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While the 4th of July is traditionally marked with fireworks and explosive displays of celebration, there are plenty who’d rather curl up on the couch and celebrate another one of America’s favorite pastimes: movies. There have been a number of films made that tie into the Independence Day holiday, whether you want to spend your 4th of July watching a musical about the drafting of the Declaration of Independence or a thriller about Nicolas Cage stealing it decades later, but we’ve gone through and put together a curated (and varied) list of some of the best movies to watch for the occasion. Here’s a list of Independence Day-themed movies that hit the spot.

National Treasure Photo credit:Disney

What’s more patriotic than stealing the Declaration of Independence? In this light-hearted action-adventure film, Nicolas Cage uncovers a hidden cypher on the back of the Declaration of Independence with a hairdryer,...

Exclusive: It’s been almost a decade since Paul Dano and Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert blew away Sundance Film Festival attendees with Swiss Army Man, but now the trio now looks ready to reunite on Dano’s next director outing. Sources tell Deadline that Dano is set to write and in talks to direct a new untitled comedy for Universal Pictures, with Kwan, Scheinert and their partner Jonathan Wang producing through their Playgrounds banner. Dano is also in talks to produce.

Plot details are being kept under wraps other then it being a high-concept, original comedy. The Daniels have a first-look deal at the studio and, while they are still deep in development on a follow-up to their Oscar Best Picture winner Everything Everywhere All at Once, this film would mark one of the first major projects they are solely producing under the deal. Senior EVP Production Development Erik Baiers...

The flair for the theatrical is at the core of “Lavender Men.” The film is set in a small theater where a rather mediocre play about Abraham Lincoln is being staged. But no sooner has the proverbial curtain come down on that self-serious proposition (with but a handful of people in the audience) than Lovell Holder’s film, co-written by creator and star Roger Q. Mason, truly begins. Described as a “fantasia” created within the mind of Mason’s Taffeta (the play’s stage manager), “Lavender Men” is a heady and meta-theatrical excavation of Lincoln’s long-rumored gay affair that’s wildly ambitious if a tad overstuffed.

“Lavender Men” began, as seems obvious from its logline, as a play. With Taffeta, a self-described Black, Filipinx, queer plus-size character, Mason devised a theatrical conceit wherein the stage would help recast the sanitized version of Lincoln the U.S. has been presented in schools.

5 Queer Celebrity Couples Who Define Relationship Goals ( Photo Credit – Instagram )

In an industry often defined by fleeting headlines and fast-paced lives, there are a few queer celebrity couples whose enduring love stories remind us what it means to build a true partnership. These power duos have weathered fame, social scrutiny, and time, all while lifting each other. Whether it’s co-parenting with style or cheering each other on from the red carpet, these couples show us that queer love is not just valid; rather, it’s aspirational. So here are five queer celebrity couples who continue to be total relationship goals.

1. Elton John and David Furnish

Sir Elton John, the iconic singer behind timeless hits like Your Song and Rocket Man, met Canadian filmmaker David Furnish at a dinner party in 1993. It was love at first sight for Elton, and clearly, the feeling was mutual. The very next day, they had their first date,...

Welcome to Tony Talk, a column in which Gold Derby contributors Sam Eckmann and David Buchanan offer Tony Awards analysis. Two weeks away from the 2025 Tony ceremony on June 8, we offer our take on who will win four of the top acting trophies and comment on momentum shifts in the top races.

David Buchanan: Last week, we discussed the very close musical acting categories, so it feels fitting to pivot now to the play acting races. Before we do, though, we should touch on the Broadway League's Spring Road Conference, which is geared toward pitching this year's shows as future touring productions and garners a fair share of Tony voter attendees. What have you heard about how the major event might be shaping the top races?

Sam Eckmann: The annual Spring Road Conference is perhaps the most important week of Tony campaigning. There are just over 100 out-of-town Tony voters, the...

Why Did Liam Neeson Back Out From Playing A Prominent President? (Photo Credit – Netflix)

Liam Neeson’s commanding voice and powerful presence make him the perfect actor for serious and demanding roles. Despite his impressive career trajectory, Neeson could have added one more stellar entry to his filmography. Little did anyone know that Neeson was once the front-runner to play Abraham Lincoln in a Steven Spielberg-helmed biopic.

He poured years into preparing for the role, immersing himself in the life and legacy of the 16th president. But despite all his efforts, he voluntarily stepped away from the project before the cameras even rolled. Continue scrolling to find the reason behind the decision.

Why Did Liam Neeson Step Down From Lincoln Biopic?

The journey began years before Lincoln hit theaters in 2012. Spielberg, who previously worked with Neeson on Schindler’s List, approached the actor with the idea of playing the titular role.

Daniel Day-Lewis Wearing Lincoln Costume On Set (Photo Credit – Prime Video)

Daniel Day-Lewis doesn’t sign on to a film unless he sees something worth his full immersion. So when Steven Spielberg had his heart set on him for a long-planned film about Abraham Lincoln, the path didn’t prove to be smooth. Spielberg had been circling the idea of a Lincoln biopic for years, but getting the actor to agree took far more than a simple offer.

