FRIDAY NIGHT TV
47TH ANNUAL DAYTIME EMMY AWARDS (8p ET, CBS) — The Talk’s Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood, Eve, Carrie Ann Inaba and Marie Osmond host this virtual awards show honoring the best in daytime TV.
WWE SMACKDOWN (8p ET, FOX) — New.
MASTERS OF ILLUSION (8p ET, CW) — New.
20/20 (9p ET, ABC) — A new, 2-hour edition.
DATELINE (10p ET, NBC) — New.
FRIDAY NIGHT IN WITH THE MORGANS (10p ET, AMC) — New. The Morgans check in with actors Garret Dillahunt and Michelle Hurd.
EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: THE STORY OF FIRE SAGA (Netflix) — Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams star in this new mockumentary, with Pierce Brosnan, Demi Lovato and Dan Stevens.
HOME GAME (Netflix) — This new docuseries features lesser-known sports from around the world.
INTO THE UNKNOWN: MAKING FROZEN 2 (Disney+) — This 6 episode documentary follows the process of making the Disney animated feature. The series looks back to about a year before the world premiere of Frozen 2 in November 2019.
SATURDAY TV:
GLOBAL GOAL: UNITE FOR OUR FUTURE (8p ET, NBC) — Dwayne Johnson will host this concert special to highlight the disproportionate effect COVID-19 has had on marginalized communities. Performances from Chloe x Halle, Christine and the Queens, Coldplay, J Balvin, Jennifer Hudson, Justin Bieber and Quavo, Miley Cyrus, Shakira, Usher and Yemi Alade. The concert will also include appearances from Billy Porter, Charlize Theron, Chris Rock, David Beckham, NAACP president Derrick Johnson, Diane Kruger, Forest Whitaker, Hugh Jackman, Ken Jeong, Kerry Washington, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Olivia Colman, Opal Tometi, Salma Hayek Pinault and more.
SHAQ VS GRONK (8p ET, Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, TikTok, shaqvsgronk.com) — Shaquille O’Neal and Rob Gronkowski will face off in six live challenges (from an eating contest to a lip sync battle) to raise donations for two social justice organizations. For each contest, O’Neal and Gronkowski will face off in real time. Several artists, including Snoop Dogg, DaBaby and Diplo, will perform live.
48 HOURS (10p ET, CBS) — New.
JUDY (8p ET, Epix) — Renée Zellweger stars in this 2019 bio-pic as legendary entertainer Judy Garland.
DOCTOR SLEEP (8p ET, HBO) — Ewan McGregor stars in this 2019 horror sequel based on the Stephen King novel. Rebecca Ferguson (The Town) also stars.
DARK (Netflix) — The third and final season of this German thriller.
SUNDAY TV
HOLLYWOOD GAME NIGHT (7p ET, NBC) — New.
THE BET AWARDS 2020 (8p ET, CBS) — Amanda Seales hosts the ceremony honoring African-Americans and multicultural contributions in music, acting, sports and other fields of entertainment over the past year.
CELEBRITY FAMILY FEUD (8p ET, ABC) — New. Wayne Brady competes with Cedric The Entertainer and the cast of The Neighborhood.
PRESS YOUR LUCK (9p ET, ABC) — New.
MATCH GAME (10p ET, ABC) — New. Panelists are Thomas Lennon, Mary McCormack, Rick Fox, Caroline Rhea, Bob Saget, and Padma Lakshmi.
SERIES PREMIERE: I’LL BE GONE IN THE DARK (10p ET, HBO) — This six-part documentary is based on the book of the same name and explores writer Michelle McNamara’s investigation into the violent predator she dubbed The Golden State Killer. McNamara is the late wife of actor Patton Oswalt. The series is a detective story told in McNamara’s own words, through exclusive original recordings and excerpts from her book read by Amy Ryan. Drawing on archival footage and police files, as well as exclusive new interviews with detectives, survivors and family members of the killer, the series weaves together a picture of a complex and flawed investigation that challenged police for decades.
SHOWBIZ NEWS & GOSSIP
IN THEATERS ONE YEAR AGO
Toy Story 4 was tops at the box office with three new films opening up to compete: Annabelle Comes Home, Yesterday, and Wild Rose.
SAMUEL L. JACKSON COULD RETURN FOR DISNEY’S DIE HARD REBOOT
The ’80s and ’90s gave us three great — or in some cases good — Die Hard movies: Die Hard (1988); Die Hard 2 (1990); and Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995). Then came the 2000s and the the money grabs that were Live Free or Die Hard (2007); and A Good Day to Die Hard (2013).
