Idris Elba on Playing an ‘Unusual Hero’ in ‘Hijack’ and a Potential Season 2: ‘I’m Open to It’

Dennis Quaid can thank his faith for saving his life.

These are a couple dirty dogs.

Pink took a detour through Toronto’s Kensington Market while touring the world.

Venice Film Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera is refusing to row back on his decision to invite controversial movie-biz bigwigs Roman Polanski, Woody Allen and Luc Besson to the late summer event, which will take place despite the potential disruption by the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. “Luc Besson has been recently fully cleared of any accusations. Woody Allen went under legal scrutiny twice at the end of the ’90s and was absolved,” Barbera said in a new interview with Variety.

Anna Tingley If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. If Instagram is to be trusted, it seems that over the last month everyone has cashed in their two weeks PTO for a European vacation.

“Eras Tour” has attracted enough fans to help boost hotel and restaurant revenue in cities across the world, and even contribute to concert ticket inflation, a phenomenon that some economists have termed “Swiftflation.”“Recently, Taylor Swift became the very first woman in history to have four albums in the top 10 simultaneously, including this week’s number one,” the company’s chief executive, Lucian Grainge, told analysts on a conference call.Universal Music’s merchandising revenue grew 12% to 157 million euros ($173.77 million) in the April-June period, also fueled by a strong performance from Swift, the group said.This more than offset a decline in Universal Music Group’s touring revenue from the outsized growth recorded in 2022 as COVID-19 touring bans were lifted, it added.Total revenue was 2.7 billion euros in the quarter, while its margin on adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) stood at 21.9%, the company reported.Universal Music expects recent price increases at Spotify to boost revenue starting from the fourth quarter and into 2024, its chief financial officer, Boyd Muir, said on the conference call.Spotify had on Monday raised prices for its premium plans across several countries including the US and Britain.Major labels like Universal Music grab the overwhelming majority of Spotify’s revenue and are the main beneficiaries of the streaming firm’s strong user growth.Apart from Swift, other top sellers in the second quarter were South Korean boy band Seventeen, King & Prince, Morgan Wallen, and Stray Kids, Universal Music said.

Jordan Moreau Michael J. Fox came face to face with his younger self on Tuesday. Like a time-traveling scene out of “Back to the Future,” the star met Casey Likes, the young actor who plays Marty McFly in the new Broadway musical adaptation of the classic film.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Disney’s remake of “Haunted Mansion” opens on Friday in theaters, where it’ll face an opponent that’s much scarier than the threatening ghosts that populate the world of the supernatural comedy. That foe would be the collective force of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” which have spent the past week putting box office projections to shame. “Barbenheimer,” as the inextricably linked movies have been nicknamed, will loom large over North American charts as Disney’s new family film aims for third place.

Sandringham Flower Show in Sandringham Park, Norfolk, England, on Wednesday by way of a horse-drawn carriage.Camilla, 76, donned a belted, pleated dress featuring a garden-appropriate green, ivy-leaf pattern, while Charles, 74, sported a dapper tan suit and fedora, a red patterned tie and a complementary pocket square — as well as dark shades for the sunny day. The former Duchess of Cornwall was spotted sniffing and picking a colorful bouquet of florals, while Charles was seen chatting with a group of onlookers, even chuckling as they spoke.

William Earl Variety and Rolling Stone have launched a digital content hub for the Truth Seekers Summit, presented by Showtime, featuring reporting that digs underneath the surface to reveal what’s hidden, what happened and what might come next. The hub, which features stories on documentaries of all genres by both outlets, will continue to update throughout the summit, which will take place in New York City and virtually on August 2, 2023.

posted Monday and has already clocked nearly 2 million views, shows the “Single Ladies” singer at Soldier Field in Illinois, belting her hit “1+1” from her 2011 album “4.” Then, Ms. Knowles-Carter, 41, can be seen gesturing to members of the stage crew to turn the fan on.

Sinéad O’Connor has died at the age of 56, the Irish Times reports.According to The Guardian, in a statement, the singer’s family said: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad. Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.”Born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O’Connor in Dublin on 8 December 1966, she rose to fame in the late 80s with her debut album ‘The Lion And The Cobra’.Throughout her career, O’Connor released 10 studio albums, with her cover of Prince‘s ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ reaching worldwide acclaim and was named the Number One world single in 1990 by Billboard.No cause of death has been revealed.The news of her passing comes a year after her son Shane, 17, took his own life in January 2022 after escaping the hospital while on suicide watch.

