The world, in perspective.

Outside experts warn that more research is needed before "circadian depression" can be classified as a subtype

It’s hard to single out any one song as the “secret weapon” of Chappell Roan’s “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess”; as the best pop debut of the 2020s, the entire album was pretty weaponized. But the ballad “Coffee” certainly counts as a sleeper — and Roan was not sleeping on it when […]

Disney’s ABC might be on the lookout for an incursion Fox Nation. Promos for the new “The Vow,” an original dating series led by Chris Harrison, former host of the ABC mainstay “The Bachelor,” are slated to air in local ad inventory on several ABC stations in roughly a dozen markets, according to a person […]

President Donald Trump must sit for a deposition in his defamation lawsuit filed against the BBC, the judge overseeing the case ruled. “Engaging in discovery is burdensome, but is a burden we undertake, especially if we file a lawsuit,” U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Aytch Lett said at a hearing in the case Thursday, as reported […]

Tom Hanks will star in the play “This World of Tomorrow,” marking his return to Broadway for the first time in 14 years. Hanks was last on Broadway in Nora Ephron’s 2013 play “Lucky Guy,” which earned him a Tony nomination. This time, the celebrated actor will be joined by theater veteran Kelli O’Hara, who […]

“Saturday Night Live” has set its next round of Season 52 hosts. As previously reported, Druski will headline the Nov. 7 episode — the first-ever digital content creator to headline the late-night sketch series. His episode comes ahead of the December release of his scripted Netflix series “Collect and Praise.” “SNL” has newly announced that […]

A musical based on Amy Winehouse is officially in development, Variety has exclusively learned. The project is in early days although legendary Broadway producer Catherine Schreiber, who has produced shows including “Cabaret,” “Rent” and the stage adaptation of “High School Musical,” is understood to be involved and casting is said to be underway. One source

When Christopher Nolan gathered his team of artisans for his adaptation of Homer’s epic poem “The Odyssey” he first told production designer Ruth De Jong of his plans. But the process was shrouded in secrecy because working with Nolan is an in-person process. De Jong explained, “There are no scripts emailed, sent or discussed on […]

A 17-person crew traveled to a remote atoll in the South Pacific to investigate the so-called Taraia Object. After surveying the site, the team announced that the anomaly was not a fragment of the long-lost Lockheed Electra aircraft

“Tangles” won the Grand Jury Prize at the 9th annual Animation Is Film Festival. Directed by Leah Nelson, the 2-D animated film follows a family impacted by their mother’s battle with dementia. “We loved the fluid 2D animation which uses a stark monochrome framing to bring to life the personal story of a family impacted […]

The crowning of the next James Bond is upon us. Final screen tests for Amazon MGM Studios’ new 007 are set to happen in the next week, sources tell Variety, beginning as early as Friday. Though who exactly will test is up in the air, Callum Turner and Jack Lowden appear to be in the […]

“Outlander” star Sam Heughan has been cast to star opposite Viola Davis in Paramount+’s upcoming thriller “Ascent,” set in the world of global corporate crisis and damage control. In the series, which Davis also executive produces, Heughan will play “Conal,” described as “one of Ascent Ventures top agents. A lethally charming and natural chameleon, Conal […]

The Gotham Film & Media Institute will recognize Focus Features’ “Elsinore” with a Gotham Legacy Tribute at the Gotham Film Awards on Nov. 30, honoring the film’s subject, actor Ian Charleson. The tribute, which takes place at Cipriani Wall Street in New York, will honor the film and its star Andrew Scott, screenwriter Stephen Beresford […]

Home to the world’s largest public collection of his artworks, a new pavilion at Quebec's Musée National des Beaux-Arts showcases the more than 50-year career of Riopelle, who was a key member of the avant-garde Automatistes movement

Kacey Musgraves will release a 16-song album of all-new material titled “Middle of Nowhere Vol. 2: Tex Mex Tapes” on January 15, 2027 via Lost Highway Records — just eight months after the release of Vol. 1. According to the announcement, the album picks up where Vol. 1 left off, “expanding on themes of solitude, […]

It’s been one year since indie game developer AdHoc Studio launched its now-hit episodic narrative superhero adventure game “Dispatch” — and in that time the game has attracted more than 5 million players. Now, the team behind the title (which has doubled in size since last October) has decided to celebrate its digital win in […]

