Entertainment

Marvel Studios’ third release of the year, Eternals, is currently running second place in terms of ticket pre-sales for 2021, according to Fandango. 

Pre-sales for the film, which comes out Friday, are outpacing those for September’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, but behind the year’s advanced sales leader, July’s Black Widow.

While the former film was only released in theaters, the latter was released both in theaters and on Disney+ Premiere Access. 

Fandango also polled its users about Eternals ahead of its release, and found 98% were “excited to see the Marvel Cinematic Universe expanding with new characters,” while 97% were “looking forward to seeing a different kind of Marvel Studios movie.”

Ninety-four percent of those polled said they wanted to see the globe-spanning movie’s use of real locations, and 81% were “curious” to see Nomadland Oscar-winning director Chloe Zhao‘s take on the superhero genre.

Meanwhile, ahead of Eternals‘ release, Marvel Studios has released a new TV spot that’s something of an MCU “greatest hits” compilation, as a way to introduce the new movie’s heroes, including Angelina Jolie‘s Thena, Salma Hayek‘s Ajak, Gemma Chan‘s Sersi, and Richard Madden‘s Ikaris. 

“The end of one era is the beginning of another,” narrates Arishem, the movie’s powerful antagonist.

Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News.

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Venus and Serena Williams‘ journey to tennis superstardom is told through their father’s eyes in the forthcoming movie King Richard.

Ahead of the film’s premiere, the athletes told Entertainment Weekly they were very excited when they learned Will Smith was interested in playing their dad, Richard Williams.

“It was like, ‘Oh my God this movie is going to be the real deal,'” said Venus, 41. “Whatever film [Smith’s] in, it’s the real deal. We got the sense of this is gonna be big, this is gonna be a serious film.”

Serena then revealed that, while their father does serve as a narrator, the story focuses on one particular person.

“I feel like the film actually tells [Venus’] story, in a way that no one can ever really tell what she went through in being the first Black player to really step out there,” Serena said.  “You see the impact that it has had and all the people that are coming up after myself and Venus.”

“There would be no Serena if there wasn’t a Venus,” the tennis star added. “Venus is so humble, she doesn’t really take credit for that. She burst open that door and I ran through.”

Venus countered by insisting of her sister, “There’s no me without her, and I could have never done what I’ve been able to achieve on the court without her.”

King Richard premieres in theaters and on HBO Max November 19. 

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Jason Bowles, the attorney for Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, told Michael Strahan on ABC’s Good Morning America Wednesday that there may be more to the fatal on-set shooting than meets the eye.

Without presenting evidence, Bowles blamed “sabotage” for the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, in the incident that also injured director Joel Souza.

Just days after an attorney for assistant director Dave Halls blamed October 21’s deadly mishap on Reed, who was responsible for the Western film’s firearms, Bowles floated the new idea. “We’re afraid…that somebody intended to sabotage this set with a live round intentionally placed in a box of dummies,” he told Strahan.

Dummy rounds look on screen like real bullets, but cannot be fired.

Before the shooting occurred, Bowles claims that Reed left the box of dummy rounds unattended while she went to lunch.

“[F]irst of all you wouldn’t bring a live round on the set but second of all, why do you place that in the box labeled dummies that the armorer is going to be pulling from?” Bowles asked rhetorically, adding, “There is no purpose for a live round on this set, zero.”

In fact, investigators have said publicly that 500 rounds of ammunition were found on the Rust set, a mix of dummy rounds, blank rounds — that is, rounds with primer and powder but no projectile — and live ammunition.

“They wanted to do something to cause a safety incident on set. That’s what we believe happened,” Bowles said.

The attorney insisted that before the shooting, his client Gutierrez-Reed showed the revolver star Alec Baldwin fired to Halls, who later reportedly handed it to Baldwin after declaring it was “cold” — that is, it didn’t contain any live rounds.

“She showed Mr. Halls each of the rounds, there were six dummy rounds that she had loaded…she believed [they were] dummy rounds…”

Bowles also insisted that while Rust was only Gutierrez-Reed’s second film, the 24-year-old was “very experienced,” declaring, “And the reason is her father, longtime person in the industry, very well respected, he taught her literally from the age of 10…”

Gutierrez-Reed’s attorney also denied reports crew members were using downtime to use the on-set guns for target practice, saying, “[Hanna] doesn’t believe that happened.”

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Jonathan Majors and Zazie Beetz take a calculated step into the Old West with their new film The Harder They Fall.

Directed by Jeymes Samuel, the film follows Majors as real-life cowboy Nat Love, who, in a fictionalized story, reassembles his former gang to seek revenge against the man who murdered his parents. Majors tells ABC Audio that to authentically take on the role of Love he had to “surrender” to the character.

“I was reminded and then…[it] was concretized that…the quiet surrender to the world, to the character is what’s going to save you,” he says. “If I allowed myself to think about riding the horse like that, I’d probably go, ‘Yeah… I could do it.’ But that’d be a lot of ego…But if I go, ‘Let me surrender to Nat’…I know Nat can do it.”

