News

This year marks the 20th anniversary of The Return of the King, the final part of the Academy Award-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Adapted from celebrated author J.R.R. Tolkien’s high fantasy novels of the same name, these films more than just introduced the iconic realm of Middle-earth to millions of fans around the world; they became legends in their own right. So much so, The Lord of the Rings has become a holiday staple celebrated by millions around the globe.

Indeed, despite being set in a world without the usual Yuletide trappings, this trilogy has quietly become something of a Christmas tradition, and an annual viewing appointment every December. Here’s how the films’ surprise connection with the holiday season began, why they’re so perfectly suited for the festive start of winter, and how The Hobbit trilogy only strengthened the association a decade later.

An Annual...

Season 2 of the Emmy-winning comedy “Hacks,” the debut of Colin Firth’s true-crime drama “The Staircase” and the streaming return of “The Matrix: Resurrections” all await HBO Max subscribers in May. If you’re looking for something new to watch or wondering what’s on HBO Max this month, not to worry, we’ve got the full rundown.

There are several must-watch new TV shows on both HBO and HBO Max this month, new and returning. Acclaimed Jean Smart comedy “Hacks” returns for Season 2 on May 12. As for the new debuts, May sees the premieres for HBO Max’s “The Staircase” on May 5, starring Colin Firth as Michael Peterson in the true-crime limited series, as well as the HBO premiere of Steven Moffat’s (”Doctor Who”) series adaptation of “The Time Traveler’s Wife” on May 15.

New films this month include the streaming return of “The Matrix: Resurrections” and streaming premieres...

With movie theaters fully back up and running, HBO Max no longer has any major film releases to point to with its list of new releases for May 2022. That’s alright though as the streamer is leaning into the HBO side of its branding to offer up some fun TV releases.

The biggest HBO Max original this month is undoubtedly the return of Hacks on May 12. The first season of this comedy starred Jean Smart as a venerated Vegas comedy and Hannah Einbinder as her new millennial assistant. The first batch of episodes was excellent and even won an Emmy or two for its troubles and now season 2 will look to keep up the good vibes.

Premiering on May 15, is The Time Traveler’s Wife. This series adaptation of the 2003 novel (which in turn became a a 2009 movie) keeps up with two star-crossed lovers who can never quite make the timing work…...

Paramount Animation and Nickelodeon Animation are further aligning under president of animation Ramsey Naito with a pair of major executive moves.

Latifa Ouaou has been named executive vice president of movies and global franchises for Paramount Animation and the Nickelodeon Animation Studio. Ouaou will oversee theatricals and streaming film content across both Paramount and Nickelodeon.

On the series side, Eryk Casemiro has been promoted to executive vice president global series content for Nickelodeon Animation. Casemiro will oversee animation series content for preschool and kids ages 6-11 across all formats and platforms for Nickelodeon Animation Studio.

“Latifa has an incredible resume and an incredible reputation,” Naito says. “The community knows her and loves her. She’s a talent magnet. She has great taste in material. And she really has worked in so many aspects of animation that she can really see a movie through from development through production. She’s just really topnotch.

It’s blockbuster season and Amazon Prime is celebrating by bringing a major action film to its stream.

That’s right, Amazon Prime’s list of new releases for July 2021 is highlighted by none other than The Tomorrow War on July 2. The year is 2051 and mankind is locked in a vicious war against an alien species. Our only hope is to go back in time and find…Chris Pratt. Ok, perhaps that’s a little reductive of the film’s plot. Future humanity also comes back to bring Sam Richardson to the future.

In terms of originals, there isn’t much else to speak of on Amazon Prime this month. The only other major release is The Pursuit of Love on July 30. This BBC series is directed by Emily Mortimer and takes place during the WWII era and follows two cousins as they navigate their lives. Lily James and Andrew Scott star.

One of the few surprises at Sunday’s Oscars had nothing to do with the actual awards themselves — well, unless you were thinking about past Oscar winners. After a montage celebrating songs in movies, Eminem popped up onstage and launched into a rousing performance of “Lose Yourself,” his “8 Mile” (2002) anthem that won Best Original Song 17 years ago. He didn’t show up then to perform or accept the prize, so why now? Well, better late than never.