President Donald Trump, who has already renamed two bodies of water after America, said he would like to redub the Atlantic Ocean as well — but that the CEO of Google pushed back on the idea. At a rally at Clemson University in South Carolina Tuesday evening, Trump told the crowd, “So we have a […]

When “The Gilded Age” premiered in 2022, the reception was warm enough. The HBO costume drama marked creator Julian Fellowes’ highly anticipated follow-up to “Downton Abbey,” bringing his eye for aristocratic quirks across the Atlantic and delivering the requisite dose of upstairs-downstairs intrigue. But the low-stakes pleasures of selecting silverware and

New achievement! “Dungeon Crawler Carl” is getting a comic series! The popular fantasy, LitRPG books by author Matt Dinniman will receive an ongoing comic book series from Vault Comics. The double-sized, 48-page first issue will launch in comic book stores beginning in January 2027. The following issues will be released monthly. The new comic will […]

“Carrie,” Amazon Prime Video’s series adaptation of Stephen King’s famous 1974 novel of the same name, has been renewed for a second season that will go beyond the events of the book. Per the official series description, “Misfit high-schooler Carrie White (Summer H. Howell) has spent her life hidden away inside the walls of her […]

Multiplatinum rapper Wiz Khalifa has signed with 10K Projects and will release his new single “The Calm,” via the label this evening. The deal sees Khalifa returning to the Warner Music Group family and reunite with his close friend and former project manager, Marsha St. Hubert, who is now co-president of 10K Projects. The rapper […]

“Obsession” breakout Inde Navarrette appeared on “The Kyle Buchanan Show” and offered up her advice to Hollywood on how to keep Gen Z audiences interested in going to movie theaters. It’s not just about original storytelling, Navarrette argued, but also assuring young moviegoers that corporate slop won’t be force fed to them on the big […]

Aamir Khan broke down onstage at the Singapore International Film Festival on Thursday as he recalled realizing, during the COVID-19 lockdown, that three decades of nonstop work had cost him years with his family. The Bollywood superstar, who was handed the festival’s Screen Icon Award by Hong Kong director Peter Chan Ho-sun, also shed light […]

Comcast is gearing up for significant job cuts in its cable and telecom business in the coming weeks, as the media conglomerate restructures ahead the expected spin-off of NBCUniversal in 2027. On the company’s third-quarter 2026 earning call, CFO Jason Armstrong said Comcast expects to take a restructuring charge of more than $1 billion in […]

On the evening of October 16, more than five million birds are estimated to have flown through Cook County, which includes Chicago. They were propelled by favorable winds brought by a cold front

Fans of both Daft Punk and Lego are about to get lucky. The electronic music duo and the toy brick brand have partnered for a new multi-platform collaboration spanning product, content and brand experiences. The partnership includes a Lego set based on the stage design from Daft Punk’s 2007 “Alive” tour, submitted on the toy […]

Seasoned Egyptian screenwriter and producer Mariam Naoum sees no shortage of creative talent in Arab television. The harder question is how to give that talent the time, development and routes to market it needs to thrive and build lasting careers. As head of the newly launched CineGouna Series, El Gouna Film Festival’s first development program […]

The TV Festival, previously known as Edinburgh TV Festival, has unveiled the first details of its inaugural event in Manchester. Set to be held for the first time in the northern city next year, the festival will keep its four-day schedule but will take place later in the month than usual. Previously the festival, which […]

Ahead of her emotional “Dancing With the Stars” tribute, Julia Stiles reached out to Heath Ledger’s former partner Michelle Williams. Speaking to Extra after the performance — which saw Stiles dance to Frankie Valli’s “I Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You” in a sweet homage to her and Ledger’s 1999 classic “10 Things I […]

Chiricahua National Monument in southeastern Arizona is now Chiricahua National Park, the 64th national park in the United States. Its striking geologic landscape and biodiversity have drawn humans for thousands of years

Jane Krakowski is heading across the pond to reprise the role of Mary Todd Lincoln in “Oh, Mary!” The Tony and Olivier winner will be back in Mary’s petticoats starting Dec. 7 at London’s Trafalgar Theatre, with her six-week run ending Jan. 16. Krakowski previously played the role on Broadway for a total of 12 […]

Some Americans lauded the 30-year-old bank robber as a Robin Hood-esque folk hero. Others castigated him as a violent criminal whose misdeeds were emblematic of the troubled era

