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Thursday, May. 3, 2018

"Black Panther" leads MTV Movie & TV Awards nominations

This image released by Disney shows Lupita Nyong'o, left, and Chadwick Boseman and Danai Gurira in a scene from Marvel Studios' "Black Panther." The global smash hit garnered seven nominations for the MTV Movie & TV Awards, including one for Boseman. The awards will be held on June 18. (Matt Kennedy/Marvel Studios-Disney via AP)

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

"Black Panther" will get its first shot at some awards show love as the top nominee at next month's MTV Movie & TV Awards .

The global smash hit garnered seven nominations including for stars Chadwick Boseman, Letitia Wright and Michael B. Jordan. The second leading nominee is Netflix's series "Stranger Things," which received six nominations including for best show.

The breezy award show's best movie category is stuffed full of superheroes, with "Black Panther," ''Avengers: Infinity War" and "Wonder Woman" competing against "Girls Trip" and "IT."

The top show nominees include "13 Reasons Why," ''Game of Thrones," ''grown-ish" and Riverdale.

For the second year in a row, actors will compete in genderless categories. The show maintains its light touch, however, with awards presented for Most Frightened Performance, Best Fight and Best Kiss.

Tiffany Haddish will host the show, which will be presented on June 18 in More

Thursday, May. 3, 2018

TV academy reviewing Bill Cosby's Hall of Fame honor

In this April 18, 2018 file photo, Bill Cosby arrives for his sexual assault trial at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, Pa. The prosecutors who put Cosby away said Sunday, April 29, 2018, they’re confident the conviction at his suburban Philadelphia sexual-assault retrial will stand. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)

By Lynn Elber, Television Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

The TV academy said it is reviewing Bill Cosby's inclusion in the academy's Hall of Fame following his sexual assault conviction.

Cosby's spokesman didn't immediately respond Wednesday to a request for comment.

Although the academy hasn't decided whether he'll remain in the Hall of Fame, Cosby's name had previously been removed from a list of Hall of Fame honorees on the academy's website.

A bust of Cosby no longer will be part of a rotating Walk of Fame exhibit honoring TV heavyweights at the academy's Los Angeles headquarters, an academy spokesman said.

Last week, jurors in Pennsylvania convicted Cosby of drugging and molesting a Temple University employee in 2004. He awaits sentencing.

Tuesday, May. 1, 2018

"Gotti," with John Travolta, will premiere at Cannes

This image released by Vertical Entertainment shows John Travolta as John Gotti from the mobster biopic “Gotti." The film will premiere at Cannes as a special gala screening at the Palais des Festivals on May 15. The Cannes Film Festival begins May 8. (Vertical Entertainment via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) --

The delayed mobster biopic "Gotti," starring John Travolta, will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival.

Film producers told The Associated Press on Tuesday that "Gotti" will premiere out of competition at Cannes at a special gala screening at the Palais des Festivals on May 15. The Cannes Film Festival begins May 8.

"Gotti" depicts the rise and fall of the notorious Gambino family crime boss John V. Gotti. It's directed by Kevin Connolly.

The movie was supposed to open in December. But just 10 days before its release, distributor Lionsgate sold the film back to its production company. Vertical Entertainment stepped in with a wider release plan set for June 15. Ticketing service MoviePass also invested in the film.

In a statement, Travolta thanked Cannes Film Festival director Thierry Fremaux for selecting "Gotti."

Tuesday, May. 1, 2018

TV drama about high court's Ginsburg, O'Connor in the works

This combination photo shows retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor accepting the Minerva Award during the Women's Conference in Long Beach, Calif. on Oct. 26, 2010, left, and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the Georgetown University Law Center campus in Washington on Sept. 20, 2017. (AP Photo)

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

A TV drama about the lives and careers of Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg is in the works.

A spokeswoman for Alyssa Milano said Tuesday that the actress' company, Peace Productions, is joining with PatMa Productions to develop the limited series.

The project will draw on the book "Sisters in Law" by Linda Hirshman, which details the legal and social impact of former Supreme Court Justice O'Connor and current Justice Ginsburg.

O'Connor was the first woman to serve on the high court, with Ginsburg the second.

Milano will serve as an executive producer along with PatMa executives Nina Tassler and Denise Di Novi. Casting was not announced.

Ginsburg is in the spotlight these days: She's the subject of a documentary, "RBG," scheduled to be released in theaters Friday.

Tuesday, May. 1, 2018

Disney, Twitter to create live content and ads across genres

In this Feb. 8, 2018, file photo the logo for Twitter is displayed above a trading post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

NEW YORK (AP) --

The Walt Disney Co. and Twitter say they will create live content and advertisements in sports, news and entertainment from the entire Disney portfolio.

This includes sports content from ESPN, as well as videos from ABC, the Disney Channel, Marvel and other Disney properties

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Live video is important to Twitter as it courts users to think of it as the place to check what's happening at the moment.

