L.A. Film Production Booms, Approaches Record Levels

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorSpotify has suspended premium service in Russia after the country launched its war on Ukraine — a move that the audio streaming powerhouse expects to result in a loss of about 1.5 million paying customers in the first quarter of 2022.That’s according to Spotify CFO Paul Vogel, who spoke at Morgan Stanley’s 2022 Technology, Media and Telecom Conference on Wednesday. According to a Spotify spokesperson, the loss of its business in Russia is not material: The country represents less than 1% of total revenue.Vogel also alluded to the recent controversy over podcaster Joe Rogan, which has spurred calls to boycott the streamer (but Vogel didn’t identify Rogan by name).Prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Vogel, Spotify was trending ahead of its Q1 guidance of adding a net 8 million total users, including 3 million paying customers.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at LargeSPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched the Season 7 season premiere, part one, of “The Masked Singer,” which aired March 8 on Fox.He may be an ace of cakes, but Duff Goldman is not necessarily a swan of song. The Food Network star and famed baker was the first celebrity revealed on this season of “The Masked Singer,” which means the one we’re all bracing for — the unmasking of disgraced former mayor Rudy Giuliani — is still to come.Goldman’s exit kicked off Season 7 of Fox’s “The Masked Singer” on Wednesday, and his appearance on the show came with a bit of a twist: After performing, Goldman accidentally knocked off the head of his costume.Disguised as a Scottish terrier — nicknamed “McTerrier” — Goldman stumbled as he got too close to the edge of the stage. And as he reached to keep the head of his costume on, instead he accidentally pushed it off.

Mike Wass Nicki Minaj is reclaiming the narrative. After opening up a dialogue with fans in last night’s Instagram Live, the rapper sat down with Joe Budden for an exhaustive interview. While the 39-year-old steered clear of the hot-button issues that have plagued her of late, she addressed a long list of topics including plastic surgery, upcoming projects, chart manipulation, motherhood, and the state of female rap.The “Do We Have A Problem?” hitmaker was particularly transparent about the latter subject, explaining how she feels about being the blueprint and avoiding trends that many of her contemporaries jump on.

Discovery today priced $30 billion in senior unsecured notes in a debt offering to raise cash for its merger with WarneMedia.

Major League Baseball’s owners said today that Opening Day has been pushed to April 15, and the locked-out players hit back by calling that “completely unnecessary.”

The Masked Singer returned to Fox for its seventh season with a slew of good, bad and cuddly contestants.

Amy Schumer has no regrets about her decision to get liposuction!

Travis Scott is drawing the ire of Kylie Jenner‘s fans, because he just did some shady s**t involving a woman who hasn’t had the smoothest time with the KarJenner fam…

Kim Kardashian’s comments about work ethic aren’t going over too well.

Demi Lovato is drawing the attention of antiquities experts after an unboxing video they shared on Instagram Stories.

[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]

Clayton Echard is responding to criticism that he was gaslighting Susie prior to her exit from the Fantasy Suite dates in Iceland, insisting that that characterization doesn't add up, though he does feel «embarrassed.»During an interview that aired Wednesday on Ben Higgins and Ashley Iaconetti's , Clayton took issue with the accusation for several reasons, which ultimately boiled down to the fact that he never had any ill-will feelings behind the way it all played out.«It's tough because I've seen what everyone's saying and they're using some pretty descriptive terms, some pretty heavy-hitting terms that I couldn't disagree with more,» he said. «I don't agree that I was gaslighting because I looked that up, and it said gaslighting, the definition is to try and convince someone of a different reality than what is actually the true reality of the situation.»«Gaslighting,» he continued.

The Masked Singer is back!

The Masked Singer is back!

Kristin Chenoweth wears a bright yellow outfit for her early morning appearance on Today in New York City on Tuesday (March 8).

The Masked Singer is back!

Leonardo DiCaprio is showing his support for Ukraine.

