News

Some sitcom producers play favorites. How else to explain why they would hire the same actor two, three or four times to play multiple parts on their TV comedies?

For reasons the world can’t quite fathom, here are five sitcoms that cast the same actor to play different parts on the same show. As If We Wouldn’T Notice.

1 Two and a Half Men

The hilarious Judy Greer played three different characters on the show: Walden’s ex-wife Bridget; Herb Melnick’s little sister Myra; and Danny, a lesbian who Walden tries to pick up. At least the physical resemblance explains both his attraction and the duplicate roles.

But Chuck Lorre wasn’t done with his lazy casting. I like Jennifer Taylor as much as the next guy, but Lorre cast her in four different parts —Charlie’s ex-fiancee Chelsea; Suzanne, who flirts with Charlie in a grocery store; Tina,...

No movie flop is as legendary as 1963's Cleopatra, which became tabloid fodder long before the Elizabeth Taylor historical epic ever hit the silver screen. But as with many legends, fiction has become intermingled with fact over the intervening years. Collider's Michael Zimmermann spoke with Turner Classic Movies host Ben Mankiewicz, who's covering the film on the new season of TCM's The Plot Thickens podcast, to clear up some of the misconceptions surrounding the film. Mankiewicz has a personal interest in dispelling the mistruths about the film: it was directed by his great-uncle, Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The first misconception Ben Mankiewicz addresses is that it's a terrible movie.

In his opinion, "It's not terrible. It's not great," and that a more modern approach actually would have salvaged it: "Joe wanted two, three-hour movies. It's a four-hour movie. [When you watch it] you don't think, 'Oh, my God, what a disaster, right?'...

1963's Cleopatrawill forever be one of Hollywood's most famous disasters. However, one person bore the brunt of its failure, and it wasn't star Elizabeth Taylor. Collider's Michael Zimmermann talked to a man who is eminently qualified to talk about the film: Ben Mankiewicz, who is not only one of the world's most prominent film historians, but is also the great-nephew of Joseph L. Mankiewicz, the film's director, who he argues suffered the most for the film's infamy. Says Mankiewicz, when talking about whether there is a "villain" responsible for Cleopatra's cost overruns:

"Elizabeth's certainly not the villain. I mean, she is very much the heroine who's blamed too much, and I think sort of becomes a fairly empathetic figure if it definitely caused some of her own problems, as Joe pointed out. But, you know, she came out, she didn't suffer as Cleopatra. Richard Burton didn't suffer because of...

We watched a lot of war films in our household when I was a kid. My granddad served in the Royal Air Force in Africa during World War II, and my dad loved action movies, so we tended towards classics like "Ice Cold in Alex" and brawny men-on-a-mission adventures such as "The Great Escape," "Von Ryan's Express," and "The Dirty Dozen." Low on grit and high on derring-do, these flicks were rousing stuff that celebrated stiff upper lips and cool heads under fire, stirring up pride in our nation's part in victory over the Third Reich. My favorite was "Where Eagles Dare;" I was left absolutely breathless when I first saw it and it gave me all the things I wanted from a war movie back then: suspense, double-crosses, explosions, and plenty of Nazis getting what's coming to them. Plus it had cinema's greatest cable car scene and Clint Eastwood...

Shohreh Aghdashloo still remembers the blood, bitter in her mouth. It spilled from a gash in her head after a hail of stones hit her during a pro-democracy rally in Tehran. The year was 1979. The Islamic Revolution was convulsing Iran. She was 26.

“The sky was full of stones,” she recalls. “I was ever so angry. I was numb. At that moment, I decided that no, no, no. I need to leave.”

She fled under cover of night, making her way through Istanbul, Yugoslavia and Paris before settling in London and eventually Hollywood.

She’s never returned. “I am banned,” she explains. “If I do, they will kill me.”

Following recent Israeli and American air strikes in Iran — widely seen as the most direct confrontation between Iran and the West in decades — the Oscar-nominated actress found herself reliving her moment of exile. But this time, grief and fear were tinged with...

Finally Dawn (Finalmente l’alba) is a soulful Italian period drama written and directed by Saverio Costanzo. While far from perfect, the film is genuinely immersive in its ability to transport viewers to another time and place. Set during the 1950s and 1960s—an era when Hollywood productions flocked to Rome.

This period saw major American stars, including Elizabeth Taylor, Gregory Peck, and Audrey Hepburn, headline films such as Ben-Hur (1959), Roman Holiday (1953), Cleopatra (1963), and Quo Vadis (1951). The result was a cinematic fusion of classic Roman backdrops and American glamour that remains iconic to this day.

Finally Dawn uses this rich setting as a backdrop to tell an absorbing story that unfolds like a sprawling novel, full of twists, turns, and layered subplots. While it can feel convoluted at times, the narrative ultimately finds its way and proves cinematically satisfying.

Finally Dawn Review and Synopsis Joe Keery and Lily James in Finally Dawn...