Tuesday, May. 1, 2018

Universal Pictures and The Film Foundation Announce Film Restoration Partnership

In this Sept. 21, 2016 file photo, honoree Martin Scorsese attends the Friars Club Entertainment Icon Award ceremony in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. --

Universal Pictures and The Film Foundation announce a multi-year partnership to restore a handpicked selection of the Studios’ classic titles. With this collaboration, Universal will fund the restorations as well as provide research and technical services. Through The Film Foundation, Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg will be personally involved in the process contributing their unique artistic expertise and historical knowledge throughout the restoration process. The restored versions will be screened at film festivals and archives around the world. The 2018 restoration slate includes the following:

DESTRY RIDES AGAIN (1939, director George Marshall)
KILLERS, THE (1946, d. Robert Siodmak)
KILLERS, THE (1964, d. Don Siegel)
MY LITTLE CHICKADEE (1940, d. Edward Cline)
WINCHESTER ‘73 (1950, d. Anthony Mann)

Additional titles will be announced More

Monday, Apr. 30, 2018

Exhibit showcasing Stanley Kubrick's photography set to open

In this undated photo, American director Stanley Kubrick shoots on the set of the film "The Shining" at his home in England. (AP Photo/File)

NEW YORK (AP) --

A new museum exhibit opening this week in New York City will focus on the early photography work of film director Stanley Kubrick.

The New York Times reports the Museum of the City of New York will showcase Kubrick's photographs for Look magazine. Kubrick was a full-time New York-based photographer for the magazine from October 1946 through August 1950.

Look was generally considered a competitor to Life magazine and focused most of its attention on American pursuits and problems. It went out of business in 1971.

Kubrick died in 1999 and is best known for his work as a film director, including "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Dr. Strangelove."

"Stanley Kubrick: Through a Different Lens " opens on May 3 and runs through October 28.

Sunday, Apr. 29, 2018

"The Dam Busters" director Michael Anderson dies at 98

In this on Dec. 10, 1964, file photo, film director Michael Anderson talks with Sophia Loren on the set of "Operation Crossbow" at MGM's British Studios at Elstree in Borehamwood near London, England. (AP Photo, File)

By Jill Lawless

LONDON (AP) --

British director Michael Anderson, whose films included war epic "The Dam Busters" and sci-fi classic "Logan's Run," has died at age 98.

Anderson's family said Sunday that he died of heart disease April 25 in Canada, at his home on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia.

Born into a theatrical family in London in 1920, Anderson served in the army during World War II and made his feature debut in 1949 with "Private Angelo," co-directed by Peter Ustinov.

His 1955 adventure "The Dam Busters" told the story of a daring wartime bombing raid on Germany's industrial heartland. Its visual flair and stirring score helped make it one of Britain's best-loved war films, and its thrilling climax helped inspire the attack on the Death Star in the first "Star Wars" movie.

"The Dam Busters" is due to be broadcast at London's Royal Albert Hall and in 400 U.K. movie theaters on May 17 to mark the 75th anniversary of the real-life 1943 raid More

Saturday, Apr. 28, 2018

"Golden Girls," "Soap" producer Paul Junger Witt dies at 77

This March 25, 1989, file photo shows Paul Junger Witt, left, and Tony Thomas posing in Los Angeles, Calif. (AP Photo/Nick Ut, File)

LOS ANGELES (AP) --

Paul Junger Witt, the prolific TV producer behind "The Golden Girls," ''The Partridge Family" and "Soap," died Friday, a spokeswoman said. He was 77.

Witt died at his Los Angeles-area home after battling cancer, spokeswoman Pam Golum said.

He worked at Columbia Pictures before joining comedian-actor Danny Thomas' production company in 1973, where he and Thomas' son, Tony, teamed up.

In 1975, Witt and Tony Thomas formed a production company that later expanded to include writer-producer Susan Harris, who created "The Golden Girls," the hit 1985-92 series starring Bea Arthur, Betty White and Rue McClanahan.

Witt and Harris married in 1983.

Witt's other credits include the TV series "Benson," ''Empty Nest," ''Blossom" and the TV movie "Brian's Song." He produced big-screen films including "Dead Poets Society," ''Three Kings," ''Insomnia" and "A Better Life."

Witt prized "A Better Life," about a single father living More

Friday, Apr. 27, 2018

Lupita Nyong'o to voice giant in VR animated "Jack"

In this June 13, 2017 file photo, Lupita Nyong'o attends the Women In Film 2017 Crystal and Lucy Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

NEW YORK (AP) --

It's the latest example of gender-bending casting: Actress Lupita Nyong'o will voice the role of the Giant in "Jack," an animated virtual reality version of the "Jack and the Beanstalk" story.

The Oscar winner will participate in the next installment of the VR experience, produced by Baobab Studios. The first installment, "Jack: Part One," is now showing at the Tribeca Film Festival.

The studio says it was inspired by "the social movements of today" to dismiss preconceived notions of the Giant and present the character as "a dynamic and powerful woman."

A viewer is given a headset and then steps onto a physical stage, which then appears transformed by animated scenery.

The film is directed by French director Mathias Chelebourg.