News

Exclusive: Kelly Rowland (Mea Culpa) and Cliff “Method Man” Smith (Power Book II: Ghost) are set to lead the new Amazon MGM Studios rom-com Relationship Goals, based on Michael Todd’s New York Times bestseller Relationship Goals: How to Win at Dating, Marriage, and Sex. Robin Thede (A Black Lady Sketch Show) and Annie Gonzalez (Flamin’ Hot) will also star.

Relationship Goals is a funny and inspiring romantic comedy on finding lasting love and sustaining a healthy relationship at every stage of courtship. The book, based on Todd’s viral sermon series about dating, marriage, and sex, spent 13 straight weeks on the NY Times bestsellers list and debuted at No. 1 on Amazon, according to the streamer.

The script was written by Laura Lekkos (Somewhere Only We Know), with prior drafts by Michael Elliot (R&b) and Cory Tynan (R&b). Rowland and Bart Lipton will executive produce while DeVon Franklin will produce. Linda Mendoza is set to direct.

Rowland recently starred in Netflix’s Tyler Perry film Mea Culpa. She has also guest starred on several series including Girlfriends, Empire, American Soul, Being Mary Jane, and L.A.’s Finest. On the film side, Rowland appeared in Kevin Hart’s Think Like A Man, New Line Cinema’s Freddy vs. Jason, Netflix’s The Curse of Bridge Hollow, and produced and starred in Merry Liddle Christmas Baby. Additionally, she executive produced her docuseries Chasing Destiny and co-produced a digital series called Milk + Honey alongside Idris Elba and Issa Rae. She is repped by UTA, Sb Projects, and Del Shaw Moonves Tanaka.

Smith starred in all four seasons of the hit Starz series Power Book II: Ghost, which recently wrapped up after four seasons last year. For his portrayal of Davis MacLean, he received three NAACP Image Awards for “Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.” He can currently be seen in Carnegie Hill Entertainment’s feature Bad Shabbos, and the Paramount+’s feature film On the Come Up for which he received an NAACP Image Award nomination for “Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture”. Smith will next be seen in Maude Apatow’s directorial debut Poetic License and as a guest star in Peacock’s Emmy Award-winning original series Poker Face for Season 2. He is represented by Shauna Garr, CAA, and Frankfurt Kernit Klein & Selz.

Six-time Emmy nominee Robin Thede is the creator, showrunner, executive producer, writer, and star of HBO’s Emmy-winning sketch comedy series, A Black Lady Sketch Show. She recently starred alongside Eddie Murphy and Tracee Ellis Ross in the Amazon MGM Studios holiday feature, Candy Cane Lane. Previously, she was the creator, executive producer, writer and host of The Rundown with Robin Thede on BET becoming one of the only Black women to host a late-night talk show. She is represented by WME and Johnson Shapiro Slewett & Kole Llp.

Gonzalez can be seen in films such as East of the Mountains directed by S.J. Chiro, Flamin’ Hot from Searchlight Pictures and Franklin Entertainment, Drive-Away Dolls directed by Ethan Coen, and Jenni, which Gonzalez stars in and produced. On the TV side, credits include Netflix’s Gentefied, Showtime’s Shameless, FX’s American Horror Story, Netflix’s Good Girls, Starz’s Vida, and most recently, NBC’s Lopez vs Lopez. She is represented by Innovative, Neon Kite, and Granderson Des Rochers.

Franklin serves as President and CEO of Franklin Entertainment, a production company dedicated to uplifting the human spirit through inspirational content. He just wrapped production on R & B, a modern version of the Biblical love story of Ruth & Boaz. Franklin has also produced the inspirational hit films Flamin’ Hot directed by Eva Longoria, Breakthrough starring Chrissy Metz for Disney/Fox, Sony’s The Star and Miracles From Heaven starring Jennifer Garner. Franklin has a first-look deal with Tyler Perry Studios and Netflix and with CBS Studios.

Elliot and Tynan are represented by Evoke Entertainment. Lekkos is represented by Gersh and Felker Toczek. Mendoza is represented by Independent Artist Group, Atlas Literary, and Del, Shaw, Bobb et al.

With the 96th Academy Awards now only a month away, each weekend brings a new award show that reveals a new look at the shape of the Oscar race. Tonight, the auteurs behind some of 2023’s biggest films gathered at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles to celebrate the craft of filmmaking at the Directors Guild of America Awards.

Martin Scorsese, Greta Gerwig, Christopher Nolan, Yorgos Lanthimos, and Alexander Payne were nominated for the night’s top prize, Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film, with Oscar frontrunner Nolan walking away with the coveted trophy. Celine Song, Cord Jefferson, A.V. Rockwell, Manuela Martelli, and Noora Niasari competed for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in First-Time Theatrical Feature Film, which ultimately went to Song.

The show celebrated some of the best directors working in television, with awards in a variety of categories ranging from TV dramas and sitcoms to commercials and reality TV.

The 76th Directors Guild of America Awards took place on Saturday, February 10 at 7:30 p.m. Pt with Judd Apatow hosting the in-person, non-televised ceremony. These kudos honored the best helmers of the year in movies and television, as voted on by more than 18,000 members of the directing guild. Scroll down for the 2024 DGA Awards winners list in three film and eight TV categories.

As always, the all-important feature film category is one of the most telling bellwethers for the eventual Best Director Oscar. The guild and the academy have only disagreed for Best Director eight times over the past seven decades, with the last three years lining up perfectly for Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert (2022’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once”), Jane Campion (2021’s “The Power of the Dog”) and Chloé Zhao (2020’s “Nomadland”).

This year, just three of the DGA’s nominees also reaped directing Oscar bids: Yorgos Lanthimos...

