Newz

One after another, they came with venom for Lil Nas X. Basketball star Nick Young. The governor of South Dakota, Kristi Noem. Rapper Joyner Lucas. Candace Owens and various right-wing Twitter personalities. Greg Locke, a Tennessee pastor. Fox News. Nike . They were clueless. Blissful, almost — lambs blind to the slaughter they were hurtling toward. Lil Nas X was waiting for them all, barbs at his fingertips. For the past four days — since the release of his new single ' Montero (Call Me By Your Name) ,' its masterfully absurdist erotica video, and then limited-edition sneakers called Satan Shoes — the 21-year-old rapper and digital prodigy has been using his Twitter account as a fly swatter, flattening one irritant after the next in a loud and uproarious display of internet-speed celebrity, executing a series of flawless pirouette dunks on the heads of his willing but bumbling antagonists. After Noem tweeted about his Satan Shoes, he groaned, “ur a whole governor and u on he...

After Karan Deol, Sunny Deol’s younger son Rajveer Deol is entering Bollywood. He will make his debut with Rajshri Productions’ upcoming project. Rajveer’s grandfather, actor Dharmendra introduced his grandson Rajveer on Instagram. The actor also got support from uncle Bobby Deol. Bobby shared the same pic which was shared by Dharmendra and said the movie was a coming-of-age love story. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Dharmendra Deol (@aapkadharam) This film will also be the debut of director Sooraj Barjatya’s son Avnish Barjatya. It will be Rajshri Productions’ 59th film. Two years ago, Rajveer’s elder brother Karan Deol had debuted with Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas . The film was directed by father Sunny Deol himself. Wishing his younger brother, Karan wrote , “The beginning of a wonderful journey into the world of cinema beckons! All the very best brother #rajveerdeol . Wish you all the success… Welcome to the movies! Love you and give it your all”. According t...

Meena Kumari, known as Bollywood's 'tragic queen,' wowed the audiences during her 30-year-long career in the film industry. She made her acting debut as a child-artist with Leatherface which released in 1939. At the age of 13, she played her first lead role in Bachchon Ka Khel (1946) and went on to appear in more than ninety films . Today, 31 March, marks the 49th death anniversary of the legendary actor. On the special occasion, here's a list of her five must-watch films: Baiju Bawra (1952) With this film, Kumari scored her first big success at the box-office. The film told the tale of two warring musicians played by actors Bharat Bhushan and Surendra. She played the devoted love interest of Baiju and won her first-ever Filmfare Best Actress award for her performance. Parineeta (1953)  The film is still considered the finest version of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel Parineeta . The romantic-drama was a huge success and Meena Kumari won her second Film...

Succession star Jeremy Strong will essay the role of Dr Jonas Salk, the inventor of the polio vaccine, in an upcoming biographical drama movie. Titled Splendid Solution , the movie is a co-production between Bron Studios and 21 Laps Entertainment, reported Deadline . Gillian Weeks will adapt the film's script from Jeffrey Kluger's New York Times bestseller. The movie will chronicle Salk's triumphant quest to create the vaccine as polio ravaged the US. His battle against the virus, his perseverance and eventual triumph made him a cultural hero and icon for a generation. Filmmaker Shawn Levy will produce the project along with Dan Levine through 21 Laps Entertainment. Aaron L Gilbert will produce on behalf of Bron. "We can't think of a more timely story to tell — of one man's journey to save the world from a devastating pandemic while overcoming misinformation from the media... and how he believed so much in the vaccine that he tested it on himself and his ...

Diana , a new musical about the idolised but ill-fated British princess, managed to get through nine preview performances before Broadway shut down last March. Now, one year, one pandemic, and one Oprah interview later, the show is ready to try again, with a new strategy and a new context. In a first for a Broadway show, a filmed version of the stage production will start streaming before the musical opens. Diana , which was shot over a week last September in an audience-less Longacre Theater, will begin streaming on Netflix on 1 October, and then two months later, on 1 December, will resume previews on Broadway. The musical’s producers announced Tuesday that they intend to open 16 December, which is 625 days after its originally scheduled, but pandemic-postponed, opening night. The producers are putting their Broadway tickets on sale now, and counting on the Netflix film, which will have an open-ended run, to boost interest in the stage production. “I think people will see the mov...

