What Changed? Will Smith Drives Fans Crazy After ‘Unrecognizable’ Appearance

K.J. Yossman As BBC Studios gears up for its annual showcase, where it introduces its upcoming hot projects to international buyers, U.K.-based Jonathan Blyth, BBC Studios’ director of comedy, and Kelly Miller, BBC Studios’ Los Angeles-based senior VP of scripted strategy, sat down with Variety to discuss what’s on their comedy slate, working with streamers and the biggest challenges they’re currently facing.What do you look for in a comedy?Kelly Miller (KM): It’s all about authentic storytelling, that lived-in experience, a talent who has something to say. Those are the comedies and the shows that are most resonant with audiences around the world, but particularly here in the U.S.Jonathan Blyth (JB): Talent is very much at the heart — front and centre.

The Tinder Swindler subject Shimon Hayut has said the women in the Netflix documentary “weren’t conned”.Hayut, who also went by the alias Simon Leviev in the recent film, recently spoke to Inside Edition about the allegations levelled against him by several women who met him on Tinder.The first part of the interview aired yesterday (February 21) with a second part due to be released today (February 22), also featuring Hayut’s girlfriend Kate Konlin.“I’m not this monster,” Hayut said of the claims of The Tinder Swindler. “I was just a single guy that wanted to meet some girls on Tinder.”The Netflix documentary alleges that Hayut convinced women he was the son and heir of diamond mogul Lev Leviev, before reportedly conning them out of millions of dollars.“They weren’t conned and they weren’t threatened,” Hayut said of the women featured in the doc, and said of the claims he was the son of Leviev: “No I am not, and I never presented myself [as such].”He went on to say he didn’t “feel bad” for the women who accused him as the allegatiosn were false, and said he is “a legit businessman” in terms of justifying his current lavish lifestyle.Hayut added: “I want to clear my name, I want to say to the world, this is not true.”Victims Cecilie Fjellhøy, Ayleen Koeleman and Pernilla Sjoholm recently set up a GoFundMe page to raise money to repay their debts after being conned.“You’re probably here because you’ve heard about our story, and we appreciate you taking the time to search and find this page,” they wrote.“The past few days have been a whirlwind, and we three (Ayleen, Pernilla and Cecilie) have been completely shocked and floored by the flood of compassion and support from everyone.

Pale Waves have announced new dates for their shows in Dublin and Belfast.

Prominent Australian TV Executive and philanthropist Neil Balnaves has died aged 77 in a boating accident, his foundation has said.

America’s Got Talent judges have paid tribute to series star Jane Marczewski, who died on Sunday 19 February after being diagnosed with cancer. She was 31.

The Mysterious Girl singer celebrated Valentine's with wife Emily last week. Writing in his New magazine column Peter said : "Valentine’s for us is all about time together, we got each other a few little bits but the most special for me was the card Emily got me. " Peter added: "As part of this beautiful card, was hidden 12 things you love about your partner and she hid each one in different locations, and I had to find them.

Coronation Street star Kimberly Hart-Simpson has recently revealed she is returning to the soap.

Clayton Davis If Tom Hanks is America’s Dad, then Will Smith is the cool big brother. Smith has received some of the best reviews of his career for his performance as Serena and Venus Williams’ father in “King Richard,” which is finally hitting theaters this weekend, in addition to streaming on HBO Max.

early positive notice from critics and is poised to be a player in the upcoming awards race, but now that it’s available to the masses you may be wondering how, exactly, to watch it. Is it streaming? Is it in theaters? All your questions answered below.“King Richard” was released on Nov.

Lorraine Kelly has once again given an insight into her glamorous world of celebrity interviews and presenting. And this week, she made a special trip to Wimbledon to speak to the one and only, Will Smith.

Will Smith is celebrating the release of his new book, WILL!