Jimmy Hunt, the freckle-faced youngster who appeared in Pitfall, Sorry, Wrong Number, Cheaper by the Dozen, Invaders From Mars and 31 other features before he retired from acting at age 14, has died. He was 85.

Hunt suffered a heart attack six weeks ago and died Friday in a hospital in Simi Valley, his daughter-in-law Alisa Hunt told The Hollywood Reporter.

Hunt played William Gilbreth, one of the 12 offspring of an efficiency expert (Clifton Webb) and a psychologist (Myrna Loy), in Cheaper by the Dozen (1950), then returned to play another son in the family, Fred, in the sequel, Belles on the Toes (1952).

As an orphan, his character fueled the plot in The Mating of Millie (1948), a charming romantic comedy starring Evelyn Keyes and Glenn Ford, who taught him how to shoot marbles on the set. And in The Lone Hand (1953), Hunt portrayed the son of a widowed farmer (Joel McCrea) and served as...

On June 30, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert held a press conference announcing the league would expand into three more cities in the next five years — bringing the WNBA team count to a league record of 18. “This historic expansion is a powerful reflection of our league’s extraordinary momentum, the depth of talent across the game, and the surging demand for investment in women’s professional basketball,” Engelbert said.

The move — adding teams in Cleveland, Detroit, and Philadelphia — marks a new step in the past three years of growth for the women’s basketball league.

Lily James’ upcoming slate of films are throwbacks in uniquely different ways.

Beginning with Saverio Costanzo’s 1950s-set Italian drama Finally Dawn, James plays Josephine Esperanto, an Elizabeth Taylor-type movie star who ropes a rejected background artist (Rebecca Antonaci’s Mimosa) into a pivotal scene of her sword-and-sandals epic. From there, Josephine, her co-star Sean Lockwood (Joe Keery) and her jack-of-all trades, Rufo Priori (Willem Dafoe), pressure Mimosa into exploring Rome’s nightlife with them.

While en route to one of their two destinations, Sean Lockwood’s acting insecurities get the better of him, and Josephine makes a half-hearted attempt to compliment their scene work that day. According to James, it’s a highly relatable scene for most actors.

“At their worst, actors are an insecure bunch of self-obsessed, needy humans. Actors and artists are often called upon to be very vulnerable…so it can trigger some serious insecurity and a need for validation,...

Taylor Sheridan's streaming empire expanded late last year when "Landman" (which he created with Christian Wallace) premiered on Paramount+. The drama stars Billy Bob Thornton as Tommy Norris, a petroleum landman for an energy company looking to dominate the oilfields of West Texas. As he's demonstrated throughout his career with "Yellowstone" and its spinoffs, Sheridan has a nighttime soap writer's love for big rural business and the big families that run them, and his sizable fan base can't get enough of the "Dallas"-esque power struggles and betrayals that come with this big money territory.

"Landman" was an instant hit, which was great news for Sheridan, but the fervor the show generated has left fans impatiently awaiting Season 2. Though they can take heart in knowing that production started on the new season last April, Paramount+ has yet to announce when the next round of episodes will air. Hopefully, the...

Tucked away in a hillside garden a short walk from the restive heart of Port-au-Prince, the Hotel Oloffson was a strange kind of refuge. Through good years and a lot of bad ones, it stayed open to all comers, welcoming despite its dark undertones and somehow immune to Haiti’s political strife. A favorite haunt of artists, celebrities, and local intelligentsia, along with aid workers and journalists needing a stiff rum punch to ease the day’s stress, the Gothic gingerbread mansion weathered brutal bouts of violence and natural disasters...

Johnny Depp’s Pirate Return Remains Unclear, But His Career Is Sailing Ahead (Photo Credit – Prime Video)

For those still holding onto hope that Johnny Depp might slip back into Jack Sparrow’s boots and swing from the sails again, there may be a glimmer of something on the horizon. But while Pirates of the Caribbean 6 brews in the backdrop, Depp is not exactly sitting idle.

The actor-director-artist-musician has been racking up headlines in Europe, brushing shoulders with art critics in London, and plunging into a fresh movie role. Depp is filming a thriller, promoting his passion project ‘Modi,’ and selling out art shows. Keep reading to know how he’s plotting a comeback without saying a word!

The Future of Johnny Depp’s Pirates Role is Skeptical However, His Career is Still Flourishing

While Disney hasn’t officially announced Johnny Depp’s return as Captain Jack Sparrow, Pirates of the Caribbean 6...

The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation is putting the program together for its upcoming gala — the Elizabeth Taylor Night of Compassion to be held at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Sept. 18 — by drafting Tina Knowles to receive a marquee honor.

