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On Thursday November 21 2024, CBS broadcasts The Late Show With Stephen Colbert!

Hakeem Jeffries; Jeffrey Wright Season 10 Episode 42 Episode Summary

The upcoming episode of “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” promises an engaging mix of politics and entertainment. Scheduled to air on CBS, this episode features Representative Hakeem Jeffries from New York and acclaimed actor Jeffrey Wright. Both guests are known for their impactful work in their respective fields, making for an interesting conversation.

Hakeem Jeffries, a prominent figure in the Democratic Party, brings his insights on current political issues. As the House Minority Leader, Jeffries has been vocal about various topics affecting the nation. His presence on the show is likely to shed light on important legislative matters and provide a glimpse into his vision for the future.

On the entertainment side, Jeffrey Wright is set to join the discussion. Known for his powerful performances in film and television, Wright...

Saturday Night Live‘s unpredictability is one of its trademarks. It’s a live show, so anything can happen in the three to five minutes a sketch is aired. But sometimes, even the most well-written and rehearsed elements of the sketch comedy series can go haywire. Here are four times actors totally broke character and made their sketch even funnier than originally intended.

Every ‘Saturday Night Live’ Ryan Gosling ‘Close Encounter’ sketch with Kate McKinnon

This now-classic Saturday Night Live sketch, “Close Encounter,” is a recurring bit about three friends abducted by aliens and questioned by the Nsa and Seti. Kate McKinnon, Ryan Gosling, Cecily Strong (the longest-tenured female cast member in the series history), and later Sarah Sherman played the friends. Aidy Bryant, Mikey Day, and Bowen Yang all played Nsa officers.

Two friends had peaceful experiences with the aliens, sharing the glow and warmth they felt from the otherworldly creatures.

Tobe Hooper's 1985 sci-fi vampire film "Lifeforce" is one of the stranger genre exercises of its era. It was produced by the Cannon Group, an exploitation movie house founded in Israel by B-movie luminaries Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, so it comes with a schlocky imprimatur right out of the gate. "Lifeforce" also has plenty of traditionally schlocky elements, including space vampires, amazing monster effects (it has one of the best practical living corpses in film history), and extensive nudity. The first detail many may remember from "Lifeforce" is the vision of actor Mathilda May wandering around a space laboratory without a stitch of clothing.

The rules of the space vampires in "Lifeforce" aren't entirely clear, as Texan director Hooper was more interested in a sense of dread than plot clarity. It seems that the space vampires can not only shape-shift, but also subsist by "drinking" lightning-light energy out of the faces of their victims.

3 different actors had the chance to portray Riker in Star Trek(Photo Credit –Instagram)

Let’s go back in time and investigate the possible outcomes inside the Star Trek world. Who knows, perhaps the series might have gone entirely in a different path if another actor had played Riker!

1. Michael O’Gorman: The Almost-Riker Who Quit Acting

Think of a Star Trek where Michael O’Gorman, not Jonathan Frakes, served as Riker’s face. It’s an idea worth considering. O’Gorman has a limited background in acting, having played quirky characters in a number of forgotten syndicated series, including Monsters and Miami Vice. Despite his short list of credits, O’Gorman was a serious contender for Riker.

In a memo dated April 13, 1987, from John Ferraro, Senior Vice President for Paramount Pictures, O’Gorman’s name appeared alongside other top contenders such as Gregg Marx and Ben Murphy. Ferraro’s memo...

Ariana Grande has been a leading name in the music industry. With her iconic use of whistle register and unique vocal range, she has amassed a widespread fanbase and numerous accolades. But the 7 Rings singer presently finds herself amidst a massive controversy after recalling an old story from her early career, involving Jeffrey Dahmer.

Ariana Grande (@arianagrande | Instagram)

Jeffrey Dahmer symbolizes a dark phase in America’s past. The Wisconsin-born late individual was a notorious serial killer who killed and dismembered at least 17 males between 1978 to 1991. In the wake of Ariana Grande’s comments, the family of the late Tony Hughes, a deaf and mute victim of Jeffrey Dahmer, slammed the Grammy winner for her insensitive attitude.

Ariana Grande’s fascination with Jeffrey Dahmer leads her into trouble

Jeffrey Dahmer in Conversations With A Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes | Netflix

Ariana Grande‘s revelation came recently after she visited Penn Badgley’s Podcrushed podcast.

Chicago – Happy Pride Weekend! To bring us into this proud celebration, HollywoodChicago.com presents three reviews of LGBTQ+ themed films, with audio overviews from Editor/Writer Patrick McDonald, contributor Jon Lennon Espino and guest reviewer/Founder of Cinema Femme, Rebecca Martin Fagerhoim.

Three by Three: ’Cassandro,’ ‘Jeffrey’ and ‘Go Fish’

Photo credit: Prime Video, Shout Factory, Criterion Collection

The three are the “Cassandro” (2023), reviewed by Jon; “Jeffrey” (1995), reviewed by Patrick; and “Go Fish” (1994), reviewed by Rebecca. Click the name in the headlines for more highlights from each of the reviewers.

