News

Kate Middleton has had a challenging year filled with ups and downs. In January, Kensington Palace released a statement that the Princess had undergone abdominal surgery and would likely not return to her public duties until Easter.

Kate Middleton Wanted To Recover Away From The Spotlight

Over the next couple of months, Kate Middleton spent time out of the spotlight recovering, which proved difficult as everyone had questions concerning her whereabouts and why she wasn’t back at work.

With almost no notice, Prince William canceled his attendance at the memorial service of his godfather, King Constantine of Hellens. It was announced that the Prince could not come for “personal reasons.” No explanation was given.

A senior aide for His Majesty remarked,

“No constitutional responsibility sits on the Princess of Wales and never will. She is not in the line of succession,”

They explained.

“She plays an absolutely vital supporting...

Although one particular Treehouse of Horror Halloween special from midway through The Simpsons 36-season run does epitomize many of the shows biggest structural issues, I still love the outing despite this. Whether The Simpsons is renewed through season 37 or not, it is fair to say that the series has had a good run already. The Simpsons reshaped the landscape of television comedy during its Golden Age from seasons 3-11, and the influential series inspired everything from South Park to Rick and Morty, to Bobs Burgers, American Dad, Family Guy, and Gravity Falls. Its legacy is already set in stone.

Related The Simpsons Season 36 Just Parodied A Movie That Hasnt Even Come Out Yet

The Simpsons season 36 episode 4 parodies '80s neo-noir movies, but the episode's plot also borrows from a movie that has not even been released yet.

However, while The Simpsons season 36s risky experiments keep interest in the series alive,...

Signalling one of the biggest European packages to hit Monday’s Mipcom, “Mozart/Mozart,” the latest big series swing from Germany’s Story House Pictures, behind Beta Film/Rtl mega-hit “Sisi,” has been boarded by Germany’s Ard and its Austrian public broadcaster counterpart Orf.

In further news, Clara Zoë My-Linh von Arnim, co-director of “The Zweiflers,” this year’s Canneseries best series and German TV Awards winner, is set to helm the series.

Based on one of Europe’s largest IPs and now backed by Ard, the biggest of Europe’s public broadcasters, “Mozart/Mozart” is created by Andreas Gutzeit – co-founder of Story House Pictures, the international studio of the Bavaria Film Group, and producer and showrunner on “Sisi” – and Swantje Oppermann, a staff writer on “Dignity” and a Story House development executive.

Bavaria Media International will bring the six-part show to market at Mipcom.

“Mozart/Mozart” is part inspired by historical fact.

As the world continues to mourn the death of Liam Payne, those who knew him best are sharing their pain.

This includes perhaps his most famous ex-girlfriend.

Though Cheryl Cole and Liam only dated for two years, their time together made a huge impact on both their lives. Her grief is felt that much more deeply knowing that along with her own pain, she’s left to care for their 7-year-old son who no longer has a dad.

This one is just going to wreck your heart.

Liam Payne and former partner Cheryl pose on the red carpet on arrival for the Brit Awards 2018 in London on February 21, 2018. (Tolga Akmen/Afp via Getty Images) Cheryl Cole’s Tribute To Liam Payne

“As I try to navigate this earth shattering event, and work through my own grief at this indescribably painful time, I’d like to kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being,...

Athanasios Chalkias, the lead actor of the Greek film ‘Dignity’ said that greed for money not only ruins relationships between members of the family, but also among nations which might result in war. He was addressing the media as his film was screened under the Cinema of the World category at the 54th International Film Festival of India.

The film at a metaphoric level explores the theme of personal greed at the cost of the dignity of the family. It attempts to extrapolate the theme and extend it to national, international and global competitions for wealth at the cost of human values and proves that the same is disastrous and undesirable.

Actor Athanasios said that in acting, theatrical rehearsals were very helpful in character-development and bonding among the cast and crew.

Expressing his appreciation for the Director Dimitris Katsimiris, said, “We employed a unique filming approach of shooting an uninterrupted 8-minute short film,...

Athanasios Chalkias, the lead actor of the Greek film ‘Dignity’ said that greed for money not only ruins relationships between members of the family, but also among nations which might result in war. He was addressing the media as his film was screened under the Cinema of the World category at the 54th International Film Festival of India.

The film at a metaphoric level explores the theme of personal greed at the cost of the dignity of the family. It attempts to extrapolate the theme and extend it to national, international and global competitions for wealth at the cost of human values and proves that the same is disastrous and undesirable.

Actor Athanasios said that in acting, theatrical rehearsals were very helpful in character-development and bonding among the cast and crew.

Expressing his appreciation for the Director Dimitris Katsimiris, said, “We employed a unique filming approach of shooting an uninterrupted 8-minute short film,...