The business mogul, designer, best-selling author and activist has been selected to receive the Elizabeth Taylor Commitment to End AIDS Award for her ongoing support for people living with HIV and for her allyship with the LGBTQ+ community. The gala event, fronted by standout TV host Melvin Robert (who departed his post at Extra and Good Day L.A. to replace the late Sam Rubin at Ktla as entertainment anchor), will feature Cookie Johnson as Etaf’s 2025 champion. Supported by presenting sponsor Gilead Sciences, the Elizabeth Taylor Night of Compassion will include a reception, culinary experience, live performance and views of select items from the Elizabeth Taylor archive.

Maureen Hingert, the Sri Lanka-born beauty queen who appeared as an actress in The King and I, Gun Fever and Gunmen From Laredo, has died. She was 88.

Hingert died Sunday of liver failure at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, her daughter, Marisa Zamparelli, told The Hollywood Reporter. “It was a beautiful and peaceful passing,” she said.

As Miss Ceylon, the 18-year-old Hingert finished second runner-up at the 1955 Miss Universe contest held in Long Beach, California, then appeared as a royal wife in Fox’s lavish adaptation of the Broadway musical The King & I (1956), starring Yul Brynner, Deborah Kerr and Rita Moreno.

She followed with more substantial parts as Native American girls in Gun Fever (1958), starring, directed and co-written by Mark Stevens, and, billed as Jana Davi, Gunmen From Laredo (1959).

Born in Colombo, Ceylon, on Jan. 9, 1937, Maureen Neliya Hingert appeared in two 1954 films made in her home country, Circus Girl and...

It was an ordinary spring day in 1962 Italy… ordinary outside of a warm greeting between the very married superstar Elizabeth Taylor and the very married actor Richard Burton that a photographer happened to catch. The “kissing picture,” as it would become known, caught like wildfire, and the paparazzi never let up. Richard Burton dubbed the ensuing press storm “Le Scandale,” and the judgement of the world swiftly followed — included a condemnation from the Vatican newspaper calling it Taylor’s “erotic vagrancy.”

At the center of Le Scandale — one which TCM host Ben Mankiewicz calls the “biggest in the history of American celebrities” — was a mammoth film, perhaps the biggest in the history of American cinema: 20th Century Fox’s “Cleopatra.”

“The first photograph of them kissing as the rumors were circulating that they were involved was [taken by] a paparazzo hiding under a car, under like a Fiat… lying on the ground,...

by Chad Kennerk

Kathryn Grayson's gown from Lovely to Look At (1952), designed by Adrian. Image courtesy of Gail Borden Public Library.

Appearing for the first time in the Chicago area is a uniquely curated tribute to the timeless glamour of Hollywood’s golden age — and the wardrobes that defined it. With screen-worn costumes that span classic and contemporary film history from 1939 to 2005, Glitz, Glamour, Gorgeous: A Tribute to Hollywood Movie Costumes at the Gail Borden Public Library in Elgin, Illinois, offers an up-close look at the fashion that helped shape some of cinema’s iconic moments.

From Elizabeth Taylor’s regal ensemble in Cleopatra to Bette Davis’ off-the-shoulder gown in All About Eve and pieces worn by former Film Review contributors Doris Day, Gregory Peck, Lana Turner and Betty Grable, Glitz, Glamour, Gorgeous showcases 33 screen-worn costumes representing important designers like Adrian, Edith Head, Orry-Kelly, Walter Plunkett, Helen Rose,...

During her storied multi-decade tenure at ABC News, Barbara Walters could always be trusted to book the high-profile interviews — and secure the exclusive scoops — that few other journalists could get. Now, a buzzy new documentary is telling us everything about the late broadcaster's own life and career, from the friends she made, the criticisms she endured and the romances that formed and fizzled in the public eye.

Following its premiere at the Tribeca Festival last month, Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything launched on Hulu on Monday. Directed by Jackie Jesko, the film shows how Walters' intense drive propelled her rise to the top of the TV news game. But that ambition also led to a strained relationship with the people in her life, including her daughter, Jacqueline Dena Guber, who declined to appear on-camera.

In a recent interview, Jesko says that she took direction for how to approach her subject's...

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Don Siegel's 1970 Western film "Two Mules for Sister Sara" starred Shirley MacLaine as the titular Sara, a nun who, because of her actions involving the French Intervention in Mexico, requires protection from the nation's many lurking French soldiers while she traverses the Mexican deserts, as she wanted for being a Juarista. She then happens upon the company of Hogan (Clint Eastwood), a former Union soldier who fought in the U.S. Civil War. Hogan and the nun soon bond over her propensity for cussing and her taste for whiskey (she doesn't behave like the other nuns he's met), and the pair even wind up bombing a train together (!), with Hogan drunkenly admitting at one point that he thinks Sara's hot. He even comes to assist Sara in her efforts to aid certain Mexian revolutionaries, with other secrets coming to light along the way.

It's great news that Rick Moranis will be returning to acting for a "Spaceballs" theatrical sequel. Even if the material turns out to be stale, Moranis won't be, as he's been semi-retired from acting since 2008 to spend more time rainsing his kids as a single dad. The "Ghostbusters" franchise may not have been able to bring him back, but those movies are getting pretty crowded, anyway, and the lure of the Schwartz is strong. We're mostly used to Moranis playing likable, relatable characters, but it's his most famous villain role of Dark Helmet that we have to thank for what may (and should) be a full-on Moranissance.

