Friday, December 19, 2025
Donate
Home Blog Page 350

The Strike Ends: The Rush to Promote Movies for the Oscars Is On, Get Ready for a Flood

Roger Friedman
-
0
The Strike Ends: The Rush to Promote Movies for the Oscars Is On, Get Ready for a Flood

Even though Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro” played at the Venice and New York Film Festivals, it still hasn’t had a lot of ballyhoo. Cooper wasn’t even allowed to speak the New York Film Fest even though he directed and starred in the movie. SAG strike rules forbade it.

But with the strike over, Netflix — like all the studios — are ready to turn on the spigot of publicity. This isn’t just for box office, but for awards season. In less than a month, nominations will be announced for the Critics Choice Awards and some kind of Golden Globes. Also, the NY Film Critics and other cities’ critics groups will be making decisions.

We’re finally going to hear from Cooper and co-star Carey Mulligan, who’s so sensational in the biopic marriage story of composer Leonard Bernstein.

We’re probably going to be hearing from and seeing the casts of a lot of movies that opened during the strike including “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Barbie,” and “Oppenheimer.” They’ve been silent since mid July.

And the end of the strike makes it a lot easier for all the talk shows, as well as “Saturday Night Live,” to give a retroactive push to the films. You can only imagine the jostling among bookers to get Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, and so on.

Who loses in this revived PR machine? The directors. They’ve been doing all the heavy lifting for months, answering questions, posing for pictures, etc. They did yeoman service, but now it’s time to step back and let the beautiful people they cast in their films take over.

On this year’s red carpet, when a star is asked. What are you wearing? The answer will be: a grin.

Breaking: SAG Actors Strike is Over as Union, Studios Reach Agreement Thanks In Large Part to The Nanny

Roger Friedman
-
0
Breaking: SAG Actors Strike is Over as Union, Studios Reach Agreement Thanks In Large Part to The Nanny

The 118 day actors strike is over. Details coming

SAG president Fran Drescher, best known for playing “The Nanny,” stood her ground when the AMPTP used all kinds of PR tactics to pressure the union.

But Drescher and her negotiating team would not give in. Though this is just a three year contract, it sets new standards for the future in streaming royalties and artificial intelligence.

Why the studios forced everyone to go through a four and a half month strike and work stoppage will be studied in the future. But as of now, Hollywood is back to business.

Taylor Swift Will Hold Jung Kook at Bay with New “1989” Set to Best BTS Singer’s Album

Roger Friedman
-
0
Taylor Swift Will Hold Jung Kook at Bay with New “1989” Set to Best BTS Singer’s Album

The sales numbers are shaping up for albums this week. Guess who will be number 1?

Hitsdailydouble says Taylor Swift — who last week sold 1.5 million copies of “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” — will be back on top. Swifties are picking up another 225,000 copies.

This means that BTS star Jung Kook, despite a ton of hype and stuffing of the ballot box, will finish at number 2. “Golden” will come in with just 160,000 copies sold.

This is certainly a loss for Scooter Braun, who now runs BTS business in the US but became Public Enemy Number 1 for buying and then selling off Swift’s masters without permission.

Jung Kook’s single, “Standing Next to You,” is currently holding positions 1-4 on iTunes. But that is suspect, and part of a pattern with BTS singles on iTunes. Fans swamp the site with purchases, but when it’s over, the numbers are always lower than expected.

Barry Manilow Comes After Mariah Carey with a Surprise Version of Her “All I Want for Christmas” Perennial

Roger Friedman
-
0
Barry Manilow Comes After Mariah Carey with a Surprise Version of Her “All I Want for Christmas” Perennial

All Barry Manilow wants for Christmas is a hit with his cover of Mariah Carey’s holiday song.

Manilow dropped “All I Want for Christmas” last Friday with little fanfare. But now it’s jumped up to number 4 on iTunes holiday song list. His spare version is a welcome relief to Carey’s Phil Spector wall of sound perennial. Manilow’s voice never sounded better.

Meanwhile, Manilow’s Broadway musical, “Harmony,” opens Monday with all new songs. He’d like that to be a hit, too, Santa.

Disney-Marvel’s Adrift “The Marvels” Panned by Reviewers: Have Cash Cow Super Hero Movies Finally Worn Out Their Welcome?

Roger Friedman
-
0
Disney-Marvel’s Adrift “The Marvels” Panned by Reviewers: Have Cash Cow Super Hero Movies Finally Worn Out Their Welcome?

All good things must come to an end, even super hero movies.

So it may be for “The Marvels,” which debuts tomorrow night. The 33rd Disney-Marvel comic book film is being panned by reviewers.

Despite the great Brie Larson, “The Marvels” has a 54% rating on Rotten Tomatoes — and it’s sinking.

Reviewers are calling it a mess, boring, and irrelevant.

What’s clear is that “The Marvels” was always a movie in search of an idea. It’s been held and reworked a lot. Now it seems to make up for lack of a plot and a villain, Marvel threw in a lot of Marvel Universe connections to keep it alive.

I guess it didn’t work, not even the sight of Robert Downey Jr. in the trailers. Iron Man/Tony Stark has been dead a long time.

Marvel had been on a roll for a long time. But with the pandemic and strikes, they are finally seeing backlash. They’ve also got a major problem with the next three planned “Avengers” movies. Jonathan Majors is supposed to star as the villain Kang. But he’s on trial soon for domestic abuse. Whether or not he’s found innocent of all charges, Majors may be too tainted now for Disney to keep him. “The Avengers” movies are now in limbo.

Marvel may have to wait to be marvel-ous for a while.

