News

Jon Stewart ripped into what he called a “tenuous” moment for media, using his Weekly Show podcast to examine how the government uses its levers of power “to manipulate and get what they want.”

It was the first edition of The Weekly Show since CBS announced that The Late Show With Stephen Colbert would end next year. Stewart is an executive producer of that show, and also hosts Comedy Central’s Daily Show on Monday nights.

“Let me just begin with, what a fucking week. I can’t even get into the Late Show, Daily Show of it all. Watch Stephen’s [show] from Monday, watch ours from Monday. I think you’ll get a sense of how we’re feeling and just how tenuous this moment is,” Stewart said to open the podcast that released Thursday morning. “Oddly enough, our episode today is about levers of power and coercion from...

Vox Media today announced a strategic partnership with Tefi Pessoa, who is joining The Cut as a special contributor. The influential host, content creator, and comedian will write a monthly advice column and launch a weekly pop culture podcast that builds on the signature takes she brings to her over 2 million followers on TikTok and Instagram. The column, called “Ask Tefi,” debuts on Friday, May 23rd, with the podcast set to launch this summer and publish across audio, video, and social platforms. Pessoa, who served as The Cut’s red carpet correspondent at the Academy Awards earlier this year, will also appear regularly on the Cut’s social channels.

“After years of connecting with people online, I wanted a space to go deeper,” said Tefi Pessoa. “This column and podcast are for anyone who's ever thought, ‘Am I the only one feeling this way?’ You’re not. Whether it’s breakups,...

Even though Leonardo DiCaprio has delivered banger after banger throughout his tenure in Hollywood’s entertainment industry as an actor, not many come as close to perfection at its peak as The Wolf of Wall Street. To say the least, that epic biographical black comedy crime film not only exceeded expectations but also turned out to be beyond immersive and intriguing.

The Wolf of Wall Street. | Credits: Paramount Pictures.

Besides becoming a major commercial success with its $407 million gross on a $100 million budget (via Box Office Mojo) – becoming Martin Scorsese’s highest-grossing film, the R-rated (and initially deemed controversial) masterpiece also earned rave reviews from fans and critics worldwide, going on to be nominated for 5 stunning Oscars, among other major accolades.

Being such a massively commended project, it’s only understandable that people want more of it through similar pieces. Turns out, similar pieces do exist: In the television shows field.

Tonight (Sunday January 26 2025), ABC broadcasts an episode of the series This Week With George Stephanopoulos!

Episode Summary

Sunday on ABC News’ ‘This Week’ w/ Martha Raddatz

Tom Homan

Sen. Elissa Slotkin

Walter Isaacson

Chris Christie & Preet Bharara

Matt Rivers reports

And Rachael Bade, John Harris & David Sanger join the roundtable

https://www.facebook.com/ThisWeekABC/videos/607028481943986/

What Time is the Episode On?

The episode of This Week With George Stephanopoulos will be broadcast on ABC at 10:00 Am at Et/Pt.

Is the Episode New?

The episode of This Week With George Stephanopoulos is all new!

Episode Videos & Previews...

President Trump announced Tuesday that he signed a full pardon for Ross Ulbricht, the Silk Road founder who was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of running the dark web marketplace used to deal drugs.

Ulbricht was convicted in 2015 of seven drug and conspiracy charges for his role in creating Silk Road, including drug trafficking, computer hacking, and money laundering. Ulbricht, who operated the site under the alias “Dread Pirate Roberts,” was also accused of soliciting multiple murders for hire, according to the Associated Press.

“I just called...

Tonight (Sunday December 8 2024), ABC broadcasts an episode of the series This Week With George Stephanopoulos!

Episode Summary

Sunday on ABC News’ ‘This Week’ w/ Martha Raddatz

Rep. Ro Khanna

Gen. Frank McKenzie

Preet Bharara & Sarah Isgur

Robert Boyce & Mary Ellen O’Toole

And Donna Brazile, Reince Priebus, Rachael Bade & Susan Glasser join the roundtable

https://www.facebook.com/ThisWeekABC/videos/1814423612702134/

What Time is the Episode On?

The episode of This Week With George Stephanopoulos will be broadcast on ABC at 10:00 Am at Et/Pt.

Is the Episode New?

The episode of This Week With George Stephanopoulos is all new!

Episode Videos & Previews...

Tonight (Sunday November 17 2024), ABC broadcasts an episode of the series This Week With George Stephanopoulos!