Considering how beloved the comedic actor is, readers might be surprised to know that his filmography is relatively short. Eliminate the occasional outright dud, and there are barely a dozen great movies left. Naturally, we're ranking them. Here is our countdown of the 12 best Rick Moranis movies.

The board of governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has voted to present actor/producer Tom Cruise, actress/producer/choreographer Debbie Allen and production designer Wynn Thomas with Honorary Awards, and actress/singer-songwriter Dolly Parton with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 16th annual Governors Awards, the organization announced Tuesday.

The honorees — whose selection was the final decision made by the 55 governors who served on the Academy’s board during the 2024-2025 term, including the likes of Pam Abdy, Jason Blum, Ruth E. Carter, Ava DuVernay, Marlee Matlin, Jason Reitman and Eric Roth — will be fêted at a black-tie ceremony at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles on Sunday, Nov. 16.

“This year’s Governors Awards will celebrate four legendary individuals whose extraordinary careers and commitment to our filmmaking community continue to leave a lasting impact,...

Betsy Gay, a retired actress and former child star, has passed away.

Per Variety, Gay's death was revealed by her friend, Bob Satterfield. No additional details about her passing were disclosed. She was 96 years old.

Born in 1929, Gay became a child star during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She may be best known for her involvement with the Little Rascals franchise, appearing in several episodes before taking on the role of Effie, Alfalfa's girlfriend. She spent a handful of years with the group before branching out to other TV and film roles in 1938. In the early 40s, she also acted in stage plays at the Pasadena Playhouse, appearing in productions of Quality Street, A Kiss for Cinderella, and Heros Unlimited.

Gay appeared in over 40 feature films during her acting career, with another one of her memorable roles including Susie Harper in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Other film credits include Man of Conquest,...

Natasha Lyonne is reportedly set to appear in a biopic of comedienne Joan Rivers. Lyonne, whose next project is Marvel’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps, was recently in the public eye with her acclaimed show, Poker Face, from Rian Johnson. There haven’t been any official announcements, except for a rumor from an industry insider.

Joan Rivers was popular for her self-deprecating jokes, as well as her sharp, straightforward digs at celebrities. Her jokes were often considered insensitive, resulting in multiple controversies throughout her life. Rivers’ jokes have also gotten her many death threats during her lifetime. She passed away in 2014.

Natasha Lyonne reportedly set to appear in Joan Rivers’ biopic Natasha Lyonne in a still from Orange is the New Black | Credits: Netflix

According to insider Jeff Sneider, Natasha Lyonne is being eyed for the role of Joan Rivers in the biopic, which will reportedly be titled Can We Talk?...

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

John Wayne was a terribly opinionated man who sometimes gave voice to some truly terrible opinions. The politically conservative movie star, who skipped out on World War II while several of his equally famous peers, like Henry Fonda and James Stewart, bravely served, did not think highly of people who looked and lived differently than he did. It's practically cliche at this point to cite the notorious interview he gave to Playboy in 1971, but it is impossible to responsibly consider the man's life without noting that he believed "in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility." In the same conversation, he also called "Midnight Cowboy," which won Best Picture in 1969, "a story about two f***." Roger Ebert once wrote that Wayne was profoundly "unenlightened," which leaves open the possibility that he might've been less of...

Members of the Jewish film community gathered at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills on June 6 for a luncheon in advance of the 2025 Israel Film Festival.

That the fest’s executive director Meir Fenigstein has a background in rock music — he played drums in ’70s band Kaveret — is fitting considering that his appeal to Hollywood’s Jewish community sometimes sounds like a broken record.

“The sponsorship luncheon serves to acknowledge the tremendous financial support of its benefactors as well as its individual and corporate sponsors, without whom the Festival would not exist,” said Fenigstein of the Iff’s goal: “to bring the best of Israeli culture and movies to Los Angeles audiences.”

There’s urgency to his appeal every year, but since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel, which has resulted in a surge in antisemitism in the U.S. and around the world, support for Israel’s film and television endeavors has been waning,...

The Italian mainland boasts a host of film festivals from the giants like Venice, Torino and Rome to the specialist cinephile celebrations like the Bologna Cinema Ritrovato and Pordenone’s annual celebration of silent cinema. But few of them boast as beautiful and historical a setting as the ancient amphitheater that hosts the screenings of the Taormina Film Festival, which celebrates its 71st edition this year.

The Greco-Roman theater, which once saw spectators enjoying the spectacle of gladiators fighting ferocious beasts, now serves as an open air cinema where viewers have watched the likes of “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” and “Twisters.” Sometimes, Mount Etna will erupt in the distance, spouting plumes of molten lava and stealing the show. With such ancient history in mind, here’s a run through of some milestones in the admittedly shorter history of the Sicilian film festival:

● 1957 – The film festival, which had...

