updating…
A nearly three hour Billy Joel documentary called “So It Goes” will kick off the Tribeca (Film) Festival in June at the Beacon Theater.
It’s a festival loaded with interesting documentaries and a few narrative ones. Some of the highlights include docs about Jayne Mansfield by daughter Mariska Hargitay, films about Barbara Walters, Boy George, and Eddie Vedder.
Is Kevin Spacey back?
He is, on Netflix, where he starred as Frank Underwood on “House of Cards” until they fired him.
Now in a promo for a Tim Dillon comedy special, Spacey — older, puffier — is back as Underwood.
Weird? Yes.
Spacey was canceled by Hollywood after becoming a magnet for sexual harassment lawsuits. The “HOC” star managed to stay out of jail even thought there were settlements on the various lawsuits. He still owes “HOC” production company MRC, one million dollars in a settlement that was reduced from $31 million.
He couldn’t get work and lost most everything, he claimed.
It’s supremely odd that he would resurface in a Netflix promo considering they killed him off in the penultimate season of “HOC,” turning the show over to Robin Wright.
But maybe they want to monetize “HOC” reruns after all this time. Will the show suddenly surface again on streamer? Will Spacey be able to use this as a launching pad back to Hollywood?
It seems unlikely, but Donald Trump is president again.
Ick.
My new special is out on Netflix right now. Give it a watch. pic.twitter.com/pkGGXEGIqT
— Tim Dillon (@TimJDillon) April 15, 2025
Kanye West has been on a tear on social media.
In new posts, he claims his parents beat him — but not in an abusive way.
He claimed in one post that he found his mother, the late Professor Donda West, sleeping with his female babysitter. Most of West’s posts are disgusting but this one is just sad. He revered his mother and is now demeaning her by exposing her private life with no possible explanation.
West also has posted hideous things about Hillary Clinton and Taylor Swift. I’m not going to post those because they’re filthy and beyond the pale. Suffice to say, West — who says in other posts he won’t delete anything, he’s very proud of all this — is a sick, sick man.
And just like that, here’s the trailer for “Sex and the City: And Just Like That” season 3.
Carrie, Charlotte, Miranda, and friends are back enjoying the high life in New York. The only intrusion of reality is rats scurrying in Carrie’s backyard of her townhouse. (Good thing she married rich — and then killed off the husband!)
So far the trailer doesn’t give much away. The women are now almost in wheelchairs, but as the songs, they’ll never give up.
“And Just Like That” won’t win any awards, but it’s frothy summer entertainment, and a good pay day for all involved.
Say goodbye to Temu. For now.
The ubiquitous Chinese marketer that famous sells products at cheap prices has exited Google Ads.
Temu, according to reports, fell from 3rd or 4th place to 58th place a few days ago on all of Google’s rankings.
By Sunday, Temu was gone entirely.
This is all in response to Trump’s trade war with China, and his 125% tariffs on Chinese goods. There was no carve out for Google. This is ironic, of course, since Google was one of many tech companies to grovel for help by donating money to Trump’s inaugural campaign.
The Google boycott by Temu probably won’t last long. They need to be on the internet via Google in order to survive and sell $2 polyester sweaters and gadgets that don’t always work. But they’re making a statement.
Stay tuned…
Here’s a chart supplied by SearchEngineLand.com:
Will Smith had better not give up his day job in acting.
Will’s “Based on a True Story,” his first rap album in 20 years, has been a colossal sales dud.
Through today, “True Story” has sold just 699 paid downloads.
If you include streaming, the total is only 14,500. All of this includes pre-sales.
So far, there’s been little interest in “Based on a True Story” outside of its opening week on March 28th.
It’s hard to say how committed Will was to the project. He could have played Coachella and gotten a lot of attention. But he didn’t. He also hasn’t been very visible on TV.
One reason for the low profile is that still, three years later, his Oscars slap of Chris Rock is an obstacle in interviews. He still can’t explain it and hasn’t really seemed contrite. He’s also still banned for 7 more years from the Oscars.
Videos from “Based on a True Story” also haven’t been watched much. The one below, “Beautiful Scars,” has 6.6 million views over two weeks. Sounds like a lot, but it’s not. The others from the album haven’t come close to that number.
