Entertainment

Variety reports Ted Lasso‘s season 3 finale delivered the biggest streaming numbers in Apple TV+’s history. Viewers watched 1.24 billion minutes of the Emmy-winning comedy for the week of May 29-June 4 — the first time any show on Apple’s streaming service has topped a billion minutes. The season 3 finale, released on May 31, accounted for 529 million minutes  — or about 42.5% of the total — the highest weekly total for a single episode of Ted Lasso, according to Nielsen.

Starz on Thursday released the trailer for season 2 of the critically-acclaimed drama Heels, debuting at the stroke of midnight Friday, July 28 on the Starz app, ahead of cable tv premiere at 10:00 PM ET/PT. The new season finds Jack and Ace Spade — played respectively by Arrow alum Stephen Amell and Vikings‘ Alexander Ludwig — “continuing to fight over their late father’s legacy and their individual versions of success, while also working to find their own identity as a ‘face’ or a ‘heel,’ per Starz…

Apple TV+ offered a first look at the highly anticipated 10-episode third season of The Morning Show, premiering Wednesday, September 13 with the first two episodes. Season 2 of the Jennifer Aniston–Reese Witherspoon-led series will see the future of the network in doubt and loyalties “pushed to the brink when a tech titan takes an interest in UBA,” per the streamer. “Unexpected alliances form, private truths are weaponized and everyone is forced to confront their core values both in and out of the newsroom.” Billy Crudup, Mark Duplass, Nestor Carbonell, Karen Pittman, Greta Lee, Jon Hamm, Nicole Beharie and Julianna Margulies round out the ensemble cast…

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The new movie Surrounded shows us a side of old west we don’t normally get to see on film. The well-reviewed movie, out now for digital rental, tells the fictional story of Buffalo Soldier Mo Washington, a Black woman in 1870 who had to pass as a man in order to travel west to lay claim on a gold mine. She’s played by Black Panther star Letitia Wright, who tells ABC Audio the idea of a Black women in the West may seem “clearly … made up, but it’s not.”

“You know, you have an example in history of Cathay Williams, who was a part of the Buffalo Soldiers,” Wright continues. “She was a black woman hiding, you know, and masking her identity to survive, really. And they didn’t know that she was a woman.”

The film was also an eye-opening experience for the Guyana and London-raised actress, who admits, “There was a lot that was missing from my experience as a kid with understanding cowboy culture and, you know, Black cowboys as well and just how embedded in that history they are … but definitely know a little bit more now.”

Surrounded co-stars Michael K. Williams in one of his last roles before dying of a drug overdose in 2021, and Wright says she loved working with him on the film.

“I actually experienced my first Thanksgiving with him,” she recalls. “We was in New Mexico and we threw this little party at my house. Michael came over and it was just vibes, man. Vibes and good energy and positivity and yeah, that is such a a shame to lose someone so beautiful and such a great artist as well. So I’ll always cherish all those moments that we had on and off screen forever.” 

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Superstar model Naomi Campbell has announced the arrival of her second child, a baby boy.

The 53-year-old announced the news on Instagram Thursday with a photo showing her holding the baby and another hand, assumed to be her daughter’s, also holding onto the newborn’s hand.

“My little darling, know that you are cherished beyond measure and surrounded by love from the moment you graced us with your presence. A True Gift from God,” she wrote.

Congratulation messages filled Campbell’s comment section, with well-wishes from stars Lala, Kelly Rowland, Donatella Versace and others.

She ended the post caption saying, “Welcome Babyboy. #mumoftwo It’s never too late to become a mother.”

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FX’s acclaimed Indigenous comedy series Reservation Dogs will end when its forthcoming third season comes to a close, creator Sterlin Harjo has revealed on Instagram. 

In the lengthy post that dropped on Thursday, June 29, he said, “That’s a difficult line to write and a more difficult decision to make. However, it’s the correct decision creatively for the show.”

He added, “I always knew what the end of this story would be, I just didn’t know when it would arrive. As we continued to break stories and write scripts this season, it became clear to the producers, Taika [Waititi] and me that the season three finale is the perfect series finale.”

Created by Harjo and Oscar winner Waititi, the show centers on four Indigenous teenagers in rural Oklahoma. It won praise — and a Peabody Award — for its portrayal of characters who are only now getting proper representation on film and TV.

Harjo added, “When we came up with the idea for Reservation Dogs, I didn’t think the show would ever get made, but thankfully it did.”

He explained, “The first and most basic idea for us as Native people was to show the world that Native humor and Natives are funny. Almost all television and film depictions about Native people are most inaccurate … and … untruthful.”

Harjo expressed, “It has been a gift to us to show the world a different perspective of Indigenous people and our culture. Most important of all, it has been a dream to collaborate and make a show that is entirely written by, directed by and stars Native people.”

In a statement about the news, FX noted, “People throw around the words historic and groundbreaking far too often and without merit: Reservation Dogs is worthy of those superlatives.”

The series returns on Hulu in August.

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Jada Pinkett Smith announced Thursday she’ll be releasing a new tell-all memoir this October — and she’s determined to tell the true story of her life. 

“On October 17th, I invite you into a journey that, understandably, many think they already know,” she wrote on Instagram, sharing the cover of her new book, Worthy. 

“The fact that I have, in the last four years contributed to the creation and perpetuation of falsehoods about myself, in which other untrue narratives were birthed, has surely aided in the misunderstandings that surround me,” she said. “This fall, with deep humility and respect, I will take back my narrative.”

With Worthy, Smith promises readers a firsthand account of the “unraveling truths” of her life, delving into significant moments, such as her “challenging upbringing in Baltimore” and “controversial life in Hollywood.”

