Entertainment

Jodie Comer to star in Damon Lindeloff’s new HBO series, ‘The Chain’

Jodie Comer attends The 2025 Fashion Awards presented by Pandora at the Royal Albert Hall on Dec. 1, 2025, in London, England. (Lia Toby/Getty Images)

Jodie Comer is the first link in The Chain.

The actress is set to star in the upcoming HBO series The Chain from creator Damon Lindelof. Comer will play Rachel in the limited series, which is based on the bestselling book by Adrian McKinty.

Comer’s casting was announced in an Instagram post on Thursday.

“Meet Rachel,” the caption reads. “Jodie Comer stars in #TheChain, the new Damon Lindelof limited series based off the book by Adrian McKinty.”

McKinty’s 2019 book follows a suburban mom, named Rachel, who has to consider the unthinkable when her daughter is kidnapped. While details on the show are being kept under wraps, a press release from HBO says Lindelof is “expanding the mythology of McKinty’s award-winning thriller.”

HBO ordered The Chain back in January. At the time it was announced, Lindelof said, “From the moment I heard the wild and original premise of Adrian’s book, I was shocked, surprised and angry I hadn’t thought of it myself.”

He continued, “I’ve always wanted to try to adapt a great thriller and this one has all the dark, weird, exhilarating touches that fire up my imagination.”

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Entertainment

Actor Johnny Flynn cast to play Paul Simon in new film ‘The Road Home’

Paul Simon circa 1986 (Photo by Ebet Roberts/Redferns)/Johnny Flynn attends party for “The Motive And The Cue” December 18, 2023. (Photo by Matt Keeble/Dave Benett/Getty Images)

Ripley star Johnny Flynn has been cast to play Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Paul Simon in the new movie The Road Home, according to Deadline.

The film, directed by Bill Condon, is centered around trumpeter Hugh Masekela, played by South African actor Thabo Rametsi, who toured with Simon in support of his 1986 Grammy Award-winning album, Graceland.

The film will also star Cynthia Erivo as vocalist Miriam “Mama Africa” Makeba, who was married to Masekela in the ’60s and also toured with Simon, and Guy Pearce, who plays anti-apartheid advocate Archbishop Trevor Huddleston. Huddleston called for a boycott of Simon, claiming he violated the United Nations cultural boycott of the country by partially recording the album in Johannesburg.

“For me, there are very few stories that could come closer to home than this. I was born in Johannesburg and moved to London in 1985 – just before the album Graceland was released,” says Flynn, also known for his work in Emma and Lovesick. “The music of South Africa – and especially that of Hugh Masekela and Miriam Makeba IS the sound of my childhood. And Graceland was the most played cassette in our car growing up.”

He adds, “It’s such an honour to be invited to tell this story with artists that I admire so much. It’s the story of hope and the power of music.”

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Entertainment

Dylan Sprouse, Barbara Palvin expecting first child together

Barbara Palvin and Dylan Sprouse are seen at the Hotel Martinez during the 79th annual Cannes Film Festival on May 14, 2026, in Cannes, France. (Arnold Jerocki/GC Images via Getty Images)

Barbara Palvin and Dylan Sprouse are expecting their first child together.

The model and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody star announced that Palvin is pregnant with their first child in an Instagram post on Thursday.

In the post, which Palvin created and collaborated on with Sprouse, the happy couple pose for the camera while they both hold Palvin’s baby bump. They are dressed up to attend the 79th annual Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France. Palvin wears a light blue gown while Sprouse is suited in a tuxedo.

The carousel continues with an ultrasound photo of their baby, whose hands look to be raised in the rock music hand gesture, colloquially known as heavy metal horns.

In the post’s final photo, both Palvin and Sprouse copy the same hand gesture. The post is captioned with three heavy metal horns emojis.

ABC News has reached out to Sprouse’s rep for comment.

Sprouse and Palvin were married on July 15, 2023, in Palvin’s home country of Hungary.

In August 2025, Palvin shared that she’d had surgery for endometriosis in an Instagram post.

“For some years now I’ve been dealing with the difficulties that can come with my periods. Fatigue, severe pain, heavy and irregular flow, sleepless nights on the bathroom floor. I thought this was just how it works for me,” Palvin wrote. “[The surgery] helped me a lot, and I’m grateful I did it. Early diagnosis and treatment are very important to prevent long-term complications, and now I’m more mindful about my body to act fast if needed.”

Palvin ended her post by saying she is “excited about this new chapter of my life and now ready to get back to work.”

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Entertainment

Will Smith to star in ‘Supermax’ for Amazon MGM Studios

Will Smith attends the ‘Emancipation’ Los Angeles premiere at Regency Village Theatre on Nov. 30, 2022, in Los Angeles, California. (Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)

Will Smith has found his next role.