The Directors Guild of America announced the nominees for television, commercials and documentary for its 76th annual DGA Awards today, a list headed by three-time winner Bill Hader and installments of the third and final season of HBO’s “Succession,” which claimed four of the five Drama Series nomination slots – the fifth going to an episode of fellow HBO hour “The Last of Us.”

The Comedy Series nomination lineup features the directors of a pair of episodes of Apple TV+’s “Ted Lasso” along with two installments of FX’s “The Bear” (including a repeat nomination for showrunner Christopher Storer – the acclaimed “Fishes” edition from Season 2 of the series – and a first for comedian and actor Ramy Youssef).

SEEBill Hader will set multiple SAG Award records with win for ‘Barry’

The Apple TV+ limited series “Lessons in Chemistry” also scored multiple bids in the Movies For Television/Limited Series category with three.

The much-delayed 2023 Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards proved worth the wait for Jay-Z. On Sunday, during the second part of the ceremony, the musician and mogul was awarded the Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special for his work co-directing Rihanna’s Super Bowl halftime show.

Jay-Z shared directing duties with Hamish Hamilton, who has helmed the Super Bowl halftime show each year since 2010. Hamilton has been nominated for the award seven times over the course of his career — for work on multiple Super Bowl performances, The Oscars,...

Next month, a handful of stand-up comedians are heading to Netflix in a brand-new special. Today, the streamer announced a multi-comic special entitled Verified Stand-Up. It will feature 10 comedians total in 10 different short form sets. The roster boasts an impressive bunch of comedians from diverse backgrounds, including Asif Ali, Dulcé Sloan, Nimesh Patel, Gianmarco Soresi, Isiah J. Kelly, Leslie Liao, Robby Hoffman, Rosebud Baker, Sabrina Wu, and Vanessa Gonzalez. The special will consist of two episodes, with each set filmed at Webster Hall in New York City. It was directed by Linda Mendoza and executive produced by Anne Harris. Verified Stand-Up premieres November 23.

Exclusive: Netflix on Monday morning unveiled Verified Stand-Up, a new series featuring short sets from 10 comedians that’s set to premiere globally on November 28. Rising comedians that perform in the two-parter, filmed at Webster Hall in New York City, include Asif Ali, Dulcé Sloan, Gianmarco Soresi, Isiah Kelly, Leslie Liao, Nimesh Patel, Robby Hoffman, Rosebud Baker, Sabrina Wu, and Vanessa Gonzalez.

News of Netflix’s new stand-up series comes following its announcement of Improv: 60 And Still Standing, a comedy special celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Improv comedy clubs, which is set to premiere November 7th. Top comics dropping in for short sets as part of that project included Anjelah Johnson-Reyes, Bert Kreischer, Craig Robinson, Deon Cole, Fortune Feimster, Jeff Dunham, Kevin Nealon, Mark Normand, Jo Koy, and Whitney Cummings.

Linda Mendoza directed Verified Stand-Up, with Anne Harris serving as executive producer.

Previously seen on Disney+’s WandaVision and The Mandalorian,...

Five years after scoring back-to-back Emmy wins for helming the 89th and 90th Oscars, Glenn Weiss could clinch his fifth Best Variety Special Directing trophy for his work on the latest Academy Awards ceremony. Given the knowledge that Jimmy Kimmel hosted said two 2010s Oscars events as well as the one Weiss is currently nominated for, a majority of Gold Derby’s Emmy predictors expect history to simply repeat itself, and they are wise to think so.

Weiss’s most formidable challengers in this contest are producing Emmy winner Jay-Z and seven-time directing nominee Hamish Hamilton, who are recognized for conducting Rihanna’s halftime performance at the most recent Super Bowl. Also in the mix are the directors of the stand-up specials “Chris Rock: Selective Outrage” and “Wanda Sykes: I’m an Entertainer” and the career retrospective “Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love.”

In order to determine just how...

Jay-Z was nominated for another Emmy for directing Rihanna’s halftime show during the 2023 Super Bowl.

Wednesday’s nomination brings the rapper, née Shawn Carter, up to three total primetime Emmy nominations, including a win for Outstanding Variety Special (Live) for the 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show, which featured performances from Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, 50 Cent, and a nomination for Outstanding Variety Special (Live) for the 2021 Super Bowl Halftime Show, which featured a performance by The Weeknd.

While Jay-Z is credited as an executive producer for the 2021 and 2022 Halftime Shows through his entertainment agency Roc Nation, which produced all three shows alongside Jesse Collins Entertainment and Dps, the rapper upped the game to directing for Rihanna’s mashup performance. Jay-Z shares the executive producer title with Hamish Hamilton.

Also Read:

Emmy Nominations 2023: ‘Succession’ Leads With 27 as HBO Dominates

In this year’s race...

Award-winning comedian Wanda Sykes will return to Netflix with a new hourlong comedy special premiering globally May 23.

The special, titled “I’m an Entertainer,” is directed by Linda Mendoza and was filmed in early February at the Miller Theater in Philadelphia.

“From the challenges of raising Gen Z teens to the dilemmas of being a liberal in a hyper charged political climate, Sykes, renowned for her social commentary, delivers her insightful and ferocious wit and candor audiences have come to know and love,” the official logline states.

Also Read:

‘The Daily Show': Wanda Sykes Wonders How Cops Find ‘Time to Shoot People’ After Learning How Many Speeding Tickets Are Given (Video)

The upcoming special comes after Sykes’ “Not Normal” in 2019, which was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards. Sykes and Page Hurwitz will serve as executive producers on “I’m an Entertainer” under their Push It Productions banner

Push...

