CNN – Entertainment

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN With a mini-reunion of key players from “Big Little Lies” at its core, “Nine Perfect Strangers” combines a book by Liane Moriarty with Nicole Kidman and writer-producer David E. Kelley, then surrounds them with an equally impressive cast. The series is another one of those riddles wrapped in a mystery,

By Laura Ly, CNN A lawsuit filed in New York City claims that legendary singer-songwriter Bob Dylan sexually abused a 12-year-old girl in 1965, according to court documents filed Friday. The now-68-year-old woman, identified in the lawsuit as J.C., alleges that “over a six-week period” the singer “befriended and established an emotional connection” with her

By Lisa Respers France, CNN According to Johnny Depp, the past five years have been “surreal” for him. In his first published interview since losing a libel suit against against the publisher of Britain’s The Sun newspaper, the actor talked to The Sunday Times about his new movie “Minamata.” Depp, who also served as one

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Well, that was quick and yet not. Ryan Reynolds’ latest film “Free Guy” just came out and already there is talk of a sequel. Over the weekend, Reynolds took to his verified Twitter account to confirm it. “Aaannnnd after 3 years messaging #FreeGuy as an original IP movie, Disney confirmed

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Debra Winger has shared why she says Geena Davis replaced her in the 1992 film “A League of Their Own.” In an interview with The Telegraph, Winger says she left the Penny Marshall directed film about a pioneering group of women baseball players following the addition of Madonna to the

By Lisa Respers France, CNN “Boys Don’t Cry,” but in the case of Simon Gallup, they do post their feelings on Facebook and offer their resignation publicly. In a public post on Facebook over the weekend, The Cure bassist wrote, “With a slightly heavy heart I am no longer a member of the Cure! Good

By Toyin Owoseje, CNN Travis Barker has flown on a plane for the first time since he survived a deadly plane crash 13 years ago, TMZ reports. According to the online outlet, the Blink-182 drummer took a flight to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, from Los Angeles with his girlfriend, Kourtney Kardashian, on Saturday. Photographs obtained

By Deanna Hackney, CNN Folk and country singer and songwriter Nanci Griffith, whose album “Other Voices, Other Rooms” won the 1994 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album, died on Friday. She was 68. Griffith passed away in Nashville, Tennessee, according to her management company. A representative for Gold Mountain Media did not give a

By Scottie Andrew, CNN There’s a scene in the very first episode of HBO’s critically acclaimed prestige drama, “Succession,” that is about as viscerally unsettling to watch as a Jigsaw death trap in a “Saw” film. The pilot sees the media magnate Roy family — an amalgam of the Murdochs, the Hearsts and other dynasties

By Brian Lowry, CNN If you need any further proof that things have changed for comic-book fans from the bad old days — when Hollywood tended to vamp up and camp up those titles, if they deigned to produce them at all — look no further than this week, which saw the streaming arrival of

By Harmeet Kaur, CNN In times like these, everyone needs a superhero. Fortunately, you can find one on Free Comic Book Day. On Saturday, stores across North America will be handing out special Free Comic Book Day editions of books from a range of publishers, including favorites like Marvel and DC. And yes, they’ll really

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Elton John and Dua Lipa love each other. And we should be grateful for that because it’s yielded us the track “Cold Heart (Pnau Remix),” which dropped on Friday. The song features John singing lyrics from his 1989 single “Sacrifice” and Lipa coming with lyrics from the classic John hit,

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Paulina Porizkova got vulnerable on Instagram Thursday. The model and actress shared a tearful, grief stricken selfie. In the caption she wrote, “I know you all enjoy happy posts, seeing people pick themselves up, dust off their pants and get back on the horse, all while smiling to let you

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN If you’re the type who enjoys consuming an eight-episode limited series and thinking “What the heck did I just watch?” when it’s over, “Brand New Cherry Flavor” might be for you. Otherwise, this bizarre Netflix drama will likely be an acquired taste, mashing up bad-old Hollywood with the supernatural, witchcraft

By Toyin Owoseje, CNN Selma Blair believed she was “shooting the final days of (her) life” at one point during the filming of an upcoming documentary following her battle with multiple sclerosis (MS), a trailer for the movie reveals. The actress, best known for her work in films like “Cruel Intentions” and “Legally Blonde,” was