That surrender, Majors says, was not only something he enjoyed, it was something that invigorated him.

“I was addicted to it,” he admits, before sharing how he channeled Love on set. “‘OK, so what are we gonna do now, Nat?’ You know, ‘Let’s bang, bang, bang. Grrr, grr, grr…Let’s do it.'” 

Majors co-star Zazie Beetz agrees, explaining that she too “enjoyed” preparing for her role as Stagecoach Mary, Love’s romantic partner and fellow gunslinger. 

“It was a little bit more…technical training and getting really comfortable with how to handle these antique weapons…and making it look like it’s second nature,” she says of using a shotgun.

Aside from guns, Beetz says that training to look “natural” on horses was also another unexpected challenge.

“We had to build relationships with our horses,” she says. “They had to learn to respect you and you respect them.”

The Harder They Fall is now available on Netflix.

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(NOTE LANGUAGE) Ryan Reynolds was in New York City Monday evening to accept his WSJ. Magazine Innovator Award, and at the event held at the Museum of Modern Art, he gave a shout-out to his fellow honorees, including Kim Kardashian, Lil Nas X and Lewis Hamilton, as well as his wife, Blake Lively.

“To be in this room with these honorees, let alone whatever category this is, is just completely and utterly insane,” Reynolds said at the podium.

The Deadpool series star and producer also thanked those behind his Group Effort Initiative, a nonprofit that he and Blake created that gives people of color opportunities to work in the entertainment community.

Ryan thanked “Renaissance woman” Lively for how she, “pushes me in ways that I never imagined I’d be pushed,” quipping in retrospect that the compliment sounded “like a police report.”

Ryan also thanked his team at his production company Maximum Effort, which produces everything from movies like his recent hit Free Guy, to clever marketing campaigns for his companies Aviation American Gin and Mint Mobile, among others. “I’m lucky enough to work with people who honor the idea that you can’t make anything great without enthusiasm. I know how lucky I am to have that,” Reynolds expressed. 

On that note, their recent effort just used Reynolds’ gin brand to celebrate the seasonal return of “America’s favorite rib-shaped sandwich,” McDonald’s McRib.

In another now-viral ad, Reynolds combined Aviation with barbecue sauce, tomato juice, lemon juice, and a pickle and onion garnish for the Gin Riblet.

Calling it “a Bloody Mary’s hotter cousin,” Ryan toasted the 40th anniversary of the sandwich. “Bring back Grimace, Godd***  it,” he added of McDonald’s former purple mascot.

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Jennifer Lopez is still Jenny from the Block, and she proved it by recreating her “All I Have” video for a Coach collaboration. 

The ad starts out with the scene from Lopez’s 2002 video as she hurriedly packs and heads out into the cold and snow-filled New York streets. As the video continues, it cuts to the 2021 version of her walking down the street carrying a host of Coach bags, just as she did in the original — but with the latest styles, of course. 

The recreation is part of the “Give a Little Love” campaign for Coach, which Lopez has been the face of since 2019. 

“All I Have,” which features LL Cool J and was released on December 14, 2002, was JLo’s second single off of her third studio album, This Is Me… Then. The song was a huge hit, reaching number one on the Billboard charts and remaining there for four weeks. 

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Shannon Lee, the sister of actor Brandon Lee, who was killed in 1993 by a revolver being used as a prop when filming The Crow, is rallying for increased gun safety measures on movie sets.

Shannon made her concerns known while attending Los Angeles’ Asian World Film Festival on Monday, where she spoke to France 24 about what she feels Hollywood needs to do in the wake of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins‘ death. Hutchins was killed last month on the Rust movie set when actor Alec Baldwin fired a gun that was apparently loaded with live ammunition.

Lee, who is the daughter of martial artist Bruce Lee and was at the ceremony to present an honor in her father’s name, believes gun safety should extend beyond the movie’s crew and involve the cast, as well.

“I think that mandatory gun safety training [should be required] for the actor so that they can check the guns themselves and know how to use them appropriately,” Lee said, “and so that they can keep others safe.”

“It shouldn’t happen again,” the 52-year-old remarked, calling the current standards “frustrating.”  She believes protocols should have changed when her 28-year-old brother was killed nearly 30 years ago.

Actor Michael Massee accidentally shot Brandon Lee when filming The Crow, believing the revolver he fired was loaded with blanks.  Similarly, Alec Baldwin believed he had been handed a “cold” gun, meaning one that’s unloaded.

Le says she never spoke to Massee, who died in 2016, but said she did feel sorry for him.

“I felt really sorry, because it is a horrible thing to cause someone else to die. And I also feel sorry for Alec Baldwin,” she remarked. “It’s really tough what he’s going through, he has to take care of himself.”

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Britney Spears issued several damning accusations against her mother, Lynne Spears, after her attorney, Mathew Rosengart, formally asked to terminate her 13-year conservatorship.

In a since-deleted post, captured by ABC Audio, Britney, 39, explained how her mother “secretly ruined my life” and claimed the conservatorship was Lynne’s idea.

