October 15, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Mireya Acierto/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) — Bachelorette star Ashley Hebert announced Wednesday that she and J.P. Rosenbaum, her husband of nearly eight years, are ending their marriage.

“It is with a heavy heart that I share with you that, after months of separation, Jp and I have amicably decided to go our separate ways,” Hebert penned in a heartbreaking Instagram update. “Our differences have taken a toll on our relationship and after years of attempting to repair the damage, we’ve decided that it is in our family’s best interest to create new and separate lives for our children.”

The 35-year-old TV personality admitted that, while the two “created the most beautiful children and shared memories that will never be forgotten,” their “ultimate focus is to create stable and healthy lives for our children.”

Rosenbaum also took to his personal Instagram to share the news, admitting, “I have written and rewritten this post dozens of times and each time I feel the same level of disbelief and extreme sadness.”

“While I realize that this will come as a complete shock to everyone, I can assure you that this is something that has been developing in our relationship for quite a while,” he maintained. “Please please please know that there is no one to blame, that there’s no event that triggered this decision, that no one is the victim, and that we’ve done absolutely everything we possibly can to try to salvage this marriage.”

Both have since requested fans to respect their privacy during such a difficult time. 

Hebert and Rosenbaum met and became engaged during season seven of The Bachelorette, which aired in 2011.  They tied the knot in a December 2012 television special.

They share two children, a six-year-old son named Fordham and a three-year-old daughter, Essex.

By Megan Stone
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 15, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Andrew Gombert / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) — The 2020 Billboard Music Awards aired on Wednesday night and it was nothing short of a star-studded, performance-packed celebration of music.

For the third consecutive Kelly Clarkson-hosted the awards ceremony, however, this year she didn’t have the pleasure of being in front of a live audience. Nonetheless, with the help of Pentatonix and percussionist Sheila E., she kicked off the show with a powerhouse performance of Whitney Houston’s “Higher Love.”

Others to take the stage included Sia, Kane Brown, Swae Lee, Khalid, Luke Combs, Bad Bunny, Dojo Cat, Alicia Keys, Post Malone and Brandy. 

John Legend performed his ballad “Never Break” and dedicated it to his wife, Chrissy Teigen, who recently suffered a pregnancy loss. “This is for Chrissy,” he said softly before belting out the emotional lyrics. 

Garth Brooks also took the stage after he was presented with this year’s ICON Award by Cher, an icon in her own right and former recipient of the award. The country legend performed a medley of his hits, which included “Friends In Low Places,” “The Thunder Rolls,” and “The River.”

In between the plentiful performances, Post Malone accepted two awards — including Top Artist — but, in total, went home with nine out of the 16 that he was nominated.

Similarly, Billie Eilish accepted two awards, Top Billboard 200 Artist and Top Female Artist.  Both times she delivered short and simple thank you speeches that reminded viewers to wear a mask, wash their hands and stay safe. 

Lizzo also delivered a message to viewers after she snagged the award for Top Song Sales Artist. Not only did she rock a dress with the word “VOTE” written all over it, she shared a powerful and inspirational message urging fans to stay true to who they are and “refuse to be suppressed.”

Demi Lovato also roused voters by delivering the debut performance of her new single “Commander In Chief,” a record which criticizes President Donald Trump.

Aside from the coronavirus-induced changes, the 2020 BBMA’s introduced two new awards at this year’s ceremony — the Billboard Change Maker Award, which was awarded to rapper and activist Killer Mike, and the Chart Achievement Award, which Harry Styles won. 

Closing out the show was En Vogue with their 1992 hit “Free Your Mind”, a song with lyrics that boasts a message of anti-prejudice.

By Danielle Long
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 14, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) — It appears Jussie Smollett’s ongoing legal drama hasn’t prevented the actor from making some major career moves.

According to Deadline, Smollett is getting ready for his feature directorial debut: B-Boy Blues, an adaptation of James Earl Hardy’s classic 1994 novel. The film, which Smollett will also co-produce under his recently formed SuperMassive Movies banner, is set to start production on October 17 in New York.

Like the book, the film will center on a complicated romantic relationship between two Black men: Mitchell, a 27-year-old journalist, and Raheim, a 21-year-old bike messenger, or B-boy, who meet at a Greenwich Village bar in 1993.

Smollett is still facing legal charges in connection with an alleged attack he reported in Chicago in early 2019. Although Cook County prosecutors initially dropped charges that Smollett had lied to the police about the attack — which they claim he staged himself — a special prosecutor brought six new charges in February. He has since denied those charges and pleaded not guilty.

By Candice Williams
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 14, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Showtime(LOS ANGELES) — Dexter is gearing up for a killer comeback.

The Showtime serial killer drama is returning for a 10-episode limited series with star Michael C. Hall back in the title role.

The new project was announced Wednesday by Showtime’s Presidents of Entertainment Gary Levine and Jana Winograde. It’s set to begin production in early 2021, with a tentative premiere date in the fall of 2021.

“Dexter is such a special series, both for its millions of fans and for Showtime, as this breakthrough show helped put our network on the map many years ago,” Levine says in a statement. “We would only revisit this unique character if we could find a creative take that was truly worthy of the brilliant, original series.”

He adds, “Well, I am happy to report that [showrunner] Clyde Phillips and Michael C. Hall have found it, and we can’t wait to shoot it and show it to the world!”

Dexter, about a forensics expert living a secret double life as a serial killer, originally aired for eight seasons from 2006 to 2013.

By Andrea Tuccillo
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 14, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic(TEXAS) — James Van Der Beek and his family have relocated from California to Texas following a particularly difficult year.

The former Dancing with the Stars competitor revealed last month that he and his wife, Kimberly, had decided to move their five children out of Los Angeles, but he didn’t say where they were headed.

In a candid Instagram post Tuesday, Van Der Beek explained that his brood has settled in their new home state and are “overflowing with profound gratitude.”

“In the last ten months, we’ve had two late-term pregnancy losses, each of which put @vanderkimberly in the hospital, we spent Christmas break thinking she had a tumor (the doctor was wrong, thank god), I was prematurely booted off a reality dancing show I was favored to win in front of the whole world, and my mom died. And a shut-down,” James wrote. “All of that led to some drastic changes in our lives, and dreams, and priorities… and landed us here.”

Van Der Beek, 43, revealed in June that his wife suffered a miscarriage at 17 weeks gestation for the second time in about seven months.

The Van Der Beeks, who have been married for a decade, are parents to Olivia, 10, Joshua, 8, Annabel, 6, Emilia, 4, and Gwendolyn, 2.

In a recent episode of The Make Down podcast, Kimberly Van Der Beek shared that she had mixed emotions about leaving L.A.

“I think we’re in a time right now where people are wanting to ground themselves a little bit more into nature, and L.A. has been a magical place for many years for me. So much life has been lived here,” she said, “But, you know, I gotta get out of the concrete jungle for a little bit.”

By Good Morning America
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.