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| Murdoch's wife hires new lawyer in divorce case: New York Times Monday, Jul 29, 2013 08:47 PM PDT  (Reuters) - The wife of News Corp Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch, Wendi Murdoch, has switched lawyers in a move signaling that their divorce proceedings could take an acrimonious turn, the New York Times reported on Monday. Murdoch, 82, filed for divorce in June. He married the former Wendi Deng, 44, in 1999 in his third and her second marriage. They have two young daughters. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Difficult' talks ongoing with Time Warner Cable: CBS CEO Moonves Monday, Jul 29, 2013 07:09 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - CBS Corp Chief Executive Leslie Moonves said on Monday he remained engaged in "difficult" negotiations with Time Warner Cable Inc ahead of a deadline to agree on fees the cable company pays to carry the broadcast network. Moonves, speaking at a Television Critics Association meeting, said he hoped to reach an agreement and avoid a blackout of the highest-rated broadcaster on cable systems in markets such as New York and Los Angeles. Talks were extended several times on Monday. Time Warner Cable spokeswoman Maureen Huff said the new deadline for a deal was 10 p.m. ... Full Story | Top |
| Disney, Weinstein to adapt 'Artemis Fowl' book series into film Monday, Jul 29, 2013 06:05 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Young adult fantasy book series "Artemis Fowl" about a 12-year-old millionaire criminal mastermind will be adapted into a feature film, Walt Disney Studios and the Weinstein Company said on Monday. The film will cover the first two books in the series and be adapted by Michael Goldenberg, the screenwriter of the young adult book "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix." A release date for the yet-to-be-titled film has not been announced. ... Full Story | Top |
| Robin Williams brings 'Crazy' moments to new CBS show Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:59 PM PDT By Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The freewheeling improvised comedy that made Robin Williams a star on 1970s sitcom "Mork & Mindy" will be on display in his new CBS comedy "The Crazy Ones," though the actor says the series will deliver a character that audiences relate to. Returning to TV for the first time since "Mork" went off the air in 1982, Williams will play an eccentric advertising executive who employs unorthodox methods to win and keep clients. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" star Sarah Michelle Gellar plays the straight-laced daughter who battles to keep him from going too far. ... Full Story | Top |
| Hillary Clinton movie mania: now CNN Films is doing a documentary Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:50 PM PDT  By Sara Morrison LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Filmmakers just can't seem to get enough Hillary Clinton these days. CNN Films announced Monday that it's set to produce a feature-length documentary about the presumptive Democratic presidential front-runner for 2016 that will debut in theaters and on the news channel in 2014. Charles Ferguson, whose "Inside Job" won an Oscar for Best Documentary in 2011, will direct. No name nor exact release date is yet known. ... Full Story | Top |
| Lionsgate vice chair Michael Burns banks more than $28 million in 2013 Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:48 PM PDT By Lucas Shaw NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - "The Hunger Games" has worked out very well for Lionsgate Vice Chairman Michael Burns. Burns made more than $28 million in fiscal year 2013, according to an SEC filing Monday. That figure is roughly five time what Burns made last year, a rise due to almost $14 million in stock option awards, almost $8 million in stock awards, a bonus of $4 million, a salary of almost $1 million and a few other incentives. Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer also got a significant bump, banking $12.6 million - a 95 percent raise. ... Full Story | Top |
| Michael Jackson and Freddie Mercury duets to be released this fall Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:47 PM PDT  By Tony Maglio LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - A previously unreleased series of duets from Michael Jackson and Freddie Mercury are set to come out this fall, according to members of Mercury's band Queen. Guitarist Brian May and Drummer Roger Taylor promised "something for folks to hear" in two months, according to media reports. Jackson and Mercury recorded three tracks at Jackson's Encino, California home in 1983. The sessions never went further and the music was not released. Until now, that is. The King of Pop died in 2009 at age 50 after suffering cardiac arrest linked to his drug dependency. ... Full Story | Top |
| Spike Lee's 'Oldboy' remake starring Josh Brolin pushed back to November Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:45 PM PDT  By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Spike Lee's "Oldboy" has been delayed one month and will now open on Wednesday, November 27 rather than October 25. FilmDistrict is handling domestic distribution for the revenge thriller, which is a remake of Chanwook Park's South Korean classic. Josh Brolin stars alongside Elizabeth Olsen, Sharlto Copley, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Imperioli, Lance Reddick, Max Casella, Rami Malek and James Ransone. Story follows a man held captive in a motel room for 20 years who has several days to figure out who kidnapped him and why. ... Full Story | Top |
