, many of whom may not be able to survive prolonged closures as officials
try to slow the spread. In response, cinemas are lobbying Congress and the
Trump administration for financial relief to stay afloat. The National
Association of Theater Owners on Wednesday asked lawmakers to enact relief
measures, including loan guarantees to ease the liquidity squeeze of the
shutdown and tax benefits to ensure multiplexes can get back on their feet once
they reopen.
BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS POSTPONED
The 2020 Billboard Music Awards — originally slated for April 29 on NBC — have
been postponed due to concerns of the coronavirus. The new date has not been
announced. The show was scheduled to broadcast from the MGM Grand Garden Arena
in Las Vegas with host Kelly Clarkson back for a third year.
MARVEL DELAYS BLACK WIDOW
INDEFINITELY DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
Marvel’s Black Widow won’t be released on May 1. The studio has now delayed the
movie indefinitely, pulling it off the schedule and not giving us a new date
for when we can expect it to open.
… With Black Widow having been delayed though, we can expect to see the next few days bring with it a whole slew of announcements from studios. The next big one is Wonder Woman 1984, which is very likely to be moved from its June release.
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE POSTPONES NEXT THREE
EPISODES DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
If you look forward to staying up late on Saturdays with SNL, or waking up to
some of the best SNL videos in your YouTube feed, it will be a while before you
see anything new. Like many other TV productions, SNL has been delayed as a
result of the ongoing coronavirus.
… The show was expected to return on Saturday, March 28, with A Quiet Place II director John Krasinski scheduled to host and Dua Lipa as the week’s musical guest.
THE MATRIX 4 PRODUCTION SHUTS
DOWN DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
Production on The Matrix 4 is being shut down for the time being, joining a
growing list of titles that have ground to a halt in the wake of fears of the
coronavirus. Production on The Matrix 4 has shut down in Berlin. Filming will
pick up again at a later date, although it’s not known when.
WRESTLEMANIA 36 COULD TAKE
PLACE IN AN EMPTY STADIUM
The entire world is trying to figure out what to do with their lives as the
coronavirus outbreak continues, and that includes WWE. With less than two weeks
to go until WrestleMania 36 is set to take place in Tampa, the idea of the
event happening in an empty arena has been thrown around. While that would work
to some extent and fans could still watch from home, rumor has it that Vince
McMahon does not like the idea at all.
… WrestleMania 36 was expected to bring in more than 100,000 people from more than 100 countries around the world to Tampa next week.
REGAL CLOSED ALL U.S. THEATERS
DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
Movie theater chain Regal has closed of their movie theaters. Many theaters have attempted to restrict
attendance, with AMC capping capacity at 50 people. And while some cities, like
New York and Los Angeles, are shutting theaters down for the time being, Regal
is taking a pre-emptive step and closing theaters everywhere. … Regal Cinemas says it’s now shut down all
543 locations in the United States
JARED LETO EMERGED FROM ‘SILENT MEDITATION’ AND
LEARNED ABOUT PANDEMIC
Is there anything more California than learning about the coronavirus pandemic
only after emerging from a 12-day meditation retreat in the desert, thereby
also presumably undoing all the stress release that meditation retreat did?
That happened to Oscar winner Jared Leto, who posted about just such an
experience on social media:
“Wow. 12 days ago I began a silent meditation in the desert. We were totally isolated. No phone, no communication etc. We had no idea what was happening outside the facility. Walked out yesterday into a very different world. One that’s been changed forever. Mind blowing — to say the least. I’m getting messages from friends and family all around the globe and catching up on what’s going on. Hope you and yours are ok. Sending positive energy to all. Stay inside. Stay safe.” • IMAGE
DAREDEVIL WILL REPORTEDLY
APPEAR IN THE NEXT SPIDER-MAN FILM
A source says Charlie Cox’s Matthew Murdock/Daredevil from the hit Netflix
series is set to make his cinematic debut in next summer’s Spider-Man film.
BABY YODA WAFFLE MAKER
Even though The Child — otherwise known as Baby Yoda — was pretty much kept under
wraps until The Mandalorian was released, he still stole the show the minute
his large eyes and oversized ears peaked out from his space crib. Since then,
the fun-sized Force user has taken over social media and graced all sorts of
merchandise, including animatronic dolls and Funko Pops. And now the tiny green
creature has set its sights on your breakfast table with the new Baby Yoda
waffle maker, a kitchen tool that stamps a portrait of Baby Yoda right onto
your breakfast in the morning. You can order it now for $40. • LINK
THE CROWN WAS ABLE TO FINISH FILMING SEASON 4
Netflix drama The Crown completed its final days of filming for Season 4.