The actor is set to star in the upcoming action-thriller film Supermax for Amazon MGM Studios, ABC Audio has confirmed.

Pineapple Express and Halloween director David Gordon Green will helm the film, which is set to stream worldwide on Prime Video. Amazon MGM Studios acquired the rights to the movie from Miramax.

Smith will star as Rex in the film, which is described to be “a propulsive and twist-laden action thriller.” It follows two FBI agents who investigate a murder that has taken place inside the world’s most secure prison.

Casting on the movie is currently ongoing and production is set to start in mid-August.

David Weil and David J. Rosen, who are known for their work on the TV shows Hunters and Invasion, wrote the film. Smith will produce the movie for his company Westbrook.

Supermax will mark Smith’s first onscreen appearance since the 2024 film Bad Boys: Ride or Die. That movie was his first major film part after the 2022 incident in which he slapped presenter Chris Rock onstage at the 94th Academy Awards. It was the same night he won his best actor Oscar for portraying Richard Williams in the biopic King Richard.

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Entertainment

In brief: Noah Wyle reveals ‘The Pitt’ season 3 timeline and more

Noah Wyle is letting fans know what they can expect in season 3 of The Pitt. Deadline reports that Wyle took to the stage at the Warner Bros. Upfront on Wednesday and revealed the time period when season 3 will take place. “It’s set in early November, just before the holidays, ushering in a whole new set of emergencies and confrontations and complications,” the outlet reports Wyle said. It seems there’s no place like the hospital for the holidays, according to Wyle, who also said the third season is about to start production …

The teaser trailer for The Hawk has arrived. Netflix has released the official teaser for its upcoming comedy series starring Will Ferrell as golfer Lonnie “The Hawk” Hawkins. Also starring in the show are Molly Shannon, Jimmy Tatro, Fortune Feimster and Luke Wilson. It follows 2004’s #1 golfer as he attempts to make the greatest comeback in the history of the sport …

In other Netflix news, the streaming service has renewed its shows Big Mistakes, My Life with the Walter Boys, Quarterback and Running Point for new seasons. It also announced that season 11 of Love is Blind will take place in Boston …

Bonrad is so back. We have our first official look at Christopher Briney and Lola Tung in character as Conrad and Belly in The Summer I Turned Pretty film. Prime Video released the photo as a way to mark cameras rolling on the upcoming movie, which will officially conclude the story that was told in the three-season romance series. “Did you miss them? The Summer I Turned Pretty movie is now in production,” the post’s caption reads …

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Entertainment

Colman Domingo says ‘Michael’ biopic ‘was not an easy shoot’

Colman Domingo attends the 2026 Met Gala celebrating “Costume Art” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 4, 2026, in New York City. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)

Colman Domingo is opening up about the making of the biopic Michael.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published on Wednesday, Domingo talked about what it was like to portray Joe Jackson, Michael Jackson’s father, in the biopic about the King of Pop.

“This was not an easy shoot, I will not shy away from that,” Domingo said. To transform into his character, Domingo wore heavy prosthetics and colored contact lenses, and shaved his mustache into a thin line.

Additionally, Michael underwent heavy script rewrites and many reshoots. As part of the changes, Domingo’s role became more integral to the film. The story evolved to center on the friction between Joe and Michael.

“Every time the film was changing in some way, shape or form, there were discussions with me just to make sure that we’re clear about the story we’re telling,” Domingo said.

Even though its production was different than any other project he had been a part of previously, Domingo said he is proud of the film.

“[The movie] has become an examination of how Michael became Michael, before we deal with anything else. Everyone thinks there’s one way to tell his story, and there isn’t. One can’t deny Michael’s genius and his extraordinary legacy in the music industry,” Domingo said.

Michael earned $217 million worldwide during its opening weekend. The film didn’t tell all of the pop star’s life story, however, leaving the door open for more to come.

When asked about making a sequel to Michael, Domingo said, “I will want to know what story we will be telling in part two.”

Michael is available to watch in theaters now.

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Entertainment

It’s their moment: A ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ world tour is happening

‘KPop Demon Hunters’ world tour (Courtesy Netflix)

In the not-so-distant future, tickets for a KPop Demon Hunters world tour will be going up, up, up for sale.

Ahead of the one-year anniversary of the record-breaking, Oscar-winning Netflix animated film and its award-winning, chart-topping soundtrack, the streamer has announced a KPop Demon Hunters global concert tour.

