Sunny (Daniel Wu) in ‘Into the Badlands’ episode one (Photo Credit: James Dimmock / AMC)
The martial arts drama Into the Badlands has been renewed for season two by AMC. Season one brought in an average of 5.6 million viewers each episode and ranked number three among all first seasons of cable shows. According to the network’s official announcement, Into the Badlands‘ second season will premiere in 2017 and will consist of 10 new episodes.
“With its deep dive into authentic martial arts, the visually stunning Into the Badlands proved to be unlike anything else on television,” said Charlie Collier, president of AMC, SundanceTV and AMC Studios. “Co-creators and showrunners Al Gough and Miles Millar, along with a talented team of producers, cast and crew, brought us an artfully crafted series. We’re eager to return to the world of barons and blades and spend even more time with these compelling and evolving characters across an expanded second season.”
“We can’t imagine any other network bold enough to embrace a show like this,” stated showrunners/executive producers/writers Gough and Millar. “We are incredibly grateful to Charlie, Joel and the entire AMC team for taking this leap of faith with us and we look forward to continuing the journey into the Badlands!”
Daniel Wu, fight director Stephen Fung, David Dobkin, Michael Shamberg, and Stacey Sher executive produce. The cast includes Daniel Wu as Sunny, Marton Csokas as Quinn, Aramis Knight as M.K., Oliver Stark as Ryder, Emily Beecham as The Widow, Orla Brady as Lydia, Sarah Bolger as Jade, Ally Ioannides as Tilda, and Madeleine Mantock as Veil.
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Lena Headey in ‘Game of Thrones’ (Photo: Helen Sloan/HBO)
HBO’s unveiled the official trailer for Game of Thrones season six and of course there are scenes of a ‘dead’ Jon Snow. Of course, there are. But until season six arrives and shows someone cutting up his body or burning it, I am choosing to believe Jon Snow will rise from the dead and lead the North. It’s possible that all of us Jon Snow/Kit Harington fans are completely delusional, but until the scene arrives in which his body is destroyed and there’s no way he could have moved on to occupy a different one, then Jon Snow will live on in our hearts.
The one-minute 40-second trailer also confirms Bran is back and that he’ll be hanging out with the king of the White Walkers. We also get to see Jorah Mormont as he finds Daenarys’ ring in the grass, which leads to a scene of the Mother of Dragons walking with the Dothraki.
Sansa Stark looks all grown up, Cersei would rather fight than go down quietly, and Davos Seaworth says he’s not much of a fighter as he draws Jon Snow’s sword, Longclaw. Is Davos protecting Jon’s body with the help of Jon’s direwolf? There’s a lot to dissect and debate over in this new Game of Thrones trailer in support of the show’s April 24, 2016 season six premiere.
Among the returning Game of Thrones cast members are Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Alfie Allen, Diana Rigg, Natalie Dormer, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams, John Bradley, Isaac Hempstead Wright, Conleth Hill, Jonathan Pryce and Gwendoline Christie. David Benioff and D.B. Weiss created the series and serve as executive producers.
“Fools, they think the walls and guns can stop me! They have no idea,” says Victor Fries (Nathan Darrow) to himself as he overhears that his wife has been moved to Arkham to be treated in its E.R. “They’ll learn,” he says as he throws one of his special cold bombs into the city’s river freezing it in episode 13 of season two of FOX’s gritty comic book-inspired crime thriller series, Gotham.
As the episode begins Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) and his partner Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue) lead a police raid to Ace Chemicals which is where Victor went to get more fast-cooling liquid helium for his cryonic formula. When they enter the building and work their way through it, Gordon and Bullock discover to their horror that Victor has already frozen to death seven cops and has gotten away with the liquid helium. The last victim of Victor’s was the poor janitor who Victor encased in a rather large ice block and carved into it the message “Free My Wife.”
When Capt. Barnes (Michael Chiklis) hears about this he’s furious and decides to set a trap for Victor (aka Mr. Freeze) by moving his wife Nora to Arkham. Jim is on board with the plan but Harvey doesn’t like the idea of being around all the mentally ill waiting for Freeze to show up. When Gordon tells Lee (Morena Baccarin) about it, she’s not pleased with the idea of using HER patient as bait. Lee insists on going along saying Nora is her patient and she’s still in charge of her care. Jim tries to talk Lee out of it and is about to bring up the fact that she’s pregnant when she threatens to scream so Gordon drops the argument.
At Arkham, poor Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) is unwillingly undergoing some sort of weird mental torture treatment at the hands of Dr. Hugo Strange’s (BD Wong) thugs and his assistant Mrs. Peabody. Strange gets word that the GCPD wants to transfer Nora Fries to his facility and realizes the police want to use his Asylum as a trap to catch Mr. Freeze. Having his own plan for Mr. Freeze, he agrees happily.
Gordon and Bullock set up a perimeter inside Arkham’s gates and use a bus to help block a forced entrance into the mental ward. Both Gordon and Bullock see Penguin after his torture treatment playing duck-duck-goose with other disturbed patients and it unnerves them a little. Dr. Strange tries to cover up the behavior by telling them he had to give Oswald a mild drug to keep him from hurting himself.
Later outside in front of Arkham but still inside the gates, Gordon sees Penguin being dragged somewhere by two big orderlies and Penguin, seeing Jim, screams for his friend to help him. Gordon tells the men to bring Oswald over to him and asks Penguin what’s going on. Penguin reveals they are torturing him but Gordon says he doesn’t see any evidence of that. Oswald explains it’s mental torture and Jim says to Penguin it’s called therapy. “Your lawyer said you were insane. Remember?” asks Gordon as the two orderlies drag Penguin away screaming that he lied for Jim and that Jim killed Galavan.
