January 14, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Steve Iervolino/ABC News(LOS ANGELES) — The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) announced Thursday that its Board of Governors voted to present the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to actor, filmmaker, writer, producer, and philanthropist Tyler Perry in recognition of his charity efforts. 

The Board of Governors also announced that the Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF) will also be so honored this year.

“There has been such widespread generosity in our industry that limiting the Hersholt Humanitarian Award to one recipient, this year in particular, was impossible. So, we are breaking with tradition and giving two awards to honor that spirit,” said Academy President David Rubin in a statement. 

He declared, “Tyler’s cultural influence extends far beyond his work as a filmmaker,” adding, “He has quietly and steadily focused on humanitarian and social justice causes from the beginning of his career, caring for people who are most often ignored.”

Perry’s 330-acre studio in Atlanta employs hundreds and was one of the first production houses to get back to work last July, after adopting rigorous COVID-19 safety protocols.

Regarding the MPTF, Rubin declared it “has gone above and beyond to help our community. The sheer number of individuals and families — from every corner of our industry’s workforce — aided during the pandemic and over the last 100 years is nothing short of extraordinary.”

The Oscar statuettes will be presented at the 93rd Academy Awards telecast, which airs live on ABC and broadcast outlets worldwide on Sunday, April 25, 2021.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

January 14, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Saban Films(LOS ANGELES) — In his new film Redemption Day, former C.S.I. star Gary Dourdan plays a U.S. Special Forces vet suffering from PTSD, who gets back into the action after his wife is kidnapped by terrorists. 

Dourdan’s super-fit in the film and while he was already familiar with firearms, he tells ABC Audio how he prepared to accurately play the character before the cameras rolled in Morocco.

“What I do is I go to a…Thai boxing camp in Thailand, and I take as much time as I possibly can to just get my fight training…top-notch, and also get my my cardio there,” the laid-back actor explains.

“But while I was there, I also got to get gun training because…they have strict gun laws in Morocco and you just can’t be working around firearms unless you’re shooting that day,” he adds. “So I made sure I got a bunch of training in Thailand.”

He laughs, “They’re a bit more lax with the heavy artillery in Thailand.”

Once Redemption Day started shooting in Morocco, Gary explained he brushed up on-set with the firearms master.

“But everything happened so fast,” Dourdan explains, “So before you know it, you got stuff exploding around you and you’re doing flips and whatever else is going on and you’re diving away from the fragments that are being blown at you.”  

Redemption Day, which also stars Ernie Hudson, Andy Garcia, Tenet‘s Martin Donovan, and Marvels’ The Inhumans vet Serinda Swan, is now in theaters and streaming.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

January 14, 2021 • No Comments • Entertainment News

ABC/Randy Holmes(LOS ANGELES) — Jeff Bridges shared some good news about his battle with lymphoma.

The Big Lebowski actor, who announced his cancer diagnosis in October, revealed his tumor has “drastically shrunk.”

In a post on his website, the 71-year-old Oscar winner said he learned the positive news after he went in for a CT scan on January 6 to evaluate how his “new protocol” is affecting him.

“Turns out, it’s working beautifully,” he wrote. “The thing has drastically shrunk.”

Bridges also wrote about receiving the news that his tumor shrunk amid the riots at the U.S. Capitol.

“I come home elated with the news. I turn on the TV to find out what’s going in the world, and….well…I don’t have to tell you what’s goin’ on,” he wrote. “To see our country attacking itself broke my heart. A question rose in me — what’s an individual to do in a situation like this? My mentor, Rozzell Sykes, came to mind. His manta was ‘Be Love.'”

Bridges has kept his fan base updated throughout his cancer fight. In December, he shared a photo revealing he’d shaved his head and was “feeling good.”

Lymphoma is cancer of the body’s lymphatic system, which helps fight germs, according to the Mayo Clinic. Treatment for the disease varies but may involve chemotherapy, immunotherapy medications, radiation therapy, a bone marrow transplant or some combination thereof.

When he publicly announced his diagnosis last year, Bridges shared, “Although it is a serious disease, I feel fortunate that I have a great team of doctors and the prognosis is good.”

By Hayley Fitzpatrick
Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.