The tour is described as a “live experience” that will “bring elements of the global phenomenon to life in dynamic and unforgettable ways for fans around the world,” but there aren’t any details beyond that. For example, the involvement of the singers behind the movie’s two main groups, HUNTR/X and Saja Boys, is unknown at this time.

More information about which cities the tour will visit and when tickets will go on sale will be announced later this year, but you can join a wait list to be notified at KPopDemonHunterslive.com.

KPop Demon Hunters debuted on Netflix on June 20, 2025, and became the most-watched original title in Netflix history. Its soundtrack dominated the Billboard charts, including the #1 hit “Golden,” the first K-pop song in history to win a Grammy Award and the first to win an Academy Award. The film also won the best animated feature film Oscar.

Since the movie became a success, EJAE, Rei Ami and Audrey Nuna, the voices of HUNTR/X, have performed together on TV and live, and were named Women of the Year at Billboard‘s annual Women In Music gala.

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Entertainment

‘Big Brother’ season 28 gets CBS premiere date

Julie Chen Moonves awards Ashley Hollis the winner of ‘Big Brother’ season 27. (Matthew Taplinger/CBS)

It’s not summer without Big Brother.

CBS has announced that season 28 of the hit reality competition series will premiere on July 9. The special 90-minute episode kicks off premiere week. It will be followed by the return of the show’s companion series, Big Brother: Unlocked, on July 10. Another 90-minute episode will air on July 12.

Big Brother follows a group of people who live together in a house without the ability to leave it or access anything about the outside world. The house has dozens of cameras and microphones that record their every move, every second of the day. Each week a person gets voted out of the house, until the last remaining houseguest wins the $750,000 prize.

Julie Chen Moonves returns once again to host the show, which this season will include the milestone 1,000th episode of the series. This means Big Brother will become the first primetime series to reach 1,000 original episodes.

After its premiere weekend, Big Brother season 28 will air Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays on CBS. It will also be available to stream on Paramount+ the following day.

Additionally, fans will once again be able to watch the Big Brother live feeds on Paramount+ and Pluto TV.

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Entertainment

Meg Stalter to make Broadway debut starring in ‘Oh, Mary!’

Meg Stalter attends the Los Angeles premiere of ‘Hacks’ season 5 on April 8, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. (Rodin Eckenroth/FilmMagic via Getty Images)

Oh, Mary? More like Oh, Meg!

Meg Stalter will make her Broadway debut by taking on the starring role of Mary Todd Lincoln in the Tony Award-winning play Oh, Mary!

Stalter’s run in the production will be a 10-week limited engagement starting on July 6 and ending on Sept. 12.

Oh, Mary!‘s official Instagram shared a poster with Stalter adorned in Mary’s signature bratty curls. The account also posted a video of Stalter getting in costume as Mary before looking straight to the camera and saying, “Sensational.”

Cole Escola created, wrote and won a Tony for starring in Oh, Mary! The show is a one-act comedy play centered on Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks leading up to her husband Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.

Maya Rudolph is currently starring as Mary Todd Lincoln in the production. She made her Broadway debut through this limited run, which was recently extended for two additional weeks. Her final performance in the role will be July 5.

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Entertainment

‘Stuart Fails to Save the Universe’ gets release date, teaser trailer

Lauren Lapkus, Kevin Sussman, John Ross Bowie and Brian Posehn in ‘Stuart Fails to Save the Universe.’ (Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)

The Big Bang Theory spinoff series Stuart Fails to Save the Universe now has a teaser trailer and release date.

HBO Max has announced that the series will premiere on July 23. It will consist of 10 episodes which will be released weekly every Thursday.

The new series stars Kevin Sussman as Stuart, Lauren Lapkus as Denise, Brian Posehn as Bert and John Ross Bowie as Barry.

“Comic book store owner Stuart Bloom is tasked with restoring reality after he breaks a device built by Sheldon and Leonard, accidentally bringing about a multiverse Armageddon,” according to its official logline. “Along the way, they meet alternate-universe versions of characters we’ve come to know and love from The Big Bang Theory. As the title implies, things don’t go well.”

The new teaser trailer shows off the high-concept series, with Stuart meeting an alternate universe version of himself.

“I’m you from another stream of reality,” alternate Stuart says. “This apocalyptic nightmare, the dimensional rifts, never has to happen.”

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe comes from Chuck Lorre Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. It is created, written and executive produced by Lorre, Zak Penn and Bill Prady.

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe is not the first Big Bang Theory spinoff. Young Sheldon, which followed the origins of the original show’s protagonist, Sheldon Cooper, aired on CBS from 2017 to 2024. A spinoff of Young Sheldon, titled Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage, currently airs on CBS. It premiered in October 2024 and is now in the middle of its second season.

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