Entertainment

It looks like DreamWorks took Eddie Murphy up on that phone call: Just months after Murphy said he’d say yes to another Shrek film “in two seconds,” Variety reports new projects in that universe are moving ahead.

The trade chatted with Chris Meledandri, founder of the animation studio Illumination and a creative partner to DreamWorks Animation, and he says he’s pushing to bring back the original Shrek gang, including Murphy as Donkey, Mike Myers as Shrek and Cameron Diaz‘s Princess Fiona for a fifth film.

“We anticipate the cast coming back,” the exec noted. “Talks are starting now, and every indication that we’ve gotten is there’s tremendous enthusiasm on behalf of the actors to return.”

As reported, Murphy’s January comments to Etalk also included him expressing, “I love Donkey. They did Puss in Boots movies. I was like, ‘They should have done a Donkey movie.’ Donkey is funnier than Puss in Boots. I mean, I love Puss in Boots, but he ain’t funny as the Donkey.”

He went on to say, “DreamWorks, if y’all wanna do it, just call me, I’m ready.”

Turns out Meledandri saw that interview, too, and was “thrilled.” He tells Variety, “It’s evidence of his strong enthusiasm for a role that he so brilliantly inhabited and really created alongside the artists at DreamWorks. I found that comment to be very exciting.”

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Jennifer Lopez‘s brand includes perfume, beauty products, footwear and more … and now she’s branching out into booze.

She’s launching a brand of ready-to-drink cocktails called The House of Delola, after one of her nicknames, Lola. The brand offers gluten-free, lower calorie drinks that come in embossed glass bottles. The first product line, Delola Spritz, includes Bella Berry Spritz, Paloma Rosa Spritz and L’Orange Spritz, which are based around vodka, tequila and amaro, respectively. They all have 110 calories or less per serving.

Starting this month, the drinks will be available in grocery and liquor stores, as well as in restaurants and bars throughout the U.S. Visit DelolaLife.com for more details.

In a statement, JLo says she created the brand because she couldn’t find a cocktail that was right for her, so she decided to make one.

“My goals were better ingredients, better taste, fewer calories than traditional cocktails, and one simple pour. Something easy, fun, fresh and delicious,” she says. “I started this journey two years ago and I’m so excited to finally share Delola with the world.”

JLo tells People the design that’s embossed on the bottle includes two lions to represent her and husband Ben Affleck, because they’re both Leos. She shot the campaign for the product in Italy and says, “It evokes this aspirational kind of glamorous lifestyle, but also something very peaceful and relaxing and earthy to it as well.”

“It has this combination, which I think is very me, where it’s kind of down to earth … but also super glam,” she adds. “Jenny from the block meets the Italian coast.”

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On Tuesday, Warner Bros. Pictures released character posters for the stars of its upcoming Barbie film that has Margot Robbie playing the titular blond bombshell.

The studio teases, “To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you’re a Ken.”

While the movie’s exact plot is still being closely guarded, some of the character descriptions shed a tiny bit of light on things — except of course Ryan Gosling, who is “just Ken,” Simu Liu, “another Ken,” Ncuti Gatwa “Ken again!” and Kingsley Ben-Adir, who “is Ken, too.”

However, Michael Cera‘s photo reads, “There’s only one Allan.”

A little more varying are the descriptions of the various female characters in the movie: Bridgerton‘s Nicola Coughlan‘s Barbie “is a Diplomat”; Ritu Arya is depicted holding a microphone, with the legend, “This Barbie has a Pulitzer”; Issa Rae‘s Barbie “is President”; Kate McKinnon‘s punk rock looking picture notes her Barbie’s “always in the splits”; and Dua Lipa is depicted as Mermaid Barbie.

Will Ferrell, rumored to be a heartless CEO type, has a poster that says, “Please call me mother.”

America Ferrera‘s photo notes she is “a human,” and Helen Mirren‘s glamorous shot denotes she’s “the narrator.”

The Barbie film hits theaters July 21.

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To commemorate his 65th birthday Monday, Alec Baldwin is seen with all of his children and wife Hilaria, in a photo she shared to Instagram.

For the photo, Hilaria managed to wrangle the entire Baldwin brood: Carmen, 9, Rafael, 7, Leonardo, 6, Romeo, 4, Eduardo, 2, 1-year-old María, and their youngest, 5-month-old Ilaria.