The 51-year-old entertainer told People she began her writing process in December 2021 and decided now would be a good time to release the book, in an effort to clear up misconceptions fans have about her life. 

“So many people feel because of my talk show Red Table Talk that they know my journey. And they really don’t,” she said. 

Smith also hinted at a return of Red Table Talk after Facebook Watch was shut down in April. Of the show’s return, she said some platforms have already reached out and that the show is “definitely coming back.”

Starting in October, Smith will embark on a cross-country book tour, kicking off in New York and ending in Los Angeles. 

The full Worthy tour itinerary, tickets and book information can be found at Ourworthyjourney.com.

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An executive producer title can mean many things in Hollywood, and it ranges from a person who fronts the money and all the logistics to get an idea to the screen, to basically an honorific used to lure talent to a particular project. 

However, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan tell ABC Audio they had to work for it with their hit Negan and Maggie team-up spinoff, The Walking Dead: Dead City. 

“I was thinking, ‘Yeah, it’s going to look good on the resume. You know, I’ll take the f****** credit,” Morgan says with a laugh. “You know, most actors don’t do anything in the producer role. They get the credit and they walk.”

He adds, “They made us earn it. We were a part of everything, from preproduction right through every single day of shooting. And then Lauren in particular has had a big hand in the post-production,” Morgan explained, noting after he wrapped he had to leave for another job.

Cohan says of her work in front of, and behind, the camera, “We know the characters, but we get this chance to go and do something new … it’s honestly just going to people who are at the top of their creative game, and collaborating and collaborating in every detail.”

She adds of wearing multiple hats, “You can be in producer mode, but at some point there’s a sort of retreat to getting into character that removes you from some things, even though you kind of want to be everywhere at once once you start, you know?”

She adds, “But then in post-production, you just kind of can let go and learn so much. I mean … It’s really, really satisfying.”  

Dead City airs Sunday night on AMC and streams on AMC+.

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Warner Bros. dropped an epic new trailer to Denis Villeneuve‘s highly anticipated sci-fi sequel Dune: Part Two on Thursday, June 29.

The new preview has Zendaya‘s Chani and Timothée Chalamet’s Paul Atreides battling with his family’s centuries-old enemies, the Harkonnen, with the former in full warrior mode, taking out enemies with a rocket launcher, swords and her bare hands.

The preview also gives the first peek at Christopher Walken as Shaddam IV, a character played by José Ferrer in the 1984 adaptation of author Frank Herbert‘s classic. He’s an emperor who is seen testing Chalamet’s character as Paul tries to fulfill his slain father’s legacy.

“Your father was a weak man,” Walken’s character tells Paul.

Amid the epic battle scenes, the coming attraction centers on Paul’s place in the galaxy and him possibly fulfilling a prophecy predicting he’ll be the savior to unite the desert planet Arrakis’ Fremen people and bring life to the harsh planet.

“Chani, do you believe in me?” he asks as he strokes his love’s face.

The trailer also shows the film’s other cast members, including returning stars Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Dave Bautista, Stellan Skarsgård and Javier Bardem, as well as newcomer/Elvis Oscar nominee Austin Butler as the villainous Feyd-Rautha, shown going beast mode in a gladiatorial ring.

The film from Warner Bros. Pictures hits theaters November 3.

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Netflix has announced that its cast for the follow-up to its global phenomenon Squid Game is now fully assembled.

While the names might not be familiar to audiences on this side of the world, the new additions to the Korean language thriller series include veterans of stage, screen and the world of music, as well as rising stars.

Joining Squid Game survivors Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun are Sweet Home star Park Gyu-young; former pop star Jo Yu-ri from the South Korean-Japanese girl group Iz*One; singer and actor Choi Seung-hyun; and musical theater star and lead of Netflix’s Move To Heaven, Kang Ae-sim.

Director Hwang Dong-hyuk, who won an Emmy for the show about the life-or-death competition, is returning to direct and executive produce the entire second season.

The entire cast recently gathered for a table read of the anticipated follow-up, with production of Squid Game season 2 starting later this year, Netflix explains.

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Lin-Manuel Miranda‘s everything-winning production Hamilton was a hit when it came to Disney+ three years ago this Friday, June 30, and to celebrate, the streaming service is about to unveil a new version.

Just in time for Fourth of July weekend, the Hamilton Sing Along will let viewers at home shoot their shot as they try to replicate Miranda and company’s complicated wordplay — or just sing along to the showstoppers they already know by heart.

For this version, the lyrics are displayed as the performers do their thing, karaoke style, so you can brush up on lines like, “So I’m the oldest and the wittiest and the gossip in New York City is insidious” as you watch.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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Lacey Chabert and Scott Wolf are reuniting for an upcoming Hallmark Channel holiday film, more than 20 years after they wrapped their career-launching roles on Fox’s Party of Five.

The actors, who played brother-sister duo Bailey and Claudia Salinger for six seasons from 1994 to 2000, are set to play siblings once again in a TV movie with the working title A Merry Scottish Christmas.

A synopsis of the holiday film reads, “When estranged siblings Lindsay (Chabert) and Brad (Wolf) travel to Scotland at Christmas to reunite with their mother Jo (Fiona Bell), a big family secret is revealed.”

The festive film is written by Andrea Canning and Audrey Schulman, with Dustin Rikert directing.

“Scott and I have talked for years about doing another project together,” said Chabert, also known for playing Gretchen Wieners in Mean Girls. “When we first read this story about these siblings at a crossroads, we both knew it was the perfect opportunity.”

Speaking about their history together, Wolf said, “Working with Lacey on Party of Five was one of my favorite experiences ever. Reuniting after all of these years to tell such a beautiful story together is a dream that I’m so glad is coming true.”

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