Cassandro (2023) by Jon Lennon Espino

Jeffrey (1995) by Patrick McDonald

Go Fish (1994) by Rebecca Martin Fagerholm

”Cassandro” and “Jeffrey” are streaming on Prime Video. “Go Fish” is streaming free on Pluto TV. All are available for digital download. Happy Pride Weekend!

By Patrick McDONALDEditor and Film Critic/WriterHollywoodChicago.compat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com...

The Boys has unquestionably been a success, and the wait for its fourth season was heightened by the news of Jeffrey Dean Morgan joining the cast. Morgan portrays a charismatic Joe Kessler in the series, known for his commanding presence and complex portrayal.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan in The Boys season 4 (Credit: Prime Video)

Fans eagerly await how Morgan’s character will shape the evolving dynamics and conflicts within The Boys. However, reports claim there are talks of a spin-off centered around Morgan’s character, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan is all in.

Eric Kripke Wants to Do a The Boys Spin-Off with Jeffrey Dean Morgan

In Season 4 of The Boys, Jeffrey Dean Morgan made his series debut as Joe Kessler, a CIA Case Officer with a complicated history with Butcher, spanning over 11 years. Creator Eric Kripke, announcing Morgan’s casting in 2022, mentioned that Morgan was a passionate fan of the show.

I think of director Barry Sonnenfeld's "The Addams Family" and "Addams Family Values" the same way I think of director Tim Burton's "Batman" and "Batman Returns." In each case, the first movie operates as more of a test run for what the filmmakers can do with the property they're adapting, whereas the sequels allow them to really let their darkly off-kilter creative sensibilities run wild.

To be sure, 1993's "Addams Family Values" is the zanier of Sonnenfeld's takes on the "Addams Family" franchise, which originated with Charles Addams' original comic panels for The New Yorker dating back to the '30s. While its predecessor has a fairly basic plot, "Values" pits the eponymous clan against a dastardly black widow -- played to camp perfection by Joan Cusack -- who's out to marry and then murder wealthy Uncle Fester (Christopher Lloyd). It's also the film that fully embraces the...

Jeffrey Dean Morgan played Edward Blake aka The Comedian in Zack Snyder’s 2009 film Watchmen. It was this lesser-known DC property that launched Snyder’s career into one of the fan-favorite Cbm directors. Morgan only had great things to say about the film, which he shared was ahead of its time. Morgan was sure that the series created by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons would be loved forever by fans.

Zack Snyder’s Watchmen has many celebrity fans including the star of the film Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Watchmen events are set in an alternative history Cold War era. The film stars Malin Åkerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino, Jackie Earle Haley, and Patrick Wilson. In a recent revelation, Snyder revealed that Tom Cruise wanted to play a crazy anti-hero in the film.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan Cannot Get Over How Great Zack Snyder’s Watchmen Is Jeffrey Dean Morgan as...

Clockwise from top left: Priceless (Screengrab); 2 Days In Paris (Screengrab); Jeffrey (Screengrab); Something’s Gotta Give (Screengrab); The Big Sick (Amazon/Lionsgate); My Man Godfrey (Screengrab)

Lovers of romantic comedies have an array of options on Amazon Prime Video—particularly when it comes to oldies but goodies. Cary Grant classics abound,...

Netflix’s Top 10 Most-Watched Web Series (Jan 8-14) ( Photo Credit – IMDb )

The winter has reached its prime, and people are enjoying the coziness indoors, snuggled inside their favorite blankets, and watching web series on one of the most popular streaming platforms, Netflix. They have released the list of Top 10 Most-Watched TV Shows from January 8-January 14.

My Life with the Walter Boys Season 1 might have crawled down on the list after being on the top spot for multiple weeks, but it is still there, and let’s see for how long the series manages to be on the list. Keep scrolling for more.

Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich: Limited Series about the disgraced financier and convicted s*x offender is on one of the top spots on Netflix’s Top 10 Most-Watched Web Series. The series brings in millions of views as people spend hundreds of hours watching fantastic content on the Ott platform.

The 75th Primetime Emmys offer the biggest night in television, as the stars and creators of entertainment on the small screen gather to celebrate each other. Anthony Anderson hosted the 2024 Emmys broadcast, which honored the finest in drama and comedy on television, as well as some love for limited series, variety shows, and even reality television.

"Succession" came away as the big winner with the trophy for Drama Series, as well as a couple of major acting awards for Kieran Culkin and Sarah Snook. On the comedy side, "The Bear" won the top Comedy Series prize, while stars Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach all won acting awards too. Finally, in the limited series category, "Beef" walked away with the major award for Limited Series, with Steven Yeun and Ali Wong taking home acting awards. Plus, the directors and writers for all of those shows took home trophies too.

erea Barros, both make their market debut at next March’s Malaga Festival Fund & Co-Production Event (Maff), one of the top forums for arthouse projects in the Spanish-speaking world.

