As the industry was rocked last year by layoffs, budget cuts, runaway production, a decline in volume and an overall malaise, one mantra kept popping up: “Survive ‘til ’25!” It was a bit of a hopeful rhyme, as Hollywood looked for some light at the end of this turbulent tunnel. Well, 2025 is here. And […]

America loves a parade. America also loves to learn from Oprah, to rock with Ryan Seacrest on New Year’s Eve and to belt out the hits with Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden. The list of the year’s top 25 most-watched entertainment specials is topped by NBC’s Turkey Day telecast of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day […]

There’s a reason why even streamers like Netflix now want a piece of the live sports action. It’s what rules our viewing habits, as witnessed by Variety‘s annual list of the year’s 100 most-watched primetime telecasts. A full 75 out of those 100 slots went to sports (up from 56 last year), thanks to 45 […]

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers from “The Dive,” the seventh episode of “Silo” Season 2, now streaming on Apple TV+. On the official poster for Season 2 of Apple TV+’s “Silo,” Rebecca Ferguson can barely keep her head above water. That image of Ferguson as mechanic Juliette, partially submerged underwater, has loomed large over […]

The broadcast bounce is real. As 2024 ends, CBS led the pack in total viewers for the year thanks, of course, to Super Bowl LVIII. No surprise, live sports continues to work its magic for the traditional networks, as NBC was also up year vs. year and even took the adults 18-49 crown for 2024 […]

SPOILER ALERT: The following interview contains spoilers from “The Last Thanksgiving,” the second season finale of “Shrinking,” now streaming on AppleTV+. The sophomore season of AppleTV+ comedy “Shrinking” wrapped on Christmas Eve appropriately enough with a holiday episode (Thanksgiving), where this group of funny, complicated therapists and their loved ones shared what they are thankful for […]

Longtime “The Simpsons” writer Carolyn Omine  was dealt a few personal setbacks the past few years, as both her father and sister died — while she was also facing the professional uncertainty that came with the Hollywood strikes. As Omine faced these hard moments, she found escape in watching videos of English mentalist and illusionist […]

When Ronny Chieng was writing the material for his new Netflix special “Love to Hate It” back in 2023, he included a few now prescient jokes about the MAGA movement. But back then, the idea that Donald Trump would somehow return to the White House wasn’t on anyone’s minds — so much so that he […]

With ten minutes to go before “The Talk” signed off for good, the champagne was already flowing on set. “The Talk” ended its 15-year run on Friday with one final live episode, and the show’s producers ended the show’s run by gathering its cast and crew on stage for a final, celebratory toast. The crowd […]

Can “Matlock” crack the case of the disappearing SAG Awards broadcast nominations? The CBS drama has been an out-of-the-box hit this fall, earning acclaim for star Kathy Bates and even already landing a Season 2 pickup. The folks at CBS Studios are bullish enough on its awards chances — particularly for the beloved Bates — […]

“The Talk” executive producer Rob Crabbe is getting a little too familiar with TV goodbyes. A year and a half after his previous talker, “The Late Late Show With James Corden,” signed off, he’s now doing the same thing on Friday with “The Talk.” It’s a different kind of show, and therefore a different kind […]

There’s a moment in Thursday night’s Christmas-themed “Ghosts” two-parter where the body of Rose McIver’s character, Sam, is suddenly inhabited by sassy downstairs cholera spirit Nancy (Betsy Sodaro). “Ghosts” requires its stars to participate in all sorts of hijinks on a weekly basis — and in this case, McIver was tasked with imitating Sodaro as […]

SPOILER ALERT: Details follow for Season 12, Episode 12 of “The Masked Singer,” “Finale: Champion Is Crowned,” which aired Wednesday, December 18 on Fox. Although we’ve come to the end of the road, we can’t let go. On this one sweet day, Motownphilly’s back again: Boyz II Men (as the Buffalo) won Season 12 of […]

Longtime ABC News star George Stephanopoulos has reached a new deal that will keep him at ABC News and as an anchor on “Good Morning America” for the near term. The news should end speculation that the well-paid Stephanopolous was on his way out as the Disney-owned network, along with every news organization, looks to […]

As she prepares to add the Warner Bros. Discovery U.S. networks to her oversight in January, Warner Bros. Television Group chairman/CEO Channing Dungey is finalizing the division’s new executive structure. That includes expanding duties for her top lieutenant at Warner Bros. TV Group, Brett Paul, who will now also serve as chief operating officer for […]

In the race to produce a documentary special about the killing of United Healthcare CEO and alleged shooter Luigi Mangione, ABC News may be first out of the gate. Variety has learned that ABC News Studios is crashing the one-hour special “Manhunt: Luigi Mangione and the CEO Murder — A Special Edition of 20/20,” which […]

The race to produce true crime and documentary about Luigi Mangione — the man accused of killing United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York — continues to get more crowded. Next up, Variety has learned that Warner Bros. Discovery true crime network Investigation Discovery is readying its own take on the story, which has […]

Streaming has not been kind to Chuck Lorre’s vanity cards. The mega producer has been using his production company logo (which is flashed for a second at the end of each episode) for decades to share essays, make jokes and write diatribes about the world around him. But for his Max series “Bookie,” Lorre has […]

Authentic Studios and Baz Luhrmann are having a little more conversation about Elvis Presley. Luhrmann is directing and producing a new documentary about the King of Rock & Roll, centered on never-before-seen footage and recordings of Presley that he unearthed while creating his film “Elvis.” That’s one of several projects in the works at Authentic […]