Steven Spielberg’s Early Pitch Failed To Impress Daniel Day-Lewis

Back when the project was still finding its shape, Spielberg approached Day-Lewis with a version of the script that wasn’t yet rooted in the historical depth it would later have. It wasn’t Tony Kushner’s version, and it wasn’t based on Doris Kearns Goodwin’s detailed biography. The script was completely different or in simple words, it was a less focused attempt.

While filming a top-secret Steven Spielberg project in New York, Josh O’Connor found himself far from home, but exactly where his career seemed destined to be. Sharing the screen with stars like Colin Firth, Colman Domingo, Eve Hewson, and Emily Blunt, O’Connor has officially stepped into Hollywood’s big league.

So, how did he land a Spielberg film? It’s been a steady climb, with strong performances and undeniable charm. But the story of how he really met with Spielberg is an interesting one!

Josh O’Connor is set to star in the next Steven Spielberg movie!

Josh O’Connor has officially landed a major Hollywood milestone, a role in Steven Spielberg’s mysterious new film, rumored to be titled The Dish.

Universal Pictures has slated the film for a theatrical release on May 15, 2026, and while plot details are still under wraps, insiders hint it’s a “UFO” story.

Andrew Garfield isn’t just known for his powerful performances in films like The Social Network and Hacksaw Ridge—he’s also earned a reputation as one of Hollywood’s best-dressed leading men.

With his striking red carpet looks, stylish shoe choices, and ever-evolving fashion sense, the British-American actor continues to captivate both audiences and fashion critics alike.

Jump to a Look:

1. Andrew Garfield’s Comments on Sexuality 2. Portraying Prior Walter in Angels in America 3. Evolving Stance on Sexual Orientation 4. Relationship History: Exes and Rumored Flames 5. Phoebe Dynevor: A Short-Lived Romance 6. Shannon Woodward: Early Hollywood Days 7. Emma Stone: A Fan-Favorite Love Story 8. Susie Abromeit: Disneyland Rumors 9. Rita Ora: A Brief Fling 10. Christine Gabel: The Private Relationship 11. Alyssa Miller: SAG Debut and Breakup 12. Andrew Garfield’s Acting Career Highlights 13. Upcoming Roles and Future Projects 14. Fashion Highlights of Garfield’s Leading Ladies

Andrew Garfield looking dapper in a...

On Wednesday evening, Oh, Mary! hosted an exclusive talkback for audience members, moderated by two-time Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize Winner Tony Kushner. Immediately following the May 14 performance, Kushner was joined by the show’s Tony Award nominated playwright and star Cole Escola and Tony Award nominated Director Sam Pinkleton for a discussion on the importance of sharing boundary-breaking new works and queer stories on Broadway and beyond. Check out the full conversation in the video below, as well as photos from the talkback event! Recently named a Pulitzer Prize finalist for Drama, Oh, Mary! continues to play to record breaking, sold out houses at the historic Lyceum Theatre. As previously announced, the smash hit comedy has extended through September 28, 2025 on Broadway. Escola will play their final performance as ‘Mary Todd Lincoln’ on Saturday, June...

Meeting follows letter signed by prominent members urging more forceful response on Hamdan Ballal’s arrest

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has convened an extraordinary meeting to address a crisis over its tepid response to the arrest and detention of the Oscar-winning director Hamdan Ballal, of the documentary No Other Land, by Israeli authorities.

The meeting on Friday morning Pacific time, first reported by Deadline, follows a strongly worded letter signed by many prominent members – including the actors Olivia Colman, Javier Bardem, Joaquin Phoenix, Penélope Cruz and Emma Thompson, directors Ava DuVernay, Alfonso Cuarón, Adam McKay and Jonathan Glazer and writer Tony Kushner – calling for a more forceful response from the Academy’s board of governors than an initial statement that did not refer to Ballal or No Other Land by name and cited the Academy membership’s “many unique viewpoints”.

A new open letter signed by around 600 Oscar voters, including Ava DuVernay, Olivia Colman and Javier Bardem, has criticized the leadership of the The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for its initial response to the recent assault and arrest of Oscar winner Hamdan Ballal.

“It is indefensible for an organization to recognize a film with an award in the first week of March, and then fail to defend its filmmakers just a few weeks later,” the open letter updated Friday and signed by AMPAS members across a range of genres, including documentaries, stated.

The AMPAS voters were reacting to a statement put out Wednesday by Academy leaders Bill Kramer and Janet Yang that suggested the beating and arrest of recent Oscar-winner Hamdan Ballal is something Academy members will have “many unique viewpoints” on.

Other well-known Academy members who signed the letter include Mark Ruffalo, Oscar-winning Zone of Interest director Jonathan Glazer,...

