Mike Fleiss Credited on ‘The Bachelorette’ Following HR Investigation, Departure From Franchise

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent The wait is almost over. After years in development, the senior citizen spinoff of “The Bachelor” is coming — and its leading man is about to be revealed. ABC will unveil the identity of the star of “The Golden Bachelor” on Monday morning. But for now, we have the first glimpse at the first-ever mature star of “The Bachelor” franchise in its two decades on the air. From the looks of the key art for “The Golden Bachelor,” the leading man does indeed appear to be more senior than the typical cast on the franchise. The marketing materials for the upcoming season, which debuts this fall, show the back of the mystery man’s head — and we can see some salt-and-pepper in his hair and beard.

Summer Sale. Just in time to add some new shoes to your summer footwear rotation, the Zappos sale is offering major savings on thousands of trending styles. If you've been mulling over the prospect of giving your wardrobe a long-overdue refresh in honor of the season, this Zappos sale is officially your sign to clear out your current shoe stock in favor of some newer, trendier styles.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent At long last, it’s finally time for “The Golden Bachelor.” After years and years — and years! — of waiting for “The Bachelor” franchise’s senior citizens spinoff, the first teaser for the new series is here. In ABC’s first promo, exclusively revealed by Variety, the franchise’s signature red rose is turned gold for its golden man. The quick trailer is set to the tune of “This Magic Moment.” While Variety has the first footage for the show, the golden man isn’t being unveiled quite yet. ABC plans to reveal the identity of its mature mystery star next week on “Good Morning America” on Monday July 17 — so stay tuned for that.

Chicago Fire is red hot.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent Britney Spears has set a date and revealed the title for her upcoming, much buzzed-about memoir. Titled “The Woman in Me,” Spears book is slated for release on Oct. 24, according to People, who first reported the news. “The Woman in Me” will be published by Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. Spears landed the massive publishing deal for a tell-all last February, just a few months after her conservatorship was terminated. At the time, a source close to Spears told Variety that the book is said to provide the pop star’s accounts of and commentary on her rise to fame, her music career and her relationship with her family.

One Direction is undeniably one of the biggest boy bands to hit the scene since the early millennium bubblegum pop explosion, and the members of the group amassed impressive fortunes over the years.

David Bowie, has shared that he fears he’s to blame for the late singer quitting touring.While speaking to Music Week, Garson shared that a conversation with the ‘Starman’ icon may have impacted his decision to stop touring after 2004.“So he called me in 2006 and he said, ‘Well, Mike, do you think we should go out again?’ Now, I think the band and my wife want to kill me because I said something absurd, but actually deep and correct and honest,” Garson said.He continued: “I said, ‘David, only if you’re feeling it’, because he wasn’t feeling it. I knew it but he wanted to give work to the band – our tour was cut short in 2004, so he was feeling guilty.”Garson toured as part of Bowie’s band for three decades.

Conecta Fiction & Entertainment caught the mood of a larger international market with panelists in its conference strand focusing often on market challenges, when a feeding fever for premium content dominated conversations in recent editions. That said, running June 26-29 in Toledo, in market attendance and insight and shows brought to market, CF&E fairly rocked.  10 takeaways from this year’s edition:    Despite Toledo’s sweltering in a hot snap, even by Spanish standards, Conecta Fiction’s attendance sky-rocketed to 1,031 accredited professionals, an all-time record and 42% up on figures announced at the end of 2022’s edition. Reasons abound. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to exchange ideas, to touch base with production partners, new ideas. It’s really interesting to see what’s happening here on Prime Video, Netflix or Disney+, what’s really working in Spain or Italy, and what lessons I can take back to my territory,” says Marie Leguizamo, MD Banijay Mexico & U.S. Hispanic. 

Watch What Happens Live” with Andy Cohen this week, Cynthia Nixon revealed that her character, Miranda Hobbes, was the subject of a sex scene that was cut from the third season of “Sex and the City.”“Was there a storyline in the early years that was cut out that you wish would’ve stayed in?” host Cohen asked her during the show. “Miranda dated a really hot detective who she was very intimidated by and thought he was really out of her league, so she got wildly drunk,” Nixon claimed in response.