“I kinda figured maybe since I didn’t get a chance to do it at the time, maybe it would be cool,” the rapper explained to our sister site “Variety.” “Back then, I never even thought that I had a chance to win, and we had just performed ‘Lose Yourself’ on the Grammys with the Roots a couple of weeks before the Oscars, so we didn’t think it was a good idea.

As the makeover of Nickelodeon continues, two key executive hires have been announced. Jenny Wall is joining the Viacom-owned network as Chief Marketing Officer and Eryk Casemiro as Svp of Nickelodeon Preschool.

As Cmo, Wall will be responsible for all on and off-air consumer marketing, brand creative and content launches across all of the network’s platforms. That roster includes digital, social and direct-to-consumer, including Nicktoons, TeenNick, Nick at Nite and Noggin. She will report to Nickelodeon chief Brian Robbins and be based in New York.

“Jenny is a dynamic innovator who knows how to create cultural moments that connect content and audiences,” Robbins said. “As Nickelodeon focuses its efforts to expanding onto new platforms and building our audience, Jenny’s creative instincts and strategic planning will further add to our momentum.”

As head of the preschool division, Casemiro will spearhead preschool production and development across all formats and platforms spanning digital,...

New Nickelodeon president Brian Robbins has made a second key programming executive hire, bringing in Oscar-nominated producer Ramsey Naito as Evp of Animation Production and Development. Based in Nickelodeon’s Burbank studio, Naito will be in charge of the network’s animation content across all formats and platforms– digital, TV and film, reporting to Robbins.

Naito replaces Chris Viscardi, Svp of Animation and Development at Nick, who will move into a producer role for the network, overseeing the creation of feature-length animated content for both Nickelodeon and third-party digital and linear platforms.

The appointment of Naito follows Robbins’ recent hire of longtime close associate Shauna Phelan to the newly created position as Svp, Live-Action Scripted Content, for the Nickelodeon Group.

“Ramsey is a proven hit-maker and creative leader who has helped bring to life some incredibly imaginative characters for audiences of all ages,” said Robbins. “One of our goals is...

Nickelodeon has hired Oscar-nominated “Boss Baby” producer Ramsey Naito as executive vice president of Animation Production and Development, in charge of the network’s animation content across all formats and platforms — including digital, TV and film — Nickelodeon president Brian Robbins announced Tuesday.

Naito will be based in Nickelodeon’s Burbank, California, studio and report directly to Robbins. This marks Robbins’ second hire since he took over Nick last month. Last week, he named Shauna Phelan head of Nick’s live-action scripted content.

Chris Viscardi, Nickelodeon’s former senior vice president of Animation and Development who was previously leading the department, will now be moving into a producer role for the children’s network. He will oversee the creation of feature-length animated content for both Nickelodeon and third-party digital and linear platforms.

Also Read: Nickelodeon Hires Awesomeness Exec Shauna Phelan to Lead Live-Action Division

Naito will be responsible for managing Nickelodeon...

Paramount Pictures has named “The Boss Baby” producer Ramsey Naito to the post of executive vice president at Paramount Animation.

Naito received an Oscar nomination for DreamWorks Animation’s “The Boss Baby” along with Tom McGrath. She will report to Paramount Animation’s president, Mireille Soria. Paramount made the announcement Thursday.

“I have had the privilege of knowing and working with Ramsey for a number of years,” Soria said. “She is a consummate professional with incredible creative instincts and relationships. I am so excited for her to bring her skills and energy to our growing team.”

Naito will oversee production on the next SpongeBob SquarePants movie. She will actively seek new projects for development and animation talent to work with the division. Naito will work with Soria to build cross-divisional opportunities with Nickelodeon and parent company Viacom’s other brands.

In addition to the third installment of “SpongeBob SquarePants,” Paramount...

Ramsey Naito, who most recently produced DreamWorks Animation’s Oscar-nominated feature The Boss Baby, has joined Paramount Animation as Executive VP. She will report to Paramount Animation President Mireille Soria.

Paramount Animation also has added Emily Nordwind as VP Production and Development, Katherine MacDonald as VP Production and Marketing and Maya Kambe as a creative executive.

