Featuristic Films has unveiled an exclusive first look at the feature documentary 'Afghanistan.' It follows filmmaker James Glancy, a former British Royal Marine Commando who was decorated in 2012 for his actions in combat, as he returns to Afghanistan with a small, handpicked team to help him answer the question that has haunted him over the past decade: Was it worth it? Dramatically, mid-way through the shoot, President Joe Biden announced that the U.S. would be pulling troops out by 9/11, starting a Taliban offensive that has led to the dramatic fall this week of the Afghan government, amidst chaotic evacuation scenes in Kabul as American forces withdraw.

https://variety.com/2021/film/global/afghanistan-james-glancy-featuristic-films-1235042807/

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J.R.R. Tolkien fans across the globe encountered the seemingly impossible last month: a film version of The Lord of the Rings theyd never heard of. There was Gollum gargling in his cave. Except that in this version, hes speaking Russian, sports orange eye-shadow and has what appears to be ...

https://variety.com/2021/film/actors/russian-lord-of-the-rings-khraniteli-1234968603/

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Gillian Jacobs and Wood Harris have both joined HBOs upcoming drama series about the Los Angeles Lakers,Variety has learned. The untitled series was ordered at HBO in December 2019. It is described as chronicling the professional and personal lives of the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers, one of ...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/gillian-jacobs-wood-harris-hbo-los-angeles-lakers-series-1234971461/

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From the NewFronts to the upfronts, brands are jockeying for position to claim the infusion of advertising dollars coming back into the marketplace in 2021. The rebound is being fueled by Americans shaking off the pandemic, according to Brian Wieser, global president of business intelligence at ...

https://variety.com/2021/biz/news/upfronts-newfronts-post-covid-future-1234969567/

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Playing the main character in a biopic is a tall order for any actor, but taking on the role of influential musician Boy George in the forthcoming film Karma Chameleon seems even more of a challenge considering his multi-faceted life as a cultural icon, fashion trailblazer and the sound of the 1980s...

https://variety.com/2021/film/news/boy-george-karma-chameleon-adam-lambert-olly-alexander-1234970881/

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The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder at Disney Plus expanded its cast with the addition of Billy Porter, Zachary Quinto and EJ Johnson. The role will be a pivot for Johnson, who has cemented himself in the world of reality and unscripted television on shows like Rich Kids of ...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/proud-family-disney-plus-billy-porter-zachary-quinto-ej-johnson-1234971592/

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SPOILER ALERT: Do not read ahead if you have not watched Season 5 Episode 11 of The Masked Singer, which aired May 12 on Fox. Hanson has been mmm-boped off The Masked Singer. The pop star brothers were unmasked on Wednesdays episode as the Russian Dolls. The trio became the first group to compete on...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/the-masked-singer-reveal-season-5-episode-11-recap-russian-dolls-1234971853/

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Woe betide the grade-school-age lad who finds himself in a movie by writing-directing duo David Charbonier and Justin Powell: He may survive their plotlines, but it wont be pretty. Their official first feature, The Boy Behind the Door (which will debut on streaming platform Shudder July 29) found ...

https://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/the-djinn-review-1234971919/

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Chernobyl producer Sister is adapting the hit Audible original podcast West Cork for TV. Created by Sam Bungey and Jennifer Forde, West Cork is an investigation into the 1996 murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier. Du Plantier, a French film producer, was found...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/global/sister-sophie-du-plantier-west-cork-1234972102/

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Damon Weaver, the kid reporter who gained national attention for interviewing President Barack Obama at the White House, has died. He was 23. According to the Associated Press, Weavers family says he died of natural causes on May 1. His sister, Candace Hardy, confirmed his death to the Palm ...

https://variety.com/2021/politics/news/damon-weaver-dead-kid-reporter-obama-1234973918/

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As I pressed play on the first episode of Run the World, I wasnt intending to mainline the entire eight-episode season in one greedy gulp. But as a blessedly rare warm New York City breeze floated through my open window, Leigh Davenports lush new series about four friends having a vivid, game-...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/reviews/run-the-world-starz-review-andrea-bordeaux-harlem-1234973705/

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Kate McKinnon kicked off the penultimate episode of Saturday Night Lives 46th season by stepping back into Dr. Anthony Faucis shoes (and glasses and combover wig) to deliver a press conference about the CDCs announcement that fully-vaccinated people no longer need ...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/saturday-night-live-fauci-cdc-mask-rules-cold-open-1234974026/

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In a sketch spoofing The Muppets on Saturday Night Lives penultimate episode of Season 46, a couple of the actual classic puppets made appearances. Kermit the Frog kicked things off, of course, as the host of The Muppet Show, but Statler and Waldorf ...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/saturday-night-live-season-46-muppets-sketch-1234974031/

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ATT and Discovery are discussing the possibility of combining media assets to create a entertainment and lifestyle content giant with a global footprint to better compete in the streaming marketplace. Bloomberg first reported Sunday that talks are ongoing and a deal could be reached as early as...

https://variety.com/2021/biz/news/att-discovery-hbo-cnn-food-network-hgtv-1234974077/

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Clive Davis has a gig as musics own new Barbara Walters, if he wants it. For the second half of his two-part virtual Grammy gala this year, the music mogul doubled down in Saturday nights invitation-only webcast on interviews with the stars, including Elton John, DaBaby, ...

