Actors represented by the Hollywood union SAG-AFTRA voted Monday evening to authorize a strike if they don't agree on a new contract with major studios, streamers and production companies by June 30.
Anna Shay, fan favorite on ‘Bling Empire,’ dead at 62
June 5, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Anna Shay, an heiress, philanthropist and breakout star of the Netflix reality series “Bling Empire,” has died at 62.
Shay died from a stroke, according to a family statement provided to The Associated Press on Monday.
NEW YORK (AP) — Yahya Abdul-Mateen II first encountered the play “Topdog/Underdog” in college, performing a section as a favor for a student director who needed actors for a showcase.
What to stream this week: Janelle Monáe, a Cheetos origin story, Diablo IV and ‘Avatar’
Chuck Todd leaving NBC political panel show ‘Meet the Press’ and being replaced by Kristen Welker
June 4, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Chuck Todd said on Sunday that he'll be leaving “Meet the Press” after a tumultuous near-decade of moderating the NBC political panel show, to be replaced in the coming months by Kristen Welker.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — “The Eric Andre Show” is ostensibly not a series that lends itself to longevity. Its titular star, who plays a version of himself and satirizes talk shows by putting unsuspecting celebrity guests through hellish interviews, has become considerably more famous since the series first aired over a decade ago.
NEW YORK (AP) — Journalist Lisa Ling, who left CNN after her “This is Life” documentary series was canceled, has joined CBS News as a reporter, the network said on Wednesday.
Major League Baseball will take over broadcasts of San Diego Padres games beginning Wednesday after Diamond Sports missed a rights fees payment to the regional sports network's parent company and let the grace period expire.
NEW YORK (AP) — HBO said 2.9 million people watched or streamed the series finale of “Succession” on Sunday night, a series record that is expected to grow as delayed viewing is taken into account.
George Maharis, star of TV’s ‘Route 66’ in the 1960s, dies at 94
May 29, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — George Maharis, a stage-trained actor with rough-hewn good looks who became an icon to American youth in the 1960s as he cruised the country in a Corvette convertible in the hit television series "Route 66," has died.
‘Succession’ finale: Fans react to end of Emmy-winning hit drama
May 29, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — With the end of the critically acclaimed drama's fourth and final season, dedicated fans of “Succession” now know the answer to the series' central question: Which of the Murdoch-esque Roy family siblings will prevail?
Ed Ames, ’50s pop singer with Ames Brothers and ‘60s TV star in ‘Daniel Boone,’ dies at 95
May 28, 2023 GMTEd Ames, the youngest member of the popular 1950s singing group the Ames Brothers, who later became a successful actor in television and musical theater, has died. He was 95.
The last survivor of the four singing brothers, Ames died May 21 from Alzheimer's disease, his wife, Jeanne Ames, said Saturday.
CBS is television’s most popular network for 15th straight year
May 26, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — CBS claimed the distinction of most-watched television network for the 15th straight year, even as those bragging rights don't mean what they used to.
The network averaged just under 6 million viewers on a typical moment in prime time for the season that just concluded, the Nielsen company said on Friday.
What to watch this weekend: ‘Succession’ finale, John Wick, Matchbox Twenty, ‘American Born Chinese’
May 26, 2023 GMTSure, lots of folks are eagerly anticipating this Sunday’s “Succession” finale. But what if you haven’t followed the Roy family drama? There’s plenty of new don’t miss new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you.
Netflix to charge an additional $8 month for viewers living outside US subscribers’ households
May 23, 2023 GMTNetflix on Tuesday outlined how it intends to crack down on the rampant sharing of account passwords in the U.S., its latest bid to reel in more subscribers to its video streaming service as its growth slows.
Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne weigh in on ‘When Harry Met Sally’ debate of ‘Platonic’ friendships
May 23, 2023 GMTCan men and women be friends? 1989's “ When Harry Met Sally ” said no, but Rose Byrne and Seth Rogen disagree.
NEW YORK (AP) — For decades, the week in May when television executives revealed what new shows were coming and which old ones were going spoke to the power and influence that ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox had over popular culture.
ABC News crew spends year in Uvalde, documents journey of survivors, families of shooting victims
May 18, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — After most mass shootings that capture the public's attention, national news organizations will send reporters for a few days, a week maybe, before moving on. There's always another community, another tragedy.
Daytime Emmy Awards postponed because of writers strike
May 17, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — The Daytime Emmy Awards have become the latest casualty of the Hollywood writers strike.
NEW YORK (AP) — CNN said Kaitlan Collins will host a new hourlong show at the center of the prime-time lineup, filling a slot left vacant since the firing of Chris Cuomo and as the network's ratings are at a low ebb.
