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Jon Burlingame The music from “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” “The Last of Us,” “Only Murders in the Building,” “American Symphony” and “Star Wars Jedi: Survivor” received Composers’ Choice Awards Thursday night from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). Daniel Pemberton won Film Score of the Year for the animated “Spider-Man” sequel; David Fleming took Television Score of the Year for HBO’s “Last of Us”; Siddhartha Khosla received Television Theme of the Year honors for Hulu’s “Only Murders”; Jon Batiste earned Documentary Score of the Year for “American Symphony”; and Gordy Haab won Video Game Score of the Year for EA’s “Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.” The Composers Choice Awards are voted by members of the ASCAP composer and songwriter community and are unique among awards given by performing-rights organizations.

Orlando Bloom opened up about one of his biggest roles, which he did not want to film.

Lord Of The Rings fans are calling on J.R.R.

Jamie Lang VFX icon and “Mad God” director Phil Tippett is working on a new stop-motion feature titled “Sentinel,” which will be pitched for the first time at this year’s Frontières section of Cannes’ Marché du Film. Variety has been given exclusive access to the first plot details and set images from “Sentinel,” which shares a visual fidelity with “Mad God.” However, in terms of production, things will be very different this time around.

The winners of the 84th Peabody Awards are out, and the list includes Emmy favorites The Bear, The Last of Us and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver along with other TV shows including the now-wrapped Reservation Dogs, kids toon sensation Bluey, breakout prank-umentary Jury Duty and the Oscar-winning Ukraine War documentary 20 Days in Mariupol.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large “The Bear,” “Bluey,” “Reservation Dogs,” “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” “The Last of Us” and “Jury Duty” are among the series set to receive this year’s Peabody Award, the org was set to announce on Thursday morning. The Peabody Awards’ board of 32 jurors have selected 34 winners, all of which received unanimous vote from TV, podcast/radio and web/digital nominees in entertainment, news, documentary, arts, children’s/youth, public service, and interactive programming.

Addie Morfoot Contributor Netflix will debut Joe Berlinger‘s six-part docuseries “Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial,” about the Third Reich, on June 5. Through the framing of the Nuremberg trials and eyewitness testimony of American journalist William L. Shirer, the series explores the rise and fall of Hitler and his enablers who were fueled through propaganda, censorship and a campaign of antisemitism.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Italian-born Texas-based director Roberto Minervini is known for a distinguished career making documentaries including his so-called Texas trilogy comprising “The Passage,” “Low Tide” and “Stop the Pounding Heart.” His most recent doc “What You Gonna Do When the World’s On Fire?” about a community of Black people in New Orleans during the summer of 2017, when a string of brutal killings of Black men sent shockwaves throughout the country, launched from the Venice competition in 2018. “The Damned,” which is Minervini’s first feature film, is set during the American Civil War in the winter of 1862.

Christopher Vourlias Ukrainian production powerhouse Film.UA is developing a bone-chilling slate of horror films all set within the same cinematic universe, the company revealed exclusively to Variety on the eve of this year’s Cannes Marché du Film. Steeped in local folklore and delving into the rituals, sorcery and mysticism that are woven into the fabric of Ukrainian culture and mythology, the films will transport viewers into a realm where ancient powers stir and darkness reigns, unspooling stories that are rooted in historical and cultural facts and set against the backdrop of current events.

Angela Deem and Michael Ilesanmi of 90 Day Fiance are at war. The TLC alum has decided to make it her mission to make her estranged husband as miserable as possible. Angela is not happy unless she is causing chaos.

OH. EM. GEE.

Terry Flores The directors of “Inside Out 2,” “Ultraman: Rising” and “Transformers One” are confirmed to speak at the weeklong VIEW Conference 2024, taking place in Turin, Italy, from Oct. 14-19.

Murtada Elfadl The Millennium Docs Against Gravity Festival, taking place in Warsaw from Friday until May 16, has grown exponentially in the last few years. In fact it is now, as the people behind it proclaim, “the largest cultural event in Poland.” Artistic director Karol Piekarczyk explains, “There is a culture of watching films and of watching films with subtitles in Poland. It’s quite unique.

How do our perceptions shape history? Director Jake Paltrow uses three characters to show a historical event’s impact in “June Zero.” The film’s starting point is the 1961 trial of Nazi official Adolf Eichmann, a major Holocaust organizer. A prison guard, a police investigator, and a 13-year-old all find themselves dealing with its aftermath.

EXCLUSIVE: Matthew Del Negro (City on a Hill) is joining season 3 of Mayor of Kingstown.