| TCA: Arsenio Hall's late-night strategy? 'I just have to be better than one cat that's out there' Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:44 PM PDT By Jethro Nededog LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Arsenio Hall doesn't seem overly worried about taking on late night's heavy hitters with the September 9 return of his own late night talk show, "The Arsenio Hall Show." Going against Jimmy Kimmel, David Letterman and Jay Leno as he hands off to Jimmy Fallon, Hall explained how he intends to thrive. First, find those viewers who don't already have a favorite. "I know that not everybody has a late-night host," Hall told reporters at a Television Critics Association panel on Monday. ... Full Story | Top |
| TCA: Robin Williams talks Anthony Weiner, Improv Comedy at 'The Crazy Ones' panel Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:43 PM PDT  By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Robin Williams was predictably manic at the panel for the upcoming CBS comedy "The Crazy Ones" at the Television Critics Assn. press tour on Monday, launching into a variety of comical voices, leaping out of his chair and firing off a number of one-liners. He even managed to get off a joke about recently scandal-plagued New York mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner. "Hold on, I'm getting a text from Carlos," Williams cracked at one point during the panel, referring to Weiner's nom-du-sexting, Carlos Danger. ... Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: 'Lords of Dogtown' star John Robinson joins Owen Wilson comedy Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:41 PM PDT By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "Lords of Dogtown" star John Robinson has joined the star-studded ensemble cast of Peter Bogdanovich's indie comedy "Squirrels to the Nuts." Imogen Poots stars as a prostitute who gets a shot as a Broadway actress thanks to a married theater director (Owen Wilson) who falls for her. Jennifer Aniston highlights the supporting cast, which also includes Will Forte, Kathryn Hahn, Richard Lewis, Cybill Shepherd, Joanna Lumley, Debi Mazar and Bogdanovich's Oscar-winning "Paper Moon" star Tatum O'Neal. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Breaking Pointe' star Allison DeBona opens up about her impending love vs. career decision Monday, Jul 29, 2013 05:40 PM PDT By Jethro Nededog LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Balancing a romantic relationship and a professional dancing career isn't easy. "I can't believe that I even allowed it to be on television," Allison DeBona, who will be live-tweeting Monday's episode at 9/8c, told TheWrap of her current romantic situation. The star of The CW's "Breaking Pointe" had an on-again-off-again romance with fellow dancer Rex Lajos Tilton on Season 1. And in the year between seasons, the dancers broke up for good and Allison rekindled her romance and started a long distance relationship with her previous boyfriend. ... Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Hollywood donor Haim Saban defends Anthony Weiner: 'Stay in the Race' Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:39 PM PDT By Sara Morrison LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Haim Saban, among a handful of Hollywood figures who've donated to Anthony Weiner's mayoral campaign in between sex-photo scandals, still has faith that he's the best candidate to lead the biggest city in America. "I would encourage him to stay in the race," the billionaire entertainment mogul told TheWrap. Saban told TheWrap: "What Anthony Weiner has - or hasn't - done is an issue between him and his wife. ... Full Story | Top |
| TCA: 'The Millers' panel talks fart jokes, seniors with STDs Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:38 PM PDT (The story uses strong language in paragraph 6) By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The panel for Greg Garcia's upcoming CBS comedy "The Millers" at the Television Critics Association on Monday took a bawdy turn, with executive producer Greg Garcia and stars Will Arnett, Beau Bridges, Margo Martindale and J.B. Smoove weighing in on everything from the effective use of fart jokes to increased rates of sexually transmitted diseases among senior citizens. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Princess Bride' director Rob Reiner will join Cary Elwes, Jason Reitman for Academy's first live commentary Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:37 PM PDT  By Greg Gilman LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - It'll be like watching your "Princess Bride" DVD with the commentary turned on - only director Rob Reiner, star Cary Elwes and Jason Reitman will actually be in the room. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Monday morning that it had chosen the film for its inaugural live commentary event, which goes down August 15 at 7:30 at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. ... Full Story | Top |
| TCA: 'Hostages' panel promises it will answer the pilot's central question Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:35 PM PDT By Jethro Nededog LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Will the surgeon and suburban mother assigned to operate on the president in fact kill him to save her family being held hostage? That's the central question on CBS's new drama series, "The Hostages." But, upon viewing the pilot - spoiler alert! - the question isn't quite answered. Rather, she takes "Option C" as one producer at Monday's Television Critics Assn. press tour referred to the decision Toni Collette's Dr. Ellen Sanders makes in the pilot. ... Full Story | Top |
