Starting his acting career in the late 70s, Kevin Bacon had his big break in the 1984 musical drama Footloose. The film follows a teenager Ren McCormack, who relocates from Chicago to a small town grappling with a ban on rock music and dancing and attempts to overturn the prohibition.
Footloose | Image via IMDb
Despite the film’s immense success and recognition as one of Bacon’s finest performances, the actor disclosed that he nearly missed out on the role due to concerns about his appearance not meeting the standards.
Kevin Bacon Revealed Why He Almost Lost Footloose
In an appearance on The Howard Stern Show, Hollywood star Kevin Bacon revealed that he almost lost his role in the musical drama Footloose. The actor shared that although he was not sure if it would make he big in the industry, he was determined to pursue an acting career.
Kevin Bacon as...
Footloose | Image via IMDb
Despite the film’s immense success and recognition as one of Bacon’s finest performances, the actor disclosed that he nearly missed out on the role due to concerns about his appearance not meeting the standards.
Kevin Bacon Revealed Why He Almost Lost Footloose
In an appearance on The Howard Stern Show, Hollywood star Kevin Bacon revealed that he almost lost his role in the musical drama Footloose. The actor shared that although he was not sure if it would make he big in the industry, he was determined to pursue an acting career.
Kevin Bacon as...
- 4/21/2024
- by Laxmi Rajput
- FandomWire
Kevin Bacon, dancing away, in 4K? Footloose is coming to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray in the UK, it’s been confirmed.
Paramount Pictures is wasting little time sorting new catalogue releases for the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray format in 2024, with the news that the 1980s hit Footloose is heading to the format.
Already confirmed in America, a UK release has now been earmarked for February 12th 2024, and the film has gone up for order now. You can find it here.
Initially, it’s only available as a Steelbook release, although it’s expected that a regular 4K disc package isn’t far away. It’s the original film, incidentally, that’s getting the release, and not the remake.
Update: The regular, cheaper release is now confirmed for 13th May 2024. You can find it here.
Kevin Bacon, Lori Singer, Dianne Wiest and John Lithgow thus take the lead roles here, with Herbert Ross behind the camera.
Paramount Pictures is wasting little time sorting new catalogue releases for the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray format in 2024, with the news that the 1980s hit Footloose is heading to the format.
Already confirmed in America, a UK release has now been earmarked for February 12th 2024, and the film has gone up for order now. You can find it here.
Initially, it’s only available as a Steelbook release, although it’s expected that a regular 4K disc package isn’t far away. It’s the original film, incidentally, that’s getting the release, and not the remake.
Update: The regular, cheaper release is now confirmed for 13th May 2024. You can find it here.
Kevin Bacon, Lori Singer, Dianne Wiest and John Lithgow thus take the lead roles here, with Herbert Ross behind the camera.
- 4/17/2024
- by Simon Brew
- Film Stories
Jennifer Hudson, who guest starred on NBC’s Smash, is now joining the producing team of its upcoming stage musical adaptation.
Hudson, a Grammy, Oscar, Tony, and Emmy winner, announced her participation today on her daytime talk show The Jennifer Hudson Show. (Watch the announcement below.)
Smash is expected to arrive on Broadway in spring 2025. Executive producers included Steven Spielberg, Neil Meron and Craig Zadan, Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey, David Marshall Grant, and Joshua Safran.
Hudson’s participation reunites her with Smash composers Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, and producers Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron, the team behind NBC’s 2016 Hairspray Live!, the musical special in which she played the role of Motormouth Maybelle.
The Broadway production will be directed by five-time Tony-winning director Susan Stroman, with a score by the Tony- and Grammy- winning duo Shaiman and Wittman, who were most recently on Broadway with Some Like It Hot.
Hudson, a Grammy, Oscar, Tony, and Emmy winner, announced her participation today on her daytime talk show The Jennifer Hudson Show. (Watch the announcement below.)
Smash is expected to arrive on Broadway in spring 2025. Executive producers included Steven Spielberg, Neil Meron and Craig Zadan, Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey, David Marshall Grant, and Joshua Safran.
Hudson’s participation reunites her with Smash composers Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, and producers Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron, the team behind NBC’s 2016 Hairspray Live!, the musical special in which she played the role of Motormouth Maybelle.
The Broadway production will be directed by five-time Tony-winning director Susan Stroman, with a score by the Tony- and Grammy- winning duo Shaiman and Wittman, who were most recently on Broadway with Some Like It Hot.
- 3/21/2024
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Zac Efron became a household name after starring in Disney’s High School Musical. And although he’s proven to be a capable actor since then with plenty of range, there was one audition that wounded his confidence.
Zac Efron was asked if he ever acted before after this disastrous audition Zac Efron | Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images
Efron may have achieved success at a very early age, but his road there wasn’t the smoothest. Before High School Musical, he was slowly building his acting credits in shows like Firefly and ER. However, there was one role earlier on that not only eluded him, but devastated him at the time. When he was 15, Efron auditioned for a live action Peter Pan show.
“I showed up and it was on tape in this tiny room. On stage you speak to the back of the room and you project and Peter Pan...
Zac Efron was asked if he ever acted before after this disastrous audition Zac Efron | Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images
Efron may have achieved success at a very early age, but his road there wasn’t the smoothest. Before High School Musical, he was slowly building his acting credits in shows like Firefly and ER. However, there was one role earlier on that not only eluded him, but devastated him at the time. When he was 15, Efron auditioned for a live action Peter Pan show.
“I showed up and it was on tape in this tiny room. On stage you speak to the back of the room and you project and Peter Pan...
- 10/28/2023
- by Antonio Stallings
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Outfest on Thursday announced Academy Award winner Shirley MacLaine and Transparent breakout Trace Lysette as the recipients of its 2023 Legacy Awards, which will be presented at NeueHouse in Hollywood on Sunday, October 22nd.
MacLaine will be bestowed with the James Schamus Ally Award, recognizing an ally’s efforts to foster LGBTQ+ moving images and to promote the communities’ stories to a broader audience. Lysette, meanwhile, is set for the Trailblazer Award, recognizing an artist who has contributed to the history of the community, shedding light on the core of the LGBTQ+ identity and experience.
The pair joins a list of Outfest Legacy Award recipients that includes Janelle Monáe, Billy Porter, Tom Hanks, Judith Light, Rita Moreno, Lee Daniels, Hilary Swank, Sean Hayes, Laverne Cox, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Bruce Cohen, Lisa Cholodenko, Craig Zadan & Neil Meron, Tanya Saracho, Victoria Alonso, and Rain Valdez, among others.
Said Outfest’s Executive Director Damien S.
MacLaine will be bestowed with the James Schamus Ally Award, recognizing an ally’s efforts to foster LGBTQ+ moving images and to promote the communities’ stories to a broader audience. Lysette, meanwhile, is set for the Trailblazer Award, recognizing an artist who has contributed to the history of the community, shedding light on the core of the LGBTQ+ identity and experience.
The pair joins a list of Outfest Legacy Award recipients that includes Janelle Monáe, Billy Porter, Tom Hanks, Judith Light, Rita Moreno, Lee Daniels, Hilary Swank, Sean Hayes, Laverne Cox, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Bruce Cohen, Lisa Cholodenko, Craig Zadan & Neil Meron, Tanya Saracho, Victoria Alonso, and Rain Valdez, among others.
Said Outfest’s Executive Director Damien S.
- 9/21/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
While making Do Revenge for Netflix, Camila Mendes felt like she was working on a theatrical, not a made-for-tv movie.
Related: ‘Hocus Pocus 2’, ‘Prey’, ‘Fire Island’ & ‘Weird: The Al Yankovic Story’ Rally Straight-To-Streaming Movies At Emmy Noms
“There was more of a priority in the art of it, you know?” says Mendes (Riverdale) of the campy film that follows a pair of high schoolers who go after each other’s bullies. Directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson and co-starring Stranger Things‘ Maya Hawke and Game of Thrones‘ Sophie Turner, the clever film penned by Robinson and Celeste Ballard had a “bigger budget than a lot of high school movies do.”
“There was more priority being placed in putting together these beautiful cinematic shots and making the costumes look really vibrant and character specific,” recalls Mendes. “I do think this movie is something that could have been in a theater, and...
Related: ‘Hocus Pocus 2’, ‘Prey’, ‘Fire Island’ & ‘Weird: The Al Yankovic Story’ Rally Straight-To-Streaming Movies At Emmy Noms
“There was more of a priority in the art of it, you know?” says Mendes (Riverdale) of the campy film that follows a pair of high schoolers who go after each other’s bullies. Directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson and co-starring Stranger Things‘ Maya Hawke and Game of Thrones‘ Sophie Turner, the clever film penned by Robinson and Celeste Ballard had a “bigger budget than a lot of high school movies do.”
