Entertainment

After sitting out the hit sixth Scream film over a well-publicized contract dispute, Neve Campbell is back as Sidney Prescott.

In an Instagram post showing the cover page to the script for the as-yet-untitled Scream 7, the actress also revealed that Kevin Williamson, who wrote the scripts to the original blockbuster in 1996, as well as its 1997 sequel and 2011’s Scream 4, is directing.

Guy Busick, screenwriter of 2022’s hit Scream revival and the well-performing Scream VI, will be back behind the keyboard for the seventh go-round.

In a lengthy caption, Campbell told her followers, “My appreciation for these films and for what they have meant to me, has never waned. I’m very happy and proud to say I’ve been asked, in the most respectful way, to bring Sidney back to the screen and I couldn’t be more thrilled!!!”

Neve added, “I’ve dreamt for many years of how amazing it would be to make one of these movies with Kevin Williamson at the helm. And now it’s happening.” She added, “[It was] his brilliant mind that dreamt up this world.”

The news follows the seventh Scream film being stalled with a one-two punch: the loss of its heroines Tara and Sam Carpenter, played respectively by Jenna Ortega and Melissa Barrerra.

Ortega left the project in November 2023 for “scheduling” reasons, according to Variety. The news came a short time after Barrerra was fired for her controversial social posts about Israel during the country’s counter-offensive against Hamas.

At the time, Spyglass Media claimed to the trade, “We have zero tolerance for antisemitism or the incitement of hate in any form, including false references to genocide, ethnic cleansing, Holocaust distortion or anything that flagrantly crosses the line into hate speech.”
 

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Black-ish star Jenifer Lewis recently opened up exclusively to Good Morning America co-anchor Robin Roberts about a devastating accident she experienced that left her temporarily unable to walk.

Lewis was injured after falling 10 feet off her hotel balcony and into a dry ravine.

Lewis, a comedic actress known for her prominent roles in hit sitcoms like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and A Different World, told Roberts that the past year had been “the hardest” for her.

After wrapping Black-ish in April 2022, Lewis said she was ready to end her career and enjoy life.

“I was gonna retire and move back home,” she said. “I conquered a dream.”

As part of that post-career celebration, she took a trip to Africa with a friend. Lewis said after a day of exploring nature in the Serengeti, she fell off of her hotel balcony into pitch black darkness.

“A lightning bolt went through my mind’s eye … in [the] pitch black, I didn’t know I was falling,” she said.

Lewis said her shoulder and right hip took the brunt of the impact. “It was hard to even take a big breath to scream,” Lewis recalled.

“Nothing would move. So, I laid there, I said, ‘Move your body, baby. Come on, Jenny. Move your body,'” she recounted.

Even though it hurt to breathe, Lewis was able to wake up her friend with her screams.

Lewis said she heard a lion roar while lying in the ravine. “My last thought … was, ‘What a headline,'” she said with a laugh. “‘The king ate the queen: Pieces of Jenifer Lewis’ body being flown back to the States.'”

Stream Roberts’ full sit-down with Lewis Tuesday on ABC News Live at 8:30 p.m. ET and Hulu later Tuesday evening.

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Karan Soni, who plays Deadpool’s long-suffering taxi driver Dopinder in the franchise, is talking about the threequel.

As the record-breaking trailer for Deadpool & Wolverine proved, Soni says star and producer Ryan Reynolds is taking “full advantage” of finally having his hero join the Marvel Studios Cinematic Universe. 

“Ryan’s taking full advantage of the MCU and playing with all the toys,” Soni tells Collider. 

Reynolds joked in the original Deadpool that Fox “couldn’t afford another X-Man” for a cameo, but being part of the MCU now gives him access to all of the characters under the Disney umbrella, following its acquisition of 20th Century Fox — like Hugh Jackman‘s anticipated return as Wolverine.

Soni adds that the third film, which also stars Succession‘s Matthew Macfadyen and The Crown‘s Emma Corrin, is coming at “the perfect time for the MCU,” following the poor reception of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Thor: Love and Thunder.

“[I]t’s ready for a little bit of a shake-up, and [Ryan’s] definitely shaking it up,” Soni says, explaining Marvel Studios is “very willing to make fun of themselves.”