Leading Chilean TV producer Maria Elena Wood, whose multiple credits include “News of a Kidnapping,” “Ramona” and “Dignity,” is developing a follow up to her company’s latest hit documentary “Operation Chile: Top Secret,” which, until the end of September, was the most-watched Chilean TV program that marked the 50th anniversary of the military coup d’état in Chile.

Wood will be at Ventana Sur to present the first animation feature she has boarded, “Lucila,” which has its market debut at this year’s Animation! Pitching Sessions.

“Our original idea is to make a documentary for a global audience and that is what we are working on now,” said Wood of the upcoming “Chile: An American Secret,” a Canada-Chile co-production, with Canada represented by director- producer Orlando Arriagada of Pimiento Prods. and Chile repped by her company Maria Wood Producciones and local partner Un día en la vida. They are...

Porcupine Tree have announced a new live album, Closure/Continuation.Live, arriving December 8th on various physical formats including CD, Blu-Ray, DVD, and vinyl.

The massive 21-song, three-hour set was recorded and filmed on November 7th at the 17,000-capacity Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam during the the UK prog rock band’s 2022 tour supporting its comeback album, Closure/Continuation. A live video of “Harridan” from the performance can be streamed now.

Overall, the set is appropriately heavy on material from Closure/Continuation, but also sees the Steven Wilson-led outfit playing career staples such as “Trains,” “Fear of a Blank Planet,” and “Anesthetize.” For more on Porcupine Tree’s 2022 tour, check out our recap of their concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York City last September.

Fans will have multiple configurations to choose from for the physical release of the live album: a 2-cd/2-Blu-Ray Deluxe Version (with 60-page...

Prominent Chilean TV producer Maria Elena Wood, a producer on “News of a Kidnapping,” “Dignity” and “Mary & Mike,” is teaming with multi-prized TV toon series director Bernardita Ojeda, helmer of two-time Intl. Emmy nominee “Petit,” to make 2D “Lucila,” both Wood and Ojeda’s first animated feature.

“I am amazed at [animation’s] narrative possibilities,” Wood enthused to Variety.

In a Chilean power package, Patricio Pereira, EP on “Dignity” and “Mary & Mike,” and Alvaro Ceppi, director of “Zumbástico Fantástico” and 2Paper Port,” have also boarded “Lucila” as exec producers.

Written by Argentine live action director Fernando Salem (“How Most Things Work”) and Chilean author Álvaro Bisama, “Lucila” is set to make its market debut at this year’s Animation! Pitching Sessions. Part of Buenos Aires’ Ventana Sur, backed by the Cannes Film Festival and Marché du Film and Argentina’s Incaa film-tv agency and organized with the Annecy Film Festival,...

Germany’s Story House Pictures, also behind “Sisi” and “Dignity,” has boarded upcoming series “Hildur,” joining forces with Finland’s Take Two and Iceland’s Sagafilm.

The international studio of the Bavaria Film Group, Story House Pictures will co-produce and has acquired rights to Germany and world distributor rights, but Take Two will be the company taking the creative lead, Story House co-founder Andreas Gutzeit told Variety.

Presented at Spain’s Conecta Fiction and based on the bestselling novel by Satu Rämö and set in Iceland, “Hildur” is developed by Matti Laine, also behind “The Paradise.”

“We loved the pitch, loved the story and we saw a possibility in it,” said Story House Pictures’ Andreas Gutzeit.

“We are into brands and into franchises. When we saw that the book has already sold to 10 different territories, we quickly realized this could be a mainstream hit.”

In the story, a surfing detective...

Cannes — Germany’s Story House Pictures, producer of the Beta Film/Rtl mega-hit “Sisi,” sold to 120 territories, has optioned what looks like one of the biggest and most ambitious projects coming onto the market at this year’s Mipcom: “The Book of Longing,” a six-part English-language series with an international cast based on the international bestseller of the same name by Sue Monk Kidd.

The novel has been translated in 17 languages and will be the third adaption of one of Kidd’s bestselling works. Her 2001-novel “The Secret Life of Bees” sold 8 million copies and was turned into a major award-winning motion picture starring Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning, and Jennifer Hudson.

Andreas Gutzeit, co-founder of Story House Pictures, the international studio of the Bavaria Film Group,’ and producer and showrunner on “Sisi,” will serve as showrunner leading an international writers room.

Now in development, “The Book of Longings” is set in 20 A.

On Monday, September 25, 2023, at 9:00 Pm, the CW will air Season 2, Episode 3 of “Children Ruin Everything” titled “Dignity.” In this episode, viewers will follow the humorous and relatable experiences of Astrid as she navigates the challenges of her workplace.

The episode kicks off with Astrid facing embarrassing situations involving her boss and co-workers, leaving her feeling out of place and disconnected from her younger colleagues. Astrid finds herself on the back foot as she grapples with these awkward encounters.

In a bid to regain her footing and bridge the generation gap at work, Astrid decides to take action. She recognizes that her best move might be to attend a drink night with the rest of her team. This decision leads to a series of comical events and interactions as Astrid tries to connect with her co-workers in her own unique way.