“There was more priority being placed in putting together these beautiful cinematic shots and making the costumes look really vibrant and character specific,” recalls Mendes. “I do think this movie is something that could have been in a theater, and...
- 6/15/2023
- by Lynette Rice
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Neil Meron, a force behind bring live events to television including such musicals as Jesus Christ Superstar, Annie and The Sound of Music, has joined Andrew Lloyd Webber’s London-based Really Useful Group as a consultant, Lloyd Webber announced today.
An acclaimed film, television and theater producer, Meron will work closely with Rug’s Licensing and Production team to identify and develop new opportunities for Lloyd Webber’s IP across North America, including mining talent and building new relationships with film companies, networks, streamers, dance companies and new media.
Meron also is expected to work closely with Lloyd Webber’s new joint venture with acclaimed British theater producer Michael Harrison to support new opportunities to explore in North America.
Said Lloyd Webber, “Neil and I go back a very, very long way, so it feels quite fitting that he take on this advisory role at Rug at this point in my career,...
An acclaimed film, television and theater producer, Meron will work closely with Rug’s Licensing and Production team to identify and develop new opportunities for Lloyd Webber’s IP across North America, including mining talent and building new relationships with film companies, networks, streamers, dance companies and new media.
Meron also is expected to work closely with Lloyd Webber’s new joint venture with acclaimed British theater producer Michael Harrison to support new opportunities to explore in North America.
Said Lloyd Webber, “Neil and I go back a very, very long way, so it feels quite fitting that he take on this advisory role at Rug at this point in my career,...
- 5/22/2023
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
The glass slippers still fit Brandy. The singer’s long-awaited return as Cinderella in a new Disney television movie has been given an official first look, courtesy of footage from the set of “Descendants: Rise of Red.” Brandy is reprising the role of Cinderella 26 years after becoming the princess opposite Whitney Houston’s Fairy Godmother in the 1997 television movie “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella.”
The set footage also confirmed that “Descendants: Rise of Red” will feature the return of Paolo Montalban, who played Brandy’s Prince Charming in the 1997 movie, which was groundbreaking for its multicultural casting. Charming is now king, and Cinderella is queen.
Variety confirmed last November that Brandy boarded the “Descendants” movie as Cinderella. At the time, the movie musical had the working title of “The Pocketwatch.” The film centers on the relationship between Red (Kylie Cantrall), the rebellious teenage daughter of the Queen of Hearts, and Chloe...
The set footage also confirmed that “Descendants: Rise of Red” will feature the return of Paolo Montalban, who played Brandy’s Prince Charming in the 1997 movie, which was groundbreaking for its multicultural casting. Charming is now king, and Cinderella is queen.
Variety confirmed last November that Brandy boarded the “Descendants” movie as Cinderella. At the time, the movie musical had the working title of “The Pocketwatch.” The film centers on the relationship between Red (Kylie Cantrall), the rebellious teenage daughter of the Queen of Hearts, and Chloe...
- 3/22/2023
- by Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
It’s time for “Smash” to be your star. Ten years after the cult-favorite musical drama wrapped its two seasons on NBC, a “Smash” musical is headed to Broadway for the 2024–2025 season.
Director Susan Stroman is attached to helm the production with lead producers Robert Greenblatt, Neil Meron and Steven Spielberg.
Bringing back much of the series’ original creatives, Marc Shaiman is handling the music; lyrics will be by Shaiman and Scott Wittman; the musical’s book will be written by Rick Elice and Bob Martin; and the show will feature choreography by Joshua Bergasse.
“Smash is near and dear to my heart, and it was always my hope that a musical inspired by the show would eventually come to the stage,” Spielberg, whose original idea led to the NBC series, said in a statement. “We now have an incredible creative team, and I’m looking forward to completing the...
Director Susan Stroman is attached to helm the production with lead producers Robert Greenblatt, Neil Meron and Steven Spielberg.
Bringing back much of the series’ original creatives, Marc Shaiman is handling the music; lyrics will be by Shaiman and Scott Wittman; the musical’s book will be written by Rick Elice and Bob Martin; and the show will feature choreography by Joshua Bergasse.
“Smash is near and dear to my heart, and it was always my hope that a musical inspired by the show would eventually come to the stage,” Spielberg, whose original idea led to the NBC series, said in a statement. “We now have an incredible creative team, and I’m looking forward to completing the...
- 3/22/2023
- by Benjamin Lindsay
- The Wrap
Smash is finally heading to Broadway.
In an announcement long awaited by fans of the 2012 NBC series, a stage musical adaptation is planned to arrive on Broadway during the 2024-25 season, with a lead producing team of Robert Greenblatt, Neil Meron and Steven Spielberg. A top flight creative team is attached, including director Susan Stroman, composers Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, book writers Rick Elice and Bob Martin, and the TV series’ choreographer Joshua Bergasse.
Spielberg, whose original idea led to the NBC series, said in a statement, “Smash is near and dear to my heart, and it was always my hope that a musical inspired by the show would eventually come to the stage. We now have an incredible creative team, and I’m looking forward to completing the Smash journey which began with my producing partners over ten years ago.”
In addition to new music, the stage version...
In an announcement long awaited by fans of the 2012 NBC series, a stage musical adaptation is planned to arrive on Broadway during the 2024-25 season, with a lead producing team of Robert Greenblatt, Neil Meron and Steven Spielberg. A top flight creative team is attached, including director Susan Stroman, composers Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, book writers Rick Elice and Bob Martin, and the TV series’ choreographer Joshua Bergasse.
Spielberg, whose original idea led to the NBC series, said in a statement, “Smash is near and dear to my heart, and it was always my hope that a musical inspired by the show would eventually come to the stage. We now have an incredible creative team, and I’m looking forward to completing the Smash journey which began with my producing partners over ten years ago.”
In addition to new music, the stage version...
- 3/22/2023
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Danette Herman was one of the key staff members of the Academy Awards ceremonies from the 1970s into the 2010s, beginning as a production assistant and rising through the ranks to become the show’s executive in charge of talent and coordinating producer. One of the few women to serve in key positions at the Oscars, she was with the show during the years of its highest ratings and largest cultural impact.
As the Academy prepares for the 95th Oscars ceremony, Herman asked TheWrap if she could share some memories of past shows, from an encounter with Katharine Hepburn in 1974 to a pair of anniversary shows in which she assembled historic groups of past winners. —Steve Pond
Congratulations to the Academy on 95 years of the Academy Awards. Almost 40 of those years are my history, also.
It began in April 1968 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. The 40th Academy Awards were hosted by Bob Hope,...
As the Academy prepares for the 95th Oscars ceremony, Herman asked TheWrap if she could share some memories of past shows, from an encounter with Katharine Hepburn in 1974 to a pair of anniversary shows in which she assembled historic groups of past winners. —Steve Pond
Congratulations to the Academy on 95 years of the Academy Awards. Almost 40 of those years are my history, also.
It began in April 1968 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. The 40th Academy Awards were hosted by Bob Hope,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Danette Herman
- The Wrap
Well, the mostly predictable Oscar nominations arrived Tuesday morning with no disasters or truly egregious missteps. Even the snubs were fairly routine: no female directors, though women won the directing award in the past two years; James Cameron and Joseph Kosinski, both with Best Picture nominees, were left out too.
Such normalcy is too bad. And I mean that in the nicest possible way.
Related Story Take Two On Oscar Nominations: Hammond And McCarthy On What Academy Got Right – And Wrong Related Story 'Till' Director Chinonye Chukwu Calls Out "Unabashed Misogyny Towards Black Women" After Oscar Snub Related Story 'Rrr' Composer-Songwriter M.M. Keeravani On His Historic Oscars Song Nomination For 'Naatu Naatu': "This Song Was My Infant Son. Now He's Driving Cars, He's Dancing, And He Has A Girlfriend"
It’s a weird but undeniable fact of Hollywood life that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
Such normalcy is too bad. And I mean that in the nicest possible way.
Related Story Take Two On Oscar Nominations: Hammond And McCarthy On What Academy Got Right – And Wrong Related Story 'Till' Director Chinonye Chukwu Calls Out "Unabashed Misogyny Towards Black Women" After Oscar Snub Related Story 'Rrr' Composer-Songwriter M.M. Keeravani On His Historic Oscars Song Nomination For 'Naatu Naatu': "This Song Was My Infant Son. Now He's Driving Cars, He's Dancing, And He Has A Girlfriend"
It’s a weird but undeniable fact of Hollywood life that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
- 1/26/2023
- by Michael Cieply
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Avail Management is adding to its ranks.
