Innholdsfortegnelse for 07/23/2024 i Variety

Who will come home from Paris with gold medal(s) in tow? And who might come home with the kind of mega profile boost that launches careers in media, business and beyond? Here’s a look at Team USA’s top contenders to become the next Simone Biles, Allyson Felix or Michael Phelps. 1 Ezra Frech SPONSOR Toyota The paralympic track and field star (and son of actor Bahar Soomekh) is a world record holder, motivational speaker, disability advocate and social media star — all at age 19. 2 Sunisa Lee SPONSOR Pearson+ Lee won gymnastics all-around gold in Tokyo. Now she’s back stealing hearts after competing on “Dancing With the Stars” and on Auburn’s NCAA team. 3 Ilona Maher SPONSOR Secret The returning rugby player has built a social media army, giving behind-the-scenes looks at…

JON VOiGHT KEEPS MOViNG. THE 5-YEAR-OLD ACTOR iS SHADOWBOXiNG, HiS FOOTWORK NiMBLE FOR A MAN OF ANY AGE, LET ALONE SOMEONE OLDER THAN EVEN JOE BiDEN AND VOiGHT’S FRiEND DONALD TRUMP. He pauses and arches an eyebrow and becomes a matinee villain. “You think you’re tough. I’ll show you tough.” Today, we’re outside his Beverly Hills home. There’s a pool and a driveway where Voight designed the pavement that features tiny ducklings, rabbits, monkeys and a dragon etched into the cement. Near the entrance are the words “Wots Modder Wot You Jonny,” in honor of his Czech grandfather who never quite mastered English. I’ve talked with Voight many times over the past year, and he is always engaging. But the presence of a photographer has kicked him into a high…

When Kevin Feige last took the stage at San Diego Comic-Con in 2022, the thousands of attendees at Hall H greeted the studio executive — currently the chief creative officer of Marvel and president of Marvel Studios — with the same eruption of deafening cheers they used to welcome Tony Stark or Steve Rogers. After the roar of the crowd finally died down, one fan even repurposed an indelible line from 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame” to scream at Feige, “We love you 3,000!” In the history of the film business, you can count on one hand the number of studio executives who have elicited this kind of rock star adulation — and it’s easy to understand why fans feel the way they do. Starting with 2008’s “Iron Man” and “The Incredible…

Say it ain’t Joe. Over the past three-and-a-half weeks, Holly-wood’s political donor class has been calling publicly and privately for President Joe Biden to step down from the top of the 2024 Democrat ticket. With his bombshell decision on Sunday, the town’s most active check-writers have their wish. But the sense of elation quickly gave way to a gnawing feeling that the Biden exit dragged on too long. “There is relief and gratitude. But neither one of those mitigates the panic that this is all too late to stop an ascendant authoritarian,” says one executive involved in the industry’s efforts to keep a Democrat in the White House. Some wanted Biden to step aside even before his disastrous debate against Republican nominee Donald Trump on June 27, and they’re blaming…

Oh, Mary They didn’t teach this in history class! In Cole Escola’s rococo look at Mary Todd Lincoln, the whiskey-swilling first lady dreams of being a cabaret star. This Broadway transfer is the most explosive night of theater since a certain power couple decided to check out “Our American Cousin.” Cats: The Jellicle Ball “Cats” is cool again? Even a cinematic derailment can’t kill Andrew Lloyd Webber’s salute to all things feline. In the Perelman Performing Arts Center revival, the action plays out as a ballroom competition. This drag reinterpretation of the oft-derided show has become, improbably, a critical darling. Once Upon a Mattress Sutton Foster, veritable musical comedy royalty, plays a back-water princess in the revival of the classic fairytale. The show had a hit run at Encores! before…

76TH ANNUAL PRIMETIME EMMY AWARDS DRAMA SERIES • The Crown Netflix• Fallout Prime Video• The Gilded Age HBO• The Morning Show Apple TV+• Mr. & Mrs. Smith Prime Video• Shōgun FX• Slow Horses Apple TV+• 3 Body Problem Netflix COMEDY SERIES • Abbott Elementary ABC• The Bear FX• Curb Your Enthusiasm HBO• Hacks Max• Only Murders in the Building Hulu• Palm Royale Apple TV+• Reservation Dogs FX• What We Do in the Shadows FX LIMITED OR ANTHOLOGY SERIES • Baby Reindeer Netflix• Fargo FX• Lessons in Chemistry Apple TV+• Ripley Netflix • True Detective: Night Country HBO TALK SERIES • The Daily Show Comedy Central• Jimmy Kimmel Live! ABC• Late Night With Seth Meyers NBC• The Late Show With Stephen Colbert CBS REALITY COMPETITION PROGRAM • The Amazing Race CBS• RuPaul’s…