Clayton Davis So have we seen everything yet?AFI Fest, which just wrapped in Los Angeles, is the final prominent film festival to unveil a handful of awards hopefuls.Lin-Manuel Miranda’s directorial debut, “Tick, Tick … Boom!,” from Netflix, premiered to strong reviews and plenty of Oscar buzz. As part of a banner year for Miranda that includes involvement in three other projects — “Encanto,” “In the Heights” and “Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It” — Miranda successfully stages a movie adaptation of a lesser-known, autobiographical musical from “Rent” composer Jonathan Larson.

Richard Williams, the controversial father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams.Director Reinaldo Marcus Green’s grand slam of a movie is an odd duck because, generally speaking, biographies tend to be made about huge names — Judy Garland, Jackie O., Tonya Harding — and their moms, dads, bosses and old flames are merely colorful side characters who come and go. Not this one. “King Richard” is about how the Williams sisters got their start, absolutely, but it’s their tenacious, quick-tempered, eccentric dad who is at the center. Richard is a helluva complex part, alternately lovable and aggravating, hilarious and scary, that’s so well-suited to Smith.

Will Smith has one of the most recognizable faces in Hollywood, but when he appeared for a virtual interview on Wednesday, some fans had to do a double-take.The Men in Black actor showed up to promote his new movie, King Richard, but it was his youthful good looks which got many people talking.MORE: Will Smith opens the doors of his Calabasas mansion for rare look inside Will appeared on a huge screen as the hosts, Zoe Ball and Jermaine Jenas, chatted to him about playing Serena and Venus Williams' father in the film. WATCH: Will's appearance on The One Show baffled fansHe wore a smart suit and flashed his famous smile during the interview, but Twitter was on fire with viewers asking, "Is that really Will Smith?"While there's no doubt he

Will Smith says he is in the most "spectacular time" of his life after his lockdown weight gain. The Hollywood actor appeared on Lorraine on Thursday morning alongside his King Richard co-stars Demi Singleton and Saniyya Sidney, where he discussed his weight gain in lockdown.

Will Smith is taking over the red table! The star is hosting this week's episode of along with Venus and Serena Williams, for an exclusive conversation about the biopic.In this exclusive clip from Wednesday's episode, Will shares that Venus and Serena, who serve as executive producers on the project, withheld whether they were going to be executive producers on the film until after they saw the finished product.«It's a complicated story to tell and we wanted our story to be something that was really...,» Serena said. «That we were proud of,» Venus chimed in.The film follows the journey of Richard Williams, played by Will, as he raises his daughters to be tennis icons.

A new generation of stars is rising.

Will Smith is one giving guy! The star spoke with ET's Kevin Frazier about what it was like to play Venus and Serena Williams' father, Richard, in the film, and why he gave everyone on set of the film a special bonus.«All I can do is my part, so it's always an honor and a pleasure for me to do my part, and everybody put in brilliant work. It was the COVID shutdowns, people really stuck with us,» Smith said about doing his part to make sure the cast and crew were fairly compensated after it was revealed that the film would be released both in theaters and on HBO Max.

King Richard finally hits theaters and HBO Max on Friday. As the actor, author, and YouTube star gears up to release his opus to the public, he hit the red carpet in LA for a big premiere event.

Will Smith has been getting candid about his family life as he promotes his new book, Will, and revealed a lesson he learnt from his youngest child during a public appearance on Tuesday night.MORE: Will Smith left in disbelief over drastic change to daughter Willow's appearanceThe Fresh Prince of Bel Air star hosted a storytelling event at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, New York, titled Will Smith: An Evening of Stories with Friends, where he recalled how he handled Willow's rise to fame."I felt like I was doing really, really well," he explained.

The entire kingdom was in the house on Sunday when Will Smith attended a screening of King Richard at the 2021 AFI Fest Closing Night at Hollywood’s TCL Chinese Theatre. Will, 53, attended the Nov. 14 event alongside his queen Jada Pinkett Smith and their two children, Jaden Smith and Willow Smith. Will looked regal in a blue suit, while Jada, 50, was stunning in an off-white dress accented with a long, flowing cape. It was an elegant display of fashion that matched well with her husband’s three-piece outfit.

Will Smith had the support of his family on his big night!

