The headlines continue to come fast and furious on Disney+ Day, and among them are some teases about sequels to a pair of beloved movies, Hocus Pocus and Enchanted.
You can now see Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimi and Bette Midler back as the witchy Sanderson sisters, thanks to a sneak peek of them in costume. Hocus Pocus 2 is slated for release in the fall of 2022 on Disney+ — just in time for next Halloween.
Also next fall, Amy Adams, James Marsden, Idina Menzel and Patrick Dempsey will return for Disenchanted, the Disney+ sequel to the hit 2007 live-action/animated musical fantasy film Enchanted. The new film will also star Maya Rudolph, Yvette Nicole Brown, Oscar Nunez and Jayma Mays.
ABBA has voyaged straight to the top of the British charts, and set several records in the process.
The beloved Swedish pop icons saw their first album in 40 years, Voyage, sell 204,000 copies in its first week of release in the U.K. That makes it the U.K.’s fastest-selling album this year, with the biggest opening week sales in four years. The last album to sell that many copies was Ed Sheeran‘s Divide, back in 2017.
ABBA is now also only the fourth artist in the past 10 years to sell more than 200,000 copies of an album in its first week in the U.K.: The others are Adele, Ed Sheeran and One Direction.
On top of that, out of the 204,000 copies sold, 29,900 were vinyl, making Voyage the U.K.’s fastest-selling vinyl release of this century.
Voyage is ABBA’s 10th number-one British album.
“We are so happy that our fans seem to have enjoyed our new album as much as we enjoyed making it!” said the group in a statement. “We are absolutely over the moon to have an album at the top of the charts again!”
Marvel Studios put the sizzle in “sizzle reel” today with teases of a slew of upcoming live action and animated shows bound for Disney+.
Included was the first footage of Oscar Isaac in costume as Moon Knight; Emmy-winning Orphan Black star Tatiana Maslany as Bruce Banner’s lawyer/green-hero cousin Jennifer Walters in She-Hulk; and newcomer Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel.
Samuel L. Jackson also makes an appearance in the reel as an aged Nick Fury for a Secret Invasion series that also stars his Captain Marvel co-star Ben Mendelsohn.
Mark Ruffalo appears in the She-Hulk footage, getting his attorney cousin used to her new Hulky powers; that is, when she’s not in court specializing in superhero cases.
The Moon Knight footage shows Isaac as Marc Spector, a nerdy guy who suffers from dissociative identity disorder who becomes a vigilante. “The multiple identities who live inside him find themselves thrust into a deadly war of the gods against the backdrop of modern and Ancient Egypt,” a press release explains.
Ms. Marvel centers on Khan, “a 16-year-old Pakistani American from Jersey City [who] has always struggled to find her place in the world — that is, until she gets super powers like the heroes she’s always looked up to.”
Along with already-seen footage of the upcoming Hawkeye, the reel also teases the return of Loki, a second season of the animated What If…?, and a bunch of animated shows, including Spider-Man: Freshman Year and Marvel: Zombies. In addition, it confirms the WandaVision spin-off, Agatha: House of Harkness starring Kathryn Hahn.
The preview can be seen on Disney+, which is owned by ABC’s parent company.
Here’s the full upcoming Marvel slate:
—Echo
—Ironheart
—Agatha: House of Harkness
—Secret Invasion
—The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special
—X-MEN ’97 (animated)
—What If…? Season 2 (animated)
—Spider-Man: Freshman Year (animated)
—I Am Groot (shorts series)
—Marvel Zombies (animated)
Halle Berry and Cardi B are the executive producers of the all-female hip hop soundtrack for Berry’s new movie, Bruised, which she directed. The “WAP” rapper has been very open about her past as a stripper, and during an Instagram video posted Thursday, the Oscar winner revealed that she also worked the pole.
The video marked the debut of Halle’s new 5 Rounds interview series.
Halle starred as an exotic dancer in the 1991 film, The Last Boy Scout, co-starring Bruce Willis and DamonWayans, and she admitted to Cardi that in preparing for the role, she actually danced topless at the Girls, Girls, Girls club in Los Angeles.
“I stripped for two days and two nights to see what it felt like and to see how much I would make,” she confessed. “I did good…I didn’t make as much as you did.”
Meanwhile, Cardi reminisced about her stripping days and said her entry song onto the stage was “Set It Off” by Boosie Badazz.
The two stars also got very graphic, discussing favorite sex positions, and what they’d do if they woke up as a man.
