TV/Film
‘The Sparks Brothers’ Documentary Gets a Release Date
The film, out June 18, chronicles the decades-long career and influence of the cult pop duo and features archival footage as well as interviews with fans. Focus Features is set to release Edgar Wright’s documentary directorial debut The Sparks Brothers on June 18, 2021. The dating follows Wright’s film about the cult pop duo Sparks debuting at Sundance and screening at SXSW in Austin on March 19. The documentary chronicles the decades-long career and influence of the Sparks and features archival footage as well as interviews with fans that include Beck, Flea, Neil Gaiman and Mike Myers. MRC Non-Fiction is behind the documentary, which Wright produced with Nira Park under their company Complete Fiction Pictures, along with Laura Richardson and George Hencken. You Deserve to ...
Meghan Trainor to Star in a Sitcom as Part of NBC Deal
Meghan Trainor has teamed up with NBCUniversal Television and Streaming Entertainment for a unique overall deal, which includes a new comedy series. The cross-platform collaboration with the company opens the door for the Grammy-winning singer’s potential scripted and unscripted projects across the network, cable, streaming and syndicated programming and throughout NBCU’s larger portfolio, which includes NBC, Bravo, E!, Oxygen, SYFY, Universal Kids, USA and Peacock. “In addition to being a phenomenally talented performer, Meghan is a vibrant and hilarious ray of light who is the perfect fit for NBC’s brand,” Susan Rovner, chairman, entertainment content, NBCUniversal Television & Streaming, said in a statement. “We love the idea of introduci...
‘Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché’ Doc Explores Punk Trailblazer In All Her Contradictions
Born Marion Elliott to a white mother and Black father (he was Somali born) in what she described as a tough neighborhood, Styrene felt like an outsider from both the white and Black communities; some of the most revelatory parts of the documentary are Zoë Howe’s reading of poems (“Half-Caste,” “I Wanna Go Back to Africa”) that Styrene wrote about her racial identity. Considering the banshee warrior wail that characterized Styrene’s vocals, it’s unfortunately easy to miss the depth of her lyrics, but hearing her poems read aloud is a testament to the succinct strength of her pen. Forming X-Ray Spex as a teenager by taking out an ad in Melody Maker, Styrene was famous (in the U.K., at least, by punk scene standards) by 19, with songs like the female...
10 Biggest Revelations From Demi Lovato’s Docuseries ‘Dancing With the Devil’
Even from the trailer she released on Feb. 17, fans couldn’t begin to wrap their heads around how much damage Lovato had suffered from her overdose, including three strokes, a heart attack and blind spots in her vision that don’t allow her to drive anymore. Dancing With the Devil, directed by Michael D. Ratner, is not a by-product of her discarded 2018 documentary. It has a completely different foundation, refocusing her narrative from center stage — as seen in snippets of the previous performance-heavy feature Lovato says would’ve only captured the “tip of the iceberg” — and opening up the floodgates about her 2018 overdose while the cameras began rolling again in 2020. The anecdotes are so harrowing that YouTube Originals featured trigger warnings regarding addiction, me...
Halsey Is Selling Her Artwork for the First Time in NFT Auction
Halsey is turning her nightmares into art with the NFT series “People Disappear Here,” she announced Friday (March 12). The series will be released on Nifty Gateway, a marketplace where some of the biggest NFT collectors have congregated, on Wednesday, March 17. The collection breathes life into animations of seven characters from Halsey’s original “People Disappear Here” painting soundtracked to eerie music, as well as the digital animation of the full original painting. The original physical “People Disappear Here” artwork, which was hand-painted and signed by the Manic singer, will be up for auction. “The characters are all inspired by figures that occurred in a series of sleep paralysis nightmares I had at home du...
Nick Jonas Joins Apple TV+ Audio Mystery Series ‘Calls’: Watch the Trailer
Nick Jonas, Lily Collins, Rosario Dawson, Aubrey Plaza, Pedro Pascal and more are lending their voices to the auditory mystery thriller series Calls heading to Apple TV+ this month. The official trailer, which premiered Wednesday (March 3), teased snippets of the nine bone-chilling conversations between loved ones that will leave listeners, both onscreen and off, hanging. Based on Timothée Hochet’s CANAL+ French series of the same name, Calls is an immersive television series that blends audio and abstract visuals to tell dark short-form stories through seemingly ordinary, unrelated phone calls that eerily find their point of connection. Fede Álvarez (Evil Dead, Don’t Breathe) directed the Apple Originals series in ass...