“Children Ruin Everything” is a comedy series that captures...

The annual New York Greek Film Expo has been set for Village East Cinema in Manhattan and the Barrymore Film Center in Fort Lee, N.J. on October 5-15.

The event will screen the latest Greek films, along with a retrospective of the films of acclaimed director, screenwriter and actor Renos Haralambidis, which will be shown at the Museum of the Moving Image (MoMi).

Haralambidis will be in attendance throughout the festival, along with many of the filmmakers whose films are being presented. Filmmaker Q&a’s will follow the screenings.

Film historians Andrew Horton (University of Oklahoma) and Foster Hirsch (Brooklyn College), along with David Schwartz, founder of Cinema Projects and former MoMI chief curator, will conduct interviews with Haralambidis following each of his screenings.

Four of the filmmaker’s movies will be shown at the fest: “Four Black Suits” (2010), “No Budget Story” 1997), “The Heart Of The Beast” (2005) and...

Actress Hilary Duff ("How I Met Your Father") poses for "Women's Health" magazine, photographed by Daniella Midenge:

Duff began her acting career as a teenager, starring as 'Lizzie McGuire' in "The Lizzie McGuire Movie" (2003).

She also appeared in the features "Cadet Kelly" (2002), "Agent Cody Banks" (2003), "Cheaper by the Dozen" (2003) and "A Cinderella Story" (2004).

She later appeared in indie films including "War, Inc." (2008), "According to Greta|" (2009) and "The Haunting of Sharon Tate" (2019).

From 2015 to 2021, Duff starred as 'Kelsey Peters' in TV Land’s longest-running original series "Younger".

As of 2022, she produces and stars as 'Sophie' in the TV series "How I Met Your Father".

Her second pop music album, "Metamorphosis" (2003), topped the 'Billboard 200' chart and earning a 3× 'Platinum' certification by the 'Recording Industry Association of America' (RIAA).

She had subequent 'Platinum' and 'Gold'-certified albums released through Hollywood Records including "Hilary Duff" (2004), "Most Wanted" (2005) and "Dignity" (2007), selling to date,...

Unfolding alongside Chile’s Santiago International Film Festival (Sanfic), Sanfic Industria runs August 20-26, promising a busy schedule that includes Iberoamerican Works in Progress (Wip) and a variety of labs that encompass fiction, documentaries, genre films, sustainable development, series, women producers’ projects, Xr etc. Some of the 11 sections will be in a hybrid or online format.

At its July 19 press conference, Sanfic Industria head Gabriela Sandoval will highlight the premiere of two hotly anticipated Chilean series that will screen at the annual event.

Both shows are expected to debut later this year on Chilean television before passing on to streaming platforms. Recipients of the Chilean National Television fund, both deal with women’s themes in distinct genres.

“We are very excited at Sanfic Industria to premiere these two series for the public. “Poemas Malditos” (“Cursed Poems”) will be shown in its entirety with all four episodes and “Cecilia la Incomparable...

Fabula’s “Superman’s Bodyguards,” “Sisi” head writer Andreas Gutzeit’s thriller “Disgrace” and “Hildur,” from Finland’s Matti Laine, who scored with “The Paradise,” all feature at this year’s still vastly expanded Conecta Fiction & Entertainment, the Europe-Latin America TV and networking forum, now in its seventh edition.

They will be presented to an audience of producers and distributors at the industry centerpiece at Conecta Fiction.

Set up at Juan de Dios and Pablo Larraín’s Fábula, producer of Oscar winning A fantastic Woman” and “Spencer,” “Superman’s Bodyguards” tells the true story of Christopher Reeve’s perilous mission to Chile to attempt to save the lives of 78 Chilean actors under death threat from an extreme right faction in a Chile still ruled by Augusto Pinochet.

A fast-paced thriller, “Disgrace” is from Story House Pictures’ Andreas Gutzeit, head writer on the banner Beta/Rtl Canneseries 2021 smash hit “Sisi,” sold to over 120 countries,...

Two deep cuts from Paramore’s latest album, This is Why, made their way onto the setlist for the band’s current tour. After a stretch of shows in England and Ireland, the band kicked off the North American leg in Charlotte, North Carolina, last night, where they performed “Figure 8” and “Big Man, Little Dignity” live for the first time.

Figure 8 live debut #ParamoreCharlotte pic.twitter.com/48cypJvTKa

— Paramore Tour Updates (@paramore_tour) May 24, 2023

Paramore mixed the new additions in with snapshots from each of their albums, from After Laughter...

Content Warning: This article discusses sexual assault and suicide.

While The Simpsons isn’t known for its dark humor, occasionally the family sitcom can get away with some seriously un-family-friendly gags. The Simpsons is not as edgy, profane, or dark as its competitors South Park, Family Guy, and American Dad. The iconic long-running animated sitcom relies on shock humor less than its imitators, with The Simpsons cultivating a more family-friendly image than the shows that followed its success. However, this doesn’t mean that The Simpsons is afraid of dark humor, and, particularly in its early seasons, the show could be shockingly cynical at times.