Updated, 12:50 Pm: More than 900 Academy members have now signed the letter, including actors Carey Mulligan, Glenn Close, Andrew Garfield, America Ferrera, Edward Norton, Jane Fonda, Pedro Pascal, Kristin Scott Thomas, Frances Fisher and Elizabeth Olsen; actor-directors Taika Waititi, Ben Affleck and Todd Field; filmmakers Denis Villeneuve, Michael Moore, Stephen Frears, Abigail Disney, Asif Kapadia, Jay Roach, J.J. Abrams and Michael Mann; composer Carter Burwell; Board of Governors VP/Secretary Howard Rodman (writers branch); and all three documentary branch Governors — Simon Kilmurry, Chris Hegedus, and Jean Tsien.

Exclusive: Deadline has learned the Academy’s board of governors is meeting in extraordinary session this morning to confront a deepening crisis over its response to the beating and detention of Oscar-winning Palestinian filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, one of the directors of No Other Land.

As that meeting nears an 11 am Pacific Time start, Deadline can report a new statement has been signed by...

The recent era of Steven Spielberg's career has been punctuated by a turn toward more adult and dramatic films, often centering around real-world political events that serve as a perfect allegory for modern issues. Starting with the immense success of movies like Saving Private Ryan and Schindler's List, his historical films like Bridge of Spies, The Post, and Munich represent a quieter and more contemplative side of one of the best directors of all time.

Arguably Steven Spielberg's best piece of historical fiction came with his fantastic 2012 drama Lincoln, a biopic centering on the 16th President's attempts to simultaneously end the Civil War and pass the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, forcing the end of the Confederacy while also securing the end of slavery in America. The film, anchored by Daniel Day Lewis' unbelievable performance as Abraham Lincoln, features a number of fantastic scenes where the characters...

One of the best films of the 2020s and the latest in a long lineage of one of the best filmmakers of all time, Steven Spielberg's semi-autobiographical masterpiece The Fabelmansis a fantastic piece of self-reflective dramatic storytelling. It follows the childhood of Sammy Fabelman (played by Gabriel Labelle), a young man in the 1950s and 1960s who becomes enamored by the magic of cinema. The story closely mirrors the actual coming-of-age of Spielberg himself.

Though the film features numerous excellent scenes that draw directly from Spielberg's life, one of the most profound comes at the end of the movie, when teenage Sammy Fabelman has the chance to meet the director of such classic Westerns as Stagecoach and The Searchers: John Ford. Ford, played in a final on-screen performance by the late, great director David Lynch, instills valuable lessons into Sammy in a scene that is one of the best endings in recent film.

Hulu is about to get a Steven Spielberg movie that many consider one of the best of his filmmaking career. The Academy Award-winning Lincoln is coming to the streamer next month.

Beginning March 1, Hulu subscribers will be able to stream Lincoln. Released in 2012, the biographical historical film focuses on Lincoln's efforts in January 1865 to abolish slavery and involuntary servitude by having the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution passed by the United States House of Representatives. Acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis gave an Oscar-winning performance as United States President Abraham Lincoln, with Tommy Lee Jones and Sally Field receiving nominations for Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress for their performances as Republican Congressman Thaddeus Stevens and First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln, respectively.

Related'Spielberg Played a Big Joke On Him': The Goonies Star Reveals How Harrison Ford Was Pranked During Set Visit

Ke Huy Quan recalls when Steven Spielberg...

The directors of the Oscar-nominated documentary No Other Land are sharply criticizing Pres. Trump’s plan for the U.S. to take control of Gaza and dispatch its Palestinian inhabitants to other Arab countries.

In an interview with Deadline, Israeli filmmaker Yuval Abraham said Trump’s idea amounted to “ethnically cleansing Gaza… It is so irresponsible, it’s so immoral.”

“It’s shocking,” added Palestinian filmmaker Basel Adra, who along with Abraham make up half the quartet of Israeli and Palestinian directors nominated for No Other Land, which is set in the Israeli occupied West Bank. “This is a stupid thing to say, what he’s saying about Gaza, like take 2 million people and to build for them a land here or there, or just to take them out. And sometimes he said that they would come back [to Gaza] and sometimes saying they will never come back.”

Adra continued, “It’s insane and a crazy thing.

Exclusive: Lbi Entertainment has signed for management the prolific Emmy winning writer, director and producer Danny Strong.

Strong, whose recent work includes Dopesick, Empire and Recount, is currently working on a classic Hollywood-era film for director Martin Scorsese starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence. Strong wrote the script on spec which was quickly taken off the market by Lbi. Strong is also currently co-writing Ultra with Tony Kushner for Steven Spielberg, based on the Rachel Maddow podcast, Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra.

Strong’s resume includes pop culture successes like the Fox drama series Empire, which he co-created, served as exec producer and director of several episodes, but he is one of Hollywood’s stronger writers in hot button and political topics. He was the creator and showrunner of the Hulu series Dopesick, which starred Michael Keaton and focused on the Opioid scourge and the role of the Sackler family’s Purdue Pharma in spreading it.

Tony Award-winning director Joe Mantello is donating $1 million to the School of Drama at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

The gift, which is the largest alumni gift on record for Uncsa’s School of Drama, will go toward a full-ride scholarship for top students as well as a fund dedicated to student-driven productions.

