CNN – Entertainment

By Chloe Melas, CNN ‘Tis the season of giving back, and Gary Sinise is doing just that. The actor held his annual Snowball Express for children of fallen military service members. Typically his event is held in person at Walt Disney World, but because of the Covid-19 pandemic the actor went virtual for the second

By Eric Levenson and Claudia Dominguez, CNN West Coast rapper Drakeo the Ruler was fatally stabbed in an altercation backstage at a Los Angeles music festival where he was scheduled to perform Saturday, according to his publicist and law enforcement officials. Drakeo, whose real name was Darrell Caldwell, was 28. Scott Jawson, a publicist who

By Scottie Andrew, CNN They weren’t meant to be heroes. Frodo Baggins, his steadfast companion Samwise Gamgee and their accidental journey-mates, jejune cousins Merry and Pippin, could have been content living out their days in the Shire with their fellow hobbits, feasting and smoking in pastoral comfort. But when a mission that would determine the

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN There’s no shortage of pure holiday movie cheese to unwrap this year. Netflix has a Scotland-based love story with “A Castle for Christmas” and the third (!!) installment of its “Princess Switch” franchise. BET+ has drama-filled family fun with “A Jenkins Family Christmas.” HBO Max, which like CNN is owned by

By Chloe Melas, CNN “What do you want to tell Joe Byron right now?” That famous TikTok video — which went viral over the last few months from the Side Talk NYC Instagram show featuring rapper Gorilla Nems — has made its way to the White House. The Jonas Brothers posted a video of themselves

By Toyin Owoseje, CNN A “new” song by Aaliyah has hit the airwaves, two decades after her death. “Poison,” which also features Canadian singer-songwriter The Weeknd, was unveiled on Friday, marking her first release since 2012’s “Enough Said.” Aaliyah sings the lines: “How can I explain myself to you? Questions keep lurking through my mind.

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Peloton has pulled an ad featuring Chris Noth in the wake of sexual assault allegations against him. “Every single sexual assault accusation must be taken seriously,” a spokesperson for the company said in a statement provided to CNN. “We were unaware of these allegations when we featured Chris Noth in

By Brian Lowry, CNN For those needing additional evidence that streaming has thrown a lifeline to movies for grownups, look no further than this weekend, which brings three of them, with two hitting theaters for reasons that have more to do with award requirements than commerce. Each of those films come with the pedigree of

By Marianne Garvey The first trailer for “How I Met Your Father” is here. The “How I Met Your Mother” spinoff series for Hulu tells the story of how Sophie, played by Kim Cattrall, meets her son’s father. Cattrall appears in the trailer, saying, “This is the story of how I met your father. It

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN Director/co-writer Guillermo del Toro veers out of his customary lane in “Nightmare Alley,” a gorgeous-looking but narratively flawed movie that at its best evokes the lurid thrillers of the 1940s while meandering too much in between. Bradley Cooper fills the central role, but Cate Blanchett steals the show as a

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Which pill will you take, love it or hate it? “The Matrix Resurrections” has received it’s first batch of reactions and even folks who enjoyed it are aware that not everyone will. Vox’s critic Emily VanDerWerff took just that stance. “I lovvvvvvved it. A lotta people are gonna haaaaaaaate,” VanDerWerff

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN The trailer for “The Lost City” might be the best one you watch all year. No trailer this year has filled me with as much anticipatory glee as this one. In the film, Sandra Bullock plays a reclusive author Loretta Sage who, after years of writing adventures, finds herself in the

By Amir Vera, Josh Campbell and Kay Jones, CNN A search warrant has been issued for actor Alec Baldwin’s cell phone in connection with the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film “Rust,” according to court documents released Thursday from Santa Fe County, New Mexico. A judge on Thursday signed the

By Lisa Respers France and Chloe Melas, CNN Actor Chris Noth is denying allegations of sexual misconduct against him published in a report Thursday by The Hollywood Reporter. Two women, who used pseudonyms in the THR story to protect their privacy, accuse Noth of sexually assaulting them. The alleged incidents occurred in 2004 in Los

By Chloe Melas, CNN Nick Cannon is opening up more about grieving his late son, Zen. The television host and actor appeared on NBC’s “Today” show on Thursday to discuss Zen’s tragic death. The infant, who was just 5 months old, died earlier this month from a brain tumor. “You pray for miracles,” Cannon told