Avail founder Jessica Kelley has tapped manager Tasha Brown to join the comedy-focused boutique firm where she’ll work alongside Rachel Gallagher, who joined in 2020. Brown’s representation resume includes stints at Nicole Garcia Management and APA, the latter of which she joined to make the switch from development and producing to work as a comedy/literary agent.
Prior to APA, Brown had worked at BBC Worldwide, as head of comedy development at Chernin Entertainment, as head of development at Chelsea Handler’s Borderline Amazing Prods., and as senior vp of television at Craig Zadan and Neil Meron’s Storyline Entertainment.
In other Avail Management news, the trio of Kelley, Brown and Gallagher will officially join forces with Silverlake’s The Lyric Hyperion to work alongside new operator Sean Casey and help spearhead the venue’s programming.
Avail Management is adding to its ranks.
Avail founder Jessica Kelley has tapped manager Tasha Brown to join the comedy-focused boutique firm where she’ll work alongside Rachel Gallagher, who joined in 2020. Brown’s representation resume includes stints at Nicole Garcia Management and APA, the latter of which she joined to make the switch from development and producing to work as a comedy/literary agent.
Prior to APA, Brown had worked at BBC Worldwide, as head of comedy development at Chernin Entertainment, as head of development at Chelsea Handler’s Borderline Amazing Prods., and as senior vp of television at Craig Zadan and Neil Meron’s Storyline Entertainment.
In other Avail Management news, the trio of Kelley, Brown and Gallagher will officially join forces with Silverlake’s The Lyric Hyperion to work alongside new operator Sean Casey and help spearhead the venue’s programming.
- 12/1/2022
- by Chris Gardner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Michael Butler, the Tony-winning producer who brought Hair to Broadway in 1968 and later produced the film adaptation and many other productions of the show, died Monday in Santa Barbara. He was 95.
His attorney confirmed the news on behalf of Butler’s family but give not provide details.
Related Story Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery Related Story 'The Music Man' Extends Broadway Run By Two Weeks Related Story Jimmy Fallon Confirms "I'm In!" To Reprise 'Almost Famous' Film Role For Broadway Musical In Drop-By Performances – Update
As a producer, social figure and international bon vivant, Michael Butler was an international celebrity in the 1960s and ’70s. As his 1968 production of Hair became an international hit, with 12 productions around the world, his friendships grew among exotic global figures such as the Shah of Iran and the Mahajarah of Jaipur. As a host at his lavish polo grounds in the UK,...
His attorney confirmed the news on behalf of Butler’s family but give not provide details.
Related Story Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery Related Story 'The Music Man' Extends Broadway Run By Two Weeks Related Story Jimmy Fallon Confirms "I'm In!" To Reprise 'Almost Famous' Film Role For Broadway Musical In Drop-By Performances – Update
As a producer, social figure and international bon vivant, Michael Butler was an international celebrity in the 1960s and ’70s. As his 1968 production of Hair became an international hit, with 12 productions around the world, his friendships grew among exotic global figures such as the Shah of Iran and the Mahajarah of Jaipur. As a host at his lavish polo grounds in the UK,...
- 11/8/2022
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Woman In Film, Los Angeles said Thursday that that She Said producer Dede Gardner, star Carey Mulligan and New York Times reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey will be honored next month at the 2022 Wif Honors. They join a recipient list that already includes the bestowing the group’s Crystal Awards to Abbott Elementary creator Quinta Brunson, The Woman King director Gina Prince-Bythewood, and Don’t Worry Darling writer and director Katie Silberman and Olivia Wilde, respectively.
The list for the ceremony, set for October 27 at the Beverly Hilton, also includes Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award recipient Michaela Coel along with Lili Reinhart who will receive the Wif Max Mara Face of the Future Award.
2022-23 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For The Oscars, Golden Globes, Grammys, Guilds & More
Da’Vine Joy Randolph has been set as host of this year’s gala, where newly minted Emmy winner Sheryl Lee Ralph, Woman King star...
The list for the ceremony, set for October 27 at the Beverly Hilton, also includes Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award recipient Michaela Coel along with Lili Reinhart who will receive the Wif Max Mara Face of the Future Award.
2022-23 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For The Oscars, Golden Globes, Grammys, Guilds & More
Da’Vine Joy Randolph has been set as host of this year’s gala, where newly minted Emmy winner Sheryl Lee Ralph, Woman King star...
- 9/29/2022
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Janelle Monáe has a date with Outfest on Oct. 22.
That’s when the actress, artist, author and singer will be feted with a Trailblazer Award at the org’s Outfest Legacy Awards presented by IMDb. Held at Paramount Studios, the event will also shine a light on Glamazon, Amazon’s diversity and inclusion network for Lgbtqia+ employees and allies, by delivering a Guardian Award to recognize the company’s commitment to the community.
Furthermore, Kerri Stoughton-Jackson will receive a Jonathan Howard Legacy Award for her efforts as Outfest’s deputy director and for serving the org for nearly 20 years. She began her Outfest run as a volunteer before going on to serve in various positions until she was hired full-time as the first year-round director of operations in January 2005.
Monáe, who next stars in Netflix’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, joins...
That’s when the actress, artist, author and singer will be feted with a Trailblazer Award at the org’s Outfest Legacy Awards presented by IMDb. Held at Paramount Studios, the event will also shine a light on Glamazon, Amazon’s diversity and inclusion network for Lgbtqia+ employees and allies, by delivering a Guardian Award to recognize the company’s commitment to the community.
Furthermore, Kerri Stoughton-Jackson will receive a Jonathan Howard Legacy Award for her efforts as Outfest’s deputy director and for serving the org for nearly 20 years. She began her Outfest run as a volunteer before going on to serve in various positions until she was hired full-time as the first year-round director of operations in January 2005.
Monáe, who next stars in Netflix’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, joins...
- 9/29/2022
- by Chris Gardner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today not only sent out its latest edition of their digital newsletter, A. Frame, to its entire 10,000-plus membership, they also alerted press and made it available to them as well just an hour later. The reason for all this? An “Exclusive” interview with new CEO Bill Kramer who last month replaced previous CEO Dawn Hudson.
Ramping up the public face of AMPAS efforts to be more transparent not just in the media, but also to their members, is a priority and this A. Frame interview certainly marks the emergency of a new era for the organization which will also include upcoming press opportunities directly with Kramer, but also an announced Academy membership meeting at the new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in September, the first of multi meetings of this type to be held over the course of a year. And...
Ramping up the public face of AMPAS efforts to be more transparent not just in the media, but also to their members, is a priority and this A. Frame interview certainly marks the emergency of a new era for the organization which will also include upcoming press opportunities directly with Kramer, but also an announced Academy membership meeting at the new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in September, the first of multi meetings of this type to be held over the course of a year. And...
- 8/17/2022
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
The new Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences CEO Bill Kramer said in an interview Tuesday that he has big ideas for the Oscars, one of which is having a producer who can handle the show across “multiple years.”
“I think bringing on producers for multiple years is advisable and we are working on that, as well,” Kramer told the Academy’s A.Frame digital magazine on Tuesday. “The 95th gives us a great opportunity to knit together the incredible legacy of the Oscars, the diverse and powerful work we do across the Academy, and our vision for the future.”
This would be a shift for the Academy. For years, the Academy has typically cycled through various guest producers of the Oscars show, including the likes of Will Packer (with Shayla Cowan) earlier this year and Steven Soderbergh (with Jesse Collins and Stacey Sher) the year before that during...
“I think bringing on producers for multiple years is advisable and we are working on that, as well,” Kramer told the Academy’s A.Frame digital magazine on Tuesday. “The 95th gives us a great opportunity to knit together the incredible legacy of the Oscars, the diverse and powerful work we do across the Academy, and our vision for the future.”
This would be a shift for the Academy. For years, the Academy has typically cycled through various guest producers of the Oscars show, including the likes of Will Packer (with Shayla Cowan) earlier this year and Steven Soderbergh (with Jesse Collins and Stacey Sher) the year before that during...
- 8/16/2022
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
A 25th anniversary celebration of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella will air with a news special cast reunion and presentation of the original film as part of Disney Princess Week.
The package, Cinderella: The Reunion, A Special Edition of 20/20, airs on ABC-tv on Tuesday, Aug. 23 stating at 8 Pm Et/Pt and will stream the next day on Hulu.
The reunion will feature Brandy, Whoopi Goldberg, Paolo Montalban, Victor Garber, Bernadette Peters, Jason Alexander, and Veanne Cox. Following the news special, The Wonderful World of Disney will aira presentation of the original film from 9-11 Pm Et/Pt. (9:00-11:00 p.m). It will also be available to stream on Disney+.