The Joe Mantello Endowed Scholarship in Drama will support one recipient at a time through four years of undergraduate study at Uncsa. The inaugural scholarship will be awarded to a student enrolled in fall 2025.

The Joe Mantello Creative Catalyst Endowed Fund for Drama will support original productions from students and augment existing programs on campus such as Keys to the Kingdom, which is a season in the fourth year that is programmed, produced, directed, acted and often written or devised by students.

Mantello graduated from Uncsa in 1984 and went on to star in several theatrical productions,...

It was a revelatory moment for the aspiring filmmaker. Attempting to transition from amateur home-movies to a professional career, the 15-year-old Steven Spielberg found himself in the office of John Ford. In just two minutes, the legendary cigar-chomping director barked some unforgettable advice at the teenager, mostly involving why a horizon in the middle of a picture is “boring as shit”, before yelling at him to “Get the fuck out of my office.” In recreating this for his autobiographical drama The Fabelmans, Spielberg asked David Lynch to play Ford — and the results did not disappoint. At home in Los Angeles over a morning coffee, Lynch told us how the hell this happened.

Empire: Steven called you directly to ask you to play John Ford. How did you feel about it?

David Lynch: At first I didn’t want to do it. And the reason is, when it comes to acting,...

David Lynch is gone, and I'm not handling it well. Lynch was the very definition of a singular artist — there will never be anyone else like him. For over 50 years, Lynch was a filmmaker who almost never compromised, making unique, challenging, mind-blowing art on his own terms. We were immensely lucky to have him, and we are worse off without him. Perhaps we all should've known this was coming — death eventually comes for us all, and last year, word broke that Lynch's health had deteriorated due to emphysema (a fact Lynch confirmed on Twitter/X). And yet, a world without David Lynch feels almost cosmically wrong. I'm sure I wasn't alone in thinking that despite poor health, Lynch would somehow keep on going, and somehow make another movie or TV show again. Just one more.

In addition to his unique directing career, Lynch would sometimes act. Not only did appear...

Those actors scurrying around at the festival in Palm Springs would have been better served witnessing masterclasses in artistry from Viola Davis and Ted Danson, the recipients of Golden Globes honors on Friday night.

Not only that, there was Mary Steenburgen and Meryl Streep, too.

And Carol Burnett and Jane Fonda!

(L-r) Mary Steenburgen, Ted Danson, Viola Davis and Meryl Streep in the Wilshire Garden at the Beverly Hilton

Streep spoke of her first meeting with Davis. It was when the two women met at the table read for the screen version of John Patrick Shanley’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play Doubt.

Streep admitted that that she’d been a little out of sorts because playwright Tony Kushner had hailed Davis as his “favorite actor in the whole world.”

But then Streep sat opposite Davis at the read-through, with Amy Adams and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, and saw exactly what Kushner had meant.

Viola Davis and Ted Danson were presented with distinguished awards in a room full of their peers — which included Jane Fonda, Meryl Streep, Carol Burnett, Anthony Anderson and Babyface — at the Golden Globes’ Golden Gala, held at the Beverly Hilton on Friday. The event marked the first time the organization hosted a special ceremony for the recipients of its two historic honors, the Cecil B. DeMille Award and the Carol Burnett Award, which in the past have been presented during the show’s live telecast.

“I hope this inaugural evening of excellence is a night that all of us will remember for years to come,” said Golden Globes president Helen Hoehne in her opening remarks. “As we’ve been thinking about how to reinvent the Golden Globes over the past few years, we’ve embraced change and opened ourselves to fresh ideas. We’re not just excited about what these...

Oh,Mary! has recouped its $4.525 million Broadway capitalization.

The play, written by and starring Cole Escola, has recouped its Broadway production costs, after opening at the Lyceum Theatre on July 11. The production has broken its own box office record nine times, including last week, when it brought in just above $1.2 million, with an average ticket price of $171.32.

In Oh Mary!, Escola reimagines Mary Todd Lincoln as a wannabe cabaret star, railing against her life in the White House and against wishes of her husband, President Abraham Lincoln.

In addition to breaking box office records, the comedy has also brought in celebrity guests, including former first lady Michelle Obama and Valerie Jarrett on Saturday afternoon, as well as Billy Crystal, Tom Hanks, Bowen Yang, Anne Hathaway, Andrew Garfield, Jennifer Aniston and Madonna (as well as Lincoln’s Steven Spielberg, Sally Field and Tony Kushner during the Off-Broadway run).

Escola landed on...

The Fabelmans could have been a much more simplistic film than it ended up being. While the film is fictional on the surface, its overt parallels to director and co-writer Steven Spielberg have been well documented. But alongside co-writer Tony Kushner, Spielberg delves deep into his past and psyche to present a story that is emotionally rich and complex throughout. Rather than delve into shallow hagiography or something to smooth over the unpleasantness of his past, Spielberg and Kushner develop a fully realized drama with characters just as real as the people who inspired them. Even the minor characters have more life in just a few scenes than some leads do in their own separate movies. This is perfectly exemplified by Chloe East as Monica Sherwood.

