Entertainment

The Fear Factor reboot has found its host.

Johnny Knoxville will host the reboot of the reality competition series with the working title Fear Factor: The Next Chapter.

Fox Television President Michael Thorn made the announcement, saying that Knoxville is “the champion of fearless entertainment.”

“His wild sense of humor, unmatched ability to push boundaries and take on the extreme makes him the perfect fit to lead this bold new reinvention of Fear Factor,” Thorn said.

This new version of the classic reality series is coming back in a way Fox promises will be bigger, bolder and more daring.

Contestants will be dropped into a remote location where the group of strangers will be forced to live together under one roof. They will face harrowing stunts, challenges and the game of social strategy under conditions where it is hard to trust your neighbor.

“Only one contestant will conquer all their fears and walk away with the massive grand prize,” according to an official description from Fox.

Sharon Levy, the CEO of Endemol Shine North America, said that if you reimagine a show like Fear Factor, “you need a host who is the epitome of daring charisma and spectacle, and that’s Johnny Knoxville personified.”

“We’ll be pushing fear and social strategy to places that will redefine reality competition, which makes Johnny the perfect host for what will be a wild, unforgettable ride, and we’re beyond excited to see him unleash all the fear (and the fun) on our contestants and our viewers,” Levy said.

Joe Rogan hosted the original NBC series Fear Factor for seven seasons. A revival hosted by Ludacris aired for two seasons on MTV.

Fear Factor: The Next Chapter will premiere during the 2025-26 season on Fox.

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Cillian Murphy is taking his talents over to Netflix.

The actor is set to star as the titular teacher in the upcoming film Steve. Max Porter wrote the film, which is a reimagining of his own bestselling novel Shy.

Small Things Like These director Tim Mielants helmed the film, which will arrive in select theaters in September.

Steve follows a day in the life of the head teacher and his students at a last-chance reform school. It is set in the mid-1990s amidst a world that has turned its back on the students.

“As Steve fights to protect the school’s integrity and prevent its impending closure, he grapples with his own mental health,” according to an official description from Netflix. “In parallel to Steve’s struggles, we meet Shy, a troubled teen caught between his past and what lies ahead as he tries to reconcile his inner fragility with his impulse for self-destruction and violence.”

Tracey Ullman, Jay Lycurgo, Simbi Ajikawo and Emily Watson also star in the upcoming film.

Murphy serves as a producer on the project, while Porter executive produces.

Steve premieres globally on Netflix on Oct. 3.

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The trailer for Splitsville has arrived. The NEON film, which arrives in select theaters on Aug. 22 and everywhere on Sept. 5, follows a married couple deciding to open up their marriage. Their short-lived happiness is quickly overshadowed when a serious line is crossed. Dakota Johnson, Adria Arjona, Kyle Marvin and Michael Angelo Covino star in the film, which Covino directed …

Scarlett Johansson puts on a British accent in the trailer for My Mother’s Wedding. The film, which was helmed by Kristin Scott Thomas in her directorial debut, arrives in theaters on Aug. 8. Johansson stars alongside Sienna Miller and Emily Beecham in the film. The three women play sisters who journey to their childhood home for the third wedding of their twice-widowed mother, played by Thomas …

Sterling K. Brown stars in the trailer for Washington Black. The Hulu series, which is based on the bestselling novel, follows the story of George Washington “Wash” Black and his scientific mind, which sets him up for his destiny. All the episodes of the series start streaming on July 23 …

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Rachel Zegler is looking on the bright side.

The actress, who is currently starring in a production of Evita on London’s West End, recently told i-D magazine for a cover story that she believes having a “victim mindset” is a choice.

“I think a victim mindset is a choice, and I don’t choose it,” Zegler said. “I also don’t choose nastiness in the face of it. I don’t choose negativity in the face of it. I choose positivity and light and happiness. And I do believe at times, happiness is absolutely a choice, and every day I wake up and I think I’m very lucky to live the life I live.”

This stance comes after the release of the live-action Snow White film back in March. Zegler played the titular princess in the film.

Her casting sparked backlash from those who believed the role should not have been played by someone of Colombian descent. Additionally, there was much talk of Zegler’s use of social media to support several political causes.

“My compassion has no boundaries, is really what it is,” Zegler said of the backlash, “and my support for one cause does not denounce any others. That’s always been at the core of who I am as a person. It’s the way I was raised.”

The actress says she understands “there are obviously things that are at stake by being outspoken, but nothing is worth innocent lives.”

“My heart doesn’t have a fence around it, and if that is considered my downfall?” Zegler said. “There are worse things.”

