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Box Office Bomb: $200 Mil “Aquaman 2” Sinks with $4.5 Mil Previews, 73% Lower Than “The Flash”

Roger Friedman
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Box Office Bomb: $200 Mil “Aquaman 2” Sinks with $4.5 Mil Previews, 73% Lower Than “The Flash”

“Aquaman 2” is DOA.

The sequel to the 2018 hit made $4.5 million last night in previews. That’s 73% lower than the last Warner’s DC movie “The Flash,” which was considered a major flop.

With under 40% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, “Aquaman 2” signals the end of this era of DC movies. They are indeed over.

The reviews are devastating. One of them suggested the James Wan movie was never finished. Another reported that Aquaman — played by Jason Momoa — has things done to him that are either comical or unintentional.

“Aquaman 2” concludes a trilogy of DOA DC Comics films including “Shazam 2” and “The Flash.” And this one didn’t even have a star who offended the public. In the first case, Zachary Levi had said some things that sounded, shall we say, not progressive. He turned off a big segment of the public. In the latter, of course, Ezra Miller’s legal troubles made it impossible for him to do publicity.

Momoa is very likable and did nothing wrong. But his co-star in the movie, Amber Heard, is so radioactive after her Johnny Depp divorce and lawsuits that the studio kept her away from the movie’s non-premiere this week in Los Angeles. And Warner’s knew they were in trouble, making sure reviewers didn’t the film until two days ago.

And so it goes. Warner’s has hits with “Wonka” and hopefully “The Color Purple.” “Barbie” has kept them in the pink for most of 2023. You can’t win them all!

“General Hospital” Will Give Beloved 45 Year Actress Jackie Zeman’s Bobbi Spencer a 2 Day Farewell Next Month

Roger Friedman
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“General Hospital” Will Give Beloved 45 Year Actress Jackie Zeman’s Bobbi Spencer a 2 Day Farewell Next Month

“General Hospital” is finally giving Bobbi Spencer a big special farewell.

Beloved actress Jacklyn Zeman, who played Bobbi for 45 years, died after a short bout with cancer last year. She was 70 years old.

The ABC soap will air a two funeral and memorial for Bobbi on January 10th and 11th. A few days earlier it will be revealed on the show that Bobbi has died on a trip to Amsterdam to settle her brother Luke’s affairs. Luke was killed off a couple of years ago when actor Tony Geary retired in real life to Amsterdam.

For “General Hospital” fans, Bobbi’s death will be the end of an era. As the soap celebrates its 60th anniversary, few cast members remain from the 70s with the exception of Genie Francis and Kin Shriner. Leslie Charleson, who plays Monica, recently made a one day appearance after almost two years. She’s battling health issues.

Get out the hankies!

Here Are the Pre-Noms Oscar Shortlists for Documentary, Song, Foreign Film, Production, Short Film Etc

Roger Friedman
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Here Are the Pre-Noms Oscar Shortlists for Documentary, Song, Foreign Film, Production, Short Film Etc

Here are the pre-nom Oscars shortlists in many categories except for the “main” ones. I’ve bold faced some of the likely sem-finalists. Nominations voting begins on Thursday, January 11, 2024, and concludes on Tuesday, January 16, 2024. The Oscars are broadcast on ABC on March 10th at 7pm hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. This is a particularly competitive season — look for some tight races.

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Feature Film category for the 96th Academy Awards. One hundred sixty-seven films were eligible in the category. Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“American Symphony”
“Apolonia, Apolonia”
“Beyond Utopia”
“Bobi Wine: The People’s President”
“Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy”
“The Eternal Memory”
“Four Daughters”
“Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project”
“In the Rearview”
“Stamped from the Beginning”
“Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie”
“A Still Small Voice”
“32 Sounds”
“To Kill a Tiger”
“20 Days in Mariupol”

DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Short Film category for the 96th Academy Awards. One hundred fourteen films qualified in the category. Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“The ABCs of Book Banning”
“The Barber of Little Rock”
“Bear”
“Between Earth & Sky”
“Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games”
“Camp Courage”
“Deciding Vote”
“How We Get Free”
“If Dreams Were Lightning: Rural Healthcare Crisis”
“Island in Between”
“The Last Repair Shop”
“Last Song from Kabul”
“Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó”
“Oasis”
“Wings of Dust”

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
Fifteen films will advance to the next round of voting in the International Feature Film category for the 96th Academy Awards. Films from 88 countries and regions were eligible in the category.

Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.

In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

Armenia, “Amerikatsi”
Bhutan, “The Monk and the Gun”
Denmark, “The Promised Land”
Finland, “Fallen Leaves”
France, “The Taste of Things”
Germany, “The Teachers’ Lounge”
Iceland, “Godland”
Italy, “Io Capitano”
Japan, “Perfect Days”
Mexico, “Totem”
Morocco, “The Mother of All Lies”
Spain, “Society of the Snow”
Tunisia, “Four Daughters”
Ukraine, “20 Days in Mariupol”
United Kingdom, “The Zone of Interest”

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Ten films will advance in the Makeup and Hairstyling category for the 96th Academy Awards. All members of the Academy’s Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Sunday, January 14, 2024. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar® consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Beau Is Afraid”
“Ferrari”
“Golda”
“Killers of the Flower Moon”
“The Last Voyage of the Demeter”
“Maestro”
“Napoleon”
“Oppenheimer”
“Poor Things”
“Society of the Snow”

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
Fifteen scores will advance in the Original Score category for the 96th Academy Awards. One hundred forty-eight scores were eligible in the category. Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The scores, listed in alphabetical order by film title, are:

“American Fiction”
“American Symphony”
“Barbie”
“The Boy and the Heron”
“The Color Purple”
“Elemental”
“The Holdovers”
“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”
“Killers of the Flower Moon”
“Oppenheimer”
“Poor Things”
“Saltburn”
“Society of the Snow”
“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”
“The Zone of Interest”

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
Fifteen songs will advance in the Original Song category for the 96th Academy Awards. Ninety-four songs were eligible in the category. Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The original songs, along with the motion picture in which each song is featured, are listed below in alphabetical order by film title:

“It Never Went Away” from “American Symphony”
“Dear Alien (Who Art In Heaven)” from “Asteroid City”
“Dance The Night” from “Barbie”
“I’m Just Ken” from “Barbie”
“What Was I Made For?” from “Barbie”
“Keep It Movin’” from “The Color Purple”
“Superpower (I)” from “The Color Purple”
“The Fire Inside” from “Flamin’ Hot”
“High Life” from “Flora and Son”
“Meet In The Middle” from “Flora and Son”
“Can’t Catch Me Now” from “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes”
“Wahzhazhe (A Song For My People)” from “Killers of the Flower Moon”
“Quiet Eyes” from “Past Lives”
“Road To Freedom” from “Rustin”
“Am I Dreaming” from “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Animated Short Film category for the 96th Academy Awards. Ninety-three films qualified in the category. Members of the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Boom”
“Eeva”
“Humo (Smoke)”
“I’m Hip”
“A Kind of Testament”
“Koerkorter (Dog Apartment)”
“Letter to a Pig”
“Ninety-Five Senses”
“Once upon a Studio”
“Our Uniform”
“Pachyderme”
“Pete”
“27”
“War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko”
“Wild Summon”

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Live Action Short Film category for the 96th Academy Awards. One hundred eighty-seven films qualified in the category. For the first time, Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.

In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“The After”
“The Anne Frank Gift Shop”
“An Avocado Pit”
“Bienvenidos a Los Angeles”
“Dead Cat”
“Good Boy”
“Invincible”
“Invisible Border”
“Knight of Fortune”
“The One Note Man”
“Red, White and Blue”
“The Shepherd”
“Strange Way of Life”
“The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar”
“Yellow”

SOUND
Ten films will advance in the Sound category for the 96th Academy Awards. All eligible members of the Sound Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts from each of the shortlisted films beginning Thursday, January 11, 2024, in the San Francisco Bay area, followed by London, Los Angeles and New York. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“Barbie”
“The Creator”
“Ferrari”
“The Killer”
“Killers of the Flower Moon”
“Maestro”
“Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”
“Napoleon”
“Oppenheimer”
“The Zone of Interest”

VISUAL EFFECTS
Ten films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 96th Academy Awards. The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 13, 2024. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

“The Creator”
“Godzilla Minus One”
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3”
“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”
“Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One”
“Napoleon”
“Poor Things”
“Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire”
“Society of the Snow”
“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”

HBO’s “The Gilded Age” Renewed for Season 3 As Ratings Boomed with Most Recent Episode Season Finale

Roger Friedman
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HBO’s “The Gilded Age” Renewed for Season 3 As Ratings Boomed with Most Recent Episode Season Finale

“The Gilded Age” is not over.