Episode Summary

Sunday on ABC News’ ‘This Week’ w/ Martha Raddatz

Senator-elect Elissa Slotkin

Rep. Tony Gonzales

Dr. Richard Besser

Preet Bharara

And Reince Priebus, Rachael Bade, Astead Herndon & Alexander Burns join the roundtable

https://www.facebook.com/ThisWeekABC/videos/595881666241758/

What Time is the Episode On?

The episode of This Week With George Stephanopoulos will be broadcast on ABC at 10:00 Am at Et/Pt.

Is the Episode New?

The episode of This Week With George Stephanopoulos is all new!

Episode Videos & Previews...

Vox Media and Enjoy Basketball today announced that YouTube star and NBA superfan Kenny Beecham will bring his flagship show, Small Ball with Kenny Beecham (formerly The Kenny Beecham Podcast) to the Vox Media Podcast Network via a strategic partnership. On Small Ball, which provides year-round basketball coverage and publishes weekly on Fridays during the NBA season, Beecham will share his unique insights through game analysis, player stories, and more. Vox Media will assume sales, marketing, and distribution duties for the show, which is available on podcast and video platforms, and collaborate with Beecham on live event extensions and editorial crossovers with Vox Media brands like Sb Nation.

“I’m excited to team up with Vox Media and take Small Ball to the next level,” says Beecham. “This partnership allows us to continue delivering great basketball content to our fans, with even more reach and resources. The show has grown so much since we started,...

Vox Media today announced a partnership with reigning NFL Walter Payton “Man of the Year” and Pittsburgh Steelers team captain, Cam Heyward, who will bring his weekly show, Not Just Football, to Sb Nation. Each week on Not Just Football, Heyward and his co-host and best friend of 20 years, Hayden Walsh unpack the biggest stories from around the NFL and share their unfiltered thoughts on the latest sports and pop culture news. Welcoming a rotating cast of athletes, coaches, and celebrities, recent guests on the show have included Lil Wayne, Seth Meyers, Michael Keaton, James Harrison, and more. Vox Media will assume marketing, sales, and distribution for the show, which will continue to publish across platforms that include Apple, Spotify, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. The show joins Vox Media from ESPN, which was its home until earlier this year.

“Every week on Not Just Football, Hayden and I have unapologetic...

Veteran media executive Geoff Isenman has been named CEO of Campside Media, the award-winning podcasting company known for ambitious, non-fiction storytelling like Suspect, Chameleon, and its most recent global hit, White Devil, which has been lodged on the podcast charts for its entire run, reaching #6 on the Apple Podcasts chart and approaching 3 million downloads.

“The quality and breadth of Campside’s work is inspiring. It is a testament to the commitment and passion of the founders and team they’ve built,” said Isenman. “I’m thrilled to lead the company, with Sister’s partnership, during this transformative period for the entire audio industry.”

Campside co-founder Adam Hoff, who has been serving in the CEO role, will now shift full-time to oversee the company’s fast-growing film and television slate as Head of Film and TV for the company.

Said Hoff, “Geoff’s deep experience is going to be a tremendous...

Podcast and media executive Geoff Isenman has been named the new CEO of Campside Media, home to the popular podcast franchises, Suspect and Chameleon.

With the appointment, Campside co-founder Adam Hoff, who had been serving in the CEO role, will move to a full-time role overseeing the company’s film and television slate.

Hoff, a screenwriter and producer, founded Campside with veteran journalists Josh Dean and Vanessa Grigoriadis and Matthew Shaer. The company specializes in reported narrative non-fiction podcasts, including the newest, White Devil, and has produced more than 40 limited series podcasts, in addition to 15 documentary projects and 25 projects in development for television and film. Campside is backed by the entertainment company, Sister, founded by Elisabeth Murdoch and Jane Featherstone.

Isenman was most recently at AccelPro, an audio-based career development platform that he founded. He was also the producer of the podcast Big Sugar, which was released in partnership with Imagine Entertainment and iHeartMedia,...

Face the Nation, the long-running news interview program, presents its latest episode on CBS this Sunday morning. The episode features guests Gov. Doug Burgum, R-n.D., Preet Bharara, a former U.S. attorney in New York, and Scott Anderson, director of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency’s operations in Gaza. In this episode, host Margaret Brennan engages […]

Face the Nation: Gov. Doug Burgum, Preet Bharara, Scott Anderson...

Journalist Kara Swisher will interview OpenAI’s Mira Murati on Monday, June 10, as the inaugural guest of a four-part live event series hosted at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C.

Swisher’s interview with Murati about AI, misinformation, and the 2024 elections will begin a yearlong partnership between Johns Hopkins and Vox Media that will convene discussions among the brightest minds working at the high-stakes intersection of technology, science, and public policy.