Selma Blair has been granted a protective order against her ex-boyfriend, Ronald Carlson.The actress was granted the order following Carlson's arrest last month on charges of domestic violence.According to court documents obtained byET on Wednesday, Blair and Carlson were in a long-term relationship that recently came to an end. On Feb.

 hits Hulu April 14.The famous family spoke about their news series with , and shared who will and won't be on air when the show starts streaming.According to the outlet, Caitlyn Jenner will not appear in the Hulu series and Rob Kardashian won't being a main cast member either, though he may appear in a cameo.While Rob was on often in its early days and even starred in his own 2016 spinoff,, which chronicled his relationship with Blac Chyna, he's largely stayed out of the limelight in recent years, instead opting to focus on his mental and physical health and his daughter, Dream.Kourtney Kardashian's future on the series isn't as certain either, with the newly engaged mother of three telling  that became «really toxic place for me.» While she attributes burn out to wanting to step away from the show, Kourtney maintained that she's not the reason the long-running series came to an end after its 20th season.«I think that we were all ready to move on to something else,» Kourtney said.The Hulu series, described as having «more documentary style» footage, will likely be Kourtney's last foray into the reality world.«I see myself living in another city,» she said. «I don’t think I see myself filming on a show in five years.

Zac Efron isn’t going to let a little dirt get in the way of “The Greatest Beer Run Ever”.

Hey, Abbott! No, not that one. The new ABC show Abbott Elementary is partnering with Scholastic to continue a campaign to provide schools with free book fairs via bus tour.

EXCLUSIVE: Longtime Saturday Night Live cast member Pete Davidson is headlining his own comedy series inspired by his life, I have learned. Davidson is poised to play the lead in the project, tentatively titled Bupkis, which he is co-writing with his long-time friend and collaborator Dave Sirus as well as Judah Miller (Crashing). Deals are still being finalized for the series, which hails from SNL honcho Lorne Michaels’s Broadway Video and Universal Television where the company is under a deal.

Zac Efron isn’t going to let a little dirt get in the way of “The Greatest Beer Run Ever”.

Regé-Jean Page, 33, may not be in the upcoming second season of Bridgerton, but he’s still making lasting impressions at fancy events! The actor, who rose to fame in the first season of the Netflix series, attended a pre-BAFTA filmmakers dinner and party in London on March 9 and looked incredibly handsome in a classic black and white tuxedo. He posed for photos while his hands were in his pockets on the carpet of the event and showed off facial hair.

Addison Rae left her fans drooling over a sizzling Instagram snapshot once again. The 21-year-old took to social media on March 9 and shared a smoldering photo as the He’s All That actress wore nothing but a sexy fuchsia slip dress with black lace trim throughout.

Britney Spears and her fiancé Sam Asghari are the most adorable couple ever! Taking to her Instagram on Monday (March 7), the pop superstar showed off their amazing romance when she posted a clip of them dancing and packing on the PDA. “Thank you baby for always reminding me what life is about … Joy, laughter, and living… My experience was a woman’s dream,” the “Gimme More” singer, 40, captioned the video. Sam, 28, commented, “My life is a man’s dream.” Too cute!

Scott Disick, 38, and Holly Scarfone, his 23-year-old new model girlfriend, definitely had the time of their lives while vacationing in Paris! Holly, who was spotted multiple times with the Keeping Up with the Kardashians alum, recently posted a sexy lingerie shot to her Instagram with a view of the Eiffel Tower in the background. Scott was quick to comment on her pic, writing, “Where is my photo credit?” in the comments.

Clayton Echard is looking back at the way he treated one of the women during this week’s edition of “The Bachelor” with some regrets.

On-location filming is booming in Los Angeles. The third quarter of 2021 was the third-best quarter in 26 years, trailing only the pre-pandemic fourth quarters of 2016 and 2018, according to the latest report from FilmLA, the city and county film permit office. Shooting days were up 3.4% from the second quarter, and skyrocketed more than 141% from the dark days of the pandemic a year ago.

The increase from Q2 2021 is attributed to a rise in feature film shooting with 1,100 days logged this quarter, a 33.5% increase from quarter to quarter. Among the recent films shooting in L.A.