The Disney live-action film marked a groundbreaking moment in television history, introducing America’s first Black Cinderella (Brandy) and Fairy Godmother (Whitney Houston). The ABC News Studios reunion special explores how the made-for-television musical expanded society’s view of the term “princess,...
The package, Cinderella: The Reunion, A Special Edition of 20/20, airs on ABC-tv on Tuesday, Aug. 23 stating at 8 Pm Et/Pt and will stream the next day on Hulu.
The reunion will feature Brandy, Whoopi Goldberg, Paolo Montalban, Victor Garber, Bernadette Peters, Jason Alexander, and Veanne Cox. Following the news special, The Wonderful World of Disney will aira presentation of the original film from 9-11 Pm Et/Pt. (9:00-11:00 p.m). It will also be available to stream on Disney+.
The Disney live-action film marked a groundbreaking moment in television history, introducing America’s first Black Cinderella (Brandy) and Fairy Godmother (Whitney Houston). The ABC News Studios reunion special explores how the made-for-television musical expanded society’s view of the term “princess,...
- 8/12/2022
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
In another 48 hours, we’ll know if it worked—the Oscar show’s Audience Replacement Therapy.
Almost inevitably, total viewers for Sunday night’s Academy Awards telecast on ABC will rise from last year’s pathetic 10.4 million. The bar is very low, and other recent awards shows—the Emmys, SAG, Critics Choice—have all caught a bounce. For the Oscars to miss the general uptick would be disastrous indeed.
But the more interesting issues will involve the identity of that presumably expanded audience. Because, in the run-up to Sunday night’s show, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences apparently has been working not so much to get its lost viewers back, as to replace them.
Oscar producer Will Packer, talking with IndieWire, has pointed toward the Super Bowl, describing an event strategy calculated to entice viewers with songs, laughs and entertainment value, no matter who is playing in the game.
Almost inevitably, total viewers for Sunday night’s Academy Awards telecast on ABC will rise from last year’s pathetic 10.4 million. The bar is very low, and other recent awards shows—the Emmys, SAG, Critics Choice—have all caught a bounce. For the Oscars to miss the general uptick would be disastrous indeed.
But the more interesting issues will involve the identity of that presumably expanded audience. Because, in the run-up to Sunday night’s show, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences apparently has been working not so much to get its lost viewers back, as to replace them.
Oscar producer Will Packer, talking with IndieWire, has pointed toward the Super Bowl, describing an event strategy calculated to entice viewers with songs, laughs and entertainment value, no matter who is playing in the game.
- 3/26/2022
- by Michael Cieply
- Deadline Film + TV
NBC’s holiday-season live-musical franchise is so proudly square that it’s surprising it took this long for them to get to “Annie.”
The recent tradition, launched by the producers Neil Meron and the late Craig Zadan, of ceding a night of network primetime to a scrappy, let’s-put-on-a-show broadcast seems to have found its perfect match in “Annie.” The family-oriented musical has never had the remotest claim on coolness. And, coming as it did in a flickering moment in which a production of this sort felt possible but still novel, “Annie Live!,” starring Celina Smith as its optimistic orphan, made its goofy eagerness to be liked, and its occasional raggedness, into assets.
The show’s staging allowed songcraft and showmanship to be the stars; numbers played out against minimalist backdrops, and the live audience was largely heard in eruptive applause but seen only in shadow. The scant amount of...
The recent tradition, launched by the producers Neil Meron and the late Craig Zadan, of ceding a night of network primetime to a scrappy, let’s-put-on-a-show broadcast seems to have found its perfect match in “Annie.” The family-oriented musical has never had the remotest claim on coolness. And, coming as it did in a flickering moment in which a production of this sort felt possible but still novel, “Annie Live!,” starring Celina Smith as its optimistic orphan, made its goofy eagerness to be liked, and its occasional raggedness, into assets.
The show’s staging allowed songcraft and showmanship to be the stars; numbers played out against minimalist backdrops, and the live audience was largely heard in eruptive applause but seen only in shadow. The scant amount of...
- 12/3/2021
- by Daniel D'Addario
- Variety Film + TV
For audience members checking in at the final dress rehearsal of NBC’s “Annie Live!” on Dec. 1, there was an additional stop along the usual security gauntlet. Between the airport-style metal detectors and the Yondr phone sequestration, everyone was required to show ID and proof of vaccination and was given a color-coordinated mask to wear throughout the show.
Producing a live musical for television is always a massively intricate endeavor, and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic added yet another layer of complexity. Every time the army of black-clad crew members swarmed the stage during the rehearsal’s commercial breaks, their masks were a constant reminder of the safety procedures to which the entire cast and crew had adhered for the many weeks that the live event has been in production.
“We’re observing all these protocols and being very, very careful,” said Robert Greenblatt, the former NBC exec who is producing “Annie Live!” “In rehearsals,...
Producing a live musical for television is always a massively intricate endeavor, and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic added yet another layer of complexity. Every time the army of black-clad crew members swarmed the stage during the rehearsal’s commercial breaks, their masks were a constant reminder of the safety procedures to which the entire cast and crew had adhered for the many weeks that the live event has been in production.
“We’re observing all these protocols and being very, very careful,” said Robert Greenblatt, the former NBC exec who is producing “Annie Live!” “In rehearsals,...
- 12/2/2021
- by Gordon Cox
- Variety Film + TV
At the 2021 Outfest Legacy Awards, Marvel Studios’ Victoria Alonso will be honored with the Visionary Award, with additional awards going to Neon, Jonathan Howard, Robin de Jesús, Rain Valdez, Alan Koenigsberg and Marissa Román Griffith.
At the gala, taking place at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on November 13th, Alonso is being recognized for her contributions to LGBTQ+ representation and media visibility While serving as Marvel Studios’ President of Physical and Post Production, Visual Effects, and Animation Production, the industry vet has exec produced many of its films and TV series, including Avengers: Endgame, Black Panther, Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Widow, Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings, WandaVision, Loki, and more, positively impacting the LGBTQ+ community on a global level.
Neon will receive Outfest’s Guardian Award, which recognizes a company’s commitment and legacy to the Lgbtqia+community, with Howard receiving the Outfest Legacy Award,...
At the gala, taking place at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on November 13th, Alonso is being recognized for her contributions to LGBTQ+ representation and media visibility While serving as Marvel Studios’ President of Physical and Post Production, Visual Effects, and Animation Production, the industry vet has exec produced many of its films and TV series, including Avengers: Endgame, Black Panther, Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Widow, Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings, WandaVision, Loki, and more, positively impacting the LGBTQ+ community on a global level.
Neon will receive Outfest’s Guardian Award, which recognizes a company’s commitment and legacy to the Lgbtqia+community, with Howard receiving the Outfest Legacy Award,...
- 10/27/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
NBC will broadcast the holiday musical event Annie Live!, with Robert Greenblatt as executive producer along with Neil Meron, who has served as executive producer on such NBC’s live musicals The Sound of Music Live! and Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert.
Annie Live! will be directed by Lear deBessonet, Artistic Director for New York’s revival series Encores and creator of the Public Works program at the Public Theatre, which produces community-engaged productions with as many as 200 performers.
Sergio Trujillo will choreograph the production, Paul Tazewell will design the costumes and Jason Sherwood the scenery. Tazewell is a veteran of two NBC live musicals, The Wiz Live! and Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert. He recently designed costumes for film Steven Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story. Sherwood was production designer for Rent: Live and the 2020 Oscars.
Greenblatt brought live musicals back...
Annie Live! will be directed by Lear deBessonet, Artistic Director for New York’s revival series Encores and creator of the Public Works program at the Public Theatre, which produces community-engaged productions with as many as 200 performers.
Sergio Trujillo will choreograph the production, Paul Tazewell will design the costumes and Jason Sherwood the scenery. Tazewell is a veteran of two NBC live musicals, The Wiz Live! and Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert. He recently designed costumes for film Steven Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story. Sherwood was production designer for Rent: Live and the 2020 Oscars.
Greenblatt brought live musicals back...
- 5/12/2021
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
The sun will come out this holiday season on NBC. Annie Live!, produced by Bob Greenblatt and Neil Meron, will air later this year, the network announced on Wednesday.
“As we look to drive big live audiences for NBC, we could think of no better way than to bring back the network’s holiday musical tradition,” says Susan Rovner, Chairman of Entertainment Content for NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. “And there are no better partners to do this with than the incredible Neil Meron and Bob Greenblatt, who oversaw every live musical during the years he ran NBC. Under their leadership,...
“As we look to drive big live audiences for NBC, we could think of no better way than to bring back the network’s holiday musical tradition,” says Susan Rovner, Chairman of Entertainment Content for NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. “And there are no better partners to do this with than the incredible Neil Meron and Bob Greenblatt, who oversaw every live musical during the years he ran NBC. Under their leadership,...