There’s a bridal shower just a few tables away from Marina as she sips a berry smoothie in the sun-dappled courtyard of a Los Angeles hotel. She tells me she’s trying not to protect her heart quite so carefully these days.

“I think part of why this album has felt so freeing is because I’ve dove into my fear of love,” says the singer, 39, who made her new album, Princess of Power, from the perspective of a superheroine whose greatest power is love. “It can sound trite,...

Back in Hollywood’s golden days, few roles sparkled brighter, or crashed harder, than Elizabeth Taylor’s queen-sized turn in 1963’s Cleopatra. Billed as a legendary epic, the film ended up being just as famous for its behind-the-scenes chaos as for its on-screen spectacle.

Thanks to the film’s spiraling budget, endless delays, and a scandalous off-screen romance, Taylor became the world’s first $1 million movie star and the most gossiped-about woman alive.

Sure, it topped the box office in 1963, but it also nearly sank 20th Century Fox. Taylor later called it the “low point” of her career, and with a lukewarm 56% on Rotten Tomatoes today, critics still agree—this Cleopatra didn’t quite rule. Here is why!

Why Cleopatra was a career low point for Elizabeth Taylor!

Cleopatra turned Elizabeth Taylor into a global icon, but behind all the glittering gowns and gold-drenched sets was a chaotic production that nearly took her,...

In the first scene of Taylor Sheridan's latest drama series "Landman," Tommy Norris sits in an empty hangar with a bag over his head. We don't see his face, and we only hear his voice. In that moment, he's trying to talk his way out of getting killed by a Mexican cartel member. Of course, we know that Tommy is played by veteran actor Billy Bob Thornton, but even before we get to take a look at his rugged visage, we sense (through his voice) that this role — of an alcoholic, chain-smoking, and no-bs landman — was tailor-made for him. It's as if Thornton suddenly had changed careers and decided to ride his final years out in the scorching heat of West Texas, bossing roughnecks around, and fixing issues for billionaire oil men who run the industry.

Half of that is true. According to the interview that Thornton gave for The Daily Beast's Obsessed,...

Michael Douglas will be celebrated with a lifetime achievement award by Italy’s Taormina Film Festival where a copy of “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” the multiple Oscar-winning New Hollywood classic that Douglas produced, will screen in the fest’s 8,000-seat open-air ancient Greek amphitheater.

Douglas who, at age 31, in collaboration with Saul Zaentz, produced the Miloš Forman-directed drama starring Jack Nicholson that in 1975 swept all the major Oscar categories – winning best picture, director, actor, actress and screenplay – will be making the trek to the Sicilian sea resort. The “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” print will screen June 10 in Taormina on opening night to celebrate the film’s 50th anniversary.

Douglas is also expected to hold a masterclass for film students at Taormina in addition to the prize ceremony and screening.

“It is with great excitement and pride that we announce the presence of Michael Douglas as...

Jeff Margolis, a prolific TV producer and director whose roster of credits stretching back to the 1970s includes nearly every major awards show and dozens of live events, specials and variety shows, died today in Nashville, Tennessee. He was 78.

His death was confirmed by the Screen Actors Guild Awards Committee and the Directors Guild of America. No cause of death was given.

“Jeff Margolis created some of the most unforgettable moments in awards show history, and we are grateful that the Screen Actors Guild Awards was among them. For over 16 years, Jeff helped shape the telecast into a celebration worthy of the actors it honors. We are profoundly grateful for his contributions and will miss him dearly,” the SAG Awards Committee said in a statement.

“The entire DGA community mourns the loss of Jeff Margolis, member since 1972,” the Directors Guild of America said in a statement. “Jeff received seven DGA Awards nominations,...

Jeff Margolis, the award-winning TV producer and director of the Oscars, Emmys, Screen Actors Guild Awards and the American Music Awards, has died. He was 78.

Margolis’ family shared that he died Friday morning in Nashville. No cause of death was given.

“Jeff Margolis created some of the most unforgettable moments in awards show history, and we are grateful that the Screen Actors Guild Awards was among them. For over 16 years, Jeff helped shape the telecast into a celebration worthy of the actors it honors. We are profoundly grateful for his contributions and will miss him dearly,” the SAG Awards Committee, made up of JoBeth Williams, Daryl Anderson, Jason George, Elizabeth McLaughlin and Woody Schultz, said in a statement on Friday.

Born in Los Angeles on Oct. 14, 1946, Margolis began his career from the ground up, as he started out holding cue cards for his uncle Monty Hall on Let’s Make a Deal.

Jeff Margolis, a TV producer and director who specialized in live events from the Oscars to the Emmys and SAG Awards, died Friday in Nashville, Tenn. He was 78.

Over four decades, Margolis directed some of TV’s biggest events, including presidential galas and specials for entertainers including Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor, Bette Midler and Cher.