Each of the four live events in the new “Discovery” series will focus on a different AI-related issue and feature Swisher recording an interview with a topic-specific guest for her podcast, On with Kara Swisher, and a panel discussion moderated by Swisher with leading experts from Hopkins and other organizations.

When: 5:30 p.m., Monday, June 10.

Where: The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Who: In addition to her interview with Murati, Swisher...

George Conway, a top Republican lawyer who has been an outspoken critic of former president Donald Trump, has donated the maximum amount of $929,000 to President Joe Biden’s victory fund.

Conway, who divorced Kellyanne Conway, the ex-Trump White House counselor, is also going to headline a fundraiser for Biden on April 24, with a minimum donation of $500 per person.

The event will take place in Washington, D.C., marking the anti-Trump lawyer’s “first big pro-Biden event.”

Melissa Moss, a strategic consultant, and her husband, Jonathan Silver, are the lead hosts for the event.

The lawyer frequently appears on MSNBC to criticize Trump, calling him a “psychopath” and “sadistic.”

Conway said that he was hoping to “make amends” for supporting the former president in the past.

“I don’t like corrupt politicians,” Conway stated on C-span’s Washington Journal last December. “I don’t like liars. That’s what this is about.

Vox Media, the leading modern media company, today announced a strategic partnership with research professor and New York Times bestselling author Brené Brown that will bring her award-winning podcasts, Unlocking Us and Dare to Lead to the Vox Media Podcast Network. Since launching Unlocking Us (which explores both the magic and the messiness of being human) and Dare to Lead, Brown has cultivated a devoted podcast audience of millions of listeners. In this wide-ranging partnership, Vox Media will lead sales, marketing, and distribution for Unlocking Us and Dare to Lead, which will be widely available on all podcast platforms together with all library episodes. Both shows will also return with new seasons; Unlocking Us beginning Wednesday, February 28th and Dare to Lead beginning Wednesday, March 20th. Brown is also scheduled to host a live recording on Sunday, March 10th as part of the company’s official podcast stage at SXSW,...

Vox Media and South by Southwest today announced that the award-winning Vox Media Podcast Network will be officially partnering with the Conference for 2024. Running from March 8-10th at the Jw Marriott, The Vox Media Podcast Stage at SXSW will bring fan favorite shows from across Vox Media to the stage, including Pivot (hosted by journalist Kara Swisher and NYU Stern Marketing professor Scott Galloway), On with Kara Swisher (hosted by Swisher), Where Should We Begin?, (hosted by acclaimed psychotherapist Esther Perel), Today, Explained (featuring host Noel King), Decoder (hosted by The Verge’s editor-in-chief Nilay Patel), The Vergecast , Point Forward (co-hosted by former NBA stars Andre Iguodala and Evan Turner), Stay Tuned with Preet (hosted by former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara), Waveform: The Mkbhd Podcast (hosted by tech reviewers Marques Brownlee) and Mma Hour (hosted by sports journalist Ariel Helwani) – with more to be announced soon.

Here’s a look at this week’s biggest premieres, parties and openings in Los Angeles and New York, including events for The Iron Claw, The Marvels and Wish.

The Marvels special screening

Director Nia DaCosta, producer Kevin Feige, executive producers Mary Livanos and Jonathan Schwartz, and composer Laura Karpman attended a special screening event for The Marvels in Las Vegas on Tuesday. Two days later, after the end of the actors strike when SAG-AFTRA reached a new deal with the studios and streamers, star Iman Vellani made an appearance alongside DaCosta at a special screening event in Los Angeles.

Laura Karpman, Kevin Feige, Nia DaCosta, Rizzo the cat, Mary Livanos and Jonathan Schwartz Nia DaCosta and Iman Vellani

The Iron Claw premiere

Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson and Stanley Simons joined filmmaker Sean Durkin at the world premiere of their wrestling film in Dallas, Texas on Wednesday.

After seven seasons, Showtime’s widely-watched gem “Billions” will be returning this week for its final season.

Created by Brian Koppelman, David Levien and Andrew Ross Sorkin, the financial drama first premiered in 2016 and follows the cat-and-mouse games between a hedge fund manager (Damian Lewis) and the United States Attorney (Paul Giamatti).

The first season was loosely inspired by Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and his prosecution of S.A.C. Capital Advisors’ Steven A. Cohen. But as the show has continued, it’s morphed away from its real-life inspiration to become something else entirely.

Whether you’re wondering how to stream new episodes or watch them live, here’s how to watch “Billions” Season 7.

