J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Expands TV Division, Hires Alex Phillips as Vice President of Television

Blake Lively might start wearing her director's cap more often!ET spoke to the 34-year-old actress on the red carpet at Michael Kors' Fall-Winter 2022 show at New York Fashion Week Tuesday night where she spoke about her recent Academy of Country Music Awards nominations and showing up for the beloved designer.«Academy of Country Music was not on my vision board,» Lively admitted about two ACM nominations for producing directing the music video for Taylor Swift's track, «I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor's Version).»As far as what or who she'd like to direct next, Blake's undecided, though she might have another Queen B in mind.«Oh my gosh, I don't know, I don't know. Tell Beyoncé to stop calling me!» Lively joked.On a more serious note, Blake, who attended the show with her sister, Robyn, shared why it was so important for her to be at Kors' show.«I mean honestly, Michael was the first person to invite me to any fashion event, and he always shows up for me, so, I think that's one of the best things you can do in life for people, show up,»  star shared.Blake wowed in a powder blue sequined two-piece bra and skirt set which she paired with a matching blazer jacket, powder blue heels and metallic white clutch. She wore her long, blonde locks down and in loose waves, only breaking her monochromatic look to rock a bold, red lip.It was an important show for Robyn, too, who said she last attended Kors' show three years ago on Valentine's Day.«I couldn't miss it, is just so special for me because I don't get to do this very often, but I did come with you how many years ago, I think it was like three years ago,» she said.

SPOILER ALERT: This story reveals major plot points from Tuesday’s Season 1 finale of ABC’s Queens.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorIn their last outings as leaders of ViacomCBS, the executive team led by Shari Redstone and Bob Bakish finally started to sound like they have a solid plan to compete in streaming.On the day ViacomCBS unveiled its corporate rebrand to Paramount, starting as of Feb. 16, the company put on a nearly three-hour virtual presentation for investors that demonstrated how much its operations have been turned inside out to focus on streaming growth opportunities.

J. Kim Murphy Original “Futurama” cast member John DiMaggio, who has long voiced the chain-smoking robot Bender on the show, has given an update on his tentative position on returning for the animated series’ upcoming revival on Hulu.DiMaggio shared his thoughts on Twitter on Tuesday evening, clarifying that he believes that the original “Futurama” voice cast should be paid more for returning for the revival.“I’ve been thinking about everything that’s been going on these past months and just to be clear, I don’t think that only I deserve to be paid more.

Charles Barkley sees his television career as a basketball commentator coming to an end.

UPDATE 2/15/2022: Allison Gollust is stepping down from her position as Chief Marketing Officer for CNN, the network announced on Feb. 15. Jason Kilar, the CEO of the network’s parent company WarnerMedia, made the announcement of Allison’s resignation in a memo to the staff.

Britney Spears found a new dancing buddy! The 40-year-old introduced fans to her adorable new puppy Sawyer with one of her signature Instagram videos. Her video started off with a closeup of her adorable new pup. Sawyer laid down and gave his best puppy dog eyes to the camera. “Geez …. can you have two loves of your lives because he comes in second !!!!  I’m introducing the new edition to my family,” she wrote in the caption. “his name is Sawyer and he’s a white Australian shepherd with blue eyes !!!!! I found him in Maui like a dream and took him home with me immediately.”

Scarlett Johansson, 37, is looking amazing in her latest ad pics! The actress posed as one of David Yurman’s first celebrity ambassadors for the jewelry brand’s “Come Closer” campaign and showed off her sexy side while she was at it. In one of the eye-catching photos, she is in bed with nothing but a white sheet wrapped around her as she stares into the camera with a serious look.

Baby blue Blake! Blake Lively arrived at the Michael Kors fashion show on Tuesday with a stunning, bright blue look for the New York Fashion Week event. The actress wore a matching light blue crop top and pencil skirt, throwing a similarly colored jacket draped over her shoulders. Blake topped off the look with light blue strappy Christian Louboutin pumps and clutch, also rocking gorgeous red lips and her signature blonde looks with the outfit.

Trigger Warning: This story discusses domestic violence, murder and self harm, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.Police said in a statement that Glen, who is being treated for non-life-threatening injuries at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, was charged with one count of “murder, arson and unlawful stalking”.Glen Tipler (38) was known for posting storm chasing videos online.Police will allege that on February 9, 2022, around 11 pm,  “a fire was deliberately lit at a Leichardt Street residence causing the death of a 21-year-old Coomera man.”On February 9, Queensland Fire and Emergency Service were called after neighbours heard a smoke alarm go off and saw smoke coming from the Leichardt Street address where Glen lived. The police found Adam’s body inside the residence.The same night around 11.50 pm, police were called to a Pioneer Road, Sheldon residence, after a man reported that his work colleague Glen had turned up at his house with significant burn injuries.

Manchester United could face competition from Arsenal for the signing of Christopher Nkunku this summer, according to reports.

Chris Hemsworth to share a hilarious Valentine’s Day post. The actor took to social media to wish his wife, Elsa Pataky, the best with her other “love.” Hemsworth shared a picture of Elsa kissing a kangaroo.

Johnny Depp is now the proud recipient of Serbia’s medal of honour, presented to him by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić in Belgrade Tuesday.

Murray Bartlett is sharing all the secrets of his mustache on The Late Late Show with James Corden.

The “Sex and the City” sequel “And Just Like That…” has wrapped the first season but the conversation about Miranda Hobbes’ storyline keeps going.