The documentary Framing Britney Spears , by the New York Times, debuted on Hulu and FX in February. It sparked a conversation on social media about how other celebrities and the media treat the Toxic singer. On Tuesday, 30 March, Britney took to her social media account and finally shared her thoughts on the documentary for the very first time. Taking to social media, on Wednesday, 31 March, Britney shared a video of dancing herself to Aerosmith’s ' Crazy' along with a lengthy caption. In the caption, Britney has revealed that she “cried for two weeks” after the release of Samantha Stark's documentary adding that she has not yet seen it.  She wrote, "I didn't watch the documentary but from what I did see of it I was embarrassed by the light they put me in. I cried for two weeks and well. I still cry sometimes!"  "I do what I can in my own spirituality with myself to try and keep my own joy...love...and happiness! Every day dancing brings me joy! ...

The music giant Super Cassettes Industries Ltd, popular in India and the world as T-Series, has finally joined the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS) as a member after a series of discussions and negotiations. The decision of T-Series, India's leading music label and film production studio, to join the IPRS will also add over 15,000 hours of music, including 2,00,000 titles and over 50,000 music videos in over 15 Indian languages, owned by the company to the society's catalogue. In a joint press conference on Tuesday,  30 March, the representatives from T-Series and IPRS announced their decision and what it would result in. Check out the announcement here TSERIES JOINS #IPRS ... #TSeries - led by #BhushanKumar - is now a member of The Indian Performing Right Society Ltd... #IPRS represents music composers, lyricists and publishers of music... #JavedAkhtar is the Chairman of #IPRS . pic.twitter.com/6bSwB0q2d6 — taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) March 31, 2021 IPRS,...

This interview  includes spoilers for Monday’s season finale of Snowpiercer . As Ned Stark, the initial, if short-lived protagonist of HBO’s Game of Thrones , Sean Bean was the first actor to utter that signature phrase of the show: “Winter is coming.” In his latest series, TNT’s Snowpiercer , winter has arrived — the Big Freeze, a cataclysmic temperature collapse that has disabled the Earth and forced a few thousand survivors to seek shelter aboard a train that hurtles perpetually around the icy planet. (The premise is taken from a series of graphic novels by Jacque Lob, Jean-Marc Rochette, and Benjamin Legrand, as well as from Bong Joon Ho’s film adaptation.) Now, though, the ice age of the story might be ending; the Earth might be warming enough to support life again. Once more, though, the biggest obstacle to this healing is humanity itself. Bean’s character, Wilford, was little more than an idea in Season 1, a Wizard of Oz-like figure who had been instaled in the minds of t...

Actor Jack Reynor will star with Chloe Grace Moretz in Amazon's upcoming sci-fi thriller series The Peripheral . Based on author William Gibson's 2014 novel of the same name, the show hails from Westworld creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy's Kilter Films and Warner Bros TV. The novel focuses on the character of Flynne Fisher (Moretz), who lives in near-future America, reported Deadline . Fisher subs in for her brother Burton (to be played by Reynor), a cyber-enhanced combat veteran who now works security in a virtual world for the Milagros Coldiron company. Actor Gary Carr will also star in the series in a pivotal role. The show has been created by Scott B Smith, who will also executive produce alongside Nolan and Joy, Athena Wickham and Steven Hoban. Greg Plageman will serve as the showrunner. Reynor most recently featured in Anthony and Joe Russo's Cherry opposite Tom Holland, and Ari Aster-directed Midsommar , co-starring Florence Pugh. He will next star ...