Is there anything Maya Rudolph can’t do? It’s a serious question, considering the comedy superstar reigns as this year’s Emmy nominations MVP. Rudolph earned four nods — a stunning achievement in itself, but made even more impressive because they come from three different programs. She’s nominated in comedy lead actress for Apple TV+’s “Loot,” in character voice-over for her role as Connie the Hormone Monstress in Netflix’s animated “Big Mouth,” and in comedy guest actress for her hosting stint on “Saturday Night Live” (which also got her an original music and lyrics nod for her monologue tune). It’s quite a year for Emmy overachievers. Several acting contenders also landed writing noms, like Quinta Brunson (“Abbott Elementary”), Richard Gadd (“Baby Reindeer”) and Donald Glover (“Mr. & Mrs. Smith”). And then there…

Carlos Vives stops himself in mid-sentence and apologizes. He chokes up, overcome by a rush of the same raw, vulnerable emotion that informs his anthemic songs. Tears stream down his face — but they’re tears of joy or, at the very least, of sweet vindication. “I never expected anything,” the charismatic singer and thoughtful songwriter says over Zoom from an unassuming, cozy space somewhere in his native Colombia. In the background, bookshelves are filled with novels, family photos and one of his many awards. Vives has been named the recipient of the prestigious 2024 Person of the Year honor by the Latin Recording Academy. The accolade could hardly come as a surprise, as Vives changed the course of Latin music, selling more than 20 million albums, winning 18 Latin Grammys…

1995 Feige graduates from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts and starts working as an assistant to producer Lauren Shuler Donner. 2000 After earning an associate producer credit on “X-Men,” one of the earliest feature adaptations from Marvel Comics, then-Marvel Films chief Avi Arad hires Feige full time as his deputy. 2007 The newly formed independent production company Marvel Studios names Feige president of production, as “Iron Man” starts filming with star Robert Downey Jr. 2012 “The Avengers” breaks the all-time domestic opening weekend record with $207.4 million (en route to a $1.5 billion global gross), launching the MCU as the dominate cultural force of the 2010s. 2015 Feige brokers an unprecedented joint venture between Sony Pictures and Disney to bring Spider-Man into the MCU with 2017’s “Spider-Man: Homecoming.” 2018 “Black Panther”…

Back in 2008, MySpace was cool, flip phones were popular and it kinda sucked to be a 13-year-old boy. Technology has changed a lot since then, but as “Didi” — a touching, frequently hilarious coming-of-age story that unfolds in the early aughts — reminds us, the agony and indignity of being a teenager is timeless. “Boyhood is messy,” says Sean Wang, the film’s 30-year-old writer and director, looking barely out of boyhood himself as he chats on Zoom from his living room. “And the experience of adolescence is pretty consistent across the generations. It’s why I can watch ‘400 Blows’ — a movie made before I was even born — and see myself in it.” When “Didi” premiered at Sundance in January, where it earned rave reviews, lots of people…

Giorgio Armani Pop-Up Little Beach House Malibu JULY 16 Henry Golding looked dapper in a linen ensemble at the fashion house’s oceanfront party for its Mare 2024 collection. “I’ve worn Armani so many times to so many beautiful red carpets,” the actor told Variety. “It has a distinguished sensibility about it. You can do refined; you can do casual. Of course, they have tailoring but they also have the larger fits, which I love.” Golding also explained his new summery buzz cut. “I just spent six months in Munich with Nicole Kidman shooting Season 2 of ‘Nine Perfect Strangers,’” he said. “I had this bouffant, this massive hair, but I was so tired of it.” CTAOP Block Party Universal Backlot, Universal City JULY 13 Charlize Theron hosted the fourth annual…

Emmys done good. For someone who follows the pendulum swings of DEI initiatives in Hollywood, nomination morning of any awards show can be emotionally draining to cover. This year, that is not the case. Despite the fact that studios have stepped back from their commitments and promises of 2020, members of the Television Academy made significant strides in putting the golden spotlight on a diverse array of nominees. Also exciting is the wider range of series, genres, studios and networks represented. In the acting races, less than one-third of the nominees are people of color. Still, among 96 nominations bestowed across 16 acting categories, voters nominated 30 people of color, a 20% increase over last year. Although 2022 saw a record-breaking 42 people of color nominated in the acting categories,…