Apple has finally set a release date for Will Smith’s high-profile film Emancipation, a film whose release plans were put into question after the actor’s infamous Oscars slap. The film will open in theaters on Dec. 2 and stream on Dec. 9 in time for awards season.
Apple released the first trailer and poster for the film as part of its announcement, which comes days after Smith attended the first screening for the film, which Apple and the NAACP hosted in Washington DC.
In March, Smith walked on stage during the Oscars ceremony and slapped presenter Chris Rock, who had made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
Smith, who won best actor later that night for King Richard, has been banned from attending the ceremony for 10 years and voluntarily resigned from the Academy. He is also prohibited from attending any Academy event during this time, adding a wrinkle to award season campaigning. But is still eligible to be nominated.
Amid the fallout, Netflix put the Smith movie Fast and Loose on the back burner. On July 29, Smith released a video in which he gave his most extensive remarks about the situation yet, noting, “there is no part of me that thinks that was the right way to behave in that moment.”
Antoine Fuqua directs the project, which Apple landed out of the Cannes virtual market in 2020 after a heated bidding war. It also stars Ben Foster, Charmaine Bingwa, Gilbert Owuor, Mustafa Shakir, Steven Ogg, Grant Harvey, Ronnie Gene Bivens, Jayson Warner Smith, Jabbar Lewis, Michael Luwoye, Aaron Moten and Imani Pullum. William N. Collage penned the script.
The film, based on a true story, follows Peter (Smith) a runaway slave who journeyed north, outwitting cold-blooded hunters and surviving the unforgiving swamps of Louisiana along the way. After escaping to freedom, Peter joined the Union Army. When he showed his bare back during an army medical examination, photos were taken of the scars from a near-fatal whipping delivered by an overseer on the plantation owned by John and Bridget Lyons. The Independent published the photo, known as The Scourged Back, in May of 1863. It appeared in Harper’s Weekly‘s July 4 issue and became indisputable proof of the cruelty and barbarity of slavery in America.
Emancipation was always expected for 2022, but in the wake of the Slap, rumors surfaced that Apple was considering pushing it to 2023. The release date news comes as Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio’s high profile Killers of the Flower Moon was set for 2023, leaving Apple without an awards contender for the year. The streaming service became the first to secure a best picture win, thanks to CODA, earlier this year.
Fuqua recently spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about his hopes for the film. Said the director: “I would like audiences to see the truth and be inspired by it.”
The latest trailer for Ryan Coogler’s upcoming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever sequel gives the best look yet at the new Black Panther.
The trailer, as it tells the emotional story of the loss of the late Chadwick Boseman’s character, the son king, T’Challa, also teases the next Black Panther, while not directly revealing the new protector of the African nation of Wakanda.
A mural of King T’Challa appears at one stage in the trailer, as Marvel Studios is making good on having the sequel be a tribute to the late Boseman, whose character was not recast for the sequel.
But the mystery of the trailer is: Who will be the next Black Panther?
“They have lost their protector,” Queen Ramonda, played by Angela Bassett, observes as the Wakandans come under attack after King T’Challa’s death, including from a hidden undersea nation called Talokan.
“Now is our time to strike … Show them who we are,” Queen Ramonda declares. That’s when, from the sky, swiftly descends a woman in a black suit, as the trailer teases the next Black Panther.
Wakanda Forever is the sequel to Coogler’s 2018 film that became a cultural touchstone and earned a best picture Oscar nomination. Coogler wrote a sequel for Black Panther star Boseman that pre-dated his untimely death.
Coogler and Marvel Studios then got to work on how to move forward while honoring Boseman’s legacy.
Wakanda Forever stars Lupita Nyong’o, Wright, Winston Duke, Danai Gurira, Florence Kasumba, Bassett and Martin Freeman, as well as Marvel newcomer Tenoch Huerta as Namor and Dominique Thorne as the hero Riri Williams.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is set to hit theaters on Nov. 11th.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
In this episode, we discuss week 4 of the NFL as the Jets, Chiefs, and Bills all win and we talk about the rest of the NFL games of the week. Plus we talk about the latest news about Tua Tagovailoa and what happened over the weekend. All of that plus the hottest topics in sports!
In this episode of the Box Seats Sports comedy talk show, we discuss the serious head injury of Miami Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa and how the Miami Dolphins are handling it, the loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, plus the other hot topics in sports!