When does “Billions” Season 7 premiere?

It depends on how you’re watching it. If you plan to stream the final season of “Billions,” you’ll be able...

Vox Media today debuted on leading industry ranker, Podtrac, as a top 10 podcast publisher. The Vox Media Podcast Network ranked #10 on Podtrac’s April 2023 "Top Podcast Publishers" ranking, with a unique monthly audience of nearly 6 million listeners in the US. With over a dozen shows consistently ranked in the top 10 in their respective categories on Apple Podcasts, Vox Media’s slate of chart-topping shows and influential hosts includes Pivot (hosted by journalist Kara Swisher and NYU Stern Marketing professor Scott Galloway), On with Kara Swisher (hosted by Swisher), Where Should We Begin? (hosted by bestselling author and psychotherapist Esther Perel), Stay Tuned with Preet (hosted by former Manhattan U.S. attorney Preet Bharara), Criminal (hosted by journalist Phoebe Judge), Today, Explained (hosted by public radio alums Sean Rameswaram and Noel King), The Mma Hour (hosted by sports journalist Ariel Helwani), Into It (hosted by public radio alum Sam Sanders), Decoder...

Robert De Niro is set to star in the Paramount+ drama series ‘Bobby Meritorious’

The series is set in the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York. When Avery “The Sage” Accomando (De Niro), an informant in the office’s biggest case, is poised to tear this storied institution apart, only one man can stop him: a fabled ex-cop turned prosecutor known as Bobby Meritorious.

De Niro is also set to executive produce the series which hails from scribe Billy Ray.

Also in news – Austin Butler cast in adaptation ‘City on Fire’

Ray is writing and executive producing. De Niro will executive produce via his Tribeca Productions banner, along with the company’s Jane Rosenthal and Berry Welsh. Peter Gethers and Preet Bharara, a former U.S. attorney in the Sdny office, also exec produce.

Despite his long and illustrious career, this would only mark...

Robert De Niro is adding another TV project to his plate.

The Oscar winner is attached to star in and executive produce a Paramount+ drama titled Bobby Meritorious, from writer Billy Ray (The Comey Rule, Captain Phillips) and Paramount Television Studios. The streamer outbid several other outlets for the project from its corporate sibling and has committed to develop it.

Should it go forward, the Paramount+ show would be De Niro’s second leading role in a TV series. He’s also starring in Netflix’s six-episode thriller Zero Day, from Narcos EP Eric Newman.

Bobby Meritorious is set in the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York. When Avery “The Sage” Accomando (De Niro), an informant in the office’s biggest case, is poised to tear this storied institution apart, only one man can stop him: a fabled ex-cop turned prosecutor known as Bobby Meritorious.

When it comes to dramatic storytelling, few shows do it better than Showtime's "Billions." Premiering in 2016, the series initially followed U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti) and hedge fund CEO Bobby "Axe" Axelrod (Damian Lewis) in a cat-and-mouse game involving financial crimes, determined (and oft-corrupt) government officials, dysfunctional families, obsession, and tested loyalties. While taking some license to push the narrative and give each character a unique personality, "Billions" also highlights the real worlds of federal prosecutors and high finance. The first season and its two main characters were allegedly loosely inspired by the former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara's case against Sac Capital Advisors founder Steven Cohen for insider trading.

As The Wall Street Journal reports, depicting these complicated worlds as accurately as possible was important to "Billions" co-creators and writers Andrew Ross Sorkin, Brian Koppelman, and David Levien, who...

The hundreds of layoffs at CNN this week were, as CNN boss Chris Licht predicted, a “gut punch,” but the question for staffers — and viewers — is what will happen next.

For viewers, the changes may be apparent in a number of ways, particularly at Hln, where the Robin Meade-anchored Morning Express is ending and Meade, whose first day on air at Hln was Sept. 11, 2001, is departing along with staffers. Instead, CNN will replace the morning show with a simulcast of CNN This Morning, the relaunched version of New Day. Hln, which was formerly the newscast-dominated Headline News, had shifted for the rest of the day to largely a format of true-crime shows, something that resembles Warner Bros Discovery sibling network ID. So it wasn’t a complete surprise that ID would take on responsibilities for the true-crime block.

Licht has indicated that, as the network undergoes cuts, he wants...

Aasif Mandvi‘s got a story for ya. A bunch of them, actually.

All of the tales are funny. Some of them are true. And figuring out which yarns are the real deal is the objective of The CW’s new comedy show Would I Lie to You?, which premieres Saturday (8:30/7:30c) and which Mandvi executive-produces and hosts.

