ABC’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ Special Casts Josh Groban, Rita Moreno and Joshua Henry (EXCLUSIVE)

Outfest is honoring Janelle Monáe in a big way. The actress, artist, author and singer will receive the Trailblazer Award at the organization's 2022 Outfest Legacy Awards presented by IMDb on Saturday, Oct.

Woman In Film, Los Angeles said Thursday that that She Said producer Dede Gardner, star Carey Mulligan and New York Times reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey will be honored next month at the 2022 WIF Honors. They join a recipient list that already includes the bestowing the group’s Crystal Awards to Abbott Elementary creator Quinta Brunson, The Woman King director Gina Prince-Bythewood, and Don’t Worry Darling writer and director Katie Silberman and Olivia Wilde, respectively.

EJ Panaligan editor Janelle Monáe is set to be honored with the Trailblazer Award at the 2022 Outfest Legacy Awards. The special salute will be presented at Outfrest’s annual gala, held at Paramount Studios on Sat., Oct. 22, which marks the Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization’s 40th anniversary. The Trailblazer Award, presented by IMDb, recognizes Monáe’s role as an artist who has consistently shown her support for the LGBTQ+ community at large through her Grammy-nominated music and critically acclaimed acting. Monáe’s latest starring role will be seen in Netflix’s “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” set for release in December.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic The list of narrators for the audiobook version of Bob Dylan’s upcoming book has come to light, and it reads like a who’s who of Oscar contenders from the past few decades, along with the author himself doing some of the reading. The lineup of voice talent reading chapters from “The Philosophy of Modern Song” aloud includes Jeff Bridges, Steve Buscemi, John Goodman, Oscar Isaac, Helen Mirren, Rita Moreno, Sissy Spacek, Alfre Woodard, Jeffrey Wright and Renée Zellweger. This lineup of all-star Dylan surrogates has yet to be officially announced. It was first published by the U.K. magazine Uncut; Variety has confirmed the list.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor With Oscar season fully underway following the Venice, Telluride and Toronto film festivals, buzz is building for the latest offerings from marquee filmmakers such as Steven Spielberg, Darren Aronofsky,Sarah Polley and Alejandro G. Iñárritu. But behind the scenes, look for leading artisans to also be recognized for their work on high-profile contenders; within the film community, these names have become as renowned as the directors and A-listers with whom they work. Here are some titans of the crafts who could add a nomination and even an Oscar win to their résumés when the Academy Awards are dispensed in March. Catherine MartinProduction designer“Elvis”

More cast members have been announced for the upcoming Beauty and the Beast special that will air on ABC this holiday season.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor Martin Short and Shania Twain are in final talks to join ABC’s “Beauty and the Beast” special. Sources tell Variety that Short would play Lumière while Twain will take on the role of Mrs. Potts in “Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration.” The news comes just days after Variety exclusively reported that David Alan Grier will play the role of Cogsworth in the production. Previously announced cast members include Oscar winner H.E.R. as Belle, Grammy winner Josh Groban as Beast and Joshua Henry as Gaston. EGOT legend Rita Moreno will serve as the show’s narrator in the live-action/animated hybrid production.

The Wicked movie is not scheduled to hit theaters until 2024, but it’s already one of the most highly anticipated films of the next two years!

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorJonathan Bailey is in talks to join the cast of Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked” movies.The “Bridgerton” star will play Fiyero in the two-part feature adaptation headlined by Ariana Grande as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba. The Universal Pictures films are set for release on Christmas in 2024 and 2025.“Wicked” is a prequel to “The Wizard of Oz,” telling the story of how Elphaba became the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.“We decided to give ourselves a bigger canvas and make not just one ‘Wicked’ movie but two!” Chu wrote in a statement when announcing the two-parter. “With more space, we can tell the story of ‘Wicked’ as it was meant to be told while bringing even more depth and surprise to the journeys for these beloved characters.”

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor David Alan Grier is joining the cast of ABC’s “Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration.” The Tony winner will play Cogsworth in the star-studded production, according to sources. Previously announced cast members include Oscar winner H.E.R. as Belle, Josh Groban as Beast and Joshua Henry as Gaston. Rita Moreno will serve as the show’s narrator in the live-action/animated hybrid production. The special, to be directed by Hamish Hamilton, will be recorded live and feature never-before-seen musical performances. Jamal Sims is serving as executive producer and choreographer. Set design is by Julio Himede with costumes by Marina Toybina (“The Masked Singer”).