Inside Arkham, Dr. Strange listens via the closed-circuit TV system to Penguin screaming about Jim’s involvement.
At Wayne Manor, Bruce (David Mazouz) is training punching a bag and is annoyed with Alfred (Sean Pertwee) for being late and missing their training session. He’s also still upset about the month-long vacation Alfred made them take away from the city in Switzerland. Alfred reveals that he had a friend do a little digging and discovered the name of the man who killed Bruce’s parents. He has a rap sheet going back to when he was 15 and his name is Patrick M. Malone, known on the street as Matches.
Alfred asks Bruce what the next step is and Bruce says he wants to kill the man. This is exactly what Alfred wants to avoid so he tells young Bruce he’s too young to have the murder of a man on his hands. Bruce begins to argue but Alfred is adamant, telling his young ward that they will find the man but it will be Alfred who kills him – and he makes Bruce agree to it.
Back at Arkham, Nora has been placed in the same room as comatose Barbara which Lee is not thrilled about. Nora is happy for Lee when she sees that she’s pregnant and the two women begin to bond. Nora tells Lee she saw her husband Victor starting to go down a dark and evil path but she chose to ignore it because she loves him. This hits too close to home for Lee who feels she’s doing the same thing with Jim. (Lee knows or suspects Jim actually killed Galavan and has asked for details involving his death because of it.)
Outside, Bullock is concerned about himself, Jim, and the other cops freezing to death just waiting around in the cold for Mr. Freeze to show up. That’s when a truck speeds down the street and bursts through the gates of Arkham right into the big bus. It turns out the driver is an innocent victim of Freeze’s who has had his hands and part of his arms frozen to the wheel.
While that’s going on outside, Victor uses his special freeze gun to blast a hole into the walls of Arkham and just walk in. Freeze uses one of his freeze bombs on two cops coming down the hall and is surprised to find someone buzzing the door open for him. Jim and Harvey, along with a few other cops, are running to try to catch up to Freeze but Dr. Strange closes the gated doors on them, separating Gordon from Harvey and the other cops who are now trapped between two locked gates. Harvey yells for Jim to keep going and tries to get someone on the intercom to unlock and open the gates.
Hugo guides Victor to a set of keys to a vehicle outside Arkham. Hugo wants to trade the keys for one of the vials of Victor’s working formula. Victor takes a minute to think about it and decides to comply, leaving a vial and taking the keys and heading to where Nora is with Lee. Jim has reached Nora and Lee and is trying to get them to leave when Victor walks in wearing his cold suit and holding his quick freeze gun. Jim tries to talk him down but he will not be stopped and he forces Gordon into a closet with Lee telling Jim to do as he says and it will be okay. Victor tells Lee he needs her to push Nora, who is unable to walk, in her wheelchair and attend to her since she’s her doctor.
Victor, Lee, and Nora are able to escape Arkham and after they do, Hugo finally opens the locked gates freeing Harvey and the other officers, blaming it on the extreme cold messing with the system.
Gordon, who did break out of the closet but didn’t reach Lee and Victor in time, is now brainstorming with Harvey on where he would take them. They realize in order to finish his experiment and save his dying wife Freeze would have to take her back to their home where he still has the cryo-chamber.
Back at the Fries home, Nora is pleading with Victor to let her go and finally let it be over but he refuses. He tells her as long as she is alive there is hope and a chance. She asks him to go and get her favorite necklace for her to wear before he freezes her and he complies. Nora distracts Lee by asking for a glass of water and while Lee is getting it, Nora switches the vial in the freeze gun with one that will not keep her alive. When Lee comes back Nora makes her promise to tell the police that Victor isn’t a bad man and that he just wanted to save her. Lee says she will. Freeze comes back and after one last kiss freezes Nora.
Jim and the cops show up and Harvey and the other police start to set a perimeter around the house as Jim heads slowly inside. Victor is just about to try to store his wife’s body in the chamber when he sees her begin to crack and break apart. “No NO NO NO!!” screams Victor as he realizes his beloved Nora switched the vials. He looks at Lee, who is both is shocked and saddened by Nora’s actions, and asks her if she knew about the switch. She says no and tells him how sorry she is. Victor asks Lee for one more show of kindness on her part and asks her to go and tell the police that he will be coming out and giving himself up, to which she agrees. Victor, now alone in the room with his dead wife, uses his own suit and vials to attempt suicide. Gordon enters the room to find Nora in pieces and Victor frozen.
Back at Gordon’s home the next day, he and Lee get into it over her putting their baby at risk. Lee tells Jim he put them all at risk because he’s lying to her. She finally brings up Galvan’s murder and tells Jim she knows he’s lying to her. Jim says nothing and leaves.
Back at Wayne Manor, Bruce is in his father’s study when Selina (Camren Bicondova) slips in through an open window and sneaks up on Bruce to try to playfully startle him. But Bruce smiles and says hello to her before she can get close enough, telling her he felt the breeze from the window change as she entered. Selina plops down on the sofa making herself at home and Bruce tells her he’s happy to see her and that he needs a favor to which Selina becomes a little annoyed. “What, no how’ve you been SORRY I didn’t tell you I’m leaving town for a month to my castle in France,” says the Cat. (Seriously, when is Bruce going to get a clue about not disappearing on Selina for months at a time with no word, nothing not even a postcard. She’s only saved his life, what, four or five times now and she is always, always there for him when he needs her.)
