Entertainment

Grammys set to honour music's best, but scandal overshadows gala

Revelations of infighting at the Recording Academy, which organizes the awards show, and an explosive allegation of rape has cast a dark shadow over the glitzy gala and rattled the institution's efforts to shed its out-of-touch image.

Folk puppets keeping heritage of Egyptian satire alive

The Aragoz puppet, with a wooden head, red conical hat, thin painted moustache and a bright red cloth cloak and his sketches are part of the country's cultural heritage.

Action! Nigeria's film industry draws global entertainment brands

Nollywood, the affectionate nickname for Nigeria’s film industry, is increasingly grabbing the attention, and financing, of global entertainment brands as it produces hundreds of films and TV episodes each month.

Harvey Weinstein pleads not guilty, rape trial delayed to January

The new indictment also comes with a disclosure that a third woman will be called to testify that Weinstein raped her in 1993 to bolster the prosecutors' case.

Comedian Kevin Hart rules out hosting the Oscars

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences named Hart as Oscars host in December, but he stepped down soon after amid criticism of his past tweets.

Netflix's 'Bird Box' success gets Hollywood clucking

Netflix, which typically refuses to provide viewership numbers, made the rare disclosure in a recent tweet as movie producers, saying 45 million subscriber accounts worldwide watched the Sandra Bullock thriller "Bird Box" during its first seven days.

'Daily Show' host Trevor Noah silenced by a voice issue

Speaking for Noah, Mike Acosta told the audience that the show "was a little different" in that Noah was ordered not to speak, or risk needing surgery. He didn't elaborate on what caused the vocal problem or how long Noah will be unable to speak.

Actor-comedian Kevin Hart will host 2019 Oscars

Kevin Hart takes over hosting duties from Jimmy Kimmel, who presided over the last two ceremonies.

Elton John signs with Universal 'for the rest of his career'

Under the agreement signed with John’s company Rocket Entertainment, Universal Music Group (UMG) will represent the veteran British singer’s new music “for the rest of his career” on top of his work from the last 50 years.

Istanbul's youth get their game on at GameX convention

Thousands have attended the four-day international GameX convention in Istanbul, making it the biggest digital gaming and entertainment fair for Turkey and much of the region.

Disney gets approval to buy Fox amid bidding war with Comcast

Walt Disney Co won US approval to buy Twenty-First Century Fox Inc entertainment assets for $71.3 billion on condition it sell Fox’s 22 regional sports networks, giving Disney an edge over Comcast Corp’s competing bid.

Michael Jackson life to be turned into musical

Producers of the musical, which will be written by Lynn Nottage, a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize, say they aim for a premiere in 2020.