See the episode below;
In this episode of Box Seats, we discuss last night’s Yankees game as Aaron Judge hits number 61, as in 61 home runs, and ties the American League home run record. We also discuss the upcoming NFL game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Miami Dolphins. All of that plus the hottest topics in sports!
Watch the episode below;
Trevor Noah is leaving The Daily Show after seven years as host.
The comedian announced the news during Thursday’s episode of the Comedy Central late-night series. He debuted as host in Sept. 28, 2015, following the departure of Jon Stewart, who had previously made the show a go-to for water-cooler conversation and must-see moments with his biting take on political debate and current events.
“I realized after the seven years, my time is up, but in the most beautiful way,” Noah told the audience Thursday. “I’ve loved hosting this show. It’s been one of my greatest challenges. It’s been one of my greatest joys. I’ve loved trying to figure out how to make people laugh even when the stories are particularly shitty on the worst days.”
Noah, the youngest of the late night hosts at just 38, explained that returning to stand-up after a two-year hiatus amid the pandemic led him to realize he wanted to continue exploring other aspects of his life. The South African-born performer, who currently spends his weekends on an immensely lucrative global tour, aptly titled Trevor Noah: Back to Abnormal, went on to thank the network and show’s team for giving him a chance when he was then-unknown in the States.
Although he did not specify a timeline for how soon he would leave, he made it clear it would not happen immediately and that details were still be ironed out. “I’m not disappearing — don’t worry. If I owe you money, I’ll still pay you,” Noah quipped.
The news comes at a time of significant change for the late-night landscape. Earlier this year, James Corden announced he would be stepping down as host of CBS’ The Late Late Show in 2023, while Showtime’s Desus & Mero and TBS’ Full Frontal With Samantha Bee have also recently ended their runs. The same could be said for Noah’s network, Comedy Central, which is far from the comedy hub it was when Noah joined.
To be sure, Noah’s star has continued to rise since starting on The Daily Show, which initially featured host Craig Kilborn when co-creators Madeleine Smithberg and Lizz Winstead launched the show in 1996. He emceed the White House Correspondents Dinner in April, the same month in which he marked his second consecutive appearance as host of the Grammy Awards. He is also a best-selling author, with a cadre of entertainment projects in various stages of development.
His stint on The Daily Show gained momentum with the 2016 election of former President Donald Trump, bringing a ratings bump and awards clout that the series, previously an Emmys darling during Stewart’s era, had lost after the transition. In a 2019 THR cover story, Noah identified election night, 2016, and what he called “Hurricane Trump” as the moment that he felt he came into his own, and stopped feeling like Stewart’s replacement.
Having come of age under apartheid, the comic recognized on that evening that what seemed horrifying to so many in the Comedy Central audience felt familiar to him. Noah saw in Trump both the attributes and governing style of an African dictator, which he showcased in a Daily Show segment that swiftly went viral. For the first time since he began, Noah’s outsider perspective felt like an asset. In the years since, his iteration of the show has earned a Peabody and five consecutive Emmy nominations for best variety talk series.
The show has long been known as a springboard for top comedy talent, having played a part in the ascension to stardom of such notable alums as Bee, Oliver, Stephen Colbert, Ed Helms, Steve Carell, Hasan Minhaj and Jessica Williams. Its current roster of correspondents includes Roy Wood Jr. , Desi Lydic, Ronny Chieng, Michael Kosta and Dulcé Sloan.
Though The Daily Show is hardly the linear draw it was in Stewart’s era, or even Noah’s earlier days, it did remain something of a crown jewel at Comedy Central during a period of seismic change and diminishing power. Original offerings at the Paramount-owned network are a fraction of what they once were, and as the company shifts more and more attention to its streaming efforts, the question of who replaces Noah is just as pressing as where and how The Daily Show might be presented moving forward.