Bruce corrects her and tells her he was at a Chateau in Switzerland but she doesn’t care. He shows her the file on the man who killed his parents and Selina is interested. She asks him what he’s going to do with it and he tells her he needs her to get him a gun. This bothers Selina and she brings up the time they confronted Alfred’s old war buddy who stabbed Alfred and threatened them and she had to push him out a window to save them both, not him. Bruce will not be deterred however and tells Selina she is the only one who can get the gun for him. She asks what Alfred thinks and Bruce tells her that he believes he’s going to kill the man but that Bruce is going to do it. This upsets Selina even more as she moves across the room and turns around behind Bruce to tell him that if he kills the man he will never be the same. It will change who he is. Bruce stands and turns and looks at Selina with cold eyes, answering back, “I hope so.”
Back at Arkham, poor Penguin is going through another torture treatment while Hugo walks down to Indian Wells and visits his new patient, Mr. Freeze. It seems with all the exposure to the different cold vials during his experiments Victor did not die when he tried to kill himself but became almost like a living human frozen popsicle. Hugo has him in a room that’s being kept below freezing. Hugo tells Freeze that he’s making modifications to his suit so that he won’t have to stay in there forever. Victor says he should have died with Nora and that it should have ended with Nora. Dr. Strange just smiles and tells Victor, “Death is not an ending. Death is a new beginning.”
With that, he walks away with the camera panning to another room where Hugo Strange is keeping the bodies of Theo Galavan and other dead villains submerged in tanks of water.
Gotham Season 2 Episode 13 Review
Dark, disturbing, and action-packed, episode 13 of Gotham titled “A Dead Man Feels No Cold” continues the introduction of the two major villains for the second half of season two and brings young Mr. Wayne back to continue his search for the people responsible for killing his parents. The stand-out performance in this episode goes to Morena Baccarin as Lee as she tries to help and look out for her patient, Nora, while struggling with the realization that the man she loves, Jim, might be headed down a dark path that she may not be able to follow. Or even worse, a path that might just destroy them both. Her scenes with both Ben McKenzie are tense and electric. The two actors have true chemistry on screen. But, her best scenes are with Kristen Hager as Nora as she bonds with her patient while trying to protect her and begins to identify with the woman’s inability to act due to her love for her husband. Baccarin’s portrayal of Lee’s shock and sadness over the death of Nora is perfect.
With Bruce back in town working with a concerned but loyal Selina to kill the man who murdered his parents, the next episode of Gotham could just be the best one yet.
Natalie Portman wrote, directed and stars in ‘A Tale of Love and Darkness’
Natalie Portman’s feature film directorial debut, A Tale of Love and Darkness, has found a U.S. distributor in Focus World. A Tale of Love and Darkness was adapted by Portman for the screen from Amos Oz‘ memoir. Natalie Portman also stars in the dramatic movie alongside Gilad Kahana and Amir Tessler.
Ram Bergman and David Mandil produced the movie and Nicolas Chartier and Allison Shearmur executive produced. Focus World is planning a theatrical release later this year. Commenting on the acquisition, Focus World SVP Anjay Nagpal said, “A true labor of love for Natalie Portman, A Tale of Love and Darkness will resonate with audiences as a moving story about personal and world history intertwining.”
“A Tale of Love and Darkness has been my passion for almost a decade now since I read Amos Oz’s masterful book and knew I wanted to adapt it into a film,” said Portman. “I’m so proud, and feel so lucky, that the film we made will be distributed by Focus World. It is a great honor to have their brand of thoughtful distribution delivering the film into the world.”
The Plot:A Tale of Darkness is an intimate family drama set against the backdrop of war-torn Jerusalem just a few years after World War II. The story is told through the eyes of a young boy whose coming-of-age is shaped by a devastating family tragedy, and by a turbulent and changing world as the state of Israel is born.
Mischa Barton and Artem Chigvintsev will be partners on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ (Photo by Craig Sjodin / ABC)
The celebrities who will be showing off their dance moves on the 22nd season of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars have been announced, with the list featuring NFL stars, a UFC fighter, and a talk show host/investigative reporter. The new season of ABC’s popular dance competition series will premiere March 21, 2016 at 8pm ET/PT and will be hosted by Emmy winner Tom Bergeron and Dancing with the Stars season 10 finalist Erin Andrews. The panel of judges for season 22 includes Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli, and Carrie Ann Inaba. Alex Rudzinski is directing season 22 and Rob Wade and Ashley Edens-Shaffer are the executive producers.
The Dancing with the Stars season 22 celebrities and professional dancers pairings are:
Details on Dancing with the Stars Season 22 Celebrities, Courtesy of ABC:
MISCHA BARTON – Mischa Barton began her successful film, television and stage career in the NY theater scene under the tutelage of esteemed director/writers James Lapine (“Twelve Dreams” at Lincoln Center with Donna Murphy), Tony Kushner (“Slavs!” at New York Theater Workshop with Marisa Tomei), and Naomi Wallace (“One Flea Spare” at the Public Theatre with Dianne Wiest.) She has since gone on to star alongside screen icons Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant in “Notting Hill,” Bruce Willis and Toni Collette in “The Sixth Sense” and Sam Rockwell in the Sundance critically acclaimed film “Lawn Dogs.” She is currently in production on the independent film “Father” and will compete on this season of ABC’s hit television series, “Dancing with the Stars.”
