Category: Entertainment

Harper Finkle and Alex Russo are reuniting.

Jennifer Stone is set to reprise her Wizards of Waverly Place role of Harper Finkle in the final season of its spinoff series Wizards Beyond Waverly Place.

Harper is the eccentric human best friend of Selena Gomez’s beloved wizard Alex Russo.

Disney announced earlier in April that Wizards Beyond Waverly Place will return for its final chapter this summer. Production on the new episodes started this month.

Gomez is set to make her directorial debut as she helms the premiere episode of this final chapter in the Russo family’s story. In addition to directing, Gomez will reprise her role of Alex over multiple episodes and continue executive producing.

Stone made a return to acting after she took a hiatus to earn her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. She graduated in 2019 with plans to resume acting full-time, before the COVID-19 pandemic hit and she stepped into the emergency room and served on the front lines. Now, Stone balances ER shifts with her love of acting, according to a press release.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place stars David Henrie as Justin Russo and Janice LeAnn Brown as the young wizard Billie. Alkaio Thiele, Max Matenko, Taylor Cora and Mimi Gianopulos also make up the main cast.

This final chapter of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place is being billed as a special four-part event.

“Billie, still reeling from losing Alex at the end of season 2, discovers that the only way to rescue her mother is to reunite with her long-lost father,” according to an official description from Disney. “As her family bands together to find Alex, Billie realizes that their combined power is the only way the Russos can defeat the evil plaguing them.”

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Natalie Portman is expecting a third child.

The Oscar-winning actress, 44, revealed the news in an exclusive interview with Harper’s Bazaar published on Friday. It’s her first baby with her partner, French music producer Tanguy Destable.

“Tanguy and I are very excited,” she said. “I’m just very grateful. I know it’s such a privilege and a miracle.”

Portman, who didn’t share specific details about her pregnancy, acknowledged the challenges people may face with pregnancy and trying to conceive.

“I grew up hearing about how hard it is to get pregnant,” she said. “I have so many people I love who’ve had such a hard time with it that I want to be respectful around that as well. It’s such a beautiful, joyous thing, and it’s also not an easy thing.”

She continued, “And so I know how lucky it is. I’m very aware, and I’m very grateful. I have deep appreciation and gratitude.”

Giving birth later in life is a growing reality in the United States.

According to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, from 1990 to 2023, birth rates have declined among women in their 20s and increased among women in older age groups.

Compared to birth rates in 1990, the birth rate increased 71% among women ages 35–39 (from 31.7 to 54.3), 127% (from 5.5 to 12.5) among women ages 40–44 and 450% (from 0.2 to 1.1) among women 45 and older in 2023.

Meanwhile, birth rates remain highest among women in their 20s but have declined 51% among women 20-24 years old (from 116.5 to 57.7) and 24% among women 25 to 29 years old (from 120.2 to 91.0) over that timeframe, CDC data shows.

At age 44, Portman is nearly a decade past the age — 35 — that doctors consider women to be of “advanced maternal age.”

While many women over 35 years old have healthy babies and pregnancies, there are risks for the mother and baby that increase with maternal age, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Portman shared that she has “more energy” than she expected, and said that she is swimming and doing gyrotonics to stay active.

Portman is also the mom to son Aleph Millepied, 14, and daughter Amalia Millepied, 9, whom she shares with ex-husband, Benjamin Millepied.

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If Dr. Jill Biden guest-starring on season two of Heated Rivalry was somehow on your bucket list, we have unfortunate news for you.

In a surprise appearance at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center’s annual Center Dinner on Thursday night, the former first lady “raised her paddle at $35,000 but was quickly outbid,” according to a press release from the organization.

The Center added in a press release that the “intense bidding war” led Heated Rivalry producers Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady to add “two walk-on roles for the top bidder at $125,000, each, resulting in a $250,000 donation to The Center.”

Biden cheekily posted about her losing bid on social media, saying: “Guess I won’t be heading to the cottage after all—but it was worth a shot! What a wonderful evening supporting @LGBTCenterNYC.”

At the beginning of the event, the former first lady was welcomed with a standing ovation by the audience for the work her and her husband, former President Joe Biden, have done for the LGBTQ+ community.

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, also known as The Center, was established in 1983 at the height of the AIDS crisis to “provide a safe and affirming place for LGBTQ+ New Yorkers to respond to the urgent threats facing the community.”

Thursday’s event went on to raise over $2 million to support their work, the organization said.

The annual dinner celebrated LGBTQ+ community icons and allies who have had an impact on the community. Brady and Tierney were honored, as well as Brooks Brothers Brand CEO Ken Ohashi and Gilead Sciences.

The event was attended by RuPaul’s Drag Race season 18 finalists Darlene Mitchell, Myki Meeks and Nini Coco, and singer Melanie C delivered a performance that had “everyone on their feet,” according to the press release.

ABC News’ Angeline Bernabe contributed to this report.

