Washington Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Todd Longwell Charles D. King has an impressive list of accomplishments, including an Oscar nomination for best picture for his 2021 feature “Judas and the Black Messiah.” But his proudest moment came when he told his young sons that he was quitting WME, where he was the first Black partner, to launch Macro, a multi-platform media company amplifying the voices and perspectives of people of color. “They said to me, ‘Dad is going to be a boss!’ and started jumping up and down on their bed,” recalls King.

Prince Harry has been threatened with deportation by Donald Trump as the former US president declared that he "will not protect him" like Joe Biden.

$200 million dollar budgets are usually reserved for Marvel or DC blockbusters. $300 million dollar budgets are typically reserved for “Avengers”-level movies.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Black Bear has hired Courtney L. Cunniff as senior vice president of film.

Prince Harry is facing a court showdown over his US visa application, following revelations about drug use in his memoir Spare.The Duke of Sussex has previously detailed his past experiences with drugs, and these admissions in his book could now cause him some trouble.This week, Harry's name is at the heart of a court case regarding efforts by the US Government to keep his immigration records private. Harry recently said during the Invictus One Year To Go Event that he has thought about becoming a US citizen - but this could be at risk if the judge decides against him in the court case happening in Washington this Friday, 23 February. A US think-tank group is petitioning for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to publish Harry's immigration records to find out whether he admitted to his drug use when he entered the US in 2020.

Seo In-guk has announced his first-ever fanmeeting tour of the US, with two stops announced so far.The US tour was announced by his agency Story J Company earlier today (February 23), and will mark the singer-actor’s first time touring the US since he debuted as a singer and an actor in the early-2010s.According to Story J, Seo In-guk will “communicate closely with fans through various game segments with a colourful stage to speak with his fans, who will be able to learn more about Seo In-guk as a human being”. The star will also be performing “several hit songs” during his shows.Seo’s fanmeeting tour will take place in late April, with the first show to be held in Los Angeles’ Saban Theater on April 22 and the second to be held in Washington D.C.’s Lisner Auditorium the next day.

Run-DMC DJ Jam Master Jay, with the defence attorney citing Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak in her argument.Jam Master Jay – real name Jason Mizell – was shot in the head and killed at his New York recording studio in October 2002. In 2020, Karl Jordan Jr, who was Mizell’s godson, and Ronald Washington, who was his childhood friend, were charged with murder.The murder trial began on January 30, with the court hearing that the Run-DMC legend’s killing was motivated by greed and revenge related to a drug deal row.An eyewitness who was at the scene of the shooting also appeared in court during the trial, identifying a suspect and recalling the Run-DMC star’s last moments.Jordan and Washington have pleaded not guilty.

“Law & Order” after three decades on the air, he’s still not ready for retirement. The “Great Gatsby” actor, 83, opened up about his replacement, Tony Goldwyn, and why he’s not quite done with showbiz just yet during an appearance on the “Today” show.Waterston has played district attorney Jack McCoy on the legal drama since 1994, and announced he was exiting the show earlier this month.“I think he’s going to be great. I think my reputation is in terrible danger because I think just he’s going to be wonderful and I’ll be watching,” Waterston said of the “Scandal” alum, 63, on Wednesday.“It’s going to be big trouble.

EXCLUSIVE: Laura Harrier (White Men Can’t Jump) has been tapped for a major role opposite Bill Skarsgård and Nicolas Cage in Lords of War, the sequel to 2005 crime thriller Lord of War, which Andrew Niccol (Anon) wrote and is directing for Vendôme Pictures (CODA), sources tell Deadline.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Netflix says its ad-supported plan includes “the vast majority” of TV shows and movies available on the standard no-ads tiers — but more than a year after the streamer introduced the cheaper option, several popular titles remain unavailable to customers with the ad plan. Most recently, Netflix customers noticed that Eli Roth’s horror film “Thanksgiving” (pictured above), added Feb. 17 for subscribers on ad-free tiers, is unavailable on the ad plan.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic The roll that country star Jelly Roll is on will make itself felt in arenas in the late summer and fall of 2024, as the singer has laid out an itinerary that has him headlining big-sized halls in 37 U.S. cities over a two-month period. The “Beautifully Broken” tour starts Aug.