While The Simpsons season 34 changed the show’s formula from time to time, like most recent outings of the series, its humor is fairly reliably tame. The Simpsons largely dropped its bleak world from around season 3 onwards, replacing darker punchlines with a larger number of jokes and more cartoony,...

Actress Hilary Duff ("How I Met Your Father") poses for "Women's Health" magazine, photographed by Daniella Midenge:

Duff began her acting career as a teenager, starring as 'Lizzie McGuire' in "The Lizzie McGuire Movie" (2003).

She also appeared in the features "Cadet Kelly" (2002), "Agent Cody Banks" (2003), "Cheaper by the Dozen" (2003) and "A Cinderella Story" (2004).

She later appeared in indie films including "War, Inc." (2008), "According to Greta|" (2009) and "The Haunting of Sharon Tate" (2019).

From 2015 to 2021, Duff starred as 'Kelsey Peters' in TV Land’s longest-running original series "Younger".

As of 2022, she produces and stars as 'Sophie' in the TV series "How I Met Your Father".

Her second pop music album, "Metamorphosis" (2003), topped the 'Billboard 200' chart and earning a 3× 'Platinum' certification by the 'Recording Industry Association of America' (RIAA).

She had subequent 'Platinum' and 'Gold'-certified albums released through Hollywood Records including "Hilary Duff" (2004), "Most Wanted" (2005) and "Dignity" (2007), selling to date,...

New Europe Film Sales, handling international sales for Matías Rojas Valencia’s “A Place Called Dignity,” “Un lugar llamado dignidad” in Spanish, which is currently playing in competition at this year’s Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, have given Variety exclusive access to the film’s international trailer.

The film presents a dramatized look at events surrounding Paul Schaefer, a former Nazi soldier who fled to rural Chile after WWII. There, he established the German-speaking Colonia Dignidad (Dignity Colony) and reigned over a generations-long culture of torture, child abuse and murder, thanks to the protection of Chile’s former dictator Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship. Under Schaefer’s leadership the community entrenched itself, becoming indispensable to the locals and providing schooling and medical services in an area where there would otherwise be none.

Rojas’ film is a dramatized look at real-life events surrounding Schaefer’s time in Chile from the perspective of Pablo,...

Beta Film has closed a raft of major deals for the period drama “Sisi” ahead of its world premiere in Cannes on Monday. In addition, Rtl Deutschland has given the green light for the second season of the series.

“Sisi” will bow in Germany later this year on the streaming platform Rtl Plus and then on linear channel Rtl.

The six-hour period drama, produced by Story House Pictures, will be broadcast by Mediaset in Italy, Globoplay in Brasil, Npo in the Netherlands, Rtl in Hungary, Rtvs in Slovak Republic and Viasat World on its Epic Drama channel throughout Eastern Europe, Greece, Cyprus and Turkey.

Most recently, Beta Film signed a contract with Vtm Belgium. Previously, TF1 for France and Austrian pubcaster Orf joined as broadcasting partners. Numerous negotiations are ongoing.

The coming-of-age story of the Austrian Empress will celebrate its world premiere at the TV festival Canneseries on Monday, playing out of competition.

Chile’s Matías Bize, the multi-prized director of “In the Bed,” “The Life of Fish” and “The Memory of Water,” is attached to direct “The Stolen Kids” (“Niños de Contrabando”), a family drama straddling Chile and Europe set up at María Wood Producciones and MegaMedia, the latter part-owned by Discovery Networks Latin America.

A true-life inspired series, “The Stolen Kids” will be presented on Tuesday at Pamplona’s Conecta Fiction, the Europe-Latin America TV series co-production forum. It features as one of the 10 projects chosen for the event’s main Copro Series competition.

Relaunched in 2020 by Wood, producer of Turner’s “Mary & Mike” and Joyn’s “Dignity,” Maria Wood Producciones look set to focus, as in past series produced by Wood, on premium scripted drama of substance, with a social or political underbelly and frequent recourse to creative film talent.

That describes “The Stolen Kids” to a tee. In it,...

In its continued bid to explore new fiction content, Spain’s Mediacrest has joined forces with Chilean shingle Maria Wood Prods. to co-produce sci-fi series, “Humanity.”

This is the fledgling three-year-old company’s first collaboration with a Chilean producer and also its first with a Latin American company.

To be presented at Series Mania, the Mars-based series could not be more timely given the growing interest in the Red Planet by space exploration companies led by NASA and billionaires Elon Musk, Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos.

In July, Branson and Bezos flew to the edge of space nine days apart to much fanfare – and some trepidation – as part of their ambition to ferry passengers to space.

