Entertainment

Martin Lawrence now has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The comedian received the honor Thursday, April 20, in a ceremony attended by friends Steve Harvey and Tracy Morgan. He spoke to Extra about the recognition and his brotherhood with his fellow stars.

“I’m truly honored … I feel so blessed and I thank God for this honor and just recognition and my fans and it’s something that I always wanted,” he said. “Richard Pryor was my first introduction to wanting to be in the business.”

Describing Pryor and Eddie Murphy as inspirations, he said, “Just following what they’ve done in their career has allowed me to push forward in mine, so I’m very grateful and thankful.”

Of his friendship with Steve and Tracy, he said it “means so much,” adding they are “two people that tell the truth … and I respect them so much.”

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Matthew McConaughey, who in 2020 published his New York Times bestseller Greenlights, took to Instagram to promote a live self-help event.

The Oscar-winning actor is offering the public some of the life lessons he put in the book and some of the guidance he’s learned from “some of the wonderful mentors” he’s had over his 53 years.

He calls the event The Art of Livin’ and enthuses, “It’s like nothing I’ve ever done before.”

McConaughey, sitting casually between his beloved Airstream trailer and, perhaps predictably, a bongo, begins his pitch by saying, “You ever have the gut feelin’ that maybe you were meant for more, but you weren’t sure about the next best steps to achieve it? Me too.”

He continues, “I’m not talking about just more money, or more things. I’m talking about more love, more joy, more choice, more balance, more trust.”

“What’s your more?” he asks.

With the help of guests like Tony Robbins, Dean Graziosi, and other “really smart people,” McConaughey promises, “We’re gonna get under the hood and work out what the hell we’re doing there, and how we get where we really wanna go.”

“Now I’m not sayin’ I’ve got all the answers,” McConaughey says in the spot, “And I’m not saying I’m making straight As in all the areas of my life that we’re gonna be talking about.”

But, he says, “I do know this: We all need a roadmap.”

While the event is free, there’s also a VIP option for $47, with some of the proceeds buying meals for Feeding America. That gets people face time with the star via Zoom and an extended Q&A session with him and his guests.

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Judy Blume Forever, a documentary about the beloved, boundary-pushing children’s book author, hits Prime Video on April 21. The following week, the film adaptation of Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret hits theaters. It wasn’t planned that way, but Judy Blume says she’s making the most of it.

“Well, it wasn’t my idea,” Blume tells ABC Audio. “The fact that both movies are coming out at the same time, almost — that wasn’t supposed to happen, but things happen.” She laughs, “I don’t know — I’m 85, why not enjoy it?”

The movie’s directors, Davina Pardo and Leah Wolchok, agree: the more Judy, the better. “We love that Judy Blume is having a moment right now, and we love that the films are coming out at the same time,” says Wolchok. “I think they really complement each other.”

“I mean, you can get to know Judy’s life story and understand a little bit deeper into her perspective … and then to see this really loyal, beautiful, cinematic adaptation of her seminal work, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, a week later and share that with your kids — they’re a great double feature.”

In Judy Blue Forever, Blume tells her own story, but there’s also archival interview footage, commentary by famous fans like Molly Ringwald and excerpts from the thousands of letters that Blume’s received from readers over the years. We also hear from two of those young readers, who went on to correspond with Blume for decades.

“Even though so many of the details of our lives have changed … the feeling of being young and wondering, ‘Am I normal? … Why don’t my parents understand me?’… I think holds true for kids today,” says Pardo. “They don’t go away. And because Judy captured them so accurately, her books really still resonate with kids.”

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Three years after leaving The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Denise Richards is returning to Bravo franchise in a guest-starring role.

“I have filmed some episodes,” Richards told Variety while in Cannes to promote her new drama series, Paper Empire. “And it’s been fun. And you know, I’m a big fan of the show, so it was fun to go back and film a lot of stuff with them.”

“This all just happened recently on the spur of the moment,” said Richards, who attended a screening hosted by RHOBH‘s Garcelle Beauvais “like a real friend.”

“I didn’t tell anyone I was gonna be there. Production didn’t know. I just showed up…” she added. “The next day, I was asked to go to some events — and so it’s been actually fun.”

Richards left the show after two seasons amid a fight with Brandi Glanville and Lisa Rinna — who has since been ousted from from the show.

“When I left after my second season, I just felt as though some of the women were very toxic and they played so dirty,” Richards explained. “I understand there has to be drama, but I also think it’s fun to see women having fun, especially this age group.”

However, notes Richards, “I don’t think it’s a positive message to try and tear people down. You can have your opinions, but don’t try to tear people down. I don’t think it’s right. I mean, that part I don’t like.”

Richards’ says her game plan this second go-round is to just be herself. “You get a group of six to eight [to] 10 women together, your drama will come up, authentically. Leave it at that and have fun with it.”

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Ted Lasso‘s Hannah Waddingham will celebrate the holidays with her own Apple Original musical special, Hannah Waddingham: Home for Christmas, premiering later this year. The special, recorded live in front of an audience at the London Coliseum, will feature performances and musical numbers from the Emmy-winning actress, as well as special surprise guests…

Speaking of Ted Lasso, with the show reportedly about to end its run after three seasons, series star Juno Temple is already close to lining up her next big role. Sources tell Deadline she is in talks to co-star in Sony/Marvel’s Venom 3. Tom Hardy is set to return as the titular character, but that’s all that’s known about the project thus far. The first two films grossed a combined $1.36 billion worldwide…

Station 19 has been renewed for a seventh season at ABC, the network announced on Thursday. The Grey’s Anatomy spinoff, which follows a group of heroic Seattle firefighters as they put their lives and hearts on the line, stars Jaina Lee Ortiz, Jason George, Boris Kodjoe, Grey Damon, Barrett Doss, Jay Hayden, Okieriete Onaodowan, Danielle Savre and Miguel Sandoval. Station 19 airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC…