In her new job, Naito will not only oversee production on the next SpongeBob SquarePants movie but she will actively seek out new projects for development and animation talent to work with the division. In addition to the third installment of SpongeBob SquarePants, Paramount Animation’s upcoming slate also includes Wonder Park (newly retitled from Amusement Park), which is set to bow on March 15, 2019.

Naito also will work with Soria to also build cross-divisional opportunities with Nickelodeon and parent company Viacom’s other brands.

“I have had the privilege of knowing and working with...

Kendrick Lamar was skunked by the Grammys for Album of the Year again this year, with the recording academy once again voting for the most adult-contemporary-friendly option — in this case, Bruno Mars (“24K Magic”). But why wait around for music’s top prize when you can go for film’s highest honor? He co-wrote the entire soundtrack album for the new Marvel film “Black Panther.” He might actually have a better shot at the Oscars since the motion picture academy has demonstrated that it’s far more open to hip-hop music than the Grammys are. Watch Lamar’s video for “All the Stars” with Sza above.

The Oscars have spent recent years trying to respond to the #OscarsSoWhite backlash from 2016 when there were no people of color represented among the 20 acting nominees. Since then the academy has opened up to a broader, more diverse, more international membership, but they were...

Black Nights festival’s animation strand has unveiled its 2016 winners.

The 18th edition of the Animated Dreams festival at Tallinn Black Nights (Nov 11-27) has revealed its winners.

Ukrainian-born Russian director Igor Kovalyov took the top prize for his 20-minute short film Before Love [pictured], which had its premiere at the Holland Animation Film Festival earlier this year

Devised around a classic love triangle, the film follows a construction worker on a scaffold who observes a young woman spying on a man.

Kovalyov is an experienced animator, having worked on TV series The Rugrats between 1992 and 2006 as well as two spin-off features from that franchise and The Wild Thornberrys Movie. He has also directed multiple short films, including Milch in 2005, which was nominated for an Annie Award.

The Animated Dreams competition jury consisted of Giannalberto Bendazzi (Italy), Pedro Rivero (Spain) and Agne Nelk (Estonia). They commented that the prize was awarded to Before Love for “the smart way it...

Summer is coming to an end and the 2016-17 TV season is just around the corner (not to mention football and more football). So it’s a good time to cram in a whole collection of shows and movies on Netflix before your schedule gets so full you won’t know what to do with yourself. Some exciting additions are a couple Fast and Furious movies, No Country for Old Men and Funny Or Die Presents: Donald Trump’s Art of the Deal: The Movie, which stars Jonny Depp as Trump. Check out the list. Find a comfortable spot and begin watching. New to Netflix August 1 The American Side An Inconvenient Truth Apex: The Story of the Hypercar Beethoven’s Christmas Adventure Big Daddy Black Widow Critical Condition Deadfall Destination: Team USA Funny Or Die Presents: Donald Trump’s Art of the Deal: The Movie The Family Man The Fast and the Furious...

It's always a good time to revisit our favorite children's movies, whether you're introducing your kids to them for the first time or enjoying a Disney classic yet again. If kids' movies like "Dumbo" and "The Rescuers" aren't already in your library, they're available right now to stream on Netflix, along with a lot of newer movies that will appeal to your kids (and to the kid in you).

(Availability subject to change.)

1. "Anastasia" (1997) G

This winning tale of a girl who might be the lost Romanov princess features the voice talents of Meg Ryan, Christopher Lloyd, John Cusack, and Hank Azaria.

2. "Antz" (1998) PG

Woody Allen voices a neurotic ant who falls in love with a princess (Sharon Stone) and must foil the plans of the power-mad General Mandible (Gene Hackman).

3. "Born Free" (1966) PG

A still-moving classic about the couple who raised Elsa the Lioness, an orphaned lion cub, then...

By Terence Johnson

Managing Editor

One of the bright spots this past film year was the success of Disney’s Frozen. On the strength of it’s more modern princesses and an infectious score, the film set box office records and has garnered two Oscar nominations, Animated Feature and Best Original Song for “Let It Go”, its infectious hit. In honor of Frozen’s nomination, we figured it was time to take a look at the history of animated movies in Original Song.

