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Kenny Bania, an irksome stand-up contemporary of Jerry’s on Seinfeld, was a meta joke when he was introduced in the show’s sixth season, according to Seinfeldia. The mediocre comic who generally went on right after Jerry at the comedy club was a “time-slot hit” — a success because of where he landed in the night’s schedule. Bania was a subtle slam aimed at all of the mediocre sitcoms that NBC aired between bigger hits like Friends and Seinfeld. Nestled in those cozy time slots, shows like Suddenly Susan and The Single Guy got top 10 ratings — until they moved to another night and died.

But the Bania character was a bigger hit than any of those mediocre comedies, appearing on six different episodes over the final four seasons of Seinfeld. Steve Hytner was guest-starring on a lot of TV shows at the time he got the call to read for the sitcom,...

Once an indie underdog, Kevin Smith has, in middle age, devoted himself to making what critics and fans alike might characterize as glorified, self-referential home movies, cast with friends and family members and filled with callbacks, in-jokes, and the same familiar anxieties about friendship, romance, and growing up. This is not an original observation.

The Biden administration announced this week that it’s taking broad actions to stop Russian schemes designed to influence the 2024 elections. As part of the effort, it’s shutting down a company called Social Design Agency, “which the Treasury Department previously sanctioned for allegedly running fake news sites in Europe on behalf of the Russian government.”

The government released Social Design Agency internal documents that detail its plans to influence the election, including spreading disinformation in swing states and monitoring the accounts of people it considers “influencers,” including comedians. That caught the attention of Redditor cannonfunk who posed a question to the r/StandUpComedy subreddit: “The Russians are actively targeting comedians who might be easily bribed to spread their propaganda. Who do you think was on the list?”

Here are the most likely candidates — at least according to the number of r/StandUpComedy upvotes received for each nomination. A reminder...

Critics have unleashed their reviews for The Expendables 4, calling it unexciting, disappointing, and maybe the worst entry in the franchise. Many reviewers criticize the film's cheap-looking CGI and poorly executed fight scenes, which waste martial artists like Iko Uwais and Tony Jaa. The movie is said to lack the fun, cheesy elements that the earlier installments had, with the new cast also proving disappointing.

The Expendables 4's reviews have now been revealed, with critics sharing their honest thoughts on director Scott Waugh's new sequel. After three previous outings, the titular mercenary team is back once more, this time embarking on a mission to stop World War III. Sylvester Stallone returns as Barney Ross in a reduced role, with Jason Statham's Lee Christmas taking center stage in a movie filled with familiar faces and new cast members.

Now, on The Expendables 4's wide release day, reviews for the film are in,...

A title that started ironically has now become all too accurate when it comes to the belated fourth installment of Sylvester Stallone’s action franchise. Arriving a full nine years after the poorly received prior entry, Expend4bles — the number is in the middle of the word, get it? — represents a nadir for a series that began as an entertainingly nostalgic throwback to old-school action movies and the square-jawed muscle men who starred in them. This edition — essentially a sub-par Jason Statham vehicle (after this and Meg 2: The Trench, some quality control might be in order for the actor) featuring a brief appearance by Stallone and several new castmembers who fail to make much of an impression — indicates that it’s time to put a fork in the series; it’s done.

If you can believe the good folks at Wikipedia, among the stars originally under consideration for this fourth Expendables film were Pierce Brosnan,...

Warning: The following contains Spoilers for Night Court season 1, episode 6, "Justice Buddies."The Night Court revival copied a trend from the original series, tackling current events and topical issues with a comedic twist. While primarily remembered as a screwball sitcom with reality-breaking gags like Wile E. Coyote being arrested for harassing the Road Runner, the original Night Court frequently addressed real-world issues like discrimination and social justice. The new Night Court continues this tradition with an episode centering around bailiff Donna "Gurgs" Gurganous (Lacretta) and a protest organized by her 12-year-old nephew, Xavier.