Season 21 of “Grey’s Anatomy” has been so bad ratings wise, it’s amazing to think to it’s still on the air.
This past Thursday’s numbers fell to 2.015 million in total viewers. That’s down 5% from last week, the second lowest of this season.
“Grey’s” is down a whopping 30% in total viewers from last year, and 47% in the key age demo.
The only viewers left are bored pets who can’t their Roku for streaming options.
Most of those pets are turning to CBS’s “Elsbeth,” which scored 4.5 million viewers this past Thursday at 10pm. To add insult to injury, ABC’s 9pm show “Doctor Odyssey,” essentially the Love Boat meets “Hotel,” had 700,000 more viewers. That’s how many people changed the channel to avoid “Greys.”
Nevertheless, ABC has renewed the medical soap opera for a 22nd season.
Can things get worse? Yes. There are still four more episodes.
Meantime, in the field of medical TV shows, “The Pitt” is the hot show everyone’s talking about.
Is Liza Minnelli coming to Broadway?
A source tells me that Minnelli will likely fly in for a celebration of composer John Kander’s 100th birthday on Monday, May 19th at the Stephen Sondheim Theater.
Joel Grey will undoubtedly be there, too. But I’m told both appearances are being kept under wraps for now.
Alan Cumming is the night’s emcee, which makes sense since he played the emcee in a revival of “Cabaret.”
Scott Ellis, Susan Stroman, and David Thompson, are the creators of the event, which has such an eclectic list of performers that Jennifer Lopez is included.
Others expected to perform one way or another at “Ring Them Bells: A Birthday Celebration for John Kander” include Victoria Clark, Charlotte d’Amboise, Brandon Victor Dixon, Whoopi Goldberg, Ramin Karimloo, Jessie Mueller, Bebe Neuwirth, Kelli O’Hara, David Hyde Pierce, Lillias White, Tony Yazbeck, and Karen Ziemba.
Proceeds from the show are going to the Roundabout Theater. Please visit https://roundabouttheatre.org/ringthembells for information and to purchase tickets.
Weeks ago, a source close to Liza told me she was planning something “big” for May. Let’s hope it all works out. If she sings one line from “New York, New York,” the Sondheim audience will lose its mind!
PS Will Liza be chosen for Kennedy Center Honors this year? She’s waited a long time. And if she does, will she go under the current circumstances at the theater? These questions loom.
Tony winners John Lithgow and Janet McTeer have joined the staff at Hogwart’s.
They will play, respectively, Dumbeldore and Minerva McGonagall in the reimagined HBO TV series of “Harry Potter.”
Several great British actors have been cast as well including Paapa Essiedu as Snape, Nick Frost as Hagrid, Luke Thallon as Quirrell, and Paul Whitehouse as Filch.
The whole next month will be filled with more casting announcements for the HBO version of the beloved series including Harry. Hermione, and Ron.
The new “Harry Potter” will not just be recitation of the films word for word. It’s being adapted, and there will be many changes for a new generation.
But so far, so good. Just wait and see Janet McTeer– she’s the Maggie Smith of our generation. And Lithgow is a genius.
Lin Manuel’s award winning Broadway musical “Hamilton” is still selling out most of its shows 9 years after it debuted.
Come September 9th, though, “Hamilton” will be totally maxed out when Tony winner Leslie Odom, Jr. returns as Aaron Burr.
If people still bought tickets in person, there would be lines up the block and around the corner for Odom, who will once again be in the room where it happens.
Odom has had many successes since leaving “Hamilton” in 2016, but this will forever be his signature role. His shows will run through November 23rd.
Will Odom be the only original cast member to return? Or the beginning of a series of such events? Either way, it’s great news!
Welcome back to the inimitable, original, Aaron Burr: Leslie Odom Jr! See him on Broadway September 9th – November 23rd. pic.twitter.com/Os7QPcAOTn
— Hamilton (@HamiltonMusical) April 14, 2025
Welcome back to the inimitable, original, Aaron Burr: Leslie Odom Jr! See him on Broadway September 9th – November 23rd. pic.twitter.com/Os7QPcAOTn
— Hamilton (@HamiltonMusical) April 14, 2025