Entertainment

Ian Fleming‘s famous superspy is getting sensitivity training.

In a story similar to edits made to Roald Dahl‘s beloved children’s books, which made their publisher reverse course following a backlash, The Telegraph reports Ian Fleming Publications will bring James Bond’s written adventures more in tune with modern sensibilities for an April rerelease of his books.

Unlike Dahl’s work, which saw pejoratives like “fat” on the chopping block, the company that owns Fleming’s literary rights says it’s removing racist language from the texts. Included are deletions of the “n-word” and references to various characters’ race — if they’re Black. Other references, such as Goldfinger’s Korean, bowler-hat-throwing henchman Oddjob, as well as various Asian pejoratives, remain, the paper explains.

According to The Telegraph, a disclaimer added to the reissued texts will read, “This book was written at a time when terms and attitudes which might be considered offensive by modern readers were commonplace. A number of updates have been made in this edition, while keeping as close as possible to the original text and the period in which it is set.”

The company that holds his rights explains that before Fleming’s death in 1964 he allowed edits of his Bond books for various markets: For example, American readers consumed toned-down sex scenes compared to overseas releases. As such, Ian Fleming Publications insists it’s just “following Ian’s approach” in changing the texts.

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The Mandalorian‘s third season debut drops Wednesday on Disney+, and Pedro Pascal can’t wait for fans to see it — because he’s a fan himself.

In an interview with Digital Spy, the Last of Us star talks about that other show that has him chaperoning a gifted child on a dangerous journey.

He said of Mandalorian creator and co-executive producer Jon Favreau and his producing partner Dave Filoni, “I remember checking in with them and just asking, ‘Are you guys, okay?’ because season three is so epic that you’ve got to wonder how overworked they are.”

Indeed, the pair are interweaving stories with Mando and its spin-off Ahsoka — which stars Rosario Dawson as the grown-up former Jedi Filoni created for Star Wars: The Clone Wars — as well as Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, which will star Jude Law.

Pascal clarifies about using the word “epic,” “I don’t mean it in a typical sort of Star Wars fashion. I mean … what season three does visually and narratively, it’s pretty epic.”

He said of his character’s relationship with the show’s first star, Grogu, who most people still refer to as Baby Yoda, “It’s such a beautiful dynamic that exists between Din [Djarin] and Grogu; protector, protected. And how … there’s so much layering within their relationship.”

He adds, “So I would just say that what is initially, or instantly, rich about their dynamic becomes more available to us in season three. What disarms us about this relationship continues to grow and that’s a fun thing.”

And seeing as the season 2 finale brought back none other than an in-his-prime Luke Skywalker, can fans expect any other jaw-dropping guests?

“The answer to that is yes, period,” Pedro says with a laugh.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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(NOTE LANGUAGE) Arnold Schwarzenegger drops one of his most famous catchphrases, and not much else, in a short tease to Netflix’s upcoming action series FUBAR.

The title is a military acronym for “[effed] up beyond all repair,” but there’s not really much going on in the snippet to justify it at this point: Arnold is shown lighting a stogie, dropping his catchphrase, riding a motorcycle and drifting a BMW around a turn. Oh, and co-star Fortune Feimster taps him in the crotch for “being too sentimental.”

Netflix’s teases, “A CIA Operative on the verge of retirement discovers a family secret. Forced to go back into the field for one last job, the series tackles universal family dynamics set against a global backdrop of spies, action and humor.”

Arnold enthuses in the teaser’s announcement, “Everywhere I go, people ask me when I’m going to do another big action comedy like True Lies. Well, here it is. FUBAR will kick your a** and make you laugh – and not just for two hours. You get a whole season.” He adds the show will give his fans “exactly what they’ve been waiting for.”

Top Gun: Maverick‘s Monica Barbaro also stars, along with The Last of Us‘ Gabriel Luna, who incidentally co-starred with Ah-nuld as a competing cyborg in 2019’s franchise killer Terminator: Dark Fate.