The Night Court revival episode "Justice Buddies" found the courtroom of Judge Abby Stone (Melissa Rauch) playing host to a group of middle school students, including Gurgs' nephew Xavier, who were meant to be observing the American legal system in action. In truth, the students had planned to stage a viral protest in the courtroom, anticipating that...

NBC’s Night Court reboot could bring back more original series stars, teases the show’s EP. Set on the night shift of a Manhattan criminal court, the original Night Court became a solid ratings performer for NBC during the 1980s, going on to run for nine seasons. Now the legal wackiness is back, as Night Court has returned for a revival series, starring Big Bang Theory’s Melissa Rauch as presiding judge Abby Stone, the daughter of original series judge Harry Stone (Harry Anderson).

Though most of the Night Court revival’s cast is indeed new, there is one original series hold-over in John Laroquette, who is back as ever-pompous attorney Dan Fielding. But could other original Night Court stars make their way to the revival series? The answer to that is “maybe,” according to reboot executive producer Dan Rubin. Speaking during the recent TCA winter press tour (via...

Ada Maris has been a working actor in TV and film since the mid-1980s.

Over her long career, which includes co-starring in the NBC drama “Nurses,” 1986’s “About Last Night” and most recently FX’s “Mayans M.C.” and HBO Max’s “The Garcias,” the Mexican American actor has been dismayed by the stereotypical and often racist portrayals of Latinos that persist in TV and film.

Lately, however, as the streaming explosion has pushed the boundaries for premium content outlets, Maris has been encouraged by the rising number of TV shows with nuanced characters and authentic portrayals of Latino communities. But in late September, she was shocked to come across the small role of a housekeeper in the first episode of the upcoming Netflix comedy series “Uncoupled” that she found to be well over the line into offensive.

The series stars Neil Patrick Harris as a successful forty-something professional in...

When last we saw American patriot/Russian citizen Steven Seagal, he was decrying the NFL protests while doing his best Yakov Smirnoff impression. Boxing legend George Foreman, on the other hand, has been busy promoting a new crowdfunding platform for inventors and probably naming more things George. It was a bit…

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What was allowed in 1986 is cringeworthy today

Two movies I loved as a child celebrated their 30th anniversaries recently, and when I looked back upon them nostalgically, as one does, I saw products of their time that mostly hold up — save for one horribly dated, unforgivable element each. The kind of offense that makes it hard to still appreciate the movie when that one inexcusable part dominates your mind.

Both “Crocodile” Dundee and Short Circuit have decent scripts. The former was even nominated for an Oscar. The latter remains quotable. Their main characters are major figures of 1980s pop culture. Not on the level of Arnold Schwarzenegger and E.T., but higher up than Yakov Smirnoff and The Noid. But I can no longer enjoy these movies. Not as they are, anyway.

Their respective crimes are things that shouldn’t have even been tolerated at the time. In Dundee it’s a scene where Paul Hogan’s titular...

What do you get when you combine uninventive found footage, a location chosen specifically for its cheap production costs, and CGI the likes of which has not been seen since the mid-1990s? Such a recipe could only result in They’re Watching, a horror comedy whose filmmakers appear to have no basic knowledge of how either genre works.

In all fairness, the film does bait its hook with an auspicious premise. Set in the former Soviet republic of Moldova (it was actually shot throughout Romania), it captures the crew of a House Hunters International-type reality show as they return to a remote village to follow up on a money pit acquired by a wealthy American artist (Brigid Brannagh) and her Eastern European footballer husband (Cristian Balint). As expected, a classic rural vs. urban conflict begins when the outsiders crash and secretly film a sacred funeral, causing the deeply superstitious populace to become hostile.

This story first appeared in the Movies and Limited Series issue of TheWrap’s Emmy magazine. I don’t even remember exactly when this happened — sometime around 1977, I reckon, though the exact year is lost in the mists. Early in my writing career, I’d gone to a comedy club near my home in Orange County, California to see a comedian friend named Gary Mule Deer, a prop comic whose bio I’d written for his PR company. The club was nondescript, with three acts on the bill. Gary was the headliner, preceded by Soviet defector Yakov Smirnoff, who said from the stage that.