https://variety.com/2021/music/news/clive-davis-joni-mitchell-dababy-oprah-gala-conversations-1234974118/

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Richard Montaez is speaking out following claims by Frito-Lay that he did not invent Flamin Hot Cheetos. I was their greatest ambassador, Montaez tells Variety of Frito-Lay. But I will say this, youre going to love your company more than they will ever love you, ...

https://variety.com/2021/film/news/richard-montanez-flamin-hot-cheetos-responds-1234974227/

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Baz Halpin, the music touring creative director who founded Silent House 11 years ago, announced an ambitious expansion Tuesday, with his brainchild to now be known as Silent House Group and expanded into three separate companies Silent House Studiios, Silent House Events and Silent House ...

https://variety.com/2021/music/news/baz-halpin-silent-house-group-expands-1234966128/

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Kym Whitley and Danny Garcia have been cast in recurring roles in the Amazon YA pilot Hot Pink,Variety has learned exclusively. The pair joins previously announced stars Sarah Michelle Gellar,Nina Bloomgarden, David Iacono, Mimi Davila, Dana Donnelly, and Myra Molloy, as well as fellow...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/kym-whitley-danny-garcia-amazon-hot-pink-1234966331/

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NBCUniversal has instituted a production assistant training program in New Mexico aimed at residents who are interested in pursuing a career in film and television production. The two-day training program, scheduled for May 22 and 23, will be free to accepted applicants and will cover everything ...

https://variety.com/2021/film/news/nbcuniversal-production-assistant-new-mexico-1234966570/

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Oscars producer Steven Soderbergh has opened up about the decisions made to change the show order of the 2021 ceremony and whether he regrets not allowing Zoom acceptance speeches. In an interview published today by the Los Angeles Times, Soderbergh, who served as producer alongside Stacey Sher and ...

https://variety.com/2021/awards/news/steven-soderbergh-oscars-show-order-1234966659/

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Global streaming sports platform DAZN and Brazilian soccer legend Ronaldo have closed a multi-project development deal kicking off with El Presidente, a docu-series chronicling the former strikers tenure as part owner of Spanish club Valladolid FC, which will launch globally on May 20. Best known ...

https://variety.com/2021/streaming/news/ronaldo-dazn-el-presidente-la-guerra-1234966481/

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The Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon at HBO has unveiled its first official images. House of the Dragon is set a few hundred years prior to the events of Game of Thrones and tells the story of House Targaryen and the Targaryen civil war that became known...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/game-of-thrones-prequel-house-of-the-dragon-hbo-first-look-photos-1234966978/

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Wednesdays are the new Fridays in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Loki star Tom Hiddleston made the announcement that his Disney Plus series is moving up its release date two days to Wednesday, June 9. The weekly episodes of Loki will release on Wednesdays instead of the ...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/loki-disney-plus-premiere-date-wednesdays-1234967122/

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Fox Corporation said profit in its third fiscal quarter rose owing to increases in value of some of its outside investments, even as overall revenue fell due to comparisons with 2020, which contained a Super Bowl and a red-hot news cycle focused on the Trump administration and the spread of the ...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/fox-corporation-q1-earnings-profit-1234967286/

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Travis Scott announced that his Astroworld Festival fully sold out today in under an hour, with over 100,000 people expected to attend the event. The event, taking place November 5-6 in Scotts hometown of Houston, sold through all its passes before a lineup has been announced, making ...

https://variety.com/2021/music/news/travis-scott-astroworld-festival-sells-out-under-an-hour-1234967354/

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Pop star Bebe Rexha has previously revealed that she considers her sexuality fluid, and in a new interview with Gay Times published Wednesday, she expanded on her views. What I believe about sexuality is this: its a scale, Rexha said. Have I gone out with ...

https://variety.com/2021/music/news/bebe-rexha-fluid-sexuality-1234967309/

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Behind the Headlines, Daniel Andreas Sagers thrilling look at how German investigative journalists triggered a political earthquake in Austria that toppled the countrys government, is having its world premiere at Danish doc fest CPH:DOX, where its competing for the Fact Award, ...

https://variety.com/2021/global/global/daniel-andreas-sager-cph-dox-hot-docs-behind-the-headlines-1234962936/

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Zhang Yimous Cliff Walkers is kicking off a multi-territory release this weekend, with day and date outings in North America, New Zealand, and Singapore coordinating with the espionage thrillers official launch in mainland Chinese theaters on Friday. That makes it one of the first major Chinese ...

https://variety.com/2021/film/asia/zhang-yimou-cliff-walkers-impasse-covid-1234963797/

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Casey Wilson may be best known as an actor, with roles in Gone Girl, Atypical, Happy Endings and Black Monday as well as a stint as a Saturday Night Live cast member, and as a podcaster (Bitch Sesh). However, she ...

https://variety.com/2021/tv/features/casey-wilson-wreckage-of-my-presence-essays-interview-1234944676/

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Caritas Migrant House sits where the semi-arid Sahel region gives way to the Sahara Desert, on the edge of the urban sprawl of Gao, a town of more than 85,000 inhabitants in the landlocked West African nation of Mali. But as the location of Ousmane Samasskous unobtrusively observant ...

https://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/the-last-shelter-review-1234962677/

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