… Following its takeover of Fox, Disney is now in control of the rights to Die Hard and sources say discussions are happening about a soft reboot for the franchise, and they want Samuel L. Jackson to return as Zeus Carver via a cameo.
HBO MAX ANNOUNCES OVER 175 NEW MOVIES/TV SHOWS FOR JULY
When HBO Max launched last month, DC fans hoped it would be the premiere place to go to watch all their favorite DC content. While the streaming service did have an impressive selection of films and TV shows available on launch, there were a lot of notable missing titles due to pre-existing licenses getting in the way. As time goes on, though, more DC properties will end up on the site. Case in point: this July will see a whole heap of superhero content go up on HBO Max.
… Next month HBO Max will have over 175 new movies and TV shows on its menu. The list includes an enormous amount of DC animated movies, mostly featuring Batman, the Justice League and Green Lantern. All of the Christopher Reeve Superman films will be up on HBO Max as of July, too.
DISNEY’S SPLASH MOUNTAIN WILL BE ‘COMPLETELY RE-IMAGINED’
Splash Mountain — one of Disney’s most popular rides — will be “completely reimagined.” The log flume ride — which is based on the controversial 1946 film Song of the South — isn’t going anywhere. Instead, it will be re-themed to star the characters from the 2009 animated film The Princess and the Frog, which features Disney’s first Black princess.
… Splash Mountain has been a mainstay at Disney parks since its creation in 1989. The new changes to the ride will be implemented at Disneyland park in California and Magic Kingdom park in Florida.
… The move comes amid fans urging Disney to re-theme Splash Mountain because of the racial stereotypes from the film it is based upon. Song of the South — which is best known for the song Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah — has long been criticized for its stereotypical and offensive portrayals of African Americans as well as a romanticized view of the antebellum South. The film is so controversial that Disney has locked it away for decades — even keeping it off of Disney+.
ELTON JOHN’S EX-WIFE TAKES LEGAL ACTION AGAINST THE SINGER
Elton John’s ex-wife is taking the singer to court in the UK. The German-born sound engineer filed legal paperwork to seek an injunction against Elton. The reason behind the injunction isn’t clear, but it’s often used in cases relating to privacy matters or to prevent materials from being published. Renate Blauel ‘s lawyer confirmed to a British newspaper that the paperwork had been filed and hoped that the matter would be resolved “amicably,” but declined to elaborate on the nature of the injunction.
… Interest in Blauel’s marriage to the rock legend was renewed after the release of Rocketman, the 2019 Golden Globe-winning biopic about the 73-year-old Tiny Dancer singer.
… The couple first met in 1983 in London while John was working on his Too Low for Zero album. Less than a year later, Blauel had joined the singer’s entourage for a tour of Australia. The pair married in Sydney on Valentine’s Day in 1984. Four years later, the duo split — the same year that the rocker announced he was gay.
EMMA ROBERTS IS EXPECTING HER FIRST CHILD WITH GARRETT HEDLUND
Emma Roberts and Garrett Hedlund are expecting their first child together after being linked a year ago.
DIXIE CHICKS DROP DIXIE
Country group The Dixie Chicks are now officially The Chicks after changing their name across all of their social media pages Thursday. The band has not commented on the change other than adding the message “We want to meet this moment” under the new name on their web site.
NICKELODEON ORDERS A BABY SHARK SHOW
Baby Shark’s Big Show!, based on the viral YouTube video, is coming to Nickelodeon and will be aimed at preschoolers when it premieres in December.
ALAMO DRAFTHOUSE WILL REQUIRE FOOD AND DRINKS TO BE PRE-ORDERED
When the CEO of AMC Theatres announced last week that, despite an ongoing global pandemic, he wouldn’t require AMC visitors to wear masks because he didn’t want to be “drawn into a political controversy,” the leadership behind Alamo Drafthouse theaters immediately took a stand. Alamo issued a statement promising that masks would be required in their theaters, and promised more details would be revealed about their policies this week. AMC eventually reversed its mask policy.
… On Wednesday, Alamo Drafthouse founder and CEO Tim League said he wants to make the act of visiting one of their theaters “one of the safest possible indoor activities.” Specifically, he said they’re aiming to make every visit to a Drafthouse “safer than a supermarket.”
… Alamo says: “We intend to make it so that you can leave your car, make it to your seat, enjoy your food and drinks, and be able to leave having never come within six feet of another person other than when your order is delivered, and having never touched a surface other than your chair and table — both of which will be sanitized between screenings with an electrostatic fogger and disinfectant.”
… Guests will be required to wear masks, except when eating and drinking. Employees will have their temperatures taken before work, wear masks and gloves, and be required to wash their hands at least every 30 minutes. All ticketing will be done online, and at least two buffer seats between groups will ensure a minimum six feet of physical distancing.