A modern-day remake of Girls Just Want to Have Fun, the cult 1985 romantic comedy dance movie that starred Sarah Jessica Parker and Helen Hunt, is in the works with Elizabeth Banks producing, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The original film centered on Janey and her new best friend Lynne — played by Parker and Hunt, respectively — who share a passion for dancing and the TV show “Dance TV.” They enter a competition to be a new “Dance TV” regular couple, although Janey’s father doesn’t approve. the cast also included Lee Montgomery, Jonathan Silverman, Ed Lauter and Shannen Doherty…

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Actor Drake Bell‘s marriage has reportedly hit a sour note, with his wife Janet Von Schmeling filing for divorce after four years of marriage.

According to TMZ, Von Schmeling filed the documents on Thursday and cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their split. She also stated that the couple had been separated since September.

Von Schmeling is requesting primary legal and physical custody of their 2-year-old son Wyatt, with visitation rights for the Drake & Josh star, per the documents obtained by the outlet. She also is seeking spousal support. 

The divorce news comes just one week after he was “considered missing and endangered” and then found later the same day.

Following the incident, Bell took to social media to joke about the situation, tweeting, “You leave your phone in the car and don’t answer for the night and this?” 

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Alec Baldwin took to social media late Thursday afternoon, hours after learning charges against him in the fatal shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins were dropped.

The photo, apparently from a different day, shows Baldwin smiling serenely, with his eyes closed, resting his head against hers. “I owe everything I have to this woman,” he captioned the picture, adding, “(and to you, Luke).”

The latter is an obvious reference to his attorney, Luke Nikias.

Earlier in the day, Nikias responded to the Santa Fe District Attorney’s Office’s decision to drop charges against his client, stating, “We are pleased with the decision to dismiss the case against Alec Baldwin and we encourage a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident.”

Baldwin, 65, had been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter after fatally shooting cinematographer Hutchins, 42, on the New Mexico set of the Western in October 2021. The actor was practicing a cross-draw when the gun fired, striking the cinematographer and director Joel Souza, who suffered a non-life-threatening injury.

The film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was also charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter over Hutchins’ death.

The movie is resuming production with a new safety team and Hutchins’ widower, Matthew, as one of its executive producers.

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Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham has publicly acknowledged his dismissal from the Apple TV+ workplace comedy Mythic Quest with a “sincere and deeply felt apology.”

As reported, Rolling Stone broke the news that the actor, who also appeared on HBO’s The White Lotus’ second season, was fired after complaints were made about his on-set behavior by his female co-stars.

In his statement, provided by his reps to ABC Audio, Abraham noted, “Though never my intention to offend anyone, I told jokes, nothing more, that upset some of my colleagues and as a result lost a great job with wonderful people. I have grown in my understanding from this experience, and I hope they will forgive me.”

In Mythic Quest, Abraham played one-time superstar sci-fi novelist C.W. Longbottom, who was a story writer on a multiplayer game — and who was described as “a walking cry for sensitivity training” by one of his much younger colleagues. 

He was abruptly written off the show in its most recent third season, with Longbottom revealing in an offscreen message that he’d chose to take his own life after receiving a terminal diagnosis.

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After years of developing and starring in TV projects, like the successful reboot of Hawaii Five-O on CBS and his just-renewed Alert: Missing Persons Unit for Fox, Scott Caan got back behind the keyboard to write the new crime drama One Day as a Lion.

The movie is now streaming on demand.

Caan stars as Jackie Powers, an ex boxer desperate to keep his teen son out of prison. In need of money for an attorney, he reluctantly takes a job for a crime boss (Frank Grillo): killing an old cowboy who owes him money (Oscar winner J.K. Simmons). But Jackie’s no killer, and he bungles the job, forcing him to go on the run.

“This movie is just sort of a combination of all the goofy people that I grew up with,” Caan tells ABC Audio. “I had a weird childhood: half of my family were a bunch of cowboys. The other half of my family were like, you know, East Coast wise-guy type of people.” He also drew inspiration from his past, noting he spent time in juvenile hall when he was 15.

Caan says the movie reignited a passion for the independent movies from the ’90s that inspired him to pursue acting.

Marvel movie veteran Grillo says Scott’s movie reminded him of Thief, starring Scott’s dad, the late James Caan.

There was another bonus for Grillo, who was born and raised in The Bronx, New York. “I never get to play, like, gangster dudes. And so for me to jump in and get to be like a goombah from The Bronx, you know — that’s like every guy I knew who’s probably dead or in jail. It was great, man. It was great fun.”

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20th Century Studios has released the first trailer to the Hulu-bound reboot of the 1992 classic White Men Can’t Jump.

Rapper Jack Harlow makes his feature-length film debut as Jeremy, with Friday Night Lights‘ Sinqua Walls as Kamal, succeeding Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes in the original film.

As before, hustling at hoops and trash talk is the name of the game, with Harlow’s character, dressed like a “yoga teacher,” beating Walls’ character in a not-so-friendly free-throw wager.

The unlikely duo team up in a street ball competition with a $500,000 grand prize at stake, but first they have to hustle their share of competitors for the entry fee.

That’s not as easy as it looks, however, as one of the sore losers busts out a flamethrower.

black-ish‘s Kenya Barris wrote the script for Grammy-winning video director Calmatic. The film also stars Coming 2 America‘s Teyana Taylor, Spider-Man: Homecoming‘s Laura Harrier and the late John Wick star Lance Reddick.

The movie debuts on Hulu on May 19.

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