- 5/12/2021
- by Andy Swift
- TVLine.com
NBC is getting a New Deal for Christmas, as it gets back into the live TV musical business with “Annie Live!” Set to air during the holidays, “Annie” also represents a homecoming of sorts for producers Bob Greenblatt and Neil Meron.
Greenblatt, of course, is the former NBC Entertainment chairman who found success in bringing live musicals to the network, starting with “The Sound of Music Live!” in 2013. Meron and the late Craig Zadan were the producers behind that special, which was a tremendous hit — averaging 21.8 million viewers in live+3 ratings. It spawned follow-up events including “Peter Pan Live!” in 2014, “The Wiz Live!” in 2015, “Hairspray Live!” in 2016 and “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert” on Easter in 2018.
“Annie Live!” landed at NBC after being shopped to all four major broadcast networks. “NBC is where we started these live musicals and I still have so much affection for it,” Greenblatt said.
Greenblatt, of course, is the former NBC Entertainment chairman who found success in bringing live musicals to the network, starting with “The Sound of Music Live!” in 2013. Meron and the late Craig Zadan were the producers behind that special, which was a tremendous hit — averaging 21.8 million viewers in live+3 ratings. It spawned follow-up events including “Peter Pan Live!” in 2014, “The Wiz Live!” in 2015, “Hairspray Live!” in 2016 and “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert” on Easter in 2018.
“Annie Live!” landed at NBC after being shopped to all four major broadcast networks. “NBC is where we started these live musicals and I still have so much affection for it,” Greenblatt said.
- 5/12/2021
- by Michael Schneider
- Variety Film + TV
Last week, Disney Plus announced that 1997’s “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella,” starring Brandy and Whitney Houston, would begin streaming Feb. 12.
The movie’s streaming debut has been long awaited by fans who urged Disney Plus to rerelease the musical, which was originally televised as a “Wonderful World of Disney” special on ABC.
“I feel like it’s divine timing,” Brandy tells Variety, saying she learned that the film would come to streaming just over a week ago. “This is the month of love; this is a month of Black history. This is just the perfect time for this product to be shared with everyone.”
Brandy made the public announcement on ABC’s “The View,” where she reunited with “Cinderella” cast mate Whoopi Goldberg, who plays Queen Constantina in the film. Houston famously played the Fairy Godmother.
“I don’t think it’ll hit all the way home until it’s actually out there,...
The movie’s streaming debut has been long awaited by fans who urged Disney Plus to rerelease the musical, which was originally televised as a “Wonderful World of Disney” special on ABC.
“I feel like it’s divine timing,” Brandy tells Variety, saying she learned that the film would come to streaming just over a week ago. “This is the month of love; this is a month of Black history. This is just the perfect time for this product to be shared with everyone.”
Brandy made the public announcement on ABC’s “The View,” where she reunited with “Cinderella” cast mate Whoopi Goldberg, who plays Queen Constantina in the film. Houston famously played the Fairy Godmother.
“I don’t think it’ll hit all the way home until it’s actually out there,...
- 2/10/2021
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
Rodgers & Hammerstein’s star-studded Cinderella starring Brandy in the title role will be available to stream on Disney+ starting at midnight on February 12.
The 1997 reimagining of the beloved fairytale touts a loaded cast with Whoopi Goldberg, Victor Garber, Bernadette Peters and the late Whitney Houston as Fairy Godmother.
Directed by Robert Iscove, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella featured a number of memorable original tunes from the renown songwriting duo including “Impossible,” “Ten Minutes Ago” and “A Lovely Night.” In addition to receiving praise for its diverse casting and musical numbers, Cinderella received seven Emmy nominations in 1998 and took home the outstanding art direction for a variety or music program prize.
Garber, Natalie Desselle Reid, Paolo Montalban, Jason Alexander and Veanne Cox also star in the fairytale flick. Rodgers & Hammerstien’s Cinderella was executive produced by Houston, Debra Martin Chase, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron. Chris Montan produced with Robyn Crawford as associate producer.
The 1997 reimagining of the beloved fairytale touts a loaded cast with Whoopi Goldberg, Victor Garber, Bernadette Peters and the late Whitney Houston as Fairy Godmother.
Directed by Robert Iscove, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella featured a number of memorable original tunes from the renown songwriting duo including “Impossible,” “Ten Minutes Ago” and “A Lovely Night.” In addition to receiving praise for its diverse casting and musical numbers, Cinderella received seven Emmy nominations in 1998 and took home the outstanding art direction for a variety or music program prize.
Garber, Natalie Desselle Reid, Paolo Montalban, Jason Alexander and Veanne Cox also star in the fairytale flick. Rodgers & Hammerstien’s Cinderella was executive produced by Houston, Debra Martin Chase, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron. Chris Montan produced with Robyn Crawford as associate producer.
- 2/4/2021
- by Alexandra Del Rosario
- Deadline Film + TV
No longer impossible: “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” starring Brandy Norwood will finally be available on Disney+ beginning Feb. 12.
Along with Brandy as the title princess herself, the beloved “Wonderful World of Disney” movie stars Whitney Houston as her Fairy Godmother, along with Whoopi Goldberg, Victor Garber, Natalie Desselle Reid, Bernadette Peters, Paolo Montalban, Jason Alexander and Veanne Cox.
The-made-for-tv version of “Cinderella,” which premiered Nov. 2, 1997 on ABC to 60 million viewers, follows the classic tale of Cinderella, who gets some unexpected help from her Fairy Godmother after her cruel stepmother prevents her from attending the Royal Ball.
“Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” was nominated for seven Emmys and well-received by critics and audiences alike for the diverse cast in the musical fairy tale, including Brandy as Cinderella, Filipino-American actor Montalban as Prince Charming, and Goldberg as his mother.
The movie is also remembered fondly by fans for its songbook, of course, including...
Along with Brandy as the title princess herself, the beloved “Wonderful World of Disney” movie stars Whitney Houston as her Fairy Godmother, along with Whoopi Goldberg, Victor Garber, Natalie Desselle Reid, Bernadette Peters, Paolo Montalban, Jason Alexander and Veanne Cox.
The-made-for-tv version of “Cinderella,” which premiered Nov. 2, 1997 on ABC to 60 million viewers, follows the classic tale of Cinderella, who gets some unexpected help from her Fairy Godmother after her cruel stepmother prevents her from attending the Royal Ball.
“Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” was nominated for seven Emmys and well-received by critics and audiences alike for the diverse cast in the musical fairy tale, including Brandy as Cinderella, Filipino-American actor Montalban as Prince Charming, and Goldberg as his mother.
The movie is also remembered fondly by fans for its songbook, of course, including...
- 2/4/2021
- by Jennifer Maas
- The Wrap
Over the years, fans of singer and actor Brandy have learned to “never say never” or believe that something’s “impossible” — and their patience and perseverance has been rewarded. “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella,” the 1997 TV movie that stars Brandy and Whitney Houston, is officially coming to Disney Plus.
Disney announced Thursday that the beloved musical movie will launch on the streaming service “at the stroke of midnight” on Feb. 12.
The movie’s streaming debut has been long-awaited by fans, and Brandy herself, who urged the streamer to pick up the rights to the project last summer, while promoting her latest album, B7. “Disney can come on up and scoop up Cinderella. That would be awesome,” she said. Well, consider your wish granted.
Thursday morning, Brandy reunited with Goldberg, appearing on ABC’s “The View” to announce the news:
“It’s pretty remarkable that people have been begging for ‘Cinderella’ to be re-released for almost 24 years.
Disney announced Thursday that the beloved musical movie will launch on the streaming service “at the stroke of midnight” on Feb. 12.
The movie’s streaming debut has been long-awaited by fans, and Brandy herself, who urged the streamer to pick up the rights to the project last summer, while promoting her latest album, B7. “Disney can come on up and scoop up Cinderella. That would be awesome,” she said. Well, consider your wish granted.
Thursday morning, Brandy reunited with Goldberg, appearing on ABC’s “The View” to announce the news:
“It’s pretty remarkable that people have been begging for ‘Cinderella’ to be re-released for almost 24 years.
- 2/4/2021
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
Amid the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests, actor, singer and activist Amber Riley learned to fully embrace the power of her voice. In the last year, Riley has released a self-titled EP, launched #unMUTEny as a movement to “end Black silence in the entertainment industry,” remixed “O Christmas Tree” into the carol “Oh Shopping Spree” in partnership with Straight Talk Wireless and landed a starring role (and a co-executive producer title) on the NBC musical comedy “Dream.” Asked what she will take away from 2020, Riley tells Variety: “I’m stronger than I thought I was. I’m more resilient than I thought that I was. I’m more creative than I thought that I was.”