After wrapping Season 2 with what seemed like pretty final finale, the HBO soap set in New York circa 1882 has been renewed.

This means that the saga of the nouveau riche Russells and their friends will continue among horse drawn carriages and nasty social fights.

The series stars Morgan Spector and Carrie Coon as the new money Russells living across the street, on Fifth Avenue, from the haughty Agnes van RIjn– Christine Baranski, her sister Ada (Cynthia Nixon) and niece (Louisa Jacobson aka Streep). The rest of the cast is massive and also includes a huge Broadway posse with Nathan Lane, Kelli O’Hara, Donna Murphy, Denee Benton, Audra McDonald, and so on.

Laura Benanti appeared this season all too briefly, and I hope she’s written into season 3. It seemed like her character and storyline were dropped quickly, clearing the way for Jacobson’s heroine, Marian Brook, to marry the Russells’ son, Larry (Harry Richardson). Now the two families who look askance at each other are connected in a new way.

Some of the “The Gilded Age” has echoes of creator Julian Fellowes’ “Downton Abbey,” the the latter show takes place 30 years later. They are not actually connected. But whole thing has a very “Upstairs, Downstairs” feel except with some halting American accents.

“The Gilded Age” improved its ratings every week over this 10 episode season. The finale on December 17th was up 17.5% percent from the penultimate episode and scored 686,000 total viewers. The potential is there for Season 3 to be the breakout and go much higher.

Meantime, the lavish set actually exists — at least the exteriors. All of old New York is locked up on Long Island, where the carefully crafted facades are waiting to rev up again.

Warner Bros’ Final DC Movie in this Phase: “Aquaman 2” Drowns in Bad Reviews with a Very Low 38% Among Critics

Roger Friedman
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Warner Bros’ Final DC Movie in this Phase: “Aquaman 2” Drowns in Bad Reviews with a Very Low 38% Among Critics

“Aquaman 2” is here.

As much as you think the super hero played by Jason Momoa is impervious to normal elements, he’s not. “Aquaman 2” is drowning in bad reviews.

Right now on Rotten Tomatoes, “Aquaman 2” has a low 38% among critics. Most everyone finds the sequel to the 2018 hit. The film also stars Patrick Wilson, Amber Heard, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and — someplace in there — Nicole Kidman.

David Fear of Rolling Stone lived up to his name. He wrote: “A tonal mess, dogged by VFX that range from “video-game cut scene” to “last-minute rush job,” complicated yet curiously thin storytelling, and endlessly aggressive rib-nudging”

Preview results tomorrow should be interesting to say the least.

“Dukes of Hazzard” Star John Schneider Still Has Twitter X Account After Threatening Bidens with Hanging: Where is the FBI?

Roger Friedman
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“Dukes of Hazzard” Star John Schneider Still Has Twitter X Account After Threatening Bidens with Hanging: Where is the FBI?

“Dukes of Hazzard” star John Schneider set off the internet today with a Tweet on his X account.

He suggested President Biden and his son, Hunter, be hanged for treason. If you or I did this, we’d lose our account and the FBI would be on our front stoop. So far, Schneider appears to be unaffected.

After Twitter users responded with outrage, however, Schneider removed the offending post.

But what he doesn’t get is that the internet is forever. That Tweet will follow him forever.

Schneider is illiterate as well as stupid. As my English teacher used to say, clothes are hung, people are hanged.

Schneider should hang his head in disgrace.

Golden Globes Finally Pick Mostly Unknown Comedian Jo Koy to Host 2024 Awards on NBC

Roger Friedman
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Golden Globes Finally Pick Mostly Unknown Comedian Jo Koy to Host 2024 Awards on NBC

The Golden Globes have spoken.