… Most interestingly, though, food must be pre-ordered with tickets and additional food and drink orders cannot be made during the movie. However, guests will be able to get refills by raising an order card.
… Alamo Drafthouse has 41 theaters across the U.S. • LINK
HBO MAX RESTORES “GONE WITH THE WIND” WITH DISCLAIMER
Gone With the Wind is back on HBO Max — with two additional videos that discuss the historical context of the classic film. WarnerMedia pulled the movie two weeks ago, citing the need to address its “racist depictions.”
… In the first video, Turner Classic Movies host and film scholar Jacqueline Stewart discusses “why this 1939 epic drama should be viewed in its original form, contextualized and discussed.” The second is a one-hour video recording of a panel discussion, “The Complicated Legacy of Gone With the Wind,” from the TCM Classic Film Festival in April 2019, moderated by author and historian Donald Bogle.
ANTEBELLUM FINAL TRAILER
A final trailer for the horror-thriller Antebellum, starring singer-actress Janelle Monáe, has been released. This trailer runs a full two minutes and explains this film better than any of the other three trailers before this.
… The synopsis only states an author “finds herself trapped in a horrifying reality and must uncover the mind-bending mystery before it’s too late.” • VIDEO
ALEX TREBEK DONATES $500K TO COMBAT HOMELESS CRISIS
Alex Trebek dug deep into his pockets again to help a homeless shelter get a new facility off the ground — more than doubling his previous donation for a very similar cause. The founder of Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission says Alex handed over $500,000 of his own money to help the charity with a brand new homeless shelter they’re aiming to get built over the next year or so in the San Fernando Valley. This new initiative is mega — they’re calling it Hope Central — and it’ll be a 50,000-square-foot facility that’ll house homeless seniors in the area. The team is currently scouting properties and will break ground in 2021.
SCI-FI MOVIE WILL STAR ARTIFICIALLY INTELLIGENT ROBOT NAMED ERICA
A lot of people are wondering how safe it will be for Hollywood to get back to work in the age of the coronavirus, especially since we’re still very much in the first wave and the number of cases in the United States has been rising. An upcoming sci-fi production will make things slightly safer for the cast and crew, because one of the lead roles will be taken by a robot, who has been created to simulate method acting through artificial intelligence.
… The Hollywood Reporter had the news on the movie starring the robot actress, named Erica. The movie is called b, and it’s a full fledged $70 million production that will be the first to use an artificially intelligent robot as an actor.
… The premise: A scientist discovers dangers associated with a program he created to perfect human DNA, so he decides to help the artificially intelligent woman he designed to escape. Erica was created by Japanese scientists as part of their general studies in robotics. In order to prepare her for this movie, they had to teach her to act by meshing the principles of method acting with artificial intelligence.
… The hope is that the film be shot in Europe in summer 2021.
EVERY MAJOR DAYTIME EMMY NOMINEE WILL PRE-TAPE AN ACCEPTANCE SPEECH
This year’s Daytime Emmys, airing Friday on CBS, will be pre-taped and shot from various stars’ homes with the women of The Talk serving as hosts. And to keep the element of surprise, presenters will tape five different envelope openings — and every nominee in the major categories presented will be asked to record an acceptance speech and send it to the show. Ultimately, it will be up to the show’s accountants to reveal the winners to producers and the editors shaping the show, who will then make sure to only edit in the winners’ names and their thank-you videos.
DENNIS QUAID AND LAURA SAVOIE MARRY IN A SECRET CEREMONY
Dennis Quaid and his fiancée Laura Savoie have made it official. The couple surprised everyone by eloping in Santa Barbara at a seaside resort on June 2. The two were engaged last October. They had originally planned to wed in Hawaii in April, then hold a reception in Nashville soon afterward, but they scrapped those plans after the coronavirus pandemic hit.
WHEN JUSTICE LEAGUE’S ALTERNATE VERSION WILL ARRIVE ON HBO MAX
When HBO Max launched, it came with news that blew the collective minds of superhero film fans. After years of campaigning, Justice League’s Snyder Cut is finally becoming a reality on the streaming service. Upwards of $30 million are being allotted for Snyder to complete his edit and the extensive visual effects to make his vision into a reality. We know the movie is arriving sometime in 2021, but now an HBO Max exec has teased a more specific timeframe.
… A bigwig with HBO Max’s parent company says the streaming service will deliver it to fans from “early to mid-2021.”
