Elaine Low-Senior Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAmid the rise in vaccinations and decline in COVID-19 case rates in California, Sony Pictures Entertainment is looking to have employees begin returning to the lot in Culver City, Calif.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterEndeavor Content partner and executive vice president Lorenzo De Maio is exiting the company to launch a new venture, De Maio Entertainment, which has backing from Fremantle through an exclusive long-term partnership deal.Based in Los Angeles, De Maio will work closely with both Fremantle’s senior leadership team and a broader group of independent labels and producers to grow the company’s scripted at factual slate and explore new strategic opportunities with

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterSPOILER WARNING: Do not read if you haven’t yet watched Season 1, Episode 2 of Disney Plus’ “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.”Who takes ownership of a superhero’s public persona once they step down from the job, and who has the right to confer it? Catching a glimpse of the “new” Captain America at the end of “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” premiere last week, after years of only ever knowing it to be Steve Rogers, was like seeing an impostor.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterLongtime unscripted producer and Universal Television exec Monica Rodman has been promoted to executive vice president of the studio’s alternative division.Most recently the senior vice president of Universal Television Alternative Studio, Rodman has been with the company since 2015 after spending the prior 12 years producing “The Celebrity Apprentice,” “Fashion Star,” and “Judge Judy,” the latter of which earned her a Daytime Emmy nomination.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterSPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched “Perfect Store” or “All Sales Final,” the two-part series finale of “Superstore,” which aired March 25 on NBC.Arguably the most convincing fib that corporations sell their employees is that the workplace is a family in which everyone will look out for each other no matter what.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAttention, Cloud 9 shoppers: if you weren’t expecting Amy to return quite so soon, you weren’t the only one.“Superstore” star and executive producer America Ferrera didn’t anticipate her character Amy would head back to St.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterFollowing an investigation into allegations of racially insensitive remarks from “All Rise” creator and co-showrunner Greg Spottiswood during Season 2 of the CBS series, Warner Bros. Television has severed ties with the TV creator.

Elaine Low Senior TV Writer“Vida” showrunner Tanya Saracho, “One Day at a Time” co-showrunner Mike Royce and TV writer and #PayUpHollywood co-founder Liz Hsiao Lan Alper are launching a program to support underrepresented groups in the television industry and provide them with the skill set to become writers’ assistants and script coordinators.The initiative has partnered with the Writers Guild Foundation to offer tools and education to scribes who identify as BIPOC, LGBTQ+, disabled writers or

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterNick Pepper is joining Amazon Studios as head of studio creative content, where he will be tasked with packaging and maximizing the studio’s intellectual property and talent deals.The hiring follows a restructuring of Amazon Studio’s executive leadership team last month, which included Marc Resteghini’s elevation to head of development and the addition of Laura Lancaster as head of series.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterLongtime FX business affairs lawyer Shola Ajewole has been named to the newly formed position of senior vice president of creative and cultural diversity at the premium cabler.Ajewole, who will report to FX chairman John Landgraf, will head FX and FX Productions’ diversity and inclusion efforts, to “help ensure they are reflected in all aspects of its culture, creative relationships and content, working closely with talent to support their goals.” He will also work

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterY’lan Noel has been cast as Dan Freeman, the protagonist in the FX adaptation of Sam Greenlee’s spy novel, “The Spook Who Sat By the Door,” which is being executive produced by Lee Daniels. The project is in pilot production at the premium cabler.In “Spook,” the fictional Freeman is the first Black CIA officer hired by the agency in the late 1960s, who has trained in high-level combat and espionage.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAmid the ongoing probe into comments made by Sharon Osbourne during a heated exchange between her and fellow “The Talk” co-host Sheryl Underwood, CBS is further extending the daytime talk show’s hiatus through “at least next week,” according to a source familiar with the matter.CBS had previously announced that it would launch an investigation into comments made on-air in which Osbourne defended Piers Morgan’s comments about Meghan Markle.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterOne of only three new pilots CBS has ordered this year, “True Lies,” which was given a pilot order last month, is moving off cycle to give producers more time to produce and film the pilot this summer.The series is an adaptation of the 1994 film of the same name starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton, Tia Carrere, Art Malik, Eliza Dushku, and Grant Heslov.CBS has a total of nine pilots, two-thirds of which are holdovers from the

