The Oscars on ABC and Hulu, hosted by Conan O’Brien (Disney)
The Oscars are always gold, but this year, they’re going to be “Golden.”
“Golden,” the KPop Demon Hunters hit that’s nominated for best original song, will be performed on the telecast by the voices of HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami.
Also performing will be Sinners star Miles Caton: He’ll sing the best original song nominee “I Lied to You,” along with one of the song’s co-writers, Raphael Saadiq. They’ll be joined by a host of other artists in what a press release describes as “an homage to the film’s singular visual style.” Those artists include Shaboozey, Alabama Shakes singer Brittany Howard, blues legends Bobby Rush and Buddy Guy and ballerina Misty Copeland.
In addition, Josh Groban, whose forthcoming album will feature him singing famous songs from movies, will perform with the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
The other best original song nominees are “Dear Me,” written by Diane Warren and performed by Kesha, from the documentary Diane Warren: Relentless; “Train Dreams,” from the movie of the same name, written and recorded by Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner; and “Sweet Dreams of Joy,” from Viva Verdi!, written by Nicholas Pike and recorded by Ana Maria Martinez.
The 98th Academy Awards, hosted by Conan O’Brien, air Sunday, March 15 at 7 p.m. on ABC and stream on Hulu.
The trailer for Margo’s Got Money Troubles has arrived. Apple TV released the official trailer for the upcoming series, which stars Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer and Nicole Kidman. The eight-episode series is based on Rufi Thorpe’s bestselling novel of the same name. It premieres its first three episodes on April 15, followed by one new episode each week leading up to its May 20 finale …
AMC has renewed its upcoming drama series The Audacity for season 2 ahead of the first season’s premiere. Season 1 of the show from creator Jonathan Glatzer debuts on April 12. It stars Billy Magnussen, Sarah Goldberg, Zach Galifianakis, Simon Helberg and more …
The official trailer for In the Grey has made its debut. Written and directed by Guy Ritchie, the movie follows a team of elite operatives who are sent to steal back a billion-dollar fortune. Jake Gyllenhaal, Henry Cavill and Eiza González star in the Black Bear film, which arrives in theaters on May 15 …
Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon testifies during the House Natural Resources Committee hearing on Thursday, June 15, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon signed a bill into law on Monday banning abortion in the state after a “fetal heartbeat” has been detected.
HB 126, or the Human Heartbeat Act, prohibits abortion once cardiac activity is identified, which is around six weeks of pregnancy, before many women know they’re pregnant.
If cardiac activity is detected, an abortion can only be performed in the case of a medical emergency, meaning if the life of the mother is in danger or if continuing the pregnancy would cause serious or irreversible impairment of a major bodily function, according to the bill.
The bill does not include exceptions for pregnancies as a result of rape or incest.
Any person who intentionally or knowingly violates the act will be charged with a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both, according to the bill.
“Today I signed the Human Heartbeat Act into law, reaffirming my view that life is sacred. I resoundingly share the determination to defend the lives of unborn children and support the intentions behind the Human Heartbeat Act,” Gordon wrote in a post on X on Monday.
Previously, abortion was allowed in Wyoming until fetal viability, which occurs between 24 and 26 weeks of gestation.
Wyoming is now the fifth state at least to have a “heartbeat ban” following bans enacted in Florida, Georgia, Iowa and South Carolina.
“This ban is an attack on Wyomingites’ constitutional freedom to make their own health care decisions, and it puts the health and well-being of our communities at risk,” Julie Burkhart, president of Wellspring Health Access, Wyoming’s only abortion clinic, said in a statement.
“Every day that this law is in effect means people in our state will face even greater barriers to abortion care — and some may be denied this care altogether,” the statement continued. “With so many across Wyoming already struggling to access reproductive health care, restrictive policies like these take us further in the wrong direction.”
Burkhart said Wellspring Health Access is prepared to challenge the ban in court and will continue to work with regional and national partners to help patients access the care they need.
Gordon wrote in the post on X that he was concerned the bill was “well-intentioned” but would lead to a “fragile legal effort with significant risk of ending in the courts rather than in lasting, durable policy.”
Gordon suggested that voters should decide on the issue and that a question be placed on a ballot asking if an abortion ban should be cemented in the state constitution.
A view of the debris of a school, where many students and teachers lost their lives on the first day of the wave of attacks launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on March 5, 2026. (Photo by Stringer/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — President Donald Trump said on Monday he doesn’t “know enough” about the strike on an Iranian elementary school that Iran says killed at least 168 people, including dozens of children, but that he was “willing to live” with the findings of a U.S. investigation into the incident.
