Entertainment

Legendary actor James Earl Jones, best known for his innumerable movie roles and the booming voice of the character of Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise, has died, his representative confirmed to ABC News.

He was 93 years old.

Jones died on Monday morning at his home in Dutchess County, New York, surrounded by his family, according to longtime agent Barry McPherson.

The thespian, whose powerful, deep voice brought to life the iconic villain, acted for more than six decades. In the 1950s and ’60s, Jones was a Broadway staple. From On Golden Pond to The Best Man, his work earned four Tony nominations, winning for The Great White Hope in 1969 and Fences in 1987.

Almost simultaneously, he was garnering acclaim on TV, as well. The eventual two-time Emmy Award winner earned his first nod in the 1960s for his work on East Side/West Side.

He picked up both his Primetime Emmy wins in 1991, for best supporting actor in the miniseries Heat Wave and best actor for the series Gabriel’s Fire. He also won a Daytime Emmy for the children’s special Summer’s End in 2000. 

Jones later earned his first Oscar nod, adapting The Great White Hope to the silver screen in 1970, playing boxer Jack Jefferson. Jones was just the second Black actor after Sidney Poitier — who was nominated in 1958 and 1963 — to be recognized by the academy with a nomination.

For the better part of the 1970s, Jones continued to juggle his work on stage, TV and film. Then, in 1977, he was cast as the voice of a new villain, Darth Vader, in the space saga Star Wars: A New Hope.

While bodybuilder David Prowse would be the figure behind the black mask of the Sith lord, Jones was the voice that uttered so many iconic lines in the film and its sequels — including “I find your lack of faith disturbing,” and then, of course, to Luke Skywalker in 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back, his big reveal, “No, I am your father.”

From 1977 to 1983, the three original Star Wars films would become some of the most revered and original movies of their time, not just for special effects, but also for the shocking plot and themes.

After Star Wars, Jones made memorable appearances in Eddie Murphy‘s 1988 film Coming to America, then starred opposite Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams in 1989. A few years later, he once again lent his voice to a famous character, starring in the Disney animated feature The Lion King as Mufasa.

Jones had almost 200 credits to his name, according to IMDB, as he stayed active for more than 60 years.

In 2011, Jones was given an honorary Academy Award for the breadth of his acclaimed work and in March 2022, it was announced that Broadway’s Cort Theatre would be renamed the James Earl Jones Theatre.

Jones married twice. His second wife, Cecilia Hart, died in 2016 after 34 years of marriage. The couple is survived by their son, Flynn Earl Jones.

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Edie Falco and her former co-star Drea de Matteo can be seen in the HBO documentary Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos, and The Wrap says that in the second installment Falco takes issue with the modern addition of “trigger warnings” to violent content.

“The show was always shocking somebody about something,” Falco says.

“You could push the envelope and let people be uncomfortable — forgive me, but without a trigger warning. The whole point is you want to surprise people and give them feelings that maybe are uncomfortable and have them learn to deal with them. That, my friend, is life.”

For her part, de Matteo says, “Like the episode where the stripper gets killed. It tells a story of Meadow in college against this young girl who would be the same age.”

Falco added that in life, “You’re not going to be given trigger warnings when terrible things happen.”

Matt Smith, the star of another HBO hit, House of the Dragon, recently lamented to The Sunday Times, “I’m not sure about trigger warnings. Isn’t being shocked the point?”

Smith said they’re proof “[e]verything’s being dialed and dumbed down.”

The English actor said, “We should be telling morally difficult stories, nowadays in particular. It’s OK to feel uncomfortable or provoked while looking at a painting or watching a play.”

He added, “We’re telling audiences they’re going to be scared before they’ve watched something. Isn’t being shocked, surprised, stirred the point?” The actor bemoaned “[t]oo much policing of stories,” adding, “being afraid to bring them out because a climate is a certain way is a shame.”

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Comedian John Mulaney will return to Broadway, along with “the funniest people on earth,” for a production called All In: A Comedy About Love.

The production comes to the Great White Way on Dec. 11.