The timing of Noah’s departure is, at least, not as dramatic as that of his predecessor in 2015. Stewart left The Daily Show on the eve of a presidential election year, one that proved to be (at the time, anyway) the most fraught in U.S. history. The Daily Show, like all politically skewing late-night offerings, gets a viewership boost during election years — and The Daily Show initially suffered from having to introduce a then-unknown to audiences looking for a familiar face to chronicle the Trump-Clinton election. With Noah likely staying put through the midterms, producers have more of a runway to get someone situated in the new role ahead of 2024.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
A Black Lady Sketch Show is a narrative series set in a limitless magical reality full of dynamic, hilarious characters and celebrity guests. The show presents sketches performed by a core cast of black women, including Robin Thede, Ashley Nicole Black, Quinta Brunson, and Gabrielle Dennis.
Watch a sketch titled Chris And Lachel: Exit Row‘ below;
Marvel’s “Armor Wars,” originally planned as a TV series for Disney+, is being redeveloped as a feature film.
“Armor Wars” will star Don Cheadle, reprising his MCU role of James “Rhodey” Rhodes, a.k.a. War Machine. The project is based on the Marvel Comics series of the same name that follows Rhodes as he must face what happens when Tony Stark’s tech falls into the wrong hands. Beyond that, plot and casting details remain scarce, though comic book villains that could potentially appear include Stilt-Man, the Crimson Dynamo and Justin Hammer, who was played by Sam Rockwell in “Iron Man 2.”
Yassir Lester, who was originally set as the series’ head writer, remains attached to write the project.
NBC has given a series order to an untitled comedy pilot written by Mike O’Malley.
The multi-cam series follows Jim (Jon Cryer) and Julia (Abigail Spencer), who, after an amicable divorce, decide to continue to raise their kids at the family home while taking turns on who gets to stay with them. Navigating the waters of divorce and child-sharing gets more complicated for Jim when Trey (Donald Faison), the owner of his favorite sports team, enters the picture and wins Julia’s heart.
Also starring are Finn Sweeney and Sofia Capanna as Jim and Julia’s kids, Jimmy Jr. and Grace, respectively.
O’Malley and Cryer both serve as executive producers along with Tom Werner, Wyc Grousbeck, Emilia Fazzalari and George Geyer. (Werner is the owner of the Boston Red Sox, and Grousbeck is the owner of the Boston Celtics.) Lionsgate TV and Universal Television co-produce the series.
O’Malley is best known as an actor, with roles including Jimmy Hughes in “Yes Dear,” Burt Hummel in “Glee” and most recently, Sam Roche in “Snowpiercer.” Other prominent on-screen credits include “My Name is Earl,” “My Own Worst Enemy,” “Justified” and “The Good Place.” As a writer and producer, O’Malley has worked on “Shameless” and “Survivor’s Remorse.” Currently, he serves as showrunner and executive producer of “Heels,” a Starz drama about pro wrestling on which he has also starred in the recurring role of Charlie Gully. He is repped by CAA, Stride Managment, and Lichter Grossman.
Source: Variety
In an Instagram Live stream, DaniLeigh has addressed claims that she had comedian B. Simone pulled from her episode of Wild ‘N Out.
“It was never a demand,” she said, admitting that she has some issues with Simone. “I don’t know why the blogs are putting out that I demanded B. Simone not to be on Wild ‘N Out. That wasn’t the case. Wild ‘N Out asked me, I love Wild ‘N Out shows, I’ve always supported Nick [Cannon], I always supported the comedians on the show.”
Shortly before she addressed the situation, Hollywood Unlocked accused DaniLeigh of laughing off the idea that she “demanded” the removal of Simone. In an interview with Tamron Hall earlier this week, Simone revealed that DaniLeigh made the request to film her episode without her present. During the same interview, she said the singer is “not that mature” even if she “understand[s]” why she made the request.
“Me and B. Simone are not cool. So, I just—my team asked if she doesn’t do the episode that I do, respectfully. It was never anything to be like, ‘I’m a diva, I don’t want’—I thought it’d be more mature to not have us sitting next to each other on a show, making it mad awkward and uncomfortable,” DaniLeigh explained. “I’m protecting my peace. I’m protecting my heart on the situation. It wasn’t petty. She was actually there, so I’m sure she got paid. It wasn’t to take nobody from nobody’s pocket.”
During the same live stream, she accused Simone of making a “whole diss song” about her. She also said that she saw “text messages between” her and DaBaby, the father of her child. DaniLeigh dated the rapper in 2020, although they split in February 2021. The two welcomed a child later that year, and had a publicly messy break-up that included a dramatic confrontation on Instagram Live.
Source: Complex