MILEY CYRUS OPENS UP ABOUT SOBRIETY JOURNEY
Miley Cyrus says she’s been “sober sober” for the past six months. She had vocal cord surgery last November and tackled sobriety just before that event. Then she used lessons learned from her family’s history to work through some of the challenges she had in her life. Now, six months later, Miley is “sober sober” and loves “waking up 100%, 100% of the time.”
NICOLAS CAGE REPORTEDLY IN TALKS TO PLAY SUPERMAN IN THE FLASH
Based on the events of the last few weeks, it looks like all bets are well and truly off when it comes to predicting the future of DC movies. If somebody had told you this time last month that not only was the Snyder Cut of Justice League happening for real this time, but Michael Keaton was also going to return to the franchise as Batman, you’d have called them insane — but 2020’s just been that kind of year.
… Now a source says the studio is talking with Nicolas Cage about signing on to play a Superman from an alternate timeline — similar to Keaton’s Bruce Wayne. Nothing’s been confirmed just yet, but it’s said to be something that Warner Bros. would like to make happen.
JURASSIC PARK DOING WELL IN THEATERS
After a brief break, Jurassic Park is once again the top draw at the box office, pulling in $517,600 at 230 cinemas over the past weekend, narrowly edging out Jaws, which made $516,300 at 187 screens.
It’s the first time that Jurassic Park has been number one at the domestic box office since June 1993. Overall drive-ins are responsible for most of the box office. Out of 1,100 open theaters, about 300 are drive-in screens, and 160 of the top 201 grossing cinemas were drive-in movies. Other movies from the catalog that are hitting cinemas again are Back to the Future (which made $131,000 this past weekend), E.T. ($126,000) and The Goonies ($110,850).
RELEASE SCREAM 5 IN 2021
Scream 5 is a go; casting is underway; and the film will be released next year. There was initially some confusion about whether this new Scream movie was a reboot or a continuation, but it was confirmed to be the latter when David Arquette signed up to reprise his role as Woodsboro sheriff Dewey Riley. To date, he’s the only original cast member to officially join the project, but we know that Neve Campbell is in talks to return as Sidney Prescott, too. Presumably, Courtney Cox has also been approached to return as Gale Weathers.
HENRY CAVILL WAS INSPIRED BY WORKING WITH TOM CRUISE
Henry Cavill is doing many of his own stunts on Netflix’s The Witcher, and he gives credit to Tom Cruise. Cavill says, “For me, when it comes to stunts, I’ve always enjoyed doing the physical stuff. Working with Tom Cruise [on Mission: Impossible – Fallout] really helped — or maybe, in the eyes of the producers, made worse my enjoyment for stunts. I really want to do [the stunts] now, and I think it’s an essential piece to the character.”
MARTHA STEWART LANDS NEW SHOWS ON FOOD NETWORK AND HGTV
Food Network not only announced that Martha Stewart is returning to the judges’ table on Chopped, but that she’ll also host an untitled holiday-themed series. Stewart will also host outdoor projects show Martha Knows Best for HGTV.
ULTRA RARE POKEMON CARD EXPECTED TO FETCH UP TO $100,000
An extremely rare Pokemon card, thought to be one of only seven ever produced, is up for auction online and experts said it could sell for up to $100,000. The Pokemon Super Secret Battle No. 1 Trainer card, being sold by Heritage Auctions, is billed by the auction house as the “holy grail” of collectible cards and its condition was rated a perfect 10 by experts. The card is one of seven that were distributed to winners of regional tournaments in Japan in 1999, granting them entry into the finals in Tokyo. The auction ends July 8.
A CHICKEN RUN SEQUEL IS COMING TO NETFLIX
Chicken Run, the hugely successful clay animation movie, is finally getting a sequel 20 years later. It’ll be made by original creator Aardman Animations and released on Netflix, with production starting in 2021.
… Chicken Run, released in 2000, followed the story of chickens Ginger and Rocky as they hatched a plan to escape Tweedy’s farm where they were destined to be made into chicken pies. Chicken Run is the highest-grossing stop-motion animated film ever. It grossed more than $225 million worldwide, and starred the voices of Julia Sawalha, Mel Gibson, Miranda Richardson, Timothy Spall and Imelda Staunton.
… The sequel will follow Ginger and Rocky, who are now living happily in a “peaceful island sanctuary” with their flock. When their daughter Molly is born, however, they find out that back on the mainland, chickens are in trouble again.