Striking Hollywood writers vow not to picket Tony Awards, opening the door to some kind of show
May 16, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Striking members of the Writers Guild of America have said they will not picket next month's Tony Awards telecast, clearing a thorny issue facing show organizers and opening the door for some sort of Broadway razzle-dazzle on TV.
Writers strike felt in missing NBC stars, absence of Fox schedule for TV sales pitches
May 15, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — The impact of the Hollywood writers strike was felt as major television networks began their annual week of sales presentations to advertisers on Monday, with news personalities like Willie Geist and Stephanie Ruhle left to hawk comedies and dramas for NBC Universal.
Jacklyn Zeman, longtime ‘General Hospital’ cast member who played nurse Bobbie Spencer, dies at 70
May 12, 2023 GMTJacklyn Zeman, who became one of the most recognizable actors on daytime television during 45 years of playing nurse Bobbie Spencer on ABC’s “General Hospital,” has died. She was 70.
Zeman died of cancer, her family confirmed Wednesday.
Swimming, gymnastics and track & field fans can rejoice. For the first time in a European Olympics, those event finals will be televised live on network television in the United States.
NBC will have at least nine hours of weekday daytime coverage, expanding to at least 11 hours on weekends.
Newton Minow, ex-FCC chief who dubbed TV ‘wasteland,’ dies
May 7, 2023 GMTCHICAGO (AP) — Newton N. Minow, who as Federal Communications Commission chief in the early 1960s famously proclaimed that network television was a "vast wasteland," died Saturday. He was 97.
Minow, who received a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016, died Saturday at home, surrounded by loved ones, said his daughter, Nell Minow.
How (and when) to watch King Charles’ coronation in the US
May 5, 2023 GMTKing Charles III's coronation Saturday will mix a thousand-year tradition with the streaming age.
Why Hollywood writers are striking and the immediate impact
May 5, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — The union representing 11,500 writers of film, television and other entertainment forms are now on strike.
Don’t miss this week: Ed Sheeran, Watergate, Pete Davidson
May 5, 2023 GMTHere’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music and video game platforms this week.
NEW MOVIES TO STREAM
— In “A Man Called Otto,” Tom Hanks stars as a despondent and ornery widower whose suicide plans keep getting foiled by the needs of his neighbors.
‘Yellowstone’ to end in November, sequel starts in December
May 5, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — The popular television western “Yellowstone” with Kevin Costner will end this fall and be replaced almost immediately by a sequel.
Since his ouster, embarrassing reports on Carlson pile up
May 3, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — A week after Fox News fired star host Tucker Carlson — for reasons that remain unexplained — he has been the subject of a handful of embarrassing stories about some of his private messages and statements while at the network.
Writers strike looks to be a long fight, as Hollywood braces
May 3, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Hollywood writers picketing to preserve pay and job security outside major studios and streamers braced for a long fight at the outset of a strike that immediately forced late-night shows into hiatus, put other productions on pause and had the entire industry slowing its roll.
Late-night TV shows go dark as writers strike for better pay
May 3, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — The first Hollywood strike in 15 years began Tuesday as the economic pressures of the streaming era prompted unionized TV and film writers to picket for better pay outside major studios, a work stoppage that already is leading most late-night shows to air reruns.
‘A Small Light’ focuses on those who helped Anne Frank
May 1, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Liev Schreiber was visiting conflict-ravaged Ukraine when he got a script about real-life events some 80 years ago that felt strangely timely.
It was a story set during the 1942 occupation of the Netherlands by the Nazis and the way some Dutch risked their lives to save Jews from the Holocaust.
It’s Met Gala time again — here’s what we know so far
May 1, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Last year, it took 275,000 bright pink roses to adorn the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the Met Gala, the biggest night in fashion and one of the biggest concentrations of star power anywhere.
Steve Austin ‘vulnerable’ in ‘Stone Cold Takes on America’
April 28, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — “Stone Cold” Steve Austin missed out on many seemingly mundane experiences during his legendary, bloodied, broken-bodied rise to becoming one of the most popular wrestlers of all time.
Fox ratings tumble in Tucker Carlson slot after his firing
April 27, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of Fox News viewers are reacting to Tucker Carlson's firing by abandoning the network in his old time slot — at least temporarily.
Jerry Springer, politician turned TV ringmaster, dies at 79
April 27, 2023 GMTCINCINNATI (AP) — Jerry Springer, the onetime mayor and news anchor whose namesake TV show featured a three-ring circus of dysfunctional guests willing to bare all — sometimes literally — as they brawled and hurled obscenities before a raucous audience, died Thursday at 79.
Past Fox firings carry lessons for network after Carlson
April 25, 2023 GMTFox News ousts Tucker Carlson, its most popular host
April 25, 2023 GMTCarlson latest in string of high-profile Fox News oustings
April 25, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Tucker Carlson has been ousted by Fox News, where he hosted the conservative cable network's most popular program.