“Jeff Margolis created some of the most unforgettable moments in awards show history, and we are grateful that the Screen Actors Guild Awards was among them. For over 16 years, Jeff helped shape the telecast into a celebration worthy of the actors it honors. We are profoundly grateful for his contributions and will miss him dearly,” said the SAG Awards Committee in a statement.

He started out in the business holding cue cards for his uncle, Monty Hall, on “Let’s Make a Deal.”

Margolis directed 22 American Music Awards, eight Academy Awards, seven Screen Actors Guild Awards,...

Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who won an Oscar for her role in “The Holdovers,” will preside over the jury of Italy’s upcoming Taormina Film Festival that will run June 10-14 in the Sicilian sea resort.

This year’s other Taormina jurors are Rupert Everett, multiple Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell, former Variety editor Steven Gaydos and Italian actors Ilenia Pastorelli (“They Call Me Jeeg”) and Alessandra Mastronardi (“Medici”).

The Sicilian cinema event, being headed once again by marketing guru Tiziana Rocca, has also announced John Wick” spinoff “Ballerina” as its out-of-competition opening film with director Len Wiseman and actor Norman Reedus in tow.

“I am very enthusiastic about returning to Taormina,” Rocca said at a Cannes press conference. “This year’s biggest challenge will be to relaunch it and place it once again in the international festival sphere,” she added.

Taormina starting this year will be divided into four sections:...

Looks can be deceiving, especially regarding the distances between towns in the South of France. When heading out to explore, plan for an hour to be more like two because of the mountainous terrain and winding roads. Nice Côte d’Azur Airport has a good selection of electric cars ideal for daytrips and more [make sure the hotel valet keeps it charged]. Whether just going for the day or charting an overnight, follow these ABCs of the communes.

A is for Avignon

Distance from Cannes: 2 hours 30 minutes

On May 22, Louis Vuitton presents its Cruise 2026 show at Palais des Papes.

Avignon celebrates its 25th anniversary as a Unesco World Heritage Site and hosts artistic and cultural programming throughout the year. The Avignon experience centers around the Palais des Papes monument, the most important Gothic palace in the West. On May 22, Louis Vuitton gets in on the action and will present its Cruise 2026 show at the landmark, carrying on its...

She smokes, she drinks, she fights back: here is Oshima. Do not trust her angelic face and her calm Nippon manners; beneath her kimono beats the fiercest determination. Nothing remarkable by today’s standards, but it was undeniably subversive attitude in a movie shot in 1957, especially for a story set in pre-war Japan at the height of tradition and paternalism.

Sincerity is screening at Japan Society as part of the Mikio Naruse: The World Betrays Us program

After her first marriage ends in divorce following her escape from the marital home, Shima remarries Tsuru: a handsome but inept canned goods store owner based in Kanda, Tokyo. As he married only to secure someone to run the business in place of his late wife, the loveless marriage does not last long; soon, he begins a relationship with a concubine, Oyuri, a former lover he had not dared marry because of higher social standing.

Director Nanette Burstein is known for bringing bold, intimate portraits of iconic figures to life, and her latest work, Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes, is no exception. The HBO documentary takes audiences on a revealing journey through the life of one of Hollywood’s most iconic actresses, using never-before-heard audio tapes recorded with journalist Richard Meryman, alongside personal footage from Taylor’s archive.

Burstein’s involvement in the documentary was serendipitous. When asked how she was chosen for this ambitious project, Burstein explains, “Originally the tapes themselves were found by Richard Meryman's estate — his wife found them. A producer had approached me about making this film, and I was very interested because I've always been an Elizabeth Taylor fan, and I thought, 'What a treasure trove of potential, very confessional recordings that she had.'”

Separately, Taylor’s estate realized the tapes existed and approached Burstein to create the documentary...

The Museum of Modern Art is spring cleaning its archives for a special ode to Old Hollywood. The exhibit “Face Value: Celebrity Press Photography,” which will open June 28, 2025 and be on display through June 21, 2026, features the best studio shots of iconic stars such as Clara Bow, Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn, Barbara Stanwyck, Elizabeth Taylor, Harry Belafonte, and more.

This is the first major exhibition of Hollywood studio portraiture to be showcased from the Museum Department of Film’s film stills archive since 1993. “Face Value” will feature over 200 works from 1921 to 1996, with studio photography of Joan Crawford, Louis Armstrong, Carole Lombard, Louise Brooks, Mia Farrow, Dennis Hopper, Lena Horne, Buster Keaton, Anna May Wong, W. C. Fields, Hattie McDaniel, Lupe Velez, Mae West, Bela Lugosi, Carmen Miranda, Elvis Presley, Diana Ross, Spencer Tracy, and Oprah Winfrey, in addition to the aforementioned stars. Historical figures such as Jackie Robinson, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis,...