“A photo of our wildness, just as we are,” she began her caption. “May this year bring you peace, health, and happiness. We feel lucky to be by your side…through all of it. Happy birthday, Alec—we love you.”

The actor is also the father to 27-year-old Ireland, his daughter with ex-wife Kim Basinger.

Baldwin is still facing involuntary manslaughter charges for the movie set shooting death of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. He has pleaded not guilty.

A hearing is set for next month for Baldwin and the movie’s armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was also charged in the shooting, and it will decide if there’s enough evidence against them to go to trial.

Baldwin fired a live bullet at Hutchins during a rehearsal scene for the Western; a live round had been chambered into the weapon, which he claims was previously declared “cold,” or safe to handle.

Recently, that first movie’s assistant director David Halls was sentenced to sixth months of unsupervised probation in part of a plea deal related to his connection to the shooting; he reportedly handed Baldwin the weapon for which Gutierrez-Reed was responsible on set.

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Screen siren Raquel Welch died from cardiac arrest on February 15, according to her death certificate that was obtained by TMZ. 

The Fantastic Voyage star was 82, and according to the document, had also been suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, which had not been disclosed to the public.

Welch was pronounced dead at 2:25 am, the document also revealed. 

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Leonardo DiCaprio testified in federal court in Washington, D.C., on Monday in the trial of Pras Michel — a founding member of the ’90s group the Fugees — on charges Michel ran an illegal multimillion-dollar influence scheme, which he denies.

DiCaprio, called as a prosecution witness, answered questions from the government about his relationship with alleged fugitive Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low.

“He would have a multitude of lavish parties,” DiCaprio said.

Low had been inquiring about projects DiCaprio was interested in pursuing when DiCaprio broached the idea of financing his movie The Wolf of Wall Street, the actor testified. At the time, DiCaprio said he only knew of Low as an “incredibly successful” businessman.

After DiCaprio and the studio conducted background checks, DiCaprio said, his representatives gave the “green light” to proceed with Low financing the film through his production company, Red Granite Pictures.

At one point, DiCaprio described a discussion with Low about politics in which he said the financier discussed making a “significant donation” to the Democratic Party of about “$20 to $30 million.”

“I said, ‘Wow, that’s a lot of money,'” DiCaprio recalled.

The defense questioned DiCaprio directly about potential problems with the foreign financing of The Wolf of Wall Street. DiCaprio said he was aware of “complications” with the money, but that he was never asked to give any of it back.

Prosecutors appeared to use DiCaprio’s testimony to show the jury how Low allegedly leveraged money to gain access to powerful and wealthy people, including celebrities.

DiCaprio is not accused of criminal wrongdoing.

Michel is charged with conspiring to commit fraud, making illegal campaign contributions and falsifying records, among other counts. He declined to comment on DiCaprio’s testimony when asked by ABC News on Monday.

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Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Shailene Woodley and Richard Madden are set to star in the Amazon Studios thriller Killer Heat, according to Variety. The movie, per the streamer, “follows twin brothers — played by Madden — caught in a violent love triangle on a remote Greek island, and a damaged detective known as ‘The Jealousy Man’ portrayed by Gordon-Levitt who is called in to investigate.” Gordon-Levitt will also executive produce the project…

Following his Oscar-nominated turn as Elvis Presley in the biopic Elvis, Austin Butler has been tapped to star in City on Fire, an adaptation of the first title in a novel trilogy by Don Winslow, according to Deadline. The goal is to build a movie franchise around the series, with Butler as the lead. The trilogy takes elements of The Iliad, Odyssey, Aeneid and Greek tragic dramas and places them in a contemporary setting. City on Fire, per the outlet, “follows two criminal empires — one Irish, the other Italian — that control all of New England. A modern-day Helen of Troy event tears them apart and starts a brutal war.” Butler will play a street soldier-turned-ruthless leader “to protect his friends, his family and the home he loves” and “build a dynasty or die trying”…

Paddington in Peru, the third installment of the popular film franchise, is set to begin production on July 24, according to Deadline. The previous two Paddington movies, which starred Ben Whishaw as the voice of the titular character, with Hugh Bonneville and Sally Hawkins, grossed more than $280 million and $225 million worldwide, respectively…

Entertainment Weekly has confirmed a Bloomberg report that Warner Bros. Discovery is working on a deal for a TV series based on J.K. Rowling‘s Harry Potter books, with each season of the show based on one of the seven books in the series. Rowling is in talks to assist in making sure the content is loyal to her books, but will not serve as showrunner or primary creator of the series…

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Hugh Jackman is reminding fans about the importance of sunscreen, after having two biopsies on his nose. 

