Entertainment

Serena and Venus Williams are overflowing with pride about King Richard, the story of how their father, Richard Williams, groomed them to become tennis superstars.

“It’s so cool we get to share with the world everything that my father means to me and our family and all that he’s done for us,” Serena told Variety. “It’s an original story of how a family actually succeeded. I’m so proud that it’s been being told this way,” Venus added.

Will Smith, who stars in the title role, hopes that Richard appreciates a special scene when his character tells Venus, portrayed by Saniyya Sidney, to be prepared for the pressure of representing Black girls for her entire career.

“It was a really private moment that I was able to share,” Smith says, “so I hope he felt honored and saw my love for him in that scene.”

King Richard debuts in theaters and begins streaming on HBO Max on Friday.

In other news, Fat Joe and Remy Ma will be among the stars sitting in for Wendy Williams. Joe will host the show Tuesday, November 23, followed by Remy on Wednesday November 24. Also, Devyn Simone from MTV’s The Challenge: Aftermath, author Bevy Smith, Variety correspondent Elizabeth Wagmeister and comedian Michael Yo will co-host on Monday, November 22. Williams is recovering from Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disease that causes an overactive thyroid. 

Finally, Halle Berry is reconfirming that Cardi B is “the Queen of Hip Hop.” After she made that statement Saturday at the premiere of her new film, Bruised, Nicki Minaj fans were upset. “There’s room for more than one queen,” Halle said Monday night on Jimmy Kimmel Live. “Nicki is a queen in her own right, H.E.R. is a queen. All these ladies to me are queens.”

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

After forcefully separating his name from Jeopardy!, following what turned out to be a pretty shady “try out” period to replace Alex Trebek, LeVar Burton is getting his own game show. 

The beloved Reading Rainbow Emmy winner and Star Trek: The Next Generation star will topline and produce a television version of the popular board game Trivial Pursuit, which is being produced by Hasbro-owned Entertainment One.

“Trivial Pursuit is one of the best-known brands in the gaming universe,” Burton said in a statement, saying he’s “thrilled” to partner with Hasbro and its eOne.

For her part, co-producer Tara Long called Burton, “an iconic member of American pop culture for decades,” whose, “love for intellectual curiosity paired with his ability to connect with audiences worldwide make him the perfect partner…”

The show hasn’t announced a network on which it will air.

In September, Burton said on Trevor Noah‘s The Daily Show that he’d mentally moved on from the Jeopardy! situation. “The crazy thing is that when you set your sights on something…they say be careful of what you wish for, because what I found out is that it wasn’t the thing that I wanted after all,” Burton explained.

“What I wanted was to compete. I mean, I wanted the job, right? But then, when I didn’t get it, it was, like ‘Well, okay, what’s next?'”

Burton added, “The opportunities that have come my way as a result of not getting that gig, I couldn’t have dreamt it up. If you had given me a pen and paper and said, ‘Well, so what do you want this to really look like?’ If it doesn’t include Jeopardy, I wouldn’t have been this generous to myself.”

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

On the 20th anniversary of the release of the first Harry Potter film, HBO Max has announced that Harry, Ron, and Hermione are going back to school.

Specifically, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson will appear together in Harry Potter 20^thAnniversary: Return to Hogwarts, a special that will debut on December 1.

HBO Max says the project, “will tell an enchanting making-of story through all-new in-depth interviews and cast conversations, inviting fans on a magical first-person journey through one of the most beloved film franchises of all time.”

The special will feature interviews with cast members including Ralph Fiennes, who played Voldemort, as well as Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange), Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid), Gary Oldman (Sirius Black), Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge), Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), director Chris Columbus “and many more.”

In case you need to catch up, or if you just want to celebrate the 20th birthday of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, all eight Potter movies are currently available on the streaming service. 

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Dancing with the Stars judge Derek Hough has been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Hough, 36, announced the news Tuesday on Instagram, telling his followers in a video: “I have some news to share and I wanted you to hear it straight from me. Even though I’ve been fully vaccinated, I have just been diagnosed with a breakthrough case of COVID. I just found out.”

The pro dancer, who has won the Mirror Ball trophy six times, as well as three Emmys for his choreography on the show, said he’s feeling “OK” and “strong.”

“I’m currently taking advice from medical professionals [and] doing everything I can to get better as fast as I can,” he added. “I’m currently in quarantine, and I’ll make sure I keep you guys all updated with what’s going on.”

Hough, who just appeared on Monday’s episode of DWTS, ended the video by sending “a lot of love” to his followers and urging them to “stay safe.” He also said he was rescheduling his shows in Las Vegas, which were set to take place this week, and will “announce the new dates shortly.”

The news comes as DWTS is set to air its season-30 finale in less than a week, with the episode set to take place on Monday, Nov. 22.