Netflix has announced Wanda Sykes’ upcoming hour-long standup special, “I’m An Entertainer” will arrive on the streaming service on May 23. The episode will premiere globally.

Set at the Miller Theater in Philadelphia, the comedian, actress and producer Wanda Sykes returns for her second hour-long Netflix comedy special. According to the streamer, the comedian tackles a host of topics from the challenges of raising Gen Z teens to the dilemmas of being a liberal in a hyper charged political climate. Known for her social commentary, Sykes delivers “her insightful and ferocious wit and candor audiences have come to know and love,” reads the official description. The special was filmed in early February 2023.

The forthcoming special serves as a followup to the comedian’s 2019 Netflix comedy special, “Not Normal,” which was nominated for two Primetime Emmy awards. In the previous special, Sykes took on politics, reality TV, racism and the secret...

Prime Video released the official trailer of the highly anticipated second season of Harlem. The second season will consist of eight episodes, with two episodes premiering every week, starting February 3.

From writer Tracy Oliver (Girls Trip), in Season Two, after blowing up her career and disrupting her love life, Camille (Meagan Good) has to figure out how to put the pieces back together; Tye (Jerrie Johnson) considers her future; Quinn (Grace Byers) goes on a journey of self-discovery; and Angie’s (Shoniqua Shandai) career takes a promising turn.

Harlem Season Two is produced by Amazon Studios and Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, in association with Paper Kite Productions. In addition to creator, writer, and executive producer Tracy Oliver, Paper Kite’s Amy Poehler (Russian Doll) and Kim Lessing (Moxie) serve as executive producers, alongside 3 Arts’ Dave Becky (True Story), Britt Matt (First Wives Club), Scott King (Difficult...

Apple TV+ has released the official trailer for “Truth Be Told” Season 3, starring Octavia Spencer and Gabrielle Union.

Based on Kathleen Barber’s novel “Are You Sleeping,” the anthology series follows Poppy Scoville (Spencer), an investigative reporter turned true crime podcaster who risks everything in pursuit of the truth. In the 10-episode third season, Poppy teams with an unorthodox principal (Union) to keep the names of several missing Black girls in the public eye, while chasing down leads to a suspected sex trafficking ring that may have kidnapped them. Returning cast members include Mekhi Phifer, David Lyons, Ron Cephas Jones, Merle Dandridge, Tracie Thoms, Haneefah Wood, Mychala Faith Lee and Tami Roman.

“Truth Be Told” is created and executive produced by Nichelle Tramble Spellman, with Maisha Closson serving as showrunner for Season 3. Executive producers include Closson, Spencer, Mikkel Nrgaard, Reese Witherspoon and Lauren Neustadter for Hello Sunshine, Peter Chernin and...

Exclusive: Amazon‘s original series Harlem has added 7 new cast members to its Season 2 roster.

Rachel True (The Craft), Courtnee Carter (Charmed), and Luke Forbes (S.W.A.T) are set to recur; Rick Fox (Dope), Sherri Shepherd (Sherri), Countess Vaughn (The Parkers), and Lil Rel Howery (Bird Box) will guest star.

True will portray Aimee, an earthy, ethereal owner of a plant shop in Harlem. She and Tye (Jerrie Johnson) strike up an unlikely friendship; Carter will portray Zoe, a confident player who has a reputation for leaving a trail of broken hearts; Forbes will portray “handsome and professional” Michael, one of New York’s top real estate agents that Quinn’s mom Patricia (Jasmine Guy) tries to blindly set Quinn (Grace Byers) up with.

Fox plays Phil, Quinn’s doting father, an affluent man who is delighted when his daughter joins him for a game of golf on his birthday; Shepherd plays Sonya,...

Exclusive: Netflix’s Michelle Buteau comedy series Survival of the Thickest is adding to its team.

Tone Bell, who starred in Netflix’s multi-cam comedy Disjointed, is to star alongside Buteau in the series with Tasha Smith, who starred in Boston Common and has appeared in Empire, recurring in the series.

Linda Mendoza, who has directed episodes of Never Have I Ever, 30 Rock and Girs5Eva, will direct the first two episodes of the series.

The series stars Buteau as Mavis Beaumont, Black, plus-size and newly single, but not by her choice. Mavis unexpectedly finds herself having to rebuild her life as a struggling stylist. She’s determined to not only survive but thrive with the support of her chosen family, a body positive attitude, and a cute v-neck with some lip gloss.

Bell will play Khalil, Mavis’s bestie and first phone call since high school. He’s...

Apple TV+ has been ramping up its content slate with some of the most talked about original series.

The streaming service's latest surefire hit is Life By Ella, premiering globally Friday, September 2.

The series follows Ella as she returns to school with a brand new perspective, excitement for what the future holds, and a major "seize the day" mentality following her stint with cancer.

With her best friend by her side, she is ready to tackle everything she was too afraid of before, and determined not to let the minutiae of fake friends and social media status distract her.

The official trailer certainly highlights Ella's plight to "seize the day," even if those around her are not ready for her to return to doing what she loves best.

Her cancer diagnosis undoubtedly is a cause for concern from her parents, with her father wondering whether returning to school so soon...

Lily Brooks O’Briant in “Life by Ella,” premiering September 2, 2022 on Apple TV+. Apple TV+ today revealed the trailer for the new kids and family series, “Life By Ella,” premiering globally Friday, September 2. “Life By Ella” follows Ella as she returns to school with a brand new perspective, excitement for what the future holds, and a major “seize the day” mentality following her stint with cancer. With her best friend by her side, she is ready to tackle everything she was too afraid of before, and determined not to let the minutiae of fake friends and social media status distract her. “Life By Ella” was created, written and executive produced by Jeff Hodsden (“Bunk’d”) and Tim Pollock (“Bunk’d”), with the first episode directed by Emmy Award nominee Linda Mendoza. The series stars Lily Brooks O’Briant, Artyon Celestine, and Vanessa Carrasco (“Irreplaceable You”) with an ensemble cast including Kevin Rahm, Mary Faber,...