Appearing in an Instagram video Monday with a bandage on his nose, the 54-year-old actor explained, “I wanted you to hear it from me just in case someone sees me on the street or whatever. I’ve just had two biopsies done.”

“I just went to my doctor… and she just saw the little things could be or could not be basal cell,” he continued, adding that he will find out there results in about “two or three days” and will share the as soon as he knows.  

“Just to remind you, basil cell in the world of skin cancers is the least dangerous of all. However, if I can just take this opportunity to remind you summer is coming,” the Greatest Showman alum said. “Please, wear sunscreen. It is just not worth it, no matter how much you want a tan. Trust me.”

“This is all stuff that happened 25 years ago that’s coming out now,” he shared.”Please be safe.”

Jackman echoed the same sentiment in the caption, writing, “I know you’ve heard me talk about my basal cell carcinomas before. I’m going to keep talking about them, if need be. And if it reminds even one person to put on sunscreen with a high SPF, then I’m happy.”

Basel cell carcinomas, as described by Mayo Clinic, “are thought to be caused by long-term exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sunlight” and “occurs most often on areas of the skin that are exposed to the sun, such as your head and neck.”

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Gladiator‘s Oscar-winning director, Ridley Scott, is returning to the big screen with that film’s villain, Joaquin Phoenix, in the title role for the historical epic Napoleon.

The Apple TV+ project will debut in theaters worldwide on Wednesday, November 22, through Sony Pictures, ahead of its release date on the streaming service.

The streamer teases: “The film is an original and personal look at Napoleon’s origins and his swift, ruthless climb to emperor, viewed through the prism of his addictive and often volatile relationship with his wife and one true love, Josephine, played by Vanessa Kirby. The film captures Napoleon’s famous battles, relentless ambition and astounding strategic mind as an extraordinary military leader and war visionary.”

Phoenix was nominated for an Oscar for playing the ruthless regicide-committing Emperor Commodus in Gladiator, which incidentally is getting a sequel with Scott back in the director’s chair.

Over half (52%) of fans surveyed have a favorite team, and of those, 52 percent said they watch every single one of their team’s games. Forty-two percent of those with a favorite team aren’t picky — they’ll watch any sport when any team is playing. On the other hand, 40 percent will watch any sport, but only when their favorite teams are playing. And it might not be for their favorite team, but 44 percent already have a trip planned in 2023, to see a specific sporting event. http://studyfinds.org/spend-to-see-favorite-sports-team/

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A reimagining of Moana as a live-action feature film is currently in development.

In a video released Monday by Walt Disney Studios, Dwayne Johnson, who voiced the character of Maui in the 2016 animated movie, said the live-action version of the film is in the works.

“As you know, Hawaii means so much to my family and me, and the traditions of our ohana, or aiga, as we say in Samoa, were shaped by these incredible islands,” Johnson says in the recorded video featuring his two daughters, Jasmine Johnson and Tia Giana Johnson, from the Hawaiian island of Oahu.

Johnson continued, “The Pacific Islands and their cultures inspired a very special story, one that you all know very well. And that story is, drum roll please …”

“Moana!” the trio exclaim.

“Moana, Gramma Tala, the music, the dance, Te Fiti, Pua the pig, the village, the beautiful powerful ocean and one more … what’s that guy’s name? Oh! Yours truly, Heihei the chicken,” Johnson jokes. “Kidding, Heihei will be in it, but of course, Maui will be in it, too.”

Disney CEO Bob Iger also shared the announcement during The Walt Disney Company’s Meeting of Shareholders webcast.

The upcoming project will be produced by Johnson, Dany Garcia and Hiram Garcia via their Seven Bucks Productions, and Beau Flynn via Flynn Picture Co.

Moana star Auli’i Cravalho, who voiced the titular character in the 2016 movie, will be an executive producer.

“The film will celebrate the islands, communities and traditions of Pacific Islanders as seen through the eyes of a young woman eager to pave her own path,” a Disney press release states. “Moana’s journey of self-discovery and reflection on the lives of her ancestors won hearts worldwide, as did her newfound friendship with an exiled demigod named Maui.”

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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