By Lisa Respers France, CNN The news that Britney Spears’s father is willing to step down as the conservator of her estate was met with joy and cautious optimism on social media by the singer’s supporters. In a court filing obtained by CNN, Jamie Spears defended his actions as conservator, but said he is willing

By Amy Woodyatt, CNN The Rumors are true — Lizzo and Cardi B have collaborated. Lizzo dropped the video for her first new single in two years on Friday, which features her and pregnant rap superstar Cardi B. The stars — dripping in finery — are both center stage in the gold-plated video, which takes

By Lisa Respers France and Chloe Melas, CNN After months of public pressure from supporters of Britney Spears, Jamie Spears, the singer’s father, signaled in a legal response Thursday that he intends to step down as conservator of the singer’s estate, according a court filing obtained by CNN. “There are, in fact, no actual grounds

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN Earnest to a fault, “Respect” spells out a handsome tribute to Aretha Franklin, with Jennifer Hudson and her peerless singing pipes as its formidable anchor. Yet this biography never fully sparks to life, as the Queen of Soul fights in episodic fashion to establish and later protect her musical legacy

By Kristina Sgueglia, CNN Rock band Phish announced mid-tour a more stringent policy Thursday requiring ticketholders for their summer and fall tour dates provide proof of Covid-19 vaccination or a negative test, beginning with their shows at The Gorge in Washington later this month. The foursome, known for their marathon jam sessions and longtime devoted

By Megan Thomas, CNN Remember those smurfy Saturday mornings from your childhood, (now grown and tired) children of the ’80s? If not, the first trailer for “The Smurfs” reboot will take you back there. Papa Smurf, Smurfette, Brainy, Hefty and their nemesis Gargamel have all returned in a new CGI-animated series for Nickelodeon. The show

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Kanye West is not lacking at all in confidence and according to Kim Kardashian West, he passed some of that on to her. The couple may be in the midst of getting divorced, but the love train keeps a running with Kardashian West talking glowingly about the rapper/producer/entrepreneur. Kardashian West

By Lisa Respers France, CNN No one can say John Cena doesn’t pay attention to the internet. The actor and wrestler shared a photo of bodybuilder and trainer Brendan Cobbina that has been making the rounds on social media because of his resemblance to Cena. Cena posted the photo on his verified Instagram account without

By Lisa Respers France, CNN The Kunis-Kutcher kids took a shower, you guys. We know that thanks to a funny video Ashton Kutcher posted Wednesday on his verified Instagram account of wife Mila Kunis standing in the bathroom as their children were cleaning up. (The video is kid safe.) This matters because the couple kicked

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Brendan Fraser feels the love. The actor appeared on TikTok with video from a virtual meet and greet. Lindley Key, who has shared videos of her cosplaying Rachel Weisz as Evelyn O’Connell in Fraser’s hit film “The Mummy,” posted video of a conversation she had with Fraser. “The internet is

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Answer: This person not being selected to host “Jeopardy!” has caused a bit of outrage. Who is LeVar Burton? Burton fans are not happy that he didn’t snag the gig to replace beloved longtime host Alex Trebek who died in November 2020 at the age of 80 after battling pancreatic

By Faith Karimi, CNN Dolly Parton sings, funds vaccines and provides children with free books. Now she’s writing her own novel. The country music queen has teamed up with bestselling author, James Patterson, to publish a novel that they co-wrote, they announced Wednesday. Set in Tennessee, the novel titled “Run, Rose, Run” is about a

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Jennifer Hudson has Aretha Franklin to thank, in part, for her career. Hudson first came to fame in 2004 as a finalist on “American Idol.” She auditioned for the reality singing competition with Franklin’s song, “Share Your Love With Me.” Fast forward to 2021 and Hudson is now a Grammy

Nominees for the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards were revealed Wednesday. Justin Bieber leads this year’s list of nominees with seven, followed by Megan Thee Stallion with six nods. Billie Eilish, BTS, Doja Cat, Drake, Giveon, Lil Nas X and Olivia Rodrigo, a first time nominee, each earned five nominations. Voting in the 14 gender-neutral

By Lisa Respers France, CNN The flower children of hip hop are coming to a streaming service near you. De La Soul announced Tuesday during an Instagram Live that their music will be released on streaming. “We have finally come down to a deal between ourselves and Reservoir Media to release our music in 2021,”