According to its website, the play written by Saturday Night Live veteran Simon Rich will feature a “rotating cast” of said funny people, including fellow SNL vet Fred Armisen and current cast member Chloe Fineman. Renée Elise Goldsberry and Richard Kind were also mentioned in the play’s initial cast, but more will be announced.

The producers say, “Sometimes they will play pirates, sometimes they will play dogs, and there’s one where we make them talk in British accents. But even though the show’s kind of all over the place, it’s meant to tell one simple story: that the most important part of life is who we share it with.”

They add, “We hope everybody will relate to it, even if it was their date’s idea to come and they are starting out from a place of quiet resentment.”

The director of the forthcoming play will be Tony winner Alex Timbers, who called the shots on Mulaney’s 2016 Broadway debut, Oh, Hello.

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Adam Sandler has announced on Instagram that Happy Gilmore 2 has gotten underway.

To a photo of his character’s Boston Bruins jersey, tagged with his titular character’s name on it, Sandler captioned, “It ain’t over. The way I see it … we’ve only just begun.”

It was only back in May that Sandler confirmed — through former co-star and TV host Drew Barrymore — that the sequel to the 1996 original was a go. 

Netflix soon followed on May 15, teasing, “It’s been almost 30 years since we last saw Happy Gilmore, the long-driving hero who won in the Tour Championship in 1996. Now, we finally get to catch up with him in a new sequel.”

The streamer added, “Adam Sandler is returning to the golf green as Happy Gilmore, and he’s bringing his powerful slap shot with him. No word on any alligators.”

Happy Gilmore 2 tees off on Netflix in 2025.

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Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out 2 has stayed atop the Fandango at Home streaming chart for the third straight week.

The animated movie is, so far, the highest-grossing movie of the year, having made more than $1.6 billion worldwide since it hit theaters June 14.

Coming in second on the streaming chart was M. Night Shyamalan‘s latest thriller, Trap; the summer hit Twisters ranked third for the week of Sept. 2 through Sept. 8.

In fourth place was a new entry, Borderlands, which suffered a disastrous box office fate when it hit theaters on Aug. 9.

Another animated hit, Despicable Me 4, rounded out the top 5.

Incidentally, interest over weekend box office champ Beetlejuice Beetlejuice seems to have spurred streams of the 1988 original, which made #9 on the list, while Kevin Costner‘s Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, which is also streaming on Max, rounded out the top 10.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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Following the upcoming Max show’s takeover of San Diego during July’s annual Comic-Con, Penguin is headed to the real-life inspiration for Gotham City: NYC.

On Monday and Tuesday, “The Penguin and his crew will station their ‘Gotham Goods’ merchandise trucks in six locations across Manhattan,” the network teases, adding fans can follow @TheBatman on social media for information on how to collect their goods — and about the other stops in his takeover.

The trucks will be stashed and stocked with goods, while supplies last, in three different locations throughout Manhattan on both days.

Following that, there will be a Penguin booth at the city’s famous Feast of San Gennaro Sept. 12 through Sept. 22. The spot will be “offering exclusive ‘Penguin-themed’ merchandise and Gotham-inspired street food.” Colin Farrell‘s alter ego will also be parking his purple Maserati, as seen in The Batman and the spin-off show, near the booth.

Further, the network says, Penguin will also take over the San Gennaro Ferris wheel during the festival.

On Sept. 18, the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Lower Manhattan will host a special screening of the episode along with a Q&A with the filmmakers who brought the show to life. 

From Sept. 13 to Sept. 20, Max is partnering with select local establishments “to offer secret menu items, signature swag, and late-night special items available for purchase.”

Finally, on Sept. 17 Max “will light up several prominent New York City landmark buildings, including the Empire State Building, Javits Center, One Bryant Park, One World Trade Center, and Pier 17 in The Penguin’s signature plum purple hue to mark the beginning of his reign.”

The Penguin debuts Sept. 19 on HBO, and the eight-episode series will stream on Max.

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The 76th Emmy Awards don’t happen until Sunday, but over the weekend the Creative Arts Emmys got the ball rolling — and the most-nominated show this year, FX’s Shōgun, collected 14 awards.