• #unMUTEny
After speaking out about the trials she’s faced as a Black woman in Hollywood, Riley launched #unMUTEny, encouraging other Black entertainers to share their experiences, in hopes of making change for...
• #unMUTEny
After speaking out about the trials she’s faced as a Black woman in Hollywood, Riley launched #unMUTEny, encouraging other Black entertainers to share their experiences, in hopes of making change for...
- 12/23/2020
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Glee alumna Amber Riley is returning to series television as the star of another music-driven broadcast comedy series. Riley is set to headline and co-executive produce Dream, a single-camera comedy in development at NBC from writer-producer Lisa Muse Bryant (Black-ish), producer Neil Meron and Universal TV where Meron is based.
This marks a reunion for Riley and Meron. The actress and Grammy-nominated singer starred in The Wiz Live!, Meron and his late producing partner Craig Zadan’s highly-rated live musical on NBC.
Written by Bryant, in Dream, when her son graduates from college, former teen mom Dream Morgan (Riley) turns her life upside down to pursue her dream of becoming a singer.
Bryant serves as showrunner and executive produces with Meron and his producing partner Mark Nicholson. Riley co-executive produces.
Since the end of Glee, Riley also appeared in the Tyler Perry feature Nobody’s Fool opposite Tiffany Haddish...
This marks a reunion for Riley and Meron. The actress and Grammy-nominated singer starred in The Wiz Live!, Meron and his late producing partner Craig Zadan’s highly-rated live musical on NBC.
Written by Bryant, in Dream, when her son graduates from college, former teen mom Dream Morgan (Riley) turns her life upside down to pursue her dream of becoming a singer.
Bryant serves as showrunner and executive produces with Meron and his producing partner Mark Nicholson. Riley co-executive produces.
Since the end of Glee, Riley also appeared in the Tyler Perry feature Nobody’s Fool opposite Tiffany Haddish...
- 11/24/2020
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
When James Brolin was first approached by producers Neil Meron and Craig Zadan to play Ronald Reagan in their 2003 miniseries “The Reagans,” he said he wasn’t interested.
“Neil and Craig are old friends and I immediately said to them, ‘I guess everybody else turned it down,” Brolin recalls. “But they said, ‘No, we think you’re the guy.’ I wouldn’t even read it. I thought me playing Reagan was absurd.”
Zadan, who passed away in 2018, and Meron eventually convinced Brolin to read the first 20 pages of the script. “It just tickled me,” Brolin says. “I went, ‘Wow, this isn’t just saying some lines. There’s something more to this.’”
There certainly was. What Brolin nor anyone involved with the project could have predicted at the time was the political storm that “The Reagans” would create. The CBS series was still filming Reagan loyalists and GOP pundits attacked...
“Neil and Craig are old friends and I immediately said to them, ‘I guess everybody else turned it down,” Brolin recalls. “But they said, ‘No, we think you’re the guy.’ I wouldn’t even read it. I thought me playing Reagan was absurd.”
Zadan, who passed away in 2018, and Meron eventually convinced Brolin to read the first 20 pages of the script. “It just tickled me,” Brolin says. “I went, ‘Wow, this isn’t just saying some lines. There’s something more to this.’”
There certainly was. What Brolin nor anyone involved with the project could have predicted at the time was the political storm that “The Reagans” would create. The CBS series was still filming Reagan loyalists and GOP pundits attacked...
- 11/24/2020
- by Marc Malkin
- Variety Film + TV
Hulu’s Head of Originals Beatrice Springborn is leaving the streamer after six years to become President of UCP.
Springborn, who has shepherded series including The Handmaid’s Tale and Normal People to screen, takes over from Dawn Olmstead, who is leaving to join Anonymous Content as CEO.
The move means that Universal Studio Group, now run by Pearlena Igbokwe, has named two of the three executives to run its divisions. Last week, it was revealed that Erin Underhill was promoted to President of Universal Television, the division previously run by Igbokwe. It is still searching for a boss for NBCUniversal International Studios following the departure of Jeff Wachtel.
Springborn, a sought-after hire, will be responsible for UCP’s slate, which includes series such as The Umbrella Academy, Dr. Death, Joe Exotic and The Girl from Plainville and has been tasked with focusing on growing the studio’s production output.
Her...
Springborn, who has shepherded series including The Handmaid’s Tale and Normal People to screen, takes over from Dawn Olmstead, who is leaving to join Anonymous Content as CEO.
The move means that Universal Studio Group, now run by Pearlena Igbokwe, has named two of the three executives to run its divisions. Last week, it was revealed that Erin Underhill was promoted to President of Universal Television, the division previously run by Igbokwe. It is still searching for a boss for NBCUniversal International Studios following the departure of Jeff Wachtel.
Springborn, a sought-after hire, will be responsible for UCP’s slate, which includes series such as The Umbrella Academy, Dr. Death, Joe Exotic and The Girl from Plainville and has been tasked with focusing on growing the studio’s production output.
Her...
- 11/16/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
John Legend is a lover man, a family man, a soul man, an Egot, a film and television producer, and — in a role that certainly has not escaped the attention of the president of the United States, or most anyone else — a political animal. That he does it all with conscience and consciousness is what makes Legend a potent force, whether he’s discussing public policy, dissing Donald Trump or crooning the songs of hope, heritage and devotion recently found on his seventh studio album, “Bigger Love.”
Notwithstanding his visible and talked-about role as a social justice gadfly and policy wonk, Legend, 41, remains a deeply passionate musician who in 2020 has made colorful R&b that’s optimistic and bright, even in the face of a global pandemic and radical social upheaval. Talk to the singer-songwriter about the Juneteenth-released “Bigger Love,” and he explains that the joy, grief and romance that...
Notwithstanding his visible and talked-about role as a social justice gadfly and policy wonk, Legend, 41, remains a deeply passionate musician who in 2020 has made colorful R&b that’s optimistic and bright, even in the face of a global pandemic and radical social upheaval. Talk to the singer-songwriter about the Juneteenth-released “Bigger Love,” and he explains that the joy, grief and romance that...
- 8/11/2020
- by A.D. Amorosi
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: “We had no idea, of course, that we would soon be on the brink of an historic moment in race relations in this country. So this racial equity fund is now suddenly more enormous in its significance than we imagined. But then again, Craig always did seem to have his finger on the pulse of what was coming, didn’t he?”
Those are the words of Elwood Hopkins, husband of the late Emmy-winning producer Craig Zadan and member of the board of trustees of the Educational Theatre Foundation. He was describing the timing, now more prescient than ever, of Etf’s Craig Zadan Memorial Fund For Racial Equity In School Theatre, which began with $250,000 in seed money that was raised from a November 2018 memorial concert honoring Zadan shortly after his unexpected death. It is now a permanent endowment that will bestow five grants a year for school theatre programs...
Those are the words of Elwood Hopkins, husband of the late Emmy-winning producer Craig Zadan and member of the board of trustees of the Educational Theatre Foundation. He was describing the timing, now more prescient than ever, of Etf’s Craig Zadan Memorial Fund For Racial Equity In School Theatre, which began with $250,000 in seed money that was raised from a November 2018 memorial concert honoring Zadan shortly after his unexpected death. It is now a permanent endowment that will bestow five grants a year for school theatre programs...
- 7/17/2020
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
James Marsden owes Julia Roberts a special thank you. During his virtual visit to The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Thursday, the Dead To Me star revealed that the Pretty Woman star helped him land his role of Corny Collins in the 2007 remake of Hairspray, telling host Ellen DeGeneres that Roberts put in a good word for him. "That role came about—I was sitting down with Adam Shankman, the director, and [producers] Craig Zadan and Neil Meron at the time in an empty restaurant off-Broadway in New York City and we were just talking about, you know, the potential of me playing Corny Collins," he began. "And in the middle of the interview—it was an interview because I was trying to get the...
- 5/28/2020
- E! Online
“Bombshell” may make it to Broadway after all. A stage adaptation of the defunct NBC series “Smash” about the making of a Broadway musical is in the works, with Steven Spielberg, Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron as lead producers.
The Tony- and Grammy-winning duo of Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, who wrote over two dozen songs for the TV show will provide the score. The musical’s book will be co-written by Tony winner Bob Martin and Rick Elice. Emmy-winning choreographer Joshua Bergasse will handle the dancing in the show.
Many of the songs that Shaiman and Wittman wrote for “Smash,” including the Emmy- nominated “Let Me Be Your Star,” will be used in the stage musical. While the story will generally follow the rollercoaster ride of mounting “Bombshell” (the Broadway musical-within-the-musical about the life of Marilyn Monroe), the stage musical will depart liberally from the series. The characters Julia...