On television, for three seasons, Barton portrayed Marisa Cooper, on FOX’s wildly popular drama “The O.C.” The show earned several awards, including a Television Critics Association Award nomination for Outstanding New Program of the Year. Barton also starred in The CW drama series “The Beautiful Life.”
In 2012, Barton returned to her theater roots, starring in “Steel Magnolias” at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin. She also tapped into her entrepreneurial side and launched Mischa Barton Boutique London in fashionable Spitalfields, East London. Here, she sells her own line of handbags, clothes and accessories. That same year, she also co-starred in “A Resurrection,” with Michael Clark Duncan and Devon Sawa, and starred in the feature “I Will Follow You Into The Dark.” Additional film credits include “Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain” (alongside Martin Sheen), “Homecoming,” “Walled In,” “Assassination of a High School President,” “Virgin Territory” and “Closing the Ring,” starring opposite Shirley MacLaine and Christopher Plummer and directed by the late Richard Attenborough.Most recent film credits include “The Hoarder,” “Starcrossed,” “Operator” and “Deserted.”
ANTONIO BROWN – Antonio Brown is an NFL wide receiver and punt returner for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was drafted in 2010 after playing college football for three years at Central Michigan, where he was named a first-team All-American by The Sporting News in 2008 and 2009. The four-time Pro-Bowl selectee was named the Pittsburgh Steelers MVP in 2011, 2013 and 2015. Brown also received the honor of the AFC Offensive Player of the Year in 2014 and was named the Fantasy Player of the Year for the 2015-2016 season. Antonio grew up in Miami, Florida and resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Follow Antonio @AntonioBrown84
Follow Sharna @SharnaBurgess
NYLE DIMARCO – Nyle DiMarco is an actor, model and spokesman. He is a native New Yorker and was born into a large multigenerational Deaf family. He is an alumni of Gallaudet University, the only liberal arts university in the world for the deaf.
He was the stand out star and winner of “America’s Next Top Model”’s Cycle 22! He has gained a lot of attention for being the first deaf contestant. Next, Nyle will appear on “Difficult People,” opposite Billy Eichner and John Early. Previously, he recurs on “Switched at Birth” as Garrett.
Nyle is a signer and creative collaborator on The ASL App (by Ink & Salt), an App created by native deaf signers to teach conversational American Sign Language (ASL). As an honorary spokesman for Language Equality and Acquisition for Deaf Kids (LEAD-K), Nyle is passionate about literacy, anti-bullying campaigns and advocacy within the deaf community.
Nyle DiMarco is deaf and uses American Sign Language. American Sign Language requires the use of facial expressions and body movements; his deafness amplifies his natural talent. His deafness is an asset and not a limitation; he is amicable and able to communicate easily.
KIM FIELDS – A true Renaissance woman of the entertainment industry, Kim Fields is an accomplished actress, director, producer and writer. Her work spans decades, and transcends both genres and mediums to create quality entertainment.
As an actress, Fields is best known for her starring roles in two iconic shows: “Living Single” and “The Facts Of Life.” Fields has also appeared on many other film and television projects, including HBO’s “The Comeback;” TBS’s “Meet the Browns,” Lifetime’s “The Division” and “Strong Medicine,” and A&E’s “The Cleaner.” More recently, she joined the cast of Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” Additional recent roles include the television movie “A Cross to Bear,” the film “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” and Hallmark Channel’s “For Better or for Worse.”
Fields starred in her third “Holiday Love” Christmas special, which she also produced, co-wrote and directed.
In addition to her onscreen work, Fields excels behind the camera. She has directed hundreds of episodes of television on programs, including TV One’s “The Rickey Smiley Show,” Nickelodeon’s “Kenan & Kel,” FOX’s “Living Single” and BET’s “Let’s Stay Together.” She also directed two of Tyler Perry’s TBS series: “Meet the Browns” and “House of Payne.”
Fields is an award-winning film director and was awarded the honor of “Director of the Year” for her work on the short film “Silent Bomb” by the Black American Cinema Society.
Fields is married to actor Christopher Morgan. The couple has two sons, Sebastian and Quincy.
This is a milestone year for Kim, celebrating her 40th year in the industry.
Follow Kim @KimVFields
Follow Sasha @SashaFarber
DOUG FLUTIE – Doug Flutie’s name has been synonymous with excellence in both college and professional football, as he has received many honors, including All American at Boston College, 1984 College Football Player of the Year, the 1984 Heisman Trophy Winner, 1991-1994/1996/1997 Grey Cup Most Valuable Player. Known for the famous “Hail Mary” pass against University of Miami to win the Orange Bowl in college, Doug went on to play in the USFL and then the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots through the late 80’s. He then played in the Canadian Football League for eight years, followed by the National Football League’s Buffalo Bills in 1998 where he was selected to the NFL Pro Bowl. At the age of 38, Doug signed a contract with the San Diego Chargers to become their starting quarterback. After four seasons, Doug was offered the opportunity to finish his career with his hometown team, the New England Patriots. Currently Doug Flutie serves as lead analyst for NBC Sports Group’s coverage of Notre Dame Football. He also serves as an analyst for NBC Sports Group’s NFL shoulder programming, which includes Pro Football Talk on NBCSN.
Doug has a charismatic personality whose approachable and personable style has translated his success on the football field into success off the field. Doug is the drummer of the Flutie Brothers Band. He has also written an autobiography, entitled “Flutie,” recounting his life both on and off the field. Married to his high school sweetheart, Laurie Flutie, and the father of two children, Doug and his wife established, the Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism in 1998, in the name of their son Dougie, Jr., to help less-fortunate families who have children with autism. He also created a cereal, Flutie Flakes, with the benefits going towards this organization. The Flutie Foundation has raised over $12 million dollars for autism causes.