Some seven further projects have been added to the initial opine announced at December’s Ventana Sur, including a pair from Paraguay, Málaga’s country of honour, and “Women in the City,” a doc feature exec produced by Rafael Cobos, creator, director and showrunner of the Canneseries-awarded show, “El hijo zurdo.”

Proving the possibility to carve out an international film career based out of Panama, “The Simple Life” (“La Vida Simple”) marks the sixth feature from Benaim, Oscar shortlisted for “Plaza Catedral.”

Marking a departure, “The Simple Life” looks like a more personal turn, about a film director, sans camera and crew, in Panama, compelled by unforeseen circumstances to live the very movie he’s longed to capture on film, suffering existential crisis.

Zack Snyder’s “Rebel Moon - Part One” Trailer Gets Debut

Netflix wrapped up this year’s virtual Geeked Week with the debut of the official trailer for Zack Snyder’s “Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire.”

The epic space opera is centered on Kora, a stranger with a mysterious past who crash lands on a moon in the furthest reaches of the universe and begins a new life among the peaceful settlement of farmers. But soon, she becomes their only hope for survival against the tyrannical Regent Balisarius and the Imperium army.

Watch the trailer for “Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire” below:

Sofia Boutella leads the cast also made up of Djimon Hounsou, Charlie Hunnam, Michiel Huisman, Staz Nair, Doona Bae, Ray Fisher, Cleopatra Coleman, E. Duffy, Anthony Hopkins, Jena Malone, Ed Skrein, Fra Fee, Ingvar Sigurdsson, Stuart Martin, Corey Stoll, Cary Elwes,...

Ask any Trekkie, and they'll happily describe the arc of the three "Star Trek" shows that came to ascend in the 1990s. In the cases of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and "Star Trek: Voyager," the shows started on their rockiest, least interesting seasons as they found their footing. All three shows showed growth during their second seasons but were still staggering to their feet. For the third, fourth, and fifth seasons, the shows had hit their stride, turning out the most interesting stories and exploring exciting new arcs. The sixth and seventh seasons, meanwhile, showed signs of fatigue, and the final episodes of each show proved to be a little rocky.

As of this writing, no "Star Trek" show has lasted as long as those three. "Star Trek: Discovery" will end after its fifth season next year, and no one was more sharply aware...

“Show us your Dicks!”

Roughly 90 minutes after someone in the audience yelled that request out, the people sitting in the Royal Alexandra Theatre would find themselves being showered with makeshift confetti, led in a gospel sing-along by folks in church-choir robes, and batting around beach balls and, naturally, inflatable penises. Everyone who came to the Toronto International Film Festival’s opening night premiere in the “Midnight Madness” section knew what they were getting into, or at the very least thought they did. The sold-out crowd wanted show tunes, sex scenes,...

Marcia Cross, Bryan Batt and Ron Canada will star in the world premiere of the play Pay the Writer, with the first performance set as a benefit for the Writers Guild.

The comedy-drama, written by novelist Tawni O’Dell (Back Roads) will play Off-Broadway at the Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theater at the Pershing Square Signature Center for a seven-week engagement starting Aug. 13. Karen Carpenter (Love, Loss, and What I Wore) directs.

The story of Pay the Writer follows a well-known literary agent Bruston Fischer (played by Batt) and his complicated relationship with his best friend, Cyrus Holt (played by Canada) who is also his most successful client, as well as Holt’s ex-wife Lana, played by Cross.

The production describes the play saying: “Bruston Fischer is a young gay man suffering from social persecution while trying to make it in publishing when he first meets Cyrus Holt some 40 years earlier.

The third episode of The Walking Dead: Dead City answered a question that had been hanging over the series’ metaphorical head since it was first announced: What happens/happened to Negan’s wife Annie, who was pregnant with their child when the mothership ended its 11-season run?

Until Sunday, Negan had managed to avoid discussing his family. But, seeing Maggie’s distress over the possibility that son Hershel had already been killed by the Croat, the Saviors’ former leader opened up to her. He, Annie and baby Joshua had been holed up in a cabin outside of New Babylon, he explained.

Historically, if they’ve been acknowledged at all, LGBTQ characters have typically existed as sidekicks or comic relief in romantic comedies. That’s changed in recent decades, with 1990s classics like “Jeffrey” and Clea Duvall’s satirical 1999 teen comedy “But I’m A Cheerleader” kicking things off, and it continues with the current boom in romcoms with queer main characters. From Joel Kim Booster’s reimagined “Pride and Prejudice” queer love story in “Fire Island,” to “Love, Simon” and more, here are nine essential queer romantic comedies.