A bitter power struggle at Scotland’s biggest country and western club over the use of the “racist” Confederate flag has taken a new twist.

Foo Fighters will be performing an intimate show in Washington DC in aid of Power To The Patients, a non-profit organisation helping to make affordable healthcare more accessible.Chuck D and Fat Joe, the latter of whom has been particularly involved with the non-profit, will also be in attendance, as well as lawmakers, government officials and Power To The Patients staff. The gig will take place on March 5.“When we were asked by Power To The Patients to help raise awareness of the need for transparency in healthcare pricing, we immediately said yes,” the band said in a statement.

Joe Biden wrapped up his Los Angeles visit today with brief remarks at a Culver City library to talk about the administration’s plans to cancel the student debt of more than 150,000 borrowers.

Apple TV's new prestige drama series The New Look features a soundtrack that's assembled and produced by Jack Antonoff, the in-demand pop savant who just won at the 2024 Grammys for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical (his third Grammy in that category and 10th overall). The soundtrack collects covers of classic songbook standards from modern pop giants, and today's track comes from Perfume Genius, the singer-songwriter born Mike Hadreas.

There were few surprises at the third and likely final pre-primary meet up of the four leading candidates for California‘s open U.S. Senate seat, a race increasingly defined by a race for No. 2 behind front-runner Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA).

Amber Dowling Netflix has picked up an untitled documentary about the Montreal Expos and the events surrounding the Major League Baseball team’s departure in 2004. The doc, which the streamer has confirmed exclusively to Variety, reps Netflix’s next original project out of Canada. The doc is the first greenlit under Netflix’s new creative partnership with Montreal-based Attraction.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor has announced details of a US tour, following the new-found success of ‘Murder On The Dancefloor’.The announcement that the British singer will be hitting the road for US tour dates comes following the resurgence of her 2001 hit, namely due to its feature in the infamous final scene of Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn.Since the film’s release at the end of 2023, it has become a viral hit on TikTok and even entered the Billboard Hot 100 – her first-ever song to chart in the US. It also climbed the UK single charts, peaking at Number Two last month.Now, Ellis-Bextor will be playing the song, as well as other hit tracks from her discography live later this spring, with seven performances scheduled across the US.The tour will kick off on May 30, with an opening show at August Hall in San Francisco, and continues the following night (31) with a stop at The Observatory North Park in San Diego.From there, the remainder of the live shows will run across the first half of June, with the first being held at the 9:30 Club in Washington DC (June 3), followed by scheduled dates in Boston and Philadelphia.The singer’s previously announced New York City show at Webster Hall is also included in the tour dates, set for June 6, although tickets for the gig have already sold out.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor is gearing up to tour around North America for the first time and adding more cities for fans to see her perform “Murder on the Dance Floor” live.

After a deal couldn’t be made for David Leitch to direct, Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment have moved fast as the studio is in final negotiations for Rogue One director Gareth Edwards to helm a new Jurassic World movie. The studio recently dated the pic to bow on July 2, 2025 and moved fast to find a director with Edwards spending all of last week meeting with execs. After impressing producers Steven Spielberg and Frank Marshall, who helped launch the franchise in the 90s, an offer soon followed and pre-production is expected to ramp up once a deal is sealed.

Katcy Stephan “Rogue One” director Gareth Edwards is in talks to direct an all-new “Jurassic World” film for Universal. The news comes days after the studio’s negotiations with David Leitch fell apart. The film will be executive produced by Steven Spielberg through Amblin Entertainment.

James Taylor has been touring tirelessly across the world.2024 will be no different.From May through September, the 75-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is hitting the road with his All-Star Band once again.Along the way, he’ll spend quite a bit of time in New York, too. He’s currently slated to bring the hits like “Fire and Rain,” “You’ve Got A Friend,” “How Sweet It Is” to Buffalo (June 25), Syracuse (June 26), Long Island (Aug.

