Open Thread

Variety reports: Melanie, the singer who performed at Woodstock in 1969 and had major pop hits with “Brand New Key” and “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)” in the early ’70s, died Tuesday at age 76. News of the death came from her publicity firm, Glass Onyon PR. Melanie’s first pop hit was “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain),” a …

Variety reports: Netflix extended its lead as the world’s biggest premium video-streaming platform — pulling in a better-than-expected 13.1 million subscribers for the fourth quarter of 2023, a Q4 record. The company’s Q4 revenue came in slightly above Wall Street forecasts, while net income fell short. As of the end of 2023, Netflix counted 260.28 million total members globally. On …

Variety reports: Will Ferrell touched down at the Sundance Film Festival to world premiere the new documentary “Will & Harper,” which centers on the relationship between the beloved comedian and his best friend Harper Steele as they take a road trip. The two met during their days on “Saturday Night Live,” which Harper wrote for from 1995 to 2008. Harper …

Deadline Hollywood reports: A defense attorney has finally divulged the motive for the 2005 theft of the iconic ruby red slippers from the Judy Garland Museum. Ahead of his Jan. 29 sentencing, thief Terry Jon Martin has admitted stealing the shoes, which — spoiler alert — were a key part of Garland’s story in The Wizard of Oz. Martin gave …

Broadway.com reports: Harmony, the long-incubating musical by Barry Manilow (music) and Bruce Sussman (book and lyrics), will play its final performance at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on February 4. At the time of its closing, the show will have played 24 previews and 96 regular performances. Directed and choreographed by Warren Carlyle, Harmony tells the true story of the Comedian …

Variety reports: Anna Wintour, Condé Nast’s longtime fashion doyenne, is famous for a singular style trademark — her sunglasses. Indeed, Wintour didn’t take off her sunglasses the entire time she met with employees of Pitchfork this week to tell them they were losing their jobs after Condé Nast had decided to subsume the music criticism site into GQ, according to …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Maybe it’s a Super Bowl commercial. Or perhaps a reunion panel. Either way, actors Joshua Malina and Mary McCormack are throwing their social media followers in a tizzy with a series of posts suggesting that a reboot of The West Wing is in the works for the drama’s 25th anniversary this year. The most recent teaser came …

Variety reports: Just hours after it was announced that Pauly Shore would play Richard Simmons in an upcoming biopic, the reclusive fitness guru has spoken out against the film. “Hi Everybody! You may have heard they may be doing a movie about me with Pauly Shore. I have never given my permission for this movie. So don’t believe everything you …

Variety reports: Matthew Perry received an emotional tribute during the 2023 Emmys In Memoriam segment, which also included late stars such as Len Goodman, Andre Braugher, Lance Reddick, Paul Reubens, Barbara Walters, Angela Lansbury, Kirstie Alley and more. Pop singer Charlie Puth and singer-songwriter duo The War and Treaty performed during the segment, first starting with a rendition of Puth’s …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Emmy and Tony winner Nathan Lane has joined Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the second installment of Ryan Murphy‘s true-crime anthology series for Netflix. Lane will play writer and investigative journalist Dominick Dunne who covered the Menendez brothers trial for Vanity Fair. Dunne is also known for his coverage of the O.J. Simpsons trial, which …

Variety reports: Joyce Randolph, who played Trixie Norton on the classic sitcom “The Honeymooners,” and was the last surviving member of the cast, died Saturday in New York City. She was 99. Randolph was in hospice care at the time of her death and died of natural causes, her son, Randy, told TMZ. Randolph’s character was married to Art Carney’s …

Deadline Hollywood reports: There was a winter storm impacting the Midwest yesterday, Winter Storm Gerri, which forced dozens of cinema closures. But that didn’t stop Paramount’s Mean Girls from hitting $11.65M (including previews), continuing to put its 4-day north of $30M at $31.5M. Outside of Barbie post-pandemic, this is a remarkable start for a movie aimed at women, Mean Girls …

Variety reports: “Oppenheimer” is coming soon to NBCUniversal’s Peacock, allowing viewers to experience the three-hour historical epic from the comfort of their own homes. Christopher Nolan’s award-winning blockbuster, starring Cillian Murphy in the title role, will stream on Peacock beginning on Feb. 16, nearly seven months after its July 21, 2023, theatrical release. In addition to “Oppenheimer,” Peacock will also …

Variety reports: More than 15 years after his death, stand-up comedian George Carlin has been brought back to life in an artificial intelligence-generated special called “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead.” The hour-long special, which dropped on Tuesday, comes from Dudesy, a comedy AI that hosts a podcast and YouTube show with “Mad TV” alum Will Sasso and podcaster Chad …

Variety reports: Selena Gomez will play Linda Ronstadt in an upcoming biopic, Variety has confirmed. The pop singer and “Only Murders in the Building” star teased the role Tuesday night by posting a picture of Ronstadt’s 2013 memoir “Simple Dreams” on her Instagram story. The music biopic is currently in pre-production, with producers including Ronstadt’s manager, John Boylan, and James …

Deadline reports: Meghan McCain says her family has not authorized a new, planned musical inspired by – and named after – her late father. But considering that the in-development musical features fictionalized characters based on public figures, John McCain included, it’s unlikely producers need any such authorization. Deadline has reached out to a show spokesperson for comment. This morning, producers …

Deadline reports: Former First Lady Michelle Obama is drawing a lot of media attention for a comment she made on Jay Shetty‘s podcast, in which she says that she is “terrified” over what could happen in the next election. “What keeps me up are the things that I know, the war in …too many regions, what AI is going to …

Variety reports: “The Last of Us,” “The White Lotus,” “The Bear” and “Beef” gained momentum Saturday night as each show picked up big wins at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards. HBO’s “The Last of Us” was by far the dominant favorite with eight wins. FX’s “The Bear,” Netflix’s “Wednesday” and HBO’s “The White Lotus” won four apiece. Netflix’s “Beef” took …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Charlize Theron says that the efforts to curb the rights of drag performers is driven by fear and ignorance. In the opening episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 16, Theron gave a speech to contenders. “Given the climate in our country right now, there’s a lot of energy being put toward your community not existing. I truly …

Variety reports: Nigel Lythgoe is stepping down as a judge on “So You Think You Can Dance,” after two lawsuits accused him of sexual assault. Lythgoe, an executive producer of the show, is accused of groping and forcibly kissing Paula Abdul in an elevator about 20 years ago. In a second lawsuit, two contestants on “All American Girl” also accused …