| Andy Fickman to direct romantic comedy 'The Exes' for CBS Films Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:34 PM PDT By Jeff Sneider LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Andy Fickman ("Parental Guidance") has signed on to direct the romantic comedy "The Exes" for CBS Films, the studio announced on Monday. Based on Jane Moore's book "The Ex Files," story follows a groom's ex-girlfriend who reluctantly agrees to attend his destination wedding for closure and their friendship. Once there, she finds herself trapped at an island resort with all of the couples' exes. Old flames are rekindled, new romances are born and complete chaos ensues. Kelly Bowe has written the screenplay and Leonard Goldberg will produce the movie. ... Full Story | Top |
| TCA: 'Sharknado' vs. 'Under the Dome' and the limits of Twitter Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:34 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Are we worrying too much about social media? TV executives think maybe we are. It's fashionable to use Twitter, Facebook and GetGlue interactions to measure buzz about shows. But those interactions don't always pay off in terms of viewers. CBS Corp. chief research officer David F. Poltrack laid out the case Monday that we may be worrying too much about what people are tweeting, using two extreme examples: SyFy's "Sharknado" and CBS's "Under the Dome. ... Full Story | Top |
| Charlize Theron pairs with Bunim/Murray for fashion-based reality show Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:32 PM PDT  By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Charlize Theron is about to get real with Bunim/Murray Productions. Theron's Denver & Delilah production company is pairing with Bunim/Murray for a reality series "Whose Closet Is it Anyway?" The series, which is based on a format from Keshet International that first aired in Israel in 2011, explores what would happen if someone swapped your entire closet with somebody else's. In each episode, three women, each with a distinct style and a strong fashion sense, trade their entire closets and have to cope with each of the other women's wardrobes. ... Full Story | Top |
| New York man pleads guilty to 'Rebecca' Broadway scam Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:30 PM PDT By Erin Geiger Smith (Reuters) - In a case prosecutors called "stranger than fiction," a former New York businessman pleaded guilty on Monday to defrauding the producers of Broadway production "Rebecca - The Musical" by creating an elaborate scheme involving fake overseas investors. Mark Hotton, 46, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and agreed to forfeit $500,000 and to pay an additional $500,000 to the victims of his schemes. The guilty plea included a second scheme in which he sought to defraud a Connecticut-based real estate company. ... Full Story | Top |
| Box office: 'Pacific Rim' sequel could hinge on China Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:29 PM PDT By Todd Cunningham LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "Pacific Rim" hits China on Wednesday, a watershed territory for Guillermo del Toro's monsters-and-giant robots epic. Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures' 3D spectacular is at $84 million after three weeks domestically and may or may not clank its way to $100 million. But international was always seen as most important for the $180 million "Pacific Rim," and China the most significant foreign market. "Pacific Rim" has taken in $140 million abroad already. ... Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: New HFPA president talks reform, new membership rules, racism Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:27 PM PDT By Sharon Waxman LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Dutch photographer Theo Kingma won a decisive victory at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association last month, after campaigning to be the group's president on a platform of reform. He and his vice president, Lorenzo Soria, sat down with TheWrap for their first post-election interview to address the HFPA's reputation, their hopes for change and their lawsuit with Dick Clark Productions over the Golden Globes. Congratulations on your election. ... Full Story | Top |
| Paramount to release ‘World War Z' in IMAX 3D for one week Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:26 PM PDT  By Lucas Shaw NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Paramount has remastered the Brad Pitt zombie blockbuster "World War Z" for a special IMAX release, the studio announced on Monday. The film has screened in 3D domestically and IMAX overseas, but not in IMAX in the United States. The film will run on domestic IMAX screens for one week beginning August 2. Produced by Paramount Skydance Productions, Hemisphere Media Capital and GK Films, "World War Z" has already grossed more than $460 million over the past five weeks. ... Full Story | Top |
| Sony Pictures Classics acquires Penn & Teller documentary about Vermeer Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:21 PM PDT By Brent Lang LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Teller, the shorter and silent half of the popular magic act duo Penn & Teller, is not commonly associated with Dutch Masters. However, the Vegas entertainer is diving deep into one of art history's great mysteries in "Tim's Vermeer," a new documentary that Sony Pictures Classics announced Monday it has acquired worldwide rights to distribute. ... Full Story | Top |
