Open Thread

Gothamist reports: Spike Lee’s new four-part “documentary essay,” called NYC EPICENTERS 9/11 ➔ 2021½, brings viewers through the past twenty years using a New York City lens. Set to hit HBO on August 22nd, the docuseries begins in 2020, recounting the pandemic, the demonstrations in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, and “the civil unrest and police brutality that …

Variety reports: Despite concerns the delta variant would keep moviegoers at home, Ryan Reynolds’ sci-fi action comedy “Free Guy” had a better-than-expected start at the domestic box office. The movie, from Disney and 20th Century Studios, collected $26 million from 4,165 North American theaters. Given its production budget above $100 million, those ticket sales wouldn’t be much to celebrate in …

Variety reports: Broadway’s revival of “West Side Story” will not be returning to the Great White Way when theaters reopen later in the year. “It is with great regret that we are announcing today that the 2020 Broadway revival of ‘West Side Story’ will not reopen,” producer Kate Horton said in a statement. Broadway has been dark since March 2020, …

NPR reports: All the rumors are true: Lizzo has returned with a bop. “Rumors” works a familiar formula into a groovy, deep-bass synth and triumphant horns as Lizzo clears haters with a smile: “If you thought that I was ratchet with my ass hangin’ out / Just wait until the summer when they let me out the house, bitch.” Fresh …

Variety reports: Britney Spears’ father, Jamie Spears, has agreed to step down from his daughter’s conservatorship. The turn of events is a massive win for the international pop star, who has been under a conservatorship for 13 years, ever since Spears placed his famous daughter under the court-ordered arrangement in 2008 when she suffered a very public breakdown. But, in …

Variety reports: Tituss Burgess is stacking the aces and loading the dice to get to Easy Street as Rooster in NBC’s production of “Annie Live!” In “Annie Live!,” Burgess will portray the sleazy Rooster, younger brother of main villain Miss Hannigan (played by Taraji P. Henson), in this live holiday production of the classic musical. Rooster escapes from jail and …

Billboard Magazine reports: The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights” adds another honor to its already historic Billboard Hot 100 run, spending a record-tying 87th week on the chart (dated Aug. 14). It equals the run of Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive,” which logged its time on the tally in 2012-14. “Blinding Lights,” released on XO/Republic Records, bowed on the Hot 100 dated Dec. 14, …

New from our pal Matt Baume: In 1977, the popular cop show Starsky and Hutch tackled a murder mystery centered around a Los Angeles gay bar, complete with a depiction of queer life that’s surprisingly nuanced for the late 70s. Then, less than a decade later, an episode of Murder She Wrote featured a similar storyline, but this time the …

Variety reports: Dennis “Dee Tee” Thomas, a co-founder of soul-funk outfit Kool & the Gang, died on Saturday, his reps confirmed to Variety. He was 70. According to a press release, Thomas died “peacefully in his sleep” in New Jersey. Thomas had just performed with Kool & the Gang at their Los Angeles show at the Hollywood Bowl, which kicked …

Deadline Hollywood reports: As recent polls show Gavin Newsom at significant risk of being ousted in the Sept. 14 recall election, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Casey Wasserman and Andrew Hauptman are among the names chairing a fundraiser next week for the California governor. The Aug. 12 virtual event also is chaired by Van Fletcher and Skip Paul and Stephanie and Mark Robinson. …

The Week reports: A report from Variety this week revealed that Richards, the executive producer of Jeopardy!, is in “advanced negotiations” to succeed Alex Trebek as host. The idea of ending the lengthy job search for Trebek’s replacement by giving the role to the show’s own producer already drew some pushback on social media, especially from fans who wanted the …

Deadline reports: Deadline has confirmed that employees at Amazon Studios are now expected to return to office on Jan. 3, 2022. That’s in line with the rest of the Amazon’s corporate employees in the U.S. and some foreign countries. Originally, Amazon employees were looking to return the week of Sept. 7 after working remotely from home. Amazon won’t require workers …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Jane Fonda explored running for California’s governor in this year’s recall election, according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle, but ultimately decided to support Gavin Newsom, who is trying to retain his seat in the September 14 election. According to the report in the Chronicle, there were some discussions about putting up a progressive candidate …

Deadline reports: A new statewide poll of 1,000 registered voters shows a virtual dead heat between Californians who want to see Governor Gavin Newsom recalled and those who don’t. The Inside California Politics/Emerson College poll, conducted July 30-August 1, 2021, found 46% of respondents in favor of recalling Newsom and 48% of voters against his recall. Those numbers are within …

Variety reports: Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine has been sold for north of $900 million to a media company backed by the private-equity firm Blackstone Group Inc. Witherspoon and Sarah Harden, Hello Sunshine’s CEO, will join the board of the new company and will continue to oversee day-to-day operations. They will also remain significant equity holders. “Today marks a tremendous moment …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Influencer and actor Hayes Grier was arrested in Charlotte, North Carolina on Friday, on charges of assault causing serious bodily injury, common law robbery and felony conspiracy, according to police records. The Dancing with the Stars alum was booked into Mecklenburg County Jail yesterday at 4:17 PM EST. The 21-year-old was released at midnight after posting bond …

Billboard Magazine reports: Aretha Franklin’s legacy is getting the proper Respect it deserves in a new clip from the forthcoming biopic about the late superstar’s life. The minute-long clip features Jennifer Hudson portraying the Queen of Soul as she belts out her world-famous signature song “Respect.” Following a couple of teasers and trailers, the new video is the first full-length …

Variety reports: Adam Driver and Lady Gaga shine as Mr. and Mrs. Gucci in the trailer for “House of Gucci,” hitting theaters on Nov. 24. The film, directed by Ridley Scott, details the assassination of Maurizio Gucci (Driver) and the downfall of the Gucci family fashion dynasty. Gaga plays socialite Patrizia Reggiani, Maurizio’s ex-wife who was tried and convicted of …

Deadline Hollywood reports: The Walt Disney Co. has fired back at Scarlet Johansson’s lawsuit over the release of Black Widow, in a biting statement in which it said that the litigation showed a “callous disregard” to the Covid-19 pandemic and even revealed that she has so far received $20 million from the project. In her lawsuit, filed on Thursday in …

Deadline reports: ZZ Top bassist Dusty Hill is being remembered by friends, musical colleagues, and even the governor of Texas paying tribute. Hill’s death was announced today by bandmates Billy Gibbons and Frank Beard. The bassist was 72. “Rock and roll has been stopped in its tracks,” tweeted Martha Quinn, one of MTV’s original veejays whose tenure at the channel …