Lucas Wong leaves NCT and WayV

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief “Fast X” predictably won a second weekend on top of the mainland China box office, driving its total past the $100 million mark. But the disappointing start for Disney’s live-action “The Little Mermaid” was the bigger talking point. “Fast X” earned $17.6 million in China according to data from consultancy Artisan Gateway. That was a 66% drop compared with its opening weekend, but still gave the film a $110 million cumulative after 12 days and has caused estimates to be further revised upwards. Ticketing agency Maoyan is now forecasting that the film will finish with RMB880 million ($126 million), having previously predicted RMB728 million ($104 million), and then RMB840 million.

Trisha Paytas has created a fun and eclectic home for herself, her husband and their daughter — and now the YouTube star is welcoming ET inside for a grand tour.Paytas recently invited ET's Denny Directo for an exclusive look around her expectedly unique digs and showed how she set the tone for visitors right off the bat with what she calls her «bling tiger» — a stunning, sparkling, jewel-encrusted life-size tiger sculpture that stands proudly in her entryway.According to Paytas, the bold statement piece is more than just a fun bit of décor — it's also a way to celebrate her 8-month-old daughter, Malibu Barbie, whom she shares with husband Moses Hacmon.«Our daughter is the year of the tiger in Chinese zodiac,» Paytas shared. «So whatever our next baby will be, if it's a bunny or dragon, we're gonna get it bedazzled.»Paytas revealed that she and her husband «are trying» for a second baby, and they are hoping it will happen sometime soon.The Bling Tiger also has a special significance for Paytas, as she explained, «One of the first movies we watched together was Life of Pi, so the tiger has such symbolism.

King Charles III thanked Armagh for the warm welcome he and Queen Camilla received during the second day of their visit to Northern Ireland.The son of the late Queen Elizabeth II attended a service at St Patrick’s Cathedral attended by various religious leaders while wife Camilla visited the Armagh Robinson Library and Museum, which is home to a number of local archaeological items. At the library Camilla met children from Drelincourt Primary School and volunteers from Dementia NI, before signing a commemorative photograph for the museum.

Rachel Seo Chinese folklore gets a Disney spin in “American Born Chinese,” an eight-episode series created by Kelvin Yu, which landed on Disney+ on Wednesday. An adaptation of the 2006 graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang, the series centers on Bay Area teenager Jin Wang (Ben Wang), who becomes entangled in a fantastical quest after a new classmate, Wei-Chen (Jimmy Liu), reveals himself to be the son of the Monkey King and recruits Jin to help him search for the Fourth Scroll. Featuring an all-star cast that includes Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, Stephanie Hsu, Chin Han, Yann Yann Yeo and Sydney Taylor, “American Born Chinese” recontextualizes ancient history for modern audiences both familiar and unfamiliar with the original stories, bringing together the talents of some of the most prominent Asian actors, writers and directors in entertainment.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Mainland Chinese star Wang Luodan (“The Dead End,” “Struggle,” “The Continent”) and Hong Kong-born Bosco Wong (“Lives of Omission,” “Triumph In The Skies”) head the cast of “My Dearest Stranger.” The high-end suspense drama series is a production fronted by mainland Chinese distributor-producer Hishow Entertainment, which announced the production at the Cannes Market, adjacent to the Cannes Film Festival in France. Based on the best-selling novel “Secret Love,” by Fan Shu and adapted by renowned screenwriter Cao Xueping (“Game Changer”), “My Dearest Stranger” tells a compelling story of Yu Xiao, a housewife who realizes her seemingly perfect husband may have a dark side. Yu decides to cooperate with policeman Song Cheng to find out the truth, while trying to keep her own secrets from the world.

Chinese streamer Youku is teaming with Beijing-based producer-distributor Hishow Entertainment to produce high-end drama series My Dearest Stranger, starring Wang Luodan and Bosco Wong. 

88rising has announced the first slate of artists for its fifth annual Head In the Clouds festival in Los Angeles.Head In the Clouds LA is set to take place on August 5 and 6 at Brookside at The Rosebowl. This year’s edition will be headlined by DPR Ian, DPR LIVE, Jackson Wang, NIKI, Rich Brian, Rina Sawayama, XG and YOASOBI, plus special guest Zedd.In addition, the festival will also feature performances by South Korean singer-songwiter Baek Yerin, Thai musician Phum Viphurit, Thai rapper MILLI, Chinese singer Akini Jing and J-pop girl group Atarashii Gakko.