Created by Paula Sánchez, Jorge Hernández and Sergio Cámara from Mediacrest’s fiction department, led by Alberto Macías, “Humanity” is set in the not-so-distant future following the explosion of planet Earth – an apocalyptic scenario...

Currently shooting “Sisi” for the Rtl Group and Beta Film, Germany’s Story House Pictures has added N’Gone Thiam to the core writing team of six-hour suspense drama “Mozart/Mozart,” another powerhouse IP production, currently in development, which it will unveil an Series Mania.

“We’re super proud to have a young German writer of African heritage writing with us,” said Andreas Gutzeit, showrunner and managing director at Story House Pictures.

He added: “We’ve known N’gone from some prestigious writing seminars where she wrote very loud and very colorful scripts and we said that’s exactly what this show needs. She’s a new exciting and very original voice on her first major international series.” Thiam was chosen as one of six Story House writers, out of over 600 candidates.

On “Mozart/Mozart,” a series which is inspired by true facts and has a large contemporary resonance, Thiam joins Gutzeit,...

Natalia Oreiro (“I’m Gilda”), Gustavo Bassani (“Separados”) and Mercedes Moran (“Spider) head the cast of Argentine Amazon Original “Iosi, El Espía Arrepentido,” one of Amazon Prime Original’s biggest bets to date in Latin America.

The series, an espionage thriller, will be available exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.

Showrun by Daniel Burman, a leading light of the New Argentine Cinema and recent Cannes Un Certain Regard jury member, “Iosi, El Espía Arrepentido” is produced by Oficina Burman, part of The Mediapro Studio, whose credits include “Pequeña Victoria” and “Pequeñas victorias, perdidxs en la Tierra,” both produced with Vis, with the latter acquired for Latin America by Amazon Prime Video.

Burman serves a series creator and showrunner on a banner project for the writer-director, which was one of the two he presented in person at Berlin Festival in 2017 when Mediapro confirmed it had taken a substantial stake in Oficina Burman.

Conecta Fiction, Spain’s still expanding Europe-Latin American TV Forum, revealed the finalists for five of its six pitching categories at an opening online session of its 2021 4th edition.

Running June 28-3o, the online Conecta Fiction will be followed by a hybrid edition over Sept. 13-17 in Pamplona when the now selected projects will be pitched on site at sessions available online for delegates, especially from Latin America, who will not be able to attend in person.

Few details of projects have been given beyond titles, producers, key creatives and genre. Among series in the key international CoPro and Short-Form categories are titles from top Chilean animation producer Zumbastico Studios (“Paper Port”), Mr. Miyagi Films, co-producer of Netflix smash hit “The Platform,” and Spain’s Aqui y Alli Films, the company behind the the acclaimed “Life and Nothing More” and San Sebastian Golden Shell winner “Magical Girl.”

Also in...

One day in 1992, Angélique Kidjo walked into a magazine editor’s office and found herself being introduced over the phone to one of her all-time favorite artists.

“Someone said, ‘Mrs. Kidjo, Mr. Brown wants to talk to you,’” she recalls. In stunned disbelief, she replied, “Yeah, and I’m Mother Teresa.” But it really was James Brown, the Godfather of Soul himself, asking to talk to her.

“I almost dropped the phone,” she continues. “He was speaking, and I couldn’t understand, so I started singing. He picked up the...

Omid Abtahi is currently commanding the fanboy scene with featured roles in The Mandalorian and American Gods, complementing his notable past roles in Argo, Better Call Saul, and Damien, as well as voice performances in the World of Warcraft and Call of Duty videogame franchises. Justice Society: World War II represents his DC Universe Movies debut.

Produced by Warner Bros. Animation and DC, the feature-length animated Justice Society: World War II will be distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on Digital starting April 27, 2021, and on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack and Blu-ray on May 11, 2021.

The three interview bites (tied together) feature Abtahi discussing the opportunity to play a superhero of Middle Eastern descent, his appreciation for the depth of the characterizations in Justice Society: World War II’s script, and his need for performing in productions appropriate for his young son to experience.

Spain’s Black Panther Films and Chile’s Invercine Prods. (“Dignidad”) have joined forces to co-produce a gangster thriller series based on the eponymous bestseller “Matadero Franklin” (“Slaughterhouse Franklin”) by Simon Soto.

The first season, starring Chile’s most bankable star, Alfredo Castro (“My Tender Matador”), comprises six episodes while a second season is already in the works.

“Matadero Franklin” follows a young Mario “Cabro” Leiva whose life is upended when the powerful gangster Felipe Cortina, aka “the Spaniard,” returns to the Franklin Slaughterhouse. Cabro, who has enjoyed the protection of respected butcher “Lobo” Mardones, will have to decide whether to remain loyal to Mardones, or to embrace the life of crime, passion and obscene wealth offered by “the Spaniard.”

