Debbie Allen, Amber Riley Join ‘The Lower Bottoms’ Season 2 Podcast Series From iHeartMedia and Will Packer Media

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Kevin Hart’s “Die Hart” action-hero spoof is bringing in some fresh faces for Season 2 of the Roku original comedy: John Cena, Ben Schwartz and Paula Pell have joined the cast of “Die Hart 2: Die Harter,” the streaming company announced. In addition to the new cast, Nathalie Emmanuel will reprise her role in Season 2. Eric Appel returns to direct with Tripper Clancy returning as writer. Production of “Die Hart 2: Die Harter” has begun in Atlanta. The series will stream free (with ads) on the Roku Channel but a premiere date has not been set. In “Die Hart” Season 1, which co-starred John Travolta, Hart played a fictionalized version of himself who ultimately achieved his dream of becoming a bona-fide action hero. In the second season, Hart now wants to cement his legacy as the greatest action star of all time. He’s developed a concept for a revolutionary movie where the action is so unscripted and unexpected that even Kevin won’t know what’s coming next. But Kevin’s vision comes with a blind spot, and he soon finds himself the victim of an evil revenge plot, orchestrated by someone from his past. To survive, Hart must enlist the help of his favorite co-star, Jordan King (Emmanuel), his overeager assistant Andre (Schwartz), Andre’s mom Cynthia (Pell) and legendary Hollywood stuntman Mr. 206 (Cena).

Khloe Kardashian is finally ready to talk.

Naman Ramachandran Daniel Evans and Tamara Harvey will be the co-artistic directors of the U.K.’s Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), the Bard-centric troupe based in Stratford-Upon-Avon, from June 2023. Gregory Doran, who served as artistic director for a decade from 2012, decided to step down earlier this year and has taken on the role of artistic director emeritus until the end of 2023. He will direct his 50th production for the company in spring 2023. At the request of the RSC board, Erica Whyman will continue as acting artistic director until June 2023, and she will then leave to pursue a freelance career.

Not letting him have the last word!!

hoping for Toy Story 5 on the horizon can probably relax. The pair were probably just having lunch. Due to the fact that Tom Hanks and Tim Allen have been part of the Toy Story franchise for years, the pair have certainly had enough time to get to know each other.

Taking a sip of his tea, John Henshaw watches on as Her Majesty's coffin is carried through Westminster Abbey.

Sacheen Littlefeather is officially responding to The Academy‘s apology.

Sacheen Littlefeather has formally accepted an apology from the Academy for the way in which she was treated at the 45th Oscars. 

Squid Game and thought, ‘Hey, I’d be good at that’, then now’s your chance to get in on the action. The South Korean survival drama achieved astronomical success following its release on Netflix in September 2021, recently making history with an incredible 14 Emmy nominations. Starring now award-winning actor Lee Jung-jae, who portrayed the main role of Player 456 Seong Gi-hun, the show pitted cash-strapped contestants against each other in violent reinterpretations of classic playground games.

A new “Karate Kid” movie is in the works and has been dated for a release by Sony’s Columbia Pictures for June 7, 2024. No new details were shared about the film currently in development other than that it is a return of the original “Karate Kid” franchise. The original film from 1984 starred Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita and spawned two sequels with Macchio, a fourth film in 1994 “The Next Karate Kid” with Morita and Hilary Swank, and a remake in 2010 with Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor An anime series based on popular open-world role-playing game “Genshin Impact” is officially in the works. HoYoverse, the Shanghai-based game developer behind “Genshin Impact,” announced a partnership with Japanese animation studio Ufotable to develop an anime based on the RPG. It also released a three-minute “concept trailer” in announcing the project (watch below). “Let’s step into this vast magical world of adventure together!” the games company tweeted Friday. “The long-term collaboration project between Genshin Impact and ufotable has begun.” The companies did not reveal an anticipated release date for the anime series, nor does the trailer provide firm clues as to what the show’s plot may center on.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Brooke Shields is coming soon to a pair of earbuds near you with her first podcast — in which the actor, model and author explores pivotal moments in people’s lives. “Now What? With Brooke Shields,” produced by iHeartMedia, is set to launch Oct. 11, to be available on the iHeartRadio app and all major podcast platforms. In each episode, to be released weekly on Tuesdays, Shields will chat with experts, authors and celebrity guests about the things that “knocked them off their feet and what they did to get back up,” according to iHeart. “Every success and every setback is accompanied by a choice, and that choice is the answer to one question: ‘Now what?’”

