Deon Estus (1956–2021), bassist for Wham! and George Michael

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorA beta version of Epic Games’ popular “Fortnite” battle-royale game that launched in China three years ago is shutting down.In China, the game was known as “Fortress Night” and operated by Tencent Games, which is a major investor in Epic and announced a deal in 2018 to launch the title in China.

China is well known for having strict internet laws and restrictions.

Fortnite looks like it’s closing down in China, as servers in the region are taking steps to shut down the battle royale from today.As PC Gamer reports, yesterday (October 31) the official Fortnite website in China announced a seemingly-permanent “suspension” to the game. While users will no longer be able to sign up or download the game from today (November 1), the game servers will shut down entirely on November 15.As per the website:“The test of “Fortress Night” has come to an end.

On Instagram last week, Novak revealed that his face was being used to sell such products as a Calvin Klein cologne in Sweden, electric razors in China, face paint in Uruguay and more, as reported by The New York Times.The Office star and writer posted photos of the products in a collection on his Instagram titled “modelling”, where he explained: “Years ago, someone mistakenly put an image of me on a public domain site, and now apparently I am on products all around the world.” The history of

Refresh for latest…: MGM/Eon/Universal’s No Time To Die, as projected, crossed the $600M global mark this weekend, leading international box office play with an additional $51.9M from 72 combined Universal and MGM markets. That lifts the offshore cume to $472.4M and worldwide to $605.8M.

Rebecca Davis editorOn Friday, China’s Korean War epic “The Battle at Lake Changjin” became the highest-grossing film in the world for 2021, surpassing the Chinese New Year breakout comedy hit “Hi, Mom.”The gritty war film co-directed by Chen Kaige, Tsui Hark and Dante Lam has grossed $845 million (RMB5.41 billion) in 29 days, marching past “Hi, Mom,” which earned $821 million at the beginning of the year over a 90-day period.

My daughter, Iris, has been playing Soo Catwoman in Danny Boyle’s Pistol series about the Sex Pistols, and she is the spit of me when I was that age. I sent her pictures of different haircuts and eye make-ups I had then.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefThe global box office recovery is accelerating. Revenues in 2021 could hit $21.6 billion, according to a new forecast from research firm Gower Street Analytics.That compared with the firm’s previous $20.2 billion estimate made a couple of months ago.“We anticipate a potential additional upside that could see the current year finish around $22 billion globally.

Rebecca Davis editorThe initial excitement and relief among Chinese fans that “Dune” passed government censorship was soon tempered by outrage that the initial release plan didn’t include an Imax 2D version of Denis Villeneuve’s keenly anticipated sci-fi thriller.Hundreds flooded the comments section of Imax’s official Weibo and online message boards last month to vent their frustration, while a few dozen took part in an email campaign to the company.Some said that if there was no Imax 2D

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterDirector Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” led the international box office, generating $47.4 million from 75 overseas territories over the weekend.The sci-fi epic, based on Frank Herbert’s seminal novel, had the biggest turnout in China, where the film opened to $22 million, a muted result in the world’s largest movie market.

Rebecca Davis editor“Dune” didn’t quite manage to spice up its China open after a middling $6 million first day in the country on Friday. The film grossed just $21.6 million in its debut three-day weekend, according to studio estimates.The result is more or less in the ballpark of its $41 million weekend tally in North America, where it released day-and-date simultaneously on HBO Max.

Rebecca Davis editor“Dune” was unable to surpass Chinese propaganda war movie “The Battle at Lake Changjin” to take the top spot on its China opening day Friday, coming in second with just $6.45 million (RMB41.2 million) according to Maoyan data, despite a protracted charm offensive to raise awareness about the film in the increasingly sci-fi hungry country.As of the early hours of Saturday local time, the Maoyan platform now estimates that it will mine a total of just $30.9 million (RMB197

Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic Dune hit China today with an estimated RMB 42M ($6.5M) on 28,274 screens and a 34.3% share of the market. While we do not yet have a social score, Friday’s estimate would portend a weekend in the $20M+ neighborhood as we noted coming into the session.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief“Dune,” Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi film of epic proportions, opened solidly in China on Friday and is forecast to attain a gross box office of $35 million (RMB224 million) in the country.The forecast was made by Maoyan, one of China’s leading online ticketing agencies, which also reported that the film had grossed RMB23.8 million ($3.7 million) by 2pm Friday local time.The $3.7 million haul was only good enough for second place, behind “The Battle at Lake

Since being screened to great fanfare before the press since late August, Warner Bros. and Legendary’s $165M sci-fi epic Dune finally lands in U.S.

Deon Estus, known best for playing bass for 1980s pop band Wham!, has died. He was 65.

Preview in new tabHe was a guitar hero.Deon Estus, the legendary bassist for George Michael and Wham!, died Monday at age 65. The musician’s passing was confirmed on his official Twitter page, although they did not reveal his cause of death.“It is with real sadness I post that Deon Estus passed away This Morning,” the post read.