Ozzy Osbourne has shared a health update after cancelling his headlining slot at the Power Trip festival later this year.The “Prince Of Darkness” was set to perform in Indio, California this October alongside headliners Metallica, AC/DC and Guns N’ Roses. But a statement shared by the metal legend explained that he was not ready to perform due to his health issues.“Unfortunately, my body is telling me that I’m just not ready yet and I am much too proud to have the first show that I do in nearly five years be half-assed,” Osbourne wrote in the statement.Speaking to his co-host, Billy Morrison, on SiriusXM’s Ozzy Speaks, Osbourne shared that he had recently had a blood clot filter removed from one of his arteries.“When I had the blood clots in my legs, they put a filter in your artery to stop the blood clots going to your heart and your brain,” Osbourne shared.

Barbie movie.The broadcaster recently shared his thoughts on his TalkTV show Piers Morgan Uncensored, and in an op-ed for the New York Post.In the former, he shared a tweet stating: “I thought feminism was about equality…Why does empowering women have to be about trashing men?” along with clips from the show featuring his thoughts.In his op-ed in the latter, he added: “If I made a movie mocking women as useless dunderheads, constantly attacking ‘the matriarchy’, and depicting all things feminist as toxic bullshit, I wouldn’t just be canceled, I’d be executed.”"I thought feminism was about equality…"Why does empowering women have to be about trashing men?"Piers Morgan questions the Barbie movie's 'anti-patriarchy' message.@piersmorgan | @TalkTV | #PMU pic.twitter.com/Z66NlbjNYp— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) July 24, 2023.@piersmorgan: If I made a movie that treated women the way Barbie treats men, feminists would want me executed https://t.co/arlrTRyK91 pic.twitter.com/6jCInWDUUw— New York Post (@nypost) July 24, 2023Morgan continued: “Head Barbie rides to the rescue by seizing back control and driving the hapless Kens back to being subservient saps to the women again. To which my response is: Why? I thought the whole point of feminism is that women wanted equality with men, not a complete reversal of the perceived unequal social power structure.“I don’t know any woman, other than perhaps US female soccer superstar Megan Rapinoe, who wants a world where women dominate absolutely everything – and men are reduced to dim-witted doormats barely capable of changing a light bulb.”His comments drew criticism on Twitter with one user writing: “Lol.

Anti-Flag have released a statement regarding the political punk band’s sudden split without any form of explanation.Last week (July 20), the band split up and deleted all of their official social media accounts and website. The news came suddenly and unexpectedly.

Kate Walsh tried out the viral TikTok aging filter — and didn’t love the results.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell suddenly froze up while giving remarks during a press conference on Wednesday, raising concerns about his health after suffering a concussion earlier this year.

Amanza Smith, one of the stars of Selling Sunset, has signed with Key Talent Management in all areas including unscripted, developments and social media.

Keith Richards had a special message for his Rolling Stones bandmate Mick Jagger on his 80th birthday Wednesday.

The Cleveland Guardians have found themselves in a rough spot all of this season. There have been a few pillars of light though, and one of those pillars is Josh Naylor. The first basemen and DH has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball all season long.

Follow OK! on Threads here: https://www.threads.net/@ok_mag Sinéad O'Connor has died at the age of 56.The iconic singer's family told Irish media that they were "devastated". In a statement, they said: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad. “Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.” Sinéad is known to have suffered years of mental health battles – she said they were as a result of being physically and sexually abused by her mother as a child.The singer first shot to fame in 1990 with an emotional cover of Prince's song, Nothing Compares 2 U.

Idris Elba is addressing those James Bond casting rumors and the public’s reaction to them.

Idris Elba has complicated feelings about all those James Bond casting rumours.

next contender to be James Bond — but Idris Elba didn’t feel very suave filming his new Apple TV+ series “Hijack.” “Some camera angles are not sexy, man – especially on a plane,” Elba, 50, told reporters at a Zoom press conference.“Let me tell you, [director] Jim Field Smith has got the camera right up my nozzle. And I’m like ‘Are you sure that’s the angle, bro?'”Elba stars in and executive-produced “Hijack,” a thriller co-created by Field Smith and George Kay (“Lupin”) that tracks a hijacked plane on its seven-hour flight en route from Dubai to London. One of the passengers, Sam Nelson (Elba), is an accomplished corporate negotiator in the business world, and tries to step up and use his smarts to save his fellow passengers. Archie Panjabi, no stranger to plane mystery shows, co-stars as Zahra Gahfoor, a counter-terrorism officer on the ground.Elba, who said that he’s 6-foot-3, was interested in exploring new territory for this role. “I’m sure it’s all subjective [and] I’m sure I’m not good looking to everyone, but … with my size and shape, all my life, it’s been like ‘Oh, you’re a big lad,'” he said. “And I’ve taken roles that feed into that.