During the 1953 world premiere of Samuel Beckett’s absurdist masterpiece, Waiting for Godot, at Paris’ Théâtre de Babylone, the curtain came down about 40 minutes into the first act as audience members whistled and hooted derisively. While the critics were accepting of the play, it presold few tickets for the American debut tour three years later in Washington and Philadelphia, prompting a move to Miami’s Coconut Grove Playhouse for a two-week run starring Bert Lahr and Tom Ewell. Promoted as “the laugh sensation of two continents,” it was greeted by vacationers with bafflement and described as a play where nothing happens. The reaction was so predictable that cabbies waited outside the theater for early exiters. Not surprisingly, the New York engagement was canceled.

“Nothing happens, that’s the thing. It’ll be interesting to see, when we put this up in front of an audience for the first time, how they respond.

Top 8 Lgbtqia+ shows you must watch (Photo Credit – Facebook)

Hollywood has increasingly embraced LGBTQ+ representation in movies and shows and has come a long way in reflecting a broader societal shift toward inclusivity. From groundbreaking movies like Moonlight to TV shows like Pose, the stories offer diverse perspectives and authentic portrayals of LGBTQ+ experiences. Now, viewers can stream exclusive shows and films about sexuality and relationships as many great dramas of all time feature LGBTQ+ characters, including The Last of Us, Mad Men, Game of Thrones, and Twin Peaks. If you’re looking for more similar dramas, here are the top 8 LGBTQ+ TV shows.

RuPaul’s Drag Race (2009-)

The most prominent reality program of the 21st century is RuPaul’s Drag Race, which has continued its success after sixteen years. Despite the changes in network and technical aspects, the show has remained influential and engaging. The show spawned various popular spin-offs,...

Well, if you’re reading this, it means that you’ve survived yet another presidential election.

You might be thrilled with last night’s results, or you might be banging your head against a wall, wondering how you’re gonna survive the next four years.

Either way, at least we can all take solace in the fact that the quadrennial barrage of panhandling text messages has now come to an end.

(Dreamworks Pictures/20th Century Fox)

And now that you can once again turn on your TV without being bombarded by mudslinging political ads, what better time to revisit some of the best presidential biopics?

Politicians and pollsters might tell you they know what the future holds, but that picture is always a murky one.

Thankfully, we can always look to America’s past for encouraging reminders of challenges we’ve overcome and the heroes who have risen to the occasion.

Last month playwright Jez Butterworth brought his latest work, “The Hills of California,” to Broadway. The haunting family drama explores the relationships between four sisters and their dying mother in their creaky seaside home, seamlessly moving back and forth in time between 1976 and 1955. The play previously bowed in London earlier this year, and before coming stateside it earned two Olivier Award nominations for Best New Play and Best Actress for Laura Donnelly, who reprises her performance in New York.

Since his Broadway debut only 13 years ago, Butterworth has quickly established himself as one of the theater’s most accomplished contemporary playwrights. He has two Tony nominations to his name, for New York debut “Jerusalem” in 2011 and for his Tony-winning epic “The Ferryman” in 2019. Those nominations alone already tie him with theater royalty including Ayad Akhtar, Tony Kushner, Tracy Letts, David Mamet, Lynn Nottage, Eugene O’Neill, and Wendy Wasserstein — all...

“The Bikeriders” is taking a trip from original to adapted screenplay Oscar consideration.

Focus Features’ drama, directed and written by Jeff Nichols, will compete for the Academy Award in the best adapted screenplay category, Variety has learned exclusively.

The movie stars Austin Butler, Jodie Comer and Tom Hardy. It premiered at the 2023 Telluride Film Festival, garnering rave reviews despite the ongoing Writers Guild and Screen Actors Guild strikes. Initially scheduled for release by 20th Century Studios on December 1, 2023, the film’s launch was delayed. Focus Features later acquired the project and released it in June. Before this acquisition, Variety exclusively confirmed that although the film draws inspiration from Danny Lyon’s iconic photobook, it was initially positioned as an original screenplay. However, those plans have shifted.

Read: You can see Academy Award predictions in all 23 categories on one page on the Variety Awards Circuit: Oscars.

“The Bikeriders” tells a fictionalized...

The title of Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice makes one think of Donald Trump’s ludicrous reality competition series, which resuscitated his career and indirectly primed his political ambitions. In the context of the film, though, the apprentice in question is Trump (Sebastian Stan) himself, introduced at the outset of his career as his efforts to establish his own real estate empire out from under the thumb of his slumlord father, Fred (Martin Donovan), lead him into the tutelage of notorious lawyer and fixer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong).

The film wastes little time in positing Cohn as the Mephistophelean figure who shaped Trump into the figure we now know, taking a relatively nervous, insecure princeling and encouraging him to present a front of bullish, unrepentant narcissism to the world. Cohn imparts three golden rules for conducting himself in public and in litigation: always go on the attack, admit nothing and deny everything,...