MEGAN FOX SAYS SHE WAS NEVER PREYED UPON BY MICHAEL BAY
After a late-night clip from 2009 resurfaced and gained steam on social media over the weekend, where Megan Fox shared a story about being sexualized as a teenager for her role in Michael Bay’s Bad Boys II, the actress released a statement to clarify that she was never “assaulted or preyed upon in what I felt was a sexual manner.” In an Instagram post this week, Fox said that she was “around 15 or 16 years old” when she got an extra role in the film, where Bay had her dance under a waterfall during a club scene. Several years later, when Fox auditioned for Bay’s Transformers, she said that the audition was at a studio parking lot with “several” other crew members and employees present. Although Fox was asked to provocatively hold tools and pose around Bay’s sports car, she “at no point” was asked to undress or do “anything” similar.
… Fox wrote on her Instagram: “While I greatly appreciate the outpouring of support, I do feel I need to clarify some of the details as they have been lost in the retelling of the events and cast a sinister shadow that doesn’t really, in my opinion, belong.” Fox reiterated her thanks for the support she’s received since the Jimmy Kimmel Live! clip resurfaced, and insisted that Bay’s behavior shouldn’t be equated to the more serious — or criminal — experiences that women face in Hollywood.
TINA FEY ASKS PLATFORMS TO PULL 30 ROCK EPISODES THAT SHOWED BLACKFACE
Tina Fey, creator and star of the Emmy Award-winning series 30 Rock, has asked streaming services to remove several of the show’s episodes that feature White actors in blackface. Fey apologized for the episodes and the “pain they have caused,” according to a letter she wrote to streaming services.
… The episodes set to be pulled include Season 3, Episode 2; Season 5, Episode 4; Season 5, Episode 10 and Season 6, Episode 19. Two of them feature Jane Krakowski, who is white, in blackface, and Jon Hamm appears in blackface in another. Some of them have been pulled from Hulu and Amazon, and some of the episodes were still available for purchase on YouTube as of Tuesday.
MEL GIBSON DENIES WINONA RYDER’S ALLEGATION OF BIGOTED COMMENTS
Mel Gibson has denied Winona Ryder’s allegation that he made homophobic and antisemitic comments to her at a party. In a statement, a representative for Gibson denied a story recently retold in an interview with Ryder. The statement reads: “This is 100% untrue. She lied about it over a decade ago, when she talked to the press, and she’s lying about it now.
… Speaking to the British paper The Sunday Times, Ryder was asked if she had ever experienced antisemitism in the industry and responded with a story concerning Gibson that she had previously shared in a GQ interview in 2010. She told the paper: “We were at a crowded party with one of my good friends. And Mel Gibson was smoking a cigar, and we’re all talking and he said to my friend, who’s gay, ‘Oh wait, am I gonna get AIDS?’ And then something came up about Jews, and he said, ‘You’re not an oven dodger, are you?’”
… Gibson will next be seen alongside Naomi Watts in action film Boss Level and the Christmas comedy Fatman.
MARVEL STUDIOS AND GHOSTBUSTERS STAR ERNIE HUDSON HAVE DISCUSSED POSSIBLE ROLE
Ghostbusters actor Ernie Hudson revealed that he has reached out to Marvel Studios for a potential role on more than one occasion. He previously discussed the opportunity to portray T’Challa’s father King T’Chaka in 2018’s Black Panther. Hudson says that Marvel may have passed him over for that role because it wasn’t “big enough” for him, leaving the possibility of saving him for another MCU appearance in the future. Hudson says he continues to text the co-president at Marvel Studios, like, “Hey, I’m here and I’m available.”
GEORGE R.R. MARTIN OFFERS A NEW WINDS OF WINTER ESTIMATE
Everyone in search of a pandemic-based silver lining can head to author and producer George R.R. Martin’s blog, where the creator of the Song of Ice & Fire book series offers new hope for its next installment. Progress continues on The Winds of Winter, Martin said on Tuesday, and he’s dared to offer a hopeful estimate — though, obviously, not a release date.
… Martin wrote: “The enforced isolation has helped me write.” He confirms a flurry of progress in the past week, adding up to five chapters for Winds of Winter, and he points to “long hours every day” and “steady progress” in putting the book together. Martin then mentions the cancellation of a New Zealand fan convention this year, which he admitted was, in some ways, a perfect development.
JIMMY KIMMEL APOLOGIZES FOR HIS ‘EMBARRASSING’ PAST USE OF BLACKFACE
As expected, from a guy who calls everyone else out for things, Jimmy Kimmel released a statement Tuesday finally addressing his past use of blackface, saying he had been “reluctant” to discuss the topic and that it “was a mistake” to wait so long to apologize. Jimmy said: “There is nothing more important to me than your respect, and I apologize to those who were genuinely hurt or offended by the makeup I wore or the words I spoke.”
… Kimmel is the latest TV star to face a racial reckoning in the wake of the police brutality protests sparked by the killing of George Floyd.
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