The Tony- and Grammy-winning duo of Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, who wrote over two dozen songs for the TV show will provide the score. The musical’s book will be co-written by Tony winner Bob Martin and Rick Elice. Emmy-winning choreographer Joshua Bergasse will handle the dancing in the show.
Many of the songs that Shaiman and Wittman wrote for “Smash,” including the Emmy- nominated “Let Me Be Your Star,” will be used in the stage musical. While the story will generally follow the rollercoaster ride of mounting “Bombshell” (the Broadway musical-within-the-musical about the life of Marilyn Monroe), the stage musical will depart liberally from the series. The characters Julia...
- 5/21/2020
- by Thom Geier
- The Wrap
A musical stage adaptation of NBC’s Smash is in development for Broadway, with Steven Spielberg, Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron on board as lead producers. Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, who wrote more than 20 songs for the 2012-13 TV series, will write the musical’s score, with a book co-written by Bob Martin and Rick Elice.
Though no production dates were announced, development on the musical inspired by the series is under way, producers said today, offering a bit of hope to a Broadway industry shut down by the coronavirus at least through Labor Day, and likely longer.
Also returning for the Smash project is the series’ Emmy Award-winning choreographer Joshua Bergasse.
“I am personally thrilled to be a part of this musical and its road to Broadway,...
Though no production dates were announced, development on the musical inspired by the series is under way, producers said today, offering a bit of hope to a Broadway industry shut down by the coronavirus at least through Labor Day, and likely longer.
Also returning for the Smash project is the series’ Emmy Award-winning choreographer Joshua Bergasse.
“I am personally thrilled to be a part of this musical and its road to Broadway,...
- 5/21/2020
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Some Like It Hot, a planned stage musical based on the great 1959 Billy Wilder comedy, has set its sights on a Fall 2021 Broadway opening, producers announced today.
The staging would mark the musical’s world premiere: A previously announced pre-Broadway engagement in Chicago has been canceled.
With a book by Matthew Lopez (The Inheritance), music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray), and direction/choreography by Casey Nicholaw (The Prom), Some Like It Hot has been in the development since at least 2018, with a 2020 debut initially planned.
Additional details for the 2021 staging – cast, venue, production dates – will be announced at a later date by producers the Shubert Organization and Neil Meron. Co-producers are Roy Furman, Robert Greenblatt and the Nederlander Organization.
Just the week prior to Broadway’s March 12 shutdown, producers announced plans for a now-scotched March 2-April 4 2021 pre-Broadway limited engagement at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre.
The staging would mark the musical’s world premiere: A previously announced pre-Broadway engagement in Chicago has been canceled.
With a book by Matthew Lopez (The Inheritance), music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray), and direction/choreography by Casey Nicholaw (The Prom), Some Like It Hot has been in the development since at least 2018, with a 2020 debut initially planned.
Additional details for the 2021 staging – cast, venue, production dates – will be announced at a later date by producers the Shubert Organization and Neil Meron. Co-producers are Roy Furman, Robert Greenblatt and the Nederlander Organization.
Just the week prior to Broadway’s March 12 shutdown, producers announced plans for a now-scotched March 2-April 4 2021 pre-Broadway limited engagement at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre.
- 5/15/2020
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
The Marc Shaiman-Scott Wittman stage musical adaptation of Some Like It Hot will make its pre-Broadway debut next March in Chicago, with, as previously announced, Tony Award-winner Casey Nicholaw directing and a book by The Inheritance playwright Matthew Lopez.
The limited engagement dates – March 2-April 4, 2021 – of the production were reported today by the Chicago Tribune. The pre-Broadway run is set for Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre.
The adaptation of the 1959 Billy Wilder film from Shaiman and Wittman, who won a Tony for Hairspray, was first announced by the Shubert Organization and producers Neil Meron and Craig Zadan in May 2018. Zadan died in August of that year.
The classic film comedy starred Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon as jazz musicians who disguise themselves as members of a female band after witnessing a mob murder in Prohibition-era Chicago. In the film, Marilyn Monroe played the band’s singer Sugar.
Casting...
The limited engagement dates – March 2-April 4, 2021 – of the production were reported today by the Chicago Tribune. The pre-Broadway run is set for Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theatre.
The adaptation of the 1959 Billy Wilder film from Shaiman and Wittman, who won a Tony for Hairspray, was first announced by the Shubert Organization and producers Neil Meron and Craig Zadan in May 2018. Zadan died in August of that year.
The classic film comedy starred Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon as jazz musicians who disguise themselves as members of a female band after witnessing a mob murder in Prohibition-era Chicago. In the film, Marilyn Monroe played the band’s singer Sugar.
Casting...
- 3/9/2020
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (Lgbtq) media advocacy organization, today announced that it will honor award-winning screenwriter, producer, and director Ryan Murphy with the Vito Russo Award at the 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards at the Hilton Midtown in New York on Thursday, March 19.
The 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards honor media for fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of Lgbtq people and issues. The 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards are presented by Delta, Gilead, Hyundai, and Ketel One Family-Made Vodka. GLAAD previously announced over 175 nominees in 30 categories. Taylor Swift will receive the Vanguard Award and Janet Mock will receive the Stephen F. Kolzak Award at the 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles on Thursday, April 16.
The Vito Russo Award is presented to an openly Lgbtq media professional who has made a significant difference in accelerating Lgbtq acceptance. The Award is named after Vito Russo,...
The 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards honor media for fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of Lgbtq people and issues. The 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards are presented by Delta, Gilead, Hyundai, and Ketel One Family-Made Vodka. GLAAD previously announced over 175 nominees in 30 categories. Taylor Swift will receive the Vanguard Award and Janet Mock will receive the Stephen F. Kolzak Award at the 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles on Thursday, April 16.
The Vito Russo Award is presented to an openly Lgbtq media professional who has made a significant difference in accelerating Lgbtq acceptance. The Award is named after Vito Russo,...
- 1/20/2020
- Look to the Stars
“American Horror Story” mastermind Ryan Murphy will be honored with the Vito Russo Award at the upcoming 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards, the organization announced Thursday.
Per GLAAD, “The Vito Russo Award is presented to an openly Lgbtq media professional who has made a significant difference in accelerating Lgbtq acceptance. The Award is named after Vito Russo, a founder of GLAAD and celebrated Act Up activist, who pushed open the door for news and entertainment industries to include Lgbtq performers and stories.”
Previous recipients of the award include Billy Porter, Anderson Cooper, Ricky Martin, Andy Cohen, Cynthia Nixon, RuPaul, Rosie O’Donnell, Tom Ford, Samira Wiley, Thomas Roberts, George Takei, Alan Cumming, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, among others.
Also Read: Janet Mock and Taylor Swift to Be Honored for Lgbtq Advocacy at GLAAD Media Awards
“Ryan Murphy is a talented trailblazer behind some of the most innovative and popular Lgbtq projects in television,...
Per GLAAD, “The Vito Russo Award is presented to an openly Lgbtq media professional who has made a significant difference in accelerating Lgbtq acceptance. The Award is named after Vito Russo, a founder of GLAAD and celebrated Act Up activist, who pushed open the door for news and entertainment industries to include Lgbtq performers and stories.”
Previous recipients of the award include Billy Porter, Anderson Cooper, Ricky Martin, Andy Cohen, Cynthia Nixon, RuPaul, Rosie O’Donnell, Tom Ford, Samira Wiley, Thomas Roberts, George Takei, Alan Cumming, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, among others.
Also Read: Janet Mock and Taylor Swift to Be Honored for Lgbtq Advocacy at GLAAD Media Awards
“Ryan Murphy is a talented trailblazer behind some of the most innovative and popular Lgbtq projects in television,...
- 1/16/2020
- by Jennifer Maas
- The Wrap
Producer, director and writer Ryan Murphy will receive GLAAD Media Award’s annual Vito Russo Award honoring an openly Lgbtq media professional who has made a significant difference in accelerating Lgbtq acceptance.
The award will be presented at the 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards in New York on Thursday, March 19.
“Ryan Murphy is a talented trailblazer behind some of the most innovative and popular Lgbtq projects in television, theater and film history, and he continues to bring underrepresented Lgbtq voices to the table in ways that raise the bar in Hollywood,” said GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. “Ryan’s unique and gifted brand of storytelling has not only entertained the masses, but provided Lgbtq youth with characters who inspire them to live boldly and proudly.”
Murphy has previously received GLAAD Media Awards for such projects as Pose, The Normal Heart, American Horror Story: Asylum, The New Normal, Popular,...
