Entertainment

Jussie Smollett is engaged.

The Empire alum revealed the big news on Instagram over the weekend, posting a series of photos from his proposal to boyfriend Jabari Redd.

Smollett shared that the moment unfolded just one day before his 43rd birthday celebration.

“I’ll be spending my birthday with my Fiancé,” he wrote in the caption. “He said YES.”

The snaps in the post captured the moment Smollett proposed to Redd near a restaurant, from getting down on one knee to slipping the ring on his fiancé’s finger.

The slideshow ended with joyful shots of the couple celebrating with hugs, laughter and a close-up of the ring.

Family and friends later flooded the comments section with love and congratulations.

“Screaming with tears of joy,” Jussie’s little sister and actress Jurnee Smollett wrote. “My whole heart loves both of you @jussiesmollett. Welcome to the family @jabriredd.”

Their other sister, Jazz Smollett, added, “Yaaaass!!! Welcome to the family Jabari!!! Love y’all!! Sooooo happy for you both!”

The news comes after Smollett recently reached a settlement with the city of Chicago in a civil case related to the city’s efforts to recover costs from its investigation into a 2019 incident that authorities claim was a staged hate crime. Smollett has always maintained his innocence.

As part of the agreement, the city dropped its lawsuit in exchange for a $50,000 donation from Smollett to a local arts nonprofit, marking a formal end to the years-long legal battle.

In a statement shared on Instagram last month, Smollett said he chose to settle by making a charitable donation, not as an admission of guilt, but to move forward from what he described as a “false narrative” that he said “has left a stain on my character that will not soon disappear.”

The city said in an official statement that the settlement offers “a fair, constructive, and conclusive resolution, allowing all the parties to close this six-year-old chapter and move forward.”

In November, the Illinois Supreme Court overturned Smollett’s 2021 conviction for allegedly filing a false police report about a hate crime in 2019, stating in its decision that the case violated his due process rights and raised questions about the state’s obligation to honor agreements made with defendants.

In March 2019, Smollett forfeited his $10,000 bond to the city and agreed to perform 16 hours of community service as part of an agreement to drop all criminal charges related to the alleged false report, according to then-Cook County first assistant state attorney Joe Magats.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Jon Bernthal could return as the Punisher in Spider‑Man: Brand New Day, the next installment in the Sony/Marvel Spider‑Man franchise, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Directed by Shang‑Chi filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton, the film is scheduled to begin production in England this summer and is set for release on July 31, 2026, Sony announced via Instagram back in March.

Bernthal previously portrayed Frank Castle in the Netflix series Daredevil and The Punisher, later reprising the role in Daredevil: Born Again on Disney+.

While details remain under wraps, the movie reportedly picks up after the events of Spider‑Man: No Way Home, which ended with the world’s memory of Peter Parker’s identity as Spider‑Man being erased.

Tom Holland will return as Peter Parker, with Zendaya and Jacob Batalon expected to reprise their roles as MJ and Ned. The extent of their involvement has not been confirmed.

Stranger Things star Sadie Sink and The Bear actress Liza Colón-Zayas are also joining the cast in undisclosed roles, according to IMDb. Bernthal won an Emmy for his guest role on The Bear season 2.

Spider‑Man: Brand New Day will be the fourth solo Spider‑Man film starring Tom Holland, and the first directed by Cretton.

Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News and Good Morning America.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Prime Video has announced the rollout for the third and final season of The Summer I Turned Pretty. The show will premiere with its first two episodes on July 16. A new episode will then follow weekly every Wednesday until the series finale airs on Sept. 17. All 11 episodes of the final season star Lola Tung, Gavin Casalegno and Christopher Briney …

Sinners is making its way to streaming. The hit film from director Ryan Coogler will appear on Max on July 4. It will air on HBO linear the next day. The film stars Michael B. Jordan as twin brothers Smoke and Stack. Hailee Steinfeld and Delroy Lindo co-star …

Dave Bautista has been offered a role in Road House 2. Deadline reports that the Guardians of the Galaxy actor is in talks to appear in the upcoming film from director Guy Ritchie. Jake Gyllenhaal will reprise his lead role as ex-UFC fighter Elwood Dalton in the film, which is a sequel to the 2024 movie that was itself a reboot of the 1980s classic …

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The competition couldn’t fly as high as How to Train Your Dragon at the box office.

Following its #1 debut upon its June 13 release, the live action remake of the 2010 DreamWorks animation spends another weekend in the top spot. Box Office Mojo reports that How to Train Your Dragon brought in an additional $37 million in its second frame, bringing its two-week total to about $160 million.

The highest-grossing debut of the weekend was 28 Years Later, which landed at #2. The zombie threequel, which follows 2002’s 28 Days Later and 2007’s 28 Weeks Later, earned a weekend total of $30 million.

Elio, the latest effort from Pixar, grabbed the #3 spot with $21 million in its debut. Rounding out the top five are Disney’s live action Lilo & Stitch with $9.7 million and Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning with $6.55 million.

Here are the top 10 films at the box office:

1. How to Train Your Dragon – $37 million
2. 28 Years Later – $30 million
3. Elio – $21 million
4. Lilo & Stitch – $9.7 million
5. Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning – $6.55 million
6. Materialists – $5.816 million
7. Ballerina – $4.535 million
8. Karate Kid: Legends – $2.424 million
9. Final Destination: Bloodlines – $1.885 million
10. Kuberaa – $1.75 million

Disney is the parent company of Pixar and ABC News. 

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Owen Wilson is rejoining his Meet the Parents family.

The actor has joined the cast of the upcoming fourth film in the franchise, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

He joins the cast of the Universal film that already includes Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro. Terri Polo and Ariana Grande are also set to appear in the new film.