Yesterday I told you they still had no host for their 2024 Awards show.

Now, they ‘ve responded by announcing their choice to run the proceedings on January 7th.

The lucky winner is Jo Koy.

Who?

He’s a comedian. He is mostly unknown and has never hosted an awards show.

There’s an irony here. For a short time, this year’s Critics Choice host, Chelsea Handler, dated Koy. The Critics Choice Awards are on January 14th.

“I’ve stepped onto a lot of stages around the world in my career, but this one is going to be extra special. I’m so excited to be hosting the Golden Globes this year,” said Koy in a press statement. “This is that moment where I get to make my Filipino family proud. Mahal Kita (Google it)!”

So, is this all good or bad? All you can say is God Bless, we hope it works out. No one else would host the Globes, so at least they got someone!

Grotesque: $500K Golden Globes Gift Bags for Nominees, Still No Recipient Announced for Lifetime Achievement Award

Roger Friedman
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0
Grotesque: $500K Golden Globes Gift Bags for Nominees, Still No Recipient Announced for Lifetime Achievement Award

This is beyond grotesque.

There are 83 nominees for the Golden Globes. Since they are all actors or directors or songwriters they are already pampered with free everything. Celebrities rarely open their wallets.

But now the Globes are going give them gift bags worth up to $500,000. That’s some incentive to campaign for a Globe statue. Other critics groups will give the winners a small statue, dinner, and maybe a round trip car ride. But not the Globes. The winners will get all sorts of fancy four star vacations, caviar and — in one case — a $190,000 bottle of wine.

That last item — the wine — presumably goes to the winner of the Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement. However, as of this writing, no recipient has been announced. Indeed, because there’s no host for the show, no one seems to have noticed the lack of an honoree. I guess the $190K bottle of wine would be an inducement to accept the prize — and an inducement to reluctant nominees to show up at all.

By the way, last year’s recipient, Eddie Murphy, was announced on December 14, 2022. This year”s honoree may be announced live on the air at this point on January 7th.

There have always been gift bags, but this staggering amount really shows the venality of this situation. After all, the United States is involved in two dangerous international wars. There’s a tremendous unsolved homeless problem in Los Angeles. The viewing audience is already skeptical of awards shows, particularly the Golden Globes after three years of scandal. But are we really going to see the stars schlepping these massive piles of swag from the Beverly Hilton? It sounds very unbecoming.

Maybe donate the value of all this crap to charity? Hmmmm…Nah.

Here’s what they get and how many of the nominees are involved for each item. PS Who pays taxes on all this stuff?

Travel and Experiences

  1. Abbaye de la Bussiere: Two-Night Stay in Burgundy, France ($2,200, available to all 83 recipients)
  2. Celestia Phinisi Yacht: Five-Day/Four-Night Luxury Yacht Charter in Indonesia ($50,000, all 83 recipients)
  3. Flockhill Lodge: All-Inclusive Stay in New Zealand for Two People ($15,000, up to 3 recipients)
  4. Four Seasons Punta Mita: Full Luxury Experience ($15,000, all 83 recipients)
  5. Hotel Wailea, Relais & Château: Two-Night All-Inclusive Stay ($5,500, all 83 recipients)
  6. Les Bordes Estate: Stay with Golf Experience ($1,500, up to 15 recipients)
  7. Liss Ard Estate: Two-Night Stay in Ireland ($2,200, all 83 recipients)
  8. One Aldwych: Three-night stay in Signature Suite, Inclusive of Theater Tickets, VIP Experiences, and Private Tours ($16,000, up to 3 recipients)
  9. Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman: Five-Day All-Inclusive Luxury Experience, Including Transportation and Yacht Experience ($20,000, all 83 recipients)
  10. Robb Report Car of The Year: Two Drive Spots for a Total of Four Guests ($28K)
  11. Seabird Ocean Resort: Three-Night Stay in SoCal with Private Surf Lessons and Custom Surfboard ($6,500, all 83 recipients)
  12. The Britely, Pendry West Hollywood: One-Year Membership to a Private Social Club ($3,000, all 83 recipients)
  13. The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston: Two-Night Stay with Luxury Wine Experience for Two ($5,000, up to 2 recipients)
  14. XO Jet: Complimentary Membership with $10K in Flight Credits ($11,000, up to 10 recipients)