He also says he was “surprisingly starstruck” meeting Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. “But it’s very cool to see those minds together … Kevin’s obviously completely changed the industry, and then Ryan who’s such a genius, like them combining their power, it’s pretty exciting.”

Soni teases of the July 26 release, “I think it’ll be really good.”

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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Oppenheimer set off a financial chain reaction for Christopher Nolan.

That’s the word from Variety, which reports the newly-minted Best Director and Best Picture winner can expect a $100 million payout for delivering the nuclear bomb drama that made more than $953 million worldwide and won seven trophies at the Oscars.

The trade reports the total stems from Nolan’s salary, profit-sharing deals and a bonus from Universal for winning the two top prizes at the Academy Awards.

What’s more, the trade notes, with Oppenheimer returning to theaters for a post-Oscar victory lap, there’s a chance the R-rated drama can clear a billion bucks theatrically. This would put Nolan in line for another bonus for clearing that high water mark at the box office.

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The nominations have been revealed for this year’s Olivier Awards, the annual salute to the best theater from over The Pond, but some faces familiar Stateside were recognized.

Sarah Jessica Parker was nominated in the Best Actress category for Plaza Suite; Succession Emmy winner Sarah Snook scored a nom for The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Nicole Scherzinger was recognized in the Best Actress in a Musical category for Sunset Boulevard, which led the pack with 11 nominations.

Shakespeare in Love veteran Joseph Fiennes was nominated in the Best Actor category for Dear England, while Jessica Jones and Ahsoka star David Tennant was nominated for Macbeth.

Also of note, the Netflix adaptation Stranger Things: The First Shadow was a multiple nominee, including in the Best New Entertainment or Comedy Play category. A musical based on the beloved 1993 Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day scored a nomination for Best Musical Revival.

The Olivier Awards take place April 14, with Ted Lasso Emmy winner Hannah Waddingham returning as host for a second time.

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On Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Monday night, the host spilled some tea about his fourth time hosting the Academy Awards.

Kimmel took the stage after Justin Timberlake first opened the show, implying Jimmy was too hungover from the Oscar after-parties to show up. After that bit, Kimmel gave fans a behind-the-scenes peek at Oscar night.

Jimmy quipped, “It’s always an honor to host an event you would otherwise not be invited to.”

As for his favorite moment, Kimmel said it “was probably hearing Arnold Schwarzenegger say the word ‘Godzilla.'”

With a clip of Ah-nuld reading the winner for Best Visual Effects, Kimmel showed Schwarzenegger clearly calling the movie “Guzzilla,” which Jimmy joked was a “mash-up of ‘Godzilla’ and ‘lasagna.'”

Kimmel also explained what went into John Cena‘s now-infamous nude scene, including a fight with ABC’s Standards and Practices about the “size of the envelope” protecting Cena’s modesty. “They kept wanting it to be bigger,” the host explained.

“Very rarely does an idea really push the envelope,” Jimmy said, revealing the producers were “terrified” by the bit.

Also, Kimmel revealed that Messi, the dog from Anatomy of a Fall, wouldn’t stop barking during rehearsals, so he couldn’t sit in the audience for the whole show as planned. “It wouldn’t be great for the in memoriam segment,” Jimmy joked.

Instead, they used pre-taped shots of the dog in the audience, including one where Messi “clapped” for Robert Downey Jr. with the help of a pair of puppeted dog legs made by JKL‘s prop master.

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Johnny Depp has sent an attaboy to pal Robert Downey Jr. on his Best Supporting Actor win for Oppenheimer Sunday night.

Depp posted a throwback photo on his Instagram Story of him and Downey chatting at the Golden Globe Awards in 2011, on which he wrote, “Let’s try this again… congrats to my dear friend.”

It’s not known whether Depp flubbed a first post or was reaching out to hang with the actor again.

Downey played Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer, which was the 96th Oscars’ biggest winner, with seven, including Best Actor for Cillian Murphy, Best Director for Christopher Nolan and Best Film.

Onstage, a humble Downey said, “Here’s my little secret: I needed this job more than it needed me. Chris knew it.” He added Nolan’s producer wife, Emma Thomas, “surrounded me with one of the greatest cast and crews of all time” and noted, “I stand here before you a better man because of it.”