By Chloe Melas, CNN Britney Spears appears to have welcomed a new addition to her family. The singer took to Instagram on Wednesday and teased her fans by posting a video of herself rocking what appeared to be a baby, with her back turned to the camera while holding a baby bottle. She captioned it,

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN Ben Affleck is trying to set the record straight. After giving an expansive interview on Howard Stern’s radio show, Affleck faced backlash over some of the comments he made about his marriage to actress Jennifer Garner and how their troubles contributed to his alcoholism, saying if they hadn’t split in 2015,

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN It’s a Christmas miracle for “Ted Lasso” fans. If you’re missing the Richmond gang, Apple TV+ on Wednesday released a stop-motion animated short that will help fill the Ted-shaped hole in your heart this holiday season. In the short, Ted and the gang go on a search after Ted’s iconic mustache

By Marianne Garvey, CNN There is a new official music video for George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord.” The video, which comes 51 years after the song’s release, stars former Beatle Ringo Starr, along with a slew of musicians, actors and comedians who make cameos. Joe Walsh and Jeff Lynne, who played with Harrison in the

By Radhika Marya, CNN The holiday season is one for time-honored traditions: Baking cookies, decorating, gathering with family and friends — and blasting holiday music. Whether on the radio, over a store’s loudspeaker or via a curated streaming playlist, you’ll likely hear many of the same songs in rotation, from Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas” to

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Not even asking Santa is going to get us a Mariah Carey and Beyoncé match-up on Verzuz. The famous franchise brings together music artists to “battle” with their hits. Recently, super producer L.A. Reid shared during an appearance on “The Real” that Carey and Bey would be his “ideal” Verzuz.

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN Remember the old days, when “Saturday Night Live” sketches kept becoming movies, with a few hits (“Wayne’s World”) and way more misses (“A Night at the Roxbury,” “Ladies Man,” “It’s Pat,” etc.)? Now one of those, “MacGruber,” makes the trip back to TV, offering an unnecessary reminder that not everything

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN Two years after its debut “The Witcher” returns to Netflix, looking every bit as brawny as its maiden flight and less messy structurally. Although the series developed a solid following (unlike some of the streamer’s other recent fantasy efforts that met the executioner’s ax), the show remains uneven and somewhat

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Mason Disick has apparently learned a big lesson. And the 12-year-old wants to share his knowledge with his 8-year-old cousin, North West. Her mother, Kim Kardashian, shared text messages from her young nephew after North recently went live on TikTok without permission on the joint account she shares with her

By Laura Ly and Kelly McCleary, CNN Several Broadway shows were forced to cancel performances this week due to positive Covid-19 tests among the cast or crew, a setback for the industry that comes just months after it raised the curtain on an 18-month shutdown due to the pandemic. Since its return, Broadway has required

By CNN’s Lianne Kolirin and Reuters Grammy-winning singer Billie Eilish has spoken about an addiction to watching pornography, starting at age 11, and how it gave her nightmares and messed her up when she started dating. Eilish, who turns 20 on Saturday, was speaking on “The Howard Stern Show” on Sirius XM radio on Monday.

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN “The Voice” doesn’t have just one new champ; it has three. Sibling trio Girl Named Tom, of Team Kelly Clarkson, won NBC’s “The Voice” on Tuesday night, besting steep competition and becoming the first group to win on the show. Caleb, Joshua and Bekah Liechty beat out fellow Team Kelly contestant

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN “The King’s Man” is a prequel to the “Kingsman” movies, but its closest spiritual kin would be “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen,” another film based on a graphic novel that brought the superhero/spy genre into an earlier era and mostly flubbed the migration process. Fun in places, this World War

By Marianne Garvey, CNN Nomintions for the 37th Film Independent Spirit Awards, the scrappy, independent alternative to the Academy Awards, were announced Tuesday. “Zola,” a dark comedy about an exotic dancer’s road trip, led among nominees, earning seven nods. The Spirit Awards will air on IFC on Sunday, Mar. 6. Below is the full list

By Lisa Respers France, CNN When it comes to pronouncing a bunch of names early in the morning, it’s kind of hard being Snoop D-O-double G. The rapper/actor and arguably the best Olympics commentator ever was a surprise guest Monday at the announcement of the nominations for the Golden Globe Awards. Rocking a red cap