There are a lot of words to describe tonight’s episode of The Americans, a game-changing haymaker craftily setup by last week’s feint at slowing things down. The usual adjectives apply to “Stingers”: it’s devastating, heartbreaking, powerfully tense but delicately observed (with praise like that, how can this show possibly not be the biggest thing on TV?). But it’s “Yakovian,” a word I just made-up in reference to comedian Yakov Smirnoff, that I’ll choose to lead with. “Stingers” is no chuckle-fest, despite the April Fool’s Day airdate, but it is one big joke at the expense of the Jennings, a Russian reversal gag of the kind Smirnoff is often associated with: “In Soviet Russia, punchline precedes setup!”

That punchline comes from Tim, of all people. “Stingers” opens with the good pastor trying to buy a ticket package to Kenya, while also selling Philip on...

For every year that is packed with awards season fodder and memorable movies that will go down in history, there is an equal number of films we wish we could erase from our memories.

The Worst of 2014 includes both people who should know better and repeat offenders, artists with a vision and hucksters out for a quick buck.

Here’s hoping the responsible parties resolve to do better in 2015.

Also Read: TheWrap’s Film Critics Pick 10 Best Movies of 2014

Below, TheWrap‘s Reviews Editor Alonso Duralde, and reviewers Inkoo Kang and James Rocchi present their worst films of the year.

Sony officially scrapped their plans for a theatrical release of The Interview. Believe it or not, it's not the first Seth Rogen film to be banned, nor is it Sony's first run in with North Korea. While it doesn't happen often, theaters internationally do ban films at the requests of protests, threats, or concern for human safety. Some reasons, such as the banning of the infamous film Birth of a Nation for racism, are obvious. The ones on this list...eh, I'll let you be the judge.

The Life Of BRIANBanned in several U.S. cities in 1979 over controversial scenes depicting Christianity.

Okay so I understand Christianity is a touchy subject, especially in the form of parody, but Brian is very clearly not Jesus Christ! They Show It In The Beginning Of The Film! Is this movie truly any worse than Mel Brooks: History of the World? With that said,...

Of all the contentious issues that have plagued Barack Obama in his two terms as U.S. President, and there have been many, perhaps none are more simplistic and complicated in equal measure than the question of what to do with the detainee camp in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. A facility that’s outlived its usefulness but remains politically sensitive for the implications of shutting it down, it still sits on the south-eastern shore of Cuba, with 149 men in custody, 76 of whom will never leave.

Camp X-Ray, the feature film debut of Peter Sattler, doesn’t offer an answer to that burning question, and even though the crux of the film is to unnecessarily remind us that Guantanamo’s detainees are people, too, it must be said that Camp X-Ray without a doubt a very well-acted and compelling reminder.

The story is a fictionalized account of life inside “Gitmo,” as a...

I was having lunch with www.getthepointradio.com’s Mike Raub yesterday and we were deep in discussion about our favorite topic, what the hell is wrong with the planet and why we are the only ones smart enough to realize it. Before long we were ranting about the lameness of most mainstream comics and the various attempts the sundry marketing departments make to boost sales.

As always, this discussion came to the point where I started in on my favorite seething rage, which, in short form, goes like this: “Screw this variant cover shit; it has nothing to do with getting people excited to actually read the comic book.”

Variant covers became amazingly popular among comics retailers and a handful of wealthy consumers some 20 years ago. In fact, while packaging some books for Image Comics, I wanted to publish a variant cover printed on chewable bubble gum. Image vetoed...

NBC is developing a new comedy series based on the 1986 feature The Money Pit, which starred Tom Hanks and Shelley Long. Amblin Television will produce the film. Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment was behind the original, now considered a cult classic.

Universal Television is co-producing, with former The Office writer-producer Justin Spitzer adapting the original screenplay by David Giler into a weekly series.

