Entertainment

The Critics Choice Association on Tuesday announced the nominees for the second annual Critics Choice Super Awards, and Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Spider-Man: No Way Home lead the film nominations, with five apiece. Two of the three Peter Parkers — Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland — landed acting nods. Zack Snyder’s Justice League also snagged nominations in the best superhero movie category alongside Black Widow, Eternals, Shang-Chi, Spider-Man and The Suicide Squad. On the TV side, Paramount Plus’ Evil and Netflix’s Midnight Mass led with six each. Disney+ dominated the superhero categories with multiple nominations for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Hawkeye, Loki and WandaVision. The winners will be announced on March 17. Disney is the parent company of ABC News…

Aziz Ansari, who created the Netflix series Master of None, will write, produce, direct and star alongside Bill Murray in as yet untitled comedic drama for Searchlight Pictures, according to Variety. The project is being adapted from Atul Gawande’s 2014 nonfiction book Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, which centers on aging, patients’ anxieties regarding death, and doctor’s tendencies to fall back on false hope — as having the potential to “change medicine — and lives.” Plot details have not been announced, nor have Ansari or Murray’s roles been revealed…

Universal has unveiled a first-look photo from Christopher Nolan’s anticipated thriller Oppenheimer, about J. Robert Oppenheimer, one of the creators of the atomic bomb, and announced the addition of Kenneth Branagh to its already star-studded cast, according to Deadline. The Oscar-nominated Belfast filmmaker joins previously announced stars Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Rami Malek, Benny Safdie, Josh Hartnett, Dane DeHaan, Jack Quaid, Matthew Modine, Dylan Arnold, David Krumholtz, Alden Ehrenreich and Michael Angarano. Production is now underway…

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Martin Lawrence and his TV series crew are back together again to celebrate the 30th anniversary of his self-titled sitcom. Taping for reunion special began Sunday; it’ll air on BET+ later this year.

“To be able to sit here thirty years later with this amazing cast that has had such an impact on pop culture is truly a blessing,” Lawrence said in a statement. “I am always humbled that the fans still want more of the show and its characters. I am looking forward to the reunion special.”

Lawrence and Tisha Campbell, who portrayed his girlfriend Gina, both won NAACP Image Awards for their roles in the show. Martin also won Outstanding Comedy Series in 1994 and 1995.  Martin aired from 1992-1997.

In addition to Martin and Tina, the reunion will also feature Tichina Arnold, who starred as Pam, and Carl Anthony Payne II, who played Cole. You can expect some very emotional moments as the fifth regular cast member, the late Thomas Mikal Ford, is remembered. He passed away in 2016 at the age of 52.

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Eight major Oscars will not be presented live on this year’s show in an effort to present a more TV friendly telecast, the Academy announced on Tuesday.

The awards will be given out an hour ahead of time, edited down, and then cut into the live telecast. However, the Academy points out that everyone will still have their “Oscar moment” — all nominees will still have their names read in their categories, and all winners will have their acceptance speeches televised.

Those categories being handed out earlier in the ceremony are for Documentary (Short Subject), Film Editing, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Production Design, Short Film (Animated), Short Film (Live Action) and Sound.

The 94th Annual Academy Awards airs March 22 on ABC.

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Via her spokesperson Howard Bragman, Wendy Williams responded to the news that her eponymous talk show would be ending this season, and that current substitute host Sherri Shepherd would be carrying the torch permanently.

As reported, producers Debmar-Mercury will launch Sherri in The Wendy Williams Show‘s syndicated time slots beginning in the fall.

Williams hasn’t been on her show since this season began, as she’s been dealing with health problems. Fill-in hosts, including Shepherd, have been talking in her stead.

“It’s been a challenging time for Wendy as she deals with her health issues,” the statement began. “She is incredibly grateful to Debmar-Mercury, to Sherri and everybody else who has supported the show through this time.”

The statement continued, “She, more than anyone, understands the reality of syndicated television — you can’t go to the marketplace and sell a show that’s The Maybe Wendy Show.”