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN The critics have made their choices for best film of the year. The film nominations for the 27th Annual Critics Choice Awards were announced on Monday with “Belfast” from Focus Features and “West Side Story” from 20th Century Studios leading the pack, earning 11 nominations each. With the momentum from Monday’s

By Jack Guy, CNN Kim Kardashian has passed a law exam and moved a step closer to being able to practice as an attorney in the state of California. Kardashian revealed that she passed the exam at the fourth attempt in an Instagram post published Monday. “OMFGGGG I PASSED THE BABY BAR EXAM!!!!,” Kardashian wrote,

By Marianne Garvey The official trailer for the third “Fantastic Beasts” movie is here. The movie, titled “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” comes after a video celebrating the 20th anniversary of the franchise had dropped in early December, teasing the new movie. The teaser gives us a look at Mads Mikkelsen as Gellert Grindelwald,

By Marianne Garvey, CNN Keanu Reeves has revealed why he turned down the 1997 movie “Speed 2: Cruise Control.” Reeves starred with Sandra Bullock in the 1994 film “Speed,” about a bus that will explode if it drops below 50 miles per hour. The actor appeared on “The Graham Norton Show,” where he said, “At

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Nominations for the 79th Annual Golden Globe Awards, celebrating the best in television and film, were revealed on Monday. The movies “The Power of the Dog” and “Belfast” led film nominees, earning seven nods each. The HBO drama “Succession” earned the most nominations for TV series with five, followed closely

By Lisa Respers France, CNN Doja Cat has announced she’s dropped out of the 2021 iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour after testing positive for Covid-19. The singer posted on her verified Instagram account that some members of her production team also tested positive. “I’m sad to share that I just tested positive as well and will

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN After a third season filled with high-stakes chess moves, the question lingered whether “Succession’s” finale could close the deal. It did, literally and figuratively, in an episode that again shuffled allegiances and featured perhaps the most eventful wedding in terms of behind-the scenes drama since “The Godfather.” The Emmy-winning HBO

By Nadeem Muaddi, CNN Megan Thee Stallion is now a college graduate, crossing the stage at Texas Southern University on Saturday in cap and gown to receive her diploma with the rest of the student body-ody-ody-ody-ody-ody-ody-ody. The Grammy winning rapper earned a bachelor of science degree in health administration, a goal she set to honor

By Sugam Pokharel and Karol Suarez, CNN Mexican singer Vicente Fernandez, 81, passed away on Sunday at a hospital in the western Mexican city of Guadalajara, according to a post published on his official Instagram account. The ranchera star was in poor health after a fall in August that forced him to have surgery. Locally

By Scottie Andrew, CNN “Succession” doesn’t do neat conclusions. It leaves gaps to be filled in off-screen, in later seasons or not at all — even the central question in the show’s title of who will succeed Logan hasn’t been answered. We, the devoted viewers, are left to read between the lines, debate and theorize.

By Andy Rose, CNN Anne Rice, author of the best-selling Vampire Chronicles novel series, died Saturday, her son announced on social media. She was 80 years old. She passed away due to complications resulting from a stroke, Christopher Rice said. Rice’s biggest success was her first novel, “Interview with the Vampire,” which was published in

By Brandon Griggs, CNN For a musician whose commercial peak came more than 50 years ago, Michael Nesmith had a rousing swan song. The singer and guitarist for the Monkees died Friday of heart failure at his home in California. He was 78. Only weeks earlier, Nesmith was performing before thousands of adoring fans on

By Marianne Garvey, CNN A New York family who came together by chance 21 years ago has now shared their remarkable story in a children’s book. Pete Mercurio was walking out the door to meet his then-partner (now husband) Danny Stewart for dinner in August 2000 when his phone rang. It was Stewart, calling to

By Catherine E. Shoichet, CNN The “West Side Story” in theaters now isn’t the movie you’ve seen before — and that’s a good thing. The original 1961 film won 10 Oscars, including Best Picture. But for decades this retelling of “Romeo and Juliet” through the lens of White and Puerto Rican gangs in New York