| Tom Hanks' 'Captain Phillips' to open New York Film Festival Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:20 PM PDT  By Steve Pond LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Paul Greengrass' "Captain Phillips" will be the opening-night selection at this year's New York Film Festival, the Film Society of Lincoln Center announced on Monday. The film, which stars Tom Hanks as the captain of a ship captured by Somali pirates, is one of the most anticipated fall releases and is considered a major awards contender. It continues in a recent vein of high-profile NYFF opening nights, which in recent years has included David Fincher's "The Social Network" and Ang Lee's "Life of Pi. ... Full Story | Top |
| TCA: 'Under the Dome' renewed for next summer: Stephen King to write premiere Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:18 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - "Under the Dome" has been renewed for next summer, and Stephen King will write the second season premiere. CBS President Les Moonves made the announcements at the Television Critics Association summer press tour Monday. He filled in for CBS entertainment president Nina Tassler because a friend of Tassler's died Sunday. "Under the Dome" has been a summer hit for CBS, scoring 13.7 million total viewers in its June premiere. Moonves said the show's viewership went up above 20 million viewers, including streaming and DVD. ... Full Story | Top |
| TCA: Les Moonves 'absolutely appalled' by 'Big Brother' racism Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:17 PM PDT  By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - CBS President Les Moonves says he's been "absolutely appalled" by some of the racist comments on "Big Brother" this season. Moonves filled in for CBS entertainment president Nina Tassler at the Television Critics Association summer press tour Monday because a friend of Tassler's died Sunday. He said the watches every episode of "Big Brother," which is hosted by his wife, Julie Chen. "Obviously my wife would kill me if I didn't," he joked. ... Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Digital domain's new CEO on exporting Hollywood VFX to China Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:16 PM PDT By Brent Lang LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - For the past 20 years, Digital Domain has created on-screen magic by aging Brad Pitt backwards or sinking historic ocean liners, but a different kind of alchemy is needed to survive in the cutthroat world of visual effects. After emerging from bankruptcy last fall, the Oscar-winning studio behind "Titanic" and "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" finds itself with its second owner in less than a year - and it's looking to Asia for its salvation. ... Full Story | Top |
| CBS delays 'The Millers' premiere a week for 'Big Bang Theory' episode Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:14 PM PDT By Tim Kenneally LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - CBS has pushed back the series premiere for its new comedy "The Millers" by a week to make room for a second new episode of "The Big Bang Theory" following that show's season premiere, the network said Monday. The series premiere of "The Millers," which had originally been scheduled for September 26 at 8:30, will now air October 3 at 8:30. "The Millers," which stars Will Arnett, follows newly divorced reporter Nathan, whose mother moves in with him when her own 43-year marriage to his father ends. ... Full Story | Top |
| Louisiana keeps 'Hollywood of the South' nickname by surviving political assault Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:13 PM PDT By Brent Lang LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Over the coming months, Louisiana will host two big-budget films, "Pirates of the Caribbean 5" and "The Fantastic Four." They're just the showiest carpetbaggers to a state that has recently earned the moniker "Hollywood of the South." Also hitting the Delta will be a new take on the "Left Behind" series starring Nicolas Cage, the third season of "American Horror Story" and the sequel to "Hot Tub Time Machine." But it almost wasn't so, after some state politicians mounted an effort to scale back Louisiana's production incentives. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Breaking Bad' review: is this what meth is like? Monday, Jul 29, 2013 04:11 PM PDT By Tim Molloy NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - I'm not going to spoil anything about the return of "Breaking Bad," except this: It's as good as it's ever been. As good as any TV show has ever been. My revealing anything about the plot would be a missed opportunity for you and an act of foolish egotism by me. Because nothing I could put into sentences would deliver the crackling euphoria the show creates with each jittery montage, wincing fight, scream-at-the-screen flashforward. "Breaking Bad" tells its story better than anyone else could. ... Full Story | Top |
| Take that, dragon: Siegfried blasts Fafner for Wagner's 200th Monday, Jul 29, 2013 03:38 PM PDT  By Michael Roddy BAYREUTH, Germany (Reuters) - It was bound to happen in a staging of Richard Wagner's "Ring" cycle someday, but few would have expected that in Wagner's own opera house in his bicentenary year his hero Siegfried would kill the fierce dragon Fafner with a machinegun instead of a magic sword. Crocodiles also copulated on stage during the love duet between Brunnhilde and Siegfried - something the famed composer never had in his libretto. ... Full Story | Top |