A newly surfaced video appears to show a U.S.-made missile, a Tomahawk, hitting a building in Iran adjacent to the girls’ school, experts told ABC News.
Trump suggested Monday it could have been a Tomahawk fired by Iran.
“I will say that the Tomahawk, which is one of the most powerful weapons around, is used by, you know, it’s sold and used by other countries, you know that,” Trump said. “And whether it’s Iran, who also has some Tomahawks, they wish they had more, but, whether it’s Iran or somebody else, the fact that a Tomahawk — a Tomahawk is very generic, it’s sold to other countries. But that’s being investigated right now.”
The U.S. makes and sells Tomahawks to its closest allies, including the U.K. and Australia. But it has never sold the technology to Iran or other adversaries. While other countries like Russia use cruise missiles, only the U.S. makes Tomahawks, as the missile experts say appears to be seen in the video of the school strike.
Israel has already said it wasn’t operating in the area of the school bombing.
The president faced questions Monday on the Feb. 28 incident during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami, including his comment over the weekend that Iran was behind it.
“Based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Saturday. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, standing just behind the president on the plane, said the matter was under investigation and that “only side that targets civilians is Iran.”
But pressed on those remarks, Trump said on Monday, “I just don’t know enough about it.”
“I think it’s something that I was told is under investigation. But Tomahawks are –are used by others, as you know. Numerous other nations have Tomahawks. They buy them from us,” Trump said.
“But I will certainly, whatever the report shows, I’m willing to live with that report,” the president continued.
The U.S. military was striking targets in the country last Saturday in an area where an elementary school was hit and dozens of children were killed, two people familiar with the initial findings previously told ABC News.
An analysis of satellite imagery by ABC News suggests the Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab was near an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps compound but had been separated from it more than decade ago.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, rejected Trump’s claim that Iran was behind the hit on the girls’ elementary school.
A poster of celebrity real estate agents Tal and Oren Alexander along with their brother Alon (Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — A jury has found the Alexander brothers guilty on all counts in their federal sex trafficking trial in New York City.
Jury deliberations began Thursday for the former real estate titans, Oren and Alon Alexander, 38-year-old twins, along with their brother, Tal Alexander, 39, who have denied sexually assaulting anyone or running a sex trafficking conspiracy, as prosecutors have charged. They pleaded not guilty.
Throughout the five-week trial, 11 women testified that they were sexually assaulted by one or more of the brothers. At least eight of the women claimed they were drugged by one of the Alexanders.
“These are chilling, reprehensible, and unacceptable acts,” U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, whose office prosecuted the case, said in a statement following the verdict. “We commend the victims for their courage in coming forward and testifying at the trial. They bravely overcame the pain of reliving the abuses inflicted upon them and, as a result, prevented others from becoming victims.”
A spokesperson for the Alexander family called the verdict “deeply disappointing.”
“We believe there are substantial problems with the evidence and the way this case was presented,” the spokesperson, Juda S. Engelmayer, said in a statement. “The legal process does not end here. We will continue fighting every day until justice is done and the three brothers regain their freedom.”
An attorney for one of the brothers also vowed to keep fighting.
“There are a lot of avenues open to us. We’re not gonna stop,” Marc Agnifilo, who represented Oren Alexander, said outside court on Monday. “We believe in our client’s innocence and we’re not gonna stop fighting until we prevail. And we believe that we will one day prevail.”
The brothers’ federal sentencing has been set for Aug. 6.
Oren and Tal Alexander gained notoriety in New York’s luxury real estate market through their company, Alexander Group, and have been under federal investigation alongside Alon since late 2024.
They have been accused of luring women to nightclubs and parties, then drugging and sexually assaulting them.
In his closing statement, federal prosecutor Andrew Jones said there is “crushing evidence” that the brothers “masqueraded as party boys when really they were predators” who committed an “array of federal sex offenses.”
Jones recounted the graphic accounts of the alleged victims and said the wealthy brothers had a “playbook” luring women with exclusive parties, yachts and luxury travel so they could assault them.
“Once they had their victims where they wanted them, the defendants assaulted them using force, using drugs, or using both,” Jones said.
Then, the brothers allegedly bragged about their exploits in blog posts with titles like “It’s not rape if… you use her tears as lube” and “It’s not rape if… she secretly wants it.”
Jones told the jury the allegations are corroborated “by the sheer number of other victims who testified here — women who never met each other, who have each led different lives, in different professions, sometimes in different cities. But they had one horrific thing in common — they were each raped by these men. And they described near identical experiences of their assaults.”