The plot will stay close to the original, which followed young couple Walter Fielding, Jr. and Anna Crowley Beissart Fielding as they proceed to buy a distress-sale mansion that quickly falls apart and destroys their relationship. Much of the humor in the movie came from the couple's attempts to fix the many problems found inside the mansion.

Justin Spitzer also has a Detroit auto company comedy set up at NBC, and another comedy in the works at USA Network called Start Up. If The Money Pit moves forward,...

Sarah Silverman, Tom Papa, Chris D'Elia and Yakov Smirnoff are among the comics set for a show to benefit Make A Film Foundation's Vidz-4-Kidz program. The Comedy Con charity night will be held at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles at 8 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 30. The Make A Film Foundation is a non-profit organization that teams children who have serious or life-threatening medical conditions with noted entertainment industry professionals who help them create short film legacies. Also read: Conan O'Brien, Sarah Silverman, Aziz Ansari: 25 Comedians You Must Follow on Twitter Among...

Tucked away in the middle of the Ozarks, far away from the bright lights of the coasts, lies Branson, Missouri, a place that has been dubbed “the live music capital of America.” The opposite of hip, its theaters feature a wide variety of traditional family entertainers such as the comedian Yakov Smirnoff and the singer Andy Williams who are neither gone nor forgotten by the 7.5 million tourists who visit each year. It’s the type of place where a lively game of bumper boats might be followed by a dinner and a rodeo show at the Dixie Stampede Theater. Five …...

With apologies to Yakov Smirnoff, at SXSW, TV watches you. The first Saturday at the Austin-based conference started with two panels about how the people who make and promote television monitor and interact with their viewers via Twitter and other social media outlets. Twitter is "the new watercooler," observed panelist Peter Lenkov, the executive producer/showrunner of CBS' "Hawaii Five-0," except that it's public and easily accessible. It provides instant feedback, for better or worse, on an episode as it happens, and offers up a sense of how many people are tuning in and are engaged enough to want to talk about it online. The desire to participate in the Twitter conversation taking place as an episode airs (or at least not be spoiled by falling behind) is, for the speakers on both panels, one of the major things driving audiences back to live TV. First up was Jenn Deering Davis,...

The numbers are in and "The Amazing Spider-Man" is a hit.

(Note, I am writing this about a week before "The Amazing Spider-Man" opens but, call me crazy, I'm pretty sure I'm making a correct assumption here.)

Now that Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone have thwipped their way into our hearts, what's next for Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy, New York City and that dude who stood in the shadows and said menacing things to Dr. Curt Connors?

Only time will tell, but, just in case the film's chief producers are reading (oh, who'm I kidding, they get a text every time I blow my nose) I've got five basic suggestions for the "Amazing Spider-Man" sequel.

Musical Director's Chairs

The fact that "The Amazing Spider-Man's" director Marc Webb hasn't said, "Yes, absolutely, I'm 100% on board for the sequel" means the dude isn't doing the sequel. I don't have any inside information on this,...

A review of last night's "30 Rock" coming up just as soon as I pick up Yakov Smirnoff from the airport... Last week, "30 Rock" revisited a gimmick from last season I hadn't enjoyed and made me much happier with it. Last night, "30 Rock" revisited a gimmick from last season I had mixed feelings about at best and improved certain things about it while still making me wish they weren't doing it. On the plus side, this felt more like what an episode of "Queen of Jordan" might feature than the first go-around, which devoted too much time to subplots...

Norby Walters is not necessarily someone I would want to be friends with. For starters, he’s a sports agent. Despite my raging “Plantar fasciitis,” I am no athlete. Back in 1988, Norby was convicted of fraud and racketeering after he signed college players to professional sports teams before it was legally allowed. Despite my penchant for Scorcese crime flicks and a dude I once made out with who just got out of Rikers, I don’t often associate with criminals. He also kind of looks like my cousin Edith who passed away years ago. I loved Edith but there’s only room for one in my heart. And yet, taking allll of these things into consideration, my mind is made up: I want to be friends with Norby Walters. Why, you ask? Simple. Judging by the characters who attended his 22nd Annual Night Of 100 Stars Oscar Viewing Party, he...