The show debuts May 25.

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Michael B. Jordan has a memory longer than his filmography, and he proved it over the weekend when he encountered a woman who admittedly used to tease the “corny” kid from Newark.

Podcast host Lore’l had used MBJ’s name to score some cred on her show, boasting how she and her friends would make fun of him at the high school they all attended. “To be honest with you, we teased him all the damn time because his name was Michael Jordan. Let’s start there, and he was no Michael Jordan. And he also would come to school with a headshot,” she derided.

Co-host Dominique also poked fun at his Valentine’s Day gesture to his then-girlfriend Lori Harvey, renting out an aquarium so just the two of them could enjoy it.

Dominique said it proved Jordan was a “nice, corny guy.”

But the actor-turned-Creed III director got his get back on the red carpet, when the Morning Hustle personality Lore’l introduced him to her camera saying, “We go way back,” to which Jordan said, “Yeah, the corny kid, right?”

Jordan kept it professional afterward, plugging Creed III, describing the “family vibe” on the movie and how it was “amazing” to be back in Atlanta, where he was attending a screening of the movie for HBCUs.

“Well, you’re not corny anymore,” Lore’l said, as Jordan ignored the comment and walked on down the red carpet.

Needless to say, Jordan’s fans weren’t pleased and flamed her online, with one snarking, “Now she’s fat, pre diabetic, tacky gold hair, interviewing him on his directorial debut. Life comes at you fast.”

Creed III opens March 3.

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Jansen Panettiere‘s family, including his sister Hayden, is remembering the late actor a week after he died suddenly at just 28 years old.

“Jansen’s heart could be seen in his eyes, and his charm in his brilliant, engaging smile; his soul in his masterful and revealing paintings, and the joy of life in his dry wit,” his family, including his mother Lesley Vogel, father Skip Panettiere and sister, Scream VI star Hayden Panettiere, said in a statement to ABC News.

The family added, “His charisma, warmth, compassion for others, and his creative spirit will live forever in our hearts and in the hearts of all whom he encountered.”

The family also said in its statement that Jansen died from an enlarged heart, adding the medical examiner’s determination “offers little solace.”

Panettiere was known for his voice acting roles in Ice Age: The Meltdown and The X’s as well as on-screen roles in the Nickelodeon film The Last Day of Summer and the AMC series The Walking Dead.

“We sincerely appreciate the outpouring of love and support towards our family as we navigate this unthinkable loss, and ask that we be gifted our privacy during this time of mourning,” the family said. “We love you so much Jansen and you will be in our hearts forever.”

Jansen Panettiere was a talented artist, posting much of his work on Instagram. He had also just shared a photo of his sister, who is five years older, cutting his hair a few weeks before his death.

Following in his older sister’s footsteps, he got his first television role in the hit Disney Channel show Even Stevens, and later appeared in several TV shows. His last television role was in an episode of The Walking Dead in 2019.

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The 34th Annual Producers Guild Awards took place over the weekend, with Everything Everywhere All at Once taking home the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures – an honor that has typically predicted which film wins Best Picture at the Oscars. White Lotus and The Bear won top television honors, for drama and comedy, respectively…

Actor Michael Mando has been fired from the Apple TV+ show Sinking Spring after getting into an altercation with a co-star, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The former Better Call Saul actor has reportedly been recast, with Narcos alum Wagner Moura taking on the role. Mando was supposed to star in the eight-episode Ridley Scott series opposite Brian Tyree Henry…

Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent has died at age 92, Deadline reports. Pinsent appeared in more than 150 projects over the course of his career, gaining recognition for his role in Away from Her, as well as voicing Babar the Elephant in Babar: The Movie and the series Babar and the Adventures of Badou. His family confirmed to Deadline that he passed away peacefully in his sleep. “Gordon passionately loved this country and its people, purpose, and culture to his last breath,” his family said in a statement…

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Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania held on to the number one spot over the weekend, bringing in an additional $32.2 million in its sophomore week at the domestic box office.