Clockwise from top left: Priceless (Screengrab); 2 Days In Paris (Screengrab); Jeffrey (Screengrab); Something’s Gotta Give (Screengrab); The Big Sick (Amazon/Lionsgate); My Man Godfrey (Screengrab) Lovers of romantic comedies have an array of options on Amazon Prime Video—particularly when it comes to oldies but goodies. Cary Grant classics abound,...

“American Horror Story” veteran Evan Peters will play the title character in “Dahmer,” a new Netflix series that re-teams him once again with “AHS” creator Ryan Murphy.

Watch the official “Dahmer” trailer below to see Evan Peters as Jeffrey Dahmer, who murdered and dismembered seventeen men and boys between 1978 and 1991.

“Dahmer” comes to Netflix on September 21, 2022.

Wikipedia notes, “Many of his later murders involved necrophilia, cannibalism, and the permanent preservation of body parts—typically all or part of the skeleton.“

The series, “chronicles the story of one of America’s most notorious serial killers (Peters), largely told from the point of view of Dahmer’s victims, and dives deeply into the police incompetence and apathy that allowed the Wisconsin native to go on a multiyear killing spree.”

“Between 1978 and 1991, Jeffrey Dahmer gruesomely took the lives of seventeen innocent victims. Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is a series that exposes these unconscionable crimes,...

Following a vibrant 2022 edition in a three-year cycle dedicated to Latin America and the Caribbean which she oversaw in an interim capacity, Zsuzsi Bánkuti has been appointed the new head of Locarno’s Open Doors.

She replaces long-time Open Doors chief Sophie Bourdon, who stepped down earlier this year.

The key to this year’s Open Doors was its inspired choice of a focus on smaller territories in Latin America which are often home to first-class directors – one director this year, Dominican Yanillys Pérez scooped a Discovery Award at the Toronto Festival with her doc-feature “Jeffrey,” for example – but, apart from the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica, lack robust state subsidy systems enabling producers to produce movies easily out of their own countries.

The obvious solution is international co-production. Tailor-made to advance this, Open Doors offers producers and directors networking opportunities and targeted training as well as a showcase for...

Modern-day production in Argentina lifted off from its new Argentine Cinema, born over 1991-95, in Brazil with Walter Salles’ 1998 “Central Station,” in Mexico from Carlos Reygadas’ 2002 “Japón.”

Now, Latin America is seeing second-phase expansion based out of smaller markets, driven by the energies of forward-thinking production companies determined to not just build slates but their national film industries.

In line with the massive new talent focus of many of Locarno’s industry programs – this year’s Germany First Look with five feature debuts, the Match Me! emerging producer springboard – Open Doors will focus on Latin America’s most under-represented territories and the Caribbean, where production companies have sprung up after national cinema lift-off in more major countries in the region.

Bolivia’s Empatía Cinema, for example, was founded in 2007, but most key companies at Locarno launched significantly later: Ypr Films in 2010, La Linterna Films in 2011, Paraguay’s Asociación Cultural Arraigo...

Having focused since 2016 on emerging film talent in lesser-known parts of South and South East Asia, Open Doors, the Locarno Festival’s flagship co-production forum and talent incubator, is turning its focus to Latin America and the Caribbean.

Of the 24 directors featured at this year’s edition, 15 identify as female or gender non conforming, led by Ecaudor’s Ana Cristina Barragán whose 2016 debut “Alba” won nods at Rotterdam and San Sebastián and Yanillys Pérez whose documentary “Jeffrey” scooped a Discovery Awards at the Toronto Festival.

Both have new projects at the Open Doors Co-Production Hub, as does Yashira Jordán with “Diamond,” a coming of age tale about a Quechua trap artist last glimpsed at Málaga this year.

Men directors take in Michael Labarca a winner at Cannes’ Cinéfondation film school shorts competition in 2016, and Guatemala’s Mauricio Escobar whose “Los Invisibles” is a social realist tale wrapped around the phenomenon of domestic migration in Guatemala.

Diana, The Musical begins its Act II with the shirtless, well-toned actor portraying the princess’ studly consort James Hewitt doing his best Urban Cowboy riding-the-bull impression, much to the dirty-dancing delight of the smitten royal.

Finally, you think, Diana has fully embraced itself, director Christopher Ashley has rediscovered the campy aesthetic that served him so well from Jeffrey to The Rocky Horror Show and hope may not be entirely lost. But then the pink-bedecked romance novelist Barbara Cartland (don’t ask) stops the action to announce that she just made up that steamy bit, and the ripped stable boy covers up his abs and Diana sinks back to its high-decibel mediocrity.

By now you’ve probably read, heard or seen for yourself, via Netflix, just how deliciously bad Diana is, but the truth isn’t quite so much fun. Diana, opening tonight on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre, is not a so-bad-it’s-good disaster.

The rise and fall of American financier and convicted Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff is the subject of a new docuseries ordered by Netflix. The as-yet untitled series hails from Paradise Lost and Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes director Joe Berlinger and RadicalMedia in association with Berlinger’s Third Eye Motion Picture Company.