Elaine Low Senior TV Writer“The Boys” spinoff at Amazon Studios has added three more to the cast: Shane Paul McGhie, Aimee Carrero and Maddie Phillips.The trio will play young superheroes in the untitled project, which is set to take place at the only college for young adult superheroes, one run by Vought International.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterGot the juice? Then Lizzo wants to see you.The Grammy-winning musician has released details about her first project at Amazon Studios, where she set a first-look television deal last August to create TV projects exclusively for the streaming service. The yet-to-be-titled unscripted series will follow Lizzo “as she continues to search for dynamic, full-figured women to join her world and perform with her on stage,” per the studio.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterA longtime crew member of ABC’s “The Conners” and “Roseanne” died on set Thursday after suffering a “fatal medical event,” according to a spokesperson for Werner Entertainment, the production company behind “The Conners.” His identity was not disclosed.“With heavy hearts we regret to confirm that a member of our technical crew suffered a fatal medical event today,” said a spokesperson.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterHBO is developing a trio of new “Game of Thrones” prequel series, sources tell Variety.One spinoff, titled “9 Voyages” or “Sea Snake,” hails from “Rome” co-creator Bruno Heller, while the other two, “Flea Bottom,” and “10,000 Ships” have no writers yet attached.“9 Voyages” would center on Lord Corlys Velaryon — known as the “Sea Snake” and head of House Velaryon, husband to Rhaenys Targaryen — on the Sea Snake vessel.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAfter a more-than-yearlong closure, Disneyland is set to reopen on April 30, Disney CEO Bob Chapek told CNBC’s “Squawk Alley” Wednesday morning.More to come… 

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterCBS is extending its hiatus of “The Talk,” canceling its live shows for the rest of the week until Tuesday, as it conducts a review related to a recent heated exchange between hosts Sharon Osbourne and Sheryl Underwood.According to a statement from a CBS spokesperson:“CBS is committed to a diverse, inclusive and respectful workplace across all of our productions.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterIn an internal memo to Fox Corporation employees Tuesday morning, Lachlan Murdoch told staff that the company is deferring its next possible phase one reopening date to “no earlier than September 7, immediately after Labor Day.”The company had previously set a return-to-work date no earlier than April of this year.More to come… 

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterCalling Fox News host Tucker Carlson a “relentlessly indignant picket fence,” among other things, “Last Week Tonight” comedian John Oliver critiqued the right-wing talk show host for being “the most prominent vessel in America for white supremacy talking points.”On the latest installment of his HBO show on Sunday, Oliver pointed to Carlson’s defense of the Jan.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterFollowing Friday’s development news of a Will Forte drama that centers on a grief-stricken man planning his own suicide, one mental health organization is criticizing the concept as “wildly irresponsible and callous.”The show, “Expiration Date,” is described as a “dark suburban soap” in which a man finds a life insurance policy that covers suicide, so long as the individual does not carry out the act within 12 months, and sets about planning out his final year.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterNow that nine-part epic “WandaVision” has wrapped and the premiere of “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” is still a week away, Disney Plus has released a new documentary-style special to fill the Westview-sized hole in your heart.“Assembled: The Making of ‘WandaVision'” features interviews with showrunner and exec producer Jac Schaeffer, director Matt Shakman, and stars Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Kathryn Hahn and Teyonah Parris.