The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the most popular teams in the NBA.

There was one sex scene that was a bit too gross to make it on to “Sex and the City”.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent On “The Idol,” Da’Vine Joy Randolph brings a rare bit of heart to the much-discussed show. Playing Destiny, Jocelyn’s (Lily-Rose Depp) manager, the actor portrays one of the only stabilizing forces surrounding the sexualized pop star who has been wrapped up in a dangerous world, led by wannabe musician and cult leader Tedros (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye). Randolph was hand-picked by “Idol” co-creator Sam Levinson after the “Euphoria” creator took over the show during a complete overhaul in which he shot it again, after an initial version helmed by Amy Seimetz was completely scrapped, Randolph says. Controversy began before the show even premiered, with a Rolling Stone article that claimed production on “The Idol” had gone “disgustingly off the rails” and that Levinson’s version played like “twisted torture porn.”

Now is the time to binge-watch Alaska Daily and The Company You Keep on Hulu.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent Hannah Brown, known as a former star of “The Bachelorette,” is launching a podcast with SiriusXM, Variety has learned exclusively. “Better Tomorrow With Hannah Brown” is a new lifestyle podcast hosted by Brown, as she seeks to answer life’s big questions: “Am I better today than I was yesterday?” and, “How can I learn to be better tomorrow?” The weekly series will premiere on July 19. Brown’s podcast will build on those questions, focusing on topics like confidence, relationships, love, faith and making time for yourself. Brown will be joined by guests on the series, including experts, celebrity friends, artists and entrepreneurs.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent SPOILER ALERT: This contains spoilers for the Season 20 premiere of “The Bachelorette,” which aired on June 26 on ABC. On “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette,” the very first red rose of the season — dubbed the “first impression rose” — is handed out by the lead on the first night in the mansion to a contestant they have their eye on. As Bachelor Nation knows, this rose often indicates a frontrunner who regularly ends up as a finalist by the end of the season. On Charity Lawson’s season premiere of “The Bachelorette” on Monday night, she handed out her first impression rose to a suitor who seemingly might also be the season’s villain.

Charity Lawson is dishing on the season premiere of . In an interview with ET's Denny Directo, the child and family therapist broke down the biggest moments from the start of her journey for love.The episode began with Charity explaining what she wants out of the show, namely a relationship like her parents, who have been married for 48 years.«I take away so much from what my parents have modeled and how they view love,» she told ET.

SPOILER ALERT! This post contains details from the Season 20 premiere of ABC’s The Bachelorette.

SPOILER ALERT! This post contains details from the Season 20 premiere of ABC’s The Bachelorette.

was going at the Loewe menswear fashion show on June 24, you were actually missing a piece of the puzzle. On June 26, showed up to the  "Le Chouchou" Jacquemus' fashion show at Chateau de Versailles looking every bit a mischievous angel in a white harness bra with sheer puffy sleeves and matching mini tutu, which she paired with square-toed Mary Jane shoes, a bold red lip, and teeny tiny silver Jacquemus bag.Emily Ratajkowski attends the "Le Chouchou" Jacquemus' Fashion Show at Chateau de Versailles on June 26, 2023, in Versailles, France. And what is an angel on your shoulder without their cheeky demonic counterpart? Well, consider that a job for Emily Ratajkowski as well.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent When “The Bachelorette” returns on Monday night with its milestone 20th season, the franchise will continue to make history with leading lady Charity Lawson. Lawson is the fourth woman of color on the long-running dating series, following Rachel Lindsay (who starred in Season 13 in 2017), Tayshia Adams (Season 16, 2020) and Michelle Young (Season 18, 2021). Over the years, “The Bachelor” has faced criticism for its lack of diversity but has pledged to increase its efforts, which have been seen on-screen in recent seasons. As the star of a primetime network show whose love story will be broadcast to millions, Lawson doesn’t take her role lightly.