During closing arguments, defense attorney Howard Srebnick conceded the brothers could be “obnoxious” and their conduct “inappropriate,” but he told the jury, “Nobody was being assaulted, nobody had been trafficked.”
Srebnick urged jurors to reject the government’s case against his client, Alon Alexander, insisting prosecutors failed to meet their burden of proof.
In her closing argument, Deanna Paul said the brothers “are not mobsters,” though sometimes they acted like “entitled a——-.”
A defense attorney for Tal Alexander, Paul argued that prosecutors have asked the jury to “connect dots that really aren’t there.”
In his summations, Agnifilo suggested to the jury that the victims in this case were dissatisfied with their encounters with the Alexanders, which motivated them to testify in this trial.
‘KPop Demon Hunters’ stars Arden Cho and EJAE attend the 31st Annual Critics Choice Awards Jan. 4 in Santa Monica, California (John Shearer/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association)
The 98th annual Academy Awards air Sunday night, and KPop Demon Hunters has been nominated for best animated feature and best original song for “Golden.” If it wins in either category, it will be a record-setting moment for South Korean creatives.
Arden Cho, who voices the movie’s main character, Rumi, told ABC Audio, “I feel like it would be such an honor and what an incredible history-making moment if we were to win an Oscar.”
“I think there’s … so many Koreans involved in this project and it is sort of the first animation set in Korea,” she added. “I just feel like it’d be really groundbreaking.”
If KPop Demon Hunters wins best animated feature, director Maggie Kang and producer Michelle Wong would be the first individuals of South Korean descent to win in that category. And if “Golden” is named best original song, four of the song’s five co-writers — including EJAE, who provides Rumi’s singing voice — would be the first South Koreans to win in that category.
KPop Demon Hunters has been a cultural phenomenon ever since it debuted on Netflix in 2025, while its soundtrack has topped the charts and spun off a series of top-10 hits. Kevin Woo, who provides the singing voice of Mystery Saja in the film, attempted to explain the project’s global appeal.
“I think it’s a culmination of different elements. It’s the storyline of finding your own voice and identity,” he told ABC Audio. “And also, the music really spoke to a lot of people around the world. And it transcends culture and genre and film and music and everything all at once. So I really think it is something special that the world needed at this moment.”
The 2026 Oscars will air on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on ABC and stream on Hulu.
President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media traveling on Air Force One while heading to Miami on March 7, 2026. President Trump and other members of the government attended the dignified transfer of six soldiers from the 103rd Sustainment Command who were killed in action by an Iranian drone strike on March 1 in Port of Shuaiba, Kuwait, during Operation Epic Fury. (Photo by Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Ten days into the U.S. war with Iran, Americans are starting to feel the economic fallout as oil and gas prices soar.
Gas prices skyrocketed to a national average of $3.47 on Monday, up nearly 50 cents from last week, according to data from AAA. Plus, oil prices on Monday surpassed $100 a barrel for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 before falling lower later in the day.
President Donald Trump has dismissed the higher cost, telling ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce it’s “a little glitch.”
“I think it’s fine. It’s a little glitch. We had to take this detour,” Trump told ABC’s Bruce in an interview on Sunday before going on to tout the U.S. military campaign against Tehran.
In a social media post on Sunday night, Trump argued: “Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace.”
Yet the cost of living remains one of the biggest issues heading into the 2026 midterms, where Trump and Republicans are seeking to maintain narrow majorities in Congress.
A poll released by NBC News on Sunday found Trump received his lowest ratings in the poll on his handling of inflation and the cost of living as 36% of registered voters approve and 62% disapprove.
On Iran, the NBC poll found a majority of registered voters (54%) disapproved of Trump’s handling of the matter.
Trump, on the 2024 campaign trail, vowed to bring gas down below $2 a gallon. During the first year of his second term, Trump routinely pointed to the drop in prices at the pump, including in his State of the Union address last month.
“Gasoline, which reached a peak of over $6 a gallon in some states under my predecessor and was, quite honestly, a disaster, is now below $2.30 a gallon in most states, and in some places $1.99 a gallon,” Trump said in his speech on Feb. 24.
Now, gas prices are closing in on $3.50 a gallon and are expected to continue to keep rising the longer the Middle East conflict lasts.
Patrick De Haan, a petroleum analyst at GasBuddy, told ABC News Live that Americans are currently experiencing “sticker shock.”