Madoff, once the most respected man on Wall Street and the biggest con artist it would ever see,

pulled the levers behind a decades-long, multi-billion-dollar Ponzi scheme that left a devastating financial and human toll. Madoff died in April at Federal Medical Center in Butner, N.C. at the age of 82.

With unique access to victims, whistleblowers, investigators, and archives, the series will explore the cautionary tale of big money, insatiable greed, and a broken system that enabled one man to single-handedly manipulate the global financial market, according to Netflix.

In addition, production has secured...

Lenka Peterson, whose Broadway performances included a 1984 Tony-nominated turn in the musical Quilters, co-starring roles with Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish and Colleen Dewhurst in plays with creative teams including Truman Capote and Arthur Penn, died Sept. 24 in her sleep at home in Roxbury, Connecticut. She was 95.

Her death was announced by her family, including daughter, actress Glynnis O’Connor.

In addition to her stage work, Peterson appeared in an extensive roster of film and television projects, spanning more than 50 years beginning with a small role in director Elia Kazan’s 1950 film Panic in the Streets (Peterson was a charter member of The Actors Studio) and continuing through the 2006 remake of All The King’s Men starring Sean Penn, Jude Law and Kate Winslet.

Born Lenka Isacson in Omaha, Nebraska, Peterson moved to New York City following World War II to pursue a stage career, and soon landed...

Exclusive: Following a highly competitive bidding war, Amazon Studios has landed the package Ex-Husbands and will develop the new comedy, an original story by Billy Eichner and Paul Rudnick. Eichner is also attached to star, with the screenplay by Rudnick. The film will be produced by Eichner and Berlanti/Schechter Films.

“The concept of a big, gay divorce comedy has been kicking around in my head for years and I cannot think of better collaborators than groundbreaking producers Greg and Sarah, and a true icon whose work I have craved and admired since I was a young gay boy lusting after show business, the brilliant Paul Rudnick who really paved the way for me and many others. And we now have the perfect partners in Amazon, who have already shown enormous passion for this project. This is a dream team. Now, Let’S Get Divorced!!!” Eichner said.

The film tells...

The Criterion Channel has unveiled their lineup for next month and it’s another strong slate, featuring retrospectives of Carole Lombard, John Waters, Robert Downey Sr., Luis García Berlanga, Jane Russell, and Rob Epstein & Jeffrey Friedman. Also in the lineup is new additions to their Queersighted series, notably Todd Haynes’ early film Poison (Safe is also premiering in a separate presentation), William Friedkin’s Cruising, and Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Teorama.

The new restorations of Manoel de Oliveira’s stunning Francisca and Francesco Rosi’s Christ Stopped at Eboli will join the channel, alongside Agnieszka Holland’s Spoor, Bong Joon Ho’s early short film Incoherence, and Luc Dardenne & Jean-Pierre Dardenne’s Rosetta.

See the lineup below and explore more on criterionchannel.com.

#Blackmendream, Shikeith, 2014

12 Angry Men, Sidney Lumet, 1957

About Tap, George T. Nierenberg, 1985

The AIDS Show, Peter Adair and Rob Epstein, 1986

The Assignation, Curtis Harrington, 1953

Aya of Yop City,...

a series by Christopher James looking at the 'Gay Best Friend' trope

The gay comedy "Jeffrey" features a refreshingly fun and unbridled sendup of the "gay best friend" character.Of the few gay-centric movies made in the 90s, a large number of them were dramas centered around the AIDS crisis. Movies like Philadelphia were very important in making straight America identify and care about those suffering with the disease. However, they were just that. They were made for straight America with the goal of educating them and generating empathy. Sure, that is a worthy cause and many of those movies were incredibly successful in that regard. However, these weren’t movies specifically made For members of the gay community. That’s where a movie like Jeffrey comes in.

Director Christopher Ashley and screenwriter Paul Rudnick created an ambitious, irreverent AIDS-themed comedy that never turns any of its bitchy queens into sympathetic martyrs.

Chicago – I will never forget meeting Olympia Dukakis. It was in Chicago in 2009, and among all the pomp and sequins of a Greek American awards night. it was Dukakis who was, by her natural presence, the movie star. Oh yeah, and she was slightly tipsy. Ms. Dukakis passed away in New York City on May 1st, 2021, age 89.

She was known for her high level of performance on stage and screen, and resided in both for over 60 years. She won a Golden Globe and Academy Award (Best Supporting Actress) for “Moonstruck” (1987), and garnered two Obies (Off Broadway Theater Awards) for her work in outer circle and independent theater. She also was a prominent acting instructor, a political activist (her cousin was 1988 Presidential candidate Michael Dukakis) and wrote her memoir in 2003 entitled “Ask Me Again Tomorrow: A Life in Progress.”

Olympia Dukakis in Chicago, circa 2009

Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.