John Waters was among the handful of celebs at the 50th annual Chaplin Gala in New York Monday night to tribute friend and collaborator Pedro Almodóvar. The Spanish Oscar-winning “Talk to Her” and “Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown” director received Film at Lincoln Center’s equivalent of a lifetime achievement award with remarks from his beloved screen muse Rossy De Palma, John Turturro, Richard Peña, and Dua Lipa, and even a flamenco dance from Mikhail Baryshnikov.

Waters’ speech, though, was the night’s most memorable and mischievous — no surprise from the “Pink Flamingos” director and Pope of Trash — with Waters praising Almodóvar as “the best filmmaker in the world” while singling out how generous the “Room Next Door” director is with complex roles for women.

Waters recalled “a completely insane club kid party for me when I appeared with my films in Malaga, Spain,” praising Almodóvar as “never pretentious,...

The TCM podcast The Plot Thickens returns in July with host Ben Mankiewicz taking a deep dive into the making of Cleopatra, the troubled 1963 drama that starred Elizabeth Taylor and was directed and co-written by his uncle, Joseph L. Mankiewicz.

As TCM notes, the production of the 20th Century Fox film was “plagued from the start by medical emergencies, location changes, climate disasters, nervous breakdowns and egos as big as pyramids…not to mention Taylor’s scandalous love affair with co-star Richard Burton. It fell to [Joe] Mankiewicz to somehow wrest an epic out of chaos.”

The most expensive film ever made at the time — some estimates put the cost at $49 million, or $512 million in today’s dollars — Cleopatra began principal photography in September 1960 and wrapped in July 1962, with reshoots taking place through the following March. It nearly bankrupted the studio.

The lavish movie opened in June 1963, was the highest-grossing film...

Actress Lindsay Lohan (“Freakier Friday”) poses for the new May 2025 issue of "Vogue" (Czechoslovakia) magazine, wearing Chanel, Vera Wang, Jean Paul Gaultier and a whole lot more, photographed by the Morelli Brothers:

Lohan began her acting career as a child fashion model, then debuted on the soap opera "Another World".

Her first motion picture appearance was in the Disney remake of "The Parent Trap" (1998), followed by "Freaky Friday" (2003).

With the release of "Mean Girls" (2004), another critical and commercial success, followed by Disney's "Herbie: Fully Loaded" (2005)...

...Lohan became a teen idol sensation, a household name and a frequent focus of paparazzi and tabloids.

Her next starring role was in the romantic comedy "Just My Luck" (2006), followed by "A Prairie Home Companion" (2006), "Bobby" (2006) and "Chapter 27" (2007).

In 2012 and 2013, Lohan did further TV work, including starring as 'Elizabeth Taylor' in the biographical TV film "Liz & Dick" (2012), followed by Paul Schrader...

The great Angela Lansbury, winner of five Tony Awards and an honorary Oscar, and nominee for three Oscars and 18 Primetime Emmys besides -- passed away in 2022 at the age of 96, leaving a legacy so large, it cannot be measured by other mortals in the acting sphere. Lansbury was one of the more versatile actresses of her generation, playing innocent girls, scheming villainesses and murderers, heroes, crones, and loving matrons all with equal aplomb. 

Lansbury was already a sizable celebrity by 1984 when she took the role of Jessica Fletcher on the long-running detective series "Murder, She Wrote." Fletcher was a retired English-teacher-turned-mystery-author who became embroiled in a series of murders in her small town of Cabot Cove, Maine. It was a cozy and intelligent series, buoyed by Lansbury's personable performance. The series ran for 247 episodes over 12 seasons. Frustratingly, Lansbury won none of 12 Emmys for which she was nominated for "Murder, She Wrote.

In New York City on May 8, the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation will honor veteran actress Rosie Perez and The Howard Stern Show icon Gary Dell’Abate by shining a light on their decades of activism on behalf of the cause. It will surely be a big night for the pair, and if Dell’Abate’s mother were still alive, he knows exactly what she would say.

“The most meaningful part of this whole thing for me is if my mother were still alive, I would give her the award and she would put it on her mantle,” Dell’Abate told The Hollywood Reporter by phone recently. “And she would tell everyone who walked in the house that Elizabeth Taylor gave her son an award.”

It’s an obvious thing to boast about, but the comment carries extra weight when considering why Dell’Abate got involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the first place.

Jean Marsh, the Emmy-winning actress and co-creator behind the acclaimed ’70s ITV period drama Upstairs, Downstairs, has died at the age of 90.

Her cause of death was a result of complications from dementia, her close friend Michael Lindsay-Hogg, told the New York Times, which first reported the news.

Before there was Downton Abbey, the seminal series — set at the turn of the 20th century across nearly three decades of Edwardian England — traced the lives of the fortunate Bellamy family and its servants, set against the backdrop of the era’s sociopolitical upheaval. Marsh starred as Mrs. Rose Buck, the household’s parlormaid, winning a Lead Actress Emmy for the role in 1975 (she was also nominated the year prior and year following). The British series ran from 1971 through 1975, encompassing 68 episodes. It was later revived in 2010 for two seasons for BBC One, tracing the family after the events of the mothership under...