Wilson will be reprising his role of Kevin Rawley, which he played in all three of the Meet the Parents films.

The new film revolves around the son of Stiller and Polo’s characters, who gets engaged to a woman who seems wrong for him. Grande is set to play the fiancée.

John Hamburg wrote and is set to direct Meet the Parents 4. He previously cowrote all of the prior films in the franchise.

Meet the Parents 4 is set to appear in theaters on Nov. 25, 2026.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Outer Banks is starting up on its final adventure.

Season 5 of the Netflix series has started production, the streaming service announced on Friday. The crew has begun filming the fifth and final season in Charleston, South Carolina.

Returning to the show in season 5 are series regulars Chase Stokes, Madelyn Cline, Madison Bailey, Jonathan Daviss, Drew Starkey, Carlacia Grant, Austin North and Fiona Palomo.

Tony Crane and Cullen Moss have also been upped to series regulars for the final season.

“We are over the moon to be setting out on one last trip with the Pogues,” Outer Banks creators Josh Pate, Jonas Pate and Shannon Burke said. “Being back on set with our cast for this final round is nothing short of bittersweet and surreal. We can’t wait to show everyone what we have in store this season — it’s going to be a wild ride.”

Netflix also released new photos of the cast back on set.

Outer Banks season 5 is set to debut in 2026.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Dearest gentle readers, it is with great joy that I inform you that Bridgerton season 4 has finished production.

Netflix made the announcement in a video shared to Instagram on Friday.

“Do join us in bidding our dear Ton a farewell as they conclude the production of the forthcoming season! Indeed, there is much to look forward to,” the official Bridgerton account captioned the post.

The video finds stars Luke Thompson, Yerin Ha, Nicola Coughlan, Hannah Dodd, Golda Rosheuvel, Ruth Gemmell, Adjoa Andoh, Florence Hunt, Will Tilston, Hugh Sachs and more changing out of their elaborate costumes and back into their actual, modern-day clothing.

Bridgerton is based on the bestselling novels by Julia Quinn. The period drama follows the eight Bridgerton siblings as they search for love and happiness in London high society.

“The fourth season of Bridgerton turns its focus to bohemian second son Benedict,” according to the season’s official synopsis. “Despite his elder and younger brothers both being happily married, Benedict is loath to settle down — until he meets a captivating Lady in Silver at his mother’s masquerade ball.”

Bridgerton season 4 will consist of eight episodes. It arrives on Netflix sometime in 2026.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Good Morning America is wrapping up the first week in its new home downtown in New York City’s Hudson Square neighborhood. After broadcasting from Times Square for 26 years, the ABC morning show is now coming to viewers live from Studio C at the state-of-the-art Robert A. Iger building.

GMA correspondent Will Reeve promises it’s still the show you know and love, but “with a brand-new look to it in a way that’s going to serve viewers and hopefully serve the country better than it ever has.”

Part of the upgrade includes new ways of reporting weather and climate.

“Personally, our weather graphics and my meteorology team behind the scenes, we changed everything,” says ABC News chief meteorologist Ginger Zee. “And they worked so hard on making sure that it looks fresh and different. … I have multiple places, like a half dozen, I can do weather in this studio. And it’s big and it’s bold, and it’s everything that I wanted it to be.”

In addition to the new weather screens, there’s a new kitchen area for food segments and demonstrations, and a comfortable set for guest interviews and more.

“I think a lot of this is like peeling back the layers of an onion,” says GMA contributing anchor Rebecca Jarvis. “There are so many new features to this studio and every day you tune in, you’re gonna get a little something new, a new nook or cranny that you’ve never seen before.” 

Good Morning America airs at 7 a.m. ET on ABC.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

There is hope for Mindhunter fans. The show ran for two seasons before ending on Netflix. Its star, Holt McCallany, recently told CBR he has hope of a revival after talking with the show’s helmer, David Fincher. “He said to me that there is a chance that it may come back as three two-hour movies, but I think it’s just a chance,” McCallany said. “I know there are writers that are working, but you know, David has to be happy with scripts.” …

Blumhouse is now in business with Saw. The horror film studio has acquired the rights to all future Saw films, shows and any other properties, Variety reports. The company paid an undisclosed sum for the part of the franchise that was owned by producers Oren Koules and Mark Burg. Blumhouse founder Jason Blum said Saw “defined a generation of horror” and he hopes to see its cultural impact continue to grow …

Jimmy Kimmel is preparing for his annual summer break by announcing a roster of celebrities filling in for him behind the desk of Jimmy Kimmel Live! Deadline reports that Anthony Anderson, Nicole Byer, Alan Cumming, Chris Distefano, Fortune Feimster, Jelly Roll, Diego Luna and Kumail Nanjiani will host the show this summer …

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Pixar’s latest film Elio soars into theaters on Friday.

Yonas Asuncion Kibreab lends his voice to the young Elio in the film, who finds himself beamed up into space and mistakenly identified as Earth’s ambassador to the universe.

Kibreab told Good Morning America he feels like he has a lot in common with his character.

“We’re both super energetic kids, and I’m always down for an adventure just like Elio,” Kibreab said. “What drew me to him is just his energy and how loving he is.”

He hopes that audiences come home from the film knowing they aren’t alone.

“If you’re feeling grief or feeling alone at times just like Elio, I just want them to really understand that everything is going to be OK and you’ll get through it just like Elio does,” Kibreab said.

Elio becomes an unexpected leader in the film. If Kibreab were to become a leader himself, are there any rules he would want to mandate?

“I think having name tags, I think would make the world a lot more friendlier,” Kibreab said. “Just like, ‘Hey James, Hi Bob,’ you know.”

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Pixar.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.