Apple TV+ today announced summer premiere dates for a full slate of all-new original series, specials, shorts and returning fan favorites for kids and families.

As part of its family programming slate, Apple will also be rolling out new content and shorts from the legendary “Peanuts” franchise over the summer. New episodes of “The Snoopy Show,” a short-form animated series focusing on the adventures of Charlie Brown’s iconic dog, will debut Aug. 5, and a special starring “Peanuts” character Lucy Van Pelt, “Lucy’s School,” debuts Aug. 12. Aug. 5 will also see the addition of classic “Peanuts” specials, originally produced by Mendelson/Melendez Productions for network television, to the platform, including: “A Charlie Brown Celebration,” “He’s A Bully, Charlie Brown,” “He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown,” “It Was A Short Summer, Charlie Brown,” “It’s Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown,” “There’s No Time For Love, Charlie Brown,” “Why, Charlie Brown,...

Exclusive: Nikki Glaser, comedian, host and executive producer of HBO Max’s breakout reality dating series Fboy Island, is set to headline her first comedy special for HBO. The as-yet untitled special will tape later this month in Denver, Co.

“Nikki is a relentlessly ferocious comedian who takes on taboo topics in the most unassuming and hilarious ways,” said Nina Rosenstein, EVP, HBO Programming. “We loved everything about her on Fboy Island and are so happy to be doing her first HBO hour.”

Written, performed and executive produced by Glaser, the special will be directed by Linda Mendoza. Alex Murray and John Irwin also will executive produce. Casey Spira is co-executive producer.

“It’s so cool to finally work with HBO, the birthplace of the comedy special, on my third hour-long special,” said Glaser.”My material will mostly consist of my novel comedic takes on the trans-rights movement, just kidding,...

NBC announced its winter 2022 lineup, including the final season of “This Is Us,” which premieres on Jan. 4 at 9 p.m.

On Mondays starting Jan. 3 “Kenan” will air its second season with a two-episode block at 8 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., followed by Jimmy Fallon’s variety game show “That’s My Jam” at 9 p.m., and “Ordinary Joe” will return with new episodes on this date at 10 p.m.

In addition to “This Is Us,” Jan. 4 will see the time period premieres of “American Auto” and “Grand Crew” at 8 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., respectively, and the midseason premiere of “New Amsterdam” at 10 p.m.

On Wednesdays starting Jan. 5 “Chicago Med” returns to its traditional time period at 8 p.m., followed by “Chicago Fire” and “Chicago P.D.” On Thursdays, “The Blacklist” will air at 8 p.m., followed by “Law & Order: Svu” at 9 p.m. and “Law & Order: Organized Crime” at 10 p.

Amazon Prime Video has set its all-female lineup for the second installment of Yearly Departed, its comedy special that will put 2021 to rest.

Jane Fonda (Grace and Frankie), Chelsea Peretti (Brooklyn Nine-Nine), Meg Stalter (Hacks), Dulcé Sloan (The Daily Show), Aparna Nancherla (The Great North) and X Mayo (The Daily Show) will join host Yvonne Orsi in the special, along with Alessia Cara who will deliver a musical send-off to everything we are leaving behind this year.

Set for premiere on December 23 exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, this year’s eulogists will bid farewell to Hot Vaxx Summer, Hermit Life, Ignoring the Climate Crisis, and Zoom, along with a few more surprises.

The inaugural Yearly Departed, which eulogized 2020, received a WGA Award nomination in the Comedy/Variety Specials category and won a Gracie Award.

Yearly Departed hails from Amazon Studios, Done+Dusted, and Scrap Paper Pictures. The special is executive produced by Rachel Brosnahan,...

Amazon has given a green light to a second installment of Yearly Departed, a comedy special that will bid farewell to everything we’re leaving behind in 2021. Emmy-nominated Yvonne Orji (Insecure) will host the special, which again will feature an all-female lineup of guests (Tba) who will tackle some of 2021’s highlights we probably want to forget, such as Hot Vaxx Summer, Hermit Life, Ignoring the Climate Crisis, and Zoom. Yearly Departed will premiere in December exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide. A specific date will be announced soon.

“In my career, I’ve been fortunate to work on a show that was created by Blacks, for Black characters, and now, I get to host a special that was written by all women, featuring a lineup of incredibly funny female comedians, directed by a talented female director, and produced by a group of amazing female producers.

Amazon Prime Video announced that the comedy special “Yearly Departed” will return for its second special this December, this time hosted by Yvonne Orji.

The new special will feature an all-female lineup of guests to be announced at a later date. They will bid farewell to the trends we are leaving behind in 2021, including hot vaxx summer, hermit life, ignoring the climate crisis and Zoom.

“In my career, I’ve been fortunate to work on a show that was created by Blacks, for Black characters, and now, I get to host a special that was written by all women, featuring a lineup of incredibly funny female comedians, directed by a talented female director and produced by a group of amazing female producers. I guess lightning can strike twice,” said Orji.

“Yearly Departed” is from Amazon Studios, Done+Dusted and Scrap Paper Pictures. The special is executive produced by Rachel Brosnahan,...