The award will be presented at the 31st Annual GLAAD Media Awards in New York on Thursday, March 19.
“Ryan Murphy is a talented trailblazer behind some of the most innovative and popular Lgbtq projects in television, theater and film history, and he continues to bring underrepresented Lgbtq voices to the table in ways that raise the bar in Hollywood,” said GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. “Ryan’s unique and gifted brand of storytelling has not only entertained the masses, but provided Lgbtq youth with characters who inspire them to live boldly and proudly.”
Murphy has previously received GLAAD Media Awards for such projects as Pose, The Normal Heart, American Horror Story: Asylum, The New Normal, Popular,...
- 1/16/2020
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Cotton Club” was thought of as an expensive flop after it was released in 1984. Coppola has said that producers forced him to cut footage of Gregory Hines, who was meant to be a male co-lead with Richard Gere, to focus more on the love story between Gere and Diane Lane, and the result felt lifeless and cold.
But Coppola has restored the Hines footage for this new version, which has been dubbed “The Cotton Club Encore,” and it might also be called “The Cotton Club Transformed,” because this cut makes a film that felt like a failure into one of Coppola’s very best pictures. This movie is a feast with all the trimmings, and then some.
Coppola has a history of revisiting his films and putting out different cuts of them, as in his “Apocalypse Now Redux” and his longer version of “The Outsiders,...
But Coppola has restored the Hines footage for this new version, which has been dubbed “The Cotton Club Encore,” and it might also be called “The Cotton Club Transformed,” because this cut makes a film that felt like a failure into one of Coppola’s very best pictures. This movie is a feast with all the trimmings, and then some.
Coppola has a history of revisiting his films and putting out different cuts of them, as in his “Apocalypse Now Redux” and his longer version of “The Outsiders,...
- 10/2/2019
- by Dan Callahan
- The Wrap
To say we’re big fans of these women is an understatement. We grew up watching Coal Miners Daughter (Academy Award for Best Actress Sissy Spacek – who did her own singing) in 1980, followed by Sweet Dreams in 1985 starring Jessica Lange as Patsy Cline.
Spacek’s co-star Beverly D’Angelo, who played Patsy Cline, also did her own singing rather than lip-synching; she was nominated for a Golden Globe as was Tommy Lee Jones.
Now comes Lifetime’s Patsy & Loretta.
The official Loretta Lynn Facebook page debuted this first poster from the upcoming film.
The movie will star Megan Hilty as music legend Patsy Cline and Grammy winner Jessie Mueller as country icon Loretta Lynn.
The movie, produced by Sony Pictures Television, is executive produced by Neil Meron, in his first solo project since the passing of longtime producing partner Craig Zadan.
Debuting later this year, the movie was filmed on location in Nashville,...
Spacek’s co-star Beverly D’Angelo, who played Patsy Cline, also did her own singing rather than lip-synching; she was nominated for a Golden Globe as was Tommy Lee Jones.
Now comes Lifetime’s Patsy & Loretta.
The official Loretta Lynn Facebook page debuted this first poster from the upcoming film.
The movie will star Megan Hilty as music legend Patsy Cline and Grammy winner Jessie Mueller as country icon Loretta Lynn.
The movie, produced by Sony Pictures Television, is executive produced by Neil Meron, in his first solo project since the passing of longtime producing partner Craig Zadan.
Debuting later this year, the movie was filmed on location in Nashville,...
- 6/6/2019
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Former Northern Exposure star Janine Turner has been cast opposite Megan Hilty in Lifetime’s upcoming Patsy and Loretta, Forever, an original movie about the friendship between country music stars Patsy Cline (Hilty) and Loretta Lynn (Jessie Mueller). Turner will play Hilda Hensley, Patsy’s mother, and also her seamstress/costume designer and confidante. Patsy & Loretta will be executive produced by Neil Meron, in his first solo project since the death of longtime producing partner Craig Zadan. Oscar-winning Thelma & Louise writer Callie Khouri is directing, and Mark Nicholson is co-ep. Known for her Emmy-nominated work in Northern Exposure, Turnerr also heavily recurred in Friday Night Lights. On the film side, Turner can be seen in Solace opposite Anthony Hopkins. Turner is repped by Link Entertainment and Linda McCalister.
Johnell Young (Tales) is set as a series regular opposite Ashton Sanders in Hulu’s Wu-Tang: An American Saga, a 10-episode...
Johnell Young (Tales) is set as a series regular opposite Ashton Sanders in Hulu’s Wu-Tang: An American Saga, a 10-episode...
- 4/1/2019
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Kyle Schmid (Six) and Joe Tippett (Rise) are set as the male leads opposite Megan Hilty and Jessie Mueller in Lifetime’s Patsy & Loretta, an original movie about the friendship between country music stars Patsy Cline, played by Smash alum Hilty and Loretta Lynn, played by Broadway’s Waitress star Mueller.
Schmid will play Charlie Dick, Patsy’’s second husband. Tippett will portray Doolittle “Mooney” Lynn, Loretta’s husband and father of their four children.
Set to film this month on location in Nashville, Patsy & Loretta will be executive produced by Neil Meron, in his first solo project since the death of longtime producing partner Craig Zadan. Oscar-winning Thelma & Louise writer Callie Khouri is directing, and Mark Nicolson is co-ep.
When the singers first met, Cline already was one of the biggest stars in country music and Lynn was starting out with little to her name but a $17 guitar.
Schmid will play Charlie Dick, Patsy’’s second husband. Tippett will portray Doolittle “Mooney” Lynn, Loretta’s husband and father of their four children.
Set to film this month on location in Nashville, Patsy & Loretta will be executive produced by Neil Meron, in his first solo project since the death of longtime producing partner Craig Zadan. Oscar-winning Thelma & Louise writer Callie Khouri is directing, and Mark Nicolson is co-ep.
When the singers first met, Cline already was one of the biggest stars in country music and Lynn was starting out with little to her name but a $17 guitar.
- 3/18/2019
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Lifetime has greenlighted Patsy & Loretta, an original movie about the friendship between country music stars Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn. Smash alum Megan Hilty will play Cline, whose hits included “Crazy” and “I Fall to Pieces,” and Broadway’s Waitress star Jessie Mueller is set as the “Coal Miner’s Daughter” singer.
Set to film this month on location in Nashville, Patsy & Loretta will be executive produced by Neil Meron, in his first solo project since the death of longtime producing partner Craig Zadan. Oscar-winning Thelma & Louise writer Callie Khouri is directing.
When the singers first met, Cline already was one of the biggest stars in country music and Lynn was starting out with little to her name but a $17 guitar. Instead of seeing the newcomer as competition, Cline took Lynn under her wing to help her make it in Nashville. They soon became close friends, touring together, bonding...
Set to film this month on location in Nashville, Patsy & Loretta will be executive produced by Neil Meron, in his first solo project since the death of longtime producing partner Craig Zadan. Oscar-winning Thelma & Louise writer Callie Khouri is directing.
When the singers first met, Cline already was one of the biggest stars in country music and Lynn was starting out with little to her name but a $17 guitar. Instead of seeing the newcomer as competition, Cline took Lynn under her wing to help her make it in Nashville. They soon became close friends, touring together, bonding...
- 3/11/2019
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
For Sunday’s Oscars 2019 ceremony, producers had a difficult decision of which film industry people would make the cut and who would be left out of the “In Memoriam.” For the segment, Gustavo Dudamel and the L.A. Philharmonic performed music by Oscar winner John Williams.
Over 100 Academy members or film industry veterans died in the past 12 months. Visit our own Gold Derby memoriam galleries for the year of 2018 and the newly-started gallery for 2019.
SEEDirector Stanley Donen, dead at 94, was light on his feet and a movie musical heavyweight
Stanley Donen would have certainly been included, but he died on the weekend after the segment had been finalized (look for him on the 2020 show). Here is list of some of the people included in the Memoriam tribute for the ceremony (Academy members are indicated with ** by their names):
Susan Anspach (actor)
Bernardo Bertolucci (director)
Yvonne Blake (costume designer)**
Paul Bloch...
Over 100 Academy members or film industry veterans died in the past 12 months. Visit our own Gold Derby memoriam galleries for the year of 2018 and the newly-started gallery for 2019.
SEEDirector Stanley Donen, dead at 94, was light on his feet and a movie musical heavyweight
Stanley Donen would have certainly been included, but he died on the weekend after the segment had been finalized (look for him on the 2020 show). Here is list of some of the people included in the Memoriam tribute for the ceremony (Academy members are indicated with ** by their names):
Susan Anspach (actor)
Bernardo Bertolucci (director)
Yvonne Blake (costume designer)**
Paul Bloch...
- 2/25/2019
- by Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
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