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Hozier Brings Christmas Vibes to ‘Saturday Night Live’ With Emotional Performance and Changed Lyrics to ‘Fairytale of New York’

Hozier was the musical guest on “Saturday Night Live’s” Christmas edition Saturday night, and for his second song, the Irish artist paid tribute to the Pogues’ classic “Fairytale of New York.” On social media, viewers praised Hozier’s emotional cover of the song that has become a Christmas standard since it was released in 1987, finding […]

‘Transformers One’ Gave Optimus Prime and Megatron a ‘Youthful Naivete’ in Their Origin Story

To make Paramount and Hasbro’s first fully CG-animated Transformers movie, Academy Award-winning director Josh Cooley (“Toy Story 4”) turned to Industrial Light & Magic, the visual effects studio behind the franchise’s live-action movies. The first challenge to making “Transformers One” was defining the overall look, which in this case involved a design philosophy that was […]

‘Mufasa’ Box Office: ‘The Lion King’ Prequel Scores $87 Million Internationally, $122 Million Globally

“Mufasa” has reigned supreme at the global box office, but the “Lion King” prequel is lacking the bite of Disney’s prior live-action adaptations. The movie, a prequel to director Jon Favreau’s 2019 photorealistic “The Lion King” remake, powered to $87.2 million overseas and $122 million globally. While those ticket sales were enough to top the […]

Box Office: ‘Sonic 3’ Speeds to $62 Million Debut, ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’ Gets Trampled With $35 Million

“Sonic the Hedgehog 3” is powering to the top of box office charts while “Mufasa: The Lion King” is getting trampled in its first weekend of release. Paramount’s third “Sonic” adventure has opened at No. 1 with $62 million from 3,761 North American theaters. Bolstered by positive reviews and strong audience scores, the film beat […]

‘SNL’: Colin Jost Forced to Tell Dirty Jokes About Wife Scarlett Johansson as She Watches Backstage: ‘Oh My Gosh, She’s So Genuinely Worried!’

For several years, the final “Saturday Night Live” episode of the year includes a segment of “Weekend Update” in which co-anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che write jokes that the other must read for the first time on the air. For Jost, this typically has meant Che forces him to say a litany of jokes […]

‘SNL’ Host Martin Short Welcomed to Five-Timers Club by Tom Hanks, Emma Stone, Alec Baldwin, Tina Fey and More

Tom Hanks opened the 2024 season finale of “Saturday Night Live” and could barely get out a “hello” before the audience in Studio 8H went wild with excitement. Sitting in a leather chair and wearing his Five-Timers Club jacket, the actor said, “Hello, I’m Tom Hanks.” Explaining the origin of the esteemed club, Hanks said, […]

Jonathan Bennett Wants a ‘Mean Girls’ Christmas Film Reunion With Lindsay Lohan and Lacey Chabert

Jonathan Bennett wants a “Mean Girls” reunion. Bennett, along with his “Mean Girls” co-stars Lindsay Lohan and Lacey Chabert, is leading his own Christmas special this year and suggested the idea of the trio reuniting on a holiday film. “I think what’s so special about the similarities between ‘Mean Girls’ and Christmas movies is they both have a through line — and […]

‘Suicide Squad’ Director David Ayer Defends James Gunn’s ‘Superman’ Amid Online Backlash: ‘As a Filmmaker I Want to Support Other Filmmakers’

David Ayer has responded to public criticism for his support of James Gunn‘s upcoming film “Superman” and his cinematic expansion of the collective DC Universe. A few days prior to the release of the “Superman” trailer, Ayer addressed the ongoing campaign among his fans to promote and release his cut of the 2016 feature “Suicide Squad.” He asked fans to […]

‘Sonic the Hedgehog 3’ Director Jeff Fowler on Casting Keanu Reeves as Shadow, Bringing Back Jim Carrey and What’s Next for the Franchise

Jeff Fowler has directed all three “Sonic the Hedgehog” films, but his association with the video game franchise pre-dates the spikey haired speedster’s big screen debut. Like any self-respecting child of the 1990’s, he grew up playing “Sonic.” “I loved his attitude and that swagger that he had,” Fowler says. “It was impossible not to […]

‘Daughter of Ruins’ Author and ‘Extra’ Producer on Plans for TV Adaptation of Greek Immigrant Story, Ideas for Sequel Novel

“Daughter of Ruins” author and longtime “Extra” senior supervising producer Yvette Manessis Corporon has been dreaming of her Greek-historical-and-mythology-laced novels being adapted for television since her debut title “When The Cypress Whispers” was released in 2014. Now, 10 years later, the author with Greek ancestry is more hopeful than ever for a chance to break […]

WGA Prohibits Work with Village Roadshow After It ‘Refused’ to Pay Members For ‘Numerous Projects’

The Writers Guild of America has blacklisted Village Roadshow, prohibiting its members from working with the company after it refused to pay a number of its writers, Variety has confirmed. “It has come to the Guild’s attention that over the last few months Village Roadshow hasn’t paid writers on numerous projects,” read a statement released […]

How ‘The Brutalist’ Production Designer Made the Most of a Low Budget and Turned Budapest Into Philadelphia

Judy Becker’s portfolio of production design work on films like “American Hustle” and “Carol” prepared her to take on the unique challenge of shooting a period piece. “Carol” was shot in Cincinnati doubling for New York and “American Hustle” was shot in Boston and also meant to be New York, so she’s “used to looking […]

Lin-Manuel Miranda Breaks Down ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’ Songs — and How He Convinced Barry Jenkins to Add the Villain Anthem ‘Bye Bye’

SPOILER WARNING: This story discusses plot details for “Mufasa: The Lion King,” in theaters on Dec. 20. Lin-Manuel Miranda knows his way around a Disney tune. After winning Grammys and earning Oscar nods for his “Moana” and “Encanto” songs (including “How Far I’ll Go,” “Dos Oruguitas” and, of course, the viral earworm “We Don’t Talk […]

Disney Executive Reveals Why ‘The Acolyte’ Was Canceled After One Season: ‘It Wasn’t Where We Needed it to Be Given the Cost’

A Disney exec has revealed why “The Acolyte” was canceled after just one season. In an interview with Vulture, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment Alan Bergman said while the House of Mouse was pleased with how “The Acolyte” performed in its single season Disney+ debut, it wasn’t enough to justify a follow-up considering the price tag. “We […]

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