Hulu Acquires ‘The Chain’ Author Adrian McKinty’s New Novel ‘The Island’ For Limited Series

Hulu has set an April premiere date for FX limited series Under the Banner of Heaven, from Oscar winner Dustin Lance Black. Inspired by Jon Krakauer’s true crime bestseller, Under the Banner of Heaven, starring Oscar nominee Andrew Garfield and Daisy Edgar-Jones, will launch April 28 exclusively on Hulu in the U.S. It will follow on Star+ in Latin America and Disney+ under the Star banner in all other territories. The premiere will feature the first two episodes, with a new episode available weekly for the next five weeks. FX also released a first-look photo above.

Hipgnosis Song Management has announced a big old deal via its Blackstone-backed venture Hipgnosis Songs Capital ICAV to acquire a stack of rights in the songs catalogue of Leonard Cohen for an undisclosed sum.In total, the deal covers 278 songs and derivatives, including the all-important ‘Hallelujah’ – which has been covered more than 300 times. For songs written from the start of Cohen’s career through to 2000, Hipgnosis has acquired the writer’s share of royalties.

Preview in new tabDolly Parton’s upcoming novel will take a “dark,” autobiographical turn. The country singer/actress/businesswoman — who joined forces with best-selling “Alex Cross” writer James Patterson, 74, for their thriller, “Run, Rose, Run” — recently teased that it’s a cautionary look into the shadows of the music industry.“It shows a lot of the dark side of that – people that have been in it, like me, you know that, because you’ve lived it,” Parton, 76, told “CBS Sunday Morning” reporter Lee Cowan for a story airing this weekend.The novel tells the tale of a Rose, a young country singer/songwriter from Nashville who realizes that fame and fortune are both not all that they’re cracked up to be.

Dolly Parton is getting into the fiction game.

Regina Hall stars in the terrifying new trailer for Prime Video’s “Master”.

EXCLUSIVE: Jason Winer (The Big Leap) has been tapped to direct Disney+’s upcoming The Santa Clause limited series starring Tim Allen. The Modern Family alum will also executive produce through his Small Dog Production Co. the series, which comes from Last Man Standing creator Jack Burditt.

Ellise Shafer The Writers Guild of America, East will host their annual “And the Nominees Are…” limited series contenders’ panel on March 1, with Variety hosting the livestream.The limited series panel will take place at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PT and will run for 90 minutes.

Michael Douglas recently wrapped his Netflix series The Kominsky Method and he’s getting ready to head back to television right away!

Joe Otterson TV ReporterMichael Douglas will star as U.S. Founding Father Benjamin Franklin in a new limited series for Apple, Variety has learned.The untitled series is based on the book “A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America” by Pulitzer Prize winner Stacy Schiff. Kirk Ellis, the writer behind HBO’s “John Adams” series, will write the show for Apple and serve as an executive producer.Emmy-winning director Tim Van Patten will direct and executive produce.

Apple TV+ has officially confirmed a limited event series starring Michael Douglas as Benjamin Franklin. The Oscar winner executive produces the project about the American polymath, from John Adams writer-executive producer Kirk Ellis, TV director, writer and producer Tim Van Patten (Boardwalk Empire, The Sopranos), Tony Krantz and his Flame Ventures and Richard Plepler’s Eden Productions under the company’s deal with Apple Studios. Based on Pulitzer Prize winner Stacy Schiff’s book A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America, the series, which has been casting for the past couple of months, is a co-production between ITV Studios America and Apple Studios.

Stephan James is attached to star and produce a scripted limited series about artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.

EXCLUSIVE: Dan Stevens (Legion, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga) has been tapped for a key role in the Hulu limited series Immigrant (working title), starring and executive produced by Kumail Nanjiani, from Pam & Tommy creator Robert Siegel.

Todrick Hall must have forgotten that fans can watch every moment of his life in the Celebrity Big Brother house, because he said something out loud that he then realized he didn’t want anyone to hear.

FX has set its cast for Retreat, a limited series from The OA creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij. Oscar nominee Clive Owen (Closer, The Knick) Harris Dickinson (Beach Rats, The King’s Man), Alice Braga (Queen of the South, The Suicide Squad), Jermaine Fowler (Coming 2 America, Judas & the Black Messiah), Joan Chen (The Last Emperor, Twin Peaks), Raul Esparza (Law & Order: SVU, Candy), Edoardo Ballerini (The Sopranos, Dinner Rush) Pegah Ferydoni (Turkish for Beginners, Drama Women Without Men), Ryan J. Haddad (The Politician, Hi, Are You Single?) and Javed Khan (The Bay, Gangs of London) join Corrin in the series, along with previously announced Marling.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAndrew Rannells has been cast in a recurring role in the upcoming Hulu limited series “Immigrant.”The darkly comedic series tells the true story of Somen “Steve” Banerjee (Kumail Nanjiani), the Indian-American entrepreneur who started Chippendales. Along with Nanjiani and Rannells, the cast also includes Murray Bartlett and Annaleigh Ashford.Rannells will play the rich kid investor in Chippendales New York and the love interest of Bartlett, who stars as producer-choreographer Nick De Noia.Rannells’ recent onscreen roles include “Black Monday” at Showtime and “Girls5Eva” at Peacock.

Andrew Rannells has been tapped for a recurring role in Hulu limited series Immigrant (working title), starring Kumail Nanjiani, Annaleigh Ashford and Murray Bartlett, from Pam & Tommy creator Robert Siegel.

New Line has acquired Mexican filmmaker Issa López’s original screenplay “The Girl with a Thousand Names,” her follow-up to 2017’s acclaimed “Tigers Are Not Afraid.”López will direct and produce the feature for HBO Max, TheWrap has confirmed.Her breakout film “Tigers Are Not Afraid,” is a hauntingly poetic horror film about a group of children orphaned by cartel violence. It was nominated for nine of Mexico’s Ariel Awards and won two.“The Girl with a Thousand Names” will likely have the same blend of true-life horror and magical realism in its story about unaccompanied minors and children in a detention center who have been separated from their families at the U.S.

EXCLUSIVE: Hulu is developing The Golden Spoon, a darkly comic murder mystery limited series based on the upcoming novel by Jessica Olien, from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend co-creator Aline Brosh McKenna and ABC Signature, where Brosh McKenna and her Lean Machine banner are under an overall deal.

HBO has closed a deal for Doomsday Machine, a limited series about Facebook starring Emmy winner Claire Foy as embattled tech giant COO Sheryl Sandberg and executive producing as well. Anonymous Content (Spotlight, Mr. Robot) and wiip (Mare of Easttown, Dickinson), which took the project to the marketplace in October, will co-produce with HBO.

The first teaser for Conversations with Friends has just debuted online!