Oscar®-winning actors Laura Dern and Tom Hanks are inviting a few of their friends and colleagues to spend a night in the new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures when “A Night in the Academy Museum” airs Tuesday, Oct. 12 (10:00-11:00 p.m. Edt), on ABC.

The special will give fans an exclusive look at the amazing history, exhibitions and insight into the art of filmmaking that awaits when they visit the largest institution in the United States dedicated to the arts, sciences and artists of moviemaking. Annette Bening, Cher, Jon M. Chu, Geena Davis, Danny Glover, Eiza González, Emily V. Gordon, Aldis Hodge, Marsai Martin, Marlee Matlin, Melissa McCarthy, Kumail Nanjiani, Michelle Rodriguez, Jurnee Smollett and Diane Warren will guide viewers through the halls of the institution as they explore the magic and artistry that has enlightened, enchanted and entertained movie fans for more than 120 years.

“A Night...

Exclusive: ABC and the Academy have teamed to promote the upcoming launch of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures with a star-studded primetime special hosted by Oscar winners Tom Hanks and Laura Dern, who are also members of the museum’s board of trustees.

A Night In the Academy Museum will feature Annette Bening, Cher, Jon M. Chu, Geena Davis, Danny Glover, Eiza González, Emily V. Gordon, Aldis Hodge, Marsai Martin, Marlee Matlin, Melissa McCarthy, Kumail Nanjiani, Michelle Rodriguez, Jurnee Smollett and Diane Warren as they explore the magic and artistry of the movies and give fans a peek into the exhibits at the museum, which opens Sept. 30. The special will air Oct. 12 at 10 p.m.

The special will provide an exclusive look at the movies’ 120-year history as well as an insight into the art of filmmaking that are showcased at what is billed as the largest institution in the U.

ABC released a trailer for the “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Station 19” crossover event that marks season premieres for both shows on Sept. 30. In the “Station 19” Season 5 at 8 p.m., the annual Phoenix Festival will cause problems to be solved by the teams of Station 19 and the Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, all while Sullivan (Boris Kodjoe) and Andy (Jaina Lee Ortiz) must work on their marriage, Dean (Okieriete Onaodowan) comes to terms with his feelings for Vic (Barrett Doss) and Travis (Jay Hayden) revisits an old lover. In the “Grey’s Anatomy” Season 18 premiere, doctors treat a patient injured by illegal fireworks at the festival, Bailey (Chandra Wilson) tries to hire new doctors and Owen (Kevin McKidd) and Teddy (Kim Raver) take the next step together. The trailer shows explosions, suspensions, proposals and more — including a tease that “someone from Meredith’s past comes back.” See the trailer below.

Dates

ABC announced...

A new collective of Latino actors, writers, directors and executives in Hollywood called “La Mesa” will host its inaugural “La Mesa Live Table Read” at the Latc Theater on Aug. 15.

The event will spotlight unproduced pilot scripts by three up-and-coming Latinx television writers who have been paired with seasoned Latinx television directors. Writers Linda Dillon Moya, Meredith Garcia-Painter and Spiro Skentzos have been workshopping their pilots with Linda Mendoza, Jon Huertas and Victor Gonzalez for the last few weeks, and the pairs will present the first 10 pages of their scripts at the event with casts of predominantly Latinx actors.

“La Mesa Table Read” is produced in partnership with Nosotros and the Latino Theater Co. The event and “La Mesa” itself work towards a goal of increasing visibility and opportunity for Latinx creatives in film and television. “La Mesa” was founded in early 2021 by “Mr. Iglesias” and “Wizards of Waverly Place” producer and writer Peter Murrieta,...

Amazon Prime just won a couple of Oscars for their film “Sound of Metal,” and now the streaming service is jumping right into Emmy season with “Beyond the Screen” virtual events and a “Prime Video Presents” podcast to promote their slate of programs from May 1 through June 10. Their events can be found on the Emmys FYC calendar.

Among the programs being promoted by Amazon this season include the sci-fi dramas “The Boys” and “The Expanse”; the Barry Jenkins limited series “The Underground Railroad”; the telefilms “Uncle Frank,” “Yearly Departed,” and “Sylvie’s Love”; the documentary “All In: The Fight for Democracy“; the anthologies “Solos” and “Them”; and the theatrical special “What the Constitution Means to Me.”

Seersvp now for May 10: TV documentary directors for ‘Framing Britney Spears,’ ‘Heaven’s Gate,’ ‘High on the Hog,’ ‘Seduced,’ ‘The Year Earth Changed’ join Gold Derby’s Meet the Experts series

“Beyond the Screen” kicked...

While much of the world was eager to bid farewell to the year that brought the world to a standstill, a team of female comics decided to the best way to kick 2020 to the curb was to give the year its own funeral. Yearly Departed, a one-off Amazon comedy special sees a line-up of top comedians including Rachel Brosnahan, Tiffany Haddish, Natasha Rothwell, Patti Harrison, Natasha Leggero, Ziwe and Sarah Silverman put to bed an abysmal year with a series of eulogies that say goodbye to things such as casual sex, TV cops, Making America Great Again and pants.

Speaking at the Amazon panel at Deadline’s Contenders TV Documentary + Unscripted virtual event, head writer and executive producer Bess Kalb said the special was a great way for them to use comedy as catharsis to deal with an awful year.

“What you see on screen was us processing our darkest,...

Amazon Prime Video has once again put a pause on its annual in-person Emmy FYC pop-up events space due to the pandemic. But in its place, the streamer has curated a virtual experience, dubbed “Beyond the Screen,” that kicks off this weekend with an evening devoted to the stars, crafts and music of Steve McQueen’s anthology series “Small Axe.”