By Lisa Respers France, CNN A boat, Italy and a ring has made Sophia Bush a very happy woman. The “One Tree Hill” alum shared the news that she and her entrepreneur boyfriend Grant Hughes are engaged in a post on her verified Instagram account Tuesday. The actress, who is currently starring on “Good Sam,”

By Rob Picheta, CNN Chet Hanks has posted a rant against coronavirus vaccines and told sufferers of the virus to “get over it,” a year after his parents, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, were hospitalized with severe cases of Covid-19. Hanks shared a video on Instagram in which he initially pretended to encourage followers to

By Jack Guy, CNN Rock icon Stevie Nicks has canceled a string of upcoming US shows due to concern over the rising number of Covid-19 cases. The former Fleetwood Mac singer posted a short statement on Twitter on Monday announcing her decision. “These are challenging times with challenging decisions that have to be made. I

By Scottie Andrew, CNN The latest issue of a Batman comic series confirms the Caped Crusader’s lovable sidekick, Robin, is queer. Tim Drake, one of several characters to have taken up Robin’s mantle in the comics, accepts a date with a male friend in the new issue of “Batman: Urban Legends,” a series that debuted

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Duane “Dog” Chapman says he’s taking a walk down the aisle soon. The reality star shared that he’s getting married September 2 during an episode of the “Two Guys From Hollywood” podcast, which dropped Tuesday. “We went to the venue yesterday, picked it out,” Chapman said. “Man it cost a

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Chucky Thompson, a producer for Bad Boy who worked with some of the biggest names in hip hop and R & B including Notorious B.I.G., Nas and Mary J. Blige has died. He was 53. His publicist, Tamar Juda, confirmed the news to CNN on Tuesday. No cause of death

By Marianne Garvey, CNN Billie Eilish visited “The Tonight Show” on Monday, where she performed her song “Happier Than Ever” off of her new album of the same name. Eilish sang the song on a large stage backed by her brother Finneas, who is also her producer. She also chatted with Fallon about how her

By Marianne Garvey, CNN Katie Thurston found a happy ending on the finale of “The Bachelorette.” After a fight with Greg Grippo and “The Bachelorette” threatening to quit the show, the season ended with an Thurston and Blake Moynes becoming engaged. The two shared a fantasy suite date and said “I love you” to each

By Scottie Andrew, CNN The post-apocalyptic thriller “I Am Legend” is bubbling up in conversation among the vaccine-hesitant crowd, prompting the film’s screenwriter to emphasize that the plot is entirely fictional. Akiva Goldsman, who co-wrote the screenplay for the 2007 film starring Will Smith, clarified that “I Am Legend” is pure fantasy after an unnamed

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN Like “Charlie’s Angels,” “Fantasy Island” is one of those old Aaron Spelling series that keeps resurfacing, whether anybody asked for it or not. So after a 1990s reboot and a pretty awful horror movie version last year, Fox boards the plane once again with a slightly updated version about a

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Quentin Tarantino has a message to parents: Watch how you talk to your kids. During an appearance on “The Moment” podcast, which is hosted by “Billions” co-creator Brian Koppelman, the famed writer and director said his mother Connie Zastoupil gave him a hard time about his aspiring career before he

By Jack Guy, CNN Actress Christina Applegate has announced that she has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The 49-year-old, known for her roles in “Bad Moms,” “Married… with Children” and “Dead to Me,” said in a tweet published overnight that she was diagnosed “a few months ago.” “It’s been a strange journey. But I have

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Vax.India.Now raised millions for the people of India with a star-studded virtual event also meant to buoy spirits as the country battles the Covid-19 crisis. The event, which was livestreamed by CNN and Dreamstage.live, was hosted last month by Hasan Minhaj and featured several celebs, including Liam Neeson, Annie Lennox,

By Chloe Melas, CNN Britney Spears will have to wait longer for a ruling on her request to remove her father as conservator of her estate. Judge Brenda Penny has denied a petition filed by Britney Spears’ attorney Mathew Rosengart to move a September 29 hearing in the case to August 23 in an effort