FREE COMIC BOOK DAY HAS BEEN POSTPONED
Diamond Comic Distributors announced Thursday that Free Comic Book Day 2020 is
postponed. Generally observed on the first Saturday in May, Free Comic Book Day
is a day where each person who visits a participating shop is guaranteed one
free comic book from a selection of titles.
DAYTIME EMMYS POSTPONED
The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences will postpone the 47th
Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, which had been scheduled for June.
MEDICAL TV SHOWS ARE DONATING THEIR MEDICAL SUPPLIES TO FIGHT CORONAVIRUS
ABC medical-themed dramas are contributing their medical supplies to help in the fight against coronavirus. Station 19 and Grey’s donated their N95 masks to local fire departments, while The Good Doctor plans to donate supplies to locals in Vancouver.
HALLMARK IS BRINGING BACK ITS CHRISTMAS MOVIE
MARATHON
To help ease your cabin fever, Hallmark Channel is bringing back its marathon
of Christmas movies this weekend. Starting today (Friday, 12PM ET) and
continuing through Sunday the network will air 27 of its Countdown to Christmas
films.
DRIVE-IN THEATERS ARE SEEING A SURGE IN
POPULARITY
As Hollywood studios push back their major releases and movie theater chains
close their locations across the country, it seems like it would be a long time
before we can go back to the old American tradition of watching movies on the
big screen. But as the coronavirus pandemic spreads, an older American
moviegoing tradition may be seeing a surprising resurgence: drive-in movie
theaters.
… The LA Times reports that drive-in theaters are seeing an unexpected surge in popularity, as traditional movie theaters are forced to close in the wake of the pandemic. Owners of drive-ins in California, Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri say that they have seen increases in business.
MOVIES STREAMING EARLY
The coronavirus pandemic has shut down theaters across the nation, but there’s
a silver lining for movie fans. Films that had their theatrical runs abruptly
shortened are being rushed to streaming. Here’s an updated list:
• Frozen 2 is streaming now on Disney+.
• Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is streaming now.
• Emma is available today (Friday).
• The Hunt is available today (Friday).
• The Invisible Man is available today (Friday).
• The Way Back will be available March 24.
• Birds of Prey will be available March 24.
• Bloodshot will be available March 24.
• Just Mercy will be available March 24.
• I Still Believe is heading to streaming on March 27.
• Trolls World Tour will be available April 10.
ESPN REVIVING ESPN8: THE OCHO
ESPN is reviving The Ocho. The Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story-inspired
channel will help fill the void of live sports programming with a “full 24
hours of seldom seen sports” programming on Sunday. Some of the ESPN8 events
include Stupid Robot Fighting League, Jelle’s Marble Runs, Cherry Pit Spitting,
Sign Spinning, and World Sport Cup Stacking. Also on the schedule: cornhole,
axe throwing, arm wrestling Spikeball, putt-putt golf, and stone skipping.
EVANGELINE LILY WON’T SELF-QUARANTINE
Ant-Man star Evangeline Lilly isn’t having any of this coronavirus thing. The
story began earlier this week when Lilly posted an Instagram update about
dropping her kids off at a gym class, saying that life is “#businessasusual”
for her. When reading the uniformly disappointed and angry responses to that
post, a smart person might have walked back the comments. Not Lilly, though.
When quizzed by fans, she responded: “Some people value their lives over
freedom, some people value freedom over their lives. We all make choices.”
… She later said: “Where we are right now feels a lot too close to Martial Law for my comfort already, all in the name of a respiratory flu. It’s unnerving.” These comments (not helped by the fact that she lives with her elderly father who’s suffering from leukemia) made fans furious.” Comments on Twitter included:
• Wow. Evangeline Lily really is thick as a brick.
• She would be arrested now in Italy and executed in China for knowingly endangering others. Selfish idiot.
SCHWARZENEGGER TELLS SPRING BREAKERS TO STAY HOME
Ex-governor of California and everyone’s favorite Terminator, Arnold Schwarzenegger, took to Twitter to tell folks to stay at home during the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus. In particular, he’s telling younger kids and teens avoid the beach and large social gatherings during spring break. In the video, Arnold hangs out in hot tub with a cigar as he tells his fans about how he’s using bicycle rides and workouts to keep himself busy during his isolation. He then expresses disappointment that so many people are remaining socially active in crowds and restaurants as the virus continues to spread.