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Outlander: Blood of My Blood has been renewed ahead of its series premiere.

The romantic period drama has been renewed for a second season months before its debut season premieres, Starz announced Monday. Season 1 of the show is set to premiere on Aug. 8, with new episodes airing on Fridays.

Additionally, season 2 of Outlander: Blood of My Blood had begun production as of Monday on the stages in Scotland where its legacy series, Outlander, filmed for 10 years.

Outlander: Blood of My Blood is a standalone prequel series that follows the connection between two couples: Ellen MacKenzie and Brian Fraser, and Julia Moriston and Henry Beauchamp. It takes place between the battlefields of World War I and 18th century Scotland.

“Two fated couples must defy the forces that seek to tear them apart, unfolding in surprising and unforeseen ways,” according to an official synopsis of the show.

Harriet Slater, Jamie Roy, Hermione Corfield and Jeremy Irvine star in the upcoming series, which sets out to welcome new viewers to the Outlander world and also provide the origin stories of fan-favorite characters to satisfy longtime watchers.

Matthew B. Roberts, showrunner of Outlander: Blood of My Blood, is thrilled to continue the epic saga of the original show.

“The passion and talent our cast and crew have poured into Outlander: Blood of my Blood has been extraordinary and we’re thrilled to continue these epic love stories in season 2,” Roberts said. “Just as audiences fell in love with Jamie and Claire, we hope viewers will be enamored by these new couples when they meet them this summer.”

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Food Network has announced the air date for celebrity chef Anne Burrell‘s final appearance on Worst Cooks in America in the wake of the longtime host’s sudden death.

Food Network announced Monday that it will air Burrell’s final appearance on the show on July 28. The network will also air “a curated selection of encore episodes featuring Anne” on Wednesday starting at 10 p.m. ET, to “highlight her extraordinary talent as a chef, competitor and teacher.”

“Anne Burrell was a one-of-a-kind talent whose loss is being deeply felt by family, friends and fans,” Betsy Ayala, head of food content for Warner Bros. Discovery, said in the announcement. “With these special programming events, we hope to honor Anne and celebrate her impact on Food Network and beyond, and to offer fans a way to remember her passion and culinary prowess that ran through everything she did.”

Burrell was found “unconscious and unresponsive” inside her Brooklyn home just before 8 a.m. on June 17, according to police. An autopsy to determine the cause of her death will be performed, the Office of Chief Medical Examiner said last week.

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MobLand is coming back for more.

Paramount+ has renewed the action-crime series for season 2. The show, which is executive produced by Guy Ritchie, is the second-most-watched original series on the streaming service. It has accumulated 26 million viewers and counting.

Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren star in the series about two mob families who find themselves in a war that threatens to ruin their empires and lives.

Ronan Bennett created and co-wrote the series, which was executive produced by David C. Glasser and co-written by Jez Butterworth.

“With over 26 million viewers and climbing, MobLand has become a resounding triumph driven by the creative brilliance of Guy, Jez, Ronan and David C. Glasser, and brought to life by the powerhouse performances by Tom, Pierce, and Helen,” Chris McCarthy, the co-CEO of Paramount and president of SHOWTIME/MTV Entertainment, said. “We are elated to greenlight a second season of this global phenomenon, which has dominated both domestic and international charts and soared to #1 in the United Kingdom.”

MobLand season 1 premiered on March 30. 

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Brad Pitt is opening up about his time attending Alcoholics Anonymous.

The actor chatted about attending an AA meeting with Armchair Expert host Dax Shepard in an episode of the podcast released on Monday.

Pitt said attending AA was an amazing thing.

“I just thought it was just incredible men sharing their experiences, their foibles, their missteps, their wants, their aches, and a lot of humor with it. I thought it was a really special experience,” Pitt said.

Shepard said he wondered if Pitt was nervous to chat on the podcast with him after they had met in AA, knowing the “really heightened honesty and vulnerability” of the experience.

But Pitt told Shepard he felt “quite at ease.” While at AA, Pitt said he was shy, but felt led to open up because of how low he felt at the time.

“I was pretty much on my knees, and I was really open,” Pitt said. “I was trying anything and everyone. Anything anyone threw at me. It was a difficult time. I needed rebooting. I needed to wake the f*** up in some areas. And it just meant a lot to me.”

After a few AA meetings, the sessions began to be “something I’d look forward to,” Pitt said. The actor also said he feels like he is “pretty good at taking responsibility” for “and owning up to” things he’s done wrong.

“And now it’s a quest to, you know, ‘What do I do with this? How can I right this?’ And make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Pitt said.

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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.

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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.

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