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor The controversial defamation case between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard is the subject of a new movie, “Hot Take: The Depp/Heard Trial,” set to debut exclusively on the free Tubi streaming service. The film stars Mark Hapka (“Parallels,” “Days of Our Lives”) as Depp and Megan Davis (“Alone in the Dark”) as Heard. It’s set to premiere Friday, Sept. 30, on Fox’s Tubi. Melissa Marty (“Station 19”) will join Hapka and Davis as Depp’s lawyer Camille Vasquez and Mary Carrig (“Law & Order True Crime”) will portray as Heard’s lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft. “Hot Take” follows the tumultuous relationship — in and out of court — of Depp and Heard, dramatizing the two-month defamation trial that concluded June 1, with the jury finding that Heard had defamed Depp by alluding to domestic violence allegations against him in a December 2018 op-ed piece. The jury also held Depp liable for a defamatory statement made about Heard by his lawyer.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor In today’s podcast news roundup, Katy Perry’s retrospective about Elizabeth Taylor as “the original influencer” is set to hit next month; Remi Adeleke gets a two-series podcast deal with Tenderfoot TV; John Allen (aka MrBallen) hires Nick Witters as CEO of Ballen Studios and signs with UTA; and more. “Elizabeth the First,” a 10-episode podcast series narrated by Katy Perry, will premiere on Monday, Oct. 3. The series comes from Imperative Entertainment, House of Taylor, which oversees the late actor’s estate, and Perry’s Kitty Purry Productions. “Elizabeth the First” will be available on all major podcast platforms and the Imperative Entertainment Premium Channel on Apple Podcast Subscriptions. Originally, it was slated to debut this spring.)

EJ Panaligan editor NewFest, a New York-based LGBTQ+ film festival, has announced the full lineup for its 34th iteration. The 2022 edition will run from Oct. 13 to Oct. 25. With world, North American, U.S. and New York premieres for more than 130 films from 23 countries, the festival will be headlined by the world premiere of HBO documentary “Mama’s Boy” from Laurent Bouzereau as the opening night screening. Additionally, the festival will hold an advance screening for the Season 2 premiere of popular HBO series “The White Lotus.” Other high-profile screenings through the festival’s run include Michael Grandage’s love triangle film “My Policeman,” starring Harry Styles and Emma Corrin, and the stop-motion horror comedy “Wendell & Wild,” from writer-director Henry Selick. Jordan Peele co-writes, while also featuring in a lead voice role. Keegan-Michael Key inhabits the film’s other lead voice role, marking a “Key & Peele” reunion on the animated stage between the two longtime collaborators.

Quinta Brunson’s voice is hoarse. The days of pre-award festivities leading up to the Sept. 12 ceremony were frantic, starting with Variety’s Showrunners Dinner (where she swapped war stories with fellow TV creators like Dan Harmon, Danny Strong and Liz Meriwether). Then came the Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony in downtown Los Angeles, the Governors Gala and Disney’s post-Emmy celebration, which spilled into the next day. Something had to give. Yet when the “Abbott Elementary” creator and star sits down for an in-depth interview with Variety, her creative voice is clear and strong.

Andy Samberg is reuniting with “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” writer and producer Neil Campbell for a new animated series called “Digman!,” and the show is rounding out its cast. The show, which will be produced by CBS Studios alongside The Lonely Island, marks the first to be written and produced by Samberg, who also leads the voice cast alongside Mitra Jouhari (“Three Busy Debras”), Tim Robinson (“I Think You Should Leave”), Dale Soules (“Orange Is The New Black”), Guz Khan (“Our Flag Means Death”), Melissa Fumero (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”) and Tim Meadows (“The Goldbergs”).

Andy Samberg has found his voice cast for animated comedy series Digman!

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Listen up: Podimo, the Denmark-based subscription service for podcasts and audiobooks, said it secured €58.6 million (about $58.4 million) in funding, as it seeks to grow its market footprint and content lineup. The funding was led by previous investors 83North, Highland Europe and Saban Ventures, with continued participation from Chr. Augustinus Fabrikker, Heartcore and Headline. The latest round brings Podimo’s total raised to date to about €162 million ($161.5 million), the company said. Podimo did not disclose valuation but said the new capital represented an “up round,” meaning its valuation increased. Founded in 2019, Podimo said it has doubled its headcount in the past two years and currently has about 225 employees. The company plans to step up hiring with the new funding.

Oscar-winning filmmaker Laura Poitras sharply criticized the Toronto and Venice film festivals today for programming documentaries connected with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, suggesting the decision bordered on a “whitewashing” of history.

Adam Benzine Guest Contributor Oscar-winning documentarian Laura Poitras slammed the heads of the Venice and Toronto film festivals for “engaging in a kind of whitewashing” by programming glossy documentaries from the Clinton family. Her comments come as TIFF this week hosted the Canadian premiere of Poitras’s “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed,” a documentary about the artist and activist Nan Goldin, and just days after the film won Venice’s top prize, the Golden Lion. It is the rare doc to land slots at the superfecta of Venice, Telluride, Toronto and New York, and Poitras said she thought “long and hard” about whether or not to voice criticism at the same venues feting her latest work. Nevertheless, she said, “journalists need to ask hard questions.”

Red carpet date night! While the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards aims to celebrate the best of television, many stars are feeling the romance.  