More from TVLineEvil Season 3 Gets Premiere Date -- Watch a Tongue-talizing First Teaser2021 in Review: Underrated Actors, Saddest Cancellation, Most Improved Series, Lamest Cameo and MoreTVLine Items: Free Evil Episode, 100 Vet Lands Netflix Comedy and More

“You could play this...

The CW’s adaptation of British panel show Would I Lie To You? has found its lineup.

Evil star Aasif Mandvi is set as host with Veep’s Matt Walsh and Carol’s Second Act’s Sabrina Jalees as team captains.

They will do the job done by Gavin & Stacey star Rob Brydon with Back and Peep Show star David Mitchell and Not Going Out star Lee Mack on the BBC version.

A litany of guest stars have also been confirmed including Brooke Shields, Amber Ruffin, Laura Benanti, Michael Ian Black, Andrea Martin, Julie Klausner, Jordan Klepper, Adam Pally, Chris Gethard, Dulcé Sloan, as well as former United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara.

The series sees a team of celebrities try and ascertain truth from fiction with questions and stories.

It will be remade by Ink Master producer Truly Original, which is owned by Banijay,...

Exclusive: Criminal Productions, the rising podcast studio founded by Phoebe Judge and Lauren Spohrer, has been acquired by Vox Media.

It is the latest major acquisition in the audio space and follows Amazon’s purchase of Wondery, a slew of deals for Spotify and The New York Times Company’s acquisition of Serial Productions.

Vox Media, which owns publications including New York Magazine, Eater, Recode and Vox, has been expanding its podcast business with the acquisition of Preet Bharara’s Cafe Studios, and sales and distribution partnerships with the likes of The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway, Longform, Gastropod, and Waveform: The Mkbhd Podcast.

Criminal Productions is behind hit podcasts Criminal, This Is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery. The company was formed in 2013 by Judge and Spohrer, who previously worked together at public radio station Wunc.

Criminal, which features close-end episodes of up to 30 minutes, tells stories of people who’ve done wrong,...

Vox Media is acquiring Hot Pod, the independent news outlet focused on the podcasting industry, as part of a bid to expand offerings from its technology site, The Verge.

Under part of a deal being announced Tuesday, Hot Pod will become the first paid-subscription product offered by The Verge, where executives are interested in seeing if they can offer a broader portfolio of similar editorial concepts in months to come, says Nilay Patel, editor of The Verge in an interview. Ashley Carman, a senior Verge reporter, will replace Nicholas Quah, who launched Hot Pod in 2014, and who will become a podcast critic for Vox Media’s Vulture. Vox also owns sites like Sb Nation, Recode and The Cut.

The Verge has “in ten years amassed a huge audience, and we have never made anybody pay for anything. We are interested and excited about what that looks like,” says Patel. “We...

The Washington Post on Monday added a correction to a Gene Weingarten humor column that inaccurately said all Indian food is based on curry, a combination of spices and herbs.

“A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Indian cuisine is based on one spice, curry, and that Indian food is made up only of curries, types of stew. In fact, India’s vastly diverse cuisines use many spice blends and include many other types of dishes. The article has been corrected,” reads a note at the top of the piece, which is called, “You Can’t Make Me Eat These Foods.”

The column about Weingarten’s disinterest in various flavors — from balsamic vinegar to Old Bay seasoning — was published last Thursday and received significant criticism for this now-altered line: “The Indian subcontinent has vastly enriched the world, giving us chess, buttons, the mathematical concept of zero, shampoo, modern-day nonviolent political resistance,...

Vox Media looks to bolster its podcasting arm with the acquisition of Cafe Studios, a podcast company co-founded by Preet Bharara, former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Financial terms of the deal were not immediately disclosed. However, Bharara and executive producer and head of content Tamara Sepper will join Vox Media under the new agreement.

Cafe Studios’ podcasts typically revolve around law and policy and how they intersect with technology, politics and business. Bharara hosts the flagship podcast, Stay Tuned With Preet. The company also operates a subscription program that offers members exclusive podcasts, newsletters, articles and live events.

The Cafe Studios acquisition marks a trend of expansion deals Vox Media has been striking in the last three years. Vox Media made headlines in late 2019 buying New York Media, publisher of New York Magazine and other digital outlets like the Cut and Vulture. The conglomerate also purchased Epic,...

Vox Media has made another deal.

The digital media company is acquiring Cafe Studios, the podcast-focused media company co-founded by Preet Bharara, the high-profile former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Cafe will operate as part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Bharara and executive producer and head of content Tamara Sepper will join Vox Media under the deal, and will be a part of the company’s presentation during the Iab upfronts in May.