Every day brings yet another voice asking the question, "Where have all the movie stars gone?" Well, if you ask this writer — me, I'm the writer — there are movie stars all around us if we just accept that they've got the goods and treat them as such. One of the youngest additions to the "movie star" canon as far as I'm concerned is Rachel Zegler, who has already proven herself to be a bonafide superstar with only a handful of film performances to her credit. Not to be parasocial or anything, but the internet is super weird about Rachel Zegler, so much so that I defended her during /Film's Hottest Movie Takes list. The reason being? I think she's one of the most promising young talents currently working today and if we really want to "bring back" movie stars, we need to foster that talent to want to continue being a part of Hollywood.

In “Lover of Men: The Untold History of Abraham Lincoln” director Shaun Peterson makes a compelling case that Honest Abe was queer.

The 102-minute doc features 20 Lincoln scholars and historians and never-before seen photographs and letters that argue that there is no denying that Lincoln had sexual relations with men. The film presents a plethora of evidence that the former president was involved with a series of men — four of significance. One of those men was Joshua Speed, with whom Lincoln shared a bed with for four years, according to the film which says it is widely documented.

“Lover Of Men’ explores not just Lincoln’s sexual preferences but the history of human sexual fluidity and the profound differences between sexual mores of the nineteenth century and those of today.

The doc, which makes its theatrical debut on Friday, recently partnered with Special Occasion Studios and the Human Rights Campaign...

Steven Spielberg's 2012 drama "Lincoln" may be considered the second part of a thematic trilogy in the filmmaker's oeuvre. Spielberg, from 2005 through 2017, made three notable historical biographies that dealt with specific historical events, but which were clearly being made to comment on dramatic political events in the present.

2005's "Munich" was about the infamous bombing at the 1972 Munich Olympics, wherein Palestinian forces killed 11 members of the Israeli Olympic team. This plan of political vengeance, however, only begets more violence, and solves nothing. Spielberg ended the film with a pensive shot of the World Trade Center towers. "Lincoln," meanwhile, took place at a time in Abraham Lincoln's life when he tried to pass the 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery. Written by Tony Kushner, the film was clearly a parallel comment on marriage equality. 2017's "The Post," about the notorious Pentagon Papers, was clearly a post-Trump movie. These three films are Spielberg's best.

Exclusive: More than 50 of Broadway’s biggest names, including actors, directors, producers, writers and others, are organizing to support Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 presidential election.

The volunteer coalition Broadway for Harris will work to to elect Harris, Walz and down ballot Democratic candidates this November. The organization plans to increase voter participation in key swing districts, produce fundraising events featuring the talents of the Broadway community and “work together toward a brighter, more hopeful, more equitable future for the country under the historic leadership of Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.”

Among those who have signed on to the initial organizing committee are Adrienne Warren, Alex Edelman, Audra McDonald, Billy Porter, George C. Wolfe, Idina Menzel, Jeremy O. Harris, Lachanze, Lin-Manuel Miranda, John Leguizamo, Sara Bareilles, Sarah Paulson, Shaina Taub and Tony Kushner. (See the full list as of August 19 below.)

Related: Democratic National Convention: What To Expect...

Like stadiums full of sports fans carrying brooms to a game where their team has a chance to complete a sweep against an archrival, the Emmys have been home to a string of dominant showings in recent years. But while sweeps can be thrilling to fans of the shows that have run the table on Emmy night, can we just admit that they’re not much fun for most of us?

And with final voting now underway, can we remind voting members of the Television Academy that it might be a good thing to divvy up those golden statuettes?

First, a little background: In 2020, “Schitt’s Creek” became the first comedy series ever to go 7-for-7 at the Primetime Emmy Awards, winning all of the ceremony’s comedy categories: Outstanding Comedy Series, awards for directing and writing, plus the two for lead acting and two for supporting acting.

The next year,...

In the ’70s and ’80s, Steven Spielberg was notable for pioneering the blockbuster landscape. But in the ’90s, the director would transcend beyond that status following his versatility, as he would delve into more serious territories with Schindler’s List, one of Spielberg’s most important films to date.

However, the director’s other attempt at helming a historical film wouldn’t be as universally acclaimed as Schindler’s List following its political aspect. Moreover, the director was aware the film would divide viewers upon its release, as he recalled discussing this matter with Tony Kushner.

Steven Spielberg Knew He Was Delving Into Hot Water With Munich Steven Spielberg | Photo by Georges Biard, licensed under Cc By-sa 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Steven Spielberg was fully aware that his 2005 film Munich, based on the 1972 massacre in Munich, was going to stir some controversy upon its release. Being the most intentionally political film of his career,...

Steven Spielberg is renowned for fearlessly tackling challenges, such as adapting the iconic shark thriller, Jaws, and resurrecting deadly dinosaurs in the world of Jurassic Park. Synonymous with cinematic excellence and his ability to craft the most ambitious of visions into reality, Spielberg’s unique talents set him league apart from his contemporaries.

