Karan Johar to be Honored at British Parliament (EXCLUSIVE)

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Shout Studios acquired North American rights to “The Kill Room,” a thriller starring Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson and Joe Manganiello. The distribution and production division of indie Shout Factory has emerged victorious in a bidding war at Cannes Film Festival. Shout Studios plans to release the film in theaters this fall. “The Kill Room” was directed by Nicol Paone and written by Jonathan Jacobson. The dark comedic-thriller follows an art dealer (Thurman) who teams with a hitman (Manganiello) and his boss (Jackson) for a money laundering scheme. The plan accidentally turns the hired killer into an overnight avant-garde sensation, forcing the dealer to play the art world against the underworld.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Nata­lie Port­man will be honored at the 49th edition of Deauville Amer­i­can Film Fes­ti­val, which will bestow her with its Deau­ville Talent Award. She will attend a screening of her new film, Todd Haynes’ sex scandal drama “May Decem­ber,” at the festival, which runs from Sept. 1 to 10. Among her career highlights, the festival singles out her performance in Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan,” for which she won an Oscar in 2011. She was also an Oscar nominee for Mike Nichols’ “Closer” in 2005 and Pablo Larraín’s “Jackie” in 2017. Other standout roles the festival pointed to were her performances in “Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace” in 1999, Anthony Minghella’s “Cold Mountain” in 2003, and Kar-Wai Wong’s “My Blueberry Nights” in 2007.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Riz Ahmed will be honoured by the Locarno Film Festival where the latest short in which the British actor appears – titled “Dammi” and directed by French auteur Yann Mounir Damage – will world premiere. Ahmed, who earned an Oscar nomination for best actor in 2021 for his performance as a drummer who suddenly goes deaf in Amazon’s “Sound of Metal,” will be feted by the Swiss fest dedicated to indie filmmaking cinema with with its 2021 Excellence Award Davide Campari, which pays tribute to film personalities who have left their personal stamp on contemporary cinema. “Dammi,” which was teased at Cannes, is an experimental work, broadly on the theme of immigration and identity, produced by French fashion brand  AMI, founded by Alexandre Mattiussi, and also starring Isabelle Adjani, Souheila Yacoub, Sandor Funtek and Suzy Bemba. The buzzed-about short will screen at Locarno’s 8,000-seat Piazza Grande, on opening night, Aug. 2, during the ceremony at which Amed will receive the award.

Naman Ramachandran Kajol and Kriti Sanon will lead the cast of Netflix India’s mystery thriller original film “Do Patti.” The film also marks the producing debuts of Sanon and writer Kanika Dhillon. Billed as a “thrilling suspense-filled ride,” the film is set in the hills of northern India. A director has not been revealed yet. Kajol, one of India’s best-loved actors, has credits that include romance “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai,” melodrama “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham…,” romantic thriller “Fanaa” and drama “My Name Is Khan.” She made her streaming debut with Netflix film “Tribhanga,” which played from 2021, and stars in a segment of the streamer’s “Lust Stories 2,” which released June 29. She will next be seen in Disney+ Hotstar series “The Trial – Pyaar, Kaanoon, Dhokha,” the Indian adaptation of CBS series “The Good Wife.”

Chrissy Teigen and John Legend gave their newborn a name with a special meaning. On Wednesday, the couple announced that they've welcomed their fourth child, a baby boy, with the help of a woman named Alexandra, their surrogate, whom they honored in their son's name.In her post, Chrissy wrote that Alexandra was «the most incredible, loving, compassionate surrogate we could ever imagine.»«I knew she was a perfect match for us the moment we spoke to her.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Two-time Oscar-winning editor Pietro Scalia will be honored by the Locarno Film Festival with its Vision Award honoring technical achievements and advancements in film. Scalia, who was born in Sicily but grew up in Switzerland and studied film at UCLA, has won Oscars for “JFK” and “Black Hawk Down.” Over the past two decades he’s collaborated closely with top directors such as Ridley Scott, Oliver Stone, Bernardo Bertolucci, Gus Van Sant, Rob Marshall, Sam Raimi and Michael Mann. His recent work includes Mann’s upcoming “Ferrari.” Scalia will receive the Locarno award on Aug. 3 during a ceremony on the Swiss fest’s 8,000-seat Piazza Grande, followed on Aug. 4 by an onstage conversation and screenings of two standout titles from his career: “Good Will Hunting” (1997) and “Black Hawk Down” (2001).

Well, this is a bit quick — and unexpected.

EXCLUSIVE: Kapil Talwalkar (Night Court), Olivia Liang (Kung Fu), Karan Soni (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse) and Tom Everett Scott (That Thing You Do!) are set to star in Paper Flowers, an inspirational indie based on the true story of Shalin Shah, a 22-year-old whose battle with cancer gained viral attention in 2015. 

Quavo and Offset paid tribute to their late bandmate, Takeoff, with a surprise performance at the 2023 BET Awards.

Naman Ramachandran Indian cinema legend Amitabh Bachchan is venturing into the field of generative AI with studio, aggregator and digital IP monetization platform Ikonz. Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence (AI) system capable of generating text, images, or other media in response to prompts, with ChatGPT and Bing Chat being current popular examples. Ikonz, which already works with Indian graphic novel properties Amar Chitra Katha, Tinkle and Chacha Chaudhary, has a stated vision of “bringing together advanced technologies and cultural icons to create a new era of interactive entertainment.”

Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds about to be star bakers?The couple visited the set of 's iconic white tent on Friday, posing for photos with baking competition show judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith and sharing them on social media.Reynolds, 46, posted a snap to his Instagram with the duo in front of the recognizable white tent, while Hollywood shared a similar photo on his respective social media page.«A full and unconditional hug of pure serotonin,» a bespectacled Reynolds, wearing a casual green button-down and jeans, captioned the sweet pic, which featured Leith wearing her signature bright-rimmed glasses and bold print shirt, and Hollywood rocking a dark denim outfit.Hollywood left a comment on the star's post, writing, «Great catching up ...»A post shared by Ryan Reynolds (@vancityreynolds)Meanwhile, Hollywood shared a photo with Lively, 35, as they sat at one of the tables, cheekily writing that he had found a suitable replacement for Leith's place at the judges' table.«Sorry Prue, Blake (@blakelively) has taken your seat… welcome to cake corner Blake

The African American Film Critics Association will honor Jennifer Hudson, Delroy Lindo, Marla Gibbs, “Ted Lasso” and “S.W.A.T.” at the fifth annual AAFCA TV Honors.Hudson will receive the “We See You” Award, given to performers who demonstrate versatility in their work with consistent excellence in their craft. Delroy Lindo (“UnPrisoned”) will receive the “Legacy Award” presented to an artist or institution that inspires others to follow their path.Marla Gibbs will receive the “Legend Ward” for changing the landscape of TV and Film.The “Inclusion Award” will go to AppleTV+’s “Ted Lasso,” for it’s ability to “prioritize representation of people from all walks of life.” CBS’ “S.W.A.T.,” produced by Sony, will receive the “Impact Award” for its influential storylines and performances to the African American community.On July 19, the AAFCA will also announce winners in 14 categories, including Best TV Comedy, Best TV Drama, Best New Show, Breakout Star, Best Ensemble, Best Writing, Best TV Directing and more.

Sophia Scorziello editor Yara Shahidi, the “Black-ish” star who recently starred as Tinker Bell in Disney’s live-action film “Peter Pan & Wendy,” will be honored with the Shining Star award at the 2023 Maui Film Festival. The festival has revealed its full honoree and film slate for this year’s event, which is set to take place from June 28 to July 2 in Kahului. Shahidi is known for starring as Zoey in ABC’s beloved “Black-ish” and is now the executive producer of Freeform’s spinoff series, “Grown-ish.” She soon will star in Amazon’s upcoming rom-com “Sitting in Bars With Cake,” for which she will also serve as EP, along with the upcoming action thriller “Ballerina Overdrive.”

Naman Ramachandran LGBTQ+ activist Moud Goba will be honored with the 2023 BET International Global Good Award. The award is BET International’s recognition of public figures who use their platform for social responsibility and goodness while demonstrating a commitment to the welfare of the global Black community. Past honorees include artist and philanthropist Akon and Kenyan mental health advocate Sitawa Wafula. Zimbabwe-born Goba has spent the past 20 years working with several U.K.-based grassroots organizations focused on fostering LGBTQ+ safe spaces and refugee integration in society. Goba works as national manager for Micro Rainbow, an initiative that provides safe shelters for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and refugees and her role there earned her a place on the 2022 BBC 100 Women list.

Sophia Scorziello editor HBO’s “The Last of Us” took home the program of the year award at the 44th Banff World Media Festival. The series was awarded at the 2023 Rockie Award Gala on Tuesday evening alongside other individuals, programs, films and media outlets. The event is held annually in Banff, Alberta in the Canadian Rockies. Craig Robinson, actor and producer with credits on programs like “The Office,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and “Killing It,” was awarded with the Sir Peter Ustinov Comedy Award. Robinson was also the host of the festival’s flagship awards program. The Grand Jury Prize was awarded to “Eternal Spring” and the Buffalo Rock Award went to “Star Trek” for its legacy in TV programming.

The Last of Us walked away from the Banff Rockie Awards with the Program of the Year gong.

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor The wolf pack is hoping for Emmys love. “Teen Wolf: The Movie,” Paramount+’s adaptation of the MTV supernatural-thriller series, has been submitted for the Primetime Emmy Awards for outstanding television movie, Variety has learned exclusively. Moreover, the streamer also submitted the film in five other categories: lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie (Tyler Posey), directing (Russell Mulcahy), writing (Jeff Davis, Will Wallace, Joseph P. Genier, Russell Mulcahy), prosthetic makeup (Chris Gallaher, Adrien Morot, Erik Porn, Hailey Trifiro, Kyle Yaklin) and original music and lyrics (“Lemon” by Tyler Posey). This provides Posey, who plays the True Alpha werewolf Scott and produces the film, three chances for recognition.

K.J. Yossman Machine Gun Kelly and 2 Chainz are among the artists to cameo in upcoming documentary “Life & Basketball: The Rise of Lethal Shooter” about iconic coach Chris Matthews. Directed by Mandon Lovett (“Boys In Blue”), the doc tells the story of Matthews’ inspirational journey from underprivileged childhood to professional athlete to homelessness to one of the world’s most respected shooting coaches. Matthews, who lost both his parents to Washington D.C.’s 1980s drug epidemic, became a pro athelete before a collapsed lung ended his career. At one point he found himself homeless as he struggled to rebuild his life. But he soon found his true calling, which is to teach the art of shooting, propelling him to become one of the world’s most respected shooting coaches in the world.

Naman Ramachandran India’s Rajshri Deshpande, star of Rotterdam winner “Sexy Durga” and hit Netflix series “Trial by Fire,” headlines “Privacy,” the first teaser for which has been unveiled. The film will have its world premiere at Korea’s Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BiFan). “Privacy” is a voyeuristic social thriller set in and around the slums of Mumbai. It follows Roopali (Deshpande), who works at the Mumbai surveillance command and control center as an operator. While being ambitious, she constantly fights her own guilt and resists her dark past. Things start to get complicated when Roopali ignores protocol and begins to investigate a robbery and murder that takes place on her watch. The film takes the neo-noir approach to explore themes of mental health, voyeurism and access to information.