Elaine Low Senior TV Writer“Access Hollywood” franchise spinoff “All Access” is not returning after this season.The half-hour entertainment news program, hosted by Mario Lopez, Kit Hoover, Scott Evans and correspondent Sibley Scoles, first launched in Sept.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterWith Los Angeles County and Orange County’s COVID-19 cases subsiding enough for each region to potentially leave the most-heightened tier of restrictions, and Disneyland hoping to reopen its gates by late April, thousands of Southern California’s theme park workers are poised to return to work after enduring a grueling yearlong shutdown of the region’s amusement parks.Disneyland, the second-most popular theme park in the world, has plans to bring back 10,000

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterEpix president Michael Wright has been tapped to succeed Steve Stark at MGM and has been named the studio’s head of scripted television.In this position, Wright will oversee MGM Scripted Television’s development and production of scripted programming, while continuing to oversee all aspects of premium cable network Epix, from growing its original programming slate and distribution to leading creative and marketing.“Michael is an extremely talented and experienced

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAmy is coming back to Cloud 9 one last time.America Ferrera is returning to reprise her role for the series finale of NBC’s “Superstore,” which is ending its six-season run with an hour-long farewell on March 25.The star, who departed her leading role in the second episode of Season 6, had been with the show since it premiered in 2015, serving as an executive producer and directing multiple episodes.The ensemble comedy, about a group of retail workers at a fictional

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterLongtime MGM Television executive Steve Stark, who championed the studio’s Emmy-winning drama “The Handmaid’s Tale,” is leaving his executive post and transitioning to a producing deal with the studio.Just over a year ago, Stark was named president of the newly formed MGM/UA Television label and extended his deal with the studio.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAfter California officials issued new guidelines Friday allowing theme parks and stadiums to reopen as early as April 1, Disney CEO Bob Chapek said at the company’s annual shareholder meeting Tuesday that Disneyland could open its gates again in a matter of weeks.“The fact is, it will take some time to get them ready for our guests,” he said, adding that Disney is focused on “recalling more than 10,000 furloughed cast members and training them to operate under the

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterSony Pictures Entertainment has named Ravi Ahuja as chairman of Global Television Studios and its corporate development operations, where he will lead Sony Pictures TV’s domestic and international productions, the studio’s game show franchises and its India business, according to the company.Ahuja will also oversee the company’s corporate development and mergers and acquisitions alongside SPE chairman and CEO Tony Vinciquerra.“Ravi is an extraordinarily talented and

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterDisneyland, Universal Studios and other theme parks in California — as well as sports stadiums — have gotten the green light to reopen their gates once again after a long shutdown prompted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.According to the California Department of Public Health, ballparks, stadiums and theme parks can open outdoors starting April 1 with “significantly reduced capacity, mandatory masking and other public health precautions.”“With case rates and

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterAmazon Studio’s fashion competition series “Making the Cut,” hosted and executive produced by Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn, is officially coming back for a second season.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterSpeaking at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecommunications Conference on Monday, Walt Disney Company chief exec Bob Chapek said he’s “not sure there’s going back” to pre-pandemic theatrical windows.Reiterating the company’s commitment to theatrical releases, Chapek reminded viewers that Disney in 2019 released 11 films that earned at least $1 billion, which “will continue to be a big deal” to the company.

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterHalf Mexican and half Chumash, showrunner Karissa Valencia grew up “torn” between modern life and Native culture.

Elaine Low Senior TV Writer“You’re doing me dirty, you’re doing me dirty,” actor Daniel Kaluuya quipped at the start of his acceptance speech as the first awards presentation of the 78th Golden Globes got off to a rocky start, when the handoff to the winner’s video feed wound up transitioning to silence.Laura Dern presented the award for best supporting actor in a motion picture to Kaluuya for his performance in Warner Bros.’ “Judas and the Black Messiah.” But Kaluuya’s audio feed didn’t

Elaine Low Senior TV WriterWhen it comes to Freeform’s young adult-oriented programming, “relatable” is the name of the game.Network president Tara Duncan, who stepped into the top spot at Freeform last June — and no thanks to the pandemic, has still not set foot in the network’s Burbank offices during her tenure — sees the cabler as a destination for stories that “authentically reflect and speak to the Gen Z and millennial experience.”“I really have a priority of making that seen both in front