“Sound of Freedom” Studio Pay it Forward Trick Isn’t Working this Time with “After Death” Release: No One Wants to Know

Roger Friedman
-
0
“Sound of Freedom” Studio Pay it Forward Trick Isn’t Working this Time with “After Death” Release: No One Wants to Know

All summer the entertainment press kept whinging on about a movie called “Sound of Freedom” making over $100 million.

Almost no one — except this column — reminded that Angel Studios was allowing Christian groups and anyone who wanted to “pay it forward” and buy tickets in bulk for people to use for free. It was a scam. “Sound of Freedom” would never have made that money otherwise.

Now Angel Studios has a new release called “After Death.” They’re still offering free tickets but guess what? No one’s going.

In 11 days of release, “After Death” — a documentary — has made just $9.5 million. Theaters are empty. Apparently no one wants to know what happens in a cinematic masterpiece (their words) that explores what happens after we die. We do know what happens when critics see it: a rotten 46%.

That’s because, you know, in the real world, no one knows what happens after we die except the obvious– we are gone. Everything else is supposition or fiction. Sorry. I know that’s tough to hear. But the only the way to find out is to die — and stay dead.

But on November 10th Angel Studios is going to offer a livestream with experts answering questions about near-death — which, frankly, does not qualify as actually being dead.

The “After Death” box office, however, is dead.

Election: Yusef Salaam, Exonerated in Central Park Jogger Case, Targeted for Death Penalty by Donald Trump, Wins NYC Council Seat

Roger Friedman
-
0
Election: Yusef Salaam, Exonerated in Central Park Jogger Case, Targeted for Death Penalty by Donald Trump, Wins NYC Council Seat

This is called vindication.

Yusef Salaam, who at 15 was convicted with five others in 1989 in the Central Park Jogger case, won a seat on the NYC council.

In 1989, Salaam went to jail for seven years, along with the other defendants in the case. They were vilified and railroaded. Donald Trump called for them to get the death penalty in a full page ad in the New York Times and other ads that cost $85,000.

But the so called Central Park Five was exonerated and their convictions vacated in 2002 and they received a combined $41 million settlement from the city. They didn’t do it, just as they’d maintained. as the real culprit was caught through DNA analysis and a confession.

(Trump never apologized. His sick posture on this crime is just one of his many egregious and hateful mistakes in New York, where we know the depth of his evil. How anyone could think of voting for him now is inconceivable.)

Salaam’s election is a sweet vindication after one of the more shameful events in New York history. He will represent a big chunk of Harlem. He ran unopposed after winning a by a big majority in the primary.

SAG Actors Strike Reportedly Nearing Resolution as Studios Agree to Tailor Language on AI: Report

Roger Friedman
-
0
SAG Actors Strike Reportedly Nearing Resolution as Studios Agree to Tailor Language on AI: Report

Our long national nightmare might be over soon.

Variety says the studios are agreeable to tailoring language in their “last, best, final offer” to the union.

The remaining issue seems to be about AI, and the digital scanning of actors– and then reusing the scans without permission or pay.

The studios will likely give in on this so the strike can be wrapped up. If not, there will be no movie or TV business in 2024. It’s time to move on.

Stay tuned…

Garland Jeffreys’ Extraordinarily Joyful Music Film “The King of In Between” Opens DocNYC Tonight– Stream It (Info Here)

Roger Friedman
-
0
Garland Jeffreys’ Extraordinarily Joyful Music Film “The King of In Between” Opens DocNYC Tonight– Stream It (Info Here)

New Yorkers know Garland Jeffreys as a hometown hero.

A rock star since the mid 70s, Garland — who went to Syracuse University with Lou Reed, his buddy — became a legacy musician with his single, “Wild in the Streets” in 1977.

He went on to make a dozen or so albums and had an early 80s hit with “Matador” and a cover of “96 Tears.” His songs are about storytelling, art, and poetry set to his own brand of R&B.

“The King of In Between” is a spectacular documentary about his amazing career, and it’s one of the opening night films at DocNYC Nov 8th. It’s also available streaming via the website. The movie is named for one Garland’s later albums, a kind of mini masterpiece. The title is a reference to the singer’s successful struggle to straddle so many worlds of color and music.

There are lots of special guests in the film including Little Steven van Zandt (and possibly Bruce Springsteen, who loves Jeffreys). Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson are featured, as well as Harvey Keitel, another old friend. But it’s really all about Garland, an American and New York original whose infectious sense of humor is shown off as well his musical and theatrical chops.

Claire Jeffreys produced and directed. No one knows the subject better. She’s been married to him for decades. This film is so good it should be on American Masters. Hello WNET, PBS.

Celebrity Sexpot Megan Fox Has Written a Book of Poetry: What a Time to Be Alive!

Roger Friedman
-
0
Celebrity Sexpot Megan Fox Has Written a Book of Poetry: What a Time to Be Alive!

Celebrity sex pot Megan Fox has “written” a book. Of Poetry. It’s called

“Pretty Boys are Poisonous.”

Look, we need this right now. The world is at war. It’s a very tense moment. America is divided– some people want a man standing trial in four places to be elected again to the presidency. Sanity and intelligence are no longer a given.

So Megan Fox — in a very Trumpian way — wants to be poet laureate. I say, let her. At this point, civilization is over. RFK Jr is polling well in red states. Megan Fox may be our way out. Or Kennedy’s choice for Vice President.

Eugene Pask produces a show called “Celebrity Autobiography.” I can’t wait til it’s back, with Britney Spears, Jada Pinkett Smith, and now Megan Fox. As long as her cleavage is good, Megan Fox can rhyme away.

Here’s her into:

1...349350351...2,323Page 350 of 2,323

Hollywood to the Hudson

Company

Trending

Categories

© Showbiz411.com