Hough isn’t the only person on DWTS this season to be diagnosed with COVID-19: contestant Cody Rigsby and his pro dancer partner, Cheryl Burke, each had breakthrough cases despite them both being vaccinated. The pair recovered and have made it to the season 30 finals alongside contestants JoJo Siwa, Amanda Kloots and Iman Shumpert, whose respective pro dancer partners are Jenna Johnson, Alan Bersten and Daniella Karagach.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Derek Hough (@derekhough)

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Lady Gaga is opening up on what her dramatic transformation entailed for the upcoming film, House of Gucci.

In the Ridley Scott-directed film, Gaga plays Patrizia Reggiani, the woman who was famously convicted of arranging the murder of her ex-husband, Italian fashion heir Maurizio Gucci.

Ahead of the film’s Nov. 24 release, Gaga spoke about the steps she took to embody Reggiani on the big screen and gave her thoughts on the woman who served 18 years in prison for the infamous crime.

“There was a lot that was in the media that was sensationalized about how she was this gold digger and about how she killed for greed and money,” Gaga said Tuesday on Good Morning America.

“I believe it was love, and I believe it was survival,” she added.

Despite feeling Reggiani was somewhat mischaracterized in the press, Gaga said she still had her reasons for not meeting with the woman.

“I didn’t wanna meet her because I could tell very quickly that this woman wanted to be glorified for this murder, and she wanted to be remembered as this criminal,” Gaga said.

“I didn’t wanna collude with something that I don’t believe in,” she continued. “You know, she did have her husband murdered.”

Instead, Gaga said she dove into her own research and worked at mastering Reggiani’s accent.

“I was just in Milan the other day doing a television show, and I had the most wonderful time with Fabio, who did my interview,” Gaga said. “When he told me that he was so impressed with my accent and that Italian people were impressed with my accent, I couldn’t think of a higher honor.”

See more of Lady Gaga’s interview with Michael Strahan on Nightline tonight at 12:35 a.m. ET on ABC.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Oscar winning actor and producer George Clooney virtually sat down with Marc Maron on his WTF podcast Monday and discussed last month’s fatal shooting on the set of the movie Rust.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed and director Joel Souza was injured when star and producer Alec Baldwin fired a gun he believed was “cold,” meaning unloaded.  An investigation is ongoing.

Clooney explained he was good friends with actor Jon-Erik Hexum, who was killed in 1984 when he put a blank-loaded gun to his head and fired. George also revealed he was “really good friends” with Brandon Lee, who was mortally wounded in 1993 when an unnoticed bullet was fired into his abdomen by a blank charge on the set of The Crow.

“That was a series of…really stupid things,” Clooney said, detailing that accident.

Of the Rust shooting, Clooney exclaimed, “Why for the life of me, this low-budget film, with producers who haven’t produced anything, wouldn’t have hired for the armorer someone with experience,” he said, referencing 24-year-old neophyte Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.

“Maybe they weren’t doing target practice with that gun, but they had live ammo with dummies in her pack. And that is insane,” Clooney said. “It’s infuriating.” 

“It’s a terrible accident,” Clooney continued. “But a 24-year-oldperson with that little experience shouldn’t be heading up a department with guns and bullets on it.”

Gutierrez-Reed’s attorney has said he believes someone mixed live rounds with dummy rounds on the Rust set in order to sabotage the production, but has provided no public proof to support the claim.

“Every single time I’m handed a gun on a set,” Clooney explains, “I look at it, I open it, I show it to the person I’m pointing it at…every single take…And part of the reason we do that is because of Brandon.”

Clooney said he “hoped” Baldwin did the same, but didn’t know.  He also said, “I’ve never heard the term ‘cold gun,'” referring to the term assistant director David Halls reportedly said to Baldwin to indicate that the gun was empty.

Allowing that “dummy bullets are tricky” because it takes a close inspection to see whether they’re harmless or not, live bullets had no business being on set. Clooney also said when it comes to revolvers — the same type of pistol Baldwin used —  “you always point it at the ground and squeeze it [the trigger] six times” to ensure nothing comes out of the barrel.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The season two premiere of Mayim Bialik‘s Fox series Call Me Kat will reunite her with her co-stars from the beloved 1990s series Blossom.

Blossom stars Joey Lawrence, Jenna Von Oy, and Michael Stoyanov will appear as versions of themselves, making a stop at the Louisville cafe where Call Me Kat‘s titular character, played by Bialik, works.

A promo for the premiere shows Kat introducing delivery man Oscar — played by Christopher Rivas — to the stars of her “favorite show growing up.”

“This is Joey and Jenna and…,” says Bialik’s Kat, struggling to identify Stoyanov.

“Michael!” he says, to which Kat replies, “Right.”

Kat also grabs a photo with the trio, which Stoyanov quips he’ll be “cropped right out of.”

The Big Bang Theory alum and current Jeopardy! host also tweeted the news, captioning a picture of wearing one of Blossom’s trademark hats, “Whoa. This is some big fun news…. a Blossom cast reunion is coming! Are you as excited as I am?!” followed by the hashtags, #Blossom #Blossomcast #Blossomcastreunion.

Blossom ran on NBC for five seasons from 1991-1995 and starred Bialik as Blossom Russo, a teenager living with her dad and two older brothers, played by Lawrence and Stoyanov. Von Oy played Six Lemeure, Blossom’s best friend.