The note from Bragman concludes, “[Williams] understands why this decision was made from a business point of view, and she has been assured by Debmar-Mercury that should her health get to a point where she can host again and should her desire be that she hosts again that she would be back on TV at that time.”

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Martin Lawrence and his TV series crew are back together again to celebrate the 30th anniversary of his self-titled sitcom. Taping for reunion special began Sunday; it’ll air on BET+ later this year.

“To be able to sit here thirty years later with this amazing cast that has had such an impact on pop culture is truly a blessing,” Lawrence said in a statement. “I am always humbled that the fans still want more of the show and its characters. I am looking forward to the reunion special.”

Lawrence and Tisha Campbell, who portrayed his girlfriend Gina, both won NAACP Image Awards for their roles in the show. Martin also won Outstanding Comedy Series in 1994 and 1995.  Martin aired from 1992-1997.

In addition to Martin and Tina, the reunion will also feature Tichina Arnold, who starred as Pam, and Carl Anthony Payne II, who played Cole. You can expect some very emotional moments as the fifth regular cast member, the late Thomas Mikal Ford, is remembered. He passed away in 2016 at the age of 52.

In other news, Will Smith was among the winners of the non-televised portion of the NAACP Image Awards on Monday. Smith won Outstanding Literary Work — Autobiography, for his memoir, Will. The late Cicely Tyson was also honored with the Outstanding Literary Work — Debut Author Award, for Just As I Am. The 53rd NAACP Image Awards will air live on Saturday, February 26 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on BET.

Finally, Netflix announced that Dave Chappelle is executive-producing four specials starring some of his favorite comics. The first show, premiering Monday, February 28, titled Legendary, will feature comedian Earthquake. A date for the second special, starring Donnell Rawlings, will be announced later.

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Streaming service Roku has released the first official picture of Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe in the biopic of Grammy-winning song-parody master “Weird” Al Yankovic.

The shot shows Daniel as Al, in a curly fright wig, wearing one of Yankovic’s trademarks, a loud Hawaiian shirt, while rocking out on an accordion. “Your first look at #WEIRD is here,” the network announced, referencing the film’s title, WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story.

As previously reported, “The biopic holds nothing back,” according to a press statement from the streaming network, “exploring every facet of Yankovic’s life, from his meteoric rise to fame with early hits like ‘Eat It’ and ‘Like a Surgeon’ to his torrid celebrity love affairs and famously depraved lifestyle.”

The release further notes, cheekily, “WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story takes audiences on a truly unbelievable journey through Yankovic’s life and career, from gifted child prodigy to the greatest musical legend of all time.”

There’s no release date yet for the film, which will stream exclusively on Roku.

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More than two decades after the acclaimed original premiered, a continuation of the animated series The Proud Family, called The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, drops Wednesday on Disney+.

The streaming service is also home to the original series, which stars Kyla Pratt as Paula Proud, Tommy Davidson as her dad, Oscar, Paula Jai Parker as her mom, Trudy Proud, and Jo Marie Payton as Paula’s grandma, Suga Mama.

Tommy tells ABC Audio that after the original series signed off on 2005, fans couldn’t wait for a return. “Over the years, there’s been a presence for The Proud Family…” he explains. “You know, and I’m out there tactile in every market in the country, and I know for a fact that people are wanting the show back from from from the time that we went off the air. You know, so with it coming back, if it’s just double, it’s double the amount of people that want it.”

In his long career, Davidson explains he’s often recognized for his animated alter-ego, no matter where he goes — including a particular comedy club, he recalls.

“There was a really young waitress there, and all of the staff…were like waiting to say hey, goodbye and take pictures. And she was like, ‘I don’t know who he is. I don’t know.’ So they were saying, Ace Ventura and all this stuff…”

“And then somebody said, ‘What about The Proud Family?'” Affecting Oscar Proud’s boisterous voice, Tommy replied, “Yeah, what about The Proud Family?” He laughs, “She was like, ‘AHHH!'” 