Game of Thrones ended in 2019 but George RR Martin still hasn’t finished the next novel in his Song of Ice and Fire series, the books that inspired the globally popular HBO drama. Alas, no word on when that might happen. But impatient fans may have something else to look forward to: The return of favourite characters like Ned Stark and Jaime Lannister in a stage adaptation of Game of Thrones that is being developed in the hope of productions on Broadway, in London’s West End and in Australia, with a target debut of 2023. “It ought to be spectacular,” Martin said in a statement announcing the play on Tuesday. The author will write the story alongside the playwright Duncan Macmillan, who also adapted George Orwell’s 1984 for the stage and recently wrote Lungs , a play that streamed live from London’s Old Vic Theater last summer. Dominic Cooke, a former artistic director of the Royal Court Theater, will direct. Martin said the play, which is not yet titled, will be set during a pi...

Hollywood star Woody Harrelson will play the lead role in the upcoming World War II psychological thriller The Man With The Miraculous Hands. The movie, which hails from Jerico Films, a division of the Vendome Group production banner, is an adaptation of author Joseph Kessel's novel of the same title, according to The Hollywood Reporter . Oren Moverman, who previously worked with Harrelson for two movies The Messenger and Rampart , is set to write and direct the film. In the movie, Harrelson will play Felix Kersten, a Finnish-born medical professional who was reluctantly pulled into the Third Reich's corridors of power as Heinrich Himmler's personal physician and prisoner. The film depicts Kersten’s remarkable true story as the physician whose therapies helped to relieve Himmler’s debilitating abdominal pain, thereby giving him extraordinary influence over one of the main architects of the Holocaust. With clever manipulations and a flair for dangerous negotiation with...

In 1962, the Japanese film studio Toho released King Kong vs. Godzilla , an ambitious monster movie that pitted two of the most popular creatures in cinema history against each other in (supposedly) mortal combat. The movie boasted a drunken Kong; cringeworthy brownface (with Japanese actors darkening their faces to play South Pacific “natives”); and a battle with a giant octopus — played by real octopuses. The feature became the best attended Godzilla movie in Japan even today, reviving the franchise and setting the stage for scores of monster movies to come. “In the late 1950s, Toho was creating all these new monsters — Mothra, Rodan — for each new film,” said William M Tsutsui, author of Godzilla on My Mind: Fifty Years of the King of Monsters . “But it really was King Kong vs. Godzilla that cemented Godzilla as the star of Toho’s monster franchise.” Since then, the two titans have fought giant squids and oversized arachnids and all manner of mechanised beasties — but never each...

Fahadh Faasil's Malayalam crime drama Joji will have its world premiere on Amazon Prime Video on 7 April. Directed by Dileesh Pothan, Joji also stars Baburaj, Shammi Thilakan, Alistair Alex and Unnimaya Prasad in pivotal roles. The film is inspired by Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth and aims to presents a "twisted version" of the plot filled with greed, ambition, murder and mystery. Joji marks the third directorial collaboration between Pothan and Faasil, who have earlier worked for 2016 comedy-drama Maheshinte Prathikaaram and National Award-winning feature Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum . The film revolves around Joji , an engineering dropout and the youngest son of the rich plantation family who lives with his aspirations of becoming a super wealthy NRI. His father, however, thinks of him as nothing more than a loser. Driven by greed and blind ambition, Joji finally decides to execute his plans following an unexpected event in the family, as per the film'...

The sequel to Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L Jackson-starrer The Hitman’s Bodyguard will now open in the US two months earlier than expected. The new film, titled The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard , will be released by Lionsgate on 16 June instead of 20 August, reported Deadline . Check out the announcement here only in theaters june 16, 2021. #hitmanswife pic.twitter.com/rAxSbZNvPq — Lionsgate (@Lionsgate) March 29, 2021 The move came after Disney decided to release action-comedy Free Guy , also starring Reynolds, on 13 August. The film now arrives the weekend after Warner Bros/HBO Max’s musical In the Heights debuts in the theatres and prior to the release of Universal's F9 on 25 June. Directed by Patrick Hughes, The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard sees bodyguard Michael Bryce (Reynolds) and hitman Darius Kincaid (Jackson) stuck in another dangerous mission, this time with Darius' con artist wife Sonia (Salma Hayek). As Bryce tries to protect this dangerous couple, this tr...