Oprah Winfrey and Niecy Nash-Betts will be honored at the 35th GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles on March 14.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music On Tuesday, March 5, Foo Fighters will perform at a private concert in Washington, D.C. hosted by Power to the Patients, a non-profit fighting for a more affordable, accessible, and equitable healthcare system through price transparency. Veteran rappers Fat Joe, who has spearheaded music’s awareness of the organization, and Chuck D will also be in attendance.

Steven Miles, best known by his gay porn persona Sergeant Miles, and a Proud Boys member, was sentenced to two years in prison followed by another year of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer during the Jan. 6 protests and riots in Washington D.C. Photo: Instagram @real_sgtmiles

Rita McKenzie, known for staging the longest-running one-woman show in theatrical history, died Feb. 17 in Los Angeles days before her 77th birthday. She succumbed to what her family described as a long-term illness.

Paul Mescal has spoken about the process of making the much-anticipated Gladiator 2, confirming that there is a scene in which he “fights with baboons”. The Irish actor was speaking on the red carpet ahead of the BAFTA Film Awards, where he is nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in All Of Us Strangers. Speaking to Alex Zane, he spoke about the experience of making the film.

Sir Keir Starmer said his party would deal with Donald Trump if the United States chooses him as the next president.

Life in the White House,” a celebratory picture book written by Betty C. Monkman and published, in a newly revised 15th edition, by the White House Historical Association.A series of new books shed fresh light on both the building, home to every president and first lady since 1800, and its occupants.

Editors’ Note: Running until the final general election results come in, the Deadline ElectionLine podcast spotlights the 2024 campaign and the blurred lines between politics and entertainment in modern America. Hosted by Washington bureau chief Ted Johnson and senior editor Dominic Patten, the podcast features commentary and interviews with top lawmakers and entertainment figures. At the same time, you can follow all the news in Biden & Trump rematch and more on the ElectionLine hub on Deadline.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Taiwan-based auteur Tsai Ming-liang, who has two films in the Berlinale this year, is a contrarian who would be almost at home working with art-galleries and museums as cinemas and film festivals. Indeed, his new “Abiding Nowhere” is part financed by the Smithsonian Institute. “Abiding Nowhere,” which premieres on Monday in the Encounters section and consists of lonely wanderings through Washington DC by a barefoot monk, is, by Tsai’s own admission, “not a normal film.” “It does not have a story or a plot.

Chris Petrikin, a former Paramount, Fox and William Morris Agency communications executive, has joined consulting firm Actum LLC as a managing director.

EXCLUSIVE: It is exactly 13 years to the day that Ralph Fiennes’ feature directorial debut Coriolanus – in which he also starred alongside Gerard Butler, Vanessa Redgrave and Brian Cox – world premiered to acclaim at the 2011 Berlinale.

Joe Biden said that the mass shootings at a Super Bowl celebration rally in Kansas City today “cuts deep in the American soul.”

Elizabeth Taylor To mark the opening of their new flagship watches and fine jewelry boutique, Chanel hosted a whimsical that drew the likes of prolific Oscar nominees, fashion industry leaders, and New York City art society. Venerated architect and long-standing Chanel collaborator, Peter Marino, helped kick off the festivities with an intimate cocktail party toasting the first glimpse of his dreamy two-story design. The night of celebration continued next door, where America Ferrera, Carey Mulligan, Michelle Williams, Kerry Washington, Elizabeth Olsen, Katie Holmes, Seth Meyers, Natasha Lyonne, Amandla Stenberg, Rose Byrne, Zazie Beetz, Sadie Sink, Tommy Dorfman, Rachel Brosnahan, Chase Sui Wonders, Lucy Boynton, Francesca Scorsese, and Larry Gagosian gathered for a special pop-up dinner.

The Kansas City Chiefs issued a formal statement on the tragic shooting that took place during their 2024 Super Bowl parade and rally on Wednesday (February 14).