A Love Island USA executive producer has died during production on the reality dating show’s eighth season.

Peacock said in a press release Monday that executive producer James Barker died last week in Fiji, where the reality show is currently being filmed, “after suffering an unexpected medical emergency.”

“James’ unimaginable loss has been deeply felt across not just the entire ‘Love Island USA’ production, but throughout all of ITV and Peacock,” Peacock and ITV America, which produces the reality series, said in a joint statement. “He was a beloved and greatly valued member of our collective family whose kindness, talent and dedication left an indelible mark on all of us and everyone who had the privilege of knowing and working with him. We extend our heartfelt condolences to James’ partner, family, friends and colleagues.”

Peacock and ITV America said that Barker will be honored on Tuesday’s episode of Love Island USA.

According to the press release, Barker started his television career in 2011 at Leftfield Pictures, where he was a producer on shows including Counting Cars, Forged in Fire and Pawn Stars. He also produced Queer Eye while working for ITV America.

Barker started working on Love Island USA in 2020 as a story producer and worked his way up to executive producer, according to the press release. He went on to produce numerous seasons of Love Island USA and Love Island Games.

Outside of television, Peacock and ITV America said Barker was passionate about music and “spent 20 years DJ’ing across the country building a dedicated following of fans.”

Barker is survived by his partner, Adam, whom he met at one of his shows, according to Monday’s press release.

Love Island USA season 8 kicked off June 2 with Ariana Madix returning as host. New episodes arrive daily, except on Wednesdays.

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Many people thought Amanda Seyfried was auditioning to play Joni Mitchell when she showed off her dulcimer skills by performing the singer’s tune “California” during a March 2025 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. It turns out Seyfried actually learned to play the instrument because she had already been cast to play Joni on screen.

In a new interview with British GQ, Seyfried reveals she was supposed to play Joni in a film about her and her manger Elliot Roberts, which wound up not happening.

As part of her prep for the role, Seyfried spent time with Joni at her home in Los Angeles, where they shared a steak dinner and listened to Joni’s iconic album Blue together. Seyfried adds that during the meeting, Joni “told me a lot of stories.”

For the role, Seyfried committed herself to learning how to play all the songs on Blue, along with other Joni classics like “Both Sides Now.” She tells the mag she “f****** wept” the day she finished learning the last song.

“I felt like a bona fide musician, like I belong here,” she says. “I felt like I had put my own flag on the top of the mountain. Because it was a f***** mountain, I tell you.”

Writer/director Cameron Crowe is currently working on a Joni biopic, which will reportedly star Meryl Streep as Joni in her later years.

As for whether she had a chance to be in Crowe’s film, Seyfried tells the mag, “Apparently a lot of people reached out to Cameron Crowe and were like, ‘What the f*** are you doing, dude?'” She noted, “I don’t know what he said, but from my knowledge, his version is, she’s really young and then she’s older.”

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Tom Holland and Zendaya made promoting their new movie look like a casual date moment.

The duo, who both star in the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day, posed for photographers during a photocall for the film in Madrid on Monday.

They both wore black, with Holland donning a black suit with a pop of red and Zendaya opting for a black strapless fringed dress.

Zendaya’s longtime stylist, Law Roach, shared on Instagram that Zendaya’s dress was by designer Christian Cowan. He also accessorized her look with details from Rolex and Stéfère Jewelry.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day will arrive in movie theaters on July 31. It’s the 38th movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The upcoming Destin Daniel Cretton-directed film is the fourth Spidey solo adventure starring Holland and Zendaya, after 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home and 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home.

According to a synopsis for Brand New Day, it follows Peter Parker, who fights crime “full-time as Spider-Man in a world that doesn’t remember him” in wake of the events of No Way Home.

The film also stars Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Tramell Tillman, Michael Mando and Mark Ruffalo.

Holland and Zendaya’s photo moment was their first red carpet together since 2021, when they were promoting No Way Home.

Since then, other outlets have confirmed their engagement after Zendaya was photographed wearing a large diamond ring at the 2025 Golden Globes.

At the 2026 Actor Awards, Roach told Access Hollywood on the red carpet that the “wedding has already happened. You missed it.”

When asked by a reporter if that was true, Roach replied, “It’s very true.”

ABC News reached out to a representative for Holland and Zendaya at the time.

Marvel is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News and Good Morning America.

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Netflix is getting in on the hockey romance action.

The streaming service is set to air an adaptation of Hannah Grace’s popular college hockey love story, Icebreaker.

The story follows aspiring Olympic figure skater Anastasia Allen, who’s forced to share a rink with NHL prospect Nate Hawkins.

Gossip Girl’s Amanda Lasher is on board as showrunner and will co-write the series with Jade Bartlett. Alex Cooper’s Unwell Productions is producing.

“I have been a fan of steamy YA since the seventh grade, reading Judy Blume stealthily hidden behind a textbook,” Lasher says. “I love this genre, and it’s been a joy working with Jade, the team at Unwell, and Netflix to bring Hannah Grace’s beloved Icebreaker novel to the screen.”

The series will follow other recent successful hockey romance adaptations, including Crave/HBO Max’s Heated Rivalry and Prime Video’s Off Campus.

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