Food and Beverage

  1. Caviar Russe: Essential Collection of Gold Ossetra ($545, all 83 recipients)
  2. Distillerie de Monaco: Limited Edition Edon Roc Gin ($275, all 83 recipients)
  3. Komos: One Bottle of Komos XO ($2,000, 3 recipients)
  4. Komos: Bottle of Komos Varietals ($200, all 83 recipients)
  5. Liber Pater: The World’s Most Expensive Wine ($193,500/bottle, 1 recipient)
  6. Razza: Private Class with one of America’s Greatest Pizzaiolos ($7,000, 1 recipient)
  7. Robb Report Culinary Masters: Full Weekend Experience for Four Guests ($25,000)

Apparel and Beauty

  1. 111SKIN: Black Diamond Retinol Oil ($250, all 83 recipients)
  2. 111SKIN: Rose Gold Radiance Face Mask ($35, all 83 recipients)
  3. Atelier Eva: Tattoo Session with a Celebrity Tattoo Artist ($2,500, all 83 recipients)
  4. Biologique Spa: Choice of Bespoke Facial or Body Treatment and Skin Analysis ($600, all 83 recipients)
  5. Byroe: Tomato Filling Serum ($150, all 83 recipients)
  6. Byroe: Truffle Eye Serum ($114, all 83 recipients)
  7. Crasqi: Custom Swim Trunks ($200, all 83 recipients)
  8. Coomi x Muzo: Colombian Emerald Earrings ($69,000, up to 1 recipient)
  9. CurrentBody: LED Facemask ($380, all 83 recipients)
  10. Joanna Czech: The Kit; Skincare Essentials ($1,250, up to 25 recipients)
  11. Le Domaine: The Cream ($250, all 83 recipients)
  12. Le Prairie: Pure Gold Radiance Nocturnal Balm ($1,100, up to 40 recipients)
  13. Opie Way: Bespoke, Custom-Made Sneakers ($1,500, up to 5 recipients)
  14. Metier: Marrakech Brown Suede Bag ($600, all 83 recipients)
  15. Perfumehead: Luxury Perfume ($450, all 83 recipients)
  16. Rossano Ferretti: Hair Spa Treatment and Blowout ($1,500, all 83 recipients)
  17. S.T. Dupont: Le Grand Dupont Lighter ($1,595, up to 10 recipients)
  18. Zenith: Watch and Manufacture Experience ($14,000, up to 2 recipients)

Paramount-Warner Bros-CNN-CBS-HBO-Max-Discovery? Report Says Merger Talks Are on for Super Studio to Take on Hollywood

Roger Friedman
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0
Paramount-Warner Bros-CNN-CBS-HBO-Max-Discovery? Report Says Merger Talks Are on for Super Studio to Take on Hollywood

Axios is reporting that Paramount and Warner Discovery are trying to engaged to be married.

After Disney bought 20th Century Fox, this wasn’t far behind.

Makes a lot of sense, especially for Paramount, which is struggling despite best intentions. For example, they have no big Christmas or Oscar movies, other than “Killers of the Flower Moon,” which really comes from Apple Studios. Warner’s is loaded with movies.

But Paramount has a big TV business. Merging Paramount Plus with Max and HBO with what used to be Showtime– perfect match.

CNN and CBS would be very happy together. CNN already loans Anderson Cooper to CBS. CNN needs programming, which they could supply CNN with especially on weekends.

Axios reporter Sara Fischer is listed as a CNN contributor, so she had good sources on this one.

Soon Apple will buy NBC Universal from Comcast, and whole new worlds will emerge.

Stay tuned, friends.

Barbie Fans: Here’s the New Ryan Gosling Version and Video of “I’m Just Ken” with Mark Ronson

Roger Friedman
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0
Barbie Fans: Here’s the New Ryan Gosling Version and Video of “I’m Just Ken” with Mark Ronson

“Barbie” fans, this is for you, kids. See you at the Oscars.

PS If you think a novelty song can’t make it at the Academy Awards, go back to “Blame Canada” from the 1999 “South Park” movie. It can happen!

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