The Narcotics Control Bureau has arrested Bollywood actor and former Bigg Boss contestant Ajaz Khan in connection with a drugs case, a senior NCB official said on Wednesday. Khan was initially detained by the NCB Mumbai zonal unit on Tuesday after he landed at the city airport, he said. Khan's name had cropped up during interrogation of drug peddler Shadab Batata, he said. Accordingly, Khan was questioned by the NCB at its office in south Mumbai and his statement was recorded late Tuesday night. After examining his role in the crime, he was placed under arrest, the official said A team led by NCB's zonal director Sameer Wankhede also conducted searches at Andheri and Lokhandwala areas along with Khan in connection with the case. Khan was taken into custody after he visited the NCB office. While speaking to media persons before entering the NCB's office on Tuesday, Khan said he was not detained and he had himself come to meet the anti-drug agency's officers. Khan ...

Tokyo | A man has been charged over online abuse directed at a Japanese star of Netflix reality show Terrace House who took her own life last year, prosecutors said Tuesday. A spokesman for Tokyo Prosecutors’ Office told AFP they had made a “summary indictment against a man in his 20s” following the May 2020 death of Hana Kimura, a cast member of the internationally popular TV show. Police referred the man, who has not been named, to prosecutors in December, saying: “The suspect... posted messages on a social media account of the victim, including ‘You have such an awful personality. Is your life worth living?’ and ‘Hey, hey. When will you die?'” The man has been charged with making public insults but is not obliged to face trial under the indictment, as is often the case for relatively minor offences in Japan. Local media said a Tokyo court had issued an order to fine him 9,000 yen ($80). Kimura, a confident pink-haired professional wrestler, was a fan favourite on the Jap...

Lupin , a French reboot set in postcard Paris, has made Omar Sy a global star and fulfilled a long-lost dream for Europeans: the confidence to take on Hollywood. But, in a devilish twist worthy of the gentleman thief himself, the leap forward for European productions comes thanks to Netflix, a quintessentially American success story. Netflix is investing massively to become a global television player, but when it comes to making shows in Europe, the company, along with rivals Disney Plus and Amazon Prime, actually has no choice. Since 2018, a European Union rule has dictated that platforms offer their subscribers at least 30 percent European content, and that they invest in local shows. And, while the Netflix revolution is mostly welcomed, this brave new world of binge-watching and algorithmic programme guides has triggered soul-searching among Europe's creators. Greenlit in Paris According to the company, Netflix has 100 films and series in various stages of production acros...

Leaving behind their political identities, Bollywood superstar Mithun Chakraborty, who has recently joined the BJP, and actor-turned-TMC MP Deepak Adhikari, better known by his screen name Dev, have teamed up for a Bengali film. The announcement came at a time when the two heroes are busy with campaigns for their respective parties in the West Bengal assembly elections and have been leading roadshows. The Bengali film, which will be directed by Avijit Sen, is a joint venture between Bengal Talkies and a movie production company of Tollywood heartthrob Dev. The producer told PTI on Tuesday that the title of the film is not yet finalised. Describing Chakraborty as "our very own" the TMC MP from Ghatal said he is excited to have him on board. Check out the announcement here Proud to present the next joint venture of @DEV_PvtLtd & @BengalTalkies starring none other than our very own #MithunDa & Myself🙏🏻 Super excited and proud to have him onboard. Directed ...

