‘The Notebook’ Author Nicholas Sparks Inks First-Look Deal With Universal, Will Produce Three Features For Studio Alongside Anonymous Content; Adaptation Of His Novel ‘The Wish’ First Up

Wilson Chapman editorMidge is taking Los Angeles by storm. A new two-day pop-up based on “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” is coming to the city June 18 and June 19, Prime Video has announced.Titled “Making LA Marvelous,” the pop-up site will feature sets inspired by the recent fourth season of the popular Rachel Brosnahan starring comedy series, including a recreation of Susie Myerson’s office from the show, as well as areas inspired by real-life New York locations Russ & Daughters deli and the Blue Note Jazz Club.

As part of its Come as You Are Festival, the Atlanta Opera is presenting two exciting new works likely to be embraced by the LGBTQ community: “Cabaret” and the transgender themed “As One.”

Taylor Zakhar Perez (The Kissing Booth 2 & 3) and Nicholas Galitzine (Cinderella) have been tapped to lead Prime Video’s romantic comedy Red, White & Royal Blue, based on Casey McQuiston’s bestselling novel of the same name. Tony Award-winning playwright Matthew López (The Inheritance) will direct, in his feature debut, with Clifton Collins Jr. (Westworld), Stephen Fry (The Dropout) and Sarah Shahi (Sex/Life) also aboard to star.

Peter Debruge Chief Film CriticThese days, it’s refreshing to speak with someone like Mike Leigh whose vocabulary hasn’t been corrupted by the latest Hollywood trends. For example, when Leigh uses the word “content,” it’s doesn’t mean the same thing as 98% of his peers, for whom the term has come to describe the swill that fills the various streamers’ pipelines.For Leigh, “content” refers to the substance of a film or play, as I found when asking Leigh, who is the subject of a 14-film, career-spanning retrospective by New York’s Film at Lincoln Center — from “Bleak Moments” to “Peterloo,” with two shorts  thrown in for good measure — where he thinks audiences unfamiliar with his work ought to begin.

Austin Butler is receiving a lot of praise for his role as Elvis Presley. Butler plays the King of Rock n Roll in the upcoming Baz Luhrmann-directed biopic, out in June. Not only are critics praising the performance, the 30-year-old actor has gotten rave reviews from Elvis’ former wife, Priscilla Presley and daughter, Lisa Marie Presley.

Austin Butler is receiving a lot of praise for his role as Elvis Presley. Butler plays the King of Rock n Roll in the upcoming Baz Luhrmann-directed biopic, out in June. Not only are critics praising the performance, the 30-year-old actor has gotten rave reviews from Elvis’ former wife, Priscilla Presley and daughter,Lisa Marie Presley.

Jon Burlingame editorComposer Nicholas Britell can keep a secret. The three-time Oscar nominee and Emmy winner for “Succession” has been working on “Andor,” the next “Star Wars” TV series, for the past two years, totally under wraps.Details about “Andor” were announced yesterday by Lucasfilm at the “Star Wars Experience” in Anaheim, Calif. Diego Luna will reprise his role as Cassian Andor from the 2016 film “Rogue One” in a 12-part series beginning Aug.

Christine Baranski rocks a sharp suit for The Gilded Age special screening held at The Whitby Hotel in New York City on Tuesday (May 24).

Notorious B.I.G.’s 50th birthday, a new track titled ‘G.O.A.T.’ – featuring Ty Dolla $ign and Bella Alubo – has been released.It’s the first track in 17 years to be headlined by the late rap icon, following his second posthumous album, 2005’s ‘Duets: The Final Chapter’. It also marks the first new material to feature Biggie’s vocals since 2017, when ‘The King & I’ – a collaborative album with his widow, R&B singer Faith Evans – was released.In the first of his two verses – both of which also feature backing vocals from Diddy – Biggie raps: “I’m poppin’ Magnums while Jigga bag somethin’ / Watch is platinum, got jet lag from / Flights back and forth, pop corks of the best grapes / Make the best CDs and the best tapes / Don’t forget the vinyl, take girls, break spinals.”Have a listen to ‘G.O.A.T.’ below:“Being on a song with Biggie has been a dream of mine since I was a kid,” Ty said in a statement shared with the release.

The host with the most! Vanessa Lachey’s gigs on Love Is Blind and The Ultimatum have turned her into the queen of dating competition shows — and she couldn’t resist dishing on some fan favorite contestants.

Thania Garcia AJR has signed with Mercury Records, the Universal Music label that recently relaunched via Republic Records. The New York-based trio of brothers Adam (vocals/bass), Jack (vocals/guitar), and Ryan (guitar/piano/vocals) Met, are currently in the midst of the U.S.

Echo,” a new MCU series starring Alaqua Cox, has begun production, Disney has announced.The series is a spinoff of last year’s Disney+ Marvel show “Hawkeye,” which featured the debut of Cox as Maya Lopez. Created by David Mack and Joe Quesada in 1999 as a supporting character for the superhero Daredevil, Maya Lopez, aka Echo, is a deaf Cheyenne woman with Olympic level athletic skills and the ability to perfectly copy people’s movement. In “Hawkeye,” the character was depicted as the leader of the Tracksuit Mafia, a gang of criminals working under Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio).

Marvel Cinematic Universe series, is officially in production with Alaqua Cox reprising her role as Maya Lopez, the Native American deaf amputee gang leader and fierce fighter first introduced in. In addition to sharing the first image of Cox back on set, Marvel Studios shared official new details about the spinoff. According to Marvel Studios, the Disney+ series will depict Echo’s origin story as Lopez’s ruthless behavior in New York catches up to her and she’s forced to “face her past, reconnect with her Native American roots and embrace the meaning of family and community if she ever hopes to move forward.”  will break new ground for the MCU with its largely Native American and Indigenous cast and crew, bringing new visibility in front of and behind the camera.

Allen Leech and his wife Jessica Blair Herman are due to welcome their second daughter this year.The Downton Abbey star, who plays the role of the chauffeur-turned-family member Tom Branson in the hit franchise, opened up on the couple's unborn child while at the New York premiere for the A New Era film on Sunday 15 May. Although the actor didn't specifically say they would be having a baby girl, he teased: "If you can see what myself and my wife are wearing, you have a clue." Allen, 40, was dressed in a pale pink-beige jacket with a nude shirt underneath alongside a striped tie, which he teamed with some brown trousers and a darker shade of smart shoes.

Production has officially begun on Season 2 and HBO is giving fans a first look at the set in a new photo of Carrie Coon and Morgan Spector above. Shooting is underway in Rhode Island and New York state.

Pat Saperstein Deputy EditorSpeakers including Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti, mayoral candidate and congressperson Karen Bass, attorney Gloria Allred and actors including Ricki Lake and Christine Lahti urged people to fight for reproductive freedom at the “Bans Off Our Bodies” rally in downtown Los Angeles Saturday.“I can’t work in Texas anymore,” said “Abbott Elementary” star Lisa Ann Walter, who stated that she is working with SAG-AFTRA to inform members of the reproductive health laws in each state. “We won’t quit until women are guaranteed autonomy all over this country.”Thousands of people turned out for the Los Angeles event in front of City Hall, while more than 380 rallies were planned across the United States.