By Chloe Melas, CNN Kit Harington has been doing a lot of self reflection and is now sharing some of what he’s learned with the hope of helping others. The “Game of Thrones” star, who welcomed his first child six months ago with actress Rose Leslie, told The Sunday Times that he is in recovery

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Harrison Ford and his wife of ten years, actress Calista Flockhart, were photographed this past weekend during an outing in Croatia. Pictures of the very private couple appeared in European newspapers amid reports that Ford is on hiatus from filming the fifth “Indiana Jones” movie following an injury. In June,

By Chloe Melas, CNN Limp Bizkit have canceled their remaining August tour dates due to concerns regarding Covid-19 cases. Following their performance to a packed crowd at the Lollapalooza music festival, the band has decided that continuing with their “Limited Last Minute Post Pandemic Popup Party” tour would not be in the best interests of

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Jon Stewart and Pete Davidson are gathering some of comedy’s biggest names in remembrance of the 20th anniversary of 9/11. “NYC Still Rising After 20 Years: A Comedy Celebration” was announced Monday as a one-night-only event to be held September 12 at Madison Square Garden. Scheduled performers include Amy Schumer,

By Toyin Owoseje, CNN Jane Withers, a former child movie star who won hearts during Hollywood’s Golden Age, has died aged 95. The Atlanta-born actress died on Saturday evening in Burbank, California, surrounded by her loved ones, her daughter, Kendall Errair, confirmed in a statement to Deadline. “My mother was such a special lady,” Errair

By Claudia Dominguez and Alaa Elassar, CNN Markie Post, the actress known for her roles in “Night Court” and “The Fall Guy,” has died. She was 70 years old. Post passed away Saturday, her manager Ellen Lubin Sanitsky of Wright Entertainment confirmed to CNN on Sunday. “With great sadness, the family of actress Markie Post

By Gregory Lemos Trevor Moore, comedian, actor, producer, and co-founder of the sketch comedy group The Whitest Kids U Know, has died at the age of 41. His death was confirmed by his manager, Kara Welker, in a statement issued on behalf of Moore’s family. Moore died “in a tragic accident” on Friday evening, according

By Elizabeth Joseph and Alaa Elassar, CNN Kool & the Gang co-founder Dennis Thomas, often referred to as “Dee Tee,” has died. He was 70 years old. Thomas passed away in his sleep in New Jersey on Saturday, according to a statement posted to the Grammy Award-winning band’s verified Facebook page. Born in Orlando, Florida,

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN It’s the end of another week, end of another Olympics and the end of my hopes of becoming the next “Jeopardy” host (Although, I never had any chance because I’m a woman and a person of color. Bazinga.) With all these endings, let’s start something. How about this week’s TV OT?

Alyssa Kraus, CNN The Olympics are winding down this weekend, with the closing ceremony on Sunday. However, several events are still in full swing, with medals being awarded in baseball, basketball, football and more on Saturday. Here are some events you won’t want to miss on Saturday. Remember, Tokyo is 13 hours ahead of US

By Chloe Melas and Cheri Mossburg, CNN Britney Spears’s father, Jamie Spears, rejected the assertion that he should be removed as conservator of his daughter’s estate and cited a recent “plea for help” regarding his daughter’s mental health, according to a new court filing obtained by CNN. The singer’s newly hired attorney, Mathew Rosengart, filed

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN The season finale of Apple TV+’s “Physical” brought to a, erm, climax a story that began as a tale about an unfulfilled housewife (Rose Byrne) in the ’80s and concluded with a woman set free. Well, she’s at least starting to set herself free. In the episode, which began streaming Friday,

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Lucy Lawless and Renee O’Connor are bringing back that warrior princess feeling. The pair, who co-starred in the ’90s series ‘Xena: Warrior Princess,” have reunited in the Acorn TV series “My Life is Murder.” Set in New Zealand, it stars Lawless as retired detective Alexa Crowe, who gets back to

By Toyin Owoseje, CNN Britney Spears has cause for celebration — she’s finally the proud owner of an iPad, calling it “a ground-breaking day.” The 39-year-old singer took to Instagram on Thursday to share her unbridled excitement at her new purchase. She told her 32.9 million followers: “My life does seem different with an iPad…

By Marianne Garvey, CNN An arrest has been made in the hit and run incident that led to death of “Gone Girl” actress Lisa Banes in June. The NYPD announced that Brian Boyd, 26, was arrested Thursday. Possible charges include leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, and failure to yield to a