The Voice is returning to NBC next week after being off the air since December 2021 and there will be some new and returning faces on the panel!

The second season of Disney+’s animated series Star Wars: The Bad Batch will premiere January 4, Dave Filoni announced Saturday at Disney’s D23 Expo.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor The dojos have mojo: “Cobra Kai” Season 5, the latest installment in the popular “Karate Kid” sequel TV series on Netflix, currently has a perfect 100% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. All 10 episodes of the fifth season, which stars Ralph Macchio and William Zabka (reprising their roles from the original “Karate Kid” movies), were binge-released Sept. 9 on Netflix. As of Friday, “Cobra Kai” Season 5 registered a 100% Tomatometer score, based on Rotten Tomatoes’ aggregation of 37 reviews. Season 1 of “Cobra Kai” also has a 100% critics score on the site, while seasons 2 and 3 have a 90% critics score and S4 clocks in at 95%. By comparison, many other recent TV premieres have Tomatometer scores in the 80s. Those include Disney+’s “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” (88%); Netflix’s “The Sandman” (87%); FX/Hulu’s “The Patient” (86%); HBO’s “House of the Dragon” (85%); and Prime Video’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” (84%).

Will Forte is getting animated.

Pixar has confirmed that Inside Out 2 is in the works and unveiled a new sci-fi-themed movie called Elio at Disney’s D23 Expo.The event is currently taking place in Anaheim, California, where many new films and highly anticipated sequels are being revealed today (September 9).Parks And Recreation’s Amy Poehler, who played Joy in 2015’s Inside Out, made an appearance at the event to share the news. Kesley Mann will direct the new film, while Meg LeFauve will write the script and Mark Nielsen will produce.According to Poehler, Inside Out 2 will be set in Riley’s – who is now a teenager – head, where she experiences brand new emotions.

Disney+ has found its Ezra Bridger. Eman Esfandi has been tapped to play the animated character in Disney+’s live-action Ahsoka series, sources have confirmed to Deadline. Lucasfilm declined comment.

Ex-Sex Pistol John Lydon went by Johnny Rotten during the 1970s golden age of punk and famously gave angry, snarled voice to the era’s anti-monarchist sentiment with the band’s scabrous musical indictment “God Save The Queen.”

Erling Haaland was begged to sign for Manchester United in a comical video which has been doing the rounds on popular social media platform TikTok. Haaland, 22, continues to set the Premier League alight with 10 goals coming from his first six appearances in the competition for cross-city neighbours Manchester City.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Amazon will bow a new laugh lead-in for its exclusive “Thursday Night Football” NFL games package, enlisting “Saturday Night Live” alum Taran Killam as the host of “The NFL Pile On” — the league’s first official comedy show. “The NFL Pile On” will premiere Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. ET on Prime Video, airing each Wednesday throughout the NFL season one day before Amazon’s “Thursday Night Football” coverage. In the half-hour show, Killam will riff on “funny and unexpected moments” from the across the NFL the week prior, from mic’d up players during pregame warmups to postgame press conference zingers, and from epic fumbles to off-the-field blunders — according to Amazon, “everything from studio shows, social media and fashion faux pas will be fair game.”

DreamWorks Animation has announced the cast, set the premiere date and unveiled the trailer for Abominable and The Invisible City, the 10-episode series inspired by the 2019 film Abominable. Alan Cumming (The Good Wife) joins Abominable alums Chloe Bennet (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Tenzing Trainor (Liv and Maddie) and Michelle Wong. All 10 episodes of Abominable and The Invisible City will premiere on Peacock and Hulu on October 5.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor In today’s podcast roundup, CNN’s Anderson Cooper delves into how to move forward after losing a love one; NPR sets “Invisibilia” Season 9 premiere date; and more. CNN anchor Anderson Cooper hosts limited-series podcast “All There Is With Anderson Cooper,” premiering Sept. 14. In the series, Cooper embarks on a “deeply personal and emotional exploration” of loss and grief and how to move forward without forgetting the people we miss. According to CNN, he began recording the podcast alone during his final weeks packing up the apartment of his mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, who died in 2019. Among his mother’s keepsakes and secret journals, Cooper found unopened boxes belonging to his father and brother, both of whom died decades ago. Feeling overwhelmed, Cooper began to record conversations with others about their experiences with grief.

Haley Kluge editor SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not watched the Sept. 6 episode of “The Bachelorette.” The first episode of “The Bachelorette”’s two-night fantasy suite event left Gabby Windey in rough shape. Johnny DePhillipo left Mexico after not being ready to get down on one knee, Jason Alabaster confessed similar hesitations to host Jesse Palmer, and Erich Schwer told Gabby that he would feel “cheated on” if she slept with other men.  But Gabby and Erich worked through his insecurities. They rehashed their fears on camera, after previously discussing them in private during their fantasy suite. While he admitted he brought it up out of a place of insecurity, Gabby was frustrated and felt pressured by the almost-ultimatum.