Cafe’s podcasts typically discuss law and policy matters as they intersect with technology,...

Vox Media has made another deal.

The digital media company is acquiring Cafe Studios, the podcast-focused media company co-founded by Preet Bharara, the high-profile former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Cafe will operate as part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Bharara and executive producer and head of content Tamara Sepper will join Vox Media under the deal, and will be a part of the company’s presentation during the Iab upfronts in May.

Cafe’s podcasts typically discuss law and policy matters as they intersect with technology,...

With most folks staying home for New Year’s Eve this year because of the ongoing pandemic, so many more eyes than usual were on the Nye TV specials. And CNN capitalized on the moment, dominating the social media discourse by having Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen get drunk on air.

There weren’t any crowds in Times Square this year, but otherwise, these New Year’s Eve specials proceeded as usual. It created a strange mood for the evening, and Cooper and Cohen very effectively tapped into the vibe of the country by throwing back tequila shots on TV, while everyone at home did the same.

Cooper and Cohen started the party at 8 p.m. Et, with their first shots of the night. And, well, it seemed like Anderson probably could have used a chaser.

Anderson Cooper's first shot of the night pic.twitter.com/3OCY7oIses

— Cj Fogler...

On Thursday, Hillary Clinton will appear as the latest guest on The Dissenters, a new podcast series that features 21 interviews with leaders and activists on their meaning of “dissent.” The series is hosted by Debra Messing and Mandana Dayani, co-founders of the non-profit campaign I Am a Voter.

In an exclusive clip from their interview, Clinton discusses the importance of dissent and peaceful protest in light of recent demonstrations against police brutality. “I think about Dr. King, and I think about losing John Lewis — people not only willing to dissent and protest,...

Look, up there in the sky – it’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s President Donald Trump?

The New York Times reported Saturday that President Trump floated the idea of a stunt when he left Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after treatment for Covid-19. The plan called for Trump to appear frail when people first saw him. Then he would open his button-down dress shirt and reveal a Superman t-shirt.

Ultimately, he did not go ahead with the stunt.

At his brief White House appearance on Saturday, Trump saw several teal blue shirts among the attendees. “I want to put one of them on instead of a white shirt.”

Naturally, the Superman revelation brought out the Twitterati for some kryptonite comments. But one supporter who played the Man of Steel thought it was a good idea.

It would have been unforgettable. https://t.co/bRFQpJCkf8

— Dean Cain...

Showtime series Billions is currently in its fifth season and it's still as intriguing as ever. A couple of billionaires such as Mark Cuban have even confessed to being huge fans of the series. And according to top hedge-funders, it gives an accurate portrayal of life at Wall Street too. 

Related: 5 Amazing Showtime Shows You Forgot About (& 5 You Should Forget)

Billions is loosely based on the pursuit of billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen by U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara. Cohen was eventually banned from trading for two years. Here are the Billions characters that represent each of the 12 Zodiac signs.

Just in time for the bingeing boom, Showtime’s “Billions” will return with more of the greed, cunning, and first-rate performances that helped make it one of the network’s biggest hits. The series began with hedge fund billionaire Bobby Axelrod (Damian Lewis) mocking the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti), in the first of many verbal smackdowns between sworn enemies. By Season 4, the former rivals had teamed up to become best pals, completely upending the entertaining conflict that made the series tick.

According to Showtime’s synopsis for Season 5, however, the rivalry is back in full force as the two schemers must navigate who else in their ambitious world may be a snake in the grass.

More from IndieWire'Black Monday' Season 2 Review: Don Cheadle's Manic Performance Keeps This Muddled Series Afloat'Free Time' Trailer: Manfred Kirchheimer's Sensitive, Six-Decade-Old Look...

Succession might have a case but no TV show touches on the topic of finance better than Showtime's Billions. The show revolves the billionaire hedge-fund manager Bobby "Axe" Axelrod (Damian Lewis) and his love-hate relationship with Us attorney Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti) who is trying to take him down for financial malpractice.

Related: The 5 Best & 5 Worst TV Lawyers Of All Time

Billions is partially based on the real-life battle between former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara and billionaire Steve Cohen who was once found guilty of insider trading. In the show, Axe makes plenty of chess moves, but he occasionally messes up in major ways. Here are the times he was smart and the times that he wasn't.

Did Republican Congressman Doug Collins (R-Ga.) have an epiphany that led him to apologize on Twitter less than two hours after he passed on two opportunities to do so on Fox News, or was he playing two media platforms to avoid who saw which message he was conveying?