| Time Warner Cable raises Internet modem fees for customers Monday, Jul 29, 2013 03:04 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Time Warner Cable said on Monday it has started notifying customers that it is raising the monthly fees to rent modems from the cable company. Subscribers on Time Warner's Cable's most popular Internet plan began paying $3.95 a month last November to lease a modem. The fee will rise to $5.99 a month starting in the next billing cycle for customers. The higher rate could generate an additional $150 million in revenue this year, according to ISI analyst Vijay Jayant. Time Warner Cable has roughly 12 million customers. ... Full Story | Top |
| Actress Leah Remini gives clues about Scientology split Monday, Jul 29, 2013 02:32 PM PDT  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. actress Leah Remini has offered clues about why she left the Church of Scientology, telling People magazine no one is going to tell her how to think or who she can talk to. Up until now the actress known for her role in the CBS comedy "King of Queens" gave little explanation for her split after three decades with the church that lists actors John Travolta and Tom Cruise among its members. In a statement this month after the New York Post newspaper broke the story, Remini, 43, thanked fans and colleagues for their support but did not mention the Church of Scientology. ... Full Story | Top |
| CBS, Time Warner Cable extend deadline for new agreement Monday, Jul 29, 2013 02:15 PM PDT  (Reuters) - Time Warner Cable Inc and CBS broadcast network, which are locked in a battle over fees the cable company pays to carry CBS programming, said they would negotiate until 8 p.m. on Monday, at least temporarily averting a blackout in some large cities. The deadline had been 5 p.m. This is the second time in two weeks they have extended the deadline. Analysts have estimated that 3.5 million Time Warner Cable customers could lose access to CBS's broadcast network if a new deal is not reached. ... Full Story | Top |
| CBS renews Stephen King sci-fi series 'Under the Dome' Monday, Jul 29, 2013 01:26 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Under the Dome," the television science-fiction series based on a Stephen King novel, has been renewed for a second season, U.S. broadcast network CBS said on Monday. The series, which chronicles the life of a small town that is cut off from the outside world by a giant impenetrable dome, has attracted an average of about 12 million viewers per episode, making it the top scripted series of the summer in the United States. ... Full Story | Top |
| Fox targets $1 billion for 'Simpsons' sale to cable, stations: source Monday, Jul 29, 2013 01:21 PM PDT (Reuters) - Twentieth Television, a unit of Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox, plans to market reruns of the Fox network's long-running animated comedy "The Simpsons" and is targeting a package of up to $1 billion, a person with knowledge of the plans said on Monday. The studio first syndicated the show featuring Bart and Homer Simpson to TV stations in 1998. The new deal would license reruns to stations and cable channels at the same time, the person said. Entering its 25th season, "The Simpsons" has 530 episodes, a number that will grow when its new license agreement starts. ... Full Story | Top |
| AP, news aggregator Meltwater end copyright dispute Monday, Jul 29, 2013 01:10 PM PDT By Bernard Vaughan NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Associated Press and news aggregator Meltwater News Service have ended their copyright dispute, which had drawn close scrutiny within the media industry because of its potential impact on how news is distributed online. The AP had accused Meltwater, a subscriber-only electronic clipping service, in a lawsuit early last year of copying "substantial infringing excerpts" of its stories and delivering them to corporate customers. In a filing on Monday in U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Real Housewives' New Jersey couple facing fraud charges Monday, Jul 29, 2013 01:01 PM PDT (Editor's note: Please be advised that first sentence contains language that may offend some readers) By Emily Flitter NEW YORK (Reuters) - She was called a "dumb ass" on national television on Sunday, but things got worse for reality TV "Real Housewife" Teresa Guidice on Monday when she and her husband, Giuseppe, were charged with fraud and tax evasion. The two cast members of "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" were indicted in U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
| Radio show personality Kidd Kraddick died of cardiac arrest: coroner Monday, Jul 29, 2013 12:49 PM PDT By Francesca Trianni (Reuters) - Popular radio and TV host David "Kidd" Kraddick, the host of the syndicated show "Kidd Kraddick in the Morning", died of cardiac disease, according to the deputy coroner of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. The Texas-based host whose program aired on dozens of radio stations across the United States, passed away on Saturday at a golf tournament held to raise money for his foundation, Kidd's Kids, according to a joint statement from the morning show and its syndicate, YEA Networks. ... Full Story | Top |
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