Olympia Dukakis, the Oscar-winning actress best known for her roles in Moonstruck and Steel Magnolias, has died at the age of 89.

50 Greatest Romantic Comedies of All Time

The actress’ brother Apollo Dukakis announced his sister’s death on Facebook Saturday. No cause of death was revealed.

“My beloved sister, Olympia Dukakis, passed away this morning in New York City,” he wrote. “After many months of failing health she is finally at peace and with her Louis [Zorich, Dukakis’ husband of 55 years who died in January 2018].”

Olympia Dukakis brought warmth, humor and wit to the stage and screen for almost 60 years,...

Olympia Dukakis, a character actress best known for her Oscar-winning supporting turn in Norman Jewison’s “Moonstruck” and for her role as the wealthy widow in “Steel Magnolias,” has died. She was 89.

Dukakis’ brother, Apollo Dukakis, confirmed her death to Variety. Apollo Dukakis announced her death in a Facebook post, writing: “My beloved sister, Olympia Dukakis, passed away this morning in New York City. After many months of failing health she is finally at peace and with her Louis.”

The actress was 56 when she came to prominence overnight thanks to her Oscar-winning turn in “Moonstruck,” the 1987 film in which she played, with an extraordinary comic ethnic gusto characteristic of the movie as a whole, the mother of Cher’s character. The Washington Post singled out Dukakis for praise: Cher and Nicolas Cage are “backed by an equally quirky cast of marvelous supporting players — especially Olympia Dukakis, whose role as Loretta...

“This morning, I saw his face above the fold. ‘Him.’ I can’t even stand to say his name. Because I’m a New Yorker, and we always hated him. And it wasn’t just the lying, the hair, and the ugly buildings. Oh my god, no. He has no style; he has no sense of humor! He tore down Bonwit Teller in the middle of the night! He wouldn’t rent to black people! Move to the Kremlin, you son of a bitch!” That’s just the beginning of...

On Aug. 9 and Aug. 10, Lifetime will air its new docuseries Surviving Jeffrey Epstein. Those airdates are significant, as Epstein, the disgraced financier and accused sex offender, was found dead in his jail cell on Aug. 10, 2019. And this story, like the network's hit Surviving R. Kelly before it, focuses on those who survived the sexual assaults perpetrated by Epstein and those in his inner circle. The most prominent figure in his inner circle? Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend accused of grooming women, who was arrested on July 2.

Bob Friedman, one of the series's executive producers, told journalists covering this summer's all-virtual Television Critics Association press tour that it was important to air this two-night, four-hour event on the anniversary of Epstein's demise - especially because "the story that we've told has been pretty much in the survivors' own words."

"The survivors who bear this burden of abuse; abuse that, dare we all believe,...

Thursday’s arrest of the seemingly elusive Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell is an “important day for justice,” Lisa Bryant, the director of Netflix’s Epstein documentary, told TheWrap.

“It’s an important day for justice and accountability on behalf of the courageous survivors who spoke out about how Ghislaine Maxwell manipulated, facilitated and groomed them for sexual abuse,” Bryant said. “The entire production team of ‘Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich’ hopes to see justice served.”

Speaking further about Maxwell’s arrest, Bryant told EW, “I’d like to see her brought to trial. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty. But all of our research and the women in the series that we spoke to, all their stories added up and they all mentioned Ghislaine’s involvement. I think there’s a lot of evidence, overwhelming evidence, or they wouldn’t have made that arrest today. I hope that perhaps the...

The Critics Choice Association (Cca) and nonfiction producers’ organization Npact announced the winners for the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, honoring the best in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming aired on broadcast, cable and streaming platforms.

Netflix programming was the big winner this year, with the streamer taking home eight wins from its 31 nominations, including two wins each for “Cheer” and “Queer Eye,” with the former earning accolades for Unstructured Series and Male Star of the Year (Jerry Harris), while the latter scored for Lifestyle: Fashion/Beauty Show and Ensemble Cast in an Unscripted Series.

Other notable winners include several Emmy hopefuls, including Hulu’s “Hillary” in Limited Documentary Series, ESPN’s “The Last Dance” in Sports Show, plus a win for streaming newbie Disney+ for “The World According to Jeff Goldblum” in Structured Series.

Executive producer and host of longtime CBS competition series “Survivor” Jeff Probst was...

Netflix dominated this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Awards, thanks in part to “Cheer” and “Queer Eye,” which led the winners list with two kudos each.

“Cheer” was named best unstructured series, as well as male star of the year for Jerry Harris, while “Queer Eye” landed wins for lifestyle: fashion/beauty show and ensemble cast in a scripted series.

Overall, Netflix won eight awards, also picking up trophies for “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich” (crime/justice series), “Somebody Feed Phil” (travel/adventure series), “Love Is Blind” (relationship show), as well as the peer-voted award for outstanding achievement in nonfiction programming by a network or streaming platform.