“If we could combine “Fargo,” “The Sopranos,” “Gangs of New York” and set them in Chile of the last century, the end result would not be as surprising,” noted Soto,...

American Gods was recently cancelled by Starz, but the series could still return for a fourth season. Novelist and executive producer Neil Gaiman and Fremantle are still committed to the show and completing its story. The series could land on streaming services like Netflix (which is making a series based on Gaiman's Sandman comics) or Amazon (which already streams Gods internationally and produced Gaiman's Good Omens).

Read More…...

Deadline has confirmed that DC Films no longer is developing the properties New Gods, which had Ava DuVernay attached to direct, and Aquaman spinoff The Trench, which Noah Gardner and Aidan Fitzgerald were penning for James Wan possibly to helm.

I hear The Trench is shelved due to Wan’s busy schedule with Aquaman 2, while New Gods, created by Jack Kirby, was stopped as the parameters of that project far exceeded a feature stand-alone structure. The Trench, which was to have a horror bent, was based on the creature Aquaman battles.

Warner Bros and DC Films released this statement today in regards to the projects:

“As part of our DC slate, some legacy development titles including New Gods and The Trench will not be moving forward. We thank our partners Ava DuVernay, Tom King, James Wan and Peter Safran for their time and collaboration during this process and look...

There’s a particular set of scenes in Angélique Kidjo and Yemi Alade’s newest music video that may most resonate with immigrants in the West. A Black laborer does grueling work at a shipping yard for an envelope of cash he designates to send back home; the Western Union paperwork in his locker is a beacon of familiarity and a conduit between worlds. The song’s union of 60-year-old Beninese sensation Kidjo and 32-year-old Nigerian star Alade similarly connects countries, generations, and struggles. Inspired by the youth-led protests against...

Starz is done playing Gods.

The just-completed third season of American Gods will be its last, our sister site Deadline reports. The network confirms that the show will not return for a fourth season. The story may continue, though, in an event series or wrap-up movie.

More from TVLineThe Gloaming Premiere Recap: Grade Starz's Eerie Aussie Murder MysteryAmerican Gods Finale: Stars Weigh In on Mr. Wednesday's Final (?) Screw-YouThe TVLine-Up: What's New, Returning and Leaving the Week of March 21

“Everyone at Starz is grateful to the dedicated cast and crew, and our partners at Fremantle who brought author and executive producer...

Pushed back from last August and now held online as Covid-19 still rages in Chile, Sanfic Industria, the high-energy industry part of Santiago de Chile’s Sanfic festival, runs March 18-26. Given its context, it bids to play an even more crucial role in Latin America’s industry re-set after experiencing a more punishing pandemic impact than any other part of the world.

Sanfic Industria: More Growth, Despite Covid-19

Over the last 12 months, film and TV events, whether virtual or on-site, have almost all slimmed. Sanfic Industria, in contrast, is expanding, adding a much-awaited Series Lab showcase. Santiago Lab has already evolved massively over the last two-to-three years, blossoming from a tight-knit niche launchpad for promising titles to a can’t-miss event for many of the region’s most ambitious projects.

Further growth, and a move into drama series, looked inevitable. Over the last five years, high-end drama series production...

In a drive for authenticity, Chile’s Parox, producer of “Invisible Heroes,” has attached Katherina Harder to direct “Silver Bridge” (Puente de Plata), a Latin American drug trade origins saga billed by Parox and Harder as a feminist romantic melodrama.

Produced by Alvaro Cabello and Parox founders Sergio Gándara and Leonora González, “Silver Bridge” weighs in as a standout title at Sanfic Industria’s new Sanfic Lab showcase, which unspools March 24. Originally written by Enrique Videla, whose credits include Joyn series “Dignidad” and Amazon and HBO Max series “La Jauría,” “Silver Bridge” now has a bible and pilot both written as well as a teaser-trailer.

Based out of Chile and Barcelona, Harder helmed the live action short “Memorias del viento” (Guiding Sights) which played at 35 film festivals, winning best short at Chile’s Valdivia fest, plus doc-reality “4to Medio,” produced by Parox for Chilean network Tvn. Her debut feature project,...

The BFI, BAFTA and more than 40 other industry partners are teaming to launch an ‘Action List’ to aid the biz in pro-actively tackling bullying, harassment and racism in the workplace.

As the industry continues to ride out the wave of Covid-19-related production shutdowns and disruption, inappropriate conduct remains a key battleground despite the lack of on-set activity.

“The industry has been facing additional pressures [during the pandemic] and that has translated into challenging behaviors in some cases,” Jen Smith, the BFI’s Head of Inclusion, told Deadline. She added that different ways of working, particularly under Covid safety protocols, have led to increased tensions and in some cases poor conduct. “It’s a pressured environment anyway [being on set], and the pandemic has added further pressures, so this is a good opportunity to say ‘let’s remember, certain behaviors are not acceptable’.”

Tim Hunter, BAFTA’s Director of Learning, Policy and Inclusion, said that there...

