August 19, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

ABC/Eric McCandless(NEW YORK) — The American Idol judges’ panel is staying the same.

Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan are all returning for a fourth season of the reality competition show on ABC.  Ryan Seacrest will also return as host.

In a statement, Karey Burke, the president of ABC Entertainment, said, referring to last season’s remote episodes, “American Idol has always been able to bring people together, entertain and inspire — and I am so proud of how this show continued to deliver joy and laughter into people’s homes during a time when we needed it the most.”

She added, “There is no one who we feel more confident about leading us into a new season of high notes than Luke, Katy, Lionel and the incomparable Ryan Seacrest.”

Showrunner Trish Kinane noted, “Katy, Lionel and Luke are fun, astute and really know how to spot talent. Their chemistry is undeniable, and we are delighted that they, along with host Ryan Seacrest, are returning to find the next superstar and take American Idol to new heights next season.”

American Idol executive producer Eli Holzman said, “At times like these, it is more important than ever to give families wholesome entertainment, packed full of hope, talent and inspiration — where dreams come true. And that is what American Idol is all about.”

Virtual auditions for the new season are underway via Idol Across America, a remote campaign that allows contestants from all 50 states to participate.

There’s no definitive word yet on when the new season will get underway.

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

August 19, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Apple TV+(LOS ANGELES) — After Friends ended in 2004, Jennifer Aniston waited 15 years before accepting her next major television role, a choice she says was deliberate.  When the Apple TV+ series The Morning Show was first pitched to her, she jumped at the opportunity.

Speaking to LA Times, the 51-year-old actress says playing Alex Levy on the show offered her an honest reflection of her own experiences when she skyrocketed to fame in the 90s.

“That show was 20 years of therapy wrapped into 10 episodes,” Aniston dished. “There were times when I would read a scene and feel like a whole manhole cover was taken off my back.”

As for how the show served as a literal foil to her experience with fame, the Friends actress explained, “[It was] interesting for me to look at how I always have tried to normalize being fine and ‘everything’s great, you know, this is all normal,’ and then there are moments when you have your private breakdown or your ‘Calgon, take me away’ moments” — referring to a bath and beauty product that ran a campaign in the 70s and 80s targeting stressed housewives who really needed a break.

There was a scene in the second episode of The Morning Show where Alex, who is about to walk a red carpet, has a breakdown in the limo after her show is rocked when her male co-anchor is fired for sexual harassment.

“There have been moments — not to that level of hysteria — but moments of ‘I don’t want to f****** go here,’ ‘I don’t want to walk out onto the carpet,’ ‘I don’t want to be seen,’ ‘I don’t want to be looked at and everyone’s going to be talking about me and judging me,'” said Aniston, saying that scene was incredibly satisfying.

August 18, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Photograph by Elizabeth Morris/HBO(NEW YORK) — Jonathan Majors has been making waves as Atticus Freeman in the new HBO series Lovecraft Country. 

The series, which follows Freeman’s journey to find his missing father, comes just two months after Majors starred in Spike Lee’s critically acclaimed Vietnam War film Da 5 Bloods. Majors tells ABC Audio that there’s a clear connection between both projects.

“I shot Lovecraft Country, the pilot, and then I left and shot… Da 5 Bloods,” he says. “And when I was working on Lovecraft Country… my biggest scene partner was Courtney B. Vance.

From there, Majors says he had the pleasure of working with another group of skilled Black actors. 

“And then from Courtney B. Vance, I jump into bed with Delroy Lindo, Isiah Whitlock, Clarke Peters and I’m directed by Spike Lee,” he says. 

In addition to being surrounded by talent he admired, Majors notes that both projects also center on Black war veterans, who were hoping to find something that went missing. In their search, the vets go on an epic journey that leads to an unpredictable ending. 

“Lovecraft Country tells the story of the Korean War veteran. And his journey moves through the Jim Crow South and what that is like,” Major explains.

“His experience is kind of surreal,” he continues. “His experience is similar to the experience that the Bloods have, but he’s in the different war, it’s a different time. But it’s all coming through… the same body.”

Looking at his latest project, Majors hopes that his new series will continue to “carry the mantle” of important narratives that need to be shared.

“There’s a story to be told… and we’re trying to tell it,” he adds.

Lovecraft Country, also starring Jurnee Smollett and Michael K. Williams, airs Sunday nights at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.

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

August 18, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Melinda Sue Gordon; ©2020 Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved.(NEW YORK) — The long road to U.S. theaters for Christopher Nolan’s COVID-19-delayed Tenet will finally end when it debuts on August 31 — but there’s a “but.”

The time-bending thriller, starring John David Washington and Robert Pattinson, will open in theaters on that date, Warner Bros. just announced, but the catch is not every state is allowing its movie theaters to open. 

So far, major movie markets like New York, California, and New Jersey are keeping their theaters shuttered to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, even as major chains like AMC are starting to open venues elsewhere. 

Explaining his decision, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo noted, “a movie theater is less essential and poses a high risk. It is congregant. It is one ventilation system. You are seated there for a long period of time. Even if you are at 50% capacity with one or two seats between the two of you, this is a risk situation and movie theaters are not that high on the list of essentials.”

In a statement, Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros. president of domestic distribution, said the studio “is proud to support our partners in exhibition as they reopen their doors. And there could be no better film to welcome audiences back to a true big-screen experience than Tenet.”

Tenet will open in late August in many overseas markets, and August 27 in Canada.

By Stephen Iervolino
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

August 18, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Terence Patrick/CBS ©2019 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved(LONDON) — Production on Camila Cabello’s live-action musical adaptation of Cinderella, which was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic back in March, will join the growing list of major studio films safely returning to production following the shutdown, according to Deadline.

Among those cast members returning for physical production in London are Cabello as Cinderella, Minnie Driver as Queen Beatrice, Nicholas Galitzine as Prince Robert, Idina Menzel as the Stepmother, and Pierce Brosnan.

Of course, the usual safety protocols will be in place, including “widespread and extensive testing” which began during pre-production and will continue during filming, according to the entertainment website. 

Safety training seminars, social distancing, contact tracing, will also take place, along with thorough daily disinfection, daily testing and adherence to local guidance.  Actors are staying separately in apartments, and on set, everyone gets individually wrapped and pre-boxed food, rather than a buffet.

Fortunately for the production, most of what’s left to shoot are exterior scenes in several towns and castles. The large crowd scenes had been shot before COVID-19, adds Deadline.

The retelling of the classic fairy tale is based on an original idea from James Corden, who’s also producing and starring in the film, along with Billy Porter and Missy Elliot.

Cinderella was originally set for a February 5, 2021 release.

By George Costantino
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.