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Bill Pullman narrates the upcoming PBS documentary Nature: American Horses, which explores the story of the horse, and how various breeds helped shaped the American landscape.  Turns out the Independence Day and Spaceballs actor knows more than a little about horses himself.

“In our valley in southwest Montana there’s a few people that are go-to riders that can do a little whispering, because it’s fairly hazardous,” says Pullman, who splits time between New York and his Montana ranch, where he says life there “teaches you to get up in the morning.” He tells ABC Audio the connection between man and horse runs deep: “You learn so much about what it is to be human by being around horses.”

Nature: American Horses, centers on four signature breeds: The Appaloosa, Morgan Horse, Mustang, and the American Quarter Horse, the latter of which can gallop at speeds up to 55 MPH, faster than any other breed. But Pullman recalls his first riding experience was a little more tame.

“It was a pony so it was really easy to get up on,” he says.  “[J]ust throw yourself on the horse, no saddle or anything else and just…skinny up there and feel that connection to an animal bigger than yourself!”

As a rancher, Pullman also has tremendous respect for environmental preservation, and the lands on which the horses and other animals roam. 

“Our connection to parks has changed in the last couple of years with the COVID thing,” says Pullman, “and everybody is appreciating their connection to vistas, and what responsible ranching is with maintaining good pasture use.”

Nature: American Horses airs on PBS Wednesday, February 23 at 8:00 ET/7:00 CT.

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While 41-year-old Channing Tatum recently told Kelly Clarkson that getting into Magic Mike shape isn’t as easy as it used to be, he’s got his eyes on a final installment decades from now. 

Tatum, now starring in Dog, the dramedy film he co-directed, appeared on The Kelly Clarkson Show to talk about his regimen for a third film in his hit male stripper series, Magic Mike’s Last Dance.

“It’s hard even if you do work out to be in that kind of shape,” Tatum said. “You have to starve yourself. I don’t think when you’re that lean, it’s actually healthy for you.”

However, the third film nearly didn’t come together at all, he explained to IndieWire, in a chat alongside Reid Carolin, his Dog co-director and the screenwriter on the Magic movies. “There’s no way we’d do a third movie just because someone called us up and said they’d pay,” Channing said

However, when they saw the Magic Mike Live! show, which plays in venues all over the world, something changed. Said Tatum, “At the opening of the show in Berlin, Reid and [director Steven] Soderbergh were talking and they said, “There’s another movie here. We should look at it.”

Magic Mike’s Last Dance doesn’t have a release date as yet, but will debut exclusively on HBO Max.

Other than that, Tatum said he has one idea for a final movie in the hit series. “The only one I said I’d actually do — before we decided on this [third film] — was the Grumpy Old Men version when we’re like 70. When we’re 70, I want to get the team back together, for sure.”

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Amid the host’s ongoing health issues, producers of The Wendy Williams Show have announced the program will not return for the upcoming fall season, and instead will be replaced by Sherri, a new series fronted by Wendy’s substitute host, Sherri Shepherd.

In a statement, Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein, the co-presidents of  show syndicator Debmar-Mercury, noted, “Since Wendy is still not available to host the show as she continues on her road to recovery, we believe it is best for our fans, stations and advertising partners to start making this transition now.”

The new series will replace Wendy Williams in its time slots across the country starting in the fall. 

They commented, “This is also a bitter-sweet moment for us…We all have a great love and affinity for Wendy, who grew into a true icon during her 12 incredible seasons.” The producers added, “We hope to be able to work with Wendy again in the future, and continue to wish her a speedy and full recovery.”

It’s not yet known what date The Wendy Williams Show will officially end, but as reported, the eponymous host won’t return before the show wraps up for this season.

Williams, 57, has been absent from her show since Sept. 20 of last year, the start of its 13th season. Her return was delayed due to ongoing health issues, which included testing positive for a breakthrough case of COVID-19. In 2019, she revealed she also suffers from Graves’ disease, an immune system disorder.

Last fall, Williams updated fans and thanked them for their support, saying in part, “…I know enough to listen to my doctors and will return to my purple chair as soon as we all agree I’m ready.”

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