Other networks with multiple wins were ABC and Bravo, with two each. “Survivor” host and executive producer Jeff Probst was awarded this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Impact Award, “for his ongoing contributions to the unscripted television industry.”

The Critics Choice Association...

In the last two years, a series of scalding and essential documentaries — “Leaving Neverland,” “Surviving R. Kelly,” “Untouchable,” “On the Record,” “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich” — have shined a light on the contours of sexual abuse and the supreme, if not obscene, concentration of power that too often allows it to be concealed and perpetuated. In most of these high-profile cases, the power emanates from one figure who is either a celebrity or a backstage manipulator of celebrity: Harvey Weinstein, Michael Jackson, Russell Simmons, Jeffrey Epstein, R. Kelly. The power wielded by these men has been total and destructive: the ability to threaten and terrorize, to twist and ruin careers, to suppress and squash the rule of law.

“Athlete A,” Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk’s disturbing and illuminating documentary about the sexual-abuse scandal that struck the U.S. Olympic women’s gymnastics team in 2016, is centered around an individual who was,...

The Critics Choice Association (Cca) and nonfiction producers’ organization Npact announced the nominees for the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, honoring the best in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming aired on broadcast, cable and streaming platforms.

Leading the nominees were Netflix’s “Cheer” and VH1’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” each of which received five nominations, followed by Netflix bedfellow “Queer Eye” with four nominations and Showtime’s “Couples Therapy” with three nominations.

Netflix dominated other outlets with 31 nominations overall, with its nearest competition coming in the form of ABC, Bravo, and VH1, which scored six nominations apiece.

“Our nominees for the 2020 Critics Choice Real TV Awards reflect the broad range of dynamic unscripted content available on all television platforms,” Cca TV Branch President Ed Martin said in a statement. “We are once again honored to bring much deserved attention to the best of reality TV — a genre that...

The Critics Choice Association (Cca) and nonfiction producers’ organization Npact announced the nominees for the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, honoring the best in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming aired on broadcast, cable and streaming platforms.

Leading the nominees were Netflix’s “Cheer” and VH1’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” each of which received five nominations, followed by Netflix bedfellow “Queer Eye” with four nominations and Showtime’s “Couples Therapy” with three nominations.

Netflix dominated other outlets with 31 nominations overall, with its nearest competition coming in the form of ABC, Bravo, and VH1, which scored six nominations apiece.

“Our nominees for the 2020 Critics Choice Real TV Awards reflect the broad range of dynamic unscripted content available on all television platforms,” Cca TV Branch President Ed Martin said in a statement. “We are once again honored to bring much deserved attention to the best of reality TV — a genre that...

Netflix’s Cheer and VH1’s RuPaul’s Drag Race lead nominations with five apiece for the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, which recognize excellence in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming across broadcast, cable and streaming platforms. Organized by the Critics’ Choice Association and nonfiction producers’ body Npact, winners will be announced on June 29.

Survivor host and executive producer Jeff Probst will receive this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Impact Award, for his ongoing contributions to the unscripted industry.

Cheer, which follows the cheerleaders of Navarro College as they prepare for the biggest moment of their lives, is nominated for Unstructured Series, Sports Show, Limited Documentary Series, Male Star of the Year and Female Star of the Year. Emmy winner RuPaul’s Drag Race is vying for Competition Series, Ensemble Cast in an Unscripted Series, Female Star of The Year, Male Star of The Year and Show Host.

Queer Eye...

VH1’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and Netflix’s “Cheer” led all shows in nominations for the second annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards, the Critics Choice Organization and the nonfiction producers organization Npact announced on Monday.

But while 89 different shows were nominated, and nonfiction series nominees included “The Last Dance,” “Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children,” “The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez” and “Hillary,” the year’s biggest nonfiction sensation, “Tiger King,” was not nominated for anything despite being eligible.

The awards, which were launched last year, honor nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming as chosen by television journalists in the Critics Choice Organization.

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “Cheer” each landed five nominations in the 25 categories. “Queer Eye” received four and “Couples Therapy” three, with almost two dozen other shows, ranging from “A Very Brady Renovation” to “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich,” receiving two.

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Millionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein, the center of Netflix's documentary Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, led a mysterious and yet completely public life. The native New Yorker, who was 66 when he died in 2019, kept details of his private life private but ran in high-profile social circles - which is where he allegedly brought many underage girls over the years as part of an elaborate sex-trafficking ring.

His survivors are telling their own version of events in the Netflix documentary, which is weaved in with a more detailed look at Epstein's rise to millionaire status and the various crimes of which he's been accused. For more background on Epstein and some of the key events referenced in the documentary, keep reading. And you can stream the documentary on Netflix starting May 27.

Related: 25 Uplifting Documentaries on Netflix to Deep-Cleanse Your Soul 1974: Epstein starts teaching at Dalton in New York. Epstein, who was born and raised in Brooklyn,...

