Judd Apatow On Netflix Licensing HBO Shows: “It’s A Scary Thing”

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Paul McCartney was the obvious headliner of the bill Thursday at the Hollywood Bowl. But it was Buffett-mania that was in full sway, as a cast of dozens of singers and celebrity presenters — from Jane Fonda to Snoop Dogg — saluted or parroted a fallen musical hero for the three-and-a-half-hour “Keep The Party Going: A Tribute to Jimmy Buffett.” Most of the night’s entertainers covered Buffett classics or obscurities, although McCartney, the Eagles and Snoop Dogg broke with that to regale the full Bowl house with their own material, while Zac Brown and (sending in a video contribution) Dave Matthews debuted brand new songs saluting Buffett.

Wynonna Judd‘s daughter Grace Pauline Kelley is facing more charges!

Wynonna Judd‘s daughter Grace Kelley is back behind bars.

Naman Ramachandran Netflix has unveiled a spectacular trailer for Sanjay Leela Bhansali‘s series “Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar.” The series is set in Heeramandi, Lahore, British India, where Mallikajaan (Manisha Koirala) rules over an elite house of courtesans. She schemes, fearing no one — until the return of her late nemesis’ daughter, Fareedan (Sonakshi Sinha), brings tensions in the house to a boil. Outside, the city is also roiling, with revolutionaries demanding India’s freedom from British rule, with Bibbojaan (Aditi Rao Hydari), one of Mallikajaan’s daughters, joining the fight for freedom.

Studiocanal has signed the person responsible for setting up Netflix production hubs around Europe as its new TV boss.

EXCLUSIVE: Netflix‘s film division has preemptively acquired a pitch for an untitled law school thriller from Holland, Michigan‘s Andrew Sodroski, sources tell Deadline.

Jaden Thompson Netflix has released the trailer for Jerry Seinfeld‘s upcoming Pop-Tart movie, “Unfrosted,” set for release on May 3. Per Netflix’s Tudum, the logline for “Unfrosted” reads, “Michigan, 1963. Kellogg’s and Post, sworn cereal rivals, race to create a pastry that will change the face of breakfast forever.

Kim Kardashian is in another legal battle… over furniture???

Judd Apatow has directed such comedy films as The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up and Trainwreck, among others. Despite his recent The King of Staten Island and The Bubble going straight to streaming, he still believes comedy films have a place in theaters.

Before reaching A-list status in Hollywood, some celebrities were once roommates in the early years of their careers. Many celebrity roommates, such as Dianna Agron and Lea Michele, met and lived together because they starred in the same show. In this case, Agron and Michele were both actors of "Glee," and decided to room together while filming.

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Judd Apatow does not believe comedy movies are dead in theaters. While the genre has largely moved to streaming in recent years (Apatow’s last two directorial efforts debuted on streaming, while the Please Don’t Destroy movie he produced last year, “The Treasure of Foggy Mountain,” skipped theaters and debuted on Peacock), Apatow recently told Vulture that all it will take is one comedy blockbuster in theaters to swing the pendulum away from streaming. Actually, that may have already happened in his eyes.

Euphoria season three is on hold.

Esteemed British writer David Nicholls is not precious when it comes to adaptations of his novels and cites Netflix’s recent adaptation of his 2009 novel One Day as being a perfect example of how being open-minded to fresh ideas on established material can result in good work. 

Ellise Shafer “Euphoria” Season 3 has been delayed at HBO. “HBO and Sam Levinson remain committed to making an exceptional third season,” an HBO spokesperson told Variety. “In the interim, we are allowing our in-demand cast to pursue other opportunities.” The scripts for Season 3 are still being written.

Michaela Zee Judd Apatow spoke to Vulture in a recent interview about the current state of television, including why the trend of rewatching older series and licensing pacts between streamers is “scary.” “I’m of two minds,” Apatow said. “There’s a part of me that’s an audience member: I’ll go back and rewatch ‘Deadwood’ or ‘NYPD Blue’ or any of the David Milch shows.

Netflix has unveiled the cast joining Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw in upcoming thriller Black Doves.

Addie Morfoot Contributor The South by Southwest debut of “Stormy” was not your typical Imagine Documentaries premiere. About adult film star Stormy Daniels’ alleged affair with former President Donald Trump, the film drew an eclectic crowd that included porn stars and “Muppet” director-producer Frank Oz, who sat in the same row as Daniels and her entourage made up mainly of buff bodyguards.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Miyazaki Hayao’s “The Boy and the Heron,” which recently won the Oscar for best animated feature film, will head to global streaming giant Netflix later this year, excluding the U.S. and Japan. The hand-drawn, critically acclaimed fantasy adventure film is part of a renewed worldwide catalog deal between Netflix and the Japanese producer Studio Ghibli, sales agent Goodfellas and independent distributor GKids.

Anna Tingley If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. Following its SXSW premiere earlier this month, Sarah Gibson’s documentary about Stormy Daniels, the porn star who made national headlines when it was revealed that Donald Trump‘s lawyer Michael Cohen paid her $130,000 to keep quiet about her alleged affair with the former president — is now available to stream on Peacock.

Netflix EMEA boss Larry Tanz has criticized local quotas for “stifling creativity” and said the streamer remains “all in” while competitors “dial back.”