MARLA MAPLES – As a Broadway professional, having starred in “The Will Rogers Follies” and “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” Marla is no stranger to the stage. A veteran host of sensations such as “The Miss U.S.A.,” “The Miss Universe Pageant,” and co-host of “Fox After Breakfast” with Tom Bergeron, Marla is also a philanthropist on a mission, an actress and musical artist. Marla’s single “House of Love,” off her album “The Endless,” features Deepak Chopra and LogiQ Pryce, and won the Hollywood Music in Media Award (HMMA) for best song in the Ambient/New Age category. Marla has appeared in over 15 films and has guest starred in numerous television series. Most recently she starred in the racially thought provoking film “Switching Lanes.” Above all, Marla is a proud mom to daughter Tiffany Trump, who is graduating this spring from University of Pennsylvania and they each happily reside in New York City once again.
Follow Marla @itsmarlamaples
Follow Tony @TonyDovolani
VON MILLER – Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller was named MVP of Super Bowl 50—the 10th defensive player to earn the honor—after posting 2.5 sacks (27 yds.), two forced fumbles, one pass defense and six tackles (5 solo). A fifth-year linebacker and four-time Pro Bowl selection, Von’s 60 career sacks through his first five seasons represent the sixth most in NFL (since 1982) history. In 2015, Von was selected to his fourth Pro Bowl, joining Hall of Fame running back Floyd Little and Ring of Fame safety Steve Atwater as the only players in team history to make at least four Pro Bowls in their first five years with the team.
As impressive as all these accolades may be, the record-breaking athletic performances are only part of what makes Von Von. His quirky interests, which range from vintage eyeglasses and fashion to raising chickens at his DeSoto, Texas ranch, allow Von to connect with people from all walks of life. His charming personality and easy-going nature make him one of the most approachable players in the game. Von has put this quality to good use, traveling to Afghanistan to show his support for the troops and frequently visiting children’s hospitals to deliver presents and play with the kids. In 2012, he started Von’s Vision, a foundation dedicated to providing eye care and glasses to underprivileged youth. His foundation now has Von’s Vision Days, where these youth can receive eye exams and glasses onsite in the same day.
Follow Von @Millerlite40
Follow Witney @WitneyCarson
WANYA MORRIS – Wanya Morris first rose to fame as an original member of the R&B group Boyz II Men, which would go on to become the bestselling R&B group of all time with an astounding 64 million albums sold, when he was just a high school student at the Philadelphia School of Creative and Performing Arts.
As the group’s second tenor, Wanya has helped them achieve international renown over the past two-and-a-half decades—creating some of the most iconic albums in music history, including, “II” (1994), “Evolution” (2007), “A Journey Through Hitsville USA” (2007), “Love” (2009), “Twenty” (2011), and “Collide” (2014) —which continues to produce hits that withstand the test of time.
Wanya along with his group members, Nathan Morris and Shawn Stockman, have won a whopping four Grammy Awards, nine American Music Awards, nine Soul Train Awards, three Billboard Awards, and a 2011 MOBO Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, as well as a Casino Entertainment Award for their acclaimed residency at the Mirage Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, which has been extended through 2018.
Boyz II Men have won fans the world over with their soulful multi-octave sound and incredible vocals. Given the monumental success of their albums and the timeless quality of their vocals, it’s easy to see why Boyz II Men remains the most popular R&B group of all time as they continue to tour the globe. Ask any successful pop or R&B superstars which artists have inspired them, chances are Boyz II Men will be at the top. From Justin Timberlake and Usher to Justin Bieber, Bruno Mars and Beyoncé, the most successful stars in the industry look to Boyz II Men as their idols.
Most recently, Boyz II Men were featured on FOX’s “GreaseLive” as the teen angels who sing “Beauty School Dropout,” which became the most tweeted moment of the show with 9,350 tweets. They also appeared on “The Late Late Show with James Corden” for the 50th Super Bowl aftershow to parody one of their well-known songs, “End of The Road.”
GERALDO RIVERA – One of media’s most enduring broadcasters, Emmy and Peabody Award-winning journalist Geraldo Rivera is a Fox News senior correspondent and host of breaking news specials the “Geraldo Rivera Reports.” He is a rotating co-host on the FOX News Channel’s hit program “The Five” (weekdays 5-6 p.m. EST) and provides regular reports and commentary on FNC’s “Fox and Friends,” “Hannity” and “The O’Reilly Factor.” He joined the network in 2001 as a war correspondent following the 9/11 attacks.
Rivera began his 45-year career as a television reporter at WABC-TV in New York. Before becoming a member of the original cast of ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Rivera presented the first television broadcast of the infamous Abraham Zapruder film of the assassination of President John Kennedy as host of ABC’s “Good Night America.” He then began an eight-year association with ABC’s “20/20” as an investigative reporter. In 1987, Geraldo began producing and hosting “The Geraldo Rivera Show” for 11 years. In 1998, he hosted a series of investigative specials on NBC.
The winner of the 2000 Robert F. Kennedy journalism award (his third) for his NBC News documentary on “Women In Prison,” and the Scripps Howard Foundation national journalism award for “Back to Bedlam,” Rivera has received more than 170 awards for journalism, including the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award, three national and seven local Emmys, two Columbia-DuPont and two additional Scripps Howard Journalism Awards.
