Eddie Murphy to receive AFI Life Achievement Award
Eddie Murphy headshot (PMK Entertainment)
Eddie Murphy is set to receive one of the film industry’s most prestigious honors for his decades-spanning career.
The actor, comedian and Oscar nominee will be the 51st recipient of AFI’s Life Achievement Award. The honor will be presented during a gala at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on April 18.
“Eddie Murphy is an American icon,” Kathleen Kennedy, chair of the AFI Board of Trustees, says in a statement. “A trailblazing force in the art forms of film, television and stand-up comedy, his versatility knows no bounds. Across five decades, his enduring impact on our culture has inspired artists and audiences alike, and AFI is proud to honor him with the 51st AFI Life Achievement Award.”
Previous recipients of the award include Francis Ford Coppola, Nicole Kidman, Julie Andrews, Denzel Washington, George Clooney and Diane Keaton.
Netflix has released the first episode of the docuseries Famous Last Words, featuring one of the last interviews with famed primatologist Jane Goodall, who died this week at age 91.
The series features interviews with cultural figures who reflect on their legacy with the understanding that their words would only be shared after their passing. Goodall’s interview was filmed earlier this year.
“Jane Goodall was fearless in all things,” executive producer Brad Falchuk says in a statement. “She deeply loved humanity and the natural world. It was clear to me in our conversation that she was approaching her final adventure with the same fearlessness, hope, humor and joy that she approached everything else in life. She was one of the world’s greatest and most beloved champions of good.”
Goodall died Wednesday, Oct. 1, of natural causes. She was in California as part of a speaking tour. Her research on chimpanzees revolutionized science, and she was a tireless advocate for the protection and restoration of our natural world.
Blake Lively in New York City, April 29, 2025, and Justin Baldoni in New York City, Aug. 8, 2024. (Getty Images)
A federal judge in New York has formally ended Justin Baldoni‘s $400 million counterclaim against his It Ends With Us co-star Blake Lively.
Judge Lewis Liman entered a final judgment on Oct. 31, after dismissing the suit in June.
Baldoni is able to appeal the judge’s ruling.
Baldoni and Lively have been locked in a bitter legal dispute since December 2024, when Lively filed a complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department, accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of the film, which he also directed.
Lively filed a lawsuit against Baldoni on Dec. 31, 2024, reiterating the claims made in her earlier complaint and alleging Baldoni and his production company Wayfarer Studios had waged a retaliatory smear campaign against her. That same day, Baldoni filed a lawsuit against The New York Times, which had published a report outlining the claims detailed in Lively’s earlier complaint, alleging libel and false light invasion of privacy.
Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios filed a countersuit against Lively, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist, Leslie Sloane, weeks later, alleging civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy.
In June of this year, Liman granted Lively’s motion to dismiss Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios’ countersuit against her. The judge also dismissed Baldoni’s defamation suit against the Times.
At the time, Liman wrote in his opinion that Baldoni’s lawsuit hinged on claims that Lively “stole the film from Baldoni and Wayfarer, threatening to refuse to promote the film and attack Baldoni and Wayfarer in the press if the Wayfarer Parties did not agree to grant her, rather than Wayfarer, control over and credit for the film” and that “Lively, Sloane, Reynolds, and the Times spread a false narrative that Baldoni committed sexual misconduct towards Lively and the Wayfarer Parties then engaged in a smear campaign to ruin her reputation.”
“Regardless of the propriety of these actions, they do not constitute civil extortion under California law,” Liman wrote, adding that “the Wayfarer Parties have not adequately alleged that Lively’s threats were wrongful extortion rather than legally permissible hard bargaining or renegotiation of working conditions” and had “not shown that some of Lively’s allegedly extortionate acts damaged them.”
Two weeks later, on June 24, Baldoni decided not to amend his claims against Lively, Reynolds, Sloane and the Times.
In a statement at the time, Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, said, “Instead of revising the existing claims, our clients will be pursuing additional legal options that are available to us.”
“The Court’s decision on the motion to dismiss has no effect whatsoever on the truth that there was no harassment nor any smear campaign, and it does not in any way affect our vigorous defense against Ms. Lively’s claims,” Freedman continued, calling Lively’s allegations “baseless.”
Lively’s spokesperson responded to Baldoni’s decision at the time, saying in a statement, “The Court dismissed the frivolous $400 million Baldoni-Wayfarer lawsuit in its entirety.”
They added, “In the days that followed, Baldoni’s lawyer said the judge’s decision to dismiss their case was not a big deal as they promised to amend and refile it. As per usual, that was not true. The Court’s dismissal of Baldoni’s sham lawsuit was a total victory after all.”
Reached for comment on Monday, a Times spokesperson directed ABC News to its earlier statement in June, following Liman’s dismissal of Baldoni’s defamation case against the outlet. “We are grateful to the court for seeing the lawsuit for what it was: a meritless attempt to stifle honest reporting,” the spokesperson said.
“Our journalists went out and covered carefully and fairly a story of public importance, and the court recognized that the law is designed to protect just that sort of journalism,” they continued. “We will continue to stand up in court for our journalism and for our journalists when their work comes under attack.”
Lively’s case against Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios is still expected to go to trial in March next year.
ABC News reached out to Baldoni’s team, who did not issue any further comment.
ABC News has also reached out to Lively’s team for comment.
Host and musical guest Sabrina Carpenter during ‘SNL’ promos in October 2025. (Rosalind O’Connor/NBC)
Sabrina Carpenter is pulling double duty on the Oct. 18 edition of Saturday Night Live, hosting and performing as the musical guest. In a new promo for the show, called “Sabrina in the City,” she struts through the SNL offices at 30 Rock while channeling Carrie Bradshaw.
“New York is one Big Apple,” Sabrina says in a voice-over as she arrives in the elevator. “And I’m taking my bite at Saturday Night Live.” She goes on to misunderstand and disrespect all the cast members who approach her.
When new cast member Tommy Brennan says, “Sabrina! What are you up to?” she replies, “In these heels? Probably like 5’4″.” When cast member Sarah Sherman asks, “Hey, Sabrina, excited for the weekend?” she replies, “Sorry, hun. I prefer a strong end,” and slaps Sarah in the butt.
After calling Marcello Hernandez “Mr. Big,” she hands him her empty martini glass, and when writer Martin Herlihy approaches her with a script question, she autographs it instead, saying, “Anything for a fan.”
Sabrina sits down, opens her laptop and continues her Carrie Bradshaw interior monologue: “The woman wondered what she’d gotten herself into. Having won over the cast and crew, the only thing left do was—”
She’s interrupted by Sarah, Martin, Tommy and Marcello, who are standing behind her. “What is she writing?” Tommy asks. “No idea. The computer’s not even on,” Sarah replies.
But when Sabrina turns around they’re all smiles, giving her a thumbs-up.
Sabrina was last on SNL as a musical guest in May 2024 and also appeared on the SNL 50th Anniversary Special.
