Showrunners Coalition Raises $3 Million in Abortion Access Efforts for Hollywood Studio Workers

Kate Aurthur editor The coalition of showrunners, TV creators and directors formed in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in June to overturn Roe v. Wade are continuing to put pressure on Hollywood studios to put safety protocols into place in abortion-hostile states. But on Sept. 28, in a full-page ad in the Power of Women issue of Variety, the still-unnamed coalition thanked those studios “for fully engaging and being thought leaders with us,” as the message reads in part. (The page was donated to the coalition by Variety‘s sales team without charge. The full letter is included below.) The coalition’s efforts became public on July 28, when Variety reported that 411 showrunners had sent nine major studios a letter demanding that new safety protocols be established for productions in states where abortion has been outlawed. Four days later, 594 male showrunners and creators backed up that demand — and the group was soon joined by nearly 400 directors.

Meghan Markle’s podcast “Archetypes” is set to return on October 4.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Meghan Markle’s podcast “Archetypes” is returning on Tuesday, Oct. 4. The episode will feature comedian and actor Margaret Cho in a conversation about Asian American tropes in the entertainment industry. In light of Queen Elizabeth II’s death on Sept. 9, the recently launched “Archetypes” delayed the release of new episodes “during the official mourning period for Her Majesty,” according to Spotify. The royal family’s official period of mourning ended on Sept. 26, seven days after the Queen’s funeral. Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, and Price Harry were in the United Kingdom for three weeks following the Queen’s death. Upon returning home to California, the couple intends to take a week off to spend time with their children, Archie and Lilibet.

Oprah Winfrey and Ava DuVernay are two of the creative leaders honored for Variety’s 2022 Power of Women presented by Lifetime. For more, click here. Oprah Winfrey has spent most of her career talking, so it’s a little surprising that the only sound you hear from the porch of her second home in Maui is absolute silence. Forget about the ocean waves or rustling palm trees. OK, if you’re lucky enough to hang with Oprah for an entire afternoon, this zen will be interrupted by the periodic squawking of wild roosters. In such a tranquil retreat, you can think clearly, cradled in the beauty of all that Hawaii has to offer. It’s this very place of refuge, in fact, where Winfrey set a trap for filmmaker Ava DuVernay that would launch one of their greatest collaborations: OWN’s “Queen Sugar.”

As an actor, activist and entrepreneur, Jennifer Garner is one of our favorite people in Hollywood and it’s always great to see nice people succeed. She’s certainly done that, having starred in the thriller/sci-fi show Alias for five seasons and now as the co-founder and Chief Brand Officer of Once Upon a Farm, which has grown exponentially since she helped set up the business. It begs the question as to what Jennifer Garner’s net worth is, particularly after her marriage to Ben Affleck, which had no prenup and was finalized more than four years ago.

Taking a hike with Oprah is serious business.

Allison Janney and Jurnee Smollett are stepping out for the premiere of their new Netflix movie!

Meghan Markle’s Variety magazine cover has been postponed following the Queen’s death at age 96 on Thursday.

sundown town. The film tumbles giddily though a montage of late-breaking endorsements, from Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (truly the model for what Booker is doing in Kentucky), Elizabeth Warren and Hollywood power players like Ava DuVernay, Kerry Washington, Regina King and Kentucky’s own Jennifer Lawrence. Some of the transitions are a bit stilted, and the film’s present-tense presentation feels awkward (the news itself is a spoiler). We know how the primary ends, but it is a nail-biter to the very end, nevertheless, from a last-minute injunction called in to beg judges to allow polls to stay open longer for those voters caught in traffic to the weeklong process of counting the mail-in votes.

fans, there was an epic reunion during the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards on Monday night! Sandra Oh, who played fan favorite Dr. Cristina Yang for a decade, was reunited with her former co-star, Candra Wilson, who plays Dr. Miranda Bailey, and show creator Shonda Rhimes.

be silenced. The Duchess of Sussex’s new podcast “Archetypes” is being put on hold amid international mourning for the Queen, who died Sept. 8.The podcast “will be paused during the official mourning period for Her Majesty The Queen,” according to the official Spotify page.

