Entertainment

Bridgerton’s Adjoa Andoh is stepping behind the camera for her next big project.

According to Deadline, Andoah is set executive-produce a film adaption of Vanessa Riley’s recent novel Island Queen. The book was optioned by acclaimed film and television director Julie Anne Robinson via her U.K.-based production company, Longboat Pictures. Like the book, Island Queen will be based on the true story of Dorothy “Doll” Kirwan Thomas, a woman who was born enslaved but bought her freedom, and became one of the wealthiest and most powerful landowners in the early 1800s Caribbean. Casting details have yet to be announced.

In other news, the premiere dates for ABC’s new series The Wonder Years and Queens have been unveiled. The Wonder Years, featuring Don Cheadle as the narrator, will air Wednesday, September 22 at 8:30 p.m. ET. Unlike the original a reboot of the 1980s-early 1990s ABC family comedy, which followed Fred Savage, the new Wonder Years focuses on a Black middle-class family in Montgomery, Alabama during the 1960s. Meanwhile Queens, which stars Brandy, Eve, Naturi Naughton, and Nadine Velazquez as original members of the popular rap group Nasty [Women], will premiere Tuesday, October 19 at 10:01 p.m. ET.

Finally, OWN will premiere a two-part The Haves and the Have Nots cast reunion special on Tuesday, July 27 and Tuesday, August 3 at 8 p.m. ET. The special comes as the cast says goodbye to the series after eight seasons. Filmed in front of a live audience, the reunion will recap “all of the greatest moments, iconic scenes, and tumultuous relationships of OWN’s beloved number-one drama series.” Hosted by Egypt Sherrod, The Haves and the Have Nots cast reunion includes Tika Sumpter, Angela Robinson, Crystal Fox, Renée Lawless and Tyler Lepley, among others.

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Jackass star Sean “Poopies” McInerney was attacked by a shark while filming a special for Discovery’s “Shark Week,” and now he’s nursing both physical and emotional scars.

McInerney was attempting a wakeboard jump over shark-infested waters and came dangerously close to death, something he emotionally recalled in a graphic video posted to his YouTube channel.

“There was like 10 sharks around me and…I was trying to swim out and I couldn’t,” the daredevil tearfully recalled. “I knew I got bit and I was gonna get attacked by about six more sharks, and luckily I didn’t. I just got my hand bitten.”

“Scariest thing in my life,” he adds, noting that he truly thought he was going to die.

Luckily, a nearby safety medic risked his own life and jumped on McInerney, pulling the surfer and TV star to safety. 

The media personality says he’s thankful he only suffered one bite, but admitted it was a “gnarly” hand injury.

According to Jackass‘ Steve-O, McInerney was immediately taken into surgery so medics could “reattach two completely severed arteries and all of his severed tendons.”

Steve-O also assessed McInerney’s injury in comparison to all the injuries collectively suffered by the entire Jackass crew over the years, and declared that his was “the gnarliest.”  

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Jackass star Sean “Poopies” McInerney was attacked by a shark while filming a special for Discovery’s “Shark Week,” and now he’s nursing both physical and emotional scars.

McInerney was attempting a wakeboard jump over shark-infested waters and came dangerously close to death, something he emotionally recalled in a graphic video posted to his YouTube channel.

“There was like 10 sharks around me and…I was trying to swim out and I couldn’t,” the daredevil tearfully recalled. “I knew I got bit and I was gonna get attacked by about six more sharks, and luckily I didn’t. I just got my hand bitten.”

“Scariest thing in my life,” he adds, noting that he truly thought he was going to die.

Luckily, a nearby safety medic risked his own life and jumped on McInerney, pulling the surfer and TV star to safety. 

The media personality says he’s thankful he only suffered one bite, but admitted it was a “gnarly” hand injury.

According to Jackass‘ Steve-O, McInerney was immediately taken into surgery so medics could “reattach two completely severed arteries and all of his severed tendons.”