With the 2012 Grammy Awards upon us and everyone already thrilled for the big Beach Boys / Foster The People / Maroon 5 reunion (finally!), let’s take a second to remind ourselves of something we all already know and complain about every year: The Grammys are, without a doubt, the weirdest and most arbitrary awards show in the entire entertainment world. To re-prove this time-tested theory, we’ve scoured Grammy’s checkered past and compiled some of its most bizarre winners in a desperate search of some meaning for this odd gramophonic statue. From the awesomely-random to the just flat-out terrible, here’s a list of 13 People You Can’t Believe Won A Grammy: 1. Zach Braff Without rehashing the internet’s eminent disdain for Garden State, let’s just take a moment to acknowledge that an actual physical golden gramophone was given to Zach Braff for being the “compilation producer” of the...

I think I've finally decided what makes me so bonkers about Pan Am. You know that episode of Friends when Rachel accidentally puts beef in the traditional English trifle and no one can eat, especially Ross because he thinks it tastes like feet? And Joey's over there chomping down like it's the greatest thing he's ever put in his mouth, all, "What’s not to like? Custard? Good. Jam? Good. Meat? Gooooood." Pan Am is just like that, all these potentially delicious ingredients, but the way the writers are mixing them together just isn't working for me.

Like "Diplomatic Relations." In a single episode we've got a story about: the political tensions of Pan Am's inaugural Cold War flight to Moscow (good!); a covert CIA operative working her first mission in the Soviet Union (good!); two flight attendants, one of them a former CIA agent, getting arrested and nearly...

Well, the Golden Globe nominations were announced, and I’m starting to believe the “Foreign Press Association” is actually just Yakov Smirnoff sitting alone in a room with an old TV Guide and erasable pen and randomly making some picks. (This would explain why “What A Country!” gets nominated for Best Drama every year.) That’s because while many well-deserved people and projects got nominated (Midnight In Paris, Bryan Cranston, … Rango), there were also plenty of plainly obvious snubs. As Dan Hopper pointed out this morning, Breaking Bad was snubbed for a nomination while Boss, a show starring Kelsey Grammer in his blue X-Men suit, managed to make the cut. Of all the snubs, though, one stings the most: The absence of Melissa McCarthy getting a nod for her brilliant turn in Bridesmaids. McCarthy made the movie (after the Goddess Wiig), and it was one of the biggest moneymakers of the year.

The Film Society of Lincoln Center announced the next presentation of Kevin Smith’s SMoviola will take place during the upcoming New York Film Festival with a celebration of the cult hit The Adventures Of Buckaroo Banzai Across The 8th Dimension featuring the film’s star Peter Weller, John Lithgow and additional guests. Fslc also announced the lineup of filmmakers set for Nyff’s celebrated HBO Films® Directors Dialogues and the complete lineup of films for the 15th edition of the film festival’s Views From the Avant-Garde series.

Returning to the Film Society after a special screening of Valley Girl during the launch of the new Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, Kevin Smith’s SMoviola will now be a continuing series of appearances by the popular filmmaker and film personality during which he will take a look at a classic, and personally beloved film, with the filmmakers and stars of the film.

John Malkovich is easily one of the finest actors working today, but I'm not sure if I'd ever trust him with an accent from east of London ever again. Take, for example, his performance in Rounders. While he's meant to be a villainous Russian gangster, he's vocal interpretation of the character incites far more laughter than it does chills. Going way over the top, it seems that Malkovich decided to forgo having a vocal coach and instead tried to do his best impression of an evil Yakov Smirnoff. Hopefully he doesn't make that same kind of mistake in his newest project. The Playlist has learned that the Oscar nominated-actor is lined up to star in director Gabriele Salvatores' Serbian Education. Adapted from the Nicolai Lilin autobiography of the same name, the story is an investigation of the Serbian criminal underworld set between 1985 and 1995. Malkovich will play Grandfather Kuzja, a...