Idris Elba may jump into action in the new TV series “Hijack”, but in real life, that wouldn’t be the case.

James Bond.The British actor, 50, has been a fan-favorite choice to play the super spy in recent years.However, due to the racial recoil he’s received about the possible role, Elba’s speculative casting has left a bad taste in his mouth.The “Luther” actor recently sat down with Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes for an episode of their “SmartLess” podcast, where he said he was “super complimented” by the Bond rumors.But the prejudiced backlash got to him.“I was like, ‘This is crazy!’ Because James Bond… We’re all actors and we understand that role. It’s one of those coveted [roles],” Elba explained.

Idris Elba is stepping out for the world premiere of his new Apple TV+ series!

Idris Elba has been one of the recurring names that fans suggest when the topic of James Bond comes up. Following Daniel Craig’s final bow as the British secret agent in No Time To Die, Elba had been keen on potentially taking over the role.

Idris Elba has said he’s been put off from playing James Bond after responses to his potential casting “became about race”.The actor, known for starring in Luther and The Wire, has often been mentioned as a favourite to take over from Daniel Craig in the role of 007.Speaking on the SmartLess podcast (via The Telegraph) with hosts Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes, Elba explained that any interest in playing the character was soured due to some of the “disgusting” reactions to the rumours.“The truth is, I was super complimented for a long time about this,” Elba said. “James Bond… it’s one of those coveted [roles].“Being asked to be James Bond was like ‘OK, you’ve sort of reached the pinnacle’.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Bond rumors have been following Idris Elba around for many years, but the actor admitted during a recent interview on the “SmartLess” podcast that he got turned off from the idea of playing 007 when the conversation became dominated by race. Back in 2015, for example, the author Anthony Horowitz notoriously wrote that Elba was “too street” to play James Bond. “The truth is, I was super complimented for a long time about this,” Elba said about originally embracing the idea about playing Bond. “I was like, ‘This is crazy!’ James Bond…We’re all actors and we understand that role. It’s one of those coveted [roles]. Being asked to be James Bond was like, ‘Ok, you’ve sort of reached the pinnacle’. That’s one of those things the whole world has a vote in.”

Idris Elba knows a thing or two about flying.

Daniel D'Addario Chief TV Critic It’s been more than 20 years since “24” first aired on Fox; its real-time conceit, with a relentless ticking clock moving characters toward collision, made it the kind of hit that’s difficult to duplicate. “Hijack,” a new drama on Apple TV+, doesn’t precisely aim for the sort of thrills and chills “24” generated, but it is indeed another real-time drama about a terrorist plot. Unfortunately, the central device doesn’t quite work, and “Hijack” ends up feeling like a flight to nowhere in particular. Here, Idris Elba plays Sam Nelson, a corporate type who finds himself at the center of international drama when his return flight from Dubai to London on the fictional Kingdom Air gets taken over by a group of armed criminals. They eventually gain control of the cockpit through blackmailing the pilot, proving their craftiness and the extent of their preparation; it falls to Sam to play quick-thinking action hero.

Lorraine Kelly made a blunder on Tuesday morning during an interview with Idris Elba - where she had to apologise to the actor.

“First-look deals are a lot of kicking tires,” Idris Elba said today, as he revealed his high-profile partnership with Apple TV+ has run down following the launch of psychological thriller Hijack.

Idris Elba, Olivia Colman, Woody Harrelson Lead King Charles III Environmental Short

K.J. Yossman Idris Elba, Olivia Colman, Woody Harrelson have banded together to help King Charles launch a new YouTube channel dedicated to the environment. RE:TV is the new platform for showcasing “sustainable solutions to the climate and biodiversity crisis,” according to the King. It is the digital extension of his non-profit, also called RE:TV, which he founded in 2020. The org has made over 100 short films about innovative environmental projects worldwide, which have previously been launched on platforms including Bloomberg and Waterbear. Now, with its own YouTube channel, RE:TV will be able to debut its content directly online.