Things I learned from this week’s Men in Kilts: It takes nine yards of fabric to make a kilt. Herding sheep is exactly as hard as you’d think it would be. And anything — even a love poem to a haggis — can be entrancing when crooned by a well-lit Scot with a gorgeous vista behind him.

Episode 5 dips into Scottish culture and tradition. Because, as Graham reminds us near the top of the ep, “Few countries rival Scotland when it comes to tradition.” The installment’s throughline feels a wee bit generic — after all, couldn’t pretty much...

The Performer | Alan Tudyk

The Show | Syfy’s Resident Alien

More from TVLineAmerican Gods Kills Off Another Deity -- Hear From the God HimselfTV Ratings: Shuffled Around by Biden Address, Thursday Shows SlipStation 19 Midseason Premiere Recap: Cold Blood and Hot Pursuit

The Episode | “The Green Glow” (March 10, 2021)

The Performance | Is anyone on TV having more fun than Alan Tudyk right now? On Resident Alien, Tudyk plays an extraterrestrial hellbent on destroying mankind, yet posing as a human doctor named Harry Vanderspeigle. The premise, which is equally quirky and campy, provides the actor with a fantastical sci-fi playground to romp around in,...

This week’s episode of Men in Kilts is officially titled “Witchcraft & Superstition” but should actually be called “All the Ways Sam Tries to Give Graham a Heart Attack.”

The installment focuses on all the ways Scots are obsessed with everything otherworldly. After all, as Sam voiceovers near the top of the ep, you can’t throw a stale bannock in Scotland without hitting a cemetery, castle or some sort of ancient ruins, “and the barrier between the world of the living and the world of the dead is especially thin.” Like Midnight, Texas, but plaid! And no weretigers… I think.

Chile’s Santiago International Film Festival (Sanfic), which is preparing for its rescheduled, entirely digital industry section which will run March 18-25, ahead of its traditional in-person festival, scheduled for August, has revealed the projects’ lineup for its Santiago Lab Fiction, Documentary and Series sections.

Sanfic’s brand new Series Lab, headed by Agustina Lumi and Alejandra Marano, has selected six Chilean productions or co-productions representative of the region’s impressive push into original TV production with the legs to travel to international broadcasters and platforms – see Fabula’s Amazon Prime Video pickup “La Jauria” or Germany-Chile co-production “Dignity” for German platform Joyn.

Santiago Series Lab is highlighted by Kathy Harder’s “Silver Bridges,” from “Invisible Heroes” producers Parox. The series was first announced at MipCancun 2018 and dramatizes the origins of Chile’s cocaine trade. Another standout can be found in International Emmy winner Hernán Caffiero’s “Anonymous Voices,” produced by Btf Media.

In today’s Global Bulletin, John Boyega’s UpperRoom sets animation deal with ViacomCBS’s Vis Kids; Germany’s Bavaria Film acquires Story House companies; and International Literary Properties appoints Hilary Strong as U.K./Europe CEO.

“Star Wars” and “Small Axe” actor John Boyega‘s UpperRoom Productions has set a deal to present three to five animation projects to ViacomCBS International Studios‘ Vis Kids for development into a long form series. The deal is one amongst several announced on Tuesday.

Other animation agreements from Vis Kids include a first-look deal with Fred Seibert‘s FredFilms (Nickelodeon’s “The Fairy OddParents”) for three projects; a female-led adventure comedy with Wildseed Studios; a Korea-originated fish out of water comedy by Jiwan Yoon; and a development deal with Argentine cartoonist and writer, Liniers, for an adaptation of an upcoming new book.

Among live action content, Vis Kids has optioned the rights for “¡Socorro!

Actor Ian McShane kicked off the most recent episode of The First Time with the story of how he first got involved with American Gods.

McShane initially didn’t think he was the right fit for the series after being offered the role of Czernobog (played by Peter Stormare in the series) back in 2016, but he became fond of his character, Mr. Wednesday, after reading the script.

“I said [Mr. Wednesday] is a little more interesting,” McShane recalls. “And [writer/producer] Michael [Green] said, ‘Well you know, we’ll talk about it. I thought you...

After acquiring Chinese New Year title The Yin Yang Master last week, Netflix is adding animated fantasy New Gods: Nezha Reborn to its roster. The film, based on the classic mythology The Romance Of The Gods, debuted theatrically in China for Lunar New Year on February 12 and grossed $21.3M through the weekend. To date, it has made over $36M in the market. Netflix has taken exclusive global streaming rights outside China.

The reimagined world of New Gods: Nezha Reborn was created by the original crew of White Snake: Origin, over a four-year period. It’s directed by Zhao Ji and features the voices of Yang Tianxiang, Xuan Xiaoming, Ling Zhenhe, Zhu Ke’er and Li Shimeng.