A quick review of last night's "30 Rock" coming up just as soon as we go to Branson to take in a Yakov Smirnoff show... I talk sometimes in these reviews about how "30 Rock" (which for the most part doesn't ask you take its characters seriously and will sacrifice any piece of characterization for the sake of a joke) can at times be at a disadvantage to shows like "The Office" (which want you to care about these people at the same time that you're laughing). On the other hand, "30 Rock" has an advantage over those shows, as well:...

This is a recap for the fifth episode of Season 4 of Mad Men starring Jon Hamm, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, January Jones, and a slew of other talented actors, on an episode called “The Chrysanthemum and the Sword.” And here is your For Your Consideration Recap: Ripped Right Out Of An Authentic 1965 Highlights For Children Judging by Miss Blankenship’s crossword entries — Leaks, Glee, Burt, Cars, Dogs and soforth — people were reallllly dumb in 1965. Didn’t the producers think of consulting with a 13-year-old Will Shortz? A Different World Indeed She’s like an elderly Dwayne Wayne! (Click for comparison) Roger + Glasses + Granddaddy Issues = ♡ ♡ ♡ I’M Sort Of Feeling Sally’S Modern Do Ok, Fess up time: How many of you cut your hair as a kid? I know I certainly did. I was about 13 years old, and thought I’d look good with a short, chin-length bob. (Ed. Note: I might have been 18. Kidding.

Today, Yakov Smirnoff is rolling in his grave. (He’s dead, right? Obvs.) That’s because his motherland of Russia has gone above on beyond the reaches of your run of the mill animal cruelty, this time strapping a parachute to a donkey and forcing it to parasail over a Russian beach for close to 30 minutes. Russia is like the Christopher Nolan of animal cruelty, in that love it or hate it, you have to admit it’s pretty genius. And perhaps no other group of sentences in the history of words better explains why we’ll probably be visiting Russia sometime soon: Stunned beachgoers said the animal had brayed in fear as it whistled through the air, causing children to burst into tears. Others calmly filmed the event on their mobile phones. “This is a little town and we all know that donkey well,” one local woman told reporters.

Membership in the exclusive Internet community has its privileges. No, we're not just talking about porn and eBay—your enviable access allows you this pre-serving of tonight's fresh Soup. Who likes road trips? America, that's who, as the Great American Road Trip so clearly proves. And who better to represent America than an Rv-gunning family from the Bronx who yell at one another while on a mission to Branson, Mo to see American comedy legend Yakov Smirnoff? Speaking of yelling… Shield your ears as bewigged big mouth Wendy Williams gets shut down by a Twitterer, and uptight anchor Barbara Walters drops the hammer on Brüno. Apparently she doesn't like pubic hair, wagging...

There will be one long post published in my name tomorrow, thanks to the magic of post-dating, but I'll actually be officially on holiday from Tuesday morning through the end of the week. So! Chris, Lauren, Kevin and others will be posting while I'm gone. Leave them lots of comments, please. I'll be in the Vegas of the Bible Belt, hunting down Yakov Smirnoff. Is this a great country, or what? ...

• Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan - 20th Century Fox Check out the teaser here “Kill the Jew!”... I mean “Jagshemash!” As soon as the music started for this trailer I thought the Russians were invading my head and that it was all over. Thank God I was only drunk. For those who’ve been surfing the internet or watching TV with the sound off and their eyes closed and a pencil up where the sun don’t shine, Borat is one of many characters created by multi-talented comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, an anti-Semitic and misogynistic journalist on a quest to better his homeland of Kazakhstan by traveling to “the Us and A to learn a lessons for Kazakhstan.” If this is half as good as his купальный костюм is form-fitting, we’re in for a doozy of a ride. A face only a prostitute sister could love.

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