Entertainment

Free Guy, the action-comedy from 20th Century Studios starring Ryan Reynolds and Killing Eve‘s Jodie Comer, beat expectations in the box office — topping it with an estimated $28.4 million debut.

The COVID-19-delayed movie, which was originally due out July 2020, also earned an estimated $22.5 million overseas, bringing its worldwide total to $50.9 million.

Free Guy‘s better-than-expected opening was no doubt due in part to strong reviews and that it can only be seen on the big-screen for its first 45 days, unlike many other recent blockbusters that were rolled out simultaneously in theaters and at-home through streaming platforms.

Don’t Breathe 2, the R-rated follow-up to the 2016 home invasion thriller which once again stars Stephen Lang, took second place with an estimated $10.6 million in its opening weekend.  The sequel fell short of the first installment’s $26.4 million debut, which went on to make $157.8 million worldwide.

Disney’s Jungle Cruise came in third, grabbing an estimated $9 million in its third week of release. The film has now earned $82.1 million stateside, added an estimated $72.2 million overseas, bumping its global total to $154.3 million. Jungle Cruise is also available to Disney+ subscribers for a $30 surcharge.

20th Century Studios is owned by Disney, parent company of ABC News.

Respect, the Aretha Franklin biopic starring Jennifer Hudson as the late Queen of Soul, earned an estimated $8.8 million in its opening weekend.

Rounding out the top five was The Suicide Squad, pulling in an estimated $7.6 million in its third week of release.

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Is Johnny Depp being boycotted by Hollywood? That’s what he seems to believe based on a recent interview.

Speaking with The Sunday Times about his new film, Minamata, which was recently released in the U.K. with a U.S. date still pending, Depp claimed that Hollywood has boycotted him and alluded that the industry’s focus on his personal life is why the film hasn’t received a North American release date. 

In the film, Depp portrays photojournalist Eugene Smith, who travels back to Japan to document the catastrophic effects of mercury poisoning on the countries costal communities.

“We looked these people in the eyeballs and promised we would not be exploitative. That the film would be respectful,” he said of Minamata, according to Deadline. “I believe that we’ve kept our end of the bargain, but those who came in later should also maintain theirs.”

“Some films touch people. And this affects those in Minamata and people who experience similar things,” he expressed. “And for anything…For Hollywood’s boycott of me? One man, one actor in an unpleasant and messy situation, over the last number of years?”

After trailing off, he added, “But, you know, I’m moving towards where I need to go to make all that…To bring things to light.” 

Depp has been embroiled in years of legal battles, including a defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife Amber Heard and a libel lawsuit against the publisher of The Sun. 

Minamata was originally slated for a February release in both the U.K. and the U.S., however they were both postponed. The U.K. has since released the film on Friday, but a U.S. release has yet to be announced. 

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Gabourey Sidibe is jumping into the world of podcasting.

Realm, an audio entertainment company that creates original fiction podcasts and audiobook series, has announced they’ve tapped Sidibe for a lead role in Pia Wilson‘s podcast series, If I Go Missing the Witches Did It. The nine-episode scripted satirical thriller follows Gabourey as Jenna, a woman who “vanishes without a trace” after a summer in Westchester. As an investigation ensues, and the only clues left behind are voice memos that claim a group of influencers used magic to achieve their means. Sidibe joins voice actress Sarah Natochenny, who plays Elise, a white podcast host with a savior complex. If I Go Missing the Witches Did It premieres Sunday, September 26, followed by one new episode every Sunday thereafter. It will be available on all podcast platforms.

In other news, Greenleaf alum Keith David has joined the second season cast of HBO Max’s anthology series, Love Life, Deadline has learned. He’ll take on the role of the narrator. Executive-produced by William Jackson Harper, the new season follows Harper as Marcus Watkins, a man who comes out of a years-long relationship with the woman he thought was his soul mate. A release date for Love Life has yet to be announced.

Finally, HBO Max has released the trailer for Eyes on the Prize: Hallowed Ground, a documentary special that honors Henry Hampton’s original civil right series Eyes on the Prize. Directed by Sophia Nahli Allison, the special is said to be a “mystical and lyrical reimagining of the past, present, and future” that “explores the profound journey for Black liberation through the voices of the movement.” Eyes on the Prize: Hallowed Ground premieres Thursday, August 19 on HBO Max.

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While Bennifer fans are elated by Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez‘s reunion, Matt Damon may be the biggest supporter of them all.

During an appearance on The Carlos Watson Show, the host asked if he thought the couple was going to last. “No one’s pulling harder than I am. They’re both great,” Matt responded. “I just want for their happiness, and they seem pretty happy right now.”

Ben and Jennifer met on the set of Gigli in 2001 and he later appeared in the video for her signature hit, “Jenny from the Block.” The couple was engaged for two years before breaking it off in 2004. The two rekindled their romance earlier this year after Jennifer and her former fiancé, Alex Rodriguez, ended their engagement.

Matt and Ben have been friends since they met in high school. The two famously co-wrote and starred in Good Will Hunting, which was named Best Original Screenplay at the 1998 Academy Awards.

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As the fall TV season quickly approaches, FX has announced a slew of new programming. Here’s a TV roundup:

Ryan Murphy will continue his American Story series at FX with two new spinoff limited series. American Sports Story will highlight a major event in the world of sports and the athlete at the center of it. The first installment will focus on former NFL player Aaron Hernandez, who was found guilty of murdering Odin Lloyd and later committed suicide in prison. American Love Story will chronicle the relationship of John F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife Carolyn Bessette, while the fourth installment of American Crime Story is underway. Studio 54: American Crime Story follows Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, former owners of the raucous Studio 54 nightclub in NYC that was ultimately shut down when they were convicted of tax evasion. 