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The Avengers assembled at CinemaCon on Thursday to share new looks at the upcoming film Avengers: Doomsday.

Directors Anthony Russo and Joe Russo took to the stage to talk about the film’s villain, Victor Von Doom. It wasn’t long after that Robert Downey Jr., who portrays Doctor Doom, took to the stage wearing the character’s signature green color.

From there, Downey screened exclusive first-look footage from the film in the form of its official trailer. Chris Evans, who plays Steve Rogers, then arrived on stage and bantered with Downey, before a Doomsday countdown clock appeared on the screen, counting down the days to the movie’s December release.

Avengers: Doomsday takes “beloved heroes from three distinct universes” who “will be set on a deadly collision course and face an existential threat unlike anything they’ve ever encountered,” according to an official description from Disney.

Along with Downey and Evans, the film stars Chris Hemsworth, Pedro Pascal, Paul Rudd, Anthony Mackie, Florence Pugh, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Wyatt Russell, Channing Tatum, Simu Liu, Ian McKellen, Tom Hiddleston, James Marsden, Patrick Stewart, Joseph Quinn, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour, Letitia Wright, Lewis Pullman, Kelsey Grammer, Danny Ramirez, Winston Duke, Alan Cumming, Wesley Holloway, Hannah John-Kamen, Rebecca Romijn, Alex Livinalli, Mabel Cadena and Tenoch Huerta Mejia.

Additionally, Kathryn Newton took to Instagram on Friday to confirm she will appear in the movie as Ant-Man’s daughter, Cassie Lang. She posted a video unboxing a miniature director’s chair with her name and the film’s title on it.

“It’s tiny because Cassie Lang gets tiny,” Newton says in the video.

Avengers: Doomsday arrives in theaters on Dec. 18.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Marvel Studios.

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Ready, set, binge! Here’s a look at some of the new movies and TV shows coming to theaters and streaming services this weekend:

Apple TV
Margo’s Got Money Troubles: Elle Fanning stars alongside Nicole Kidman in the new series.

Netflix
Beef: The second season of the anthology series stars Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan.

Prime Video
Balls Up: Mark Wahlberg and Paul Walter Hauser star in the comedy film about marketers who pitch a sponsorship for the World Cup.

Movie theaters
Mother Mary: Anne Hathaway is a world famous pop star in the witchy new film from director David Lowery.

Lee Cronin’s The Mummy: This new horror film is a reimagining of the classic film franchise.

Wasteman: Tom Blyth stars in the new British film set in a prison.

That’s all for this week’s Weekend Watchlist – happy streaming!

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We now have the teaser trailer and premiere window for Outlander: Blood of My Blood season 2. The second season of the Outlander prequel series is set to make its debut in fall 2026. It stars Hermione Corfield and Jeremy Irvine, as well as Harriet Slater and Jamie Roy, as two couples who fight against everything to stay together across space and time …

Wizards of Waverly Place fans, rejoice. Deadline reports that Gregg Sulkin is set to appear as Alex Russo’s ex-boyfriend Mason Greyback in the upcoming four-part conclusion of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place. David Henrie, Janice LeAnn Brown and Selena Gomez star in the spinoff series about the Russo family wizards …

The official trailer for Street Fighter has arrived. It follows estranged street fighters Ryu and Ken Masters, played by Andrew Koji and Noah Centineo, who are recruited for the next World Warrior Tournament. Kitao Sakurai directed the film, which arrives in theaters on Oct. 16 …

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The pigeon gets a TV show.

Paramount+ has announced the main voice cast for its upcoming two new TV series based on children’s books by Mo Willems.

Neil Patrick Harris is set to portray The Bus Driver in The Pigeon Show! Starring The Pigeon. The series follows the day-to-day struggles of a pigeon who wants someone to listen to him. Additionally, he’ll be your best friend if you have a bus and let him drive it.

Other characters from Willems’ books, including the Duckling who always seems to get what she wants, will appear in the show. New characters will also appear, such as The Pigeon’s 150-million-year-old pterodactyl grandmother, Nana-Dactyl, and his best wing-pals, Ima Pigeon and Doug Pigeon.

Former Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt co-stars Tituss Burgess and Ellie Kemper are going to voice Elephant Gerald and Piggie in The Elephant & Piggie Show! The upcoming series is meant for pre-K children and follows “the messy and joyful art of friendship,” according to an official synopsis.

Both shows are set to arrive to Paramount+ in 2027. Paramount+ announced it had greenlit the programs back in December 2025.

Willems is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and illustrator, known for children’s books like Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! and Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale. He started his career as a writer on Sesame Street, where he earned six Emmy Awards.

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Great balls of fire! Top Gun 3 is on the way.

During Paramount’s CinemaCon presentation in Las Vegas on Thursday, it was revealed that a third film in the blockbuster franchise is coming, with Tom Cruise and producer Jerry Bruckheimer both returning.

CinemaCon shared the news in a post on X.