Prior to joining Fox News, Rivera served as host of CNBC’s number-one rated primetime show “Rivera Live,” where his critically acclaimed coverage of the O.J. Simpson civil trial verdict set an all-time CNBC ratings record.
An avid sailor who circumnavigated the globe, Rivera is a graduate of the University of Arizona and Brooklyn Law School and is the author of seven books, including two bestsellers, “Exposing Myself” and “His Panic: Why Americans Fear Hispanics in The U.S.” He is a philanthropist who donates and raises millions to aid various causes, including education and the care and treatment of the autistic. He is married to Erica Michelle Levy and has five children.
JODIE SWEETIN – Entrepreneur, actress and author, Jodie Sweetin garnered the love of millions in her role as Stephanie Tanner on ABC’s long-running, hugely popular sitcom “Full House,” which still airs in syndication. Currently, Jodie is working on the spinoff, “Fuller House,” which was recently picked up for season two on Netflix. With her innate sense of comedy and girl next-door charm, audiences will be re-introduced to the Stephanie they loved for over eight years, and will also see Stephanie in her new, grown up role on the show.
Originally from Orange County, Jodie always knew she wanted to be a “modeler.” Her mom saw that she loved performing and at three-and-a-half years old, she began doing a few print ads and commercials. She soon booked her breakout role in “Full House” and secured her spot in pop culture with her cute lisp and catchy tag line, “How rude!”
Jodie’s education was always very important to her. A true triple threat, she was in the musical theater program at the Orange County High School of the Arts (OCHSA). She then graduated from Chapman University with a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts with an emphasis in elementary teaching.
In 2009, she published her memoir, “UnSweetined,” documenting her life growing up in the spotlight and the years after. Jodie wrote the book as a means to show that she was human, had faults, but most importantly, she had strength and courage. In sharing her story, she hopes she has been able to help others confront their issues head-on and move forward.
This beauty has graced the big and small screen numerous times in various roles. She thoroughly enjoyed hosting “Pants-Off Dance-Off” for the Fuse Network in 2007, and she and “Full House” co-star Dave Coulier finished a short webseries called “Can’t Get Arrested.” Most recently, Jodie played lead roles in the feature films “Defending Santa” and “Walt Before Mickey,” as well as playing a lead in the pilot “Singled Out.” She has also done guest appearances on many other shows such as “Yes, Dear” and “Party of Five.”
In addition to juggling the role of actress and mother, Jodie has teamed with famed jewelry designer Erica Anenberg to create and design the Jodie Sweetin for Erica Anenberg line, a simple and elegant line of necklaces, charms and bracelets with inspiring and positive messages that one can live by and is important to oneself.
In her rare spare time, Jodie loves to dive into a good book. Jodie lives in Los Angeles and usually keeps busy going on adventures with her daughters, Zoie and Beatrix.
Follow Jodie @JodieSweetin
Follow Keo @keodancer
PAIGE VANZANT – Paige “12 Gauge” VanZant is the youngest and one of the most popular fighters in the UFC. With a record of 6-2-0, she is one of the most exciting fighters in the UFC, and is currently a top ranked contender in the women’s straw-weight division. Paige grew up dancing in Dayton, Oregon where her parents owned a dance studio. After some very difficult instances in which she was badly bullied in school, she came across MMA legend Ken Shamrock’s gym where she trained in both boxing and MMA. Paige turned pro on June 30th, 2012 and signed with UFC in December 2012 where she’s quickly become one of their rising stars. On 12/10/2015, Paige became the first female straw weight to headline a UFC event. Paige is also one of a select group of UFC stars to have an endorsement deal as a Reebok athlete alongside Rhonda Rousey, Holly Holm, Connor McGregor and Jon Jones.
Follow Paige @PaigeVanzantUFC
Follow Mark @MarkBallas
GINGER ZEE – Emmy Award-winner, Ginger Zee is “Good Morning America”’s chief meteorologist, reporting on the nation’s weather throughout the morning broadcast. Previously she was weather anchor for the weekend edition of “Good Morning America.” Additionally, Zee reports across all ABC News broadcasts and digital platforms and also serves as chief meteorologist for ABC News.
Since joining ABC News, Zee has covered almost every major weather event and dozens of historic storms. She broadcasted from the devastated Jersey Shore during Hurricane Sandy, the Colorado floods and wildfires, and covered the wreckage from tornados in Moore and El Reno, Oklahoma. In 2013, she covered extreme weather conditions, ranging from the Boston blizzard to the record-breaking heat in Death Valley.
Zee’s love of adventure does not stop at studying the atmosphere in the center of the storm. She has gone para-hawking in Nepal, para-glided from the Himalayas to the Andes, dove with sharks in the Bahamas, rappelled 27 stories down the exterior façade of the Wit Hotel in Chicago, plus has gone ice boat racing and surfing.
Prior to joining ABC News, she was a meteorologist at NBC station WMAQ-Channel 5 in Chicago from 2006-2011, also filling in for several NBC and MSNBC News programs. Before that assignment, Zee worked at WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids, Michigan where she part of the Storm Team 8, also covering the environment, science and the impact of weather throughout West Michigan. From 2003-2005, Zee worked at WEYI NBC 25 in Flint, Michigan. She began her career at WLAV FM/ WXMI in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Daisy Ridley and John Boyega star in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’
MTV is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its MTV Movie Awards with this year’s show hosted by Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson. The 2016 MTV Movie Awards will air on April 10th at 8pm ET/PT on MTV and will take place at the backlot of Warner Bros. in Burbank, CA. MTV announced this year’s nominees via Snapchat, with Star Wars: The Force Awakens earning 11 nominations including Movie of the Year. Deadpool (released in 2016) also earned a Movie of the Year nomination as well as seven additional nominations in categories including Best Male Performance and Best Fight.