Countless celebrities have lent their vocal talents to The Simpsons over the past 36 years, including several legit old Hollywood icons such as Elizabeth Taylor, Jack Lemmon and an 89-year-old Bob Hope, whose dialogue was recorded at his Silver Lake home with the help of a young Conan O’Brien.

But perhaps the most prominent Simpsons role to be played by a classic film star was Chester J. Lampwick, the impoverished creator of The Itchy & Scratchy Show’s Itchy, who was voiced by three-time Oscar nominee Kirk Douglas. And really, no scene in Spartacus comes close to the passionate rebellion Douglas showcases as Lampwick while refusing to paint Grampa Simpson’s chicken coop because the corn muffins he was compensated with were “lousy.”

But the late Douglas wasn’t always the easiest person to work with. He was labelled “difficult” by frequent co-star Burt Lancaster, and fought so bitterly with director Stanley Kubrick...

Marina is a glamorous, frolicking woman inspired by the confident women who “enjoy life to the max” on her new single “Cuntissimo.” On Friday, the musician celebrated her main stage Coachella set and the Thursday announcement of her album, Princess of Power, with the video for her new song.

The stunning, Olivia de Camps-directed video for “Cuntissimo” reflects the pleasure she sings about, as Marina and a group of women let loose at a pillow party inside a picturesque home. As she puts it, it’s all about “the...

There is, for devotees of a specific type of movie arcana, a glorious moment in Jason Statham’s new movie, “A Working Man.” About midway through, his character, searching for a trafficked young woman, poses as a drug dealer looking to score a connection with a local kingpin holding court in the backroom of a biker bar. The kingpin suspects he’s a cop, but after Jason handily dispatches his goons, the kingpin, regarding his fists, says, “Look at those bricks. You ain’t a cop, you’re a working man.”

The title drop, when a line of dialogue references the film’s title, is a delicate art with a distinct cult following. When they’re good, they’re very good. When they’re bad, they’re terrific.

Director John Waters is a title drop enthusiast. He rattled off some favorites in a phone call with IndieWire: “Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia,...

Marina wants you to meet the Princess of Power, the love-radiating heroine of her new album. The cult-favorite pop queen has revealed full details of her sixth studio album, Princess of Power, out June 6, and released its third single, “Cuntissimo,” ahead of her main stage Coachella performance on Friday, April 11.

“We are meeting a Marina who is not guarding her heart so much anymore,” she tells Rolling Stone. “I think part of why this album has felt so freeing is that I think I’ve really dove into my fear of love.

As of this week, it’s officially been 50 years since Monty Python and the Holy Grail first hit theaters. While some Python fans may choose to celebrate this milestone by paying nearly $300 to ask John Cleese questions about the production after watching the movie for the billionth time, here’s another idea: Why not visit the castle where much of The Holy Grail was filmed?

The building itself dates back to the 14th century, as The Daily Telegraph recently reported, but Scotland’s Doune Castle has fully embraced the fact that it’s become a tourist destination for Monty Python obsessives who are eager to visit the spot where King Arthur was taunted by an outrageous French soldier.

Play

Doune Castle wasn’t actually the Pythons’ first choice for a filming location. “We’d picked all these wonderful castles,” Terry Jones explained in Monty Python Speaks: The Complete Oral History,...

Toby Jones plays the spaniel-eyed schoolmaster setting Harry Lawtey’s needy young pupil on course for haughty international stardom

The career of Richard Burton seemed mythic at the time, and more so in retrospect. In Pedro Almodóvar’s latest movie The Room Next Door, Julianne Moore’s character is even shown reading Erotic Vagrancy, Roger Lewis’s account of Burton’s then-adulterous relationship with Elizabeth Taylor in the early 60s, the title taken from Pope John Xxiii’s extraordinary denunciation: “You will finish in an erotic vagrancy, without end or without a safe port.” In fact, the nearest thing Burton ever had to a safe port was his inspirational English teacher Philip Burton in Port Talbot, south Wales, whose own frustrated dreams of the theatre were poured into the bright young miner’s son Richard Jenkins, coaching him in acting and even making him his legal ward and getting him...

The following contains spoilers for The Studio Episode 1, "The Promotion," now streaming on Apple TV+.

Apple TV+’s The Studio doesn’t exactly have the most novel premise. Like Ricky Gervais’ Extras before it, or even that one episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (“Mac and Charlie Write a Script”), the new Seth Rogen series begins with more than a bit of movie magic in its premiere, "The Promotion." The scene opens on a lakeside cabin in winter. A serene spell of gentle snowfall is abruptly broken by a man bursting through a door. Gunshots ring out. The man's been hit. He leans back against the hood of a car, then slides to the ground. The man's mysterious attacker walks over to deliver the coup de grâce. "Bang, " the director yells. The camera pulls back, fading into the same image as seen on a monitor.

The actor, who was just killed on-screen,...