Steve-O also assessed McInerney’s injury in comparison to all the injuries collectively suffered by the entire Jackass crew over the years, and declared that his was “the gnarliest.”  

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Harvey Guillén cavorts with vampires in the FX series What We Do in the Shadows, but now he’s hanging with a more wholesome cast of characters as part of the new Disney Junior animated series Mickey Mouse Funhouse.

Guillén voices Funny the Funhouse, an enchanted playhouse that magically takes Mickey and friends on all kinds of adventures. The self-proclaimed Disney fan calls the role a dream come true.

“I still can’t put [it] into words,” he tells ABC Audio. “[This] was my childhood dream. If I would have gone back in time and told five-year-old me, like, ‘You’re going to be a Funhouse in Mickey Mouse’s Funhouse,’ I would have not believed myself.”

Guillén hopes the series will bring that same feeling to a new generation of little ones.

“It’s a really lovely story, just the idea that, you know, we don’t know what every day has for us, but what we can do is that we can rely on our imagination,” Guillén says. “So whatever our circumstance is, you could be in your house and your house can become a spaceship. Your house can become a castle.”

He continues, “I love the idea that we’re introducing…that world to kids where we don’t need to get on a plane and go on an adventure, we can stay in our backyard and it becomes a fantasy world.”

Mickey Mouse Funhouse debuts with a primetime special “Mickey the Brave!” on Disney Junior at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT tonight, followed by the series premiere on Friday, August 20 on both Disney Channel and Disney Junior at 8 a.m. ET/PT.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

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While the mercurial funnyman is legendarily hard to reach in Hollywood, it’s pretty clear director Wes Anderson has Bill Murray‘s number, creatively speaking.

 Murray has reportedly agreed to star in Anderson’s next project, an as-yet-untitled film set in Spain, Variety reports. Another frequent Anderson collaborator, Tilda Swinton, has also signed on. 

The trio recently collaborated on The French Dispatch, which they promoted at the Cannes Film Festival. 

The new project is the ninth between Anderson and Murray, who has appeared in the director’s films starting with 1998’s Rushmore, and including The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou,  Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Darjeeling Limited, Moonrise Kingdom, Isle of Dogs, and The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Murray is notoriously choosy in his career, employing a 1-800 number for people to call and record job offers to him, rather than using an agent or manager.

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Sarah Jessica Parker, reprising her iconic role as Carrie Bradshaw from the original HBO series, revealed Thursday that Nicole Ari Parker, Sarita Choudhury and Karen Pittman have joined the cast of HBO Max’s upcoming 10-episode Sex and the City revival, titled And Just Like That…

“And finally!!!!” Parker wrote in an Instagram post. “THRILLED to welcome @therealsararamirez, @NicoleAriParker, Karen Pittman? and Sarita Choudhury to #AndJustLikeThat.”

“Can’t wait to work with these brilliant actors who bring so much talent, humor and excitement to our ensemble,” she added.

According to HBO Max, Parker will play Lisa Todd Wexley, a “Park Avenue mother of three and documentarian.” Choudhury is playing Seema Patel, a “single, self-made powerhouse Manhattan real estate broker,” and Pittman will appear as Dr. Nya Wallace, a “brilliant, challenging Columbia Law professor.”

“Everyone at And Just Like That … is thrilled to have these amazing and vibrant actors join the Sex and the City family,” executive producer Michael Patrick King said in a statement.

It was announced in May that Grey’s Anatomy star Sara Ramírez would be joining the cast of the revival to play Che Diaz, a non-binary, queer comedian and podcast host.

As previously reported, Carrie’s besties Miranda Hobbes and Charlotte York Goldblatt are back, played respectively by co-executive producers Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis.

Other returning SaTC cast members include Chris Noth as Mr. Big, Mario Cantone as Anthony Marentino, David Eigenberg as Steve Brady, Willie Garson as Stanford Blatch, and Evan Handler as Harry Goldenblatt.

Kim Cattrall, who played Samantha Jones in the original HBO series, is not returning, and her character will not be replaced, though no one has publicly specified how that’ll be handled on the show.