Every time we think we see a little development for Kanye West, it’s one step forward and two steps back.

Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) has announced that its 70th anniversary edition in August will include the debut of the annual MIFF Film Competition. Already the Southern Hemisphere’s largest and longest-running film festival, MIFF will now also offer one of the world’s most substantial festival prize pools.Initially comprising three awards, the MIFF Film Competition‘s flagship prize will be the AUD$140,000 (approx.

“I don’t want to die on TV. I want to die on the golf course or somewhere fishing. I don’t want to be sitting inside over [by] fat-ass Shaq [waiting] to drop dead,” said NBA Hall-of-Famer Charles Barkley of his tenure on TNT’s Emmy-winning Inside the NBA.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterWhen it comes to Freeform’s young adult-oriented programming, “relatable” is the name of the game.Network president Tara Duncan, who stepped into the top spot at Freeform last June — and no thanks to the pandemic, has still not set foot in the network’s Burbank offices during her tenure — sees the cabler as a destination for stories that “authentically reflect and speak to the Gen Z and millennial experience.”“I really have a priority of making that seen both in front of and behind the camera,” she told Variety. “I think what we have in this latest slate of shows are stories that I think are really going to resonate with the audience because they’re tapping into something that feels really true, and real.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterYakko, Wakko and Dot aren’t done with their Hollywood comeback yet.Ahead of its second season premiere later this year, Hulu’s “Animaniacs” reboot is already getting renewed for a third season, announced the Disney-owned streaming service at its Television Critics Assn. press tour day.The ’90s animated series, which ran for five seasons from 1993 to 1998, came back to the small screen last fall after 22 years off the air, skewering and satirizing everything from modern-day politics to the Olympics to, of course, the entertainment industry.Steven Spielberg is continuing on as executive producer of “Animaniacs,” with Sam Register, President, Warner Bros.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterIn a bid to further streamline its internal operations, WarnerMedia is merging the executive teams for production and business affairs at HBO and HBO Max.As part of the move, HBO veterans Janet Graham Borba and Susanna Felleman will expand their duties, with Borba becoming executive vice president of production and Felleman becoming executive vice president of business affairs for the prestige cabler and HBO-branded streaming service.“As HBO Max moves toward the same in-house production model that’s been the heart of the HBO programming lineup for the past many years, it’s become clear that we need greater consistency across the business and production practices of HBO and HBO Max,” said Glenn Whitehead,

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterNissa Diederich, most recently the executive vice president of production for Touchstone Television (formerly Fox 21 Television Studios), has been named head of production at 20th Television in the wake of the consolidation of the Walt Disney Company’s TV studios.Longtime production executive Jim Sharp, who had served as 20th’s production head and spent decades at the company previously known as 20th Century Fox, will depart the studio at the end of the year after assisting with the transition.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAmazon Studios has brought on board Greg Coleman as its global head of franchise marketing, where he will be tasked with overseeing the team in charge of TV and film fantasy and sci-fi originals — including the upcoming “Lord of the Rings” series.In leading Amazon’s genre-focused marketing, Coleman and his team will look to engage mass audiences across the world via the streaming studio’s marketing campaigns and support global expansion of the fantasy and sci-fi brands in its portfolio.The marketing exec was most recently vice president of worldwide marketing and franchise management at Walt Disney Animation Studios, where he built franchises and campaigns around major Disney properties, notably blockbuster

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterDisney has named Carlos W. Williams to head business affairs and operations for 20th Television and Freeform, where he will work with 20th TV president Karey Burke and Freeform president Tara Duncan to grow the business operations and deal-making strategies at both entities.“Carlos is a gifted dealmaker and strategist and he will be a fantastic partner to Karey and Tara as they each run and grow their already successful businesses,” said Walt Disney TV president Craig Hunegs.

As Bad Robot is ramping up its series portfolio, adding a slate of HBO Max projects to the mix, the company is bulking up its television team. Bad Robot has hired Alex Phillips as VP of Television. She joins VP Kira Innes, who joined the company a year ago, as well as Bad Robot’s Jamila Kerr, who has been promoted to VP, and Derek Martin, who has been upped to Director of Television.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterPremium cabler Starz is looking to emphasize its commitment to storytelling about and by underrepresented groups with a new inclusion initiative it is calling #TakeTheLead. The effort will include a monthly series of talks with agencies, guilds and organizations such as the ACLU of Southern California and California Film Commission and conclude with a summit.The initiative ties into the network’s programming mandate to amplify underrepresented voices, Hirsch told Variety.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterLongtime Disney/ABC exec Emily Cummins has been named president of Julie Plec’s Universal Television-based banner My So-Called Company.There, she will oversee development and produce projects for the company, including those that “Vampire Diaries” creator Plec creates and writes.“I’ve known Emily for years,” said Plec. “We’ve had a lot of good times together as we both grew up from assistants and baby execs into the established women we are today.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterParticipant has tapped Endeavor Content veteran Liesl Copland to step into the newly established role of executive vice president of content and platform strategy, where she will be tasked with designing and implementing how the company’s film and TV slate fits into the global distribution infrastructure.Copland will oversee all sales and guide the company’s strategic options for all properties, working cross-functionally with exec VPs of narrative film Anikah McLaren and Robert Kessel, and senior VP of global television Miura Kite.“Participant is an incredible company both in the content it creates and the broader service it provides to the global society as a whole,” said Copland.