Viola Davis Created a Production Company ‘Out of Necessity’ for More ‘Prestige’ Roles for Black Actors

EXCLUSIVE: Andy Fischel has joined Yahya Abdul Mateen II’s House Eleven10 after spending four years at Netflix on the Original Studio Film team. In this role, he will oversee production and development for House Eleven10.

Viola Davis is getting to work on her next project!

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentAndrew Lloyd Webber and Antonio Banderas are teaming to create a joint company Amigos Para Siempre (APS) aimed at producing musicals, stage plays and live entertainment for major markets in the Spanish-speaking world, including the Latino U.S. Upcoming productions will include Spanish-language makeovers of Lloyd Webber classics, such as “The Phantom of the Opera,” “Sunset Boulevard,” “Starlight Express,” “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “Evita,” “Cinderella,” “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and “School of Rock.”Spanish-language adaptation rights to these works will be ceded to the new joint venture  by Lloyd Webber’s company, Really Useful Group.  Building on a decades-long friendship, APS will also license third-party works, as well as develop and produce original shows for the Spanish-speaking market, the biggest easily accessible non-English-language market in the world, whose theater and musical scene is experiencing robust growth. The joint venture will be overseen by Emanuel Nuñuz, CEO of the NuCO Media Group, who has a deep knowledge of the Spanish-world entertainment scene, and Jessica Koravos, president of Really Useful Group. “Antonio Banderas not only forms part of entertainment royalty but is also one of the most versatile creative minds with whom I’ve have the pleasure of working,” Lloyd Webber said.He added: “It’s really moving to associate with Antonio to present my work, as well as other brilliant Broadway and West End titles, in new markets. Though millions of people in all of the Spanish-speaking world already love our shows and music, there’s an extraordinary appetite to receive more and the levels musical and stage play talent is extraordinary.

Barack Obama was among those who shared the heartbreaking news on Friday that the US Supreme Court had overturned Roe v. Wade.MORE: Michelle Obama ‘heartbroken’ as Roe v.

A survivor from the accident that occurred on the set of Netflix‘s The Chosen One is speaking out.

Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground production company is heading to Amazon’s Audible platform.Following the end of a three-year deal with Spotify, the Obamas have reportedly inked an exclusive multi-year, first-look deal with the Amazon-owned platform.While firm details surrounding the Obamas’ new deal with Audible remain unclear at this time, comments from Michelle Obama hint at the possibility of their content with Audible being released on multiple streaming platforms.The Audible deal will see the Obamas “keep striving to tell compelling, provocative, and soulful stories — while doing everything we can to make sure they reach the folks who need to hear them,” Michelle Obama told The Hollywood Reporter.A Higher Ground spokesperson also told The Hollywood Reporter that the two companies “plan to make the Audible Originals available to the widest possible audience”.The newly signed deal with Audible comes after the Obamas’ three-year deal with streaming giant Spotify ended earlier this year. The Spotify deal saw them “develop, produce and appear” on select podcasts through their Higher Ground production company.The Obamas’ contributions to Spotify notably included the eight-part podcast series Renegades: Born In The USA with Bruce Springsteen.

Anna Marie de la Fuente A survivor of the Baja California accident that claimed the lives of actors Raymundo Garduño Cruz and Juan Francisco González from the Netflix series “The Chosen One” says he doesn’t blame the van driver or the production company. But actor Yeray Albelda says it’s the norm that “people are exhausted” in many productions.The Mexican actors union ANDA also held a remote press conference Tuesday to weigh in on the fatal crash.In an interview with Variety, Albelda, one of the six survivors of the crash, said he was told that a mechanical failure might have caused it. Others, he was told, have speculated that the driver was trying to avoid a pothole or even a deer.

Netflix has released an official statement following the tragic death of actors Raymundo Garduño Cruz and Juan Francisco González Aguilar who were working on the series The Chosen One in Mexico.

Jessica Chastain steps out in a chic black dress next to Viola Davis, Gillian Anderson and Michelle Pfeiffer at the Paramount+ UK Launch held at Outernet London on Monday (June 20) in London, England.

Kevin Hunter is slamming the production company behind ex Wendy Williams‘ daytime talk show for their handling of the series final episode.

Big moves are being made in Hollywood: 101 Studios — the creators of beloved drama Yellowstone, starring Kevin Costner — announced it has secured a first look partnership with PZAJ, an emerging film and television production company.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorCheyenne Jackson is adding producer to his resume. The actor and singer has quietly launched a production company, Shiny Boy Entertainment, with his husband Jason Landau, the couple exclusively tells me.Their first project is “Brutal,” director Sam McConnell’s comedy short about a news anchor (Jackson) who acquires a leaked sex tape of a longtime U.S. senator.

Social media is one of the best (and worst) inventions of our time. The fact that people all across the world are connected nowadays is a great idea, in theory.

Samuel L. Jackson and Viola Davis are both veterans of the New York theater scene, and embrace the opportunity to dig into their shared experiences before addressing their latest work on TV. On Apple TV+, Jackson takes the lead role in “The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey,” an adaptation of Walter Mosley’s novel about an elder struggling with dementia. And on Showtime, Davis plays Michelle Obama in the dramatic anthology “The First Lady.” SAMUEL L. JACKSON: How do you feel about rolling around town, seeing yourself on these big old billboards? How is that?VIOLA DAVIS: I don’t see that as myself.

Viola Davis has a big issue with social media.

Viola Davis has higher hopes for Hollywood.

JuVee Productions CEO Viola Davis and her husband, JuVee President Julius Tennon, said the entertainment industry must become a kinder workplace. They spoke at a Produced By conference panel called “Shooting for Tomorrow: The Future of Producing,” moderated by Yvette Nicole Brown.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film WriterOscar winner Viola Davis says social media has undermined her art form, especially as it relates to modern theatrical movies.The “Fences” and “The First Lady” actor delivered a blunt and juicy indictment of what it takes to market films nowadays. In a conversation about her content label JuVee at the annual Produced By Conference on Saturday, Davis discussed the notion of escapism at the cineplex and how tentpole movies can erode the nuance of storytelling.“Social media has taken over the defining of this art form.  I think that the word ‘escapism’ is something that is interesting — the goal all of us have is to sit in a movie with the popcorn and Sour Patch Kids and forget about our lives — but, literally, it destroys our art form,” she said.

More casting details are emerging about the new project that will once again team up Ben Affleck and Matt Damon.