“Obviously, it would be meaningful for Steven to be the first Asian American to be nominated,” Bong recently told Variety. “But before all of that, I would just like to congratulate him as an actor and an individual. The nomination would only prove his ability as an actor. If he’s to be nominated, I would congratulate Steven for his great performance in ‘Minari,’ and I think him being Asian American and the first to be nominated are secondary issues....

“Hi Friends! I have some news to share,” Pinto wrote on Twitter. “Earlier this week I was let go from 7 News. I am posting this because I want to be open and honest with all of you. Last year, I participated in a cameo in the recently released Netflix movie by Adam Sandler, ‘Hubie Halloween.’ In doing so, I mistakenly violated my contract with the station.” Pinto continued, “I understand why management unfortunately chose to terminate me....

Puck’s Dylan Byers, himself a former media reporter alongside Stelter at CNN, reports that Stelter was summoned to new CNN chief Chris Licht’s office on Wednesday “looking ashen.” The final episode of “Reliable Sources” will be this Sunday, August 21. “Reliable Sources” is the longest-running show in CNN’s history. It debuted in 1992, hosted by Bernard Kalb, and then was taken over by Howard Kurtz for 15 years until he left to launch a similar show on FoxNews in 2013 called “Media Buzz....

More than any other festival on the planet, Cannes aims to project an air of exclusivity to its selection, the sense that it truly has assembled the best of the best. That goal is often informed by an array of other practical factors, including the choices made by various distributors and sales agents to make certain films available, the seniority of filmmakers deemed “worthy” of a venerated competition section, and the festival’s predilection for certain regions of the world over others....

According to The Hollywood Reporter: “In the hours immediately after the ceremony, neither China’s official mouthpiece The People’s Daily, state news service Xinhua nor the populist tabloid Global Times had produced a single report on Zhao’s multiple wins at the Academy Awards…One of the exceedingly rare pieces of coverage, on private news site 163.com, actually used the occasion of her victory as an opportunity to not-so-subtly assert one of China’s most important — and contentious — geopolitical priorities....

“There is widespread concern over the global economic outlook, and we must factor that risk into our long-term planning,” Licht wrote in the memo, which IndieWire obtained. “All this together will mean noticeable change to this organization. That, by definition, is unsettling. These changes will not be easy because they will affect people, budgets, and projects.” CNN is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which is under a particular (and mostly self-appointed) edict to majorly cut costs....

Rock joked while at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, England that Smith attacked him onstage earlier this year for a “bullshit joke” about wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s hairstyle. “Did that shit hurt?” Rock asked the audience (via Deadline). “Goddam right. The motherfucker hit me over a bullshit joke, the nicest joke I ever told.” Rock added that he returned to work the day after the 2022 Academy Awards and that he does not consider himself to be a victim....

With that many names on the call sheet, everyone working on the film could find someone to be starstruck by. In Christian Bale’s case, that happened to be Chris Rock. “I remember his first day, I was excited to meet him, I’m a big fan of his standup,” Bale said in a new interview with IndieWire. “Then he arrives, and he’s doing some things. … David [O. Russell] told him to tell me some stories that I didn’t know he was gonna tell me, which is the way David works often....

“‘Well, do you have a problem with people seeing ‘Dunkirk’ on my phone or whatever?’” Nolan asked himself before answering, “No, I don’t. But the reason I don’t is because it’s put into these big theaters as its primary form, or its initial distribution. And the experience trickles down, to the extent where, if you have an iPad and you’re watching a movie, you carry with you the knowledge and your understanding of what that cinematic experience would be and you extrapolate that....

The four-and-a-half-hour “City Hall” first debuted out of competition at the Venice Film Festival in September, followed by a North American premiere in Toronto this month, and then landing at the New York Film Festival, long a favorite venue for Wiseman’s works. Here’s an official synopsis of the film: “City government touches almost every aspect of our lives. Most of us are unaware of or take for granted these necessary services such as police, fire, sanitation, veterans affairs, elder support, parks, licensing of various professional activities, record keeping of birth, marriage, and death as well as hundreds of other activities that support Boston residents and visitors....