Sharing an infographic that read,”The most dangerous animal in the world is a silent smiling woman,” the Grammy winner started off by saying her mother is “concerned” by how happy she is.

“The moment I SMILE and I realize I haven’t in a very long time !!!! My mom gets so CONCERNED and says ‘You’re acting weird … what’s wrong with you ???,'” Britney wrote. “I was BORN today cause I get to SMILE … so thank you for exiting out of my life and finally allowing me to live mine !!!!”

“It was a family business before … it’s no longer that anymore,” Spears continued before claiming Lynne played a much-larger role in her legal woes. “My dad may have started the conservatorship 13 years ago … but what people don’t know is is that my mom is the one who gave him the idea.”

Spears further alleged, “I will never get those years back …. she secretly ruined my life … and yes I will call her and [former family business manager] Lou Taylor out on it.”

Britney accused both Lynne and Taylor of feigning ignorance and claimed both were well aware of her situation. “You know exactly what you did … my dad is not smart enough to ever think of a conservatorship,” the singer declared. “But tonight I will smile knowing I have a new life ahead of me.”

Britney’s next court hearing is set for November 12, where Judge Brenda J. Penny will consider terminating the conservatorship.

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The Bachelorette continued Tuesday with Michelle Young and her suitors dealing with the aftermath of Jamie‘s rumor about her having a previous relationship with Joe.

Rick, a 32-year-old medical sales rep from Los Angeles, assured Michelle that the men in the house had her back and, during their conversation, learned the rumor came from Jamie.

Rick shared his discovery with the other suitors, which led to a series of confrontations with Jamie.

As awkward as that was for Jamie, who tried unsuccessfully to dodge their questions, it was nothing compared to the tongue lashing he received from Michelle, in front of the other men.

Michelle led Jamie outside for a private conversation and sent him home after telling him, “I don’t trust you at this moment and I have to be done with it.” 

Also sent home on Tuesday were Washington-based yoga guru LT; Mollique, an academic administrator from San Diego; Peter, the pizzapreneur from Florida; and Spencer, a financial crimes analyst from Cleveland, Ohio.

Earlier, Glen Powell and Jay Ellis — stars of the upcoming movie sequel, Top Gun: Maverick — challenged a group of men to prove their love for Michelle with a series of physical and mental competitions. At the end, it was Martin, the personal trainer from Miami, Florida, who earned the date rose.

Later, a group date led by spoken-word poet Rudy Francisco had the men testing their poetry skills, with Brandon scoring his second group date rose.

Finally, a one-on-one date saw California sales rep Rodney literally bearing it all in a game of truth or dare. Rodney passed both the dare and truth parts of the date and was rewarded with a rose.

Here are the other men remaining after the rose ceremony:

Brandon J., 26, a traveling nurse recruiter from Portland, Ore.
Casey, 36, an advertising creative director from Miami Beach, Fla.
Chris G., 28, a motivational speaker from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Chris S., 28, a commodities broker from West Hollywood, Calif.
Clayton, 28, a medical sales rep from Columbia, Mo.
Joe, 28, a real estate developer from Minneapolis, Minn.
Leroy, 27, a biomedical Ph.D. student from Dallas, Texas
Martin, 29, a personal trainer from Miami, Fla.
Nayte, 27, a sales executive from Austin, Texas
Olu, 27, an IT analyst from Newark, N.J.
Rick, 32, a medical sales rep from Los Angeles, Calif.
Rodney, 29, a sales rep from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Romeo, 32, a mathematician from New York City, N.Y.
Will, 28, an academic interventionist from Grand Rapids, Mich.

The Bachelorette returns Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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Ted Lasso Emmy winner Jason Sudeikis, The Mandalorian‘s Rosario Dawson, and Star Wars star Mark Hamill are taking part in an all-star virtual reading of the holiday classic It’s a Wonderful Life, benefiting The Ed Asner Family Center (TEAFC), a charity dedicated to helping people with special needs and their families.

This year, Sudeikis will play Jimmy Stewart‘s role of George Bailey, while his real-life uncle, Cheers alum George Wendt, will play George’s forgetful Uncle Billy. 

Asner, who died in August, participated in last year’s event, which featured SNL‘s Pete Davidson as George Bailey. 

This year’s one-night-only event, hosted again by Tom Bergeron, also features Martin Sheen, Mandy Patinkin, Lou Diamond Phillips, Futurama‘s Phil Lamarr, Ron Funches, Ed Harris and more. 

The event, in partnership with Turner Classic Movies and sponsored by MeTV, takes place Sunday, December 5, 2021, at 8 a.m. Eastern time. For a minimum donation of $25, you can stream the virtual table read performance, but commemorative artwork and will also be available at TEAFC.org/wonderful.

Matt Asner, son of Ed Asner & Co-Founder of The Ed Asner Family Center, said of the event, “My father’s passing has left an indescribable hole in my heart. For our annual fundraising gala this year, I want to honor my father’s legacy as both a legendary actor and a staunch advocate for people of all abilities.”

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