Fans will get to continue to find out What We Do in the Shadows. Less than a month before its season three premiere, FX has renewed the series based on the cult classic 2014 film for a fourth season that will debut in 2022. Viewers can get a sneak peek at the new season, which airs on September 2 at 10 p.m. ET. 

The creators behind Netflix’s The OA have locked in a new venture at FX, as the network orders the new limited series, Retreat. Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij will write and co-direct the mystery series that puts Gen Z character Darby Hart at the heart of the plot. The show follows a group of people as they attend a retreat in a remote location, with Darby serving as the amateur detective trying to solve the case when one of the guests is found dead.  

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Some things are just better left unsaid. Unfortunately for Kevin Hart, he learned this the hard way. 

In a now viral clip from Hart’s new talk show Hart to Heart, the 42-year-old comedian is joined by Don Cheadle. During their discussion, Cheadle briefly mentions his age, which causes Hart to loudly react in a way that catches both stars off-guard — giving way to a cringeworthy exchange. 

The Space Jam: A New Legacy star explains, “And me, you know, I’m 56 years old…” before he”s cut off by Hart who lets out a loud, “Damn!”

The two stars briefly stare at each other in silence as Cheadle shoots Hart a look, leading the Fatherhood star to apologize. 

“Sorry,” he says as the clip comes to a close. 

Although the exchange was interpreted by most as awkward and tense, there seems to be no bad blood between the two.

Hart showed that he was able to laugh at his pain by retweeting the clip along with the caption, “Y’all gotta check out this interview in full,” followed by four crying laughing emojis. 

It’s appears Cheadle didn’t take the situation too seriously, either. When a fan asked what was going through his mind in that moment, the Avengers: Endgame star answered, “That @KevinHart4real and i need to do a movie together asap!”

“I think this is my favorite interview ever,” he added. “‘damn!'”

 

 

 

 

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If you’ve been wondering where Cameron Diaz has been lately, the actress says she’s doing just fine, thanks. 

Sitting down with comedian Kevin Hart on his new Peacock talk show, Hart to Heart, the Golden Globe-nominated actress shares that she’s stepped away from acting, a decision she made about eight years ago, at age 40, when she determined that she didn’t want to hand control of certain aspects of her life over to other people. 

“I realized that I looked around and it was so many parts of my life that I wasn’t touching and that I wasn’t managing, and I couldn’t really manage it because it was so big,” Diaz says, adding that acting is “fun to do, I love it.” 

Cameron made the decision around the time she met husband Benji Madden, whom she wed in 2015. The couple later welcomed daughter Raddix in 2019. 

“All of those things that I didn’t have time for before, and not just not have the time for, but didn’t have the space to make the right decisions for me at the time to bring that in,” Diaz continues. “I really wanted my life manageable by me. My routine in a day is literally what I can manage to do by myself. It’s the best feeling. I feel whole.” 

Though she’s stepped away from the big screen — last appearing in 2014’s Annie feature film — the Charlie’s Angels star teamed with her friend and entrepreneur, Katherine Power, last year to release organic wine brand Avaline. 

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For years, Jimmy Fallon has been trying to get one of his guests to participate in a bit he calls “Straight Up Goes For It” — in which said guest would sing Train‘s “Drops of Jupiter.”  Well, it took him years to find someone willing to do it, but Thursday night, he finally succeeded.

Thursday was the 1,500th episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and, after “dozens of famous people that you know and love” told Fallon no, Game of Thrones star Kit Harington finally said yes.  And even though the actor best known as Jon Snow can neither sing nor play the piano, Fallon said, “He’s doing it because he’s cool, and he’s funny and he gets it.”

And Harington did, indeed, “straight up go for it,” pretending to play the piano decorated with candles and roses as he belted out the Grammy-winning 2001 hit.  While his voice wasn’t great, he made it through the entire song — even to the “nah nah nahs” at the end — though he did get tripped up by the admittedly bizarre lyrics several times.

The audience, of course, went wild.

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Jennifer Hudson says she received a special mandate from the Queen of Soul when she took on the role of  Aretha Franklin in the new biographical film Respect.

In the film, which captures the life and career of Franklin, Hudson plays the singer as an adult. The movie focuses not only on Aretha’s struggles with her relationships, but also with the male-dominated music industry that often tried to control her. Hudson tells ABC Audio that Franklin wanted to make sure that she did her story justice.

“I remember our very first meeting, and [Franklin] said, ‘How are you going to portray me?’ And I said, ‘Well, however you would like to be portrayed,'” the singer says, laughing.

According to Hudson, Aretha wanted the Oscar winner to make her biopic be more than just about the drama.

“I think the biggest thing was just holding onto her roots — and my roots as well — which is her faith,” Hudson explains. “And that was key to me, and the most important thing throughout the entire film in portraying her.”

Respect, also starring Forest Whitaker and Marlon Wayans, is now in theaters.

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Grace and Frankie fans woke up to exciting news on Friday with the announcement that four new episodes from the final season are now available to stream on Netflix. 

Series’ stars Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin engage in their onscreen banter as the titular characters in a video message to fans, and after a back-and-forth exchange, Lily reveals that the first four episodes of season seven have dropped.

“We’ve missed you, but more important, you’ve missed us,” she quips, adding that if she’d had it her way, fans would’ve instead gotten gift cards to her character’s favorite restaurant, Del Taco.  

“But don’t worry, there’s plenty more to come. We just wanted to give you something special until we finish the rest of the season,” Jane assures. 

The remaining 12 episodes of the final season will be released in 2022. 

Since its debut in 2015, Grace and Frankie has been nominated for multiple Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. It’s also the longest-running original series in Netflix’s history.

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