On Wednesday night, Collins was convinced that Democrats were terrorist sympathizers, telling Lou Dobbs of Fox Business that they “are in love with terrorists” and that they “mourn Soleimani more than they mourn our Gold Star families.” He refused to apologize...

Republican congressman Doug Collins (R-Ga.) said Democrats pushing to give Congress a say over further military action against Iran “are in love with terrorists.”

The top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee made the comments on Fox Business Network’s Lou Dobbs Tonight on Wednesday.

Collins went on to accuse Democrats of having sympathy for Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a U.S. drone attack last week, saying, “We see that they mourn Soleimani more than they mourn our Gold Star families who are the ones who suffered under Soleimani.

Mick Mulvaney, President Trump’s acting chief of staff, said the quiet part out loud last week regarding the administration’s dealings with Ukraine.

“We do that all the time with foreign policy,” he told reporters after one pointed he’d just admitted to a quid pro quo when he explained the U.S. delivering military aid was contingent on investigations relevant to Trump’s political agenda. After the press conference concluded, Mulvaney attempted to walk back the comments by flatly denying he’d said what everyone heard (and recorded) him say flatly hours earlier.

Refresh for updates, including Trump tweets Well, that was fast. Former special counsel Robert Mueller got right to the point in countering President Donald Trump’s oft-repeated mantra about “no obstruction.”

Under questioning from House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler, kicking off today’s hearing, Mueller confirmed that his report did not, in fact, exonerate Trump with regard to obstruction of justice. (The collusion aspects of the investigation will be addressed later today).

In the first round of questions this morning, Nadler, the Democratic congressman from New York, said, “Director Mueller, the President has repeatedly claimed that your report found there was no obstruction and that it completely and totally exonerated him. But that is not what your report said, is it?”

Said Mueller, “Correct, that is not what the report said.”

With that, today’s much anticipated hearing got straight to what Democrats hope will be one of the...

While right-wingers usually take the worst punishment in a typical one-hour episode of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, tonight it was noted progressive George Clooney’s turn in the barrel.

Maher and guests Se Cupp and Andrew Sullivan all criticized the star for calling for a boycott of the Beverly Hills and Bel-Air hotels. The luxe properties are owned by the sultan of Brunei, the nation that is about to pass legislation that would sentence to death anyone who is gay or commits adultery. (Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and former New York attorney general Preet Bharara were on Real Time but stayed out of the Clooney fray.)

In an exclusive guest column on Deadline, Clooney argued that Hollywood is capable of applying constructive pressure to address an unconscionable human rights violation, the possibility that homosexuals can legally be stoned to death. “Every single time we stay...

Updated, 7:22 Pm: Showtime has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit filed against it, Billions creator Andrew Ross Sorkin and others by a Wall Street performance coach who claims to be the inspiration for a key character on the drama series. Read the document here.

Denise Shull, who wrote the 2012 nonfiction book Market Mind Games, filed a copyright infringement suit in January claiming that the defendants “ripped off” the character of Dr. Wendy Rhoades, played by Maggie Siff. In its filing Friday in the Southern District of New York, the premium cabler claims a “total lack of similarity of protexted expression” between Shull’s book and Billions and argued therefore that the suit should be dismissed.

Read details of the case below.

Previously, January 7: A Wall Street performance coach who specializes in trading psychology is suing the creators of Billions, saying she was the uncredited and uncompensated inspiration for the character Dr.

Sneak Peek Season 4 of "Billions", the episodic New York City set legal drama starring Paul Giamatti ("The Pentagon Papers"), Damian Lewis ("Band of Brothers") and Maggie Siff  ("Sons of Anarchy"), returning March 17, 2019 on Showtime:

"...Giamatti plays 'Chuck Rhoades, Jr.', a ruthless 'Us Attorney' for the 'Southern District of New York' with a distaste for corrupt politicans who cover-up, obstruct and try to buy their way out of justice.

"Despite his significant power, Rhoades struggles not to be overshadowed by his wife 'Wendy' and rich father. 

"In private, he and his wife engage in 'Bdsm' role play, with Chuck as Wendy's 'slave', loosely based on Preet Bharara, the fired, former Us Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

"Lewis plays 'Bobby Axelrod', an ambitious billionaire manager of hedge fund 'Axe Capital' who worked his way up from humble beginnings. He was a survivor of the September 11 attacks...