Incidentally, Downey is the cover star of the latest People magazine. In it, he promises fans, “I got a couple other tricks up my sleeve,” teasing playing four characters in Max’s upcoming limited series The Sympathizer, which debuts on April 14.

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ABC’s telecast of the 96th Oscars on Sunday drew an average audience of 19.5 million total viewers, while nabbing a 3.81 rating among adults 18-49 based on Fast National Live+Same Day program data, the network announced on Monday. The program grew in total viewers for the third straight year, marking a four-year high of 19.5 million — up 1 million from last year. Additionally, Sunday’s Oscars was the strongest awards show telecast on any network in four years in total viewers. The program also stood as the No. 1 entertainment program of the year to date in terms of social video consumption with 71.8 million video views …

Variety reports Zach Galifianakis has been added to the season 4 cast of Hulu‘s Only Murders in the Building, joining Kumail Nanjiani, Eugene Levy and Eva Longoria. As with the other additions to the season 4 cast, Galifianakis’ role is being kept under wraps, but an insider tells the outlet that his character is “integral to the twist and turns of this season’s investigation.” The fourth season will also feature Saturday Night Live veteran Molly Shannon and returning co-star Meryl Streep …

Following Bradley Cooper‘s surprise appearance on the Sunday, March 10, episode of ABC’s Abbott Elementary, the network has announced more guest stars/recurring guest stars on the way in season 3, according to Deadline. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before‘s Lana Condor, Key & Peele‘s Keegan-Michael Key, A Different World‘s Cree Summer, Fresh Prince‘s Tatyana Ali and the Deadpool franchise’s Karan Soni will all be guest stars/recurring guest stars in various upcoming season 3 episodes. Details on their roles have not been revealed …

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Al Pacino presented the Oscar for best picture at the 96th Academy Awards, but when The Godfather actor took the stage, some thought he may have made a mistake when he didn’t name all the nominated films in the category before announcing Oppenheimer as the winner.

“There seems to be some controversy about my not mentioning every film by name last night before announcing the best picture award,” Pacino said Monday in a statement obtained by ABC News. “I just want to be clear it was not my intention to omit them, rather a choice by the producers not to have them said again since they were highlighted individually throughout the ceremony.”

“I was honored to be a part of the evening and chose to follow the way they wished for this award to be presented,” he added.

“This is the time for the last award for the evening and it’s my honor to present it,” he continued. “Ten wonderful films were nominated but only one will take the award for best picture. And I have to go to the envelope for that. And I will …. Here it comes.”

“And my eyes see Oppenheimer,” he said as he opened the envelope.

After a delayed reaction from the audience, Pacino said, “Yes, Emma Thomas, Charles Roven,” listing some of the producers for the film.

In his statement, Pacino said he recognizes that being nominated at the Oscars is a big moment.

“I realize being nominated is a huge milestone in one’s life and to not be fully recognized is offensive and hurtful,” he said. “I say this as someone who profoundly relates with filmmakers, actors and producers so I deeply empathize with those who have been slighted by this oversight and it’s why I felt it necessary to make this statement.”

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In a post-Oscars interview that aired on LIVE with Kelly and Mark Monday morning, Jimmy Kimmel revealed his live reading of Donald Trump‘s negative post about him almost didn’t happen.

Toward the end of the broadcast Sunday evening, four-time host Jimmy read a scathing review of his performance from his phone, adding, “See if you can guess which former president just posted that on Truth Social?”

“Thank you, President Trump. Thank you for watching. I’m surprised you’re still up. Isn’t it past your jail time?” he added, drawing laughs from the crowd.

To Kelly and Mark, Jimmy revealed the show’s producers told him, “‘You have a little bit of time.’ I was like, ‘I’m reading the Trump tweet [sic],'” he recalled with a laugh.

“They were, ‘NO, no don’t read that!'” Jimmy insisted, adding, “‘Yes, I am!'”

Kimmel also poked fun at Al Pacino‘s peculiar reading of the night’s final award winner for Best Picture.

The Godfather icon talked about the nominated films as he opened the envelope and then peeked inside and said, “And my eyes see Oppenheimer.”

“I guess he’s never watched an awards show before,” Kimmel laughed. “Seems like everyone in America knows the rhythm of how it’s supposed to go: ‘And the Oscar goes to …’ but not Al, God bless him.”

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