Variety has the exclusive roundup of the Emmy FYC panels, screenings, podcasts and performances that will kick off Amazon Studios and Prime Video’s campaign starting May 1, and continuing through June 10.

Talent populating the panels, set to be streamed for Television Academy members, include McQueen and John Boyega (“Small Axe”); Barry Jenkins and Joel Edgerton (“The Underground Railroad”), and Karl Urban, Antony Starr, Aya Cash and Jack Quaid (“The Boys”). Other contenders participating include “Solos,” “Sylvie’s Love,” “The Expanse,” “Them,” “Uncle Frank,” “What The Constitution Means To Me” and “Yearly Departed.

Roasts, in their standard form, thrive on chaos. They give speakers the green light to share the unfiltered truth of the night’s subject — or, more often, an exaggerated interpretation — leading to story after story, joke after joke, screed after screed that crosses the boundaries of accepted social mores. But, despite certain selections for Comedy Central’s (in)famous televised events, roasts typically work best when the roastee is well-liked. After all, it’s supposed to be an honor. Sure, taking a jackass to task can be fun, but there’s added excitement to peeking behind the curtain of an everyman’s gracious public image, just as there’s an added challenge for comedians to hit a not-so-easy target.

“Yearly Departed,” Amazon Prime Video’s end-of-year comedy special that says goodbye to “the year we love to hate,” is not officially a roast. It’s a wake. Speakers Tiffany Haddish,...

Director Linda Mendoza has more than three decades years of production experience across scripted and specials content, and ironically it was HBO’s “Greater Tuna,” which she worked on in 1984, that best prepared her for Amazon Prime Video’s “Yearly Departed.”

“Greater Tuna” featured two lead actors playing all of the roles of the inhabitants of the small-town of Greater Tuna, Texas in the comedy project, which meant its visual style needed to feature a lot of locked-off shots, with a heavy post-production lift to insert the same two actors into a scene multiple times, in each role. Because “Yearly Departed,” a “variety special meets ‘Waiting for Guffman,'” as Mendoza puts it, was filmed amid the Covid-19 pandemic, it, too, isolated performances and dropped them into the same scene via VFX.

“It was a very long process just thinking about how do you put people in a room when...

Some of the funniest women in television are teaming up to give 2020 the mocking sendoff it deserves.

Amazon Prime Video has unveiled the trailer for “Yearly Departed,” an upcoming one-hour comedy special hosted by Phoebe Robinson (“2 Dope Queens”) that will take aim at President Donald Trump, everything that Americans lost due to the coronavirus, and a handful of other topics. The special, which Amazon has aptly billed as the “funeral for the year 2020,” stars Rachel Brosnahan (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”), Tiffany Haddish (“Tuca & Bertie”), Patti Harrison (“Shrill”), Natasha Legerro, Sarah Silverman, Natasha Rothwell, and Ziwe.

Per Amazon, the synopsis reads: “Yearly Departed” is a series of eulogies for the year 2020, where a lineup of all-women comedians will deliver everything from casual sex to beige Band-Aids and everything in between that we’ve “lost” in 2020. After a year of societal upheaval, plague, murder hornets and banana bread, “Yearly Departed” will...

If you weren’t already in the mood to say goodbye to 2020, the trailer for Amazon’s “Yearly Departed” special will get you there, as it shows Tiffany Haddish, Rachel Brosnahan, Sarah Silverman and more iconic female comedians eulogize that “triflin’ ho” of a year.

In the preview, which you can watch via the video above, Haddish, Brosnahan, Silverman, Natasha Rothwell (“Insecure”), Patti Harrison (“Shrill”), Natasha Leggero (“Another Period”), Ziwe (“Book of Ziwe”) and host Phoebe Robinson bid farewell to a year they all hated.

“Yearly Departed” is described by Amazon as “a series of eulogies for the year 2020, where a lineup of all-women comedians will deliver everything from casual sex to beige Band-Aids and everything in between that we’ve ‘lost’ in 2020. After a year of societal upheaval, plague, murder hornets and banana bread, ‘Yearly Departed’ will give 2020 the huge send-off it deserves, from some of the world’s funniest women.

Amazon is rounding out an all-star lineup for Yearly Departed, its upcoming comedy special that will bid farewell to 2020, the year that just won’t end fast enough. Tiffany Haddish (Girls Trip), Sarah Silverman, Natasha Rothwell (Insecure), Ziwe (Book of Ziwe), Natasha Leggero (Another Period) and Patti Harrison (Shrill) are set for the special that will premiere December 30th exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide. Yearly Departed hails from Amazon Studios and Done + Dusted.

Per Amazon, Yearly Departed is a series of eulogies for the year 2020, where a lineup of all-women comedians will deliver everything from casual sex to beige Band-Aids and everything in between that we’ve “lost” in 2020. After a year of societal upheaval, plague, murder hornets and banana bread, Yearly Departed will give 2020 the huge send-off it deserves, from some of the world’s funniest women.

The six join previously announced Rachel Brosnahan,...

Phoebe Robinson of “2 Dope Queens” fame and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” star Rachel Brosnahan are teaming up to wave a fond (or not so fond) farewell to 2020.

The duo have set a comedy special at Amazon called “Yearly Departed,” which will feature an all-women lineup of comedians delivering delivering a series of eulogies for the year. Robinson will host the special, and Brosnahan will appear in addition to executive producing.

“Yearly Departed,” which is slated to premiere sometime this winter, will see the comedians tackle everything from casual sex to beige Band-Aids, as well as reflecting on everything that we’ve “lost” in 2020. Brosnahan exec produces alongside Paige Simpson, David Jammy, Katy Mullan, Samantha Ressler, Nathalie Love, and Bess Kalb, with the latter serving as head writer.