ABC News has reached out to Paramount Pictures and CinemaCon for comment.

Top Gun 3 will serve as a follow-up to the Joseph Kosinski-directed Top Gun: Maverick, which premiered in 2022.

Cruise, who starred in the 2022 film, reprised his role as Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell from the 1986 film Top Gun. In that film, Maverick is sent to the Top Gun Naval Fighter Weapons School, where he trains to refine his flying skills.

It starred Val Kilmer as Lt. Tom “Iceman” Kazansky, Anthony Edwards as Lt. j.g. Nick “Goose” Bradshaw, Tom Skerritt as Cmdr. Mike “Viper” Metcalf, Meg Ryan as Goose’s wife, Carole, and Kelly McGillis as Charlie Blackwood.

Top Gun: Maverick centered around Maverick confronting his past while training a group of younger Top Gun graduates, including the son of his late best friend, for a dangerous mission.

The 2022 film starred Cruise, Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly as bar owner Penny Benjamin, Miles Teller as Lt. Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw (Goose’s son), Glen Powell as Lt. Jake “Hangman” Seresin, Jon Hamm as Vice Adm. Beau “Cyclone” Simpson, Bashir Salahuddin as Chief Warrant Officer Bernie “Hondo” Coleman, Monica Barbaro as Lt. Natasha “Phoenix” Trace, Jay Ellis as Lt. Reuben “Payback” Fitch and more.

While Cruise was not onstage to help reveal the news about Top Gun 3, he made an appearance on April 14 at the Warner Bros. presentation to share a sneak peek of his upcoming film Digger, directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu.

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The world has watched Snoop Dogg evolve over the years, and now he’s bringing his life story to the big screen in a new biopic called Snoop.

Snoop announced at CinemaCon the film will be released next year. “After my brothers got to tell their story with Straight Outta Compton, now it’s my turn,” he said, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The rapper praised director Craig Brewer and promised the film would be rated R, adding, “So get your parents’ permission.”

“If we’re going to do a Snoop Dogg movie, I’ve got to get gangster with it,” he said.

“I wish I could give you more details,” he added. “We’ll be back at CinemaCon next year with a trailer.”

Snoop will see Jonathan Daviss portraying the rapper. Brian Grazer, who also worked on 8 Mile, will produce with Snoop under Death Row Productions. 

Snoop previously described the biopic as an “evolution story” about his life, family and upbringing, saying it will show how he overcame challenges and learned from those who shaped him.

“A lot of people just see me for who I am now,” he told Extra. “They don’t know what I went through and what I had to do to get to this stage and the people that taught me the lessons that I learned and the reason why I am who I am.”

Snoop will begin filming this summer.

In other Snoop-related news, Lil Baby has joined the team for Snoop’s Dr. Bombay Ice Cream brand, which “remixes classic frozen treats with West Coast flavor full of clever music nods and hip hop easter eggs,” a release said, per People. Dr. Bombay’s first storefront will open April 26 at the Venice Boardwalk in LA.

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Victoria Beckham is speaking out about her family in the wake of her son Brooklyn Beckham’s comments criticizing his parents earlier this year.

The Spice Girl and fashion designer briefly discussed the family dynamics with The Wall Street Journal in a wide-ranging profile, published Thursday.

The publication noted Victoria Beckham spoke on the topic without mentioning Brooklyn Beckham’s name specifically.

“I think that we’ve always — we love our children so much,” she said when asked about her eldest son, according to the Journal. “We’ve always tried to be the best parents that we can be. And you know, we’ve been in the public eye for more than 30 years right now.”

She continued, “All we’ve ever tried to do is protect our children and love our children. And you know, that’s all I really want to say about it.”

ABC News has reached out to a representative for Brooklyn Beckham for comment.

Brooklyn Beckham came forward with a lengthy statement on social media in January detailing the family fallout, which he claimed centered around his wife, Nicola Peltz, whom he married in 2022.

“I have been silent for years and made every effort to keep these matters private,” he wrote at the time. “Unfortunately, my parents and their team have continued to go to the press, leaving me with no choice but to speak for myself and tell the truth about only some of the lies that have been printed.”

The 27-year-old claimed in his statement that throughout his life, his parents had “controlled narratives in the press” and “placed” stories, “at the expense of innocent people, to preserve their own facade.”

He also accused his parents of mistreating him and attempting to sabotage his relationship with Peltz, starting before the couple’s marriage.

ABC News reached out to representatives for Brooklyn, Victoria and David Beckham at the time, as well as Peltz, but did not hear back.

David Beckham addressed the accusations on CNBC a few days later, saying, “Children are allowed to make mistakes. That’s how they learn. So, that’s what I try to teach my kids. But, you know, you have to sometimes let them make those mistakes, as well.”

He added, “I’ve always spoken about, you know, social media and the power of social media. What I have found personally, you know, especially with my kids, as well, use it for the right reasons.”

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