Call Me Kat season two premieres January 9 on Fox.

Whoa. This is some big fun news….a Blossom cast reunion is coming! Are you as excited as I am?! 🌸 🐈 #Blossom #Blossomcast #Blossomcastreunion pic.twitter.com/RSaXduOTjH

— Mayim Bialik (@missmayim) November 15, 2021

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Ryan Reynolds is already known for pulling off some viral promotional gags, and he’s done it again thanks to the folks at the PBS series Antiques Roadshow. 

In a segment he posted to his socials, Reynolds appears in character as his Red Notice alter-ego, art thief Nolan Booth, looking for an appraisal for the movie’s MacGuffin — an ancient golden statue of an egg.

Antiques Roadshow expert Lark E. Mason does the honors, asking Booth the usual questions of provenance. “Is it a family heirloom?” he asks of the item Booth steals in the film’s open.

“This is not a family heirloom,” Ryan-as-Booth tells him with a nervous laugh. “My family disowned me years ago. This is more of an heirloom that my friend at the museum lent me — he’s not aware that he lent it to me,” he corrects himself. 

“That sounds a little complicated,” Mason deadpans, “so that’s going to perhaps play into the value because of regulatory issues.”

“Yes, there will be a lot of issues,” Reynolds agrees.

Mason correctly assesses that the egg was one of three commissioned by Cleopatra in 30 B.C., but this one had gone missing in World War II.

“German soldiers had taken it to a secure hideaway,” Lark explains, “And there it remained up until recently.”

Lark even details the involvement of a “very muscular, talented FBI agent,” alluding to Dwayne Johnson‘s character in the movie, before Ryan cuts him off.

Lark then cuts to the chase, saying the egg’s worth over 100 million bucks, provided Booth can “clear up the complications” as to how he acquired it.

Red Notice, which also stars Gal Gadot, broke Netflix’s record for most single-day views on its debut this past Friday.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

It’s Rocky IV, reimagined. Sylvester Stallone has released a new director’s cut of the fourth Rocky film, now titled Rocky vs. Drago. It includes more than 40 new minutes, and Stallone tells ABC Audio that process gave him a “rude awakening.”

“As a young man, you’re more interested in, let’s get down there and rush and get it all done,” he explains. “And then as you get older, you get a little more pensive and you try to find the sensitive moments, pull back on the cheap shots and get the more profound moments.”

So how does this version differ from the original? Stallone says it has more heart and fewer laughs.

“I try to give even Drago some heart, give Adrienne a little bit more screen time, enhance the fight a little bit,” he offers. “But more than anything [I removed] what I would consider just the cheap laughs.” 

There’s also a new version of the fight between Rocky and Ivan Drago, played by Dolph Lundgren — the one Stallone tells ABC Audio almost killed him.

“I said to Dolph…just come and try to knock me out. Just go for it. You know, don’t crush my temple, but really dig the body. Well, he did, and he damaged my heart,” he reveals.

“I didn’t feel it until that night. And then I had to get a low altitude flight into an emergency room, and I stayed in intensive care for about five or six days,” adds Stallone, who had “nuns coming in every five minutes” asking if he was alright.

“And I as like Oh my God. This is it. I’m done,” he continues. “An hour ago, I was in the ring with a six foot five guy. Now I’m being given giving last rites? I’m a little confused.” 

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Twenty years ago today, Harry Potter fans flocked to theaters to see their favorite boy wizard come to life for the first time on the big screen in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

The movie, starring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and a host of the U.K. and Ireland’s finest actors, was the highest-grossing film of 2001 and has gone on to earn over $1 billion at the box office.

More importantly, it was the first installment of a franchise that would eventually grow to encompass eight films and two prequels, so far, not to mention several theme-park attractions.

Here are some things you may not know about Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone:

— Everywhere but in the U.S., the movie, like the book on which it’s based, was titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. That meant that every scene that mentioned the “stone” had to be shot twice: once with the actors saying “philosopher’s stone” and once with them saying “sorcerer’s stone.”

— Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling was asked to play Harry’s mother Lily Potter in the scene where Lily appears to Harry in the mirror of Erised. She turned down the role because she was convinced she’d “mess it up somehow.”

— Robin Williams and Rosie O’Donnell both wanted to be in the film, but they were rejected because J.K. Rowling only wanted actors from Britain and Ireland in the cast.  She hand-picked Alan Rickman, Robbie Coltrane and Dame Maggie Smith to play Snape, Hagrid and Prof. McGonagall, respectively.

— Richard Harris turned down the role of Dumbledore three times, until his granddaughter said she’d never speak to him again if he didn’t accept it.

— In the book, Harry had green eyes. But Daniel Radcliffe had a bad reaction to the green contacts he was supposed to wear, so in the film, he had blue eyes, but only after J.K. Rowling approved the change.  Similarly, in the book, Hermione had buck teeth, but since Emma Watson couldn’t speak clearly through the fake teeth she was given, they were abandoned too.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.