Cardi revealed why she’s rapped about not having sex with broke men. She says when she did get intimate with a poor man, “He was stealing from my purse.” She advised women, “Don’t do it. You’ll end up with nothing.”
The Hustlers star also tweeted about getting to meet the famed actress for the first time.
“Sooo guys I can’t believe I met Halle Berry,” Cardi wrote, “and let me tell you this tea, her skin is so soft…I wanted to bite her shoulder.”
The Bruised soundtrack drops November 19; it features Cardi, City Girls, Saweetie, H.E.R., Young M.A., Flo Milli, Latto and more. The movie opens November 24.
Bring on the Spandex and sweats! Carrie Underwood just dropped “Stretchy Pants,” her hilarious new tribute to holiday feasting.
The song embraces a different side of Christmas cheer than fans have already seen from the singer, who dropped a more serious batch of seasonal tunes, called My Gift, last year. The tune also is a counterpoint to Carrie’s well-known love of health and fitness, which fans have gotten to know in part through her line of activewear, Calia.
“People know that I am a champion for a healthy lifestyle, but a big part of that is balance,” she points out. “There are times to be disciplined, and then there are times when we need to eat and drink and be merry and enjoy ourselves with family and friends.”
Along with the song itself, Carrie shared a fun animated video for “Stretchy Pants,” which adds a colorful visual element to the song’s celebratory message.
A portion of the proceeds from the song benefits Brad Paisley’s The Store, a free shopping experience in Nashville that offers those facing food insecurity the dignity of going to a regular grocery store.
“We knew [the song] would bring a lot of fun and joy to people, but I also wanted to do something good with it that would help people. I immediately thought about Brad and [his wife Kimberly]’s charity, The Store,” Carrie goes on to say.
“Everybody should be able to afford feasts for the holidays,” she adds, “and everybody should have the opportunity to break out those stretchy pants!”
Limited-edition “stretchy pants” made out of green flannel — just like the ones featured in the song’s video — are available in Carrie’s merch store, too.
(HOUSTON) — Several lawsuits have been filed so far against several parties connected to the deadly stage surge during Astroworld Festival at NRG Park in Houston, Texas, which left at least nine concertgoers dead and many more injured. Now, more than 100 victims of the tragedy are being represented in cases against event organizers, managers and performers.
Astroworld is a music festival founded by rapper Travis Scott and held annually in Houston. This year was the third Astroworld event, which hosted popular rappers and singers including SZA, Bad Bunny, Chief Keef and Tame Impala.
According to Houston Police and witness accounts, a wave of tens of thousands of people surged toward the stage when Scott — and later, rapper Drake — appeared. Concert attendees say they were pushed into one another from all sides, and as the crowd pressed its way forward, some began to fall, pass out and get trampled by others in the audience.
“You’re not moving yourself — it’s more of the crowd moving you, so you don’t have control of your body at that point,” said concertgoer Fatima Muñoz, who shared her experience with ABC News’ daily news podcast “Start Here.” “So when people start falling and losing their balance, it kind of becomes like a domino effect.”
“Somebody next to me started falling, and he kind of took me down with him. And that’s when I had fell right on the floor, and that’s when everybody started tumbling down, and I tried so hard to get up,” Muñoz said. “There’s just too much people like on me, like, they legit dog-pile on me. I was on the floor. Nobody helped. I tried screaming for my life. I tried screaming for help. Nobody helped nobody.”
Muñoz said she bit someone’s leg to bring attention to her laying on the floor and then two attendees helped her up and out of the crowd.
“If those two guys didn’t help me, I mean, I really could have been one of those people for sure,” she said.
The lawsuits, along with some witness accounts, allege that Scott continued to perform despite the presence of emergency vehicles in the audience.
Houston police say the investigation is active and in its early stages.
Lawsuits stack up against concert producers, venue
Live Nation Entertainment and ScoreMore Holdings, two concert production and entertainment companies that organized and produced the event, are being sued, as well as performers Scott and Drake. NRG Park’s venue management and operation agency, the Harris County Sports & Convention Corporation, is also included as a defendant in the lawsuits.
The family of 21-year-old Axel Acosta, one of the people who died in the crowd surge, say they plan on joining a lawsuit as part of 35 total plaintiffs in a case to be filed by Houston attorney Tony Buzbee against the aforementioned organizers.
Buzbee cited a 2015 disorderly conduct charge against Scott, which he pleaded guilty to, stemming from that year’s Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago when he urged attendees to ignore security, ABC7 Chicago reported at the time.