EJ Panaligan editor ABC announced a slew of news regarding their fall programming at the Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour on September 14, headlined by guest star announcements for the second season of recently-anointed Emmy-winner “Abbott Elementary.” Read below for a summary of ABC’s announcements from the TCA press conferences. Debuting on Wednesday, September 21, the second season of Quinta Brunson’s hit show will feature recurring guest roles from actor Leslie Odom Jr., Lauren Weedman and Keyla Monterroso Mejia. Odom Jr. will play Draemond, the owner of a batch of charter schools in the area who visits Abbott. Weedman will play Kristin Marie, a hard-shelled teacher from a neighboring school that strikingly resembles one of Abbott’s own teachers. Monterroso Mejia plays a teacher’s aide whose lax personality contributes to classroom chaos at Abbott.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Sacheen Littlefeather made Oscars history in 1973 when she became the first Native woman to stand on stage at the awards ceremony. When Marlon Brando was named best actor for “The Godfather,” Littlefeather declined the prize on behalf of him, as he had boycotted the Oscars in protest of Hollywood’s portrayal of Native Americans. Met with both boos and cheers, she was escorted off the stage. But her 60-second Oscar speech was life-changing for her, as well as others. “He very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award,” Littlefeather said to an audience of millions in her 1973 speech. “And the reasons for this being are the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry… and on television in movie re-runs, and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee.”

star nearly 40 years ago. Coined by actor Philip Michael Thomas, best known for playing Ricardo Tubbs on the ‘80s TV phenomenon, the acronym stands for Emmy, GRAMMY, Oscar and Tony awards. Whoopi Goldberg, John Legend, Rita Moreno and Mel Brooks are just a handful of talents who’ve picked up all four illustrious honors. In June, Jennifer Hudson became the 17th person to join the EGOT club. To kick off awards season, ET is breaking down the timeline from EGOT's unexpected origin story to its present-day status as entertainment's most coveted titles.One month after hit the airwaves, Thomas was already making plans for his burgeoning career.

ABC will be airing a special version of Beauty and the Beast later this year to celebrate the beloved movie’s 30th anniversary.

Josh Groban is set as the co-lead opposite H.E.R. in ABC’s animated and live-action blended special, Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration. The announcement was made during Friday’s panel at D23 Expo 2022.

Henry is best known for his Tony-nominated leading roles in “Carousel,” “The Scottsboro Boys” and “Violet,” and for playing Aaron Burr in “Hamilton.” He played Roger Bart in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Tick, Tick, Boom” and Jerlamarel opposite Jason Momoa in Apple TV+’s “See.” He is currently appearing on Broadway in the Stephen Sondheim musical “Into The Woods.”Celebrated EGOT winner Moreno just wrapped production on feature films “Eighty for Brady” with Sally Field, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, and “Fast X,” where she plays Vin Diesel’s grandmother. Last year, she co-starred and was an executive producer on Steven Spielberg’s remake of “West Side Story.” “Beauty and the Beast,” which was released on November 22, 1991, became the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture at the 1992 Academy Awards, where it won Best Original Song for its self-titled theme song. “Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration” is produced by Done+Dusted in association with Walt Disney Television Alternative and Electric Somewhere.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Costume designer Gersha Phillips drew upon African tradition while creating outfits for “The Woman King,” Gina Prince-Bythewood’s movie about female warriors in the 1800s. The film starring Viola Davis will debut Sept. 9 at the Toronto Intl. Film Festival ahead of a Sept. 16 release by Sony’s TriStar. During her research, Phillips discovered that Agojie warriors in West Africa wore baggy pants during that time. Initially, she designed outfits in that style, but several iterations later, she incorporated wrap skirts — also seen in historical archives. Since the women were going to be moving a lot, Phillips says, “I had to consider functionality. Everybody had to fight, so we ended up using a stretch-knit fabric so they could do what they needed to do in it.”

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Adam Blackstone is riding a career high. For years he has been the musical mastermind behind live shows for Justin Timberlake, Rihanna, Janet Jackson, Alicia Keys, Maroon 5 and Eminem. This weekend, he picked up an Emmy Award for outstanding music direction for his work on “The Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show Starring Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, 50 Cent.” And just last week, he kicked off a residency, “The Legacy Experience,” at new Los Angeles music venue the Sun Rose. Blackstone never really saw himself as a frontman until COVID made him stop and think about his legacy. “People trust me to curate,” he says. “I saw a couple of my friends pass away during COVID, and I had heard someone say, ‘I don’t want to die with a laptop full of ideas.’”

Eminem could be the next artist to achieve an EGOT status following his win at the 2022 Creative Arts Emmy Awards. Slim Shady became an Emmy award winner when the Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show won for Outstanding Variety Special.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans Editor Eminem is one step closer to achieving EGOT status after winning the Emmy Award for outstanding variety special (live). With 15 Grammy Awards and an Academy Award for original song under his belt, the singer and songwriter only needs a Tony Award to achieve the elusive EGOT title (given to artists who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony). Assembled by Pepsi, the NFL and Roc Nation the memorable lineup of performers for the Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show included Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar. The artists are all winners alongside the “Lose Yourself” rapper. Executive producer Shawn Carter aka Jay-Z also won an Emmy.