Disney Sets April Carretta As Head of Communications For Direct To Consumer Unit

Manori Ravindran International Editor BBC Film boss Eva Yates has set out her new editorial team, with the BFI’s Kristin Irving joining as a commissioning executive, and Anu Henriques boarding as a development executive. Meanwhile, Claudia Yusef has been named commissioning executive, expanding her responsibilities across development and production. Irving was a senior production and development executive at the BFI’s Film Fund. She formerly worked in a number of development roles including for production company Portobello Pictures on films such as Pawel Pawlikowski’s Oscar-winning “Ida.” She also worked across sales at sister company, Fandango Portobello. At the BFI she has exec produced films including “Rye Lane,” “A Gaza Weekend” and “The Origin.” She joins BBC Film in November.

Haiti is preparing to seek military assistance from the international community to confront gangs that have blocked the country's principal fuel port, the Miami Herald reported on Friday, citing sources with knowledge of the decision. The government of Prime Minister Ariel Henry plans to make the written request on Friday to allied nations, without specifying where the troops should come from, the Herald reported.

Production has wrapped on The Blind, a biopic of Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson with a theatrical release date slated for Sept. 22, 2023 as distribution plans are being finalized.

Daniel D'Addario Chief TV Critic “East New York” fits neatly into CBS’ battery of dramas about law enforcement, from “The Equalizer” to the “CSI” revival. But credit it with this much: In its roundabout way, it has more on its mind than one might expect at first blush. Set in a Brooklyn neighborhood where the beginnings of gentrification rub up uncomfortably against families who’ve lived there for generations, “East New York” is relatively careful in its presentation of cops and policing as flawed tools in need of rethinking, and boasts a charismatic lead who can make you believe, for an hour of primetime, that such change might be possible. We meet Regina Haywood (Amanda Warren of “The Leftovers” and “Dickinson”) as she’s getting a manicure; the robbery of a dollar van outside gets her attention, and draws her out to the street. She’s very early in her tenure as precinct chief, and this comes as a wake-up call of sorts; Regina is, soon enough, working to reduce quotas for arrests on petty crime and chicanery in the interrogation room, all with a single-minded focus on addressing major crime’s root causes. Her long-term goal is for the cops she oversees to live in the neighborhood they defend; she’s willing to start with placing an eager underling, Officer Brandy Quinlan (Olivia Luccardi), in an apartment procured by city housing.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter The FX comedy pilot “English Teacher” has found its main cast, Variety has learned exclusively. Stephanie Koenig (“Lessons in Chemistry,” “The Offer”), Enrico Colantoni (“Just Shoot Me,” “Station Eleven”), and Julian Sergi (“Ramy,” “War Dogs”) have all joined as series regulars. Carmen Christopher (“The Bear,” “Killing It”), Jordan Firstman (“Big Mouth,” “Ms. Marvel”), Yissendy Trinidad (“Babylon,” “You’re Not Alone”) and Langston Kerman (“Insecure,” “The Boys”) will all appear in recurring roles. “English Teacher” was originally ordered to pilot in June. Production is now underway. Brian Jordan Alvarez wrote the pilot and stars as Evan, a gay high school English teacher in Austin, Texas. The show follows him and his fellow teachers “trying to balance the competing demands of the students and their parents in a world where the rules seem to change every day.” Alvarez is also an executive producer on the pilot along with Paul Simms, who is currently an executive producer on the FX shows “What We Do in the Shadows” and “Atlanta.”

Billy Joel has been announced as the latest headliner of BST Hyde Park 2023.The summer series of gigs will return to Hyde Park in central London in July 2023, with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band already announced on the line-up.BST Hyde Park organisers have confirmed this morning (September 29) that Joel will headline the series on July 7, 2023, in what will be his only European live appearance of the year.A line-up of special supporting guests for the show is set to be announced soon.Tickets will be available first to AMEX members in a pre-sale from 10am today before a general sale begins at 10am on October 6 from here.A post shared by BST Hyde Park (@bsthydepark)Elsewhere, Billy Joel’s 1990 live film Live At Yankee Stadium will be screened in cinemas next week (October 5 and 9) to celebrate the musician’s 50 years in music.“Billy Joel’s legendary 1990 concert at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx stands as one of the greatest concert films of all time,” a synopsis for the film reads. “Shot in 16mm colour film, the original concert has now been meticulously re-mixed and re-edited.“The newly edited version includes a never-before-released performance of ‘Uptown Girl’, along with interviews from Billy and behind-the-scenes footage from the event’s production.