“Certainly neither Travis Scott nor his handlers, entourage managers, agents, hangers on promoters, organizers or sponsors cared enough about Axel to make even minimal effort to keep him and the others at the concert safe,” Buzbee said in a press conference with the family Monday.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump and attorney Alex Hilliard are representing more than 100 victims from the Astroworld tragedy, including a 21-year-old attendee who helped lift people up from the floor amid the chaos. They accuse the event’s organizers and Scott of negligence in providing medical equipment, crowd control, safety precautions, adequate hiring and training of staff.
“We are hearing horrific accounts of the terror and helplessness people experienced — the horror of a crushing crowd and the awful trauma of watching people die while trying unsuccessfully to save them,” Crump said in a statement to ABC News. “We will be pursuing justice for all our clients who were harmed in this tragic and preventable event.”
Texas attorney Thomas J. Henry also filed a lawsuit against Scott and Drake, as well as Live Nation and NRG Stadium, on behalf of one of the surviving victims following Friday night’s tragedy.
Henry said he believes a message needs to be sent to “performers, venues and event organizers that a lackadaisical approach to event preparation and attendees safety is no longer acceptable.”
“Live musical performances are meant to inspire catharsis, not tragedy,” Henry said in a statement sent to ABC News. “Many of these concertgoers were looking forward to this event for months, and they deserved a safe environment in which to have fun and enjoy the evening. Instead, their night was one of fear, injury and death.”
Kherkher Garcia, LLP has also filed a lawsuit against event organizers and Scott on behalf of an attendee who the firm said “suffered serious bodily injuries when the uncontrolled crowd at the concert knocked him to the ground and trampled him.”
“He and those who promoted and supported this concert must take responsibility for their heinous actions,” Kherkher Garcia, LLP said in a statement to ABC News. “We intend to hold them fully accountable by showing that this behavior will not be tolerated in our great city.”
Houston attorney Ricardo Ramos told reporters Tuesday night he also plans to file a lawsuit on behalf of as many as 30 concertgoers over alleged injuries and emotional distress, though the defendants are still being determined.
“They went there to have a good time, and they went there to have some fun,” Ramos said. “In return, probably it was the biggest nightmare they have ever experienced.”
Scott and organizers react
Following the concert, Scott released a statement on the tragedy on Twitter, saying, “I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld festival.”
Scott announced he will cover the funeral costs and further aid to individuals affected by the tragedy and will refund all of the Astroworld concertgoers and ticket holders. He has also said he is cooperating with investigators.
On Instagram, Scott’s girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, who attended the concert, defended Scott.
“I want to make it clear we weren’t aware of any fatalities until the news came out after the show and in no world would have continued filming or performing,” Jenner wrote in her post.
Drake on Monday night posted a statement on Instagram. “I’ve spent the past few days trying to wrap my mind around this devastating tragedy. I hate resorting to this platform to express an emotion as delicate as grief but this is where I find myself. My heart is broken for the families and friends of those who lost their lives and for anyone who is suffering,” he wrote. “I will continue to pray for all of them, and will be of service in any way I can. May God be with you all.”
In a statement to ABC News, Live Nation said it was working with law enforcement to get answers.
“We continue to support and assist local authorities in their ongoing investigation so that both the fans who attended and their families can get the answers they want and deserve, and we will address all legal matters at the appropriate time,” Live Nation said.
Legal analysts, including civil litigation attorney Danielle Cohen Higgins and ABC News’ Dan Abrams, say there are many questions that need to be answered about what exactly happened at the festival.
Higgins said event organizers are going to have to answer for the safety precautions, crowd control procedures and other policies that play a big role in event planning.
“If Live Nation created an environment where they reasonably should have anticipated that a surge was possible — that’s a problem for Live Nation. They are the experts in creating this environment,” Higgins said in an interview with ABC News.
NRG Park representatives declined ABC News’ request for comment.
Higgins and Abrams also pointed out that in 2019, three people were also hospitalized at Astroworld after being trampled when thousands of people rushed to get into the event.
Following that 2019 incident, Houston police tweeted: “We are successfully working together to support Houston’s biggest music festival @astroworldfest at @nrgpark and collaborating closely with the festival to ensure the public safety of everyone attending the event. We look forward to a memorable night.”
Abrams, when asked on Good Morning America about what stands out to him the most about this tragedy, said any of Scott’s actions and comments at the concert could affect these cases.
“There’s going to be social media videos of every moment of that show,” Abrams said. “Every single second will have been documented, so we’ll know exactly what he said and when he said it.”
The Offspring has premiered a new live video for the band’s stripped-down version of “Gone Away.”