Makers released a brand-new trailer for Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Bad Batch , an original animated series launching exclusively on Disney+ Hotstar Premium. Star Wars: The Bad Batch makes its debut on Tuesday, 4 May, with a special 70-minute premiere, followed by new episodes every Friday starting on 7 May. Star Wars: The Bad Batch follows the elite and experimental clones of the Bad Batch (first introduced in The Clone Wars ) as they find their way in a rapidly changing galaxy in the immediate aftermath of the Clone War. Check out the trailer Members of Bad Batch—a unique squad of clones who vary genetically from their brothers in the Clone Army—each possess a singular exceptional skill that makes them extraordinarily effective soldiers and a formidable crew. Star Wars: The Bad Batch is executive produced by Dave Filoni ( The Mandalorian, Star Wars: The Clone Wars ), Athena Portillo ( Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels ), Brad Rau ( Star Wars Rebels, Star Wars Res...

With less than a month until showtime, the 93rd Oscars are taking another pass at the script. Show producers Steven Soderbergh, Jesse Collins and Stacey Sher remain determined to have an i n-person ceremony on 25 April in Los Angeles but told nominees on Tuesday in a virtual meeting that they’ve added a British hub after some backlash from nominees about international travel restrictions. The main event will still take place at Los Angeles’ Union station which will include a red carpet component but they are planning something special for the UK location. The show is also working with local broadcast affiliates around the world to provide satellite links for other international nominees. They said they are not totally ruling out Zoom but are hoping it doesn’t come to that. Although plans and requirements remain fluid, attendees have been told they’re expected to quarantine for 10 days prior to the show. And everyone is being told to bring a mask, even if the show is being designed...

K-pop superstar group BTS has condemned racism against Asians, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in a statement saying they’ve experienced it themselves. “We stand against racial discrimination,” BTS  tweeted  Tuesday in English and Korean. The band said their own painful encounters with racism included “expletives” and being “mocked for the way” they look. BTS issued their statement after recent attacks against people with Asian heritage in the US, which have risen during the coronavirus pandemic. A white gunman recently killed eight people, including six women of Asian descent, at Atlanta-area massage businesses. “We cannot put into words the pain of becoming the subject of hatred and violence,” the band said in the statement, adding that their experiences made them feel powerless and chipped away at their self-esteem. In February, a German radio station  drew ire  when a host compared the band to the coronavirus. The band said that although the discriminat...

Bollywood actor and former Bigg Boss contestant Ajaz Khan was detained by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Tuesday in connection with a drug case, an official said. Khan's name had cropped up during interrogation of drug peddler Shadab Batata, he said. The probe team also conducted searches at Andheri and Lokhandwala areas along with Khan in connection with the case. Khan was taken into custody after he visited the NCB office. Khan's statement was being recorded by NCB officials and he is not arrested yet, the official said. Khan landed in Mumbai only on Tuesday. While speaking to media persons outside the NCB office in south Mumbai, Khan claimed he was not detained but himself came to meet the officers. by Press Trust of India

We might be living in uncertain times right now, but it's nearly impossible to remain cynical about the future while talking to the multi-hyphenate, Anand Gandhi. And that's because Gandhi has always lived in the future. At a time when the country was still coming to terms with the World Wide Web in 1996, Gandhi was teaching Adobe Photoshop. Starting out writing dialogue on two of Indian TV's biggest K-serials ( Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki ) at age 20, Gandhi used the earnings to experiment with an interesting short film, Right Here Right Now , in 2003. He backed a young, unknown voice called Chaitanya Tamhane , with his first play: Grey Elephants In Denmark in 2008. At a time, when streaming services were a distant dream, Gandhi made his directorial feature Ship of Theseus (2012) available for download... for free. Running a lab called Memesys, Gandhi is now at the forefront of India's VR technology initiatives, trying to integrate it i...