“Gas stations are seeing their costs go up in real time again today, as oil markets are jumping, and that’s going to be in another round of price increases over the course of this week, prices could jump another 15 to 35 cents a gallon for gasoline over the next three days, as long as nothing changes,” De Haan said. “And it’s going to be worse for the price of diesel, which could jump 35 to 50 cents a gallon, that would put it close to nearly a $5 a gallon national average.”
Some Democrats are seizing on the price jump to criticize Trump and the administration for the handling of the war.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, has called for President Trump to tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to alleviate the financial burden for Americans.
“American families are suffering from higher prices as the effects of Trump’s reckless war become pain at the gas pump and beyond as high gas prices trickle down making everything more expensive,” Schumer said in a statement on Sunday. “They cannot afford to simply wait and hope prices come down. The President has a solution right here at home, and he should use it.”
“Trump promised a Golden Age in America. Meanwhile. Republicans are crashing the economy, gas prices are out of control and the extremists are spending billions dropping bombs in the Middle East. You deserve better,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, also a New York Democrat, wrote on X on Monday.
Trump was asked over the weekend if he would use the SPR to bring some relief, but declined to say, instead criticizing former President Joe Biden’s use of the reserve. Biden released oil from the SPR several times over the course of 2022 as prices increased due to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
“I filled it up and he brought it down to the lowest level it’s ever been. We will start at the appropriate time, which is basically a gut instinct, we will start filling up,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Saturday.
“Biden used them so that he could get some extra votes in the election,” Trump added.
Analysts previously told ABC News that the SPR is a “valuable resource” for the administration to bring some relief to Americans and assuage market fears, but likely wouldn’t be enough oil in the long term to make up for the 20 million barrels of oil currently being prevented from passing through the Strait of Hormuz every day.
Trump told Fox News’s Brian Kilmeade in an interview on Sunday night that ships holding at the Strait of Hormuz need to “show some guts” and push through the channel.
Several war-risk insurers have canceled their coverage for vessels amid the widening conflict. Trump said the U.S. government was going to provide some risk insurance and guarantees, and if necessary the U.S. Navy would escort tankers through the strait.
Like Trump, several Republicans are contending that higher gas prices will be temporary.
“The prices will come back down as soon as we get out of Iran, as soon as we finish turning them into fish food, which will be pretty soon,” Republican Sen. John Kennedy said on Fox News on Sunday.
How long the Iran war will last remains an open question. President Trump initially estimated four to five weeks for the U.S., though he later said the timeline would be whatever it takes.
On Sunday, Trump told ABC’s Bruce: “I don’t know. I never predict. All I can say is we are ahead of schedule both in terms of lethality and in terms of time.”
GasBuddy’s De Haan told ABC News Live that the longer the conflict lasts, the more time it will take to see oil and gas prices to get back to their previous levels
“Every day the situation continues, it could add another several weeks to the recovery time,” De Haan said.
ABC News’ Isabella Murray, Nicholas Kerr, Soo Youn and Max Zahn contributed to this report.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Stocks closed higher on Monday, recovering from sharp losses earlier in the day as markets whipsawed in response to developments in the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.
The dramatic reversal on Wall Street came after U.S. oil prices turned lower on Monday afternoon. Crude prices settled at about $85 per barrel, unwinding a surge hours earlier that had reached as high as nearly $120 a barrel.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 230 points, or 0.4%, while the S&P 500 jumped 0.8%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq increased 1.3%.
The Dow had fallen as much as 750 points on Monday morning, before reversing those losses in the afternoon.
Oil prices fell into the red and stocks raced into the green after comments made by President Donald Trump to a CBS reporter, who posted on X that the president had said “the war is very complete, pretty much.”
Crude markets began to calm on Monday morning amid a meeting of the Group of Seven (G7) finance ministers about a possible coordinated release from their respective strategic petroleum reserves.
The G7 announced on Monday its decision to forego a release of reserve oil at this time, but traders appeared to view the group as willing to take such action.
Still, indexes fell worldwide on Monday as the jump in oil prices rippled through global markets. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index plunged 5.2%, while pan-European STOXX 600 index slipped 0.6%.
U.S. crude oil prices hovered at about $85 per barrel on Monday afternoon, which marked a roughly 6% decline from a day earlier. Since a month ago, however, oil prices have soared 34%.
In a social media post on Sunday night, President Donald Trump downplayed the rise in oil prices.
“Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace. ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!” Trump said.
Soon after the war with Iran began on Feb. 28, U.S.-Israeli forces killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran. His son Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen on Sunday to succeed him.