But it only takes a few minutes to realize that “Clouds” isn’t just another honeyed and ham-fisted piece of evangelical propaganda — even if the likes of “I Can Only Imagine” and “I Still Believe” made canny bids for mainstream success by hiding their full religiosity until the very end. If Baldoni’s sometimes moving and often graceful Disney+ debut can be described as “faith-based” — a big “if” for a filmmaker whose directing work has always evinced a single-minded yet decidedly secular interest in the lessons we can learn from young people at the end of their lives — the faith in which it’s based is found here on Earth, and not floating in the skies above....

NBCUniversal announced a slew of new Peacock projects during the conglomerate’s virtual presentation at the Television Critics Association 2021 Winter Press Tour. Per NBCUniversal, Robinson’s 10-episode untitled series will center on class, capitalism and one man’s quest to achieve the American dream — and also hunting really big snakes. The project is written and executive produced by “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” co-creator Dan Goor and executive producer Luke Del Tredici. Robinson and Mark Schulman also serve as executive producers....

It’s tough to make precise comparisons, but the effort is worthwhile. Studios will look at this data point and apply it to their platform strategies for future releases. The total box office for the three-day weekend will come in at around $15 million. Last year, led by the second weekend of “Frozen II,” it grossed $181 million. Of course, this comes with fewer than half of domestic theaters open, and without its two largest markets....

His presentation focused heavily on live action and CGI remakes of Disney’s most beloved animated films, delighting nostalgia-seeking fans with early looks at movies like “Snow White,” “Peter Pan and Wendy,” and “The Little Mermaid.” The enthusiastic reception to the star-studded event was a reminder that Disney’s pairings of classic material with A-list talent remains a very profitable formula. Keep reading for a roundup of all the live action projects previewed on Day 1 of the fan event (those interested in our animation coverage can find it here)....

It was an acknowledgement of the big picture in the midst of a lively scene, and a natural extension of the movie. “Dave Chappelle: This Time This Place,” which was listed as untitled until the moment the opening credits rolled, captures Chappelle’s extraordinary 2020 efforts to hold a series of outdoor comedy shows in a cornfield near his home in the small town of Yellow Springs, Ohio (population 3,700). As his ambition grew and virtually every revered comic made their way through town, Chappelle and his team fought to keep the lively events going even as locals attempted to shut it down and the possibility of positive COVID tests loomed....

“Nobody would have thought they had a shot at a giant hit with ‘Joker’ had ‘The Dark Knight’ not been as massive as it was,” Fincher said. Indeed, “The Dark Knight” also racked up more than $1 billion for studio Warner Bros., but even “Joker” bested it. However, Fincher also described the film as a mash-up of two Martin Scorsese classics that also floundered in its portrayal of people with mental illness, as Todd Phillips’ film uses that trope to explore Joker’s jagged psyche....

“I just found out that the great Julee Cruise passed away. Very sad news,” Lynch said in a video posted on his David Lynch Theater YouTube page. “So might be a good time to appreciate all the good music she made, and remember her as being a great musician, great singer, and a great human being. Julee Cruise.” Cruise died on June 10 after battling systemic lupus. Her husband Edward Grinnan confirmed Cruise’s death....

“I don’t have the faintest idea how that happened,” Frank said. “I don’t know what I did differently this time than every other time. I suppose it’s what many people were looking for but might not have known it: ‘You’re going to love a show about a girl playing chess in the ’50s and ’60s.’ They wouldn’t know they would like it, but once they started watching and responding and sharing their reaction, something happened....

According to new data from research company Kantar, a poll of more than 20,000 streaming users found that, when presented with the new, cheaper option, 22.8 percent of what the analysts call “loyal” subscribers downgrade to a plan with ads. This is what is known as a mixed blessing. For Disney+, which had 164.2 million global subs at the end of the September quarter, that means we should expect roughly 37....

Wells Fargo analysts wrote that the case for Disney finally spinning off the sports network is becoming “increasingly logical.” Even if it requires some balance sheet shaping, Iger’s return makes the move far more likely, they predict. “We believe Bob Iger has returned to DIS with a gameplan to both improve operations organically and shape the portfolio towards a new future,” the analysts wrote. “We think with Bob Iger returning as DIS’s CEO the potential for strategic change is greater than ever....