Although we know that Netflix already have a bumper collection of content planned for June, the streaming giant are also using the final week of May to put out a lot of new series and movies.

After a weekend where an Adam Sandler film has, not for the first time, pulled in big audiences for the platform, the streamer’s giving us a chance to appreciate one of the actor’s more serious roles by releasing Uncut Gems. Other highlights coming up between May 24th and May 31st, meanwhile, include a new Jeffrey Epstein limited series and the debut of Space Force.

On the movie side, the Safdie brothers’ Uncut Gems arrives on Monday, May 25th, and is highly recommended for anyone that hasn’t yet a had a chance to take in the deep dive into pawnshops and bets gone wrong. Other film highlights include the Matthew McConaughey-starring The Lincoln Lawyer,...

Netflix has released the official trailer for “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich,” a new docuseries exposing the money, power and secrets behind the international sex trafficking ring that led to Epstein’s 2019 arrest and eventual death in prison.

Premiering on May 27, the four-part series features interviews with Epstein’s victims, detailing their experiences on his private island — also known as “pedophile island” — and at his Palm Beach, Fla., residence. The trailer alone features nine women who have come forward to accuse Epstein of sexual abuse.

The trailer also promises an in-depth look at the 2008 case in which Epstein avoided a life sentence by procuring a secret plea deal with the government. Although federal officials identified 36 underage girls who Epstein had sexually abused and solicited for prostitution, he only served 13 months of jail time. In July 2019, Epstein was arrested once again on charges of sex trafficking of minors, but died in jail in August.

In 91 years, no one has ever been Oscar-nominated for playing a pope. That could change this year if Jonathan Pryce (lead actor) and Anthony Hopkins (supporting) are recognized for the crowd-pleasing “The Two Popes,” as, respectively, Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI.

The film depicts their mutual wariness, which turns into friendship. And thanks to director Fernando Meirelles and writer Anthony McCarten, it also packs a punch in dealing with the men’s very different socio-political backgrounds.

“The Two Popes” sounds like a TV movie that would be shown on cable every Easter. In fact, Italian TV has done a bevy of papal biopics over the years, and America has had a hand in several, including Jon Voight (!) in the 2005 “Pope John Paul II” miniseries.

But Vatican City has rarely appeared on the big screen. “The Agony and the Ecstasy” (1965) and “The Shoes of the Fisherman” (1968) were both intended as...

Sometimes Emily Hampshire slips into character during dates.

Things get awkward, the Canadian actress tells Et, when her courter suddenly realizes that she's not Stevie Budd, the deadpan, buttoned-up motel clerk she hilariously portrays on Pop TV's Schitt's Creek, which just finished airing a critically acclaimed third season earlier this year. In fact, Hampshire, who frequently breaks into uproarious giggle fits during our freewheeling interview, couldn't be more infectiously giddy and refreshingly forthcoming.

"I feel bad that I'm not Stevie for them, that I'm not as cool as Stevie," the 35-year-old actress says. "They meet me and they're like, 'Oh, you're way more animated than Stevie is.' I can hear the disappointment in their voice."

That's when, she acknowledges, "I try to overcompensate for not being Stevie."

So then they get Jennifer Goines, the brainy but unhinged heroine she plays on Syfy's 12 Monkeys. If you know Jennifer, you know this means Hampshire's dates end with...

Major Crimes is back for eight episodes!

I'm thrilled. I've missed Provenza, Flynn, and Sanchez, and I'm relieved to see Flynn is in okay shape after his health crisis at the end of the summer season.

And if this show being back wasn't good enough news, Major Crimes Season 5 Episode 14 features Camryn Manheim as the new Deputy Chief Davis, whose existence seems to be based on making Raydor miserable.

Major Crimes has always been about characters more than about the mystery of the week.

There's always a crime to be solved and they always manage to solve it, but the fun is in watching Provenza battle with technology, bureaucracy or one of his other enemies while the other characters struggle with whatever obstacles are thrown their way.

"Heart Failure" was no exception.

The opening scene was gritty and realistic. Although the violent-crime-as-training-exercise twist has been done before, somehow it was different here.

An Officer and a Gentleman, The Devil’s Advocate and Ray are just three of the movies in director Taylor Hackford’s illustrious career, although his one Oscar was for a short film he made much earlier in his career.

For Hackford’s latest movie, The Comedian, he directs Robert De Niro as Jackie Burke, a veteran comedian and star of a popular old TV sitcom, who is trying to find a new lease on life, which actually ends up with him being thrown in jail for assaulting a heckler. While doing community service, he meets Leslie Mann’s Harmony and he shares with her his love for stand-up, although her father (Harvey Keitel) doesn’t approve of the relationship.

If you ever wondered whether De Niro can do stand-up comedy, you get a lot of opportunities to see him performing mostly insult comedy ala Jeffrey Ross (who was involved...