William Lee, most recently a VP at Washington Speakers Bureau, is joining UTA’s live-speaking division, where he will tasked with expanding the agency’s live-speaking footprint in the live-wire Washington DC market. UTA already reps DC notables including Jim Acosta, Dana Bash, Anderson Cooper, Jake Tapper, Chuck Todd and Preet Bharara via its speakers arm Greater Talent Network, which the agency acquired in fall 2017 and is run by partner and Gtn founder Don Epstein.

Lee’s client portfolio includes Hsbc, NBCUniversal and Pimco. At Washington Speakers Bureau, where he was VP Sales, he specialized in developing new talent, packaging programs for buyers, and building speaker profiles for corporate businesses. He will be based in DC and report to Epstein and Gtn co-head David Evenchick.

“Bringing on someone with Will’s experience and reputation in the Washington, DC marketplace is an important step for UTA as we expand and grow...

Right wing provocateur — and recently pardoned ex-felon — Dinesh D’Souza is coming out with a new documentary feature in which compares Donald Trump to Abraham Lincoln.

In a new trailer for the film “Death of America,” released on Friday, D’Souza likened the president’s Democratic opponents to Nazis and fascists and said that like Lincoln, Trump would be called upon to save the United States from collapse.

“Lincoln was elected to unite a country and stop slavery. Democrats smeared him, went to war against him, assassinated him. Now their target is Trump,” D’Souza says in voiceover before asking ominously, “Who are the real racists? Who are the real fascists?”

Also Read: Susan Sarandon Among 575 Arrested in Washington DC at Protest of Trump Immigration Policy

The roughly two-minute preview was generously inter-spliced with B-roll featuring historical re-enactments of parading Nazis — including Hitler — as well as depictions of a pre-Civil...

Washington — President Donald Trump said that he would give a full pardon to Dinesh D’Souza, the political commentator, author, and filmmaker who plead guilty in 2014 to a felony campaign finance violation.

“Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D’Souza today. He was treated very unfairly by our government!” Trump tweeted on Thursday morning.

Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D’Souza today. He was treated very unfairly by our government!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2018

D’Souza made the movie “2016: Obama’s America” in 2012 and followed it up with “Hillary’s America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party.” In the latter movie, he portrayed himself as the victim of political retribution. Overall, his projects tend to espouse conspiratorial motives and theories from those on the left. “Hillary’s America” grossed $13 million at the domestic box office — healthy returns in the documentary category.

In February,...

When supporters of President Trump expressed outrage over Michelle Wolf’s comedy routine at the recent White House Correspondents’ Dinner, one interested observer kept a wary eye on the controversy. His name was Bassem Youssef and he knew a little something about the importance of political humor.

“Instead of being petty and getting all wrapped up in their egos, they should embrace the likes of Michelle Wolf,” Youssef wrote in a statement provided exclusively to Deadline. “[She] proves that not even the strongest man in the world is above satire. And that’s what makes America really great.”

Youssef, often called “the Jon Stewart of Egypt,” hosted Al Bernameg, a wildly popular late night comedy show that launched in 2011 in the wake of the Arab Spring. The documentary Tickling Giants—directed by Sara Taksler, a former Daily Show senior producer—tracked Youssef as he became a sensation in his country, and...

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. has opened an investigation into assault allegations against New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, whose resignation will be effective at the end of the day on Tuesday.

Schneiderman, who spearheaded an investigation into the Weinstein Co. and sexual harassment and assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein, stepped down just hours after the New Yorker published allegations from four women who said that he assaulted them, drank heavily and made threats during dating and sexual relationships. He has denied assaulting anyone.

“Our office has opened an investigation into the recently reported allegations concerning Mr. Schneiderman,” said Danny Frost, a spokesman for Vance.

At the direction of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, Schneiderman’s office had been reviewing the way that Vance had handled allegations against Weinstein back in 2015, when model Ambra Battilana claimed that the mogul groped her, but Vance declined to press charges.

Meanwhile, Barbara Underwood,...

Washington — Michelle Wolf’s monologue at the White House Correspondents Association dinner dominated the headlines coming out of the evening — even if it was a mere sliver of the four-hour event and only a moment in what is traditionally D.C.’s most social weekend.

The surreal aspect is usually the mix of newsmakers on opposite ends of the political spectrum or at odds in other ways — Michael Avenatti, Stormy Daniels’ attorney, was at the annual Garden Brunch on Saturday along with Kellyanne Conway.

Hollywood had a presence, although it was much more muted than in previous years. At Hamilton Live, Kevin Bacon and The Bacon Brothers at one point played “Footloose,” as they were the headliners to a series of journalist-bands, including Lester Holt and the Rough Cuts.

Some of the other events:

Bytes and Bylines (Thursday): One of the first events of the weekend, held at the...