Disney+ and National Geographic’s anthology series has found the ensemble cast of its upcoming “Genius: MLK/X.” Portraying the pioneering leaders of the Civil Rights Movement are Kelvin Harrison Jr. (“Waves,” “Elvis”) as Dr.

EXCLUSIVE: Disney+ and National Geographic have set the lead cast for Genius: MLK/X, the fourth installment in the anthology series, which will focus on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.

K.J. Yossman Warner Bros. Discovery Intl President Gerhard Zeiler has set out the company’s post-merger strategy, re-iterating his belief in cinema as well as his commitment to “local stories,” despite the fact that HBO Max recently halted local original programming across a number of European territories, including in the Nordics, Central Europe, the Netherlands and Turkey. “If you want to be a global player, you have to have relevant local stories,” Zeiler said at the Royal Television Society’s (RTS) annual convention in London on Tuesday morning. “I mean don’t misunderstand me, the big kids will always be the Batmans, the Elvises, the Black Adams, which premieres next month here in the U.K.” He also pointed out that WBD invests in local films, citing productions in Japan and Germany, as well as streaming content.

Milena Zajović Netflix’s “Our Man From Jersey,” starring Halle Berry, Mark Wahlberg and J.K. Simmons, is coming close to wrapping its shoot in Croatia and Slovenia, according to Film New Europe. The film, based on a screenplay by David Guggenheim and Joe Barton, has been described as a “blue-collar James Bond.” Wahlberg plays a down-to-earth construction worker from Jersey, who is thrust into the world of super spies and secret agents when his high-school ex-girlfriend Roxanne (Berry) recruits him on a high-stakes U.S. intelligence mission. It is directed by Julian Farino, and produced by the U.S.’s Closest to the Hole Productions, owned by Wahlberg. The producers are Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson and Jeff Waxman.

Christian Eriksen has made an encouraging start to life at Manchester United.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Disney has upped PR exec April Carretta to head of communications for its direct-to-consumer business. In her new role, Carretta will lead communications globally for Disney’s portfolio of direct-to-consumer video streaming businesses under its Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution division (DMED), including consumer, content publicity, international, crisis communications and incident management, as well as internal employee communications. DMED, which is led by chairman Kareem Daniel, manages operations for streamers Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ and Disney+ Hotstar, as well as broadcast and cable television networks. The direct-to-consumer arm handles P&L management and all distribution, network and engineering operations, sales, advertising, data and technology functions worldwide for these platforms.

Kate Winslet is back at work after suffering a leg injury while filming in Croatia.

Kate Winslet is back to work! The 46-year-old actress was spotted back on set after suffering a fall while on location over the weekend. Winslet slipped and got medical attention as a precautionary measure required by production while shooting her upcoming film, , ET learned.A rep for the actress told ET, «She is fine and will be filming, as planned, this week.»True to that, Winslet returned to the set and got back to shooting the historical drama film where she plays photographer Lee Miller, who worked as a  correspondent during World War II.

Kate Winslet was taken to hospital after suffering a fall on a film set in Croatia over the weekend. On Sunday, local press outlets published images of the British actress arriving at a hospital in Dubrovnik along with her team.

Kate Winslet was taken to the hospital after she suffered an accident while filming LEE in Croatia. The Oscar-winning actor fell while on the set of the movie and a rep for the star is offering an update on her health condition.

Kate Winslet suffered a fall while on location filming in Croatia and was taken to the hospital, ET has learned. The famed actress slipped and got medical attention as a precautionary measure required by production while shooting her upcoming film A rep for Winslet tells ET, “She is fine and will be filming, as planned, this week.”The 46-year-old, Oscar-winning actress is working on the historical drama , where she will play photographer Lee Miller, who worked as a  correspondent during World War II. Winslet's most recent work on HBO’s hit drama series earned the actress an Emmy award in 2021.