NBCUniversal CEO Shell departs over ‘inappropriate conduct’
April 23, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Jeff Shell, the chief executive of NBCUniversal and one of the media industry's renowned executives, is departing the company after an investigation into inappropriate conduct, parent company Comcast announced Sunday.
The front door, threshold of welcome — and perilous border
April 23, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — The American front door is a place where the welcome mat offers friendly greetings, where affable neighbors knock or ring, where boxes brimming with possibility are delivered. It is where home meets a world full of potentially good things.
Seeking a rebound, CNN turns to Charles Barkley, Gayle King
April 22, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — TV personalities Gayle King and Charles Barkley will headline a new prime-time weekly CNN show, “King Charles,” debuting in the fall, the network announced Saturday as it tries to engineer a turnaround amid tumbling ratings.
New this week: ‘Judy Blume,’ Rodrigo y Gabriela, Minecraft
April 21, 2023 GMTHere’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music and video game platforms this week.
NEW MOVIES TO STREAM
— In her young, flourishing career, Ana de Armas has already made three films with Chris Evans.
Dan Bongino, ‘Unfiltered’ Fox News host, leaving network
April 20, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Fox News is parting ways with weekend host Dan Bongino, after the former Secret Service agent turned conservative pundit said Thursday they couldn't agree on a new contract.
“It's not some big conspiracy,” Bongino said on his podcast.
Robin Thede aims for laughs, longevity and legacy
April 20, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Success in television can be measured in many ways, but one of Robin Thede’s sure tell signs is longevity.
“A season four is a testament to the most appreciation, right? Because we’ve seen a lot of great shows — I’ve created a lot of great shows — that don’t last as long.
Keri Russell evolves from silky spy to sweaty ‘Diplomat’
April 19, 2023 GMTThe first sign is the hair. Not exactly a total mess. But definitely not neat, either.
Keri Russell’s hair on “The Diplomat,” her new Netflix series set in the world of high-stakes global diplomacy, is the hair of a woman — in this case, the U.S.
‘Somebody Somewhere’ finds more joy, acceptance in season 2
April 19, 2023 GMTThere are no flying dragons, zombies or media moguls in the HBO series “ Somebody Somewhere, " making it different in tone and scope from the network's larger, flashier shows.
New this week: Jeremy Renner, Metallica and ‘Cocaine Bear’
April 15, 2023 GMTHere’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music and video game platforms this week.
NEW MOVIES TO STREAM
— “Cocaine Bear” was technically inspired by a true story — a 1985 plane crash that scattered some $2 million worth of cocaine across Georgia hillsides and resulted in the death of a 175-pound black bear, who overdosed.
Peyton List becomes a leader thanks to ‘School Spirits’
April 14, 2023 GMTPeyton List's character on the Paramount+ series “School Spirits” is a ghost, so she spent a lot of times in scenes watching and listening to those around her and also being ignored.
Cedric the Entertainer enjoying life in his ‘Neighborhood’
April 14, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — “The Neighborhood” might be a hit sitcom now, but needed some careful planning before laying down a solid foundation.
“We shot the pilot twice. We had to recast. And so, there was moments where you didn’t think the show was going to go,” said Cedric the Entertainer.
In ‘Florida Man,’ Edgar Ramirez ‘has fun with’ popular meme
April 13, 2023 GMTEdgar Ramirez says his new series “Florida Man,” now on Netflix, may share a name with the popular meme of the same name, but it is not making fun of the state or its residents.
Bill Hader gets deep on human nature in ‘Barry’ final season
April 13, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — “In every man, of course, a demon lies hidden — the demon of rage,” says the intellectual brother, Ivan, in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “The Brothers Karamazov,” a theme to which the Russian novelist frequently returns.
New streaming app to ‘Max’ programming from HBO, Discovery
April 12, 2023 GMTWarner Bros. Discovery unveiled a streaming service Wednesday combining iconic HBO programming such as “The Sopranos” with a mix of unscripted TV series in a push to reap more subscribers from what so far has been a muddled media merger.
Mo’Nique sues CBS, Paramount over ‘Parkers’ royalties
April 12, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Mo'Nique sued Paramount and CBS on Wednesday, seeking what the Oscar-winning actor and comedian says are unpaid royalties from her sitcom “The Parkers.”
The breach-of-contract lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court and obtained by The Associated Press alleges the defendants artificially depressed the show's profitability to “retain millions that would otherwise be contractually due" to Mo’Nique’s production company.
Jeremy Renner attends premiere, months after snowplow crush
April 12, 2023 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Jeremy Renner attended the premiere for his new series Tuesday, capping a remarkable recovery less than four months after the "Avengers” star was nearly killed in a snowplow accident.
A great read turned into a dream role for Jennifer Garner
April 11, 2023 GMTIf you devoured Laura Dave's novel “ The Last Thing He Told Me," you're not alone.