At the “Back to Black” 20th anniversary concert in London on Wednesday night, Amy Winehouse’s essence was everywhere. The eager crowd lined up outside was full of winged eyeliner, leopard print, big hair and cigarette smoke; nary a vape in sight. Even the venue itself — the Roundhouse in Winehouse’s beloved Camden, the last place […]

While the year-long celebrations for “Star Trek’s” 60th anniversary continue to roll on, arriving in the Eternal City this week for Rome’s MIA Market, the iconic science-fiction franchise is at an inflection point, according to Trevor Roth, COO and president of development at Roddenberry Entertainment. “Right now, ‘Star Trek’ is at a bit of a […]

Fandango Sales has taken all international rights to “Galileo,” a new film from Italo-Brit director Roan Johnson (“Rider”), toplining Italian A-list actor Elio Germano as pioneering scientist Galileo Galilei, who famously stood trial before the Roman inquisition. Fandango is introducing the €8 million ($9 million) movie to international buyers during Rome’s

Spotify hit the mark on all its key targets in the third quarter of 2026, as the streaming-audio giant packed on 6 million subscribers in the period — to reach 306 million — and saw healthier growth in ad revenue. On the free, ad-supported side, Spotify added a net 11 million monthly active users to […]

Amanda Jiang, Joey Phillips (“Outlander”), Richard Brake (“Game of Thrones,” “The Mandalorian,” “Kingsman: The Secret Service,” “Barbarian”) and Shayne Ward (“The Good Ship Murder,” “Coronation Street”) will lead the cast of gothic romance and supernatural thriller “Dracula: The Crimson Code,” which has started filming. The contemporary female-led Dracula re

Sales company The Playmaker Munich has closed further territory deals on animated family adventure film “Pirate Mo and the Legend of the Red Ruby” ahead of the American Film Market, where it will have its market premiere. The film has now sold to more than 50 countries. Variety is debuting the teaser (below). The latest […]

Sebastian Koch, star of Oscar-winning German film “The Lives of Others,” and Toni Servillo, protagonist of Italy’s Oscar winner “The Great Beauty,” are set to topline “The Lüneburg Variation,” a noir based in the world of chess, directed by Gabriele Salvatores. Salvatores – himself also winner of an Oscar for “Mediterraneo” – has started shooting […]

Alan Bennett’s “The History Boys” is going back to London’s West End after a 20-year absence. Nicholas Hytner returns to the National Theatre production he first staged in 2004, which later went to Broadway and won six Tony Awards there. Set in 1980s Britain, the comedy follows eight pupils at a Sheffield boys’ grammar school. […]

Producers behind Fan Bingbing’s “Mother Bhumi,” Cannes Un Certain Regard title “Rehana Maryam Noor” and BBC One and Stan drama “The Tourist” are among 14 picks for the debut Producers Exchange at Indonesia’s JAFF Market, which will hold its third edition Nov. 28-30 in Yogyakarta. The market runs alongside the Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival (JAFF) […]

Every series Bengali streamer Hoichoi launches over the next two years will get Hindi, Tamil and Telugu-language versions streaming exclusively on Netflix, under a partnership the two companies unveiled in Mumbai on Thursday. New titles will arrive on Netflix in the three languages at the same time as their Bengali debut on Hoichoi. The first […]

Indonesia’s film agency is helping draft a revised Film Law that would reshape its powers, while Jakarta, where Netflix now has four titles in production, is working to become a regional film hub. Fauzan Zidni, chair of the Indonesian Film Agency (BPI), tells Variety the first draft, prepared with the Ministry of Culture, has taken […]

Good news, “Guardians of the Galaxy” fans. Chris Pratt, who has played superhero Star-Lord across six films, recently confirmed that his character will return to the MCU and that the studio has already taken “hard action” to make it happen. “I have a great relationship with Kevin [Feige] and Lou [D’Esposito], and there have been […]

Sabrina Carpenter, Julia Roberts and Oprah were among the stars who paid tribute to Dolly Parton during the Country Music Association’s celebration of the late country icon Wednesday night. Oprah, who appeared in a pre-recorded video at the beginning of the broadcast, shared what Dolly meant to her. “We’re both Tennessee girls, and she represented […]

John Anderson, the country Hall of Famer behind hits like “Seminole Wind” and “Swingin’,” has died. He was 71. Anderson’s death was announced by his family across his social media accounts on Wednesday. No cause of death or further information was noted. “It is with the heaviest of hearts that we share the passing of […]