Produced by Alibaba Pictures and with animation from Light Chaser Animation Studios, the film is set the mythical Donghai City, a melting pot where gods and people from different cultures co-exist. Nezha is reborn as Li Yunxiang,...

As is obligatory for the start of a new year, it’s time to look back at the sh*t-show that was last year and pick out our highlights of the year… First up, Phil’s Top 5 Nintendo Switch games of 2020.

Let’S Sing 2021

Honestly, Let’s Sing 2021 isn’t much of a change from last years iteration but when that game was without a doubt The best karaoke game ever made. RavensCourt and Voxler know what works and they’ve stuck to the winning formula… It seems that, at least for now, there’s no way to improve on perfection (which the last game was), merely the ability to tweak things slightly for a smoother experience. If you like these kinds of karaoke games you owe it to yourself to grab a copy of Let’s Sing 2021 now.

The Takeover

Debuting a little too close to the release of...

Good ol’ 2-Bit shows up on the Stansfield campus in this week’s Power Book II: Ghost, just in time for Parents’ Weekend. And that makes sense, in a way: Though he’s no longer with us, the sins of Tariq’s father continue to truly eff with his son’s life.

But the Tejada family is not without its share of turmoil in “Family First,” which chronicles Cane’s ouster from Monet’s inner circle — not to mention her house. Read on for the episode’s highlights.

More from TVLineAmerican Gods Season 3: Shadow Has an Audience With Blythe Danner...

Rapidly consolidating as one of South America’s banner film-tv events, Chile’s 17th Santiago International Film Festival (Sanfic) will split the Sanfic Industria section into two parts next year with a fully virtual industry section and marketplace to be held March 18-25 and an in-person festival in August.

Five Industria sections will unspool online in March including the traditional Santiago Lab for Ibero-American projects and Sanfic Wip sidebars as well as three new events: Sanfic Net: Business Tables; Sanfic Series Lab; and Ibero-American Women Producers In Focus. Several of the events will then host on-site counterparts at August’s festival.

“We decided to hold off on sections which included screenings of finished films or series until the face-to-face version in August because exhibiting online burns a window,” Sandoval said of the festival’s industry split. “We considered an outdoor event in March, but we can’t be sure of...

A Grimm cop and a Practice legal eagle are the two newest members of Starz’s Black Mafia Family.

Russell Hornsby and Steve Harris will be series regulars in Curtis “50 Cent'” Jackson’s new drama, our sister site Deadline reports.

More from TVLineAmerican Gods Season 3: Shadow Has an Audience With Blythe Danner's Goddess -- 2021 First Lookjag's David James Elliott to Play Stephen Amell's Dad in Starz's HeelsPower Book II: Ghost Recap: Let's Talk About Sex Week

The drama is based on the real lives of Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory and his brother, Terry “Southwest T” Flenory, kingpins...

As a growing clutch of earlier events postpone to later in the year, major French TV festival Canneseries is holding firm, returning to its traditional mid-April dates — in this case April 9-14 — for its fourth edition in 2021, which will be a hybrid affair.

The third Cannes Intl. Series Festival ran Oct. 9-14 onsite in Cannes, attracting an unexpected influx of French industry executives accompanying titles at the festival who were delighted to be attending an on-site event again.

It also launched an online version for executives unable to attend in person, screening all competition contenders via Festival Scope to industry execs, the press and a limited public audience of 2,000 viewers in and sometimes outside France.

In a classic example of a festival carrying over online elements into 2021, Canneseries is planning a second hybrid event with on-site screenings at Cannes’ Palais des Festivals for the TV festival’s Official Selection line-up,...

A character from the original Power shows up in this week’s Book II: Ghost, and while it’s not (yet) the lovable blonde psychopath Tasha named in court at the start of the series… it’s certainly someone who could mess ish up for her in a heartbeat.

The criminal in question is 2-Bit, aka the member of Tommy’s crew who wound up in jail at the end of last season but didn’t turn informer to get out early. And he still didn’t turn informer… but by the end of the episode, he’s definitely out of prison earlier than expected.

BAFTA Execs To Speak At British Urban Film Festival

Exclusive: The British Urban Film Festival (Buff) has set BAFTA Chair Krishnendu Majumdar and BAFTA Film Committee Chair Marc Samuelson for a 90-minute ‘in conversation’ session at this year’s festival, which is taking place later than usual and online as a result of the coronavirus lockdown. The pre-recorded Q&a, titled The Changing Faces of BAFTA, will be moderated by Emmanuel Anyiam-Osigwe and streamed via the festival’s website next month. Viewers will be able to submit questions in advance of the Zoom session via the Buff Facebook page. Actor and producer Femi Oyeniran will once again helm the annual Buff awards ceremony. Winners last year included Noel Clarke, Terry Pheto and Aki Omoshaybi. The festival’s full program is due to be announced in coming weeks.

Sbs Begins “Most Ambitious Drama Yet”

Oz broadcaster Sbs has begun its “most...