Tag: Hollywood

‘Maze Runner’ outruns ‘Jumanji’ to lead North American box offices

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Fox’s young-adult film “Maze Runner: The Death Cure” dashed past “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” as it opened this weekend in North American theaters, taking in an estimated $23.5 million after a strong showing overseas, website Exhibitor Relations reported. The dystopian sci-fi film, the third and last in the “Maze Runner” series, follows the life-and-death adventures of three young “Gladers,” teens immune to a destructive virus infecting the world. […]

Minnie Mouse gets her star, a few decades after Mickey

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Minnie Mouse was honored with a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame Monday, with her eternal sidekick Mickey by her side. In her red and white polka-dot dress and bright yellow heels, the giggly cartoon favorite was recognized a full four decades after Mickey. “Mickey, I’m so happy you’re here to share this wonderful day with me. That’s for you! This really is the best day ever. Oh thank […]

Hollywood hits red carpet for SAG awards

by Veronique Dupont Agence France Presse LOA ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Stars descended on the red carpet Sunday for the Screen Actors Guild Awards, with Black comedy crime story “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” expected to dominate a ceremony that will honor Hollywood’s women. Reese Witherspoon, Susan Sarandon, Morgan Freeman, Margot Robbie, Sterling K. Brown, and “Stranger Things” star Millie Bobby Brown were among the glamorous arrivals at the Shrine Exposition Center in downtown […]

Ex-employee accuses Michael Douglas of sexual harassment

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) – A former employee has accused Michael Douglas of sexual harassment and misconduct in her presence, charges the Oscar-winning Hollywood megastar has vehemently denied. Douglas, 73, is the latest big-name celebrity accused of seamy behavior since a sexual harassment watershed began with the downfall of movie mogul Harvey Weinstein in 2017. The actor — Hollywood royalty as the son of actor Kirk Douglas — “thought he was the king of the world […]

Robert Redford: #MeToo is ‘tipping point’ for Hollywood

by Frankie Taggart Agence France-Presse PARK CITY, United States (AFP) — Robert Redford said Thursday the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements were a “tipping point” that would change Hollywood in favor of women’s equality and intolerance for sexual misconduct. “From my standpoint, change is inevitable and change is going to come… I’m pretty encouraged right now,” the 81-year-old double Oscar-winner told a news conference launching his annual Sundance Film Festival. “What it’s doing is bringing […]

Contested Versace murder drama hits US television

by Thomas Urbain Agence France-Presse NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Dismissed as “fiction” by the Versace family and met with mixed reviews, a controversial new drama depicting the 1997 murder of Gianni Versace makes its US television debut Wednesday. “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” is the second edition of a crime story franchise whose first iteration won rave reviews and a bevy of awards for revisiting the 1995 O.J. Simpson murder […]

Israeli town names cinema for ‘Wonder Woman’ Gadot

JERUSALEM (AFP) — A cinema in northern Israel is to be named after Israeli-born Hollywood celeb Gal Gadot, star of the blockbuster hit “Wonder Woman,” the town of Upper Nazareth said Tuesday. “We are going to name the new cinema after Gal Gadot, an Israeli actress who brings honour to this country,” municipal spokeswoman Orna Yosef told AFP. “This is a message for our young people because Gal Gadot is an example of success, who […]

Actress Kruger says Hollywood changing because ‘men are scared’

PARIS, France (AFP) — Hollywood actress Diane Kruger said Monday that the #MeToo movement had scared powerful men but she was afraid that change may be short-lived. The German-born star, who won the best actress in May at the Cannes film festival for “In the Fade” — which is hotly tipped for a best foreign movie Oscar nomination — told French television that she has never been paid as much as her male co-stars. Yet […]

Deneuve says she meant no offence to sex assault victims

PARIS, France (AFP) — French film star Catherine Deneuve said she stood by her signing an open letter in Le Monde this week bashing the #MeToo movement but apologised if she had offended victims of sexual assault, in a letter published on the website of daily Liberation on Sunday. “I warmly greet all the victims of these hideous acts who might have felt offended by that letter which appeared in Le Monde. It is to […]

Mary J. Blige gets star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Grammy-winning soul singer Mary J. Blige — who has earned critical acclaim and award nominations for her acting debut in last year’s “Mudbound” — celebrated her 47th birthday Thursday by getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. “I am so grateful, and I say that with confidence and not arrogance,” she told the crowd gathered for the star unveiling ceremony. “I know my work and I understand […]

Five women accuse James Franco of sexual misconduct: report

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Five women have publicly accused Hollywood star James Franco of sexually inappropriate behavior, The Los Angeles Times reported Thursday, just days after the actor triumphed at the Golden Globes. The paper published allegations by four former students at the film school Franco founded who accused him of exploitative behavior including during nude scenes. A fifth woman accused Franco of pressuring her into performing fellatio while the pair were in […]

Versace family slam TV series on designer’s murder

MILAN, Italy (AFP) — The Versace family on Wednesday slammed a new television series on the murder of fashion giant Gianni Versace, saying it was based on nothing more than “work of fiction.” The show, filmed largely at Versace’s Miami waterfront mansion where the stylist to the stars was gunned down in July 1997, is set to be released next week in the United States and Europe. “The Versace family has neither authorized nor had […]