Japanese filmmaker Ishikawa Hiroshi, whose credits include “Tokyo.sora,” “Su-ki-da.” and “Petal Dance,” is back with his first feature in 13 years. His new film, “the blue we touch” (original title: “Awo no Jo”), is in post-production and will be released in Japan in 2027 by Bitters End, which unveiled the project ahead of the Tokyo […]

Nitesh Tiwari’s “Ramayana: Part One,” starring Ranbir Kapoor and Yash, will be available to buy on demand from streamer JioHotstar in India after its theatrical run. The deal between JioHotstar and Prime Focus Studios will see the film sold as a separate on-demand purchase on the platform. The companies described it as the first pay-per-view […]

Vietnamese whodunit “Karaoke Murder” will open in cinemas across North America, Europe, Australia and Asia on the same weekend, a first for a film from Vietnam, according to its backers. The film, titled “Án Mạng Karaoke” in Vietnamese, will bow nationwide at home on Oct. 30. U.S.-based specialty distributor 3388 Films will release it that […]

Nicko McBrain, the long-time drummer for heavy metal band Iron Maiden, recently admitted he’d been invited to play golf with Donald Trump, but turned down the offer because of his staunch anti-MAGA beliefs — and that the president and his “bunch of cronies,” in McBrain’s words, “should be put in jail.” Like Trump, McBrain resides […]

South Korean director Hur Jin-ho thanked the Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) for defending freedom of expression as his political thriller “The Assassin(s)” opened the festival’s 37th edition on Wednesday, two weeks after the Korea’s conservative opposition asked SGIFF to pull it. “I am truly grateful to the film festival for protecting artisti

Two-time Oscar-nominated producer Rodrigo Teixeira will receive the inaugural Árbol de la Vida Visionary Award at the GuadaLAjara Film Festival (GLAFF), the Los Angeles offshoot of the Guadalajara International Film Festival, on Nov. 6. The honor will be presented by Oscar-nominated actor Wagner Moura ahead of a screening of James Gray’s “Paper Tiger,” which

SPOILER ALERT: The following article contains plot details from “Judgement Day,” the Season 6 finale of “Slow Horses,” now streaming on Apple TV. “Hello, River.” Those two fateful words announced Olivia Cooke’s return to “Slow Horses” after a four-season absence from the Apple TV spy drama. Cooke’s MI5 agent Sidonie Baker made a brief but […]

What have we missed on “Glee”? For six glorious, terrifying seasons from 2009 to 2015, we witnessed Ryan Murphy bring a fever dream to life. With each new episode, the musical dramedy series’ unique blend of satire and earnestness had girls, the gays and their allies pondering: What song that should be sung by Mercedes […]

Alexander Skarsgård knows how to make an entrance. The Swedish actor has been turning heads with his wacky red carpet looks while promoting his new fantasy romance “Wicker.” At the London premiere earlier this month, he donned a metallic gold Saint Laurent suit. If that wasn’t bold enough, he slipped into a pair of clear […]

The school year is off to a strong start: “Abbott Elementary” returned to ABC with the premiere of its sixth season on Oct. 7 and achieved its strongest viewership in a year. After seven days of viewing, the Season 6 premiere reached a total of 6.3 million viewers and a across all platforms. Not only […]

New research suggests that the ancient coffin was repurposed in the 10th or 11th century to hold the remains of an abbot who had overseen the London monastery

Keep on laughing: BET’s “ComicView” reboot has been renewed for Season 2. BET has ordered 20 more episodes of the revived stand-up franchise, which premiered in June as “ComicView: Rooftop Series.” Chris “CP” Powell returns as host of the program, which will see 60 comedians performing on a Hollywood rooftop. Veteran comics Affion Crockett, Cocoa […]

Another Batman villain may be getting their own TV series. A Poison Ivy TV show is in the works at HBO with “The Penguin” showrunner Lauren LeFranc as a producer, Variety has confirmed. LeFranc’s “The Penguin” marked the first live-action spinoff from a Batman movie, after Colin Farrell originated his villain in Matt Reeves’ “The […]

“Saturday Night Live” veteran Kenan Thompson weighed in on Shane Gillis’ controversial monologue, which sparked social media outrage due to a joke about women dressing like “whores” at the gym. “I know Shane, and I don’t know him to be a mean person, necessarily,” Thompson said at the Axios Media Trends Live summit. “But if […]