Actor Tamannaah Bhatia unveiled the teaser of her debut web-series 11th Hour on 29 March on social media. She plays a businesswoman all set to rule the corporate world in the upcoming digital series directed by Praveen Sattaru. “There are a few characters you play which touch you. #Aratrika is one such role! Happy to share a glimpse into a show close to my heart (sic),” Bhatia wrote on her Twitter page while sharing the teaser. Tamannaah is playing the character of a boss lady who is subjected to a hostile environment. The story revolves around a woman named Aratrika Reddy who fights her way into a man’s world to achieve what she strives for. Check out the teaser here There are a few characters you play which touch you. #Aratrika is one such role! Happy to share a glimpse into a show close to my heart. ♥️ #11thHour Teaser Out Now. ▶️ https://t.co/5SJWLgdV5g Premieres April 9, mana favourite @ahavideoIN lo. — Tamannaah Bhatia (@tamannaahspeaks) March 29, 2021 The series ...

Anand Pandit’s Chehre , a Rumy Jafry directorial, has got postponed owing to the rise in coronavirus cases across the nation. After the lockdown last year, many filmmakers were awaiting the release of their upcoming films in 2021. Even though the theatres and other establishments are functioning smoothly across the country, the sudden spike in COVID-19 cases is a matter of concern. Considering the situation the nation is going through and keeping the safety of fans in mind, Anand Pandit Motion Pictures has decided to postpone the release of their much-anticipated film Chehre. Starring Amitabh Bachchan and Emraan Hashmi in the lead, the mystery-thriller was all set to release on 9 April. However, the film is now pushed ahead and the new release date will be announced soon. Sharing about the decision, Producer Anand Pandit said in a statement, "Considering the situation and safety of our audiences and fans which is of utmost importance to us, we have decided to postpone our film ...

American music label Capitol Music Group has responded to the allegations that one of their executives used the N-word slur against singer Tina Turner. Lashing out against the unidentified executive who made this remark in the 1980s, the group has called it reprehensible and appalling, reports Variety .  The incident came to light after the documentary titled Tina was released on HBO. In an old interview from 2009 which has been included in the documentary, A&R executive John Carter who passed away in 2011, recalls the incident where a top executive of the Capitol Music Group referred to Tina by using the N-word in an exchange with him. The documentary Tina released on HBO on 27 March.  Speaking to The Wrap , a spokesperson from Capitol Music said that they are learning about the incident only now which would have occurred 40 years ago when their group had different ownership.  The report further mentioned that the record label has condemned the remark saying th...

Actor Akshay Kumar on Tuesday started shooting for his action-adventure drama Ram Setu . Kumar, who plays an archaeologist in the film, took to Twitter to share his first look. The 53-year-old actor said Ram Setu is one of his "most special" films and he is looking forward to the audience's reaction to his performance. "The journey of making one of the most special films for me begins today. Ram Setu shooting begins! Playing an archaeologist in the film. Would love to hear your thoughts on the look? It always matters to me," Kumar wrote. Check out his post here The journey of making one of the most special films for me begins today. #RamSetu shooting begins! Playing an archaeologist in the film. Would love to hear your thoughts on the look? It always matters to me🙏🏻 @Asli_Jacqueline @Nushrratt @Abundantia_Ent @LycaProductions pic.twitter.com/beI6p0hO0I — Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) March 30, 2021 @PrimeVideoIN @vikramix @ShikhaaSharma03 #Abhis...

French artiste DJ Snake, best known for instant global hits like ' Turn Down For What,' 'Lean On,' 'Let Me Love You ,' and ' Magenta Riddim ,' has made a career out of rich collaborations with sensations like Justin Bieber and Major Lazer among others. His most recent collab is a reunion with ' Taki Taki ' partner-in-crime Selena Gomez for ' Seflish Love ,' part of the American singer's fourth EP  Revelación , which released earlier this month. In an exclusive interview, Snake discusses composing for the Spanish single, adjusting to virtual gigs in the times of coronavirus, and how the youth are dominating the global music industry today. How excited were you that your second collaboration with Selena after ' Taki Taki ' was in Spanish? Excited for sure. Selena and I have been talking about doing another song for a while now so it feels good to get it out. How difficult is it to make music for a language you are not entire...