Viacom18 Wins Digital, TV Rights to India’s Home Cricket Matches for Estimated $720 Million

K.J. Yossman BBC Studios has merged three areas of its formats business to create a new global entertainment division led by Matt Forde.

Olivia Rodrigo has cancelled her publicity tour in Australia days before it kicks off due to “unforeseen circumstances”.The pop star was due to host a Q&A with fans on September 22. She was also booked for a number of media interviews in promotion of her new album ‘Guts‘.A spokesperson from Universal Music Australia said [via MusicNews]: “Olivia is devastated that she won’t be able to make it, however she’s so excited to see her Australian Livies [fans] in 2024.”Rodrigo recently announced her ‘Guts World Tour’ for next year, which opens in Palm Springs, California on February 23, 2024.The singer-songwriter was set on a promo tour of Australia following her record-breaking success in the country.

Katy Perry just made a massive music deal.

The financial and divorce drama seems to never end with with Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann .

revealed their separation after nearly three decades of marriage. The shockwaves hit just a year after the pair captured headlines with their big-dollar purchase of a ritzy Manhattan penthouse.The dynamic duo sent tongues wagging when they dropped $22.1 million for the residence, located in Chelsea.

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Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Southern California Public Radio president/CEO Herb Scannell has announced his plans to retire after four years at the organization, which operates KPCC-FM (“LAist 89.3”), LAist.com and LAist Studios. Scannell, the Nickelodeon vet who later ran BBC Worldwide North America and Mitú, will remain in the role until a new successor is named. The SCPR board has started a search for Scannell’s replacement.

Kate Winslet is getting candid about baring it all.

Michaela Zee Charlie Robison, the country singer-songwriter known for such hits as “I Want You Bad” and “My Hometown,” has died. He was 59. Robison’s wife Kristen confirmed his death on Facebook: “It is with a heavy heart that I share the news that my husband, Charlie Robison has passed away today, surrounded by his family and friends.

A Dumfries homeless support charity has been forced to close its town centre shop.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Story Protocol, which is developing what it says is an open system for extending intellectual property through online collaboration and paying any number of contributors, announced that it has raised more than $54 million in funding. The funding was led by a16z crypto, part of venture-capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, along with investors including Endeavor and Samsung Ventures.

Naman Ramachandran Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Viacom18 Studios has just delivered three back-to-back theatrical hits in India. Now it has plans for further expansion in the market. The company distributes all Paramount titles in India and scored a success with “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,” which grossed $16 million in the country.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter Denzel Washington’s bloody assassin-thriller “The Equalizer 3” debuted at the top of box office charts with $34.5 million over the weekend and an estimated $41 million through Monday’s Labor Day holiday. It’s the second-biggest Labor Day opening weekend in modern times, though the holiday isn’t known for bringing people to the movies. After the record-holder Marvel’s 2021 blockbuster “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” ($75 million for the three days, $94.6 million through Monday), the next highest-grossing Labor Day debut is Rob Zombie’s 2007 “Halloween” remake ($26 million for the three days, $30 million through Monday).

Clayton Davis Senior Awards Editor “Sex is back,” said Julie Hintsinger, executive director of the Telluride Film Festival, to a packed house of festival-goers as they took in the newest effort from Yorgos Lanthimos at this year’s 50th anniversary. One of the festivals tributes this year, a pre-screening convo was moderated by director Karyn Kusama, as the two discussed his filmography which included his early works “Kinnetic” and “Alps.” In the audience were Oscar winners like director Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”) and actor Casey Affleck (“Manchester by the Sea”), and they, along with the crowd, devoured it.

Coldplay’s former manager is suing the band for over £10 million ($12 million) worth of unpaid commission. Variety broke the news last month that Dave Holmes, who managed the Chris Martin-fronted band for over 20 years, had split with the “Viva La Vida” rockers and launched a lawsuit in the U.K. High Court.

Naman Ramachandran Indian cinema A-lister Allu Arjun is delighting in his best actor win at India’s National Film Awards for “Pushpa: The Rise – Part 1.” Directed by Sukumar and produced by Mythri Movie Makers and Muttamsetty Media, the film traces the rise of Molleti Pushpa Raj (Arjun), a labourer who rises through the ranks of a sandalwood smuggling syndicate and faces off against an egotistic police officer. The Telugu-language film was also dubbed into other Indian languages and went on to become the biggest box office hit of 2021 in the country. It is the first time an actor from the Telugu-language film industry has won the best actor accolade at the National Film Awards in India.

Disney is planning to offer free cricket on smartphones and tablets in India as it fights back against subscriber loss at its Indian streaming service Disney+ Hotstar. 

Manchester United pulled back a two-goal deficit to beat Nottingham Forest 3-2 at Old Trafford and in doing so, answered a major concern of Erik ten Hag's.

Naman Ramachandran The popular Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival is returning after a three-year COVID and logistics-related absence with a hub, a refreshed executive team and a host of plans. Hollywood and Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra Jonas continues as festival chair, while media veteran and former Variety contributor Anupama Chopra remains festival director and independent producer Anu Rangachar (Locarno title “Rapture”) heads up the international program.

The California Republican Party is currently at odds with the national Republican Party after proposing to remove opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion – two longstanding mainstays of the national platform – from its state party platform.Supporters of the proposed change say that removing those two prominent social issues from the state’s political platform would put the state GOP’s official position more in line with the values held by most California voters. Opponents argue that by removing those topics, the state party’s stances would contradict those held by most of the party’s presidential candidates and betray values or beliefs that are deeply held by the party’s conservative base.The 2016 Republican national party platform, which still stands today as the party’s guiding document, opposes same-sex nuptials despite bans prohibiting such marriages having been struck down by the U.S.