“I can’t imagine a better way to lay this unfathomably awful year to rest than giving some of the world’s funniest women the last word.

Amazon is preparing to read 2020 its eulogy with an upcoming comedy special hosted by “2 Dope Queens” star Phoebe Robinson.

Called “Yearly Departed,” the “funeral” special will feature a lineup of all-women comedians and is set to debut this winter on Amazon Prime Video. “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” star Rachel Brosnahan will executive produce and make an appearance.

The special is described as “a series of eulogies for the year 2020, where a lineup of all-women comedians will deliver everything from casual sex to beige Band-Aids and everything in between that we’ve ‘lost’ in 2020. After a year of societal upheaval, plague, murder hornets and banana bread, ‘Yearly Departed’ will give 2020 the huge send-off it deserves, from some of the world’s funniest women.”

More performers and the official premiere date will be announced later on.

In addition to Brosnahan, “Yearly Departed” is also executive produced by Paige Simpson, David Jammy, Katy Mullan,...

Is it over yet? Not quite. Amazon will say farewell to 2020 with Yearly Departed, a new comedy special hosted by comedian Phoebe Robinson (2 Dope Queens) and executive produced by The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s Rachel Brosnahan, who will also appear. Yearly Departed will premiere this winter exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide. The special hails from Amazon Studios and Done + Dusted.

Per Amazon, Yearly Departed is a series of eulogies for the year 2020, where a lineup of all-women comedians will deliver everything from casual sex to beige Band-Aids and everything in between that we’ve “lost” in 2020. After a year of societal upheaval, plague, murder hornets and banana bread, Yearly Departed will give 2020 the huge send-off it deserves, from some of the world’s funniest women.

Brosnahan executive produces with Paige Simpson, David Jammy, Katy Mullan, Samantha Ressler, Nathalie Love, and Bess Kalb,...

Saturday Night Live’s Don Roy King’s Emmy winning stream continues.

Tonight, the TV veteran won the directing for a variety series award for the fourth year in a row during Night 2 of the 2020 Creative Arts Emmy Awards. King won for the SNL episode hosted by former cast member Eddie Murphy in his return to the NBC show.

In his pre-taped acceptance speech, King started off by thanking “two people, (SNL boss) Lorne Michaels, who makes my work the best it can be, and my daughter Cameron, who makes my life even better.”

He went on to expand the list to “a hundred and two” by acknowledging the winning episode’s host Eddie Murphy and musical guest Lizzo as well as the SNL cast, crew and writers.

Three of King’s four consecutive Emmy victories in the past four years have been for directing episodes hosted by SNL alums,...

The movement toward greater inclusivity by the Television Academy advanced when this year’s record-breaking Emmy nominations were announced on July 28. About a third of nominees in acting categories were Black performers. That’s really important. Black lives matter. As a queer Latino immigrant, my basic rights have been shaped and impacted by the work of Black leaders, some of whom I consider my lifelong teachers. The fight, sweat and tenacity of one community help another’s efforts. We must all stand united to celebrate the wins, and we must also hold each other up to endure the losses. And at the Emmys, the Latinx torch will be carried by a scant few nominees in yet another year of paltry recognition.

I applaud and am inspired by the Emmy breakthroughs of artists like Linda Mendoza (up for Director of a Variety Series), Jessie Mojica (hairstylist extraordinaire on “Pose”) and Nadia Hallgren...

Inclusion and parity are all the rage right now — a process that has been long in coming and is far from over — but creating an equal environment among colleagues in the entertainment industry isn’t as easy as it might seem. That includes the Emmy candidates for directing and writing. Actors are traditionally divided by gender, but not so with the other categories.

As Frank Scherma, chairman and CEO of the television academy, remarked before host Leslie Jones kicked off the virtual socially-distanced reading of the nominees, “This year we are also bearing witness to one of the greatest fights for social justice in history, and it is our duty to use this medium for change. That is the power and responsibility of television — not only delivering a multitude of services or a little escapism, but also amplifying the voices that must be heard and telling the stories that must be told.

Women landed one third of all the Primetime Emmy nominations in the seven directing categories, a record high for the Television Academy.

In total, 16 women were recognized this year out of 48 total directing nominations — a big jump from last year, when nine out of 49 directing nominees (just over 18%) were women. And this year, a woman was nominated in every single directing category, after two straight years of no female directors getting a nod for a reality series and one year without a woman picking up a nom for a variety series.

Before this year, female directors had the highest representation in 2013, when eight of the 33 nominees — or 24% — were women. That was when there were still just six directing categories, as reality series had not been added to the list at that time.

In the writing categories, women landed 33 nominations out of a total of 120 nominees, or 27.5%. That’s a slight...

The Daytime Emmys completed its third and final pandemic-delayed ceremony on Sunday night, with Amazon Prime Video, HBO and Netflix all landing six wins in the various children’s, lifestyle and animation awards handed out, while Disney Channel and sister network Disney Junior combined for a total of nine wins.

Among the top winners were Disney Junior’s “Elena of Avalor,” Disney Channel’s “Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure,” and HBO’s “Sesame Street” and “Sesame Street’s 50th Anniversary Celebration,” all of which each won three awards.

Among individual wins, Mike Rowe (“Returning the Favor” was named outstanding host for a daytime program; Giada De Laurentiis (“Giada Entertains”) was named outstanding culinary host; and Tamron Hall (“Tamron Hall”) was selected as outstanding informative talk show host.

Then there’s the case of Alan Menken, who won the outstanding original song in a children’s, young adult or animated program Emmy for...