Steven Spielberg | Photo by Elena Ternovaja, licensed under Cc By-sa 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Yet, even for a director of his stature, some projects might seem too daunting to undertake. And screenwriter Tony Kushner certainly thought so when Spielberg approached him for the first time to transform the original classic into one more suited to contemporary tastes.

Screenwriter Tony Kushner Felt One Classic Was Challenging Even for Steven Spielberg

Rachel Zegler in West Side Story | Walt Disney Studios

Based on the widely renowned 1950s stage musical by Jerome Robbins, Steven Spielberg‘s 2021 West Side Story adaptation was certainly...

Steven Spielberg chased Daniel Day-Lewis for the title role in Lincoln for nine years before the actor committed to the role. After the director met with him for the first time, Day-Lewis sent him a letter explaining why he could not take part in the project. Spielberg had the script rewritten for him and he rejected it yet again.

Daniel Day-Lewis in a still from Lincoln | DreamWorks Pictures

Spielberg brought in Tony Kushner, who previously wrote Munich for him, to write a more character-oriented story that was eventually made into the film. After Day-Lewis turned him down, Spielberg approached Liam Neeson to play the role, who prepared for the role extensively. However, Neeson left the project in 2010 and it circled back to Day-Lewis once again.

Steven Spielberg Had To Go The Extra Mile To Convince Daniel Day-Lewis To Star In Lincoln Sally Field and Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln | DreamWorks Pictures...

Before the age of Primetime Emmy Awards sweeps for comedy “Schitt’s Creek” and drama “The Crown” – a trend that could very well continue this year by either “The Bear” or “Shōgun” – there was “Angels in America.” The HBO miniseries adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Tony Kushner won 11 Emmys back in 2004 and famously took home the prizes in all seven top categories, making it the very first program to do so. This year’s 76th annual ceremony marks the 20th anniversary of the show’s historic night. To celebrate Kushner’s birthday on July 16, let’s flashback to that epic Emmys sweep.

The television adaptation followed just 10 years after the premiere of both plays on Broadway in 1993. Those original productions of “Millennium Approaches” and “Perestroika” nabbed seven Tony Awards combined, including two wins for Best Play, one for director George C. Wolfe, one for actor Ron Liebman as Roy Cohn,...

Jeffrey Wright has joined the cast of Paramount+ With Showtime’s upcoming political thriller series “The Agency.”

As exclusively reported by Variety, the series is led by Michael Fassbender as Martian, a covert CIA agent. George Clooney serves as executive producer.

Wright will play Henry, the CIA’s director of operations overseeing non-official cover agents, and a mentor to Martian.

“The Agency” is based on the hit French series “The Bureau,” which ran on Canal+ from 2015 to 2020. Per the official loglline, the new series follows Martian as he’s “ordered to abandon his undercover life and return to London Station. When the love he left behind reappears, romance reignites. His career, his real identity and his mission are pitted against his heart, hurling them both into a deadly game of international intrigue and espionage.”

Wright was most recently seen leading the 2023 film “American Fiction” as Thelonious “Monk” Ellison, and up next,...

The off-Broadway comedic hit Oh, Mary! is moving to Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre starting June 26, and, while it’s gaining a bigger platform, Cole Escola, the show’s star and creator, wants to keep the zany hit show pretty much as is.

“It’s going to be bigger, better, bolder …” Escola says, before dropping the act. “It’s going to be exactly the same … we don’t want to spoil the recipe.”

That recipe saw the play — which had its world premiere at the Lucille Lortel Theatre last winter — sell out and extend twice. Given that the play follows a reimagined Mary Todd Lincoln, depicting her as a petulant wannabe cabaret star with a predilection for booze and, in its absence, paint thinner, the warm reception wasn’t necessarily a given. It even drew praise from Lincoln director Steven Spielberg, Sally Field (who played Mary in the movie) and screenwriter Tony Kushner,...

While most of Steven Spielberg’s releases are very different from each other, which stands as a testament to his versatility, at the core, all of his movies are very personal to him. However, his 2022 semi-autobiographical drama, The Fabelmans, takes a step further, as it draws a more intimate portrayal of the Oscar-winning director’s formative years.

Apart from delving into his passion for cinema, the film also tackles his mother’s affair, which he discovered as a kid following his love for filmmaking.

Steven Spielberg Discovered His Mother’s Affair While Editing His Early Film A still from The Fabelmans | Credit: Amblin Entertainment & Reliance Entertainment

Before crafting monumental blockbusters and acclaimed dramas, Steven Spielberg spent his teenage years recording every moment around him on his Super 8. Although by the time he was 18, the director had already made 15 short films, his passion for filmmaking also led to him inadvertently recording...

Here’s a bit of The Last of Us casting news you’ll want to wolf down: Jeffrey Wright is joining Season 2 of the HBO series, TVLine has learned.

Wright will play Isaac in Season 2 of the dystopian drama based on Naughty Dog’s video-game series. This is a huge deal for fans of The Last of Us Part II, because Wright also played Isaac in the game.