After 2017’s masterful War of the Planet of the Apes, which completed the trilogy that started with 2011’s Rise and 2014’s Dawn and told the epic story of wise leader Caesar and the apes who created this whole new world, I really thought there was nowhere else to go with this franchise that had itself started so brilliantly in 1968 with the original starring Charlton Heston as an astronaut who lands in this futuristic world dominated by intelligent apes. Many other iterations would come, even a side foray by Tim Burton, but it was that most recent trilogy (the first directed by Rupert Wyatt, the final two by Matt Reeves) that really popped. But being box office successes, 20th Century’s new owner Disney knew there was more to be mined, and they were right.

Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will be raking in a small fortune this month when they fight in Saudi Arabia to unify the world heavyweight division.

EXCLUSIVE: Award-winning Star Wars VFX veteran Joseph Kasparian, whose recent credits include The Mandalorian and Andor, is joining Montreal-based VFX studio RodeoFX in the role of Executive Visual Effects Supervisor.

K.J. Yossman Israel’s leading documentary co-production market CoPro is set to return next month for its 26th edition in a hybrid format amidst the ongoing war in the region.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent French director Jonathan Millet riffs on manhunt tropes in “Ghost Trail,” the psychological thriller that will be the Cannes Critics’ Week opener. Variety has been given an exclusive first-look clip from the film, which is inspired by real-life events. “Ghost Trail” is the story of a Syrian man named Hamid who is part of a secret group pursuing fugitive leaders that perpetrated horrors in the name of the Syrian regime during the country’s civil war.

There has been a huge increase in anti-Semitic hate crimes recorded by Greater Manchester Police in the months following the Hamas attack, new figures show.

10 countries have triumphed in the first semi-final of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden, when 16 countries competed to get through to Saturday’s Grand Final.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Tyler Childers and Sierra Ferrell lead the nominations for the 2024 Americana Honors & Awards, both picking up nods in each of the three categories in which they were eligible — album of the year, song of the year and artist of the year. Longtime favorite Childers is up for “Rustin’ In The Rain” for album and “In Your Love” for song. Ferrell, who has risen quickly through the ranks to become an Americana queen, is nominated for “Trail of Flowers” for best album and “American Dreaming” for top song.

EXCUSIVE: Passing along this confidential information: CNN and BBC Studios have reteamed on a new docuseries that details the inner workings of Cold War operatives in the 1980s. The news network will air Secrets & Spies: A Nuclear Game at 10 p.m. Sunday, June 2. Watch the trailer above.

Eurovision organisers have defended their decision not to boycott Israel over the war in Gaza.It comes ahead of the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden this Saturday (May 11).There have been several calls to boycott the competition from various countries. Over 1,000 Swedish artists called for Israel to be banned this year, such as Robyn, Fever Ray, and First Aid Kit, whilst over 1,400 Finnish music industry professionals recently signed a petition to ban the country from taking part in the contest as well.In the buildup to the 2024 edition, individual artists such as Olly Alexander also faced calls to boycott the event.

Naman Ramachandran Universal’s “The Fall Guy” debuted atop the U.K. and Ireland box office with £3.5 million ($4.5 million), according to numbers from Comscore. But the force was strong with Disney’s 25th anniversary rerelease of “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace,” as it debuted in second place with £1.1 million.

Disney topped Wall Street forecasts for its fiscal second quarter and inched closer to the long-awaited milestone of streaming profitability.

Patty Jenkins is giving an update on film projects she’s been attached to, such as Wonder Woman 3 and Star Wars: Rogue Squadron.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Roadmap Writers, a screenwriting education and training platform based in Los Angeles, is partnering with Hollywood producer Barry Josephson to identify short stories fit for film and television adaptation. The competition, open now and running through June 14, seeks commercial-leaning work and carries a cash prize of $7,000. The top three stories will be published on Roadmap Writers.

The Hamas militant group says it has accepted an Egyptian-Qatari ceasefire proposal to halt the seven-month war with Israel.

Brits soaking up the sun in Spain are reeling from staggering booze price hikes that have pushed popular resorts like Magaluf out of reach for some holiday budgets. The cost of a tipple has doubled in some bars and cafes, leaving destinations once known for their affordability now pinching tourists' pockets.

EXCLUSIVE: Political drama-thriller Words Of War, led by an ensemble including Maxine Peake, Ciarán Hinds, and Jason Isaacs, is heading to this month’s Cannes Market. 

Morgan Freeman, Olivier Marchal and Simone Ashley will be lauded at the Monte-Carlo TV Festival in June. Prince Albert II of Monaco will present Freeman with Festival’s Crystal Nymph award.

Many have only recently discovered the true meaning behind the Tesco name, and they're in awe of its history.

Michaela Zee The Israeli government voted unanimously on Sunday to shut down the operations of Al Jazeera, a Qatar-based news network, in the country. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement: “Al Jazeera reporters harmed Israel’s security and incited against IDF soldiers.

Jar Jar Binks. Invoke the name to any hardcore Star Wars fan and then step back to see the explosion. No one is neutral.