By Marianne Garvey, CNN The Weeknd has released the video for his new single “Take My Breath.” The video features The Weeknd partying at a rave, where he meets a mysterious woman with an oxygen tank. She gives The Weeknd hits of oxygen before eventually choking him with her braid and dragging him along a

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Kanye West hosted another listening event in Atlanta for his “Donda” album, but there was more chatter about his personal life than music. It was the second time West held a listening party at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium where he’s been staying as he completes the album named for his late

By Marianne Garvey, CNN Taylor Swift is hinting at the music and collaborators on the long-awaited re-release of “Red.” On Thursday, the singer shared a mysterious video of a vault, opening it to re-recorded tracks from her 2012 album. In the 30-second video, scrambled words appear on the screen, which had fans guessing who will

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN “Annette” premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, buoyed by the intriguing tandem of Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard in an original musical. The resulting movie, however, hits the wrong notes, repeating mundane lyrics without uttering the words that keep coming to mind, which are “precious” and “pretentious.” French director Leos

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN In “Mr. Corman,” it’s Apple that gets a teacher, although it’s a decidedly bittersweet one. Three little words explain Apple TV+’s interest in “Mr. Corman,” and those are Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who created, produces, writes, directs, stars and even performs music in this melancholy series, elevating a concept that looks at

By Harmeet Kaur, CNN From “Full Metal Jacket” in the ’80s to “Mean Girls” in the ’00s, Asian and Pacific Islander women have historically been exoticized and hypersexualized in Hollywood — and the problem lingers today. Female Asian and Pacific Islander characters are more likely than female characters of any other race to be objectified

By Chloe Melas, CNN An attorney for Britney Spears has filed a petition requesting the judge in her conservatorship case move up a hearing to determine immediately whether Jamie Spears will be removed as the co-conservator of his daughter’s estate, according to court documents obtained by CNN on Thursday. The next hearing is currently set

By Marianne Garvey, CNN Ellen Burstyn is set to guest star in the upcoming season of “Law & Order: Organized Crime” on NBC. The actress will reprise her role as Bernadette Stabler, the widow of Joseph Stabler and mother of Detective Elliot Stabler, played by Christopher Meloni. Burstyn won an Emmy for the role in

By Neelam Bohra and Scottie Andrew, CNN Lil Nas X, the 22-year-old juggernaut known by most for “Old Town Road,” is in prison. He’s in the shower, naked — save for some humble pixelation — and twerking, surrounded by eight male backup dancers. And he seems to be having the time of his life. It’s

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN “Free Guy” is a cleverly programmed wedding of star (Ryan Reynolds) and subject matter, in a movie that’s silly, handsome-looking and a great deal of fun, in roughly inverse proportion to how much one sweats the details. Traveling inside videogames doesn’t always end well cinematically, but this “Guy” braves that

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Val Kilmer’s children say their father is continuing to recuperate from throat cancer. Mercedes and Jack Kilmer, the actor’s daughter and son, talked to “Entertainment Tonight” recently about their father’s new documentary, “Val,” which debuts Friday on Amazon Prime. Mercedes Kilmer said their dad is “doing really well” these days

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN After putting the wind in “Moana‘s” sails with his music and lyrics, Lin-Manuel Miranda brings his stage-honed chops to another animated movie in “Vivo,” a sweet if slight love story built around an inordinately resourceful kinkajou. Premiering on Netflix, Miranda’s songs elevate a small-boned effort — call it cute, without

By Lisa Respers France, CNN The estate of Aaliyah has a message to those who have tried to release unauthorized projects about the late star. The singer, who was born Aaliyah Dana Haughton, died August 25, 2001, at the age of 22 in a plane crash that also took the lives of eight others. Aaliyah’s

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN “The Suicide Squad” is a rather ironic title for a do-over, but that’s what DC and Warner Bros. have essentially done, taking another stab at the team of supervillains five years after a prior effort. On the plus side, writer-director James Gunn’s movie is superior to its predecessor on most

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Sean “Diddy” Combs believes he’s been given a second chance. In an interview with Vanity Fair, the man who added “Love” to his name talked about a wide range of topics, including the loss of the mother of three of his children, Kim Porter, in 2018 at the age of