The adaptation of the 1975 novel of the same name by James Clavell is nominated for a total of 25 awards.

The series dominated the technical categories, including hair and makeup, costume design and visual effects, but it also earned an Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series trophy for Néstor Carbonell.

Another FX series, previous Emmy winner The Bear, was still hot, serving up seven Emmys on Sunday night. These included a pair of performance Emmys: one for Jamie Lee Curtis as Donna Berzatto and one for Jon Bernthal as her onscreen son Michael Berzatto, both in the Outstanding Guest Actor/Actress in a Comedy category. 

Incidentally, if you’ve seen the show’s “Seven Fishes” Christmas episode, you’ll know both of those trophies were really well-deserved — and that The Bear really shouldn’t be in the Comedy category.

The 76th annual Emmy Awards telecast, hosted by Eugene and Dan Levy, will broadcast live on ABC Sunday, Sept. 15. It will also stream on Hulu Sept. 16 through Sept. 22.

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The Eye Network is giving viewers a peek into its fall schedule with a new special. 

CBS Fall First Look will air Sept. 19 at 9:30 p.m., and features “scores of new and returning CBS stars sharing fun facts and cross-show conversations” about the network’s forthcoming lineup. 

The program will also be available for livestream and video on demand on Paramount+ and Pluto TV, as well as CBS.com and the CBS app.

Stars from the hits NCIS, Elsbeth, FBI, Fire Country, The Neighborhood and more will take part, and there will be peeks at the new shows Matlock, starring Kathy Bates; Poppa’s House, starring Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr.; the prequel spin-off NCIS: Origins; and the Young Sheldon spin-off Georgie & Mandy’s First Wedding. 

The network will release the first of its new shows, Matlock, on Sept. 22, and The Summit Sept. 29, ahead of the new fall schedule’s official start with the returning action drama Tracker on Oct. 13.

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Selena Gomez has shared new details about her future journey to motherhood.

The singer and actress told Vanity Fair she is unable to carry her own children in an interview released on Monday.

“I haven’t ever said this … but I unfortunately can’t carry my own children. I have a lot of medical issues that would put my life and the baby’s in jeopardy. That was something I had to grieve for a while,” Selena said.

She said becoming a parent one day may not happen the way she originally envisioned it, but she is now “in a much better place with that.”

“I find it a blessing that there are wonderful people willing to do surrogacy or adoption, which are both huge possibilities for me. It made me really thankful for the other outlets for people who are dying to be moms. I’m one of those people,” Selena said. “I’m excited for what that journey will look like, but it’ll look a little different. At the end of the day, I don’t care. It’ll be mine. It’ll be my baby.”

Selena was diagnosed with lupus in 2013. In 2015, she shared that she underwent chemotherapy to treat the autoimmune illness.

The pop star, who is in a relationship with Benny Blanco, had a firm plan to start a family by age 35 before she started dating him.

“Before I met my boyfriend, I was single for five years, with the exception of going on a few dates,” Selena said. “And I was like, ‘Okay, if this is the vibe, then what is the most important thing to me? Family.’”

Selena also said she has “never been loved this way.”

“He’s just been a light,” Selena said. “A complete light in my life. He’s my best friend. I love telling him everything.”

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On Monday, the Television Academy announced the list of presenters for this year’s 76th Emmy Awards.

Among the presenters will be many of this year’s nominees, including Only Murders in the Building trio Selena Gomez, Martin Short, and Steve Martin, as well as their fellow nominees Kristen Wiig, Jean Smart, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Nava Mau, Jane Lynch, Matt Bomer, Lily Gladstone and Christine Baranski.

Also among the dozens of presenters announced are Oscar winners Kathy Bates, Viola Davis and Ron Howard, as well as Oscar nominee Colin Farrell, former Emmy winners Niecy Nash-Betts, Steven Yeun, and Candice Bergen, and country music legend and actress Reba McEntire.

The full list of presenters can be found here.

The 76th annual telecast, hosted by Eugene and Dan Levy, will broadcast live on ABC on Sunday, Sept. 15 from the Peacock Theater at L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles. It will also stream on Hulu from Sept. 16 through Sept. 22.

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