The clip, filmed at the Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville, finds frontman Dexter Holland delivering a heartfelt, solo rendition of the song with just his voice and a piano.
“Many of you have lost someone close to you, I know that I certainly have,” Holland says at the beginning of the performance. “When I’ve been singing this song lately, I’ve been thinking about that.”
The Offspring included the piano-led version of “Gone Away” on their new album, Let the Bad Times Roll, which was released in April. It’s also featured on the newly released Gone Away EP, along with a live and “alternative” recording, as well as the original, electric “Gone Away” from 1997.
The one-minute, 25-second segment shows Paul McCartney, John Lennon and George Harrison gathered in a circle sitting on wooden chairs, with Ringo Starr at his drum kit behind them, as McCartney runs through his then-new song “I’ve Got a Feeling” with his band mates.
As Paul sings and plays the song, John adds some off-the-cuff backing vocals. When the tune hits the bridge section, McCartney calls out the chords to the rest of the group. As the clip ends, we see George ask Paul, “Is that one called ‘I’ve Got a Feeling’?” The tune wound up being released on The Beatles’ final studio album, 1970’s Let It Be.
As previously reported, The Beatles: Get Back — which was created from dozens of hours of unseen footage and audio recorded in January 1969 during sessions that yielded songs for Let It Be and the band’s next-to-last album, Abbey Road — will premiere on Disney+ over three days later this month, November 25, 26, and 27.
Each part of the series, which was directed by Lord of the Rings filmmaker Peter Jackson, runs about two hours.
The preview clip follows last month’s premiere of an official trailer for the series, which features glimpses at more segments from the series, including scenes that show The Beatles preparing to give what became their last-ever live performance, the famous surprise concert on the roof of the Apple headquarters on London’s Savile Row. The entire rooftop performance will be seen in the series.
(NEW YORK) — The number of people who quit their jobs rose to a record high in September, the Department of Labor said Friday.
Some 4.4 million workers, or 3% of the total workforce, quit their jobs in September, the DOL said, marking the highest number since the government started tracking the data. Moreover, the number of job openings in September was 10.4 million — tying August for the second-highest figure ever recorded and down only slightly from the record 10.9 million job openings seen in July.
The layoffs and discharge rate, meanwhile, was unchanged at 0.9% in September.
The fresh data reflect an ongoing trend among U.S. workers who are reevaluating their work situation and life following the shock of the pandemic.
Job quitting increased in several industries in September, according to the data, with the largest increases seen in the arts, entertainment and recreation sector and in the state and local government education industry.
The record-high levels of people quitting their jobs, combined with soaring job openings, have left many major companies reeling to find staff. Workers now have an upper hand in the labor market that has been linked to a spate of strikes and new employee activism.
Thousands of workers at John Deere remain on strike and new unionization efforts have emerged at major companies including Amazon and Starbucks.
The crunch for workers as the economy reopens has also been linked to rising wages, especially in the service industry where wages were largely stagnant for years before the pandemic.
Preliminary data from the Labor Department indicates that the average hourly earnings of all employees in food and drinking establishments soared to a record high of $17.58 in September, a figure that has slowly climbed each month in 2021.
The overall unemployment rate still remains elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels. The unemployment rate last month was 4.6%, still above the 3.5% seen in February 2020 before the pandemic upended the labor market.
Beyoncé dropped her first new music of the year on Friday: ‘Be Alive,” from the new Will Smith movie, King Richard.
Queen Bey was inspired to contribute the song after attending a screening of the film, which tells the story of how Richard Williams, portrayed by Smith, developed his daughters, Serena and Venus Williams, into tennis superstars.
The 28-time Grammy winner sings: “It feels so good to be alive / Got all my family by my side / Couldn’t wipe this black off if I tried / That’s why I lift my hеad with pride.”
“The marriage of a movie and a song is a kind of magic that’s unmatched in entertainment,” Smith told EW.com. “I was so happy when Beyoncé called.
Beyoncé and Serena previously worked together when the four-time Olympic gold medal winner appeared in the “Sorry” video in 2016.
“There is no other person that could do the song except for Beyoncé because I feel we’ve had a similar path in our lives,” Serena said last week on Jimmy Kimmel Live! “We trained from an early age to reach a goal. Her dad was super involved in her career as well as her mom, and for us it was really only one answer. She embraced that.”
“The original song is amazing,” Serena added. “It all came together so perfectly.
“Be Alive” is heard during the closing credits of King Richard, which debuts theaters in November 19 and streams exclusively on HBO Max. The song is nominated for a Hollywood Music in Media Award in the Feature Film category.