Will Smith has an incredibly supportive family and their close bond was more apparent than ever in his latest social media video.MORE: Will Smith left in disbelief over drastic change to daughter Willow's appearanceThe Fresh Prince of Bel Air actor posted footage on Instagram of himself reading a moving excerpt from his memoir, Will, where he opened up about fatherhood.In the video, the Hollywood star was surrounded by his three children, Trey, Jaden and Willow, as he read out loud his memories of becoming a first-time dad.VIDEO: Will Smith prepares to take a dive in the deepest swimming poolWill was emotional as he detailed his worries about being a good father to his newborn son, as his children comforted him.MORE: Will Smith opens up

Beyoncé's highly anticipated single, «Be Alive,» is finally here, and it was well worth the wait.The powerful ballad appears in the upcoming Will Smith-led biopic , which has him taking on the role of Serena and Venus Williams' father, Richard Williams. Much like the film details Richard's unwavering belief that his daughters will «shake up this world» as he pushes Venus and Serena to succeed despite the odds are stacked against them, Beyoncé's single is a battle cry to Black strength and perseverance.

Beyonce has a new song out!

EXCLUSIVE: Continuing the acclaim they have been receiving since King Richard debuted at the Telluride Film Festival over Labor Day weekend, Will Smith and Aunjanue Ellis have been named recipients of the 37th Annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s Outstanding Performers Of The Year Award. This is the first of several honors to be announced by the Festival which has become a must-stop on the awards circuit with their winners often going on to take the Oscar. No specific date has yet been announced for the Smith and Ellis evening but it will take place between March 2 -12, 2022 which are SBIFF’s official dates. An on stage conversation about their individual cinematic careers will lead up to the presentation.

EXCLUSIVE: Antoine Fuqua’s Apple thriller Emancipation has rounded out its cast, with Steven Ogg (Snowpiercer, Westworld), Grant Harvey (Animal Kingdom, The Crossing), Ronnie Gene Blevins (The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, Joe), Jayson Warner Smith (The Walking Dead, The Birth of a Nation), Jabbar Lewis (upcoming Amazon series The Terminal List, Adventure Force 5), Michael Luwoye (The Gifted, Prodigal Son) and Aaron Moten (Next, Disjointed) signing on.

Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith have been trending more than most celebrity couples over the last year. Jada has been unstoppable during her Red Table Talk with discussions that often get misconstrued or judged online but now Will has been making headlines adding more to the story.

Hollywood star Will Smith’s searingly honest new memoir, I, Will reveals all about the breakdown of his marriage to Jada Pinkett Smith, and how the work he did on himself subsequently has helped strengthen their bond. Men In Black star Will, 53, wed actress Jada, 50, in 1997 and the couple have kids Jaden, 23, and Willow, 21, together.

WILL. During the event, titled “Will Smith: An Evening of Stories with Friends,” the rapper-turned-actor reminded fans of his hip-hop roots with performances of his recent feature on Joyner Lucas’ “Feeling Like Will,” discussed the more personal pain points and life lessons revealed in his new book in conversation with director Spike Lee, answered impromptu shouted-out by attendees and regaled the fans with performances of classic favorites.

Will Smith's marriage to Jada Pinkett Smith has always fascinated their fans, especially as the duo has become more open about the details of their relationship in recent years. In his self-titled memoir, the 53-year-old actor gets refreshingly candid about their marriage, from the sex-filled beginnings to the tumultuous roadblocks that nearly ended their union. In the deeply personal book, Will shares how he and Jada met in their 20s and became a couple after the  actor split from his first wife, Sheree Zampino.

Will Smith has spoken about his “raging jealousy” of 2Pac in his new autobiography, Will, which was released yesterday (November 9).The actor’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, was close with the late rapper after meeting him at the Baltimore School for the Arts in the 1980s.Smith has now admitted that he felt threatened by his wife’s past relationship with ‘Pac and that his “mind was tortured by their connection”.“Though they were never intimate, their love for each other is legendary – they defined ‘ride or die,'” Smith writes in his new book. “In the beginning of our relationship, my mind was tortured by their connection.