By Leah Asmelash, CNN Things are looking pretty sour for fans of Olivia Rodrigo. After tickets to the “Driver’s License” singer’s “Sour Tour” went on sale Friday morning, many cities sold out almost instantly — with tickets now being resold for thousands online. In New York, for example, tickets to see Rodrigo are being resold

By Sandra Gonzalez and Chloe Melas, CNN Michael Nesmith, a singer and guitarist for the hit group the Monkees, died Friday. He was 78. Micky Dolenz, Nesmith’s bandmate, confirmed the news to CNN. “I’ve lost a dear friend and partner,” Dolenz said. “I’m so grateful that we could spend the last couple of months together

By Sandra Gonzalez, CNN …And just like that, it’s time for this week’s TV OT. See what I did there? What’s my age again? As we come closer to closing out 2021, this curious cat decided to look ahead by looking back, researching what pop culture milestones were upon us in the new year. The

By Marianne Garvey Miley Cyrus and Pete Davidson revealed they got matching tattoos after a “Saturday Night Live” appearance by the singer in 2017. Cyrus and the “Saturday Night Live” comic were on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” on Thursday, where they talked about the upcoming New Year’s Eve special they’ll be hosting together.

By Chloe Melas, CNN Warning: This article contains spoilers about the first episode of “And Just Like That…” “And Just Like That…” shocked fans during its first episode. The reboot of HBO’s hit show “Sex and the City” returned to the screen with a long-awaited reunion on Thursday. HBO Max, which like CNN is part

By Toyin Owoseje, CNN Kanye West hasn’t given up hope of saving his marriage. The hip-hop star made a public appeal to his estranged wife, Kim Kardashian, to “run right back to me” as he performed alongside Drake at the “Free Larry Hoover” benefit concert on Thursday night. The event, which took place at Los

By Scottie Andrew, CNN Lina Wertmüller, a central figure of Italian cinema and the first woman to be nominated for an Academy Award in the best director category, died this week, Italy’s Ministry of Culture confirmed. She was 93, according to Variety. Wertmüller made films that were both debased and staunch in their moral standing,

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN After a successful series and two not-so-great movies (the last coming in 2010), “And Just Like That…” revives “Sex and the City” minus one of its fab four, with the remaining trio entering a new phase of life that brings fresh challenges. The name surely carries plenty of equity, but

By Lianne Kolirin, CNN Robbie Shakespeare, the legendary bass player and one half of the band Sly and Robbie, has died at the age of 68. Shakespeare’s friend, manager and producer Guillaume Bougard confirmed the musician’s death in a statement to CNN on Thursday. Bougard said Shakespeare passed away in Miami on Wednesday due to

By Marianne Garvey, CNN Banana Split has been revealed. Katharine McPhee and her producer husband David Foster were unmasked as Banana Split on the latest episode of “The Masked Singer.” There are two finalists left, Bull and Queen of Hearts, who will now compete next week in the season finale. In the latest round, contestants

By Marianne Garvey John Lennon died 41 years ago on Dec. 8 after being shot outside of his apartment building in New York City, Fans paid tribute to the late artist on social media. Lennon was 40 years old at the time of his death. Lennon’s wife Yoko Ono, wrote, “Over 1.5 million people have

Megan Thomas, CNN Nick Cannon is thanking supporters after sharing that his 5-month-old son, Zen, had died of a brain tumor. On Wednesday’s episode of the “Nick Cannon Show,” the talk show host and actor opened up about how he’s been managing his grief following the death of his youngest child over the weekend. “People

By Lisa Respers France, CNN The fact that Meryl Streep didn’t know what “G.O.A.T.” means proves that she is just that. Jennifer Lawrence told Stephen Colbert on “The Late Show” that while filming “Don’t Look Up” with Streep, the cast would “offhandedly call Meryl the G.O.A.T.” — abbreviation for the “greatest of all time.” “And

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN The beauty of being Will Smith is that if you decide to scratch items off your bucket list, National Geographic and Disney+ will dutifully mount and chronicle your adventures. Enter “Welcome to Earth,” which allows Smith to explore the world with those who do so professionally, in what amounts to

By Lisa Respers France, CNN According to Rebel Wilson, not everyone on her management team was excited about her weight loss journey. The “Pitch Perfect” star has documented her fitness transformation on social media for more than a year. Wilson told BBC Breakfast in a recent interview that “I got a lot of pushback from