‘Soul’ Score Wins Society of Composers & Lyricists Award
Lolita Ritmanis’s score for Blizzard of Souls won outstanding original score for an independent film. Both Soul and Blizzard of Souls are on the Oscars’ shortlist of 15 contenders for best original score. The spirit of collaboration award was presented to Terence Blanchard and Spike Lee. The award is presented “to a composer and filmmaker with an enduring and distinguished creative partnership, representing a significant body of work.” Blanchard and Lee’s most recent collaboration, Da 5 Bloods, was nominated for outstanding original score for a studio film. (Da 5 Bloods is also on the Oscar shortlist.) Here’s the full list of winners: Outstanding original score for a studio film: Soul, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste Outstanding original score for an independent film: Blizzard...
‘SNL’ Thinks Dionne Warwick Wants to Egg Wendy Williams’ House, But She Has a Better Idea
But she does have something else in mind, suggesting that the NBC series should “kick this up a notch.” The 80-year-old multi-platinum singer addressed the show in a short “My Response to SNL & I’m Calling Out Wendy Williams, Let’s Talk!” clip on her YouTube channel, where she will be launching her very own talk show, Dionne Speaks. And you’ve probably already guessed who she wants the first guest to be. “Thank you for the wonderful skit you did last night. I had a ball laughing,” she said, grinning from ear to ear. “And I want you to know you guys must be reading my mind because I’m getting ready to do my own talk show. And I’d love for my very first guest to be — mmhm, you guessed it — Ms. Wendy William...
9 Things We Learned From Billie Eilish’s ‘The World’s A Little Blurry’ Documentary
Perhaps the best part, though, is that instead of glossing over some of the most painful moments — quite literally, like the time Eilish sprained her ankle within seconds of starting a sold-out Milan concert to the time she forgot the words to a song during her Coachella debut — the documentary unpacks them for what they are. In doing so, The World’s a Little Blurry is a refreshing return to the documentary as a vehicle for unveiling, unlike many celebrity documentaries of late that more so double as concert films or hype-reels. Despite how often Eilish has talked about her family, mental health journey and concerns over cancel culture, the film manages to show, not tell, how these topics have impacted and continue to impact her as both a teenager and public figure. Ahead of th...
Billie Eilish Performs ‘Ilomilo’ In Front of L.A. Skyline, Cries Over Favorite Fan Moment at ‘Blurry’ Live Premiere
She pulls up right next to her brother and hitmaker-in-crime Finneas, who’s playing “ilomilo” on a sky blue piano that would’ve matched the sky earlier in the day. The “Therefore I Am” singer walks out wearing the Gucci x North Face puffer jacket and matching bucket hat, but her easily recognizable neon green hair still peeks out from underneath and frames her face, which sometimes goes out of focus to reveal the L.A. skyline behind her. Following her stripped-down performance of the track from her blockbuster debut album Where We All Sleep, Where Do We Go?, the Grammy-winning singer plops down right next to Lowe in a comfy chair setup in the same sky blue shade as her microphone and Finneas’ piano. The two launch into the interview segment by...
Preview Jhené Aiko’s ‘Lead the Way’ in Disney’s ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ First Look
Jhené Aiko wrote and performed the new song “Lead the Way” for Disney’s upcoming Raya and the Last Dragon film, and now fans can hear a minute of it. A brand-new first look of the film premiered Friday (Feb. 19), in which the Grammy-nominated R&B singer’s triumphant anthem echoes in the background. “Lead the Way” will be featured on the soundtrack album Raya and the Last Dragon (Music From the Disney+ Film), which will be available digitally Feb. 26 ahead of the film’s premiere on Disney+ Premier Access and in theaters March 5. Premier Access for Raya and the Last Dragon will cost $29.99. Aiko is currently up for three 2021 Grammy nominations, with her third solo album Chilombo snagging two nods for ...
Questlove to Direct Documentary About Sly Stone
Common will exec produce the project from MRC Non-Fiction. After making his feature directorial debut with Sundance-winning doc Summer of Love, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson has set his follow-up feature on Sly Stone. Questlove will direct the documentary about the influential artist, king of funk, and fashion icon, with his partners Zarah Zohlman and Shawn Geehis producing under their Two One Five Entertainment banner. According to the announcement, the doc will follow the musician “who was breaking all the rules at a time when doing so was extremely challenging, even dangerous. The pressure of explosive mainstream pop success and the responsibility of representing Black America forced him to walk the fine line of impossible expectations.” You Deserve to Mak...