Other films that earned multiple nominations include Avengers: Age of Ultron, Mad Max: Fury Road, Pitch Perfect 2, The Revenant, Trainwreck, Jurassic World, Straight Outta Compton, and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2. Voting is now open online at www.MovieAwards.MTV.com through Sunday, March 20 at 11:59pm ET. Two new categories have been added to the awards show for 2016: True Story and Documentary.
“What has always been so cool about the ‘MTV Movie Awards’ is that it’s about blockbuster movies that audiences line up to see; comedies, superheroes, science fiction, fantasy, action,” said Casey Patterson, Executive Producer. “This show is about fandom and the stars come out to celebrate that. The nominees and the content are naturally diverse and eclectic because we’re a true reflection of real movie-going audience.”
2016 MTV MOVIE AWARDS NOMINEES:
MOVIE OF THE YEAR
• Avengers: Age of Ultron (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Creed (Warner Bros.)
• Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
• Jurassic World (Universal Pictures)
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Straight Outta Compton (Universal Pictures)
TRUE STORY
• Concussion (Columbia Pictures)
• Joy (20th Century Fox)
• Steve Jobs (Universal Pictures)
• Straight Outta Compton (Universal Pictures)
• The Big Short (Paramount Pictures)
• The Revenant (20th Century Fox)
DOCUMENTARY
• Amy (A24)
• Cartel Land (The Orchard)
• He Named Me Malala (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
• The Hunting Ground (RADiUS-TWC)
• The Wolfpack (Magnolia Pictures)
• What Happened, Miss Simone? (Netflix)
BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE
• Alicia Vikander – Ex Machina (A24)
• Anna Kendrick – Pitch Perfect 2 (Universal Pictures)
• Charlize Theron – Mad Max: Fury Road (Warner Bros.)
• Daisy Ridley – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Jennifer Lawrence – Joy (20th Century Fox)
• Morena Baccarin – Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
BEST MALE PERFORMANCE
• Chris Pratt – Jurassic World (Universal Pictures)
• Leonardo DiCaprio – The Revenant (20th Century Fox)
• Matt Damon – The Martian (20th Century Fox)
• Michael B. Jordan – Creed (Warner Bros.)
• Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
• Will Smith – Concussion (Columbia Pictures)
BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
• Amy Schumer – Trainwreck (Universal Pictures)
• Brie Larson – Room (A24)
• Daisy Ridley – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Dakota Johnson – Fifty Shades of Grey (Universal Pictures)
• John Boyega – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• O’Shea Jackson Jr. – Straight Outta Compton (Universal Pictures)
BEST COMEDIC PERFORMANCE
• Amy Schumer – Trainwreck (Universal Pictures)
• Kevin Hart – Ride Along 2 (Universal Pictures)
• Melissa McCarthy – Spy (20th Century Fox)
• Rebel Wilson – Pitch Perfect 2 (Universal Pictures)
• Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
• Will Ferrell – Get Hard (Warner Bros.)
BEST ACTION PERFORMANCE
• Chris Pratt – Jurassic World (Universal Pictures)
• Dwayne Johnson – San Andreas (Warner Bros.)
• Jennifer Lawrence – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (Lionsgate)
• John Boyega – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
• Vin Diesel – Furious 7 (Universal Pictures)
BEST HERO
• Charlize Theron – Mad Max: Fury Road (Warner Bros.)
• Chris Evans – Avengers: Age of Ultron (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Daisy Ridley – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Dwayne Johnson – San Andreas (Warner Bros.)
• Jennifer Lawrence – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (Lionsgate)
• Paul Rudd – Ant-Man (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
BEST VILLAIN
• Adam Driver – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Ed Skrein – Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
• Hugh Keays-Byrne – Mad Max: Fury Road (Warner Bros.)
• James Spader – Avengers: Age of Ultron (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Samuel L. Jackson – Kingsman: The Secret Service (20th Century Fox)
• Tom Hardy – The Revenant (20th Century Fox)
BEST VIRTUAL PERFORMANCE
• Amy Poehler – Inside Out (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Andy Serkis – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Jack Black – Kung Fu Panda 3 (20th Century Fox)
• James Spader – Avengers: Age of Ultron (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Lupita Nyong’o – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Seth MacFarlane – Ted 2 (Universal Pictures)
ENSEMBLE CAST
• Avengers: Age of Ultron (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Furious 7 (Universal Pictures)
• Pitch Perfect 2 (Universal Pictures)
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (Lionsgate)
• Trainwreck (Universal Pictures)
BEST KISS
• Amy Schumer & Bill Hader – Trainwreck (Universal Pictures)
• Dakota Johnson & Jamie Dornan – Fifty Shades of Grey (Universal Pictures)
• Leslie Mann & Chris Hemsworth – Vacation (Warner Bros.)
• Margot Robbie & Will Smith – Focus (Warner Bros.)
• Morena Baccarin & Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
• Rebel Wilson & Adam DeVine – Pitch Perfect 2 (Universal Pictures)
BEST FIGHT
• Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) vs. Ajax (Ed Skrein) – Deadpool (20th Century Fox)
• Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) vs. The Bear – The Revenant (20th Century Fox)
• Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) vs. Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) – Mad Max: Fury Road (Warner Bros.)
• Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) vs. Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) – Avengers: Age of Ultron (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Rey (Daisy Ridley) vs. Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) vs. Lia (Nargis Fakhri) – Spy (20th Century Fox)
Craig Robinson will be joining the cast of USA Network’s critically acclaimed, award-winning dramatic series Mr. Robot for season two. Robinson has come on board the show as a recurring guest star, playing a character named Ray who, according to the network, is a “neighborhood local who reaches out to Elliot in his time of need.”
USA Network recently announced Joey Bada$$ and Chris Conroy will also appear in season two. Filming is now underway in New York City on the second season’s 10 new episodes.
The cast of Mr. Robot is led by SAG Award nominee Rami Malek and includes Golden Globe winner Christian Slater, Portia Doubleday, Carly Chaikin, Grace Gummer, Michael Cristofer, and Stephanie Corneliussen. The dramatic series is written by Sam Esmail who also serves as an executive producer along with Steve Golin (True Detective) and Chad Hamilton.
Robinson’s film and television credits include The Office, Mr. Robinson, Hot Tub Time Machine, Hot Tub Time Machine 2, This is the End, Knocked Up, and Eastbound and Down. He also spends his time traveling the country performing stand-up along with his band, The Nasty Delicious.
Emilia Clarke in ‘Game of Thrones’ season six (Photo: Macall B. Polay/HBO)
HBO’s latest video for the upcoming sixth season of Game of Thrones provides a glimpse behind the scenes with the cameramen who shoot the fantasy action adventure series. While the five minute video is interesting, it’s apparently not what fans wanted according to the comments left on YouTube immediately after HBO posted the video. Fans who signed up to receive notifications when HBO updates anything to do with Game of Thrones mistakenly believed the latest video alert was the season six official trailer, and many took their frustration out via the YouTube comment section.
HBO’s set to premiere season six of Game of Thrones on April 24, 2016. This season marks the first in which readers of the books are on equal ground with those who’ve never picked up one of George R.R. Martin’sA Song of Fire and Ice books. HBO hasn’t released an official cast list, however it’s fairly safe to assume season six will feature Peter Dinklage, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke, Aidan Gillen, Natalie Dormer, Liam Cunningham, Carice van Houten, Conleth Hill, John Bradley, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams, Isaac Hempstead Wright, David Bradley, Kristian Nairn, Art Parkinson, Natalia Tena, and Gemma Whelan, as well as new cast members Max von Sydow and Ian McShane. And Kit Harington will appear in some form or the other, maybe even just in flashbacks as a dead body in the snow.
Nate Parker in ‘The Birth of a Nation’ (Photo by Elliot Davis)
The 5,000+ motion picture professionals who’ll be attending this year’s CinemaCon will be honoring writer, director, actor, and producer Nate Parker with the 2016 Breakthrough Director of the Year Award. Parker is earning rave reviews for his directorial debut, The Birth of a Nation, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. The Birth of a Nation picked up two awards at the festival, with Vanity Fair’s Richard Lawson saying “Parker generously calls to all with his rallying cry of a film, a weighty invocation of past bravery that charges its audience with the essential, nation-defining mission of fighting for a better and more just future.”
CinemaCon is the National Association of Theatre Owners annual convention and this year’s gathering will take place April 11-14 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. The awards ceremony will take place on the final night of the event at The Colosseum in Caesars Palace. “Following its Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award at the 2016 Sundance film festival, Nate Parker’s The Birth of a Nation will surely bring movie-going audiences to their feet when it is released October 7th,” stated Mitch Neuhauser, Managing Director of CinemaCon. “A pure labor of love and a film that shows the true passion necessary to craft it, we are honored to present such an outstanding filmmaker with this year’s CinemaCon Breakthrough Director of the Year Award.”
Fox Searchlight is targeting an awards season release date of October 7, 2016.
The Birth of a Nation Plot: Set against the antebellum South, the film follows Nat Turner (Nate Parker), a literate slave and preacher, whose financially strained owner, Samuel Turner (Armie Hammer), accepts an offer to use Nat’s preaching to subdue unruly slaves. As he witnesses countless atrocities – against himself and his fellow slaves – Nat orchestrates an uprising in the hopes of leading his people to freedom.
Geena Davis at the ‘Suffragette’ premiere (Photo by John Phillips/Getty Images for BFI)
Oscar winner Geena Davis has signed on to a starring role in the upcoming The Exorcist series. The horror/drama is inspired by William Peter Blatty’s bestselling novel which spawned one of the scariest horror film’s in Hollywood history. According to Fox, Davis will be playing a character named Angela Rance and the network provided this description of her character: “Naturally beautiful, regal and proud but weighed down by stress, Angela Rance does everything she can to stay positive and keep her faith even though her family is currently struggling. She can’t help but think, however, if perhaps her nightmares about a demon are a sign of what’s wrong.”
Jeremy Slater (2015’s Fantastic Four) wrote the pilot and Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) is directing. Slater and Wyatt are also executive producing along with Rolin Jones, James Robinson, David Robinson and Barbara Wall.
Davis won an Academy Award for her supporting performance in The Accidental Tourist and she was also nominated for an Oscar for playing Thelma in Thelma and Louise. Her television credits include Grey’s Anatomy, Coma, Commander in Chief, The Geena Davis Show, Family Ties, and Buffalo Bill.
The Exorcist Series Plot: A modern reinvention inspired by William Blatty’s original 1971 book, The Exorcist is a propulsive, serialized psychological thriller following two very different men tackling one family’s case of horrifying demonic possession, and confronting the face of true evil.