The Marvel Studios film — starring Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jonathan Majors, and Kathryn Newton — now stands with an estimated $167.3 million domestically and over $363.6 million worldwide.

Debuting in second at the box office was the Elizabeth Banks-directed film Cocaine Bear. The movie racked up an estimated $28.3 million worldwide, with $23 million of that domestically.

In third place, the religious drama Jesus Revolution made its debut, pulling in $15.5 million in its domestic-only release. Meanwhile, Avatar: The Way of Water remained in the top five, landing in fourth place and adding $4.7 million domestically in its eleventh week of release for an estimated total of $665.3 million. Overseas, the movie has generated over $1.6 billion, bringing its global tally to $2.267 billion.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish rounded out the top five, earning $4.1 million in its tenth week of release. That brings the animated adventure-comedy’s estimated worldwide earnings to $442.5 million.

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We’re just under two weeks out from the Oscars – Hollywood’s biggest night airs live on March 12 on ABC, and the movie Elvis is expected to pick up some hardware.

The film goes into Oscars night with 8 nominations, including a nod for Best Picture, and a nod for Best Actor for star Austin Butler. Baz Luhrmann directed the film, and he tells ABC Audio he loves awards season because it often puts him in rooms with people he knows well and people he’s never met.

“You may not have noticed, but we’re not spring chickens. Like we’ve been around,” he says before naming Cate Blanchett and Steven Spielberg as some of the community he knows well.

“What’s exciting, though, is you get the young Daniels [directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert] who are making the film Everything Everywhere All at Once,” Luhrmann continues. “You get to see this new energy and we’re very focused on helping the new generation and being part of that. So it’s exciting to see people who’ve never done it before.”

For Luhrmann’s wife and business partner Catherine Martin, who produced Elvis alongside him, shares that all of the nominations mean a lot to her, but possibly even more to others.

“I just feel really happy and proud that all the people who aren’t even nominated but worked so hard on the movie get to put on their CVs Oscar-nominated movie,” she says. “You know, people that don’t naturally get thanked.” 

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The 29th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards honored outstanding performances in film and television Sunday at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles. The event was streamed live on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and other media partners including Netflix. 

Here is the complete list of winners:

The Motion Picture winners are:
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Brendan Fraser – The Whale

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Michelle Yeoh – Everything Everywhere All at Once

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Ke Huy Quan – Everything Everywhere All at Once

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Jamie Lee Curtis – Everything Everywhere All at Once

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Everything Everywhere All at Once

The Television Program winners are:
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Sam Elliot – 1883

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
Jessica Chastain – George & Tammy

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman – Ozark

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
 Jennifer Coolidge – The White Lotus

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
Jeremy Allen White – The Bear 

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
 Jean Smart – Hacks

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
The White Lotus

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
Abbott Elementary 

The Stunt Ensemble winners are:
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
Top Gun: Maverick

Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series
Stranger Things

The 58th SAG Life Achievement Award
Sally Field

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The second season of Tim Allen‘s hit Disney+ series The Santa Clauses has just hired a bad Santa.

According to the streaming service, Emmy-winning former Modern Family star Eric Stonestreet will play Magnus Antas aka the Mad Santa, “who reigned during the 14thcentury and is now returning to try and take down Scott Calvin and reclaim the North Pole.”

According to Disney+, “In the second season, the Calvin family is back in the North Pole as Scott Calvin continues his role as Santa Claus after retirement plans were thwarted when failing to find a worthy successor in season one. Now that Scott and his family have successfully saved Christmas, Scott turns his focus towards training his son Calvin to eventually take over the ‘family business’ as Santa Claus.”

Undoubtedly, the Mad Santa will have something to say about that.

Incidentally, Stonestreet previously worked with award-winning Clauses producer Jack Burditt on Modern Family.

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