More from TVLineTVLine Items: Cristin Milioti Joins Hulu's Hit-Monkey, Death by Lighting Adds Bradley Whitford and MoreTVLine Items: Dove Cameron and Avan Jogia Lead Amazon Thriller, Peacock's Laid Adds 8 and MoreA...

Universal Pictures has dated an “untitled event film” directed by Steven Spielberg for a wide release on Friday, May 15, 2026. The story will be by Spielberg and the screenplay by his frequent collaborator David Koepp. Kristie Macosko Krieger will produce.

While no further details were shared at present, Variety reported last month that Spielberg’s next project will “likely” be “a UFO film based on his own original idea” and written by Koepp. The May 2026 release is Spielberg’s original idea as written by Koepp, and a Spielberg UFO film would surely be an event film.

When reached by IndieWire, a spokesperson for Universal Pictures declined comment on the UFO detail.

Of course, most Spielberg films are event films, with many written by Koepp, including: “Jurassic Park,” “The Lost World: Jurassic Park,” “War of the Worlds” (a UFO film!), and “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” Combined, those...

Directors Jack O’Brien and George C. Wolfe will each receive a 2024 Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre.

Wolfe is a five-time Tony-Award winning director, helming shows including Angels in America: Millennium Approaches and Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da Funk, and has worked as a writer, a producer and artistic director of The Public Theater from 1993 to 2005. O’Brien is a three-time Tony Award-winning director for Hairspray, Henry IV and The Coast of Utopia, among many other credits on Broadway, including last season’s Shucked, All My Sons, Carousel, The Front Page, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Porgy and Bess. He led the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from 1981 to 2007 and has also directed projects in London and Off-Broadway.

In addition to his work in the theater, which includes writing the score to and directing the musical Jelly’s Last Jam and directing...

Oh, Mary!, the Off-Broadway comedy hit about Mary Todd Lincoln, is transferring to Broadway for a 12-week engagement this summer.

The show, written by and starring Cole Escola as Mary, will begin previews at the Lyceum Theatre starting June 26, with an opening night on July 11. The engagement runs through Sept. 15.

In Oh Mary!, Mary Todd Lincoln is reimagined as a wannabe cabaret star, filled with yearning for that other life, in the weeks leading up to President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. The show also stars Conrad Ricamora as Mary’s Husband, otherwise known as Abraham Lincoln, James Scully as Mary’s Teacher, Bianca Leigh as Mary’s Chaperone, and Tony Macht as Mary’s Husband’s Assistant, as well as cast members Hannah Solow and Peter Smith.

The show is critically acclaimed and has proven popular off-Broadway, after selling out its first run and extending twice at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.

Prominent literary organization Pen America has canceled its annual awards ceremony, which was due to be held next week, after 28 authors chose to withdraw their books from consideration. The group has faced increasing backlash over its response to the Israel-Hamas War. Among those dropping out was debut novel finalist Rachel Eliza Griffiths, wife of former Pen president Salman Rushdie, according to the Associated Press.

Of those withdrawing are also nine out of the 10 authors nominated for the Pen/Jean Stein Book Award. The Literary Estate of Jean Stein has directed Pen America to donate the $75,000 award to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, representatives said on Monday.

The decision to cancel the awards comes in the wake of escalating upset against Pen America. A series of open letters signed by Pen nominees in recent weeks have criticized the group for allegedly choosing sides against Gaza in the war that started...

Nearly a month after Jonathan Glazer’s Oscars speech reverberated across Hollywood and caused a wave of controversy, 455 Jewish creatives (and counting) have signed a letter in a show of support.

“We were alarmed to see some of our colleagues in the industry mischaracterize and denounce his remarks. Their attacks on Glazer are a dangerous distraction from Israel’s escalating military campaign which has already killed over 32,000 Palestinians in Gaza and brought hundreds of thousands to the brink of starvation,” reads the letter, published amid the continued conflict in the Middle East. “We grieve for all those who have been killed in Palestine and Israel over too many decades, including the 1200 Israelis killed in the October 7 Hamas attacks and the 253 hostages taken.”

The letter is signed by a mix of actors, writers, producers, filmmakers and other creatives. Among those backing Glazer are Joker star Joaquin Phoenix; Killer Films vet Pamela Koffler...

Update: More than 300 Jewish creatives — including eight-time Oscar-winning composer Alan Menken, “SNL” star Sarah Sherman, actor and documentarian Alex Winter and “Seinfeld” writer Larry Charles — have added their names to the list of signatories of an open letter in support of Jonathan Glazer’s Oscars speech.

The number of signees now sits at 492, having more than tripled since Variety first published the April 5 letter, which criticized the attacks on Glazer for being a “dangerous distraction” from the mounting death toll in Gaza while also contributing to the “suppression of free speech and dissent.”

New additions also include Oscar-winning “Anatomy of a Fall” co-writer Arthur Harari, veteran U.K. producer and Oscar winner Jeremy Thomas, “Girls” co-showrunner and co-writer Jenni Konner and “The Hunger Games” writer and director and four-time Oscar nominee Gary Ross. Many members of the Israeli film community have also signed the open letter, including Oren Moverman, Nadav Lapid,...