The history of animated films picking up nominations and wins in Best Original Song is a tale as old as time (see what I did there?). Since the 1930s, animated films have won this award 13 times and over 50 nominations, which you can see below. This is an even greater feat when you think about the consideration that animated films get when lists of musicals are made (they...

John Cleese and Tim Curry have joined the voice cast of Vanguard Animation's comedy feature film Valiant. Shrek's John H. Williams is producing, while Gary Chapman is directing. The animated comedy, in production, tells the story of a lowly wood pigeon named Valiant, who overcomes his small size to become a hero in Great Britain's Royal Air Force Homing Pigeon Service during World War II. Cleese plays an Allied pigeon who gets trapped behind enemy lines, while Curry is devoted to the pigeons' destruction as part of the enemy's Falcon Brigade. The production already boasts the voice talents of Ewan McGregor, Ben Kingsley, Jim Broadbent, Rupert Everett, Hugh Laurie, John Hurt and Ricky Gervais. The Walt Disney Co.'s Buena Vista is distributing the picture in North America, while Odyssey Entertainment in the United Kingdom is handling international distribution. Cleese, repped by CAA, is no stranger to animated voice work, having recently lent his voice to Shrek 2. Curry, repped by Innovative Artists, has recently been part of the voice casts of Rugrats Go Wild!, The Wild Thornberrys Movie and Rugrats in Paris.

NEW YORK -- Paramount Pictures has signed on with InDemand's video-on-demand offering, leaving the Walt Disney Co. as the lone holdout among studios providing movies to the leading VOD distributor. The nonexclusive rights deal gives InDemand access to such recent titles as Star Trek Nemesis and The Wild Thornberrys Movie and current releases like The Hours. Library films also will be made available, but specific titles have yet to be selected. Paramount joins Artisan Entertainment, DreamWorks, MGM, Sony, Columbia TriStar, 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios and Warner Bros. Pictures as studio partners of InDemand, which is available through such major cable operators as Comcast and Time Warner Cable.

LONDON -- U.K. boxoffice admission figures for February fell 21% from the same period last year, according to figures released Tuesday by the Cinema Advertising Assn. Admissions in February hit 15.03 million, down 8% from January's total of 16.3 million. But the month boasted the highest weekly average (3.76 million) since February 2002, which had the highest boxoffice admissions on record since 1969 thanks to Monsters, Inc. and Ocean's Eleven, two of last year's biggest hits. According to the CAA, the top five movies in the United Kingdom during February were United International Pictures' Catch Me If You Can (£11.1 million, or $17.5 million), Warner Bros.' Two Weeks Notice (£10.3 million, or $16.25 million), Buena Vista's Chicago (£6 million, or $9.46 million), Entertainment's Final Destination 2 (£5 million, or $7.88 million) and UIP's The Wild Thornberrys Movie (£4.8 million, or $7.57 million). With admissions running at 31.3 million through the second month, the CAA predicts that cinema admissions this year will remain on course to top the 180 million mark.

Where else could Adam Sandler go up against the Powerpuff Girls? The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has released the names of the films that qualify for this year's Best Animation Feature Film Oscar . and the number is almost double that of last year. Nine films were selected as eligible last year, with Shrek taking home the inaugural award, and for 2002 the Academy has named seventeen eclectic candidates, including Adam Sandler's 8 Crazy Nights, The Powerpuff Girls Movie, and Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie. Disney's two high-profile animated offerings this year . the hit Lilo & Stitch and the flop Treasure Planet . also qualified, as well as Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away, which the Mouse distributed in what was considered a badly mismanaged marketing campaign. Two films' eligibility . Eden and The Wild Thornberrys Movie . is predicated on their opening prior to December 31 in Los Angeles. Under the rules governing the award, a maximum of five films may be nominated; nominees will be announced February 11, along with all the other Oscar noms.

Films eligible for the 2002 Best Animated Feature Film award: Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights; Alibaba & the Forty Thieves; Eden; El Bosque Animado (The Living Forest); Hey Arnold! The Movie; Ice Age; Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie; Lilo & Stitch; Mutant Aliens; The Powerpuff Girls Movie; The Princess and the Pea; Return to Never Land; Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron; Spirited Away; Stuart Little 2; Treasure Planet; The Wild Thornberrys Movie.