Another round of winners for the 47th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards were unveiled Sunday night as the ceremony handed out trophies honoring Children’s, Lifestyle, and Animation programming. The ceremony also paid tribute to Regis Philbin, who passed away this weekend, by sharing his acceptance speech for the Lifetime Achievement Award he received at the 42nd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards in 2008.

Hosted by Loni Love, the virtual ceremony follows last week’s event which honored the best in Digital Dramas with Amazon’s The Bay, After Forever and Studio City walking away as big winners. During the livestream, winners accepted their Emmys from the comfort of their own homes — or wherever they are in quarantine.

Presenters included Izabella Alvarez (Nickelodeon’s The Loud House and The Casagrandes), actress and social media star Tabitha Brown (Actress and Vegan Foodie), Josh Dela Cruz (Nickelodeon’s Blue’s Clues & You!), Quintessa Swindell (Netflix...

OTTThe show puts an Indian-American teen at the centre, pushing past generations of stories that have placed white protagonists in the spotlight.Nikhita VenugopalThere’s a formula when it comes to classic teen rom-coms — a girl, a boy, best friends, overbearing parents, school. The best versions of these stories draw us in with tropes (because who doesn’t love a good rom-com) but keep us hooked for something much more. For teen stories, the task becomes harder because we’re wired to dismiss their problems as ‘angst’ and move on with our day. But beyond the crushes and homework and screaming matches, it’s ultimately a kid in crisis, hoping to be taken seriously in a world where the adults are talking. Netflix released the first 10-episode season of Never Have I Ever this week, a new series from actor and comedian Mindy Kaling and writer-producer Lang Fisher, about a...

In today’s film news roundup, Atlas Literary is born, Emily Tosta is cast in Nicolas Cage’s “Wally’s Wonderland” and Netflix confirms it’s closed a deal for Radha Blank’s “The 40-Year-Old Version.”

Division Launch

Atlas Entertainment is expanding into literary management with the acquisition of HertzbergMedia and launch of Atlas Literary.

Atlas chief Charles Roven and Alex Hertzberg made the announcement Wednesday. Hertzberg will lead the new division as CEO as they focus on literary creators with unique artistic identities and brands.

“Atlas Entertainment has since its inception had the good fortune to manage some of the world’s most talented creative voices both in front of the camera and musically,” Roven said. “These relationships have always enhanced Atlas’ content creation in the motion picture, television and music mediums. We are excited to establish similar relationships in the literary arena. We are thrilled to have Alex, with...

Atlas Entertainment is expanding into literary management with the launch of Atlas Literary following the acquisition of HertzbergMedia.

Alex Hertzberg will lead the new division as CEO as they focus on literary creators with unique artistic identities and brands.

“Atlas Entertainment has since its inception had the good fortune to manage some of the worlds most talented creative voices both in front of the camera and musically. These relationships have always enhanced Atlas’ content creation in the motion picture, television and music mediums. We are excited to establish similar relationships in the literary arena,” said Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven. “We are thrilled to have Alex, with his depth of experience and stellar clients, as our partner in this new venture. This division is the perfect companion to Atlas Entertainment and Atlas Artists and our unified ability to create holistic content”

“Atlas Entertainment and Atlas Artists teams operate with the...

We’re two paltry weeks away from the Oscars and while the race for Best Picture continues to narrow, the Emmy race couldn’t be more wide open. That’s not to say that there aren’t a few conclusions to be drawn from TV’s winter awards cycle, but their significance remains to be seen.

Saturday night saw the Directors Guild of America step into the spotlight and celebrate the artists in their midst. Hosted by fellow director Judd Apatow, it was a ceremony even Jimmy Hoffa could love, with many winners touting the benefit of working within a strong union.

“I’m very moved by this,” “Chernobyl” director Johan Renck said of his award. “As a Swede I really believe in the power of unions and organized labor for justice and solidarity.”

HBO came out on top, winning Dramatic Series (Nicole Kassell for “Watchmen”), Comedy Series (Bill Hader...

The 2020 Directors Guild of America Awards wrapped Saturday night in downtown Los Angeles, with winners spanning television and film. IndieWire has rounded up all the night’s big winners, below. Films “1917,” “Honey Boy,” and “American Factory” all took home the night’s film prizes, while “Chernobyl,” “Watchmen,” and “Barry” claimed the television honors.

The DGA prize is often considered a bellwether for the Best Director Oscar and the last six DGA winners all went on to repeat at the Academy Awards: Alfonso Cuarón for “Roma,” Guillermo del Toro for “The Shape of Water,” Damien Chazelle for “La La Land,” and Alejandro G. Iñárritu for both “The Revenant” and “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance).”

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2019

Bong Joon Ho

“Parasite”

(Neon)

Sam Mendes

“1917”

(Universal Pictures) *Winner

Martin Scorsese

“The Irishman”

(Netflix)

Quentin Tarantino

“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

(Sony)

Taika Waititi

“Jojo Rabbit...

When the winners of the 72nd Directors Guild of America ceremony were handed out Saturday, January 25, all eyes were on the feature film category. (Read our live blog here.) Would Sam Mendes (“1917”) continue his winning streak after claiming the Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Award? Would Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”), who tied Mendes with the critics, prevail with the directors guild? Or would Martin Scorsese (“The Irishman”), Quentin Tarantino (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”) or Taika Waititi (“Jojo Rabbit”) triumph instead? Scroll down to see who won all of the film and TV categories at the 2020 DGA Awards, which took place at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles.

SEEJanuary 25 is busiest day on 2020 Oscars calendar: DGA Awards plus cinematographers, sound mixers and Annies

DGA voters have a great track record with predicting what will ultimately win the Oscar for Best Director, including the past six in a...