Will Grey’s Anatomy fans see Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey reunite onscreen again after those accusations of his “terrorizing” behavior on the ABC drama?

Wilson Chapman editor One of Pixar’s most acclaimed films is getting a sequel. “Inside Out 2” is in the works from director Kelsey Mann, it was announced at the D23 Expo on Friday. Meg LeFauve is writing the script and Mark Nielsen is producing the pic, which is very early in production and coming in summer 2024. Released in 2015, the original “Inside Out” imagined a world where people have five core personified emotions — Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger and Disgust — guiding their thoughts and actions through everyday life. The film zeroed in on the emotions of Riley, a middle-schooler struggling to adapt to her family’s move from Minnesota to San Francisco, as her leading emotion Joy is expelled from the control center and forced to team up with her polar opposite Sadness in a quest through her mind. The film ended with the two coming to an understanding as Joy recognizes the need for Riley to experience an emotionally complex life, and she begins collaborating more with her fellow emotions to steer the girl through adolescence.

Kate Aurthur editor On Aug. 15, a coalition of showrunners, TV creators and directors sent a list of demands to studios, outlining the urgent need for abortion safety protocols for productions in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in June to overturn Roe v. Wade. It was the organization’s second letter — the studios had collectively answered the first one, sent on July 28 — with a response one member of the group, who spoke anonymously to Variety, called “patronizing” in an interview. The group’s second letter more clearly detailed the medical dangers for pregnant women in states where abortion is illegal because of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision — not only for those who want an abortion, but for women whose medical care might be otherwise compromised. Ignoring the collective response, which had been issued by the Motion Picture Association, the Aug. 15 appeal was sent directly to studio presidents, and members of the boards of directors at AMC Networks, Amazon Studios, Apple TV+, NBCUniversal, Netflix, Paramount, The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Discovery. They gave a deadline of Labor Day for responses from the studios.

Hollywood’s major studios are stepping up to ensure that employees who work in states where abortions are illegal can have access to abortions, according to a statement released today by a coalition of nearly 1,500 showrunners and directors.

Mindy Kaling’s bestie, B.J. Novak, has a sound piece of advice for her when she is speaking to her daughter. On episode three of the Archetypes podcast, the 43-year-old actress reveals to host Meghan Markle that Novak, who is her children’s godfather, offered a tip for the type of compliments she should give her daughter daily.

Mindy Kaling appeared on the third episode of Meghan Markle’s Spotify podcast. The Office alum, 43, took to her Instagram on Tuesday to share a photo of herself chatting with the Duchess of Sussex on Archetypes.Meghan Markle shares ‘secret’ in new interview “Loved sitting down with Meghan on her new podcast, #Archetypes. Listen now, only on @Spotify.

A royal walk down memory lane. Meghan Markle looked back on her engagement to Prince Harry — and the global response it received — during the latest installment of her podcast.

Mindy Kaling speaks candidly about her decision to start a family on her own in a new interview for Meghan Markle’s “Archetypes” podcast.

Oprah Winfrey doesn't know how to pull off a birthday celebration! The media mogul recently took to Instagram to share a behind-the-scenes look at the lavish, three-day blowout she hosted in honor of Ava DuVernay's 50th birthday. The duo has been close friends for almost 10 years and have worked together on numerous projects throughout the decade, such as  Disney's  and OWN's Queen Sugar, for which they both serve as executive producers. In a video posted to her page, the 68-year-old surprises DuVernay with a tall bouquet of fresh-picked sunflowers from her garden. Winfrey reminisces on their first meeting in the caption and credited actor David Oyelowo for introducing her to the director through her indie film, «I googled who directed the movie because I had not heard of Ava DuVernay at the time.