Prime Video, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max (soon to be, simply, Max), Paramount+, Netflix, Peacock, Discovery+, Starz and even more streaming services, there’s no shortage of options when choosing what to binge-watch in your free time. However, sometimes the amount of great film and television available to stream can be overwhelming and lead to scrolling aimlessly — hoping to land on that perfect piece of content.

EXCLUSIVE: EST Studios has entered into a partnership with New York and Bangkok-based N8 Studios to represent a slate of Asian films at global markets including the Marche du Film at Cannes. 

WayV, the Chinese sub-group of K-pop boyband NCT, have announced the European leg of their Fanmeeting Tour ‘Phantom’.WayV will head to two European cities as part of their wider 2023 Fanmeeting Tour ‘Phantom’. In less than a month, the boyband will perform at London’s Eventim Apollo on June 8, followed by the La Seine Musicale in Paris on June 11.According to WayV’s official Twitter account, only five of the group’s six members will be in attendance at the fanmeeting: namely Kun, Ten, Xiaojun, Hendery and YangYang.

Former Manchester United midfielder Jordi Cruyff will leave his position as Barcelona sporting director this summer after nearly two years in the job.

Alissa Simon Film Critic U.K. sales agent Mr. Smith Entertainment is launching one of the Marché’s most anticipated genre titles: “Grafted,” from Kiwi helmer Sasha Rainbow. The smart, surprising, female-led body-horror film marks the feature debut of the L.A.-based, Wellington-born Rainbow, who took a quick break from post-production in New Zealand to talk to Variety.  Penned by Mia Maramara, Hweiling Ow and Lee Murray, “Grafted” follows a bright but socially awkward Chinese scholarship student who arrives in Auckland to study biology and hopes to continue the work of her late scientist father. Rainbow was brought on board by Murray Francis, one of the film’s producers.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Hong Kong Disneyland theme park managed a 22% increase in visitor numbers in its most recent financial year allowing it to modestly reduce its annual losses. The park, which is jointly owned by the Hong Kong government and Walt Disney, with the government holding a narrow majority, reports a financial year to the end of September – and does so more than seven months in arrears. It has been loss-making for the past eight financial years and has made profits in only three years since its opening in 2005. The 2021-2022 financial year was again complicated by the city’s strict anti-COVID restrictions. It was fully closed for three and a half months (longer than the previous financial year) and operated under other social distancing and pandemic measures. Additionally, inbound tourism was heavily curtailed, especially from mainland China. That meant that during the reporting period, the park and hotels were largely visited by locals only.

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SM Entertainment has released a preview of its upcoming music releases for the third quarter of 2023.Today (May 11), SM Entertainment released an earnings report for the first quarter of 2023. In it, the K-pop agency previewed plans for its line-up of upcoming releases in the next five months, up until the third quarter of the year.According to the report, NCT member Taeyong is set to release his first mini-album in the second quarter of 2023.

EXCLUSIVE: Signature Entertainment has snapped up rights for the UK and Ireland to Hong Kong-China action picture Sakra, directed by and starring Donnie Yen, from Well Go USA. 

NCT member Doyoung as its newest ambassador.Dolce & Gabbana announced the appointment though its official Instagram account in a series of posts featuring the K-pop singer in outfits and accessories by the brand. In its announcement, Dolce & Gabbana noted that Doyoung would be the brand’s ambassador in Korea and Japan.“I’m truly excited to become part of the great Dolce & Gabbana family,” Doyoung said of the ambassadorship.

The fashion brand founded by Real Housewives of Cheshire star Seema Malhotra owed almost £3m when it entered liquidation, it has been revealed.

Millie Court and Liam Reardon appear to have confirmed they are back together, as they posed for a sweet Instagram snap while on holiday.The former Love Island stars seem to be on a cruise together, where they posed for a snap with singer Jessica Yallup, who then shared it to her Instagram page. Posting the photo, she penned the caption: "Love Island Winners - Liam and Millie are sailing with us around Europe this week - what lovely people! They love live music and I’m a big Love Island fan" It wasn't long before fans of the couple quickly flocked to the comments, with one writing: "omg they are back together Yayy" "We all knew it, it was only a matter of time before people found concrete evidence" quipped another fan, while a third added: "im so happy".

Prince Andrew is among the members of the royal family to attend the Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle this evening. The Duke of York sat next to his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York.