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Gigi Hadid has replaced Chrissy Teigen in a voiceover role in Netflix’s comedy Never Have I Ever, in the wake of Teigen’s cyberbullying scandal. 

Hadid can be heard throughout the third episode of the season titled “…opened a textbook,” which centers on Darren Barnet‘s hunky high-schooler, Paxton. In the episode’s open, he’s shown staring at a poster of a bikini-clad Hadid. 

“This is Paxton Hall-Yoshida,” Hadid says. “He is a 16-year-old boy from Sherman Oaks, California, and I am model, designer, activist, and a former 16-year-old from California, Gigi Hadid.” 

A quick montage of Hadid posing on the red carpet follows.

“You may be asking yourself, ‘Why is Old Gigers taking time out of her busy skedge to narrate the story of a 16-year-old boy?’ Believe it or not, I relate to this kid. We’re both constantly underestimated because people only see us as sex symbols.”

She adds, “When scientists declare your face to be perfectly symmetrical, that’s all everyone thinks you have to offer the world…[But] we have some much more going on inside. At least that’s true for me…”

Teigen lost the gig — as well as endorsement deals, and her unofficial title as the Mayor of Twitter — after it was revealed she’d cyberbullied a then-teenaged Courtney Stodden.

Teigen recently made a lengthy Instagram post in which she claimed to have been sitting around the house depressed for being “cancelled.” In it, she claimed, “…I could use some time off my couch!”

In that post, she didn’t mention that she, husband John Legend and their two children had just returned from a trip to Italy.

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Shortly after ABC’s Dancing with the Stars announced it will return for its 30th season on September 20, Carrie Ann Inaba confirmed that she’ll be returning as well — alongside fellow judges Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough.

“Hey guys, I’m walking my dog, Lola.  Anyway, just wanted to say, did you hear the news?  Dancing With the Stars, September 20, it’s official.  We’re back!” Inaba, 53, shared in a video posted her Instagram Stories on Thursday.  “Get your glitter on, pull your disco balls out, warm up your back.”

“I can’t wait,” she continued. “Let’s bring on the dancing!”

Carrie Ann also promised to have some news about her future on CBS’ The Talk.

“I noticed a lot of you are asking about The Talk, if I’m coming back and what’s happening there,” Inaba said in another series of videos.  “I should have some news soon about what’s going on with my future at The Talk.”

She also congratulated Jerry O’Connell, who was announced Wednesday as the show’s permanent new co-host, joining Sheryl Underwood, Amanda Kloots and Elaine Welteroth.

In April, Inaba announced that she would be taking “a leave of absence” from The Talk “…to focus on my well-being.”

 

 

 

 

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A new documentary out today looks at the life and death of chef and travel show host Anthony Bourdain, who died by suicide in 2018. The film Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain is from Oscar winning director Morgan Neville, who talked to ABC Audio about why he wanted to explore Bourdain’s life.

“Because I felt like he was a fellow traveler with me,” he explains, adding that, in a way, he felt Bourdain was a documentary filmmaker just like himself.

“He was somebody who was trying to share people’s stories and humanize them and be an advocate for curiosity and open mindedness,” Neville shares.

The director admits that losing Bourdain was sad for him — not just because of losing him as a person, but also because of losing him as “a voice in our culture,” which seems to echo how others felt as well. Neville says he was often greeted with “a heavy sigh” after revealing that he was working on the documentary.

But, he hopes the film “can at least make you see [Bourdain] as a full dimensional, complex and flawed human…maybe that was kind of the goal is like this is a real person who’s got great strengths and weaknesses. And sometimes those are the same things in him.”

Neville also hopes that after watching Roadrunner, audiences realize that “it doesn’t matter if you seemingly have everything, pain is pain and there’s no way around it.”

“And I think understanding that these are humans, that we shouldn’t put them on pedestals and that we really should have love and understanding, because the more you put somebody on a pedestal, the harder it is for them to ask for help,” Neville concludes. 

Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain is in theaters now. 

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